Chapter 39: The Lovely Land of Oz
Mandy slowly untangled herself from Regina's hold and slipped out of the bed unnoticed, leaving her mother sleeping peacefully in her bed. She knew Gold wouldn't be in his shop yet, for the sun was just rising.
Once inside the shop, she began rummaging through every drawer and cabinet looking for the one thing that could help her bring her father back. After an hour of searching, she still couldn't find it and Gold would be coming in soon. She was growing frustrated so instead of putting things back where they belonged, she left everything on the floor. She knew he had what she was looking for; she retrieved the item herself many years ago.
In one of the drawers she found there was a secret compartment hidden within the drawer. She couldn't get it unlocked though; it was protected with a barrier spell. She had a feeling it wouldn't be strong since no one knew about this item and he probably forgot that she was the exception. She removed the spell with little trouble and pulled out what she had been looking for all along.
She stared down in amazement at the book she retrieved from Oz, all those years ago. "The Grimmerie!"
She ran all the way to Regina's mausoleum and straight into the room that held the bodies of her father, Daniel and her former love, Peter. Many feelings resurfaced when she saw Peter's body. She wanted to be back with him and thought about bringing him back instead. She was very conflicted for she knew if she wanted everything to work out without any trouble, she could only bring back one. She sat on the floor against the wall, looking over the foreign language that covered the pages within the Grimmerie. She wanted to make sure she got the spell exactly right so she practiced saying the words out loud.
Oz: Pre-curse
Rumple told her to meet a man that could bring her to this world, Oz they called it. His name was Jefferson and they traveled together for they were on a similar mission. She was to retrieve the Grimmerie from the Wicked Witch of the West and he was to obtain the Ruby Slippers from the Wicked Witch of the East.
"Well, little girl this is where we part ways." Jefferson said when they reached a section in the Yellow Brick Road that had many different paths one could follow.
"I'm not a little girl, I'm 13!" She yelled placing her hands on her hips. She reminded him of someone but he couldn't put his finger on it.
"Fine, young lady." He corrected himself. "Once you get the book, meet me in the Emerald City. We have to leave together."
"It's not like I can go back without you." She said rolling her eyes.
"Well, good luck. Hope you don't die." He said before taking the right path.
"Thanks." She said sarcastically taking the left path.
She had been walking for days, resting only at nights for a few hours. She didn't sleep much the night before and soon grew tired. She found a cute little town and decided to rest for a bit. She soon regretted her decision when a whole bunch of little people came out crowding her. "What the hell?"
"We wish to welcome you to Munchkinland!" They all shouted.
"Munchkinland?" She repeated. "Just what I need, a bunch of little people annoying the shit out of me!"
"We don't get many visitors…" The mayor of Munchkinland said.
"That's because you harass your visitors." Corinne replied before the mayor could finish his sentence.
"Why do you come here?" A little munchkin asked.
Corinne stood up; she started to feel suffocated with everyone crowding around her. "I'm just passing through, so you can all go back to whatever it is you all do." She said shooing them away.
They didn't move back, if anything they moved closer. She couldn't take it anymore. She flew her hands out, knocking them all down.
Once the mayor stood up he yelled, "We are calling the Witch of the North! She'll know how to handle you…you and your dark magic!"
Corinne smiled. "Okay, let me know when she gets here." She laid back down on the grass, put her hands behind her head and closed her eyes. She could careless who they called, she was tired and wanted a nap so a nap she shall have.
"LOOK! It's Glinda!" A munchkin boy yelled making Corinne sit up. She was curious to see this witch.
"Well where the hell is she?" She asked not seeing anyone other than munchkins.
No one said anything, only pointed. She followed their fingers to a big bubble coming towards them. Once the bubble floated close to the ground, it popped revealing a gorgeous blonde woman wearing a sparkly blue gown holding a snowflake wand. "What's wrong, my dears?" She asked.
They pointed to Corinne, still sitting on the ground. She walked over to her to ask her a few questions.
Corinne was first to speak though. "Are you supposed to scare me?" She asked almost laughing. "Because floating down in a bubble and looking like you're about to attend a royal ball would scare even the toughest of men." She said sarcastically.
Glinda shook her head as her blonde curls bounced back and forth. "I'm not here to scare you, dear. I'm here to protect the munchkins. They say you have dark magic."
Corinne stood up and wiped her hands on her tan pants. "That I do, but I am not here to harm anyone."
"What is your name and why are you here?" She asked with a puzzled look.
"Corinne. I already told them that I was just passing through and needed to rest." Corinne said aggravated.
"Then why did you attack them with magic?" She asked crossing her wand in front of her.
"They were getting all up in my space. They're like clingy little freaks." She said making a disgusting face as she looked at them.
Glinda ignored the remark against the munchkins. "Where are you headed?"
Corinne rolled her eyes. "If you must know, I'm going to pay a visit to the Wicked Witch of the West."
As soon as she said her name, everyone gasped. "Elphie." Glinda whispered in shock.
Corinne was close enough to hear what she whispered and decided to act on an impulse. "I'm going to kill her." She lied.
Whispers began swirling around the munchkins but Glinda tried to ignore them. Corinne saw her shift uncomfortably. "Is there something wrong, bubble lady?"
Glinda regain her composure and turned around to the munchkins. "The visitor, Corinne will be coming with me to discuss her further plan of taking down the Wicked Witch of the West. She is no threat to you but I will be taking her off your hands anyway. If there is nothing else, we shall be on our way." She waited a moment for any munchkin to speak up but all were silent.
Corinne tapped her on the shoulder causing Glinda to turn around. "I'm not coming with you." She whispered. Corinne couldn't object anymore because she was suddenly engulfed in a pink bubble with the blonde woman.
Corinne crossed her arms and arched her eyebrows. "Are you seriously kidnapping me right now? With a bubble?"
"I couldn't talk to you about this. Not in front of them anyway." Glinda said ignoring the young girl's attitude.
"Talk to me about what?" Corinne asked.
"About Elphie."
"That's the second time you said her name. "Who the hell is Elphie'?" Corinne asked, raising her voice.
The bubble popped around them, revealing a huge fancy bedroom. Corinne assumed it was Glinda's chambers. Glinda glided over to the huge window. "She was my friend." She answered as she stared out the window.
Corinne was waiting for more of an explanation but she didn't get any. "Is' Elphie' the Wicked Witch of the West's name?" She guessed and saw the blonde nod.
Corinne walked a little closer to the older woman, trying to understand this whole thing. "So let me get this straight, your friend became the Wicked Witch. Everyone wants her dead but you don't. You're still friends with her but no one knows."
The blonde nodded again without saying a word. "Don't let me guess the entire thing! Fill me in."
Glinda turned towards the young girl. "We went to school together, Elphie and I. She became my best friend."
"So what happened?" Corinne asked a little too eagerly than she should have.
"We met the wizard, although he wasn't a wizard at all." She said bitterly. "He was a liar. He said she could be anything she wanted to be only if she stood by him in his twisted schemes. He tried to manipulate her but she knew better. She was smart."
Corinne would be lying if she said she wasn't intrigued by her story. "And then she became the Wicked Witch?"
"Not right away." Glinda said taking a seat on her bed. Telling the story had stirred up many emotions for her. Corinne decided to take a seat next to her. Glinda seemed like a layed back person and only used magic when she absolutely had too and Corinne kinda felt safe around her although she didn't put her guard down completely.
"She's not wicked. She just wanted to help the animals but he turned everyone against her when she ran away with the Grimmerie and refused to help him." Glinda further explained.
"But if you believe she isn't wicked and you know what happened, why don't you set the record straight?" Corinne asked.
"It's not that simple." Glinda said looking at her for the first time since the bubble popped. "People see me as a public figure. I can't be associated with her."
"So you would let your reputation and what everyone else thinks get in the way of a friendship that you clearly want back?" Corinne stood up angry.
Glinda also stood up, towering over the young girl although Corinne didn't back down. "She and Fiyero broke my heart."
"Fiyero?"
"I loved him and for the longest time I thought he loved me too but he had always loved her." Glinda said sadly sitting back down.
Corinne knelt down in front of the blonde, grabbing her hands. "Well I'm sorry to hear that Glinda but I think you should try to mend your friendship with Elphie."
"I don't think she'll want to be friends again." Glinda said.
"But you won't know until you try." Corinne said offering a smile. "Why don't you come with me?"
"You want to kill her." Glinda said angrily.
"No, actually I don't. I just need to get something from her." Corinne said calmly.
"What do you want from her?" Glinda asked eyeing her suspiciously.
Corinne hesitated. "Well, it's a spell book of some sorts."
"The Grimmerie?"
"Yea, that's the one!" Corinne said standing back up.
"That's the book that started all of this!" Glinda yelled. "It's dangerous."
Corinne was growing tired of this emotional blonde. "Just come with me!"
"Fine, but I doubt you will get the book from her." They were engulfed in a big pink bubble once again on their way to the Wicked Witch's Castle.
They soon appeared in a dreary looking room that was covered in cobwebs and dirt.
"Where do you think she is?" Corinne asked.
"The tower." She answered.
"Well let's go!"
Glinda grabbed her arm. "She'll come to us. She knows we're here."
The door burst opened and there was the green woman dressed in all black. Corinne assumed this was the Wicked Witch.
"What are you doing here, Glinda?" The witch asked angrily still standing in the doorway.
"Elphie, I've come for many reasons. I want to amend our friendship and apologize." Glinda said sincerely.
"A likely story." Elphie said crossing her arms as she strolled into the room. "And who's your little friend?"
"She came for the Grimmerie, Elphie."
The witch laughed. "You think I would just hand it over to you, a child none the less."
"It's not for me. I'm retrieving for someone else as part of a deal." Corinne replied.
"You're form another land, aren't you?" Elphie asked.
"Yes. The Enchanted Forest."
"Did Glinda tell you about this book?"
"A little but it doesn't matter how dangerous it is. I need it." Corinne said almost desperately.
"It won't be any good to you or the person you are retrieving it for. It's written in an ancient language that only few know how to read." Elphie explained.
Corinne crossed her arms. "Well that's a minor setback."
"I will not give you the book. It had caused too many problems." Corinne put her head down trying to think of another way to get it. "But I will let you see it."
Corinne basically ran over to her in excitement. "Great!"
"But Elphie, I need to talk to you." Glinda begged.
"We can talk later, Glinda. I'm with the child right now." She said waving her off.
Glinda sat down in a dusty chair as Elphie led Corinne over to the Grimmerie.
"Wow." Corinne whispered when she looked at the ancient book. "I didn't think it would be that big."
"Oh yes. It's full of spells and enchantments." She said opening the book.
Corinne looked inside. "You know how to read this?"
"I only knew a few words at first but after studying it further I mastered the language."
Corinne looked at a random spell but for some reason she knew what it said. "There's a spell to change the weather?!"
"How do you know that?" Elphie asked.
"I read it. Right here." She said pointing to the middle of the page.
"You can read it?"
"Um, just a little." Corinne said hesitantly. She didn't want to tell her that she could understand the words plain as day.
Elphie grabbed hold of her shoulders. "Do you know what this means?"
Corinne looked slightly frightened. "No."
"You could do so much. You have magic, don't you?" Corinne nodded. "Would you like to stay here? I could teach you so much."
Corinne thought about it for a moment. To be on the same side as the Wicked Witch meant she would be feared and she would have so much power. She would achieve more with her than she would with Rumple. "I would like to but I made a deal with Rumple and until I fulfill that debt, I can't leave."
"Just don't go back."
"He'll find a way to get to me. Trust me; you don't break deals with him." Corinne said.
"Very well." Elhpie said sadly.
"Elphie?" Glinda asked.
"What Glinda?" She asked frustrated.
"Your sister is here…with Boq."
"Nessa is here?" She asked shocked. "Why? How?"
"I don't know Elphaba! Just get out there!" Glinda yelled back.
The witch didn't say anything as she marched back into the room. "What are you doing here Nessa?"
"Is that anyway to greet your sister?" Nessa asked. Elphaba didn't say anything so Nessa continued. "I've come to tell you of fathers passing. I am now the governor of Munchkinland."
"Father's dead?" Elphaba asked in disbelief.
"Oh don't go soft on me now. He died a while ago. When he heard of the things you've done he died of shame." Nessa shot back.
"Glinda, I can't believe you're really here." Boq whispered grabbing her hand.
Glinda quickly pulled away. "What are you doing Boq?"
"Don't you see? I love you Glinda. I've loved you right from the start." Boq confessed grabbing her hands once more.
"What did you just say?" Nessa asked quickly turning around to catch them holding hands.
"Nessa, it's not like that." Glinda tried to explain but was interrupted by Boq. "Actually it is. I lost my heart to Glinda the moment I laid eyes on her."
"Lost your heart?" Nessa hissed taking a few steps closer to the pair. "You're going to lose your heart to me!"
Corinne could take this drama anymore. "If you want his heart so badly, then just take it!" She plunged her hand into Boq's chest and pulled out his heart. Boq groaned in pain as the women gasped. Corinne then crushed the heart into dust causing Boq to fall instantly to the ground.
"What have you done?" Glinda shrieked.
"She wanted his heart." Corinne said simply.
"I didn't want him dead!" Nessa yelled.
Elphaba quickly ran to get the Grimmerie. She flipped through the pages rapidly looking for a particular spell. Once she found it, she began reading the enchantment. Boq came back to life but he was not himself.
"Why does he look like that?" Glinda asked.
"It was the only way I can save him. He can live without his heart but only if he were a tin man." She explained.
Corinne had never seen someone come back to life and stood in shock and the man before her.
"Boq?" Nessa asked.
"Stay away from me! I don't want anything to do with any of you!" He yelled.
"This is both of your faults!" Nessa yelled at Glinda and Elphaba.
"How the hell is it my fault?" Glinda asked. "I was never in love with him."
"Aren't you the one that told Boq to ask Nessa out in the first place just to get him off your back?" Elphaba reminded.
"Well it's not my fault my beauty captivated him." Glinda said flipping her hair over her shoulder.
"It didn't captivate Fiyero, now did it?" Nessa said putting her hands on her hips.
"Oh shut up Nessa!" Glinda yelled.
"Don't tell my sister to shut up!" Elphaba shouted.
"Don't defend me, Elphaba! I don't need your help taking down this ditzy blonde." Nessa said pointing to Glinda.
While they fought with each other, Corinne grabbed the Grimmerie and snuck out of the room before disappearing in a puff of purple smoke. She wanted to find out what happened to Fiyero but she knew she had to get out of there. She landed somewhere on the Yellow Brick Road. "Well that was easier than I thought." She said smiling as she continued walking towards the Emerald City.
Storybrooke-Present Day
Regina awoke in an empty bed. She figured her daughter was downstairs but when she saw only her mother in the kitchen she became a little worried.
"Mother, where's Miranda?" Regina asked.
"I haven't seen her since last night when she blew out the candles." Cora said before taking a sip of her tea.
"She should still be sleeping. I don't know where she is." Regina said.
"Calm down, Regina. She probably just met Jake somewhere."
"This early?" Regina said not accepting that as an excuse. A loud knock came from the door and they kept banging and banging until Regina answered the door.
"Where is she Regina?" Gold hissed walking into her house uninvited.
"What are you talking about Gold and nobody said you could come in." Regina said angrily slamming the door.
"Where's Miranda?" Gold yelled.
"What do you want with Miranda?" Cora asked coming from the kitchen.
"She stole something from me and I want it back."
"How do you know it was even her?" Regina asked crossing her arms.
"She is the only one who knows about it. I want it back. She completely trashed my shop." Gold barked.
Cora began circling Gold. "We can't help you if you won't tell us what it is she stole."
Gold wasn't going to tell them. "I'll find her myself." He said before storming out of her house.
"Mother, what do you think she stole?" Regina asked.
Cora thought for a moment. "I'm assuming it's something from another land that was very hard to retrieve. It has to be something rare, something very useful."
Mandy sat on the floor contemplating who she wanted to bring back to life. She studied the spell and was ready to enact the enchantment. She stood up and walked in between both coffins, placing a hand on each.
"I love you both very much but I can only bring one of you back." She whispered.
She turned to face Peter. "Peter, you will always be my first love and you will always be in my heart. I hope you understand that I have to bring my dad back. My mom is heartbroken without him and I just want her to be happy. I also hope you're not mad that I moved on with Jake. I really do love you Peter." She kissed the coffin before picking the Grimmerie back up and turning towards her father.
"I hope you're ready daddy." She started to chant the ancient words making the book glow brighter and brighter as she kept going. The room soon filled with the bright light and she suddenly felt a rush of energy go through her, knocking her to the ground. When she looked up, she noticed the bright light had faded and the glass coffin covering Daniel had broken into many pieces.
She heard groans coming from Daniel. She slowly got up and hesitantly whispered, "Daddy?" More groans were heard and then he sat up staring right at her.
"Miranda?" He asked unsure.
She nodded. "It's me, daddy."
He jumped off the slab he was laying on and ran over to his daughter, picking her up in a giant hug and swinging her around. She couldn't help but laugh as she was swinging through the air. He finally set her down to get a better look at her. "I told you we would be together again."
"You knew?" Mandy asked.
He nodded. "I couldn't tell you when or how, just that it would happen."
She couldn't help but shed a tear. "I can't believe it actually worked!" She exclaimed hugging her father. "I'm so happy you're here!"
"Me too, princess." He said hugging her tightly. "I have a message for you…from Peter."
"Really?" She asked looking up at him. "What did he say?"
"That he understands why you chose me and not him. He needed to stay with Noah and he is happy that you have moved on." Daniel said cupping his daughter's face in his hands.
Mandy nodded. "Thank you."
"Where's Regina?" He asked anxiously.
Mandy smiled seeing the eagerness in his eyes. "Her house…well our house. She's gonna be so happy to see you!"
He laughed. "Well lead the way."
I hoped you liked the little Oz trip. I really liked writing this chapter so I hope you liked reading it! A lot of the Oz moments are based off of the musical Wicked if you didn't already know. I'm excited for the Daniel/Regina reunion! I hope to update again soon but I will be busy because school is starting in a few days. Let me know what you think :)