Page 6 - My FlipBook

Chapter Two

Neptune was nearly exhausted by the time he reached the island. It took the last of
his strength to flutter over the beach and collapse onto the nearest tree.

After a while he recovered enough to look around.

The island was covered in tall, lush, dripping jungle. It rang with howls and
screeches.

The howls came from monkeys dangling and swinging in the trees. But the
screeches came from parrots – bright green, red and yellow. A flock of them flew past

Neptune.

“Who are you?” cried one.
“I’m Neptune. I’ve just landed.”

“Well, don’t hang about here!” the parrot said. “The figs are ripe!”
“Pieces of eight!” squawked Neptune.

“Pieces of what?”
“I mean, pieces of fig!” said Neptune quickly.

“Sure. Let’s get there before the monkeys do!”

Neptune joined the flock of parrots. Soon he was feasting on ripe figs. Not just
figs – there were mangoes, dates and pawpaw. He couldn’t believe his luck.

No more maggoty ship’s biscuits! He could eat his fill of ripe fruit.
No more dodging careless cutlasses! The monkeys were easy to dodge.

No more kicks and curses from Captain Snatchit!

For the other parrots were a friendly bunch and welcomed Neptune. This was a
parrots’ paradise!

When he met a beautiful female parrot called Liana, his happiness was complete.
He never mentioned his former pirate life to the other parrots. He stopped saying

“pieces of eight,” and “shiver me timbers” and talked proper parrot language instead.

Life was wonderful. He even began to think about setting up a nest.
Then, one day, a battered boat washed up on shore. Out jumped Captain Snatchit

and his men.
They’d spent three weeks rowing around in circles, living off ship’s biscuits and

raw fish. They were starving, smelly, and in a very bad mood.