3 Puffin Patrol

Chapter 3 Puffin Patrol Sofia stared at the waves below, wondering how deep the water might be. Then she heard voices. She glanced up and saw a boy and a girl crossing the black sand beach. "Let's catch up to them," said Max. "We're wearing waders for a reason!" He grabbed his backpack and climbed carefully down the ladder attached to Wind Rider's hull. He stepped into the water, lowering his foot slowly until he felt the sandy seabed below. The sea was

only knee-high, but it was freezing! Max shivered, but his waders kept him dry. Sofia followed him down. "We'll have to hurry if we're going to catch them!" she said. But wading through the icy waves felt like running in slow motion. When she finally reached the slick black sand, she glanced at the tower of rocks rising through the mist. Birds called to one another as they circled high above. Then someone called to her—the boy on the beach. But she couldn't understand a word he was saying. "H., purfie

tie hjálp?" I need my necklace! Sofia realized. She pulled the beads from her backpack and slipped them on. As Max stepped out of the waves, she motioned to him to do the same. "Hi," the boy onshore said. "Do you need help?" He waved with one hand and straightened his knit cap with the other. "Hello!" said Sofia. "We're fine, thanks." The red-haired boy stepped closer. "I'm Gunnar Magnusson." He gestured toward the blond girl at his side. "This is my twin sister, Agnes Magnusdóttir." Agnes smiled shyly from beneath the fur-lined hood of her purple parka. "Wait," said Max. "If you're twins, why do you have different last names?" Gunnar laughed. "You're new to Iceland, aren't you? I couldn't tell at first, because you speak Icelandic quite well. Here, your last name tells who your father is. Our father is Magnus, so I am the son of Magnus and Agnes is the 'dóttir' of Magnus."

Sofia cocked her head. "I get it! So I would be Sofia Tomásdóttir, the daughter of my dad, Tomás." Agnes nodded. "Welcome, Sofia," she said warmly. She didn't seem as chatty as her brother, but her eyes twinkled. "What brings you to Iceland?" asked Gunnar. "We're here to, um, see the wildlife," Max said quickly. It's true, he reminded himself. We just don't know which animals we're here to help yet! "We already saw a pod of whales!" said Sofia. "White ones." "Ah, beluga whales," said Gunnar. "We also have humpbacks." Max grinned. "We have humpback whales back home!" Suddenly, Iceland didn't feel quite so far away from Starry Bay.

"If you like wildlife, it's good we met," said Gunnar. "We're part of the local Puffin Patrol. We're on our way to a puffin colony right now." He pointed toward the rocky cliffs, where seabirds swooped in and out of the rocks. "Would you like to come?" Sofia's heart leaped. She had seen puffins only once before, during another adventure on Wind Rider to Scotland. "We'd love to," she said. "Definitely!" said Max. Is this why we're here? he wondered. Did Wind Rider bring us here to help the puffins? He quickly took off his waders and changed back into his shoes. As Sofia fell into step beside Agnes, the sun peeked through the clouds, casting a sheen across the black sand. Sofia dodged a clump of seaweed just as Agnes nudged her shoulder. "Speaking of puffins...," she said. "Where?" Sofia followed Agnes's gaze toward the cliffs. Then she saw it—a squat puffin perched beside a bush. It had wide orange feet, black feathers, and a bright white belly, as though it was wearing a tuxedo. Its beak was striped and brightly colored. Seconds later, it waddled off the rocks and took flight.

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