Joel peeked in. The cabin was clean and pleasant, with a fridge and a small stove top and neatly made bunks covered in red plaid sheets. A fine place to spend a week.
“I think we’re ready to go!” Mrs. Popper said.
“All aboard!” Yuka called. He leaned down to confide in Joel. “I’ve always wanted to say that, but it would feel silly when I’m traveling alone.”
Once the boat had been freed from the dock, Yuka started the engine. Before long, they were puttering out of Hillport harbor.
The kids placed their chicks on the deck. The penguins waddled over to the edge, to gaze down at the water flowing past the boat. They’d taken to swimming laps in the bathtub, so Joel wasn’t too worried about what would happen if they fell in. Yuka would just stop the boat and fish them out of the water. The chicks would be sure to enjoy the process immensely.
“Once we get up there,” Nina whispered, “how are we going to say goodbye to Ernest and Mae?”
“We’ll find a way,” Joel said, putting an arm around his sister. “Being with other penguins is what’s right for them.”
Nina kneeled at the edge of the deck. Mae toddled over and hopped into her lap. “I guess. But it’ll still be hard to say goodbye.”
Not one to be left out, Ernest pinched the fabric of Nina’s jeans with his beak and lifted himself into her lap. He was turning out to be a smaller penguin than his sister and sometimes needed help getting himself everywhere he wanted to go.
“I know it will be hard,” Joel said, watching Ernest snuggle in closer to Nina. “I know it.”
Ernest let out a long oooork. “Sounds like he knows it, too,” Nina said.
“Actually, I think that just means he’s ready for some more tuna fish.”
THE JOURNEY BEGINS
JOEL LOVED SPENDING his day at the helm with Yuka. There were so many instruments and panels to investigate, and Yuka would often let him take control—while keeping an eye out, of course.
Sometimes Joel would catch his mother watching the two of them with an expression that looked both sad and happy. It wasn’t hard to imagine where her thoughts were. Joel sometimes overheard his mother talking to her friends on her phone about how she was worried Joel didn’t have any “male role models” in his life. But that was ridiculous. Joel wasn’t excited to spend time with Yuka because he was a “male role model.” It was all about the instruments and panels!
Nina would often want her turn, too, so they’d switch off, and Joel would take over minding the chicks. Mae and Ernest spent most of each day sleeping. At first Joel and Nina had been worried they were sick, but then Mrs. Popper pointed out that the chicks were probably sleeping so much because they were growing so fast. Apparently Joel and Nina had done the same thing when they were babies.
When the chicks weren’t sleeping, they made plenty of trouble. Ernest preferred to be at the stern. Sometimes he’d poke around the boat’s engines, investigating the various humming devices. Other times he’d stare into the waves and flap his wings—Joel could imagine him preparing for the day when he’d be swimming through ocean water. Mae preferred to be perched at the bow, like the figurehead on a pirate ship. Whichever kid was on duty would have to walk the deck, making sure that neither chick fell into the surf.
Chicks falling overboard wouldn’t turn out to be the problem.
Yuka was an excellent sailor, diligently minding the controls even as he told elaborate tales about his childhood in the Arctic, complete with impersonations of all his family members. On the fourth morning, though, he seemed preoccupied. He spent a long time examining his atlas after he pulled up anchor.
“This makes no sense,” he said.
Mrs. Popper, Joel, and Nina crowded around Yuka. Not to be left out, Ernest and Mae oorked until the kids picked them up so they could see what all the fuss was about.
“All my instrumentation agrees that we’re here,” Yuka said, pointing to a spot on the map as the boat sped forward.
“That’s good, right?” Nina said.
“Yes,” Yuka said, drawing out the word as he pointed at the horizon. “But if that’s true, we wouldn’t be here already.”
“We wouldn’t be where already?” Joel asked.
“Popper Island!”
“What?” Nina yelled, jumping up and down.
“Careful with Mae,” Joel scolded. But the chick was clearly enjoying the action, her cries joining Nina’s. Joel put a hand over his eyes, like a visor, and squinted. They were approaching a windswept pile of dark gray rocks, sticking up out of the ocean. It looked brutal and unforgiving to Joel—but who knew, maybe it was paradise to a penguin’s eyes.
“Are you sure that’s Popper Island ahead of us?” Mrs. Popper asked.
Yuka nodded. “Definitely. I grew up around here, and I’d recognize those rock formations anywhere.”
“But how could all your instruments be wrong?” Nina asked.
“They’re connected to a central computer on the boat,” Yuka said. “If my navigation systems have us in the wrong position it really isn’t good, because that means I don’t have readouts on nearby undersea obstacles. It’s dangerous.”
“Where is the computer located?” Joel asked with a sinking feeling.
“At the stern.”
Joel slipped away to the back of the boat, Ernest chirping happily once he realized they were heading to his favorite spot. He hopped down and examined the engine like usual before sitting and gazing into the water.
Joel spied the computer, housed in a plastic box on the floor. He’d never bothered to look closely at it before. A corner had been bent away, the contents dragged out onto the deck. Some
