A/N - Sorry..I've been suffering from review deprivation.

Mistake. How could she have ever thought that she was making a mistake? Well, sure, of course she had made a mistake, but that had been coming to the Emerald City in the first place. She had food, and she lived in a place in a slum, but she was happy to have somewhere to call home.

It had been two and a half years, and Elphaba was a zealous member of The Suffering. She found that she barely ever thought of Shiz, Glinda, or Fiyero…well, not Fiyero. She still thought about him plenty.

Walking along the crowded streets, her hood pulled low over her face, Elphaba searched for her messenger. Ah ha! There you are, she thought, as she saw a Quadling man dressed in all black. Not very surreptitious, are you? "Fae?" he asked hollowly as she approached. Elphaba nodded, and followed the Quadling into the building he stood in front of when he motioned her.

"Sit," he said, motioning to a chair at a table. "You'll have to keep your hood on, from what I understand. You won't mind if I take mine off?" he asked, suddenly warming up to Elphaba.

"If you'll excuse me for saying so, but I don't have time to waste on small-talk. It's my understanding that you're supposed to give me my mission, and that's it. Skyla said nothing about small-talk, and that is advantageous to me, because I'm not good at it," Elphaba replied, seating herself.

"The Leader didn't give this duty to you?"

"No. Now, please, before I die."

"Well, you look like you have plenty of life left in you, Fae, so I'm going to order myself some coffee. I've been waiting for you in the street for over three hours, I'm freezing. Did you get lost?"

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "No. I was trying to be inconspicuous."

"Right. Coffee, black, please," he said when a busboy came to their table.

"Anything for you, Miss?" the busboy asked Elphaba.

Elphaba shook her head. Peering warily out of the corner of her eye, she started as the busboy was out of sight, "So, what do you have for me?"

The Quadling rolled his eyes, reaching into his pocket. He placed a neatly folded piece of paper in front of him and slid it to Elphaba. "This is it? Just a piece of paper?" Even though she had been a devoted member, she had never done more than blackmail. She was assuming that this mission would be no different.

"Just read it, Fae. It tells you all you need to know."

Elphaba sighed and put the papyrus into a pocket in her cloak. "Like who's house to send a note saying, 'we know what you did last night'? I should think not." Elphaba paused, seeing the busboy coming back. "Why can't you give me something better?" she asked when he was gone.

The Quadling took a sip of his coffee, closing his eyes as he warmed himself. "I don't assign people their missions, I just deliver them. Feel lucky that you've even been chosen to do something as treacherous as blackmail."

"Treacherous? Please-"

"No, I'm serious. Blackmail is easy to trace: fingerprints, handwriting, smells, even. The Leader only chooses the best to do blackmail."

"To hell he does," Elphaba replied, standing up.

As she began to turn to leave, the Quadling put his hand on her arm. "Fae, be careful with this one. I've seen your style, and I can tell that you're very diligent, but I'm afraid that you're becoming careless. I can understand your frustration at not being able to have what you want, but you're putting yourself in harm's way," he said.

"Why do you care? You're not my keeper," Elphaba growled.

Walking out of the café, Elphaba crossed the street quickly, heading towards the slums of the Emerald City.

¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤

Clandestinely, Elphaba placed the note on the stoop and knocked, dodging off to the side of the house as soon as she had done so. Despite her wanting to do something more worthwhile or 'exciting', she had to admit that what she was doing now was making her heart reverberate in her ears.

As soon as she heard the door open and shut, Elphaba peered around the corner of the house. No one there. Effortlessly, she threw her nimble body over the fence into the conjoining yard, and ran to the sidewalk. She looked behind her. There was no one following her. She was safe.

Walking back towards the jungle of the City, Elphaba had to remind herself to breathe. "Stupid trepidation," she muttered as she sidestepped a patch of ice.

When Elphaba arrived back at her 'precinct', she found Skyla waiting for her. "What do you want Skyla?" she asked, taking off her cloak and draping it across a chair.

"Is the deed done?"

"Yes."

"Did anyone follow you?"

"Not that I know of."

"That's not good enough."

"Then get out. No, Skyla," she said, sighing, "no one followed me. I'm alone."

Skyla smiled. "Good. Now, I came by to wish you a happy Lurlinemas,"

Elphaba groaned. "I don't celebrate Lurlinemas. I don't celebrate any religious holiday. I don't celebrate any holiday. I don't celebrate anything."

"And why not? Lurlinemas was always my favorite; gifts, food, happiness…"

"Well, aren't you vain? Material objects possess no meaning to me. I hate food. And I hate happiness. Lurlinemas is stupid, anyways. Lurline was nothing but a traitor."

"Queen Lurline, to you. Fine, if you don't celebrate Lurlinemas…" She seemed to think for a moment, as if forgetting the reason she had come. "Oh, yes. We have a meeting tomorrow. At the same place we did last month, you remember where that was, don't you?"

Elphaba nodded. "Why the urgency? It's a little soon since our last, don't you think?"

"It is, but the Leader told me that it's important. I was told that someone had to be done away with before the year clocks out. He wants the only the best on this mission, Fae. And I know for a fact that he thinks you are one of the best."

"Then why has he never given me a chance to prove my worth? And how come you get to converse with him and I don't?"

Skyla shrugged. "You're green, I guess."

Elphaba scoffed. "That's encouraging. Isn't it a late in the century for racial persecution?"

Skyla shrugged again. "Maybe, but I don't I know if that's truly what it is. I have to go. I don't want to be here after dark," she said, eyeing the setting sun warily. "It's creepy…the murderers and rapists…"

"And hookers. Don't forget them. Welcome to the jungle, my dear Skyla," replied Elphaba, handing Skyla her cloak.

"It's at one o' clock, tomorrow morning. Play your cards right, Fae, and you'll get this. I promise you this."

"Sure," said Elphaba, skeptically. Even though her heart was thumping with anticipation of the next meeting.

This would be her chance.

Next chapter. I swear that it'll get better!

REVIEW. OR IT WON'T.

Li