Disclaimer- I don't own Wicked or Rent.

The days passed and everyone got used to seeing the Lioness, Zara, and Elphaba moving about the palace grounds. Many of them were still frightened of her and everyone kept their distance; still they couldn't help but watch the two enemies square off in deep discussions. Even Maureen and Glinda gave her more than a little space. Glinda in particular wanted to stay as far away from her as possible. Seeing Zara brought back too many painful memories and dreams of what might have been with her beloved Gorrian.

For her part, Zara found the whole ordeal both irritating and more than annoying. She preferred the palace grounds to the confines of the palace itself and spent most of her time outside. No matter how comfortable the under chamber had been made for her, it still felt too much like the cage that had cost her so much…even with the door left constantly open. Then there was the witch.

Elphaba had made it clear that the spell on her would remain in place until they had come to some sort of understanding. She had to hand it to the Witch; she had thought her revenge out and was exacting it in outrageous ways. The spell that contained her allowed her seeming freedom, yet she could not leave the palace grounds or feed normally. Someone had to bring her meat to her. In this way, she was embarrassingly dependant on the whims of the humans around her. Oh, the Witch had been clever, but she had also been firm in that Zara be allowed freedom and kept healthy. The Witch would also spend time each day trying to draw Zara into conversation. She was unfailingly polite and reasonable…almost to the point of Zara's distraction. Still, she tried to draw her out. It became something of a daily bantering match. It was a match Zara was determined to win.

She tried to annoy the Witch in small ways at first. She made it difficult to be found, she refused to talk…small things. Nothing worked until one day when they were deep in discussion, Zara's food arrived. The servant set it down before her and Zara launched into the raw meat with gusto, splashing the Witch's dark skirts with the blood. The Witch turned even greener, if that was possible, and flew towards the palace with her skirts flying behind her. Zara laughed aloud. Now she knew how to shut the woman up! She was feeling quite self-satisfied, when she heard a soft, yet steady voice address her.

"That was uncalled for." Zara spun to see the King of Burzee step from a behind nearby tree. He moved toward her steadily and unconcerned for his safety. When she met his calm gaze with a glare he continued.

"Elphaba refuses to eat meat of any kind...raw or cooked. It's a sore point with her. She saw too many Animal abuses and will never trust the source again. Here in Burzee, Animals and humans are equal under our laws, but in Oz… She's lost Animal friends and mentors to the Wizard's cruelty. Splashing her with that blood was cruel and far beneath you. You might as well have been splashing her with the blood of one of her friends."

Zara sensed no fear or uncomfort in this man. He sat upon the boulder that Elphaba had just vacated. His countenance and body language were clear…Emrys was as easy around her as he would be a common housecat. "Oh, I'm not worried about my health, if that's what you're thinking." It was as if he could read her mind! "I trust my sister-in-law implicitly. If she says we're safe, we're safe. She's too smart to be wrong, and far too honorable to lie."

"Well, at least now I know how to get rid of her though!" The Lioness watched the man shake his head sadly.

"I wouldn't be so anxious to be rid of her, if I were you. There are many across this kingdom and Oz that would have preferred your immediate death for the things you've done. It was Elphaba who insisted that reason prevail. She could have let them kill you, or simply used her magic to kill you herself; but that is not her way. Even after you murdered her best friend's fiancé…even after you murdered Grale…even after you kidnapped her daughter and niece…even after you threatened to eat her daughter, Elfie! After all of that, she still wanted to hear your side, to find the cause of your pain. Elphaba's smart enough to know that actions like yours are seated in pain somewhere. If I were in your place, she is not the person I would be anxious to chase away or rid myself of."

"You're not though! In my place, that is… You have no idea what I've been through!"

The king looked sad yet somehow sympathetic. "But I do; we all do. Elphaba's magic again. Along with my wife's. No one was more horrified than Elphaba!" The king stood slowly and adjusted his tunic but kept her eye. "I'd at least take the time to find out why. But that's only my view. Good day." With the utmost politeness, the king bowed from the waist and walked away slowly. Watching him go, Zara realized she had lost her appetite…for the raw meat and her current mode of vengeance.

It was several days later and then, Zara was walking past the lake that sat on the palace grounds. By nature, Zara was quiet and by nature she could move undetected when she chose. She did so now but was startled when a human voice spoke up quite near her. Its possessor had gone previously undetected, causing Zara to spin and ready for attack, yet the one who spoke did not even look up at her. She sounded weary.

"He would have helped you, you know."

Zara found herself staring at the new ruler of Oz, Glinda the Good. Glinda, however, was looking into the lake, her eyes never met Zara's in fact, and she kept staring into the lake; her face anything but the carefree one she wore in Oz. She looked perfect…just…so very sad and lost. When Glinda sensed Zara nearby, she paused she continued.

"Gorrian…he would have helped you, you know. He did in fact. It was Gorrian that helped me draft all the changes to the Ozian laws the Wizard had implemented. I wanted the Animal banns dropped and gone. It had to be legal and foolproof though, you see. Gorrian was brilliant! I would have muddled it all up…but Gorrian? Gorrian knew what we needed to do and he knew how to get it done…done so that nothing could be undone ever again! He was an Ambassador. He was at the palace as often as he was because I needed his help to get that done. If he hadn't been there…if I had been smart enough to do it on my own…he'd be here. If he hadn't fallen in love with me, Gorrian would be alive."

In all honesty, Zara did not know what to say. For the first time in a long time she had no sharp reply, no acerbic comment and she felt no desire to cut this woman deeper than she had been cut already. She knew the pain this human seemed to be feeling. The loss of the one…the only one you will ever love and the realization that you were the one responsible for his death…at least in part.

"It wasn't your fault. I know this pain of yours, and it's misplaced. You did not kill your Gorrian. I did. You may have loved him and he loved you, but his blood is not upon you. It stains me. I knew nothing of these new laws. I only knew that the way to attack the Witch was through those she loves. She has precious few of those. The information given to me was that you and she were…are friends." Zara felt herself loosening up to this human for some unknown reason. "You should know, I came for you. I wanted her to hear of your death. Your Gorrian…he…happened upon my path first. I'm not sure if he knew why I was there, but he did choose to block my way to you anyway."

Glinda sat by the lake, looking at the water, taking it all in, never making a sound, still never looking at Zara. Her tears were silent. Gorrian had died to protect her. All her life, Glinda had dreamt of being loved wholly, completely, selflessly…the way Elphie was loved by Fiyero. She had known that Gorrian truly loved her, but until now she had not known the scope of that love. Emmy had been right. His last thoughts were of her and her safety. He wanted her to know that he had loved her beyond this life…and into the next. Slowly, Glinda began to smile softly.

Zara began to fear for this Glinda's sanity. She had just told her that she had planned to murder her, and she was smiling! She had told her that her lover's death was unneeded and she was smiling! It somehow shook her to the core, but not as much as Glinda's next words to her did.

"Thank you for telling me that. You may never know how much I'll treasure what you've just told me."

Zara watched her carefully.

"Let me understand, I tell you I was planning your death; that your Gorrian died in your place and you thank me?! I don't understand."

For the first time Glinda looked Zara in the eyes. Her smile was still sad but soft and the tears still coursed unchecked down her cheeks.

"Have you never felt that kind of love, Zara? You must have! We saw you and your mate in the mirror. Your life before… Knowing you were trying to kill me means very little to me. But all my life I dreamed of a love where I was his reason for knowing the very meaning of the word 'love' and until you told me that just now, I couldn't be sure that I had. I had a suspicion. Emaurie had a portent, you see. She witnessed your murder of my Gorrian. It terrified her! She's only four years old, after all; but then she relived it again with Elphie's help. She wanted to help so very much, you see. Emmy was sure that he wanted to warn me…and to see that she let me know how very much he loved me."

Glinda sighed deeply and rose. "Thank you, Zara. What you told me may have to carry me the rest of my life, but knowing it…well, knowing it will make it easier. I have to tell Elphie. Excuse me."

With that, Glinda seemed to slowly float across the lawn. She was going the wrong way and Zara, while amazed, felt obliged to correct her.

"The palace is the other way, you know?"

Glinda stopped and shook her head. "Thank you. I'm so bad at directions!" Then she was gone.

Zara was steadily growing unsure. Her compatriots had assured her that the Witch was evil, evil incarnate. She had added her own memories to the knowledge they had shared with her and had been sure of the Witch's backstabbing and cunning cruelty. Yet here…here she saw a different human. In a land where both Animal and human were valued equally, the woman was beloved! She saw signs of it over and over. She was beloved and respected. Zara found that day by day she grew more and more unsure of what she did know.

There was the fact that the Witch treated her with the utmost respect and unswerving patience, no matter what Zara flung at her. There was the day that a winged-Horse arrived at the palace. He was apparently a general of some sort. Zara, watching from a distance, had been amazed to see both the Witch and the Horse bow to each other formally. The Witch's curtsy was deep and flowing...and thoroughly genuine. When she rose, however, they looked at each other with meaning and the Witch had rushed forward to embrace the winged Horse…an embrace the Horse relished. They were, it seemed fellow warriors who held each other in the highest regard. They spoke of destroying Morrible. Madame Morrible! It was they who had destroyed the she-devil?!

Then there was the night that she was pacing the outer gardens unable to sleep, and happened upon her scent. Following it, she found them. The Witch and her mate, Prince Fiyero. Zara watched them, concealed in the shadows, curiously. They walked slowly and were never apart physically in some way for more than a moment. As they walked, they held hands, and her mate's other hand would stray to her hair or cheek. At times, the Witch's head would rest upon his arm and shoulder, and she could see her breathe in his scent as if it were an intoxicating perfume. In the Witch's soft words and answers to him was a sultry laugh and tone that Zara heard her use nowhere but with this man! Suddenly, the Prince pulled her to a halt and into a tightly passionate embrace. His lips assaulted hers and she moaned back with unspoken wanting, bending into his body with relish.

From her place in the shadows Zara remembered feeling that wanted…feeling that cherished. She watched them, unable to draw back, as the Prince swept a hand slowly up her back, into her hair, and with one movement caused her hair to fall like a black waterfall. The lover in Zara was beyond caught up in the moment. She knew how this Witch felt, she knew what her husband was making her desire…and she remembered how wonderful it felt.

"Mmmm…Yero…please…" The Witch ran her hand through her mate's hair slowly, sensually.

"Yes, my Fae! My precious, precious Fae! This time let me bewitch you." Then he lifted her in his arms and Zara watched him carry his wife to the nearby gazebo.

Zara found she couldn't move from the shadows, and also couldn't bring herself not to listen. She closed her eyes and just listened to the music they made together. They filled the corner of the gardens with the sounds of their lovemaking. Each time she was satisfied, her Prince gave her more, brought her higher until the sounds she made were unintelligible…except to him. Finally, her cries mingled with his, filled the gardens and Zara, with her eyes closed remembered.

It was sometime later that she watched as the Prince carried his sleeping wife from the gazebo…cradling her gently in his arms. He paused at the path junction near her hiding space unknowingly. Zara watched him look at her sleeping form with enough passion and gentle, complete love to make her catch her breath. She heard him croon to his sleeping wife lovingly.

"My beautiful, precious Fae! You feel for everyone…their happiness and their pain, and you fight for them all." He bent and kissed her gently, causing her to mumble and curl into his arms even more. Zara saw him smile down at her in the moonlight.

"Ssh, love! I'm here. I'll always be right here…between you and the world if need be. You know that. It's time to let me feel for you. You've been feeling Zara's pain now too. Tonight, sleep peacefully, my Fae. Sleep and dream of us, love. "

Then he moved off towards the palace, disappearing behind the trees. Zara watched the Prince as he moved, ever so carefully so he would not wake his sleeping wife. This "wicked" Witch…she was loved, loved beyond reason! This human who loved her did not see her color as so many others did. He saw her soul. He cherished her heart. What was it the Prince had said to his sleeping wife? 'You've been feeling Zara's pain now too.' Had she? If she was the creature her compatriots had described, why would she take on and feel her pain? Those thoughts kept Zara up most of the night.

It was just dawn and the world looked and smelled new when Zara awoke. As she began to stretch, she caught a whiff of an all too familiar scent. It was the woman's own unique scent mixed with the smell of the Prince and poppies. The Witch. She caught sight of the woman, walking through the gardens slowly; stopping near the herb bed to harvest several bunches and then move on. Next she stopped near a bed of poppies, and gathered a sheath, tucking them into the basket she carried over her arm. Before she moved away,

Zara watched her look around to see that no one observed, and she carefully stepped into the bed of flowers. Once there, she closed her eyes and inhaled deeply, smiling like a naughty child. After a second or two, she carefully stepped out of the flowerbed and stretched. Zara noted it, and remembered the Witch's activities of the night before.

Then she moved out of the garden…out of the garden and into the burial area that served this family. Zara watched her carefully place the basket on the ground but remove the poppies. Slowly, reverently, the woman moved to one of the plots and gently laid the poppies near the stone. She knelt as she did so and then ran her fingers through the engraving on the marker. She touched it with the fingers of a mother, gentle, light, and loving. She heard her murmur only five words the whole time, "Oh Grale! We miss you…"

After a few moments, she stood and backed away from the marker. It struck Zara as if the woman before her could not bear to turn her back on the friend she had been separated from. A shot of self-loathing flew through her like an arrow and was gone. Zara followed at a safe distance as this woman walked around the garden area and moved toward the front paths. As The Witch rounded the side of the palace and was near the front of the building, a shape in the air apparently caught her eye. She stopped dead in her tracks and as the shape grew closer, the Witch gasped loudly.

"No! No! Oz, no!"

The carefully tended basket and sheers were thrown to the ground and forgotten as the Witch fairly flew towards the figure preparing to land on the grass in front of her. Upon closer inspection, Zara saw that it was another flying Monkey. Why did this upset the Witch so?

"Chistery! Chistery! The girls…" He lit near her and although winded, he answered quickly.

"Are safe, Elphaba! Your Chistery would never leave them if they were in danger! This Elphaba knows!"

At his words the Witch sank to the ground and pulled him toward her, holding him as if to assure herself that he was real. With the woman's eyes closed and pressed against the Monkey's chest, it was he who soothed her. Zara watched him pat her back almost lovingly. Wait! Lovingly? Finally, her voice returned.

"But then Chis, why…"

The Monkey shook his head and looked at her as if she were almost foolish.

"Chistery is here to see that his Elphaba is safe too! Our Elfie and Emmy are safe. But your Chistery worried… about you! The others are there. I will not leave my Elphaba!"

The woman looked into his eyes and took his outstretched hand. A look passed between them that Zara saw. It couldn't be? She loved this Animal?! Loved him as a friend! It was at that moment that the winds shifted. Zara knew in a flash that now she was upwind.

At the same clock-tick, the Monkey's head shot up and was aware of her presence. As Zara stepped slowly out of the shadows, the Monkey rose into the air with a screech and a flap of wings, hissing and placing his small body between her and the Witch. He was no match for her, yet he was ready to try…ready to die to protect this woman!

Chistery's movements had caught the Witch by surprise and while she lost her balance, coming to rest on her hindquarters, she reacted instinctively Zara saw. She clutched his hand even tighter and with all her strength spun his flying body behind and up above her.

"Chis! Fly to Yero! Go!" Catching his balance in midair, Chistery flew…and landed in front of 'his Elphaba'.

From across the lawn Fiyero saw what was happening. It was no surprise to him. Chistery and his Fae would protect each other to the death. Neither one would desert the other one. He yelled to her now as he ran to them.

"Fae! The spell, Fae! She can't hurt you!"

He watched as his wife remembered that both she and Chistery were safe. Her body visibly relaxed and she slumped to the lawn.

"Chistery! She can't attack us! We're safe."

Chistery was not deterred. This creature had killed Grale and Gorrian, frightened and kidnapped Elfie and Emmy…and hated his Elphaba! He would have clawed at her but was stopped by his friend. Her voice was calm, easy.

"We're safe, Chis…I'm safe." He lit near her now and captured her hand in his again. As Chistery let out a breath, Fiyero was there. He was there and helping Elphaba to her feet. Zara had yet to move again. She looked at this woman with new eyes now.

"You protected him…"

Elphaba nodded and gently squeezed Chistery's paw. "We protect each other. We're a family."

Zara understood now. All that she had seen, all that she had heard had prepared her for this moment. This Witch was not wicked! She was loved, respected, and held in high regard. She treated Animal and human the same…with a deep seated respect for life and she had honor! She would have died to protect the Monkey…and he , her. Indeed, he came back to check on her safety. No one as evil as she had been led to believe could instill such fierce devotion.

Even now, the Monkey was still eyeing her with suspicion, ready to leap to this woman's defense if need be. She watched now as the Prince held her beneath his arm protectively as they made their way slowly back to the palace. This Chistery flew over and recovered her basket and shears as they went. Zara felt an ice cold band around her heart snap open and for the first time in many, many months, she was able to see straight and breathe deeply. She had released the hate held within her for so long. She used one of those deep breaths now.

"Witch!" It was almost second nature at this point…but it was wrong. Zara tried again.

"Elphaba!"

At once, the woman spun and looked at her hopefully. "Yes?"

Tell her the rest! A voice said, so she began.

"You have more enemies than you know! There are others that hate you…hate you far more than I did." Elphaba noted the past tense and came back toward her now hopefully, waiting.

"There are others that would kill you…you and your family! Fear is a dangerous thing…and they fear you, Elphaba! They fear you and time has seasoned that fear, turning it to hate. Be careful!"

"Will you help us? Will you tell us what you know?"

Zara nodded. "Yes, I'll help you all I can. I owe you at least that much. I think I know now that you would have saved my family if you could have…just as you did with your friend. The others though…they won't care. The time they have hated has turned their hearts to stone. You will need strength to fight them." She turned to Chistery. "No offense to you, Monkey. You're courageous, but this will require a killer's instincts, and that I have. Will you hear me out and then decide, Elphaba?"

It amazed her to see the light in the woman's eyes. "We will! Thank you, Zara. Why don't you join us in Emrys' sitting room? I promise, The door will be open."

"Very well, it may take time for me to be comfortable indoors; but I'll try."

With that, she joined them; pausing only as she trembled going through the doorway. It was then that she felt Elphaba's hand rest gently, but surely on her back. It was a sign of understanding…and trust and compassion. It was time to build, Zara knew.