Beverly

The yacht, that's where I need to go...

Beverly flapped her grey wings as the wind rushed through her feathers. The river below her had a beautiful silver glint as the sunlight reflected off it. Gliding close to the water she looked ahead, spotting the white speck in the distance. The yacht! That was where Beverly had been sent.

"The pigeon!" A man called. He waved Beverly over and she glided up, landing on the edge of the yacht. The man smiled at her and she gave a graceful flap as he carefully untied the message from her leg. He unfolded it, glancing briefly at Beverly. "I wonder what this is?" the man said.

Beverly watched the man read the message, his face falling as he did. "Oh," He whispered, sitting abrupty on a small armchair placed on the deck of the yacht. He sunk into it. "Oh... Stu... " He whispered, going white with fear. "He can't really be gone, can he?" The man shook his head. "Silly me, talking to a pigeon. How could you possibly understand?" But Beverly understood fine. She knew Stu was gone.

"Oh, dear, Stu," He sobbed. Beverly flapped around the yacht, quite unsure what to do. The man read the rest of the message. "And he's left me you, hasn't he. Bet his best friend got the house, yet he gives me a worthless pigeon...!" Beverly watched the man carefully. She wasn't worthless, was she? Stu had always said she was so beautiful and clever. The man was so sad, though, and Beverly's tiny little pigeon heart ached too.

"Well, what should I do with you now? Me, a yacht, a pigeon and no brother." So Stu really was gone. Beverly didn't quite know where, but she knew that one day she woke up and she was in a room with lots of other animals, the dog with the sad eyes and the rabbit who stayed in a milk crate in the corner. The woman in a coat had come in with a paper she tied to Beverly's leg. "To the yacht, Stewart's brother's yacht,". Beverly knew that one, at least. She was here now, yet without Stu, Her special Stu, who had stroked her feathers so lovingly, who had fed her every morning and night, who had told her stories like he knew she understood.

"The last thing I need is a damn pigeon. Go on, fly away." The man brushed at Beverly. She quickly flew into the air, avoiding his nasty slap. She remembered what Stu had said. In life, some people are mean. Some people are greedy. Some people want to hurt. But you have to remember that sometimes those people have been treated badly themselves. So you can't blame them for anything.

Although she was just a pigeon, Stu treated Beverly like a human. And that made Beverly happy. But now Stu was gone, Beverly had no more messages to send. She had nobody to look after her. This man did not want her, clearly. Beverly's wings drooped. If only she never needed to send the message saying Stu was gone.

The man gave a huff. "Come on, you stupid thing. Go away, or dinner tonight will be pigeon pie. Or perhaps smoked pigeon. Maybe a good old pigeon bake..."

Good thing Beverly understood the man. She took flight, leaping off the yacht and gliding away. Where to? Beverly did not know. But she knew she had to leave.

Beverly flew up into the mountains, landing on a small tree. She had never lived like a normal pigeon- she didn't know how to. Stu had always let her fly around freely, but she didn't know how to find food or look after herself. All she knew was that Stu was a good man, and Stu was gone. Beverly gave a triumphant flap. She could find Stu! Back across the water, back to Stu and her's home. She knew where that was. Being a carrier pigeon had taught her that, at least. She could always go home.

Landing on Stu's front porch, Beverly could not see him. Her tiny heart fluttered. Perhaps Stu had gone out for a little while? Maybe that's what the man meant by "gone". Beverly sat there, not moving at all for a few days. Surely Stu would come back? Surely he would. Stu wouldn't leave her.

A small boy ran past. He was giggling and jumping around. The boy saw Beverly, and laughed loudly. "Hello pigeon!" Beverly chirped in reply. The toddler squealed with delight and ran to Beverly, scooping her up. Beverly loosened herself up in the boy's arms.

"Mama, mama, look what I found!" The squealing boy ran to a taller woman, his mother. "Oh, Austin! Put that down now!" The woman leant down. "Oh, look, this is Beverly!"

Beverly cocked her head in excitement. "Remember Stu, the nice old man who used to live over there?" The woman pointed to Stu's house. "This is his pigeon. When Stu, well, passed, poor little Beverly must've been left behind..." The woman looked thoughtful. "Stu loved this bird...." She said.

"Mama, can we keep Bevvy?" The toddler asked excitedly.

"Well, I suppose so, maybe just for a little while."

Beverly felt so safe in the little boys' arms. So snug and tight. They got in the car all together. She'd never been where they were going, yet she still felt so safe and comforted. Usually Beverly like knowing where she was going, but this time it was alright.

Beverly gave a happy little sigh and the car drove on, home, all the way home.

The End.