Katie and the Snow Babies by Gillian Shields Page A

her fingers through her dark curls. “Who could they be?”
    Benjy poked his friendly face above the waves and cried out, “We’re the lords of the sea, aren’t we, Dad?”
    His father looked up as he glided past.
    â€œThat’s what we whales like to think, Benjy,” he said, blowing heavily. “The walruses wouldn’t agree, though. They think they are the finest creatures in the whole of Ice Kingdom!”

    The young friends looked at each other uncertainly. Could the second clue be about the huge, stately walruses? They were surely splendid enough to be called lords.
    â€œSo maybe we need to go where we can see polar bears and walruses together,” said Katie slowly. “‘Where the kings of the ice meet the lords of the sea’… isn’t that what it says?”
    â€œThe best place for that is Walrus Point,” said redheaded Poppy decidedly. “I’ve heard that you often see polar bears near the icy bluff where the walruses gather.”
    â€œThen we’d better set off at once,” exclaimed Katie.

    â€œUm, Katie,” murmured Megan nervously, “haven’t you forgotten that polar bears and walruses sometimes fight each other? They can be very fierce, you know.”
    Becky seemed worried, too.
    â€œAren’t we prepared to risk anything and face any danger to solve the clues and save Ice Kingdom?” asked Katie, sitting up on her lemon-colored tail and looking around solemnly at her young friends.
    â€œYes!” said brave, daring Jess.
    â€œSo am I,” said Amber seriously.
    â€œMe too!” cried Poppy.
    Becky and Megan held hands and swallowed hard. “Then so are we,” they promised. “Let’s go to Walrus Point!”

    The mermaids hugged each other and got ready to dive into the icy waves, where the beluga whales still circled like sleek white ships.
    â€œHow will you get there, mermaids?” asked Benjy, looking up at his friends. “Walrus Point is far away.”
    â€œWe’ll just have to swim,” shrugged Jess, “even if it takes a long time.” With a ripple of her strong turquoise tail, she slipped into the water next to him. Katie and the others followed her.
    â€œBut you need to find the diamonds soon, or it will be too late,” said Benjy, a frown creasing his smooth little face. “Can’t we help them, Dad?”

    Benjy’s father swam closer to the mermaids.
    â€œI’m afraid we are weak after being trapped for so long.” He sighed. “We need to rest here and get our strength back. But we have a friend who might be able to help you.”
    The belugas made their eerie cry, and they were soon answered by a deep, echoing call. The clear blue water suddenly heaved, as though a powerful boat was cutting through the waves. In a few moments, a gigantic humpback whale raised his magnificent head above the surface of the sparkling sea.
    â€œIt’s our friend Monty!” cried Benjy in delight. “He’ll take you anywhere you want to go, mermaids!”

    â€œOh, ho, ho, it’s mermaid business, isit?” said Monty with a wide smile. “Just hop on my back, little ones, and we’ll be off right away. All aboard the Whale Express!”
    Katie and her friends could hardly believe their amazing luck. Monty was a strong, tireless whale who could carry them all the way to Walrus Point much faster than they could ever swim.
    â€œThank you so much!” cried the mermaids. They clung on tightly to Monty as the huge whale plunged away from the snowy shore.
    â€œGood-bye, Benjy!” they called. “We’ll bring the snow diamonds home very soon—we promise.”
    After what seemed like many hours of surging through the icy sea, Monty calledout cheerfully, “Here we are, mermaids. We’ve arrived!”
    Katie and the others slid gracefully from Monty’s broad back and rippled their tails in the