A Mother's Curse
Chapter 6: East Meets West… and… North
After a long train ride, and a surprisingly short carriage ride, Galinda Upland finds herself in the colorful countryside of Thropp Manor, Munchkinland. The grounds are a lovely rainbow color of different crops and grasses, the blue sky bright and cloudless. The main building itself is rather modest in contrast to the estates Galinda had been raised in from birth. The blonde haired, blue eyed young witch in training is wearing a rather plain pale blue frock styled dress, for once taking Elphaba's advice of function over fun. This dress matches the wall color of the mansion almost perfectly. Adorning the blonde's tiny feet are practical yet stylish white boots with a brown sole.
Pink tanned skin from the hot summer sun, Galinda removes her matching blue sunglasses, just as the front door is opened. She makes no time in almost running though the doorway to enter the much cooler parlor. The butler, Alfred, is amused but manages to appear stoic and professional.
"Miss Galinda Upland, welcome to Thropp Manor," addresses Alfred regally, "I shall alert Miss Nessarose at once."
"Okay," pants Galinda dramatically, "Thank you, and um, could I please have some water. It has been a rather long journey for me."
"Absolutely Miss Upland, I will return with refreshments shortly," replies Alfred stoically but kindly, he can tell that the woman in front of him has had a long trip, "If you require further assistance just ring the bell. My name is Alfred and I am the Thropps' personal butler, should you need anything do not hesitate to call and ask."
"Thanks again," breaths Galinda as she sinks into a nearby chair while the butler leaves the room," "Elfie was right I do need to get into better shape!"
"Why if it isn't Miss Galinda, my sister's famous roommate," states Nessarose, a teasing yet friendly tone to her voice, "I was not aware you talked to yourself. Dear Fabala always seems to let that detail slip her mind."
"I don't talk to myself!" Galinda states too defensively.
"Relax Miss Galinda," replies the brunette, wheelchair bound girl, "I was only joking. We Munchkinlanders tend to be too sarcastic for our own good. You should already know this, living with my sister these last two semesters at Shiz."
"Speaking of your Sister, she and I have become rather good friends," comments the blonde woman nostalgically, "We didn't get along all too well at first, but time heals all wounds. Anyway, do you mind if I refer to you without the honorific as well?"
"Okay," replies the tragically beautiful girl, her outfit also a light blue frock, "Fabala usually calls me Nessie but I wouldn't mind Nessa. I get enough of my full name from my father. Elphaba gets a special nickname, but not me."
"Likewise you can now call me Galinda or 'Linda. Your sister calls me Linny, which is annoying," reveals the typically annoying blonde woman, "Or Glinda, which is worse because that's my cousin's name and I hate being compared to someone else."
"Wait, Glinda the Good Witch of the South is your cousin!" shouts Nessa happily, "That is so cool!"
"Yes, it can be awesome sometimes," comments Galinda thoughtfully, "But it is also a pain because we are too similar and I don't really standout as my own person in my own family."
"It's okay Galinda, I don't stand out at all in my family," replies Nessa sadly, "I'm the most normal of my siblings. Fabala is green and magical, and our brother Shell is crazy and a boy."
"Elfie is always saying how you are your father's favorite though?" states the blonde in the form of a question.
"Father loves both of us almost equally," replies the brunette defensively, "Yes he sometimes favors me, but not as often as my sister might make it seem. As for our brother, our father has very little, if any love for him."
"Why? What did he do?" asks Galinda out of curiosity.
"It's nothing he did really. Although being crazy is not helping him change our father's mind about the troubled boy," reveals Nessa quietly, "Our mother died shortly after our brother Shell was born."
"I'm so sorry!" blurts the blonde regretfully, "It was so rude of me to even ask that, its' really none of my business."
"You are forgiven," replies Nessa in a happier tone of voice, "So what brings you all the way out here? If you are looking for my sister she left a few days ago…"
"Actually, I'm here to see you," announces the blonde, her new friend's eyes brighten at the thought of someone coming to see her and want to speak to her for once, in a way that is not out of pure pity, "Elphaba and I met the Wizard over winter holidays. He has placed your sister and me with unique quests. I in turn am allowed to request your assistance as it involves your father's government…"
Many kilometers away towards the West, a decrepit castle is housing a rather curious prisoner. The two emerald green skinned women dressed in black frocks do not know what exactly to make of the other. Elphaba has grown up with the legend of the Wicked Witch of the West, how she was responsible for killing the Wizard's human form and whom may be responsible for the disappearance of her mother. And the Wicked Witch is hiding a secret that could shatter the younger woman's whole world…
Quickly using her powers to increase the lighting of the room, the Witch turns her emerald face to find a matching, abet a younger, less angled, and far better looking, mirror image staring back at her. A tiny gasp escapes both of their mouths as the Witch whispers with a look of shock on her normally blank face, "Elphaba?"
Warm and calm brown eyes meet cold yet electric gold eyes as Elphaba replies, "How do you know my name?"
"So you are Elphaba," states the Wicked Witch almost mocking the younger woman, "I would have expected better from a daughter of the powerful Theodora the Good Witch of the West."
"What did you do to my mother!" yells Elphaba, anger replacing her once calm demeanor, "Did you kill her?"
"Yes, well in a manner of speaking," replies the Wicked Witch of the West cruelly as she cackles at the younger woman, "you could say I killed her. But the fault was less mine and more that of your precious, saintly Wizard! Ask him what happened to good old' Theodora. What really happened to her! That poor girl died before I was even involved! And it was his fault!"
During this odd, confusing conversation, Elphaba has been trying to plot her escape from the rather confined stone room. So far her efforts have been futile. The one window has heavy iron bars and the one door is blocked by both a heavy wooden door and the Wicked Witch herself. The young witch cannot seem to focus her magic either, although the cause, other than possibly being the other witch, she is unsure of.
"What you are saying doesn't make any sense!" yells Elphaba confusedly, "How can you blame the Wizard for killing my mother when you also admit to doing it? You two are clearly not on the same side!"
"Child, the Wizard of Oz and I were not always enemies," reveals the older Witch almost wistfully, "We were close once, lovers even. At least I thought we were, he could have cared less about me."
"Um, what does this have to do with Theodora?" asks Elphaba, wanting the witch to get to her point so that she could leave the younger woman alone, and time to plan an escape.
"This! Has! Everything! To! Do! With! Theodora!" pauses the Wicked Witch angrily, "Elphaba, your mother is not physically dead! Your mother is me! I am Theodora, or rather I was Theodora!"
"No, it can't be! That's impossible!" shouts Elphaba, a look of disbelief turns to rage as she lounges towards the Wicked Witch of the West with brute force, whatever stopping her magic having seemed to stop, or perhaps her own power just increased significantly.
Different colored flames and bursts of electrical Energy, red for Elphaba and green for the Wicked Witch, clash as the two witches get into an energized fist fight. The youth and power of Elphaba is too great for the Wicked Witch to beat and she is rather quickly overpowered by her younger counterpart. Having fallen unconscious during the fight, the Wicked Witch is quickly bound up in metal chains by Elphaba.
"We'll just wait to hear what the Wizard has to say," Says Elphaba coldly, "But even if you were my mother, you didn't even raise me. Melina Thropp was my mother. Not you. Never you!"
The next day all of the Wicked Witch of the West's prisoners are released by Elphaba. Including Finley.
"Are you ready to see Oscar again?" asks Elphaba, "I know you haven't seen him in a while. The mission was to rescue you, but capturing her is a bonus I'm sure he'll appreciate."
"I guess as ready again to see him as I'll ever be," replies the Monkey with a look of sadness on his face when he sees his still unconscious former Mistress, "I just hope he doesn't go too hard on her. Her bite has always been worse than her bark. Her sister is a lot at fault here."
"Everyone needs to stop blaming other people for the Wicked Witch's choices," bitterly states Elphaba, "She must have made at least one conscious choice."
"Yes," says the weary Monkey thoughtfully, "She confessed to me that she had given you up instead of using you to get her sister and herself back to power. There is more to this story than you know young Elphaba, remember to keep an open mind. Things are not always as they appear child."
"Sure, just more questions we'll have for the Wizard once we get to the Emerald City," announces the green skinned young woman, Finley smiling that Theodora's daughter thought of him as fondly as her mother had of him long ago and keeping him included in her life, "Let's go!"
A young witch holds onto a chained, unconscious older witch while flying on a broomstick, her winged Monkey companion flying on her right side as they head towards the dawn's horizon...
