Rifiuto: Non Miriena

A/N: I love Zani, she's my favorite sister-in-law- okay, she's my only sister-in-law- but I'm ignoring her 'no posting Chapter 4 until all reader theories/answers are read' rule.

I'm not saying she'd hold the story hostage until she got reviews like I've noticed some writers do- which I really think is stupid, (this coming from someone who doesn't write that much fanfiction, I just post them for her), but I think it'd be more fun to give you all a few minutes to read the first three chapters, formulate your theories in the reviews, and then post Chapter 4, and see how your theories evolve from there.

A/N: Written: 2010. Found: 2018- Licia

She braced herself for death-

That never came.

The carriage wheels stopped, and after a moment, she lifted her head, to find them an inch from her face. Her heart was running a marathon in her chest, and her lungs struggled to suck in air. She could feel a strange tingling sensation come over her skin, as though she'd slept on an appendage too long. Eventually, she was finally able to suck in breath to her starved lungs; quick, short, frightened breaths.

Slowly, she backed out from under the horse, eyes never leaving the carriage wheels that had very nearly crushed her skull. She sat back, pressing a hand to her heart. Talk about an arrhythmia. A moment passed, before she quickly pressed two fingers to her throat, feeling her jumping pulse begin to slow down. Eventually, she was able to take slower breaths, and let her eyes roll shut.

She barely registered the carriage door open or the person step out. When she opened her eyes next, she found a shadow cast over her and looked up.

"Are you all right?"

The voice sounded familiar, like she'd heard it very recently. The owner was cast in shadow, and after a moment, she nodded, sighing. "Shaken. Really shaken. You nearly ran me over." The person's eyes softened, misting with tears.

"What do you have to say for yourself? You nearly ran me over!"

"Maybe my driver saw green and thought it meant go."

"I'm so sorry, I never meant to. I saw you dash out into the street and tried to get my driver to slow down, but we were going to fast to fully stop. Here, let me help you up." They held out a hand, and she noticed the light pink manicure on the small fingers. A moment passed, before she finally laid her hand in theirs, allowing them to help her to her feet. Once standing, she realized who it was had nearly run her over.

The blonde from the front of the restaurant, that she'd plowed into earlier.

Glimba? No. Glinda.

"Elle, correct?" The girl nodded. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to-"

She froze, hearing a voice call her. Without turning around, she knew who it was. Damn it. There went her plan to escape to the forest. A moment passed, as she quickly ran through the options in her head, and they weren't... they just weren't. She turned back to Glinda. "Consider us even." The blonde watched her dark eyes dart back and forth, looking for a way out, saw her tense when she heard her name called.

"Do you have anywhere to stay tonight?" The girl thought a moment, before quickly shaking her head. The blonde nodded, seeing in her eyes what was worrying the girl. "Come on." She gently wrapped an arm around her shoulders, guiding her to the carriage. "You'll stay with me tonight. No objections." As she climbed back into the carriage, she turned back, seeing Fiyero step out of the crowd.

"Elle!"

Without a second thought, she climbed in beside Glinda, allowing the door to slam shut behind her. As the carriage took off, she glanced out the window, to see him watching her in shocked silence. As soon as they turned off the main street, she settled back against the seat of the carriage, releasing a heavy sigh.

"Woah."

She couldn't help the gasp of surprise as they pulled up in front of Mockbeggar Hall. She'd never seen anything so grand before; from the marble columns to the opulent gardens spread out before them, it was... "Is this a... palace?"

Glinda chuckled softly from behind her as they exited the carriage. "This is Mockbeggar Hall. My family's Emerald City estate." She moved around the girl, heading up the steps, before turning to see her still standing in front of the mansion, mouth agape and eyes wide. "You might not want to stand out here with your mouth open for much longer. You'll start to collect flies that way."

The girl snapped out of her study, hurrying after her, holding tight to her bag. The two women entered the mansion, and she soon saw how wealthy Glinda really lived. Though the furnishings were fairly modest, they were still fancier than anything she'd ever seen before in her life. She glanced down at her clothing; her boots were scuffed and dingy, her dress was wrinkled and dusty from her time on the ground, both her knees scraped and bleeding. She suddenly felt very... unwelcome in this grand mansion. She bit her lip, taking a step back, as Glinda moved about, talking to a couple maids about getting a guest room ready.

If she timed it right, she could slip out of the mansion, down the steps and across the lawn in five minutes-

"Elle?"

She looked up, and Glinda saw the look in her eyes. "Y... yes?"

Slowly, the woman made her way towards her, taking her shoulders. "Come on, let's get you in a hot bath. After the day I'm sure you've had, you could use it." She reached to take the bag, but the girl tightened her hold on the strap. She shook her head quickly, and Glinda sighed.

"I won't look. I'm just going to put it into the room that's going to be yours for the night. I promise." She bit her lip, before sliding the strap off her shoulder and holding it out to the blonde.

The water was warm; not too hot, not too cold.

She sighed, sinking into the water and leaning her head back. She couldn't remember the last time she'd had a bath- if ever. She never really thought of herself as a bath person, but this... this was nice. Her eyes closed, and she let the warm water relax her-

The door opened with a soft knock, and she bolted upright, the ends of her long black hair trailing the water behind her. She pulled her knees up and covered her chest, suddenly embarrassed. Glinda slipped inside, giving her a small smile. "Feel better?" Silently, she nodded, never changing her position. The blonde looked as though she wanted to say more, but stopped, before, "Elle, have you eaten today?"

The girl thought a moment. "I... I had a pastry earlier this afternoon."

"That's all?" Glinda's eyes filled with worry. She'd helped the girl undress before leaving her alone for her bath, and had been horrified at how thin she was; yes, the curves she possessed were there, but barely noticeable for the thinness the girl possessed. Elphie had been thin, but not like that... or had she? I don't remember, it's been so long...

She couldn't help examining the girl silently while she'd helped her undress, becoming horrified when she saw every vertebrae in her back when she bent over, or the way her fingertips were slightly tinged black, but from what, she couldn't be sure. She'd seen the almost drastic similarities between the girl and her former roommate- from the extreme thinness, to the small breasts, exposed vertebrae, the muscles in her legs and the smooth, taut stomach. Despite her thinness, the girl was well-built, small in almost every way, and, surprisingly, not very tall. About five foot five, at most.

"Well, what would you like to eat then? I can have the kitchen staff whip up an entire feast if that's what you desire." But the girl shook her head, leaning against her knees.

"I'm not really hungry, thank you anyway, Miss Glinda-"

"Please, Glinda. Just Glinda."

She nodded, taking a deep breath and resting her chin to her scraped knees. "Glinda. I'm not really hungry. Thank you for offering though." The blonde nodded, standing.

"Do you need anything else?" The girl shook her head, glancing over her shoulder. "Okay. I'll be downstairs if you need me. There's a pair of pajamas on the bed in the guest room. I didn't think you had anything to change into, so I took your dress-"

"Please." She whispered. "That dress is all I have-"

"Shh, hush, Elle. I simply asked the maids to wash it. You'll get it back tomorrow."

After a moment, the girl nodded. She watched in silence as Glinda slipped out of the bathroom, before turning her head and resting her cheek to her knees. She sucked in a soft sob, before releasing it slowly. At least she was safe. She may have been staying with the strange blonde she'd run into earlier in the day, but Glinda at least appeared a little more stable than Fiyero.

Extremely lonely and sad, but stable.