AN: For danderson, the luckiest and most deserving of all. Sorry this is so late.

Thanks to everyone who has been reading this, and especially those of you who have reviewed. I really appreciate all the feedback. I hope you enjoy it.

Fiyero spared a moment to check on Avaric, who was now stammering apologies and sobs left and right. From the sound of it, Elphaba had been provoked, and Galinda was red-faced when she heard Avaric’s confession. Boq turned a similar shade and raised his fist to punch Avaric himself at the assault on the blonde’s reputation until Galinda set her hand on his arm. Boq dropped his hand, sparing only a hateful, “You pathetic asshole. You don’t deserve a girl like Galinda.”

Leaving them to their own devices, Fiyero shoved his way through the crowd of gawkers in the direction Elphaba had fled. There was no sight of her, and considering how fast she was, he knew there was little chance of him catching her now. Still, he had to find her. She was obviously upset, and not just from Avaric. He couldn’t leave her like this. With a weary sigh, he pushed his hair out of his eyes and began what promised to be a long search.

As he’d feared, it took well over an hour of searching through the forest to discover her prone form blending with the grass. She was shaking, and any lingering thoughts of chastisement vanished. He rushed to her side, and with a soft voice, called her name. She didn’t answer. “Fae, please, look at me,” he knelt beside her, tilted her face up to him.

The long, angry red marks coursing down her cheeks drew a sharp gasp from him. “Sweet Oz! Elphaba, what happened? Are you alright?” She nodded bravely, only to be betrayed when a teardrop escaped her swollen eyelids and trailed a new line of burns in its path. As soon as he realized what the welts meant, he furiously struggled to wipe all the tears away. They wouldn’t stop coming, and he winced as he fought the flood of poison leaking from her eyes.

He pulled her to him, hoping his shirt could absorb the tears faster than his fingers could. “Sh, it’s all going to be okay now.” he said as he cradled her against him and dropped a kiss on her head before he could censor himself. Her skin was on fire, and for a second he thought the tears must be burning his skin as well. He certainly felt allergic to her tears.

“Fiyero?” her voice was shaky, uncertain.

He gathered her closer and rocked her, soothing her back and hair. “Yes, baby, I’m right here. I’ve got you. You’re okay now.” At this she shuddered with a new wave of tears, he hoped of relief, but either way they were injurious. “Fae, listen to me. I need you to try not to cry, alright? Can you do that for me?”

She sniffed and nodded, fighting back the tears. The sight of her soft crying was more unsettling than Galinda’s most dramatic sobs, which was saying a lot. He felt her forehead, now certain that it was a fierce fever heating her skin so. He had to get her to the hospital. Picking her lanky form up in his arms, he carried her as carefully and quickly as he could back through the woods to help.

“Fiyero?” He couldn’t help the stab of fear when he heard how weak her voice sounded. “I’m so sorry, Yero. I never meant to. Please.”

“Hush now. I know.” Fiyero kissed her forehead gently, wincing at how much hotter it had gotten just in the time it had taken him to reach the tree line. “I’m sorry, too, angel.”

“No, you were right.” He chanced a glance only to see her eyes rolled back in her head. “And Galinda… I’m so sorry.”

He tightened his hold on her until he feared it was hurting her. “Sh, save your strength, Fae. Don’t worry; I’m going to take care of you. You’re going to be okay.” He kept his reassurances up more for himself than her. She clung to him lightly, and he could just prayed he could live up to her trust.

If something happened to her…he couldn’t even complete the thought. He had already lost her for a week; he couldn’t live without her for a second longer.

Fiyero finally reached the clinic, feeling as if an eternity had slipped away in the journey. He cursed loudly when he saw the door was locked. What kind of clinic wasn’t open for emergencies?

Elphaba stirred at his outburst, and he quieted her as he thought about what to do. Surely there was a doctor that would make a house call for the right price. Fiyero would pay every penny he owned if he had to. He started back to the dorms, trying to decide which room to take her to. If he took her home, he couldn’t stay with her, which was wholly unacceptable to him at the moment. He couldn’t help the superstition that if he left her, even for a second, something terrible would happen while she was out of his sight. He veered left and smuggled her into his room.

Fiyero set her carefully on his bed, and Elphaba curled up happily, mumbling something about how the sheets smelled like him. How desperately he had missed her! He brushed his hand over her face lightly, before pushing himself away to call the doctor.

With help on the way, he followed the doctor’s suggestions and set a cool (dry) cloth on her forehead. The doctor had confidently admonished him not to worry, but that was impossible. He paced a bit and found a shirt of his for her to wear, but he couldn’t bring himself to put it on her. Instead he set it beside her so she could change after the doctor had visited. Then he waited, which was probably the hardest part.

“Yero?” she tried to open her eyes to see him, and he pulled her to him.

“Hush, angel. I’m right here. Keep your eyes closed, okay Fae? I’m not going anywhere.” She curled her fingers around his buttons as she so loved to do, and he wrapped his arms around her.

“Are you still angry with me, Fiyero?” she said softly.

He rubbed her back as he cradled her to his chest. “I can never stay angry with you.”

“Yes, you can,” she argued weakly. “You broke up with me.”

“Never,” he kissed the top of her head. “We just had a fight. A bad fight, but just a fight. I would never leave you.” She started to argue some more but he quieted her with another kiss. “We’ll talk later, Fae. Now you need to rest.” She struggled to stay awake and argue with him, so he hummed softly the lullaby that evoked memories of her with him in darkness and peace. “I see the moon…,” his voice broke.

“And the moon sees me,” she echoed back, her pretty voice growing heavy with sleep.

“And the moon sees the one I want to see,” he whispered and kissed her forehead tenderly. He continued until she drifted off and faded into the kiss he let settle on her unaware lips.

He wrapped his arms around her tightly, praying the doctor would hurry. After a while, he started to doze himself, exhausted by the long week of insomnia he’d had. His bed just hadn’t felt right without her anymore, and he’d taken to napping in his chair by the door. Now, as Elphaba slept peacefully pillowed on his chest, the weight of her was like an anchor through the exhaustion and into beautiful rest.

Fiyero didn’t wake until the knock on his door was a loud, quick rat-a-tat, no doubt the result of several precursors gone ignored. He slid out from Elphaba to answer it and felt a sharp stab of guilt when he felt how hot she was. “Sorry,” he greeted the doctor, his hand running through his hair.

The doctor smiled kindly in that knowing way of those who play with life and death, “It’s fine, son. Where is she?”

He led the doctor in, trying not to be annoyed by the man’s obvious reaction to her skin tone. “That’s not related,” he grunted before the doctor could comment. “And she’s beautiful,” he dared the man to contradict him.

The doctor nodded curtly and went to work examining the drowsing girl. Fiyero hovered over the man’s shoulder, trying to guess if his reaction to each test was a good sign or a bad one. The doctor gave him a knowing smile and patted him on the shoulder. He asked some questions, very few of which Fiyero had the answer to, and he cursed their stupid argument that had kept her away.

“Fiyero?” He turned toward the sleepy voice and took her hand.

“I’m here, Fae.” Before he could help it, he kissed her hand. “Fae, the doctor’s here, too. Do you think you could answer some of his questions?”

She nodded sleepily. After what seemed like an endless time, the doctor frowned, and Fiyero felt his heart drop in his otherwise petrified body. He motioned Fiyero to follow him to the hall, and he did so in two strides without sparing a breath. “Is she going to be okay?”

The doctor met his wide eyes, and a soft, sympathetic smile faded into the man’s face. “I hope so, son.” Then the smile vanished and a brusque recitation of medication and eventualities whizzed past Fiyero at lightning speed. “The next few hours will determine her probability of recovery. Keep her resting, and get some fluids in her. That and the medication is your best bet. I don’t think she’ll need to go to the hospital, but if she does, you can reach me more directly at this number.”

Fiyero was nodding so much, he was afraid his head would bobble right off his neck, and yet, he couldn’t seem to stop. “Thank you, Doctor. I really appreciate your help.”

The doctor caught his arm before he could retreat. “Good luck. She must be a very special girl.”

“She is.”

He squeezed his arm. “Don’t worry. She’s in good hands.”

It was a long night for the both of them. Elphaba tossed and turned relentlessly as her sweat soaked through his shirt. For his part, he could barely close his eyes before imagining her call for him. Every hour he had the unfortunate task of waking her to drink and take her medicine. Each hour it seemed she was more and more reluctant to wake.

The doctor had warned that her illness was dependent on the severity of her allergy, and judging from the welts swelling the sensitive skin around her eyes, it was far from mild. Fiyero paced, consumed in thoughts of how he was to blame until he was nearly desperately for her to forgive him. Yet, he didn’t dare mention it when he woke her for fear that it would disturb her remarkably peaceful sleep.

He had never seen her sleep this much, or this well. It gave him some hope. A glance at the clock told him it was time to wake her again. “Fae,” he stroked her cheek, carefully avoiding the welts which he noticed were a duller red than before. “Wake up.” He kissed her forehead, noticing it felt cooler as well. “I know you don’t want to, but the doctor said every hour. Come on, wake up.” He shook her lightly, and when the only answer was a soft flutter of her eyelashes, he panicked. He shouted her name, shaking her far less lightly than before, and she merely murmured his name and rolled over.

What did that mean? Was she alright? Was she worse? He paced as he fought the crushing indecision. Finally, he called the doctor. At the weary hello the phone issued, Fiyero launched into his dilemma, asking the doctor what to do. After a slew of questions, the doctor said, “Oh, good. She’s going to be fine. Don’t worry about waking her until the morning.” And with further instructions for her care, the doctor gave a parting, “And try to get some sleep, too, son. I’m sure you’ve hardly closed your eyes all night.”

Fiyero woke several hours later to soft lips wandering against his neck. He tried to think if he was allowed to kiss her back, but all that he could process was “Mmmmm.” His fingers trailed through her hair, tangling it mercilessly as his renegade lips slid against her temple.

She nuzzled against him, and he knew then that she was still asleep. That particular kiss had never failed in their waking hours to make her giggle and blush. He cracked open an eye to see her distinctly blush-free. With a sigh, he untangled his fingers and forced his eyes all the way open. It was mid-morning, the sunlight already streaming in, and no doubt time for Elphaba’s next round of medicine. One glance at her sleeping face made him pull her closer. The medicine could wait.

He let himself brush his lips across her hair, but nothing more personal until he knew how she felt in a more aware position. Even as late as it was, he hadn’t slept but a few hours, and soon enough he was drifting back off with a wide yawn.

“I’d know that yawn anywhere,” Elphaba said as she stirred, and Fiyero couldn’t help but match the smile he heard in her voice. She rolled over on her side and felt his face gently. “Just making sure. Um, Yero? Why can’t I open my eyes?”

His hand ran up and down her arm. “They’re still pretty swollen. Do you,” he cleared his throat, “remember everything that happened last night?”

At her long silence, he began to panic at his choice of words, blurting out obtuse clarifications until she laughed. “Yes, I do. For the most part, I’m assuming.” He relaxed again until she whispered in a meek voice, “Thank you.”

He squeezed her to him. “Anytime. I’m just so glad you’re ok.”

“Um, I guess we should…talk?”

“Oh. Yeah.” If she was the one to bring it up, it was worse than he thought it was. The silence spread into eternity before he said, “So...what do you think?”

She sat up and drew her knees to her chest. “I don’t know.” She bit her lip. “I guess I was wr-wrong,” she choked on the word. “I shouldn’t have...well, a lot of things really. I understand if you never want to see me again.”

The thought of that shook him, and so he said, “You know what I think?” He pulled her back to him, tilting her chin up before he remembered she couldn’t open her eyes. “I think none of that matters anymore, because I don’t know about you, but this last week has been hell. And I can’t stand another second without you.” He took a deep breath. “Because, well, I think I love you, Fae.” She took in a quick breath, and he took her hands in his. “No, I know I love you, Fae. And I always will.”

“What?” she shook her head, “After everything I did, you love me?”

He leaned down to whisper in her ear, “That’s kind of what ‘always’ means.”

She blushed and stammered a bit, until he thought his smile would stretch past the edge of his face. “I don’t know what to say.”

“Nothing you don’t mean.” He kissed her hand. “And I mean that.”

She nodded, thinking carefully. “Fiyero?”

He turned over her hand and placed a kiss in her palm, “Yes, my love?”

“Um,” she blushed at his casual use of the term, “I…love you, too. Can we just forget all the stupid things I did the last couple weeks?”

“Only if you forget the stupid things I did the last couple weeks.”

She laughed and nodded. “That was surprising easy. I hope Galinda goes as well.”

“Oh yeah?” he teased, feeling as if the weight of the worlds had drifted off his shoulders. “Let’s see Galinda do this.” He leaned down to kiss her socks off. Unfortunately, since she didn’t see him lean and he’d closed his eyes, the two knocked their heads together painfully. “Why do I get the feeling that life is out to get us?” He held her cheeks this time and maneuvered them into a long, beautiful kiss. “Well, Galinda’s going to have to wait. I’m not letting you anywhere but this bed anytime soon.”

The door flung open with Galinda and Boq standing in the doorway. “Fiyero, Elphaba’s gone missing!” Galinda blurted out until Elphaba sat up from behind him. “Oh. Never mind.”

Boq gave them a knowing smile, and Fiyero glanced at his friends’ clasped hands before giving Boq one of his own. Then he smiled at Galinda, “So, Galinda, we were just talking about you. How do you feel about making up?”

“Well, it’s not quite as fun as make up,” she giggled as she crossed the room, sharing a look with Fiyero as Elphaba’s welts came into view.

“Or making out,” Fiyero supplied, winking at Boq.

She shook her head at him in mock chastisement before taking Elphaba’s hand in her free one, “But it’s a close second.”

After a massive updating and apologizing all around, Fiyero wrapped his arms around Elphaba’s waist. “Now, if you don’t mind, I think I have some love to be proving. And I’m sure you two have some ‘making up’ to do of your own.” Galinda and Boq blushed, but took the hint and scuttled out of his room. “Now,” he teased her lips with his, “where were we? Oh yes, I love you, Elphaba Thropp.” He kissed her nose. “And I love you, my brainy ‘Phaba.” He kissed her cheek. “And I love you, my beautiful Fae.” She smiled against his lips as he kissed her gently.

“Wait,” she said, and he pulled back breathlessly. She got up, hands feeling her way along the wall until she reached the door, and his heart dropped. She was going to leave? After all that, and with her blind?

She turned to give him a wicked smile, and locked the door. “Now,” she grinned, “where were we?”