Thanks to Beagle, Ink, DEFiiANCE, Elphaba1fan, ElianaMargalit, Candy and Millimagpie for reviewing the previous chapter.

Also extra, extra, extra thanks to Mirrabellakarie and crazybeagle both who nominated this for the Wicked fanfiction awards – I literally spent about five minutes staring at the screen in shock before deciding you both must be mental (in the best of ways but have you seen how many stories there are that are so much better than mine?) but it did make my day :D

Perhaps on a better day she would have complained that white dresses clashed horribly with green skin, but on a better day she wouldn't be in this situation at all. So while Elphaba was being surprisingly passive to the annoying tailors, poking and tightening tape measures around her body, her mind was whurring.

Avaric, curse that fiend! What right did he have to ruin everything, for his own gain, when her life was actually going right for once? Well she wasn't going to let him win – that much was for sure – unfortunately he had her in a rather tight corner… but there must be a way out of this – surely? It would be almost be tempting to kill him, with someone like Avaric it seemed almost reasonable, but someone would probably notice his absence. Using that spell to turn him into a frog would be amusing too – but it only lasted twelve hours and after that the joke would probably wear off pretty rapidly.

So if she couldn't get rid of him, there was only one other option – she needed to get rid of herself, but even that was harder than it seemed. If she simply disappeared Avaric would guess that she had run off to live with Fiyero, her father's men would hunt her down in no time, Avaric would marry Nessa and she and Fiyero wouldn't even be dug graves. She needed a way to go without Avaric knowing she was gone. A thought struck her – it was simple – Avaric wouldn't stop pursuing her until she was dead, so she would be – or at least she would appear to be…

By the time evening was falling and the tailors had finally declared her dress 'perfect' her plan was fully formed in her mind. She was sure it would work – well it had too – otherwise she would loose everything.

She entered her chamber – glad that Glinda and Nessa were apparently not back from having their bridesmaids' dresses prepared. She went to her bookshelf, took out her largest spell book and began to leaf through its musty pages…

Half an hour later she was ready. She snapped her book shut just as Glinda skipped through the door.

"Ooooh, Elphie! My dress is soooo prettyful! You should see it! It's all pink and lacy and shiny. Oh, but Elphie, how about your dress? I simply must see it – it must be the most beautiful thing in all Oz! Can I see it now?" she said, so fast that Elphaba had to take a few seconds to decipher it.

Glinda, how had she forgotten to account for her? She would miss her more than she could ever comprehend, these past few days she had spent so much time thinking about Fiyero that she had completely forgotten just how much she loved Glinda. Elphaba felt her resolve weakening… no! There was so much more at stake here than the feelings of Glinda, Fiyero and her – it was about the fact that there were thousands of Munchkins who would potentially fall under the control of a cruel, cunning and self-centred ruler. And… well… ok it was about her as well, she wanted to live, not just to survive married to a man who could, and would, blackmail her into doing anything.

"Elphie please? It is pretty isn't it?"

Elphaba shrugged, "I never looked good in white."

Glinda tutted in disbelief, "Honestly Elphaba, you're going to be beautiful, I know it, and you really need to develop a fashion sense too – you're going to be a married woman tomorrow!"

"Don't remind me," Elphaba grumbled.

Finally seeing her friend's attitude, Glinda stopped peaking in all of Elphaba's cupboards in a desperate attempt to find the dress, and looked at her sadly, "Look Elphie, I know it's hard to give up Fiyero but it's the right thing to do, right? I know you, you must have agreed to this because you believe it's the best way to help your province and you being the smart, selfless person you are I'm sure it will be. Avaric can't be that bad, I know you'll be fine."

She didn't have the strength to contradict Glinda's delusions about her fiancé – he certainly was that bad – nor did she want to admit that her reasons for agreeing to this marriage were hardly selfless and that if she had anything to say in it the marrige would not go ahead at all.

Instead she sighed, "You're probably right Glin," she forced a smile on her face. "Ok, I'll show you the dress, do you want to lend me something borrowed?"

Glinda's squeals were answer enough.

But even fashion talks don't last forever when you want them to, too soon Glinda inadvertently reminded her of how little time together they had left.

"But Elphie, we must stop now, you need your beauty sleep on tonight of all nights! And remember – this will be the last day you're in this bedroom!"

Well that would be true, even if not in the way Glinda meant it.

"I'll miss you Glinda."

"Oh, don't be so silly Elphie!" came the reply – chirpy as usual, "I'm sure we'll still see each other loads and loads and loads, if not just as much as usual! Anyway, it doesn't matter because we'll still be bestest friends for ever and ever, won't we Elphie?"

How could she answer a question like that? "You'll look after Nessa for me, won't you?"

"Of course!" her friend's face turned serious, "Don't worry so much about her Elphie – I'm sure she'll forgive you soon – she's just a little shocked about everything that's happened in the last few days…"

"I know, I know," she sighed, "just Glinda if… anything happens to me, make sure you look out for her, become one of her advisers, make sure she's a good ruler and if she has to marry Avaric make sure he doesn't boss her about and… and," her voice broke as she concealed her tears from her, "tell her to always remember that I love her. Promise me you'll do that – tell her that Glin?"

"Elphie, what's gotten into you?"

"Promise Glinda?"

"Alright I promise, but I don't understand…"

She pulled her face into a grimace, "Oh nothing, pre-marriage stress, I suppose," she took one final look at her best and truest friend, "Goodby… night Glinda."

"Goodnight Elphie."

As soon as she was alone in her room she went to the balcony and called for Talia, she flew to her in seconds.

"Are you ok, Elphaba?" the Bird asked kindly.

"Yeah… well sort of, look I wouldn't normally ask this of you, but it's urgent, do you think you could deliver a message to Fiyero in Ix?"

The tiny Bird nodded.

"Good, tell him to meet me at the corn exchange as soon as possible – tell him I'll be there no matter what he hears."

Talia nodded again, "I can do that."

"You're a lifesaver Talia, literally, can you be as fast as you can?"

She nodded once more then turned and flew off into the night.

There was now only one more piece of the plan to put in place; ordering one of the servants to clean a floor nearby Elphaba picked up a spare nightgown, went to stand near the trapdoor of the secret passage and muttered a spell…

Dorothy's screams brought the whole household to where she was huddled over a sodden wet, black nightgown – all that was left of Miss Elphaba. When they had calmed her down enough to speak she revealed how she was walking down the corridor with the water to clean the floor when she had tripped over what felt like an invisible bar. The water had been thrown out of the bucket and had landed on Elphaba, who had been walking down the corridor, and she had proceeded to melt before the maid's eyes.

So the rumours were true – no member of the court had any doubt that the water had melted Elphaba Thropp.

That night the bells in every mauntery in the Emerald City rung in sorrow, Elphaba Thropp – future Governor of Munchkinland, was dead.

In an abandoned corn exchange, in a small alley, a green girl smiled.