At the base of Mount Taranaki they found a phone box and called the minister to arrange for an appointment.
“Please minister, we need your help. Can we meet with you tomorrow on our way back to Australia? It’s really, really important!”
He agreed. Chloe then called Frank and asked if they could stay another night. Of course he said yes. Chloe and Joey waited for a bus to Frank and Dottie’s house. They couldn’t wait to share all their adventures with them, especially meeting Kiwi!
They arrived as the sun was setting. After greeting Frank and Dottie and having dinner, Chloe asked if she could call her mum in Melbourne. Dottie called the number for her and handed her the phone. Nobody was home so she left a message.
“Mum, it’s me, Chloe. Sorry I haven’t called you for a few days, it’s a bit difficult to find phones sometimes. Everything is OK and we will be on a plane back home tomorrow afternoon. Please tell Mrs Johnson that Joey is fine and not to worry about anything. See you soon. I love you.”
Chloe yawned. She was very tired from all her adventures in the forest and went to bed early. Tomorrow she and Joey would head off to Auckland where they would meet the kind minister.
They said goodbye for the last time to Frank and Dottie, who had been so kind to them. It really helped having somewhere to stay on the way. And Frank and Dottie enjoyed their company and took lots of photos.
When Chloe and Joey arrived in Auckland, the minister’s secretary was waiting at the bus stop for them. She had a sign saying ‘Minister for Environment’ so Chloe knew it was her. She was wearing a very expensive perfume that reminded Chloe of violets. They rode to the minister’s office together in a special black limousine. It was so cool - there was even a television in the back on which Chloe could watch New Zealand’s favourite TV shows!
At the minister’s office, the kind minister asked how he could help.
Chloe replied “Kiwi told us that if people keep killing wildlife and destroying their homes and not caring about them, there won’t be any wild animals left in the future! I am angry because the mean minister in Victoria won’t help find a safe home for Joey’s family. Why doesn’t he understand that kangaroos all love their families and don’t want to die?
Chloe suddenly remembered another thing Kiwi had said: “Also can you tell him that if he doesn’t help save kangaroos then what will his children think if they can’t see any kangaroos hopping around when they grow up? It’s his job to look after the kangaroos. The children in Epping want to know why isn’t he doing his job properly!”
“Well, it’s very difficult but I promise to try. I can’t make him do anything though. I suggest you talk to the newspapers and go on TV. I can arrange all that for you.”
“Thank you, Mr Minister” said Chloe. As she was leaving she turned and said one more thing “It is so important that we don’t wait to start caring about our kangaroos until it is too late, as you have waited until it was almost too late for your kiwis. Please, please do your best!”
The kind minister looked at Chloe, saw her sincere heart and tears came into his eyes, thinking of his own children and how much he loved them. A little smile came over his face.
Within an hour there were more TV and newspaper reporters outside the building who wanted to know about their adventure.
“Did you meet a kiwi? What was it like? What did he say?” they all asked at once.
“It was wonderful. He was very kind. But it was very sad to leave him because he said even though everyone in New Zealand was trying hard he was still worried his species might die out because people started caring too late. He wanted us to ask this very important question: ‘Do people really want to live in a world without wild animals? If they don’t then it’s very important to make space for animals – every single one counts. Animals love their families, they love their lives, they don’t want to suffer and they don’t want to be shot any more.’ This is the message Kiwi gave. All around the world the animals are crying because they are losing their homes and families. Kiwi spoke not only for all the kiwis, not only for all the kangaroos, but for all the animals everywhere.”
The reporters were very interested and took lots of photos, especially of the dark red backpack that Joey was wearing. They wanted to see what was in his backpack so Chloe showed them. “He likes to eat freshly picked wild grass, organic muesli, carrots, sliced red apples, and drink a little water, he doesn’t need very much” she said as she handed him some apple slices. Joey took them with his paws and put them delicately in his mouth. Crunch, crunch! He so loved sweet, juicy apples.
The reporters thanked them. The next day on the front page of all the newspapers was a picture of Chloe and Joey wearing their backpacks, with Joey eating his apple slices. The entire message from Kiwi was also printed. And all over the world millions of people were looking at their computer screens and reading the news about Chloe and Joey on the Internet.
Chloe bought a copy of all the newspapers and put them under her arm as there was no space in her backpack. It was a big wad of newspapers!