Chapter 28

I awoke the next morning to see sunlight streaming in through the window and Fiyero still sleeping beside me. Upon seeing him, the biggest, cheesiest smile crossed my face. The previous night had been utterly amazing, he hadn't cared that I couldn't reciprocate in the way a typical person could, and now, under his influence, I was waking up late. For me, anyway. As much as it would have been kind of nice to watch him sleep (I'm aware that sounds just a tad creepy), he needed to get up and get both of us dressed, before …

"Yo! Yo, green human girl, I got an announcement! It involves large amounts, somewhere in the range of ninety six thousand!"

We could hear him from all the way down the hall, and it woke Fiyero up. "What in Oz …?" he groaned.

Just then, Usnavi burst in. "Ninety six thousand Ozma coins! Praise Lurline, I won the lotto! Can you believe it, Elphaba, I won the lotto! No more-…" Then he noticed Fiyero, who was desperately trying to keep himself and me covered with the sheets. "Oh. Right, sorry. Didn't mean to disturb you two. I'm leaving now, but I just wanted you to know my big news. Be happy for me!" He laughed heartily as he left the room.

"Well, that was an … interesting wake up call," Fiyero said, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. "Does he do that often?"

I chuckled. "Mmm." You have no idea.

"This is the strangest place I've ever been to – and I love it!" He got up and stretched. "Hey, wanna get in your chair so you can talk and stuff?"

"Mmm." So he picked me up, sheets and all, and carried me over to Killyjoy. A part of me just wanted to stay in his arms forever, in our own little private corner of Oz …

But in seconds, I was in Killyjoy, and Fiyero was pouring water into my tube. "And this time, I remembered to close the clamp!" he announced proudly. "How about that? You ready?"

"Mmm." So he put my tube in and opened the clamp, as if he had done it a million times before. Fuck. I don't deserve this. "I … just … wish …" I stopped typing, debating whether I should say the utterly pathetic thing that was on my mind.

But it was too late; he had already eagerly moved over to look at my screen. "What?"

I sighed. "… that … I … could … be … beautiful … for … you." Even after the night we had, I still didn't quite get why Fiyero didn't want someone with a normal lifespan – and someone who wasn't green and a fugitive.

"Elphaba …"

"And … don't … tell … me … that … I … am. You … don't … have … to … lie … to … me."

"It's not lying!" he insisted, turning away from my screen to look at me. "It's just looking at things another way." Oh my Oz, he is too perfect. "And look, I know you feel bad about Glinda, but you two have been friends forever. I don't want to be the one to tear that apart. You can get past this." He laughed a little as he began to give me the CalMix. "I remember when I first came to Shiz, you two would chase each other around the courtyard, and you would almost always end up catching her."

"Well … she … always … doomed … herself … by … wearing … those … ridiculous … heels." Another memory came to my mind. "Remember … the … time … she … fell … into … a … mud … puddle … on … the … way … back … from … the … Ozdust … one … night?"

"Yes!" Fiyero exclaimed. "We were all so drunk that Boq and I could barely talk, and you and Nessa kept crashing into one another."

I sighed. "Life … was … easier … then."

"Well, it was an easier time. But-…"

Suddenly, Vaia came in. "Hey, green human girl, I thought you might want to – and oh my Oz, you two are naked! Okay, nursing school did not have a class on this … um, Prince Boy! You need to get dressed before somebody sees you!"

Fiyero spluttered. "B-But I'm feeding-…"

"Hey! I have a nursing degree and two years of experience, and I'm dressed! I'll feed her. One of our anesthetists is already spreading rumors about your 'taxi,' so …" Fiyero reddened and quickly put on some pants. Vaia sighed and sat down next to me. "Endrea would not stop probing me this morning for gossip about the two of you! Why does she always have to be up in everybody's business?" Endrea was the nurse who had given me a haircut shortly after my arrival at the hospital.

"She's … Endrea. And … I'm … guessing … she … knows … about … Usnavi's … big … win?" SPEAK.

Vaia sobered. "I don't want to talk about that."

Soon after that, I was fed and dressed, and the three of us were relaxing, resolving to have a day off before figuring out how we would adapt to having a third person in our group. Vaia was quizzing us about Shiz, since she had never even been on campus. "So like, the main courtyard has a lot of important buildings around it," Fiyero explained. "There's the history building, the agricultural sciences building, the life sciences building … and there's a statue of some important guy in the middle. I forget who."

"Only … Joonus … Truner. Shiz's … founder. He … was … kind … of … important." SPEAK.

"Right. I never liked that statue."
I turned to Vaia. "He … fell … off … the … statue … once." SPEAK.

That cracked her up. "Damn! Why was he on the statue to begin with?"

"I was dancing on it," Fiyero admitted sheepishly. "What?! It seemed like a good idea at the time!"

I smirked. "Until … you … landed … on … your … ass." SPEAK.

"You just don't appreciate my dancing skills, that's all."

We all laughed at that, but my laughter died down as an uneasy feeling came over me. The wind whistled outside, sounding uncannily like someone screaming in pain. Someone familiar … Vaia startled me by putting her hand on my shoulder. "Elphaba? Are you alright?"

"Do … either … of … you … hear … that … screaming?" SPEAK.

"Screaming?" Fiyero repeated. "I mean, there's the wind outside …"

My heart stopped for a clock tick as I recognized just whose screams I was hearing. "My … sister … is … in … danger!" SPEAK. And if Nessa was in danger, that meant little Frex probably was too. I never should have left them!

"What?" Vaia asked. "How do you know?"

"I … don't … know. I … just … do!" SPEAK. Suddenly, I saw a vision so shocking and terrible that I screamed myself, alarming Fiyero and Vaia.

"What is it?" Fiyero asked with concern. "What d'ya see?"

I can't believe I'm even typing this. "It … doesn't … make … any … sense! It's … a … house … but … it's … flying … through … the … sky!" SPEAK.

Vaia raised an eyebrow. "A flying house? Really?"

"I'm … not … crazy! We … have … to … go … to … Nessa!" SPEAK. I gave Vaia the look I usually reserved for when I was trying to communicate without my device. Please! You promised you would always trust me!

"Alright, green human girl," Vaia said solemnly. "Who am I to question your visions? I need to get away from this hospital anyway. Prince Boy, you coming?"

Fiyero nodded. "Of course. Let's go."

"Nnn!" I protested. "It's … too … dangerous." SPEAK.

He didn't argue, thank Oz. "Okay. But hey, you don't have to come back here when you're done. My family has a castle in the eastern Vinkus, Kiamo Ko. There are just some sentries who watch over it; we've never lived in it."

"Then, where do you live?" Vaia asked curiously.

"Um, the other castle."

"Oh. Duh."

Fiyero went over to me and wrapped his arms around me. "Good luck, Fae. I love you, you know."

His embrace was as warm as ever, but as he let me go, I got a disturbing feeling that this would be the last time I would be in his arms. "We'll … see … each … other … again … right?" SPEAK.

"Elphaba, I meant what I said last night. I'm going to be with you until the very end. You can see houses that fly through the sky! Can't you see that?" I couldn't help but return his smile, and the feeling of his lips on mine lingered even when Vaia and I were fifty feet in the air. But I tried my best to shake that feeling off and concentrate. I had to save my sister.