Pigeon Man's Swan Song
It was just like any other autumn day. Arnold was lounging in his room (you know, the room that everyone wants) and reading a book when he heard a sudden SMACK. He gazed up at the skylight windows and saw a clumsy bird fluttering around outside. That's weird, he thought.
Arnold sprung up and climbed through the hatch onto the roof. The bird had settled down and was perched on the boarding house's satellite. It was a grey pigeon, not unlike any of the other million grey pigeons in Hillwood. But Arnold proceeded toward the creature to get a closer look. It can't be, he thought.
"Chester?"
The pigeon let out a loving coo and nodded his head.
Arnold couldn't believe it. He hadn't seen Chester since he got lost in that bad thunderstorm.
"Chester! How have you been, buddy?"
Chester held up his claw. There was a rolled up piece of paper tucked into his grasp. Arnold grabbed the note and opened it. In scratchy handwriting, it read: "1657 Fringewood Drive. - PM". Arnold's eyes widened as Chester took off into the skies.
"Pigeon Man…" Arnold said.
It'd been years since Pigeon Man and his flock of pigeons peacefully launched off the roof, eclipsing the sun in search for a better life.
After heading back into his room, Arnold turned on his Grapefruit computer. He typed in the address, and a map appeared on the screen. Arnold looked at the location with immense surprise.
"Wow," he said. "Pigeon man didn't fly into the stratosphere… He went to New Jersey."
There was only one thing Arnold could do. He picked up the phone and dialed.
"Gerald, you're not gonna believe this," he said.
"I sure hope you know what you're doing, man," Gerald said, as he sat next to Arnold on a Hound Dog bus.
"Trust me," Arnold answered. He focused on the crinkled up note. "I think Pigeon Man might need help."
Gerald's stomach grumbled. "Well, I hope New Jersey's got food 'cause man-o-man, am I starving!"
After several hours of cruising, the bus passed into New Jersey and eventually came to a halt. Gerald was zonked out, snoring with his head tilted back. A long drop of drool hung from his mouth. Arnold turned and shook him.
"Gerald!" he said. "Wake up!"
Gerald promptly propped up, still unaware of his surroundings. "Mom, it was Timberly, I swear!" he exclaimed. Then he looked at Arnold. "Oh…"
"I think this is our stop," Arnold said. "Let's go."
Arnold darted out the door, while Gerald slowly stood up, stretched, yawned, and sauntered off of the bus.
They'd arrived in a quaint, skyscraper-less town called Hillville. Arnold looked around at the street signs. Gerald noticed a pizza place on the corner.
"Hey, Arnold…" Gerald said. "I could go for a nice, juicy slice of p…"
"This way!" Arnold said, as he took off down the sidewalk.
"But…" Gerald said, pointing at the pizza place. By this time, Arnold was already on the other side of the street. Gerald sighed and grudgingly followed behind. "You're a bold kid, Arnold…"
"There it is!" Arnold proclaimed.
"Is it a cheeseburger?" Gerald asked.
"No, we made it to Fringewood Drive," Arnold said. "We just need to find 1657 now."
"This better be a short walk," Gerald said. "You know when I'm hungry I start getting that cramp on my left side."
"We're close," Arnold said. "Maybe 5 or 7 blocks away."
Gerald's jaw dropped.
Arnold scurried down the road, glancing at every single address as the numbers crept closer to 1657. Gerald struggled to keep up.
Suddenly, Arnold stopped in his tracks. "This is it!" he said. "1657." He looked up at the building's sign. It read: Dan's Bird Food Shop.
"Dan's Bird Food Shop?"
Gerald caught up and looked at the sign. "Huh, I never thought Pigeon Man would be one the join the business world," he said.
Arnold shrugged his shoulders and they entered the shop. It was a homey place. Various types of birdfeeders lined the walls, and there were big bags of seeds toward the back. A young woman sat behind the counter.
"You guys need help finding anything?" she asked.
Arnold cleared his throat. "Hi, we're wondering if Pigeon Man is here," he said.
She gave them a strange look. "Pigeon Man? Never heard of him."
Arnold and Gerald turned toward each other in confusion.
"It's kind of a long story," Arnold said. "But he led us to this address."
"I'm sorry I can't help you guys," the woman said. "But I've never heard of a Pigeon Man."
Arnold hung his head low and walked toward the exit. Just then, Gerald glanced at one of the walls. There was a painting of a pigeon sitting on a telephone pole.
"Arnold, wait," Gerald said.
Arnold turned around and looked at the painting. There was a folded note tucked into the corner of the frame. Arnold snatched the note and opened it.
He read the note aloud. "It says… 'Head North down Forest Road and take a left at the red feather'" His eyes lit up.
"Let's go!" he said, as they dashed out the door.
Arnold and Gerald had been walking down Forest Road for what seemed like miles. The trees became more abundant and the mood got quieter as they headed further into the wilderness. Gerald's stomach growled.
"Those berries are looking mighty fine," Gerald said.
"Well we haven't had much luck with berries before," Arnold said.
"I don't care anymore," Gerald said. "I am STAR-VING. We've been out here for hours. We are never gonna find this red feather!"
"We can't turn back now," Arnold said. "We just can't."
Gerald's stomach growled even louder.
"Yikes," Arnold said.
"Uh, Arnold," Gerald said. "That wasn't my stomach."
"Oh, I gotcha…" Arnold answered.
"No, I mean that noise didn't come from my body."
Just then, a glaring roar rumbled out from behind. They slowly turned around and saw a colossal bear staring right at them.
"RUN!" they yelled, simultaneously.
The two took off down the road, running faster than either of them had ever run. They quickly turned left and jumped into a bush, sweating and breathing heavily. Arnold gestured his finger as to say "Shh…"
They heard and felt the weight of the bear approaching. The big brown figure growled and hovered over the bush. Arnold and Gerald hugged each other tightly. The bear's snout poked through the bush branches and gently sniffed around. Gerald's stomach let out a prolonged growl. The bear slowly backed away from the bush, and headed off in the other direction.
Arnold and Gerald breathed a gigantic sigh of relief. They emerged from the bush and brushed themselves off. Gerald looked up at one of the trees. "Hey!" he said.
It was the red feather.
The two trudged further into woods. They noticed that there were a lot of birds of all kinds in the area—flying around, chirping with glee, and enjoying the wonderful forest.
A cozy cottage rested in the distance. As the two approached, they saw that the roof was covered in pigeons.
"This is it, Gerald!" Arnold said. The two ran toward the cottage.
When they got to the door, all the pigeons turned and stared at them. One of the pigeons flew off of the roof and landed on Gerald's hair.
"Hey, watch the hair," Gerald said as he waved the pigeon away and it fluttered off. Then, a glob of pigeon poop splattered onto his shoulder. Gerald frowned.
Arnold knocked on the door. The two waited for a few moments, and then the door opened. A silhouette of a man appeared in the doorway. Chester was sitting on the shoulder. The man stepped further into the light. It was definitely Pigeon Man. But he had a long, grey beard and he appeared more hunched and fragile than ever.
"Welcome, Arnold" he said.
Arnold and Gerald sat down inside Pigeon Man's humble abode.
"I'm just so glad to see you after all this time," Arnold said.
"You're a good kid, Arnold," Pigeon Mad said, coughing.
Gerald looked as if he was waiting for an acknowledgment.
"And I'm glad to find out you and Gerald have stuck together," Pigeon Man said.
"That's right," Arnold said. "So… What'd you call us here for, Pigeon Man?"
Pigeon Man coughed. "I'm going to be straightforward with you," he said. "I don't have much time left here on Earth."
"What do you mean?" Arnold asked.
Pigeon Man coughed again. "My path has run its course and I still have one final journey to take."
Arnold and Gerald shot each other a confused look. "Okay?" said Arnold.
Pigeon Man put on his hat and goggles and achingly walked out the front door.
"Follow me," he said. "I want to show you something."
Arnold and Gerald followed Pigeon Man out to a clearing in the woods where a warm ray of sunshine shone down. There was a makeshift hot air balloon planted directly in the middle of the area. Pigeon Man walked up to the hot air balloon and struggled to climb in. Arnold and Gerald gave him a boost and he settled into the craft.
"Hop in, guys," he said.
Arnold and Gerald jumped in.
"Snazzy digs," Gerald said.
Arnold looked around at the balloon. He noticed that there was no power source.
"This is a nice balloon," he said. "But how does this thing get off the ground?"
"Ah, one moment," Pigeon Man said.
Pigeon Man closed his eyes and slowly raised his arms. Suddenly, a sound of whistling and windy commotion broke out in the distance. Arnold and Gerald turned around and saw the gigantic flock of pigeons flying through the woods and heading toward them. The pigeons surrounded the balloon and gave it lift off. Arnold and Gerald stood there in amazement.
The balloon rose up from the forest and nearly reached the clouds. Arnold looked down below at the astonishing view of colorful leaves.
"This is amazing," he said, as the wind blew in his face.
"I totally forgot I was hungry," Gerald said.
Pigeon man nodded and smiled.
The air balloon made its way over the cities and landed on the roof of Arnold's home, Sunset Arms. He and Gerald hopped out of the balloon.
"Thanks for the ride, Pigeon Man," Arnold said. "It's been a great day."
"You right ma man," said Gerald.
"I'm heading into the skies for good," Pigeon Man said. "But before I finally say goodbye, I have something for you, Arnold."
Pigeon Man whistled. On cue, Chester clumsily emerged from the flock of pigeons.
"I want to leave Chester with you," Pigeon Man said. "He needs a little extra care."
Chester flew into Arnold's arms and cooed.
"Amazing bird," Pigeon Man said.
"I don't know what to say," Arnold said.
"It's okay," Pigeon Man said, coughing again. "You don't have to say a word."
Pigeon Man took in the setting sun, and breathed a deep breath. "Listen here," he said.
"Always remember that no matter how much people let you down, and no matter how much the world crumbles, there's always a piece of goodness left. A slight spark of hope in the darkest of places is sometimes all it takes to push forward. Don't lose that spark."
Pigeon Man whistled and the pigeons carried the balloon up into the sky.
Arnold and Gerald gazed up at Pigeon Man's fading figure. A tear fell down each of their cheeks.
"Stay free, Pigeon Man."