written: 01.03.25-02.09.25
rewritten: 03.18.25-07.06.25
edited: 06.11.25-07.07.25

Once upon a time...

Glinda, exactly how dead is he?

Because there has been so much rumor and speculation, let me tell you the whole story: According to the Time Dragon Clock, the Melting occurred at the thirteenth hour, the direct result of a bucket of water thrown by a female child. Yes. The Wicked Wizard of the West is dead!

Wingéd blue monkeys smashed through the window, flying out over the psychedelic land of Oz. Below them, Dorothy, Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Cowardly Lion walked down the Yellow Brick Road, Dorothy holding a broomstick in her hands.

A rainbow began to form over the waterfall as children ran through the fields of Munchkinland, ringing out the bells all cheerfully calling out:

"Good news! He's dead!"

"It's the Wizard Hunters!"

"They got his broomstick!"

Hearing the commotion, a family scrambled to get out of their house.

Ozian Family:
Good news!
He's dead!
Clang pots and pans
Spread the good news:

More families came out to hug each other in celebration.

Ozians:
The Wizard of the West is dead!
The wickedest man there ever was
The enemy of all of us here in Oz
Is dead!
Good news!
Good news!

A little girl looked up at a bubble floating directly towards her, eyes widened, and popped it, causing more bubbles to appear.

"Let us be glad..."

"Look! It's Glinda!"

Everyone looked to where a man was pointing. In the sanctity of her own bubble, looking like a light in the sky, was the Good Witch of the North, vocalizing: Glinda.

"Let us be grateful..."

Everyone began to cheer at the light coming closer.

"Let us rejoicify that goodness could subdue...the wicked workings of you-know-who..."

Glinda was a beautiful sorceress with an equally beautiful outfit. A silver crown laid atop her head a pink dress flowed around her ankles. Out of all the witches in Oz, she was the least powerful, but there was a reason her full title was Glinda the Good.

"It's her!"

"It's Glinda!"

"The Witch of the North!"

"It's Glinda the Good!"

The bubble came down and Glinda reached out with her wand. Pop! She stepped out, the crowd cheering wildly for her. "It's good to see me, isn't it?" She came forward, her goodness radiating off of her and into the crowd. "Fellow Ozians. Let me set the record straight: Yes...the Wicked Wizard of the West is dead! And the Witch has fled!"

The cheering only amplified at the confirmation that their mutual enemy was now deceased.

Glinda:
Isn't it nice to know
That good will conquer evil?
The truth we all believe'll by and by
Outlive a lie
For you and -

She booped a boy on the nose and made her way into the crowd, addressing her people with a warm smile.

Man:
No one mourns the wicked!

Startled that someone interrupted her, Glinda gave a secretive glare at the man.

Woman:
No one cries, "They won't return!"

Ozians:
No one lays a lily on their grave!

Man:
The good man scorns the wicked!

Three Women:
Through their lives, our children learn

Ozians:
What we miss
If they misbehave!

Glinda:
And Goodness knows the Wicked's lives are lonely
Goodness knows the Wicked die alone
It just shows, when you're wicked
You're left only on your own

Ozians:
Yes, Goodness knows the Wicked's lives are lonely
Goodness knows the Wicked cry alone
Nothing grows for the Wicked
They reap only what they've sown

"Miss Glinda?" one of the little girls asked, catching her attention. "Why does Wickedness happen?"

"That's a good question. One many people find confusifying." She came closer to the girl, bending over to meet her eye-level. "Are people born Wicked? Or do that have Wickedness thrust upon them? Even the Wicked Wizard had a childhood," she continued, getting up to address the whole crowd. But when she looked, she saw a giant depiction of the Wicked Wizard with a pointed chin, yellow eyes, sharp fingernails, and a snarl-scream. She swallowed, looking away from it. "A father. Who, by the way, had been appointed Governor of Munchkinland."

-

Governor Frexspar Thropp, a man in a suit, got his things together to leave. "I'm off to the assembly, dear!"

And he has a mother, as so many do.

Frexspar:
How I hate to go and leave you lonely

Melena:
That's okay, it's only for one night

Frexspar took his wife's hands in his own.

Frexspar:
But know that you're in my heart while I'm out of your sight...

He kissed her before leaving. Melena continued to smile out at him until the door closed and she turned around, which is when her smile quickly dropped. She took off her scarf and threw it, going to the backdoor and pulling her lover in. The man took a drink from a bottle he had while Melena was twirled and seated.

Like every family, they had their secrets.

Salesman:
Have another drink, my dark-eyed beauty
I've got one more night left here in town
So have another drink of green elixir,
And we'll have ourselves a little mixer
Have another little swallow, little lady
And follow me down ~

She had another swig of the elixir, kissed the salesman passionately, and pulled him upstairs.

And one thing led to another...as it so often does.

-

Nine months later and Melena was screaming, her husband, midwife, bear nanny, and other nurses around her, encouraging her to push.

But from the moment the Wizard was born, he was...well...different.

"It's coming!" the midwife exclaimed.

"Now?" Frexspar asked in anticipation.

"The baby is coming!"

"Oh, and how!"

Midwife:
I see a nose...

Frexspar:
I can feel joy...

Frexspar, Midwife:
It's a healthy, perfect, lovely little -

"Oh!"

"Oh! Sweet Oz, oh!"

The other nurses gathered around, gasping when they saw the baby.

Midwife:
How can it be?

Frexspar:
What does it mean?!

Midwife:
It's atrocious!

Frexspar:
It's obscene!

Frexspar, Midwife:
Like a froggy, feeny cabbage,
The baby is un-na-tur-a-lly...

The midwife held up the baby for Melena to see.

"Green," the governor mumbled.

One of the nurses took a quick sip from her flask, then gave it to her colleague, who did the same.

After a moment of silence, the governor spoke in a mumble. "Take it away."

She hesitated and the baby screamed louder, the surgery tools flying up to the ceiling.

"TAKE IT AWAY!"

Dulcibear held him close, protectively, whispering to him as soon as they were out of the room, which calmed him down right away. "Don't worry, little one. I'll take care of you."

"So his nanny Dulcibear took care of him. But as he grew, so did his challenges, each one harder on him than the last."

-

Seven Years Later

Little Elphabud sat outside with his four-year-old sister and nanny, reading quietly by himself. He wore black that matched his curly hair and round glasses over his freckled cheekbones.

"Dulcibear!" the governor called.

She looked in his direction, then at Elphabud. "Little one? Watch Nessarose just a clock-tick," she requested before leaving them alone.

Nessarose began to whimper, Elphabud immediately rushing to her side. "Oh, Nessarose. Don't you worry. I'm here." He gave her a pink flower, then took her free hand. "Now. Wanna see something amazing?"

"Yeah."

He showed her his book, opening a pop-up of Oz. "This is all about our Wonderful Wizard of Oz." The page he was on had a hot-air balloon flying over the mountains. "Do you know how he got here?"

"No."

"From the sky! In a balloon! See?" He turned the page to a man in a large green city. "Then he built a city made of emerald. 'Cause he loves emeralds. Even though they're green. And Nessa. You wanna know a secret?" He got closer, whispering to her, "If you get to meet him, he grants your heart's desire!"

"Elphabud Thropp! Green on top! Someone run and tell 'im! Everyone can smell 'im!"

Nessa covered her ears, bursting into tears while Elphabud slowly turned to look at the bullies, who had come to taunt him. He took a few steps and pebbles began to lift as he heard Nessa's cries grow louder.

Full-on rocks lifted and smacked the bullies, causing them to cry out and run away.

"Elphabud Thropp!"

He looked behind him at his father rushing at him with an angry look, Dulcibear behind. "What have you done this time?! Now you made your sister cry!" He turned his attention away to his daughter, lifting her up from her wheelchair, cooing, "It's okay, Daddy's here." He ignored Elphabud, not looking for an actual answer, and went back inside.

Dulcibear gently placed a paw on Elphabud's shoulder. "It's okay, little one." She left at the governor's call, leaving Elphabud to pick up his book and look longingly at the page.

-

"And so...it couldn't have been easy."

Ozians:
No one mourns the Wicked!

Glinda's face fell when she realized that no convincing could get the people to stop picking on her deceased friend. Especially when a large effigy of him, looking like a charcuterie of an evil wizard, was rolled out. But true tears filled her eyes when she saw another of Y/n roll out. She was not dead, but since the Wizard's demise, she had retreated quietly into the shadows.

Ozians:
Now, at last, he's dead, they're gone!
Now, at last, there's joy throughout the land!
And Goodness knows!

Glinda:
Goodness knows...

Ozians:
We all know what Goodness is

Glinda:
Whoa, ohhh...

Ozians:
Goodness knows the Wicked die alone!

Glinda:
She's left alone...

Ozians:
Woe to those [Woe to those]
Who spurn what Goodness they are shown!

One of the men held out a torch to Glinda, who took it, but took an extra moment to look at the effigies. She turned her head away to the ground before throwing it at the pyres only, not aiming at all for the Wizard or Witch. But the fire crept up, burning them.

Ozians:
No one mourns the Wicked!

Glinda:
Good news

Ozians:
No one mourns the Wicked!

Glinda:
Good news!

All:
No one/Know one mourns the Wicked!
Wicked!
Wicked!

Everyone began to cheer again, Glinda going back to her kind smile. "Whoo! Yep. Well this has been fun. As you can imagine, I have much to attend to with the Wizard's unexpected departure. So if there are no further questions, I'm gonna go."

She rebuilt her bubble, ready to fly away, until a teenage munchkin pushed out of the crowd. "Glinda! Is it true you were their friend?"

"What?" Glinda asked, voice muffled by the bubble. "One sec..." She popped it again. "What?"

"Is it true you were their friend?"

A frown replaced the previous smile. "Friend? ...yes. I - I mean I did know them."

This was met with shocked gasps from everyone and murmuring.

"That is, our paths did cross...at school," she remembered with a sad smile.

-

In one of the meadows of Oz, Y/n put Elphabud's hat on his head, then fixed its position, smiling lovingly at him, which he returned, gently taking her hand in his.

Glinda swung her legs on top of a tree they stood under, her hair in pigtails, watching them with a smile.

-

"But you must understand...it was a very long time ago..."