I saw the Wicked Day Green Performance on Broadway this past Sunday and had a blast!
Fiyero looked over the menu for the Ritjana Feast. He knew what foods he would be feasting on the night before his wedding, but he still didn't know who he would be marrying. He put check marks next to everything, regardless of whether he liked it or not. There was bound to be someone who would eat it.
He was due for his wedding dashiki and kapa fitting the following day. He wondered if his bride was also going through wedding plans in Munchkinland. Of course, the wedding would be solely Vinkun culture and tradition, with not a single shred of anything Munchkin, which would probably make her a bit uncomfortable. Perhaps he could be nice and slip something in for her without his family's objections.
"Fiyero."
He looked up and smiled at his cousin. "Khát." He stood, then noticed what she was wearing. "Why are you wearing a traveling cloak?"
"Because I'm returning home today."
He blinked. "What? No, you're not."
She chuckled. "Yes, I am, Yero. The summer is over, and I must return home. You've been so busy that the days flew by."
He abandoned his desk and met her at the doorway. "I suppose they have."
She hugged him, resting her head on his shoulder. "Thank you for a wonderful summer. I will miss this."
"Will I see you for the wedding?"
"Of course. And perhaps you might see my future husband."
He hummed. "Perhaps."
She released him. "I'm leaving in an hour. Don't miss saying goodbye to me." She kissed his cheek and walked out.
Fiyero continued to go through the papers, noting a signed paper that mistakenly got into his pile. He looked it over and recognized the official seal. It was a safe passage document for a Munchkin official. He stared at it. The name line was empty, but he could only assume that it was for his wife. It was a highly diplomatic move to offer her safe passage into the Vinkus, and even though he accepted this political plot, he didn't know if it eased the marital awkwardness for their first move to be this political.
He took the document and placed it in a manilla folder. He had to give it back to his grandfather so he could finish filling it out before sending it. He passed his grandfather's secretary and passed it along to him, and walked down the opposite direction, hearing his family in the parlor. It ended up being just his grandmother, mother, and sister. "What's going on?"
"We're planning your wedding. It's very exciting," Hannalyn smiled, feeling two different fabrics on the dress forms.
"Was I going to be asked to be a part of this conversation?"
"Why would you be?"
"Because it's my wedding."
"We planned on calling for you when we need you. We are currently looking over the color scheme and seating chart," Amalie said.
"Isn't that the bride's job?"
"The bride hasn't arrived, and plans need to get underway. We're taking care of everything for her. She will be grateful," Baxina added.
Fiyero looked at all the papers scattered around the large table as the women started talking about flowers and colors and seating arrangements and music.
"Ah, Sarima!" Baxina smiled when she looked up and saw the Young Dowager Princess standing in the doorway. "Come help us choose colors for the iro and buba."
Sarima came in, gave Fiyero a fleeting glance, and looked at the outfit colors. "I like the dark blue."
"Fiyero and his bride will be wearing white and purple, so navy blue will be a nice compliment for them," Amalie said. "And we'll all wear matching geles." She took the head ties out of the boxes and laid them on the table.
Sarima looked at them. "That would be nice."
"It's settled, then. We will send for Biimpé to start on our outfits. She's almost finished with the bride's dress," Baxina said, clapping her hands.
Fiyero didn't know if everyone calling his betrothed "the bride" was intentional. Did they know her name and were just refusing to say it around him? Or did they legitimately not know? Either option didn't sound good to him.
"Oh, Fiyero, when you're done selecting the menu for the Ritjana Feast, give it to Chef Euel," Baxina said.
"I will," the prince nodded.
"Did you select the hot pepper soup?" Sarima asked.
"I did. I know how much you and Eszno liked it at your wedding."
"He ate bowl after bowl after bowl. We almost ran out."
"Well, this time, we will be prepared to feed an army of Esznos."
Sarima chuckled softly, and Fiyero smiled. This was the first time he and Sarima were discussing Eszno's memory without it turning into an argument. While he was hopeful that this was a step in the right direction, he was also prepared for this to be a one-time interaction.
"I didn't see any Munchkin food on the menu."
The women looked up at him in surprise. "Why would there be?" Hannalyn asked.
"Because my bride is Munchkin. I'm sure she would appreciate something that she's familiar with. A bridge between our two countries and cultures."
Sarima rolled her eyes. "I'm not eating endless amounts of corn-related dishes."
"I'm not saying we have to. I'm saying that perhaps –"
"We'll have the best foods available. Everything will be so fresh and appetizing that she won't even miss her Munchkin food," Baxina said.
Perhaps this wasn't the best time for a menu argument. Fiyero didn't even get the chance to officially concede because a servant came in and announced that Kháteryne was preparing to leave.
The family quickly gathered in front of the castle to say goodbye to Khát. She reassured Fiyero that she would return for his wedding and let their hug linger before she had to leave. He helped her into the carriage, waving to her as it drove through the gates.
The following week, Fiyero watched from a hidden observation deck as servants hauled suitcases into the castle. Sissalíne and Tsie were moving in and preparing to serve his wife-to-be. He thought that he should get to know them, but figured it wouldn't be viewed as proper. He was about to get married. His days of flirting had to be over.
He dutifully attended his final wedding dashiki fittings. Everything fit and looked nice, and the new outfit did help to lift his mood a bit.
Now that September was here, his wedding had been announced and the Vinkun people eagerly prepared to meet their new princess. The wedding was scheduled for September seventeenth, only giving him five days and a feast to get to know her.
Irji, Manek, and Nor were very excited to be a part of the wedding. Irji and Manek would be page boys and Nor would be the flower girl. Sarima made them promise to be on their best behavior for the rest of the days leading up to the wedding, or risk losing that privilege. The children eagerly agreed.
Fiyero found himself getting antsy. He wouldn't say he was ecstatic to meet his betrothed, but he wasn't dreading it. Not completely, at least. He just had a lot of nerves that he needed to find a way to work off.
"It's scary to have everything in place, and still not know who you're marrying," Fiyero confessed a few days later as he walked with Gyles and Kel. "I guess I just need to blow off some steam."
"I'm going on a ride with Nzer tonight. Their house is overrun with women preparing for the birth, and Defi kicked him out. He tried to stand his ground, but once Amma put her foot down, that was it. Shall I extend the invitation?" Gyles asked.
"That would be helpful. Thank you," Fiyero said.
Later that evening, Fiyero joined his two friends and Nzer on the trails in the forest. Once Hunfter realized that his master was leaving, he insisted on coming along. Fiyero tried to get the beagle to stay at the castle, but the hunting dog wouldn't listen. Giving up, Fiyero let him come along.
The air was cold from a recent downpour, but not enough to deter a ride. Fiyero knew his purple vest would keep him warm enough. Plus, he liked riding in the rain. It made the experience more freeing.
"Shall we go down towards the stream?" Nzer asked, ducking so his turban wouldn't get knocked off by a low tree branch.
"Sure," Kel nodded, and they followed him down the path.
Hunfter happily trotted beside the horses, expertly weaving between them and sniffing and huffing. Fiyero thought he was tracking a wild animal, but ignored the behavior. If he didn't encourage it, the hunting dog would realize this wasn't a hunt.
Fiyero liked riding while surrounded by nature's night music. The mix of owls, crickets, birds, and other animals created a symphony that could've lulled him to sleep if he didn't have to stay focused. If he had the choice, he'd listen to those noises every night.
Suddenly, Hunfter straightened and barked. Again, Fiyero continued to ignore the behavior. But this time, the dog was insistent and kept barking.
"Hunfter, no," Fiyero said, making a gesture to shush the dog.
The command was ignored, and the hunting beagle sprinted ahead, turning towards the road. Fiyero called for him to come back, but when his command wasn't obeyed, he figured that whatever Hunfter had found was important. He led the way and the three followed behind.
When they emerged from behind the trees onto the road, they froze when they saw what the dog had found. They could only stare as Hunfter barked and circled a carriage that was seemingly caught in the mud.
Their only source of useable light came from the carriage lamps, allowing them to see a driver and two uniformed men standing by the carriage. The guards had their weapons drawn, but slowly lowered them.
"Are you travelers alright?" Gyles asked, dismounting and handing his reigns to Kel, who had done the same.
The uniformed men looked at each other and said something they didn't understand. Kel looked at Gyles and silently asked if he knew what they were saying. He shook his head, and they turned back to the uniformed men.
"They don't speak Arjiki," Kel reported.
"What do they speak?" Nzer asked.
"I don't know. It doesn't sound like any other tribal language, though my Scrow is a bit rusty."
"Perhaps now it's time to implement common Ozian into the Vinkus. Make it more 'common'."
"Well, who speaks common Ozian?"
The Vinkuns shook their heads. One of the uniformed men said something, then pointed past them. They turned and realized he was pointing to the castle.
"I think they're trying to get to the castle," Gyles said, motioning for Fiyero.
The castle? Fiyero thought. He dismounted and stepped forward. He looked at the men, then noticed that a fourth person was standing by the carriage. It was a young woman, wearing traveling clothes and her hair hidden under a headwrap. She didn't look Vinkun, and he stepped closer. She took a step back, and he stopped and squinted. It could've been a trick of the light, but her skin appeared green.
She said something to him, and he blinked blankly at her. He looked back at his friends and noticed them also staring at the strange woman, and turned back to her, tilting his head.
She looked like she was getting self-conscious with the staring, and that's when he realized that her green skin probably wasn't a trick of the light. For some reason, she looked familiar to him, but he couldn't remember where he'd seen her. He looked at the carriage and his eyes traveled up to the top. It wasn't a Vinkun state flag. It was a Munchkinland one.
Munchkinland? No. This couldn't be…
It clicked for him. That distant memory of seeing a green woman in the Munchkin wedding newspaper photo resurfaced. It was her. She was the Eminent Thropp's other great-granddaughter. She was his bride.
"There's nothing familiar about their dialect," Kel said.
"Kel, give her your cloak," Fiyero commanded, his eyes never leaving the woman.
"What?"
"It's cold, and she is not wearing anything warm. Give her your cloak." Just because he had conflicting feelings about marrying her didn't mean he wanted her to freeze.
"Fiyero, we don't know who these people are, and we can't understand them. Why would I –"
He whipped around to face him. "Just give her your cloak, man! Show some chivalry!"
"And what do you know about chivalry?" Kel scoffed.
"I know more than you, since I'm not the one trying to keep this young lady unprotected from this cold."
"I'd listen to the prince, if I were you," Gyles smirked.
Fiyero slapped his friend's arm. "Just do it!"
Kel slapped his hand away, and with a grumble, unbuckled his cloak and handed it to him. Fiyero nodded his thanks, which was ignored, and carefully draped it over the woman's shoulders.
The woman looked surprised at the gesture, but said something and motioned to her guards. The men stood down, but remained ready to redraw their weapons at a moment's notice.
"Are we going to help them?" Kel asked, trying not to shiver.
"I think we should," Gyles said. "Fiyero?"
"We are helping them," Fiyero nodded.
"Why can't they get out of the mud? It doesn't look that deep," Nzer said.
Kel ran his hands over the horses, who were lying down and snorting, and felt their muscles twitch. He shook his head. "Their horses are exhausted. They must have traveled from far away."
They traveled across Oz, Fiyero thought.
"We can use our horses to pull the carriage out." He turned to the uniformed men. "Uh… oh!" He pointed at the reins and mimicked unbuckling them.
The woman seemed to understand what he wanted and spoke to her men. The driver unclipped the horses from the carriage, got them to stand, and moved them out of the way. Nzer clipped his and Gyles's horses in their place as Fiyero climbed into the driver's seat. The prince clicked his tongue, and the horses began pulling the carriage. Hunfter barked and jumped as the carriage was freed from the mud.
The foreign men clapped as Fiyero jumped down and rewarded the horses.
"Are we going to personally escort them to the castle?" Gyles whispered to Fiyero.
The prince looked back at the woman. "Yes. We will get them to the castle safely. It might be smoother if she rides with you, Gyles. I don't trust that carriage on this bumpy road. There could be holes or more mud."
Gyles nodded and remounted his horse, then offered his hand to the woman to help her up.
She looked confused for a moment, then realized what he wanted. She smiled sheepishly and shook her head, pointing to the carriage.
"She wants the carriage," Gyles said, shrugging at Fiyero before urging his horse to go behind the carriage.
"Kel, check the wheels and make sure they're not loose," Fiyero said.
Kel did and gave his approval. It was clear that none of the men knew why Fiyero was doing all this extra stuff to help these strangers, but followed his commands, hoping these people wouldn't end up robbing them.
The woman untwirled the borrowed cloak from her shoulders and returned it to Kel. Fiyero fought against the eye roll he wanted to give his friend as he put it back on. Kel climbed into the driver's seat next to the driver and took the reins, almost pushing him off.
"Kel!" Nzer chided.
"What? Fiyero said that we're helping. This is helping."
The prince didn't fight the eye roll this time. He went to the carriage and opened the door for the woman. She accepted his assistance, and he immediately noted how soft her hands were. He didn't want to let go, but he knew it would scare her if he didn't. He was about to close the door when Hunfter jumped into the carriage and settled at the woman's feet.
"No, Hunfter. You can't get us into this, then make yourself comfortable," Fiyero said.
The beagle looked at him and barked, nudging the woman's leg with his nose and sniffing her hand. She smiled and reached down to pet the dog, showing she approved of him riding with her.
Fiyero could've sworn his dog was giving him a smug look. He playfully shook his head at his dog, who was now very comfortable in the carriage, and closed the door. He mounted his horse and took the lead. Nzer took the leads of the two tired horses and gave the group a thumbs up, signaling that they were ready to go. With a whistle, the large party began their journey to the castle.
Fiyero occasionally glanced back at the woman, letting it sink in that this was his bride. This wasn't how he pictured their first meeting, and he knew it wasn't how she pictured it, either. She caught him looking at her and gave him a small smile, and he nodded to her before turning back around.
While he had figured out who she was, she hadn't seemed to figure out who he was, which made him feel slightly better that she had been just as clueless about their marriage as he had been.
One more chapter of Fiyero's Vinkus.