The Wizard Of OZ
Chapter Two - If Only
-Scene 05: If I Only Had A Heart-
The odd duo were well on their way to the Silver Crystal City, who were still following the yellow brick road and had come upon a dark forest.
"I'm so hungry I could eat straw!" Usagi whined. This caused Minako to jump far away from her. She quickly realized her mistake, "Not that I would! You probably wouldn't taste very good anyway." Minako smiled at this, then frowned.
They'd walked until it started getting dark. Usagi was starving. Minako was lucky, being a scarecrow and made of straw, there was no need for her to eat. She was getting tired, and it was scary walking through the woods. Back home she'd have never done this unless she was henshined, or Mamoru was with her. But then what joy! They'd come across a bunch of apple trees! Apples were on the menu for dinner, and Usagi didn't mind one bit. She skipped happily over to the closest one to pick some off while Minako inspected those that were rotting on the ground. They smelled sickeningly sweet, and filled the air with a heavy stench.
With a slap!, the tree's branch whisked over and smacked Usagi on the hand. She jumped back, looking around with wide eyes.
"How would you like it if someone came along and picked something off you?" the tree snarled, scaring Usagi.
"Oh, I'm so sorry, Mr. Tree! B-but I'm so very hungry and, and..." stuttered Usagi, before it hit her. Talking trees? Evil talking trees? That slapped innocent passerby?
"Leave her alone, you-you overgrown weed!", Minako cried, who had witnessed the assault.
"Beat it, scarecrow! Or I'm gonna give you a piece of my roots!" it shouted, kicking a leg up and tripping Minako. She recovered rather quickly, and managed to pull Usagi out of it's reach.
"I've got an idea!" Minako whispered to Usagi, pulling her ear close. "Come on, Usagi! You don't want any of those apples!" Minako ordered.
"Are you hinting my apples aren't what they ought to be?" the evil tree yelled.
"Oh, no! It's just that she doesn't like little green worms!" Minako laughed, only to be hit with a barrage of apples. The tree began plucking it's own apples and throwing them like grenades.
"Take that, scarecrow!" it roared.
Quickly, Usagi and Minako snatched them up, their plan had worked! Usagi considered Minako, she was quite clever for someone who didn't even have a brain. They took off down the road, until they could no longer hear the tree's colorful insults. They sat in the tall grass, and the scarecrow helped rub them clean as Usagi ate one after another. She sighed happily, patting her full stomach. She looked around, and saw more apples lying on the ground. There were no trees, but she shrugged it off and went to fetch them, it would be good to keep a few for later. There was no telling how long it would take her to get to the enchanted city.
She got on her hands and knees, scooping them up, moving deeper into the woods. She saw the most delicious red one near a bush, and just as she was reaching to get it she bumped her head into something hard.
"Ow!" she cried, dropping the apples and holding her head. She looked up and saw a tall, metal object standing beside the bush. She pulled herself up, and saw it was a man. She called for Minako, who leaped over with little grace. Usagi pointed at the metal man.
"It's a man made of tin!" Minako uttered quietly, in case the man woke up. She motioned to the ax in it's hand, the scare crow hid behind Usagi, not very fond of things that could slice her straw in half.
Squeak squeak.
'What was that?'
The tin man didn't move an inch, but it had made the noise, it's 'mouth' was moving ever so slightly. It was covered in moss, and there were several large dents in its torso. Usagi found she was fascinated by it, she'd never seen a man made of tin, what had happened to him? She smiled to herself, and reached a hand out to touch it.
"Oh-ka!" it suddenly said, making the girls jump.
"Did you say something?" Usagi asked the man made of tin.
They heard the sound of metal grinding, it was clearing it's throat, and replied.
"I said oilcan, stupid."
"He said oilcan!" she said, ignoring his insult.
"Oil can what?" asked Minako, trying to imagine what oil could do. She had misinterpreted, or she was just being stupid. Hard to tell when you had no brain.
"Oilcan!" Usagi said, looking around. She spotted it on a wooden stump. Picking it up, she raised it to his mouth, so he could talk. "Where do you want to be oiled first?"
It's mouth began to move, slowly at first, until finally it opened all the way and out came a growl.
"Finally, God that's sore. Who the hell are you?" the male voice surprised them. He sounded angry, and scary.
"Watch your language, Metal Man!" lectured Minako, no longer scared. Brain or no brain, she knew it couldn't hurt them so long as it was completely rusted.
"Shut up," the 'man' said to her. "Who are you?"
"I'm Usagi Tsukino from Japan! I'm on my way with Minako here to Silver Crystal City to see the wizard. I need to get home before the wicked witch kills me." Usagi spoke bluntly, while the other two stared at her.
"Usagi, huh? Silver Crystal City, eh? I've heard of that place, never wanted to go there, waste of time, too shiny. You'll go blind." he grunted.
"So, what happened to you?" Minako asked, taking a finger and touching the tip of his ax, she yelped when it sliced open her glove.
"Why should I tell you? None of your damn business!" he grumbled, they were coming to the conclusion that he was an asshole.
"Tell us, or the oilcan gets it!" Usagi said half jokingly, she tipped it until it's contents were about to pour out on the ground. It was the man's only hope to move, that oilcan.
"Fine, name's Heero. I am a tin man. Long story short: it rained and I rusted." he tried to glare at them, but his eyebrows wouldn't move. He was angry with them and their tricks.
"Heero? That's a nice name, Tin Man. Heero the Tin Man. Has a nice ring to it, Minako?" laughed Usagi, beginning to like the guy despite his grouchy demeanor. The two began to oil down Heero. Arms, legs, neck, and all the other places. His arms fell down straight, they thought it must have been a pain to keep them up for so long. After a while he was able to walk, he stepped out into the road. He was walking away when Usagi stopped him.
"Wait! Don't just leave us, come with us." she grabbed his arm, and he shoved his ax in her face. She gulped, but didn't let go. "What happened to you?" she looked at him sadly.
"Damn tinsmith forgot to give me a heart. Can't feel a thing." he spoke gruffly. "So I could kill you now and not give a shit."
"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you're angry because you can't feel." Usagi said, trying to figure out how that made sense. She could tell, looking into his gray eyes, it was what he wanted.
"So, no heart?" asked Usagi.
"No heart." he huffed. "Go ahead, bang on my chest!" he managed to puff it out, and they did, the response was an echo. There was no sound of a beating heart.
"That is the saddest thing I've ever heard!" Minako wanted to cry, but couldn't since she was made of straw.
"Well, it doesn't really matter," he told them. But Usagi knew he lied.
"I know!" shouted Bunny. "Come with us to Silver Crystal City! We're going to see the wizard there, he's very powerful! He's gonna give Minako a brain and get me home! Surely, he can give you a heart!"
"Really?" he looked at them suspiciously, their faces eager. "You think?"
"Yes!" the two cried out together, pumping their fists.
The girls were giddy with excitement, they'd been worried about going deeper into the forest alone. Now they had someone to protect them. The tin man sighed, dropping his ax. He'd hadn't wanted this to happen, but now he had to sing:
Heero the Tin Man
When a man's an empty kettle
He should be on his mettle
And yet I'm torn apart
Just because I'm presumin'
That I could be kinda human
If I only had a heart
I'd be tender
I'd be gentle
And awful sentimental
Regarding love and art
I'd be friends with the sparrows
And the boy who shoots the arrows
If I only had a heart
Picture me
A balcony
Above a voice sings low
Where for art thou, Romeo?
I hear a beat
How sweet
Just to register emotion
Jealousy, devotion
And really feel the part
I could stay young and chipper
And I'd lock it with a zipper
If I only had a heart
'What a voice!' Usagi thought dreamily. She wiped the goofy smile off her face, it wasn't like the tin man was cute or anything. He wasn't even human, and she was supposed to marry Mamoru. Shaking off such thoughts, she pulled him along, they had to get off to the city. Once again on their way, through the forest.
-Scene 06: The Enchanted Forest-
The words dark and scary barely described the atmosphere of the forest. The three traveled through, the girls trying their best to ignore the eerie sounds coming from the blackness that surrounded them. Usagi stayed close to Heero, looking around her carefully. As they made their way on, she noticed soft lights coming from behind the rotting trees. She squinted, and their lights grew slightly brighter. Minako had noticed them, too. As she had no brain, she didn't understand fear as well as others. She unhooked arms with Usagi, and stepped off the yellow-brick road.
"Minako!" Usagi hissed, looking at the tin man, who was ahead of them.
But the scarecrow ignored her, making her way towards the pretty lights. One by one, the lights encircled Minako, and began to move up and down. To Minako, it felt like dancing. She wished she could dance, too. Secretly, she wished she could be pretty like Usagi. But she was just a sack stuffed with straw and pine cones, judging from the odd lumps. This made her sad, but she knew she had the lights now, they would be her friends and make her pretty. Minako closed her eyes, and pretended that she had long, golden hair in a pretty red ribbon. That she had soft skin, and pearly white teeth.
Usagi called after the scarecrow. She had wandered farther in, and Usagi tried to follow her but when she tried to move the lights stopped her. Her entire body froze, and she started screaming to Heero for help. She struggled against the nothingness that prevented her from getting to Minako.
"Heero!" she cried, panic filling her entire being. She could barely see the scarecrow now, she'd gone so far.
Minako danced around with the lights, they were so nice to her. Why had she ever wanted to go to some stupid city, with people who would point and laugh at her strange face? Here, she had lots of friends, and they took turns giving each other nicknames. It was moist and dark, and she liked it. If it was dark, nobody could see her sack face. She continued to dance with the lights, and when she twirled she saw a silver figure darting towards her. Minako screamed loudly, and suddenly the lights dispersed. She tried to move, and felt some of herself disappear.
"Minako!" she heard Usagi, the human girl.
She heard a loud grunting noise, and saw the tin man with his ax above his head. He looked around wildly, his tin shining in the darkness. The scarecrow looked down, her thumb had been cut off, and straw stuck out in all directions. She frowned, and wondered what it would look like if she were human, with her finger cut off. She shuddered at the thought of blood.
"Minako!" Usagi came running, and grabbed her in a big hug. "Oh, Heero! Thank you!"
The tin man grunted, and lowered his ax. He stared as the lights came flickering back to the group.
"Why do you take her from us?" they sighed together. "We only wanted to dance with her, really."
Usagi came up to the largest light, and squinting, saw a tiny fairy inside. She was very pretty, and wore dancing shoes.
"I'm sorry, but we have something important to do. I would really like to get home, and Minako wants to ask the wizard from OZ to give her a brain." she said, bending down to it's face. "We're going to go now, I am sorry."
Usagi grabbed Minako's arm, and they followed Heero. The scarecrow looked back at the lights, they were bobbing up and down, as if waving good bye. She silently said good bye, and turned away from them. It wasn't very long before she pulled away from Usagi, and stood away from the others on the road.
"I don't want to ask the wizard for a brain anymore." she said, Usagi looked upset, and was about to protest when the scarecrow spoke again.
"Why waste a wish? I'm going to become human like you! I mean, I'm not a very good scarecrow. And I do like to dance, so maybe if I become human I can become a dancer!" Minako looked down at her thumb, she couldn't make it move anymore. Usagi rose her eyebrows, the scarecrow sounded serious enough, and Usagi smiled at her.
"Dumb girls." the tin man huffed, and carrying his ax, continued without them.
-Scene 07: Rei, Tin Losers, And Promises-
Once again the three were traveling down the yellow brick road, it was well past midnight and the full moon was out. A howl was heard in the distance. This scared the three. Well, not Heero. A gun had appeared on his hip moments ago, and so he feared nothing. Unfortunately, as they passed a little house, a fireball erupted from atop it and landed next to Usagi, singeing her hair. The wicked witch sprouted from the roof, her robes now completely black, and a pointed had sat lopsided on her head.
"Helping the little lady along are you, my fine gentleman? Well, stay away from her, or I'll stuff a mattress with you! So Scarecrow, want to play ball?" Rei cackled evilly, forming a ball of fire between her well manicured fingers. She shot it at Minako, who went up in flames. This made her scream, being made of straw she couldn't really feel the heat. It was the thought of what was happening that caused her pain.
"Ah! Put it out! Put it out!" she cried, making Rei laugh harder and clutch her sides.
Heero grabbed the flaming scarecrow, and threw her on the ground. He proceeded to stomp on her straw body until all of the flames had been put out. He kicked her a few times, and she went rolling. This was mostly for his own pleasure. Usagi ran up to Minako and helped her stand. Heero looked up at the witch, and he pulled out his gun. He saw the tips of his fingers were charred slightly. This angered him, and he aimed for the witch on the roof. One shot, she was falling. He'd hit her dead on, and the normally poised witch was pulling herself out of the brush surrounding the house.
"You son of a bitch, tin man!" she shrieked, seeing the leaves tangled in her hair. "You'll pay for this! When I get back my locket, I'll get you too!" then she vanished in a puff of red smoke.
Heero looked at the girls, they were sitting together as Usagi yanked up the grass from the ground and old pine straw. He leaned against a tree, folding his arms. Usagi was thinking about what would happen if she were to go home and leave the others behind. What would happen to them? Would they still be in danger from the witch? Her thoughts were interrupted by the scarecrow.
"I'm not afraid of her! I'll make sure you get safely to the wizard, whether I become human or not. Stuff a mattress with me, ha!" Minako said angrily.
"I want to know what the deal is with this locket." said Heero, the man made of tin. "What do you have it for?" Usagi shrugged, looking down at it. Even in the darkness, it continued to sparkle with a light of it's own.
"Oh, I really don't know. I wish I did, then maybe you two wouldn't be in such danger, because of me. At first I thought I should just hand it over, but I couldn't. Like, if I gave it to her, something horrible would happen to this place. Michiru, the good witch of the north, said that it was powerful. But then I think if it was, then the locket alone should be able to send me home. It's so confusing." Usagi sighed, kicking up dirt with her shoe. "You know, it's funny, but I feel as if I know you, before I met you, but I couldn't have, could I?"
"I don't see how. You weren't around when I was stuffed and sewn together, were you?" asked Minako.
"I was standing in those woods for a long time." said Heero. "Possibly before you were even born."
Heero considered Usagi, her odd hair, her pretty blue eyes. If he weren't made of tin, he'd be blushing just from checking her out. He turned away as she stood, pulling the scarecrow with her. That skirt was very short.
"Still, I wish I could remember, but I guess it doesn't matter anyway. We know each other now, don't we?" Usagi smiled at them.
"We do," Heero said, attempting to smile, a difficult task with all of the tin stuck to his face. It turned into a sort of painful looking grimace instead.
"That's right!" shouted Minako. "We'll always be the best of friends and stick together!"
"To OZ?" asked Minako, offering her right arm to Usagi.
"To OZ." said the Tin Man, offering Usagi his left arm. With renewed vigor, the three ventured to what they hoped was the end of the forest.
-Scene 08: If I Only Had The Nerve-
"I wonder if there are any wild animals out here?" Minako suddenly spoke up. In the distance, a crow cawed as if in warning.
"What, like lions?" asked Heero.
"Yeah, like lions. Or tigers!" Minako replied.
"What about bears?" Heero knew that Usagi was getting scared, her arms trembling between them.
"Oh, my!" cried Usagi, frightened to the bone.
"Lions, tigers, bears. Jesus!" she whispered furiously, over and over, as if it were a mantra. The three walked together down the road until a they came across a large log lying in the middle of the road. Suddenly, a lion leaped over it, and sailed over their heads. It stretched out a large paw, swiping at them with it's claws.
"Fuck off." said Heero, who wasn't the least bit afraid of the lion. Especially not with his trusty gun at his side. The lion pounced on Heero, knocking his ax to the ground, and gun bouncing off somewhere behind some shrubs.
The lion snarled at the tin man, and raised a paw, ready to slice him open like a can of sardines. That is, until a rock came flying and hit the large cat in the eye. He stumbled backward and let out a rumbling cry. His paws rubbed frantically at his face as Heero sat up. The tin man looked around, and saw Usagi picking up more rocks.
'She saved me,' he thought lamely. The scarecrow had jumped into some bushes, and they quaked with fear. He snorted, and reached for his ax. In moments they'd be cooking up this feline for dinner. As he brought the ax down, two things happened. The lion began crying, big fat tears falling from his eyes. Usagi dropped everything and ran to his side, and began to pat his shoulder comfortingly.
"You're just a big baby," she said, running her fingers through his mane. "It's your own fault, attacking us like that."
"You're right, I'm a coward! I haven't got any courage at all. I even scare myself." he cried, wiping at his eyes with his own tail.
Heero sighed, dropping his ax. Of course she'd befriend a beast. He started looking for his gun, stopping momentarily to kick Minako from her bush.
"Look at the circles under my eyes. I haven't slept in weeks." he continued.
"Why don't you try counting sheep?" Heero suggested lamely, holstering the gun.
"That doesn't do any good. I'm afraid of them." he cried, more tears coming.
"Ah, that's too bad. You're pretty pathetic. To think I was afraid of you!" Minako said, brushing herself off and rearranging her cotton dress.
"Minako!" Usagi hissed, turning to the lion and giving him a big smile. "Don't listen to her, I think you're a great, ferocious lion!"
"Really?" he grabbed her close, and the tin man was ready to chop it's head off. "You think so?"
Silence reigned for a moment as Usagi tried to think of something, before the lion exploded. Yes, in a puff of smoke, he was gone. Usagi squealed, she'd been touching him, and now she held nothing. A great roar came from behind a tree, and a man came tripping onto the yellow brick road. He had long bangs covering his face, and one green eye peaked out, looking at everyone with dismay. He was tall, and had two cat ears sticking out, and a long tail that waved at them wildly.
"What-who are you?" cried Usagi, backing away from the man cat. The scarecrow had hid behind Heero, and was now staring at the man cat with great interest.
"What happened to the lion?" the scarecrow asked the man cat, who continued to eye the three.
"I...am the lion." he said, pointing behind them. "He stole my identity."
The tin man snorted, he wasn't falling for that old trick anytime soon. Usagi gasped, and ran into his arms, knocking him back into the scarecrow.
"That's the munchkin from before!" she said, also pointing behind them.
Heero finally turned his head, and sure enough was the lion. But only the lower half of his body was that of a lion's. The top half was a man with a long braid, and violet eyes. He looked back at them with a guilty expression.
"Sorry about that..." he mumbled, and continued to step out of the lion costume, it dropped to the ground in a great pile of fur.
"The Lollipop Guild!" Usagi cried, and Heero covered her mouth with his gloved fingers. Usagi looked down at them, distracted by the fact that they weren't made of tin and just gray.
"You're pretty hot." Minako blurted out, fascinated by this new lion.
The tin man held his ax in the impostor's direction with his free hand.
"Speak." he ordered.
"Well...the witch put me up to it. I was supposed to follow you guys, make sure you didn't see the wizard. She knows that's where you're going." the braided man sad, scrunching said hair in his hands nervously.
"Leave." Heero said coolly. "If you see the witch, give her our regards."
With a puff of smoke, the young man was gone. The three turned their attention to the new lion.
"He stole my credit cards." he said, flattening his ears against his head. Minako squealed with delight, rushing to his side, and latched onto his arm.
"Are you coming with us?" Usagi asked, pulling away from Heero. "We're going to see the wizard in Silver Crystal City."
"I suppose. I believe I'm to ask for some courage." he rolled his eye at this, and sighed with irritation. "Not that I need it."
He pushed the scarecrow away, and started singing.
Trowa the Cowardly Lion
Life is sad, believe me, Missy,
when you're born to be a sissy,
without the vim and verve.
But I could change my habits,
never more be scared of rabbits,
if I only had the nerve
I'm afraid there's no denying,
I'm just a dandelion,
a fate I don't deserve.
But I could show my prowess,
be a lion not a meowess,
if I only had the nerve.
Oh, I'd
be in my stride
a king down to the core.
I could roar a way I never roared before,
and then I'd... RRWWWWWWOOOOF!
And roar some more!
I could show the dinosaurus
whose king around the forest
a king they better serve.
Why with my regal beezer
I could be another Caeser
if I only had the nerve!
Heero, Usagi and Minako watched as he leaped through the air. They continued to stare as his song ended.
"Fuck off, it was in the script." Trowa said in his defense.
The scarecrow laughed, and broke out in enthusiastic applause.
"You were so great! I've never heard such a beautiful voice!" she fluttered her sewn on lashes at him, he in turn ignored her.
-Scene 09: Heero's Troubles-
The four main characters were near the end of the forest, they were sure. They had to be, seeing as they'd been walking for two days straight without food or rest. When Usagi collapsed, they took turns carrying her. When it came Minako's turn, her straw body became misshapen, and she sunk to the ground. The tin man took over, and Trowa went searching in the deeper part of the woods to get her something to eat.
He came back with a lunch box full of onigiri. The scarecrow nudged Usagi back to consciousness, and the four turned a stump into a table.
"Are we lost?" Minako asked out loud, staring up at the sky. The trees had grown sparse, and Trowa said it was because tin men came and cut them down every year. Everbody looked to Heero, who shrugged.
"Not me, I was rusted too long."
"Just how long were you there before we found you?" Usagi finished, and scooted closer to him.
He shrugged again, not fond of all their attention. Usagi made him uncomfortable, with her beautiful eyes and long hair brushing against his tin-suited arm.
"Some of this forest looks like it was burned down," he said, attempting to change the subject.
It was true, the charred remains just behind them.
"So sad, I was probably related to some of the twigs here." Minako sighed, leaning her head against Trowa's shoulder. They stared at her, wondering how she could possibly come to such a conclusion.
The tin man got up and lead the way, it would be best to get out of the woods before dark. Before long they reached a fork in the road, and none of them could agree on which path to take. The scarecrow ended up making the decision for them when she pulled the ribbon out of her hair and used it to tie her and the lion's arms together. She dragged him off to the right, and eventually they disappeared from view.
Usagi and Heero glanced at each other, unsure of what to do. He scratched the back of his tin head nervously, tapping a foot against the brick road. Usagi looked up at the tin man, and blushed when he caught her. She reached for his hand, and timidly pulled him down the left. She touched the moon locket, and whispered a quiet prayer. She needed to sort out these feelings. It was confusing, scary, and she thought of Mamoru. The way he'd been so cold, how she'd run into the street and ended up here. At times it felt as if she really were dreaming or dead. But when she felt the tin man's hand, it was warm and made her heart flutter.
"Is it...is it possible you're not completely made of tin?" she asked him, surprising herself.
"How do you figure?" he said monotonously. "Could it be the fact that I have eyes, or hair?"
Usagi sweat-dropped, she had noticed but felt stupid asking before. Now she was too curious not to.
"I was human, once." She stopped, and looked back at him. His eyes refused to meet hers.
"My body was taken apart by a tinsmith, and I was made into a monster."
"Are there others like you?" she asked, although something told her she shouldn't. His eyes flickered a moment, and she could have sworn he looked at her with contempt, she was afraid he'd yell at her. Instead, he adjusted the ax on his back and shoved past her.
"We should get going, don't want those two to beat us to Silver Crystal City."
Usagi stared after him, wondering what she could do to help. What kind of person or demon did that to somebody? She'd never seen him so sad before, and she felt bad for the tin man. It made sense now, the reason he wanted a heart. But why couldn't he see that he already had one? Heero was kind to her, was helping her get to the wizard and get home. She looked down at the moon locket, and brushed her fingers against a wing. If she went home, she'd never see him again. With doubts in her heart, she followed the tin man.
.
10/2011: Done with the second chapter, and I have to say I am very pleased with how things are turning out. Much better than all of that immature crap from before. Enjoy!