Once upon a time, in a bright and busy coral reef, there lived a little fish named Reek. Reek was small and brilliant blue, with a big heart — and an even bigger fear of the shark gang that prowled the deeper water. The gang was led by a shark called Scar, famous for his teeth and for the way the water seemed to go quiet whenever he passed. The mere mention of Scar’s name was enough to set Reek trembling from nose to tail.
Reek loved the reef. He loved exploring the coloured coral, playing hide-and-seek among the fans and fronds, and darting through the swaying seaweed with his friends. But he always, always stayed close to home. He never once swam out to where the shark gang might be waiting.
One sunny morning, while Reek was playing near his favourite coral cave, he overheard his friends talking. They were talking about a hidden treasure, buried deep in the ocean and guarded, so the story went, by a school of wise old fish.
Reek’s curiosity flickered up like a light. But the thought of what he might meet on such a journey put it out again just as quickly.
The days went by, and still he could not stop thinking about it. Finding that treasure would be the greatest adventure of his life, and think of the joy it might bring to his friends and his family. At last, gathering every scrap of courage he possessed, Reek made up his mind to go.
Before he set out, he swam to see his friend Ollie, a clever old octopus known all over the reef for his good sense.
“Ollie, I want to find the hidden treasure,” Reek confessed. “But I am so afraid of the shark gang.”
Ollie wrapped a gentle tentacle around him.
“Bravery isn’t having no fear at all, my friend. It’s carrying on even while you’re afraid.” He pressed something small and smooth into Reek’s fin. It was a shining seashell. “Take this. If ever you feel frightened, hold it tight and remember that you have friends who believe in you.”
With Ollie’s words turning over in his mind, Reek set off.
He swam through thick kelp forests where the light came down in green columns. He crossed sparkling sandbanks and passed schools of fish in every colour he could name and several he could not. The ocean was enormous and full of wonders — and all the while, Reek kept one wary eye out for Scar.
Then, one afternoon, resting beside a rocky outcrop, he heard a voice behind him.
“Well, well. What do we have here?”
It was Scar, with his whole gang fanned out around him.
Reek’s heart hammered against his ribs. He gripped the little seashell as tightly as he could and made himself take one slow, deep breath.
“I’m looking for the hidden treasure,” he said, and his voice only shook a little.
Scar laughed — a low, cold sound that ran all the way down Reek’s spine. “A little fish like you? You’ll never make it. Why not turn round and go home now, while you still can?”
But Reek did not move.
“I may be small,” he said, “but I have a big heart. And I am not turning back.”
The gang began to circle, closer and closer, the water churning around them. Scar opened his jaws —
And all at once the light changed. A school of wise old fish had risen out of the blue below, and they closed around Reek in a shimmering ring.
“You shall not harm this brave little fish,” said one of them. “He has shown great courage, and he deserves to finish his journey.”
The sharks hesitated. They looked at one another. Then, one by one, they turned and slid away into the deep, grumbling as they went.
Reek let out a long, shaky breath and thanked the wise old fish with all his heart.
“Your bravery has carried you a long way,” said their leader. “But you should know this — the hidden treasure is not only gold and jewels. It is the courage you have found inside yourself.”
With the wise fish guiding him, Reek came at last to a beautiful underwater cave, and it was indeed heaped with glittering treasure. Yet what he kept thinking about, all the way home, was that he had looked his greatest fear in the face and come away stronger.
When Reek returned to the coral reef, they greeted him like a hero. His friends crowded round to marvel at what he had done, and Reek felt proud right through — not because of the treasure, but because of the fear he had swum straight past.
He had learned that even the smallest fish can make a very big difference, so long as his heart is brave enough.
And so Reek lived happily ever after, exploring every corner of the ocean without fear, and telling his tale to any small, frightened creature who needed to hear it.