DISCLAIMER: The characters you recognise from Wicked aren't mine, obviously. But the other characters are.

AN. This is the chapter when I was like... yeah. This is too long for a oneshot.

Chapter 4: Answers

Two days later, Fiyero and Kasmira set off for Munchkinland.

Fiyero spent most of the journey torn between wondering what to say to Elphaba when he saw her; and trying to put himself in her shoes as he thought of her making the same journey.

They were staying at the Munchkinland branch of The Pinnacle, timing their check in for the evening in order to attract less attention. Fiyero didn't want Elphaba to hear that he was here before he got a chance to see her. He remembered Elphaba's comments about how Munchkins gossiped. He didn't want to contribute to the grapevine.

Because it was Munchkinland (at least Fiyero assumed this, based on what Elphaba had told him about her homeland), The Pinnacle had only a single suite, which fortunately was available and given to them. Royalty did have its perks, considering the only notice they'd given was a telegram two days ago.

The suite overlooked Munchkin City, and from the large window in the main room, Fiyero could see the big white house upon the hill that could only be the Governor's mansion.

"I can see why she left," he said, looking at the view.

From the moment they'd crossed the border, all he had been able to think was that he couldn't picture Elphaba here. The country towns, the endless fields of livestock and crops. After being with her in the City, and seeing how she'd thrived, he had no trouble understanding why she wanted more and been prepared to go to any lengths for it. And that was without any real knowledge of her family life.

"Elphaba's so much more than all this, Mom."

"I'm sure Munchkinland has its own charms once you've been here longer than five minutes, Fiyero," Kasmira replied, slightly exasperated.

Fiyero doubted that.

"Do you know what you're going to say to her?" Kasmira asked from behind him, her voice soft.

"No. Maybe it'll come to me in my sleep," he replied, faking a smile. "Night, Mom."

However sleep, when it came, provided no answers. Eleven o'clock in the morning found Fiyero at the door of the mansion, Elphaba's Shiz acceptance letter burning a hole in his jacket pocket and trying to summon to courage to ring the doorbell.

He'd been awake since five am, up since seven and spent the past few hours stalling; first rationalising that Elphaba might be sleeping in, and then having breakfast and he didn't want to intrude too early. When it came to ten-thirty and his excuse wavered to "what if they're having brunch?", Kasmira had all but kicked him out of the suite in exasperation.

He'd actually asked his mother to come with him- for support, but she'd simply given him a pointed look and said that if Elphaba was willing, she'd love to see her before they returned to the Vinkus.

So, here he was. Standing on the doorstep and trying to coax himself into ringing a doorbell. He had to roll his eyes at himself.

"You're the bloody king of the Vinkus, Tiggular," he muttered under his breath. "Act like it, and ring the damn bell."

He did so swiftly before he could chicken out, waiting nervously for it to answer. For some reason, he was so sure that Elphaba would answer the door, that it would swing open and she'd be standing there, looking at him with those eyes that had drawn him in from the very moment they'd first met.

Which means he was abruptly lost for words when the door did open, and he found himself facing a tall, thin, bald man who could only be Elphaba's father. The man stilled when he saw Fiyero, which gave him time to find his voice.

"Hello, Governor Thropp," he said politely. "I'm Fiyero Tiggular. I'm looking-"

"I know who you are," the Governor replied coldly, and the ice in his tone surprised Fiyero.

He hesitated, uncertain where to go from here. Suddenly everything Elphaba had every told him about her father seemed almost too kind.

"Is- is Elphaba here?" Fiyero asked tentatively.

Governor Thropp frowned, and for a moment, Fiyero thought he was going to shut the door in his face. but then he reluctantly stepped aside. "Come in," he said curtly.

Fiyero stepped inside, his eyes immediately searching out any hint of green in vain. The Governor led him down a hall and into a study, gesturing to an armchair.

"Have a seat. I'll be back in a moment," he said stiffly, and left the room, closing the door behind him.

Fiyero was left rather bewildered, even more so when Governor Thropp returned a few minutes later, alone but with a tray of coffee.

The coffee was poured in silence, and Fiyero felt very small under his gaze.

"Did Elphaba write to you?" the Governor asked brusquely.

"No," Fiyero replied, a puzzled frown on his face. "No. I haven't heard from her since she left the Vinkus last March."

The Governor had an odd look on his face at that response.

"That was nine months ago. Why are you here now?"

It was a fair question, but Fiyero hadn't been expecting it. At least, not from the Governor.

"I didn't know where she was," he answered honestly. "I had to get a private detective to track her down."

The Governor arched an eyebrow. "You never thought to check her home? With her family?"

Fiyero straightened his back determinedly and met his gaze. "With all due respect, sir, I didn't think she had much of a home to return to."

The Governor's jaw tightened.

"Did you look for her?" Fiyero asked without thinking.

Frex raised an eyebrow. "Excuse me?"

"Your daughter ran away. For six months. Did you even look for her?"

Fiyero was determined not to cower under his icy gaze.

"Yes," Frex answered at length, which surprised Fiyero- both the answer and that he was willing to answer at all.

"It appears that you were more successful than I was in that regard," he added coolly. "Why are you here?"

"I want to see Elphaba."

"Why?"

That question, Fiyero hadn't expected. And found he didn't really have an answer for.

Why did he want to see her? To pass on her mail? To make sure she was alright? To find out why she left? To tell her that he still loved her?

He didn't know.

"It's complicated," he finally replied.

The Governor looked at him oddly. "I assure you, Mr Tiggular. You have no idea just how complicated."

That meant absolutely nothing to Fiyero, who stared at him, flummoxed. Governor Thropp got to his feet and opened the door.

"Nessarose," he called.

From his seat, Fiyero couldn't see out of the room. But when a light voice returned with "Yes, Father?" a few moments later sounding rather close by, Fiyero had no trouble conjuring up a mental image of Elphaba's sister that fit with everything he'd heard about her.

"Where's your sister?" the Governor asked.

"She's upstairs," the voice replied, sounding surprised. "I think she's checking on-"

"Thank you," her father answered, cutting her off.

The study door shut behind him as he stepped out of the room, and Fiyero was left alone again. Straining his ears, he heard a few hushed voices murmuring to one another and then footsteps faded away. When they returned a minute later, there were more hushed voices, one raising in what could only be panic. The Governor's voice sounded calm, although Fiyero couldn't make out what he was saying.

Fiyero rose to his feet as the doorknob turned, and then there was Elphaba.

Standing there. In the doorway. Right in front of him. She was staring at him with what seemed to be fear, and he wasn't sure why; and there looked to be something different about her that Fiyero just couldn't put his finger on, but she was here.

"Hi."

"Hi," she replied hoarsely. "Why are you here?"

Fiyero faltered, and then, at a loss for anything else to say or do, reached into his pocket and pulled out the envelope.

"This is for you," he said, holding it out to her.

She frowned slightly as she tentatively took it from him and opened it. Fiyero watched her face as she read it, saw the shock and wonder that flickered in her eyes. It wasn't the happiness and excitement that he'd felt upon reading it or that he'd expected to see; nor did he expect her to crumple into tears, burying her face in her hands.

"Elphaba?" Fiyero said in alarm.

Elphaba's father reappeared in the doorway behind Elphaba. It was so quick, Fiyero had to wonder if he'd been hovering in the hallway and listening in.

"What is it?" he asked shortly.

Fiyero was surprised to see concern on his face. It seemed to be official that nothing made sense anymore.

Elphaba thrust the letter in her father's direction without looking up.

Frex read it, and looked at his daughter. There was the same shock and wonder that had been in her eyes on his face, as well as something that Fiyero couldn't identify.

"You applied to Shiz? You never said."

Elphaba just wept quietly into her hands, not looking at her father or Fiyero.

Frex glanced between Elphaba and Fiyero for a moment, hesitated, and then gently guided his daughter into the room and into the armchair opposite Fiyero's, who tentatively resumed his seat.

"You talk. Hear him out, at least. Nessa and I will take care of things," Frex told Elphaba quietly, who nodded in acknowledgment.

With that, he left the room, closing the door behind him.

"I don't understand what's happening," Fiyero said honestly, once they were alone as Elphaba's tears faded to sniffles.

Elphaba still wasn't looking at him. She had reached out and picked up her Shiz letter that Frex had left on the end table next to her chair, and was re-reading it with reverence.

"It came in April," Fiyero explained quietly. "About a month after you left. I sent them a letter, getting them to defer your acceptance for a year. I didn't want you to lose your chance if I couldn't get the letter to you in time for the semester to start."

Elphaba's eyes filled with fresh tears. That was the least of the reasons why she'd lost her chance to go to Shiz.

"How did you find me?" she asked, her voice thick with tears.

"Private detective."

"Why bother?"

Fiyero frowned at the bewilderment in her tone.

"Why bother?" he repeated in disbelief. "You just left-"

"Nine months ago," she interrupted pointedly.

Fiyero ignored her. "You didn't even leave a note-"

"What?" It was Elphaba's turn to stare at him in bewilderment. "I left a note!"

"No, you didn't."

"I did. I left it with- with the ring…" she trailed off quietly, wincing.

Fiyero met her gaze solemnly. "There was no note. I looked. A thousand times."

"I left one," she insisted.

Silence fell.

"You could have just posted the letter once you knew where I was," Elphaba finally said. "You didn't need to come all this way."

"I got a little worried when I found out you were in Munchkinland," Fiyero admitted. "You said… I didn't think you'd ever come back."

Elphaba lowered her eyes. "Well, circumstances change," she murmured.

"What circumstances?" Fiyero asked, confused.

"Why are you here?" she asked in return, holding his gaze.

"Because you left," Fiyero blurted out. "And note or no note, you didn't- you didn't say goodbye."

"What does that matter?" Elphaba demanded. "You were going to ask me to leave anyway. I should think you'd be happy that I spared you the conversation."

Fiyero gaped at her, stunned. "What?"

She looked at him as though he were an idiot. "What do you mean, 'what'?"

"I was going to ask you to leave?" he repeated. "Why in Oz's name would you think that?"

"Because I heard you!" she exclaimed. "I heard you talking to your mother!"

"You heard me say that I wanted you to leave?"

"You said- you said that you'd changed your mind," Elphaba said, her voice catching. She blinked and her eyes filled with tears. She didn't want to be having this conversation. She didn't want to be reliving those moments with him, while their daughter slept above their heads.

She didn't know why her father had insisted she talk to Fiyero, instead of just sending him away.

Fiyero frowned deeply, racking his brain for any conversation he'd had with his mother before Elphaba had left.

"You weren't sure how to tell me that without hurting my feelings, apparently," Elphaba said stiffly. "So, forgive me for not wanting to hang around for that conversation."

No memories were coming to mind, and Fiyero felt rather useless that he was unable to defend or explain himself. As he tried to make sense of her words, Elphaba got up and crossed to the window, staring outside so she didn't have to look at him.

Fiyero couldn't stop himself from watching her. He couldn't put his finger on why she looked different. She looked tired, yes; perhaps a little paler than he remembered, but that might have been the stress and shock of having him arrive on her doorstep suddenly. He wondered when had been the last time that he really looked at her.

And suddenly, he remembered the conversation she was talking about.

"You thought I'd changed my mind about us?" he exclaimed suddenly.

She turned to him incredulously. "I thought? Fiyero, you said it."

"Yeah, I meant that I'd changed my mind about getting married!"

It was only when she winced he realised how that could be interpreted. "I meant- I wanted to move the wedding up. But if we did that… you wouldn't have been able to go to Shiz," he explained, softening his tone.

"I knew how badly you wanted it, and you deserve it. But I was selfish. I wanted to marry you. I kept putting it off, because I didn't want to be like your father. I didn't want to keep you from the life you wanted. I never wanted to be the person who hurt you."

"Elphaba, how could you think I'd changed my mind about us?" he asked quietly, unable to hide the surprise and hurt in his voice. "I love you."

Elphaba was even paler, but by now she was almost grey, causing Fiyero to rise to his feet in concern.

"No," she said faintly. "No. Because I heard you, and then Avaric said-"

"Whoa," Fiyero interrupted sharply, alarm bells ringing in his head. "Avaric said? Avaric said what?"

Tears filled her eyes. "Don't. Don't make me say it," she whispered brokenly.

"Fae," he replied firmly, stepping closer to her. "What did Avaric say?"

"I- I don't remember exactly."

Fiyero broached the last few steps between them and placed his hands on her arms.

"Just the gist, then. Something, anything."

Elphaba's throat was constricted, as she fought to speak. She remembered clearly what Avaric had said, but to say the words aloud was another matter entirely. The past nine months had been the hardest of her life, but she feared this conversation would truly break her once and for all.

"He said that as king, you were expected to- to be with the… right people. Which does not include me," she choked out.

Fiyero's face darkened and his grip on her arms unconsciously tightened. Elphaba took a step backwards, shaking his hands off her. She'd never seen him this angry before.

"Fiyero?" she said unsurely.

Fiyero curled his hands into fists, blood pounding in his ears.

"I'm going to kill him," he said quietly. "I'm going to kill him! That manipulative bastard."

Elphaba could only looked at him in bewilderment.

He began to pace furiously. Elphaba had the absent-minded thought that her father's study always seemed to make people angry, and maybe her father should redecorate with something to encourage a more peaceful environment.

When he had a hold on his temper, however tenuous, Fiyero stopped in his tracks and turned to Elphaba.

"Avaric told me that you didn't want the hassles and stuff of being royalty," he said bluntly.

Elphaba gaped at him. "What?"

Fiyero ran a hand through his hand distractedly, his mind racing as he put pieces together.

"I bet it was him. He must have taken your note- are you sure you left a note?"

Elphaba's eyes narrowed, and he hastily backpedalled. "Sorry. Just checking."

He let out a breath. "It was him," he repeated.

Elphaba felt lightheaded and weakly sank onto the small sofa, which was the closest chair. "You- you didn't want me to leave?"

There it was again- that hurt look on his face.

"No. Of course not."

"But… you had the carriage."

He frowned, puzzled. "What carriage?"

"When I left, the carriage driver… he said he had orders from you to take me anywhere in Oz. I thought…"

Fiyero felt sick. "No, I never-" he broke off abruptly. "Wait. The carriage driver brought you here?"

She nodded. "Yes. Why?"

"I thought you got a public carriage."

"Well, I was going to, but then the driver said… I don't understand. What is it? Who told you I took a public carriage?"

"Avaric," Fiyero said flatly, his tone grim. What else had Avaric lied about? He looked at Elphaba unhappily.

"I didn't know where you'd gone. If you had gotten on a public carriage, you could have been anywhere."

Elphaba lowered her eyes, staring intensely at her lap. "Is- is that why you didn't come after me?" she asked quietly, but not daring to look up at him.

Fiyero's face softened, and he came and sat beside her. "Partly," he admitted. "Until the Shiz letter came… I was so hurt that you'd left, I couldn't think of anything else. And then it just took so long to find you. I've been looking all over Oz for you since April," he informed her. "You're surprisingly hard to find, considering…"

"I'm green?" she finished for him, and he nodded.

He hesitated, and then took her hand. "Fae, how could you think that I wanted you to leave? That I'd change my mind?"

She removed her hand from his, still avoiding his gaze. "It didn't exactly seem implausible to me," she murmured, gesturing to herself.

Although he could kind of understand that, Fiyero chuckled in frustration. "For Oz's sake, Elphaba. What do I have to do for you to believe that I love you?" he demanded. "Why didn't you come talk to me?"

She uttered a half-sob, half-laugh. "Talk to you?" she repeated in disbelief. "I couldn't get you in the same room for longer than a minute! How could I?"

Fiyero couldn't really argue with that point.

"I'm sorry," he apologised. "I didn't mean to push you away."

"You were busy. You were always busy," Elphaba said quietly.

He paused, then asked the one question he'd never asked before.

"Elphaba, I love you. But do you love me?"

He'd never wanted to push her into saying it before, feeling that rather ruined the moment. But he'd come all this way, and whilst so much made sense now, he still couldn't help but wonder. There were still questions he wanted answers to.

Elphaba's response was a choked sob. "You can't," she said hoarsely. "I just- I ruined everything, and I… I can't."

She leapt to her feet, and hastened from the room as she began to weep in earnest.

Fiyero, still confusified, wasted no time in following her. Not this time.

AN. This was actually a surprisingly hard chapter to write, because I had to make it at least a little different than LTC!