Chapter Four: Miss Independent

Elphaba didn't seem too pleased when Fiyero insisted on walking to her dorm with her. But after their conversations in the carriage, he felt a sort of fierce attachment towards her, one he attributed to some sort of misplaced brotherly affection (or so he hoped). As they walked the campus, he was taken in by his surroundings. There was very little grass in the Vinkus, and the grass that did exist was dull beige as it wilted beneath the treads of a foot or two. Here, the grass was brighter than Elphaba's skin, and it reached up as though trying hard to catch the suns, springing back to life even when walked upon.

Meanwhile, people were staring at them. The Winkie and the Green Girl, he thought to himself. We really do make quite a pair. Suddenly, he wanted to shelter her from the unyielding eyes of their classmates. He wasn't sure why – surely she was used to this. Still, he found himself straightening up, wanting to keep her safe from prying glances.

Elphaba walked with her head lowered, her braid swinging along her shoulders. She carried a small, worn canvas bag that carried all her belongings. His trunk was larger, though not by much. His mother had worried he might attract attention if he brought too much luggage with him. It was probably a wise decision, too. The fact that both of them had traveled light made it easier to move across campus faster, and out of the scorching looks of their new classmates.

Her room was up two flights of stairs, and he tried to take her bag from her. "That's ridiculous," she told him, clutching the bag to herself. "I can take care of myself! You don't even need to be here."

For some reason, her insistence upon independence made him want to be nearer to her even more, and he merely followed silently as she mounted the stairs. Now, she had her head held high, nose pointing towards the ceiling defiantly. He could tell he had crossed her a bit, and he wondered how to remedy that. The best way, most likely, would be to leave her alone as she had asked, but he just couldn't find it in him to do so.

When they got to her door, she turned to him. "I'm at my room now. You can go."

"Nonsense. I'm curious what the girls' dormitories look like."

"Of course you are," she muttered.

Was she ever going to let that go? For a moment, he wondered how her father would fare in the Vinkus if even his blasphemy-spouting daughter couldn't handle the idea of fornication. It was one hell of a first impression he'd made on her, that was certain. "Not for the reasons you think."

She grumbled but opened the door. "If you insist."

A petite blonde girl sat on one of the beds, fluffing some pillows. She was pretty, though next to Elphaba he barely noticed her. The young woman looked at them curiously. Clearly, she hadn't expected a green roommate. Once she recovered herself, she said, "Hello!"

"Hi," Elphaba said shortly.

His eyes traveled between the two young women, and he couldn't help but think it would be interesting to watch the two of them interact. Just looking at them, it was obvious they were polar opposites. "You must be Elphaba's roommate."

"Galinda," the blonde stuck out her hand for Elphaba to shake.

"Nice to meet you," Elphaba remarked, taking it for a moment. "This is Fiyero, he's, um…"

"A family friend," he supplied.

"Right." Elphaba gave him a look he didn't understand. "He just wanted to see where I was living."

He smiled politely and sat down at the desk set up in the corner. "I hope you don't mind me visiting." Giving Elphaba a pointed look, he said, "I'll probably be visiting every so often to check up on her. Her father would want that."

The glare Elphaba gave him was so sharp he couldn't meet her gaze. "Thank you, Fiyero." Her voice was dripping with disdain.

"My Ama went out to grab a few necessities. She'll be back soon." Galinda told them. "I'm sure she'll be pleased to meet you."

Elphaba had made a comment during the carriage ride about not understanding the necessity of Amas. She didn't think she needed to be supervised. He'd reminded her that she'd spent a lot of time taking care of herself and others while a lot of other young women weren't used to being on their own. At that point, she replied that none of the boys were used to it either, but they weren't required to have chaperones. He'd given up the argument then, since he knew she was right. He'd known she was right from the beginning, but he enjoyed engaging her in discussion and had prodded on anyway. It probably hadn't helped him any, though. She most likely thought he was a chauvinist when he'd merely been playing Devil's Advocate. "So, Glinda, where are you from?" He asked, deciding to change the subject before Elphaba could bring it up.

"Gillikin, naturally. You must be from… the Vinkus?"

"I am. But Elphaba here is from Munchkinland."

"I can speak for myself, Fiyero. Thank you."

"So how do you two know each other?" Galinda asked innocently.

"Our parents are good friends." Fiyero replied quickly. "I'm a prince, and Elphaba is Thropp Third Descending. They thought it might be good for our families to get to know one another." He saw in Elphaba's eyes that this excuse impressed her, and a smile played at her sweet lips.

"Wow, so you must have a lot of money, huh?" Galinda had wide eyes.

Elphaba snorted at that. "Far from it. I'm lucky I made it here."

"We're not exactly rich either," Fiyero admitted. "The Vinkus isn't really known for the economy, after all."

Galinda's face seemed to fall a little. "I see."

"You must be so excited to start school."

"I'm excited to meet new people." The way the young woman looked at them made it clear that she didn't consider Elphaba and Fiyero to be the "new people," she was excited to meet.

Fiyero felt a little bad for Elphaba. This girl wasn't going to want anything to do with her, although Elphaba would probably like that. And Galinda was at least socially conscious enough not to be too cruel. But still, he could imagine that when he left, there would be an awkward tension between the two of them. He put a hand on Elphaba's shoulder. "Is there anything else you need? Do you want to go to the bookstore together?"

"Sweet Oz, Fiyero, I can do things myself!" She snapped, wrenching away from him.

The blonde girl seemed amused by the way Elphaba was talking to him, but sat silently on her bed, twiddling her thumbs.

"I'm sorry. I'm just trying to be helpful."

"Well, you've been helpful enough for one day. Or forever. You can go now!" Elphaba pointed at the door. "You've pestered me enough."

He left, trying to ignore the sting of rejection he felt. Fiyero wasn't exactly used to being rejected. Being the prince, no one had really said "no," to him other than his own mother. No one had ever kicked him out of a room, or told him what to do. Although it stung a little, he also liked the fact that Elphaba wasn't afraid to speak her mind around him. Her independence made it so that she didn't care what other people thought, so she never bothered to mince words. Yet he also had the feeling that part of the reason she was so harsh was because she was protecting herself, though he wasn't sure from what. He was sure, however, that he intended to find out.