Free The Wildlife Games by Bindi Irwin Page B

wing,’ whispered Bindi. ‘Dr Dianne operated on him yesterday.’ She carefully lifted a small cornerof the cloth so Mimi and Declan could take a quick look.
    â€˜I had no idea the hospital looked after such a big range of creatures,’ said Declan.
    â€˜It was my dad’s wish that any animal that was brought into the hospital needing help, big or small, would be treated with the same respect and care as any other creature,’ said Bindi solemnly.
    Jason came up to the small group. ‘And that’s why your dad was totally awesome,’ he said.
    Bindi smiled. ‘It’s true. He was totally awesome!’
    Once the group had finished the tour they were each given surgical gloves and masks and assisted Dr Dianne on an operation. The patient was a large feisty pelican nicknamedChopper. He had a fishing hook caught in his bill that was making him very unhappy. All four contestants were thrilled to be able to help out, and humbled by the work the vet and her staff and volunteers did.
    Ginny filmed the entire procedure. All four kids worked together beautifully as a team, and handed Dr Dianne the instruments she asked for, checked to see that Chopper remained breathing throughout the operation and carefully helped move the patient so the vet had better access to the fish hook. It was really something to watch, and so different from the calamity and mayhem of earlier.
    The camerawoman thought back to the start of the day, and how much these kids had achieved. Editing all of the day’s footage would be a largejob. She felt the team had captured so many special moments throughout that they probably had enough for five shows, not just the one-hour special that had been agreed on.
    Terri and Robert sneaked in to watch the contestants help the vet with her operation. Bindi gave them both a big hug. She’d done it. It had been a perfect day and she was so proud of everyone involved!

THREE WEEKS LATER
    â€˜Shhh, shhh, it’s about to start,’ said Mimi quietly.
    No-one heard her and the room remained full of chattering people.
    Ana stood up and looked around the room. ‘Everyone BE QUIET!’ she yelled, and the room was immediately silent. She sat down again and stared at the large TV screen that had been set up in the conference room at the back of the Crocoseum.
    Declan nudged Jason. ‘Hey Jas, hand me the popcorn, mate.’
    Jason’s eyes were glued to the TV as the opening credits showed each of the four contestants in a quick montage over the opening music. ‘Hey, did you see me? There I was!’ His hand sought out the bowl and passed it to his friend without his eyes leaving the screen.
    Declan laughed. ‘Thanks.’ He was less interested in seeing himself on the big screen. He was pleased that the Aurora Network had organised thisadvance screening so he’d get a chance to see Bindi and his fellow contestants again – especially Mimi. Although it was only one day, he felt like he’d spent months with these people. They’d emailed and messaged each other almost every day since the games, and he was pretty sure they would all continue to be good friends for many years to come.
    Bindi was so pleased to be here, watching the end result with her friends and family. She looked over and gave a wave to Josie and her cousin. They’d jumped at the chance to attend the screening, and Andrew had already mentioned he was interested in entering next year’s competition.
    Even Stan the director was here with Ginny. He’d survived the concussion and twisted ankle,just as Ginny had foretold, and had helped out in the editing suite, where no further injuries took place. (‘It was a miracle,’ according to Ginny.) Stan knew after viewing the raw footage that they had a hit on their hands.
    The four contestants laughed and joked with each other as they watched themselves compete on the show. The winner of the