A couple of dark-eyed Inuit girls came out the door and scampered off, laughing, in the direction of their homes. Chinook came out next and squatted down to pet Sasha.
“She’s really a great little husky!” he told Jean-Paul. “But she isn’t going to be very big. She might have trouble pulling a sled by herself.” He looked up at Jean-Paul. His friendly face was lighted by the glow from the schoolhouse window. His eyes were shiny, black marbles.
Jean-Paul said, “It’s not size that counts, Chinook, but strength. That’s what Pa says.”
“I think your father’s right,” agreed Chinook. “That’s a good point.”
The schoolhouse door opened again and Aiverk and Nanuk appeared. “We’re ready!” yelled Aiverk. “Let’s go!”
“I’m ready if Jean-Paul is.” Chinook stood up and turned to Jean-Paul. “We have to go to my apudyak first. I have to get my sled and Amarok. Is it too far for you to walk?”
Jean-Paul was embarrassed. He wondered if Chinook really cared if it was too far for him to walk, or if he was just making another joke about his foot. The Inuit village wasn’t that far from school.
“I can walk,” he said.
Jean-Paul knew where Chinook lived, but he had never been inside the igloo. During the summer months, Chinook’s family usually lived in wooden shelters made from driftwood, or trees that grew along the river. Unlike most Inuits around those parts, Chinook’s family did not follow the trails of large game during the cold months. Instead, Chinook’s father, Taguk, hunted seals on the ice. Those who tracked land animals often built apudyaks along the way, as needed. Winter snow was welcome, for snow houses were snug and warm.
The first time Jean-Paul had seen Chinook’s large round snow house, he had been amazed to see a window built right into the side of it. It had been night, and the light from the whale-oil lamps had shown yellow through that small window. Cordell had said, “Sometimes Eskimos build window panes of thin sheets of ice or seal gut.” Jean-Paul often thought it might be fun to live in an igloo.
They began walking. Jean-Paul tried to keep up with the boys. Sasha had no trouble tagging along. Jean-Paul was beginning to relax, and the more he relaxed, the more he talked.
Nanuk said, “You must start early to train your dog, Jean-Paul Okalerk.”
“I wish you wouldn’t call me that, Nanuk. If I’m going to be in the Ice Patrol, I should have a better name.”
Chinook had walked on ahead in the darkness as they left the lights of the village behind. Now he stopped and waited for Jean-Paul and the other two. When they reached him, Aiverk spoke. “Jean-Paul wants another name, Chinook. What name do you suggest?”
Jean-Paul could not see Chinook’s face, but when the Inuit lad spoke, it made Jean-Paul very happy.
“What’s wrong with calling him Jean-Paul? If Mother and Father Ardoin thought he should be Jean-Paul, then that’s what we should call him. Unless he doesn’t like the name and wants another.”
“It was Grandfather Ardoin’s name,” Jean-Paul admitted. “I’m very proud of it.”
Chinook laughed. “And I’m also proud of my name, even if it does mean a strong, hot wind!”
Everyone laughed at that as they continued walking.
When they neared Chinook’s igloo, Jean-Paul saw the small window glowing yellowish. And the closer they got, the more peculiar he thought the igloo looked. Harpoons—kakivoks—had been stuck into the top of it, so they would always be handy.
Jean-Paul had seen men and boys spearing through holes in the ice. First, a hole was cut out of the ice. Then the hunter waited for a fish or seal to come to the hole for air. He held a harpoon ready to strike. Inuits and Indians had to be expert marksmen. There was only one chance to throw the weapon, and it had to be a good shot. If it missed the mark, the fish would quickly swim away.
Chinook didn’t invite his friends inside. “Too many bodies in there right now,” he said. “But I have to get something.”
He called Nanuk and Aiverk to one side and spoke so Jean-Paul couldn’t hear. But the three were laughing, and Jean-Paul wondered if they were laughing at him again. Then, Aiverk and Nanuk stayed with Jean-Paul while Chinook went inside.
Nanuk said to Jean-Paul while they were waiting, “You should put a harness on Sasha, so she can become used to it. Just let her drag it around for a while. Then, when you’re ready, pick up the other end and tie it to the sled. When she tries to get loose, the sled will slide across the snow. She’ll think she has done something wonderful, and most of your training will be done.”
Chinook came out of the igloo. He went behind it to get Amarok and the sled. Jean-Paul wondered if Amarok would like Sasha.
Chinook’s huge husky was very friendly. He barked once at Sasha, then came up to sniff. Sasha backed off a little, then stood still while Amarok got her scent. Then the large brown dog was satisfied. He would always remember who Sasha was.
“Let’s go!” Chinook yelled.
Jean-Paul could hardly wait for all the secrets to be told.
“Where are we going?” he asked.
Chinook thumped him on the shoulder as Jean-Paul climbed onto the sled. “We can’t tell you where we’re going,” he said. “You’ll find out soon enough.”
Aiverk and Nanuk laughed as they trotted along beside the sled. But when Amarok pulled faster, they both jumped up to ride with Jean-Paul. Chinook yelled to Amarok in Inuktitut, “Ouk! Ouk!” (Turn right.) And, “Rra! Rra!” (Turn left.) The big husky pushed all his power into his harness and swung off to one direction, then another. Jean-Paul hung on tight to keep from getting thrown off the sled. Sasha ran along with Amarok, and he was glad she was able to keep up.
Jean-Paul buried his nose in the warm robe. A strong wind had arisen, and sometimes it tried to tip over the sled. For once Jean-Paul was glad he had worn the itchy wool underwear. It was a very dark night, without the moon or stars to guide the way. As far as the eye could see rose great dark shadows of snow-sculptures and ridges.
Several minutes of fast sledding brought them to a stop beside an igloo, and Jean-Paul wondered if Chinook’s dog had taken them around in circles. The igloo seemed strangely familiar in the darkness.
“Where are we?” Jean-Paul sat up and pushed the robe away from his face. A blade of icy air slashed his skin and worked its way inside his hood. He shivered violently and covered his nose.
Chinook came around to the side of the sled as Nanuk and Aiverk climbed down. Jean-Paul, too, got off the sled and looked around. It was too dark to see, but the huge igloo’s form stood out clearly. Suddenly, Jean-Paul knew! He tried to see Chinook’s face, but couldn’t. Sasha whined, and Jean-Paul reached down to pet her.
When Chinook spoke, the wind tried to snatch his words away. “Everyone sit down on the sled so we can begin.”
Jean-Paul backed against the sled and sat down. Nanuk and Aiverk sat on each side of him, and Chinook stood before them, a dark blob in the night. Chinook said, “To get into Ice Patrol, you have to do two things, Jean-Paul. Are you ready?”
Jean-Paul glanced at the haunted igloo. A terrible fear fell upon him. He wanted to go home, but he couldn’t tell them that. He told himself that whatever they wanted him to do couldn’t be so bad. Choking back a lump in his throat, he said, “Yes ... I guess I’m ready.”
Jean-Paul heard Nanuk and Aiverk snicker.
“Hold out your hands.” In the darkness, Jean-Paul saw Chinook holding something.
“Wh–what is it?”
“It’s food,” Chinook said. “If you want to be in our club, you have to keep up your energy.”
“Well, it’s almost supper time,” Jean-Paul admitted.
“Take off your mitten,” Chinook told him.
Jean-Paul pulled off a mitten. His hand became instantly cold. He held it out to Chinook, and Chinook laid something icy in his hand. Jean-Paul jerked his hand away at the last minute, dropping the object on the snow beside the sled.
Chinook grumbled and picked up th
e item. “Come on now, Jean-Paul! We don’t have all night. Take it now!”
“What is it—?” Jean-Paul reached out. When Chinook put the thing in his hand again, Jean-Paul closed his eyes. It felt like a piece of bait. He gripped it in his freezing hand. He sniffed, and smelled a familiar odor.
“It’s only a fish!” Aiverk laughed.
Jean-Paul almost dropped it again. “Is it alive? I won’t eat a live fish!”
Nanuk and Aiverk doubled over with laughter. Nanuk said, “He thinks we want him to eat a live fish, Chinook! How dumb can one person get? Even Inuits kill the fish before eating it!”
“You have to eat some if you want to join the club,” said Aiverk.
Jean-Paul gave the fish back to Chinook. “I’m not eating raw fish, Chinook! My cousins in Quebec like it raw, but not me. My stomach hurts just thinking about it.”
But Chinook wouldn’t take the fish. “You said you wanted to join the club. And eating raw fish is one of the things you must do. The fins and scales have been removed. But watch out for bones.”
Jean-Paul was beginning to suspect the boys had made special rules just for him.
Aiverk laughed and punched Jean-Paul lightly on the shoulder. “Wait till you hear what comes next!”
Jean-Paul was nervous and scared. He didn’t care what came next. He didn’t care if he joined their old club or not. All he wanted was to go home.
“Eat the fish before Sasha gets it,” Nanuk said. “You’re the biggest baby!”
Suddenly, Jean-Paul was very angry. No one could call him a baby and get away with it. “I’m not a baby, Nanuk! I’m almost as old as you and Aiverk, so you can’t call me a baby unless you call yourselves babies, too!”
“Then you’d better get busy and eat the fish,” Chinook said. “We can’t take you home until you do. This and the other thing.” The other two boys laughed loudly.
Jean-Paul knew he didn’t have a choice. He felt the fish. It was not large, and he made up his mind to eat some, even if it choked him blue in the face.
He brought the fish to his mouth once, then brought it down again. Warmth from his hand had thawed the fish a little. His stomach groaned. Waves of sickness rose inside his chest. A bitter, acid taste came into his throat. He closed his eyes tightly and, before he could change his mind, sank his teeth into the fish and ripped out a small bite. His blood pounded inside his ears as he sat for a moment with the mouthful of raw fish.
“We eat raw fish all the time,” Chinook said. “It isn’t that bad. We eat other meat raw, too. It helps keep us warm in this cold weather. If you want to be like us, you have to be strong.”
Jean-Paul could not speak with his mouth full. For one awful moment he wanted to spit out the bite. He tested for bones with his tongue, then began chewing. The icy flesh came apart easily between his teeth. He swallowed. It slipped softly down his throat. Why, there was nothing to eating raw fish. When he had finished, he gave the rest to Sasha.
“You didn’t say I had to eat it all,” he told them, wiping his mouth and pulling his mitten back on. His fingers ached and burned from the cold.
“He did it!” exclaimed Nanuk. “I didn’t think he would, but he did!”
Chinook slapped Jean-Paul on the back. “That’s number one! If you pass the next test, you’ll be a member of Ice Patrol and will get to go with us when we ice-fish or hunt. You’ll learn our secret codes and messages.”
“Yes,” said Aiverk. “Only very brave boys can be members of Ice Patrol. And you were brave to eat the raw fish when you never did it before.”
Jean-Paul’s whole body felt chilled to the bone, warm clothes or not. At that moment he didn’t care if he passed any more tests or not. But something told him they wouldn’t let him go home yet. He thought the cold he felt was more from fear than anything else. He was sure his new friends had planned something much worse than raw fish.
“Wh–what do I have to do now?” he asked.
“You’re going to do what all of us had to do once,” came the answer from Chinook. “You must spend two hours alone in the haunted apudyak.”
Jean-Paul stared at the large, dark shape in front of him. “Is this where you have your meetings?”
“No,” said Nanuk, “we just come here sometimes to play. It’s fun sliding down the side of the apudyak on our bellies.”
“But you have to sit inside the apudyak for two hours,” said Aiverk, “listening to the torngark moaning, and talking to the crazy old man.”
“I don’t think they’ll get you.” Chinook laughed. “But you never can tell!”
Jean-Paul shrank back against the sled. “I—I don’t think I’d better. No! I won’t go inside there! You can’t make me go in there!”
“I thought you wanted to be in our club,” said Nanuk. “Does this mean you don’t?”
“No,” Jean-Paul replied, “that’s not it. I just…” He looked toward Nanuk, but could see only the outline of his face. “I mean ... well…”
“If you’ve changed your mind,” said Chinook with a sigh, Athen we’d better take you home.”
“No! I really do want to join, Chinook! But you’re trying to make me do things I don’t like to do!”
“Aw, let’s take him home,” Nanuk said with disgust. “Jean-Paul’s just a big baby, like we thought. He’s afraid of torngark.”
“Yeah, let’s take him back right away,” agreed Aiverk. “We can’t have babies in our club.”
“I’m not! I’m not a baby!” Jean-Paul shouted. “I’m not afraid of any old igloo or torngark, either!”
The wind moaned, and Jean-Paul thought he heard laughter. Amarok gave an impatient yelp, then howled. His voice rose, ending in several short, high-pitched yips. Sasha answered, and her howl drifted away to nowhere. Jean-Paul’s knees shook, from the stabbing cold and from fear. Nobody moved. Nobody spoke. Jean-Paul knew the laughter had not come from a human. It was something from inside the igloo. Something or someone inside there was laughing.
He forced himself to brush away the frightening thoughts. Of course there really was no laughter. The laughter was only in Jean-Paul’s imagination, but he was too scared to know that. There was only the strong wind whistling around from behind the igloo.
“Two hours?” Jean-Paul tried to sound brave, but he knew his voice was small and quivering.
“Yeah!” Chinook replied. “Just two hours in that haunted apudyak, then you can go home.”
Jean-Paul gritted his teeth to keep them from chattering. “I g–guess t–two hours won’t be so bad. If the rest of you can do it, so can I. And when the t–two hours are up, you will let me join Ice Patrol, won’t you?”
“Sure we will,” they all said at once. “And we’ll take you home right after.”
Jean-Paul’s mind was made up. He wanted in that club more than anything in the world. And, if he was ever going to overcome his fear of the dark, now was the time to do it. He started toward the igloo with Sasha at his side. “Okay. If I can find the entrance.”
But Sasha had already found the opening. She poked her nose inside, then backed away.
“Better let your dog go in first!” yelled Aiverk. “She can make sure it’s safe!”
Someone laughed. A real laugh this time, not the wind. “If she comes back out, you’ll know it’s safe to go in!”
The three boys sat on the sled and watched to see what Jean-Paul was going to do. Jean-Paul glanced back at them, but they were just three dark shadows all running together. He wished it was light. Then he could see what he was doing. There could at least be a moon, or a bright aurora. He dropped to his hands and knees before the entrance. They’re trying to scare me, but I won’t let them!
The entrance was a short round tunnel leading into the main room. The darkness from inside was even worse than the darkness outside, for it seemed to reach out for Jean-Paul as he moved slowly forward and stuck his head in. Behind him, Sasha whined. At the doorway, Jean-Paul stopped.
“What are you waiting
for?” yelled Nanuk.
Aiverk shouted over the sound of the wind. “Go on in, Jean-Paul Okalerk!”
Jean-Paul found his courage and crawled all the way into the tunnel. Black as pitch! Blacker than the ink on Father Cortier’s desk! Like going into a cavern! Suppose there’s no bottom in this igloo! Suppose I just drop down and down and ... all the way through the earth ... to the South Pole!
At that moment, something touched his foot. He drew it up sharply. Then came a whine. Of course, it was Sasha, following him into the tunnel. He could feel the walls of the tunnel. There wasn’t enough room to turn around. If something came out of the igloo after him, he would have to back out. There was no way both Jean-Paul and Sasha could back out fast enough before something grabbed them.
Then, the tunnel walls fell away. Jean-Paul’s heart thumped hard as he realized he was inside the big, round room. He knew there should be a smoke hole in the top of the igloo, but it probably hadn’t been used in a long time. Maybe it was even frozen shut. He felt a cold nose on his cheek. His heart hammered at his chest. He walked his hands across the snow-packed floor, feeling his way inch by inch. “I guess we’re in here, Sasha!” His voice sounded hollow as it bounced off the igloo’s wall.
Someone called from outside, but he could not tell who. “You in there, Jean-Paul? See any spirits yet? How about wolves?”
Muffled laughter seeped through the thick wall. Jean-Paul grabbed for Sasha and clung to her neck. “I wish I was home. Oh, Sasha, I wish I was back home! Why did I listen to them?”
A soft scuffling sound came from behind. Jean-Paul turned his head to hear—to see. But there was nothing to see. There was only the complete blackness. He hugged Sasha tightly and buried his face in her furry neck. “Listen,” he whispered. “Something’s here ... something’s in here.”
The Haunted Igloo Page 5
