Just like Redoll said, they reached the edge of the forest in under an hour. "There it is!" Lando exclaimed. "The Emerald city!"
Sure enough, the tall emerald green structures of the city could be seen in the distance. A large field of poppies were all that stood in their way. "It's beautiful!" Sharon said.
Luke nodded, "He must be a great Wizard if he lives in a place like that." he said.
"Well c'mon, what are we waiting for?" Lando asked. "Let's go!" The group took off through the flowers towards the city. At first Luke ran as fast as his tiny legs could carry him, but as he ran his feet felt heavier with every step. Redoll seemed to be feeling the same way, so he switched to running on all fours to help pick up speed while poor Luke was left behind.
Lando and Sharon reached the top of a small hill overlooking the city and turned to look at their straggling companions. "C'mon you two, we're nearly there!" Sharon encouraged. Redoll got to the top and joined them and Luke slowed to a crawl as he reached the top of the hill. He breathed heavily, leaning on his knees and Lando frowned, "Luke, are you alright?" he asked.
Luke wanted to say yes, but he couldn't shake this odd feeling he had. "I...I don't know." he said between breaths. "I feel...so tired all of a sudden…" As he spoke, Trevor had curled up on the ground and fallen fast asleep.
"Well, if you're tired we can carry you." Sharon offered but Luke shook his head. "No don't worry...I just need to rest for a minute." He knelt down in the soft grass, inhaling the beautiful scent of the poppies that just made his eyes droop even more.
"Luke, this is no time for sleeping!" Lando said.
"I don't know...sleep sounds pretty good right now." Redoll said with a yawn.
"Not you too!" Lando exclaimed.
Meanwhile, Luke softly fell to the ground with a soft thump, fast asleep. "Luke! Luke wake up!" Sharon called, shaking his shoulder.
"Hey, stay with me Redoll!" Lando exclaimed trying to keep the lion awake but it was no use. Redoll curled up and fell fast asleep.
"What's going on? They won't move!" Sharon exclaimed frantically.
"I don't know!" Lando said. He spied Trevor asleep near them under the flowers and the answer came to him. "It's the poppies!" he exclaimed. "They must be under some kind of spell!"
"Anton!" Sharon gasped, realizing the situation. "We have to get help!"
"But we can't just leave them here!" Lando countered. "Anton could show up any second!"
As the two struggled helplessly wondering what to do, little did they know that Anton wasn't the only one watching them. Claire smiled softly as she gazed into her own crystal and picked up a small white bag.
"Winter, the time where everything living falls into a deep slumber." She said as she untied the bag's silver string. "But after winter comes the spring, and the warm sun awakens the world from its cold dark sleep." She scooped out a handful of sky blue dust and sprinkled it over the crystal ball.
"Winter is over my friends; awaken from the cold grasp that keeps you in a dark slumber."
Back at the poppy field Lando and Sharon suddenly looked up as something cold began to fall from the sky. "Snow?" Sharon asked.
Lando looked around seeing that the snow was only covering the cursed poppy field, and the sky was still a clear blue. "Is this...a spell too?" Lando wondered. They looked at Luke and Redoll as they both began to stir, the snowflakes kissing their faces.
Luke rubbed his eyes and slowly sat up, "Huh…? What's going on?" he asked sleepily.
"Luke, you're awake!" Lando exclaimed. "And so is Redoll!" The lion was stretching like a large cat.
"Thank goodness!" Sharon said, giving Luke a small hug as he picked up Trevor. "Wha...Why is it snowing?" Luke asked getting to his feet.
"You and Redoll were under a spell." Lando exclaimed. "Somehow the snow snapped you out of it."
Luke watched as the snow slowly stopped and looked up at the clear blue sky. Why would it suddenly snow like that right when he and Redoll were under a spell? The answer came to him and he smiled at the sky. 'Thank you Claire.'
He swore he could almost feel her smiling right back at him.
Anton threw his jar of poison to the ground, shattering it and spilling the poison everywhere. "Blast that Claire!" he growled. He stormed to the window and stared at the Emerald city that was in perfect view. "Well, if you want something done, you have to do it yourself." He muttered. "Soon enough, that boy and his dog will be mine."
He jumped onto the windowsill and leapt off. His cape flapped as his magic activated and he took flight, and with a malicious grin, he flew towards the Emerald city.
Luke could barely contain his excitement as they approached the gates of the Emerald city. It took everything he had not to run off and leave his friends behind. They were finally going to see the Wizard! He would finally be able to get home! 'Professor... Emmy...just wait a little longer...I'll be back soon.'
They finally reached the front gate, the only obstacle standing between them and their goal. Lando reached up and pulled the string to ring the bell. Luke cringed slightly as a loud clunky bell rang through the air. A small window on the gate opened and a man with a long face, a large mustache and long shaggy hair poked his head. "Who the blazes rang that bell?" He demanded.
"Uh, we did." Lando answered.
The guard looked down at them with a glare, "Can't you blokes read?" he asked irritably.
"Read what?" Luke asked, looking around. There wasn't anything with words anywhere.
The guard grumbled to himself, "The blasted sign of course!" he exclaimed. "Are you all off your rocker?" Luke and the others looked around one more time, but they didn't see any sign. There wasn't even one on the way to the gate. The guard rolled his eyes, "Blasted kids…" he muttered and pointed next to the string, "It's right-"
He stopped short as he realized there was nothing there. The guard sighed and grumbled something about new recruits and disappeared inside the portal. A few moments later, he reemerged and slapped a sign next to the bell string before slamming the portal door shut. The group looked at the sign and their initial confusion cleared up.
'Bell out of order. Please knock.'
Luke spied the large door knocker and managed to lift the heavy thing a few times to bang against the door. The portal opened and the guard reappeared. "That's more like it." he said. "Now, what business do you have in Oz?" he asked.
"We've come to see the Wizard, sir!" Luke answered. His companions nodded but the guard flinched back in shock. "You want to see the Wizard?" he asked.
"Yes sir." Lando said sincerely.
The guard huffed, "Hardly anyone's seen the Great Oz." he said. "What makes you think I'll just let you in to see the most powerful man in Oz?"
Luke thought for a moment until an idea came to him. "We have to see the Wizard sir, we've traveled a long way too." he said. "Claire, the good witch of the North sent me to see him."
The guard's eyes seemed to light up in recognition, but he still seemed skeptical. "Claire, eh? Do you have any proof?" Luke's smile faded; what proof did he have?
Luckily, Lando had an idea, "Well, he's wearing the ruby colored shoes she gave him." he said, pointing to his feet. "Is that proof enough?" The guard looked down as Luke held out his foot where the shoes were still sparkling in the sun despite the long way they had walked.
The guard smiled, "So he is." he said with a nod, "Alright, if Claire sent you, I'm sure the Wizard will hear you out." Luke felt his hope rise as he looked excitedly at his companions.
The guard disappeared from sight again, and a few moments later, the gates slowly swung open.
I'm not sure how good a gatekeeper Chelmey would be in real life... B(
But then again, he's not too competent as an inspector either. (Better than Strotsky at least)