Disclaimer: Self-harm and abuse. Reader discretion is advised.
The distant furor of singing, music and celebration were heard from Theodora's bedroom. The young witch was despondent. She had been forced to stay in her room at the Emerald City Palace for what seemed like weeks now after her father furiously screamed, shouted and blamed her for attacking Glinda. "How dare you attack my cherished daughter", Pastoria yelled. "The hallway has been completed damaged because of your unacceptable behavior! You are a menace to society and to proper Ozian society! You are a failure! You are weak and pathetic!"
But the witch found the king's accusations to be preposterous and ridiculous. She never attacked Glinda, or at the very least, never remembered doing so.
Before this attack supposedly occurred, her father forbad her from attending the upcoming dance celebration that Glinda and Evanora were freely invited to. However, the young witch pleaded with the king to change his mind.
"I will only under one condition", the king calmly said after he finished flaying his youngest daughter's shortcomings and deficiencies in front of others. "You can only attend if you find someone who wants to dance with you."
The search was then on for the witch to ask someone to the dance. But Theodora was terrified at the prospect of asking a complete stranger to the ball, let alone under the condition that this person had to go with the expectation of dancing with her, something she didn't even know how to do.
After several days of being allowed to roam the hallways of the palace, she thought she saw a cute and handsome young servant. He didn't see her, but she saw him. And while she wanted to approach and ask him to the dance, she would hesitate at the last minute. Instead, she would spy on him from afar.
"I really wanted to ask him", she would tell Evanora when her older sister would come to drop off food to her. Her older sister knew that their father gave her this condition because the king knew that she would never be able to find someone who would want to go with her to begin with.
"Maybe you should just let her come to the ball" Glinda would tell Pastoria when she would visit him in the king's chambers. Evanora would hear these private conversations because she would often eavesdrop on the king without him knowing.
"She will never come to the ball", the king would tell Glinda. "No one can ever become friends with her because she's dangerous." The king would then lean towards Glinda while he sat on his bed. "She's wicked…" But Glinda shook her head adamantly. "You know this is not true, father…"
"Do I", the king would retort back at her. "May you not be on the receiving end if you make her angry."
"Well, did you talk to him", Evanora would ask Theodora when she brought up this servant. "No", the witch replied. "I'm too nervous. I wouldn't even know what to say…"
Shortly after this conversation and several days after Theodora had secretly gone to the market, the only thing she remembered was trying to approach this handsome servant for the final time, but would see Glinda speaking with him from afar. She automatically assumed that it was Glinda asking this servant to the dance. She was crushed and betrayed. She remembered running away, filled with anger and on the verge of tears.
The next thing Theodora remembered was waking up in her bed, being barred from leaving her room. Even Glinda would now avoid her. Not only did her older sister betray her, but her chance for asking someone to the dance had been ruined. And she didn't know why.
The witch sat at her desk. As the distant sound of music entered her room, she felt incredibly depressed. She eyed a nearby letter opener. She took it and started to make marks on her arm. She didn't know why she started to do this, but something within her told her to hurt herself. While it wasn't as sharp as a knife, she pressed the blade onto her skin and tried to stab herself. When blood started to ooze out of the open wound, she felt a weird relief that was intoxicating to her. For once, the black hole that consumed her with emptiness began to lift.
This was the first time she had cut herself to feel relief. It was this release of emotional pain that made her want to go to the party. She slammed the letter opener down onto her desk and, with a renewed determination, left her room.
As soon as the witch opened the double played gold doors that led to the throne room, the music stopped. Everyone who was in attendance at the party stopped conversation—some in mid-sentence—and began to gawk at who entered the party unannounced and uninvited.
The king, who had been dancing with his wife, turned to his youngest daughter and fumed. However, he suppressed his anger so as his guests would not see. King Pastoria had to keep up appearances to his Ozian subjects.
"Daughter", the king spoke warmly. "You should not be here. It is past your bedtime. You should be in your room sleeping. Please…", he said with fake sincerity. "Please, go back to your bedroom and we will speak about this in the morning…"
"Father", Theodora answered with defiance in her voice. "I want to attend. I want to be here. I want to be a part of Ozian society too! I want to celebrate just like everyone else. I want to dance…"
The king smirked at his daughter before turning to the crowd. "And who wants to dance with my youngest daughter? Does anyone wish to dance with one who can throw fireballs?"
The crowd of well-dressed partygoers were silent.
"Anyone", the king asked again. "Are there any takers?"
After more silence, the king turned to his youngest daughter. "It appears that no one wants to celebrate with you. No one wants to dance with you."
"But I want to…" As Theodora started to beg and plead with teary eyes, the king's expression went from cordiality to anger.
"Daughter, if you don't leave this instant, you will be dragged out of here kicking and screaming. Do I make myself clear?"
Glinda then gracefully emerged from the crowd. "Sister, you should leave…", she calmly said. "You should go back to your room." This made Theodora gasp in shock at her sister betraying her again. She had been friends with Glinda ever since she was little. How could she?
"Yeah, there is no place for a Wicked Witch here!", Agatha spat at her.
"Yes, she's wicked", someone else from the crowd yelled.
"Wicked Witches are not welcome here", another one screamed.
"Get her out of here!", yet another announced.
The witch was on the verge of tears. "But I am just like you", she cried. "Please…"
"Seize her", the king declared. His order made several of the Emerald City Guards attempt to grab the witch. "No! No! I am not going to go back to my room! I'm not!" Theodora began to wail and scream as she successfully fought off and pushed several of the guards away with her strength. And when the witch accidentally discharged a fireball from her hand during the struggle, pandemonium, chaos and panic erupted from the crowd. This made Pastoria and Lurline enter the fray.
"NO! NOOOO! NO! I'M NOT GOING BACK", Theodora screamed. "I'M NOT GOING BACK! I'M NOT!"
"RESTRAIN HER", the king yelled at his guards, who were having issues doing so. This made the king grab her arms and the queen grab her legs. They then began to carry her back to her room. "I'M NOT GOING BACK! I'M NOT!" Tears were now streaming down and burning Theodora's cheeks as she attempted to punch and kick her parents, but she was overpowered by them. "I'M NOT GOING BACK! PLEASE! NO!"
"Lower her on the bed", the king said to his wife. "Hold her down!"
When the witch was on her bed, still trying to land a flurry of kicks and punches, the king looked at Glinda, who had been silent all of this time and was merely looking on as an observer. "Do it daughter! Put her out!"
"NO! NO! SISTER! SISTER HELP ME! PLEASE! PLEASE! HELP ME! But this time, Glinda did not listen to her little sister. She had been attacked by her and this changed her. As her little sister pleaded with her for help, she grabbed a handkerchief and doused it with chloroform. "NOOOOOO! NOOOOOOO!" Glinda lowered the handkerchief to Theodora's nose as she tried to fight back, but had been restrained by her parents. Her voice now muffled, she continued to struggle for the next several minutes as Glinda held the handkerchief to her nose until she finally slipped into unconsciousness. The young witch passed out and her struggling ceased.
Silence then permeated Theodora's bedroom. Lurline released her daughter's legs and went over to a nearby dressing cabinet. She pulled out an ointment and began to rub it over her youngest daughter's cheeks. "Rest, my daughter", she said, as the burns on Theodora's cheeks began to disappear. "Rest."
During the scuffle, Evanora had been outside of her little sister's bedroom. She did not want to enter and neither did she make eye contact with either of her parents as they entered the hallway again. Glinda was the last one to leave, locking Theodora's bedroom as she and her parents began to walk back to the throne room and to the dance.
For several moments, Evanora remained behind, visibly shaking and trembling.