Waddling Home

SQUAWK.

“Kinguyakkii?”

Kingu turns slowly around. Behind him stands Kussuyok, a rather sheepish look in his beady eyes.

“Yes?”

“Do you think… maybe, just maybe… could I…”

“If you’re about to ask to borrow one of my rocks, the answer is no.”

Kussuyok goes wide-eyed, flapping his wings anxiously. “No! Not at all! I mean…”

“You were, weren’t you?”

Kussuyok hangs his head. “Yes.”

“There are plenty of rocks. These rocks are mine.”

“How am I ever going to get Immuyak to fall for me if I don’t get enough nice rocks, though?” whines Kussuyok.

“You looking for rocks?” comes a voice, and both Kingu and Kussuyok turn. Saghani is behind them, calmly looking between the two of them. The colony is bustling around them. The gentlemen in their suits are rushing around, trying to collect as many rocks as they can before the ladies arrive. Saghani doesn’t seem concerned, though. He’s got an eye for finding the best rocks, and it always pays off.

Kussuyok, speaking a little frantically. “Do you know where I can find some?”

“There used to be a really nice little island not far from here with tons of rocks,” says Saghani, gesturing off in the general eastern direction. “It’s a bit of a swim now, though. Seems to keep getting farther and farther away each year.”

“I’ve noticed that,” Kingu agrees, nodding. “It’s rather inconvenient.”

“Inconvenient is an understatement,” grumbles Saghani. “I can show you if you want, Kussu.”

“Oh, yes! Thank you, Saghani!”

Kingu eyes his own rocks a bit as he watches the two waddle off together. Does he have enough? Will Pikatti come back to him? He shakes his head. He needs to stop worrying. He has enough rocks. They’re good rocks. Pikatti will be back.

***

WADDLE.

“Kinguyakkii!”

Things had been quite peaceful with Kussuyok gone, but it seems his excursion with Saghani has been a success. He has just placed a nice, shiny rock atop his pile, and his gleeful squawk has awoken his neighbour. Kingu isn’t sure why he didn’t just let the others steal all of Kussuyok’s rocks in his absence, having instead squawked at anyone who even dared look sideways at the collection. If Kussuyok had returned to find his rocks stolen, though, his panic probably would have been enough to finally drive Kingu mad.

“You found some rocks?”

“I found some rocks! Saghani was right, it was a long swim!”

Kussuyok is overflowing with excitement. He’d probably be jumping up and down for joy, if he could.

“That’s great. I’m proud of you.”

“I’m going to go get more rocks!”

“You do that.”

The ladies will be here soon. Kingu is a bit worried that Kussuyok might not get back before they do, but he also doesn’t think he can dissuade his neighbour from going after more rocks. He’s just got to hope for the best.

***

CHIRP.

Kussuyok barely gets back before the ladies. He wants to head out again, but Kingu stops him. “Will Immuyak fall for you if you aren’t here?” he points out, and Kussuyok relents.

A day later, the ladies are back. They are a pleasant sight for tired eyes, and relief washes over Kingu when he sees Pikatti waddling his way.

“Pikatti,” he greets her. “You’re looking lovely as ever.”

“And you’re looking… established,” Pikatti says, eyeing the rocks and giving him an approving nod.

“Only the best for you, my darling,” says Kingu.

He’s not paying attention, but a little way to the left, Immuyak has approached Kussuyok. Kingu, however, has eyes only for Pikatti. He doesn’t even hear the delighted shriek of joy that Kussuyok lets out when Immuyak agrees to be his.

“I swear, the trek gets longer and longer each year,” Pikatti sighs, nestling herself up close to Kingu and resting her head against him. “And the weather! My goodness, is it ever warm. I think this is the warmest it’s ever been this time of year.”

Kingu is silent. She has a point. It’s quite warm out. He doesn’t remember a time when it’s ever been this warm before. Is that why the swim to Saghani’s favourite little island keeps getting longer? Maybe the island isn’t floating farther away. Maybe the island is melting and getting smaller. Maybe there’s just more water now.

“I say someone ought to do something about this. The heat is just too much,” Pikatti carries on. “Why, if things keep up like this, we’ll barely have a home to come back to by this time next year!”

Once again, Pikatti is right. Kingu looks down at her, and then gives her a peck on the top of her head. “I’ll talk to the others, love, and we’ll see if we can’t figure something out,” he says.

“Thank you, Kingu. That’s all I wanted to hear.”

***

SPLASH.

“You know,” muses Saghani, balancing a rock on his toes as he speaks, “I think all this heat wave nonsense started once those big fellows in red started showing up.”

“It did!” agrees Kussuyok.

“We all know they mean us no harm, though,” says Kingu, shaking his head. “They wouldn’t do anything to destroy our home. They like us.”

“It could be something they’re doing inadvertently,” says Saghani.

“Inadv…?” Kussuyok cocks his head to one side.

“They aren’t meaning to,” explains Kingu, and then he looks at Saghani. “You might have a point there. Maybe we should go and pay them a visit.”

Kussuyok goes wide-eyed at this proposal. “We can’t go see them!” he says.

“Sure, we can!” says Saghani. “I’m sure if we just explain our situation, they’ll be willing to take a look at their gear and see if any of it is messing with the temperature. That’s a great idea, Kingu.”

“Thanks.”

“You’re going to take the lead, right?”

Kingu looks over at Saghani in surprise. “Me?”

“Well, sure. It was your idea. And, you know, you are the calm one. You’d probably be best at explaining things to the red folks.”

It isn’t what Kingu had expected, but Saghani certainly has a point. Kussuyok would probably turn and run the second one of the big red fellows addressed him, and Saghani… he’s a good guy, but maybe not the best suited to speak with the red ones.

“Well… all right. Should we go now?”

“Sure. We should be able to make it there and back before the ladies notice we’ve even left. I think Desna is sleeping. She might still be asleep by the time we get back,” laughs Saghani.

Kingu nods. “All right. Then we’ll go now, see what the red ones know, and be back before the girls are missing us.”

“I’m not so sure about this,” says Kussuyok.

“Kussu, it’ll be fine. You can come with us, or you can stay behind if you want,” says Saghani. “That is, if you’re a chicken.”

Kussu ruffles up his feathers. “I’m not a chicken! I’m a penguin!”

And off they go.

***

SLIDE.

It’s a bit of a hike to the encampment where the red ones live, but spirits rise somewhat when the three friends see the vibrantly-coloured shelters over the ridge. They hurry the rest of the way there, eager to speak to somebody about their concerns. A woman is already outside, bundled up in red and watching with a smile on her face as they approach.

“Ma’am, good afternoon,” says Kingu when they are within earshot of the woman. Kussuyok, as expected, is lingering behind Kingu and Saghani, nervous in the vicinity of the red ones.

“Well, hello there, little guys!” the woman says, grinning as she crouches to their level.

“We have something very important we need to ask you about,” says Kingu.

“Hey, guys!” The woman calls over her shoulder. “We’ve got some penguins here, come out here!”

Kingu nods approvingly. “That’s an excellent idea, yes. We can wait until your companions join us, in case any of them have any thoughts or insight.”

They wait a moment while a few more of the red ones emerge from their habitats. They are mostly men, and they make their way through the snow to greet their guests.

“You three are quite a ways from your colony, aren’t you?” remarks one of the men, peering in the direction of the ridge over which the colony lies.

“We are, yes,” Kingu says, nodding. “It’s very important, though, I assure you. We wouldn’t have come all this way if it wasn’t.”

“Is everything okay up at the colony, little buddy?” asks the woman, tilting her head curiously to one side. “You look worried.”

“We are,” says Kingu. “You see, we’ve noticed a strange phenomenon as of late. Over the last few years, the temperature seems to be rising, as are the sea levels. I’m sure you’ve noticed it too? We’re beginning to get concerned, and we wondered if, perhaps, you had any idea as to what the cause of this might be? We doubt it’s something you’re deliberately doing, but we wonder if any of your equipment might be somehow influencing the temperature. Do you know?”

“Do you little guys want some fish?” asks a man. Up until now, Kingu hadn’t even noticed that he had approached with a bucket in hand. Now that he has removed the lid, though, the pungent aroma of fresh seafood hits Kingu hard and fast. His mouth waters. The red ones certainly know how to host, and yet…

“I’d love some fish, but perhaps in a minute,” Kingu says. “First, we were just wondering about the temperature. Have you any idea what might be causing this?”

“Here you go, little guys,” says the man beside the bucket wielder. He pulls a floppy grey fish from the bucket and tosses it in their direction. Kingu scoffs a bit at this. Are they even listening? He intends to ignore the fish, wanting to stress to the red ones the importance of their query, but it seems that Kussuyok has other ideas, and he gobbles up the fish without hesitation. Kingu glares at him.

“Solidarity, Kussu,” he scolds, and then looks back once more at the red ones. “Please, I implore you… could you at least investigate a bit? Take a look at your equipment, and maybe check whether it could be causing this anomaly?”

“Aww, Dave, give them more fish, the little guy’s jealous that his buddy got one and he didn’t!” says the woman with a laugh.

“What?” asks Kingu. “I’m not jealous. We have a genuine concern – please don’t make light of this. We appreciate you as neighbours, which is why we’ve come to talk it over and see if you have any insight-“

“Here you go, little dude,” chuckles the red one called Dave, tossing another fish towards Kingu.

Kingu falls silent, staring at the red ones. They’re not listening. They don’t even seem to care. His shoulders slump and, disheartened and defeated, he turns to Kussuyok and Saghani. “We should go.”

***

CLICK.

The camera flash isn’t needed, not for the blinding glare of the sunlight on the white snow that makes up the frigid landscape around them. Paula can’t wait to see the outcome of this picture. The three little penguins waddling against the landscape of snow and ice – oh, they stand out remarkably, almost like the three tiny protagonists of some movie marching into battle.

A harsh wind blows past and Paula shivers, fiddling with the hood of her bright red jacket. She feels like a giant bottle of ketchup waddling around the Antarctic in this thing, but visibility is important. If a snowstorm were to hit while she was away from the base, her teammates would need to be able to find her with ease.

“Well, hello there, little guys!” Paula says to the three penguins as they come nearer. She crouches down in front of the squawking penguins, and then glances over her shoulder. “Hey, guys! We’ve got some penguins here, come out here!”

Dave always has a bucket of fish at the ready in case penguins happen to wander over. It’s not common this time of the year, not when they’re in the middle of their mating season and all busy with their nests over at the colony, but it’s happened from time to time. She’s sure he’s going to want to come and feed the little penguins some fish.

It takes a couple of minutes for the others to join them, but soon, most of the team has assembled. “You three are quite a ways from your colony, aren’t you?” chuckles Ted.

Paula eyes the penguins slightly. Ted is right. It doesn’t make sense that these three little stragglers – all male, it appears – would have wandered off like this. “Is everything okay up at the colony, little buddy? You look worried,” she muses, trying not to chuckle as she hears the squawks of the chatty penguin at the front. He certainly is adorable.

“Do you little guys want some fish?” comes Dave’s voice, and Paula is pleased that he has brought the fish. She doesn’t speak penguin, but at least the little guys won’t have to head home on an empty stomach.

“Here you go, little guys,” says Pierre, grabbing a fish from Dave’s bucket and tossing it their way. The penguin in the rear immediately gobbles it up, and Paula laughs when she sees the disappointed way in which the chatty one looks at the other.

“Aww, Dave, give them more fish, the little guy’s jealous that his buddy got one and he didn’t!” she says.

“Here you go, little dude!” says Dave, tossing a fish towards the loud penguin at the front of the group. The penguin doesn’t seem interested in the fish, though. He doesn’t even eat it; instead, he just stares at it for a moment and then turns to his friends. His squawks seem to rally them, and the three of them turn and start to waddle away.

“Bye bye!” Paula calls after them, straightening up and watching for a moment as the penguins walk off.

“I wonder why he didn’t eat the fish. That’s pretty unusual,” says Dave, and Paula turns around. A few of the others are already starting to walk off, but Dave looks rather disappointed that the penguins didn’t want his fish.

“I don’t know,” Paula says, shrugging a bit. “Man, if only penguins could talk. Can you imagine the stories they’d tell?”