This chapter has a lot of songs in it. So it's kind of short, but packed full of music. The next chapter will be longer and with more plot. Promise. As always, my buddy "Denpa Wave Chick Saki" co-wrote this with me. Enjoy!
"...and here is where you will be performing." Madame Morrible gestured to the area near the grand piano. "I hope it will suffice?"
Galinda smiled. "It will work wonderfully. Thank you very much, Madame."
The headmistress left, and Elphaba ran her hand across the piano keys lightly. "I don't think I have ever played a piano this nice before..."
"You'll do great, Elphie. I'll be right back. I'm just going to run to the bathroom really quick."
"All right..." Elphaba sat down at the piano, playing a few notes. She paused, trying to make sense of all of the feelings coursing through her body. After a few more moments, she started to play again. "When you try your best, but you don't succeed. When you get what you want, but not what you need. When you feel so tired, but you can't sleep. Stuck in reverse. And the tears come streaming down your face. When you lose something you can't replace. When you love someone, but it goes to waste. Could it be worse?" When Galinda walked back into the room, she paused for a few moments, listening to the song. She walked up behind Elphaba, moving to sit beside her on the bench. The green woman, who currently had her eyes closed, did not notice the blonde. "Lights will guide you home; And ignite your bones. And I will try...to fix you."
Galinda spoke softly. "It sounds beautiful, Elphie."
Elphaba jumped at the sound of Galinda's voice. "AH! I didn't...hear you come in..."
"Sorry. I didn't mean to frighten you. I just didn't want to interrupt."
"It's all right..." Elphaba cleared her throat. "Would...would you like to practice or...not..."
"I would like to warm up. Will you sing with me?" The blonde gave her a smile.
"O-oh...um...sure." Elphaba looked back down at the keys. "What are we...singing?"
"How about 'When You Believe'? Does that sound alright?"
Elphaba thought for a moment. "Yes...I think I know that one." Another pause, and then the green woman began to play.
"Many nights we've prayed, with no hope anyone could hear. In our hearts a hopeful song we barely understood."
"Now we are not afraid, although we know there's much to fear. We were moving mountains long before we knew we could," Elphaba joined in.
"There can be miracles when you believe. Though hope is frail, it's hard to kill. Who knows what miracles you can achieve when you believe. Somehow you will, you will when you believe," the two girls sang together.
"In this time of fear, when prayer so often proved in vain, hope seemed like the summer birds so swiftly flown away." Galinda watched Elphaba's fingers dancing across the keys.
"But now I'm standing here with heart so full I can't explain, seeking faith and speaking words I never thought I'd say."
"There can be miracles when you believe. Though hope is frail, it's hard to kill. Who knows what miracles you can achieve when you believe. Somehow you will, you will when you believe," they joined together again.
As the last notes faded away, Elphaba smiled at the blonde. "You sound amazing, Galinda..."
"Thank you," Galinda returned her smile. "You sounded great too, Elphie." The green woman blushed and opened her mouth to say more, but it was at that moment that a third person came into the room.
"I see you two started without me," Sarima said with a smile.
Galinda turned to the brunette. "Elphaba was just helping me warm up. Would you like to warm up as well?"
"Oh, I think I'm fine." Sarima looked Galinda up and down. "That is quite a stunning dress. Wherever did you buy it?"
"Oh...a friend gave it to me, actually," the blonde said, figuring Elphaba wouldn't want her to mention it.
"I see...well, you'll certainly stand out."
"Thank you...I think..." She mumbled the last part to herself.
"And, of course, no need to feel threatened," Sarima said with a smile. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I'll be right back."
Elphaba placed a hand on the blonde's arm after Sarima was gone. "You will do fine..."
Galinda gave her a small smile. "Thanks, Elphie."
As the officials and guests began to arrive, the three women waited by the piano. "How do I look?" Sarima asked, standing in front of the green woman.
"Fine..." Elphaba trailed off, her gaze on Galinda, who had her back to them.
Sarima noticed. 'No, I will not lose to that blonde airhead!' She took Elphaba's face in her hands, turning her head to look at her. "Hey. You need to focus."
"I am...focused..."
Galinda sat in her chair watching as everybody wandered in. She saw a flash of short blonde hair in the crowd and her breathing grew faster. 'Fiyero's here? What is he doi-' She relaxed more when she realized it wasn't him, but that little episode brought back everything that Elphaba had been telling her lately. 'Is she...right? Do I really need to leave him? No...well, only if I want to save myself more heartbreak. Oz, why did I have to fall for him...?"
Elphaba came up behind the blonde. "You are going to be singing first," she said, but she noticed that the blonde seemed deep in thought. "Galinda?"
Galinda snapped out of her reverie, turning to Elphaba. "Huh? Oh, I'm sorry, Elphie. What were you saying?"
"I just wanted to make sure that you knew you were performing first."
"Oh, alright. Thank you for telling me." She gave her a small smile.
"Galinda...is everything all right? Anything you want to talk about?"
"No. My mind was just drifting around." Elphaba nodded before giving the blonde's hand a squeeze.
"Good evening, everyone! Welcome to our annual benefit dinner and concert. Please take your seats and welcome our first performer, Miss Galinda Arduenna," Madame Morrible announced before stepping aside and joining the applause.
Elphaba leaned in close to the blonde. "Good luck," she whispered before she went to the piano and sat down. Galinda took a deep breath as she stood and moved to the microphone stand. She gave Elphaba a quick smile before giving her a small nod of her head, signaling her to start. The green woman returned the smile as she began playing, her eyes never straying from the blonde.
"Don't tell me not to live, just sit and putter, life's candy and the sun'sa ball of butter.Don't bring around a cloud to rain on my parade.Don't tell me not to fly-I've simply got to.If someone takes a spill,it's me and not you.Who told you you're allowedto rain on my parade!I'll march my band out,I'll beat my drum,and if I'm fanned out,"Galinda gripped the microphone in one hand, holding it close to her face, while her other hand pointed out at the audience. "Your turn at bat, sir. At least I didn't fake it.Hat, sir, I guess I didn't make it!But whether I'm the roseof sheer perfection,or freckle on the noseof life's complexion,the cinder or the shiny apple of its eye,I gotta fly once,I gotta try once,only can die once, right, sir?Ooh, love is juicy,juicy, and you seeI gotta have my bite, sir! Get ready for me, love,'cause I'm a 'comer,'I simply gotta march, my heart's a drummer.Don't bring around a cloud to rain on my parade!I'm gonna live and live now,get what I want-I know how, one roll for the whole shebang,one throw, that bell will go clang, eye on the target-and wham- one shot, one gun shot, and bam!" She flung her arms out and her head back in emphasis, slowly looking back at the audience with a smirk on her face. "Hey, Mister Arnstein, here I am!I'll march my band out,I will beat my drum,and if I'm fanned out,your turn at bat, sir,at least I didn't fake it.Hat, sir, I guess I didn't make it.Get ready for me, love,'cause I'm a 'comer,'I simply gotta march,my heart's a drummer.Nobody, no, nobodyis gonna rain on my parade!"
When the last notes faded away, Elphaba applauded with everyone else, a smile on her face. The blonde gave a curtsy and a smile to the crowd. "Thank you, Miss Galinda. Now, please welcome our second guest, Miss Sarima."
Sarima came onto the stage, offering Galinda a smile as the mic was handed off to her. After handing her the microphone, the blonde moved to sit in her chair quietly. Sarima nodded at Elphaba before turning back to the audience.
"There's a fire starting in my heart reaching a fever pitch, and it's bringing me out the dark. Finally I can see you crystal clear. Go ahead and sell me out and I'll lay your ship bare. See how I'll leave with every piece of you. Don't underestimate the things that I will do. There's a fire starting in my heart reaching a fever pitch and it's bringing me out the dark. The scars of your love remind me of us. They keep me thinking that we almost had it all. The scars of your love, they leave me breathless. I can't help feeling, we could have had it all. Rolling in the deep you had my heart inside of your hand, and you played it to the beat. Baby, I have no story to be told, but I've heard one of you, and I'm gonna make your head burn. Think of me in the depths of your despair making a home down there, as mine sure won't be shared. The scars of your love remind me of us. They keep me thinking that we almost had it all. The scars of your love, they leave me breathless. I can't help feeling we could have had it all. Rolling in the deep you had my heart inside of your hand, and you played it to the beat. We could have had it all. Rolling in the deep you had my heart inside of your hand, but you played it with a beating. Throw your soul through every open door. Count your blessings to find what you look for. Turn my sorrow into treasured gold. You pay me back in time and reap just what you sow. You could have had it all. Rolling in the deep you had my heart inside of your hand, but you played it. You played it. You played it. You played it to the beat."
Elphaba clapped after the song was finished but not as loudly as she had for Galinda. Sarima curtseyed to the crowd as well, then turned to Galinda, who was joining her for the duet.
Galinda came up to stand next to Sarima with a second microphone, signaling for Elphaba to start. "Maybe this time, I'll be lucky. Maybe this time he'll stay. Maybe this time, for the first time, love won't hurry away. He will hold me fast, I'll be home at last. Not a loser, huh anymore like the last time and the time before."
Sarima, who was not looking to be outdone, raised her own mic. "Everybody loves a winner, so nobody loved me. Lady Peaceful, Lady Happy, that's what I long to be. All the odds are, they're in my favor. Something's bound to begin. It's gonna happen, happen sometime. Maybe this time I'll win."
"'Cause, everybody, they love a winner, so nobody loved me. Lady Peaceful, Lady Happy, that's what I long to be."
"All of the odds are, they're in my favor. Something's bound to begin."
"It's gonna happen, happen sometime. Maybe this time."
"Maybe this time I'll win!"
"I'll win!" Galinda joined in as an echo, gliding up to a perfect high octave above Sarima. Elphaba struck the last notes on the piano and couldn't keep the grin off her face as she stood with the others to applaud. The blonde gave another curtsy and a smile to the crowd. She turned around with her hand outstretched to Elphaba, beckoning her to bow with her and Sarima as well. Elphaba sat and remained rooted to her seat, vehemently shaking her head. She shrunk further behind the piano. Galinda gave a small shrug before giving another smile to the crowd and walking off the stage.
Elphaba almost tripped over the bench, as she went after her. "Galinda, you were amazing!"
"Oh, thank you, Elphie. You were great too."
"W-well, I didn't do terribly much...but might I ask why you are leaving so soon?"
"Oh, I wasn't leaving. I was just getting off of the stage."
"O-oh...I knew that." Elphaba followed the blonde to their table. "Is your father here?"
"I suppose he might be. It really depends on how busy his schedule was today."
"So busy he can't even make time to see you?" Elphaba muttered, looking down. She shook her head and looked back up at the blonde. "So...what now? Do you want to stay?"
Galinda shrugged. "I'm used to it by now. It is just like any other benefit concert. He has more important issues at hand. I have accepted that over the years."
"I suppose..." Elphaba took the blonde's hand gently. "I'm sorry...I will always make time for you," she said with a slight smile.
"Thank you, Elphie." Galinda gave a small smile back. "I think I might head back to the room a little early."
Elphaba started to reply, but it was at that moment that Sarima came up to their table. "Your performance was impressive tonight," she said to the blonde. She grabbed Elphaba's arm and pulled her to her feet. "Come on. I want you to meet my father."
"Sarima, I-"
"It won't take long." The brunette started to lead her away and Elphaba could only twist around long enough to give the blonde a wave.
"Don't leave without me!" she called.
Galinda gave a smile and a wave back. She sat in her chair for a few more minutes, before she happened to glance up in time to see a familiar blonde man walking out the door of the building, arm in arm with another girl. 'He...he did come...and didn't even notice me...' Galinda's face fell and she stood, finding the nearest waiter and requesting a pen and paper. The blonde wrote a note to leave on the table saying, "Elphaba, I walked back to our room. I was feeling a little tired. Don't worry about me, I..." she thought for a moment, "...ended up running into Fiyero and he is going to walk me back. I will see you when you get back or in the morning if I am asleep. Have fun with Sarima. Love, Galinda." The blonde left the note on the table in front of Elphaba's chair before turning and leaving the room.
Elphaba, meanwhile, was trying very hard to get away from Sarima and her father, but that was certainly not happening anytime soon. She continued to scan the crowd, hoping that Galinda was staying put.
The blonde heiress slowly walked back to their room, softly singing to herself. "And now I'm all alone again,nowhere to turn, no one to go to.Without a home, without a friend, without a face to say hello to.And now the night is near, now I can make believe he's here.Sometimes I walk alone at night, when everybody else is sleeping, I think of him, and then I'm happywith the company I'm keeping.The city goes to bed, and I can live inside my head.On my own, pretending he's beside me.All alone, I walk with him till morning." Galinda wrapped her arms around herself. "Without him,I feel his arms around me, and when I lose my way I close my eyes, and he has found me.In the rain, the pavement shines like silver.All the lights are misty in the river.In the darkness, the trees are full of starlight,and all I see is him and me forever and forever." She looked up at the night sky, a tear rolling down her cheek. "And I know it's only in my mind, that I'm talking to myself and not to him.And although I know that he is blind, still I say, there's a way for us.I love him, but when the night is over, he is gone, the river's just a river.Without him, the world around me changes.The trees are bare and everywherethe streets are full of strangers.I love him, but every day I'm learning, all my life,I've only been pretending!Without me, his world will go on turning, a world that's full of happiness that I have never known!I love him...I love him...I love him...But only on my own..."
Elphaba finally managed to escape and hurried back to the table, where she found Galinda's note. She was not altogether happy, but she couldn't blame the blonde. She turned on her heel and, after exiting the building, started running back to Crage Hall. She entered their dark room, trying not to pant. "Galinda?" she whispered. "Are you awake?"
Galinda was softly humming the song she had sung when she had walked back, but she stayed where she was sitting on the windowsill, quickly wiping away some of her tears before looking back out the window at the full moon in the night sky. "I'm over here, Elphie."
The green woman approached her. "Sarima and her father really do like to talk. I thought I'd never- Galinda, you've been crying. What's wrong?"
"Nothing is wrong. I was just thinking...I'm sorry about Sarima's father though. He always was such a bore." She gave a half smile to her.
Elphaba pulled the blonde into a tight embrace. "Tell me what is wrong...it kills me to see you like this...I only want to help," she said softly.
"I...I saw...Fiyero..."
"He walked you back right?"
Galinda shook her head slowly before breaking down into tears. "I saw him leave...with another girl..."
Elphaba held the blonde tighter. "Oh, Galinda...I am so sorry...I can't...he is just...I'm sorry." Galinda simply clutched Elphaba closer to her, crying until there were no more tears left in her to cry. "Come on..." Elphaba picked her up gently before moving to sit on the bed, holding the blonde in her lap as she stroked her hair.
"Thank you, Elphie...You really are the best friend I have ever had..." She rested her head on the green woman's shoulder.
"I...I feel the same...about you..." Elphaba looked down at the blonde, brushing a few strands of hair from her face. "Do you think you can sleep? I won't leave..."
"Yeah...I think I can sleep..."
Elphaba pulled back the covers and helped the blonde underneath. She sat beside her, offering her a smile. "I'll wait until you fall asleep, all right?"
Galinda grabbed onto Elphaba's hand, holding it in her own. "Thank you..."
The green woman nodded before she leaned down to give the blonde a gentle kiss on the top of her head. "Sorry...was that terribly inappropriate?"
Galinda shook her head with a small smile. "No...how is it that you always know exactly what I need?"
"I have known you for a long time...I like to think I have learned something." Elphaba gripped the blonde's hand with a smile. "Now try to sleep...I will be here in the morning."
"Ok, Elphie...see you in the morning..." Galinda laid her head down, closing her eyes, but never letting go of Elphaba's hand. Elphaba smiled slightly, leaning down to kiss the top of her head again. She then moved to lean against the headboard and closed her eyes, her grip on Galinda's hand remaining just as strong.
The next morning, Galinda woke up just as depressed as she had been the night before. She rolled out of bed and dragged herself into the bathroom, starting a bath. The feeling of Galinda pulling away from her hand woke the green woman, and Elphaba looked up just in time to see the blonde dragging herself into the bathroom. "Good morning...not feeling terribly well, I assume?" Galinda shook her head, not speaking. She stripped off her nightgown and stepped into the tub with a sigh. "I see...well, that answers that, I suppose." Elphaba swung her legs over the side of the bed and stood, stretching. "If there's anything you need...please just let me know," she called to the blonde, who didn't reply. Galinda sat in the tub, her head resting on the side as she stared off into space. Elphaba took the blonde's silence as a 'no'. She sighed, before she started to change her clothes, realizing she was still in the same dress as the night before.
Nearly an hour later, the blonde finally emerged from the bathroom with a towel wrapped around herself. She went to sit at her vanity and started to slowly brush out her hair. It was at that moment that Elphaba returned to the room, a small bowl of grapes in one hand and coffee in the other. "Oh. You're out. I...I brought you a breakfast of sorts...do you think you're up to eating?"
Galinda shook her head. "No thank you, Elphie. I'm not very hungry right now. Thank you for doing that, though."
The green woman set the items down with a sigh and came up beside the blonde, kneeling to her level. "Galinda...I can't stand seeing you like this. At least promise me you will not go the whole day without trying to get some sort of nutrients in to your body."
The blonde gave her a half-hearted smile. "I promise I will eat sometime today." She turned back to her mirror, picking up her brush again.
Elphaba sighed again. "All right..." She took the blonde's hand and gripped it gently. "Just remember that I...I will be here for you...the entire way. No matter what you need...I will be here for you."
Galinda left her vanity to move into the closet, rifling through her clothes to find something to wear. "So what are your plans for the day, Elphie?"
"Do I ever make plans?" Elphaba replied, trying to lighten the mood. "I am available for whatever you want to do."
"I don't really feel like doing much today if that is alright with you. You don't have to hang around here if you don't want to."
Elphaba approached the blonde, turning her so that Galinda could look into her dark eyes. "Hey...there is nowhere else I would want to be right now, especially if it was away from you. I just...want you back...to your bubbly self."
She sighed. "I...I'm sorry, Elphie. I'm just not feeling up to it today..."
"And that's perfectly fine...but don't expect me to go anywhere. You are stuck with me...whether you like it or not."
Galinda finally settled on a simple pair of pants and a shirt, moving past Elphaba to go into the bathroom. She emerged a few minutes later fully dressed, and sat on the edge of her bed.
When Elphaba saw the blonde wearing pants, she knew that this was serious. She moved to sit beside her. "Galinda...what would you like to do today? I mean...I know you don't feel like going out...but do you really just want to sit here? How about you try drawing? That always brightens your mood, right?"
With a sigh, Galinda left the bed to go sit on the windowsill. "I don't really feel like drawing right now...maybe tomorrow..."
Elphaba followed her. "Well then, what are you going to do? Sulk all day? That is not healthy!"
The blonde looked up at her with sad eyes. "Elphaba, please...I can't deal with this today..." She brought her legs up to her chest and rested her head on her knees as she stared out the window, the bleak weather reflecting her mood perfectly.
Elphaba sighed again, this time in defeat. "I...I'm sorry." She sat beside the blonde, taking her into her arms. "Is...is this all right?" Galinda gave a small nod, as she snuggled deeper in to the green woman's embrace. Elphaba smiled slightly. "Good..."
Songs Used:
"Fix You" by Coldplay
"When You Believe" from "The Prince of Egypt"
"Don't Rain On My Parade" from "Funny Girl"
"Rolling In The Deep" by Adele
"Maybe This Time" from "Cabaret" (Glee Cast Version)
"On My Own" from "Les Misérables"