Rifiuto: Non Miriena

A/N: So the third day passes by fairly quick in this story. But, there's a major reason for it. Written: 2012. Rewritten: 2014. Found: 2018.- Licia

Town of Nest Hardings,

Munch Territory,

Thropp Household,

Day Four

The early morning sky was had not yet gained its colour on the fourth day of the week. The remaining hours of the third day had been fairly tense within the Thropp household; Elphaba refused to speak with anyone, Shell was even quieter than usual, Tibbett was avoid Nessa at all costs, only speaking on occasion with Elphaba, and in hushed tones in secluded corners of the house, and Melena and Frex both spent the time hoovering over all four, unsure of how to react or respond.

Safe to say, no one was sleeping much that night. Elphaba had locked herself in her room; Shell was camped out in his own, trying to figure out a way to help his oldest sister, and while Melena and Frex were up conversing softly in their bed about what had seemed to go wrong, Tibbett was out in the wheat field, lost in thought.

"Tibbett?"

He no longer needed to turn, to know who it was, but he did so anyway, to find Nessa, barefoot and in only her nightgown, hair down in waves, watching him. She looked about to turn the eighteen years that would signal her arrival into womanhood, though she still maintained some of that childlike innocence. A soft sigh escaped his throat. "Go back to bed, Miss Nessarose. Dawn has not yet chosen to appear. You need to sleep."

"So do you." She made her way towards him, reaching out to take his hand. There, among the quiet of the wheat, and the darkness of the morning, they stood, strangers tossed together by a common factor- her sister. But there was something else, something besides Elphaba to connect them; a desire, a longing... dare, even, to consider... the first, innocent, unsure stirrings of... love?

Tibbett would be a liar if he did not admit that he felt something for the headstrong teenage white, but was it really the beginnings of love? The young translator had gone for so long ignoring the feelings of love, that he knew not what exactly they were anymore. But Nessa... this... this beautiful, innocent young woman... this... white woman... something in her called to him. She saw the white he was born as, and the Arjiki he had been raised within, and in her own, gentle, silent way, accepted them both- the man and the warrior he would have been.

She accepted the parts of himself he could not, for he did not feel as though he truly belonged in the white world, nor did he belong with the Arjiki. Nessa, in her own way, understood and accepted it, because she did not belong to herself, nor in the world she'd been born into. She'd always known it, but after her sister had been taken, it had become even more abundantly clear.

"Tibbett."

He met her gaze, and she blushed. "Yes, Miss Nessarose? What is within your heart?"

She started, blushing. "I... I believe... I believe that I... that I am falling in love with you, Tibbett."

Slowly, he pulled away. "You know not of love, you are a child."

A shake of her head as she moved closer. "Not anymore. In two weeks time, I will be eighteen, a grown woman. You forget, that I am like my sister. Just as headstrong as she is. I know what I want. And... I may not be as experienced as she in the ways of love and marriage and children, but I do know when I desire something, or someone." She took his hand, pressing her palm to his; his long, slender fingers dwarfed hers by inches, and after a moment, she slid her fingers between his. "I know that what I am feeling is just the start, and I wish to act on it, for it could be something beautiful."

She moved closer, meeting his gaze. The briefest of moments passed between them, before she rose slightly onto her toes-

"You would choose a white-savage as your mate?" He pulled away, turning from her and continuing through the field. "When you could have any white."

"I don't want any white! And you... you are no more a savage than my sister is! You said it yourself, the Arjiki are a peaceful people who just want to be left alone! You are kind and gentle and intelligent and wise in the ways of the world! A world I long to see! You claim we are keeping my sister captive- well I have been a captive too! Treated as a child, though I am near eighteen! I want to make my own way in the world, become my own person! Find love, real love!"

She followed, until they were so far out in the field, anyone looking out the windows of the house would be unable to see them. Once she got close enough, she reached up, taking his face in her hands, fingers gently caressing the diamonds upon his cheeks. "Tibbett, you say I'm too young, that I don't know what love is, but with you... you see me. Not just a little girl, like everyone else. When you look at me, you see a woman. Please, Tibbett. I know you feel it too. Please."

He closed his eyes briefly, before opening them and meeting hers. She was right; he saw the woman she was becoming, not the child her parents wished to keep her as. She was smart, strong-willed, and braver than most. Stubborn in her ways, yes, but so was the princess. It was the same fire in her soul that resided in Elphaba's that had allowed her to survive within the tribe as long as she had; the same fire within his soul.

The Arjiki have a saying- twin souls reside in two bodies. And when those souls find each other, they combine, not just in the creation of children, but within each heart. Deny it all you want, but you have found the second half of your soul; it is staring back at you, through Nessa's beautiful dark eyes.

A moment passed, before he leaned down. "You hold the other piece of my soul, Nessarose, and I hold yours." She smiled softly, unsure of what he meant, but accepting his kiss eagerly. When they finally broke apart, she met his gaze, smiling softly, fingers brushing against his lips. Her soft request startled him, but only briefly.

"Please, Tibbett."

Worry filled his gaze, and after a moment, he glanced behind him, before tugging her towards the shadows of the barn. "You are not asking-"

She nodded. "I am."

"Nessa, there is no going back once-" She rested a finger against his lips, quieting him.

"I know. I don't care. I'm a grown woman, I know what I want. I know that I am falling in love. Please, Tibbett, take me as my sister was taken. Show me love the way she was shown."

"You are asking to steal love from my very heart. Love I may not be able to give."

"If I am stealing love from yours, then you have stolen love from mine. And the prince from my sister's and she from him. Do not tell me what you have not felt these past three days is not real." He sighed; he couldn't. It was very real, and it scared him. "Please, Tibbett."

A moment passed, before he pulled her close, realizing she was right; that their hearts had each been stolen by the other, and that no matter what happened, this love was always meant to be.