Lulu Bell and the Moon Dragon by Belinda Murrell Read Free Book Online Page A

lost.
    â€˜Hi, Sam,’ called Molly and Lulu together.
    Sam smiled and came over.
    â€˜Are you having a good day?’ asked Lulu.

    â€˜It’s okay,’ said Sam.
    â€˜I didn’t see you at lunchtime,’ said Molly.
    â€˜I was reading in the library,’ Sam explained. ‘It was too hot to play.’
    Molly looked worried. ‘Sam, you can’t spend every lunchtime in the library. You need to get out and have fun with the other kids.’
    Sam looked away. Lulu thought he seemed sad.
    â€˜There are lots of lovely kids in kindy,’ said Lulu. ‘You just need to get to know them.’
    Sam smiled up at Lulu. He nodded.
    Lulu and Molly were given the job of looking after Sam and a kindy girl called Hannah. The students lined up two by two to walk to the beach. Lulu walked with Sam, and Molly with Hannah. Miss Baxter and Miss Stevens led the group. Three parents had also volunteered to come along.
    The lines of children headed out the school gate. They snaked down the footpath towards the ocean. Lulu could feel the sea breeze cooling her cheeks. She breathed in deeply.
    The teachers held up the traffic while the students crossed the road. On the other side was a wide park above the beach. Cyclists whizzed past on bikes. Mums pushed babies in prams. Dogs trotted along, dragging their owners for a walk.
    On the other side of the park was the sea.
    The sun danced on the sparkling blue water. Close to the shore, pale green waves rolled and smashed onto the crumbly white sand. The air smelled of salt and seaweed.
    â€˜Where are the whales?’ asked Lulu. She shaded her eyes. ‘I can’t see any.’
    Miss Baxter pointed to the right.
    â€˜The whales are in the cove further along the foreshore,’ she explained. ‘But we may need to be patient. Did you know that humpback whales can hold their breath underwater for nearly an hour?’
    â€˜An hour!’ exclaimed Lulu. ‘I hope we don’t have to wait that long.’
    The students walked along the footpath around the foreshore. After afew minutes, they came to a slight rise. It was fenced off from the rocks below. The children crowded around the fence and looked down at the calm water. Hannah started chatting to one of the other girls in her class.
    A group of kindy boys gathered together. They leaned against the railings, joking and laughing. One of the boys looked over at Sam.

    â€˜Do you want to go and join your friends, Sam?’ asked Molly.
    Sam shook his head. ‘No, it’s okay,’ he said. ‘I’ll stay here with you.’
    Suddenly Molly pointed and cried out, ‘Look!’
    Lulu gazed out over the sea. A white splash caught her eye.
    â€˜Is that a whale?’ asked Lulu.

Chapter 3
The Whales
    A huge black-and-white whale leaped from the water. It arced through the air and then smashed down again with a loud splash.
    â€˜Wow,’ called Lulu. ‘Did you see that?’
    â€˜It’s beautiful,’ replied Molly.
    A moment later, there were two whales leaping and diving. They whacked their tails and slapped their fins against the water. It was as though the twowhales were putting on an acrobatic performance especially for the children.
    â€˜They are two young males,’ explained Miss Baxter. ‘The males practise breaching and diving so they can show off to the females.’
    â€˜Some human boys are just the same,’ whispered Lulu. ‘They like showing off to the girls too.’
    Lulu and Molly giggled.
    One of the whales shot a spout of water metres into the air.
    â€˜Do you see that spout?’ asked Miss Stevens. ‘Whales are mammals, just like humans. They breathe air in through their blowholes. When they breathe out, they force water out in a huge spout.’
    The other male blew another spout even higher.
    Both whales swam closer to theshore. They swam on their sides with their huge mouths open. They looked as though they