The Runner's Shadow

The starting line was full of runners in bright colors. Nearly two thousand people waited in Tromsø's midnight sun. Polly sat on Astrid's shoulder, feeling nervous energy everywhere. People spoke Norwegian, English, German, and Japanese.

"You're heavier than you look," Astrid said with a small smile.

"All muscle," Polly replied. "I'll fly once we start running anyway."

Suddenly, a young man nearby started searching through his running belt. His face went white with panic.

"My insulin!" he shouted in English. "It's not here! I know I packed it!"

Astrid turned quickly. "Type 1 diabetes?" she asked with concern.

The man nodded. "I'm Mikkel. I checked three times before leaving the hotel." He held up an empty cooling pouch.

Polly recognized panic. But this was medical - much more serious.

"When did you last take it?" Astrid asked, getting her phone.

"Four hours ago. I planned to check my blood sugar at 10 kilometers." Mikkel's hands shook. "I can't run without insulin."

"You're not running," Astrid said firmly. "We need the medical tent."

"But I trained for months! My friends came from Oslo to watch!"

Polly flew into the air. "What does the insulin kit look like?"

"Blue and white pouch, small," Mikkel said with shaking hands.

"Which hotel?"

"Radisson Blu, but-"

Polly was already flying above the crowd. The midnight sun made everything bright, but finding something small was still difficult. She searched the harbor, past the fish market, looking everywhere.

Then she saw it - a blue and white pouch under some papers near a bench by the fjord.

She grabbed it and raced back. The announcer was counting down: "Ten minutes to start!"

"Insulin delivery!" Polly announced, dropping the pouch to Mikkel.

His relief was immediate. "Everything's here!" He looked at Polly with grateful eyes. "How did you find it?"

"Lucky guess. And good eyesight," Polly said proudly.

Astrid showed her nurse credentials to the medical volunteer. "I can watch him during the race."

Mikkel checked his blood sugar quickly. "Perfect. I'm ready to run."

"Run your race," Astrid said simply. "That's thanks enough."

As they hurried back, Polly noticed Astrid seemed calmer now.

"That was kind," Polly said.

"Runners help each other," Astrid replied softly. "Helping someone else made me less nervous too."

The starting gun fired, and thousands of runners began moving together into the endless Arctic day.