Two overwhelming and disagreeable smells assaulted Fay\u2019s nose when the claw released her on the sand outside the store. The pickle smell was Barnaby whose arm had been clutched in Mr. Twicky\u2019s other claw-like hand. And the bloody apron, which she now found herself uncomfortably close to, reeked of rancid chicken fat.<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\u201cThe boys is gettin\u2019 a little rowdy,\u201d said Twicky.<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\u201cRowdy?\u201d sputtered Barnaby. \u201cThey\u2019re completely psycho! They\u2019re wackers!\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\u201cI think,\u201d panted Fay, \u201cthat \u2018Captain\u2019 Arg has lost control of his crew.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\t\tBehind them, at the Parsnips\u2019 store, a window smashed from the inside, and smoke billowed from the side door. Pirates, whooping and snarling, formed a ring around the building.<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\u201cChildren,\u201d called the frantic voice of Miss Parsnip. \u201cIt\u2019s time to go! I\u2019m sorry to say this exhibition has become a bit too realistic for safety sake!\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\u201cWhere are we going to go?\u201d asked Fay.<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\u201cAnywhere but here!\u201d shouted Mr. Arg as he dashed from the store and made a beeline for the shed they\u2019d started out in.<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\u201cFollow that man!\u201d cried Miss Parsnip.<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\u201cYou ain\u2019t kiddin\u2019,\u201d added Twicky. <\/p>\n
\n\t\tFay took off, with Barnaby, Miss Parsnip, and Mr. Twicky right behind.
\n\t\tAs they lunged into the shed, Fay slammed the door, and Mr. Twicky threw the bolt into place.<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\u201cSo now what?\u201d asked Fay. \u201cThey burn the shed down too?\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\u201cWe\u2019ll be french fries!\u201d screamed Barnaby.<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\u201cDon\u2019t care if they do, and don\u2019t care if they don\u2019t,\u201d growled Mr. Arg, \u201cso long as I find my piece o\u2019eight.\u201d He began frantically patting his jacket. \u201cGots to be here somewhere…stuck in the lining or something…\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\u201cYour pizza what?\u201d demanded Barnaby. <\/p>\n
\n\t\t\u201cPiece o\u2019eight boy! That accursed piece what was forged in that accursed furnace what got us here today! If I got the piece o\u2019eight I don\u2019t need that cast-iron hell hole!\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\t\tOutside the shed, Fay heard a gruff and mocking voice.
\n\t\t\u201cYou in there, Cap\u2019n? You\u2019re missing the paaaarrrrty…\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\u201cPiece o\u2019eight…piece o\u2019eight…,\u201d muttered Mr. Arg.<\/p>\n
\n\t\tWHAM! <\/em>Something heavy collided with the door, rattling the whole rickety shed.<\/p>\n \n\t\t\u201cGive yourself up!\u201d squawked Barnaby. \u201cMaybe they\u2019ll bargain!\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\tThe voices outside the shed grew louder. Evidently, the mob had abandoned the burning store and was regrouping here.<\/p>\n \n\t\t\u201cThe Captain\u2019s not here!\u201d yelled Fay, hoping to buy time. \u201cHe\u2019s on the ship!\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\t\u201cPiece o\u2019eight…piece o\u2019eight…\u201d Mr. Arg continued to mutter. He turned his jacket inside out and began to shake it.<\/p>\n \n\t\t\u201cYAAARGGG!,\u201d yelled a voice outside the door, \u201cMess wif\u2019 me an\u2019 I\u2019ll eat your eyeballs raw! We know the Cap\u2019n\u2019s in there!\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\tBOOM!<\/em> Something hit the door harder.<\/p>\n \n\t\t\u201cCap\u2019n?\u201d squeaked Mr. Twicky. \u201cYa\u2019 think it\u2019s the best time to be worryin\u2019 about money?\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\t\u201cI NEED MY PIECE O\u2019EIGHT!\u201d roared Mr. Arg who was now ripping the lining out of his jacket.<\/p>\n \n\t \t\u201cA piece of eight is money?\u201d asked Fay, as a thought crept into her head. \u201cAs in…a coin?\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t \t\u201cOh sure, oh yeah,\u201d said Barnaby sarcastically, \u201cI bet those psychos would be happy to leave us alone for…a COIN!\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\tMr. Arg stopped shredding his coat and glared at Barnaby. \n\t\tBASH!<\/em> The door started to creak.<\/p>\n \n\t\t\u201cMiss Parsnip!\u201d called Fay, trying hard not to panic. \u201cDo you still have my pirate coin?\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\t\u201cYour what, dear?\u201d asked Miss Parsnip.<\/p>\n \n\t\t\u201cMy pirate coin,\u201d repeated Fay. \u201cThe one you took away when I was fighting with Barnaby.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\tCRASH! <\/em> The door splintered and began to give way.<\/p>\n \n\t\t\u201cOh,\u201d said Miss Parsnip with a nod of recognition. \u201cYes, that. You know, dear, you could really use some anger management coaching.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\tMore wood cracked with a horrific squeal, and Fay saw Yellow Tooth, leering hideously at her through a dinner plate sized hole in the door.<\/p>\n \n\t\t\u201cHoney, I\u2019m home,\u201d he said. \u201cHope you set the table real pretty.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\tMiss Parsnip shook her head as if she disapproved of the face in the doorway and removed a coin from her purse. \u201cIs this what you\u2019re looking for dear?\u201d she asked. \u201cDo you think you could be more careful with it from now on?\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\tFay was certain there was no time for respectful behavior. She snatched the coin from Miss Parsnip\u2019s outstretched hand, and handed it to Mr. Arg. \u201cWill this help?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n \n\t\t\u201cBlow me over with a tin whistle!\u201d cried Mr. Arg. \u201cMe piece o\u2019eight! How\u2019d you…oh never mind that…\u201d<\/p>\n \n\t\tYellow Tooth\u2019s hideous face had disappeared from the hole, replaced by the butt end of a log, smashing into the door with full force. As the hole grew larger, Mr. Arg crouched and fingered a knothole in the wooden floor. \n\t\tThe log hit what was left of the door with a mighty whack. The door was gone. Mr. Arg dropped the coin into the knothole, and Fay knew that, once again, she was being sucked toward a tiny point in space–only this time, the face stretching and swirling behind her was pock-marked and had yellow teeth.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Two overwhelming and disagreeable smells assaulted Fay\u2019s nose when the claw released her on the sand outside the store. The pickle smell was Barnaby whose arm had been clutched in Mr. Twicky\u2019s other claw-like hand. And the bloody apron, which she now found herself uncomfortably close to, reeked of rancid chicken fat. \u201cThe boys is […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[10],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.emilygillespieclement.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/171"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.emilygillespieclement.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.emilygillespieclement.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.emilygillespieclement.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.emilygillespieclement.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=171"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/www.emilygillespieclement.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/171\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":173,"href":"http:\/\/www.emilygillespieclement.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/171\/revisions\/173"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.emilygillespieclement.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=171"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.emilygillespieclement.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=171"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.emilygillespieclement.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=171"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\n\t\t\u201cIt ain\u2019t just any piece o\u2019eight ya\u2019 guppy,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s an accursed thing…but it\u2019s the only thing!\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\t\t\u201cYou lubbers\u2019ll stand near me if you know what\u2019s good fer ya\u2019,\u201d he said distractedly.<\/p>\n