Katie and the Snow Babies (3 page)

Katie and the others looked at one another with concerned faces. They hadn't thought of that. It would be terrible if Mantora sneaked up and overheard their plans, or even worse, captured them with one of her dark storm spells.

“It's true,” admitted Jess. “We were being careless, Finn, and you were right to teach us a lesson.”

“Dad's always right!” cried Max happily. Then he did a somersault into the circle of mermaids, tumbling over their tails and ending up on Megan's lap. The young friends couldn't help laughing delightedly. They took turns cuddling with Max and stroking his soft white fur.

“But do you know anything about the missing snow diamond, Finn?” asked Katie, tearing herself away from the baby bear's games. “Have you seen one falling from the sky?”

Finn shook his powerful head. “I heard what you said about Mantora's clue. I roam far over the wide ice, and I have also heard rumors that she has been plotting against Princess Arctica. But this clue of hers makes no sense to me at all. You'll have to ask Ulrick.”

“Who is Ulrick?” chorused the others, looking up from their little playmate.

“Ulrick is the Chief Walrus,” said Finn. “He's the wisest creature in these parts. He's also the most proud, stubborn, and annoying!”

Finn sat down heavily on the powdery snow and rested his head on his paws. His dark eyes stared moodily into the distance.

“So you're not friends?” Becky asked timidly. “You can't take us to see him?”

“Friends!” barked Finn with a throaty growl. “We used to be the best of friends. But we had a silly argument about who was the strongest and wisest, and it turned into a stupid fight. I tried to make up with him afterward, but Ulrick wouldn't listen. He won't even let Max here play with his baby grandson, Caspar.”

Max stopped cuddling Poppy for a moment and looked up sadly.

“Caspar is my friend,” he said. “I want to see him.”

“Not today, Max,” said Finn gloomily. “Maybe another time.” The father bear hung his head over his little son and nuzzled him softly. “But this isn't helping you, Sisters of the Sea,” he added, suddenly snapping out of his sorrowful
mood. “Go and visit Ulrick right away, to ask if he can help you with this clue. You must find the diamond and save our snowy home.”

The mermaids quickly roused themselves. They gave Max one last kiss, then slipped from the ice into the clear waves with a splash of their sparkling tails.

“It might cause trouble if I come with you,” said Finn. “Swim along by the ice edge until you reach the bluff at Walrus Point. Ulrick and his folk bathe in the water there every day. Good luck!”

In a flash of rainbow colors—turquoise, lemon, blue, peach, pink, and lilac—the mermaids darted under the cold sea. They felt sorry that Finn and Ulrick were no
longer friends, and they were nervous about meeting the Chief Walrus himself. But the only thing that mattered now was trying to solve the clue …

As Katie and her friends swam closer to Walrus Point, they saw several powerful sea creatures twisting and turning in the water ahead. They had found the walruses!

“Excuse me,” Poppy asked boldly. “We're looking for Ulrick.”

A walrus mother glided near to the mermaids. “You mean
Lord
Ulrick, my dear. He's overwater right now, sunning
himself on the big blocks of ice that stick out into the sea at the edge. Swim right up if you want to speak to him—but mind your manners!”

The mermaids followed the direction of the mother walrus's pointing flipper and surged above the waves. They hovered for a moment near the tip of the ice.

“There he is!” whispered Becky.

Above them on the ice, surrounded by his loyal folk, was the magnificent Chief Walrus. His splendid brown chest gleamed in the sun, and his long whiskers and immense tusks added to his stately dignity.

“Um … greetings, Ulrick—I mean,
Lord
Ulrick,” Katie called up politely. “We have come here on a very important mission, seeking your wise advice.”

The Chief Walrus peered down his long tusks to where the mermaids bobbed up and down below him in the green sea. A group of heavy walruses gathered clumsily next to him on the ice so that they could listen and watch. Ulrick cleared his throat slowly, then spoke in a rich, rolling voice.

“It is true that I am the wisest creature in these parts,” he said grandly. “You may tell me your tale, but swiftly! The Chief Walrus cannot waste his time.”

Katie hurriedly explained all about the theft of the snow diamonds and Mantora's taunting clues.

“So we thought the diamond
falling from the sky might be a shooting star,” Poppy burst in impatiently. “Do you think we're right?”

The Chief Walrus stared down at Poppy's mop of copper curls.

“It is not our way to say ‘yes' or ‘no' in the blink of an eye, like a giddy shrimp,” he said disapprovingly. Sammy the fairy shrimp popped his head out of Megan's pocket. Was this old fellow talking about him? Then he dived out of sight again, alarmed by the sight of Ulrick's bristling mustache.

“Besides,” the noble walrus continued, “how could one single mermaid cause so much trouble? Now, if it was a rascally polar bear who wanted to take over Ice Kingdom, I could believe it. But a
mere
mermaid
? Whoever heard of such a thing!”

He and his walruses began to laugh in a deep, rippling rumble that echoed like thunder over the wide plains of ice. Katie glanced at the other mermaids in dismay. She hadn't expected this! On all sides, the massive brown creatures were rolling helplessly with mirth, clutching their smooth sides with their waving flippers.

“But Mantora really is powerful … ,” Katie tried to explain hurriedly.

The Chief Walrus suddenly stopped laughing. He held himself straight and quivered with pride.

“No one has any power over what happens in Walrus Point except the Chief Walrus,” he declared, banging his flipper down hard on the frosted ice.

“But if we don't get the snow diamonds back, the whole of Ice Kingdom will melt—yes, even Walrus Point!” said Poppy angrily, swimming in front of the other mermaids. She stared up fearlessly into the Chief Walrus's stern face. “And it's no good pretending that it won't happen.”

Becky and Megan gasped and held
hands in the water as Katie looked around at her friends with worried eyes. The walruses would never help them with the clue if Poppy annoyed their leader! But Katie knew in her heart that what Poppy said was right. The Chief Walrus, however, didn't like it one little bit.

“How dare you speak to me in this way?” Ulrick glared, his whiskers shaking with disbelief.

“Because it's the truth,” Poppy declared.

Katie swam right up to the ice edge, took a deep breath, and said, “Poppy doesn't mean to be disrespectful, sir. I'm afraid she is right about the diamonds. Finn told us you were wise and would know what to do …”

But she never got the chance to finish her sentence. Ulrick rose up on his flippers and his face grew dark with rage.

“Finn?” he bellowed. “You have spoken to that no-good polar bear? Well, you foolish young creatures, let me tell you that any friend of Finn is no friend of mine. Be off with you at once, and take your silly tales of melting icebergs with you!”

He turned and waddled slowly away from the ice edge, turning his back on the shocked mermaids.