Chapter Text
"Galinda!"
The Aureal was striding down the halls with her tail flicking dangerously.
Like a large cat, Elphaba thought, though this particular tail could fling her right back into the large atrium where they landed. There was a sound of rushing water from a two hundred feet tall indoor waterfall at the Northern Wing, backlit by lights. A funnel at the bottom of the atrium directed the flow of water underground without splashes, dampening sound.
"Galinda, wait!"
The size of the manor was beginning to make sense. The soaring ceilings and wide corridors were the perfect size for Galinda to move quickly through without knocking any scaffolding down.
"I'm sorry I called it a bloody monument!"
The dragon seemed to pause at the end of a long corridor. It was so long that Elphaba did not notice that the corridor was not straight, but gently curved. Elphaba wheezed as she ran as fast as she could. Before she was even halfway, the dragon was gone.
By the time she rounded the corridor, she could see the swish of a petulant golden tail at the end of the next corridor.
If she were walking calmly, she would have noticed that the entire structure was complete, even the walls and tiled floors. They were already up in most rooms, just waiting for windows. At regular intervals across ceiling cornices were cyphers of their initials entwined together but Elphaba was too busy running to notice anything.
All she knew was she had upset Galinda by insulting the manor. In her defense, it had not been her intention to insult. It was just her natural reaction to the humungous structure they could see from way up in the atmosphere. She should have known by now that the dragon was highly sensitive to nuances. Just a few words could make her highly upset.
Case in point : the day Elphaba wanted to return the sacred fire. Just one wrong sentence meant Galinda had left her for Shenshen's until she figured out how to deal with the knowledge of being a dragon mate.
If she weren’t completely occupied running after her dragon, Elphaba would have realised this was the first time in her life that she was running after someone who was mad at her. Running after and not away. She would have reflected that Galinda was the first person whose anger she wasn’t afraid of.
Elphaba was so busy running after every flicker of golden tail up ahead (the dragon was highly upset but still cared enough to ensure her mate wouldn’t be lost) that she did not realise heavy protection spells were lifting before she even passed through.
The illusion of straight corridors and opalescent dead-ends disappeared. The path widened into a smooth spiral, descending into the ground. As an oblivious Elphaba ran downwards, protective wards and illusions solidified above her.
By gleaming white and silver doors deep under the earth, Galinda was waiting. The ridges on her back were black, contrasting beautifully with her golden scales. The dragon’s back was towards her and Elphaba noted again how similar Galinda was to an annoyed cat.
She approached from an angle, where the dragon could see using her peripheral vision. She walked up to Galinda, and stood next to her in front of the massive double doors. The Aureal was so large that Elphaba’s height came up to one third of the dragon’s foreleg.
The house isn’t ready, the tone in Elphaba’s head was clipped. I’m sorry. I was supposed to bring you to my parents’ but I wanted you to see the house first.
“Galinda, I’m sorry. The house is beautiful,” she said remorsefully.
Don’t lie, Elphie. It’s not remotely done yet.
“I’m not lying. Can’t you tell?”
Galinda’s wings unfurled and furled, delivering a strong gust of wind. She was still clearly agitated but Elphaba knew the dragon could tell she was being honest.
Elphaba decided to just comfort her the way she would comfort the blonde. She walked up to hug her front foreleg. It was so large that her arms could not encircle it. The next thing she knew, the blonde was hugging her back.
It seemed the dragon could not resist hugs. Elphaba’s mind took note.
“I’m sorry,” she buried her face into golden curls. “It was a genuine first reaction. I know you’ve worked so hard on it and I didn’t realise why it had to be so big until I followed you.”
Galinda’s big brown eyes were luminous with tears. Elphaba felt a stab of guilt, “I made you cry.”
“I’m just… allergic to dust,” Galinda sniffled, shaking her head. Elphaba realised the blonde hid her thoughts when she thought it would upset her.
“My sweet girl,” she wiped tears off the corner of the blonde’s eye with her fingers. “I don’t mind that the house isn’t done. I don’t mind that it’s still being built. I’m so glad you asked me for my input before completing the entire thing. It’ll be our house in every way and I’m going to love every inch of it as much as I love the sketches.”
“What did you call me?” The blonde lifted her head.
“My sweet girl.”
Galinda’s nose scrunched and her eyes were smiling, “Say it again.”
“My sweet girl. You like it?”
“You know I do,” Galinda kissed her cheek briefly before linking an arm.
“Where are we?” Elphaba asked, looking at the white and silver doors. The silvery parts were undulating, looking like liquid silver because maybe that was what it was. Elphaba did not know that Galinda had designed the locks to be made from mercury - the first liquid lock design in Oz.
“Everything beyond these doors belong to you too, Elphie,” Galinda said shyly.
“That’s not… the hoard, is it?” Elphaba’s eyes widened. She looked up and she could see a haze of spells and wards. They were so far underground that the spiral walkway which she ran in from couldn’t be seen through the haze. The thought occurred to her suddenly that the walkway might have disappeared.
Galinda transformed again and breathed fire at the doors. The heat was so hot that Elphaba could feel sweat forming under her winter coat. The silver mercury, under high heat, flowed into the door frame, unlocking to allow the white doors to swing inward.
Welcome to our Hoard, Elphie.
Elphaba stepped through the doorway seeing only darkness. As the doors closed, mercury flowed out of the door frame back through specially designed pathways in the door, locking them hydrostatically. Above her, the dragon breathed fire into a trench built along the wall. Yellow flame licked every surface of the smooth wall, lighting up the entire circular cavern.
Two concentric circles of pillars marked the centre of the cavern. Everything, from the floors to the pillars and the walls was covered in gold - not the yellow, normal sort seen at goldsmiths. There was something about the gold here that Elphaba could not identify. It was almost living.
Elphaba did not know what to expect. Well, maybe she did, because she had read enough books about dragons and their piles of treasure. Galinda’s treasure was not piled haphazardly like the dragons in story books. Everything was curated and placed properly like museum exhibits.
Above them, blue aquamarine walkways criss-crossed. Elphaba climbed Galinda’s back. The dragon flapped her wings once and they were on top of the vast circular cavern looking down.
Elphaba asked, “You have a viewing gallery?”
The dragon chuckled in her mind.
“This is,” Elphaba paused searching for a word, “very organised.”
She let her eyes take in everything. Gold bars neatly stacked, gold coins arranged in cylindrical holders, precious stones arranged according to colour and size and perhaps the 4Cs, swords with jewelled pommels, fabric that shimmered strangely, metals of all kinds in neat stacks, the same size as the gold bars. From the viewing gallery, the entire hoard was visible.
It’s all yours.
Elphaba took a step backward, “No. No way. This is too much.”
The tone in her head was amused. There’s no such thing as too much, Elphie.
“So you sit here and observe your hoard?” Elphaba asked, unable to imagine Galinda sitting still and doing nothing.
In my leisure time, yes.
“Why does the gold here look different?”
It’s true gold like your pendant.
Elphaba’s hand flew to her necklace.
The ones here are imbued with hexes and placement spells. I will know the moment anything is touched. Or moved.
“Hexes?”
Anyone not me will die.
The dragon looked at her expression calmly. Of course you’re the exception to the rule. You’re a part of me. The spells should have kept anyone else out of this place but you followed me easily.
Even after knowing for some time that she was a dragon’s mate, it was quite perplexing to see the evidence in front of her. Elphaba cleared her throat.
“How often do you update the hoard?”
Once a week during spring to autumn. Once a fortnight in winter. This is the main hoard. I do have a feel stashes of gold in other places. Gold rolls in from the mines and it’s a bit of a pain to figure out storage. Now that I’ve been gone for months, I have quite a bit of organising to do.
“A pain,” Elphaba said drily. “Only a dragon would refer to gold as a pain.”
It’s too commonplace, but nothing holds value quite as well as it does. I myself prefer true gold - more uses.
Elphaba, hearing the dragon delivering fact after fact, suddenly realised that Galinda was speaking rather formally. She reached out and touched her black talons, noting how sharp they were.
What are you doing?
“Admiring you.”
She didn’t know if it was a trick of the light but the dragon’s cheek shone brighter.
“You seem nervous.”
I’m not. The denial was so swift that Elphaba knew that the dragon was in fact, nervous.
“I love everything about our house and our land,” Elphaba reassured her. Galinda had lowered her head to rest on her talons. “I’m honoured to share it with you.”
Dragons don’t share, Elphie. You’re my person.
Elphaba was struck with how lonely Galinda’s existence had been. To live decade after decade, surrounded by immeasurable wealth and to have no one to share with. The image of Galinda, sitting alone over her entire hoard and cut off from most of the world due to her differences was devastatingly sad. She felt a rush of tenderness for her dragon.
Fiyero had been right. Galinda was lonely. Being a true born dragon with no other true born dragons of her age did not improve matters. While Crope and Tibbett had human relatives to interact and play with, there had been no one for Galinda. She had only her parents, whom doted on her and yet had high expectations for their only daughter.
She walked nearer to Galinda’s snout and pressed a kiss into it. There was no mistaking the change this time. The dragon’s scales burned brighter when she was blushing. She ran her fingers across the soft, velvety scales on both sides of her face. They rippled under her touch, like liquid gold.
“Tell me, beautiful,” she teased. “Is this place flammable?”
Galinda’s face shone like the sun at the question.
Let’s go upstairs and have dinner, shall we?
“You didn’t answer my question.”
What sort of dragon do you take me for? Why would I design a house that is flammable?
“Just checking,” Elphaba shrugged her shoulders. The dragon’s amber eyes were fixed on her, pupils almost pinpricks.
There was no mistaking the immediate change in pupil size. Elphaba barely had time to yelp as Galinda pounced. She grabbed her gently in her talons, flying upward through the haze of hexes, liquifying and solidifying spells. They rolled onto the ground of the circular atrium a few clock ticks later. Elphaba, cocooned on all sides by talons and wings, had no idea where they were until the dragon unfurled its wings. She cackled as the dragon released her.
“Do you prefer eating dinner like this or…” she hadn’t finished her sentence when the blonde punched her arm lightly.
“As a human. Come on, let’s go to the kitchens. I’m famished.”
They walked across the atrium to the South Wing.
“I have a feeling you’ve been wanting to do that for ages.”
“Pounce on you?” Galinda laughed freely. “You have no idea.”
The South Wing began with a long incomplete hall. By the scaffolding, there were many slabs of pink stone lying about. “This is the dining room.”
“What’s that?” Elphaba pointed.
“Quartz. I thought it’d be nice to have them for the table top.”
“Wow,” Elphaba breathed.
At the end of the dining room, there was a long corridor which led into the kitchens. The kitchens were a large cavernous room and Elphaba half expected it to look lsomewhat cosy and homey, like in most great houses. The first thing that struck her was the pale green quartz walls and the ridiculous amount of space.
Countertops were granite black and the white kitchen cabinets were flat-panelled. Soft lights in hidden spaces in the wall turned on as they stepped in. The floor was hard wood and everything seemed to meld seamlessly against each other. It was so minimalistic and so different that Elphaba stared.
There was no haphazard pieces of furniture like the cooking stove or different storage pieces with different counter tops. There was no dark wooden panelling or mismatched tables and chairs. Even the centrepiece, which Galinda later called ‘the island’, matched the cabinets in design, material and colour.
Far above the kitchen ceiling were their initials intertwined in plaster. Huge wooden beams crossed the ceiling, looking like a specific design choice, making the space feel airy and yet homey.
“Galinda,” Elphaba exclaimed. “This is beautiful. I’ve never seen anything like it.”
“Me neither. I just drew it and now here we are,” the dragon was looking at everything with a critical eye. “Oz, I should have used smaller wooden beams.”
“It’s perfect.”
Galinda shook her head, sighing. Elphaba noticed but kept her silence for now. One thing was clear. Just as she pushed herself to the brink during study week, something more than just a desire for perfection drove the blonde in every other aspect of her life.
Too many people only saw the perfect side Galinda showed them. Elphaba knew she was the only one that the blonde showed her real self to. Even then, there were issues hidden under the glistening surface that the blonde did not speak about. She wondered briefly how she was going to broach the topic with the highly sensitive dragon.
They ate dinner served by unobtrusive staff. Their butler, pouring red wine, could hardly keep his excitement contained by the fact that they were both there.
“Toray,” Galinda finally addressed the quivering butler. “Stop it.”
“I’m very sorry, my lady. Let me just say that we are very, very happy for you.”
“Do you have anything to say to the new lady of the house?” Galinda leaned back against the high-backed chair, smiling at Elphaba’s expression.
“My lady,” Toray bowed. “We’ve been awaiting your arrival for decades. Please, do let us know if you need anything. Anything at all.”
Elphaba decided to tease him a little, “How is Galinda like?”
“Oh, my lady. Surely, you jest if you wish to hear my honest opinion of Lady Galinda.”
“I’m not jesting, Toray. Tell me, is she a difficult mistress to please?”
The butler’s eyes glanced from Elphaba’s amused face to Galinda’s raised eyebrow.
“I’m su - sure you’ll find her most amicable, my lady,” Toray busied himself by refilling Elphaba’s wineglass. He whispered loudly, “But only to you. She’s very ferocious but she’s fair to us, my lady. Her family is one of the few left that still pay us in gold.”
“I can hear you,” Galinda grumbled.
“I know, drakina,” the butler grinned, unfazed. “If you wish to know more about Lady Galinda, I’d be more than happy to fill you in on anything. Anything at all.”
Elphaba exchanged a cheeky wink with the butler, whose cheeks visibly pinked.
“Elphie, let’s go upstairs.” Like clockwork, two footmen materialised and pulled their chairs as they stood. Elphaba blinked.
The bedchamber was a vast space overlooking the central atrium. An entire wall was completely covered with glass. A part of the glass was in direct contact with the indoor waterfall, creating swirling, mesmerising patterns. Elphaba stood at the edge marvelling at how the waterfall seemed to flow right through the centre of the manor.
Behind her, the blonde was fussing over their luggage. Elphaba extended a hand and looked over, wordlessly seeking Galinda’s touch. Of all the things she loved about Galinda, she loved her reassuring touches the most. The blonde paused mid frown.
Elphaba raised a hopeful eyebrow. Come here?
She felt the corner of her lips tug in a half-smile as the blonde folded.
“Don’t you want to freshen up and go to bed?” A small arm slipped around her waist.
“Look at that,” Elphaba pointed at the swirling vortex against crystal glass. “How did you manage to design that?”
“Designing that was easy. It’s finding a way for my design to live with the laws of physics and engineering that’s tough.”
Elphaba leaned in to kiss an alabaster cheek, “You’re quite the architect, do you know that? I’m so proud of you.”
Galinda turned red, “Thank you, Elphie.”
“Where does the water flow to?”
“There’s a series of aqueducts underneath the house that redirects water flow.” Galinda made a face, worried about being too technical but her mate seemed to enjoy listening. Until she met the green girl, no one wanted to listen to her ramble about engineering and design. They would just smile politely and change the topic to a safer one. Like weather.
Galinda hated small talk but performed it well because it was expected in high society. She had never realised how much she needed someone to listen until now. She had also never realised how happy having someone to share her passion with made her.
The best part about her mate was that she was incredibly intelligent. No information was too mundane because Elphaba loved to learn. She not only listened - she remembered and could quote her out of the blue. She blushed as she realised the green girl was patiently waiting for her to continue, “I wanted aqueducts and fountains like Settica so I added it to the design. You’ll have time to see it and compare it with the blueprints. We have a month.”
Elphaba allowed herself to be pulled away from the viewing window. She finally noticed the huge bed in the centre of their bedroom. There was an archway on the left leading to walk-in closets, and another archway on the right leading to the bathroom. Stepping into the cerulean bathroom was a whole discovery in itself. It felt like she was inside a jewel. There were two sinks, side by side but only one large bathtub with a large mirror.
After a hot bath, she picked out a fluffy bathrobe and found that her hair oils and facial cleansers were already laid neatly by her sink. It was oddly intimate that someone knew her bath routine and yet, it was not awkward at all.
The mattresses in their dorm at Shiz were comfortable but nothing could truly compare to their bed. It had the right firmness and texture, covered in what looked like a mixture of gold thread and highest quality cotton. The cashmere bedsheets smelled divine, as though lavender and lily petals had been lightly crushed into it.
No wonder Galinda can’t bear to sleep on Shiz-standard mattresses, Elphaba thought.
Just when she thought today couldn’t be more otherworldly, Galinda walked out of the bathroom, shimmering with a strange greenish-gold light. Elphaba blinked and the light faded slowly, revealing the blonde in her one of her usual pink peignoirs.
“Elphie?” Galinda said as she pulled back the covers and climbed into bed.
“Yes?”
“These sheets aren’t flammable,” the blonde menace informed her.
“Oh really?” Elphaba felt her mouth go dry.
“Sleep tight, dearest,” Galinda yawned. “And welcome home.”
A rainbow, Elphaba thought as she opened an eye. I’m lying on a cloud and that’s a rainbow.
She cracked another eye open and saw Galinda sitting on the edge of the bed, just staring out of their wall-to-wall photochromic window. Elphaba sat up groggily and saw sunlight reflected by the waterfall, effectively dispersing white light into their bedroom and the entire atrium below.
For some reason, the blonde, hugging her knees, looked somewhat lonely. Once again, Elphaba’s heart tugged at her to bring her comfort and so she scooted to the edge of the bed. Galinda turned back with a soft smile.
She wrapped two arms around the blonde, putting her chin on her shoulder. Galinda shivered and then relaxed into the back hug.
“You’re amazing.”
“Hmm?”
“You designed it so that we’ll always have a rainbow,” Elphaba said. The dragon seemed mesmerised by the shifting colours.
“Rainbows represent hope. No matter what happens, we’ll always have hope.”
In daylight, she could see what was hidden the night before. The circular atrium had a dome with an oculus, letting light in. Unlike the corridors and the outer facade of the manor, the atrium had no scaffolding to indicate it was still under construction. Instead of concrete walls, the walls of the central atrium was covered in glass, much like their bedroom. Their bedchamber, one floor above, had curved concrete walls except for the viewing window facing the waterfall.
“Where did you find all that glass?”
“It’s not glass.”
“What is it?”
“The same as your spectacles - sapphire crystal. Light penetrates it better. It’s also photochromic - it gets darker as more light tries to penetrate.”
After a leisurely breakfast in the atrium, they left the manor in a another well-sprung carriage. Galinda, noticing Elphaba’s quiet demeanour, reached out a hand to squeeze hers.
“They’ll love you. Don’t worry.”
Elphaba barely took in her surroundings of the vast estate. By the time the carriage finally exited the main gate thirty minutes later, the silence inside was grim.
A solid hour later, the carriage turned up the drive of Upland Manor.
Galinda wanted to comfort Elphaba but the green girl was unreachable somewhere inside herself. She knew meeting her parents would be stressful for her mate because of her own tumultuous relationship with Frexspar and Nessa. Galinda had not realised just how stressful.
At the stone steps of the manor, her parents were waiting, looking anxiously excited from afar. As the carriage slowed to a stop, the door opened. Instead of the footman was Highmuster Upland, pretending to be one. He held Elphaba’s hand gently as she descended from the coach and did the same for his daughter.
Galinda giggled.
“Popsicle, this is Elphaba Thropp. Dearest, this is my father.”
“May I hug you?” He addressed a white-faced Elphaba.
Galinda made a displeased sound, unhappy with the request, before sighing, “Fine.”
But Larena Upland was there first, wrapping Elphaba in the tightest hug ever. The green girl’s breath hitched in surprise. Galinda felt somewhat indignant at the uncharacteristic display of humanity from her trueborn mother.
“Momsie,” Galinda tapped her mother when the hug went for a tick too long.
“Momsie,” Galinda tapped impatiently. “You’ll suffocate my Elphie.”
“Look at you,” Larena said with pride, taking a step back to take in Elphaba’s appearance. “I knew Galinda wouldn’t settle for less. She only likes beautiful people.”
Galinda avoided Elphaba’s raised eyebrow. People? Plural?
Good luck explaining that one, Homo.
“Nice to meet you, Lord Upland. Lady Upland,” Elphaba said softly, clearly relying on her strict upbringing to carry her through even though she looked completely lost by the warm welcome.
“Away with the formalities,” Larena waved her hand. “Call me Momsie. Call him Popsicle. Or call us by our names. You’re family.”
“Galinda,” Larena addressed her daughter like a flunkey. “Pack your things and Elphaba’s. We’ll be spending the New Year at Granny’s.”
“At Mount Rouncible? But we just got home!”
“You’ll spend one night here. Tomorrow we leave early so that we’ll arrive at Granny’s.”
Galinda stared as her mother tucked Elphaba under her wing (figuratively) and started to tell her every interesting thing that happened in every corner of the house. Every dramatic sentence teased a tentative smile from the green girl. Even from a few steps behind them, Galinda could see the effect of that shy, devastating smile on her stern mother. The great dragon who ruled the entire household with an iron claw simply melted.
She exchanged a meaningful raised brow with her father, who looked equally surprised by his wife’s instant affection for Elphaba.
“I like her,” her father whispered. “She’s not afraid of your mother.”
Galinda hissed, “She’s too polite to show fear.”
“Better this than if your Momsie takes a dislike to her - mate or no mate,” her father reminded.
Galinda shuddered.
“Popsicle, I want to show you something. Something’s going on at Shiz and I don’t like it. Not one bit.”
By the time Galinda filled her father in on her version of events, he was utterly silent. He looked carefully at the strip of tablecloth from the Lurlinemas Ball.
“I don’t know what this is. Honey, could you come here for a bit?”
“What is it?” Larena moved away from her deep conversation with Elphaba and sat in Highmuster’s lap, kissing him soundly. No one in the sitting room blinked at this display of affection except for the green girl.
“Smell this. Do you know what this is?”
Larena shook her head, “We could ask Momsie tomorrow.”
“Would Granny know?”
“Granny might lead us to someone who does.”
“What is going on in Oz?” Elphaba asked.
Three dragons whipped their heads to look at her. None of them looked as though they would talk. Elphaba was immediately reminded of Galinda’s ‘dragons aren’t good at sharing’.
“There’s been reports of a great enemy abroad. We used to think it was the Wizard but our Consul has checked and he’s just a political figure. Based on Galinda’s account, the Azuris have had trouble in the Emerald City, losing their abilities to shift into dragon form.”
Galinda, leaning on a crimson chaise lounge, suddenly spoke up, “Popsicle, I think the Consul in Munchkinland is not doing his job properly.”
She then filled them in about the Viridis man they met at their hotel. Her parents exchanged a loaded look.
“Momsie, Popsicle. You can’t keep secrets like this from me anymore. I’m an adult now.”
“You’ll always be our baby dragon, Galinda,” Popsicle’s eyes twinkled. “Except you’ve brought your mate home. Oz, this calls for a celebration.”
“You changed the topic, don’t think I haven’t noticed.”
“We can tell you this much. We need to inform the Consul.”
“Oh, where is our Consul?”
“Inside Mount Rouncible.”
Galinda almost sprung up from the chaise lounge. “I have lived this long only to find out that Granny lives near the Consul?”
“What could harm a dragon?” Elphaba asked, curious. “You guys are practically magic.”
“A rogue dragon,” Larena said. “The Kinslaying took out a lot of my family.”
“There’s a lot, Elphie,” Galinda filled in. “You already know one. Obsidian.”
“Some other magical creatures, which will not name here. Not in this house,” Popsicle said evenly, his nose releasing a small tendril of smoke.
“You have a lovely house, Lord and Lady Upland,” Elphaba said after five minutes of awkward silence.
“Elphaba, I told you to drop the formalities,” Larena said pointedly. Her dark brown eyes turned bright orange.
“Momsie, don’t scare my Elphie,” Galinda reproached her mother when she saw the green girl freeze.
“I’m sorry, Larena. I’ll do better. I just have to get used to it,” Elphaba quickly replied.
“See that you remember.” The orange eyes returned to a warm brown.
“So you’ve stayed the night at your new house,” Highmuster’s blue eyes gleamed. “What did you think of the monstrosity?”
Elphaba suddenly understood the reason 'bloody monument' had triggered such a reaction.
From the corner of her eye, Elphaba could see Galinda’s posture stiffen. “I can’t begin to describe how wonderful it is and how beautiful it’s going to be. I know Galinda’s worked so hard and to be honest, it’s my fault it’s not complete. I looked over her sketches and asked for reading nooks all over the house.”
She reached over the chaise lounge and laced the blonde’s icy fingers in hers, “It’s not everyday someone designs a house with me in mind. She indulges my every whim and I’m still learning to get used to it.”
“When will it be done?” Larena asked her daughter.
“Spring,” Galinda replied in a clipped tone. “Some materials can’t be transported through the ice.”
Something inscrutable passed between mother and daughter as Larena’s lips formed a thin line. Seeing it, Elphaba began to understand the anxious blonde a little better.
“You’ll stay here tonight. Your manor is too far to start travelling at a decent hour tomorrow morning. You’ll sleep in separate bedrooms. I don’t care if you’re roommates at Shiz. I’ll know if you enter her room.”
“Momsie,” Galinda protested. “You can’t be serious. What if Elphie feels lonely and abandoned?”
“I can sleep by myself for one night, Galinda,” Elphaba flushed.
Larena was looking at her as though realising that Elphaba was entirely human. Elphaba had been judged for many things in life, but this was the first time being human was held against her.
“Feelings,” Larena shook her head at her daughter’s human mate. It was clear that the immaculate blonde woman was too much of a dragon to consider human feelings. “Make yourself at home, Elphaba. Everything that belongs to Galinda belongs to you.”
“Thank you, Larena,” she said politely. “and Highmuster.”
Larena Upland stared for a clock tick, before nodding her head with an approving nod reminiscent of her daughter. Her husband followed in her wake, leaving them alone in the sitting room.
A footman in blue and gold livery appeared, “My lady, Lady Larena asked me to show you to your room.”
“I know where my room is, Sivan.”
Elphaba jumped when she realised that she was the one being addressed. “Please lead the way. I’ll follow.”
Hand in hand, they walked through the stone manor, past a long hallway, hung with portraits of extremely good looking people. The layout of the manor was not unlike Colwen Grounds, even in size. It was nothing like the avant garde building Elphaba would call home. There was a symmetrical quality to the Upland manor that was oddly comforting.
“That will be all, Sivan. I trust that Elphaba’s room is the pink guest room?”
The footman cleared his throat nervously, “It’s the blue guest room, my lady.”
“That’s the furthest room down the other wing!” Galinda gritted her teeth.
“Is this your room?” They stopped outside ornate doors with Galinda’s carefully calligraphed cypher carved into the wood.
“Yes.”
“Okay.”
“It is not okay, Elphie. You’re under this roof but we’ll be sleeping apart!”
“What’s wrong with that?” Elphaba asked innocently.
“It’s… I… I can’t sleep apart from you!”
“We’re sleeping apart?”
“Yes. Didn’t you hear what Momsie said? I’m not allowed to enter your room!”
Elphaba grinned wolfishly, “She didn’t say anything about me entering yours. She said everything that belongs to you belongs to me too. Your room is my room. Don’t lock the door tonight, sweetheart.”
Galinda couldn’t help it. She blushed to the roots of her hair.
Elphaba leaned in to whisper, sending shivers down her spine, “Wear that filmy nightgown. The one with the huge pink bow. It makes you look like a present.”
Her mate, she thought ruefully as Elphaba cackled at her expression, would be the death of her.