Disclaimer, you know
Back the palace, Glinda made her crystal ball fade as the three sat down to begin eating Elphaba sat on a chair next to her. Madeline was stood in her doorway sipping a cup of tea.
"I mean, she's not wrong, it did break the ice" she said sipping loudly
"Was that your intention?" Elphaba asked curiously.
She nodded at this and took another loud sip.
"And the coat rack?" Glinda asked curiously
"Other side of the living room entrance, they walked past it twice without even noticing." Madeline said giggling, "maybe I'll put a few brighter hats on it to draw attention to it."
"Then they'll know it was you who did it, and that they aren't going insane." Elphaba said rolling her eyes.
"I think that's probably for the best, I mean, in Dorothy's mind it could only be myself, or one of you guys, including Rose and your brother" Madeline said.
"But you also told Ozma about it, and she's playing along with it." Glinda said sighing and pinching the bridge of her nose.
"Just a bit of fun." Madeline said, "let's just face it, Ozma is as much part of their relationship as the two of them are together, not that the two would acknowledge the fact without the other doing so first."
"So, you see it as well?" Elphaba asked curiously.
"You would have to be properly blind not to notice." Madeline said, taking another loud sip, this one awkwardly loud and slow. After a moment she set the cup levitating and began to list "The way dorothy blushes whenever Ozma gave her a peck on the cheek, the fact that alex never objects, the further fact that their rooms are literally right across from each other, Ozma's desire to have both on a permanent basis." Counting them off on her fingers.
"Honestly, if it weren't for the fact that they're all too polite to mention it, I'd imagine they'd work something out." Em said from behind Madeline.
"Never thought you were the type to support that kind of thing Emily." Glinda said chuckling.
"Madison, Henry, Horace and I have mentioned it in passing a few times, the signs are all there but none of the three would ever acknowledge it out of respect for the other." Em said sighing, "I believe the word for the idea is polyamory, but that's more of a question for Ace."
"You think they'd actually be up for the idea?" Elphaba asked curiously.
"maybe" came the voices of all three from a mirror.
Everyone but Madeline and Elphaba went white as a ghost, Elphaba just turned a sickly shade of pale green. They turned to find Glinda's full Mirror filled with an image of the three of them in the kitchen of gale hall, seemingly partway through the start of their meal.
"You know, you're right." Ozma said, "that the three of us were too polite to bring it up to each other" Ozma said.
"And I do believe you're right on the word, Mrs. Gale." Alex said.
"And how long have you three been listening in?" Em asking disapprovingly.
Dorothy's wince was almost audible.
"Since I felt the hairs on the back of my neck settle down, they always seem to stand on end when you guys are using a crystal ball." Dorothy said "I usually don't register the fact, but it occurred to the three of us, Ozma is here, why wouldn't you be watching"
Glinda let out a defeated sigh and rolled her eyes. Elphaba let out a triumphant chuckle.
"Told you" Elphaba said
The three just rolled their eyes.
"Frankly I'm a tiny bit surprised you guys even registered the fact that you weren't being watched anymore" Madeline said, a smirk crossing her face.
"Like I said, usually we don't" dorothy pointed out
"But given the circumstances it seems to have been easier to notice" Alex added.
"Sounds about right." Madeline said taking a loud sip of tea.
"Well, for fear of making this any more awkward" Em said clearing her throat, "we'll let the three of you return to your meal"
The three of them shared a glance. Alex took a bread roll and split it. The crust of it made a loud crackling. Em's face turned from a look of awkward exasperation to one of someone who was genuinely impressed. The mirror flickered, rippled, and went dark.
"that'd be the beast interfering, that must have been his only reflection point" Elphaba said sighing.
"No, he had the soup kettle." Madeline said, "I'm pretty they did that deliberately."
Back at gale hall.
And if fact it had been deliberately done by the pair. Alex chewed on the roll, his reflection staring back at him cross armed.
"Polyamory?" the beast asked.
"I mean, we already have something close to that, don't we?" Dorothy asked looking between the two, "you two are for all intents and purposes two separate people."
"Same person, different personalities." The beast said.
Alex swallowed the bit of roll in his mouth and took a spoonful of soup. Then person and reflection turned to look at Ozma.
"I mean, we could do it." Alex said while inhaling.
"I mean…" Ozma trailed off and blushed a little
"They weren't wrong." Dorothy said placing her hand on top of Ozma's, "I think we've just been too polite to talk about it."
Alex's hand soon joined hers.
"The two of us may be soul mates as has been pointed out on numerous occasions." Alex said smiling, "but that doesn't mean we can't work something out." He said.
"I sure hope you're including me in the we" came the voice of the beast from the mirror.
"I mean, do we really get an option?" dorothy said sticking her tongue out playfully at the reflection.
"tease" the three of them said in response.
"I mean you three are already perfectly coordinated, you have no problems double te-" she cut herself off before saying that "nope, not walking into that trap later."
"Would it come as any consolation if we told you we always have a plan for that?" Ozma asked giggling.
Dorothy said nothing, she just leaned back and sighed dramatically. This resulted in a chuckle from them. They continued their supper in silence, and once they all had a slice of cheesecake in front of them, they resumed the thoughts.
"So, I imagine this will work out" Dorothy said glancing back and forth between the two.
"I mean, Ozma has tried very hard to get us both here permanently, if only because we're a package deal as everyone else tends to put it." Alex said looking over to the mirror
"I don't know what you're looking at me for" the beast said, "you basically summed up the general position"
"Yeah, but usually you have some secondary opinion that alex would never say aloud" Dorothy said, "Or a wisecrack" she said playfully.
"Ooo, ouch kitten, our pride" they both said in unison.
This ended the conversation with a chorus of hearty laughter. Once they had eventually settled down and continued with their dessert. Soon however this too ended, and they all leaned back in their chairs satisfied and full.
"Well, if anyone could make it work, I think it would be us." Alex said stretching.
He then looked at the scepter and nodded. There was a flash of light and table was cleared. The plates going over to the sink and starting to wash themselves. Dorothy and Ozma both did a double take at this. Dorothy hesitated then removed her reading glasses for a moment. A dull throb this time but nothing more. She breathed on the lenses and rubbed them off with her shirt before blinking and looking at the sight and then alex.
"I know, hypocritical, but I really wasn't in the mood to have a discussion about who would wash, who would dry, et cetera." He continued with a sigh, "I figured it best to just get everything cleaned up as easily as possible and move this conversation to the living room." He spoke.
Dorothy and Ozma shared a glance and shrugged. The three of them quickly moved to the living room, the scepter following rapidly behind. Dorothy and Ozma took a place on the couch whilst alex took the armchair across from them.
"I think, we should probably take a little more time to discuss this, make sure we're all on the same page with everything." Ozma said, "that way none of us overstep any boundaries."
"That sounds like a good decision, but where to start?" dorothy asked curiously.
"Well, I think, at least for now sleeping arrangements should stay the same." Ozma started, "it was a lot of magical effort to get your guys' room the way it is now, I wouldn't want to spoil that, or shift too much energy into that area."
"I think in that case it would be wise, besides, dorothy already has a key to your room, so its not like we don't have access." Alex said.
This conversation would roll long into the evening. The three dozing off having come to their arrangements. As the clocks in Gale Hall struck 8 in the evening, the three had managed to doze off completely.
Outside however, between gale hall, the rest of the town and Castle Garrison, something was forming. In the pale moonlight a puddle of energy, forming what could only be described as a puddle of angry sludge had formed on the ground. In daylight the true color was red. But in the moonlight, it looked like a pale pink. The mass churned and twisted of its own volition. It couldn't really mobilize and move out of the spot it had formed but It could lash out at anything or anyone that approached.
So, a quick authors note. The three way relationship between Dorothy, Alex, and Ozma was something I had been developing since I finished a new adventure. I had wanted to get this out in time for valentine's day but that didn't happen. As for this puddle here, what do you guys think it is.
