Chapter Six:
Despite protests from Chuffrey and her mother, at now four months pregnant Galinda Chuffrey got a carriage and made her way to Shiz University. Chuffrey would not allow her to go alone, so he came with her.
The couple had rarely seen each other in the past months since their wedding. Chuffrey had been away on business, and Galinda had been at home finding activities to keep herself busy. She had taken up sewing, and had tried and failed at cooking.
During the carriage ride, her husband who was in all honesty trying to comfort her could not console Galinda.
Sniffling she turned her head towards the window and placed her hands on her small but still round stomach. Her silk rose-colored dress was loose enough so that she could move in it and she wore a brimmed white hat. Her black scarf hung around her neck and completed the outfit. No one could even tell, by the length of the gown, that Galinda was wearing flats instead of heels because of her feet swelling.
"Were you close to your Ama?" asked Chuffrey as they entered the Emerald City. Silence filled the air for a moment. This was the first real conversation the wife and husband had ever had together.
"She raised me since I was nine. She was like a mother to me. A crazy eccentric mother who was a pain sometimes but a mother nonetheless," Galinda wiped her eyes with her hanky.
"And Doctor Dillamond?" Galinda was quite surprised that Chuffrey was showing an interest in her few months as a student at Shiz.
Galinda waved the subject of him away with her hand, "Elphie knew him more than I did. She's crushed, Chuffrey. Apparently she went into shock when she heard and has only spoken to me since then."
"You will be careful, won't you? I'm worried how Ama Clutch will react if she is dying and you and the baby could be in danger and-"
Galinda cut him off with a harsh glare and her blue eyes flashing in anger, "How could you say that? My Ama wouldn't hurt a fly!" The carriage stopped and they noticed that they were at Shiz.
Galinda looked at Chuffrey one last time before she disembarked from the carriage, "And why am I getting the strange impression that all you care about is this baby and not me?"
She turned around without another word and was assisted to the ground by her footmen.
Chuffrey merely shook his head at her and left the carriage as well.
Madame Morrible was waiting right there to greet them. Dressed in a deep black gown with her wild hair drawing attention to her, she grasped hands with Galinda, expressed her sympathy for Ama Clutch and her joy for the baby.
"She is in the infirmary," said Madame Morrible as she led the couple with Grommetik behind them to the wing, "and only you and your husband are allowed to see her. I felt as if other visitors should come she'd get quite agitated and then it would be…upsetting for you to see her like that."
The nurse opened the door for them, and Galinda let go of Chuffrey's hand as she went inside. Chuffrey stayed outside, saying that he would be right there if she needed him.
Galinda moved slowly towards the figure of her ailing caregiver, and tried to keep back the tears. The gray tinted stained glass windows seemed to only enhance Galinda's sad, dreary mood. She pulled back the white curtain that gave her privacy and sat down slowly on the edge of the bed. With a lump in her throat, Galinda smoothed out the baby pink knitted sheets and kept her tears at bay. There would be plenty of time for crying afterwards.
"Can I ask her one thing before you talk to her?" The question threw Galinda off guard and she whirled around to see who the speaker was.
"Who-" but as soon as Galinda recognized the green skin the question was irrelevant, "Elphie, what are you doing in here? Morrible said that no one else was allowed in here besides Chuffrey and myself."
The green woman was dressed in all black, with black-fringed gloves on her hands. She walked slowly towards the bed, almost trance-like, "I needed to ask her what happened. I need to know for sure if that tic tok machine killed Dillamond."
She reached the bed, and Galinda reached out a hand and grasped Elphaba's frayed gloved hand.
"Elphie, I think you're being ridiculous… Ama Clutch is dying, she won't remember a thing."
"That's not true," snapped Elphaba, "The dying remember the things in life that troubled them, their last attempt to solve the mysteries of their deaths and or lives. She'll remember."
At this Ama Clutch opened her pale eyes and looked around wildly. Then her gaze stopped on Galinda's face, and her bony hand clasped Galinda's hard.
"My sweet Galinda, look at you darling…" said Ama Clutch softly and then she turned her head sharply to the left, "No you stupid table, I wasn't talking to you!"
Galinda felt whatever hope she had left in her that had been wishing that her Ama was getting better diminish into oblivion. Her heart sank as her Ama raved on to the 'table' that was supposedly talking to her.
"You're pregnant," noticed Ama Clutch once she had snapped out of her rant. Galinda nodded and she bit her lip as she felt the water rise up in her eyes.
"It'll be good for you, Galinda. Oh and look Elphaba's here too!" She smiled as best she could at the green woman who stared at her intently.
"Ama Clutch," Elphaba spoke up now and she could sense that the old woman was going, "Tell me this now before you go. Who killed Doctor Dillamond?
Was it Grommetik?"
Elphaba's voice was on the verge of desperation and Galinda noticed she grew rigid as she waited for an answer.
"You already know who did it, duckies. That tic tok thing never liked me anyways or the poor Doctor," Ama Clutch said with a slight huff. Galinda now had tears pooled in her crystal blue eyes.
"Ama Clutch, I am so sorry, so, so sorry for everything! I wish that I could save you," Galinda cried mournfully and Ama Clutch knew that she meant every word.
"Don't' worry about me, my dear Galinda. I'd worry about yourself if I were you."
Ama Clutch's hand lost some of its strength and the elderly woman closed her eyes for a moment and smiled.
"You hear that, Galinda dear? It's the Wind coming to take me away. Now don't you cry, I have lived a long and happy life."
But Galinda had begun to cry, and she felt comforted when Elphaba put a strong hand on her shoulder. The blonde leaned on Elphaba's angular shoulder, and Elphaba was almost hit by the brim of her hat.
Galinda held her caregiver's hands until she breathed no more and then heartbreaking cries were heard from the blonde's mouth.
Elphaba of course remained stoic and silent but she did wrap her arms around Galinda's shaking body.
"It'll be alright, Galinda. Don't cry," stated Elphaba her voice thick with some sort of emotion that was not sadness, it was more like determination.
Galinda's tears finally came to a cease and she leaned on Elphaba while they sat on the bed for support.
"I really am going to miss her," whispered Galinda tearfully as she blew her nose in her hanky.
Suddenly Galinda took a sharp intake of breath, and pressed a hand to her stomach as if in pain.
"Galinda!" snapped Elphaba worriedly as the blonde gave out a cry of pain.
She staggered off the bed, breathing heavily and grasping Elphaba's hand as if it was her last life connection. Slowly she lifted up her rose colored skirt to find blood flowing down her legs. At the sight of it, Galinda nearly shrieked and she collapsed against Elphaba in a panic.
"Galinda, calm down, just breathe… it will be alright," rushed out Elphaba and her eyes widened in fear as the blood now pooled at the floor and at the hem of Galinda's dress. As for the blonde woman she clutched onto Elphaba like she was dying and started sobbing uncontrollably when she felt something slip between her bloody legs. She knew in an instant that it was the baby, and she buried her head into Elphaba's chest, begging her to never let go.
Suddenly Galinda felt Elphaba's hand under her chin and teary-eyed she was forced to look into the green woman's eyes. Still hiccupping and crying, Elphaba pitied her friend. She knew that Galinda's whole life had been ruined in this one moment, and she had no one to fix it for her. But Elphaba hated seeing Galinda cry, and even more so when she was heart-breakingly sobbing.
So Elphaba kissed Galinda fully on the lips to make the tears and the hurt go away, at least for the little time they had together before Morrible and Chuffrey came barging in.
Those precious moments had more of an impact on Galinda than Elphaba would ever realize they did.
This was a really sad chapter. Really, really sad. I actually almost started crying when I was writing this. How do you all think Chuffrey will react to this? Elphaba? Poor Galinda, we fanfictioners just love to torture her. Also I was thinking of changing the title of this to "So Close Still So Far". What do you think? Like?
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