KatriaFaeyero: LOL! Yes, the library scene was inspired by Harry Potter.
Ultimate Queen of Cliffies: MY STORIES MUST BE TRAGIC BECAUSE IT'S FUN! For me, at least. *Cackle*
The pair slowly made their way to a large house on a small hill. Galinda wrapped her cloak tighter around her and looked over at Elphaba.
"Everything will be fine," the ghost whispered, and Galinda let out an uneasy breath.
The blonde nodded wordlessly and sighed. They stopped in front of the door and Elphaba disappeared. Galinda took a deep breath and knocked on the door. A few clock-ticks later, a familiar face answered the door.
"Miss Galinda," the man dressed as a butler gasped in surprise.
"Hello, Mikal," Galinda smiled softly. "Are my parents home?"
"Yes, they're in the drawing room," Mikal said, stepping aside to let Galinda through.
"Thank you," the blonde said as she went to wait in the parlor. She was nervous, and rightfully so, and couldn't stop fidgeting. Even though she couldn't see Elphaba, she felt her gently slip her gold ghostly hand into hers in an attempt to calm her down.
She heard footsteps and mentally braced herself. But she didn't quite brace herself enough.
The footsteps came to a halt and Galinda looked up. "Momsie. Popsicle."
Mr. and Mrs. Upland stared at their daughter, almost as if they didn't recognize her. Galinda held her breath, hoping they would say something.
"What are you doing here?" Mrs. Upland asked, a bit harshly.
Galinda wasn't expecting her parents to say that. "I… I need your help."
"Why should we help you?" Mr. Upland asked. "After what you did, why should we even acknowledge you?"
"Because it wasn't my fault," Galinda pleaded. "Please. You have to believe me."
"You attacked the queen!" Mr. Upland roared, and both Galinda and her mother shuddered. "You have committed the ultimate treason. The law requires that anyone with knowledge of your whereabouts turn you in to the Gale Force immediately."
"You wouldn't," Galinda whispered. "Please, Popsicle! You have to help me!"
"I don't have to do anything of the kind. And if you don't leave here immediately, I will call the Gale Force!"
Galinda deflated a bit and looked at her mother. "Momsie?"
Mrs. Upland frowned and turned away from her daughter. Galinda felt tears run down her cheek and she quickly wiped them away. "Get out," Mrs. Upland whispered softly.
"Please, Momsie…"
"You heard your mother! Get out!" Mr. Upland sneered.
Realizing that it was a lost war, Galinda slowly walked out, closing the door behind her.
"I could stay and haunt them for a while, if you want," Elphaba said gently as she appeared next to the blonde.
She ignored her.
"I'm sorry, Galinda."
The blonde wiped away more tears and took a deep breath. "Looks like I'm on my own now."
"You not on your own. You have me."
"Again, looks like I'm on my own now."
Elphaba made a noise in the back of her throat and disappeared, but the blonde ignored her again. She looked back one more time at her home and hurried away, knowing that she probably wouldn't see it again.
"You snuck into the Emerald City Palace before, so how hard can it be to sneak into Kiamo Ko Castle?"
"So many things are different between the two."
"Well, then go through the walls and try to find a way in front the inside."
"You should have mastered the transportation spell well enough to poof yourself into the castle by now."
Galinda gave the green girl a look. "Fine. But if this goes wrong, I'm blaming you."
"If this goes wrong, you'll be like me and won't have any problems walking through the walls."
"That's very reassuring, Elphaba."
"I'm sorry. You know you'll be fine. The wall isn't as thick as it looks."
"I don't even know what the other side of this wall looks like. How do I know I won't just pop in on someone?"
Elphaba rolled her eyes and disappeared into the castle. "It's an abandoned-looking room. No one is in there."
Galinda made a noise and muttered the spell under her breath and slowly disappeared. When she opened her eyes, she was inside the castle and breathed a sigh of relief.
"Now was that so hard?" Elphaba asked as she reappeared.
"Shut up, Elphaba," the blonde sighed and the ghost snickered. "The map said that the Mirror of Moure was somewhere in the castle."
"We can't search the entire castle."
"Then we'll split up. I'll search down here where there's a lesser chance of me being seen, and you search upstairs, where there's a lesser chance of you being seen."
"I won't be seen regardless of where I look," Elphaba said, but went upstairs anyway.
But instead of immediately searching for the object, she made a quick stop first. She didn't know where she could find the king, but if she took a wild guess, she thought the throne room. Not finding him there, she searched the rest of the floor until she found him in his private office.
As soon as she saw Raal, she immediately was sent back to their brief time together at Shiz. He had grown older, which was to be expected. While she would forever remain a nineteen-year-old girl, her old boyfriend was now a fifty-three year old man. He looked young for his age, though Elphaba immediately noticed his greying hair and his wrinkled face.
"Raal," she whispered, knowing that he wouldn't be able to hear her.
He was looking over some paperwork, sighing as he rubbed circles on his temple. Elphaba smiled softly, then turned when she heard footsteps. She turned and saw the queen come in, smiling at her husband.
"Are you almost finished?" she asked as she approached her husband.
"Almost," the king said, giving his queen a soft kiss.
Elphaba smiled at the scene. She was glad that Raal had found another woman to love, but she did want to admit that she wished it was her by his side.
She pulled herself away from the scene. She had got what she came for; to see Raal again. That was all she wanted.
"So, how have you been traveling around Oz?"
"I learned to create a large bubble and I get to fly around Oz in it. I know, it's not the most thought-of mode of transportation for a witch, but I like it."
"It looks more comfortable than my old broomstick," Elphaba admitted. Galinda was using her aura to make her corporeal to brush her hair. Elphaba still didn't see the point in Galinda doing her hair, but it made her feel better, so she allowed it.
"And did you really find all those objects from the books?" Fiyero asked.
Galinda nodded. "We did. They were mostly hidden in the government buildings and palaces, which made sense, and made it easier."
"So… you went to Kiamo Ko?"
Galinda nodded.
"Did you see my father?"
"I did," Elphaba said softly.
"Oh. Right."
Elphaba nodded and that was the last they spoke about it. Galinda began to braid her hair with a tired sigh. "Stop, Glin."
"But I'm not finished yet."
"You're tired. Stop."
The blonde didn't look happy, but stopped the aura and Elphaba went back to her transparent state.
"You should get some rest."
"But I'm not tired."
"I didn't ask if you were tired."
"Elphaba –"
"Glin, please."
After a brief argument, Galinda relented and slipped into Fiyero's bed. At first, Galinda felt weird sleeping in Fiyero's bed, but Fiyero assured her that the couch was just as comfortable, but he figured that it had been a while since Galinda had a warm bed to sleep in. She continued to protest, but Fiyero put his foot down, and Elphaba threatened to hex Fiyero if he tried any funny business. As soon as her head hit the pillow, though, all of her protests were immediately forgotten.
"You really care for her, don't you?" Fiyero whispered once Galinda was asleep.
Elphaba turned and looked at him. "I do. It's my responsibility to make sure that Galinda doesn't die because of me. And there were times… when she came really close…"
"I'm sorry."
"Don't be. She told me she would help me, but I still have to keep her safe. She went through more than I thought she would, and she's been so strong throughout this entire process. It's the least I can do for her."
Fiyero nodded. "I have to get back to work, but I'll lock the door. I'll be back in a few hours."
Elphaba nodded and watched as Fiyero left and locked the door behind him. She settled herself at the edge of the bed and simply watched over the sleeping blonde like a guardian angel.
Fiyero was reviewing more paperwork and placing more pins on the map, even though he knew Galinda wasn't spotted in those places, but he had to throw them off her real trail.
"Captain?"
Fiyero turned. "Yes?"
"The queen wishes to see you in the throne room."
He nodded. "Thank you." What did the queen want to see him for? Did she know about his little secret? He hoped not. He was very careful not to let anyone, not even the maids, into his room, and to always keep his voice down when talking to Galinda and Elphaba.
He made his way to the throne room and bowed before the queen. "You call for me, Your Majesty?"
"Yes, Captain," the queen said, sending the guards away so it was just the two of them in the large room. "You have remained very loyal to me these past few years, especially in the search for the witch who attacked me."
"It is my honor to serve the queen," he replied dutifully, trying not to show how nervous he was.
"But, Captain, you must understand that I command and demand complete and utter loyalty and commitment, especially from people I hold in high regard."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"Now, it has been brought to my attention that you have been keeping a secret from me. A very important secret. And I would like to know what it is."
Maybe he could play this off. Maybe he could say something else and the queen would believe him. "I would never keep a secret from you that would put you or the country in jeopardy." Not the best excuse, but it was still better than confessing.
"So you admit to keeping a secret from me?"
"I…" Biting his lip, he thought quickly. "I have developed a… secret love interest." It wasn't a total lie, but it was very far from the truth.
The queen leaned forward in her throne. "With who?"
"Her name is… Fae. She's from the Outer City." He didn't know where that name had come from, but it was the first name that came to his head, so he was sticking with it.
"And how often do you meet her?"
"A few times a week. Mostly during my breaks and in the evening."
The queen sat back and considered this new information. All Fiyero had to do was pretend to be sincere and play the part of a young man in love. "What is she like?"
"She's… beautiful. She has long raven hair, chocolate eyes –" He was on the verge of saying 'green skin', but he stopped himself. "She loves reading and spends most of her free time in the library or at the café. She loves to sing, even though it's not her greatest gift, but she's much better at sketching."
He figured that was enough fake information to tide the queen over.
"I'm very happy for you, Captain," the queen said with a small smile.
"Thank you, Your Majesty," Fiyero said, letting out a breath.
"However, I know for a fact that that's not your secret," she said as her eyes began to turn light blue.
Fiyero gulped. He knew he was in trouble. Maybe he should have signed up for those acting classes back at Shiz.
"You have committed high treason against me by helping the blonde witch!" the queen boomed in Morrible's voice. "And you will tell me where she is!"
Instantly, Fiyero felt like all of his internal organs were being squeezed out of his body. He collapsed to the floor, crying and struggling to breathe. He was in so much pain that he didn't know what else was going on around him. But he knew one thing.
No matter what, he had to protect Galinda.
The next chapter will be the final chapter, with our big final battle. Will Elphaba get some more ghost friends?