For fifteen years I have dreamed of this moment, for fifteen years I have longed for it, begged for it. I have prayed to every god from every religion throughout Oz that this moment would come to pass.

But in all those fifteen years I have never once dared to hope that it really would. I have never believed that it even could happen, that I would actually get to see her again. I have never stopped to consider how I would actually feel if I learned she was alive.

I am bloody furious!

"How dare you!" I hiss, too far beyond anger to even raise my voice.

"Glinda I…" The distance between us is crossed with two quick strides as my hand shoots out with blinding speed.

*CRACK*

The taller woman stumbles back under the force of my slap but quickly steadies herself, black-gloved fingers covering the blotchy handprint already taking shape on her cheek. "Do you feel better now?" she asks me.

"NO I DO NOT!" It is fortunate that the fireworks display is still in progress or the crowds in the Emerald City would surely have heard me.

I try to close in for another blow but find the goat between me and my target, stubbornly blocking my advance. "Get out of the way you silly old goat!"

"Glinda! Just because you didn't like history is no reason to be disrespectful."

I give up trying to get passed the old goat and turn away from the tall, dark haired woman. My breathing is ragged and I can feel tears forming in my eyes but I refuse to let them fall. I am still too angry for that.

"Let me tell you about being 'disrespectful'." I begin, my voice shaking with the strain of not falling to little pieces, "Because of you, I cried myself to sleep every single night for more than a year. I still have regular nightmares featuring black dresses and flying brooms. And do not speak to me about red shoes! And you have the nerve to stand there and tell me that I'm being disrespectful?!"

I have to pause and take a few deep breaths, desperately trying to keep from going completely hysterical. "No I'll tell you what's disrespectful. What's disrespectful is you letting me come here for fifteen years to cry over the grave of a woman who isn't… who isn't even…"

The tiny thread of composure I've been clinging to finally unravels and I sink to my knees with fresh tears pouring down my face.

I can feel her arms encircle me, steadying me, before I can collapse completely. "Shh. Shh, it's ok Glinda. Everything's going to be alright," she murmurs, her hands rubbing soothing circles into my back.

"Oh Elphie... You were... I thought you were dead." I sob as she pulls me tighter into her embrace and I latch onto her desperately, crying into her shoulder while she gently cradles my head in her hand

"I'm sorry Glinda. For all the pain I've caused you I am so sorry." I can hear the edge of tears in her voice now and I shake my head, try to tell her that it's ok but my voice isn't working so I just hold on even tighter until the storm of emotion passes me by.

I'm not quite sure how long we've been kneeling here on the ground; the fireworks display above the Emerald City has long since ended, the crowds dispersing back to homes or clubs for sleep or to party on as the mood strikes them.

We gently ease out of our embrace and get back on our feet again. A simple task made complex by my ridiculous skirt and the fact that neither of us wants to let go of the other.

We stand quietly for a moment, hand in hand, before I reach up to her cheek and gently trace the darker green blotch where my hand struck. "Sorry about that," I start to say but she cuts me off.

"It's ok. I think I probably deserved that."

A few more moments are spent in silence as we gaze over the Emerald City before I force myself to ask the question that I'm not sure I want to know the answer to. "What happens now, Elphie? Oz still isn't safe for you, it probably never will be."

"I know. Coming back was a bad idea. I just wanted to see that you were ok, that you were safe and alive. I wasn't supposed to speak with you but…" I can see her struggling to keep composed so I pull her back into my arms, offering what comfort I can provide. After a few seconds she continues, "I have spent the last fifteen years convincing myself that you could move on, that you would be happy, but when I saw you tonight you just looked so sad, so broken."

"I was broken. For fifteen years I was broken, but now that I know you're alive I can't go back to the way things were."

"You know I can't stay here…"

"Then you'll just have to take me with you. I won't lose you again Elphie."

She pulls away slightly so her eyes can meet mine, "are you sure Glinda? You won't be the Good Witch of the North anymore."

"You mean I could be Glinda? Just Glinda Upland?" Her nod stretches a wide smile across my face, "that would be wonderful."

"And you'll have a lot to learn very quickly."

"I'm sure I can handle it. I'm not the academically challenged girl you once knew."

She smiles at that, but then she hesitates as if she's afraid to ask… "Why?"

I don't answer straight away. I take her hand and lead her back through the grave yard. To a lonely, unmarked grave where a solitary pink bloom no longer grows. "Because, Elphaba Thropp, knowing you has changed me. I don't know if I've been changed for the better," I say as I guide her fingers over the old inscription. "But I'd like nothing more than for that change to be for good."