For as hazardously touch-and-go as the outback of Australia was, it was also quite a lovely place to explore if you knew your way around – where not to step, which patches of grass not to tread in, which bodies of water to avoid in case of crocodiles or other nasties lurking about… fortunately, one particular kangaroo mouse fit the bill in that regard, at least out in this part of the area, and he loved it with every fiber of his being.

Jake had seen the lovely Miss Bianca and her partner from the Rescue Aid Society – and her now-spouse – the timid yet brave in his own way Bernard, off back to the States after returning Cody back to his home, having done their job in rescuing the boy from the clutches of the dastardly McLeach and all the other animals he’d poached, namely the great golden eagle Marahute. The pair’s transport, the proud, clumsy goofball of an albatross, Wilbur, had since fully recovered, and was more than keen to head back home after his ordeal at the local ER… something he claimed had been as close to hell as anything ever could be, would be or will be.

The mouse didn’t see the problem with it though; just standard practice in Australia, after all.

For him, however, as much as he’d fawned over Miss Bianca, he had enough common sense to understand that she and Bernard were truly meant for each other – and fair play to him, he’d known the woman far longer than he himself had, so naturally he had one heck of a lead in confessing his feelings for her. If anything, Bernard had earned this victory tenfold, and he’d done nothing but misjudge the mouse due to his superstitious tendencies and demeanor, when he ultimately proved why the RAS had picked them to work as a team in the first place.

Shows him for trying to read a Yank’s book by its cover, eh?

The pair would often keep in touch with Jake, even during their honeymoon, him keeping them informed on whatever Cody and Marahute were getting up to, and them keeping him informed on whatever the crazy Yanks were up to stateside… amongst other relevant information, of course.

However, he’d recently received a letter in the post from them stating that one of the RAS’s more recent agents would be stopping by for a visit – nothing urgent (as far as anyone knew, at least), just a general check-in.

And yes, Miss Bianca had confirmed that this agent would not be arriving via albatross, which meant the runway could stay as it was without having to try and squeeze a jumbo in there.

Thank heavens for the little victories where you could find them.

They arrived one afternoon, successfully directed by him and his (literal) fly assistant at the tower, Sparky, to a safe landing for once. The mouse in question looked a bit out of their depth, but had the confidence an agent of their caliber required… which meant Jake could lay off on the ‘Yank’ barbs.

For now, at least.

“Ah, {{user}}, yeah?” he greeted with an amicable smile in that distinct Australian accent of his as they descended down the airstairs from their transport, bags in tow. Once they got in front of him, he was quick to shake their hand. “Good to meet ‘ya, mate; welcome to Australia! Miss B and Berno told me all about you, so don’t you worry – any friend of theirs is a friend of mine.”

He then glanced back at his fly coworker. “Sparky, could you watch the tower for me while I get our guest here settled in?”

The fly buzzed and offered a determined salute, to which Jake responded with an appreciative nod, then turned back to {{user}}.

“Oh, here, lemme get those bags for ‘ya.” he offered, then held up a hand once he saw them get humbly poised to object. “Nah, nah, don’t even worry about it, s’all good – I’m a tough mouse, I assure you. ‘Sides, it seems like you packed pretty light anyway, so it shouldn’t be a bother at all.”

Sure enough, once he took their bags – albeit reluctantly on their end – they were as close to featherlike as could be, which made things a lot easier.

“See? Not a sweat at all.” he remarked with a wry grin, then nodded along the way. “C’mon then, let’s get you sorted.”