-:-December-:-
In the month since her initial visit to the Filibuster, Elphaba's lot in life had drastically changed. Where she was once able to lurk about in the shadows and avoid public eye, she was suddenly thrust into a management position where she had to deal with all sorts of people. These people ranged from the customers to her staff, to the drunks who needed occasionally to be ejected from the bar. The green girl found none of these people particularly acceptable, nor the fact that so many of them now looked at her like something of a hero for running such a fine place.
The green girl but preferred the hours before the establishment opened every night. She was, for the most part, by herself making sure everything was in order. It was about the only time of day when she wasn't constantly bombarded by people. Currently, she stood behind the bar polishing glasses that were already clean enough to catch your reflection in. Mindless tasks like these gave Elphaba the chance to day-dream about what she'd prefer to be doing, while still giving off the appearance of keeping busy. Every once and again her thoughts would be side-tracked by the noise of another employee coming in, or someone backstage shuffling about, but mostly this was her alone time.
"Elphie!"
The aforementioned shuddered as her silence was broken by the much more intrusive sound of a soprano's voice. Her teeth grated momentarily as she placed down the glass she'd been working on and picked up another, dark eyes sliding over to glare at the person who spoke to her, "What're you doing here?"
Glinda huffed and raised a hand to her chest in insult at the comment. "I work here Miss Elphaba, and I'd very much like it if you'd bother to remember that fact. You've been overseeing here for nearly a month now and you still don't know you're staff. Anyhow I'm just checking with the show plans for tonight. . ."
Elphaba nodded dimly, appearing to tune out the other girl, instead she seemed to take interest in watching the stage across from the bar, where nothing was happening. Her hands still polished the glass deftly, every once in a while her head would remind her to nod for the sake of the blonde chattering next to her.
"Miss Elphaba I swear, you're not even listening are you? I can tell when you start day dreaming you know," The blonde chastised the taller woman, popping her head into the view of brown eyes once more. In turn Elphaba blinked back into reality and looked down at the singer.
"Oh I'm sorry, why are you still here?"
"I still work here, ugh you're impossible!" Glinda threw her arms up in the air as she stormed her way back towards the stage.
Elphaba smirked in the blonde's wake. The girl had been hanging around ever since they'd first met. That could be due to the fact that, as Glinda had asserted, she worked here. However that didn't account for following the green girl nearly everywhere else, or how she lingered about even when she was off duty. The green girl had to admit, that even though Glinda still got on her nerves, the little blonde was by far her favorite out of all the people who harassed her on a daily basis.
-:-:-
"Elphie?"
The green girl grunted briefly in response, not raising her head form her current project. She was busy tightening the leg on one of the tables near the stage, the night before a customer had complained that it wobbled so much it had spilled his drink. As much as Elphaba thought that was an over-exaggeration, she didn't want to deal with another drunk man yelling at her anytime soon. Glinda sat in a chair nearby, leaning it dangerously back on two legs as she thought. Her eyes seemed to return from some far off land as they focused on the working girl.
"Do you know what day it is?" The blonde asked simply.
Elphaba looked up for less than a second before looking back down at the joint holding the leg to the table. For some reason no matter what she did the leg still wobbled. With a sigh she took off her jacket and set it on the chair closest to her before rolling up her sleeves and getting back to work, "It's the fourteenth, and I highly recommend that you go purchase a calendar Miss Glinda."
Glinda inhaled sharply, her brows creasing downward at the insult, although she voiced no audible complaint. "Precisely Miss Elphaba, it's the fourteenth. The Fourteenth of December."
Elphaba glanced out of the corner of her eye at the blonde, holding back a snicker at the girl's offense. With a brief shake of her head she went back to the table, wiping the back of one hand across her forehead before removing the leg from the table altogether to get a better look at how it joined to the table. Glinda sighed heavily at the realization that Elphaba was going to ignore her entirely.
"Elphie, it's almost Lurlinemas! For cryin' out loud, surely you knew that!" The blonde half-yelled in exasperation. Elphaba rolled her eyes and went about reconnecting the leg to the table. Glinda crossed her arms across her chest and pouted, "I was just wondering if you had any plans for the place."
The only noise for a few moments was that of the table's screws being tightened. Glinda only allowed the quiet to go on so long because she thought the green girl might honestly be thinking of plans.
"I've got it!"
Glinda sat up expectantly at the words, her face beaming. Elphaba stood up straight from where she'd been knelt over the table and looked over at the blonde proudly. "See?" the green girl continued, raised a hand to tug on the table's leg, "It doesn't wiggle anymore!"
The blonde's entire form seemed to sink, her expression lying flat as blue eyes stared at Elphaba, clearly not amused. With a dejected sigh the blonde stood, straightening her dress, "Well that's just copacetic1 boss."
Elphaba paid no mind to the blonde as she moved off to join her fellow performers behind the stage. It was nearly opening time and everyone needed to be getting ready for the crowds. With another satisfactory nod, the green girl righted the table and placed some chairs around it before going about her other duties.
-:-:-
Elphaba's jaw nearly hit the floor when she walked into the Filibuster on December Twenty-fourth. She was sure when she'd left the night before everything was in order. Now as she walked in the entire place had been dolled-up. Garlands were wrapped around the support columns, and in one corner stood a huge tree with lights and ornaments and everything around it. There were so much holiday themed decorations Elphaba was having a hard time taking them all in. There was a small giggle from her right almost immediately above her. The green girl's neck cracked in protest to having been redirected so quickly to look at the source of the laughter.
"Oh dear, I had hoped to finish before you arrived," the now all too familiar blonde giggled again, raising a hand to her face to hide her pleasure. Elphaba quickly erased the shocked look from her face before putting her hands on her hips.
"Glinda I thought I said I wasn't putting up decorations for this nonsense."
"Au contraire, you simply ignored me when I asked what you were doing. So instead I thought I'd spruce the place up myself," Glinda shot back merrily before going back to her decorating.
She was fiddling with someone near the roof, which explained why she was on a small ladder and now a good foot or so taller than Elphaba. Well, it was really more like a stepping stool, the ladder only had three steps and Glinda was now standing on the top rung, even then she was standing on her tip toes to reach the ceiling. Before Elphaba could see what she was doing the blonde cheered in delight, obviously having accomplished whatever she was doing.
In the process of this she wobbled precariously upon the step stool, Elphaba raised a hand to steady her, which Glinda grabbed gratefully and balanced herself. With a broad smile Glinda looked up at the ceiling then back down to Elphaba with a face of mock surprise. "Why Miss Elphaba, you're underneath the mistletoe!"
Elphaba's attention shot up to look at the sprig hanging above her head now, "S'nothing but a load of rubbish. Do you know that mistletoe actually means 'dung on a twig'? It's a stupid holiday and a stupid myth."
At this point Glinda's knuckles found a place on Elphaba's head. "Oh Elphie don't be such a party pooper. I bet you've just never been kissed under it before, well let me tell you the guests will appreciate the holiday spirit."
Elphaba grumbled something under her breath and looked away. Glinda smiled merrily squeezing her hold on Elphaba's hand as she shuffled her feet on the stool, her other hand reaching to catch a pointy chin and redirect its area of focus. "Ooo, did I hit a sore spot?" the blonde cooed playfully, addressing Elphaba as one might address a child.
The green girl huffed and went to walk off but Glinda tugged her back, mostly because she didn't want to be dragged off the stool. Elphaba looked up just in time to have Glinda's lips meet with her cheek. Time seemed to freeze for a moment, green cheeks now a shade darker from the strange transaction, their owner frozen in shock. Glinda stood up straight once more, having to have bent in half to reach Elphaba's face from where she stood perched on the stool still. A broad grin was apparent on the blonde's face, blue eyes twinkling, "There, all better?"
"HOT DAMN," a voice echoed from across the room, both of the girls' attention flying over the table to see who had said something. There stood Avaric, who was joined shortly by Fiyero. At the boy's sudden appearance Elphaba yanked her hand out of the blonde's and headed to the bar, muttering something about getting to work.
Glinda wobbled where she stood for a moment before making her way down the stool and leaping in bounds over to the duo, "Hey daddy, what's shakin'!" The blonde latched her arms around Fiyero's neck, who swung the small woman around in a circle cheerily. Their conversation was shortly lost on the green girl who had begun organizing things that were already organized behind the bar.
Only the blonde's words brought reality crashing back after the embarrassing moment seconds before. Elphaba's face was still flushed as she busied herself with menial tasks, glad for the distance between her and the rest of them. Brown eyes traveled up to the singer who still had her arms around Fiyero's neck as she planted a kiss on his lips. Sometime immediately after they'd first met Glinda and Fiyero had started dating, apparently they thought they were perfect for each other or something. Elphaba had almost forgotten since the blonde always seemed to be around her. The green girl scoffed silently at the pair, glad when all three of them disappeared behind the stage.
When they'd gone though Elphaba sighed, raising a hand to her cheek. The blonde had only done that because of the mistletoe right? It had to have been, because that singer didn't need an excuse to kiss anyone. That was apparent. Brown eyes trailed up to where the trio had vanished once more at the sounds of light-hearted giggles behind the stage. In that instant, any signs of softness on those green features vanished instantly. Dark brows creased angrily and her face set into its typical scowl, an expression that had been seen less and less often in the past month.
The green girl scrubbed the bar with more ferocity then was necessary as she distracted herself from her thoughts. She couldn't possibly be thinking what she thought she was thinking. That would be completely and entirely taboo, as if she didn't already get enough of a bad rep with people. Well alright, so people rarely thought of her as bad anymore, unless they were the police. But still they only looked over her verdigris because she was providing them all alcohol. Elphaba was only entertaining the thoughts she was because there was only one person that had bothered to tear down the wall she'd placed between herself and the rest of the world. And that person was currently off with her boyfriend and his best friend. Elphaba tried to bite back her intense dislike for this situation and instead tried to convince herself that she hated everyone again.
Glinda was right though, the customers did love the decorations. Especially the mistletoe, which saw plenty of couples underneath it throughout the night. Some less drunk than others.
-:-:-
1 – copacetic: excellent, or all in order
A/N: Only one footnote this time. Anyhow, this is, mainly just an excuse for me to write a Christmas sort of deal (as I never have before). Still it helps put the story in motion. Hoorah!