Disclaimer: I don't own Wicked.
To be honest, Ellie had thought that traveling by bubble would be quite embarrassing. Who would willingly go in a big pink sphere and let everyone know that you did? And who would even think of it? However, now that she was in a giant pink bubble, she had to admit, it was kind of cool. She had seen Emerald City from the sky with all of its tall sky scrapers and buildings. She could make out the Yellow Brick Road and could see people traveling on it. Ellie looked over to her mother who had gasped and gripped her hands on her wheelchair, shutting her brown eyes tightly. "What's wrong?" Ellie asked her and neglected the wonderful sights below her.
"I've never traveled by bubble before. And I never liked heights," Nessarose admitted.
"Relax," Glinda said, holding her large wand.
"My life is in your hands, er, bubble, several hundred feet above ground. How am I supposed to relax?" Nessa exclaimed.
"Because you've got to live in the moment," Ellie laughed and took a seat on her mother's lap. She didn't really feel like standing anymore, and sitting in a bubble was kind of awesome.
"Exactly," Glinda giggled and continued to control the bubble and observe her surroundings. She was keeping an eye out for Elphaba. Ellie couldn't help but wonder if Glinda and Elphaba's relationship was something more than friendship. Perhaps, it was something along the lines of love? But what did Ellie know? She was only ten and didn't know anything about that kind of stuff. She remembered how same sex relationships were frowned upon anyway, although she had never understood why. Dorothy had told her it was because the church and Bible said so, but Ellie didn't think that was a valid reason. Besides, Ellie hated the Bible. The words in it were too confusing for her.
"I think I'm going to be sick," Nessarose said and held her head with her hands. Ellie got off of her lap when she saw she looked as if she was literally going to throw up any second.
"Oh no," Glinda said nervously. "You are not going to throw up in my bubble!"
"I think she might!" Ellie exclaimed.
"We're landing," Glinda decided and the bubble began to lower into the forest. Eventually, it landed and Glinda was able to drag Nessa over to some bushes and held her hair back as she was sick. Ellie decided that this would be a good time to use the bathroom. She let Glinda know, who looked as if she was going to be sick herself watching the crippled woman vomit, and Ellie went deeper into the forest for some privacy.
After relieving her bladder, Ellie went to go back to Glinda and Nessarose. However, she heard a plop of some kind, as if a rock or something was thrown into the water. Curiosity getting the best of her, Ellie went to go check it out. She followed the sound, and she was confident someone was throwing rocks in a lake or pond. She pushed some vines and branches, and the occasional bush aside as she followed the sound.
Ellie had to suppress a gasp when she saw who was sitting there and throwing rocks in what seemed to be a pond. The pointed black hat and green skin gave her away pretty quickly. It was indeed Elphaba, sitting on the dirty ground a few feet away from the pond. Her head turned quickly when she heard Ellie's foot step on a branch. She turned back around, ignoring the girl.
Ellie decided to go sit next to her. What harm could it do? So, she sat down on the dirt next to Elphaba, but didn't look at her and didn't acknowledge her right away. The two sat there, staring ahead at the old pond. "What are you doing here?" Elphaba finally spoke up and breaking the silence.
"Sitting here," Ellie said simply, tracing patterns in the dirt casually.
"You can't just leave me alone, can you?" Elphaba asked her. Ellie wondered how much torture this poor woman must have gone through in order to feel this way.
"No, I can't. I care too much. I still love you, Elphaba. Biologically speaking, you are my aunt," Ellie explained. She heard Elphaba sigh after a moment.
"You can't get attached to people, Ellie. Not like this. And especially not me."
"I never attach myself to people. I've mostly kept to myself. But I let myself get attached to you because, well, I don't really know. Maybe it's because you're the first person to show that you cared about me."
"What about Dorothy?" Elphaba questioned.
"She never really loved me," Ellie gave her a sad smile. "Sure, I cried when she died because she was the only person who didn't make fun of me back in South Carolina. But now, I can talk about her without crying. I was never attached to her." When Elphaba didn't say anything, Ellie decided that she'd speak. "Did you really mean that?"
"Mean what?" Elphaba asked her. It was almost a whisper.
"That you hate me?" Ellie finally looked up at Elphaba and their eyes locked. Elphaba didn't say a word. "I understand," Ellie said. "You want to be left alone." She stood up. "I won't look for you anymore. I'll go back to Emerald City." Ellie turned around and began walking back towards the forest, but she felt a hand on her shoulder before she entered it. She was forced to turn around, and pulled into a comforting hug.
"I don't hate you," Elphaba said, her bony arms holding Ellie tight. "I shouldn't have said that. I'm sorry." Ellie returned the hug and cried tears of joy. Finally, they parted and Elphaba put her hands on Ellie's shoulders. "You really do look just like Nessa. I don't know why I didn't see it before."
"Glinda said I look like her, too," Ellie smiled. "Come back to Emerald City. I'm sure Glinda would let you stay with her. She's nice."
"Well I…" Elphaba was cut off by the shrill yelling of no other than Glinda herself, screaming Ellie's name frantically. "You came here with Glinda?"
"Yeah. We should probably go tell her we're okay," Ellie said and grabbed Elphaba's hand with her own. "And I have a surprise for you."
"We? And a surprise?" Elphaba questioned as she was dragged through the forest.
"Mmhmm," Ellie nodded. "You're going to be so happy!"
"I don't like surprises," Elphaba said, letting herself be dragged through the forest.
"I don't like them either, but I know you'll like this one," Ellie grinned. She saw the blonde in sight, so she shouted her name to get her attention.
"Ellie, thank Oz, I thought I lost…you…" Glinda said, but her voice trailed when she saw Elphaba standing in front of her. Ellie noticed Nessarose was sitting in the background in her chair, and Elphaba had failed to notice her. Right now, she seemed to only notice the blonde who stood there dumbfounded in her ridiculously sparkly, but beautiful, dress. The two were silent, and Ellie let go of Elphaba's hand and silently walked over to her mother and sat on her lap.
Ellie watched Glinda touch Elphaba's cheek, probably because she couldn't believe that the green woman was standing right in front of her. Once she was satisfied, Ellie jumped into Elphaba's arms and murmured, "My Elphie." Elphaba had no choice but to hold her up, seeing that Glinda decided to hang on her and keep her feet off of the ground.
"Oh, my sweet, how I have missed you," Elphaba admitted.
"Why didn't you tell me you were still alive? You know how much it hurt to keep going, thinking that you were dead?" Glinda questioned her, crying now.
"I wanted everything to die down before I told you. I didn't need witch hunters coming after me."
"I wouldn't have told anybody, you know," Glinda said. "Please never, ever leave me again. I don't think my heart can bare it."
"I know, my sweet, I know," Elphaba said, still holding the blonde.
"Do they love each other?" Ellie whispered to her mother. Elphaba then put Glinda down and they shared a passionate kiss.
"I believe they do," Nessarose answered.
"I never saw two girls kiss like that before," Ellie said. After all, she had grown up in a religious and conservative neighborhood where people hated others who were different in any possible way.
"I used to think it was gross when two women or two men kissed each other like that. But I know better now." Elphaba must have heard Nessa's voice because she pulled away from Glinda. She looked over the short woman's head and her jaw dropped. She couldn't believe she was looking at her sister. Ellie knew Elphaba thought her sister was supposed to have died. Ellie got off of her mother's lap and pushed the wheelchair over to Elphaba.
She smiled at her and said, "Surprise. You like this surprise, right?"
"Of course I do," Elphaba said, standing there dumbfounded. "But how…"
"Glinda took care of me," Nessarose answered.
"You have arms…" the green woman trailed.
"I know. Glinda gave them to me," Nessa smiled. "Unfortunately, I'm paralyzed from the waist down."
"I can't believe you're alive," Elphaba said and brought her sister into a hug. Nessarose awkwardly hugged her back because she was still getting used to her extra limbs that she had never had before. Ellie helped guide her mother's arms, though, to make it easier and less sloppy. "Nessa," Elphaba said. Ellie could tell she was going to cry, but she didn't. Elphaba was good at holding back tears. Glinda stood behind Ellie and put her hands on her shoulders.
Nessarose and Elphaba parted from their hug and exchanged a few words Ellie couldn't make out. Finally, they talked a bit louder, above a whisper, so that she could hear them again. "Thank you for taking care of Elena," Nessa said. "I was afraid she'd try to come on her own."
"I know I was probably harsh with her," Elphaba started.
"I don't think it matters anymore. And I'm pretty sure Elena's forgiven you, correct?" Ellie nodded at her mother's words.
"So, what happens now?" Elphaba asked.
"You come back to Emerald City and live with us, silly," Glinda laughed.
"I don't think I can do that," Elphaba whispered.
"What?" Glinda sounded heartbroken, so Ellie turned around and gave her a hug, which Glinda returned.
"Elphaba, you can't leave Glinda again, and you're not leaving me again, and you certainly aren't leaving Elena. You have to stop pushing people away. I know your life hasn't been the best, but people do care about you. We're your family. And if you think you're going to abandon the people that love you, well, you're just disgusting," Nessarose spat, but she was also crying. "You cannot keep running away, Fabala." There was a moment of silence, and the only thing Ellie could hear was the sound of Glinda's sobs. "We're your family, Elphaba," Nessarose added. "You're not alone. We aren't going to leave you."
"We love and care about you, Elphie," Glinda said all choked up.
"I have to go," Elphaba said and began to walk away. Ellie removed herself from Glinda's hug and ran to catch up with Elphaba. She wasn't going to let her go this easily. She knew it was up to her to get her to come back. Glinda didn't seem like the running type, nor could she run without tripping over that gown, or running into something. And her mother, well, she couldn't really run being paralyzed and all. So, Ellie took it upon herself to go after Elphaba. "Why are you so intent on following me, my pretty?" Elphaba said defeated and fell to the forest floor. "Why do you care so much?"
"Because I can't lose anyone else," Ellie cried. "Why do you have to make it so hard? I would kill for people to want me enough to chase after me. Sure, your childhood couldn't have been easy, and bad things happened to you, but when something good comes along, you're running away from it, and it's just frustrating. I never really wanted, or cared to meet you to be honest. But once we traveled together, I guess I thought you cared about me, and then I got attached."
"You shouldn't have gotten attached to me."
"How could I not?" Ellie said.
"Why couldn't you just be like everybody else and just run away from me?" Elphaba cried, burning her face with her own tears. She fell to the ground, completely broken.
"Because I guess I don't just judge you based on rumors and the color of your skin," Ellie whispered and knelt down next to her. Elphaba just stared at the ground, trying hard not to cry.
"Why not?"
"Where I come from, people judged me on those things."
"Whether I like it or not, you remind me of myself."
"I do?" Ellie questioned.
"I was like you when I was a kid. My pretty, don't turn out like me, promise me you won't. You're on that road."
"But I want to be like you," Ellie said. Before Elphaba could ask why, Ellie started speaking again. "Because you're strong, you don't depend on people, and you're nice, and I think you're really pretty."
"Ellie," Elphaba started.
"Come with me, mommy, and Glinda. You'll be happy there, right?"
"I don't think," Elphaba tried to speak yet again, but to no avail.
"Mommy is alive, you seem to be very fond of Glinda, and, well, I think deep down you like me."
"It's not that I don't like you, my pretty."
"Then, what is it?" Ellie asked her. When she got no response, Ellie took Elphaba's hand and sat on her lap. She knew that she was the only child who could get away with this, and she liked that feeling. After all, this was her aunt. The two stared into each other's eyes until Elphaba smiled, a warm smile, and a real one.
"We should probably go back and make sure Glinda and Nessa are okay. I don't think either of them are well equipped for the forest," Elphaba laughed and the two stood up. As they walked back towards the other two women, Ellie grabbed her aunt's hand and made her stop walking.
"Do you love Glinda?" Ellie asked seriously. "As in, you're in love with her, in a romantic way?"
"I do," Elphaba said after a brief hesitation. After all, same sex relationships weren't the best things to be admitting due to the lack of people that supported them in Oz. Ellie nodded and continued walking.
They found Nessarose trying to console a hysterical Glinda in the middle of the forest. Nessa's eyes were red and her cheeks blotchy from crying, but Glinda was sobbing loudly at the possible loss of her love. She had immediately stopped crying, though, when Elphaba came over to her and announced that she'd be staying with them. Ellie had jumped onto her mother's lap and was brought into a hug. Ellie then turned around and faced Elphaba and Glinda and witnessed another kiss, but this one was much more passionate and lasted much longer. "Um, could you guys not do that?" Ellie spoke up.
"Does our relationship make you uncomfortable?" Glinda asked and the couple walked over to Nessa and Ellie.
"Elena, it's okay for two women to love each other," Nessarose said.
"You don't mind, Nessa?" Elphaba asked her and she seemed to be shocked.
"Of course I don't."
"But what about the Unnamed God?" Elphaba asked.
"Screw the Unnamed God," Nessarose said, and the other two women gasped. "I was blinded by the whole religion thing by father. It took a house to hit me over the head and a near death experience for me to realize that I was wrong before. I accept you two as long as nobody gets hurt. And Elena, I am shocked about your comment." Her mother was being stern with her, and she had just met her face to face only hours ago. Ellie sighed; having a real mother was going to be a piece of work, but worth it.
"I don't care if you are a couple. I'm fine with that. It's just the kissing, it's gross."
"What are you getting at?" Elphaba asked slowly, trying to understand the young girl. Ellie just shrugged.
"I may act older than I am, but I'm only ten. Kissing like that in general is just gross," Ellie explained and scrunched her face cutely. Ellie didn't understand why, but the three women broke out in laughter.
Well, I didn't realize that this story was going to be such a hit. I got so many views on this story, it's crazy! Over 150 some days! Thanks to everyone who's reading this (mostly to my reviewers)! The next chapter will be the epilogue, meaning that it will be the last. If anyone even reads these author notes, I would like to mention that if you guys want, I can continue writing stories about Ellie. I already have one planned out in my head after watching this documentary on the famous ship called Titanic on the Discovery Channel a few weeks ago. If anyone at all is interested in this character I created and wants to read more about her, then tell me in a review or PM and I'll start writing the story after the epilogue!