Echo's Lucky Charm

by Catherine Hapka

  Contents

  Title Page

  1 Bay’s Announcement

  2 Echo’s Idea

  3 An Unexpected Visitor

  4 Hard Work

  5 Missing Magic

  6 The Search Is On

  7 Echo in Trouble

  8 Pearl’s Plan

  9 The Hermit Crab

  10 The Test

  Sneak Peek

  About the Author

  Don’t miss any adventures at Dolphin School

  Copyright

  “HURRY UP, PEARL—WE DON’T WANT TO BE late to Magic class!”

  “I’m coming!” Pearl called to her friend Echo. “Wait for me!”

  She waited one more moment as a large grouper swam in front of her. Coral Cove Dolphin School was located in a quiet lagoon sheltered by a large, circular coral reef. Lots of sea creatures lived on or near the reef, so there were always plenty of fish, mollusks, and crustaceans swimming or crawling through the school.

  As soon as the grouper had passed, Pearl flicked her tail to catch up with Echo. Just ahead, their friends Splash and Flip were waiting for them.

  “We’d better hurry,” Splash said, doing a somersault in the water. “Bay doesn’t like it when we’re late.”

  Pearl smiled. She knew they weren’t going to be late. But it was no surprise that Splash wanted to swim faster. He loved swimming fast, doing flips, jumping, and spinning.

  “Okay, let’s go!” Pearl said. “I hope we practice our guiding today. It’s so much fun!”

  One of Pearl’s favorite parts about going to school was learning all about dolphin magic. As the protectors of the ocean, dolphins used their magical powers to help other creatures. For instance, Pearl’s family pod lived near an island where sea turtles hatched. Her parents helped the baby turtles swim safely out to sea and find food, mostly by using a magical ability known as guiding. That was a type of mental magic in which dolphins sent gentle messages to other creatures to show them what to do. Pearl couldn’t wait to get better at magic so she could help her parents help the baby turtles!

  Soon Pearl and her friends were swimming into the part of the cove where they went for Magic class. The rest of their school pod was already there. On the first day of school, the teachers had divided all the students into smaller groups for their classes. There were eight dolphins in Pearl’s school pod, including her and her three best friends.

  “It’s good to see you all again,” Bay said. Bay was Pearl’s favorite teacher, and she taught Pearl’s two favorite subjects—Magic and Music. The pod had already had Music class that day.

  “Is everyone ready to get started?” Bay asked.

  “I’m ready!” Splash exclaimed, doing a flip.

  “Good. I have an important announcement today,” Bay said. “You’ve all been doing very well in class, so I’ve decided you’re ready for your first test. It will be three days from now.”

  A test? Pearl blew a nervous stream of bubbles out of her blowhole. This would be their very first test since starting school just a few days earlier. Pearl wasn’t sure she was ready!

  “Now let’s get to work so you’re prepared for the test,” Bay said. “We’ll start today by practicing our guiding. Be patient for a moment—I need to call over some creatures to help us.”

  She began to sing. A small school of about a dozen brightly colored cardinal fish swam closer, attracted by Bay’s beautiful song.

  Bay stopped singing and looked at the class. “I want you to divide into pairs and try guiding these fish,” she said.

  Splash’s eyes widened. “All of them at once?”

  Pearl felt nervous again. Her parents often guided whole groups of baby turtles. But so far, Pearl and the other students had only tried their guiding skills on one creature at a time.

  Well, most of the other students …

  “Have you done this before?” Pearl whispered to Echo.

  Echo’s mother had especially strong magic. She was famous all throughout the Salty Sea because she’d once saved a whole group of Land Leggers from drowning when their boat sank. Even though most young dolphins waited until they started school to learn any magic, Echo’s mom had already taught her a little bit.

  Echo nodded. “Mom helped me guide a small school of angelfish a few times,” she whispered back. “By the way, do you want to be partners?”

  “Of course!” Pearl said.

  The other two female dolphins in the pod went first. Bay told them to try guiding the cardinal fish into turning around and swimming the other way. Pearl could see that the girls were trying hard. But they only got one of the cardinal fish to turn the way they wanted. The others got confused and scattered in every direction.

  “Oops,” said one of the girls, a slender little dolphin named Harmony. “I hope that’s not on the test.”

  Bay chuckled. She sang a few notes of her song to bring the school of cardinal fish together again. “Don’t worry. I know this is a more difficult exercise than anything we’ve done so far,” she said. “Pearl, Echo—why don’t you give it a try?”

  “Okay,” Pearl said. She and Echo swam to the surface to take a breath of air. When they were back underwater, the two of them touched their fins together. Magic was always stronger when dolphins worked as a team.

  “Ready?” Echo asked. “Let’s guide!”

  Closing her eyes, Pearl focused her magic energy, adding it to the energy already pouring out of Echo. When she opened her eyes, Pearl saw that the fish had all stopped. They were hanging still in the water, fins vibrating.

  “More!” Echo whispered. Pearl saw her friend touch the pretty striped shell she always wore as a necklace. Even more energy pulsed out through the water.

  “Hey!” Splash exclaimed. “There they go!”

  The fish were moving again—this time in the opposite direction! Pearl sent out one more burst of energy, feeling proud of herself and Echo. They’d done it!

  “Good work, girls!” Bay sounded pleased. “Very good.”

  Magic was the last class of the day. When Bay dismissed the class, Splash and Flip stayed behind to talk to the other boys in the pod. Pearl and Echo swam slowly toward the school entrance.

  “We were great partners, weren’t we?” Echo said to Pearl. “We were the only ones who got all the fish to turn around at the same time!”

  “Yes, that was fun.” Pearl smiled. “I saw you touch your shell while we were doing it. How come?”

  Echo touched her necklace again. “It’s my lucky shell,” she said. “My mom gave it to me.”

  “Oh, right. You told me that before.” Pearl nodded. “But why do you call it your lucky shell?”

  “Because I think it must have a little bit of my mom’s magic in it,” Echo explained. “I always do better at magic when I touch it.”

  “Really? Cool!” Pearl looked at the necklace again, impressed. She wished she had a lucky shell of her own!

  PEARL AND ECHO HAD JUST LEFT THE SCHOOL reef when Splash and Flip caught up to them. “Wow, can you believe we’re having a test already?” Splash said, doing a flip beside the girls. “I hope I pass it!”

  “I definitely will,” Flip said. “I bet I’ll get the best score of anyone on that test!”

  Pearl just smiled. When she’d first met Flip, she’d thought he bragged too much. But now she was starting to get used to it—plus, he was bragging less than he had been.

  “I hope we’re all ready,” she said. “Do you think we’ll have to guide more than one creature at once, like we practiced today?”

  “Maybe,” Echo said. “The test isn’t for three whole days. Bay might think we should be able to learn to do that by then.”

  Splash looked nervous. “Uh-oh. Flip and I couldn’t ge
t any of the fish to turn!”

  “That’s because you got distracted and did a flip while we were trying,” Flip complained. “I could feel that they were about to turn!”

  “Hey, Flip, I have an idea,” Echo said. “Pearl and Splash should come home to our pod with us so we can all study together.”

  Echo and Flip were part of the same pod. A pod was a dolphin family, although not all dolphins in a pod had to be related. Some pods were small and the dolphins who lived in them were always the same, like Pearl’s—she lived with only her mother, father, and younger sister. Most pods were larger, with dolphins joining or leaving all the time. For instance, Echo and Flip’s pod had more than fifty dolphins in it! Pearl had never been around such a large pod before. She was nervous to visit—but excited, too!

  “That’s a great idea,” Splash said. “Let me find my brother and tell him. He can let the rest of my pod know where I am. Be right back!” He swam off in a flurry of bubbles.

  Pearl didn’t have any older brothers or sisters at school. “I’ll have to go home first so my parents know where I’m going,” she told Echo and Flip. “I don’t think I can send them a mental message from this far away.”

  “No problem,” Flip said. “We’ll come, too.”

  As soon as Splash returned, the four friends set off. They swam quickly through the shallow, warm waters of the Salty Sea. Pearl lived farther from school than any of the others. But the trip seemed shorter with her friends along. Before she knew it, they were swimming between two large coral formations into a quiet lagoon.

  “Wow, it’s pretty here!” Echo said.

  “It’s too bad no turtle eggs are hatching right now,” Pearl told her friends. “You’d love the baby turtles—they’re so cute!”

  A younger dolphin zipped toward them. “Hi, Pearlie!” she said. “Hey, who are you guys? Are you Pearlie’s friends?”

  “This is my little sister, Squeak,” Pearl told the others. “Squeak, these are my friends Echo, Flip, and Splash.”

  Squeak looked impressed. Like Pearl, she’d grown up in their small pod, far away from most other dolphins. She immediately started asking the others all sorts of questions. Meanwhile, Pearl swam off to find her parents and get permission to visit Echo and Flip’s pod.

  Then Pearl and her friends said good-bye to Squeak and set off. They found Echo and Flip’s pod in the shallow, sun-flecked water between two large islands. There were dolphins of all ages everywhere Pearl looked—eating, talking, or just swimming around. Pearl hung back behind the others, feeling shy. Several younger dolphins around Squeak’s age were playing in the surf near one of the islands under the watchful gaze of several adults. One of them, a large female with big eyes, spotted Echo and the others and swam over.

  “Hi, Mom.” Echo rubbed fins with her mother. “Pearl and Splash came over so we could all study together. I hope that’s all right.”

  “Of course. Welcome, young ones.” Echo’s mother smiled. Suddenly colorful lights flickered all around Pearl and her friends, bursting in pretty shapes that reminded Pearl of lace coral, and ending with a beautiful underwater rainbow that rippled in the current.

  “Wow!” Splash exclaimed. “Did you do that?”

  “Sure she did.” Flip shrugged. “She’s awesome at magic, remember?”

  Echo’s mother chuckled. “That’s just my way of saying welcome,” she told Pearl and Splash kindly. “I’m glad you’re here. Echo never stops talking about you two!”

  “Really?” Pearl felt shy. She’d heard so much about Echo’s mother and her super-strong magic. And seeing that amazing light display, she could believe it! All adult dolphins could create pretty displays like that out of light and water droplets. But Pearl had never seen one as bright and interesting as the one Echo’s mother had just made.

  “What are you kids studying today?” Echo’s mother asked.

  “Magic,” Flip replied. “Bay’s giving us a test in a few days. I’m not that worried about it, but these guys are.” He swirled his fin toward the others.

  Echo’s mother chuckled. “Bay is a good teacher. She’ll make certain you’re well prepared. But it can’t hurt to practice together, either.”

  “Will you help us study?” Echo asked her mother.

  “I’ll be around if you need me,” her mother replied. “But I’m sure you’re all smart and talented enough to do well on your own.”

  Just then, one of the baby dolphins squeaked for help, and Echo’s mother swam off to check on him. “I’m glad your mom will help us study if we need her,” Splash said. “It’s too bad she can’t come to school to help us out with the test, too!”

  “Yes.” Pearl glanced at Echo’s necklace, once again wishing she had one of her own. “But at least Echo always has a little bit of her mom’s special magic with her in her lucky shell.”

  Echo touched her shell and smiled. “Come on,” she said. “Let’s practice some magic!”

  PEARL LOVED MUSIC CLASS ALMOST AS MUCH as she loved Magic class. The next day, her school pod worked on singing together. It wasn’t easy—some of the dolphins sang faster or slower than the others. And Splash tended to get distracted and start doing flips in the middle of the song.

  “Oops,” he said when he did that for the third time. “Sorry about that, you guys.”

  “It’s all right, Splash,” Bay said. “It’s time to end class, anyway. We’ll continue working on this tomorrow, since singing together can help make our magic stronger. See you in Magic later. Class dismissed.”

  Pearl touched Splash’s fin with her own. “Don’t worry,” she told him. “I can tell you’re getting better at singing.”

  “Thanks, Pearl.” Splash smiled gratefully. “Come on—let’s go to Jumping and Swimming. I’m much better at that class!”

  Pearl’s smile faded. Splash might be good at Jumping and Swimming, but not Pearl. She still wasn’t used to swimming fast or jumping much at all. She didn’t have to do any of that stuff in her quiet, safe lagoon!

  As she followed the rest of the pod out of the music area, there was a sudden loud whistle from the middle of the cove. It was Riptide, the Jumping and Swimming teacher. He was floating beside Old Salty, the head of the school.

  “Attention, all students,” Old Salty said, using magic to make his voice loud enough to be heard in every nook and cranny of the reef. “I have an important announcement. An electric ray just swam into the cove.”

  “That’s right,” Riptide boomed out. He was a large, burly dolphin with a brisk manner. “As you know, rays don’t normally bother dolphins.”

  Old Salty chuckled. “Most of them know that,” he told Riptide. “But not the first years. We haven’t covered rays in Ocean Lore class yet.”

  “That’s true,” Echo whispered to Pearl with a giggle. “I think Old Salty got stuck on mollusks and algae!”

  Pearl giggled, too. Old Salty taught their Ocean Lore class. He seemed to know everything there was to know about every creature, plant, and type of coral in the Salty Sea, but his lectures were kind of boring.

  “In any case,” Old Salty continued now, “we want to make sure our electric ray friend has moved on before we continue classes. We wouldn’t want anyone to get a shock! So we’ll have recess early today. Please stay in the area near the kelp forest until we tell you it’s safe.”

  When Pearl and her friends reached the kelp forest, most of the older students were already there.

  “I wonder how long it will take the teachers to move the ray,” Splash said, using his tail to play with a swaying frond of kelp.

  “Probably not long,” Echo guessed. “Bay is great at guiding. I’m sure she’ll be able to convince the ray to leave.”

  That reminded Pearl about the Magic test. “Speaking of guiding, who wants to practice with me? We could try to guide those oysters over there to open and close their shells.”

  “During recess?” Flip said, sounding surprised.

  Pearl nodded. “I really want to be ready
for that Magic test. It’s only two days away now, and I’m getting nervous!”

  Three older students swam over just in time to hear her. One was Splash’s older brother, Finny. The other two were Finny’s friends Mullet and Shelly.

  “Uh-oh,” Mullet said with a smirk. “Are the teeny-weeny baby first years worried about their first test?”

  Pearl frowned at him. She and her friends had met Mullet on the first day of school. At the start, he’d seemed nice. But he’d turned out to be a bully. He’d dared Flip to swim out into Bigsky Basin, and Flip had almost ended up being eaten by a shark out there!

  “Oh, leave them alone, Mullet,” Finny said.

  “I don’t blame them for being scared,” Shelly added. “Bay’s tests are really hard!”

  “Really?” Pearl felt more worried than ever. Shelly might be Mullet’s friend, but she was nothing like him. She seemed really cool. If she said something, it was probably true.

  “Definitely!” Shelly widened her eyes. “I had to take my first Magic test three times before I passed!”

  Mullet laughed. “That’s because you kept cheating by singing to strengthen your magic,” he said.

  “Yeah,” Finny agreed. “Bay kept telling you not to do that, since we hadn’t studied it yet.”

  “I can’t help it if I have natural talent.” Shelly whistled a short tune. Then she turned back to Pearl and the others, looking sympathetic. “Plus, I only sang because I had to. Good luck with the test.”

  Mullet sneered. “You’re going to need it!”

  PEARL HAD BEEN NERVOUS ABOUT THE MAGIC test before. But now she was really nervous.

  Splash didn’t seem to be nervous at all. He laughed, and said, “I’m not so sure about how I’ll do. But Echo, I bet you’ll do great. After all, you have your lucky shell to help you!”

  “That’s true.” Pearl looked at Echo’s necklace. “Too bad we don’t all have lucky charms from your mom like that!”

  “Oh, wow!” Shelly said. “Your mom has the strongest magic in all of the Salty Sea!”