If someone had asked ten-year-old Evergreen if he thought that he would spend part of his birthday being stared down by an under-two-feet-tall white bunny with a pink nose, wearing a pair of well-tailored slacks, a waistcoat, and a cravat, who was wielding a short sword, he would have thought they were joking. It was a day of surprises for sure and, had he not lived it, he would not have believed it. As the bunny sat there staring at him, Evergreen instinctively stuck his hands out.

"Hello," he began, "My name is Evergreen. We d-don't want t-to hurt you."

"I know who you are," came the response. "I really only meant to keep watch over you, now that you will be settling into your magic."

"So, this is all real, then?"

"Yes, it is. You're a wizard, son."

Evergreen looked over at Dad with yet again another confused expression. Plain old Evergreen Quandary really was a wizard? Did this mean that maybe his mom was some kind of witch as well? The most pressing question was, where did this bunny come from?

"Stop me if I'm wrong," Dad spoke to the bunny, "but you must be related to Bristle the doorman."

The bunny's ears perked up at the name.

"You are correct. He is my father. It was I who delivered you the talisman that aided your escape from Oz. My name is Seta."

"Wait," Evergreen stammered, "you know this b-bunny? And what's all this t-talk about talismans and… Oz?"

"Eminent, it's time we have a talk that we should have had a long time ago," replied his father, gravely.

The three of them sat down at the kitchen table upon which the letter and the supply list still lay. The rabbit ー Seta ー sheathed his sword and hopped up to the chair, requesting a warm drink. Dad prepared the three of them some hot apple cider. Once the steaming mugs were before them, Dad started his story.

"I met your mom about 17 years ago, at a dance near Mount Hood. She was the most beautiful woman I had ever met. She was tall, probably about your height, and she had gorgeous curly red hair and your stormy eyes."

Dad stopped briefly. Evergreen felt Dad's eyes bore into his, perhaps waiting for a response. Evergreen was gazing back at Dad with rapt attention, hanging on to every word. Dad began again.

"She and I fell in love quite quickly and it was during that time that she revealed she was a witch. I was surprised, as I had thought witches to be old and ugly, but she assured me that the only ugly witches were the ones who practiced dark magic."

"So, like S-star Wars then, there's a l-light side and a dark s-side of magic?"

Dad smiled, amused. "Exactly. She was from the Sun River area, kind of near Mount Hood, and had gone to her middle and high school at Ilvermorny, the school you were just invited to. After leaving school, she, and her best friend, Elphaba, ran off to spend some time together in Kansas. It was there they discovered a portal to the Land of Oz, a magical place that can be accessed by anyone who is pure of heart, or so your mom said."

He let out a breath and Seta took a loud slurp from his cider.

"So, she and Elphie had gone to Oz, and they expected to bond over this new magical landscape, but it was not to be. The great Wizard, Oz, had accidentally caused Elphie to become increasingly jealous of your mom over time, and this jealousy eventually turned into a curse that caused Elphie to become ugly, because her curse came from a deep, dark magic."

Evergreen nodded. Even in the non-magical world that he was familiar with, jealousy never ended well for anyone. It could consume anyone and cause them to grow old and bitter if unchecked. He hoped never to do that. He was grateful that he had never really wanted much because it meant there was never really anything for him to become jealous of. Even at Christmas, he never really knew what to ask for.

"Not long after that," Dad continued, "Elphie became increasingly dangerous and dark. That was when Dorothy Gale arrived. Dorothy defeated Nessarose, another dark witch, and helped your mom to finally defeat Elphie. Then, Dorothy used old magic to travel back home to Kansas. Your mom was able to replicate the spell and travel back and forth between Oz and our world. She and I met shortly thereafter, were married, and she gave birth to you a little while later, in this world. We actually celebrated your first birthday in the land of Oz. We lived there part-time due to your mom's responsibilities there."

At that, Seta piped up.

"And that is when the darkness started again to cover the land of Oz. The Witch of the South, your mother, told me that if anything happened, I would be tasked in keeping you safe and getting you out of Oz. Something did happen, and your mother, the Witch of the South, was lost. I had to keep you safe, so the darkness couldn't get to you, so I retrieved one of her travel talismans, and, with it, I helped you and your father escape to this realm."

Despite the unbelievable story that had just been laid out by Dad and Seta, things started to fall into place for Evergreen after he heard it. There were so many odd coincidences and unexplainable happenings in his life that suddenly had an explanation. According to Dad's story, that reoccurring dream of the man running in the forest had actually happened. The lights, the screaming… his dad must have been fit once, he thought. Those dreams must have been memories of Dad and Evergreen fleeing Oz. His mom was a powerful witch and ーhe realized with a start ー he must have inherited some power too. That was the only explanation for all the strange things that had happened to him throughout his life, and it would explain the letter from that magic school, too. He couldn't control his magic yet, he assumed, and that must be why he needed to go to a school of magic. As he started to realize all of this, he began to also understand why his dad had kept it all a secret. It was simply unbelievable, and it wasn't as though Evergreen could do anything about Oz until he could control his magic on his own. From the many action movies that Dad and Evergreen had enjoyed over the years, Evergreen had learned that untrained individuals in the field were, as any operative would tell you, liabilities at best.

He looked over at Seta from behind his mug of cider. So, this bunny was sent by his mom to keep him safe? That didn't seem too bad. Maybe the bunny would come to Ilvermorny with him. He was allowed to bring an animal with him, after all. Seta could probably pass for a jackalope. He wondered aloud whether talking animals were a normal thing in the magical world.

"No," Seta said. "In this world, talking animals are not necessarily normal. A speaking animal is usually a sign of some kind of dark magic. For example, if a human being can understand a snake speaking, that person is called a Parselmouth, and this ability is attributed almost exclusively to dark wizards, descendants of Europe's Salazar Slytherin. You may have heard of acromantulas or manticores. They speak but are some of the most savage creatures in this world and would just as soon have a talk with you as have you for dinner."

The bunny gave off a violent shiver at this. Being at the bottom of the food chain could influence some creatures. For Seta, he had just become especially hardened.

Over the next little while, they kept talking, having moved over to the couch to get comfortable. Dad and Seta talked quite a bit about Seta's dad, Bristle, who was the doorman of Bunnybury, where Seta was born. Seta himself had only been about Evergreen's age when he had left Oz with the Quandarys.

Apparently, before anyone could enter Bunnybury, they first needed to shrink down to bunny size. Evergreen imagined Dad being under two feet tall and let out a very loud laugh. The television droned on faintly in the background as they told stories. Evergreen was the only one who noticed that the station wasn't even in English. It was probably some broadcast out of Montreal.

Dad invited Seta to have dinner with them out on the town. Evergreen expressed some concerns regarding this. Wouldn't people think it odd, and would the bunny even be allowed into some of the nicer restaurants? Seta explained how No-Majes ー humans without magic ー typically didn't notice anything unusual or magical, even when it was right in front of them. This phenomenon had something to do with what Seta called "the bystander effect," in which people "outside" of an especially concerning or weird situation were disinclined to engage with people or circumstances within.

It was nearing sunset when they decided to go out for some dinner. Dad decided on the Ithaka restaurant. So, they pulled on their jackets to brace against the chilly 50-degree weather and left the hotel. It was only a half a mile walk from the hotel to the restaurant, so they decided not to drive. They had been traveling by truck all day, after all.

What a wonderful walk it was! Evergreen walked with a great spring in his step, because magic was real, and he was going to become the greatest wizard that ever was! He had always had stellar grades at his elementary school, so he hoped that as long as he kept studying, he would continue to do well at his new school, and eventually be able to do great things in the magical world. After the trio had been walking for a while, Seta leaped from the ground to Evergreen's shoulder. It was a straight jump of over three feet that Evergreen was quite impressed with. Seta did this, he explained, so that he could get a better view of the city from a higher vantage point.

When they entered the restaurant, it was just as Seta had said. The hostess held up three fingers asking if it was just them in their party, not even looking twice at the well-dressed bunny and led them to their table. The chairs were fine for Dad and Evergreen, but it was just a little low for Seta, so, by magic, Evergreen assumed, he conjured a small cushion which he then plopped himself upon. Now they were all comfortable.

Dad ordered some beef and lamb gyros for the humans and a large Greek salad for the bunny. Seta piped up asking for the onions to be fried instead of fresh. Apparently, fresh onions weren't healthy for bunnies. Good to know. Seta also asked if they had wheatgrass, which they did. Some were then added to the order. Evergreen was blown away at how oblivious the No-Maj waiter seemed to be about the talking bunny. "I guess it is true," he mused silently. "People do not see, because they do not wish to see."

Their food was quickly brought to the table, and they started chowing down. Before Seta did, however, he grabbed his plate of wheatgrass and poured a little liquid he had in his coat pocket thereupon. Immediately, the wheatgrass dried up and turned brown. He then grabbed a few sprigs and stuck them in his mouth with a satisfying crunch.

Evergreen gave him a look of amazement that made Seta laugh to himself, before explaining that the wheatgrass hay, for him, was like French fries for humans ー it was comfort food. Plus, wheatgrass had the added benefit of being good for Seta, as opposed to French fries, which were bad for humans and even worse for bunnies. Evergreen's food was great as well. He had never had gyros before, but the chewy beef and the almost melt-in-your-mouth lamb mixed with hummus, a special sauce, and shredded veggies in a pita wrap was enough to make a Greek believer out of anyone, he thought.

Once they got back to the hotel, Dad and Evergreen agreed to share the king bed, allowing Seta to sleep on top of two single couches pushed together, making kind of a makeshift burrow. Seta had said that bunnies felt most comfortable in tight spaces unless they sensed a predator nearby. The three of them fell asleep quickly because anyone in their right mind would agree that it had been a very interesting day.

A/N Thanks for reading so far. I have everything written out, I'm just getting it checked and edited by a friend. So, I can promise a new chapter every week until I finish this. I have a multi-book story in mind, so if you like this, more will come. Thanks for the follow and for the favorite!

-Evergreen