Among the Grass

Firestung eyes gazed hopelessly into the fire before her. The smoke wafting up and into the starry night sky filled the air above her head in a fog of gray clouds. The fire reminded her of home, her bed, her shower, her partner. She'd been out here searching for days, in the middle of the bush surrounded by sound. Yet not one of the orchestras that filled her ears whispered the sound she needed. Rolling over on her sleeping bag Jane looked up watching for planes flying overhead. Holding tightly the locket around her neck, she let her weary eyes close. 

In the dark embrace, Jane felt her ears perk up. Listening closely to all the familiar sounds, trying her best to cross off each of the parks noises; the crackling fire next to her camp blistering with heat, the croaking of toads down by the billabong where she had waded for hours, the chirping of crickets, endlessly calling out for a loved one. The last sound she heard was unexpected, an ear-piercing screech. Sitting upright Jane looked around the moonlit bushlands that surrounded her. Again she heard it, but this time it called from above. Ripping herself outside of her swag she stood up and faced the source of the screeching. 

Alone in the tree above her sat a scrawny-looking barn owl. Its face was a ghastly white, its body a lighter brown. It was as if she'd been visited by a ghost. The bird itself was too far up the tall eucalyptus tree for Jane to reach it, but even as she approached the stump the owl continued to call out to her. Holding her hand outstretched she tried her best to calm the creature, lowering her typically frantic speaking voice down to a motherly tone. 

Within a minute or two the bird had ceased its crying, still however refusing to break eye contact. Jane pulled back her hand, placing it against her cheek. What was she doing? If she was meant to keep looking she would need her sleep. Talking to animals, no matter how cute, was not going to get her any closer to finding…

Dawn came quicker than she had expected. Sleeping on the hard dirt ground wasn’t doing anything for her back, but at the very least she felt ready to continue the hunt. The fire had smoldered down to nothing but warm coals, enough for her to light another quickly. Placing down her coffee pot she laid back and looked up the eucalyptus trees' long flowing branches. To her surprise the barn owl remained, peering its small round head down towards her. Perhaps she had made a friend. 

The morning air was as bitter as her coffee, once again she regretted forgetting milk, but nothing was getting in the way today, not the glaring sun blasting over the horizon nor her new owl friend. The gravel path was no longer an option, it had led around the large park, but this time she would need to venture off it, deep into the long grass, and muddy grounds. She wasn’t ignorant of the dangers, in fact, she knew them very well. If only she’d shared her knowledge sooner, perhaps she wouldn’t be knee-deep in mud. 

Climbing up and out of the bog, she brushed aside the tall beige grass, clearing a path for her to sit. Although the search was far from over, Jane could at least be relieved she hadn’t found evidence of what she was looking for, swallowed by the mud, or drowned by the billabong. Looking around quickly Jane pushed herself up and searched for another landmark to begin a new search. Off in the distance, a burnt-up tree, taller than any other she had seen, as black as charcoal and nesting upon its tallest branch, a little brown bird. At the roots of the tree, she looked up, the barn owl watching her every step. Placing her heavy boot down onto the soot-covered soil the owl screeched louder than before, flailing its wings up and down. Jane took her eyes off the bird and looked to the ground. Beneath her boot was a mixture of twigs and feathers. Lifting up the entangled mess of cooked plant fibers she watched as it began to fall apart. 

The owl was no longer adorning the tree, instead, it had hobbled its way down to the lowest branch. Angling its head up it screeched towards the distant horizon. Hacking away violently, she tossed the grass aside, digging through its thousands of reeds. She was going to find something today, she had to. Her resolve was failing, she had looked through all the key spots, the bog, the water, the burnt tree, she needed to find something. They could not have simply vanished!

Freezing, Jane held her breath. She could see the blades of grass waving by themselves. Just as she did by the charcoal tree, she needed to watch her footing. As if walking on eggshells she placed one foot in front of the other, looking back every so often to see the barn owl hovering just behind her. Finally, she stopped and slowly lifted her steel-capped boot into the air. After a hiss, she stomped down with all her weight causing the golden locket to fling out of her shirt collar. It fell gently down next to the long black ribbon opening up to reveal a photo. 

The snake lay motionless between the blades of grass, a crimson red belly just barely showing from beneath its scaly hide. It wasn’t long before the owl that had been tailing closely, swooped down into the thick brush next to the serpent, standing triumphant over its corpse. Jane left the two together and walked up the small hill. At the top of it, she sat down and looked at the photo inside the locket. His face was clean-shaven, his hair pulled back, and a smile. Placing the locket between his hands she slid her hand down his wrist, over the two holes deep in his forearm, and looked off over the park. The burnt tree, the smoking fire, the old eucalyptus. A feeling rushed over her, one no doubt similar to the bird down below. Laying back she looked up towards the clear blue sky, for now, they’d lay together, among the grass.