Thank you to byalencar for reviewing. You are one of the first to put together what Duran is, though I will say you are not perfectly on point. I hadn't planned to bring Dorothy back into it. I know that she comes back at some point, but I don't know how much I'm going to follow the lore. The departure point of the two timelines is starting to get further back.
Thank you to Varia for reviewing.
Thank you to MyLittleElphie for reviewing. Yes, it is quite the sticky situation, isn't it? And you get the cookie for catching the reference. I did not know he was called those names in Australia, though the reference picture I have of his outfit is from the Australian cast. I actually meant that to be Duran's Emerald City persona as a way to show he is around even during the events of Wicked, just not known.
Thank you to RavenCurls for reviewing. I think turnabout is fair play with how you play with everyone's heart strings! And you're right, it is far from over.
Thank you to nursejoy7 for reviewing. I think I've described Fiyero as very good looking.
Thank you to chinaluv for reviewing.
The last few days of Glinda's tenure as Throne Minister closed with violence and discord. The riots that had broken out directly after the verdict had been quashed quickly. However, as if a cork had popped, a chain of follow up riots sprung up across the Emerald City. Glinda had been at the forefront of the Home Guard responses, determined to use the least violence possible.
For the first two days it worked. Glinda was constantly on the move those days following the wave of rioters. She caught rest where she could alongside the soldiers of the Home Guard, and used small magic to maintain her appearance. After the first few hours she had switched to her boots. Their familiar comfort had allowed her to stand the constant stress. Her calm demeanor and angelic appearance had shamed many citizens into going home.
The third day the City exploded. Former Gale Forcers and Administration supporters instigated several riots. These riots targeted non-Gillikin and Emerald City districts. Glinda had split the Home Guard and used her own Emerald Palace Guard to stop these assaults. The rioters even went so far as to attack the Emerald City forces. At one point it looked as if they were going to break.
At that point Glinda had stepped in. Her magic had blown back all the rioters and flung their weapons from them. When they had tried to continue the assault with their fists she blew them down and pinned them there. The Emerald City Forces spent hours rounding up the rioters while Glinda moved on. From that point, Glinda spearheaded the responses and used the same magical force to put down the riots. Many who saw her thought she was an angel of retribution.
Unbeknownst to Glinda, the former Gale Forcers launched an attack on the Palace itself. They had planned to capture or kill Elphaba, and depose Glinda. After the trial, however, Fiyero had ushered Elphaba off to the rented Vinkun estate of his father. There she was surrounded by not only the Sworn Guards of the Chief and Fiyero, but also her own Witch Guard. Seeing the heavily secured villa, no rioters dared go near.
The fighting in the Palace was swift and brutal. The understrength Emerald Palace Guard were taken by surprise, and their pikes had difficulty contending with the well trained swords of the Gale Force. The battle looked lost when the Soldier with Whiskers appeared and turned it back. He scattered the Gale Forcers in front of him, and bought enough time for a Home Guard detachment with their General at the head to arrive. The General gave no quarter or mercy to the treacherous Gale Forcers.
As smoky dawn rose on the fourth day Glinda took a deep breath. The heavy magic use of the previous day had taken its toll on her. She had to drop her minor enchantments on herself and her weariness was now evident to everyone. Four dirt smudged figures walked over to her. You could not tell beneath their coats and cloaks that they were female. Glinda sighed and turned a weary smile on them.
"Not exactly how I wanted to get to know you." She exasperated. There were soft chuckles from the four.
"Well, now you know what we can do." Singra replied.
"Yes, you are all quite talented, even if some of you are novices." Glinda answered. They perked up.
"I bet Sarima hated being relegated to dispatch duty." Lamented Gloma.
"Not at all." Came a voice from behind them. They turned to see the young Vinkun pushing a cart with food and tea pot. "I was happy to help anyway I could."
"And you were very helpful. Without you, we wouldn't have known about the Palace, or gotten to the General." Glinda said. The other Adepts nodded.
"I just wish…" Locasta started, but then shook her head.
"Wish?" Glinda asked as she floated some stools and a small table over. The act was almost more than she could bear, but she would not let these women see her weakness.
"Wish we didn't have to use our magic like this. I want to do more with it, not just violence." Locasta finished, looking at her feet.
"The world is a harsh place." Pfannee said, and took a sip of tea. The grimy blonde pulled a face. "Blegh. Not your fault, Sarima; I can't imagine any good tea shops are open. At least it's bracing. As I said, Locasta, the world is a harsh place. Our magic allows us to thrive in it. What you do with your strength is up to you. You can make the world better, or just exist in it."
"Optimism from you, Miss Pfann?" Glinda teased. Pfannee took another sip and grimaced.
"No. Just truth. Powerful people get what they want in this world. Be powerful, and you will get what you want. If that is a better world, then so be it."
"So, ladies, I now know you capabilities. Tell me what you plan to do before you go off to school with Miss Pfann." Glinda said, and took a bite of a piece of shortbread. There the six women sat in a bizarre imitation of a lunch formal while they discussed their plans and themselves while the Emerald City smoked behind them.
"You look tired." Elphaba said. The two women were standing outside the carriage station near the Home Guard barracks. As they did not want a repeat of the riots, there was a small detachment of Emerald Palace Guard and Home Guard in attendance. The Sworn Guard of the Vinkuns and the Witch Guard were also there, mounted for the trip.
"I am. It has been a busy week." Glinda replied evenly. Normally she would have never admitted it in public, but the two witches had cast a concealing charm as soon as they came face to face.
"I hear they are having a vote in the Hall today. Do you think they will elect a new Throne Minister?"
"I hope so. Either way, I am done."
Silence stretched between them. Glinda's held face her smile but it did not reach her eyes. Elphaba could not look at her, and constantly shifted her eyes away.
"You know," Elphaba started, "you could come with us. Get away from the City for a while."
"Thanks, and while the Vinkus is beautiful, it did nothing for my hair." Glinda replied lightly. Elphaba hated the tone.
"Glinda, don't…" Elphaba started but trailed off. Glinda raised an eyebrow.
"Don't?" she asked.
"Don't…don't forget to write." Elphaba finished. She could not say what she wanted to. For Glinda to not fall back behind her Good persona.
"I won't; though I don't imagine they'll be much going on. Even the Emerald City citizens seem to need a break from all the excitement." Glinda replied sweetly. Elphaba inwardly cringed.
"Are you sure you'll be ok?" Elphaba asked. It was the closest she could get to the question.
"Of course." Glinda lied. She was certain Elphaba would be able to tell, but the green woman either missed it or did not acknowledge it.
"Ok. Look, about everything-"
"You need to hurry otherwise you won't make it to the first stop." Glinda interrupted. "I know you are not used traveling by coach, but schedules and stops are very important for the horses and you."
"Glinda…"
"Go, Elphie." Glinda said. The blonde took a step forward and planted a kiss on the green woman's cheek. "You've finally gotten a real chance at happiness, now go."
With that, the blonde turned away. As Elphaba watched, she slowly was obscured by her guards. There had been so much more she wanted to say, but she could not have said it.
"Elphaba, it's time to go." Fiyero said. She looked at him.
"Yes, I know."
For Glinda's part, she simply placed the heartbroken girl that was Glinda into a small room in her mind and shut the door. She let Glinda the Good face the world.
"Glinda! How nice to see you again!" Shenshen squealed as she saw the blonde. Glinda smiled at the brunette and the blonde whose arm she was on. They were outside the Palace steps.
"You too, Shenshen. It's been a few exciting months, hasn't it?"
"Yes. Pfannee told me all about it. How thrillifying!" the darker haired girl continued. Glinda smiled as she remembered her old friends ease of excitement.
"Yes, well, it was less so during it. But all's well that ends well, right?"
"And now I get to trip around Oz with my blondie bear." Shenshen replied. Glinda smiled as Pfannee groaned at the nickname. "I have you to thank for that also."
"I hope it won't be too much trouble for you. I know you are married and have a young one."
"Oh, I won't be far from home often. A few days here and there, and then we are going to take my Maxentius with me. It shall be so fun the three of us."
"I see. I wish you the best." Glinda said with a genuine smile. Shenshen went to thank her, but caught sight of a vendor selling children's toys. She politely excused herself, and went to browse.
"I here Boq got together with Milla." Glinda said.
"Yes. They seemed to click right away." Pfannee answered.
"That's good."
"He also retained her as a Militia General."
"The old generals couldn't have been too happy with that."
"They were, but Boq repeatedly pointed out how she trounced them as justification."
"That did him no favors."
"True, but the people love Milla. First person to ever successfully invade the capitol of Oz. She's a hero to the Munchkinlanders, and to the women. There isn't much they can do about it."
"That's good. That will keep her busy. I'd imagine she would get bored being a housewife."
"And what of you?" Pfannee asked.
"I think I shall take a bit of hiatus from social life, to get my breath back. I have a feeling things are going to change a lot for me." Glinda replied while watching Shenshen talk to the vendor.
"You can't give up, Glinda. You have to keep fighting. If you don't, how can we?" Pfannee asked. There was more vulnerability in her voice than Glinda had ever heard. She knew she should say something to comfort the woman.
"I can't, Pfannee." Glinda replied evenly, watching Shenshen. "I'm just too tired to do it, and there doesn't seem to be anything worth fighting for anymore."
Pfannee's face fell, but she quickly concealed it when Shenshen came back. The two blondes gushed appropriately over the toy Shenshen had picked out, but Glinda had to go back to the Palace to finalize some last minute arrangements. Pfannee watched as Glinda walked away. She could not help but feel that everyone had gotten their happy ending but Glinda.
At midnight, Glinda retired from the Palace. A squad of specially selected Emerald Palace and Home Guard escorted her along the path to her villa. Many of the Emerald City citizens had turned out to see her, and Glinda spent time with them as she walked. She noticed the lamps in and around the Hall of Approval still lit. Last she heard they had still not selected a new Minister. She inwardly shrugged, as it was not her problem. Finally, as she reached the gate of her villa, a man in a dark grey suit opened the door.
After her villa was raided, none of the original staff (except the cook) accepted Glinda's return invitation. This had put her in a bind as she had forgotten to get staff until the last day in office. However, an associate of hers recommended this man. Checking into it, he came with numerous endorsements by many of the Emerald City nobility. What really sealed the deal for Glinda is that he came with his own staff.
Before entering her villa, she thanked the Palace Guard and tipped them as was customary. They blushed and thanked her. She did the same with the Home Guard, who blushed even deeper. Finally, she walked through the gates. The man bowed low.
"My Lady." He said in a deep timber.
"Please, Mr. Jonkel, it's just Glinda."
"As you wish. And I am just Jonkel." he replied. Glinda noted he had a face that looked etched of stone. Something to be thought upon later.
Glinda quickly retired to her room and began the process of de-Glindafying herself. The dress was taken by a healthy looking chambermaid to be cleaned. Her bath was already drawn but the blonde did not allow herself the luxury of soaking. After dismissing her maids, she shut the door and donned her nightgown. Taking a deep breath, she tried to quell the rising force.
It burst forth from her chest as a choked sob. Glinda tried to stifle the rest, but the torrent came. She fell to the floor, devoid of anything to even hold and comfort her this time. The last of her broke, and she curled onto herself as she fell into despair.
Avaric smiled as he walked through the halls of the Emerald Palace. The last year had been a turbulent time for both him and Oz. At some points even he had not known what to do. However, it had all worked out best for him, bringing him to this point.
As he walked into the throne room he saw a young man sitting on what was once the Wizard's throne. He was the picture of deep in thought with his first on his scraggily chin. Avaric framed the scene in his mind: the man deeply contemplating Oz while sitting regally in a dirty Home Guard uniform. Avaric smiled more.
The man himself noticed Avaric walked into the room. Up to that point he was as Avaric supposed; deep in thought. However, the echo of leather boots on the floor had drawn his attention. His mind was still attuned to the battlefield he had been on for the last three days. When he saw it was Avaric, he went back to studying the cracked columns. The man pinched his nose; the cracks and soot of the fights would have to be cleaned to make the Palace gleam as it should. Finally, he noticed Avaric had stopped in front of him. The man raised an eyebrow at the other. It was not like him to wait to speak.
"I've got good news." Avaric beamed. The man waited as Avaric paused for dramatic effect.
"They have named you Throne Minister. First time for a sitting Home Guard General." Avaric said as his smile grew.
Both of the man's eyebrows rose. That was unexpected. Looking upward, the man contemplated how his fate had changed. At twenty-seven he had been elevated to position as Home Guard General. Now, at the same age, he was going to be Throne Minister. Not the youngest, surely, but certainly still a feat. He looked back down at Avaric.
Throne Minister. The man rolled over in his mind. It will do. For now.
On a broken throne in the City of Emeralds, the man named Sheltergod smiled.
Thank you for taking this ride with me. The next chapter here will not be an actual chapter, but list of references/tips of the hats in each of the chapters. I'm a bit narcissistic in that I want you all to notice all those things.