Stay:The Last Dog in Antarctica (12 page)

The Squirrel helicopter hovered over the flat ledge of rock and then landed gently. Nuts was in the pilot seat, Stay saw, as he turned off the rotors and waved at them. His black beard had grown even longer.

Chills and Beakie had packed up all of their belongings and carried the bags far away from the penguins, right across to the other side of the island, so the birds wouldn’t be disturbed by the sound of the helicopter. It had taken them many trips to get everything to a safe distance, and they were cold and tired.

Stay felt anxious. The penguin research had been finished successfully, but her own job in Antarctica wasn’t over, and there wasn’t much time left.

A cold wind was blowing, and the three men formed a chain and started passing the bags and boxes up to the helicopter.

‘Hurry up!’ Nuts called. ‘If this wind picks up much more, I can’t take off.’

Chills and Beakie started tossing the bundles to each other and Nuts quickly stowed them in the Squirrel’s side cargo baskets.

‘Hop in,’ he called as they finished loading. ‘And remember — Stay gets the front seat!’

‘Are you kidding?’ Beakie said. ‘I want the front seat.’

Nuts shook his head. ‘Sorry. She’s my most famous passenger. Get in the back, chicken chasers.’

Chills lifted Stay into the front seat, buckled the harness around her, and put the headphones over her ears. He gave her a pat and a smile. ‘You’re a celebrity now, Stay,’ he said, and climbed into the back seat.

Nuts started the helicopter and the rotors began spinning with a loud roar. They rose up in the air and Stay looked out eagerly to see the view. She loved flying.

The bay was filling up with flat pieces of ice that looked like giant pancakes. She could see Mawson Station ahead of them, its brightly coloured buildings standing out against the grey and brown rock. There had been a few snowfalls in the past week and snow was starting to pile up around the station.

Nuts pointed out in the direction of the sea as he turned the chopper. His voice crackled through the headphones. ‘There’s the ship!’

Stay, Chills and Beakie all looked where he was pointing. Stay could see a small orange shape in the distance making its way through the pancake ice. It was the
Aurora Australis,
coming to take them back to Hobart.

‘There’s been a change of plans, as usual, because of the ice conditions,’ Nuts said. ‘The ship went to Davis first to pick up passengers, so Mawson is her last stop. Should be arriving at the station by tomorrow. You haven’t got much time to get organised. There’s a farewell dinner tonight and then you’re off home.’

Chills was silent, but Stay knew what he was thinking. If the ship had already been to Davis, then he wouldn’t have a chance to say goodbye to Kaboom. And neither would Stay.

Stay looked back at Bechervaise Island one last time. As they rose higher in the air, she could see the two little apple huts that had been their home. She’d had lots of adventures in Antarctica, and being on Bechervaise, watching the penguins and seals and enjoying the company of Chills and Beakie, had been one of her favourites. Now it was time to go home.

But for some reason Stay didn’t feel happy to see the
Aurora Australis
heading their way.

To her surprise, Stay was the guest of honour at the Mawson Station farewell dinner. She had her own place setting at the head of one of the long tables. Chills put on her bow tie and tucked a white napkin into her harness, and the chef personally brought her a plate of beef stroganoff with rice and a glass of soft drink.

Of course she couldn’t really drink or eat, but she liked the idea of it, and Chills, who was sitting by her side, was quite happy to eat her meal as well as his own.

She really had become famous over the summer and everyone wanted to pat her and take a photograph.

‘No pats or pictures without a donation!’ Chills said when people came up. ‘It’s good practice — in case you’ve forgotten how to use money.’

There was a bit of grumbling, as no one could remember where they’d put their cash, but after dinner
people went back to quarters and found their hidden-away wallets. Stay posed for photographs with just about every single person on station, and coin after coin clanked down through her head, along with folded-up notes. By the time dinner was over, she was so heavy that Chills grunted when he picked her up.

Everyone went to the bar to celebrate the end of the summer season. Stay sat up on the bar and earnt even more donations when people came for a drink. Everyone patted her when they walked past and she enjoyed being the centre of attention.

‘Sure you don’t want to leave her down here?’ Jackie asked. ‘It doesn’t seem fair to lose the huskies and Stay all at the same time.’

‘I need to take her home,’ Chills said. ‘She belongs in Hobart. Sorry about that. The huskies will be good company for her on the ship.’

Stay felt her heart sink. She had forgotten that the huskies were going back to Hobart too. Of course they’d be on the
Aurora Australis
with her. Cocoa might be her friend now, but she knew that Blackie still hated her. It wouldn’t be easy, sharing a ship with them.

‘Bedtime,’ Chills said, interrupting her thoughts. ‘There’ll be a big rush to get on the ship tomorrow and I’ve still got some packing to do. Come on, Stay. We’re sleeping in one of the old dongas tonight. It’ll be fun.’

He lifted her off the bar and carried her with both arms. Lots of hands reached out to pat her head as he walked through the crowd and Stay realised she would miss the expeditioners. They were unusual people, but very interesting. A big, strange, friendly family.

Chills and Stay stepped outside. It was dark and very cold. The sun had started setting again late in January and now the nights were almost a normal length, about nine hours. Stay had loved the long, lingering sunsets and sunrises, when the sky turned all different shades. She knew that by the end of May the sun would go down and not be seen again for six weeks.

Overhead Stay could see the Milky Way stretching across the sky. During summer she hadn’t seen the stars much and she’d almost forgotten them. They looked very bright and close and, as they stood there, she saw a shooting star fall.

‘Make a wish, Stay!’ Chills said.

Before Stay could make her wish, a wave of green light suddenly swept across the sky, dimming the stars behind it. She’d never seen anything like it and she gazed in wonder.

‘The southern lights!’ Chills said. ‘Isn’t that beautiful? Lucky winterers get to see them all the time.’

Stay remembered the Boss telling her about the aurora australis and she was glad to have seen it
herself. The two of them watched the green, glowing light in the sky, until finally Chills shivered. ‘Come on, girl. Let’s have that money out of you, and get packed up.’

Chills staggered along the road, skidding on the ice but managing to stay on his feet. He reached the line of old accommodation huts, where he had a bunk to sleep for his last night on station, and went inside.

It didn’t take long for him to finish his packing and he turned Stay upside down to empty out the money into a sack and put it carefully in his bag. He took out one coin and slipped it back into her when he turned her up the right way.

‘I’ll get the Boss to put your money in the safe when we board the ship,’ he said. ‘I hope he’s forgiven me for dognapping you, Stay.’

Stay hoped so too. She watched Chills get into bed, turn off the lamp and pull up the covers close to his chin. She could feel that he was sad.

‘I wish I could have said goodbye to Kaboom,’ he murmured. ‘It would have been great to see Davis Station again too. I don’t know when I’ll get back down to Antarctica. I guess no one really knows. You only get your job for a year.’ He rolled over and punched his pillow. ‘Antarctica gets inside you, Stay. Once you’ve been down here, you always want to come back.’

He fell silent and a few minutes later Stay heard a quiet snore.

It was her last night on Antarctica. Although she’d been there for the whole summer, Stay felt like she’d only had a taste of Antarctic life. There were so many more places to explore and adventures to be had. She thought of Kaboom, who was staying down for winter and would get to see falling stars and the aurora australis nearly every day. She’d be there when the sea froze over and she could walk across the sea ice to the islands, or go exploring on the quad bikes or in a Hägg.

I’ll miss you, Kaboom,
Stay thought. Then she mentally shook herself. It was no good thinking about Kaboom. It was time for Stay to go back to Hobart and sit outside a supermarket again. It would be very dull compared to Antarctica, but on those long lonely nights she could relive all her Antarctic adventures. If she saw Jet again, she’d have so much to tell him.

Stay realised she’d forgotten to make a wish on the falling star. She didn’t know what she wanted to wish for.
I’ll save it up for when I really need it,
she thought.

You again!
Blackie snarled at Stay.

They were standing by the harbour, waiting for their turn on the barge that would take them out to the
Aurora Australis,
which was anchored just offshore. Windy and Baldy, with several other helpers, were holding on to the huskies to stop them fighting. Stay sat on top of Chills’s bag, watching the barge push its way through the drifting ice towards the shore.

Stay sighed to herself. There was nothing she could do to make Blackie like her, so she decided to not even try.

Cocoa looked in her direction.
Hello, Stay. Haven’t the puppies grown? They’ve been running with the sledge for the last two weeks. They’re nearly ready to start working.

Stay looked at the pups. Like the penguin chicks, they’d grown very fast and were catching up with the adult huskies. They had thick coats of fur and friendly
brown eyes. It looked as though they took after their mother in temperament.

They look wonderful,
she said to Cocoa.

But the dogs were all uneasy, Stay realised. She, at least, knew what to expect from their voyage. Now the dogs knew she’d been telling them the truth about leaving Antarctica, but they had no idea what the rest of the world was like. They were nervous and snappy.

It’ll be fun,
she thought to all of them.
You’ll see trees and grass, and feel the rain. You can dig holes in the dirt. Everything smells amazing.

None of the dogs knew what she was talking about, she realised. None of them had ever seen trees or grass, and it never rained in Antarctica. They’d find out for themselves soon enough, just as she had discovered snow and ice and blizzards.

The barge reached the loading dock and there was a rush of activity as everyone helped hand down the luggage. A crane lifted big baskets of cargo across to the barge, which sank lower and lower into the water.

‘That’s enough!’ the barge skipper called. ‘I’ll be back soon for the next load. Get the dogs ready.’

As the barge pushed off, Stay heard the distant sound of the helicopter coming in to land. She wondered
where Nuts had been. Perhaps helping to load cargo onto the ship.

There were plenty of other things to take her attention. The Boss and all the crew were over there on the ship. She wondered if the Boss had forgiven her for staying in Antarctica. She hoped he’d allow her on the Bridge again, and that he’d tell her more stories of sailing the world’s oceans. She could watch out for whales and albatrosses from up there, and she’d be safe from Blackie. He wouldn’t be allowed on the Bridge, Stay was pretty certain. The huskies were never allowed inside.

Stay heard footsteps running down the road towards the dock. From the corner of her eye she saw someone run up behind Chills and put big gloved hands over his eyes.

‘Who’s that?’ Chills said.

‘Me!’

It was Kaboom, Stay realised with a thrill.

‘How did you get here?’ Chills asked, turning around with a big grin on his face.

‘Friends in high places,’ Kaboom said. ‘Nuts flew one of the Squirrels over for RTA. I got a lift with him. I had to come and say goodbye to Stay.’

‘Oh, righteo,’ Chills said, and his grin disappeared. ‘There she is.’

Kaboom came over to Stay and crouched down beside her. She patted Stay on the head and then gave her a hug. She put her face up close.

‘Do you really want to go home?’ she whispered in Stay’s ear. ‘Or do you want to stay here in Antarctica?’

Stay felt a pang of excitement. What did Kaboom mean? Was she about to be dognapped?

Kaboom gave her another hug and whispered again. ‘If you want to stay, let me know. And then keep very, very quiet, no matter what happens.’

She stood up again and patted Stay on the head. ‘You’re the most famous Antarctic dog of all now,’ she said loudly. ‘We’ll miss you.’ She turned back to Chills and Beakie. ‘How was your time on Beche?’

Stay was too churned up to listen to their replies. Like Chills, she had to go back to the real world. She had responsibilities, and a job to do. She belonged to the Royal Guide Dogs and she should be sitting outside the supermarket where Carol had put her, collecting money.

She remembered all the months she had spent outside shops in Hobart as a collection dog. It had been cold and lonely. Nothing much changed around her
and she didn’t move from place to place. Adults mostly ignored her, though children usually stopped to say hello and give her a pat. It was a noble life, but not very exciting.

If she stayed in Antarctica, Chills would go back without her. She might never see him again!
But if I go back to being a collection dog, I won’t be with Chills anyway,
she thought.
I’ll be alone, out on the streets.

Stay felt like her head was spinning. She loved Chills and wanted to stay with him. She was loyal to the Guide Dogs and wanted to do her job well. And she loved Antarctica too!

She loved it even more than Chills and the Royal Guide Dogs, she realised. It was big and frightening and wild, but every day in Antarctica was an adventure. The people were like no other people she’d ever met, and there were amazing animals like penguins and seals and skuas and snow petrels.

If she stayed with Kaboom, she’d become a winterer. She’d see the aurora in the sky. She’d see the sun set and not rise for six weeks. She’d see snow and ice and icebergs and go on jollies across the sea ice to new places.

She’d be the only dog in Antarctica.

Stay looked over at the huskies. The barge was on its way back and they knew they were being loaded onto it.
They looked miserable. They didn’t want to leave. They were scared of what might be ahead.

Stay had an idea. It was time to use her wish, the one she’d saved from the falling star.