Mitchell slowly and wearily placed one of the many reports he was reviewing onto the dining room table, which was covered with paper. The sun had long set as the dim orange hues of the nearby gas lamps lit the castle once more. For many hours, he was reviewing every detail of the inventory that each Winkie farmer was required to submit to the witch's castle.
The tired captain placed his head on his hand as he closed his eyes and took a breath. While his job was to oversee, direct and supervise every Winkie Guard that was employed by the witch, he now engaged in mostly administrative tasks due to the nature of his work at the witch's castle.
When he was a lieutenant for the Emerald City Guards—the same ones who ran off when the Wizard assumed his immortal form and scared them away—an officer's job was to train, supervise and discipline their contingency. However, things changed when they arrived at the witch's palace. Theodora demanded that every Winkie farmer submit a report to her castle on a weekly basis, otherwise they would be punished. This greatly increased the bureaucratic responsibilities of the officers, but the bulk of that responsibility belonged to the captain.
At first, Mitchell was confused as to why the witch demanded inventory reports from the farmers. Inventory did not need to happen weekly. In fact, before Theodora even arrived in Winkie Country and when the land was controlled by her aunt, Gayalette, inventory never existed. For the most part, the old witch left the Winkies to their own devices, as she was obsessed with controlling the Winged Monkeys because they had played a prank on her husband.
As the weeks passed, it had become clear to the captain that Theodora's scorn towards the Winkie populace ran much deeper. She was bitter and vengeful for how she was treated when she lived at the Emerald City. She felt betrayed that Ozians had cast her out and she felt especially devastated by the Wizard himself. Consequently, she decided to take her anger and rage out on the Winkie populace. Terrified of the witch and of her powers, the people simply did as they were told.
For the most part, the Winkie Guards were spared from the witch's wrath because the captain would cover for his men. Like everyone else, he wondered if things would change with the Wizard's surprising and entirely unexpected visit.
Mitchell slowly stood from his chair as he made his way to Theodora's bedroom. He had left a final report on her bed several hours before, but she was having dinner with the Wizard and had previously told him not to be disturbed.
Knock, knock, knock, knock, knock. The captain melodically knocked on the door to the witch's bedroom. "Come in", she responded in whispered tones.
As the captain quietly entered, he saw Theodora sitting upright on her bed, propped up by a bunch of pillows. She was still wearing the red gown she wore to dinner. She was holding the final report in her hands as she was meticulously reviewing it. As she did so, the Wizard's eyes were closed and his head rested near the witch's stomach. He was wearing his white shirt that served as an undergarment to his three-piece suit, as the remainder of his clothes had been haphazardly placed near the witch's bed. A blanket covered the rest of his body.
Theodora placed the report gently down onto her bed as she eyed the captain. "Shhhh", she raised her finger to her red lips. "The Wizard is sleeping", she softly whispered. She lowered her head, looked down at him and smiled as she gently caressed his hair.
The captain's droopy eyes gazed at the witch. "Mistress, I am finished for the day. I am heading home."
"Have a good night", the witch quietly replied as she gave him a bright-eyed smile.
The otherwise stoic captain turned away and slowly made his way to her bedroom door. As he placed his hand on the knob, a small smile spread across his face at the sudden realization that the witch had smiled at him. She would never smile at him. In fact, he did not remember the last time the witch smiled while he was stationed at the castle with anyone.
Before he left, he turned his head and eyed the witch. "You look happy", he exclaimed.
"I am", the witch started to run her hand on the Wizard's cheek as her other hand continued to caress his hair. "I am so happy", she then beamed once more at the captain.
As he quietly left the bedroom and closed the door behind him, Theodora picked up the report. As she eyed its contents, she ticked in annoyance. There were names of numerous Winkie farmers who were not meeting production. The witch ticked even more noticeably as she saw a farmer who was on his second violation. This trouble maker would have to be dealt with.
Suddenly, the Wizard's hand moved as he slowly grabbed the report and tugged it away from her. "Wizard…what are you…I'm not finished with that…" Despite fidgeting, she did not offer any resistance as his hand placed the report on a nearby nightstand. "Come, you can review it tomorrow", he quietly stated.
And with that, Theodora turned over to her side as the Wizard placed his head on the nearby set of pillows that had formerly propped the witch up. She wrapped her arms around him as they engaged in another evening of intimate pillow talk.
"You changed a little bit, Wizard", the witch cooed. The Wizard raised his eyebrow. "What do you mean?"
The witch's hands went from the sides of his chest up to his cheeks. "I don't know", was her hushed response. "It's just…I haven't seen you in three years and you seem different. You look a little different. You seem to have lost weight. I could tell this when I hug you. And you seem more…" Theodora's words trailed off as she thought of the right thing to say.
"You just seem more closed. And serious. And…" Her eyes became wider as she stared into his. "Unhappy."
The Wizard's eyes looked away from the witch's as he smirked. "What makes you think that", he asked as his gaze returned to hers. He then placed his hands on her own cheeks.
"I just know, Wizard. I'm just intuitive with other people's emotions and feelings and behaviors. I can't explain why I feel this way..." With several moments of hesitation in her voice, she continued. "It's just that I do. And I'm usually right…"
Deep down, he knew that Theodora was right. As a traveling carnival man, his life was simple. No, he did not make a lot of money. But there was also minimal stress. He traveled the United States and the carnival housed him and paid for his expenses. Every decision he made felt easy. He truly lived a carefree life.
Contrary to his carnival days, every decision he had to make as the Wizard felt onerous and even downright dreadful and torturous. Because there were so many Ozians who relied on him and would be affected by his edicts and decrees, he often refused to make any decisions at all. After much hesitation in the early months of his reign, Glinda started to take over his responsibilities and began to micromanage him, which placed a substantial strain on their budding relationship. Not even six months into his rulership, they both mutually agreed that it would be best for the land if they were merely colleagues instead of lovers.
At the end of it all, the Wizard didn't even seem to mind that their romantic relationship was over. Glinda was not Annie. And despite Glinda looking like his friend and missed connection from Kansas, the witch was not the same person that Annie was.
As his rulership continued into the first year, the Wizard thought about Annie more and more. He also ruminated on Evanora, whom he loathed, and on Theodora, the supposedly irredeemable Wicked Witch of the West that he secretly created. No one else in the land knew that both her and the Wizard shared an intimate encounter on the first night he arrived. This included Glinda. No one knew that the misery the Winkies faced on a daily basis was solely because of him. This secret—that he created the "Wicked Witch of the West"—slowly ate at him.
For the past three years, the Wizard simply dwelled on his regrets. He regretted not marrying Annie when he had the chance. He regretted deceiving women by not opening up his heart to them. As his heart ached for his own redemption, the Wizard cut himself off from the rest of the Emerald City population and became a depressed hermit.
During this time, it never even occurred to him to travel to Theodora's castle. Deep down, he was terrified of the witches and the powers they had. And despite his remorse, he felt that he didn't have the courage to change anything. In his mind, if he even dared approach the witch's castle, she would have either incinerated him on sight or order her Winkie Guards to kill him.
Glinda's note finally gave him enough courage to journey to the witch's castle. But maybe deep down, it really wasn't Glinda's letter that made him go. She never forced the Wizard to make this trip and he could have even cancelled it.
Deep down, maybe it was his own guilt that made him to go. Maybe, just maybe, he had the courage inside himself all along.
"How do you have this gift", the Wizard finally asked her.
"This isn't a gift", she said. "It is a curse…"
"What do you mean?", he replied.
The witch confided in him. "Ever since I was a little girl…I…my father forbad me from leaving the Emerald City palace. I was confined to my bedroom at all times. It was…" Her voice cracked. "I picked up on emotional cues easily because my parents would have mood swings and they would just be mean to me and…I had to make sure I wasn't…"
The witch became quiet as the Wizard cupped his hands on her cheeks as he stared into her eyes. "I'm sorry…I am so sorry", he said.
Now he realized why Theodora had been so sheltered. He kissed the bridge of her nose and then turned around, his back now facing her. She placed one of her hands on the Wizard's hair as she started to caress him as she wrapped her other hand around his body. This made him close his eyes and, for the next several minutes, the bedroom was quiet as they cuddled.
From the short time he was at her castle, the Wizard believed that Theodora had been misunderstood by the Ozian population. He didn't see a conniving and a diabolically evil wicked witch. Instead, what he saw was a young girl who was overwhelmed by an immense amount of responsibility that had been foisted upon her. A young girl who did not know how to handle power because she was never taught how to. A young girl who had a capricious temperament and ever-changing mood swings. A young girl who had been broken hearted and lonely. A young girl who needed a support system in her life, but never received one.
This revelation made the Wizard feel even more sad and guilty.
"Wizard…my Wizard…", the witch cooed as she continued to caress his hair with her hand. Her voice was quiet as her tone became increasingly frantic. "Please…don't leave. Don't ever leave me. We belong together, Wizard…we belong together. Just you and me. Don't go back to the Emerald City. Don't go back to Glinda. Please…stay here with me. Stay here with me…forever…" The witch's eyes were full of hope and longing as she was practically begging him, even though his eyes were still closed as his back was turned to her. "Please…"
The Wizard slowly opened his eyes as feelings of dread began to take over. He didn't know what to tell the witch. His feelings about her were divided. On one hand, Theodora could be charming, caring and incredibly loving. Unlike Evanora, who was cold, icy, sadistic and truly evil, he could tell that Theodora was an empath. He felt that they did indeed share a common physical connection together.
On the other hand, they had almost nothing in common with each other. His interests included inventions, dazzling tricks and discoveries. He constantly desired to gain scientific knowledge about the mysteries of life.
Theodora desired none of this. The witch didn't have a yearning to learn new and complex things like he did. Whenever the Wizard would bring up anything she didn't understand, she would quickly change the subject or simply attribute it to magic and something that was unexplainable. She didn't seem interested in learning. She had simple thoughts. Even when they were on the balcony of her castle staring at the numerous stars that filled the dark Ozian night, the witch did not question or contribute anything to the conversation.
Additionally, Theodora's naivete did not help matters. She simply did not seem to understand the complexities of life. Unlike the witch, Annie was the complete opposite. She understood that he would often travel around the country and would encourage him to be the best he could be, even if that meant they would never be together.
No, the Wizard simply could not disappear from the Emerald City and start living with Theodora. Despite what his personal views of the witch were, she was still considered an enemy of the Emerald City. And while he never officially banished her, the court of public opinion still found her irredeemable, vile and corruptibly wicked. Even if she had returned and even if the Wizard had given her his blessing to return, the public would demand the Wizard's immediate resignation. Even Glinda would scorn him. There was no way around this reality.
The only reason why he felt comfortable being there was because Glinda had sent him a letter telling him to go. He trusted Glinda on a professional level and knew she would not put him in harm's way. She must have known something that he didn't, otherwise she never would have sent him to Theodora's castle to begin with. But if the Wizard had gone there on his own accord, his public persona would have been utterly ruined.
While the Ozian people believed themselves to be lofty models of goodness, many of them were indeed very narrow minded and commonly engaged in black and white thinking. Perhaps then, Theodora was more of a product of her society than its denizens would care to admit.
Still, he needed to handle the witch with kid's gloves. He didn't want to hurt her or dash any of her very high expectations.
"I…" The Wizard's words were paused on his tongue. He turned around to face her one more. "I am sure we can work something out", he finally reassured her. She gave him a bright-eyed smile in response. "Good", the witch felt relieved. "Because I thought you were drifting away from me today…"
He looked away from the witch's intense and loving gaze. He knew that kicking the can down the road was not a tenable solution. The Wizard just hoped that Glinda would appear sooner rather than later and to finally tell him what this surreptitious assignation was all about.