Before the Door Opened
At a quarter to nine, Ada saw a penguin outside her grandfather's fish shop. She was getting ready to turn the CLOSED sign around. The bird was black and white, with short legs and wet feet. Ada looked at the penguin, then at the sign in the window. This was her first Saturday helping in the shop. Grandad did not mention penguins when he explained the job.
"We've got an early customer," she called. Grandad came outside with a red basket. He put it down beside the door. "That customer is a long way from the beach." The beach was behind the shops, but the road in front was busy. Two cars passed. The penguin turned its head at each one.
Ada held out her hand. She wanted to bring the bird into the shop before another car came. But it moved away from her, towards a parked blue bus. "Wait," Grandad said. "Don't follow it yet." He went inside and found the local ranger's number on the wall. Ada stayed by the door. She watched the penguin walk between the bus and a car.
Grandad called the ranger. Then he came back. "Sam is coming. We must leave some space around the bird." Ada looked at the clock above the till. They usually opened at nine. She still had to put paper bags in the red basket and clean the counter. Now she had a different job, and Grandad could not give her all the instructions.
A Very Busy Window
The penguin came out from beside the bus. It stopped at the shop window and touched the glass with its beak. The glass was like a mirror. Ada could see the bird's reflection in it. "Does it think there's another bird in there?" she asked. "Perhaps," Grandad said. "I can't ask it." Ada moved the red basket away from the door, so people would have more room to pass.
At nine, passengers arrived for the bus. A boy saw the penguin and called to his father. Soon four people were standing near the shop. One lifted a phone. Ada wanted to say something, but they were all adults except the boy. She looked at Grandad. He was on the phone to Sam again, explaining where the bird was now.
The boy took a step forward. The penguin hurried away from the window and went back towards the bus. Ada saw the driver through the front window. His hand was near the key. She knocked on the bus door. "Please don't move! There's a penguin beside your front wheel." The driver looked down, then took his hand away. He opened the door, but he stayed in his seat.
"I have to leave soon," he said. "I know. The ranger is coming." Ada pointed to the bird. The driver could see it now. He asked his passengers to wait farther along the pavement. The boy went with his father. There was more space in front of the shop, but the penguin stayed beside the wheel. Ada could not reach it safely from the pavement. She stayed where she was.
Space to Move
Sam arrived carrying a box with small holes in its sides. He looked under the bus from the pavement. "It's a young penguin," he said. "It needs a quiet way out of this busy place." Grandad told him about the narrow path behind the shop. It led to the beach. They could go through the back gate without crossing the road.
"Can I open the gate?" Ada asked. "Yes, please," Sam said. "Then come back here." She ran through the shop and along the path. The gate was stuck. She pulled it twice, but it did not move. Then she saw a small stone under it. She took the stone out and opened the gate wide. She came back through the shop. Grandad was standing at the front door, keeping it clear.
Sam put the box near the bus. Its top was closed, but he folded down one side. A towel covered the bottom. The inside was dark. Grandad brought two large pieces of cardboard from the shop. Sam placed them between the wheel and the box. They made a short path with high sides. "Please stand back now," he said. Ada moved beside Grandad. The driver and passengers stayed away too.
For a little while, nothing happened. Ada watched the clock through the shop door. Then a small black head appeared beside the wheel. The penguin looked at the box. It took two steps, stopped, and took two more. Ada held her breath. At last the bird went into the dark box. Sam closed the side, then lifted the box carefully. There were still holes for air. "Now we can take the quiet path," he said.
The Other Side of the Shop
The driver started the bus after Sam moved the box away. The passengers got on, and the bus left. Ada turned the sign around so OPEN faced the street. It was nine twelve. Grandad gave her a smile. "You can go with Sam. I'll put out the bags." She left the red basket with him and followed Sam through the shop to the back gate.
Behind the buildings, the air smelled of grass instead of petrol. Ada could still hear the traffic, but it was quieter. Sam walked slowly, carrying the box with both hands. They passed a fence and went down three wooden steps. The beach was almost empty. A low wooden walkway stood above the sand. Ada could see a penguin in the shade under it.
Sam put the box on the sand near the walkway. He folded down one side and stepped back. Ada stood beside him. The young penguin stayed inside for a moment. Then it came out. It walked towards the shade, stopped, and walked on. Another penguin moved under the wood. Soon Ada could no longer see the young bird. She waited, but it did not come back out.
"Does it live here?" she asked. "There are penguins here," Sam said. "I don't know which one is its family. I'll stay and watch for a while." Ada went back along the path. She closed the gate behind her. In the shop, the red basket was full of paper bags. There was fish on the clean counter. Grandad asked her to wrap a customer's fish, and this time the instructions were easy to follow.
Later, the bus driver returned to buy fish for lunch. "Any more birds waiting for a bus?" he asked. "Not today," Ada said. "Then two fish for my lunch, please." Ada wrapped the fish and put them in a paper bag. "No holes needed this time," she said.
