Trigger Warning: sexual assault. Readership discretion is advised.

"WHERE'S THE WIZARD!?" The hallways of the Emerald City Palace were dark as the shrill sound of an angry witch echoed throughout its corridors. It was the middle of the night and all of its servants had been sleeping. They were sleeping, that is, until the Wicked Witch of the West stormed the palace in one of her horrifying and murderous invasions.

The Wizard was trembling as he cowered near the corner of a dark hallway. As he leaned against the stone wall, he slowly peeked his head around the corner and not fifty paces from him were ten of his servants that the witch had captured, with women and children among them. They were sitting on the floor as their hands were firmly tied behind their backs with rope.

The Wizard was breathing heavily. As he continued to peek around the corner, he saw a row of torches mounted on a nearby wall overlooking the group of terrified servants, some of whom were quietly sobbing. A few of the men pleaded with the witch to spare the lives of their families. The faint hue of the torches illuminated the black silhouette of the green skinned witch, the broom she firmly held in her hand and the black pointy hat she wore.

"SHUT UP!", the witch furiously roared at them. She then approached a small little girl as she flashed the trembling child a devious smile. "We are going to play a little game. If you tell me where the Wizard is, I will spare your miserable life!" She then eyed the whole group as she raised her voice. "The one who tells me where the Wizard is lives! The rest of you die!"

"We don't know where the Wizard is!", yelled one of the male servants.

"Very well…!", the witch barked. And with that, Theodora extended her hand as her ruby ring glowed bright red. The man began to float and started to scream in agony. His arms and legs contorted as his joints slowly snapped. "Don't hurt my daddy!", the little girl pleaded with the witch, but Theodora ignored her sobs as she clenched her teeth in anger. The man continued to scream from the excruciating pain until the witch decided to end the brutal attack by snapping his neck with the flick of her fingers. As the servant's lifeless body fell to the floor, the young child began to cry. But the witch showed zero empathy or remorse as the remaining servants begged and pleaded with her for mercy.

"Anyone else? Last chance!", she hollered. As the servants whimpered and sobbed, but still refused to give the Wizard's location to the green skinned witch, she snarled. "Very well…", she hissed. Her ruby ring glowed bright red once more as she was about to target another servant.

Suddenly, the little girl quickly darted up and began to run as fast as her little legs could carry her. She dashed away from the witch and in the opposite direction of where the Wizard was hiding. "Run Darla!", her servant mother screamed.

"No!", the witch grumbled. She created a fireball in her hand and hurled it at the girl. The little child burst into flames as her blood curdling screams echoed throughout the palace hallway. The Wizard held his hands over his face. His shaking continued. He began to softly sob as the child cried out for help. There was nothing he could do to save her. He was just an ordinary man. A conman. He was no wizard. But that is what the Emerald City needed most right now. They needed a real Wizard. Not him.

Hearing a sound in the darkness behind her, the witch swiftly turned around. And for the next several moments, all her yellow eyes did was stare into the empty and now silent void of the hallway. She had an empty expression on her face as she remained hyper focused on the dark corridor. Even though the sobbing sound had dissipated as soon as it had started, it still made the witch slowly approach the end of the darkened hallway. She turned as she neared the corner.

However, there was no one there. Greeted with silence, she turned and walked back to her helpless captives.

The Wizard's face was drenched with sweat as he stealthily ran down the palace hallway and had turned another corner before the witch could spot him. "Oh, fuck", he whispered to himself as he heard more screams from the palace servants. And for what seemed like an eternity, the shrieking and piercing sounds of their urgent voices crying out for help filled the hallways. He knew they were dying a slow and excruciatingly gruesome death. They were being burned alive. Or their bones were being individually snapped. Or their organs were being internally smashed by the witch, for she could do this all with a flick of her finger. The Wizard could not even begin to fathom all of the horrors they were going through. He simply knew that he had to make his way out of the palace. He started to run as fast as he could down the hallway and away from the witch and the haunting screams of his dying servants. Underneath it all, he was still a coward. He left them there to die.

Suddenly, he heard a voice that was all too familiar. It wasn't in any particular direction, but rather, the voice came from every direction. "Wizard…", the witch sarcastically sneered at him. "Oh, Wizard…why don't you come out and play…" She then hideously cackled, her laughter piercing the hallway. The Wizard started to run once more as the witch taunted him again. "Let the hunt begin", she whispered.

The frightened and terrified Wizard had trouble seeing in the dark. The only sound he heard was his own heavy breathing and the sounds of his footsteps. As he tried to make his way down another dark hallway, he nearly tripped over the lifeless bodies of his palace servants who littered the floor.

As he continued to run, he approached another corner and saw a faint orange light around the nearby bend. Thinking it was a lantern, he started to cautiously walk towards it. But as the Wizard turned, he saw the hideous green skinned witch. Her eyes were bulging from her face as she held two fireballs above her head. "BOO!", she screamed as she hurled them at the Wizard.

The Wizard shot out of bed as he began to pant. He was disoriented as he glanced around in all different directions. After several moments of confusion, a small nightlight near the night table next to the bed came into focus. Through his tired eyes, he saw that he was not at the Emerald City, but in Theodora's bedroom.

He quickly turned his head to confirm that she was actually there, for she was, sleeping soundly and peacefully on the other side of her spacious bed.

Ever since Theodora departed from the city, the Wizard would often have nightmares about her or Evanora seeking revenge on him and its inhabitants. He was terrified about this possibility. For many nights after the "wicked sisters" had left, the Wizard would lock the old king's large and heavy double bedroom doors when he would sleep. But on many occasions, he simply could not sleep. He would wake up sporadically throughout the night and would often be left feeling fatigued the following day.

The Wizard remained upright as his heart continued to beat out of his chest. His eyes quickly scanned the room for any possible threats. After yawning briefly, he then rested his head on his pillow, but after several minutes had passed, he knew he was not going to fall back to sleep so easily.

Earlier that day, he killed Agatha. And earlier that day, he became a murderer. It was the worst of outcomes. He knew he killed the lieutenant in self-defense, but he could not wave the incredible guilt he was feeling. It was the first time he had killed anyone and the pain of actually going through with it was wearing on him tremendously.

After that incident, the Wizard felt numb as he returned with the witch to the castle. The lieutenant's blood was still on his cheek and on his hands. The witch acted like nothing had happened and even felt giddy. Deep down, Theodora was indeed jubilant. The Wizard had chosen a side, and for once, he didn't side with Glinda. In her mind, that meant he was not going to abandon her and go back to the Emerald City. At times, she would hop, skip and jump at this realization. As they passed the lush castle gardens ladened with multi-colored fauna and finely manicured lawns, she would even remark to him that the Emerald City never treated him right and that this was the place he belonged. However, he ignored her and the incredible Ozian surroundings as a million different thoughts filled his mind.

The Wizard didn't remember all of the details because of his brain fog. But he did remember the most important questions that were swirling around his anxious mind. How could Glinda set him up like this? Did Glinda set him up like this? What was her intent to send Agatha there? What was going to happen to him as the Wizard? What would happen to his standing at the Emerald City? How would this effect his legacy and his reputation? Would he become a disgraced leader because of this? But most importantly, what would be the reaction from Glinda and the Emerald City?

Due to everything that had just occurred, he felt incredibly faint as the pair slowly approached the castle. And the first thing he did when they entered was part ways with the witch and head to a nearby wash room. "Wizard?...", the scarlet clad witch asked with growing concern in her voice. "Are you okay?" But he ignored Theodora as he closed and locked the door to the small wash room. As he did so, he felt incredibly dizzy and nauseas. The room was spinning as he started to cough and retch uncontrollably. After he vomited the breakfast he ate earlier, he sat near the toilet with his head against the wall. He placed his hands on his face as he started to quietly sob, his fingernails anxiously scratching his forehead and his blood-stained cheeks.

How could Glinda do this to me, the Wizard asked himself. How could she send Agatha here without telling me what she was going to do? Did Glinda even know about Agatha's plans? As the Wizard thought about all of these things, his mind started to rationalize what had happened. If Glinda didn't know what had happened, maybe this was all just a massive misunderstanding. Maybe things will be fine. After all, I *was* in the right.

Glinda would understand, he finally assured himself. She would make everything right again.

Moments earlier, Theodora had covered her ears with her hands as she heard the sounds of him retching, which made her very upset. She frantically sought out Bella, whom she felt was probably her most competent Winkie subject at the castle.

As the Wizard sat on the wash room floor ruminating about the violent confrontation he had earlier with Agatha, analyzing every detail of said incident and all the possible implications of her death, he heard a gentle knock on the washroom door. "Wizard?", the witch said. "Please, open up the door." But the Wizard ignored her as he stared blanky at a nearby wall. He couldn't describe how he was feeling, but it was almost like he couldn't hear the witch at all and was gazing at something incredibly far away, even though it was only at the wall.

After some time, he slowly stood and stared at himself in the mirror. An empty expression was present on his face as he gazed at his reflection. He began to slowly touch the now dried blood that was on his cheeks. This was Agatha's blood. It was real. He killed her. She was dead. And even though he acted in self-defense, a question flashed persistently in his mind: how would the Emerald City react? How could Glinda react? His hands were still shaking at all of these unknowns. He turned on the faucet and began to use the water to wipe off the lieutenant's blood.

However, what came out of the faucets really wasn't water. It looked like water and it acted like water, but when it stayed on the skin for any length of time, it became a clear goo. The Wizard recognized that none of the faucets ran water shortly after he arrived at the castle. As a result, he sought not to put any in his mouth until Bella reassured him that he could drink it and not have any ill effects. He realized that every sink, every shower and every bath throughout the entire castle had been retrofitted with this substance due to Theodora's water allergy.

The witch and Bella stood on the other side of the door. Theodora was breathing heavily. She turned and anxiously looked at the maid with increasing concern. "Maybe we should get a doctor…"

Suddenly, the door opened. The Wizard slowly staggered towards the witch to lean on her as she grabbed his side. Seeing this, Bella then darted back to the dining room where Daisy and Betsy were finishing up their assignments. "What happened?", the young girls asked. But Bella, who as slightly out of breath, shook her head. "I don't know." She then flashed the younger two girls a worried glance. "I think the Wizard was throwing up. We need to get the physician…"

Some time had passed. The girls abdicated their other duties as they searched in earnest for the physician but to no avail. They then hurriedly searched the castle for the witch. As they ran past the rows of empty guest rooms, they saw Theodora sitting on her bed, with the Wizard resting his head silently on her lap. He remained motionless and had a blank expression on his face. His eyes were open while the witch's hands were caressing his hair. "Do you want anything to drink", she asked him. She then looked up as her eyes made contact with Bella.

"I couldn't find the doctor", the young maid replied. As the girl's entered the mistress' bedroom, they saw that the captain was standing silently next to the bed. "It's inspection day, so he is probably out in the field…cleaning up after the mess the guards make", the witch casually replied. She then looked down. "He's still not talking…"

Bella knew that her father had been delinquent on meeting inventory for the second time and that the witch was supposed to meet with him today. "Does this mean you will…"

But the witch cut her off and snippily responded. "No, I will do so tomorrow." As she continued to look at the Wizard, she began to massage the bridge of his nose. He then closed his eyes. "Do you like that Wizard?", she said lovingly to him.

Her eyes then met Bella's as the witch's voice became edgier once more. She waved her hand. "Leave us…attend to your duties…"

As the captain closed the door behind them, the witch began to cradle and slowly rock the Wizard in her arms. "Oh Wizard, now I know why you didn't tell me Glinda sent you…", the witch softly cooed at him. She started to massage his ears as she then traced her fingers over his cheeks. "You only wanted to be with me again and wanted to escape from her…but Glinda had other plans. Like she always does…" The witch briefly lowered her head as she pursed her red lips and smiled at the Wizard. "And you chose me over her. That much is certain…" She then stared into space as she continued to gently caress him and continued her monologue. "Glinda used you and deceived you like she does to everyone. And now the Emerald City will be relentless. They will be relentless. Like they always are." The witch began to shake her head as anxiety started to fill her voice. "They will come. They will come. To try and take you away from me…"

"But we will make them see" the Wizard said. This made the witch look down at him, for he finally uttered a word. "We are in the right here", he continued. "We will make them see that we were in the right…"

The Wizard continued to have flashbacks of the previous day as he quietly stood from Theodora's bed due to his inability to fall back to sleep. He checked his pocket watch. 3:30AM. He slowly and quietly walked out of her room and past the empty and dark bedrooms. His legs and arms felt weak and sore, which was typical when he was not getting enough sleep at night. As he made his way towards the dining room, he could not help but admire how charming Theodora's castle was in the middle of the night. The soft hues of the lanterns, combined with the ornate rooms and finishings. had created a tranquil and rather relaxing atmosphere. As a child, he remembered reading fairy tales and the witch's castle was similar to one. And while their numbers had been greatly reduced in the evening hours, each Winkie Guard stood so silently on their watch that no one would have even noticed their presence.

The Wizard sat on one of the plush dining room chairs, placed his elbow on the table and his hand on his face. He was exhausted, but couldn't sleep. As his mind raced over the events of the previous day, he then began to recall what happened next.

After cradling him in his arms, a Winkie guard had knocked on her door. "Go away", the witch grumbled. "I'm with the Wizard…"

The guard responded from behind the closed door. "I apologize Mistress, but your attention is needed outside…"

The witch rolled her eyes. She then reluctantly left him to his own devices. It was "inventory day" after all, but the Wizard did not know what this even meant. For the next several hours, he occupied himself by reading a book. Little did he know that he would eventually doze off. He was not sure for how long he slept, but it was clear that the sun had already set by the time he woke.

He was also startled to see that it was Theodora who woke him. "Wizard", she softly hummed as she kissed his cheek and then his neck. She was on top of him, her long hair falling to its side. "Wizard…I want you…", she quietly murmured. She then flashed him a big mischievous grin. He didn't think much of this and thought that the witch was simply being playful.

As she kissed his neck, her hands then began to undo the buttons of his white shirt. She then started to lick his chest as she stared up at him alluringly. She then reached below to his belt.

The Wizard placed his hands out and stopped her. He shook his head. "Wait. It's been a very stressful day", he said. In actuality, he had not gotten enough sleep the night before and was still groggy. He wanted it to be a quiet evening. "I don't think we should do this…"

As he moved his body to slowly get up, the witch momentarily looked at him with an empty expression on her face. This expression quickly turned into a snarl. She roared, as both of her hands overpowered the Wizard and pushed him forcefully down onto the bed. "I am not finished yet, WIZARD…", the witch snapped sharply at him. His eyes became wide as she clenched her teeth. This was not the Theodora he knew. What had gotten into her?

"Now…", the witch softly cooed, her voice slightly shrill as her mouth approached his again. "Where were we…?" She began to kiss him on his cheek and neck. "Oh yes…" She then gave him a seductive glance and a small grin. "I want to give you a little present Wizard…I want to give you a little present…"

The Wizard's voice became more forceful as he motioned with his hands for her to stop. "Theodora, this is not what I want…please stop…"

But the witch was incredibly strong. She pinned the Wizard's hands to the bed and held it there. She clenched her teeth once more as she looked at him with simmering anger and rage at his continuing refusal. "This is not what you want Wizard? Huh? This is not what you want? Well, what about what I want, Wizard? Huh? What about what I want?"

He shook his head. At first his voice was calm. "Get off of me…"

But the witch's tone was caustic and increasingly accusatory. "You did this with Glinda every night?! Huh Wizard!? Didn't you?! You did this with Glinda every night when she had you under her spell? You did this with Glinda, didn't you?!"

"Theodora!", the Wizard's voice started to take on a sudden sense of urgency as he began to raise his voice. He tugged his arms, but the witch firmly held his hands in place. "Stop it!"

But she was unrelenting and her tone was acrimonious. As her hand bound him by his wrists, she started to shake him. "Oh! You would do this with Glinda every night and even with Evanora, but not with me?! Huh Wizard! You don't want to do this with me!? Why don't you want to do this with me?" Her teeth were clenched as she then snickered.

As the Wizard continued to struggle, the witch used one of her hands and grabbed his crotch. "Ohhhh what's this", the witch seethed with sarcasm. She flashed him a sly smile.

And when the Wizard realized that he could not free his hands from Theodora's tight grip, no matter how hard he tried or how much he struggled, that was when he got really scared.

"THEODORA", the Wizard screamed as loud as he could. "STOP IT!"

But the witch snarled as she laughed. "Oh yeah Wizard! You like it rough! Huh? Tell me you like it rough!" Her face was so close to his that the fire in her eyes and the fury on her face were clearly palpable.

For the first time in his life, he was completely overpowered by a woman. And he didn't know what to do. Theodora appeared to be a normal girl who was a light weight. But this was Oz, where everything was different and nothing was what it seemed. Instead of trying to pointlessly fight back, he simply turned his head to the side and started to weep. When the witch saw this, her expression and tone immediately changed.

"Wizard…? What's wrong…?"

"LET ME GO!", the Wizard demanded, trying to fight back his tears. "GET THE FUCK OFF OF ME!"

The witch immediately complied as she looked at him with a mixture of concern and confusion as she knelt in front of him on her bed. She held her hands out. "Wizard…I….I just wanted to love you…"

But he angrily interrupted as he shouted at her. "Theodora, never do that again! You need to learn and understand boundaries! That was not okay!" The Wizard was surprised at how angry he was. "When someone tells you to stop, YOU. ALWAYS. STOP! Do I make myself clear?!" He then swiftly turned his back to her and onto his side.

Theodora opened her mouth as she gasped. "But…I….I…I…." As the witch held out her hands for forgiveness and the Wizard didn't respond to her quiet pleading, her mouth contorted into a mixture of frustration and extreme sadness. She then collapsed onto her side of the bed and started to sob. Both had their backs to each other.

After several minutes of hearing her cry, the Wizard turned around. He sighed. "Do you want to talk about it?" She stopped crying, but otherwise remained silent. He then turned around once more and thought about whether he should use the guest bedroom for the night. And to lock the door. But the witch seemed genuinely upset by what had happened, so he decided to try and put this behind him. He then blew out the nearby lantern. As he closed his eyes to get more sleep, the witch's eyes were narrow. Her cheeks dry, she stared angrily at the nearby wall.