FLETCHER THE KANGAROO: LIFE AND DEATH - CHAPTER FOURTEEN AND FIFTEEN

By Kristine Fitzgerald

Have you read the previous chapters yet?

Chapter 14

“We need a plan,” Donovan stated decisively. “Only when we know what we’re doing, can we expect things to improve.”

“You’re right,” Fletcher agreed, “but we’ve tried everything already. We’ve tried talking to them nicely, we’ve tried fighting back, but nothing works. Have you got any ideas, Miles?”

Miles shook his head. The situation with Terence and Solomon was getting worse. In the weeks since Fletcher, Miles and Donovan had seen them in the gum tree forest, Terence and Solomon seemed to appear every day, throwing their weight around.

“I couldn’t believe it yesterday,” Fletcher said, “when Solomon told me I wasn’t allowed to go down to the river after sunset. Their rules are getting out of hand and we need to do something about it.”

“My point exactly,” Donovan said. “We need a plan.”

“Right. Let’s get some ideas then. Why don’t we just say no? Without thinking, without hesitating, simply say no when they make their ridiculous requests.”

Donovan scratched his nose. “We’ve tried that, Fletch. You know we have. They don’t listen. Any time we make a point, they stamp it out by saying that Stanley said so. And we can’t really say anything bad about Stanley in front of them. He’s the alpha—he’d punish us for sure.”

“Have you got any more ideas then? What else can we do?” 

“We need to outsmart them. Somehow figure out what they’re going to say and have our answers ready.”

“But that’s impossible. We never know what they’re going to say to us. Ugh, this is so frustrating!”

“We should just ignore them,” Miles said quietly.

Both Fletcher and Donovan turned their heads to face Miles, surprised that he had spoken up and offered a suggestion. “What was that, Miles?” Fletcher asked. “I didn’t quite hear you.”

“I said we should ignore them. Not give them the satisfaction of seeing that they’ve annoyed us.”

“Of course!” Donovan exclaimed. “Miles, you’re brilliant!”

“What?” Fletcher asked. “I don’t get it. We can’t just do nothing.”

“Yes we can,” Donovan answered. “Doing nothing is perfect. They’re trying to get under our skin. Every day they follow us around purely to annoy us, and so far it’s working. We’ve asked them to stop, we’ve yelled at them, but nothing has worked. They’re loving the fact they have so much power over us. However, if we ignore them that power is taken away. I really think it will work.”

“We can try,” Fletcher said. “We’ve tried everything else, so we can at least give this a go. I still don’t think it’s a very good idea, but come on, let’s see what happens.”

“What? Now?” Miles asked.

“Sure. Why not? They’ve been following us around so much lately, I’m sure it won’t take long for them to appear if we go for a hop. Come on, up you both get. Let’s go down to the valley. We’ll be very visible there so I think they’ll find us quickly.”

The three kangaroos hopped down the hill. Fletcher led the way, Miles stayed in the middle and Donovan brought up the rear. They stopped and pretended to nibble at the grass. “What do we do now?” Fletcher asked.

“Give it time,” Donovan said, “and act normal. Don’t look suspicious or anything. Just behave the way you usually would.”

They waited but nothing happened. “This is silly,” Fletcher said. “They’re not going to come just because we’re waiting for them. Come on, let’s go.” He followed the valley into the gum trees and Donovan and Miles followed him.

“How’s your head, Miles?” Fletcher asked.

“It’s throbbing a bit but I’m OK.”

“We won’t stay out too long. We can go home soon.”

“Just come up this way a bit further,” Donovan urged. “I haven’t been here for ages.”

And just then, as soon as they let their guard down, as soon as they stopped looking out for Terence and Donovan, they heard the undeniable sound of movement in the nearby scrub.

Fletcher quickly came to a stop. “Who’s there?”

“Boo!” Terence yelled as his face appeared from behind a tree. “Look who we have here. Who would have thought we would run into you lot all the way out here?”

Solomon had now caught up to Terence and was slightly out of breath. “Look who I just found,” Terence said. “Don’t you think it’s funny how we keep accidentally meeting these three every day?”

Solomon sniggered under his breath.

Terence looked directly at Miles. “Why don’t you tell us where you and your two friends are going?”

Fletcher felt anger bubbling up inside him and tried to work out what to do. They had decided to ignore Terence and Solomon, but how could he do that? They were picking on Miles, who was too afraid to respond at all. Fletcher stepped forward and tried to stay calm. “We’re going up here a bit further and then heading home. Do you want to join us?”

Fletcher couldn’t believe what he had just said. Had he really invited Terence and Solomon to join them? However, he could see the look of confusion on Terence’s face.

“Join you? Ah, no.”

“Right then,” Fletcher quickly replied. “We’ll be on our way then. Just be careful on your way back home. There are some low-lying branches up the hill a little bit. See you.”

And with that he hopped away, closely followed by Miles and Donovan. He resisted the urge to turn around and see what Terence and Solomon were doing—he kept going until he felt sure they’d be out of sight. When he did finally stop, he looked around and couldn’t see them anywhere.

“Do you think it worked?” he asked Miles and Donovan. “Our plan for acting calm and ignoring them? Did it actually work?”

“It sure did,” Donovan said with a big smile. “You were brilliant, Fletch. I couldn’t think of anything to say, but thanks to you, I didn’t need to say a thing.”

“Oh man,” Fletcher said, letting out a big breath. “Maybe it did work.”

“If they were following us,” Donovan said, “we would have heard them by now. You really showed them, Fletch. You showed them that we don’t have to do what they tell us to do.”

“I don’t know. Things might have turned out well for us this time but I don’t think we can just keep on ignoring them.”

“We’ll see,” Donovan said. He lay back, carefully positioning himself so that he didn’t put his weight on his sore shoulder, and smiled. “That’s a win to us, no matter how you look at it. Who knows what tomorrow will bring, but today we really showed them that we won’t be pushed around.” 

A couple of weeks passed and Miles continued to improve. He kept up his morning routine of playing games with Teresa and Sonny. One morning in the early spring, he made up a new game.

Sonny frowned and folded his paws across his chest. “This isn’t a real game. I want to play hide and seek.”

“This is a new game,” Miles explained. “Give it a go. Come on, it’ll be fun. Are you both listening? The first rule is, when I call out ‘Now!’, everyone has to stop moving. So go on, move around as much as you like.”

Sonny jumped on the spot waving his paws up and down in the air, Teresa hopped around in circles and Fletcher, who was lying on the grass nearby, watched for a while to see how the game would work out.

“Now!” Miles shouted as he opened his eyes. Teresa and Sonny froze, standing still on the spot, trying not to move at all. Sonny had one paw awkwardly up in the air but he held it still. “Good work,” Miles said. “You can move again now.”

He closed his eyes as Teresa and Sonny hopped around. Fletcher thought the game was quite amusing and decided to join in. He taught Sonny some crazy dance moves as he waited for Miles to call out.

“Now!” Teresa was crouched down low to the ground, Sonny had just enough time to land on the grass after a big hop, but it was Fletcher who struggled to keep still. He tried to balance on one leg but was most unsuccessful—he fell over, causing Teresa and Sonny to burst out laughing.

“I don’t think Fletcher’s very good at this game,” Miles said. “He’s going to have to practise a bit more, isn’t he?”

Teresa and Sonny nodded enthusiastically.

Shelley hopped towards them to see what was going on. “What all this laughing about?” she enquired.

“We’re playing a game,” Teresa explained. “It’s a new game. Miles made it up all by himself.”

“I see. So, are you going to show me how this game works?”

“Sure,” Sonny answered. “Just watch us, Mama. But don’t watch Fletcher, he’s really bad at it.”

“Oi,” Fletcher said. He hopped over and tickled Sonny in the tummy. “I’m going to beat you this time. You just wait and see.”

“Everybody ready then?” Miles asked. “Let’s go. Move around. That’s it. Jump up and down, whatever you want to do. I’m closing my eyes now.” He closed his eyes for a little while, then when he was ready he called, “Now!”

Teresa stood very still very quickly and held her position. Fletcher did his best to avoid moving. And Sonny, who had landed with one foot in front of the other, used his paws to maintain his balance. “I’m looking really carefully,” Miles said then paused, “to see if anyone is going to move.” He waited for a few seconds and then Sonny lowered his right paw to stop himself from falling over. “Ah, there we go,” Miles called. “Sonny moved.”

“That’s not fair!” Sonny objected. “I held it for ages. I can’t help it if I ended up nearly falling over.”

Miles laughed, but in a kind way. “That’s how the game works, Sonny. You have to stay still for as long as it takes.”

“Whatever,” Sonny replied, clearly not impressed.

“I say,” Shelley said. “I’ve got an idea. We could change this up a little. Miles, do you still want to be in?”

“Sure.”

“Then everybody else come down here with me and line up side by side behind Miles. We all start hopping towards him until he turns around. And just like before, as soon as he faces us we have to freeze. Miles, you’ve got to see if you can see anyone moving. Let’s give it a try.”

“Are you going to play too, Mama?” Teresa asked.

“I certainly am. Come stand beside me, Teresa. And Sonny and Fletcher as well. OK, I think we’re all ready.”

Miles looked straight ahead so that he couldn’t see any of them and they started to make their way towards him. Sonny giggled a little bit as he snuck forwards quicker than anyone else.

Then, all of a sudden, Miles turned around. Each of the kangaroos stood very still but unfortunately for Fletcher, he had landed on one foot. He held his balance for as long as he could but as soon as he brought his other foot down to the ground, Miles noticed the movement.

“Fletcher!” he called. “I saw you move. You’re out.”

“Gee,” Fletcher said. “Not again.” He pretended to be really upset in order to entertain Teresa and Sonny. “Can’t I have another chance? Please?”

“No way,” Teresa said. “Rules are rules, Fletch. And you’re out.”

They played a few more times and it occurred to Fletcher how good it felt to do something as simple as playing a game with his family. It wasn’t just him and Miles—Teresa and Sonny were involved and even Mama! Fletcher thought that if his dad could look down and see them right now, he would know that they were all doing OK.

Both Fletcher and Miles were tired after playing games, but having had a short rest in the middle of the day, they got up and quietly hopped away to see if they could find Donovan. When they saw that he wasn’t at home they continued down to the open field just below the parkland, keeping their eyes open in case he appeared.

“Let’s have a look over by that tree he used to go to,” Fletcher suggested.

“He won’t be there,” Miles said. “He hasn’t done any exercises for months.”

“Let’s check anyway, just in case.” And, sure enough, there he was.

“Donovan!” Miles called. “What are you doing?”

“It’s OK. I’m taking it easy. I just really wanted to come here and see what I could do.”

“Are you sure you’re ready for this?” Fletcher asked.

“I don’t know. All I can do is try. I want to rebuild my strength whenever I can. I haven’t done much yet—just a few forward bends. I can’t reach nearly as far as I used to, that’s for sure.”

“That sounds OK,” Fletcher conceded. “I was worried you were doing push ups or sit ups or whatever it is you used to do.”

“I’m starting slowly. I don’t want to hurt myself—there’s no way I want to go through that pain again. Where are you going?”

“We were looking for you and then maybe heading up the hill a bit. Do you want to come?”

“Sure. Let’s go.”

“Now Miles,” Fletcher said, “you speak up and let us know when you’ve had enough. We’ll turn around whenever you say so.”

“OK. I’ll let you know.”

They took the long way around the parkland, which meant they had to dodge through some thick scrub, but once they reached the bottom of the back hills the land was clear again.

“You OK, Miles?” Fletcher checked.

Miles nodded and continued hopping.

“We’ll stop soon and have a break. Let’s just get up to those rocks over there.”

They continued up the hill and Fletcher could tell that Miles was starting to get tired. As soon as they reached the rocks, they stopped and Miles and Donovan both sat down. Fletcher remained on his feet and took in the view. They were a long way from the top of the hill but the scenery before him was still quite a sight to take in. “Look at Big Rock,” he said, half to himself. “We haven’t been there for a while but it sure looks good, doesn’t it?”

He hadn’t crossed the river for a few months, so he hadn’t been to Big Rock or the cave in that time. Firstly because of Donovan’s shoulder and then because of Miles’ ear. He looked forward to the day when he would be able to swim across again and return to those familiar sights.

Fletcher thought he heard a noise in front of him. His ears automatically stood up and slowly turned so that he could take in each and every sound.

“Did you hear something?” Donovan asked.

“Ssh,” Fletcher answered. Then, without a doubt, they heard the sound of a group of kangaroos approaching.

“Who is it?” Miles asked. “Maybe they’re from another mob, all the way up here.”

But Fletcher didn’t agree. It might seem to Miles that they had climbed a long way up the hill but, in reality, they hadn’t come very far at all. No, this wasn’t likely to be roos from another mob. In fact, Fletcher had a feeling that he knew exactly who it would be.

Solomon showed his face first. “What are you lot doing up here? Gee, me and Terence come for a nice quiet hop, and here you are. Move it, Fletcher. Get out of my way.”

Fletcher did his best to stay calm. “I’m not in your way. Look, there’s plenty of space.”

Now Terence arrived and joined in the conversation. “If Solomon tells you to do something, you’d better do it!”

Fletcher reluctantly stepped back and sat down beside Miles and Donovan. He was trying very hard not to show any outward signs of anger—hoping that Terence and Solomon would just continue on their way. But this time he wasn’t so lucky.

“You three didn’t get very far up the hill,” Terence said. He looked at Miles. “Don’t tell me wussy boy here is tired already. Come on Miles, you’re a fully grown kangaroo. You can do better than that!”

This time Fletcher couldn’t contain his feelings. “Don’t speak to Miles like that!”

“Or what?” Terence said quickly.

Solomon stepped forward. “Yeah, Fletcher. What are you going to do about it?”

Fletcher looked at Miles and Donovan. Miles shook his head as if to tell him not to egg them on any further.

He looked back at Terence and Solomon. “Just go away and leave us alone.”

“What do you think, Solomon?” Terence asked. “Is that what we want to do? Shall we just go away and leave them alone?”

“I’d rather stay here,” Solomon said with a smirk.

“Me too,” Terence agreed. “I’m just starting to have a bit of fun. I think I’ll stay here a while longer.”

“Right,” Fletcher said. “If you’re staying, we’re going. Come on, you two. Let’s get out of here.”

Terence quickly hopped forwards until he was right in Fletcher’s face. “Not so fast. If we’re staying here, you can stay too. You don’t get to leave until I say so. Got it?”

Fletcher’s mind spun. He tried desperately to think clearly but with Terence looking down at him and blocking his way, he couldn’t move. Without giving it much thought, he swung his right paw forwards and hit Terence sharply on the cheek.

Terence straightened his hind legs to make himself even taller than usual and banged his paws on his chest. Meanwhile, Solomon charged forwards and knocked Fletcher onto the ground. Miles stood back, terrified by what was unfolding before him and Donovan rushed in and started punching Terence. Terence quickly pushed Donovan back saying, “This is between Fletcher and myself. Everyone else, get out of the way!”

Donovan scampered over to stand beside Miles while Solomon pinned Fletcher to the ground. “You too, Solomon,” Terence ordered. “Stand back. Just Fletcher and me.”

Solomon stood up and dusted the dirt and twigs off his coat. He stood beside Donovan and Miles to make sure they didn’t try anything.

Fletcher stood up and tried to regain his composure. “What’s this all about?” he demanded.

“It’s about you!” Terence answered. “You and your attitude. This needs to be cleared up once and for all.”

“You’ve gone mad,” Fletcher replied. “We didn’t do anything. We were just sitting here quietly until you came along. And I won’t have you speaking to Miles the way you did. I just won’t have it.”

Terence chuckled in an eery manner. “You’re not getting it at all, are you? You need to learn your place, Fletcher. You don’t get to tell me what to do. Solomon and I are so much higher up the mob than you’ll ever be, and if we tell you to do something, you have to do it.” With that, he clipped Fletcher on the side of his head.

“You’re deluded!” Fletcher cried. “Higher up the mob? Since when has anyone been higher up the mob than anyone else? Except the alpha, of course.”

“Ever since the alpha, as you put it, promoted us a few weeks ago. Come on Fletcher, we’ve been through this already. Solomon and I are Stanley’s assistants and that means we must be obeyed.” Terence leaned forward and punched Fletcher in the ribs, left and right.

Fletcher stumbled but he didn’t fall. “For what it’s worth, I disagree. And I certainly don’t have to answer to you.” Using all his strength, he hit Terence in the face repeatedly.

“Oooh,” Terence said. “Now we’re getting a bit of a reaction. This is more like it.”

“Yeah, this is more like it,” Solomon echoed.

Terence and Fletcher both laid into each other. Terence was clearly bigger and stronger, but Fletcher fought with so much energy that he was able to keep the fight fairly evenly balanced. For a while, anyway. Eventually, just when they had taken a step back to catch their breath, Terence unexpectedly threw his weight forwards and struck Fletcher on the side of the head. Everything suddenly seemed to go in slow motion for Fletcher. He wobbled from side to side, his vision went blurry and he felt a wave of nausea fill every fibre of his being. He struggled to keep his balance, he vaguely heard Miles scream, “Noooo,” and then everything went black.

Chapter 15

Fletcher looked down at the scene unfolding below him. He seemed to be hovering a few metres above the ground and he watched with fascination. Miles was crying, bending over a kangaroo lying on the ground. “Wake up, Fletch! Wake up!” he screamed between sobs.

“I’m here!” Fletcher called back. “I’m fine, Miles. Just look up. I’m right here!”

He noticed Terence and Solomon hopping away and Donovan kneeling down beside Miles.

“Wait a minute,” Fletcher said to himself. “Is that me lying on the ground? It can’t be—I’m right here, up in the sky.”

He shook his head, realising that his thoughts made no sense. He couldn’t be in two places at once, could he? He swooped down lower to have a good look at the kangaroo lying on the grass. Its neck was twisted away at an awkward angle, so he went over to the other side to get a better view. What he saw made everything fall into place. “Oh no,” he whispered. “It isme. I look dead. That’s why Miles is crying. He thinks I’m dead.”

Fletcher came down to the ground and sat beside Miles. “Miles!” he said urgently. “I’m right here. Look. I’m as fit as ever. I can’t even feel where Terence hit me.”

Miles still refused to respond, so Fletcher tried getting through to Donovan. “Donovan, can you hear me? Donovan! Listen to me. I’m right here. I really need you to tell Miles that I’m OK.”

But it was no use—they simply couldn’t hear him. So, Fletcher tried something else—he tapped Miles on the shoulder. Well, he tried to at least, but his paw went right through Miles’ body, as if it wasn’t there at all.

“Whoa,” he said, jumping back. “This is too weird.” 

Noticing how light he felt, he floated up in the sky and tried to collect his thoughts. Firstly, he knew that he had been in a fight with Terence. And he knew that when Terence hit him in the head and punched him in the stomach, it had really hurt. But there was no pain anymore. That was unusual. Secondly, Miles and Donovan couldn’t hear anything he said. That was strange too. Thirdly, he could fly through the air. That definitely wasn’t normal. And fourthly, he couldn’t touch anything. Bizarre. Something was definitely going on.

Could he really be dead? He looked at his body lying lifeless on the ground. “Maybe I can get back into it.” He zoomed in and tried to get inside his body but it didn’t work. In fact, he felt something tugging him upwards. It was gentle at first, but there was no mistaking that something was drawing him up. It was a very nice feeling and he was happy to follow it. “Don’t be sad, Miles,” he called. “There’s nothing wrong with me. Maybe I’ll be able to figure out a way to come back.” He drifted higher up and viewed the scene from above. Miles and Donovan were both hunched over his body now, sobbing together. “Or perhaps I won’t. Maybe I’ll just keep going wherever it is I’m going.”

Fletcher turned his head to look up and see where he was. He was higher than the hilltops now, and Miles and Donovan were barely visible. He felt like he was on an adventure and he was eager to find out what would happen next. Higher and higher he went. “This feels really nice,” he said to himself. “Maybe this is what it’s like to be a bird—flying through the sky.”

He thought he might fly over to Big Rock but quickly discovered that he was unable to choose where he was going. His route seemed to be set and he was unable to change it. He was so high up now that he was unable to recognise anything below him. The trees and rocks were too small to see, even the mountains were a blur. He looked around. The sky, or wherever he was, was a swirl of soft pastel colours—not just blue but light pinks and purples also. He felt weightless. He didn’t have to hop at all, instead he floated freely through these colours and, although he didn’t know where he was going, he felt safe. And curious. Yes, that was it. He was curious and interested to see what he would discover next. He understood now that he had died, and even though he knew that Miles was sad—and Mama would be too when she found out—he knew that everything was OK, he knew that he would see his family again one day, and he knew that he was heading in the right direction.

Surrounded by the beautiful colours, Fletcher felt himself speed up. He had the impression that he was travelling through a tunnel of some kind. It usually went straight ahead but every now and then he felt as if he had just come around a corner. He tried to take everything in. It was all so new to him and he wanted to enjoy it. He spread his paws out to the side. He could lean forward and travel headfirst, or he could keep his feet below him. Both ways felt good. And then he thought he heard something. What was it? It was very soft and very beautiful but he couldn’t describe it. The best comparison he could make was that it was like a bird singing a song, except that this sound was continuous. He didn’t just hear it with his ears, he heard it with his whole body. It vibrated through him. It wasn’t exactly a tune, but it was very soothing. He felt like he could stay here forever.

But staying still wasn’t possible. Fletcher was moving fast and wasn’t able to slow down. He thought of his family. The logical part of his mind knew that if he was dead, then his family would all be very upset. But the thing was, his mind didn’t feel logical. He loved his family very much but he couldn’t easily join in their sadness because there was nothing to be sad about. They were sad because he was dead, except he wasn’t dead, was he? So, before long, his mind came back to enjoying the journey he was on.

He came around one last corner and felt himself starting to slow down. “What’s happening?” he asked himself. “Am I going to stop now? Is this where I’ll be staying?”  The space he had been in spread out so that he no longer felt like he was in a tunnel, but instead he found himself coming to a stop in a wide open space. As he looked around, shapes formed before his eyes. There were gum trees, wattle trees and spring blossoms on his left and a stream flowing by on his right. The grass was fresh, the air was clear and a few butterflies and bees flew past. 

“Oh my,” Fletcher whispered as he looked around. “It’s…. it’s perfect. What a beautiful place.” He stood in front of the stream, leaned forward and dipped his paws into the water. It didn’t dissolve beneath him—this felt real. He stood up, turned around and saw a beautiful female kangaroo waiting for him on the grass. Her face was warm and glowing and something deep inside Fletcher told him that he had met her before. He shook his head a little. Even though the kangaroo before him looked familiar, he couldn’t think who she was. 

“Hello Fletcher.”

“Uh, hi.” He knew his response was inadequate but his mind was trying to grasp something, trying desperately to remember who she was.

“Ar…. Ari…. Ariana! That’s your name, isn’t it?” He was pleased with himself that he had remembered.

“Yes it is. Well done. It didn’t take you very long this time.” She smiled warmly at him and spread her paws wide, offering a hug. As Fletcher allowed himself to be held , memories washed over him. He had known Ariana before. In fact, he knew her very well. She was his…. his teacher. And there were others in his class too. He couldn’t think who they were just yet but he knew he would see them soon. 

“How are you?” Ariana asked. It was a bit of an unnecessary question because she could quite capably read his mind, but she was, more than anything, giving him time to adjust and settle in.

“I feel great,” Fletcher answered. “I’m getting used to things but I feel really good.”

“Now, there’s no rush. Take it slowly and enjoy each step you take. Do you want to have a look around or do you want to get started straight away?”

“Maybe I’ll have a bit of a hop then we can get started after that.”

Whilst hopping down to the trees, Fletcher took a few deep breaths. This place was similar to his land at home and yet it was different. The colours were brighter, the sounds were clearer and the air felt alive. Fletcher laughed softly to himself, realising that now he was dead he felt more alive than ever. He picked out the biggest gum tree he could find and stood underneath it. Even though he couldn’t see any other kangaroos, apart from Ariana over there in the distance, he knew that he was connected in some way to this place. He bent down and scratched at the dirt on the ground, then lifted his head up high and sniffed the air.

He thought about his family once more and was filled with an overwhelming feeling of love for them. Normally when he thought of his mama he felt like he had to fulfil his sense of duty and be a good son, but not now—now he just noticed how much he loved her and felt how much she loved him. His thoughts turned to Sonny and Teresa. Thinking about Sonny used to be a source of frustration for Fletcher, but not anymore—now he remembered Sonny with fondness and viewed his larrikinism as a quality that made him unique. And Teresa—well, he’d always had a soft spot for her and that hadn’t changed one bit. Fletcher thought of Miles and knew that Miles still had plenty of hard times ahead but that he would get through them—not just survive them but cope with style. Things that once worried Fletcher now seemed to be part of a grand scheme and every event, whether it felt good or bad, was a perfect part of the overall plan.

He shook his head from side to side. He remembered that he had been struck hard in the left temple—fatally actually—but he couldn’t feel any pain. In fact, he felt better than ever! His energy was boundless and he was filled with—what was it?— peace. Yes, that was it—he felt peaceful.

“This is pretty good,” he whispered to himself as he hopped back towards Ariana.

“Come with me,” she said when he arrived. “Let’s sit down over here.” She led him to a patch of grass that was soaked in sunshine.

“This place is so nice,” he said. “I used to wonder what would happen after we die but I didn’t think it would be as good as this.”

“Why, of course,” Ariana replied. “This is your place. You designed every little bit of it.”

“I did?”

“Yes, you put of a lot of care into creating your place.”

“Wow,” Fletcher said. “I don’t remember.”

“You will,” Ariana smiled. “It will all come back to you. So tell me, how are you feeling?”

“I feel better than ever. I don’t know, I feel light and full of energy, like I could do anything at all.”

“That’s a good start. Now, I want you to remember. Let’s begin by remembering this place. Close your eyes and tell me what comes to mind.”

Fletcher obediently shut his eyes, dubious that he would remember much at all. “What do you want me to say?”

“Tell me about your place. This place, where we are sitting right now.”

“There are trees and a stream. I could see all that when I arrived but I don’t think I actually remember it.”

“That’s OK, just relax. What else do you think might be in your place? Perhaps something that you haven’t seen yet.”

“I don’t know,” Fletcher began, but as he spoke he pictured himself hopping a little past the gum tree he’d just visited. “Oh, I think there’s a rock down there a bit further.”

“There is. Well done. What else? Tell me why that rock is special to you.”

“I don’t know…. I like to sit on top of it. That’s right! I think I remember! Yes, I sit up there and look down at the stream below. It’s my lookout.”

“That’s right,” Ariana said. “Now, keep going Fletcher. Your mind is adjusting well. What else can you remember?”

He felt a little more confident now and started to relax a bit. As he calmed his mind, he was overcome with memories. He remembered being here, in his place, with other kangaroos—not many, just a few. He couldn’t remember who they were but he knew he was close to them. “I’ve been here with other kangaroos. We hopped all over the hills and we sat underneath the trees. We swam in the water and dried ourselves in the sun. But mostly we just sat.”

“Good work. Now you can open your eyes.”

Fletcher looked around and the surroundings were now so familiar to him—it almost felt like he had never been away. “This is my place,” he breathed. “I chose this and I put it all together.”

“You did indeed.”

“But there’s something else I remember. There are other kangaroos. Where are they? Are they hiding?”

“No, they’re not hiding. They’re waiting for you and they’re very excited about welcoming you back.”

“I can’t quite remember who they are.”

“You will. All in good time. Shall we go and have a swim?”

“OK,” Fletcher said. He was happy to try anything in this new and exciting place. He followed Ariana down to the edge of the stream and they both waded into the water. 

“I won’t stay in for long,” Ariana said, “but you stay here for as long as you like. Take your time. The water is good for you.”

Fletcher dove beneath the surface. He felt a slight current but this water was much calmer than the river he remembered back at home. It was a lot warmer too. He didn’t notice Ariana. She swam away and got out shortly afterwards, but Fletcher stayed in. He paddled his legs and paws beneath the surface, looking at the scenery around him. The colours were so vivid—so much stronger than the colours he remembered from back at home. Why did he call it home? Maybe this place was his true home. He would have to ask Ariana about that later. He rolled over and floated on his back. The water supported his body weight easily, so he tilted his head right back and floated effortlessly. He had a warm feeling in the pit of his tummy—a feeling of contentment. He was still Fletcher but this sense of peace or satisfaction or acceptance was becoming more familiar to him. He understood that he couldn’t do anything wrong. Everything was exactly as it should be, from the biggest mountain in the distance to each blade of grass or grain of sand.

Floating in the water, he let his thoughts unwind. Once again, he thought of his family but his memories of his life were starting to blur around the edges a little. This place was feeling more real to him while his life on earth was starting to fade. Although he didn’t want to forget, he understood once again that everything was unfolding exactly as it was supposed to. He remembered looking down just after his death and seeing Terence and Solomon hopping away. He noticed that even thinking about them didn’t distress him in any way. When he was alive, they were a continual source of worry, but now they were simply another couple of kangaroos living their lives the best way they could. 

Bringing himself to a vertical position once more, he paddled his feet. “This is all a bit strange,” he said to himself. “Maybe not strange, but different.” He swam to the water’s edge and hopped onto the grass. He shook himself and was instantly dry. He hopped forwards to join Ariana who was waiting for him in the shade of a willow tree.

“Come with me Fletcher,” Ariana said as she stood up.

“Where are we going? Can’t we stay here?”

“You’ll be able to come back later, but for now we have a few things that we must do.”

She hopped through the trees with Fletcher following closely. He wanted to look around and take everything in but he also didn’t want to be left behind.

“Ariana,” he said as he hopped along.

“Yes.”

“This is my place, isn’t it? I mean, I feel like I really belong here.”

“It certainly is. You chose every detail and put it all together.”

“So, do you have your own place too?”

“I do, indeed.”

“And I guess that you designed your place too. Is that right?”

“Of course.”

“What’s your place like?”

“I’ll show you. Let’s go there right now.”

“All right. If it’s OK, I mean.”

As they hopped the scenery around them changed. The fields and trees of Fletcher’s place faded away and they were surrounded by light. It was very similar to the tunnel through which Fletcher had travelled, just a short while ago. Currently the space was pink but he wouldn’t be surprised if it merged into another colour very soon.

“Where did my place go?” he asked. “It disappeared.”

Ariana smiled. They were no longer hopping; instead they floated through the pink light. “This is how we travel. Look, we’re just about to arrive at my place. Can you see it yet?”

Fletcher looked. The pink had changed to a light purple colour, but bit by bit he saw flowers taking shape. “Is that a waratah?” he breathed.

“Yes, it is. I selected native flowers—species that were native to the regions that I have lived in whilst on earth. Do you like them?”

“They’re beautiful.” By this time the environment of Ariana’s place had fully formed and Fletcher knew that he had to start hopping again because he could feel the ground becoming solid beneath his feet. There was no water in Ariana’s place but there were so many flowers—bottle brushes, banksias, waratahs and more. “This is amazing,” Fletcher said. “I know what some of these flowers are, but others—I’ve never seen them before.”

“Come down this way. This is my favourite spot. Just a little further.”

Fletcher followed and the path they were on lead them into a forest. It was cooler and darker in here and there were flowers everywhere. 

“Gee,” he said. “This is beautiful. I guess you designed it?”

“I did. I chose my favourite flowers that I knew from earth and filled my garden with them.”

He sniffed at a few of the low-lying flowers. They weren’t strongly perfumed but he enjoyed their scents all the same. “What’s this one called?”

“That’s a grevillea. It’s pretty, isn’t it?”

“It sure is. Do you come here much?”

“I do. Sometimes I sit here in what I call ‘the garden’, while other times I like to lay in the open fields.”

“It’s so different to my place.”

“Naturally. We each have our own style. That’s a good thing, don’t you think?”

“I do. Thanks for showing me this.”

“You’re welcome. Do you want to stay a little longer?”

“No, that’s OK. You were going to take me somewhere else, weren’t you?”

“Yes. There’s someone I’d like you to meet.”

Fletcher wondered who it could be but he reasoned that he didn’t remember anyone else from here anyway, so it would be just like meeting someone new. 

“Are you ready?” Ariana asked.

“I think so. Let’s do it.”

Once again the scenery faded away and Fletcher found that he was floating rather than hopping. The space surrounding him was a pale green. He sniffed the air but couldn’t smell anything. He listened for sounds but heard nothing. The coloured light was all that existed and he floated easily through it. Up ahead he saw a shape begin to form. As he travelled closer towards it he could see that it was another kangaroo—a male this time. Even though he couldn’t see any details yet, he looked as hard as he could to see if he recognised the kangaroo in any way. And just then, when he discovered who it was, his jaw dropped in surprise.