Wash Out the Pain

Rifiuto: Non Miriena

Summary: I keep going to the river to pray, 'cause I need something that can wash out the pain...

A/N: It says she has a sequel to this... Written: 2010. Found: 2018- Licia

"I keep going to the river to pray
'Cause I need something that can wash out the pain
And at most
I'm sleeping all these demons away
But your ghost, the ghost of you
It keeps me awake"

- Ghost

Ella Henderson,

Chapter One Album

She rushed through the forest, trying her hardest to ignore the sound of the dogs chasing after her.

How had things gone so wrong in such short a time?

God, Elphaba, when will you learn? Good question. You won't. You never learn.

She had left her lover to God only knew what fate, left her sister to die alone, betrayed her best friend, defied the Wizard...

Her foot caught of the skirts of her dress and she stumbled, sliding in the wet leaves and mud before landing in the shallow end of a river. Thunder roared overhead, and she groaned.

Great. Just what she needed-

She turned her gaze back the sky, an idea popping into her head. If the rains came, she could slip away undetected. The dogs would lose her scent, and the witch hunts would end until the rains subsided. After a moment, she climbed to her feet, brushing a strand of hair out of her eyes.

She stopped, something catching her eye. A moment passed, as she squinted, before shaking her head.

A spot.

A pale spot.

In the shape of a raindrop.

The rain fell harder, and she watched in shock as the green of her skin began to disappear, washed away with the rains overhead. Suddenly, the skin of her hands were no longer green, but pale white, as pale as Glinda's. She quickly gathered her hair, pulling it back from her face, turning her gaze upward. She had known that she'd never been allergic to water- a stupid rumor started by Glinda back in university- but she'd avoided it none the less, because she hated getting wet. Had she known rainwater would do this-

Without a second thought, she hastily stripped out of her dress, letting it pool at her feet before stepping out of it and then working on her boots. She now stood in only her underclothes, and after a moment, she removed them as well, standing completely nude, watching as the rainwater washed away the green from her skin. The green pooled at her bare feet, like a puddle of paint, leaving perfect, porcelain skin in its place.

Finally, after all these years, all the ridicule, all the hatred, all the... horror, she was finally rid of her curse. She was finally rid of the very thing that had been her torment, since birth. After quickly expecting herself for any last trace of green, she slipped back into her underclothes, before grabbing her dress. The black dress was long, patch-worked together from years on the run, a remnant of the life of a fugitive- a green-skinned fugitive.

After a moment, she turned her attention to the area where the sleeves and shoulders met; they were fraying, tearing, and all they would need-

She slid a nail between the threads and yanked; the ripping was drowned out by the thunder. Eventually, both sleeves fell, leaving a high-necked, sleeveless dress with a long skirt, which she now turned her attention to. The skirt itself was barely holding on. Eventually, it too was give up and die, falling to pieces... but if she could salvage even some of it... maybe the underskirt...

It took a little longer to release the skirt from its hold, but eventually, layer upon layer fell to the forest floor, leaving only a shift style sleeveless dress with a high neckline of black lace, and an overlay of black tulle. After pulling it on, she found it fell to just an inch or two above her knees. She grabbed her boots, hopping out of the green gunk that had once covered her skin, and took a seat on a rock not far away. She pulled on the boots, before turning to the remains of the skirt. It fell in quite a few inches of frayed, haphazard material; it almost seemed a shame to waste it. Her gaze moved to the hat, the very hat that Glinda had given her all those years ago at Shiz, the hat that had started their friendship.

After a moment, she tossed it aside, before turning back to the skirt. What could she possibly do with this? It was still good material... her gaze slid back to the puddle of green, and she got an idea. Bunching up the skirt, she tossed it around the gunk, as though it had been burned through and then grabbed the hat, dropping it on top of it.

There, the hat and the remains of that skirt. The perfect clue.

Once done, she slipped the green glass bottle into her bag, and slung it over her shoulder, tying her cape about her shoulders, before going to the river and kneeling down. Despite the rain, she could still see her reflection, no matter how it rippled, and she was surprised. She actually appeared younger than her twenty-six years. In fact, she looked closer to eighteen, nineteen at most.

Not only had the rain washed away the green, revealing her true skin color, but it'd washed away the years, leaving her younger than she actually was. A smile crossed her face. If she wanted, she could re-enroll in Shiz, under a new name, and finally get her major-

She shook her head. No.

If she was going to have a fresh start, it was going to be away from Shiz, from the Emerald City, from Oz, if she could somehow manage it.

A moment passed, before she turned, studying the nearest tree. It took a couple minutes, but eventually, she could feel the familiar crackle of her magic working its way through her fingertips, and she turned, aiming her hands at the tree. A burst of blue escaped her hands, hitting the tree and making it spark. So she still had her magic...

She bit her lip. She would use it for good this time. She wouldn't allow herself to be caught up in political hummings or revolutionary desires; she would put it strictly towards bettering herself and her life, and to hell with other people. This chance was hers, no one else's. If she had to wipe her own memory clean, she would. In fact...

She turned back to her bag, where the Grimmerie lay, waiting to be used. A moment passed, before she pulled it from the bag and set it on her knees, flipping it open. She took a deep breath. A spell to erase select memory or even just memory... please... please... let there be something... The book began to glow warm underneath her hands, and she turned her gaze to it. A tiny smile tugged at her lips. She shouldn't... but if it meant a chance at a new life, wherever she ended up, she couldn't bring the memories she had with her. It would be too painful. No, this was the best option.

She awoke four hours later, in the early hours of the morning, just before dawn, to find herself sprawled out on the forest floor, a minor headache starting behind her eyes, and having no idea where she was or how she got there. It was still raining, harder actually, and she quickly pulled her cape around her. The conical hat and skirt were still there, residing over the green goo that had at one point been skin.

Slowly, she pushed herself to her feet, finding herself slightly off balance. She still possessed a few memories, she still remembered what the Grimmerie was, but had no idea why she had it or who she'd been running from. Glinda, the bubbly blonde, and her sister, Nessa, were nothing more than figments of her imagination, and Fiyero...

She shook her head, gathering her few things and stumbling away from the river. Eventually, she made it out and decided to head towards the nearest town. Or, city, rather. Her eyes widened in surprise, and she felt her mouth drop in shock, as she stared at a city made completely of Emeralds.

Eventually, she found herself wandering down the main street that cut through the City. It was beautiful, the people friendly, if a little curious about the young girl in black wandering down the street in a strange short dress, cape and boots. She ignored them, too enthralled by everything around her to care. So preoccupied was she, that she didn't see the person she'd slammed into until it was too late.

"Oh, I'm sorry! I didn't see you-"

"No, no, it's my fault-" The blonde stopped, eyes widening and jaw dropping in surprise; she had to be seeing things. It... it looked like... "Elphie?"

The girl gave her a strange look, stepping back. She quickly took in the blonde's expression, raising a dark eyebrow. "No... Elle." She held out a hand, and the woman glanced at it.

"Oh. Elle." She gently took the girl's hand, shaking quickly. "I'm Glinda."

"Interesting name." The blonde blushed. "And... dress."

"Thank you. Yours too." The girl ducked her head, a raven strand falling into her eyes. For a moment, Glinda felt as though she were staring at her best friend, fifteen years younger or so. "So... where are you from?" The girl lifted her head, and after a moment, she shrugged, looking around her.

"Around."

Her head snapped back to the blonde when a man joined her. "It was good to see you again, Glinda-" He'd run into her in earlier in the day, and the two had gone to lunch to catch up. In fact, it was the restaurant they were exiting, to go their separate ways. But he stopped, at the sight of the raven-haired teenager in front of him. "Is that... Elphie?" The girl looked up, eyes narrowing at him, and for a moment, he was certain it was her. "Elphaba-"

She raised an eyebrow, in a very Elphaba manner, and stepped away from him. "Sorry buddy, don't know who that is." His blue eyes furrowed in confusion, and he stepped closer, only causing her to step back. "Elle."

"Elle?" She nodded, adjusting the strap of her bag. "Nice to... meet you. I'm Fiyero."

She cocked her head, as though searching for the importance of that name in her head, but then came up with nothing. She held out a hand. "Nice to meet you." He shook hands with her, and she studied them. "You make a cute couple."

"Oh, we're not-"

"We're simply friends-"

She shrugged, taking hold of her shoulder bag again. "Sorry, you just looked like you were together."

"We were, at one point. But it didn't work out." Glinda whispered. God, you look so much like Elphie. You could be her twin. Or her daughter.

The girl nodded. "I'm sorry to hear that." The trio stood in silence for several minutes, before she looked around. "Well, I'd better be going."

"Wait!" She turned back after taking a couple steps. "Do you need help? Or directions? I'm not very good at giving directions, but I can try. Or... or a place to stay for the night-"

The girl thought a moment, shaking her head. "No, thank you!"

"She... she looks like Elphie, doesn't she, Fiyero?"

He nodded. "Like what Elphie would look like without green skin."

They watched as she turned and continued down the street, not necessarily caring where she was going or what she was doing, as though she had all the time in the world, without a care to slow her down.

Back in the forest, with the rains having stopped, a group of witch hunters came across the river.

"Look!"

They approached the hat in silence, before one of the men reached out, picking the hat up, only to discover the remnants of a skirt and what appeared to be a puddle of green skin.