Once upon a time, in the icy expanse of Antarctica, there lived three penguin brothers named Pippin, Percy, and Puck. They were unlike any other penguins in their colony, for one simple reason: they absolutely loved going to school. Every morning they waddled off together to Iceberg Academy, where they learned about the wonders of the sea, the proper way to catch a fish, and all the secrets of the frozen world around them.
One chilly morning, the brothers were getting ready in a great hurry.
“I can’t wait to learn about ocean currents today!” said Pippin, the eldest, tugging his little backpack straight.
“Nor can I!” chirped Percy, the middle brother, who was forever wondering what lay in the deep.
“And don’t forget our science project on krill,” added Puck, the youngest, with a twinkle in his eye.
Their mother, who was very proud indeed of her scholarly sons, stopped them at the door.
“Remember to stay together,” she said. “And keep your eyes open. There has been a sea lion about.”
The brothers nodded, and none of them felt like laughing. They all knew about Sly — a large, cunning sea lion who had been seen patrolling the water near the school, watching for anything small and slow enough to be an easy meal.
Off they went across the ice, singing their favourite school song, their three voices carrying thinly over the snow. The road to Iceberg Academy took them past shimmering blue-white icebergs and over slippery floes that tipped and bobbed underfoot, but the brothers crossed them easily. They had done it hundreds of times, and they always went together.
At break time they were playing their favourite game, tobogganing along on their bellies with their flippers tucked back, when Percy stopped dead.
Out beyond the ice shelf, a dark head was cutting slowly through the water. It turned, and two eyes fixed on them and did not look away.
Sly.
The three brothers exchanged one long look. They had to think, and think quickly.
“We need a plan to outsmart him,” Pippin whispered.
“Then let’s use what we’ve learned,” said Percy. “Remember our lesson on distractions?”
“And the ice maze by the playground!” added Puck, hopping from foot to foot.
Between the three of them, they worked it out.
Pippin fetched the shiny pebbles they had collected in science class and flung them as far as he could across the ice, away to their left. They landed in a long, bright, rattling clatter.
CLICK-CLACK-CLATTER-CLINK!
Sly’s head snapped round towards the noise.
“Now!” hissed Pippin.
The three of them waddled as fast as their legs would carry them into the ice maze — a great glittering labyrinth of tall frozen walls that stood beside the playground. They had learned their way through it during geography lessons and they knew every turn of it as well as they knew their own flippers.
Behind them came a bellow of rage. Sly had realised he had been tricked, and he came after them, hauling himself over the ice with astonishing speed. But the maze was narrow and confusing and slippery as glass. The brothers slipped through gaps too tight for him to follow, doubled back along passages he had already tried, and left him floundering.
At the very heart of the maze, Puck stopped.
“Let’s hide here a moment,” he panted. “Just to get our breath.”
They huddled together with their backs to the cold wall, hearts hammering, listening.
They heard Sly’s growls of frustration echo along the corridors. They heard him try one turning, and then another. And then, at last, they heard the growls grow fainter and fainter, until there was nothing but the wind and their own breathing.
He had given up and gone looking for easier prey.
Relieved and rather pleased with themselves, the three brothers picked their way back out of the maze and returned to school, where their classmates and teachers — who had watched the whole thing from a safe distance — met them with a great cheer.
The headmaster, an old and very wise emperor penguin, came forward.
“Well done, Pippin, Percy, and Puck,” he said. “You used your wits and you worked together, and you kept yourselves safe. You have made us all proud.”
From that day on the penguin brothers were heroes at Iceberg Academy. They went on doing well in their studies, always eager to learn something new, and always ready to face whatever came next as long as they faced it together. And they never once forgot the lesson of that morning: keep your eyes open, and use what you know.
And so Pippin, Percy, and Puck lived happily, enjoying their school days and their adventures in the icy wonderland of Antarctica, ready to outsmart any trouble that came prowling their way.