The Journey

El Mago

The heroes returned to Ciudad de Amitista and retreated to el Mago's residence.

"I see you've already returned," el Mago said.

"Por favor, señor," Mirabel said, stepping forward. "We've done what you told us. We brought you the broomstick of la Bruja Malvada del Oeste."

"Oh, and how did you manage to get it?" el Mago asked.

"I accidentally threw a bucket of water at her, and she just melted," Mirabel replied sheepishly.

"Is that it?" el Mago asked. "All you had to do to stop her was to splash her with water?"

"Life is full of things we'll never understand," Mirabel shrugged.

"Es cierto, mija," el Mago said. But then he started to fade away.

"¿Señor?" Mirabel asked.

"What's going on with el Mago?" León asked, just before el Mago disappeared completely.

Suddenly, a young man came out from behind a curtain, catching the attention of the quartet. He looked just like Ramiro but with purple glasses. "Ay, yai, yai," he muttered. "It always disappears like that. I'd lose my real head if it wasn't attached to my shoulders."

The quartet went up to this mysterious man.

"¿Quien eres tú?" Mirabel asked.

The man turned to find the quartet having caught him. "¿Yo?" he gulped. "Well, I am el Grande y Poderoso Mago de Oz."

"You?" Espantapájaros gasped.

"But the head...," Estaño pointed out.

"...was only a projection," el Mago admitted sheepishly. "I used an old projector that pointed upward to show the giant head, using film rails. I really should've converted this to a DVD and used a new projector when I got the idea."

"But why were you pretending to be a giant floating head in the first place?" León asked.

El Mago was really nervous, but he knew just what to say. "Well, when I first came to this city, the good people were sure that I was wizard material," he revealed. "But I was bullied a lot in high school because I was different. I wanted to help people achieve their goals in my own special way, but my classmates said there was no way I could do that because I'm just an ordinary man."

Mirabel, Espantapájaros, Estaño, and León weren't very happy that el Mago had tricked and lied to them. But on the other hand, they felt sorry for him, especially since now they knew why he lied in the first place. It seemed like el Mago was the one who needed help, and Mirabel knew just how to do it.

"I kinda know how you feel," Mirabel said.

"Really?" el Mago asked.

"I was bullied in high school for being different, too," Mirabel said. "Four of the popular kids even followed me to my college campus, and they're not even actual college students."

"Why did they do that?" el Mago asked.

"They knew that not being in high school anymore meant they couldn't be popular anymore," Mirabel said. "Since they couldn't go back to high school, they had the bright idea to come to Universidad de Mariposa, so they could continue giving me a hard time for being different."

"Ay, que patéticos," el Mago scoffed. "You can tell they peaked in high school."

"And I'm certain your bullies did, too," Mirabel smiled. "I'm sure you can help people in your own special way."