Nessa smiled as her sister leaned down to kiss her cheek. "Don't have too much fun," she warned. "I'll be here soon enough."
Elphaba straightened up and shuddered slightly, looking up at the high brick walls that made Shiz University impenetrable. Just over the tip, a golden statue of the glorious Wizard could be seen- and the grand old building itself. She opened her mouth to say something, but lost her words in the process.
"Would you like us to come in with you?" Nessa asked sweetly, mostly because she wanted to see Shiz for herself.
Looking back at her father impatiently waiting for Nessa to return to his side, Elphaba decided she would be fine. This, after all, was her first step towards freedom and it was something she wanted to do on her own. "Thank you for coming Nessa, I'll see you soon."
"You better come visit us," Nessa ordered. "I'll only have Nanny and Papa and Shell for company now!" She looked back at her father and faked a bright smile, then turned to her sister and mouthed for help.
Elphaba promised, hugged her sister and then took one more deep breath before pushing open the iron gates and taking a running start through. Once inside and out of Nessa's view, Elphaba let the full range of her excitement wash over her. She covered her face with her hands and peered out through her bony fingers. No, it wasn't a dream. She was really here. She was finally here...and there were at least twenty people staring at her and muttering to each other.
Reaching into her bag, Elphaba pulled out a slightly crinkled schedule and smoothed it between two fingertips. The first event on the agenda was a seminar for the new students. Elphaba hoped there weren't many students; she didn't want to be in close proximity with people who she had no chance of getting along with.
With ten minutes left, Elphaba decided to forfeit her explorations and continue on to the parlor where she was supposed to be. Once there, she settled herself in the back of the room on one of the cheap fold out chairs and waited silently, while others filed in and formed their own chat groups, as far away from Elphaba as possible.
Minutes passed and all Elphaba could do was watch her boot tap a rhythm out against the empty chair in front of her. One, two, three. Stop. One, two, three. Stop. She sighed, wishing for once that she had Nessa with her, but knowing that if Nessa were here, she would be off attempting to fit in. Elphaba couldn't do what Nessa could. She couldn't fake.
The seminar started and Elphaba made her best attempt at listening to the headshiztress, but couldn't manage it. The odds weren't encouraged by a group of rowdy latecomers making their entrance.
"Sorry Madame," a boastful Gillikinese student said, while his arm was draped around the waist of a pretty Gillikinese blonde. "Fiyero here was just teaching us some philosophy."
Madame Morrible huffed. "I must say I expected better of you Miss Upland; Master Tigelaar. As for Master Tenmeadows...I'd be lying if I said I wasn't expecting that from him."
The one who had spoken and the blonde slumped down into a seat with the same pout. It was so similar, they could have been mistakenly related if not for the last names. A Munchkin, small even by Munchkinlander standards, tried to claim the seat on the other side of the blonde, but she shot him a look and the Vinkun slid smoothly into the chair.
Elphaba tried not to stare at Fiyero, but she couldn't help it. She wanted to see what his reaction would be. To her...to Shiz...to anything. For a moment, she realized with horror that he might actually try to speak to her, but it passed quickly, as he wasn't even making eye contact with her.
But wasn't it the least he could do? After you kiss someone, you try to make eye contact. It was common courtesy. But then with slight discomfort, Elphaba saw the reason.
The blonde was eyeing her carefully, looking her over with disgust; head to toe. She kept one hand on Fiyero's knee and the other was propped up on the chair, two fingers supporting her chin as she curled her lips and observed every possible threat to her popularity. Elphaba would have given anything to know the thoughts that were racing behind that vicious smile.
"Misssss Upland, I wonder if you have been paying any attention," the authoritative voice of the headshiztress rang out through the room.
Elphaba couldn't believe that the blonde had the nerve to jump to her feet and address Madame Morrible directly. "That would be Miss Upland of the Upper Uplands, Madame, and you were going on about how no one applied to your sorcery seminar and I might be so kind as to remind you: I applied."
Madame Morrible looked Galinda directly in the eye and said coolly, "Miss Upland, perhaps you find it hard to believe that someone did not enjoy your peevish ramblings as much as you do."
"Now what does that mean?" Galinda muttered to herself.
"It means that your entrance essay was not entirely as pleasing as you believed it to be."
Galinda blushed. She hadn't expected Morrible to hear her remark and looked desperately around for something to make up for her lack of a comeback. Her concentration settled on the girl sitting in the second to last row. What a perfect opportunity that had arisen! The chance to collectively turn everyone away from the green ghoul and turn everyone toward the beautiful blonde, brave enough to confront anyone. "Well, Madame, I do believe there are other people here who would qualify for your seminar," Galinda drawled obnoxiously, even for her own taste. "I mean, look at her!" Galinda pointed to Elphaba behind her. "Her birth alone must have been a miracle!"
There wasn't a single person in the room who didn't smile at the very least, except Elphaba who shrunk down into her seat.
"Alright! Alright! Everyone calm yourselves!" Madame Morrible called. "We might as well get through room assignments now... I say...I've never had such rowdy first years."
"You have no idea, Madame," Fiyero laughed. It was the first time he had spoken.
"First and foremost the Misses Pfannee and Shenshen?" Morrible read off of a paper.
Two "Galinda clones" pranced up to the front and chattered mercilessly as they received their key. Elphaba would have paid them just to stop. On their way out they waved at Galinda and then left; their laughter carrying down the echoing hallways of the university.
Morrible continued calling names. She called the Munchkin who had been trailing Galinda and a few more girls in sophisticated attire and less than sophisticated attitudes. As the numbers were narrowed down Galinda and Elphaba both started to panic. The person they couldn't imagine surviving the semester with...
"Miss Galinda and Miss Elphaba."
Galinda's hands covered her eyes as if the sight of Elphaba were too terrible to endure and Elphaba rubbed her temples, already warding off the onsetting headache from that squeaky, high pitched voice.
Carried by one force, Elphaba and Galinda approached Madame Morrible at the same time. "Madame, I do think there's been a mistake," Elphaba started.
Galinda nodded fervently. It would be the only thing they'd agree on for quite a while.
"Oh no!" Morrible cried, slightly offended. "I never make mistakes regarding room assignments!"
"There's always a first time," Galinda suggested.
"I suppose," Morrible replied thoughtfully, "but not here," she amended quickly. "I can already foresee you two being a formidable pairing."
Galinda turned her head away and stuck out her tongue, while Morrible handed Elphaba a key. There was a clear look on the head's face, saying not to argue because it was senseless. Morrible instructed them to locate their dorm and begin unpacking before dinner, but the advice was lost on Galinda who had already turned to Fiyero's side.
Elphaba watched as she tossed her hair and said to Fiyero, "Perhaps you can come to check on me later to make sure I haven't caught the green germ?" She said it so convincingly that even Elphaba was sure it was a germ she was carrying.
Fiyero just nodded gruffly and returned to the conversation he had been having with his friend before Galinda interrupted.
Watching in silence, Elphaba took that as a sign that maybe he wasn't automatically counted as one of them.
Peering up at the small wooden plates above the doors, Elphaba looked for the right three numbers that would lead to her new home. Unfortunately, the chances of it ever feeling like home were looking bleak. She was sure that blonde thing that everyone thought was an angel was going to make her life hell.
Or maybe not exactly hell...but one thing was for sure. Blondie wanted to be on top of the game and she wasn't above starting the race before everyone else.
Elphaba finally matched the numbers on her sheet to the numbers on the door and shoved the key into the lock upside down. To her credit, it only took four more tries before she got it. She entered and the left the door open behind her. If it took her four times to get the lock imagine how many it would take her roommate. Ouch. Blonde jokes even when the blonde wasn't around. This was shaping into such a pleasant friendship already.
But to her surprise, Elphaba noticed Galinda already in the room carefully placing elaborately designed dresses into a closet on the right side of the room.
"I hope you don't mind that I'm using up all of the closet space," she said curtly. "My dresses need to be hung."
Elphaba stood in awe for a moment. Firstly, she had no idea how Galinda had gotten up to the room so quickly and wanted to ask. Secondly, those dresses were so bright it was almost blinding. Thirdly, Galinda had just spoken to her without a snobby comment...well, without a snobby comment directed towards her.
Standing for a moment with her eyebrows halfway up her forehead and her mouth slightly open, Elphaba just looked at Galinda, who stopped and surveyed her coolly. "Can I help you?"
Elphaba shook her head slightly and caught up with herself. "No, I'm fine."
"Good," Galinda replied. "I'm going to finish putting away my things now..." She walked away from the closet and towards the bathroom.
"Uh...that's the bathroom...not the closet..." Elphaba pointed out.
"I know what it is!" Galinda snapped. "How dumb do you think I am?"
Elphaba couldn't resist herself. "Oh, I don't think you're dumb. I just think your birth must have been a miracle."
Galinda huffed and turned her back towards Elphaba, which she took as a sign that the conversation was over.
"Awwwwwwwww! Are my girls bonding?"
The expression on Galinda's face was murderous. "Avaric! If you think that's even a joke- oh hello Fiyero!"
"Do I really sound that much like Avaric?" Fiyero asked, abandoning his position by the door and coming in without an invitation. He sat down on one of the beds and leaned back against the headboard with his hands behind his head.
Elphaba dropped her bag on her trunk. "Excuse me. That's my bed."
"Hospitality is key to this issue at hand," Fiyero said plainly. "I'm a guest to your room."
"So is she," Galinda intervened. "I was supposed to have a private suite, but Morrible's sense of decency has gone to the dogs...or rather to the frogs."
Proud of herself for learning to easily tune Galinda out so quickly, Elphaba kept her back to the blonde and placed her hands on her hips. "Please get off my bed."
Galinda tossed fluffy pillows onto her bed. "You're always welcome to my bed, Fiyero."
Elphaba snorted. "Blondie obviously doesn't mind being the rebound."
Sinking onto her bed, Galinda crossed her arms across her chest and glared at Elphaba.
"Elphaba, be nice," Fiyero said flatly.
"Elphaba? You mean to say that you're familiar?" Galinda asked incredulously.
"We've met," Fiyero shrugged.
Taking it as a personal insult, Galinda rolled her eyes disbelievingly. "Where could you possibly have met?"
Elphaba saw this as a chance to rub something in Galinda's pretty face, but refrained.
"Monarchy things," Fiyero answered, doing all of the rubbing in Elphaba's stead.
"Why wasn't I there?" Galinda demanded.
"Monarchy..."
"I'm monarchy!" Galinda cried.
"By choice, not by birth," Elphaba muttered and then noted how quickly the conversation had thinned out. Galinda was almost white with rage (something Elphaba would never experience) and Fiyero lapsed into an awkward silence, relinquishing the bed to Elphaba, who got started unpacking her things.
"You two think you've got a difficult situation here," Fiyero said lightly. "Try rooming with Avaric Tenmeadows." And he left the room, with Galinda still in a pout.