Hello all! Welcome to chapter 29 of 'Darkness of the Night' and sadly this is the second to last chapter for this story. One more chapter before I end this story. This chapter has the special appearance by a character. You will see who it is as you read on. Won't spoil the surprise on who it is. I won't say much on this chapter as you should read it. So I will stop yapping and let you read on. So read and enjoy!
Chapter 29
Elphaba is humming to herself as she is bent over a table with her hands resting on the cool surface. She is looking at the map of Oz. She has been keeping herself busy lately while Glinda has been pulled away to meetings to fill the political voice left by the Wizard. The good witch has tried to drag her into one of them but the green woman had respectfully declined. She has had enough of politics plus Glinda is much more adept at it than she ever will be. So Elphaba has taken upon herself to get in contact with all of the Animal Resistance compounds to confirm what they have been hearing. The Wizard is gone and they are all free from his oppression.
"Have you've contacted the ones near the deadly desert?" Ares questions as he points to a spot on the map that is near the deadly desert. He has the list Glinda has given to him. He is helping with the work load that has been placed on the raven haired beauty's lap. She lifts a hand up to scratch her chin in thought. She is mentally going through the list in her head.
"Uhhh…does it have a check mark by its name?" She asks with uncertainty in her voice. She didn't realize there was so many hideaways until she saw the list Glinda gave them. So now she has lost track, who knows how many names ago. The Tiger's ears twitch before he looks to his left to look at the scroll. He uses his tail and moves it down the paper until he finds the name of the compound that is by the deadly desert.
"It does not." He answers as he looks back to the witch. Elphaba nods her head slightly in understanding. Then she will start writing the letter to them as soon as possible.
"Then I'll start there. Mark it off for me, Ares."
Ares dips one of his claws into the ink bottle and puts it onto the paper to carefully make a fresh check mark near the name. His ears go to the side when he hears the door, to the room, creak open and light footsteps start walking towards them. His fur puffs out along with his sharp claws poking out. He is ready to defend Elphaba from whoever entered the room unannounced. The green woman nearly had a heart attack when the Tiger pushes off the table, almost tipping it over in the process, and gives off a loud, intimidating roar.
"What are you doing? Trying to kill me?" She snaps slightly while putting a hand over her pounding heart. To say his unexpected roar scared her is an understatement. Her whole body is shaking from that loud nose he made. Ares just snarls with his ears flat against his head. His golden eyes fixated on the intruder, waiting for them to make a move.
"Uh…Elphaba, please tell your Tiger I'm your sister." Nessa's voice trembles in fear as she finally finds the courage to speak. Elphaba blinks her eyes slightly at the voice before turning around to look at the doorway. She sees her younger sister with her back up against the wall of the room. Her eyes never leaving Ares. Elphaba gives a chuckle before putting a calming hand on the softly growling Tiger.
"Relax Ares, that's my sister Nessarose." She revels before she starts to walk towards the dark haired woman with a huge smile on her face. Ares stops growling in an instant then cocks his head to the side curiously. He didn't know that the green woman had a sister. Nessarose relaxes in seconds after her sister calms down the Tiger. She didn't plan to get eaten today.
"Nessa, what are you doing here?" Elphaba questions. Nessa eyes Ares warily before looking to her with a warm smile.
"You didn't reply to my letter. So I thought I'd drop by to see you." She replies as she finally peels herself off the wall. She won't admit that she was worried when she didn't receive a letter from Elphaba from the days that followed. The dark haired woman had to make sure that everything was all right. Elphaba puts a hand to her forehead when it dawns on her that she never got to sit down and read her sister's letter. She has been so busy cleaning up, so to speak.
"I'm sorry Nessa, I meant to write but I got so bust with everything here." Elphaba confesses with a heavy sigh to follow after. The days have been long especially with Glinda not being around to make it go faster. Nessarose gives a soft chuckle before wrapping her arms around the lanky body of the green witch's body. She is just glad that the nightmare is over.
"I'm just glad you all are safe." She whispers. Elphaba's eyes soften while her body is warmed by the love for her sister. She hugs her sister back tightly.
"Me too." Elphaba whispers back before giving her a kiss on top of the dark locks. She lets go of her with a soft smile. It's good to see Nessa again now. Now that they are free she can rebuild her relationship with her sister. It seems that the dark haired woman has matured over the years in her absence. An unintended side effect when she left her. They all have come a very long way that she can see. Nessa gives a happy sigh before reaching up to tuck some of the raven locks behind the green ears. It's nice to know her sister is safe and sound now. The dark haired woman leans to the left slightly to peer at Ares. That is clear for sure. The Tiger gives a big smile, making her swallow hard at the rows of sharp teeth glistening before her, and waves at her.
"Hi!"
Elphaba turns around when she hears her friend speak up. She has forgotten her manners. The green woman puts an arm around her sister and smiles greatly. She can't wait to introduce Nessa to all the friends she has made over the years. She will start with Ares.
"Nessa, this is Ares. He is one of my dear friends and Fiyero's adoptive son." Elphaba introduces the Tiger to Nessarose. She feels the dark haired woman tense up slightly when Ares walks over towards them. The green woman gives her a squeeze of reassurance. Once he knew that Nessa isn't here to harm Elphaba the young Tiger is one of the friendliest Animals there is.
"Nice to meet you." He replies as he holds out a massive paw to her so they can shake hands. Nessa hesitates slightly before reaching forward and puts her hand on his paw. She expected an iron grip to crush her hand but she is surprised to feel him carefully grip her hand then gently shakes it He understands that he is stronger than most and adjusts it accordingly.
"Nice to meet you too, Ares." She says as she pulls her hand away once the hand shaking is done. Ares opens his mouth to start a conversation but stops when he gets a look from Elphaba saying she would like alone time with her sister. He looks to the wall.
"Oh, look at the time. I need to see Rain." He bows his head towards the two sisters. "I'll see you later."
He then dashes out of the room to leave them to have some quality time together. Nessa looks to the wall and raises an eyebrow slightly when she sees no clock there. The green woman must have silently told him to go. Shame cause she wanted to know more about the young Tiger.
"He seems nice. Fiyero taught him well." Nessa comments on Ares's manners. The green woman gives a slight smirk. She knows how those two get into mischief all the time.
"You don't know the half of it." Elphaba shoots back with a chuckle. The dark haired woman gives a soft 'hmmm' as she is sure she doesn't want to know. Her ruby red shoes click softly in the room as she walks towards the table filled with the map of Oz and various papers.
"What are you going to do now since the Wizard is gone?" Nessa questions as she looks down at the map of Oz. Her hand touches the picture of the Emerald City. Elphaba twists her lips in thought at this question. She hasn't really thought about it since she has been so busy. The green woman is going to assume that Glinda will finally give in and take up the throne to rule Oz. Then Elphaba will be by her side throughout the whole thing.
"If Glinda decides to succeed the Wizard I would live here with her." Elphaba answers truthfully as she follows her sister's footsteps. Nessa taps her knuckles on the table with a smile. Typical Elphaba answer. She always preferred not to be in the limelight, something she liked when people would gawk at her unusual skin tone.
"Well, legally you have the right to rule since you are daughter." Nessa points out but instantly regrets it when she sees the brown eyes harden up and the green jaw tightens in anger. The dark haired woman should have known better than to bring him up. Though she still can't believe it herself. All these years they thought Frexspar were both their fathers but once Glinda revealed The Wizard to be the father of Elphaba, it blew her out of the water. It didn't change how she felt about her sister.
"I'm sorry Elphaba, I shouldn't have said that." Nessa apologizes quickly to try and reduce the damage. The raven haired beauty's body relaxes and the warmth returns to the brown eyes. She knows her sister didn't mean it. The raven haired beauty sits upon the table before looking to her with a smirk.
"Aww come on Nessa, you know I'm no politician. I'm too hot headed. Glinda is the better option." Elphaba says as she swingers her legs slightly. Nessa gives a chuckle as she nudges her sister with affection.
"You would be driven crazy in a week."
Elphaba starts to laugh in agreement. She never cared for those boring meetings and the jargon spoken by the people there. Somebody always wanting something from somebody else. That's why she passed up on governing Munchkinland and that is why she will refuse to rule Oz if it is ever brought up.
"Elphie? Ares said you'd be in here."
Nessa's eyes get wide when she hears Glinda's voice come into the room. She hasn't heard that lithe voice in nearly two years. Oh, how she missed it so. Tears go to her eyes as she looks towards the door. Her throat tightens up when she sees Glinda standing there, in a light blue, sparkling dress, with a hand over her mouth when she sees Elphaba's sister in the room.
"Glinda?"
Glinda gives a stifled cry as tears roll down her face at finally being reunited with her old friend. It feels like it's been decades since she last saw Nessarose and now she is here in person.
"Nessarose, Oz it's so good to see you again." The blonde replies before she walks towards the two sisters. Elphaba watches Nessa walk towards her wife. Her heart warms when the two of them a reunited with tears and hugs.
"I thought I'd never see you again. I heard you were dead. Elphaba told me you were alive but to see you in person." Nessa whispers through her tears at feeling the warmth of Glinda in her arms again. The good witch looks to her then her cheeks flush ever so slightly when the dark haired woman gently wipes away her tears. That touch is so similar to Elphaba's. She is glad that Oscar never tried to target Nessa to try and flush either her or Elphaba out of hiding. He knew how devout she was to her when the green woman left them both alone.
"I almost did but the Animals saved my life." Glinda answers with a sniffle. Nessa shakes her head in slight disbelief. She was in a deep depression when the news reached her. She had lost the two people she loved dearly. Nothing could get her out of it for quite some time. Nessa pulls Glinda loser to her and rests her head on top of the golden locks. Elphaba's fingers grip the edge of the table slightly as a twinge of jealousy goes down her spine at how comfortable the two women look. She's not use to seeing the level of contentess on the good witch's face. Not even Fiyero could do that when those two are around each other. The green woman shakes her head slightly to push that thought of her mind. It would be of no use to her.
"I'm beyond happy to have you and Elphaba back in my life. I prayed to the gods and they have answered." The dark haired woman says as she finally lets go of Glinda. Glinda clears her throat while tucking some of her blonde locks behind her ear. She looks from Nessa to Elphaba, which a big grin appears on her face. She is thankful that they have a second chance on life and now it seems it will get even better. She will have to tell her wife that she accepted the position of ruler of Oz. It seems like the right thing to do. She will user in an era of peace and goodness with Elphaba by her side. The era of Glinda the Good is about to begin.
Yes, I brought Nessa back for this chapter. It seemed fitting to bring her in so she could be reunited with Glinda as well. I maybe have implied something or maybe I didn't. If I do make a sequel it would be brought up in that story. Anyways, the next chapter will be the last chapter of this story. I think it's fitting that the last chapter will be the redo wedding for Glinda and Elphaba. It will be updated on Sunday. Until then my faithful readers.
DWK