Happy New Year, everyone!
This story is a combination of many different ideas I had. I decided to combine them into one to save time.
Also, thank you all for your votes in this year's Greg Awards! I'm so honored to have won tied–third place for Most Humorous Author, Best Romance Author, and Best Angst Author, and First Place Best Crossover!
Hope you all enjoy this!
"Your Ozness!" the guard exclaimed as he ran into the throne room and bowed.
The Wizard looked up from his paperwork. "Yes?"
"The Wicked Witch… has escaped from the Southstairs."
His eyes widened. "What?"
"The Wicked Witch has escaped."
"How is this possible?"
"I don't know, sir. And… there's something else."
"What else?" the Wizard growled.
"The Princess… she's missing."
The monarch gasped in alarm. "Missing? What do you mean by 'missing'?"
"She's not in her rooms, nor the library, nor the parlor… nor in any other place in the castle or the gardens."
The Wizard glared at the guard. "Find her. I will not have my daughter in danger with the Wicked Witch on the loose."
"That's just it, sir. We believe she was kidnapped… by the witch."
The Wizard paled. "No…"
"And sir?"
"Yes?"
"There's something else."
"What is it?"
"The Captain… he's also missing."
"They were both kidnapped?"
"We don't know yet, but it's possible."
"Find them both! Bring them, and the Witch, to me!"
"Yes, Your Ozness!" The guard clicked his heels and bowed before leaving the room.
(Months Earlier)
Fiyero Tigulaar followed the guard who was showing him around the palace. He had no idea why he was so nervous. No, he wasn't nervous. He was scared. But he didn't know why. It's not like he was meeting the supreme ruler of all Oz and…
Oh, yeah. That's why.
He couldn't believe he was meeting the Wizard. And in person, too. When he applied for the job as a guard at the palace, he didn't think he would actually get it. Even though he had a lot of experience in weaponry and had a whole four years of rigorous military training under his belt, he was sure there were many other men more qualified than he was. And then to hear word back that the Wizard wanted to make him the Captain of the Royal Guard was much more than he ever expected. Fiyero Tigulaar, Captain of the Royal Guard had a very nice ring to it.
"Master Fiyero Tigulaar to see the Wizard, Madame," the guard said to an older woman in a green uniform sitting at the desk by the two large double doors leading to the throne room.
The woman looked up and regarded the guard and Fiyero. "And does Master Fiyero have an appointment?"
"The Wizard has requested that he meet the new Captain of the Royal Guard in person."
The woman's face softened ever so slightly and she nodded, writing something down in her book before going into the throne room. The guard waited with Fiyero until the woman came back out and motioned for Fiyero to follow her. Fiyero gulped down the lump in his throat and followed the woman inside.
The first thing Fiyero noticed was how his footsteps echoed off the walls. He probably should have noticed the green, since it completely surrounded him, but his hearing was much more sensitive. Everything looked shiny and freshly polished, the prince through that his shoes would scuff the floor… or that he would trip and fall, which was equally as bad and embarrassing.
He slowly lifted his eyes and bit back a gasp. There, sitting with his back erect on a throne, was the Wizard. He was a middle-aged man, probably almost sixty, with graying hair and thin-rimmed glasses perched on his nose. He was lazily skimming through some papers, tossing some aside while he signed others.
"Your Ozness," the woman curtsied deeply, and Fiyero bowed.
The Wizard looked up and put down the paper he was holding. "Madame Morrible."
"Fiyero Tigulaar, the new Captain of the Royal Guard, is here to see you."
"Thank you, Madame. You may go."
The woman curtsied and swiftly left, leaving the Wizard alone with Fiyero. Fiyero instantly felt his nerves begin to rise and for some reason, wished there was someone else in the room with him. It wouldn't certainly give the Wizard someone else to focus his attention on.
"You are Fiyero Tigulaar?" the Wizard asked, pulling Fiyero from his thoughts.
"I am, Your Ozness," Fiyero said with a short bow.
"Where are you from?"
"Kellswater, in the Vinkus, sir."
The Wizard nodded. "Where did you receive your training?"
Fiyero blinked. Didn't the Wizard know all of this information already? Why would he be asking him these questions? "I trained with at the Westering End Academy in Kellswater for four years."
"What do your parents do?"
"My mother is a seamstress and my father works for the National Vinkun Stock Exchange."
"Do you have any other family?"
Fiyero paused briefly. "N-No, Your Ozness."
The Wizard narrowed his eyes at the Vinkun. "You hesitated."
Fiyero licked his lips. "I have… had… a sister."
"And where is she now?"
Fiyero bit his lip. "She's dead."
The Wizard instantly softened. "Oh. I'm terribly sorry."
"It's alright." Fiyero desperately wanted to change the subject. He really didn't feel like talking about his sister.
The Wizard seemed to sense the Vinkun's plight and changed the subject. "I trust you understand your duties as Captain."
"Yes. To accompany any member of the royal family and their guests whenever they leave the palace and to take shifts of night guard duty."
The Wizard nodded. "Rarely anyone leaves the palace, especially myself and my daughter, but there will be times when I, not so much her, have to leave."
"I understand, Your Ozness."
"You are also the head of security. You are responsible for knowing who is here, how long they are staying, and when they are leaving. You will be giving the list of guest at least two days in advance."
"Yes, Your Ozness."
"Very good. Madame Morrible!"
The woman opened the door and scurried in. "Yes, Your Ozness?"
"Please show Captain Tigulaar to his quarters."
"Right away, Your Ozness," Morrible said, curtsying as Fiyero bowed, and the two of them left the throne room together.
"The royal family is on the third floor," Morrible explained as she led Fiyero up the grand staircase. "Their guests stay on the second floor, along with the higher-ranking officers, such as yourself. The maids, servants, and other guards have private quarters on the first floor. You will eat all of your meals with the other officers. As Captain, you are responsible for assigning the other guards their shifts, but you must take the night shift one a week."
"I understand," Fiyero said as Morrible showed him to his room.
"This is your room," she said as she unlocked the door and led Fiyero inside.
The room was very spacious, much more spacious than Fiyero was expecting. There was a queen-sized bed in one corner next to a large window, draped over with transparent, green drapes. A desk and a bookshelf were opposite from the bed and a wardrobe was opposite from the bed. There was a nightstand next to the bed and a dresser at the foot, both of which were a very light green.
"Your belongings have already been brought up and put away," Morrible explained as Fiyero walked around his new room.
Fiyero did his best to hide the blush from the thought of maids going through his underwear.
"You are free until dinner this evening. One of the maids will come up to fetch you." And with that, Morrible nodded and left, leaving the key on the desk and closing the door behind her.
Fiyero slowly sat down on his new bed, clad in an emerald green comforter. This place really needs to make it obvious what its favorite color is, he thought to himself. He sighed, getting up to look out the window. He was very happy to see that his room was overlooking the royal gardens. He remembered how his mother loved the garden they had in their backyard. It gave her such joy to tend to her flowers and vegetables. Especially after…
The Vinkun shook the thoughts out of his mind. He promised himself it would be different here. He wouldn't allow thoughts of his late sister to interfere with his job. He couldn't allow thoughts of his late sister to interfere with his job.
He finally decided to get up and get to know his new home and workplace. He grabbed his key and locked the door before setting out.
As he roamed the halls, he found that as much as the palace loved green, they loved paintings even more. He found paintings of different monuments in Oz, historical events, and even the Ozmas. He was so engrossed in looking at the paintings as he walked that he didn't even realize he was walking in someone else's path until they both collided and ended up on the floor.
Fiyero was the first to recover and realized that he had knocked over a young woman, probably no older than he was, with blonde curls and a dark pink gown. Oh, great, he thought. I've knocked over the princess on my first day here. Great way to make a good first impression, Tigulaar. Let's just hope you don't get fired because of this brainless act. "I'm terribly sorry," he said as he got up and offered his hand to the woman.
The blonde girl smiled gratefully and accepted his hand. "Thank you."
"Are you hurt?"
The blonde brushed off the skirt of her dress and fixed her curls over her shoulder. "No. The carpet is very soft. And who might you be? I've never seen you before."
Fiyero swiftly bowed. "Fiyero Tigulaar, the new Captain of the Royal Guard, Your Highness."
The blonde curtsied and giggled, a sound that made Fiyero's stomach want to soar, but he held himself together. "I am Galinda Upland, of the Up- wait," she paused. "Did you just call me 'Your Highness'?"
The Vinkun blinked. Was that not how he was supposed to address the princess of all Oz? Had he made yet another mistake in his forty-five minutes at the Emerald City Palace? Oz, he was going to be fired for sure. "I…"
The blonde blinked before bursting into hearty laughter, confusing the poor captain even more. What was going on? Why was the blonde laughing at him?
"I'm sorry," Galinda said, finally regaining her composure as she wiped a tear from her eye. "It's just… I'm not the princess."
"You're not?" Fiyero asked, his surprise very evident.
Galinda shook her head, her curls bouncing off her shoulder. "No. I'm her lady-in-waiting."
"Oh." Fiyero sounded very shocked, his mouth forming an 'o' shape, which made the blonde giggle even more. "I'm… sorry."
"Oh, it's perfectly alright. I can't remember the last time I had a good laugh like that one. So, thank you."
"Ah… you're welcome… I think…" Thank Oz that wasn't the princess!
The blonde smiled, curtsied, and excused herself before continuing on her way. Fiyero turned to watch her go. The blonde was very beautiful. Anyone could have mistaken her for the princess. It was a harmless mistake. A harmless mistake that, thank Oz, didn't cost him his job. He continued on his self-guided walking tour of the palace.
After a few minutes, Fiyero somehow managed to find himself on the third floor. He was walking around, still admiring the wall paintings, when he heard a very familiar giggle. Against his better judgment, he followed the sound, which led him to a closed door.
"Oh, Elphie! It was so funny. First, he bumped into me and knocked me to the ground. He was so flustered and embarrassed and he thought I was the princess! Oh, you should have seen the look on his face!"
"Of course he was probably flustered and embarrassed, Galinda. He's not here for an hour and he's already knocking people over."
"Elphie, that's not the whole point of me telling you this. He thought I was the princess. He thought I was you! This is the part where we laugh together."
"Of course he thought you were the princess, Galinda. I would think that you're the princess."
"Oh, Elphie. You're very princessy."
A sigh.
"But the look on his face was priceless! I wish there was a painter here to capture it on canvas."
Another sigh.
"Captain Tigulaar?"
The captain jumped, hoping it wasn't someone that had the authority to get him in trouble, but relaxed when he saw a young woman in an emerald maid uniform. "Um… yes?"
"Are you alright? I was sent to inform you that dinner is ready, but you were in your room."
"I'm fine. I just… wanted to walk around."
The maid nodded. "The other officers are waiting to meet you at dinner. It's on the first floor, through the kitchen and into the back dining room."
"Thank you," Fiyero said, following the maid's instructions and hurrying down the hall.
"Your Highness, Lady Galinda, dinner is ready," the maid said as she knocked on the door.
Fiyero had just rounded the corner when he heard the door open and footsteps leaving the room and following the maid down the opposite end of the hall. He would just have to meet the real princess much, much later. In the meantime, he just hoped he wouldn't do anything else stupid. And if he knew himself the way he did, he knew he most definitely would.
Well, that was the first chapter! Let me know what you think in the reviews!