Alphabet Soup, from A-Z
Title: Promises, Promises
Fandom: Wicked (the novel)
Pairing: Elphaba/G(a)linda
Rating: runs the gamut from G to PG-13
Wordcount: 2,600 words (24 drabbles at 100 words each, plus one (using two prompts) at 200 words *dies of exhaustion*)
Gimmick: All of the individual titles are songs from musicals, because I’m tragic that way. (A cookie if you know all of the shows...which I’m pretty quite certain no one does :p)
A/N 1: From page 83 of Wicked - "The Quell...pairs a sequence of thirteen short lines with a concluding, unrhyming apothegm."
A/N 2: Final line stolen from one of my favourite childhood books, Galax-Arena by Gillian Rubinstein.
Prologue/ The Girl Most Likely (undulating, 100 words)
Surprisingly (or not?) it is timid Galinda who makes the first move; who bestows the first kiss.
It is chaste, a friendly peck: a gesture of comradeship for the girl she doesn’t really hate. It is innocent - until time marches on, and neither breaks away. Galinda reaches up to cup Elphaba’s face, insides swirling as she feels a cautious tongue brush against her own.
She is about to attempt the same when there is a cough behind them. Two pairs of gently shuttered eyes fly open and guiltily, they leap apart, neither daring to meet Ama Clutch’s disapproving frown.
1/ Run With the Tide (fatal, 100 words)
From day one, Galinda loathes Elphaba. This is a given - not only is she green, but she is the very height of unsophisticated, unfashionable, uninteresting. Galinda is fortunate that the other (better) girls befriend her before the identity of her roommate is unveiled: admitting to Elphaba off the bat would be social suicide.
Even after a week, it remains dicey, but Galinda can cope with temporary taunting far easier than eternal cold shoulders.
She can’t help but wonder how Elphaba does it, quickly catching herself before she feels sorry for her. After all, it’s her own fault.
Isn’t it?
2/ Two of a Kind (loner, 100 words)
The loathing soon wears off, settling into a more healthy indifference. They do not converse. They are polite strangers. Save for the sleeping hours, if one is in the room, the other is not. They co-exist almost without effort.
Yet Galinda can’t help but feel snubbed when Elphaba walks in with an armful of books, sees her there, and immediately returns to the library. On such unseasonably cold evenings, surely the room is big enough for both of them.
It has never before occurred to Galinda that perhaps Elphaba cares for her company as little as Galinda cares for hers.
3/ Brand New Eyes (marvel, 100 words)
“Entrancing. There’s some strange exotic quality of beauty about you. I never thought.”
She is just musing aloud, but unintentionally, Galinda makes Elphaba blush - that is, if darker green can count as a blush. The unexpected sight is nothing short of charming, transforming Elphaba’s face from hawkish and jagged to softly reticent. Amazed, Galinda stares, causing Elphaba to flush deeper. She has never before considered that Elphaba might be capable of such a thing - she has always seemed above such girlishness as blushing, or giggling, or daring to look pretty.
But then, she is only human, after all.
4/ New Ways to Dream (startle, 100 words)
When Elphaba suddenly poses a question, Galinda, still a bit awed by her roommate, flushes and shrugs a little, not replying because she wants Elphaba, usually so silent, to continue for as long as possible.
Elphaba does not speak like anybody else Galinda knows; she rolls her words around her mouth, picking and choosing carefully which ones to expel, lending weight to each and every syllable. She speaks so rarely, that anything she does say remains with Galinda for hours afterwards, forcing her to mull things over repeatedly, often until she wears herself out.
Strangely, it is a pleasant fatigue.
5/ I’m Not That Smart (quilt, 100 words)
Elphaba is already in bed, covers pulled up over her head, when Galinda returns from the poetry soiree. She huffs into her own bed noisily; she had been planning on asking for Elphaba’s help with writing a quell. Galinda had feigned boredom at the extra credit assignment, but as long as the misses Pfannee and Shenshen never find out, she may as well attempt to raise her average.
Elphaba emits a somewhat theatrical snore, and Galinda glares at her blanketed form vehemently. Just like her, to desert Galinda in her time of need! Countenance darkening, she grumpily sets to work.
6/ Simple as This (paltry, 100 words)
“Alas! For impropriety
The steel rules of society
Bear down as if a deity
Unbreakable with history
Dissenters must feel jittery
As never can they justify
The bending of sorority
The notion does not mystify
Nor is it a sacrifice
To look at the forbidden twice
If anything, it makes one wise
But society has shuttered eyes
Preferring ancient binds and ties
One should never judge a book by its cover.”
Elphaba stands in the deserted classroom, reading the ‘anonymous’ quell over and over, wishing she could scratch out the C+ (granted, a generous mark) in favour of an A.
7/ Maybe I Like it This Way (opposite, 100 words)
Galinda isn’t fussed when Morrible refuses her request for a new roommate come second semester. She only goes to see the Head in the first place because Pfannee has forced her into it, going as far as walking her to Morrible’s office, as if she knows that Galinda has planned to skip the appointment and report later that it had been unsuccessful.
“It’s not so bad,” she says when the others offer their condolences. “I don’t mind rooming with Elphaba, truly.”
“Don’t let anyone else hear you say that!” Milla admonishes. Squirming, Galinda makes a hasty mental note not to.
8/ Picture Postcard Place (hankering, 100 words)
It is eerily quiet, at Caprice-in-the-Pines, without Elphaba. Galinda lies awake most nights, cursing her sudden insomnia. She is with her friends here - her equals. As much as she can now tolerate Elphaba, she is clearly better off without her. She can walk around the town with a sunny smile, flirting with the local boys because she is just the well-bred blonde, and not the “roomie of the grasshopper”. Then she can giggle and gossip with the others, until they depart for their rooms, and Galinda finds herself oddly relieved because there’s only so much bitching she can take.
9/ This Time Next Year (ink, 100 words)
Several times, the trio write to Milla, inviting her to join them for the rest of Highsummer if her extended family will allow it. The house is enormous, there is easily enough room for a fourth.
Briefly, Galinda considers also writing to Elphaba, to extend the invite to her as well. Surely the girl could do with a holiday - but no, certainly not here, not in this company. Besides, she would undoubtedly think Galinda was kidding and refuse the invitation, and Galinda wouldn’t blame her.
After all she has seen and heard, she would too if given the opportunity.
10/ A Long Way From Where You’re Standing (knife, 100 words)
“Oh, Miss Elphaba, I do wish things were different,” Galinda sighs.
“I know, you needn’t remind me that it was not your invitation I accepted,” Elphaba points out. Galinda gives her a wan smile.
“I wish it had been. I would have liked to have asked you here.”
“Be careful what you wish for,” scoffs Elphaba, reaching for the marmalade. She spreads it thinly on her toast as Galinda hovers, uncertain of which direction to move in.
Eventually, she slips back into the hall. “Please join us for supper. I’ll bring you a plate if you don’t, but...please consider it.”
11/ One Shot at Today (elliptical, 100 words)
It is Galinda who joins Elphaba, under the guise of taking a nap.
“Avaric is entertaining the others on the oval, they won’t miss me,” she scoffs. “And they’d never think to look for me here.”
Too late, she realises how her words sound, but Elphaba appears immune to such comments now.
“I wish you’d come under different circumstances,” Galinda reiterates, after they have finished eating. “Honestly, after two weeks cooped up with those snobs, I really missed your company.”
And, neither hearing Ama Clutch making her way up the stairs, she leans forward to give Elphaba a goodnight kiss.
12/ Climbing Uphill (zipper, 100 words)
They do not speak for the rest of the week. Under the constant scrutiny of Ama Clutch, Galinda does not dare to, for once keeping her chattering mouth quite firmly locked. Fortunately, once again, Elphaba spends as little time as humanely possible in their room, often returning well after dark, and leaving when Galinda is barely beginning to stir.
Gone now are the shy pleasantries they had been fostering the previous term, the casual solidarity. It had only meant to be an upper class gesture, a puff of air more than anything else. What in Oz had gone so wrong?
13/ Talk About It (rind, 100 words)
“Ama Clutch will return soon,” Elphaba mutters, as Galinda perches on the edge of her bed. “She’ll catch us. Again.”
“I don’t care. Look...last week -”
“Forget it. I have,” Elphaba shrugs.
“But I don’t want to.” Stung, Galinda picks a twig off her skirt, grating it with her thumbnail in an attempt at nonchalance.
“I suppose I can’t make you,” Elphaba considers. “But I have. And now it’s late, and Ama Clutch should be back soon. Goodnight, Miss Galinda.”
Nodding, Galinda returns to her own bed, burying her face against the pillow so that Elphaba can’t hear her cry.
14/ Connect (bamboozle, 100 words)
They sit in stunned silence as the Goat’s body is wheeled away. Galinda barely registers that the hand clutching hers is Elphaba’s, until the latter suddenly flies to her feet and sprints for the bushes. She falls to her knees, retching painfully.
Boq, as if in a trance, rises to help, but it is Galinda who rushes forward, collecting up Elphaba’s hair gently.
“Let’s get you back to our room,” she whispers. “Get you into some fresh clothes.”
Dumbly, Elphaba lets Galinda help her to her feet, Boq staring in amazement as the sworn enemies walk off, arm in arm.
15/ I Think We Know Each Other (collapse, 100 words)
Though overwhelmed with fear, Galinda manages to temporarily push Ama Clutch from her mind. This is pure grief: Elphaba is white, all colour has drained from her.
“It was Ama Clutch, I was so embarrassed and confused,” Galinda blurts out. “I hadn’t intended to kiss you. I’m sorry, Elphaba.”
“Sorry you kissed me?” Elphaba eventually replies.
“Yes...well, no,” Galinda blushes. “I apologise to you that I did such a thing, and then treated you as I did, but I’m not sorry that I kissed you.”
After a moment, Elphaba finally allows herself to relax against Galinda’s shoulder.
“Neither am I.”
16/ She Looked at Me (trickle, 100 words)
“I almost wish your sister wasn’t coming,” Glinda murmurs, letting Elphaba’s hair slide through her fingers. She has license to play with it now - or, at the very least, Elphaba doesn’t snap at her to stop.
“So do I,” Elphaba replies. “But it beats being thrust into dormitories.”
“Oh ho, hark at the snob!” Glinda teases.
“It’s not that - who would want fourteen other girls staring at them? One is enough.”
“I don’t stare!”
Sternly, Elphaba catches Glinda’s gaze. “You do, but there’s a difference.” Shaking her hair free, Elphaba leans closer. “I like it when you do.”
17/ What is it About Her (xmas, 100 words)
“No, my family didn’t celebrate Lurlinemas. Papa pitched a fit when my brother, Shell, asked once about creating a costume - his friends were going as a band of marauders.”
“We weren’t strict Lurlinists either, but I still dressed up,” Glinda says. “Most years, I went as a witch.”
Elphaba snorts, tweaking Glinda’s hair. “You? Isn’t that more my line than yours?”
“Don’t be silly, Elphie, whoever heard of a green witch?” Glinda asks, daringly.
“Whoever heard of a green person?” Elphaba counters good-naturedly. In lieu of a response, Glinda kisses her fiercely.
“I did, once. She was something else.”
18/ Reviewing the Situation (wanton, jugular, 200 words)
Fortunately for them, Nanny is a sound sleeper. The same can’t be said about Nessarose, but at least she has no way of bursting in on them at inopportune moments.
Though she does bring up such moments, when alone with her sister. Always, her message is the same: Papa wouldn’t like it.
“Papa isn’t here, nor does he have any way of finding out,” Elphaba points out coolly, a low dig as they both know Nessa can only write home via dictation.
“I speak on his behalf,” Nessa replies, her tone clipped. “What you are doing is not right. You are only eighteen, and unmarried, Elphaba. And Glinda is a girl.”
“Really?” Elphaba feigns shock. “I know our morals differ, Nessie, and I will no doubt offend your sensibilities, but I do not care one whit if sharing Glinda’s bed is wrong. To me, and to her, it’s right - and that’s all that matters.”
“It’s not that simple,” Nessa whines. “Your behaviour is reprehensible!”
“Well,” Elphaba rises to her feet, “maybe that’s because I feel I have to be reprehensible enough for two.” She gives Nessa’s shoulders a pointed look, leaving the room before the guilt becomes too strong.
19/ I Raise My Voice (narcotic, 100 words)
When Elphaba stands up and sings, Glinda is mesmerized. So are the others in their circle - and the rest of the pub, for that matter. Here is no longer a green abnormality, only a young girl singing of hope, and longing. Her eyes, still downcast whenever the light catches Nessa’s shoes, meet Glinda’s as she sings, and she smiles, briefly.
Glinda smiles back, not caring who is watching. When Elphaba takes her seat again, Glinda does not hesitate before kissing her; proud, not embarrassed, that dozens of pairs of eyes are still on the singer.
Her singer. Her Elphie.
20/ Well, Did You Ever (anticipate, 100 words)
Elphaba is restless at the Peach and Kidneys. She seems anxious to be somewhere else, making Glinda worry that her roomie is about to disappear on her.
“Don’t leave me,” she warns between creamy kisses. Elphaba takes a gulp of wine before proceeding to lick flecks of saffron from Glinda’s lips.
“What makes you say that, my pretty?”
“You appear to be preparing to take flight.”
“Perhaps, although flying solo isn’t as fun.” Elphaba slides a hand over the sheer material (barely) covering Glinda’s breasts, the friction almost making Glinda blush.
And then she cocks her head towards the restroom.
21/ Small Town Girl (girdle, 100 words)
Glinda was brought up to be a Lady, to spend her life a paradigm of dignity and discretion. As a child, this seemed the perfect situation.
At eighteen, she is much wiser.
She leans against the grimy cubicle door, whimpering as Elphaba’s tongue finally pushes inside her. Somehow, vertical, it feels different. Perhaps it is the thrill of doing something that she really shouldn’t, of being in public with her skirt bunched up around her waist, her blouse open, her corsetry straining with every gasp for air.
“Elphie,” she groans, loudly - it is also the thrill of being caught.
22/ We’re Not Sorry (yank, 100 words)
They have to run to make the coach - Elphaba takes Glinda’s hand and hauls her down the alley, not stopping when Glinda stumbles.
The driver complains, but still waits as they tie on their luggage and get settled. The other passengers have spread out and glower at the intrusion, none moving over to make room for the girls.
Their glares are even harsher when Glinda curls into Elphaba’s lap. Protectively, Elphaba wraps an arm around Glinda, her eyes closing.
“Are they still staring?” she asks quietly.
“Yes,” Glinda whispers, and Elphaba chuckles, pressing her lips to Glinda’s temple.
“Good.”
23/ Follow Her (dank, 100 words)
Closer to the city, the rooms get worse. Snobbery returns to Glinda as she observes the horrendous conditions, until Elphaba sits down on the bed wearily and begins to undress, beckoning Glinda to join her.
“You hate it,” she says, as they huddle under the thin sheets and threadbare (if they’re lucky) blankets.
“What’s there to hate?” Glinda takes Elphaba’s face in her hands, kissing her firmly. She tries to stop shivering, to ignore the roaches scurrying across their floor. At least her smile is unforced, because there is a small positive in all of this squalor. “I’m with you.”
24/ Promises, Promises (votive, 100 words)
Tomorrow, apparently, they will see the Wizard. Neither holds much store in this appointment, but, just in case, they get an early night - or at least make a decent attempt to.
An hour later, the bed has finally grown used to their weight and stopped protesting at each new movement. Glinda rolls over, pulling Elphaba on top of her, giggling breathlessly as a pool of black hair spills across her neck. “Let’s stay like this forever,” she whispers, as Elphaba’s head settles against her breast.
“Yes,” Elphaba agrees. “Let’s.”
And for a while, Glinda almost believes that they will.
Fandom: Wicked (the novel)
Pairing: Elphaba/G(a)linda
Rating: runs the gamut from G to PG-13
Wordcount: 2,600 words (24 drabbles at 100 words each, plus one (using two prompts) at 200 words *dies of exhaustion*)
Gimmick: All of the individual titles are songs from musicals, because I’m tragic that way. (A cookie if you know all of the shows...which I’m pretty quite certain no one does :p)
A/N 1: From page 83 of Wicked - "The Quell...pairs a sequence of thirteen short lines with a concluding, unrhyming apothegm."
A/N 2: Final line stolen from one of my favourite childhood books, Galax-Arena by Gillian Rubinstein.
Prologue/ The Girl Most Likely (undulating, 100 words)
Surprisingly (or not?) it is timid Galinda who makes the first move; who bestows the first kiss.
It is chaste, a friendly peck: a gesture of comradeship for the girl she doesn’t really hate. It is innocent - until time marches on, and neither breaks away. Galinda reaches up to cup Elphaba’s face, insides swirling as she feels a cautious tongue brush against her own.
She is about to attempt the same when there is a cough behind them. Two pairs of gently shuttered eyes fly open and guiltily, they leap apart, neither daring to meet Ama Clutch’s disapproving frown.
1/ Run With the Tide (fatal, 100 words)
From day one, Galinda loathes Elphaba. This is a given - not only is she green, but she is the very height of unsophisticated, unfashionable, uninteresting. Galinda is fortunate that the other (better) girls befriend her before the identity of her roommate is unveiled: admitting to Elphaba off the bat would be social suicide.
Even after a week, it remains dicey, but Galinda can cope with temporary taunting far easier than eternal cold shoulders.
She can’t help but wonder how Elphaba does it, quickly catching herself before she feels sorry for her. After all, it’s her own fault.
Isn’t it?
2/ Two of a Kind (loner, 100 words)
The loathing soon wears off, settling into a more healthy indifference. They do not converse. They are polite strangers. Save for the sleeping hours, if one is in the room, the other is not. They co-exist almost without effort.
Yet Galinda can’t help but feel snubbed when Elphaba walks in with an armful of books, sees her there, and immediately returns to the library. On such unseasonably cold evenings, surely the room is big enough for both of them.
It has never before occurred to Galinda that perhaps Elphaba cares for her company as little as Galinda cares for hers.
3/ Brand New Eyes (marvel, 100 words)
“Entrancing. There’s some strange exotic quality of beauty about you. I never thought.”
She is just musing aloud, but unintentionally, Galinda makes Elphaba blush - that is, if darker green can count as a blush. The unexpected sight is nothing short of charming, transforming Elphaba’s face from hawkish and jagged to softly reticent. Amazed, Galinda stares, causing Elphaba to flush deeper. She has never before considered that Elphaba might be capable of such a thing - she has always seemed above such girlishness as blushing, or giggling, or daring to look pretty.
But then, she is only human, after all.
4/ New Ways to Dream (startle, 100 words)
When Elphaba suddenly poses a question, Galinda, still a bit awed by her roommate, flushes and shrugs a little, not replying because she wants Elphaba, usually so silent, to continue for as long as possible.
Elphaba does not speak like anybody else Galinda knows; she rolls her words around her mouth, picking and choosing carefully which ones to expel, lending weight to each and every syllable. She speaks so rarely, that anything she does say remains with Galinda for hours afterwards, forcing her to mull things over repeatedly, often until she wears herself out.
Strangely, it is a pleasant fatigue.
5/ I’m Not That Smart (quilt, 100 words)
Elphaba is already in bed, covers pulled up over her head, when Galinda returns from the poetry soiree. She huffs into her own bed noisily; she had been planning on asking for Elphaba’s help with writing a quell. Galinda had feigned boredom at the extra credit assignment, but as long as the misses Pfannee and Shenshen never find out, she may as well attempt to raise her average.
Elphaba emits a somewhat theatrical snore, and Galinda glares at her blanketed form vehemently. Just like her, to desert Galinda in her time of need! Countenance darkening, she grumpily sets to work.
6/ Simple as This (paltry, 100 words)
“Alas! For impropriety
The steel rules of society
Bear down as if a deity
Unbreakable with history
Dissenters must feel jittery
As never can they justify
The bending of sorority
The notion does not mystify
Nor is it a sacrifice
To look at the forbidden twice
If anything, it makes one wise
But society has shuttered eyes
Preferring ancient binds and ties
One should never judge a book by its cover.”
Elphaba stands in the deserted classroom, reading the ‘anonymous’ quell over and over, wishing she could scratch out the C+ (granted, a generous mark) in favour of an A.
7/ Maybe I Like it This Way (opposite, 100 words)
Galinda isn’t fussed when Morrible refuses her request for a new roommate come second semester. She only goes to see the Head in the first place because Pfannee has forced her into it, going as far as walking her to Morrible’s office, as if she knows that Galinda has planned to skip the appointment and report later that it had been unsuccessful.
“It’s not so bad,” she says when the others offer their condolences. “I don’t mind rooming with Elphaba, truly.”
“Don’t let anyone else hear you say that!” Milla admonishes. Squirming, Galinda makes a hasty mental note not to.
8/ Picture Postcard Place (hankering, 100 words)
It is eerily quiet, at Caprice-in-the-Pines, without Elphaba. Galinda lies awake most nights, cursing her sudden insomnia. She is with her friends here - her equals. As much as she can now tolerate Elphaba, she is clearly better off without her. She can walk around the town with a sunny smile, flirting with the local boys because she is just the well-bred blonde, and not the “roomie of the grasshopper”. Then she can giggle and gossip with the others, until they depart for their rooms, and Galinda finds herself oddly relieved because there’s only so much bitching she can take.
9/ This Time Next Year (ink, 100 words)
Several times, the trio write to Milla, inviting her to join them for the rest of Highsummer if her extended family will allow it. The house is enormous, there is easily enough room for a fourth.
Briefly, Galinda considers also writing to Elphaba, to extend the invite to her as well. Surely the girl could do with a holiday - but no, certainly not here, not in this company. Besides, she would undoubtedly think Galinda was kidding and refuse the invitation, and Galinda wouldn’t blame her.
After all she has seen and heard, she would too if given the opportunity.
10/ A Long Way From Where You’re Standing (knife, 100 words)
“Oh, Miss Elphaba, I do wish things were different,” Galinda sighs.
“I know, you needn’t remind me that it was not your invitation I accepted,” Elphaba points out. Galinda gives her a wan smile.
“I wish it had been. I would have liked to have asked you here.”
“Be careful what you wish for,” scoffs Elphaba, reaching for the marmalade. She spreads it thinly on her toast as Galinda hovers, uncertain of which direction to move in.
Eventually, she slips back into the hall. “Please join us for supper. I’ll bring you a plate if you don’t, but...please consider it.”
11/ One Shot at Today (elliptical, 100 words)
It is Galinda who joins Elphaba, under the guise of taking a nap.
“Avaric is entertaining the others on the oval, they won’t miss me,” she scoffs. “And they’d never think to look for me here.”
Too late, she realises how her words sound, but Elphaba appears immune to such comments now.
“I wish you’d come under different circumstances,” Galinda reiterates, after they have finished eating. “Honestly, after two weeks cooped up with those snobs, I really missed your company.”
And, neither hearing Ama Clutch making her way up the stairs, she leans forward to give Elphaba a goodnight kiss.
12/ Climbing Uphill (zipper, 100 words)
They do not speak for the rest of the week. Under the constant scrutiny of Ama Clutch, Galinda does not dare to, for once keeping her chattering mouth quite firmly locked. Fortunately, once again, Elphaba spends as little time as humanely possible in their room, often returning well after dark, and leaving when Galinda is barely beginning to stir.
Gone now are the shy pleasantries they had been fostering the previous term, the casual solidarity. It had only meant to be an upper class gesture, a puff of air more than anything else. What in Oz had gone so wrong?
13/ Talk About It (rind, 100 words)
“Ama Clutch will return soon,” Elphaba mutters, as Galinda perches on the edge of her bed. “She’ll catch us. Again.”
“I don’t care. Look...last week -”
“Forget it. I have,” Elphaba shrugs.
“But I don’t want to.” Stung, Galinda picks a twig off her skirt, grating it with her thumbnail in an attempt at nonchalance.
“I suppose I can’t make you,” Elphaba considers. “But I have. And now it’s late, and Ama Clutch should be back soon. Goodnight, Miss Galinda.”
Nodding, Galinda returns to her own bed, burying her face against the pillow so that Elphaba can’t hear her cry.
14/ Connect (bamboozle, 100 words)
They sit in stunned silence as the Goat’s body is wheeled away. Galinda barely registers that the hand clutching hers is Elphaba’s, until the latter suddenly flies to her feet and sprints for the bushes. She falls to her knees, retching painfully.
Boq, as if in a trance, rises to help, but it is Galinda who rushes forward, collecting up Elphaba’s hair gently.
“Let’s get you back to our room,” she whispers. “Get you into some fresh clothes.”
Dumbly, Elphaba lets Galinda help her to her feet, Boq staring in amazement as the sworn enemies walk off, arm in arm.
15/ I Think We Know Each Other (collapse, 100 words)
Though overwhelmed with fear, Galinda manages to temporarily push Ama Clutch from her mind. This is pure grief: Elphaba is white, all colour has drained from her.
“It was Ama Clutch, I was so embarrassed and confused,” Galinda blurts out. “I hadn’t intended to kiss you. I’m sorry, Elphaba.”
“Sorry you kissed me?” Elphaba eventually replies.
“Yes...well, no,” Galinda blushes. “I apologise to you that I did such a thing, and then treated you as I did, but I’m not sorry that I kissed you.”
After a moment, Elphaba finally allows herself to relax against Galinda’s shoulder.
“Neither am I.”
16/ She Looked at Me (trickle, 100 words)
“I almost wish your sister wasn’t coming,” Glinda murmurs, letting Elphaba’s hair slide through her fingers. She has license to play with it now - or, at the very least, Elphaba doesn’t snap at her to stop.
“So do I,” Elphaba replies. “But it beats being thrust into dormitories.”
“Oh ho, hark at the snob!” Glinda teases.
“It’s not that - who would want fourteen other girls staring at them? One is enough.”
“I don’t stare!”
Sternly, Elphaba catches Glinda’s gaze. “You do, but there’s a difference.” Shaking her hair free, Elphaba leans closer. “I like it when you do.”
17/ What is it About Her (xmas, 100 words)
“No, my family didn’t celebrate Lurlinemas. Papa pitched a fit when my brother, Shell, asked once about creating a costume - his friends were going as a band of marauders.”
“We weren’t strict Lurlinists either, but I still dressed up,” Glinda says. “Most years, I went as a witch.”
Elphaba snorts, tweaking Glinda’s hair. “You? Isn’t that more my line than yours?”
“Don’t be silly, Elphie, whoever heard of a green witch?” Glinda asks, daringly.
“Whoever heard of a green person?” Elphaba counters good-naturedly. In lieu of a response, Glinda kisses her fiercely.
“I did, once. She was something else.”
18/ Reviewing the Situation (wanton, jugular, 200 words)
Fortunately for them, Nanny is a sound sleeper. The same can’t be said about Nessarose, but at least she has no way of bursting in on them at inopportune moments.
Though she does bring up such moments, when alone with her sister. Always, her message is the same: Papa wouldn’t like it.
“Papa isn’t here, nor does he have any way of finding out,” Elphaba points out coolly, a low dig as they both know Nessa can only write home via dictation.
“I speak on his behalf,” Nessa replies, her tone clipped. “What you are doing is not right. You are only eighteen, and unmarried, Elphaba. And Glinda is a girl.”
“Really?” Elphaba feigns shock. “I know our morals differ, Nessie, and I will no doubt offend your sensibilities, but I do not care one whit if sharing Glinda’s bed is wrong. To me, and to her, it’s right - and that’s all that matters.”
“It’s not that simple,” Nessa whines. “Your behaviour is reprehensible!”
“Well,” Elphaba rises to her feet, “maybe that’s because I feel I have to be reprehensible enough for two.” She gives Nessa’s shoulders a pointed look, leaving the room before the guilt becomes too strong.
19/ I Raise My Voice (narcotic, 100 words)
When Elphaba stands up and sings, Glinda is mesmerized. So are the others in their circle - and the rest of the pub, for that matter. Here is no longer a green abnormality, only a young girl singing of hope, and longing. Her eyes, still downcast whenever the light catches Nessa’s shoes, meet Glinda’s as she sings, and she smiles, briefly.
Glinda smiles back, not caring who is watching. When Elphaba takes her seat again, Glinda does not hesitate before kissing her; proud, not embarrassed, that dozens of pairs of eyes are still on the singer.
Her singer. Her Elphie.
20/ Well, Did You Ever (anticipate, 100 words)
Elphaba is restless at the Peach and Kidneys. She seems anxious to be somewhere else, making Glinda worry that her roomie is about to disappear on her.
“Don’t leave me,” she warns between creamy kisses. Elphaba takes a gulp of wine before proceeding to lick flecks of saffron from Glinda’s lips.
“What makes you say that, my pretty?”
“You appear to be preparing to take flight.”
“Perhaps, although flying solo isn’t as fun.” Elphaba slides a hand over the sheer material (barely) covering Glinda’s breasts, the friction almost making Glinda blush.
And then she cocks her head towards the restroom.
21/ Small Town Girl (girdle, 100 words)
Glinda was brought up to be a Lady, to spend her life a paradigm of dignity and discretion. As a child, this seemed the perfect situation.
At eighteen, she is much wiser.
She leans against the grimy cubicle door, whimpering as Elphaba’s tongue finally pushes inside her. Somehow, vertical, it feels different. Perhaps it is the thrill of doing something that she really shouldn’t, of being in public with her skirt bunched up around her waist, her blouse open, her corsetry straining with every gasp for air.
“Elphie,” she groans, loudly - it is also the thrill of being caught.
22/ We’re Not Sorry (yank, 100 words)
They have to run to make the coach - Elphaba takes Glinda’s hand and hauls her down the alley, not stopping when Glinda stumbles.
The driver complains, but still waits as they tie on their luggage and get settled. The other passengers have spread out and glower at the intrusion, none moving over to make room for the girls.
Their glares are even harsher when Glinda curls into Elphaba’s lap. Protectively, Elphaba wraps an arm around Glinda, her eyes closing.
“Are they still staring?” she asks quietly.
“Yes,” Glinda whispers, and Elphaba chuckles, pressing her lips to Glinda’s temple.
“Good.”
23/ Follow Her (dank, 100 words)
Closer to the city, the rooms get worse. Snobbery returns to Glinda as she observes the horrendous conditions, until Elphaba sits down on the bed wearily and begins to undress, beckoning Glinda to join her.
“You hate it,” she says, as they huddle under the thin sheets and threadbare (if they’re lucky) blankets.
“What’s there to hate?” Glinda takes Elphaba’s face in her hands, kissing her firmly. She tries to stop shivering, to ignore the roaches scurrying across their floor. At least her smile is unforced, because there is a small positive in all of this squalor. “I’m with you.”
24/ Promises, Promises (votive, 100 words)
Tomorrow, apparently, they will see the Wizard. Neither holds much store in this appointment, but, just in case, they get an early night - or at least make a decent attempt to.
An hour later, the bed has finally grown used to their weight and stopped protesting at each new movement. Glinda rolls over, pulling Elphaba on top of her, giggling breathlessly as a pool of black hair spills across her neck. “Let’s stay like this forever,” she whispers, as Elphaba’s head settles against her breast.
“Yes,” Elphaba agrees. “Let’s.”
And for a while, Glinda almost believes that they will.