Strength

A.N. Sorry, everyone! I know it's been a bit longer than my chapters usually take, but I've been a very busy little elf getting ready for the holidays. Thanks for the reviews!

Disclaimer: I don't own these characters.

Glinda stayed out in the courtyard for a while longer. She wanted to give Elphaba and Fiyero as much time together as she could. She only went inside when it began to get dark. On the way up to her room, she stopped to check her and Elphaba's mail. With them having been gone, it was very full. Glinda lifted everything out and quickly sifted through the stack.

"Catalogue, ad, ad…" Glinda sighed. Such was the life of a collage student. She hadn't gotten any real mail in months. As soon as her family decided she was settled in, they had stopped writing her. Elphaba had never gotten any mail at all, except for the letter informing her of her mother's death. Glinda continued sifting through the stack of mail until she found something that made her eyes widen. She let the rest of the mail drop back into the mailbox; she could always come back for it later. Elphaba had to see this right away.

"Elphie, Elphie! Look what came in the…Oh, sorry!" In her hurry to show Elphaba what had come in the mail, Glinda had neglected to knock on the door, and in doing so had caught Elphaba and Fiyero in the midst of a kiss.

"Honestly, Glinda, what could be that important?" As much as Elphaba had grown to love Glinda, there were times when her impatience and perkiness could get annoying.

"You have mail, Elphie. And it's not just any mail. Look!" Glinda showed Elphaba the envelope she had found earlier. Elphaba's own eyes widened upon seeing in, and she was soon just as happy as Glinda.

Fiyero sat on Elphaba's bed, staring at the two roommates. "Can someone explain to me what is going on?" he said.

"This letter, it's…it's addressed to me!" Elphaba exclaimed.

"And we're celebrating this because…"

"Look at the envelope, Fiyero. It's green!" Glinda was now jumping up and down with excitement.

"Once again, I'm going to have to ask you why we're celebrating this. So the envelope is green. It could be just a very early or very belated Lurlinemas card."

"There are only two things wrong with that theory, Fiyero. First of all, I never get Lurlinemas cards, or Lurlinemas anything for that matter. And second of all, this letter is from the Emerald City Palace. Look at the seal on the back." Elphaba pointed to a gold seal on the back of the envelope.

"Why would the Emerald City Palace be writing to you?"

"Well, back when the semester first started, Madame Morrible said that she would write to the Wizard to tell him about my sorcery abilities. Maybe this is his response." Elphaba slowly opened the envelope and removed the letter inside. The letter read:

Dear Miss Elphaba Thropp,
It is our pleasure to inform you that, due to the recommendations of Madame Morrible and other faculty at Shiz University, your presence has been requested in the Emerald City for an official meeting with our Wonderful Wizard. The meeting has been set for November 21st, at 1:30 pm. If you so desire, you may bring along up to two companions for your journey to the Emerald City. However, they will not be allowed in the meeting with you.

"Well, what does it say, Elphie?" Glinda was still bouncing with anticipation.

"It says that I get to meet the Wizard." Elphaba could hardly believe her own words.

Fiyero took the letter out of Elphaba's hands and read it himself. "Elphie, the meeting is just five days away. You're going to need at least two to travel to the Emerald City. Do you really think that Madame Morrible is going to allow you to leave school again just two days after you returned?"

"I don't care. I'm going. And you two are coming with me."

Well Elphaba didn't have to tell Glinda twice. "Oh, Elphie, I'm so happy for you! Come, we have so much to do before we leave!" Glinda grabbed Elphaba's arm and dragged her out of the room.

Fiyero remained on the bed, and took a closer look at the letter. It was postmarked on November 12. However, the date on top of the letter read November 8. According to the letter from her father, Elphaba's mother had passed away on November 11. Why would the Wizard, or even his office assistants, wait an extra four days after writing a letter to actually send it? More importantly, why would they send it the day after her mother died? Surely with her father being the governor of Munchkinland, the death of Elphaba's mother had to have been somewhat well known.

As he walked back to Ozma Towers to begin re-packing for the trip to Emerald City, he couldn't help but feel a little uneasy about this whole situation. He wanted Elphaba to be happy, but he was starting to doubt that her sorcery abilities were the only reason she had been asked to meet with the Wizard. He decided to keep mum about it, though. Elphaba's reaction to the letter was the happiest he'd ever seen her. After a week of seeing her cry, it was refreshing to see her smile and laugh. He decided not to interfere with that, at least for now.