"WHERE IS THE WIZARD'S BAG!" The witch stormed into the dining room with anger in her voice and fury in her eyes. "I WANT IT RIGHT NOW!" She stood impatiently, her hands on her hips as she tapped her heeled boot on the carpet. She pouted as she made further demands of her servants. "DON'T MAKE ME HAVE TO WAIT!"

The servants scurried around the opulent and spacious dining room area, desperately trying to find the bag to avoid the witch's wrath. One such servant was Betsy, a young lass who was merely eight years old. She was a Winkie who was born in the northeast part of the country. Like most other Winkies, her family were farmers, and they were poor. Because they did not produce enough food for the witch during the prior harvest season, they had no choice but to sell little Betsy, where she was forced to work long hours at the estate.

Every morning, Betsy would wake up at dawn. She would eat a quick breakfast of oatmeal before walking down a long dirt path to reach the witch's castle. She would often make the journey with a small group of other Winkies, all of whom worked in the castle as well. Two other Winkie servants that she was friendly with were Bella and Daisy, all of whom were older than her and had guided Betsy during her first weeks at the castle.

Because most of the adult Winkies worked on their farms, the vast majority who worked at the castle were children from poor Winkie families. They cooked and cleaned and did anything else that the witch ordered them to do. They also had to deal with her capricious and ever-changing mood swings.

As was typical, this particular group of Winkies reported to the castle early in the morning. Their shift included making breakfast for the witch and her Winkie Guards. It then involved cleaning, dusting and organizing the entire castle. If they missed a spot and the witch noticed it later, she would become furious. They would continue to work by cooking lunch for the witch and her minions. When that was done, they would continue to clean, perform manual labor and cook dinner. After cleaning the dishes after dinner, they would leave the castle and would walk back to their homes. They would be exhausted, but would have to wake up the next day to do it all over again. They received no breaks and no days off.

"WHERE IS THE WIZARD'S BAG?" I WANT IT RIGHT NOW!" DON'T MAKE ME HAVE TO WAIT!" She was again screaming at the Winkie servants who were unlucky enough to be working in the dining room at that particular time.

Betsy was frantic. Oh! We never should have let the Wizard forget his bag! She was so frightened that the witch would punish them that she was about to cry and wet her pants.

Luckily, Bella located the bag under the table and gave it to the fuming witch. She dared not to look into the witch's eyes as she did.

Theodora's voice was shrill, but the servant's quickness had somewhat calmed her. "That is a good girl, I am glad one of you simpletons is responsible around here." She then looked at Betsy and Daisy, the younger of the girls and snapped at them. "NOW WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR! START TO MAKE DINNER! ARE YOU DEAF! OR DO YOU WANT ME TO BEAT YOU SENSELESSLY WITH A STRAP!" The witch waved her hands at them in a hostile manner as she turned around and barged out of the dining room.

Betsy looked at Daisy with wide eyes. Anxiety was present in her voice. "Let's start making dinner right now. You know how the witch does not like delays…"

"Today we are going to make a soup!" Bella declared. "I will not have either of you getting distracted in your duties. We must make haste…"

But Daisy sat on the velvet carpet. She was exhausted from the day's duties. "I can't work anymore. I'm not feeling well…"

Bella interjected with confidence. "It is okay, Daisy. We will help you pull through!" To liven morale of her companions, she started to sing.

While the Winkies were off preparing dinner, the Wizard was sitting on the king size bed in the main guest room. A yawn swept across his face and he decided to take a nap.

The Wizard stirred as he opened his eyes. He was disoriented. He tried to pull the blanket towards him, but couldn't.

He suddenly felt the tingling of brush hairs gently sweep across his back. He then heard a sharp growling voice behind him as a shadowy and dark, greenish figure emerged from the corner of his eye. It wore a thin pointed black hat and a black dress.

"Wizard…"

His eyes darted open in fear. He knew that voice all too well. It was one that plagued his nightmares for the last three years. Try as he might, he could not move.

"I am glad you came back to visit me…"

The Wizard began to tremble. He tried to turn around, but he still could not move.

"Because if you betray me again…I will kill you!" It cackled as it swiftly struck a knife into his side.

The Wizard opened his eyes and immediately jumped out of bed in a panicked cold sweat. He was gasping for air and quickly turned his head to the side of the bed where the wicked witch had stood. The green skinned witch, the one who plagued his dreams for the past three years, was gone. He had another nightmare of her.

He sat on the bed as he put both of his trembling hands over his face and took deep breaths. He kept thinking of Glinda, and how she better knew what she was doing.

He then heard a knock on his door and the sound of a small child's voice.

"Excuse me, but dinner is being served."

"Coming!", he exclaimed, his voice cracking. He then composed himself and scrambled to put on the same three-piece suit and top hat that he wore before he took his nap.

The Wizard was escorted into the dining room by the young Winkie maid. When they arrived, the witch was already seated along with several of her Winkie Guards. She had changed outfits and was wearing an evening gown. She smiled glowingly at her guest. Her expression then struck a more serious look.

"Wizard, I am surprised you didn't change." She then gently waved her hand at him. "Not that you don't look debonair as usual…" She chuckled and smiled at him again as she blushed.

He grinned at the witch, his lower lip quivering. He looked disheveled as he adjusted his bowtie. "I just took a short nap."

As the Wizard made his way to the expansive dining room table, he noticed that there was no chair for him.

Seeing this, Theodora snapped her fingers at a nearby Winkie maid and sharply whispered to her. "Get the Wizard a chair this instant!"

The Wizard raised his eyebrows at how the witch addressed the child, but gave it no further thought.

Theodora then adoringly gazed and smiled at him excitedly. "Wizard, sit across from me at the table, so I can see you." The Winkie Guards across from her quickly moved their chairs to make room.

As he took his seat, the witch began to make introductions. She introduced the Wizard to various Winkie Guards while sitting in her own chair. She then made her way to the captain, who was sitting next to her.

"Wizard, this is Mitchell." The witch's eyes narrowed, trying to recall if the Wizard had met him previously. "I am not sure if you remember him?"

They shook hands. "I do remember you, Wizard. However, you were sort of hurried when you arrived at the Emerald City that day. Your stay while I was stationed there was very brief." The captain flashed the Wizard a big smile and a warmhearted chuckle, followed by some friendly colloquial conversation. The Wizard could tell that the captain was affable and pleasant. The witch exhaled from her mouth and smiled.

The conversation quickly split off into numerous tete-a-tetes among the table. Some Winkie Guards discussed work, while others discussed their family life. The Wizard continued a conversation with the captain while the witch quietly listened to them, her eyes darting back and forth between the Wizard and the captain while they spoke.

The food then arrived on silver platters. The Winkie servants lifted the cover of their dishes simultaneously, which revealed clear broth soup mixed with vegetables and chicken.

At the onset of the meal, the witch would intermittently glance at the Wizard as he spoke to the captain.

"Don't slurp", she suddenly ordered the Wizard. While her words were sharp, a smile then spread across her red lips to show him that she was trying to convey a gentle playfulness.

He froze as he teasingly brought the silver spoon up to his mouth. "Whoops, too late", he nervously chuckled.

During the meal, the witch even stood briefly, dinged her spoon with a glass to get the table's attention and welcomed the Wizard to both the Winkie Country and to the dinner.

"And I hope the Wizard can stay with us for some time", she exclaimed.

For all intents and purposes, he was shocked at how cordially he was being treated. When the Wizard woke up just that morning, he imagined being chased out of the Winkie Country by a cackling green skinned witch shooting fireballs at him while flying on her broom. He never imagined that Theodora would be so diplomatic. He was pleasantly surprised.

"Thank you", he graciously replied to her.

As she sat on her chair once more, her cheerfulness suddenly gave way to a frown. Theodora turned around and made a "come hither" gesture to a nearby Winkie servant. "Get me the seat arrangement for tomorrow", she demanded. "Now."

The young boy, who looked to be no older than nine years old, nervously approached the witch. "M-m-Mistress…I…"

But the witch scowled at him angrily and yelled in a fiery and shrill tone. "GO TO MY BEDROOM AND GET ME THE SEATING ARRANGEMENT FOR THE DINNER TOMORROW! DO YOU WANT TO SEE ME MAD? I DON'T THINK YOU WANT TO SEE ME MAD!"

The room became deathly silent. The Wizard's conversation with the captain trailed off mid-sentence as he stared at Theodora. He was shocked at the witch's behavior towards a mere child. Was this for real?

The room was so quiet that a pin could be heard if dropped.

The child began to tremble as all eyes were now upon him. This was his first day at the witch's castle and he had no clue where the witch's bedroom was. There were also no other servants in the dining room who could help him.

The Wizard decided to intervene. "Theodora, it's okay. I can help the child find the paper." He was about to stand from his chair, but the witch gently put her outstretched hands on his from across the table and addressed him in a sweet and kind-hearted tone. "It's fine, Wizard." She then gestured at him with her hand. "Please continue to sit."

The Wizard's eyes darted over to the boy, who looked absolutely petrified. His eyes then darted back to the witch smiling at him. "Yeah." He finally nodded his head in nervous acquiescence.

Theodora then turned to the captain and whispered into his ear. "Get the seat assignments for tomorrow. We need to review it."

As the captain stood and walked towards the witch's bedroom, Theodora turned her head and shot the trembling Winkie boy a menacing glare. "Now get out of here."

Despite her hostile tone, the witch then gazed at the Wizard with a bright-eyed smile. He merely placed his head down and shifted uncomfortably in his seat as he started to eat again, trying to rationalize in his mind what he had just witnessed.

Quiet conversation resumed once more amongst the Winkie Guards, but the Wizard ate in silence, with the witch eating her food and giving her guest quick anxious glances.

After several minutes, the captain returned. The witch snatched the paper from his hand as he took his seat next to her once more.

She sighed as she reviewed the table and seating arrangements. "This dinner tomorrow is the most important gathering we have all year. Everyone important throughout Winkie Country is going to be in attendance." The witch then shook her head anxiously. "I can't with planning this. I can't. I get so overwhelmed." The witch frustratingly put her hand over her face as she mulled over the paper.

She glanced at the captain. "Who is sitting at my table?"

In response, the captain touched the paper with his finger. "Well, King Jol Jemkiph of Oogaboo will be sitting on your right and his brother, Prince Jol Soforth, will be sitting on your left and…"

But the witch shook her head as her heeled boot repeatedly and nervously tapped the carpet. "No, this will not work. The Wizard needs to sit next to me and…"

However, the captain was adamant, not afraid to anger the witch. "No, that's not possible. They paid a lot of gold to be at this table and…"

The witch glared at him and her tone was angry as she interrupted him. "I don't care what they did to sit at this table. I want the Wizard to sit next to me and they are just going to…"

The Wizard gently placed his hand on hers as she stopped mid-sentence, turned away from the captain and looked at him. "It's okay, Theodora. I will sit elsewhere…"

Her hands broke away from his as she threw her hands up in defeat and sighed. "Fine, whatever." She turned to the captain and they continued to discuss the seating chart.

The Wizard had a long day, so he proceeded to stand from his chair as the witch turned to her guest. "Are you going to bed?"

He nodded. "Yeah, I'm going to head to bed, I think. It has been a very long day and I didn't get much sleep last night."

Before the Wizard departed, the witch smiled at him as she got out of her chair and walked around the table. "Have a great night." She pecked him on his cheek, smiled radiantly at him and then returned to where she was sitting.

As he walked slowly back to his room, he tried to make sense of what had happened during dinner.

How is she so gentle, kind and friendly to me, but so mean to children? And how can she have them work like this?

The thought was fleeting as the Wizard believed he would deal with it in due time. However, rest beckoned him. Despite taking a short nap earlier, he was exhausted from the day's travels. As a result, he fell asleep shortly after he got into his bed.