AN: Sorry about a lack of updates, but school projects distracted me, and then studying for standardized testing and then all sorts of other messes. Blegh, hopefully this will be enough to appease anyone who cares about this silly story.

(It won't)


"I'm dreadfully sorry you two, I truly am, but there's just nothing I can do for you!"

Glinda huffed as Dr. Nikidik turned away from them yet again. She and Fiyero had been questioning him about Dr. Dillamond for the last 20 minutes and not once gotten a scrap of info out of him.

"Sir, please, they couldn't really have just shoved you in here without any info about what became of Dr. Dillamond!" Fiyero stepped forward, fed up with this stalemate.

"As hard as it is to believe, that's actually exactly what happened!" The newly employed professor threw his arms up in frustration. "The school officials marched in with a job offer and I took it, that's really as far as it goes!"

Glinda stamped her heel onto the floor as she groaned, upset that she wasn't getting her way.

"Well then where are we to go if we want to get some actual info?"

"Well I'd look to Madame Morrible!" Dr. Nikidik glared behind him. "She's the headmistress, she's the one who's left with the task of work release forms and other assorted paperwork!"

"I've tried that!" Glinda moaned as she leaned against the wall. "But with every sorcery seminar Madame Morrible become even more tight-lipped, if that's even possible!"

"Well if you can get into any of the records, you're more then led to Dr. Dillamond!"

"And just how are we going to do that?" Fiyero asked with growing agitation.

"I'll be damned if I have a clue." Dr, Nikidik sneered as he shooed the two students out at last. "Now out, out with you! I've put up with more than enough of this for today!"


"It's a lost cause Fiyero." Glinda lamented through her hiccups, head resting against the prince's shoulder. "How in the world are we ever going to hope of convincing Madame Morrible?"

Fiyero rubbed the arm of the girl next to him, slowly processing a handful of ideas.

The two sat together on a secluded corner of the Shiz lawn, avoiding the prying eyes of their fellow students. For now they had no class, but time to act was limited and currently fleeting.

"Glinda," Fiyero spoke with a sudden sense of urgency as he frantically patted Glinda's arm. "Glinda, look!"

The downtrodden girl looked up, glancing in the direction Fiyero had gestured in. It was Biq-no, Boq and Nessa, the latter looking fairly relieved.

"It's just Boq and Nessarose, Fiyero."

"Glinda, you don't get it, Nessa rooms with Madame Morrible in her private quarters!"

Within moments of this explanation, the blond had already leaped up, tearing her way across the grass towards the two.


"...and so you see, it's just simply urgent that we look into this." Glinda looked desperately into Nessa's eyes, attempting to convey the grimness of their situation.

Her sense of panic was not lost on the fragile girl in the chair. Nessa smiled her small smile, sad eyes reaching Glinda's. "Of course Glinda, I understand entirely, and I'm behind you. I think it's very noble what you're doing."

"Oh thank you Nessa, you've no idea what this means to me!" Glinda's arms snaked their way around Nessa's shoulders in a light hug, additional words of thanks coming from her here and there.

Nessa let her sit that way for a moment, attempting an awkward half hug to calm the slightly hysterical blond draped around her shoulders. "Alright then, come on Glinda, pull yourself together, we'd better get going."

"Oh! Yes of course!" Glinda spoke with a little exclamation, smoothing out her outfit. "You're right, let's just get going."


The small party of four arrived at Madame Morrible's abode with little finesse, Nessa removing her key from a pocket on her vest. She hastily opened the door, ushering the others inside. "Quickly, quickly now!"

"Wait," As they each shuffled in, Fiyero stopped suddenly, "We're going to need someone to watch at the door, in case anyone drops by unexpectedly."

Glinda's blue eyes widened at the notion. She spun herself to face Boq, shooing him out into the hall. "It's nothing personal Biq, we just need to make sure we aren't caught off guard!"

The last words were squeaked with moderate urgency as the large door was closed on the protesting Munchkin. "Right then, let's get down to it!"

"Let's." Nessa answered as she rolled her chair to the center of the room. "Alright, we're currently in her living area. Her room is back there, she has an office across from that, and there's a bathroom in the back, we'd best begin searching for anything that looks like any official paperwork."

"Gotcha'." Fiyero was the first to move, pulling open the drawer of a nearby end table.

"I'll be off in her room!" Glinda called as she scurried off too the hall near the back of the room.

"Well then, I suppose that leaves me to her office." Nessarose spoke mostly to herself as she stared down the hall Glinda had just sauntered off into. The perky girl had taken the left door into the bed room across the hall from the office the paraplegic girl was currently making her way into.

Inside her office Nessa was met with a dim atmosphere. The dark, royal red of the room was a rich color almost suited to that of blood, and ornate gold decorations dotted the lining in the walls and furniture. A perpetual fire burned at a grand fireplace, a charm the headmistress had shown to Nessa when she first showed up at Shiz. Two leather chairs faced the fire, and a large desk sat across the fire at the other end of the room.

The desk was a fine, sleek, and smooth piece, carved from very exclusive quoxwood, gold also embedded into the design. Nessa rolled closer, eyeing her own reflection in the finely polished surface. Another large leather chair sat behind the desk, this one being more reminiscent of a large throne fit for an Ozma.

Nessa's breath came steadily, slightly nervous in such an extravagant room. She'd only been in the room once or twice with Madame Morrible, and the seemed that much darker when she was alone in it. She moved forward, coming to the other side of the desk. Propped up against one of the carved legs, she saw a large bag, ancient with a fading color that looked almost like rust. The paraplegic girl scooted forward, opening the clasp. Fresh and aged papers alike nearly poured out, pointing in every direction outside the open fabric.

"This is it!" Nessa whispered despite herself, almost squealing in glee. She pulled the bag onto her lap, briskly exiting the room back into the main living area, finding her giddy companions twirling each other about in a half hug, half waltz position.

"Oh, oh, Nessa, we did it, we found it!" Glinda giggled as she pulled herself away from Fiyero, showing to Nessa a stack of papers. "There's sure to be all sorts of info in here!"

"Glinda," Nessa spoke softly, recognizing the papers. "These are menus for the commons calendar."

Glinda's brow furrowed in confusion as she looked at the pages again, pouting slightly. She stared at the papers again for a few moments before throwing them to the ground with a shout and a stomp of her foot. "Why does that even need to go through Madame Morrible?"

"Glinda, don't worry, I got them!" Nessarose spoke encouragingly to the blond currently seeking comfort in Fiyero's arms. She thrust the bag out into the open, revealing her discovery. "It's full of her official papers, we can find something in here!"

The brunette would have continued, but she was cut off by another hug from Glinda. "Oh Nessa, you're wonderful, truly remarkable!"

"How are we going to do this though?" Fiyero questioned, adjusting his jacket. "Are we going to take a look right here and now, or should we get out of here and analyze what we've got somewhere else?"

The group found themselves unable to ponder this for long, the slamming of a door against a wall interrupting them.

"Hide, hide, hide!" Boq half-whispered as he rushed into the back hall, not once looking back or saying anything more.

"What? What's happened, who's out there?" Nessa hadn't gotten a response, as Glinda and Fiyero had already followed Boq's example and fled into the bathroom, shutting the door behind them.


GASP SHOCKING PLOT TWIST AND ONLY EVERYONE SAW IT COMING

I'll try to be more timely with my next update, no more being a terrible person for that long a period of time!