Into That Forest - By Louis Nowra Page 0,10

I wondered where I were. Then I realised I were in the tigers’ lair. But there were no tigers. It were dark in the cave and gloaming outside. I seen Becky curled up on the floor of ferns, deep asleep. I were ’bout to say, Hello Becky when suddenly, like she heard something awful in a dream, she wakes up, her eyes wide and alert. I heard a noise too and the opening to the den went dark. It were one of the tigers. It came into the cave, a step ahead of the sunlight that poured in again. Becky whimpered like a pup and crawled away from the creature. It had a dead bird in its mouth.

The tiger dropped the bird on me lap. It were bloody and its head chewed, its belly tore open. I knew it were a present. Thank you, I said, and I swear, I swear on me mother and father’s heart, that it knew what I said cos it kind of nodded as if saying Eat it and trotted outside. The bird felt warm when I touched it and I dipped me finger into its bloody chest and licked the blood off me finger. It tasted rich like molasses. Becky made disgusted noises. It’s not cooked, she groaned. I told her I remember me father telling me stories ’bout how he ate snakes and cockroaches, so a bird were fine to eat. I were starving and the taste of blood made me feel even more hungry. I tried to pick at it with me fingers but I couldn’t get any flesh so I bit at its chest til I got some flesh and then chewed it. It felt sort of cooked cos it were still warm. Ugh! Ugh! Becky kept on saying, but it were fine to taste though hard to chew. I could feel the blood dribbling down me chin and for some reason it made me happy - I could feel me tummy filling up a little and that felt good. I gave the bird to Becky, who knocked it away. I picked it up and wiped the dirt from it. I told Becky she had to eat, but she shaked her head something frightful. As I chewed up more of the bird, pulling out feathers from between me teeth, Becky called me a cannibal. Aye, I am a cannibal, I grinned. Well, that were more than she could put up with and she skedaddled out of the cave on her hands and legs.

I ate some more and then crawled out of the den. Becky were sitting between the buttress roots of one of the two trees eating some grass and leaves. She were looking at her mother’s cameo and she were murmuring to herself words I did not hear. I thought I would play a joke on her, you know, make her laugh, so I silently crawled up behind her then made snuffling noises like a tiger. She jumped in fright. I laughed and she slapped me across the face. It stanged like mad. What was that for? I cried. She snarled like an animal. You sleep with them. You make noises like them! All I could say were that I liked the tigers and they didn’t hurt us. You like them more than your mother and father? she sneered, her words stanging me again. She jumped up like a Jack-in-the-box and said, I’m going home. She asked me if I were coming. I were still angry with her and shaked me head. She walked off in the direction of the setting sun, which I thought were the wrong way cos home were in the east. I knew that cos me father had teached me about the compass needle and where home were just in case I got lost. You’re going the wrong way, gink! I called out. She began to get smaller and smaller. I were cold and lonely so I crawled back into the cave wondering what to do. I knew Becky were going the wrong way but I had no idea where I were either. I gave up worrying cos I were still hungry and I started to chew on the bird again. Then after a time, oh, I don’t know how long, I heard a noise at the entrance of the cave. I thought it were the tigers but I seen it were Becky, her teeth chattering with the cold. Without a word, she crawled into the