AN:

Tadaaaaaaa! Chapter 7!

This one has a decent length again :D

The Fiyero-chapter that goes with this one has exactly the same name. :)

Happy reading!

xoxo MLE :3

UPDATE LOG:

This chapter was updated on: 09-06-2014

Minor editing, no additions worth mentioning.


Chapter Seven: A Rather Unexpected Encounter

As so often, she was lying on the worn rug next to the fireplace, reading yet another book. Her right arm had recovered nicely by now and she no longer needed to carry it in a sling. The wound on the left shoulder, however, just did not seem to improve at all. After several weeks, it was still hurting terribly and oozing blood-tinged pus. The infection had started to spread and soon her whole left arm, down to her hand, was aching so badly she could barely move it. Yackle had promised her to prepare a highly potent ointment, but she had to travel to the Emerald City to obtain the necessary ingredients.

Engrossed in her books, Elphaba patiently waited for the old woman's return. She had been in worse pain before and in a way she saw her suffering as due punishment for her prior misconduct. She thought of the others who had been wounded that night because of her and hoped that their recovery progressed more smoothly.

Just when Elphaba was about to start a new chapter, she heard the old door squeak, heralding Yackle's arrival. As always, Elphaba carefully put the heavy tome aside, jumped up and busied herself in the kitchen. Only a few clock-ticks later, she had set the table and served a simple meal, accompanied by some wine.

Yackle entered the room and wordlessly slumped down onto her chair. The old crone looked worn and tired, her eyes lacking the mischievous sparkle Elphaba was used to see in them.

Hesitantly, Elphaba took her own seat and waited. Her gaze uneasily lingered on the empty chair left between her and the older witch. She was not quite sure when Boro had left the house, but it had been about three to four days ago and at one point she had simply assumed that he had left together with Yackle and would eventually return together with her. Since the little Bear was still nowhere to be seen, she concluded that he had either tiredly collapsed into bed right after their return, or that he was still somewhere out there.

"Where's the furball?" Elphaba asked softly after waiting a couple more minutes.

For some reason Yackle seemed a little irritated at her question. She used more force than necessary as she chopped off a leg of the cold roast chicken in front of her and then dropped it noisily on her plate. After a while she glanced up from her food to find the younger woman still staring at her, waiting for an answer.

"How would I know?" she finally barked, shaking her head and taking a bite of her chicken.

Elphaba sensed that something was amiss, but tried to act as nonchalantly as possible.

"I don't know, I was just wondering…" her voice trailed off.

She shot another short glance at Yackle and shrugged.

"I just kind of thought he might have been with you, is all."

"He accompanied me to the Emerald City," the older woman admitted, clenching her teeth. "However, that does not mean that I have to see to his safe return."

"The Emerald City?"

What sort of business a little Bear could possibly have in the capital was a mystery to Elphaba. And why would Yackle seem so aggravated?

"What is he doing there?" she asked quirking an eyebrow, but as soon as the words had left her lips, the realization suddenly dawned on her.

"Is he looking for his parents?" she pressed on when the old woman did not bother to reply to her previous question.

"Yes, could be. Who knows…"

Elphaba narrowed her eyes. Boro knew that his parents were held captive somewhere in the capital. There was not much a little Bear could possibly do to find or even free them, unless…

Her mouth fell agape in shock.

"No…" she whispered, glaring at Yackle. "You didn't!" she growled, hoping the old crone would convincingly refute her suspicions.

But instead of denial, explanations, justifications or any other reaction Elphaba would have expected, there was only silence.

She felt her pulse rushing in anger.

"How could you?" she demanded of the older witch. "He's just a cub!"

This time Yackle made eye contact with Elphaba. Her expression was cool and firm.

"He had a good reason to join. He needed a purpose," she pointed out, "just like you."

"A good reason?" the younger witch huffed. "Maybe, but he is still a child, for Oz's sake!"

She rose to her feet, clenching her fists. Her breathing was irregular and heavy, as if she had been running for miles.

Yet soon her anger towards the old witch made way for worries for her young friend. Maybe he needed her help, maybe it was already too late? Her good hand grasped the edge of the wooden table, supporting her weight.

"Is he alone?" she asked in a low voice.

Yackle remained silent.

"What is his assignment?"

There was no response.

She grew more and more agitated.

"Where exactly is he?"

"I. Don't. Know." Yackle bellowed, slamming her fists on the table with a thud.

Elphaba should not have been surprised. She knew that the old witch was speaking the truth, for the Resistance made it a point to keep everything as secret as possible - even within the organization. However, since she resented her for dragging Boro into all this, she thought that the least Yackle could have done was looking out for the little Bear.

She averted her eyes, trying to calm down. Resigned, she decided to retire to her chamber. Maybe she would catch some sleep before leaving the house in the morning in order to search for her little, furry friend.

As she turned around to leave the room, she heard the clinking of cutlery and eager munching. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw how Yackle continued eating her dinner as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened.

Champing with rage, she whirled around, ready to shout her frustration at the older woman. However, as at the same moment a powerful shockwave of energy, knocking over chairs and the heavy dining table, sending tableware and food flying across the room, radiated from her, she was so surprised at her sudden outburst that it rendered her speechless. With wide eyes, she watched Yackle crawling out from under a curtain that had been ripped from the window. No matter how enraged she was, he had not intended to hurt the old woman.

But Yackle just casually brushed the dust off her skirt and sighed. With a lazy flick of her wrist she rearranged the chairs and table.

"Pity about the food," she said, shaking her head. "You still have to learn how to gain better control over your temper."

"I should control my temper?" Elphaba repeated in a shaky voice, her whole body trembling. Holding her right hand out, she summoned her broom, attracting it like a magnet. Clasping it tightly, she stormed out of the room, out of the house and into the night.


With her left arm rendered useless by the infection, the flight had been arduous and taken far longer than she had hoped. However, despite her physical condition, turning around had never been an option.

Once she reached the outskirts of the city, Elphaba sought out friends and informants in order to learn more about the whereabouts of the Bear cub. Unfortunately, even after days of searching, she was no step closer to finding him. She knew a couple of spies who surely would be able to help her, but she also knew that they were not going to share any of this information.

Since it seemed as if nobody would be able to supply her with the intelligence she needed, she decided that there was no other way than entering the city and looking for Boro herself. It was the first time since that unfortunate incidence with the Oh-So-Wonderful Wizard that she would actually go back into the city and she was wondering whether security might have increased since her last visit. Would the Gale Force be patrolling the entire city, looking for her? However, there was no way around it; she had to take this risk. For her friend.

It probably would have been a bad idea to simply march through one of the heavily guarded gates, so when night came, she took her broom, found a relatively deserted spot and flew in low altitude across the city wall.

She landed in the backyard of an abandoned house. Looking around, she confirmed that nobody had seen her, before hiding her broom and pulling the hood of her black coat over her head. She walked off in the direction of a shabby pub she knew to be frequented by members of the Resistance and their loose associates.

As she entered the pub, the air was thick and smoky. The place was crowded with all kinds of dubious patrons, drunk on cheap beer and the company of morally questionable wenches. She was not particularly fond of this establishment, but as a furtive rendezvous point for undercover agents it worked out rather well. Today, however, she was out of luck. Not one of the faces seemed familiar to her.

Frustrated, she left the establishment, trying hard to think of other venues where she might find help. Nearby, a trashcan noisily toppled over and a grey cat jumped out into the green light of the street lamps. The animal looked at Elphaba and meowed softly before once again vanishing into darkness. She shook her tired head and resumed pondering over where to go next. As she was about to take her next step forward, she felt the cat rubbing against her leg and purring. Elphaba reached out to stroke the silken fur, but before she could touch it, the feline meowed again and sprinted off.

Elphaba watched the animal and could not help wondering whether it was actually an Animal, subtly trying to get her attention. She saw her suspicions confirmed when the grey Cat seemed to wait for her to follow before turning around the next corner.

Several side streets and narrow passageways later, the Cat had led her to a blind alley, but was now nowhere to be seen. At the very end of the street, Elphaba noticed a small brick house whose door was slightly ajar, literally inviting her inside. She hurried towards it and quietly slipped through the entrance.

Inside it was dark, with the only source of light being the moon, which hesitantly peeked through the window. When Elphaba's eyes had finally adjusted to the low light, she could see the silhouette of the grey Cat again.

"You are searching for a little Bear, are you not?" whispered the Animal, curiously watching the green girl from the top of a bookshelf.

"What if I am?" the tone of Elphaba's voice remained cool, but privately she felt hopeful and relieved to finally have found someone who might be able to tell her more about her missing friend.

"I'm not supposed to interfere," explained the Cat, looking away, "but seeing as he is still but a child, I'm too worried about him."

She jumped off the shelf and onto a tallboy, where she sat down at eyelevel with Elphaba.

"I can lead you to him, but understand that the elders are not going to be pleased, should word reach them that you got involved in another agent's mission."

Elphaba nodded.

"I am aware of that. Just tell me where to find him."

"Very well."

Elegantly the feline leapt to the floor and rushed through the room and out of the door.

Elphaba followed her through some more winding streets and alleys, sometimes barely able to keep up with her. Just when she thought that she was about to run out of breath, she saw the Cat sitting on a windowsill, next to a flowerpot.

"There," the feline motioned with her head.

The green girl recognized the old town hall whose dungeons now served as one of the city's prisons and frowned.

"They caught him?" she asked fearfully.

"Not yet," the Cat silenced her worries. "He is hiding between the rubbish piles in that corner over there."

"Hiding?" Elphaba turned her head to throw the Animal a questioning look, however, the Cat had already vanished. Shrugging her shoulders, she approached the corner where she was supposed to find the Bear cub.

"Boro?"

Searching, her eyes went back and forth.

She heard rustling and her head snapped to the right. Suddenly the Bear cub's head appeared between shreds of old paper, collected in a large garbage container.

"Elphaba?"

Boro briefly shook his head, making sure what he saw was not merely a dream or a trick his tired brain would play him. When he was certain that it was indeed his green friend standing there in front of him, he clumsily climbed out of the container, tumbling over as he reached the ground.

She rushed towards him and engulfed the cub in a tight hug, trying to ignore the pain shooting through her left arm.

"You silly Bear," she chided him gently. "You scared me."

After a couple of quiet moments, she let go of him and the young Bear sullenly stared at the ground.

"I can't do it. The assignment. I'm useless," Elphaba heard him mutter.

"You are not," she assured him, scratching his head just the way he liked it. "You are not useless, you are a child. Whatever task they placed on you, a child should not have to bear such a burden."

Boro was not convinced.

"But I want to help! I want to free my parents and the other Animals." His eyes met hers and she could see the determination burning brightly in them.

Elphaba sighed and regarded the little Bear for a while, whilst in her head she fought a battle with her conscience. He was still a cub, but she could not deny that he had grown already since the day that she had first met him; physically as well as mentally. And his stubbornness – that might have been her bad influence.

"Alright," she whispered, once again embracing the cub. "I'll help you."

His eyes brightened and his stumpy tail was almost wagging like that of a dog's.

"Under one condition," Elphaba rushed to add, pointing a stern finger right in front of the Bear's black nose. "We find your parents, free them and you, my friend, will go with them. Disappear somewhere, never to be seen again. No more secret missions or reckless operations." She studied his face, waiting for some sort of confirmation. "I mean it."

Finally, the Bear nodded silently.

She sighed.

"Good. And you better don't try to find out what I will do to you should you break your promise."

Boro gave her a challenging look, but Elphaba knew he was only playing.

"I'm dangerous," she retorted dryly, rising both of her eyebrows. "Lest you forget, I'm the Wicked Witch."

With a sharp yelp, the Bear fell to the ground trembling, covering his head protectively with his paws, feigning fear.

She chuckled and pulled him back to his feet.

"Well, now we need a plan."

Breaking into the dungeons turned out to be much easier than Elphaba had anticipated. Merely a hand full of guards were watching over the prisoners detained in this facility. For most of them their only crime was simply being an Animal and she assumed that nobody cared enough to get in trouble saving them. And even if the Resistance would indeed feel like freeing some of them, she was sure the Wizard would have no problems absorbing such a loss.

Luckily, Boro was well prepared and already knew the outline of the prison, including the exact location of his parents' cell. As they descended further and further, bypassing several levels, practically ignoring the forlorn and suffering cries of the many innocent occupants of the cells, Elphaba could not help feeling somewhat irritated by her own impuissance. But she knew that this was not the time to play hero. It was crucial that they concentrated on the task at hand and nothing more, or nobody would walk free tonight. And so they did.

As they reached the end of the last flight of stairs, Boro motioned to the left passageway. Tacitly, Elphaba followed him into the darkness. The lower levels of the dungeons were cold and moist, with water dripping from the ceiling, here and there even forming stalactites. Occasionally, a prisoner's coughing would resound through the narrow corridors.

Not wanting to look at all those poor souls they would not be able to rescue today, the little Bear used his keen nose to sniff out his parents. Once he detected their unmistakable scent, he hurried towards the cell near the end of the aisle.

In the near darkness Elphaba had lost sight of him and hurried to catch up with the Bear, worried that he could be running into one of the guards. She was relieved when she found him, nuzzling his mother's head, disregarding the thick iron bars separating them.

She stepped closer and the Bears, as well as a Hyena, a Doe and a family of Sheep, who shared their bleak accommodation, eyed her with a mixture of curiosity and apprehension.

"This is E… Fae," Boro whispered, breaking the silence. "She is a friend. She can get you out of here."

The Animals' eyes widened at the prospect of freedom.

"You can really do that?" the Doe asked in a hushed voice.

Elphaba did not answer, instead she gingerly held her hand against the rusty lock and murmured the spell she had learned back when she had rescued the Foxes from Shiz's laboratory. The lock crumbled and with a noisy squeak, the door swung open. The Animals looked at each other, hesitant to leave the relative safety of their cell.

Even through the darkness Elphaba could see Boro's eyes sparkling.

"Run everyone," he cheered, "you are free!"

"No!" Elphaba yelped.

Hastily, she kicked the door shut and dropped to the floor, covering the Bear's mouth with her hand.

"Shhht!"

He threw a questioning look at her.

"Silly child, be quiet," she begged.

She thought for a moment before she explained her plan.

"There aren't too many guards around here, but I don't see how such large animals as two fully grown Bears could leave this place without being detected. What we need is a diversion."

She glanced over the long row of cages.

"I will set all of them free," she finally said. "Well, not all of them, only those here at this level."

Some of the Animals close enough to hear her words, started rejoicing and others eagerly asked them what the green woman had just said to elevate their spirits so much.

"But-" Elphaba held out a hand to dampen their excitement. "But, understand, that I cannot promise safe passage to any of you," she explained. "I will open the doors of your cells and that is all I will do. All I can do, really. After that each of you has to make their own luck."

She turned back towards Boro.

"With so many prisoners at large the guards will be overwhelmed and I am sure most of the Animals will be able to escape unscathed. There will be quite a commotion, but make sure you stay with your parents, do you understand?"

"Well, I will have to fulfil my end of the bargain, right?"

The Bear looked at her worriedly.

"What about you?" he asked concerned.

Elphaba smiled slightly.

"Well, you are a big boy now, so I will be honest. Since they won't be able to handle the situation, the guards will most likely call the Gale Force and depending on how fast the reinforcements can arrive, this might turn out a bit messy. But don't worry, as soon as they see me, a terrorist, public enemy number one…" she chuckled slightly, "they will all but forget about you Animals."

Boro did not like what she was implying, but nodded gloomily.

"So this is farewell?"

She ruffled the little Bear's fur and rose, beginning her work on the rest of the locks.


And Elphaba's predictions were all too accurate. As dozens of Animals made their way to the dungeon's exit, screeching and stomping, the few wardens were taken by surprise and unable to gain control over the situation. Soon, however, a contingent of soldiers arrived in order to help apprehending the fugitive prisoners. It took not long until one of them – not quite coincidentally - spotted a hint of green, just disappearing around a corner. Immediately the hunt for the escaping Animals was cancelled and the hunt for the Wicked Witch began.

Elphaba was just hurrying towards the staircase, when two men of the Gale Force intersected her. She quickly changed direction and ran towards a long, dark corridor. Only a few steps later, she realized that this passage would lead to a dead end. She slowed down and as she heard a shot being fired right behind her, she whirled around to face the two soldiers following her.

The fat one to the right shot again, his rifle aimed towards the ceiling. The vault was old and the walls brittle. Some debris crumbled to the floor where the bullet hit the withering stone. Ignoring the danger, the second man, much slimmer than his companion, but rather short, fired another shot in the same direction. Elphaba cast a hasty glance towards the ceiling and carefully stepped backwards as the two men kept coming closer, alternately firing warning shots. More and bigger slabs of stone came crashing down with every bullet.

"You are lucky that the Wizard wants you alive," the shorter one snorted, "otherwise you would already have more holes than a horse trader's mule, by now."

The fatter one made a choking sound, and noticing how the corners of his mouth curled upwards, Elphaba could only guess that this was his unique way of laughing.

She took one more step and suddenly felt the cold wall behind her. With no obvious escape route in sight, Elphaba braced herself and put on a defiant look, narrowing her eyes and smirking disdainfully. Just as only a couple of feet were left between Elphaba and the soldiers, a light breeze started circulating around the witch's feet, continuously gaining momentum. The debris scattered on the floor, started to vibrate and finally rose into the air where it remained hovering between Elphaba and the stunned men.

Of course she was almost as surprised as the soldiers, but she tried her best not to let it show in order to make them believe that she was indeed in control of these powers.

The clangour of heavy footsteps heralded the arrival of more Gale Forcers. An old officer, followed by a younger man, came running, but they also stopped dead in their tracks as they took in the scene playing out before them.

Elphaba eyed the newcomers. She had seen the older one before – he was the Captain of the Guard, the very man who had shot her that night a couple of weeks ago. As she looked at his face, a sudden pain coursed through her left arm. The second one was –

"Fiero," she gasped.

The power; just one moment ago still surging through her whole body like an electric current, was now suddenly gone. The protective veil of rubble dropped instantly, breaking the spell that had kept the men at bay.

"What are you waiting for?" the captain bellowed. "Don't stand there like idiots, seize the witch!"

The two men who had first found her, slowly stepped closer, wary of any magick tricks the witch might still have up her sleeve. Fiyero just stood there as if he was rooted to the ground, relentlessly staring at her.

Elphaba was glad that he was not the first one to jump right at her; after all, he certainly knew that her more powerful magick was restricted to uncontrollable outburst. Other than that, she did not know what to think. What was he doing here in the first place, wearing this stupid, green and gold uniform, and in the company of the men who wanted to see her hang or burn or shot? He surely must be aware of the Gale Force's purpose?

Her thoughts were interrupted as she heard some squealing and the clopping of hooves. A Boar came running towards the group, chased by another duo of soldiers. The Animal was so terrified, that he ran without even paying any attention to where he was going and in his panic knocked down the men standing in his way. Just on time, Elphaba managed to step aside and the Boar collided with the wall behind her. But even the sudden contact with the solid stone could not stop his rampage. He briefly shook his head and turned right around, trying to escape the way he had come, flooring his hunters in the process.

Elphaba recognized the opportunity when it arouse and dashed past the six soldiers. She did not run far, however. Hoping that no one would expect her to hide so close by, she locked herself in a cell right next to the entrance of this corridor and hid in the darkest corner, partially covering herself with some old, musty straw.

"Great, now our dinner escaped," she heard one of the men complaining.

"Your dinner? Are you two halfwits blind or really that stupid?" the captain demanded. "Just a clock-tick ago the Wicked Witch stood right here, literally in our grasp. And now – gone! Thanks to you gentlemen!"

Elphaba would have laughed at that, but the close proximity to her pursuers did not allow it.

She heard shuffling as the men slowly got back to their feet.

"Up with you lazy bums! Spread out and find her, or you will be sorry for it!"

Five of the men, among them Fiyero, hurried through the doorway, the sound of their steps soon fading away in the distance. The older soldier followed them at a leisurely pace. He stopped just outside Elphaba's cell, glancing left and right. Her heart raced and the wounded arm throbbed in memory of its tormentor. After a few moments, however, he decided to leave and she relaxed against the clammy wall.

In order to avoid another encounter with the soldiers, she decided to remain in her voluntary prison for a while longer and made herself as comfortable as she possibly could. Her mind turned back to Fiyero. In an unexpected and somewhat strange way, the last few days had been good. Well, at least better than all those miserable weeks that had come before. She had been so caught up with her search for her little, furry friend, that she had been far too busy to ponder over her feelings for the Vinkun prince and altogether, she had given the whole conundrum barely any thought at all. But tonight's incident, she knew, would cause a whole set of new issues to brood over.

Absentmindedly, her hand found the rose pendant hidden underneath her clothing and grasped it tightly. What was he doing here? Two explanations came to her mind: either he was empty headed enough to have been completely oblivious of the Gale Force's purpose, or he was angry with her after that night two months ago and was now seeking vengeance.

After a while, the cries of fleeing Animals and the shouting of angry soldiers had died away and when she was thoroughly satisfied that the Gale Force had stopped looking for her and left, Elphaba came crawling out of her cell. She straightened out her skirts, brushed off some straw and set off to find the exit.

The few wardens left in the complex were gormless enough for her to sneak past or trick them and so she soon found her way out of the prison without any further complications.

As she stepped outside, she could already see the sun rising in the east. Using the last few minutes of twilight, she traced her steps back to the spot where she had left her broom and crossed the city wall.


Utterly exhausted, she fell into her bed. After last night's exertions and the long flight back home, she needed some rest. All the stress and the struggle appeared to have further aggravated her condition and the pain in her arm had only gotten worse. For a brief moment, Elphaba was wondering whether she would have to get it amputated if it would not improve very soon.

Looking for her rusty, old alarm clock, she spotted a small tin on her bedside table. She picked it up and opened it. The salve inside smelled wonderfully refreshing, although she could not quite identify this particular scent. She smiled to herself and started to undo her bandage. After she had treated the wound with the ointment, she put the dressing back on and lay down to finally catch some much-needed sleep.