The Wizard's hands trembled as he slowly and carefully picked up the clothes that were scattered throughout Theodora's bedroom and neatly piled them in the drawers of a nearby wooden cabinet.

Like the rest of the castle, the witch's bedroom was an opulent and spacious space. It boasted a dazzling chandelier and a fireplace directly across from the huge king size bed that was draped in red silky sheets. Near the large window was a vacant wooden desk. Above the chandelier was a high ceiling with a deep midnight blue mural of the night sky adorned with the glittering display of stars.

However, and for the first time, the Wizard noticed something else. In one particular section of the ceiling was what looked to be a tiny balloon with glittering colors of turquoise, light green, lavender, carmine and shades of pink. As he squinted his eyes to get a closer look, he saw a hot air balloon. It was his hot air balloon. And the sprinkling of colors that surrounded it and leapt into a small portion of the midnight sky were the Wizard's fireworks. They were his stars.

The hot air balloon and the fireworks in this mural were no coincidences. The Wizard knew that both of these things were alien to Oz before his arrival. It was apparent to him that Theodora had ordered this to be part of her bedroom mural.

As he began to pick up and neatly fold the remainder of his clothes, a black and white figure appeared behind him who he knew all too well. At first, she didn't speak, but as the Wizard placed the last of his clothes away, Annie started to talk.

"I told you Oscar that she is unstable." Annie's voice was as calm and composed as ever. "You need to leave now while you have the chance." Her voice was unwavering, but became slightly more concerned. "Things are only going to get worse the longer you are here."

Without turning around, the Wizard sighed and addressed his former childhood friend. "I can't. I know I can help her. I know I can turn things around. And besides, I need to wait for Glinda. I know she is going to get me out of this. It was she who sent me here to begin with."

But Annie was logical. "How are you going to help Theodora when you can't even help yourself? And why would you wait for Glinda when you know that you aren't even safe here?"

Several moments passed before Annie, who was really the Wizard's conscience, spoke again. This time, her voice was firm. "Leave Oscar. Leave now while you can…"

"And where would I go?"

"You can go anywhere. Go to the Gillikins. Go to Mombi. She's your friend. Or go to Glinda now and plead your innocence. Go before things get worse. I know you have the courage to do this. You have come such a long way, Oscar…but you have to think for yourself now. You need the old Oscar to resurface. You have to be strong."

The Wizard turned around. Annie was gone. "That man is no more", the Wizard whispered to himself. He then lowered his head as he made his way to Theodora's bed. He sat on it and placed his hand across his face. Annie had always been there for him, ever since they were children. He really needed her now. It tore him apart knowing that he threw it all away because he had a silly intimate encounter with the strongman's lady. And the most ridiculous thing of that entire incident was that Oscar didn't even "sleep" with her.

The Wizard's decision to callously jump into that hot air balloon really ate him up inside. It wasn't the actual decision of jumping into the hot air balloon that tore him up, but what that decision led to. Because of that choice, he found himself in a strange land with strange people who had strange customs. The worst thing about this entire predicament was that he was trapped. He would never be able to leave Oz. He would never be able to see any of the people he used to know in his former life. He would never be able to see Annie again.

The Wizard just wished beyond all hope that he could tell his childhood friend that he was okay and that he survived his encounter with the tornado. If he could just simply go back for even one second to tell her goodbye, he would get closure. If he could just go back in time and prevent himself from even traveling to Oz to begin with. If only that wretched tornado wasn't there…

But there would be no closure here. There could be no closure. The Wizard would never be able to go back to Kansas. He would never be able to see Annie again. He would never be able to speak to her again. She was gone forever. The only thing that he could do now was to conjure her inside his mind when he needed guidance. He truly, deeply and honestly needed her now more than ever. He just wanted to tell her how much he missed her. He just wanted to ask her for guidance and wisdom. He needed to know the right path to take. How should he deal with Theodora? Should he really leave? Should he go seek out Glinda before the Emerald City visited him again?

He knew that Annie wasn't really speaking to him and they were just his own thoughts. But he didn't even trust his own thoughts.

Truthfully, he didn't know how to deal with Theodora. Since he arrived in Oz, his feelings for her wavered. At first, he saw her as a friend with mild romantic attraction. Then, he greatly feared her. And now, those initial romantic feelings were returning.

But there was something in the far reaches of his psyche that told him to keep her at arm's length, even when he first met her. He couldn't describe what those feelings were or why he had them. They were just general feelings of pervasive and nagging anxiety. In fact, he had this anxiety with every single woman he had developed a romantic attraction to, including Annie. And he didn't know why.

What was wrong with him? Did he not want a romantic relationship? He did. He really did. He even tried it very briefly with Glinda…until….

Until he realized that his secret would be discovered by her. Everyone has secrets, but the Wizard had a secret that almost no one knew, not even Glinda. The only one who knew his deepest, his darkest and his most well-kept secret was Annie. He knew this secret to be true, but even he didn't understand it. He confessed it to her in private. After he told her this secret, he said he didn't know why he felt this way. Annie was one of the only people he could open up to and confide with.

The Wizard's mind began to remember that cloudy day in Kansas when he told her.

"You are the only one who knows this…" Oscar had been resting on a couch in a dilapidated and dusty Kansas City apartment. He shrugged as he adjusted his body and sat on the couch. "I mean…I had a normal childhood…"

Annie sat in a nearby chair. "Oscar, you told me that your father was a drunkard…"

He waved Annie off gently as he shook his head. "Oh, Annie, that wasn't exactly true. My father was a lout and a cad, but he never drank totally to excess." He then looked at her sincerely before giving her his signature cheeky smile. "I was exaggerating…"

Annie looked at him fondly. "I always thought that you enjoyed the company of many women. I mean, you gave me that perception, Oscar Diggs. But…deep down…I had a feeling that this wasn't the real you. And in a way, I felt like I always knew. This makes sense to me…"

"But that was the real me. The romantic part was the real me. But not the way you perceive it, or maybe even perceive it to be now. My feelings for them—my feelings for you—are valid and true. You see, I just viewed my father in a certain light and I emulated his own behavior but…after I would woo whoever I was with, I simply couldn't go through with it. I couldn't seal the deal. Even though the opportunity was there and all of the women I was with wanted it to happen…it just wouldn't…"

He was quiet before he completed the sentence. "…Happen…"

She continued to look at him tenderly. "Oscar, maybe this means you are just a one-woman man and you haven't found the right person yet…"

He curled his hands and rested them on his stomach. "The many women I've been with wouldn't think that. They'd wrongly think I'd simply go with the next girl because they were somehow defective or misled or deceived or maybe I wasn't interested in them. But it wasn't like that at all. It's just…I couldn't go further with them…and I don't know why and I don't know how to explain it…even though they all must think that I'm like…" Oscar paused before continuing. "They must think I'm a cad like my father with the next woman I went with…even though I'm not…"

He lowered his head. "I just don't understand why…I don't go through with it. Isn't this what every man wants? Isn't my father, with all of the women he's been with and the mistresses he's bedded…isn't that what a real man should be? I ask myself this question time and time again. On one hand, while I have a begrudging respect for his conquests, I loathe him for that same behavior as well…"

Annie simply smiled as he rested his forehead on his fingers. "Oscar…you will find someone who completes you...if you want to…someday…"

The memory of that old Kansas City apartment began to fade from the Wizard's mind as the witch's bedroom came back into view.

As he continued to sit at the edge of Theodora's bed, he felt lost, the same way he felt in that old Kansas City apartment. He needed Annie to discuss all of this. But there was no way for that to happen. Oscar was dead to her, and she to him, and this made him incredibly heartbroken and sad. These memories and pangs of emotions began to affect the Wizard greatly.

Don't cry Oscar…don't…just…don't cry…keep it together…. keep it together, okay? Just keep it together. The Wizard told himself this as he used his hands to wipe away a tear from his eye. He continued to hold his hands over his face as he silently and gently rocked on the edge of the bed.

Annie I'm so sorry…I'm so sorry I didn't spend more time with you when I had the chance…and that I was engaging in fruitless endeavors of trying to prove something that I wasn't. What I needed was a friend…and I failed you…"

As the Wizard continued to lament over the past, two voices were heard in the hallway behind the closed bedroom door.

"He is still in there, right?"

"Yes."

A note was then slipped under the imposing double doors.

Wiping away a tear, the Wizard slowly stood up and retrieved the note from the plush red bedroom carpet. He began to read it:

Wizard—please meet me on the castle grounds in front of the large fountain in thirty minutes. We all heard the outburst, but please pay no heed to it. This is the way of life for everyone here. The meeting will be brief and the mistress will not know. You will understand what is going on as all will be explained to you.

PS—if you need Finley, simply make a continuous tapping noise with your pencil on the dining room table and I will "retrieve" him for you. Please use your utmost discretion moving forward.

Once read, please slide back under the door.

~B.

Upon reading, the Wizard slid the note under the door as a hand on the opposite side swiftly grabbed it once again.