AN. David Harris is doing his last 2 shows today as Fiyero with the Australian production of WICKED, currently in South Korea. I've seen David 5 times as Fiyero and he is a fantastic Fiyero.
Twenty- Three
A week and a half later, a grand carriage rode into Munchkinland early one afternoon, and rode through the streets until it pulled up outside the Thropp cottage.
Nessarose and Boq were in the living room, and as the door opened and the passengers stepped out, Nessa smiled knowingly.
"Elphaba! You might want to come see this!" she called out in the direction of the kitchen.
Elphaba was in the kitchen cleaning up after lunch with Melena. The two usually cleaned up after meals together, mostly because Elphaba wanted to feel useful and both mother and daughter had found there was a kind of peace in doing the small task together. As though they were bonding and getting to know one another better, without really having to talk- because neither was a hundred per cent sure what to say.
At Nessa's call, Elphaba paused and exchanged a frown with her mother.
"What in Oz's name?" she muttered, leaving the room.
Melena was three steps behind, and only heard a gasp of surprise before Elphaba positively bolted to the door.
"What's going on?"
Nessa was smiling. "We have visitors."
Peering out the window, Melena was just in time to see her eldest daughter fling herself into the embrace of a tall, handsome, blonde boy.
"Is that?"
"Fiyero Tiggular," Boq confirmed.
"And that's Galinda," Nessa pointed out the perky blonde girl, who was waiting impatiently to greet Elphaba.
Outside, Elphaba pulled away from Fiyero's hug and stepped away, turning to Galinda, who hugged her tightly.
"What are you two doing here?" she demanded happily.
Galinda explained. "Well, when we got yours and Nessa's letters, Fiyero wrote to me and said he was going to come here and would I like a lift? I said yes, of course; so he detoured via Gilikin before coming here."
"But.. you both had plans this summer. And you're here?"
Fiyero laughed. "Of course we're here. Fae, you're going through something huge. Where else would we be?"
The way he said it, in such a casual manner as though it were obvious, thrilled Elphaba to her very toes. In response, she leaned up and kissed him. She hadn't realised until she saw him how much she'd missed him.
Galinda thought it was sweet, but she didn't really want to have to watch. "Ok, this is lovely, Elphie, but I might go say hi to Nessa."
Elphaba pulled away from Fiyero, blushing slightly. "I'm sure she'll be happy to see you. Boq's here too at the moment."
Fiyero took Elphaba's hand. "I'll come too."
Elphaba led them towards the house and into the living room. Nessa and Boq were there with similar smirks, as Melena was standing in the doorway, looking guarded. This was her first experience at this, Nessa was yet to have a serious dating experience that reached the point of introductions between mother and boyfriend.
And it was a lot more complicated with Elphaba.
"Hello, Galinda, Fiyero," Nessa greeted them.
"Hi, Nessa. Sorry for the lack of notice. It was kind of a spur of the moment thing," Fiyero apologised.
"Don't be silly," Nessa replied. "It's great to see you. Right, Boq?"
Boq was currently busy basking in the beauty of Galinda and not really listening. At the sound of his name, he turned red and stammered.
"Oh, y-yes. So g-g-great to see you. Er, both of you," he added as an afterthought, tossing the later statement in Fiyero's direction.
He and Elphaba supressed a smile with difficulty, and Galinda was oblivious to Boq's reaction.
Nessa took charge of introductions, to make it a little easier for Elphaba.
"Galinda, Fiyero, this is our mother, Melena. Momma, this is Galinda Upland of the Upper Uplands; and this is Prince Fiyero Tiggular."
"Just Fiyero," Fiyero said quickly, stepping forward to greet Melena.
"It's nice to meet you both," Melena nodded cordially.
Fiyero was just as inexperienced at meeting the parents as Melena was at meeting the boyfriend; so both were a little awkward.
"So, where are you staying?" Nessa asked them.
"There's an inn in town, isn't there?" Fiyero asked. "I thought it made sense to get two rooms there."
"You could stay with me!" Boq blurted.
As all eyes turned to him, he hurried to explain. "We have a spare room that's now empty because Elphaba's staying here."
"And we have the couch," Nessa offered. "Galinda could stay here and Fiyero could stay with Boq?"
Elphaba swore Nessa added that part just to tease Boq, and his facial expression was enough to make her almost start laughing.
"That would be great, thanks," Fiyero said to Boq gratefully.
"If you don't mind," Galinda added to Melena, who smiled.
"That's fine with me," she assured her.
Boq's parents were surprised at the sudden appearance of visitors, let alone the Vinkun prince, but had no problem with letting him stay there. Of course, Boq's sisters were beyond thrillified with this news, which was enough to send Elphaba into a fit of laughter.
When Galinda and Fiyero had settled in, Fiyero quietly suggested to Elphaba that they go for a walk. Elphaba, who was aching to talk to him, agreed and they left.
"I still can't believe you're here," she said to him as they walked.
Fiyero squeezed her hand. "As soon as I got your letter, I knew I had to come."
"What about your parents?" Elphaba asked anxiously. She knew the king and queen couldn't have been happy about their son leaving.
"They weren't too happy," Fiyero admitted, recalling the blazing argument he'd had with his father before leaving. "But I don't care. I was worried about you."
She looked up at him in surprise. "You were?"
"I am," he corrected.
They came to a park, that was otherwise empty. Fiyero led her over to a bench and sat down.
"How are you doing?" he asked gently.
Elphaba struggled for a moment, not knowing what to say. "It's hard," she admitted. "I love Nessa, I do. She's so sweet, and she was really the first person to be somewhat friendly to me at Shiz. But now, she's my sister. I have no idea how to be a sister, or a daughter…"
"Hey," Fiyero interjected. "You didn't know how to be a girlfriend either, but you've mastered that."
Elphaba looked at him in exasperation and he chuckled.
"Sorry. Trying to help. It's true though."
Elphaba ignored him. "It's just… I never really thought about what would happen after finding out who my parents were. I never expected to walk into anything so complicated. And Nessa… I screwed up her whole life without even being there."
"Where did you get that idea?" Fiyero asked sharply.
Elphaba laughed hollowly. "Are you kidding me? Fiyero, think about it. Frex insisted Melena eat milk flowers when she was pregnant with Nessa, so she wouldn't turn out like me, and she was born not being able to walk; Melena had a drinking problem for years because Frex gave me away; and that led to him dying! Nessa was so close to her father, and he died because of what happened."
Fiyero cupped her face in both his hands. "That all leads back to Frex, not to you," he said sternly.
Elphaba just met his gaze calmly. "If I hadn't been born though, none of it would have happened," she whispered.
Fiyero could tell that she'd been thinking about this, maybe since she'd first discovered the truth, and it horrified him.
"Elphaba, listen to me," he told her softly. "I've only been in a room with your mother for a few minutes, but believe me when I tell you there is absolutely no way she blames you for anything. She is so happy to have you back in her life. And Nessa? Can't you see how excited she is? She pointedly refers to you as her sister in every other sentence, which is kind of adorable. I don't think she resents you for anything."
Elphaba couldn't help but smile, but her eyes fell to her lap. "She doesn't yet."
Fiyero did the only thing he could think of. He drew her towards him and kissed her deeply. Elphaba wasn't really ready for it, but she didn't fight it, slipping her arms around his shoulders and moving closer to him on the bench.
When he pulled away finally, he tenderly tucked a lock of hair behind her ear.
"Fae, I know this is hard for you. And that it's going to take time to adjust to everything, and it's bound to be scary. But I promise you, neither Nessa or your mother are ever going to resent you. You haven't done anything. People make choices, and their choices have consequences. Sometimes good, and sometimes bad. But that doesn't make anything your fault."
"I just don't want to screw this up," Elphaba whispered fearfully.
Fiyero shook his head. "You won't. And eventually, you'll have a normal mother-daughter and sisterly relationship. You and Nessa will fight over shoes, and your mother will drive you crazy. But that doesn't mean you've screwed anything up."
Elphaba laughed slightly. "I'm not really into shoes."
He grinned and kissed her again lightly. "Books then."
They continued walking until they could see the Governor's house atop the hill.
"So, that's where..."
Elphaba nodded. "That's where I was born. Where Nessa was born, where Frex died... I get chills just looking at it," she admitted and Fiyero wrapped his arm around her.
They eventually returned to the cottage in time for dinner, and Melena had invited Boq and Fiyero to stay for the meal.
"So, what happens next?" Galinda asked Elphaba as they ate.
"What do you mean?" Elphaba replied.
"Well, with your father. Are you going to try and find him?"
Elphaba exchanged a brief glance with Nessa before answering. "We tried. It turns out the bottle that was left with me belonged to him. We took it to a glassblowers last week to see if they could tell us anything more about it that might tell us where to look."
"And?" Fiyero pressed gently.
"It was made by a glassblower named Turtle Heart in the Quadlings," Nessa answered.
"So, when do we go to the Quadlings?" Fiyero asked casually.
They all turned to him, silence falling around the table.
"What?" Elphaba frowned. "Fiyero, we can't just go to the Quadlings."
"Why not?" he countered. "I have a carriage, we can find somewhere to stay when we get there. What's stopping us?"
She looked at him in fond exasperation. "The money for that-"
"Let me worry about the money," he cut her off.
Elphaba chuckled in faint disbelief. "Yero, I can't-"
Fiyero interrupted her once more. "Elphaba, I've offered to pay before, remember? I told you, anything you need, I'm here for. And if you really want to try and find your father, we'll go the Quadlings and try and find him."
Elphaba could only squeeze his hand wordlessly, unable to speak.
"Is that a yes?" Galinda questioned eagerly.
"It's a yes," Elphaba managed to whisper hoarsely.
After dinner, Galinda dragged Elphaba and Nessa off to look through the luggage she'd brought with her to see if it would be suitable for the Quadlings, or whether a shopping trip was in order before leaving.
"I don't know what good you think I'm going to be here," Elphaba informed her friend reasonably as she and Nessa followed her.
"We'll help clean up," Boq offered to Melena.
"Thank you," she said to the Munchkin boy graciously.
Boq picked up a few plates and took them into the kitchen. Left alone, Melena turned to Fiyero.
"That's a very generous offer you made, Fiyero," she said politely.
Fiyero smiled faintly. He had a suspicion as to what was going through Melena's mind, and decided the best thing to do was to get everything out in the open.
"Look, Mrs Thropp, you don't know me. And I understand you're really just getting to know Elphaba; and it must be very strange for you to suddenly have a twenty-one year old daughter with a boyfriend when you last saw her as a baby. And I'm sure you've heard certain things about me in the past-"
"I've heard stories," Melena interrupted.
Fiyero nodded. "Yes. But the thing is, I honestly love your daughter. And if this is important to her, and will make her happy, I want to do as much as I can to help make that happen."
Melena regarded him for a long moment.
"Are you sleeping with her?" she asked suddenly.
"No, ma'am," Fiyero replied, not even reacting to the question.
"But you love her?"
"Yes. Very much."
"Is it serious?"
That question was harder to answer, but Fiyero did his best. "We haven't really talked about the future too much, we've only been dating a few months. But I can tell you that when I think about my immediate future, Elphaba is in it."
Melena paused. "What exactly is your definition of 'immediate future'?"
Fiyero shrugged. "Months, not years. But I'm not ruling out the possibility of years," he said solemnly.
"What about your parents?" Melena asked, not wanting to show that she was impressed by his answers so far.
"They don't really approve," Fiyero admitted. "But they don't know Elphaba. And honestly, I don't care."
Melena paused thoughtfully. She knew that if Fiyero and Elphaba ever did decide to get married, they'd need his parents blessing; and if they disapproved of Elphaba, that could cause trouble and possible heartache for her daughter. But she genuinely believed that he loved Elphaba and there seemed no denying that the prince made her happy, from the little Melena had seen.
"Alright then," she said finally, and picked up some glasses to carry to the kitchen.
Melena decided not to accompany the group to the Quadlings. She felt this was Elphaba's journey and she trusted Boq and Fiyero to take care of the girls. Besides, she knew they would return to Munchkinland after completing their business in the Quadlings, anyway.
The group left two days later, and began their journey to Oz's southern province. The Quadling country was known for being relatively swampy and undeveloped; but they were reputed for their beautiful and exquisite arts and crafts, such as glassware, painting and jewellery, which was how they made most of their revenue.
When they finally reached the Quadlings, Fiyero found them a motel to stay in. It was a five-star for the Quadlings, but would have been a three-star at best for what Galinda and Fiyero were used to, but they didn't complain or comment.
"I could do with some more closet space, but it's an alright room for a few days," Galinda said, looking around.
Elphaba could tell her best friend was putting on a brave face for her sake, and appreciated the gesture.
"Thanks, Galinda," she said warmly, and hugged her.
Galinda chuckled. "You're welcome, Elphie."
"I like the view," Nessa commented.
Galinda looked at them and shook her head in amazement. "I still can't believe you two are really sisters,"
"Half-sisters," Elphaba corrected.
"Sisters," Nessa reiterated firmly, and Elphaba smiled at her.
"Are you going to change your name?" Galinda asked and Elphaba frowned.
"What do you mean?"
"Are you going to change your name?" Galinda repeated.
"To what?" Elphaba asked in bewilderment.
"To Thropp," Galinda answered simply.
Elphaba and Nessa exchanged a glance.
"I hadn't thought about it," Elphaba said honestly.
"Or," Galinda continued. "You could wait until you find your father and take his last name."
"Elphaba Thropp," Nessa said aloud thoughtfully. "It has a nice ring to it."
Elphaba chuckled. "I'll consider it," she promised. "But for right now, I'm happy being Elphaba Rozek."
"Maybe one day you'll be Elphaba Tiggular," Galinda said slyly, and Elphaba threw a pillow at her.
When they met Boq and Fiyero in the lobby, Fiyero was excited.
"I asked at reception if they'd ever heard of Turtle Heart, and they said he has a workroom in his house, which is about ten minutes away."
Elphaba gaped at him. "Really? That's amazing!"
"Do you want to go see him now?" Boq asked eagerly.
Elphaba shrugged. "Sure, may as well. The sooner we find out, one way or another, the sooner we can leave."
It was agreed, so the group headed over to Turtle Heart's workroom, following the directions Fiyero and Boq had gotten from the people in reception. They had decided to walk, given that it wasn't far and it was still light.
It was a small, old looking hut, with a wide open porch. As they approached, they saw an enormously tall, black man, who was hanging a few beautiful and delicate looking glass wind chimes on the porch.
"Excuse me?" Elphaba asked when they were within earshot.
The man turned, and Elphaba was surprised when he didn't even blink at her skin colour.
"May I help you?"
"Are you Turtle Heart?"
He smiled. "Yes, Turtle Heart. Would you like to buy something?"
Elphaba drew the green bottle out of her bag once more. "Actually, I was hoping you can help me with something else. I'm trying to find the person who may have owned this bottle, and I was told that you made it."
Turtle Heart took the bottle from her and carefully examined it. "Yes. I made this. Special Order."
Elphaba's heart began to beat faster in apprehension. "It would have been a long time ago- twenty-one years at least," she said.
He nodded. "Yes, it was a long time, large order. Specially designed."
"Do you happen to remember who ordered them?" she asked.
Turtle Heart looked at her and answered calmly and readily. "Oscar Diggs."
"Oscar Diggs?" Elphaba repeated, clutching Fiyero's hand tightly. Was this her father?
But she wasn't expecting the next bombshell. "Yes. I believe he is more recently known as the Wizard of Oz."
Elphaba's eyes widened. She heard Galinda gasp, but she was aware of nothing more as the room spun and her legs gave way, and she fainted in Fiyero's arms.