Okay so I'm sorry this one took so long. I've been trying to finish up writing chapter 25 before I posted this one, but it's being an absolute bitch and I still haven't managed to finished it. I didn't realize when I decided to add Glinda into the mix that it would be so difficult to write scenes with the three of them.
Also I had a really strange day today. I live in Manhattan and it was extremely nice out, so I decided to take a walk uptown (I live in the Village). I ended up passing through Times Square and when I got up by the Gershwin I realized they were doing the Wicked lottery, so on a whim I put in for one ticked and I won. I'd just seen it like 3 weeks ago but really who passes up a $30 ticket? So I just spontaneously saw Wicked again, sitting in the front row by myself like a loser. Pretty decent Sunday afternoon though, especially since it wasn't planned.
Anyway I hope you guys don't hate the way I've decided to write Glinda over the course of the next couple of chapters. I won't say much about it now, but I hope you won't consider it out of character when you get there. I tend to give her a lot of credit on average. Anyway I'll stop talking now, here's the next chapter.
Fiyero trailed behind Elphaba and Glinda, still reeling from all that had happened in just the last couple of hours. The two women had not said a word to each other since they'd departed the Emerald City, and Fiyero was practically choking on the tension in the air. He remembered the way the two had been at each other's throats in the dungeons and knew it was probably wiser not to interfere. After all, he had a sneaking suspicion he was to blame for at least a good deal of the anger between them, and that they both had a fair bit of it to direct his way as well.
Yet after another hour of walking in silence Fiyero found that his curiosity was killing him. He still had next to no idea what had been going on when he'd found Elphaba and Glinda at the palace, or why Glinda was suddenly along for the ride. If Fiyero didn't speak up soon he was liable to explode.
Breaking the silence tentatively, Fiyero said, "So, does anyone want to explain to me what's going on?"
There was a long pause, during which Fiyero began to wonder if they would answer his question at all or whether he was receiving the silent treatment. He supposed it would be fair if that were the case. Both women had justifiable reasons to be angry with him.
However, eventually Elpaba supplied a response. "Glinda sold me out," she said. Her voice was even but laced with venom.
As was to be expected, Glinda did not keep silent in the wake of this accusation. "Well what do you want from me?" she huffed, "You betrayed me first, you and Fiyero! Going behind my back for Oz knows how long!"
Fiyero swallowed hard as he watched their argument take off. Perhaps he shouldn't have pushed this.
Elphaba gritted her teeth. "I've already told you, we have not been going behind your back! I had never even met Fiyero before two weeks ago, and he certainly did not tell me he was engaged! And in any case, even if we had been that would still not be an acceptable excuse for selling me out to the Wizard!" she snapped.
"Well I didn't really, did I?" Glinda retorted, "If I had I wouldn't be in this mess. I'd be back in my bed at the Emerald Palace, not traipsing around the forest in my nightdress with you!"
"You should have just stayed behind then! Oz knows I didn't need your help to avoid being captured!" Elphaba shot back.
Glinda huffed, "Oh come on Elphaba, you know I wouldn't have actually stood by and let them captutre you that way. Even though I'm fairly sure I'd like to kill you myself at the moment."
They lapsed into silence, but Fiyero was still confused. He was debating whether or not he should open his mouth again when Elphaba seemed to realize they'd never answered his original question and spoke up, "After I escaped, Glinda went to the Wizard and Morrible and told them to use you to set a trap for me. Since I would assume you'd returned to the Emerald City, it wouldn't be far fetched that they could take you into custody, and Oz knows they'd have no problems torturing you to get information on me. Then, once they'd lured me to the palace to attempt your rescue, Morrible was planning to catch me with my guard down and without my spell book."
"Yes, but I felt terrible about it and I've been going down to the dungeons every night since so that if Elphaba showed up I could warn her away before they caught her. So don't make me out to be a terrible person!" Glinda said.
"Oh you actually felt bad about effectively sentencing your friend to death. You're right Glinda, you're an absolute saint," Elphaba shot back.
Glinda sighed, "Well either way, I'm paying for it now aren't I?"
Now that he'd heard the full explanation, Fiyero supposed it made sense. It did seem very like Glinda to let her emotions get the better of her that way, and he had given her fair enough reason to be upset. Still, Fiyero was glad to know that she was incapable of going through with something that awful.
They walked on in silence again after that. The night had grown cold, and Fiyero could feel the chill seeping in through his now-ragged long sleeved shirt. Elphaba seemed fine in the heavy black dress and cloak she was wearing, but Glinda, who was dressed in nothing but a short-sleeved nightgown, had visibly begun to shiver.
Noticing Glinda's discomfort, Fiyero said, "It's about three day's journey to Kiamo Ko, and we don't have any provisions or a change of clothing. "
"I still have some supplies," Elphaba responded, "But certainly not enough for a three day journey."
Fiyero nodded and replied, "Yes, and it also won't do to have Glinda traipsing through the woods in her night clothes and slippers."
Elphaba, who seemed to have been oblivious to Glinda's predicament up to this point, turned her gaze to her shivering friend. Grudgingly she sighed and undid the knot where her cloak was fastened around her neck. Saying nothing, she held it out to Glinda, who seemed surprised but accepted it gratefully.
Fiyero was pleased to see that the two were at least willing to get along, despite the hard feelings between all three of them. He supposed this was a matter of survival. "So I was thinking, would we be able to pick up some supplies if we stopped at the Animal camp in this direction? The one you were at most recently before you came to the Emerald City to find me. It's not too far out of our way, no more than an extra half a day's journey," Fiyero suggested.
Elphaba seemed surprised. "How do you know about that place?" she asked, a small measure of distrust in her voice.
Fiyero was taken aback; he'd forgotten she hadn't exactly wanted him to follow her there. "I went looking for you after you vanished. I realize you probably told all of the Animals at the first camp not to give me any information about where you were going, but I suppose you forgot to give Lorgen the memo," he replied.
Elphaba shook her head and said, "That girl," but Fiyero could still hear the fondness in her voice.
Fiyero continued, "She pointed me in the right direction, and from there I found the other camp." He left out the bits about the Lion, deeming it unnecessary information for the time being. He glanced over at Glinda as he finished his explanation. He knew this was probably not what she wanted to be hearing, but she said nothing, and her face was unreadable in the darkness.
"It appears I was not as careful in covering my tracks as I'd hoped." said Elphaba, "Though I suppose in this case it did turn out for the better. At any rate yes, I think stopping there would be for the best. However, I think we should continue for as long as we are physically able before stopping, and when we do we should take short rests in shifts. We'll need to stay off any of the beaten paths as well."
Fiyero nodded his approval; ignoring the fact the gesture would go unseen in the darkness. He imagined Elphaba had plenty of experience evading Gale Force guards, but she had also never traveled in a group. He was also particularly concerned with Glinda, who had never lacked for comfort a day in her life. To her credit though, she did not protest Elphaba's plans.
And so, as promised, the three walked on for as long as they were able. Elphaba had taken the lead, and Fiyero glanced about with a sort of vague recognition as they went. He could hardly believe he had passed through these woods on his own such a short time ago.
Eventually, the three travelers grew too weary to continue. As was to be expected, Glinda was the first to give in to fatigue, though Fiyero was not far behind her. By this time the first light of dawn had begun to creep its way over the tree tops, and even Elphaba's steps were beginning to falter.
Before she would allow them to officially stop and rest, Elphaba insisted on flying up on her broomstick to confirm that there were no Gale Force troops in their immediate vicinity. Taking care to remain out of site within the tree branches, she did a quick survey of the area that apparently assuaged her fears. There was no way to tell whether they'd lost the members of the Wizard's guard completely or merely gotten a respectable head start, but given their exhaustion they had no choice but to take a short rest and hope they would remain out of sight.
To no one's surprise, Elphaba volunteered to take the first watch. Fiyero protested out of courtesy, but he already knew any attempts to dissuade her would be futile. The three found a suitably secluded place to sleep and cobbled together a sort of makeshift camp in silence. There was still very obvious tension between them, and Fiyero couldn't help but feel that they weren't going to be able to go on like this forever. Eventually, preferably sooner rather than later, the three of them were going to have to talk.
As he finished arranging a bunch of leaves into a pile roughly the size of his body, he glanced over and realized tht Glinda was already fast asleep, wrapped tightly in Elphaba's cloak. He smiled sadly. On some level, it was his fault she was out here. This was all pretty much his fault in fact, but he hadn't wanted it this way. He had never wanted to hurt Glinda, but it would have been crueler to carry on with her the way they'd been once he'd realized he had no true feelings for her. Wouldn't it?
Fiyero shook his head and sighed. Glancing behind him, he found that Elphaba had already taken up her post. He knew she must be tired as well, but still she stood tall and imposing, clutching her broomstick at her side. Feeling Fiyero's eyes upon her, she turned to face him.
"You should go to sleep. I'll wake you up when it's your turn. I think we should just split the watch between the two of us. I think Glinda should sleep if we have any hope of getting moving again, and I can't say I really I trust her abilities as a guard at all anyway," she said.
Fiyero nodded, already feeling drowsy. "I never got a chance to thank you for coming to my rescue," he said, his voice slurring slightly.
It was still dark, even with the sun beginning to rise, but he liked to imagine that Elphaba was smiling slightly. "Well, I couldn't leave you to die for my sake could I? I thought we'd already established that I'm not really a wicked witch," she responded.
Fiyero wanted to say more to her, but sleep was already overtaking him, and before he could manage another word he was snoring softly and Elphaba had returned to her watch.
So moving along. We'll get a lot more confrontation between the three of them in the coming chapters, so I hope I'm not boring you too much in the interim. Thanks for reading, leave a review if you can.
S.P.