Title: "In The Night" Rating: T Pairing: Elphaba/Glinda (friendship), Elphaba/Fiyero

New Disclaimer: I started and posted this story many years ago, then it became abandoned when as I became busy with other things and slowly stopped writing. Just recently, was looking at some old stories and decided I want to give it another shot. This is a newly edited, expanded version of the Prologue and the first chapter, so even if you happened to have read it already I suggest you do it again because changes have been made. I also have no beta reader, so any mistakes are mine.

Old Disclaimer: I do not own "Wicked" or the characters you recognize. I think we all know who does...The Prologue was originally intended as a drabble but I decided to make it into a chapter story. Chapters will be getting longer. Post-musical. The stuff in italics represents Glinda's thoughts and memories. Please leave feedback.

Prologue

The horrible screams echoed off stone walls and through vacant hallways, filling the cavernous rooms of Kiamo Ko and forever etching themselves into the mind of the petite blonde women hidden deep within the confines of a small closet. She huddled in the farthest corner, clutching a book closely to her as she gaped in horror at the closed door that led to the main room. "May I cut in?" Smoke seeped under the door, just a little at first but soon it poured in as the screams grew in intensity. "Can I call you Elphie?" "It's a little perky..." The smoke began to fill the small room, catching in the woman's nose and throat as she tried to breathe. She fought her instinct to cough, nearly gagging on the gray cloud that seemed insistent on choking her. She mustn't cough. No one could know she was there. She couldn't breathe. "I want to remember this moment, always." The screams still pierced the night. The screams of her former roommate, her dearest friend. Her Elphie. "Come with me."

Her head pounded as if the screams were burrowing their way into her brain. It was as if they were trying to dig up distant memories. Things that seemed to have happened so long ago but were never truly forgotten- a first day at college, a dance, sharing secrets...an ill-fated trip to the Emerald City. "Together we're unlimited." They rang through her head, as shrill as the screams but even more piercing. It felt as if her cerebellum were about to explode. Then silence. Total and complete silence. The sound of footsteps came next, signaling the departure of the intruders from the other room. She waited while the footsteps grew faint. She waited until they too had become a memory. Then she waited in the silence for what seemed to her an eternity before she even attempted to stand. She set the book down, hiding it under some old fabric. The book would be left in the safety of the closet. In the safety she could not bear to remain in but craved so tremendously. Slowly, cautiously, she pushed open the closet door.

"Elphie?" She barely recognized her own voice sounding weak but thick with tears yet to be shed. She didn't have to see the room to know what had happened. She knew before she had opened the door. She knew before she called her best friend's name. Even so, she was not prepared for the sight that awaited her. The room was empty, devoid of any signs that another living being had been there. All except for the black pointed hat sitting in the middle of the floor, almost as if it was awaiting its owner's return. "It's really, uh... sharp, don't you think?"

The woman staggered forward, trying to swallow the lump that had formed in her throat. Once again she felt like she couldn't breathe, only this time it was not the smoke that was stopping her. Silently she knelt besides the hat and gently picked it up. She opened her mouth to take a deep breath but all that came out was a choked sob. She clutched the hat to her chest as the tears began to run freely down her face. "Oh, Elphie!"

It was then that Glinda the Good awoke, no longer in the cold and foreboding walls of Kiamo Ko but in her own bedroom. It had been nearly two years since Elphaba's death. Nearly two years since Glinda first heard the screams that haunted her ever since. Fearing another nightmare, she pushed away her pink comforter and climbed out of her bed to go to the window. At her request, it faced the west. "So if you care to find me, look to the western sky."

Below, the citizens of the Emerald City were preparing for their annual celebration of the deaths of the "Wicked Witches". Glinda could hear their laughter and gaiety even through her closed bedroom window. It used to make her so happy to hear that noise, but now it caused a nauseous feeling to creep into her stomach. Everything Elphaba had done, she did for these people who now celebrated her death. She tried to show them who the Wizard really was, to protect them. And now they were all but dancing on her grave. Glinda wanted to yell down at them, tell them the truth about everything. To tell them how wrong they were. To set the record straight once and for all, no matter what the cost.

"Don't try to clear my name." No, she couldn't. She had promised Elphaba. She had to keep her promise. With everything Elphaba had done for her, the least she could do was keep her promise. Glinda took a deep breath. She had to stay calm today. She was expected to give a speech at the festivities. She knew it would take all the will power she had not to have a nervous breakdown in front of the crowd. Now wouldn't that be something? She could just see the headline in the "Emerald City Times": 'Glinda the Good Becomes Hysterical During Anniversary of Wicked Witches' Deaths'. She barely bit back a bitter laugh. It'd give them something new to talk about, anyway. While Galinda used to love hearing the sound of her name floating through the halls, Glinda was getting tired of hearing the whispering- the hushed tones that immediately halted when she entered a room. 'Poor Lady Glinda, her fiancé ran away with that Wicked Witch.'

They killed Fiyero because he loved Elphaba. They killed him because he wasn't afraid to go against them. He wouldn't hide his feelings. Glinda wished she had his courage to stand up to them. It may have made a difference.

Who are you kidding? They would have turned on you as well. Elphaba's voice. It was a voice in her head she had been becoming accustomed to. That fact alone should have scared her more than it did, but the voice had become oddly comforting to her. And it was right. She couldn't have saved them. Sweet Oz, what was the point of being Glinda the Good if she couldn't even save her friends?

It was her fault Madame Morrible and The Wizard had used Nessarose against Elphaba. Granted, she didn't know what they were going to do but she knew there was a chance that Elphaba would be caught. And she hadn't cared. She had let her pride get in the way and didn't think about the ramifications of her words. She had betrayed her friends. Now they were all dead because of her. If she hadn't sent The Wizard after Nessarose, Fiyero would never have had to play the hero. He tried to rescue Elphaba because he loved her. He loved Elphaba. Elphaba. Misunderstood, sarcastic Elphaba. Her best friend. She killed her best friend.

Glinda opened her window and gazed into the sky. It was something she had taken to doing shortly after... the incident, though she was never sure of what she was looking for. In the distance, black was fading into hues of pink and purple. Dawn was approaching.

"I hope you're happy, Elphie." Glinda sighed and walked back towards her bed, not bothering to shut her window against the overzealous Ozians parading outside. She was going to need to get a few more hours of sleep before she could face the day. She leaned against her pillows, succumbing to the exhaustion.

From the shadows outside of Glinda's window, a cloaked figure watched as the blonde woman fell back to sleep. She didn't have much time left, with daylight quickly approaching. The danger of someone discovering her there was great, especially on this day. Yet she took a few precious moments to mutter a spell under her breath. She glanced into the room once more as Glinda mumbled in her sleep, "Elphie..."

"I'm here." Then the figure quickly flew off before any passers-by could see her. But for the first time in quite a while Glinda the Good slept without hearing the screams.