A/N: Funnier today? I hope so. I was in a really strange mood this afternoon - but then, that's nothing new.

Part IV

Admittedly her ego was a little bruised, but Glinda never let such setbacks trouble her for long. Her thoughts returned to their earlier train, yet another hare-brained scheme hatching behind her wide blue eyes.

So intent was our young friend on her byzantine plots, that absolutely nothing caught her interest. In fact, it was the day before a conjuration test, and the campus fairly crackled with miscast energy. In her short walk back to the dorm block, the hapless blonde was subject to a series of mishaps - a sharp shower of jelly beans pattered off her head; a troupe of singing penguins pirouetted by; the fountain had been turned into a giant fudge gateau, which was soon surrounded by a flock of ladies' hats, all gaily launching themselves at the vast cake, one by one. It was only when the gargoyle above the hall's main door burst into the strains of a tenor aria that Glinda dimly wondered if things were somewhat amiss. Inside, there were no signs of the raging anarchy. Absently shaking confectionary out of her cuffs, Glinda dropped her satchel in a corner of their room, already turning to check the clock. Elphaba should be headed to the library any time…

As yet, even the efforts of a crack team of postgrads had failed to subdue the chaos out of doors. Incredibly, Glinda still noticed none of it as she calmly re-crossed the battle-scarred lawns. Murderous flights of silverware whizzed past above her head, impacting an oak tree which let out a high "miaow". A stricken second year called for her help in vain, cornered by an strangely amorous plate of chops. Glinda reached her destination unharassed, only stumbling as the top step nibbled at her toes.

The library was oddly, even eerily calm. But sure enough, up in her accustomed refuge, Elphaba sat, alone at last. Her foul mood had only deepened in the past half hour, and her fuming passage through still more pointless irritants had been marked by furious swearing and heavy, booted thumps. Then, just as her tensed shoulders began loose their load…

"Hello!!" an all-too-familiar voice called.

"Glinda," she grated, resettling her glasses wearily. "Is it worth asking what you are doing here?"

"Actually, I'm looking for this play I used to know."

The green girl was quite alarming in her natural habitat. Nervous, Glinda unwisely began to improvise.

"It's for - er… - my Intro to Politics class. They want us to prepare a dramatic scene. You know, to… - to boost our confidence."

Just as her powers of invention wound down, Glinda mercifully found what she'd been looking for.

"Here it is!" she flourished a tattered volume. "Look!" Elphie flinched as Glinda shoved the book under her nose.

"Over The Rainbow," Elphaba read. "What is it with you and all the drugs today?"

"Elphaba! No drugs!" chided Glinda indignantly. "It's a comedy, a famous one I'll have you know."

"Ok…" sneered Elphie sceptically.

"Really! There's this girl, she's carried by a hurricane -"

" - Well, that's ridiculous for a start…"

A/N 2: So, who wants Glinda to read a scene from that renowned masterwork, Over The Rainbow, otherwise known as Oz: The Pantomime? No prizes for guessing where I went this past Christmas. Warning - may include crazed or scandalous content. Audience participation is required. And for those non-Brits who have no idea what I'm on about...that's what Google is for!