Calamitous Intervention

The Great Gem Robbery

Deep inside a cave's tunnel, a small newt was excavating their way through a sealed opening, hoping to find some strange treasures or secrets long undisturbed by nature. As the ancient gate shattered into pieces, it revealed a massive hall where something in its center caught the newt's attention.

His eyes widened in awe as he stepped forward, observing the beautiful gem resting on an old pedestal. As he slowly approached it, looking out for traps, he suddenly paused when he felt the room starting to rumble. A large beast began to emerge from the shadows, presumably the one guarding the treasure. Before it could see him, the newt dashed back through the opening and hid behind the corner just as the beast turned in his direction.

"Well, that is most troublesome," he muttered, wiping the sweat beading on his forehead. He debated what to do, when a new idea hatched in his head. Perhaps he would need some... outside help.

Chapter Thirty-One - The Great Gem Robbery

It had been two long weeks since Hop Pop had won the mayoral election against Toadstool and practically banished him from Wartwood, as neither he nor Toadie were seen since. The town had mostly forgotten about them, though Luz wondered where they had gone.

By now, Hop Pop's schedule was loosening enough to let him stay at the house two days a week, so this meant more work for the kids to do. Not only were they performing house chores like farming and cooking, but they also had to help Felicia out with the tea shop. Needless to say, they weren't seeing Hop Pop as much anymore. Meanwhile, the Plantar family stand was already closed for the time being, and thank goodness for that. Luz didn't think she'd get enough sleep if she had that on top of her plate too.

Luckily, the old frog's work had lightened up dramatically once he began addressing Wartwood's debts, and so that day, for the first time in what felt like forever, he was able to spend most of the afternoon at the house with his children just like old times.

"Alright, kiddos," Hop Pop announced, cleaning some breakfast-laden dishes. "I'm going to spend this afternoon helping rebuild the schoolhouse, so I'm sendin' y'all to a daycare just outside Wartwood's borders."

Luz, who was wiping the table, froze at the words, feeling they were just treated as toddlers. "Um... Can't we just go to the tea shop like we do whenever you're busy?"

"Ordinarily, yes," Hop Pop explained. "However, let's just say the tea shop is dealing with some... bugs."

At the tea shop, things were in chaos as tons of giant roaches were scampering and flooding the tables and floors all around the establishment. Sylvia looked on in horror while Felicia and Ivy tried to fight off the killer roaches, all of them realizing this was going to be a long day.

"Mother, I thought I told you to check the yeast for eggs!" Felicia scolded, kicking a bug in its face.

"I apologize greatly, but you need to know I was busy that night!" Sylvia gently but firmly responded. "There were so many goods and produce that I didn't even realize what time of year it was!"

"Ivy! Behind you!" Felicia suddenly shouted out.

Ivy turned and landed a kick on a roach just in time before it bit her.

"Ohhh... Are you sure they can handle it?" Luz worriedly asked, willing to head to the shop and help if needed. Sprig, too, was ready to help out his friends.

"They'll be fine. It ain't the first time," Hop Pop assured them with a chuckle, happy to see that his courageous adopted granddaughter hadn't changed. "Besides, this could even be a little vacation for you all. They'll give you plenty of time to bond with others and maybe work on those spells of yours. How's that sound?"