Chapter Text
Elphaba followed, dazed, as Galinda practically dove to sit on their dorm room floor. Despite the late hour of the night, the girl seemed as bubbly as ever. Elphaba supposed that it would be foolish of her to expect anything less. Galinda had never been anything but larger-than-life, and it was something that she had actually grown rather fond of. Galinda’s loud, extraverted, borderline-obnoxious nature was far more palatable when she wasn’t spewing her ignorance everywhere.
“Come, sit! I couldn’t remotely sleep, and therefore, I think we should talk! Fun talk— sleepover talk.” Galinda said excitedly, patting the empty patch of floor next to her.
“I’ve never been to a sleepover.” Elphaba admitted, sitting across from Galinda. She pretended not to notice the brief expression of dismay that crossed the girl’s face.
“Well, we’re going to fix that tonight! And for our first topic of conversation… ooh! How about we tell each other something we’ve never told anybody else? I’ll go first, of course,” Galinda said. Elphaba gave an amused chuckle, allowing her to continue. “I assume you know about my mothers? Governor Upland and Kristin Upland?”
Elphaba shook her head. She vaguely remembered hearing of Governor Upland via her father’s annoyed rants about how she was ruining Gillikin country and wanted to take everyone else with her, but she hadn’t put the pieces together until now.
“Well, that’s okay. Anyway, let’s just say… well, like mothers like daughter, I suppose. I’ve never been too fond of men, you know? They’re just so… ugh.” Galinda shuddered. Elphaba laughed again, brighter this time. She understood what Galinda meant perfectly well.
“I figured as much, what with the way you completely abandoned Fiyero at the Ozdust.”
Galinda waved it off, giggling. “Oh, please. He was lucky to have garnered my attention for as long as he did. I do like him, though… I think we could be good friends.” She mused. Then, “Now it’s your turn! What secrets do you have to share, Elphaba?”
Elphaba shrugged. “Oh, I don’t think I have any. My life hasn’t been terribly interesting, and my father is a public figure, so I don’t have much to tell.”
Galinda pouted a bit, seeming to think for a moment. Then, quicker than Elphaba could process, Galinda shot up and grabbed the small, green glass bottle from under Elphaba’s pillow.
“Well, I want to know what this funny bottle is!” She sing-songed, dancing around the room with it as Elphaba frantically stood up to get it back.
“Galinda! Give it back!” She said, her voice panicked. Galinda faltered, giving Elphaba enough time to snatch the bottle back. She cradled it to her chest as if it were a precious heirloom and not a simple tchotchke she could find in the garbage.
“This… this is the only thing I have from my mother.” Elphaba said softly, slowly sitting back down on the floor. The hardwood felt colder than it had mere moments prior. She felt Galinda sit next to her, and her presence warmed her.
“Oh, Elphaba… I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have touched it without asking.” She apologized solemnly. Elphaba looked over at the girl next to her, the lingering distress in her expression melting away. She looked back down at the bottle, studying her warped reflection within it.
“My father hates me.” She said abruptly. She felt Galinda start at her statement, sensing that she was almost angry at the admission. Elphaba held up a hand to calm her down.
“That’s not the secret,” She said with a hollow laugh. “No, the secret is that he… he has a good reason to.
“When I was about five years old, my mother got pregnant again. My father was overjoyed but… apprehensive. He insisted that she chew milkflower day and night, for fear that the baby would turn out… well. Green.
“But the milkflower ended up making the baby come early. She was a perfectly normal color, but it ended up killing my mother. And… and the baby died too. Within the hour. She was just too premature to make it without serious help. So that’s that. If I hadn’t turned out the way I did, my mother never would have died, and the baby wouldn’t have either. It’s all my fault.” Elphaba concluded, tears welling up in her eyes. Galinda took her into her arms, and Elphaba didn’t resist.
“Elphaba, no. None of that was your fault. That was the milkflower’s fault.” She said softly but sternly. It almost made Elphaba laugh. They had so quickly gone from enemies to… whatever they were now. Friends? Perhaps that was too presumptuous of her, but if this wasn’t friendship, Elphaba didn’t have a clue what friendship was. (That was true regardless… but Elphaba didn’t feel like thinking about that.”
“Look at me,” Galinda said, taking hold of Elphaba’s chin to turn her face towards her. Elphaba tactfully ignored the butterflies that erupted in her stomach. “That may be your secret, Elphaba Thropp, but that doesn’t make it true.”
And wasn’t that a lovely thing to hear?
After a few seconds, Galinda let go of Elphaba, and moved over to the window. Elphaba found herself missing the girl’s presence, which was a mildly troubling state to be in. This was friendship, right? It wasn’t like she had much experience, but this had to be a friend thing.
“Oh, look at that! It’s tomorrow!” Galinda giggled, her voice breaking through Elphaba’s thoughts. Elphaba looked out the window, surprised to find that Galinda was completely right. The sun had risen, and the two girls hadn’t slept a wink. Thankfully it wasn’t a weekday, so they didn’t have classes, and it wasn’t like Elphaba had plans. That didn’t mean that Galinda didn’t, though… in fact, Elphaba vaguely remembered her mentioning about a week ago that she wanted to go out with Pfannee and Shenshen today.
“Indeed it is. Do you want to get some rest?”
Galinda tilted her head, seeming confused. “Rest? What do I need to rest for?”
Now it was Elphaba’s turn to be confused. “Um… well, I thought you wanted to go out today. With your friends.”
Galinda sat for a moment looking puzzled, before the pieces clicked into place. She scoffed, rolling her eyes at the mere thought of her old friends.
“Oh, please. With the way Pfannee and Shenshen have been acting, they’ll have to do a lot of work if they want to be my friends again. Besides, what do I need them for when I’ve got you to spend my time with?” Galinda said, dragging Elphaba over to her bed.
“And Elphie,” She gasped, a smile spreading across her face. “Can I call you Elphie?”
When she said it like that, how could Elphaba possibly argue?
“I– well, sure.” Elphaba conceded, smiling warmly in spite of herself.
“And you can call me: Galinda.” Galinda said, tossing her hair in a needlessly dramatic fashion. Elphaba laughed.
“That… is your name.”
“Let’s not quarrel!” Galinda said, flopping onto her bed. “Anyhow, I know just what to do today. We can give you a makeover! A new wardrobe, a new hairstyle, maybe experiment with some makeup…” She trailed off, a mischievous twinkle in her eyes.
Elphaba was pretty sure she’d do whatever Galinda wanted if she looked at her like that.
~~~~~
After some undetermined amount of time (Elphaba hadn’t really been keeping track), Elphaba ended up seated at Galinda’s vanity while the girl played around with her hair. She seemed to be trying to find a nice accessory, but to no avail. Elphaba couldn’t be too sure, though. She was busy trying not to act too strangely. Because, well. When Galinda was up close to her like this, combing through her hair like she cared about her, the heady, overpowering scent of her perfume (the one that Elphaba had so loathed mere months prior) wasn’t so bad.
Elphaba snapped back to reality when Galinda gasped in delight. Elphaba looked in the mirror to find a delicate pink flower nested above her ear.
“Oh my goodness! Pink goes good with green, doesn’t it?” Galinda said with a grin, looking down at Elphaba.
“Goes well with green.” Elphaba corrected quietly, staring at her reflection. She couldn’t help but notice how out of place she looked among Galinda’s frilly dresses and dainty beauty products.
Galinda didn’t seem to notice Elphaba’s contemplation. “It so does!” She giggled, resting her head on top of Elphaba’s.
“Wow, Elphie. Look at you. You’re beautiful.” Galinda whispered almost reverently. All of a sudden, Elphaba felt completely choked. Air. She needed air. She needed air, and the room suddenly had quite the lacking supply of it. She had to get out of there, fast.
Elphaba stood abruptly, wrestling herself away from Galinda. “I… I have to go.” She muttered, rushing to get out of the room. She paid the expression on Galinda’s face no mind, and she didn’t stop running until she had reached a small, secluded pavilion on the outskirts of Shiz’s campus. She skidded to a stop underneath the shelter, leaning against one of the support beams. It was peaceful, until the mindless chirping of the birds startled her back to reality. She wondered if they, too, had been affected by whatever it was that was making Animals lose their speech, or if they were just plain old birds.
Oz. How could Elphaba be so careless? There she was, wasting her time with foolish parties and fake sleepovers, while Animals were still in trouble. She had promised to help them, and what had she done thus far to fulfill that oath? Nothing.
Then it hit her like a train. There it was: the reason she had been acting so strangely as of late.
Love.
That was why being around Galinda was so hard, and why she ended up leaving their room so suddenly. That was why she had been so eager to spend time with her. That was why Elphaba was so willing to forgive, regardless of how good Galinda’s apology had been. She was in love with her.
~~~~~
Elphaba Thropp was never good at love. This wasn’t her fault, of course; she just hadn’t gotten much practice. Sure, she had read plenty of swoon-worthy romance novels, but that didn’t mean that she had the practical knowledge one needed for love. After all, nobody wanted to court the bookish, introverted, green girl.
So as she walked back to her dorm, Elphaba had resolved to not say a word on the matter to Galinda. What she didn’t know wouldn’t hurt her, right?
Lost in thought, Elphaba didn’t realize that she had run right into someone until she heard them speak.
“My goodness. Running into me twice within forty-eight hours? This must be fate.”
Elphaba rolled her eyes as if it was a reflex. “Fiyero,” She sighed. “I can assure you that it is not. And, if memory serves, you ran into me the first time. With your horse.”
Fiyero grinned, slinging his arm around Elphaba’s shoulders as if they were best pals. Honestly, Elphaba didn’t mind it as much as she thought she would.
“Fair enough, Elphaba. I do still believe that we’re destined to be friends, though. Given that you’re one of the only people outside of my family who doesn’t want to jump my bones, and that you can carry on an intellectual conversation.” Fiyero remarked. Elphaba had to admit that he had a point. Maybe having another companion on campus would do her some good, and Fiyero was… well, he was kind of begging to be her friend at this point.
“True on both counts.” Elphaba agreed, a small smile growing on her face.
“So, headed back home?” Fiyero asked, looking down at Elphaba. She nodded. She was worried about potentially having to explain to Galinda why she had run away, but she knew that avoiding it would only lead to trouble.
“Well, in that case… could I join you? As I mentioned earlier, I don’t have so many friends as I have… admirers, let’s say. And Galinda seems quite nice, and wholly uninterested in me as a romantic prospect, which is quite the win in my book!”
Elphaba chuckled. “Sure, Fiyero.”