Glinda wasn't sure exactly how long she sat crumpled on the ground. Something in her mind felt sure that Elphaba had been snatched and tortured because of her, and she didn't even try to fight the idea. Her tears ran through her fingertips as her head sat heavy in her hands.

She heard the slightest crunch of footsteps on stone. She glanced up briefly, her tear-stained eyes blurring as she searched through the darkness for the source of the sound. All she could see was black - black sky, black ground, black vegetation surrounding her. Her eyes strained and managed to make out the shape of a person. She was shaking from her tears - and now from fear - yet she managed to brandish her handbag in front of her as a shield, or, if need be, a weapon.

"Come out," she whispered, her voice trembling. She cleared her throat and repeated herself, louder and stronger. "Come out, whoever you are. Show yourself!"

The figure's paces increased, the sound of footsteps echoing in the dark night. They sounded determined, as though desperate to reach her. Glinda watched as the figure came ever closer, yet she still couldn't determine what her visitor looked like, or even what gender. Before she knew it, they were right in front of her. Glinda was scared to look up.

"Glinda?" a familiar voice asked.

Glinda's head snapped up, and she rubbed her neck as the sudden movement irritated it. "ELPHIE!" She squeaked, and jumped up, hugging her friend.

Elphaba was taken aback at the sudden outburst. "Why were you on the ground? I thought we agreed to meet over there." She pointed to a small clearing only about 10 metres away.

Glinda stared at her, making Elphaba feel uncomfortable. "What?" the green girl asked, confused.

"I thought I'd lost you," Glinda whispered, barely audible.

Elphaba was now truly stumped. "Glinda, you saw me 5 minutes ago! You said you'd come and meet me out here. Did something happen?" Elphaba's slight outburst suddenly softened as she looked Glinda over quickly.

"No, no, I just...didn't look hard enough, I guess."

But Elphaba knew there was more that Glinda wasn't sharing. Her face was pale, even in the darkness. She decided to press further.

"Why did you think that you had lost me? I can tell you mean more than just a slight vision problem."

Glinda debated whether to show Elphaba the newest letter or not. It would torture her, she knew that. The words still mulled over and over in her mind. That command, that threat.

'Step down, and your friend will remain alive. You don't, he will die - along with your other friend.'

It was clear who that other friend was, and she didn't want Elphaba to have anything more on her already-crowded plate. No, the letter could remain hidden for the night. If the need arose, she would show her the letter.

But she could never show her to photograph.

"Look, we better go," Elphaba suggested, thinking she wouldn't get any more out of the blonde. She seemed unusually quiet, but she wouldn't pull at that thread until the opportune moment.

Glinda nodded. They began to walk determinedly away from the Emerald Gate, the Emerald City, and the place Glinda the Good called home.

-Wicked-

Glinda was already complaining after 2 hours. 5 minutes after they had left the Emerald City, Glinda felt the need to create conversation, and began to question Elphaba, and when her answers were short and unhelpful, she just talked aimlessly herself. Elphaba let her, smiling on the inside. It was just like old times - Glinda the talkative and intuitive, Elphaba the silent and witty, speaking only when extremely necessary.

After Glinda got bored of commenting on anything she saw, she began to complain - that her legs and feet were sore, that she needed water, that it was too hot. Elphaba shook her head slightly with every complaint, sniggering slightly. Glinda caught her once.

"What's so funny?" she asked, her tone annoyed. "Is my headache humorous?"

Elphaba laughed, aloud this time. "I'm sorry, Glinda. But you were the one who forced me to allow you to come."

"Yeah, so?"

She chuckled. "You haven't changed."

"And what's that supposed to mean?" she asked, stopping and folding her arms, her old pout forming on her porcelain face.

Elphaba decided to ignore the question, and they spent the next hour in silence. They both took in the brilliant dawn that was beginning to rise, flaring out streaks of pink and orange. But, as Elphaba had expected, Glinda couldn't keep quiet any longer, and was soon back to her bubbly self.

At one point, Glinda asked a question that Elphaba had to ask herself.

"How do you know where you're going? There's no path."

Elphaba stumbled on the answer. "I-I don't know. It's almost as if my mind's leading me towards him. It just feels right."

"Well, ok then," Glinda finished, unsatisfied with the answer, but continued on anyway.

Elphaba immediately noticed when Glinda stopped talking. She had been silent for over 5 minutes now. She turned her head slightly to see if she was alright. As she had thought, Glinda wasn't. Her eyelids were drooping, and her head had tilted forward slightly, as though she were ready to stumble and drop at any moment.

"A break?" she suggested, and they both gladly toppled down on a pile of soft grass. It was a relief to rest their aching feet.

"Why don't you have a sleep, Glinda?" Elphaba softly suggested, noticing how worn the blonde looked.

But the stubborn woman shook her head. "We have to find Fiyero, Elphaba. Don't let me hold you back."

Elphaba laughed slightly. "Well, we won't get far with you looking like that, now, will we?" She emptied the contents of her bag and slid it behind Glinda, indicating for her to use it as a pillow. Glinda smiled at her, before positioning herself until she was comfortable and closing her eyes. A gentle snore filled the air within a few minutes.

Elphaba felt as awake and energised as a newborn animal exploring for the first time. She was slightly annoyed about this rest-stop, but she didn't want Glinda collapsing on her on the voyage. She took in the scenery around her - the brilliant emerald trees, the bluebirds singing at the top of their lungs, the crickets flitting through the grass. It was ironic that this beautiful scenery was surrounding them as they were on a journey to rescue a man from death.

Elphaba picked up the Grimmerie, and began to flick through the pages, waiting for her best friend to wake up.

Yeah, for some reason I imagined Glinda to still be the talkative girl she was. Reviews are appreciated :)