Gelphie || WICKED || Gelphie || Changed For Good || Gelphie || WICKED || Gelphie
Title: Changed For Good – Writer's Month 2022
Fandom: WICKED: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West
Disclaimer: All rights to the WICKED series reserved to Gregory Maguire, the Oz franchise belonging to L. Frank Baum. This fanfiction on the other hand is entirely mine. No money is made with this, though reviews are more than welcomed.
Tags: f/f, m/m, fluff, fix it fic, wedding, established relationship, aroace Nor
Main Pairings: Gelphie & Liism
WICKED Characters: Elphaba Thropp, Galinda Arduenna Upland, Liir Thropp, Trism bon Cavalish, Illianora 'Nor' Tigelaar, Oziandra 'Rain' Thropp, Nanny Cattery Spunge
Summary: Writer's Month Prompts: popular + married life. Glinda and Elphie are watching their granddaughter Rain while her parents prepare for their wedding.
Changed For Good
Writer's Month 2022
"I just absolutely can not," Liir looked distressed as he handed the toddler over. "There is still so much to do and uncle Avaric is drunk I think, already, and I can't find Nor and-"
"Calm down, my boy," Glinda smiled her most charming smile as she accepted the toddler. "Granny Glinda and Granny Elphie got this, right precious little Oziandra?"
"Rain," corrected the toddler with a pout. "Is Rain."
Glinda raised her eyebrows and looked over at her son, who sighed and shrugged. "She likes Rain better these days. I think it's also because she can't pronounce Oziandra. Just... go with it?"
"Of course," Glinda huffed and poked her granddaughter's nose. "You know that I used to go by Galinda before I changed my name to Glinda, mh? Little Rain and I will have a lot of fun."
"Right," Liir rubbed his hands on his thighs. "Right."
Bounding Rain on her hip, Glinda gave him a one-over. "Well, get going, boy. You just said you have a lot to do, didn't you? And, if you want some advice, to keep Avaric from making a fool of him, send Boq to intervene, okay?"
"Uncle Boq," Liir blinked repeatedly. "That is... a good idea, thank you."
"And if you're looking for Illianora, I last saw her in the rose garden."
Liir heaved a relieved sigh and leaned in to kiss Glinda's cheek. "Thanks, ma."
"Of course, sweetheart," Glinda smiled reassuringly. "I'll see you later, mh?"
With a jerky nod did Liir head out again. That boy, still as gangly as he'd been as a teenager. Part of Glinda had hoped the boy would fill out some after joining the army. Oh, she had been so proud of him, when he became a dragon-rider. Naturally, he'd been quite popular. Liir Upland – taking Glinda's last name over Elphie's, because the Thropp name had some negative connotations, and Fiyero's last name could get him negative attention too. But Glinda? She had always been important. Popular at school, successful in politics, loved by the people. Her name brought him favors. He still had to work hard for himself, but she'd opened the door for him.
"Honey," Glinda called out as she headed to where she suspected her wife to be. "We have a guest! Liir dropped our favorite little pea off for us. Are you doing dangerous magic, or can we come in?"
"I'm just reading, you can come in. Liir was by?"
After opening the door, Glinda got to see her. Age suited her. Some women just got better with age and Elphie was definitely one of them. Her black hair was graying some and her bright-green skin had some lines from laughter and tears alike, but they were signs of the life they'd shared. Every line showed that Elphie had fought through it and survived, she had earned them. Smiling to herself, Glinda walked over to kiss Elphie's cheek before putting Rain down in her lap.
"Nana," Rain looked up in awe, making grabby motions for Elphie's face.
She always did. The girl always got so excited to see Elphie, which figured. They were the only two green-skinned people in all of Oz. The look on Elphie's face when she had first gotten to hold baby Rain, oh, it had broken Glinda's heart. For the first time, Elphie was looking at someone who looked like her. Undeniably her granddaughter. Liir, he had been so disheveled and desperate as he stood in front of their door, a baby in his arms and a beat-up soldier with him, pleading for their help.
While cleaning them up and getting them dressed in something dry, Elphie and Glinda had listened to a wild tale. How Liir had fallen in love with Trism, the soldier, the fellow dragon-rider. How he had been injured and laid in a coma. How some girl had taken advantage of him while he was in a coma and how she had ended up pregnant with his child from that. Yet she'd abandoned the baby, leaving it in a farm. Not knowing what to do, Liir had taken his daughter and searched for his lover and had then returned to his mothers, hoping for their guidance.
Of course had Elphie and Glinda helped him up onto his feet again! And oh, how wonderful it was to see Liir in love. The way he looked at Trism, but also at little Oziandra. Ah, Rain now. Despite the awful circumstances of her conceiving, Liir still loved his daughter with all his heart.
In a reverse sense did it remind Glinda of Elphie, back when she had found her way to Glinda. So distraught over the death of Fiyero, highly pregnant with the baby of the man both of them had loved, helpless and lost. There had always been something between Glinda and Elphie, but both had always chalked it up to Fiyero. Without Fiyero, with only them, and only them raising the baby together, they were free to explore their feelings. By the time Liir was old enough to truly remember things, Elphie and Glinda had already been married. They had always been Liir's mothers, both.
/break\
Liir was a complete and total mess. It was mildly amusing to watch for Nor. His mothers had sought out Nor's mother many, many years ago, to tell her and her sisters about Fiyero's death. That in itself didn't mean too much to Nor, she had no functioning memories of her father. Neither did Liir, he'd only been born after Fiyero's death. The new baby brother was more or less interesting to Nor.
In the end, knowing them had saved her life. When the soldiers had come and killed her family and she had only survived by chance and perhaps god's will, who knew. Maybe her father had looked out for her from beyond the grave, if one wanted to be that level of sentimental.
When the Upland-Thropps had learned of the attack, Glinda had pulled some strings, used her connections to find Nor. The two had saved her from a fate that Nor would like to not consider. At best, a quick death, at worst... Who knew. Not her, and she was grateful for that.
"Brother," Nor nudged him gently. "You do love him, don't you?"
Liir startled out of his thoughts and looked up at his sister. "Yes! Of course I do! I love him. He... makes me feel in a way I've never... felt before. I can't explain it to you."
That was a recurring theme. Nor had tried to understand it before, had asked auntie Glinda about it (because auntie Elphaba was less forthcoming when it came to feelings), but she too failed to explain it in a manner that Nor could understand. She understood feeling special and feeling loved, she loved too – loved her brother, loved Glinda and Elphaba for taking her in and raising her, loved her little niece Rain. But from what she gathered, theirs was a different kind of love. A love that Nor simply didn't understand. So Liir tried to explain it in a different manner, with flushed cheeks, about his desires for Trism, the carnal side of his feelings for Trism. Now that, Nor understood even less. Love, she understood on behalf of the type of love she felt, but sexual desires? No, not at all.
"You love him, you desire him, you raise your daughter with him," Nor listed in a patient manner. "The next logical societal step is to get married, like aunt Glinda and aunt Elphaba. You want that, don't you? So why are you fretting? He was the one to ask you, so he must want it too."
"Your rationale is frustrating when I am irrationally fretting," Liir glared annoyed. "Thank you."
"You are welcome, brother," Nor smiled. "Now, can we go and get this over with?"
/break\
Trism wasn't entirely nervous, he was just tense. He'd never had much of a family to show for, had never been close to his folks when they were still alive and was now pretty much alone. Liir on the other hand, he had this whole family. His mothers, his sister, his daughter, his nanny who was like the family grandma. There was an entire family that was willing to let him become a part of it.
"Trism," Elphaba's voice was even, hard to read, as most times. "It's time."
Her wife was the chatty one, bringing warmth and laughter to anyone she met. Elphaba preferred to stand in the shadow of Glinda, soaking up her wife's sunshine. Trism didn't think that him and Liir had this kind of shadow-light dynamic to them, but he gathered each relationship was different.
"Right. Time," Trism straightened his clothes one last time and followed her. "Time."
Elphaba was the one to lead him down the aisle. There weren't overly many guests, most friends of the Thropp-Upland family, some amicable colleagues of Liir and Trism. At the end of the aisle stood Glinda, in a puffy, sparkly blue dress, ready to officiate the wedding. To her left was Nor, wearing a bright pink bridesmaid dress. And next to her... Liir. He cleaned up well, in the white suit. After bringing Trism up to them, Elphaba leaned in to gently kiss her wife's cheek before she sat down in the first row, next to Nanny who was handling a fussy babbling Rain.
"Dear everyone," Glinda smiled at the crowd. "We are gathered here today to celebrate the union of Liir Thropp-Upland and Trism bon Cavalish. I believe there are vows to be exchanged?"
"Trism," Liir cleared his throat, trying to fight the red on his cheeks. "I met you when I was trying to figure out who I am and... I don't think I have, fully, figured out who I am yet, but I have figured out that I like who I am when I'm with you. You stayed at my side, you helped me raise my daughter and I know that with you in our life, she is going to grow up to be a wonderful young woman. I can't wait to see the life we have together to unfold before us."
Nor handed him a ring to stick onto Trism's finger before it was his turn. "Liir... I never thought meeting you would have that great an impact on my life as it did. I don't know if I'm a good man, I don't know if I've become a better man, but I know that meeting you, my life changed for good."
"Enough with the sappiness," Nanny sounded irritated. "Let's move this along."
The guests chuckled and laughed to different degrees. Elphaba cleared her throat and glared at her elderly nanny, who simply shrugged in an unapologetic manner, muttering something about not everyone being that young and having that amount of time to listen to all of this.
"She's been the same at our wedding," assured Glinda amused, clapping once loudly. "Well then, Nanny's right. Let's move this along. Unless anyone has any objections...? I now pronounce you man and man. You may kiss your husband now."
Trism grasped Liir by the neck to pull him into a kiss, accompanied by the cheers of their wedding guests. By the time they parted, Glinda had already joined her wife. In Elphaba's arms laid little Rain, giggling as Glinda tickled her stomach and cooed at the toddler.
"Now, boys, here are the keys to the Thropp estate," Glinda got something silver out of her pocket. "We'll happily watch our little pea here while you two enjoy your honeymoon."
Rain reached out for the shiny keys, trying to grab them. Before she could, Liir took them from his mom and pressed a kiss to Rain's cheek. Their daughter looked displeased by that and pouted, prompting Trism to ruffle her hair with a smile. Time to start the rest of their life.
~*~ The End ~*~
Author's note: Can't believe that after over ten years of me reading this series, I am only now publishing my first fic for it. But ever since I saw the "popular" prompt, I've been singing the song from the WICKED musical in my head so I wanted to somehow work with that. So. Why not fix EVERYTHING that I found wrong in the WICKED series? So here, have a dash of much needed fluff and happiness