Page 18 of There's No Place Like Oz

“Let’s stop for a moment so you two can eat. The forest up ahead is full of wildlife and is notoriously treacherous.” Crowe said aloud for me. “That was from Talos, by the way. I don’t particularly care if you eat.”

Dorothy rolled her eyes at Crowe, then she looked at me and gave me the softest smile I’d ever seen. If my heart was still beating, it might have skipped a tick or two for that. A strange thought.

I picked a few more apples from the tree, and I situated myself on the floor with my companions. Tobias dug into his fruit, and Dorothy ate slowly, perhaps trying to appear a touch more dignified. I watched them both, studying the very guarded way Tobias’ eyes would shoot toward any subtle sound of rustling leaves or light breezes, and the differently guarded way that Dorothy would cover her mouth while she chewed, as if not wanting anyone to see her when she was less than proper and perfect.

I wasn’t a fan of perfect, personally. I think she would be more beautiful a bit disheveled and ruffled.

“I feel the same.”Crowe communicated directly into my mind while remaining outwardly silent. I was glad he’d figured out he didn’t need to speak out loud to talk to me.“She would be beautiful bathed in a wicked witch’s blood.”

“You’d said she killed your witch though, no?”I stared at him inquisitively.“Though your curse wasn’t broken simply by killing her. Isn’t that odd?”

“I don’t know. I’ve never heard of anyone murdering a witch before, so it’s hard to say what’s normal.”Crowe licked his lips as his gaze fell back on Dorothy, who was sitting cross legged beside Tobias. I watched the movement of his eyes as they dipped down to the little silver shoes that rested on her feet.“Though I suspect that she might BE my wicked witch now.”

My eyes widened at the implication. If Dorothy had Grunhilda’s power… Was that why Crowe was travelling with her? Was he compelled to be by her side, or was he simply doing what was natural to him? Figuring he may be honest with me in this silent channel, I made clear eye contact with the Scarecrow.“So then, are you travelling with her to protect her, or are you hoping she might…”

He grinned widely, showing off his sharpened fangs that lined his entire jaw, and I nodded in clear understanding. Dorothy was not a wicked witch, but so long as she wore those silver shoes, she had the potential to be. I didn’t know if her death could bring relief to Crowe, but I was curious enough to stick around and find that out. We could only hope the same corruption would never touch Dorothy’s spirit like it did the most fabled Grunhilda.

Chapter 14

What a strange turn of events this has been. I supposed Oz was at least more interesting than life on the homestead might have been, but it was difficult to even try and find any sort of normalcy with all these strange characters along for the ride. This was starting to feel like being a cat lady, but instead of accidentally rescuing an always growing number of stray kittens, I was rescuing hot psychopaths with trauma. They should call me the deranged man whisperer. Maybe the emotionally unavailable pied piper, who drew all the soulless killers of Oz away from their kingdoms.

Was that really so different than the men I’d attracted in the past? I glanced between my companions, then I returned my focus to this small gaggle of apples we’d gathered. They were unusually sweet, almost resembling honey more than fruit. Every bite was a pleasant combination of crisp and juicy, and it made me realize exactly how dehydrated I’d been. It was nice to get my strength back.

Talos handed me another apple since my stomach was still grumbling after the first, and his soft, silver eyes seemed to smile as he did so. I accepted the fruit, but I hesitated to take another bite. I should still be in an excessive calorie deficit, but they were so sweet, for all I knew I could have been eating pure sugar. I had no idea the nutritional or caloric density of these strange Oz fruits either.

I shook my head, trying my hardest to dismiss the notion. My body fat percentage was the last thing I should be thinking about right now, yet it was so hard to turn it off. Even now that I was out of that world of obsessive fitness, where my body was required to be a few levels thinner than perfect, and I counted every bite I took against my workouts, I still twitched at the thought that I might eat too much on accident just because I’d been in near starvation mode over the last day or two. I already had a tendency towards binge eating after growing up not always certain where our next meal might come from, and it had taken years to un-train my brain from clearing my plate just in case there wouldn’t be more later.

So instead, I trained myself to leave the table still hungry, which at the moment, I was starting to realize wasn’t any healthier.

Tobias rested a hand on my knee. His palm was warm, and the simple, gentle contact instantly put me at ease. He crunched into another fruit, and I frowned at how obsessive I was being. This was going to be a long journey, and I needed to focus on what was important. The Wizard likely wasn’t going to send me packing if I gained a pound or two, and I couldn’t imagine my companions would think less of me for eating enough to avoid fainting on the road. If anything, Crowe would just end up more confused as to how human bodies work if I’d eaten yet still couldn’t function.

That thought amused me, and my heart felt a touch lighter. I barely knew these men, Toto included, really, yet I felt so comfortable with them already. Tobias was proving to be reliable and kind. Crowe was strange, a touch terrifying, literally a psychopath, yet not at all threatening towards myself. And Talos, while he’d not spoken a word, exuded a kindness and carefulness through his eyes and body language that put me at ease. I’d never felt this comfortable around men before, and I hoped it wasn’t misguided trust.

I bit into the second apple, trying to convince myself that chasing away hunger pains wasn’t a sign of poor discipline, and I made myself eat until I felt completely satiated this time. Slowly but surely, I needed to undo all of this unhealthy thinking that I’d decided I had to govern myself with. All of the things that were fine for others to enjoy but weren’t acceptable for me had tobecome‘acceptable for me.’ This would be a long journey, and all I could ask was that it also might be a healing one.

“That was delicious. Thank you, Talos.” I said with a friendly smile.

He nodded, then he began packing spares for later in a satchel slung over his shoulder. He tucked aside a small bottle to make room for more.

Crowe stood in as his voice to respond, guessing my question before I could ask. “His witch had turned his bones to tin and placed a paralysis spell on him. The lotion is an antidote of sorts.” His demonic eyes rolled from his companion back to myself. “Lots of other uses for a good lubricant though, if that’s more what you were thinking.”

“I-I see.” My cheeks immediately flushed, and while it was difficult to tell, it looked like Talos’ cheeks may have too.

“Creaky hinges and such, you know.” Crowe added with an obnoxious amount of neutrality. “Anywho,” his voice shifted immediately to something more singsong, “I hope that was enough, because the forest gets much more dense from here, and who knows what might live in those trees.”

“Are there a lot of wild animals in Oz?” There was still so little I knew about this place, even if it felt like I’d been here an eternity already.

“I wonder” was all Crowe said. If Talos wanted to share more information, Crowe wasn’t offering to translate anymore. I wished I could speak with him directly, since he seemed the more reasonable of the two. Though that was only a vague assumption.

A warm hand fell on my shoulder, and Tobias gave me a gentle but reassuring smile. “It won’t matter what Oz has to throw at us, so long as you stay by my side, Dorothy.”

Genuinely comforting. He helped me to my feet, and we all turned to face the long stretch of yellow bricks before us. The golden shine of the cobbled road disappeared beneath the heavy shadows of the coming woods, and I wondered if anything I encountered could possibly be any worse than what was already behind me.

Or what was already beside me.

The darkness swallowed me whole beneath the heavy shade of the trees. The uneven, ill-constructed roadway didn’t inspire much confidence as I near tripped on the crooked lip of every brick, and it was difficult to see my companions even when I could hear their footsteps still so close. I’d come to identify each of my men by the sound of their walk. Tobias was light and quick, Talos’ step was heavy and focused, while Crowe was completely silent, save the near inaudible shifting of fabric as he moved. This made it easy to identify every sound that wasn’t one of them, which was why every rustle of leaves had me on edge.

Yet, there were still no signs of any alleged beasts. For all I knew, Crowe could have made that part up just to scare me. He seemed the type to find amusement in the terror of others. We’d not encountered another creature since our last stand against the munchkins, so I should have relaxed. If anything came at us, Toto would hear it first, after all, and he would keep me safe.

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