19-THE OLD BOUNCER TREATMENT

THE OLD BOUNCER TREATMENT That evening, Bouncer and I walked to the WATERFALL behind our camp. We each carried an empty coconut shell to collect water. The sand around the waterfall glistened in the moonlight. I picked up a pawful. No, this wasn't any old beach sand. These were quartz crystals! We were about to return to camp when we heard some voices. We peeked over the dune. A broken-down canoe was nearing the beach. Two odd-looking mice were on board. The first was as thin as string cheese. He had huge buck teeth and was dressed in a MOTH-EATEN captain's uniform.

His sunglasses were held together by an adhesive bandage. The other was as round as a ball of mozzarella. He wore a tiny sailor's hat and an OLD-FASHIONED one-piece black swimsuit. On two of his paws, he wore yellow flippers tied on with rubber bands. While the chubby one rowed, he sang this tune: Treasure hunters are we! We sail across the sea. We search for Jewelry and silver and gold, We lie and cheat and don't do what we're told. So get out of our way, Or we'll make you pay. Oh, treasure hunters are we!

The chubby one looked so excited, he could hardly sit still. He BOUNCED up and down like a yo-yo. The canoe rocked and swayed. "No one gets in our way, right, Cap E. Tan? Right?" he squeaked. "We'll SQUASH 'em. We'll squash 'em. We'll turn 'em into cat food. Right? Right?" The captain snorted. "Less talking and more rowing, Chatterbox Charlie," he muttered. But the chubby one kept on squeaking. "We can't tell anyone that we have the treasure map. Right, cap E. Tan? Right?" the chubby one babbled on. "And we especially can't

tell anyone that the treasure is hidden under a rock shaped like a cannon. Right, Cap E. Tan? Right?" The captain stood with his paws on his hips. "Quieeeeeeeeeeeeet!" he shrieked. The chubby one blinked for two seconds. Then he continued chattering on and on about the treasure. "Where can it be? Oh, where, oh, where, oh, where?" he jabbered. The captain looked like he was about to explode. "Enough!" he cried. "Why don't you dive in and look for the rock? Or better yet, look for a muzzle!" Splash! The chubby one hit the water. A few minutes later, he surfaced. "No rocks shaped like a cannon! Just rocks shaped like rocks!" he announced. The captain scratched his head. "Hmmm,

then we'll anchor by the island," he decided. I grabbed Bouncer's paw. "What are we going to do now?" I whispered. Something told me these rodents weren't looking to make friends. Bouncer was gnawing away on a hunk of pineapple. "I can always give them the old Bouncer Treatment, Mousey Mouse, he offered. I chewed my whiskers. "The old BOUNCER TREATMENT?" I asked. "Sure," Bouncer snickered. "First I tie up their whiskers. Then I shave off their fur. Then..." I quickly shook my head. I wasn't into violence. That's no way to solve a problem. "We just need to get them off the island," I told Bouncer.