"Elphaba?" Boq called softly. The dungeons were full of damp, dark tunnels and empty cells. In fact they hadn't been occupied since ancient times. Now criminals were kept in a much more sanitary prison. A musty smell permeated the air. "Hello?" The munchkin was beginning to think he was chasing smoke when a pile of ragged black cloth and tangled raven hair sniffled. "Elphaba?" the Tin Man gasped.
Two dark, baleful eyes flashed up at him. "What do you want?" droned a rough, empty voice.
"It's me," the munchkin nervously explained. "Boq."
"Have you come to get revenge for that I did to you?" the green girl snorted bitterly.
"No," Boq assured her. "I've come to help you."
"Why would you help the Wicked Witch of the West," Elphaba snapped.
"Glinda told me the truth about you," the Tin Man informed her. "I need your help."
"With what?"
"Madame Morrible is using a killing spell on Glinda" the munchkin told her in a panicked rush. "Morrible put Glinda under a mind control spell but she broke free and now she's going to murder her." Immediately the witch was on her feet.
"She's using the killing spell from the Grimmerie?" Elphaba demanded, her voice sparking with frantic worry. The Tin Man nodded. "We've got to get to her soon," she muttered grimly.
Gritting his teeth Boq fastened his tin hands onto the rusty bars of the green girl's cell. Years of disuse had left the metal weak and with a large amount of exertion the munchkin was able to bend two bars far enough apart for Elphaba to slip through.
***
Glinda the Good was dying. After casting her dastardly spell Morrible had left the room with Raeb in tow. Now the small ruler could feel her strength waning. It wouldn't be long. A sigh escaped the blonde's mouth. Her usually bright eyes were dimming; the ceiling above was little more than a blur. Blackness was closing in.
Some deep part of Glinda's heart was happy because she would soon be joining her friends. I'm coming Elphie, the blonde thought as her mind clouded. At that moment a misty cloaked figure with emerald skin appeared before the petite ruler. Glinda's weak lips twitched into a smile as Elphaba lifted her from the bed.
***
The green witch cradled her unconscious friend as they flew across the gentle night sky. She and Boq had been minutes away from being too late. Luckily Elphaba knew an antidote for the killing spell. Now she and Glinda were returning to the Animal village where Oz's blonde ruler could recover in safety.
***
Caya was more than happy to share her home with Glinda and Elphaba. It had been three days and the blonde witch was still asleep. Her green friend refused to leave the petite woman's bedside. The witch's face was creased with worry and heartbreak.
"Elphaba?" Caya called softly.
"Yes?" the green girl replied in an oddly subdued tone.
"There's someone here to see you," the Tiger told her, excitement surging through her voice.
"Tell them to go away."
"I'll think you'll want to talk to this someone," Caya hinted pushily. Her curiosity piqued Elphaba reluctantly followed her Tiger friend downstairs. The man waiting for her almost stopped the witch's heart.
"Fiyero?" the green girl breathed in disbelief. Before her stood an absurdly perfect Winkie prince…and he was human. Elphaba rushed forward and tackled Fiyero against the wall. Her arms trapped him and pulled his lips against hers passionately. "I thought you were dead!" she gasped between kisses, tears of rampant joy coursing down her cheeks. "What happened?"
"I was burning and then there was a flash of green," the Winkie explained. "I woke up like this a few miles away from the village. You saved me again."
"It was my fault you were trapped," the witch sniffled, hugging him tightly for fear that he would disappear. "I'm never letting go of you again."
***
Glinda awoke in a strange bed. The small ruler looked confusedly around and her eyes landed on Elphaba standing a few feet away. "Elphie!" she squeaked delightedly. Then her face fell. "So I must be dead then. Morrible did kill me. Oh Elphie I'm sorry I let you down. I'm sorry I didn't finish your work."
"You're not dead," the green girl reassured her. "And you haven't let anyone down. In fact you've been much braver than I should've ever forced you to be."
"But you're here," the blonde stuttered. "And you died so how am I…? This is all very confusifying." With a fond smile Elphaba took a seat in the chair beside her friend's bed.
"I faked my death," she explained gently. "There was a trapdoor; I didn't really melt. Fiyero's alive too; my spell just turned him into a scarecrow." Glinda's eyes widened as she took this all in. With trembling hands she brushed her fingers against the green girl's cheek to assure herself that this wasn't a dream. Then the petite woman slapped her.
"Elphaba Thropp how could you do that to me?" the blonde demanded as tears rippled down her face. "Do you know how it was waking up every morning and wishing to every star in the sky that you would come back but knowing that we would never be together again? Do you know how painful it was living with the knowledge that my best friend died because of me?"
"It wasn't your fault," the witch protested. Now sobbing quite violently Glinda smacked her friend again, though she didn't quite know why. "Feel better?" Elphaba teased.
"Yes I do," the blonde snuffled, hugging her friend. Glinda's world spun as she drew in ragged breaths. "Elphie I'm so glad that you're alive!" When the two of them pulled apart the green witch's eyes were moist and a hopeful smile tugged at the corners of her mouth. "What happened?" Glinda wondered. "Morrible put me under a spell and then everything got jumbled together." Taking a deep breath Elphaba explained what she knew. Not once did the blonde witch comment, which was quite out of character. As the green girl concluded her tale Glinda felt compelled to hug her again. "Is Fiyero here?" the blonde wondered.
"Yes," Elphaba replied. "But you should probably change your clothes before you see anyone."
"Why?"
"Well you've been sleeping in the same dress for three days," the witch pointed out. Glinda flushed and wobbled her way into a standing position. Her legs were weak and the green girl had to catch her several times as they made their way to Caya's closet. Luckily the Tiger had several black dresses of Elphaba's being mended in her shop, so the fire hadn't claimed all of the witch's clothes.
"Everything's black," the blonde observed, blanching slightly at her friend's wardrobe.
"Did you expect anything else?" the green girl inquired.
"No," Glinda huffed disappointedly. "But a girl can dream." Unfortunately Elphaba was quite a bit taller than her friend, so the dresses didn't exactly fit like a glove. "This looks like a nightgown on me," the blonde complained, shuffling about.
"It's better than nothing," the witch sniffed, leading Oz's ruler down the staircase. Although she was wearing a loose black dress and her fair curls were messy and disheveled Glinda's face wore the brightest smile it'd experienced since…well since Elphaba left. The missing half of her heart had returned and she felt whole, as did the jubilant green girl beside her.
"Glinda!" Fiyero exclaimed when the two girls reached the living room. He swept her up into an enormous bear hug. "It's so good to see you." The blonde witch was displeased to realize that the Winkie's touch still made her heart leap. That was going to complicate things.
"Glinda this is Caya," Elphaba introduced her Tiger friend. "She kept me sane after we went into hiding."
"It's an honor to meet you," the Animal told Glinda earnestly.
"Same here," the blonde responded.
"Caya is the village seamstress," Fiyero added with a mischievous grin on his face. Immediately the tiny ruler's eyes flamed with interest.
"You make clothes?" she squealed excitedly.
"I see you don't share your friend's aversion to new outfits," the Tiger chuckled. "We're gonna get along just fine."
Hahaha Fiyero's not really dead…I tricked you!...sorry for being so sadistic but it was necessary (did you really think I would do that to Elphie?)
Speaking of the Winkie prince I'd like to know if I'm portraying him correctly…it's kinda hard to get his post-Shiz character right because you really don't see a lot of character development for him after 'Defying Gravity'…any suggestions would be much appreciated!