I planned on posting yesterday, and guess what -I forgot. Buuuuuut I had a really good reason (in my opinion anyway lol). Anyone interested in Glee out there? Because I am. Anyone interested in the whole Shelby/Rachel-relationship out there? Because I am. And I found a story that I just couldn't stop myself from binging right through. It's like 600-something k words and I read the whole afternoon and half the night and I was a sobbing mess at 2 o'clock night time and... yeah. Just wanted to put that out there. I wish I could write as well as that writer. I've never managed to move my readers to tears (not that I know of anyway) and I don't think I ever will. But hey, that's totally fine. I mean, what would happen if every single person on this planet was such an amazing writer? I would never stop reading. Like, literally NEVER.
Anyway... I'm rambling.
Here you go with chapter 26.
Stay safe and healthy, everyone.
Thanks for your reviews and everything. Keep them coming;)

Started writing: 02.02.2020

Finished writing: 03.02.2020

Chapter 26
Encounter

"Fae."

Elphaba's head snapped up.

"Fiyero."

Her heart picked up pace, her fists clenched underneath the table. Help, she thought, dear Oz, help me.

He smiled at her broadly as he sat down opposite her.

"Fae," he said. "You said you'd accept one that you like. What's unlikeable about 'Fae'?"

Elphaba knit her brows. "One what?"

"A nickname," he explained and Elphaba pressed her lips to a thin line. "I couldn't do any better than 'Fae', right? No one could, I say."

She should say no, she knew; keep her word of not making it too easy for him.

"Well, it cannot get much better, I suppose," she said.

Fiyero grinned. "No, it cannot. So, I've got your permission?"

She nodded and slapped herself in her mind. Could she be more obvious?

"Great," Fiyero leant forward as though telling her a secret. As though trying to kiss her… Elphaba almost banged her head against the tabletop. Her ridiculous, love-infected mind was an awful condition. Couldn't she think straight anymore, just for a second? No, instead, she had to be reminded of that almost-kiss in the woods every moment.

"Thanks, Fae," he grinned. "See you at the meeting?"

He stood up and turned to go, and Elphaba almost asked "What meeting?" just so he would stay just a second longer.

Yes, this was an absolutely awful thing.

The meeting would be about the social project and the reports they'd all have to write and Elphaba was already scared out of her wits about it. He would sit beside her, for sure. And she wouldn't be able to think logically. Or at all, if she thought about it.

She watched Fiyero leave the cafeteria and turned to her assignment again.

"Elphie. Oh, Elphie," cried Galinda a mere ten minutes later and hurried to sit down. "I heard what happened."

Elphaba's eyes widened.

The two girls hadn't seen each other since yesterday morning when Galinda had rushed off to her shopping trip and Elphaba had made her way to that fateful History class. When she returned to their dorm room later that day Galinda hadn't been there yet and when the blonde had arrived, Elphaba had pretended to be asleep, fearing a confrontation with Galinda. She was Fiyero's ex-girlfriend after all and had cried a whole night through after he'd broken up with her.

"W-What are you talking about?" Elphaba stammered and Galinda folded her hands on the table.

"About this horrendible thing with Doctor Dillamond," the blonde said and tears were welling up in her eyes although she had never seemed to like the Goat all that much.

"And Milla told me about the Lion Cub and what you did," Galinda sniffed, taking Elphaba's hand in hers. "You were so brave, Elphie. To hex them all and run off to save the little thingy."

Elphaba didn't know what to say.

"And Fiyero helped you, I heard."

The green girl moistened her suddenly dry lips. "H-He did."

"Oh, how good of him," Galinda beamed at her for a second, but then her face fell and she said, "But Milla also told me that you might've gotten yourself in some serious trouble. Madame Morrible was furious when she found out, she said."

Elphaba swallowed hard. "I know. I have a meeting with her later today. Even in her letter, she seemed absolutely furious."

Galinda squeezed her hand. "You'll get through this, Elphie, I'm sure. You did the right thing."

Elphaba nodded.

She had to think of the Lion Cub; the poor thing now was on his way to the Vinkus, to Fiyero's cousin where he'd live in safety. She couldn't help but smile.

"What is it?" asked Galinda and Elphaba waved a hand dismissively.

"I'm dropping History," she announced and Galinda's eyes widened. "I won't be sitting in that monster's class, especially not if he's responsible for the removal of Doctor Dillamond."

Galinda put her hand on her chest. "Oh, dear Doctor Dillamond."

Elphaba wasn't sure if she was faking it. But even if she was, she decided that it would be good enough. As long as someone other than herself grieved the loss of that great teacher -the loss of yet another Animal Right.

It was the same thing she planned on telling Madame Morrible first; that she was devastated about the fate of Doctor Dillamond. Although it wasn't devastation that she felt for what had happened; it was outrage.

But in the end, Elphaba didn't say anything of that sort when she was asked into the Headshiztress' study with a bark.

She stepped inside and closed the door with a loud thud.

"Miss Elphaba," Madame Morrible's voice was cold and distant and Elphaba had a hard time looking the woman in the eyes.

"Good day, Madame," she said and sat down on one of the empty chairs.

"As I'm sure you know, I called you here to discuss yesterday's happenings with you."

Elphaba nodded.

"Now, Miss Elphaba, I must say that I'm deeply disappointed with your behaviour," stated the Headshiztress. "I thought of you as a clever, hard-working student -one of the best in the faculty. But you let me down. What you did yesterday -to dear Mr Athington and his Lion Cub- is absolutely unacceptable."

Elphaba couldn't stop herself. "Mr Athington's Lion Cub? The poor Lion doesn't belong to anyone but itself. It's an Animal, not an animal, Madame, please don't mix things up."

Madame Morrible's face contorted with anger. "I understand your sympathy for the thingy, Miss Elphaba, but I cannot accept such behaviour. You might feel like it is unfair to treat an Animal this way because you yourself are such an… abnormality, but that doesn't give you the permission to run around, 'freeing' Animals from their owners."

Elphaba's mouth fell open in shock. Abnormality. And that from a woman who looked as though she was half carp.

"And your outburst concerning your magic," continued Madame Morrible. "only shows me that you haven't been working hard enough on Sorcery. Not as hard as you're ought to."

Elphaba's mouth fell open even more (if that was even possible). She wasn't working hard enough on her Sorcery skills? That must've been a joke. Elphaba spent a lot of time on studying Sorcery. Time she could be spending with her new friends.

To say she wasn't working as much as expected from her was almost insulting.

"Furthermore, your behaviour towards Mr Athington was horrendible and disgracing. You can consider yourself lucky that he didn't decide to file a complaint about that with me. He is a very kind and generous person, you might want to consider apologising to him," the Headshiztress arched a thin eyebrow at Elphaba. "As for the Lion Cub… Mr Athington has decided that the Lion wasn't what he'd consider a good research object anyway. But to take it away just like that, Miss Elphaba, is an unacceptable motion."

Elphaba didn't lower her head but kept her chin up high as she looked at the Headshiztress and said nothing.

"Regarding all this," continued Madame Morrible. "I've decided it would be best to inform your parents."

The green girl's eyes widened. "My parents? Oh, but Madame, you needn't do that, it's not necessary. It's a waste of time, and of paper at that and-"

Madame Morrible raised a hand to silence her.

"The decision has been made, Miss Elphaba," she interrupted. "I will contact your parents and inform them of your misbehaviour. Such is not tolerated here at Shiz."

Elphaba closed her eyes for a second.

"Madame, please hear me out," she said as composed as she managed to. "You must be as outraged about Doctor Dillamond's fate as I am, surely you must. He was your colleague after all and a highly praised teacher by the school council. And Mr Athington said terrible things about him. I couldn't stand by, watching, Madame, I just couldn't. And then he scared the poor Lion Cub and I… I couldn't contain myself anymore."

Madame Morrible arched an eyebrow at the green girl. "So, it's all about Doctor Dillamond, you're saying? Miss Elphaba, really; must you put the blame on the poor innocent Goat?"

"But, Madame-"

"Miss Elphaba!" barked Madame Morrible and her eyes narrowed. "You must learn that sometimes you have to let other people's business be entirely their business. Doctor Dillamond has been removed from the faculty, yes, but not without a reason."

"But if the reason is being an Animal-"

"Enough!"

Elphaba flinched back. Her fingers were trembling, her mind was racing a mile a minute.

"You need to accept your limits, Miss Elphaba," hissed the Headshiztress harshly. "You've been trying to cross them a few times too much in these last few days."

She gestured at the door. "You may go now. And you might want to consider warning your parents about the letter that's about to reach them."

The green girl jumped up from her place.

"They have more important things on their minds," said Elphaba coolly. "Good day, Madame."

Before Madame Morrible could say anything else, she hurried out the door and closed it behind her a tad too loudly.

She was shaking with anger and frustration, maybe shock, too. She had wanted to demand answers from the woman but had gotten nothing but insults. Elphaba clenched her fists. And she would write a letter to her parents. Her poor parents; weren't they going through enough trouble right now? Did she really have to add up to all their sorrow?

There was something positive about her conversation with Madame Morrible, though; she had missed the meeting for the social project. Which ultimately meant; she wouldn't have to sit next to Fiyero for half an hour, trying not to think about the look in his blue eyes, the way the corners of his lips curled when he smiled.

Elphaba pressed her lips to a thin line. It was a hopeless case. Absolutely hopeless.

Sighing, she made her way down the stairs and out of the building. It was too cold a day to be spending it outside on the meadows; too warm a day to spend it stuck in her dorm room. A few students met Elphaba on her way to the library, hurrying along their opposing ways.

The green girl knit her brows. Madame Morrible couldn't have picked a worse timing to decide to inform her parents. She had just sent a letter home a few days ago and was running out of stamps. So, she went to the reception and met Mrs Arnstein's somewhat twisted, triumphant smile with one much too nice, and spent her last cash on new stamps.

She'd have to ask her father for a new cheque -and if there was one thing, she truly loathed, it was having to ask someone for money.

"Thank you," she murmured and turned around, hurrying away from the reception.

Her next stop was the library of Shiz. She needed some time alone, without bumping into Galinda or Aurelion or anyone else for that matter (a certain prince for example); the girls would see each other tonight in their dormitory and she couldn't face thousands of questions right now.

With a huff, Elphaba opened the French door to the library and stepped inside.

Wooden shelves that reached up to the ceiling, rows and rows of books, tables in the side corridors and dark blue and red sofas in a lounge not too far from her.

A smile formed on her lips. The library was like a second home to her. Or third, now that she got along with Galinda so well.

Elphaba strode along the shelves, searching for the place she usually reserved for studying. When she turned into the corridor, she was shocked to find it was already taken. And she was even more shocked by whom it was taken.

The last person she would've expected to meet in a library was Fiyero Tiggular. And yet, there he was, bent over opened school books and scribbled notes.

Before he could even notice her standing there, Elphaba fled the corridor and turned into the one right beside him. She sat down at the table, folded her hands and listened carefully.

If she turned her head to her right, she could hear him whisper silently.

"Evolution," he murmured and flicked through the book before him. "Animal evolution, animal evolution…"

Elphaba knit her brows. Wasn't evolution part of the upcoming Life Science exams? Could it be that Fiyero started studying for the exams before Elphaba herself did?

"Adaptive radiation… what the…?"

With a sigh, Elphaba pushed the few books to the side of the shelf that stood between them.

"Do you need help?"

Fiyero started, whirling around. "Fae."

So, he was really going to see this through.

"Good afternoon," she tried a grin. "What are you up to?"

Fiyero looked at the books and notes in front of him and sighed. "I'm studying for the exams. Or; I'm trying to study for them, but I get stuck every other page."

Elphaba carefully pushed her head through the shelf, leaning over with her upper body as she tried to decipher the writing in the book. She knew, she probably looked like a complete fool, halfway stuck in a shelf. But she didn't care; she felt as though she couldn't possibly sit right beside Fiyero, there had to be something in between them, otherwise, she couldn't think straight.

"Let's see," Elphaba said and struggled to pull the book closer to her. The edge of the shelf was pushing against her hipbone. No matter that, she decided when she looked up and saw Fiyero's devastated look.

"Adaptive radiation is a process in which organisms diversify rapidly from an ancestral species into a multitude of new forms…" Elphaba tapped with her forefinger against the page. "Here you go, it's right there in black and white."

Fiyero knit his brows and leant forward. "Yeah, I know, but I don't quite understand."

"Well," said Elphaba. "For example; brown bears and grizzly bears both are bears, but they differ in some way, so they're called differently. And the process when the bears developed into brown and grizzly bears is called adaptive radiation."

She bit her lip. "That's just the fundamental principle of the whole term; it's actually much more complicated than that. But once you understand this, everything else will be rather easy."

Fiyero looked at her with big eyes.

"H-How do you know all this?" he stammered. "You didn't even enrol for Life Science."

Elphaba smiled. "Well when I was about eight or something, I found it very interesting. I just grew out of it…"

The prince stared at her as though she was a ghost.

"Eight or something?" he repeated disbelievingly. "When I was about eight, my friends and I jumped around in the gardens, pretending we were soldiers that had to save some damsel in distress."

Elphaba snorted. "I was a strange girl, still am… obviously."

Fiyero shook his head.

"Did you never do something like that? Met with other children and pretended to be, I don't know; a princess?"

The green girl flicked through the book as though she was searching for information when it really was a distraction that she longed to find.

"The other children were afraid of me, naturally," she said. "And poor Nessie couldn't have played like that, being stuck in her chair."

"That's so awful," stated Fiyero.

He took the book from her, his fingers grazing hers. Elphaba felt a chill run right through her.

"It's just how it is," she answered, fingers clutching the edge of the shelf. "I was fine with my books and my paint. And later, when Nessie became friends with Boq, I had him to talk to about school and everything."

Fiyero tilted his head to one side. "So, that Boq-boy was your first best friend?"

"No," Elphaba shook her head. "He was my sister's first best friend."

"Then who was yours?"

The green girl bit her lip and stared at her long fingers for a moment.

"I guess, Galinda is my very first best friend," she admitted quietly. "And Aurelion is my first friend at all."

Fiyero's eyes widened. "Are you saying you never had a friend before going to university?"

Elphaba nodded. "Despite my family, no one ever got over the green."

And suddenly there was Fiyero's hand on her arm and she looked up into his blue eyes.

"Yes, I have," he said seriously and almost desperately. "And so has Galinda. We don't care. In fact, we couldn't care less. It's just a colour, Fae."

Elphaba felt the tingling in her fingertips again, the odd desire to be close to him.

Did he feel it too, she wondered, this urge, this longing?

"It's what people remember," she said and her brain needed a few seconds to register the words she was uttering. "They remember the green, not the person. It's nothing personal, I think—I hope. But they don't talk about me as Elphaba but as the girl with the green skin."

He squeezed her arm tenderly. "I talk about you as Elphaba; as Fae. And Galinda does too."

"But you used to."

"Oh, how I hate the past-me."

"There's much about the past that I hate," said Elphaba.