Strength
A.N. Thanks for the reviews. I received a request for some romance. Well, let me see what I can do…
They arrived in Nest Hardings around seven the next morning. Although Elphaba had protested it at first, they decided to go directly to the governor's mansion. They knew that they would have the best chance of finding Nessa there. Sure enough, she was sitting on the porch when they pulled up. As soon as she saw the three of them exit the cab, she wheeled herself off of the porch (long ago rebuilt to accommodate Nessa's wheelchair) and down the front path.
"Oh, Elphaba! I knew you'd come back!" she exclaimed.
As Nessa proceeded to repeat the entire situation, it occurred to Elphaba that Nessa was the first person, outside of the Shiz faculty, who hadn't called her "Elphie" or "Fabala" in quite some time.
"Nessa," Elphaba said, holding up her good hand to stop her. "I know what's going on. I need to talk to you. Let's go inside so Fiyero doesn't have to stand here holding me."
Although it was no strain on Fiyero to hold Elphaba, he nodded in agreement. He could sense that Elphaba felt uncomfortable being seen outdoors here, especially in the condition that she was in.
The interior of the house seemed brighter since the last time they had been there. Elphaba was surprised to see no servants or attendants around, meaning that Nessa had been taking care of herself for the time she had been there.
"So what did you want to talk to me about, Elphaba?" Nessa asked once they were all seated on the couch.
Elphaba looked at her sister's face. She couldn't believe what she was about to tell her. "Look, Nessa, I wanted to talk to you about this petition."
"Oh, I know. Isn't it awful? But don't worry, we'll get it straightened out if we just…"
"No, Nessa. The thing is, I started it."
Nessa was silent for a moment before asking "What?"
"Well, technically Boq started it, but we gave him the idea. I just don't think I'm the right person to rule Munchkinland right now, Nessa. I'm only 19 and I've had no experience."
"But Elphaba, it's your birth right! Who will be the governor if you step down?"
"Well, I was thinking you. You're 18, and our father always wanted you to be his successor anyway. I'm sure you'd do a better job than I could."
Nessa took this with a little more hostility than Elphaba had expected. "Well, you can be assured that I will take on the job, Elphaba. I will not abandon my family position as you have done. It's no wonder that Father was so frustrated with you! Now, since I am the new governor I guess that would make this my house, so I would appreciate it if you all would leave. I have a lot of work to do. Goodbye, Elphaba."
Elphaba said nothing as Fiyero carried her out of the house, with Glinda following them. She remained silent until they had found a small hotel and had rented a room. Although it was against her better judgment, Glinda allowed Fiyero and Elphaba to share the same room.
There was an awkward silence for a few minutes. Eventually, Elphaba sighed and said "She's gone. I've lost her."
"Fabala, what do you mean?"
"I've lost her, Fiyero. My little sister. I've lost her forever."
Fiyero sat down next to Elphaba on the bed. "You didn't lose her, Elphie. She'll forgive you."
Elphaba shook her head. "It's not just that. Did you notice that she was all alone in that house? She doesn't need me anymore."
Fiyero nodded. "She certainly has changed through all of this."
"She's independent, she's forceful, she's strong…everything I've lost."
Fiyero leaned over and kissed Elphaba. "Elphie, how many times am I going to have to tell you? You didn't lose anything. In fact, I would say that you've gained quite a bit."
"Yero, you're so sweet. But let's face it. That just isn't true. I'm a different person than I was before all of this started."
Fiyero put his arm around Elphaba's shoulder and she leaned her head on his chest. "Well, who said that was a bad thing? I actually like this Elphie better." Seeing Elphaba's confused expression, he continued. "Before all of this, you were sweet, caring, compassionate…"
"And I'm not anymore?"
"No, you are. But before, we couldn't see those things. You were hidden behind this mask of only being sarcastic and strong. I like seeing all of you, Elphie." He kissed her again, a little more forcefully this time.
Elphaba didn't respond, at least not verbally. The two of them kissed for quite awhile, enjoying the romance that had been all but forgotten in the midst of everything else going on.
Eventually, they tired and Elphaba once again leaned back on Fiyero's chest. She was enjoying the comfort and security that she found in his arms. Everything was peaceful, everything was serene.
The serenity didn't last, though. After a few minutes, Elphaba thought she heard voices in the distance. She shrugged it off, thinking it had only been a passing townsperson or the wind.
She was wrong. Both she and Fiyero heard the sound of shattering glass, and Glinda yelping in the next room. Before they had a chance to respond, the window directly above them had shattered as well, the glass flying to all corners of the room. Thankfully, the rooms were conjoined so Fiyero didn't have to let Elphaba out of his sight for more than a few seconds as he went into the other room and surveyed the situation. He led Glinda into their room. She was crying, and holding her arm. Her hand did little to stop it from bleeding, though.
It was at this moment that Elphaba realized what had happened. As she looked across the room, she saw the mark that confirmed her theory. In the wall across from the bed was one single bullet hole.
They had been the victims of armed rebels. Since Elphaba and Fiyero had been on the bed, the bullet shot through their window had gone right over their heads and into the wall. Glinda, however, was not so lucky. Fiyero lifted Glinda onto the bed, placing her as close to Elphaba as he could. He got his first aid kit and began working on Glinda's arm. Elphaba tried to help as much as she could, but eventually her job became simply to keep Glinda calm.
"It's ok, Glinda. You're going to be fine. Trust me."
As she stroked Glinda's shoulder with her good arm, she saw a drop of blood land on her wrist. "That's odd…" she thought. She realized that the blood had come from her own face, most likely the result of the broken glass flying everywhere.
Fiyero looked up for a moment and saw this. "Great…more blood" he said.
"Don't worry about me, Yero. We have to get her to the hospital. Putting oil on my burned skin is one thing, but this is quite another."
"I know, Elphie. I'm just trying to figure out how I can get both of you there. Neither of you can walk there."
As Fiyero struggled to figure out a plan, Elphaba watched Glinda's eyes. They were staring blankly up at the ceiling, a look Elphaba remembered all too well from the night she was injured. She sensed that Glinda was going to pass out, so she tried to get her attention and keep her awake. Elphaba may not have been trained in what to do with a gunshot wound, but she did know that in situations like this the patient should be kept alert.
"Glinda? Glinda, look at me, sweetie. You're going to be fine. Does your arm hurt?" It was an obvious answer, but at least it was something Glinda could respond to.
Meanwhile, Fiyero had come up with a plan. "Elphie, you grew up here. How far is the nearest hospital?"
"It can't be more than a block or two away. This is the main part of Nest Hardings. Hotels, stores, hospitals, they're all lumped together within a few blocks."
"That's good, because this is going to be tricky." Fiyero said as he lifted Elphaba in one arm, and Glinda in the other. Thankfully, they were both small.
The next few hours were a blur to all of them. Glinda passed out when they arrived at the hospital, despite Elphaba's best attempts at keeping her awake. Elphaba was taken by a doctor as well to treat the cut on her forehead. She ended up with stitches and with a burn from the doctor attempting to wash off the blood from her face with water, and was then returned to Fiyero's arms in the waiting room to wait for Glinda.
A.N. Well, that was exciting, wasn't it? And now I get to be evil and put a cliffhanger (does evil laugh). I'll be fast, I promise. Please review!