Dear Dad,

  Sorry for not writing. Turns out that being “on the road” makes it a lot harder to write consistently. Sorry for giving you a hard time about it when you’re working.

  I know being here, wherever “here” is, is a lot different from your work, but I get it a little more now. Anthamund couldn’t help us back home, but he said someone in the big city would be able to. He gave us directions and some food and stuff for the way there. It really wasn’t much, but at least he tried, you know?

  He could have apologized for making us fight oozes and ruining our clothes and basically holding us for ransom. But at least he gave us more stuff than just our friends back.

  I would have preferred a car. I think all of us would have, but it was still plenty of food and stuff, which was nice.

  We walked, like, a really long time, all day and then some. Riley wanted to walk further, but Reese, Grace, and I just laid in the dirt by the road and pretended not to hear her. She didn’t find it as funny as Willow and Zunair did. Though Zunair almost fell over from being tired, too, so that might have just been the fact that he was also tired. Either way, we ended up sleeping right next to the road, which was weird, and the weird sleeping bags that Anthamund gave us weren’t very comfortable.

  The girls did it first and gave us inspiration. So Reese, Zunair, and I shared, using their sleeping bags as a mattress and then mine as an actual blanket.

  It still wasn’t very comfortable because it turns out that Zunair tries to turn into a starfish when he’s asleep. Reese and I had to make him sleep on one side so he couldn’t kick us all the way out of the bed.

  The packed lunch things were weird too. Riley told us that each pack was supposed to be an entire day’s food, but it didn’t seem enough. I was hungry, trying to pace it out, but at least it was food.

  It was like camping, but worse, somehow. Can you believe it? We followed the road as best we could. However, there wasn’t anyone else on the road when we passed another few villages. Zunair said we had to keep moving, that there wasn’t time for lollygagging. I think he just was hoping we could get his car out of the tree somehow.

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  I don’t think we’ll be able to get it out in one piece though. It looked like the tree branches might have been doing through some important parts of the car, but if that’s what he’s working towards, then at least it’s keeping him moving forward. I know I want to go home, get in bed, and hopefully hug you. I know you always hug me when you get home from a long work trip, and I know a week isn’t the longest that you’ve been gone for, but it’s the longest I’ve been gone for.

  And the school trip wasn’t that bad before I left, but let's just say I’m glad that I’m no longer on a school trip and just kinda in the middle of nowhere with my friends.

  This is a little weird to say cause I didn’t think they’d be my friends when I first met them. I thought we were just going on a food run. Now I think they’re my friends, even if Reese is a little, well, much, and Willow is a little flighty. Riley is, well, fight-y and Zunair is a little out there, and Grace is also kinda fight-y, but she’s also just got a lot of rage to give.

  I like them, and they’re not too bad to spend all this time with. But I’d rather be home. And able to take a hot shower. I miss showers.

  I miss you too! Not to say that I miss showers more than I miss you. I’m more used to not having you for a bit than not having running water.

  Which sounds a little bad, but I mean, I know your work is important, and I miss you when you go. I hope you miss me too. I mean, I’m sure you do. You’re my dad. It’s just weird to have everything switched.

  We’ve talked to a lot of people about getting home somehow, and most of them think a city is our best bet. Apparently, there’s a huge one not too far away that we can go to that everyone keeps telling us will be the best place. Even though it’s really far away, and we’ve already gone so far from where it was that we started.

  You’ve said before if I get lost, I should stay in one spot, but I don’t think you’ll be able to find me here. Still, I hope you’re just a couple steps behind me, and I’ll be here soon to take my friends and me home. But until then, we’re looking on our own.

  The city is far away. I know that means it’ll be a while, but hopefully, we’ll be home soon.

  But this morning, we found a new place, larger than most of the villages we’ve been to, with a big wall around it. It made Willow nervous, but Reese thought it was a good thing, meant that the town it protected.

  I hope it’s a good thing. It's called Briarmorth and the town is full of super welcoming people, and we're allowed to sleep in this little castle place at the center of the town! It’s so cool, you wouldn’t believe it! And they stored our horses and stuff for free. The mayor says we can pay him back later, but I’m going to take advantage by getting this shuffle of paper so I can write you.

  The mayor I think his name was Bradal? Didn’t have any answers about how to get home from here, but he was so nice otherwise that it wasn’t that bad.

  Hopefully, he can point us in the right direction tomorrow, and we’ll be home soon!

  Love, Jack