So, this is the final part. I hope you enjoy it. It has been a pleasure writing for you.

Maureen stared at herself in the full length mirror. Compared to her floor length lavender gown, the white bathroom seemed bland around her. Carefully, she shaped her hair into a sleek bun, and opened her jewelry case. Nothing inside of it screamed to be worn; nothing seemed to go perfectly with the dress, with the occasion

Wonderful.

Slowly, Maureen opened the door and stepped out into the hallway of her apartment. Joanne stood in the living room, wearing a simple, elegant black dress. Maureen's heart leapt and sunk into her stomach. Seeing Joanne ready for the evening made it so much more real.

"Pookie…I'm nervous."

Joanne crossed the room to Maureen and pulled her tightly into an embrace. Maureen inhaled the soft, slightly spicy smell of Joanne's hair, and her nerves subsided a little.

"Honeybear, you know that tonight is your night, no matter what."

Maureen nodded like a child, trying not to break down. Of all nights, this was the night she got scared?

"I have something for you," said Joanne softly as she picked up a narrow box from the table and handed it to Maureen. Maureen held the velvet box for a moment before opening it. A beautiful dark pendent on a long silver chain lay inside. Maureen's mouth opened as she stared at it. Carefully, Joanne picked it up, stepped behind Maureen and fastened it around her neck.

Maureen felt a slight pull; the pendent was heavy, but for some reason, she held her head higher than she had all night. She turned to Joanne and kissed her with as much love as she could manage.

"I'm ready," she said.

***

"And the 2004 Tony for Best Actress in a Musicals goes to….Maureen Johnson, Wicked!"

She couldn't help it. Maureen burst into tears. She squeezed Joanne's hand so tightly that Joanne would have winced, had she not been squeezing back.

Slowly, Maureen rose to her feet and held a bunched up portion of her skirt in her hand, trying her damndest not to trip as she mounted the stairs to the stage. She could see people rising to their feet, she could see Joanne crying into her hands, and somewhere beyond the theatre, she could see her friends, in the loft, jumping and hugging each other.

A voice overhead recounted her success. "Maureen Johnson takes home her first Tony Award, playing the part of Elphaba in the original musical, Wicked. This is her Broadway debut."

In a haze, Maureen accepted the award from the presenter and stepped up to the microphone, waiting for the roaring applause to die down.

"Thank you," she chocked out, he voice thick with tears.

"I LOVE YOU!" someone shouted in the audience.

Maureen smiled and waved. "I love you too!" she called.

Eventually, the cheering died down and Maureen regained control of herself.

"It is the greatest honor," she said, "for an actress, so new to Broadway's stage, to be even considered for this award." A cheer rose up again, and Maureen swallowed back tears. "When I was a little girl, my parents would take me to musicals, and I'd look up at the strong, beautiful, talented women in the shows and I would think, 'That's gonna be me.' And now, it is." Something broke loose inside of her. More tears splashed down her face. "I'd like to thank my director, the producer, the cast; everyone involved with the show for making what it is, because without the makeup designers and the tech people and the fabulous, fabulous actors, I'm just a woman playing dress-up. I want to thank my parents, my big sister; and I want to thank my friends, Collins, Mimi, Roger, and Mark. And I want to thank my friend Angel, who would have been my biggest fan, and I know she had something to do with this. And of course, I want to thank Joanne, the most beautiful woman in the world and the love of my life. I love you."

That's it, Maureen thought, as she walked off into the wings with the award presenters. I'm limitless.

I hope you liked that. Maureen's Tony's outfit (including the necklace) was based on what Idina wore when she accepted her award. A lot of this chapter was based on Idina's win, although I obviously altered her speech. Idina's makes me cry every time I watch it, so that's where I'm sending you next, dear reader...right after you review, of course.