waving their spines She saw sea cucumbers sluggish on the sea’s floor and sun stars bright as sunset and rosy as dawn tiptoeing this way and that on their many legs and hundreds of tiny sucker-feet The sun stars were moving faster than Gull We’re there Jane said at last That was after they had drunk their ginger beer and Jane had laughed some of hers out her nose and they had eaten most of Gran’s scary cheese-and-onion sandwiches It was after the tide had made Seal Rock back into an island They pulled Gull up and walked around the islet trying not to pay attention to the person on tortoise rock For it was a person not a seal they could see now that they were there But there were no seals Not one They were here though said Jane There were fishy remains everywhere and clumps of old fur all brown and tufty There was gray crumbly stuff too that Becca didn’t want to know too much about I think this is where seal babies hang out Jane said Look at this hunk of fur Oh said Jane It still has skin on it Even the air is nourishing Becca said She thought it must be at least as good for you as those awful fish-oil capsules they sold in vitamin stores If you can stand it Take your hand off your nose I can’t understand you said Becca person there sat up There was a snorty croaking noise from tortoise rock and the
It’s just seal and sea-lion leavings he said Old meals and a little poop Merlin Becca exclaimed What are you doing here I thought you were talking with Uncle Mac said Jane I was said Merlin And then I went for a walk Did you come here to talk to the seals asked Jane I came to be alone How can you be alone asked Becca Don’t you have a pager or something I turned it off Merlin said A person needs a little peace now and then He closed his eyes Feel free to ignore me Becca and Jane went on exploring Look A seal tooth Jane exclaimed I didn’t know seals lost their teeth Becca said Is there a tooth I can’t sleep with you girls clonking about Merlin declared fairy for seals sitting up again Come help us finish our sandwiches said Becca They sat against lumpy tortoise rock Who made these Merlin asked when his eyes had stopped running with onion tears They’re very aggressive sandwiches Gran said Becca She calls these onions sweet and says they taste like apples Apples Merlin blew more onion tears out his nose What time is it he suddenly asked I’d better be going But you can’t Becca said For the sea had been coming in quickly and serenely creeping up the shore Already it felt like Seal Rock was shrinking sinking quietly into the strait perhaps preparing to become the seals
nighttime bedroom once more Well not really Becca didn’t really think seals slept here but she pointed to the water swelling up around the islet Merlin jumped to his feet and clambered over the cobbles and conglomerate up over the driftwood dried grasses and prickly plants He leapt towards the distant beach as if if he moved fast enough he’d be able to soar across the widening channel between Seal Rock and the island But even a deer in full flight couldn’t have leapt so far Ow There was a tumbling knocking sound and a sea-lionish noise from Merlin Ow he repeated That log rolled away right under my feet Becca and Jane looked at him He was sitting in a pile of smelly fur clutching his ankle Can you walk Becca asked I don’t know Merlin said But it’s all right It’ll be better in a while We can’t leave you marooned here Becca said And wounded said Jane I don’t need rescuing You can’t stay here all night Becca said And even if you could swim across how would you get back home I’ll be fine Merlin said Ow There’s no point wiggling your ankle Jane said It won’t get better if you don’t rest it what the aunts would say RICE Becca told him Rest ice compression elevation That’s Would you really stay here all night Jane asked
It seemed like a long time for Merlin to sit on a rock in the sea all evening and all night too because the night tide wouldn’t be low enough for someone to get across without swimming a long way And swimming in the dark alone was a bad idea I could work it out eventually Merlin sighed But I’m supposed to be somewhere this evening And Mrs Barker’s pressure pump needs attention Becca and Jane lifted Gull into the sea Welcome aboard said Jane Watch out for the boom Can you swim Becca asked Of course I can swim Merlin answered That’s good Becca said because we don’t have a spare life jacket Gull sank a little as he climbed in Ow he cried and fell over the centerboard Push off as hard as you can Becca said Jane We need all the momentum we can get Becca gave Gull a great shove and hopped aboard Don’t you have oars Merlin asked Becca thought of the oars standing at attention against the shed waiting for her to bring them down and put them in Gull just in case they were needed Which they were in this windless world and what a pity she and Jane had forgotten them Or if she was really the skipper she had forgotten them And now she was allowing a life-jacketless passenger aboard as well But what else could she do
