theatrical_muse Potions

One big room in the Palace was assigned to magical research. It always had been, but neither Azkedillia nor DG was much allowed into it as children. In the years between DG's supposed death and the overthrow of the Queen's government, Azkedillia tried to get into the room. She was gently thwarted every time by Tin Men or Readers or someone else who just happened by. It was one more in a growing series of frustrations that were all satisfied by standing before the Queen and telling her change had come.

While she waited for her new tower home to be built, the Sorceress tried again and again to get into that room as well. No one actively attempted to stop her. Instead the room was never quite were it seemed to be. She would open the door and look in to see row after row of tables that held vials of brightly colored liquids and small alcohol flames. Dried plants hung from racks all through the room.

The only problem was the moment she stepped into the room it became something else. Most frequently the kitchen. While a small part of the witch did enjoy the irony, the rest was rapidly infuriated by it all. She could, and did, build her own work spaces in the new tower, but that didn't mean there weren't things she could learn from the native magic of the OZ. Things she knew would make her more powerful.

Now that everyone was safely back in the Palace, Azkedillia had no great interest in seeing her mother's laboratory. Her memories of the experiments the witch enjoyed were too strong. Each time she passed the room the careful mask of disinterest she cultivated for the moments when people wondered aloud in her presence if the witch was gone.

Nothing in that room was of any particular use to her. She couldn't erase the past with a potion or fill the emptiness inside herself. No potion could do that, not really.


334

for the_bigshow Cheerful Pessimist

She'd chosen a dress that some might have seen the Sorceress wear, but she didn't care. The color suited her and she felt beautiful in it. She let her hair fall loose around her shoulders in soft waves. DG tried to give her a crown of flowers to wear, but she brushed them off. They didn't match her dress.

The Royal Family was in attendance at a children's festival that happened at the rise of the second Spring Moon. DG danced with the children, made more flower crowns, and generally forgot about any semblance of royal comportment. In other words, she had a marvelous time. At another event their parents might have made some move to rein the girl in, but it was obvious her antics made the citizenry happy. It was a comfort to them.

More of a comfort to Azkedillia was the way the Royal Guard looked. Although they kept their attention on the edges of the crowd and on the Royals themselves, they were relaxed and occasionally laughed at DG's antics. They were particularly amused at her attentions to their chief. She had to take off his hat to give him his flower, earning laughter and even a smattering of applause from the guard.

Ambrose tried to take the flowers from him, leading to much teasing of both of them about which would look prettier in the pale blue flowers. It was finally decided that they suited the Tin Man's eyes better and he was required to keep them. Keep them he did, but held carefully in his hand rather than on his head. His hat returned to its place as quickly as he could manage.

The party continued on around them with drummers from the Munchkins being followed by dancers from the Winkies and then tumblers from the Quadlings. By time the Gillikin puppeteers reached the stage, Azkedillia had found a quiet, shaded corner to secrete herself. She had a large glass of lacasa, but she hadn't touched it yet. When the Tin Man took a seat beside her, she handed him the glass without a word.

He took it from her with a softly spoken word of gratitude, then took a deep drink from it. He seemed to consider taking another drink for a moment, but ultimately he put it aside and leaned back against the bit of wall behind them. Azkedillia chuckled. "She'll wear you ragged if you let her."

He groaned. "I know. The girl dragged me all over the OZ and back like it was a Sunday stroll." He glanced over at her to see how she took the reference given the reason for the odyssey.

She nodded. "Once she gets an idea in her head there's no stopping her."

The Tin Man groaned again and nodded. "True enough." He watched the girl in question try to learn how to work the giant Gillikan puppets. She was over balanced, couldn't get the strings lined up right, and was having a wonderful time. "The girl has more plans and schemes than…" He sighed and glanced over at Azkedillia again, this time with a touch of guilt clear on his face.

Azkedillia shrugged. "There were many plans. Happily, they all failed."

Wyatt Cain smiled faintly to thank her for excusing his comment. Then his smile broadened. "Ah well, at least if we have to resign ourselves to DG's plan succeeding, we can enjoy them a bit." He took the ring of pale blue flowers that he'd rested on his lap and placed them carefully on her head. As well as they matched his eyes, they matched her dress a little more.

She touched the flowers and smiled easily for the first time all day. When he saw her smile, the Tin Man pushed his hat down over his face and leaned back against the wall with a soft grunt. She watched him for a while, expecting something more although she wasn't at all sure what. Finally she leaned back beside him, careful to make sure her flowers weren't crushed, and closed her eyes.

He was right. They might as well enjoy it.


688

the_bigshow Best Laid Plans

( It was a great plan! The one little thing that went wrong was... )

589