Disclaimer: I own nothing, nothing, and nothing.
A/N: Hello there darlings! This one took a while, didn't it? Never fear, I promise Chapter 7 will be faster.
As always, thank you, thank you to all of you who read and reviewed, you guys win at life. And, of course, thanks to my wonderful Beta Wolfie, for the typo hunting and grammar polishing.
This chapter has a small reference to an amazing work of fanfiction, whoever catches it wins a gold star! ( it's pretty easy, but not from this fandom)
Oh! on a completely random note: I've been listening to the German wicked recordings. Isn't Willemijn Verkaik freaking awesome? I so want to learn German now.
Chapter six:
"If you don't know by now"
Galinda awoke to a terrible headache and an annoying realization: Elphaba was not in their room.
Strange, Galinda thought as she slowly and painfully regained consciousness. What can Elphie be doing on a Saturday morning -afternoon - that's more important than being here with me?
Galinda got up, became dizzy and nauseous, vowed never to drink anything alcoholic ever again at least five times, and went to take a bath.
While Galinda relaxed and let the warm water work its magic, she tried to organize her thoughts of the previous evening. She vaguely recalled Fiyero talking to Elphaba, Boq telling a joke about a Turtle, a cat, a Prince and a Minister, drinks of all the colors of the rainbow, Pfanne – or was it ShenShen? – telling her that the way Elphaba's skin kept changing from green to pale green to dark green was funny, Avaric being his normal, annoying, arrogant self, and Elphaba being her normal, annoying, grumpy self.
From what she could remember, the night had been a complete success. She, Galinda Upland, best friend extraordinaire, had actually managed to get Elphaba into a bar!
Elphaba. Where was Elphaba, anyway? She should be here, helping Galinda get rid of this stupid headache, not wherever it was that Elphaba went when she wasn't with Galinda.
Galinda scowled at her bubbles.
I'm much more interesting than a stuffy old library!
In the middle of her second hair wash, Galinda realized it didn't actually matter where Elphaba was anyway, because Galinda was mad at her.
Elphaba spent most of her morning in the library reading psychology and medicine books. She read for hours and hours, while other students came and went.
Her research, however, was proving to be fruitless.
Nevertheless, she wasn't about to give up. She had to find some sort of explanation for Galinda's recent demented behavior somewhere in this. If the library didn't have the answers to her questions, well, she might lose the little faith she still had in the world.
While the librarian behind her table rearranged some books on the shelves, Elphaba took her notebook and re-read what she'd listed as Galinda's symptoms:
1) Feverish appearance: Flushed cheeks, sweaty hands.
2) Disorientation. Often gets lost in her thoughts.
3) Constant need of physical nearness.
4) Troubled sleep.
5) Increased –
Ugh. This isn't helping at all, Elphaba thought as she put the notebook aside. She considered taking a break from her research and going back to her room, but decided to avoid Galinda for a little while longer.
She grabbed a book at random from the enormous mountain she had formed on the table and started reading again.
After half an hour of useless, and quite frankly, disturbing reading, Elphaba was getting tired and frustrated again. Her eyes hurt from the hours of nonstop studying, her back ached, and she hadn't found a single answer. For the first time in her life, Elphaba found that a book could not solve her problems.
She closed Adolescent Trauma: The Road To Recovery with a sigh. She took off her glasses her rubbed her weary eyes.
This wasn't going anywhere. Clearly, Galinda wasn't suffering from psychological trauma. She didn't have Pneumonia, Yellow fever, Vinkus pox, or – Elphaba checked her notebook - Sesquipedalophobia, either.
Galinda's recent behavior was evidently related to something else. The question was: To what?
Maybe she had been having trouble with her classes? With her family? With her friends? Elphaba didn't find any of those scenarios possible. After all, Galinda always had trouble with her classes, and never before had it seemed to bother her. The only news Galinda ever received from her parents were gifts and nauseating letters full of love and cutesy nicknames like 'princess'. Galinda had seemed perfectly at ease with her friends the previous night at the bar.
Elphaba's musings were interrupted by someone calling her name.
"Elphaba, what a pleasant surprise!" Fiyero said, appearing between the stacks of books.
Great, just great. Fiyero was here.
What was Fiyero doing in a library, anyway? Was this some sort of conspiracy to make Elphaba lose her mind?
Elphaba was about to send him off as nicely as possible. She liked Fiyero, most of the time. Or she had liked him, when he was dating Galinda and was his normal empty-headed self.
"Elphaba? Hello?"
Then, it hit her. Fiyero had dated Galinda. He probably had talked to her about friends, school troubles, and family. He should be able to help her discover what was happening to Galinda and why she was acting so exceedingly peculiar. Or, at least, he would be able to guide her in the right direction.
In any case, Elphaba realized she needed all the help she could get. Alone with her books and medical journals, she was sinking fast.
Perfect. Elphaba closed her notebook and smiled.
"Hello, Fiyero," she said. "It is a pleasant surprise for me too."
Fiyero beamed.
What is it with these people and cheeriness?
Fiyero was convinced that Elphaba had to be the most interesting girl he had ever met. She was smart, funny, mysterious, beautiful, green, and had class and poise.
And she wouldn't care if he dropped dead.
"Did you have a good time last night?" he asked, trying to smile charmingly. It had never seemed to work with Elphaba before, but he tried anyway.
"It was…an experience." Elphaba looked like she wanted to say something else, but didn't, so Fiyero continued the conversation himself.
"I had a wonderful time, I think," he told her. He honestly didn't remember much of the previous night beyond the fourth round of drinks. He had the distinct impression, however, that he had made a complete fool of himself trying to charm Elphaba with his witty conversation.
When Elphaba didn't say anything after a few seconds, he started to feel as though the sheer awkwardness of the situation was going to drown him if he didn't do something soon.
The problem was that he didn't know what to do. This had never happened to him before. Girls loved him; they had always loved him. He never had to work for their attention. He just had to think long enough to decide which beautiful, popular girl he was going to date.
What was he supposed to do to get Elphaba to notice him?
Feeling completely out of his depth, he smiled his best smile at Elphaba. It was the only thing he could think of doing.
Well, the only appropriate thing he could think of doing.
Elphaba still looked uncomfortable, but she responded with a cautious half smile.
"Fiyero?" she asked quietly, after a few more moments of awkward silence.
Fiyero would later think he'd imagined the whole thing, but at that moment, Elphaba seemed nervous. Also, Fiyero was convinced she was blushing.
Fiyero immediately perked up. Maybe Elphaba wasn't uncomfortable! Maybe she was nervous! Maybe she was interested in him after all, but didn't know how to tell him!
This was wonderful.
"Yes?" He leaned closer to Elphaba, his tone soft and his smile still firmly in place and perfectly charming.
Elphaba looked alarmed at his actions, which made him feel a little less sure of himself.
"I need your help with something," she said.
Fiyero tried to make his smile, though it seemed impossible, wider and more charming.
"Anything. Anything," he whispered.
Then, looking even more alarmed and uncomfortable, Elphaba moved her chair away from him so quickly that she almost fell to the floor.
He lost all of his self confidence immediately.
"It's about Galinda," Elphaba informed him. Needless to say, he promptly deflated completely.
He should have known.
Of course it was about Galinda. Wasn't everything always about Galinda?
Elphaba found that Fiyero was of little use to her. Aside from his eagerness to help with 'anything', he, like all the books she had read, wasn't able to give her any answers.
"Maybe she had a fight with one of her friends?"
"They seemed perfectly amicable yesterday," Elphaba surmised. However, she mused internally, her knowledge of sociable interactions wasperhaps a bit lacking.
"Yes, of course they seemed amicable, but you know how girl friendships are," Fiyero said. Elphaba arched an eyebrow in question.
"They can hate each other," he explained, "and still seem as if they are the best of friends. And then, at the first opportunity, stab each other in the back."
"You think that's the case?" Elphaba asked, unsure.
"I don't know. Maybe Galinda and one of her friends like the same boy?" Fiyero wondered as he flipped through one of Elphaba's medical books. "Galinda was a bit strange yesterday. Maybe it had to do with Avaric flirting with ShenShen?"
Aha!
Elphaba smiled. Finally, Fiyero had given her valuable information. This had something to do with boys. It was so simple that Elphaba laughed at her own stupidity. Of course it had something to do with boys.
Wasn't everything always about boys?
Elphaba bolted from her chair, ready to solve her problem once and for all. Apparently, she was a bit abrupt. Fiyero jumped in surprise and fell from his place at the table.
"Fiyero," Elphaba said while she picked her things up from the library table. "This conversation has been most helpful. Thank you."
"You're leaving? I'll walk you to your room." Fiyero extended his arm in Elphaba's direction, and she assumed he was offering it for Elphaba to take.
Instead of doing that, Elphaba filled Fiyero's arms with so many books that he could hardly move.
"Thank you," she said. "I'll need some help getting these books to my room."
Fiyero scowled fiercely at the books, and then shrugged. That, Elphaba thought, was a poorly calculated choice, since it caused two books to fall from his arms. This, of course, brought forth more scowling.
Elphaba chuckled. "Are you sure you can handle all that knowledge?" she asked.
"Yes, yes." He picked the books up from the floor, carefully balancing the other ten that were in his arms, and smiled at her. "After all, needs must."
Elphaba didn't know what he meant by that, but found herself smiling in return.
Fiyero wasn't so bad after all.
When Elphaba finally returned to their room, Galinda was just about ready to die from simple, utter boredom.
"Where have you been?" Galinda snapped as soon as Elphaba crossed the threshold.
"In the library," Elphaba answered simply, an eyebrow rising impossibly high. If Elphaba sensed Galinda's anger, she certainly didn't show it.
Galinda grew madder still.
Elphaba, paying no mind to Galinda's huffing and arm-crossing, turned to the door and said, "You can come in," to someone outside.
When Galinda saw Fiyero walking through the door, looking as if he couldn't be happier and carrying what appeared to be Elphaba's books, Galinda almost punched him in the face.
What was Fiyero doing with Elphaba, her Elphie, carrying her books and smiling like an idiot?
"Fiyero! What a nice thing to do, helping Elphaba with her books!" Galinda exclaimed cheerily. After all, even if she did want to cause Fiyero severe pain, it was no reason for her to lose her manners.
She just had to make sure Elphaba never, ever, ever paid attention to him.
"It was nothing," Fiyero said. His face, however, disagreed with that statement. He was flushed with the effort of carrying the pile of huge, obscure books Elphaba favored, and his cheeks were glossy with the slightest hint of sweat.
"Where do I put these?" he asked, still smiling his stupid smile.
When Elphaba answered, "Just leave them on the table," smiling back at him, a voice in Galinda's mind yelled, "They're smiling at each other! Do something!"
At a loss, Galinda did the only thing she could think of. Stepping between Elphaba and Fiyero, she grabbed two books from Elphaba's arms.
"I'll help you!" Galinda announced, delivering a smile so wide it could easily match Fiyero stupid one.
"Oh, thank you. But there's no-"
"I'll. Help. You," Galinda growled in response to Elphaba's unfinished rebuke.
"I- Yes. Of course. Help away."
When Elphaba's absurd mountain of books was settled on the table, Galinda noticed that Elphaba and Fiyero were still standing much too close.
Galinda though her situation was most unfair.
After all, if Elphaba had to decide to suddenly bond with Fiyero, couldn't she at least have had the simple decency of doing it somewhere else rather than the stupid library? Somewhere Galinda could have been present to put an immediate end to it?
"Well, I guess I should go now," Fiyero said, smiling at Elphaba. It was as though Galinda wasn't in the room at all, or as if Galinda didn't even exist.
"Maybe, uhm, you would like to go drink something? Coffee?" Fiyero asked Elphaba.
"They're still smiling. Make it stop!" the voice in Galinda's brain screeched. Galinda was disturbed to find that the voice sounded very much like Madame Morrible's.
The only sensible course of action Galinda could think of was getting Elphaba as far away from Fiyero as she could manage. That, of course, included thwarting any plans for coffee drinking.
"Oh, I'm so sorry Fiyero. But Elphie and I already have plans," Galinda said, gently grabbing Elphaba's arm, her voice as sweet as saffron cream.
"We do?" was Elphaba's perplexed reply.
"Did I forget to mention it? I need to buy a new pair of shoes."
"That plan doesn't sound like it needs my presence," remarked Elphaba reasonably.
"But Elphie, I need you to help me choose!" Galinda pouted.
"All right, all right." Elphaba sighed and rubbed her temples. "Thank you for the offer Fiyero, but it seems I already have plans."
Urged by an impulse Galinda could not control, she stood on her tip-toes and kissed Elphaba on the cheek.
"Thank you," Galinda whispered against Elphaba's cheek, just loud enough for Fiyero to hear.
Elphaba blushed an impossible shade of dark green.
Halfway through her shopping spree, Galinda had remembered she was mad at Elphaba. This, of course, puzzled Elphaba to no end.
"Galinda, if you brought me shopping with you, only so you could ignore me, I must say that isn't very nice of you."
Galinda didn't dignify Elphaba's statement with an answer. She went to pay for her new pair of obscenely expensive, uncomfortable looking yellow shoes instead.
As Galinda and the shop employee traded pleasantries, Elphaba fumed.
Honestly, this was absurd. First, Galinda acted all strange and tactile, utterly embarrassing Elphaba. And now, she was angry at Elphaba for no reason at all.
Sweet Oz, Elphaba though. Galinda should have come with an instruction manual!
"Have I done something to upset you?" Elphaba's irritation evidently showed, because Princess Galinda finally deigned to answer.
"Yes."
Well, at least Galinda was talking.
"May I ask what it is that I've done?" Elphaba quietly asked, trying to keep her annoyance in check. Now that she had gotten Galinda to talk to her, she didn't want to cause Galinda to be silent - and sulky - for another hour.
"If you don't know, I'm certainly not going to tell you," Galinda said, and her chin got so high, Elphaba feared she might crack her neck.
Galinda put the bag with her new shoes in Elphaba's arms and stormed out of the shop.
Elphaba was about to follow her when she saw a boy she knew from Psychics class give her a sympathetic look. He, like her, also had his arms full of bags. And he, like her, was being dragged around the shop by a pretty girl.
"I understand," his gaze seemed to say. But when Elphaba was about to get close enough to ask him what was thathe understood and if he could please explain it to her, Galinda appeared seemingly out of nowhere.
"Elphaba," she hissed, grabbing Elphaba's arm in a vice-grip. "We need to go."
Noticing that somehow, she had managed to anger Galinda again, Elphaba let herself be dragged out of the shop without argument.
Out of the corner of her eye, Elphaba saw the boy mouth, "Flowers," to her.
There was no questioning it anymore. Everyone in Shiz had gone completely, utterly insane.
Galinda had the nagging suspicion that Elphaba had been dropped on her head as a child.
"Galinda, please, tell me what it is that I've done to upset you," Elphaba pleaded for the fifth time.
"No," was Galinda's answer, like it had been the previous four times.
"Then, for whatever it is I've done, I ask forgiveness."
Galinda didn't want to forgive Elphaba yet. It wasn't only that Elphaba had been clearly flirting with Fiyero. Galinda had been mad at Elphaba before that.
Galinda thought her anger was most easy to understand if one hadn't been dropped on one's head as a child.
Elphaba had done nothing. Nothing. Galinda had changed the world for her, she had made her popular, Galinda alone had created the perfect environment for Elphaba to ask her out. And yet, Elphaba had done nothing!
When Elphaba gently grabbed her hand to spin her around and angrily asked, "Can you at least answer me?" something dawned on Galinda.
Galinda had assumed any romantic relationship she could have with Elphaba would progress as any of her previous liaisons did. Elphaba would want her, and as soon as she had the opportunity, she would ask Galinda out.
Galinda had not considered the possibility that she would have to make Elphaba want her. Granted, she had anticipated flirting and flouncing, but she had expected Elphaba would initiate things.
As it was, Galinda realized she had yet to actually seduce Elphaba.
"Galinda, are you even hearing me?"
"Yes, Elphie. I heard you," Galinda said. "You are forgiven."
Elphaba gave a sigh of relief and smiled.
"Thank you," she said. "Someday, though, you'll have to explain to me what it was I did that needed to be forgiven."
"Don't worry," Galinda giggled as she intertwined her fingers with Elphaba's. "Someday, you'll understand."
Galinda kissed Elphaba on the cheek, and when Elphaba predictably blushed, but continued to hold Galinda's hand, Galinda smiled inwardly.
Elphaba had no idea what she was in store for.