When the first ray of sunlight settled upon Wendy's furry face, her eyes opened wide…and it became apparent, right at that moment, that she was not at all drowsy, but rather fit to rise and begin working at the morning tasks she had been instructed to do, presently that of fixing up a full breakfast for the both of them. She put her white apron back on and headed for the cottage's kitchen area to begin her work, pulling four eggs with the intent to scramble them, two at a time. She noted, as she was working, that Minerva was still asleep, and she surmised that perhaps the proud witch had once again enchanted her to not only awaken at the touch of sunlight, but also to instinctively get breakfast ready to serve by the time Minerva chose to awaken.

Scrambled eggs, buttered muffins, and carrot juice…all of it prepared to satisfaction…was on the table by the time Minerva entered the kitchen area and settled into her seat, her servant dutifully pushing the seat of the proud witch gently towards her meal. "Good mornin', Mith Minerva."

"Good morning, Wily Wendy." Minerva courteously responded. "My, but this food looks delicious. You're making a very good impression upon me, dear."

"Thank you, Mith Minerva." Wendy made a little bow of her head with this acknowledgement, as per a habit she was developing, and she set to her side of the kitchen table to begin eating her own delicious food.

"I won't have too much for you today aside from your cleaning the kitchen, since we'll be spending most of the day in Bunnybury." Minerva noted. "Just pull the fresh carrots from the side of the crop that wasn't ruined by your…um, my spellwork." The proud witch fairly corrected herself here, no doubt in recognition of the respect she truly felt her servant had earned. "Pull them all, Wily Wendy. Oh, and…you have my permission to take one for yourself, if you wish."

"Yeth, Mith Minerva…thank you, Mith Minerva." Wendy responded, smiling.

"I will of course expect you to re-cultivate the crop tomorrow morning after breakfast, however." Minerva reminded, receiving a positive confirmation from her servant in answer, as the two of them finished their nourishing breakfast.

Wendy made good on her cleaning duties when both of them were finished eating, as Minerva went to her own living quarters to pick out an outfit for the trip. Wendy cleaned dishes, utensils, their drinking cups, and the table they were eating upon, followed by a thorough sweeping, before Minerva emerged to direct her servant to follow her.

The bunny girl's next new task was to have Wendy dress the proud witch in the dark red and purple outfit Minerva had picked out. Not being used to such outfits for the fact that she was a farmgirl used to more rural and informal styles of dress, Minerva instructed her servant on the proper manner of outfitting for such comparatively elaborate clothing choices. The bunny girl attended to her outfitting duty with the greatest of care, for the witch's outfit looked quite eye-catching, and some of the pieces were a bit delicate. Nevertheless, Minerva was quite pleased with Wendy's first outfitting.

"Do I go ath I am, Mith Minerva?" Wendy asked.

Minerva nodded. "Although I am going to give some consideration as to picking out manners of dress which I feel will suit you for future visits."

"Thith lookth really exthpenthive, Mith Minerva…" Wendy noted, looking over the outfit. "Did it cotht you a lot?"

Minerva then giggled. "I forgot that you're a stranger in our land. Well…you should find it radically interesting to note that there is no need for money in the land of Oz. Except, perhaps, if you want green lemonade, but Ozma stopped that manner of exchange when she became the land's ruler."

"Tho you can jutht get thingth for free?"

"More or less, yes." Minerva confirmed. "And since you'll be the one making the carrot deliveries, don't be surprised if they start forcing a new outfit on you. There are really good tailors in Bunnybury, Wily Wendy. I would not be surprised if you come out of there wearing something just as elaborate as this very outfit you've so carefully dressed me in."

Wendy smiled at this, feeling anxious. "Really?"

"Well…I'm certainly going to remind everyone that you're my servant, in case they don't pick up on the hint right away with you being constantly at my side and all, as I wish you to be, and dressed as you are." Minerva remarked. "One cannot expect a servant to dress in outfits more suited to nobles, after all."

"I underthtand, Mith Minerva."

"I would also advise you to not get any ideas about getting things for free, either, servant." Minerva added, with a bit of a stern tone. "Don't just go grabbing things without asking about them. Remember…taking without asking is the reason why I had you grow all that fur in the first place."

"Yeth, Mith Minerva."

"Stay close to me at all times, no matter what. Unless I specifically tell you otherwise." Minerva warned.

"Yeth, Mith Minerva." Wendy acknowledged. "How are we going to get to Bunnybury?"

"The same way most bunnies naturally travel." The proud witch answered, with a shrug. "We hop."


It would of course have been more convenient for the proud witch to use her magic to instantaneously bring them before the front gate to the small city, but it was for her new servant's sake that she chose to hop over. She wanted to have Wendy get used to her bunny form, hopefully to a point where she would not want to be restored to human form.

Most would probably consider this a bit of a wicked thought, but in this case, this thought was not so much wicked as it was a matter of pride. She liked how her new servant was shaping up. It did not take much effort to keep the girl from wanting to escape servitude thus far. Further, a wicked person would sooner abuse and torment his or her thrall for no good reason than show anything remotely resembling compassion and/or fairness, whereas Minerva's hand, while firm, was also fair and notably complimentary.

Minerva started the journey with easy hops, so that Wendy could keep up and absorb knowledge of the postures necessary. The hops got longer and longer until they were hopping in long strides, and in a manner that Wendy found to be surprisingly enjoyable. From the looks on her face, Minerva surmised that from her bunny girl's perspective, she wasn't so much hopping as she was flying. The proud witch made sure to remind her elated servant to maintain awareness of the ground, lest she land upon hazardous surfaces like deep water or perhaps even on the back of a hungry animal.

Wendy noted that while she could use her furry arms as naturally as any human, she noted that they had instinctively bent out in front of her furry chest, the hands angled down…much in the manner of a typical bunny…when she hopped. Such was part of the apparently instinctive posture of bunny-hopping, and it felt weird to look so much more like a real bunny when they hopped towards their destination.

Finally, Minerva and Wendy settled in front of what looked to be a large marble wall, and the proud witch pressed a single button mounted upon it, which had the following message neatly painted under it:

NO ADMITTANCE
except on
BUSINESS

Minerva turned to Wendy with a knowing smile. "Watch this." She then turned back to the wall…and in the next moment, a section of wall, shaped to correspond to a door, opened up.

The wall was pulled open to reveal the presence of Bristle, the Keeper of the Wicket, whose job it was to ensure that not only visitors did in fact come for business affairs, but that they were the appropriate size as well. Bunnybury, after all, was a rabbit-sized domain, and those who were of human size needed to be shrunk down by Bristle before entering.

Wendy marveled at how elegantly the Keeper was dressed, with his gold-embroidered white satin jacket, white trousers, a rose-colored satin vest, and white plush shoes with rose-colored stockings.

Bristle adjusted the monocle he was wearing as he opened the door, speaking as he pulled it. "Hum-ha! Have your orders or letters of introduc…" Bristle stopped upon spotting Minerva staring upon him. His tone was now reproachful to the proud witch, although he also glanced upon Wendy as well. "Your delivery is a day late, Minerva."

"I had inescapable business of my own." The proud witch explained.

Bristle eyed Minerva's servant. "Been a naughty girl, eh?"

"Never you mind!" Minerva snapped. "We must get these carrots to the King before they spoil."

"I fancy your…friend…there has never been to Bunnybury." Bristle noted. "Without a Letter of Introduction, I do not see any reason to allow her in."

Minerva sighed irritably. "She is a bunny! Just like me, Bristle. Just like you. Just like anyone in Bunnybury!"

Bristle took another look at Wendy, who could not hide how nervous she felt.

The Keeper of the Wicket then looked back to the Proud Witch. "And you will take full responsibility for any…problems…that arise, involving your friend?"

"She is my servant, actually." Minerva corrected, and Wendy could not help but blush at this. "And I believe you will find she is very well behaved. In fact, I would request unto the King for a Writ of Citizenship in her name. She will be no trouble."

"There can be no Writ without a name to go with it." Bristle reminded.

"She is called Wily Wendy." Minerva responded.

Bristle nodded, pulling a small, bare parchment from his outfit and scratching the name out upon it. He then looked to Wendy. "Should your stay here prove that you can indeed be trusted to exist among us, young lady, you shall be entered into the Citizenship Rolls, and upon your very next visit, you shall be welcomed as a full citizen of Bunnybury. Until that time, you are to remain alongside Minerva at all times unless the King demands otherwise."

"Yeth, thir." Wendy acknowledged, with another respectful bow of her head.

"Custom demands that since the Kingdom of Bunnybury must be of the proper size to be able to accommodate bunnies, your size must be reduced appropriately, along with Minerva. Do you consent to this?" Bristle inquired, looking to Wendy.

"I do, thir." Wendy confirmed.

Bristle nodded, and as Wendy approached the more proper door leading into the city, she saw the small door grow larger and larger until it was sized appropriately for her passage through it.

Bristle then opened the door. "Welcome to Bunnybury, Wily Wendy."


Wendy and Minerva stepped through the door, and Bristle began leading them towards the King's Palace. Wendy stared around, awed, as she carried the carrot bundle, walking alongside the proud witch upon streets of fine white marble.

The entirety of the Kingdom of Bunnybury was protected by a high marble wall, very much like the wall that separated it from the rest of the Quadling territories. Spires and minarets from the overturned kettle-shaped houses and buildings reached high into the sky, providing an aura of magnificence to the overall community. Houses shared the distinction of having a healthy green clover lawn in front of them, creating a nice contrast between the green of the lawns and the white marble.

It became quickly apparent to Wendy that she was terribly out of place when it came to the fashions evident in just about every citizen she passed, for they all dressed very splendidly. Most citizens gave them pleasant nods as Bristle led them to the Royal Palace of their King, but others lingered a bit on the strange bunny with the red hair and the dull brown dress. No doubt these were the more haughty citizens of the community and Wendy made it a point to keep her head down, staying close to Minerva as she had been instructed.

And then, they came upon the most imposing white marble building in the entire Kingdom: the Royal Palace, with its filigree of frosted gold. Wendy could dimly hear voices within the Palace as they went through the front entrance.

Bristle led them deep into the Palace, the voices growing louder until she could make out the words being spoken.

"…these will be all the rage among the citizens. It will make them all stand out, and encourage a most intriguing sense of individuality. They can of course remove them after they leave, and we need not make it a necessity for anyone to wear them, but…"

Two were in the Main Audience Chamber of the King of Bunnybury as the trio walked in, and both were very richly dressed. The surprisingly sullen half of the pair wore the crown, and so Wendy surmised this to be the King himself. The individual talking to him was also quite richly dressed, but wore a head of human-styled white hair which he gestured to as he spoke. Perhaps this bit of hair was the proposal of wigs to the Bunnybury society, and Wendy noticed that this particular nobleman had interrupted his speech upon sighting her, in particular, and he immediately rushed over to her, much to Wendy's surprise.

"See here, Your Majesty!" The nobleman added, in his young, strong and handsome voice, pulling Wendy over to the King before she could protest, taking even Minerva by surprise. "See how this young lady's curled red hair separates her from the typical citizen…and in a most lovely fashion, I might add…surely, you can see how this could benefit us? To be more of an envy to the average forest creature than to simply dress in our most distinguished manner?"

The King simply nodded, not seeming to be terribly interested in this potential social boon. "Yes…very impressive, Chamberlain." He then saw what Wendy was carrying with her, and his tone changed when next he spoke to the Chamberlain. "Perhaps we can discuss this at length at another time? More urgent affairs are beckoning. You are dismissed for the moment."

The Chamberlain blinked, loosening his grip upon the bunny girl with the carrot delivery, which had been placed in a wicker basket and was fully concealed with a red and white-checkered handkerchief. Wendy glanced to the Chamberlain curiously…she had been avoiding his gaze until now…and immediately noticed how handsome he was to her. If that was a wig on his head, he wore it very stylishly.

It took a moment for the Chamberlain to respond. "Very well, Your Highness. I hope to be able to bring this up again very soon." And with that, he snapped his heels together and bowed respectfully to the King, who nodded back. The Chamberlain then turned to face Wendy, taking her furry hand and lifting it delicately up until he could bring the front of his muzzle to press against the back of the four-fingered hand in a kiss. "Charmed, my darling." He then gave the servant girl a delicate rubbing behind one of her long ears and after presenting a similarly respectful bow to Minerva, he advanced to leave the room, nodding to Bristle as well as he passed him.

Bristle then stepped forward as Wendy hurried back to stand alongside Minerva, who smirked as she returned to her.

"Your Highness…may I present the ordained witch, Minerva Mulch, and her servant, Wily Wendy, to whom Minerva has requested citizenship."

The King nodded, looking first to Minerva. "Our stores were about to go dry. 'Tis most advantageous that you have arrived with your crop, Minerva."

"It wasn't as much as I was intending, Your Highness, but I do have one whole crop's worth for your stores." Minerva responded. "The rest should be ready in four months."

"And the delay, I fancy, was because of this…servant of yours?" The King inquired, his eyes now fully on Wendy.

"The circumstances were mostly mine, but…my new servant did factor into it." Minerva explained, nudging Wendy forward to present the basket.

Wendy jumped a little at the nudge, but…she composed herself quickly, wanting very much to make a good impression for the King, and she stepped towards the King, doing her very best to hide the fact that she was very nervous.

She then carefully lowered to one knee when she was close enough to the King and held out the basket to him.

And then, unexpectedly, she spoke.

"Your Highneth…I humbly athk that you acthept thith healthy, well-raithed crop of carroth on behalf o' the proud witch of Bunnybury, Mith Minerva Mulch, and I offer my perthonal apologieth for the crop not bein' ath large ath Mith Minerva had hoped. The fault for that ith mine, and I beg your forgiveneth." Wendy then lowered her head to the ground in a deep, humble posture.

Minerva's eyes grew very wide. She did not expect this from her servant! She expected the bunny girl to simply offer the carrots and then step back to her. But to hear her speak in her queer fashion to the King of Bunnybury…

Yet, the King smiled. "Please rise…Wily Wendy, is it?"

"Yeth, your Highneth." Wendy responded, her head still bowed as she rose to her padded feet. The King then pulled the handkerchief from the top of the basket to examine the carrot bundle. It was indeed as fresh and as clean an offering as he had received from Minerva. He could practically smell the freshness…and contrary to Minerva's allowance, Wendy never took one for herself.

"I shall have these added to our stores at once, Wily Wendy," The King remarked. "while I see to your immediate citizenship." He then gestured to Bristle, who handed the Writ he made over to his King.

This surprised both the proud witch and Bristle, the latter of whom had to interject. "Your Highness wishes to dispense with common citizen custom? Without even a Letter of Introduction? Should we not allow for the fullness of her visit to pass, without incident…"

"Yes, yes, I am very well aware of custom." The King hastily interrupted. "But I very much appreciate the qualities demonstrated by this young lady. I should like very much to see her within our walls more often. You are dismissed, Bristle. From this moment forward, the witch and her servant are free to walk the Kingdom grounds unattended."

Bristle blinked, but nevertheless offered a bow of acknowledgement. "As you wish, Your Highness."

"I might add, as well, that a Letter of Introduction was actually sent ahead of this sweet young lady's visit." The King then revealed, showing evidence of the required letter.

Wendy went wide-eyed with surprise. Minerva, however, looked slightly aghast at this. This revelation meant either Glinda…or Ozma…knew what she had done to Wendy. A somewhat accusing glance from the King to Minerva also carried the possibility of awareness.

Bristle took a closer look at the letter, and then bowed again. "Very well, Your Highness."

The Keeper of the Wicket then turned and left the chamber, making his way back to his entrance post.

The King then turned his gaze to Minerva. "I trust I can have you within the Kingdom for a time without having to worry about any witchcraft mischief?"

Minerva wanted to protest over this statement, but she maintained her courtly manner. "Of course, Your Highness."

"Good." The King responded. "Because I should not like to hear stories of how you were forming sinkholes in lands like Texas for unsuspecting young human girls to fall through, accident or not."

"That should no longer be a concern, Your Highness." Minerva confirmed. "Especially when I now have such talented help tending to my crops." She gestured to Wendy, giving her a bit of an accusing look in so doing.

"Treat that servant well, Minerva." The King warned. "You will be hearing from me otherwise."

"Yes, Your Highness." Minerva bowed her head as she responded.

The King's gaze went back to Wendy, smiling. "I hope you enjoy your first day in our wonderful Kingdom, Wily Wendy."

"Thank you, Your Highneth." She gave a very low bow as well. The pair then turned and went back towards the front entrance. When they were outside, Wendy turned to Minerva.

"Have I made you angry, Mith Minerva?" Wendy innocently asked.

As much as Minerva found Wendy's unexpected communication to the King entirely shocking, and perhaps worthy of some manner of punishment, Minerva shook her head. "No, dear. In fact…" It took her a moment to summon up the humility to add this next admission. "…I was very impressed by your unexpected candor."

"Are you sure?" Wendy inquired.

"Positive, Wily Wendy." Minerva confirmed. "Although you had better not let this compel you to embrace any habits I will not approve of, servant."

"Yeth, Mith Minerva." Wendy responded, her head lowered.

And from that moment on, Minerva opted to take her new servant on as much of a grand tour of the Kingdom as possible, and meeting any passerby who had wanted to acquaint themselves with the mysterious new citizen.

As Minerva introduced Wendy to two elegantly-dressed women, however, Wendy suddenly felt a sharp pain right at her tail. "OWW!"

Whirling behind her, she saw what looked like a young bunny with his paws behind his back, looking up innocently, as if he were just idling. Wendy frowned.

Minerva, however, stepped over to this boy. "Touch my servant again, Bumpus, and you'll be hopping out of Bunnybury in the form of a toad."

"I didn't touch her!" Bumpus protested.

Minerva now walked right up to this bullying boy. "Have you ever heard of peripheral vision, you detestable brat? I caught what you did at the corner of my eye. Now apologize to my servant this instant!"

Bumpus scowled, and then looked to Wendy, his scowl deeper. All Wendy did was frown right back.

"FREAK!" Bumpus barked, and then he hopped away as fast as he could, quickly dashing out of sight.

Minerva sighed, looking to Wendy. "I suppose it was only a matter of time before you met ol' Bumpus. He's one of the King's relatives, and he always thinks that makes him untouchable. Hardly anyone likes that little creep."

"I can thee why." Wendy griped.

"Indeed! Someone needs to give that little rapscallion more than a good scuffing!" The young, strong voice startled them both. Turning to the source, they saw the very same Chamberlain who was in the King's presence in his audience chamber. "Or perhaps a little witchcraft, eh, Minerva?"

"I made a promise to the King to mind my spellcasting, I'm afraid." Minerva lamented.

"Oh, I think even the King would not mind much if you were enchanting Bumpus." The young Chamberlain then turned to Wendy. "Plummage Bratprince the third, by the way. We haven't been formally introduced." And again, Plummage took Wendy's paw into his own and kissed the back of it with his muzzle respectfully. "Charmed, Miss…?"

Wendy was taken aback, again, at the Chamberlain's initiative, and expected Minerva to step in…but, when she looked at Minerva…

"Servant! Do not keep the Chamberlain waiting! Introduce yourself!"

Wendy looked back, nervously, to the man who, from her bunny perspective, looked entirely handsome to her. "Um…I…I'm…Wily Wendy, thir. Thervant to Mith Minerva Mulch, the Proud Witch of Bunnybury." She applied a nervous curtsey to her introduction, to which Plummage smiled.

"You have such striking pink eyes, my dear." Plummage intoned, to which Wendy blushed deeply. "Although I feel that your mode of dress is a bit out of place. Minerva, I wonder if I might borrow your servant for a while."

"To what end?" Minerva inquired.

"If we are going to be seeing this young lady around these streets more often, I should like to see her share in our manner of fine fashion. Such loveliness should not be confined to the garments of a mere servant while her fluffy feet touches upon the marble paths of our exquisite city!"

Minerva smirked. "So long as the Chamberlain understands that outside of the city, she remains my servant, and shall be attired accordingly." She then looked to Wendy, her tone firm. "Be on your very best behavior, Wily Wendy. In the time you are with the Chamberlain, you are to be in compliance to his desires, just as you are to mine. Understood?"

"Yeth, Mith Minerva." Wendy replied.

Minerva then moved in close to Wendy to examine her look and appearance, fixing wrinkles in her servant's outfit. The bunny witch was facing away from Plummage, allowing her to confide a quick, quiet message to her servant. "If he offers you a carrot, don't accept it. Nod if you understand."

Wendy blinked in confusion, but nodded.

The proud witch then turned back to the Chamberlain. "I might request that she be returned to my supervision once the day's natural light begins to wane?"

"Of course, Minerva." Plummage confirmed, with a cordial nod.

Wendy felt a little uneasy seeing Minerva walk away from her. She didn't know anything about this Chamberlain person. For all Wendy knew, the Chamberlain could be far worse than Minerva could ever be. Even her foster parents warned her about trusting strangers.

But Plummage was royalty, and unless he had magic powers of his own, Wendy figured it would not be wise for this man, noble or otherwise, to cross the servant of a witch. It also seemed a foregone conclusion that since she was favored by the King, any misbehavior by the Chamberlain could result in dire consequences, possibly from the King himself.

The Chamberlain placed an arm gently around Wendy's shoulders, smiling, and led her in a particular direction, towards a garment establishment which looked far too expensive for someone like Wendy to actually get anything from. "Right this way, Wendy. Don't worry…you should find this experience quite invigorating."