A Little... Well, Complicated
Chapter One
"Nessa, I beseech you, think about it," her sister pleaded. There was no use putting sense to her, but this was the last straw. And this time, Glinda was behind her. She followed her sister around the small drawing room where they were having tea, but Elphaba's sudden request caused her to pace.
"No," replied Nessa simply, "No, Elphaba, I am governess and I hold a third-share power over Oz. You assured Father that he would hold a separate power for Munchkinland once you two took over, and when he died, guaranteed me the same right. Even made me third empress. Now you're saying it's a lie? Don't you trust me?"
"It's not a matter of trust at all, Nessie," said Glinda, who was just as calm. She took a sip of mint-flavored tea. "Can I have some honey in this?" Elphaba rolled her eyes. Was she the only one agitated about this?
"Nessa," implored Elphaba, "I turned the other cheek when you outlawed the importation of oil, which is ridiculous in itself-"
"It's so the tinmen won't be able to run away," she answered plainly.
Elphaba didn't even want to respond to that absurd rationale. Where on earth were there tinmen? Nonetheless, she pressed forward. "And didn't I stay quiet when you made it law that munchkins are to only wear pink, green, and red?"
"I thought you'd be happy about that one," said Nessa.
It took all her might not to scream at her. She took a breath and sighed. "No I am not happy at all. But Nessa... stripping the husbands of their rights? Giving sole authority to wives? It's insanity!"
"And why so?" she demanded. "For so long, we have been their helpless damsels, their petty servants. Finally, women take power, and they deserve the right to know how it feels."
Elphaba tried not to burst into laughter. "Madness! I'm talking to a nut."
Nessa turned to her, a fire ablaze in her eyes. Elphaba turned her head askew for a moment, observing her carefully. Too late. The fire had settled into a soft cloud in her iris. "I will not raise my voice, Fabala. But I do believe you are jealous." She stirred her cup and walked over to a nearby window, avoiding her sister's face.
Elphaba glanced at Glinda. "You know, you can jump in at any time."
"I'm still drinking my tea," replied Glinda. Elphaba sighed heavily and walked over to Nessa where she could see her green reflection on the windowpane.
"You really shouldn't wear that hat indoors," remarked Nessa, taking a sip.
"I don't know what has gotten into that pretty little head of yours, but I am not jealous of you," said Elphaba.
"Denial. Giving Father separate supremacy over Munchkinland in hopes that he would somehow grant you recognition, acceptance?" Elphaba lifted her head in complete disbelief. Her eyes hardened.
"I gave him separate supremacy in hopes to keep him out of my hair! That ungrateful, inconsiderate man!"
"Elphie, keep your voice down," whispered Glinda from behind.
"There will be no disrespectution in this house!" said Nessa, matching her tone. She set her cup down and approached her sister slowly. Elphaba raised her eyebrow and got close enough to stare into her eyes wickedly.
"I advise you to keep your voice down," said Nessa softly, unblinking. "The servants wouldn't want to hear any uproar from Fabala the Fair." Elphaba cringed. It wasn't much the nickname the media gave her, but the fact that she was given a label that disturbed her. And she knew that her sister was clearly mocking her.
"I have done everything for you and this is how you repay me," stated Elphaba lowly. Nessa chortled and drew the curtains.
"Done everything for me? I wonder how that is possible while you're out parading with those Animals-"
Elphaba didn't even think twice before slapping her sister across the face. Nessa placed a shaky hand on her cheek and stared at her defiantly. "You had no right... you are not in charge of me, Elphaba. You've assaulted the Governess."
Her tall sister towered over her menacingly. "And what are you going to do about it?" she taunted. "You can't do anything without those stupid shoes of yours!"
"Well you can't do anything without that stupid broom of yours!"
The anger was unbearable. The hot blood in her veins began to run violently throughout her body. Her teeth clenched as she glared into the cold-hearted eyes of her sister. She brought her hands up and felt her fingers beginning to twitch. The room began to dim a bit, and the winds began to change.
"Dio hiyum, dio greethum, dio hiyum das il mein. Dio hiyum, dio greethum, dio hiyum das il mein," she repeated darkly. The spell began to take place as she chanted the words louder and louder. Nessa's eyes grew wide. She shrank down in fear, covering herself with one arm. She shrieked.
"My shoes! Please...please, don't do anything to my shoes!" she gasped and grasped her slippers on her feet. "No, please, I beg of you..."
Elphaba continued solemnly, but knew that if she wasn't to be stopped now, things would only become worse. The words grew deeper as she started bringing her fingers, all bent, to her shoes. She knew Nessa would be too afraid to try any of the spells she was taught on her own, especially against the one who knew it better than anybody else. And yet barely an inch away from her shoes, she felt a strange air.
"What have you done?" commanded Elphaba. "What have you done to your slippers?"
"Nothing, I haven't done anything," she said trembling.
"Then why are they untouchable?" she inquired.
"Elphaba, that's enough," said Glinda. She snapped her fingers and the room reconciled to its normal condition, the winds died, and the lighting brightened. She stood in front of Nessa. "I think we should leave."
"Traitor!" said Elphaba. "No wonder you were so quiet."
"Yes, I couldn't stand it myself," said Glinda. "But I had to murmur the spell soft enough for you not to hear. Oh, Elphie, I knew you'd do something like this. So I cast a spell on her shoes. No one can touch them until she dies."
"Glinda, you're always there for me-" started Nessa.
"Oh shut up," said Elphaba. She turned to Glinda and shook her head. "And here I thought you were on my side."
"I am," she said, "but this is not the way to negotiate." She grabbed her arm and pulled her toward the door. "Lovely party, Nessie, we must do it again sometime. Maybe my house? Love you plenty." Elphaba was tugged across the room, forcing herself to, again, as she's done so many times before, turn the other cheek. Glinda opened the door and jumped back a little.
"So sorry Genessey, we were just leaving," said Glinda, pushing Elphaba gently to the side to let the young lady through.
"Good afternoon Aunt Glinda, Aunt Elphaba," she said curtsying. She was at the ripe age of seventeen, ready to blossom into an elegant young woman. Her hair was straight and fine, brown like her mother's, but had her father's blue eyes. She was tiny and delicate, and carried an attractive poise. A weight of politeness and silence made everyone who set eyes on her give the utmost respect for her.
"Is everything alright Mother? I thought I heard something," she said walking over to Nessa. Elphaba dodged her stare.
Nessa hugged her daughter warmly. "Everything's fine. Why don't you put on your breeches and I'll watch you and your father ride horses."
Genessey nodded and excused herself courteously. Elphaba pursed her lips. "Nice to know someone in this room is teaching her daughter how to treat animals well," she muttered bitterly. Glinda pinched her arm.
"Goodbye, Nessa," she said and dragged her green friend out of the mansion. They walked out of the square where a carriage was waiting for them to take them to the palace at the Emerald City. Their palace there wasn't home, but more like a meeting place, a place where they spent most of their days and many of their nights. Glinda resided with her family in the Gilikkin and Elphaba refused to call that public attraction home. The carriage steadily led them away as Elphaba pondered out the window, her chin resting on her knuckle.
"Elphie, what's wrong with you?" asked Glinda.
"What?" snapped Elphaba.
"Treating your sister that way, you know I would be lucky to have one," she said. "She's a fragile thing."
"Fragile? Have you heard the rumors about her abusing her power? The Wicked Witch of the East, they call her."
"Hang the rumors, hang the media for coming up with such nonsense. I mean, first they're hailing her as Nessarose the Riveting, now demeaning her as the Wicked Witch. I recall another person who hated the media for such obscurity."
Elphaba bit her lip to keep from saying anything rash. She crossed her legs and leaned her head back, listening to the soothing crackles of the wheels. "She hates me."
"This isn't the first time you've fought. She'll come around." She touched Elphaba's hand gently. "When have I ever been wrong?"
She turned to her blonde companion and laughed. They engaged in a light conversation until green lights peeked through the window. An excited crowd formed in their presence, all hoping to catch a glimpse of their empresses. The carriage drew near the palace where the gates held everyone back. Elphaba squirmed in her seat and knelt on the cushion to look out the rear window. Every once in a while she can make out their cheering. The Jewel of Emerald City, they cheered. Elphaba frowned. For once, this was not the glory she had once dreamt for.
One morning when there had been another eager group outside their walls, she spotted someone with green skin. Another one like her. She hoped that she had discovered something wonderful, only to realize that it was just another fan who painted their skin. She was disappointed for the rest of the day.
The driver opened the door for them and they thanked him. Elphaba followed Glinda up the grand stairs, which seemed to lead on forever. It also didn't help that Glinda took twice as long getting up the stairs. Elphaba merely tagged behind her because she was afraid that she'd trip over her three-inch heels, and would need someone to catch her.
Once they met the top of the stairs, a handsome man clad in a green uniform greeted them merrily. He kissed Glinda and bowed his head to the second empress.
"How did it go with Nessarose?" he asked.
"Great. We had tea," said Glinda and she walked inside. Fiyero stuffed his hands in his pockets.
"So how did it really go with Nessarose?" he asked.
"Terrible," said Elphaba, "we had tea." She followed Glinda into the dining room where supper was being set by a few maids and butlers. Elphaba sat across from her while Fiyero took the head of the table. She said it was preposterous that one them should take the head of the table and that they'd rather have him take it. Elphaba refused to uphold such power in something as calming as the dining room, and Glinda didn't want to take it unless it was fair. Besides, Elphaba would hate staring into the eyes of the man she loved.
"We have a long night ahead of us," said Glinda laying her napkin on her lap. Elphaba snorted in agreement. "I mean, we have that riot near the Vinkus that's getting out of hand-"
"I've held them back as much as I can," said Fiyero tiredly.
"I know you have. And then we have those ancient laws to amend that are keeping certain minorities from doing things they should have the right to do, not to mention your sister's laws."
"Ahh, so I take it she didn't handle it well?" asked Fiyero.
"She handled it better than I thought," said Elphaba. "I thought she would do something incredibly stupid. Only this time, it wasn't her." She shot a look at Glinda.
"I can see you darting those sour faces, Elphie," she said, taking a bite of her food. "That's so improper at the dinner table."
"Do I have to send you both to your rooms?" asked Fiyero. "What happened?"
"I cast a locked spell on Nessa's shoes, is all," responded Glinda.
"Is all?" Elphaba retreated, catching the warning look Fiyero gave her. He cleared his throat and looked at Glinda gently.
"Glinda?" he said. She continued looking at her food. He rolled his eyes and smirked. "Darling, my sweet?" She looked up and smiled.
"Yes dearest?"
"Didn't I tell you something about getting into family business?"
Her smile failed to disappear on her face. "It wasn't about family, it was about politics." Her husband sighed.
"Anyway, it's all over now, we have other matters to worry about," said Glinda. "We have too many affairs to deal with and my baby's starting Shiz tomorrow."
"Man, Glinda, he's a man," murmured Fiyero repetitively.
"How is Devin? I haven't spoken with him in a while," said Elphaba, taking a sip of red wine.
"A doll! I bought him the most dazzling vest yesterday, red. Much like the one Fiyero wore the first day we met." He smiled at her and she beamed. For the rest of dinner, they talked mostly about Devin. Elphaba didn't mind as long as they were content. It was the only time of day where she could just talk to her best friends. She didn't realize how heavy the burden was that came with world renown.
When they finished, Glinda was still going on and on about her son. "I'm so proud of him. You'd be proud of him too, I know it."
"I'm sure of it," said Elphaba as they all stood to leave.
"Sweet Oz, I miss him dearly. I think I'm going to take a ride," she said waving her wand.
"The night is drawing near; I don't want you to get hurt," said Fiyero.
"It's not like I haven't ridden at night before," she said. A bubble began to form between the three of them.
"You spoil him rotten, you know that?" he asked.
"Yes I do. I'll be back within the hour." The pink bubble sparkled and slowly rematerialized to enclose Glinda. She smiled and waved her fingers goodbye. She flicked her wand once more and the bubble dematerialized, leaving the air moist.
"I suppose I'll catch some shut-eye before she returns," said Elphaba and began to leave in haste when he grabbed her arm.
He traced his hand down her arm and intertwined her fingers with his. He kissed her long fingertips softly and looked at her with devious eyes. She wanted this more than he did, but the fear that they would get caught, of betraying her only friend, compelled her to think with her mind rather than her heart. He pulled her to him, and pressed her body close to his, feeling the sudden heat. She tried not to wrap her arms around him as he pulled her even closer, his hands to her hips.
"Elphaba..." he whispered. He wasn't going to let her go.
Her mind and heart undecided, she kissed him fiercely, keeping her hands on his face. He pushed her toward the dining table where she was forced to sit. He centered himself between her, taking her hat off, caressing her neck. Elphaba felt everything going so fast. Their time was scarce so the passion needed to be quick. She pushed him away and covered herself. But was it worth betraying a friend?
"What is it?" he asked.
"Someone will see," she muttered frightened. She couldn't do this.
He stepped closer to her and wiped the hair from her face. "How much longer do we have to keep it secret?"
Elphaba tried to fight back the tears that seemed to burn on her skin as they trickled down. "So long that it ceases existence."