The Wonderful Witch of Oz
The long journey had taken its toll on everyone. However, the aching feet of the group quickened its pace by the triple as Donny Gale, his dog Terry, Scarlet Crow, Nicki Chopper, and Lioness' eyes beheld the City of Emeralds they were lead to once again by a road paved with yellow bricks.
"At last!" Donny exclaimed, throwing the Wicked Wizard of the West's pointed hat up into the air and catching it. "Now that we have the Wizard's hat, the Witch of Oz has to help us."
"I knew we could do it!" Scarlet said, shoving loose straw back into her sleeve.
Each member of the gang walked long routes, overcame spooks, fought off flying monkeys, and even killed a Wicked Wizard all to obtain impossible things. Scarlet Crow wanted to receive an education from the prestigious Oz University, but being a scarecrow made without a brain, Scarlet was rejected. Nicki Chopper was a soul who had loved and lost. Nicki's relationship with a Munchkin boy ended when his mother disapproved and hired the Wicked Wizard of the East to turn her to tin. After losing her heart, Nicki was unable to ever fall in love again and has put her to sorrow. The Cowardly Lioness ran away from her pride during her first hunt, in the fear of ever telling her family that she was really a vegetarian, so Lioness lived in fear and regret of confronting her pride. And last but not least, Donny Gale longed for his farmhouse in Kansas more than he ever thought he would, and to once again feel the wisdom of his Uncle Emanuel and Aunt Henrietta. The group of four friends and a little dog named Terry all met along the way for help from the wonderful Witch of Oz. They all wanted very different things from the Witch, but they all had one issue in common; time.
Donny knocked on the solid emerald gates three times until the long, red-bearded gate keeper showed his face through the hole.
"Who are you?" asked the gate keeper.
"My name is Donny Gale and these are my friends Scarlet, Nicki, and Lioness."
"And Terry too," said Nicki, with a smile.
"Hmm…," said the gate keeper as he gazed us over for security. "Ah yes!" he finally exclaimed after seeing the ruby wristwatch upon Donny's arm. "Please, do come in!"
Lioness led the group into the city and through the doors to see the Witch.
The room was just as they left it, before they went on their quest to defeat the Wicked Wizard of the West. Green curtains surrounded the emerald platform like a stage and in the center, sat Oz herself in her bright throne carefully chiseled from pure emerald. The train of her green dress was draped perfectly on the ground below her and her hand beheld an emerald staff. Every part of the Witch was green, from her clothing to her eyes and even to her skin.
As the group of comrades assembled before her and bowed, she stood from her throne.
"I am Oz the Great and Powerful," as she said during their last encounter. "Why do you seek me?"
"Your highness," said Donny. "We have done what you asked and bring you the Wicked Wizard of the West's hat."
The Witch watched with confusion as Donny placed the hat at her feet.
"How did you do it?" asked Oz.
"He was poisoned," Lioness explained, stepping forward to face the Witch.
"But surely a wicked wizard cannot be poisoned," said the Witch.
"Oh but they can, you see," explained Scarlet. "Donny accidentally spilled a bag of sugar into the Wizard's glass of water when trying to break free of the flying monkeys of the dark castle. The Wizard of the West drank the water unknowingly, and being a creature of pure wickedness, his body could not take in such sweet substances and he dropped to the ground."
"It got quite messy, your loveliness," Nicki added, "his glass spilled all over him."
"So what about our rewards?" asked Lioness.
Donny wished to go back in time to his farmhouse in Kansas, before he ran away, so that he would not get sucked up into the cyclone and he would be safe with his Uncle and Aunt. Scarlet wished to go back in time to when she was being stuffed and sewn together to ask to be given a brain. Nicki wished to go back in time and prevent herself from being turned to tin so that she would still have a heart. And finally, Lioness wished that she could go back in time before her hunt and confront her family about who she is, without the shame of hiding for so long.
The Witch of Oz opened her mouth to speak, but it took some time before words could actually catch up to it.
"I—I have to have time to think it over," Oz said, turning around to leave. "Go away and come back tomorrow!"
"Tomorrow?" Donny questioned. "We want our rewards now!"
"I said come back tomorrow!" Oz screamed and attracted little Terry to come up to her.
"What kind of a Wonderful Witch are you if you can't keep your word?" Donny asked.
Terry began to lick the exposed part of the Witch's leg and the jaws of everyone in the room dropped, all in unison. Terry licked green make-up off of the Witch's leg to show her true, pale ivory skin tone. Oz moved away from Terry quickly, covering her leg with the train of her dress.
"Hey!" said Scarlet. "You're not even a witch!"
Oz tried to run, but Lioness leaped in front of her, covering her closest exit.
"Who are you and why have you fooled us?" Donny asked.
Oz let out a large sigh and stepped down from the platform to face Donny.
"I'm sorry to all of you," she said. "I meant you no harm, I promise. I used to be a stunt pilot from Omaha, Nebraska, you see, and one day my plane was caught up into a storm. I thought I was done for, but I eventually made it to this wonderful place. No one here has ever seen or heard of an airplane, so they thought I was a great witch and named me the Wonderful Witch of Oz."
"But…," said Nicki, placing one of the green flowers in her tin ear. "What about our wishes?"
Oz looked down at the floor and gave it a little thought, then approached the group.
"My dear, Scarlet Crow," said Oz, "just because you have no brain does not mean you are not smart. You have already proved yourself to me of your intelligence and I would gladly write you a glowing letter of recommendation to Oz University that they cannot possibly refuse."
"Thank you so much!" said Scarlet.
"And Nicki Chopper, you wish to go back to the past and prevent yourself from losing your heart, when in fact it has never left you! A heart can never be a physical thing that is taken away. There is a heart for all who love and for all who are loved."
"Oh my," Nicki said, turning the tin of her cheeks bright red. "I do have a heart! I can feel it warming my soul inside of me!"
"And for you, Lioness," said Oz, kneeling down for their eyes to meet. "You do not need to go back in time to save yourself from the shame of running away from your pride. The greatest courage of all is being able to accept yourself for who you are, before anyone else. Only then will you find the true bravery to confront your family."
"You're very right," said Lioness, "thank you."
"And Donny," Oz said, her tone changing from happy to sad. "I wish I could take you back to Kansas, but my airplane was destroyed when I landed in Oz so many years ago. I truly am sorry."
Donny's head fell down as he sat on a step to the platform in utter defeat.
As Donny's friends tried to comfort him, a shining white light beamed from the floor in front of them and up came Glen the Good Wizard of the North.
"Glen!" exclaimed Donny, standing up to great the Wizard who showed him the way to Oz.
"Hello my boy!" said Glen. "I came because I had something that I wanted to tell you! It is that—hm… what did I want to tell you? It was something import—oh oh oh! Yes! I had just talked to my brother, the Good Wizard of the South, and he told me that the ruby wristwatch I gave you is the key to your return home!"
"It is?" Donny asked, examining his watch. "But how does work?"
"Hm.. I believe that—no, it wasn't that," Glen said, struggling with his scattered mind. "Oh yes! You must wined the watch three times and tell it where you want to go. However, the ruby wristwatch can never be used again, since to get back to your world, it will take all the magic it has, and then it will disappear forever."
Donny understood and said goodbyes to all of his unforgettable friends, who if he went back in time like he originally wanted, would never have even met.
Donny picked up his dog Terry and wound his watch three times.
"Take me home to Uncle Emanuel and Aunt Henrietta!" Donny said into the watch.
Donny then felt himself falling and everything around him vanished and was replaced by large, cotton clouds.
Donny tumbled onto the ground and looked up to see his Aunt Henrietta and Uncle Emanuel building a new farmhouse where the other was ripped away to a distant land.
Donny stood up, and with Terry, he bounded over to his Aunt and Uncle who were ever so relieved to see him and Donny had never been so happy to be home again.