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In New Orleans, where brass bands play in the streets and the Mississippi River rolls wide and muddy, lived a friendly pelican named Perry. Perry loved riding the warm breezes above the river and watching boats glide beneath him. But most of all, he loved people—especially the ones who gathered along the riverfront to enjoy the view.
One morning, Perry spotted something unusual near the Moonwalk along the riverbank—a little metal robot sitting quietly beside a pile of tools and wires. The robot looked dusty and forgotten, with one blinking blue eye and a crooked smile painted across its face.
Curious, Perry fluttered down and tilted his head.
“Are you okay?” he squawked softly.
The robot whirred to life. “Hello! I am R.B.—the Riverfront Buddy. I was built to help keep the parks and sidewalks clean and to take care of the plants along the riverfront. But I broke down last week, and no one has come to fix me.”
Perry ruffled his feathers thoughtfully. “Well, maybe I can help!”
With a tug of his beak and a flap of determination, Perry knocked loose a rock that was wedged under one of R.B.’s wheels. R.B. beeped cheerfully as his wheels spun freely again.
“I can move! Thank you, Perry!”
From that day forward, Perry and R.B. became inseparable. Every morning, Perry would point out spots where wind had blown stray trash into the grass, and R.B. would sweep it up and tidy the pathways. Children giggled when they saw the pair—Perry marching proudly beside his little robot friend, like a parade waiting to happen.
When a sudden gust of wind blew a little girl’s kite into a tall oak tree, Perry soared up to catch it and dropped it gently into R.B.’s hands. The crowd cheered, and the girl hugged them both.
“You’re heroes!” she said.
Perry puffed up with pride.
“That’s what friends are for.”
And so the legend grew: Perry the pelican and R.B. the Riverfront Buddy, the protectors of the riverside parks and keepers of community joy. Because in New Orleans, magic isn’t found in fairy dust—it’s found in friendship, helping hands, and a city that loves big.
