

Ben and Lily were playing in the backyard with their toy cars. They liked to make noises and pretend they were driving fast. Sometimes they would crash into each other and laugh.
But then they saw a big bird on the roof of their house. It was black and white and had a long yellow beak. It was making loud noises too.
"What is that?" Lily asked.
Ben shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe a duck?"
Lily shook her head. "No, ducks are not black and white. And they don't go on roofs. They go in ponds."
Ben frowned. "Well, maybe it's a penguin?"
Lily rolled her eyes. "No, penguins are not noisy. And they don't go on roofs. They go in snow."
Ben thought hard. He wanted to explain what the bird was, but he didn't know. He wished his mom or dad were here. They would know.
Then the bird flew down from the roof and landed near them. It looked at them with its shiny eyes and opened its beak.
"Hello, children," it said. "Do you want to play with me?"
Ben and Lily gasped. They had never heard a bird talk before. They were scared and amazed.
"Who are you?" Ben asked.
"I'm a magpie," the bird said. "I like shiny things and I like to talk. I saw your toy cars and I wanted to see them. They are very shiny and pretty."
Ben and Lily looked at their toy cars. They were shiny and pretty. They liked them too.
But they didn't like the magpie. He was crazy and rude. He had no right to take their toy cars.
"Go away," Lily said. "These are our toy cars. You can't have them."
The magpie tilted his head. "Why not? I like them. And I'm bigger than you. I can take them if I want."
He reached his beak to grab one of the toy cars. Ben and Lily shouted and tried to stop him. They were angry and scared. They wanted their toy cars back.
"Help!" they cried. "Mom! Dad! There's a crazy bird on our toy cars!"
