Stormy Seas
Samphire gazed upwards at the dark clouds rolling in across the evening sky. She felt the boat rock as waves lapped at the side of their newly-acquired propeller boat (which, to the dismay of her crew, Sam had christened “Boaty McBoatface”). A grin spread across her face as the salty spray speckled her crooked whiskers. With a dramatic flair, she turned to face her crew, “Crew, it looks like we’re in for our very first storm at sea! Buckle your seatbelts, because it’s gonna be an exciting night.”
A concerned murmur travelled through the crew, who were packed into the small boat almost as tightly as sardines in a can. After a moment, Moshe’s comically short plastic peg leg raised into the air, “Excuse me! Uh… is this gonna be like… a dangerous storm?”
“Maybe!” Sam replied, perhaps a bit too gleefully.
“Cool!!” Moshe exclaimed.
Noor waved a small paw in the air, “Sam, did you by any chance check the weather forecast before selecting today for our first practice sail?”
“What forecast?” quipped Sam. Noor wasn’t sure if she was being sincere or facetious.
Next, Tomcat Bobcat tapped his daughter on the shoulder, “Kiddo, I hate to break it to you, but I have a distinct lack of seatbelt up here in the navigator seat.”
“She was joking, TCBC!” cackled Lulu from the crowd.
Sam grinned mischievously at her father and snatched the rolled-up parchment from his paws. It was already dappled with fresh raindrops. “No, but you do have this soon-to-be soggy supply list! Yo, Mom, can you put this in the dry bag?”
“Don’t you ‘yo’ your mother!” Babb huffed, giving her daughter a quick swat on the nose before tucking the parchment carefully into the dry bag as instructed. Once her task was completed, she hefted her bowling-ball-shaped body up onto the platform beside Sam, “Now dears, does everyone remember what we discussed about storm safety?”
An uncertain silence fell over the crowd. The sky seemed to grow darker by the second. Finally, slowly, Noor raised a paw and piped up quietly, “If there’s lightning, we should all stay low.”
“Good!” Babb praised, “What other safety precautions should we take during a storm? Come now, don’t be shy.”
Before anyone had the chance to respond, though, a flash of lightning split the sky. Newt’s powder-pink crest shot up in alarm. Sir Beeston scampered to Babb’s side and Inlé wedged himself between Tib and Moshe. Soon after, thunder rumbled in the distance and all hell broke loose aboard Boaty McBoatface.
Newt was the first to react. He let out a shrill scream. Then another. And another. Before long, the screams had devolved into some kind of a hysterical death honk. Energized by Newt’s screaming, Tib let out a high-pitched screech – the kind that seems to go on forever, barely even stopping to breathe. Not wanting to feel left out, Moshe joined the chorus with a booming yodel.
As the cacophony grew, Haru clapped his paws over his ears and squeezed his eyes shut. Spotting his discomfort, Babb waddled over and scooped the tiny mothcat up in a bearlike embrace. He snuggled his face into her scruffy mane for a moment, but then he abruptly pushed away and heaved over the side of the boat. He gave a self-conscious glance to either side before slinking off to curl up behind some supply bags.
“You better not puke on the weaponry!” Samphire yelled after him, earning herself another bap on the nose from her mother.
At that moment, the boat gave a lurch, sending Bean skidding directly into Maya’s backside. The flabby mothcat yowled and spun around to strike Zack in misplaced rage. The larger mothcat winced backwards from the unexpected assault, then slunk away to curl himself protectively around Andy and Blue.
Sensing his moment to shine, Tisias made his way through the rain, wind and noise towards the front of the boat. Once he had reached his destination, he perched atop the bow on his hind legs, so as to make himself appear taller. He cleared his throat authoritatively, then shouted over the cacophony, “My dearest friends and crew members! I know you are overflowing with fear and excitement as we experience our very first storm at sea, but now is not the time to come apart. No, now is the time to come together! We must work in harmony to weather this storm! We each have valuable skills to bring to the table, so think now about what YOU can do to…”
“Tisias!” Babb shouted sternly as soon as she spotted him, “Get down here this instant! You know it’s not safe to be up there in this weather.”
Unfortunately, he couldn’t hear her any better than she could hear him over the roar of waves, thunder and shouting. Not that he would have listened if he had heard. So instead, he continued rambling on, unheard by most of his audience.
About 10 minutes into his inspired speech, the cacophony started to wane. Before long, Tisias’ proud voice was the only sound remaining. He figured this was a good sign, “I can sense that our morale is improving already. With this kind of cooperation, I am confident we can weather the rest of this tumultuous night and many more to come…”
“Hey bro, the storm stopped so you can shut your big mouth now!” Sam shouted over him. He stopped immediately and took a moment to look around.
Overhead, the clouds were parting to reveal a starry night sky. The downpour had slowed to a drizzle, and the waves lapped gently at the sides of the boat. The screaming had subsided. Tib and Moshe had collapsed in a sleepy pile with Inlé, and Noor was gently stroking Newt’s soft cheeks to calm his nerves. At the back of the boat, Ygrai had just finished crawling out of an equipment bag and was surveying his egg collection for damage.
“…I thank you all for your cooperation,” Tisias concluded abruptly, trying hard to keep his composure over the heat rising in his face. He gave a suave smile and hopped down from the bow of the boat.
“Hah!” whispered Newt. The tension broke, and everyone minus Tisias dissolved into nervous laughter.