The Cherry Tree

Boq pulled the door closed behind him and heard the sound reverberate off the walls of the empty corridor. He could see a faint strip of dusty light shining in from the door at the end of the hallway as it fell closed. He ran towards it, not wanting to lose her.

"Glinda!" he called helplessly into the morning air. His eyes scanned the courtyard, and he saw her crying beneath a blossoming cherry tree. He approached her tentatively and sat down in the grass beside her, placing a hand on her shoulder. She removed her face from her hands to look at him. Her eyes were red and there were delicate lines of mascara beneath them. Her tears ran gently down her flushed cheeks before falling quietly into her lap.

He looked at her, expecting her to speak, but she did not. "Are you okay?" he asked her gently, though the answer was quite evident.

She sat for a moment, staring at her hands, which were folded in her lap. She looked up at him slowly and drew in a couple of short breaths before saying, "Oh, Boq, why did she have to leave!" She threw her arms rather awkwardly about his neck and buried her face into his shoulder.

"Shh…" He rubbed her back as she sobbed quietly. When she had regained some of her composure, she pulled away from him and leaned back against the tree.

"Sorry," she mumbled, blushing slightly.

"Don't be," he said. "Do you want to, erm… talk about it?"

"It's just-" Glinda said, tears forming again in her eyes. "Today is Elphaba's birthday. And- she- she never said goodbye." She paused, trying to think of what to say. "And, you know, I was thinking about her today, just wishing that I could see her to tell her how much I miss her. And that poem in Doctor Nikidik's class- it's like she was finally saying goodbye. I don't-" she faltered, sounding unsure. "I don't know. Maybe it sounds crazy. It's just that Fiyero's gone now too and I just- have a feeling that something's wrong."

He let out his breath in an almost relieved way. He was glad to hear her words reflect the same things that had been troubling him all week. "I've had that feeling today as well. I just hope she's all right…"

She laid her hand on his in a reassuring way. "Boq. It's not your fault, you know."

He looked up at her and stared deeply into her clear blue eyes, looking for a hint of accusation residing there, but he found none.

"I know. And it's not yours either."

She sat still, a few more tears leaking down her face. The sunlight glistened off of them as he leaned in to gently wipe them away.

With the sunlight, the blossoms, the closeness… Boq couldn't help it. He leaned in and kissed her lightly. He was surprised when she kissed him back.


A Rough Night

He lay upon his side on the mattress, watching Elphaba sleep. He was lying as close to her as he could without physically touching her. Every time he had, she had pulled away and cried out in pain.

She moaned quietly as she opened her eyes. She looked at him and tried to smile, but it turned instead to a grimace. "Fiyero," she whispered. "You weren't supposed to come."

He chose to ignore what she had said. He sat up in bed and scooted closer to her. "What happened to you, Elphaba?" he asked gently as he reached over to feel her forehead.

She jerked away. "Fiyero. Don't."

His eyes filled with tears. "Elphie, what is it?"

She closed her eyes sleepily and said in a drowsy voice, "You weren't supposed to come."

"Elphie, no." He said, reaching out again to touch her arm. "You have to stay awake."

Her eyes flew open. "Fiyero! I said don't."

He pulled his hand away. "For goodness' sake. Just tell me what happened."

"I-" she hesitated. "I can't."

• • • • •

She could hear Fiyero breathing as she woke drowsily. She tried to move, but immediately gave up, moaning. She opened her eyes and saw Fiyero watching her. She was glad he had come. She didn't want to be alone.

He reached over to feel her forehead, but she pulled away, cringing. "Fiyero. Don't." she said.

He looked worried- she could see it in his eyes. His look caused her even more pain, if possible. She didn't want him to be hurt.

"Tell me what happened," he said gently.

Her mind began racing. She remembered flashes of lights and crowds of people, a dark alleyway coupled with terrible pain. The room began to spin again as she tried to escape from the images forever imprinted into her memory. "I can't."

He tried to comfort her. "Elphie, I love y-"

"No, Yero," she said in a weary voice. "Don't."

He laid down next to her again and scooted close. This time she didn't force him away. "I do," he whispered into her ear.


The Red Balloon

Fiyero woke from an uneasy sleep. He sat up gingerly, not wanting to wake Elphaba. She was shaking and there were ringlets of sweat forming upon her brow. She began to toss and turn, mumbling in her sleep.

What in the name of Sweet Lurline happened to her? He thought as he leaned in to examine the bumps on her arm. They had faded significantly in the past few days and were now hardly visible. Why won't she tell me what happened? He was worried about her. 'No. You can't come. I know it's my birthday. I've got work to do. I'm serious, Yero,' she had said. Had she been hurt that night? Working? Whatever it is, it isn't worth her life. He thought angrily. He didn't want her to make sacrifices… he needed her.

"No!" she cried out suddenly in her sleep. She twisted herself up in the blankets, thrashing about, screaming incoherently.

"Elphie!" he cried out to wake her, shocked.

She stopped fidgeting and opened her eyes uncertainly. She was still shaking.

"Oh, love." He reached over to her but she swatted his hand down and sat up in bed, wincing slightly.

"Bring me my oil, will you?" she asked. Her voice sounded slightly stronger than before. "The green bottle."

He rose and walked to the wardrobe to retrieve it.

When he returned, he noticed that she had thrown back the covers and pulled her hair back from her face. She took the bottle from him and poured some oil into her palms. It smelled of kiwi and also had a faint medicinal scent of herbs. She rubbed it gingerly on her arm before proceeding to rub it on her stomach and legs as well, wincing in pain. Her skin, though not entirely back to it's normal color, had a more healthy glow to it.

"The Gale Force," she said quietly.

"What?" he asked, surprised.

"The Gale Force. They found us…" her voice trailed off uncertainly before she continued. "They ruined everything…" she said quietly.

"What did they do?" he asked, terrified.

"I don't know," she whispered.

"You were out of it for two days. Always moaning and thrashing about. I couldn't touch you at all," he said the last part regretfully. "I could hardly get you to eat or drink, or speak."

"I'm glad you came," she said.

He crawled into the bed with her and held her in his arms. He kissed her and then rested his head upon her shoulder.

"I'm so glad you're safe."

He thought he heard her voice, faintly, but was unsure. He shook his head, deciding that he must have imagined it. For he could have sworn he had heard her whisper, 'I love you.'


Okay, I am unsure how much I like this chapter. It needed to be written, I felt bad for leaving you all in suspense last time, not that this helps too much. With the way you all tell me it moves too fast (sorry, that's my personality showing, lol) I wouldn't have possibly made Elphaba pregnant, at least notso soon. Anyhow, I know Shiz and the Emerald City are really disconnected right now, I am working on getting them connected better as soon as it is convenient for me. And, I see how many hits my story gets, and how many reviews I am getting. I appreciate the people that are reviewing, it helps tremendously. But, you all must remember, this is my first fic, in which feedback is very important to me as I am still new to the whole 'writing' thing. Anyhow, please review, I will get another chapter written up in a few days once I have heard from all of you about the chapters up so far. :)