Wanting to keep the image of Shiz and her roommate burned into her mind as long as possible, Elphaba spent the first few hours curled into a corner of the carriage, eyes shut and knees hugged to her chest. She knew she wouldn't sleep, not around a stranger, but if she was still enough she could almost forget about the month that was ahead of her.

There is another reason why you must come home, Nessa had said. But I can't discuss it over a letter.

Elphaba shifted the tiniest bit and nestled her forehead onto her knees. She had avoided thinking about it during exams at Shiz, but now all the pieces were coming back to her. Her father moving to the Colwen Grounds. Their grandfather stepping into their lives for the first time. A surprise that Nessa risked warning her about. Something wasn't adding up quite right, and Elphaba was simultaneously terrified and dying to find out.

And what would the Eminent Thropp be like? She remembered, however vaguely, toddling after her mother, listening to her go on and on about whatever that day's subject was. Melena would rant about her husband the faraway minister, or the strangeness of her daughter, or the Wizard gorging himself up in his palace. Not that I care much for politics, she would say airily. But at least whatever corruption we have in the Thropp line is known throughout Munchkinland.

And she would talk of her father, Elphaba's grandfather. A wiry old man, even when I was young. Like the willow trees. He sways and bends so much you'd think he'd fall over any day now. But he's a damned stubborn fool. She'd glance down at her daughter, not expecting the green girl to understand a single word. Just like the rest of the family.

"We'll be reaching the outskirts of the Emerald City soon," came the voice of the driver, drawing Elphaba out of her reverie. "We'll be stopping just inside Munchkinland's border for you to switch carriages." He cleared his throat and glanced back at her through the little window at the front of the carriage. "Your…father said you'd be fine without stopping for the night?"

Without opening her eyes, Elphaba mumbled a quiet affirmative.

The driver fell silent as they went on, not speaking again until they reached the Emerald City and turned off the main road. "Too much traffic to go through town," he explained, though Elphaba had never asked. "Have you ever been to the Emerald City, Miss Elphaba?"

Despite herself, she opened her eyes and looked out the window. "No. I've seen it, but never from the inside."

"A shame," her driver said. There was something close to laughter in his voice. "It seems to me you'd fit in well there."

Elphaba scowled but chose not to respond. Instead she gazed up at the tall, gleaming buildings of the city. It was a world of promise for most of Oz, but to her the emerald seemed darkened, shadowed. Somewhere in the sparkling, radiant palace was the Wizard, probably having lunch with some sort of important person, perhaps working on a new Animal ban.

She looked away and shut her eyes once more.

They stopped a couple hours after nightfall at a tiny station just off the Yellow Brick Road. A Munchkin was laying down on the driver's bench of another carriage. He sat up as they approached, hopping to the ground and bowing low.

"The Third Thropp descending?" he asked.

Elphaba drew her coat around her, instinctively hiding as much skin as possible, and slipped out of the carriage.

The Munchkin made no reaction other than to take her bags from her and move to check the horses once last time.

Elphaba turned to her first driver and handed him a few coins, thanking him quietly. He blushed furiously. "Th-thank you, Miss…thank you, Elphaba. Safe travels."

As he headed back to the original carriage, the second driver hopped into his own. "Are you ready, Miss?"

She climbed into the cab. "How far until we reach the Colwen Grounds?" she asked.

"A fair while," was his answer. "But we're well-rested here. We should have you there by mid-morning."

The green girl nodded, settling into the same position she was earlier. This time, though, she stared out the window and gazed up at the night, watching the moon as it followed their path across Munchkinland.

The sun was hanging lazily in the sky as they neared their destination the next morning. Elphaba was sick by now of the dull farmlands and deteriorated yellow of the brick road, but she was more than curious about the Colwen Grounds.

A plump little Munchkin shook himself awake as the carriage approached the gates. "Morning, Viko," he said after the driver tipped his hat. "You're early, aren't you?"

"A bit. Why? Are you not going to let us in until our scheduled time of arrival?" Elphaba could hear the smile in her driver's voice.

"Now that would be entertaining," the other Munchkin replied, hopping down from his post and moving over to the gate. After another moment, the iron gave a slight groan and pushed back. Viko shook his reins and urged the horses up the gravel path toward the castle.

Elphaba shifted in her seat to get a better view out the window. The first glimpse of the Grounds reminded her of Shiz, with the wrought iron gates wrapping all the way around and darkened ivy climbing up stone walls. Though it was nowhere near as grand as the Emerald City, it was still pretty impressive—Elphaba had to almost lean out the window to see the tops of the towers. The stone that made up the castle was a dark charcoal color, giving the place a shadowy, haunted feeling.

A figure stood on the front steps, looking stoically down the path at them. Elphaba leaned back out of sight and closed her eyes. A green hand reached frantically for the smaller of her two bags and clutched it to her chest. Cursing her sudden nerves, she steeled herself and opened her eyes once more. The man was looking at the carriage, but he couldn't quite see in the window. Elphaba squinted a little, taking him in.

He was withered and wrinkled, as thin and fragile-looking as a sapling, yet he seemed planted on the stone steps. He was slender, with slim shoulders and long limbs, like Elphaba. Except he's taller, she noted with some surprise. He must have had several inches on her, in fact. Everything about the man seemed dark, and she couldn't tell if it was from the castle's shadow or years spent under Munchkinland's hot sun.

Elphaba noted the rigid cut of his shoulders, the firm set of his lips, the way his hands folded neatly behind his back. It reminded her of the dignified posture Nessarose sat with, or the way she herself walked around campus with her chin high and shoulders set, or even of how her mother would talk, severe and unyielding despite the ever-present weariness with which she regarded life. Stern, stubborn, and stoic, it would seem, ran in the family.

"Your Eminence," Viko said as the carriage came to a halt. Elphaba heard him jump down from the driver's bench. She took a deep breath, grabbing her bags. The door opened beside her, but she waved away Viko's offer to carry her bags and stepped out on her own.

Matching his expression perfectly, Elphaba looked up at her grandfather.

There was a long silence as they regarded each other for the first time. To his credit, the Eminent Thropp showed no signs of shock or revulsion at her skin tone. He stared calmly at her, eyes barely moving, and she got the vague feeling that she was being tested. But she stared back, trying to find a trace of the man's thoughts on his face. To her surprise, there was nothing. Elphaba had always considered herself to be the closed book in the family—it was all too easy to tell when Nessarose was upset, and from what she could remember her mother had no filter whatsoever—but her grandfather was just as poker-faced as she was.

It wasn't until Viko had climbed back into the carriage and started off to the stables that either of them moved. The Eminent Thropp cleared his throat and took a step down so they were on level ground. Without even realizing, Elphaba took a half-step back, keeping the same amount of distance between them.

"Your father has been up for a while now." He gestured vaguely to his right. "He should be in the—"

"Where is Nessarose?" Elphaba asked, her voice even. He didn't react to her tone, but instead turned slightly so she could see to the dark, ornately carved front doors behind him.

"Eating breakfast. Let me show you to the dining hall."

Without another word, he led the way inside. They walked through the grand foyer and down a hall to the left. Elphaba let herself look around in wonder as they made their way through the halls. There were stain glass windows and hand-sewn tapestries woven with gold and silver. Some halls were lined with statues or pieces of armor and weaponry, while others held portraits of past rulers and officials. Delicate, glimmering chandeliers hung high above them and candles flickered in sconces on the walls. Every door they passed was made of a polished dark wood, and at least half of them held intricate silver knockers.

The room he led Elphaba to was smaller than she expected—it was barely larger than her dorm room. An oval table stood in the middle, surrounded by less than a dozen chairs. The green girl had a moment to think that this had to be a personal dining room, and a much larger hall for formal dinners and meetings was probably somewhere else in the castle, before a figure at the table captured her attention.

"Nessa."

Elphaba had wondered what she would see on her sister's face after months of being apart. But when Nessarose turned to her with her chin tilted up and a wry smile tugging at her lips, she didn't know why she ever expected anything else.

"You're thinner, Fabala. I thought people were supposed to gain weight when they went to university."

"Perhaps I've joined a swim team to keep me fit," the green girl replied just as dryly.

"Oh? You didn't mention they had a pool full of oil at Shiz."

"It's a well-kept secret."

"Like the rest of your college experience." Nessa raised an eyebrow, another trait she had learned from her sister. "You've barely told me anything in your letters."

"Perhaps my college life is simply that boring."

"I doubt it. The life of a green girl is never boring."

They held each other's gaze for a moment, staring silently. Elphaba's lips twitched first, and then the sisters were grinning at each other.

Elphaba saw no one but her sister for the rest of the morning. Their grandfather had quietly excused himself shortly after Elphaba arrived, taking her bags with him to put away in her room. "Nessa can show you where it is later," he had said before gliding out of the dining hall.

Nessa had raised her eyebrows at Elphaba, waiting for the inevitable judgment that was sure to pass, but the green girl said nothing. She didn't know what to think of the Eminent Thropp. Not yet, at least.

The sisters spent the next couple of hours wandering around the castle, Nessa directing them and prying about life at Shiz as Elphaba pushed her chair and dutifully answered.

"Are there many Munchkinlanders there?"

"A few. One boy, Master Boq, actually lived near us in Rush Margins."

"Really? How do you know?"

"Supposedly he remembers playing with me as a child."

"Supposedly? Is there any doubt to his memory? How many green children did he used to run around with?"

Elphaba made a noise in the back of her throat. "I'd like to think it's my charming sense of humor that makes me so memorable."

"Obviously. And what of the others? As prestigious as Shiz is, how many students had to buy their way in?

"A fair few," Elphaba said with a smirk.

"And we've heard rumors of a Vinkan attending the university."

"The Winkie prince? You've heard of him all the way out here?"

"Vinkan, Elphaba. Always use official terms in regards to others." Nessa spoke as if reciting something memorized. She immediately pressed her lips together, blushing slightly. Elphaba tilted her head to the side, regarding her younger sister.

"…The Vinkan prince, then," she said after a moment. "His name is Fiyero. He's nice enough, I believe." She tried not to sound resentful, although she didn't know why she would be in the first place.

Nessa was already onto her next question. "What about your roommate? Miss Glinda Upland? Grandfather says the Uplands are highly respectable. Are you the two of you still getting along?"

Elphaba felt that increasingly familiar heat rise on the back of her neck. "We are," she said. Not wanting to talk about her roommate anymore—there was a strange pang in her stomach at the thought of the blonde—she searched for a way out of the conversation. "Right or left?" she asked.

Nessa took the change of subject without complaint. "Right," she answered. "I want you to see this hall."

Elphaba steered them to the right and through an arching doorway. The ceiling rocketed up, revealing a balcony running along each side of the hallway. Portraits—large, ornately framed paintings that started at Elphaba's waist and reached a couple feet above her—lined both walls, both on the first floor and on the balconies. Each was of a different man or woman, but they all shared some characteristics: thin lips, stern-set shoulders, arching eyebrows, prominent cheekbones. Under every painting was a gold placard with a name carved into it, and although the first names varied greatly, the surname was the same. Thropp.

The girls fell silent as they passed their ancestors. Elphaba felt as if she were being watched, judged, condemned for walking through this hall. A green descendant, she thought. What would they think if they knew they had a green descendant?

"I've looked," Nessa said eventually. "But Mother's portrait isn't in here."

"She never ruled Munchkinland."

"No, but she was part of the family. Sometimes there are smaller pictures—like there." She pointed at a row of little portraits. "Every Thropp who's ever lived in the Colwen Grounds is here. At the very least, they have a name plate. But not her."

Elphaba's eyes darted up and down the hall. "She didn't want to be. She never wanted to be a part of the Thropp line." At least we had that in common, she added silently.

"Why not?" It was more of a wondering than a question. Elphaba shrugged.

"How should I know? But that's why she ran off with Father. She didn't want to be a part of this, and she didn't want us to be a part of this."

Nessa shifted a little in her chair. They'd reached the end of the portraits, where a single gold plate was on the wall. Peerless Thropp.

"What do you think of him?" Nessa asked quietly.

"I've barely met him."

"I think he's a good man."

"He seemed polite."

"Father respects him."

"That does nothing for his case. I rarely respect Father's opinions on anything."

"Have you seen him yet?"

"No."

"Elphaba."

"Nessarose."

Nessa grabbed the wheels of her chair and rolled forward, turning herself to face Elphaba. "Don't act like a child, Fabala. Not this time."

"I see nothing childlike about my behavior. You asked me to come here for break, and I came. You tell me there's some great secret reason why I have to be here, and I don't ask for details. You want me to be respectful toward a grandfather who has never acknowledged our existence until now, and I will. I'm assuming next you'll ask me to do my best not to get in a fight with Father while I'm here, but that's exactly what I'm doing."

"By avoiding him?" Nessa asked heatedly.

"Seeing him certainly isn't going to help."

"Don't you think you're being ungrateful? He's your father."

"Biologically, yes. You know I don't have the same relationship with him that you do."

"He's paying for you to go to Shiz!"

Elphaba snorted. "Hardly. Most of my tuition is covered by scholarships."

Nessa crossed her arms over her chest. "You're going to have to talk to him eventually."

"As if I don't know that."

The younger girl opened her mouth to respond, but then shook her head and pressed her lips together. "Arguing about this, again, isn't going to help anything. I can only pray that the spirit of Lurlinemas will keep you from picking any fights."

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "You're a follower of the Unnamed God. You don't believe in Lurlinemas."

"But the spirit of love and family is the same." Nessa's voice was harsh, a strange contradiction to her words.

The green girl pinched the bridge of her nose, sighing quietly. "I never intend to get into it with him, Nessa. You know that, don't you?"

Nessa's eyes narrowed and she looked away. "I'll show you to your room now. Lunch will be soon, and I'm sure you want to change out of your travelling clothes."

She wheeled herself away, not bothering to look back at her sister. Elphaba set her jaw and followed. Winter break was turning out to be just as she had expected.

Glinda had thought she would be bouncing in her seat the entire train ride home. Instead, she was curled into the corner, staring blankly out the window as if she could still see the campus that had faded into the horizon hours ago.

She had spent most of the morning at a café just outside the station, waiting for her train to arrive and ignoring the looks and whispers she received from the other students who were travelling to northern Gillikin. She saw Pfannee and Shenshen once, and it took most of her willpower not to dart from her table and hide in some nearby alleyway. But they caught sight of her before she could do anything. Shenshen simply frowned a little and turned away, but Pfannee's gaze lingered. Glinda could read her cold eyes and slightly curled lips all too clearly. Too bad the green bean's not here, she seemed to say.

Glinda did her best to glare back. I'm not afraid of you.

Apparently it was convincing enough, because Pfannee turned to follow Shenshen into the station and out of sight.

Glinda was suddenly tired of facing her classmates. It was officially winter break, and she'd had enough. She reached into her bag and pulled out an architecture book, running her palm delicately over the faded cover. It was old and worn; Elphaba had rescued it from a box of library books that were about to be thrown out. Glinda could still picture the faint blush in her roommate's cheeks as she gave the book to her.

Shaking her head, the blonde found the page she'd last marked and read until her train arrived. When it came time to board, she settled down in a window seat near the back of the first class car. As soon as the train started forward, she'd curled up and stared longingly at Shiz fading away.

Glinda shifted a little in her seat, looking around the car and observing her fellow passengers. She remembered her trip to Shiz last summer, and how an old Tortoise couple had been sitting on one of the back benches of the first class car. But as she looked around now, she realized there were no Animals on the train, first class or otherwise. A semester ago, she wouldn't have even noticed, let alone cared. Now, though…

She wished Elphie were there. She wondered where the green girl was now. Had she reached Munchkinland yet? Was the driver still being rude to her? Did she perhaps miss Glinda?

The blonde quickly pushed this last thought away. It was ridiculous. After all, they had seen each other just a few hours ago. Elphaba didn't miss her yet, and even if she did, she couldn't possibly miss her as much as Glinda did.

Glinda slumped against the window, resting her chin in her hand. Here she was, all alone in a half-empty first class train car. She was bored, and it was still a couple of hours until they reached Frottica, but she didn't feel like reading again. So she focused her attention out the window once more. They had already gone through the station at Dixxi House and were just reaching the beginnings of the Pertha Hills. It was something she had grown up with, but she still couldn't help but adore the roll and tilt of the ground before her, the rippling of knee-high grass and wildflowers. She remembered lying on the ground as a child, braiding flowers together to make a bracelet or a crown, or staring up and imagining nonsensical pictures in the clouds.

She realized with a jolt how ridiculous it all was. She'd grown up in a daydream; Elphaba had grown up in a nightmare.

It's not as bad as it sounds, Elphie had said, but Glinda wasn't so sure. If her roommate knew the luxury that was Glinda's life, would she be so accepting of her own? It's not fair, Glinda thought. She of all people deserves more.

This aching for her roommate wasn't helping, so Glinda tried to lose herself once again, this time focusing on the little hillside cottages that began dotting the landscape, signaling the outskirts of their next stop, Settica. The train moved too fast for her to catch more than a glimpse of them, but she knew what they looked like: small and round, only one or two rooms on the inside. Small families with little money lived there, content with their cozy homes and vegetable gardens. They weren't anything close to the endless plantations of Munchkinland, but it was enough to be able to live independently. They provided only for themselves, unlike the Munchkin farmers who worked year-round…

And just like that, she was thinking of Munchkinland again. She had never been, but she had seen photos and paintings. What did Elphaba's home look like growing up? What were the Colwen grounds like? Were there trees and hills and wildflowers? Were the buildings similar to the marbled mansions of Gillikin? Was Elphaba enjoying herself, or was she already sick and overwhelmed with her part in the Thropp family?

The afternoon stretched on like that, with Glinda trying and failing to turn her mind away from her roommate. Every time she thought of the green girl, she grew a little more anxious. She knew Elphaba's only friends were at Shiz. It wasn't like the green girl to get lonely, but what if she did?

She would turn to her research, that's what. Every free moment she had would be spent with her nose buried in Dr. Dillamond's journal. At least she'll have something to escape to, Glinda thought, relieved. But there was something else, too.

Fear. Would Elphaba would go too far, like Dillamond had? Would she try something reckless? Would she do something that put her in danger, just to prove her point? Yes. Of course she would. But somehow, that wasn't Glinda's concern. Elphaba could take care of herself. So what was really bothering her?

What if she didn't come back? What if Elphaba discovered something that caused her to not return to Shiz? What if she did come back, but she was so far in that she wasn't Elphie anymore? Their friendship had only just begun…what if Glinda lost it to this research?

The other passengers started shifting in their seats, gathering their bags and pulling on coats. Glinda shook herself out of her thoughts and looked out the window, immediately recognizing the passing buildings. They were in Frottica.

Elphaba was temporarily forgotten as the train slowed. Glinda pulled on her gloves and gripped her bag tightly. She was on the wrong side of the car to see the station, and it took all her self-control not to run to the other side and look out the window.

When the train finally came to a stop and the doors opened, Glinda hesitated, trailing behind the other passengers. She stood on tiptoe and gazed over the crowd as well as she could, looking for the kind, wrinkled face, the wisps of grey hair, the signature wide-brimmed, flowery hat…

"Ama!" Glinda cried, spotting her and running forward. The old woman held out her arms as Glinda practically tackled her.

"It's good to see you too, duckie," Ama Clutch chuckled. Glinda pulled back and looked up at her.

"Mother and Father?" she asked, though she already knew the answer. She'd known it since she got on the train that morning.

The look in Ama's eyes proved her right. The old woman shook her head gently. "They had a lunch to attend. But they send their love, and they already have reservations for all of you at the Pertha Winery tonight." Ama cupped Glinda's cheek. "Come on. Let's get you home. Everybody's been counting down until your arrival."

Glinda smiled and picked up her bags, letting Ama Clutch lead her. The ache of Elphaba's absence still lingered, but as she climbed into the Upland carriage and settled in next to the old woman, she forgot all about the rumors and reputation that had plagued her the last few weeks. She grinned and leaned her head on Ama's shoulder, glad to be home.