Fiyero was glad he'd picked Elphaba's name out of the hat, because he felt like nobody else would really put thought into what she'd actually want. But it was daunting, trying to think of a good Lurlinemas present for his best friend. Obviously, Galinda was easy. Expensive, but easy. And despite the Secret Lurline pact the friends had, he knew his girlfriend would still expect gifts from him, regardless of whose name he'd drawn. He could get through Galinda's gifts with a chunk of cash and a trip to a store that sold sparkly things. He wasn't worried about shopping for Galinda. But Elphaba... he was glad she wouldn't end up with a frilly pink dress that Galinda thought she "might sort of like plus itwouldlooksocuteoneherIswear", or something practical, like socks, from Nessa, or... whatever Boq would have thought of. He was only sad it fell on him to top the gifts she would have gotten from the girls or the man caught in between them.

It was a big deal to him, to get her present just right, and he was determined to do it.

Since meeting Galinda, and, subsequently, her room mate, a couple months earlier, Fiyero had found himself with his first group of real friends. He'd always been surrounded by people, but never felt the kind of bond with them that he was sure he had with this group. He'd especially found a kindred spirit in Elphaba, the only girl in history (well, except for Nessa... Perhaps it was genetic?) who hadn't fallen all over herself to try to marry him. (He always shuddered at how quickly girls were planning their wedding so soon after meeting him.) Elphaba was different. She was spiky, and fierce, extremely loyal and a damn good friend. She was all sorts of things contradictory and strange, and he loved it. They were partners in crime, and he went to her with all his deepest secrets, fears and dreams.

What could he get for her? He wanted her to know how much her friendship meant to him, he wanted to show that he'd listened to her just as much as she'd listened to him. She was beyond special, the best friend he'd ever had, and she deserved a Lurlinemas gift for the record books.

He was completely stumped.

"I saw this absutively gorgerific dress at l'Oz Parfait the other day," Galinda suggested, when he mentioned that he was trying to think of a good gift. He didn't really expect Galinda to have any genius ideas, but perhaps she'd heard Elphaba mention something.

"Was it pink?"

Galinda paused, knowing she was caught. "Well... yes. But it was a nice pink, Fi! And pink goes really good with green."

"I don't want to buy her something I want her to have, I want to buy her something she wants to have."

Galinda's eyebrows almost furrowed, and would have, save for years of training in not making faces that could leave frown lines. "You said 'want' a lot of times, and you lost me."

Fiyero yawned to cover his chuckle. "I know if you'd pulled Elphaba's name, you'd have gotten her something you wanted her to have. But I think she should get something she really wants, and I don't know what that could be. Has she mentioned anything?"

"Fiyero, you're sure putting a lot of thought into this. I already got Boq's present," Galinda shrugged.

Oh no. "What did you get him?"

"Socks. They have snowmen on them!"

Fiyero groaned. "Lin..." she hated when he called her that. There wasn't a 'Ga' to be found in that nickname. "You can't just get him socks!"

"Why not? They're cute."

"Because they probably cost five dollars, and five minutes to pick out. You should think about Boq, and really try to get him something that will mean something." He smiled encouragingly at her. "I have to go. I've got a study session that's likely to end my life."

He kissed her quickly and left, shutting the door just in time to miss her small, confused, "But they're so cute."

Fiyero had to smile at Galinda's... lack of regard for Boq. She had learned to be a little more involved in Elphaba's life, and she was very invested in Fiyero, but that was about as far as her effort went when it came to other people. Galinda was, for lack of a kinder phrase, self-centered. It wasn't that Fiyero thought she should be, he was simply amused at how someone who thought so little of others could be so adored by them. He knew he shouldn't be amused by something like that, but he took his pleasures where he could, especially since befriending Elphaba.

Dancing through life had been a lot of fun, if not a little empty and, honestly, lonely. But Elphaba had demanded more of him, and he'd found himself becoming more serious, more aware. He didn't begrudge her the growth he'd experienced; he was proud to make her proud. But it was odd to him that only a few months before, he would have told Galinda that she'd found a great gift, and then probably tried to make out with her. He stubbornly held onto an appreciation for frivolous things, determined not to lose all lightheartedness. Galinda's naive selfishness was one of those things.

"Elphaba!"

Many people turned to stare, and Fiyero realized he had shouted kind of loudly when he spotted her. But he couldn't help it... he wanted to get her attention! She stopped and waited while he jogged to catch up to her. "You're on time for our study session, Master Fiyero," she smiled, raising an eyebrow. "You must have started primping hours ago!"

She always teased him, always called them study sessions rather than dates (and insisted he do the same) and always called him Master Fiyero when she was teasing him. "That I did, Miss Elphaba," he grinned. "Do you like my hair?"

She gazed at it for a moment, eyes sparkling, and nodded. "It's luscious," she commented, her face hovering somewhere between a smirk and a smile.

"Luscious," he repeated. "That's a ten-Ozbuck word. I like the way it rolls off the tongue. Luscious." She looked at him as if he'd just wet his pants, and he felt foolish. "What? Why are you looking at me like I'm a fool?"

She shook her head. "I don't know... I suppose that was just... quite the reaction to a word."

"Don't you think it's a lovely word?"

Fiyero's eyes were twinkling with mischief. He was flirting with her again, she knew. He did it often, she assumed it was because he liked making her squirm. She'd never been flirted with; he knew how uncomfortable she was with it. "It's decent."

"Come on," he drawled. "Luscious... fruit, luscious pillows, luscious lips..."

"Alright, Master Fiyero, that's enough out of you. Let's go."

He pouted a little, but she wouldn't be swayed. "I'm going to make a list of every luscious thing I like, and you'll realize after hearing it that I am absolutely correct about the word."

She rolled her eyes. "You're a fool."

"Ah, but you put up with me," he pointed out.

She froze, realizing it was true. "You're right, I do," she said, quietly. "I do."

Two hours later, brain throbbing, Fiyero had learned a decent amount of History but had no leads on the Elphaba Gift Mission. Operation Perfect Present was going to destroy him, he knew. She dragged him out of his chair. "Come on, they're closing the library," she said.

"Don't you, like, have a key anyway?"

"Who told you about that?" She whirled to face him, and immediately realized she should have kept her mouth shut. His eyebrows raised in surprise, and she would have slapped her palm to her forehead if her arms hadn't been full of books.

"You have a key to the library?"

She shifted. "No, I... Well, sort of."

"Sort of, as in, you do, but you don't want to admit it?" She stared stubbornly at the floor, and he relented. "Elphie -"

"Don't call me that."

He grinned. "Elphaba," he tried again. "You deserve a key. You're a great student, and you study harder than anyone around here, and you'd never do anything wrong... It's an honour, that they gave you one. Congratulations!

She smiled. "Thanks, Yero," she murmured.

He flushed. He always did when she called him Yero, and he couldn't figure out why. Perhaps because he lived for it, because when she said it, it made his heart leap with joy. He'd never told her, though, and, thusfar, had been lucky enough to find ways to hide his pink cheeks or excuse them. On this particular occasion, it was pretty dark in the library, and he was sure the change in colour wasn't apparent. "Shall I walk you back?"

"No," she said, as she always did. "It's not necessary."

They fell into step. He always walked her back, after offering and being turned down. It was their little joke, now. They had many little jokes. Both were grateful to have a close friend, though neither had ever admitted out loud that they thought of the other as their best friend. Galinda would have murdered them both for not choosing her, and, honestly, Elphaba felt guilty that she felt closer to Fiyero. She'd decided awhile back that Fiyero and Galinda were tied, that there was no choosing one over the other, and that her brain would just have to live with that.

Fiyero knew that Galinda wanted to be his best friend. She brainlessly referred to Elphaba as her "bestest, dearest friend in the whole wide Oziverse", but that didn't mean he was allowed to have anyone but her as a best friend. She wanted to know him better than anyone, and, though she did not, there was no point in telling her so.

"Thanks for the help," he said, careful to keep his voice down. Galinda was probably waiting for Elphaba to get home. It wasn't that Fiyero wanted to lie to his girlfriend, it was just that... sometimes she wanted to come along. Galinda was not a good study partner. She simply wanted to be around Fiyero, and felt left out when he was studying with Elphaba. Neither could say no to the blonde, and so they'd end up attempting to study for twenty minutes, then giving in to her pleas to go shopping or to a café. More often than not, Fiyero took the fall, leaving Elphaba to study in peace. After all, it was always he who gave in to Galinda's request to come along; why should Elphaba's studies suffer because he couldn't say no to his girlfriend?

"My pleasure," she whispered back. "See you tomorrow in class?"

"Of course. Night, Elphie."

"Don't call me that," she reminded him, before turning and disappearing into her dorm.