Buddy the Whale Shark

                                                                            BUDDY THE WHALE SHARK

                                                                            By Ron and Gabriel Buedefeldt



         Buddy the whale shark was swimming with his friend Billie the porpoise.  As they swam  by the old shipwreck they heard a cry for help. 
         
         “Did you hear that?” asked Buddy.
         
         “I sure did,” replied Billy.  “Let’s see what it was.”
         
         With a flip of their tails and a flick of their fins they turned and  glided toward  the cry.
         
         “Help, help,”
         
         “We’re coming!” Buddy called as they reached the wreck.  The cries came from deep inside.
         
         “What should we do?” asked Billy, looking for a way in.
         
         “I see a hole over there,” said Buddy.  “Let’s see if we can get in.”
         
         They swam quickly to the hole and looked  inside.  It was very dark inside. 
         
         “It looks spooky,” said Billy.  “Maybe we just thought we heard  something.”
         
         “Help me please,” came the cry.  “I can’t get out.  I’m lost.”
         
         “We definitely heard it that time,” Buddy said.  “Come on.”

He saw some glowing coral lying by the boat and scooped it up.  Using seaweed, they tied the coral on like a miner’s light.  “Come on, I think we can squeeze through this hole.”
         
         Seeing by the glow of the coral, Buddy and Billy carefully swam through the hole and down the narrow hallway. 

         They heard another cry for help. Then a thump, like a footstep.  Stopping by a hatch, they listened carefully.  The old wreck creaked and groaned but they heard no more scary sounds so they moved toward the call for help. 

         The hallway opened into a large room, and in the middle of the room sat a turtle shell. 

         “That looks like Sammy,” exclaimed Buddy, “Hey Sammy, is that you?”

         A head slowly peaked out of the shell.

         “B-B-B-Buddy?”  Sammy looked at his friends with relief.  “Billy, boy am I glad to see you guys.  I was so scared.” 

         Just then they heard the thump again and it sounded like it came from just outside the room.  Sammy disappeared back into his shell.

         “That’s why I was scared,” said Sammy from deep in his shell.  “I came in here to find Slimey the snail and it wasn’t scary but then I heard those footsteps and got frightened.  It thumps every time I try to leave.  It sounds big.”

         It did sound pretty big, thought Buddy.  He and Billy swam over to wait by Sammy.

         Another footstep sounded right at the door and the friends could see the toe of a large, brown human shoe.  They all froze in fear and waited to see the danger that was coming through the door.  Suddenly the shoe shot into the air about a foot and then floated back to the deck in the room with a thump.  Peeking over the tongue of the shoe was a tiny shelled creature.

         “Hi guys, what’s going on?” asked Slimey, smiling up from the huge shoe as he gathered himself for another leap to reach the others.  “Sorry I’m late, but this shoe is really heavy.”

         “Why are you in that shoe?  I thought you were a monster!” said Sammy.

         “Mom found this shoe under the boat paths.  She said it must be a snail shoe because there is only one and snails only have one foot.”

         “But it is so big, isn’t it hard to wear?” asked Buddy.

         “Yeah, but mom says I’ll grow into it.”  Slimey finally made it over by his friends.  “Let’s play a game.”

         “Won’t it be hard to play in that shoe?” asked Billy.

         “No,” laughed Buddy.  “He can go barefoot."