Bravery was not by any means easy, particularly for one as inexperienced as Oscar was. The reality of the fact that he would not have had any of his recent experiences if not for Oz's affect on his life was not lost on him-- but, where would he be otherwise? It was harvest season-- he would be in the fields tending to the grains, doing emergency repairs to the machinery that he could fix, and helping his Aunt with the canning they did annually.

Nothing in his life would have been an adventure that had been swept from the pages of a fairy tale. He didn't regret his decision to follow the instructions of that foreign voice in his head to learn the answers he never would have found otherwise.

"I think we can all help each other here," Oscar replied, nodding quietly with his words. The unspoken apology was not lost on him. "The locals won't; we're all we've got. But... the others have complicated feelings about all of this, and it's not going to be easy for you or anyone..."