A/N: I hope you're all well!

WickedObsessed: Yes, it's always an encouragement to know people are reading! Thanks for still being here.

Elphaba couldn't see the owl, but she heard it.

The Mountains of Morph stood between them and the Shifting Sands like a gaping mouth. She tasted fog. Night was just falling, but Elphaba could have sworn they'd been in the mountains for days. In this terrain, the rest of Oz was swallowed, every creature forgotten except the owl, its hoot low and unbroken.

Nessa hated owls － had hated them since they were children. She shrank from the gnarled claws poised to snatch you away. Many nights, Elphaba heard her crying and Nessa begged her to huddle under the covers lest the owl take her too. Elphaba would curl her arm around her sister's slight waist, knowing beyond a doubt the owl was watching them from the window.

Occasionally, she would peek under the counterpane at its knowing eyes. What must it be like to be an owl? Did it live a lonely life? Sometimes she would imagine herself taking flight, but if she did, would she remember life at home? The thought made her hold Nessa tighter. Yet in daylight, she knew the owl wouldn't seduce her against her will, and the look in its eyes remained an offer.

Right now, Elphaba felt the same way she did on those nights.

"We should stop for the night," said Fiyero, jolting her for a moment.

There was shuffling and coughing. Shaking herself from her unwanted thoughts, Elphaba stepped forwards, following Fiyero's voice. Finding him, she took his hand. They stumbled to the front of the throng, or where she guessed the front was.

Finally, Fiyero stopped and turned sideways, reaching out behind him. There was a scuffle as everyone joined hands in a chain.

"One," said Elphaba, knowing the drill.

"Two." Fiyero.

They counted all the way back. They had decided on this method of accounting for everyone soon after leaving the museum. There were forty six of them in all. In such a large group it would be easy for them to be separated. As such, they'd stopped to count every hour or so － even more frequently since it started to get dark. Elphaba fidgeted, waiting for the full count to travel back along the chain.

"Forty six," Fiyero confirmed, and Elphaba breathed a sigh of relief. Who knew what they would do if someone went missing in these mountains?

They broke the chain and she settled on the rocky ground, the company huddled together. Elphaba should have been eager for all the body heat she could share. Still, the closeness made her squirm.

The owl continued hooting, and the others fell asleep. Time seemed to stretch, and she wasn't sure how much later it was when she was startled by the sensation of Fiyero's hand grasping hers. She'd assumed he'd fallen asleep with everyone else, but she allowed him to pull her up, relieved not to be packed in with the company any more.

Tiptoeing over the exhausted bodies, they discovered an uninhabited spot of ground. Fiyero sat with his back against a tree. The mountains were alive with sound － Fiyero's breathing and the Animals snoring. Elphaba didn't know what to say. She wasn't certain she felt much better seated next to Fiyero than she had with the group. In fact, it made her curiously nauseous. Was she still so edgy in company? She thought she'd been getting used to it － more than used to it.

A beam of moonlight penetrated the thick foliage above their heads, illuminating Fiyero's face. It gave him a speckled appearance, the light crawling across his visage. He reminded her of the owl, with an otherworldly aspect as though there were depths of him she hadn't yet unearthed. His eyes were bright, his skin glowing, his hair ruffled. He'd never looked more beautiful, she thought.

The light stayed on him. There was no duvet to hide under now.

Elphaba allowed him to kiss her slowly, the noise of their surroundings receding. The moonlight bathed both of them, and her skin prickled, but she couldn't pull away. A foreign kind of delight unfurled in her stomach, and she ignored the growing prickling sensation until it became unbearable. The owl hooted again and she jumped, prying herself from him and crawling back into the shadows.

"What's wrong?" Fiyero whispered.

Everything was on display in his eyes － vulnerability and the courage she'd seen earlier. In a moment, Elphaba was back in the clearing by the well, where he'd first told her he loved her and asked if she returned his feelings. She hadn't thought about Nessa then. In fact, her sister hadn't crossed her mind.

She found herself getting angry. "Everything's wrong!"

The look on Fiyero's face caused her stomach to twist with guilt. "I'm sorry," she said. "Not everything's wrong. Just these mountains."

Fiyero looked nonplussed. "What's wrong with them?"

Elphaba wanted to bark a laugh, but couldn't work herself up to it. "Admit it. We're lost."

"We're not lost. When morning comes we'll see where we are. You aren't going to let the darkness beat you?"

She felt as though he was missing the point. "We shouldn't have come here in the first place. If we hadn't, it wouldn't have grown dark, and we wouldn't be lost."

"We have to pass through these mountains to get to Quox," Fiyero said slowly. "And of course it would still get dark." He paused, chewing his lip. "You're talking like you don't want to go to Quox, you know."

Elphaba forced back tears. Why was she crying? "I do want to," she said.

Fiyero looked like he wasn't sure whether to believe her. "I never would have done this if not for you."

She crawled over to him again, wishing she could do something to wipe that look off his face. If only he would smile. Anything to prove he wasn't angry with her.

He hesitated before taking her into his arms. Elphaba noticed the brief pause, and it made her want to rip away from him again. But if she did, would he requite her reticence?

"You were amazing back there," he instead said conversationally, watching her. "You'll be even more amazing when we get to Quox."

Despite herself, pleasure blossomed inside at the compliment. She'd heard something similar before, from Mareem. She found herself wondering how Mareem was. Had she reached Quox yet?

"What will we do in Quox?" she wondered out loud.

Fiyero's shoulders dropped, and a slow smile spread over his face, to Elphaba's relief. "I don't know. But I know it'll be amazing, because we'll have each other, and we'll have done what we set out to do, for now. We'll have led the Animals out of Oz. We'll soon figure out what to do next."

Her eyes adjusting to the dark, she saw the outline of his hair drooping over his forehead, though the moonlight that had temporarily filtered through the trees was gone.

"Focus on what's ahead, okay?" Fiyero continued. But then he faltered, frowning. "What does all this have to do with you not wanting to kiss me?"

Another gust of cold wind made Elphaba wrap her arms around her chest. "Nothing. I was just distracted, you know?"

"By the mountains."

She shrugged, looking away.

"As long as you're not tiring of me. You do still want me around, don't you?"

To persuade him, Elphaba kissed him again, twirling her fingers in his hair. The heat in her stomach was timid, but delicious. How she was here with him, instead of at home, was beyond her.

She became aware of the rose tucked in her belt and broke the kiss, dropping her hand to touch it.

Fiyero noticed. "Can I see the rose?"

Elphaba felt strange as she handed it to him with trembling fingers. As he turned it over in his hands, it was like he was tossing her soul.

"I've never seen a green rose before. Why did you take it?"

Elphaba considered telling him what Mareem had said and how finding the rose at the museum had made her feel. "I guess I was surprised to see one. Roses should be red." She tried to look as if she'd forgotten he held it, but it was no use. Should she snatch it from him? Toss it to the ground?

"…Can I have it back now?"

Fiyero handed it over, and she quickly tucked it in her belt.

"Please, tell me what you're thinking," he said.

"I'm thinking… that I love you."

It was the only true thing she'd said in this entire conversation.

The sound of distant flapping told her the owl had flown away.

…

Fiyero fell asleep some time later, and Elphaba lay awake, watching him. He tossed and turned for a while, but when she was sure he wouldn't waken, she wiggled out from under his arm, reaching for the snow globe in her bag. It felt strange in her hand, possibly because she hadn't used it for this purpose before. She wasn't sure what she was looking for, exactly, but she wanted to check on Nessa, even if she was only sleeping. It had been a while since she'd done so, and that knowledge upbraided her.

Her magic seemed to know that it hadn't been used for this before, tickling her beneath her skin. Even the globe was reluctant to obey her command, but eventually it had to bow to the spell. A fuzzy image of Nessa gradually came into focus. She was in her room, as Elphaba had expected. But something was wrong. She lay in bed, and although she wasn't quite sobbing, there were tears streaming down her face.

Elphaba's heart constricted and panic lurched in her throat. What had happened? Was Nessa hurt? She should have kept a closer eye on her sister － if she had, she would know what was the matter. But with all the excitement of the previous days, she'd rarely thought about her.

What should she do? For a few seconds, she stared at the scene until the answer dispersed the fog like the morning sun.

She had to go to Nessa.

It wouldn't be that far to Colwen Grounds on her broom. They hadn't left Oz yet － she could make it there and back to the company again before dawn. No one would ever know she'd left. Yes, that was what she needed to do.

So why did she hesitate?

She glanced again at Fiyero, looking more still and peaceful than she'd seen him in some time. The moonlight had left, but she could still see the outline of his face, his body. She could imagine the softness of his features and the carelessness of his hair － a far-cry from its careful styling when they'd first met. She didn't need the moonlight, truthfully. She knew he was beautiful, and courageous, and kind. He was even more attractive now than when he'd had a comb and freshly pressed outfit at hand. What would he think if he woke up and she was gone?

He won't wake up, logic told her. It had been a long day, and she was the only one not taking the time to recuperate. Still, she felt horribly guilty, as though she were deceiving him somehow. She reached out to him, finding his hair and allowing it to slip through her fingers. He wouldn't feel her touch, but she didn't want him to － she only wanted to think.

She stopped herself right before gliding her fingers over his forehead. This wasn't helping. With new resolve, she stood, looking down on him. She wouldn't lie back down next to him. Nessa needed her now. Fiyero would understand.

Still, as she mounted her broom, she felt like a coward.

The frigid night air embraced her as she kicked off, chasing away her unwanted thoughts, although she couldn't yet feel at ease. Would Nessa still be awake when she arrived? It would be easier if she were asleep, of course. She could assure herself she was all right, and leave with no stone disturbed. Nevertheless, she couldn't deny that the idea of Nessa being awake and welcoming her back was more appealing. No, not appealing － balming. It was as if something inside Elphaba was hurting, unseen, but not unfelt. She'd felt it ever since she decided to stay with the Animals.

The temperature was dropping further. By the time she caught her first glimpse of Colwen Grounds, she was ready to fall off the broom with the cold. There was Nessa's window, almost invisible except for the fact she was looking for it. If only she could get there faster.

Perhaps she became careless as she got closer. She was flying too fast － it wouldn't take much to draw notice, and if someone saw her…

No one did though, and she landed on the windowsill. The window was open, and she flailed as she tried not to fall off. She still wasn't used to flying. If she could pry her frozen fingers from the broom, she could grab on to the window pane, but they wouldn't budge. She tumbled into the room, landing on her knees with a sharp gasp.

Pain shot up her legs into her hips, and she was winded. It soon became clear, though, that Nessa hadn't noticed her arrival, for she was sleeping.

Elphaba picked herself up from the floor. Her hip berated her and her legs felt shaky, like disembarking a ship when you've become used to the tossing of the waves. For the first time since she'd left her, she took a long look at her sister.

Nessa was breathing uneasily, and her forehead was creased. Her face was still blotchy and red. In all other aspects, she was as beautiful as ever, but in suffering, she had an air of vulnerability.

A part of Elphaba was disappointed not to find her awake. Still, she crouched down next to her on the floor, then changed her mind and perched on the side of the bed. Nessa didn't stir. A sliver of a moan pushed past her lips. Was she dreaming?

Elphaba found herself overcome with emotion. She reached out to touch Nessa's cheek － she did it much more easily than she'd touched Fiyero, she noted. Nessa's skin was every bit as soft as she remembered.

For some reason, the pain didn't leave like she'd expected, though she'd assured herself Nessa was alright. Instead, it knotted in her chest demanding acknowledgement. Elphaba stroked Nessa's cheek with her thumb, and with every stroke, the knot became tougher and more unyielding.

"I'm sorry," she found herself whispering. "I'm so sorry."

What should she do now? Nessa was fine － or at least, as fine as she could be in sleep. But she'd been upset, and Elphaba was no closer to finding out why. The longer she lingered on the side of the bed, the more she was reminded of all the nights she'd spent with Nessa before, when Nessa was sad or wanted the company. She'd never denied Nessa whenever she asked her to stay, content in the knowledge that Nessa needed her. It was funny － she'd never suffered a sleepless night at home. Not even when she was most afraid. Yet, how long had it been since she'd slept through the night?

Once, she'd awoken to the sound of Nessa crying, and when she came to check on her, she found Nessa rolling around, caught up in a nightmare and whimpering. Elphaba had shaken her, trying to wake her as gently as possible. It did no good. It was too late to shout － she would wake Father. At last, she'd given up trying to wake her, and slipped into the bed with her. Nessa settled almost at once. Her crying stopped, and her jostling eased. It was as if she knew that Elphaba was there, and that no night terror could harm her now. Elphaba fell asleep by her side, and woke in the morning to see Nessa regarding her with a soft smile.

"I knew you were here," was the first thing she said.

Nessa related the event to Father later. "Good," Frex had said. "I'm glad you were watching out for her."

It was the closest he'd ever given Elphaba to a compliment.

A thought suddenly occurred to her － what if… she stayed till morning? Maybe then she'd find out what was bothering her sister after all.

The idea was magnetic. It gripped her with curious power, and even plausibility. Why would she go back to the Animals when she hadn't yet achieved what she came here for? She'd come to find out why Nessa was upset. She should at least stay long enough to find out. It was the most obvious course, and also… the most comforting. For the first time, the pain in her chest seemed to dull. Only one consideration stalled her － what would the Animals and Fiyero say when they awoke and she was gone? Fiyero wouldn't know where she was. He might wonder if something had happened to her.

Would he be angry?

Elphaba stared at the window, then dropped her head into her hands. Fiyero was probably angry with her anyway. She recalled their conversation mere hours ago. He'd said that it seemed like she didn't want to go to Quox, and maybe he was right after all. He expected her to run off into the Quoxian sunset with him, and not look back towards her beloved sister even once. All Elphaba had done was fail Nessa of late. Nessa was in love with Fiyero － she'd told her as much. Was that why she was crying? Nessa wasn't stupid, and both Elphaba and Fiyero had left at the same time. She must have put two and two together.

So it was settled. Fiyero was angry with her, and Nessa was angry with her. But there was one thing she could fix, and that was her conduct towards Nessa. Maybe, just maybe, Nessa would forgive her. Elphaba drew back Nessa's covers. She was about to slip under, when suddenly she was blinded, and she dropped the covers in shock.

It wasn't like being blinded by sunlight or darkness, where one was unable to see anything. She could no longer see Nessa, though she felt her bedsheets fall from her grip. But she saw the forest where she'd left Fiyero and the Animals with frightening clarity. For a moment, the company remained asleep as she'd left them. Then she heard a snap, and the scene exploded into chaos. Dozens of armed men blazed through the trees, rousing her friends. Elphaba watched as the men seized them, chaining them against their convulsion. The vision dissipated after she saw them bind Fiyero, his teeth bared either in fear or fury － she couldn't tell.

Legs trembling, Elphaba came to on Nessa's floor. She knew from the vision's immediacy that she had seen the attack mere moments in advance of its coming to pass. It was the same sense of immediacy she'd experienced before the explosion at the Tower. But this time, she wasn't in the explosion herself. She was miles and miles away.

Her friends were alone. And defenceless.