The next morning Dorothy and her friends met in front of the throne room.
Everyone but Dorothy was very excited to see Oz.
"Congratulate me," said the Scarecrow. "Today Oz will give me a brain."
Dorothy looked at her friends and said, "I like you all as you are.
A brain, a heart, and courage cannot change that."
"That is kind of you to say," said the Scarecrow.
"But I would like a brain all the same."
"Shall we go in?" asked the Tin Man.
The Lion knocked on the door of the throne room.
"Come in," called Oz.
They found him sitting at a desk next to the window. He was thinking deeply.
"I have come for my brain," said the Scarecrow softly.
"Oh yes," said Oz. "Sit down please.
First I must place this hat upon your head.
Okay, with the power vested in me, I confer a doctorate in philosophy from the University of Oz to the Scarecrow.
Congratulations, Scarecrow. Here is your diploma."
"Does this mean I have a brain?" asked the Scarecrow.
"It does indeed," said Oz.
"In fact, your friends should call you Doctor Scarecrow from now on."
The Tin Man stepped forward. "I have come for a heart."
"Very well," said Oz. "But I will have to cut a hole in your chest, and it might hurt."
"I'm not worried about that," said the Tin Man.
"I can bear any amount of pain for a heart."
Oz took a pair of tin shears from his desk and cut a square hole in the Tin Man's chest.
He put a small, heart-shaped clock inside the Tin Man.
"There," said Oz. "You have a heart that any regular man would be proud of."
"Thank you," replied the Tin Man proudly.
The Lion then walked forward and said, "I have come for my courage."
"Here you are," said Oz. He handed a small green bottle to the Lion.
"What is it?" asked the Lion.
"Well, if it were inside you, it would be called courage. Drink it!" said Oz.
"How do you feel?" asked Oz after the Lion had drunk all the liquid in the bottle.
"Full of courage," roared the Lion.
The Scarecrow, the Tin Man, and the Lion walked out of Oz's throne room proudly.
Dorothy remained behind and asked, "Have you found a way for me to return to Kansas?"
"No," said Oz sadly.
"It was easy to make the Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Lion happy because they believed I could do anything.
But I will need a lot more than my imagination to help you get back to Kansas."
Dorothy stayed with her happy friends while she waited for Oz to think of a plan.
After four days Oz came to her and said, "There might be a way."
"To return to Kansas?" Dorothy asked eagerly.
"Yes," said Oz. "The one major problem for us is getting across the Great Desert.
Once we cross the desert, finding Kansas should be easy.
And I think I know how we can cross the desert."
"How?" asked Dorothy.
"In a hot-air balloon," answered Oz.
"But how will you make it fly?" asked Dorothy.
"Well, there are two ways to make a balloon fly," answered Oz.
"With gas or hot air. There isn't any gas in Oz, so we will use hot air."
"We?" asked Dorothy.
"Yes, of course," said Oz. "I can't let you go alone.
But it will take me at least a week to get everything ready.
We are going to need a large balloon made of silk and a giant basket to ride in.
We'll also need a bunch of ropes to tie the balloon to the basket."
"Can I help?" asked Dorothy.
"If you can sew, you can help to make the balloon," answered Oz.