Hi, everyone! I'm so pumped to finally share this fic with y'all! This is my special fic in honor of Wicked's 20th Anniversary on Broadway!
Here's how we're gonna do this. There are 3 parts: 8 chapters in Part 1, 6 in Part 2, and 12 in Part 3 (26 chapters total). It'll be a bit before the actual Fiyeraba gets here, since we need to see their individual stories first, but I promise it'll be worth it when we get there! So let's begin!
PART 1: Elphaba's Munchkinland
Description: Elphaba always believed she could have the capacity to love her family if it weren't for all the politics involved. Her dreams of escaping to a life of academia are shattered when she is used as a pawn in an alliance.
Elphaba's favorite place in the world was her secret reading nook. Wend Farleigh was an old manor in Bright Lettins, Munchkinland with many secret passages and rooms, and growing up there gave Elphaba many opportunities to explore and memorize all of them. She could slip through a door hidden behind a tapestry and end up in another part of the large house in less than five minutes.
She had found this hiding place when she was nine. Her parents and Nanny were too busy dealing with her two younger siblings to notice that she had ventured off. She loved that she could easily slip away, coming and going as she pleased. She was never jealous of the attention paid to her siblings. It gave her more opportunities to discover new places to escape.
She made her nook comfortable with a few pillows, blankets, and items that she hid from the adults over the years. It was a small hidey-hole, and while it was the perfect size for her as a child, her eighteen-year-old self had to fold in a way that didn't look comfortable, but she never cramped.
Currently, her nose was buried in a book, as it usually was. While her sister preferred romance novels, and her brother preferred newspaper comic strips, Elphaba only found value in reading books with real, useful information. Her current fascination was chemistry, reading textbooks and journals written by scientists all over Oz. She was teaching herself to identify the elements and how they interacted with the world. She was so engrossed in her studies that she almost didn't hear her name being called.
Almost.
The walls were notoriously thin, and she would have to take the long way around to keep her special spot from being discovered. But she knew why she was being called, and taking the scenic route would help delay the inevitable.
…
"Fabala! Fabala, where are you?! Come out here now!"
Silence.
"Fabala! This is important! Where are you hiding, you little frog? Nanny has no time for your games!"
"It's no use, Nanny."
The old woman turned at the voice and frowned when it wasn't the person she was calling. "Nessarose –"
"You know how Elphaba is when she wants to be alone," the teenager said, straightening in her wheelchair.
"Well, she can't be alone right now. This is important. The luggage is loaded and we're ready to go."
"Have you checked her room?"
"Yes."
"And the library?"
"Yes!"
"And the gardens?"
"Yes, and she's nowhere to be found."
The young brunette huffed. "She's hiding, as usual."
Nanny's lips pursed as she tucked stray hair that had freed themselves from her wimple back. "Thank you, Nessarose. Nanny hadn't noticed. Fabala knows what today is."
"And that's why she's hiding. She always chooses to be difficult at the most inconvenient times."
"Well, she can't hide forever. She'll get hungry eventually."
"You know Fabala is a picky eater."
"Nessarose, if you're not going to help –"
"I don't know where she is, Nanny."
"Elphaba Melena, you have until I count to three to show yourself!"
"Nanny, must you shout?"
"If she doesn't come soon, she'll have to –"
"I'll have to what, Nanny?" Elphaba asked, appearing behind the old woman.
The brunette looked up as the old woman spun around. "There you are, Fabala! You had poor, old Nanny looking everywhere for you!" She dramatically placed her hand over her heart as if to calm herself and tsked.
The green girl closed her book and shoved it under her arm. "I'm surprised you didn't call the Gale Force."
"None of your sass! It's almost time to leave. Go put on your traveling jacket and headscarf."
"We're leaving whether you're ready or not. So hurry," Nessa said, hiding a smirk at her sister's groan.
Elphaba shot her a look. "That's easy for you to say when you're not the one who has to –"
Before she could get another word out, Nanny shoved the jacket and headscarf into Elphaba's hands. She immediately went to work helping her fix the scarf over her head, tuning out Elphaba's routine brooding and protests.
"I still don't understand why we must leave today. Naoleine's wedding isn't until Friday."
"Your great-grandfather summoned the whole family to Colwen Grounds for the week," Nanny said, tying the scarf tighter than Elphaba would've liked.
The green girl made a face as she fixed her headscarf so it draped lightly over her shoulders. Though her life in Bright Lettins wasn't idyllic, traveling up the Yellow Brick Road to Colwen Grounds wasn't her ideal way to spend a sunny, June day.
"I wish he didn't pay so much attention to us. He has his direct line of Eminence heirs."
"Fabala, this is your family. You should be happy to see them."
"I, for one, am looking forward to seeing Grandmother Partra and Grandpa Romen again," Nessa said, her tone indicating that she thought saying that made her better than Elphaba. "And Ati Sophelia and Uncle Phyl."
"The Thropps aren't a family, Nanny. We're an institution. Everyone else has families. We have 'Descendings'." She marched out, meeting the rest of her family waiting at the top of the stairs. Her parents both had the same impatient expression, while her younger brother looked so happy to see her, like he hadn't seen her in years.
"There you are," Melena huffed impatiently. "We were waiting."
"We couldn't leave without you… even if we wanted to," Nessa frowned as Nanny pushed her wheelchair down the ramp.
Elphaba hummed. "My apologies. If I had known my presence was so important, I would have gotten ready last week."
Shell burst into laughter. "You're funny, Fabala!"
She smiled at her younger brother. The eleven-year-old was one of the only things in her life that made living more tolerable.
"Where do you always disappear to, Elphaba?" Frex asked once they were all settled in.
Elphaba shrugged. "I was reading and lost track of time." Not the full truth, but not cryptic.
"Don't shrug, Elphaba," Melena corrected sharply. "And fix your posture."
Her mother was always chiding her for something, and the chiding increased when they were going to be around the rest of the family. While she knew her mother hated their family's politicalness as much as she did, she also cared a lot about their appearances. There was only so much she could do to work with her eldest daughter's verdant skin, and everyone could see that she was doing her best with what she was given.
Begrudgingly, Elphaba straightened in her seat.
"I didn't ask what you were doing. I asked where you were doing it," Frex pressed.
"I was in the kitchens." Also not the full truth, but true enough to not be a complete lie. Her hidey-hole shared a wall with the kitchens, so it was a good enough excuse to use.
"You were reading in the kitchens?" Nessa asked skeptically.
"Yes."
"I don't belie– Shell, stop poking me!"
"Shell, behave," Nanny said without looking up from her large print word search.
"I'm not poking her. I was pointing to something out the window. It's not my fault her shoulder was in the way," Shell protested.
"What are you pointing at? There's nothing here but farmlands and yellow bricks," Elphaba said.
The young boy pointed out the window, making sure Nessa's shoulder got in the way. "That!"
Nessa growled. "Shell, if you don't stop poking me, I'll –"
"You'll what?" Shell challenged.
Without hesitation, Nessa closed her book and whacked Shell on the shoulder. The hardcover made a surprisingly louder-than-expected sound when it collided with the younger boy's arm. Shell yelped in pain and a mini-slap fight started between the two.
"Nessarose! Sheltergod! Enough!" Frex snapped.
The two immediately stopped bickering. Their father rarely raised his voice to them (it was mostly reserved for Elphaba), so when he did, it carried serious weight.
"He started it," Nessa frowned.
Shell stuck his tongue out at her, and Nessa prepared to hit him again.
"And I'm finishing it," Melena said, giving the two a look only a mother could.
After exchanging begrudging apologies, the two younger Thropps calmed.
"Well, there goes my entertainment," Elphaba grumbled, receiving a light thwack! from Nanny.
"I'm hungry," Shell complained, now needing to redirect his energy from annoying his sister.
"We'll arrive at Colwen Grounds in time for afternoon tea," Frex said. "You can wait until then."
"Aww! But that's –"
"You can wait until then."
"Fine."
"Sheltergod, if you do not fix yourself to be on your best behavior this week, you will regret it."
He slouched. "Yes, Father."
Melena didn't correct Shell's slouching as she did Elphaba's, but instead, ignored him and returned her attention to her needlepoint. It amazed all three Thropp children how their mother could keep a steady hand on the bumpy road.
"Who will be at the wedding, Mother?" Nessa asked, abandoning her book for gossip.
"All of Oz," Elphaba mumbled, cleaning her glasses on her skirt.
"I wasn't asking you. When I want to know about some random topic that no one in Oz cares about except for you, then I will ask for your opinions."
Elphaba rolled her eyes, but minded her own business and went back to her organic equations.
"I didn't see the guest list, but I expect it to be quite extensive," Melena said.
"Who is Naoleine marrying again?" Elphaba pipped.
"Loiln Heuena, Judge Kumn Heuena's son." Nessa huffed with an eye roll. "Did we have to bring her?" She scowled at her sister. "You know, it is possible to go longer than five minutes without hearing your voice. You should try not to talk so much."
"If you're worried that I'll steal attention away from you, I will tell you right now that it's not my intention. If you get jealous, just remember that I never requested any of it in the first place."
"Then perhaps you should work on drawing less attention to yourself. Especially if you're going to make it clear that you don't pay attention to anything important. This event is too important for you to be embarrassing the family."
"Nessie, be nice," Frex said, sounding more placating than commanding.
"I'll remember that the next time you need me to sing you a lullaby," Elphaba said with a smile.
Nessa waved a dismissive hand. "I haven't required a lullaby since –"
"Last night!" Shell interrupted with a smirk. "I heard Fabala in your room."
"You're about to hear ringing in your ears."
"Nanny will never hear the end of this," Nanny whispered, shaking her head as she started a new word search.
...
The long carriage ride wasn't over soon enough for the family, but thankfully, the gilded gates of Colwen Grounds came into view before anyone heard ringing or saw stars. As they came to a stop in front of the Governor's Mansion, the three adults breathed a sigh of relief. They were trapped in the carriage with the children for hours, and they were so glad to finally be set free.
Footmen and other attendants came down to help with the luggage as the driver got out to retrieve Nessa's wheelchair.
"Your Excellencies, welcome back to Colwen Grounds," an older gentleman in a Colwen Grounds uniform bowed.
"Thank you, Jemmsy," Melena nodded.
"His Eminence and Their Excellencies are in the family room."
"We will meet them there once we freshen up."
"Very good, ma'am," Jemmsy bowed, then swiftly left.
The family freshened up quickly, not wanting to keep the others waiting long, and went down to the parlor.
"Melena, you've finally arrived," the Eminent Thropp said once they were announced.
Peerless Thropp was a man in his late eighties, though he didn't look a day over seventy-five. He had no hair on the top of his head, yet a full, grey beard, trimmed mustache, and stray whisps in the back. Thin, black glasses sat perfectly perched on his long nose, allowing him to watch over his family with a stern gaze, while not covering his bushy eyebrows.
Melena stepped forward, gave her grandfather a deep curtsy, and kissed his cheek. "Hello, Grandfather."
"Frexspar."
It was clear the Eminent Thropp wasn't the biggest fan of his granddaughter's husband, but he didn't hate him, and that was the best they could hope for.
"Your Eminence," he bowed.
Elphaba, Nessa, and Shell greeted their great-grandfather, grandparents, aunt and uncle, and cousins. Since they were in private, they didn't have to do the full deferential greetings, but their air of formality was maintained in the familiarity.
"Where's Navi?" Shell asked, referring to their eldest cousin.
"He's attending to business in Center Munch. He'll return tomorrow," Sophelia's husband, Phyl, said, lightly ruffling the young boy's hair.
Shell looked put-out. He wanted to show him the new maps he'd drawn. He settled on showing his uncle, who appeared very interested and applauded the young boy's skills.
Afternoon tea was served, which brought on discussions of wedding preparations and activities. Elphaba feigned interest, Nessa was ecstatic, and Shell looked bored, but remained quiet.
"All of you will have roles in the wedding," their aunt, Sophelia, smiled at her nieces and nephew.
"Must Elphaba be included?" Nessa asked innocently. "She'll clash with the color palate."
"Now, Nessa," Nanny admonished gently.
"Nessa, Elphaba, Aurol, and Eadgyth will be bridal attendants. Shell and one of Loiln's nephews will be page boys."
"Our sabai dresses are purple," Aurol smiled, bouncing in her seat.
"With silver lace!" her identical twin, Eadgyth, giggled.
"I'd say that would work fine with Elphaba's verdigris," Partra nodded.
All eyes turned to Elphaba, who was desperately trying not to fidget. "Yes, thank you," she said, not knowing what else to say.
"Will I have to wear purple, too?" Shell complained, swallowing his biscuit.
"Shell," Melena frowned.
"Your dress tunic will match the girls' sabais," Romen said.
Shell pouted. "I have to wear a dress tunic?"
"Yes, Sheltergod. It is an official state event," the Eminent Thropp said sternly, but not unkindly, to his youngest great-grandchild. "We will all be in traditional Munchkin attire."
That piqued the young boy's interest. "Even the Winkies?"
"Shell, that is not a polite or proper term," Nanny frowned.
"Winkies don't wear tunics," Aurol stated.
"Aurol!" Sophelia hissed.
"They wear dashikis," Elphaba stated, though no one cared about the clothing terminology anymore.
"Will there be Winkies at the wedding?" Nessa asked, her face twisting in slight disgust.
"That is more than enough!" the Eminent Thropp boomed, holding up his hand to silence the room.
Everyone obeyed and they were dismissed until dinner. Elphaba was glad for this escape. She was also glad that this was her first long stay at Colwen Grounds where she didn't have to share a room with Nessa.
After her seventeenth birthday the previous year, she officially became a woman by Munchkin standards, leaving her then-fifteen-year-old sister in childhood for three more years. With that transition came more privacy and freedom, which meant less of being forced to be around Nessa.
The Thropps were a very traditional family. They had to be, in order to keep their power and status. While modern accommodations were made with each generation, some things remained the same. It was tradition for Munchkin women to start wearing ahais, a special headscarf, to cover their hair in public once they turned seventeen, though it wasn't uncommon to see girls younger wearing them. Ahais came in various colors and fabrics to match different outfits and seasons. Translucent ahais were more popular in the summer months, while wool ones kept them warm in the winter.
As soon as she closed her room door, she pulled her ahai off and neatly folded it on the back of the desk chair. She wasn't averse to covering her hair, since she was already used to covering her skin her entire life, but it felt good to have a brief pressure relief.
Her guest room overlooked the large pond in the private part of the gardens. She had enjoyed going down to watch the swans or to swim. She refused to get in the water, but had vivid childhood memories of Shell cannonballing, Aurol and Eadgyth racing, Naoleine sitting on the bank with just her legs in the water, and Aunt Sophelia helping Nessa float. It was one of those rare moments where politics didn't interfere with their family time.
A knock at the door pulled her from her vivid pond memories. She ran a hand through her hair as she opened her door, expecting it to be either her mother or Nessa, but was surprised that it was neither.
"Naoleine," she said, not fully hiding her surprise.
"I hope I'm not interrupting," Naoleine said formally, yet kindly.
Naoleine was only a few months older than her, but her position in life caused her to have to age faster. Though she had an older brother, the Munchkin Eminency was passed down through the first-born females, only going to the males if no direct female heirs were available, making her the heir, and not Navi.
She was taught formalities before she learned to read, and was rarely in situations that called for casualness. By the time she usually got used to the unfamiliar informalities, the event was usually over, erasing all her progress and the cycle repeated itself. At times, her attitude and personality resembled Nessa's, but without the brattiness. Her life as the Thropp Third Descending taught her how to behave and how to expect things a certain way. Questions and requests sounded more like commands, but never in a tyrannical way.
"Not at all," Elphaba said, stepping aside to let her in.
Naoleine stepped in, shyly brushing a lock of chestnut hair behind her ear before straightening and folding her hands across her stomach. "I am going into town after breakfast tomorrow with my maid of honor to pick up a few more things. I want you to come with us."
Elphaba paused. In general, shopping wasn't her ideal activity, unless a trip to the bookstore was included (and she doubted it would be included this time).
"I want you to meet Elisy before all of the wedding craziness starts."
The sentence was a request, but her tone left little room to say no. Plus, she knew that if she did, the whole family would berate her for saying 'no' to the bride-to-be. She was so used to it from Nessa, she could handle it from Naoleine. She put on what she hoped was a convincing smile. "I'll come."
She nodded. "Good. Thank you." She turned to go, but paused in the doorway. "… Fabala." Her lips twitched at her successful attempt at familial interaction and she left, closing the door behind her.
Elphaba let out a sigh. Perhaps this week wouldn't be so bad after all.
Updates will be every other day. And here's the Thropp Family Tree!
Peerless Thropp (Age 89) + Unnamed Woman
1. Lady Partra Thropp (64) {Thropp Descending} + Romen Thropp (63) (née Skarr)
a. Lady Sophelia Thropp (41) {Thropp 2nd Descending} + Phyl Thropp (45) (née Daul)
i. Navi Thropp (21) – {Thropp 6th Descending}
ii. Naoleine Thropp (19) – {Thropp 3rd Descending}
iii. Aurol & Eadgyth Thropp (15) – {Thropp 4th & 5th Descending} (respectively)
b. Lady Melena Thropp (37) {Thropp 7th Descending} + Frexspar Thropp (40) (née Warwiken)
i. Elphaba Thropp (18) – {Thropp 8th Descending}
ii. Nessarose Thropp (16) – {Thropp 9th Descending}
iii. Sheltergod Thropp (11) – {Thropp 10th Descending}