Chapter 11: New Beginnings.
Elphaba woke one morning to the sound of Fiyero's snoring. She smirked and snuggled closer to him, breathing in his scent and wrapping her arms around him. He hummed in his sleep and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her closer still. She sighed happily. Life was definitely worth living. All the hardships she'd ever faced and the heartache she'd endured where now as nothing in this moment of pure happiness. Elphaba gently pushed some of Fiyero's hair out of his face and woke him by tweaking his nose.
"Good morning, sleepyhead. Sleep well?" she purred in his ear.
He smiled and kissed her forehead. "When I've got the prettiest, bestest woman in all of Oz next to me every day of my life, how can I not?"
She slapped his arm playfully and got up. "'Bestest' is not a word. I don't care how many times you and Glinda say it is, it's not. But I do appreciate the sentiment. Now get up."
Elphaba and Fiyero appeared at the breakfast table looking as happy as ever. Raga however was nowhere to be seen. Glinda looked a little worried as she glanced up at Elphaba and Fiyero.
"Where's Raga?" Elphaba asked, sitting down next to her husband and across from Glinda.
"She's in bed. She caught the flu and she's been…"
"AAAACHOOOO!"
"Doing that all morning." Glinda looked in the general direction of Raga's room as a coughing fit echoed throughout the Palace after the sneeze.
"That, doesn't sound good. I hope she feels better soon. I should check on her later," Elphaba commented as she looked at her breakfast with disgust.
Glinda noticed the look. "What's wrong? You always have eggs and blueberry pancakes in the morning."
Elphaba pushed her plate away. "I don't know why, but I have a monster craving for eggplant stew this morning."
Glinda nearly spit out her orange juice. "You what?! But you hate eggplant! Oh…"
Elphaba looked at her friend worriedly as a sly knowing smirk crossed the blonde's face. "What are you thinking, Glin?"
"You're pregnant!" Glinda shrieked. "I can't believe it finally happened! About time too! You two have been at it long enough."
Elphaba just stared at the blonde like she was nuts. "Seriously? You've been waiting for us to… have kids? This whole time? I think you've officially lost your mind, Glinda."
Glinda would not be persuaded otherwise. "Oh, please, Elphie! You've got your first craving and everything! You can't seriously deny that your pregnant."
"It's just a random craving, Glin. That alone doesn't mean I'm pregnant." Elphaba crossed her arms.
"Then we'll call the doctor. He'll tell you I'm right," Glinda declared, settling the question with her signature determined look.
Elphaba sighed in defeat. She knew Glinda would stop at nothing and so surrendered to the crazy blonde.
"Glinda could be right. You haven't had your monthly in a while either. It's a good idea for you to get a checkup, Fae," Fiyero whispered in her ear.
Elphaba sighed again. "Why do you have to be so right about this?"
"Why do you have to be so stubborn?" he teased.
That made Elphaba smile. She gave him a peck on the cheek and turned her attention to the bowl of eggplant stew Chistery had brought her.
A few hours later the doctor was examining Elphaba.
"Hmm. Well, it's still a bit early to tell for sure, but you definitely have many of the early signs. I'd say your friend is right and you are with child, but you will know for sure when you feel the first movements. I would suggest making sure you get plenty of fluids and fiber. Fruit is usually best. Consult me if you start vomiting or have severe constipation. Now I must check on the Queen again. She's definitely got the worst case of flu I've ever seen." The doctor bowed to Elphaba and left to check on Raga.
Elphaba was stunned. She couldn't believe it. She was pregnant? But, it was too soon! She wasn't ready to be a mother! Heck! She didn't even know how to be a mother!
"Calm down, Fae. We'll work this out together," Fiyero said suddenly taking her in his strong arms.
Only then did Elphaba realize that her mental rant had actually been spoken aloud. "Oh, Fiyero! I'm so scared! What if I mess up? What if the baby isn't healthy? What if…"
Fiyero pressed a finger to her lips. "Shh. It's ok. I'm here, Glinda's here, Raga's here… We're all here for you, Fae. Everything's gonna be ok."
Elphaba sighed and relaxed into Fiyero's embrace, but the thoughts kept buzzing though her head. What if the baby had a disability? What if she was a bad mother? What if the child had her magic? Would she be able to teach them how to control it like Raga taught her? Or would she wind up doing something like what her father did to her? Or worse?!
"No! No. I will not do anything remotely close to what my father did to me. I would never hurt my child. Ever. And so help me, I will kill anyone who dares harm my child in any way!" Elphaba nodded at the thought as her motherly instincts rose up for the first time in full.
Raga was lying on her bed, miserable with the flu. Her sinuses were congested and inflamed, her lungs were congested, her ribs hurt from all the coughing, her joints ached, her muscles ached, her throat was inflamed, and her stomach could hardly keep anything down. Glinda carefully opened the door and entered the room carrying a tray. She softly walked over to the bedside and set the tray on the nightstand.
"Hey. You feeling any better?" she asked softly.
Raga coughed a few times before replying in a decidedly nasally voice. "No. I feel like warmed-over death."
Glinda couldn't suppress a soft chuckle. Even when she felt like 'warmed-over death,' Raga was still a rather humorously sarcastic person. Glinda picked up a medicine bottle and a spoon.
"I've got your medicine. Do you think you can keep it down?"
Raga sat up painfully. "I'll try, but no promises."
Glinda nodded and measured out a teaspoon, then slipped it in Raga's mouth, as she was too busy trying to prop herself up on her elbows. Raga swallowed the foul liquid and coughed a few times, making a disgusted face.
"Gah! That stuff is worse than anything I ever had to eat in the Badlands. But I don't want to be stuck in this room for three weeks," she said, laying back down.
"I know. But you won't have to take it forever. Would you like some soup?" Glinda inquired, holding a bowl of chicken soup.
Raga nodded a little, pushing herself into a sitting position against her headboard. Glinda handed her the bowl and waited until she was done. Raga didn't have much of an appetite and only ate about half the soup. She was soon asleep again and Glinda quietly made her way back to the kitchen.
"How is she?" Elphaba inquired.
Glinda sighed. "She feels like 'warmed-over death.' Her exact words. She'll be ok though. She fell asleep a few minutes ago."
Elphaba bit her lower lip. She was worried about her cousin, though the doctor had said she'd soon recover, and she was worried about her own pregnancy. She still hadn't told Glinda what the doctor said because the blonde was sure to call it a done deal and start planning a massive and elaborate baby shower. Not to mention suggesting a couple hundred baby names and insisting they call her 'Auntie Glinda' and who-knows what else. She was startled out of her mental monologue by Glinda's voice.
"So, what did the doctor say?"
"What?" Elphaba blinked.
"What did the doctor say?" Glinda repeated. "Am I right or am I right?"
Elphaba couldn't suppress a chuckle at her exuberant friend's confidence. She decided to tell Glinda after all, since she'd probably find out on her own anyway.
"He said it's still a bit early to know for sure, but I've definitely got several of the early signs of pregnancy. However, before you jump twenty feet in the air and go crazy planning parties and what-not, we won't know for sure until I feel the baby quickening. So keep your feet on terra firma, thank you very much." Elphaba smirked at her hopelessly excited friend.
"OH MY OZ! I KNEW IT! I TOTALLY KNEW IT!" Glinda would have crushed her friend in a hug of pure exuberance, but suddenly found herself suspended about a foot in the air by her ankles.
Elphaba glared at her with her arms crossed. "Would you kindly keep your voice down? You don't want to wake Raga up, do you?"
Just then the sound of violent coughing reached their ears. Elphaba dashed off towards her cousin's room, worried that her condition had worsened. Glinda squeaked in surprise as she landed unceremoniously on her head, suddenly released from Elphaba's magic. She sat up rubbing her sore head.
"You're definitely pregnant, Elphie. The hormones are already kicking in. Ow," Glinda muttered as she slowly stood up and made her way rather dizzily to Raga's room.
Elphaba burst into Raga's room to find her cousin hunched over in bed coughing up a storm. She ran to her side and began rubbing her back to help calm the coughing. Raga finally stopped coughing and lay back with a moan of pain. Suddenly she looked over at her cousin and her eyes shot wide.
"What are you doing in here? You shouldn't be in here, what with the baby," she said hoarsely.
Elphaba blinked. "How did you know?"
Raga smiled. "I've known for weeks. The Palace sensed the forming of a new life and consequently, I sensed it as well. You, my dear Elphaba, are nearly two months pregnant."
The color drained from Elphaba's face. Nearly two months? And she didn't notice it? But then again, she had been feeling a little queasy in the mornings and there were the missed monthlies and a few other things.
Just then Glinda came in still clutching her head. "Hey! I know you're pregnant and having hormonal issues, but that doesn't mean you can just drop me on my head!"
Elphaba whirled around and her face showed how awful she felt. "I'm so sorry, Glin. I didn't mean to drop you like that. Here, let me help."
Elphaba gently laid a hand on her friend's head and healed her. Glinda sighed in relief.
"Thank you. Now, you should go read or something. I'll look after Raga, don't worry. Now shoo!" Glinda fairly pushed Elphaba out of the room and closed the door.
Elphaba shook her head. She still couldn't believe she had a new life growing inside her. It was all just so… surreal. She slowly made her way to the library.
"Hello, Elphaba. Congratulations by the way. Anything in particular I can help you find?" Thorboo asked from his stand.
Raga had brought him back with them and he was very happy to be home again after a thousand year absence. Elphaba looked up at him in shock.
"You too? Why is it that I am the last to know and I'm the one carrying the baby?" she asked, a touch of bitterness in her voice.
Thorboo was surprised by her reaction, but quickly recovered. He remembered a certain queen he once served who had had a similar experience.
"You're not the first woman who didn't realize she was pregnant and you won't be the last. Your great-aunt Sapreen was the same way when she was pregnant with Raga. She had no idea 'til she was four months along. She also, wasn't too happy to be the last to know. She felt it made her a bad mother, but she was the best mom ever to Raga. Ask her yourself if you don't believe me. She'll tell you her mom was the best." Thorboo smiled at Elphaba.
Elphaba sighed. "What if… what if the child comes out… green?"
There, she'd said it. She'd voiced her biggest fear aloud. That her child would be born green, just like her. That her child would be an outcast as she had been.
"Oh, Elphaba. You don't have to worry about that. Green Elixir is the only cause of green skin in Oz. As long as you don't drink that stuff, your child will be born a perfectly average color. Now, I've got some excellent books on what to expect when you're… expecting. Interested?" Thorboo inquired.
Elphaba's ears perked up at that. She smiled and nodded enthusiastically.
Thorboo smiled. "Good. Now, I should caution you, these are generalizations, so you might not experience everything in the books. Also, some signs and symptoms may appear sooner or later than the books say. Just remember, you're an individual, so your experience will be unique to you. These books are just meant to be a rough guide. Ok?"
"Alright already! Spare me the lecture, why don't ya? Where do I find them?" Elphaba snapped a bit.
"I can see you've already got the crankiness. Anyway, third level, medical section, under 'Pregnancy.'"
Elphaba nodded and headed in that direction. Soon she was curled up in her favorite chair by the fire reading quickly. She was completely engrossed in what she was reading and didn't hear when Fiyero came in, nor did she notice when he sat on the floor beside her. Fiyero just watched her, enthralled by her beauty and endeared by the look of utter concentration on her face. He liked the look she got when she lost herself in a book and the expressions that graced her face.
At the moment, Elphaba's brow was furrowed in concentration, her face seeming to glow a bit in the sunlight. Fiyero perched his elbows on his knees and held his chin in his hands, just watching her. Those big chocolate-brown eyes darted back and forth, quickly taking in all the information on the pages before them. He remembered back when they were at Shiz and Glinda (then Galinda) had forced him into a reading contest with Elphaba.
"Oh, come on! I may be brainless, but I'm not stupid!" Fiyero glared at Galinda.
"Oh, come on now, Fifi! Are you afraid of being beaten by a girl?" Galinda teased.
"Have you seen the number of books she's read? I would be crazy to challenge her!"
Galinda however, was nothing if not persistent. "Fifi is a frady-cat!" she sing-songed.
"Am not! I just want to hold on to what little dignity I have!"
"That would be none," said a voice they both recognized.
"Elphie! I was just telling Fifi here that you two should totally have a book reading contest!" the blonde exclaimed.
Elphaba quirked an eyebrow in amusement. "You wish to challenge me?"
Fiyero colored bright red. "I never accepted that challenge!"
Elphaba got an evil smile on her face. "Suit yourself. But, if you were to challenge me and win, I just might consider going on that date with you."
Fiyero sighed. "I'm not getting out of this am I?"
"Nope!" Both girls laughed.
"See you in the library at three sharp. Don't be late or it's an automatic forfeit." Elphaba walked off with Galinda, who was skipping, while she was reading.
Fiyero chuckled at the memory.
His chuckling brought Elphaba out of her concentration. She closed the book and looked down at him.
"And what, pray, are you thinking of that has got you so tickled?" she asked quirking an eyebrow in her signature amused expression.
"I was remembering the time you and Glinda forced me into a reading contest with you," he replied.
A smile appeared on Elphaba's face as she recalled that memory. "Ah, yes. I remember that day fondly. You were a pathetic opponent, but how else were we going to get you to study?"
"Study! You just wanted to get on my nerves to see if I would still ask you out!" Fiyero accused her.
Elphaba grinned wider. "It worked, didn't it? You were still just as persistent as ever."
Fiyero laughed and stood up, wrapping her in his arms and leading her over to the settee, settling her in his lap. She just snuggled into him with a happy sigh, leaning her head on his shoulder and closing her eyes. He loved it when she did this, when she let herself be completely vulnerable, when she showed just how much she trusted him. She loved it when he held her like this, when he became her protector, when he showed just how much he cared about her.
Glinda walked in looking for a book on flu remedies and saw this cute little scene. "Awwww!"
Both Fiyero and Elphaba looked at her with mildly annoyed expressions. "What?"
"You two look so cute! If only I had a camera," Glinda smiled at them.
They both rolled their eyes at her and went back to enjoying each other's company. Glinda chuckled and found her book. She left the library knowing Fiyero and Elphaba would make great parents.
Fiyero and Elphaba spent a few more minutes cuddling, then Elphaba picked up the book she had been reading. Fiyero let her get comfortable next to him and peered over her shoulder.
"Pregnancy books?" he asked.
She nodded.
"Can I read these?"
"Mmhhmm."
Fiyero shrugged and picked up one of the books.
"Start with this one. It'll make more sense." Elphaba handed him a different book and kept on reading.
Fiyero chuckled. Elphaba really had no idea how great of a mother she'd be. She was kind, compassionate, nurturing, loving, great at multi-tasking, and very organized. Among other things.
"Oh, well. It took me years to convince her of how beautiful she is. I guess it'll take a while to convince her she'll be a great mom," he thought as he started reading.