Dimensional Reality: Oz (Chapter 13 cont.)

Dorothy squinted in the direction that Joseph spoke toward.  After a few moments she could discern a man shaped shadow moving toward the clearing.  She waited anxiously for the man to come into the light.  Her jaw dropped as she saw the person come into the clearing.  She had thought it was a man, but this was no living man.  It was a living scarecrow, The Scarecrow.  She could see Joseph’s arrow stuck through his chest and coming out of his back.  The Scarecrow carried a well-used, but sharp scythe in one hand and what looked like a pitchfork in the other.  She could see what seemed to be his face was a grain sack with the eyes, mouth, and ears painted on.  The nose was a raised bump in the sack.  She was suprised, once again, when the painted mouth formed into a grin.

  “I guess I am.  I see Poly was right though.  What are you doing back in Oz? No one comes round here anymore.”

  “I came tracking an anolomy.”

  Blaze flew over to the Scarecrow and alighted on his shoulder.

  “Hello Blaze.”

  The Scarecrow stuck the pitchfork in the ground and pulled the arrow out.  He pulled bits of hay, straw, and wheat from the arrow point.  He handed the arrow back to Joseph and pulled some wheat grains from the bits in his hand.  He stuffed the bits back into his chest and held up the grains to Blaze.  Blaze chirped a soft thanks and began picking at the grains with his beak.  The Scarecrow looked back at Joseph.

  “An anolomy?  No one comes to Oz anymore, not even in nightmares.”

  Blaze finished his picking and flew over to the branch of a tree, looking intently at everyone.

  “The Fates had something to do with this one Scarecrow.”

  Joseph beckoned to Dorothy, who had been shyly standing back behind Joseph, watching the exchange.

  “Come into the light young one.  Let the Scarecrow see you.”

  Dorothy slowly walked over to stand at Joseph’s side.  The Scarecrow’s eyes widened as he looked upon her.  He shook out of his daze and bowed on knee.

  “Your Highness, forgive me, I did not see you.”

  “Rise Scarecrow.  This is not the Dorothy that you know.  This is a decendant of Dorothy’s bloodline.  She is of the same name.”

  The Scarecrow stood slowly, with an expression of awe on his face.

  “Even as you are not Princess Dorothy, my honor in meeting you is no less.  I must say though that the likeness is amazing.”

  Dorothy wasn’t sure how to reply to this, but before the moment became awkward Joseph spoke again.

  “Are you out here on patrol?  Where’s the rest of you?”

  “No, Poly sensed the shift.  I volunteered to come out and meet you.”

  Dorothy stood staring at the Scarecrow.  She couldn’t get this feeling out of her mind, something like nostilga.  The edges of a memory were in her mind, but she just couldn’t grasp onto them.  She pushed it out of her mind for now as she thought of Joseph’s offer.  She knew what the logical thing to do would be.  To get the hell out of here.  But she had never been one to always do the logical thing.  She followed her heart, even if it didn’t seem logical at the time.  So far, it had never led her wrong.  And somehow, staying here, helping these people felt right.

  “Dorothy? Dorothy!”

  Dorothy snapped out of her musing to see Joseph and the Scarecrow (and Blaze), looking at her.

  “What?”

  “The Scarecrow is asking if we’re going to accompany him back to base camp.  Do we go or do I take you home?”

  Dorothy looked at the Scarecrow.  She thought how ragged he looked, the well used weapons he carried.  Of course, he would look somewhat ragged being a scarcecrow, but she doubted he ever looked this ragged.  She doubted he had ever carried or even handled a weapon before.  She thought of the ruined Munchkin city.  She thought of how, despite that it wasn’t the movies, that they had sang and danced at one time.  She thought of all this and looked at both of them before speaking.

  “I’m going with you.”