The grump of the finch trio, Luna only craved peace. Nimbus imme-
diately felt sorry. Luna’s size often made her the subject of extra attention
during the school day. And her reactions to noise were entertaining to the
children, who would rap the sides of the cage to watch her flutter.
Nimbus glided to the perch next to Luna and began to groom her
neck feathers. “Poor Luna, I’m sorry you had a bad day,” Nimbus soothed.
“Would you like me to read to you the funnies?”
“Humph! Indeed not. Reading is a dreadful habit that should be kept
to humans. It is absolutely unnatural to get information from cage lining
the way you do.”
Nimbus knew this would be Luna’s first reaction. It usually was.
Nimbus gently disagreed. “I hear you, but just think of all the informa-
tion we’ve learned from those papers! And about the world outside! We’d
never know there were such wonders as sky and trees and starlight if it
wasn’t for reading.”
The coconut began to bounce and twirl again as Zephyr joyfully
chattered, “The world! The world! Tell us more about the world, Nim!”
A burst of song exploded from the coconut.
7