A/N: The response to this story is great. I'm glad you all are enjoying it. I'm having fun writing it, that's for sure.
Poor Jeb, that's all I'm gonna say : )
As usual, nothing is mine.
And so went the dreams of a long, illustrious military career.
Jeb berated himself again for his lack of judgment. It had been the princess's comment about letting other people fight while he was sitting pretty in Finaqua that had got him. There had been no more rational thought as he changed his clothes, collected his gear, and followed her to the stable. He was just as tired of sitting around as she was.
But now, after hours in the saddle, Jeb's head was clear again and his thoughts kept tarrying over the list of charges he was wracking up. Disobeying a direct order of the Queen, abandoning a post, absence without leave, failure of duty, and depending on how creative the military tribunal got, possibly kidnapping a member of the royal family. There would be no trial. They would simply lock him up and throw away the key. How would he explain this? "Well, sir, you see, the princess was sleep walking. . ."
And then there was his father. Jeb steered clear of thinking about that.
He could have stopped her. He knew he could have. What in the hell was he doing out here? Silently, he wondered if he was going crazy.
Ahead of him, Princess DG was urging her mount on. Determined was an understatement. By his reckoning, they had left Finaqua in the middle of the night nearly two days before. She had not stopped for food at all on the first day and Jeb had threatened to hog-tie her if they didn't make camp. This had been well after the sun had gone down.
DG had them up again before sunrise and once again had not stopped until sunset. This morning had been the same. He had to give the princess credit. He had no idea where they were going and he seriously doubted that she did either, but by the gods, they were making good time getting there.
They had left the lane before sunrise on that first day, and since then the princess had set a heading roughly northeast. She barely spoke, only answering the rare question that Raw posed to her when the Viewer was able to get close. With DG leading, they had crossed rivers, valleys, and trail-blazed through deep forests. It seemed the determined young princess was unstoppable.
Jeb looked at the forest around him. It was young. The slender silver birches looked as though they were only a half a century old. There was a sparse spattering of underbrush, making it easy for the horses to move in and among the trunks.
DG was in front of him, about as far as he was willing to let her get, when Raw drew up beside him. Without even being asked, he pulled out an apple and offered it to Jeb.
"Thanks." His stomach growled as he took the offered fruit. He nodded towards DG as he bit into the apple. "Any idea why she's in such a hurry?"
The Viewer smiled. "DG knows."
"Wish she'd tell the rest of us." Jeb took another mouthful and muttered. "Hardhead."
Raw's smile grew more knowing. "Like others Jeb has known."
Jeb sent a warning glare at the other man. The contact of Raw passing him the apple had been enough for him to catch a glimpse at Jeb's feelings, he knew. But he wasn't interested in sharing.
As the two had been speaking, the princess had apparently convinced her mount that trotting would be a fun idea. She was moving away quickly heading up a fairly steep incline.
"Hey! Your Highness!" Jeb called. "Don't go running off."
She seemed not to hear him as she disappeared over the crest of the hill.
"DG do that a lot." Raw informed him.
"Great." Jeb clucked to his horse who jumped forward obediently. The bay cantered up the hill, moving quickly among the trees. Jeb could hear Raw following close behind.
When they reached the top, Jeb could see the princess sliding from her saddle. In front of her was a small, dilapidated building. It was gray and depressed with a sagging porch and broken and dark glass windows. Even still, the princess was barely able to tether Speedy to a low tree branch since she was so taken with the ramshackle building. "I know this place."
Jeb and Raw had made it to the front of the house as well. Both dismounted and Jeb went to the princess. "Your Highness, it's just an old shack. There's hundreds of places like this all over the O.Z.."
"Not like this one." She replied softly. "I saw it in my dream. And I remember it from the Grey Gayle."
"Sacred ground." Raw had joined them.
"It's just an old house." Jeb insisted. "Is this what we've been riding hell-bent-for-leather for?"
DG didn't answer. Instead, she strode forward purposefully. Jeb moved to stop her and Raw followed. It was then that the ground went out from beneath them all with a series of loud cracks. All of the sudden, he was aware that they were all falling amongst branches and leaves that had been used to disguise the pit.
He landed hard in the dirt on his back, debris falling on top of him. The air was crushed from his body when the princess landed on top of him. "Those are my lungs, Your Highness."
"Sorry," was the sheepish reply as she elbowed him again on her way back to her feet. Ignoring protocol, he gave her a dirty look as he disregarded her helping hand and got up under his own power.
Raw was standing beside them and was dusting himself off. "Trap."
"No kidding." Jeb allowed himself the momentary weakness of being outwardly surly. They were all lucky the pit was shallow. The princess's bad habit of charging in headfirst was going to get them killed. "Probably for catching small game."
"No." The ground was speaking to the Viewer. "For trespassers."
"Wonderful." Jeb muttered as he looked up. The pit was only about eight feet deep and maybe ten wide. "Raw, if you give me a boost, I can climb out of here. Then I can help you and the royal pain . . .highness out."
The princess crossed her arms. "I said I was sorry, okay?"
Jeb ignored her as he went to Raw who interlaced his fingers and widened his stance. Jeb placed his foot in Raw's hands and with a mighty heave, the Viewer practically tossed him out of the hole. Jeb dug in with his elbows as DG and Raw pushed on his legs. Without much effort, he was able to roll himself over and out.
On his stomach, he reached back into the hole. "All right, Your Highness. You're next."
With a boost from Raw, DG was able to grasp Jeb's hand and pull herself up. Immediately, she turned and knelt down, extending her arms to her friend still in the pit. "C'mon, Raw."
Jeb was surprised by how strong she was. Between them, they were able to haul the Viewer out of the pit. With a final heave, they rolled Raw out and then sat among the leaves to catch their breath. While he rested, Jeb's keen eyes picked out two more pits, cleverly camouflaged and pointed them out. "Why protect this place?"
"Suppose there's only one way to find out." DG jumped to her feet and moved to the rickety wooden stairs that ascended the porch. They groaned dangerously beneath her feet, but held as she crossed the porch and opened the door.
"Princess," Jeb had been up and after her almost immediately, "would you please just stop running-"
He stopped short just behind her where she still held onto the doorknob, taking in the unbelievable scene before them. From the outside, the house had looked condemned and dark. Inside, there was a warm glow of lights from lanterns and a small fire in the grate.
It was like stepping into the history museum in Central City, which Jeb had only been to once before in his life. Velvet ropes and brass stands cordoned off a small bed made neatly with a patchwork quilt and a sparse kitchen complete with a wood cook stove.
On the walls were paintings. DG was examining the first right beside them. It was of a young girl in a blue-checked dress holding a small dog and a basket. She was surrounded by members of the Eastern Guild. Their heads barely came to her waist.
Slowly, DG ran her hand over the brass plate on the frame. It read The Good Witch of Kansas.
"Where's Kansas?" Jeb asked, studying the portrait himself.
"The other side. It's where I'm from . . .or I guess it's where my mother sent me to be raised." She smiled softly. "I guess it makes sense that she's from there, too."
"You know her?"
"So do you." She turned to him. "That's Dorothy Gayle. My great-great grandmother and the first Queen of the O.Z."
Jeb's eyes darted back to the painting. He had seen renderings of the great Slipper who saved the O.Z., but always she had been portrayed as tall and regal, much like Orianah. The girl in this painting seemed small and meek, barely able to take care of herself let alone save an entire world.
As Jeb continued to look, DG moved more to the interior of the house. Raw followed her and Jeb turned to look at him when the Viewer chuckled. He was standing near a large and well-detailed bust of Dorothy. "DG look like great-grandmother."
The princess made a face. "I don't see it."
Jeb did. He moved closer. The bust possessed the princess's wide eyes and pert nose. The sculpture was flawless in its depiction of the young woman and extremely meticulous. He could make out the individual hairs of the ponytails that were brushed forward over the girl's shoulders. The artist had been very devoted to the work.
There was a loud thump behind them and instinctively, Jeb put himself between the possible threat and the princess. It was coming from the small back room near the fireplace. He was able to discern the shuffle of feet as the noise came again.
In the doorway, leaning on a cane, was the oldest woman Jeb could ever recall seeing. She was stooped and bent, leaving the hem of her faded pink dress, which Jeb was sure would have only hung to her knees, brushing the tops of her tattered old house slippers. Her white hair was pulled back into a severe bun, but stray, coarse strands had broken free, causing a frizzy, cloud-like halo around her head.
She studied them through thick glasses as she adjusted her shawl around her shoulders. "Ahh, visitors! Welcome, welcome!"
Her voice was high and scratchy, as though it hadn't been used for a while. "You would like a tour, I'm sure."
"A-a tour?" DG asked.
"Well, of course." She tottered forward and grabbed Jeb by the elbow, leading him back towards the first painting. "One does not travel all the way to the Gayle Museum of Art and History and not take the tour."
"The what?" Jeb asked.
The old woman stopped and blinked at him rapidly, her blue eyes magnified behind the spectacles. "Why, the Gayle Museum of Art and History, dear boy."
Jeb looked around. "This is a museum? Kinda off the beaten path, isn't it?"
The old woman bristled and straightened a bit. He quietly thanked the gods that her brittle spine didn't shatter. "I didn't ask Dorothy to drop her house here, young man, now if you like-"
"We," DG broke in before the old lady told Jeb exactly what he could do, "would love a tour."
Immediately, the anger was gone. "Oh, my dears, are you in for a real treat! I do so love sharing information with bona-fide Dorothy-philes and I can see that you are just that."
"Guess you could say that." The princess mumbled under her breath. Jeb smirked slightly at the comment.
"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the Gayle Museum of History and Art. Our mission is to preserve the precious history of the House of Gayle through whatever mediums we can. Writings from that time period are scarce, so we rely heavily on artifacts from the world of art."
Jeb wondered briefly who "we" was. The old lady seemed to live by herself and clearly it was affecting her.
"I would ask that you hold all questions until the end of the presentation and please visit our gift shop at the conclusion."
Yup, she was definitely batty. He must have been making a face because the princess gave him a chiding look. He found this particularly unfair since she was clearly trying hard not to laugh herself.
"Before the coming of Dorothy", the old lady was saying, "the written language that we know today as "English" did not exist. Nor did paper or books. These were great gifts that the good Queen bestowed upon the O.Z.. Those we commonly refer to as "The Ancients" used a picture language to record important events, mainly on cave walls."
"Pardon me," DG interrupted, "but if no one spoke English, how did Dorothy communicate with the people she met here?"
The old woman sniffed. "I asked you to hold your questions."
"Sorry." The princess replied sheepishly.
"But to answer the question, a great many people of the O.Z. spoke this language she called "English". This bolsters the theory that long ago, the Outer Zone and that which we call "the Other Side" were a part of the same dimension.
"The ability to record our own histories so thoroughly was a great gift to the O.Z.." The little woman turned sad. "But, unfortunately, it was not developed quickly enough to record Dorothy's great adventures. Only bits and fragments of her own writing and those closest to her remains. But oral tales of her life had inspired many an artist to take up the brush and canvas."
She raised her hand to indicate the first painting that DG and Jeb had studied. "We begin with this piece. The unknown artist captures the little known legend of how Dorothy first arrived in the Outer Zone right here on this very spot."
"That doesn't make sense." Jeb pointed to the painting. "This shows the house in the middle of some Eastern Guild city. First of all, the Guilds build their villages in trees and second, there is no city out there now."
"Such a rowdy bunch!" The old lady burst out. "Young man, I will have you know that the people of the Eastern Guilds have not always lived among the trees, bows and spears close at hand. Necessity drove them to the trees! Once this valley was filled with a beautiful city, but circumstances drove the little people from this place and reverted them back to the ways of their ancestors."
She moved to the window, her voice bitter. "Forced to protect what they perceived as a shrine to the House of Gayle with nothing more than a few shallow pits before they were driven from their homes. Even when Dorothy returned and vanquished the Great Evil that had grown in her absence, they still refused to return. They vowed that never again would they grow complacent and lose so many. I can't blame them under the circumstances."
What was she talking about? Jeb looked to the princess who merely shrugged in confusion before asking quietly. "What circumstances?"
The old lady thumped her cane on the floor before turning around and scowling.
Raw smiled. "Would like you to hold questions."
DG gave him a dirty look before motioning to the old lady. "Please, continue."
"Thank you." The guide took a deep breath. "Now the coming of Dorothy was a blessing, but unexpected event for her. According to what literature we have, she describes her house being caught in the teeth of a terrible storm. It was the very house that we stand in that was carried to the O.Z.."
DG took in the structure before whispering to Raw, "Fared better than mine did."
"Fortunately for the people of the Eastern Guild, her aim was true and her house fell upon the vile Witch of the East."
"It fell on her?" DG asked in disbelief.
Apparently, this question was allowable since it was spoken with such awe. "Yes, it did. And young Dorothy was made an honorary member of the Eastern Guilds."
She moved to the next portrait, which Jeb studied with interest. It was of the same girl, same dog, even the same basket. Dorothy was peering intently at a scarecrow in the center of a field of corn.
"Though Dorothy was glad to be of service, she was anxious to return home. Knowing that the Witch of the East's evil sister, the Witch of the West would seek vengeance upon the girl, the Witch of the North set Dorothy on the path to the City of Emeralds, to consult the great wizard who resided there."
Jeb felt like he was going to need a compass to keep this story straight. North, East, West.
He had heard the Legend of the Emerald City and Dorothy's Journey before. It was a children's bedtime story and the quest of mad adventurers looking for fortune and glory.
"According to legend, before the girl left, the Witch of the North gifted Dorothy with the Witch of the East's magical silver slippers to protect her on her journey. Those that follow in Dorothy's footsteps still quest to find this most precious gift, for it is said that they remain in the Emerald City to this day."
"It looks like the Old Road." DG pointed to the path beneath Dorothy's feet.
"The Brick Route?" Jeb interrupted again. "But that just leads to Central City."
With a small, knowing smile the old lady shook her head. "Not the Brick Road that leads from this house. This is the original. The one you know as the Brick Route to Central City was Dorothy's tribute to the road along which she learned so much."
"The path to the future lies in the past." DG was out the door in a flash Raw behind her.
"Damn it." Jeb ground out between his teeth before remembering his manners. He chanced a quick look at the old lady's brass name tag. "Excuse me, Glinda. We'll be right back."
As he jumped down the steps, the princess was on her knees shuffling around.
"Look, either you stop running away, or I swear I will drag you back to Finaqua. Are you hearing me, Princess?"
"Jeb, look."
Knowing that his threat had fallen on deaf ears, he walked over. Sure enough, beneath her feet were a few faded yellow bricks. There were some missing, but there was definitely a path.
Quickly, DG began to dance around scattering the leaf litter from the path, building up speed as she circled once around them. Jeb let his head fall back and he looked up to the heavens for guidance. Eh, maybe the princess would be the death of him and he wouldn't have to go back and face a tribunal . . . or his father.
"C'mon!" She was near a thicket now. Long vines grew up and between the trees. Resigning himself to the adventure he knew she would want to take, he marched over and began helping her to tear the ivy down.
Even he was impressed when they managed to clear it. The brick road stretched out before them, the boughs of the tall, stately, silver trees arcing over it. It beckoned them, begging to be followed. Even Jeb had to admit that.
"I'm supposed to follow it." DG said, matter-of-factly.
"How did I know you were going to say that?"
"If that old lady is right, the answer to all of our problems may be at the end of this road. What if those magical silver slippers were the source of Dorothy's magical ability? What if that gift is actually the source of the magic of the House of Gayle?"
Jeb cocked an eyebrow. "You think a gift handed down for generations through your foremothers came from some fancy footwear?"
"I saw Dorothy at my family's crypt. She was wearing silver shoes. " DG replied. "What if they are magical? Maybe, I can use them to get my light back and fight whatever bogeyman is about to come down on the O.Z."
"I'm not gonna argue with you, Princess."
"Oh, good. Progress."
"I just want to point out that the source of our information might be a little sketchy." He gestured back towards the cabin and stopped short. "Where is it?"
There was nothing. No little house, no foundation, no evidence whatsoever that anything had ever stood there. Jeb ran back to the source of the brick path. He found himself looking into a tall Spicebush. "What in the-"
DG was beside him again. "I'm starting to think she isn't as sketchy as you want to believe. Our old-lady friend was pointing the way."
"This has got to be a dream."
"If this is a dream, which one of us is having it?" DG smiled. "This is what we're supposed to do, Jeb. Are you getting it? Whether I'm right or wrong, we're supposed to follow that path."
He just prayed they weren't following it into the teeth of a trap. "I guess there's nothing else to do but follow the yellow brick road."