A/N: This is mostly fluff but I thought it was necessary as the next few chapters will not be fluffy. Hope you enjoy! Some themes are discussed but inferences, no direct words. :)

Chapter 17

Queen Eliska quietly made her way down the palace hallways to her son's room. He and Elphaba had been moved up there after the green girl was done in the infirmary and the Queen wanted a few words before the morning which undoubtedly brought war. She reached the door and was about to knock when she noticed it slightly ajar. Deciding she should listen and see if they were sleeping before she entered, she stood there for a few moments listening.

"Yero, people are going to die because of me. Of course this is my fault!" Elphaba pointed out. Apparently they were in the middle of an argument and the Queen was about to leave when she heard her son say,

"None of this is your fault. It is the fault of small-minded people. Your whole life you've been surrounded by people who feared you, people who hated you, and people that abused you. It is because of their lies and treachery that we are in this mess. Not everything that goes wrong is your fault."

"You heard them! They think you loving me, is my fault! I must have cast a spell on you! I must be controlling your mind! Because I'm hideous and I'm wicked and there is no way anyone would love me!" At this Elphaba collapsed onto the bed and buried her head in her hands. Fiyero immediately went to her and pulled her into his arms.

"You are not hideous. You are not wicked. You are beautiful. You are the kindest person I know. You're intelligent and funny and brave. I've told you this all before and I will keep telling you until you believe me. After this is all over, we'll go home, and it can be just you and me, ok? No more throngs of people and their judgments. Just, you, me, and the house we built," he said, trying to comfort her. Eliska practically broke down into tears at the door. Granted, she had not known Elphaba for very long, but she knew that what had happened to her shaped her thoughts and she knew all too well what the young woman was going through.

"What if there isn't "after this is over"? What if all we have is tonight?" Elphaba asked; her very real fear of losing her husband was understandable. She could protect herself but Fiyero would be required to be on the ground with the troops. She could not protect them both and her precarious perch atop the very gracious Griffin, Eggbert, would prevent it.

"Then we spend it together, in each other's arms, just like every night," Fiyero gave her a slight smile.

"You need more than my arms," the words were barely above a whisper and the Queen wasn't sure if she'd heard them correctly.

"I cannot ask that of you. I promised to wait until you were ready and I meant it," he told her. Eliska knew what he was getting at and it made her smile that Fiyero had grown up to be the man she'd always dreamed he'd be.

"There may not be a tomorrow Yero. I need you as much as you need me," Elphaba admitted. She had been unwilling to admit it but as of late, as life had slipped back into some form of normal, her body was reacting to certain things even if her mind objected. Fiyero's muscular arms and chest as they chopped wood for the fire (with no shirt on), the feel of him holding her tight as they slept in case of her nightmares, the way he kissed her, the way he tenderly took care of her (despite her objections). It was all reminding her that she could no longer suppress the physical portions of her body. Maybe it was a way to heal and maybe it would only cause more problems but the thought of death without one more moment with the man she loved, the only man whom she ever loved, pushed her mind to scream that she should listen to her body.

Somehow, Fiyero seemed to gauge all of that from the look on her face. He leaned in and pressed his lips to hers.

"Whatever you desire, my princess, my one and only," he said after they parted. At this point, the Queen quietly closed the door and hurried off down the hallway.

To Be Continued…