A/N: So, remember when I said I hoped my placement wouldn't affect updates much? Yeah, I was wrong. So sorry! But I was desperate to get this one out for you, and I managed to make the time. Thank you all for your patience! I'm actually immensely proud of this one.

StarDust2000: Aw, you're so kind! But no, I'm not telling you a stitch about where the story is going lol. That would ruin the surprise! And I agree, Fiyero in the kitchen was very fun to write.

A bitter chill enveloped Elphaba, and she looked around wildly, fighting to regain her senses. The pungent smell of burning. Bewildering light. Terrified cries and blind movement. All this came flooding into her awareness, although she couldn't make sense of any of it.

A drug-like confusion suffocated her, as mentally she thrashed to get free of the fog she was trapped in. Then she started coughing, and vaguely, she became aware of pressure on her arms and around her shoulders, along with the feeling of being propelled in an unknown direction.

"Hey. Hey, it's me. Are you alright?" A voice spoke. Was the person addressing her?

She began to jerk as the mystery person shook her. "Elphaba! Are you alright?"

Suddenly, her vision cleared, and she realised that Fiyero was in front of her, searching her over with eyes that were wide and distressed.

"What- what happened?" The voice didn't sound like her own. But she was certain that it was. It was raspy and low.

He didn't answer. His eyes raked over her. "Are you hurt?"

"I don't- think so. What? What's happening?" Her voice began to rise with the beginnings of hysteria.

"I don't know. There was an explosion. I- I don't..." his ramblings gave out in a fit of coughing, and he let go of her, bending over and clutching his stomach.

Some sense returning to her, Elphaba gasped and lowered herself down to him, awkwardly rubbing his back, as though that could help. Finally, his coughing ceased, though he continued to wheeze loudly for several minutes.

They were surrounded. Several cries pierced the darkness.

"Miss Elphaba!"

"...explosion..."

"...the mill..."

"...almost died..."

Her head began to hurt. Animals started crowding around them, and she found herself being jostled about, clutching her hair.

"Where are we?"

"We aren't in the Tower anymore!"

"Magic!"

The deafening sound of collective panic caused her heart to beat more wildly inside of her, and she let out a moan. Before she saw him move, Fiyero was again by her side, and his arms were wrapped around her. She was too much in a state of shock to protest, or to try and stop him when he drew her close, running his fingers almost painfully through her hair as though seeking grounding, and pressing frigid kisses to her forehead.

A hoof landed on her shoulder, and she turned just enough to see Doctor Dillamond peering at her, his own breaths coming too quickly as he spoke. "Are you injured, Miss Elphaba? Master Fiyero?"

"No," she repeated. "I don't think so."

"No," Fiyero agreed. "Where are we?"

"Outside, I think," Doctor Dillamond answered. "Somewhere outside the Tower. I have no idea how we got here, but..."

"The explosion!" Elphaba ejaculated, the memories suddenly flooding back. "There was an explosion! The Animals..."

"...are all okay, I think," Doctor Dillamond reassured her. "We can't be sure, of course, until everyone is accounted for, but I think we all got out." Confusion seeped through his tone.

"Elphaba," Fiyero sounded breathless, as though something had just occurred to him. "Did you have something to do with that?"

"I don't know," Elphaba replied. "I don't know," she repeated, beginning to wail. "I don't know anything! I don't know what's going on! I don't..."

"Okay," Doctor Dillamond intervened smoothly, pulling off his waistcoat and wrapping it around Elphaba's shoulders. "You two should go home. We'll be fine, for now."

"But what will you do?" Fiyero demanded.

The Goat sighed. "There are other abandoned buildings in this district. If we move quickly, we might be able to get there before any humans come here. But we must be quick. You must go!"

Fiyero nodded, understanding the necessity for them to disappear, and fast. Roughly, he pulled Elphaba to her feet with him and started heading towards the light.

"Wait!" Doctor Dillamond quickly stopped him by the shoulder. "What are you doing? You can't go back there!"

"But the horse..." Fiyero indicated pathetically to where they'd left Delaya in the stables.

This thought hadn't occurred to Elphaba. "Delaya! No! She was in the stable! We have to..."

Again, the Goat cut her off, shaking his head sadly. "There's no way your horse would have survived so close to that explosion. I'm sorry, Elphaba. You'll have to leave without her."

Tears filled Elphaba's eyes in horror at the realisation of what had happened.

"I'll take them back to Colwen Grounds," another voice piped up. It was Bir. He nodded towards Doctor Dillamond. "They can ride on my back. I'm strong enough."

"Good," Doctor Dillamond replied. "You take them. They're both still in shock. We all are." His voice shook.

Elphaba was barely aware of anything, her shoulders racking with painful sobs as Bir lowered to the ground on his front paws, and Fiyero hoisted them both onto the Lion's back.

"Be careful," were Doctor Dillamond's last words before Bir took off.

The ride was uncomfortable – Elphaba's bones protested at the constant jostling, but she couldn't care less. Her thoughts were in a spin. Delaya was dead. The Animals were almost dead. They were almost dead. It was almost all over. Her breaths came thick and fast, and she found she couldn't stop her compulsive hyperventilating. The world spun and she felt faint. It wasn't until she experienced a bone-jarring impact that she was jolted back to reality. She slammed against the grass, winded. Only belatedly did she realise she must have fainted and fallen off Bir's back.

Bir stopped, and both he and Fiyero stared at her anxiously.

"Miss Elphaba?" Bir asked tightly. "Are you alright?"

But she was too breathless to respond.

"Never mind," Fiyero spoke harshly. "Let's get her back up. We have to get her back as soon as possible."

Bir grunted in agreement, and the ground disappeared from beneath her as she was lifted inelegantly and nestled against Fiyero's back. His arms wrapped tightly around her to keep her from falling, and she leaned heavily against him, slack and submissive. Bir kicked off again into a run, a little slower this time.

By the time they made it back to Colwen Grounds, she couldn't feel anything. Fiyero lifted her off Bir's back, and she didn't say anything when he kept her cradled in his arms, or hear whether he said anything to Bir before the Lion left.

The next thing she was aware of was being laid gently on the parlour sofa – she blinked, and saw that Fiyero was sitting before her, her hand cradled in his. It was the first time she'd had a proper look at him since the explosion, and she realised his face was half covered in thick black, his hair was dishevelled and there was still that unhealthy wheezing. "Are you alright?" she asked, one eye open and another shut.

Fiyero looked grim. "I will be. Are you?"

She opened her mouth to try and answer in the positive, but instead found that she couldn't speak for tears. Fiyero awkwardly brushed his finger against her cheek, brushing away the wetness. "Wait a minute," he muttered, before rising and leaving the room. In a few minutes, he returned with a cup of what looked like hot chocolate and a blanket, which he wrapped around her.

Neither of them said anything as she drank the chocolate. What was there to say? The horror of the night still played out before her eyes, and intermittently, she let out another sob. By the time she'd drained the cup, she was significantly less confused, although that just made her feel more awful than she had to begin with.

"I'm taking you to bed," Fiyero murmured, lifting the mug out of her shaking hands and leaving, presumably to return it to the kitchen. When he came back, he helped her up, placing an arm around her waist. They both stumbled up the stairs, and when they reached the landing, Fiyero turned to her suddenly. "Which chamber is yours?" he croaked.

Weakly, Elphaba indicated with her hand, and he nodded, walking her to the door. He shuffled uneasily, his hand still supporting her. "Do you need me to come in?"

Elphaba shrugged. She was beyond caring at this point. While in any other circumstances she would have been mortified at the very suggestion, she really wasn't sure she had the capacity for embarrassment right now.

Fortunately, Fiyero seemed to understand her mood, and without a word, he pushed the door open. If he was surprised by how small and sparse her chamber was, he didn't comment. But then, how could one comment on something so insignificant after everything that had happened tonight?

He led her to the bed, and monotonously, Elphaba laid down on it, pulling the covers up to her chin and turning away from him. Fiyero simply sighed, then turned around and left.

She heard the door click.

The dam broke.

…

Elphaba couldn't get up the next morning. She really tried, but the will just wasn't there.

She had failed. That was the one thought that kept resounding in her head. She was supposed to protect the Animals – and she'd known the explosion would happen, moments before it did. Somehow, her magic had kicked in at the last minute and she'd seen it play out like a broken record. Yet she'd done nothing to stop it.

She lay in bed, watching as the sun slowly arose. It was way past the time when she ought to have been up by now. Her limbs felt like lead, and she knew the smoke still clung to her, because she hadn't had the sense to wash last night. Or change her clothes.

Cowper leaped up onto her bed when he noticed his mistress wasn't moving, and meowed softly, batting his head against her neck, as if asking what was wrong. Weakly, she lifted her hand to stroke his back, but otherwise she didn't move. She couldn't. Maybe it was cowardly, but she couldn't face the world after what she'd done.

After some time, she heard a soft knock on her door, and then Mareem called out. "Elphaba," she whispered, "are ye up?"

Elphaba thought about answering, but all she could muster was a soft groan of acknowledgement. Not that Mareem could hear.

"Elphaba?" she repeated, an edge of worry creeping into her voice. "I'm comin' in there."

The door opened, and Mareem poked her head through. Her forehead creased deeply when she saw that her young friend was still in bed. "Are ye alright? Wha's the matter?"

Elphaba merely shrugged wearily, then turned to stare up at the ceiling. There was a web-like cluster of cracks just above her head that she'd never noticed before.

"Wha's that smell? Is that... smoke?" At this, Mareem hurried further into the room, crouching down by Elphaba's side and placing a rough hand against her forehead. "Ye don't feel ill. Ye're still in yer clothes. Did somethin' happen, love?"

Elphaba tried to open her mouth, but closed it again like a fish, failing to get the words out. Tears started to drip down her face once more. She thought she'd cried out all her tears last night. Apparently not.

Alarmed now, Mareem stroked her head in comfort, muttering soft words. "Somethin' did happen. Did ye go out last night?"

Elphaba began to cry more in earnest. "It's all my fault," she finally managed.

"Hey, what's yer fault my sweet?" Mareem soothed, lifting Elphaba's head off the pillow into her arms. The old woman hadn't called her by the term of endearment since she was a little girl.

"Th- the e-explosion!" she burst out.

Bewildered, Mareem said no more, but held onto her until she calmed down, rubbing her back and letting her soak her pinafore. "Sweetheart, I hate t'say this y'know, but ye really must come down. Ye don't want a run in with yer father." Elphaba could hear how much it pained the woman to say this, and nodded slightly.

"I'll come," she agreed, and Mareem placed a kiss on her forehead.

"I'll wait for ye. Jus' come down when ye can."

Elphaba nodded again, and Mareem gently laid her head back down and headed for the door, looking back at the distraught girl with a sigh. When Mareem had left the room, Elphaba dragged herself from the bed and to her basin. She threw the cold water on her face and head, trying to wash away the guilt. Impulsively, she pulled at her clothes and ripped her shift feverishly down her body until they were pooled at her ankles. She cupped as much of the freezing water as she could in her hands and threw it all over her body, scrubbing at herself to try and get rid of all the dirt she felt like she had rolled in. By the time she was done, she was soaked from head to toe, shivering in a puddle of murky, sooty water. It did nothing to make her feel the least bit cleaner.

The clothes she had slept in were rumpled and now swimming in filthy water – these she grabbed and threw into the basin. She only owned one other frock, and it was too tight on her. It would have to do though, as would her spare shift.

She wrestled on the shift, contorting into strange animalistic shapes as she attempted to tie the lace on her own – a skill she had been forced to learn from girlhood. The frock ripped a little under her arm when she pulled it on, but it probably wouldn't be noticed. Her hair was now tangled and dripping water down her clothes. In a rush, she dried the excess with a towel and pulled her hair back, forcing it into compliance on the back of her head. A glance in the mirror showed dark purple circles under her eyes, and skin almost like a ghost's - as close as it could be to a ghost with its unnatural hue.

She made it down to the kitchen, looking like she'd been to hell and back, but at least up and dressed.

Fiyero didn't look much better, Elphaba noticed, when she took the breakfast in. His face was ashen and seemed to have aged decades overnight, with lines appearing on his forehead that hadn't been there before. His beautiful caramel hair seemed to have lost its glow, and was a little matted, sticking to his forehead. The smell of smoke, too, hung around him, just barely. When he caught her eye, he tried to smile, but couldn't quite pull it off, and his eyes were startlingly weary. Nevertheless, a softness took over his demeanour when she entered, and it took all of Elphaba's willpower not to throw herself at him then and there, and let out all of her tears in his arms. He was, after all, the only person who could understand. He had been there.

To keep herself from doing exactly that, she served up as quickly as possible, ignoring the puzzled look of Nessarose and avoiding the Governor's eyes entirely.

Fiyero found her again later that day, after she had prepared Nessa's mid-morning tea.

He was waiting for her when she entered back in the house from the veranda. "Come with me," he murmured, indicating that she follow. Follow, she did, without much thought. He took her to the breakfast room, rarely used at this time of day, or at all. The large open window looked out over the back of the house, and the room was unusually bright and clean – Elphaba was expected to keep this room tidy at all times, regardless of how little it was used. A simple, but elegant table stood in the middle of the room, and a modest bookshelf lined the wall.

Fiyero didn't close the door, but kept it partially shut to avoid prying eyes. "How are you?" he probed quietly.

Elphaba shrugged. "As well as can be expected, I suppose. And you?"

He answered with a shrug of his own. "I've been better."

Elphaba nodded, biting her lip.

"Was it you who got us out of the Tower like that?" Fiyero continued, looking oddly intense. "We were all there, and then suddenly we weren't. But you knew it would happen, didn't you?" He had seen the way she blanked out for a moment before it happened, and heard the scared way she said his name.

Elphaba thought for a moment. "I suppose so. I don't really know. All I know is how desperate I was to get out of there – I did see it," she admitted, quietly.

Fiyero looked like he had expected this answer. "You had a premonition?"

"I think that's what it was."

"Have you ever had one before?"

Elphaba thought. "Not that I can remember."

Fiyero was thoughtful. Then he smiled, just a little. "You're amazing."

At that, Elphaba scoffed loudly and bitterly. "I'm not. I knew it would happen. I should have stopped it. Maybe I could have..."

"No," Fiyero said fiercely. "You got us out of there. You rescued us, and the Animals. What else could you have done?"

Her eyes burned. "I don't know, but..."

"You've already done everything for us. We all would have died if it wasn't for you. Surely you can see that?"

Elphaba looked down. "I just wish..."

"I know. But there's no point in wishing. It happened. We're alive. That's all that matters."

"Do you think all the Animals got out? Khanija? All the others?"

A dark cloud seemed to settle over the prince's face. "I don't know."

Half-heartedly, she nodded. Then she looked back up at him. "Why did it happen?" she almost sounded like she was begging.

Fiyero sighed deeply. "I don't know."

…

"Father, I can't find Delaya. She's not in her compartment." Nessa sat in the doorway to the parlour, her pretty face looking puzzled.

Elphaba looked up from where she had been dusting, her face suddenly going cold.

Frex looked up from his newspaper, frowning at his youngest daughter. "Did you check the rest of the stable? Maybe she got out somehow."

"I did, Father," Nessa nodded vigorously. "I checked the grounds as well. I can't find her anywhere."

Elphaba felt like she couldn't breathe. Delaya's death had been weighing heavily on her mind, but somehow she'd forgotten to think about what would happen when someone couldn't find her. Feeling tears both of grief and fright sting her eyes, she focused all her energy on her hands, trying to keep them dusting and avoid drawing attention to herself.

It wasn't to be, however. Just as Frex was rising from his chair, a vase toppled from its shelf above Elphaba's head as her magic began to spiral out of control. It was quickly followed by two other ornaments, falling to the ground with an unforgiving crash, and the furniture in the room began to tremble as if the earth was quaking. A sharp slap resounded in the room as Frex took strides across the space towards her and his hand connected with her cheek.

"Stop it at once!" he roared. "Stop this commotion!"

"Father," Nessa whimpered, and he turned towards her, softening for just a moment. "It's alright, my darling. Return to the stable for now, and I'll join you in a moment."

Looking apprehensive, Nessa obeyed, flashing one last glance at her sister before she left.

Elphaba's blood pulsed in her veins as she tensed in expectation of the next blow. The furniture continued to tremble, now starting to slide left and right, the paintings on the wall swinging precariously. If they moved much more, they would fall off the wall. Desperately, she tried to reign it in, but the more she tried, the more her control slipped through her fingers.

"I said stop it!" Frex's voice increased in volume. "Stop it, you witch!" He slapped her again, as if physical punishment would cause her to regain control. As if she had a choice.

Abruptly, Frex grabbed hold of a fire poker, and raised it high above her head. Elphaba breathed in sharply as it sank in what he was about to do.

"Stop!" the sound of a voice came from the doorway, and both heads snapped over in the direction it had come from. Elphaba's eyes grew huge when she saw who it was. Mareem stood in the doorway, holding a wooden spoon and trembling. "You leave 'er alone!"

Elphaba's heart sank. No. Not Mareem. It should never have been Mareem. She wasn't supposed to get involved.

But she was.