2. Scarecrow
He was 28, she was 25
Galinda Upland was hungover.
It wasn't just the 'oh, deary me, I've drank a little too much!' headache. It was the 'oh dear god, somebody please put me out of my misery' mother of all hangovers. Her eyes were still closed as she tried to feel her surroundings out.
She spread her arms out, touching the surface which she was lying on. The fabric was incredibly soft, like lying on clouds. At least she knew she was in a bed. Whose bed? She didn't particularly care right now. A soft creak came from the frame of the door, but to Galinda's incredibly hungover and sensitive ears, it sounded almost like scrap metal twisting against each other.
"I quit, leave me to die please," Galinda groaned weakly. Her throat felt as dry as the Uncrossable Desert. She pulled her pillow from under her head and held it against her uncomfortably warm face.
A musical laugh came from the door. Careful footsteps could be heard stepping towards Galinda and she felt a weight on the edge of the bed. With her head still throbbing, Galinda wanted nothing else but to keep her eyes tightly shut and preventing her brain from exploding into moosh.
"It's gonna be a hell of an excuse I'm gonna have to come up with to explain why I've got a dead blond in my bed if you do decide to expire here" She could almost hear the smirk in Elphaba's voice. Galinda could only offer another groan.
The sound of Elphaba's laughter reached her ears again. "C'mon, I've brought you some warm water," she said with a hint of amusement.
"I don't want to move," the blond complained weakly. Sweet Oz, even the sound of her own voice was threatening to implode her brain.
"Linny, if you don't drink, you will die."
Galinda grumbled softly at the ridiculous nickname, "it's exactly because I drank that I'm dying."
"Glin…"
Oh no, it was the Elphie Naggy voice again. She haven't heard that tone from Elphaba since the eve of their Sorcery finals.
"Alright, alright, I'm up," Galinda removed the soft, soft pillow from her face. Her eyes opened carefully, feeling extremely grateful when she realized that Elphie had her thick curtains drawn and her room engulfed in sweet darkness.
The morning was then spent on nursing Galinda back to sobriety. Every 5 minutes, she would declare quite passionately that she will never, ever drink again. Elphaba could only offer more warm water. Galinda spent another 20 minutes in the bathroom, emptying her stomach of the alcohol.
"I've never seen you so miserable before," Elphaba admitted softly as she held Galinda's sweaty blond curls away from her face as she continued puking her guts out. Elphaba had seen Galinda drunk, of course. They were roommates and her bestfriend was dating the Crown Prince of Corruption himself. It's just that, in the years that she'd known her, she had never seen Galinda so upset.
Galinda hurled a little longer before she could hold it down long enough to speak. "Really? It's as bad as Nessa's birthday reception 3 years ago?"
"Way worse," Elphaba sighed tiredly, "You only binge when you're upset, Glin. And that night you were pissed." She stroked her bestfriend's hair as gently as she could manage. She had placed herself on the edge of her tub, letting Galinda's head rest on her knee. "What happened?"
She felt Galinda stiffen at the question. She was still too weak to lift her head though, so she simply curled into a miserable cocoon. Elphaba knew that when Galinda was sad, she tended to hide in her safe place until she garnered enough perky energy to deflect any concern that came her way. It was something that she was usually so good at. Pretending to be okay,
"Should I send for F—"
"No!"
Galinda jumped up to her feet, but immediately regretted her action. "Oh sweet Oz I need to sit," she whined as she pulled down the seat cover for the toilet and plonked down on top of it.
"What did he do this time?" Elphaba furrowed her brows confusedly. The last she'd heard about the two of them was Galinda's engagement announcement. She remembered it so clearly because it had haunted her so deeply that she couldn't bring herself to be in either company. Guilt caused her cheeks to flush as she glanced away from Galinda.
Her bestfriend did not notice her discomfort as she exhaled deeply.
"Fiyero and I…" she started hesitantly. A bout of sadness rushed through her body, "Fiyero and I are over." Her breath was caught in her throat, "He left me… Or I left him. Doesn't matter. It's over."
Elphaba blinked slowly. She was sure that her selfish hallucinations were finally taking a toll on her sanity. She was sure she'd gone a little crazy, because she thought she'd heard Galinda say that Fiyero had left her. Or that she'd left Fiyero. Either way, it wasn't what she had expected.
"Elphie, say something," Galinda pleaded softly, "Please." Her cerulean blue eyes were downcast. She was staring at her own hands as if she had never seen them before.
"… I'm sorry," Elphaba said in a voice barely louder than a whisper.
Galinda managed a weak laugh as her eyes flickered up to Elphaba's. She reached for her hands, holding them gingerly in her own, "Don't be," she said with a sad smile, "It's not like it's your fault."
With those words, Elphaba felt a painful stab in her heart as she tightened her grip on her bestfriend's hands.
He was 22, she was 19.
"What do you mean you've never seen 'The Ghosts of Lurlinemas Past'?" Fiyero exclaimed loudly, one hand scratching his head and the other placed firmed on his hip. "They've been performing the play in the theatre in town for the last 2 years!"
"How would you know?" Elphaba crossed her arms across her chest, "You've only been here for a couple of months!"
"Miss Elphaba, I'll have you know that I happen to be a learned man in all things entertainment and cultural," Fiyero waved a dismissive hand as a smirk began to form on his face.
Elphaba refused to justify that statement with anything other than a roll of her eyes.
"Yero, dearest!"
The sound of Galinda's voice reached the two. It had barely been a couple of months since the incident with Elphaba's bottle and the two of them still couldn't quite be in the same proximity without snapping at each other.
The perky blond all but skipped over to them. The train station had been less crowded than they had anticipated, seeing that it was the first week since their winter break started. Everyone else had gone home early this year because of the worrying weather that had been sweeping across the Gillikin. The Great Gillikin Railway was terribly old and nobody wanted to get stuck in town should a wayward storm drift by.
"So tell me again why you're staying in Shiz for Winter break?" Galinda raised a perfectly shaped brow at her bestfriend as she intertwined her hands with Fiyero.
"I told you," Elphaba shrugged, "Father's bringing Nessa to the Emerald City to stay for the break. They'll be there for some Lurlinemas party at the Emerald City History Museum."
"It doesn't explain why he'd leave you behind," Galinda frowned deeply, "It's really too much, leaving you in Shiz for a whole month while Nessa gets to enjoy the party. And you've always wanted to visit the Emerald City."
Elphaba smiled weakly, "It's fine, really. It's a political thing. Nessa's going to be the Munchkinland Governess so she's attending all these parties to meet all the old, snooty governors from the other provinces." The taller of the two girls shrugged, "I don't need to be there."
From the corner of her eyes, she could see Fiyero flinch. He was quiet as he watched Galinda fawn and coo at a flustered Elphaba. She was grateful for it. She wouldn't be able to hold back her tongue if he had joined in.
It was a bit later before the train finally called for all passengers to board. Fiyero and Elphaba stood by the platform as Galinda peeked out from the open window, waving back at them with a bright smile. Fiyero grinned back at her as Elphaba waved. They stood beside each other, watching the train pull out from the platform and disappear into the distance.
"So, it's just you and me, huh," Fiyero started casually, shoving his hands into his pockets. His eyes were still glued to distant horizon.
Elphaba glanced towards him, "Aren't you going home to the Vinkus for the holidays?"
Fiyero shrugged lightly, sticking his tongue out at the mention of the holidays, "Supposedly. But I received word that the carriage my folks sent for me broke down while it was passing through the Great Kells."
"W-What?" Elphaba's eyes were as wide as saucers, "Was anyone hurt?"
"The driver's fine. It's just the wheels." Fiyero scratched at a spot on his forearm, "Completely fell apart. They're sending a second carriage but it's gonna take another week."
"I guess, as long as nobody was hurt…" Elphaba trailed off.
It had been a long time since the two of them had been left alone, and frankly, Elphaba was a little worried. Nessa had been sent home a few days ago in a carriage sent by Father. She was begging Elphaba to forgive her for leaving her behind, but of course, there was nothing to forgive. It wasn't Nessa's fault that their father couldn't quite be bothered with Elphaba. She deserved it after all.
Boq had taken the same carriage back with Nessa, something that she had insisted on since they were both headed back to Munchkinland and there was no reason he should trouble himself with a commercial carriage.
And now that Galinda had left, it was the two of them again. Elphaba was surprised that the two of them hadn't started yelling at each other yet.
"Uhm," Fiyero cleared his throat awkwardly as he turned towards Elphaba, "I'm gonna go now."
Elphaba blinked. "Uhm. Sure."
"And…" He cleared this throat, his hands returning into his pockets. "uhm, first. I'm gonna have to walk you to where ever you're planning to run off to because I am a gentleman."
"You don't have to walk me anywhere," Elphaba narrowed her eyes at him. Oh great, now they're gonna go at it again.
"Look Elphaba, I'm exhausted." Fiyero exhaled deeply. White mist escaped from his lips as he spoke, "Just for once, let me do something nice for you?"
"No, you look," Elphaba crossed her arms across her chest, "You don't have to do anything for me, and I don't need anything from you. I can take care of myself just fine." She poked a finger into his chest, "And Galinda isn't around anymore. You don't have to pretend to be nice to me."
"I'm not pretending, for Oz's sake, Elphie—"
"Don't call me that!"
"Not everything I do is has to be because of Galinda!"
Elphaba rolled her eyes at that and it was the last straw for Fiyero. "Look if you're going to be so insistent on us not getting along, then fine. Suit yourself." He took to heel and turned his back to her, stomping away angrily.
"Fiyero, we've just heard back from the second carriage. By the time this letter gets to you, it should only be a few more days before it arrives. We're all anxious to see you again and hear all about your experience in Shiz. I for one, am very happy to see that we haven't received a single letter of warning this winter from your professors. We'll see you soon.- Love, Papa."
The Vinkun Prince smiled amusedly at the letter that he had received. It had already been a week since winter break began. A whole week since he had last spoken to Elphaba. It concerned him that he had been as affected as he was by the green girl.
They kept hiding things from him and he didn't like it one bit. He understood that Galinda was protecting her friend, and of course, it was Elphaba's secret to tell, not hers. But Oz damn it, he hated how Elphaba just refuses to let him do anything nice for her. So Fiyero has decided that he would give up.
It's no use trying so hard for her when she does everything in her power to reject him. To be honest, he had actually put in more effort into trying to be friends with her than he had tried to get a girl his entire adult life.
He was going to forget her. Forget about the infuriating girl who believed herself to be smarter than everyone (although she probably was). Forget about the girl who knew just the right things to say to set him off. He was going to forget about ever trying to understand Elphaba Thropp, the nerdy, sharp tongued, wildly sensitive walking ball of fire.
Fiyero was going out. He was going to the Oz Dust with some of the Gillikinese boys who lived in Shiz town. He would drink till his brain was numb and he would have a ton of fun and dance with the prettiest girl he could find tonight.
The loud music and dim lighting made it the perfect atmosphere to get shit faced. When he'd stepped into the ball room, they were playing something by Chopin, which was apparently someone important from where the Wizard came from. The fast paced riffs gave the people on the dance floor a rush even without alcohol in their system.
The boys had gotten a table near the bar. The bartender knew them to be Shiz University students and promised them a bottle on the house, winking inconspicuously at Fiyero. There were some perks with being a Prince.
At some point, it had started to rain outside and the ballroom became just a tad cooler. Fiyero was disappointed that the weather haven't been cold enough to snow yet. He'd been excited to see a snow covered Gillikin.
And so it was one bottle… And then another one… And a third one bought by one of the Gillikinese boys… And of course, it wouldn't be a good time without a few rounds of shots. By the time the Oz Dust had begun chasing people out of their ball room, Fiyero couldn't even feel his face any more.
One of the Gillikin boys could hardly even stand up as the doors to the ballroom closed behind them. Fiyero glanced about, noting amusedly that he was the only one still capable of walking back. The rest of his acquaintances had to hold on to each other as they stumbled home, waving their hands behind, yelling about how they should do this again sometime. He could only chuckle at the silly drunks.
Fiyero made his way back to campus, taking his time to breathe in the 2am morning air. The cold was making his drunken brain ache, and Fiyero anticipated a minor hangover tomorrow. Nothing he hasn't experienced before, but it made him dread sunrise even more.
The empty campus was strangely liberating to him. Nobody was going to be around to judge him or expect anything of him as he leapt on the stone ledge of the Suicide Cannel, something that would've given Elphaba a heart attack if she'd seen him. Especially with the light rain threatening to turn his stunt into a deathtrap and one way trip down into the choppy waters of the cannel.
…Elphaba again?
Fiyero groaned. Oh and he was doing so well forgetting about her right till then. He jumped off and landed gracefully (or as gracefully as a drunken man could) in the snow covered grass. The quiet was pleasing to him and it allowed a smile to crawl up on his face. Of course, all he needed was a leisurely stroll in the rain to forget.
He has reached the hallways now. In day time, when classes were still going on, the open air hallways would always have a couple of students loitering about or heading off to their next class. Shiz was a school much too large for its elite population of students so there were never any traffic congestions.
But now that it was 2 am and a holiday, the empty halls was a strange welcome for Fiyero. It might not seem like it, but Fiyero enjoyed being alone. He grew up in the public's eye, sure, but he had already accepted that he was an introvert.
Thud, thud.
He was sure that he was nearing his dorm when he heard it
Thud, thud.
Who was still hanging around Shiz at this time of night? He slowed to a stop as he tried to focus his tired eyes. There was someone in the distance. The figure moved slowly, as if fatigued. There were womanly curves to its body as it moved.
"Elphaba?" He muttered almost to himself.
The rain outside had begun to grow into a storm as water pooled in the corners of the old building. A lightning streak lighted up the hall for just a split second before the thunder followed. A painful shriek came from the figure as it dropped what sounded like books and crouched into a ball on the ground.
In an instant, his body moved on its own accord. He was still a little tipsy and his body felt heavy. Each footstep felt like it could be his last before he would fall face first on the ground. He skidded to a stop when he reached the figure. He crouched down, pushing the thick black hair away from her face and confirmed that it was Elphaba, sitting here, sobbing at the sound of thunder.
"Elphaba, are you okay?" He asked sternly. Fiyero had never seen her so… weak. It worried him.
She whimpered. Another streak of lightning flashed and she cried out just as the thunder boomed. The storm was getting worse. "L-Leave me alone, Fiyero!" She snapped, standing up abruptly as she rushed to pick up her books.
"What the hell are you doing out here in the middle of the night?" He asked hastily, feeling a little ticked off that she had brushed him off like that.
She grabbed her books, piling them neatly and holding them close to her chest. Fiyero noticed that she wasn't wearing her jacket. Her white blouse and long, navy skirt wouldn't be enough to ward off the cold. When it was clear that she wasn't planning on replying him, he grumbled, removing his own jacket and placing it gently on her shoulders.
"Go away, Fiyero," she groaned weakly, there was a tremble in her voice that she couldn't hide, "I don't need your help."
"For Oz's sake, Elphaba, just let me walk you back," he said, his voice laced with exhaustion, not just with his interaction with her, but the cold and alcohol was really doing a number on him. "I'm not doing it for you, alright?" He stared at her, brow furrowing and jaw stiffening, "I'll feel better knowing that you're back in your room safe."
She didn't reply him. A deep purple coloured her cheeks. Another rumble came from the sky and she whimpered again, her hands trembling as she struggled to keep her stack of books steady. Fiyero frowned. With Galinda gone, Elphaba would be sleeping alone in the large suite. He wasn't sure what came over him when the words escaped with mouth, but he couldn't take it back now, "Take a turn, you're sleeping in my room tonight."
"W-What?" She glared at him. Even when she was terrified, she was still stubborn. "No! What the hell do you thinking you're doing?"
He snatched her books from her arms and refused to give them back to her.
"FIYERO."
"I'm not leaving you alone, not while the storm is still raging," he said matter-of-factly, keeping his pace steady as an exasperated Elphaba followed closely behind. "Yell at me all you want, but I won't leave you tonight."
He heard her grumble something about a 'stupid, self-important Vinkun Prince', and although it kind of hurt, it had to be done. She was terrified but annoyingly headstrong and he won't let her continue doing that to herself.
When they reached his room, Elphaba was still grumbling to herself. She snatched her books from him and piled them on his empty study desk. His room was a little smaller than Galinda's, but because he didn't need to share it with a room-mate, it felt much larger. His desk was always empty and clean, only because he rarely did any homework. There were a few décor from back home and some stray shirts laying on his couch, next to his teddy bear dressed like a scarecrow. All in all, Fiyero's room was rather simple.
Elphaba eyed him cautiously as he sighed. "Take the bed. I just had the sheets changed so don't worry about it being dirty or anything… I'll take the couch."
She kept silent, but her glare softened.
"You can take a shower if you want. I have some shirts and sweatpants you can borrow." He looked over her awkwardly. The shirts were probably going to be too large for her around the shoulders, but at least she wouldn't have to sleep in her form fitting blouse (which he was sure was a gift from Galinda. Elphaba would never willingly buy something like that on her own).
He proceeded to prepare his couch, fluffing his pillows and grabbing his spare blanket from his closet. He wasn't expecting it, but he heard Elphaba sit gingerly on the edge of his bed. She said, in a voice barely louder than a whisper, "… Thank you."
His eyes flickered over to hers and they just looked at each other for a while.
"It's fine," he said, trying to hide the blush that was threatening to form on his cheeks. He stepped over to his closet and grabbed an old linen button-up and a pair of grey sweats, tossing them over to Elphaba who grabbed them mid-air. "You can take the shower first. I'm just gonna set up my couch."
She watched him curiously for a bit before she got up from his bed wordlessly, making her way to the bathroom with his clothes in her arms. Just as the doors closed behind her, Fiyero let go of the breath that he didn't he had been holding. He wasn't sure what was happening to him, but he was sure that he didn't like it one bit.
Elphaba was out of the shower in half an hour and then it was Fiyero's turn to grab the hot shower he so desperately needed. The sound of the rain slapping against his windows was worrisome. If the lightning and thunder came back, he wasn't really sure how he could comfort Elphaba without making it awkward for the both of them.
"Troublesome woman," he sighed. He let the warmth of from the water take his mind away. Slowly, but surely, every muscle in his body began to relax. Thank the Wizard for bringing the invention of hot showers to the Land of Oz.
When he was finally done, Fiyero dressed himself quickly in an oversized linen shirt and sweatpants. He peeked out the door and noticed that Elphaba had already climbed into bed, her face hidden away under the blanket. The storm was still raging, although a little less violently than before.
Fiyero lighted a fire in the fireplace and tossed in enough wood to make sure that it lasted the night. With a tired yawn, he climbed into his own makeshift bed on his couch.
"Goodnight, Elphie" He mumbled with a smirk. He heard her shift under the blankets and had to suppress the urge to laugh as he drifted off to sleep.
He wasn't too sure how long he'd been out when he heard her voice again. Whimpering and sobbing. He rubbed the sleep from his eyes and tossed, glancing out his window. The rain was still pouring and from the sound of his windows rattling and the moan from the winds, he was sure that it must've stirred Elphaba.
A flash of lightning was followed by a loud rumble of thunder. She choked back a cry, trying not to wake Fiyero, not knowing that he was already sitting up and staring worriedly at her shivering form. His eyes flickered over to the teddy that was sitting on the foot of his couch. Mr. Scarecrow had been a gift from his mother when he was 5 and terrified of the monsters under his bed.
Fiyero always had a fear of birds and when his nightmares came, momma had picked up sewing just to make Mr. Scarecrow for him. He haven't slept with Mr. Scarecrow since he began bringing girls into his bed with him instead. But he never left Mr. Scarecrow behind either.
He picked up the old teddy and walked over to his bed where Elphaba was still shivering under the blankets, whimpering. He sat by the edge of the bed and he noticed her shoulders stiffening. Fiyero placed Mr. Scarecrow on top of her head, balancing it wryly. "You'll protect her, won't you, Mr. Scarecrow?"
Mr. Scarecrow did not reply, but he stared back at Fiyero with button eyes and a stern frown.
"Of course you will," Fiyero grinned. He went back to his couch and climbed back in. He waited for a while, listening for disturbances in Elphaba's sleep. When he stopped hearing her whimpers, he fell back asleep, proud of Mr. Scarecrow for his ever vigilant watch over her.
Now over in Fiyero's bed, Elphaba smiled. It was an unwilling smile that she had tried to fight back, but she just couldn't help it. She hugged the old teddy tightly, burying her face in the stuffed bear. For the first time in years, when the thunder came, Elphaba slept soundly.
He was 28, she was 25
Elphaba held in her hands two pints of ice cream.
One was vanilla ice cream with chocolate chunks and the other was peanutbutter flavoured. She pushed opened the door to her room with her foot, having left it ajar when she left. Galinda was sitting up on her bed, reading a gossip magazine that she had one of the servants bring for her. An old teddy dressed as a scarecrow sat on her lap.
Elphaba felt her breath catch in her throat.
"Elphie! You're back with the goods," Galinda grinned wryly, eyeing the vanilla ice cream. She noticed her friend staring at the teddy and she laughed, "I hope you don't mind. I found this silly old thing while I was tossing about in bed. Why did you hide it behind a pile of pillows?"
"I-Uhm…" Elphaba started, but she let herself trail off and simply shrugged.
"You're so strange," Galinda laughed again. "I mean, sleeping with a bottle was weird, but I won't judge if our Grand Vizier still slept in bed with a teddy… Where'd you get this anyway? It looks hand stitched." Galinda touched the threading on the bear, admiring the handmade quality to it.
"It… It was a gift." Elphaba admitted quietly. Guilt was eating away in her chest again. "A parting gift."
A/N I'm not particularly proud of this one. Also if anyone knows anyone who wouldn't mind beta-ing for this story, do leave a PM for me!
And thanks for all the feedback for the first chapter! I'm glad that the story seems interesting enough :) As I wrote the rest of the chapters, I'm starting to realize how long each chapter was getting (had to split half of chapter 3 into chapter 4). This might take longer than I thought to finish whoops.
Until then, I'll see you guys in a couple of weeks :P
P.s In case it wasn't obvious enough, the story is very influenced by the book. So really, this is just a weird love child between musicalverse and bookverse, with a splash of AU.
