Fields

VII

I thought about it for a second. "Climbing that tree." No one questioned me, we all went to the tree closest to the fence. I helped Gracie up and Tedrick helped Annie. Simon climbed up on his own. We walked out on a branch that grew over the fence, missing it by centimetres. "Do you trust me?" I asked.

"Yes." They all said.

"Tedrick can you jump first, then you three and I'll go last."

"Catch you down there." Tedrick crawled out along the branch until he was past the fence. Then lept out into the air. Annie, Simon then Gracie followed. Annie looked back over her shoulder with big eyes.

"It will be alright Anna Banana." I said. She turned back, looked down and fell forward.

Tedrick yelled back up. "Got her, come down Simon, It's alright." Simon inched himself along the branch, then slipped off without looking back. "Your turn Gracie!" Simon yelled.

"It's alright, I'm right behind you." I said softly. She walked out and looked down, she took a long breath in and lept off. "My turn." I said to myself. I walked out along the branch which got thinner with every step forward. I kept walking until the fence went behind me. I looked down and saw Teddy and all the kids standing there looking up. Unharmed. I sat down on the branch and pushed myself forward. I fell and hit the ground. A hard pain shot up my feet. After about a minute it stopped. "Why did it hurt when I hit the ground?"

"Just the shock of hitting the ground I guess, happened to all of us." Tedrick said.

"Well who cares? At least we're out? Now come on, we have to go before father wakes up." I started running towards the hills, the hills that father drove away to every pan.

We looked down and saw lots of little lights like fire lighting up hundreds of houses. "What is that?" Simon asked with astonishment.

"I don't know but let's find out." Tedrick said. We walked down the hill until the big houses rose up, touching the sky. We walked down hard grey stuff, like what the houses are made out of. Fast coloured boxes whooshed past us and you could hear the faint chatter of humans everywhere. A lady with a small brown thing stopped when she was walking past us.

"Are you kids alright?" She asked.

"No we need help." Tedrick exclaimed.

"Do you need the police?" She said.

"The what?" We all said together.

"Come on dearies, follow me, I'll help you." She turned around and we walked behind her and the little brown thing until she got to a pale blue building. "Come on, it's alright." She led us through two big doors and up to a desk, behind it was a man wearing a blue top.

"Excuse me ma'am but what is that?" Gracie pointed to the little brown thing that was connected to her by a thin rope.

"Your kidding right?" She asked with a smirk.

"No I'm not, that's why I asked you."

"It's a dog girl, everyone has one these days."

"Oh."

"Would you girls like to pat him?" The woman asked.

"Yes please." Gracie leaned forward and cautiously started touching the dog. "He is very soft ma'am."

"Please call me Vera darlings, and I think the officer wants to talk to you older ones." She motioned to the man sitting behind the desk. Tedrick and I walked up to him. Annie and Gracie were busy patting the dog and Simon was telling Vera our names.

"How may I help?" The man asked.

"Well Paul Fields is my dad and Craig Fields was his dad." I motioned to Tedrick.

"Are you kids being serious?"

"Why wouldn't we be?" Tedrick asked confused.

"Please follow me." He opened a grey door behind him.

"Gracie! Simon! Come on this way."

Vera sat down on a seat and her dog sat at her feet. "I'll wait for you guys okay?"

"If you want to, but thanks for everything Vera. You helped us when we knew nothing of this world." I said.

"I'll take that as a yes then." She grabbed a very thin book off of the small table and started flicking through it. Us five and the officer walked further inside the house to a room with no windows.

Once we all had a seat, he pressed a red button on the table. "Please tell me everything you know about Paul Fields." So we did, we told him everything. From the shimmer to the fence to even the fortnightly pan. "Thank you guys. We'll tell you more when we know more."

We went back out to Vera and she took us to her house. It was very nice and shiny. It was up high in the air but we stood in a room that took us up. Vera said it was called an apartment and an elevator. Tedrick was amazed by this new world and so was I.

We had to go back to the police house the next day and he talked to Tedrick, Vera and I. They told us that dad was taken away, and so was mum and auntie. They said that everything he told us was a lie, except the shimmer. The shimmer's real name was Cannabis and we were one of the largest Cannabis farms in the country. Uncle was indeed murdered by my father and Vera is looking after us now. Vera is lovely. 

Teddy and I are walking down to the shop to buy bread and cow's milk. The shop is three blocks away from Vera's apartment. Vera also gave us a green piece of paper called money to buy it.

I can see the shop now and life is wonderful. I glance over at Teddy who is walking next to me. The two words slip out of my mouth like second nature and my legs start running. "Race you."