AN: Yay, I have internet again! Sorry it took so long. Longest two weeks of my life...

Elphaba stumbled with Avaric's dead weight slung heavily on her left arm. He fumbled to open the door, and she shoved his hand away. "I hardly think this is a time to worry with chivalry."

Avaric snorted, and grimaced as pain radiated from his broken nose. "I'm surprised enough you didn't tell him to finish me off." He staggered into the corner, and she hauled him away from the wall. "I'm sorry, El. I wouldn't blame you for leaving me here." She rolled her eyes. "I doubt anyone would."

"I'm not leaving you to bleed all over the floor. Now quit talking and try to walk straight."

He sighed, limping a little more evenly. "What about your shirt?"

"Huh?"

"I can bleed on you, but not the floor?"

She huffed a laugh. "Haven't you been trying to get this shirt off me anyway?" He smiled, which only widened his split lip. "Shut up before you bleed yourself to death."

He squeezed her shoulder and fell silent until they reached the infirmary. "Thanks, love. I'd kiss you if I weren't disgusting."

"If you really want to thank me, you could tell me what Fiyero has against you."

He studied the wall behind her. "You'd better get out of here. Madame Morrible's going to want an excuse, and I'd rather not suck you into the lie."

"Lie?" She tilted her head. "You're not going to tell her the truth?"

He cocked his head to match hers. "Of course not. What do you take me for?"

"But…you hate Fiyero. Why wouldn't you want to get him in trouble?"

Avaric shrugged. "It's a guy thing. He'd do the same for me. Probably." He glossed over her skeptical look and struggled up the steps. When she followed, he turned, frowning. "What are you doing?"

"I'm going with you. I'd like to know if I should start planning your funeral."

"El-"

"I know, I heard you." She caught his hand. "But I'm going."

The look he gave her softened her expression despite his bloodied visage. He squeezed her hand and brought the other to trace her cheekbone. "Now I really wish I could kiss you."

She rolled her eyes with false annoyance. "Yeah, yeah, Casanova. In you go. Let's make sure you still have all your vital organs, first, huh?"

It took several hours until Avaric had been properly examined, interrogated and admitted. Though he'd balked at a night in the infirmary, he'd taken great pleasure into stripping into the hospital gown and tossing his clothes at her. Madame Morrible didn't believe one bit of Avaric's impossible tale, and if he hadn't demanded adamantly that Elphaba had only arrived after the fact, she would still be squirming in Morrible's Horrible Death Stare.

As it was, twilight was falling by the time she slipped from the building to head home. She fell into a silent reverie as she tried to process her perspective on the events of the day. Such that she almost screamed when a hand caught her wrist.

She spun away and aimed a swift kick at her attacker.

"Elphie." Her eyes widened at Fiyero, knocking her off-balance, and she tumbled into his chest. She almost choked at the smell of whiskey drenching him. "Sweet, wonderful Elphie."

"You're drunk," she stated, and he laughed.

"And you're beautiful. Are we done with the obvious?"

"What are you doing here, Fiyero?"

He gestured to the infirmary. "I guess he'll live?"

She nodded guardedly. He huffed, but the self-conscious dip to his head exposed the pang of his conscience. Fiyero didn't look much better than Avaric now, disheveled and exhausted. "We'd better get you home. You look terrible."

He smiled. "So blunt." His arm snaked around her waist, preventing her attempts to lead him toward his dorm. "So honest. So beautiful."

"Yeah, I'm fantastic," she bit out dryly. "Now let's go."

He let her lead him, but kept his arm secure around her waist. After a meter or so, he stopped. "Why him, Elphie? Why'd you pick him?"

"Not this again," she muttered. She faced him. "Fiyero," she warned," I don't think we should-"

"Why did you side with Avaric?" His sadness radiated like a contagion, and she sagged beside him. "Over me?"

"I didn't side with him."

"You did."

"I didn't." She shook her head for emphasis, but he caught her chin. Her voice came out a whisper, "I just…didn't side with anyone. How can I if neither of you will tell me what happened?"

His murmur was as soft as his fingertips along her jawline. "You used to side with me."

She gaped uselessly at an answer, and his lips descended toward hers. Her reactions were paralyzed as she struggled to comprehend what was happening. And then he kissed her. For all the warning, it still jolted her. His lips were soft against hers, a whisper of kiss just realized enough not to be dismissed, and she shivered.

He kissed her again, slow and soft, and she couldn't even care that the taste of whiskey clung to his lips. Then he combed her hair back just as she'd jealously watched him do with Galinda a thousand times before, and she staggered back.

"We shouldn't. Galinda-"

"I can't lose you." He leaned his forehead into her. "Not to him. Oz, not to him."

Elphaba snapped her head back. "I'm not just some toy for you two to fight over." She shoved him away. "Never mind that your girlfriend is my best friend. Never mind that you're screwing with everyone here. All you care about is him."

"He's my fault." Fiyero's fist opened and closed under his close scrutiny. "I should have taken care of him a long time ago."

"Why? What is it he did?"

"I should have known. I should have never let him near her." She had to bite her tongue not to rush him along, half-afraid if she interrupted, he'd come to his senses and never tell her. He caught her hand with an urgency that spread past the booze-induced haze. "Don't think less of me."

"Why would I?"

"Elphie." He kissed her fingertips. "I won't make that mistake with you. I'll keep you safe. I promise." He leaned a heavy head against her shoulder. "I drank too much."

She rolled her eyes, "Obviously."

"Come on." He staggered to his feet. "You're taking me home."

After another long, swaying walk awkwardly half-carrying a different irresponsible male, a very grouchy Elphaba finally found herself tugging Fiyero up the stairs to his dorm.

"Elph," Fiyero wheezed, and she groaned at the thought of that future nickname. "Can I ask you something?"

She hauled him past the final step and huffed, "Why? You never answer my questions."

"Do you love him?"

"Oh, for Oz's sake," she swung around to face him and sent him reeling against the post of the banister. "Fiyero, would you even have the slightest interest in me without Avaric to punish?"

He swallowed meekly. "Yes."

"Well that's convincing." She stalked toward his room, tugging harshly on his elbow. "Goodnight, Fiyero."

"No kiss?"

She glared at him and sent him forward with a not-so-gentle shove. He collapsed into his door.

"Guess not."

She stormed down the hall, contemplating the many ways that men suck.

"What do you want?" Elphaba crossed her arms at Fiyero leaned against her doorway.

The long, sleepless night had given her plenty of time to think. Oz, she longed for the days when her worst problems were how to balance her homework with her recreational reading. Now she'd been sucked into some melodramatic love triangle…square…trapezoid that would rival the best of the Cozmo romances her roommate so adored.

"I wanted to apologize." She lifted an eyebrow and jutted her chin out in aggressive approval. He'd better have a good apology. "Can I come in, or should I grovel in the doorway?"

She contemplated it a moment, but decided privacy from her gossiping neighbors won against indignant spite. She stepped aside.

"Thanks." He ran a hand through his hair as she locked the door in her new habit. "Elphie, I'm so sorry. I was a real ass."

She nodded.

"And I was drunk."

"I noticed," she replied dryly.

"But I shouldn't have been. And I shouldn't have hit Avaric…so much."

He struggled with the last bit, and she sighed. Now he'd blame the alcohol for kissing her, and they'd pretend the whole thing hadn't happened, stranding her in the dark for eternity on the source of the feud as they passive-aggressively punished each other and her by proxy in constant denial of the root of their issues.

"I apologize for my crap behavior. And I understand if you're mad, Lurline knows you have a right to be, but I'm not sorry for kissing you."

She jerked her head up in shock, and his grinned his adorable lopsided grin.

"Only for the circumstances." He stepped closer and brought his hands to either side of her face. "Kissing you is the one right thing I've managed to do in a long while."

He tilted his head toward her, and she blurted out, "What about Galinda?"

Fiyero sighed. "Galinda."

"She's my friend. I can't just break up her relationship." Guilt flooded through her at the knowledge of how heavily she and Avaric had tried. "We can't-"

Fiyero stopped her with a soft kiss. "It's not your fault. Galinda and I have been done for a while. We're just going through the motions, apathy more than anything else. And I guess her obsession with popular opinion. I'm not proud of that, but it's true. I've had feelings for you for a while. I just wish I would have acted on them sooner."

"If that's true, why didn't you say something instead of fixating on Avaric? How do I know this isn't just another way for you to hurt him?"

He flinched. "First of all, I would never use you like that. You should know that. That's more you little boyfriend's show. He's the lying, manipulative snake. Kumbricia's broom, he deserves to be hurt. I hope he is, but with that heartless ass I can't imagine he would be."

"So what, you wouldn't stoop to using me against him because I couldn't hurt him? Thanks." She crossed her arms. "Way to make a girl feel special. Sometimes you're the most thoughtless jerk I know."

"I know." He ran a hand through his hair. "I know I don't deserve you either. But at least I tried to stay away."

"Like when you kissed me?"

"Better me than that clown."

"I see," sarcasm rippled through her voice. "You'll protect stupid little me against the mean, scary man only to drop me afterward because you're 'not good enough' for me either."

"I didn't say that."

"And what? I'm supposed to thank you for ignoring me for the past six months before all this?"

"I was trying to protect you!"

"Isn't that my decision to make?"

He scowled. "Yeah, just look at your decision-making." She flushed, and he caught her arm, pulling her toward him. His voice found a placating tone, "Wouldn't you do the same for me? For Galinda? How can I say I care about you and stand by while you do something stupid?"

She blinked up at him "What are we talking about now? Him or you?"

"I don't know." Fiyero sighed and released her. "Both."

"You don't make any sense. You want me, but you don't. You don't want me with Avaric, but you won't tell me why." He started to interrupt, but she held up a hand. "You'll do me this huge favor of stealing me from him with the premise that he's this villain, but you don't trust me enough to actually tell me why."

"Can't you just trust me?" He scrubbed a hand through his hair hard enough to turn his scalp white. "Why can't you believe me he's trouble?"

"Why can't you just let me make my own choices?"

"I don't want you to end up like her. I can't lose you, too."

"Like who?!" She exploded, her voice echoing oddly in the still hall. "I don't get your code. Oz, I can't take it anymore. You don't want to lose me? That's exactly what you're doing."

"Better mad at me than dead."

She shoved him into the doorknob. "Oh, great. Another cryptic remark that you'll refuse to explain. I'm starting to think this is all a big lie. Just another way to screw with me. He probably just burnt a waffle of yours or something." Fiyero's face ticked in a half-snarl, half-scowl, and she pressed her advantage. "Or did he take the last of your shampoo? Maybe he threw away your geography homework in the third grade and you're still pissed at him."

"He killed my wife!" Fiyero slammed his hand into the door hard enough to rattle its hinges. "He manipulated her and seduced her and shamed her until she couldn't tolerate it. He stood there and watched her kill herself and did nothing. He's a rapist and a murderer, and he should be shot for what he's done. And now he's twisted you, and damned if I'll watch him do it again!"

She shrunk back, stunned. "Your wife? You…have a wife?"

"Yeah." Fiyero deflated, rage spun inward into shame. "Um, I was married at birth. It's my culture. An honoring of the old traditions." He hung his head. "You must think us barbarians."

"No. Of course not." She pulled him to sit beside her. An awkward silence settled. "So, did you…live together?"

"No. And we were never, um, together. Not like that. We weren't ready yet. But…it's my fault. If I'd been more…"

She laced her fingers with his. "Avaric?"

Fiyero nodded. "He seduced her, in my own bed no less." A fiercely tangible pain radiated through him such that Elphaba winced in its intensity. "He used her and left her and made damn sure everyone knew it."

"So she…what?"

"She threw herself off the top tower," Fiyero confessed to the floor. "She couldn't take the whispers, the looks. Everyone knew. I told her it didn't matter, but…she couldn't stand it. I didn't make it in time to stop her. If I'd only been there…"

"It's not your fault, Fiyero."

His eyes were dark when they met hers. "That's right. It's Avaric's fault."