The Magic Pearl Read online

  ABOUT THE BOOK

  Take a trip to Cape Kelp Forest and join Willow Wave, Sophia Seashell, Chloe Coral and Olivia Ocean for another splashing adventure in MERMAID HOLIDAYS …

  Willow decides to celebrate the first day of the holidays by throwing a MERMAZING slumber party! The besties are so excited. But when Willow discovers a beautiful shimmering pearl, some very strange things start to happen that none of the mermaids are prepared for.

  Could this pearl have magical powers?

  Contents

  Cover

  About the Book

  Title Page

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Mermaid Holidays: The Bake Off

  Mermaid Holidays: The Talent Show

  Imprint

  Read more at Penguin Books Australia

  This story starts where the sea meets the shore, where the waves crash down with an almighty roar.

  There is an underwater world full of magic and fun, where the rays ride the tides and bask in the sun.

  But this isn’t a story about the sea and the stingrays, it’s about four special mermaids who are home for the holidays …

  On the outskirts of Turtleville, in the calm and clear waters of CAPE KELP FOREST, Willow Wave and her octopus pal, Frida, were preparing for a SLUMBER PARTY.

  Music was playing, snack bowls were full and the sleeping-bags were out …

  Now all that was needed were FOUR MERMAID MATES!

  ‘I am so excited for my MERMAZING SLUMBER PARTY,’ exclaimed Willow. ‘Sophia, Chloe and Olivia should be arriving any second.’

  As Frida placed a big plate of sea-cucumber sandwiches on the table, there was a loud KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK! at the door.

  ‘They’re here!’ squealed Willow.

  With an explosion of BUBBLES, the mermaids burst through the door and fell into a big group hug.

  ‘I’ve missed you CRAZY CATFISH!’ cried Olivia.

  Bruce, Olivia’s cheeky marlin, swam straight for the snack table and started munching away on the KELP CRACKERS.

  ‘Excuse me, Bruce,’ snapped Smedley. ‘I believe those snacks are for ALL of us.’

  ‘Don’t get your FLIPPERS IN A FLAP, there’s plenty to go round,’ said Frida with a big grin. ‘Everyone, help yourselves to a SEA-FOAM FLOAT.’

  ‘So I was thinking we could play some board games. I’ve brought mine and Bruce’s ABSOLUTE FAVES,’ said Olivia. ‘We’ve got –’

  ‘Actually, Olivia,’ interrupted Willow, ‘I’ve got something pretty cool for us to do.’

  ‘Ooooh, do tell!’ said Chloe as she sipped on a sea-foam float.

  ‘Well, the other day Frida and I were swimming through Cape Kelp Forest and found the most beautiful shells. That’s when I had the BEST idea. We spend so much time apart when we’re at school, so I thought we could make special MF necklaces with the shells. We can wear them all the time. That way we will be together, wherever we are in the ocean.’

  ‘I LOVE it,’ gasped Olivia.

  ‘Very moving, Miss Willow,’ sniffed Smedley.

  ‘So CUTE!’ agreed Chloe.

  ‘Just one question,’ said Sophia. ‘What in FISH GILLS does “MF” mean?’

  ‘MERMATES FOREVER!’ giggled Willow.

  With the help of their sidekicks, the mermaids made a start on their special necklaces.

  ‘I want everything on my necklace to be PINK,’ said Sophia.

  As they all rummaged through the tubs of shells, something SHINY and SHIMMERY caught Willow’s eye.

  ‘Well, well, what’s this?’ said Willow. She held up the shiny stone for a closer look.

  ‘Is that a PEARL?!’ exclaimed Chloe. ‘They’re SUPER RARE.’

  Willow gazed at the beautiful pearl – it was ENCHANTING. She could almost feel it tingling in the palm of her hand.

  She carefully attached it to her necklace and tied it around her neck.

  ‘It looks so MAGICAL!’ sighed Willow.

  Frida winked at Willow. ‘Maybe it is.’

  ‘What are you talking about, Frida?’ asked Willow.

  Frida smiled. ‘Have you heard the LEGEND OF THE MAGIC PEARL?’

  The mermaids shook their heads.

  ‘How about you all finish your necklaces and I’ll make us some mugs of hot cocoa and tell you the story,’ said Frida.

  ‘YAY!’ cheered the mermaids.

  The mermaids snuggled down in their sleeping-bags with a big shell mug of cocoa each and Frida began to tell them the LEGEND OF THE MAGIC PEARL.

  ‘The story starts hundreds of years ago with King Timon, the TERRIBLE Turtle King.’

  ‘I’ve heard about mean King Timon,’ interrupted Sophia. ‘He was just AWFUL!’

  ‘SSHHHHH,’ snapped Bruce.

  Sophia stuck her tongue out at Bruce. ‘Carry on, Frida.’

  Frida turned the page and continued the story. ‘Now, King Timon loved gold and he loved power. His kingdom was already the wealthiest in the whole ocean, but he was very, VERY GREEDY.’

  One day, King Timon was floating through the sparkling hallways of his coral mansion when a messenger seahorse whispered in his ear.

  ‘Sir! Word on the waves is, there’s a MAGICAL PEARL hidden in the heart of the ocean.’

  ‘POPPYCOCK!’ snorted the King.

  But the little seahorse continued, ‘Sir! The stories are true. This MAGIC PEARL has the power to grant THREE WISHES! And whoever holds the pearl will be the most powerful creature in the ocean.’

  This got King Timon’s turtle ears twitching. WISHES? POWER? He liked the sound of that. But he was lazy. He didn’t want to swim far and wide in search of the pearl. So he summoned his three sons.

  The oldest of the brothers, Theodore, was King Timon’s favourite. He was MEAN, GREEDY and HEARTLESS.

  The middle brother, Trenton, was the King’s second favourite. He was JUST AS MEAN, JUST AS GREEDY and JUST AS HEARTLESS as Theodore.

  And then there was Tobias, the youngest brother. King Timon didn’t like him one little bit and neither did Theodore and Trenton. You see, Tobias was nothing like his cruel and selfish family.

  He was KIND, CARING and PURE OF HEART.

  The King ordered his sons to find THE MAGIC PEARL and bring it to him.

  ‘Whoever returns with the pearl will receive a kingdom to call their own and all the jewels and riches they desire,’ said King Timon. ‘Now, off with you!’

  Theodore and Trenton were drooling at the thought of this. But Tobias wasn’t bothered about the pearl or the promise of power. He just wanted to explore the seas, and visiting the heart of the ocean had been on his bucket list ever since he was a teeny-tiny turtle.

  A few hours into their journey, the sand road the brothers had been following suddenly disappeared. Standing in front of them was a WIZENED, OLD MERHAG and an ANCIENT-LOOKING OYSTER.

  ‘Would you be so kind as to help me?’ begged the merhag. ‘My friend and I have been swimming through these RAGING RIPTIDES for days and we’re exhausted. Please could we ride on your shells for a little way?’

  ‘What’s in it for us?’ grunted Theodore.

  ‘I’m afraid we don’t have anything to offer you,’ sobbed the merhag. ‘But if you could find it in your heart –’

  ‘PAH!’ scoffed Trenton. ‘Kindness isn’t free.’

  ‘Get out of our way, you MANGY MERHAG,’ said Theodore. ‘We’ve got a magic pearl to find!’

  And with that, the two brothers WHIZZED off through the water.

  The merhag sighed and scooped up her oyster pal. She hadn’t noticed that Tobias was still floating beside her.r />
  ‘Don’t be sad,’ said Tobias. ‘I’ll help you. My brothers are determined to find this magic pearl for my mean father, but I just want to see the ocean and have ADVENTURES. You can take a ride on my shell.’

  The merhag looked down at her little oyster and WINKED. Suddenly, a great WHIRLPOOL came out of nowhere and surrounded the merhag and the oyster, sweeping them up into the CHURNING water.

  Tobias was STUNNED. When the bubbles cleared, the kind turtle couldn’t believe his eyes. The WIZENED MERHAG had transformed into the most MAGNIFICENT and BEAUTIFUL MERMAID he had ever seen. And in her hands, where the ancient oyster had been, was …

  ‘THE MAGIC PEARL!’ whispered Tobias.

  ‘Yes, Tobias,’ sang the mermaid. ‘Your mean brothers will be swimming the seas for eternity. They are searching for the heart of the ocean, but it isn’t a place. You see, Tobias, YOU are the heart of the ocean. You are KIND, CARING and PURE OF HEART – the pearl can’t be found, the pearl finds you.’

  ‘PIPPING PIPIS!’ exclaimed Olivia. ‘I didn’t see that coming …’

  ‘SHUSH.’ Sophia glared at Olivia. ‘What happened next, Frida? Did Tobias go back to the mean, old king and give him the pearl?’

  ‘I hope not,’ said Willow. ‘King Timon is HORRID. He doesn’t deserve all that power.’

  Frida giggled. ‘Tobias didn’t give the magic pearl to King Timon,’ she continued. ‘In fact, he never saw his father or his greedy brothers ever again.

  ‘With the magic pearl tucked safely in his shell, he made his FIRST AND ONLY WISH: to be rid of his cruel family.

  ‘Tobias was free to explore the seven seas day after day, month after month and year after year. Until one day, he floated through our beautiful lagoon and he knew that this was the place he was going to call home.’

  ‘Hang on a second,’ interrupted Chloe. ‘Tobias, as in Tobias TURTLETON? The FOUNDER of Turtleville?’

  Frida nodded. ‘The one and only.’

  ‘Whoa,’ said the mermaids.

  ‘What happened to the magic pearl then?’ asked Sophia.

  ‘Legend says the pearl just vanished,’ said Frida, ‘but many believe Tobias hid it somewhere in Turtleville, and only the TOWN ELDERS know where it is.’

  Chloe gasped. ‘Willow, what if you’ve found THE MAGIC PEARL?’

  The mermaids stared at the shimmering gem around Willow’s neck.

  ‘Imagine if it was,’ Sophia said, her eyes widening, ‘and you had THREE WISHES.’

  ‘That would be MERMAZING,’ yawned Olivia.

  ‘Well, that’s quite enough excitement for one night,’ said Pam. ‘Time for sleep, I think.’

  With wishes on their minds, the mermaids and sidekicks all snuggled down in their sleeping-bags.

  ‘Best slumber party ever,’ Chloe muttered as she drifted off to sleep.

  As everyone nodded off, Willow lay awake, thinking about the legend.

  What if it is THE MAGIC PEARL? thought Willow. Her fingers tingled with excitement as she touched it. Maybe I could make just one tiny wish … There’s no harm in that, right?

  With the pearl clasped tight in her hands, Willow whispered her first wish …

  ‘I wish that my MERMAZING SLUMBER PARTY could carry on tomorrow, starting with a yummy breakfast of all our favourite things.’

  Dreaming of SPONGE PANCAKES and SEAWEED WAFFLES, Willow fell fast asleep.

  Cape Kelp Forest is usually one of the most peaceful parts of Turtleville. But the morning after the slumber party LOUD, GURGLING SNORES vibrated through the calm waters.

  ‘I WISH someone would wake that SNORING SNOTFISH up!’ cried Sophia.

  ‘I agree with Miss Sophia,’ Smedley huffed as he glared at Bruce. ‘That noise is the WORST.’

  ‘What are you complaining about?’ Olivia yawned and prodded her snoozing pal. ‘I find his snoring soothing.’

  Bruce blinked and smiled sleepily. ‘Well, that was the best sleep EVER. I slept like a little MERBIE.’

  Willow and Chloe giggled. It was so funny when Sophia and Smedley got cross.

  ‘What’s for brekkie?’ asked Chloe. ‘Something smells YUMMY.’

  Chloe was right. The most delicious smells were floating through from the kitchen.

  ‘I don’t know,’ said Willow. ‘Frida, did you make breakfast?’

  The elegant octopus stretched out her tentacles. ‘Not me. I just woke up.’

  With RUMBLING TUMMIES, the mermaids went to investigate.

  The kitchen table was jam-packed – Willow had never seen so much food. There were kelp smoothies, sponge pancakes, seaweed waffles, nori toast, coral crunch cereal and much more.

  The mermaids dived in and piled their plates high. Frida and Willow stared at the yummy breakfast banquet – they were SPEECHLESS! They hadn’t made all this food, so WHO had?

  Willow frowned. ‘Something FISHY is going on here.’

  Sophia shrugged and popped another coral crunch in her mouth. ‘Doesn’t smell like fish.’

  Then, Willow remembered …

  ‘NO WAY!’ she gasped.

  ‘What?’ asked Sophia with a mouthful of seaweed waffles.

  ‘It’s the PEARL!’ exclaimed Willow. ‘I wished for this amazing breakfast last night and it came true!’

  The room fell silent as everyone stared at the pearl around her neck. It looked bigger and seemed to sparkle a little brighter than it had yesterday.

  ‘HOLY MACKEREL,’ whispered Chloe, and took a sip of her kelp smoothie.

  ‘Why are we all standing here like a bunch of SILLY SALMON?’ said Oliva. ‘This is AWESOME.’

  ‘This is a very special gift you’ve been given, Willow,’ said Frida. ‘You must be careful with your wishes.’

  ‘Frida’s right. Think long and hard about them,’ warned Pam. ‘Wishes have a habit of backfiring and BITING you on the TAIL FINS.’

  ‘I have a bad feeling about this, Miss Willow,’ groaned Smedley. ‘A VERY BAD FEELING indeed.’

  Bruce rolled his eyes at the stuffy seahorse. ‘Oh, don’t be such a BORING BLOBFISH, Smeds! Have a nibble on some coral crunch and RELAX. Willow’s got WISHES to make.’

  Bobbing in the water like a GOBSMACKED GUPPY, Willow gazed at the pearl.

  The mermaids huddled around her with excitement – this was the most MERMAZING thing that had ever happened to them!

  ‘So,’ Sophia squealed with a huge grin on her face, ‘what will your SECOND WISH be?’

  Willow knew exactly what she would wish for. She loved being back together with her mermates, and the school holidays were her favourite time of the year, but they always ended too soon.

  With the pearl clasped tight in her hands, Willow made her wish …

  ‘I wish that every day in Turtleville was a holiday party – no school, no work, just FUN, FUN, FUN!’

  After Willow made her second wish, the mermaids waited and waited for something to happen. They played several board games and STILL NOTHING HAPPENED, so they decided to go home and meet up tomorrow.

  When Willow and Frida woke up the next morning, the pearl was even BIGGER and shining even BRIGHTER than before. Eager to see if her wish had been granted, they rushed into town to meet her mermates.

  As they floated along Pacific Parade, Willow and Frida were speechless. Turtleville had been transformed! Party decorations covered every coral cave in town, and the sea streets were filled with merfolk and fishfolk CHATTING and LAUGHING. No one was at work and EVERYONE was having FUN.

  When they reached Turtleville Town Square, Willow stared at the gates like a STUNNED MULLET. Balloons and banners announcing the TURTLEVILLE HOLIDAY PARTY were draped around the entrance, and in the middle of the square was the most MERMAZING FUNFAIR Willow had ever seen.

  ‘Frida, my wish came true!’ she cried.

  ‘Willow!’ Chloe yelled as she emerged from a bunch of balloons.

  ‘That was one FISHTASTIC wish you made,’ said Olivia. ‘This is the best holiday party ever.’

 
; ‘Totally,’ agreed Sophia. ‘Everyone’s having so much fun.’

  Willow saw all the smiling faces and realised her wish really had made everyone happy. And the best bit was that, from now on, every day was going to be a HOLIDAY PARTY.

  ‘Let’s have a go on these rides!’ squealed Willow.

  Willow and Frida zipped off to the SPINNING TEACUPS.

  Chloe and Pam couldn’t wait to have a go on the PIRATE SHIP.

  Sophia dragged Smedley to the CAROUSEL.

  Olivia and Bruce raced over to the ROLLER-COASTER.

  And the one ride ALL the mermaids wanted to try was the BUMPER SHELLS.

  ‘Come on, there are four shells free,’ yelled Olivia.

  ‘Perfect!’ cheered Willow.

  HOOOOONNNKKKK!

  At the sound of the horn, the mermaids WHIZZED and WHOOSHED through the water.

  After FOUR goes on the bumper shells, the mermaids needed some food.

  ‘So, what does everyone fancy?’ Willow asked as they swam around the food stalls. ‘Sea-cucumber sizzle? Kelp kebabs? Seaweed slushies –’

  ‘Can’t beat a SEA-CUCUMBER SIZZLE, if you ask me. Go find a picnic spot and I’ll bring ’em over,’ Bruce said with a wink.

  He swished off to join the queue.

  ‘Well, that’s TWO wishes down and ONE to go,’ said Olivia. ‘What will wish number three be?’

  ‘Oooh!’ gasped Sophia. ‘If you need any suggestions, I’ve got HEAPS!’