Schmoo and the dinosaur

Hello, I’m Dash. Come and join me on a Fairyland Adventure. Today we join Schmoo in his search for a dinosaur. I think that’s going to be interesting. How about you?9

Where to begin? Hmm. Let’s start at the beginning I suppose. Allow me to introduce Schmoo. Cute isn’t he?

Schmoo is a desert brownie who lives in the sandy dunes of the Simpson Desert, in Australia. To be more precise, he lives in what humans call the Boulia region in the state of Queensland. Of course, he doesn’t know this. The wee folk don’t divide the world like humans do. Schmoo doesn’t know about borders or states or anything like that. Do you know about borders? Where do you live?

He does know about fences. Schmoo likes to sit on them and watch the world go by. Plus, he knows humans build fences that go as far as his little eyes can see. He tried to follow one once. Even after many moons of travelling, he never came to its end. Though he did see many wonderful sights. Just no end of the fence. Oh well.

Today Schmoo is looking for dinosaurs. He doesn’t know what they are, yet he heard some human children talking about them. And they sounded very interesting. A dark-haired boy had said, with much certainty, that dinosaurs were incredibly large. Larger than a human house and how they caste a large shadow on the ground. Schmoo could hardly believe that. Bigger than a human house? Were there such creatures?

The other boy had giggled and said they couldn’t be. They were small and lived underground. And that scientists dug them up. Dug them up? Schmoo wondered if they lived in burrows like he did. And if they did live in burrows, then why hadn’t he ever met one? Were they shy? Had he met one without knowing it? No. He would have known. 

A red headed boy interrupted the conversation and said that they were both wrong. That dinosaurs flew in the sky and had big teeth. Oh my, big teeth. Schmoo wondered why they needed such big teeth. After some thought, he decided they must have big teeth because they had big smiles. His mother always told him to show his teeth when he smiled. She said it made him look more handsome.

In the distance a bell rang, and all three boys went back inside. For a moment Schmoo was going to follow them. He wanted to know more about dinosaurs, but the building had screens on the windows which prevented him getting in. Schmoo thought about waiting for the boys, to ask them more questions, but he was too shy. Instead, he decided to track down a dinosaur on his own.

After a good night’s sleep, Schmoo woke early and ate a big breakfast of dune patties. The remaining few were tucked into his pockets for later. It was going to be a big adventure. Who knew how long it would take, and no-one liked being hungry while they were adventuring. Especially not Schmoo. 

The morning sun was just peeking over the far horizon as he stepped from the burrow. As it was early, the land felt cool, though soon, the sun would rise, as would the temperature. And when the sun reached it’s highest point in the sky, the land would feel like it was baking, like nardoo cookies in an open fire.

Even though he was used to the heat, Schmoo wished it would rain. Not just because he liked jumping in puddles and sliding down mud hills, though those things were fun. He liked it because the dry hidden seeds would burst from the ground, growing into lush green plants. Plants that would flower quickly, and cover the sand dunes with beautiful colours. When this happened it was like the desert changed into a different world. It looked different. It smelt different. It attracted so many different insects. To Schmoo, rain meant the start of a great party.

But there was no rain today. Not even a single speck of cloud in sight. Oh well, Schmoo didn’t mind. Clouds would have been a distraction. Besides, he had a mission. A mission to find a dinosaur. Whatever that was.

Starting on foot, Schmoo skipped along whistling a tune to himself. Surely a dinosaur taller than a house couldn’t be that hard to find in the red soiled desert. Unless the dinosaur was red too? Was that possible? Schmoo hoped not as that would make finding one even harder. He scanned the horizon. Nope. He continued to skip and whistle to himself.

A short time later Schmoo realised that the sun wasn’t as hot. Looking around he noticed that he was standing within a very large shadow. How odd, he thought. Schmoo skipped a little further then froze to the spot. A large shadow? 

‘A large shadow,’ he screamed to no-one in particular. Turning this way and that, he looked for the owner of the shadow. He saw no dinosaur. He saw no beast. All he saw was a small mountain. Schmoo flew over to it. Just to make sure it wasn’t a sleeping dinosaur.

‘Dang, Mr Mountain. I was hoping you were a dinosaur.’ He said to the silent mountain.

‘A dinosaur?’ A small voice said behind him. ‘How silly.’

Startled, Schmoo turned around. Behind him sat a small bird on a wisp of grass. He frowned. The bird looked like a wren, though the wrens where he lived were plain brown. This wren had a reddish tinge to it. Like the rust on the old abandoned cars, he had seen outside of town.

‘What are you looking at brownie?’ Asked the bird.

‘Sorry for staring. Are you a wren?’ He asked.

‘Yes, I am. Why?’ Responded the bird.

‘The ones where I live are just plain brown, but you are a beautiful reddish brown.’ He stated.

Pleased by the compliment, the wren puffed out its chest. ‘I am what they call rufous coloured. Some say reddish brown, others brownish red. It’s all the same.’

He laughed. ‘How wonderful. I’m Schmoo by the way.’

‘Nice to meet you, I am Yexler. I’m a grass wren.’ Spoke the bird. ‘Why did you want the mountain to be a dinosaur?’

This time Schmoo puffed out his chest showing his bravery. ‘I am on the hunt for a dinosaur. Some humans spoke of one, so I decided to look for it.’

Yexler looked down and swiped his foot across some grass tips. ‘I don’t want to sound silly but what is a dinosaur?’

Sighing, Schmoo spoke again. ‘To be honest, I don’t know. The human children made it sound amazing. So I thought, just maybe, I could find one.’

‘Hmmm,’ said Yexler in thought. ‘Do you have any clues?’

‘Yes,’ he said excitedly. ‘There were three humans and each had a different clue. The first was that it was incredibly large. Larger than a human house.’

‘I suppose the mountain did fit into that description.’ Agreed Yexler.

‘The second,’ he continued, ‘was that it was small and lived underground.’

‘Isn’t that clue the opposite to the first?’ Asked Yexler.

‘Yes,’ he nodded.

‘Well, I’m small but I don’t live underground.’ Spoke Yexler who then asked about the third clue.

‘The third clue was that it flew in the air and had big teeth,’ Responded Schmoo.

‘Hey, I fly! But I have a beak, not teeth. Plus I’m pretty sure I’m not a dinosaur. Do you think a dinosaur would know they were a dinosaur?’ Asked Yexler.

‘Yes,’ responded Schmoo confidently. ‘A dinosaur should definitely know they are a dinosaur.’

The pair nodded in agreement.

‘This mountain is the largest thing around here, and it’s not a dinosaur. I think we should move on to the second clue.’ Stated Yexler.

‘We?’ Schmoo asked.

‘Yes, we. I must come with you, for I really want to know what a dinosaur is too.’ Yexler spoke as if he had no choice.

Schmoo didn’t mind. Having someone to chat to was more fun than adventuring alone. So the two headed off to where Yexler thought there may be some burrows. Flying low over the red sandy desert, Yexler searched for a particular dune.  There, on it’s slope, hidden amongst the sandhill cane grass, were several small openings. The burrow entrances were well hidden amongst the grass. Schmoo stepped towards one. Looking back he noticed Yexler was not following.

‘Are you coming?’ He asked.

‘I can’t,’ responded Yexler. ‘Firstly, I’m a bird, and to escape something nasty I fly. I can’t fly in a burrow. Secondly, I’m a bird, and kowari live in that burrow. The kowari are the something nasty, that could eat me.’

‘Oh,’ he said. ‘I understand.’ Schmoo did understand, as no one wants to get eaten, but he had no idea what a kowari was. ‘I’ll go in and let you know.’

Yexler nodded in agreement, then sprung into a small shrub to watch the burrow entrance. After settling into place, Schmoo could barely see the bird amongst the dry leaves. With less confidence than before, Schmoo entered the burrow and followed the dirt tunnel. The tunnel was wide enough, and tall enough for him to walk freely. Reaching out, Schmoo ran his fingers along the walls. They were sandy at first then turned more to dirt. To his surprise the dirt got cooler the further he walked. He decided it was because the baking sun couldn’t reach this far underground.

Switching this way and that, the tunnel eventually opened into a large cavern. It had a refreshingly cool feel.  Like how he felt after a nice dip in a pond. Unable to see too well in the darkness, he cast a spell for a light globe. One sprung up in front of Schmoo, temporarily blinding him.

While waiting for his eyes to adjust, Schmoo heard some scuffling. Suddenly a little furry animal popped out and scuttled behind him. It hung desperately to his legs. In close pursuit were two larger fuzzy animals that stopped in front of him. They looked like mice but with bushier tails.

‘Who are you?’ Yelled one of them harshly.

‘I’m Schmoo, the brownie.’ He said in his brightest voice.

‘Step aside Schmoot Tooty, this doesn’t concern you.’ Said the other.

Schmoo told them that it wasn’t nice calling people names, especially ones they had just met. And that he was being nice introducing himself, and that they should do the same.

‘This doesn’t concern you Schmoot Poot. This is kowari business.’ Said the first.

‘Oh, so you are kowari. Hmmm.’ Responded Schmoo.

Curious, the two look at him. One speaks, ‘what do you mean, hmm?’

Schmoo wasn’t sure where he was going with this. All he knew was that he wanted them to stop terrifying the little animal behind him. So he continued, ‘I heard that the kowari were the bravest of hunters.’

‘We are,’ said the two in unison.

‘And that they can snatch a bird from the sky, and a scurrying lizard, without effort.’ He continued.

‘We can,’ responded the two.

‘And that they had the biggest hearts and always did what was right.’ Schmoo was forming a plan in his head.

‘We do,’ said the two in unison. They were liking these compliments and it showed by the smiles on their faces.

Now that they were in a better mood, Schmoo tried to think of how he could ask them to help him. 

‘Did you know, that it is told in the archives of Fairyland, that the first time you ever meet a brownie, and you grant them a request, they will owe you a favour.’ Schmoo hoped for the best.

‘A favour? What sort of favour?’ The two were curious.

‘A magical favour.’ He stated.

‘Really? Like right now?’ They excitedly asked.

‘Yes, but to be honest. A magical favour from a brownie is incredibly special. You really should think about it. But remember, you must grant the brownie a request first.’ He explained.

The two kowari debated the pros and cons of a magical favour. They weren’t quite sure what one was, yet it did sound special. In between the words, one, then the other, would look over before continuing the discussion. Finally the two nodded and turned to Schmoo.

‘We accept your offer of a favour. What is it you ask for brownie?’ The two stood tall. They may have been twins as they not only looked the same but acted and sounded the same.

‘Please leave the little one behind me alone.’ Schmoo made the simplest request.

The two glared, firstly at him, then at the fur ball behind him. Nodding, the two accepted the request, even though it made them unhappy. The only thing that cheered them was the thought of a magical favour. ‘Don’t forget you owe us!’ They yelled as they turned with a huff and went down the tunnel they had come from.

Finally Schmoo could turn and see who was behind him. To his surprise it was a tiny kowari. Way smaller than the other two, though it had big bright eyes.

‘Are you okay?’ He asked.

Twitching it’s whiskers and looking down the tunnel, the little kowari responded. ‘Yes, thank you. You are very kind. I am Anouk.’

‘Well, they weren’t very nice, were they.’ Schmoo also looked down the tunnel as he spoke for he didn’t trust the two.

In a small voice, Anouk spoke again. ‘They are my brothers, from the same litter.’

Schmoo couldn’t believe his eyes, the other two were so large, and this kowari was so tiny.

She continued. ‘You see the kowari are a carnivorous marsupial. We are meant to eat meat, and lots of it. Meat makes me sick in the tummy. I prefer seeds and flowers. They don’t hurt my tummy and they taste better. My brothers are mean to me because I am different.’

‘I like seeds and flowers,’ said Schmoo, ‘plus, I have a friend outside who does too.’

‘Thank you for saving me, but why are you down here?’ She tilted her head questioningly.

‘I was looking for a dinosaur.’ He responded.

Anouk cringed and her eyes darted around looking for the dinosaur. ‘Is it mean? Does it eat kowari?’

‘It’s okay, I don’t think the dinosaur is here.’ Schmoo spoke in his most soothing tone. ‘Why don’t you come with me, and my friend Yexler, in our hunt for one?’

Anouk considered the request, and looked like she was going to say no, until she heard her brothers snickering in one of the tunnels. ‘Sure,’ she said, ‘it couldn’t be more worse than being here, with them.’

So Schmoo and Anouk walked up the tunnel that he had entered through. She asked if he was worried about the favour he owed her brothers. He said that even though he made up the legend, he would still grant them a favour. As Fairyland magic could only be used for good, so no matter what the brothers asked, the magic would flip it around and make it good. The thought made her smile.

Reaching out, Schmoo’s fingers could feel the walls slowly becoming warmer. It meant they were approaching the entrance where he had left Yexler. As she got closer to the surface, Anouk stopped looking over her shoulder for her brothers. Schmoo started to relax more too. When they could see the light at the end of the tunnel, she tugged on his arm.

‘Schmoo?’ She said.

‘Yes Anouk. What’s the matter?’ He responded.

‘Kowari are nocturnal.’ She answered.

‘Nocturnal?’ He was confused.

‘Yes, we normally only go out at night.’ She looked hesitant to go towards the light.

‘Does the sun burn you?’ Schmoo asked not knowing why an animal would only go out at night.

‘No, silly.’ Anouk giggled a little as she spoke. ‘Our eyes work best at night. In the light we don’t see as clearly.’ 

‘It won’t get dark for a little while,’ said Schmoo, ‘maybe you can hold my hand till it is. I can guide you.’

She smiled. ‘That is very kind of you. If it’s okay I’ll just stick close to your leg.’

Schmoo agreed, so the little kowari walked closely next to him. Her fur tickling his leg as they moved. When they stepped out of the tunnel, Schmoo rubbed the sun’s glare from his eyes. Suddenly, he heard a squeal from Yexler.

‘What is it?’ He asked in a panic, unsure of what the problem was.

‘You brought a kowari to eat me!’ Squealed the bird.

He was about to laugh until he realised Yexler was serious. ‘No, no. This is Anouk. She only eats seeds and flowers. I promise. And she wants to search for the dinosaur with us.’

‘Is that the truth?’ Yexler squinted at the just as terrified kowari.

‘Yes! Meat makes my tummy icky. I can only eat plants. My favourite is the Mitchell grass seeds.’ She explained.

‘Ooo, mine too.’ Said Yexler forgetting about being scared. ‘Have you tried tumbleweed seeds? They are hard to catch but have a nice zing to them.’

‘No I haven’t,’ Anouk said. ‘I’ll definitely give them a try.’

Schmoo was glad his new friends were getting on, but he still hadn’t found his dinosaur and they were running out of clues.

‘Okay friends. There is only one clue left in our hunt for a dinosaur.’ He said. ‘It flies and has big teeth.’

‘I don’t know any birds that have big teeth.’ Said Yexler.

‘I heard my brothers talking about something with big teeth at a waterhole nearby, but I don’t know if it flies.’ Added Anouk.

He looked at them both. ‘Well it’s the best idea we have. Plus, I’m thirsty and could go a swim, as I’m all dusty from travelling.’

Everyone agreed so they headed off to the waterhole. Thankfully the sun had passed its peak and was lower in the sky. Things were cooling off a little. The three chatted all the way and laughter flowed up from their little group. They were having so much fun, they nearly forgot where they were going. 

Schmoo’s mother had taught him about the water in the Great Artesian Basin. Surely the waterhole was part of that system. And even though the natural springs were all hidden away in sneaky locations, she had told him how to find them.

The Great Artesian Basin is like a very big underground sink that catches water from all over the desert. It funnels the water underground and lets it pop up where it’s needed. Sounds amazing doesn’t it? Well in truth, the fairies work hard to make sure it all works. The wee folk call them water fairies. I think humans may call them plumbers? You know, the people who turn up when the water isn’t flowing or if its flowing into the wrong spot! Like on your feet when it shouldn’t.

Using his knowledge, Schmoo guided the others to where he thought the waterhole should be. It took a while but eventually they reached a small raised rocky area. It did not look like much, just a few reddish coloured rocks jutting out of the ground. Walking over to it, Schmoo placed his hand on a rock. The others watched on fascinated. Nodding to himself, Schmoo kept moving and touching the rocks.

He circled back and forth for a short while, then yelled, ‘follow me,’ to the others. At that moment he slipped through a crack in the rock. The others followed hesitantly. As they exited the crack on the other side, they saw a vast cavern with a deep pool of water, sun shining through cracks in the rocks above, lush green plants growing around the edges, and reeds standing tall in the water. Neither Yexler or Anouk could believe their eyes. It was a hidden oasis.

As Schmoo approached the water, desperate for a sip, he froze. On the far side of the pond two bright yellow eyes appeared on the surface. A short distance in front of them a small green snout popped up. He gasped. Anouk gasped. Yexler squealed.

The yellow eyes sank into the water with its snout. The friends all looked at each other.

‘What was that?’ Asked Yexler.

Anouk shrugged while Schmoo searched the water with his eyes. Closer, in some reeds, he saw the two eyes appear. And then the snout. Trying to remain calm he asked, ‘Who’s there?’

The eyes just blinked. Then ripples formed around the snout as the creature moved towards the trio.

‘We mean you no harm,’ he said in a slightly louder voice.

Moving towards them, it’s snout leading the way, the creature’s body rose up from the water. A rough leathery back could be seen, as well as a long thick swishing tail. As it got even closer, they could see it’s four webbed and clawed feet. Yexler squealed. Anouk squealed. Schmoo tried to remain calm. It wasn’t easy. It took him a moment to realise what the animal was. By the time he had, it’s whole long body was in front of him.

In a quiet voice Anouk said, ‘Please do not eat us.’

Yexler nodded in agreement. Schmoo nodded too, as the beast’s powerful jaw opened. They all saw a row of very large, sharp, teeth.

The animal saw their fear and spoke. ‘I am not here to eat you. I have been alone in this waterhole for a very long time and am surprised to have visitors.’

‘Why are you alone?’ Asked Schmoo.

‘Many moons ago there was a tremendous storm. So big, the land filled with water. I got confused and went the wrong way. Then I became lost. Once the storm was finished, and everything returned to normal, the water disappeared except for this little waterhole. I can’t walk long distances, so I stayed.’ Said the animal.

Nodding, Schmoo spoke again. ‘Are you a crocodile?’

‘Yes,’ said the creature, happy that someone knew what he was.

‘Don’t they like saltwater?’ Asked Anouk.

‘I’m a freshwater crocodile. Not as angry, or as bitey as my salty cousins. See,’ the crocodile pointed to his nose, ‘my nose is way narrower too.’

The three friends nodded, though in truth they were still confused, as none had ever seen a crocodile before. Schmoo didn’t want the crocodile to feel uncomfortable so he told him about their adventure to find a dinosaur. The crocodile was very interested in their journey, so Schmoo told him about the clues and what they had and hadn’t found.

‘The first clue was something very large.’ Schmoo started. ‘The second was that it was small and underground. And the final clue was that it flew and had big teeth.’

‘Well, nothing can be all of those things at the same time. Though, between us four, we cover all the clues.’  The crocodile spoke confidently. ‘I am large and have big teeth. Anouk lives underground, Yexler flies, and Schmoo, you are small.’ 

Schmoo laughed. ‘You are right, but we are not dinosaurs.’

‘Yes,’ the crocodile paused, ‘we are not dinosaurs but I have ancestors who lived when dinosaurs were alive.’

‘Really?’ The three friends spoke excitedly, intrigued by the crocodile’s words.

Zooter, as he called himself, told the trio about how dinosaurs no longer existed. That humans dug up their bones and wondered about their life. He also explained how his very own relatives had dinosaur friends, as they lived at the same time, which was a very, very, long time ago. Millions, if not billions, of years ago. The stories which had been passed down through his family were truly amazing, but, he was sad that no-one ever wanted to hear them. 

‘We may not have found a dinosaur,’ said Schmoo, ‘but I’m glad we found you. We’d love to hear your stories.’ 

The other two agreed.

‘Would you really like to hear my stories?’ Asked Zooter.

The three friends nodded in agreement then Anouk spoke. ‘But first, let’s have a swim!’

The four new friends spent the remainder of the daylight swimming and splashing in the water. Zooter gave rides on his back and head, playfully threatening to dip the others under. Their laughter echoed in the cavern.

As the sun set slowly, Zooter asked if they would all like to stay overnight. It sounded exciting so they all agreed. Zooter even promised to tell some stories, and if they were hungry, he had some sweet river grass stashed away which would make a great snack.

Anouk, her eyes wide in the dark, wanted to stay up all night chatting about the adventure, but the others became tired. Their eyelids were unwilling to stay open. So one by one they drifted off to sleep.

As Schmoo’s eyes closed for the night, he realised that he may not have found his dinosaur but he had made three new friends. Normally he would have been sad that he had not found what he was looking for, but the journey had been fun. In his slumber, he dreamt of adventures the new friends would have.

What a wonderful adventure. Schmoo made so many wonderful new friends. And saw some amazing places. Do you like to go on adventures? I know I do. And, yes, having someone join you on an adventure, always makes it better.

Don’t forget to join me again! See you soon.