'Lo all. I must say I was really surprised by the awesome response to the last chapter. Thanks so much to everyone who read and reviewed! You guys are all amazing!
Well anyways, I really have nothing else to say for now, so I s'pose I just won't take up any more of your time and just allow you to read the story.
Fiyero couldn't remember falling asleep, but he must have at some point during the night, for morning had broken some time ago. For a moment he wondered why his bed felt so hard and uncomfortable, and why he could not hear Glinda's gentle snores coming from beside him. He sleepily cocked one eye open, and bolted into a sitting position as he realized he was lying on the floor of a cave. It took a few moments, but soon the memories of the previous day broke through the haze of his still tired mind.
Everything flooded back to him in an instant. He'd been captured trying to find the Witch's hideout and now he was paying the price. He had no means of escape, and, for that matter, no clue as to why the Witch hadn't killed him yet. He shuddered as he tried not to think of all of the things the horrible woman could do to him.
Propping himself up with his elbows, Fiyero took a quick glance around the cavern that served as his prison. He hadn't really looked around last night, but now that he did he realized just how small the space was. It was quite tight, about the length and width of the dining room table they'd had back at the Emerald Palace. It was enough to make Fiyero feel claustrophobic.
Upon further inspection, Fiyero noticed a bowl of fruit and a bowl of water sitting over in the corner, and he realized that the Witch had left it out for him. She must have put the bowls there before he'd woken up. Judging by the fact that the fruit was already browning, he assumed that he must have overslept. Fiyero shuddered involuntarily as he imagined the Witch standing mere inches from him as he slept. He still couldn't fathom why she'd go through the trouble of giving him food. Why should she care if he starved to death?
Another thought struck him. Was the food poisoned? Had she enchanted it to have some strange effect on him after he ate it? He eyed the bowl warily, weighing his options. He wasn't very hungry at the moment, but he'd have to eat eventually. Would it be better to take his chances with the food or risk starvation? Neither seemed like a very appealing option.
Deciding to leave the fruit alone and worry about that later, Fiyero finally stood up on shaky legs. His first thought was that he wished there was a mirror in this cave. He could tell that his clothes were filthy from sleeping on the floor and so assumed his face and hair was as well. Even in captivity a prince had to look his best. Sighing, he turned around to face the stone that blocked his exit from this room.
To his immense surprise, he found that the heavy stone had been moved back from the entrance to his passage, and it appeared he was free to move into the main section of the cave. Taking a tentative step forward, he held a hand out, sticking it out through the archway as if expecting to recieve an electric shock. When none came, he pulled his arm back to his side and stepped out into the living area.
Looking around, he was grateful to find that the Witch was no where in sight. Briefly he recalled her words from the night before. Apparently she planned to let him roam free in the cave whenever she wasn't around. Again he wondered why she even bothered to grant him that right, instead of making him stay cooped up in that small cavern until he went insane.
Shaking his head, Fiyero decided not to puzzle himself over the Witch's decisions anymore for the time being. After all, the woman was practically insane and for all he knew there was absolutely no method to her madness at all. How could he hope to explain the actions of someone who flew around on a cleaning implement and kept the company of rebellious Animals?
Stepping further into the room, Fiyero noted that not much seemed to have changed since yesterday. The only difference was the absence of the Witch's cloak and broomstick. He wondered briefly where the Witch had gone, but didn't waste too much energy thinking about it. She was probably out causing trouble or wreaking havoc or whatever Wicked Witches did for recreation. Fiyero just hoped she wouldn't be caught, for if she was it was most likely he'd be forgotten and left to rot in this Ozforsaken cavern. The other difference was that a fresh pail of water lay in the corner. He hadn't noticed that yesterday. How did the Witch draw water from the lake if it was supposed to melt her?
Turning, Fiyero found himself face to face with the large boulder that blocked the entrance to the cave, the only thing standing between him and freedom. He studied it for a moment, once again trying to assess whether or not he had the strength to move it on his own. Deciding he had nothing to lose, Fiyero pressed his hands firmly against the stone and pushed with all of his might. His muscles tensed and strained, but his hands kept slipping against the stone. There was no way for him to get a firm grip, and the rock was far too big for him to simply roll it aside this way. Defeated, his energy spent, Fiyero gave up and collapsed against the rock, sliding down against it until he slumped to the floor.
From his position, Fiyero took another look around. His eye was suddenly caught by the glowing orb in the corner of the room, the only source of light in the cave. Suddenly fascinated, Fiyero stood and moved closer to better examine it. He eyed it carefully, keeping a measurable distance between himself and the orb at first. However, it seemed harmless, and so after a moment he reached out and brushed the light with his fingers. He watched with fascination as his fingers passed right through the orb, leaving no sensation on the tips of his fingers. Fiyero stood for a few moments, completely in awe of the strange light source. He'd never been this close up to something so magical before. Sure he'd seen Glinda conjure her bubble, but this was in a different category altogether.
Turning from the light, Fiyero focused his attention on the spell book that still lay open on the stone table at the center of the room. He suddenly found himself very curious as to what was written in the strange book that gave the Witch the ability to perform such extraordinary tasks. Crossing the room, he crouched down in from of the old book and examined the page it was opened to. He was surprised to find that he did not recognize the writing on the pages at all. The ancient looking paper was covered with unfamiliar symbols, all swirling around and constantly rearranging themselves. He marveled at the fact that the Witch could understand it at all. He flipped through the pages quickly, only to find that they were all characterized by the same strange alphabet.
Losing interest in the strange book quickly, Fiyero stood and decided to continue his exploration of the Witch's living quarters. He was not sure what he was expecting to find exactly. Perhaps he was hoping for some insight into the way the Witch's mind worked or an explanation for why she committed such horrible crimes. No matter what his intent, the dog-eared pile of books across the room became Fiyero's next destination.
There were five books in the small pile, and each was rather thick. Picking up the one on the top of the pile, Fiyero was relieved to find it was written in normal Ozian language. It was a book on the study of Animals, which was all Fiyero could gather from the title. He flipped through the pages disinterestedly, and wrinkled his nose as the pungent smell of musty paper stung his nose. He glanced at the titles of the other books, but they all seemed to be on more or less the same subject. All in all, the Wicked Witch of the West had a rather boring hide out.
Fiyero was just about to have a seat on one of the Witch's stone seats when suddenly a trace of green caught his eye. Turning his head toward the strange distraction, Fiyero could see the corner of what looked like a bit of green paper sticking out from under a stone on his far right. Moving toward it curiously, he bent down to have a closer look. Taking the corner of the page between his fingers, he gave it a sharp tug, but it wouldn't budge from beneath the stone.
His curiosity peaked, Fiyero decided to move the large rock aside and get a better look. Placing his fingers under the stone, he gave a heave and managed to flip the rock over, revealing a sort of secret outlet beneath. Inside lay an assortment of different artifacts he assumed the Witch had wanted to keep hidden. There were two books, a small black one that looked like a diary, and a larger one Fiyero couldn't identify. Along with this was a number of papers that looked like assorted letters and documents. Shifting through them carefully, Fiyero wondered why the Witch would attempt to hide these.
One item that stood out most against the others was a green envelope, which was what Fiyero assumed had drawn his eye to this little secret compartment in the first place. Upon further observation, Fiyero recognized it as the type of envelope the Wizard used to send messages. He wondered whether the Witch had intercepted this letter or if it had been a request from the Wizard to turn herself in before she'd gotten out of control. Curiosity getting the better of him, Fiyero reached into the envelope and extracted the carefully folded sheet of paper within.
Upon perusing the short notice, Fiyero was more than surprised to find that it was not at all what he'd expected. Instead of a summons, it appeared to be an invitation from the Wizard addressed to someone named Elphaba Thropp. The name sounded a bit familiar to Fiyero, though he couldn't put his finger on why. Was this the Witch's real name? Up until this point he hadn't really even thought it possible that the woman could have another title other than 'The Wicked Witch of the West". Bringing his eyes back down to the page, he saw that this Elphaba person had been invited to have an audience with the Wizard more than two years ago because of her 'extraordinary achievements in magic and sorcery'. Fiyero stared blankly at the page, not quite sure what he was reading. Why would the Wizard actually invite a woman who was such a dangerous threat into his palace? Had he not known yet, or had this actually been before she had become the Wicked Witch of the West?
"Thought you'd have a bit of fun going through my belongings did you?" came a menacing voice from behind, causing Fiyero to start and toss the letter away as if scalded. Jumping up, he found himself face to face with a furious Wicked Witch.
Feeling his legs turn to jelly, Fiyero began to stammer, "I-I-I…." He could think of no sufficient explanation. True, he'd forgotten that the Witch could actually come home while he was digging through her personal belongings.
"Get back in your room," she growled, pointing a finger toward the small cavern in which Fiyero had spent the night. Not daring to disobey, he stumbled back into the small cavern as quickly as he shaky legs would carry him. He caught one last glimpse of the Witch's belongings, still scattered across the floor, before the boulder slammed into place.
Fiyero stood there for a few moments, mind blank, before he did something he'd seldom done before: he began to use his brain. He knew he wasn't supposed to have seen those papers, and he was surprised the Witch had not punished him for going through her things.
He still couldn't understand why the Witch had that letter. Was it true that the Wizard had actually requested to see her some time ago? Had that been when she'd first been labeled the Wicked Witch of the West? Perhaps she had turned on the Wizard once she'd entered his chamber, but had failed in her assassination attempt. But if that was the case then why save the letter?
Fiyero suddenly wished he'd gotten a better look at some of the other papers. Most of all he would have liked to get a glimpse at the woman's diary. After all, what sorts of things would the Wicked Witch of the West want to keep private? Fiyero couldn't exactly picture her curled up on her bed, scribbling her deepest darkest secrets in a small book.
Well, there was no use wondering about it now. He was pretty sure the Witch would be moving her belongings to a new location as quickly as possible, and he had a feeling he'd most likely never see them again.
Fiyero's thoughts were cut short as the boulder suddenly swung open and the Witch swept in. Fiyero eyed her apprehensively, and backed up against the wall as she passed him. She seemed to pay no mind to his behavior.
She dropped a plate of what looked like plain cheese and crackers onto the floor, and Fiyero eyed it distrustfully. She seemed to notice this, and also that the fruit from earlier this morning lay untouched.
"Oh, you're afraid I've poisoned it are you?" she asked, whipping around to face him. Fiyero said nothing, for it was exactly what he'd been thinking. He watched as she took one of the crackers from the plate and placed it in her own mouth. "There's nothing wrong with it, so I suggest you take your chances or starve to death. Either way it's of no consequence to me."
That said, the Witch stalked from the chamber with the now rotting bowl of fruit, leaving Fiyero alone once more as the rock slid into place behind her. Fiyero watched her go, before turning his attention back to the plate of food. True, by his time he was rather hungry, as he hadn't eaten since morning the day before. Carefully, he removed one of the crackers from the plate and nibbled at it. When nothing happened after a few moments, he popped the entire thing into his mouth and reached for another.
As he devoured his rather unexciting meal, Fiyero tried to make sense of all he'd seen in the past two days. The only thing he knew for sure by now was that the Witch was most certainly a conundrum. What was worse, she was a conundrum that made him think.
And there's chapter four, which I believe was the longest chapter yet. I know it wasn't all too exciting, but it's definitely necessary to the plot. Anyways, please leave a review if you have the time, because reviews make me all warm and fuzzy inside!
Anyways, thanks for reading. I'll try to get the next update out as soon as possible.
S.P.