Somewhere Over The Rainbow

The Wicked Witch of the West

Red smoke suddenly came out of a certain spot on the ground. The Munchkins quickly scattered and hid or prostrated themselves face down on the ground. From the smoke appeared a green-skinned woman wearing a black dress, a black hat, and a black cape, and she was holding a broomstick. Rhianna quickly stood in front of Dorothy to shield her from this woman. They watched as she went to the house to see the Wicked Witch of the East's feet protruding from it.

     "I thought you said she was dead," Rhianna muttered to Glinda.

     "That was her sister, the Wicked Witch of the East. This is the Wicked Witch of the West. She's worse than the other one was," Glinda explained.

     The Wicked Witch of the West walked up to the trio. "Who killed my sister? Who killed the Witch of the East?" she asked. She then looked at Rhianna and Dorothy. "Was it you two?"

"No. No, it was an accident. We didn't mean to kill anybody," Dorothy replied, frightened.

"Well, my little pretty, I can cause accidents too!" the Wicked Witch retorted.

"Aren't you forgetting the ruby slippers?" Glinda chimed in.

The Wicked Witch stopped at the mention of the ruby slippers. "The slippers. Yes!" she said with a smile. She walked to the house to get the slippers. "The slippers!" She was just about to grab them when they disappeared and the stockings recoiled back under the house, and she glared back at Glinda. "They're gone!" She marched back up to the three ladies. "The ruby slippers! What have you done with them? Give them back to me or I'll. . ."

"It's too late!" Glinda interrupted. She pointed her wand down at Dorothy's feet. "There they are, and there they'll stay!"

Dorothy and Rhianna were shocked to see that Dorothy was now wearing the ruby slippers. How did that happen?

"Give me back my slippers! I'm the only one that knows how to use them. They're of no use to you. Give them back to me. Give them back!" the Wicked Witch demanded.

"Keep tight inside of them. Their magic must be very powerful or she wouldn't want them so badly," Glinda told Dorothy.

"You stay out of this, Glinda, or I'll fix you as well!" the Wicked Witch threatened.

"Oh, rubbish! You have no power here. Begone, before somebody drops a house on you too," Glinda retorted.

The Wicked Witch suddenly looked up, as if a house really would fall down on her any second now. "Very well. I'll bide my time," she said, and then looked at Rhianna and Dorothy. "And as for you, my fine ladies, it's true I can't attend to you here and now as I'd like. But just try to stay out of my way! Just try! I'll get you, my pretties, and your little dog too!" She laughed menacingly as she went back to the spot she first appeared from, and disappeared in red smoke and fire.

"It's all right. You can get up. She's gone! It's all right. You can all get up," Glinda assured the terrified Munchkins. "Oh! What a smell of sulfur!" She looked at Rhianna and Dorothy. "I'm afraid you two have made rather a bad enemy of the Wicked Witch of the West. The sooner you get out of Oz altogether, the safer you'll sleep, my dears."

     "Oh, we'd give anything to get out of Oz altogether. But which is the way back to Kansas? We can't go the way we came," Dorothy said.

     "No, that's true. The only person who might know would be the great and wonderful Wizard of Oz himself," Glinda told her, and the Munchkins bowed at the name.

     "The Wizard of Oz? Is he good or is he wicked?" Rhianna asked.

     "Oh, very good, but very mysterious," Glinda replied. "He lives in the Emerald City, and that's a long journey from here. Did you bring your broomsticks with you?"

     Rhianna and Dorothy almost chuckled at how this kind woman kept thinking they were witches.

     "No, I'm afraid we didn't," Rhianna replied.

     "Well, then, you'll have to walk," Glinda said as she led the Gale sisters down the dais. "The Munchkins will see you both safely to the border of Munchkinland." She looked at Dorothy. "And remember, never let those ruby slippers off your feet for a moment, or you and your sister will be at the mercy of the Wicked Witch of the West." She kissed Dorothy's forehead.

     "But how do we start for Emerald City?" Dorothy asked.

     "It's always best to start at the beginning. And all you do is follow the yellow brick road," Glinda replied. She pointed her wand at the spiraling roads, and Dorothy and Rhianna walked down to them.

     Dorothy looked back at Glinda. "But what happens if I—" she started to ask.

     "Just follow the yellow brick road," Glinda interrupted. She then disappeared in her pink bubble, and some of the Munchkins waved goodbye to her as she floated away.

     "My! People come and go so quickly here!" Dorothy remarked, making the Munchkins giggle.

     The girls looked down at the roads. One of Dorothy's feet was on the tip of the yellow brick road.

     "Follow the yellow brick road," Rhianna said. She and Dorothy started doing just that.

     "Follow the yellow brick road?" Dorothy questioned.

     The Mayor stepped in front of them.

"Follow the yellow brick road."

     A City Father stepped in front of them.

"Follow the yellow brick road."

     A female Munchkin stepped in front of them.

"Follow the yellow brick road."

     The Barrister stepped in front of them.

"Follow the yellow brick road."

     All of the Munchkins started singing as Rhianna and Dorothy did as they were told.

"Follow the yellow brick road!
Follow the yellow brick road!
Follow, follow, follow, follow,
Follow the yellow brick road!
Follow the yellow brick,
Follow the yellow brick,
Follow the yellow brick road!"

     Rhianna and Dorothy were skipping down the yellow brick road by now, and the Munchkins followed them to see them safely to the border of Munchkinland.

"You're off to see the Wizard,
The wonderful Wizard of Oz!
You'll find he is a whiz of a wiz
If ever a wiz there was!
If ever, oh, ever a wiz there was,
The Wizard of Oz is one because,
Because, because, because,
Because, because,
Because of the wonderful things he does!"

     The Munchkins stopped at the border and watched as Rhianna, Dorothy, and Toto continued following the yellow brick road.

"You're off to see the Wizard,
The wonderful Wizard of Oz!"

     Rhianna and Dorothy turned to wave goodbye to the Munchkins before continuing their long journey.