AN: Yeah, I kind of liked the previous chapter myself. And I love hearing/reading your favourite lines. It makes me smile :).

BlueD: Actually, no, I didn't know that xD. We're always way behind on the USA when it come to movies and stuff... it'll probably come out here later :3.

EmeraldReine: Thank you so much! ^_^ Though I really think you should sleep, it's still nice to hear.

Musicgal3: I loved your review, as always. And there were a lot of 'Oh no''s in there :P.

Fae Tiggular: Don't feel relieved too soon... *smirk*

Mbak Sanca: For no apparent reason... should I be offended? :P No, just kidding - thank you!

Chapter 10. Should Have Stayed Up High

'I love you.'

'I'm not listening.'

'I bet you are. I love you.'

'Shut up, Fiyero. I'm trying to sleep.'

'I loooooove you!' he declared in a sing-song voice. She groaned. 'Well, you haven't changed at all. Still annoying and obnoxious.'

'And in love with you.'

'Would you stop it?'

'Fae, please talk to me.'

Her head shot up at the old nickname, eyes narrowing to dark slits. 'Don't call me that.'

'Elphaba…'

'I'm sleeping.'

'What happened to 'talking this out like adults'?'

''Adults' being the key word. Since the conversation would include you, it's a lost cause before it even started.'

'Come on. Please. I really do love you.'

'Don't say that!'

'Love-love-love-love-love-love-ouch!' He rubbed his arm, where she had punched him. 'What was that for?' he demanded, and she looked at him in exasperation. 'Do you really have to ask?'

He was silent for a while. After she had come over to him to punch him, she had perched herself onto the cot with him instead of returning to her bench. Granted, she had still scooted as far away from him as possible, but still. He considered it a hopeful sign.

Neither of them said anything and they didn't look at each other, just sat at different ends of the cot. Finally, Elphaba opened her mouth and muttered something.

'What was that?' he asked, jerked away from his thoughts, and she repeated reluctantly, 'Thank you.'

He was amazed. 'For what?'

'Saving Nessa for me.'

'Oh.' He felt like dancing – for her, he knew, this was a huge step. 'You're welcome.'

They fell silent again, until he offered, 'If you want to sleep, you can have the cot.'

She sounded surprised when she replied. 'Oh, no, thank you. I'll just… stay awake.'

He rolled his eyes, even though she couldn't see that. 'Come on, Fae, just sleep on the damn cot. I'll sleep on the floor.'

'No, that won't be necessary,' she insisted. 'I slept on floors many times before. I'll be fine.'

Silence again. He thought about her words and realised that to some extent, she had been right before. He didn't really know her; not anymore. So much had happened in the past two years, so much that he hadn't taken part in… 'Tell me about your life.'

She sounded surprised – and slightly wary - once again. 'What?'

'Tell me about your life,' he repeated. He shifted a little, resting his back against the wall. 'What you do. Who your friends are. Let me get to know the new and improved Elphaba Thropp.'

She snorted. 'I don't think she's someone you really want to know, Fiyero.'

'Humour me.'

'Fine.' She sighed. 'What do you want to know?'

'You could start by telling me what exactly happened after you and Glin left for the Emerald City,' he suggested, and she did. She told him about their one wonderful day in the City and their visiting the Wizard, and what had happened once they got there. He listened without interrupting her and when she finished, they stayed quiet for a while.

'It must have been hard,' he said then. She shrugged. 'Some parts were harder than others.'

'Which parts?'

She bit her lip. 'Leaving Nessa behind was the worst,' she said quietly. 'Leaving… Shiz in general, I guess. Not that I had so many friends there, and especially since Glinda was going with me, there weren't many people I missed… but just the fact that I would never finish my education, that all my dreams had shattered before my eyes… that kind of hurt.'

He nodded, understanding. He decided not to comment on the fact that she just told him about something that had hurt her in the past – he got the feeling that she was slowly starting to open up to him and he didn't want to mess that up. 'And being declared a Wicked Witch?'

'That wasn't really fun, either,' she said sarcastically, and he laughed a little. 'But it's not too bad,' she continued. 'Especially in the City, people aren't very wary of me. They all seem to think the green is just paint. It's a fashion statement around here, so it's not uncommon.' She shrugged again. 'That's the main reason Glin and I decided to stay here, in the City. We've been hiding right under the Wizard's nose for the past two years.'

'Clever.' He rested his head back against the wall as they lapsed into silence once again. Again, he was the one breaking the silence. 'Are you sure you don't want to talk about me lov-'

'I'm sure.'

'Okay.' He closed his eyes, since it was pitch black in the cell anyway. 'It can wait.'

He knew she would be too curious to let it slide, and he turned out to be right. 'How long?' she asked softly after a while, and he didn't have to ask what she meant. 'Since the Lion Cub.'

'Oh.' Hey, that annoying voice in her head said perkily, that's about the same time you fell in love with him! Coincidence, huh? Now would you go and tell him already?

Never. 'Do you ever have conversations with yourself in your head?' she asked abruptly, and he chuckled at her sudden question. 'All the time. Why? Is part of you trying to tell the other part of you something?'

'Something like that,' she said reluctantly, but to her relief, he didn't interrogate her further. They lapsed into silence again.

'I know you don't want to talk about it, but-'

'Then don't.'

'Why won't you believe me?'

'Because it's impossible. You can't love me. I don't want you to love me. Go away.'

'Never.'

'Dramatic playboy prince.'

'Stubborn green girl.'

She glared at him. 'I'm not stubborn.'

He snorted a laugh. 'No, of course not. And I'm the Wonderful Wizard of Oz.'

'You should be glad you're not. If you were him, I'd be strangling you with my bare hands right now.'

'I thought you already felt like murdering me.'

'I did. But there are people I hate even more than I hate you.' She let out a soft groan. 'I wish the Wizard was in here with me now… even if I don't have any weapons at my disposal, it still wouldn't be pretty, I can assure you that.'

'You really hate him, don't you?' he asked. She rolled her eyes at him. 'Do I hate the man who destroyed my life? Let me think about that.' She tapped her chin in mock thoughtfulness. 'Um… yes, I do,' she finished, grinding her teeth.

He flushed a little. 'Sorry. That was a really stupid thing to say.'

She didn't say anything. A grin tugged at the corner of his mouth. 'Oh, come on, just say it. I know you want to.'

'No, I don't,' she snapped. 'I'm not going to tell you that it wasn't a really stupid thing to say, because it was a really stupid thing to say. You are really stupid!'

His smile faded – that genuinely stung a little. 'Ouch.'

'I'm sure your oversized ego can handle it,' she sneered, before moving away from him. He hissed in annoyance. 'Fine. Turn away again. Go ahead and push! That's what you do best, isn't it? Chasing people away? Especially the ones you care about?'

'Are you implying that I care about you?' she inquired, and he shot at her, 'Your words, not mine!'

Her eyes narrowed. 'I don't care.'

'Keep telling yourself that,' he snarled. 'I don't even know why I'm taking the effort. I love you, Oz dammit, and all you do is pushing me away!'

'Of course I push you away!' she shouted, jumping to her feet, eyes flaming even in the scarce light. 'You really don't understand it, do you? Have you got any idea what it's like when the entire country wants you dead?' she demanded, planting her hands on her hips. 'When the very leader of Oz pronounced you a Wicked Witch, and your best friends, as well? When your own sister betrays you? When everyone you meet, every stranger you bump into, might recognise you any minute and run away, screaming for the Gale Force? Have you got any idea what it's like to be on the run all the time, never feeling safe anywhere? Knowing that it's your fault your best friend is a fugitive, that you hurt your sister because you chose a greater cause over her? Over family? Knowing that the one man you love ended up all alone because of you? No! You don't know anything about…' Her voice trailed away when she realised she had slipped up. For a clock-tick, she hoped he hadn't noticed; but of course he had.

'Elphaba.' He slowly inched closer to her, approaching her as if she were a wild animal. She eyed him warily, but didn't flinch or bolt, not even when he reached out and gently touched her hand. 'Fae. You're right,' he said quietly. 'You're completely right. I have no idea what that is like.' He took her hand in his now, carefully lacing their fingers together. She didn't pull away.

'I shouldn't have said that,' he continued. 'I'm sorry. I understand why you can't trust anyone, I really do. But I promise you that you can trust me.'

'A promise isn't enough,' she whispered, eyes never leaving him, watching him vigilantly as he moved closer. 'Then let me show you,' he whispered back, and before her mind could even process what was going on, he was kissing her. He was all over her, fingers tangled in her hair and cupping her face, hands moving to her waist and sliding over her back, arms enclosing around her, and his lips pressed against hers. She kissed him back fervently, shoving all reasonable thought aside, locking her arms around his neck.

'I don't love you,' she breathed between kisses as he pushed her against the wall to get a better angle at her neck. He kissed the soft skin there and she arched her neck to give him better access. 'I know,' he murmured, still kissing almost feverishly, and she stopped him for a moment with one hand held up. 'I'm serious,' she said, her lips already swollen from all the kissing. 'I don't love you.'

'You don't have to.' He started kissing her again, deeply, and her eyes closed on their own accord as she melted into him almost inadvertently. It was amazing what he could do to her with a single touch… but she didn't love him. She really, really didn't love him.

Liar.

She told the voice in her head to go and do something very inappropriate and just kissed him back, her mind void of all normal thought. At least, that's what she thought. Unfortunately, her brain wasn't that easy to shut off.

She pulled away again. 'I really don't love you,' she stressed, and he groaned. 'Whatever you want, Fae.'

'But I'm-'

'Would you stop talking? You're ruining the mood.'

'What mood?' She immediately pulled away and scrambled backwards, eyeing him suspiciously. 'You didn't think I was going to sleep with you, did you? Because I wasn't planning to. Not now and not ever, and certainly not in a disgusting icy cold prison cell-'

'Oz, Fae, I'm not expecting you to sleep with me!' Frustrated, he ran his fingers through his hair. 'You must be the most confusing woman I've ever met!'

She arched an eyebrow. 'Is that so?'

'Yes! Confusing and impossible and… and…' Beautiful. But he didn't want her foot in his groin, so he didn't say that out loud. 'You're like… a butterfly spinning around a sword. You're a tease, you know that? You're just daring me to lash out, but once I do, you get mad at me and pretend it's all my fault!'

'It is your fault! I'm not teasing you!'

'Oh, Master head councillor,' he mimicked her in a high voice, fluttering his eyelashes. 'Of course you can poke your tongue into my mouth and grab me everywhere you want to!'

She flushed. 'I didn't do that!'

'He did, and you didn't stop him!'

'It's my job, Fiyero! And it's not like you have a right to say anything about it!'

'No.' He sank down onto the cot, his hand in his hair. 'You know what?' he said finally. 'You're right. I don't.' He shook his head. 'Fine, then. I'm giving up.' He sighed and curled up on the cot. 'I don't know what to do anymore, Fae. You don't believe me when I tell you I love you and you've made it very clear that you don't want me anywhere near you, so… the moment we'll get out of here, you'll be rid of me. Just like you want. I'll just go back to the Vinkus, find myself a wife like my parents expect me to… forget about you, even though I'm pretty sure that's impossible, but I can try.' He was talking to the wall now, his back turned towards her, curling a bit more into himself. Hot tears were stinging his eyes, but he didn't want her to see them. For two years, he had looked everywhere for her. He was willing to give up everything, everything he had once had and could ever have, just to be with her. He loved her more than anything in the world. Even now, even when she turned him away and snapped at him and treated him like garbage. Her mere presence caused butterflies to flutter around in his stomach… but she made it clear that she didn't feel the same way about him, and he would have to respect that.

Elphaba, for her part, was baffled by his surrender. She bit her lip, that stupid voice in her head screaming at her. Go to him! Apologise! Tell him you love him, Elphaba, before it's too late! You don't want to lose him!

She didn't protest. It was true, after all: she didn't want to lose him. But wasn't that exactly why she had to let him go? Wasn't it bad enough that she had endangered her best friend? Should she endanger the man she loved as well? What did she have to offer him? She had no real home. She barely had any money to feed and clothe herself properly. She was a wanted fugitive, constantly in danger. Even if she could open up her heart and let him love her, she wouldn't do it. She wouldn't let him get hurt because of her. It was better to hurt him now, like this, to make him think she didn't love him, than to allow something much worse to happen to him if he went with her.

You're like… a butterfly spinning around a sword.

'I'm like a butterfly,' she whispered, drawing her knees up to her chest, hugging them close to her body. 'Spinning around a sword as if to dare…' Was she daring him? Honestly? What was she doing?

If you're a butterfly, you should have stayed up high. Away from the sword and away from the ground. You knew it was dangerous, yet you inched closer every time. It's your own fault, you know. Why don't you just give in?

I can't!

It's not that hard. Just walk up to him and say 'I love you, too'. Four little words. That's all there is to it.

She bit her lip. She couldn't. She was torn between giving in to her feelings and giving in to her sensible mind, and she didn't know what to do. She usually listened to her mind – it tended to be right about most things – but right now, she was being pulled down into a whirlwind of emotions, and that scared her. She had never been an emotional person. Ever. She had always kept her emotions carefully in check, except for when it came to her sister – then she'd lose control sometimes. And that one day with the Lion Cub. That had been the first time, perhaps, that she had really let her guard down, that she had let herself feel and even showed her feelings to someone else – with the possible exception of Glinda, the night they had become friends.

Around him, it was hard to stay in control. She didn't want to love him, but she couldn't help it, and that scared her beyond reason. 'It's stronger than me…' she whispered, and Fiyero moved a little on the cot, though he didn't look at her. 'What?'

'My gravity.' My, now she was getting poetic. What was happening to her?

Fiyero stirred again, adjusting his position a little, but still facing the wall. 'I thought you said you defied gravity.'

A wry smile tugged at the corners of her lips. 'I'm a woman full of contradictions.'

He sniffed in agreement. 'You could say that.'

She almost laughed out loud. Yes, she defied gravity – in the literal sense. She could fly and it felt wonderful. But he… he was like a magnet, pulling her to him despite her struggles. If his love was her gravity, then it truly was stronger than her.

Wait. What? No! I can't give in! I won't!

Just do it already! Only now did she notice that the voice in her head sounded an awful lot like Glinda. She huffed. Perhaps the blonde had rubbed off on her more than either of them had thought.

Suddenly, she heard a soft sound coming from the bed, and her head shot up. 'Fiyero?'

The sound stopped. She narrowed her eyes suspiciously. 'Are you… crying?'

An indignant huff. 'No.' But she knew he was, and suddenly, guilt washed all over her. 'Oh, Yero…'

Something broke inside of her, her resolve crumbling, and she crawled over to the bed and lay down with him, snaking her arms around his waist. He turned, surprised, and with a pang she noticed that his eyes were indeed red and puffy. In an impulse, she leaned forward and gently kissed each of his eyelids. 'I'm sorry,' she whispered. 'I didn't mean… I mean, I just…' She wanted to tell him, she did, but she just couldn't. The words wouldn't leave her lips.

He looked at her, his azure blue eyes unreadable. 'I take back what I said before. You're not the most confusing woman I've ever met.'

She arched an eyebrow. 'I'm not?'

He shook his head. 'You're the most confusing woman ever in existence.'

'Should I be offended?'

He shrugged. 'I'll leave that up to you.' He looked at her again, trying to get to the bottom of her, but he couldn't see past those beautiful dark brown eyes. She remained a mystery to him and she frustrated him to no end. Suddenly, he felt incredibly tired. 'What do you want from me, Fae?'

She bit her lip. 'I… I don't know.' And that was the truth. What did she want from him? She had no idea. She didn't know what she was doing and she didn't know what she should do next, and that scared her. She was always in control, she always knew exactly what she had to do, in every imaginable situation. But now…

Now, for the first time, Elphaba Thropp didn't have the faintest clue as to what she should do.

The butterfly spinning around a sword - should have stayed up high - gravity thing is from a song. Virtual chocolate cake for those who know which one, because it's not really well known, but I love the song.