There's no place like home…

"There's no place like home…" Where was he…? What had happened…? Luke felt tired, sluggish, like he was almost numb. Luke could only find strength to keep muttering those five words. "There's no place like home...There's no place like home…"

"Luke?"

He felt like his head was throbbing as he processed the voice. "Luke, my boy, are you awake?" That voice...it sounded so familiar.

'Professor…?'

Luke stirred as he felt a gentle hand on his forehead, pressing a damp washcloth to his skin. His whole body felt heavy and exhausted but he finally cracked his tired eyes open. A white ceiling came into view and slowly focused into what looked like a hospital room. He blinked and looked to the side to see two familiar figures smiling over him.

"Luke, can you see us?"

"It's us, Luke."

Luke felt relief flood his system as he finally recognized his bedside guests. "Professor...Emmy…" he exclaimed softly, his weakened state hiding the disbelief he currently felt. He was here! He had made it back!

"Welcome back, Luke." Emmy said, her face bright with happiness.

The Professor smiled warmly as he removed the cloth and placed his hand on Luke's shoulder. "You gave us quite a scare my boy."

"What happened?" Luke asked, trying to sit up only to plop back down on the soft bed due to his heavy head, "My head hurts..." His chest also felt heavy, like someone had placed a large weight on it.

"You were caught in the sandstorm," The Professor explained. "You not only got a good bump on the head, but you breathed in a lot of sand." Luke then noticed the appearance of his mentor. The usually refined and proper gentleman looked quite haggard. His hat was off, sitting on the table next to Luke's bed and the bags under his eyes suggested that he had been here with him late into the night. Emmy looked the same, her brown hair looking a bit frizzy like it hadn't been given its usual proper care.

"How long was I asleep?" Luke asked, a little afraid of the answer.

"Almost two days; you were out all day today and all last night." Emmy answered and Luke felt his heart skip a beat. Only two days? It had felt so much longer than that… "I'll go tell the others." Emmy said to the Professor before hurrying out the door.

"I'm sorry I made you worry, Professor." Luke said, but the Professor waved his hand. "No need to apologize my boy; all that matters is that you're alright." he said.

The door opened and Emmy came in followed by Randall, Angela, and Henry. Luke's eyes became a bit more alert as he gazed at them. He could've sworn, for a split second, that he had seen Lando, Sharon, and Redoll. "Hey mate, welcome back." Randall greeted as they approached the other side of Luke's bed.

"Are you feeling alright, Luke?" Henry asked.

Luke grimaced as he tried to take a deep breath, "It kind of hurts when I breathe…"

Henry nodded, "You breathed in a lot of sand; it may be a while before you can breathe normally again."

"We're so glad you're finally awake Luke." Angela said. "We thought we were too late when we found you under that old shed."

Luke blinked. "I was under the shed?"

"The old thing collapsed in the storm." Randall explained. "Dalston and his dog found you under the rubble."

"If it wasn't for them, I don't think we would have found you when we did." The Professor said. Luke nodded; he would have to remember to thank Dalston and his dog when he saw them again. Emmy propped up Luke's pillow and helped him so he could sit up comfortably.

"So, did you sleep well at least?" Randall asked.

Luke frowned as Oz immediately came to his mind. "I had the strangest dream…" he said, putting a hand on his head. He looked at Randall, Angela, and Henry, "And...you guys were there, and so was Mr. Dalston."

The three friends looked surprised. "Really?" Randall leaned towards Luke a bit. "Must have been been an exciting dream."

Luke smiled, "It sure was, there were witches, talking animals and wizards too."

'Could it have really just been a dream?'

"What happened in your dream Luke?" Angela asked.

Luke shifted under the sheets. "Well...I was trying to get home, back here." Trevor looked up at him knowingly. "I traveled for days and a witch kept chasing me." he shuddered as he unconsciously touched his cheek. He suddenly flinched when he felt a band-aid where his cut should have been.

'Was it all real?'

"But luckily a nice lady named Claire appeared and helped me. I met a lot of other friends too." he finished.

"Hershel, are you alright?" Henry suddenly spoke up. "You look quite pale."

Luke looked at his mentor and saw that Henry was right. The Professor was staring at the ground, his eyes wide and his skin looking quite ashen. "Professor?" Luke asked as Emmy knelt down next to him.

The Professor suddenly shook his head and waved his hand, "I apologize, I'm simply tired, that's all." he said. A pang of guilt reverberated in Luke's chest. 'Because of me...' The Professor looked at Luke with a smile, "It seems you had a very interesting dream, Luke."

Luke looked away, his face drawn in confusion, "But...it felt so real." he touched the band-aid on his cheek again. "It couldn't have been a dream...could it?"

Emmy smirked, "You didn't hit your head too hard, did you?" she put her hand on Luke's forehead just so he could push her away.

"I mean it Emmy, it was real, I know it was!"

'It couldn't have been a dream! All my friends...they were real, I know it!'

The Professor put his hands on his shoulders, "Now Luke, you're still hurt and need your rest."

"But...But…"

"We'll come see you tomorrow." Angela said.

Randall gave his shoulder a pat, "Maybe tonight you'll have another dream like the last one."

"The doctors here will take good care of you." Henry said as they all made to exit the room. "Just call them if you need anything."

Luke simply watched them all exit the room until it was just him and Trevor. He looked at the little dog, who was sitting right next to him. "It wasn't a dream, I know it." Luke said softly. He scratched Trevor's ears. "It was real, wasn't it Trevor?"

Trevor let out a soft bark. "Unless we both had the same dream." Luke translated. Luke smiled, touching the band-aid on his cheek again.

A few hours later, after being looked after by the doctors to make sure he was still breathing properly, it was already nightfall. It must have been sunset when he had woken up. The doctors turned his lights down low so he could sleep and he nestled down into the sheets. He looked out the window at the starry night sky as Trevor lay down next to him.

He had been on quite the journey, and all thanks to one little sandstorm. There was no way he would forget the magical land that taught him a simple yet incredibly valuable lesson that he would never question again. He wasn't sure if he would ever see his beloved friends again, or if he really was just crazy thinking that Oz was real, but that didn't mean that he would forget it. If it really was all just a dream, there was no harm in remembering it.

He turned away from the window and spied his nightstand. The Professor's hat was still sitting on it. Luke felt quite taken aback; had the Professor really forgotten to take his hat when he left? ...Or did he deliberately leave it there?

Luke smiled at the hat; he felt immensely safer with it watching over him. The fact that the Professor left his most prized possession out of his sight astounded him. Luke knew that hat was special to him, although he was yet to be told why. But the gesture warmed him. It felt like his mentor was watching over him, from all the way at the inn. Luke nuzzled the pillow and closed his eyes, Trevor's soft breathing right next to him.

There truly was no place like home.

DON'T GO AWAY YET! I have one little bonus chapter planned out for this that's going to act as an epilogue of sorts. It should be done in the next day or two so keep an eye out for it, okay?