1"Imbecilic piece of Vinkus ox shit!"

Morrible's words echoed around the throne room as she flung the partial Grimmerie away from her.

"It's useless. Absolutely useless!"

She ranted as she paced. If she could have seen herself she would have realized she looked like a lunatic. There were dark circles under her eyes, her hair was an absolute mess from her pulling it in frustration and she kept talking to herself. It was a far cry from the normally poised image she tried to present.

"All that time spent in Southstairs studying languages and for what? So I could spend an eternity trying to decipher symbols that look like gibberishness?!"

She glared at the book, which had landed a short distance from the fireplace.

"That's it… I'll burn it!" She rushed over to the huge stone edifice. "Then Thropp won't have it either!"

Her blood boiled at the thought of the girl having the book in the first place. She was a child. Still so wet behind the ears she should have been hiding behind her mother's skirts to avoid the big bad world. How was it fair that someone so inexperienced could read the book when a seasoned professor of sorcery like herself couldn't? Or anyone else in the magical world for that matter.

No, that wasn't quite true. The other one could probably read it too. If they were sisters, as she suspected, it only made sense. Children of the Wizard… children of both worlds who could do electrifying magic without so much as an hour spent practicing and could read the ancient text to boot. Everything came so easily for them.

It made her want to hunt them down and torture them both for good measure. Of course they were probably still recovering from her attack the day before, if they survived it at all.

The thought brought a smile to her face. Killing them would be the ultimate vindication. After all, they came to Oz and stole her thunder. At least Thropp had. And as far as she was concerned the other one was guilty by association. Yes, ridding the world of two such miscreants was a job she was more than willing to undertake.

"Excuse us."

Her head snapped up when she heard the voice. She was shocked to find the Merchants Council standing in the doorway to the room.

"What do you want?" Her voice cut the air like a knife.

"We, uh…" The spokesman hesitated as he took in her appearance. "We need to speak to you."

"Now really isn't a good time."

"Now is the only time." One of the other councilmen declared from the back of the group.

"Uh…" The spokesman swallowed hard, realizing the other man must not have been able to see her or he wouldn't have been so quick to demand her time. "Maybe we should come back later."

"Nonsense." The same man spoke again as he shoved his way through the crowd. "We have something to say and we're going to be…" His eyes almost bugged out of his head when he saw her. "Heard." The last word came out in a squeaky voice.

She grinned at their nervousness, resisting the urge to tell them to bow before her to see if they would actually do it. That would be childish. And she had too much power to use it for such things. That's what got her poor, misguided Nevin in enough trouble for her to put him out of his misery. She had her eyes on a much bigger reward.

The total domination of Oz.

"Maybe he's right." The second man swallowed hard as he spoke. "We should come back when…"

"No." Her voice boomed around the room again. "You said you had something to say, so say it."

"It's, uh…" The original spokesman looked like he was about to wet himself. "It's really not that important."

"Obviously it is or you wouldn't have come all this way." Morrible eyed him. "And stop saying 'uh.' It makes you sound like an uneducated dolt."

"That's enough." Another man spoke up as he made his way to the front of the group. "You may intimidate them, but you won't intimidate me." He was so full of himself he actually managed to keep his voice steady and expression neutral when he caught sight of her. "You have been ignoring our requests for an audience with you and we want to know why."

"Requests for an audience?" She frowned. "Why in Oz would you be requesting an audience? And why should I care? I'm in control now."

"But…"

"But nothing!" She cut him off. "I know you think you wield the real power here, but I have news for you. You don't. At least not any more. It made me sick to see the Wizard and my son both grovelize for your approval. I'll be damned if I'll do the same."

"But…"

"You're starting to sound like him." She nodded toward his counterpart. "Consider this your official termination as a governmental group." Morrible waved them away. "Now be gone."

"No!" The last man to step forward spoke again. "We have been in power for too long to let you…"

"Power?" Her voice was full of malice. "I'll show you power!"

A massive whirlwind erupted from her hands as she gestured toward them. It picked the group up, throwing them around inside its cone like rag dolls as it lifted them almost to the ceiling before suddenly disappearing again, leaving them to fall to the hard stone floor of the room.

Morrible looked around at them in disgust. "Any questions?" She smiled as one of them groaned. "I thought not."

The inspiration she had been looking for struck as her eyes fell on the Grimmerie again. She had the last chapters. What if there was information on how to make out the spells in the front of the book? The Wizard never let her have a proper look at the text. He showed her a page in the middle, asked her to read it and slammed it shut when she couldn't. After that he kept it under lock and key until Elphaba came to the Emerald City.

Why hadn't she thought of this sooner? All she had to do was find the other half of the book and all her problems would be solved. She already knew who had it. All she had to do was find her.

And when she did Glinda Upland wouldn't know what hit her.

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

Elphaba frowned as something touched her forehead. She tried to swat it away only to feel it brush against her cheek. That sensation had barely passed when she felt it again on her lips.

"What in Oz…" Her voice trailed off when she heard Glinda giggle. She opened her eyes to find the blond leaning over her with a mischievous grin on her face. "What are you doing?"

"Waking you up." Glinda placed another gentle kiss on her lips. "How are you feeling, Elphie?"

"Much better." She stretched. "It's amazing what a little sleep can do for you."

"Tell me about it. I was having the most wonderful dream." Pink lips met green again.

"Really?" Elphaba asked when they parted. "About what?"

Glinda ran her fingers through raven locks. "Us."

"Sounds interesting."

"You have no idea."

The corner of Elphaba's mouth turned up. "You woke me up to tell me that?"

"No. I was watching you sleep and thinking about how beautiful you are." Glinda kissed her yet again. "And I got hungry."

"Imagine that." Elphaba chuckled. "The infamous Upland appetite made an appearance." She started to sit up. "Let's go down to the kitchen. I'm sure Betak…"

"I don't think you understand." Glinda pushed her back down on the mattress. "I'm not talking about food."

Elphaba furrowed her brow. "Then what are you…" Her eyes suddenly lit up in understanding. "Glinda!"

"What?" The blonde pouted. "Being this close to you makes me think about what we did at the hot springs." She kissed her again. "And in the hot springs." And again. "And by the hot springs."

"So you're saying you're…" Elphaba's voice trailed off as she raised her eyebrows.

"Yes." Glinda nodded. "Very."

"And you woke me up to have your way with me?"

"Or you could have your way with me. Or we could have our way with each other. Or…"

Elphaba captured her lips. "I get the point."

Glinda quirked an eyebrow. "And?"

She pretended to swoon on the bed. "Have away."

Glinda giggled. "I knew there was a reason I adored you."

"I…" Elphaba swallowed hard as the blonde started nuzzling her neck.

"What was that?" Glinda breathed against her skin as she worked on the buttons of her shirt.

"Never mind."

"That's what I thought." She moved to her mouth for a scotching kiss.

"What are you doing here?!"

They both jumped when Betak's voice filled the house.

"What was that?"

"Betak." Elphaba frowned. "And she didn't sound very happy."

"Get out!"

"We better go see what's going on." Elphaba looked at her apologetically. "I'm sorry my love. But our luck hasn't exactly been the best lately."

"I know." Glinda sighed as she climbed off of her. "But you're going to have to start wearing something I can slip over your head or that zips in the back. We never seem to get very far when I have to mess with those buttons."

Elphaba smiled as she re-buttoned her shirt. "Sounds like a reason to go shopping."

"Yea!" All thoughts of being depressed disappeared when she thought about hitting the stores with her lover. "We'll have such a good time."

"I meant you, not me."

Glinda smacked her on the arm. "Meanie!"

Elphaba chuckled as she stood, offering Glinda her hand and pulling her to her feet so she could wrap her arms around her. "Will you settle for this?" She kissed her passionately. "And a promise that we'll pick up where we left off very, very soon."

"Maybe." Glinda walked her fingers up Elphie's arm seductively. "If you promise to reconsider shopping with me."

"We'll talk about that later too."

"We'll be doing something later but it won't be talking." She pecked her on the mouth. "Let's go before I start something else we can't finish." She gripped Elphaba's hand and led her out of the room.

"Calm down, Betak. You're going to stroke out."

Glinda frowned as they started down the stairs. "Was that Breena?"

"I think so." Elphaba quickened their pace.

"Are you taking her side?"

"There aren't any sides here."

"Of course there are. She showed up with the Wizard and Boq didn't she?"

They rounded the corner into the kitchen to find Breena pouring coffee in mugs and Betak standing in the middle of the room looking darts at the old woman sitting at the table.

"I was invited." The crone pointed at Breena. "I saw her outside and she asked me in."

"What?!" Betak gave Breena a look.

"She said she knew Mom."

Elphaba frowned. "What were you doing outside?"

"Well good morning to you too." Breena griped as she joined the woman at the table, giving her one of the mugs. "Don't worry about her." She nodded toward Betak. "Her bark is much worse than her bite."

"I'll show you what's worse than my bite." Betak continued to stare at her. "How could you invite her in?"

"And while you're at it you can answer my question too." Elphaba went to stand next to Betak. "What are you doing out of bed let alone outside?"

"Hi Glinda." Breena ignored the two of them. "Would you like some coffee? I'll be glad to get it for you."

Glinda shook her head, not wanting to get involved.

"Are you sure?" She made a show of taking a drink from her cup. "I make a mean pot of java." She looked at the old woman. "It's good, isn't it?"

"Surprisingly so." The woman nodded. "I'm usually more of a tea person."

Glinda continued to shake her head, trying her best not to smile. It was obvious Breena was feeling better and having fun giving Betak and Elphie a hard time.

"How about some juice then? Or milk?"

"Breena!" Betak's voice was stern.

"Don't Breena me. You're angry because I asked..." She trailed off, looking at the old lady.

"Yackle." She supplied.

"Because I asked Yackle in for a cup of coffee. She said she knew Mom and I naturally wanted to find out how." Breena switched her attention to Elphaba. "And to answer you question, I was outside taking a walk to get some fresh air. I overdid it a little yesterday but sleeping like a rock all night did the trick." She sighed when she saw the look of doubt on Elphaba's face. "If you don't believe me, ask Addena. She played doctor…"

"Who played doctor and why wasn't I invited?" Addena interrupted her as she walked into the room, too caught up in seeing her sister to notice the blush that crept into Breena's cheeks. "Good morning you two." She gave Glinda a hug. "How are you feeling Elphaba?"

"Fine." Elphaba nodded toward Breena. "Is she really all right?"

Addena shrugged. "She was a lot better when I examined her this morning." She grinned at Breena. "Now I get it… played doctor. I thought you meant something else."

"See." Breena fought to keep from blushing even harder.

"Well enough to take a walk?" Betak asked.

"I didn't say anything about a walk." Addena gave Breena a look.

Breena sighed. "I'm perfectly fine."

"She's a healer." Yackle spoke up. "If she says she's fine, she's fine."

"Thank you." Breena did a double take. "Wait a minute, how did you know I was a healer?"

"Your mother came to see me about you once."

"That's it!" Betak snapped her fingers. "I knew I recognized the name Yackle. You're one of those crack pots Leandra consulted when Breena was a child."

"I'm no crack pot." Yackle defended herself.

Betak frowned. "According to Leandra you were."

"That's because she didn't want to hear what I had to say." Yackle took another drink of coffee. "It scared her."

"Scared her?" Elphaba frowned.

Yackle nodded. "It's not easy for a parent to hear that their child is different."

Breena shook her head. "My powers never scared Mom. As a matter of fact she was fascinated with them."

"She certainly was." Betak agreed. "That's why she said this one was a crack pot." She gestured toward Yackle.

"I don't care what she told you. She was terrified by what you could do and what it meant."

Addena looked at Glinda. "Is she making any sense to you?"

"She's not to me." Breena frowned. "I never scared my mother."

"Not you, girlie. Your powers." Yackle pointed out. "Think about it. You can heal yourself and others of just about any injury and perform magic like it's the most normal thing in the world."

Breena's frown deepened. "And?"

"That's more than enough to upset someone. Especially if they were smart like your mother and realized what it meant for you."

"What are you talking about?" Elphaba had moved so she was behind Breena, wanting to lend her support.

"No one ever cared enough about you as a child to be scared, did they?"

"Hey!" Glinda shot her a look. "That was completely uncalled for!"

"I was just speaking the truth." Yackle didn't seem phased by her anger. "She's a feisty one, isn't she?"

"Can we get back on track here?" Breena interjected.

Yackle gave her a look. "Where does your magic come from?"

"What do you mean where does it come from?" Elphaba was getting agitated. "It comes from us."

"Does is?" The old woman questioned.

"Yes." Breena growled, obviously angry.

Elphaba put her hand on her sister's shoulder to center them both. "Stop being so cryptic and spit out whatever it is you're trying to say."

"Your power is like a separate entity. You both can draw on it, but it can draw on you as well."

Glinda furrowed her brow. "What does that mean?"

"I think she means the power may be a part of them, but goes beyond them as well." Addena tried to explain.

"Exactly." Yackle pointed at her. "It's a combination of two worlds. A creation of the time the Wizard spent with their mothers. And now that it's alive so to speak, it will do anything to remain."

Breena swallowed hard. "Even make me heal Elphaba when I normally wouldn't have."

"Make you?" Betak frowned. "Have your powers been acting up."

"I'm not sure what you'd call it." Breena answered. "Elly and I were both hurt when Morrible attacked us at Upland Manor. We wouldn't have stood a chance if she decided to come back to finish what she started."

"Not acting up, acting out." Yackle nodded. "It was insuring its own survival."

"How is that possible?" Betak was clearly confused.

"How is any of what they do possible?"

"I never thought of it that way." Glinda gave Elphie a concerned look.

"Is it dangerous?" Addena was fascinated. "Can it harm them?"

"No one can be sure, but I don't think so. Without them it ceases to exist at all. But I can tell you this..." Yackle looked between the two sisters. "By working together you can achieve anything."

"Hey guys." Lion spoke as he and Fiyero came into the room. "How are all of you beautiful women this..." His voice trailed off when he saw Yackle. "How are all of the women I've been formally introduced to this morning?"

"We're getting what I think is a line of bull." Betak sneered at Yackle.

"They can prove it." Yackle accepted the challenge. "What's the biggest spell either of you has cast?"

"That's easy." Elphaba looked at Fiyero.

Breena nodded. "Elly turning a certain Winkie prince into a scarecrow."

"Winkie prince?" Addena frowned. "Are you saying he's Fiyero?" She jerked her thumb toward the scarecrow. "You're Fiyero?"

"That would be him." Lion clapped him on the shoulder.

"Fiyero Tiggular." He offered her a straw stuffed hand. "We haven't met."

"Where are my manors?" Glinda shook her head. "Fiyero, this is my sister, Addena. Addena, this is Fiyero."

"Wow." Addena started at him for a moment before looking at Elphaba. "I can't believe you transformed him into a scarecrow."

"Neither can I." Elphaba sounded sad.

"You saved my life, Fae." Fiyero tried to make her feel better.

"Reverse the spell."

"What?!" Betak looked at Yackle like she had sprouted a second head. "Everyone knows you can't do that."

"Poppycock." Yackle waved her away.

"I don't like poppies." Lion scowled.

"I already told you, together they can do anything. Including the reversal of a spell."

"But that spell came from the Grimmerie." Elphaba stopped her from saying more. "And we only have half the book right now."

"Half the book?!" Betak, Fiyero and Lion spoke at the same time.

"That's not important right now." Breena shushed them. "Well I guess it could be kind of important to Fiyero." She sighed. "Just let Yackle finish!"

"I can't remember what part of the book the spell was in. Or even if I read it exactly as it was written." Elphaba was frustrated. "I wasn't in the best frame of mind when I cast it."

"Tell me the words you spoke aren't ingrained in your mind and we'll have a problem." Yackle looked at her expectantly.

"Of course they are." Elphaba was quick to answer. "But..."

"No buts. Share them with your sister and together you can change him back into a man."

Breena looked over her shoulder at Elphaba. "What do you think sis?" She half grinned at the new nickname. "Do you think we should give it a try?"

"I..." Elphaba stammered. "I don't know."

"What can it hurt?" Yackle tried to convince her. "He's already a scarecrow."

"That's true." Fiyero nodded. "If you want my approval to give it a try, you have it." He looked down at his flimsy legs. "It would be nice to be able to walk normally again."

Elphaba met Breena's gaze. "Do you really think we can do it?"

Breena shrugged. "We'll never know if we don't try."

"All right."

"That a girl!" Yackle cackled.

Elphaba swallowed hard as everyone else started talking at once, wondering if she made the right decision.