Fiyero leapt up the steps to his home in the Vinkus, happy to be home. Elphaba came up behind him slowly.
"What if they don't like me anymore because they can tell that I'm green?" asked Elphaba, holding onto Fiyero's arm.
"They'll still love you." Fiyero assured her confidently, "But not as much as I do......because that would just be creepy." Elphaba allowed herself a small shaky laugh at Fiyero's joke. He smiled at her.
"My dad my might be a little surprised about your skin because Mom's got him convinced he's got trouble with his eyes. She told him she saw love in my eyes every time I looked at you. He said my eyes were still blue and that he couldn't tell the difference, so she told him they were pink and now he's pretty freaked out." Fiyero chuckled; his Mom was always playing jokes on his father. Fiyero knocked on the great oak doors of the castle. The great doors swung open to reveal the doorman, Khol.
"Oh, prince Fiyero, what a pleasant surprise!" said Khol, jumping at the sight of Fiyero, he jumped even higher when he saw Elphaba. Elphaba rolled her eyes and Khol quickly straightened up, realizing he must have offended the girl.
"Khol! Who's at the door?" Fiyero heard his mother ask loudly from the grand steps in the entrance hall foyer.
"It's us!" Fiyero called. He stepped inside, pulling Elphaba with him.
"Oh Fiyero dearest!" Meredith cried, sounding like Galinda, but her tone was maternal no girly. Meredith rushed forward and wrapped Fiyero in a hug then turned and gave Elphaba a hug, not even noticing her skin color. Elphaba actually somewhat hugged Meredith back, relieved that she wasn't being resented for her verdigris. Then Rolfe rounded the corner. He stared at Elphaba for a long time and it was eerily quiet. He blinked several times.
"Sweet Oz! There actually is something wrong with my eyes!" Rolfe exclaimed, "She's green!"
"Yes, I am green." Elphaba said, surprised at the calmness in her voice.
"Oh my eyes, my eyes, there's something wrong with me!" Rolfe continued, raving about, then as though just hearing Elphaba's words, he turned to her, "Wait, you really are green?" he asked.
"Yes, green as sin." said Elphaba.
"Green as emeralds." Fiyero said sternly, correcting Elphaba's statement.
"Oh, well at least I know my eyes are perfectly fine." said Rolfe, looking at his wife pointedly. Meredith laughed.
"Oooh, you should've seen your face! You are oh so easy to trick." Meredith cackled.
"Gee, that makes me feel great." said Rolfe gruffly, stuffing his hands in his pockets.
"Honey, it's ok, I still love you." Meredith laughed and patted Rolfe's shoulder assuredly. Rolfe looked up and smiled. Fiyero's parents reminded Elphaba of young school children, light hearted and always teasing each other and playing jokes on each other, but good naturedly. The couple turned back to the other couple standing before them.
"And to what do we owe this lovely pleasure?" asked Meredith.
"Well..." Fiyero wondered what to say, he didn't think Elphaba would be very supportive of him spilling the whole story out, "um....we really needed to get out of Shiz..." he began. At his parents shocked and disapproving looks he quickly continued, "We're not dropping out! We'll only be here for about a week or two...but you know, at Shiz the other students were really, um..." Elphaba looked down at her shoes. Meredith noticed how uncomfortable they seemed. She'd get Fiyero to explain later.
"It's alright." she said softly, "You can stay as long as you wish." she sent her son a look that said 'tell-me-later'. Fiyero nodded slightly as Elphaba took in a relieved breath, not noticing the exchange.
"Why don't you two go and get settled in the extra rooms upstairs." said Meredith.
"Alright," said Fiyero, "C'mon Elphaba." he led Elphaba up a few flights of spiraling stairs until they reached a tower where there were two separate bed rooms. He secretly wanted to share a bedroom with Elphaba, but his parents would disapprove and Elphaba probably wouldn't be all too comfortable with that.
Once they got situated in their rooms, Fiyero offered to show Elphaba around the castle. He introduced her to some of the people that worked there. They were all very polite about her skin color and ignored it. They were walking down one of the corridors when they came across a door with a large white sign taped to it. It read in big colorful bold letter, 'Prince Fiyero's room, no gurls alowd' and then beneath that, 'do not entar...u've bin warnd'. Below the words was a picture of a skull and crossbones, it looked more like a mutant squirrel with drumsticks. Fiyero chuckled at the sign. That had been his bedroom when he was about, what five, six? He obviously couldn't spell back then and he really couldn't draw. He was surprised no one had taken the sign down when he'd moved into a bigger room. Fiyero went to the door and was about to open it when Elphaba stopped him.
"I wouldn't enter if I were you." she said, an amused light in her eyes.
"I think I'll be fine." Fiyero smiled.
"Alright." Elphaba held her hands up in surrender, then she moved to whisper in his ear, "But you've been warned." Fiyero laughed and swung the door open. Childhood memories floated to him through the breeze that came through the open window. He smiled at the small room. The walls were covered in childhood drawings and posters. Elphaba smiled as she looked around the room.
"You were really into these 'Nu-clear Ozheroes' ." she said glancing at the many posters of stupid looking cartoon characters in leotards and tights that made them look oh so manly, not.
"Hey, don't insult Captain Noodles or his Funky Poodle." Fiyero said, feigning offence. Elphaba laughed. She saw a picture of Fiyero on the small child size desk when he had been a little boy. She picked up the picture.
"Oh you were so cute, you and your little Captain Noodles. Aw." she said gazing at the little boy in the picture. He was laughing and had a Captain Noodles action figure in his tiny hand.
"Were so cute?" Fiyero questioned, "Are you saying I'm not anymore?" he joked.
"Yeah, what happened?" Elphaba laughed, setting the photograph down.
"Ha ha." Fiyero said sarcastically, "I don't suppose you've got any childhood pictures I could mock you with."
"Nope," Elphaba shook her head and responded good-naturedly, "Nobody took pictures of freaky children like me."
"Oh, surely there's at least one." said Fiyero, snaking his arms around her thin waist and pulling her up against him.
"Perhaps," said Elphaba, smoothing her hands across his chest, playing with the soft white fabric, oh Fiyero looked good in white, anyway, "Nessa got a camera for her birthday one year when we were young and she just couldn't seem to stop taking pictures, even of me." Elphaba laughed, remembering her childhood, or the part that was actually happy.
"Remind me to talk to Nessa when we get back." Fiyero said, "I want to see those."
"You really don't." said Elphaba, laughing. Fiyero smiled and leaned down and kissed her she quickly responded and Fiyero had to stop before he got carried away.
"Want to see the library?" he asked.
"A library?!" Elphaba asked, thrilled.
"Yes, it's this big room with shelves. And on the shelves, they have this things called books..." Fiyero joked. Elphaba laughed.
"I know what a library is dummy." she said.
"Of course you do." Fiyero laughed and he lead her out of his old room and up a flight of stairs. He stopped in front of giant white doors with gold frames. He swung the doors open dramatically and pulled her inside. The library was amazing and it took Elphaba's breath away. It wasn't like the dark musty library at Shiz that always smelt of burning wax and had the feeling of someone's life being sucked from them. This library was different. There were humongous white framed rounded windows that reached up to the ceiling. There were two levels to the library, spiraled staircases leading to the next levels. Ladders on wheels were lined up against a few of the book shelves of colorful books that reached up to the ceiling. The room was circle and the book shelves lined the walls, while in the center was a lovely reading area with comfortable looking couches and love seat and chairs and a coffee table and such. Sunlight streamed in through the windows and filled the room making everything seem so fresh and lively even though it was a library. But of course, to Elphaba, libraries were always lively, but that was just Elphaba.
"Oz." Elphaba murmured as she spun in a slow circle looking at the amazing library.
"I didn't know if this was really your type of place." said Fiyero, "I mean, c'mon it's a library." Fiyero said sarcastically.
"It's heaven." Elphaba replied, then she quickly added, "Well, you know, if you believe in that sort of thing." Fiyero chuckled.
"You are just determined to believe in no religion what-so-ever."
"That's right." said Elphaba. She walked over to one of the giant shelves of books and ran her fingers across the perfectly crafted spines with gold titles and bright colors and thousands of pages. Her fingers danced across the spines, then stopped on a wide scarlet book and she pulled it carefully from its place.
"Oh, it's my favorite book." she said, looking at the cover. Fiyero walked over and took the book from her hands.
"The dictionary?" he asked, arching an eyebrow.
"Yes, it's full of so many wonderful, wonderful, words." Elphaba sighed taking the book out of his hands and placing it back in its place on the shelf.
"You know, for some things, even words fail." said Fiyero, looking into her eyes.
"Words never fail." said Elphaba softly. She'd used words her whole life, words expressed everything, words were wonderful shields, "You can express hate with words, without making physical contact. You can express sorrow with words without just crying. You can express happiness with words without laughing or smiling. You can express---"
"Love?" Fiyero asked.
"Yes..." Elphaba whispered. Fiyero leaned down and kissed her softly on the lips, eliciting sparks in his body. He did not get carried away this time. He kept the kiss light, but its passion was deeper than ever before. When they broke apart, Fiyero looked at her eyes which were shimmering in the light.
"I could never describe that with mere words." said Fiyero, "I could never describe you with mere words. I could never express my love for you with only words. You would never know how much I really loved you with only words."
"I would know. If you chose the right words, I would know. If you spoke them sincerely, I know I would know..." Elphaba said softly, would she really know?, "Fiyero, I've been using words my whole life. When I'm sad, you can tell, even when I don't cry. Can't you?"
"Elphaba, you take advantage of words," Fiyero said, smiling sadly, "You're good at spinning words and twisting phrases to make the emotion behind the words come out differently. But when you cry, I can tell, I can tell how sad you are or how much something hurts. You can keep dry eyes and say you're fine and maybe I'll never know. Words are words."
"Words are powerful things Fiyero." said Elphaba.
"So is a kiss." said Fiyero, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, "So are tears." They stood like that in a comfortable silence in each other's arms, gazing into the other's eyes.
"Sir," Fiyero looked up to see Khol standing in the door way, looking reluctant to interrupt them.
"Yes?"
"The King and Queen told me to tell you that dinner is ready."