Okay I just figured out disclaimers (kudos to me) so here we go.
Disclaimer: Do I live in a penthouse in New York? Do I see Wicked every night from the front row of the Gershwin? Did I go to the Tony Awards? If the answer to these questions is no, then I own nothing and don't get a cent from this story. The fact is, I live in a house 70 miles from NYC, I saw Wicked once, and I enjoyed the Tony Awards from the comfort of my living room.
Glinda couldn't believe her eyes. But she knew only one person in all of Oz would have a burnt broom this far out to the West. Glinda remembered seeing it on that awful night. She was certain, this MUST be a trick of Elphaba's. And there was little doubt in her mind that Fiyero had taken part, too.
Glinda reached her trembling hands out and gripped the broom. She remembered, as if it were yesterday, when Elphaba asked her to fly on it.
"Quick, get on!" said Elphaba urgently.
"What?!" Glinda said. She back away, a little frightened of her best friend.
Elphaba said, "Glinda, think of what we could do...together. We'd be unlimited. Together we are unlimited. Together we'll be the greatest team there's ever been. We can make dreams the way we planned them, but only if we work together."
Glinda was almost convinced. She knew that together there would be no fight they couldn't win if they defied gravity together.
"Glinda, with you and I defying gravity, they'll never bring us down. Well, are you coming?"
Glinda paused. Her friend waited for an answer, eyes flashing with anticipation. Glinda then realized that this might be the right choice for Elphie, a unique green girl with special talents and an unloving family, but not for Glinda, the beautiful girl with hidden dreams and evident popularity.
Instead of saying no outright, Glinda merely took a cloak from the wall of the storeroom and fastened it around Elphie's shoulders.
"I hope you're happy, now that you're choosing this," she said, with tears in her eyes.
Elphaba tried to keep her eyes dry while she said, "You, too. I hope it brings you happiness. I really hope you get it."
With a trembling lip, Glinda whispered, "Please don't live to regret this. I hope you're happy in the end."
Before slipping into the darkness of the storeroom, Elphaba whispered, "I hope you're happy my friend."
The Gale Force swarmed into the storeroom and grabbed Glinda by the arms. She yelled and kicked, protesting fiercely. Suddenly a voice emerged from the shadows. "Let her go! She had nothing to do with it! I'm the one you want! It's me! IT'S ME!"
Glinda's breath caught in her throat as Elphaba rose out of the storeroom and into the air on the broom, crying "Nobody in all of Oz is ever gonna bring me down!"
And they hadn't. Everyone thought that Dorothy had been a hero, but now Glinda knew the truth. She wondered if it could've changed anything, flying out of the Wizard's storeroom with Elphaba, defying gravity and the citizens of Oz.
What had made her turn back? Why?
Glinda focused her attention on the trunk. Maybe some clues would lie in the trunk. Maybe the hidden reason why she didn't join Elphie, what happened to Elphie after deserting Glinda in the storeroom, where she was now...
Glinda heaved the trunk open, too impatient to settle the thoughts whirling in her mind to care that her beautiful dress was now even more dirty with dust, which also settled in her golden curls.
A musty smell similar to rotten eggs filled the air. Glinda choked and gasped until the smell subsided, and looked inside the trunk.
There wasn't much inside for Glinda to look at. There were a few black dresses folded neatly in piles. Glinda rummaged through them and found some old schoolbooks she recognized from Shiz University. This seemed to be a trunk of Elphaba's belongings. Glinda, hoping for a clue, opened the foremost book. A small, pressed, yellow flower dropped onto the ground.
With trembling hands, Glinda picked the flower up, cradling the petals gently. She remembered that flower. It was after that dance at the Ozdust ballroom Fiyero organized his first night at Shiz. Ah, how well she could remember that day, even after all those years...
