AN: No, no, this isn't the sequel to Witches, Bubbles, & Broomsticks. This is just a random oneshot that came to me when I was watching the first episode of Beauty and the Beast (don't know if you know the series, they only started broadcasting it here in the Netherlands this evening). It's set right before Fiyero's arrival at Shiz. Hope you like it and please review! :)

Update: As from now on, it's not a oneshot anymore! ^^

And then a hero comes along

With the strength to carry on

And you cast your fears aside

And you know you can survive

Elphaba Thropp sat up groggily, one hand flying to her forehead. She scowled as she pulled back her fingers, finding them covered with blood, and she swore fervently. She was feeling dizzy and disoriented, and she had a few bruises besides the cut in her forehead, but at least her tormenters were gone now.

It had all started the way it usually did; she had been on her way back from town, passing the station, when she had encountered a few of her fellow Shiz students. They had started pestering her, calling her 'artichoke' and 'green bean', and Avaric had shoved her as she had tried to walk past them. She had tripped and they had been laughing at her – there wasn't really anything new about that, but she had been stupid enough to get worked up about it and her powers had gotten out of control again. She had accidentally released her magic; it had rippled through the air and knocked over a few of the students. Most of them had been terrified at that, stepping back a little, but Avaric and a few other male students had only gotten angry. The moment she had seen their faces darkening, she should have ran, but she had been too proud and too stubborn to let them chase her away like that.

That's when they had started beating her, calling her names all the while. She had fought them, but there were too many of them, and they had dragged her over to the train tracks and pushed her off the platform, causing her to crash onto the railway more than a meter below. They had scoffed at her and shouted at her that she should just stay there so that she would be run over by a train, for the world would be better off without such an 'awful green witch', but eventually – and thankfully – they had left.

She had hit her head as she fell, which was probably why she was feeling so dizzy right now. She blinked a few times, trying to clear her vision, but everything was still blurry and it took her a while to realise that was also because her glasses were gone. She had no idea where they were – still at the platform, probably, along with her bag. She hoped they hadn't ruined the glasses, but she feared they would have – especially Avaric would have never let the chance pass to do something to irritate her.

There was a pounding sound in her ears as she tried to get up, but her legs felt a little wobbly and she closed her eyes, trying to stop the world from spinning. That was probably why it took her a moment to realise that the pounding sound wasn't just the blood she could hear pumping through her veins. It was an approaching train.

The first thought flashing through her mind was, Now Avaric has his wish, because even though she didn't particularly have a death wish, she didn't feel like she would be able to get out of the way in time. The world was still spinning and she couldn't even see from what direction the train was coming or how close it was – both because of her absent glasses and because the blood from the cut in her forehead kept streaming into her eyes, blurring her vision even further. She just stood there, swaying, convinced that this was going to be the end of her.

But then, suddenly, someone leapt at her and pushed her against the wall of the platform, covering her body with his own as the train rushed by, barely missing them with mere centimetres to spare. She squeezed her eyes shut and her heart pounded as the train passed them. She didn't seem capable of any thought at all and it seemed like an eternity before the train was gone and whoever had saved her pulled back a little to look at her. She immediately missed his body warmth – it had been a long time since someone had been that close to her, even if he only had been that close because he had been trying to save her life.

'Are you okay?' the boy asked in concern, and she nodded, then shook her head, then burst into tears. She was usually definitely not the teary one – in fact, she absolutely loathed crying, but she didn't seem able to stop. Her rescuer didn't really seem to mind; he merely just held her, rubbing soothing circles over her back as she sobbed into his shoulder. She didn't even really care – after all, she didn't know this boy, and she would probably never see him again in her life, and so she allowed herself to cry just this once.

When the tears subsided a bit, he made a gesture. 'Let's get back up on the platform, shall we?'

She nodded and allowed him to help her up and guide her to a bench, where he sat her down and handed her a handkerchief. 'Were you trying to kill yourself?'

She looked at him in horror. 'No!'

It was only then he seemed to notice gash the in her forehead, because he drew in his breath with a sharp hiss and took the handkerchief back from her. 'Here…' He pressed it against the wound, as gently as possible, but she winced at the touch anyway. He looked at her with dark blue eyes. 'Did anyone do this to you?'

'Avaric,' she mumbled, 'and his friends. It's nothing new, really. Well, this is,' she corrected herself, indicating the cut in her head, 'and they have never shoved me off a train platform before, either, but, well… they're creative. I bet they'll come up with something even better next time.'

'You sound like this is normal to you,' the boy said angrily, and she flashed him a brief, mirthless smile. 'It is normal to me. Have you taken a good look at me yet? People have been harassing me all my life.'

'Because of your skin?'

'Obviously.'

He ran a finger down her bare arm thoughtfully, a motion that made her shiver involuntarily, but he didn't seem to notice. 'I like it.'

She looked at him warily. 'Excuse me?'

'Your skin. It's… different. I like it.'

She scoffed softly, but he ignored it and directed his attention at her wound. 'I think that might need stitches, it's pretty deep. You need to see a doctor - I'll go with you.'

'That's not necessary, thank you,' she said gruffly, getting up and brushing off his hand. 'Who are you, anyway? And why were you helping me in the first place?'

'I'm Fiyero,' he introduced himself. 'And why I helped you… what kind of crazy question is that? Did you think I'd have left you there to be run over by a train?'

'Most people I know would have,' she muttered, and he shook his head and got up as well, grasping her shoulders. 'I have no idea who you are, but it seems to me like you've been mistreated by people for too long. Please let me help you.'

She wasn't sure why she said yes, but for some reason, she did, and she watched as his whole face lit up. 'Come on, then. You said you were going to Shiz, right? I'll take you to the medical department there – I have to go there myself, anyway. Not the medical department, obviously, but the university.'

Her eyes went wide at that. 'You're a student?' So far for not ever seeing him again in her life.

'I'm new,' he explained with a crooked grin. 'I was supposed to arrive by carriage, but it broke down halfway and so I took the train. You must know, I never do that, but I'm glad I did, or you would have been dead right now, train girl.'

It was only then she realised that she hadn't even thanked him for saving her life – and that she hadn't introduced herself. She smiled a little. 'It's Elphaba.' Then she avoided his gaze and stared at the floor as she added softly, 'And thank you.'

He looked at her, an unreadable, azure gaze that seemed to penetrate all the protective layers she had so carefully built around her for all these years and look right into the core of her very being. She shifted uncomfortable under his gaze, wanting to look away, but finding herself unable to. His hands were still on her shoulders and he shifted them slightly, sliding one down her arm and around her waist and the other around her neck as he slowly moved closer to her…

Again, she wanted to pull away, but she couldn't. He frightened her beyond words, yet she found herself unmistakably drawn to him; and when he kissed her, it felt to her as if the world, that had been seemingly off its axis ever since she could remember, suddenly rightened itself. Here he was, a complete stranger, and yet he cared for her. No one had ever done that before in her life.

She reluctantly pulled away as she felt the blood trickle down her face again, and he gently wiped it away with his thumb. 'Come on, I'll get you to a doctor.' He caressed her cheek with his fingertips and she blushed a little, causing him to smile and plant a soft kiss on her hair. 'I don't know what is wrong with the people who did this to you, or with the other people that have been convincing you that you're not worth caring for, that they could not see how wonderful you really are,' he told her, putting an arm around her waist to steady her as she swayed again. She sniffled softly at that and before she knew it, she was crying again – she wasn't even sure why. He held her close, whispering comforting words in her ear, and he didn't let go even when her crying stopped. They just stood there for a while, before she whispered faintly, 'I don't want to go back.'

She loathed herself for that moment of weakness, for being such a coward, but it was the truth. She just couldn't stand it anymore – all those people always laughing at her and making fun of her, and no one there to ever consider how she was feeling, or to even be remotely interested in her, other than to harass her. She didn't want to go back to Shiz, where she'd have to face Avaric and the other students and pretend to be strong and immune to their actions again.

Fiyero, however, pulled back at that, taking her hand and squeezing it. 'We're going back together,' he told her earnestly. 'And we're going to face them together, too. I promised I'd help you, and I will, Elphaba. You don't have to be alone ever again in your life if you don't want to be.'

She stared at him, barely believing what he was saying and almost bursting into tears again, but thankfully, she managed to compose herself this time. Instead, she smiled at him – a real, genuine smile. 'Thank you.'

'It's my pleasure,' he said sincerely, locking eyes with her for a moment before sliding his arm around her waist again to support her, as they started walking in the direction of Shiz University.