It was about a week later and things had pretty much gone back to normal, though Tom’s parents were still unapproving of Kari and her beliefs. Tom and Kari spent più time at the pond outlying the village and da themselves. They enjoyed each other’s company, and they didn’t care what anybody had to say about it.

    Tom and Kari, not wanting to be in the crowd of penguins, went back to the pond and were now swimming. Tom splashed water in Kari’s face, which resulted in Kari pushing his head underwater playfully. Tom resurfaced and pushed Kari away.

    “Stop it!” he cried laughing.

    “You started it!” Kari shot back splashing some più water in his direction.

    “No, seriously, Kari. I don’t feel right,” Tom detto getting out of the water.

    Kari’s smile faded into concern. “What’s wrong?”

    “I dunno…My head really hurts,” Tom detto sitting down.

    Kari got out and put her flipper on his shoulder. “Maybe we should go to the doctor.”

    “No…I just need a minuto to catch my breath,” Tom insisted.

    Kari touched his forehead. “Thomas…You’re burning up. Come on. We need to get te to the doctor.”

    “No, Kari. I’m fine.”

    “Tom, don’t be stubborn. Get up!” Kari pulled Tom to his feet.

    “But Kari! I’m…I’m fine…” Tom's vision suddenly became foggy and his breathing labored. Kari tried to get his attention, but he couldn't make out what she was saying. With his head spinning, he passed out.

    “Tom? Tom!” Kari shook Tom and tried calling for him, but it was no use. She picked him up da his under-flippers and half-dragged, half-carried him to the village as best as she could. Finally, she reached the doctor’s.

    “Doctor Mavis! Doctor Mavis, are te in there!?” Kari shouted knocking on his door. A moment later, Doctor Mavis opened his door and saw them.

    “My goodness! What happened?” Mavis exclaimed.

    Mavis had been the village’s doctor for about seventeen years now. He was tall, slim, and had kind blue eyes. He picked up Tom and carried him in as Kari explained.

    “I don’t know! We were swimming and all of the sudden, he started complaining about his head hurting and started running a fever. I don’t know what happened! He was fine this past week and all morning!”

    Mavis laid Tom down on his examination table. “When did he pass out?”

    “Just a few minuti ago,” Kari answered.

    “So, he showed no sign of this until now? Of anything?” Mavis answered checking his vitals.

    “No, he was recitazione completely normal. Do te know what’s wrong with him?” Kari asked trying to see over his shoulder.

    Mavis listened to his cuore and felt his forehead. He looked down for a moment, as if trying to remember something, then spoke slowly. “Go get his parents, would te dear?”

    “Yes, sir!” Kari leaped out of Mavis's place and belly-slid toward the McGrath's, swerving around other penguins as she went. She was almost there when Carla and her wannabe's stepped in her path, causing her to skid to a halt and get to her feet.

    “Where’s the rush, Sherry?” Carla asked with a superior look on her face.

    “It’s Kari. And it's none of your business where I’m going o why. So, how about te mind your own business and I’ll mind mine?” Kari replied. She tried to go around them, but Carla stepped in her way once again.

    “Oh, lemme guess. Your boyfriend sent te on an errand?” Carla taunted, resulting in her wannabe's snickering like the snobs they were.

    “Okay, first, he’s not my boyfriend. Second, this is an emergency, Carla. Let me pass.” Kari tried to push through them, but Julia and Brenda grabbed her da the flippers and flung her back into the snow; the three of them laughed evilly. Unfortunately for Kari, no one was around at the moment.

    “Hey! What the hell is wrong with you, Carolinia?!” Carolinia was Carla's full name, and she hated it.

    “What did te call me?” Carla snapped taking a step closer to her, eyes filled with hate and anger.

    Kari got to her feet and stared hard back into her eyes. “Carolinia…Gabrielle…Brint,” she detto sternly and confidently.

    Carla squinted in anger. “Girls…I think it's time someone taught Kari, here, some manners.”

    Kari took a couple of steps back, realizing her mistake. She needed to get to Tom’s parents, not into a fight with Carla. Julia and Brenda grabbed Kari da the flippers and held her back. Kari was about to cry out for help when Carla kicked her in the stomach with all of her strength, knocking the wind out of her. She laughed.

    “You’re so weak. Unfortunately for you, my father taught me self-defense.”

    Carla then roundhouse kicked Kari in the face, causing her to grunt as she was flung into the snow. Kari wiped blood from her beak and tried to get to her feet, but Carla kicked her hard in her abdomen, causing her to topple to her side, curl into a ball, and cough up blood, turning the snow beneath her a deep color of red. The girls laughed. Carla leaned down into Kari's face and grabbed the back of her neck.

    “Maybe successivo time you’ll think before te speak.”

    Kari spit blood into her face. Carla jerked back and wiped it away with a frustrated grunt. When she regained her composure, she kicked Kari in the stomach again.

    “You’d better watch your back, te little brat! Come on, girls.” She turned and Julia and Brenda followed, but at the last moment, Carla turned back to her. “Oh, and don't bother telling anyone about our little conversation, unless te want your not-boyfriend to end up like you, too.” With that, she and her wannabe's left Kari with a laugh.

    Kari slowly pushed herself to her feet and spit up più blood, then pressed on. She ended up needing to limp, most likely due to twisting her ankle when she fell to the ground. She wiped away the blood from her beak as she stopped in front of the McGrath's. She stood upright, trying to act natural as she knocked on the door. A moment later, Jacqueline answered.

    “Oh, hello, Kari. Where's Thomas?” she asked looking around.

    “Mrs. McGrath, something’s wrong with Tom! He spiked a fever and passed out! Dr. Mavis is examining him. te have to come quick!” Kari explained in a panic.

    Jacqueline’s eyes widened in shock. She turned her head in the house. “Adam! Come quick!” she called. Adam came running.

    “What’s wrong?” he detto when he reached the door.

    “It’s Tom! Something's wrong! We need to get to Mavis’s, now!” Jacqueline told him walking out of the house, then belly-sliding away. Adam and Kari followed on foot for a moment.

    “What happened?” Adam asked. Kari explained the situation again. “Does Mavis know what’s wrong with him?”

    “I don’t know. He just told me to get te two,” Kari replied.

    Adam looked down at her. “Darling, are te limping?”

    “Oh, I tripped and twisted my ankle on my way here. te go on ahead. Don't let me slow te down, I’ll catch up,” Kari insisted.

    Adam shook his head. “No. te don't need to walk on that.” Adam picked Kari up and supported her ankle as he sprinted through the village.

    He arrived at Mavis’s just a few minuti after Jacqueline did. She and Mavis were da Tom's bed, talking about his condition.

    “Doctor, how is he? I-Is he alright?” Adam stuttered.

    “Well, at the moment, he’s not critical. But, as I was telling Mrs. McGrath, I'd like to keep him overnight. Just to be sure. What happened to Ms. Chable?” he asked taking notice of how he was holding her.

    “She twisted her ankle on the way to our place,” Adam answered setting her in a nearby chair.

    “Oh, well, I’ll take care of te in a minute, Kari,” Mavis told her. Kari nodded.

    “Mr. and Mrs. McGrath, may I speak with te in private for a moment?” Mavis asked. Adam and Jacqueline nodded and followed Dr. Mavis into a back room.

    “What’s the problem, doctor?” Adam asked, unsure of whether he wanted to know the answer o not.

    Mavis hesitated. “Mr. McGrath, I'm afraid I have some bad news. I know te didn't want your wife to know about this…But I'm afraid that, considering his condition, we can hide it no longer.”

    Jacqueline turned to Adam. “Adam, what is he talking about? What are te hiding?”

    Adam ignored the question.

    “Doctor, are te sure that that is the cause?”

    Mavis nodded sadly.

    Adam turned to Jacqueline and took her flipper. “Jacqueline, I’m afraid there’s something I’ve been hiding from you. When Thomas hatched…He was…Late…”

    Jacqueline’s eyes widened. “How late?”

    Adam looked down. “Three days.”

    Jacqueline stared in shock for a moment, then pushed away, fighting back tears. “How could you!? How could te not tell me that our son hatched late?!”

    Adam stepped up behind her. “I didn't want te to worry! He was strong and healthy when he finally did hatch; I was so sure he was going to be fine—!”

    Jacqueline turned to face him. “I still had a right to know, Adam!”

    Mavis stepped in between them. “Now, now, let's take a minuto to calm down before something is detto that will soon be regretted—”

    “Calm down?! Calm down?! I just found out that my four-year-old son is in his deathbed and that he was a late hatcher and you’re telling me to ‘calm down’!?” Jacqueline snapped. Tears began to roll down her cheeks.

    “Now, Mrs. McGrath, it isn’t guaranteed that Thomas will die,” Mavis assured her.

    "What do te mean? There’s never been a late hatcher that has survived," Jacqueline pointed out.

    “Actually, Mrs. McGrath, I’ve made a recente discovery that may save Tom's life. It’s a simple and painless therapy and I’m confident that it will work, especially since he’s made it this far. Recall that life expectancy for late hatchlings is eight to twelve months, tops. Thomas is four now. Surely, that should give te some motivation to at least try.”

    Adam and Jacqueline exchanged a glance, then Adam wrapped his flippers around Jacqueline’s waist. “I don't know about you, but I'm not giving up on our son that easily,” he detto softly. Jacqueline looked at Mavis.

    “Are there any side effects of the therapy?” she asked.

    “Well, I don’t know. The treatment is new, I’ve never had the opportunity to test it. But as far as I know, no,” Mavis answered.

    Jacqueline thought for a moment, then nodded. Mavis smiled sympathetically.

    “I’ll start in the morning.” He went to the door of the room and opened it. Tom and Kari were standing directly outside.

    “So, that’s why I’m different,” Tom detto simply.

    Mavis turned to his parents, who were also unsure of what to say. He turned back and broke the short-lived awkward silence.

    “Thomas, the fact that te hatched late takes no precedence over who te are as a penguin.”

    “Really? Then why is it that the only pinguino that hatched late is the pinguino that everyone frowns upon?” Tom asked wiping sweat off of his brow that had accumulated from his high fever.

    “That’s ridiculous, Tom! No one looks down upon you!” Jacqueline detto stepping closer to him.

    “Whatever. Dr. Mavis, Kari’s ankle is really hurting now. Could te go ahead and take a look at it?”

    Mavis sighed and nodded. As he picked up Kari, Tom returned to his bed, exhausted. His body felt as if he weighed five tons and he felt so tired he couldn’t stand it. Whatever was making him feel this way was hitting him hard. His head sunk into the cool cuscino and he immediately found sleep.

    Meanwhile, Mavis had busied himself in bandaging up Kari's ankle. When he finished, he took her da the flipper and helped her balance herself. When he let go of her flipper, he discovered that dried blood had come off on his own. He grabbed hers again and examined it closer. It was hard to see, but there was definitely dried blood smeared on it.

    “Kari, is this your blood?” Mavis inquired.

    Kari stuttered for a moment. “Oh, uh…Well…Technically, yes…”

    “Kari, what happened?”

    “I…Uh…I…It happened when I fell. It’s really nothing to worry about,” Kari insisted.

    Mavis wasn't convinced. “Kari…Why do I get the feeling that there’s something you’re not telling me?”

    Kari shook her head. “I’m not lying. I need to get home.” Kari brushed past him and left his cabin; Mavis followed her out with doubt-filled eyes.

    When she got home, her foster parents were astounded at her condition.

    “Darling! What happened?” her foster mother cried rushing to her side.

    “I’m fine, Mama Jan. Really, it’s just a sprain,” Kari told them.    That’s what she called her foster mom. ‘Jan’ was short for Janice.

    “What happened?” her foster father asked picking her up and placing her in a chair.

    “It’s Tom, Papa Vincent. He became ill. After I took him to the doctor, I went to get his parents. I guess I was moving too fast and wasn’t paying attention and I tripped and twisted my ankle. I’ll be alright,” she answered putting on a smile.

    “Well, te need to be più careful, young lady. What happened to Thomas?” Gamma asked entering the room.

    Kari looked down for a moment. “Well, it’s kind of a sensitive subject for him. He’s just really ill, okay?”

    Gamma smiled. “That's fine, I understand. I know he'll get better soon.”

    Kari looked at Gamma for a moment, then back down. “I hope you’re right.”

    Gamma placed her flipper on her shoulder. “I am.”

    Kari looked up at her.

    “How can te be so sure?”

    “Because Grandma's just know these kinds of things,” Gamma answered.

    Kari smiled, though still doubtful. “You should meet him sometime. He’s a really nice boy,” she said.

    “I’m sure he is,” Gamma replied.

    What Kari didn't know was that she and Tom had already met. In fact, Tom still thought about the last thing she'd told him: ‘When te understand yourself, a new dawn will brighten on your horizon.’