Daisy and the Trouble with Zoos (15 page)

Nanny said it was only something small for my new bike, but it was BRILLIANT! A real hooter that makes real loud hooting noises when you squeeze it!

Mum said it would be like living with a sea lion.

Grampy said he would fix it to my handlebars before they went home, and then he asked me to tell him all about the penguins I had fed at the zoo today.

When I looked at Mum, her face had gone a bit funny again, but then she put her finger to her lips and smiled.

So I told Nanny and Grampy about all the penguins I'd met.

(Except one.

One little one.)

Then I told them about the rhinoceros,

the lions,

the meerkats,

the flamingos,

the pygmy goats

and all the other animals I could remember, including the fossa!

And guess what? Nanny and Grampy hadn't heard of a fossa either!

They hadn't heard of loads of the things that I learned at the zoo today!

Before they left, Nanny and Grampy gave me seven birthday kisses goodbye, EACH!!

Then Mum let me have seven extra hoots on my hooter and asked me to have my bath and get ready for bed.

Before she tucked me up, she read me a story (I wanted seven, but she said no), then she stroked
my forehead and asked me to promise her again that I would NEVER adopt a zoo animal again without asking her first.

So this time I double promised.

In fact I triple promised.

But that's the
trouble with double and triple promising after you've adopted a baby penguin
.

Even if I had A ZILLION PROMISED, I still knew that Findus would be cross to be back at the penguin pool with
Tiffany and all the other penguins.

I bet you all the herrings and kippers and mackerels and sardines and pilchards and goldfish in the sea that he'd much rather have come to my house.

To live on a packet of frozen peas with me!