Starspangledpumpkin: I didn't really give Elphaba magic in this story.

TheDancerandtheDreamer125: LOL! No, it's not bad. But when you get the chance, you MUST see Wicked!


Later that evening, as the sun went down, Fiyero went back inside to check on Elphaba. He got worried when he saw Elphaba asleep, but relaxed when he saw her chest moving up and down. He gently nuzzled his nose against her cheek, gently trying to wake her up.

The green girl hummed and opened her eyes, smiling softly when she saw her boyfriend. "Hey."

"Hi," Fiyero whispered, helping the green girl sit up. "Did you have a nice nap?"

Elphaba nodded and yawned. "What's going on?"

"I wanted to know if you wanted to come see the fireworks."

"Fireworks?"

"The fireworks for my grandmother's birthday," the prince smiled, helping Elphaba to her feet.

Elphaba followed the prince out. The chairs were moved to the center of the garden. The adults sat in the chairs, parents holding the young children in their laps. Fiyero immediately saw River and gently pulled Elphaba behind him.

"I was wondering when you would come back," River teased as Fiyero sat on the grass next to her.

"I would never miss the fireworks," Fiyero smiled.

"Are you excited, Elphaba?" River asked, looking at the green girl.

"I don't really know what to expect. I've never seen fireworks before," the green girl answered, sitting down next to the prince.

"Never seen fireworks?" Fiyero and River asked at the same time, then exchanged a look.

"No. They're illegal in Munchkinland."

"You don't even have them for holidays?" Fiyero asked.

Elphaba shook her head. "No. Never."

"Wow. Then you're in for a treat," River smiled as the fireworks were being prepared.

The people running the fireworks waited until the sky got dark enough before setting off the grand finale to end the queen's birthday. It exploded into the sky with a loud boom, filling the sky with bright colors.

Elphaba jumped and let out an involuntary squeak when she heard the loud noise.

"It's alright, Fae," Fiyero whispered.

"I… I just didn't know they would be so… loud," she whispered.

"Do you want to go back inside?"

Elphaba thought for a moment. This would probably be the only time she would be able to experience fireworks. She couldn't just pass up this opportunity. "No. I'll… I'll stay."

"Are you sure, Fae?"

Elphaba nodded. "I'm sure. I don't want to miss this."

Fiyero nodded and shifted his position so Elphaba's head was resting against his chest and his arms were wrapped around her. Elphaba smiled as she felt Fiyero's steady breaths and felt his heartbeat as she watched the display.

The royal family oohed and ahhed at the spectacular display of colors. The green girl found it fascinating that the fireworks exploded when they went into the sky, wondering what the science behind it was. She had never seen the sky so bright with color before.

"Get ready, Fae," Fiyero smiled, gently hugging Elphaba closer.

"Why?" Elphaba whispered.

The prince simply pointed to the sky and Elphaba looked up, gasping when she saw the next fireworks explode into the sky. They were now creating objects, like roses, a crown, a throne, and even the royal family crest.

Once the spectacular display ended, the royal relatives applauded and began to disperse back into the castle. Most of them were staying the night since it was too dark to travel, but a few relatives that lived relatively close decided that they could go home.

"Are you staying over?" Fiyero asked River as they got up.

"Of course I am. Don't forget, she's my grandmother, too, Fiyero," River said, smirking slightly.

"I know," Fiyero smiled.

"Don't look so upset that you have to share."

"I didn't have to share until I was two years old."

The younger girl rolled her eyes and walked back inside with her cousin and his girlfriend. The younger children had immediately fallen asleep after the fireworks so they were put to bed first. The parents, exhausted from the day, retired next. Alyena's siblings stayed up with her for a while, then went to bed.

"Did you enjoy the fireworks, Fae?" Fiyero asked as they cuddled in front of the fireplace in the parlor.

"I did. It was a wonderful experience. I've never seen anything like it before," Elphaba smiled, watching the flames dance.

The prince kissed her forehead and smiled when Elphaba snuggled closer to him. After few yawns from Elphaba, the couple decided that they were going to go to bed. Fiyero walked Elphaba up the stairs and kissed her goodnight before going to his own room. Elphaba got ready for bed quickly, took her medicine, and sat on top of the covers with her book.

"Come in," she called when she heard a knock at the door. The door open and she looked up, surprised to see who it was. "River?"

"Hi," the younger girl said. "Are you too tired to talk?"

The green girl shook her head and invited the younger girl inside. River hurried inside and jumped onto the bed next to the green girl. "What did you want to talk about?" Elphaba asked.

"You."

"Me?" Elphaba blinked.

River nodded. "I'm leaving tomorrow morning and I don't trust Fiyero. I know you already went through the adults, so that's why he told me to wait."

Elphaba looked at the younger girl.

"But I don't want this to be like that. You can tell me whatever you want to tell me. I don't want to force information out of you that you don't want to share. Or I can just tell you about me and we can see what we have in common."

Elphaba could tell that Fiyero's younger cousin didn't mean any harm by wanting to talk to her, so she agreed. She let River tell her about herself and they commented on their likes and dislikes. Elphaba was surprised to see that she had a lot in common with the princess.

"Technically, my real title is the Duchess of Bernsbridge," River explained. "I have no idea why I can't just be Princess River, but apparently it has something to do with a bunch of political and traditional things."

"Isn't your mother a princess?" Elphaba questioned.

"She is, which is why I asked her why can't I be one, too. She said that I'm a princess by birth, but my official title is Duchess. It's so confusifying. I don't get it, either."

Elphaba chuckled softly and the girls talked some more. River reminded her a lot of Galinda; she liked things that were pink and sparkly, she giggled a lot, and she also loved to brush other people's hair.

"So, how did you manage to meet Fiyero?" River asked as she ran a brush through Elphaba's hair.

The green girl bit back a sigh. She had told that story way too many times this week. She really didn't want to go through it again, especially since it would lead to her having to explain her lung illness.

"Elphaba?" River asked, pausing in her brushing. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing. I'm sorry, but I'm really tired. Could we stop now?" Elphaba asked, turning to face the younger girl.

River looked upset, but nodded as she slid off the bed and returned the hairbrush to Elphaba's dresser. "Thank you for indulging me, Elphaba."

"Thank you," Elphaba smiled as she watched the younger girl turn and leave.

River was about to leave when she stopped in the doorway. "I already told Fiyero this, but I'm really glad he chose you as his girlfriend."

The green girl blushed. "Thank you, River."

"Anytime," the younger girl smiled before waving and closing the door behind her.

Elphaba felt much better after that conversation with River. She read for a few more minutes before climbing under the covers and going to sleep.


"And you promise to write?" River asked for the third time as she said goodbye to Fiyero the next morning.

"Yes, River. I promise to write," Fiyero said, rolling his eyes, but hugging his cousin nonetheless.

"Good, because I'll be writing to you. And I expect replies. Preferably swift ones."

"I'll be back at Shiz next week."

"That's no excuse. People write all the time in college."

The prince chuckled and gave his cousin, aunt, and uncle a goodbye hug. He watched as River said goodbye to Elphaba and whispered something into her ear. Elphaba chuckled and nodded, giving the younger girl a hug before watching her say goodbye to their grandparents and leave with her parents.

Fiyero said goodbye to the rest of his relatives who had stayed over. A few of them actually said goodbye to Elphaba, which the green girl took as a form of acceptance. As the last of the relatives drove away, the royal family walked into the parlor and sat down.

"Did you have a nice birthday, Mother?" Raal asked.

"Of course I did," Alyena smiled. "I was surrounded by my family, and potential future family," she added with a smile at Elphaba.

The green girl looked surprised by that statement, and even more surprised when Fiyero stifled a chuckle, but the thanked the queen nonetheless. The queen nodded and announced that she was going to her room to rest some more.

"Are you feeling alright, Mother?" Raal asked.

"Of course, Raal. I feel fine," Alyena said, waving her son off as she walked out of the room.

Amalie and Raal stayed in the parlor with the young adults and had a small conversation before Raal was called to do some paperwork. Amalie then excused herself and walked out of the room, leaving Fiyero and Elphaba alone.

"Come on," Fiyero said as he helped her to her feet.

"Where are we going?" Elphaba asked, but followed him anyway.

"Just into the gardens," Fiyero smiled.

The couple walked into the gardens and came upon a large cherry blossom tree.

"They're almost all gone," Elphaba said, noticing that there were only a few blooming flowers on the tree.

Fiyero nodded. "They only bloom for around a week, and that's it until next year," Fiyero said as he picked a flower and placed it in Elphaba's hair. Elphaba smiled and stood on her toes to place a gentle kiss on his lips. The prince immediately kissed her back and the kiss quickly deepened.

"Fae," Fiyero whispered against her lips when they finally pulled away.

"Yes?" Elphaba mumbled.

"I'm glad you came here with me."

"I'm glad I came to, Yero. I love you."

"I love you, too, Fae."

The couple continued to walk around and Fiyero found his soccer ball. "Have you ever played soccer before?" Elphaba gave him a look and the prince chuckled sheepishly. "Come on."

"Where are we going?"

Fiyero led her to the soccer goal and stopped her a few feet away with the ball at her feet before running to the goal. "Try to get the ball past me."

Elphaba blinked at him, then looked at the ball. "What?"

"Try to get the ball past me."

Elphaba blinked again before kicking the ball. It slowly rolled against the grass and Fiyero stopped it easily.

"Come on, Fae. You can do better than that." Fiyero kicked the ball back to her and Elphaba stopped it with her feet.

The green girl tried again, kicking the ball harder, but Fiyero still stopped it. After a few more attempts, Elphaba managed to kick it hard enough to get a goal past Fiyero. She laughed softly, seeing her boyfriend sprawled on the grass with a surprised, yet happy look on his face.

"Good job, Fae," he smiled as he got up and kicked the ball back to her.

"Thanks," Elphaba said as she kicked the ball again, getting another goal.

The two went back and forth like that for a while, Fiyero stopping a few goals and Elphaba getting some more through. Before both of them knew it, they were called in for lunch.

"Pardon me, Your Majesty, but the mail has just arrived," a servant said as he came into the parlor, where the royal family was resting after lunch.

"Thank you," Alyena said as she took the mail.

The servant nodded and bowed before leaving. Alyena flipped through the letter and paused when she saw one from Munchkinland. "Elphaba, you have a letter from Nessarose Thropp."

"You got a letter from your sister," Fiyero said, giving the green girl a small, encouraging smile.

Elphaba stiffened. Her sister was writing to her? "Thank you," she said as she took the letter from the queen, but didn't open it.

"Fae," Fiyero probed gently. "Are you still mad at Nessa?"

"I… I don't know," Elphaba whispered, still staring at the letter. "I… I don't want to be."

"Why don't you open the letter and see what she said?"

Elphaba still stared at the letter. She played with the flap, but still didn't open it.

"Do you want to wait until later?"

Elphaba shrugged.

"Elphaba, you can go and open it in your room if you like," Alyena said, sensing that if the green girl wanted to open the letter, she wanted to do it alone. She didn't know why she was having such a hard time opening a letter from her sister, but knew that it was affecting her.

"Thank you," Elphaba said quietly before getting up and going back upstairs to her room. She closed the door behind her, taking a deep breath before looking at the letter in her hands. She slowly tore the envelope open and opened the folded piece of paper with her sister's neat cursive handwriting.

Dear Fabala, it read,

I hope you are having fun in the Vinkus. I hope that you are still not too mad at me and actually reading this letter. I know I will never be able to apologize enough to you and Fiyero for what I did, but I just want you to know that I'm really sorry. I was selfish and petty, but I was mostly scared. I feel awful about it. I really do miss you. It feels so different without you around. I hope you're alright and taking care of yourself. I'll see you when we get back to Shiz.

Love,

Nessa

Elphaba blinked and read the short letter again. She had to admit, most of her anger towards her sister had vanished, leaving her missing her sister instead. She read the letter once more. She did want to talk to her sister, but she didn't want to do it over a letter.

"You okay, Fae?" Fiyero asked as he knocked on the door and came in.

Elphaba turned. "Yeah."

"What did Nessa say?"

"She hopes I'm having fun and that she's sorry for what she did."

"Have you forgiven her yet?"

Elphaba was silent for a moment. "I don't know…"

"Fae, I know she really hurt you. She really hurt me, too, but she's your sister. And I don't want to come between the two of you."

"She came between the two of us."

"I know she did, and as upset and angry with her as I was, once I calmed down, I realized why she felt the way she felt."

"That's still no excuse."

"I know it's not. Here," he said as he gently took the letter from Elphaba and took her hands. "Why don't we stop worrying about that for now? You can decide what you want to do later on."

"Okay," Elphaba agreed, accepting a hug from the prince. She wanted to forgive her sister, she knew that much, she just wasn't sure her heart was ready to move on and trust her again.


NEXT. CHAPTER. EVERYONE! MWAHAHAHAHA! GET READY! WE'RE ALMOST THERE! *Wide smirk*

Also, I completely forgot that Sunday August 21 was Fanfiction Writers' Appreciation Day, a day where we take the time to thank Fanfiction authors for taking the time to give us stories that touch our hearts, make us laugh, cry, and want to throw our computers across our rooms. Reviews make great belated presents! *Sweet smile*