Sorry this chapter is a day late, everyone! A mixture of this not being finished, doing laundry, and being tired overall stopped me from posting. But I'm back now!

Zenaida (Guest): You're joining the Nia Witch Hunt? Okay. Have fun.

AnOreoForElphie: No, you cannot sacrifice Nessa to save Elphaba. We don't do human sacrifices at the Temple of Nia. We only accept offerings of Fiyeraba fluff, virtual sweets and goodies, and reviews.

Ultimate Queen of Cliffies: That's quite a list you gave me.

Emerald Minded Fictionist: Yes, at least he gave him the letter.


Nessa watched over her sister as she slept. She kept a vigil over her since the doctor had returned. He was currently with their father in his study, talking about what they should do to make Elphaba comfortable. She tore her gaze away from her sister when she heard birds chirping outside. She wheeled over to the window and smiled at the sight of a mother bird feeding her babies.

"N-Nessa…"

The younger girl turned around and saw her sister slowly beginning to wake up. She quickly wheeled back over to her and took her hand.

"W-Wa… Water…"

Nessa helped her sister sit up and reached over to grab the glass of water from the nightstand. She held the glass up to her sister's lips and helped her take a few sips of the cold water.

"There," Nessa said when Elphaba pulled away, signaling that she had enough. "Better?"

Elphaba nodded faintly as her sister helped her lay back down. She felt Nessa slip her hand into hers and smiled faintly. The last thing she remembered was her sister whispering, "I love you, Fabala," before falling asleep.

Nessa smiled when her sister gave her hand a very faint squeeze, a signal that she had heard her. The brunette continued to sit with her sister for the next few hours, alternating between reading a book and glancing up at the green girl. She heard her mutter things in her sleep and waited for her father and the doctor to return. She soon heard their voices outside the room and looked down at her sister once more.

"Nessa, were you up here the entire time?" Frex asked as he entered with the doctor behind him.

The brunette nodded. "Yes."

"How long has Elphaba been asleep?" the doctor asked, slowly approaching the green girl.

"She only woke up once, and she wanted water," Nessa reported. "She's also been muttering things in her sleep."

"What things?" Frex asked.

"Want… go… Vinkus," Elphaba slurred sleepily, only a quarter-conscious of what was going on around her.

"Like that," Nessa answered. "She wants to see Fiyero again… for his birthday."

"Fiyero… Yero…" Elphaba muttered.

"A trip to the Vinkus would be a lot," the doctor said.

"And she's been before," Frex added.

"But she wants to see Fiyero again, Father," Nessa said.

"Nessa, it would be too much for her," Frex said.

"But this is what she wants. She'll never get a chance like this again. Please," Nessa begged. The way she was pleading her sister's case, no one would have ever guessed that she had tried to break the two of them up.

"Well…" the doctor mused for a bit. "I suppose one last trip wouldn't hurt. But only for a few days; three to four at most."

"I won't be able to take off for that long," Frex said. "I have important meetings that cannot be rescheduled or cancelled or…"

"I can go with her, Father," Nessa interjected.

"Nessa…"

"I'll make sure she takes her medicine and rests and…"

"As long as Elphaba takes her medicine, she should be fine," the doctor said. "And I can give her something extra to take to get her through the trip."

The brunette smiled as she watched her father and the doctor walk out of the room to discuss it more. She turned back to her sister and smiled, taking her hand. "It's okay, Fabala. You're going to the Vinkus to see Fiyero."

"Yero…" Elphaba slurred in a whisper.

"Yes, Fabala. You're going to see Fiyero for his birthday," Nessa nodded, leaning over and placing a gentle kiss on her sister's forehead.

Three days later, Elphaba sat in the foyer, watching as servants brought her and her sister's belonging to the carriage. She smiled to herself, barely able to contain her excitement of seeing her boyfriend again. She was feeling stronger, but knew she still wouldn't last her very long, just long enough to get through the trip.

"Fabala."

Elphaba turned and saw her father walking over to her. Smiling, she stood as he wrapped his arms around her.

"Are you sure this is what you want?"

"I'm sure, Father," the green girl nodded. "Thank you."

Frex nodded and slowly released his daughter. "Please be careful, Fabala. Remember to take your medicine and rest and…"

"I will, Father," Elphaba interrupted lightly.

Frex looked at her and sighed, but nodded. "Have a safe trip."

"Thank you," Elphaba said as she wrapped her arms around her father. "I love you, Father."

"I love you, too, Fabala," the governor said, trying to hold back tears. He offered his arm to her and the two of them walked to the waiting carriage, where Nessa was waiting.

After saying goodbye to her father, the wheelchair bound girl was helped into the carriage, followed by her sister. Once both girls were inside, Frex nodded to the driver and they took off. The governor waved to his daughters until the carriage was out of sight. Sighing, he went back inside and went into his study, closing the door behind him.

It was clear that Nessa wanted to talk to her sister, but knew that if she opened her mouth, she would end up mentioning something about her illness and her sister would begin to close off.

"Nessie?"

"Hmm?" Nessa blinked.

"Are you alright?"

"Of course. Why are you –"

"You were staring at me."

Nessa didn't even realize she was staring at her sister. "Oh. Sorry."

"Did you want to tell me something?"

"Nothing that I haven't told you before."

The two sisters were silent for a moment, none of them knowing what to do or say.

"Tell me about the Vinkus again. And the Cherry Blossom Festival," Nessa finally said, as if reacting on an impulse.

The green girl smiled and recounted the beauty of the Vinkus to her sister. Nessa smiled as she listened to her sister. It was very rare that the two sisters got to share a normal conversation, and it clearly made both of them very happy.

"Will there be cherry blossoms?" Nessa asked.

"I don't think so. Fiyero said that they only bloom for one week in May."

"Oh." The brunette sounded disappointed.

"Nessa, I'm sorry I didn't –" Elphaba started.

"No, it's okay, Fabala. I understand," Nessa stopped her before she could finish.

Elphaba didn't look convinced, but Nessa quickly changed the subject to Fiyero's birthday and meeting the royal family. She admitted her nerves to the green girl, but Elphaba reassured her that everyone was very nice and would welcome the wheelchair bound girl just like they did with her.


Fiyero sighed as he walked the halls of the castle. Galinda would be arriving any moment, and though he was very excited to see the blonde again, his mind wouldn't stop focusing on Elphaba. As much as he wanted her to come again, he knew her health came first. And he didn't want her to put her health on the line (even more than it already was) to come to the Vinkus again.

Galinda arrived within the hour and Fiyero happily greeted her. He wouldn't allow his feelings to mess up Galinda's trip. She deserved to have a nice time.

"Yero," Amalie called, walking into the parlor where the prince and Galinda were sitting and talking over tea and cookies.

"Yes?" the prince asked, looking up at his mother.

"I think there's something you should see," the queen smiled, beckoning her son and Galinda.

"What is it?" Fiyero asked as his mother led them to the front door.

Amalie just smiled and opened the door, allowing Fiyero and Galinda to peak outside. Both of their faces displayed the shock and surprise when they saw who was at the foot of the stairs.

"Fae," Fiyero whispered, stepping outside.

Elphaba was looking around, taking in the royal grounds as her sister got settled in her chair. She looked up and her eyes locked with Fiyero's. The smile on her face widened and she waved to him. Fiyero let out a laugh as he ran down the steps to the carriage. He happily wrapped his arms around his girlfriend and held her close, not even bothering to stop his tears from flowing.

"Fae," the prince whispered, his voice muffled since his face was buried in her hair.

"Hi, Yero," the green girl smiled, tightly returning the hug.

"Oh, Fae."

"It's okay, Yero. I'm here."

The prince gently pulled away and his eyes scanned his girlfriend. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," Elphaba said, really not wanting to discuss how limited her time was. Her eyes looked past the prince's shoulder and she saw her best friend standing behind her. Her mouth was still slightly agape from shock, but she was clearly overjoyed to see her best friend. "Hey, Glin," she said, gently pushing away from Fiyero to hug the blonde.

"Hi, Elphie," Galinda said, wrapping her arms around her friend. "I've missed you so much."

"I've missed you, too, Glin."

"What are you doing here?" Fiyero asked. "Not that I'm not happy to see you. I am, but I thought you weren't going to be able to make it. At least, that's what you said in your letter… it was your letter, right?"

Elphaba laughed softly. "Yes, that was my letter. And I though I wouldn't be able to make it, either, but I couldn't miss your birthday, Yero."

"But… how…"

"The doctor gave me a special potion that would give me enough strength to get through this visit."

"So… that's means…"

Elphaba cut him off with a soft kiss. "We can talk about that later."

Fiyero got the message and nodded, wrapping his arms around his girlfriend as he helped her up the stairs. When they were halfway up, Fiyero noticed that Elphaba was starting to get breathless and stopped to lift her into his arms.

"Yero!" Elphaba gasped, glaring up at the prince.

The look on his face told Elphaba that he was serious and she sighed, relenting to being carried up the rest of the stairs. Navon and Raal were waiting in the foyer for everyone to come back. The two men were very happy to see Elphaba again, and greeted her like she was an old family member. The green girl noticed that Navon looked tired and sad, and Raal didn't look much better, and she quickly deduced that it was probably from Alyena's death. They tried their best to hide it, but they couldn't fool the queen-of-hiding-true-feelings.

"We're so glad you could come back, Elphaba," Raal smiled at the green girl, giving her a gentle hug.

"Thank you," Elphaba smiled, accepting a hug from Navon before introducing her sister.

The brunette bowed her head slightly (since she couldn't curtsey), and the royals warmly welcomed her. Nessa looked up at her sister and smiled, and the green girl immediately smiled back.

Later that evening, after dinner, Elphaba and Fiyero were curled up on the couch, snuggling in each other's arms. Elphaba was curled against the prince's chest, her ear pressed against his heart. Fiyero's chin rested comfortably on top of the green girl's head.

"Fae?"

"Hmm?"

"I need to ask you something."

Judging by his tone, Elphaba could tell that he was serious. "What is it?"

"How long do you have?"

Elphaba blinked at the blunt question and looked up at the prince. "I…"

"Elphaba, just tell me. Please."

"Six weeks," Elphaba said, just above a whisper. "Or, well, it's probably around five weeks by now."

"I have something I want to show you."

"What is it?"

The prince gently shifted so he could stand and helped Elphaba to her feet. "We're going to the library."

"You know how to get there?" Elphaba smirked.

"Ha ha, very funny," the Vinkun said, rolling his eyes. The prince led her down the corridor and up a flight of stairs, which Elphaba assured him that she could walk up by herself, even though they had to take a ten-minute break once they reached the top for her to catch her breath.

"Why are we in the library?" Elphaba asked when Fiyero opened and held the door for her.

"I found something that I think will interest you."

"What is it?"

They walked to the back of the library where Fiyero scanned the bottom shelf and pulled out a book.

"Legends of the Vinkus?" Elphaba read.

Fiyero nodded and opened to the middle of the book before handing it over to the green girl.

"It's a legend about a wizard," Elphaba said as Fiyero guided her to a seat.

Fiyero nodded as they both sat down on a sofa.

"It says here that there's an old wizard that lives in the Maialian Mountains that will grant you one wish, if you answer his riddle. What's his riddle?" Elphaba asked.

"I don't know. The wizard swears them to secrecy. If they tell the answer to the riddle to anyone, they will be cursed for the rest of their lives. But I know this; it's a very hard riddle. And you only get one shot to guess correctly. If you get it wrong, he sends you away."

Elphaba blinked. "But why are you showing this to me?"

"Fae, don't you see? This is your ticket to living. The wizard can heal you."

"Yero, this is just a legend. And who knows if this wizard is still alive."

"Look at this. The first recorded encounter was six hundred years ago, with the most recent one being ninety-seven years ago. If he's survived this long, I'm pretty sure he's still alive."

"And he's up in the mountains. That's at least a day's journey from here, if not longer."

"But it can't hurt to try," Fiyero said as he gripped her hands. "You could be cured. You wouldn't have to worry about your illness anymore. You could stay here… with me."

Elphaba looked into her boyfriend's eyes and saw how optimistic he was. He truly believed that it would work. But she didn't want to get her hopes up.

"You could be cured," Fiyero repeated, squeezing her hands.

"I… could be cured…" Elphaba echoed, more to herself than to Fiyero.


Two more chapters, everyone!

And now, I believe Miss Ultimate Queen of Cliffies owes me a few things.