Free The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles by Julie Andrews

Sidewinders went tumbling and falling all over each other in their efforts to get out of the way. The music ran down like an old record. The drums stopped and the creatures piled one on top of the other as they reached the river's edge. They fell with colossal splashes into the golden swirling water and there were terrible discordant sounds as they gurgled and gulped and gasped.
    The professor said firmly, "Now, children, is the time to move. Run home as fast as you can."
    The boys needed no second bidding. Grabbing Lindy by the hand, they raced with her along the path they had traveled earlier. The professor, showing surprising agility for one of his age, kept up with them all the way. In no time at all they burst through the hedge into his garden and safety.

THREE
    Lindy was tearful. "I hated those things. I don't like it when I get scared. Don't let's go there again."
    Feeling decidedly shaky, the party limped across the lawn, and were completely unprepared for the surprise that was waiting for them in the summerhouse.
    The Prock was sitting comfortably in one of the chairs.
    The professor steadied himself against a post. "Prock, you are an annoying fellow. You turn up at the most inconvenient times." He sank into a chair, breathing heavily.
    It was the first time the boys had ever seen the Prock and they gazed at him apprehensively.
    Lindy stepped forward and said in an angry voice, "You know, you're a very nasty man. You made us horribly frightened and that's not fair. You just apologize."
    The Prock nonchalantly crossed one long leg over the other. "Don't blame me, little girl. The professor knew what to expect. It's his fault for getting you into a situation like that."
    "It's not his fault. And stop calling me 'little girl.' My name is Lindy."
    The Prock rose, eyes glittering with anger. "I came here to give you a warning. If you persist in this adventure, then the Sidewinders are just a beginning. Give up this foolish idea of seeing the Whangdoodle, or it will be the worse for you all."
    The professor said quickly, "Prock, you have said enough. Anything else should be said to me personally and not in front of the children."
    "No, I intend them to hear this. They are the only ones who can prevent you from continuing this mad scheme." The Prock pulled the golden Yo-Yo from his pocket. It bounced and danced violently in front of the boys.
    "Put that thing away!" The professor spoke in such a sharp voice that the children jumped. "You have delivered your warning. Now please go."
    The Prock moved to the doorway in a single sinuous movement.
    "Mark my words well. Think on them. Think hard, or you'll be sorry." Taking hold of a post, he slid around it three times and was gone.
    Lindy said in a small apologetic voice, "Professor, I'm not sure I want to do the adventure anymore. I know the Sidewinders didn't harm us, but they did frighten me so."
    The Professor looked at her fondly. "I know. You were very brave about it."
    "No I wasn't." She began to get tearful again. "I cried, and everything."
    "Well, it's all right to cry. It helps a great deal sometimes, and just think what you accomplished today. You made it to Whangdoodleland. Apart from me, you are the first humans to have been there in hundreds of years. It's a fantastic accomplishment."
    Lindy brightened a little. "We did do it, didn't we?"
    "You bet we did," the professor replied enthusiastically. "And we learned a valuable lesson from our experience with the Sidewinders."
    "What was that?" asked Ben.
    "If you remain calm in the midst of great chaos, it is the surest guarantee that it will eventually subside."
    "But those creatures were really gross," said Lindy, "and the Prock said they were just a beginning."
    "Yeah, what else could he come up with?" demanded Tom.
    "Well," the professor answered, "what weapons has he left? Powerful ones, you may be sure. When all else fails he will resort to using things that can do us most harm. Things like the weapon he used