Wonderer's Wish World: An Empty Land

Ditching School is Cool Now

Wirt's brow furrowed as his lips pursed out in a pout. Kipo and Adam noticed, but they were laughing way too hard to care. Even Bipo looked a little amused.

"It wasn't... it wasn't that funny... guys," Wirt huffed, crossing his arms. He was walking behind Adam and Kipo a little bit as they followed the rest of the bugs. Class had apparently ended, and now they were headed off to who knows where. But right now, Kipo and Adam were much more preoccupied with Wirt.

"It WAS that funny!" Adam snorted. "That wasp put you in the Bad Child corner for your crimes against the classroom, Wirt."

"I was only talking!" Wirt protested, his face stained red.

"You don't talk in class, Wirt!" Kipo teased, giggling. "But if you want us to stop laughing, we definitely will."

Wirt stared at her for a couple seconds, and that's all it took for Kipo's stifled giggling to erupt in full blown laughter again. She was laughing so hard that she could almost feel tears running down her cheeks, and she had to stop, leaning against the wall for balance. Wirt sighed, and he and Adam paused. Bipo, apparently tired from their five minutes of walking, flopped down on the floor and started snoring. Kipo knew the feeling, the wasp had provided them with fruit throughout the day, so now Kipo was feeling stuffed, full and tired. She wished she could fell asleep, too.

"Oh, come on," Adam groaned, but his annoyance was overshadowed by the corners of his mouth quirking up in amusement. "We can't lose them."

Kipo nodded, and took a couple breathes. She shakily stood up straight again, but she still felt like she could start laughing at any second.

"Um... so why are we following the bugs again?" Wirt asked, staring after the disappearing crowd of bugs. The four of them started off before the bugs could go completely out of sight.

"Cause... we're students now?" Adam told him. "Come on, Wirt, you already got in trouble for talking in class, are you going to try and get in trouble for wandering next?!"

Wirt sighed while Kipo tried to hide her laugh with a cough.

"It's probably better to follow them for now, because they're probably going out of this place to go home," Kipo explained, more serious this time, but she still couldn't resist another joke. "Besides, we don't want to be a troublemaker like you, Wirt."

Another sigh, and Adam chortled.

"What if they're not leaving, though?" Wirt asked. Adam and Kipo paused, surprised.

"Huh?" Kipo asked. "But it's the end of the day, they have to go home for the night."

"Miss Langtree's school was a boarding school," Wirt told them. "What if this is a boarding school, too?"

Adam sucked in a breath, the possibility seeming to worry him, but Kipo still looked confused.

"A boarding school?" she repeated. "What's that?"

"A school where the students live at the school," Adam huffed. "Dammit, you might be right about that... That'd be a problem for us."

"Live at the school... they can still leave, though, right?" Kipo asked, confused.

"Um..." Adam and Wirt exchanged a look. It was clear neither of them had really been to a boarding school. "I don't think so?"

"I think you have to get permission first," Wirt added uncertainly. The bugs were long gone now, but that wasn't exactly their biggest problem anymore.

"Oh," Kipo didn't look any less confused.

"Unfortunately, we can't even communicate to the wasp, let alone get permission to leave," Adam said. "We're going to have to sneak out."