After a full night sleep, the Wizard opened his eyes to the sounds of birds chirping near his window. Despite the past few days being filled with turmoil and uncertainty, he finally felt incredibly refreshed. Ahhh sleep. What a concept, he thought to himself. After resting in bed for what seemed like hours, he finally checked the time on his pocket watch resting on the night stand. 11:02 AM.

The warmth of a shower, he mused as the "fake" water cascaded down his body. What a feeling.

After spending time in the washroom, he stepped back into his adjacent guestroom. He slowly buttoned up his white shirt and put on his black pants. The life of a bachelor. What a relief, he lightheartedly thought.

It wasn't until after noon when he tiptoed out of his bedroom and cautiously made his way to the dining room with one of his blueprints. He thought of keeping his door locked throughout the day, but his guest room did not have an actual work desk. At this point, the Winkie servants and maids that made up the day shift had already worked for many hours, with numerous servants bustling past the Wizard as he continued past the bedroom hallways. His heart nervously skipped a beat when he passed the gold-plated double doors of the witch's bedroom, but both of her doors were closed.

He remembered what happened the day prior with Theodora. She had gone berserk. Ironically, he was relieved that he was finally able to get a full and complete night of sleep.

Okay that is harsh to think like that, he chided himself. This girl had a near nervous breakdown and I am thinking about a full night of sleep? He brushed off his thoughts as he finally made his way to the dining room. He sat on a plush chair, took out his pencil and started to review his work on the sturdy oak table.

Of course, he knew that things would work out. He anticipated that the witch would come out of her room, they would talk and everything would resolve itself, just like Glinda would come and clear up this entire misunderstanding. I will deal with all of this later, he thought.

As he began to work, he saw one particular winkie guard stroll past the dining room. "Hey!", the Wizard called out. The captain saw his outstretched hands as he stopped and entered.

"What the hell happened last night? There was trouble and you decided to dip out? Thanks for leaving me hanging", he sarcastically responded.

The captain lowered his head at him. "I know. I was privy to what happened earlier this morning from one of my men. I didn't realize what had happened during our journey." He then looked at the Wizard with an icy stare. "But it seems like you handled it fine without me."

The Wizard shook his head as the captain left. He then raised his brow as he lowered his gaze and continued to review his drawing. And for the next several hours, things were tranquil and quiet.

"So, the prince finally woke. I was wondering where you were all this morning…" A small voice then startled him as he looked up. "Oh, it's you…" A smile spread across his lips as he gazed at Bella, who smiled back at him. "A late riser today? Do you do that every day when you are at the Emerald City?"

He shook his head. "What a day yesterday, huh?" He then beckoned her to come closer as he looked around the room. He wanted to make sure no one was watching or hearing their conversation. However, there were no Winkie Guards who were stationed in the dining room. It always seemed fortuitous when Bella decided to converse with him. Or maybe she knew more about the duties of the guards than she was letting on. He then whispered to her. "What the hell happened yesterday?"

The Winkie maid began to whisper at him in kind. "This is what happens routinely with her, Wizard. It's just that yesterday was one of the worst we've ever experienced. She threatened our pets. She threatened our parents. She threatened my father."

He tilted his head at her as he rolled his eyes. "And maybe someone should learn how to read letters."

"Or maybe someone should tell us what's up before departing the castle", she wittily retorted. "I don't know who threw away the letter, but it was probably a maid who didn't know any better."

As the Wizard looked down at his blueprint, Bella interjected. "So, have you changed your mind?"

He addressed the maid without looking up. "Changed my mind about what?"

"About…you know…", she said.

He tilted his head at her again, implying that he didn't. "Come on, Wizard", she said. "You saw how she acted yesterday. This is what we have to put up with regularly, but yesterday was far worse. She could have killed someone…"

He looked down and again viewed his blueprints. He traced a pencil over his design while correcting her. "Could have killed someone. But didn't."

The maid placed her hands on her hips. "I wish you could take this much more seriously. We need your help…"

He placed his pencil down, looked up at her and sighed. He crossed his arms on his chest. "Look", he said. "Let me talk to her."

"What is talking to her going to do? Wizard, we need to take action!"

He continued to look at her. "Okay, I will think about it" he finally said, hoping this would make her go away.

"Thank you!" The maid clasped her hands together and gave the Wizard a slight bow as he returned to his work and she to hers.

The late afternoon sun began to sink beneath the horizon as night descended on the Winkie Country. The Wizard continued to work, but he was surprised that he did not see the witch. This was a first. As the castle darkened, the Winkie Guard night shift lit the lanterns in each of the rooms and hallways, whose orange hue gave the castle an enchanting and storybook-like atmosphere. Strangely, the Wizard felt most at ease in the castle at night.

As he stood from the table to head to bed, the Wizard noticed something he didn't see before. There was an envelope at the far corner of the sturdy oak dining room table.

"Wizard, something came for you in the mail today." He remembered one of the Winkie maids said that to him yesterday, but he had been too preoccupied with the witch to pay her any heed. As such, he didn't inquire about this mail until it caught his eye.

The Wizard opened the envelope with his hands and saw a folded piece of paper. He pried the paper out of the envelope and began to read it. While he did so, the light of the full moon from the nearby bay window lit up half of his face while darkness covered the rest.

Wizard,

Who could believe that an imbecilic fool such as yourself could kill one of my mortal enemies. I seem to have "underestimated" you. I would say congratulations, but an idiot like yourself doesn't deserve any of that. Good luck trying to convince those fools at the Emerald City you were in the right. I will cherish the day when you are executed painfully and slowly by those who you claim to adore. What delicious irony would it be for the Emerald City—made up of your pathetic and obsequious followers—to turn on you and to do it themselves. You may think I am suffering now due to my "exile", but I am cherishing your misery and laughing wholeheartedly as I write this.

I will be killing you slowly and laughing at your pain while doing so.

~Evanora

As the Wizard read the note, he felt an inner rage take over. He clenched his teeth in anger as he started to crumple the letter. He wanted to just throw the oak table over and smash the nearby windows. Instead, he frustratingly tore the letter to shreds.

He hated this witch with every fiber of his soul. The incessant taunts. The false words about his character. The threats. One day, he would get retribution against Evanora. On that day, he would be the last one to laugh.

He knew that he had unfinished business with her. And he knew the day would come where he and the witch would trade blows and they would try and kill each other. In the past, he heeded Glinda's warnings that he should ignore and not engage with Evanora. But it ate him up inside. He reluctantly followed her advice, despite the horrible things that she would say about him and how she turned thousands of Munchkins against him. Despite Glinda's advice and guidance, he knew that one day he would seek revenge.

He just didn't know who would win.