Wonderful Wizard of Nick - Chapter 5

Chapter 5 - Almost with the Wizard

Lila woke up with the first sun rays, and, after thanking Jenny for transporting her, the metal girl gently placed her back on the ground and Spunky, who had woken up a few moments before her, started walking next to the girl’s heels.

“Are we still far from the brick road?” Lila asked while Jimmy handled her the basket so she could take her and Spunky’s breakfast.

“Sadly, it seems so.” Jimmy informed her, the group still walking. “We tried to return in a straight line, but the terrain aside the river is very rocky and kinda dangerous, so we had to surround it. We’re still in the right direction to get back to the road, but we aren’t sure of how much we’ll still need to walk.”

Lila sighed and took a sip a milk before looking back, without stopping to walk; as the scarecrow said, there were several small rocky hills all over the place, and surrounding them was much easier than climbing them up but it obviously took a lot more time. Lila, being her usual optimistic self, decided to, at least, enjoy the walk, and certainly, the prairie seemed to be a nice, safe place for a hiking.

As the group continued walking, the grass and other plants were slowly getting replaced by beautiful scarlet flowers with a spicy scent; after a while, they were completely surrounded by these flowers, the group walking through a large meadow full of them.

“These flowers are beautiful. My teacher, Mister Simmons, would love coming here for a field trip... Heh, my friend Sheena would surely make herself a collar with them.” Lila giggled a bit.

“They’re nice, I guess... luckily, I don’t fear flowers.” Chuckie chuckled. “Even if these smell a bit weird.”

“I like the smell. It would be nice to have some of these flowers in a kitchen.” Lila commented, referring to the flowers’ spicy scent.

Apparently, Spunky agreed with her as the dog sniffed some of the flowers as the group continued walking.

“Mmm... that’s another thing I lack. The smell sense.” Jenny sighed.

“Yeah, I can’t smell a thing either.” Jimmy added. “Uh... it’s that a bad thing?”

“Depending on the situation; if you find something that smells nicely, yeah, it can be bad.” Lila explained him.

“But if you find a skunk... trust me, having no smell is a blessing.” Chuckie commented, rolling his eyes and cringing a bit, obviously referring a previous experience.

As the group continued walking, still surrounded by flowers everywhere, Spunky, slowly, stopped moving as much as usual, and in fact started yawning and walking quite slowly. Lila, yawning a bit as well, held him, and after a few more minutes, the dog was completely asleep.

“You need a break so soon? We hadn’t walked that much.” Jenny said to Lila, noticing the sleeping dog, and how the redhead was looking sleepy as well.

“I... I don’t feel... so good...” Lila yawned and almost fell down, but Jimmy caught her.

“Oh, no... does any of you think Lila is sick?” Jimmy asked his other companions. Jenny gave him a puzzled look but then she and Jimmy turned to see Chuckie, who was looking slightly drowsy himself.

“I... I don’t get it... Lila and Spunky... shouldn’t be like this after walking for such a short time... and... I don’t feel... so good myself...” Chuckie yawned before realization hit him. “The flowers... it’s the flowers’ scent!!! It’s poisonous or something... it makes you sleep if you smell it!!”

Jenny and Jimmy gasped at this; they were the only immune ones to the flowers’ scent, and therefore the only ones who could do something to solve this problem.

“We have to get the three of you out of here... and away from the flowers!!” Jenny grabbed both Lila and Spunky while Jimmy grabbed the basket and gave Chuckie a whole jar of coffee, the lion gulping it down in a few moments.

“Chuckie, you’re too big for Jenny and I to carry; you have to get out of here by your own. Run to the road as fast as you can, and wait for us.” Jimmy instructed his friend. Chuckie nodded, now partially reanimated by both the coffee and the fear-induced adrenaline.

“Okay... good luck.” The lion nodded at the scarecrow and metal girl, and, after giving Lila and Spunky a quick look, he dashed away, heading to the brick road at full speed. Soon, he was out of sight.

Jenny and Jimmy ran as fast as they could, but, even with Jenny’s strength, she still was a heavy metallic girl, and Jimmy’s straw-filled legs weren’t made for a long distance run, so they weren’t even close to Chuckie’s speed. After almost one hour of running, the duo stopped, finding Chuckie in the middle of the field, soundly sleep.

“How are we gonna help him? We can’t leave Chuckie here.” Jenny said to Jimmy. The scarecrow gave the lion a sad look and then turned back at Jenny.

“He’s strong; he can stand the flowers’ toxin much better than Lila or Spunky. We have to get them out of here first; we don’t know if this scent can kill them if they smell it for too long. We’ll return for Chuckie later, once we decide how to save him.”

Jenny agreed with Jimmy, and, after getting sure Chuckie was comfortable enough, they both went back to running. It took them more than half an hour of non-stop running to finally get out of the flowers’ field, and then they had to run for a few more minutes until they got far enough to decide it was safe to stop. Luckily, by this point, they could see the yellow brick road and the river they had crossed. Jenny gently dropped Lila and Spunky under a tree’s shadow, close to the river’s shore, hoping the humid air would help them recover faster from the flowers’ poison.

While Lila and Spunky slept, Jimmy and Jenny used this time to try coming up with a plan to save Chuckie; as they discussed their options, Jimmy helped lubricating Jenny’s joints, as she had been too close to humidity in the last two days and this was very risky for her.

“Okay... we really need to come up with a brilliant plan now...” Jimmy groaned. “Just our luck that Chuckie is the one who needs to be rescued. He might be a coward but he had been the one rescuing us so far. Not that you don’t do a good job at that, Jenny, I mean...”

“Yeah, I know, and I agree with you.” Jenny sighed while moving her arms to ensure a proper lubrication. “How are gonna rescue that... cat?”

“Yeah, he’s a very big cat, and...”

“No; over there. A cat.” Jenny interrupted Jimmy while pointing at a distance. As she said, there was a cat running next to the road; he was a very thin golden-furry tabby, his right eye blue-colored while the left was green. As he ran closer to the scarecrow and metallic girl, it became obvious he was chasing another animal, a little gray mouse.

“Hey, compadre, can’t we discuss this?” The mouse, with a strong Latino accent,  yelled back at the cat.

“Yes, let’s discuss it over dinner!!!” The very hungry cat replied, getting closer to the mouse.

“How I knew you were saying that?” The mouse yelped while dodging the cat’s claws.

“That’s not fair.” Jenny frowned and walked towards the cat and mouse chase after making a quick stop with Lila.

The cat was about to catch the mouse when a metallic foot stomped right ahead of him. The cat looked up at the very angry Jenny.

“So, you’re hungry, uh? Then... eat... THIS!!!”

“Argh, not in the face!!!!” The cat covered in fear but then smelled something and opened his eyes, getting a surprised expression. “A fish taco?”

“Yes, it’s obvious you are hungry. Come on, eat it.” Jenny said to the cat, who ate the taco immediately. Jenny then took a small paper bag out from Lila’s magical basket and handled it to the feline. “Here. Take it, and leave this mouse in peace.”

“Yes; peace. Love peace. Much better than ‘pieces’.” The mouse, who was now protecting himself behind Jenny’s legs, agreed with her.

“Oh, yeah, no problem.” The cat opened the bag and grinned. “Mmm... chimichangas... Oh, and that’s milk? I hit the jackpot.”

The very happy cat left the place and Jenny looked down at the mouse.

“You are safe now. He’ll not mess up with you, at least for now.”

“Lucky me, I found the only girl that carries a Mexican restaurant in her basket.” The mouse smiled at her. “Thanks a lot, Miss...”

“Jenny. And he’s my friend Jimmy.” The metallic girl pointed at the scarecrow. “And you’re welcome. You see, I have no heart, literally, so I always try to be nice to others ... with some exceptions... so I don’t end being cruel by accident.”

“Then, if you had a heart, it would be golden.” The mouse chuckled. “Oh, and my name’s Pip. Glad to meet you both.”

As Pip finished talking, several mice appeared out of nowhere, all of them looked both concerned and relieved.

“Sir, are you okay?” A random mouse asked Pip.

“Yes, luckily, this kind lady saved my neck.” Pip then turned back at Jenny. “You see, I’m pretty much the leader of all mice in this land... by democratic election, and hope I can make it good for next period... so, if you ever need any assistance, just go to some open field and yell for help. Some mouse will hear you, and they’ll tell me or assist you directly.”

“Very kind of you, Pip.” Jenny said to the mouse, not willing to offend the little animal by saying it was unlikely she’d ever need the help of such a small critter.

“And... we might take up your offer right now.” Jimmy added; Jenny turned at the beaming scarecrow and understood what he meant.

“Yeah... Pip, you think you and your mice can help us save a lion friend.”

“Okaaaay... Miss Jenny, I heard ‘think’, ‘your mice’, and ‘help us’, but did you also say ‘lion’?” Pip gulped a bit. “As in... a very large, stronger version of the animal that almost made a snack out of me?”

“Don’t worry, he’s not dangerous, and besides, he’s sleeping... that’s precisely the problem. Come here.” Jimmy said to the mice while leading them to where Lila and Spunky were sleeping, and explained everything to the rodents.

“Whoa; the red flowers? Ugh, those things are dangerous; they put you to sleep faster than my Uncle Gustavo’s bedtime stories.” Pip scratched his chin. “How did you escape?”

“Jenny and I don’t smell.” Jimmy explained. Pip sniffed the air.

“Mmm... actually, you do, especially you; really, Scarecrow, you need new clothes.” Pip then got serious. “I see your problem, but I don’t know how we’re gonna move something as big as a lion.”

- - -- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -  -

“I can’t believe we’re moving a lion.” Pip, his mouth and nose covered by a piece of clothing, commented to nobody in particular as he and a few hundred of his mice helped Jenny and Jimmy move Chuckie through the scarlet flowers’ meadow.

Jimmy and Jenny came up with a simple solution; the mice got a large bed sheet from a farm (they assured the scarecrow and metallic girl that they didn’t steal it) and then, after all the mice protected themselves with pieces of clothing that resembled surgery masks, they went with the duo to where the lion was sleeping. Once Jimmy and Jenny rolled him over the sheet, the mice helped them pull it, with Chuckie as an unconscious passenger; the combined force of Jenny, Jimmy, and their many small yet willing assistants was enough to transport the feline out of the field and away from the flowers, and soon he was (still sleeping) safely under the same tree Lila and Spunky had been sleeping. The girl and dog had already recovered and heard the story of how Jenny rescued Pip; to thank the mice for their assistance, Lila gave them some food from the basket, something they all appreciated, especially after carrying a lion for such a long distance.

“Mmm... these are good quesadillas. That Maria witch is quite the cook... remind me to move to her kitchen.” Pip half-joked before finishing his food. “Well, we better leave now. No offense, but being this close to a cat, especially such a large one, even if he’s sleeping, it’s not exactly my idea of a funny time.”

“We understand, and thanks again. We’re ever so grateful.” Lila smiled at the little rodent.

“You’re welcome, Miss. Okay, Mice, the last one pays the piper.” Pip said to the mice and a moment later they all left, while the group waved bye at them.

To recover faster from the flowers’ toxin, Lila washed her face on the river, and, a few hours later, when Chuckie woke up, his friends convinced him to do the same. As much as Chuckie didn’t want to get close to the river again, he was thankful for the cold water on his face.

“A lion defeated by flowers... and rescued by mice... Heh, hello, Low Self-Esteem, how had you been?” Chuckie sighed while the group went back to walking on the road.

“Don’t feel bad, Chuckie. After all, you already did some very daring deeds yesterday.” Jenny tried to cheer him up.

“Yeah... and guess it’s a good thing the flowers put me to sleep, because, otherwise, remembering all those things would give me nightmares.” Chuckie rolled his eyes and gently rejected a new jar of coffee Lila offered him. “Thanks, but I think I already have enough caffeine in my system to keep a bear from hibernating... and I had to say ‘bear’? Perfect.”

“I just hope we’re not far from Emerald City. This journey had been long and dangerous enough.” Lila sighed. Before Jimmy could comfort her, the scarecrow stopped and pointed at a distance.

“Call me ‘Obvious’, but that must be Emerald City!!!”

The group looked at the distance and wide opened their eyes at the huge, imposing city, with large emerald-colored towers behind a thick wall with green marble, polished smoothly: the whole place shined as a gigantic jewel.

“Yes, ‘Obvious’, that’s the place.” Jenny beamed. Now feeling much better, the travelers walked to the city with renewed energy.

As the group approached the city, they realized there were some small farms around it, obviously to provide food to the city’s people. Unlike the farms Lila saw when first arriving to this land, these fields weren’t corn or other crops’, but fruits and vegetables ones. Lila also noticed most of the trees were green apples and lemons’ ones, plus seeing several lettuce, broccoli, peas and watermelons fields, and the farms’ building and fences, like Emerald City itself, were green painted, and the farmers all used mostly green clothing.

“Mmm... they really like their greens in this place.” Lila commented to her friends. “But the farmers aren’t as sociable as Miracle City’s people. None had approached us.”

“Uh... Lila, I recognize their expressions.” Chuckie told her as the lion looked at the farmers. “They’re afraid; when you first arrived, you didn’t have a living scarecrow, a walking metal statue, and a lion at your side.”

“Oh. You’re right.” Lila now was getting a bit worried, thinking about this possible problem. “What if the city’s people fear us too, and they don’t let us see the wizard? That would be ever so terrible... Maybe they’d let me pass, but it wouldn’t be fair for my friends if I can see him and they can’t.”

Finally, the group arrived at the city’s wall, and, right at the end of the yellow brick road, they found the main entrance, a huge dark green door. Jenny saw a sign next to it, reading ‘To enter, please ring the bell’, and, next to the sign, she found a rope whose other end went inside the wall. The metallic girl gave it a good pull and several bells started ringing.

A moment later, a small hole opened on the door, and the group could see someone’s eyes.

“Alright, who’s there? Tell your name, motives of your visit, and who won the last game between the Lousy Lemons and the Large Lettuces.”

“Uh... okay, if you are talking about some kind of sport team, sorry, we don’t know.” Jimmy, as puzzled as his companions, replied to the one inside.

“Oh, Ultra-Rats. How could I miss last night game?” The guy groaned. Then, another pair of eyes appeared next to the first ones; this time, they were wearing round glasses.

“Sheen, you know you can’t ask those questions to the visitors. Just follow the procedure.” The guy with the glasses’ had a meek and low voice.

“Fine, Carl, let’s do it your way... The boring way.” The first guy, now identified as Sheen, talked to the group again. “Okay then, answer the first two questions... oh, and sorry, but if you’re bringing pets to the city, you have to put a leash on them, especially on the lion. I know, it’s a dumb rule, but some people don’t like getting eaten.”

“Oh, but he’s not a pet. He’s my friend, Chuckie.” Lila said, now ready to make the proper introductions. “And the scarecrow here is my friend Jimmy, and she’s my friend Jenny; I’m Lila Sawyer, and this little dog is Spunky...”

“He looks more clueless than spunky to me.” Sheen interrupted.

“No, his name is ‘Spunky’. And we came here to see if Mister Wizard of Nick can, please, attend us.” Lila finished in her usual polite way.

“You came to see the wizard?” Carl gasped.

“Let me handle this, Carl.” Sheen cleared his throat. “YOU CAME TO SEE THE WIZARD??? Are you brainless???”

“Well, I am.” Jimmy pointed at himself.

“Oh. Ouch.” Sheen paused a bit before continuing in his hyperactive, loud tone. “Still, you can’t just come and ask to see the wizard just like that!! You have to send a petition, make 10 copies, get a hundred signatures, and then wait at least for 90 days before we return you the petition and tell you that YOU CAN’T SEE THE WIZARD!!”

“Sheen is right. The wizard is our city’s ruler, and he’s a very busy person. You can’t come and ask for an audience with him just like that; if he wants to see you, he’ll be the one calling for you. That’s how it works.” Carl replied.

“Oh, come on... have a heart!!” Jenny groaned. “And if you have an extra one, give it to me.”

“Really, can’t you make an exception? We made a very long journey to come here, and it wasn’t easy or safe.” Jimmy pleaded.

“Yeah, I mean... two chasms, El Oso, the river, the flowers...” Chuckie got interrupted by Sheen.

“Stop right there. Don’t tell me the story; I’ll wait for the book... and then ask someone to read it for me and give me a summary without all the boring parts.”

“Please, don’t do this to us. We really need to see the wizard. We’ll be ever so grateful if you do.” Lila got closer to the door’s hole, the girl now getting teary eyes.

“Oh, no, not the puppy eyes... That’s cheating. Carl, you tell them.” Sheen groaned and closed his eyes. Carl was about to politely decline their request again when, suddenly, Lila’s forehead started glowing with a white light.

“S-Sheen, you have to see this...”

“If it’s a llama, Carl, I’m not... Ultra Wow, is that what I think it is?” Sheen wide opened his eyes.

“Uh... Lila, right?” Carl asked the nodding girl. “Do you know The Good Witch of The North?”

“Mrs Maria? Yes, I first met her when I arrived to this land. She’s the one who told me to come here.” Lila told them, unaware of her own glowing forehead and how her friends were staring at it now.

“Oh, my... this girl has good connections.” Sheen said to Carl.

“Yes... we can’t deny her entrance... and if the others come with her, then we must let them in too.” Carl replied.

“Yeah... okay, one moment.” Sheen closed the little hole and then the group could hear him and Carl removing several locks.

“Lila, how did you do the whole... glowing thing?” Jimmy asked her.

“Glowing?” Lila was puzzled for a moment until she looked up and saw a little bit of the glow before it disappeared. “The glowing... Oh, it’s Mrs Maria’s blessing. She gave it to me before sending me here... She told me it would be useful.”

“Of course. She’s a witch, and a good one, no less, so she’s a very important person here, and nobody wants to offend her. That blessing is pretty much your V.I.P. pass.” Jenny pointed out as the guards finally opened the door. Now the group could see them well, they realized Carl and Sheen weren’t much older or bigger than Lila; Carl was an obese redhead with a short hairdo, with a few freckles on his face, while Sheen was thin, slightly taller than him, and with a dark, spiky hairdo. Both of them were wearing green uniforms.

“Okay, look, we can’t leave our post, but we’ll get you someone to guide you to the palace. With some luck, you’ll get to see the wizard, or at least, talk with his assistant.” Carl said to the group while letting them in.

“Yes, one moment, please.” Sheen cleared his throat and then yelled. “HEY, LIBS, COME HERE!!! IT’S IMPORTANT!!”

While this ‘Libs’ arrived, the group could finally take a good look to the city. As expected, green was the predominant color in both the buildings and clothing, and even regular objects were mostly green.  Also, the city was clean, huge, and the citizens seemed to be happy, as most of them had nice expressions.

“Hey, this is a nice place.” Lila said to Carl, the girl visibly impressed.

“Thanks. The wizard usually doesn’t talk directly to his people, but, through his leadership, we have a very prosperous community. In fact, nobody works more than half-day shifts, and most people enjoy their jobs; that’s why you rarely see anyone angry here.” Carl explained her.

As they continued talking, a cocoa-skinned girl, with a braided hairdo, and a stylish green outfit, approached the group, giving Sheen an amused smile despite rolling her eyes.

“Sheen, I’ve told you, you don’t need to yell every time you wanna call me.” The girl said before looking at the newcomers. “Oh, hi; long time without any tourists here... Uh, you’re tourists, or a circus act?”

“No circus act, and no tourists; we came here on business. Sorta.” Jimmy shrugged at the girl.

“Libby-licious, these guys came to see the wizard.” Sheen said to the girl while placing an arm around her shoulders. “And before you say it’s not possible, well, we already told them that, but the girl comes with very good recommendations.”

“And those would be..?”

“The Good Witch of The North. She has her blessing, Libby; look.” Carl pointed at Lila’s forehead. Libby got a bit closer and the blessing mark appeared again for a few moments.

“Whoa. Talking about a fashion statement.” Libby was visibly impressed. “Okay, I’ll take you to the wizard’s palace. Just be on your best behavior, don’t bite the people, and if any of you needs to use the... sanitary facilities, tell beforehand.”

“Why you only looked at me when you said the ‘bite’ and ‘sanitary facilities’ bit?” Chuckie frowned a bit but then sighed and raised his left hand. “But yes, I need to use the bathroom.”

Once Chuckie made a quick stop at the guards’ restrooms, Libby took the group to the palace. Apparently, her job was precisely as a Tourists’ Guide, but due to the road’s dangers, very few people came to Emerald City, so she had a side work as fashion designer.

“... and let me tell you, it’s really hard to be creative when you only can use green tones.” Libby rolled her eyes while chatting with the group, mostly with Lila, who was the only one with some fashion knowledge. “Of course, the wizard allows us to use clothing on any color we want, but because of tradition, we stick mostly to green.”

“Oh, I think the city is ever-so beautiful. Still... you think the wizard will attend us?” Lila asked.

“Well, you first have to talk with his assistant. She’s my best friend, and she’s in charge of the palace; and with that blessing of yours, at least you can be sure the wizard will get your messages.” Libby answered as they finally arrived at the palace, the most prominent Emerald City’s building, with towers so big it reminded Lila of some skyscrapers back at home.

Libby rang the doorbell and told the group to be patient; apparently, since the city was very prosperous and the outer wall protected it well, the place only had a handful of guards and policemen, even at the palace, so it took a few minutes for someone to open the door.

“Coming.” The door finally opened, and the group saw a green-eyed blond girl, around Libby’s size, greeting them; like everyone else in the city, she was wearing green clothing, in her case, similar to an uniform, and, with a closer look, the group realized this girl was made of porcelain or china.

“Guys, she’s Cindy; the wizard’s right hand and semi-ruler of Emerald City.” Libby made the introductions.

“Libby, you know I’m not a semi-ruler or anything like that... even if, yes, I do most of the work around here.” Cindy rolled her eyes and smirked a bit. “So, who are your friends? If they’re looking for a job, we have a full staff right now.”

“No, Cindy, they came to request an audience with the wizard.”

“Uh... okaaaaay... Did you check if they have functional brains?”

“I don’t.” Jimmy pointed at himself. “And that’s precisely what I came to request.”

“Well, you really need it if you think it’s so easy to get an audience with The Wizard. I barely see him, and I work here.” Cindy was about to continue her tirade when Lila’s forehead started to glow again. “Wow.”

“Yep. A good witch’s blessing.” Libby grinned at her friend. “So, I think you should at least inform the wizard about this group and their requests.”

“Yes, please.” Lila said to Cindy. “First, hello, and thanks for receiving us. My name is Lila Sawyer, and I need to return home.”

“My name’s Jimmy, and I need a brain.”

“My name’s Jenny, and I need a heart.”

“My name’s Chuckie, and I need courage.”

“My name’s Cindy, and I need a break.” Cindy groaned and rubbed her temples. “Okay, come in. I’ll tell the wizard about this while you wait at the main room. Make yourself at home... and I want no paws on the furniture.”

Spunky and Chuckie nodded at the last part as the group finally entered the palace; as they expected, it was quite magnificent, and Chuckie found himself intimidated again.

“Now I fear touching anything; if I break it, I’m not gonna need courage but a very good loan with a life-long credit.” Chuckie cringed.

“Gee, you really need the courage.” Cindy told the lion as she leaded them to a room where they could wait.

“Before you go... this wizard is as good as everyone says?” Jimmy asked her.

“You tell me. He fixed me.” Cindy rolled one of her uniform’s sleeves to reveal what seemed to be a very little crack. “I broke my whole body some time ago... as you can realize, porcelain is very fragile. The wizard fixed me with a special liquid of his, and I’ve been working here since then. He even made enough of this special liquid so I can cover myself with it regularly; thanks to that, my body is no longer as breakable as before.”

Jimmy and the others were satisfied with this explanation, showing that the wizard definitely was resourceful and he’d be able to help them. Cindy left the room and didn’t return until almost one hour later; in the meantime, Libby stayed with them and started telling them some generalities about the city and the palace to keep them entertained while Cindy returned.

“What did he tell you?” Jenny, quite eagerly, asked Cindy the moment she re-entered the room.

“He’s a very busy guy, but he agreed on seeing you all and hear your requests. However, he’ll only see you one after the other, and that will be tomorrow. The first appointment will be in the morning, next one at noon, then at mid-afternoon, and final one in the evening.” Cindy told them. “He also instructed me to have you well attended while you wait for your turn, so, until you see the wizard, consider me your host.”

The group was a bit disappointed that they would need to wait a bit more before talking with the wizard, but, considering how important he was, and that he still was attending them, they all agreed with his terms. Cindy then took them out of the room, and she and Libby, with help from the rest of the palace’s staff, prepared them to spend the night.

X-X-X-X-X

(Now, for the notes. Pip, the mouse, is from ‘Back to the Barnyard’, while the cat chasing him was Max, a secondary character from ‘The Penguins of Madagascar’. The rest of the characters introduced in this chapter, namely Sheen, Carl, Libby and Cindy, are from ‘The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron, Boy Genius.’ And, again, the flowers and how the group handles them are part of the original story, as Pip does a gender-bending role here, taking the place of The Queen of the Field Mice. And, of course, Cindy's character is a reference to the most recent Oz movie that serves as a prequel to the original story.)