The Birds in Oz

It's going to be one of THOSE days

Stone wings unfolded above Jojo, straining against the wind and gravity. It was just enough to keep the pair from nose diving head first into the ground, but Jojo could tell they wouldn't be able to avoid the tree directly in their path. Hephaestia wrapped herself around Jojo as they both braced themselves for impact. A tearing cracking exploded through Jojo's senses and then the world spun and tumbled around her. Blinding light was all she could see for a moment, and then stars filled her vision, dancing and swirling before the world became slowly clear again. She looked wildly around and spotted her gryphon friend pulling herself into a sitting position and shaking her head back and forth. At least she was all right. Jojo looked around them and became transfixed on the tree they had crashed into and the torn up ground that led to their current position. The tree was toppled and lay across the path leading to a large cottage that stood at the edge of a cliff.

Jojo swallowed and lifted herself, checking herself and Hephaestia over for injuries. Hephaestia seemed unscathed other than dizziness, and she had managed to escape with nothing more than a few scrapes and a missing shoe. The gryphon ruffled her feathers and shook her head again, wobbling a little. It was obvious she wouldn't be flying them back to the castle, and Jojo was wary of returning to the skies anyway if they were going to be bombed with bubble spells. She was musing over how she was going to walk back to the castle with one bare foot and a dizzy friend when a voice behind her had her spinning around.

"Oh. It's going to be one of THOSE days, is it? By the great Wizard, it's not even noon and I'm already done with today!"

The blond woman behind her wore an apron and had her hands on her hips, scowling at the tree they had knocked down. Jojo put a finger to her lip. It had been unavoidable, but still she felt ashamed somehow, like they had done it on purpose. The woman turned toward them and her expression turned from annoyed to concerned, as if she had just noticed them.

"Are you two alright? Munchkins! You must have run into the tree!"

Hephaestia leaned against Jojo's leg to steady herself as the woman ran up to them and and began checking them both over. Her hands fluttered over them as she tsked her tongue and gasped at the scrapes that were still bleeding along her knees and elbows. The woman finally scooped the still dizzy Hephaestia up into her arms and nudged Jojo toward the cottage with her elbow.

"Let's get you two cleaned up and we'll see what we can do for you. My name is Alicia, I work in the cafe yonder. Come on."

Jojo followed Alicia as they stepped over the branches laying in the pathway to get to the welcoming place of business. Jojo noticed the wooden sign gracing the entry, dubbing the place Marie's Cafe. They entered to the tinkling of a bell, and Alicia sat them at a handcrafted wooden table. She fussed over them to make sure they were comfortably situated and then she rushed away behind a counter, disappearing from view. Jojo breathed in deeply, the smell of fresh baked bread and hot coffee making her stomach rumble. Alicia reappeared and put down a number of different colored bottles and vials on the table in front of them. She began going through them one by one, squinting at the labels and getting increasingly frustrated. Jojo clasped her hands in front of herself and waited while Alicia read under her breath and began shaking a brown bottle with a green label.

"This is the one. Open your mouth, erm...I don't believe I know your name."

Alicia gestured the bottle towards Hephaestia's beak. Jojo rubbed at a bump on her forehead that was beginning to make a pounding appearance as Hephaestia obediently opened her beak and grimaced after the medicine had been poured in. Jojo was offered a spoonful of the same brew and pulled her head back, wrinkling her nose at the pungent smell. She put a hand up to avoid the medicine, looking for a distraction to put off having to swallow it.

"This is Hephaestia, and my name is Jojo. I don't need any medicine, really. Although something to eat would be appreciated. We left our friends at Lady Barbara's castle and we need to get back there somehow."

Alicia lifted her eyebrows in interest and put the bottle back on the table with the others. Jojo sighed in relief. She eyed Hephaestia still smacking unhappily at the aftertaste. It had been a narrow escape, though she had to admit that Hephaestia already looked less dizzy. Alicia drummed her fingers on the table, thinking, and then snapped her fingers.

"I'll just take you there myself. I have the perfect method of getting you both there quickly. But first you both need something to eat. I'll be right back."

She gathered her bottles in her arms and left behind the counter again. Jojo slumped in her seat. Oz was certainly no place for the faint of heart. She wondered how far she would have gotten without her new friends. She thought of facing the zombies alone and shuddered, admitting to herself that her odds of surviving that would have been nil. The door to the cafe creaked and the tinkling of the bell sounded, pulling her from her macabre thoughts. Jojo peeked around her shoulder and nearly fainted at the sight of the being that had just entered the cafe and was looking right at her.

To be continued.........