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"Yes! That's it!" Elphaba Thropp yelled, dropping her final ingredient into the medium-sized black cauldron. The cauldron was sitting on Galinda's vanity, atop of scattered makeup, makeup brushes hairtools scattered about, as if it was a makeshift sorcerer's desk. She watched her key ingredient, a single feather, fall into the liquid into and start to sizzle. The feather of a Chicken that she got from asking one of the feathered ladies at a local bar for kindly. It was the last thing she needed to, hopefully, make her potion work. She watched as the bubbling liquid turned bright red. The opposite of green. This would be just what she needed.
"Elphie!" said a nasally, sing-songy voice, knocking on the door, but coming in before waiting for an answer. Her roommate, Galinda. "Ugh, what is that smell. It's simply hideodious!" The pink and blonde sorceress-in-training exclaimed. Elphaba rolled her eyes. She didn't need the interruption right now. "What is it, Galinda?" She said, with a tone a bit sharper than what she meant to use.
"I was going to ask you about the spell casting homework, but it seems like you've already got a head start" Galinda took a sniff of the air and scrunched up her nose in disgust. "Ugh! We have to share this room yaknow! What in Oz are you doing?" She said, waving her hand in front of her face as if she could make the smell go away.
"It doesn't matter." Elphaba replied, still with a bit of an attitude.
"Well, clearly it does! It smells all gross in here. It'll take forever to get the smell out of the curtains, and what if you spill your weird potion? Everything in here is pink! It'll look like there was a battle in here! I don't want red sludge all over my linens!" Galinda stomped her foot down like a toddler throwing a tantrum.
"I'm not going to spill it! Galinda please just leave me be," Elphaba responded, wishing that the other gurl would just take a hint, although she knew that was too much to ask. "No! Not until you tell me what you're up to."
"It's nothing- "
"Clearly not"
"It's just some magic stuff" Galinda looked offended at this. "Magic! I want to learn magic. I am a sorceress-"
"No you're not" Galinda gasped, in a feigned offense.
"I am an up and coming sorceress and I demand that you tell me what you're up to Elphaba WhateverYourMiddleNameIs Thropp!"
"Oh, you demand?"
"It's an order" she yelled, her voice shrill.
"Oh an order? So you think you can order me around?"
"No. Just tell me. Please please please please please. I'll do the puppy dog eyes if I have to" Elphaba had to stop her from doing a pouty face. She knew it would work.
"No I can't tell you"
"Why not"
"It's far too embarrassing"
"Embarrassing? Like a secret. Well you can tell me! I'm the bestest at keeping secrets!"
"That is absolutely not true"
"Gasp! I'm offended! How could you say something like that. I would never never ever ever share a secret!"
"You do it all the time!"
"How meanified! Name 1 time. It only took Elphaba a few seconds to come up with some examples.
"When you told everyone that Pfannee has a crush on Fiyero."
"Well he does. And everybody knows it. That doesn't count" That was true. But Elphaba already had other examples locked and loaded.
"How about when you told me that Boq only asked Nessa to the dance because he felt bad for her"
"That's different! I only told you that. I tell you lots of thing I don't tell other people. And it was about your sister."
"How about when you let it slip that ShenShen cheated on her botany quiz after she told you now to tell anyone?" "Accident!"
"How about when-"
"OK ok I get it I get it. I'm a horrible no good secret sharer. But what is it about this red goo that has you so frazzlated?"
"It's nothing Galinda really"
"Elphie come on! You can share anything with me. I won't judge you. I promise." Elphaba took in a deep breath. She wasn't sure if she could actually trust the pink woman in front of her not to giggle at her, or if she was capable of keeping her mouth shut at all, but there was something about the look in her eyes that made Elphaba trust her. That she didn't mean the green girl any harm.
"Fine. I'll tell you. But you have to promise not to laugh. Or tell anyone. But only of it doesn't work. Because if it does, then everyone will already know" Galinda paused, trying to guess what the secret was before being told. "Wow I'm mysticified! Whatever could this be Elphie?" Elphaba couldn't believe that she was actually going to tell her.
"It's a potion." Galinda's jaw dropped. Of course, she already figured it was, but it was different hearing Elphie confirm her suspicions. And she was also exaggerating her shock a bit for dramatic affect. Out of respect for the big secret Elphie was about to share and also because it was a little bit fun.
"It's a potion to degreenify me" This time, Galinda didn't have to feign her surprise.
"Wh-huhwhat huh what? Degreenify? You mean-"
"Yep I'm going to get rid of the verdigris that has been troubling me my whole life. I'm going to be a normal colour! Goodbye stares, goodbye bullies, good bye being called a steamed artichoke when I get angry" Galinda giggled, remembering that she herself was the one who had called her that. "Well it is pretty funny, I have to say" Elphaba shot her a glance that silenced her immediately.
"I didn't even know that was possible," Galinda said.
"Well it is," replied Elphaba, "Maybe. Only temporarily. For now. I was going through some old spells and I came across a colour changing one. It was made as a prank, like turn your friend blue for an hour as a joke, so it's only temporary, but I tried out a few things that will hopefully make it last longer. I made mine red because it's the opposite to green on the colour wheel, hopefully canceling it out. Thus making me normal!" Galinda couldn't hide the shock on her face, but then again, she had never been very good at hiding her emotions.
"Oh Elphie, do you really think that's such a good idea?" "Why wouldn't it be?" Elphaba said taking offense.
"It's just that-"
"I've been made fun of my whole life, felt isolated and so alone, my own father looked at me with such disdain, everyone always whispered about what my mother must have done to make me this way. I just want to live without that. At least for a day. To not have every head turn when I walk in the room. To be noticed for my talents and not my appearance. To have people get to know the real me and see my personality without judging me based on what I look like." Galinda for possible the first time in her life, wasn't sure what to say. "Elphie, I don't know if this is a good idea" Elphaba shook her head. "Of course you'd say that, you don't understand. You're beautiful. Everybody loves you" This was true and Galinda knew it. "Um.
, excuse me, I know what it like to have ever head turn when I walk in the room"
"That's completely different!
You know what I mean" She, in fact, did not know what Elphaba meant. "Im judged for my appearance all the time, Elphie! 'Oh Galinda, she's so beautiful and has beautiful dresses and perfect blonde curls, she must just be mean and dumb and not a very nice very talented sorceress'" Elphaba glared at Galinda like she never had before "Galinda that's not the same at all! You'll never understand what it's like to be ugly. People like you aren't very nice to people like me" Galinda's jaw dropped. "People like me?" "Pretty people with high social status"
"Well, thank you"
"Galinda-"
"Elphie"
"I've dreamt of this since I was a little girl. I thought that I'd have to wait for the Wizard to do it for me, but know I can do it on my own! I want you to be supportive of this"
"I want whatever you want! I support your journey in becoming your best self. But I don't know if that means becoming something you're not. Not-green you isn't the real you."
Elphaba was stunned. "Something I'm not? You don't know what I am! My life is just beginning! I'm starting to get everything I've ever wanted. I got into Shiz, without even trying and now I'm studying sorcery under Madame Morrible and becoming the best witch I can be. People are starting to see me for me. But there's one thing holding me back. And besides, you're the one who wanted to give me a makeover. To make me popular. How can I be popular when I'm green!"
"When I said I wanted to make you popular I meant wear different clothes! Not change your skin tone"
"Being popular is easy for you. You've never had to think about it or try hard to get people to like you."
"OK. If this is what you want, I'll support you. I don't want to to do this alone. It's just temporary. Right?"
"Yeah it should be"
"Alright then. Let's make you 'normal'"
Elphaba lifted up a ladle that was laying next to the cauldron on the desk and dipped it into the bubbling red potion and then lifted it to her lips. She paused and locked eyes with Galinda and then took a small sip before downing the rest of the potion in the ladle. The liquid was a litte too hot and very astringent and hard to swallow but she was determined to get it down. When it was all gone she threw the ladle down onto the desk and squealed. The gravity of what she had just done was starting to hit now. She was starting to become nervous. What had she done? How long would it last? When would it start? What if it made her look weirder than before?
"Elphie..." The quiver in Galinda's voice and the look in eyes told Elphaba that her magic trick had worked. Fast. She jumped up so quickly from her her seat that she toppled the chair over with a loud clatter and rushed to look in the mirror, but closed her eyes before she got there. She hesitated for a moment and then opened them. Wow. She didn't know what to expect, exactly, but this was beyond anything she could have thought of. She looked so normal. So plain. And yet so... strange. She touched her new-coloured fingers to her new-colored face. Brown. A beautiful shade of deep brown just like her mother's had been in pictures. She loved it. She wondered if her mother had looked just like this when she was her age. She looked more like her sister now. She looked more like part of a family.
"Wow, Elphie" The no-longer-green girl had been so overcome with new emotions that she had almost forgotten that she was not alone in her dorm room.
"You look...you look..." The very stunned Galinda tried to choke out.
"Hideous? Ugly? Strange? Did the spell not work right? Is this this not how other people look? Did I get it wrong?" Galinda chuckled. "No silly, you look beautiful. Absolutely stunnifying." Galinda reached her hand out toward Elphaba's new face and hesitated for a second before stroking her cheekwith her thumb. Elphaba didn't know what to say. She stood there, with the other girl's hand on her face, contemplating what her words had meant. Had Galinda Upland of the upper Uplands just called her beautiful? Is this what it meant to be normal looking? Is this what her life could be like? Galinda interrupted Elphaba's thoughts by speaking again.
"But it's not you. You don't look like you"
How could she say that?
"What yes I do. I still have the same face. The only thing that change is that I'm no longer green."
"Yes, but you are green. You've always been green."
"But you said I looked beautiful" Elphaba whispered, unsure of what Galanida was trying to say. Galinda blushed and looked down at the floor before saying "Yes you do look beautiful, but I thought you were beautiful before too" "Really?"
"Well, of course"
"But you never said anything"
Galinda opened up her mouth as if she was about to say something but then closed it again. Elphaba continued "I never thought that anyone would find me beautiful with my green skin. That anyone could ever love me." Galinda looked astonished.
"How could you think that no one could love you Elphie? You're so amazing and talented and smart..and the prettiest girl I've ever seen"
Elphaba didn't know what to say.
"Do you really mean that?"
"Of course I do."
"Wow Galinda, I had no idea that you felt that way. Despite the green?"
"Especially with the green"
Elphaba felt her cheeks get warm. She wondered how she looked liked when she blushed with this new appearance, but she was too embarrassed to look in the mirror.
"You know Galinda, I've always felt the same way about you too"
" Well of course you do, everybody does, Galinda replied without hesitation
Elphaba chuckled "Yeah. I guess you're right."
"Come on, why don't we take this new skin for a stroll" Elphaba should've been excited for this part right? This was the part that she was dreaming about, the reason why did all this in the first place. To see how others reacted to her like this. It was basically a social experiment. She was conducting a study on how appearance affects treatment from others. It was practically science.
"Ok let's do this. She removed her microbraids from the scrunchie that had been tying them up, out of her face and and threw on a long charcoal pea coat, over the simple black nightgown she had been wearing, too excited to change, and grabbed her book bag ready to take on the world. Or Shiz at least. For now. She threaded her arm through Galinda's and headed out of the dorm rooms and in the school courtyard.
The two girls walked arm in arm across the cobblestone courtyard past the the other students and for the first time in her life, no heads turned her way. There were no sneers, no staring, no pretending not to stare, no whispers, no glares. She was utterly unremarkable. And it felt amazing. Is this what life feels like for everyone else? All of the time? She was green with envy, well, not really, not anymore. But she was jealous in a way she had never been before. She had always been afraid to walk around in public, knowing that people would see her as weird and different and evil. And that someone always had something to say about it. And now she could walk around without anyone coming up to her to ask her about her appearance. She had said "Yes,I was born like this, Yes I'm the only one that's green in my family , no my parents didn't do anything wrong to make me like this, probably. Yes I'm sure that my dad is my 'actual' dad, probably" that it had become instinct. Every time she met someone they would ask about her skin or she could tell that they wanted do. But now she was free to just be Elphaba. "Hey Fiyero!" Galinda called out.
Elphaba watched the tall, handsome boy trot toward them. "Hey Galinda, who's you're lovely friend," he said lifting up her hand to his lips.
"Why, it's Elpie, silly" said Galinda, surpised that he couldn't tell.
"Oh Elphaba? Woah! What happened I didn't recognize you" Fiyero said with genuine surpirse
"It's a spell. It's just temporary"
"Oh well I'd hope so," the boy said grinning, "I like the new look but I miss the old you"
Was he being honest or just trying to be nice?
"Oh! Well... thanks!" she said.
Fiyero continued on his way, finding a new group of students to flirt with.
"Well that went well didn't it?" Said Galinda. "He feels the same way that I do"
Elphaba thought about the interaction for a moment before saying "Yeah that went pretty well" But she was actually a little confused. She thought that everyone would like her new appearance but they seemed to prefer the old her.
Before Elphaba could think about this further, Galinda spotted Nessarose and Boq chatting in the courtyard and waved them over. Elphaba was nto ready for this interaction to happen. It was kind of inevitable, but she hadn't really thought that far ahead.
"Elphaba? Is that you?" Elphaba had turned her head away to avoid recognition, but, of course, it didn't.
"What did you do?" Nessarose said seeming upset.
"Nessa..." Elphaba started to say, not knowing where the sentence was to go.
"What happened to you're beautiful green skin?"
Elphaba tried to think of what to say to make this conversation go more smoothly.
"It's just temporary. I look more like you"
Nessarose stared at her, taking in her new appearance. "But you don't look like you." That hit Elphaba hard. But that was the point wasn't it? To not look like herself? She had always felt uncomfortable in her skin, had always been insecure about her looks.
"I don't want to look like me," she told her sister.
"Elphaba, I'm a little disappointed. You always stuck up for me when we were kids. We were both mercilessly bullied but you never let anyone make fun of my wheelchair. You told me to be proud of who I am. Why can't you do the same? You're words mean nothing to me of you can't accept yourself." Elphaba hadn't thought about confronting her sister while looking like this, but this was worse than anything she could have conjured up on her own.
"Nessa, you don't mean that.."
"No I definitely do." Elphaba could see that Nessarose was trying hard to hold back tears as she rolled herself away in the opposite direction she had been heading in before. Boq mumbled a "Uh looking good Elphaba" before running after her sister. Elphaba had forgotten he was even there. She started to feel her own tears welling up.
"How could she say that to me?" She said, turning to Galinda, sniffling. "Why won't she be supportive?"
Galinda rested her hand on Elphaba's shoulder. "
Elphie, she grew up with you looking the same way and now you look different. That's got to be definishly jarrifying. She loves you for who you are." She paused before saying "So do I" Galinda blushed and looked down when she said this but keep speaking before Elphaba had enough time to react. "You don't need to look like everyone else for people to love you for who you are. You have your sister, and your family, and you're friends. And you have me. You'll always have me" Elphaba knew that she really meant this. And she was thankful for it. To have someone in her life like Galinda.
"To be honest, I kind of miss the green.It makes you unique and special"
This rubbed Elphaba the wrong way
"I don't want to be unique and special"
"You already are without the green skin.You're the only person I've ever met, maybe the only person in the entire world who looks like this and I think that's a great thing."
"I don't think that's a great thing at all. I don't think you could ever understand what it's like.
Galinda knew this was true. She could never understand what Elphie had experienced. Nobody could.
Galinda stepped back and looked Elphaba up and down
"Elphaba Thropp: powerful sorceress,excellent student, activist, protector of Animals, loving sister. Green
Being green shaped you and your life experiences. You wouldn't be who you are without the green"
Galinda interrupted herself with a gasp and Elphaba knew without looking that the spell had worn off. She felt a little sad to be back to normal. To be the same old boring shade. Like a leaf.
But Galinda felt differently "Wow," she said, "I almost forgot how much I love this shade of green" she said lifting her hand to Elphaba's face and cupping her cheek in it.
Ephaba had never had anyome say that to her before. Not even her parents. Especially not her parents.
"Really? Do you really mean that?"
"It's my second favourite colour! After pink of course!"
This made the now-green-again girl chuckle.
"Of course"
"Green is a lovely colour to be. I mean plants are green, the grass, the trees"
"Im like grass?"
"Youre the colour of earth and life itself. Youre like spring in human form." Elphaba laughed at this. She had never heard anyome describe her like that before. She kinda liked it.
The two girls stood there for a moment, in the middle of the school courtyard, cheek in hand and people turned to look.
Maybe it was because of the display of affection. Maybe it was because of the green. But for the first time in her life, Elphaba Thropp didn't care about the stares. She just wanted to stay in this moment forever. She was loved. Just the way that she was. She couldn't believe that she had spent so much of her life wanting to change. She knew that people would still be judgy and mean and the glares wouldn't go away, but she was starting to feel like maybe some of it wouldn't affect her so much. The people that really mattered already accepted her and anyone that didn't, didn't matter. "I have to go apologize to Nessa. I'm glad I tried it but I don't think I'll ever be doing that again.
"I don't think you need to. But I'll support you regardless. But I have to say, I like you just the way you are. And I hope that you can too."
"I think maybe I can"
Galinda intelaced her fingers with Elphaba's and the two girls walked hand in hand back to their dorm room. Each one thinking about how lucky they were the have the other.