AN: My favorite Wicked take is the idea that it really doesn't matter whether Glinda joined Elphaba at the end of Act I, since it was her love and acceptance that empowered Elphaba to get on the broom and resist The Wizard. So, what if Elphaba and Glinda hadn't been roommates, let alone friends? What would Elphaba have done when she got to The Emerald City without having known any kind of love and affection before?

Please be aware this story is rated M for explicit sexual scenes

It was the pain that woke her up. She knew that something bad had happened, something cataclysmic beyond the fact that she felt as though her head was trying to pull itself apart, but for a few seconds, the pain was all she could feel. She kept her eyes closed, too weak to open them right away and dreading the effect that any kind of light would have on her.

Besides, once she was able to notice anything other than the pain in her head, there were other sensations, sensations so lovely she wanted to hold onto them. There was a small, cool, feminine hand on her forehead, stroking gently and mitigating the pain ever so slightly. There was a larger, more masculine hand wrapped around her own, protective and soothing at the same time. Her parents? It had to be her parents—no one else could care that much about her or stay with her like that. But…no. Through the haze of pain and confusion, she knew that wasn't right. Her mother was…and her father didn't…

She forced herself to open her eyes and remember what happened.

"Elphaba! Oh, she's waking up!" Madame Morrible sighed with relief.

"You gave us quite a scare there, little lady," The Wizard admonished her gently, squeezing her hand. "Gosh, we were—"

"No. No, no, no!" Elphaba tried to sit up, but Madame Morrible put a hand on her shoulder, easing her back down. She allowed it; the pain of balancing her head on her neck was too much for her to bear anyhow. And even if she could lift her head and leave, without The Grimmerie, she was useless. Even with The Grimmerie, all her powers did was cause harm. Despite the jumble of thoughts, she knew one thing; she had to get out.

"Let me go! Please, just let me go!"

"Elphaba, listen. Are you listening to me?" The Wizard was still holding her hand, just tight enough so that getting out of his grip would have taken too much effort on her part. She had to conserve her strength, so she didn't even try.

She nodded at him and forced herself meet his gaze. He looked so concerned and his voice was so soothing, she had no choice but to listen.

"No one's keeping your prisoner here, okay? You, uh, you can leave any time you want. But with that said, you hit your head pretty bad back there. If you left before a doctor got a chance to take a look at you and something happened…well, gosh, I just couldn't live with myself. So can you just wait until a doctor gets here?"

"It would only be for your own good," Madame Morrible added.

She exhaled and settled further into the bed. They were right; considering the way she felt, she wouldn't go very far, and she could just imagine fainting in the middle of the city and being crushed by the crowds or falling onto the train track.

She nodded, blinking back tears of frustration and pain. "Badly"

"What was that?" The Wizard asked.

"'You hit your head pretty badly.' Wizard of Oz should know that."

He smiled so broadly she very nearly smiled back in spite of herself. "Yeah, he should, shouldn't he? Smart girl."

There was a light knock at the door and with The Wizard's permission, a small woman with a dark ponytail stepped inside.

"Dr. Bomasina." She sat on the edge of Elphaba's bed. "May I take a look at you?"

Elphaba nodded and the doctor turned to The Wizard.

"You said she hit her head? Can I ask how…"

"We don't know for certain," Madame Morrible chimed in, "she was running down the hallway and we heard the most awful crashing sound from the other room. She must have tripped."

Elphaba furrowed her eyebrows. That wasn't right. There was nothing in the hallway for her to trip on, the floors were so smooth. If she had slipped, she would have slipped backwards. And she remembered the dull thud of something between her shoulder blades.

"Can you tell me what day it is?" the doctor asked, and Elphaba blinked in confusion. She knew what day it was, well, she knew she knew. She had read the invitation dozens of times, thought that she would always remember that day as the start of her new life, but when she tried to say it…

"The…twelfth?"

Dr. Bomasina and The Wizard exchanged a concerned glance.

"No, the…seventeenth. I'm sorry, I don't—" the tears flowed down her cheeks this time, and she didn't bother to wipe them away. The doctor did a few more tests, and based on the look on her face, Elphaba could tell she wasn't excelling.

"She has a concussion," the doctor told The Wizard, politely ignoring Elphaba's crying. "I don't think it's anything serious, but you should keep her on her back for the next forty-eight hours. She should have visitors, just so she doesn't get bored, but she shouldn't read or do much of anything else."

"Gosh, I am so sorry about that," The Wizard told her as the doctor left. "Are you, uh, okay staying an extra two days? I guess we could try putting you back on the train, but with this short notice, I dunno if we could get you a private car, and if you need to stay, uh, horizontal…"

He was The Wizard; he was perfectly capable of getting her onto a private train car with a bed, they all knew it. She simply didn't have a choice, no matter what they said. "Okay. I can stay. Two days." Two days wasn't terrible. Besides, once her head cleared, she could spend that time planning her first moves after leaving The Emerald City. She didn't want to do anything rash when she got back.

"I think that's a very good idea." Madame Morrible patted her hand. "Would you like me to read to you? I saw that you had some books in your bag."

"I'd like that, yes."

"Well, I'll, uh, leave you to it." The Wizard stood up and walked towards the door. "Anything you need? That stuff the doctor gave you should be kicking in soon, but if you'd like some tea or—"

"No." Elphaba wasn't about to sound polite, especially after what he'd done. He didn't seem to mind, though, and left her and Madame Morrible alone.

Elphaba took stock of the room she was in. The Wizard had been serious about letting her stay in the palace with him; the room was clearly an approximation of a young girl's room. Everything was still green, but it was a lighter green than everywhere else, and the furniture was more delicate and old-fashioned, with curved, flowing lines, and wrought iron flowers decorating the mirror and bed frame. The shimmery curtains were drawn, but the windows were huge, and there was probably a gorgeous view outside. She hated herself for immediately thinking of how jealous Nessa would be if she could see that room. If she ever saw Nessa again.

"What…would happen if I told people?" she asked haltingly. She knew Madame Morrible was just as complicit as The Wizard, but still, she was the only familiar face in the whole city, and Elphaba had to talk to someone.

"Nothing would happen to you, dearie. The Wizard is so merciful, he's willing to ignore that outburst you had earlier today; he understands you were overexcited, and you didn't mean what you were saying. Such nonsensical things, Elphaba…" she tutted and shook her head. "And if your…delusions continued and you said such things against him in public, you might be expelled for speaking out against Our Wonderful Wizard. But in that case, you would merely go home, I suppose."

Elphaba nodded, not allowing herself to imagine the scene that would take place between her and her father if she were expelled for that reason.

"I dunno what to do, I—"

"Just relax for now. You'll only distress yourself even more if you try to think too hard. Let me read to you a little, would that be alright?"

"Yes, please." She knew she had to make some kind of plan, but the only thing she wanted was to not be alone with her pain and confusion. "I really, really appreciate that," she added, hoping to win some favor. It seemed to work, since Madame Morrible smiled at her again before touching the sleeve of her dress.

"Let me help you change, dearie. This is a lovely dress to meet The Wizard in, but it does not look suitable for resting. Did you pack anything else?"

"Yes, in my bag." She didn't know exactly how long she would be staying for, so she had packed enough pajamas and clothes for a few days.

"Are you comfortable with my helping you, or would you prefer one of the maids—"

"You can help, it's fine. I wouldn't want to bother anyone."

Madame Morrible helped her out of her dress and into her pajamas, discreetly averting her gaze when Elphaba was completely naked.

"There, now. Are you more comfortable?"

"Yeah, I am."