Author's Note - Hey, wow. Thirty. That's like a milestone, or something.
Chapter Thirty
Now that they knew who it was that probably had Jack - it wouldn't have been fair to say who 'wanted' Jack because it's general knowledge that that number is somewhere in the tens of thousands - it would have been logical for the little waif Carly, Captain Melanie Cash and William Turner the blacksmith to need a plan of action. But they had better than that.
They had a monkey.
More specifically, they had Milton the capuchin monkey, and he had been trained by Carly. That meant several things. Firstly, it meant that his innate animal knowledge allowed him to assess that Jack completely disliked him and that it was only proper then for him have more affection for Jack than for any human being apart from Carly. Secondly, Milton was very keen on voice commands because Carly talked to him incessantly. And lastly, and because he belonged to Carly, there was no greater pleasure for him in the world than to play catch.
A close relative of the game of catch is the game of hide and seek. Hide and Seek evolved from Catch when Catch rose out of the murky depths of the primordial-game-soup and decided that it was more fun to play with multiple people, and that it was even MORE fun to tease that person by not giving them what they were supposed to have caught. It was more fun to, say, hide it. So came the glorious dawn of Hide and Seek, and hundreds of years later, Carly was bent and speaking earnestly to an attentive Milton.
She was holding a gold coin. "Milton," she said. "Look." She showed him the coin, and then with visible concentration, palmed it in an act of sleight-of-hand that would have made David Blaine proud. She displayed her empty hand to her monkey and he was properly astounded. "Now, find the coin, Milton! Find it!" While Melanie and Will looked on, the capuchin hopped about in obvious excitement but saw that he had no idea where to begin. He looked back to Carly.
She rolled her eyes dramatically. "Okay, Milton. I'll give you one hint, but it's got to be just the one. Jack has the coin. Now do you think you can find it?" He hopped about again and at a nod from Carly, he was off down the street.
He was gone for two hours. When he returned and Carly scooped him gleefully into her arms, they all saw that his fur was coated in green cotton candy. While Carly stroked his head and pocketed the coin Milton held that had no doubt been nicked form Jack's pocket, Will was thoughtful.
"What is it, Will?"
He looked slightly sheepish. "I learned a few things yesterday, and most of them involved how not to get candy stuck in my hair." He cleared his throat. "But, in an act completely devoid of irrational coincidence or corner-cutting even though a certain someone has to go to a birthday in less than two hours, I know where this green cotton candy is from. It is only made in ONE PLACE."
"One place?" Melanie asked.
"No, you've got to say it properly. ONE PLACE."
"Oh, okay. ONE PLACE. And you know where this ONE PLACE is?"
Will nodded. "I'd bet my hat on it."
Melanie chuckled. "Let's not be too rash, dear. I've heard about you and your love for that hat. Where is this ONE PLACE?" Instead of answering, Will took of at a trot down the Carnival Street, and the two ladies followed.
It turned out the ONE PLACE was a big place. It was, appropriately, the big top, or the biggest tent on the entire island. Outside, people were selling green cotton candy. Adding that to the information from Eric about their adversary owning the big top, it was a safe bet that Jack was somewhere inside.
Melanie tightened her boots and checked that the dagger in her sleeve came out smoothly. Will patted the sword at his hip that had never been mentioned but always assumed to be present. Carly bought herself some cotton candy.
It was time for a little Carnival fun.
Chapter Thirty
Now that they knew who it was that probably had Jack - it wouldn't have been fair to say who 'wanted' Jack because it's general knowledge that that number is somewhere in the tens of thousands - it would have been logical for the little waif Carly, Captain Melanie Cash and William Turner the blacksmith to need a plan of action. But they had better than that.
They had a monkey.
More specifically, they had Milton the capuchin monkey, and he had been trained by Carly. That meant several things. Firstly, it meant that his innate animal knowledge allowed him to assess that Jack completely disliked him and that it was only proper then for him have more affection for Jack than for any human being apart from Carly. Secondly, Milton was very keen on voice commands because Carly talked to him incessantly. And lastly, and because he belonged to Carly, there was no greater pleasure for him in the world than to play catch.
A close relative of the game of catch is the game of hide and seek. Hide and Seek evolved from Catch when Catch rose out of the murky depths of the primordial-game-soup and decided that it was more fun to play with multiple people, and that it was even MORE fun to tease that person by not giving them what they were supposed to have caught. It was more fun to, say, hide it. So came the glorious dawn of Hide and Seek, and hundreds of years later, Carly was bent and speaking earnestly to an attentive Milton.
She was holding a gold coin. "Milton," she said. "Look." She showed him the coin, and then with visible concentration, palmed it in an act of sleight-of-hand that would have made David Blaine proud. She displayed her empty hand to her monkey and he was properly astounded. "Now, find the coin, Milton! Find it!" While Melanie and Will looked on, the capuchin hopped about in obvious excitement but saw that he had no idea where to begin. He looked back to Carly.
She rolled her eyes dramatically. "Okay, Milton. I'll give you one hint, but it's got to be just the one. Jack has the coin. Now do you think you can find it?" He hopped about again and at a nod from Carly, he was off down the street.
He was gone for two hours. When he returned and Carly scooped him gleefully into her arms, they all saw that his fur was coated in green cotton candy. While Carly stroked his head and pocketed the coin Milton held that had no doubt been nicked form Jack's pocket, Will was thoughtful.
"What is it, Will?"
He looked slightly sheepish. "I learned a few things yesterday, and most of them involved how not to get candy stuck in my hair." He cleared his throat. "But, in an act completely devoid of irrational coincidence or corner-cutting even though a certain someone has to go to a birthday in less than two hours, I know where this green cotton candy is from. It is only made in ONE PLACE."
"One place?" Melanie asked.
"No, you've got to say it properly. ONE PLACE."
"Oh, okay. ONE PLACE. And you know where this ONE PLACE is?"
Will nodded. "I'd bet my hat on it."
Melanie chuckled. "Let's not be too rash, dear. I've heard about you and your love for that hat. Where is this ONE PLACE?" Instead of answering, Will took of at a trot down the Carnival Street, and the two ladies followed.
It turned out the ONE PLACE was a big place. It was, appropriately, the big top, or the biggest tent on the entire island. Outside, people were selling green cotton candy. Adding that to the information from Eric about their adversary owning the big top, it was a safe bet that Jack was somewhere inside.
Melanie tightened her boots and checked that the dagger in her sleeve came out smoothly. Will patted the sword at his hip that had never been mentioned but always assumed to be present. Carly bought herself some cotton candy.
It was time for a little Carnival fun.