Once upon a time, Annie Womble sat on her bed in the dark winding tunnel beneath a feeble- weathered evening. She sprayed her mother’s perfume on the back of her paw and breathed it in. “It’s not fair”, she thought. Of course, she wasn’t supposed to have taken her mother’s perfume bottle, but Annie felt entitled since there was far too much unfairness, and she should have something to compensate for it.
Veronika Womble was Annie’s older sister. Annie watched the way she danced and tried to emulate her. Annie’s legs were short and muscly and she could not even do one pirouette. Veronika’s had long, slender elegant legs. There was even a video of Veronika playing the younger part of a very famous dancer to advertise the dance school which she attended every day after school.
Annie also had a baby sister, Katrina who had beautifully soft blonde fur. She was a sweet and gorgeous wombat and Annie adored her. But sometimes she would not play with Annie and squealed in protest when Annie would not let her go.
“Mommy will I die in the night?” asked Annie the third time she had gotten her mother to come to her bed in the middle of the night. “No Darling, you will not die in the night,’ reassured her mother. “Now, please let me sleep, I am tired.”
“Mommy, I am scared,” said Annie about an hour later as she stood in front of her mother’s room. “There is nothing to be scared off darling, Mommy and Daddy will protect you”. “Mommy, I’m scared of the dark, can I sleep with you?” “There is no room here, your little sister is still feeding and Daddy has to work in the quarry tomorrow. Please go back to your room. There is nothing to be scared about!” said her mother firmly. “Well, I don’t care what you say, I am scared and it’s not fair that I can’t sleep in your bed with Katrina. With that, her father got out of bed and escorted her back to her room. “Stay here!” he yelled before turning around and disappearing into the dark.
Five minutes later, Annie stood at the door to Veronika’s room. She could smell the resin on her dancer’s shoes. She stroked the ribbons and listened to her sister breathing quietly. “Veronika, are you awake?” Veronika kept breathing and stayed still. Annie poked her. “I’m scared,” she said. “Go away, stop annoying me, and stop being scared of everything. If it wasn’t for you, we would be a happy family!” said Veronika in that haughty way she always spoke. “I hope you slip on a banana”, whispered Annie under her breath.
Annie sat on her bed again. “I will kill myself,” she thought. But in truth, she couldn’t hurt anything and she was certain she couldn’t kill herself. But she begun to imagine what it would be like if she had a ‘death by misadventure.” She had heard plenty of stories about relatives who had died in tragic circumstances. Uncle Teddy was eaten by a Tasmanian tiger; a cousin had drowned after thinking she could fly off a cliff. She made a gigantic splash as she fell into the sink hole which was full of murky water just after the flood and she disappeared never to be seen again. Great Grandfather had tried running on soft snow and fell down a crevasse. One of the smallest babies was stolen by an eagle. There were plenty of ways to die.
Annie put on a spare coat and silently left the burrow. Luckily the moon was high in the sky and she could still see. “I am going to make every last person in my family sorry they were mean to me,” she thought. Even though her heart was racing, she trotted off in the direction of the hill. It seemed like a good place to get into trouble. As Annie got to the top of the first hill, she stopped to see if anyone was following her. The vibrating sound of cicadas filled the air. Annie was scared. She felt the earth breathing and had an impulse to run back home. But she was determined to get her own way. She could never go back. As Annie contemplated her death, she wondered if anyone would hear her breathe her last breath.
The leaves rustled and whispered to her as she trod ungraciously on them. Now and then she slipped and rolled down an incline. She lay there huffing and puffing for a while before getting back up. Annie was stubborn and certain she would die out here. She imagined the sad and sorry faces of her family looking down at her lifeless body. She smiled with an entitled sense of satisfaction. She still had her mother’s perfume in her pocket and sprayed a little on her paws.
But Annie was tired from struggling up and falling down the innumerable hills and vales. She huddled underneath a fallen branch in some soft grass. It began to rain. The dry leaves cracked and jumped at the unexpected spray of water droplets landing on their dry bodies. Annie thought they sounded like cornflakes being crunched up. She liked cornflakes and began to feel hungry. Her mother had always made sure there was plenty of lovely vegetarian food to eat.
As Annie lay there, she could hear the piercing cry of an owl high up in the branches. Then it landed with a thud right beside her. In a panic Annie ran and ran and ran as fast as her fat chubby legs could take her. Finally, she tripped with exhaustion and found herself falling through a hole in the darkness. “This is to be my death,” she thought.
It seemed a long time before Annie awoke. She had landed on some soft mud at the bottom of a cave. Cautiously, she looked about. She could see stars right up on the ceiling where the hole was and she could hear the sound of water. Although she was quite used to subterranean passages, she was not so used to such a huge caverness space. “How will I ever get out of here?” she wondered.
After some time, Annie sensed she was not alone. Various grunts and groans were coming from somewhere deeper inside the cave. She followed the sound through a long tunnel which led to a waterfall. At the foot of the waterfall, a young wombat was in labour. An ancient furry beast with hidden eyes was attending to her. Annie dared not move. She was both scared and fascinated.
Even though she could hear the sound of water trickling, there was a silence in this cave that she had never experienced. Yet, as Annie brushed her body against the rounded rocks, she sensed they were breathing like long lost wild animals. She suddenly felt quiet alive, quite connected to something she had never felt before.
A small wet baby emerged. It glistened under the odd twinkling stars. The ancient furry beast held it up to the light and said prayers and blessings in a language Annie did not understand. Then she plunged the little wombat into the pool and the water ran red. Annie took a deep breath, fearful the baby would drown. But after a few minutes, the ancient furry beast brought it back to the water’s surface and placed it with the mother where it began to suckle.
The sound of a trillion frogs began to vibrate throughout the cave. Annie had no idea what to do now. She didn’t know how she could get out of the cave. She didn’t really want to die any more.
Annie was so tired and so hungry. She crawled into a corner where it seemed that many furry coats had been tossed. As she lay down, she sensed she would be safe and fell into the deepest sleep.
Sunlight streamed in through the various small holes in the cave’s ceiling. The waterfall had turned clear once more. A huge plate of delicious leafy greens lay beside her. Without thinking she ate all of it. Annie could now see paintings on the cave walls. Huge images of ancient creatures, cows with horns and eyes that seemed to glow, and furry creatures like the one that had attended the mother giving birth.
Suddenly the cave became dark once more as the sun moved across the sky. Annie moved towards the sound of water flowing and wondered why the darkness no longer frightened her. It was if she had learned to see in the dark, not with her eyes, but with other senses both inside and outside of her that she did not know existed. After what seemed like a very long time, she squeezed herself out of a hole and into the daylight.
She was at the bottom of a huge cliff. Fortunately, she spotted a pathway leading to the top. As she paused at a steeper part of the incline, she looked down. The ancient furry creature looked back at her. Annie took a deep breath and suddenly felt very powerful. It seemed like an ancient heart was beating inside her, she felt connected to all living things and knew that her existence was valuable.
Somehow, without even thinking, Annie retraced her steps towards home. Far in the distance, she saw her mother and father searching for her. She squealed with joy and ran effortlessly towards them.
As they returned to the burrow, Annie knew she was different.
One day she would go back to that cave to give birth. She sensed that she was worthy of making her own way in the world. She missed the ancient furry creature but knew they would meet again.
*Images taken are of the little friends on the counter at the Gooseneck Kettle/Orr St Cafe
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