Thank you all so much for your reviews! The movie was released in the USA early last month, and I don't know if it was released anywhere else other than the USA and the UK.

Elphaba feigned interest as she spoke to numerous and nameless people at the party. This was not her idea of a fun night out.

Maybe I'm just too royal to have a fun night out, she thought as she shook another person's hand.

"And then there's my grandniece, Phaedra. She's the one married to the first lieutenant from the Gillikin. Her husband was killed in the war, poor soul, leaving her with a two year old boy and seven months pregnant with their second child," a baroness said as she clutched her purse and wiped an artificial tear from her eye.

"Oh, I'm so sorry to hear that. It must have been terrible for her," Elphaba said, surprised that she didn't feign the sincerity in her voice.

"She's doing much better, Your Highness. She's…"

Elphaba continued to listen to the woman prattle on and wished she could go back to the palace. But maybe she didn't have to go back to the palace. Maybe she could just escape and make it to the other party. She looked at the guards out of the corner of her eyes and immediately, she knew it wasn't possible. She would be stuck at the party for the rest of the night.

"Pardon me, but I have to step out for a moment. I will return momentarily," the princess said as she excused herself from talking with a Duke from Oz-knows-where. He bowed and everyone watched as Elphaba hurried away towards the restroom. Thankfully, no one else was in there and she leaned over the sink, taking a deep breath. It felt good to get a few moments to herself, although she knew that if she stayed in there too long, someone would go looking for her. She slowly lifted her head and looked at her reflection, and that's when the idea came to her. She could just change her appearance. She could make herself look like an ordinary Ozian and blend in with everyone else. No one would know who she was and she could sneak out of the ballroom and head to the party.

She muttered something under her breath and smiled as the magic began to take effect. When the tingling of her skin stopped, she slowly opened her eyes and gasped. Her emerald green skin was now rosy-pale and her raven hair was now wavy and a dark golden brown color. The spell would only last for twenty-four hours, which was more than enough time for her, or until she lifted the spell herself. She looked down and muttered another spell, changing the color of her dress to a dark golden color. Satisfied with her appearance, she quickly left the restroom. Thankfully, everyone had started dancing, which made it easier for her to slip out. Or… well, it would have made it easier if a gentleman hadn't asked her to dance. Since it would have been very impolite to refuse, she consented and danced with the gentleman, who was a lesser Duke. All he wanted to do was talk about himself and didn't have the slightest interest in Elphaba, which kind of bothered her. When the second dance started, she politely excused herself and headed for the doors. She didn't see Colonel Kean or Colonel Rudker at their post, and when she looked around for them, she saw them by the dessert cart, talking to two young women. Smirking to herself, the incognito princess quickly slipped out of the doors and closed them behind her.

"Melena," the Wizard said softly to his wife as he wrapped his arms around her. "Elphaba will be fine."

"I know. I just…" Melena sighed. "She's growing up so fast. I don't want her to get caught up in anything or have something happen to her or…"

The Wizard cut her off with a kiss. "She a princess. She knows her place and knows how a princess should behave."

"I know she does."

"But…?"

"Nothing," the Queen sighed, melting into her husband's embrace.

"She'll be back in a few hours and we'll hear all about the private party. But right now, we have to get ready for the balcony speech."

Elphaba looked out at the crowded streets at all the people. She smiled as she hurried down the stairs and was immediately swept up into a group of people celebrating.

"We won! Victory is Oz's! Long live the Wizard!" the people shouted.

Elphaba tried to get away from the crowd, but she was swept up and onto a trolley and the doors closed before she could fully process what was happening.

The trolley was full, so Elphaba, and many others, were forced to stand. She noticed that even though everyone was forced into this small, crowded space, they still seemed happy, or maybe they were a bit drunk. Either way, they were loud and celebrating.

"Fares, please! Fares!" the conductor said as he forced his way through the trolley. "Fares, please!" he said to Elphaba.

Elphaba bit her lip and cursed herself. She didn't bring any money. She didn't expect that she would need any. The conductor was still standing in front of her, waiting for the money.

"I'm sorry," she said softly, fear slipping into her voice. "But I don't have any money."

The conductor looked angry. "No money? You know what happens to people who try to ride my trolley without paying the fare?"

Elphaba gulped and prepared herself for whatever was coming her way, but a voice interrupted.

"It's okay," a man who was sitting down in the seat next to her said, his face hidden by a cap. "She's with me."

Elphaba looked down as the man took the money out of his pocket and handed it to the conductor. The conductor took the money and, without another word, turned and walked back to the front of the trolley.

"Thank you," Elphaba said as she looked down at the man.

The man simply shrugged and turned to look out the window. The man sitting next to him got up and left the trolley, and Elphaba took his seat.

"I really mean it. Thank you," she repeated.

"Don't mention it," the man said, a bit tightly.

Elphaba nodded and turned in her chair, but looked back at him when something on his jacket caught her eye. "You served in the war?"

"You like to talk, don't you?" the man grumbled irritably.

"I beg your pardon?"

"You ask a lot of questions."

"I simply asked you one question. You could have just answered 'yes' or 'no'."

"Why do you care?"

Elphaba sighed. "I saw the insignia on your jacket. You were part of the fifth regiment, weren't you?"

"Isn't that what this insignia means?"

"You seem to be asking more questions than I am, sir."

The man grumbled some more and turned away from Elphaba. The incognito princess scowled and was about to say more when the trolley jerked forward to a stop, causing both of them to fall out of their chairs.

"Last stop! Everybody off!" the conductor called.

As soon as the two stood, they were immediately engulfed in the crowd and were pushed off the trolley. They were the last off and they fell to the ground, Elphaba on top of the strange man who paid her fare, with a grunt. The man quickly pushed her off and rose to his full height.

"So you are a gentleman," Elphaba said when he offered her his hand and helped her up.

"You sound surprised," he said.

Elphaba dusted off her dress and looked up at the man. Her head was just beneath his chin and his dark brown hair was hidden behind his military cap. She couldn't see his eyes, but she could see a very small smirk playing on the ends of his lips.

"Yes… well…" Elphaba cursed herself for her speechlessness. "I… you…"

"You seem to become speechless very easily." Elphaba didn't respond, which only proved his point. A light chuckle escaped his lips. "Well, it has been nice talking to you, miss. Enjoy the rest of your evening." And with that, he turned and began to walk away.

"W-Wait!" Elphaba called after him. She made to run, but stumbled and realized that her heel was broken. "Hey! Wait!"

The man turned around and sighed, walking back to Elphaba. "Here. Give me your shoe."

Elphaba looked up at him. "Why do you want my broken shoe?"

"What do you think I'm going to do?"

"I don't know you, therefore, I don't know what you're going to do."

The man reached into his pocket and pulled out a small tube of glue. Elphaba slowly handed her shoe over and watched as he glued the heel back on and gently tapped the heel against the wall.

"What's your name?" Elphaba asked as the man gave her shoe a final tap and handed it back to her.

"Fiyero. You?"

"El- Fabala," Elphaba said, knowing she couldn't use her real name. Her nickname should be a good enough cover-up. It didn't really sound like her real name. She quickly put her shoe back on. "Thank you… Fiyero."

Fiyero nodded and began to walk away. Elphaba was about to let him go, but something drew her to him. "Wait!" she said as she hurried after him. "So… are you from the city?"

Fiyero turned and once he realized that he would never rid himself of this strange woman, he decided to entertain her for a bit. "No. I'm actually from the Vinkus. My father is a very important member of the King's cabinet and my mother works in the private royal library."

"What are you doing in the city?"

"All of the roads are blocked, so I have to spend another day here before I can return home."

"Where are you staying?"

"The Golden Emerald Rose Hotel. They're allowing for soldiers to stay there until they can return to their homes."

Elphaba nodded and the two walked in silence for a moment.

"What about you?"

"Hmm?" she hummed, surprised.

"What about you? Where are you from?"

"Oh, I live here. My father... he works in the government." Which wasn't a lie. "My mother pretty much stays at home and takes care of her duties from there." Also not a lie.

"How old are you?"

"Eighteen. You?"

"Nineteen."

Elphaba nodded. "Tell me about your family."

Fiyero paused. "Well, I have a younger sister named Lillyana, who's fourteen. And I have… had… an older brother named Lyle and a younger brother named Rheme."

"Had?" Elphaba asked gently.

Fiyero nodded. "They were killed in the war."

"Both of them?"

"Yes."

Elphaba sensed the sensitivity of the subject and let it drop. "I'm an only child. It must be nice to have siblings."

"They can be a real pain sometimes. Especially when you're the middle child. No one really pays attention to you. But at the end of the day, you always end up loving each other."

"That's nice."

"So, where are you headed?"

"I was going to a party at the Emerald Diamond, but I got swept up in the crowd that got on the trolley."

"The Emerald Diamond?" Fiyero asked, stopping in his tracks. Elphaba nodded. "We're going in the wrong direction."

"We're?" she asked, raising her eyebrow slightly.

"I assumed that since you were following me, you wanted me to stay with you."

Elphaba thought for a moment. Did she really want Fiyero to stay with her? After all, they barely knew each other. "Your company is… enjoyable."

"I'll take that as a 'yes'."

"You do that. But… I thought you weren't from the city. How do you know we're going in the wrong direction?"

"I've been visiting the city as a child a lot. I'm not a complete stranger here. But you should know. Didn't you say that you were from here?"

Elphaba bit her lip, looking for an excuse. "I don't really get to go out a lot, so I know about as much as a tourist."

Fiyero chuckled a bit. "Well, we'll have to take another trolley if we want to get there before midnight."

Elphaba looked up at him.

"Don't worry. I can afford another trolley ride for the both of us."

She smiled and followed Fiyero to the closest trolley stop. The trolley soon came, this one considerably less crowded than the last one, and they climbed in. Fiyero paid for their fares and they sat down.

"Next stop, the Emerald City Palace!" the conductor announced.

Something clicked in Elphaba's mind. Her father's speech. She looked at the high clock tower and realized that the speech was going to begin soon. "Fiyero, we have to get off now!"

"What?" Fiyero asked, turning towards her. "Fabala, we're no where near the Em-"

"Come on!" Before the Vinkun could protest, Elphaba grabbed his hand and pulled him off the trolley as the door opened.

"Seriously?" Fiyero groaned. "Why?"

"The Wizard's speech is about to start soon."

Fiyero sighed. "Really?"

"Really! Come on!"

A crowd had already gathered and Elphaba and Fiyero squeezed themselves into the front. Just when Elphaba reached the gate, trumpets sounded and the Wizard and Melena walked onto the balcony.

The people immediately began to cheer. The Wizard and Melena smiled and waved to the people. Elphaba smiled up at her parents and turned to look for Fiyero. But he was nowhere in sight.

I realized that making Fiyero a prince (especially when Elphaba is the Princess of Oz) would have made the Fiyeraba very difficult in this story. Don't forget to review!