Toto begins licking the Wicked Witch of the West’s ankle.
Dorothy and I glance at each other. What are our dogs doing? Why are they being friendly to the witches? Toto isn’t friendly to anyone! And I thought Prince was loyal to me!
But wait …
“Ahhhh!” the Wicked Witch of the East cries as her body starts getting weirdly smaller. Is she shrinking?
“Nooo!” the Wicked Witch of the West shouts as her body does the same thing.
My eyes widen. Oh my goodness.
The witches are … melting!
“The dogs’ saliva is making the witches melt!” Frankie cries. “Just like water would!”
OMG. Is anything grosser?
But, yay?
Yay!
The witches get tinier and tinier as they melt down, down, down.
We hear the faintest of shrill cries, and suddenly there is nothing where the witches stood but their capes, hats, brooms, two gray crowns, striped tights, and shoes. The puddles soak right into the ground and disappear.
“Um,” Penny says, looking around. “Did Toto and Prince just lick the witches away? With their dog slobber?”
“Yes!” I say disbelievingly. “I think they did!”
Toto and Prince bark proudly, their tails wagging.
“The witches are gone?” Dorothy asks.
“They are!” Frankie cries, her eyes sparkling.
“Hurrah!” Robin says, doing a little dance.
“Good boy!” I tell Prince, scooping him up and nuzzling him close just as Dorothy scoops up Toto and praises him, too.
“The witches are gone!” the Wizard’s voice booms out.
A whole bunch of Munchkins and Winkies start running toward us.
They’re cheering and clapping.
I spot Orly among the Munchkins, and she sprints over to me and grabs me and Prince in a hug.
“Thank you so much!” she cries. “Because your dogs got rid of the witches — for good — we’re no longer under their spell. We’re free!”
“We couldn’t have escaped in the first place without you,” I tell Orly, hugging her back.
“It’s true,” Frankie says with a grin. “Everyone contributed.”
The Munchkins and Winkies are all dancing and cheering in celebration.
“Ding-dong, the witches are dead!” Penny starts to sing. Everyone joins in.
Lion does the Floss. Tin Man and Scarecrow do the Macarena.
“The Wizard will reclaim his rule!” the guardian of the gates says. “Hurrah!”
Then Penny stops singing. I look over to her and see that she’s running for the spot where the witches melted.
The magic silver shoes are lying there. And so are her checkered sneakers. Yay! Penny snatches them both up and lifts them all above her head, two in each hand, in a V for victory. At last, we can go home!
The gray clouds disappear and blue skies are everywhere. Flowers start to bloom — in all colors of the rainbow. The gray has been lifted.
“But why isn’t everything green again?” one of the townspeople asks. “Everything is just regular color. I thought this was the Emerald City.”
“Because you’re not wearing your glasses,” the Wizard says, stepping into the middle of the circle. “I am sorry to tell you this. But I am a fraud. I don’t really have any magical powers.”
Everyone gasps.
See, I don’t deserve to reclaim my rule,” the Wizard says, hanging his head. “You all deserve better than me.”
There are murmurs through the crowd. They’re getting angrier and angrier.
“We should lock him up!”
“Kick him out!”
“Put him in Tigertail Tower!”
“Let the tiger eat him!”
The crowd is slowly closing in on him and us. This isn’t good. It’s an angry mob! I hold Prince close and look for a way to escape.
Suddenly, a burst of glittery blue appears in front of us.
What’s this?
The blue glittery air clears and a woman steps forward. She has gray hair and brown skin and kind eyes. She’s wearing a pale blue gown that glistens in the sun like it’s made of diamonds. She’s also wearing a pale blue pointy hat.
“It’s Glinda!” Penny exclaims. “Glinda the Good Witch! Finally! Where has she been?”
“The Munchkins could only call for her now that the Wicked Witch of the East is dead,” Frankie explains.
Ah.
Glinda walks over to the two gray crowns and picks them up. The crowns immediately become one. They turn from gray to gold and are encrusted with colorful stones.
Wow!
Swoosh-whoosh. Swooooop!
I look up. Uh-oh. Winged Monkeys start soaring straight for us.
Oh, noooo! Just when I thought things were improving.
“Hide, everyone!” I cry.
But the Winged Monkeys don’t snatch anyone. They land on the ground beside Glinda.
“Don’t worry about them,” Glinda says. “They have to do the bidding of whoever wears the crown. And right now that’s me! Enjoy the Emerald City, monkeys. Have fun!”
The Winged Monkeys cheer. I see one opening up a banana. Two others begin playing what looks like flying tag. Whew.
“The monkeys are kind of cute now,” Penny admits.
Glinda looks at the shoes in Penny’s hands. “The magic shoes! Aren’t they pretty?”
“Yeah,” Penny says. “But silver is so last season. Can you change the color?”
“Perhaps,” Glinda says, tapping her wand on her chin. “What color were you thinking?”
Oooh. It would be cool to see the ruby slippers.
“Red, I guess,” Penny says. “Why not, right?”
Glinda waves her magic wand and the magic slippers are now — poof — ruby-red shoes. Just like in the movie.
“Yay! Thank you!” Penny picks them up and hands them to me. “Your turn, Abby. You should be the one to take us all home.”
Oh! I wasn’t expecting that. But I do want to try them on. I step into the shoes. They fit! Of course they do. They’re magic shoes. I wave one foot around. I’m wearing the ruby slippers!
I look at Glinda. “So if we all hold hands, I can click my heels together and take us to Kansas?” I ask. My plan is that we’ll drop off Dorothy at her home, and then I’ll click the heels again to take my friends and me back to Smithville.
Glinda shakes her head. “I’m so sorry, but the shoes can’t carry so much weight. One person and maybe a pet — a small one — maximum.”
My heart sinks. Crumbs.
“That’s it?” Robin asks. “Then how will we all get home?”
“I don’t know,” I say.
“We can send Dorothy home with the shoes,” Frankie says, “but what happens to us?”
“Can the monkeys help?” Penny asks. “They can carry people.”
“They can’t leave Oz,” Frankie says. “It’s in the book.”
Glinda nods. “That’s true.” She glances at the Wizard. “Can you help them?” she asks.
“I’m a fraud,” the Wizard says sadly. “I don’t have magical powers.”
“True,” Glinda says. “But you did come to Oz in a hot-air balloon. Can’t the girls take your hot-air balloon back?”
We all look at one another. Could we?
Frankie shakes her head. “In the book, the Wizard does try to use his hot-air balloon to take Dorothy home, but then Toto jumps out and so does Dorothy. So the Wizard goes away, but we don’t know where.”
“The hot-air balloon will work this time,” Glinda says. “I am confident.”
“I’ll leave with you,” the Wizard says sadly. “These people don’t want me here anymore anyway.”
“I don’t believe that’s true,” Glinda says. “Everyone!” she calls out to the crowd, and they quiet down. “Listen here! It’s true that the Wizard is not really a wizard. But he is a very nice man and an excellent leader. Would you like him to stay and lead the Emerald City
, or would you like him to go?”
There are murmurs as all the townspeople gather together to discuss. And then finally we hear, “Stay! He should stay!”
Glinda beams. “The crowd has spoken.”
The Wizard is teary. “Thank you!” he tells Glinda. He turns to Tin Man, Scarecrow, and Lion. “Would you all stay with me? And help run Oz?”
“Us? Really?” Lion asks.
“Yes!” the Wizard says. “You’re so brave! The way you stormed the Tigertail Tower was inspiring. And Tin Man, you are so kind. The way you comforted Penny when she was scared was really caring. And, Scarecrow, your idea to trick the crowd was very smart. I could use a crew like you to help me run this place!”
Lion blushes, Tin Man smiles, and Scarecrow beams. The three of them look at one another and nod happily.
“We would be honored,” Tin Man says.
“And you don’t mind if we take your hot-air balloon?” I ask the Wizard.
“Not at all,” he says. “Might take me a few hours to set it up and teach you how to use it. Unless any of you know how?”
“Um, no,” I say.
“Actually, I do,” Robin says. “Kind of. My parents took me to a hot-air balloon festival in Albuquerque last year. It was fun.”
“Oh, wow!” I say. Unexpected. “Great.”
“But how do we find Smithville?” Frankie asks.
“Go west,” the Wizard says. “Follow the sun.”
Seems vague, but I guess it will have to do.
“You should go as soon as the sun starts to drop,” he adds.
“Okay,” I say. “We can’t wait much longer than that. We have no idea what time it is back home, so we should get back as soon as possible. But, Dorothy, we understand if you want to go home right now. We know you miss your family.”
She links her arms through Robin’s and Penny’s. “I miss them for sure,” she says. “But I’ll miss you guys, too. I can wait another hour.”
Which means I get more time in the shoes! Woot! Not that I’m using their magic. But still. They’re pretty cool.
Penny picks up Toto and in a baby voice says, “I will miss you, Toto, yes I will.”
I guess Penny is coming around to dogs after all.
“Shall we have some lunch?” Glinda asks. “I can zap up a feast. Does anyone like pizza?”
My stomach growls. “Everyone likes pizza,” I say. “But hold the spiders, frogs, and butterflies.”
Ready?” the Wizard asks.
We all nod.
The hot-air balloon looks awesome. It’s huge and multicolored. Below the balloon is a big basket that we’re supposed to stand in. I have no idea how hot-air balloons work, but I’m glad Robin and the Wizard do.
Before we climb into the basket, I take off the ruby slippers and hand them to Dorothy. “Do you know what to do?”
She slips her feet inside the sparkly shoes.
“Just click your heels together three times and tell the shoes where you want to go. They’ll take you in three steps,” Glinda explains.
“Got it,” Dorothy says. Then she pauses. “But … are we sold on the plain red?”
Huh?
“Do you want me to change them to something else?” Glinda asks.
Dorothy smiles. “I kind of like the checkered pattern on Penny’s shoes. Do you think you could do that?” she asks.
“You have excellent taste,” Penny tells Dorothy, who blushes.
Glinda laughs and waves her wand toward the shoes.
They’re now checkered red and black. But still glittering.
“Wow. Thank you!” Dorothy says.
“Looking good,” I say, and give her a hug. My eyes tear up. “It was great to meet you.”
“You too,” Dorothy says. “Thank you all for helping me.”
I look at Dorothy in her blue-and-white gingham dress, braids — and checkered red-and-black slippers — with Toto in her arms.
Perfect.
Ruff! Prince barks good-bye to Toto.
Ruff-ruff! Toto barks back. He leaps out of Dorothy’s arms and runs right over to Prince. But they don’t fight. Instead, Prince leans against Toto. Aw, is Prince giving Toto a hug? I think they are sad to say good-bye. They’ve come so far together — from not getting along, to working together to save us all!
Dorothy scoops up Toto again and closes her eyes. She clicks her heels together three times. “Take me home,” she says. “Take me home. Take me home.”
Poof!
And she’s gone.
Glinda closes her eyes and opens them three seconds later. “Dorothy and Toto are already home! I saw her safely land and run into her aunt’s and uncle’s arms.”
Whew.
“Ready?” Bob the Wizard asks, sweeping his arm toward the hot-air balloon.
“Ready!” I say as Frankie, Robin, Penny, and I — carrying Prince — get in the basket of the balloon. I sneeze. I really am ready to get home and into bed.
“You’re good, Robin?” Bob asks. He gave her a brief review before to make sure she knew what to do.
“Great,” Robin says. “The hot-air makes you go higher. And cool air makes you go lower.”
“Exactly,” the Wizard says.
I wave down at the crowd as the balloon starts to rise.
Glinda, Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Lion are all waving and smiling.
I wave at the Munchkins and the Winkies.
And then suddenly we’re flying up, up, and away. It’s not scary like when the flying monkeys captured us, or when the tornado lifted Robin’s tree house. It feels peaceful and easy, like we’re floating on a cloud.
We sail over the Emerald City and I see the yellow brick road below us.
I look out on Oz and smile. This has been an amazing adventure!
But then I freeze.
Because standing right there on the yellow brick road …
Is GLUCK.
He’s not in disguise: He looks like himself — white-blond choppy hair, ice-blue eyes. And I can see the black wings on his back!
No!
“Robin, can you go any higher or faster?!” I cry. “I see Gluck!”
“What’s that in Gluck’s hand?” Frankie asks, straining to see.
We all look.
“It’s a bow and arrow,” I say.
“What is he doing with a …” Robin asks, but her voice trails off as we see what he’s up to. He pulls the bow back and the arrow comes flying right toward us.
Nooooo!!!
“Good-bye, suckers!” Gluck shouts into the sky.
We all scream and duck down into the basket.
But the arrow goes right into the balloon, tearing a hole right through it.
“Oh, no!” Frankie cries.
The balloon suddenly starts to zigzag in the sky. We all hold on for dear life.
“This is bad,” Robin says. “Really, really bad.”
The balloon starts to drop. And tilt. Suddenly, we’re floating down instead of up. We’re descending faster. And faster.
“Guys, hold on to the side!” I scream. “We’re going to crash into that field of red flowers!”
Thud.
Thankfully, the soft red flowers provide a cushion, so the landing isn’t that hard. We stand up in the hot-air balloon, relieved to be okay.
But wait. No! The red flowers are the poppies! The ones that made the others fall asleep last time. Are you kidding me? “Nobody breathe!” I cry. “Everyone, hold your noses!”
“It’s too late,” Frankie says, beginning to swoon. “I’m tired again.” She sits down, then lies down. In seconds she’s asleep. Ahhhh!
“Robin, do not breathe in, do you hear me, we need you, do not breath —”
But Robin’s curled up on the floor of the basket, snoring, too.
“Noooo,” I say.
Prince is also curled up and snoring.
“Why am I still awake?” Penny asks. She sneezes.
I look at her. I half smile. “You caught my cold?
”
She laughs. “I did. I actually did. I never thought I’d be so happy to get a cold.”
“Seriously,” I say, sneezing, too. “Now, how do we get out of here?”
She looks up at the tear in the balloon. “We need to plug the hole.”
“But with what?” I ask.
“Oh!” Penny exclaims. “Look what I have! My last piece! I saved it!” She takes the grape bubble gum out of her pocket and chews it for a few seconds. “Mmm. The flavor is so good at the beginning, right?”
Then she carefully climbs up the edge of the basket to find the hole. “I think this works,” she says, taking the gum out of her mouth and spreading it out to close up the hole. It’s kind of gross, but who cares?
“Great,” I say. “Now we only have to figure out how to fly this thing.”
“I saw Robin do this,” Penny says, pressing a button.
“And I saw her do this,” I say, pulling a lever.
The basket starts to shake a bit and slowly rise back off the ground.
“We did it!” Penny says.
“The hot-air makes you go higher,” I say, remembering. “And cool air makes you go lower. Right? I think that’s what Robin said.”
Penny nods.
Hot-air, higher. Cool air, lower. Got it — I think!
“So we just have to make the heat hotter or cooler depending on how the breeze is carrying us,” Penny says, rushing over to the knob controls. One says HOT and one says COLD.
“It’s working!” I cry. “And now we just head west?”
“That’s what he said.”
“Okay, then,” I say. “That’s what we’ll do.”
“Abby —” Penny says.
“Yeah?”
She smiles at me. “This was fun. I’m glad I got to come with you into a story again.”
“It was. And I’m glad you were here with me,” I admit.
“Whoa. What’s that?” Penny asks.
In front of us is a pale, swirling blue mist.
“It’s something magical,” I say, thinking of the swirling purple portal that always takes me home from fairy tales. “Go into it!”
As soon as we float into the mist, the balloon starts spinning really fast, like a Tilt-A-Whirl.
I squeeze my eyes shut. I have no idea what’s about to happen!
The balloon spins and twirls and goes sideways. I hold on to the still-sleeping Robin and Frankie and Prince so they don’t fly out. We go sliding to the left. Then to the right as the balloon straightens. Suddenly, we’re just floating. I can’t see a thing.
Abby in Oz Page 9