Pip waddles to the edge of a big green lily pad and peeks over the water.
A small blue fish hovers near the reeds, turning in slow circles. Pip tilts her head. "Why are you sad?" she asks.
The fish blows a bubble. "I have lost my way home," it says. Pip flaps her wings. "Let's find it together."
Pip paddles beside the blue fish through the whispering reeds. They swim on together.
A toad sits on a lily pad ahead, chewing noisily. "Ribbit-ribbit-click-click!" he says, pointing one foot down a channel.
"Thank you, Mr. Toad," Pip says. The toad blows a tiny bubble like a kiss and stays put.
They round a curve of green reeds — and there it is. A cozy hollow under a weeping willow root, glowing with shimmering water.
The blue fish darts inside, then pops back out, tail flicking happily. "Thank you!" he says, blowing a string of bubbles.
The bubbles pop against Pip's feathers with soft tickles. She wiggles her wings and lets out a quiet happy quack.
Pip settles onto a warm sunlit rock while the blue fish curls into his cozy hollow. The pond is quiet and still.
Every morning after, the blue fish waits at the edge of his hollow and watches for Pip's bright yellow feet splashing into view.
The duckling waddles closer. The fish flicks its tail. The pond shivers with lily pads and quiet happy sounds.