There is only one chapter left after this. I will be posting that one this coming Saturday, since I have already finished it. I will be starting work on the sequel as soon as possible, I hope you will look forward to it. Please leave a review if you can. Thanks. :)
Chapter 18
When Glinda, Travion and Symana were ready to depart not a half hour later, Elphaba ventured back down to the lower level, though reluctantly. She saw the glaring looks Symana sent in her direction, but endured them without comment. She concentrated instead on saying goodbye to Glinda and Travion, wishing them a safe and happy trip. No one commented on Fiyero's leaving, not wanting to deepen the sadness Elphaba already felt. Riordan likewise bid his family goodbye, promising to return to Gillikin as soon as Glinda made her way back to the city. Symana gave him an extremely sour look which he chose to ignore as Elphaba had done. There was much commotion as all the bags were taken to the carriage, but within moments, it had pulled away. Riordan and Elphaba were left, both thinking how terribly quiet the house was now.
"Are you hungry? There was still plenty of food left from our breakfast." Riordan made this suggestion mostly to fill the painful silence, but Elphaba nonetheless appreciated his offer. She shook her head gently.
"No, thank you. Right now I really couldn't... Maybe by lunchtime. I'm really surprised Symana let you stay." The change in subject didn't throw Riordan off in the slightest. He smiled slightly.
"She didn't want to make Glinda angry at her, that was mostly it," he admitted. "She hates arguing with our daughter... Because she never wins."
Elphaba couldn't stifle a laugh at this, and Riordan's smile widened. "You're taking this situation very well. Glinda wasn't kidding when she said you're a very strong person."
Elphaba took the compliment in stride. "I've had to be. Just surviving my growing up demanded it." She abruptly changed the subject, obviously not wanting to get into a deeply emotional discussion. "We're going to be here for at least a week, I suppose. What can we do to fill all that time?"
Riordan thought a moment, then said, "We could sightsee a bit, I guess. I've never done much of that, what with the wedding plans taking up most of the time whenever we've come here before. Glinda told me how you love the city. Maybe you could be my tour guide."
"I... I suppose, if you wanted me to. Today?"
"No, no I don't think so. I'd like to spend today talking and getting to know each other better, since you're essentially my daughter now. Would that be all right with you?"
Elphaba's mind wandered a bit as she imagined the sorts of questions Riordan might ask... How personal things might get. Or more accurately, how truthfully Elphaba could manage to answer his inquiries. She was sure she'd have no choice but to lie about some things, and she was sorry. Riordan had shown her nothing but kindness since they had met, and she felt guilty that she would repay his gentleness with untruths.
"Elphaba, is something wrong? Are you having regrets about asking me to keep you company here?"
"Oh no, not at all," she said with a touch of urgency. "It's just... Well, I'm not in the habit of talking about myself... I'm more of a listener. It takes me a while to open up."
"I'm a patient man," Riordan assured. "Really, it's not as if you have to tell me your life story in one day. Anything you don't want to tell me, you don't have to. How does that sound?"
"That sounds fine," Elphaba said as confidently as she could. They decided to make themselves comfortable in the parlor Elphaba loved so much. Once Riordan had gotten a fire started in the grate, they both settled on the couch to begin their conversation.
"Glinda told me she met you at university, that you were roommates. I remember that not long after she started attending there, we got letters from her. She'd say things about how she didn't like having a roommate, and she couldn't imagine how she would get along. Was she talking about you? If she was, then you certainly had to come a long way to be best friends."
"We didn't like each other at all, not at first. It wasn't all her fault. I was so quiet and shy, I'm sure I drove her to distraction. She was so naturally outgoing. She had a crowd of people always wanting to hang around her. But I was so reserved that hardly anyone cared about me. The professors were more friendly to me than any of the students. My sister was also at the university, and we spent some of our time together, so I wasn't always alone."
Riordan looked puzzled when he spoke again. "My daughter never said you had a sister. I'm sorry she wasn't at the wedding. It would have been nice for you to have her there."
"Yes, yes it would..." Elphaba's whisper was so soft Riordan barely heard her reply. He looked at her questioningly, but said nothing as he waited for her to continue.
"My... my sister died some time ago. It was very sudden, and she was the only member of my immediate family that was left besides me, so it was..."
"Please, you don't have to say anymore," Riordan said gently, resting a comforting hand on Elphaba's arm. "I'm sorry, I didn't realize. I think it's my turn to share for a while. You can just listen."
For the next several minutes, Riordan shared details of what his own growing up had been like. He had been fortunate enough to have two very loving parents, though like Elphaba he had never had any friends until he got to university. He was an only child, and admitted that the one regret he had about his family was that Glinda had no siblings either. Then he glanced at Elphaba and smiled.
"But I guess now she does."
"Yes... Riordan, how would you feel if I called you Papa too? I mean, if you think I should just call you by your name, or Glinda would be jealous if I call you by the same name she does..."
"If you want to call me Papa, then that's what you should call me. I'd be honored if you did that. Don't underestimate Glinda too much. I'm sure she will understand. She loves you and wants you to be happy."
"I know. If she didn't she would never have asked me to have a joint wedding with her. I hope she and Travion have an enjoyable trip. Fiyero's isn't likely to be so happy." Not wanting to delve any further into Fiyero's family problems, Elphaba soon excused herself to go upstairs and change clothes. When she returned to the lower level, she and Riordan spent over the next two hours in conversation. Elphaba listened as Riordan did most of the talking. She only said as much as was needed to make it clear he was holding her attention.
In the back of her mind, Elphaba was thinking about something else entirely. She felt so fortunate that Riordan had accepted her into his family. Still, she knew he had welcomed her thinking she was being honest about who she really was. Elphaba realized that she owed it to him to show him what she really looked like. She knew it was selfish and maybe even foolish, but she wanted to find out if someone besides Fiyero and Glinda could love her for who she really was. At that, her mind was made up. The next time Riordan fell silent, Elphaba spoke up, though hesitantly.
"Papa, if I'm really going to be your daughter now, there is something I have to tell you."
It wasn't until dusk on the second day after departing the Emerald City that Fiyero arrived at his family's castle. The trip had been longer than expected because a severe rainstorm had made the route impassable for several hours that day. As Fiyero walked up to the imposing entrance to the castle, he wished he could feel happy he had arrived. Instead, all he felt was apprehension and dread. Like Elphaba, he did not want to see himself left without a family. He tried to keep his hope alive that neither of his parents were responsible for the nearly deadly spell that had been cast over his wife.
Once he had been admitted to the fortress-like castle by one of the many servants of the house, Fiyero waited a moment longer in the entryway. He had been told exactly where his parents could be found, but still he hesitated. He looked around, realizing what a long time it had been since he had last been here. Though little within his sight had changed, his heightened emotions made everything seem different. This place didn't feel like home now. He hoped that by the time he left, it would again.
His disguise, which he had affected once he had gotten within several miles of the palace, did not make matters any easier. Though Fiyero could not actually see what he looked like, he knew he didn't look the least bit like himself. The servant who had answered the door had known Fiyero since he was a child. Yet the man had shown not the slightest hint of recognizing him as he was admitted to the castle. Fiyero had given a false name as well, since that was equally necessary under the circumstances. He sighed, and decided the time had come to get the answers he had come for.
When Fiyero joined his parents, their meeting place was the ornate throne room of the castle. As a boy, he had rarely been allowed in here. Once he had grown up, his visits were infrequent and brief. He had never noticed then how gaudy and pretentious this room was. He shook his head and laughed slightly to himself, because he realized the truth of the situation; It was not the room that had changed, only his perception of it.
His parents greeted him as a guest seeking audience with them, a stranger who was to be just one of their visitors that day. wanting to get the extremely awkward meeting over with sooner rather than later, Fiyero wasted no time in introducing himself by his false name and immediately stating why he had come.
"I'm trying to find the wizard. Since he was forced to flee the Emerald City, hardly anyone has a clue about where he's gone. I've heard that you might know where he is. He owes me a favor, and it's very important that I contact him."
Fiyero watched his parents' faces closely. His father looked mystified at the suggestion, and it was clear he had no clue whatever where the wizard was. His mother, however, looked at first startled by the request, which was quickly followed by a look of alarm that Fiyero recognized. It was the same look that used to cross his mother's face when she had been overly extravagant in her shopping, or having sneaked an extra dessert from the kitchen. Guilt. Fiyero's heart felt very heavy as she began to answer his inquiry. He already knew what she would say.
"Yes, as a matter of fact, I do. It's not something I've made public of course, considering all the scandal surrounding the man. He did me a favor too, so I hope you will be satisfied when he repays that favor to you.." Jeranda gave the name of the last place she was sure the wizard had been living, then went on to say that she now had her regrets about ever contacting him. That if she could go back, she would never have done such a thing. At this, Fiyero uttered the words that lifted his disguise. He stood before his parents now as their son, their only child. Both his parents gasped. He walked as close to them as he could as they sat perched on their thrones.
"Why did you send that man to kill my wife?!" he growled. He was looking straight at his mother, and did not see the look of shock on his father's face, or hear the older man's words as he asked how his wife could do such a thing.
"Why did you do it??" Fiyero asked again when his mother made no reply after almost a full minute. "I'm sure you knew all along who Elphaba was... I know how you love your gossip. But she never did anything to you, she has never hurt you! I LOVE her, and I'm going to spend the rest of my life with her. What gave you the right to try to take her away from me?!"
To her credit, Jeranda did not try to deny what she had done. She squarely met her son's gaze as she replied. "Son, I only tried to do what I thought was best for you. I didn't ask the wizard that favor out of any fears for myself or your father. We heard all those stories about how dangerous that woman... Elphaba, did you say her name was? Anyway, I thought that even if only some of those things were true, you were in terrible danger. I knew trying to reason with you and tell you it was best to leave her would never work. So I located the wizard, and asked him to take care of things for me."
"Did you ask him to come to our home to kill her?" Fiyero was unsure why this exact detail mattered anymore. His mother's intent was clear enough. Whether she had actually used the word kill when making her request was really academic... But still, he needed to know.
"I... I don't think I ever used that word," Jeranda stammered, her resolve weakening under her son's withering stare. "I asked him to find a way to get her out of your life. I know that's just the same as giving him leave to kill her. I realized that after he left here that day. It was too late, there was no way to reach him. Then, when we got that invitation to the wedding ceremony, I was so relieved. But I didn't dare show my face. I'm a terrible liar, and I thought, if you suspected me already, there would be a huge confrontation. I didn't want to ruin the wedding and make things worse. I made some ridiculous excuse to your father, which he mercifully believed. I'm sorry, son. I made a terrible mistake. But the two of you are married now, she survived whatever the wizard did to her." She paused as a pained look crossed Fiyero's face.
"Elphaba is all right, isn't she, son?" Fiyero smiled wistfully at the gentleness of his father's question. He appreciated the fact that he had used Elphaba's name. Just those few words made it clear that Fiyero's father was just the same as always. His family was the most important thing in the world to him. That family now included a daughter-in-law.
"She's usually just fine, but sometimes she's overcome by terrible pain. There are days she is confined to bed, and she can barely breathe... She urged me to come here, to find out if either or both of you were responsible for what happened. She said to me once that maybe you tried to get rid of her before I ascended to the throne, to keep her from ruling alongside me. After that day, I couldn't get the idea out of my mind. I had to know."
Fiyero looked away, not wanting to get emotional in front of his parents. That sort of thing had always been frowned upon, particularly by his mother. Therefore, Fiyero was shocked when not only did his parents begin to have angry words over the situation, but Jeranda suddenly burst into tears. Her weeping was soft, and as dignified as any tears could be. But Fiyero had never seen his mother in such a state. He struggled to find words that might be comforting and still be honest.
"Mother, I won't stand here and say I'm not angry, but you're sorry for what you did, and that makes a difference. If Elphaba hadn't survived, I don't know if I would have come to suspect what you did. But you were honest with me, and I'm glad. Elphaba was so afraid I would come here only to have to shut you both out of my life forever. I don't want to do that, Mother. I know my wife, she will forgive you for this. If she can, so can I. It will take time, but... The two of you will accept her, won't you? Whatever you think because of how she looks, or the stories you have heard... You don't really know her. Will you try to get to know her now?"
Fiyero's voice was tense, showing his obvious fear that his parents would refuse his request. His father replied by rising from his seat, walking to where Fiyero stood, and hugging him briefly. "Of course I will. You'll have to wait and ask your mother after she stops her crying."
Jeranda looked away, her face reddening with shame. But the king's words had not been touched with anger. Rather, he seemed glad to see his wife showing remorse, repenting for the pain she had brought to their son and his new bride. The elder Fiyero asked how the wedding had gone, because he remembered the date from the invitation.
"Not exactly the way to start off a marriage, is it young man? Leaving your wife all alone when you haven't even been married a day? You have to have left right after, since you've gotten here already."
Fiyero blushed, but answered quickly. "Elphaba insisted. I asked her several times if she'd rather I stay, but she urged me that this was more important. She's not alone though. Someone is staying there with her, at our friend's house in the city. She can take perfectly good care of herself, unless the pain..."
"I understand," the king said, his face darkening with sympathy. "Let's leave your mother to herself for a while. We can sit down somewhere comfortable, and you can tell me all about the wedding I missed." Fiyero looked back at his mother as he walked out of the room. She was watching him wistfully, all trace of tears gone from her face.She still looked very sad, and he could see she wished they were as close as he and his father were. He quickly walked back to where she sat and took one of her hands in his.
"Mother, I know you're sorry," he said earnestly. "Like I said, I can't forgive you overnight. I'm going to tell Father all about the wedding, and about Elphaba. If you'd be willing to listen, you will understand about her. Will you come with us?"
"In a few minutes, son," Jeranda said, sounding a little out of breath from all her crying. "You're going out to the garden, I suppose?" Jeranda looked to her husband, who nodded. The garden had always been his favorite spot on the castle grounds. They agreed to meet there shortly. Fiyero and his father walked along, speaking only of pleasantries at first, but soon the king's tone grew more serious.
"I really am sorry about your mother's behavior. I was shocked to hear her confession in there. I never knew she had contacted such a shady person, that she could be so desperate..."
"I have to make her understand, that's all. The lies you heard for all that time were spread by the wizard's press secretary, who had been a professor of Elphaba's at the university. So few people knew Elphaba at school because she was-- and is-- extremely shy. So it only made it that much easier for the cruel rumors to spread. Eventually, Elphaba had to go into hiding for her own safety. I sent her to our other castle, in the mountains. I suppose you heard about the..."
"The melting, yes. That's why we were both surprised to receive the wedding invitation. You always could be very crafty when the situation called for it. Did you start that rumor about her being harmed by water?"
"I exaggerated it, so she could have a way to leave Oz and have no one follow her... Follow us. But she is sensitive to water. It would take a lot for it to actually kill her, but when she has those bouts of pain, she runs a fever, and even the sweating makes her skin burn."
The king looked alarmed, but was discreet enough not to ask how that situation could be remedied. Instead, he inquired about the wedding, wanting to know every detail. Father and son were seated on a bench in the garden discussing this when Jeranda joined them. She quietly took a seat, and did not interrupt her son in his tale.
"So after all those months of planning, it was actually time for the ceremony. Elphaba looked so stunning. She wore purple velvet, and even though she had to marry me while in diguise, the dress suited her perfectly. She was very nervous to stand up there and say the vows. But having the ceremony at our friend's house helped. Elphaba likes it there. She's there waiting for me... I should send her a message, but all the things I have to say would take pages to put down."
"However long it needs to be, that's what it will be. I can send a messenger with it, tonight if you wish," Fiyero's father said gently. "Anything you want, Fero, all you have to do is ask." Fiyero smiled at the sound of the nickname.
"You haven't called me that since I last lived here... Before I went away to university. It's nice to hear it again. Elphaba has no nickname for me, she likes my name as it is."
Fiyero's parents knew from the twinkle in his eye that he was anxious to tell them something, and they waited silently for him to go on. "Not long after we had to go away, I gave Elphaba a nickname of her own At first she thought it was strange, I guess. But she loves it now." He stopped, waiting for one or both of his parents to ask for themselves what the name was. He was thrilled to hear them ask in unison, very quietly.
"Ivy," he replied with a smile. "That's what I call her. I know there is a lot both of you don't understand about her. You weren't there, there is no way you could know. When she first met me, she didn't care one way or the other about me. But then, one day in our history classroom, something tragic happened, and everything changed..."
Over the next couple of hours, Fiyero told his parents every detail about Elphaba's life that he could; about her lonely, unhealthy family life, the shyness and rejection that plagued her at school, at least at first. He told them also of Elphaba's compassion and gentle nature. The closeness of her friendship with Glinda was something Fiyero spoke of so tenderly that his mother truly began to soften to the situation, to really understand. After they had returned to the interior of the castle due to the darkness outside, Fiyero continued his story as if it had not been interrupted. He told now of the depth of his own bond with Elphaba, of their unwavering devotion to each other. At last, he explained to them why the wizard coming to seek vengeance on Elphaba had been particularly heartbreaking.
"The wizard had his own score to settle with Elphaba. He felt betrayed by her, because she had tried to tell others the truth about him. He isn't a good person, you do realize that much. We both knew he held a grudge, but we hoped he might get over it, that he would try to forgive her. Because... Because Elphaba is his daughter."
After his parents' shock at this revelation passed, Fiyero explained Elphaba's complicated family history, amd how it was the wizard himself who was accountable for the color of his daughter's skin. He then went on to explain how the devious man had first used Elphaba to achieve his own ends, only to turn against her when she rejected him for his underhandedness. He detailed the ways in which both the wizard and Madame Morrible had succeeded in ruining Elphaba's reputation, forcing her to fake her own death and flee the city. Fiyero made it clear how important it had been to him to go with Elphaba to her place of exile. despite the personal cost to him. He omitted any mention of the spell Elphaba had cast in an effort to save his life, realizing that their understanding was extremely unlikely to extend that far.
At last, Fiyero was left with no more energy to speak, and he quietly took his leave of his parents. They sat absorbing all he had said, unable to think of sleeping yet. For his part, Fiyero made his way up to his old bedroom, barely taking time to remove his shoes before getting into the large, cozy bed. Though he was bone-weary, Fiyero remained awake for several minutes more, thinking only of his wife and hoping everything was well with her back in the Emerald City. He planned to send a letter to her first thing in the morning, to tell her how things were going with him and his parents.