AN: Two more chapters until the end! I'll post them both tomorrow!

Chapter Forty-One: Indefinitely

Their engagement party was drawing near, and Fiyero was feeling incredibly nervous. He'd asked Elphaba to borrow the ring back so he could have it cleaned in time for the party, and had put a simple gold band on her finger instead. Of course, when the time came for the party, he'd say there was a problem with it and that they were having a replica made instead and it would take time. She wouldn't suspect, would she? He didn't think she knew.

His mother, however, did suspect. "Son, you are acting so ridiculous you're starting to worry your father. What in Oz is going on?" She stood in his doorway after dinner one night while Elphaba was in the reading room he'd set up for her.

"I… I'm going to ask Elphaba to marry me for real. I'm planning on asking right after the engagement party."

His mother hugged him close. "Oh, that's wonderful. But really, Fiyero, you need to stop acting so strange. Your father will wonder. And so will she. I'm assuming you want it to be a surprise."

"As much as it can be. She probably has an idea that it's coming at some point, but I don't think she expects."

"Well, she will if you keep acting like a frightened chicken."

"I'm just afraid she won't accept."

His mother frowned at that and sat beside him. "Do you really think that's a possibility?"

"Very much so. Elphaba loves me, Mother, but she's very, ah, independent. I think the idea of marriage has her a little scared."

"She'll have to get over that."

"I don't know if she can. And Mother, I know you talked to her last time, but please don't meddle this time. I need to do this my own way and let the chips fall where they may." He played with his fingers. "I want to be with her forever, but if she doesn't want the same thing, I don't want her to feel like she has to stay."

His mother nodded. "I think I understand that feeling."

Of course she did. His father, trapped forever with her. That's what she was thinking of that moment; he saw the distant sadness in her eyes. How he wished he could fix it. But he couldn't force his father to love his mother, and he couldn't change the way she felt towards him, either. He hugged her briefly and went back to the topic at hand, "She needs to come to terms with it by herself. I think maybe she has. But there's only one way to know."

"Well, then, I wish you the best of luck. I won't bother you anymore. Just please stop acting like an idiot."

He laughed as his mother left the room and fell back against his bed. Fiyero wondered if Elphaba had noticed his odd behavior. He could always read her, did that mean she could read him, too? Was she simply being polite and not mentioning? Did she know what it meant and was trying to avoid it?

"You're still up," she observed, entering the room several hours later.

"I don't like falling asleep without you," he admitted. "And I've had a lot to think about."

"I've noticed."

He raised his eyebrows at her.

"You've seemed a little bothered lately. It's the coronation, isn't it? You're nervous about becoming king." She sat next to him and put a hand on his arm. "You'll be wonderful, you know. I can't imagine a better leader than you."

Strangely enough, he hadn't been concerned at all about taking on the role of king. He was more focused on taking on the role of husband, hopefully. "Still, it's a daunting task."

"One you were quite literally born for, Fiyero."

Usually, it was Elphaba who needed comforting, who needed to be told she was strong enough to do something. This time it wasn't the same. "What if it goes wrong?"

She laughed at that. "Then you will handle it exactly as a king should. You are amazing, and nothing should stop you from doing what you're meant to."

How he wished she knew what he was actually worried about. Fiyero kissed her softly on the mouth. "Can I ask you something?"

She nodded, though a hint of discomfort flashed in her eyes.

"When we talked about coming out here, you made it clear it was temporary. You said you needed to see how we did for a bit before you decided if long-term was possible. You've been here for quite some time now. Have you figured it out?"

She took both of his hands in hers. "I think I'd like to stay for more than just the summer, if that's what you mean. You're not talking about forever, are you?" Her eyes widened. "Fiyero, you're not asking me to marry you…?"

"No, not right now." He smiled. "I just thought it might be good to know how we're doing, where you're at. I know a lot of the time you think I just know, but I do like to check in with you before I make an assumption. And as I've told you, you can stay as long as you want." Forever, if you would.

"I know. And I intend to stay somewhat indefinitely, if you don't mind having me hanging around all the time."

"There's nothing better in the world."

She flushed. "Yero my hero, you are too sweet."

But he was too happy to bother with that. She would stay. That meant she was leaning in the direction he had been praying for. He felt his nerves calm somewhat. Asking her didn't seem so frightening, all of the sudden. Fiyero was certain he hadn't been mistaken that there had been hope and excitement in her eyes when she'd thought he might be asking for her hand.

Glinda arrived a day before the party and took up most of Elphaba's time for the day, which worked out well for him because he was busy preparing his arrangements. Of course, Glinda probably knew that and that's why she was doing so. He didn't see Elphaba until they went to bed that night.

The moment she entered the room, he pulled her into his arms and began to undress her. He didn't know what would happen the next day, and he was going to enjoy her while he had her. She didn't seem to notice, perhaps because he often got overly affectionate and heated with her. That night, he kept her up for hours, listening to her sweet cries of ecstasy, loving the way his name sounded as it fell breathless from her lips, tasting each part of her body, diving into her depths and burying himself there, praying he'd never have to let her go.

"If you keep me up any later, I'll never have the energy for the party, Yero." She teased. "Don't get me wrong, I am thoroughly enjoying this, but you are a little enthusiastic tonight and we really should rest."

He kissed her lips slowly, running his tongue over her lower lip and then exploring her mouth. After a moment, he drew back and said, "I'm sorry, sweet Fae. How can I help myself when I look at you?"

She ran a hand through his tousled hair and grinned. "I don't know. Sometimes the passion between us scares me it's so intense."

"There are moments when I forget who I am without you, what it's like to be apart from you, like everything I do is wrapped up in you."

"I'm glad that I'm not the only one who feels that way sometimes." She took a deep breath. "Yero, I love you so much. I don't know what I'd do without you. I hate to think how soft and pathetic that sounds, but it's true."

He grabbed her waist and tugged her against him. "It's not pathetic, Fae. It's just love."

"It can't be this way for everyone, Fiyero."

"I don't think it is." He murmured, running a finger along her torso, tracing the line of her abdomen. "This is going to sound incredibly cliché, but I think this isn't the love other people experience. This is deeper, somehow. Like… like it was meant to be."

At those words, she flushed. "Maybe, just maybe it was."