What's In A Name?

"Boq?"

"Yes, Madame?"

Nessa sighed, but didn't bother correcting him. She had corrected him on her name for years, and it had made no difference to Boq. She was, and always would be, Madame Governor to him. Suddenly, Nessa felt like crying. It wasn't fair. She hadn't wanted to be left alone. She had been lonely for so much of her life. Boq had been the first one, the only one, since Elphaba to treat him like a person. So she had latched onto that desperately. If anything, she felt lonelier when Boq was here then when he was gone. But she couldn't bear to let him go. So here she was, the lonely governor of Munchkinland, with only her unwilling servant to keep her company.

"Could you get me some tea please, Boq?"

"Of course. Madame." It was perverse, really. The little joy that Boq got from denying the cripple the one thing she truly requested of him. All she wanted was to be known by her name, Nessarose. But he couldn't give that to her. Because that would mean admitting the one thing that he didn't think he could admit. The fact of the matter was, he didn't hate Nessa nearly as much as he acted like he did. It was annoying, really. He was essentially a prisoner in the governor's estate, and yet… Each time he saw her, he could feel it. He could feel his heart bend a little bit. Quite frankly, it was a thought that terrified him. That he just might have fallen for his Madame Governor. No, he hadn't fallen for the Governor.

He had fallen for Nessarose.

"Thank you, Boq." Nessa sighed. It was quite clear. She would never be Nessarose again. She would always be Madame Governor to Boq. In reality, to her, Boq was the only one that mattered. If Boq saw her as Madame Governor, as the Wicked Witch of the East as so many now called her, what difference did any of it make? She would never have Boq, and that was all that mattered. She was destined, doomed to be alone.

Boq gave a curt nod, fleeing the room, hoping to outrun his feelings.

Nessa watched him go. As soon as he was gone, she cried.

-------------------

Boq looked at the simple headstone. It had been easy enough to carve. It hadn't taken much time. After all, when you're made of tin, you don't need rest. He had worked on it through the night, having rescued Nessa's body from under the house only hours before. He gently laid her body in the small grave he had dug, before covering her with earth, uttering prayers to Lurline, the Unnamed God and whoever else he could think of for the repose of her soul as he worked. Finally, he laid the headstone, ensuring it was well in place that it wouldn't move. He had buried her under the old sycamore in the palace gardens, her favorite place to read on the estate. He figured if she found piece anywhere, it would be here.

He looked at the epitaph, not able to amuse himself with the irony of the fact that only in death could he admit what she had so yearned for in life. He had been in love with Nessarose Thropp. For a moment, he felt a pang of regret, but it faded as quickly as it had come, a reminder of the heart he lacked. A heart that could not mourn for Nessa, for fear of rusting, for fear of admitting, even to himself that he just might care. Then... Would that be such a bad thing? Of course it would be. Disaster.

He ensured that the headstone was secure one last time. "Goodbye…" he thought for a moment. What difference did a name make? "Nessa."

All the difference in the world.

My first attempt at Bessa. Please review and tell me what you think of it.

Thank you.