“What a beautiful morning!” Freddy exclaims as he rises from his rockpool shelter, clambering his eight legs out of his sandy bed. The sun shining down on his red shell he is looking forward to spending time with his marine friends on the warm seashore. What a beautiful day for a fiddler crab to play the violin he thought.
Freddy reaches into the rockpool with his many legs to fetch his violin but searching in the sand for a while he realises his violin isn’t there. “Oh dear” said Freddy, “my violin has disappeared, I must find it before it is swept out to sea and lost forever.” Frantically he makes his way to the beach thinking to himself, what is a fiddler crab to do without a fiddle to play!
Beginning his search, Freddy approaches the seagulls resting on the beach, waving his claws for their attention, he calls up “seagulls, have you seen a lonely violin on the beach today?” The seagulls reply “squawk squawk, we have seen only a few shells and pebbles dear crab” oh dear thought Freddy, “I shall continue my search in the sea, thank you seagulls” and made his way to the tideline where he dipped into the sea froth.
There he stumbled across Marvin the starfish. Freddy asked “Marvin have you seen my violin, it has disappeared from my rockpool.” Marvin replied “I haven’t seen your violin, sorry Freddy, but I suspect a small wooden violin would float so perhaps it has floated far out to sea in the night.” “Yes indeed Marvin, I will need to investigate and ask the creatures that live further into the sea if they have spotted a lost violin. Thank you Marvin” said Freddy then he was again on his way, further into the deep blue sea.
Freddy soon encounters a troop of seahorses, munching on the seagrass. “Well hello there my seahorse friends, I need some help with finding my violin, have you passed such an instrument on your travels?” “Oh no!” the seahorses erupted together, “that is terrible news that your violin has gone missing Freddy, your violin makes the sea dance and brings the white horse waves to our oceans, without your music the sea will not dance, we must help you find it dear Freddy.”
The seahorses moved quickly, scanning the ocean floor and the surface for any sign of Freddy’s violin, but it was nowhere to be found. Such a little object in a vast ocean, the search seemed almost impossible.
The seahorses returned, disappointed that Freddy’s violin was nowhere to be found. Freddy thanks the seahorses and makes his way back to the seashore in his fast sideways step. “I must find my violin” thought Freddy, focused on his search, he decides to crawl back to his rockpool from where he started. Upon reaching the rocks, Freddy was greeted by Harry the hermit crab, “why Harry that is an interesting shell you are wearing there!” said Freddy, Harry replied “yes Freddy, a big wave swept away my shell home and I had to take cover underneath this wooden box that I found in the dark last night” Why Harry, that is no box that you have adopted as your new shelter, that is my violin!”.
“Oh Freddy I’m so sorry, you must have your violin back so you can play your beautiful music.” Harry then slipped out of the violin he was wearing. Freddy, who was a bigger stronger crab, had pulled out a beautiful new shell from the rockpool for Harry to wear. Freddy called “This shell looks a good size for you Harry, please use this shell as your new home.” Harry tried on his new shell home and decided it was a perfect fit for a hermit crab. “Thank You Freddy!” cried Harry and with that he scuttled into the neighbouring rockpool.
Freddy relieved to be reunited with his precious violin, positioned his violin on his shoulder and he began to play the magnificent music of the fiddler crab. The sea and its creatures began to dance in time with this his violin music once again.