Disclaimer: I don't own Wicked.

Chapter 14-I'm Not That Girl (Reprise)

Elphaba stood in shock for a moment before running at Fiyero and flinging her arms around him. "Fiyero!" She cried whilst tears ran down her face. But unlike before, these were tears of joy.

Fiyero chuckled at Elphaba's exuberance and patted her back. "Fae?" Then he felt the moisture on his shoulder. "Elphaba? What's wrong?"

Elphaba shook her head. "I-I thou-thought y-you we-were d-dead!"

Fiyero wrapped his arms tightly arm Elphaba and positioned her so she was sat on his lap. Elphaba sobbed onto his shoulder, clutching the fabric of his shirt in her fists. She took in his scent, it was so Fiyero. She laughed through her tears.

Fiyero shot a worried glance over at Glinda, who just smiled back at them. "Elphaba? Where have you been?" He asked.

Glinda mouthed, "I'll tell you later," to which Fiyero nodded.

"Fae, why did you think I was dead?" Fiyero pulled Elphaba back a little so he could see her face.

Fiyero wiped away a few of her tears and Elphaba grabbed his hand before he could put it down again. She held it with her so tightly that, had be still been human, she would have cut off the circulation. She rubbed her nose on it, taking in even of Fiyero's smell. She closed her eyes and tried to get her crying under control.

Once she felt she had more of a hold on herself, she started explaining to Fiyero about how she had been captured and locked her up. When she finally got the part about the whipping, Fiyero looked livid to say the least. "I could kill the bastards that did that to you."

Elphaba stroked his jaw. "I know," she murmured, "But that's not important right now."

Elphaba carried on her tale in hushed whispers, so not to alarm Torrisa. Glinda was now sitting with the young girl, doing her brown hair in elaborate styles.

Fiyero looked even angrier, if that was possible, when Elphaba told him of how the guards had lied to her. She told him of how she had a little insane and she turned her head away, ashamed, when she admitted that she had nearly killed the guard.

Fiyero wiped a few more of her tears away and begged her to continue. She obliged.

Elphaba told him about going after Nizava and all that had happened afterwards. She didn't tell Fiyero about how she knew about the spell, however, for fear of Glinda's wrath.

Once she finished telling Fiyero the story, she rested her head back against Fiyero's stuffed shoulder. Fiyero stoked Elphaba's hair, and muttered in her ear that she should rest. Elphaba murmured something like, 'No' but eventually lost the fight with her eyelids.

Fiyero looked at Elphaba's weary face for a long time. She had dark circles under her eyes and her cheeks were flushed from her crying. Fiyero ran a finger down the side of her face as she slept in his arms. Eventually her grip on his shirt loosened and her hand dropped into her lap. Fiyero stood, keeping her in his arms, and laid her on the bed.

He brushed a strand of hair out of her face and turned to look at Glinda, who was staring back, eyebrows pulled together. Torrisa didn't notice the serious looks passed between the adults and carried on playing with her hair.

Glinda took Torrisa back to the room they had set up for her, even though her spent most of her time in Elphaba and Fiyero's room. Once the child was safely in her room, Glinda hurried back to Elphaba and Fiyero.

On the way back she ran into Nizava. "Oh, sorry Miss Glinda," Nizava said shyly.

Glinda waved her hand nonchalantly. "No need for that, Miss Nizava. But would you like to have a room to rest in?"

Nizava nodded her head eagerly. Glinda smiled softly. "Very well then, you are welcome to the room on the floor below. It's the only one down there."

Nizava smiled gratefully, "Thank you, Miss Glinda."

And with that she made her down to her new room. Glinda shook her head at the teenager.

Fiyero hadn't moved from the position he had been in when Glinda had left. He was still stroking Elphaba's face with a worried expression on his face.

"Fiyero?" Glinda walked over, pulling over a chair with her. She placed it next to Fiyero and sat on it, casting her own worried glance at her friend's face.

Fiyero sighed and looked up from Elphaba's face. "I'm just so worried about her Glinda."

Glinda didn't met his eyes, instead she reached out and held one of Elphaba's hands with her own. "She doesn't deserve any of this."

Fiyero continued holding onto her other hand and running a hand down her face. "No," he agreed, "she's so good. She shouldn't have to live through this."

"How touching."

Fiyero and Glinda's heads shot up and stared at the source of the voice. Glinda stood first, anger clear on her face.

"Anvesa," she said evenly, a few traces of her fury seeping into her voice.

Anvesa smirked. "Well, I guess the games up. Hello," she said, wiggling her fingers at them.

She walked over to stand next to Elphaba. Glinda tried to move but Anvesa held out a hand, freezing her in place. Fiyero stood up and blocked her way.

"So, you must be Fiyero?" Anvesa asked.

Fiyero didn't answer her question. "Stay away from her," he growled out.

"Ooo, I'm so scared," Anvesa chuckled and with a flick of her wrist Fiyero was flung across the room.

At Glinda's shocked expression, Anvesa snickered. "Oh, yeah, about the whole I can't really do magic thing? I lied."

She stood next to Elphaba's bed for a few seconds, taking in the image of the weakened green woman. "This is the fearsome, 'Witch'? So much for that."

Anvesa reached out a hand to touch Elphaba, but an emerald skinned hand gripped her wrist first. "Don't even think about it," Elphaba hissed, eyes opening.

Anvesa looked shocked for a few seconds before she disappeared from view.

Elphaba flopped back against the pillows and looked up at Glinda. Elphaba smiled at her and then reached out her hand to Fiyero, who had stood up and was now sitting on the bed next to her again.

"How do you feel?" Glinda asked, sitting in her chair again, still slightly in shock from Anvesa's sudden appearance.

Elphaba found that shrugging caused her a lot of pain and clutched her shoulder as she grimaced. "Well, I think the bullet wound in my shoulder has seen better days," she looked at Glinda from under her eyelashes. "But, if you hadn't cleaned it, Glin, I don't want to think what kind of condition it would be in. Thank you."

"Elphie, you're my best friend. It's no problem." Glinda smiled reassuringly at Elphaba.

Elphaba returned the smile before looking up at the ceiling for a few minutes. Then she turned to Fiyero. "Yero? Could you get me my bag?"

Fiyero obliged and handed the well worn bag to Elphaba. Elphaba took it gratefully and hunted through it looking for something. She soon withdrew a blue bottle and unscrewed the top. She gave it a hesitate sniff and then took a large gulp. Glinda and Fiyero stared at her as the scars on her arms hissed for a few milliseconds and then disappeared. Elphaba smiled as she sat up, seemingly full of energy.

At Fiyero and Glinda's questioning looks, she explained. "Healing potion. I bought it years ago and I've kept it for emergencies ever since. I think this counted as one don't you?"

And with that Elphaba heaved herself out of the bed and walked calmly to the bathroom. She shut the bathroom door and the other inhabitants of the room heard the lock click. Then they heard the shower start.

After about twenty minutes of Glinda and Fiyero trying to make awkward small talk, Elphaba immerged from the bathroom, her skin slightly flushed from the hot water and wearing a silky long black dress. It had an open back and when she turned to close the door to the bathroom, Glinda and Fiyero saw that there were no traces of the torture she had endured.

Elphaba turned back to them with a soft smile on her face and she walked over to Fiyero and wrapped her arms around his torso. He buried his face in her hair.

"You don't know how good that feels," Elphaba murmured into the burlap material that made up his neck.

Glinda watched their moment before excusing herself. She went to go and make sure that Torrisa was alright.

Elphaba and Fiyero eventually broke their embrace. They smiled up at each other, and Fiyero placed a kiss on Elphaba's forehead.

"You don't know how good it is to see you, Yero," she uttered looking down at her bare feet. "I thought I wouldn't ever see you alive again."

Fiyero held her close to him again. "I'm here, Fae, I'm always here for you."

Elphaba nodded, tears entering her eyes. "I know, but I thought I'd lost you again. Please," she pulled away and looked him in the eyes, "promise me we won't be spilt up like that again?"

Fiyero kissed her. "I promise," he whispered, resting his forehead against hers.

Elphaba nodded again, pulling away and brushing the tears out from under her eyes. "I'm being silly, aren't I?"

She laughed lightly and Fiyero clasped her hands in his. "No," he told her, "it's understandable. After everything you've been through. Most people would have given up long ago, but not you. You, Elphaba, are not, in any way, the Wicked Witch of the West." He smiled at her. "You are the Wonderful Witch of the West."

Elphaba ducked her head, embarrassed. "Now you're the silly one," she told him, swatting at his chest when he released her hands.

Fiyero shrugged. "Well, my head is filled with straw."

Elphaba laughed and walked away. Fiyero grabbed her from behind and swung her round. "Put me down!" Elphaba tried to sound harsh, but her giggles stopped her from being so.

Once he let her go she told him she was off to the library. Elphaba gave him clear instructions not to interrupt her and he agreed to them. She gave him one last kiss on the cheek, grabbed her glasses off the bedside table and went to the library.

*

Elphaba took off her glasses and rubbed her eyes with one hand. She let the book she was holding fall into her lap, effectively losing her page.

She had been holed up in the library all day, trying to find something to take her mind off the disturbing images still floating around in her mind. She read studies, essays, she even got so desperate she read a romance novel. Or tried to anyway.

But it wasn't working. Every time she closed her eyes the memories would be there. Memories from before the whole 'Wicked Witch of the West' thing even started, hell before she even went to Shiz!

She watched, just a figure in the doorway, as her parents discussed the new baby. Her Papa was telling her Mama to eat some of those plants she didn't like. She want to tell her Papa to stop, that she had been having nightmares about the new baby's birth because of the milkflowers, but she was too afraid to. And so, it really was her fault her mother was dead...

Then at Shiz, being the outcast, the weirdo with no feelings. She was a freak of nature why should she have feelings? At night, she would let herself cry into the pillows, the day of bottling up her hurt and humiliation all pouring out. If Galinda ever heard, she never let on. Elphaba loved being at Shiz, but the insults she could do without.

Defying the Wizard. Crashing into a wood nearby when she lost control of the broom. Having to steal supplies and hide away until she could find somewhere safe. It was frightening to say the least. The nighttimes were the worst, wondering if she would be found in her sleep. Found, captured and killed. It was a very real possibility. And it was truly terrifying.

The spell...it wasn't working...she could feel it...he was going to die...Fiyero was going to die...and all because of her...

"FIYERO!"

Elphaba startled herself awake with her scream. She looked around the deserted library, the fire she had lit just embers now. She massaged her temples and took in some deep breaths. She stood and started to relight the fire.

Once it was lit again, she picked up the checked blanket she had fallen asleep under and plopped back down on the couch, laying the blanket over her again. She picked the book off the floor and tried to concentrate on it. She soon gave up again and stood off the couch.

She wandered to the window and opened the curtains. The sky was full of stars again but the moon was no longer complete. She looked at it for a minute before staring out to the horizon.

Elphaba could see a small dot of light, like fire, shimmering every so often. She squinted, trying to make out what it was. After no success she grabbed the telescope that decorated the area next to the fireplace. She positioned it so she could see out of the window and turned a few knobs until she could see what the thing was clearly.

"Sweet Lurline..." she breathed out in disbelief.

She ran out of the library and back down to her room. She opened the door so hard that it slammed against the wall. Fiyero looked up from whatever he had been doing whilst she was gone. Glinda had brought Torrisa back into the room and the young girl was playing dress up.

Fiyero stared at Elphaba, concern on his face. "Fae? What's-"

Elphaba hurried around the room, searching for something. When she came across her boots she pulled them on absentmindedly. She found what she was looking for – a book.

"We have a problem, a huge problem," Elphaba told them as she flicked through the book.

She stopped at a page and held it up for them to see. "This is our problem," she said, pointing to picture of a reptilian creature who was breathing fire and had huge wings.

"There's a dragon heading for the Emerald City."

Right, so we are coming up to the scene I've had in mind since I started writing this. Thanks again for all the reviews everyone, I can't express how much they encourage me to keep writing. Thank you.

So, reviews inspire updates. *hint hint*

Cherry x