AN:

Hey, look, it's chapter 10!

I uploaded the Elphie-version's chap ten earlier today, so this really, really is the last chap I had to update!

Something I'm kinda pleased with is the fact that, spread out over all the chapters and between the two versions, there are now ca. 8,000 more words to the story! My personal goal these days is to have chapters of at least 2,000 words (I prefer 3,000+, but that does not always work with the way this story is organized) and now there is only one single chapter left with less than that. The word count per chapter might not necessarily be a marker of quality, but I find super short chapters a bit annoying as a reader, so I try to avoid them when I write.

Anyway…

Companion chapter from the Elphie-version: "A Visit by Night"

Happy reading!

xoxo MLE :3

UPDATE LOG:

This chapter was updated on: 13-06-2014

Minimal changes, so nothing that needs to be mentioned here…

Chapter Eleven: A New Home

After breakfast a carriage was ready to bring Fiyero and the captain back to the Emerald City. Captain Karders spent most of the journey reading the newspaper, while the young prince lethargically gazed out of the window, barely appreciating the passing landscape. The puppies were hidden in a satchel he had pinched from one of the camp guards.

"What a surprise," the older man remarked in a sarcastic tone, "Her Goodness made it on the front page of the Oz Times again."

Fiyero paid him no attention.

"Just look at that sweet smile!"

He flipped the paper to show him the big picture of his girlfriend.

"When are you going to propose to Miss Bubble, lad? I'd say it is about time you put a ring on that delicate finger of hers. Seal the deal before she gets impatient and finds herself some other prince."

Fiyero coughed uneasily.

"I… I don't think I'm ready for that just yet."

The captain chuckled.

"Don't be such a chicken! When I was at your age, I already had three children."

The prince's eyes widened.

"We are certainly still waiting with that!" he choked out. "Maybe ten, fifteen years?"

Karders laughed out loudly at that – and Fiyero's hilarious facial expression.

"That's what you think! Have you ever asked her before?" Still grinning he shook his head. "But seriously; she is Oz's happy little mascot and you are sooner or later going to be the captain of the guard. You two are perfect together! And I'm sure His Ozness would agree with me."

With that he resumed reading his newspaper and the two men did not exchange another word until they reached the city gates.

Fiyero had just unpacked the two Poodles and was about to fetch them some food, when Glinda came storming into his apartment.

"Fifi!" she exclaimed. "You really had me worried. Couldn't you have told me in advance that you would stay there over night? I didn't sleep a wink."

She pouted.

"Sorry Glin, I didn't know myself."

Placing her hands on her hips, she tilted her head and pursed her lips.

"I'm not entirely sure whether I should believe you, Fiyero Tiggular."

Then she noticed some movement and rushed past him, towards the bed.

"Oh my! Puppies!" she squealed. "You got me puppies! They are so gorgeous."

She picked up the little boy pup, cuddled him and turned back towards Fiyero, beaming.

"Thank you, dearest, of course I will forgive you!"

His face lost some of its colour and he nervously run a hand through his hair.

"Um Glin… I'm sorry, really… but these are no dogs, they are Dogs, you know."

At first the blonde stared at him in shock, then she studied the Poodle in her hands more closely.

"Hey here," the boy said.

"Oh, hello," Glinda stammered and blushed. "Sorry about that, little one."

Carefully she placed him back on the bed, next to his sister.

Fiyero let out a sigh.

"Look Glin, I'm sorry. But if you want, I'll get you a puppy. Or a kitten perhaps?"

"Now there is no point anymore," she huffed. "It's not so much about the doggies – although they are absolutely adorable – it's about you coming up with it by yourself!"

"Oh, I see," he said slowly, but he really did not.

She sighed.

"No, you don't. But it doesn't matter; I knew you were brainless after only one week of dating and I still stuck with you. Serves me right."

He suddenly remembered what the captain had told him about 'sealing the deal' before she would find another. But truth be told, he would prefer that. It would set an end to their relationship without any heartbreak. Even if he would never find Elphaba, he should not keep Glinda as some sort of consolation price. She deserved better than that.

"Where are these two from anyway?" Glinda interrupted his thoughts.

"Well, yesterday after that… um… 'cleaning campaign'," he said with a painful expression on his face, "the captain ordered me to escort one of the wagons to a camp. That's where I found these pups and I decided to get them out of there."

The blonde nodded.

"I see. So what are you going to do with them? We couldn't possibly keep them. Even if they would pose as dogs; someone would surely find out sooner or later."

Fiyero agreed.

"Of course. But I think I might just know the perfect place for them.

Fiyero reined in the horse he had borrowed from the Emerald Stables, pretending he had to return to the Vinkus in order to visit his sick mother. He dismounted and led the gelding for the last few hundred yards to the small settlement before him.

He smiled as he caught sight of an elderly Vixen working in her garden and some Rabbits helping an Okapi mother thatching her roof. He had been worried that he might return to see the village devastated and its inhabitants gone, but everything seemed to be well.

At first someone saw his grey horse and, believing that it could be a Horse, spread the word, until a small curious crowd had gathered at the edge of the settlement. But then a Goat spotted the man in green uniform.

"Gale Force!" the Animal shouted and everyone started to panic.

Everybody fled the scene, rushing towards their homes as quickly as possible. The Rabbits hurriedly climbed down the ladder, the last one sliding down the wooden steps on his or her belly instead.

This reaction was to be expected, the prince knew and undeterred continued his way until he reached the village. Of course he would have preferred to leave his uniform at the palace, however, this way his sudden trip had attracted as little attention as possible and overall he was much more concerned about his fellow Gale Forcer's curiosity than the Animals' distrust.

"You can come out now," he said, lifting the flap of his saddlebag. "Final stop: Peony Hills."

First the male, then the female Dog emerged from the leather pouch.

"Where is everyone?" the boy asked and Fiyero chuckled.

"I scared them to death and now they are hiding behind bared doors."

He looked around, trying to determine the house which looked most imposing, hoping it would be the home of the village leader or some other important Animal. He decided on a decently sized red house positioned almost exactly in the middle of the settlement and knocked on the green quoxwood door.

The face of an elderly Lynx with glasses appeared in the window next to the door. The Cat studied Fiyero extensively, while he patiently waited for the Animal to make up his mind. After a good twenty minutes of staring and considerations, the Lynx's face disappeared from the window and Fiyero let out a frustrated groan. He was just about to leave, when the green door suddenly opened.

"Master Tiggular, isn't it?" the Cat greeted him carefully.

"Yes," the prince answered surprised. "How do you know my name?"

"I used to work at Shiz University. For twenty years, to be exact. I was made redundant soon after Doctor Dillamond had left."

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that."

The Lynx shrugged.

"Well, it is what it is. Now. What brought you here? Since you are a friend of Miss Elphaba's I assume, or let's say hope, that you are not here for official Gale Force business."

Fiyero's eyes widened.

"You know about Elphaba? Have you seen her, is she alright?"

"We can talk about that later, the Animal tried to dampen his sudden outburst of excitement. First tell me why you are here."

The prince let out a deep sigh of disappointment, before he went to his horse to retrieve the puppies and introduce them to the Lynx.

"A while ago our captain received an anonymous tip about an illegal Animal settlement at the Peony Hills and I was sent to validate the information. I indeed found this village, but upon my return I told my superiors that the intel was bogus. When I came across the little ones, I thought that this would be a great place for them to grow up."

"Very well," the Cat nodded. "I think we still have a little bit of space in the house, so the two of them can stay with me and my wife, if that is alright."

The little Dogs agreed and so the Lynx invited them and Fiyero inside.

"Forgive me for not properly introducing myself, Master Tiggular, my name is Baldrian Lox."

"Nice to meet you, Mr. Lox." The prince shook his extended paw.

"So you said you worked at Shiz?"

"Yes, yes."

Mr. Lox took a seat on an old armchair and stared out of the window pensively.

"I used to assist various professors with their research and their lecture preparations. As time went by, more and more of them rejected my help due to my being an Animal. The last few years I only worked with Doctor Dillamond."

"Is that how you met Elphaba," Fiyero inquired.

The old Lynx smiled.

"Yes, that is how I met Miss Elphaba. And to answer your question, young man, I last saw her maybe two, three weeks ago. She comes to visit every now and then."

"She does?" Fiyero was suddenly full of hope. "Please, I need to see her! Do you know where she lives or at least when she will come next?"

Chuckling Mr. Lox shook his head.

"No and no. And even if I knew, I would not be able to tell you. I know you two used to be friends when you were at university, but I already told you more than I should have, by dropping her name."

He understood the Cat's reasoning, but that did not change the fact that he felt like his heart was constricting in his chest. He burrowed his face in his hands and groaned. Never before had he found a lead this promising. There had to be a way.

The Animal recognized his genuine despair and made him an offer.

"Come back here in exactly two months' time. I will send someone to Miss Elphaba to tell her that, if she wishes to see you, she should also come at the same time."

"Two months from today?" the prince repeated thoughtfully.

"I wish I could offer you an earlier date, but there is no point if the likelihood of the messenger finding her on time is so low. She is very difficult to get a hold on, you know."

Fiyero could have turned somersaults. He tried to remind himself that Elphaba might very well not show up, but at least there was a chance that she actually would come.

The Mantel clock above the fireplace chimed six times and suddenly Fiyero remembered that it was well about time to return to the Emerald City. He had not forgotten how angry Glinda had been this morning. He certainly did not want to repeat this experience. So he bid Mr. Lox and the puppies farewell, promising that he would return in exactly two months.

After only half an hour of travelling, the daylight grew noticeably weaker. The prince hurried his horse along, hoping that he would reach the capital before midnight.

Soon the last rays of the sun had vanished and all that was left was the pale light of the stars and the moon. Fiyero could barely see his hand in front of his face, but his gelding seemed to know where to go.

Eventually, however, his luck ran out. As he came across a slight slope, the grey horde lost his footing and stumbled, almost toppling over. Fiyero found himself sitting on the animal's neck instead of the saddle, but at least he had not been unhorsed. He inched backwards until he was back to his original position and tried to urge the gelding to get up. When his attempts remained futile, he dismounted and pulled on the animal's reins. The big horse stood within a few minutes, however, it was soon obvious that the prince would not be able to ride the beast any further: his horse was limping.

He ran a hand through his hair, but there was nothing he could do. He led his horse to the next village, which was two hours away by foot, and spent the night at the local pension.

The next morning the animal's leg was already much better and he was able to ride again, although only very slowly.

He reached the Emerald City by the early afternoon. After returning the horse, she went to his room for a change of clothing. Next he was headed for Glinda's apartment. He was not keen at all on seeing her infuriated face, but he would have to face her sooner or later, so he might as well get over and done with it.

Hesitantly, he knocked on the door. After only seconds it flew open and Glinda literally jumped into his arms.

"Fifi!" she cried cheerfully.

Now that was unexpected. Slowly and thoroughly confused, he wrapped his arms around her. After a clock-tick the blonde took a step back and showed him the widest grin.

"Guess what, Elphie was here!"

She waved a piece of paper right in front of his nose. Surprised he took it and examined the beautiful handwriting on it. It was unmistakably Elphaba's.

He smiled. Elphaba was well (at least for now) and Glinda wasn't angry. The green girl's letter had probably saved his life