Oz: The Great and Powerful Junior Novel Disney Book Group by Disney Press Read Free Book Online Page B

just stared at each other. This little girl was quite possibly smarter than both of them.

    Oz now found himself back on the Yellow Brick Road with a flying monkey and a girl made of china. And they were on their way to kill a witch.
    The china village quickly faded behind them, and soon they found themselves in a dark forest. Bats fluttered past as they made their way deeper and deeper into the trees. From high in a tree, a crow as black as night cawed a warning to them that that would not make it out of the woods alive. This gave everyone the creeps, but no one more than China Girl, who lifted her arms up to Oz so she could be carried. Oz obliged and picked her up, only to notice Finley with his arms raised and a “pick me up too” look on his face. Oz just rolled his eyes and the trio kept moving.
    “This is terrifying, but at least there are no spiders,” Finley said. “I hate spiders,” the monkey admitted. The place was giving him the spooks. And he wasn’t alone.
    “Do you think there are ghosts out here?” China Girl asked.
    “No, of course not,” Oz responded, trying to convince both her and himself that there weren’t any.
    “Evil spirits, maybe? The undead?” she countered.
    “The und—? Would you stop that!” Oz yelled. He didn’t think he could be more afraid—until a glowing snapdragon-like flower lunged from the forest at them, causing them all to scream. More and more of the odd snapdragon flowers attacked, causing Oz, China Girl, and Finley to weave and dodge out of their way…and run!
    Rounding a corner, the trio was able to slow down and catch their breath. “Oh my gosh, that was close!” China Girl said. But before she could continue, something caught her eye. “Where are we?” she asked, and when Oz and Finley turned to look, they grew even more frightened. There, in front of them, was a rusty fence. And behind the fence was a sea of gravestones set amid bent and gnarled trees.
    “This must be the place,” Oz muttered under his breath.
    “So how you gonna kill the Witch?” China Girl asked when they reached the graveyard’s edge. Unlike Oz, she seemed to be enjoying the idea.
    “All I need to do is get a hold of her wand,” Oz said grumpily. At least that was what Evanora had told him before she sent him off. “Once I destroy that, she’s finished.”
    “Why don’t you just use this?” she asked, pulling out a large knife.
    “Hey!” Oz cried, taking a step back. “Where’d you get that?!”
    The girl shrugged. “I’m made of china,” she said matter-of-factly. “I’ve got to protect myself somehow.”
    “Give me that! Honestly!” Oz yelled. This was out of control. Not only was he supposed to be killing a witch, he had a knife-carrying girl made of china trying to help. It was beyond absurd. If he weren’t so scared, he might have even laughed. But he didn’t. Instead, he grabbed the knife.
    “Honestly yourself,” China Girl muttered. Then something appeared that caught their attention.
    At the edge of cemetery, a lone figure in a long black cloak appeared through the thick fog. All three of them ducked behind a nearby boulder. Carefully, they peered over the edge. The Witch was literally floating through the air. As they watched, she landed next to the cemetery gate and pulled a basket from her cloak. Then she bent down to pick some flowers. As she worked, she placed her wand on a broken-down cart nearby, unaware that she was being watched. Oz shivered.
    “That must be her,” China Girl said.
    “She put down the wand,” Oz replied, sure that this was the Wicked Witch that he had to defeat.
    “But how are you going to get it?” China Girl asked.
    He racked his brain, trying to figure out a plan. Then it hit him! In magic, the most important element was misdirection. If the magician could get the audience to look that way while he did something this way, they were never aware of the sleight of hand, and the trick was a success. All he needed was some