"There you are. I've been looking for you."
Elphaba turned around. She was face-to-face with the most beautiful person she had ever seen in her life. He was a couple inches shorter than she was, he had blue diamonds tattooed on his brown skin, dark, curly hair, and gorgeous brown eyes. His smile was brilliant and his expression was soft as he gazed at her.
He drew her in and swept her hair back. "I'm so glad I found you."
Elphaba fell into him with a soft sigh, as he held her and kissed her without abandon.
She felt warm and safe and wanted.
"You always find me," she whispered into his shoulder. "How do I find you?"
"But I'm already here," he murmured.
They laid together and he whispered sweet nothings. Elphaba nuzzled him, his heart beating steadily in her ear.
Then it stopped.
She breathed in deeply and opened her eyes only to find she was in bed and completely alone. No handsome, mysterious stranger in sight.
She'd had this dream the last three nights, each time more vivid than the last, but he had felt so… real. No one had ever held her or looked at her like that before. Was this a vision?
No. It couldn't be.
Even though things had changed at the village, she doubted someone as beautiful as that would ever be drawn romantically to her.
Well, if all she had were her dreams, so be it. It just wasn't fair. Maybe she wouldn't find love like that, but she would at least like to have someone who would seek her out because they wanted to be around her. Just because she was who she was. A dear friend.
Elphaba smiled softly. Fiyero was a dear friend. She wasn't alone at all. Maybe things would change when his curse was broken, but for the moment life was fine. It was good.
She had Fiyero, Chistery, and Castle. What more did she need? Sure, it'd be nice to have someone warm next to her at night, but if she really wanted something that would adore her and cuddle up to her and be happy every time she entered the room, she'd get a puppy.
"No use spending the day dreaming," she said and got up.
She looked through her wardrobe and frowned, Her second favorite dress was missing, Did she put it away elsewhere?
Well… it was a little warm to wear it anyway.
Elphaba looked at some of the clothes she picked up from around the castle to fill out her wardrobe. Some of it was similar to what women wore in the village.
"Well… might as well," she said to herself.
She put on the skirt, blouse, and vest. She had liked the embroidery on the vest and skirt, the colors were beautiful against the blue fabric.
Elphaba started putting her hair up, then paused and let it drop. She just needed to keep it out of her face. She fetched the babushka she had been given and rolled it up into a band, wrapping it around her head and tying it off. Her hair flowed back and wouldn't get in the way.
The torches flashed three times.
"Visitors?" said Elphaba. "Oh! Perhaps it's Dr. Dillamond."
She hiked up her skirts and hurried down the stairs to go meet him. Castle opened the front doors for her just as the cart arrived. To her surprise, it was loaded to near bursting and covered with a canvas.
Dr. Dillamond sat in the driver's seat in his traveling clothes.
"Hello, Dr. Dillamond!" Elphaba called, hurrying down the steps to meet him.
"Miss Elphaba!" he said. "Ah, forgive me, you're a Madame now, aren't you?"
"Please, come inside," she said, not really answering that. "I'll give you the tour, you can pick your room, and we'll bring everything in."
"And I'd very much like to meet this husband of yours," said Dr. Dillamond.
"Yes, he's just… he's away so it might—"
"Elphaba!" Chistery scampered towards her. "He's here!"
"Fiyero?" said Elphaba. "Oh! Go get the surprise! Dr. Dillamond, come with me and you can meet him. Then we'll do everything else."
"Of course! They'll be fine in the wagon for a bit," he said. "A castle this big, I would think there'd be a hundred servants."
"No, the boys were fine with it as it was before I came along," said Elphaba. "But I've been thinking we should hire a few people from town out of work. Just for some upkeep. I mean, we can't do it all by ourselves, especially since I'm the new healer in town and Castle won't clean herself!"
A panel flung open. Elphaba blocked it with her arm before it could smack her in the head.
"I'm not wrong," she said, swatting it shut. "I hope you'll be polite to Dr. Dillamond."
The torches spluttered and Elphaba chuckled.
"Curious!" said Dr. Dillamond, adjusting his glasses. "The castle is alive?"
"Very much so," said Elphaba. "She's enchanted and provides everything we could need so long as we ask. Food, fire, supplies. I supplement here and there for specific things. This way."
She led him to the gardens and straight to the pumpkin patch. Fiyero's body was growing out of the ground like asparagus, and in the center was a pumpkin the right size for his head.
"Peculiar," said Dr. Dillamond, poking at the hand sticking out of the ground.
"You haven't seen anything yet," said Elphaba, sitting on her heels. "Just watch."
Dr. Dillamond knelt next to her. She could tell he wasn't sure if she was sane or not, but thankfully he kept quiet.
Lines appeared in the pumpkin and the limbs began to twitch. Fiyero finally opened his eyes.
"Oh, my!" Dr. Dillamond gasped.
Fiyero blinked and furrowed his brow.
"Fae, who's this?" he asked.
"Dr. Dillamond, my mentor."
"Extraordinary!" said Dr. Dillamond, poking Fiyero with his hoof. "This shouldn't be scientifically possible!"
"Neither should green skin, but Omega can attest that I was born this way," said Elphaba.
Fiyero mumbled something and Elphaba sighed.
"Dr. Dillamond, don't put your hooves in his mouth."
"Pardon me," he said sheepishly. "I've just never seen anything like him! How does he work? Why is he growing in the ground?"
"He got trampled a few days ago," she said and looked at Fiyero. "Are you alright?"
"I'll be better when I'm put back together," he said pointedly.
Elphaba smiled and stood up just as Chistery ran out with a burlap sack.
"I have a present for you," said Elphaba, pulling his limbs out of the ground.
"A present?" said Fiyero keenly. "What is it?"
"You'll see," she said and stood behind him so he couldn't peek.
Chistery opened the bag and pulled the chest piece Elphaba made out. She knew he hated being all stick and pumpkin, but clothes never fit him right and were always getting caught. She made him a chest out of burlap and stuffed it with wool. It wasn't very big, just to fill him out, give him some shape. She slid it over his pole before attaching his arms and legs so it wouldn't slip off.
She put on the shirt and trousers she tailored to fit tighter around his limbs. The trousers were still baggy, but she secured them up with suspenders. So they couldn't slide off his barely there shoulders, she added tabs to the shirts to fasten them down. She had also made him vests out of fabrics she had been weaving over the past few months and some old vests she found in the castle.
For his legs, she found a pair of soft leather boots and stuffed them with straw before putting them on his feet, over his trousers. To secure them, she wrapped them up with leather straps. She stuffed his trousers the rest of the way with straw.
"What are you doing back there?" Fiyero asked.
"Almost done," said Elphaba, hauling his body to its feet. She rolled the sleeves up to his elbows and buttoned them down to stay there. "Alright."
Chistery cut the vine keeping Fiyero tethered to the ground and picked his head up, passing it to Elphaba. She set Fiyero back on his shoulders.
He seized the sides of his head and tugged it down with a resounding crack.
"What do you think?" Elphaba asked, stepping back. "I thought it might be more comfortable if you didn't have to worry about straw spilling out of your chest."
Fiyero looked down at himself and patted his chest. He stuck a foot out and wiggled it.
"You made all this for me?" he asked, looking at her in amazement.
"Well, some I tailored," she said. "If the shape feels wrong, I can let it out a bit, add more stuffing or take some out."
"It's perfect," he said, grinning. "It's amazing! Thank you!"
He hugged her tightly. Her heart beat fast and she leaned into him before realizing they had an audience.
"Right," she said. "Dr. Dillamond, this is Fiyero, but the villagers refer to him as Scarecrow. Fiyero, this is Dr. Dillamond."
"A pleasure to meet you," said Dr. Dillamond.
"You as well," said Fiyero, shaking his hoof. "Welcome to Kiamo Ko."
Elphaba noticed his arm was still secure around her waist. He was usually a little stiff after waking up. She spun out and straightened her vest.
"You woke up just in time," she said.
"In time for what?" Fiyero asked.
"To help me give a tour and carry in Dr. Dillamond's things," she said.
"Aww, Fae, I just woke up and you're going to put me straight to work?" he whined.
"Yes."
He groaned. "Fine!"
Dr. Dillamond chuckled. "No doubt you two are married."
"We're not, actually," said Elphaba. "Father just… misunderstood, but Fiyero was kind enough to let me stay."
"Oh!" said Dr. Dillamond. "I see. Well, it's always good to become friends with someone before spending your lives together."
Elphaba sighed softly and gave him the tour first so he could pick his room.
"What lovely flowers," said Dr. Dillamond, pulling one out of a vase on a pedestal in the hall. "May I?"
"Go ahead."
He munched on it and considered the rooms.
"I think this one would be quite nice," he said, selecting one that got a lot of sunlight.
"How long are you planning on staying with us?" Fiyero asked.
"That remains to be seen," said Dr. Dillamond.
"What is it?" Elphaba asked. "What's wrong?"
"I wouldn't dream of imposing on you, my dear," he said, patting her hand. "I will be looking for more permanent lodgings. It's just… well, it seems there's no place for an old Goat like me back home. Local law… Animals shouldn't be providing medical service to humans, but you don't see anyone raising a fuss at veterinarians!"
"How awful!" Elphaba gasped.
"Well," said Fiyero. "It's not like we don't have the room and you are a certified doctor. We'll introduce you at the next town meeting. Their doctor is in the pocket of some bandits and I know Fae is worried about having to perform surgery."
Elphaba broke into a wide smile. Was he saying what she thought he was?
"Yes, stay here as long as you like," said Elphaba. "And if that quack doctor gets run out of town, you might end up moving there regardless."
"How kind of you," he said. "I'll think on it."
"For now, let's just get your things in," said Fiyero.
It took them the better part of the day. Dr. Dillamond brought one of every book he had in his shop on top of his personal library, as well as all his apothecary ingredients. Plus his research journals, clothes, equipment, everything he owned. Elphaba promised to make space for him in the laboratory.
"Yoohoo! Miss Elphaba?"
Elphaba stopped on the steps and turned around.
"Madame Abolar," she said. "What brings you up here?"
"I noticed your carriage," she said. "I thought you might have had a visitor and thought I'd call to introduce myself. I brought some rice fritters."
She held up the covered basket and spotted Fiyero.
"Prince Scarecrow! How wonderful to see you've returned," she said. "When Lady Elphaba said you would recover I didn't believe it."
"Believe it," said Fiyero. "Is everyone alright?"
"Yes, perfectly fine! That soldier turned cat isn't too happy though," she chuckled. "But I hope the change is permanent. The children just adore him."
"Please, come in," said Elphaba. "This is Dr. Dillamond, my mentor. He's an excellent doctor and a certified pharmacist. He's moved here to train me and be available to the village as a surgeon."
"Wonderful!"
While the two got acquainted, Elphaba helped Fiyero bring in the last of the crates and bags. Even though she was strong, Elphaba wasn't comfortable using her magic to carry more than two at a time.
"There we go," said Fiyero, wiping imaginary sweat off his brow. "Whew, if I knew I was going to be putting this much work in, I would've waited longer to come back."
"Can you actually choose when to come back?" Elphaba asked.
"Well, no," he admitted. "I just die and then I wake up. It's hard to explain. Sometimes I wonder if I do dream and just don't remember it."
She shrugged, not really knowing how to respond, so she moved on.
"That was wonderful of you to invite Dr. Dillamond to stay indefinitely," she said.
"He's important to you," said Fiyero. "That's reason enough."
She smiled. "I preferred him as a teacher than the Tigress who taught me how to weave. He didn't throw stuff at my head when I messed up."
Fiyero scoffed. "Not a high bar, Fae."
He stared at her a long moment.
"What?" she asked.
"You're wearing your hair down," he noted.
"Oh. Sort of." She touched it lightly. "I didn't think I'd be seeing anyone except Chistery today, so I thought I'd change it up."
"And here I thought you got prettied up just to greet me," he teased, running the tail of her babushka through his fingers.
"So certain of yourself," she scoffed, though inside she felt all shy.
Honestly, she didn't like Fiyero like that and even if she did, she wasn't his type, so it was better not to read too much into why her heart was racing when his hand came so close to her skin. Even if she was okay with sticks and pumpkin for the rest of her life, Fiyero certainly wouldn't be. She had a better chance with the man from her dream.
Elphaba quickly sped away from him to make sure she got everything from the carriage and wagon. Satisfied, she left Fiyero to take care of Poppy and went inside to figure out where Mrs. Abolar and Dr. Dillamond went, finally finding them in a parlor with a tea cart.
"Sorry to keep you waiting," said Elphaba. "Everything is in your room for the moment Dr. Dillamond, we'll unpack and sort over the next few days."
"Thank you, my dear," he said. "Mrs. Abolar was just telling me how you've helped the village since you've arrived."
"Yes, she chased away those horrid bandits," said Mrs. Abolar.
"Well… that is something I wanted to bring up at the next town meeting," said Elphaba. "They do intend to enact revenge."
"Oh."
"Not anytime soon," she hastened to add. "They want to lull everyone into a false sense of security and then strike. I have a way to watch them and give warning but…"
"We'll need a plan," said Fiyero, taking a seat next to her on the couch. "You can tell the Burgomaster and we'll discuss how to prepare for when they come back."
Mrs. Abolar pursed her lips and nodded. "How do you watch them?"
"I have my ways," said Elphaba. "When they're ready to act, I'll know."
"And we'll be ready to push back," said Fiyero. "Let's just keep it quiet that Elphaba has a way to watch. If we give away our advantage…"
"Then we're lost," said Mrs. Abolar, tapping her nose. "Mum's the word. We'll just say we don't expect them to leave well enough alone and must be prepared."
Elphaba remembered what she wanted to talk to Fiyero about and made a mental note to bring it up later.
Mrs. Abolar left after a while to have dinner at home, but not without insisting they all stop to call soon.
After a pleasant dinner that Castle served, Elphaba saw Dr. Dillamond to his room.
"I'm sure you're exhausted from the journey," she said. "But if you'd like I can help you unpack."
"I think I'll just wind down," he said. "But thank you, I'll take you up on that tomorrow."
"Alright, we'll start after breakfast then," she said.
"After breakfast then," he agreed.
Elphaba turned around and realized Fiyero hadn't followed along. She thought of trying to track him down, but he usually liked to take some time to himself after growing back. That may have been due to the last several times his demise was caused by her, but if he didn't want to see her, then she wouldn't disturb him. Her idea could wait until tomorrow.
~o0o~
Dr. Dillamond's arrival brought many visitors to the Castle over the course of several days wanting to get a look at him and to get his opinion on certain matters Elphaba hadn't been sure about.
"Well, now," said the Old Goat once the bus left. "I think I should like a nap before dinner."
"Of course," said Elphaba. "Can I get you anything?"
"No, my dear, thank you."
She nodded and went outside for some fresh air. She hadn't dreamed of her handsome stranger again, which was more frustrating than anything. They were her dreams, was she honestly being left high and dry by a figment of her imagination?
She parked herself beneath a flowering tree. The blackberry bush around it was starting to ripen. She should make a jam with them. They had all that flour too, she could make some fresh bread.
Blackberries had always been her favorite fruit. They grew around the house back home. Nessa would hold the basket while Elphaba picked them.
She breathed in the sweet scent of flowers and tilted her head up to catch the last bit of full sun before it would start to dip below the peaks.
It wouldn't be a bad place to live out the rest of her life. She could see herself growing old here. Stooped, grizzled, and grey, using her gnarled hands to pluck off rotten leaves and petals; sitting on this bench to feed her crows or complete her knitting.
Would that change? If Fiyero's curse broke and he went back to his life, would she be left behind?
She opened her eyes and sighed softly. Yes. That would make sense wouldn't it? Why did any sort of security have to lie in marrying well?
It wasn't fair.
"Fae?"
She blinked and realized Fiyero was standing there. He braced his hand on a low branch of the tree as he ducked under it. No doubt to prevent his head from being knocked off.
"Yero," she said. "It's been so busy, I'm afraid we haven't really had time to chat."
"What's wrong?" he asked. "You seem sad about something."
"No, I wouldn't say sad," she said softly.
He sat next to her.
"Anything you want to talk about?" he asked. "I thought you'd be happy with Dr. Dillamond here."
"I am," she said. "I really am. I'm just… being ridiculous."
"If there's one thing you're not it's ridiculous," said Fiyero. "Except maybe when it comes to cleaning the castle top to bottom with a toothbrush."
She rolled her eyes and nudged him.
"What is it?" he asked.
"I was just thinking about the future," she said.
"Oh?"
"Sometimes, I think I can see it so clearly," she said. "I get feelings. Visions. Not often just… flashes."
"Did you have a vision?" Fiyero asked.
"I don't know," she admitted. "Probably more of a wish. It's foolish."
"It's not foolish to wish for things," he said. "What is it you're wishing for? I promise, I won't laugh."
"Usually when people promise not to laugh, they end up laughing," she pointed out.
"Well, I don't fancy you sticking my head up somewhere I can't reach so…" He scooted closer. "Talk to me."
Elphaba looked down, rubbing her thumb over the embroidery on her skirt.
"I want to stay here," she said. "Here in Kiamo Ko, but I'm terrified of being alone."
"Who says you'd be alone?"
"Well, when your curse breaks, you'll have to go back to your life," she said. "And Chistery might want to spread his wings and explore elsewhere. And Dr. Dillamond is already an old Goat, he won't live forever. And I couldn't go back to live with my family. Maybe I could still be a Healer, but for how long? How long until I've outlived my usefulness? Would I be abandoned? What if Castle stops being sentient? What if I can't stay here anymore? And there's that man—"
Fiyero grabbed her hand and her spiral halted.
"What man?" he asked and she felt her face heat up.
"No man, forget the man," she said.
"Fae, is there someone in town still giving you a hard time?" he asked.
She shook her head.
"No." She got up and walked away. "Just forget it. I'm being stupid."
"Hey! Why won't you just talk to me? I've been out of the loop for three days, you think Chistery is going to fill me in?"
"I don't want to talk about it!" She shot back and climbed up the largest tree to escape.
"We're friends! Just tell me about your feelings so I can help you!"
Elphaba crossed her arms and leaned against the tree trunk. Fiyero scaled up after her and held onto the branch she was sitting on.
"Please," he said. "I want to help you."
Oz, he was so earnest. Elphaba pulled a flower off a branch and started pulling off the petals one by one.
"It's just someone I dreamed about," she said softly. "I highly doubt he exists."
"What did he look like?" Fiyero asked.
"Brown skin. Curly brown hair. Few inches shorter than me and…" she closed her eyes. "His eyes… I think they were brown. Or maybe hazel."
"Not so unusual in this area," said Fiyero.
She shook her head. "Even if he did exist, there's no way he would say all those wonderful things to me or even look at me like that."
"And how did he look at you?"
She dropped her head back.
"Like I was everything," she sighed. "My own flesh and blood was happy to get rid of me and I've come to a realization. I don't want to die alone."
"You're not going to die alone." Fiyero hauled himself up onto the branch and took her hands. "You'll always have a home here. Whether my curse is broken tomorrow or in a hundred years, I swear to you— Look at me."
She slowly raised her eyes to his.
"I promise you won't be without a home," he said. "If something happens and I can't be here anymore, then I'll just make the castle yours and I'll have people take care of you."
She blinked and straightened up. "You can't do that!"
"Why not? I think Castle likes you more than me anyway."
She huffed softly.
"I know what you mean," he said. "About loneliness. I think I may have been lonely my whole life. I just never realized it until…"
He trailed off and looked away.
"Until?" she pressed.
He smiled. "Until you showed up."
Elphaba pulled her hands away from his. Foolishness. Her heart had no reason to be reacting as it was. She was just lonely and looking too deep into her relationships.
She needed to focus.
"I wanted to talk to you about something," she said.
"Yeah?"
"Come with me."
They climbed down and she led him up to her tower, taking out the map.
"Those bandits are staying here," she said, tapping Vadallet Du on the map.
"That's really close to here," Fiyero noted. "Distance wise anyway. They wouldn't be able to reach us unless they were part mountain goat."
"I'm not so sure," said Elphaba. "Didn't you say the tunnels beneath the castle sprawl really far out into the mountain?"
"Sure but… oh! You think they might be connected?"
"I mean, I've never seen the tunnels," she said. "But that's about a mile as the crow flies, isn't it?"
"As the crow flies," he agreed. "But the main road to there is about twenty miles. I think it'd be six or seven to cut through the forest before it becomes too steep. Any tunnel reaching it would have to either slope down or have stairs."
"Still worth a look, isn't it?" she said. "They plan to attack one day and I heard the woman, she said they have enough riches to last a lifetime, so it's all for sport."
"Hm." Fiyero tapped his chin. "Wouldn't it be interesting if… nah, forget it."
"I was thinking of stealing it from them," said Elphaba.
"Oh! That's exactly what I was thinking."
"And we could give it back to the people," she continued. "The money should be equally distributed and I think for anything else like jewelry and silverware, people would need to report it and we could see if we have it. Rather than just give what could be a priceless heirloom to a random person."
"That I had not thought of," he said. "You're right, but the nobility might be angry that they won't get everything back in full."
"Then that's not very noble of them and they no doubt took it out on villagers to keep their own lifestyle."
"Good point. I'll start looking myself, those old tunnels can be dangerous and I don't want you to get hurt if there's a collapse."
"Fiyero, I'd be fine."
"Humor me," he said. "Just on this. Please?"
She sighed softly and nodded. "Alright."
