Chapter Five: Terms and Conditions

"I think I'll do this. With a few conditions of my own."

She'd shown up at his door basically unannounced that evening. He took her hand and walked her into the room. "All right. Tell me."

For a moment, she stared down at their hands and then drew back. "Let's begin with that. I'm not an affectionate person by nature, and it wouldn't be believable if I was acting sweet with you all of the sudden. I'm not saying we need to keep our distance, but I am saying we need to remember who we are. We're still playing ourselves, Fiyero."

"Fair enough. But you need to remember that we need to move this relatively fast if we're going to be 'engaged' by next year."

"I get that." She paused. "And I don't want your money. You can owe me all the favors you want when this is over, but the money… it doesn't feel right. I'm doing this because you looked desperate for help, and because you don't deserve to be stuck in the situation you're in. And, honestly, there are some parts of this that will benefit me, too. I wouldn't mind having my family off my back, either."

"If you insist." He sat on his bed. "Sit down and we'll talk about how to handle this, then."

She sat down beside him. "I've told Glinda."

"I figured." He smiled. "Now, we'll call yesterday's lunch our first official date. And maybe once or twice a week, the two of us need to be away from everyone else, not necessarily out and about, but together somewhere. You can come over here and just study if you want. But you need to be with me. I won't bother you."

"I think I can do that. If I was in a real relationship, which I likely wouldn't be at all, I don't see myself going out a lot to begin with. Staying in and studying is probably what I'd do."

"Good. We're on the same page, then. I guess I'll tell my parents over the winter holidays."

"I'll do the same. Nessa and Nanny will probably already know by then, anyway. Please tell me you're not intending to make some sort of big deal about announcing our 'relationship.'"

"Nope. I figure we'll just show up holding hands one of these days to dinner and everyone will come to their own conclusions." He sat back. "Stay here a bit. I don't know if anyone saw you at my door, but if they did…"

"Right." She looked around and grabbed the knapsack she always carried, pulling out a book. Glancing at him quickly, she settled herself on the floor.

"You can sit on the bed, you know." But he knew why she wasn't. And he knew she shouldn't. That didn't stop him from wanting her to.

"I'm perfectly comfortable right here." She gave him a pointed look.

"I was just being friendly. We're still friends through this. You understand that, right?"

"Of course." But she didn't even look at him.

He relaxed on his bed. "You don't want to talk more about this?"

"It sounds like you've gotten it pretty much figured out, Fiyero. What more is there to talk about?"

"What did Glinda think?"

"She thinks it's a bit crazy, but she doesn't see the harm."

"It is a little out there. But I really don't know what else I could do." He looked over at her, noting that she had her nose in her book still. "You'll probably need to join me in the Vinkus over the spring or summer holidays to meet my family."

"I can do that. Is there anything I need to know?"

"Not that I can think of." He didn't mention that the Vinkus wasn't as… traditional as the rest of Oz, that people were more open. His father didn't exactly go about hiding his affairs from his mother. And many couples didn't necessarily care to wait until marriage to enjoy the pleasures of the flesh, but that didn't apply to them. Fiyero wasn't sure if he should even bother to tell her that and he decided to leave it as it was for the moment. "We might want to get our story straight on how this all came about. I had an idea, though."

"What's that?"

"It's simple. The other day when we ran into each other on our way to library, we got to talking. We realized we had more in common than we thought and I asked you out. You agreed. Easy. We shouldn't make this complicated if it doesn't have to be."

"Good."

He was getting frustrated with the way she was basically ignoring him and he went over and sat beside her. She lifted her gaze to him for just a moment and then went back to her reading. "What are you studying?"

"Life sciences."

"I could study with you, maybe quiz you or something. We are in that class together, you know."

"I do just fine on my own, thanks."

He didn't know why, but he wanted her to talk to him. "Have you told Glinda that you've accepted the idea?"

"I will." She looked like she wanted to say something more, but shook her head.

He couldn't imagine that her roommate hadn't had more to say, but he knew prodding wasn't going to get him much further. Instead, he grabbed his own book and flipped through the pages. Maybe he could find something to discuss with her in terms of the book. "What made you so interested in life sciences, Elphaba?"

"Our old professor." Her face finally displayed some emotion. "It's really too bad you'll never get to have a class taught by Dr. Dillamond. He was so passionate about the topic and he knew so much. It was impossible not be interested."

"Unlike Dr. Nikidik, who you can barely hear at all." He commented wryly.

She grinned at that. "Exactly."

"I don't see much passion for the subject there."

"There isn't any. Sometimes I wonder why he bothers to teach at all."

"I imagine the pay is fairly good. That's the only reason I can think of."

She shrugged. "I suppose."

"I can't believe any of us are passing that class at all, though. All he does is stupid demonstrations to stroke his own ego and mutters about things no one understands. If it weren't for the book, I'd have no clue what we're supposed to be learning."

"That thing he was doing when you first came in… he was definitely trying to show off. It failed miserably, though."

He cringed, remembering. His parents had come with him to get him settled the first day and insisted he wear ceremonial robes. They'd left just before he went to his first class, but he hadn't had time to change. Fiyero couldn't forget the stares of his classmates, the pointed fingers and the snickering. Then again, she probably got more of it than he did, and on a daily basis. He couldn't understand why, though. The green, though it was typical, wasn't ugly. It shimmered on her skin, made her look ethereal. "I'm surprised he still has his job after that."

"Morrible doesn't care. She's too busy organizing poetry readings that are actually thinly-veiled political rallies."

"Oh?"

"She hated Dr. Dillamond. And he wasn't too fond of her. If she could've fired him, she would've, but he'd been there long before she arrived and with his tenure, there wasn't much she could do about him. She was probably overjoyed the day he died." She said darkly.

"You don't really think she's that evil, do you?"

"I'm not certain." She admitted.

He put a hand on her shoulder, noting that she jumped a little. They'd have to work on that. "This place can't be all bad."

"No, it's not. There are good people here. But people can be corrupted. As I've said before."

"It's a good thing we have you to set us straight, then." He told her.

She smiled genuinely at that, laughing lightly. "Yes, maybe it is."