That afternoon, Calvin and Hobbes were in the kitchen, sitting in a barrel and eating apples.
"Do you think an apple a day really keeps the doctor away?" Calvin asked.
"Probably not," Hobbes replied, taking a bite. "They're loaded with pesticides."
Calvin shrugged and continued eating.
"You know, it feels so weird," he said with a sigh.
"You mean how the Sarge is dead?" Hobbes asked sadly.
"Well yeah, and my pants are filled with starfish."
Hobbes stopped in mid-munch and stared at him before finishing and swallowing.
"You and your hobbies," he sighed, shaking his head.
"Hey, you try keeping busy on the ship!"
Suddenly, Jim appeared at the mouth of the barrel.
"Guys!" he said sternly.
"ACK!" they cried.
"What are you doing in here?!"
Calvin and Hobbes exchanged glances.
"Um, we're…," Hobbes started.
"APPLE INSPECTION!" Calvin interrupted.
Jim rolled his eyes.
"Jim, we've missed you!" Calvin cried.
"Yeah, climb in!" Hobbes added. "It's surprisingly roomy! Clearly a TARDIS in disguise!"
"Can't," Jim sighed. "I'm doing my chores."
"Oh, come on! Share an apple!"
"I can't!" Jim insisted.
And they both grabbed him and pulled him inside.
"Hey!"
Seconds later, the door burst open, and they heard three sets of footsteps.
"Okay, here's the plan!" Bucky said.
"I say we kill that captain now!" Hagar.
"And then we get that Canadian twit mutt!"
"Ooh! New chew toy!" Zero said.
The three of them cackled.
Jim, Calvin and Hobbes exchanged glances.
They continued laughing until Zero casually noticed someone.
"Oh, hi, Long John," he said.
They all stopped laughing and gasped.
Long John stood menacingly over them.
"I'm an easy man," he grumbled. "A gentleman of fortune says most. But it makes me sick at heart to sail with the likes of you. Now get this straight: If anyone mutinies before I says so, I'll throw you overboard like I did that scurvy mate, Sarge! I says, let the captain steer us closer to the island. I've got the lad's treasure map now. When I say the time is ripe, we'll kill 'em all!"
Jim, Calvin and Hobbes had all lost control of their jaws, causing them to fall open in shock. They could only sit there, horrified.
They all began laughing and cackling outside.
It was silenced when they heard someone outside shouting.
"LAND HO!"
They all got excited.
"C'mon, lads!" he shouted, and he led them outside, laughing all the way.
As soon as the laughter faded away, Jim, Calvin and Hobbes dared to poke their heads out of the barrel and look.
There was a pause.
"Just when you think you know someone," Calvin muttered.
"You know, he asked me if I'd lend him money the other day," Hobbes added. "I don't feel guilty about saying no now."
Jim simply stared ahead in shock.
The ship continued sailing onwards towards an island that loomed in the distance. It was a massive jungle island that was covered in giant trees, tall grass, sand, rocks and various other things.
Roy and Bernie, still out on the front, laughed as they saw it.
"LAND HO!" Bernie shouted.
"Beachfront property!" Roy added.
"Retirement estates!"
"BIKINIS!"
And they laughed merrily.
Captain Snoopy stood at the helm with Beetle Bailey.
"THROW THE MAINSAIL! DROP ANCHOR! Bring her up hard to starboard, helmsmen. PREPARE TO LOWER THE LONGBOATS! GET THE KIBBLE OUT! I WANT MY SUPPER! IT'S SUPPERTIME! SUP-SUP-SUPPERTIME!"
The crewmen scattered about, hoisting the sails back up, lowering the anchor and preparing to head for the island. One by one, a crew headed for the longboats.
Jim, Calvin and Hobbes snuck out of the kitchen and looked around nervously.
Snoopy gave orders for Beetle to help with the longboats just as Jim ran up.
"Captain, I must speak with you!" he whispered.
"In a minute, Jim. WHERE'S MY SUPPER?!" he shouted.
"But Captain, we just heard! Long John is planning a mutiny, and they've got the map!"
Snoopy stopped in surprise and stared out at the crew.
"I see," he said. "Well, that sort of puts a crimp in my day."
"What do we do?!" Hobbes asked, panicking.
"I say we scour 'em all!" Calvin shouted, giving the entire crew a sinister look.
Hobbes sighed. "Keep him away from the swords," he whispered.
Snoopy nodded thoughtfully. He thought for a moment, and then seemed to get an idea.
"Mr Silver?" he shouted.
Long John looked up.
"Aye, aye, captain!" he shouted.
"Mr Silver, I want you to take the crew ashore at once! We need water and provisions. Take as long as you want."
Long John stared.
Jim, Calvin and Hobbes gawked.
The crew cheered.
"SIR!" Long John grinned. "Tis a task to my liking, sir! That it is!"
Snoopy nodded firmly, and then turned back to the others.
"Have you gone completely off your doghouse?!" Calvin hissed.
"Boys, do me a favor and get the officers and bring them to my quarters," he whispered. "Quickly."
Catching on, Jim, Calvin and Hobbes hurried away.
"This better be good," Calvin muttered.
"Whatever," Hobbes sighed. "Let's make this quick."
Long John was able to sneak Bucky, Hagar and Zero aboard the longboat along with the rest of his crew.
"Well, I suppose it's only natural that mutt of a captain would let us go ashore," Bucky snorted. "Otherwise, I'd have had to get rough with him."
"Sure you would," Hagar muttered.
"I thought he was a purebred beagle," said Zero, looking back at Snoopy.
Long John rolled his eyes, and sneakily, he took his crutch and tossed it back onboard.
As Jim walked past with the officers to the Captain's Cabin, Long John called him.
"Jim, lad!" he called.
Jim stopped and saw him.
"There's room in the boat for one more! Come along for an adventure!"
Jim gulped.
"I can't, the captain wants me," he said.
"Oh, what a shame! I'll miss you, lad that I will."
Jim nodded and started to leave.
"Um, Jim!" Long John said, calling him back. "I seem to have left my crutch on board! Hand it to me like a good lad, will ya?"
Jim nodded and picked up the crutch and brought it over to him.
"Ah, it'll have to be a bit closer than that, I can't reach that far!"
Jim really should've known better, but he went closer anyway.
Once it was close enough, Long John grabbed the crutch and yanked it forward, pulling Jim along with it. Jim landed in the longboat with the pirates.
"Hey!" he shouted.
"Cast away, men! Be quick now!" Long John ordered.
They cast off the longboat, and, holding on to the thrashing Jim, rowed away from the ship.
Snoopy had gathered Calvin, Hobbes, Squire Satchel, Dr Garfield and Odie in the Captain's Cabin.
"The plan is simple," Snoopy explained. "We set sail and return in a year or so. By then, all the fight should be out of them."
They stared at him.
"Oh, is that the whole plan?" Squire Satchel asked.
"Yes."
"Wow. That was simple."
Dr Garfield pondered this. "Not a bad plan, Captain," he commented. "Gee, no lasagna for over a year. What a punishment."
Odie rolled his eyes.
Hobbes glanced out the window, and his eyes burst open.
"I have a very strong sensational suspicion this won't work," he commented.
"Oh, you're so negative. Why not, pray tell?" Calvin asked.
"The pirates have Jim!"
Calvin rushed to join him at the window and gasped.
"Those no good family stealers!" he said angrily. "Get back here with him!"
The pirates were cackling and laughing as they paddled the longboats towards the shore.
And as they paddled, a small motorboat went sailing past towing a cat wearing a life vest sailed by.
"I'm getting tired!" the cat shouted.
"What'd you say?" another shouted.
"I'm getting tired!"
"He says go faster."
"I'm getting tired!!"
And they sailed onwards.