Chapter Text
The Emerald City, one short ride. One short ride and she was almost there. Almost there to finally get her dream. To prove herself, to do something good. To be good.
She holds onto the railing, glancing over to see Glinda waving at her. Her little pink dress stood out in the sea of blue uniforms. She looked like she was trying not to cry and Elphaba couldn’t help but smile.
Oh why not.
“Glinda come with me!” She calls holding out her hand for her friend to take.
“Oh I mustn’t! This is your big day!” Glinda said with a small smile, but then immediately started to rush over, her walk a little silly with the magnificent heels she was wearing. “Oh alright I’m coming!”
She just about squealed, holding Elphaba’s hand landing on the platform with ease, and turned around seeing Fiyero as he waved goodbye. “Fifi! Hurry!!” She gestures for him to follow.
Fiyero blinks seeing Elphaba nod excitedly, both of their hands outstretched for him to take. He races towards the speed train and jumps, the girls stepping to the side so the Vinkun Prince topples over a bit unceremoniously.
Glinda giggles, “Oh what fun this will be! We are off to see the Wizard!” She clasps her hands while Elphaba helps Fiyero to his feet.
Fiyero gratefully takes her hand, giving a thin smile as he settles between the two.
“The wonderful Wizard of Oz.” Elphaba breathes, with a short smile to her companions, to her friends.
Everything was coming true, her wish soon to be fulfilled. She couldn’t help but watch as the Shiz train station got further and further away, with all her classmates waving and shouting for her.
In a short span she went from bottom of the school pyramid, to the very tippy top no thanks to Glinda, and Fiyero.
She glances up at the sky, seeing the robin egg blue and the sun shining down at her.
Dreams do come true. She whispered to herself excitedly, turning to see Glinda fussing over Fiyero who still seemed a little out of sorts.
The poor man had been thinking after all, and that was something Fiyero never did.
Elphaba can’t help but smile at the two of them, she wouldn't have this any other way. And hopefully the Wizard would be able to help her with the Animals and what odd business was going about.
If anyone could help, it would be the Wizard.
+++
Emerald City was nothing like she’s ever seen. Tall buildings that were covered in this gorgeous deep emerald, actual emeralds.
It was loud, it was bustling, and part of her was a bit intimidated.
No one batted an eye when she walked through the cobbled streets, with Fiyero and Glinda by her side.
“Eee! Look at it all, oh Elphie! We are really here!” Glinda squeals, her whole body just about vibrating. “I have to get a new dress! Just for this occasion!”
“Is there a time when we are to meet the Wizard? Would we even be allowed in?” Fiyero asks, his own face in slight awe.
Elphaba blinks, pulling out the invitation. “It doesn’t say, I assume we just…find the right place and they’ll let us in. As for you two, I won’t enter unless you come with me.” She says firmly, the Wizard could handle her two guests, it wasn't like the invitation said to come alone anyways.
She felt more confident with her two friends beside her.
“Oh then that’s just perfect! We have to look our best for the Wizard! Ah!! Elphie, we need to get our nails done!”
Glinda looks more excited than ever, bouncing about the place while holding Fiyero’s hand, the man’s arm following her movement up and down.
“What about Fiyero? We can't just leave him to wait for us.” Elphaba says feeling a bit guilty that the man would have to be walking around taking care of Glinda’s shopping spree.
“Fiyero can get his nails done too!”
Fiyero snorts at that, his facade sliding back into place like a well worn mask. “Please, my nails are just fine. You girls have fun, we can find a place to meet up. I don’t mind looking around the city.”
Elphaba frowns, “Are you sure? I..”
“I’ll be fine. Don’t worry about me.”
Elphaba held her tongue, she was worried, the man had been so quiet, and usually he talked her ear off as much as Glinda did. Something was churning in that head of Fiyero’s and she wasn’t sure just what.
“Okay, we’ll be done and then we can do something together.” She says firmly, making him know that he wasn’t about to get left out of the festivities.
Fiyero just gives a sly grin, his blue eyes sparkling with something. “But of course. You two have fun. I’ll be around.” He says with a slight bow and Glinda gives him a kiss to his cheek.
Fiyero doesn’t reciprocate, only squeezing her hand before he takes off into the crowd.
“I swear thinking is just so dangerous for him.” Glinda says with a slight sigh. “I worry for him, Elphie.”
“I do too.” She admits quietly, “But I’m sure it’ll pass. Always does for people like him.”
This makes Glinda brighten, and she links her arm with Elphaba.
“Shall we?”
“We shall.”
+++
Glinda was adamant that they got pampered to the highest degree. Hair, nails, everything in between. Thankfully none of the Emerald City citizens had anything to say about her green skin.
Sure there were jumps and odd stares but that she was used to.
They didn’t flinch away from her, like she was some horrid beast. In fact they treated her with kindness, which was surprising to say the least.
When they finished Glinda had a completely new attire, and Elphaba didn’t really change aside from the new nail color.
“There you are.” Fiyero hums as they step out of the final store, Glinda already had boxes of items being sent back to Shiz.
He pulls out two flowers holding them out for them. One was a bright pink rose, and the other an orange poppy.
“For my ladies.” He says with a smooth smile, winking at the two of them.
“Oh Fifi! You’re back!” Glinda says with a happy squeal just about launching herself onto Fiyero. Fiyero thankfully was more prepared this time around and gently swung her around before passing the flowers to them both.
“Thank you,” Elphaba says gently, holding the poppy in her hand.
“Of course. Now, I believe Wiz-o-Mania is about to start. Then we can see the Wizard.”
They all nod excitedly, and rush off with the gathered crowd as they begin to sing happily about the Wizard and how he came to be. It was so inspiring to have a man from a distant land come in and make the place so much more merrier.
Elphaba hoped she could do some good for Oz as well. Starting with the Animals.
The celebration leads to dancing, fireworks and it’s like this every day. On the clock they do this and Elphaba couldn’t imagine just how happy one would be to hear this over and over.
She glances at Fiyero who seems a bit more relaxed, his shoulders not tense from the severe amount of thinking he had been doing.
Freeing that cub really must have turned his whole world on its axis.
She wondered just what the prince was thinking. That life wasn’t just gliding through without a care. That if you didn’t care you didn’t truly live.
It was painful to live with ignorance, despite what he would claim.
Fiyero catches her eye, green and blue locking. There’s an emotion on his face she just can’t pinpoint, sometimes Fiyero was easy to read. But other times he seemed so locked up.
He gives a small grin, which leads to her giving a smile of her own, only for Glinda to break their eye contact by shimming her way between them. Her hands clasped and giggling as she watched the show.
Elphaba can’t help but chuckle, turning her attention back to the show.
It doesn’t take long for it to conclude, the three of them joining in the dancing and frolicking. Life in Emerald City was…fantastical. It almost made her want to stay forever. How intoxicating it was.
The greens and golds just about call her name as they step up to the entrance of the Wizard’s palace.
“Nervous?” Fiyero whispers behind her, and she nearly jumps at it. She turns around seeing his smug little face, brows lifted just slightly.
“A little,” she admits with a small sigh. This was the Wizard they were talking about. She was about to prove herself to the Great and Powerful Wizard of Oz.
Fiyero hums, “Don’t be. You’ll be great. Me and Glinda are right behind you. Every step of the way.”
“Glinda and I.” She corrects Fiyero to roll his eyes, the smirk never leaving his face. “But…thank you.”
Fiyero nods, his eyes softening just for a moment.
“The Wizard will see you now!” The guard says, passing back the letter. Elphaba clutches it with all her might as the doors open and in they step.
+++
The Wizard was not what she expected. Then again..she didn’t know what to expect. He was charismatic, charming, and seemed to be very determined to have her step in and help make Oz a better place.
He offered a spot in Emerald City, offered her the very dream she longed to have. When he had asked if she didn’t wish to be green, she almost took it.
But then she felt Fiyero and Glinda’s eyes on hers and realized her skin wasn’t that important anymore. Something was happening with the Animals, and she needed all the help she could get.
He didn’t seem surprised at the answer, he probably already knew what she wanted. Being great and powerful and all.
They step into a different building and she’s surprised to see Madame Morrible standing there, looking proud and regal as ever.
“Madame Morrible?” Glinda asks before Elphaba could even get a word in.
Morrible ignores Glinda and Fiyero, instead gently placing her spindly hands on Elphaba’s face. “I didn’t wish to miss your big day.” She croons, and Elphaba feels her heart swell.
Everyone was here. Everyone who believed in her.
“Now, let us see what you can do.” The Wizard says with a slight hum to his tone. He gestures to a podium with an odd book sitting there.
“The Grimmerie.” Glinda gasps and Fiyero’s eyes widen in surprise to see such a tome. It was sacred, and was just there. Sitting innocently.
“We’ve been working on levitation spells,” Morrible says as she guides Elphaba towards the book, gesturing for Glinda and Fiyero to move back a bit. They don’t argue and take a step back, watching with curious eyes.
“Levitation spells…I see.” He snaps his fingers and soon a monkey steps in, looking a bit confused.
“My dear, Chistery has always wanted to fly. He often looks up at the sky and yearns for it.” The Wizard says with a soft smile.
Elphaba understands what he’s trying to imply, he wanted her to attempt to levitate this monkey. To show her worth.
She stands right before the odd book, and Morrible gently steps away, giving a slight gesture for her to try and open it.
Her hands hovered over it, too afraid to touch such a special book. Like she was worried it would be tainted by her hands. There’s a small clicking noise and the pages begin to spill, fluttering open in an invisible wind.
“It opened,” Morrible whispers, almost as if she’s surprised.
The Wizard just stares, with a slight smile that begins to grow wider and wider.
The pages flutter and flip, and Elphaba hears a strange whisper in her ears, as if the tome is calling for her. “What….what language is this? ?” She can’t help but ask, seeing the intricate swirls and lines twist and move against the paper. Almost like they were alive.
“An ancient language. Don’t fret, it took me years to decipher a few phrases here and there.” Morrible explains and Elphaba just stares, her clawed hands gently touching the yellowed pages.
Something thrums at her fingertips, this energy that caresses her like a gentle song. Whispering in her ear. She can’t read the words, but then…she can.
They begin to blend together, forming into phrases she can see. Whispering the syllables she needed to hear.
Calling her. Begging her.
Make her dreams come true.
She begins to chant. Words she does not know spilling off her lips. She had to prove herself to the Wizard, she wants to show that she wants to do good. If this book could help her magic flow better, then she would take it, she would use it.
“She can read it.” Fiyero whispers knowing that only one person could read from the book, and that was the Wizard.
Elphaba’s thoughts start to swarm, the magic surging within. At first it was like a gentle stream, then it crashes at her like waves on a shore. Its almost overwhelming, her own power thrumming against the ancient magic.
Suddenly she’s hit with a vision. Something that cracks through her mind like fire. Images flash, hitting against her skull. Blurs of greens and golds, pinks and whites, silver shoes and golden straw.
Fiyerrooooo!
She hears the sound of Fiyero screaming as he’s being hurt, pulled apart, stabbed and it’s too much. She closes her eyes as if that would stop the vision but the pages start to flip as she grips the podium.
The image of Fieryo’s silhouette dangling on a pole burns into her retinas.
What was that? What had she just seen? Fiyero hurt? Was this the future? Was he going to die?
The pages begin to flip further, landing on another page entirely. Her thoughts ripped from the monkey, from levitation, and now was focused on Fiyero.
The syllables continue to tumble out of her, she can’t stop. The page shudders and shifts as the magic roars from within. It begins to make shape, looking akin to a snake that twists and writhes.
If this was his future, or some glimpse of something, she couldn’t protect him. He needed protection, to be able to fight back, he needed to live.
Make him strong, make him powerful.
A thought that crashes against her mind, one she can’t rattle, and it feels like the Grimmerie understands, and makes work with the request.
The magic thrums brighter and suddenly she yanks away, her own thoughts realizing she might have done something horribly wrong.
The Grimmerie suddenly slams shut and the air grows cold.
She turns around to see the group staring at her, as she breathes heavily. Nothing seemed to have happened so maybe whatever thoughts she had it didn’t affect the spell. Maybe it had been so muddy the book didn’t know what she wanted. So it didn’t do anything.
“What happened? Nothing happened.” Morrible states, looking at the monkey who just shifted awkwardly, looking at himself as if he suddenly expected to fly in some manner.
“Maybe you used a different spell.” Glinda suggests and they all look around in confusion. “Or maybe the words are just too old.”
“Oh please, like you would understand any of this,” Morrible snaps, her face contorted into a sneer. Fiyero steps forward, his eyes bright ready to argue for Glinda, but the Wizard steps in ready to moderate this argument.
“It’s quite alright, I don’t expect you to get it on your first try.” The Wizard says but his voice is a bit more tense than usual. “We can try tomorrow. How about we get some rest and come back?”
He doesn’t seem angry in the slightest, and Elphaba feels like she’s disappointed him.
“No…no! I can try again. I don’t…I don’t know what happened.”
“Not to worry my dear, you’ve shown great promise already. The book opening for you was enough for me.” The Wizard says with a twinkle in his eye.
“Your Greatness..” Morrible stammers but the Wizard just waves his hand and she immediately closes her mouth.
Elphaba just stands there, her heart pounding in her ears. She didn’t know if it was from the magic that poured in and out of her as she read from that book, or the idea that something was terribly wrong.
“Don’t worry. You’ll get it. I know you will.” Fiyero says, trying to cheer her up. “Let’s say we go back and get a nic-“
His voice suddenly stops, the words choking in his mouth as he feels a terrible pain blossom through him. He stumbles backwards, attempting to try and get his bearings.
Glinda quickly reaches for him, holding his arm with a bit of worry on her face.
“Fifi? Are you okay? Is it the dust?” Glinda whispers the last part and Fiyero clutches his heart, his brows suddenly pinched together as sweat begins to form.
“I…I’m fine. Just a sudden…” He doesn’t finish his sentence, tumbling to the ground with a gasp, his body suddenly seizing up. Glinda can’t hold him up, so his body just crashes onto the floor.
“Oh my Oz! Fifi!”
“Fiyero?!”
Both rush to his side, unsure what to do as Fiyero twitches and groans. His eyes were hazy and confused, as if trying to process why he suddenly feels terrible.
“What’s going on?! Fiyero, are you okay?!” Glinda asks, her voice shrill and frightened. She gently reaches for his face finding that his skin was ice cold, despite the sheen of sweat on his face.
“He’s freezing!” Elphaba stammers, feeling Fiyero’s muscles shiver and twitch against her hands.
Fiyero just grits his teeth, curling into himself as if he’s trying to hide the fact that something is terribly wrong. “S…somethings wrong…” His voice sounds garbled, frantic as he tries to hold himself together.
Another cry ripples out of him, and the sounds of something grinding can be heard from Fiyero. Like his bones were dragging against each other.
“Stay back!” Morrible suddenly exclaims yanking the two up and away from Fiyero.
“What?! What is happening! Elphie!”
“I don’t…I don’t know..” Elphaba stammers, her eyes wide as Fiyero’s skin suddenly starts to darken, hardening as glossy scales begin to form on his hands, traveling across his body like a wildfire.
There’s clicks and groans of bones being suddenly twisted and pull, muscles swelling and body lengthening. Before their very eyes Fiyero is shifting, changing into something else entirely.
His nails harden, growing into wicked claws that dig into the grain of the wood they are standing on, he grunts and cries out in agony and everyone just stands there in pure shock.
“H…help.” He begs, looking at Glinda and Elphaba, his bright blue eyes having a ring of acid grin starting to circle around his pupil. They were no longer circular, but that of a thin slit one would see on a snake.
“We have to do something!” Elphaba cries and Morrible holds her tightly, nails digging into her skin.
“We can’t, once the magic starts it won’t stop until it’s finished.”
They can only watch in horror as the popping of bones as they’re being added into place while his torso lengthens, stretching out to impossible standards. His clothes are unable to handle the stress as they rip and tear, making way for this new body.
He cries out in pain, unable to handle the pain that rattles through him like terrible knives digging into his flesh. It was magic that was surging through him, invisible hands gripping and pulling at his skin, his body, his bones.
His feathers explode from his hair, traveling down his back. His face shifted to that of a snout, with teeth growing and filling up his mouth. His tongue became thin and forked.
His back shudders, and buckles upward as large appendages rip his back, though there’s no blood to be seen. Blue wings shudder and flap against his mutated body, more serpent-like than human. They’re large and beautiful, twitching and moving with every heavy breath he takes.
Fiyero’s body surges, growing larger, bigger. Muscles rippling, things shifting and moving. A scaled tail thrashes out of his backside and curled onto the floor.
He gives out a shuddering cry, tears falling from the large reptilian eyes, his body flopping to the floor as he gives one final noise. It almost sounds like Elphaba’s name, but it’s too garbled to understand.
“My God..” The Wizard whispers and Elphaba yanks herself out of Morrible’s right grip, unable to process just what happened.
Did she do this? The book…it did this, it changed him. Because she couldn’t focus. She couldn’t stop thinking about the imagery of his dead body being hung up like some puppet on a string.
She wobbles nearly falling backwards, she couldn’t take her eyes off the fallen transformed body of her friend.
“What did you do?” Glinda asks fearfully, making Elphaba finally turn to face her.
“I…I didn’t..I don’t…”
“What did you do to him?!” She asks once more, her voice wavering, tears in her eyes.
Fiyero laid motionless, he seemed to be breathing. No doubt he had passed out from the pain. He was quite the sight, this long creature with scales and feathers. Mighty wings that transitioned from feathers to leather like one would see on a bat.
He looked oddly mismatched but yet coherently put together. Magic was so odd and strange to say the least.
“A full transformation..” Morrible says in a bit of awe, “Remarkable.”
“We…we can change him back, right?” Elphaba asks, rushing towards the book, her hands hovering over it. “Please tell me this is reversible!”
Moreible’s face twitches, it’s so fast that if you blinked you’d missed it. “My dear, the spells from the Grimmerie..they are permanent, irreversible.” She says solemnly.
Elphaba feels like a stone hit her gut, sitting hard and heavy in the bottom of her stomach. She did this, she didn’t mean to, but she had done this. What was the thinking?! She just condemned her friend!
“Permanent?” Glinda squeaks, “Why? Why did you do this?”
“I didn’t mean…I didn't mean too!” Elphaba argues, gripping her head. “I saw-“
The Wizard immediately rushes closer, “Not to worry,” he gently shushes the two. “This is magnificent. What a creature! What…is it, exactly?”
He turns his attention to Morrible who tilts her head, stepping closer to the unconscious Fiyero. She reaches for a wing, lifting it up, the dark blue feathers glimmering in the low light.
“I am not sure, perhaps a dragon? It looks similar but not quite. What were you thinking when you started to chant?”
Elphaba swallows, “I…I saw him hurt and I didn’t want…I was worried and then the book….it…”
Morrible frowns, “I see. The book often can be influenced by your thoughts, that is why you must be focused when chanting.”
It’s almost like she’s scolding Elphaba for not being focused instead of completely transforming her friend. Glinda however, was not having it.
“So you, just changed him?!” Glinda stammers completely outraged by this all. “How could you? He was your friend!”
“I didn’t mean to! I didn’t mean any of this! The words just kept coming and I couldn't stop it! I’m so sorry Glinda…Fiyero..” Elphaba cries, her eyes watery, unable to take her gaze from her transformed friend.
Morrible makes a noise, trying to change the subject. “Not to worry, we can make do with this! Yes! Imagine a wide and powerful dragon on our side! It would be the perfect force of nature.”
“Force of nature? For what exactly?” Elphaba demands stepping between Fiyero and the others. “What do you plan to do with him? He’s still Fiyero!”
“Ahaha-“ The Wizard interjected, his hands shaking as if to try and calm Elphaba down. “Perhaps not the best wording. We can use him to…help! Yes help! Fly in, check on anyone who needs my help.”
His tone is hasty, attempting to cover something up and Elphaba is not having it.
Morrible comes closer to her, hands gently reaching for the green skinned woman. “Elphaba dear, we don’t wish to harm anyone. This is quite the achievement. With more studying you could-“
Elphaba yanks herself away racing for the Grimmerie and holds it out for the Wizard to take. “Fix him! You’re the Wizard! Fix Fiyero, please!”
She’s begging at this point, she didn’t want this. She didn’t want to hone her powers if it meant doing something like this.
The air suddenly turns colder, tense as she holds out the tome for the Wizard to take. Glinda slides next to her, begging him with her large eyes.
“Fix my dear Fifi..”
The Wizard swallows audibly, “I…I can’t my dear. What is used in the Grimmerie…it can’t be done. It’s the way of this land.”
“Can’t or won’t,” She snaps her teeth bared, “You’re the Great and Powerful Wizard of Oz aren’t you?!”
She pauses, lifting herself up to her full height, eyes wide as she stares at the Wizard. It clicks in her head like a spark. “You can’t…you can’t read the book…you can’t do magic.” She whispers in realization.
“But you can! And imagine what we could do, together!” The Wizard exclaims, and Elphaba feels like her whole world was crashing, crumbling right before her eyes.
The Great and Powerful Wizard of Oz…was a fraud.
“Elphaba please…there has to be some explanation for all this,” Glinda whispers, her tone shaky, choked up. “We have to…oh Fiyero…”
Madame Morrible claps her hands, snapping them both to attention, more monkeys enter the room standing behind her ready for orders.
“Take it to the tower,” She states, her hand sweeping to the unconscious Fiyero.
“What?! No! What are you going to do to him?!”
“My dear, you are the one who changed him into a dragon. Do you think the boy you know is in there? Surely not. We will take care of it.” Morrible says with a sickly sweet smile.
Elphaba feels her rage starting to boil within, “Take care?! Like you take care of the Animals?! Lock them in cages? Isolate them from a world they have every right to live in?!”
“Elphaba stop! They said they would take care of him! We can’t take him back to Shiz, to his family..” She stammers her eyes wet. She can’t bare to look at the monkeys attempting to drag the large beast that was her boyfriend.
Elphaba whips around her green eyes bright, angry. “Take care of him?! You heard what they said, it’s irreversible. He’s not some creature! That is still Fiyero!” She turns to look at the Wizard and Morrible.
“No, he’s coming with me.”
“You will be going nowhere!” Morrible hissed, grabbing at her hand. “This is your opportunity to make good in the world. Don’t squander it.”
The last part is whispered, as if she was trying to threaten Elphaba. That if she walked down this path, there would be consequences.
Elphaba exhales through her nose, yanking her hand away from Morrible once more. “If this is “good”…I don’t want it.” She states her voice, low deadly.
She then turns to the Wizard, pointing at him with determination burning in her eyes. “I’ll expose you for the fraud you are!”
“Get her!” Morrible shouts, monkeys clamouring in with spears and armor. Had Elphaba stayed with the original spell…they might have been flying at her.
She rushes out, finding another exit and Morrible turns to Glinda who just stands there in shock.
“If you want to be anywhere in this world. I suggest you put some sense into her.” Morrible hissed and Glinda took the hint rushing off to find Elphaba.
The Wizard looks uncomfortable watching some of the stray monkeys continue to drag the transformed prince out of the room. The creature was the size of a horse or a small bear so it took a couple to move the odd looking thing.
“What do we do?” He asks to the air and immediately Morrible replies.
“Put him in a holding cell, if he doesn’t cooperate then he’ll stay there. She will try to come back for him. That I can be sure of.” Morrible knew Elphaba, she watched her while at Shiz.
Glinda and Fiyero, along with her sister, would be the key to dealing with Elphaba.
“Until then…we’ll deal with the bigger problem at hand…”