Blue and Bessie went inside the hut and found a small dinghy. Bessie loaded it up with scuba gear, and together they pushed it down the bank and into the water. Bessie held on to its nose as Blue wobbled her way to the back and took a seat. She couldn’t imagine who they were going to meet in the middle of a lake, but she’d been with the Boogaloos long enough to know she could trust them. Blue was just so glad to be back at the clinic and away from the crushing weight of her mother’s disappointment.
With one stripy leg in the boat and one on the shore, Bessie shoved off from the side. The boat drifted out into the lake.
‘Don’t we need oars?’ asked Blue.
‘Oh yes, they might have come in handy. Never mind, luv,’ said Bessie. ‘We’ll just have to wait.’
The dinghy drifted out towards the middle of the lake. Blue dangled her feet over the edge, dipping her toes in the cool water. The morning sun tingled on her cheeks. Bessie lay back along the seat and pulled out a bag of pistachio nuts.
‘Nut?’
Blue and Bessie began munching their way through the bag of pistachios, tossing the empty shells into the lake. Every now and again, Bessie flung an arm over the side and tapped the surface of the water as if it were a piano. Enjoying the sunshine, Blue lay back and began to doze. She was in a half-sleep when she felt the boat vibrate beneath her. She looked at Bessie. Bessie didn’t stir. Blue thought she must have imagined it. She closed her eyes. Then it happened again. This time, it was more of a wobble than a quiver. Blue sat up.
As she did, an ancient-looking black-and-white snout emerged from the water right beside the dinghy.
And it was HUGE!
Blue screamed.
Bessie sat up. ‘Leonard!’ she said. ‘Hello, you gorgeous old fella!’ She leaned over the side and rubbed the creature’s nose. ‘Leonard, I’d like you to meet Blue.’
‘Oh … my … g-g-goodness!’ stuttered Blue. She had never seen an animal of that size. To be up close to one was overwhelming. ‘He’s the most magnificent thing I’ve ever, ever seen, Bessie.’
‘He is grand, isn’t he? He’s a gentle giant, our Leonard. Bit of an over-emotional big lug, aren’t you, luv? Go on, stroke his nose. He loves a pat.’
Blue reached down and touched his knobbly snout. On the underside was a cluster of barnacles.
‘Right, let’s get you in the water.’ Bessie wobbled towards the scuba gear.
‘What! I’m not getting in the water, am I?’ said Blue, pale-faced from fright.
‘Don’t worry, he won’t hurt you,’ said Bessie.
‘I can’t!’ said Blue. ‘He must be forty tonnes! I can’t get in the water with a whale!’
‘Well, not just any whale, luv. I like to think of Leonard as one of the greatest blues singers in the world. His whispers and clicks can unlock any heart, no matter what the combination. It’s his calling. Otherwise, he’d be out in that ocean, heading north with his mates for a bit of fun. Whale song is extremely powerful, Blue. It’s not just hippy-dribble talk, you know.’
Blue’s heart pounded. She tried to talk herself through what was going on, but there were two voices yelling at her in her head.
‘You call yourself an animal lover!’ she chided herself.
‘Yes, but that doesn’t mean you’d get in a cage with a lion or swim with piranhas, does it!’ the other voice argued.
‘I thought you said you’d do anything to get your laughter back?’ the first voice reminded her.
‘Yes, but swimming with a humpback whale? It’s a wild animal. It could crush me! I mean, Leonard is the size of our school bus! There’s got to be another way!’
While Blue argued with herself, Bessie just got on with it. She pulled out huge reins and lassoed them over Leonard’s snout. He slid under the water and surfaced about ten metres or so away from the boat. Rolling onto his back, his ridged white underbelly faced the sky. He turned onto his side and stuck a surfboard-sized white flipper straight into the air.
‘That’s Leonard talk for “come on in”,’ said Bessie.
‘I can’t!’ said Blue. ‘My mother won’t even let me pat a dog without my gloves on!’
‘Well, it’s up to you, luv,’ said Bessie, tossing a pistachio into her mouth.
Blue had to make a decision. It wasn’t really about what her mum would or wouldn’t let her do. That was just an excuse. If Blue really wanted her laughter back, she knew she had to get in that water. To summon her courage, she tried to imagine herself surrounded by her old friends in fits of laughter. If she was honest, she couldn’t even remember what laughter felt like anymore.
‘All right. I’ll do it.’
‘GOOD GIRL!’ said Bessie. ‘Here. Put on these goggles and breathe through this.’ Bessie heaved a scuba tank onto Blue’s back and hung a three-step ladder over the back of the boat.
Blue climbed down into the water, her legs shaking with fear. Slowly, she swam towards the whale.
‘Just hold on to those reins!’ yelled Bessie. ‘You’ll be right, luv. You’re in for a real treat. There’s nothing our Leonard loves more than an audience.’
Blue grabbed hold of the reins. Immediately, Leonard plunged beneath the surface. Blue held on as tightly as she could. Terrified, she could feel the whale’s immense power as he pulled her towards the bottom of the lake.
Eventually, Leonard stopped pulling and began to drift. It was completely silent and still beneath the water. And cool. Shafts of light beamed down like moonlight shining through holes in a roof. Leonard gently rolled as he drifted. His white flippers glowed in the soft buttery light. Stretched out wide like wings, Blue couldn’t believe how birdlike this
