I enjoyed all the lovely reviews! Keep 'em coming! :) Here's an extra long one.

"Elphaba! Elphaba, wait!"

Elphaba whirled to see Galinda barreling towards her like a mad woman, her hair streaming behind her and purse swinging wildly. Galinda nearly mowed her right over as she flung her arms around her and began to sob noisily.

"Sweet Lurline, Galinda, what—"

"Oh Elphie, I'm so sorry!" Galinda wailed.

"Sorry for what?"

Galinda only wailed louder.

Elphaba was growing impatient. "Oh, for Oz's sake, will you stop having hysterics and tell me what's going on? And let go of me; I feel like I'm wearing that stupid corset again." She pried Galinda's arms from her waist and waited. Galinda sniffled pathetically.

"Well?"

Galinda took a deep breath and blurted, "IgaveyouthehatsoFiyerowouldstoplikingyouandlikeme instead." She covered her face with her hands, bracing herself for one of Elphaba's tirades. When it didn't come, she peeked through her fingers to find Elphaba staring at her blankly.

"Come again?"

Another deep breath. "I-I only gave you that hat because I wanted to make you look bad so that Fiyero wouldn't like you anymore."

Elphaba recoiled as though she'd been slapped. For a long moment she was silent, then, "Galinda, how could you?"

Galinda's lower lip trembled. "I-I don't know. I was jealous and…and…" She hung her head. "I understand if you don't want to be friends anymore." 'But please say you do…'

There was a long pause. Feeling more nervous by the second, Galinda snuck a glance at Elphaba, who stood silently, her expression unreadable. 'She's too quiet. Is she trying to decide how best to kill me? Oh, I hope it doesn't leave any scars…"

She twisted her fingers into her skirt, then began bouncing on the balls of her feet. 'Oh Oz, oh Oz…' She could feel her anxiety rising. 'I didn't take my medicine this morning. Calm down, Galinda. Breathe.' She took a deep breath, then another, and the breaths started coming quicker as her panic escalated. 'I'm too young to die! What will Oz do without me? I've never even French kissed a boy! And all of my dresses…what if they go to the poor? Oh, the disrespectation!'

Elphaba watched, baffled, as Galinda began to hyperventilate. She knew the girl was high strung, but this… 'I'll just let her suffer a little longer. She deserves it.'

When it looked like Galinda was about to either explode or have a complete nervous breakdown, Elphaba decided to intervene.

"Ok, Galinda—Galinda! Calm down. Oz, I'm not going to murder you."

Galinda stopped pacing and looked up in surprise. "You're not?"

"No!"

"Oh. Well that's relievifying. Does that mean we're still friends?"

Elphaba took in Galinda's hopeful expression and found that she wasn't angry. In her way, she supposed Galinda was being sincere. She sighed. "Alright."

Galinda clapped her hands and began to bounce.

"But!" Elphaba held up a finger and waited for her to stop. Galinda froze mid-bounce.

"Are you finished?"

Galinda nodded meekly.

"Good. Now, just because we're friends, that does not mean that you can give me makeovers, nor can you force me into any more corsets, nor can you call me Elphie."

With each restriction, Galinda's perfect eyebrows inched closer together. "But Elphie, how am I supposed to remember all that?"

Elphaba smiled sweetly. "Oh, I'll make sure you do. If it's any motivation, if you ever try to put lipstick or a corset on me again, I will retaliate, and it will not be pleasant."

Galinda tapped her head nervously. "It's in there."

She paused, puzzled, and knocked on the side of her head again. "Elphie, does it sound…hollow to you?"

"You know what? Let's just go to the dance now."

When they arrived at the Ozdust, Galinda clutched Elphaba's arm in excitement. "Oh Elphie, this is just thrillifying! There's a whole room full of…of studmuffins in there just dying to be chosen by me!"

"Studmuffins?"

"Yes, isn't it a great word? I learned it from Shen-Shen yesterday."

"But…what does it mean?"

"Boys, Elphie, boys! Hottified boys."

"Well, you certainly bounced back quickly," Elphaba grumbled. "And don't call me Elphie."

Not seeming to hear, Galinda gasped in horror. "Oh, I can't let them see me like this! My makeup is probably all streamy and melty and grossified! Is that why you never cry, Elphie? 'Cause the green might melt all over the place? But that would be a good thing! So how 'bout you just stay here and have a good cry while I run to the bathroom and fix my makeup, ok?"

She scurried off to the restroom, leaving an incredulous Elphaba standing in front of the entrance to the ballroom. "She thinks it would melt?"

Shaking her head in disbelief, Elphaba straightened the pointed hat and went inside. Galinda's original plan in giving her the hat had raised some doubts—could something as silly as a hat really cost her Fiyero's friendship? Would he be embarrassed and no longer want to be seen with her? She didn't think so, but she needed to know for sure.

Besides, she liked the ugly thing.

She stepped into a barrage of sound and lights and suddenly felt afraid. Maybe she was wrong. Maybe one more scene of public humiliation would be too much for any friend to endure. 'But not Fiyero. He's better than that.' Taking a deep breath to steady herself, she stepped onto the dance floor.

Just as she'd expected, she was met with gasps and mocking laughter. She leveled a frosty look of indifference on the crowd, and the room fell silent. A few people tittered, but she ignored them, satisfied that most of Shiz was as intimidated by her as Galinda.

Lifting her chin in defiance, she searched the crowd for Fiyero. She finally found him standing in a shadowed corner, watching her. Their eyes locked, and her heart began to pound. His expression revealed nothing.

'Please,' she pleaded silently. 'Please, Yero, not you too. This was a mistake.'

'Oz, she looks beautiful…' Fiyero couldn't tear his eyes away. She wore a simple black dress, but it clung to every perfect curve. Even the strange hat she wore seemed exotic, like her.

When her eyes met his, he could see that she was frightened. 'She thinks I'm going to turn against her,' he realized. Without another thought, he started towards her.

The crowd parted, he thought he saw her smile, and he broke into a trot. He felt a comical desire to hop on a horse, brandish a sword, and shout, "Have no fear, Elphie! I'll save you!" and he almost laughed out loud at the thought.

And then there she stood in front of him, his beautiful Fae, as he liked to call her in his mind, smiling in earnest now. He bowed with a flourish and held out a hand. "Dance with me?"

Elphaba's eyes scanned the room nervously. "Everyone's watching."

"Let them watch." Fiyero took her hand and spun her into his arms, motioning for the band to start playing again. A beautiful Vinkan lullaby filled the room.

"I was hoping you'd come," he told her. "I requested this one specifically for the first slow song—you said you were interested in music from the Vinkus, so…" he shrugged.

"That's right," she whispered, touched. He smiled and began to sing along softly.

Though at first she'd been unnerved by his close proximity, Elphaba soon discovered that there was something incredibly reassuring about being close to him. He made her every step seem graceful, even though she'd never danced in her life; he was that good. His familiar scent washed over her, comforting and intoxicating at the same time, and his husky tenor was soothing in her ear. Her hand in his tingled with electricity, and his hand at the small of her back sent a pleasant warmth radiating through her.

"I guess I should thank you," he said after a moment.

"What for?"

"You saved me from dancing with Shen-Shen." A sheepish grin spread across his face. "I was hiding from her when you arrived."

"It's your own fault she's after you, you know," she informed him. "You're too good-looking for you own—" Her eyes widened, and she clapped a hand over her mouth. "Did I just say that?"

His smile broadened. "Yep, you did."

She groaned in embarrassment, but he only laughed. "You're not so bad yourself."

"Let's just go get some punch, how about that?"

Two hours later, having been forced to learn to waltz, swing-dance, and tango, Elphaba was exhausted. She'd quickly discarded the hat, finding it impractical for dancing. It was the last slow song of the night, and so she'd reluctantly allowed Fiyero to lead her back out onto the dance floor.

Too tired to fight her attraction to him, she yawned and rested her forehead against his shoulder.

She felt the vibrations in his chest as he laughed softly. "Tired?"

"Mmmm…"

Taking advantage of this rare moment of calm between them, he wrapped his arms around her and rested his chin on top of her head. He let his eyes close as he swayed them gently back and forth, breathing in the scent of her hair; he couldn't name the scent, had never smelled anything like it, but it seemed to fill every corner of his brain, taunting him.

It was a delicate game that they played, teetering on the brink between friendship and something more. One false move could so easily destroy the trusting friendship they'd developed. But as neither was alert enough to protest, both half drunk on the music and the lateness of the hour, the moment held.

'It could be like this,' he thought wistfully. 'It could be like this, always…should I tell her?'

But, unwilling to end this precious moment with her, he simply held her in silence and dreamed of making her his. 'If only…'

"Galinda, do you ever run out of energy? It's two o'clock in the morning!"

Elphaba lay in bed, wanting nothing more than to just go to sleep-but her bubbly roommate had other plans.

"Exactly!" Galinda screeched. "Two o'clock is the very best time for secrets!"

"No, it's the very best time for sleeping."

"Goodness, you are so moodified."

"Galinda, I'm tired. I have no intention of—"

"Elphie! Don't be so boring. I want to have fuuuun!"

Elphaba rolled onto her side and glared at the tiny blonde, who appeared to be testing the springiness of her bed. "Galinda, for the last time, do not call me Elphie!"

Galinda pouted. "But you let Fiyero call you Elphie."

"That's different."

"How?"

'I'm madly in love with him, that's how.' Not about to divulge the real reason, Elphaba opted instead for, "I didn't have any say in the matter." The minute the words left her mouth, she knew it was the wrong thing to say.

Galinda's eyes sparkled with mischievous glee. "Well, you don't have any say in the matter here, either. I'm calling you Elphie, and there's nothing you can do about it."

"I'll turn the entire bedroom brown."

"And I'll turn it pink again."

"You can't—"

"Oh yes I can! Now, not another word—we have work to do. I've decided, Elphie, that it's about time you learned how to flirt."

Elphaba folded her arms grumpily. "I don't want to learn how to flirt."

"Nonsense!" Galinda leapt off her bed and twirled gracefully. "Of course you do!"

"No, I really don't," Elphaba insisted.

"Yes, you do. Besides, how else are you supposed to keep Fiyero interested?"

Elphaba's head shot up. "Excuse me?"

"You heard me."

"First of all, Galinda, someone has to be interested for you to keep them interested."

"Elphaba Thropp, what are you getting at? Honestly, you are so confusifying."

Elphaba opened her mouth to respond, but Galinda held up a hand. "No, don't tell me, I don't want to hear it. Now, no more interruptions. First, I'm gonna teach you how to toss your hair. Watch carefully."

With a defeated sigh, Elphaba flopped onto her back and closed her eyes, attempting to block Galinda's high-pitched voice out of her head.

"Elphie? Are you watching?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm watching," Elphaba mumbled without opening her eyes.

Galinda demonstrated a perfect toss-toss, complete with her signature giggle, then ordered, "Now you try."

She turned to find Elphaba asleep on her bed and frowned. "Elphie?" No reply. She poked the sleeping girl in the ribs, but still she didn't stir.

Galinda sighed. "Oh, why do I even try?" Shaking her head, she headed for the bathroom, humming to herself. She stopped at the door and looked back at her sleeping roommate with a fond smile. 'My new best friend…'

Meanwhile, Elphaba was hovering somewhere between dreams and reality, reliving that last dance in her mind. She could feel his arms around her, she could smell him still, but this time he whispered in her ear that he loved her and drew her into a gentle kiss. She sighed, rolled over. 'If only…'