Author's note: Everyone, thank you again for reading and reviewing and just generally being awesome. I'm so glad you have enjoyed the past few chapters. I wasn't going to say this until later, but, whilst graduation in chapter 14 is the official end of this story there will be a sequel coming up about Glinda and Elphie's shenanigans post-university. They are just too much fun.
In which Elphaba is up a tree
"There are books written about the perfect picnic, which is perfectly absurd," said Glinda as they arrived at their destination, a sunny field on the outskirts of Shiz, spotted with trees and inclining gently down towards the town.
"What would it say about where to pitch your picnic spot?" Nessa wondered. "Under the trees, maybe? The shade would be welcome." It was well in to spring now, warm and sunny with all the freshness of a new year.
Under the trees seemed as good a choice as any. Soon blankets and mats were spread and the whole charmed circle was happily arranged in more or less an actual circle; chatting, pouring drinks and beginning to delve in to the hampers for the food.
"There is already fly in my drink." Glinda was unimpressed.
"I am surprised there is only one." Elphaba wafted at a small cloud of flies formed in front of her face. "I can barely see for the things, I should have thought your drink would be swimming with them. Or, rather, they would be swimming in it."
Glinda giggled. "I think you might be attracting them all."
"Indeed, Elphie, do us a favour and go and sit on the other side of the field, taking these things with you so we can eat in peace." Avaric was trying his luck.
"Charming!" was all the retort he got, Elphaba being rather preoccupied. The more she talked the more likely one would end up in her mouth.
"Don't be cruel, Avaric," Glinda took up the defence. "Or I shall pour my juice over you and set you in the other field as a wasp trap."
Elphaba chuckled at Glinda's defensiveness and laid a hand on the other girl's own, ostensibly to make sure she did not carry out her threat but mostly because she just wanted to. Glinda gazed up at her and rotated her hand, causing them to come together palm to palm, and intertwined their fingers. It was going to make eating her sandwiches a trifle difficult but staring in to those blue eyes Elphaba could happily have starved.
They were interrupted by Avaric still going on. "I don't understand why Elphaba must even eat. Do you not photosynthesise?"
"You know, that would be so useful. But alas, no." Elphie's voice had taken on the high pitch and sing song quality dangerously close to Pfannee's, who shot her a glowering look, apparently able to hear even though she was set some distance away.
Boq now chimed in. "Elphie would not make a very effective plant. The first smattering of rain and the show would be over."
"I am so pleased I can provide you all with such entertainment," Elphaba grumped.
"Come now Elphie. You are a fascinating study."
"Yes but I've heard it all before you see. In fact I've heard little else for the last twenty years."
"Pssh," Nessa objected. "You attract more attention with your opinions than your colour."
"Do you think? Maybe being under so much scrutiny I decided I might as well have something interesting to say."
"Your psychology is not the point of this conversation, that would need a convention of considerably more size than we have assembled here -" Elphaba opened her mouth to dispute this somehow but Crope continued. "The question is your reaction to the elements."
"Now then Crope, perhaps you have managed to say something unique. I had only ever considered the one element. But if water burns and I am indifferent to earth... perhaps fire will have the opposite effect. Does anyone have a match?"
Tibbett appeared to actually be looking for one.
Glinda howled in protest. "There will be no Elphaban bonfires!"
"But in the name of science, Glinda!" Tibbett attempted to persuade.
After Elphaba restrained Glinda yet again the meal was eaten in good natured frivolity. Avaric cracked open some champagne and the group started to break apart in clusters, lounging around and moving to sit more in the sun.
Glinda only noticed quite how closely she and Elphie had been leaning against each other when Elphie moved.
"Where are you going?"
"To see if I can climb this tree..." But Elphie was walking around to the far side of the enormous trunk and Glinda hoped very much that she knew why. She followed.
Tucked out of sight Elphie was waiting for her, with a look on her face that gave Glinda butterflies in her stomach.
Elphaba reached out to Glinda. Just the sheer comprehension of the fact she was allowed – nay, encouraged – to reach out and touch Glinda whenever she wanted was enough to stun Elphaba in to silence for hours at a time. It didn't matter if it was only in their room or behind trees, it was still so new that each time was a revelation, each time was like the first time.
So she did reach out. She stroked Glinda's hair and touched her face, watching the fluttering eyelashes. Elphaba also watched her hand, curious, as it moved and strangely found herself thinking it beautiful, the beauty of the action rubbing off on it. As if the the smooth forearm, the bones and muscles rising and falling under the skin, the curve of the fingers did not belong to her. It was a strange sensation.
With a quick glance around the tree to the others, who were happily all very much preoccupied, Glinda pushed Elphie back against it and kissed her soundly.
When they broke apart Elphie was grinning. "Have I told you yet how much I love you? How I am just foolishly and hopelessly in love with you?"
As a matter of fact, she hadn't. Glinda kissed her again, clutching at her and pressing against her. Her hands ran along Elphie's shoulders and up her neck, then in to her hair. It would make a mess of the braid Glinda had worked on that morning but she would just do it again, it was no hardship.
Eventually pulling back Glinda saw a flash of desire that Elphie quickly replaced with that terrible mischievous look. "Now will you give me a leg up?"
"Elphie..." Glinda warned.
"No? I'll do it myself."
With a little jump and a shimmy Elphie was disappearing up in to the tree, accompanied by a yelp from Glinda.
"Elphaba!" Glinda hissed. "Get down! You'll hurt yourself."
Stood on a lower branch Elphie pointed down at Glinda and beckoned her up. Glinda pointed at Elphaba and then down at the ground, too concerned to be amused by this, though resisting the urge to stamp her foot. Elphie mouthed something that was quite possibly 'I love you' before making her way further up the tree. Glinda followed her progress, coming back round to the front towards the rest of the party.
Avaric joined Glinda in looking up in to the branches. "You see, she is part elf. I always knew it."
"Yes, it's all very funny. Now get down, you absolute goose." Glinda was firm but was not obeyed.
Crope and Tibbett appeared to think it were actually very funny and shortly they were also taking up residence in a neighbouring tree, Glinda having prevented them from going up Elphie's in case a branch should snap or some other calamity occur.
Glinda appealed to what she thought would be a voice of reason and agreement. "Really Nanny, she's like a naughty schoolgirl. Can't you do something?"
"Well, she never did go in for that at the time." Nanny mused, still clicking her knitting needles. Maybe that was where Elphaba got the habit of seemingly vacant responses from. "Let her to her fun, even if it is a decade overdue. I've never seen her so happy as this past year."
Glinda sat abruptly down on the picnic mat and thought she might actually cry with happiness over that statement. Instead Elphie waved down at her and she just waved back, unable to protest any further.
As the day wore on and the sun was began to set the air was subdued, respectful of the gorgeous evening unfolding for them. Nanny had fallen asleep propped up by a picnic basket and was snoring a little. Nessa seemed content laid on the rug watching the changing colours of the sky and clouds. Nearby Fiyero was laid on his stomach reading. Boq had wandered off to survey the hedgerows, Crope and Tibbett were still up a tree somewhere and Avaric was escorting the other girls on a little walk with Ama Clipp hot on his heels.
Elphaba had descended and returned to the earth to sit leaning against her tree. Glinda had somehow conspired to sit in between her legs, back entirely pressed against her and head resting on her shoulder. At some point Elphaba's arms had crept around Glinda's sides and she had clasped them together around Glinda's front, pinning her snugly in place. Glinda's own hands lay on bare green arms, fingertips moving slowly up and down.
"I want to stay like this forever." Elphaba barely even breathed the words and it was more that Glinda felt them than heard them. She could also feel Elphaba's heart reverberating within her, so close to her own that the two seemed to find the same rhythm. She only needed to turn her head a fraction before she was nuzzling in to Elphie's neck and could feel the furious pulse running there.
The feeling was perfection. They were so close she fancied them inseparable and there was nothing Glinda wanted more than that. "I love you," she whispered fiercely.
Elphaba shifted her a little and looked at her intently. Elphie's eyes made Glinda realise perhaps why they had never done this, why they had resisted one another for so long. It was a constant, all consuming and all encompassing love. It was all, everything. The absolute need to just possess Elphaba was so strong it was painful. Elphaba looked to be in more or less the same state.
"Glinda..." Elphaba's voice was hoarse with longing and thick with meaning.
Glinda understood though that if they were to kiss, there in that moment, they would never stop. It was a near perfect coalescence of situation and circumstance and feeling and desire and they were frustratingly and wonderfully trapped within it.
There was nothing they could do except enjoy it and trust there would be many others to come. Elphaba tightened her arms around Glinda in a bid to meld them together and Glinda pressed as many tiny kisses to Elphaba's neck as she thought the other girl could bear. They were in silent agreement that this was undeniably the way things should always be and that from now on it was exactly how things would be.