Thank you guys so much for your reviews and support! It's finally Elphie time and I do hope I'm living up to your expectations...
Without further ado: Reunion
"Glinda."
The young witch froze. Her eyes widened, and her mouth stood open. Feeling a twist in her stomach, she had to swallow. Trying her best to extinguish the hope that had sparked up in her, she squinted her eyes close. She could hear the echo of her name ring in her mind. How she hated herself for having such a vivid imagination. Her eyes burned from the upwelling tears, but she held them back. Swallowing again, the young woman sniffed and started blinking the water out of her eyes.
"Glinda." She heard it again. It was Elphaba's voice, she was sure of it. Shaking her head in an attempt to get rid of her hopes, she stared at the ground. The tears kept coming, so she let them roll down her cheeks, her lips frowning, her eyebrows almost meeting. Heart racing, she could hear the blood rush in her ears, her stomach turning and her heart aching. Her shoulders started trembling, but she could not withstand the urge to turn around.
I saw her die. She told herself over and over again, slowly turning. I hate you. I hate you for leaving me, I hate you for making me hate you, I hate you for making me love you! She thought, despising herself for such thinking. She had been angry, very angry, she had been sad, she had been confused and she had been betrayed. All of a sudden, all those feeling started to well up anew, her body heated from the intense feelings.
When she lifted her head to look up, Glinda had already caught sight of a figure in black, standing only a few meters apart from her. Her light tremble intensified into a quiver until her whole body was aching. Even though she could only see a blurry image, she knew exactly who it was she was facing now.
"Elphie…" her voice broke, coming as a whimper. She tried to take a shaky step forward, blinking the tears out of her eyes that kept streaming down her reddened face. Finally able to see her clearly, Glinda noticed her best friend's eyes softening.
"Y-you…" the good witch breathed, slightly panting from crying now. Her lips curved into a bittersweet smile. She felt dizzy, bewildered and weak, her body still shivering, her stomach convulsing and her eyes burning. Still, she had never been happier. She had a hard time forming her words, kept swallowing down the lump in her throat and watched her friend with teary eyes. Elphaba returned her gaze warmly, almost apologetically. "You…" Glinda sniffed, "you brushed your hair." She managed to speak after a moment.
.,.,.
Elphaba had to frown and give an amused smirk, trying not to show her embarrassment. She hasn't changed a bit. She thought to herself, rolling her eyes. She had lost the fight against herself, coming out of her room in the hope of forgiveness. Since her friend was still shaking all over, Elphaba approached the blonde herself. Before she could reach her, Glinda had made an attempt to step forward, too, but suddenly broke together.
Wide-eyed, Elphaba crossed over to her friend, who was now weeping loudly, trying to support herself with her hands. Wanting to crouch down and help the blonde up, the green woman was surprised once more, when arms suddenly enclosed her legs. Not even given the chance to hug her friend back, Elphaba had a hard time keeping her balance when Glinda tightly squeezed her legs.
The green witch detached the pale fingers with a lot of effort and lowered herself. Before she was kneeling completely, she was being hugged again. Glinda tightly pressed her head into Elphaba's stomach, gripping the fabric of her dress. Apparently, she did not mind laying stretched out on the cold floor.
"Elphiiiiie…!" She whined, almost screamed into the black dress covering her face. Elphaba frowned with sympathy. She had not expected her friend to react this severely – or maybe she had not wanted to. Hesitantly at first, the green-skinned woman carefully stroked the young witch's back, while her other hand rested on the blonde's shoulder. Glinda kept crying, grasping for air every once in a while and tightly clenching her fingers, determined not to let her thought-to-be-dead friend go.
"It's okay. I'm here…" Elphaba whispered, trying to calm the still trembling girl on her lap down. She repeated herself many times, muttering reassuring words and gently stroking the blonde's back.
It had taken forever, at least an hour, but eventually, Glinda had stopped crying. Elphaba kept sitting there, still being embraced, fiercely. Her legs hurt, her dress was soaked, and she could not understand how Glinda was not uncomfortable, but she stayed the way she was anyway. Sighing, she lifted her gaze to the window. Though she could not see the sun from her position, she caught sight of the evening sky, tinted in a scarlet red.
"Are you two okay?" Elphaba slightly winced when Fiyero's clam voice reached her ears. She turned her head around, watching as he stepped out from behind her. He placed a straw-stuffed hand on her shoulder and crouched down beside her.
"Go, hide!" She tried to brush off his hand and looked at him urgingly. "Clearly, she can't take both of us at the same time!" She hissed, trying to be as quiet as possible. When he did not move, she looked at him with pleading eyes.
"Don't worry." He serenely said. His voice told her he was trying to smile. He gave her a gentle nudge with his shoulder against hers, which was very light, since he was made of straw. He stretched out his hand and took a golden lock between his fingers. Before Elphaba could interfere, he had let go of it, letting the blonde's hair fall down. The couple exchanged a glance.
"She's fast asleep." He explained, amusement sounding in his voice, alongside a hint of sympathy. Elphaba could not suppress her smile, shaking her head lightly and looking back down on her friend. He was right. She looked back at him, a slight frown wrinkling across her forehead.
"What now?" She enquired his advice, her voice still soft. He shrugged and reached out to his girlfriend's side, where he unsuccessfully tried to remove the pale fingers. Elphaba shook her head at him, sighing in defeat. Even though Glinda was sleeping – and she had a very deep sleep, especially when exhausted – there was no way for her hands to relax. She was so determined, her subconsciousness would not allow her to let go. Elphaba wondered what her friend might be dreaming right now, if she was at all. She had always had such vivid dreams.
"Can you get up?" Fiyero questioned, breaking the silence, also in a hushed voice. Shrugging, Elphaba tensed the muscles of her legs, feeling them for the first time in probably the past hour. Her feet had both fallen asleep long ago, but upon attempting to move them, they started tingling so much, it hurt. With the help of Fiyero, she managed to get to her feet, crouching on the ground, Glinda hanging on her like a sack of potatoes.
The Scarecrow went over to the blonde's torso and carefully lifted her up by her stomach and thighs, as much as he could guess through the puffy skirt. While Elphaba rose, slowly walking over to the wall she nodded her head at, he followed her, carrying the sleeping girl after her. Elphaba could feel Glinda's grip tighten while shortly moaning in her sleep. Unable to suppress a chuckle, the green woman exchanged a glance with Fiyero, before settling down next to the wall. Leaning her back against it, she thanked her boyfriend for putting her best friend down.
"You should eat something." He decided, his voice giving away a gentle smile he could not form on his face. "I'm going down to make your favourite." He said before she could protest.
"But that'll take you forever!" She murmured, pulling him back to her by his hand. "Anything will do. Oh, and something for her, too. She looks even more pale than usual…" Elphaba mumbled, looking back down onto the sleeping girl, who's back rose and fell, "We can share, I'm not hungry." She added, giving him her most reassuring and persuasive smile. The Scarecrow was not buying it.
"I'll make you something." He simply replied. Elphaba pulled on his hand once more, before placing a sweet kiss on his cheek. She whispered a 'thanks' and watched Fiyero leave the room.
Elphaba sat there for a long time until he returned. He sat beside her while she ate, leaving Glinda's portion on the other side of his girlfriend. Letting her rest on his shoulder, he waited for the talented witch to doze off a while later, staying with her through the night.
Blinking against the sunlight, Elphaba awoke the next morning. She let out a long breath, lifting her head up. Smiling, she turned to Fiyero, who had his arm around her shoulders.
"Morning." He whispered close to her ear. She nuzzled her nose against his face and smiled into his painted features. Pulling away after a moment, both let their eyes wander downwards, watching how the blonde witch was still sleeping.
Fiyero had stubbornly insisted on getting Elphaba breakfast, although she told him the last meal had been enough still. Again, not believing her, the Scarecrow left, whispering an 'I love you' before he disappeared. She returned it and smiled for a long time, even after he was gone. Why could it not always have been this way, she thought, pleased with all three of them together in peace. True, Glinda was not aware of him being alive or awake to witness anything, but Elphaba felt warm around her heart after being united with her best friend.
A sniffle reached her ears. Elphaba looked down when she felt fingers tightening on the fabric of her dress, fiercely gripping her sides, too.
"Elphie…" Glinda breathed shakily, "Elphie, Elphie…" she sniffed, then gasped for air as silently as possible. Elphaba wondered if the blonde had actually woken up or was just mumbling in her sleep. Glinda let out a long, slightly shaky sigh. "Elphie." It sounded different from before. Content. Slight wet stains spread on her dress again, so Elphaba felt. She raised her hand, carefully patting her friend's back.
Suddenly, the grip on her dress pinched her sides, making her frown in surprise and slight pain. Before she knew it, Glinda had pushed herself up, furiously staring into her friend's green eyes. Elphaba's back hit the stone wall behind her. She returned a puzzled look. The blonde's face was red, eyes swollen and stains of the ruffles of the dress she had laid on all night were running across her features. She was in no condition to look mad, but did it anyway. Elphaba's amusement gave way for sympathy when she saw her best friend suppressing the urge to cry.
"I thought you were dead!" Glinda practically screamed. The green witch did not wince when fists hit her thighs, repeatedly. "I thought," the sorceress had to fight for air in between her whining, "you died!" The blonde spat, tears streaming down her cheeks again. "You idiot! You sham! You TRAITOR!" She yelled in a high-pitched voice that broke off. Her blows lacked force with every following hit, so Elphaba took her friend's wrists and held them up. They trembled, so she tightened her grip ever so slightly.
Glinda panted heavily, staring back at Elphaba. The word traitor had left a stinging pain in her chest, but the green witch did not know how to respond. There was truth in the blonde's words, she knew that, but it was not that simple. She held the gaze, suddenly having to fight back her own tears. Never had she seen anyone this upset in her life. It broke her heart that it was her best friend and even more, that she herself was the cause of it.
"I'm sorry." She let her head sink, loosening her fingers around the pale wrists. "I'm sorry, Glinda." She could only repeat herself. There was hardly anything else she could say.
Glinda gave a small whimper upon hearing her name. Hearing her say her name. It had been way too long since she had heard it being said this way. Not that Elphaba used a specific tone, but somehow, it had a different ring to it.
Arms tenderly enclosed Elphaba's neck. The green witch sighed in relief through her nose, hugging her friend back. Glinda swallowed, smiling weakly, but genuinely.
"I've missed you." She whispered to her long-lost friend. Every minute of every day. She added in her mind, burying her face in the long, black hair, falling over her best friend's shoulder.