Chapter 29: An Unknown Place
"Would we wake them up?"
"No, no, leave them alone- Wait! They are waking up."
Diddy and Dixie began to open their eyes because of the bright midday light reflected through the holes in their sleeping shelters, and also the murmurs of several voices that could be heard nearby. They both got up before giving one last yawn and rubbing their eyes. Upon fully waking up, they uttered a shout of astonishment as they saw a whole massive group of known faces surrounding them, as if it were a group of curious people watching an accident.
"Hi, little monkeys! We met again."
"Say what?!" Diddy exclaimed in shock. "W-What are you doing here?"
"How... did you get here?" Dixie asked in the same expression. "How did you find us?!"
"Well, while we were into the sea, the current brought us here," an elephant replied. "The question would be: how did you get here?... Didn't you go to your island?"
Diddy and Dixie finished getting up quickly and left their positions completely to get a better look at those ones. In fact, it was the great herd of the same animals of the circus, now also accompanied by those of the zoo and other animals never seen before. Diddy and Dixie looked at each other stunned by the unexpected reunion, because they never expected to coincide with them right in the same place.
"Do you live here too?" the animals asked the two of them between murmurs.
"So, you're the one who freed everyone from the circus?" asked the animals that went from the zoo.
"Did you come to visit us or were you following us?"
"No, no, no, I can explain!" Diddy replied, calming them all down. "Well, we were going home on that boat, but then giant waves swept us here... and we don't know where we are now."
"By the way, does anyone know DK Island?" Dixie asked them quickly. "Or is it at least nearby here?"
"DK Island, huh?" a lion said thoughtfully.
The animals looked at each other and muttered in case anyone knew... But none seemed to have the answer they needed, not even the unknown animals that seemed to be from that new island had an answer.
"Sorry, little monkeys," a gorilla said in a compassionate tone. "It seems that nobody knows about that island... Huh, but don't worry, this island seems to be nice."
Diddy and Dixie were disappointed upon seeing that no one could help them find their way home, to which the rest of the animals looked at them with some pity and kept muttering.
"But... nobody really knows?" Diddy asked them again. "Haven't you heard of DK Island?"
"I didn't know it, I didn't even know it existed," replied a rhino.
"Me neither, I've never heard it," added a zebra in the same way.
"It sounds familiar to me but I'm not so sure," said one of the tigers.
The animals began to mumble with similar responses, which only increased concern in Diddy and Dixie. Both didn't want to get the idea that they wouldn't return to DK Island easily and would have a new inconvenience now.
"Uh, so, what do we do?" Diddy asked Dixie in a lower voice.
"Oh, I don't know, we didn't expect this," Dixie replied with too much concern as they continued to look at the murmuring animals.
"We're really sorry, little monkeys," said one of the elephants. "Although you can stay here with us; everything is quiet."
"Well, how have you been, by the way?" Dixie asked, trying to break the thread of the conversation. "Were you swept away by the waves?"
"Not exactly, we just got carried away by the wind and it brought us here," replied a giraffe. "We arrived here almost at dawn. We're not all here; some took different routes, but most of us managed to reach this island."
"But at least we managed to survive, and we're not alone," said an elephant before pointing to the animals unknown to Diddy and Dixie. "We have found more animals on this island."
"There's a big shelter here, and we're staying there!" added one of the little bears of the circus.
"Really? That sounds good," Diddy told them, smiling along with Dixie. "I see that at least you got to a good place."
"Hey, and it was thanks to you," said one of the tigers with emotion. "You delivered us from that dreadful circus!"
"Yeah, it wasn't a bad idea to have made all that escape after all," added one of the elephants in the same way. "And well, uh, is there anything we can do to thank you?"
"Oh, hey, you don't have to worry," Dixie replied, smiling at them. "Now we just have to try to get to DK Island."
"Don't you want something to eat before you continue your search?" suggested an elephant kindly.
"We have a place with a lot of banana trees, they are delicious," added a gorilla who lived on that island. "Oh, yes, and we also have the community shelter, you can come see it if you want."
"Uh… Okay?" Diddy and Dixie nodded after some thought, though not so sure. That surprise of finding them all again had left them astonished, but at least they had found acquaintances and that left them somewhat calm.
"Well, so, let's go," said the same gorilla. "You'll feel like home."
The animals began to signal to Diddy and Dixie, to which they got up completely and agreed to accompany them. Both were still in doubt, but anyway, they also needed to know where they were.
"Wait, what place will that be?" Dixie asked quietly and looking strangely.
"I don't know, but it isn't bad to find out," Diddy whispered. "At least to ask if anyone knows about DK Island."
"Isn't there somewhere strange or something?"
"At least so far nothing strange or threatening is seen. Let's see anyway."
The animals led them along paths that led to a place full of trees with bunches of bananas, those looked so colorful and delicious that the pair of little kongs didn't hesitate for a second to take some after they were offered.
"Take as many as you want, monkeys," said one of the island's gorillas, handing them a few bananas.
Diddy and Dixie were so hungry that they each even carried more than five bananas; they had also not eaten well in recent days and, fortunately, those bananas seemed to be of good quality. Both thanked the gorilla for the small snack.
Later, a group of tall and strong gorillas of different characteristics appeared, who lived on that island, with apparent adult ages between males and females. Diddy and Dixie looked at them strangely and somewhat fearfully upon seeing them, due to their authoritarian aspects. But later, those apes greeted them with all kindness.
"Are you the new ones here, little ones?" one of those big gorillas asked them.
"Uhh... yes?" Diddy replied with some insecurity.
"Well, come this way," said another of the apes, inviting them to follow them. "In this place you can take refuge temporarily until you find your old homes or a new home."
"Uhh, excuse me," Dixie said a little shyly. "Is this a... shelter or something?"
"Yes, of course," replied one of those gorillas kindly. "Come, let's show you."
Both, somewhat doubtful at the beginning of the invitation, accessed the indicated place and entered by another short path. Upon entering through curtains of leaves, they realized that the place was the aforementioned community shelter. This one had a nice appearance, was all surrounded by trees, was too wide and had several corners full of leaves and tree houses for the animals to take a break, as well as, there were small lagoons for animals that rested in areas like those. Circus and zoo animals were scattered throughout the site, as if each group had a resting stand. A minute later, they all gathered in the center where there was a table full of food.
"Come too, little ones. You're welcome here," another gorilla from that group said kindly to Diddy and Dixie.
"Well... Thank you," Diddy and Dixie replied simultaneously but with some shyness.
"Uh, and you sirs are from this place or how?" Diddy asked, still doubtful.
"Of course," one of the apes replied, smiling at them. "We manage this shelter."
"And by the way... what is the name of this island?" asked Dixie curiously.
"Oh, this is Hurricane Island," replied another of the apes. "Well, and what are you waiting for? Come this way," he added, again beckoning them.
Diddy and Dixie had never heard about that island in their lives, so it was clear that they were too far from DK Island. Not even Dixie, who had been to several islands, had heard of it.
The two little kongs joined the rest of the animals at the table where they had been invited. Apparently, it was lunchtime. The animals of the circus and zoo seemed to enjoy their lunch quite as if it were a banquet; now they were seen tasting a meal well. Along with them, there was the group of big gorillas who, apparently as they were mentioned, were the owners of that shelter. Diddy and Dixie, from their respective seats, were still observing the environment where they were now; after all, nothing out of the ordinary looked in that area.
"And where do you say you live, little monkeys?" asked the group of apes before standing on the sides at the table.
"On DK Island," replied Diddy. "Do you know it by chance?"
"DK Island... DK Island," said one of the apes thoughtfully. "Hmm... No, I don't think it rings a bell. Is there anyone famous who lives on your island?"
"Donkey Kong."
The group of apes looked at each other in case anyone knew the aforementioned Donkey Kong… But seconds later, everyone seemed to have no affirmative answer.
"Well, no. We don't know any Donkey Kong. I suppose that the DK Island you mention must be very far from here."
"What!?" exclaimed Diddy in confusion. "But…is Donkey Kong, is the future ruler of DK Island and its greatest hero. In fact, he's my uncle. Do you really not know him?"
"That name doesn't really ring a bell," replied one of the apes.
Diddy and Dixie made a gesture of concern. Generally, Donkey was very recognized by many, but if they were in a place where nobody claimed to know anything about him, it was something that made them think that they were very far from home… and that began to worry them much more.
"So... you don't know either," Dixie said, looking worried.
"Hey, but don't worry, little monkeys," one of the apes said kindly. "You can stay here too until you manage to find your island again."
"We really appreciate it. But we must return as soon as possible," Dixie replied with concern. "There on our island we have family and friends, and they must be worried about us. We've been away from there for almost a week."
"By the way, doesn't anyone remember the way to the city?" Diddy asked all the animals. "Maybe we can go back there and get back on the way home."
"Oh, no, no! It's not a good time now to sail across the sea," replied one of the apes from the shelter, somewhat concerned. "Well, now it's hurricane season and whirlpools in that area, it's very dangerous. Perhaps the storm that swept you away was part of that."
"In fact, we are a group of apes that offers refuge and assistance of various kinds to shipwrecked animals, and in these seasons is where we receive them the most. Almost everyone who arrives here, it's because the wind of this season brings them to this island, in fact... because of that it's called Hurricane Island."
"Or rather, most of the things that go through the hurricane are washed up on this island."
"These new animals were also brought here by the wind. Although... this time they tell me that they are runaway animals from a zoo that you released, right?"
"That's right," replied Diddy. "But we still have to go home… And when are those hurricanes you mention over?"
"Well, they just started recently," the apes replied with a shrug. "They should be finished in about three months, which is how long they usually last. So, for now you can't sail."
"Three months?!"exclaimed Diddy and Dixie in unison, shocked and as if they had been given some news they didn't want to hear. "It's... a long time."
"But as I told you, you can stay here. We have enough food and sleeping spaces; you'll be safe here."
Diddy and Dixie were very disappointed; in addition to having landed on an unknown island, they would now also have to wait almost an entire season to be able to consider returning home. Both of them just wished to close their eyes and wake up on DK Island, or even go back a week so they hadn't done things wrong. Even so, they were grateful that those apes left them a space to stay and, of course, something that reassured them even a little, was that they came across several known animals.
"If you want you can go explore the island; there are many interesting places," one of the apes suggested. "Only don't go far so you don't get lost; this island also has unknown areas."
"And... how long can one stay here in case we have nowhere else to go?" asked Dixie.
"Don't worry about that either," replied another of the apes, smiling at them. "You can stay as long as you want if you say you have an island to reach. Even if you need help with something, don't hesitate to ask us. Make yourself at home."
Diddy and Dixie looked at each other and shrugged; at least they didn't see anything to worry about in that place or on that island, so they just thanked the ape group for their invitations.
Both little kongs, upon finishing eating, didn't hesitate to start exploring the island... or rather, try to keep searching for DK Island. Neither of them wanted to give up, much less wait an entire season to be able to return.
"Well, thank you for the food," Diddy said to the apes, smiling at them along with Dixie. "Now we'll go... to explore around here."
"And thank you for letting us stay here," Dixie added before going with Diddy.
"It's nothing, little ones," replied one of the apes, smiling at them too. "Be careful outside, and don't forget, we're here to serve you."
Diddy and Dixie said goodbye to all the known animals and, after that, left the shelter. Now, with daylight, they would have a better chance of finding any traces of DK Island.
"Wow, I never thought we'd meet them again," Diddy said as they walked out of the shelter.
"I think the same," Dixie replied, pausing to look around and toward the shelter. "But at least it seems that this island is safe... Although I don't want to stay here either," she added, whispering insecurely.
"Neither do I," Diddy replied in kind, as he looked everywhere. "And now what do we do?"
"We have to take advantage now to find the island. We cannot let too much time pass."
"But where do we start?"
Looking better everywhere, they realized that, especially for Dixie, it was the same as having arrived in the city: everything was very extensive and they didn't know where to start looking for DK Island, and this time there were no buildings as references; only trees, ground and a few small birds in sight.
"Uhh... Let's go for... over there," Dixie pointed in a random direction.
Both began to move along random paths, as long as, trying not to lose sight of the shelter of animals in case some problems were presented. They searched all over the beach they could walk, over the tallest trees they could find and through several areas overlooking the sea... But even so, they didn't find anything similar to DK Island. Indeed, it seemed to be true that DK Island would be too far away.
They stopped for a while to rest in frustration, while observing the horizon of the sea. In the distance it could clearly see a cloudy environment with no sunlight, confirming that in short, the weather was not good as the apes mentioned in the shelter.
"Oh, no! We'll never find the island," Diddy complained as he looked toward the horizons in detail. "It doesn't even look good with that haze in the distance."
"I don't want to stay here for three long months," Dixie added in the same way, crossing her arms. "We'll miss the vacation!"
"Or I got an idea!" Diddy exclaimed, getting up. "What if we build another boat or something to search by the sea?"
"But... what if another giant wave appears again because of the hurricanes and whirlpools that we were told about?"
"But we have no choice; we must return to DK Island soon. Remember that those four fools from school are armed again as you told me; who knows what they are planning now. Even worse if you say that Jemky is probably... you know. Those other three fools can take revenge and not in a good way."
"I know, it's true. But where will we go to search in the middle of the sea?"
"We just go and search; we won't find anything if we stay here... We may even have to escape from that shelter."
"Agreed," Dixie replied with no choice. "So... let's go now?"
Diddy and Dixie headed back towards the beach. Either way, they had to find a way back to DK Island. They were grateful that the other animals had offered them shelter, but even so, they couldn't stay another day like that: away from their home and their families and friends on DK Island... and with problems to solve.
When they arrived at the beach where they had arrived at the beginning, they began to look for materials to be able to assemble a raft or a boat that could take them. They went to an area of fallen trees, where there were trunks and large pieces of wood, and began to collect them.
"Wow, there's too much wood around here," Dixie said as she picked up and examined some loose pieces of wood. "It's like it's a dumping ground here."
"Hey, this one even…" Diddy added, examining a much larger piece, "it's like it was shaped like a boat or something.
For some reason, those pieces of wood that were in the area, seemed to have very particular shapes... They were as if they had already had use and showed that they had been parts of old and broken boats. Some fragments even showed themselves to be shaped like large boats that seemed to have had a terrible end.
"Wow, this is very strange," Dixie said, looking at one of those large fragments.
Both rummaged another while until they realized that, in short, those pieces of wood did seem to be remains of boats, which made them think about several scenarios about how they could have gotten there, considering the climatic phenomena they had been told in the shelter. Even so, there was no time to continue drawing conclusions, so they returned to their main matter.
"We must build a boat that is sturdy enough to sail in that wild sea," Diddy said as he rummaged for more pieces of wood.
"What if we ask the other animals for help?" Dixie suggested as she carried more pieces of wood.
"I'd like to, but surely they're not going to let us go because of the whirlpools and hurricanes.
"The truth is that I don't believe so much that DK Island is as far away as they say; maybe they just don't know it and that's it."
Both continued to search for branches, trunks and pieces of wood so they could assemble a small boat. They were piling up all the pieces in one place.
"Hey, Dixie," Diddy said after a while as they were still in the matter.
"Yeah?"
"By the way, no one on DK Island wanted to come with you to find me?"
"Yes, almost everyone wanted to come, but I told them that I would go alone. I didn't want to expose them to danger."
"Really? And how did you convince them?" Diddy asked with a look of astonishment.
"Well, I told them to investigate Jemky's case, and to let me go alone if I told them that those four... " Dixie stopped in her tracks when she realized she was saying something she shouldn't.
"What?" Diddy asked with a look of surprise and leaving the pieces of wood on the ground. "Wait... Haven't you told them that those four fools had guns and the whole story about them?"
Dixie fell silent when she realized that she couldn't tell Diddy that she had already told the other kongs about the bullying they received from that quartet of bullies. It was a secret that, even if it was bad keeping it, she had promised Diddy long ago that she wouldn't tell anyone.
"Oh, no, Dixie, tell me no…" Diddy said, noticing Dixie's paralyzed expression.
"Diddy…" Dixie replied slowly. "Sorry, but…"
"No, no, no, Dixie, tell me you didn't tell anyone!" Diddy interrupted desperately.
"Ugh, sorry, Diddy!" Dixie replied, sighing before telling the truth. "I had no choice; your disappearance was an emergency, and all I thought was that those stupid kids would have done something bad to you. So... I had to tell Donkey and the others that."
Diddy froze for a few seconds before reacting again in alarm.
"Oh, no, Dixie! What did you do?! Tell me it's not true!" Diddy exclaimed, more desperate. "You didn't have to tell anyone, you promised me!"
"I know, but I couldn't hide it at the time, Diddy," Dixie replied. "Anyways, Donkey and the others did suspect something. In fact, almost everyone suspected that those four had to do with your disappearance."
"But you could have told them something else!" replied Diddy, beginning to look disgusted. "Even when we were at the circus, you told me you hadn't told anyone!"
"Diddy, it was a serious situation, I couldn't lie to them at the time!" Dixie replied.
"Ugh, I won't tell you anything again!" Diddy exclaimed, now annoyed.
"Hey! I told you that it was a serious situation!" replied Dixie, raising her voice as well.
"But it was a secret, Dixie! I thought I could entrust them to you!"
"I always keep your secrets, but with that one I couldn't do it in the middle of that situation!" replied Dixie before pausing and looking seriously at Diddy. "And sorry to tell you this, Diddy, but it really wasn't good for you to keep hiding that. It was a bad secret, I mean... it was a threat! Such secrets should not be hidden."
"Yeah, you said it: a threat. Those four said that if I accused them, they would hurt them all. And surely Donkey and the others are already looking for them to give them face."
"Oh, Diddy! Those kinds of bullies threaten you like that just to scare you, not that they're really going to do it. You'd have told Donkey or Wrinkly a long time ago!"
"You say they only threaten like this to scare me?! Well, so excuse me for what I'll tell you, but how did you feel when those fools threatened you to steal my pyramid and not tell anyone because otherwise, they would finish me, the teacher and the whole class?"
"Well…" Dixie said quietly, not knowing how to respond defensively. "Oh, anyways, maybe if you had reported them on time, that wouldn't have happened either, did you know?! And sorry to tell you something else, Diddy, but none of this would be happening if you had reported them on time!"
"Oh, wow," Diddy said with his arms crossed, before raising his voice again. "Well, just look at that, that's how it feels not to be able to do it! Even you said it yourself when we were in the circus!"
"Ugh, okay, it's enough, Diddy! Let's argue no more and keep making that boat," Dixie replied defensively. "What's more, I always tried to understand that you didn't want to tell that secret, when I shouldn't have hidden it either!"
"And I should never have told you!" exclaimed Diddy, all annoyed. "I'll never tell you anything again, Dixie! I thought I could trust you!"
Dixie showed a shocked face at Diddy's last words, which made her much angrier.
"Urgh! You know what, Diddy?! I'd better build my own boat and you'll think on your own how you get back to DK Island!"
"Ah, yeah? Well, I won't have any problem! I can make my own boat too! And you know what?! It's going to look better than yours!"
"Well, we'll see! And in the meantime, don't even think about talking to me, Diddy! You can go to the tide of the sea and be stirred by the waves!"
"Oh, right! As you wish, Dixie Kong!" replied Diddy in the same tone. "You'll see that I'll finish my boat first than you and it'll be much better!"
All that said, they both turned around and each went their own way... Not without first, turning again and looking at each other in the distance with a bad face, then each one made a mockery, and then returned to what they were going.
Diddy felt very angry with Dixie, as she was the only one to whom he had confided the secret about his classmates, and that she had reported it to the entire Kong family was something that annoyed and disappointed him too much. He was always afraid that would happen, as he didn't want conflicts to be created between the bully quartet and Donkey or Wrinkly and it would all end very badly.
Dixie, on the other hand, felt bad for having revealed that secret of Diddy, although to tell the truth, she always knew that it was not good for them to hide that. In turn, she was also angry with Diddy because of how he had taken it.
Diddy and Dixie had distanced themselves with the recent argument, so each settled in different places on the beach, and now each began to build their own boat.
"Bah! I don't care, I don't need her, I can with my own boat," Diddy said to himself firmly.
Diddy returned to look for wood to start building his boat. It took him several minutes to gather quite a few logs and sheets of wood, but he figured it wouldn't be that difficult to make a boat himself. The first thing he did was to select the pieces of wood that could serve him. He began to remember how they had built the boats that the animals made after having escaped from the circus, as well as, he remembered how Funky made his inventions. But then... he realized that the boats that the animals had built were too simple to withstand storms, while for Funky's he needed complex tools that were not available at the time.
Anyway, Diddy made a plan to build the boat. He spent a couple of hours putting the pieces and trying to fit them together, from time to time, he hurt his limbs either from some sharp piece or because some heavy piece fell on him.
A while later, Diddy had finished building his boat. It was satisfying for him to have been able to build one on his own, and he could now resume the search for DK Island. But a few minutes later, a piece of the boat came loose, so Diddy tried to put it back in. But in his attempt to fix it... the whole boat fell apart. He was frustrated to see that his effort was not worth it.
But Diddy wasn't going to give up, so he tried again to build a new boat. He did the same procedure until he got it. After a few moments, he already had a finished boat for the second time and hoped that this time it would work for him... But as soon as he got on it, it crumbled again. Diddy tried for the third time to put together a boat... Then a fourth time... Later, a fifth... And a sixth.
For the umpteenth time, there was Diddy with a frustrated face when he saw that no attempt to build a sturdy boat turned out well. He decided better to sit down to rest and relax for a while so as not to get upset. Minutes later, he began to hear some noises that had been resonating in the area for a long time; they were continuous and constant as if someone was hitting something. Diddy, with enormous curiosity, got up to follow those noises to see where they came from.
When the sound was heard more closely, Diddy peeked through some bushes. He put on a face of astonishment at what he saw: a boat placed on a very firm support and, although it wasn't yet finished, it looked quite well built. And the noises came from none other than Dixie, who was with a sharp stone in hand making small holes in the corners of the boat. On the other hand, she had a campfire lit under a roof of leaves built; above this, there was another support on which she had a sheet of wood heating up. A moment later, Dixie took that sheet and folded it slightly and then placed it on one of the sides of the boat, then continued to make holes in the corners where small vines passed to hold the pieces.
Diddy gawked at Dixie's maneuver; he had to admit that she was doing well. At one point, Dixie looked in any random direction and, by chance for her, reached to catch Diddy watching her. Diddy looked away and instantly hid upon being found out by Dixie. But she just ignored him indifferently while rolling her eyes.
Minutes later, Dixie decided to rest for a while. But then, she was also curious and decided to go to where Diddy was to spy on how he was doing with his boat. She tried to follow any noise she heard and crept stealthily through some bushes when she found Diddy. He still struggled to manage building a boat, he even began to apply the same methods of Dixie: with some rocks he tried to make holes in the corners of his boat; at first, he didn't do it with enough force, so each time he was making stronger blows that ended up breaking the whole piece. Seconds later, his new boat attempt collapsed again. Diddy went into despair, threw his cap to the ground, and stomped on it several times. Dixie, while watching the scene, only laughed quietly, but pride also dominated her, so she rolled her eyes again and then left to continue with her own boat.
An hour later, and with the umpteenth boat attempt, Diddy went out to look for vines to be able to tie the pieces. He climbed up leafy trees that contained large quantities of tangled vines, as he needed ones that were thin and strong at the same time to hold pieces of wood.
Diddy, walking on a branch of the trees, noticed some vines that looked perfect for use in the boat. Between times, he could hear certain footsteps on the nearby branches, but he didn't take it seriously. The vines he wanted to reach were a little high, so he had to walk to the end of the branch and stretch his arm as far as he could to reach them. When he arrived, the branch where he was, began to emit a breaking sound and, when he pulled those vines, everything around him began to move until, another branch that was higher, caused a large number of leaves, branches and vines to fall towards the ground and, therefore, Diddy also fell along with all that.
When Diddy got up, he was tangled and covered with leaves and vines, and it took him a couple of minutes to untie himself. Suddenly, he heard something moving among the pile of leaves that had formed, so he walked around the pile to find out what it was. He was shocked when he discovered that it was nothing more than Dixie, who in turn, also showed a gesture of astonishment when she met him head-on. They both looked at each other not knowing what to say or what face to make. Dixie just turned around, making a gesture of indifference to him, and hurriedly picked up a few vines that she was also looking for. But she didn't notice that a vine was getting entangled in her foot and, after a few seconds, she tripped and rolled to the ground, but she immediately got up and continued on her way. Diddy turned around and laughed disguised at her stumble, but was interrupted when, by accident, he stepped on a sharp branch and gave a little squeal, to which Dixie also laughed at the low... Both deep down wanted to talk to each other, but pride still dominated them, so they returned to where they were assembling their respective boats.
In the evening hours, each kong on its side, sat down to take a break. After all, it wasn't so easy to build a sturdy boat on own, especially for Diddy, who only took a break from frustration at not being able to build his boat, as all his attempts had failed. Unlike Dixie, who seemed to have her boat ready, but still wasn't sure if it would work perfectly.
Night had fallen, so it was too late to go out and find DK Island by sea, so both Diddy and Dixie were considering staying until the next day. Neither of them spoke to each other throughout the afternoon, although between times, they spied on each other to see what they were doing and how they were doing with the building of their respective boats.
Diddy was sitting on the sand, resting after he had given up assembling the boat. He didn't have anything else to do about it, he was just sitting without knowing what to do on a distant island, more and more regretting having gone out that night for a ride by the sea; he just wanted to close his eyes and upon open them, appear on DK Island, at his house with Donkey. He wanted to turn back time, maybe so he wouldn't have gone out that night… maybe to have confessed his feelings to Dixie when he had the chance, or even... to have reported the quartet of bullies to Wrinkly and Donkey, even if he was afraid that those four kids would harm them in revenge. Even so... he was beginning to think that Dixie might be right: everything would be better if he had reported the four of them from the beginning.
"Oh, Dixie..." he said to himself in his mind and with a low look.
"Diddy! Here you are. I was looking for you" one of the gorillas from the circus suddenly appeared, interrupting Diddy's thoughts.
"Uh, hi," Diddy greeted, turning to look at him. "What's up?"
"Well, the apes have prepared a dinner at the shelter and they want to invite you."
"Oh, great," Diddy replied, smiling. "Right now?"
"That's right. And your friend Dixie? Isn't she with you?"
"Oh, yeah, she is…" Diddy paused as he thought about what to answer, before pointing in the direction of where Dixie would be. "Well, she's over there."
"Well, call her and tell her she's also invited."
"No, no. I mean, don't they need me to help them with something for dinner?" Diddy replied with a forced smile. "Well, it's that... Dixie is over there, and... crabs! Yes, she is looking at crabs, she likes them very much and... she doesn't want to be interrupted now."
"Oh, okay... But what do you plan to do at dinner?" asked the gorilla looking at him strangely.
"Well, I could help you with some dishes while you can go call Dixie, what do you think?"
"Well, okay... I think we would need your help to serve the dishes anyways," said the gorilla, still looking at him strangely. "And where is Dixie by the way?"
"I think she's over there, after those rocks and that tree," Diddy pointed in one direction.
Diddy didn't feel ready to talk to Dixie again, not after the argument they had that afternoon, so he just told that gorilla to call her, and headed towards the shelter soon after, at least to clear his mind...