Five On Treasure Island

Five young pirate friends have an adventure of a life time.

“Ahoy, maties. I am Captain Hook. You are my pirate crew.” Jamie loved the new pirate cartoon on Netflix. “We’re going to Treasure Island to retrieve my chest of gold doubloons.”

His four friends, Paul, Bonnie, Julie, and Nancy were into Jamie’s make-believe play as much as he was. Paul wore a homemade eye patch he nudged into place before waving his stick sword. “Blimy, captain, there be whispers that evil Captain Red Beard and his band of cutthroats hunt us for the map.”

All five of them hissed and ground their teeth. “There is no time to waste.” Captain Hook urged his small band on. He led the way to the raft they’d made. It proudly displayed a homemade black skull and cross bones flag flying in the early Saturday morning breeze.

“Cast off, ye lubbers.” Hook settled onto the captain’s chair.

“Aye, aye, captain,” Paul untied the rope to the bobbing raft and leaped aboard. The others barely had time to jump on before the current caught it.

“We’re off to Treasure Island,” Hook crowed, waving his map. Seagulls cried overhead, demanding scraps of food from the kids. “Here. Catch and be quiet or Red Beard will know we are on the river,” Bonnie tossed day-old french fries from McDonald's into the air.

This drew even more birds swooping down into the action. “Look. Behind us,” Hook pointed with the cast on his broken arm. He’d used duct tape to connect a bent butter knife for a hook onto it. “Red Beard. Set the sail.”

Red Beard, better known as Kevin, waved at them from his dad’s flat bottom fishing boat. He was the leader of the big boys in the neighborhood. They liked to tease and bother the Jamie’s younger group.

Thunder roared above everyone’s heads as lightning lit up the sky. Rolling mushroom shaped clouds grew, hiding the sun. “We’re saved,” Hook laughed. Warm rain shot down from the sky, “Red Beard will be kept busy bailing out his boat. They won’t see which island we land on.”

The crew took off wet sailor pirate hats made from newspapers and danced on the wobbly raft, laughing as one, then another, nearly fell off into the slow moving stream. “There Tis, Land ho,” Hook moved the raft towards a small island with the steering oar. Several other islands dotted the widening river. This one had the group’s handmade clubhouse on it. It was a secret place Red Beard had yet to find.

“You buried the treasure here?” Paul felt confused. “When did you do that?”

“And why?” Bonnie asked. She was Jamie’s twin sister and thought she knew everything he did.”

Julie got busy handing out the backpacks everyone had brought eat lunch from and to carry the treasure away “Let him talk.”

“Wait until you see what the treasure is.” Hook would say no more. He hitched up his pants before leaping to the sandy shore as the raft slid onto the island’s edge.

“Footprints before ours, Hook.” Paul kicked sand over them. “They lead to our castle.” There was a hand painted sign on the clubhouse that said ‘Castle’ in case anyone had any doubts.

“What are you kids doing here?” A gruff grown-up voice demanded from inside the building.

“That’s our clubhouse. You are trespassing, mister.” Hook raged from a safe distance away.

“You better leave our treasure alone,” Nancy shouted. Bonnie clapped a hand over her friend’s mouth, too late. The word was out.

Rocks began raining toward the pirate band, hurled from those stored in the clubhouse. “Go away. Possession is nine tenths ownership.” A dark bearded figure moved back and forth from the club doorway as more rocks thudded closer.

“It’s that homeless guy lurking around our house at night,” Bonnie had better eyes than any of her friends. “I recognize his beard. Remember how mean he was?” The man had kicked at Bowser, the family dog, when Bowser had barked at him to go away.

“He was looking through one of our windows as Dad was paying bills from our strong box.” Hook said. “He wanted to steal it.”

Everyone else in the family thought he did, when it went missing,” Bonnie looked at her brother with new interest. “Is that the treasure? Did you take it for safe keeping, and now the thief has it?”

Hook looked worried. “We have to get it back.”

“How?” Bonnie and Paul shouted at the same time, moving back from falling rocks. Julie and Nancy startled throwing them back.

“Oh,oh. More trouble.” Julie was looking back at the shore. “Red Beard and his nasty crew found us after all.” Their flat bottom boat hung low in the water. A shout of delight came from the half submerged craft.

“They are going to take our raft. We’ll never get back.” Julie cried out.

“They’re coming after us first.” Hook led the way to safety, clambering up a rocky hill with some weathered large boulders that hid a cave. He’d stockpiled supplies as a backup plan.

Down below The homeless guy and Red Beards crew were battling it out. Lightning stopped that quick. One nearly struck Red Beard. Another hit the clubhouse, setting it on fire.

The fight was forgotten, Red Beard, his crew, and the homeless man got on the raft and pushed off.

“How will we get home?” Nancy wanted to know. Hook smiled and pulled out his cell phone.

The fire died down by the time her parents arrived in their fishing boat. Hook had the fire proof strong box in his hands. Jamie had left a note with his dad about why he’d taken the strong box. His dad had okay’d it for now. It was a holiday weekend and banks were closed.

“Nice reward,” Paul crowed. Jamie’s father had paid to have a clubhouse shaped like a castle built on Treasure Island and stocked it with all kinds of hidden goodies. Treasure maps gave hints where to find them.

Contest Prompt

Write a short story or poem about entitled "Five on a Treasure Island" about five children who get stranded on an island..}