OMG! Has it really been 3 months since I updated? Yeesh! My apologies! I'm back now!

Elphaba didn't know what woke her up. It wasn't her pager or cell phone, and the monitors whirled normally with no signs of any emergency. She stared up at the ceiling as her eyes adjusted to the darkness. Other than the machines, the only other noise was her sister's soft snores.

It took her a moment to remember the previous night. She was still sleepy, but was so used to waking up early that she couldn't go back to sleep. Instead, she quietly slipped out of bed, carefully maneuvering so she wouldn't jostle Nessa too much and wake her, and softly shuffled out of the room.

She shielded her eyes from the bright fluorescent lights and walked down the hall. Her body started to ache, which reminded her how much she hated sleeping in the hospital beds. The on-call room beds were more comfortable, but nothing beat her own bed at home.

No more staying overnight when I'm not on call, Elphaba promised herself, though she knew that promise would surely be broken within the week.

She made it back to her office and sat at her desk. Since she was up with no hope of going back to sleep, she might as well get some paperwork done.

"Thropp."

Elphaba's fingers were typing a mile a minute, and she didn't look up at the voice. "Hmm?"

"What in Oz's name are you doing here at five in the morning when you're not on call?"

"I couldn't sleep."

"So you came here early?"

"I never left, Crope."

His phone buzzed and he chuckled softly. "You stayed with your sister, didn't you?"

That got her to lift her eyes from her computer screen and remove her glasses. "How'd you figure that out?"

"Your bed hair. And this." He showed her the text he just received, a photo from Tibbett of her and Nessa peacefully asleep. Elphaba made a face and grumbled, and Crope gave her a cheeky grin as he forwarded the photo to her. "How long have you been working?"

"Uh… maybe an hour?"

"'Maybe' in Throppese means 'it's been much longer'. Come on. You need a break, and fast. You need to break your fast." His eyes lit up. "You need breakfast."

"Maybe you should go back to bed. I can't take a break now. I have to read this article." She grabbed the first binder her fingers touched and opened it, her eyes darting back and forth across the pages, tuning the surgeon out.

"You're not reading that."

She looked up, annoyed. "And what makes you think that?"

"You're not wearing your glasses. You can't read anything without your glasses." He looked over her shoulder. "I'm looking at words; you're looking at blurry, squiggly lines. Which means that you should at least come get coffee with me."

"I'm not –"

"All right, Elphaba. I was gonna keep this a secret, but you've forced it outta me; Glinda told me to babysit you, and I'm not getting on her bad side just because you wanna be stubborn. So, let me make sure you don't die before she returns, or I'll call her right now and have her tell you. We both know she's up, but she's not gonna be happy if she has to deal with both you and her newborn."

She shot him a hard glare, but stood. "Babysitting?"

"Tib's on her payroll too, but he's taking PTO to look after your sister."

She had to admit, coffee did sound nice right about now. "Fine." She led the way out, but body aches caused swaying, and she roughly bumped into the doorframe.

"Hurting yourself for revenge isn't going to help your case," Crope said, though he made sure she was alright. There was a bruise slowly forming on her arm, but the look Elphaba shot him kept his mouth shut.

They got their coffee and watched the sunrise from the fourth-floor overpass. It was something they usually did by themselves, but joined each other when they could. It was a peaceful moment until Elphaba's cell phone buzzed. She looked down and groaned, seeing that it was her sister saying that the nurse just finished her morning assessment and to come back.

"Duty calls," Crope smiled as Elphaba got up to leave.

"Bye, Crope. And... thanks for the coffee."

He gave her a playful salute. "Good luck."

Elphaba took her time returning to her sister, who was alert and sitting up.

"How long have you been up?" was Nessa's greeting.

She tried to micro-dissect her tone to guide her response, but couldn't pinpoint whether she was annoyed at waking up alone or not. "A few hours. I couldn't go back to sleep, so I ran to my office to get some work done."

"Oh." A pause, then. "Aren't you going to ask how I slept?"

"I know how you slept; with your hair in my face, and your hand pressing into my stomach." She grabbed the chart and looked over the nurse's notes. "How are you feeling?"

"Can you get me some real food, please?"

She checked her watch. "I have to start working soon, and I won't have a free moment long enough to sit down until lunch."

"Can you bring me some of the doctors' lounge's food?"

"That's not real food. It's stale muffins, overcooked eggs, and fruit that looks like it came out of the dumpster. I normally eat at home."

Nessa made a face as the door opened and a nurse brought in her breakfast tray. Hers consisted of a large bran muffin, grape jelly, an apple, and a small cup of orange juice.

"My first patient isn't for another forty minutes. I can stay, if you want," Elphaba offered once the nurse left.

Nessa agreed and Elphaba sat on the bed, entertaining herself on her phone as Nessa ate.

"Why didn't you tell me you were sick?" Nessa asked suddenly, catching her sister off-guard.

"What do you mean?"

"A few weeks ago. I had to hear from Glinda that you were admitted after fainting at work."

The memory resurfaced. It was right before she became Chief Resident, so it had been pushed to the far recesses of her brain. "Nessa, we already talked about it –"

"I know. And I know I blamed you, even though it wasn't your fault. You didn't tell me or Father because you thought we wouldn't care." She took her sister's hand. "I want you to start taking better care of yourself, Fabala."

"That's why I became a doctor, isn't it?" she half-joked, then realized that Nessa was being caringly serious.

"I'm serious."

"So am I." She glanced down at their joint hands. "Why are you suddenly so concerned about this?"

"I've been thinking… I haven't been fair to you. I've always thought that just because you're functioning well, you're perfectly fine and don't need any help."

Elphaba bristled. "I'm not constantly sick, Nessa."

"I know," she said quickly. "And I know you work very hard, and you're strong, and try to balance and… I guess what I'm trying to say is… I've been taking advantage of you and… you don't have to always be strong around me."

"What are you trying to say, Nessa?"

"I'm sorry."

Nessa's apologies were rare, which meant she only said those two little words when she really meant them. Elphaba was figuring out how to respond when her pager beeped.

"I'll see you later," she said quickly, hurrying out of the room before Nessa said something else.

Her entire life, no matter what was going on around her or with her health, she always protected Nessa. From hiding her pain behind a smile, to covering bruises and hiding medicine, Nessa only saw the ugly side when Elphaba couldn't help it. And for the most part, she helped it. Her sworn duty as the older sibling was to protect her younger sibling, and she had a successful track record of doing it her whole life. She wouldn't tolerate any talk of Nessa saying she no longer needed her to do that.

She met her interns outside her office and gave them their official assignments. The four looked surprised when she handed them individual folders instead of telling them to follow her.

"We can go back to doing our own things now?" Shem asked hesitantly.

"No. You can go back to doing your job on your own," Elphaba corrected with a stern look. "You won't engage in any more foolish missions or general tomfoolery, or do anything that could jeopardize your jobs or, more importantly, mine. If any of you put one toe out of line, you'll be hanging by them."

The group unanimously agreed and hurried off for the day.

"Dr. Tigulaar, finally! Someone with some sense!" Imie said, pushing herself up as Fiyero entered her room.

"Imie," her father scolded gently.

"Will you please tell these two interns that I do not need to go down to that big scary surgery today?"

"Well, according to your calendar, it is 'Big Scary Surgery' day," Fiyero said with a playful shrug.

"I have changed my mind," the teenager declared. "I no longer wish to go. So, I need you to pull your rank and tell these two interns 'no'."

Even though Fiyero was also an intern and had absolutely no power in this situation, he had to go another route to get Imie to agree. "Imie, remember when I told you this surgery would help you to breathe better?"

"… Yeah."

"And that you'll feel so much better after you recover?"

"… Yeah."

"And that it will be worth it in the end?"

"Stop making good points."

He sat next to her on the bed. "We had such a good game plan, and –"

"We? Who's 'we'? I'm the one having the big scary surgery," she pouted.

"'We' is 'you and me'. Do you know how long it took me to convince Dr. Heuena to do that puppet show with me to explain the procedure? He's never gonna take me seriously ever again, but it made you smile and less scared."

"Yeah."

"We're still a team, Imie. But this is one part you do have to do on your own. But you're strong, and I know you'll do great."

She still looked a bit unsure, but nodded and allowed the surgical interns to prep her.

"I didn't get to finish my book," Imie sighed sadly, holding onto Fiyero's hand as they wheeled her to the elevator.

"The one on your nightstand? 'Builders, Maintainers, and Destroyers' by Yevrah Yojain?" Fiyero asked.

"Uh-huh."

"I read that when I was in high school."

She turned to him. "How does the book end?"

"You sure you want me to spoil it?"

"Yeah. Do they get married and live happily ever after?"

Fiyero smiled. "They do."

The teenager made a face. "Ew."

The adults laughed as the elevator doors opened. They reached the OR floor and Fiyero went as far as he could with her.

"Will you be here when I wake up?"

"I'll have them page me as soon as you're done. I promise."

"Okay." She finally released her death grip on his hand and disappeared behind the double doors.

"You'd think I'd be alright," Imie's father said. "It sounds like a simple enough procedure. And this isn't our first show. But… every time she goes in there and I can't go with her…"

"I understand, and Imie is in great hands. She'll be okay." Fiyero knew the rules about making promises he didn't know would be kept, but his goal was to reassure the man. If it meant making unspecific, blanket promises that didn't really sound like promises, then so be it. He led him back to the waiting room and sat with him until his pager went off. His eyes widened and he jumped up, tripping over his own feet as he hurried towards the emergency room.

"I'm here! I'm here!" he said as he met Elphaba outside.

The green doctor calmly turned towards him. "There's a new admit three minutes out."

The two managed to wait in a not-very-awkward silence for exactly one minute before it became awkward.

"You're still free next weekend for Sarima's dinner party?" she asked, meeting his gaze.

"I'm still invited?" he countered.

"Yes. Why wouldn't you be?"

"Because you're still mad at me."

"What makes you think that?" She softened slightly at the incredulous look he shot her. "I'm not… as mad… anymore. I keep work and private life separate."

"Easier said than done."

"But still doable."

The sound of the ambulance wailing growing louder drew the two from the personal conversation and back into work-mode.

"What've we got, Avaric?" Elphaba asked as she threw the back of the ambulance open.

"Peiea Sygh, nineteen years old. She fainted in a stairwell in her apartment and took quite a tumble. She has sickle cell anemia, which might have caused her fall." the EMT said, carefully disembarking and pushing the gurney toward the doctors. "Her airways clear and her pupils are responsive. I don't know if she has any broken bones, but her left ankle looks sprained." He handed a paper to Fiyero. "List of allergies and medicines. And her neighbor gave us her parents' numbers."

Elphaba nodded. "Thanks, Avaric. We've got her."

The young man waved and returned to the ambulance as Fiyero and Elphaba pushed the unconscious girl into the emergency room. They got her hooked up to the machines and a small team of nurses danced around them.

"Crap! She's crashing," Elphaba grunted as she started CPR and instructed Fiyero to get the paddles.

After an intense five minutes, the patient stabilized and the machine calmed.

"I'm going to order an x-ray for any broken bones, not including her ribs from the chest compressions," Elphaba huffed, wiping wisps of hair from her face as she caught her breath. "She's still unconscious, so I want to make it quick."

"… Okay."

"Why are you staring at me?"

He wordlessly gestured to the large bruise on her arm and she sighed.

"I bumped into a doorframe earlier this morning."

"Are you alright?"

"Yes. You know anemics bruise easier, and it takes longer for them to heal. It won't kill me, so I'm fine. I'm going to call her parents."

Fiyero watched her go, realizing how incredibly sexy she looked when saving lives.

"I want to go home."

"Nessa, believe me, no one wants you to go home more than me."

The sisters were having lunch outside. Tibbett suggested that some supervised fresh air would be good for Nessa before being discharged. Nessa wanted Elphaba to come with her, and Elphaba almost backpedaled once Tibbett made a comment about her looking paler, but Nessa won, as she always did.

"I hate being cooped up."

"That's why we're outside."

"How much longer do I have to stay here?"

"You should be good to go home tomorrow. Your stitches have healed enough, and your scans have come back clean."

"I'm not staying longer because you want to keep a watchful eye on me, am I?"

"Well, I did threaten Dr. Miluyse with death if anything happened to you, so he's probably terrified of both of us."

Nessa rolled her eyes, sensing the joke and deciding she was done being aggravated. "Have you heard from Glinda?"

"Not really. I'll probably stop by with some food and supplies soon and check on her and the baby."

"I'd like to start a family someday. Of course, I'm not in a rush, since I want to finish school first, and I still haven't met someone I like enough to consider marriage with. Speaking of, please don't tell me you're still single."

Elphaba innocently tilted her head. "Oh, did you not see the long line of men waiting to date me?"

"I'm serious, Fabala."

"So am I."

She studied her sister for a moment, then broke into a smile. "There is someone!"

"What makes you say that?"

"You're blushing."

"Side effect of my medicine."

"Oh, stop it and tell me the truth."

"Fine, but keep your voice down. I don't want the whole hospital to know. If my colleagues find out, they'll never let me hear the end of it." She subtly glanced over at a nearby table before returning her gaze to her food.

Nessa caught on quickly. "Fabala, not one of your interns!" she gasped quietly.

"Shh!"

"Which one? The taller one? The blonde? Please don't tell me it's the one with the tattoo."

"The one that looks like a happy golden retriever."

"I recognize him. What's his name?"

"Dr. Tigulaar."

"His first name is 'Doctor'?"

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "It's Fiyero."

"And is the feeling mutual?"

"We've kissed, so I'd say so."

Admitting that was a mistake. Nessa's squeal drew attention from the nearby tables, including the intern table, which Elphaba made a solid point of ignoring.

In all honesty, Elphaba was expecting Nessa to berate her. Her reality was that anything that took up her non-work time was not as important as using that time to help Nessa with something. She succeeded in calming Nessa down, only for her to begin peppering her with questions about Fiyero and their relationship. For some reason, while she recognized her sister's excitement, something about her personality seemed off. She couldn't pinpoint her finger on it, and couldn't focus on trying when being hounded with questions.

"I think that's enough fresh air for now," Elphaba said, growing tired of answering Nessa's numerous inquiries. She stood, threw out their garbage, and stepped behind her sister's wheelchair. "What's all this?" she asked, gesturing to the pile of envelopes on the nightstand as she got her sister settled back into bed.

"Father picked up my mail for me. My mailbox was starting to overflow."

Elphaba picked up the papers and sifted through them. "You still subscribe to Ozmopolitan?"

"It's a nice light read. Plus, the cover colors go with my living room palate."

"Mmm." She paused on an official-looking envelope and noted the return address.

"I already opened that one. It's from the targeted tietactal therapy clinical trial. Because of the surgery, they had to remove me from the study."

"Oh. I'm sorry, Nessa. I know how much you wanted to try this."

"I'm okay."

"Did Father –"

"I had to tell him. He asked and… I couldn't lie to him. I told him that it was my idea and that you didn't fully agree, but I still went ahead with it. He was disappointed that I didn't tell him sooner, but he got over it. And I will, too."

"Where is Father?"

"He went to the store. I want a fully stocked pantry when I go home tomorrow."

That sounded more like the sister she grew up with.

By the end of her shift, Elphaba was so exhausted, she was in autopilot mode. She was so out of it, she almost tripped over the large bags in front of her apartment. "What in Oz…"

Once she gathered her bearings, she peered inside, seeing boxes and cans of food. She didn't recall going shopping, and if she did, she would never leave the bags outside like this. There was a note taped to one of the bags and she pulled it off.

I know you're busy, and you have no food in your house, and you will go broke if you order take-out every day, so here's a restock.

~ Nessa

Nessa had asked their Father to go grocery shopping for her? And he got foods she could actually eat and somewhat liked. Her family never made a huge deal about her dietary restrictions, and she was mostly left to her own devices in the food department, but an actual effort was made to be mindful of what he bought her this time.

And if she was honest with herself, Nessa was right about her not having food in the house and her credit card statements mostly being take-outs.

She carried the groceries inside, and unpacked them on her kitchen counter, taking a photo and texting it to her sister. You sent Father grocery shopping for me?

The reply came a minute later. You're welcome.

Lots of Fiyeraba in the next chapter!