Once the relatives were gone, Ms. Frizzle was ready to get the trip started.
"Come along class", she said, "we can't go on a trip if we stay in one place". The students cheered as they made their way to the bus. Once they got in the bus, Ms. Frizzle drove off and began the trip.
Ms. Frizzle looked at her new students through the mirror. She sensed that this class had a unique trait that would make them the best students she has ever taught.
"This year will be spectacular, am I right Liz?". Liz eagerly nodded her head. She too was very excited about the year that was to come and was happy to finally get it started.
Ms. Frizzle smiled as she showed her expression. "I'm glad that we can agree with each other. Speaking of our class, could you check on our students to see how they're doing?". Liz nodded as she began to walk in the bus.
Once she made her way to the back, she found Carlos and Ralphie sitting together in the last row. Liz decided to sit next to them and listen to their conversation.
"So, this will be your first-time camping?", Carlos asked.
"It sure is", Ralphie responded.
"Well, I'll let you in on a little tip. Prepare yourself for a lot of physical activities".
"Carlos, I'm pretty sure that being active is one of the main purposes of a camping trip".
"But it's not as simple as it sounds. Nearly all the activities that'll probably be held will be done outdoors, and it can be tiring after a while on a summer day like today. We may as well be chairishing our time in the bus while we can!".
"Ha ha haa, good one Carlos".
Liz was also chuckling to herself at the joke. She could see that these two were becoming friends at a quick rate. Feeling satisfied with what she saw, Liz left the duo and made her way up the bus. Her next stop was at the middle rows where Dorothy, Keesha, and Wanda were sitting. Like she did with Carlos and Ralphie, Liz sat in and listened to their conversation as well.
"This whole trip has me confused", Keesha said to herself. "Why would any teacher want to spend time with their students before the first day of school?".
"I will admit that it is not typical for a teacher to do this", Dorothy replied, "but there are plenty of positive aspects to this. Think about it: this trip could introduce us to what she will teach us this year. We could be getting a head start on our studies, which—
"Our studies?", Wanda interjected. "No one wants to study during summer break. Summer time is when people go on all sorts of adventures, and a camping trip is the perfect trip to be adventurous!".
Dorothy was intrigued by her statement. "Well, I can understand why you'd want this trip to be fun and all, but I think it's still important to include an education component in a school trip as well".
"Girls", Keesha asked, "are you sure that she won't have a mix of both educational and adventurous components?".
Wanda and Dorothy both looked at Keesha once she finished her sentence. "That's a good point Keesha", Dorothy replied after thinking about her statement. Wanda nodded her head in agreement.
Liz sighed to herself at that point. Even though they finished their discussion, she still wondered about the trio and how they would interact with each other throughout the year. She made a note to tell Ms. Frizzle about the conversations when she finished checking in.
Afterwards, Liz continued to make her way to the front of the bus. While she was walking, Tim managed to notice her walking by.
"Hi Liz", Tim said in an attempt to get her attention. Liz heard him and stopped by his seat to wave at him.
"You know, I have to admit that you seem to be very talented for a lizard". Liz could only blush after Tim made his statement, which caused him to chuckle.
"Hey Liz, could you hold still for a moment?". Liz complied as Tim got his sketchbook out. "And we are finished", Tim said as he turned his book towards Liz. On it was a portrait of Liz in the pose that she was in. Liz was flattered and began to lick Tim's face once she saw the drawing.
"I knew that you would like it", Tim said as he petted Liz in response.
Once Liz calmed down, Tim ripped the page out and gave it to Liz. Liz nodded her head in thanks and continued to walk down the aisles. Once she got towards the front rows, she noticed that Arnold and Phoebe were having a conversation.
"It's nice to meet you Arnold".
"It's nice to meet you too Phoebe".
The duo sat in silence for a second before Arnold spoke up.
"Don't you think that this trip seems kind of unusual?".
"It does when you think about the rarity of a field trip, but what's odd about a field trip?'.
"The fact that this trip is happening before the first day of class. Ms. Frizzle barely knows us and is willing to take us on a field trip, which by itself is rare. Just thinking about it make me nervous".
Liz chuckled to herself. She could tell that Arnold would be stunned by what he would be witnessing over the course of the weekend.
"Well, you make a good point when you put it that way. At my old school, we were lucky if we got to go on one field trip".
"So, you're a new student?".
"I sure am! In fact, this will be my first year at Walkerville Elementary".
As they continued to converse, Liz looked around and noticed that she had checked on all the students. Feeling satisfied, she made her way to the front of the bus.
"Wonderfully done Liz", Ms. Frizzle said as Liz jumped on her lap. Afterwards, Ms. Frizzle looked at the notes that Liz had written down. Feeling pleased with the information that was written down, the duo winked at each other.
9:15 P.M., Camp Site
The class was excited and cheered as the bus was parked. "All right class", Ms. Frizzle requested, "grab your stuff and put it on the porch of the cabins! We will unpack and claim beds later. Oh, don't forget to introduce yourselves to any of the classmates you haven't met yet".
The classmates did as they were told and gathered under the camp's pavilion once they finished. From there, they enjoyed a dinner of PB&J sandwiches.
10:00 P.M., Camp Pavilion
"Has everyone enjoyed their first night?".
The students cheered in response.
"I'm glad that all of you are having fun! Unfortunately, we are running short on time, so we will be taking showers and going to bed very soon".
The class expressed disappointment when she finished her statement.
"But before we wrap this up", she resumed, "I want to share some very important information with every one of you. You see the bus over there? The one we rode on to get here?".
The students nodded their heads.
"That bus isn't a typical school bus. My bus actually has magical capabilities".
"Magical capabilities", the class asked in unison.
"That's correct! Good guess class".
The students sat there with confused looks on their faces. A few moments later, Arnold spoke up.
"What do you mean by 'magical capabilities?'".
"Good question Arnold! This bus is capable of going anywhere imaginable. Do you want to go to outer space? My bus can get you there in the blink of an eye! Have you ever wanted to go in the depths of an ocean? My bus will let you explore that ocean without the need for lessons on scuba diving".
The students were more confused than they were before Ms. Frizzle told them about the bus.
"That's impossible", the class stated in unison. To them, this concept seemed impossible. After all, they figured that magical buses were things that could only exist in things like TV shows or books.
"Oh class", Ms. Frizzle countered, "you all make excellent points. It should be physically impossible for a magical bus to exist. At the same time, you'll find things in life that are so unique that they often go against common knowledge. Anyhow, I think it's time for us to catch some Z's. Good night class!". Liz hopped on Ms. Frizzle's shoulder as she left the pavilion.
11:00 P.M., Boys Area
Once the group was dismissed, the boys made their way to their bath house to get their showers in. During this time, all of them thought long and hard about Ms. Frizzle's information and why she shared it with them. After their showers, they made their way to their cabin where they got ready for bed.
"Is anyone still confused about this trip", Ralphie asked.
All the boys nodded their head in agreement.
"I'm glad that I'm not the only one", Ralphie said. "First, she wants to do this trip before the beginning of the year, and now her bus is magical? Something tells me that our teacher is crazy".
"I think your right Ralphie", Arnold added. "Personally, I'm starting to wonder if I should have stayed home this weekend".
"Exactly! We would at least be safe in Walkerville, but now we are in the middle of nowhere with a crazy teacher that we barely know".
"Will you two just stop for a second", Carlos interjected. Arnold and Ralphie then directed their attention towards Carlos.
"I do agree that our teacher is strange and that this trip is unusual, but that is beyond our control. All we can do is go along with her plans".
"But what are her plans", Arnold asked.
Carlos shrugged. "Your guess is as good as mine. We may go on wacky adventures, or we may just get to imagine things. I'd like to think that she's pulling a prank on us, but she sounded so serious when she brought it up".
"I know", Arnold added. "That's what scares me the most. I'm starting to wonder if she has some kind of injury or issue that she hasn't told us about".
Ralphie nodded his head in agreement. "My mom is a doctor, so I wonder if I can get our teacher to schedule an appointment with her".
"Can we stop for a moment", Tim asked. The trio suddenly turned towards Tim. "We haven't even been with Ms. Frizzle for a day and we are already deciding that she has issues?".
"Have you been listening to our conversation", Ralphie asked.
"I have", Tim replied, "and the conclusions we are arriving at are ridiculous. She may seem odd, but that doesn't make her evil. I was even informed that Ms. Frizzle was the most popular teacher at the school when I went to register for the year, so she must be doing something right. Look, can we agree to let this trip pass before we begin to judge her?".
"I guess we could", Arnold stated. Carlos nodded while Ralphie stayed still.
"Good", Tim replied. "Now let's get some sleep. It sounds like we have an interesting week ahead of us".
Once Tim finished his statement, he went to the light switch and turned the lights off. Afterwards, the boys slowly went to sleep.
11:00 P.M., Girls Area
Like the boys, the girls also took their showers and made their way to bed. However, their cabin was very quiet once they all got to their beds.
After a few minutes had passed, Keesha spoke up. "Is everyone else confused about the 'magical bus' story?".
The other girls nodded.
"I'm glad that I'm not the only one", Keesha responded. "She appears to be nice, but the bus story seems fishy".
"She may have told it just to get us worried", replied Dorothy. "After all, scary stories and pranks are traditions that people typically partake in on camping trips".
"So, what you're saying is that Ms. Frizzle gave us false information about her bus just to prank us?".
"Absolutely. There's no better way to get a group of strangers to be comfortable with you than to make them laugh".
"Oh, I hope that's not the case", Phoebe responded. "Pulling a prank on someone is probably the riskiest way to break the ice".
"Well, as false as her story may be, I wish it were true", Wanda said to herself. The other girls turned their attention to her at that point.
"Are you crazy?", Keesha asked. "Did you hear what she said about that bus?'.
"I did", Wanda replied, "and it sounds awesome! A bus that can go to places like space or the ocean? That sounds like a recipe for an epic adventure!".
"And that's why it seems suspicious", Keesha said. "These kinds of trips are things that would typically be done by trained professionals, not kids".
The group stared at each other for a few seconds.
"Why don't we stay up and catch Ms. Frizzle before she pranks us", Dorothy asked.
"Great idea", Keesha said. "That'll not only prevent her from scaring us, but it'll also give us a chance to question her".
Once she finished her statement, Dorothy, Keesha, and Wanda got out of their beds and began to set up a mini fort. On the other hand, Phoebe stayed in her bed with a worried look on her face.
11:00 P.M., Boat Ramp/Lake Decatur
While the students were sleeping, or getting ready to sleep, Ms. Frizzle set up a tent by the lake. Once she set it up, she laid on the grass with Liz by her side.
"What a lovely night", Ms. Frizzle said to herself as she looked at the lake. Liz nodded her head in agreement.
"And I'm glad that you're getting to share this experience with me".
Liz contently sighed.
"Liz, you've always been an amazing friend. From helping me with schoolwork to calming me down when I'm stressed out, you've always been there to help. To be honest, I'm not sure that I would've been able to handle my job as much as I have without your help".
She began to cry as she finished her phrase. Sensing her emotions, Liz jumped on her shoulder and licked her face as she began to cry as well.
"Oh Liz", Ms. Frizzle resumed, "come here you goofball!". At this point, Ms. Frizzle began to tickle Liz in response to her decision to lick her face while their tears still rolled down their faces.
Liz fell asleep shortly after this moment, whereas Ms. Frizzle was still awake. However, Ms. Frizzle's attention was now directed towards Liz instead of the lake.
"You still look just as adorable as you did when we first met. And to think that you would turn out to be my best friend".
As she said this, she carefully picked Liz up and brought her to her chest.
"Shh", she whispered as she rocked her, "don't let anything bother you. Auntie Frizz is here for you. Everything will be all right".
Ms. Frizzle began to sniffle as she held Liz. After a few minutes had passed, she took another look at her sleeping friend.
"Liz", she declared, "I promise that I'll start treating you like a real friend. No longer will I have you doing my menial work, but you'll also be able to go on any class trip that you want to attend. I hope that this'll allow us to grow closer to each other. I also hope that it'll give me a chance to make up for all the challenges that you had to go through".
She kissed Liz on her cheek after she finished her statement. Once she finished the kiss, Ms. Frizzle laid down and continued to look at the lake as she continued to hold and pet Liz.