Chapter 4
"You can't make me go back out there!" Elphaba was crying as Morrible hugged her close. "I know, dearie. But you can't stay in this room forever. You've been hurt, but not everyone is like that? How many people were bullying you?" Morrible asked. "Everyone!" Elphaba cried. "Everyone? Or did it just seem like everyone?" Morrible stroked the crying girl's hair. "I don't wanna talk about this!" Elphaba yelled, turning away from Morrible.
Suddenly, Elphaba heard the door open. She turned and saw Nessarose at the door, staring wide-eyed at Elphaba. "T-the ghost!" Nessa shrieked. Elphaba quickly ran to her room and slammed the door. "Miss Nessarose! I thought you weren't going to be hear until after the ball." Morrible said. "I-i decided to come earlier after the ghost yelled at everyone." Nessa replied, glancing over at the door Elphaba had disappeared into. "Please don't call her a ghost. She's not a ghost. She's a normal person who just had a hard life. I've watched over her since she was a child. I can't really say anymore, but you'll be rooming with her, so maybe you can get her to tell you more." Morrible explained.
"I-i'm rooming with her?" Nessa asked, a little scared. "Don't worry, dearie. She'd never hurt you." Morrible said, smiling at Nessa. "O-okay." Nessa said. Morrible went and opened Elphaba's door. "Elphaba? Miss Nessarose is going to be rooming with you. Please try to behave." She called into the room. Nessa wheeled herself into Elphaba's room, the door closing behind her. The 'ghost' sat on her bed, clutching a pillow to her chest and crying. "H-hi..." Elphaba forced a smile. "Uh...hello..." Nessa responded, keeping her distance. "I-if your worried that the green is contagious, it's not." Elphaba muttered. "It's not a green...your not really a ghost?" Nessa asked. "No. I'm not a ghost. Thats just what I wanted people to think." Elphaba sighed. "So, if your not a ghost...whats your real name and how did you make yourself look like a ghost?" Nessa asked, a bit curious. "My name is Elphaba, and I'm a sorceress. The ghost thing was a weak invisibility spell." Elphaba explained.
"That explains a lot, and Elphaba is a really pretty name." Nessa smiled at Elphaba. Elphaba just looked away. "Elphaba? Yesterday, what did you mean when you said I knew you?" Nessa asked. "Do you have a sister?" Elphaba looked back at Nessa. "No. I'm an only child." Nessa replied. Elphaba just shook her head. "Thats a lie." She said. "What do you mean?" Nessa was really confused now. "Nessarose Thropp, my name is Elphaba Thropp. I'm your sister." Elphaba explained. Nessa suddenly backed away from the green girl. "N-no your not! I have no sisters!" She protested.
"but it's true, Nessa. I'm your older sister. Father hated me from the moment I was born, so when I was four and you were one, he left me here." Elphaba had tears in her eyes, remembering that horrible day. "But why would father leave you here?" Nessa asked, shocked that Frex would do such a thing. "He said I was an ugly, monstrous witch and that he never wanted to see me again!" Elphaba shouted, unable to control herself. She was sobbing uncontrollably. "Oh, Elphaba. None of those things are true." Nessa assured her sister. "Yes it is! No matter what you say, I'll never be normal, or beautiful, or loved in any way!" Elphaba buried her face in her pillow.
"You created this whole ghost act to hide your insecurities, didn't you?" Nessa asked, putting her hand on Elphaba's shoulder. Elphaba nodded. "And to get revenge on those who've hurt me. I came up with the idea when I was seven." She added. "Fabala, revenge is never the answer." Nessa said, hugging Elphaba. Elphaba suddenly looked at her sister. "F-fabala?" She asked. "Y-yes. Is that okay if I call you Fabala?" Nessa asked, hoping it would be okay. "F-fabala was mothers name for me." Elphaba whispered, remembering her mother. Melina was the only person who had ever loved the green girl. "What was mother like?" Nessa asked, sad that she never got to meet her. "She was beautiful, loving, caring, kind..." Elphaba listed off so many things about Melina. Nessa smiled. "I wish I could have met her." She said. Elphaba froze when Nessa said that. She hid under her blanket. "It's my fault she's dead." Elphaba whispered so quietly that Nessa could only just hear what she was saying. "I'm sure thats not true, Fabala." Nessa said. "But it is! When mother was pregnant with you, father was scared that you would come out green like me. So he made mother chew milk flowers all the time, and it made you come too early, with your little legs all tangled up...and mother never woke up." Elphaba said, the last part in a whisper.
"But that was a milk flowers fault, not yours! And I don't mind being in this chair, really." Nessa tried to comfort Elphaba, but to no avail. "Don't lie, Nessa. I know you hate not being able to walk. I just wish there was something I could do to make it up to you...Wait! I have an idea!" Elphaba suddenly got excited about something. She jumped up from her bed and left the room. When she came back, she was holding a large book in her hands. She sat back down and started flipping threw the pages of the book. "whats that?" Nessa asked, looking at the strange book. The writing on the pages was like nothing she had ever seen before. "The Grimmerie. It's the most powerful spell book ever known. I think it can help you." Elphaba explained, finally stopping on one of the pages.
"Just try to stay calm so I can do this right, okay? I promise nothing bad is going to happen." Elphaba looked up at Nessa. "I wasn't nervous until you said not to be." Nessa commented, which made Elphaba chuckle. "Don't worry Nessa. I know what I'm doing." The green girl said before starting to chant something in a strange language. Nessa's shoes suddenly started glowing bright red. "I-it feels like my feet are on fire! What have you done to my shoes!" Nessa cried, really freaking out. Elphaba had stopped chanting by now. "Don't panic! This is normal!" Elphaba assured her sister. The glowing stopped and the burning feeling went away, but the shoes remained red. Elphaba stood up and held her hands out for Nessa. Nessa held Elphaba's hands and was pulled out of her wheel-chair. "Wait! B-but I can't walk!" Nessa protested. "You can now." Elphaba said, letting go of Nessa's hands.
Nessa thought she would immediately fall down again, but nothing happened. She took a few wobbly steps forward, smiling brightly. "Oh, Fabala! Thank you! What in Oz did you do?" Nessa asked, hugging Elphaba. "I enchanted your shoes. Wear them, and you'll be able to walk just like everyone else. I hope this makes up for what happened to you and mother." Elphaba hugged her sister in return. "Thank you so much!" Nessa was crying tears of joy. "Your welcome, Nessa." Elphaba smiled at her sister. Finally, she had managed to make someone happy.