Dear reader,
I've written this story for the inaugural 'In a Sunburned Country Event', for both my enjoyment and yours. I self-edited, and although I've proof-read several times, the time came when I needed to stop playing with it and put it out there. Anyhow, I've found the best way to discover an error is to publish, so apologies for any mistakes.
The events and characters in this story are figments of my imagination, however, the locations described within are real. Known for thousands of years as lutruwita by the indigenous palawa pakana (native Tasmanian people; palawa kani words all in lowercase), and named Van Diemen's Land by Europeans from 1642 until the end of 1855, Tasmania is an island state of Australia.
A mountainous land of wild rugged beauty, Tasmania has a cool temperate climate, often said to have 'four seasons in one day'. Consequently, if you are unfamiliar with Tasmania, my descriptions may not quite fit your preconceptions of stereotypical Australian 'sunburnt' landscapes. The Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area covers approximately 20% of the state, and in the north of this wilderness is a popular multiday hike, the Overland Track.
On another note, having an Australian setting this story obviously contains many Australianisms, and I suspect the term 'Map of Tassie' is likely to be unfamiliar outside Australia. To clarify this idiom, I found the perfect explanation from Urban Dictionary: "Map of Tassie -- Australian colloquialism for a woman's pubic hair. Originated from the similarity in shape of a woman's pubic hair to the shape of Australian Island State of Tasmania."
I'll also draw your attention to the word 'cobber' which crops up a few times, and is another word for friend, analogous to 'mate'. Once common across Australia but now rare, except in Tasmania where it's still part of the local vernacular. I've also heard it used on rare occasions in Queensland, where incidentally, the story begins.
And so, cobber, enjoy this adventure deep into the Tasmanian bush!
Thefireflies
EARLY-DECEMBER
A melodic tune from a guitar accompanied by a sweet voice drifted from one of the bedrooms through the old Queenslander house, mixing with the pervasive humidity and smell of cannabis wafting in through the flyscreen door from the back veranda. A fairly standard welcome home for Tim after a heavy day in the hospital emergency department. He tossed his backpack into his room and grabbed a stubbie of XXXX Gold mid-strength beer from the kitchen fridge, before pushing open the flyscreen. "Mate, that shit'll give ya drug-induced schizophrenia," he said to Ryan before taking a pull on his beer.
Ryan placed the bong down on the card table, carefully avoiding the sheets of paper sprawled out in front of him, and exhaled a cloud of pot-smoke before turning directly away from Tim, speaking to the empty chair on his left. "Hey, do you think he's talking to us?"
"Ha har. You're mentally deranged already, so what's it matter." He swept his hand in the direction of the mess on the card table. "Anyway, what is all this shit?"
"What do ya reckon they are, mate? You've never seen a map of Tassie before?"
Tim bent over the table, picking up the nearest sheet, treating it like maps were completely foreign to him. "Ah, so this is what a map of Tassie looks like. I thought they'd be...softer. More, um, bushy."
"Just mind me bong there cos if you knock it over on me maps..."
Tim spoke before Ryan finished his sentence. "Then your maps of Tassie will get all wet. Anyway, obviously I know they're maps. I was wondering what you're planning?" Tim took another pull of his beer.
"Bushwalk, mate. Overland Track. Doin' it with me big sister. She moved back to Hobart a while back and we've said for years we'd do it, but neither of us have gotten around to it till now."
"You Tasmanians like to keep it in the family, don't ya," Tim laughed. "Doin' it with your sister and all that. Makes sense now. I've seen photos on Facebook of you two together. She. Is. Hot!" He emphasised the last three words.
Ryan fixed Tim with a serious stare. "Mate, you're talking about my flesh and blood here. Though, I s'pose you're right, Heather's the hottest sister I've got. She's also the only sister I've got too, funnily enough."
"Whatever floats ya boat, mate. So what's this about the Overland Track? I dunno much about it. Never been to the apple isle."
"You haven't lived till you've been to Tassie, cob. God's country."
"You're mistaken cos God's country's clearly Queensland."
"Queensland? Whatever, mate," Ryan dismissed Tim's comment with contempt. "I swear this state's tryin' to kill me, either with heat, humidity or lightning. Plus, it's full of red-necks like yourself."
Tim snorted. "Me a red-neck? And to think I took pity on you and let ya live in our house, even though you're a two-headed bastard? Anyway, you've moved here all the same."
"Mate, you know they removed my second head at the border. But I'd go back to Tassie in a heartbeat if I didn't need me job. Anyway, Heather's posted me these maps and said to get inspired."
"Ya sister sent you her maps of Tassie? Sharing is caring I s'pose."
"Yep. She rolled them into long cylinder and inserted them up the postage tube, then licked the stamp till it was moist, and thrust it through the hole in the post box."
"Mate, that's a bit over the top. You're talking about your hot sister here." Inbreeding jokes about Tasmanians are fairly standard in Australia and because they'd become close mates since Ryan moved in eighteen months previously, Tim felt it his matey duty to give his friend shit. After all, Ryan gave as good as he got, occasionally playing up to the incestuous Tasmanian stereotype for shits and giggles.
"So, tell me, you've been to New Zealand, but not even your own south island. Typical mainlander. Shame on you."
The smile left Tim's face at mention of New Zealand. "Mate, low blow. You know I went there for Abi."
"Too soon?" Ryan chuckled, gesturing to the empty chair. "Have a seat, cobber." He moved the bong way from the table, lest one of them knock it over and spill its dank water over his precious maps.
Tim sat in the empty seat, placing his stubbie carefully on the table and examined the maps as Ryan rearranged them. "So you and your sister are planning a long bushwalk?"
"Yep. We've talked about it for years, but Heather's been away with the army and then I finally left Tas soon after she returned. We've hardly ever been back there at the same time since Heather left in her late teens, and the walk takes about a week so we've never been able to do it."
"Walking for a week? I s'pose ya Sis must be fit if she was in the army."
"You have no idea, mate," Ryan said with a laugh. "When we were kids she'd run up the mountain with Dad. For fun. She's won triathlons before and could have been an Olympian if she'd cared enough to focus on one particular sport. She still runs ten to fifteen kilometres every other day."
