Disclaimer: Um...Not mine...and...ah...D'arvit! I don't have anymore witty things to say! This is a sad day... KINGS DOMINION! Off to King's Dominion, for the evil institute known as school has released us from its tyrannical grasp for eight short weeks. But that means I may not post tomorrow. So enjoy this chapter.
Read, Review, Favorite if it's worthy! I love people who do! -LostOzian
Glinda didn't need more proof of Fiyeraba's abilities, and in her current mood, Fiyeraba wasn't about to give her any. Instead, the Good Witch let Grinnie and Fiyeraba retire to the guest room to sort out their belongings; they weren't going back to the orphanage, after all. A guard led the two to their new room, also carrying their trunk.
"I like this," Grinnie had whispered, looking at the back of the guard. Fiyeraba nodded, lost in the ominous void of the corridors. The palatial hallways felt empty without the trail of her mother, like there was something that should have been there but was forgotten. From what she had gathered from the throne room, her mother should have been able to wander these halls aimlessly, because she was the talented Witch, favorite of the Wizard. But she had given that up so nobody else would be hurt.
Fiyeraba watched the green marble tiles beneath her feet as she automatically followed the guard. After a while, he stopped and opened a door, revealing a pale-celery colored room. Grinnie stared at it in amazement.
"Lady Glinda's rooms are at the end of the hallway," the guard said. "If you need assistance, there is a guard at the beginning of each hallway." Fiyeraba took the trunk from him as Grinnie limped into the room, trying to take in all of its wonders.
"A fireplace! And a big mirror!" Grinnie said excitedly, examining these new treats. The orphan's room had a simple iron stove for heat, and the only mirror was extremely dirty and in Helene's room. Grinnie ran into the bed, allowing herself to fall into the feathery comforter. "Fiyeraba, come feel this! It's so soft!" Fiyeraba placed a hand on the bed, feeling it sink into the downy blankets. It was soft, and she would have wanted nothing more than to just lie in the feather blanket if she hadn't felt so helpless in her little quest for her miracle. She nodded distractedly.
"It's nice," she said, opening the trunk and pulling out a few things she would want to bring with her. The old cloak she was found in, definetly. Her satchel made of old scraps of cloth to carry things in. What else was worth taking? Grinnie slid off the bed, and fell over trying to get her balance. Fiyeraba abandoned sorting her posessions for the moment to help Grinnie up.
"Fiyeraba, you should be more happy! We're at the palace with Lady Glinda and we have an amazing room!" Grinnie smiled, accustomed to falling. Fiyeraba pulled Grinnie to her feet.
"Yes, it's wonderful," Fiyeraba said sarcastically, turning back to their chest. "Simply couldn't be happier." Grinnie's smile wavered. Fiyeraba had never used sarcasm before, and she wasn't sure she liked it.
"What's wrong?" Grinnie said. "This is everybody's dream, Fiyeraba!" Fiyeraba shut the trunk lid roughly. All the rest of her things weren't suitable to take. She would let Grinnie have them.
"But it's not my dream," Fiyeraba said. She sighed. "When Glinda first said I come back to the palace with her, I thought she was going to help me find my mother." Fiyeraba held out the old cloak, dark fabric piling on the ground. Either way, she draped the too-long cloak around her shoulders and tied it, glancing at Grinnie in the full-length mirror. "But she can't help me. So I have to help myself."
"What are you talking about?" Grinnie stood next to Fiyeraba in the mirror, completely overshadowed by the older girl's grim determination. She tried to find something to reason her with. "Remember Lady Dorothy of Kansas? She…" Grinnie's thoughts died as she realized that Dorothy of Kansas was the one who had forced Fiyeraba's mother into hiding, making her situation the most terrible analogy ever. Fiyeraba held herself tall against the mention of Dorothy, staring at the girl in the mirror, full of questions. How much was that girl capable of? Could she make it if she tried?
Could she live with herself if she didn't?
"I get it, Grinnie. Lady Dorothy helped the Wizard, and then the Wizard helped her." She closed her eyes a moment. Twelve years old. Lady Dorothy had been twelve years old when she had flown over the rainbow and, in the eyes of history, achieved so much good. "But Glinda's no Wizard. I'm going to find her myself," she promised her reflection. Grinnie stared at her.
"What?!" Grinnie grabbed Fiyeraba's arm. "Fiyeraba, all Oz is right here in front of you and you'd leave it behind?!" Fiyeraba looked at her mournfully.
"I know what I want," she said. "And if I want to find my mother, I can't want anything else anymore." Grinnie hugged her, rocking as she lost balance and gripped Fiyeraba to stay standing.
"Please stay," Grinnie pleaded. "Please, please, please, please, please-" Fiyeraba snorted at Grinnie's begging.
"Grinnie, I have to do this." Fiyeraba told her, disnentangling herself from Grinnie's hug. "In the throne room, I felt what had happened to my mother, and how much it hurt to leave her dreams behind. It must have been really sad for her to leave me." Fiyeraba took a deep breath, looking back at herself in the mirror. The black fabric weighed down on her shoulders, like she was wearing armor instead of a cloak. It was hard to believe this decrepid blanket had really been Elphaba's cloak. Fiyeraba wondered what effect the cloak had had in her mother's apperance.
Wait... Glinda had said she looked like her mother. On a curious whim, she imagined herself taller, with the trademarked pointy hat and green skin. Grinnie gasped in shock as the reflection shifted and warped until they were both looking at Elphaba. Mother and daughter spent a minute staring at each other, Elphaba's expression impossible to read.
Is she really here? How far is she? Fiyeraba lifted one hand to touch the smooth glass; Elphaba did the same. Their fingertips barely met before the green woman's reflection faded back into Fiyeraba's and the magic ended. Feeling her breath grow uneven, and fearing tears, Fiyeraba hoped she would come closer to meeting her mother than a few shadows and reflections scattered about.
"She needs to meet her daughter." Fiyeraba said with resolve. Grinnie looked at her sadly. Was this really the only way, or was Fiyeraba not thinking things through? Grinnie couldn't tell. For most of her life, she had depended on Fiyeraba to tell her what was right. Now, about to make a decision most would view completely wrong, how could Grinnie advise her friend?
A knock at the door ended the somber moment. Fiyeraba freed herself from the cloak and threw it in a corner quickly. If all this guessing was right, it was the Witch's cloak, and if anyone saw it...
"Come in," Fiyeraba called to the door. Glinda opened it, cautiously looking inside. Fiyeraba held her back against the mirror, as if Glinda could still see the reflection of her old best friend.
"Dinner will be served in a few minutes," Glinda announced. "Would you come down with me?" Grinnie looked up at Fiyeraba. Maybe some food would help get this notion out of her head.
"Let's go," Grinnie took Fiyeraba's hand. Fiyeraba didn't grip back, but allowed the weaker girl to lead her to Glinda. Glaring at Glinda, the black-haired girl stayed unusually silent.
"Fiyeraba, I know what it looks like I'm trying to do," Glinda told her quietly. "But it's for the better."
"It doesn't matter," Fiyeraba said, adding an edge to her words that cut deeply. "I don't need parents anyway. I've lived my whole life without her, haven't I? What's a few more years?" Fiyeraba suddenly took charge, pulling a surprised Grinnie along after her and leaving a stunned Glinda.
It's for their safety, Glinda thought as she hurried to catch up with Fiyeraba, about to make a wrong turn. Fiyeraba would never survive the journey.
And Elphaba would never survive being found.
