He sat and remained motionless at the table as the room was silent. Even when the Emerald City Council started to reluctantly stand from their seats—a resounding look of defeat ever present on their faces and proceeded to head towards the exit—did the Wizard remain. Even the witch beside him conveyed an empty expression of disbelief as she started to slowly stand from where she was seated. She didn't smile or convey any type of merriment or emotion. Instead, she looked to the Wizard for direction and to see if he was going to elicit any type of response as to what just occurred. For her, what just happened was jarring. She could not believe it. She was in a state of shock.

For the Wizard, everything felt surreal. And impossible. It felt like he had just pulled off a nearly insurmountable circus act, a work of magic that no one could have dared to imagine. To him, he snatched victory from the jaws of defeat.

A magistrate appointed by the late King Pastoria just sided with me, the Wizard thought. He was still perplexed that she would decide this matter against the Emerald City. Wasn't the city omnipresent and all powerful? Despite everyone calling him the Wizard, he still viewed himself as a mortal man, a weak man. How did this happen? He wanted to win. He had to win. Everything had been riding this very moment. But now that he had achieved the victory that he wanted, the victory that he needed, he couldn't believe that it occurred. But it did occur. He challenged the Emerald City. And won.

There was no sudden and immediate celebratory fervor when the magistrate departed the room and exited through the back door. There were no cheers of joy from the victors, no shouts of schadenfreude to the losers. There were no taunts or jeers. There were no threats or "I told you so" moments. Instead, the victory had not yet dawned on anyone or seemed to be real. Besides the look of resignation on the faces and eyes of the Council Members who were now leaving the room and entering the waiting area, everyone else remained quiet. They did not know how to act.

"All parties, please step out", the guard repeated once again.

Finally, the Wizard stood. Not even one minute had passed since Magistrate Pompadorea had left, but to him, it felt like an eternity. The only ones who remained were friendly observers and his chosen Cabinet Members who had been selected by the Wizard to run his new government.

"Wizard! Are you okay", China Girl asked him as she smiled and approached the front bench. But he remained stunned. He simply stared at her little porcelain frame near the floor and tried to convey a weak smile to her. He didn't know what to say.

On the one hand, it still didn't register to him that they had just won an enormous victory. On the other hand, he was consumed by the gravity of it all and what the potential ramifications could be. Would the Council appeal? If they did, it would take years to finally reach a resolution. Based in the Land of Ev, the Guardian Council heard appeals from every country in Nonestica. And if the Emerald City Council was truly vindictive and appealed it further to the Faeries themselves, the whole process could even take decades. Decades were an incredibly short amount of time for a witch—the same time span of several years for an ordinary human—but it would be a long and arduous ordeal for the Wizard, and it would certainly consume the remainder of his life. If the Council chose this path, it would cast uncertainty and doubt on the legitimacy of the Wizard's appointments and even of his standing. It would hang over all their heads for years to come.

As they also left the Magistrates room, the Council representatives huddled in a corner and deliberated on what their next steps should be after this devastating decision.

"What should we do", one of them asked.

"I think our only option is to appeal", another said.

During the recess, the Council had expelled Margalotte for conspiring with the Wicked Witch of the East without their knowledge or approval and appointed the Talking Tiger, an ally of the Wizard, in her stead. Since all creatures of Goodness were so well behaved in the Land of Oz, the city nor its representatives knew anything about this process. Because of this, they had brought along two Ozian legal scholars who were experts on the rules to advise them of next steps and how to proceed. As the Council deliberated, the scholars quickly flipped through the pages of their books.

"Your only option is to appeal", they both said in unison. "Yes, this is your only option."

The new Council Leader weighed his options carefully. While he was not as rash as Margalotte and he really did not have any issues with the Wizard or his appointments, he also knew that the Wizard probably did not think things through and that his choice might have unintended consequences. A significant portion of the Emerald City had formed hardened beliefs that Theodora, and to a lesser extent Mombi, were irredeemable and vile wicked witches. They wouldn't be able to change this popular opinion and the culture surrounding Ozian society overnight. Most troubling, he still did not know who Theodora was as a person. Because King Pastoria had kept her secluded from the city, no one really knew who she was until they were introduced to her as the green skinned witch who terrorized the land.

Still, he recognized that this decision was a watershed moment, a landmark ruling and a turning point in Ozian history. Everything had changed. And nothing would ever be the same again. He blamed Margalotte's lack of planning and callous disregard of the Wizard's wishes for creating the situation they were now in. He knew that if he was given more time to speak to the Wizard, that if Margalotte hadn't been so tenacious in her decision to suspend and antagonize him, this outcome might have been different. The Wizard might have never commenced this matter, and the Council might have convinced him to appoint another to his government instead of Theodora.

However, the expelled former leader was also the Council's most stubborn member. She was always the most outspoken one and even recommended that the Wizard be executed upon hearing of Agatha's death. It took the remaining council members—and even Glinda herself—to reign her in and to compel the Wizard to return to the city and stand trial.

"No", he finally said as he sighed and reluctantly shook his head. "What's done is done."

"But Sir Leader", another interjected. "We can't allow!—"

"I am not going to allow this bickering to continue any longer. We lost. We need to accept this fact, no matter how wrong we believe the Magistrate's decision was. The Wizard is going to appoint who he wants now. There is nothing that we can do to stop him. We need to face and accept the inevitable. An appeal will take years. We have a long way to go if we choose to go down this path. Instead, I believe we can work with the Wizard while keeping a cautious eye open for any wrongdoing or wickedness. This will serve the city better than antagonizing a partner that we will need to work with in the coming years. Doing anything else will be reckless and will not ensure the city's success, nor will it ensure peace."

As the Council Members stared solemnly and sullenly at the floor, the Council Leader finished speaking. "This is my decision. I trust that everyone here will accept it and will act accordingly." Begrudgingly accepting their fate, the group then made their way out of the manor house where the city's royal carriage waited for their return to the Emerald City.

While the Council departed, the Wizard's group had now gathered in the waiting room, still dazed by the events that had just happened. The captain and Bella spoke amongst each other as they went outside with Betsy and Diasy to prepare the carriage for departure.

For the first time, the Wizard's ascending advisors formed a circle, and they all looked at each other.

"Did that really just happen", Mombi asked as she was the first to speak. Her eyes met the Wizard's and for the first time, it truly began to dawn on him of their victory. "Yeah, it did", he replied as his lips parted and he shot his friend a glowing smile. "It really did…"

"We did it", he responded again with growing fervor in his voice. "We really did it!"

He held his hands in the air as he yelled a triumphant laugh, which made the whole group beam at each other in delight. The shock was starting to wear off as everyone began to cheer, laugh and smile. "Praise God", the Wizard continued in glee. "Praise the Faeries!" He took a surprised Mombi in her arms and hugged her, for she didn't remember the last time she had been hugged by anyone. "My friend, thank you so much! Thank you!"

"Ohhhh Finley", the Wizard happily took the little monkey into his arms and hugged him. "You are one of my best friends who has stood with me through thick and thin."

He then looked at the little porcelain doll who was right next to his feet. "And China Girl", he said as he lowered his head, bent his knee and addressed her. "Your quick wit and sharp tongue saved me more than you know. You will forever be in my debt…"

"You are my family", the porcelain doll said in earnest.

"And what about me?"

The Wizard stood and turned to the woman who had started this all. She was the reason why he went to Oz. She was the one who had set everything in motion. She was the one who spent years of her life to avert tragedy. She was the one who got the Wizard to this moment.

"And for you, my dear…" The Wizard paused as he tried to think of what to say next. He took Dorothy's hand within his and their eyes met. "There are no words to express my appreciation for what you have done for me. All of this is because of you. You got me to where I am today. From the bottom of my heart, thank you so much…"

"But it is not just because of me", Dorothy responded. "You did it all, Wizard. You chose your own path. You decided your own destiny. You did it all yourself. And for this, I am incredibly proud of you."

The Wizard then addressed the Cowardly Lion and Nick Chopper. He turned to the one last witch that remained.

Out of the entire group, she was the only one who didn't show her emotions. Her eyes lingered with sadness as the Wizard approached her. And unlike the others, her reaction to him was the strongest.

"Theodora…I—"

"I don't know what to say, Wizard", she interjected.

"You don't have to say anything…"

"I just…I just feel like I want to cry…"

The Wizard took her into his arms as her eyes started to well up. She closed them as she rested on his suit jacket. She couldn't stop herself as she began to sob.

For all her life, she had never been accepted by Ozian society. Her father had forbidden her to venture out of the palace on her own, and even locked her in her room to protect her and the entire country from the darkness he believed was deep inside her. And when she was able to walk the palace's halls, she was bullied relentlessly by those who misunderstood her. She was different and only deserved fear and loathing. No one ever gave her a chance. No one wanted to associate with her or be her friend. She was ostracized from Ozian society.

When her father unexpectedly died—when she finally gained freedom from her abuser and tormentor, she didn't feel any better. She wasn't free from the pang of loneliness that was deep within her while she spent years locked in her bedroom. Instead, these feelings only became worse. The emptiness deep inside her psyche became more pronounced. And even to her surprise, she cried rivers of tears at her father's funeral, her conflicts with him forever remaining unresolved. Her depression, pain and sadness consumed her, that is, until she met the Wizard himself. No one she had ever met had treated her as kindly the way he did. She believed that he was the one who would save every Ozian not only from the "Wicked Witch", but also from their very flawed existence. From their hypocrisy. From their cruelty and self-righteousness. For deep down, Theodora felt that Ozian society was wicked in how they had treated and discarded her.

Her joy was not to last, for when she became heartbroken from the Wizard's perceived betrayal, she was thereafter cast out of the Emerald City and once again rejected by society. All her pain, heartbreak and loneliness returned to her but with an even greater fury than ever before.

She thought that she would never smile again or ever find a shred of peace or happiness. Those feelings and emotions were for other undeserving Ozians who laughed at her misery, who tormented and tortured her to a lifetime of loneliness. In her mind, they had all these positive feelings because they had robbed her of everything positive in her life. They sucked all the positive emotions out of her that made life worth living. The Wizard's betrayal had only contributed to that, the icing on the cake after decades of abuse and neglect from those closest to her.

She thought it was over. Nothing was worth living anymore. Instead, she would take all her pain and agony out on her Winkie subjects. And then she would do something impulsive that would result in her early death, for maybe then every Ozian would finally feel sympathy towards her.

But how one small insignificant year could change things! The Wizard's unexpected visit and how he defended her against the Emerald City served as an unexpected catharsis. To her, this victory and all the Wizard had done for her during this time meant everything and more. She didn't even have the words to thank him for everything he did for her. And she now believed that he really did love her and, after last night, wanted to be with her. Forever.

She didn't even care if her own tears burned her cheeks. Instead, all she could do was cry as all her pent-up sadness, pain, fears, rage, frustrations and agonies cascaded into cries of joyful weeping. All she could do was sob until his jacket became soaked from her tears.

"Let it out", the Wizard whispered to her. He ran his hand through her hair as she held her hat in her hand. "Let it all out." This only made the witch sob even harder as her diaphragm convulsed in short and erratic bursts.

As he squeezed the witch as tight as possible, everyone around them started to converge and gave the pair a group hug.

"Don't let me go", the witch said softly to him during short, but intermittent breaks when she wasn't crying.

"I won't", he reassured her. "We are never going to let you go". He saw how everyone had now wrapped their arms around the pair and around each other. Dorothy, who was a master inventor, scientist, physicist and doctor. China Girl, who was wise beyond her years and zealously defended the Wizard when no one else would. Finley, who was his trusted old friend and advisor. Mombi, a witch who isolated herself from all of Oz after a tragic betrayal but unwittingly became one of the Wizard's most steadfast and ardent supporters. The Cowardly Lion, who had overcome his own fear and gained strength from courage, for speaking out against injustice and bullying. And Nick Chopper, protector of the woods and of all weaker beings after a near death experience from Evanora's malice.

This was the team he wanted. This was the team he needed. The Wizard knew what he was doing.

"We are all here for each other and we are all here for you", he said softly to Theodora. For the first time wetness began to roll down his cheek. "We are never going to let you go."

"Wizard!" A deep masculine voice made him break his embrace with the witch as he turned to a nearby guard who was now approaching the group. "The magistrate wanted you to have a copy of this. It's the order…"

The Wizard snatched it from the guard's outstretched hand. His eyes darted past the case caption and went to the decree itself:

1) The Wizard's Petition is granted to the extent that he is reinstated along with backpay, and the Defendants are prohibited from interfering, preventing or obstructing the Wizard from appointing Theodora, referenced by the Defendants, inter alia, as the "Witch of the West" or "the Wicked Witch of the West", to a ministerial level position in his government and is hereby further directed to instruct its agents, intermediaries and third parties acting on behalf of the Defendants to comply with and execute said Order.

2) The Wizard's request for monetary fees for bringing this action as against named Defendants is denied.

3) The Wizard's request for sanctions against named Defendants is denied.

4) All additional arguments are waived as not raised at the hearing by the parties and/or are moot.

5) Absent a stay by the Guardian Council in the Land of Ev, this Order shall take effect immediately and will remain in effect unless by order of the Guardian Council after an appeal is taken, if any.

SO ORDERED.

The Wizard noticed that the Magistrate's decision was a narrow one. It did not protect any of his other appointments. If he could do it again, he would have made his petition broader and would have asked for more, such as the power to appoint any of his ministers. However, he did not think of this at the time he wrote his petition. Still, Theodora was his most controversial appointment, and the council did not even seem bothered by or objected to anyone else. He accepted this victory and if he had to go through this process with any of his other candidates later, he at least knew what he had to do. He was satisfied with the outcome.

It was then when the Wizard remembered that he only had thirty minutes before the new budget went into effect. He told Theodora to fly to the Emerald City "as fast as possible" since he wanted to make sure the city received a copy of the magistrate's decision before they appointed their own ministers. "Just give the order to the guard outside", he instructed her. "Then return to the Winkie Country."

"What will happen after I do", she asked with inquisitive eyes and a hopeful smile. "I will prepare for the inauguration of all new incoming ministers", he responded. "And this includes you." His eyes remained locked with hers.

"Get some rest these next few days. You are going to need it." He then winked at her and said one more word to the witch before turning and departing with the others as they headed back to her carriage. "Minister."