Walter the Whale had come back to visit in the Big Harbour. It had been a long time since he saw his friends the tugs. He was really happy to see them again, and they were happy to see him too- specially Hank and Theodore, who some very exciting news to tell Walter.
"A big ship's coming here to the Big Harbour this afternoon!" Hank tooted. "And she's famous! What was she called again, Theodore? I forgot."
"It's the 'Queen Stephanie'." Theodore replied. He looked at his friend.
"How could you forget the name of such a famous ship, Hank?" He asked feeling very puzzled over the matter.
"Well, I got so excited on having a famous visitor that I forgot." Hank explained sheepishly.
"Okay." Replied Theodore. Then he turned to Walter.
"Everyone's very excited, though we're also busy getting ready for her arrival. Would you like to come and watch?"
Walter squeaked happily.
"Well, alright then!" Theodore laughed. "Let's go, Walter! Come on, Hank!"
So the three set off for the Big Ocean and Salvage Company Dock, and Hank and Theodore filled Walter in on what had happened to them since the last time the young whale had been on a visit.
Walter was very excited about seeing the famous ship come in to dock, and he wondered what the visitor would be like.
Much later, Theodore and Hank arrived back at the Big Ocean and Salvage Company Dock, with Walter still swimming alongside them.
The Dispatcher turned to Hank and Theodore.
"Ah, Hank and Theodore- I'm glad I caught you! I have a very special job for you. You are both to welcome the Queen Stephanie to the Big Harbour."
Walter was so happy for his close friends that he squeaked out loud, and alerted the Dispatcher to his presence.
"Ah, I see young Walter is here too!"
Yes, he's here visiting." Theodore explained.
"Oh, Dispatcher- can Walter help us welcome Queen Stephanie, please?" Hank pleaded. "I bet he'll love it!"
The Dispatcher paused, considering this baffling request, but then he relented.
"Alright, he can help, but you must be aware that"-
"That's great! Thank you so much, Dispatcher!" Hank exclaimed, now feeling far too excited to listen to the Dispatcher's warning.
And then he and Walter set off.
"Hey, wait for me!" Theodore called, and he proceeded to catch up with his friends.
The Dispatcher looked worried.
"I do hope that nothing goes wrong..."
...
Emily and George were also given an important job to do: they were in charge of pulling Queen Stephanie into the Big Harbour.
"I hope this goes well!" Emily said. "I'm so excited!"
"Me too- the Dispatcher chose the strongest tug to pull the Queen!" George bragged.
"Ahem."
"And, of course, the most hardworking too." George added, awkwardly.
"Look George-it's Walter!" Emily said quietly, so as not to scare their visitor away.
"Ah yes, little fellow visiting, is he?" George asked, just as Hank sidled alongside the young whale.
"Yes he is, and he's even going to help me and Theodore welcome our special visitor!" He chirped excitedly.
Emily was very worried. "Wouldn't Walter get frightened by Queen Stephanie?"
"No- in fact, I think they'll be great friends!" Hank replied, in an attempt to reassure Emily of her worries.
Emily wasn't so sure about it at all, but then she saw Theodore, and tooted her horn. He responded with a toot of his own.
"Hello Theodore- I heard about how you and Hank get to welcome the Queen! I know you'll both do very well!"
"Thanks Emily- only, Walter has to do it too, and I'm worried in case he gets frightened by her."
"What can go wrong?" George said arrogantly. "It's just one visitor, not a harbour of them!"
"Yes, but that visitor is huge! Walter's not fully grown yet." Emily pointed out.
Theodore now felt very worried indeed. A lot could go wrong today, and he knew he couldn't let that happen. He didn't want to let Queen Stephanie or the Dispatcher down, but he wanted to ensure that Walter wouldn't get alarmed by the size of the ship coming in that afternoon.
What was he to do?
...
Unfortunately for Theodore, time flew right by them, and soon, it was two o'clock- the time that the ocean liner was coming.
Walter was excited. He made happy yet funny sounding squeaks as he waited Stephanie's arrival.
But when he saw her approach where Emily and George were waiting for her, he grew alarmed and swam off.
"Hey, where did Walter go?" Hank asked, now feeling very confused as to their friend's whereabouts.
"Oh no- I think Walter must have been frightened by Queen Stephanie! We need to find him, quick!"
So the two harbour tugs set off to look for Walter.
...
Luckily, he was only with Foduck, who was on his way to the mouth of the Big Harbour after he had finished delivering his safety report to the Dispatcher.
"Hello Walter!" He said. "Is something wrong? I hope it's not a fire."
"It's not. Walter just got scared by Queen Stephanie." Theodore explained, as he and Hank both caught up to their friends.
"What do we do now, Theodore? We can't expect Walter to greet Queen Stephanie if he's frightened." Hank asked. He knew his best friend was a quick thinker, and always had good ideas.
Theodore thought for a moment about their dilemma. Then, he had an idea.
"I know what we can do! But I need you to come with me." He said to Hank.
"Okay, Theodore!" Hank said cheerfully. "Do you need Walter?"
"Yes, I do need Walter with us."
"Good luck!" Called Foduck as the two harbour tugs left their safety conscious friend wondering what Theodore was going to do.
Theodore and Hank sped to the mouth of the harbour, where they were just in time to see their visitor about to glide into the Big Harbour.
"Hello ma'am." Theodore said politely. "Welcome to the Big Harbour..."
"...the nicest, friendliest harbour in the world!" Hank added excitedly.
"My, such polite and enthusiastic tugs!" Queen Stephanie exclaimed.
"I know you've had a long journey, and I understand if you're feeling tired. But could you do us a favour?"
"Of course I will, after that lovely welcome you gave me." The ocean liner smiled warmly.
"Great- it's not a big favour, but it's important." He cleared his throat. "We have a friend called Walter, and he was really excited to meet you, until he got scared. We were wondering if you could meet Walter and maybe even become friends with him."
The guest pondered.
"Well, there's no harm in me trying." She decided at last. "Where is he, anyway?"
"Oh, he's over here!" Said Hank, and looked towards the patch of ocean on his right. There was a young whale, peeking shyly from beneath the waves.
Queen Stephanie was baffled, but nevertheless spoke to Walter in her softest voice.
"Hello Walter."
Walter looked up at her. He was still frightened, but he made eye contact with her.
"I'm 'Queen Stephanie' and I'm here to visit the Big Harbour. Are you here on a visit too?"
Walter began squeaking quietly.
"Yes he is." Theodore translated.
"Wonderful! Do you like travelling, Walter? I do it a lot, and I enjoy it a lot, as I get to learn new things."
Walter squeaked again.
"He does, ma'am." Theodore interpreted. "He does it with his friends and family though, as he doesn't like being on his own."
"I like being on my own sometimes, but there are other times when I prefer having a friend's company." She admitted.
Walter was surprised to learn how much he had in common with the famous ocean liner. He gave a loud whoosh of water from his blowhole to give her his welcome.
"Thank you, dear." Queen Stephanie said, very politely.
And everyone cheered as their special guest was pulled in by George and Emily. Walter just squeaked and let off another whoosh, making everyone laugh.