So your current suspects are Benn, Rodger, Duran, Gazilon, Avaric, and Madame Morrible (I love how you guys bring her into this even though she hasn't even made an actual appearance in this story. Then again, you all know me and my writing, so I suppose you have a point). You won't find out for sure for another while yet, but I'm glad it's still not too obvious who it is.

25. Theories

Elphaba usually slept better with Fiyero than alone. Her own theory about that was that, despite the fact that she'd always tried to be independent, there was a part of her that longed to be taken care of by someone. She thought that sleeping with someone's arms around her made her feel safe, however subconsciously.

That night, however, she hardly slept at all.

There was nothing new going through her mind, aside perhaps from the question of how this was possible. Fiyero had secured the building, so who had managed to get inside and up to her bedroom without anyone noticing? He had urged her to go to sleep, but he himself hadn't joined her until a few hours later. She suspected he'd been downstairs, going over the security camera footage with her head of security to see if the guy had been captured on camera. By the time he got back, she had drifted off into a fitful sleep and so she didn't get a chance to talk to him about it until morning.

When she awoke, however, Fiyero was gone again and so she slunk down the hallways in her pyjama trousers and T-shirt, returning to her own room to shower and get dressed. She had breakfast with Oscar and the twins, who somehow sensed that something was wrong, but she pretended that everything was perfectly fine. Fawn and Xalo accepted this eventually and moved onto a different subject, namely the question of whether or not they were allowed to go with Galinda and Cohvu into town that afternoon.

"Auntie Galinda stopped by this morning," Xalo explained seriously. "She and Uncle Cohvu say that they'd love to take us out for the day and we can have ice cream and go to the playground and have lunch at that place where they have the bear-shaped pancakes…"

"Sure," Elphaba agreed tiredly, poking at her cereal with her spoon without eating more than a few bites. "Go with Galinda and Cohvu – they love having you guys around and I think you could use some time out of the Palace."

"Yay!" Xalo exclaimed.

Fawn glanced at her mother. "Are you sure it's okay if we go, Mum?"

Elphaba gave the little green girl her best shot at a reassuring smile. "It's fine, honey, really. Just go find Fiyero first and tell him to send a few guards with you, okay?"

Fawn nodded. "Okay."

Elphaba wondered when it had gotten to the point where she not only refused to let her kids outside without security, but where said kids actually found it normal that such a precaution was necessary. It was sad, really. She hated it. Then again, she hated a lot of the things that were currently going on in her life. She hated having a stalker sneaking into her bedroom, too.

She sighed and poked some more at her cereal, half-heartedly waving at Fawn and Xalo when they leapt up, kissed her cheek, and ran from the room to get dressed.

Oscar looked at her. "Elphaba?"

She glanced up at him and then down at her breakfast again. "You already know about last night." It wasn't even a question – she could see it in his face.

He nodded, clearing his throat awkwardly. "Fiyero told me this morning. He told Galinda and Cohvu as well."

"So that's why they offered to take the twins off my hands today." Elphaba sighed again. "Well, it's appreciated, if unnecessary. I can handle this, you know. I managed to handle everything else so far."

"I know." Oscar looked solemn. "You might need a little extra help handling this one, though."

She suddenly sat up straighter, looking at him intently. There was something about the sound of his voice that she didn't like. "Dad?"

He averted his gaze.

"What do you know?"

He shook his head. "Not much," he said.

"But something."

He bit his lip. "Listen, Elphaba… security was tightened," he said, looking unhappy. "No-one could have gotten in and up to your bedroom, then out again, unnoticed."

"So I'm assuming whoever it was didn't go unnoticed," said Elphaba. "We caught him on camera, didn't we?"

"We did, but once again, we didn't get his face."

Elphaba sighed through her nose, then pinched the bridge of it in frustration. "Let me guess. Black hoodie hiding his face from view?"

Oscar nodded. "But still, Elphaba… We've got alarm systems, security checks, the whole circus. Fiyero said that there is absolutely no way someone managed to get inside and upstairs without having passed several guards, who must have searched him, so how did he get that knife up? It doesn't make any sense. No-one has seen or heard anything suspicious that evening, so how did he get in?"

Elphaba narrowed her eyes at him.

"Dad. What aren't you telling me?"

He sighed deeply. "I just have a bad feeling about this, Elphaba," he said quietly. "Fiyero has some suspicions that you're not going to like. This stalker of yours… Fiyero thinks it's not a stranger, sweetheart."

He never called her that. He hardly ever called her anything other than her name, which told her how bad this really was. Then again, she thought as his words fully sunk in, if her stalker really wasn't a stranger, if it was someone she knew…

"He's suspecting my friends," she said, the pieces of the puzzle suddenly falling into place. "Isn't he? He thinks it's either Duran or Gazilon – maybe even Cohvu. Probably Duran, though, given his confession about being in love with me last night."

Oscar looked shocked. "He said that?"

"He's had a crush on me before, Dad," she reminded him. "People have crushes on their friends all the time. It doesn't make them bad people, let alone creepy stalkers. It might not mean anything."

"Unless it does," said Oscar.

Elphaba didn't reply, instead just stabbing at her food. "He would never do such a thing. Neither would Gazilon. I don't believe this – Dad, I've known them for nearly eight years already! Don't you think I'd have known if one of them was an obsessive jerk?"

"I know, Elphaba. Believe me, I know. I can't imagine it myself, but if Fiyero says that security is too tight for anyone else to have come in, how would you explain it?"

"I don't know!" she burst out. "One of our employers? Just someone who's really, really good at sneaking around and getting into buildings unnoticed?"

Oscar looked sceptical. "Elphaba…"

"Oscar?" Fiyero appeared in the doorway, then grimaced when he saw Elphaba. "Fae. We… We found proof. Or, well… Something that points in a direction we don't really like." He glanced at Elphaba. "He told you?"

She nodded, suddenly feeling a little nauseous, and Fiyero sighed and raked his fingers through his sandy hair.

"We found something in your bedroom," he said. "A cufflink. One with the military insigne on it."

The room started spinning.

"Duran," she whispered. "Oh my Oz. It's Duran, isn't it? He could have gone up to my room when he went off to find the bathroom. He was at the party, too… But how could he do such a thing?" She felt dizzy. She could tell from the look on Fiyero's face that she was right, even though she really wished she hadn't been. "Oh my Oz…"

"Elphaba?" Oscar looked very worried suddenly and he pushed his chair back, hurrying over to her. "Come on, breathe. You look as if you're about to faint. Here, have some juice," he urged her and she sipped some, more to please him than because she really felt like having it. Her mind was racing, more and more things finally falling into place. His confession about loving her. The things he'd said about Fiyero and how it could never last. He'd known that they had gone to Munchkinland, she'd told him about it; he could have followed them easily. She'd thought she could trust him…

She looked up at the sandy-haired bodyguard standing next to her, looking solemn and a little sad. "Fiyero," she said, trying her hardest to keep her breathing under control. "Please tell me the guy who has been threatening me, stalking me, and attempting to kill you and the twins isn't one of my best and oldest friends. Please."

Fiyero couldn't keep looking at her. Instead, he only took her hand and squeezed it, saying quietly, "I'm so sorry, hon."

His only warning was a single strangled sound from Elphaba's lips. Then she was suddenly on her feet, hurling her empty coffee cup across the room, shrieking curses that made both men pale visibly. The cup crashed against the opposite wall, shattering into pieces.

Then Elphaba did something Fiyero and her father had only ever seen her do a handful of times before.

She burst into tears.

"Oh, Elphaba. Oh, dear," said Oscar, putting his arms around her and hugging her a little awkwardly. She buried her face in his shoulder, crying, and he rubbed her back and tried to comfort her.

Fiyero moved to stand in front of her and touched her arm. "Fae, I'm sorry," he said solemnly.

Her mind was reeling. One of her best friends… or so she'd thought. How could he have done such a thing? When had this even started? They'd been in touch on a regular basis since Shiz, so when had his crush on her developed into something far more creepy and obsessive – and why hadn't he started his stalker-ish behaviour until a couple of months ago?

"Fae?" Fiyero said quietly. When she raised her head from her father's shoulder to look at him, he said, obviously reluctant, "There's more."

Anxiety twisted her insides into a knot all over again and she let go of Oscar. "What do you mean, there's more?"

"The gunman," he said. "The one who tried to shoot you after your dinner with President Sevens at The Silver Swan?"

"What about him?"

Fiyero bit his lip. "He's been questioned and he confessed that he never wanted to shoot you, even though he really does disagree with your policies," he explained as carefully as he could. "He doesn't want you in power, but he's not a murderer. He said there was another man who bribed him and threatened his family unless the guy attempted to shoot you."

"Let me guess," Elphaba said bitterly. "That other man was Duran?"

"From the gunman's description, it looks like it," Fiyero nodded and Elphaba heaved a deep sigh, rubbing her temples. She could feel a pounding headache coming up.

"Who can I still trust, if not even my own friends?" she asked, her voice breaking. "Are you going to tell me next that Galinda was in league with Duran all along? Or that you helped him get inside my house? Can I still trust anyone at all?"

Fiyero sighed. "Fae…"

She knew this wasn't really fair of her, but she couldn't help but wonder. She'd never suspected a thing. If Duran could do it, anyone could, and that scared her. She'd never thought one of her closest friends would betray her like this.

Before she knew it, there were tears leaking from her eyes again and Fiyero pulled her close, allowing her to bury her face in his shirt. He put his arms around her and just held her for a while, resting his chin on the top of her head as he shared a look with Oscar.

"It'll be all right," he said quietly. "I know it doesn't seem that way now, Fae, but it will be. We'll bring him in for questioning and find out if it was really him."

She nodded, but she didn't emerge from his embrace for a long time.

She went to get her phone, which she had left in Fiyero's room, not much later, only to find that she had a text from Gazilon saying he was sorry they hadn't discovered anything about Elphaba's stalker, but that he'd had a great time last night and that he was already on his way back north, but he'd love to do something like it again soon.

"Gaz is going back home," Elphaba said to Fiyero when she came back into the sitting room where she'd left him. "That means he's no longer staying with Duran. He must be home alone now – Duran, I mean."

Fiyero nodded grimly. "We should try to get to him right away. I'll go right now." He kissed her temple, gently squeezing her shoulder. "Don't worry, okay? I know this is a shock, but however this turns out, we'll deal with it. If it's really him, we won't let him get away with this; if it's not, we'll find out who is."

She nodded, even though she wasn't convinced by far, and then she watched him go. She wasn't even sure if she hoped it would be Duran, just so they'd know who it was and this whole nightmare would be over; or if she didn't, because she couldn't bear the thought of a good friend betraying her like this. She just couldn't imagine Duran doing anything like this. Duran, with whom she'd downed so many glasses Gillikin wine just so she could prove to him that she could still recite all articles of the Ozian convention on minority protection even when she was drunk. Duran, who had been so genuinely horrified upon nearly running her over and who'd apologised for it endlessly. Duran, who'd been one of the first people to look past her skin and see the person she was inside; one of the first friends she'd ever had.

How could he have done such a thing?

She was glad the twins would be staying with Cohvu and Galinda for the rest of the afternoon, because she didn't think she'd be able to explain to them what was going on. She had a hard time even grasping it herself.

She went to her office and tried to get some work done, but her mind kept wandering and she couldn't concentrate. She absently clicked open an email reminder about the gala that would be hosted by Mayor Samms of Quadling City, a friend of Oscar's, in two weeks' time, to celebrate the fact that he'd been mayor for ten years straight and would retire the next year. Would she even be able to go? If Duran really was her stalker and Fiyero had him arrested, her life could be completely back to normal by the time this gala rolled around. It was a strange thing to imagine.

Then again, she mused, resting her chin in the palm of her hand and staring out of the window without really seeing anything, would her life ever really be normal again after this? Somehow, she doubted it.

She didn't see Fiyero the rest of the day; she only received a text from him saying Duran had been taken into custody and would be questioned now. Fiyero wanted to be there for that, so he wouldn't be back for another while yet.

So far he's denying everything, the bodyguard wrote, but I promise, if it's him, we'll make him talk.

For some reason, that gave her a knot in her stomach.

Don't be too hard on him, okay? We don't know for sure it's him.

His reply sounded a little indignant.

I'm not a savage, Fae. It's not like we're going to torture him into confessing, or something.

She sighed and rested her head on her arms, looking out of her window again. Rationally, of course she knew that Fiyero and anyone else involved wouldn't be swarming around Duran like a bunch of barbarians to beat the truth out of him. Still, before her mind's eye, she imagined her old friend tied up and terrified and Fiyero and the others laughing maniacally as they danced around him with pitchforks and torches.

She shook her head and sat up straight. Right, that's it. She really needed a good night's sleep for once.

Her phone gave another ping and she opened Fiyero's next message.

Don't wait up for me tonight. Just sleep in your own bed and make sure you lock the door to your rooms, okay? I'll tell you everything in the morning.

She sighed again. Just wonderful. So far for a good night's sleep. She knew she'd never be able to sleep well in her own room by herself – not after what happened there twice now. Even with her door locked, who was to say she was really safe in there? Especially if she was sleeping alone.

Listlessly, she went downstairs to pour herself a cup of coffee and she spent the rest of the afternoon reading in the library – or trying to, anyway, since she couldn't really focus on her book. When Galinda, Cohvu, and the twins returned, she did her best to greet them enthusiastically, listened to their stories about the fun time they'd had in town, and then sent them off to the living room to play. She took Galinda and Cohvu to the dining room to explain to them what new developments had been going on during their absence.

Galinda was shocked, but she tried to hide it, instead focusing on her friend and hugging her. "Oh, Elphie. Are you going to be okay?"

Elphaba shrugged and the blonde squeezed a little harder. "Listen. You and the twins can come have a sleepover at our place, if you want."

Cohvu nodded solemnly. "You're welcome to stay as long as you like. We have a guest room."

The green woman smiled at them both tiredly. "Thanks for the offer, but I shouldn't. Despite the fact that someone got in here again the other day, the Palace is still the most secure place around. Besides, I don't want to leave Oscar here by himself and I also don't want to take the twins out of their home again. Not after what happened last time."

"Okay." Cohvu touched her shoulder briefly. "We understand. If you need anything, though…"

"Thanks," she said with a sigh. "I think we'll just all crawl into either Fawn or Xalo's bed tonight, and hopefully Fiyero will have more news for us tomorrow."

She texted Fiyero to let him know they'd all be sleeping in Fawn's room – just in case he came to check up on her in the middle of the night and found her door unlocked and her bed not slept in – and pretended to the kids that they'd just be having a fun sleepover. She brought tea and small cakes up into Fawn's room for an after-dinner picnic, helped the kids build a tent out of the blankets, and chased them around the room until they were breathless with laughter. Even if she herself couldn't for a moment forget about what was going on, Fawn and Xalo certainly deserved to and she was happy to see them happy.

Still, once they were actually in bed that night and settled in to sleep, Elphaba was unable to. On either side of her, her son and daughter had dropped off almost immediately, for which she was grateful. She tried to sleep as well, but after a couple of hours, she gave up and got out of bed.

She stood in front of the window for a while, watching the stars and thinking everything over, but she soon stopped that. Thinking things over had never been very good for her nerves. Instead, she glanced at the twins once more before leaving the room and heading for the kitchen, smiling a little at the memory of having done the same thing in Munchkinland a couple of weeks ago. It was a shame she probably wouldn't find Fiyero there this time.

She made herself some warm milk and after half an hour or so, she went back down the hallway, intending to try once more to get some sleep. When she passed the door to Fiyero's rooms, she paused and quietly opened it, slipping inside. She moved over to his bedroom door and peeked in. He was there, sprawled across the bed with his mouth slightly open, fast asleep. She smirked a little at the sight and then sneaked out again. At least he was back safely.

She returned to the twins' room and crawled back into bed with them. Fawn stirred and half-opened her eyes, mumbling, "Mum?"

"Shh, it's okay, sweetie," Elphaba whispered, stroking her daughter's hair. "Go back to sleep."

Fawn snuggled into her mother's side and Elphaba smiled, pressing a kiss to the little green girl's hair and then closing her own eyes as well. This time, sleep came much more easily.

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