Hey guys, an update! Just wanted to request a little feedback. Reviews have slumped lately...

The next morning she slowly walked down the stairs that led to her sister's private set of rooms. Nessarose sat in her small dining room, attended by Boq who stood attention nearby, saying, "He was found very early this morning by his guards, all of whom claiming something supernatural happened to them last night. He'd been dead for hours."

Nessa cut off his explanation as her sister walked into the room, smiling blithely. "Fabala, I didn't think you were home, sit," she gestured to the empty chair beside her and motioned for Boq to fill up one of the cups with tea. Elphaba sat down but didn't take a sip of her drink.

"Home is where the heart is, isn't it?" she asked, running her fingers through her hair. Although she knew the answer, she had to ask, as nonchalantly as possible, "What's going on?"

Boq and Nessa exchanged a look, but Nessa went on to say, "The Wizard of Oz is dead, found stabbed to death in his bed this morning. Oz is in a panic."

"Yet the leader of a free-state adjacent to Oz just sits and has her tea like any other day?"

Before Nessarose's temper could flare up, Boq cut in, "Elphaba, you seem tired. Did you not get enough sleep last night?"

She glared at him- his implication was clear. "I didn't kill the Wizard, if that's what you're asking."

Nessa looked surprised at that, but just said, "Either way, it's a good thing for us. Oz is trying to come up with someone to rule in his stead, perhaps temporarily, perhaps permanently."

"Glinda." The name popped out of Elphaba's mouth before she had a chance to think about it.

Her sister frowned. "What do you mean by that?"

"Margreavess of Tenmeadows, Lady Glinda. She's well liked and respected in Oz. She's always been known to be kind and fair. Publicly she never said a word against the Wizard but privately... well, privately her views on him weren't so kind." She hadn't meant to run a mid morning political campaign for Glinda, but the idea seemed more and more perfect as she explained it. "She'll be able to fix alot of the Wizard's corrupt policies quickly, and with enough grace not to tip off those loyal to the Wizard. She's mentioned to me a desire to improve relations between Munchkinland and Oz. Increasing trade would be beneficial for Munchkinland." She grew nervous, knowing her next statement would either completely turn her sister off from the idea or sell her on it. "We've discussed the possibility of Oz re-annexing Munchkinalnd. She would let you rule how you see fit, but offer us Oz's protection. Think about it, Munchkinland is a small country with a small military. If we had Oz supporting us..."

"You feel strongly about this, don't you?"

She took a deep breath. "Nessie, Glinda is my best friend. I trust her with my life, my secrets," my child, "I trust her with all the political power in Oz."

The two sisters stared at each other for a minute, Elphaba realizing slowly how important this was. Eventually Nessarose smiled, "I think that's a good idea. Munchkinland will back Lady Glinda." Elphaba nodded, getting up to leave but her sister caught her by the sleeve. "Something's still bothering you, Fabala. What is it?"

She shook her off. "I just didn't sleep well last night. I'm going back to my room, come get me if you need anything."

---

She laid down but sleep wouldn't come to her, as it wouldn't very early that morning. Her mind kept spinning. The Wizard of Oz was her father. The Wizard of Oz was dead. Her one mission in her adult life had been to kill him, but when given the opportunity, she froze. Granted, the opportunity was not how she assumed it would be.

The Wizard of Oz was dead. Soon- whether she was a part of it or not- her sister would lose power, possibly even her life. Who would she be when it was over? Everything she had ever aspired to as a child seemed impossible now. Everything she had aspired to as an adult was ending was over. She had truly accomplished nothing- Avaric had killed the Wizard, not her. And she had no desire to take part in removing her sister from power. Her friends would be able to save Oz without her. She had just created more of a mess- taught Nessarose magic, proved incapable when given the opportunity to kill the Wizard. She'd failed even as a wife and mother, unable to fix her relationship with her husband, unable to care for her daughter. She had done nothing.

Nessarose's agreement to support Glinda was a fabulous step forward. Glinda would be a just, fair leader, and would step down as soon as it was safe to. Oz was already on the mend. Munchkinland was too- as soon as someone acted. Part of her wondered if it would be easiest, least painful if she just killed her sister herself. She would accomplish something then, make sure Nessa didn't suffer.

But she couldn't do that.

She reached into the neckline of her dress, pulling out the necklace that held her wedding ring. She didn't allow herself to entertain that possibility, knowing it would only end with someone getting very hurt, again. Still, a part of her felt very alone, a part of her wished he was near again. She cried for a bit, unable to articulate quite why and fell into an uneasy sleep and dreamed of a time long passed.

"Fabala, play with me," said the pretty, happy five year old.

Her older sister hesitated, unsure. She pulled at one of her dark braids, a nervous habit. "Papa said I'm supposed to be watching you and helping you. He doesn't like it when I play with your things. He got mad last time"

"But I want you to play with me, I said you could." She hands her sister one of her many baby dolls. "He won't get mad, I'll tell him not to. He listens to me." The pretty doll paired with her sister's attention was too much for the seven year old to resist. The two girls played, like any other pair of sisters, blissfully ignorant of what was to come, of who they would become.