Sea Surprise

Chapter 1: A Morning Swim It was a cool, wet day at the bottom of the sea. Above the waves, a storm was brewing. Far below, safe from the storm, Kate and Dave were out for a morning swim along the coral reef. "What shall we do today, Dave?" asked Kate, flipping her tail idly. "Let's bite something," said Dave. Dave was bored, and boredom always made his teeth itch. "No," said Kate. "Why do you always want to go around biting things?" "It is what I do," answered Dave simply. "Well, it is not what I do," said Kate. "Let's go and visit Eel instead. I haven't seen him since last week, and I miss his electric-eel glow." "We could visit Eel and bite something," Dave muttered to himself. The two friends swam off together toward Eel's house. Chapter 2: A Sick Friend Eel was ill. He did not wake up feeling very electric. This was not a good sign. He was an electric eel. He tried to zap on the light at his bedside with his tail. When he touched it, nothing happened. "Oh, drat!" he said grumpily. "I've lost my zap!" He tried the lamp again but remained in the dark. "Ding!" rang the doorbell. "Go away!" shouted Eel. "It is your friends, Kate and Dave," said Kate and Dave. "I am sick. I seem to have lost my zap. The door is unlocked. Come in," said Eel. Kate and Dave swam through the open door. They saw their good friend lying in bed. He was as pale as a sea cucumber. "What's wrong?" asked Kate, concerned. "When I woke up today," Eel answered, tucking himself further under the covers, "I felt as weak as a sea slug. As flat as a flounder. And when I tried to use my zap to turn on my light, I had no glow. No charge. No e-l-e-c-t-r-i-c-i-t-y." "Then I will make you some sea tea," offered Kate. "And I will give your tail a good bite," offered Dave. "Try it, and I will zap you," said Eel. "Once I get my zap back." "Nobody understands me," said Dave. His lower lip stuck out as he pouted. "I was only trying to help." He looked around and saw a pie on Eel's kitchen shelf. "If you two help me get my zap back, I might let you have a bite of that plankton pie you have your eye on," said Eel. Dave's eyes widened in delight. Plankton pie was his favorite dessert. "It's a deal," said Dave, smiling. "Let's go, Kate. We've got work to do." Chapter 3: The Wreck "Where are we going?" asked Kate, as they raced along the ocean floor. "To the wreck," said Dave. "I am hoping that Puff will help us." Kate and Dave soon reached the wreck. The sunken ship had been lying on the ocean floor for many years. Its tall mast reached all the way up above the waves. "Puff is always hiding around here," said Dave. "We will find her. Ha! There she is now." Puff was warily peeking out from a broken teacup. She had not yet seen her friends. "Watch this," said Dave, and snickered. Silently, he swam up behind the cup. "Woo Woo!" he shouted. Whoosh! went Puff. She inflated like a balloon and popped out of the teacup in a nervous flutter. "Hi, there!" said Dave with a wicked grin. dn0 "Eek!" squeaked Puff. "You scared me!" "You were already scared," said Dave. "What are you hiding from?" "There is a big storm up above," explained Puff. "I am afraid of the thunder and lightning." "But that is all the way up there," said Dave. "We are all the way down here." "You never know," said Puff nervously. She was always very cautious. " 'Fraidy fish," said Dave. "Stop it, you two!" Kate snapped. "We are wasting time. Puff, Eel is ill. He woke up without his electric-eel energy, and we are trying to help him get his zap back," said Kate. "Will you help us?" "I g-guess so," said Puff nervously. She took a deep gulp of water. "But keep DaveLandry, Leo is the author of 'Sea Surprise', published 2005 under ISBN 9780805066456 and ISBN 0805066454.