This chapter took longer to finish than I would have liked. I had surgery last week and I lost my writing spirit for a few days while the painkillers lulled my brain.

Anne and Sprig stood in their room with full suitcases on their beds. They spent the last hour gathering all the things they'd need for their journey to Newtopia.

"Alright, let's see if we've got everything packed," said Sprig. "We need to be prepared for everything that can happen.

Anne grabbed a piece of paper. "I got the list! First up is clothes."

"Yeah, we packed plenty of those," said her frog brother.

"Toiletries, yep." Anne silently hoped she would get some higher quality stuff in Newtopia but didn't voice the thought. "Games?"

"Uh huh," said Sprig excitedly. "I grabbed a few from Emma's room. I almost died trying to get out but I figured out that puzzle door."

"You what!?" Anne didn't really mean to yell but she couldn't help it. "When you put games on the list I thought you meant the cheap stuff in the basement! I didn't want you to almost die!" It's been over a year and Anne still can't fully comprehend amphibians' casual acceptance of death.

"Well I didn't," said Sprig, oblivious to Anne's distress. "Did you pack snacks?"

Anne sighed. "Yep, all kinds of bugs. Did you pack your slingshots?" asked Anne.

"Yep!" Sprig held one slingshot in each hand. "I've got the magic one and a normal one." He knew he would've spent all day trying to pick a normal one if Anne hadn't chosen one for him.

"Multiple pairs of sunglasses? Can't forget those," said Anne as Sprig put the slingshots back in his bag.

"I've got those too," said Sprig. "You never know when you'll need to look cool."

Anne nodded. "And last on the list: dumb touristy stuff!"

"Yep!" Sprig held up a book labeled 101 Useless Things to Do in Newtopia. "I found this last week when we collected all the books. And if that's it, then we're fully packed!"

"Woohoo! Spranne against the world!" exclaimed Anne. "By the way, how long will we be gone?" asked Anne.

"That's a great question!" said Sprig. "And the answer is…" he froze. "I have no idea. Good thing we packed so much!"

"Yeah, it sure took a while."

Anne and Sprig turned to see Polly standing in the doorway.

"How long have you been standing there!?" Sprig demanded.

Polly shrugged. "A while. I finished packing thirty minutes ago. You two are slow."

"What's even in your bag anyway?" asked Anne.

"Weapons, of course!" Polly opened her suitcase, showing that she had taken plenty of stuff from Pollianna's chamber. "I'm gonna go to the Newtopian Weapons Guild with Sasha and Grime! We're gonna show them our stuff!"

"Does Hop Pop know about that?" asked Sprig.

Polly smirked. "What he doesn't know won't hurt him."

"Ouch! I didn't know there was a nail sticking out of the floor!"

Hop Pop tended to his injured foot as he mentally cursed himself over allowing this trip to Newtopia. He hadn't left the valley in a long time, not since that fateful trip six years ago. If he stayed in Wartwood, then he could've defended his family from the herons. He has no idea if he would've been successful, but Sprig and Polly might not have lost their parents.

Newtopia may be the one place in Amphibia to be somewhat safe from dangerous beasts, but Hop Pop has read and heard enough to know the city had dark secrets and ancient knowledge to be wary of. That being said, he couldn't deny Anne the chance to see her friend. But maybe he could dissuade everyone from looking for the music box. He didn't want a dangerous device anywhere near his three grandchildren, and he imagined Grime and Marcy's guardians would feel the same if they had his book.

He sighed when he saw he wasn't bleeding. "I should be folding these last few ascots. They require a very delicate fold."

Once he was done with the ascots, Hop Pop stepped back and looked at what he had packed. "Alright, clothes are done." He grabbed a piece of paper from his desk. "I've got my acting resume ready— Newtopian theater is gonna love me!" He put the paper in the suitcase and placed a spray bottle next to it. "I'll also need Ol' John's Cologne. Anything else?"

Hop Pop looked around the room and paused once he came upon his books. He hadn't paid much attention to it before, but now that he was looking at his book collection it was clear that it had been disturbed. None of the books were in the right order and one of them was missing entirely. The family tome was still there, but it was awkwardly placed back on his desk after Polly took it without his knowledge. He grabbed it and placed it on top of the ascots.

"I better take this too. Just in case."

Hop Pop walked downstairs with his bag and joined his grandkids in the living room. He froze when he noticed the kids were struggling to keep their bags closed. "Kids, what are those?" asked the old frog, pointing to the bags.

"They're our suitcases!" said Anne.

Sprig raised an eyebrow. "You told us to pack our bags, Hop Pop."

"Those bags are practically overflowing!" said Hop Pop. "I bet lots of that stuff ain't important. Like a book that's missing from my room?"

Sprig crossed his arms. "It's a book about Newtopia! It'll tell us cool stuff to do!"

"You won't need that— the royal court is providing for us." Hop Pop's mood visibly became happier. "We're gonna live like rich people!"

"But rich people travel with lots of stuff in their bags!" Polly protested.

"Yeah, well…" Hop Pop paused as he realized he couldn't refute that. "Okay."

"What's even in your bag anyway?" asked Sprig. "It's pretty big."

"Mostly clothes." He didn't get any more specific. They couldn't know he packed three dozen ascots.

"So what's Newtopia like?" asked Sasha as she and Grime exited the inn/tea shop with their baggage.

"Overly bureaucratic," was Grime's short reply.

Sasha blinked. "Burea—what?"

"It means there's lots of rules." Grime sighed when he saw Sasha's disappointed expression. "But there's also lots of fun stuff to do there!"

That seemed to lift Sasha's mood. "Yeah! Marcy will show me and Anne all the cool stuff in town!"

"You three should check out the Newtopian Colosseum! I was a champion fighter there in my younger days." added Grime. "And don't forget the Weapons Guild! You're bound to become the youngest member. Well, second youngest."

"Do they even allow members as young as me and Polly?"

Grime tightened his fist. "They will."

Just then, a distant "ca-caw" was heard. Sasha and Grime looked up to see two birds (a sparrow and a finch) approaching the town.

"Ah," said Grime. "There's our ride."

The sparrow landed near the front gate and Karina, the pink dignitary who had been Wartwood's contact with Newtopia, stepped off. "Alright, we don't have all day." She pointed to the finch which landed behind her. "Place your belongings on the other bird."

Grime placed the bags on the finch while Sasha hopped up on the sparrow.

"Once again, I'd like to say that we're leaving today, Plantars!" Karina angrily yelled toward the farm.

Hop Pop kicked open the front door as he and his grandkids exited. "Okay, okay, we're comin'."

"So who's gonna watch the farm while we're gone?" asked Anne.

Hop Pop smiled. "Chuck, of course!"

"I grow tulips."

Anne turned around and saw a green frog with a straw hat covering his eyes standing in front of the farm. "He definitely wasn't there ten seconds ago."

"Yeah, Chuck comes and goes," said Sprig. "But he's super reliable and efficient!"

Chuck bowed his head. "Tulips."

"He's kind of obsessed with tulips," said Polly.

Anne was still a bit confused but nodded anyway.

When the Plantars reached the birds, they saw that most of the Wartwoodians had gathered around the town entrance.

"Wow! You're all here!" exclaimed Anne.

"Of course we came to see you off!" said Mrs. Croaker. "You might not come back until you find a way home."

"But you better not leave Amphibia without saying goodbye to the rest of us first!" Soggy Joe shouted.

"I would never do that!" protested Anne. "Wartwood is my second home. When we find the music box, me and Marcy and Sasha are gonna go back to Earth and come back here again and again forever!"

The Wartwoodians all cheered at that. (No one noticed Hop Pop's big frown.)

"That's good, and we'll be rooting for you every step of the way!" said Felicia. "Plus, I've been thinking about periodically sending you kids gifts and supplies."

There were nods and murmurs of agreement.

Happy tears came to Anne's eyes. "Aww… thanks, you guys." The Wartwoodians wrapped Anne in a group hug. It was honestly really heartwarming.

"Any day now!" shouted Karina. She was completely ignored.

While all the adults were hugging Anne, Maddie and Ivy approached Sprig and Polly.

"You should take these explosion pouches with you," said Maddie, handing Polly a bag. "You never know when you'll need them."

"So, just toss them and stuff blows up?" Polly eagerly asked.

"Yep!"

There were practically stars shining in Polly's eyes. "Cool."

Meanwhile, Ivy gave Sprig a kiss on the cheek. "Make sure you bring back adventure souvenirs. We should start a collection."

Sprig blushed. "Yeah, we should."

"ARE WE FINALLY READY TO LEAVE THIS STUPID TOWN!?" yelled Karina from atop her sparrow.

Everyone looked at her in shock. At first no one moved or did anything but eventually there were some quiet mutterings.

"Okay…" "Fine…" "She didn't have to be rude…"

The Plantars quickly hauled their baggage onto the finch, and hopped onto the sparrow behind Grime and Sasha. There was just enough room for it to carry all seven passengers.

Sprig threw his hands up in excitement. "Woohoo! Nonstop trip to Newtopia!"

Anne and Polly cheered similarly.

Grime cleared his throat. "Actually, we're stopping at Toad Tower first."

"Oh." Sprig's hands awkwardly stayed up in the air. "And then it's a nonstop trip to Newtopia!"

"Yeah! Let's go!" Polly threw an explosion pouch at the ground in excitement.

"Don't waste those!" shouted Maddie.

"Sorry…"

I'm not sure how long the next chapter will be but it might be short.