Oz

It was beautiful, there was no doubt in Ilithyia's mind about that. There were so many towers she couldn't count them all, the peaks of them a beautiful shade of blue she had never seen before. The walls were white, but not the kind of white that would remind her of boredom, but the dazzling kind of white. When the sun rose over the beautiful mountains before them, its rays striking the castle's many surfaces, Ilithyia could not contain her gasp. She had thought the Emerald City was the most beautiful city in all of Oz, but she had definitely been wrong.

Someone chuckled to her left, causing her wide mouth to snap shut, her cheeks tinging pink, "I take it you haven't seen the good witch's castle before?"

She shook her head at the curly haired stranger, biting her lip, "I've never seen anything more glorious."

Harry nodded his head in agreement, his own green eyes taking in the large fortress before him. The two had been pretty much inseparable since they stumbled upon one another in the dark forest. Harry had endless stories of all of his endeavors and Ilithyia yearned to take a walk in his shoes. He was living her dream and she couldn't help but let her imagination get the best of her when he was around. She needed to see everything he had already seen, and know all that he knows- plus Harry didn't seem to mind telling her of all his adventures.

"You mean to tell me that out of everything you have seen, all the tales you have been spilling to me, you haven't seen anything more beautiful either?" her eyebrows rose with curiosity as she tilted her head up to look at him, the two trekking behind the rest of the group.

He shrugged his shoulders, digging his hands into the pockets of his raggedy jeans, "just being honest."

He was always honest, for a thief.

"Hey you two, the guards are going to let us in if you'll hurry up," Liam hollered, snapping them out of their conversation.

Ilithyia chuckled under her breath as she quickened her pace to meet the others at the front of a very large gate. The protective walls stood taller than any castle's she had ever seen before, and four guards stood awaiting their arrival. When she and Harry joined Liam and the others he nodded towards the smallest guard. The man brought his hand up to his mouth and yelled something really loud, causing Cecily to yelp with surprise and the rest of them to fall into a fit of giggles. Even Liam couldn't help but crack a smile.

The magnificent gates before them swung open slowly to reveal the inner workings of the city behind the large fortress. There weren't many people bustling about, just a few here and there, the place seemingly deserted. The fact that there weren't hundreds of people hurrying around made the girl's stomach churn as she shot Rowan a worried look.

They did not know what to expect upon coming here. So far it had been a lot easier than any of them had thought. Niall was sure there would be guards all over the place, corrupt by whoever was causing all of the mischief in Oz. So far no one had rushed up to them, no one had tried to make an arrest, and no one had been hurt. Everything seemed perfectly fine, and that had to mean that everything most certainly was not.

"Any ideas Liam?" Rowan mumbled, her eyes scanning the place carefully as they walked.

"Anyone else feel seriously creeped out?" Cecily whimpered.

It was then that Liam stopped, turning to look at each of them before his eyes got this determined look about them. He always seemed to know just what to do, and apparently this instance was no different.

"You two," he nodded to Niall and Rowan, "you take the left, search high and low for anything out of the ordinary."

Niall smirked over at Rowan, winking before adjusting the strap of his backpack across his shoulders. Liam looked over at Louis and his sister next, then at Harry, "You three are with me, we're going into Glenda's castle."

"Lith, Cecily," they both nodded to show that they were listening, "I want you two to take the right. Stick together, and please, no wandering."

Cecily looks down at her shoes with guilt, while Ilithyia's cheeks turned pink. Everyone seemed to know which ways they were going and what job was their own, but splitting up made Ilithyia feel uneasy. This was her turn for adventure and she was freezing.

"We'll meet back here before nightfall, if anyone of us runs into danger high tale it back here. There is a brewery right down that alley way," He threw his thumb over his shoulder, "It's a safe place."

"There has to be some sort of clue, some indicator as to where all of this power is coming from- find it!" Liam had never looked like more of a leader than he did in that moment, and the nervousness the blonde girl had been feeling evaporated.

The two girls watched as everyone went their separate ways, before sharing a knowing look and doing the same.