AN: Marsaili's name is pronounced MAHR-suh-lee, and her nickname, Maisry, is pronounced MAYZ-ree. Both of them are Celtic names used in both Ireland and Scotland that mean "a pearl," and they are both alternate forms of the names Margaret/Majorie/Majory.
Originally, I was going to give her the same name that Gregory Maguire gave to Liir's daughter in the fourth Wicked Years book, Out of Oz, which is Oziandra Rainary, and her nickname was going to be Rain, but then I changed my mind and decided to go with either Celtic or Gaelic, because I've been going back through a book called "Through the Faerie Glass," by Kenny Klein recently, and it mentions the name Maisry (also spelled Masery) several times in there, and I absolutely fell in love with it and all the other Celt/Gael names, so anyway, yeah, that's how that ended up happening.
Also, on the site where I got these names, it also has "Maureen," as in MAUREEN FREAKING JOHNSON FROM RENT. Guess what Mo's name means?
"Great."
Fits her perfectly, doesn't it? And also, the nickname "Mo" might have its origins in an alternate spelling of the name, which is "Moreen." Pretty cool, huh? I wasn't even TRYING to find stuff about that name, I was just on this website looking at a list of Celtic names and trying to pick one for Liir's sister, and it had that in the "M" section, right underneath the name I ended up choosing, if you can believe that! DANCE WITH ME, PEOPLE!
OMIGAWD, I GOTTA TELL YOU GUYS BEFORE I FORGET, I'm getting to go see "Mary Poppins" live onstage today! My friend Christina says that she actually FLIES ABOVE THE AUDIENCE when she's making her grand entrance, and I CANNOT WAIT TO SEE THAT! I'll tell you all about it my next update, I promise!
xoxo, love ya tons!
-Maggie 3
DISCLAIMER: Thoren and Azon are mine. Daeri, his sister, and nephew are mine. Marsaili is mine. Fiyero and Liir are not mine. Elphaba is not mine. Nor/Ilianora is not mine.
Three Years Later
The fact that he was able to look down at the man in front of him didn't help Fiyero get rid of the helpless feeling inside of himself. He knew that continuing to argue would be completely useless by this point, so he didn't even bother to try. He tuned everything out, his mind already beginning to form a new plan.
"Just focus on what needs to be done," he told himself repeatedly. "Find a way to get some bandages, get to the camp, rescue Nor, then go from there."
The shorter man turned and continued along the dirt path. Fiyero sighed, running a hand through his hair as he glanced over his shoulder, only to find his son picking at the huge cut on his arm.
"Liir!" he called. "What did I tell you about messing with that?"
"It's not my fault, Dad, I swear! She made me do it!"
Fiyero rolled his eyes as he went over to where the seven-year-old was sitting with their things. He picked up the makeshift bandage that Liir had taken off, shaking his head.
"Liir, how many times have we gone over this? You can't blame your sister every time you do something you shouldn't, especially if you know you're not supposed to do it."
"Aw, jeezum! Now what's he trying to pin on me?" Maisry demanded loudly as she came scrambling down the nearby hill with a flask in each hand.
As soon as his eyes landed on his daughter's face, there was a pang in Fiyero's heart. It was nothing new, though. He was used to it by now. She just looked so much like her mother that it hurt sometimes.
Both twins had gotten Fiyero's ice blue eyes and pale ivory skin, but their obsidian hair and high cheekbones were entirely Elphaba. Marsaili just had so many more of Elphaba's physical characteristics than Liir, so it was more painful to look at her.
He took one of the flasks when she held it out to him, shaking his head. "Nothing important. You sure this is totally full, hon? It doesn't feel as heavy as usual." Maisry rolled her eyes in a manner almost identical to her mother. "I'm positive, Dad."
Fiyero raised an eyebrow, but said nothing as he unscrewed the top and looked into the opening. "It's almost half-empty, Maisry," he said. She frowned. "That's not possible, I filled it up all the way, I know I did!
"You guys are so dumb!" Liir blurted suddenly. "Quit tilting it, Dad, there's water coming out the side!" Sure enough, there was a stream of water flowing out of a hole in the side of the flask.
Maisry fought back a grin as she held out the other one. "Here," she said, "this one's full, I promise." Fiyero took it and tested the weight. Satisfied with what he felt, he put it into a side pouch on his rucksack.
"Dad? Why did Thoren keep going without us?"
Fiyero closed his eyes and sighed. He'd been hoping that neither of them would ask, but he should've known that it would happen sooner or later. It certainly didn't surprise him that Liir was the one to ask.
"Thoren has to follow his own path from here, and it just...It's not the one that we're taking. He's done everything he can to help us, but there's not much reason for us to stay with him anymore."
Liir frowned and kicked at a pebble. "Should've known this would happen. I mean, why would he stick around? Ked didn't, Azon didn't, not even Daeri, and you said that he saved your life."
"He did, Liir, and I'll never be able to repay him for that."
"Then why did he leave, huh? If you guys were so close?"
Fiyero sighed. "Liir, we've been over this a million times. Daeri left because he needed to find and rescue his older sister and nephew. Speaking of which, let's get going. We've gotta keep moving if we wanna get to the camp that Nor is being kept at before sundown."
He grabbed his leather satchel and the rucksack, and after Maisry put her shoes back on, they continued following the dirt path.
AN: OK, I've said this before in ANs and stuff for other stories, but for those of you who either haven't read those stories or have forgotten, I'm going to repeat myself in order to clear up any and all confusion.
In my mind, Sarima is Fiyero's whore of a twin sister. I've discussed this with one of my PM buddies on here (can't remember who, it's been awhile), and we came to the conclusion that if Gregory Maguire had made Sarima his sister in the book, then theoretically speaking, that would make him Irji, Manek, and Nor's uncle instead of their father.
So, here's how I incorporate that into my stories:
Manek is the oldest. He had a twin sister at birth, but she was a stillborn, so they saw no point in naming her. She is buried in the garden at Kiamo Ko, and her grave is marked with a statue. Irji is the second oldest, and he has a different father, making him Manek's half-brother. Nor has the most interesting story of the three.
She is the youngest, and once again, her father is someone totally different from either of her half-brothers. She was born 8 weeks premature, and Sarima lost a lot of blood while in labor. They were afraid that she and the baby would both die. As soon as the midwife said "It's a girl," Sarima passed out cold. The only other person in the room at the time was Fiyero, and he got the privilege of being the first person to hold his niece.
As soon as she was strong enough, Sarima did the exact same thing she had done with both of her sons; left Kiamo Ko without even giving her child a name, leaving the baby to be raised by its grandparents, aunt, and uncle. Fiyero got to pick the name this time around, and he chose Ilianora because of the fact that it derives from an ancient Vinkun word meaning "miracle child," which is exactly what this baby was. Over time, it ended up being shortened to just Nor.
Because she's a preemie, Nor has always been smaller than most children her age, and she has always gotten sick easily. She and Fiyero have always shared a special connection; He loves both of his nephews, of course, but there's just something there between him and Nor that's not present with Irji or Manek. Fiyero has always believed that this is due to the fact that he was the first person to hold her when she was born.
None of the children know who their mother is. Reynard and Zerelda (Fiyero's parents) decided that it was probably best not to tell them so that they would't ask questions that couldn't be answered, such as why their mother abandoned them and why she seemed to not even love them. They do know, however, that they are siblings.
To them, Sarima is nothing more than a woman who randomly shows up at Kiamo Ko out of the blue every so often. Fiyero and his younger sister Niobe usually take turns keeping the kids distracted during Sarima's visits, in order to avoid awkward situations.