This one is set after the first season episode 'It's Magic'
The Casket
Skipper was coming up the path that overlooked the lagoon with an armload of firewood. He looked down and saw Gilligan at the water's edge fishing. As he watched he noticed the line tighten indicating that Gilligan got a bite.
"Hey Skipper," Gilligan called up to him. "I got a bite!"
Skipper ran up the path, dropped the firewood at the base of a tree and arrived next to Gilligan just in time to see a large crate on Gilligan's line float around the bend and into the lagoon. Gilligan and Skipper looked at each other.
"Well, come on reel it in. There might be something useful inside," Skipper replied hoping for something that could get them off the island.
Gilligan reeled the crate in and once it reached shallow water it became difficult to continue to reel in. Gilligan and Skipper walked to the water to carry it in. They got on either end of the crate and lifted.
"Boy, this sure is heavier than it looks," Gilligan huffed as he struggled to keep hold of the crate.
"I'll say," Skipper replied also struggling to hold the crate up.
They finally pulled it further onto the beach and put it down. They got all the seaweed off of it and saw faded writing on the lid.
ADD
MON
FUN
HOM
They looked at each other and shrugged.
"Let's open it," Gilligan replied. "Maybe it is something fun!'
Skipper rolled his eyes and took out the hammer he had been using earlier from his pocket. He used it to pry open the lid. Once he had the lid in his hands the sides collapsed to reveal the contents of the crate: a casket. Their eyes widened in horror and Skipper took a step back as Gilligan jumped behind him and peered over his shoulder.
"T t this must have been going to a a funeral home," Skipper gulped and stuttered.
"You don't think there is anyone inside do you," Gilligan squeaked.
"Well, there is only one way to find out," Skipper replied hesitantly.
They looked at each other and took a slow step back towards the casket. They covered their eyes with their hands and Skipper lifted the split lid and looked in between his finger and sighed with relief.
"It's okay Gilligan you can look its empty," Skipper replied in relief.
"Thank goodness," Gilligan replied looking in the casket at the white bedding as a shiver ran down his spine.
"I'm going to go get the Professor to help us bring this back to camp. Stay here," Skipper replied and took off to find the Professor.
Gilligan leaned against the open casket and put his hand in his pockets as he waited. After a minute he heard the girls' voices in the distance and got an idea.
Mary Ann and Ginger were in their bathing suits and were on their way to the lagoon to sun bathe. Mary Ann was telling Ginger about something that happened to her once on her uncles' farm.
"So I look all over for that sick little cat and finally spot him at the base of a tree when all of a sudden this huge hawk flies down and scoops him up," she says as they reach the lagoon.
Ginger gasps!
"I know it scared the day lights out of me," Mary Ann replies.
"No, look at that," Ginger whispers pointing.
Mary Ann looks to where she is pointing to and gasps. There 10 feet in front of them on the beach is a casket with pieces of crates around it. They look at each other and slowly approached it.
"Do do do you think there maybe a body in there," Mary Ann asked nervously?
"I don't know," replied Ginger. "But there is only one way to find out!"
Ginger lifts up the split lid and as she does someone in a sheet rises up and moans. The girls jumped into each others arms and screamed as Gilligan pulled off the sheet and laughed.
"Gotcha," he replied laughing.
"Ohhhhh, Gilligan," the girls replied angrily stamping their feet.
"Sorry, I couldn't resist," Gilligan replied smiling.
"Well, resist this" Ginger said as she pushed Gilligan back down, closed the lid and both she and Mary Ann jumped up and sat on top of the casket. Gilligan kept knocking on the lid.
"Come on Ginger, Mary Ann," he called from inside. "Let me out!"
"Not until you learn you lesson," Ginger called and they both giggled.
Inside the casket Gilligan crossed his arms and huffed. He wasn't scared because if he panicked he would likely have a panic attack. He continued knocking on the lid.
"Well, it certainly tops the list of weird items to float into the lagoon," the Professor replied as he followed the Skipper back to the lagoon.
"Well it definitely freaked us out that's for sure," Skipper said as they reached the lagoon and saw the girls sitting on top of the casket.
"Girls, what are you doing," the Professor asked as they approached?
"Where's Gilligan," Skipper asked though he had a feeling he already knew.
The girls looked at each other, smiled then jumped off the casket. Gilligan got the lid open, scrambled out of the casket and hid behind the Skipper and Professor.
"Girls, that wasn't a very nice thing to do," the Skipper chastised.
"Yes, what if Gilligan had panicked and then wasn't able to breathe," the Professor agreed.
"We're so sorry, Gilligan," the girls said.
"No, it's okay I've been through worse," Gilligan replied. "Besides it was my fault in the first place."
"Well, we might as well bring this back to camp and figure out what to do with it," the Skipper replied.
"I'll help I carried heavier things than this on the farm," Mary Ann replied.
So Ginger walked ahead as Skipper, Professor, Gilligan, and Mary Ann each got a hold of a corner of the casket and slowly walked it back to camp. They made it to camp just as the Howells were coming out of their hut. One look at the casket and they nearly jumped right out of their skins.
"Good heavens," Mrs. Howell exclaimed! "Where on Earth did that come from?"
"It washed ashore in the lagoon," the Skipper answered as they put the casket down in front of the supply hut.
"There isn't anyone inside is there," Mr. Howell asked as he and his wife took a step back.
"Don't worry there isn't," the Skipper reassured them.
"So what are we going to do with it," Mrs. Howell asked?
"That's what we're trying to figure out," the Skipper answered.
"Well, it's much too nice to turn into firewood," the Professor replied knocking on the casket. "We could just take out the bedding and use it for storing supplies then we'll have it just in case . . . well you know!"
They all looked down at the casket and shuddered.
"Oh, this remind me of a TV show I was once on," Ginger spoke up and Skipper and Gilligan opened the lid to take out the bedding. "I played a girl that was pronounced dead after falling in a frozen river and they took her to the morgue and right before they were about to do the autopsy she woke up."
Gilligan tripped on the sheet and fell through the door of the supply hut.
"Gilligan, be careful," Skipper warned him!
"Oh, that reminds me of when I was a nurse's aid back at Harvard," Mrs. Howell replied. "Another nurse and I were taking a deceased man down to the morgue and right before we were about to go in he sat right up. It scared the day lights out of us."
The Skipper stubbed his toe on something in the supply hut.
"OUCH," he exclaimed!"
"Watch out for the chair," Gilligan replied!
"Thanks a lot Gilligan," Skipper said.
"One time I went camping with my uncle and cousins," Mary Ann piped in. "And on our way back my uncle hit a deer. It looked dead so my uncle stuck it in the trunk. When we were almost home we suddenly heard banging coming from the trunk and when my uncle stopped to investigate he opened the trunk the deer burst out and ran off into the woods. Turns out it was just stunned."
"The exact same thing happened to me when I was a lad," said Mr. Howell. "Only it was this big bird that flew into side the mansion. Our butler brought it inside to show it to us before he disposed of it and right when he was about to take outside it woke up and flew off inside. It took the maids days to finally catch it."
"One time I left the window open in my room," Gilligan started. "When I got home my turtle, Herman, wasn't moving in her shell and I thought she was dead. My sister was the only one home at the time and she took us into the bathroom and filled the sink up with warm water and put him in. Then after a few minutes Herman poked her head out of her shell. Turns out she was only sleeping."
"I once read of this story that occurred in the 1400's," the Professor replied. "There was this young girl that had passed away from the flu and her family place her in the mausoleum. When another relative passed away years later they went to open the mausoleum and found the skeleton of her body at the entrance. That occurred so many times during that period that they began to tie strings to the bodies with bells attached at the grave. Then they would have night watchman in the graveyards and listen in case the bells rang during the night."
"I could tell you dozens of similar stories that happened during my time in the war," the Skipper said as he and Gilligan came out of the supply hut. "But I don't want to give you nightmares."
"Indeed," the Professor replied thoughtfully.
"Well, let's get this in the supply hut," the Skipper replied. "We've cleared a spot for it."
Just the like before Skipper, Professor, Gilligan, and Mary Ann took hold a corner and carried it into the supply hut and placed it against a wall. The took out all the bedding and put it on a shelf. They kept the lid open so it'll be ready for whatever supplies they put in it.
After that the Howells went back into their hut, the girls walked to the western shore to continue sunbathing, the Professor stayed in the supply hut to work on an experiment, and Skipper and Gilligan went back to the lagoon to continue fishing. Gilligan's thoughts never left the casket.
"Your awfully quiet all of a sudden," Skipper asked after a while. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah, it was just all that death talk gave me the creeps," Gilligan replied. "Especially the story the Professor told."
"Hmmm," Skipper replied. "I guess they were a little creepy. But don't worry it'll be a long time before anyone of us die."
"One of my best friends died when I was a kid," Gilligan said after a moment. "After months of her being sick I went to wake her and she was just gone."
"That's awful Gilligan," Skipper replied. "Did you attend her funeral?"
"They had a wake for her and then cremated her body" Gilligan replied looking into the lagoon.
"Have you ever thought about death," Gilligan asked after a while?
"Several times times during the world," Skipper replied thinking back. "I was stationed in Pearl Harbor when the Japanese attacked and saw dozen of men I knew killed."
"Whoa," Gilligan replied.
"Uh huh," Skipper said. "And I witness several gruesome deaths during the Battle of Guadalcanal."
"Did you . . . ever kill anyone," Gilligan asked?
"It was a team effort when a bunch of us sunk a couple of battleships and brought down one of their planes. And I unfortunately killed a couple of soldiers we captured," Skipper said and then added. "We never thought of the lives we were taking. We were only thinking of protecting our country."
"Whoa," Gilligan replied.
"Have ever thought of what kind of funeral you'd have," Gilligan asked after a while?
"Yes I have an honorary Navy Military funeral set when I pass," Skipper replied.
"What if if something happen and you pass here," Gilligan asks?
"Uh um yes well we have the casket so you can use that or you can send me out to sea on a funeral pyre," Skipper replies. "How about you burial or cremation?"
"Um, well burial I guess," Gilligan says thinking it over. "That way if it happens here you can dig me up when you get rescued and ship me back home."
They were quiet for a few minutes looking out into the lagoon and waiting for something to snag their lines.
"Skipper do you think we'll get rescued soon," Gilligan asks?
"Of course," answered Skipper. "We must never give up hope."
They spent the rest of the afternoon catching a bunch of fish for dinner. They then pack up and brought the fish back for Mary Ann to prepare for dinner. They brought their fishing rods into the supply hut and laid them in the casket then left the hut without giving it a second glance.
Well what do you think so far. Read and review. Also PM me if you have any ideas on what else can wash ashore. Also I have updated chapters 1 and 2 of my other fic 'Gilligan's Name' feel free to go back and read it.