No Birds Do

It's not far to Hay.

Margaret is considering stopping.

Does anyone else need anything? asks Margaret.

Not me, says Katherine.

Nor I, says Gaius.

Me, says Terence.

But no one else, says Margaret. 

Actually, I could do with some mints, says Katherine.

Then we'll stop for two minutes, says Margaret.

She pulls up outside an IGA.

Come on Terence, says Katherine. We'll have to hurry.

She and Terence get out and go into the store.

Katherine finds her mints straight away, but Terence can't find the coloured pencils.

We'll ask the assistant, says Katherine.

Terence runs up to the checkout assistant.

Where are the coloured pencils? asks Terence.

Aisle four, says the assistant.

Come on, Terence, says Katherine.

You go, says Terence. I want to ask some more questions.

All right, says Katherine, heading off to aisle four.

What questions? asks the assistant.

Do parrots come here? asks Terence.

No, says the assistant.

What if they had money? asks Terence.

Parrots don't need money, says the assistant. No birds do.

What if they had ten dollars tucked into their feathers? asks Terence.

That wouldn't happen, says the assistant.

Katherine returns with the coloured pencils.

The assistant scans them through, with the mints.

Nine dollars eighty, says the assistant.

Katherine pays. 

She and Terence leave the store. 

Here you are, dear, says Katherine, handing him the box of coloured pencils.

Margaret has already started the engine.

They get into the car.

Terence looks out of the window.

It would be good if a parrot looked in.

He would open the window and tell it where to find coloured pencils. 

Aisle four. And it wouldn't need money. No birds do.

Open your box of pencils, says Gaius. Let's see the colours.

Terence tears the box open.

There are twelve coloured pencils: Two yellow, one orange, one red, one pink, one purple, two blues, two greens and two browns.

Perfect! says Gaius. Two greens, two browns and two yellows. 

What about the red? asks Terence.

Not required for a green and golden bell frog. says Gaius.

What if it's eating a berry? asks Terence.

They don't eat berries, says Gaius. 

I'm sure they'd eat something that's red, says Katherine. A red butterfly, or perhaps a redback spider?

Perhaps. 

What delicious ideas.

Money Tucked Into Feathers

I wish I had coloured pencils, says Terence.

Well, you haven't says Margaret. Make the best of it.

If I had a parrot, my parrot would find coloured pencils, says Terence.

Where from? asks Katherine.

Where they were, says Terence.

Nonsense, says Margaret. A parrot wouldn't know where to find coloured pencils.

Perhaps the next town, says Gaius.

The next town is Hay, says Margaret, and we won't be stopping.

My parrot would be stopping, says Terence.

Indeed, says Gaius. You could send him ahead to locate coloured pencils. He could obtain them and rejoin us in Hay.

Don't you start, says Margaret.

I was merely conjecturing, says Gaius.

How would the parrot obtain the coloured pencils? asks Margaret.

We could have given the parrot some money, says Katherine.

Hah! says Margaret. And how would the parrot have carried the money?

A ten dollar note tucked into its feathers, says Katherine.

Terence is entranced, 

His parrot would have money tucked into its feathers, and would buy coloured pencils in Hay.

The parrot would wait for them in Hay.

Margaret would slow down and open her window.

No, not her.

Katherine would open her window.

No not her either.

Terence would open the back seat window. And Saint Roley would fly in, and drop the coloured pencils in Terence's lap.

Why did you need these? Saint Roley would ask him

To colour the green and golden bell frog in Gaius's notes, Terence would say.

Take care when colouring while the car is moving, Saint Roley would say. 

I'm always careful, Terence would say.

Which is true, in a way.

Not Killing a Fly

We must get going, says Katherine. It's a three hour drive to Narrandera.

Would you like me to take over? asks Margaret.

That would be nice, says Katherine. Do you know where we're staying?

Gateway Motel, says Margaret. I've already booked it.

A motel? says Gaius. 

Yes, says Margaret. A triple room. I hope you don't mind.

What's a triple room? asks Terence.

A room for three people, says Margaret. It's cheaper than a room for a family.

They walk back to Katherine's car.

Gaius is hoping there are three single beds in a triple.

Terence is counting the people.

Gaius, Katherine, Margaret and him.

That's more than three people.

Hey, says Terence. What about me?

You're small, says Margaret. You can sleep on a couch, assuming there is one.

Terence doesn't sleep, says Katherine.

I stay up all night, says Terence.

Katherine hands Margaret the car keys,

She nudges Terence.

What? asks Terence.

Katherine mimes holding a pencil.

Are you killing a fly? asks Terence.

Katherine whispers something to Terence.

Remember the pencil! says Terence.

Yes! Thank you, Terence, says Gaius. 

Margaret opens the boot. 

Gaius locates his backpack and feels around in the bottom for a pencil.

Yes. He has found one.

They all climb into the car.

Margaret starts the engine.

Soon they're back on the A20.

What did you want the pencil for? asks Katherine.

To highlight my notes on the green and golden bell frog, says Gaius.

I should like to see those notes, when you're done, says Katherine.

Certainly, says Gaius. Are you thinking of joining us in our frog observations?

Once I've seen all there is to see in Canberra, says Katherine.

Can I see the notes? asks Terence.

You can have the first page, says Gaius. There's a detailed illustration.

He hands Terence the first page of his notes.

This frog's black and white! says Terence.

You must imagine the colours, says Gaius.

What are the colours? asks Terence.

You should know this, says Margaret.  

Yes you should, says Katherine. What's the name of this frog?

Froggy? says Terence.

Proper name, says Margaret. 

Common name, says Gaius.

You've confused him, says Katherine. It's the green and golden bell frog.

I knew that, says Terence. Someone should colour it in.

That would be a fine use of your time, says Gaius. I don't suppose either of you ladies has thought to bring coloured pencils?

No, admit both the ladies.

Bumho....begins Terence. But remembers he's not allowed to say it.

So what happens now?

Ninety Percent Of Our Brothers

Gaius checks his phone for messages. 

Wonderful! Arthur has replied, says Gaius.

Does he remember the words of the poem? asks Katherine.

Let's see, says Gaius.

Arthur has sent a series of messages.

First message: OK get back to you

Second message: Time out scraped knee.

Dear me, says Gaius: I hope he's put something on it.

Third message: Saint Roley the Good. The frog one?

Fourth message: Saint Roley The Good/ Did He Eat us? No! Although He Could/ We Who Lost Ninety Percent of Our Brothers/ Through Development Schemes/ He shared With Us His Last Mollusc/ And We Shared Our Dreams/ We Wish Him Safe Journey/ Saint Roley the Good/ He Did Not Eat Us/ Although He Could.

There you have it, says Gaius. I knew Arthur would remember.

Ask him about his knee, says Katherine.

I suppose I should, says Gaius. 

He types: Thank you, Arthur. How is your knee?

But receives no immediate reply.

That was a good poem, says Terence. The green and gold bell frogs should win.

Good as it is, their poem isn't in our competition, says Katherine.

True, says Margaret. And how do we know they actually wrote it?

They would have dictated it, says Gaius. 

I miss Saint Roley, says Terence.

Have you managed to get that straw though the hole in your Ribena? asks Gaius.

No, that's why I need a parrot, says Terence.

How would a parrot help? asks Margaret.

Beak, says Terence.

Don't you have a claw? asks Katherine.

Yes, he does. Terence had forgotten his claw.

He jabs it into the foil-covered hole at the top of his Ribena.

Ribena squirts everywhere. 

Some drops even land in the brown Murrumbidgee.

As The River Flows Silently By

They leave Katherine's car and walk down to the banks of the Murrumbidgee.

They sit on the grass, under trees.

Margaret unwraps the rest of the sandwiches.

Gaius takes a large bite of apple.

What do I get? asks Terence.

This, says Gaius. taking something out of his pocket.

A Ribena.

Yay! says Terence, ripping the straw off the side. 

Take care! says Gaius. The new straws are made out of paper.

Okay, says Terence.

He stops ripping and proceeds to be careful.

Guess what, says Terence. 

What? asks Katherine.

Margaret told me her poem, says Terence.

Did she? says Katherine. 

It was only the first half, says Margaret. In fact,Terence was helpful.

Terence pokes the paper straw through the hole in his Ribena.

Or tries too.

Was he? asks Gaius. How so?

He gave me his opinion on whether I should use the first person, says Margaret. 

Did I? says Terence.

I see or you see, says Margaret.

A dog or a cuttlefish, says Terence. But it wasn't that sort of poem.

Are you sure you won't have a sandwich, Gaius? asks Margaret.

I won't, thank you Margaret, says Gaius. 

May we hear your poem, Margaret? asks Katherine.

Oh...why not, says Margaret. 

Katherine closes her eyes and leans back against a giant redgum. 

The Murrumbidgee flows silently by.

Margaret coughs and begins:

I see before me a landscape/ of horizontal limestone beds/ and calcareo-siliceous deposits/ in ochres and yellows and reds/ but nothing of green/ although fossils marine may be seen.

Bravo, Margaret, says Katherine. I like fossils marine.

Quamquam fossils, says Terence.

I toyed with the idea of quamquam fossils, says Margaret. But it seemed out of context.

Unless three of our poems were put together, says Katherine. Excluding mine. 

Everyone tries to remember Katherine's poem.

Yes! It referred to the fact that they were waiting for a message from Arthur.

Reminding Gaius that he should check his phone.

Three Apples

I thought we were eating the rest of our sandwiches, says Margaret.

We are, says Katherine, but let's buy three takeaway coffees, then choose a nice spot by the river.

While you do that, says Gaius, I'll find a supermarket, and purchase an apple.

Three apples, says Margaret.

Very well, says Gaius. 

He goes off.

He forgot to look for his pencil, says Terence.

Remind him when he comes back, says Margaret.

Katherine goes into the café and orders three coffees.

Margaret waits outside with Terence.

Mind if I run my poem by you? asks Margaret.

Do I have to run too? asks Terence.

We won't be running, says Margaret.

Okay, says Terence.

I'm not sure about the beginning, says Margaret. 

Try A dog has died, says Terence. That's what I do.

A dog has died? says Margaret.

It's not a question, says Terence.

It was, says Margaret. Why has it died?

It could be a cuttlefish, says Terence.

My beginning is not like that, says Margaret. Will you listen?

I'm listening, says Terence.

You see before you a landscape/ of horizontal limestone beds, says Margaret.

Woo! says Terence.

Or should it be I see? says Margaret.

Icy? says Terence.

I see a landscape before me, says Margaret. See the difference?

Yes, says Terence. I see.

I see before me a landscape/ of horizontal limestone beds, says Margaret. Does that sound better?

Yes, says Terence. Then what?

And calcareo-silicious deposits/ in ochres, yellows and reds, says Margaret.

That's good rhyming, says Terence. 

Katherine comes out with the coffees.

And Gaius appears in the distance with three apples in a compostable bag.

Always A Quamquam

Not far now to Balranald.

Gaius is looking forward to buying something to eat which is not a tomato.

Terence is waiting for Margaret to come up with a poem.

Margaret is trying to do it.

She has encountered a problem.

Not many words rhyme with calcareo-siliceous.

Except for words that will remind Gaius of tomatoes.

Such as delicious. And nutritious.

And she's not going there.

Perhaps there's no need for a rhyme.

Or she could break the words up, to invent her own rhymes.

Is it ready yet? asks Terence.

Not yet, says Margaret. I could do with a pencil.

Couldn't we all, says Gaius. I really must remember to get mine out of the boot when we get to Balranald.

I'll remind you, says Terence.

Thank you, says Gaius.

No one else wrote their poem with a pencil, says Terence.

What are you saying? asks Margaret.

Except you, says Terence. So it's cheating.

Does anyone else think it's cheating? asks Margaret.

Not really, says Katherine.

Nor me, says Gaius. A poem is better written down. It helps one remember.

And fiddle about with the endings, says Margaret.

I see much thought is going into your poem, says Gaius.

Perhaps too much, says Margaret.

Quamquam, says Terence.

Quamquam what? asks Margaret.

Quamquam you don't have a pencil, says Terence.

As luck would have it, they have now reached the outskirts of Balranald.

And minutes later, the middle.

Katherine pulls up outside a café. 

Pencil, says Katherine.

I'm reminding him, says Terence.

Go on then, says Katherine. I was just reminding you.

Remember your pencil, says Terence.

Thank you, Terence, says Gaius. 

Will this be sufficient to ensure that Gaius looks for his pencil?