Pirates of Infinite Space
a Treasure Planet fan fiction
by Lord Akiyama
Disclaimer: With the exception of Clarice, Black Sam Roberts and Peter Reynolds, all characters are more than likely the property of Disney. The character of Clarice is the property of Long Meg Silver and is used with permission (Thanks Meg - XD)
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Chapter 1 - Duty Calls
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Three Years Later - The Benbow Inn on The Planet Montressor
Morph made a mistake. He turned himself into a rattle and accidentally handed himself to the eldest of the three daughters. The young baby began laughing in delight and at the same time was slamming him repeatedly on the floor. She didn't stop until her mother picked her up and released her grip on the poor shape shifter.
"I bet he'll have a headache that'll last for a week." Sarah Hawkins had been running The Benbow Inn for a very long time. So long that she honestly would not remember the exact date. All she knew was that she was running the place after she was married, when she gave birth to Jim, when her husband left, when it burnt down, and when it was rebuilt. For all she knew, she would be running the place until the day she died.
Sarah took the injured creature and took him as far away from the toddler as possible in the room. She giggled along with the baby's mother, Amelia Doppler. Amelia gave her daughter a stern look, while at the same time relished in her daughter's delight. After tickling her tummy and giggling along, she placed the toddler in the crib with the rest of her siblings.
"I honestly don't know how you manage it, Amelia," Sarah said, releasing Morph to float about. "I had enough trouble raising Jim by myself. You have three daughters and a son to take care of. Not to mention a career traveling through deep space."
"Give my husband the pity on the last part, Sarah," Amelia said. "He's gonna need all the sympathy he can muster once these kids are older. Speaking of Jim, I hear he's doing marvelously at the Academy."
"Making friends, being a show off, giving teachers a hard time. It amazes me how he's still able to maintain such high grades and not land some sort of detention. I'm telling you Amelia, the stuff he writes in his letters just give me such great joy that I sometimes forget the hard times we've been through before he found that ridiculous map."
"I'm sure my little boy will idolize you son as soon as he starts standing on his own two feet," Amelia said as she teases with her son's nose, making laugh about with joy. "As long as his sisters don't give him a hard enough time as it is. I guess the old saying really does apply to my children. Like father like son, like mother like daughters."
"I didn't know the last part was plural." Rolling out of the kitchen was B.E.N. The Bio-Electronic Navigator found stranded on Treasure Planet had become Sarah's assistant since arriving with the others to Montressor. Jim Hawkins was the first living person he had set eyes on since the terrible Captain Flint, so the least he could do was be of service to the boy's mother.
"I take it you have been around babies for a long time, B.E.N.," Amelia said, pulling herself away from her adorable children.
"Well, not really," B.E.N. replied. "Do being with a pair of cantaloupe bear cubs before the mother returns to slam tackle you count?"
"Don't bet on it," Sarah replied, covering her mouth as to not let her chuckling be heard. The idea of saying that you were slam tackled by a cantaloupe bear and didn't have a sense of fear in your voice was amusing to her.
"The dishes are done!" Bursting out of the kitchen was another one of Sarah's helpers. A young girl around Jim's age named Clarice. From what Sarah had been told, Clarice had been hanging around with the pirate Long John Silver since she was a toddler herself.
"Good girl," Sarah said. "And yes, you're done for the night."
"About time. I haven't had to wash that many dishes since I had both of my arms. Oh by the way, Mrs. Doppler, I think your husband is done tossing his cookies outside."
Amelia chuckled as she shook her head. "I warned him not to use too much pepper," she said. "Do you think you can help Mrs. Hawkins watch over my children for a minute, Clarice dear? I may need the assistance of B.E.N. should the situation get any uglier than it has."
"Oh good, I think I still have the program on keeping the after effects of vomit from continuing when using the right supply of turtle wax and slug juice stirred together with a hint of maple syrup," B.E.N. said as he followed Amelia into the kitchen to the back of the inn.
"Do shut up and speak no more about wax, juices, or anything in that nature," Amelia said. "It's probably a good idea if you just not speak at all, B.E.N. My husband has a very sensitive stomach." Both Amelia and B.E.N. were through the kitchen door, but still could be heard by Sarah and Clarice.
"Does this mean I don't get to talk about the idea of using a bat's liver?" The unmistakable sound of Dr. Delbert Doppler vomiting was heard before the door to the back of the inn was shut. Sarah and Clarice looked at one another and giggled at the good doctor's misfortune.
"Well, someone's in a good mood this evening," Sarah said, addressing to Clarice while teasing one of Doppler daughters. "You're usually in the 'Oh, how I wish I were with Silver right about now,' phase whenever you finish cleaning the dishes."
"What, you mean I haven't put forth enough sarcasm?" Clarice said. "Nah. I'm just not in the mood. How could you when there are four adorable little children in the room." Clarice picked up the eldest of the daughters and starts spinning. The eldest daughter seemed to have taken a real liking to Clarice.
"Reminds me of my days with Jim. With eyes the size of soccer balls, it was impossible to make go to sleep without having to read that book of his."
"Which one would that be?"
"The one on the 'so-called legend' of Flint's trove. I swear, I never imagined the greatest fantasy my son could ever dream of would be apart of his life."
"Must have been nerve-wrecking on you just thinking that the very stories your son read at nights turned out to be true."
"Getting him to stop reading that book was trouble enough. Children will do amazing things to you. They can surprise you for good or bad. Tell me, how did 'the mighty' Long John Silver handle parenting when he took you in?"
"I try to ask him. He tells me, 'You were one of dem lucky lassies. Always mindin' yer p's an q's for t'is ol' pirate.' With a lie like that, you could tell I caused him havoc growing up."
"I can imagine. A rough and tough pirate like him trying to raise an innocent little girl. I would love to have seen that." Each daughter Sarah and Clarice were watching began to close their eyes, falling asleep in the warm comfort of The Benbow Inn. The peace was broken for Sarah and Clarice when the others walked in through the kitchen.
"Remind me never to mix peppers with the black beans ever again, Amelia my love," said the good doctor, speaking in between gargles to clean his mouth of the vomit odor. "Not to mention to ever drink that odd-tasting liquid Clarice produced."
"I warned you how that wasn't a good idea," Amelia chuckled, carrying her husband in with his left arm over her shoulder. "Clarice will never adapt as long as we give her opportunities to whip up something that scoundrel taught her."
"And which scoundrel would we be talking about, ma'am?" Clarice mocked. The two giggled a little before Amelia plopped her husband on the nearest resting chair.
"Okay, enough with the waiting," Sarah said. "You obviously came hear with some sort of news. Normally when the entire Doppler family is here it's because it's the holidays or you want Clarice and I to baby-sit the children for the evening. You normally don't order a whole family meal without a good reason. Spit it out."
"Can't seem to get anything pass you, can I," Amelia chuckled. "Very well. I have accepted command of a vessel intended to locate a certain planet supposedly few people have ever seen."
Clarice didn't need to hear the rest of the story to know what planet that would be. Being around Silver had its advantages, and old pirate tales were often true. "Someone's found Maladar?"
"The so-called 'only planet to not have been plundered by even Captain Flint himself'? Why yes." Doppler always felt that he needed to be a little dramatic for others to listen. Often he did it just a little too much. Since marrying Amelia, he had learned when to keep his mouth shut when it needed to be. Otherwise he would have dulled the room with the endless stories of the planet.
"A gentleman by the name of Peter Reynolds is putting together an expedition," Amelia said. "I have been asked to command the ship. As much as I love to have my precious husband long for the trip," she said, rubbing the back of Doppler's right ear, "I'd be better off getting someone more familiar with adventuring."
"You mean, you're asking me to come along?" It's been a while since Clarice was asked to join an expedition. In fact, it was the only time. She usually just tagged along with Silver on whatever journey he made.
"Why not? I trust you enough and since I hear you run off every so often to go on your own adventure, might as well be part of one that's right up your alley."
As if expecting any form of objection, Clarice turned her attention to Sarah. The owner of The Benbow Inn shrugged. "It's not as if I could stopping you from running off in the first place," Sarah said. "It's fine with me that you sail off with Mrs. Doppler."
Clarice literally jumped in the air and cheered. Morph cheered as well, turning into a mini fireworks display. Clarice thanked everyone and quickly ran upstairs to her room, formally Jim's, to pack her things.
"You can tell she's been raised by a pirate like John Silver," Doppler said, scooping his youngest daughter in his arms. "Any form of adventure involving treasure would easily spark their interest."
"To be quite honest, I was going to lie to her," Amelia said, tickling her son before picking him up and spinning him in the air. "I was going to say that I was assigned to a routine escort mission."
"Why didn't you?" Doppler asked. "It would've kept her here a little while longer to help out Sarah."
"I didn't have the heart, Delbert darling," Amelia responded. "Besides, you know what happened the last time I lied to her."
"Ah yes," Doppler sighed. "Even after all the vomiting I've done this evening, I think I'm still feeling the after effects of what she did to my kidneys." The young daughter in his arms began to giggle.
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to be continued...
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R/R - I really wanna hear what y'all think.