Chapter 29

AN: Mature-ish scene towards the middle, nothing explicit though. High T.

About two weeks had passed since Elphaba came home from the hospital. Oz, she never wanted to go to Munchkinland ever again.

The police there informed her that the Munchkins, two men and a woman, that had planted the bomb in Nessarose's room had been arrested, tried, and sentenced to life in prison. When the matter of governorship came up, and the fact that she was now the only heir to it, Elphaba had flat out rejected it. She gave full permission for the executives to hold out elections if they so wished. As for the mansion, she handed the property over to the servants who currently lived in it and to whomever the future governor turned out to be.

Elphaba had mourned Nessarose. Even if they hadn't even been close and had their differences all the way until the end, she had still been her sister. She'd cried for a couple of days, but now she felt, oddly, numb. She couldn't change the events of the past, she had to look towards the present and future. Even if it would always hurt, Elphaba had to accept what had happened and try to move on.

She hadn't returned to work since the accident; she didn't think she was ready and her boss, thankfully, understood. It wasn't bad, actually. She got to spend time with all her babies and Terri, take it easy during the day, and relax in the evenings with Fiyero. Well, if it could even be called relaxing.

He was distant. Sure he kissed her before he left, when he came home, before they went to sleep; they cuddled. But he was very tense. They'd never been so…awkward with each other before. Not even on the rare times where they were angry at each other. Their conversations were short and mostly one sided with her doing most of the talking. He wasn't fully there with her. And she knew why.

She knew what was going through his head. It was what she'd feel when he'd call and tell her he was hurt, how sick she would get each time the station called her to say he had been injured. But this was worse. She'd actually been lifeless in his arms, he'd given her CPR, and for a moment, he'd thought she was gone. This didn't compare, not by a mile.

Galinda had come to visit her a couple days ago. She too had noticed a change. Fiyero was still the caring and attentive husband he'd always been to her best friend, but something just wasn't right. When Elphaba had explained exactly what had happened, Galinda teared up. After the shock of the fact that she could have lost Elphaba wore off, and after hugging the green girl for almost five minutes, she addressed the issue of her best friend's husband. No wonder Fiyero was unlike himself, he was so traumatized.

Galinda had told Elphaba that he just needed time. He was hurting and tired. The best Elphaba could do was be there for him. And of course she would be.

But he needed to talk to her. He needed to let her in. She knows it's taking a toll on him, more than he lets show. And she couldn't blame him, had the roles been reversed, she would probably be in a worser state. It's killing her to see him this way, like he's about to break down any minute. He's trying to be strong, wearing a mask to hide what he's truly going through. He had to let it out, and she had to be there for him when he did.

Elphaba tucked Zianna on her bed. She was having a little trouble falling asleep on her own while she adjusted to having a regular bed instead of a crib. The twins had gone down easy and peacefully after she and Fiyero rocked them earlier for a little bit. And speaking of Fiyero, he'd been in the shower for a while. She kissed Zianna's cheek and closed her bedroom door on the way out. She checked on the twins and turned on the baby monitor before partially closing their door.

Taking a deep breath, Elphaba slowly opened the bathroom door and closed it loudly so he would know she came in. But he didn't say anything. She walked closer to the shower, ready to talk to him, but all words flew out of her mind. Staring at the curtain, she bit her lip. They still needed to talk about it and she was going to make him talk to her, comfort him, one way or the other. But maybe, just for this moment, words could wait.

Quietly, Elphaba removed her clothes. Her body was different after carrying the twins; her stomach wasn't as flat, faint stretch marks remained, and her breasts were larger due to breastfeeding. But Fiyero always made her feel beautiful. He made her feel loved and comforted. Now it was her turn. She folded everything and set in on the sink. She undid her braid last. She took a deep breath and moved the curtain slightly to step in.

The steam quickly warmed her up and she hadn't even touched the water. His back was to her, his hands up against the wall. By the way he was shaking slightly, she guessed he was either crying or had been. And it broke her heart.

Very slowly, she pressed her cheek to his wet back, glad that he didn't jump or tense up. She wrapped her arms around his waist, warm water hitting her arms. He exhaled. For a few moments, they were both still. Then he turned around in her arms. Her hold on him tightened. His trembling hands cupped her cheeks.

His eyes, so red; bloodshot. His face wet with a mixture of the water and his own tears. There was so much love in his eyes, but also sadness. Pressing her bare body to his, she softly kissed his jaw, playing with his wet hair. His hands dropped to her waist. She moved her lips slowly up to his cheek, giving him a kiss there. Then the corner of his mouth, and finally his lips. He was holding back, she could feel it. Come on, love, she thought, let me in. She kissed him again and this time, he kissed her back, moving his lips against hers. She felt him give in. His hands ran up and down her back. She pulled him impossibly closer, touching him everywhere she could reach.

He needed this. They both did.

Fiyero reached behind him and turned the shower off.

"Sweet. Oz," she whimpered.

Elphaba and Fiyero had made it to the bed, their bodies still slightly damp from the water. He was kissing her all over her body; sucking off the water they hadn't dried off, licking and nipping at those spots he knew drove her wild.

This would never be enough. All the love he could show and pour on to her would never be enough to describe how he felt about her. Oz, he loved her; he loved her so damn much. She tugged at his hair as he kissed her stomach. This beautiful stomach that has carried two of his children. This body that he held tightly at night. That he'd held when-

She pulled him up. His eyes were glassy. "Sh," she soothed and rubbed her nose against his cheek.

Her fingers traced his lips and then she kissed him. "Mmm," he moaned in her mouth.

He pulled away and cupped her cheek, kissing the corner of her mouth, loving the hell out of those giggles that came from her lips.

His hand traveled from her cheek to her neck, to her collarbone, to the valley between her breasts, to the centre of her chest. His fingertips barely touched the small, purple bruises there. The result of him pushing down to get her heart beating again, refusing to lose her.

She grabbed his hand. Their fingers interlocked. "I love you," she whispered in between soft pecks.

With their hands still together, they guided him slowly into her. Both of them gasped in pleasure when they finally fully joined.

He went slow. Excruciatingly, deliciously slow. He reveled in her warmth around him, kissing her with each long, deep thrust.

He couldn't keep his eyes off of her as they made love. He'd felt, seen, and heard every single reaction she was having so many times before. Her eyes rolling to the back of her head; her hands gripping him tighter anywhere she could reach, his arms, back, hair, shoulders, neck. Her back arching, her teeth digging into her lower lip. The moans, cries, gasps, and whispers of pleasure; all forming his name. The kisses she left all over his face. All these little things she did that were just for him, because of him. The most intimate and vulnerable they could possibly be. The thought of him never being able to be like this with her ever again - if she had actually - no.

He changed the tempo. Slow and gentle thrusts became fast and desperate. She squirmed underneath him. For a moment, he worried he was hurting her, but she tugged his hair; she always did that to encourage him.

"Yero," she gasped. Sweet mother of Oz, she almost screamed. He always made her feel amazing. She was so close.

He grabbed her leg, pulled it around his waist, and placed his arm under her neck. He kept rocking back and forth. She gripped the bed sheets tightly. His lips found her neck and she arched into him.

One, two more thrusts, and she was in complete ecstasy. His hand tightened at her thigh as he fell over the edge as well. He moaned into her neck as he released. Fiyero let himself lay on top of her, feeling how her chest rose with each breath. She was breathing. He felt her hands in his hair and he kept his face nuzzled in her neck, leaving soft butterfly kisses there. He didn't ever want to leave her arms.

Elphaba kept her touch soft, light. She was still breathing heavily from her climax. Once she could breathe regularly, she hugged Fiyero tightly. She kissed his hair. She loved him so very much, with her whole heart. He was the love of her life. And she hated that she'd put him through hell.

She kept threading her fingers through his blonde locks, slightly damp from the water and sweat, smoothing out small knots.

"Fiyero," she broke the peaceful silence. His arms tightened around her. She placed a light kiss on his hair. "Love, look at me," he slowly raised his head. "I'm alright."

"Do you have any idea…what it felt like?" his voice broke. His eyes were full of so much pain.

She stroked his cheek. "I don't," Elphaba whispered. She did get scared about receiving a phone call during the day saying he'd gotten gravely hurt. But even the couple times she had gotten a call from his job, which hadn't happened in almost a year now, he hadn't been severely injured. It in no way compared to what he'd been through.

"Elphaba," she wiped away a stray tear and kissed his lips tenderly. "My world collapsed. Images of you flooded my head, then the children. Oz, the pain…I can't even describe it to you, when you were-"

"You don't have to. Because it was just a scare, and I'm sorry to have done that to you," she gave him another soft kiss and saw more tears in his eyes when she pulled back. "Sh," she cooed, kissing him again.

She rolled their bodies over so she was on top. His hands stroked her bare back. She kissed his neck, collarbones, running her hands all over his body. She smiled at hearing him moaning and sighing. This round, she would take full control.

Later, Fiyero was lying on top of Elphaba. His head on her chest, his arms around her, her hands playing idly with his hair and running up and down his spine. Oz, how he wished he could freeze time right now.

He'd finally poured out everything he'd been holding in for the past couple of weeks. He felt so much better, lighter, after talking to her. And Elphaba did, too. Even if some of it had been hard to listen to, knowing how much her husband was hurting, she felt like they could finally start to put the accident behind them.

"Let's not focus on that anymore," she kissed his forehead, "you're in my arms, I'm in yours, we just made love, and I really want brownies for breakfast tomorrow for some reason."

Fiyero chuckled. "I'll make them for you," he kissed her fingers when she traced his lips. "Would it…would it be selfish and pathetic of me to ask you to stay home from work for one more week?"

She tightened her hold on him. "It's not pathetic. Nor selfish. And if it is, you have every right to be. But only if you take it off with me."

"I was planning to," he kissed her chest.

He'd thrown himself back into his job when they'd gotten back from Munchkinland. He thought it would serve as a distraction, but instead it had just made him think about everything even more. That wasn't what he needed. What he needed was to be with her and their kids; with his family.

"I love you, Yero."

"I love you, too, Fae," he whispered, the beautiful sound of her heartbeat soothing him into the first goodnight's sleep he'd had in a while.

I'm SO HAPPY with y'alls response to the chapters so I'm updating again today instead of tomorrow. 3 more to go!

R&R :)