A/N: This chapter is dedicated to Chnprod22, it's her birthday September 20th, she deserves a nice little present from me for being such a nice friend. Hope you all enjoy this.
"The National Weather Service in Miami has issued a tropical storm warning for those located in the Key West area. At eight P.M eastern standard time, top meteorologists tracking Tropical Storm David have noted that the sustained winds of the storm have increased to seventy-five miles an hour. Turning this tropical storm into a hurricane. David is expected to hit the Keys tomorrow afternoon as a weak category one storm. Though this storm is small and not as powerful as most hurricanes, it is advised that those who do not wish to flee the storm must take proper precautions. This includes having emergency food, water, and gear handy, secure all important items, and stay away from rising water. Once again the National Weather Service in Miami has issued a tropical storm warning for the Key West area, please stay tuned for further announcements."
Moe and the gang listened to the news report in an almost empty bar. Homer, Roger and Barney looked at each other with nervous eyes. They had been through a tropical storm once and they remembered the heavy rains, the wind wasn't too bad but they knew that with this storm the wind would be stronger and the rains just as heavy, but even more dangerous would be the waves. Both Moe's house and the bar were near the water so it made the boys wonder how things would turn out after it was all said and done.
"Eh don't worry you guys, I went through my first hurricane a year after I got here. It wasn't so bad, just windy mostly," Moe said as he noticed the three staring out into the night with the look of nervousness in their eyes.
"But how big was that one? Was it like this one?" asked Roger.
"I think it was the same size and I think only part of it brushed us so maybe that one shouldn't count," Moe said as he began putting glasses away.
"Should we still batten down the hatches?" Barney asked.
Moe stood there for a moment, wondering if what Barney asked was a good idea. The tables were sturdy enough to go through anything. Even really drunk guys could barely knock those things down, the chairs would probably have to be moved and set over at a safe location. The glasses could be kept in the cupboards and hopefully they would not fall and break. The liquor bottles could be moved too. But other than that, everything else would most likely be fine. The house would have to be boarded up and things secured, like the boat, but that was really all.
"Yeah go ahead and gather all the chairs and put them in the back room where they won't float away if anything does happen," Moe replied as he began putting away all the beer mugs.
The boys immediately went to work, the bar was mostly empty any way, most of the inhabitants of Key West had moved north to higher grounds. Moe decided to stay, he knew evacuations were always a mess and was in no mood to be stuck in traffic for so many hours. He knew things would be fine, as long as he had emergency food and water.
As the group put things away, a familiar sounding car drove into the parking lot. Homer, Barney, and Roger tried to ignore it, they knew who it was and it was best to not be of any part of it unless Moe wanted them to. Of course Moe stopped what he was doing and glared at the front door, waiting for his competition to appear and give him crap. That was always the way with Patrick, never a moment of peace when he was around.
"So I see you aren't the only one staying behind," Patrick said as he made his way into the bar, a sly smile on his face.
"What does it matter to you, everyone is leaving for higher ground, there won't be much competition," Moe replied as he tried to ignore him while putting the rum down in a more secure cabinet.
"Oh that's not the competition I'm looking for, I actually plan on fishing right before the storm hits and I was wondering if you would like to join me," Patrick replied with a grin.
Moe stopped what he was doing, in fact everyone did. He and Moe had actually never fished together, sure they usually fished side by side but that was more with their rivalry than anything else. Why was Patrick suddenly doing this? And most importantly, why before a big hurricane?
"What's the catch?" Moe asked suspiciously.
"Why the biggest fish of the sea, haven't you noticed that some of the best fishing happens right before a big storm?" asked Patrick.
"No, I'm too busy staying safe," Moe replied as he turned away from Patrick and continued to secure his booze.
Patrick stood there watching him, the boys could tell he thinking long and hard about what to say to his best competitor. He was a sly one and usually came up with a good trick to talk someone into something he wanted them to do.
"So you don't want to have an adventure eh? You don't want to catch some of the biggest marlins before the storm hits, the papers will have something more interesting to talk about than some weak little storm. Like the weather man said, its only a category two, it's not gonna be that dangerous. Just a storm with a few small waves and wind. We'll be out of the water before it really hits us too. Right when the winds get rougher we'll leave and then wait to tell the news about our greatest catch of the day," Patrick said as he put his arm around Moe's shoulder.
"And besides fame, what else is there in this offer?" Moe asked as he shoved Patrick's arm off his shoulder.
"Well maybe respect from me for one thing, or even a bar-b-q to grill the best fish we caught. Whatever you desire," Patrick said as he grabbed a lone beer mug and rubbed a speck of dust off it.
Moe stared at Patrick, Patrick was apparently offering him something, anything he wanted, and he never did such a thing. Apparently this competition before a hurricane was something Patrick was waiting for. They had only competed against sales and now Patrick was ready to go out on the ocean and bring back something big. But what could he ask for from Patrick, the offer was too tempting, he would have to think about it, maybe not even tell him until after it was all said and done.
"Challenge accepted, but if I or any of my guys die in this, you're paying for the funeral," Moe said as he shook hands with Patrick.
Patrick only grinned, that was a good bargain, but hopefully it wouldn't happen. Hopefully this fishing trip would be a quick one and they would leave before the storm really hit. He knew timing was everything and had to keep his eyes on the sky. He knew he could do it too and that this would be a very memorable fishing trip.
The wind was blowing steadily as the clouds began to gather in the early morning hours. Moe stood on the dock and looked out into the ocean where the storm was slowly making it's way toward them. Homer, Barney, and Roger were busy assessing what they needed on the boat and hoping that the storm would be just like the weatherman said. They weren't really into the idea of going out to fish, but they knew Moe wanted to prove something to Patrick even though the risk was a bit stupid.
"Alright, you guys got enough bait for us?" Moe asked as he fumbled through is pockets looking for his boat keys.
"Looks like it will last all day if we want it too, but are you sure you want to do this Moe, it may seem calm now but things can change," Roger said nervously as he looked out over the horizon at the storm clouds.
"Of course I do! Besides, when the storm starts rearing its ugly head, we can just pack it all up and head back home," Moe said showing no signs of worry.
Even though he did say that they could head back home as soon as the storm hit, both Roger and Homer wondered if the boat could move faster than the weather. They had beaten storms before, but not one of this caliber and both were watching the clouds with nervousness. Barney was actually looking forward to the adventure. He was a little nervous too but he was more excited about competing with Moe. His last competition was with Bruce over a beer pong tournament a few months ago. Barney lost, so he was hoping to beat Bruce today and catch something big.
They were almost ready to go, when the familiar sound of Patrick's boat became louder and louder before it was finally docked right next to Moe's. Patrick had a huge grin on his face while both Bruce and Ian stood nearby looking eager to start.
"You ready yet Moe?" Patrick asked as he tried to keep the boat in one spot.
"I will be in a moment, gotta make sure I have everything, I wanna win this," Moe replied with an eager look on his face.
"Well may the best man win, as soon as you're ready, just pull out. I'll be out there waiting to take you to my fishing grounds," Patrick called back before he backed out and waited a few feet from the dock.
Moe watched him for a moment and rolled his eyes before taking what he had in front of him and tossed it into the boat. There was no more time for lollygagging, it was time to fish.
The water was a bit choppy as Moe steered the boat through the water. Homer, Barney, and Roger stayed seated nearby, trying not to get tossed from side to side as the boat rocked back and forth. The clouds were getting closer and they could see lightning in the distance. How soon the storm would reach them made them all wonder, but for now they needed to stay positive and have a nice time catching the biggest fish, well as long as they did not fall into the water first.
It wasn't long before Patrick finally stopped the boat and let it drift as he began taking out his fishing pole and bait. Moe drove next to him and stopped only a few feet away. That way they could stop and discuss how the fishing was going. Of course they would show off what they caught up close too, and maybe perhaps share some beers. Even though they were rivals, they could still be on friendly terms for a little bit.
"Barracuda the Marlin was actually seen here a few days ago, so maybe we'll get lucky and catch him. There's also a nice school of nurse sharks here too, fun to catch if you are interested," Patrick said while he was baiting his hook.
"I might take you up on that, if I can find the shark hook, you guys seen it?" Moe asked as he searched his gear for the hook he wanted.
"Last I saw one of those was after that fight we had with the tiger shark we caught just off the reef, I think we had to cut the line for that one," Roger said a little worriedly.
Moe stood on the boat for a minute contemplating on what to do about his missing hook. He wasn't mad, just upset that he forgot to go out and buy a new one. He did remember Barney mentioning that they had lost a nice fight with that shark, he had just forgotten that it was time to replace the hook. "Oh well, if I catch one I catch one," Moe said as he grabbed his pole and started knotting the best hook he could find to the line.
One by one they all cast out their fishing hooks hoping to snag something while the water pounded the side of the boat and thunder rumbled in the distance. Everyone watched the storm clouds gather in silence while they let their poles move up and down with the waves hoping for something to come up and snatch what was on their lines. But after nearly fifteen minutes of fishing, no one was getting a bite, a few nibbles here and there, but nothing too big. Finally, Patrick seemed to have enough of the silence and decided to start a conversation.
"Hey Moe, remember that tropical storm we had last year?" Patrick asked.
"Which one, we had two," Moe replied as he threw his line back into the water after checking to see if his bait was still there.
"The first one, I think they called it Bess or something," Patrick said.
"Oh yeah that one, spent three days cleaning up after that thing, geeze for a tropical storm, that one sure was messy," Moe said.
"It was, but before that storm hit, I caught two thirty pound tarpons out here and that was in a few minutes, I have no idea what's going on right now," Patrick said.
"Everyone but us is being safe," Roger said looking a little bored but also staring out at the storm as it churned in the distance.
Before Patrick could reply, Bruce let out a yell of surprise and jumped up as he began to reel in his fishing gear. "Looks like I got something!"
The boys watched as Bruce began to play tug of war for a good five minutes before the huge fish gave up and was scooped out of the water by Ian. It was a wahoo, a delicious fish that Patrick loved to catch since it was one of his most popular fish on his menu. This one weighed 20 pounds and he knew he would be selling that meat for a few days once the storm left the area.
Once he packed the fish into a special container that would keep it fresh until he got back, he turned to Moe's crew and let out a sly smile. "Let's see you catch something like that," he said before grabbing his pole and waiting to catch something else.
"Smug Bastard!" Moe said in a voice that wasn't too loud but loud enough for Homer, Barney and Roger to hear. "Catch me something guys, I don't want to come back without something in our cooler."
"Well Moe, it really depends on the fish, that's why its called fishing and not catching," Barney said before he took a swig of beer.
Moe smacked him upside the head. "I didn't want some stupid quote about life, I want a damn fish!"
The boys stared at each other nervously, Moe now seemed a little too obsessed over the idea of beating Patrick in this. But of course this usually happened with all rivalry's and the boys knew they could not stop Moe from achieving victory. He had beaten Patrick countless times before, but so had Patrick. There was no real prize to this, only the feeling of accomplishment. It wasn't long either before Moe felt that he was closer to victory when Roger felt a tug on the line.
Roger let out a whoop and a holler as he reeled the fish in. It wasn't too big of a battle, save for the fact that the waves were rolling and the boat was starting to rock more thanks to the storm. He was able to get the fish in after a few moments. It was a tarpon, about four feet long and weighing thirty pounds, a good sized fish but not the biggest, they knew they could find something even bigger. They still saved it though, it would make a for a good fry later.
The first two hours wore on, the weather barely changed during that time, but they could still see the storm churning out in the east, waiting to come toward them and bring the heavy rain. The waves were getting slightly larger, but not a big cause of concern yet, once they started rolling the boat and splashing over the sides, then it was time to move on.
From time to time, the boys kept catching different fish, some they kept, others were too small and had to be thrown back. So far nothing was very big and they all knew it was because of the weather. The fish were being smart, they chose to move to safer waters.
"I wonder if Patrick is just setting us up for this," Homer said in an annoyed voice as he continued to sit and wait for a tug on his line.
"If he was, then he is one mean character that we are dealing with, setting us out on the ocean like this before a big storm hits. I hope he and Moe know when the best time to leave is," Roger said.
"I don't think he would lure us out to our deaths if he came along, he must know what is a good time to fish and when its not. Though I am getting a little scared especially since the fish aren't biting as much as they usually do," Barney said before he took a big swig of his beer he had in his hand.
"I say we should only be here for another hour, because by then the storm will finally be here and we need to get while the gettings good," Roger said.
"I agree," Homer replied. Barney just nodded in agreement.
They all turned to Moe to see what he would say and apparently he had been listening to the conversation as well. He did not take his eyes off the ocean as he spoke. "We will leave when Patrick has had enough, I don't know when that will be, but hopefully soon. I'm getting a little nervous myself. Being honored more is not worth being killed."
The boys were a little surprised by his change of thought, but were glad he was agreeing with them. Perhaps they could forfeit, but then they did not want to make Patrick feel that he was the best in fishing and that he was more brave than them. They had to stick it out a little while longer, no matter how crazy and brainless Patrick was being.
It wasn't for another hour and a half before the weather really began to change, the winds started to pick up, the rain started as a light drizzle and then soon steadily onward. The waves were now getting bigger and the bites on the lines fewer. All of them now agreed, it was time to start packing up.
"We'll weigh the fish later, when the weather is better. For now we should all head back, I don't think it would be a good idea to keep going and then end up losing my best rival," Patrick said with a smirk as he began to rev up the engine.
"Glad you are thinking safe," Moe replied as he began to being his hook in so he could start the boat and make his way back.
The boys were very happy to hear this and all of them reeled the lines in, ready to head home were it would be safe from the dangerous storm. But that was not before Homer felt a tug on his line.
"Aww great, I got a fish," Homer said.
"Well hurry up and try to bring it in, we need to get going," Moe said as he started the engine.
Homer did his best to reel the fish in, but for some reason, this one was not about to let go. He kept trying to bring it in, but the more he tried, the more it fought back and after a few minutes, he was feeling exhausted trying to reel the fish in and hanging onto the side of the boat so he would not fall overboard.
"Moe I think I need help." Homer called nervously while he fought back.
"Well if he doesn't give up at all pretty soon, just let him go, sounds like he's big, but that's not worth trying to win something when a storm is about to hit," Moe said as he stood by Homer's side watching him try to bring whatever kind of fish was on the other side of the line.
"I wonder what you caught any way?" Barney said as he continued to watch Homer fight.
"Feels like a marlin," Homer replied. After many years of fishing, he had learned how each fish has a unique way of tugging at the line.
It wasn't long though before they finally got their answer, it was a marlin and it wasn't the one they were expecting at the moment. Moe was the first to notice the unique markings on the animal. The part of the sword missing, half a dorsal fin and the way it fought to keep itself from being reeled in.
Homer had caught Barracuda.
A/N: So I decided to make this chapter short and to the point, mainly because I've noticed a lot of people not reading because my chapters are too long for them. Which is really sad because I've seen stories with much longer chapters than this. So let me know what you think of this length, if you don't then I will return to what I normally do.
Also I am very sorry about the long wait, I lost motivation because of the length of my chapters and I'm just a little stressed, hell as you can tell I still have no motivation. I just wanted to finish this for Chnprod because she is a nice friend and all. I don't know when I will update again, but I appreciate feedback, let me know how you felt about this chapter and if it was worth your time to read. I've also noticed that this story has taken me the longest to write, how sad because I was so excited when I first started out. Now I am just like "meh"
Any way please review and have a nice day.