pouch, your pouch was on the belt, and the belt has fallen into the sea!" Scarlett said. "Well, you've really let us down, Misty. What will Queen Neptuna say?"
Tears of shame filled Misty's eyes.
"Scarlett!" said Ellie reproachfully. "Misty is very sorry. She made a mistake, but it can't be helped. It's no use rubbing it in."
"But she'll never find her crystal again," said Scarlett angrily. "It's lost in the Giant Kelp Forest! We'll never get the six new crystals home in time now. The old crystals will fade, our Merfolk power will die, and Mantora will destroy our home!"
Misty stopped crying and looked up. "Oh no, she won't," she said, in a determined voice. "I promised Queen Neptuna that I would bring my crystal home safely. And I will, if it's the last thing I do!"
"We'll help you, Misty," said Ellie eagerly. "We're a team, after all, like you said."
"Do you really mean it?" asked Misty.
"Of course we will," said the others. But Scarlett still looked annoyed.
"The first thing we need is a plan," said Holly. "Misty, can you remember anything about where you landed after the storm?"
"Urn, er, I saw lots of starfish," Misty said hopefully. Holly shook her head.
"That's no good," she replied. "There are hundreds of starfish all over the Forest. Can't you remember anything else?"
Misty thought hard. So much seemed to have happened to her in the last two days! She desperately tried to remember what had happened when she'd arrived in the Kelp Forest. Then something flashed into her mind.
"Oh, of course! A grumpy crab pinched my tail," she exclaimed. "He was called . . . oh, what was it? 'Cay' something . . ."
"Caleb?" suggested Ellie helpfully.
"No, wait, I know," said Misty. "Cato! His name was Cato!"
"Then we've got to find this Cato right away," said Holly. "He's the only way we can track down the spot where the crystal might be."
Misty and her friends turned back the way they had come through the waving underwater thickets. They called Cato's name as they swam along.
"He was a bit deaf," said Misty. "We'd better shout loudly."
The mermaids' voices rang through the tall avenues of seaweed. Tiny purple fish peeped at them as they glided past. But no one answered their cries.
"Oh, this is hopeless," said Scarlett.
"We can't give up yet," said Sophie. "Let's try just one more time. One, two, three—CAAAYY-TOW!"
Suddenly, a giant cuttlefish poked out from behind a big piece of kelp. He waved his yellow tentacles at them.
"All right, all right!" he said. "I heard you the first time. And the second and third . . . " He sounded angry, but his big eyes looked kind. "What's the matter, mermaids?"
"We have a terrible problem . . . ," began Misty, swimming to the front of the group and facing the cuttlefish bravely.
"Well, there's a solution for every problem, that's my motto," replied the cuttlefish.
"Not for this problem," said Misty sadly. "Unless you know someone called Cato?"
"Know him?" he said. "Old Cato's been my special friend since we were hatched. We used to play hide-and-seek as youngsters in the Forest. But that was a long time ago! Now we're both sleepy old fellows."
"That's how it all started," said Misty. "He was asleep, and I sat on him."
"Sat on him!" exclaimed the cuttlefish. "That's no way to say hello to an old crab like Cato."
"I didn't mean to," said Misty. "It's just that there was a terrible storm . . ."
"Storm? What storm? There hasn't been any storm down here in the Forest as far as I know." The old cuttlefish looked very puzzled.
"It wasn't a storm from Mother Nature," Misty explained. "It was Mantora blowing us far away from our home in Coral Kingdom."
"Mantora? Not that wicked old creature up to her tricks again. Well, well," said the cuttlefish, eyeing the friends carefully, "this is a strange tale. Mermaids, all the way from Coral Kingdom, unnatural storms, and now Mantora. I think you had better tell me everything that has happened from the beginning. And by the way," he
Tears of shame filled Misty's eyes.
"Scarlett!" said Ellie reproachfully. "Misty is very sorry. She made a mistake, but it can't be helped. It's no use rubbing it in."
"But she'll never find her crystal again," said Scarlett angrily. "It's lost in the Giant Kelp Forest! We'll never get the six new crystals home in time now. The old crystals will fade, our Merfolk power will die, and Mantora will destroy our home!"
Misty stopped crying and looked up. "Oh no, she won't," she said, in a determined voice. "I promised Queen Neptuna that I would bring my crystal home safely. And I will, if it's the last thing I do!"
"We'll help you, Misty," said Ellie eagerly. "We're a team, after all, like you said."
"Do you really mean it?" asked Misty.
"Of course we will," said the others. But Scarlett still looked annoyed.
"The first thing we need is a plan," said Holly. "Misty, can you remember anything about where you landed after the storm?"
"Urn, er, I saw lots of starfish," Misty said hopefully. Holly shook her head.
"That's no good," she replied. "There are hundreds of starfish all over the Forest. Can't you remember anything else?"
Misty thought hard. So much seemed to have happened to her in the last two days! She desperately tried to remember what had happened when she'd arrived in the Kelp Forest. Then something flashed into her mind.
"Oh, of course! A grumpy crab pinched my tail," she exclaimed. "He was called . . . oh, what was it? 'Cay' something . . ."
"Caleb?" suggested Ellie helpfully.
"No, wait, I know," said Misty. "Cato! His name was Cato!"
"Then we've got to find this Cato right away," said Holly. "He's the only way we can track down the spot where the crystal might be."
Misty and her friends turned back the way they had come through the waving underwater thickets. They called Cato's name as they swam along.
"He was a bit deaf," said Misty. "We'd better shout loudly."
The mermaids' voices rang through the tall avenues of seaweed. Tiny purple fish peeped at them as they glided past. But no one answered their cries.
"Oh, this is hopeless," said Scarlett.
"We can't give up yet," said Sophie. "Let's try just one more time. One, two, three—CAAAYY-TOW!"
Suddenly, a giant cuttlefish poked out from behind a big piece of kelp. He waved his yellow tentacles at them.
"All right, all right!" he said. "I heard you the first time. And the second and third . . . " He sounded angry, but his big eyes looked kind. "What's the matter, mermaids?"
"We have a terrible problem . . . ," began Misty, swimming to the front of the group and facing the cuttlefish bravely.
"Well, there's a solution for every problem, that's my motto," replied the cuttlefish.
"Not for this problem," said Misty sadly. "Unless you know someone called Cato?"
"Know him?" he said. "Old Cato's been my special friend since we were hatched. We used to play hide-and-seek as youngsters in the Forest. But that was a long time ago! Now we're both sleepy old fellows."
"That's how it all started," said Misty. "He was asleep, and I sat on him."
"Sat on him!" exclaimed the cuttlefish. "That's no way to say hello to an old crab like Cato."
"I didn't mean to," said Misty. "It's just that there was a terrible storm . . ."
"Storm? What storm? There hasn't been any storm down here in the Forest as far as I know." The old cuttlefish looked very puzzled.
"It wasn't a storm from Mother Nature," Misty explained. "It was Mantora blowing us far away from our home in Coral Kingdom."
"Mantora? Not that wicked old creature up to her tricks again. Well, well," said the cuttlefish, eyeing the friends carefully, "this is a strange tale. Mermaids, all the way from Coral Kingdom, unnatural storms, and now Mantora. I think you had better tell me everything that has happened from the beginning. And by the way," he
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