AN: Hi guys! Welcome to the new year! :)
Best way to ring in 2014 - I'm not kidding, this actually happened like this. We were outside just after midnight, watching other people's fireworks (there's this family in our street that always spends a lot of money on it and they have the most beautiful things). Suddenly my Mum says, "Look over there! That's beautiful! Pink and green fireworks combined - you don't see that often!"
I was grinning like an idiot :D. I think it's a sign that this year will be positively Wicked!
I'm glad you all liked my sentimental speech :P and if you want more of it... I decided to start the new year by creating a blog! It will be about my fanfics, but also about my life in general, musings of my mind, and of course it will include updates on how my original story is coming along, which I'm hoping to get published somewhere this year! The link is this:
queenofcliffies
dot
blogspot
dot
nl
(sorry for that, but otherwise FF blocks it :3)
and I would love for you to check it out and/or follow! :)
That being said, thank you so much for your lovely reviews! You will be rewarded with fluff. This chapter. Lots of it. Yay!
Last but not least, I created a new poll. It's on my profile and it's basically the same one as before, only asking about your favourite one-shots instead of multichaps. Feel free to check that out as well ^_^.
Chapter 6. Loved
Even after he pulled away, she just couldn't stop staring at him.
He coughed and shifted a bit nervously. "Fae?"
She blinked a few times, fingers coming up to touch her lips in wonder. She had never expected to be kissed at all… but to get her first kiss from none other than Fiyero Tiggular? That was beyond her wildest imaginations.
Far beyond.
"I'm sorry," Fiyero said, dropping his gaze. "I shouldn't have done that. I mean… Could you just say something? Anything? Slap me across the face if you have to? Because quite frankly, a quiet Elphaba is even scarier than an angry one."
She chuckled softly at that. "No, I… I just never expected to ever be kissed," she admitted, lowering her gaze. "Least of all by you."
He looked shocked. "You mean… Surely you've been kissed before?" he asked, baffled.
She shook her head. "Look at me, Fiyero," she said softly, but without any trace of self-pity. "Who would ever want to kiss me?"
"Me. Obviously." Suddenly he looked panicked. "But… but I didn't even wait for you to answer when I asked if I could kiss you! Now I stole your first kiss against your will! Oh my Oz, Fae, I'm so sorry –"
She cut him off by pressing her finger to his lips.
"I wouldn't have wanted it from anyone but you," she whispered, a dark red colour creeping up into her cheeks, but she smiled when she saw the grin that lit up his face again.
"Really?"
She nodded, still blushing. He shifted closer to her. "So I gave you your first kiss," he mumbled.
She nodded again.
"Can I give you your second, too?"
Normally, she would have scoffed at how cheesy he was being; but right now she just didn't care. Instead, she just nodded again and she closed her eyes when his lips touched hers again, a bit firmer now than the first time. He laced the fingers of his one hand with hers, while his other hand came around her to press against her back, pulling her closer, and she allowed herself to melt into the kiss.
When they finally broke apart again, he rested his forehead against hers, looking deep into her eyes. "I love you," he breathed.
She blinked a few times, still not really believing that this was happening, but she replied nonetheless. "I love you, too, Yero."
He kissed her again, slowly lowering her onto the bed. For a brief moment, she thought he wanted to take this to the next level, and she panicked a little. She wasn't ready for that. She had received her first kiss only moments ago – not to mention the fact that she still wasn't convinced that he really did love her; or the fact that she was sure he would run away in disgust when he saw her in all her green glory, not disguised by any clothes; or, she reminded herself, the fact that she wasn't even really here.
But instead of pinning her down or trying to remove her clothes, he just sat down beside her, pulling the blanket over her and tucking her in, pressing a sweet kiss to her forehead. "'Night, Fae."
"You don't have to go," she said without thinking; but even when she did think about it, she realised she didn't want to take it back. "I mean… you can sleep here, if you want."
He looked hesitant. "Are you sure? I don't want to pressure you or anything…"
She shook her head. "You're not."
He nodded and lay down beside her, crawling under the blankets as well. She scooted over a little to make room for him as he squirmed, trying to make himself comfortable beside her without touching her. When his hand accidentally brushed her hip, he immediately yanked it back. "I'm sorry."
She rolled her eyes. "Fiyero, don't be ridiculous."
"But –"
"I would tell you if I didn't want you to touch me," she told him. "Or if there was anything else you were doing wrong, or if I was feeling pressured. You don't have to treat me like I'm made of sugar, Fiyero. I'm not."
"I know," he said as he leant up on one elbow and looked down at her, that soft look in his sapphire eyes that always melted her. "But I know you're new at this, and I'm going to assume you don't share your bed with a boy on a regular basis…"
She snorted a laugh. "Not really, no."
"…so I just want to be careful with you," he finished.
"I appreciate that," she said softly. "I really do. But you don't have to be."
He nodded. "Okay. Good to know." He kissed her again softly before settling down next to her. Their shoulders and legs touched lightly, but she could tell that he was still afraid to impose himself on her.
She rolled her eyes and, deciding to be bold, cuddled up against him, her head on his chest and her legs tangled with his. He stared at her for a few moments and she looked back up at him, doubt in her own eyes now.
"If you don't want…" she began anxiously, but he cut her off by pressing yet another kiss to her lips.
"I love you," he whispered, wrapping his arm around her, and that settled it.
She curled into his embrace, closing her eyes. If this was a dream, she wanted to enjoy it for as long as she possibly could.
When she opened her eyes the next morning, however, he was still there.
He appeared to be asleep; but when she moved, trying to scoot away from him a little, his arm tightened around her and he pulled her back. "Stay here."
"Well, good morning to you, too," she said, trying to sound sarcastic, but it sounded more… teasing. In a flirty kind of way. What in Oz was happening to her?
Fiyero smiled, though he still hadn't opened his eyes. "Good morning," he mumbled. "You're not a dream, are you?"
She rolled her eyes.
"I mean, if I open my eyes, will you still be there?"
"You're just going to have to try and see for yourself," she said with a broad grin.
He opened his eyes.
She wasn't there.
He was awake in an instant. "Fae?" He sat up, alarmed, hands groping at the sheets as if she might be hiding underneath them. He looked around in bewilderment, searching for her frantically.
Elphaba smirked at him from the spot she had transported herself to, on the other side of the bed. "Your face right now is epic."
He whirled around to face her, relief flooding his eyes. "Okay, you had me there," he confessed. "Sweet Oz, you scared the wits out of me."
She chuckled and snuggled into his side again – his other side this time. "Yes, well, that's what you get when you're dating a spirit-ghost-soul-thingy. Even more creepy magic tricks than usual."
He kissed her forehead. "I love you."
She melted instantly, a soft smile gracing her lips. "I love you, too."
He trailed his lips down her temple and her cheek until they touched her own lips, and he kissed her softly. "I can't believe this is finally happening," he whispered. "I've been dreaming of this for so long, but I… well, honestly, I never thought you could feel the same way about me. And then there was Galinda to worry about…"
Elphaba shot up. "Oh, Oz, Galinda! Fiyero, we can't do this to her! She's heartbroken, and –"
"Fae," he cut her off, pulling her down again. "Glin already knows, remember? I won't say she's fine with it, because… because I know she loved me, and I hurt her… a lot… but she'll get over it. I know she will."
"But –"
"And besides, she can't see you. She doesn't know I can, either. She doesn't know about us."
Elphaba sighed. "Fiyero, just because she can't see me, doesn't mean we can do whatever we want. She's my best friend… I don't want to hurt her."
He cradled her face between his hands and kissed her softly. "It'll be alright, Fae. I promise."
She just sighed again, but gave in, relaxing as he pulled her closer again and nuzzled her hair.
"Don't you have any classes to go to?" she murmured after a while.
He shook his head. "Nah. I'd much rather stay here." He ran his fingers through her long, silky hair, playing with the strands and twirling them around his fingers.
She looked up at him, dark eyes piercing. "Fiyero, just because you're crazy enough to be in love with me, does not mean you get to skip your classes," she said sternly.
He leant down to kiss her. "Yes, Mummy."
"Calling me 'Mummy' while kissing me is a little bit weird, don't you think? Disturbing, even."
Fiyero grimaced. "Oz, Fae!"
She cackled. He just pulled her closer again and buried his face in her hair. "You're not my mother, though," he mumbled. "You can't make me go to class. I'm just going to stay right here with you all day."
His eyes flew open when suddenly his fingers were only grasping air. He heard her cackle again, this time from the other side of the room. "Sorry, Yero," she said as she tossed him his clothes, "but if there's no other way to get you out of bed, then this will have to do."
"Hey!" he protested, reaching for her. "Get back here, you!"
She stuck out her tongue. "I'm going to stir things up a little more in the Emerald City," she said, waving at him. "I'll see you tonight. Good luck with that Economics test you have today!" She blew him a kiss and tossed her hair, mimicking Galinda, before she disappeared.
He blinked and rubbed the sleep from his eyes, staring at the spot where she had been a moment ago. Then her words dawned on him.
"Wait!" he cried, as if she could still hear him. "I have an Economics test?!"
"The Wizard is gone!"
Fiyero whirled around. "What?"
Boq blinked at him. "I didn't say anything."
"No, I wasn't talking to…" Fiyero trailed off when he realised that Boq was the only other person in the room – the only other person everyone could see, anyway. He cleared his throat. "Um… I need to use the bathroom."
"Again?" Boq asked him irritably. "You just went fifteen minutes ago!"
"I have a tiny bladder!" he called back over his shoulder as he hurried out of the library and into the hallway.
"A tiny bladder?" Elphaba echoed as she followed him, clearly amused. "Is that all you could come up with?"
"Can you just please stop sneaking up on me like that?" he begged her. "Boq is going to think I lost my mind!"
Elphaba smirked. "Don't worry, he already thinks that. What I was saying, though, is that the Wizard is gone. Can you believe that? I actually managed to chase away the Wizard of Oz!"
Fiyero blinked. "What?"
Elphaba nodded, a smug grin on her face. "I went back today," she said. "To the Palace. And the Wizard said he's had enough of it. Or, well, he didn't actually say that – he kind of… screeched it. In a Galinda kind of way. He actually believed Ozma was haunting him because of everything he has done to the people of Oz." She sniggered. "And just now, he said he's giving up. He ordered some servants to blow up his hot air balloon and he's leaving Oz for good."
Fiyero gaped at her. "Really?"
She shrugged. "I don't know," she said. "I hope so. If he left… that would be amazing."
Fiyero shook his head. "Fae…"
"Oh, I know," she cut him off. "But Fiyero, they're the ones that hurt the Animals. All the Wizard has ever done since he got power is deceive the people and hurt the minorities in Oz. We can't let him go on with that! Or at least, I can't. And if I scared him to the point that he decided to leave Oz, well, then I'm glad. That only leaves Morrible. She'll be harder to scare, but I'm sure I'll be able to pull it off somehow."
He sighed. "I know you can't let them go on like this," he said. "And that's what I admire in you, Fae – the way you're so passionate about everything and stand up for what you believe in. But these are the rulers of Oz we're talking about. Who is going to take over once they're gone? Not to mention the fact that Morrible is very smart, and she's a sorceress – what if she finds out what you're doing? What if she decides to strike back?"
"She won't. She doesn't even know it's me." Elphaba shrugged. "That's the advantage I have now, Yero. No-one but you can see me."
"I know." He looked a little pained. "Just… please be careful," he begged her.
She leant forward to kiss him briefly. "Always."
He raised an eyebrow. She stuck out her tongue.
"Now you go back to Boq," she said, waving him away. "I don't want to waste your precious study time."
He groaned. "What are you going to do?"
She shrugged. "Check up on Galinda," she said softly. "And Nessa."
He squeezed her shoulder briefly and was rewarded with a small smile before she disappeared.
