AN: Everyone is immediately like, 'Frex! That can't be good! :O'. Well, you're just going to have to wait and see, right? ^_^ Just so you know, though: I might be playing around with Elphaba's parentage a little. Nothing too bad, but since the Wizard is probably not going to appear in this story, I won't exactly follow the musical when it comes to Elphie's father.

Vinkunwildflowerqueen: I KNOW! ;) But I feel like I've been slipping that quote into way too many of my stories already, and since I think you could all make the connection yourself, I decided to leave it up to you to fill in the gaps ^_^.

Musicgal: ROTF once again. Elphaba fell out of the Wizard's balloon?! LOL...

Scarlett the Squiddy: Thank you so much for your review. I love my silent stalkers, but I also really, really love my reviewing stalkers, and so I'm glad you did leave me a review. Thank you so much! :)

Chapter 12. Curiouser and curiouser

'Tell me where he is!' Elphaba nearly begged the maid. 'Please!'

The girl shook her head. 'I'm sorry, Miss Elphaba,' she said sympathetically. 'He's been taken upstairs to recuperate from his fainting spell. You're not supposed to get up there – no one is. Only Miss Nessarose is up there now, and her Majesty gave specific orders for him not to be disturbed.'

'But Resie,' the green girl said pleadingly. 'He knows something. He knows me. And he fainted when he saw me – it has to mean something! Please tell me where he is!'

The maid hesitated. She, like everyone at the palace, knew about Miss Elphaba's background; and in all honesty, she felt a little bad for the girl. If it were Resie who had grown up without parents and without knowing where she came from, and then something like this happened… wouldn't she want to find out what the Governor knew, as well?

She caved. 'Second floor,' she said softly. 'Fourth door on the right.'

Elphaba hugged the maid quickly. 'Thank you, Resie!' With that, she dashed off.

Fiyero, who had been standing behind her, now stared after her, feeling a little awkward and slightly disappointed. Of course, he was happy for Elphaba if this meant she would discoverate something about her past; but why did this have to happen right in the middle of their dance together? Plus, he didn't really like the fact that she suddenly didn't spare him a single glance anymore. He could admit that much. It kind of hurt his ego.

Just then, she cast a look over her shoulder. 'Are you coming?' she asked, and his face broke into a grin as he ran after her.

They stormed through the hallways and up the stairs together. In front of the door to Frexspar's room, Elphaba stopped and smoothed out the skirt of her dress before taking a deep breath. 'Here we go.'

He took her hand and squeezed it, and she flashed him a grateful smile before quietly entering the room.

The Governor was sitting in a chair, still looking pale, but better now. There was a glass of water on the nightstand and a blanket around his shoulders. His daughter, Nessarose, the girl in the wheelchair, was sitting next to him, holding his hand and looking anxious.

Upon hearing the door open, they both looked up, and Frex immediately paled again. 'You…'

'Excuse me, Governor Thropp,' Fiyero said smoothly. He bowed before the man. 'My name is Fiyero Tiggular, Crown Prince of the Vinkus. This is-'

'Melena,' Frex whispered again, and his daughter looked confused. 'Father?' the girl asked quietly. 'Who is this Melena you keep mentioning?'

The Governor swallowed and forced a smile. 'No one, dear,' he said to his daughter, but it didn't sound convincing.

Elphaba knelt down in front of him. 'My name is Elphaba,' she said slowly, and his eyes suddenly got an absent, distant look in them. 'Elphaba…' He smiled softly, his mind clearly elsewhere. 'That's a beautiful name.'

'I… Thank you,' Elphaba said, confused. Silence fell over the room again. Nessarose was eyeing Elphaba up and down curiously, and Frex was studying the green girl's every feature as if his life depended on him remembering every single detail about her.

'Sir?' she broke the silence, her voice soft. 'Why did you call me Melena?'

Frex immediately snapped out of his trance-like state, his eyes clearing. He shook his head violently. 'It's nothing, girl. A… a memory. Of a woman from my past. That's all.' He forced another smile. 'But it's clear you're not her, Miss Elphaba. I apologise for my strange reaction upon laying eyes on you. Please don't take it the wrong way.'

Now she was studying him, her dark eyes narrowed. 'You're not surprised by my skin colour,' she stated.

He seemed taken aback. 'What?'

'My skin,' she said. 'Usually when people see me, they are repulsed, or scared, or at the very least surprised…'

'My father fainted upon seeing you,' Nessarose sneered. 'Is that surprise enough for you?'

Elphaba ignored her. 'You did faint,' she said to Frexspar. 'But that wasn't because of my skin colour. You weren't repulsed or scared. You looked surprised, yes, but it was a different kind of surprise… Like my skin is something you hadn't seen in a long time and didn't expect to see here.'

He met her gaze. 'Like I said, Miss Elphaba. You remind me of a woman from my past.'

She shook her head. 'That's not it,' she said stubbornly. 'That's not all of it.'

Frex looked at the green girl and opened his mouth to say something, but just then, Nessarose spoke up sharply. 'If you'll excuse us, my father just fainted and he is not feeling very well. Could you please leave us be for a moment?'

Elphaba hesitated, then rose to her feet. 'Alright,' she relented. 'We'll leave now. Get well soon, sir. Goodbye, Miss Nessarose.'

Nessa nodded curtly. Frex didn't respond in any way, just stared at the floor.

Elphaba and Fiyero made their way outside. The dark-haired girl closed the door behind her and leaned her back against it, trying to comprehend what had just happened. 'That was… weird.'

'Why? You think he's hiding something?' asked Fiyero, and Elphaba nodded. 'Did you not see the look in his eyes? I know he's hiding something.' Her dark eyes were shining with determination, looking like burning coals in the dimly lit hallway. 'And I'm going to find out what.'

Elphaba climbed up the rocks until she reached the highest one on them – a protruding rock that formed some kind of cliff, about ten meters above the water. She ran up to the edge of the cliff and jumped, her raven hair flying behind her as she dived into the water, relishing in the rush of adrenaline shooting through her body. 'Whooooh!'

Galinda buried her face in Cohvu's chest, afraid to look. 'That girl is going to get herself killed sometime!' she wailed.

Cohvu laughed. 'Aw, come on, Glin. It's only ten meters, and the water is deep there. It's not like she'll hit rock bottom or anything.'

Galinda made a scared little sound and burrowed deeper into his chest. He just chuckled and put his arms around her.

Fiyero, who was already down in the water, held up his hands against the splash of water she caused when she hit the surface. He laughed and lowered his arms. 'That looked amazing.'

He realised she couldn't have heard him, since she hadn't surfaced yet, and he shook his head. Ever since she had discovered that she could touch sea water, she had loved to swim – especially underwater. At first, he had panicked once again when she stayed under the water for over two minutes – in fact, he had dived down himself to 'rescue' her; but by now he was used to it… much to Elphaba's delight, he knew. The green girl had been ready to punch him when he had been all panicky about her staying under for too long - for the third time.

The minutes ticked by and Galinda shook her head. 'Show-off.'

Cohvu laughed. 'Well, you have to admit it is pretty impressive,' he said. 'She's been under for over three minutes now!'

'Do you hear that, Fifi?' Galinda called across the water. 'She, who has only been swimming for less than a year, can hold her breath longer than you, who has grown up right next to a sea!'

He stuck out his tongue at her.

When Elphaba still didn't surface, however, he started to grow worried. 'Cohvu?' he asked anxiously. 'How long has it been?'

Cohvu, who had been counting all the while, looked a little pale as well now. 'Five minutes.'

Galinda's eyes were wide. 'No one can hold their breath for that long.'

'Well, technically, there are people who managed to-'

'Coco!' she interrupted him, her already high-pitched voice shooting up even more into a panicky squeak. 'What if she got stuck or something?' She turned her head around to call for Fiyero, but he had already disappeared underneath the water.

He seemed to stay under for forever, but in reality, it was barely twenty seconds before he surfaced again with Elphaba in his arms. She was coughing and spluttering, and Galinda immediately squealed and leapt to her feet, launching herself at the green girl. 'Elphie! Are you okay!'

'Her foot got stuck,' Fiyero answered for her. He looked a bit pale.

Galinda shot her boyfriend a glare. 'I told you!'

Cohvu held up his hands in surrender, then looked at Elphaba. 'You okay?'

She nodded, but didn't say anything. Fiyero looked down at her in concern. 'Are you sure?'

'Yes, Fiyero,' she said quietly. 'You can put me down now.'

He did, and she immediately moved towards the beach, picking up her towel and wrapping it around herself. 'I'm going inside.'

Fiyero stared after her, bewildered. 'Do you think she's really okay?'

Galinda placed a hand on his arm. 'She probably just got a good scare, that's all. You have to keep in mind that she hasn't been swimming for all that long – it must have been scary for her to be trapped under the water.'

Cohvu looked sceptical. 'Elphaba? Scared?'

Galinda frowned. 'Yes… you're right – that doesn't make sense. Elphie is never scared.' She shook her head. 'Just leave her be for a moment,' she advised Fiyero. 'She'll be fine.'

He didn't seem convinced, but dropped the matter nonetheless.

When Elphaba ran through the hallways of the castle, dressed in just a towel and a bathing suit, she bumped into someone.

'I'm sor-' she started, but she faltered when she realised it was Frex. He stared down at her with wide eyes, as if he could not believe what he was seeing.

'Miss Elphaba,' he said after a while, and his voice sounded strangely choked. 'Are you… wet?'

She flushed. 'I just went swimming,' she explained, and he blinked at her. 'Swimming.'

'In the sea,' she clarified. He nodded, seemingly dazed. 'Salt water,' he muttered under his breath.

Elphaba had already been moving past him, but she stopped dead in her tracks when she heard that. 'What?'

He looked up, apparently surprised that she had heard that. 'Hm? Oh, nothing.'

'You said something,' she pressed on. 'Did you say 'salt water'?'

'I didn't say anything,' he snapped, turning away from her and starting to walk down the corridor again. 'A good day to you, Miss Elphaba.'

She stayed there for a moment, frozen in place. She thought about going after him for a moment, but decided against it; he probably wouldn't tell her anything right now, anyway. She promised herself to go talk to him later. She was absolutely certain that he knew something about her that he wasn't telling her, and she wanted to find out what that something was.

She continued to her room and closed the door behind her, letting out a breath. She put the towel away and undressed, cleaning herself with her oils before changing into some more appropriate clothing and sitting down on her bed, chewing her lip as she thought about what had happened.

Her foot had gotten stuck in some water plants, and she had panicked a little. She had never been trapped under the water before and she had started kicking and squirming blindly to get free. In her panic, she had taken in a gulp of water… and something really, really strange had happened.

She shook her head slightly. No. In her panic, she must have imagined things. What she thought had happened, could not really have happened. It just wasn't possible and so it couldn't be true.

Satisfied with her reasoning, she rose to her feet again. She thought about her next course of action for a moment. She should probably go back to her friends, to reassure them that she really was okay; but on the other hand, she didn't really feel like talking to them right now, and she wanted to find out what was going on with Frex.

Finally, she opened the door and slipped inside the hallway, heading for the Governor's guest rooms. She just hoped he had cooled off a little by now.

'What do you mean, he's gone?' Elphaba stared at Lori in disbelief.

The Queen took a sip of her tea. 'Just like I said,' she said patiently. 'Frexspar and Nessarose left back for Munchkinland an hour or so ago.'

'But I talked to him just before that!' Elphaba spluttered, and Lori shrugged. 'It was a last-minute call, apparently. They came to say goodbye and then they left in their carriage. Why? Is something wrong?'

Elphaba sighed and lowered herself onto a chair. 'It's just… what happened at the ball the other day, and… and just now, he said something strange. When I met him in the hallway, I mean. Like… like he knew something, but he was hiding it from me.' She sighed and buried her head in her arms, which were resting on the table. 'But now I'll probably never find out,' she said, her voice muffled by her arms. 'I guess I'm just doomed to stay in the dark about my past forever.'

Lori placed a comforting hand on the green girl's arm. 'Don't think like that, Elphaba,' she chided her gently. 'That's not true. You'll find out where you're from one day.'

Elphaba raised her head. 'I want to find out now!' she complained, and Lori chuckled. 'You can't always get what you want.'

That earned her a glare.

'I'm serious, Elphaba.' The Queen took Elphaba's hands in her own, looking into the girl's eyes. 'Listen to me, sweetheart. I understand why it's important for you to find out where you came from and who your parents are. I really do.' She squeezed Elphaba's hands. 'But you're like a daughter to me, I just want to give you some motherly advice. Sweetie…' She shook her head. 'Where you're from, or what happened to you before we found you, does not define who you really are. You're you. You're Elphaba. And whether you're from the Vinkus, from a land beyond Oz, or from the moon, for all I care, that won't change anything about who you are inside. Right here.' She placed her fingers over her own heart. 'Do you understand that?'

Elphaba sighed, pulling away her hands. 'I do,' she said quietly. 'I really do. It's like I told Galinda the other day – it's more of a feeling than a rational thing. I just feel like there's a hole inside of me that can't be filled by anything other than the truth about my past.'

Lori smiled a bit sadly. 'I get it, Elphaba. I'm sorry. We have been looking, Hamold and I, but we never found a clue as to where you could be from.'

'Which is why it's so important for me to be able to talk to Frex,' Elphaba said pleadingly. 'He knows something, Lori. I'm sure of it. And he's the only starting point I have.'

Lori nodded slowly, then smiled again at the green girl, more genuine this time. 'You know what?' she said, a mischievous twinkle in her eyes. 'I think I'm going to invite the Governor over for some tea in another few weeks.'

Elphaba smiled back. 'Thank you, Lori.' She frowned a little. 'Do you think he'll come all the way to Vinkus to have tea with you?'

Lori snorted. 'We're King and Queen. We'll make him come if he doesn't come by himself,' she declared. She cocked her head a little to the side. 'But I'll just make up some excuse about political stuff, or something, to ensure that he'll come,' she decided. 'No problem, Elphaba. Just promise me one thing.'

'What?' the dark-haired girl asked, and Lori looked at her. 'When he gets here, I don't want you to let him leave again until you've found all the answers he can give you.'

Elphaba grinned at the Queen. 'Promise.' She hugged her. 'Thank you.'

'Anytime, sweetheart.' Lori hugged her back tightly, then pulled back and smiled. 'Anytime.'