AN: Kudos to The Wizard Of Wicked for being the 100th reviewer for this story, as well as for quoting my favourite line in this story so far in your review! Virtual cake for you! :)

Please check out my one-shot and my new drabble... also, keep your eyes open for a new fic I'm working on. It's called 'Everything' and I'm going to start posting it somewhere in the next few days, along with the sequel to 'Conceal, don't feel' (yes, I know I said in my blog post that I wanted to take it slow with stories... but inspiration strikes when it strikes, people!).

This chapter is dedicated to Xanne-Li and Elizabeth, because they're both awesome :). Love you!


Chapter 12. The need

Fiyero woke up a few hours later, feeling drained, tired and awful, a nasty headache pounding behind his eyes. He slowly sat up, blinking; but he was awake instantly when he realised that Elphaba wasn't there.

"Fae?" he called, his voice slightly panicky.

She came running in from the small adjoining kitchen, looking guilty. "I'm sorry," she apologised as she sat down on the edge of the bed and allowed him to fold her into his arms. "I wanted to be there when you woke up, but I figured you would have to eat something, so…"

He shook his head. "I'm not hungry," he said hoarsely.
She caressed his cheek, looking into his sapphire blue eyes. "Yero," she said gently. "You need to eat."

He shook his head again wordlessly, pulling her even closer. She didn't protest when he captured her lips with his, running his fingers through her soft, silky hair as he did so. He pulled her back onto the bed with him as he deepened the kiss, gripping her to him almost desperately.

"I love you," he murmured as he moved his lips to her throat, kissing the soft skin there, holding her close to him. She laid her hands flat against his chest, leaning her head back a little to allow him greater access.

"I love you, too, Yero," she whispered. She couldn't deny that.

He gently pushed her down onto the bed, kissing her deeply. His one hand was resting on her hip as the other moved around restlessly, sliding up and down her side and her arm, up to her face to cup her cheek, then down to her waist again. She sighed and relaxed, melting into the kiss the way she had done when he had kissed her that very first time, before the summer. Before things got awful and complicated.

"Please don't ever leave me again," Fiyero whispered, pleading, as he broke away for a moment and rested his forehead against hers to look deep into her dark eyes. He was a little dizzy and out of breath from all the kissing, and he noticed that Elphaba's breathing was ragged as well.

"Promise me," he begged her. "Promise me you'll never leave me again."

She trailed her fingers up his arm, into his hair, then down to his face. "I can't," she whispered. "Fiyero, please… don't ask that of me. You know I can't."

He nodded silently, his sadness visible in his eyes.

She captured his lips again in a soft, sweet kiss. "But you have me now," she whispered. "For now, I'm not going anywhere. And I'll always be there for you. Always. Even if it's not in the way you'd want me to…" She trailed off.

He laced his fingers with hers, pressing soft kisses to her throat, her cheeks, her nose, her eyelids, her jaw and her forehead, peppering her face with kisses.

"Can you at least promise me that?" he breathed. "That I have you for now? At least for tonight? Please? Just for this moment?"

She ran her fingers through his hair and pulled him to her, pressing her lips to his again. "I promise," she murmured. "For now, for tonight, I'm yours."

"You're mine," he echoed softly, kissing her again. "Oz, Fae, I love you."

"I missed you so much," she whispered, her eyes fluttering shut as he continued to kiss her and a soft moan escaped her lips. "I missed you so much over the summer, but… but maybe I missed you even more afterwards. When I saw you every day, but I couldn't be near you, and you were looking at me with that sad look in your eyes all the time… it was killing me, Yero. I love you so much, and I hated seeing you in pain… it broke my heart to see you like that, knowing it was my fault."

"It's okay," he whispered between kisses. "I understand, sweetheart. Really. You didn't have a choice."

She heaved a shuddering sigh. "I guess. But still."

He laid his head on her chest and closed his eyes. She stroked his hair, not sure what she could do or say to help him.

"He would have loved you," Fiyero said quietly. "My dad."

Elphaba stayed silent. She understood that he needed to talk about his father.

"He knew about you," Fiyero said in a choked voice. "He was so looking forward to meeting you… the girl who had managed to make his son think." He let out a soft, hoarse laugh. "I bet you two would have gotten along really well. He's really into books, and he loves discussing politics, and things like that… Loved," he corrected himself, realising his mistake. "He loved politics and books."

Elphaba dropped a kiss on his head.

He rolled onto his back, looking up at her. "Fae…"

"Yeah?" She was still stroking his hair, lacing the fingers of her other hand with his and resting their joined hands on his chest.

He squeezed her fingers softly. "I… nothing," he said, heaving a sigh. "I don't know."

"I understand," she whispered.

He rolled back onto his side and stared ahead of him without really seeing anything.

"At least Mum is okay," he broke the silence after a while.

"Maybe your sister is, too," said Elphaba softly.

He shrugged half-heartedly. "Maybe." He sighed. "But I don't think so."

Elphaba kissed him, then helped him up into a sitting position. "Come on. You need to eat something."

He didn't protest as she fed him some fruit and bread and made him drink a glass of water. He curled up next to her as she read to him from one of her favourite books. He asked her to sing for him again, which she did – she was glad to be able to help in some way. After a while, he pinned her down beneath him again and started kissing her; and she wound her arms around his neck and kissed him back, relishing in the feeling of it while she still could.

She didn't protest when his fingers travelled to the back of her dress and started working on the buttons there. His fingers grazed her bare back and he deepened the kiss, pulling her even closer. She could feel his despair and his need, and she knew that right now, he just needed to feel. Had the circumstances been any different, she might have pushed him away and told him to wait – or to not do it at all – but not right now. Right now she just couldn't deny him anything.

He pulled his shirt over his head and tossed it over his shoulder. Before it even hit the floor, Fiyero's lips were on Elphaba's again. This time, he deepened the kiss almost immediately.

She laid both her hands flat against his chest, feeling his muscles rippling under his skin as he continued to kiss her. He slowly started slipping her dress off her shoulders, but he stopped himself.

"Are you sure you're okay with this?" he breathed, not really wanted to stop, but knowing that he would hate himself later if he did this and she didn't want it.

She looked into his eyes and trailed her hands down his bare chest.

"I'm fine," she said softly.

And she was. She wasn't sure if she was ready for this, or if she wanted it to happen this way… but she knew that she wanted her first time to be with Fiyero. She wanted to give herself to him, all of herself, because she knew that the alternative was to give it to Gazilon; and even though she cared about him, she didn't love him. Not like this. Fiyero was the only man she had ever loved and would ever love, she was absolutely sure of that, and she wanted her first time to be with him, no matter what. This might be the only chance they got, and she was willing to take it.

He nodded and leant down to kiss her again, his arms going around her to hold her close to him. She hooked her leg around his and he groaned softly. "Fae…"

"I love you," she said breathlessly, and he could only kiss her again and mutter, "I love you, too, sweetheart."

"Elphie, Fifi!" A tiny blonde cupcake covered in lilac ruffles suddenly stormed into the room. Galinda froze when she saw the rather compromising position her roommate and the Vinkun prince were in, and her eyes widened to the size of saucers.

Elphaba shot up the moment she heard her best friend's voice and she adjusted the sleeves of her dress, clearing her throat awkwardly as she buttoned her dress back up and ran her fingers through her hair in an attempt to make herself look decent. Fiyero, looking flushed, just grabbed the blankets and yanked them up to his chin.

"Elphie," Galinda said in a low, slightly trembling, voice. "Please tell me you haven't been that stupid."

"Not yet," Elphaba said sheepishly.

Galinda heaved a sigh with relief. "Oh, Elphie…" She shook her head and perched on the edge of her own bed. "I'm not going to give you a speech about saving your virginity for your wedding night, and stuff – because honestly, that's horribly old-fashioned…"

"Thanks," muttered Elphaba. "I bet Nessa wouldn't be above giving me that speech – a very long and drawn-out version of it – if she ever were to find out."

"She won't hear it from me," Galinda assured her. "Elphie, my problem is not with you and Fiyero sleeping together. You're a big girl and I know you love him, so it's fine with me. But I know about certain customs in Munchkinland."

Elphaba frowned, confused.

"Like the one where they show… um… a certain… proof of the woman's virginity…" Galinda blushed bright pink at those words. "To the family of the groom, you know… after the wedding night."

Elphaba's eyes widened. To be completely honest, she had totally forgotten about that custom. Munchkinland was very strict when it came to women being 'pure' when they married a man; and it was customary to show the bed sheets to the parents of the groom after the wedding night, so that they were convinced of the fact that their new daughter-in-law had been a virgin when she had married their son.

"You could get in serious trouble, Elphie," said Galinda softly. "I know you're supposed to marry Gazilon, and if they find out you've done… it… before your wedding night… I don't know what would happen."

Elphaba shuddered, suddenly feeling icy cold. She was a Munchkinlander by birth – how could she have forgotten about this?

"My father would kill me," she said hoarsely. "Literally, most likely. Either him or the Glikkun people would. And then they would search for the man who took my virginity, and they would kill him, too."

Her grip on Fiyero's hand tightened subconsciously, and he closed his eyes and rested his forehead against her shoulder.

"I'm sorry," he whispered. "I wasn't thinking."

"Me, neither," Elphaba sighed. "It's okay, Yero. It's not your fault. I mean…" She sighed again. "It's yet another risk I can't take."

He nodded, and Elphaba looked back at Galinda.
"Glin?" she asked. "Why did you come to find us, anyway? I thought you were staying over at Milla's tonight."
"I was," said Galinda, nodding her head so that her golden curls bounced on her shoulders. "I am. But Madame Morrible sent me to find you, Fiyero. She says there's something important going on."

Fiyero blinked. "Something important?' he asked, frowning in confusion.

Galinda nodded again. "Apparently it's about your sister."

Fiyero's eyes widened. He jumped out of the bed and pulled his shirt over his head. Elphaba rose to her feet as well, smoothing out her hair and dress before following Galinda and Fiyero out of the door and across campus, to Madame Morrible's office.

The woman looked up when they entered, peering over her reading glasses like a carp glaring at its food.

"Ah, Master Fiyero," she said. "There you are."

"Galinda says you have news about my sister," Fiyero said impatiently, not wanting to waste time on pleasantries. Not when it was about his family.

"I do." Morrible removed her reading glasses and rose to her feet, looking from Elphaba to Galinda and then to Fiyero. "Do you want to do this in private?"

Fiyero shook his head. "They can stay," he said firmly.

"Alright then. Very well." Morrible walked up to a door in the corner and opened it. "If you will follow me, please."

"Can't you just tell me what's going on?" Fiyero demanded. "What news is there about my sister? Did they find her? Is she dead or is she still alive? Please," he said, his voice breaking despite his best efforts not to show any emotion to Morrible. "I need to know."

Morrible nodded slowly. "She's alive," she said.

Fiyero's knees buckled with relief, and Elphaba and Galinda had to grab an arm each to hold him up.

"How is she?" the prince asked hoarsely. "Is she hurt? Will she be okay?"

"She's hurt," Morrible conceded, "but not seriously. Bruises, some cuts, a broken wrist. She will be alright, don't worry. Would you like to see her?"

Fiyero blinked, confused. "See her?"

Morrible gave him a look. "Yes," she said. "See her."

Fiyero kept on staring at her.

"Master Tiggular," Morrible said, looking at him. "Your sister is here."


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