Note: I do not won any of these characters, except for Keahn and Jiana. The rest are the property of Gregory Maguire.

Thank you to all who have already reviewed. I love you guys! Reviews are what motivate me to keep writing for you. Please continue to leave them. :begs: I'll do anything! Well…almost anything. Lol Happy reading my faithful fans!

Liir paced inside his cell. "I have to get out of here," he thought, "If only I knew where here was." The last thing he remembered was walking Jiana home from his parent's wedding. They had talked all night. She had given him a kiss on the cheek and told him he was sweet. He smiled at the memory. He could barely keep his feet on the ground while he walked to Tar's hut. He couldn't wait until daybreak when he would meet with her. Liir had played out a hundred scenarios in his head. He yearned to express his feelings for her, but he could not find the right words. He had given up and gone to bed when he felt a sharp pain before darkness. When he woke up, he was in a cell.

A blinding pain raced across his brain, making him wince. "Ahhhh! I wish that would stop!" Liir grumbled to himself. He gazed around the cell in the hopes of finding an escape. The bars were too solid to bend apart. The concrete floor thwarted any thought of digging, and he hadn't seen a soul for hours. Liir sighed and slumped onto the cold, hard floor in defeat. "Maybe a nap will help me think better," he thought. He closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.

Liir awoke to the sound of his mother's voice. "Liir! Thank Oz we found you!"

"It's about time you got here," Liir muttered. "Where are we anyway?"

"We are in the dungeon of the Emerald Palace," Fiyero informed him.

"Can you get me out of here?"

"Open the cell," Elphaba commanded the Wizard.

Once the cell was open, Fiyero rushed inside followed by a slow-moving Elphaba.

"We were afraid we wouldn't find you," he said.

"Is Jiana all right? Was she taken too?" Liir asked when he caught sight of Keahn.

"She's safe. She was the one who told us you were gone," said Elphaba.

"I'm so glad to see you again," Liir told his parents, all worries about Jiana forgotten. He hugged his father tightly. Elphaba shifted nervously. She was still uncomfortable about showing Liir affection. "Old habits die hard I guess," she mused internally. Liir moved toward his mother, unsure of what to do. "I must seem like such an ogre to him," she thought wryly.

"It's ok. You can hug me too. I won't bite," she told him. Liir flung his arms around Elphaba. She flinched when he hit the tender spot on her back, but she didn't feel apprehensive anymore.

"Let's go home now," she said when Liir pulled away.

Before they could turn around the cell gate slammed shut. Keahn stood on the other side, laughing eerily.

"What do you think you're doing?" demanded Elphaba.

"Getting my revenge," he replied.

"Revenge for what? We haven't done anything to you."

"Fool! It's your fault my wife was slain! If you had never come to the Vinkus she would still be alive."

Elphaba was aghast.

"Don't look so shocked, Witch. I've been plotting this since you came back," Keahn sneered.

"Life has made you bitter, Keahn," Fiyero said.

"Thanks to this monster you call your wife. The rest of the village may have accepted her, but I don't. You think you've atoned for abandoning us by rebuilding the village? You are as much to blame for the destruction as she is. While we were fighting, you were off canoodling with this harlot!" snapped Keahn.

Fiyero could feel the heat rising in his face. He and Keahn had always been close friends. How could he stand there and denounce the character of his best friend's love? She hadn't intentionally caused harm. Elphaba put herself in front of Fiyero and forced him to look at her.

"That's enough. Let it go," she whispered.

The tension in the room was giving her a headache. Fiyero put his arm around her protectively, but she gently shrugged him off. She needed to be strong for this. She walked up to the cell gate and look Keahn dead in the eye.

"If you think you're doing the right thing by locking us in here, then so be it. But leaving us here to rot will not bring your wife back. I know how it feels to lose some one you love. It's the worst feeling in the world, but you have to move on. You have your daughter to care for."

"The Witch is well-spoken, but her words will not save herself or her family," Keahn said bitterly. He turned to leave. "Oh, one more thing." He looked straight at Liir. "My daughter was leading you on the whole time. Her only feelings for you are hatred and disgust." Keahn quickly ascended the staircase with the still-enchanted Wizard following behind.

Elphaba leaned her head against the frigid, steel bars. The cold seeped into her skull, holding her brain hostage. Fiyero wrapped his arms around Elphaba's waist and held her tightly. His breath melted away the numbness that was invading her body. Liir sat in a stunned silence, mulling over what had just occurred.

Elphaba tried to figure out why she couldn't find a way to escape the never-ending web of lies and deceit she called her life. When no explanation arose, she turned and buried her face in Fiyero's chest. Seeing Elphaba deeply tormented broke Fiyero's heart. He wanted to erase the hateful words that were said, to make her happy again, but words failed him. His tongue felt thick and heavy in his mouth. All he could do was hold her and be her escape.