Dedication:
To Taylor the Latte Boy, anyone who is Elphaba/Glinda for Halloween, milk chocolate, and Toto the Champ, who gave me the idea for this story even if she'll probably never read it.
Disclaimer:
I own nothing but the tree.
The tree had seen a lot of things in its many years. Most of the last century had passed under its waving branches, and it witnessed things that would eventually become lost or forgotten in the Land of Oz.
It was an large oak tree that stood proudly a mile or two away from Shiz University. Its leaves reached further up than most in the forest and the trunk was too big for a human to wrap their arm around and touch fingertips. The oak was mighty and solid as well as old, and it had withstood the test of time longer than most around it.
However, it had once been a young sapling like the rest. The reason for its awesome size was a very peculiar rainstorm shortly after the Wizard began his rule. It fell at precisely the right moment in the tree's growth, dubbing it to be the one who would witness the miraculous events that were to take place in the land of Oz. The oak grew abnormally fast, passing its surrounding trees quickly. It witnessed nothing for almost 18 years, though.
It was a beautiful evening when it first saw the green girl. She was walking amongst the trees, reading a book she held and quietly humming. It was the oak that she chose to read at, sitting on the dirty forest floor with her back leaning against it.
She sat like that for a long time, eventually closing the book and staring up at the sky in thought. An hour passed, then two, and before either of them knew it, the sky had turned a brilliant red and was quickly fading to dark. Still, the girl didn't move, but sat against the oak, still staring off into space.
The sky eventually became navy blue, lit only by the smallest ray coming from the West. The apple-colored girl stood up and slowly and quietly walked back the way she came, looking sad to be leaving.
It wasn't long before it saw her again, though this time there was someone else with her. She burst through the trees in front of the oak, completely unexpectedly, shouting something behind her shoulder. A boy soon followed her, carrying a very odd contraption in his hand with an actual Lion Cub inside.
They stood in front of the oak and it watched as they argued back and forth. He mentioned something about leaving and the girl, instantly regretful of her words, grabbed his hand to keep him from there. A few more words were exchanged between the blushing pair, and he ended up running away with a half excuse. The girl watched him go then slumped against the tree, burying her head in her arms.
A few minutes later, a loud clash of thunder shook the skies and it began to pour rain. In concern for the green girl in front of it, the oak tried to cover her more with its leaves, preventing the heavy drops from landing on her. She soon left, glancing behind just before she slipped out of view. The oak noticed that not all the water on her face was from the rain.
It was a long while before it saw her again. When she arrived a few months later, she had changed tremendously, carrying a broomstick now along with a older, more determined expression. A curious hat perched on top of her curly black hair, and it wondered if she knew how sinister it looked on her. Almost like a storybook Witch.
The woman approached the tree and rested her forehead against it, eyes closed. It noticed that she was trembling from head to toe despite her expression and taking in deep, calming breaths.
He saw her quite a lot after this, at least once a week. In fact, she often slept at its roots, bundled up in a cloak to keep out the chill of night.
There came a time where it did not see the woman for a very long time and worried that she might have been hurt or captured. However, she did come back eventually. Just as the second time he saw her, she was not alone.
The man that had visited years earlier was now with her, and they talk in voices barely above a whisper as the walked holding hands. The man stopped in front of the tree and took out a switchblade. He carved a heart in the oak's bark (it didn't feel a thing) and the words; Fiyero + Fae
The woman snorted unattractively and chided him for being so sappy and possibly giving away their identity. A twig snapped nearby and they both hurried away.
The green woman never visited him again after that. The only excitement that occurred within the next few weeks was some nearby apple trees started throwing their fruit at a little 12 year old, her annoying dog and sparkly shoes, and a talking Scarecrow.
Two months after this occurred, the night sky was filled with green and gold fireworks that whizzed up and lit up the sky every evening for a week. At the end of the seven days, when the sparks ceased, the oak received a visitor that he had never seen before. A young woman appeared who had ringlet curls that were as light as the Witch's curls were dark. She stood in the shadows for a minute before approaching the oak with caution, glancing around to make sure nobody else was there.
The young lady ran her finger across its bark until she reached the heart carved just months before. Squinting, she bent down to read the words and gasped aloud. Swaying alarmingly, the blonde steadied herself against the tree trunk. She sat on the dirty ground, seeming not to care if her perfect dress was ruined. The woman then cried out, tears falling down her face and sobbed until she had drifted off to sleep on the forest floor, laying where her best friend had sat reading three years before.
Happy Halloween everyone!