The witch was despondent and refused to come out of her bedroom. After the Wizard was forcefully apprehended by the Emerald City, paraded through the main boulevard, and cast in irons, Theodora and her Winkie Guards slowly made the emotionally arduous trek back to her castle. It was the same path that she and the Wizard had taken three years prior, but this time, the journey was under much darker circumstances than she could have ever imagined. The witch felt the situation was utterly hopeless and irremediable. She was defeated. Unlike the joyous and jubilant arrival of the Wizard those years prior, this journey was a solemn affair in which the group hardly spoke. And when Theodora finally did return to her palace, all she did was run to her room like a broken teenaged girl, slammed the door behind her, dove for her bed and started to cry as soon as her head hit the pillow.

In her mind, she felt like she could do nothing else. She was powerless. She believed that the Emerald City was omnipotent, and she couldn't stop them no matter what she did or tried to do. The Wizard seemed to be the only person who accepted her for who she was, but even he was soon to be executed and taken away from her.

All was lost. Nothing would change.

Three days passed and she hardly moved. She didn't eat. She could barely sleep. Her eyes were red, and her dark mascara was smudged from her crying. She sank into a deep depression. The Winkies hated her. The Quadlings feared her. The Emerald City wished for nothing but her destruction. She was an outcast from her home.

However, early in the morning on the third day, she received a knock on her double bedroom door. "Go away", she whined in a tired and dejected voice. Whoever was on the other side though did not listen as she could hear her door slowly start to creak open. Her face was still covered by her pillow, but she peeked as to who ventured into her room.

It was the captain himself. After he entered her bedroom, he walked to her bed and crossed his arms over his chest. "How long are you going to stay in your room and cry?", he asked sympathetically.

"I don't know", the witch pouted softly as she closed her eyes, and her face fully sank into her pillow once more. "It doesn't matter anymore."

"Of course, it does", he calmly said in an almost fatherly voice. "You can change things, you know."

"How", the witch asked incredulously. "The Emerald City has the Wizard. Glinda has him. Even if we scale its walls, she would—"

"You're not understanding where I'm coming from", he interjected. "It's not about using violence to get what you want. You could invade the Emerald City and still not get the Wizard back. And even if you do, then what? You could still very well lose him. No. It's not about using violence. It's about using your voice. You could still go there and be heard. The Wizard needs you. He needs you more than you think. You've been crying for three days now because the Emerald City has him. But the real question is: what are you going do about it?"

This made the witch start to prop herself up on her bed. "But what can I do? No one would listen—"

"But you still have a voice and I do know something", the captain interrupted her. "That crying has never gotten anyone anything. The Wizard is going to be put on trial. He told you in his letter he is going to fight this. Ozians are going to vote for his guilt or innocence. This is inevitable. So, I ask you again: what are you going to do about it? Are you just going to stay here and cry passively about it or are you going to go there and actually help him? You are not some helpless damsel. You are an Ozian and an active agent in how all of this can still play out…"

The witch shook her head slowly. "But I am just one witch. What can one witch really do?"

"One witch can make a huge difference. Do you think Glinda goes around moping when things don't go her way? No, she doesn't. She gets back on that horse of hers and she tries again. And again. And again. I saw this firsthand time and time again when I was at the palace."

The captain then approached her bed, and he touched her on the shoulder. "I know you have it in you, Theodora. I know you have what it takes. You could very well be the difference between the Wizard's guilt and innocence. His freedom or his execution. You must go there and help him. You must find a way. But I do know one thing. And that's moping and crying or using violence is not going to get you anything. It's not going to get you what you want. It's not going to get you anywhere and least of all it is not going to get you the Wizard's respect. It will not get you the respect you seek from the land. You yourself must go out and get what you want. And you can do this without stomping your feet or raising your voice. You can do this without threats or violence. This is not the real you. You can do this simply by being your real kind and caring genuine self. This is entirely in your power to do so."

The witch raised her eyebrows as she gazed at him. "You really believe so?", she asked.

"I know so", he said assuredly.

It wasn't long before Theodora darted out of bed, and in her renewed frenetic energy, the castle entered a whirlwind of activity. First, the witch placed on her best clothing and then she asked for Finley. And it wasn't long before the duo left the castle together, but the witch was in such a rush to leave that the monkey didn't even know where they were heading as they journeyed past the castle gardens and exited through the castle gate.

"Where are we going, Theodora?", Finley finally asked her as they headed down the path. "You will see little Finley", the witch said as she bounced, skipped, and hopped energetically. "We are gonna go on a little adventure…righting wrongs, saving the innocent and…" She continued to look ahead as her smile disappeared, her wide eyes narrowed, and she adjusted the red hat sitting on top of her head. "Defeating the wicked."

The pair made small talk and walked for quite some time until they saw the spires of the Emerald City in the distance. By now, the sun had already reached its zenith high in the sky and had begun to make its long descent. "Uhhh you know", Finley said nervously as the pair entered a forest adjacent to the city. "I don't like this place". He remembered this was where he got trapped in vines and was almost eaten by a hungry lion. "It's okay little Finley!" She clasped her hands together below her waist and grinned at him exuberantly. "I will protect you."

Suddenly, they then heard a roar as they both uncomfortably stared at each other and knew what that sound meant. "Hungry lion!", then they screamed in unison. Unlike three years prior when the witch hid behind a tree, she stepped in front of Finley and was ready to face the unseen beast and protect her friend. But when the lion emerged, he looked to be more frightened than anything. The creature was even standing on his hind legs. "D-d-don't come any closer or I'll…or I'll…"

"It's okay! We aren't here to hurt you", Theodora said reassuringly.

"What do you mean we aren't here to hurt him!", the monkey said as he cowered behind the witch's legs. "This was the lion that tried to eat me!"

"Y-y-you mean you are not going to h-h-hurt me?", he asked timidly.

"No!" Her eyes then narrowed. "And you're not going to eat my friend, right?"

"N-n-no mam! I-I-I would never do such a thing!"

She then turned and flashed a big smile to Finley. "You see! He's not going to eat you…" She then turned and looked back at their new acquaintance. "We are just heading to the Emerald City."

But then the lion unexpectedly started to break down in tears. "Ohhhhh aaahhhhhh nooo", he said between sobs. "I hate those Emerald City guards! They always tease a-a-and make fun of me! And I don't have the courage to do anything about it!"

The witch looked at him with sympathy. She used to be made fun of and bullied relentlessly when she was growing up in the palace. Maybe the captain was right. Maybe it was good for her to leave her castle and head to the Emerald City. Unbeknownst to her, she might even be able to make a new friend along the way!

"Awww, it's okay! No one will make fun of you! Not while I am…" But her words ended on her tongue as she then heard rustling from the nearby bushes. She gasped as she gestured with her hands for them to hide behind the nearest tree.

As they did so, they then saw a random Emerald City guard emerge. He was wearing green plaided armor, wore a helmet and carried a halberd.

"O-o-oh no! H-h-h-ow are we gonna get past him! I-I-I know who this guard is! H-h-he is the one who made fun of me! H-h-he is cruel and h-h-heartless! Ohhh I'm gonna get out of here this instant!"

As the lion was about to turn and run as fast as he could back into the forest, Theodora stopped him by grabbing his tail and quickly pulled him back. "No!", she squeaked. "You don't want to do that! You don't want to run away from your problems! I did that and your problems will still catch up to you, believe me!" The lion needed to confront him, but the witch also needed a way to enter the Emerald City undetected. This is when she smiled and whispered into both Finley and the lion's ear. She had a plan.

"Nyeeeeaaahhhhhhhhh!" The guard swiftly turned around as his eyes frantically darted in all which direction. "Who goes there?", he asked in a dominant, but startled voice. However, all he heard was another sound behind the forest trees, which was strikingly like a horse. "Nyeeeeaaaaahhhhhhhh!"

A horse, he said to himself. I could use a horse…

But as he approached the tree, a huge lion emerged! He roared with all his might, but then just as the guard's face became pale with fright, the lion became timid. "I-I-I…can't do this!", he said with panic rising in his voice. "I-I-I need to get out of here! I need to get out of here!"

But then Theodora emerged from behind the tree as she grabbed his arm. "No! You can't run away! You need to tell him how you feel!"

How you feel. As she thought of the words she told the lion, it became clear to her that she could have used this advice on the night she discovered that the Wizard had been with Glinda and her sister had concocted the story about the second music box. Had she confronted the Wizard and told her how she felt and what had happened, then everything that had transpired since then may have never needed to happen to begin with.

"H-h-how I feel. I-I don't know! I don't like c-c-confrontation! Not since—"

"But it's the only way that you are doing to feel better!", she interjected.

"Hey! Wait a minute!", the guard bellowed. "Aren't you that pathetic lion that we all make fun of because he is scared of his shadow?" The guard then broke into laughter.

"Oh yeah!", Theodora then intervened on behalf of her new friend as she placed her hand on her hip. "How would you like it if you were teased or bullied? That's not very nice, you know!" Instead of throwing fireballs or punching things, the witch was trying a new method of persuasion and conflict resolution.

"Yeah!", the lion said in support. "Y-y-you d-d-don't have a heart! Because y-y-you know, I c-c-can be a lot meaner!" As he said this, Theodora looked at him and smiled. "W-w-what you s-s-said to me was very mean and hurtful! I-I-I-I think it was very cruel!"

Since the guard was alone and did not have his friends with him, he became bashful and quiet. "Ohh geez, we didn't mean much of it. Honest! We were only doing it because it made ourselves feel better. But we didn't mean to hurt you. And I promise that I have a heart—"

As he spoke and tried to apologize, the witch then smiled with a hint of mischief and whispered into the lion's ear. Her bright smile remained as he then did what the witch told him to do.

"W-w-well, you better not do it again or—" The witch continued to whisper into his ear. "You want me to say that?", he asked of her. She simply nodded her head.

"If-if you d-do it again, I k-k-know the W-w-icked Witch o-of The West! Yeah! I k-k-know her and she will not be p-p-pleased that you are m-making fun of me!"

The guard's eyes suddenly became wide. "You know the Wicked Witch of The West?"

"Y-yes!", the lion said triumphantly, even though he believed that he was lying. The Wicked Witch of the West was green and malevolent. He heard vile stories about her and that she also rode a broom. He didn't know what story this young woman in the red hat he just met was concocting, but since he believed this story would help him against this bully, he tried to say it with all the confidence he could muster.

"If you know such a dastardly evil woman, this is not someone that I wish to cross. Will you accept my apology?", the guard said to him.

Theodora then whispered again into the lion's ear as her eyes were filled with hidden mirth.

"W-w-well, I'll accept you're a-a-apology if you g-g-give me your armor!"

"My armor!", the guard shrieked. "Why would you want my armor!?"

The witch then whispered into the lion's ear yet again.

"A-a-a-and your weapon! And your h-h-helmet!"

"Why do you want these things?", he asked perplexedly.

With Theodora whispering into his ear, he responded the best he could. "B-b-because I need to re-g-gain my courage! And I want to enroll in the 'Guard School for the Timid'. I'm w-w-working on a new persona. W-w-wearing your uniform would g-g-give me a head start!"

The guard then stripped down to his pink polka dotted underwear as the witch turned and looked away. She did her best not to giggle at the awkwardness of it all. The monkey then shooed him away. "Get out of here and don't return", Finley yelled. "Unless it's with bananas!"

As he was being shooed away, the lion gave him some final advice.

"Y-y-you better not t-t-tell y-y-your friends about this! B-b-because if you do, I will be v-v-very angry. And I will have my c-c-courage back!"

"No! of course not! I will not say a word!" As the guard made his way out of sight, Theodora grabbed his armor set and went behind the bushes. "Psst, Finley! No! Don't follow me! I'm changing!" She giggled as Finley blushingly departed and the bushes rustled as she changed into her new armor. The witch then emerged and stepped into the clearing. "So, how do I look", she asked the pair.

"You look…" As Finley thought of the right words to say, his mind went black. Theodora looked unrecognizable. No longer did her face glow. Her facial makeup was gone. She looked more tom boyish now than anything.

"Y-y-you need to adjust that helmet!" This made the witch gasp as she flashed a meaningful look at the lion. "My! My! Does someone have courage so soon?" This made him blush. "It is g-g-going to take some time g-getting used to…"