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Started writing: 20.02.2020

Finished writing: 23.02.2020

Chapter 33
You

Dear Fiyero,

I'm so proud of you; you wouldn't believe it.

Your results arrived just before we went to the restaurant and I think my parents now officially think I've gone crazy. I must've grinned at your letter for all eternity (and they sat right beside me, just for the record).

And I'm really proud of you, Fiyero, you've done so well. I'm wondering, though, how could your results arrive here almost at the same time as mine? Did your parents even get a look at it? 'Look' as in 'time to read every single mark and comprehend that their son hasn't been expelled' -not as in 'paper being shoved into their faces and snacked away from them before they can even get it off them'.

Anyway, I'm sure they're very proud as well. And it's nonsense that you wouldn't have gotten it without me, Fiyero, you're not dumb; you're smart. It's just that your laziness sometimes gets in your way.

Now...

Of course, I told my parents about us. And despite their absolute shock/surprise, they haven't developed any complexes. Actually, they want to meet you. And so desperately so, that they've invited you to visit Rush Margins at the end of the holidays. I wouldn't have guessed they'd be so okay with all of this; I totally expected my father to make me transfer to some other university just so we wouldn't be able to see each other. I'm wondering how he's going to react when Nessa shows up with a boyfriend. I bet he'll freak out. She won't ever be allowed to leave the house again.

Poor girl, I might have to rescue her. (And for the record; you'll have to come with me because I couldn't possibly carry Nessa and her wheelchair out the window.

And while we're at it, we can invite Galinda to come as well. That way she can just talk my father out of keeping us there in case we get caught.)

Now, Fiyero, I can't even begin to tell you how desperately I'm waiting for the holidays to end. I just want you to be here; to meet my parents and my sister (And I'm pretty sure you'll meet Boq as well… he's kind of always hanging around.)

I miss you so much.

I'd never had thought you could miss someone as much as I miss you.

Please, let the next few weeks pass by quickly; I can't wait to be in your arms again.

Forever yours,

Elphaba

"Fabala."

"Mmh?" she looked up from her book.

"You're doing it again."

Elphaba arched an eyebrow at her younger sister as though that could mask her blush.

"What do you mean?" she asked innocently, lifting her book higher in front of her face.

Nessa slapped her leg gently. "Oh, you know what I mean."

Elphaba turned over a page demonstratively. "No, I don't."

She grinned over her blush, biting her lower lip.

"I'm talking about the humming," Nessa reached over to take the book from her sister's hands, one eyebrow raised. "You were humming again."

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "What's so bad about that? Was it untuneful?"

She grinned at her sister, snatching her book away from her again.

"Uh, Fabala," Nessa sighed. "We all know that your lover boy is coming today, no need to constantly rub it into our faces."

The green-skinned woman couldn't help but burst into laughter. "Loverboy? Oh, what I'd have given to see Fiyero's face at that."

She shook her head, laughing. "You're hilarious when you're annoyed, Nessie."

Nessa bit her lower lip.

"Whose fault might that be?" but she smiled, nonetheless.

Elphaba pulled her knees to her chest, resting her chin on them.

"I'm sorry if I'm freaking you out," she said softly. "But I'm just so… happy that he'll be here soon."

"Figures," sounded Momma's voice from behind them.

The woman stepped closer, stopping right behind Elphaba. She ran her fingers through the green girl's hair, smiling down at her.

"Fabala, what should I prepare for dinner?" Momma asked.

Elphaba tilted her head. "Fiyero's favourite food is pancakes, so if you wanted to go for the 'I cook your favourite dinner, treat my daughter well or it will never happen again'-strategy, I'm sorry to disappoint you."

She curled her lips into a broad grin. "Go for something light. It's far too hot outside, I don't know if I'd be able to eat something hot on top of that."

She let her eyes wander through the room for a second. In the last two days, it had been so hot in Munchkinland that it wasn't overly comfortable to be outside for longer than a few minutes. So, they had drawn the curtains close and closed every window.

"If they were black, it would look as though someone had died," Nessa murmured, gesturing at the curtains.

Elphaba shrugged. "Would be good for me, though; fewer colours in here to clash with."

Her mother stepped back, arching an eyebrow at her. "We're not getting black curtains, Fabala, over my dead body."

The green girl chuckled slightly, "I never said that, Momma. Oz, someone's getting irritable in here."

"And I," said Momma with a smile. "am absolutely seeing through this behaviour of yours, Elphaba Thropp. You're nervous."

"She's giddy."

"Impatient."

"She's excited."

Elphaba arched an eyebrow. "She's right here."

Her mother laughed quietly. "And that too."

She turned around. "I'll be seeing to dinner then."

Elphaba closed her book, looking at her little sister with her head tilted to one side.

"Was I really humming?" she asked quietly, a blush creeping onto her green cheeks.

Nessa grinned. "Yes, you were."

The green girl let her forehead sink against her knees, murmuring to herself, "Humming? Really, Elphaba? How obvious can you get?"

When she looked up into her sister's eyes again, she sent her a somewhat sheepish smile. "What exactly was I humming?"

Nessa rolled her eyes.

"I don't know, I'd never heard it before."

Elphaba was just about to ask Nessa to hum it for her when suddenly the sound of the doorbell rang through the mansion. The green girl jumped up from her place on the sofa.

"Finally!" she exclaimed happily, bolting from the room.

She heard her mother rattle with the dishes, somehow relieved she wouldn't be there right away.

Approaching the door, she felt her heart almost burst with excitement and when she finally opened the front door, she thought she'd just be picked up by the non-existent wind and carried away, high on happiness. There he stood; Fiyero with his sandy blonde hair and the blue eyes. With the somewhat goofy lopsided smile and his hands stuffed into the pockets of his trousers.

"Excuse me, Ma'am," he started, bowing in front of her with a cheeky look in his eyes. "I'm searching for my girlfriend; she's said to be the most beautiful girl in the entire land of Oz. But I'm afraid I got lost and-"

Elphaba arched her brows, smiling broadly. "Uh, shut up, Fiyero."

Fiyero tilted his head to one side. "Well, that's some kind of welcome."

But he smiled back at her and when he stepped forward, Elphaba could do nothing but fall into his arms and let him kiss her lips.

"Just for the record," he whispered against her lips, his fingers entangling with her long hair. "I had a whole show prepared for you. But you had to spoil it, of course."

Elphaba curled her lips, gently pinching his cheek as she said mockingly, "Oh, I'm so sorry, Fiyero. If you feel the need to cry and pout a little bit, I kindly offer you the landing for that. It's the absolute best place to do just that."

She felt his arms sneak around her lower back, and he held her close, kissing her fleetingly on the lips. "I missed you."

She smiled. "I missed you too."

With a firm gesture, she stepped away from him and let him get his suitcase inside. Then she closed the door behind them, turning around.

She could see the hem of her sister's skirt right behind the door to the living room and a smile formed on her lips. She knew Nessa was probably almost bursting with curiosity. But her little sister was also a rather shy girl and had never been overly good at introducing herself and welcoming others.

So, Elphaba took Fiyero's hand and gently pulled him with her into the living room. Nessa was pretending to study the book Elphaba had read before and when her older sister and Fiyero entered, she looked up in false surprise. Elphaba saw right through it, but she said nothing.

"Fiyero, this is my little sister Nessarose," she smiled as Fiyero took Nessa's hand and grazed it with a kiss.

The wheelchair-bound girl blushed furiously.

"Hello," she said quietly.

"My pleasure to meet you," Fiyero nudged Elphaba's side. "Fae told me so much about you."

Nessa knit her brows in a faint frown. "Fae?"

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "Oh, don't you dare to pick that up as well."

"What, you'd rather I called you 'Elphie'?"

The green girl's eyes widened. "I swear, Fiyero-"

He began to laugh, tickling her sides as she narrowed her eyes at him.

"It's just too tempting to be able to say all these things and see your reaction on the spot."

Elphaba tilted her to one side, smiling up at him. "I bet you've been thinking about nothing else but what to say to make me freak out."

He kissed her temple cheekily. "You know me too well."

Steps were nearing the living room and Elphaba turned around in Fiyero's arms, facing her mother standing in the threshold, smiling.

"You must be Fiyero," she said, approaching them and shaking the prince's hand. "I'm Elphaba's mother, Melena."

Fiyero nodded with a smile. "Thank you so much for inviting me to stay with you, Mrs Thropp."

"Oh, it's our pleasure, really," Momma said, turning to her Elphaba and Nessa.

"Dinner will be ready in a few minutes, girls," she smiled at Elphaba. "Fabala, call your father, please, he'll want to meet Fiyero before dinner, I'd think."

Elphaba nodded, freeing herself from Fiyero's embrace. "I'll be back in a second."

"I'm counting."

She laughed, head going far back. "Yeah, as if you knew how to do so."

Fiyero's eyes widened in fake hurt and he placed his hand on the centre of his chest as though in pain. "Ouch. That hurt."

Elphaba waved a hand dismissively, smiling broadly at him as she turned around. "I'm merely teasing you, Fiyero, just look at your exam results."

Before he could say anything else, she left the room and hurried upstairs, picking his suitcase on the way up and placing it next to the door of the prepared guest room. Then she made her way to her father's study, knocking on the door.

"Yes?" sounded Father's voice from inside the room.

Slowly, Elphaba opened the door, sticking her head through the gap. "Father, Fiyero is here."

The man looked up from his work. "Is he? Well, then these documents will have to wait until later tonight."

He stood up, rounding the table. When he stepped out of his study, he looked at Elphaba with a light smile. "When did he arrive?"

Elphaba shrugged, "Five minutes ago, maybe less."

Father nodded silently. He wasn't a man of many words, big speeches. He said what he thought was necessary to be heard and kept everything else to himself, only sharing a few of those things with his wife, as Elphaba knew.

As they entered the living room, Fiyero was sitting on the sofa, on the exact same spot where Elphaba had sat before, and looking at the book she'd been reading. But upon seeing her father, he rose from his place and straightened up visibly, taking the older man's hand and shaking it firmly.

"It's nice to meet you, Mr Thropp," he said. "I'm very grateful to be able to stay here for the next two weeks."

Father simply nodded, doing nothing but letting his eyes wander across Fiyero's face multiple times.

Elphaba cleared her throat gently, taking Fiyero's hand. She had missed that feeling a lot, she now realised; she had missed the way her hand fit perfectly into his, how he always drew patterns on the back of her hand with his thumb.

As though he could read her mind, Fiyero squeezed her hand, smiling down at her.

"Dinner is ready."

Momma stood in the threshold again, head tilted to one side. She exchanged a smile with her husband before stepping back and gesturing at the dining room.

Elphaba felt her parents' and sister's look on her back as she led Fiyero into the dining room. She and Fiyero sat down next to each other and Momma took the place next to Nessa that usually was empty.

"I've just made some salad with chicken," the older woman explained. "Fabala was right; it's too warm outside to eat a warm meal."

Fiyero took Elphaba's hand underneath the table and they shared a small smile. She never wanted to let him go again; she had missed it too much.

"Fiyero."

Elphaba and Fiyero turned around and Elphaba closed the book she'd been reading.

After dinner the two of them had settled into the soft cushions of the sofa, curling up in each other's arms and just enjoying the feeling of being close together again.

Elphaba felt her brows knit faintly as she looked up at her father, towering above them.

"I'd like to have a word."

Her eyes widened. This did not sound good. Not at all.

But when Fiyero sent her an uncertain look, she simply smiled reassuringly and squeezed his hand as though her heart wasn't pounding rapidly in her chest.

"Um…" Fiyero stroked through his hair nervously and slowly pushed Elphaba's legs from his lap so he could stand up. "Sure, Mr Thropp."

He raised an eyebrow at Elphaba as they left the room. "See you later, Fae… I guess."

Elphaba stared after them for a second. Then she was on her feet, hurrying out of the living room and into the kitchen where her mother sat over a crossword.

"Fabala, sweetheart," Momma said gently, slowly pulling Elphaba on her lap, busy filling out another gap.

The green girl rested her chin in her palms and let her eyes wander across the paper.

"Try 'moodified'," she whispered into her mother's ear. "Here; 'Universal slang for 'grumpy'."

Momma smiled, "Oh, thank you, dear."

She placed her pen on the table and looked at her daughter with her head tilted to one side. "Would you mind helping me with the laundry? I waited for the sun to set so it would be a little cooler."

Elphaba nodded. "Of course, Momma."

As they made their way into the garden, she couldn't help but try to catch a glimpse of Fiyero or her father through the window of the study. But there was nothing to be seen but the reflection of the sky and Elphaba couldn't wait for a cloud to cover the sun; she didn't want her mother to notice her nervousness.

"Say, Fabala," Momma began, handing the green girl some clothes-pegs. "Fiyero and you… how serious is it?"

Elphaba rose an eyebrow at her mother. So that was the purpose of this? Well, she could handle the don't-do-anything-inconsiderately-talk with her mother. She just wasn't sure if Fiyero could handle the do-something-with-my-daughter-and-I-will-kill-you-talk with her father.

"Um…" Elphaba curled her lips. "I'd say pretty serious. But it's not like I had anything to compare this with."

Momma tilted her head to one side.

"Well," she said slowly. "Do you love him?"

Before Elphaba could say anything, her mother added hastily, "You don't have to answer if you don't want to, Fabala, I won't be mad. I didn't tell my parents everything I did as well."

Elphaba sighed. "It's alright, Momma."

She took a deep breath. "As for your question; yes. Yes, I love him. And very much so."

"So, it's not just falling in love anymore?" Momma asked gently and the green girl shook her head.

"I'm not even sure it was ever 'just falling in love'," she confessed. "I mean… I know exactly when I realised that I had feelings for him. But I don't know whether that was mere affection or love."

She smiled at the memory; how they'd stood on the clearing in the woods and how her heart suddenly had seemed to burst with something she couldn't quite name back then.

"And he's good to you?" Momma's voice was almost hesitant and Elphaba looked at her in something close to surprise.

"Of course, he is," she answered. "It's Fiyero, he couldn't harm a fly if his life depended on it."

Momma nodded knowingly.

"I'm just asking, Fabala, because he…" she curled her lips. "Well, he has a history, after all."

Elphaba sighed deeply. "I know, Momma. But he's changed. He's dropped the 'dancing through life' attitude. Otherwise, he wouldn't have passed all his exams."

"You don't have to explain yourself, dear," her mother said. "I believe you."

She smiled at Elphaba, her fingers working at the sleeve of a shirt.

"He's not pressuring you into anything?"

The green girl's eyes flew open. "No, of course not! He'd never do that."

Momma sighed in relief. "Alright."

She turned to her daughter with a furrowed brow. "And… are you sleeping together?"

Elphaba felt her cheeks burn, blood surging to her face.

"N-No, we're not," she stammered. "We haven't even talked about it. It's never come up."

She cursed the ground for not opening up and swallowing her in whole. Yes, Elphaba and her mother were close. But that didn't mean she was comfortable with talking about such upsetting-parents-topics as sex with her.

"I just-" Momma bit her lower lip for just a split second. "Elphaba, I don't want you to do something you will regret later on. You don't have to do anything you don't want to, okay?"

Elphaba felt her cheeks flush even more. She nodded quietly, silently begging her mother to stop talking.

"You needn't do anything you're not comfortable with, alright, dear? If you want to stop, you have to say so, Fabala," suddenly her mother stood right in front of her, taking her hands in hers. "Don't ever think you'd have to endure anything silently until the end. I claim to know you well enough to know that you'd probably tough it out without ever saying a word because you'd fear he might resent you afterwards. But know, Fabala, that if he does something, you're clearly not comfortable with, he's not worth sticking to him, okay?"

Elphaba lowered her head for a second. "Of course, Momma, I know that."

She looked at their joined hands in between them.

"But Fiyero would never do anything like that," she said quietly.

Momma stroked a strand of black hair out of the green girl's forehead. "I'm not talking about him, Fabala, I'm talking about the possibility that such things could happen. Not with Fiyero in particular, but… with any man, really."

Elphaba knit her brows faintly.

"I just don't want something bad to happen to you."

The green girl nodded slowly. "I can take care of myself, Momma, don't worry."

Momma smiled at her, breathing in deeply as though trying to shrug off the darkness of their previous conversation.

"Let's hurry up a bit," she said firmly. "I want to finish that crossword."

Elphaba threw her head back in laughter. "Trying to beat Father, are you?"

Her father was passionate about crosswords. There were times that he'd solve five a day without a single mistake and Momma tried to keep up with him from time to time.

"Keeps the brain intact," Father always said and Elphaba couldn't help but chuckle at the memory.

When she, later on, met with Fiyero in his room, she had a crossword in her hands, chewing on a pencil as she closed the door behind her.

"Freed from the monster's fangs?" she asked with a grin and fell onto the bed beside him.

Fiyero groaned. "Uh, don't remind me of it."

Elphaba chuckled slightly. "Was it that bad?"

He propped himself up on his elbows and arched an eyebrow at her. "'Bad' is not the right word for it. 'A real horror' fits much better."

He grimaced. "I felt as though I was a murderer or something. He asked all the questions if you know what I mean. Didn't let anything slip, I felt like I was in court."

Elphaba stroked through his hair with a light smile. "Same with me, really. My mother was really anxious I would suddenly turn into the term 'easy girl' personified."

Fiyero's eyes widened. "Really? Oh, Fae, I'm sorry."

"Why would you be sorry? It's not your fault at all."

Fiyero tilted his head to one side. "Well, but she wouldn't have gotten the idea if I-"

"You want to leave?" she arched an eyebrow at him and laughed, inching closer. "I had that conversation years ago already. Just not that… detailed, you know?"

"Detailed?" Fiyero grinned. "I'd love to hear those details someday."

Elphaba gently shoved him away, rolling over so she could kiss his lips.

"You're crazy."

He smiled. "Yes. Crazy in love with you."

The green girl rolled her eyes. "Cheeky."

"I can take cheeky," said Fiyero, kissing her again.

Had home ever felt as homelike?