Rifiuto: Non Miriena

A/N: Written: 2009. Found: 2018- Licia

Glinda discovered that she had no real trouble making friends, it turned out. She'd met three girls that were just as well off as her- Milla, Pfhanne and ShenShen- and the four quickly became a fixture at the small boutiques dotting the city around the college.

"So, what's it like?"

"What's what like?" Glinda asked, meeting ShenShen's gaze as they sat chatting over coffee at the school cafe. Because classes didn't start until next week, the students were allowed to get used to campus now- including all the hangouts, like the cafe.

"Rooming with the green bean."

Glinda swallowed hard. She'd noticed her roommate's unusual color, but such a cruel nickname hadn't sprung to her mind. If anything, she'd been too preoccupied with the things her roommate had brought with her to really take stock of her skin.

"How could you call her that?" Milla cried, swatting ShenShen. "She's one of the top athletes in the Vinkus. I hear, if she and her partner place in qualifications, they'll go to the Ozlympics in two years."

"Morrible did say they were Ozlymp-" But all conversation stopped as the pair in question entered the cafe, duffels over their shoulders. They ordered and then took a table not far from the quartet of girls, who, besides Glinda, quickly gathered together.

"I heard he's a Crown Prince."

"If that's so, then why is he playing a sport? And with her?"

"I heard she was the Governor's daughter."

"Governor? Which Governor?"

"The Munchkinland Governor, Pfhanne."

Glinda glanced over her shoulder, watching as Elphaba scooted closer to Fiyero; the pair were looking over something in a notebook, talking in rapid tones and making adjustments. At one point, Elphaba took the pencil from him and erased something, drawing what appeared to be a line on the page before handing it back. He shook his head, erasing what she'd just drawn. "Then what do you suggest, Yero? We try for pairs instead? We've been working our asses off to go as a Mixed, and now you want to throw it out because you don't like the play?"

"I didn't say that, Fabala. I just meant that that specific play won't work. Iskinaary and Nikidik tried it three years ago, and it cost them Regionals, remember?"

"Of course I remember, Yero. We took their place!" She sat back, grabbing her mug. "Look, all I'm saying, is that it's worth a shot. Just because Iskinaary and Nikidik didn't succeed doesn't mean we won't. We're smarter and younger and better than they are-"

"Fabala, they'd won Worlds six times in a row. They're Roaring legends for a reason."

"Exactly. They're legends. They're Mixed career is done. Ours is just beginning. Yero, if we pull off this play, we could win Worlds next."

He set the notebook down and tossed the pencil on top of it before grabbing his mug. "We need to win Regionals before we can even consider winning Worlds, Fabala. And then we need to best everyone else to even qualify for the team."

"Which we can do. God, Yero, don't you have any faith in us? We've come this far-"

"You know I do." He replied, sitting up and leaning towards her.

"I wonder if he likes being with her, or if he's forced to." ShenShen ventured, tearing Glinda away from her study. From what she could tell, the two seemed pretty comfortable around each other. And Elphaba had said that they'd been basically together since they were eight.

Classes started the next week, much to basically everyone's chagrin. Of course, the soon-to-be monotony of classes was broken by the two young athletes, for Elphaba and Fiyero had a few classes together- he was majoring in Politics and she in Life Sciences- and their presence never failed to set tongues waging. It didn't help that the two sat together in the far corner, even going so far as to share a desk. It was as though the pair couldn't bear to be apart for very long, something Glinda found extremely odd.

She and Elphaba hadn't shared two words to each other that resembled a conversation since the day they'd moved into the dorm, and Elphaba seemed perfectly fine with that. She wanted to be left alone, and Glinda left her alone, though she couldn't help but watch her roommate.

The young girl was quiet, studious- when she wasn't running off to wherever she disappeared to at the one in the afternoon every day but Sunday. She never had afternoon classes- in fact, Glinda didn't see either Elphaba or Fiyero after about twelve-thirty. It was as though they both vanished into thin air, before returning to their respective dorms in the mid-evening. And she hardly heard Elphaba say a word- to her at least- but always to Fiyero. She always had something to say to him.

Their relationship was strange, to say the least.

So it was a surprise to the blonde when she came back from class one Friday afternoon three weeks later, to find the pair standing in the doorway of the dorm, having a heated argument in a language Glinda didn't understand. Elphaba waved her hands in annoyance, and Fiyero said something back, that caused her to snort in derision.

"Um..." Glinda softly cleared her throat, and the pair stopped, turning to her. The three stood staring at each other awkwardly- well, they were staring at her, and it was getting awkward. "Sorry, I... I didn't mean to interrupt." She slipped past Elphaba into the room.

"You didn't interrupt anything, Glinda." The young woman replied, causing Glinda to turn as Elphaba turned her attention back to her partner. "And as for you, if that's the way you're gonna be, then we play Regionals, but after that I quit! You can find yourself a new partner!"

"Fabala, you can't be serious!"

"I am serious! I'm sick of this! You don't understand how important this is to me! How much I need this! All of this! But you don't care! About any of it! And certainly not about me!" And without another word, she stormed back into the room and slammed the door.

Glinda watched her roommate storm over to her bed, wondering what had gone so wrong for the pair in such a short amount of time.