Scarlett's New Friend (4 page)

“Oh no!” said the mermaids. “How awful.”

“Lori cried and cried,” Scout continued, “and I rushed her back to our home beyond the rocks. My poor wife was so frightened when she saw our baby with that great big cut.”

“Is Lori all right?” asked Ellie and Lucy anxiously.

“Hopefully the good salt water in the sea will soon heal the cut,” replied Scout. “And my wife has wrapped Lori's flipper in a nice piece of kelp for a bandage. But we're still left with all this dangerous litter on our beach—and I can guess who did this!”

“So can we,” said Scarlett grimly. “Mantora! She has been following us ever since we set off on our journey for Queen Neptuna, trying to cause trouble for us and our friends.”

“But how could Mantora scatter this trash across the beach?” Holly frowned. “She has a tail like us; she can't just walk across the sand—or fly!”

“No, but her black Storm Gulls can,” said Scout. “I think there was a whole gang of them here just before dawn, screeching and yammering away. And every single one of them carried a piece of garbage in his beak and let it fall here—here on this beach where Lori and her friends love to play.”

“That settles it,” said Scarlett. “We've
got to clean up this beach so it's safe again for Lori and the other baby seals.” Her eyes were bright and her cheeks were pink. She looked like her bossy old self again, determined to get her own way. “Well, what are we waiting for?”

“It seems like a good idea, Scarlett,” hesitated Sophie, “but let's not rush into anything. Of course we feel sorry for Lori. But don't forget that we're supposed to be hiding here and staying out of trouble. If we get held up again, we might not get home with the crystals before sunset tomorrow.”

“Then everything would be so much worse for Lori and all the sea creatures,” said Misty. “Imagine what Mantora would do if she manages to overthrow Queen Neptuna and set up her horrible Storm Kingdom.”

“But don't you see?” demanded Scarlett impatiently. “This dirty, dangerous beach is part of Storm Kingdom—right in front of our eyes! It's exactly how Mantora wants it.”

Scarlett's friends shivered, as though a cloud had covered the afternoon sun. The littered beach did look sad and ugly. They knew that Mantora would be happy if it stayed like that.

“I think Mantora knew we would swim past Sandy Bay Island,” Scarlett
went on, “and she did this to show us her power.”

“And to slow us down on our journey,” added Ellie, looking around unhappily. “Oh, what should we do?”

“If we really want to fight Mantora, we've got to clean up this beach,” declared Scarlett, with a stubborn expression on her face.

The other mermaids glanced at each other uncertainly. It was impossible to say no to Scarlett when she was in this bossy mood.

“But, Scarlett, how could we get across the beach to pick up the litter?” asked Sophie.

“We'll just have to find some other creatures to help us,” replied Scarlett. “I'm sure it won't be too hard.”

“Well, all right then,” said Holly slowly. “We all want to help clean the beach. But we must be careful and keep our crystals safe. We don't want anything to delay our journey home tonight.”

Scout looked very pleased. “I'll go and tell Lori,” he said. “She'll be so happy.” The father seal dived clumsily from the rocks and then streamed away under the water.

Scarlett quickly started to tell the other mermaids her ideas for cleaning the beach.

“We can't take the trash away anywhere,” she said, “so the best thing to do is to bury it.”

“How will we do that?” asked Sophie.

“It's simple,” explained Scarlett. “We'll
swim over from these rocks and sit at the water's edge. The tide is low at the moment, so we'll scoop out some holes in the damp sand with the scallop shells in our S.O.S. Kits. The holes will be our garbage pits. We'll fill them up with the litter and cover it carefully with pebbles. When the tide comes in later, everything will be completely hidden.”

“So who should we ask to help us, Scarlett?” wondered Ellie. “We can't walk over the beach to pick things up.”

“We have friends with beaks and wings, though,” replied Scarlett determinedly. “You can ask the seabirds to help.”

Soon the mermaids were sitting on their curling tails by the edge of the shore. Ellie made the special bird call that the great albatross had taught her, while Scarlett decided where to dig the holes in the sand. In a few moments, some seabirds with long legs and beaks gathered by the water's edge. They were waders, and they had heard Ellie's call.

“We will help you,” said the waders, in their quick, chirruping voices.

“Excellent,” said Scarlett. “Show them what to do, Ellie, and I'll get some more help. Didn't Scout say that there were lots of crabs on this beach? Their scurrying legs and snapping pincers will be just right for picking up litter.”

She shook her long hair back from her face and cupped her hands around her mouth.

“All crabs must report for duty NOW, in the name of Queen Neptuna,” she called. “I've got a job for you!”

A group of curious young pebble crabs lined up in a row in front of Scarlett. They had pinky-orange shells and large front claws.

“Okay,” she said briskly, “you crabs are going to help us. We've got to get this beach cleaned up so that Lori and the other baby seals can play here safely.”

“Why should we do all the work?” asked
one of them, stepping forward boldly. “It's not our problem!”

“It will be your problem if I tell Queen Neptuna that you refused to help us,” said Scarlett angrily. “What's your name?”

“I'm not telling you, bossy boots,” said the fearless crab.

“Ooh, Buster,” giggled the other pebble crabs, “you'll make her so mad!”

“So it's Buster, is it?” said Scarlett, her cheeks burning with annoyance. “Well, Buster, you and your friends had better get to work if you don't want to be reported to Her Majesty when we get back to Coral Kingdom.”

Sophie and the other mermaids glanced at each other nervously. Scarlett was being so bossy—and just when she had been learning to be more patient and gentle. The young friends didn't think this was the right way to persuade the crabs to help. But Scarlett was so eager to clear up the beach that she wasn't in the mood to listen to their advice.