Chapter 6:

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The sun had started to drop in the sky as Snowy pulled over to the side of the road while informing Harry that due to the higher chances of Roos jumping out at them after dark, it was safer that they make camp for the night.

Harry had been a little apprehensive about the sleeping arrangements when Snowy had tossed a swag at him from the truck, explaining they would be sleeping in the open when Harry had asked where the tent was. Harry had no problem with camping out, but had at least been expecting to pitch a tent, not sleeping in the open.

When he’d questioned Snowy about it the old man had just laughed

“Harry you’ll be fine. Just shake out your swag before you climb in. It’s still warm enough that the snakes won’t bother us, and  we’ll clean up the scraps so the Dingoes will leave us be.” The old man chuckling a little more at the look on Harry’s face.

As he’d bent to set about making the small fire, he’d grinned up at Harry. “Trust me son, I’ve been doing it all my life and I’m still here ain’t I?”

Harry had simply nodded and tossed the swag next to Snowy’s.

Once camp had been made, they shared a simple meal and a couple of beers in front of the fire before rolling out their swags.

Climbing in, it took several minutes to get comfortable. Once he was, Harry tucked his arm under his head and looked up at the sky and was greeted with a blanket of stars as far as the eye could see. He sighed at the magnitude of the sight before him.

“Still gets to me mate and I’ve been living out here forever.” Snowy spoke from his place by the fire, instinctively knowing what Harry was sighing about.

“It’s amazing.” Harry whispered. “I’ve never seen anything like it.”

“The outback can be a cruel mistress Harry. She’s deceptively beautiful but don’t let that trick you, as she’s also extremely brutal. If you remember that lad you’ll go far out here.” Harry heard Snowy shuffled around a little before mumbling, “Night lad.”

“Night.” Harry returned before he lay looking at the star formations and trying to remember his lessons from long ago. None of it made sense until he realised the stars he been watching were in the northern hemisphere and that was a long long way from here.

Snowy had been lightly snoring for a while when Harry first heard the noises. It startled him and had him scrambling up to a sitting position, looking into the darkness beyond him trying to pinpoint the rustling sound. He caught a piercing howl some distance away and shrunk back into his swag thinking that he had to trust Snowy. Even though everything in his being was distilling fear.

While he lay hoping to drift off, he remembered having the same feelings of dread the first night he had spent at school.

That first night in the big dormitory had been the most frightening in Harry’s short life. The shadows that elongated along the walls once the lights were switched off screamed of monsters and evil creatures. Harry had fought hard not to cry, but it had been a battle he had lost and he softly whimpered in his pillow.

Jacob, who was a year older than Harry, had been given the task of showing him around and had conveniently forgotten how daunting his first few weeks were. He decided that it was going to be fun to torment the new boy. Harry had tried to ignore the teasing and the way Jacob had deliberately feed him the wrong information. Sending him to the opposite end of the school for certain classes, making him late and earning him a detention when he had finally arrived at the correct location.

Harry had been successful at ignoring all the little things until he had returned to the dorm one evening to find the photo of his parents had been defaced. The devil horns and tail on his father didn’t actually bother him much, but the moustache and girl parts drawn over his mother’s face and body was what had tipped him over the edge.

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