#if fiyero didn't exist

[omglaurashutup]

i've found a beautiful reference & had to make it gelphie version. also, liir 🩵

[thedykeparade]

I know for a lot of people the relationship between Elphaba and Fiyero feels rushed and underdeveloped, but, I don't know, I happen to like the fact that she had such a strong impact on his life in such a short amount of time... like, yes! of course she altered his brain chemistry and whole philosophy of life after a grand total of 3 encounters, she really is THAT girl (I just realized what I did there as soon as I finished typing it, I swear the pun was not intended).

I think they gravitated towards each other because they were exactly what the other needed in their lives.

In the beginning Fiyero was a person that felt comfortable reducing his entire existence and purpose to just being a "hot prince with a scandalacious reputation". But then he meets Elphaba, and she is different than anyone else he'd ever met in all those schools he went to, in more ways than one. She is Not Impressed by his looks or his title. She challenges him because she's able to look past his "nothing matters" bullshit and see that he's actually a really kind, caring person. She looks at him like she knows that he can do better, be better ("no matter how shallow and self-absorbed you pretend to be..."). She inspired him to become the best version of himself.

Fiyero needed that, someone to push him to take control of his life and act upon his wants and beliefs. Without Elphaba he would've had a content but unfulfilled life.

And Elphaba needed someone to stand by her, to not leave her alone, to not be ashamed of her, to fight for her, to prioritize her, and to love her unapologetically. That person is Fiyero (and yes, Glinda could've been that person too, but ultimately she made her choice, and by the time she realized she chose wrong it was already too late).

Elphaba spent her whole life feeling unwanted. She needed someone that would spend years looking for her!!! Someone that would risk everything for her!!! Fiyero did that!!! That man was devoted!!! And that's exactly what she deserved!!!

She was alone her whole life until Glinda (except for Nessa, I guess, but even in that relationship Elphaba was always the one that had to take care of her sister), and she is so strong, but in the end she didn't have to be alone anymore, and she didn't have to be strong, she could just let herself be held and loved, and I love that for her 😭��️

In conclusion: fiyeraba they could never make me hate you

[delespresso]

RERUN ━━ Fiyero x fem!reader

author's note; this took longer than expected, i'm sorry! but here we are <3

prompt; "Admit it you missed me." "I certainly missed kicking your ass, if that's what you mean." for Fiyero x Reader? (maybe they knew eachother as kids?)

summary; fiyero's arrival in shiz university had everyone in a frenzy, but especially a certain lady from winkie country

side notes; i'm using a surname for the reader this time but its not an oc, feel free to imagine your own name! (i just didn't wanna use y/n). never read the books, so if i say anything about the vinkus/ winkie country is purely from google searches and maybe even made up by myself idk 😭

━━ ☄. *. ⋆

The newspaper pretty much hit her in the face.

She'd been walking in the courtyard, intending to head back to her dorm to get ready for her classes after an early morning jog. But the newspaper that somehow flew from a stack on one of the tables quite literally smacked her in the face.

She grabbed it with a huff, about to throw it aside. Of course, until the headline of the latest report from The Shiz Gazette caught her eye.

Prince Fiyero Spotted at Shiz!

She read it over and over again. Looked at the picture they'd printed repeatedly. Then she tossed it onto the floor, quite literally stomping over it as she ran back to her dorm.

When was the last time she saw that stupid, handsome prince? They were both younger then. Their separation was mainly because he could never for the life of him keep himself in one school — there was always something he did that had him transferred to a new one.

She'd thought that now she was in Shiz, maybe they wouldn't meet again. After all, it was quite a prestigious school. Maybe his nonchalant, slacking attitude would have him rejected the moment they saw his name.

She was so wrong.

He was here. Fiyero Tigelaar was here. The Winkie Prince. The boy she grew up with. The boy who stole her butterfly clips for no other reason than to make her run in the rain to catch him. The bane of her existence.

She was sure the universe was conspiring against her. The second she'd changed into her uniform, she left her dorm. Admittedly, it wasn't the typical blues that everyone wore. She was one of the few with a different shade; greys and lighter blues instead. She intended to head straight for her first class— only to find a small crowd gathered outside.

That horse. Oh, she knew the horse. She recognised the bloody horse before she even saw the person.

When someone finally moved their head out of the way, she caught sight of Fiyero Tigelaar himself. He was by the directory board, figuring out the layout of the place. Galinda was there too, no doubt trying to offer some touring services. He turned his head, about to respond to the blonde girl — when his gaze drifted over the girl's shoulder and found a familiar face.

A smile immediately broke on his ridiculously handsome face, his hand raised for a wave. It was as if everyone's attention immediately snapped to her.

She sighed inwardly, her eyes narrowed. The slightest nod was all the acknowledgement she gave him before she turned and trudged off elsewhere, avoiding him at all costs.

She'd heard of his little escapade to the Ozdust Ballroom, bringing quite the group of students with him for a night out in town. Already he was rubbing off on everyone, influencing them into his bad habits.

Fiyero had been in Shiz for a week now, and she'd successfully avoided him. But of course her peace and quiet couldn't last forever. In the back shelves of the library, as she skimmed through the book bindings to find a history book — she was loudly interrupted.

“Lady Yarrow.”

She nearly dropped a book with a gasp, startled by the sudden intrusion. Then she was quick to hush the person, spinning on her heels to see Fiyero's smug expression.

“This is a library,” she pointed out.

“Really? It was introduced to me as the ‘bookplace’,” he hummed, looking around as if it was a new discovery.

She rolled her eyes, inhaling deeply to prevent herself from yelling at him like she used to back when they were in Winkie Country.

“Library,” she repeated. “And you're meant to be quiet.”

Fiyero grinned, knowing she was getting ticked off already.

“And is this ever-present tension a new development? Or have I forgotten how easy you are to rile up?” he teased.

The young girl he knew was always sensitive, took everything to heart. They weren't necessarily best of friends but they weren't enemies either — or so he believed.

“Why are you here?” she deflected with ease as she turned back to searching for her book.

“I wanted to read.”

“Ha!”

“Shh, its a library,” he exclaimed in a mock whisper, repeating her earlier words as she shot him an exasperated glare.

“Why are you in Shiz?” she asked instead, moving on from the topic.

“Transferred from Royal Winkie.”

“Kicked out, I believe is the right term.”

“Oh so you have been keeping up with me?” he exclaimed, a bit of a giddy grin on his face as tailed her through the shelves.

When she didn't respond, he just skipped his way until he was in front of her. He walked backwards as she moved forward, still looking through the titles.

“I haven't. But you know our parents,” she grumbled.

“Admit it, princess, you missed me,” he teased, poking at her shoulder.

She swatted his hand away, looking up at him with narrowed eyes. He was still as insufferable as ever.

“I certainly missed kicking your ass, if that's what you mean.”

Fiyero chuckled at that, but he persisted anyway. He just kept shadowing her through the library, pestering her with random teases or jokes even until she was leaving. Even then he followed her.

She just couldn't seem to shake him even if she tried.

“Princess,” he drawled, knowing full well how much she hated when he called her that.

He couldn't help it though — getting on her nerves was his hobby. Not to mention, he hasn't seen her in years.

She ignored him though, continuing to walk through the halls and towards the garden instead. Fiyero knew she was stubborn, but so was he.

“Ignoring me won't make me go away,” he pointed out.

“Throwing a log at you might.”

His laugh was awfully gleeful for someone who just got threatened. When she settled at one of the tables in the garden, she noticed he wasn't directly with her anymore.

Just as she thought she was free of his torment, there was a daffodil suddenly in front of her face. She looked at the hand holding the yellow flower, following it up to see his cheeky and smug face. In a smooth motion, he slid the flower in her hair as an extra accessory.

"You know, I think I'll enjoy wearing you down," he said, before giving her his signature smile and walking away.

Fiyero Tigelaar made it his life mission to bother her at all times from that day onward — letting history repeat itself, as always.

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[auroracalisto]

Hey can you do a fiyero x reader where the reader is afraid of being vulnerable and he helps them?

yes, superfartninja, i think i can.

to be changed.

movie!fiyero x gn!reader, 3.4k words summary: to be vulnerable meant to be defenseless. it was a liability and that's all it ever would be. fiyero couldn't have that, now could he? a/n: please remember that i only have movie knowledge, so this will be based solely on what i saw in the movie. :P also, shout outs to house song by searows (was on repeat for this fic). erm. this kind of got away from me. i started it was 12 AM and now it's nearly 2 AM. hope it's coherent.

It wasn't like you to be vulnerable. It just didn't happen. It was like... asking a fish or an elephant to climb a tree, or some other weird analogy that you heard oh-so-long ago, when vulnerability aged you more than it helped.

To be vulnerable meant to be hurt. To be ridiculed, to be laughed at, to be made a fool in front of anyone who cared to look your way. It was something that you knew was not needed. You would be fine living by yourself. You came into this world alone and screaming, and you would leave this world the same way.

If you cut out the wound before it began to fester, you solved the problem immediately. Or so they say.

So that's what you did, long ago, when you swore to yourself that the pain you felt would be the very last time. It would never happen again. It couldn't happen again.

Oh, Oz, it couldn't. Your heart couldn't take it.

What was left of your heart, anyway. Sometimes you feared you no longer had one, especially when you feared the pain that would haunt you if someone else came along and made you feel that way again.

It's not that you were afraid. No, fear of being vulnerable was foolish. At least... you believed that you weren't afraid of being vulnerable.

Perhaps that was an act of foolishness in itself. Pretending that you weren't afraid. Pretending that having few friends and few moments of happiness didn't pierce your heart with every passing second.

Perhaps you needed to be better. To be vulnerable, to swear off that silly promise you made to yourself so many years ago.

But it was so difficult.

Being vulnerable was to be in pain. To be lost to a world of sorrow. To be... hurt by the very thing you swore you'd never be hurt by again.

It wouldn't happen.

You wouldn't let it.

He existed in the back of your mind. His beautiful blue eyes, the way those pretty locks fell in front of his eyes when he actually studied his books (if he ever did, of course).

When was the last time he actually tried...? No. You couldn't think of him like that. Too much thinking about his pretty face would ruin you.

You had only talked to him a few times here and there, and the first time was to merely ask him to move out of the way. He took up quite a lot of space—or at least, maybe it was his confidence. It oozed from him like an air of upmost superiority.

No...

You were just being cruel. He was just standing in the way, out of breath from singing to Galinda in the library (because of course—who didn't sing to pretty girls in libraries anymore?).

The second time you spoke to him was over the essay you had to write in your literature class. Peer reviews were the bane of your existence, and this essay, because of course it did, had a simple prompt in response to one of your readings: Taking into account the author's sheer disdain for the idea of magic, write what you believe Oz would be like without magic.

Thought-provoking, yes. You wrote a decent two pages, handwritten of course.

He gave you a paragraph.

If the world of Oz existed without magic, perhaps we would all be better off. No more bickering over the usages of it all, no more idiosyncrasies, no more debates on whether you are intelligent or mediocre if you hadn't the ability to wave a wand or utter a simple spell. If we didn't have magic, perhaps life would be far more difficult, but I also feel as if we should see what it would be like. Maybe there would be less heartbreak. More happiness to go around.

Okay. A piss-poor paragraph that made you wonder how he was even passing Madame Lillabet's literature class.

Maybe he wasn't.

You didn't feel pity for the man—nobility had the ability to do so many things that you would only ever dream of. Why should you feel pity—vulnerability—for a man you didn't know, let alone understood?

Oz, even now, his essay haunted you. You did your best with your review, pointing out the obvious things missing—a decent thesis, body paragraphs that proved his thesis, and just in general, an entire essay that was expected of the entire class.

He merely read over your essay and made one simple comment: Excellent.

Oh, yes, excellent. It was excellent to know that he was just trying to help your essay, yes? Leaving that little comment, even though you didn't make full marks—how was it supposed to help you?

Pity be damned. He was a fool, through and through.

Things muddled in your mind like they often did. Thoughts racing, heartbeat close behind the quick pace.

If you had magic, you'd be sure to quell it.

These thoughts were the one thing that you wished you could squash under the heel of your boot. They were the bane of your existence, the utterance of a foolhardy penance to the god of whatever looked down upon you and wished for pain.

Perhaps that was what was meant for you.

A life of pain—of pity from others, of the amenability to be swayed by those around you even when you tried, desperately, to stay away from those who may catch your attention.

Like him.

Oh, Oz, just like him.

Fiyero.

The man who'd lose his head if it wasn't attached to his shoulders. The man who once told you in passing that if he hadn't a brain, perhaps classes would be easier—then he wouldn't truly be all there, and he'd easily get around the... well, specifics of it all. The man whom you felt tugging at your heartstrings, even when you told yourself no.

It would not happen.

It could not happen.

You would not let it.

In typical, terrible luck fashion, you found yourself wandering the halls of Shiz late at night, unable to sleep. The thoughts racing through your head of so many things, not just him (although they kept leading back to the fool), they just weren't stopping.

An exam was to be held tomorrow. Perhaps you could create a distraction—keep the professors from being able to do as they needed. There were a box of fireworks hidden in one of the many corridor closets, kept for special occasion. You could whip a few of them out and create so much chaos that they'd surely have to cancel the exam!

You leaned against the railing, looking down at the stonework of Shiz's courtyard. A chill ran down your spine from the cold breeze, and for once, all was silent if only for a moment.

His voice brought you out from your thoughts.

"Y/n," he said, an obvious smile playing at his lips.

You squeezed your eyes shut and glanced back at him. Without saying a word, you acknowledged him.

"Doesn't look like your dorm," he continued. "What are you doing out here, all alone?"

"Thinking."

His eyebrow quirked. "Thinking? Oh," he softly hummed, coming to stand beside of you. "Well, that's no fun, now is it? What are you thinking about?"

"Nothing."

He snorted softly. "You're thinking about... nothing?"

"Whatever I'm thinking is none of your business," you retorted.

He stared you down for a moment, tilting his head curiously. He hummed again and looked out at where you had been staring moments prior.

"You are right," he softly said, voice much quieter this time. "Let me lead you back to your room. We have an exam tomorrow, remember? You at least need to pretend to sleep."

You paused. Since when did he care about exams? You glanced at him, fighting the urge to question him. You let out a soft sigh and shrugged, allowing him to lead you to your dorm.

The walk was quiet, and you almost questioned how he knew where your dorm was, but you didn't. He seemed to pay attention better than most (it was part of that aloofness, you've noticed), and it wasn't the first time he had seen you near your dorm.

It was at least the third. The number had to be easy to memorize by now. 133.

As you opened your door, Fiyero spoke. "You know, I've been thinking..."

"Dangerous thing for you, isn't it?" you quipped, not looking at him as you stepped inside.

He let out a soft chuckle. You amused him to no end.

"Yes, perhaps," he softly said. "But besides. I was still thinking. I've been... well, wondering if perhaps you would—"

"—no."

He blinked slowly. "What? No? Y/n, you didn't even hear what I had to say—"

"—the answer is still no," you said. You glanced up at him from the spot you had been staring at, frowning. "I don't know what this is, but we are not friends. Do not ask me for favors."

"Not friends, hm?" he softly hummed, leaning against the doorway as he locked eyes with you. So knowing your dorm number was just a fluke.

"Not friends. Now if you'll excuse me, I should probably go and pretend to sleep."

His upper lip quirked in a faint smirk. Not friends, but you still joked with him as a friend would do. He rolled his eyes and gave you a rather joking half-bow.

"Of course," he said. "Do not let me keep you up. Perhaps I should find my dorm as well."

"You should do that," you simply said, shutting the door right after.

You didn't give him a chance to say anything else, quickly locking the door and heading back to your bed.

Heart pounding, mind still racing, but not with the thoughts of earlier. No, dear reader, your mind raced with thoughts of him.

So impressionable, so—so kind, so—well, was he really kind?

To you.

He was kind to you.

Nearly a week passed you by. The exam went rather well, without any kind of distraction. Passing marks and a somewhat decent night sleep.

You do everything you can to try and avoid Fiyero. Running this way and that, going through all of the longer corridors instead of the shortcuts you knew by heart. You did everything you could to avoid his handsome face.

You did everything you could to avoid the vulnerability that plagued your heart every time you thought of him.

If you simply embraced the wants of Fiyero, perhaps not having a brain would keep you from thinking this way. You'd still have a heart, sure, but it was much better than keeping yourself on your toes wondering if you'd see the damned man at any passing second.

On the hour of the rising moon, almost exactly on the dot, Fiyero spotted you. And this time, you were not evading him.

He practically took off after you, leaving his friends behind. They scoffed and called after him, but he didn't look back. His focus was on you.

He grabbed onto your wrist as you went to leave, not letting you go.

"Y/n! There you are," he softly said. "I have been looking everywhere for you. I wouldn't have thought it would be so difficult to find you, but—"

"—there you go, thinking again," you blurted, unable to stop yourself. Your tongue was wagging faster than your brain was working.

He weakly smiled. "Yes. I know. How ironic, hm?"

You watched as he stared you down.

"Look," he softly began. "I truly—I do not know what I did to deserve you ignoring me at any which way, but I wish you would tell me why. What did I do, Y/n? I thought—well, I assumed that we were friends, but perhaps I was wrong. I find myself wrong quite often nowadays."

"I—well, Fiyero, I—" you paused. You squeezed your eyes shut and inhaled a deep breath. "I don't have friends."

He blinked slowly. "You don't have friends? What of the one girl you were with the other day? Milla?"

"I do not have friends," you repeated. "I have... acquaintances. People I do not get attached to."

"That is sad."

"What?"

He raised an eyebrow. It seemed like a commonality when he spoke with you. The staple eyebrow raise had to happen or else he wasn't really chatting with you.

"It is sad. Why wouldn't you want to get attached to people?"

"I don't want to have meaningless relationships," you said. You avoided saying, I don't want to have relationships at all. "Not everyone can be as friendly as you, Fiyero."

He rolled his eyes. "Friendly. Yes. I talk to people, but I would rather not have all the attention that I do."

"Oh, that's rich," you said, scoffing. "You play the popular little prince and then claim you do not want it? What is that, Fiyero?"

Fiyero pursed his lips. "It is just—this is not a conversation about me. I wanted to have an intervention for you since you seemed as though you were avoiding me every which way. Now. Just—"

"—an intervention? What? Please. You sound ridiculous."

"So do you!" he returned, hands to his hips like an older man scolding a child for something they broke. "You vex me, Y/n! You act as if you are interested in me, then run away hiding like a scared little pup. You act as if you are afraid to get close to anyone."

You stared at him, lips parted ever-so-slightly. But it was enough. You were done for.

He let out a curt laugh. "You are."

"What?"

"You are. Scared. I can see it in you. You listen to what I have to say, even when the others don't. I've made an effort to pay attention to you. To see what you—"

"—Fiyero, stop."

"Do not tell me to stop, Y/n," he said, voice low with conviction. "Not now. Not when I've finally figured you out. You are scared. But of what? Being close to someone? Having a friend?"

You frowned. "I am not scared—"

"—you look at me like if I were to touch you, you'd melt."

"That doesn't mean anything!"

"I can see it in your eyes, Y/n," he said, not looking away. He held eye contact with you and hoped that you would continue to do the same. "You—you're scared. To open your heart to the people around you."

You frowned, again. It was perpetual anymore. "And you're a sad man who dances and pretends everything is fine because Galinda said you looked pretty one day."

He blinked slowly, a smile quirking on his lips. "Maybe. But this—this isn't about me, Y/n. This is about you."

"What even is this? I didn't agree to have you psychoanalyze everything I've ever done."

"Neither did I, yet here we are," he said. "I've had a lot of time to think, to mull it over, and I know it. I know it now. You are scared. I don't know what happened to you. I don't know who hurt you in your past, or if something tragic happened to make you so cold inside, but there is absolutely nothing wrong with being... with being vulnerable, Y/n. There's something... magical, even, about opening up to others."

"Oh, and you would know, wouldn't you?"

He frowned. "Y/n—"

"—no. Absolutely not. You do not get to sit there and ridicule me for not wanting to be close to people and then not take what I give you," you said. "You do not let anyone close to you. Sure, Galinda, but what does she know about you? Does she know how you half-ass everything? How you hardly even talk to your 'friends' and just let them float along with you like everything is fine and dandy? You're as sad as I am, if that's what you're trying to say. Don't try to fool yourself."

"I am not trying to fool myself," he softly said. "I am only trying to make it known that I see you. I see myself in you."

"Oh, that's rich," you said, scoffing. "The rich, popular boy sees himself in little ol' me. That's perfect."

"Y/n—"

"—no. Don't. Stop. Just. I don't want to talk to you anymore. We're not friends. We never were friends. Just leave me alone."

It's simple, but it shuts him down. And with that, you run from his side, rushing to hide away in your dorm.

You couldn't believe what you did. Blowing up at him instead of listening to what he had to say. He read you like the children's book your heart truly was—while everyone else focused on the words, he focused on the pictures. The minute details that seemed to pass by everyone's mind because the story was flowing far too quickly.

He saw the delicate brush strokes, the intricate colors, the pieces of you that the words did not show.

He knew you.

And it scared you.

Only you knew yourself. If anyone else were to know who you were, deep inside, well, that would be disastrous.

It couldn't happen.

You couldn't let it.

Fear.

Perhaps fear was the best way to describe the way you felt.

You sat by the edge of the lake in the forest just beyond Shiz's campus, fingers gently brushing against the water. The surface rippled, sending small waves to the end of the shore.

You were afraid.

Of what?

Of a man knowing you?

Of Fiyero knowing you better than even your family once knew you?

You sat there, thoughts racing through your mind. It was as if you couldn't avoid them anymore.

Days had passed since you blew up at Fiyero and ran. You couldn't avoid him forever, you knew that, but it seemed as if your thoughts believed the same.

Tears pricked at your eyes. The warm, salty tears began to fall before you could even try to stop them, and a soft sob bubbled at the back of your throat.

"Y/n?"

Shit.

You quickly wiped your tears away and looked back at him—at Fiyero. But your tears wouldn't stop. A soft sob rippled through you and you turned your head away.

Fiyero came to your side, kneeling down in the soft earth beside of you. He inwardly grimaced at the dirt, but he said nothing of it. He'd bathe in mud if it meant you would stop your tears.

He reached forward, gently placing a hand to your cheek. He turned your head to face him.

"Y/n," he softly said. "It's alright. You... you're alright."

Another sob.

He pulled you into his arms, and you let him. You didn't pull away, melting into his embrace as he said you would before. He pressed his chin to the top of your head, situating himself so he would be more comfortable near you.

He softly hummed a soft tune—you remembered it. The one thing he hummed quite often when you caught him alone, or trying to focus on his school work.

Dancing through life, skimming the surface... Life's more painless for the brainless.

He was just a sad boy with needs of his own, much like you were scared of being seen. Of being known.

Of being loved.

Oh. Oh, that's what it was.

It terrified you to no end.

Fiyero pressed a soft kiss to the top of your forehead, gently cupping your cheeks in his hands.

"What's got you so upset, love?" he softly asked, wiping your tears away gently with his thumbs.

You shook your head. "I... later," you mumbled. You leaned into his grasp, and you could have sworn you saw his eyes soften.

He released a soft, shaky sigh of his own, before he pulled you back into his arms. He'd hold you until the end of the world if that's what you needed him to do.

Being vulnerable—it was the one thing you had told yourself you would never do. Ever again. And here you were, letting this man hold you and practically lull you into a calmness you'd never felt before.

Is this what it felt like? To be... weak? To be... frail?

No.

Vulnerability... it didn't mean that.

It meant that you were... open. That you had managed to open your heart to a more... malleable form.

To be changed.

To find the one thing in life that you knew would keep you going for as long as it could.

To be vulnerable meant to be loved.

[alvinjrsgun]

WICKED SCENE REWRITE - WHAT IF GALINDA WAS IN FIYERO'S PLACE FOR THE CUB SCENE???

with the existence of the, "you could've picked me" deleted scene, I offer you a timeline in which Elphie was lesbphaba and DID choose Galinda!!!

TAGS: not at all like the og scene lmao, lots of banter, vulnerable glinda, VERY vulnerable elphaba, glinda has depth, GELPHIE, angst/fluff, NOT proofread and i havent written fic in a hot min so sorry in advance 🫶

》》

“…what are we gonna do?”

Elphaba looks to the duo beside her expectantly, hoping they'd understand the urgency of this situation— Fiyero looks taken aback with wide eyes,

“I'm sorry, we?"

Elphaba is seemingly taken aback by his words as he was hers, and before her anger boils into her magic, she catches a glimpse. Galinda, her eyes wide and expecting, not seeming in daze at all, not shuttering at the thought of what in Oz Elphaba's plan could be.

“Well, someone has to do something—” The flowers her nails are gripping into, crinkling the parchment, slam against wood, pollen dusting across the room. Her thoughts quiet as she watches as each and every one or her classmates slowly succumb to sleep - all except for one.

She looks to her right to see Galinda gingery lowering Fiyero's head to the desk with a gasp, looking around with furrowed brows. Suddenly, she gasps for air, looking to Elphaba with blown out cheeks before frantically spitting out words, quickly closing her mouth again.

“Elphie, am I allowed to breath?”

“Oh my— yes, yes, breath, Galinda. If you didn't topple over instantly like the rest, you're fine.”

The green girl mutters, her eyes finding the shimmering gold cage keeping that poor, now snoozing, lion cub captivate. She hears Galinda release all the air from her lungs and pant, before hearing her heels shimmy behind Fiyero. Elphaba's eyes dart up as Galinda delicately hurries down the steps of the lecture hall, quickly fiddling with the latch of the cage. Before she can even process the view, the blonde is cooing softly to the sleeping cub, gently cradling it's limp form in her arms before her eye's meet Elphie's,

“What now?”

“I-I don't have a plan, Galinda!”

“You don't need one, do you? This cub certainly can't stay here and…” She leans down as the small animal yawns, smiling wide and wiggling her nose against it's,

“Now, we have the opportunity to get somewhere less scary and dark and traumatizing, isn't that right? Who could ever cage you…”

The other girl's mind scatters as she searches to make sense of what the seemingly peaceful blonde has set in motion. She takes a deep breath and steps over Fiyero, Galinda quickly unbuttoning her top blazer button and nuzzling the cub into the warmth of the fabric, following as Elphie darts for the door.

They hastily make it to an outdoor entryway to Shiz, spotting two bikes leaning against a banister. It's a miracle they made it with Galinda’s insistent questions as to where they were heading, seeming in good faith but not helping Elphaba's brain scramble.

“The forest, we'll take ‘em to the forest.”

She finally decides as she picks up both bikes and looks off into the distant wood, Galinda quickly gripping a bike and leaning the cub into the basket attached to it's rear, smiling as wide as her face will allow as it snuggles in,

“I mean, our dorm is rather big… it's a suite, after all… and we're both very nurturing…”

She starts and Elphaba just snorts, hopping on her bike and starting to slowly pedal, allowing Galinda to frantically start on her own before picking up speed. The silence of the churning pedals doesn't last long,

“We could name him something depressingly dark!! Maybe even fear-inducing? Elphie, I'll beg!”

“Him?”

“Mhm?” Galinda hums casually, leaving Elphaba to hesitantly mumble,

“Did you… check his…?” She hears the girl gasp as if looking at an animal's genitals would be obscene,

“No, no!! His eyes told me, they were fierce and hearty—” She cuts herself off just as they enter the terrain of the forest, keeping the silence for a moment before letting out a stubborn huff, “Then again, your eyes are like that as well, Elphie. I suppose it's a strength thing, really, rather than a sex determination.”

Elphaba can hear a lightbulb spark above Galinda’s head as she gasps, hardly giving her the time to process the blonde seeing her eyes as strong, whatever that could mean…

“Oh, Elphie! Can we name her ‘Elphie’?”

Elphaba breaks her bike and allows her movements to slow and ease as Shiz is nearly out of sight, leaning the hunk of metal against a nearby tree. The calm allows her to turn attention to Galinda's absurdity.

“Wouldn't that get confusing? Also, frankly, we wouldn't be talking to that cub much longer.” She can't help but smirk as the heartbreaking news hits Galinda like a truck, the blonde slowly picking up the little lion and kissing it's forehead as it yawns again,

“Aw, I know, Elphie, I know…” She coos into its fur, the softness in her voice while using Elphaba's name (of which she's come accustomed to) leaving a soft warmth in Elphaba's stomach. She knows she's talking to the poor animal who certainly deserves the comfort more but, that doesn't at all affect the way the girl now feels grounded, strengthened.

Galinda carefully walks to a small ditch of water, hunching up her skirt with a small gag before pressing her porcelain knees to the dirt. She sets the cub into the pond, clapping her hands from joy as it does a small bounce of discovery.

Elphaba simply watches, now pondering. Without the adrenaline, she starts to wonder - why hadn't the pollen taken Galinda? Had it chosen to spare her, was it apart of Elphaba's subconscious? Was this something she could hone and control—

“Elphie, you're thinking rather loudly.” The silence is broken as the blonde keeps her back turned, her tone unreadable - which is strange for Galinda.

“Oh, uh, sorry.”

“Oh, no, it's not a complaint. Just, I've noticed you do that. I can hear the gears turn in that brilliant mind of yours.”

She giggles with the admission and Elphaba can feel her cheeks heat up - she's not sure if it's from being observed or from the compliment, but, Galinda's cheering giggle as the cub splashes down into the water certainly doesn't calm it,

“Well, uh… If you're curious, I'm thinking about the flowers in the classroom.” The blushing girl mutters as she kneels down next to the other, less-flustered girl. Galinda’s shoulders tense softly, practically unnoticeably at Elphaba's words. They hang in the quiet forest ambience before Galinda clears her throat,

“Why didn't I fall asleep, Elphie?” There's a strange, unfamiliar vulnerable to her tone as Galinda whispers, her brown doe eyes finding Elphaba's own. Elphaba stiffens, almost cringing at the unfamiliar sight - not that it isn't welcome but, what's bringing it on?

“I'm, I'm not sure. I mean, it can't be luck.”

“I surely hope not.” She smiles with her words, finding the green-eyed girl's gaze again without an ounce of vulnerability lost, “In all honesty, I hope you chose me, somehow.”

The words hang in the air as their eyes stay interlocked, Elphaba's heart thudding in her chest. She takes a sharp breath before looking away, knowing damn well she can't process a thing with her eyes sparkling expectantly, beautifully, like that.

“And,” The blonde starts again as she adjusts, reluctantly letting her skirt touch the dirt as she shifts towards Elphie, as if trying to elaborate, “I don't expect you to know. I don't need an answer. I just, hope.”

“Why?” the question blurts out far to harshly than intented and Galinda simply stiffens a bit with a grounding chuckle, seeming almost nervous.

“Because that would mean you trust me. With even the parts you can not control, you trust me.” Her usual cheerful tone has taken to a softened whisper, making the green girl's skin shiver. The blonde's attention is quickly back on the thristing cub, encouraging the animal as it laps up water. Elphaba just stays silent, stunned.

Despite how much her and Galinda have grown close in such a short time, it had never even crossed her mind that it was something the blonde had actively noticed and consciously thought of. She'd already dolled Elphaba up and they've told stories back and forth but she'd never seemed to want anything with deeper-roots. Perhaps, however, Elphaba had been the one without that desire. All her hesitance with Galinda was gone except for that building block, trust. Galinda was arrogant at times and often only remembered atrocities and discrimination as they are in history books, never looking deeper, never caring to.

Yet, she'd sprung at the opportunity to help Elphaba, acting before the girl with the actual passion in this endeavor could think. Perhaps their friendship was all the passion she'd needed. Perhaps.

“Why were you so eager to help me? Was trust really your motivation?”

The black hair girl's words immediately catch the blonde's attention as she's rubbing beneath the cub’s tired eyes. Her gaze then turns to Elphaba, trailing down to the sunken skin that matched the animal that shared her name. Galinda swallows as she hesitantly sits up a bit,

“You were my motivation, yes. I mean, you were so passionate, I couldn't help it. If you care then, I care. It's…”

Her voice trails off as she gently reaches forward, cupping the girl before her's cheek and running her thumb along the bag beneath her eye, “It's as simple as that.”

Just as she begins to hear the gears turn, she hears the thump in Elphie's chest, her palm beginning to warm as Elphaba blushes bright. She can't help but smile, just as wide as she had with the cub, who was now frolicking and sniffing around the pond. Something about making Elphie crack, just putting a small dent in her tight-knit walls of security - it made Galinda's stomach swirl like she's never felt before, an unfamiliar thrill.

Elphaba, however, was experiencing a different excitement. Of being wanted. Never in her life had she ever felt the security of that, of being desired in anyway that was vulnerable and true - yet, here Galinda was, gazing into her as if she were all she could possibly want. Elphaba can't stop herself from sinking into the soft girl's palm and, just as she couldn't stop that, she doesn't even realize as she begins to cry.

She only comprehends her shallow sobs as Galinda, frantically, pulls her closer, clearly taken aback but jumping on the opportunity of comfort. She rests Elphaba's forehead to her shoulder, one hand gently cradling her face as the other gently rubs her back. Her gentle tone coos into her ear, with the same genuine calm it had held at the Ozdust ball. How Galinda was always getting her so emotional? Oz knows. Elphaba doesn't even want to ponder anything as she sinks into Galinda's chest, letting her tears soak the already dirty blazer but quickly sniffling and quieting herself.

“You're okay, Elphie, I'm here…”

The blonde pulls Elphie's face up slightly, just to look into her as she whispers soft comforts to her, the kind that threaten Elphaba's tear ducts to burst again. To force them closed, Elphaba starts to softly unbutton the blonde's blazer, knowing that the grime will quickly come to her attention and drive her mad,

“Oh— thank you, Elphie, you don't have to…” Galinda almost sounds breathless as Elphaba shimmys the sleeves off her arms, her delicate cheeks slightly flushing from the other girl's proximity. She almost feels shameful at her fluster, seeing as how the girl causing the warmth was just sobbing into her mere moments ago.

“Let me do this for you.”

The words brust against Galinda's ear, breathy and soft, making her heart sink to her stomach and her throat clench. Elphaba stands with the blazer and slings it over her bike, dinging the bell with a smirk,

“We should, um, likely get going.”

“Yes, yes, right, of course.” Galinda quickly jumps to her feet, dusting off her disgusting skirt and turning back, gazing into Elphie's eyes one last time. Well, not truly. This would just be the last time they belonged to her furry friend,

“Bye, Elphie!!” She calls out before hopping on her bike, watching as the cub moves deeper into the wood, the only sound besides the echoing branches being Elphaba's amused cackle.

They ride off, back towards Shiz, Galinda's eyes trained on her blazer, gingerly bouncing over Elphaba's shoulder. The thought of the dirt and tears and what would look like battle scars getting all over Elphaba's clothes would normally disgust her but, the fact that Elphaba chose for it to be so almost makes it darling.

[chisterymalky]

i just remember in the book, in the Vinkus chapter, how Sarima's sisters mentioned how Elphaba didn't come out to celebrate Lurlinemas (their version of Christmas) with them, and them going all "ooh what a grinch she is" (not exactly cause the Grinch doesn't exist in Oz but you get what i'm saying)

and like...Ten years ago Fiyero was murdered that same day. The day she was sent on her first mission and failed. She's grieving for him / mourning him, in the only way she can. Her the staunch atheist. I...

[marchentraume]

Quick Wicked Part 1 Thoughts

Wicked (and Oz as a whole franchise) has impacted me probably the most, the songs are part of my blood, sweat, and tears as they helped me through emotionally painful chapters in my life

So the movie had a lot to live up to in my tiny little smooth brain, so here we go (SPOILERS! FOR THE MOVIE! AND WICKED AS A WHOLE!!!)

Keeping these bulleted as that's what I like best!

Part 1 is the entirety of Act 1 from the show, which they paced WONDERFULLY keeping every song and not cutting anything for length. You'd think this would make it feel long, in fact is was one of the best paced films I've seen all year, thank you Winnie Holzman for coming back and adapting it for the screen <3

I am in no way surprised it's a hit, as Act 1 has some of the best crowd pleasers in the entire show. Act 2 is where it starts to get...unique. And I can see it creating split opinions, but that depends as well how much they keep vs change for a movie

Ariana and Cynthia proved me wrong and surpassed all expectations. Wicked is a show I hold on such a high pedestal I really never had a fan cast in mind, but both charmed me to the point of tears. The comedy timing, the growth, everything from them felt so natural and genuine

Jonathan Bailey, the man that you are! Amazing how a movie actually improved on a character/relationship dynamic (Fiyero with both Elphaba and Glinda).

As whole the ENTIRE cast, from our leads to the supporting and background characters, understood the whole assignment.

To get some things I don't like out of the way: Michelle Yeoh...I have no idea why they went with the direction they gave you but it just didn't work. She has the look, her singing even was workable considering Morrible really only has two songs the entire show with prominent moments (though I wonder if Part 2 will give her one more...we'll see)

And like everyone else I was bothered by the lighting choices, such a shame as it distracted some of the beautifully radiant costumes and sets. At this point we just have to accept this is what they wanted for the films and Part 2 will be more of the same

Song wise, the stand-outs to me were 'No One Mourns the Wicked', 'What is this Feeling?', "Dancing Through Life', 'Popular', and 'Defying Gravity'. That isn't to say the remaining songs are awful, far from it. But those being the 5 standouts I think makes the most sense to grab out attention back

Can I just say, 'The Wizard and I' made me feel like I was in my room singing and reenacting it at age 12 all over again <3

If I had to pick a song I was a little disappointed on, 'I'm Not That Girl' felt a little too filler despite being a big fave of mine (though shout out to Jonathan Bailey with his subtle performance during this whole sequence)

I would still watch this movie over and over again, because it gave us a one of kinds experience from the stage while still respecting and understanding the source material. I'm so happy to exist in the timeline where we have Wicked <3

[sakyhana13]

Excerpt without context from the Gelphie fanfiction in the style of "I need to save my girlfriend who was cursed to be a monster"

(Idea based on the fact that I'm a dumbass for witches trying to rescue and detransform their girlfriend cursed by a maniac, anyone who assistiu Dungeon Meshi knows what I'm talking about. that nobody asked for, but I need to share it or I'll explode.)

Elphaba watches Glinda sleep. It's so funny, even when she's in the form of a giant cat, with a high chance of snoring and drooling. But Glinda doesn't do that; she just sleeps quietly, with short breaths and the occasional snort. Her tail twitches happily every now and then. Elphaba wonders if, in this form, Glinda still has dreams and what she would dream about. There was a time when Elphaba knew the answer to all these hypotheses. Glinda dreamed. She dreamed big, of a life of adoration by the masses and unlimited influence. She dreamed of dinners and balls, of the burlesque life that the Emerald City had to offer.

They dreamed together, one day, of building a life in this place: Elphaba as the Wizard's apprentice, and Glinda as a socialite loved and well-liked by society. One day, Glinda dreamed of marrying Fiyero. One day, Elphaba dreamed of being like Glinda. Elphaba once dreamed of being loved and respected. But that had changed, at least for Elphaba. Ever since she left Glinda in that tower, her dream after ending the wizard's tyrannical rule had always been to one day return to her arms, at least one last time. To return to Glinda and to their dormitory, to hear the clicks of Glinda's heels hitting the floor. To Glinda's nimble, delicate fingers in her hair as they rested under their favorite tree on the Suicide Canal, while Elphaba read aloud from one of her books. Elphaba's dreams were filled with nights sharing a bed with Glinda beside her, whispering secrets and nonsense. Sometimes Elphaba would wake up smelling Glinda's perfume, as if her nose were buried in her blond curls, and the heat of her body just above hers. Elphaba didn't like to dwell on the past, or to ask silly questions, but she wondered how and when she had lost all of this. She knew the answer, but sometimes she still felt disbelief that she had lost Glinda. It wasn’t even her fault. It wasn’t even Glinda’s fault. They were just the right people at the wrong time. Always at the wrong time. Could they never exist without causing each other pain? Without hurting each other or becoming fractured? Not after Shiz.

Elphaba still remembers Glinda’s raw anger at their last meeting. She hadn’t expected the slap, hadn’t expected Glinda to hurt her. But Glinda had. Elphaba hadn’t expected to hurt her sweet girl either, but she had, because in the end, she had fought back. Her hand hadn’t touched Glinda’s face to tuck a stray strand behind her ear. No. Her hand had returned the insult in kind. It had always been that way between them, hadn’t it? Always fighting back and giving back what they had received from each other. Always trying to balance the scales. If heartbreak corrupted one heart, the other would soon follow. Just as affection in one could not blossom alone. Elphaba wonders why they were destined to this. Why were their destinies so singular, yet so rhyming? Why did Glinda's song always rhyme with hers? Why couldn't she just be alone? Why couldn't she exist with a heart of her own? Why were she and Glinda woven together in the universe, even when they were in opposition? Even when they were far apart? Why was their pain shared? Why was Glinda always following her, even when she didn't want to? Even trapped in this form where she was not remembered, where all Glinda knew was that someone had taken care of her when she was hurt. When all that was left of Elphaba in Glinda's psyche was a stranger. When they had already been so much more than that… She doesn't know how to reverse this, doesn't know how to heal her. She needed the Grimmerie to even look for a hint, a suggestion, but she also didn't want to try to use the damn book and make things worse.

[moistvonlipwig]

this is the dumbest fucking post ever oh my fucking god. hey you know these people aren't REAL right. when people complain that fiyero was an unnecessary insertion into the story whose sole purpose in the musical is to heterosexualize elphaba & glinda they are not saying he is a bad person. they are talking about the WRITING. he didn't need to fucking EXIST in the musical frankly. book fiyero is a different character who even gregory maguire admitted was only there for "boy fluff" but he at least serves some kind of purpose to the book's narrative which is much more about elphaba's descent into being the wicked witch we see in the wizard of oz movie. the musical centralizes the elphaba/glinda relationship in a way the book doesn't (yay) but it ALSO makes fiyero a much bigger deal and creates a love triangle between him and glinda and elphaba and tries to sell him as this perfect guy who is elphaba's One True Love all while making him white and boring (*my biggest eyeroll ever*). once they decided to make the musical less about elphaba's tragic life and more about a complex female relationship they should've axed the "boy fluff" altogether and they blatantly only didn't so it wouldn't seem too gay. give me a fucking break i can't stand all the heteronormativity defenders coming out of the woodwork to praise musical fiyero in the year of some guy 2024

[professorspork]

Any fun general observations from your Wicked watching so far? Top five scene pairs? Or maybe top five pairs you wish could exist but never did?

this has been sitting in my inbox for almost a week and the problem is i have so MANY thoughts but also i've been too busy watching ice skating and then also more wicked to actually put any of them down

most true rankings i really want to hold off on until the project is complete because i want the full data to work with, but some spare thoughts:

I am easier on Elphies than I am Glindas, but a Truly Good Elphaba is. a rare magical gift of joy

that said, i have never had an Elphie I've HATED, whereas I do have Nemeses for the other leads. I've had Elphies that underwhelm or seem mismatched but never one where I was like "girl stop." and for being now ten years into my run that is. damn impressive??? even the elphies i've had that were least to my taste it's only made me want to see them with different casts to get a better picture

I am pained constantly by the fact that allegedly there IS a full Mendez/Clarke/Klena video boot out there in the universe but it is lost to the sands of time or the disney vault or w/e like. the pairings that Never Were tickle my brain certainly why did Nicole Parker never get a good Glinda SHE DESERVED IT but what tortures me far more are the things i know DID exist that were never recorded. like yes i have Many kara lindsay boots in my hopper now but i DON'T have full shows of her with her and Jonah Platt with either Rachel Tucker or Christine Dwyer and that kills me

which: having a good Fiyero matters so much it matters SO MUCH

i LOVE it when The Girls Are Fightinggggg but i have to believe what they're fighting over MATTERS

the one problem with watching these in chronological order is that by this point it's almost impossible for a Glinda to do something KRC didn't do first, and on the rare occasion Katie didn't do it, Kendra Kassebaum probably did. and then it's like Did You Also Separately Come Up With The Idea of A Frankenstein's Monster Or What

[lollytea]

i don't know if you've seen but there was a whole deleted scene for the wicked movie where we'd have seen a montage of elphaba, glinda, fiyero, boq, and nessa doing different things together as a friend group at shiz and they'd all sing a brief reprise (like, a single verse) of dancing through life. honestly i liked that the wicked movie didn't add a bunch of brand new plot beats and songs because it would've been pretty easy to mess things up/disappoint fans of the musical who didn't like the additions, and what they did add mostly felt pretty respectful of the source material imo, but as a longtime fan this was something i DO wish they'd kept in. i think it would've been a lot of fun and helped act 2 make a bit more sense, if we saw that despite the messiness of their relationships all of these people really were friends for a little while. also might've made boq/nessa feel even more tragic if you could imagine that even though he was leading her on and didn't love her romantically, there were still times when he had fun being with her.

I did see it! And I'm so sad it wasn't included, but I guess I understand. The movie's runtime was already pushing it and I suppose if they NEEDED to make a shorter cut, I admire them for only deleting the scenes that were movie exclusives so they could keep as much of the source material as possible. But also I hope they eventually release an extended cut because it was SO CUTE!!

I think it definitely adds more than it subtracts from the source material. In the musical, none of these characters were shown to be all that tight knit, they were all at least close with one or two of the others, but they were never a friend group. But like ya, as you said, them being close when they were young makes the inevitable unravelling of their lives, and the resentment that they all develop for each other makes it all hit so much harder.

It also might not be faithful to the musical but it's a cute nod to the book in which all five of these characters WERE in a friend group together (as well as a few other characters) that they called the Charmed Circle. Like if they're gonna include one detail from the book, that's definitely one that serves the story well.

Anyway ya like I think it would have been a valuable inclusion for a ton of reasons. Like.

I always thought that the length of time between Ozdust and Elphaba leaving for the Emerald City was quite vague and it's never made clear for just how long Elphaba and Glinda have been friends. It was probably way longer than a week, but a week is kinda how it felt. The montage works well to make it seem like quite a substantial chunk of time has passed. Long enough that all these characters have become comfortable with each other and enjoy each other's company. Long enough that Elphaba has warmed up to Fiyero. Long enough that Glinda has warmed up to Boq.

On the subject of that, Boq and Glinda actually being friends when they were young rather than Boq just admiring her from afar and Glinda barely acknowledging his existence would contextualize the obsessive crush on her he had for YEARS afterwards. Like yeah it's still weird but at least he actually knew her.

And also Fiyero being in Elphaba's orbit gives her so much more time to observe him in a less chaotic setting so she can come to the conclusion that he's deeply unhappy. The two of them being at least acquaintances within a friend group BEFORE the lion cub incident would provide a lot more foundation to that scene in the forest. They DO know each other, they're already to starting to develop an attraction, the lion cub incident just solidified it.

I would LOVE those extra scenes of Boq and Nessa dating and genuinely being fond of each other, even if it's not romantic on Boq's end. Like he DID love her, in a way. It's so much sadder when he DOES love her.

There's also the moments between Elphaba and Nessa that are interesting. It's never explicitly stated in the movie but considering Elphaba spent most of her time alone before she befriended Glinda, it's implied that Nessa was distancing herself. She didn't outright shut her out, having a giddy exchange with her in the library, but she definitely wasn't making an effort to support her while she was being bullied. So the fact that they're happily spending time together as friends is so lovely. Especially considering how Elphaba seemed to believe that Nessa was ashamed of her. It's like they were finally mending their strained relationship, which would AGAIN make part 2 hit so much harder.

Overall the scene really hammers home the point of "Everything's coming up Elphaba!", especially considering it happens directly after Fiyero tells her she doesn't have to act like Glinda to be worthy of love. I think that moment, as well as the "Popular" sequence really boosted her confidence enough that she didn't shy away from this friend group being formed. So at this point she has Glinda, her sister, two silly boys who are also her friends, Dr Dillamond, Madame Morrible and the promise of her wildest dreams coming true. Elphaba is the happiest she's ever been. God! Nothing like building a character up just to knock them down so painfully.

(Some miscellaneous details about the scene that are unrelated but I want to yap about

Glinda wearing Elphaba's boots is so cute but also so symbolic of her taking bits and pieces of Elphaba and making them a part of herself. Imagine Galinda Arduenna Upland wearing big black chunky boots! What if somebody saw? Well I don't think she cares at all right now.

That pic of the scene where Fiyero is pushing Nessa's chair. That implies a lot! It's a little strange because I know it's made very clear that Nessa doesn't like other people touching her chair and I doubt the film would overlook that. My guess is that it's probably just rough terrain and she needs a little help. But even still, it's very cute that she apparently trusts Fiyero enough to push her. I like the thought that they're friends.

There's a part where Fiyero and Boq take their shirts off and I think the joke, as it's implied in the script is that Fiyero strips first and looks hot. And then Boq strips next and is significantly less impressive. But also I was thinking about how Ethan Slater was a wrestler at one point and I think it would bea lot funnier if Fiyero got his moment of looking hot and then Boq took his shirt off and was shown to be WAY more jacked. That might have been the way the scene turned out when they filmed it, I don't know. I think Boq being unexpectedly swole is hilarious.)

[quetzalpapalotl]

Watched Wicked and I liked it was more than I expected (which was not at all, I went bc a friend invited me and they watched TF One for me). But wow, the yuri was so good. Or maybe I have low standards, but I was so so invested in that relationship from the beginning just from seeing Glinda conflicted during the song celebrating Elphie's death. Also let's be real, I love vain characters, I love women full of themselves and Glinda only wears pink, she was made for me to like her.

Don't know why Fiyero exists, maybe he'll make more sense in the second part, but I was annoyed by him beyond getting in the way of my ship like, I have no idea where his romance with Elphaba comes from??? Like at least there was some modicum of chemistry with Glinda when they first flirted, but even putting the insane Glinda/Elphie chemistry aside idk how I'm supposed to buy Elphie suddenly singing a sad pinning song over him. Like what???? I could even buy him developing a thing for Elphie bc she's great, but Elphie for him really just feels forced.

I liked the evil magic mentor and also I liked Elphie's sister, too bad she's gonna get crushed by a house I guess.

I liked the dances but I didn't like the songs, like, at all. Which is no good.

But the yuri was so good, oh my god.

[astrallithid]

* ROMANCE HEADCANONS!

NAME: balduran

NICKNAME: baldur ⎛ hence why everything is called baldur's something lmao ⎠ , ranny ⎛ from willem! ⎠

ROMANTIC ORIENTATION: pansexual

PREFERRED PET NAMES: he has been called many terms of affection in various languages- most of them translate to 'darling' or 'lover' or whatnot.

RELATIONSHIP STATUS: he's so very smitten with a certain poet ⎛ willem ⎠ and there's a pink tiefling who is always on his mind ⎛ which i guess is fair because he has been literally IN hers ... if you know you know ⎠

FAVORITE CANON/FANDOM SHIP: back in faerûn ... balduran and ansur ... have me in a chokehold. i also slap balduran with dradeel! he had a dymanic with belynne that awakens something in me too lmao. in spirale, of course, balduran and willem, and also balduran and fiyero's budding romance brings me so much joy

OPINION ON TRUE LOVE: of course it exists, and so do soulmates! ansur was his soulmate ... it ended badly but it didn't change his opinion of it!

OPINION ON LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT: balduran's not exactly sure of this one- because he was such a flirt back when he was truly human. a good looking sailor who hit on everyone at the taverns he went to? the one who flirted his way through most of his adventures? the one who seduced a dragon? ' the love and admiration of 200 men ' balduran ... are you for real ... he certainly believes in lust at first sight, he's been there plenty of times ... but love is something he thinks has to grow and be nurtured.

HOW ‘ROMANTIC’ ARE THEY?: in a serious relationship, he is all about very specific romantic gestures that are in fact tailored to the desires of his loved one. he's incredibly observant, and as an illithid he can read minds lmao so it makes him really good at knowing what someone wants. in casual relationships he's physically affectionate and playful, prone to inviting people 'out for some time together' and the likes. he seems more relaxed in a no strings attached situation because he's been so traumatized by actual romance, but he is in fact a hopeless romantic under everything ...

IDEAL PHYSICAL TRAITS: when i say balduran slept with literally anyone who also wanted to sleep with him, i mean it. he has taken individuals of all genders and races to his bed- there's a famous story of how he shared the bed of a cambion and walked out with his soul in tact ⎛ and somehow tricked her with a turnip??? ⎠ - if he can learn how to please someone's physical body in this regard, that's what he cares about.

IDEAL PERSONALITY TRAITS: balduran likes someone who is confident and can challenge him. he likes intellectuals and people with a strong sense of honor- the latter because it was a nice compliment to his ... uh. well, he was a pirate turned paladin, so his morals were always a little skewed. he values kindness and acceptance, but more than anything he values someone who puts their own freedom first. he loves people who also love themselves.

UNATTRACTIVE PHYSICAL TRAITS: not so much unattractive so much as he can get flustered if he can't figure out how to navigate a partner's physical body. the body should be just as pleasured as the mind and soul, and so of course it's less fun if one of those aspects isn't there- but he wouldn't say he can think of any unattractive physical traits.

UNATTRACTIVE PERSONALITY TRAITS: those who simply follow mindlessly. balduran is all about freedom, and it's been shown that in most situations he will put himself and his own freedom first. he's always been a rather self-centered person in that way, so he doesn't know how to feel anything but pity and sometimes flat out disdain for those who act ... 'like thralls' ...

IDEAL DATE: that changes depending on who he's with!

DO THEY HAVE A TYPE?: uh. does he?????

AVERAGE RELATIONSHIP LENGTH: well, his relationship with ansur lasted a fair amount of time, but obviously the fact that he turned into a mind flayer was ... the reason the relationship ended. balduran met dradeel when he was 25, he and dradeel were together until his 'last voyage'- balduran was 36 when that happened, so 11 years. his relationship with belynne couldn't have been more than like 5 years ⎛ i do not know the timeline i just make it up as i go ⎠

PREFERRED NON-SEXUAL INTIMACY: just being able to sit in comfort with someone. balduran reads minds, people don't have to talk to just know and understand each other and that's nice. he enjoys casual intimacy, fixing someone's tie, brushing a lock of hair away from his lover's face, that sort of thing.

COMMITMENT LEVEL: a lot. in his most devoted relationships, it's the only time where he WON'T put himself first. he becomes- in his mind- irrational, taking risks that he otherwise wouldn't. or putting himself in danger of being enthralled himself, or at risk of DYING, and balduran isn't usually that type. a surefire way to know he loves you is when he really starts showing that to maintain your life and freedom is worth risking his own.

OPINION OF PUBLIC AFFECTION: balduran likes public affection! he will give kisses and caresses whenever his lover wants! he also does that when he flirts ⎛ especially if he's flirting while drunk ... ⎠

PAST RELATIONSHIPS?: ansur. dradeel. belynne stelmane. and literally every other person he may or may not have seduced during his adventures lmao. but the first 3 are his serious relationships of the past.

[thewomaninlilywhite]

My thoughts on Wicked Part One

Disclaimer: unfortunately, the 3 scenes I judge a production of Wicked on (WWotE, Cat Fight, ALAYM) are all in part two... so, as much as I enjoyed this first part, I am hesitant to get my hopes up.

That being said, the production itself was incredible--set, costumes*, lighting: chef's kiss--the orchestrations gave me chills, the end of defying gravity was even better than I had expected; overall 10/10

*I would have liked them to keep the black and white costumes for Ozdust because that's my FAVOURITE scene (visually) from the musical; and I love the bit of Glinda and Nessa being the only ones in pink (albeit Nessa in a lighter shade; re: her paling in comparison to Galinda in Boq's eyes)

I loved the opening so much

Glad (as a sex repulsed ace) Melena's affair wasn't overly sexualised (I hope this holds true to ALAYM since that's one of my fave songs)

Little Elphie and little Nessa!! (Idk about young Nessa but I love how they actually cast a disabled actress as grown-up Nessa)

Also using Dulcibear as a means of how Elphie takes to the plight of Animals, aside the obvious fact that she's used to being "othered"

(Obvs this character is based on Nanny, but is there a similar character/character with this name in the WWOO books? I've never actually read them)

I like the addition of the Headmistress character; I think it helps abate Madame Morrible's power to make her working with the wizard more of a twist

Genuinely love how dorky/quirky Cynthia made Elphie; Wizard and I might have been the highlight song/scene for me

I liked Nessa but her voice seemed kinda weak so I'm curious how she's gonna be in act two (I had the same opinion of the woman who played the role last time I saw the show on Broadway, and her WWotE became one of my faves so there is hope!!)

I really liked Fiyero riding a Horse, and treating him like a fellow sentient being. It was a little detail that I think gives more depth to his choice to help Elphaba with the cub/her trusting him with the cub

WiTF and Popular were somehow gayer than the stage version which was *chefs kiss*

Also short Elphie my beloved. As someone who is only 5' tall and always identified more with Elphie, I always hc'd her as tiny, even though she's supposed to be tall lol

The subtle accessibility alterations in Dr Dillamond's hut that don't really exist in his classroom (there's a statement here if you wanna write it -- I don't I'm still sick and very tired)

As for the Cameo in OSD -- exactly who I figured it was referring to when I saw people being like "don't spoil the cameo", but way more featured than I'd expected. I wish the story was more based on Oz lore though -- maybe making them Lurline and Ozma instead of just "the wise ones" -- it made the whole thing sound kinda forced

Things from the book I was hoping made the film, since I heard people saying they were incorporating elements from it???:

Boq and Elphie knowing each other as kids

Dr Dillamond dying ???

Dr Nikidik being NAMED

Fiyero versus the Antlers

Brrr being named -- and the whole "how can you define an animal v Animal before it learns to speak" lecture

Cribbett 

ShenShen and Pfannee being explicitly named -- like, they're credited that way ????

"Hold out my sweet" -- even if they didn't kiss !????

Gelphie road to the emerald city (the definition of the Only One Bed trope smh)

Fiyero being dark-skinned having tattoos

[deuterosapiens]

Haven't said much more about Wicked since starting it, but, in my defense, most of what's happened hasn't exactly seemed too noteworthy. What is noteworthy, based on some tentative research on my part, is that evidently the show removes Elphaba and Fiyero's son, Liir. Who seems to exist entirely to act as a punching bag for Fiyero's other children. That particular episode ended with one of them actually attempting to murder him, leading to Elphaba basically pulling a Lovely Bones on the scoundrel via icicle.

So I guess the show just cuts this entire section out or something?

Oh, and that thing I guessed would be a thing I have to contend with? Yes, in a brothel. The human in this scenario was traumatized afterwards.

The more I read, the more curious I am about how much has been changed or removed to make this a family production. If I didn't know any better, I would almost swear I was reading the wrong book. I actually am kind of digging it though, in a way. The prose is insanely beautiful, even when it stops to be really, really weird. And yeah, this one's really, really weird.

[falsifiedshallowed]

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FIYERO wasn't one for deep contemplation. If anything, that was something which the male found himself purposely avoiding amongst most circumstances as, although he was one who seemingly prided himself on an existence of carelessness to the public eye, internally it were a game of 'tag' taking place in the forefront of his mind involving just about every emotion you could imagine - usually negative - chasing him around the labyrinth that was his own cluster of thoughts until it overwhelmed him enough to shut him down. He never told anyone of such, of course but on occasion even he could note that his thoughtless and outgoing nature was an evident façade. The key word here is 'note' as he knew better than anyone that acknowledgment meant facing the problem and he wasn't going to be one to do that anytime soon. Perhaps he could stick to just subconscious awareness. All he had to do was run fast enough, keep himself constantly moving and he would be the winner of this game. That was what he told himself anyway, he refused to accept that a single metaphorical twist of the ankle that could force him to slow down could change things forever. So, had anyone been planning to tell him that the twist of the ankle would have been a girl who he (well, not him, per say but an affiliate of him while he slept comfortably in the back of said carriage) nearly ran over with a Goddamn carriage? But that was a story for another day. And a long one, at that.

Regardless of such factors, it was getting increasingly more difficult to not let his thoughts get to him when he were wondering around a city that . . . definitely not home even though that term meant a million different things to him as of late but this sure as hell wasn't one of them. It resembled nothing of anything he knew and that alone put him in a state of utter unease regardless of how his feet kept moving him forward. In actuality, a lot wasn't making sense to him right now but I think in these circumstances, we gotta deal with everything one step at a time. This also meant that actually paying attention to those around him wasn't of the utmost priority to him so, when he turned the corner and was seconds away from nearly slamming into another body, Fiyero didn't react until it was clear that walking around them wasn't exactly an option as of right now and jerking himself to the side only meant that it was their shoulders that made contact as opposed to their faces prior to hitting the ground so, maybe that was an improvement? It was astonishing how someone could be so good yet awful on their feet at the same time.

" SORRY, sorry - Going to be honest, I did not see you coming," The boy began as a more light-hearted jab at an apology while he attempted to scramble back up to his feet (it worked after a few good effects) before reaching a hand out in the direction of the latest victim of his own absentmindedness, "I hope I didn't make you break a rib or anything like that." ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀(@walstarterblog)