twenty

Pirates!

Rosy and Sylva looked at each other in dread. They had read about Captain Hook and his terrible pirate crew in the book called Peter Pan. They knew just how horrible pirates could be.

“Eee lalee!”

“Don’t be scared, Squeakie,” said Rosy, her voice rising just a little in fear. “We’ll keep you safe from the pirates.” She turned to Sylva. “Look, Sylva. I’ll go warn Poppy. You take the fairy carrier off my back so I can—”

“We don’t have time for that!” said Sylva.

“You’re right,” said Rosy. “We’ve got to get Squeakie out of danger now.”

“You’ll have to fly to the palace to tell Queen Mab what’s happening,” said Sylva. “And I’ll take care of Poppy and Lucky.”

“Be careful, Sylva!” Rosy gave Sylva a quick, fierce hug and flew off, faster than Sylva had ever seen her.

Now to keep Poppy and Lucky safe from the pirates, thought Sylva. And me too!

Sylva kept an eye on her best friend up in the spruce tree. Poppy must not have seen the pirates yet. Her gaze was fixed on the tall grass, where Lucky was playing hide-and-seek. Sylva flew up to her as quietly as she could.

“Poppy!” she whispered.

If Poppy hadn’t been so good at balancing, she might have fallen off, such was her surprise and joy at seeing her best friend flying toward her.

“Sylva!” cried Poppy. “I’m so happy you’re here!”

“Oh, Poppy, I’m so, so sorry!” said Sylva. “Can you forgive me, please?”

“Forgive you?” Poppy said. “I was the one who was wrong. Can we still be best friends?”

“Yes! Oh yes, please!” Sylva and Poppy hugged each other hard. It was so good to be friends again! “Oh, I missed you so much, Poppy!”

Then Poppy looked down from the branch. “Do you see Lucky down there?” she asked. “I would have flown down to pick her up, but those sailors coming ashore . . . they gave me a chill.”

“I’m glad you didn’t. Do you know what kind of sailors they are?” asked Sylva.

Poppy looked at the rowboat as it came closer and closer. She studied the two villainous-looking rowers.

“They’re not—”

“Yes, they are!” said Sylva. “They’re pirates. And they’re here to steal treasure!”

“Oh no!” said Poppy. “And look—they’re already ashore. We’ve got to act quickly to get Lucky out of danger. Ourselves, too!”

“Shh . . . ,” said Sylva. “Those pirates are saying something. Let’s listen.” It may save us, she thought. Both fairies sat perfectly still as they leaned in to hear the pirates.

“This fog don’t please me, Mr. Leakey. It don’t please me one bit,” said the taller pirate as he and his mate unloaded the rowboat onto the shore of Pirates’ Cove. Then he wiped his nose on his sleeve.

“Yuck,” said Sylva.

“He looks like the captain,” Poppy whispered.

“I don’t like the fog neither, Cap’n Sinker,” said his companion. “But where be the treasure?”

“One’s called Sinker and the other’s Leakey!” said Poppy, laughing as quietly as she could. “They can’t be very good sailors!”

“Or pirates!” said Sylva. She was laughing too. “We’ve got to keep quiet, Poppy. Let’s hear what they’re saying.”

“This fog be as thick as pea soup. Just like the soup me dear old ma used to make,” said Captain Sinker. “And the same color, too. WAAACHOO!”

“What a sneeze!” said Sylva.

“Your ma warn’t much of a cook, then,” said Mr. Leakey.

Captain Sinker sighed. “No, she warn’t.” He coughed loudly. “ACK ACK ACK!”

“That pirate captain has a bad cold,” said Sylva. “Next time he sneezes, let’s scoop down and get Lucky. Then we’ll fly away home!”

“Got it!” said Poppy.

“Ma is the reason I ran away to sea, bless her,” said the pirate captain. He was poking around in the grass, not too far from where Lucky played. Poppy and Sylva held their breath. “Between that soup . . . and her ghost stories.” Captain Sinker shuddered. “She told me such bedtime stories about wee ghosties who came out in the fog!” He looked around at the fog rolling in on the cove. “Very much like this fog here.” The captain’s voice was shaking. “Ma said that thinking about ghosties would help me get to sleep.”

“Nice mother,” said Mr. Leakey, very quietly.

“I be ever so afraid of the wild ghosties,” said the captain in a small voice. He sniffed loudly. Then he pulled himself together. “But even this fog won’t keep us from seizing our treasure, Mr. Leakey,” he said, rubbing his hands.

“Will there be gold for all on Sheepsferry?” asked Mr. Leakey.

“It’s Sheepskerry, you jackanapes,” the captain roared. He wiped his nose on his sleeve again. “And this treasure be greater than gold. WAAAACHOOO!”

“Let’s go!”

Sylva and Poppy held hands and flew down from the tree branch. They landed right next to Lucky and picked her up together. She was not going to get away this time.

But at that very moment, as the two fairies took flight with Lucky in their arms, Captain Sinker’s eyes watered. His nose itched. And he sneezed his biggest sneeze of all. “WAAAAACHOOOOOO!”

The captain reached for his sleeve and unfurled a

great

red-and-white

polka-dotted

handkerchief.

And Lucky saw him do it.

“Lucky! No! No!”

Lucky leaped out of the best friends’ arms and ran straight toward the captain.

“Mew! Mew!”

“What’s this?” cried the captain when he saw the kitten streaking toward him. “A pretty kitty for our ship?”

Lucky thought the captain wanted to play—until the captain grabbed her by the scruff of her neck and tossed her into his pirate chest.

“Mow! Mow! Mowwww!”

“You can stay in that trunk till we get back to the Bilgewater,” he said to Lucky in a terrible voice. Sylva and Poppy were terrified.

“And once you be aboard, my pretty kitty, you can eat up all our rats.” He laughed his nasty laugh. “Unless they eat you first.” He slammed the trunk closed with Lucky inside. “It’s a pirate’s life for you, my pretty,” he said. “A pirate’s life for you.”