Page 65 of Witch Queens: Tales from Oz

By the time we bathed and were given a change of clothing, it was near for dinner time.

They followed the old rules of society here, and I was given a black sequined gown that fell just above my knees. The bodice was sheer and showed more than it covered.

I loved it.

Slipping on a pair of five-inch stilettos, I glanced into the mirror of the royal guest room bed chamber. Damn, I still had it.

There was a knock on the door, and then my sister rushed in without waiting for my reply.

She paused mid-sentence when she saw me.

“Um, are you going out like that?” Glinda motioned to my hair that I had left to dry after showering.

My hands automatically went to my wavy dark locks, “Is there something wrong with it?”

“No,” she rushed to assure me, but her eyes didn’t leave my head.

I hated when she was like this.

“Just tell me,” I demanded.

“It is just that we are dining with royalty,” her nose wrinkled with distaste. “And you haven’t done anything different than when you go to the market or the gym.”

“That’s a lie,” my ears were hot. “I never go to the gym!”

Glinda shook her head sadly, “This is what I am talking about, Indy. Can’t you just try?”

The truth was that I didn’t have a lot of skills when it came to doing my hair. But I didn’t want to admit that to Goody-two-shoes Glinda.

“I am sure no one will notice,” I muttered.

“Of course, they will. I did. Come and sit in front of the mirror and I will try to tame this.”

I drug myself over to the vanity and then sat in front of the mirror as she quickly pulled my hair into a fancy chignon.

I don’t know how she did it. But as I turned my head from side to side. I saw a princess instead of regular old me.

“Thank you,” I breathed in fascination. “It is beautiful!”

Glinda’s cheeks reddened so that they matched her blush-colored strapless gown.

“You are lovely, Indy,” she said quietly. “I only helped to bring that out.”

I felt a rush of affection for my sister. I know that being the youngest of four opinionated witches could not have been easy.

I smiled as I rose, grabbing her arm and looping it through mine.

“I shall have to use you as a shield if Greggy-poo gets too cranky. You are the only one that he seems to like out of all of us.”

Glinda sighed, “His name is Prince Gregory. And he isn’t that bad if you would only give him half of a chance, you would know it for yourself.”

She was delusional.

We argued about this, that, and the other all the way down the hallway to the grand staircase that led to the dining hall. I was about to take the first step down the stairs when something at the bottom caught my eye.

There, standing at the base of the stairs stood Scarecrow in an all-black tuxedo. His curling dark hair had been slicked back, and his dark eyes obliterated the dress that I was wearing until I felt like I was completely naked under his gaze.

His tan looked darker in the candlelight. I couldn’t catch my breath as my heart attempted to break free from its cage.

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