Disclaimer: Under no circumstances do I claim ownership of the original elements from Wicked. I only own the plot, and all other rights go to Stephen Schwartz, Winnie Holzman, and Gregory Maguire.

A/N: Thank you to everyone that reviewed!

Wizard: You couldn't be more correct (about the reading, that is).

Nymeria, Nia, and Fabala: Thank you!

Elphaba: O.O *shrinks back and mutters something about Elphaba being the one that casted the spell in the first place*

That night, Elphaba sat in a small cave-like alcove in the Great Gillikin Forest. She had made a small fire, and as she stared at the dancing flames, a thought hit her. Was casting that spell really worth it? Surprised at the sudden thought, she lay down on the cold stone floor and shut her eyes.

"Don't be silly, Elphaba," she muttered to herself. "Of course it was."

But they were your only friends, her mind reasoned, and now they have it out for you just like the rest of Oz. If you had just let them be, you'd have somebody to fall back on.

Don't be unreasonable, came the reply. If I hadn't done it, I would only be putting them through daily torture. I couldn't do that to them. They're better off like this.

Are they? Are they really? What happens if the spell wears off?

Impossible. That spell came from the Grimmerie, the most powerful spell book in all of Oz. No spell from that just "wears off"; the only way that it could is through a counter spell.

How can you be sure? You've had that book for a whole day—how much time have you had to study it? What if it wears off after they've done something bad to you? Do you honestly think that they would ever forgive themselves if that happened?

Just be quiet already! I'll think about this in the morning. No retort came, and she was able to fall asleep in peace.

"Hey, Fae." Elphaba looked up towards the voice and smiled slightly.

"Can you stop with that nickname already?" Fiyero twisted his expression into a mock frown.

"But Galinda can call you 'Elphie'," he said in an over-exaggerated pout. "Why can't I call you 'Fae'?"

She looked at his face and rolled her eyes, chuckling. "I don't know," she said. "It just sounds really… cute." The prince quirked an eyebrow and smirked.

"What's so wrong with cute?" he asked. She shrugged in response.

"It just doesn't suit me, that's all," she replied in a quieter voice, looking down at the ground. Fiyero sat down next to her, leaning his back against the large tree behind them.

"Oh, come on. Haven't we been over this already? Quit thinking that," he said in a surprisingly comforting tone of voice. She glared at him.

"Why should I?" she asked, her voice suddenly cold. "The entire campus thinks I'm a freak. To be honest, I don't see why you and Galinda don't think the same." Fiyero looked at her with a serious expression.

"Because we are your friends, Fae, and friends don't do that. They stick up for you." Her expression softened a bit.

"Do… do you really mean that?" she asked hesitantly. Fiyero nodded.

"Of course I do," he said. "And I bet anything that if you ask Galinda, she'll say the same thing." As much as Elphaba wanted to believe him, a part of her brain was saying that he was just saying that to make her feel better, and that part was pretty convincing in its argument. She looked at him doubtfully, and he gave her a warm smile in return. "I mean that," he stated simply. She could see how genuine he was being right now, and quickly turned away, blushing slightly. Oz, Elphaba, what are you doing? He's dating Galinda, she thought. Quit letting yourself melt like this whenever you see him! She turned back to him.

"I, uh… I should probably go. I just remembered that Galinda wanted me, to, uh… give her a makeover-" No, you idiot, it's the other way around! By the time she realized her mistake, however, Fiyero had already noticed and was looking at her with an expression somewhere in between shock and confusion.

"Galinda wanted you to give her a makeover?" he asked incredulously. Her eyes widened a little and she blushed.

"What? Oh, no, no!" she said quickly, trying to cover up her mistake. "I would never give anyone a makeover unless they were seeking out a job in the circus," she half-joked. Fiyero chuckled and smiled.

"Right, right. So, she wanted to give you a makeover, I presume?" he asked. For a moment, she considered saying no, but she quickly pushed the thought out of her head, saying that staying there would only make it worse.

"Um, yeah, that's what I was trying to say. I probably shouldn't keep her waiting; you know Galinda and how she is when she's angry," she said. He laughed at that.

"Well, I won't keep you any longer, then. See you tomorrow." He got up and began walking away. She sat there for a moment before getting up. Looking down at the grass below her, she smiled faintly and glanced at him one last time before walking away.

"Yeah," she said softly. "See you tomorrow."

When Elphaba opened her eyes, she was greeted by the soft morning light shining through the trees into the opening of the small cave. What? Where's Fiyero? Where's Shiz? she wondered, a bit disoriented from waking up. Once she got her bearings and remembered the events of the past few days, though, those thoughts quickly ceased. With all of the things that I've been through for the last two days, she thought, why would I be dreaming about that? Remembering her conversation with, well, herself last night, her expression became one of annoyance.

"If you're trying to guilt trip me into casting the counter spell," she grumbled, looking up at her forehead, "you've got another thing coming." Locating her broomstick, she exited the cave, looking around to see if anyone was nearby. When she saw that the coast was clear, she got on her broomstick and started flying, making sure to be just above the tops of the trees in case of trouble. As she flew, she looked to her right. She could see Shiz University off in the distance, immediately making her think of Fiyero. I hope he's okay, she thought, bringing her back to the question that was still hot on her mind: Was it really worth it?

A/N: Well, this was a nice break from everything that's going on, and I thought it was nice to show a little insight on what Elphaba's thinking. Don't get used to it, though: it'll pick back up next chapter. Until then, thank you for reading, and please review!