I loved writing this one!

Summary of the Previous Chapter: After Emma brought Glinda to the loft and introduced her to her parents and Regina; the Good Witch started telling them all about the history of Oz, including her own personal position there. She was last seen explaining the downfall of her homeland.

Please, enjoy!

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**UPDATE: Moderate editorial changes. I reorganized, added, removed, replaced and revamped this Chapter on 8/22/2014.

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Chapter Six: The History Of Oz—Part Two

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In a clearing in the woods, a monkey landed with a thud, whimpering a bit as it tried to stay off of its injured limb. Smacking its lips together, it gently brought a lumpy finger down to its wound but as soon as it made contact, it cried out in pain, the new throbbing sensation radiating a fresh wave of discomfort throughout its entire body. Leaning forward a bit, it looked up and gently flapped its wings in the soft even breeze, thinking about taking off so it could find a safe haven before going back to its mistress with news of a newcomer.

…A woman who had the ability to shoot out pink bursts of magic…

Shaking its head as it tried to ignore the damage to its leg, it took a couple of tentative steps forward, noticeably limping when it did so, and as its eyes started to adjust to the blackened sky…it then heard an unsettling, snapping sound to its left.

Now on high alert, the monkey peered into the direction it came from, folding its wings back into its sides as if trying to appear small to the possible predator. Its ears were high in vigilance as it waited for something to happen, but when nothing did, the monkey slowly turned away, its tense body starting to relax when it cautiously extended its giant wings back into the air. The wind then shifted in its direction, picking up in speed as it swept through the clearing and enveloped the creature, making the long hairs on its back sway in the chilly breeze, but as it continued to brush pass, a familiar smell circled around its nostrils, immediately catching its attention.

It was a human scent…

Suddenly, a sharp object shot out from behind a bush, aiming for the backside of the monkey but missed due to the rearranging of the wind. Screeching from the impending ambush, it turned around to confront its attacker, its mouth wide open while its claws began to emerge from the tips of its fingers in a blind fury.

"Come on, men!" the leader yelled as he held his crossbow up properly, a practiced finger on the trigger. "Aim for something tender…Dr. Whale and Mother Superior want to study one of these things with the hope of finding a cure for the transformed."

"Then why don't you shoot this…tranquilizer gun instead of us?" One of the men responded, holding up the weapon with one hand, awkwardly.

"I work better with an arrow," the first man replied, his eyes trained on the furious animal in front of him. "And I'm more of a precautionary for you, should something go wrong. Plus…I'm not the one who volunteered us for this type of mission…"

"Leave the lad alone, Robin, you're just mad because you're not spending time with that lady friend of yours," said a third person in a teasing tone.

The man identified as Robin couldn't help but to smile at the thought of Regina, the lady who has been repairing his guilt-ridden and broken heart with her company alone. They have been spending a lot of time together and not being with her right now was creating a dull ache in his chest. The sooner this was over, the sooner he could go find her and end his suffering. "True," he admitted, still pointing his crossbow at the creature. "Now, let's finish this."

As if on cue, the monkey let out a roaring sound before lunging at them, the limp in its leg less noticeable in its anger, but just when the one holding the tranquilizer gun raised it and pointed at it with the intent to shoot, the monkey was already upon them. Smacking the weapon away with the ease of one of its long arms, it then flourished a wing and pulled it inwards, slightly enfolding the frontal part of its body, before releasing it with a pulverizing backhanded force; knocking the men down in one fell swoop. As the other men tried to recover, Robin, who had managed to hold onto his crossbow on the way down, got to his knees and lifted his weapon up at the now retreating animal, which was moving away in great strides. Remembering that it had to be taken in alive, he quickly grabbed the tranquilizer gun from the unconscious man beside him and took aim.

The monkey was running at top speed, power and energy flexing the muscles in its legs and wings as it tried to fly away, but confident in his ability to capture it, Robin—though unpracticed with a gun—leveled it, judging the distance required before he gently squeezed the trigger, the force of the gun pushing his body back. The dart instantly shot out of the muzzle and flew through the air, nearing the behind of the desperate beast, but as close as it was to piercing the tender flesh of a cheek, it unfortunately fell short when the monkey's wings filled up with wind, building and storing enough energy in the folds to help it take off into the night sky; ruining their chances of bringing something back with them to Storybrooke.

"Dammit," Robin stated when he got to his feet, angrily holding the gun in his fingers as he watched it disappear from his view. The other men followed his lead by also standing up, a few of them propping up the injured parties as they turned to leave, but as they started to make their way back into the town, they heard a faint whooshing and snapping sound behind them. Probably thinking that it was too unimportant to investigate, they ignored it, and continued on their way home, a mixture of emotions bombarding them and tugging at their focus, which ultimately prevented them from hearing a loud thumping sound in the distance.

…

Back at the loft, the listening parties' ears perked up as soon as Zelena's infamous nickname was mentioned and as Glinda continued, they're interests peaked, hoping that she would share some sort of insight towards what possibly happened in the year they had lost—especially where the Wicked Witch was concerned.

"Oz's downfall was all my doing," she said, lowering the cradled wand till the back of her hands bumped against her thighs. "A few months after our exile from the Emerald City, the Wizard suddenly disappeared, including any writings about him in the Scroll, leading us to believe that something terrible had happened to him—though recently, I've discovered otherwise—but in the past, I was confused as to the meaning of this new dilemma. It was then that the pages began to document warnings about a woman named 'Zelena', who had bestowed upon herself a title, the 'Wicked Witch', and soon afterwards, her misdeeds began to spread; covering the entire realm in her infamy. It was then decided that I would seek a consultation with her, which was easy to do now since our banishment was under the former leader's decree, thus making it void, but when I was able to locate her, I, as if coincidentally, stumbled in on her using her powers. Her gifts were incredible.She was far more experienced than specified, which easily swayed me into accepting a surprising notion: what if she was the successor to my departed colleague, the previous Western Witch? Zelena definitely appeared to be a decent candidate, minus her extensive faults, and despite it not being my place to make such assumptions, for the crystal alone can determine its own wielder, I thought it best to persuade her to come back with me so I could find out for sure."

"It should've been my first indication when she showed a disinterest at the thought of joining us since she was more occupied with her thirst for revenge, which had literally turned her green with envy, but I refused to quit. The feeling I had about her being a part of the Sacred Four lingered in my mind and only grew stronger when I consulted the records, which gave me a positive outcome as to her future SHOULD she fully commit to our cause...but, if she continued down her current path, Oz would face a subjugation unlike anything it had ever seen."

"And you know about this because of a scroll?" Regina questioned, an eyebrow raised in suspicion and doubt.

Glinda glanced at her and gave her a subtle nod. "...Yes. Oh, I forgot to say that since I'm the Southern Witch, my duties extend to being the Scroll Keeper, which basically entails me guarding over a booklet as it records the past, present and perceivable future on a sheet of parchment. The warnings that I had mentioned earlier in regards to Zelena had come from those pages, as well as all of the background information I have been telling you. It is an ancient instrument of magic and the only one of its kind throughout all the realms—Merlin apparently didn't feel the need to create another."

"Despite this supposedly 'powerful' scroll having the gift of prediction; it couldn't tell you that all of this, like your banishment to the Enchanted Forest, was going to happen?" Regina continued with a mocking tone in her voice.

Glinda paused, trying to figure out an easy way to explain the complicated object she was entrusted with. "It did, but only after a specific point had already occurred. Since it can only perceive what's going to occur in the future, its insight concerning impending events is somewhat limited because of our ability to change. We're constantly adapting to new situations or altering our minds based on our ability to process the different paths we can take in life; causing the Scroll to rewrite itself, constantly. The only portions that seem to be certain are the prophesizes, such as Emma being the Savior of Storybrooke."

Emma winced inwardly at the reference but chose not to address it. All this information about Oz, a place that was really different from the things she was raised with, was getting very interesting; however, she could feel her mind starting to shut down because of her ongoing fatigue and decided to speed the process along for the selfish reason of beating her insomnia. "Sooo, it predicts the likelihood of what's to come based on the decision a person makes?"

"Precisely," Glinda stated, happy that somebody was able to understand what she had been trying to say. "It's hard to read at first but with practice and time, it becomes easier..."

Registering her words, Emma then prodded her to finish her story. "What happened next?"

"The Scroll, more or less, gave me a positive confirmation about my inklings towards her, which pushed me into having more meetings with her, some with permission from the Northern Witch, some without, and after weeks of coaxing on my part…I finally managed to convince her that her revenge wouldn't give her the satisfaction she was looking for and that it wouldn't make up for the years she had lost. When she seemingly accepted those particular realizations, her skin returned to its natural pigmentation, making me believe that her miraculous rehabilitation was real. What I did next; however, would change things permanently" she then took a breath "…After much consideration, I decided to bring her back to our Hallowed House, which can be found a little ways outside of the Emerald City..."

"I'm sorry, the 'Hallowed House'?" Emma asked, curiously.

"It's the place where the Sacred Four convene and store our magical properties. It's like our other home when we're away from our given Countries," she responded, a reminiscent twinkle in her eyes. "It's protected by all kinds of good magic which has made it a safe place to stay in troubled times, a fortress, if you will; especially since no evil can pass through its doors."

"We could definitely use some of that here…" Emma commented, making a fleeting glance towards the stairs, her thoughts wandering over to her son, who, she hoped, was still asleep and not poking around.

"Perhaps," Glinda whispered in agreement. "Well, in doing so, I had broken an important rule…no one is allowed to bring a stranger into the House without getting permission from the other members, but I felt that my situation was a just cause to ignore it. She showed great interest in the place upon arrival, which I took as a genuine show of emotion, and when I noticed that the others were gone, I took her to the room where we kept the crystals to either confirm or reduce my confidence. Knowing that we were still out of favor with the civilians of Oz, the ceremonial event wasn't an option to use, so I took it upon myself to perform the added duties. I gave a speech and handed her the only available crystal there, which she gladly accepted, but to my amazement and shock, it responded to her presence almost immediately. She didn't even have to touch it for it to glow, which ultimately proved that what I had been sensing was the absolute truth. She was the new holder of the Western Crystal."

"So, that's how Zelena got her name? That explains a lot," David breathed out, piecing the dots together aloud.

"Why were you able to predict her as the Western Witch?" Mary Margaret then asked; her brows furrowed together in confusion while she rubbed her stomach absentmindedly.

Glinda thought about it for a minute but then shook her head. "I honestly don't know. No one has ever been able to predict a wielder, it's too complicated to do, and it was never in our responsibility to do so. My guess is as good as yours…" she cleared her throat for a moment before she looked at David. "But yes, she ended up symbolizing the West and still claims to, to this day, even though she no longer has her crystal—the location of it remains unknown to the Scroll and, therefore to myself—however, my concern lies with more pressing matters," she then paused again. "First, I must confess my frustration to you aloud. It was supposed to be her fresh start at a new life but as the old feelings of abandonment began to stir again inside of her, she lost control and allowed it to consume her. She soon reverted back to her old ways, her skin revealing the true color she was underneath, and when I tried to assist her, she responded by sealing me away in another dimension with the assistance of her then active crystal, where I stayed for a total of thirty one years. I couldn't imagine what she was doing in Oz while I was gone, but I knew that it wasn't good."

"It took me a decade to get out, but when I did, the portal I had created was strong enough to transport me to the place I desired to go to the most. As soon as I got to my homeland, however, I knew that I had failed…" A tear sprung from one of her eyes and rolled down the soft curve of her cheek, trailing past her chin before descending to the floor. Feeling the weight of her emotions, Mary Margaret got up from her seat and pulled Glinda in for a tight hug. She understood the pain she was going through, from her living in exile to the thought of being a complete failure, but as she leaned back to peer at the witch's face, she got the feeling that there was more to her depressing story.

Glinda thanked Mary Margaret for her kindness but felt that she didn't deserve it. "If I had done my job properly, it wouldn't have escalated this far…"

"You did what you thought was right!" Mary Margaret told her, wiping away the tear stains, her motherly disposition showing through her kindness. "She's the one who didn't listen, who didn't heed your words! A person can only go so far to help someone, especially if they're unwilling to accept it."

Gently pushing herself away from the loving embrace Emma's mother was giving her, Glinda used the back of a hand to wipe away the remaining wetness from her cheek, her wand glistening in the artificial light. "But it was my job to know…instead of doing what I should have, I aided her. I shaped her into who she is now."

"But didn't you say that the crystal is the one that chooses its holder?" David asked, taking a couple steps closer so he could stand near his wife. "If that's the case, then it's not your fault at all."

"I did and that is true, but if I had shown some restraint and waited to give it to her, things could've turned out differently. I was so excited at the thought of finding a potential Sister of the Order that I acted irrationally. If I had…if I had held back till she had proven herself worthy of the crystal, she permanently could've been purged of her fears and revengeful nature."

"Are you saying that if you had waited till she wasn't so full of hatred," Emma began, the realization hitting her. "Then she possibly could've been a good witch in the Sacred Four?"

Glinda nodded silently, her eyes cast down to the floor. Emma brought her hands up to her face and rubbed at her temples, all of this information was really starting to overload her senses. The room then fell into a discerning silence as they processed the new information they had just received about their foe.

"Am I to understand," Regina then said, bravely speaking up, "that these crystals are powerful enough to influence a person?" Her eyes flashed dangerously while her hands settled upon her hips, resting comfortably.

"As I have said, they can transform your destiny."

"Then…you are to blame for everything that has happened here. If you had shown some common sense back in Oz, we wouldn't be in this situation now." Regina spat, her pent up frustration spewing out of her in vehemence spades. It was because of her actions that Zelena had apparently gotten stronger and it was time that somebody held this "Good Witch" accountable. "All the deaths that she has caused, all the bad things she has done is because of you."

"I know that you don't have your heart right now, but that's no way to talk to somebody who's trying to help us." Emma stated, taking a challenging step forward in Glinda's defense, again.

"And why don't I have my heart? Oh, I know, because of my revenge seeking sister who is bent on destroying all of us, no thanks to her!" Regina responded, thrusting an accusatory finger in Glinda's direction.

"If I remember correctly, that theme or…apple doesn't fall far from your family tree," Emma retorted; projecting her entire attention and weariness onto her mentor. "In fact, I'm pretty sure that if you didn't cast the first curse, then none of this would be happening right now."

"Okay, stop it you two—" Mary Margaret said, trying her best to end the verbal feud but her voice wasn't loud enough to compete with them, so, David then tried to intervene, like he did the last time, but he too was ignored.

"Oh please, don't try to justify Zelena's and Glinda's actions by comparing them to my own. They aren't the same and you know it!"

"How are they NOT the same? You—"

"Enough!" Glinda shouted, a harmless, but bright, pink spark erupted from the tip of her wand when she raised it at arm's length, immediately accomplishing her goal of getting their attention with one swift movement. Everybody's eyes were wide when they complied with her order—both Emma and Regina relented in their stance against one another by either turning away or taking a few steps back. The vulnerable and sweet façade, of moments passed, completely vanished when Glinda adopted a new and fearsome expression, one of fiery eyes and profound determination. "There isn't enough time for pointless bickering or dramatics of precedence. What's done is done...plus," she reasoned, "we don't want to wake up the boy who's upstairs."

She then turned to look at Regina, who tried to conceal the nervous tick one of her eyebrows made by blinking. "I understand your position and what you say is true, but that's exactly the reason why I decided to act. I went back to Oz not only because I missed my homeland, but to confront her. To save what it was that I helped destroyed. But when I got there, it was desolate, blood-soaked and filled with wretched souls who looked desperate enough to wish for death! Knowing that I had to find my sisters, I went to our House where I saw their remains strewn out on the lawn, unprotected and unloved, the Eastern Crystal also gone—the whereabouts likewise in an unknown place. The only explanation, for their murder, was that they had to have been drawn out of our magically protected haven...so, fearful for the first time in my life in Oz, I swiftly headed inside where I, thankfully, found the Scroll. I opened it and watched as decades of information flooded its pages, filling them up to the brim, where I indeed learned of my sisters' demise as well as some surprising plot twists along the way. As I skimmed the sheets, trying my best to memorize each important event, each death, each vital piece of information, each creation Zelena had designed in my absence—I happened upon the mysterious town of Storybrooke…and its savior."

Glinda then glanced in Emma's direction. "Apparently, there had been a prophesy about one who would be able to save her people from a dark curse, after twenty eight years had passed, and when I read that the result had concluded successfully, I found myself beginning to hope; something I hadn't done in a long time. As I continued browsing, determined to find some more information about you, Emma, I discovered that you were listed as one 'destined for great things' and I became convinced that you would be able to assist me in what I have to do."

She then made her way over to Emma, who was shell-shocked by Glinda's passionate speech. She took a step back from the imposing witch and pointed at herself. "Me? How could I possibly help you in this?"

"When we first met in the street, after I saved you from one of Zelena's monkeys, I told you that you could be my only hope and I meant that. There's an evil coming that will destroy all the realms if we don't act quickly."

"The Ice Queen," Emma whispered softly, vaguely remembering what she had told her after she had been attacked. From her peripheral vision, she noticed that her parents were giving her a look that expressed their concern in light of Glinda's words; meaning that they were beginning to understand how the two of them had met. Emma exhaled, she wasn't planning on telling them the details of that situation, whatsoever, but now that that cat was out of the bag... "Do you know what she's planning?"

"The writings mentioned something about a 'black cloud' being powerful enough to do her bidding. She just needs a few potent ingredients to do this but they were, unfortunately, not elaborated on from my perspective. The Ice Queen, however, did manage to achieve some form of alliance with one we're both acquainted with…"

"Zelena," David answered, moving closer to his family who had again, through the midst of the conversation, migrated away from him. Glinda gave him a quick empty half smile, soundlessly informing him that he had guessed correctly. Looking about the room, she took in their somber features. She knew that she had just hit them with some heavy information…but she wasn't through yet. Glinda had just one more thing to tell them and if they thought that what they had just heard was difficult then, what she was about to say next, was going to be a doozy.

Glinda took a breath before speaking again. "When I was able, I summoned another portal. It was a weaker design because of how much magic I had used to create the first, but it suited my purposes. I hastily made my way here, to Storybrooke, with the intention of finding that hope I so longed for." The strawberry blonde's lavender eyes fixed upon Emma's hazel ones and took a step closer, standing only a foot away. "…You."

When Emma couldn't find any words to express what she was feeling, Glinda held out her right hand, shifting the wand over to her left, and waved it; her wrist rolling around in a circular motion. The air then sizzled and burst in front of them as something began to materialize in the middle of her palm; a collection of light was pulling at a stream of magic in an upwards motion before revealing a chunky, diamond-shaped object.

"What is that?" Emma questioned as she staggered a couple paces backwards; her eyes wide. Regina had now moved beside the couple, in order to she get a better look, while Mary Margaret had grabbed her daughter's shoulder in a protective, vise-like grip.

"This," Glinda began, as she looked over the item, "is the last one, in existence, without a master. It is the greatest of them all…the Northern Crystal. I found it inside our House at the same time I had found the Scroll. The previous holder must've thought it wise to leave it behind and she was right. If this fell into the wrong hands, who knows what could happen to it or to the other realms," she then looked at Emma, lowering the object to see her better. "With the rest of my sisters gone, it'll be difficult for Oz to get back on its feet and restoring order would be harder, if not impossible to do, but it doesn't end there; many of the other worlds would suffer as well. So, I need to find the next Northern Witch before this black cloud happens for he or she is the only person who can locate the other two now, since going back to Oz for a public event is unlikely and life-threatening. And I think that I may have found the best candidate to do so or at least start with…"

"Who?" Mary Margaret asked when nobody else dared to, her eyes moving rapidly between Glinda and the sleeping crystal she was displaying.

She hesitated before boldly stating what she had been leading up to the entire time she had been telling her story. "…Who but the Savior of Storybrooke and the product of the greatest True Love there is? Emma Swan, the daughter of Snow White and her Prince Charming."

…

Sitting languidly in her throne chair, legs crossed and head propped up by the back of her knuckles, the Ice Queen watched in intrigue as large images flashed across the mirror she had propped up a couple of feet away from her.

"How interesting…" she drawled out when she first observed Glinda explaining to the rest of the room about the Land of Oz before summoning the Northern Crystal, a coveted item in any named realm. Upon seeing it, she leaned forward, biting her lip in amazement.

"So it was in the Hallowed House? No wonder they couldn't find it."

She then waved a finger, changing the picture from the loft to the other different areas within the same town. It soon guided her to a clearing in the woods where a group of armed individuals had surrounded a flying monkey. Noting that it was one of her partner's creations, she raised an eyebrow, wondering what could possibly be interesting about capturing one of those creatures, but when she heard the words "cure" and "tranquilizer gun", she realized that they were planning to transform the beast back into its normal self...if it still had one to go back to...

"They'll have a tough time in doing so…that bit of magic is hard to undo," she mocked, engrossed in what she was watching. As the creature ran to attack the men, she saw that it was injured and without hesitating, she commanded the mirror to zoom in on the wound, finding it odd that such a durable creature would bear a mark or a scar. It was a fresh injury and judging from what she had overheard in Glinda's conversation, this could be the very same monkey they had warded off.

"That must've been the bit of information I had missed," she said when she recalled her discovery of the Southern Witch's new location. Since that happenstance though, she had been keeping a close eye on her, which was a good thing; otherwise, she wouldn't have learned a few details that were, ordinarily, kept by certain individuals.

Until now.

As she continued to look at the creature, she soon found what she had been looking for. There, barely discernible to the human eye, was a small puff of residual pink magic gliding around the gaping wound, and because of the Bylaws of Magic, it could've been done by only one individual—the innocent, sweet and cunning Glinda.

Breathing deeply, trying to control her emotions, she watched as the creature got away from its attackers by taking off into the night sky. Her eyes still focused on the mirror, she twirled a loose strand of her hair nervously. "If that beast makes it back to Zelena, then my test would be ruined…"

Knowing her options, she raised a hand and steadily flicked a finger, the practiced motion summoning out a pale blue light, which then glided deliberately over to the mirror. Using her extensive knowledge of transporting through realms, she guided it effortlessly through the surface while simultaneously creating a small portal right in front of the monkey that lived in Storybrooke. The creature stopped, its wings flapping wildly behind it, but before it could react in anyway, the magical wisp lunged forward suddenly and struck it squarely in the chest, over its heart. Its mouth dropped open in shock as a stinging pain racked its body, causing its tail to vibrate unnaturally, and as soon as its wings started to slow down; a thick formation of ice began to encase it. Once its entire body was covered in an icy tomb, a hiss of air escaped from its mouth, effectively breathing its last, before it plummeted to the ground at a high speed.

It broke through a couple of branches before crashing with a loud thud, shattering and exploding into different areas of the forest.

"It's always better to keep things on ice…" the Ice Queen stated with a wide smile, watching how her deadly decision went unnoticed by the group of men, who had begun to leave the clearing in obvious disappointment. Then, with a lazy hand wave, she closed both the portal in Storybrooke and the images on her mirror so she could lean back into her throne chair, allowing the inevitable darkness to close in around her.

"Zelena," she whispered, staring at the one flicker of light in the room, which was illuminating a wall in the distance. Her thoughts darkened when her present concerns wandered back to her. "You better not fail me…or I might do the same thing to you."

…

I hope that you liked it. The next chapter will be here soon!

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