AN. If you solve the clue for this chapter (or you know, follow me on social media), you will get a hint to the show that has consumed my soul the most this year, haha!

8 Down: Beyond Description (9)

It was unavoidable that if Fiyero wanted to invite Elphaba to visit the Vinkus in the summer, Nessarose also had to be invited- Governor Thropp would never allow it otherwise. And that meant Boq had to be included, because neither Frex nor Nessa liked the idea of them travelling across Oz alone; and if Boq was invited, Galinda also had to be included. None of which Fiyero really minded- they were his friends, after all. But it was Elphaba that he really needed to be there, for reasons that he was beginning to fear- or to hope- were also unavoidable.

He and Elphaba had only been dating for six months, and Fiyero had been wrestling with the words "I love you" for at least the past three. He didn't want to say it until he had a feeling Elphaba was ready to hear it, and he wasn't sure exactly what that looked like. He'd never told anyone that he'd dated that he loved them before, and he didn't want to screw it up. He didn't want to say it too soon, or too late- and was it even possible to say it too late? In a way, Fiyero felt like he was waiting for a sign.

But when it came, he was almost blindsided by it. As they lingered around the table after lunch on Sunday. Nessa announced her intention to find a Unionist church in town and Boq agreed to accompany her; which Galinda begged off in favour of visiting the famed Brunhilla's Wall.

"Elphie, do you want to come with me?"

"Actually," Fiyero interjected hastily before Elphaba could respond. "I want to show Elphaba something this afternoon."

Galinda pouted. "Can't it wait?"

"No," Fiyero replied firmly.

Elphaba glanced at him quizzically before turning back to Galinda. "Sorry. If you go tomorrow, I'll go," she offered. "We could all go."

"No, we need to go shopping tomorrow now that we're going to the theatre," Galinda shook her head. "I certainly didn't pack anything suitable to wear for the royal box, so I know you definishly didn't."

Elphaba rolled her eyes.

"Come to the church with us and then we'll go," Nessa suggested instead, and Galinda agreed.

As the others left the table to prepare to leave, Elphaba arched an eyebrow at Fiyero.

"And what are we doing then?"

Fiyero grinned and offered her a hand.

Fiyero's hand suddenly felt rather sweaty as he led Elphaba to the library, because this was new. This was big. And when he'd pulled his mother aside as they headed to lunch to ask her nervously, "Would it be alright if Elphaba sat with us after lunch?"; he'd seen her face shift from surprise, to delight, and into something so soft that Fiyero's heart wrenched, all in the moment before she'd agreed.

Which meant that neither Ibrahim nor Kasmira looked surprised to see them as they entered the room, but nor did they know that Elphaba was completely oblivious to what was happening and what this meant.

"Would either of you like something to drink?" Kasmira greeted them. "Lemonade? Tea?"

"I'm good," Fiyero refused as he sat on his usual couch and gently pulled Elphaba down to sit beside him.

"I'm fine thank you," Elphaba said, shooting Fiyero a clear look that demanded an explanation.

"Fiyero didn't explain this to you, did he?" Ibrahim asked her with a wry smile, catching the look.

"Uh, no," Elphaba said. "I was just told he wanted to show me something."

Ibrahim laughed quietly as Kasmira looked to her son exasperatedly. "Yero, really?"

Fiyero just shrugged sheepishly.

"It's not always easy for us to find time together," Kasmira explained to Elphaba. "Royalty isn't exactly a nine-to-five job, and it can be rather difficult to switch off. So once Ibrahim and I were married, we decided to set aside every Sunday afternoon to just sit together and do the Sunday crossword in The Chronicle."

Elphaba straightened sharply, shooting Fiyero another look from the corner of her eye.

"Oh?"

"Once Yero was born, it became family time," Ibrahim added. "Much to Fiyero's joy, although it appears he's come around this year for some reason…"

Fiyero shot a glare towards his father, who grinned at him delightedly.

"Can we just get started?" he grumbled. "Before the others come back."

In actuality, the others most likely hadn't even left yet, but no one pointed that out to Fiyero.

"Do you want to start us off, dear?" Ibrahim asked Kasmira, handing her the paper and pen.

"Very well," Kasmira said, pausing to take a sip of her lemonade. "Alright. One across. 'Horses' gait'."

Elphaba sat there quietly at first, which Fiyero wasn't totally surprised about. Elphaba was smart- she couldn't miss what it meant for Fiyero to include her in this family moment, and Elphaba went quiet when she was processing things. This was a lot to process.

"'Bogged Down.' Five letters."

"Stuck," Fiyero volunteered confidently.

"Fourth letter is E."

Fiyero wrinkled his nose. "Fixed?"

Kasmira hummed thoughtfully. "That would make thirty-seven across… 'Quoxian city known for its ale'… starting with an F."

"Fallham?" Ibrahim suggested.

"Three letters."

"Fal?" Fiyero countered, which made Elphaba groan.

"Stop," she protested, and he grinned at her.

"What if down was 'mired'?" Elphaba asked his mother, ignoring Fiyero.

"That certainly fits," Kasmira agreed. "But I'm afraid I still don't know the answer to across. Dear?"

"No," Ibrahim admitted. "Let's come back to that one, shall we?"

Kasmira continued down the list of clues and then laughed softly. "Well, Ibrahim- you should know this one, and Fiyero- I think your father will be very disappointed if you don't know it."

Fiyero perked up. "Is it me?"

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "You were a clue one time, and now you think every clue is about you," she complained.

Fiyero hushed her. "What is it, Mom?"

"'EM BLANK' was the pen name of-"

"Gallien!"

Ibrahim rolled his eyes at Fiyero's enthusiasm. "Have you read any of EM Gallien's works?" he asked Elphaba.

"I did a course last semester on Vinkun Literature," she nodded. "We read Exile, and then I looked up more of her work. She was your ancestor, wasn't she? Fiyero told me."

Ibrahim grinned. "Yes, it was the pen name of Queen Emmalote, my great-great grandmother. We have all first editions of her works," he added, waving a hand in the direction of the bookshelves, and Elphaba's eyes lit up.

"Really?"

Ibrahim never missed an opportunity to show off the royal collection of old books, as Fiyero deemed it, so he wasn't particularly surprised as the crossword was immediately abandoned as Ibrahim offered to show Elphaba. Fiyero remained where he was, shaking his head fondly as Elphaba disappeared from view. His mother came and sat in Elphaba's empty seat, and Fiyero eyed her warily.

"Hi, Mom."

She beamed at him. "Elphaba is lovely, Yero."

Fiyero cleared his throat awkwardly. "Yeah, I know."

"Have you two discussed-"

"Mom," Fiyero protested, hastily getting up from the couch. "Come on. Not now. Please?"

His mother looked up at him knowingly. "Alright, but you can't avoid us forever," she warned. "We know where to find you."

"Yeah, yeah," Fiyero muttered and hurried off to find his father and Elphaba.

"I loved it," Elphaba was saying. "I think Back to December is my favourite of hers that I've read so far."

"It was my mother's favourite as well," Ibrahim replied. "I'm afraid it's one I never resonated with."

"I wasn't sure about it for the first third," Elphaba confessed. "But then there was that passage… oh, what was it?"

There was a pause and Fiyero rounded the corner to find Elphaba carefully turning pages of a book. Both she and Ibrahim were completely oblivious to his appearance.

"Here it is," Elphaba announced after a moment. "'I can't speak of love as one speaks of fine wine or the rise and fall of the sun. I can drink in the beauty of a sunset while explaining the science of it, and take comfort in knowing the shadows of night have their own beauty in its time, and then the sun will rise again. A fine wine is manufactured and paired with a dish to highlight and complement the best features of both wine and food. But love- love is ineffable. I can not explain it, or be sure it will rise again if replaced by shadows. But perhaps that is the most beautiful thing of all; that one is willing to step in it, bathe in it, take a chance on it. Even when we are not sure how long it will remain. I can't explain why I love you, and I can't promise you forever. But I know that I want to spend all my days trying for both."

Fiyero's skin tingled from head to toe, and a sudden ache gripped his chest. Honestly, he'd never read any of his third great-grandmother's works. The more his father told him that he should, the more he resolved not to. But if he'd known Queen Emmalote had the ability to put his emotions into words from hundreds of years in the past, he would have devoured everything she'd ever written.

"That is rather profound isn't it?" Ibrahim mused thoughtfully. "Perhaps I should give that one another try."

His eyes found Fiyero then, and he smiled slightly. "I'll leave you in Fiyero's capable hands, Elphaba. Feel free to borrow any books that catch your fancy."

Elphaba's eyes widened like he'd just handed her the crown jewels.

"Thank you," she said, her voice wavering in a way that Fiyero only heard because he knew Elphaba.

Ibrahim left them, clasping Fiyero's shoulder as he passed. Fiyero moved to occupy the space he had left vacant, watching Elphaba's fingers trail reverently over the spines of the books before her.

"I love you."

Elphaba jumped a mile, rushing to steady the book she had been pulling out before it toppled to the ground before she whirled around to face him.

"What?" she demanded, wide eyed.

"I love you," Fiyero repeated, the words barely a breath. "I'm in love with you."

Her dark eyes searched his face carefully, while Fiyero practically held his breath.

"Why?"

Fiyero huffed out a laugh. "Why not?" he asked her. "Elphaba, you… I could spend a lifetime telling you all the reasons I love you, and it still wouldn't be long enough. It's… it's ineffable."

Elphaba folded her arms around her stomach, almost shrinking back against the bookshelves.

"A lifetime, huh?" she asked hoarsely.

Fiyero swallowed. "I mean… yeah. I think forever is worth a shot."

Elphaba held his gaze for a long moment, and then her lips curved almost imperceptibly. "Maybe," she said carefully, and the ache in Fiyero's chest eased.

It wasn't a no, so he'd take it.