OK, so here's the next chapter. Thanks once again to my readers for the amazing amount of feedback I've been receiving. You guys rock my socks, really. So anyway, I don't want to say anything else about this chapter until after you read it. Enjoy.

The two did not return to the cave until later that evening, once the sun had begun to disappear beyond the horizon. After their run in with Lorgen, Elphaba had taken a visit to the Animal's medical center to see if there was anyone in need of help. However, most of the patient's only had minor injuries, nothing that required Elphaba to retrieve her Grimmerie. After checking up on things, they'd finally departed with Elphaba promising to return tomorrow.

They walked in silence as they returned to the cave. Elphaba seemed satisfied by another day of helping the Animals, while Fiyero was still completely in awe of what he'd seen. He could not get over the fact that this place seemed just as civilized as any other part of Oz, maybe even more so than certain regions, and yet the Wizard's goal was to stomp it out. At this point, Fiyero imagined that the world would probably be a heck of a lot nicer if people behaved more like the Animals. After all, he hadn't seen anything even remotely resembling a fight break out for the entire duration of his visit to the camp.

The two entered the cave, and Fiyero walked closer to Elphaba until his eyes adjusted to the light. Unfortunately, the fact that she was swathed in all black prevented her from providing much assistance. After what seemed like an eternity of walking around with his eyes closed, Fiyero finally bumped into Elphaba as she stopped before the entrance to the cave.

With a sweep of the hand the boulder rolled back, and Fiyero was blinded once more as the light from the cave penetrated the darkness. He wondered how on earth Elphaba's eyes had ever adjusted to changing situations so quickly. He was beginning to get a headache from the rapid switches from light to dark.

First thing upon entering the cave, Elphaba moved over to the Grimmerie and chanted a brief spell. Immediately Fiyero could feel bonds he hadn't even noticed before release him. That finished, the two were left standing awkwardly in the middle of the cave, both unsure of what to say.

Turning away, Elphaba moved to the other side of the room to hang up her cloak. Fiyero took this time to initiate an awkward conversation, "I uh…thanks for letting me tag along. It really is wrong. What the Wizard is doing, I mean. And um, I'm glad I got a chance to see that."

Elphaba turned, looking both surprised and pleased by his admission. "Yes well, ignorance seems to be the main problem in Oz right now doesn't it? People follow whatever the Wizard says blindly, not even bothering to think for themselves every once in a while. Perhaps if they actually knew what was going on they wouldn't be so ready to condemn. Of course, anyone who does fight his lies is immediately denounced, so I suppose that option isn't very appealing."

"And that's what happened to you," Fiyero said softly as Elphaba finished her rant. He'd by now come to terms with the fact that the Wizard really was exactly what Elphaba said he was. After all, how could he deny it after everything he'd just witnessed? Fiyero felt a sort of sympathy for the green woman who'd been shunned by society for doing what she believed in.

Elphaba gave him an odd look for a moment before she said, "Why are you doing this?"

Fiyero raised an eyebrow, "Doing what?"

Elphaba rephrased her question, "Why don't you hate me? I kidnapped you, I'm holding you as a prisoner, I've basically ruined your life. Why are you trying to justify that?"

Fiyero thought this over for a moment. In all honesty, he didn't know why he didn't feel more contempt for the woman in front of him. He knew that what she said was true, and yet there was something that made it hard to loathe her. Perhaps it was the fact that she'd obviously had a much harder life than he had, or the fact that she was so passionate about working for a good cause. It took Fiyero a few moments to answer the question, "I-I'm not sure. It's not your fault you kidnapped me. You didn't have a choice; I got too close to capturing you."

Elphaba looked down at her hands, "It still doesn't make much sense. Either way I'm keeping you here against your will. You're one of the Wizard's men, and you've had his principles drummed into your head your entire life. I honestly find it hard to believe that you've suddenly changed sides in less than a week."

Fiyero studied her for a moment. So that was what this was about. She didn't trust that he believed in her cause. He supposed there was some logic behind that. After all, he was a Gale Force guard whose mission it was to capture the Wicked Witch of the West. The fact that he had so readily become a part of the fight for Animal rights probably was cause for suspicion. She probably believed that he had wanted to see the Animal camp as an excuse to leave the cave and possibly find some means of escape.

Fiyero thought this over. It was true that he wanted to escape and return to his old life more than anything, but at the same time he suspected that some part of him was actually enjoying being a prisoner here. When he'd been a part of the Gale Force, he'd simply been another uniformed officer doing the Wizard's bidding and never questioning why. Now, however; he felt like there was so much that had been revealed to him in such a short period of time. He hated to admit it, but he'd changed over the time he'd been here. Gone was the empty-headed pretty boy prince, and in his place was a man who was beginning to develop principles and a mind of his own.

He turned his thoughts to the Witch herself, or Elphaba as he'd now come to know her. It was strange how much his opinion of her had changed over such a short period of time. Ever since college, he'd heard terrible stories about the Wicked Witch of the West and the way she terrorized Oz. She was an icon; the ultimate fear of every Ozian citizen. That most certainly included Fiyero. Ever since he'd first read about the woman in the papers he'd been scared out of his mind at the prospect of ever having a run in with the witch. When he'd become captain of the guard his fears had deepened, and he'd gone out on each assignment with the horrible thought that he might not come back alive.

Now that he'd actually met Elphaba, however; he couldn't believe how much time he'd wasted fearing someone who didn't actually exist. There was no Wicked Witch of the West, only a passionate, headstrong young woman who'd paid for the Wizard's shortcomings. A woman who, Fiyero had noticed, was actually quite lovely once the initial shock of her odd coloring faded.

Once again Fiyero tried to force these strange thoughts from his mind, but he found he could not. Fleetingly, he tried to think of Glinda, but the image did nothing to stop the sudden feelings from creeping up on him. It was true that he hadn't been able to stop himself from admiring Elphaba more and more since they'd been at the camp together. He'd tried his best to look the other way, to convince himself that he was only seeing these things because he was a male and she was the only human female in range.

And yet somehow, deep in the recesses of his recently activated brain, Fiyero could sense that this wasn't the case. The strange sensation he'd been experiencing around her was unlike anything he'd ever felt before, even when with Glinda. Whenever he was close to her he felt short of breath and could feel his stomach tying in knots. At first he'd written this off as the after effects of his initial fear of this woman, but now he couldn't help but think that it was something more. The thought scared him. After all, he was engaged to Glinda the Good, he had a prestigious job, and his life was nearly perfect. Surely he was not so dense that he could not see what he had.

Shaking his head, Fiyero finally broke his train of thought and came back to reality. Refocusing his eyes, he realized that he'd been silent for some time and that Elphaba was now staring at him with a curious expression on her face. Taking a breath, he took a moment to remember what they'd been talking about before he responded, "I know you may not trust me, but I honestly do believe in this cause. I don't hate you Elphaba, and I meant what I said before about you being an admirable person. I may not be happy with the current circumstances, but I know you did what was necessary to ensure your survival.''

Elphaba gave him a strange look, and her expression suddenly became unreadable. Fiyero soon became uncomfortable with this, and asked, "What?"

"Nothing, I just never thought I'd see the day one of the Wizard's guards grew a conscience," she gave him a weak smile, one which he returned after a moment.

The two lapsed into silence, though it was not as awkward as one would expect. Something about the air of the room suddenly felt odd, though Fiyero couldn't quite place what was different. He stared hard at Elphaba for a moment, as if trying to read her thoughts. For a moment he thought he saw something in her eyes. Was it just a trick of the light, or did they suddenly seem to be reflecting exactly what Fiyero was feeling at the moment? And was he just imagining it, or did their faces suddenly seem to be moving closer together?

All time in the room seemed to freeze, and the outside world completely disappeared. Fiyero suddenly completely forgot his situation and who the person sitting across from him was. All rational thought fled his mind as he suddenly leaned in and kissed the 'Wicked Witch of the West'.

Ok, I know everyone is going to want to injure me with pointy objects, but this is probably the last chapter for 2 ½ weeks until I get back from vacation. I realize this was probably the absolute worst chapter to post right before leaving, but it just worked out that way. Maybe if I have time I'll post the next chapter right before I leave tomorrow, but I'm not promising anything.

So anyway, I'm pretty sure this is a chapter most have been waiting for, so what do you think? I was trying to take this relationship slowly, but obviously I had to initiate the actual Fiyeraba somewhere. I hope it was believable and didn't feel too rushed, I'm actually pretty happy with the way it came out.

So anyways, please leave a review and tell me what you thought and I'll try my hardest to get the next chapter up by tomorrow.

S.P.