My buddy "Denpa Wave Chick Saki" co-wrote this with me. Enjoy!
"See? It's a good thing we switched groups. We are working much more efficiently on our own than we were with the others," Elphaba said as she walked with Galinda to the next day's class.
The blonde smiled back at her. "I'll admit, you were right. We have gotten quite a lot done, haven't we?"
Elphaba nodded, and opened her mouth to say something else when an interesting sight caught her eye. "Um...isn't that...Fiyero? Why is Sarima hanging on his arm like that?"
Galinda turned to look, her jaw almost dropping. "I...I have no idea. When did that happen?"
"I mean, I-I understand Fiyero being a womanizer and all..." The green woman trailed off, wondering why Sarima would even consider being with him. She had snapped at Elphaba less than a week beforehand, swearing she would have the green woman for her own. "So how can she have moved on already...?"
"Hmm? What was that, Elphie?"
"Wha-" Elphaba looked at the blonde, realizing she had been thinking aloud. "N-nothing...just talking to myself." She poked Galinda in the side. "Why don't you go ask him?" she said teasingly.
Galinda jumped with a small squeal at the touch. "Elphie, don't! You know I'm ticklish."
"I know. You just make such cute noises." She readjusted the bag on her shoulder. "Well...if you won't ask...I-I will."
"You- what?"
"You heard me. I want to know what is going on, and standing here won't help us, so the only logical thing to do is ask." Elphaba started for the couple.
Galinda followed silently behind her. "Just...just try not to be rude, Elphie."
"Hey, you know me: I'm always cordial." She gave Galinda a half grin before she tapped Fiyero on the shoulder. When he turned towards her, she said, "Am I correct to assume that you and Miss Sarima are currently fuck- going out? I meant to say...going out..." Her face flushed in embarrassment.
Fiyero turned to the green woman. "Why, hello, Miss Thropp. Yes, it would be safe for you to assume that the lovely Sarima and I are going out." He gave a wink down to the brunette on his arm. Elphaba nodded, looking anywhere but at Sarima, who was looking rather composed today.
"Yes...how fortunate," Sarima said with a laugh that sounded almost forced. "Oh, Elphaba, I do apologize for what happened back in the Glikkus. I never meant to hurt you. I just...lost myself a little." A distant look filled the brunette's eyes.
"R-right...well, we were just...curious," Elphaba managed to get out, looking at Galinda. 'Help me!' she mouthed.
Galinda gave a smile. "Oh, thank you so much, Elphie." She turned to the blonde prince. "Elphaba was just being so kind as to satisfy my curiosity for me."
The green woman nodded in embarrassed agreement. "Galinda, let's go sit down and leave them alone." She took the blonde's arm and led her away. "Thank you," she sighed.
Galinda sat down in her seat, pulling Elphaba down beside her. "It's the least I can do for my best friend."
Elphaba blushed as she sat and quickly turned to pull her notebook from her bag to hide her darkened face. "Y-yes...well..." She began putting on a pretense of looking for her pen, unaware it was already on the desk.
The blonde giggled and picked up Elphaba's pen, holding it out to her. "Elphie, is this what you are looking for?"
She froze and sat up slowly. "Uhh...yeah..." She took it from the blonde, mumbling a "thanks" before she opened her notebook, leaning down so low that her nose almost touched the paper. "Why do you think they did it?"
Galinda shook her head with a shrug. "I have no idea. I knew Fiyero was a womanizer, but I didn't think he would move on quite that fast."
"And Sarima..." Elphaba didn't finish. She wasn't quite ready for Galinda to know about their love affair or the threat Sarima had made. "Well, as I have said before: people are impossible to please."
"Yeah. I suppose so." The blonde's thoughts drifted off. I guess last weekend must have been worse than I thought. I can't believe Sarima would do that to her. Elphaba must be crushed that Sarima moved on so fast after breaking up with her...
"It doesn't matter either way. Life goes on," the green woman said just as the lecture began. After class ended and the two were leaving, another sight caught Elphaba's eye and she smiled slightly. She leaned down close to Galinda's ear to say, "Your other suitor is fast approaching. Want me to deal with him?"
"What are you talking abo-" The blonde turned to the side, only to find herself quite close to a certain munchkin boy.
"G-good morning, Miss Galinda! I heard about you and Master Fiyero, and I am so very sorry!"
"That's what I'm talking about," Elphaba whispered.
"O-oh! Why, hello, Master Boq. It is so...good to see you again."
The munchkin grinned, pleased that the blonde had remembered his name. "Y-yes! I realize it may be soon, and forgive me if I cross any boundaries, but would you perhaps care to join me for lunch today? A-as friends, of course!" Elphaba chuckled softly at that, covering it with a cough, and fiddled with a loose seam on her dress.
"I- well, you see, I already have plans with Miss Elphaba. I'm sorry, Boq. Another time, maybe?"
The munchkin tried not to look disappointed. "Oh, yes...of course. I understand. Another time then." He scurried off, soon becoming lost in the crowd of students.
Elphaba raised an eyebrow. "What are these plans you speak of, and why was I not informed of them?"
The blonde gave her a quick glare. "You were just going to leave me there floundering, weren't you?"
"I asked if you wanted me to deal with it, and you seemed to be just fine. I can hunt him down and scare him off permanently if that is what you want."
"No, but the least you can do is have lunch with me, so I don't look like a liar."
Elphaba smiled slightly. "Oh, I just don't know...let me check my oh so busy social calendar...I am ever so popular, you know."
"Oh, come on. Let's go into town for lunch." She grabbed Elphaba's hand and pulled her.
"Yes, Miss Galinda," the green woman said with a smile. As they headed outside, Elphaba looked up at the gray clouds, frowning slightly. "I don't like the looks of those clouds..."
"Then I guess we should hurry up and find somewhere." Elphaba nodded as they continued walking. No sooner had they reached town than the green woman let out a hiss, feeling a burning drop hit her face. The blonde also felt a drop hit her own skin. She quickly stripped off her sweater and held it over Elphaba's head to protect her. "Let's go, Elphie."
"Put your clothes back on, woman!" Elphaba said loudly with a grin before she pulled her hood up. "Stop stripping!" The green woman laughed at the stares they were receiving before she started running down the street, casting a glance back at Galinda.
Galinda followed her with a grin. "Let's try going in there!" She pointed to what looked like a cafe up ahead of them.
The green woman opened the door, holding it for the blonde and closing it as she followed Galinda in. She lowered her hood as she gave the heiress a grin. "This is cozy."
Galinda looked around, beginning to recognize the place. "Hey, this is the same place Fiyero took me to before we..." she trailed off.
"O-oh...it is..." Elphaba looked back at the blonde. "Would you perhaps like to go somewhere el-" Before she could finish, someone heading for the exit bumped into her shoulder roughly.
"Watch it," the man growled.
Elphaba was about to reply, but that voice...her eyes fell on the man's face. So familiar...and then it hit her. "You..."
"What are you staring at?"
Elphaba was on him in an instant, tackling him into a table. "YOU BASTARD! I'M GOING TO KILL YOU!" she shouted as she began striking him in the face, all the awful memories from the Ozdust pouring back.
"Elphaba, what in Oz are you doing?" She quickly grabbed onto the green woman's arms, trying to pull her back.
"LET GO!" Elphaba pushed the blonde away.
"What the fuck did I do to you?" the man asked.
The green woman slammed his head into the ground. "DON'T ACT LIKE YOU DON'T KNOW!"
"ELPHABA, YOU NEED TO STOP THIS!" She grabbed onto her arm again, holding tighter this time.
The man managed to shove Elphaba off. "You're crazy!"
"You attacked us!" Elphaba screamed back. "I spent three months in a cast because you shattered my ankle! You would have raped the heiress of Oz, if I hadn't stepped in and I'M GOING TO KILL YOU FOR IT!"
Galinda let go of her in a gasp, suddenly remembering the man as well. She brought a hand up to her face where the man had punched her across the face. "Elph..." She snapped herself out of the memory, bringing herself back to what was happening at the moment. "Elphie, you need to stop this! Leave him for the police. He's not worth it. Please..."
The man had escaped by that time, and Elphaba let out an angry growl. She became aware of the stares she was receiving and chose to ignore them, stalking to a small table in the corner and slumping down in the seat, crossing her arms angrily and muttering under her breath. Oz, this made her mad! Being able to confront her attacker...and he had gotten away with nothing more than a slight beating. It was nothing compared to everything he'd done to them...
The blonde heiress ordered them some drinks before moving to sit across from Elphaba. She reached over to hold the green woman's hand in her own. "I'm sorry, Elphie. I know how much you wanted to get revenge on him."
Elphaba's hand twitched in Galinda's grasp. "It isn't fair. I should be able to protect you...to teach scum like him a lesson!" She slammed her fist into the table, knocking the sugar shaker over.
"You did protect me. I would have been in the hospital for weeks if you hadn't saved me."
The green woman looked at the blonde with a sigh. "I'm sorry I lost my composure again in public...I'm not doing a very good job of behaving, am I?"
Galinda gave a soft chuckle, nodding in thanks to the waiter when he brought their drinks. "No, you really aren't too good at it."
"Galinda, I...I really do try, and I don't mean to embarrass you...but now that you're my best friend...I can't help myself. I just...I want to protect you from ever getting hurt, because I know how cruel the world can be. Please...please don't hate me...for this."
"I don't hate you, Elphaba."
The green woman took a large gulp of her drink nervously, not realizing it was boiling hot. She had to keep from spitting it all over Galinda, and her eyes watered involuntarily. "Oww..."
Galinda chuckled, quickly using a napkin to dab away the unshed tears from Elphaba's eyes. "You should be more careful, Elphie."
"Thanks. " Elphaba put a hand to her throat. "Nnn...so are you regretting turning Master Boq down for this?"
"No. Not at all. I would much rather have a nice lunch with my best friend than have a munchkin hanging on my every word." She smiled.
The green woman returned the gesture. "I'm flattered."
"A-all right...so...do you have any experience with the piano at all?"
The blonde shook her head. "Nope. I mean, I have seen people play, but I don't know what any of the keys or foot thingys actually mean."
Elphaba smiled slightly before she sat on the bench. "Come sit with me."
Galinda move to sit beside her, looking down at the keys. "So what do I do?"
"First off, those 'foot thingys' are called pedals. They change how the piano sounds. From left to right, it's the soft pedal, the sostenuto pedal, and the sustaining pedal. Now as for the keyboard itself, this piano is older, so it has 85 keys with seven octaves." She looked at the blonde. "With me so far?" Galinda nodded her head. "All right." Elphaba placed her fingers lightly on the keys. "Now, the harder you push the keys, the harder the hammer hits the string, and the louder the note you get." She demonstrated her point. "Just place your fingers on the keys, and try relaxing your hands while pressing lightly."
"Alright..." The blonde put her hands on the keys, relaxing her muscles as she was told, and she gently pushed down on them. She looked up at Elphaba with a smile.
"See? Not terribly hard." Elphaba readjusted her glasses, turning back to the piano. "Now just think of a song you like and try playing that melody. Don't worry about getting the notes right away." Galinda thought for a moment before very slowly starting to tap out a tune. "Learning by ear isn't as hard as you might think. Reading sheet music actually becomes easier once you have a feel for what each key sounds like. So if you can remember which sound is associated with which key, you'll have no problem, really." Elphaba smiled at the blonde before she began playing a tune to complement Galinda's. Galinda continued tinkering her little tune, grinning up at the grinning woman in excitement. "You're getting the hang of it," Elphaba said, her own face turning dark green as she did her best to keep her own excitement from brimming over, but the blonde's mood was contagious. Elphaba looked back down at the keys, her hands subconsciously moving faster.
As their speed grew faster, the blonde started to mess up her notes. After a particularly loud, out of tune note, she gave up, sitting back with a sigh. The green woman paused at the foul note and looked at the blonde. "S-sorry...when I get nervous, I play faster. But that was good for your first time."
Galinda blushed. "Th-thanks..."
"S-so like I said...it isn't terribly hard. It'll just take practice, but you can't get frustrated if you mess up. You have to keep playing over and over until it's ingrained in your mind. Repetition and rhythm come first; everything will eventually follow."
"Okay, Elphie. I'll try my best."
The green woman nodded, her fingers running lightly over the keys. "So...is there anything else you'd like to know?"
"I think it's just like you said: I need to practice...a lot." She giggled.
"W-well, I don't expect you to get it right away," Elphaba said, her face growing darker.
"I'm glad you don't, because that would definitely not happen. Give me a few weeks or so." She smiled at the green woman. "How long did it take you to learn?"
"A month...I didn't have much else to do with my time. I was young then...not much was demanded of me at the time. I was told to stay out of the way, so I found my escape here."
"Oh, I see. Well, obviously it worked. You're quite good at it, Elphie."
"Thank you." Elphaba sighed before she looked at Galinda. "It was the closest thing I had to a normal childhood. A-and what about you? When did you start dancing?"
"Long before you started working for me...almost since I could walk, really."
"I see...so I just never saw it then, seeing as you and I didn't see much of each other those first few years. Still, of all the things I learned, I could never quite get dancing down."
The blonde giggled and stood, holding her hands out to Elphaba. "Then I suppose that's where I come in. It's my turn to teach you now."
Elphaba's face turned slightly pale. "Uhh...I-I don't know, Galinda..."
"Come on, Elphie. That was the deal, wasn't it? You would teach me piano, if I would teach you to dance."
"H-how about I just teach you piano? I can live with that!"
"Nope." She grabbed Elphaba's hands and tugged her to her feet with a grin. "You're not backing out now."
"N-no! What if I step on you? I d-don't dance!" Elphaba resisted against the blonde.
"That's too ba-" Galinda stopped when she heard the door to the room open. She turned to see a young man standing in the doorway, recognizing her father's regalia on his uniform. "Oh, hello. Is there something I can do for you, sir?"
The young man stepped forward, holding out an envelope to her. "I have an urgent letter from the Wizard for you, Miss Arduenna."
Elphaba used the distraction to scamper back to the piano bench, sitting down and preparing to root herself there. "What does it say? Is everything all right?" she asked once the man had left.
The blonde opened up the letter reading it, her shoulders falling when she finished. "For Oz's sake! Why must who do this to me?" She leaned heavily against the wall, letting the letter fall to the floor.
"What is it? What's wrong?" Elphaba leapt off the bench and ran to the blonde's side.
"I could deal with it when I still lived in the palace and I could easily change my plans, but this? He's making me go on another carriage ride for hours so that he can please another one of his oh so important diplomats." She sighed.
"Galinda, what is it? Where is he sending us?" The green woman stooped down to pick up the fallen letter.
"Father is having some important people over for a dinner. One of them, apparently, has requested my presence at the dinner. So we need to be at the palace tonight."
"T-tonight?" Elphaba looked at the blonde. "B-but, we would have to leave...right now to be ready by tonight! W-we barely have time to pack!"
"Ah, so do you see now why I am so upset? Come on. Let's go, Elphie." She grabbed her bag and headed for the door.
Elphaba quickly followed after her, and once they reached their room, she began throwing things into her suitcase. "Now would be an ideal time for you to consider traveling light."
Galinda chuckled. "Oh, believe me, I plan on doing just that. All I'm taking is one outfit, my makeup, and my art supplies." She started putting those things into her duffel bag.
"That is impressive. Perhaps we should rush more often," the green woman said with a grin before she slung her bag over her shoulder. "Come on, let's go!"
"I wouldn't get used to it, Elphie." The blonde chuckled, slipping the strap of her bag over her shoulder, and she followed the green woman.
"Oh believe me. I have grown quite used to packing copious amounts of luggage for you." The two emerged and soon reached the carriage, hopping inside. "But isn't it so much easier to just pack lightly?"
Galinda shook her head. "I like having options for my wardrobe choices."
"You should try having three outfits like me. It makes life so much easier." The carriage lurched forward as it started off, causing Elphaba to smack her head against the roof. "Gah, every time!" she said, putting a hand to it with a growl.
The blonde giggled. "You should just accept the fact that it's never going to happen. I will always love my clothes, Elphaba."
When the carriage arrived at the palace, the two women leapt out, barely managing to give Nessa a "hello" as they ran to their respective rooms. Elphaba grabbed her emerald suit and tripped over her dress as she wriggled out of it.
"You're late," Nessa said, wheeling in the doorway.
"I know that!" Elphaba retorted, realizing her pants were on backwards. She took them off with a growl. "We only just got the letter after our first class."
"The dinner is going to start in less than two hours."
"I know that too!" Something didn't feel right, and Elphaba looked back down to see that her pants were backwards again. "WHAT IS UP WITH THESE PANTS?" Nessa giggled before she left to see how her blonde sister was faring.
After rushing into her own room, Galinda quickly stripped off her own clothes. She threw on a robe and sat at her vanity to work on her hair and makeup. "Elphaba has pants issues," Nessa announced as she wheeled into Galinda's room.
"IT'S NOT ME! THESE PANTS ARE BROKEN!"
"I rest my case."
The blonde giggled from where she was sitting. She called behind her, "Do you require assistance, Miss Thropp?"
"NO I DO NOT, THANK YOU VERY LITTLE, MISS GALINDA ARDUENNA, HEIRESS OF OZ, PERSON WHO HAS TOO MANY DRESSES!"
Galinda broke out into a fit of laughter. "Elphaba, are you really having that much trouble with your pants?"
"NO I'M NOT! LEAVE ME AND MY BROKEN PANTS ALONE!"
Nessa shook her head with a sigh. "She's just impossible." The brunette wheeled up to her sister's side. "Galinda...how are you going to deal with...him?"
The blonde turned to her, a confused expression on her face. "Deal with who?"
Nessa paused. "Uhhh...so how's that sorcery class...going?"
"Nessaaaa...tell me. Who are you talking about? Who is going to be at this dinner?"
The brunette wrung her hands nervously. "I thought you knew...it would be like Father to keep it a secret. Well, you see, it's like this-"
"Dear Oz, that was ridiculous!" Elphaba said, coming into the room and doing up the buttons on her jacket.
Galinda reached over to grab Nessa's hands. "Nessa, tell me."
Nessa winced slightly, but only because of what she was about to say. "It was...Devon who requested your...appearance. There I said it! Are you happy now?"
The blonde turned back to her vanity with a moan. "Ozdamnit, I should have known."
"Devon is going to attend?" Elphaba's eyes narrowed. "I can take care of this nuisance once and for all, if you permit me."
Galinda returned to doing her makeup. "Elphaba, I would like nothing more than to just let you at him, but you know we can't do that."
"But why not? As your bodyguard, it is my duty and obligation to remove anything that poses a threat to you, and I see him as a threat. Therefore, he needs to be removed."
"We can't just get rid of him. Father would never allow it, and we would both be severely punished. We will just have to deal with, Elphie."
"But I don't want to just deal with it," Elphaba muttered under her breath, looking down.
"Why is he so persistent? Can't he take a hint?" Nessa said.
"Nessa, hints bounce off men like you wouldn't believe."
"Well, not all men. Most of them take the hint after a while, but Devon...well, he's just a tad too persistent." She finished her makeup and started on her hair.
"Oh, what do you know about men, Galinda?" Elphaba said.
The blonde turned to look at her. "Do you doubt that I know more about men than you do?
"Yes. Yes, I do. What are you going to do about it?"
"Well, I suppose I can't do too much about it. Although...no. That would be too cruel." She shook her head with a smile.
"What? Come on. You can't leave me in suspense here!"
"I could order you to wear that dress I gave you for Lurlinemas to dinner...but, like I said, I'm not quite that cruel." The blonde finished artfully curling her hair before getting up and moving into her closet.
There was a pause in which the two brunettes exchanged looks. Nessa shrugged and gestured towards the blonde. Elphaba looked back in her direction. "But...how would that prove you know more about men than me?"
"I didn't say I was going to prove that. You were the one who doubted me, and you asked what I was going to do about it."
Another set of exchanged looks between the brunettes. "I rest my case," Elphaba said, unaware she was echoing Nessa's exact words from earlier.
"Well, have fun getting ready, you two," Nessa said before she wheeled from the room.
Galinda sat down in her chair, tucking her dress underneath her. The blonde had finally decided on a simple, strapless pink dress that cut off just below her knees. With a smile, she patted the seat next to her, gesturing for Elphaba to sit. Elphaba looked at the seat uncertainly and instead chose to stand behind Galinda's chair, as she was accustomed to doing. Her dark eyes scanned the room.
"Have you seen him yet?" Nessa asked, wheeling up beside her sister.
The blonde shook her head, speaking softly so only Nessa could hear, "Maybe he simply won't show up, and we can all have a pleasant night." She kept a fake smile plastered on her face.
"Wouldn't that be lovely?" Nessa said.
"Yes...but I'm afraid it may only be wishful thinking," Elphaba said. "Please let me deal with him once and for all. I won't hurt him, I swear."
"Elphaba, you know you wouldn't be able to control yourself around him. Just leave it. It's something we simply have to learn to deal with." Galinda smiled politely at the people who filtered into the room and began taking their seats.
"Don't tell me how I would and would not act! You may know me, but you don't know me that well, Galinda."
The blonde gave a shrug. "Face it, already. We can't get rid of this problem. We're stuck with it. Please just leave it alone. I would rather have a good time tonight while I still can."
"Fine," Elphaba huffed, but she forced herself to calm down, if only for Galinda's sake. The blonde was too nice and well-mannered for her own good, but there was nothing the green woman could do without Galinda's "okay". She chose to instead watch the guests, hands clasped tightly behind her back.
Galinda gave her a small smile and turned back to the guests, talking to them politely. When dinner was brought out, the blonde serious began to wonder if Devon would even show up after all. Her smiles grew a little more genuine at the thought, but then she turned to see him striding through the door with his father, and her smile faltered the slightest bit.
Elphaba's thoughts had been along the same line, and she shared Galinda's disappointment when she saw him enter. "He could at least be on time," she grumbled, reaching over to help Nessa cut a particular tough piece of meat.
The blonde's spirit fell even further when Devon happened to choose the empty seat next to her. He turned to her with a bow of his head. "Good evening, Miss Galinda. It is so good to see you here tonight."
Galinda turned to him, giving a small bow of her head as well. "And it is good to see you as well, Master Devon."
"Yes, we were afraid all the food would be gone by the time you decided to grace us with your presence," Elphaba all but spat.
The blonde sneakily gave her a light smack on the leg. "Please don't mind her. She has always been one to speak her mind, whether the time is appropriate or not."
Devon turned back to his meal with a shrug. "It doesn't matter to me. People like her are inconsequential. The higher caliber of people, like you and I, can't be bothered with them." He didn't notice the blonde grinding her teeth or clenching her fists beside him. "So, on another note, how have your studies been going at Shiz, Miss Galinda?"
Galinda forced herself to relax, returning to her meal. "My studies have been going quite well, thank you."
"That's very good to hear. So I hope you wouldn't mind settling something for me that I just happened to hear?"
"Go ahead, and ask away," Galinda said, even though she had a pretty good idea what he was curious about.
"Well, you see, I have been hearing a few rumors here and there that you and a certain prince of the Vinkus are...no longer together. Would it be terribly impolite of me to ask if that rumor is true?"
The blonde shook her head. "Master Fiyero and I simply aren't meant to be. His priorities are different than mine, and we were just upsetting each other. So we thought it would be best to just break it off, you see." It was obvious why Devon was asking these questions, and that only made Elphaba angrier, but she kept her mouth tightly shut.
"Perhaps it would be best for my sister to take a break from all men," Nessa said, putting an emphasis on "all."
Devon leaned close to the blonde, taking her hand in his own in what seemed like a comforting gesture, but it was really more possessive than comforting. He whispered in her ear, "I'm sure you will be fine, though. There are, after all, plenty of other eligible young men in Oz, am I right, Miss Galinda?"
Galinda gave him a small smile. "Oh, you are very right, Master Devon. In fact, one man in particular has already caught my eye."
The inky haired diplomat's son smirked. "Really? And am I allowed to know who this man is?"
"Oh, I don't know...I'm sure you wouldn't know him, Master Devon. You see, I met him at Shiz as well. He is an absolutely delightful person." With another smile, she pulled her hand from Devon's and returned to her meal, reveling in his displeasured look.
"Yes, well, I can't wait to meet this mystery man. Anybody who is swell enough to capture the heart of such a beauty as yourself, must be quite the catch." With almost a glare, he turned back to his food, not saying another word.
Elphaba raised an eyebrow. She was almost sure that Galinda was lying to head Devon off, but even so...could it be true? And if so, who could that man be? Galinda had hardly had any interaction with men after Fiyero. Unless...no...Galinda couldn't possibly be referring to...Elphaba?
"But I thought you were off men," Nessa said, catching herself too late.
Galinda turned to give her sister a look. "Well, I was, but when I met...Boq, I simply couldn't help but be attracted to him." By that time, however, had completely lost interest in the conversation.
"What? But you-" The green woman was silenced by an elbow to the stomach from Nessa.
"Thank you, Nessa. I'm sure Boq and I will be quite happy together."
"What Animal do you suppose your meal used to be?" Elphaba said, desperate to change the subject.
"Elphaba, you know very well that the palace is extremely careful about not using meat from Animals. Do you have any idea how much of an uproar that would cause?"
"Do you know how much your father doesn't care?" Elphaba looked away. "The whole idea disgusts me..."
"Elphaba don't. Not here," the blonde hissed at her. The green woman did not reply.