Chapter 31.

A/N Thank you for the wonderful response :)

Time to start wrapping things up, I'm afraid. One more after this one...

The moment they walked through the kitchen doors, Drakin came up to them. Fiyero had to ask himself if they would ever be allowed the chance to just be, even for a little while.

"Your presence is requested in the library. You have a visitor."

The Prince frowned.

"Me?"

Drakin gave them a meaningful look.

"Both of you."

They came into the library to find Glinda on the sofa. She was still wearing the dress she'd had on the night before. Only hours before had they made their escape. Why was she here?

"I have to talk to you."

She didn't specify who she was talking to but her eyes never left Elphaba, so Fiyero hung back.

"Just me?"

Elphaba had come to the same conclusion.

"Well. It concerns you, but it is up to you if Fiyero stays or not. It doesn't matter to me."

Drakin left the room discretely and Fiyero followed him, unsure of what to do. He wanted to stay, of course, but if what Glinda had to say didn't concern him, he didn't want to force his presence on either of the women.

Elphaba called him back when he'd nearly reached the door.

"Fiyero?"

She didn't say anything else but he understood perfectly well what she was doing; She was making good on her promise. She was trying to keep her word.

He smiled and closed the door.

Elphaba never liked to waste time and Glinda had grown out of her habit of lingering on irrelevant details, when it came to business.

"Elphie. Do you still have that bottle that belonged to your mother?"

"My...Yes. Why?"

"Can I see it?"

"Why?"

"Please just trust me. Can you get it?"

Elphaba didn't say anything but left the room.

The two that remained shared a silence that was filled with what wasn't being said, until the prince couldn't take it any more. Words that he long should have shared with his former love bubbling to the surface.

"Glinda. For the record; I am sorry."

"I know."

"Do you? Because...I do love you. I just...I'm...I'm sorry. I'm so sorry."

Her sigh was impatient, as if she didn't want to have this conversation, but had known it was coming and now wanted to get it out of the way.

"Fiyero. I'm not going to tell you it's okay, because it's not. But...I understand. And I understand why you did what you did. That's going to have to be enough."

It was. It was more than he deserved, but he didn't know how to say that. Luckily, he didn't have to because at that moment the door opened again and Elphaba strode back into the room, handing Glinda the bottle she'd asked for.

The blonde stared at it for a moment, a tortured expression on her face.

"Tonight, after you two left...the Wizard offered me a drink."

She looked at them both. Fiyero knew that Elphaba's look mirrored his. Neither of them able to guess where this was going. Fiyero, as often in tense situations, opted for humor.

"That's not a great start, Glin."

She merely threw him a look he'd seen a million times before, but most of those times, it had been on Elphaba's face. It startled him a little.

"He offered me a drink from a bottle like this."

Her eyes stayed on Elphaba's.

"Exactly like this."

The green woman shook her head, clearly confused, but also afraid of what was coming.

"Glinda. What are you talking about?"

"I mean that the Wizard has a bottle exactly like this."

"But...this was my mother's..."

"I know, but Elphie...where did your mother get it?"

Realization dawned in the dark eyes.

"What are you saying, exactly?"

"I don't know."

Another impatient sigh. She seemed, for all the world, like a mother dealing with petulant children. She looked tired. More tired than he'd ever seen her. He was ashamed to realize he hadn't spent nearly enough time to ask himself what all this was to doing to her. He'd been too busy with himself and Elphaba to concern himself with Glinda. The fact made him flush with shame and embarrassment but Glinda had already moved on, oblivious to what was in his mind.

"I don't know, Elphie. I truly don't so stop looking at me like that. I am asking...don't you want to know?"

Fiyero couldn't keep up with them. Maybe he really was slow on the uptake. Or maybe they were just being women; talking in only half-sentences, expecting the other to fill in the gasps and understand.

"What does she want to know?"

"Why the Wizard has a bottle just like this." She turned back to Elphaba. "What if your mother got it from the Wizard?"

"No."

"Elphie."

"No."

"Saying 'no' won't change anything, you know. I've tried that. It's called denial."

"Well, I'm glad to see you've grown as a person, Glinda. But that won't make me change my mind."

Fiyero could already see where this was going. His time spent around women had taught him to recognize the sure signs of the beginning of a cat fight.

"Alright. Last time you did this, no one came out on the better side."

They both glared at him, but Glinda gave in.

"He's right, Elphie."

She put the bottle on the table.

"You don't have to do anything about it. I just thought you'd want to know. You should know. Maybe he has the answers."

Fiyero rubbed his neck as his eyes flitted from a tired face to a frustrated one. He had a feeling there was a lot more being said than there was actually being said. Out loud and in words. Words that he would be able to understand too. Women. How were men supposed to keep up?

"The answers to what?"

Both women ignored him. They just stood there and looked at each other. An entire conversation taking place without a word being said, until Elphaba sighed.

"Fine. Let's go get this over with."

She turned and looked at Fiyero.

"Are you coming?"

He wanted to protest that going back to the palace only hours after their near-escape was suicide. He wanted to remind her of her promise. But it dawned on him that she was keeping her promise, by asking him.

"Of course."

They traveled by bubble, though Elphaba refused to leave her broom behind. They didn't object. She needed an escape route. A safety net. The other two understood and respected that.

The bubble wasn't as fast as the broom, but it was steady and stable, not bothered by rough winds or thunder storms and on a clear day like this one, it glided through the air with ease. It wasn't far either, from the Vinkus to the Emerald City, even if it took forever with a coach, so the trip was short and made in nervous silence.

Glinda moved with purpose, marching straight through the halls, until she got to a door, where, surprisingly, Keegan stood watch. Elphaba nor Fiyero commented on that, and though their eyes met the soldier's as they followed Glinda to the door, no words were spoken. Fiyero stopped as Glinda moved to open the door without knocking.

"I'll wait here. Just to be sure."

As Elphaba opened her mouth to protest, he smiled at her.

"I trust you to not run off without me.."

"But what if..."

She threw a hesitant look at Keegan, who turned towards them.

"I've kept from having you arrested twice now. I've earned more credit than you're giving me."

Again, his eyes slid to Glinda. She nodded, almost imperceptibly.

"Thank you. I promise you will get your answers. As soon as we get ours."

He didn't say anything, didn't even nod in acknowledgment, but he stepped back and resumed his position.

"I'll stay here, anyway. Let me know when it's safe to come in."

It wasn't that he didn't trust Keegan, it was simply that he didn't trust anyone. He needed to be sure, one hundred percent sure, that they'd get out of here. Elphaba had her broom, she could always fly. And this way, he'd be able to keep an eye on Keegan. If needed, he'd be in the room in a matter of seconds.

As he watched the door swing shut, he sighed and raised his eyes skywards. Like Elphaba, he didn't believe in a deity but he decided that, if one did happen to be out or up there, now would be a great time for them to pay some attention.

Elphaba walked behind Glinda with lead in her shoes. She couldn't remember any other time in her life where she had hid behind another person. Not even when there had been people to hide behind. This time, however, she couldn't bring herself to take the initiative. She didn't want to be here, not for this purpose, and the reluctance weighed her down, put lead in dragging footsteps.

The Wizard was nowhere in sight, as far as she could tell, but no sooner had she opened her mouth to voice her doubt to Glinda, or the man came up from behind that idiotic golden head. He was clearly not expecting anyone, least of all them, because the moment he saw them, his eyes shot to the door, looking for a way out. Glinda held her hands up in the air.

"Please, your Ozness, we didn't come to attack you or mean you harm."

The green woman wanted to scoff at that, but didn't. Glinda obviously knew what to do here, and how to go about it, because the Wizard didn't move an inch. To be safe instead of sorry, the blonde moved slowly towards the golden head, her hands still up, as she advanced on the Wizard, driving him to take a few steps backwards.

Elphaba watched in amazement. Glinda had really thought this through, that much was clear. By making him retreat, she was driving him away from his throne, from his megaphone, so he couldn't call for help without moving past them. Still, she stayed behind. She would stay as far away from him as possible, until they had the upper hand. Glinda was here too, now, and Fiyero was just outside. She wouldn't risk them getting hurt. Not again. They were risking their lives too and though she'd always been prepared to lose her own life in this battle, she wasn't prepared to lose theirs.

Glinda stopped moving and so did the Wizard.

"We've come to ask you something."

"You won't fault me for not trusting you on your word, miss Glinda. Last time I saw you, your life was threatened by your former love-interest, in order to free the woman currently by your side."

This time she did scoff and the words escaped before she could stop them.

"We won't fault you for that."

"Elphie."

Glinda's voice held a warning tone and Elphaba swallowed the biting response.

The blonde turned back towards the Wizard.

"No. I won't fault you for that. Just as I hope you won't fault us for asking this question."

The Wizard cocked his head in ill-disguised curiosity.

"What question?"

"Elphie?"

At Glinda's meaningful look, Elphaba, without saying anything, reached inside her pocket and put the bottle on the table. Both women looked at the bottle, then at the Wizard, who was staring at it with wonder in his eyes.

"Where did you get that?"

"It was my mother's. The real question is: where did she get it?"

"Your mother's?"

He reached into his pocket and retrieved a bottle exactly like the one already on the table and put it next to its twin.

"Yes, my mother's."

"But where could she possibly..."

His voice trailed off as the meaning of her words set in. His eyes sought her face but they were unfocused.

"Wait. Your mother. What is your mother's name?"

She loathed him. Hated every second of being in this room, talking.

"Was. She's dead. Didn't Morrible fill you in on that?"

Glinda touched her arm and frowned at her.

"Elphie."

She wanted to shrug off the soft hand but refrained.

"Fine."

For Glinda. She could do this for Glinda. She had to. She owed her that at least, even if she couldn't understand why this was important to Glinda. Even if she did understand that Glinda, by some ill-guided notion, was doing this for her.

"Melena. Melena Thropp."

He took a few steps back, his hand reaching out behind him, looking for support but coming up empty.

"Melena..." His eyes bore into hers, narrowed in concentration. Then, they widened as he staggered back.

"My God."

Both women watched as he sank to his knees.

Glinda stepped forward but stopped in her tracks as she remembered who she was talking to. She wasn't on his side. Yet she couldn't say nothing.

"Mr...Sir..."

She was obviously unsure of how to address him.

"Are you alright?"

Elphaba snorted at that, but Glinda didn't pay her any attention.

The Wizard, shaking his head as he lifted his face from his hands, looked back up from his spot on the floor.

"How old are you?"

Elphaba just looked at him, one eyebrow raised.

"How old am I?"

She gave him a look filled with impatience.

"What does that have to do with anything?"

He didn't seem to hear the hateful tone. He just stared at her and asked again, his voice weaker than the first time he'd asked.

"Just...can you tell me? When were you born?"

She stared at him. She didn't want to answer, though why she couldn't say.

"I'm twenty-four."

He made a whimpering sound and fell back to the floor, his eyes still on her, wide as saucers.

She didn't want to ask, she didn't want to initiate any conversation with him. He didn't deserve questions, or time to answer. He didn't reserve respite.

"Why?"

"I...Melena..."

"How do you know my mother?"

She didn't want to know the answer.

"There...there was...your father...I mean...her husband...he was away. I was passing through. I was there for a few days at the most."

"What are you saying exactly?"

She knew the answer.

"You look like her."

It was the wrong thing to say. She retreated to the door. For some reason, that made him panic. He got to his feet and moved towards the door, towards her, his arm outstretched.

"Elphaba, wait."

To both their surprise, she halted and, very slowly and deliberately, turned around.

"For what?"

"I..."

He went back to the table and took both bottles, one in each hand. His eyes went back and forth between them.

"I don't...I never meant..."

But it was too late, the swishing of her dress the only sound as she disappeared through the door. The Wizard turned back to Glinda, a helpless look on his face.

The blonde witch moved to his side, and reached out to steady him but then remembered who it was she was about to help and she let her hands drop to her side, a distrustful expression on her face.

"You had an affair with her mother?"

"I...I didn't...I was only there for a few days. Her husband was out of town. She seemed so happy to be ….I don't know...free, I guess."

His eyes took on a distant look.

"She was so beautiful."

His memories weren't strong enough to hold him. Or maybe the present was too strong to be ignored.

"She really does look like her. I didn't see it before."

Glinda moved forward again, but not to help this time. Her eyes bore into his, fiery, angry and determined.

"I hope you realize you've been actively trying to kill your own daughter these past few years."

It was something he'd probably realized but at her words he fell back on the floor. She took another step towards him, until she stood towering over him. He seemed nothing but an old man now. Old and frail. If she hadn't known better, she would have felt sorry for him.

"I want you to leave Oz."

He didn't look at her anymore, his hands still clutching the bottles, and nodded. She knew, with absolute certainty, that he would. But that didn't mean the end of their troubles. There was one more problem to be dealt with. And she needed to deal with it now.

She walked over to the door and called to the soldier right outside the door.

"Mr. Keegan. Please come in. There is some work to do."

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