The
Treasure of Squeaky Toy Island
Chapter 1
Ahrrrr!
'Twas a dark and stormy night aboard the pretty good ship Rawhide.
Aft on the wagging fantail stood Captain Snoopy, a steady paw on the
helm, guiding his edible...ah venerable craft over the sort of choppy
waves.
Not
your typical sea dachshund, (mine, maybe, but not yours), Captain
Snoopy was still no stranger to a good sea battle. He and his furry
crew had just narrowly escaped plunder by that most feared of
Wienerkings, Ernie the Red.
As
the ship rolled, Captain Snoopy showed no fear. Good thing he'd
packed his thunder shirt. Between howls of wind, and the howls of his
crew, Captain Snoopy could just about make out the dark furry figure
ascending the ladder-well.
Holding
a free paw above his eyes, Captain Snoopy bellowed, “Advance and
identify yeself!”
“Captain,
'tis I! Frankie LaFoot, the four-foot Pirate!”
“Ahoy
Bowsun Frankie! I trust our booty is safe in the hold!”
“Aye,
Captain. We're in the teeth of a boomin' Gale!”
Far
up on the prow, the paw-carved figuresnoot Anna Rose stared into the
endless sea, her brown, paw-painted eyes seeming to say, “Daddy
come catch me!”
Back
on the fantail, Captain Snoopy said, “Bowsun, muster the crew!”
“Aye,
Cap'n!”
Frankie
tried several times to hold the silver pipe with both paws, but after
failing on the third attempt, he simply raised his snoobido, and
cupped his paws over it as he howled “Ah, oowh-ah!”
Chains
rattled around necks, and paws trod across the decks. Captain Snoopy
looked down, and said, “Ahoy, mateys! There's fixing to be a gale
tonight, but we have to reach squeaky toy island tonight, before
Ernie the red! Navigator Muffin, what's our next landfall?”
“Blue
Platinum rock, Cap'n.”
“Ahr!
Ye didn’t say Blue Platinum Rock?”
“I
did, Cap'n.”
“Hold
your floppy ears, mateys, or we're going aground!”
Frankie
held his paws to his ears, and said, “We'll be blue-beered for
sure!”
Many
miles away (okay, the other end of the pond) was the craggy islet of
Blue Platinum Rock. Here lie the home of those dreaded of all sea
creatures, the flop-eared fishtails, also known as the furmaids.
These beauties of the sea would lure unsuspecting mariners to a
terrible fate on the rocky shore. And if they thought that was bad,
next morning's hangover was even worse. Never mix light beer with
Cheetos. But I digress.
Upon
the rock sat two fine maidens of the sea, Tasha and Puddles, keeping
a sharp lookout. Well, okay, Tasha was keeping a sharp lookout, while
Puddles tested the beer and Cheetos, making sure they were “safe”.
After
licking her cheesy paws clean, Puddles opened another blue-bottle
beer, and said, “You need one?”
“Nein!”
Puddles
looked at her watch and said, “No, quarter to eight. So, any ships
in the area?”
“I
see something.”
“What
do you see?”
Tasha
squinted through her spyglass, and said, “I can't tell. It's too
small.”
“No
wonder. You're looking in the wrong end.”
Embarrassed,
Tasha spun the telescope around, and said, “Now, that's something!”
She
handed the scope to Puddles, who looked through the eyepiece, and
said, “I see it, too.”
“What
is it?” , Tasha asked.
“It's...................................”
