Prison was fun, man. Well, flinging gruel at the guards was fun. You'd think they learn, though, huh? Prison was actually very boring; so don't get arrested if you can help it. I'd been in the dark cell for over a month now, and I was beginning to show my pregnancy.

At night, when everyone was asleep, I would talk to the baby inside of me. I knew what the Wizard was waiting for, he wanted me to have the baby and then he was going to kill me. He wanted to torture Fiyero and I's baby, I knew he did. I was hoping that somehow the gruel would make me a have a miscarriage, but so far it wasn't happening.

That night, the Wizard decided to pay me a little visit, "So, how have you been doing in imprisonment, Miss Thropp?"

"Great. Your guards make wonderful targets. Well, actually they don't, since they're very bad at not getting hit."

"Yes, I've heard about the gruel."

I smiled cruelly, "While the Wizard is away, the prisoners will play."

He nodded, thoughtfully, "How far along are you?" he asked, pointing at my slightly swollen belly.

I shrugged, "Three, four months along, I don't know. So…I guess I've still got a couple of months in prison, eh?"

"Ah, I see you have caught on to our little plan."

"It's not tough to figure out, if I may be so frank."

"No, that's how I planned it, I wanted you to suffer knowing what was coming to you."

"You killed Fiyero, you can kill me, but my child will be immortal to you. I'll make sure of that. Of all the people you can hurt, you won't be able to hurt her!" Her?

He smiled, meanly, "I'll be able to hurt her, and you can't stop me while you're here."

"Amazing. You'd torture children because you want me to suffer."

"It's not just a child, it's your child, Fiyero's child."

I pressed myself against the bars of my cell, "I'll kill you if you ever lay a hand on her." Where was this Her stuff coming from?

"Have you forgotten, my dear Elphaba, that you're in prison and it's not possible to escape?"

I sneered, "I haven't forgotten, but the mind is more powerful than the body."

"Whatever you wish to believe." I think my philosophy was scaring him. Well, I knew my philosophy was scaring him.

"If Fiyero was alive, he would kill you."

"Your heathen of a lover wouldn't be able to kill me, he already tried. And I won."

"You didn't win, your army won."

"It's all the same, dear."

"No, it's not."

He shrugged, "Have a nice sleep, Elphaba." he said, sneering at my name.

I stuck my tongue out at him as he walked away. How childish.

Suddenly my heart hurt. I was lying to myself; I had tried to convince myself that I was done with mourning Yero..but I wasn't, I looked up at the only window in the whole prison, a 2 by 4 barred rectangle, was all it really was, but it worked. I was greeted with the bright moon in my eyes, I shuddered, "Oh Yero, help me."

"You know, if you turn here, you can get to Loland in two days."

"Stop trying to trick me, Sahlah, Going that way is going to take longer and would be even more dangerous."

"Humph. I hate not being trusted."

"Well, then stop lying."

"I'm not lying."

"You are. That way leads to the Hiland Forest, which in case you didn't know, is very dense. It would take us a couple of days."

She crossed her arms over her chest and began to pout, "How old are you?" I asked her.

"I'm twenty-one, why?"

"I don't know. Maybe it's because you're acting like a three year old."

"I am NOT!"

I raised my eyebrows at her, "You're not?"

She glared at me, "What are you, my father?"

"No. I just don't think it's safe for children under the age of thirteen to travel across the country of Hiland."

"Then what are you doing here?"

"I, unlike you, am twenty-two."

"Your ego is too big, you know that?"

"Yes. It's part of my charming personality." I was beginning to talk like Elphaba.

"I wouldn't put it as charming. I want to know how Elphaba stands you."

"Elphaba is able to stand me because she influenced me."

"Can't wait to meet her."

"Well, you're not going to meet her."

"What! Why not?"

"Because, I'm not going any further than Munchkinland with you. You bug me. Besides, it's probably not safe to be seen with me in the Emerald City."

"So? You're going aren't you?"

"Do we have to have this conversation every ten minutes, Sahlah?"

"Sorry, but that can't be your answer for everything."

"It can, and it is: There's something is wrong with Elphaba, and the Gale Force is after her. That's the only reason I need."

"Whatever. Look! There's the city!" Sahlah pointed off to the west.

Sure enough, there was the city of Zarohe, its bright lights lighting up the surrounding area, "Come on, I want another newspaper."

"We're in Zarohe, and all you can think of is newspapers."

"Yes."

"Fine, let's go."

Sahlah took off at run, she was apparently very excited about seeing Zarohe, maybe this would be chance to escape! Before I could turn to run, she turned around, "Come on, Fiyero, I'll get you your newspaper."

And she did, but this paper had even more bad news than the last one, "'Green Girl Captured.'" Sahlah read, looking up at me, "'Elphaba Thropp has been captured, and is being held in the prison at the palace. Although she won't admit where she has Prince Fiyero hidden, her actions are enough to suggest that she is the kidnapper.'" She finished softly.

I took a deep breath, "Is there anyone around here who can help me get to the City quicker?"

"I don't think so. Are they going to kill her?"

"Yes."

I must be a celebrity or something, because Mr. Oz himself visits me every night, how wonderful.

"You know, there's only five or six months left."

"Yes, I know, thank you."

"You don't seem to care."

"I don't."

"Not even about your child?"

"I do. But not as much as you think." Well, that was a lie, I cared a lot about this baby, but I wasn't going to let him know that.

"You know that you're the headline in the newspapers?"

"I don't care."

"Oh, but you should. People want you dead."

"Are you stupid? Because this is the twentieth time I've had to tell you, "I don't care."

"You do."

"Fine. I do. Believe what you want to."

"The Arjikians want you dead more than anything. Especially Sarima and her children." He smiled.

I paled, "I didn't do it." I managed, weakly.

"They don't know that."

"Go die."

He only chuckled, "I see I'm getting to the infamous Elphaba Thropp."

I grinned, "Why not? I'm going to die anyways. I'll let someone else win for a change, too bad it's you."

He nodded, "Too bad for who?"

"Too bad for you." I punched him through my cell.

He groaned and fell to the floor, I heard cheers around me, "How's that?"

Oh boy, was I in for it now.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm sending a letter, to my wife."

"Your wife? I thought…"

I grinned, "I didn't tell you that I wasn't married. I need to let her know that I'm alive, and that the Wizard was the one who tried to murder me."

"How long will it take to get to the Vinkus?"

"Oz only knows, hopefully soon. Though I wouldn't count on it." I quickly scribbled a letter to Sarima:

Sarima:

I'm alive, the Wizard was the one who tried to kill me, not Elphaba. I'm in Zarohe, I should be in the Emerald City in a couple of months, please try to get Elphaba's name out of the papers.

Fiyero

I debated whether or not to write love at the end, but finally decided against it. I didn't love her, after all. I quickly sent the letter, first class, and then I quickly got something to eat.

I was hungry, but the food tasted like sawdust in my mouth. I couldn't stop thinking about Elphie, what if that letter didn't get there in time? What if they killed Elphaba before Sarima could spread the word that it wasn't Elphaba?

"Are you not hungry? Because I sure as hell am and I'll eat your food if you don't want it."

I pushed my plate towards Sahlah, "Here, have it. I'm not hungry."

She looked at me then shrugged, "Whatever."

"We're not stopping after this, got it?"

"Okay, you'd leave me if we did anyways."

"Probably. You're really slowing me down. Please, Sahlah, please, stay here in Zarohe."

"No."

"Please?"

"No."

"Please?"

"No."

"Damn you."

"Come on, you'd get lonely without me, and you know it."

"So? I'm miserable with you."

"You're lucky I'm passive-aggressive."

"You are?"

"Shut up, Fiyero."

"I think you're crazy as hell."

"You love it, and you know it."

"Sahlah, can you please stop hitting on me?"

Silence. It's golden.

"Whatever." She got up and left.

"Thank Oz for small miracles." I wasn't sure how much longer I could stand her before I hauled off and slapped her. She'd been hitting on me ever since we started this trip, and it was obnoxious.

"Now you stay in here." The guard threw me into a damp, cold, dark cell, worse than the one I had been in earlier.

"Bye." I wrapped my arms around myself, it was cold, and it was lonely. I was all alone, me..and this child inside me, and the….rats. Yuck.

I fell asleep not knowing what time it was, and woke up not knowing what time it was; there was nothing but darkness.

"Wow, you've been asleep for quite a while. Days in fact."

"Hello Tasi, how have you been?"

"Great. I love how it feels to get scum like you off the streets."

I snorted, "Scum? Me? I think not."

"So, I want to know how you live with yourself when you lie about Fiyero."

"You actually believe that son of a bitch? I didn't kill Fiyero, he did. I loved Yero."

"Right. Where is he? If you tell me, I'll let you go."

"What? You actually have keys?"

"Yes."

"You can't trick me twice, Tasi, even if Fiyero was alive and I knew where he was, I wouldn't tell you."

"I'm not tricking you this time, Elphaba."

"Then what are you doing? Seducing me? I think not."

He sighed, "That poor child is going to suffer a horrible childhood. Thought of what you're going to name your baby?"

"FIYERO IS DEAD!"

"Fine. I'd name her Tale, it means 'green'."

"Bastard."

"That would work, too. Seeing as how you keep saying her father is dead."

"Go fuck yourself."

"Nah. I don't want to. Seriously, though, what are you going to name her?"

"How do you know it's a her?"

"How do you?"

"She's in me, remember?"

"Okay, what are you going to name her?"

"I don't know. I was thinking Hasina, which means good."

"Oh, I see, try and prove your innocence through your daughter?"

"Basically yes."

"Good name." He walked away, at least that's what it sounded like; I couldn't see anything.

I called after him, "I didn't kill Fiyero, please believe me."

I heard the footsteps stop, but Tasi said nothing for a minute, "How can I?"

I nodded and heard him start to walk again.

I began to hum softly, there was nothing else to do. I was about four months along now, I still had five months to go. I groaned. I could not stand being in this prison any longer.

"Do we really have to leave Zarohe now, Fiyero?"

"Yes. It's not like Elphaba can come to us, now is it?"

"Rats."

"You know, you don't have to come with me. I've told you that."

"I know, but I like being with you."

"I don't."

"Fine. You can leave me in Loland."

"Really?"

"Yea. I don't want to go across the Shifting Sands, I'd die."

"Probably." She glared at me, "What?"

"You're not supposed to agree with me."

"Well sorry."

So I left Sahlah in Loland, thank Oz. She stayed in the city and I continued across the Nonestic Ocean towards the Shifting Sands…and that's where the fun would begin.

I pretended to stay in Loland, but I wasn't going to let Fiyero leave me so easily. I had a duty to do, even if it wasn't assigned to me, and I was going to complete it. I followed behind Fiyero closely, and he didn't even notice that I was following him! Ha, so much for being Prince of the Arjikis.