There was a brief moment of silence before everyone began talking at once, trying to find out what exactly was going on.
"What?" exclaimed both Woot and Polly. "Dorothy and Princess Ozma missing?"
"Who are these children?" A scarecrow and a tin man pointed at the Aldens. The siblings scooted closer together.
"How did they get here?" asked a very shaggy-looking man.
"But the Magical Belt and the Silver Shoes are missing as well?" asked Polly at the same time.
"When did you find out they were missing?" asked Woot.
A hen flapped her wings and squawked. "So many questions! We need answers!"
"Did ... did that hen just talk?" asked Violet, her eyes wide.
"I-I think so," said Henry, his own eyes widening.
"She must be that hen that saved them from the Nome King the first time," said Jessie.
"Yes, but hearing her talk is odd, all the same," commented Henry.
"No kidding," mumbled Jessie.
"Maybe we shouldn't speak of our problems until we've taken care of them," said the tiger with a soft growl in his voice. He took a step towards them.
"Is this how subjects of Princess Ozma treat our guests?" came a voice from the right. In walked a tall and queenly woman with red curls cascading past her shoulders. Her dress was white, simple but elegant, yet it caught the light in such a way that it looked like the fibers were dancing with the light coming through the windows. She had her face turned towards the crowd of people, and the Aldens couldn't quite see her face. Henry wanted her to turn her face upon them so badly as an ache he thought he had suppressed came bubbling up to the surface. That hair, that shade of red, it reminded him of his mother so much. He swallowed the lump that was forming in his throat before glancing at his siblings, he could see the same pain, the same longing in their eyes that he felt, Benny especially. Henry looked back at the woman, he could almost see his mother's face framed by those red locks. Yet deep down, he knew it couldn't possibly be her, there was no way. So it came as no great shock that when she turned to them, he saw not his mother's warm smile but the gentle face of a queen. But the wishful thinking had done its damage, and Henry thought his heart was going to crack.
Benny burst out crying. "I want my mommy!"
"Oh Benny!" Jessie quickly knelt and wrapped him in her arms, no doubt to hide the tears that were welling up her own eyes. Violet wrapped her arms around Henry's arm and pressed her forehead against it. He could feel the tears streaming down her face as he blinked back his own tears.
"You see, my friends, they want to go home to their mother. They are no doubt as scared as you."
"Oh, no," said Henry, his voice just barely above a whisper so they wouldn't hear the catch in it, "that's ... that's not it. Our parents died a few months ago. We live with our grandfather now."
"Oh, the poor dears!" exclaimed the hen, throwing up her wings. There were others who exclaimed their condolences.
Benny pointed at the redheaded beauty as he wiped at the tears spilling out of his eyes. "My mommy had that same hair!" There was a collective gasp before the room went quiet. All eyes turned to her. There was a brief pause, then the queenly figure knelt down and held out her arms to them. Benny broke away from Jessie and ran straight into them, sobbing the whole way.
"Benny!" Jessie cried out.
"It's alright," said the queen. Then she held out her arms again. Violet took off next. She wrapped her arms around the queen's neck. The queen beckoned to Jessie and Henry. Jessie glanced at Henry, tears filling her eyes. She turned and rushed into the queen's arms. Henry took a moment before he began walking towards them. With every step, it seemed to him like something was being lifted off his shoulders. While yes, their grandfather was taking care of them now and that had lifted some of the weight off Henry's shoulders, Henry, and to a greater extent, Jessie, still worked to keep the family together and sane. And now, the mental burdens seemed to fall off him, and for that brief moment, Henry found that not only could he breathe, he could grieve. Tears were streaming down his face when he finally joined his siblings in the warm embrace of the queen.
Henry woke with a start. He glanced around at his room. But it wasn't his room back at Grandfather's, this was an elegant room. The sheets were white with a red quilt and gauze draped around the bed posts. The room itself was white paneling with red trim. The bed frame and the dresser was made of the finest mahogany. So they were still in Oz, still in the Quadling Country, to be exact. Could the queen not send them back home?
Several voices drifted into the room from the hall. Henry threw off the covers and practically leaped out of bed. Two sets of clothes were laid out on top of the dresser, one set was the clothes he wore yesterday, clean and pressed, the other set was of a pale red shirt with burgundy trousers, a cherry red jacket, and pale red socks. He quickly dressed in his clothes and walked out the door. He saw his siblings gathered around an elderly woman who was not much taller than Jessie.
"So you see, Benny, pink is the royal color of the Quadlings. Just like lavender is for the Gillikins, baby blue for the Munchkins, and cream for the Winkies."
"And green is the royal color for all of Oz!" Benny said. He noticed Henry at that moment. "Henry! Your favorite color is the royal color!"
Henry raised an eyebrow. "Oh it is? That's nice."
"Ah, good morning Henry, I'm Locasta, the Sorceress of the North," said the woman, extending her hand. "Glinda asked me to get the four of you for breakfast."
Henry shook her hand. "Good morning, a pleasure to meet you, ma'am."
She patted his hand. "Delighted, to be sure. Now, come, we're going to discuss your problem and ours at the breakfast table."
"Has word been sent to our grandfather?" Henry asked as they followed her down the hall.
"Glinda has taken care of that. She was waiting to see if an answer would have arrived by now, hence why she asked me to escort you to breakfast," explained Locasta.
"Oh thank goodness," said Jessie with a sigh of relief.
"But how could she know where Grandfather lives? We didn't get to tell her. We fell asleep!" Benny pouted. "And I don't remember falling asleep!"
"Neither do I," said Violet. Henry's eyebrows knitted together, he didn't either. Why was that?
"But you had a restful night, I hope?" said Locasta. The children replied in the affirmative. "Then we're all good. And Polychrome told Glinda everything you told her about your home."
Benny brightened. "Oh that's right! We did tell her! Yay for Polly!"
Jessie chuckled. "Well of course we did, it's where we found her!"
Henry, however, had his mind on other things. "Yes, I'm grateful to Polly for giving Glinda the information, but I'm still wondering how all four of us fell asleep without realizing it."
"Oh, easy, you were all simply so exhausted from walking, plus the stress of being in a new land and seeing new faces, and grieving your dead parents on top of it all, you just collapsed." She patted Benny's and Violet's heads as they walked next to her. "It sounds like you've been through quite a bit for ones so young. And, unfortunately, there might be more for you to undergo."
"What do you mean?" asked Henry.
"We might need your assistance in helping us find Princess Ozma and Dorothy, as well as the Magical Belt and the Silver Shoes. See, the Magical Belt is one of the few magical items that can carry people safely across the Impassable Desert."
"The Impassable Desert?" chorused the children.
Locasta nodded. "Oh yes, whoever sets foot on the desert sands dies instantly."
Violet gasped. "Oh, how horrid!"
"Simply dreadful!" said Jessie.
"Sounds like a mean desert," said Benny.
"Oh it is, Benny, it's why the people of Oz never left this country for the longest time. But then, they defeated the Nome King and Princess Ozma took charge of the Magical Belt, thereby allowing her to bring people in and out of Oz. There are other ways in and out of Oz, obviously, you got here in one way yourself, but that Belt is a more sure way of knowing where you'll end up."
Henry nodded. "That makes sense."
"Are you worried that it might have gotten into the wrong hands?" asked Jessie.
"But isn't everyone here happy?" asked Violet. "It looks like it."
"Oh the subjects of Ozma are very happy and would never do anything to harm their ruler. But there are still certain people who could cause trouble, and some who wouldn't mind seeing Ozma taken from the throne and rule in her stead. Usually people from outside Oz, but there have been a few to be found within Oz as well. We fear this might be one of those instances, even though there is talk of an invasion." A worried expression flashed over the woman's kind face.
"We'll help you however we can," said Henry.
Locasta smiled. "Thank you. With everyone working together, we'll get this taken care of and find them soon." She chuckled as she patted Benny's head. "And get you four home faster."
"That would be nice," said Jessie.
"And we get to see more of Oz!" cheered Benny.
Locasta chuckled. "That you will, Benny, that you will." She paused in front of a pair of doors. "Now, let's see what Glinda has found out." She pushed open the doors and ushered the children in. Everyone was already sitting around the table, and as the siblings passed each person on the way to their seats, they were introduced to each colorful character. There was the Tin Man who was the Emperor of the Winkies, the Scarecrow, the Cowardly Lion, the Hungry Tiger, Scraps, Billina the hen, Betsy Bobbin, Ojo the Lucky who was also the Mayor of the Munchkins, Button-Bright, Captain Bill Wheedles, Trot Griffith, Oscar Diggs who is best known as the Wizard of Oz, and of course Woot, Polly, and the Queen Glinda at the head of the table. After making sure the siblings were comfortable, Locasta went to her seat.
Glinda stood up. "I understand that during such an uncertain time one will worry themselves to the point of not eating. However, this is the best time to eat, when one is uncertain, though there are those who do not need to eat." The Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Scraps all nodded. Glinda continued. "We must remain calm and think things through. While this will take time, and time is of the essence, getting something wrong could make things even worse. So, we shall proceed with caution." She held out her hands. "Please, seat and eat. You have now all met each other. I have sent word to the children's grandfather that they are safe and that we are working on a means of getting them back to him." She turned to them. "He in fact sent word that he would be more than happy to help with anything, but I merely told him that it's best if we do it. We have kept the location of our country secret for so long, we would like to keep it that way. But, he could help us by searching for the Princess and Dorothy on his end, to which he replied that he would keep an eye out for them."
"Oh, that's wonderful to hear!" said Jessie.
Henry's brow creased in thought. "He didn't mention anything about the tornado?"
"Only to say that there was no tornado," said Glinda slowly, glancing between each of the children.
"Oh! But-but how else could we have gotten here so quickly?" exclaimed Polly. "The winds felt right for one too!"
Glinda sat down as she looked at Polly. "Then it most certainly was a magical tornado. Why it was created, who created it, and why it picked you up in particular are questions that still need answers. Answers that seem to elude my big Book, and made me wonder if perhaps whoever kidnapped Dorothy and the Princess sent them to America in the tornado and picked you five up unintentionally … or intentionally." A few mumbles spread among the others while the siblings glanced at each other in shock. "That being said, I recommend that the Wizard take you with him to the Emerald City. He will be better able to protect you within the city's walls should anything occur."
"Are you still thinking the Nome King is behind all this?" squawked Billina.
"It's a possibility, but I don't want to take any chances. Speaking of, Billina, please go with him and get all the hens started laying as many eggs as possible. We might need them."
Billina gave her a winged salute. "Yes ma'am!"
"But what will you be doing?" asked Benny.
Glinda smiled at him. "We shall split our forces and begin searching for the Princess and Dorothy. You will help the Wizard of Oz in his search of the Emerald City."
"We will be glad to help you in whatever way we can, sir," said Henry.
Oscar smiled. "I'm glad to hear of it." He turned to Glinda. "But what of the boy, Kiku? What should be done with him?"
Glinda nodded at Ojo. "I think Ojo should make sure he gets back home, and do a thorough search for the Princess and Dorothy in his hometown as well."
Oscar nodded. "Excellent decision."
Locasta let out a breath. "And now, my dear friend, we come to the big question. What exactly did the Big Book say?"
Glinda's mouth turned down. "That, my dear friend, is my greatest concern. It seems to skip right over the part where Dorothy wished the Belt and the Shoes away and the appearance of the boxcar with Polly and these siblings."
The Aldens turned towards Glinda with wide eyes. "Say what?"
"You-you knew we were here?" asked Henry.
"Once I looked at the Book, yes," said Glinda, "which I didn't look at until the matter of the Princess's disappearance was brought to my attention. Then I saw your arrival to my castle, and well, here we are now."
"Then either the Nome King has found some new powerful magic item, or someone more powerful is behind this," said Oscar in a low voice.
Glinda looked at him. "And that is what I need you to do mainly. Find out who is behind this, before they strike again." While everyone else glanced at each other with grim faces, the Aldens looked at each other with wide eyes. Just what did they get themselves into?
(Author's Note: Hello my rosy readers! Thank you for being so patient with me! I hope you enjoy this latest chapter! Alas, I did not make it for the next round in the competition that this book was being written for, but probably for the best. The point of the challenge was to have a finished novella of about 40,000 words ... this story is going to be as long as any of my other fanfics, lol. Which, safe to say, since I've looked at them, are well over 60,000 words. Plus, now I can operate on this story at my own pace instead of needing to get to 20K - 40K words by May. And like I said, it would have needed to be finished by then, and that just wasn't going to happen. Maybe next year, we'll see. I could still end up with writing another 20-chapter novel for next year too, lol, but with everything that's been going on, moving, a new puppy, everyone else's stress, on top of my own stress and the lack of interactions with people outside of work and family, it's a bit much. Don't get me wrong, I do prefer alone time, but when you're sharing a room with one sister and both the dog and the other sister come in a lot because they're seeking attention, it gets to be a bit much. Now, one could say that that's a sign that I wouldn't be able to handle being a mother. I say it's a sign I know my limits and no one is allowing me room to breathe, much less myself some days. Plus, babies take naps and when they become toddlers, can be given crayons and books. Puppies less so, and this one just doesn't know when to stop, much less go to anyone else for comfort. He technically belongs to my youngest sister, but because he was supposed to belong to the middle one who's been having medical issues, I've been the one to take care of him before ownership was transferred to the youngest. It could also be because he's just not the right breed for me, just so so active. Anyways, now that this is out of the way, I suppose, I think things will be a lot easier. A competition of this size was apparently too much too soon. I'm glad I entered it, I got inspiration from it, and I might go back to the prompts and find something else to inspire me at a later point. Right now, I want to get these stories done, but in my own time. And now I must get some articles finished for a couple of magazines. There's been an extension on both, so there's room to breathe there, but the articles aren't going to take too terribly long. Besides, heading out of town to go visit my cousin who just had her baby. So excited! Oh, and by the way, happy Easter! Hope everyone had a wonderful holiday and that the rest of the week goes very well! God bless! He is risen! Alleluia!)