Including some deleted scenes in this chapter

~🫧~

Elphaba walked through Shiz with her new look. Her black braids were half-up and half-down and her glasses were gone. She was wearing a new school uniform with a light blue shirt under it.

Instead of running away in fear or mocking her, Students happily waved and greeted 'hello' to Elphaba.

After giving a group of students them a smile and wave, Elphaba entered an archway.

Making sure she was alone, Elphaba tried to toss-toss her hair back a couple of times.

"You've been Galindo-fied."

Elphaba turned around and saw Fiyero leaning against a pillar with a smirk as he watched the green woman in amusement.

"You don't need to do that, ya know." He stated before walking off. "Let's get to class."

Instead of giving the prince a snarky comment, Elphaba just sighed and followed him.

~💚~

Elphaba entered the dining hall, feeling self-conscious, and saw Galindo, (Name), Nessa, Boq, and Fiyero all seated together, having a conversation.

Once the five saw the green woman, each of them grinned and eagerly made room for her to sit.

Elphaba smiled and took a seat, Galindo giving her a grin.

Elphaba gave her best hair-toss, making everyone laugh.

~💚~

As music played from an Ozain radio, the group sat around a crackling fireplace.

(Name) was snuggled in Galindo's side as he had an arm wrapped around her waist.

As Nessa helped Boq toss kindling in the fire, Elphaba said something that made Galindo and (Name) laugh until they cried.

As for Fiyero, he was immersed in the book he was reading, which Elphaba had recommended to him.

~🩷~

Another night, Boq led the friends through the quad, bringing them to the woods.

As Elphaba, Galindo, Nessa, and Fiyero continued to follow Boq, (Name) struggled to keep up due to her high heels.

Noticing she was falling behind, Galindo simply scooped (Name) up and carried her in his arms bridal style.

(Name) gave the blond a kiss on the cheek in thanks and Galindo carried her off.

Finally, Boq brought the friends to a secluded clearing, and led them to a huge, rotting tree.

The friends looked at the Munchkin boy in confusion, wondering why he brought them all the way here just to show them that.

Boq just smiled in respond and pulled out an axe.

After a good while of chopping, the rotting tree was gone and turned into a campfire.

Fiyero took off his shirt, making the girls stare at him.

Galindo covered (Name)'s eyes before she could even get a good look.

(Name) removed his hand and gave her boyfriend an annoyed look, making Galindo smile sheepishly at her.

Noticing the girl's staring, Boq took off his shirt as well. Everyone looked away from him except for Nessa, and they hauled the rest of the tree away.

~🌲~

Later that night, the friends sat at a table in the library, leaves and twigs stuck to their hair and clothes.

Elphaba and (Name) were studying and Nessa was sharing notes with Boq.

Galindo was reading a huge textbook, but a fashion magazine was inside it. As for Fiyero, he was lying asleep on the table.

When (Name) noticed Galindo was just reading a fashion magazine, she snatched it from him and gave the blond a look.

Galindo just gave an innocent smile and shrug.

(Name) sighed and began to help him study.

~📚~

As the sun rises, the Friends trudged up a hill.

(Name) was wearing a pair of boots Galindo had bought for her as she held hands with the blond.

At the top of the hill was a beautiful field of poppies.

Elphaba took a moment to acknowledge the field of her favorite flowers, (Name) noticed and nudged her best friend playfully.

The green woman smiled, and the group ran to the field as fast as they could.

Galindo placed a poppy in (Name)'s hair, Boq did the same to Nessa.

(Name) then took a poppy and tucked it in Galindo's shirt pocket. The blond smiled at her and kissed her forehead.

Later, while Fiyero and (Name) played in the flowers together, Galindo helped Elphaba pick a bouquet of poppies for Doctor Dillamond.

A half hour later, (Name), Galindo, and Elphaba watched as their friends played in the flowers together as they sat on a log.

Elphaba placed her hat on her head, making Galindo and (Name) smile at her.

(Name) leaned her head on Galindo's shoulder.The blond smiled and kissed her head, Elphaba smiled at her best friends.

~🌸~

As students entered Doctor Dillamond's class they all chatted with each other and took their seats. (Name), Galindo, and Fiyero took their seats in the back while Boq and Nessa sat in front of them.

Nessa giggled at something Boq had said, the poppy he had given her was still in her curly black hair.

When Doctor Dillamond entered the classroom, Elphaba rushed up to him and handed out her bouquet of poppies.

"Doctor Dillamond, I picked you some poppies."

"Not now, Miss Elphaba." Doctor Dillamond dismissed her, sounding nervous.

"Please, everyone take your seats! I have something to say, and very little time." The goat announced to the class.

Surprised by his urgency, Elphaba and the rest of the quickly took their seats.

"My dear students, this is my last day here at Shiz."
Doctor Dillamond revealed. "You see, Animals are no longer permitted to teach."

"What?!" Elphaba exclaimed while (Name) let out a horrified gasp.

"It's alright, girls...I'll be alright." Doctor Dillamond gently assured.

Suddenly, a whistle blasted, and three uniformed guards entered the room, followed by an anxious Miss Coddle.

"Students, remain calm, please, there's no cause for alarm—"

"What is this? What's happening?" Elphaba demanded as she rose to her feet.

"Come on, goat!" One of the Guards growled as he grabbed Doctor Dillamond by the horns.

Doctor Dillamond bleated in protest as more Guards grabbed onto him.

"Hey!" Fiyero shouted, standing up.

"Stop it! Leave him alone!" (Name) protested as she rushed to the Guards while Elphaba ran over to Miss Coddle.

"(Name)!" Galindo chased after his girlfriend, not wanting her to get hurt by the strong Guards.

"Don't hurt him!" (Name) begged as she tried to reach for Doctor Dillamond.

"Back off, girl." A Guard commanded as he harshly pushed the (hair color) girl away.

Galindo quickly caught (Name) in his arms and held her close, moving her away from the Guards.

"You can't permit this!" Elphaba told Miss Coddle.

"Miss Elphaba, I'm afraid it's out of our hands." The teacher sighed.

"But—"

"They can take away my job, but I shall continue speaking out!" Doctor Dillamond shouted as the Guards shoved him out of the classroom, making his spectacles fall to the ground.

Elphaba picked them up before a Guard could crush them with his foot.

"Listen to me!" Doctor Dillamond called to Elphaba, making her whip her head around.

"You're not being told the whole story!" He shouted as he was pulled away.

The entire classroom went silent, trying to take in what just happened.

"Are we all just going to sit here in silence?" Elphaba yelled.

Galindo and (Name) looked at each other, not knowing what to say or do.

"That's quite enough, Miss Elphaba. Take your seat." Miss Coddle said in a fake sweet tone.

Elphaba sighed and walked over to her seat when she saw Galindo waving her over as he clutched onto (Name)'s hand.

The blond gently guided both girls over to their seats, sad looks on all of their faces.

"Students, your new history professor has prepared a special presentation!" Miss Coddle announced.

A somber human man entered the classroom, carrying a rectangular, cloth-covered package, he stopped in the middle of the room.

"Good afternoon, students." Professor Nikidik greeted.

But nobody responded.

"Good afternoon!" Miss Coddle encouraged.

"Good afternoon." The class said in a monotone voice.

"In times such as these, it behoves us all, not merely to study the past, but to look to the future..."

Professor Nikidik pulled the cloth off with a flourish, revealing a small cage with a lion cub inside.

Elphaba and (Name)'s eyes widened in horror and shock.

"This is called 'a cage.'"

The lion cub tried to chew on the bars of the cage with his sharp, tiny teeth but Professor Nikidik just wacked the cage with a stick, making the cub tremble.

"This remarkable innovation is for the good of all Oz, as well as for the Animal's own good." Nikidik explained.

"If it's so good, why is he trembling?" Elphaba asked.

"He's just excited to be here!" Nikidik smiled.

(Name) and Galindo looked at each other and shook their heads, knowing that wasn't true.

"One benefit of caging an animal this young is: he will never learn to speak!" Nikidik revealed.

"Oh no..." Elphaba whispered.

As Nikidik went on with his lesson and wrote on the chalkboard, Elphaba imagined Doctor Dillamond in a cage, stripped from his clothes and unable to speak.

"Can you imagine a world where Animals are kept in cages and they never learn to speak?" Elphaba whispered to her friends.

"I don't wanna think about it." (Name) shuddered. "That Lion cub seems so frightened, the poor thing."

Galindo rubbed her back soothingly to calm her down.

"What are we going to do?" Elphaba asked.

"Sorry, we?" Fiyero raised an eyebrow.

"Well, someone's got to do something!" Elphaba slammed her bouquet of poppies down on the desk.

Suddenly, the poppies began to rise up and spin around in the air. It's beautiful, and strange.

The poppies began to float around the room and released a green-golden pollen.

Everyone in the room began to drop into a sudden sleep.

(Name) let out a yawn and leaned on Fiyero, falling asleep.

"Hey, hey, c'mere!" Fiyero gently lifted (hair color) girl's head and checked if she was okay.

"What is happening?!" He queried as he looked at the asleep class in shock.

Elphaba looked at everyone just as confused as he was. "I-I don't know, I got mad and..."

Fiyero gently placed (Name)'s head on the asleep Galindo's shoulder. She snuggled closed to him with a relaxed hum, leaving a small smile on Galindo's face as he leaned his head on the (hair color) girl's.

"Fiyero? What are you doing?" Elphaba asked as she watched Fiyero walk over to the Lion Cub's cage.

The prince released the Cub from its cage and held him in his arm's. "Well, you coming?" He asked Elphaba.

"Come on!" Fiyero ran out of the room with the Cub in his arms and Elphaba quickly followed after him.

~🦁~

Elphaba and Fiyero, with the Cub, run as fast as they can. And up ahead, Elphaba spotted two bicycles plopped against a tree.

"Look!"

Elphaba grabbed onto one bike that had a basket in it, and opened it up for Fiyero to place the Cub in.

"Come on, buddy. That's it." Fiyero cooed as he gently put the Cub in the basket before shutting it close.

Fiyero hopped onto the other bike and peddled off, Elphaba peddled after him.

The Cub peaked out of the basket before meowing and sticking his head back in.

~🚴~

Madame Morrible entered the classroom to find everyone still fast asleep, and the cage empty.

"What in the name of Oz...?"

It took Madame Morrible a moment to realize who was responsible for this.

She smirked and rushed out of the room to write a very important letter...

~💌~

Fiyero had the sleeping Cub wrapped in his jacket as he stood in front of two diverging paths.

"So, we could go this way?" Fiyero jumped onto one tree and pointed to one direction.

"Or we could go this way!" He pointed to another direction.

"Don't squeeze him." Elphaba warned the prince.

"I'm not?" Fiyero studied the Cub. "I think he's waking up."

"Well, we can't let him loose just anywhere, we've got to find him someplace safe!" Elphaba scoffed.

"I realize that!" Fiyero returned. "You think I'm really stupid, don't you?"

"No, not really stupid."

Fiyero grunted when the Cub began to wriggle around, making the prince fall onto the ground.

"Alright, um, can you just stop?" Elphaba asked as Fiyero rose to his feet while struggling.

"He's wriggling!" Fiyero informed.

"He's wriggling because you're holding him in the wrong way. Stay still!" Elphaba tried to calm him down. "Breathe."

Fiyero began taking slow breaths.

"Thank you." Elphaba smiled.

"Just...there." Elphaba slowly reached for the Cub and gently pulled him out of Fiyero's jacket.

"It's okay, it's okay." Elphaba cooed as she held the Cub in her hands.

Fiyero stared at her, Elphaba simply shrugged in response.

"See?"

Elphaba gently placed the Cub in front of a puddle of water.

"You don't have to be afraid of me." She assured as the Cub drank the water.

Fiyero took his jacket off and looked around the forest. "Why is it you're always causing some sort of commotion?"

"I don't cause commotions, I am one." Elphaba answered, her back to him. "So I should just keep my mouth shut? Is that what you're saying?"

Fiyero shook his head. "No, I'm saying—"

"You think I want to be this way?" Elphaba rose to her feet. "You think I want to care this much?"

"I just meant—"

"You think I don't know how much easier my life would be if I didn't?"

"Do you ever let anyone else talk?"

Elphaba went silent. "Sorry."

"I just—" Fiyero opened his mouth to say something.

"But can I just say one more thing?" Elphaba interrupted.

Fiyero sighed.

"You could've walked away back there." Elphaba stated.

"So?" Fiyero shrugged.

"So no matter how shallow and self absorbed you pretend to be—"

"Excuse me, there's no pretense here: I happen to be genuinely self-absorbed and deeply shallow."
Fiyero revealed.

"Oh, please, no you're not." Elphaba scoffed. "Or you wouldn't be so unhappy."

Elphaba looked around Fiyero and sees him, he's suddenly uncomfortable.

"Fine." Fiyero broke the silence. "If you don't want my help—" He began to walk away.

"No, I do!"

Elphaba grabbed his arm, the two stared at each other. She quickly let go and turned back to the Cub.

~🦁~

Galindo and (Name) opened their eyes with a groan.

"Where's Elphaba and Fiyero?" (Name) asked, staring at the empty seats next to her.

~🦁~

Fiyero leaned down next to Elphaba as she held the Cub in her hands.

"What did you mean to do, back there?" He asked. "And why was I the only one you didn't do it to?"

Before Elphaba could respond, she noticed a bloody scar on the side of Fiyero's forehead.

"You're bleeding." She informed.

"Am I?" Fiyero asked.

Elphaba nodded, she reached her green hand out to his wound to wipe the blood away.

"There." She whispered.

"It must've scratched you." She stated.

Fiyero nodded. "Yeah...or maybe it scratched me or something."

Elphaba smiled at him.

"I better get to safety." Fiyero said. "I mean—the Cub."

"Mmhmm." Elphaba nodded.

"Better get the Cub to safety."

"Yes, of course."

Fiyero scooped the Cub up in his arms and ran off with him.

Elphaba instinctively ran after him.

"Fiyero—"

But he was long gone.

Elphaba looked down at her hand, the hand that touched Fiyero.

"Hands touch, eyes meet..."
"Sudden silence, sudden heat."
"Hearts leap in a giddy whirl."
"He could be that boy."
"But I'm not that girl."

Elphaba leaned on a branch and it bended along with her, dipping her, as if it's hers dancing partner.

Elphaba walked through a couple of bushes with white flowers.

"Don't dream too far."
"Don't lose sight of who you are."
"Don't remember that rush of joy."
"He could be that boy."
"I'm not that girl."

"Every so often we long to steal."
"To the land of what-might-have-been."
"But that doesn't soften the ache we feel."
"When reality sets back in."

Elphaba sat on a bench in the quad, thinking about all of the other girls in the school who were in love with Fiyero.

"Blithe smile, lithe limb."
"She who's winsome, she wins him."
"Gold hair with a gentle curl."
"That's a girl he would choose."
"And Heaven knows."
"I'm not that girl."

Elphaba saw Fiyero walking in the middle of the quad without his jacket.

She then saw (Name) rushing towards him and giving him a hug, which Fiyero returned.

"Fiyero! I was so worried! Are you okay?" She asked him.

"Hey, I'm alright." Fiyero assured gently.

Elphaba smiled at the sight, but she remembered how (Name) had told her that Fiyero had tried to flirt with her when they first met.

Elphaba knew that (Name) was in love with Galindo and Fiyero didn't like her that way anymore, but Elphaba knew that (Name) was the kind of girl Fiyero would be with. A beautiful girl.

"Don't wish, don't start."
"Wishing only wounds the heart."
"I wasn't born for the rose and the pearl."

Galindo rushed over to (Name) and Fiyero along with Boq and Nessa. The five all walked off together, (Name) and Galindo holding hands.

"There's a boy I know."
"I love him so."
"But I'm not that girl."

Elphaba sighed and turned in the opposite direction. Alone.

~🫧~