Before you start, I wanna give a HUGE shoutout to Sniper-Dreem who drew this beautiful drawing of Rowena. -Mal

"Alright, kids, we're about to hit the dry swamp, make sure you hydrate, girls." Hop Pop announced as he gave each of us a canteen of water. "That's okay, HP, besides, it's still a swamp, how dry can it be?" Anne asked as she was immediately dehydrated when we arrived. "Gimme that stuff!" "Welcome to the dry swamp, girls, home to giant frog eating sand worms, bandits, vagabonds, you'd know of course if you've ever read the classic play, Fear the Dry Swamp." We groaned. "He's gonna act." Sprig complained. "Hark, for I am homeless, I am friendless, I am the Dry Swamp." Hop Pop read. "You know, I was this close to getting the lead part once." "You don't say." Sprig groaned. "Yup, before I was a farm frog, you're Hop Pop had dreams, next life I suppose." Hop Pop explains. "Hey, Hop Pop, I don't mean to interrupt the story of your dreams being crushed, but I think those weeds just moved." I warned. Turns out it was one of those sand worms. All of a sudden, these frogs surrounded our fwagon to scare off the worm. "Hey, thanks for your help out there." Hop Pop thanked a woman. "Don't mention it, you folks really shouldn't be out here on your own, haven't you ever read Fear the Dry Swamp?" She asked. "You know that play?" Hop Pop asked. "Know it, I directed it, Renee Frodger's the name and managing this acting troop is my game." She introduced. "An acting troop?" Hop Pop gasped. "Wow, what are the chances." I said. "Say, why don't you folks join our caravan, we could use the extra stage hands." Renee offered. "We're in!" Hop Pop agreed without hesitation.

Renee took us into her wagon to show us around. "Welcome to our humble operation." Renee said as she introduced us to Francis, a young actor around the same age as Sprig. "Yo, Francis, show these youngsters to the kids wagon." Renee ordered. "As you wish, madam, I am Francois, heir to house don cool." Francis introduced in a French accent. Hop Pop went to Renee's trailer and left us with Francis. "You four are free to join me if you wish." Francis clears his throat. "Wow, that guy is the coolest kid I've ever met, let's go with him!" Sprig exclaimed. "I'm in!" Polly agreed. "I'm out." I said. "Absolutely not!" Anne refused. "We were in a school play once, it was awful, and this place is bringing back memories." "My mom even took me to visit Amanda and Justin, two of the kids who were sent to the hospital." I explained. "4 to 5 dentists agreed, Anne was traumatized." "Anyways, see you dudes later, I've got a complicated jigsaw puzzle with my name on it, yes, my babies, yes." Anne said as we both headed back to the fwagon to relax.

While Hop Pop was performing for a while and Sprig and Polly with the theatre kids, I was in the fwagon with Anne, alone. I would write about our adventures in Wartwood, while she would work on her puzzle that easily got destroyed with every bump in the road. "Hey, Anne, can we talk?" I asked. "Sure, just as long as I can still work on my puzzle." Anne replied. "Well, I've been thinking, and I wanted to tell you about this for a while, so, here goes nothing." I said as Anne looked up at me as I showed her my journal. "A journal?" Anne asked. "Open it." I said as Anne opened up my journal and skimmed through a few of the pages. "Oh my gosh, Rowena, are these our adventures with the Plantars?" Anne asked. "That's what you've been writing all this time?" "Yeah, but I don't want to tell them anything, because I wanna surprise them with a copy of these adventures if we ever find a way back home, one for us and one for them." I explained. "I love it, they will love it too." Anne smiled and continued to work on her puzzle as we ran over a bump, causing the puzzle to collapse. "Aw, come on!" I laughed out loud and she joined in.

I continued writing for about an hour and Anne was about to finish the puzzle, when suddenly, Hop Pop burst into the fwagon, scaring both of us. "Girls, the play's a distraction for a bank robbery!" Hop Pop exclaimed, banging on the table and accidentally broke apart part of Anne's puzzle. "On one hand, that's awful, but on the other hand we need to support the arts, right?" "What, no, they're using you to commit crimes!" Anne said. "Yeah, HP, you can't just pretend you don't know that." I added. "I probably could, I'm a very good actor, you know." Hop Pop explains. "Thanks for the advice, girls." Anne continued to fix her puzzle until Sprig stormed into the fwagon. "Guys, the theatre kids don't like me!" Sprig cried, also banging the table. "Seriously, it doesn't matter what those theatre dorks think." Anne replied. "You're right, it matters what they feel, I just gotta speak to their hearts." Sprig said as he left. After that, Polly surprised both of us in a nearby window. "Anne, Rowena, I love you, girls!" Polly exclaimed. "Love ya, Polly." I replied. "I LOVE YOU TOO, DUDE!" Anne snapped as she restarted her puzzle.

Not long after, Renee was arrested after robbing the bank and the cops were asking Hop Pop a few questions. Anne finally finished her puzzle, for about two seconds as we came to a stop, Anne walked out of the fwagon with a few puzzle pieces in her hair. "Dude, Rowena and I told you not to rob a bank!" Anne exclaimed. Hop Pop laughed nervously. "They're joking, good one, girls." "Hop Pop, we joined the theatre gang!" Sprig announced. "Just like you." Polly added as Hop Pop grabbed all of us as we drove away in the fwagon. "Movies are better!" I shouted.