Enough time had passed since the trip to the other world that Elphaba no longer jumped at every little sound. She was incredibly paranoid, more than she let anyone see. Or perhaps they did. She was doing everything she could to mask the paranoia, the nightmares, including helping Galinda decorate their now too empty house. With Fiyero gone, Elphaba was both relieved and sad. Mostly relieved because she always felt like she was walking on eggshells around him. Now she could try and relax and just focus on healing her wounds. She was very thankful for the healing potions, they'd helped heal her body with little to no scarring left behind.
She surprised herself when she reached out to Svetlana. She didn't even know the woman beyond having seen her post on the boards, yet here she was going to talk to her about what happened in the other Oz. Mostly she wanted to see if she could actually say it aloud. Elphaba had all ready done Rose's suggestion of writing it down. She'd formed it in a letter to her friends, and if this talk went well, then she'd give it to Elena and Galinda to read. Or she might just tell them, whichever was more comfortable at the moment in time. For now, she readied herself for meeting Svetlana. She really did hope she wasn't imposing on the woman, but she if she kept worrying about that sort of thing she'd never meet anyone else. And wasn't being here about having a second chance at doing things right? At having the life she'd always gotten but was always denied in Oz?
With Galinda at work or with James, it was sometimes hard to tell, Elphaba dressed and left a note for the blonde in case she got home before the green-skinned witch did. She didn't want Galinda to worry, which she would. She made sure she had her phone in case anyone needed her, cast the spell to degreen herself and headed off to the cafe. It was one she frequented because it was usually quieter and the booths and tables were fairly private. She often took a book and would spend a few hours reading. This evening, she'd spend it talking.
When she arrived at the cafe, she glanced around and spotted Svetlana. Drawing in a silent deep breath, she first went and ordered herself a tea, then walked over to the table. "Svetlana?" There was a soft smile on her face, and she hoped the woman would know it was her despite not being green at this moment in time. Setting her tea on the table, she slipped her coat off, setting it on the back of the chair. She was clad in all black, covering all of her skin save for her hands and face. She had a scarf wrapped around her neck. The torture had only enhanced her self-image issues even though there was no evidence left of it. Her long dark hair was pulled into a braid and draped over one shoulder. Despite the smile on her face, her eyes were dark and full of unspoken pain that she no longer had the strength to even try to mask. She used to be good at masking it, she used to be good at fooling people. But that was before she'd ended up here, before she had Galinda and met people like Elena that helped her open up. In truth, she was holding up her facade by a mere thread that was starting to unravel.