A/N: I had problems starting this chapter, so yeah...but I managed to get the ball rolling eventually:] You guys can keep your pitchforks now, I shall be kind enough (to myself as well) and say that this is a cliffie-free chapter ;)


In her life, Glinda had heard many screams.

She'd her mother scream at her when she didn't close her mouth when she was chewing, or about her sluggish posture.

She'd heard her teachers scream when she dozen off in the middle of class, or when Pfannee got bored and decided to pull a prank on them.

She'd heard her friends scream whenever she wore black, or when they thought latest fashion trends were, in their saying, 'a disgrace to the fashion world'.

And yet, despite her multiple experiences with screaming, Glinda felt as if this one scream had brought her whole world crashing down upon her. The scream of the Wicked Witch of the West, of Oz's worst tyrant...of her best friend Elphie.

It was as if someone had thrust a hot stoke into her heart, searing it till it became fragile enough to shatter like glass. But at the same time Glinda felt nothing but chilling numbness, like her heart had been struck by an icicle, cold and lethal.

"Elphaba!" she screamed, her vocal cords burning as the forced cry escaped her cracked lips.

She darted forward, pushing Fiyero roughly aside as she went. She had no orientation of this vast black stronghold, but she didn't care if she got lost in it for a decade, as long as she found Elphaba's chambers.

However, she made it no further than two steps, before a sharp pain shot through her feet, causing her to crumple to the ground. Unfortunately, the arm that instinctively shot out to support her fall happened to be her broken one, and she gave a yelp of anguish as it gave her another excruciating stab.

She was in so much pain...ripped inside out.

"Glinda, you're in no shape to walk!" cried out Fiyero as he rushed to her side.

"No! I've got to get to her!" said Glinda, tears flooding down her cheeks as she stumbled once more to her feet, only to fall again in agony. Fiyero supported her this time, grabbing her by the still-intact arm, to her relief.

"I'll take you there, Glin," he whispered softly. "But you've got to cooperate. Let me help."

Glinda was too tired to protest, she let him scoop her up into his arms, her head falling limply against his chest as he strode through the hallways at a quick pace.

"Glinda...you might need to take some time explaning," began Fiyero.

Glinda lifted her head weakly. "What? Why?"

"We'll need to pass through the dinning hall to get there," replied Fiyero. "And I think Dorothy and Co. might be there..."

"Oh." Glinda dropped her head in a weary sigh. Her head was still in a mess, and so was her appearance. She'd need to come up with something logical, and the only possible explanation was...

No, she couldn't, could she?

They burst into the room, and sure enough, Dorothy sat at one of the chairs sobbing (again) with Boq and Brrr at her side. Upon entering they looked up to meet the newly joined.

"Glinda!" cried Dorothy, springing from the chair. "Oh bless Uncle Henry's overalls what had she done to you?" She burst in tears again, much to Glinda's...slight annoyance. How in Oz had Fiyero managed to stay with this wimp for more than two hours without socking the girl in the face?

"I'm fine Dorothy," she lied. "The Witch" - she flinched at the term - "didn't kill me."

Dorothy's eyes widened. "The Witch...oh I've killed 'er!" she cried, more tears wellin up in those big doe eyes. "I didn't mean to!"

"What exactly did you do, Dorothy?" pressed Fiyero, setting Glinda down on a chair for a moment.

"Oh, Scarecrow, it was terrible! She locked the Tin man and the Lion in the room and took me away! She was accusing me of stealing 'er shoes, and then 'er broom lit on fire, threatening to kill me! I...'er skirt...it caught fire...and I...I tried to help 'er put it out with the water..." The girl began to hyperventilate, her face turning slightly blue as she struggled to remain conscious.

"Dorothy...calm down," soothed Boq. "You've got to breathe..." Glinda shuddered as she remembered the circumstances when she had said simliar things to Elphaba.

Dorothy wiped her face and rubbed her already red nose. "She started smoking...I couldn't watch...I ran out of the room..."

The girl fainted.

"This must be my record for having so many people faint on me in one day," mumbled Fiyero.


The first thing that she registered was not the water that was dumped on her, but the screaming inside her head.

It was not one, but multiple screams, a cacphony of earpiercing sounds pounding in her mind. She could hear Nessarose's above all, and she could make out one other, faint but barely audible...Glinda's.

I'm so sorry, Glin.

The hisses were louder than ever, stabbing her soul like a thousand pinpricks. It felt as if her soul were being ripped to shreds, as if her mind were about to explode.

You Delilah! Look what you've done! You -

Game over, Nessarose, if you won't die, I'll die for you.

I'm your sister! You can't do this! Nessarose let out another scream of fury and agony, writhing in pain as her black spirit became engulfed in a burning inferno.

I can, thought Elphaba. A chill began to take over her, wrapping her in a icy embrace. Numbness crept through her body, the sounds in her head growing louder and louder until they were no softer than thunder. The noise was unbearable, and suddenly it was like a bright explosion of light, hurting her and burning her.

She heard Nessarose let out one final ear-shattering scream, like a condemned soldier in a desperate attempt to thrust a sword into the body of an enemy as he died.

And then everything was...quiet.


"Hurry up!"

"I'm already hurry uping, Glinda!"

"Hurrying up, Fiyero."

"Since when did you become a grammar Nazi?"

"What's a Nazi?"

"No clue."

"Oh my Oz..." Fiyero halted at the doorway, still carrying the broken blonde. The room was exactly how Glinda had left it, only there was now an overturned bucket, a charred broomstick, and a heap of black dress.

"Elphaba!" Glinda dropped out of Fiyero's arms, staggering over to the black heap. She turned it over, to find herself staring into the green face of Elphaba, black tresses falling over her closed eyes.

"Oh, Unnamed God..." Fiyero gasped as he fell to his knees beside her.

"Elphie...wake up!" sobbed Glinda, hugging Elphaba's limp body close to her chest, rocking back and forth. "Please! Stay with me! It's too soon to say goodbye...too soon..."

Outside, thunderous clouds rolled just over the mountain tops, growling darkly. The winds howled with cold menacing despair, the dark shadows of the trees swaying vigorously, as if dancing to the sad song of the air. It was as if the weather were a reflection of her inner self. She wanted to hate herself, she wanted to let the guilt crush her and snap her, and yet she wanted to stay strong for Elphaba, and be there for her friend.

"G-glin..." Had she not been holding Elphaba close, she might've missed it. But she didn't. She looked down in shock, finding Elphaba's long black lashes fluttering slightly, but wide enough to reveal...blue eyes.

"Oh, Lurline! Fiyero she's still alive!"

Fiyero choked. "What?" Glinda lay her down, to find her chest still barely moving up and down.

"Oh sweet Oz, barely," he murmured, checking her pulse, "it's faint, but it's there! Oh, Glinda, she's alive!"

"Cadiopulmary resurrection!" cried Glinda. "We gotta revive her!"

"You mean cardiopulmonary resuscitation?" asked Fiyero, and Glinda nodded eagerly. "Yes, we do, but how? I don't want to kill her doing it wrongly."

"There's a correct way of doing it?"

"I have no idea, I sleep during every life science lecture, but I vaguely remember Doctor Nikidik announcing a topic on emergency procedures before I dozed off."

Glinda smacked Fiyero on the head. "Damn you, Fiyero!"

"It's not a lost cause!" Fiyero said hurriedly. "We still have another person here that had surely been listening to the lecture."

"Fiyero, I didn't take life sciences in college -"

"No, I wasn't talking about you," Fiyero cut in.

"Then who -"

"I was talking about Boq."