As January rolled into February, most classes were canceled due to snow. The students took advantage of that and spent most of their time outside having snowball fights, making snow angels, or sledding down the hill.
Elphaba spent most of this newfound free time with her sister. Nessa couldn't play in the snow because of her chair, and Elphaba thought snow was too cold to play in. They mostly studied and chatted together, and Nessa helped her sister by quizzing her on her royal studies.
"Now, during a royal state dinner, who sits next to the duke?"
Elphaba closed her eyes and thought for a moment. "The… margreave?"
"Yes," Nessa smiled, then turned the page in the book. "What is the proper greeting title for a duke?"
"Your Grace," Elphaba said immediately. "That was an easy one."
"Good. What is the order of traditional dances at a society ball?"
"Waltz, Allemande, Folk Jig, and the Minuet."
"That's the order for a private court ball."
"Then… Waltz, Allemande, Minuet, and Folk Jig."
"And don't forget the Landler. That's after the…"
"Minuet." Elphaba looked at the clock. "Thanks for your help, Nessie. I have to go to Morrible's sorcery seminar now."
"I can't believe Madame Morrible's the only one who didn't cancel class today," Nessa said as she watched her sister pack up.
"She'd still hold class if the world was ending and everything was ablaze and that class was the only thing left in the world."
The brunette chuckled and waved to her sister as she left. When Elphaba got to the room, Morrible was already there, setting up.
"Ah, Miss Elphaba," Morrible nodded when she saw the green girl. "I'm glad someone managed to come to class."
A few minutes later, Galinda ran in, covered in snow, exclaiming, "I'm not late!"
"You're not early, either," Morrible frowned.
"I'm exactly on time."
"Class starts exactly at one o'clock. That means everyone needs to be ready to start. And since it seems like it will only be you two today, I will be forgiving and not mark you late, Miss Upland."
"Thank you, Madame," was all the blonde could say as she quickly got settled.
If she was honest with herself, Elphaba enjoyed the sorcery seminar. She took it to keep her powers under control, but it was somewhat fun, despite that it was taught by Horrible Morrible. It took practice, but she was now at the point where she could get emotional and not risk setting something on fire. It also helped her with controlling her temper, which she was sure would be useful no matter what she chose.
She also found herself progressing with Madame Jabal. It took a lot of work and help from Galinda, Nessa, and even Fiyero. The green girl had invited the prince with her to practice dancing.
The time she spent with the Vinkun prince increased as the days went on. She really enjoyed his company, and he gave very useful advice about how to deal with her potential new life. They spent lots of time on and off campus together, leading many people to think they were dating.
"Well, would it be an incorrect assumption?" Fiyero asked, picking up the magazine that Elphaba had carelessly tossed aside. He looked at the picture of them walking back to campus, holding hands with the headline, 'A Royal Night Out: Vinkun Crown Princess and Oz's Heir Dating?'.
It was common knowledge that the Wizard had given Elphaba until August to formally accept or renounce the title, but that didn't stop the press from still publishing articles about what she would be like as a princess.
Elphaba slowly looked up at him. "Would it?"
"I… wouldn't like it to be."
"Are… are you asking if you want to be… boyfriend and… girlfriend?"
"Do you want to be?"
Elphaba sighed. "We really need to stop answering each other's questions with more questions."
The prince chuckled. "We do?"
"Fiyero!"
"Yes?"
"Stop it!"
"Stop what?"
"Doing that!"
"Doing what?"
"You know what! It's driving me crazy!"
The prince smirked as he sat next to the green girl and pulled her close. "Is it?"
Elphaba pushed his face away from hers, but he pushed her hand away and gently pressed his lips against hers. She was surprised, but quickly melted into the kiss, wrapping her arms around his neck. Fiyero responded by wrapping his arms around her waist and pulling her even closer. They eventually pulled apart, their breath mixing together. Elphaba was blushing deeply, brushing a section of hair behind her ear.
"Yero," she whispered, resting her head against his chest.
"Fae," he whispered back.
"Fae?"
"That's been your nickname in my head for quite some time."
"Where did you come up with that?"
"'Fiyero and Elphaba' is F.A.E. Fae. I'm creative, I know."
"What?"
"It sounds cute, so I'm sticking with it. Don't ruin the moment."
"At least I stuck with something closer to your name and not an acro-"
He stopped her by kissing her again. "Didn't I tell you not to ruin the moment?" he mumbled when they pulled away, their noses touching.
"Yes," Elphaba said with a slight smirk. "Forgive me."
"There's nothing to forgive."
The two cuddled in silence for a moment. "Yero?"
"Yes, Fae?"
"If the tabloids and magazines and paper say we're dating… I… wouldn't want for it to be an untrue statement."
"Are you saying you want to date just to please the press?"
"No… quite the opposite, actually. I'm saying that… I like spending time with you. You've understood me throughout this whole process better than Galinda and Nessa could. And I'm not saying that I'm ungrateful to them. It's just they don't understand what it feels like to have to do all… this."
He grinned. "Is this you giving me permission to formally court you?"
Elphaba rolled her eyes. "You're an idiot for using such an old fashioned word like 'court', but yes."
The prince stood and bowed deeply before kissing the back of her hand. "I graciously thank you, Your Royal Highness. I vow to be the most chivalrous and swankified swain in all of Oz."
Elphaba bit back a chuckle, but decided to play along. "The privilege is all mine, Your Royal Swankified Swaininess."
Meet me in the lab room after lunch.
Fiyero stared at the note before briefly glancing up at Elphaba. She never passed notes during class, so this must have been important.
Okay, he scribbled before slyly sliding it back to her.
After lunch, he arrived in the lab to find Nessa and Galinda already there, looking just as confused as he was.
"Do you know what this is about?" Nessa asked after greeting the prince as he sat down on a high stool.
"No idea. Fae slipped me a note during class. And she never passes notes."
"This must be serious."
"This must be about her big decision," Galinda suggested.
"I thought she had until August."
"She does, but that doesn't mean she can't decide early."
"We'll just have to wait for her to come and find out."
As if on cue, Elphaba came in and closed the door behind her.
"Hi, Fabala," Nessa smiled, having not seen her sister since the previous day.
"Hi," Elphaba smiled, clearly distracted about something as she put her bag down on the table. "Thanks for meeting me here."
"It must be pretty serious since you were passing notes during class," Fiyero said, and Nessa raised an eyebrow at the green girl.
"Yeah. I just wanted you three to be the first to know."
"First to know what?" Galinda asked, though she already had a good idea.
"This is about my decision to become the official heir to Oz."
They all held their breath, waiting for Elphaba to finish.
"After weighing all of the pros and cons, I have decided…"
"Yes?" Galinda asked eagerly when Elphaba paused.
"I have decided to… to accept."
The tension in the room immediately vanished. Fiyero beamed and Galinda squealed as she wrapped her arms around her best friend. Nessa grinned at her sister, wiping a tear from her eye.
"That's Ozmazifying, Elphie!" the blonde smiled, releasing the green girl and allowing her to hug her sister. "I'm so happy for you!"
"It wasn't an easy decision," Elphaba said as she accepted a kiss from her boyfriend. "I thought about all the power and responsibility, and if something went wrong, how easy it would be to blame me. But I still have to try. Going to that shelter really helped me to see the difference I could make not just here, but in all of Oz."
"Did you write to the Wizard?" Nessa asked.
Elphaba shook her head. "I still have to respond to his last letter. I'll include this in there. Also, this news doesn't leave this room. And that doesn't mean you bring people into this room to tell them." The latter part was directed at Galinda.
"Why are you all looking at me?" the blonde asked, glancing around at her friends.
"Why do you think?" Nessa asked, raising an eyebrow.
"I promise not to breathe a word to anyone," Galinda said like it was obvious.
Elphaba nodded and slowly relaxed. "This is going to send all of Oz into a field day."
"Let them have a field day," Fiyero said, wrapping his arm around her shoulders. "Oz deserves to celebrate having a new princess."
"He's right," the blonde smiled, taking her best friend's hand.
"That sounds wonderful," Elphaba said, only half-sarcastically.
The four friends laughed and walked out together, with the news staying behind in the lab. The Wizard's response to Elphaba's letter came the week after she sent it. It also included some more news.
"Celebrating your twenty-first birthday in the palace! I love that idea!" Galinda beamed after Elphaba read her the letter.
"It sounds like he was trying to phrase a suggestion as an invitation," Elphaba said with a look the blonde couldn't quite identify. "And instead of waiting until August, he wants to present me as the official heir to Oz then."
"What's wrong with that? You wrote to him to tell him you want to be his official heir."
"I know. But what if I have second thoughts afterward? What if I can't do the job? What if I make a mistake? What if I can't fix that mistake? What if I –"
"What if you're the best ruler Oz has ever seen? What if you make a difference for the better?" Galinda countered.
"You've been spending too much time with me," Elphaba said through a smile.
"You say that like it's a bad thing," the blonde chuckled, then hugged her friend. "All of Oz will join the festivations. Just think: celebrations throughout Oz that's all to do with you."
Elphaba looked at the letter again. "He wants to throw a big ball at the palace. I never had a birthday party before, and I don't want to celebrate my birthday with a bunch of strangers."
"We could have a small get-together earlier that day," Galinda suggested. "Just you, me, Fiyero, Nessa, and The Wizard. The big party would be later that night. Hosting and attending big parties is just another part of your future. Plus, I know you didn't learn all those different dances to not put them to good use."
"You're right," Elphaba sighed, folding the letter and putting it back in the envelope.
"As usual, I know," the blonde nodded, tossing her hair over her shoulder before going back to her bed. "And speaking of parties, there's an end-of-winter dance at the Ozdust at the beginning of next month. We should go."
Elphaba sighed. "Glin –"
"Please, Elphie?"
"What is the point of an end-of-winter dance? We're going to have a spring dance four weeks later."
"It's to say goodbye to winter and welcome spring."
"I'm sure spring will feel welcomed even if we didn't have a dance."
"Will you please come? It'll be so much fun."
"I don't want to attend more parties than I have to."
"Okay," Galinda said slowly, pulling her training wand from under her bed.
"What are you doing?" Elphaba asked, watching as Galinda went over to her closet.
"Now, are you going to come to this party, or am I going to have to turn all of your clothes pink?" She waved her wand and pointed it at one of Elphaba's dresses. Nothing happened. Frowning, she lightly slapped it against her leg before trying again. Still nothing. "Is this thing on?"
Elphaba couldn't help but laugh. Some things never change. "Alright. I'll go to the dance. If only to stop you from changing the color of my entire wardrobe."
"Good," Galinda said, hitting the wand against her bed, still trying to turn it on. The familiar magic sparkles danced at the tip and the blonde smiled before pointing it at the green girl, changing her uniform into a short, frilly, pink dress.
"GALINDA UPLAND!" Elphaba gasped, jumping up and looking at her new outfit. "WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!"
"Pink goes good with green!" the blonde laughed, her arms wrapped tightly around her waist as she doubled over.
"I am going to end. Your. Life," the green girl growled, her face devoid of all expressions other than murderous.
Galinda squeaked as Elphaba lunged at her and ran around the room, still laughing. She knew her life was most likely in danger, but the sight of her best friend wearing her favorite party dress completely took the fear from her body. She pointed her wand at her again and this time, Elphaba's hair curled and was pulled into two pigtails, both tied with matching pink ribbons.
"You will pay for this!" Elphaba hissed, still chasing the blonde about the room. "Change my clothes and hair back now!"
"But you look like a princess!"
"And you're going to look like a fruit fly when I catch you!"
"You mean if you catch me," the blonde smirked, throwing open the door to their room and running out. She knew her roommate wasn't going to leave the room looking like that.
"You're soooooo dead!" Elphaba shouted down the hall before closing the door and locking it behind her. Sighing, she looked down at the pink dress before hurriedly taking it off and putting on another uniform, and pulled the ribbons out of her hair.
When I'm queen, Elphaba thought as she sat down on her bed, glaring at the dress. I'm outlawing the color pink.
Yes, Elphaba finally accepted the job! And when she becomes queen, Galinda will have to find a new color that goes with green.
