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Chapter Text

Fiyero stared into the crackling fire as it reduced the twigs and branches to ash. On the other side, the fire glinted off the body of the Tin Man, his axe lying at his side. His head was tilted back as if he were sleeping but as Fiyero watched him as he shifted and opened his eyes to watch the stars.

The young girl that had pulled him from the stake in the fields lay sleeping on the ground, her dog curled up beside her. She was so young, he realized, far too young to be so far from home.

He turned his gaze back to the flickering flames, the one thing that could hurt him in this new, strange body. His thoughts turned back to the events of only a few days before.

"Elphaba, go , now !" he had ordered one last time before she finally took off in a swirl of black robes, like a shadow taking flight , l eaving only him and Glinda, ringed by the Wizard's Guard, who only that morning had been under his command. Their hesitance to take him spoke more of their fear for Glinda, Oz's darling of the day , than unwillingness to take his life. Betrayal had that effect on many.

But looking in to Glinda's terrified, disbelieving eyes he knew that he could not keep the threat up long. Even if she was not the woman he loved, he had cared for her since that day in the courtyard when he first invited her to dance. And the tears that pricked her eyes as she gazed at him down the barrel of his musket were too much.

He let it fall and within a moment, he felt the Gale Force tackle him, holding his arms back and dragging his unresisting form towards the cornfield

"No! Please don't hurt him !" Glinda had cried, but one soldier had lifted the fallen musket and was holding her back. He wanted to tell her not to worry but then the first blow felt across his jaw and the stars that exploded across his vision dazed him into silence. Hot, salty blood filled his mouth and he spat it in the face of his attacker.

"Do your worst," he had said. Maybe just this once he could stop the idle dance and stand for something. Even if he died here, he would stand for Elphie and give her the time she nee ded to escape. Yet as the blows rai ned down, driving the wind from his lungs and the thoughts from his head , his resolve wa i ver ed and he felt the first cry rise unbidden in his throat.

"Not so tough now are you, Captain," one of the Force soldiers sneered. "That'll teach you to protect the wicked," with a vicious jab he slammed his fist into Fiyero's nose and it exploded in a shower of blood.

"That's enough, boys. Hoist him up," came a gruff voice and Fiyero felt himself being raised into the air, his wounds stinging in the air and his limbs straining against the scaffold that supported him. "He'll not last long up there."

"One more thing, sir ," Fiyero shuddered as something was placed on his head. A raucous laugh went up amongst the company.

"A witch's hat? I like it, it's a good fit for his traitorous head ."

"He 'll makes a fine scarecrow," one of the Force laughed.

"Aye, but before long he'll be attracting more crows than frightenin' them. Let's go, we're finished here."

The sun had set as Fiyero hung from the stake , too dazed to think and in too much pain to stop the hot tears that slid down his face, stinging the gashes. He didn't feel like a hero anymore, just a fool that had convicted himself to a slow death in the middle of a cornfield, miles away from any who could hear his mumbled cries.

He begged phantoms of the air to save him as his delirium deepened. Glinda, Elphie, even that ridiculous Munchkin boy that had Glinda had tormented with her flirtations back at Shiz. Their apparitions flickered before his eyes as his exhausted mind drifted in and out of sleep, always awakened by the slightest twitch that sent pain lancing through his wounds.

"Elphie…" he had whispered just as he felt consciousness slipping from his grasp.

As he floated in the darkness behind his eyelids, he felt the pain leaking from is limbs, leaving only a delicious numbness in its wake. Even the throbbing mass that had been his nose seemed to cool and stop its bleeding.

It was not until the sun had risen the next day that he realized what had happened. His once warm flesh had been replaced by cloth, his insides by a malleable, crackling material. Straw? Had he died, only to be reborn in the very cornfield where he had lost his life as a part of the scenery?

He began to laugh at the thought, a high pitched, hysterical sound that startled the crows that had come to roost on his perch. This only made him laugh harder, until tears were rolling down his face and he felt his flesh, no, his straw growing sodden. It was just too impossible. Was this the work of the Wizard? Glinda? …Elphaba? Was this the result of some misguided attempt to save his life?

It was becoming harder to think. Had his brains become straw too? Why couldn't he focus? Even though it was impossible for him to sleep, he felt himself slipping into a blank stupor from which he did not awaken until a little farm girl with a checkered dress asked him how to get to the Emerald City…

Now he was on this mad journey with a child who claimed to be from a different world (and might just be ignorant enough for it to be true), and the strange man who sat across from him whose body seemed to be made entirely of tin. Yet something tickled Fiyero's memory as he studied the Tin Man's face. The hard set of the jaw gave the already unyielding features a severe cast that he supposed was the opposite of his own malleable features.

He had seen a glimpse of his face in the water when Dorothy had gone for a drink: round eyes, a dark nose and a slit for a mouth that made a ghastly parody of his former features. On his head sat a peaked black hat, not unlike the one Elphie wore. Fortunately, no one had made the connection between the witch's hat and the witch's lover.

"Did she do this to you too?" Fiyero looked up and saw that the Tin Man was speaking to him, having abandoned his stargazing. He was now hunched forward as best as his stiff body would allow and gazed intently at the man he knew as the Scarecrow.

"I don't know what you're talking about," replied Fiyero. It was easier to play dumb than to think too hard about the sudden change his life (after all, he had plenty of practice playing dumb after his younger years jumping from school to school) but the question was pointed, not just idle banter and he was curious to see where the Tin Man was going with this.

"You didn't start out a scarecrow and there's only one person powerful enough and evil enough to turn a man into a creature," he spat. "The Wicked Witch of the West."

"Elphie?" Fiyero blurted before he could stop himself and mentally berated himself when the Tin Man sat back with a satisfied smirk.

"I thought you looked familiar. I guess she got tired of Glinda having something she wanted," said the Tin Man.

"Now wait just a minute," Fiyero shot back. "Elphie would never do something like that."

"Wouldn't she?" The Tin Man rapped sharply against his chest, just over his heart. "Do you hear that? Hollow, and it's her doing. What makes you think she wouldn't do the same to you?"

"Who are you?" Fiyero said by way of dodging the question. He didn't feel like telling this complete stranger about his relationship with Elphaba, not in territory that was already hostile to the "Witch".

"Only the man Glinda stood up so she could run off with you, who ended up taking care of the Wicked Witch of the East for the rest of his natural life because I thought it would make her love me."

"Nessa? What were you doing taking care of her…" It took a moment but it slowly dawned on Fiyero who this stranger was. A dimly remembered face skulking in the corner all those years ago, spinning Nessa's wheelchair around so that she laughed aloud and clapped her hands in delight, "Bick?"

"It's Boq." He sat upright and real fury crossed his face for a moment before he sank back into his desultory slouch. "Or it was, now I'm just the Tin Man," said Boq. "You would do to forget your old name too, Fiyero. We're the only ones of our kind."

"You're not still mad about that dance all those years ago, are you?" said Fiyero, catching a hard undertone in Boq's voice.

The Tin Man's body rose and fell in what the Scarecrow assumed as a shrug. "Maybe I would be, if I had a heart. As it is, I don't feel much of anything. I'm not sure if it's a good thing or not yet. For your sake it probably is," he said, gripping his axe.

"I'd like to see you try. I'm pretty much indestructible like this," Fiyero said, prodding his torso. It gave way bonelessly. "At least I don't rust when it rains."

"At least I won't go up like a match," Boq shot back. For a moment they glared at each other before Fiyero broke it off with a laugh.

"Why are we fighting?" he said then sobered. "I'm sorry about Glinda. I don't know whether or not you'll believe me, but it was pretty much one sided. I wouldn't get too worked up over her, she's kind of a flake." Her tear-stained face flashed across his mind, her desperate plea for his life and felt a pang of regret at this.

Still, his heart had belonged to Elphaba since that day he had seen her on the dance floor, awkward yet proud as she swayed alone to music only she could hear. The true meaning of dancing of life, not caring for what others think. He had thought Glinda understood his single-minded pursuit of Elphie after her disappearance but the unexpected engagement was an obvious difference in opinion.

"Hmph," grunted the Tin Man. Lifelong crushes were not so easily dispelled, even for one who no longer had a heart. "Even a flake is better than a wicked witch. I'm just glad I got away from her, I hope she rots alone."

Fiyero realized that Boq didn't know about the storm, the house, or the girl who lay next to them. She had been silent about the matter since they had met; perhaps she truly was ashamed of what had happened, even if it had been beyond her power to stop. "Nessa is dead."

"What?" Boq's head came up at this and Fiyero thought he could see the first glint of real emotion in his eyes since they had met.

The Scarecrow nodded towards Dorothy, "The storm that brought Dorothy to this world killed her. Those are her shoes on Dorothy's feet."

"She's really dead?" said the Tin Man and Fiyero couldn't tell if there was elation or despair in his voice. "I guess that means I'm free."

Fiyero nodded vaguely but all he could see was the horror on Elphie's face when the vision had sent her flying to Munchkin land to save her little sister. No matter how many people in Oz rejoiced at the death of a tyrant, there would always be one woman who mourned the death of the last of her family.

"So, what's next?" said Boq.

"We got to the Emerald City, like Dorothy wants," said the Scarecrow.

"Do you really think the Wizard can restore my heart?"

"It's about as likely as him being able to give me a brain," Scarecrow with a hint of sarcasm. If he hadn't grown one after years, chasing Elphie then magic probably wasn't going to be much help. "Or the Lion courage. But maybe he can get Dorothy home." And he wouldn't be able to walk all the way to the Vinkas like this. He needed to find Elphaba and she was looking for the girl who slept not five feet away from him. So he would travel with her for as long as it took for Elphie to catch up with them.

Chapter Text

Elphaba lay sprawled on the floor of her room in the observatory. Chistery and the other monkeys chattered and clambered around her but she was numb to them. She was numb to the world. Nessa, Dillamond, Fiyero…all that was left in her life were those shoes and the little farmgirl who had stolen them. Let the Wizard find her, let him do what he will. Her death held no more fear for her.

Her body convulsed as a vision fell upon her, blinding her to the world. She was flying across the land, at a greater speed than her broom could ever achieve. Suddenly she was falling, down, down below the trees. Three figures appeared, two men, something was odd about their clothing but she could not make out any more. Between them trotted that disgusting girl with her little dog, chatting merrily. The shoes glinted in the sunlight of Elphaba's vision, sending scintillating shards across the path.

The vision was like a dream in that she could feel the meaning behind the sight; they were going to the Wizard as Glinda had ordered. Just as quickly as it had come the vision fled and she felt strength flood back to her body with a new and deadly purpose.

There was no life left for her to live for, but there was a death. She would destroy this foolish farmgirl as surely as the girl had destroyed Nessa. She would pry the shoes, the last memory she had of her dead family, off the girl's corpse. The Witch would have her revenge.

Dragging herself up off the floor, she snatched up her broom and hat and took to the air, the chattering of the winged monkeys fading behind her as she soared on the wind.

East, to Munchkinland.

Fiyero saw a shadow cross the path as if a giant bird had flown overhead. They had been walking all day and Dorothy was holding up admirably well. The Tin Man tramped on stoically, not paying any attention to his surroundings, his gaze set in single-minded drive towards the Emerald City. Fiyero had not been as silent, but after a day of traveling, there wasn't as much to say anymore.

"What was that?" Dorothy quavered.

"It was just a bird," Boq said irritably.

"It was awfully big for a bird. What if it's the Witch?" Dorothy said uncertainly, and raised her eyes to the treetops to find whatever had cast the shadow.

"Then you would have guessed right, for once," came cold, familiar voice. The party spun and saw the Witch suspended in midair above their heads. Her face could have been carved of emerald for all the emotion it gave away.

"I'll give you one last chance. Give me back my sister's shoes," she ordered.

"I told you already! I want to, but they won't come off my feet!" cried Dorothy, "I swear, if I could I'd give them to you!"

"That isn't good enough," tilting the broom forward she swooped down, sending the whole company to its knees as they narrowly avoided having their heads taken off. "If you can't give them to me then I'll have to take them by force." She muttered an incantation and a ball of fire appeared, hovering above her hand. "So which of you is going to try to stop me?"

This wasn't the Elphaba Fiyero knew. Her hair was wild and her voice coarse. Looking into her eyes was like seeing a predator looking back. And never before had she intentionally used her powers to harm like this.

Without really planning it, Fiyero dove out in front of the others, "Elphie, stop! It's me-!"

"How about you, Scarecrow?" she cackled and Fiyero narrowly avoided a fireball that would have taken out most of his chest. Dancing to the side he looked up just in time to see another fireball headed this way. It filled his vision and his mind went blank when suddenly he was shunted to the side. He tumbled to the ground, and looking up he saw Boq standing where he had been, axe held before him like a sword.

"I'll stop you," he said, "In fact, it'll be my pleasure."

Elphaba froze in midair and the fireball clenched in her fist died. "Boq? You're alive?"

"No thanks to you," he said, "I feel nothing. My heart has stopped beating; I might as well be dead. I can't feel anything, not my heart in my chest or the warmth of the sun on my skin. I'm a walking machine, Elphaba, and it's your fault!"

She appeared visibly struck by this, "It was the best I could do. Nessa's spell was going to kill you!"

"Nessa would never have hurt me. The blame lies at your doorstep, witch," he spat. "I'm glad she's dead so she doesn't have to see me kill you." Taking a step forward he grasped the axe by the hilt and catapulted it end over end into the air.

Elphaba dodged to the left then spiraled upwards. "I will be back! I'll get you, my dear Dorothy, and that little dog of yours too!" she became a black speck against the sky and then vanished against the light of the sun.

Fiyero watched her flight until she was out of sight. For a moment, he almost wished he had lost his heart like Boq. Seeing her like this was too painful to bear.

"She's horrible!" the Tin Man and the Scarecrow turned to see a white faced Dorothy, her dog clutched to her chest. "I wish you had hit her, Tin Man! She's the most frightful person I've ever met!"

If Fiyero's face had been flesh, he would have turned red with rage. This little girl from her made up world dared cast judgment on Elphie? What did she know of Elphaba? What did she know of Oz and the horrible things that had been done to a sweet girl who had been hated all her life for her appearance?

Boq had gone to fetch his axe and was idly thumbing a dent in the blade. "Next time I won't miss."

Fiyero rounded on him, incoherent with rage but felt the fire die in him as quickly as it started. Something had to be done, but that something wasn't to get in a battle of words with any of his companions. With any luck, he would get another chance to speak with Elphie before things grew more dire.

He just hoped it was soon. The Emerald City loomed on the horizon and Elphaba would not risk entering the headquarters of her greatest enemy, not even for her sister's shoes.

Elphaba gasped as she approached the upper reaches of the air. Were it not for the cold wind that tore at her eyes they would have remained dry but tears ran from them and froze to her cheek.

Then again, perhaps it was not just the wind.

"Boq is alive." It was as much a question as a statement. Gone was the Munchkin boy who had made Nessa so happy. The man that had confronted her, his tin flesh glimmering like armor, was a warrior to make the Wizard proud, one bent on her destruction.

Another good deed gone awry. She had done her best to keep him alive, but was the cost too great? Had she condemned him to a living hell that no man should have to endure?

She was so focused on Boq's plight that the mystery of a walking Scarecrow was shunted to the side. In her hours of brooding as she flew to her home in the west, he was forgotten entirely.

Their travels continued and though they narrowly avoided losing the Lion (who had joined them on their quest only the day before) and Dorothy in the Poppy Field (Fiyero blamed himself, he should have remembered the dangerous defense grown by the Wizard to keep large forces away from his city) they were now standing at the gates of the Emerald City. They were tired, bedraggled, and certainly the worse for wear, but at the sight of the gates they all stood a bit taller now that they had finally reached their destination.

The Tin Man rapped the knocker hard and after a moment the slat opened. A Gale Force guard appeared. "No one is allowed in, by order of the Wonderful Wizard of Oz."

"What?" Dorothy cried. "But we've traveled so far, we can't turn back now!"

Boq stepped in front of her, drawing the guard's attention to himself, "Let me make myself clearer. I am the Tin Man, this is the Scarecrow, the Lion, and this," he said, pointing to Dorothy, "Is the girl who killed the Wicked Witch of the East," his voice did not tremble in the slightest when he announced the killer of his long-time lover and Fiyero found this disconcerting. However, it seemed to work on the guard, whose eyes widened.

"Well, why did you say so sooner?" said the guard, his manner suddenly obsequious. "Come in, the Wizard has been looking forward to meeting you."

"Really?" Dorothy said excitedly as the gate swung open.

"You'll need these," the guard said, presenting them with the regulation green glasses. Fiyero smiled to himself as they walked the streets, Dorothy and the Lion marveling at the beautiful "Emerald" City. Of course, as one of the former Captains of the Gale Force, Fiyero knew what lay behind the green glow. The city had fallen into disrepair over the last few years as the Wizard retreated further and further from the public. Deep study of the best way to defeat the Witch was cited as the reason for his withdrawal from the public eye, but Fiyero strongly suspected that the Wizard knew of no way to rid himself of her and now lived in fear of the day she would come for him.

"Are we going to see the Wizard now?" said Dorothy to the guard as he led them through the streets. He took a disdainful look at all of their garments.

"Of course not. You're the Wizard's honored guests. You need to be cleaned up before you enter his court."

He lead them to the Four County's, what Fiyero remembered was the most prestigious hotel in the Emerald City. It was located at the center of town, not far from the palace and it purposefully maintained the façade of being attached with a similar decorating scheme. The four of them were separated for their individual grooming sessions but the Tin Man and Scarecrow ended up in the same room because of their rather odd physiology.

"We could wash his clothes," said one of the beauticians uncertainly.

"And replace his straw," chimed in another.

"I'm not sure I like this," the Scarecrow muttered to his companion. However, the Tin Man seemed to be having a fairly pleasant experience, as a mechanic cleaned out the rust in the places he could not reach and buffed his limbs until they shined.

"I'm sure it won't be that bad," said Boq. His mood had noticeably improved since they had reached the Emerald City. "For a man who can't feel anything, I have to say your technique isn't half bad," he said to his mechanic. The man seemed disconcerted to be working on an object that could talk back and generally ignored whatever Boq said to him.

"Yes, but you're not having your insides taken out and replaced," said Fiyero.

"With any luck one of my insides will be replaced by the end of the day," replied Boq.

When they all emerged from their respective spa treatments, they did indeed look a great deal better. Dorothy had been cleaned up, her dressed washed and her hair put into curls not unlike Glinda's (who set the fashion of the day here in the Emerald City). The Lion had bows twined in his hair that no self-respecting Lion should ever allow. But no one thought of the Lion as self-respecting.

The Scarecrow had not been pleased by his restuffing but he had to admit that he felt better now that he was clean and the new straw actually made it easier for him to move.

"The Wizard will see you now," said a butler-like man who entered the room with stiff-backed poise. The companions glanced at each other, some with excitement, others with hints of anxiety (or outright fear in the case of the Lion) and followed him out.

Chapter Text

Fiyero did his best to appear anxious as they traveled down the long corridor to the Wizard's court. In truth his only fear was that the Wizard would recognize him, but if his own lover could not he doubted that a man who he had only seen on occasion would.

It was the talking head today, which of late had become the Wizard's favorite guise. As he boomed and blustered about their "worthiness" to receive gifts, Fiyero kept his head carefully downcast.

"You may prove yourselves to me by performing a simple task," the Wizard bellowed, "Kill the Wicked Witch of the West."

The Lion fainted dead away and Dorothy sank to her knees.

"No, no I can't. I've never killed anyone before. You can't ask me to do such a wicked thing," she pleaded.

"I'll do it," said the Tin Man, stepping forward. In one hand he brandished his axe and once again Fiyero saw a glint of something in his eye. Bloodlust.

"Good, then it is settled. Bring me proof that she is dead and I will give you all what you ask, and I will help the girl return home," said the Wizard.

They were escorted out of the throne room, two of the guards dragging the Lion behind until he was loaded onto a litter and brought up to their room in the Four County hotel. While Dorothy tried to revive the Lion, Fiyero pulled Boq to the next room.

"What were you thinking back there? You're going to kill Elphie?" he whispered fiercely. Boq stiffened and his jaw set.

"It's a fitting revenge for what she did to me," said the Tin Man.

"Boq, she's our friend. You grew up with her, you cared for her sister."

"She was never a friend of mine," Boq's gaze became a glare, "Have you forgotten what she did to you?"

"I don't even know if she was the one who did it," said Fiyero.

"Open your eyes! She was jealous of Miss—of Glinda, so the Witch turned you into this so she couldn't have you."

"You think this is about me and Glinda?" said Fiyero, astounded.

"What else would it be?" said Boq, "Maybe its time you figure out where your loyalties lie."

"I know that already," said Fiyero.

"Good, then we're in this together?" said Boq. A smile came to his metallic face, but it was strange and hard, as if he only dimly remembered what the gesture meant.

"I wouldn't have it any other way," Fiyero said woodenly. In the next room there came a low rumble that meant the Lion was awake.

"We should prepare for the journey tomorrow," said the Tin Man, loud enough for Dorothy to hear in the next room. "Get plenty of rest."

Fiyero watched him as he went back into the room. He could only hope the journey was long enough to find Elphie before they reached his castle in the Vinkas.

He had some questions to ask her.

They were greeted with a huge amount of fanfare at the Western Gate. The crowd cheered, hailing them as witch hunters. Had Fiyero a real body, he would have felt vaguely sick at the deadly fervor in the eyes of the crowd.

"Good fortune, witch hunters!" howled a familiar voice but Fiyero could not see the direction it had come from. Dorothy and the Lion were leaning against one another as they walked, as if torn between being flattered at their popularity and frightened by the execution-day excitement of the Ozians.

The Tin Man seemed to be enjoying the attention most of all. They had almost reached the road when a reporter (likely one of Morrible's lackeys) came pushing out of the crowd, quill and parchment in hand.

"Mr. Tin Man, is it true that you are off to kill the Wicked Witch for our beloved Wizard?" she called.

"This is more than a service to the Wizard," Boq replied, turning to speak to the crowd. "I have a personal score to settle with El…" he paused, a strange look crossing his stiff features, "With the Witch! It's due to her I'm made of tin, her spell made this occur," he said, gesturing to his metallic body, "So for once I'm glad I'm heartless, I'll be heartless killing her!"

With this a roar went up amongst the crowd and Boq became more fervent, gesturing widely as he sucked in their adoration. He tried to drag the Lion forward but both he and Dorothy were cowering against the gate, uncertain and fearful of their so-far gentle companion's sudden transformation. It must be the greatest shock to Dorothy. Only a child, she had no idea of the political undercurrents and dangerous plotting that went on behind the scenes in the beautiful land of Oz. This wonderous land she had found was growing darker than anything she had ever known back on her farm. Within twenty four hours she had been ordered to assassinate a woman she barely knew, and had seen for the first time the frenzy of the mob as it cried for the Witch's execution. When he could not pull the Lion forward, Boq went on to narrate the Lion's reason for wanting Elphaba dead, "—If she had let him fight his own battles when he was young, he wouldn't be a coward today!"

What? thought Fiyero. Could it be that this cowardly Lion he had been traveling with was the very same one he and Elphie had freed so many years ago? How had Boq known this? And how dare he turn Elphie's good deeds against her?

"And the Scarecrow here…" he continued but Fiyero grabbed his arm and wrenched him back.

"You're making a scene. How do you expect us to sneak up on the Witch if she can hear us all the way from here?" he hissed. This seemed to shut Boq up but the fervent glow did not dim from his eyes.

"You're right, we have to go," they managed to slip out of the crowd and out onto the road without being snatched back by the crowd. The Scarecrow gave a sigh of relief as the sounds of the mob faded behind them. Dorothy and the Lion also breathed an audible sigh of relief though Dorothy continued to send furtive glances over her shoulder as if she suspected they were being followed. "It's a long way to Winkie Country, it will take us at least a few weeks to reach the border of the Witch's territory," said the Tin Man.

"Weeks?" whimpered Dorothy.

Unless we take the paths that I know, thought Fiyero, but those are the ones Elphie won't be watching.

Still… "It's pronounced Vinkas," he pointed out, but Boq ignored him.

Little did he know, Elphaba was watching them at that very instant. Her visions had become more frequent and now she channeled them through a glass ball in order to focus her thoughts and clarify what she saw.

She had seen the Wizard ordering her death and smirked at the thought. This little farm girl, kill her? She dismissed the girl immediately. Boq was the greater threat, if only through sheer will to end her life. His lack of heart had made him crueler than any of the evil caricatures Morrible had created of Elphaba, and he cared no longer for any of the connections he had had while still flesh. That left the Lion and the Scarecrow to consider. She felt a pang knowing that the Lion cub she had helped save so long ago had been conscripted into the party sent to kill her. But what hurt more was Boq twisting the events, another good deed punished because she had lacked the foresight to see what a childish bid for attention it had been from the start. Had she ever really cared for that Lion cub? Or for Dillamond, or even for Fiyero? Had it all just been some stupid attempt on her part to fill the void of her father's love? She would never know. They were all dead or turned against her. She had only her hatred and her revenge to bind her to this world. Yet they made cold bedfellows.

She shivered despite the crackling fire in the corner of the observatory. Her whole life had become cold now that Fiyero was gone and no matter how much her blood boiled from the injustice of the world, it was not enough to warm her.

She drew her thoughts from their brooding. There was still one more threat to consider.

The Scarecrow. The mysterious construct that had followed Dorothy all the way from where she had fallen from Munchkinland. He had been with her even before Boq had joined their their party. He continued on even though he could not possibly have a stake in Elphaba's death. Who was this creature, and why did he travel with them on their quest of assassination?

Even with the crystal ball amplifying her powers, Elphaba could not get a closer look at him. It was as if he was a blur across her vision.

She could not leave anything to chance. Snatching her broom from the wall she prepared to cast herself to the mercy of the winds. She had to learn this creature's identity, nothing could be left to chance.

They had camped by the side of the road and the Tin Man had gone off to scout their path while the Lion and Dorothy slept. The Scarecrow acted as a guard, preparing himself for another dull night of watching the slow rise and fall of his companions' breathing while he waited for the sun to rise and the journey to resume. Worry for Elphaba was gnawing at his heart but it was now tempered with doubt.

Was Elphie really the cause of his transformation? Why would she do such a thing?

Had he been a fool all along? Was the propaganda against her really all fabricated or in her years of running had she really become…unstable?

He had had so little time with her before she had gone running off after her sister. In truth, he could not say for certain if the girl he had fallen for so many years ago was there any more. Had she been lost in the feral freedom-fighter than Elphaba had become?

And there was the visions. Just because the one of her sister's death had been true, that didn't mean she was completely sane. After all, she was now bending her entire will on recovering an old pair of shoes.

A crackling came from the trees nearby and Scarecrow shot to his feet, stumbled, and regained his balance.

"Who's there?" he called and a dark shape emerged, cloaked entirely in black, a broom clutched in one hand.

"Elphie?"

Chapter Text

"Elphie?"

"Tell me how you know that name," a hoarse voice growled. The figure was completely enshrouded in a voluminous black cloak. Atop it's head, a pointed black hat obscured its face but there was no mistaking who it was.

Fiyero wanted to blurt out who he was but he checked himself. He had other lives to consider besides his own. "First tell me why you are hunting us."

She laughed but it rang through the air as a harsh, crow-like cackle, "That is a fine question. Would you not watch a poisonous scorpion that was prepared to sting you?"

"You were following us before the Wizard ordered us to kill you," said Fiyero, "Why?"

"That girl has something she has no right to. Those are my shoes. My father made them, my sister wore them. They are all I have left of my family. She has no right," she hissed.

"She means no harm. She can't take them off anymore than you can remove them from her feet."

"She has been sent to kill me."

"Then you've chosen the wrong target. What's wrong with you, Elphaba? Can't you see that the Wizard is your enemy, not this little girl?"

"Who are you?" she whispered, her eyes were wide, as if she had seen a ghost.

"Don't you know?" said Fiyero sadly, "It was your spell that made me like this." He took a step forward and grasped both of her arms, forcing her to look closely at his face. In the moonlight the image was dim, especially under his twin black hat, the one the soldier's had stuck on him as he lay dying to mark him as a traitor, a witch-lover.

The Witch threw herself backward. "No, no, no, its not possible."

"It's true, Elphie, it's me," he said, taking a step forward.

She held her broom out in front of her like a weapon, forcing him back, "No. You're dead. It's my fault that you're dead!" tears stood out in her eyes, glinting in the pale light of the moon.

"Elphie…"

"Leave me alone!" she howled and raising the broom above her head, took off into the sky. Once again he watched her spiral off into the sky. Yet even as she rose into the sky he could hear a faint cry fall behind her. What a world…

"What just happened?" Fiyero turned to see Boq coming up behind him. He felt curiously numb.

"Nothing. It's your turn to stand watch. I need some time to think." With that, he turned and walked into the darkness.

The Tin Man eyed him suspiciously but let him pass. For a while, the Scarecrow simply wandered in the darkness until he was sure that none of his companions were following him. A boulder stuck out of the ground in a clearing and he leaned against, looking into the sky where Elphie had disappeared.

Elphaba lay curled up on her throne in the observatory, a shadow against the darkness. The fire had gone out in the hearth and she had banished Chistery and the others to the aerie. She was alone in the dark and the cold.

"It was your spell that made me like this."

"No, it's not possible," she pleaded to the silence. "They were just nonsense words, they had no power."

"It's me."

"Fiyero's dead. Like Father, like Nessa…"

"Elphie…"

"No!"

The scream echoed against the stone, ringing in her ears then fading like a shooting star into nothingness.

"Don't wish, don't start…" she whispered, climbing to her feet. "Wishing only wounds the heart…" But she could not convince herself. Somewhere beneath that cloth exterior, was her Fiyero hiding? The Grimmerie lay on its stand by the window and she drifted towards it.

The leather binding seemed to burn at her touch. Would she ever be able to use this for good, or would only disasters rise to her call. She didn't even know how to use the book.It seemed that the spell she needed always rose to her call. Thumbing the cover open, she closed her eyes and turned to a page. For a moment she kept her eyes shut, allowing her hand to run over the snake-skin like pages, the smell of old parchment rising up in her nose.

She opened her eyes.

On the page was a woodcutting of a man being beaten by cudgels. Yet he smiled, unharmed. Straw stood out as his wrists and neck.

The book slid from her nerveless fingers and snapped shut on the ground. Falling to her knees, the Witch began to weep.

"Before we go any further, we have to decide how we are going to kill the Witch," said Boq when they rose the next morning, Dorothy and the Lion rubbing the sleep from their eyes. The Scarecrow had not returned until just before dawn and he remained strangely quiet, sitting at the back of the campsite.

"I've never killed anyone before," said Dorothy fearfully, the Lion nodded vigorously in agreement.

The Tin Man ran his finger speculatively down the blade of his axe but then shook his head. "Brute force won't be enough. We have to find her weakness and exploit it."

"Good luck with that," said the Scarecrow sullenly. The Tin Man frowned and, grabbing Fiyero's sleeve, dragged him out of Dorothy's hearing.

"Unlike you, Scarecrow, I am in full possession of my brain," hissed Boq, "But even an idiot could tell you are hiding something. You are with us in this, aren't you?" The flash of the axe in the sunlight made it more a statement of fact than a question.

"Kiamo Ko is a hilltop fortress. It would take years for even an army to breach the walls. And Elphaba isn't stupid, she'll know we're coming and she'll be prepared."

"Kiamo…Ko?" Boq's eye's narrowed, "Wasn't that the name of the castle you used to brag to Miss Galinda about?"

Fiyero cursed inwardly at his own stupidity, "Did I? Maybe the Witch heard about it and decided to steal it," he said but the excuse was lame even to his ears.

"But it was your castle," said the Tin Man, "So you know how to get into it."

"I do."

"Then our only problem will be finding a way to kill her," said Boq and turned as if to rejoin Dorothy and the Lion.

It was a bolt from the blue but it suddenly occurred to Fiyero how he would protect Elphaba. "I said she's be prepared, I didn't say she would be invulnerable," he said nonchalantly, catching the Tin Man's attention so he turned to listen. "Everyone who hasn't been under a rock for the last year knows how to kill the witch."

"How?" Boq said, ignoring the dig at how he had spent his last year, rusted solid in an apple orchard.

"The key is her skin," said Fiyero. "It's not natural. They say her wickedness has dried her up over the years, that her soul is now so unclean all it takes is one thing to destroy her completely."

"What is it?" said Boq.

"Pure water. It melts her skin like acid. With enough water she could be killed instantly."

"Pure water… Yes, I had heard something about that not long before I was transformed. Would it really work?"

"Well, I for one never saw her in a rainstorm, how about you?" Of course, Boq had not seen much of Elphie at all during their school days, but if Fiyero could count on time and the washing away of memory…

"Yes! You're right, I never saw her outside in the rain! And Miss Galinda used to tell everyone about how Elphaba didn't bathe like a normal person." Fiyero felt a self-satisfied smile stretch across his lips and did nothing to stop it. Boq was too riled up now to separate fact from fiction. If the rumor could be spread about Elphaba's supposed weakness against water, she might have time to plan some sort of escape.

"Should we tell Dorothy?" asked Fiyero.

"I don't see any reason that she should know the whole truth," said Boq. "Perhaps if we let on that water weakens the witch…"

"Then Dorothy will know what to do if she's in a jam, but she won't be afraid to do it," agreed the Scarecrow. "Sounds perfect." A plan was beginning to take shape in his mind, but he would need Elphie to know about it or it would all fall through.

Yet as the traveled west, they had no further encounters with the Witch. It was as if she had forgotten them entirely. Fiyero wondered whether she had returned to the offensive against the Wizard, whether she was still alive. Perhaps this ragtag party had been a distraction from the real threat.

The worry grew on his mind until they were in the realm of Kiamo Ko, almost without his noticing it. Yet the trees had grown familiar, the rocky crags that made up his home country loomed on the horizon.

Elphaba watched them in her crystal ball as they tramped through the last stretch of stunted forest at the base of Kiamo Ko. Chistery hung over her shoulder, watching the scene intently and she moved so he could have a better look.

"What do you see, Chistery?" The monkey made a chittering noise and Elphaba smiled sadly. "Still nothing to say?" She waved her hand so the scene went dark and went to he parapet. Gazing out into the distance she could see the treetops above where they were traveling and soon she would be able to see their ant-like shapes against the ground.

"It seems Boq is implacable, no surprise there. I'm surprised the Lion even made it this far. And that Dorothy…" her face twisted as if she had bitten in to a lemon. She hated child heros. Yet what was worse, this was a child assassin, and had she any illusions left of how low the Wizard would stoop this would be enough to dispel them.

How had things gone so wrong? When had the bright-eyed girl at Shiz, so determined to become an adored public figure, become an enemy of the state? How could the Ozians be so blind, and not realize that the Animals were citizens as well as they, how small a step it was until they too were marginalized and cast out on a whim of the Wizard?

It seemed that the harder she had fought, the more they had resisted. The more she had shown them of the Wizard's bigotry and cruelty, the more they shouted her down, hated her, and called her a witch.

The worst part was, she could understand them. She understood the comfort that lay in believing the Wizard would make everything right, that thanks to him nothing could go wrong in Oz. It had taken Doctor Dillamond to make her see that the dream was a lie. She had tried to become Doctor Dillamond to the world, showing them the injustice of his tyrannical rule but all in vain. Now what was she? Her life had no meaning any more, no achievable purpose. She had attempted to change the world and now she had been shown that she was only mortal.

She was limited.

There was nothing she could do to change the world now, hated and reviled by all they would never listen to her even if they saw the Wizard's cruelty with their own eyes.

And now the crowning insult. A threat to her life by a little girl who had stolen the last heirloom of her family. They all wanted her dead, the Wizard, Morrible, Boq, the Lion cub…

And now Fiyero.

"Chistery," she said. Her voice had gone dull, and flat. "Summon your family. I have a job for you."

Chistery cocked his head to the side and Elphaba leaned up against the parapet, gazing off into the forest.

"Bring me the the girl, and the Lion…oh, and don't forget her little dog too." She frowned. "Do what you like to the others but don't kill them." They were innocents and would be better off tucked away somewhere in the castle while she dealt with the real threat.

Chapter Text

The Scarecrow could only watch helplessly as Dorothy (clutching Toto), and the Lion were lifted into the air by the winged monkeys and hauled off towards the castle. His straw lay all around and without the support he was only a lump of clothing on the ground with a stuffed head lying on top. Boq had run off to chase them but came back within a few minutes, his axe dragging behind him.

"Well, don't just stand there, help me," said Fiyero. The bravado was false, in truth he felt sick seeing what would now be considered his innards strewn across the forest floor but Boq was unmoved and set about restuffing him, uncharacteristically silent.

Once restuffed, he struggled to his feet, tucking in stray pieces of straw. The Tin Man was looking towards the castle, his expression unreadable. "We let our guard down," said Boq. "And we've paid the price. I should have expected no less from the Witch."

"But why only Dorothy and the Lion?" said the Scarecrow.

"We'll just have to find that out when we get there," said the Tin Man grimly and set out towards the castle. His joints squeaked as he walked, courtesy of a dent in his leg from being dropped by one of the monkeys.

"Whoa, whoa, wait. We can't just go barging in there."

"Then what do you propose we do? Dance in the door and ask the guards nicely to let us pass?"

An idea slowly dawned in Fiyero's mind, "Yes."

"What?"

"This is my castle, after all. I'm sure some of the guards are still loyal." In fact, he knew they all were. If they were willing to protect Elphaba against the wrath of the Wizard then they must be more loyal than he had ever dared hope, "With me back, they'll turn on the Witch and help us free Dorothy. We can kill her together."

"You really think that will work?"

"There's only one way to find out."

Getting in to the castle turned out to be surprisingly easy. Hidden in the shadows, the guards had recognized Fiyero by his voice even if his face was now strange. The only hard part had been hinting that he was here to save Elphaba while Boq looked on. Yet eventually his hints about "getting rid of the Witch" and "bringing his girl to safety" had resulted in a change of uniform and now he and the Tin Man were safely inside Kiamo Ko.

Once inside, their problems had multiplied. The Witch kept to herself these days, high up in the observatory and none of the guards were allowed to disturb her. And none of them knew where she kept Dorothy and the Lion.

"I hear she has the little girl cleaning the castle from top to bottom," said one guard, a few nodded in agreement.

"And the Lion?" asked the Tin Man.

"She's keeping him locked up. I heard she's starving him to force the little girl to work," said another.

Fiyero didn't believe for one minute that Elphie would willingly harm an Animal but that left them with very little information to go on. Kiamo Ko had numerous places where prisoners could be kept and without access to the upper floors he would be unable to find them.

He had to find Elphie, before it was too late.

Elphaba watched the Tin Man and the Scarecrow go through the rounds with the guards. She has chosen act as if she was unaware of it. Yet even after days of spellwork she was no closer to finding out why the shoes were stuck to the farm girl's feet, and the constant insults from the Lion (who quickly ceased if she even looked at him only to start again as soon as he dared) were wearing. She was coming quickly to the conclusion that just like the rest of the world, there was nothing she could do to change Oz except against go against her every instinct. To save the world she would have to become like Glinda, back down from her anti-Wizard stance and become a simpering yes-man for anyone would listen to her.

To remove the shoes from Dorothy, Elphaba would have to kill her.

The question only remained, how long until her patience gave out?

She sat once again in the observatory, locked away against the world, contemplating this question when something caught her ear.

At first she could only make it out in snatches, like someone speaking very far away. Walking to the window she leaned over the parapet and heard a snatch of melody on the wind.

"…mindless and careless…"

The song tugged at her memory but from the tower she could not hear enough to place it. Part of her said to ignore it, the part that had been born the day her sister died, but another part pulled her downwards and taking her broomstick in hand it was the part she followed, and drifting down the side like a flake of thistle-down, she drew closer to the source of the music.

"…woes are fleeting…blows are glancing…"

The song was different than when she had first heard it, loud and raucous to hail the arrival of the boy who would turn her life upside down. This tune was soft and haunting, a lullaby that begged her to relinquish her cares. As she drew closer to the ground she saw a dark shadow emerging from the landscape, yet even from the heights her heart recognized its form. Despite what she knew, she felt an answering song rising from her lips.

"Kiss me too fiercely… hold me to tight. I need help believing," her feet touched onto the ground, only a few feet from the silhouetted form, "You're with me…" The words died on her lips.

Only a few feet away from her, in the tatters of his Gale Force uniform, sat Fiyero. He let the note he had been singing carry for another moment then let it fade. Yet as she looked closer she could see the ravages of the enchantment all over his body. Straw stuck out of his form at odd angles and it was impossible to say where clothes ended and flesh began. Yet even with its strange, painted appearance his face was the one she had fallen in love with so many years ago.

"Are you with me?" she found herself saying. "Or are you with him?"

Confusion flickered across his features, "With who?"

"The Wizard," she said.

"How could you even say that?" He was on his feet now, advancing towards her and she held her ground. The enchantment had made no change to his height, he still loomed several inches above her, something few men could do. "I came here to find you."

"After all I've done to you?"

"You saved my life, why would I want revenge for that?"

"But I failed." Her throat was tightening and the tears she had thought spent threatened to spill over. "I turned you into this."

"Do you hate it that much?" he said.

"No, no I don't, it doesn't matter to me, but you…"

"You're the only person I care about. If it doesn't bother you, it doesn't bother me." He smiled, a ghost of the smile from their carefree days. "I love you, Elphie."

The tears spilled down her face and she flung herself forward, throwing all caution and suspicion to the wind. Even if he plunged a knife into her heart that very minute she wouldn't have cared. She felt free, as if an unimaginable weight had been lifted from her shoulders. He caught her in his arms but she felt the once strong body give way beneath her and they tumbled to the ground.

"Heh, yeah, I'm not as sturdy as I used to be," he said sheepishly.

"Did I hurt you?"

"Nope, didn't feel a thing. Weak, but completely impervious to harm. Well, at least as long as it's not fire."

Her hands flew to her mouth, "The fireball!"

"Yeah, that was a close one. But hey, it was partially my fault as well, I should have let you know right away."

"Why didn't you?"

"Well, it wasn't quite as simple as it looks. You're not the easiest person to find. That's why I was traveling with Dorothy. It was the fastest way to find you."

"She has been sent to kill me," Elphaba said flatly.

"It was the only way the Wizard would help her home."

She snorted at this. "As if he has the power to do that. He was sending an innocent girl to her death."

"Would you really have killed her?"

The brim of her hat dipped to shadow her face and she went silent.

"Elphie? You wouldn't have really killed her, would you?"

"I don't know. The world was so dark, all I wanted was revenge. And those shoes…they were like a reminder of everything that had been taken from me."

"And now?"

"I guess…they don't really matter, do they? I'm not alone anymore," she said and smiled at him. Suddenly she realized they were lying on top of one another and started upright, the faint blush in her cheeks invisible in the moonlight. "So, now what?"

"You can't hold Dorothy there forever," said the Scarecrow. "And if you send her back to the Wizard, he'll only send another assassin, and another, and another until you're dead. This is only the beginning."

"Then I'll just have to stop all of them," said the Witch.

"Why?" The looked she gave him was incredulous but Fiyero continued, "Elphie, you've been fighting for so long, but these people don't want your help. Why don't you just leave? We can go together."

"I can't. And even if I could, they would hunt us."

"No, they won't. We can leave soon, tomorrow even, and I know how we can do it so they'll never chase us." He saw the reluctance and her face and continued, "It doesn't have to be forever. Someday we can start over, when the world is different, when it doesn't remember the Wicked Witch of the West."

She seemed to think about this for a while and he remained silent and allowed her her thoughts. After a moment she nodded. "So how do we do this?"

"Well, first off we're going to need a bucket…"

When Fiyero returned to the barracks Boq greeted him at the door. For a man who supposedly had no emotions he looked utterly flustered.

"Where have you been? I was certain you had been captured!"

"Spying. I found out where Dorothy and the Lion are. The Witch has her cleaning day and night, which means…."

The Tin Man's face lit up, "Water."

"Exactly. We're going to have to do it soon, before she realizes we're here. Tomorrow night would be best."

"You think it will work?"

The Scarecrow smiled. "She won't even see it coming."

"How are we going to tell Dorothy?"

"We'll only have a few moments to see her before the Witch finds us. I'll need you to make a distraction, we'll free the Lion, join Dorothy and dispatch her together."

"Tomorrow night," said Boq, savoring words.

Chapter Text

Elphaba was pacing the room adjacent to where she had set Dorothy to scrubbing. Occasionally, she would go in and making a stinging comment about the girl, her shoes, her questionable parentage, or some other insult. She wanted the farm girl good and riled when the time came. Yet just as the hour approached for Fiyero and the others to rush in and "kill" her, a familiar noise filled the air, like a hundred tinkling bells.

It was Glinda.

Suddenly she knew what had to be done.

Fiyero heard dim music coming through the door as they rushed up the stairs to Elphaba's observatory and a familiar voice. For a moment he hesitated but Boq, the Lion, and Dorothy were only a few steps behind him and he was forced forward. Dorothy was struggling as she ran with the heavy bucket of water that she had been using to scrub the foors. In truth, Elphie had only set her to scrubbing the day before, else the placement of the water pail would have been suspicious. Dorothy's blue and white checkered dress was splattered with the sudsy water that had spilled over the edge and her face was flushed with the exertion of carrying the pail. But it had to be this way. Even Boq had grudgingly admitted that that the task had been given to Dorothy.

The Scarecrow reached the top of the stairs first and was about to throw open the latch on the door when he heard a frantic whisper of voices on the other side. Glinda? What was she doing here?

Listening closer he was able to decipher over the tramping footsteps a general meaning.

Elphie was saying goodbye.

Holding up his hand for silence he halted his companions before they could barge in.

"This is it," he whispered. "On the count of three we have to rush in there. Boq, Lion, and I will distract her." He indicated the pikes that were part of the guard uniform. "Dorothy will throw the water. Once we're done we're going to have to be quick to escape, there's no telling what kind of traps she laid across the castle." And the last thing he needed was them poking around her "body" and finding the trap door.

They all nodded in agreement, Dorothy and the Lion shakily as they were white faced and quivering with fear.

Fiyero heard the swish of fabric from within and praying that it meant Glinda's departure, he held up his fingers, counted to three and threw the door open. She was standing by a curtain that obscured a corner of the room. She turned and gave a start as if she was surprised at their arrival. Fiyero darted forward, pike in hand and "forced" her over the trap door. Boq was only a step behind while the Lion used his bulk to block the door.

"Scarecrow, Tin Man." She held her broom in front of her in a mirror image to their pikes, as if the old thing could fend off the sharp metal spikes.

"It's the end of the line, Witch," said Boq. "Your reign of wickedness is over."

"Perhaps it is, perhaps it is," Elphaba said with a little smile. "But do you really have what it takes to kill me?" She eyed their pikes contemptuously. Had the Scarecrow not known the plan beforehand, he knew he would have been completely fooled by her bravado in the face of the steel. Grasping the tail of her broom, sparks flew from her fingertips and lit it on fire and brandished the now burning weapon towards Dorothy, who was huddling between Fiyero and Boq, too frightened to move.

"Dorothy, now!" shouted Boq. Dorothy scrunched her eyes shut as she lofted the bucket of water and threw its contents into Elphaba's face.

For a moment the Witch blinked as if surprised. Then, she let out a dreadful shriek. "You cursed brat, look what you've done?" Had the situation not been so dire, Fiyero would have burst out laughing at the expression on Elphie's sodden face. "I'm melting, melting!" She stomped on the ground with one pointed black shoe and slowly began to drift downward as the trapdoor mechanism kicked in. Her dress fell all around her, covering up the door as it dropped her down and smoke began to rise from beneath her, as if she really was dissolving into steam.

"Oh what a world, what a world! Who would have thought a little girl like you could destroy me like this!" Her voice was becoming higher pitch as she finished her drop. With one last shriek she disappeared and her hat fell neatly on top of the pile. The trap door closed quietly above her.

"Grab the broom, we need to get out of here!" shouted the Scarecrow before they could paw around the pile of discarded clothes. Boq snatched up the broom and they all ran for the door. They fled down the stairs, Boq practically dragging Dorothy, who was white faced and sluggish. Poor girl, Fiyero thought, as far as she knows, she just took part in an assassination.

They had almost reached the gate when a pair of arms wrapped around Fiyero, who had been lagging to the back, and dragged him backwards.

"Scarecrow!" shrieked Dorothy as he was attacked by a hoard of guards and pulled away from his companions.

"Forget me! Tin Man, get Dorothy to safety!" he shouted after them. For a moment Boq hesitated then nodded. In truth there was little love lost between the the two, especially now that their quest had been completed. The guards rushed towards them and the three fled into the night, leaving Fiyero behind in the castle.

The guards dragged him back from the door and into the main hall where they had kept their mess hall. They kept up the clamor and rattle of spears until they were certain that the Tin Man and the others had gone beyond an earshot of the castle.

Fiyero stood and dusted himself off, removing in chunks the guard armor that he had been wearing for the past few days. He frowned at the dents it had made in his body and shaking them out returned it to its original shape.

"Prince Fiyero, your orders?" said one of the guards, the notches on his armor proclaiming him a lieutenant.

"Take what gold you want from the coffers. You're free men, I have only one task left for you." Standing up on one of the benches he addressed the crowd, "Spread the word as far and wide as you can that the Wicked Witch of the West is dead. Don't let there be any suspicion on the matter or it will mean our deaths. I'm not telling you where we are going, and you're better off not knowing but I'm going to be gone for a long time, too long for you to remain guarding Kiamo Ko. I may never come back," said Fiyero. "I can not thank you enough for your help but you must excuse me, there's a young lady I have to let out of a very small room." With a smile and a jaunty salute he leapt down. The guards all smiled and patted him on the back as he went, a few of them even shouting advice of what he should do with said young lady.

He climbed the stairs back to the observatory and hesitated at the door. It was finally over. Soon news would spread of Elphaba's death. For the first time they were free to do as they wanted, to live their lives.

He opened the door to where his love waited. The curtain and been thrown back revealing the rest of the room and the flying monkeys were nowhere to be seen. The Grimmerie sat on a stand in the corner and he tucked it inside his shirt. It would not do to have it fall into the wrong hands.

Pushing the discarded robe and hat to the side he beat his fist against the door and whispered down, "It worked!"

After a moment the trap door slid to the slide and Elphie rose out like a plant springing from rocky soil.

"It's over, isn't it?" she asked. Fiyero nodded and held her hand as she stepped out of the hole. She looked down at the discarded pile of clothes after a moment of contemplation she picked up the peaked hat and held it in front of her. "Where do we go from here?"

Taking the hat from her hand, Fiyero placed it on her head then leaned down to kiss her. Her lips met his hesitantly at first and then with passionate fervor she wrapped his arms around his neck. He supposed it was a strange sensation for her, her lips against the dried fabric of his face and after a moment he pulled away.

"This…you don't mind this?" he said, suddenly self-conscious of his only partially human form.

Her fierce dark eyes traced his face as if she was seriously considering the question and he felt as if he were being stripped naked, weighed, and measured. "Of course not, you're just as handsome as you've ever been."

"I'm not sure if I should take that as a compliment," he said wryly but he was cut off as she kissed him again.

"It's just another way of looking at things," she said.

He smiled back at her and remarked casually, as if commenting on the weather, "I've heard Ix is lovely at this time of year."

"Isn't that the other side of the Impassable Desert?"

"It's not impassable if you can fly," he pointed out.

"Well, we both won't fit on a broom," she said. "Perhaps something more comfortable this time, maybe a carpet?"

"You're the magician." He wrapped his arms around her and drew her close.

"Maybe we can even stop over Gillikin Country. Glinda will be worried…"

Fiyero shook his head. "Nobody can know that we're still alive. It would only be painful for her anyway."

"I suppose you're right," she said a bit sadly. But in truth she wasn't worried. Glinda would take up the legacy she had been forced to abandon. Loved by the populace, she would make much more headway than Elphaba ever could. It would not be easy work, it never was and perhaps the hard work would be enough to ease the grief. She suspected all of Oz would be in for a shock when their blonde "flake" of a good witch revealed the very cunning mind that had been hidden under those curls all these years.

"Ix for now then?" asked Fiyero.

"For now. There's a whole world out there to explore. Maybe we'll even find that strange land that farmgirl came from." A sudden rush of love for Fiyero washed over her. Even altered he was the man she loved and reaching up kissed him again.

"Fiyero, my hero."