Chapter 5
If you haven't noticed the pattern yet, we're in this same room for the fifth time now, except now we see eight men. There's three men in the lower, left-hand corner, two men in the upper, left-hand corner, one man in the upper, right-hand corner, and two men in the lower, right-hand corner. Two of the men in the lower, left-hand corner have white skin, and the other man has black skin. The two men in the upper, left-hand corner have white skin, and so do the men in the upper and lower, right-hand corners. All three men in the lower, left-hand corner look to be in their twenties, one man in the upper, left-hand corner looks to be about nineteen and the other man looks to be about eighteen, the man in the upper, right-hand corner looks to be in his early twenties, and one of the men in the lower, right-hand corner looks to be in his fifties, and the last man looks to be in his early twenties. The man with black skin is bald, and he's wearing a long-sleeved, button-up shirt, a sleeve-less, black and white vest, a long-sleeved, black leather jacket, a brown belt, tan jeans, and light brown dress shoes. The man on his left has short, blonde hair, and he's wearing a long-sleeved, maroon shirt with a gray stripe around his waist and with gray sleeves (with a single maroon stripe around each sleeve), and a gray collar, long, brown jeans, black sneakers, a long-sleeved, tan jacket, and a black and gray striped scarf. The other man has short, dirty-blonde hair, and he's wearing a long-sleeved, brown shirt, a long-sleeved, blue and white flannel jacket, a long-sleeved, black leather jacket, blue jeans, black sneakers, and a shark-tooth necklace. Both men in the upper, left-hand corner have short, brown hair. The older boy is wearing a long-sleeved, green and gold checked shirt, long green pants with a single gold stripe running down each leg, and tall, black boots that are covered by his pants. And the younger boy is wearing a long-sleeved, gray, button-up jacket with a collar and cuffs, short, gray pants, white tights, and black dress shoes. A gray hat is lying on the floor next to him. The man in the upper, right-hand corner has short, brown hair, and he's wearing a long-sleeved, white shirt with a lace collar, a long-sleeved, blue evening jacket, and black dress shoes. And one of the men in the lower, left-hand corner has long, brown hair that's pulled back into a pony-tail with a blue silk ribbon, and he's wearing a long-sleeved, dark blue shirt, a long-sleeved, dark blue, button-up jacket with silver buttons, long, dark blue slacks, and black boots. A black top hat is lying on the floor next to him. And the other man has short, brown hair, and he's wearing a long-sleeved, gray dress shirt with a collar, a long-sleeved, black tuxedo jacket, a black cravat, black slacks, and tall, black boots. All eight men slowly begin to stir and open their eyes… The man with black skin has brown eyes, the man on his left ahs brown eyes, and the other man has brown eyes. The man in the green and gold uniform has blue eyes, and the man next to him has gray eyes. The man who's by himself has blue eyes. And the man with the top hat has gray eyes, and the other man has brown eyes. They all stare at each other in horrified silence for several minutes, and then the man in the top hat steps forward and breaks the silence…
"Who are you all?" he demanded, surveying each face, his eyes as cold as ice. The black man stepped forward. "My name's Benjamin Coffin III, although, all my friends call me 'Benny'. And this is Mark Cohen," He gestured to the man on his left, who nodded once. "And this is Roger Davis." He gestured to the man on his right, who also nodded once. The man turned to the men in the upper, left-hand corner. "And you two are…?" The man in the gold and green uniform stepped forward. "My name is Fiyero Tiggular. And this is Boq." The other man stepped forward and nodded once. The man then turned to the man in the upper, right-hand corner. "And you?" "Raoul de Chagny." "And who are you?" Mark asked. The man drew himself up to his full height and said with authority, "Inspector Javert." "And I'm Marius Pontmercy." the other man said, also stepping forward. "Where are you guys from?" Fiyero asked. "I'm from Paris, France." Raoul replied. Javert raised his eyebrows. "Really?" Raoul nodded. "We're from Paris too." Marius said. "Really?" Javert and Marius nodded. "That's interesting." Raoul said. "It is." Marius said, and Javert nodded again. Then, turning to the group of three, Javert asked, "Where are you guys from?" "We're all from New York City." Roger said. "Where are you two from?" Benny asked, looking at Fiyero and Boq. Fiyero and Boq looked at each other. Then they looked back at the others and said, "We're from Oz." The others were silent for several seconds, and then Javert let out a low growl. "Do you take us for fools, gentlemen?" "Not at all Javert." Boq said. "Then I suggest you tell us where you're really from." Fiyero and Boq looked at each other again. Then they looked back at the other six. "We really are from Oz." Fiyero said, glaring at Javert. "It's not a fictional place, as many people believe." "What part of Oz are you from?" Roger asked. "Winkie Country." Fiyero said without hesitation. "Munchkinland." Boq said, also without hesitation. Mark and Roger looked at each other, and Mark raised his eyebrows. Roger just shrugged. Then the two of them walked half-way across the room, extended their hands, and waited patiently for Fiyero and Boq to come forward and shake their hands. Fiyero and Boq looked at each other, and then went and shook hands with Mark and Roger. The group of four turned as Benny, smiling slightly, came forward and extended his hand. Fiyero and Boq smiled back at him reassuringly and shook hands with him. Seeing the others' warm reception of each other, Raoul stepped forward confidently and shook hands with the other five men. Then they all turned to look at Javert and Marius, who hasn't moved an inch from their corner. "Come on you two!" Benny said with a grin. "We don't bite! I promise!" Marius grinned, stepped around Javert, and went and shook hands with the others. Then they all turned back to Javert, who was looking suspiciously back at them. "Oh come on Javert!" Marius said in a tone of pure exasperation. Javert glared at him, but hesitantly stepped forward and extended his hand. Raoul shook his hand, and then Mark, Roger, and Benny. Javert then turned to Fiyero and Boq, and shook hands with them too, even though there was still distrust flickering in his gray eyes. "So you work for the police then, Javert?" Fiyero asked. Javert nodded. "Yes. In all my years of service, there was only one guilty man who went free on my watch…" Javert scowled, the memory of that obviously still haunting him. "Why do you ask?" "I'm in the army." Fiyero replied. "I work for The Wizard, the man who runs Oz. We've been searching for a green-skinned witch who defied The Wizard for two years now, but we still haven't found her. So, believe me, I understand your frustration, Inspector." Javert snorted. "Two years!? That's nothing! I've been searching for Jean Valjean, a convict who broke his parole and escaped, for ten years!" The others gaped at him (even Marius). "Ten years!?" Roger asked incredulously. "Are you serious?" Javert nodded. "Why?" Mark asked. "I mean, what did he go to jail for in the first place?" Javert answered, "He earned five years for breaking into a house and stealing a loaf of bread, and he earned another fourteen years for trying to escape so many times." All of them except Marius continued to gape at him. "Five years just for stealing a loaf of bread!?" Boq asked, apparently appalled. Javert nodded, drawing himself up to his full height once more. "That's insane!" Benny said. "Why would you put someone in jail for that long for something that insignificant? Why would you ruin someone's life like that?" Javert opened his mouth to reply angrily, but Mark and Roger cut him off, glaring at Benny. "You're one to talk!" Roger snarled. "You called the cops on Maureen's protest just because you didn't want her to stop you developing in New York City! And you were going to evict hundreds of people from their homes for nothing!" Mark snapped. Benny opened and closed his mouth several times, but no words came out. Finally he closed his mouth and just glared at Mark and Roger. "I don't get it either." Raoul said. "There are good reasons for hunting down a man, and there are bad reasons for hunting down a man. And hunting down a man for stealing a loaf of bread and breaking his parole is a bad reason." Javert let out a low growl. "And what, monsieur, do you think would be a good reason?" "If the man you were hunting had murdered hundreds of people for no reason, had tried to kill you, and had kidnapped your fiancé." The others gaped at him, at a loss for words. Finally Javert said hoarsely, "Yes, I suppose that would be a good reason! Did that happen to you?" Raoul nodded, anger flashing in his blue eyes. "The man's name was Erik Destler. He lived in the cellars of the Paris Opera House, and he fell in love with my fiancé, Christine Daae. He was crazy and tried to seduce Christine and kill me, and so I planned to have him arrested. But that Devil got wind of our plan and kidnapped Christine. I went after them, and Erik tried to kill me again. But Christine finally convinced him to let us go. He did, but then he escaped…" "So you understand as well." Javert said. Raoul nodded, his hands balled into fists. "Erik claimed he had a sudden change of heart, although I doubt it…" Javert snarled. "As did Valjean. He became the mayor of the town where I was working, and I finally discovered who he really was. We confronted each other, moments after one of his factory girls died, and he said that he had to rescue her daughter. We fought, and he knocked me out cold. And now he's gone, and I may never find him again…" There was deep self-loathing in his voice, as well as deep frustration. Boq gave him a sympathetic look. "I know how you feel Javert." Javert raised his eyebrows. "You do?" Boq nodded. "I know the girl that Fiyero has been looking for. I'm her sister's slave. She's stripped all of the Munchkins of our rights. She's as wicked as her sister! And when the green girl came back to visit her sister, she tried to kill me. I escaped and went for help, but the witch escaped too…" Boq's tone was extremely angry and bitter. Turning suddenly to Fiyero, he said, "I hope you find her Fiyero! I hope she pays for what she's done!" "So do I, Boq!" Fiyero said. "And what exactly is wrong with rebelling?" Mark asked sharply. Javert, Raoul, Fiyero, and Boq looked at him as though he was crazy. "You can't be serious!" Javert growled. "But I am." Mark said sharply. "If someone is rejected by the world, and they rebel against the world, you can't put them in prison for that!" "Sometimes rebellion brings about positive change!" Roger agreed. "And maybe someone does break the law. But if things get better in the end, why does it matter? And for your information, Javert, Raoul, Fiyero, and Boq, people can change!" Marius nodded in agreement. "Yes they can. I've changed. I used to hate my father-in-law because he's an ex-convict. But I knew he cared about me and my wife, Cosette, whom he rescued from a life of poverty, and adopted as his daughter. Even if he is the man you speak of, Javert!" Javert turned to him sharply, his eyes wide. "What!?" he whispered, gaping at Marius. "Valjean found the girl he was looking for, and he adopted her. She and I met, and fell in love. And now we're married." "He couldn't have changed!" Javert snarled. Marius's eyes flashed dangerously. "He could, Javert, and he did! He's a God-fearing, law-abiding man, and he rescued both of us from the barricade!" Javert started and paled. He knew Marius's words were true, and he couldn't deny it. There were several tense minuets of silence, and then Benny said quietly. "We've all suffered hardships." The others turned to look at him. "And yet we've all persevered." he continued. The other seven nodded. And then, for the first time since they had shaken hands, they all smiled tentatively at each other. Even Javert. At this point, they were all standing in a circle, near the center of the room. Benny reached out and put his left arm around Mark, and his right arm around Roger. Mark put his left arm around Fiyero, and his right arm around Benny. Fiyero put his left arm around Boq, and his right arm around Mark. Boq put his left arm around Raoul, and his right arm around Fiyero. Raoul put his left arm around Javert, and his right arm around Boq. Javert put his left arm around Marius, and his right arm around Raoul. Marius put his left arm around Roger, and his right arm around Javert. And Roger put his left arm around Benny, and his right arm around Marius. They hugged each other for a couple minutes, and then, suddenly, everything went black, and each group was sent back to their own stories…
