"Wizard, where do you think you are going?"

After the night watch had returned the gold to its proper place, the pair continued on their way to the bedrooms. After a long day, the Wizard was hoping that he could actually get some much-needed sleep in one of the guest rooms. As the witch stopped outside of her bedroom, he kept walking. She eyed him suspiciously as she placed her hands on her hips.

Her question made him stop in his tracks. He sighed as his frown turned into his signature plastic grin. He turned around and glowed at the witch. "Of course! I am coming with you…to sleep." He winked. Inwardly though, he really just wished to rest in his own guest room.

The witch beckoned him to enter as he walked into her bedroom. The dim ambers of the gas lanterns greeted him and the aura of a fragrant sweet perfume penetrated his senses, which put him at ease. At night, Theodora's bedroom was enticingly charming and endearing to him. While it conveyed a soft and feminine atmosphere, there was something about the room that evoked authority and power. Maybe it was the red silk sheets or the dazzling mural on the ceiling. Or maybe it was the miniature portrait of what he presumed to be Theodora's mother—a young and beautiful woman with flowing blonde hair wearing a crown on top of her head—hanging on the wall above the bed. The added chandelier and the fireplace gave the space a nice flair. The room was dazzling, just like the rest of her castle.

In all of his years growing up in Kansas and traveling as a carnival magician throughout the United States, the Wizard never imagined that a woman from a wealthy background would take a romantic interest in him. He experienced his adult youth during the late nineteenth century, a period characterized by rapid economic growth and prosperity in many parts of the world, including the United States.

However, this economic growth was not experienced equally by everyone. In fact, vast income disparities during this time period meant only some men became rich, while many others remained poor. Consequently, rates of marriage had precipitously declined from its peak many decades prior because many eligible young bachelors simply did not have the financial means to marry.

And while most young men strived to succeed, the Wizard was one of those men who felt this immense pressure. While he told Theodora that his mother had committed suicide—which was true—it was not true that his father forced him to leave. Indeed, it was tragic fate that his mother experienced a miscarriage, but what really drove her to suicide was his failure "as a man" to become financially successful and to live up to his parents' high expectations. For her, this was the final straw in a series of heartbreaks. His parents were always poor, but despite his bluster that he would become better, the Wizard remained impoverished with no financial prospects. He did indeed leave his father after his mother's untimely death, but the reality was that he abandoned him due to shame. He could not bear the reality of his mother ending her life because he was a failure.

Since courtship was chaperoned in nineteenth century Kansas, his parents did not have enough money to afford a dowry to pair the Wizard off with a bride. As a result, his parents put great pressure on him to be financially successful. They even begged him to marry Annie, his best friend at the time.

"She doesn't come from money, but she will be good to you and will treat you right", his mother pleaded to him. "We can speak to her parents and arrange a marriage for you. You don't want to be alone forever! Don't you want to leave a legacy?"

The Wizard cared for Annie a tremendous deal. He may have even loved her. While they would share intimate secrets and even kissed each other, the reality was Annie wanted children and he simply did not. A man not wanting children was almost unheard of in nineteenth century Kansas and the subject remained mostly taboo. But because of this major incompatibility, he knew that he could never have a long-term future with her.

"A real man has kids", his father groaned to him on many occasions. "A real man takes care of his family!"

"Well, what if I don't want to be a 'real man'", a younger Oscar would angrily retort back. "What if I don't want the burden of a family? What if I want to do what I want?" This would cause father and son to have many acrimonious arguments.

"Son!", his father would angrily yell at him as he pontificated with his many "manly" lectures. "Real men marry women. Real men don't have friendships with women!"

But the Wizard never had many male friends. Because he thought poorly of himself, he projected his low self-esteem onto other men, too. He always found emotional solace in the friendships of women, many of whom were more comforting to him.

The Wizard approached his side of the bed and pulled the covers away from his pillow. He removed his trousers and three-piece suit, keeping his undergarments and button-down shirt on. He slid under the covers and lied on his side.

After ducking into her washroom, he could hear the witch emerge several minutes later. She climbed into bed behind him and snuggled close to him. She smelled of an agreeable scent, which the Wizard thought was freesia or some similar perfume.

"Ohhhhh Wizard…", she mischievously said with a hint of seduction in her voice as she wrapped her arms around him from behind. "I'm nakey…" She giggled, but her jovial laughter faded when he did not react or respond to her advances. Instead, he continued to have his back turned to her as his head rested on the pillow with his hand under his cheek.

"What?", she asked, with mild disappointment in her voice.

"Nothing", he said. "I'm just tired."

"Oh, come on, Wizard. Turn around", she pleaded. "Please…you feel so distant from me…turn around…"

"But I'm right here", he murmured.

"No!", the witch started to whine. "You feel so distant from me! Just turn around…"

"Okay, but let me go to the washroom first…" As he was about to get up, the witch became fearful as she tightened her hold on him.

"No!", she shrieked.

"Theodora…what are you…hey! Stop that!" But it was too late, for the witch had already wrapped her arms and legs around him. And when he started to try and wriggle his way out of her grasp, he couldn't.

"Come on, Theodora, I just want to go to the…"

"No!", she playfully screeched in a higher pitch voice as she then started to snicker.

For all of his failed attempts, the Wizard tried to use all of his body strength in order to break free from her grip. God, this woman is so strong, he thought to himself. For a woman who was of thin appearance and of ordinary stature, Theodora was immensely strong. He never met any man in Kansas who was as strong as her. In fact, he never met any human in Kansas who had her strength, either. She was so strong that it felt like he was encased in concrete.

"Aww, what's wrong, Wizard?", the witch cooed in his ear as she began to teasingly mock him. "Can't get up?"

"No", he said as he tried to play things cool. "I just don't want to hurt you and…" His words ended on his tongue as the witch giggled. He then felt her teeth nibble on his ear followed by her tongue licking its outer layer. The witch snickered again.

"Theodora, please, just let me go to the…"

"Oh no…", the witch replied. She then turned him over onto his back as she playfully started to crawl on top of him. "If you go there, you might do your disappearing act on me and I can't have that…" Much to his chagrin, he could tell that she was in a frisky mood.

"Let's wrestle", she said exuberantly as she giggled again. She moved her face incredibly close to his as she grinned. She eyed him lustfully and then bit her lower lip. "Ummm no", the Wizard said nervously. "I don't think that's a good idea. I…" As he spoke mid-sentence, she closed her eyes and kissed him passionately, like it was air she needed to breathe. But he partially resisted and held his hands on her arms, which made her end the kiss. She stared at him blankly. "Wait", he said. "I just need to…"

"No!", the witch barked loudly and angrily at him. His eyes wide, she then tempered her tone as her voice became gentler. "No, my Wizard…", she cooed. "No…"

His heart started to beat faster from nervousness. While he wondered what the hell was going on with the witch over these past few days, Theodora ironically had been wondering the same. For her, love has been one of the most terrifying emotions she had ever experienced. Unlike the relationships she had with her sisters, her relationship with the Wizard would leave her in a state of perpetual vulnerability and anxiety. She was petrified of being hurt by him in ways that no one else—not even her sisters—could ever come close to. Love for her was addicting, but devastating. It was exciting, but dreadful. It was heavenly, but hellish. Most importantly, she was deeply fearful of him leaving her, even if it was to her washroom.

"Come here, my Wizard…", she quietly beckoned to him. "Come here…" She shifted to her side on the bed once more and turned him around to face her. This made the witch softly coo as she wrapped her arms and legs around him again. She kissed his nose as she tenderly placed her hands on his cheeks. They were so close to each other as she began to whisper in hushed tones.

"I love you", she said compassionately and earnestly as her big and bright eyes stared into his. They were so close that their noses almost touched. "I love you so much, my Wizard. I don't think you know that. I love you so much", she whispered to him. As she stared lovingly and brightly into his eyes, she gasped as she became emotional and tried to think of the words to say next. "I love you more than anything else in this world. I really do. I love you so much that I just can't express it in words." She looked at him with such hope as her eyes glistened and glowed. "I just want you to be close to me at all times because you make me feel so good. It's like walking on sunshine with pure joy and happiness and glee. It's like smelling all of the most incredibly and most beautifully intense fragrances. It's like flying around high in the bright blue sky with the most wonderful of majestic magic…" She smiled brightly at him as she pecked his nose with a kiss. "I just feel so delightful, ecstatic, content and elated. All of these wonderful things. I just can't put them into words…"

Her hands then tightened their hold around his cheeks as her bright-eyed smile faded. "But Wizard…" Her eyes narrowed as her voice became uncertain. "Do you…" After some trepidation, she continued to speak. "Do you love me too?" She looked at him with great expectation and with an expression of uncertainty that if he said the wrong thing, that she would plunge into a dark and infinitely deep void that was waiting just underneath the surface.

As he opened his mouth, the witch interrupted him as her finger touched his lips. "Oh, please, please just say you love me. Please say you love me and that there's no one else and that you want to be with me forever…" Her eyes then closed as she started to shake her head. "Please only say that. I can't bear for you to say anything else. Please my Wizard…please only say that…unless you think I am hideous, which maybe I am." She suddenly looked at him with frantic, pleading eyes and much fear in her voice. "Do you think I am hideous, Wizard?"

As the Wizard contemplated what to say next, the ghostly figure of Annie stood behind him.

Oscar, what are you doing?

Wearing the same black and white garb from Kansas, her image was back in his head once again.

What do you mean, he asked her.

I mean…this. What are you doing in her bed? This was never what your mission was supposed to be. What are you even still doing here?

I don't know, he mused. This sort of just happened.

…Like what happened with her when you first landed in Oz, which nearly got you killed, she chided him.

That was different, he rationalized. She was being controlled against her will. Her darkness and her wickedness were not of her doing. She was not responsible for her actions…

And how do you even know that, Annie asked him.

Because that's what she told me. That's what Glinda told me.

And you believe Glinda?

She's given me no reason to doubt Theodora's story, he said.

So, what are you going to tell the witch who is pouring her heart out to you, she asked him.

I don't know, he thought to himself. I do care for her, but our goals and values don't align. I can't be what she wants. I can't live up to her lofty expectations. I don't know what to do next. But I don't want to hurt her…

Maybe you should start by telling her the truth, she responded. That you don't have the same feelings that she does.

The truth is too risky, the Wizard admitted to himself. I told my parents that I didn't want to live the life that they wanted for me, and look at how that turned out. If I tell her the truth, who knows what will happen and how she will react and besides, the Wizard thought. She loves me.

She's in love with the fantasy of you, Oscar. She doesn't know you. She still thinks you are some great and powerful wizard. Do you think her words and actions are the product of a stable mind? You shouldn't play with someone like this. I thought you already learned this the hard way.

I can handle this, he tried to reassure her. I know I can.

For now, she cautioned him. But what will happen when this house of cards you built finally collapses again? You injected yourself into this situation, Oscar. You gave her these feelings. She is your responsibility now. That means you are going to have to deal with the fallout. And it's not going to be pretty.

Why are you so jealous of this, the Wizard asked Annie. I like this.

Jealousy, she asked him in an incredulous, yet soothing tone. Oscar, it was never about me being jealousy. I never cared who you ended up with. I just wanted you to be happy, she said. But I also want to keep you alive.

…Because no matter what you think of yourself, Oscar, you are special in Oz. But not in the way you think. You are special because you are a fake wizard—a miniscule guppy swimming in an ocean full of dangerous sharks—and one of those sharks can easily maim you. I don't think you realize how easy it would be for this witch to kill you. You narrowly escaped death from her twice. Glinda may not be around to save you the next time. And that concerns me the most.

You should stop this, Oscar. You should stop this now, before it is too late.

"Wizard?" The witch's voice brought him back into focus as Annie's ghostly image faded from his mind. "Did you hear what I said?"

He forced a smile on his face. "Yes", he replied. He inhaled through his mouth as he thought about what to say next. "I really care about you a lot and…" The Wizard started to speak as he placed his hands on Theodora's cheeks. But she gently shook her head. "No Wizard, it's not about if you care about me. Do you love me?" She eagerly awaited his answer with much anticipation.

He nervously pursed his lips and, for a moment, broke his gaze with hers. He didn't know what to say. Maybe Annie was right? Maybe he should be honest with her.

"As I said, I care about you…but…" He started to deflect. "I don't know much about you."

The witch blinked as she slightly opened her mouth and exhaled in disappointment. He could tell that somewhere deep within Theodora's psyche, she was hurt and insecure. "Wizard, don't you think I'm beautiful?"

"Yes of course", he quickly replied. "But it's not just outer beauty that matters…"

Her chest became heavy as she looked at him anxiously with a hint of sadness in her voice. "You think I'm hideous, don't you…"

"No!", he responded, trying to comfort and console her.

"But then why don't you love me and want to be with me forever?" Now she was putting him on the spot. He sighed.

Maybe Annie was right, he thought. I can't hide from this anymore.

He continued to hold her cheeks as she did his. "Because love is a very complex emotion. It's not just something that happens to me very quickly. I think you are beautiful, but it has nothing to do with that…"

The witch sighed. "So, you don't love me. But yet you love Glinda?" She stared at him as her voice conveyed more disappointment and sadness.

"I didn't know Glinda for enough time for me to truly love her. It takes me a long time to truly love someone…"

The witch's voice was apprehensive as she asked her next question. "Did you…did you ever kiss Glinda?"

"Yes."

The witch had a puzzled expression on her face. "But I don't get what you mean, Wizard. You kissed me the first night we met. And you kissed Glinda? So, what do you mean when you say you don't love me or Glinda? I don't get it…I am confused, Wizard. You make me very confused…"

"Well, I never said I didn't love you, or that I didn't love Glinda. I love both of you and have deep affection for both of you. But is it true love? That would be hard to say. What I mean is that I haven't known either of you long enough in order to be able to say if it is true love."

The Wizard's response caused Theodora to remove her hands from his cheeks. She then turned and lied on her back. She stared at the ceiling as she processed what he had just said to her.

"What?", he asked.

She shifted her gaze back to him. "You can…love both of us?" She furrowed her brow in puzzlement. "But how can that be possible? You can only truly love one or the other." She shook her head as she narrowed her eyes. "I don't…I don't understand this…"

He caressed her cheek as she shifted her body towards him again. "Well, love can encompass many things. A person can love their parents and their friends. They can love them very much. But there are different levels of love and each of them come with different sets of feelings. Like, I love Finley, but it doesn't mean I want to live with him forever. So, love can encompass many different things…"

"But why are you doing this with me then, Wizard?", the witch asked nervously.

"Because you are really special to me", he replied. I do mean that, he thought to himself.

She flashed him a bright smile, but it faded just as quickly as it came. "Like Glinda?", she said.

"Yes…but I don't do this with Glinda anymore", he responded.

"I'll take that…" She smiled and caressed his hair with her fingers. "Come here, Wizard…" She then touched the back of his head and gently pushed him towards her. "Rest on my chest. Rest on my chest, Wizard…"

For the next several minutes, the pair rested in silence as they snuggled in bed. She started to massage his scalp. The Wizard's eyes remained closed as Theodora couldn't help but open and close them repeatedly. She really wanted to ask him a deep and personal question.

"Wizard…", she said anxiously.

"Yes", his voice was muffled as his face was pressed against her chest. Theodora gently massaged his hair with one hand while gently caressing his back with the other.

"Never mind", she softly said. She really didn't know if she wanted to ask this question. But after several minutes, she broke the silence again. "Wizard…"

"Yes?"

She clenched her teeth in anticipation of his response. "Be honest with me. Did you and Glinda ever…do anything else together?" To the witch, the silence was deafening and felt like forever before he answered, even though it was less than a second.

"No", he replied.

"Ohhh", the witch expressed great relief at his response as a smile washed across her face. But that bright smile quickly disappeared because his answer prompted more questions. While she was now genuinely relieved—before he visited her, she tortured herself by imagining that Glinda would make her body available for his pleasure, much to the witch's envy, misery and rage—she was also now really confused. How could the Wizard not lust over Glinda? It seemed like he did when he met her. In her mind, every other Ozian man would chase after her as well. Even Evanora would bitterly comment on Glinda's beauty like it was an established fact. She furrowed her brow in confusion.

"Wizard…", she wanted to ask another question.

"Yes", he murmured.

"Nothing", the witch said. She closed her eyes as she continued to caress his hair and rub his back until she slowly opened her eyes and her expression became tense once again.

"Wizard", she repeated anxiously.

"What", he asked impatiently.

"I…" But her words ended on her tongue. Oh I don't know how to ask this question, the witch nervously thought to herself as she started to blush.

"Wizard", she exhaled as she started to force a smile on her face as her expression conveyed a tinge of embarrassment. "Do…do you want to go farther than this? I'm ready, Wizard…"

After some hesitation, he responded. "I like the way things are as it is."

As they continued to cuddle, the witch smiled and closed her eyes. "You know", she softly murmured as he gently shifted his head up to hers and kissed her eyelids. "You make me so relaxed." She opened her eyes as they stared into each other's eyes once again. "Maybe we don't need to stay here."

"What do you mean", he asked as she continued to wrap her arms and legs around him.

"Maybe we can go to a far-off cabin in Winkie Country and we can just live there. We give all of this up…"

"But why give this up", he asked.

The witch continued to stare at him with a hint of longing in her eye. "And besides, you'd really do that", he asked. "You would really give all of this up?"

"I don't know", she whispered. "It would just be nice to get away from all of this stress. And when I'm with you, I just forget about all of my problems."

"Can I ask you a question?"

"Sure", the witch happily replied.

"But can you promise you won't get mad?

Her eyes narrowed as she stared into his. Her voice was filled with hesitation. "Okay…"

He pursed his lips. "The thing is, I don't think you should run away from this, but you should just do things differently."

"What do you mean, Wizard?"

"Well, you should just treat the Winkies better…"

As the witch opened her mouth and started to object, he placed his finger on her lips. "Let me finish", he said.

"You see, where I come from, we have something called superheroes, where someone with great powers protect people. Beings who have extraordinary abilities. Freethinkers. Men who devise grand inventions. And that's what you can be. Because when I look at you, I see that in you. You can be the protector of the Winkies…"

"…I already do that, Wizard. The Winkies give me half of their resources and I protect them from outside threats…"

"But I don't mean getting something out of it. I mean doing it because it is the right thing to do", he said.

She gazed at him with confusion on her face. "So, then what do I get out of it?"

"It's not about getting something out of it. It is about doing the right thing. You told me that you are Theodora the Good, right?" She nodded her head slowly in response.

"Then do good. Show every Ozian that you are good."

Theodora was silent as he continued to describe his vision to her.

"I see a place where you and the Winkies live side by side. I see a place where every Winkie can go to school and spend time with their families whenever they want. A place where everyone is happy and prosperous. Where people are working, but they are not forced to work and they are free to make their own choices how to work. I see a place where you nurture and protect everyone from harm. Where you are happy and joyous. Where you spend time with children and make them flourish. Where you make sure they are educated and you make sure they can become the best that they can be. You are satisfied with life, but you are also helping everybody else live. I see the Winkies trading with other provinces in Oz and living side by side as allies. You may not be able to see this", he said. "But I can."

The witch continued to stare at him with a stoic expression on her face. For once, he had a hard time reading her and didn't know how she was taking his "vision". "You really see that in me, Wizard?"

He nodded his head. "I do. But in order for that to happen…you have to…" His voice started to trail off.

"What?", she asked him. Her eyes narrowed. "What do I have to do?"

"You have to give up control over others", he said. "You have to give people autonomy and freedom. You have to be able to trust that people are going to do the right thing. You have to see the best in people. You have to be able to let people go and be comfortable with that decision. That they won't hurt you when doing so."

The witch looked at him with uncertainty. "What are you saying, Wizard?"

"What I'm saying is that letting go includes the people that you love", he whispered. "And that you should trust me."

She looked at him anxiously as she slightly nodded her head. "Okay, Wizard…" A small smile crept over her face. "As long as you don't pull a disappearing act on me again…"

He shook his head and smiled to her. "No. Of course not." He then tilted his head, reminding her about his need.

She slowly nodded her head nervously. "Go…but come right back…"

Annie is wrong about Theodora, he thought to himself as he got out of the witch's bed and started to walk towards her washroom. She is not someone who should be feared. With the darkness Evanora gave her now gone, she can be driven and reformed. I can't run away from this. Soon, Glinda will come and the unfortunate incident that happened with Agatha will be resolved.

Sometimes, we are given second chances for a reason. And maybe, just maybe…

This time I can get things right.