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Noodle stepped back and surveyed her handiwork a final time. The little boat was completed and as seaworthy as she could make it. It floated on pontoons made of hundreds of plastic bottles and pieces of Styrofoam, all tied together with salvaged fishing nets. The body was made of scrapwood and plastic pipes and sheet metal, all fastened together with more fishing nets and salvaged rope and a few nails and bolts she'd been able to find. On top was a mast made of one of the plastic palm tree trunks Murdoc had decorated the island with. The rudder was an old car door, and the sail was a plastic tarp, topped off with a flag she'd made of an old, tie-dyed tee shirt she'd found in with all the other garbage. On it, in dirty motor oil, she'd scrawled: Last Chance. A fitting name, for what truly was their only hope of leaving this place alive.

She heard Sunmoonstars come down the slope behind her. She turned toward him and saw that he held a large oil drum full of jellyfish juice. As he carried the heavy container toward the boat, he broke into a run, then, as he reached the boat, leapt from the beach and landed on the boat's deck with a loud thunk! As she watched, he carried the large container over to the outer shell of one of the junked cars, which had been lashed to the boat's deck with rusty chains, serving as a sort of makeshift shelter and storage area for their supplies. He put the drum into the car's trunk with another thunk, and, a moment later, had jumped back down from the boat to join her on the beach.

"Is that the last of the juice?" she asked him

He nodded.

"How many more containers are still left at the shelter?"

He showed her two fingers.

"Terrific, it's almost all packed up," she said, making herself give him a smile. "Where would I be without you to do all the heavy lifting?" She forced a laugh.

He paused and seemed to look at her speculatively, the sunrise reflecting in his goggled eyes. She knew he could tell she was nervous. He seemed to be good at picking up on her moods, even when she was doing her best to hide them. Feeling self conscious, she dropped her eyes from his and toed at the refuse underfoot. "I'm fine," she told him, although she was really trying to convince herself more than anyone else. "I'm just nervous. I…I know we're taking a big risk by leaving this island. There's a chance we won't make it to land. Maybe a big chance. You…you know that, right?" She looked back up at him.

He nodded, and then just stood there, as if he knew she would say more.

She fought the urge to stare back at the ground. "I…I really don't want to put you or Pelican in danger…I know that I am by taking you on this boat…I know you want to get off this island as much as I do…I know risk is inevitable…I know that you know that…I know we all have no choice…I know I'm rambling…" She forced another laugh and stared at the ground intently once more. "I…I guess I just want you to know that you don't have to come, but if you do, I'll do anything in my power to get you to land safely, but I can't promise I'll be able to…and…and…" I want to know if you'll forgive me if you die. Only I can't say that because it's too horrible and I could never ask anyone that anyway, and…

Sunmoonstars took hold of her and lifted her into his arms.

"No, no!" she tried to protest. "I don't need a hug! I'm fine, really! I really am…I…oh…the hell with it…" She slipped her arms around his neck and hugged him back.

"Thanks," she whispered, as he set her down.

Once her feet were firmly back on terra firma, she forced herself to re-gather her courage and start acting like a leader again. "Listen, why don't I go get the last two containers and load them onto the boat?" she told him. "You go and catch us some breakfast. I'd like to leave as soon as we've eaten, and everything will go faster if we divide up the labor."

He nodded and the two of them set off on their respective tasks.

Noodle climbed the slope and headed back to the shelter. Once inside, she paused, startled by how empty it looked. It had gotten quite crowded with containers of supplies in the past few days, so much so that it looked quite strange now that it was empty again. She scanned the little room, taking in the huge window, the relatively flat surface below it where they slept, and the garbage filled wall on the other side of the room. There honestly wasn't much to look at here…it was a filthy and yet, strangely sterile little shelter that they had called home this past week and a half…and yet, Noodle felt the strangest bit wistful when she realized that she would almost certainly never see it again. It wasn't that she had been happy here…but she certainly hadn't been as miserable as she thought she'd be. Aside from her first night here and the day that had followed, all her memories of this place had been pleasant ones. Waking up to the washtub full of food her second morning here….emergency cooking lessons out front…excitedly planning and building the boat…looking at the stars from the doorway of the shelter and then later, on the hill behind it…feeding Pelican fish after fish and discovering what a bottomless pit such a small animal could truly be….waking up in the middle of the night to find slender but strong arms around her, keeping the helicopter dreams away.

She wasn't sure she could say she would miss this place, but it hadn't been so bad, either.

Shaking herself out of her musings, she went over to the corner and picked up one of the two plastic containers full of dried meat. As she carried it out the door, she heard the loud beating of wings and a second later, Pelican had landed on a small garbage mound beside her.

"Hey, Pelican," she said. "Still haven't managed to convince Seagull to come with us?"

The seabird shook his head sadly. "Nope," he said. "He's too scared.

She raised an eyebrow at him. "Is that what he said?"

"Nope," Pelican admitted. "He said he's not stupid enough to 'sail into oblivion on a junk raft with me and a crazy girl and a masked freak.'" Pelican shook his head in confusion. "I don't know what he means by that, Miss Noodle," he said. "I think he's just scared."

"I think you're right," Noodle agreed, a touch indignantly. Crazy girl? Sail into oblivion? She may have been nervous about the voyage and their chances of surviving it, but that blasted Seagull was far more pessimistic than she would ever be. Not to mention more insulting… "I think that maybe he's a coward," she said hotly.

"That's what I said to him, Miss Noodle," Pelican replied. "But he said he wasn't a coward. He said that I was just stupid. I'm not stupid, Miss Noodle! I just want to get off the island! And he wants to get off it even more than me, but he won't come! And he's says I'm the one who's stupid! I don't understand him sometimes. And then he says that make me even more stupid!"

"You aren't stupid, Pelican," Noodle reassured him, hoping she was keeping a straight face. "It's not stupid to want to escape a prison. It's not even stupid to take risks to escape it, as long as you consider them risks worth taking. That's what I think."

"You're very wise, Miss Noodle," the bird told her. "I know you'll get us to shore! And when you do…I'm going to laugh in Seagull's face!"

"Uh…of course," Noodle replied torn between being touched by his faith in her and feeling guilty about it. "Uh…Pelican…you do know that there's a big possibility that Seagull is right and our boat might sink before we make it to shore, right?" She supposed she owed him the same conversation she'd had with Sunmoonstars, since she didn't want to drag either of her passengers on a deadly voyage without them both understanding and agreeing to the risks. "I'm going to try my hardest to keep you safe…but it might not be enough. We could die, Pelican."

"Oh, we won't die," he replied cheerfully. "I know you'll take care of us! Don't worry, Miss Noodle! Seagull's just being an idiot! In fact, I'm gonna go tell him now!"

"Wait!" Noodle said to him, just as he spread his wings. "I was just trying to make sure you knew about the danger, not get into an argument with Seagull. Since you still want to come with us, be ready in an hour, okay? Sunmoonstars is getting us some breakfast, and we'll leave right after we've eaten. So I want you to make sure you're ready to go by then, all right?"

"Okay, Miss Noodle!" Pelican replied. "What should I do until then?"

"Oh…uh…anything you want," said Noodle, starting off toward the boat with her container of supplies. "Take a good last look around the island, say goodbye to the rest of your bird buddies, keep trying to convince Seagull to join us. Whatever will pass the time for you."

"Okay, Miss Noodle," the Pelican called after her, and she heard the sound of his wings as he took off. "Hey Seagull!" she heard him call out. "Hey Seagull! Miss Noodle says we could die but you're a coward who should take risks to get out of prison but I think you're an idiot and you should come with us…" His voice faded as he flew out of earshot.

If she hadn't been in such a foul mood, Noodle might have started giggling. "With persuasion skills like those, I'm surprised he hasn't sold someone a bridge in Brooklyn yet," was all she said, before heading off to finish packing up the boat.

/ / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / /

The Boogieman swam strongly after the yellow and black striped fish, pulling himself agilely through the water with powerful strokes of his arms. The fish darted around a submerged car and the Boogieman followed it, squeezing his slender body into the space between the car and the garbage behind it, just in time to see the fish's tail disappear into what looked like an overturned, empty paint can. Realizing his quarry had trapped itself, he stuck his hand forcefully into the paint can, fingers pointed outward, and felt a satisfying crunch as the fish was impaled on one of his claws.

He pulled his hand out of the paint can, bringing the still wriggling fish out with it, along with a small puff of blood. Closing his hand around his latest catch, he pulled himself to the surface and quickly swam to the shore, where the overturned washtub waited. He lifted it and tossed the now dead fish underneath to join all the others he had caught, then set it back down over all the fish to protect them from the seagulls. Slipping back into the water, he scanned the murky gloom all around him for his next target.

It wasn't long before he spotted a dark, sprawling shape about the size of his hand moving slowly out from behind a broken teapot on a submerged garbage slope to his right. A closer look revealed it to be a small, green, one-eyed octopus. It seemed similar to the one-eyed squids he often caught in these waters, except that it was smaller and rounder and its eye took up a much larger proportion of its body. Still, it would certainly be a fine edition to the breakfast table, and the Boogieman began to swim stealthily after it.

He came at it at from behind, hoping its large eye wouldn't see him coming, but at the last moment, just as his claws were about to snag the thing, it shot out a jet of ink into his face and propelled itself from submerged slope out into the open water beyond.

Having anticipated this possibility, he quickly stuck his other hand out in front of the thing, trying to cut off its escape route, but the ink made it hard to see where exactly the mollusk was headed. For a brief instant, he felt something snag the claw on his pinky finger and then it was gone. A moment later, the ink cleared, revealing a single tentacle stuck to his claw.

He pulled the tentacle from his claw in frustration and scanned the area around him, trying to see where the octopus had gone, but there was no sign of it. It had escaped.

He was just about to give up and look for a new target when he spotted something round on the slope below him. His first thought was that it was the octopus, but he soon realized that it was much too small. Curious anyway, he propelled himself toward the surface with a kick of his legs, tipped his head back and stuck the snout of his mask out of the water like a snorkel, snatched a quick breath, then dived down toward the object.

It was smooth and hard as his hand closed around it, and when he wiped the grime away he could see a shiny, light brown surface speckled with darker brown spots. He turned it over to reveal a long, narrow opening traveling lengthwise down the middle of it, an opening which was flanked by numerous blunt white "teeth." His best guess was that it was a seashell of some sort, but it certainly didn't look like the typical snail and clam shells he occasionally saw among the garbage during his fishing trips.

He shook it slightly, wondering if there was a snail or other creature still inside, but the shaking revealed nothing. He supposed he would have to crack it open to know for sure. Deciding that it was worth carrying back to check out later (snails were just as edible as octopuses, after all), he quickly swam to the beach and tossed it and the single octopus tentacle under the washtub before diving back beneath the surface to continue his fishing.

A short while later, he decided he had caught enough fish to make an adequate breakfast for the three of them and headed back to the shelter. He was already halfway back there when it hit him that he was never going to have to go fishing again. Not that it was bad work…he had even gotten rather good at it...but it was a useless activity anywhere but here and one that he would no longer need to partake in once he left the island. Just as he would no longer need to stay with the girl. Pleasant things that were temporary. He knew that. He had made his peace with that. There was no more need for foolish thoughts and musings.

The girl had a small fire ready by the time he got back, and he quickly set down his washtub and set to work cleaning the fish he had caught. As soon as he finished preparing one, he would hand it to her to thread onto one of the skewers. A few of them he set aside for the pelican, since it ate its fish raw. Soon, the washtub was empty except for the lone octopus tentacle and the seashell he'd found.

"Where's the rest of it?" the girl asked him as he picked up the tentacle.

He merely shrugged and handed it to her to put on the skewer. It wasn't like he could tell her an elaborate story about the One That Got Away.

"Got away, did he?" she asked him. She gave him a rather wooden smile. "Ah well, he probably tasted nasty anyway. Who needs him, right?" She gave a laugh that he could tell was fake.

She still seemed so nervous about their upcoming escape from the island. He could tell by her behavior that she was actually quite afraid they would die on the voyage, and as the time of their departure grew nearer, she seemed to be getting more and more edgy. He wished there was something he could do to make her feel better. He couldn't exactly give her a pep talk, and even if he could, what was he supposed to say? That there was no danger of them dying? They both knew that wasn't true, so what good would lying do? Still, he wished there were something he could do, to cheer her up at least, even if he couldn't ease her fears. But the hug he'd given her earlier certainly hadn't helped, and that was the extent of his knowledge of sympathetic gestures. He sighed.

She turned to give him a questioning look, but her eyes immediately caught sight of the only object still in the tub. "Did you bring back a seashell?" A smile, a real one, teased at the corners of her mouth for a moment, and her eyes glittered with amusement.

He nodded and picked it up, wondering again if there was a snail inside. He shook it again, but that didn't tell him anything more than the last time had.

"That's a cowry shell," he heard her say. "I didn't think any of them were native tot these waters. Then again, this place does have stuff that the currents brought from all over the ocean. Maybe it traveled a long way to get here." She reached for the shell. "May I?" she asked.

He handed it to her, glad to have found something to take her mind off her nervousness.

"Cowries are actually a kind of snail, although you wouldn't know it from looking at their shells. They definitely don't have the typical spiral shape most snails have." She smiled and held it up to her ear. "I can hear the ocean pretty well. Must be empty."

He supposed that answered his question. Although it likely didn't matter anyway. They had plenty of food, and one snail wasn't going to make a difference.

She placed the shell back in his hand. "Try it," she said almost cheerfully.

He obediently held the shell up to his head and listened, but all he could hear was something that sounded like a distant, echoing wind. It certainly didn't sound like the ocean. He cocked his head at her, wondering if she was teasing him.

She beamed at him. "Neat huh?"

Deciding that she was serious, he nodded his head politely, deciding it was best to go along with her whimsical belief if it made her happy.

"Those are supposed to be good luck," she continued, gesturing at the seashell. "In some cultures, anyway. In others, they're a symbol of fertility." She laughed. "I suppose because the round shell looks like a pregnant belly and the crack on the other side reminds people of a-"

"Is it time for breakfast yet?" a loud voice interrupted her.

The two of them turned to see the pelican perched on top of a mound of trash behind them.

"Oh, hello Pelican!" said the girl. "Still no luck with Seagull?"

The bird shook his head sadly. "Nope. He called me an annoying peon!" His beady little eyes twinkled with confusion. "What's a peon?"

"Never mind," the girl laughed. "He's just being a grouch. Just think, soon you won't have to put up with his insults anymore."

"I guess not," said the pelican, although he sounded anything but happy about the idea. "I wonder if he'll miss me..."

"Who knows?" said the girl, all traces of mirth suddenly gone from her face. "Sometimes you don't realize what someone means to you until they're gone." Her face clouded and she was suddenly busy with turning the skewers full of cooking fish.

"Well that's a bloody stupid way to be!" the bird suddenly snapped, sounding distressed for the first time since the Boogieman had met him. "What good does it do to figure something out when it's too late to do anything about it?"

The girl gently reached out and smoothed the bird's dull brownish feathers. "I know…I know," she said softly. "I'm so sorry, Pelican. I didn't realize how much he means to you."

"Stupid Seagull," the pelican said forlornly, hanging his head and staring at the garbage underfoot. "I hope he gets run over by an old jalopy!"

The Boogieman gave the pelican an odd look. Was that a common way of meeting one's demise on a floating landfill?

"Hey…c'mon now…" said the girl, stroking the bird's feathers again. "I know you don't mean that. Here, why don't you calm down and have your breakfast?" She gestured toward a pile of uncooked fish that the Boogieman had set aside for him earlier.

"Okay," he said glumly, hopping down off the garbage heap and waddling over to the fish. "But I'm not really hungry anymore."

"I'll bet you'll change you mind once you taste them," the girl told him. "Look, there's a yellow striped one!"

The Boogieman tuned them out, feeling a bit glad that the girl seemed to have a bit more pep now, even if she still didn't really sound happy. He supposed having to take a leadership role and help the rest of them out took her mind off her nervousness. Well, that and looking at seashells…

The thought reminded him that he still held the odd snail shell in his hand. He looked down at it, gleaming in the morning sunlight like glazed porcelain. He supposed he should throw it away, since it was empty and of no use to any of them, but strangely enough…he found himself feeling a bit reluctant to dispose of something that had made her happy, even if it was only briefly. Even though he had no idea what else he could do with it. Maybe he could give it to her, since she seemed to like it so much.

Suddenly, it was as if a light switch had been turned on in his head. A gift! That's what would cheer her up! Humans were always happily exchanging gifts with one another! A gift would make her far happier and for far longer than any measly hug could. This was perfect. He would give her the shell as a present, and it would cheer her up and take her mind off her worries. It even might have symbolic value, since she had said that particular type of shell signified good luck. Giving her such a shell would be a way of saying "I wish you luck on this voyage." It all fit together perfectly. He actually began to feel quite impressed with himself for thinking of such an idea.

He looked back down at the shell again. So…what was he supposed to do exactly? Just hand the thing to her? It seemed a bit…unceremonious. She might think he was just giving it to her to look at again. And he couldn't talk, so he couldn't explain that it was a gift and what it meant and why he was giving it to her. And maybe she would think such a gift was silly anyway. What was she supposed to do with a seashell? Put it away in a drawer? Walk around holding it in her hand? No, he needed to find a way to dress it up a little bit, to make it obvious that this was a gift for her to cherish. He scanned the refuse all around them, pondering, and his eyes happened upon a piece of neon yellow plastic twine.

The idea now firmly cemented in his mind, he picked up the twine with one hand, and with his other, he began to drill a small hole in the top of the shell with one of his claws.

/ / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / /

The octopus finally emerged from the old leather boot it had stuffed itself into, blood still leaking from the stump of its severed tentacle. Its huge, single eye swiveled up to gaze toward the surface, where it had last seen the infernal abomination. This would never do. The holy guardian of the seas was supposed to have vanquished the demon. What was it doing still swimming these waters and preying upon the sea life? Could the octopus's master have failed? And even now, be slumbering, unaware that his prey still prowled this island? Such a thing was unacceptable.

This situation would have to be remedied.

The octopus began to propel itself toward the depths, where it knew its master awaited.

/ / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / / /

Noodle stood on the deck of the Last Chance and took one more look at Plastic Beach. She knew she would not miss it, but she also knew she would never forget it either, and truthfully, she didn't really want to. This past week and a half had shaped her, helped her pick herself up and build her confidence anew, and she once again felt comfortable standing on her own two feet. Whatever the future brought, she would be ready for it, and she would face it with her head held high

Taking one final glance at the ruined plastic island, she turned and began to make the final preparations for the voyage, determined to remember her newfound confidence no matter how frightening the journey ahead would be. She double-checked the ropes that worked the sail, made sure everything on the boat was still fastened properly, and made sure all their food, jellyfish juice, tools and supplies for emergency repairs were all accounted for. Everything was as it should be. They were ready.

She turned to her two passengers, but to her surprise, only Pelican was there, perched forlornly on top of the car's roof.

"Where's Sunmoonstars?" she asked him.

"Behind you," Pelican said dejectedly.

Noodle whirled around to see the demon standing over her, arms raised above her head as if he were planning to slip something around her neck. Something made of yellow…twine?

"What the heck are you doing?" Noodle asked him, as he quickly hid whatever it was behind his back and shook his fist at Pelican. "You're not trying to strangle me, are you? It's a bit early in the trip for the passengers to mutiny. At least wait until we're on the water." She mugged at him.

He merely stood there in evident embarrassment, whatever it was still hidden behind his back.

"What've you got there?" Noodle asked him.

He hesitated a moment longer, then took his hand out from behind his back and held it out in front of him. In his huge palm was the cowry shell he'd found, a loop of twine threaded through a small hole in the top. It was a necklace. He'd made the seashell into a necklace.

"Is this for me?" she asked hesitantly.

He nodded, then dropped his blank round eyes from hers and shifted his feet self-consciously.

Noodle took the crude necklace from him and held it up in front of her, wondering what on earth had possessed Sunmoonstars to do such a thing. "It's beautiful," she told him, hoping he wouldn't hear the little white lie in her voice. Truthfully, it looked a bit clunky, and twine certainly wouldn't be the most comfortable thing to wear around her neck, but…it was a gift. He had made a gift for her.

And the idea that the big scary demon had tried to make her a clumsy gift suddenly struck her so adorable that she threw her arms around him.

"I love it. Thank you," she said to him, as he lifted her into his arms and hugged her back.

"What brought all this on?" she asked him warmly. "How come you're being extra nice to me today?"

He paused for a moment, as if trying to think if how to communicate what he wanted to say. Setting her down, he reached out and traced a line from the corner of her eye with the back of his claw. He shook his head, pointed at the shell, then traced a U-shape over her mouth and nodded.

"Oh, you wanted to cheer me up?" Noodle said, after a moment's pondering. "Is that it?"

He nodded vigorously. Then, he gestured at the boat around them, pointed toward the eastern horizon, then at the shell, then made the sign for "good."

"And the shell will make us have a good trip?" she guessed.

He nodded again. Despite the mask, she could have sworn he was beaming.

"How will it…?" she wondered, before remembering their conversation before breakfast. "Oh, because I said they were good luck in some cultures? Is that what it is? A good luck charm?"

"Either that or he wants you to get pregnant," said Pelican from behind them.

Sunmoonstars had lunged at him before Noodle could even finish turning around. The bird squawked and took off just as the demon landed beside him on top of the car. Sunmoonstars just barely missed him as he took a swipe at the flying bird, managing to pull out a tail feather. Pelican squawked again and flew up on top of the mast, where Sunmoonstars couldn't reach him.

"Don't fight," Noodle scolded them, trying to ignore the fact that her cheeks suddenly felt hotter than a stove. "We're going to be out at sea a long time. If you two can't behave yourselves before we even leave the shore, how do you expect to survive weeks of being cooped up together?" But it was scolding without any anger behind it. She was still so charmed by Sunmoonstars's little gift that she decided she could put up with a little bickering. She slipped the necklace on with a smile, then turned to her two passengers.

"It looks like we're ready to set sail," she told them. "Sunmoonstars, would you do the honors of launching the boat?"

He nodded and shook his fist at Pelican a final time before hopping down from the car, and then down from the boat onto the beach. He placed both hands on the boat, and then, bracing his feet against the shore, began to push with all his might.

For a moment, nothing happened, and Noodle began to wonder if she should get down and help him. But then the little boat began to slowly slide from the beach into the water. The water splashed as the pontoons came in contact with it, and as they did so, pushing it suddenly seemed to become much easier. With a final shove, Sunmoonstars got the boat completely in the water and then pulled himself back aboard.

"We're floating!" Noodle marveled, as the little raft began to bob in the surf. Although she had done everything possible t make sure the little boat would stay afloat, it still seemed amazing to her to actually see firsthand that it worked. She quickly ran to the mast and started adjusting the sail. A few pulls and twists of the ropes, and the sail had unfurled and caught the wind. Soon the boat was heading northeast at high speed.

"Goodbye, Plastic Beach," Noodle said, watching the island begin to shrink with distance behind them.

"Goodbye, Seagull," said Pelican softly.

As if in answer, she heard a distant seagull call from the island.

"Maybe that's him saying goodbye to you," Noodle said to Pelican gently.

"He's a wanker," Pelican said, turning around on the mast so that his back was to the island.

The seagull called again, sounding closer this time.

Beside her, Sunmoonstars perked up, looking out at the sea behind them. Noodle followed his gaze and saw a small white dot following them.

"You don't suppose…?" she said to Sunmoonstars, watching the dot slowly gain on them.

The seagull called again.

Pelican had finally had enough. "I said you're a WANKER!" he shouted, turning back to face the island. "You hear that? You're a-SEAGULL!"

Sure enough, the dot had finally resolved itself into the gloomy seagull, flying toward them at top speed. A moment later he had reached the boat and landed on the hood of the car.

"I don't suppose you have room for one more?" he asked dryly, as if it didn't really matter what her answer would be, as if there were another boat that would be there in ten minutes to pick him up if this one happened to be full.

"Of course we do!" Noodle said, grinning at him. "I'm glad you changed your mind! I think Pelican is too," she said as Pelican glided down from the mast and landed beside him.

"Hooray, Seagull!" he shouted, flapping his huge wings excitedly. "I always knew you'd come with us! I knew it, I knew it, I knew it, I did!"

"Yes, well, don't make me regret that decision," Seagull shot back. "Honestly, if you flap your wings in my face any harder, I'm likely to get blown off this car and end up in the drink."

"Why DID you decide to come with us?" Noodle wondered.

The bird sighed. "I suppose it was what Pelican said to me earlier. Or rather, what you told him to say. All that bother about prisons and escape and risks and such. I realized that you were my last chance of leaving that plastic prison, and that, if I didn't go with you, I'd spend the rest of my life miserable and regretting my lost chance. And perhaps even missing my…anchor. A little." He sighed again. "I don't know if that's worse than dying out at sea, but I'm willing to take the risk."

"I'm glad," Noodle told him. "And I promise I'll do whatever I can to get you to land. I know it's dangerous, but I also know we can make it, with a little teamwork, a little cooperation, a little hard work," she touched the shell around her neck. "And a little luck."

"I think you should work on your pep talks," the bird told her with a yawn. "That was painful to listen to."

"Now Seagull," Pelican said, as Noodle tried and failed to think of something cutting to say in return. "Miss Noodle is being serious. She has a lucky pregnant seashell that's gonna keep us from sinking!"

"I assure you that that eases my mind considerably," the gull said mildly. He lifted a foot and scratched the back of his head.

"Mine too!" Pelican agreed. He flapped his wings joyfully. "Oh Seagull, I'm so glad you decided to come with us!"

"Yes, well, as I said, don't make me rethink the idea. It's not too late to fly back, you know."

"You wouldn't do that," Pelican said, sounding almost smug. "You like me! Admit it, Seagull!"

Seagull turned his back on Pelican. "I wouldn't go that far. As I've said before…we simply seem to be tethered together. Perhaps destiny has a cruel sense of humor. Whatever it is, it seems to be out of my hands…"

Noodle smiled at the two friends, just as Sunmoonstars gently placed his hand on her shoulder. Noodle reached up and touched the shell necklace he had given her. "I think we're all in destiny's hands now," she said softly.

Plastic Beach dwindled away and disappeared over the horizon, leaving them adrift on the open sea.