The adventures of Lucy and the Tiggbott
Chapter 1
His bright red cape dragged on the dirt floor. Specks of crushed rock and broken twigs and leaves caught on the velvety fabric as the magician paced back and forth. The room filled with murmurs, suffocated his anxiety. Villagers waited patiently to hear his wise advice. Raglan’s glances darted around the room, taking in the wide wooden ceiling beams. They wandered to the loft; a chuckle escaped his lips when he saw some children hiding under the hay, hoping to hear the adults’ secrets. He watched a strand of the golden hay drift from the loft and land near a stack of oak barrels. Each with slots fitted to perfection and bound with metal rings, weathered by age and wear. Inside contained; honey-wine, sweet apple juice, and crushed pears. All had been fermenting slowly over the months.
Raglan cleared his throat. Conversations ceased, and gazes turned toward him. Next to him sat a cloth bag. It was tied with a frayed piece of rope and the sides bulged with pressure from the contents within it. Raglan nodded to the villagers, each eager to hear his words. He cleared his throat once more and spoke.
“Villagers of Watchumdonk, I have called this meeting on this fine summer’s morning to make you an offering. I am seeking something? And alas, I find myself too old and tired and cannot find the energy needed to carry out the search myself. So I am asking for help from you good folk. I ask you but one thing, to bring me the most precious thing in this land. Whoever brings the most beautiful and rarest thing in all of the Land of Wallawong; will receive the contents of this bag.”
The magician patted it with his gnarled, bony fingers… Timmy Tiddle squirmed under the magician’s gaze.
“Raglan, what sort of thing do you ask for? There are innumerable rare and beautiful things in this land. Are you asking for a Gem, gold, or silver-leaf?”
“Bring me what you will, but remember; whatever you do bring me; it must be beautiful and rare! You may conduct your search between the mountains of Purple mist in the west, the valley of Blue Moss in the east. Between the village of Watchumdonk, this is in the north, and the great forest of Badgers bottom in the south. That’s plenty of area for you to cover and two weeks is more than enough time.” The magician then tapped his sword on the floor.
Mumbles rolled like a wave from villager to villager. Possum Pete stepped forward. “But Raglan, how will we know what to look for?”
“You will know when you find it.” Raglan turned to leave.
“Wait” said Pete –“What is in the bag?”
The wizard turned and glared!
“I’m sorry Raglan, but I am bewildered; what do we receive as our reward?” Said Pete, pushing the wizard for an answer. The others muttered words of confusion.
“I cannot answer you. It is something you will be very pleased with. You are the only ones in this village who made the effort to come here today to hear my words. There are twelve families in this room. Each family is to select a representative. Be sure to select the bravest, strongest, most courageous and wisest of all. By the night of the next full moon, the bag will be given to the person who has brought me the most precious thing.” Responded the wizard, and then nodded at those looking his way.
“I will wait in the Woods of Diggery-dook until the evening sun sets below the horizon. The representatives must be at my side by then, with a bedroll and enough supplies to last two weeks, or your family will not be included. It is up to you if you choose to participate or not.” With that, the magician walked through the door, leaving the families in a quandary.
For the next few hours, squabbles between various family members filled the air with shouts and snarls. Raglan sat in the shade, with his back leaning against an ancient Gum-Gum tree. He sighed, hearing arguments coming from the different houses in the village. “I can do it better than you! I am stronger! You are weak! I am the wisest! You have no stamina!” Raglan shook his head back and forth in disappointment.
As the sky turned fiery shades of pink, orange, crimson and blue, the lucky twelve who had been selected; gathered around the magician. The rest of the families, some very annoyed with the choices made, stayed in the village.
“Raglan, we are here, all of us,” Pete said. “None of us are pleased with the secretiveness of our reward, nor with such vague instructions, however, we are all intrigued enough to follow through with your request. When do we begin our search?”
“Sleep under the stars tonight and when you find the sun’s first golden ray on your face, you may begin your quest. While the one of you who succeeds will be rewarded, the ones who fail may be met with jeers and shouts of disappointment from your families and risk the possibility of being cast out of the village forever. Are you all still willing to go?” He gazed at the group. Each head bowed with acceptance, ready to accept the consequences, no matter what they might be.
“Very well. At the next full moon, bring your finds to this spot. I will be waiting.” The magician pulled out his staff and sauntered back to Watchumdonk, leaving the twelve alone.
Lucy, a young girl, and only daughter of Jack & Jean, Jack is the forester for the village, and Jean is a loving wife to Jack, and mother to Lucy.... So, back to the story.........
Lucy, who had been watching the events of the day un-fold, stirred anxiously from the branch of a Eucalyptus tree. Its thick greyish-green leaves offered protection from the villager’s wandering gazes.
“I can find something precious” she thought?” Dropping from the tree, she landed with a thud in the knee-high grass below. Wanting to hear more, she curled up in a ball and squeezed his thin and undernourished body under a Gorse bush. Juice from the crushed orange-coloured berries seeped in through the fabric of her light brown shirt, staining her elbows… She listened to the men boast with surety that they would be the one to find it.
“I’m going to write all of this down in my journal, starting right now.” She pulled a leather-bound notebook and pencil stub from her pocket, scribbled the events of the day, as he usually did each morning and evening, and then closed the book, slipping it and the pencil into his deep back pocket. The arguments went on until the moonbeams danced on the green barley fields.
Meanwhile, Lucy; who had remained silent throughout the gathering, sat patiently listening to the rest of them; tired of all the squabbling, she fell asleep under a twinkling starry sky.
When the sun rose, bringing with it a rosy dawn, Lucy longed for the smell of bacon and pork sausages grilling over the open fire. The aroma of spicy meat and fried chuck-chuck eggs was more than her empty stomach could bear. She crawled out from under the bush, wiped the rest of the smashed berries off her scratchy cloth shirt, and moved closer to their camp.
“Throw the extra to the dogs.” Pete, being the largest of the group, he’d taken over the role of leader and the others allowed it, at least for the time being.
Lucy peeked out from behind a tree trunk. Pete stood as tall as the barn door at his farm. His broad shoulders spread just as wide, giving support to his beefy muscles. The only thing Lucy didn’t like about Pete was his long moustache. It was rusty red, like the rest of his hair, and it hung down on both sides to his belly button. Pieces of chewed up food fell from his mouth when he ate and landed in the moustache. Pete never cleaned it out, so there were always flies and other insects crawling around in the scraggly hairs.
Bush-Tucker Bob lifted the black cast iron cooking pan off the smouldering fire with his bare hands and tossed the contents into the bushes. Because of Bob’s size and strength, Lucy feared he’d toss the food back, all the way to Watchumdonk... Fortunately for Lucy, the pile of leftover food landed within her grasp. She waited with anticipation. Bob doused the fire with a bucket of water from The Bendigo Creek and helped the others pack their bedrolls.
Just a head shorter than Pete, Bob wasn’t quite as ugly, at least Lucy didn’t think so. Bob didn’t have a moustache. His face, pockmarked with holes, took the attention away from his un-brushed and plaque-coated teeth. But aside from that, he kept his dark brown shoulder-length hair brushed and lice-free.
Lucy grabbed the still warm breakfast before the dogs found it, shoving it into her mouth. She didn’t even stop to flick off the pieces of dirt and twigs. Her cheeks bulged with blackened, overcooked sausages, greasy and very chewy bacon, and congealing pink egg yolks. There was so much food in her mouth she could hardly swallow.
Pete picked up his back pack. “We separate from here. If anyone would like to walk with me for a while, I’d like the company. Come to think of it, we might be safer if we travel in pairs. There are some wild animals that roam in these forests, and mountains, and other parts of the Land of Wallawong.” The others agreed. Bob asked to accompany Pete, who approved.
Lucy parted the bushes and looked at the others in the group, trying to decide which ones she wanted to follow. Her eyes wandered to Gripping Grant, who had paired up with Jackie Wish-Wash.
“I do not want to go with them. Grant burps so loud and so often, that it would drive me crazy and Jackie has smelly feet. If only she changed her purple socks once in a while. Nope, I don’t want to stay with them.”
Big Bruce Grim partnered up with Pot-Bellied Paul. “No way am I going anywhere near Bruce. His breath is so bad that it could kill a kangaroo at 50 paces! And Paul blows his nose all the time; besides that, they’re taking the dogs with them.”
Anita Hatchet and Louisa the Weener decided to travel together. Lucy shook her head. “I can’t go with them either. Anita snores like a Dingo and Louisa breaks off pieces of her toenails and throws them wherever she wants. I’d gag if I found a piece in my stew.”
Flynn Bloat walked over to Chester Jaw-drop. “Do you want to partner up, Chester?” Chester nodded.
Lucy chuckled. “Chester is way too skinny. He hardly ever eats, so he would never cook any food, except pancakes, or boiled sprouts, so I’d rather eat a ferret. Flynn doesn’t take baths. He’s got fleas too. Nuh uh. I’ll not travel with them either.”
Desmond Ditherbrain and Norris Noserott were the last two. Neither of them liked the other; and didn’t want to be a team. “I’ll go off by myself. I am not travelling with him,” Norris said....... Lucy snickered and mumbled to herself. “That’s probably a good idea, Norris, because Desmond spits all the time. Of course, you pick your teeth, so which is worse? I think my only choice is to go with Pete and Bob.”
So the six pairs and Lucy left camp and headed in six different directions, spreading out like the sun’s rays.
Pete and Bob were the only ones to head into the mountains.
Lucy ran behind, being careful to not let them see her. “I’m glad it’s summer. If it was winter, we’d freeze to death in the snow.”
Chapter 2
Stickle-back pines, heavily laden with cones, lined the path most of the way. Lucy enjoyed the smell of the fragrant trees as she plodded along.
Pete and Bob turned the third bend.
Lucy’s legs felt the path growing steeper. They ached from the climb. She stopped to rub them, sitting down on a bed of last year’s fallen leaves, now brown and crunchy.
“Maybe I should have followed Flynn and Chester. At least they didn’t go into the mountains. They chose the flat path, hugging The Bendigo Creek. With my legs aching so much, I’m going to feel this tonight when I’m trying to sleep.”
“You are a complainer.” A high-pitched voice spoke from behind her.
She rolled onto her stomach, hoping to catch whoever it was.
“Who’s there?”
A furry green creature stepped out from behind a pine. “I said, you’re a complainer. Do you always whine?”
Lucy rolled to her knees and stood, brushing the dirt from her blue jeans.
“What are you?”
“My name is Tabby and I’m a Tiggbott. I live in the woods. Now you answer my question.”
“I’m Lucy, and no; I don’t always whine. I’ve never seen a Tiggbott before.”
“That’s not my fault.” Tabby came closer to her.
“Quit staring at me.”
“I’m sorry. You’re so round and plump. I didn't know there were creatures in the woods that had blue legs and only have three fingers and toes on each hand and foot.”
“All of us Tiggbott’s look like this, though my fur is a bit greener than most others. I can climb trees too.”
“You're awful small. You barely come up to my knees and you don’t seem to move too quickly. I can't believe you're good at climbing trees. How many other Tiggbotts live in the woods? I’ve never heard anyone mention your kind before.”
Her orange horn-shaped snout matched her legs and arms in colour. She sneezed and a soft toot blew out. “Excuse me. Let me wipe my bulgy eyes,” Tabby said.
“Bulgy eyes? Well, I guess they do sort of bulge.”
“I was being sarcastic. I’ve been sneezing all morning. I'm allergic to Lilli-Pilli berries and they're ripe on the vines at this time of year. To answer your next question, I think there are about twenty-eight of us Tiggbotts in the Woods of Diggery-dook.”
“It is nice to meet you, Tabby. If you'll excuse me, I want to catch up writing in my journal. It’s been a busy day today.” Lucy wrote an entire page about her morning and then put the book and pencil back in her pocket.
Tabby looked over her shoulder and watched the pencil move across the paper. Lucy stood and looked at the Tiggbott. “I’m not trying to be rude, but I’ve got to run. You see, Pete and Bob are getting too far ahead of me. I’m going to have to run fast to catch up with them.” Lucy bowed and turned to leave.
“Wait! Take me with you. You can give me a piggy-back ride. I eat forest food, so I won’t be a bother to you that way.”
“You want me to take you with me? Piggy-back ride? I might be going far away from the Woods of Diggery-dook.”
“Are you a parrot? You repeat every single thing I say. Yes, I want you to take me. I know these woods. I can help you. Let me come, please, Lucy.”
“You might come in handy. Okay. Climb on my back, but keep quiet. Pete and Bob don’t know I’m following them.
Tabby clung to her, wrapping her long toes and fingers around her neck and back. “I’m ready.”
Lucy ran up the hill. Tabby didn’t weigh that much so she didn’t notice a difference. “Shh. There they are, up at the top of the hill.”
“Why are you following them?” Tabby whispered in her ear.
“The people of Watchumdonk were sent on a quest by the magician, Raglan, to find the most precious thing in all of the Land of Wallawong. I wasn’t included in the gathering, but I think I can find it just as easily as the others.”
“What is the most precious thing in all the Land of Wallawong?” Tabby scratched her head with one of her nail-less fingers.
“I am not sure” said Lucy-“Raglan said we’d know when we found it. Now be quiet.” Lucy leaned against a pine, watching Pete and Bob.
“They’re planning something. Pete’s showing Bob his map.”
“I know these woods better than them. Why don’t we go off by ourselves and find it? We don’t need them. I am good at finding precious things.” Tabby wriggled her body back and forth.
“You are? Do you think you could help me find the most precious and rare thing in all the Land of Wallawong?”
“I think I can. Let’s start by going to the mountains of the Purple mist. I know a path across the Meadows of Nunawading. We might even find some honey. I like honey.” Tabby licked her lips.
Chapter 3
“Lead the way, Tabby. I don’t need to follow Bob and Pete. I’ve got my very own Tiggbott.” Lucy reached behind her and stroked her fur. “Which way?”
“Go to the right, and keep walking until you come to a Dorydock tree. It’s the only one of its kind in the land. Just look for the tree with the biggest roots.”
“How will I know if it has the biggest roots? Roots grow under the ground.” Lucy scoffed.
“Not the roots of a Dorydock tree. They grow on the ground, not under it.” Tabby’s voice was full of sarcasm.
“Okay. Sorry. I didn’t know that.” Lucy took a deep breath and walked on.
Tabby whistled a Tiggbott tune while Lucy headed west.
The sun was high in the sky. “How much longer, Tabby? I haven’t seen a Dorydock tree yet and I’m getting tired and hungry.”
“Let’s stop. I’ll go and find us something to eat. You can rest.”
Lucy sat in a field of wildflowers and pulled out her journal again. As she wrote, she watched how the dragonflies fluttered about, their lacy wings soaring above the fragrant yellow buttercups, pink corn-trumpets, and the orange lilies.
Tabby disappeared in the flowers.
Lucy heard her humming the same Tiggbott tune. She closed her eyes and thought of the treasure she would surely find. I’ll find the biggest diamond, the reddest ruby, the greenish emerald, and a fist full of opals, and huge gold nuggets.
Tabby came back carrying an armful of fat grubs and snails and dropped them near Lucy’s feet. “What are you smiling for?”