Puppy Pirates Super Special #3

by Erin Soderberg

  Henry called the Weirdos over. Millie and Stink loved dressing up in costumes. Millie wore fluffy black earmuffs. Stink had a pirate hat almost as big as he was. Henry whispered to them, “Mates, I should be wearing something pirate-y! Do you think I could borrow your hat, Stink?”

  “Aye!” Stink woofed.

  Henry stuck the hat on his head. “Perfect,” he said. Wally thought he looked even more pirate-y than usual.

  The other teams had one thing in common: they were all pulling a beautiful sleigh. Some were covered in jewels. Others were decorated with painted designs or wooden carvings. One sleigh was sparkling silver and full of flashing lights and dials—it looked ready to slide into space! Only the puppy pirates had a sled made out of plain brown wood.

  Very simple.

  Very boring.

  “Nice sled, pirate pups,” one of the North Pole Racers said, smirking.

  Blizzard shushed him. “Don’t be a bad sport, Dasher,” she scolded. “That’s not the spirit of this competition.”

  “I don’t want to pull the worst sled,” Captain Red Beard muttered. “I only like being the best!”

  “It doesn’t matter what our sled looks like,” Wally reminded the captain. “The only thing that matters is how fast it goes.”

  The puppies paid close attention as Mrs. C. explained the rules. “The beginning of the race is simple. Speed and strength will be important. You will follow Gumdrop Trail out of the village, race through Candy Cane Forest, and then cross the bridge over Gingerbread River.”

  Gumdrop Trail? Wally thought, giggling. Candy Cane Forest? Gingerbread River? The North Pole sounded delicious!

  Mrs. C. went on, “If any of you don’t know the way, just follow the North Pole Racers—they know this route better than anyone. But when you reach Cotton Candy Caves, each team will be on its own. From there, you will need to use your noodles if you want to win the greatest treasure of all.”

  “Aww, we don’t have any noodles,” Captain Red Beard whined. “I have steak, I have stew, but I don’t have noodles. No curly noodles, no straight noodles, no cheesy noodles. No noodles at all!”

  “In case you were wondering,” Henry whispered to Wally and the other pups, “noodle is a silly word for brain.”

  “Each team will get a map,” Mrs. C. said. She handed out pieces of parchment. “I have set up three checkpoints along the course. At each checkpoint, your team will get a riddle. Solve the riddle, and you will get the next part of your map. The first team to reach the finish line will earn a special key—”

  “Is it a gold key?” Captain Red Beard barked out. Curly shushed him.

  Mrs. C. went on, “This special key will unlock the treasure.”

  Captain Red Beard howled with joy. “A map?” he woofed. “Riddles? No one is better at map reading and riddle solving than my puppy pirates!” He called the pugs over. “Piggly, Puggly—you don’t run fast, but you are very good at solving riddles. You will ride in our sled and help out.”

  The pugs cheered. They loved being part of the action. Wally also had a feeling they wanted to snack on candy canes, gumdrops, and cotton candy along the way!

  “Maybe I could also ride along in your sled during the race?” Frosty asked. He stepped forward shyly. “In case you need some help figuring out how your ropes and the sled work?”

  Captain Red Beard glared at the little husky pup. “Shouldn’t you ride with your own team?”

  Frosty shook his head. “They don’t need me. But I might be helpful to you.” He wagged his tail eagerly. “It would be nice to feel useful.”

  “Captain,” Wally said, “maybe we should bring him along. Frosty knows a lot about dogsledding.”

  “Fine,” Red Beard huffed. “But I am not sharing the treasure.”

  Frosty climbed into the sled. He curled up between Piggly and Puggly, and then sighed happily. “It’s a lot cozier when you have friends in the sled!” he said.

  Mrs. C. waved her checkered flag. “Pups, are you ready?”

  All the dogs tensed, prepared for action. Wally took a deep breath.

  “Get set!” Mrs. C. hollered.

  Wally got set. Henry whooped.

  “And…GO!”

  The flag swooped down, and the dogs took off! Barking and yipping, teams of six raced across the town square. The huskies took the lead right away. Sled after sled slid out of the village and into the snowy world beyond.

  The rest of the Salty Bone crew barked and cheered from the sidelines. Millie and Stink rang little sleigh bells and sang merrily.

  “Arr-arrrr-oooo!” Curly yipped. “Stay strong, mates!”

  “Yo-ho-haroo!” woofed Old Salt.

  Henry waved a pirate flag at the crowd.

  Pulling the sled through snow was easier than Wally had feared. Especially without Henry and Captain Red Beard yelling opposite commands. They weren’t anywhere close to the lead, but at least they weren’t tangled up in their own ropes. And because their sled was simple and plain, it was surely much lighter to pull than some of the other teams’ fancy sleighs!

  The snow turned everything white. But Wally could still see the North Pole Racers’ red hats bobbing in the distance. They reminded Wally of a lighthouse, guiding the way.

  Gumdrop Trail led them to a red-and-white forest. The trees looked a whole lot like…candy canes? Wally couldn’t believe it. “That must be Candy Cane Forest,” Henry said. He ran one finger along the map, tracing their route.

  “Can we stop for a taste?” Piggly begged.

  “No,” Captain Red Beard told her. “We don’t stop until I have my treasure.”

  Piggly and Puggly both sighed. “What about what we want?” Puggly whined. “Don’t our wishes count?” With the mention of wishes, Wally remembered he hadn’t yet found the perfect gift for Henry. Maybe his best mate would like a giant candy cane?

  At the edge of Candy Cane Forest, Mrs. C. popped up out of nowhere. She was wearing a red beret. The little red hat made Mrs. C. look like she was a part of the forest. She held a camera in front of her face and yelled, “Say cheese!”

  “Cheese?” Puggly woofed. “Where? I love cheese!”

  The North Pole Racers were way out in the lead, and getting farther ahead every minute. It seemed as if they were flying across the snow—their feet hardly touched down between steps! The huge, strong Saint Bernards were right behind them. The Dalmatians and their fire-truck sleigh were running ahead of the puppy pirates, and the greyhounds were close at their heels. So far, it was a very close race!

  Wally and his team chased after the leaders. Though they were tired, the Salty Bone crew would never give up. They ran as fast as they could, weaving through stalks of red-and-white candy canes. Henry called, “Mush! Mush!” and his friends’ paws pounded against the snow. By the time they reached the far side of Candy Cane Forest, the puppy pirates were in fourth place!

  Families of gingerbread men, women, and children cheered for the dogsled teams as they dashed across the bridge over Gingerbread River. “Ahoy!” Henry shouted, waving his flag.

  On the other side of the river, a ridge of blue and pink mountains loomed ahead of them. Henry called out, “Whoa!” On his command, the puppy pirate team skidded to a stop. When they did, the sleek greyhounds and a team of stylish standard poodles zipped past them.

  Henry pointed at the horizon. “Look!”

  “What are ya doing?” Captain Red Beard said, tugging at his harness. “This is a race. There’s no time to stop and enjoy the scenery.”

  Henry waved Mrs. C.’s map in the air. “Mates, look at the map! Cotton Candy Caves should be inside those big blue and pink lumps over there.” Henry pointed east, in a slightly different direction than the poodles and greyhounds were heading.

  “Who is leading this team?” Captain Red Beard demanded. “I get to read the map. I get to decide whi
ch way we go! I am the captain.”

  Frosty poked his head out of the sled and said, “But, sir, I think the boy is right. To get to Mrs. C.’s first checkpoint, we need to go east around Cotton Candy Caves and cross the Snow Cone Glaciers.”

  Piggly glanced at the map. “It’s true.”

  Red Beard pawed at the ground. “What is this hoodly-toodly nonsense? Let me see the map. I don’t believe you.”

  Red Beard studied the parchment. Finally, he said, “We need to go that way—east around Cotton Candy Caves.”

  “But that’s exactly…,” Wally began. He was about to point out that Henry, Frosty, and Piggly had said the same thing. But he knew the captain wouldn’t want to hear it.

  Then Wally thought of something Captain Red Beard would want to hear. “Captain,” he barked. “We have something special that none of the other teams have.”

  “What is it?” Captain Red Beard asked. “It better not be fleas.”

  Wally shook his head. “We have helpers riding in our sled. None of the other teams have anyone in their sleigh. If we leave the map reading to Henry, Frosty, and the pugs, we won’t have to stop running to study the map!”

  “Hmmm,” Captain Red Beard said, cocking his head. “Little Walty, something you just said gave me an idea.” He howled, “From now on, the human, Frosty, and our two pugs will be in charge of reading the map and directing our sled. The race team and I will focus on running.”

  The captain stomped his paw in the snow. “Now onward, racers—to Cotton Candy Caves!”

  The puppy pirates set off running across the snowy plain. The dogsled teams had spread out after Candy Cane Forest, so now the puppy pirates had no other teams to follow. Red Beard’s crew was on its own.

  As they raced toward Cotton Candy Caves, the snow came down harder. Once, Wally thought he spotted the North Pole Racers’ red hats again in the distance. But he wasn’t sure. It was hard to see much of anything while the sky was full of swirling snowflakes.

  Finally, they reached Cotton Candy Caves. Wally wished they had time to explore. What kind of treasures might be hidden inside such colorful caves? He imagined jewels made of sugar, rocks made of peanut butter, and walls covered in tasty rawhide.

  But cave exploring would have to wait for another day. Today, they were on a quest for a different kind of treasure—the greatest treasure of all. There was no time to stop and smell the treats. Instead, the team turned east to go around the pink and blue mountains and shot out onto the rainbow-colored Snow Cone Glaciers.

  Henry yelled commands, guiding the crew over giant cracks in the ice. Sometimes the puppy pirates had to stop, back up, and steer around icy pools. Playful seals and honking narwhals poked their heads out of the water and cheered them on.

  Wally was beginning to feel tired. The sled felt heavier with each step he took. Spike had little ice balls stuck between his paw pads. Wayne was having trouble keeping his harness in place. The pugs moaned that they were starving.

  Just when Wally thought they should stop for a rest, he spotted a huge red-and-green flag flapping ahead of them. The flag was planted at the base of an icy mountain. “In case you were wondering?” Henry cried. “I think we found the first checkpoint, mates!”

  The sounds of barking and cheering got louder as they drew closer to the mountain. Dozens of puppies had taken a shortcut to the first checkpoint so they could cheer the racers on. As the puppy pirates’ team ran toward the flag, Millie and Stink burst into song.

  “Splashing through the snow,” the two Weirdos sang, “in a six-dog pirate sleigh, o’er the ice they go, running all the way—yo-ho-ho!”

  “Whoa!” Henry cried. “Halt!” The puppy pirates came to a stop under the giant flag. Little elf pups surrounded the crew. The small, fluffy white dogs were wearing tiny red-and-green-striped hats decorated with jingling bells. They offered each of the race pups dishes of hot meat stew and bowls of cold water.

  While he gobbled up his snack, Wally searched the crowd for Mrs. C. Before they could collect the next section of their map, they needed to solve her riddle. But where was she? And where were the other teams?

  A moment later, a loud Yoo-hoo! rang out from above. Wally and the other pups looked up to see Mrs. C. sliding down a rope off the edge of the icy mountain. She was wearing climbing gear and gloves. Her harness reminded Wally of the one he had to wear to pull their sled.

  “Welcome,” Mrs. C. said, landing on the ground with a soft thump. “Congratulations on making it to the first checkpoint. You are the third team to arrive.”

  “Third?” Recess yipped with glee. “We’re in third place?”

  Mrs. C. added, “The North Pole Racers and the Saint Bernards are just ahead of you.”

  “I hate third place,” grumbled Captain Red Beard.

  “Are you ready for your riddle?” Mrs. C. smiled at Wally and his mates. “Remember, no hints from the crowd. Only racers on your sled can guess the answer. Here goes:

  “When it’s cold outside,

  everyone loves

  these little white stars

  that sprinkle from above.

  What are they?”

  Captain Red Beard woofed happily. “Stars!” he said. “Twinkling stars! That’s easy. I am very good at solving riddles.”

  “That might be it, sir,” Piggly began. “But I’m pretty sure she said sprinkle, not twinkle—”

  “SNOW!” Henry hollered. “I think the answer is snow.”

  “Very good,” Mrs. C. said, grinning. She handed Henry a map. “Good luck on the second leg of your race. I’ll see you next at the Ancient Licorice Tree!”

  As the puppy pirate crew raced away from Mrs. C., Wally heard the crowd let out a cheer. He glanced back. The Dalmatian team had just pulled into the checkpoint. “Run, run,” Captain Red Beard growled. “We can’t let anyone catch us!”

  Luckily, the warm stew had given everyone on the team energy. Wally, the captain, Recess, Leo, Spike, and Wayne all ran as fast as their legs would allow. If they caught up to the North Pole Racers and the Saint Bernards, they could slide into first place!

  Wally heard Henry, Frosty, and the pugs trying to map out the fastest route to the next checkpoint. “I think we should take Sugar Plum Meadow to Marshmallow Bog,” Frosty told the others. “It’s the shortest path.”

  “Haw!” Henry yelled. The pups turned to the left. “To Sugar Plum Meadow!” As they set off at a gallop, Wally glanced to his right. In the distance, he could see that the Saint Bernards had chosen a different route. Wally was sure that Frosty knew the best route and felt lucky they had the little husky on their crew!

  When the Salty Bone racers reached a purple-snow-covered meadow, Frosty called out friendly greetings to a group of Sugar Plum Fairies who had come to watch the race. The fairies waved their wands in reply. A second later, a pile of treats appeared in the back of their sled! Piggly and Puggly gobbled them down.

  The team raced on through Marshmallow Bog. The Salty Bone sled was making good time. Wally spotted the North Pole Racers not far ahead. He was about to alert his teammates when, suddenly, their sled lurched to a stop. “Eh?” Captain Red Beard said, glancing over his shoulder. “Why did you all quit runnin’?”

  Frosty and Henry hopped out of the sled to see what had happened. “One of our sled rails is stuck in the bog,” Frosty said, shivering like crazy.

  Piggly and Puggly climbed out of the sleigh. The two pugs sniffed at the sticky goop on the ground. Piggly took a tiny taste. Puggly took a bigger bite. “This is the yummiest bog on earth,” she announced. “Tastes like marshmallow and peanut butter and honey, all mixed up in one cold, delicious stew. It might take a while, but Piggly and I could lick our sled free.”

  “Ugh,” Henry groaned. “We need some help. This is a sticky mess!”

  “I have an idea,” Frosty said. He howled, and a moment later a
group of furry creatures came lumbering across the bog. It was a pack of little polar bear cubs! They surrounded the sled, then stuck out their tongues and…licked.

  “Told you so!” Puggly shouted. She and Piggly joined in the fun. It was hard work. Deliciously hard.

  Within minutes, the sled was clean, and the puppy pirates were back in action.

  “Thanks for your help!” Frosty cried out to the little bear cubs as the pups’ sled zoomed away.

  “There’s the flag,” Henry called not long after. He pointed to a red-and-green flag hanging from the tallest branches of a giant black licorice tree. “And there are the North Pole Racers!” Sure enough, just as the puppy pirates pulled into the second checkpoint, the husky team dashed away.

  “We’re getting closer to first place!” Recess woofed.

  As soon as the pups had come to a complete stop, Mrs. C. parachuted out of the sky. Wally couldn’t figure out how she had beaten them to the checkpoint. He was starting to think she was as magical as the rest of the North Pole.

  “Congratulations on making it to the second checkpoint,” she said. “You are the second team to arrive. Are you ready for your next riddle?”

  “Aye!” the puppy pirates barked.

  “Okay, here you go,” Mrs. C. said. She pulled off a huge pair of goggles and winked.

  “I bite but have no teeth.

  What am I?”

  “A toothless dog?” Captain Red Beard guessed. “The Sea Slug!”

  “Bite…,” Piggly repeated. “No teeth…hmmm, this is a hard one. An eel? A whale?”