“The witch whose boots you wear had silver and blue magic because she lived in Munchkin and that metal is abundant there and all the flowers native to Munchkin are blue, although many Munchkins have brought in other flowers from throughout the realm over the years. Beneath the surface of the soil are blue crystals. If you dig, you can find them. I did it as a kid. I’d dig them up and trade them with Munchkins for things like cakes and buns. Munchkins like color, but they like blue the best still, and a pretty blue gem almost always catches their fancy.
“The Vampire Witch of the West, who we must kill, she lives in Winkie Land and gold is abundant there. Winkie Land is famous for its golden crystals and golden sands, and the Vampire Witch who lives there has gold magic. Her hair is gold, just like Glinda’s hair is red, and Gayelette’s hair is white.”
“Does that mean the Wizard’s hair is green?” I chime in with a sassy smile and he smirks at me.
“It is likely.”
“What about the other lands? That song you sang said the Lands of Oz are five in all, right?”
“Gillikin, the Zombie Witch Mombi’s territory. I have never seen her, but I think it is safe to assume that her magic is as purple as Gillikin.”
“Maybe because I’m not from here, I get to use all the colors,” I say, and shrug and he lets out a soft chuckle.
“Perhaps,” he says and focuses on eating, and I do the same.
I think I need a minute to collect my head. It’s been such an insane day. Who would have thought that existence is endless, forever moving in a kaleidoscope of life? And I got to see it all. It’s a gift I will always be grateful for from the bottom of my soul. I thank the magic, I thank the realms, I thank the powers that contain us all and the energies that created me for showing me such a sight and to find love. I may not be his love, but he will always be mine. Even though I wished to meet him many times, I never believed I would. Maybe that’s why he doesn’t reciprocate my feelings.
I don’t want to live a gray, unexceptional life ever again, and seeing what I’ve seen, doing what I’ve done these past weeks, those experiences alone make me exceptional, so why can’t the life I lead reflect that? I don’t have to accept an average life, so I won’t. Why should I? Because it’s easy? That doesn’t seem like a good reason.
“What are your thoughts?”
“I was just thinking about everything. It blows my mind, you know?”
A light laugh escapes him before he says, “Yes, I do.”
“And coming here, meeting you, experiencing magic and seeing what we saw, this entire event means there no way I’m average anymore. I feel special for the first time in my life. It’s kind of wonderful.”
We finish our food and he stands first, then offers me his hand and helps me up to my feet.
“How do we get off this thing?” I say and I hear Toto bark but I can’t see him. “Toto? Where did you go?”
I follow his barks and find a small staircase behind the curve of the turret. Flower petals cover its steps, and Toto is at the bottom standing before a large emerald door with a Flower of Life emblem carved into its center. Nick is right at my back as we descend the stairs, and I am so captivated by the beauty and scent of these gorgeous flowers.
“These flowers smell amazing.”
“They are Ozaleas. They were my mother’s favorite flower. We always had them in our home growing up,” he says with a soft smile as we approach the door. It slides open for us and we walk into the foyer between both our rooms.
“They’re my favorite flower now too,” I say and smile back at him. Toto hurries for the door to our suite and it slides open for him. He bolts inside and the door slides closed after him.
“Today was astounding, and I am glad I got to see it with you. You make my life wonderful, Dorothy. There is no one more special to me than you in all the realms,” he says with eyes so earnest my breath catches.
“Me too, but you,” I blurt as I stare at him googly eyed and enamored. I expect another one of his smiles of pity but his eyes darken and fall to my lips instead, so I dig deep and muster the courage to say, “Do you want to come in?”
“More than anything,” he says as his eyes bore into mine.
I just go for it—I throw my arms around him and kiss him like I’ve kissed no one before. Thank goodness he kisses me back. His arms wrap around me, and it’s passionate and hot and I want him like I’ve wanted no one before.
As I break our kiss to catch my breath, he presses his forehead to mine and says, “Dorothy, I don’t think we should take this too far.”
My heart drops, but I tell myself not to jump to conclusions. What he just said was very vague.
“What do you mean?”
“We’re friends, and I want to be close to you, but it can’t be more so I… I can’t have sex with you.”
“I don’t remember offering,” I scoff, so taken aback, and step away from him.
“You did not.”
“Yeah, all right,” I say and sigh, not knowing what else to say. I’m mortified right now. I just want to go hide, bury my head in a pillow, hide under my covers, and disappear. “Um… Sorry. I’ll see you tomorrow,” I say as I reach back and touch the doorstone to my suite. When the door slides open, I turn to hurry inside, away from him, but he takes my hand in his and pulls me toward him, wrapping his arms around my waist and holding me tight.
“Do not run away. Just because we can’t have sex doesn’t mean we can’t have fun.”
“Don’t do me any favors,” I snort.
“Dorothy, I want to be close to you, but I do not want you hurting over me. And you cannot stay here. I need you to be safe. In your realm, you can be safe. If we take it too far, I will miss you too much.”
“I already miss you too much.”
As he leans in, I know I should step back, but I can’t seem to bring myself to do it. With lips so soft, he kisses me and my heart melts in my chest. Any pride I may have had has melted away with my heart. And when our lips detangle after a long, perfervid kiss, we stumble into my suite.
19
The Calm Before the Storm
My lips have never been so sore. For the past two days, Nick and I have holed up in my suite. When we come up for air, we stroll around the palace or have lunch in the secret garden between our rooms, and throughout the day we’ve been making a list of everything we need for our journey. We write it on a thick sheet of emerald crystal that Jellia gave us, and soon after we place an item on our list, it appears in our suite. Most of the time though, I’m falling harder every moment we spend together despite our restraint.
Today, we leave. We’re packed and ready. Now, all there is to do is go.
We haven’t seen Ardie or Werelion much since we arrived, but that’s because Ardie and Werelion both met girls and they’re spending their time with them. It’s been fine by me though because I got to spend my time alone with Nick. We are sharing a tent—it’s less to carry—and although I may have been shy about it before, Ardie already knows about us, so why pretend?
Ardie has been coming early in the morning to take Toto out around the city with him, and I am only aware of this because yesterday when I woke up, Oz showed me what happened when he came. Although I wasn’t sure how to feel about the Wizard using his magic to record the goings on in my room, I am glad I knew where Toto was. When Ardie came in, he saw Nick asleep beside me in bed, shook his head in disapproval, picked Toto up, and left. It’s fair to assume he thinks we’re sleeping together. We’re not. Well, we’re sleeping together but not sleeping together. I’m expecting a lecture.
I’m sure Ardie thinks I’m being stupid, that Nick is using me, but I don’t think that’s true.
“Where is your coat?” Nick asks me.
“Um… I don’t know. Do I have a coat?”
“Don’t you?”
“Was it on the list?”
“Did you pack a heavy coat or not?”
“Not.”
“The land we are
traveling through gets cold, it rains, snows, storms. Ardie and the Werelion should make sure they have them as well,” he says. “I must return to my suite soon to sharpen my axes. The sharpening block should be there by now. I will request your coat while I’m there.”
He’s so hot taking control of everything.
“You need to stop looking at me like that or we will get nothing of importance done today,” he says as he comes over, kisses me once, and continues to dress.
“Sorry, you’re sexy right now.”
“You find preparedness sexy?”
“On you, I guess it is.”
“Dorothy, I have enjoyed our time together here, and I’d like it to continue on our mission. There will be many cold nights, but I do not want you to get attached in a way that makes you want to stay. It has to end between us. You understand that, right?” he says, so condescending and superior.
“Look, I get you’re not in love with me. If I gave you a wrong impression, I apologize,” I say as my arms cross. Looks like I’m mad—I do that when I’m mad.
“Do not be cross with me.”
“That came off as obnoxious and it ticked me off. I get what this is. It’s clear we have no future as a couple, so you can stop with your ‘I’m so heartless’ routine. Got it?”
“Gotten.”
That felt like a kick in the chest. At least I can admit to myself it hurts to hear him say it, that I had hoped he’d ask me to stay, tell me he loved me, but he won’t.
“Are you sure you are unhurt by our arrangement?” he asks, his forehead scrunching as if he’s concerned and it only pisses me off more.
“Are you trying to upset me?” I say, growing enraged, and he laughs.
“No.”
“If you don’t want to continue to make out with me, get another tent. What’s your problem?” I say, exasperated.
“There is no problem. As long as you understand this cannot go any further, that we aren’t more than the best of friends, I would like to continue,” he says, and it hurts, but he’s always made himself clear.
“Part of me wants to tell you to cram it up your bunghole,” I say, and he guffaws, “but soon I’ll never see you again. I’ll miss you and I… I ‘like’ you,” I admit.
“I like you too,” he says, and we gaze into each other’s green glass covered eyes.
When he kisses me, my heart feels like it’s melting into sadness and love in my chest—I’m so pathetic I don’t care how pathetic I am as long as I get to be with him like this, in his arms, close to him. ‘Like’ him is all he’ll ever hear of it though. The depth of my feelings is something he need not know because if he did, he wouldn’t continue. What little we have would end and he’d only be my friend with no benefits.
This must be what it’s like for people who get into one of these relationships. One person feels more, wants more, and the other is just doing it for the pleasure, and the comfort, and because the person is a close friend, and it’s nice to be closer. When a guy and a girl are close, I guess this can happen, and I’d guess it ruins the relationship more than not. If I were staying, I might not do this. To make things weird for a relationship that is more long term doesn’t seem smart.
If I end up not being able to return to Kansas, I’ll go to General Boq, get a job, and this arrangement between us will end. For the sake of our friendship, I’ll do my best not to let my feelings get in the way. On occasion, we might see each other. By then, I hope I’ll have moved on, maybe found another boyfriend or something, so things won’t be too weird. If I go back to Kansas though, none of it will matter because our relationship will be over, forever. No matter what, I’ll miss him, so I can treat him like he’s mine, even if it’s just for a short while, even if it’s not mutual. Right now, I can love him and indulge in him.
There’s a knock at the bedroom door and it’s Jellia. When I wave, the door slides open and she steps into the room.
“Good morning,” she says with a sweet smile on her green painted lips. “I have come to get you ready. If you need more time—”
“Not to worry, I was just leaving,” Nick says. “I shall meet you here at noon.”
“Later,” I say, and he chuckles as he leaves the room.
When I get up and out of bed, Jellia brings me into the bathroom for another round of Oz style grooming. Through each of the stations from the beginning, I’m doused and scrubbed and slathered, and when I’m caked in shimmery emerald green mud and placed on the emerald slab again, the magical mist of Oz engulfs me.
Glittery green magic spins around me in a whirlwind as I float in the center of its funnel and watch the super-fast motion of the vortex draw a rainbow of light from inside me. At first, I’m not sure what’s happening, then panic sets in—I think he’s taking what little power I have right before I embark on this journey.
When I try to move my body but can’t, my breath quickens. All I can do is watch as the rainbow light emanating from me grows, and my mind spins at hyper speed trying to come up with a way out of this, a way to fight back. What has worked before is asking something outside of myself for help, so I pray to whatever entities created the multiverse and whatever might be beyond the light that encapsulates everything, and I beg them to let me keep this magic inside me for my journey. I’m not so sure how I’ll fair against a Vampire who has the magic of a powerful witch otherwise.
The rainbow light leeching from my body rushes back into me and the green vortex comes with it. A potent polychrome fills the room, and it’s the only thing I can see. The vigorous buzz suffuses me, shaking me right out of my body.
All I am is color—an endless colorific spectra, a sparkling gem with facets of every hue. I am the fiercest red and the fieriest orange. I am the yellow that burns as hot as the sun. I am a bright vivid green as rich and full of wonder as the emerald magic of Oz. My blue is electric, my indigo is as dark as this monstrous land, and my violet is an impenetrable force connecting me to powers far outside myself. The monochrome magic of Oz may make him great and terrible, but I possess the striking, dynamic force of a riot of color.
Before, I thought the colors I was desperate for were colors I didn’t possess, but I was wrong. I’ve always been a rainbow. I was just veiled by somber gray clouds. My journey here has put those clouds behind me, and I know who I am now. Everything I need to win I carry within me.
In an arching stream of brilliant color, every particle of light in the room downloads into me, and the power that charges me is a harmonic dichotomy of everything. Cloudbursts of vermillion strength surge inside me as my ruby wrath attacks, filling the room in mist and sparks that infiltrate the walls, hungry to teach Oz a lesson for trying to steal my power.
My ruby red battles his emerald green, and with a roar, I break free from his hold on my body as I siphon his power in an arching vortex of bright ruby sparks that funnel straight into my sternum. Jellia screams as I leap to my feet, naked and covered in mud atop the emerald slab that held me captive moments before. I jump off the slab and land on my feet as the light in the room goes out. Screams outside stop me—if I take all his power, people could drop from popping bubbles in the sky, or get stuck in the walls—and regret pangs in my chest. Pale blue shimmering mist submerges my raging sparks and the fizzy lilac water vapor left behind disperses.
“What the ever-loving f—”
The lights come back on and an old man appears before me in mist. This old man doesn’t look like the same old man I met when I talked to the Wizard. Jellia drops to her knees in reverence, so it must be him, but after that stunt, he can kiss mine if he thinks I’m bowing to him too.
“Please, I meant no harm,” the misty green figment of Oz says, his hands raised in a placating gesture.
“Yeah right,” I say and chortle.
“My aim was to reveal the potential within you. To fulfill your mission, you must attain the full strength of your power.”
“Right, sure. So I’m guessing it’s a no to my request, since you ne
ver answered.”
“The five of you are a perfect combination, a team like no other in the realm. Between you, you have everything needed to defeat her. Much lies within you, Dorothy, but each of your companions have at least one very important quality you still have yet to realize.”
“Why can’t you do it yourself? Why must I murder her for you?”
“The strength of my power must remain here to run this city and keep the land protected. I could gather my power from throughout the lands but even if I did, you are still the only witch who holds the power needed to destroy her once and for all. Ezdalina is a plague. The five of you are my cure.”
“Ezdalina is the Vampire Witch I’m assuming. Thanks for giving her a name. That helps me out with the murdering her thing a lot. The more personal information you could give me about her the better. Does she have any favorite stuffed animals I should know about? Perhaps the story of her first heartbreak might help.”
“Ezdalina is no longer. An undead evil force more foreign and far darker than this realm has ever seen has stolen her body and her name, and it is you who will stop her.”
“How do I know you’re not sending me into a trap?”
“You saw the future. The gates of this city were open.”
“That was the future? It wasn’t an alternate universe?”
“If you are to reach the mountains before nightfall, you must go soon. Now that you have found your strength, you are ready. The realm is counting on you. I bid you good fortune on your journey,” he says and disappears.
Jellia rises, and I stand stunned, naked, and covered in green mud. What just happened?
“What happened?” Jellia asks me and I laugh.
“Funny, I was just wondering the same thing.”
“Oz said he was sorry. What was he sorry for?”
“For trying to steal my power.”
“Oh dear!”
“Don’t worry, I stole his right back.”
Dorothy In the Land of Monsters Page 30
