Oops, 8 months... I'm 3 chapters into this, know exactly where it's going, and will be writing nonstop for the duration of spring break. There won't be any gaps, and an update every 4-5 days. Stick it out with me, I promise I won't leave you hanging again :)
Over the next two days Glinda tried repeatedly to bring her friend out of the solitude she had confined herself to. Every time she tried she was dismissed or ignored, with the same comment made – I'm not leaving until Freya is here. It was really quite frustrating, but Glinda hated to admit that she would be doing the same thing – a Glindafied version – if the roles were reversed.
Elphaba really was quite strong, Glinda had to admit. Especially with such a grim outlook facing Fiyero. So she didn't take her dismissals too personally, and was at the point of just checking in to make sure that Elphie didn't fall asleep on the balcony again and to make her eat. Without Glinda, Elphie wouldn't have been doing either of those things correctly.
On the evening of the second day waiting for Dahl to return with a message, Glinda entered the room once again, scanning to make sure her friend was inside. She was, bundled up on a chair facing the glass doors that lead to the balcony.
Glinda frowned slightly, moving closer to Elphaba and perching on the arm of the chair. She never got cold... why was she bundled up?
"Are you okay Elphie?"
The green woman didn't acknowledge Glinda, her eyes never stopping scanning the sky outside. "I have a slight cold. Nothing bad." And she sneezed, an annoyed look appearing on her face at having to look away from the sky for a split second.
Glinda nodded to herself, and there was silence for several moments. After it had become great enough for her to feel a bit awkward, the blonde looked around the room, her eyes resting on Fiyero.
"How is he?"
And Elphaba jumped to her feet as she always did when Glinda brought up Fiyero. Taking one last look outside, she silently turned and moved to the bed, kneeling beside her lover. She rested her wrist on his forehead, and then took his wrist between her fingers. A pulse. She leaned so her cheek was over his mouth anyway, not straightening until she felt his breath.
"I think he's doing okay. I hope." As time went on, she was becoming less and less sure of herself. Nothing she was doing was really helping Fiyero.
Glinda watched Elphaba, a frown on her face as she watched her move back to the chair. There wasn't really much she could do for her friend, at least not until Freya arrived and she could take her places to take her mind off of this situation.
She put a smile on her face and moved so she was standing in front of Elphaba, who finally looked at her with a blank expression.
"You know what I'm going to ask, Elphie. Did you eat?"
"Yes."
"What?"
"Some bread and an apple."
This was, unfortunately, progress. This was the first time Glinda hadn't had to feed Elphaba, that she had eaten on her own.
"Did you wash today?"
"Yes."
"Are those new clothes?"
"Yes."
Glinda pulled Elphaba gently up to her feet, hugging her tightly, resting the side of her head right beneath her friend's chin. "Elphie." But she didn't know what else to say, so she pulled away and moved back to the door. "Sleep early tonight, okay?"
Now that she could see outside again, Elphaba resumed scanning the sky once again. "No promises."
Glinda sighed, nodded, and exited the room. Maybe Dahl would come tomorrow?
After several hours passed with Elphaba doing nothing more than scanning the sky, she decided that nothing was going to happen that night. So, getting to her feet and taking her blanket with her, she walked over to the bed.
Once there, Elphaba stopped suddenly, and just looked down at Fiyero for several minutes. She wasn't helping him. He wasn't getting better.
So she wouldn't sleep with him that night.
Leaning down, Elphaba kissed her lover's lips very quickly and gently, and then laid her blanket over his still frame. Then, kneeling, she spoke to him.
"Yero, I need you to try and get better, my love. I'll try and change, maybe that will help. Soon, Freya will be here. She'll know what to do. I love you. Please... Don't leave me." She kissed him again, then brushed away a tear that managed to spill over before it could burn her.
"I'm not going to sleep in here tonight, Yero. I'll check in every other hour though, and I'll be back at dawn. I love you. Keep... Don't give up on me."
She watched him for a few more minutes, and then suddenly got to her feet and walked swiftly out of the room, closing the door silently behind herself.
Then, she moved towards Glinda's room, glancing at a grandfather clock as she walked. Ten. Glinda would obviously be asleep. She tended to sleep early when there wasn't a party on that night.
She found the elegant double doors that would obviously lead to her bedroom, and slipped inside silently. Elphaba moved to her friend's bed, nudging her awake gently. It didn't take much, because Glinda wasn't used to being awaken by anything other than her alarm clock in this house.
Glinda looked up at Elphaba, a confused expression on her face. "Elphie? What is it?" She halfway sat up. "Is Fiyero alright?"
Elphaba didn't move, her expression unchanging. "He's fine. Can I...?"
Glinda might have been sleepy, but she wasn't stupid. She nodded. "Of course. Do you want me to sleep somewhere else?" Oh the sacrifices she made for her friend.
Elphaba moved around to the other side of the bed. "No. You can stay."
And she got into bed and pulled the blankets over herself, keeping her back to Glinda. Soon, she was asleep, having let herself feel the exhaustion from several sleepless nights. But her body would wake her up every other hour, just like she had promised Fiyero. It was good at being its own alarm clock.
Glinda faced Elphaba, watching her sleep. When her friend turned over onto her other side, Glinda bit her lip when she realized that she was crying in her sleep; tears were slowly sliding down her face. Quickly grabbing a handkerchief from her nightstand, she busied herself dabbing Elphaba's tears away before they could burn her.
This lasted for a little over an hour, and then Glinda too fell asleep.