Eve of the Emperor Penguin Read Online Free PDF Page A

worked,” said Annie.
    The ice raft kept floating along a thin river inside the cavern, past icy archways and jagged ledges. Jack felt as if they were being watched. He thought he heard whispering and breathing.
    “Look!”
said Annie. She pointed to one of the cave openings. Standing on the ledge outside the cave entrance were two penguins. They looked just like the emperor penguins Jack and Annie had seen earlier.
    Jack and Annie stood up so they could see better. As their raft floated toward the ledge, the penguin in front stepped back into the cave. The other didn’t move.
    “Oh, man!”
said Jack.
    The penguin wore a glittering crown.
    “The
ancient crown,
” Jack whispered. “We found it!”
    Annie didn’t say anything. She just smiled as the ice raft floated straight toward the emperor penguin. It hit the ledge with a gentle bump.
    “Hi,” Annie said simply.
    The penguin made deep murmuring sounds. He didn’t speak in human speech. But somehow Jack and Annie could understand every word:
Welcome to the Cave of the Ancient Crown.
    Annie bowed. The penguin had such dignity, Jack bowed, too.
    The emperor spoke again:
Come.
He beckoned with his wing, then turned.
    Annie stepped off the ice raft onto the ledge and followed the emperor into the cave. Jack put the Wand of Dianthus into his pack. He hoisted the pack onto his back and tried to balance his weight so he could step from the raft to the ledge.
    “Hurry!” said Annie, poking her head out of the cave.
    “I’m coming!” said Jack. He leapt from the raft onto the ledge, then hurried into the cave.
    The Cave of the Ancient Crown was sparkling. Icicles hung everywhere. Pillars of ice glimmered with blue light. From behind a row of ice pillars came the sound of music—strange music, unlike any Jack had ever heard before. It sounded like the music of a thousand icicle wind chimes.
    The emperor led Jack and Annie around the pillars.
    “Oh, wow,” said Annie.
    Penguin couples were dancing to the strange music on a glittering ice rink. Pink and blue lights spilled over the dancers as they gracefully glided and turned. Some penguins danced silently with their eyes closed. Others touched beaks. A group of baby penguins danced together, hopping and sliding on the ice.

    “How—how could this be happening?” stammered Jack.
    “Don’t ask,” whispered Annie. “It’s magic.”
    A murmur went through the ballroom as the penguins began to notice Jack and Annie. Though the strange music kept playing, all the dancers came to a stop. None of the penguins seemed alarmed, though. They all looked at their visitors with calm, friendly faces.
    The emperor spoke to Jack and Annie:
Word reached us earlier that you saved one of our own. We have been hoping to meet you.
    Puzzled, Jack looked at Annie.
    “When we first got here, remember?” she whispered.
    “Oh, right,” said Jack. He’d forgotten all about rescuing the small penguin from the petrel.
    You may stay with us for as long as you wish,
said the emperor.
You are honored members of our tribe now.
    “Thank you,” said Annie. “But we can’t staylong. We came to Antarctica to look for a secret of happiness.”
    “To save one of our friends,” said Jack. It felt natural to tell the emperor and his tribe the truth. They lived in a world as magical as the world of Camelot. “His name is Merlin. He’s the magician of Camelot, and he’s really sad.”
    The penguins began murmuring and whispering to one another. Jack couldn’t understand what they were saying. From the back of the crowd, a baby penguin waddled forward, the tiniest one in the tribe.
    “Oh, look …,” breathed Annie.
    Jack grinned from ear to ear. The baby was a fuzzy gray ball with big dark eyes. It was even smaller than the young penguin they had saved from the petrel. The little penguin waddled up to the emperor.
    Peep, peep,
she said.
    The emperor looked down at her.
    Peep, peep.
    She says she wishes to go with you,
said the