Ok so I have now changed the title of this story to Soul Complications with some help from JuliaCaesar, thank you! My inspiration is still Charlie St. Cloud though but I have tried to make this more of a Wicked fic than ever before! And as promised here is the next update, I hope you enjoy and PLEASE REVIEW!
Life at Shiz seemed rather uninteresting to both Galinda and Fiyero once Elphaba had left. Fiyero had not seen her after their final encounter, Galinda and Nessarose had accompanied her to the train station and Elphaba had insisted profusely to them all that she did not need an escort and would be fine alone in the Emerald City. Madame Morrible had arranged for her to stay in a very swankified part of the city, in an apartment block usually booked into by businessmen and women with very important jobs so that she would be safer. Elphaba's audience with the Wizard would be during the holiday once that half of term had ended but she was busy visiting the many tourist attractions that the city offered but she felt somewhat out of place there on her own without a friend to accompany her, still she had refused company and that was fine.
The sound of the bell ricocheting off the walls around the classroom was the only thing that prevented Fiyero's head hitting the hard wood of the desk he was sitting at on the final day of the half term. Lessons were over, finally, he had had quite enough of university and was not in any way looking forward to the many dissertations he was yet to make a start on that were due in after half term. Still he was heading back home to the Vinkus, he was looking forward to spending some time with Sam, he figured it might take his mind off Elphaba and what she was doing presently for this was constantly preoccupying him at the moment.
"So are you doing anything interesting when you get home then Fiyero?" Galinda asked him as the two walked across the sunny lawns of Shiz towards the cafe.
"Not really," Fiyero replied distantly, his thoughts were elsewhere and directed at someone else.
"Fiyero you need to stop this, I'm not moping around and I miss her too, she is coming back you know, she promised me that much," Galinda assured him with a smile, "besides Elphaba's too much of a bookworm and a study freak to stay away from university for that long."
"I guess you are right," Fiyero conceded, trying to cheer himself up.
"No Fiyero I am right, there is no guessing about it," Galinda smiled up at him and he could not help smiling back, "now let me buy you a cappuccino."
Galinda took his hand and began tugging him harder in the general direction of the cafeteria and he laughed.
"You are not buying me coffee Galinda Upland because I know full well what happens when you have coffee," Fiyero denied her strongly, almost as if reprimanding a small child.
"But I need my caffeine fix," Galinda complained, her voice shrill, "especially after a day of depressifying lessons."
"Galinda you are one person who does not need a caffeine fix ever, you are permanently high to start with," Fiyero informed her as they made their way inside.
"No I am not, I'm just a happy person," Galinda deviated from the subject as her face lit up at the sight of pink cupcakes lining the counter and she giggled excitedly and Fiyero raised his eyebrows at her, rolling his eyes, a mannerism he had picked up from Elphaba.
Somehow the after effects of the caffeine Fiyero had reluctantly bought for Galinda in the form of a cappuccino lasted overnight as she was still just as wired and energetic on the platform at the train station the next day. She herself was heading back to the Gillikin for a few days to see her parents and inevitably attend some kind of ball, whilst Nessarose was going with Boq back to Munchkinland and Fiyero to the Vinkus.
"You guys should come and visit, we have massive gardens at the castle, and I bet Sam and my parents would love to meet you," Fiyero offered to his three friends as the train to Munchkinland began to come into view.
"Of course we will Fiyero, just write to us and let us know when and we will be there," Nessarose answered politely and Boq nodded to show he was consenting as well and Fiyero gave him a slightly pitiful glance, he knew Boq was rather fed up with having to look after the prim Nessarose all the time and it was even more so now that Elphaba was away.
"And I will be there too with all the gossip from the Upper Uplands but I will have to make sure I don't have any balls scheduled first," Galinda beamed at him as a station master fitted a wheelchair ramp to the side of the train for Nessarose's benefit.
"Of course you will," Fiyero nodded sardonically at her, it was almost as if Elphaba was there he sounded so uncannily like her.
They all bade each other goodbye for a final time and headed to their respective platforms and the trains all left for their destinations, Fiyero gazing out of the window at the rolling hills and beautiful Ozian countryside he adored so much. Despite the fact that Elphaba was not around he thought he was going to have a fun holiday, his friends were visiting and he would see his little brother again, everything really was going to be fine this time.
X-X-X-X-X
Using a mirror was not something Elphaba Thropp was used to but that morning she felt the need to make her appearance impeccable. She tucked a loose strand of hair nervously behind her ear for what felt like the thousandth time as she ensured once again that her bun was still perfectly in place. She had carefully remembered all the tips on make-up Galinda had given her and done what she thought was a rather impressive job. Galinda had tutored her on how to tie her hair into a messy bun effectively and it was all accompanied by a knee length black dress and flat black shoes that the two had bought from the Ozdust Boutique for the special occasion. Placing her shaking hands on her stomach and inhaling and exhaling loudly to try and calm her nerves, Elphaba grabbed her new black waist length jacket from the bed and put it on before grabbing her school satchel which encased her research and slinging it over her shoulder.
"Oh stop it Thropp," she ridiculed herself as she tore her eyes away from the mirror for a final time and left the apartment.
The walk downstairs and out onto the streets of the city felt like the longest it ever had. She tried to tear her thoughts away from her imminent and ever nearing audience with the Wizard but her mind seemed incapable to toss away any thoughts of the kind. She bypassed all he commuters going about their daily lives, all oblivious to the uneasy feeling she had in her stomach as she looked ahead to the Emerald Palace glittering above the rest of the buildings proudly and flamboyantly. With every step closer she became more unsure if it was the right thing to do, this was a completely different side of her, Elphaba Thropp was supposed to be audacious, ambitious and confident, not anxious. She kept reminding herself of this as she finally approached the scintillating gates of the palace and a smile finally found its way to her face. All her fears were pushed aside as a sense of adrenaline replaced them, this was it, her destiny would be decided within these walls, it really was now or never. She handed her invite for the audience and other documentation over to the sentries on duty and they acknowledged it, allowing her access to the palace.
Meanwhile back in the Vinkus Fiyero was having an equally stressful time but it was a different kind of stress.
"Fiyero," Sam shouted out across the castle, "Fiyero."
"Sam stop shouting, if you want your brother go and find him," Claire reprimanded him sharply and so Sam charged off up the stairs in the direction of Fiyero's room.
"Fiyero, where are you?" Sam called out again.
"Sam be quiet, geez you are going to give the whole castle a headache," Fiyero too reproached his brother.
"Can we go boating now, please," Sam asked pleadingly, looking up at him with puppy dog eyes.
"Sam I am going out to lunch with my friends," Fiyero told him firmly, ignoring the disappointed look on Sam's face.
"Oh that can wait, I'm sure we can go out tomorrow," came a voice from behind them.
"Hey Glin," Fiyero beamed as he walked over and hugged her tightly, looking past her to see her collection of matching trunks piled high in the hallway, "I see you brought the entire Ozdust Boutique with you."
"Don't be silly Fiyero," Galinda said, brushing him off before turning to Sam, "you must be Sam, Fiyero has told me about you."
"I bet he has," Sam said sarcastically, glaring at Fiyero.
"So are Nessa and Boq here already?" Galinda asked Fiyero.
"Yeah they have rooms down the hall from here, they were down at breakfast last time I checked, we can go and meet them if you like?" Fiyero offered.
"Oh no its quite alright, I would like a lie down if that's alright, we have been travelling most of the morning already," Galinda requested kindly and Fiyero nodded, leading her to another of the many rooms that was made up for her. He assured her he would get someone to bring her cases up for her as Sam followed him into his bedroom looking like a lost puppy.
"Fiyero," Sam said, his voice quieter than before as he spotted a baseball glove on Fiyero's bed.
"Yes Sam," Fiyero said as he searched relentlessly through his draws for a shirt to wear so he looked presentable at lunch.
"Do you remember when you were at high school and you used to go out at sundown every evening and practise baseball every night with Dad?" Sam said carefully, knowing their father was a touchy subject with Fiyero.
Fiyero smiled slightly, glancing across at the photograph on his bedside table, their family before their father had left, "how could I forget?"
"Well I was wondering if maybe you could practise with me in the holidays? I mean I really want to get on the team at school and you are the best baseball player I know," Sam pleaded hopefully, trying to speak commandingly of his brother at the same time.
"Of course I will practise with you Sam," Fiyero smiled at him, chucking the baseball glove at him.
"Do you promise, every evening at sundown in the holidays?" Sam asked again.
"I promise," Fiyero smiled, ruffling Sam's straight hair, not curly like his and the younger boy pouted and smoothed his hair back into place, taking a cursory glance in the mirror.
"Please can we go sailing now then," Sam begged as Fiyero turned his back to him once more, "I'm bored of everything else, sailing is fun."
"Sam," Fiyero started but then he turned to face him and realised he was being harsh, he was being rather rude by ignoring his younger sibling, "fine one hour of sailing on the river and that is it, then we are coming back, ok, I want to spend some time with my friends before school."
"Yes," Sam smiled, punching the air dramatically, "I'll go get ready, see you out there."
Fiyero laughed proudly as Sam sprinted back down the stairs and towards his room as he himself headed to go and tell Nessa and Boq where he was going.
X
The footsteps of the Gale Force member who was leading her towards the throne room echoed loudly around the stone walled corridor, the military boots keeping the same steady marching, rhythmic, pattern. From what you could see on the outside the Emerald Palace looked very bright, painted with a vivid green and cheerful colours but inside it was a completely different story. The hallways were pretty bare and covered in dull, monotonous colours that were doing Elphaba's mood no good. The staff were altogether pretty dreary and lacklustre, she had thought it would be a lot more vibrant than this. Eventually the heavy footsteps drew to a close and Elphaba looked up to see a grand looking wooden door in front of her.
"He is expecting you, you can enter now," the gale force member indicated, reaching for the handle on the door and he opened it as Elphaba nodded at him.
She walked in rather feebly, the room was dimly lit and cold, not very inviting as she had expected it to be. She noticed a giant gold mechanical head was stood in the middle of the room but it was clearly not in operation as the lights surrounding it were off and covered a thin layer of dust.
"Hello," she called out, hoping for somebody to come and greet her soon.
"Elphaba, Elphaba is that you?" a voice finally reached her from somewhere behind the giant head.
"Yes, it's me," she replied, moving forwards as a figure emerged from the darkness, flicking a switch as it did and the lights came on, adding some colour to the room which she could now see was painted green.
"Elphaba Thropp, it is a pleasure to meet you, I am the Wizard of Oz," the man smiled merrily at her, taking her hand to shake.
"I know you are and please, it is a pleasure for me to meet you, I could not believe it when I received your letter," Elphaba smiled at him, generally feeling more at ease now that she was in safe hands.
"Well your headmistress described you in very high esteem, she thinks extremely highly of you Miss Elphaba, I hear you are a top student," the Wizard commended her.
"Well thank you I suppose but if you please sir that is not exactly why I am here, I erm, I have some research which I wish to discuss with you if you don't mind?" Elphaba asked, reaching for her satchel.
"Of course I don't Elphaba, and you know I am the Wizard of Oz, I already know why you are here," he smiled kindly at her, leading her over to a grand gold table on the other side of the room.
"You do?" Elphaba questioned, unsure whether to believe him or not.
"Elphaba I do have some power believe it or not and you are a very strong-minded young woman, I believe you have come about the Animals, I know that there are becoming increasingly less of them in Oz and you might be able to help me." The Wizard inferred, from what he had read in Madame Morrible's letter.
X
"Ok buddy, you ready to get going?" Fiyero asked Sam as he came running down the jetty of the river towards his boat which Sam was sat in.
"Yep," Sam smiled as he did up his lifejacket, Fiyero doing the same as he vaulted over the side and into the boat, untying it from the mooring.
"We should get going quickly, it looks like there is rain coming," Fiyero observed as he looked up to notice that the previously blue sky was now covered with grey clouds.
"Sure," Sam agreed as he moved to check the sails and Fiyero started up the boat.
The two were talented at sailing and had won various competitions together in the boat that had been bought for them when Fiyero was just fifteen, making Sam only eight when he had begun boating too. The Vinkus River was the most famous in Oz, famous for its length and width, it could almost constitute the sea at some points because you could not visually point out the other side. It was also famous for its treacherous conditions in some parts and Claire was still wary of letting her sons sail on it because if a storm hit then some of the bends and falls could be lethal.
Fiyero's thoughts automatically drifted to Elphaba as he looked out across the sky in the easterly direction of the Emerald City. It had not escaped his mind that today was her audience with the Wizard and he believed in her and knew that whatever she did today she would make him proud somehow. It was the first drops of rain that awoke him from his daydream and he heard Sam's clicking fingers in the background. The conditions seemed to be changing quickly, the boat moving more roughly on the water which was beginning to move in bigger waves. It was apparent that a storm was coming as the rain began to pelt down harder, the droplets so hard they hurt as the two boys quickly became soaked through.
"Sam we have got to turn the boat around," Fiyero shouted across to him, his voice blocked out by the sound of rain on water.
"Fiyero its too dangerous, we should be back home," Sam said, his voice showing signs of panic.
"Sam you have got to stay calm for me," Fiyero said, trying to keep the fear from lacing his voice too as the boat began to move more violently on its own.
Thunder crashed through the sky as the boat blew roughly to the side the ropes holding the sails up stretching precariously and the interior of the boat creaking hazardously.
"Fiyero we are heading towards the fjord at Kumbricia's Pass, we will never turn the boat around in time, everyone knows its perilous down there," Sam shouted, tears beginning to well in the corners of his eyes.
"Sammy I need you to stay strong for me, we need to work together," Fiyero said bravely, setting to work on trying to get them to safety, he really hoped that today would not be his last, besides he owed Galinda lunch and there was still something he had to say to Elphaba, "we have done this a million times before we can do it again."
X
"So what you are basically saying is that someone, somewhere in the parliament of the Emerald City is stripping the Animals of their rights without your prior knowledge?" Elphaba asked the Wizard warily.
"Well yes, Miss Elphaba I am an outsider, I came from another world and there are some people in Oz who do not agree with me being in a position of power as I am and they take it upon themselves to establish their own laws and I am afraid they can do that," the Wizard sighed ruefully.
"But surely you have some sort of control over what is going on?" Elphaba asked desperately, clutching at any kind of hope she had left.
"Well I would have if I had a decent team to rely on but these days my staff are failing and so are my regimes. When the Emerald City came about and Ozmatown was abolished the people accepted it with open arms but it appears something else is trying to take its place again. Ozians are people who love change and I am afraid we just do not have the support of the people anymore." The Wizard said, his voice clearly showing remorse and regret.
"You cannot give up on a city that you created yourself. People have forgotten their old lives to accept you. You hardly ever hear talk of the Ozma Regent anymore because you are the people of Oz's new hero, you inspired me to make a difference and that is why I am here, I want to put a stop to what is going on here, please let me help you," Elphaba practically pleaded, she had promised herself that she would not resort to begging for a job with the Wizard but it appeared when he himself was renouncing his position she had to step in.
"That was the reason I asked you here in the first place Miss Elphaba, how do you fancy becoming Oz's new Grand Vizier?" the Wizard offered her with a smile, replacing the downcast look that he had previously been exhibiting.
A smile lit up Elphaba's face, so there had been a point to the visit the whole time, all of the stories, they had all been a lead up to this moment. She could not believe what she was hearing, obviously she would need to complete her schoolwork at the same time but she was going to be celebrated throughout all of Oz, finally.
X
The fjord of Kumbricia's Pass was rapidly approaching and Fiyero and Sam were trying in vain to turn the boat around but the waves on the river were incredibly high now it was barely passable.
"Fiyero please, we need help," Sam beseeched helplessly as he was thrown from one side of the hull of the boat to the other.
"Sam where is there help out here, we have no one," Fiyero shouted at him angrily.
"We should never have come out here, I never want to come sailing again, we should have just played baseball, you made me a promise," Sam cried furiously as he tried to pick himself up but his attempts were futile.
"I am not going to ditch you," Fiyero assured him as strongly as he could manage.
"That's exactly what Dad said," Sam retorted angrily, moodily.
Fiyero was about to shout at his brother again, anger lacing both boy's eyes and thoughts as the boat hit a rock and wave at the same time and tipped, both boys falling simultaneously, the world spinning. Sam's screams echoed through the afternoon sun along with the sound of sails snapping, crunching painfully on the river bed, and then there was silence.
A very long chapter I know but I hope that was dramatic enough for you! Please keep reading! :D