The Heartfelt Love [COMPLETE]

Never Forget

The wizard agreed to take Dorothy and I back to Kansas in his hot air balloon, a wonderfully unique way to travel if you ask me. As I stood inside the balloon, my hand was practically glued to Tin Man's smooth shoulder, slightly nervous about going up so high. Fortunately, Toto ran away from Dorothy and being the nice little sister I was I hopped off to help her catch him only to see my great mistake: the wizard flying away without Dorothy or me on board. As we started crying, our new friends comforted us, gently asking us to stay. And as much as we wanted to, we both found ourselves greatly missing the farm we knew so well.

When Glinda came along and told us the way to get home, we were both thrilled but sad to really be saying goodbye. I said goodbye to Scarecrow, then Lion and finally I came to Tin Man. For a short moment, we were both silent as we looked in each other's eyes before he swept me up in his arms, crying without any rusting caution at all.

"Felicia, my dear sweet Felicia. Please...don't go." I sobbed alongside him. "I must. My sister needs me." I pulled back to look him in the eye, arms wrapped around his neck.

"You're the best friend I could ever ask for." The word friend seemed to stick in my throat, he smiled. "I wouldn't say we're friends." I raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?" Then he did something I wouldn't have expected if I could tell the future.

He kissed me. And it was wonderful, like fireworks going off in my core. He held me ever so tight against him, fingers woven within my hair and other hand pressed against my back. I was only slightly aware of Dorothy's gasp but other then that all I could feel was the love radiating off him in waves.

When we parted, I didn't have to touch my lips to know there was oil lining them like lipstick. Lion muffled a chuckle but Scarecrow shushed him anyway, Dorothy was smiling knowingly. "Well isn't that sweet." She cooed and for once I didn't mind.

"I love you Felicia." I smiled warmly at his words. "I love you too, Tin Man." "And I want to prove it." He gently let me go and did something that shocked me to the bone.

He unclipped his heart and held it out to me.

"But Tin Man, you've worked so hard for your heart. I...I can't just take it." "I'm not offering," he lay it in my hand, "I'm giving. It's yours." I looked up, tears gathering in my eyes.

"My heart is yours Felicia and it always will be. I love you, I love you so much." I looked at the heart, looked back at him, before throwing myself in his grasp, sobbing with ever bit of my essence. "Oh Tin Man, I'll miss you most of all. I love you too." He smiled gently before hugging me back.

Slowly, I pulled back and we shared one last kiss before I went to stand by Dorothy, gently gripping her hand. With the voice of any child's dream mother, Glinda told Dorothy what to say and I hesitated before looking to Tin Man one last time.

His smile was warm as the summer sun, like the first time we met and his eyes were as welcoming as a crystal clear lake. I smiled, tears gathering before closing my eyes like Dorothy and whispering along with her.

"There's no place like home, there's no place like home, there's no place like home..."