59. Ariel, Melody, and the Ghost

Ariel and Melody are good friends, but Melody sometimes teases Ariel about being scared, which makes Ariel very embarrassed. One afternoon, she was sleeping merrily, but Melody wanted to chat. "Get up, Ariel! Are you thinking about the time you thought I was a monster?" "Of course not. Anyway, I was just playing I was scared. I knew it was you in disguise." Melody continued her teasing. "I hope our guard leaves a light on for you!" "Why?" Ariel asked. "I LOVE the dark." "Really?" cried Melody. "I'm so, very inclined. I always thought you were scared of the dark. Hmm." Ariel ignored Melody, and went back to sleep. Next morning, King Triton arrived. "You are to go to the dockside to get something new." "What kind of something?" "You'll see." Melody was pushing carts in a siding. Marina came with some goods carts. The light man switched their points, and Melody waited, until Marina was out of sight. Then, disaster struck. "Points have been jammed!" the light man cried. "I cannot get them back! The men will fix them tomorrow. Now is too late!" "Let's see." said Melody's worker. "Melody, tonight, you will stay here." "Where will you go?" Melody asked. "Home for dinner." Melody was surprised. She watched her fellow sea creatures go back to bed. When night came, Melody felt lonely and scared. "Oh, my!" she cried. "It looks spooky." "What was that?" It was just an owl, but Melody didn't know. "I wish Ariel were here." she said softly. Ariel waited for her new load at the dockside. Then, she saw it."Splashing' Seahorses!" she cried. "It's a ghost!" "Never mind." said the worker. "It's just a pretend ghost. For tomorrow's carnival." Men got the ghost on Ariel's cart, and put light on it in order to protect it. Then, Ariel went in to the darkness of the dark. Melody slept on her siding, and didn't know that Ariel was coming. Melody soon got up. "Oh, no!" she wailed. "I won't open my eyes, until the worker comes!" The points had been fixed next day, and Melody made it safely to the station. Scuttle was going to leave with his wagons. "Guess what I saw when I was sleeping last night." Scuttle didn't want to play guessing games. "I'm very busy. I don't have time to play." "I've seen a ghost. It was all filled with lights." Scuttle grunted. "You've been staying up too long. You'll get moonburned." When the others heard this, they also laughed. "Watch out, Melody!" teased Flounder. "Or the ghost might get you by mistake." "Nobody trusts me." thought Melody. "Maybe the ghost wasn't real." But Melody now noticed that the ghost was real. "Somebody, help!" "It's OK." said Ariel. And she told her about the carnival. "How was your night?" Melody told Ariel what had happened. "So, Melody," Ariel said, "maybe everyone gets scared. But we're not afraid to tell the truth. by Julian Ayele Cumberbatch