Two Hamsters One Cage
After much discussion (which involved checking that Bertha and Pongo were the right kinds of hamster to live together, and getting permission from the head teacher, and asking the parents), it was agreed:
Pongo would move into Bertha's cage. They would share. The cage would be made bigger to fit two. The cage door would have a better clip, in case Pongo tried to take Bertha out for adventures again.
Mr Halpern fixed the chewed-out gap at the bottom of the cage.
Mr Schmidt brought a second water bottle.
The class drew up a roster of who would refill the food bowls each day.
Within a week, Bertha and Pongo were inseparable. They slept curled up together. They ran on the wheel side by side. Pongo was the slightly cleverer of the two, which Bertha did not seem to mind.
Mr Halpern wrote, on the noticeboard:
*This term we have learned: be patient when something runs away. Look quietly. And sometimes, when you find a problem, it turns out to be a friend.*
Liv said, at the end of the week, "Mr Halpern, this was the best week of school."
Mr Halpern, to his own surprise, agreed.
Pongo, in his new shared cage, ate a sunflower seed with great seriousness. He had finally found somebody to share it with.
The class, very quietly, went back to maths. But every now and then, somebody would glance over at the cage and smile.
Some adventures end well.