"Help, Help" Minty the Monkey was on watch when he heard a voice cry out from the
ocean. Quickly he rang the alarm and the ship slowed. The crew swung into
action. "There," called Mitten the kitten. "I see someone" Sure enough there
was a small green figure bobbing in the ocean. The crew pulled him out, "Ug!"
Panther exclaimed. "I think it's one of of those elves. I had hoped we would
never see one of them again!" She was of course referring to a Christmas
adventure we had a few years ago. "Throw him back!" "Please don't throw me back
I will reward you..." Said the little figure then passed out. "Oh Panther we
can't throw him back, remember the bad elves were really goblins, elves aren't
so bad." Said I shel the cat's servant. "Take him below and don't forget his
hat, " said Captain Topcat, pointing a paw at the green object blowing about the
deck. "Don't worry Panther he is not a elf nor a goblin he is a leprechaun." So
the the little one was dried off and when he woke up, Tiberius the ships cook
fed him some hot soup. Later Topcat agreed to take him back home in return for
the promised reward. So it was that the grateful leprechaun in freshly dried and
ironed clothes little hat in place and a full belly was set ashore along with
Captain Topcat and a few of us crew members. We had only gone a short way when
with a laugh the little guy jumped into a bush and vanished! We looked in the
bushes but found no trace of him. I was surprised when I saw Topcat look at
engineer Spott and grin. he pulled out a small electrical device and winked his
one big green eye at Panther and myself. Panther laughed as she comprehended its
use. As usual I was clueless. As we followed after them Spott took pity on me
and explained its use. "Ach," he said, " its a tracking device. We bugged his
hat." So it was that more of the crew landed and we soon tracked down the wee
midgen.
The crew saw the green clad one
in a clearing chortling before a big pot of gold. Panther leapt upon the
leprechaun only to come up empty. The little man laughed as he nimbly dodged to
one side and ran off into the bushes leaving only his hat. Some of the crew gave
chase but Topcat called them back. Let him go we have the pot of gold. The pot
was much to heavy to move so Topcat and Panther stayed and guarded it until the
crew returned with equipment to move it back to the ship. Soon they had it moved
aboard and placed on deck. Panther shoved it he rest of the way in to the deck
cabin and Captain Topcat locked the door behind the the three of us. He turned
and glared with his one green eye suspiciously first at Panther then at the pot
of gold. "Hey I know you are strong but I don't see how you could have pushed
that heavy thing in here!" Panther looked into the pot and reached into the pot
bringing up a lovely golden ovoid. She shoved this into her mouth. "Crunch, hey
these are not gold coins they are potato chips and really good ones too!" "Wait
a minute", Topcat said."I checked they were gold." Panther and I said nothing we
were busy stuffing our faces with delicious chips. Topcat muttered about finding
the Leprechaun and beating the gold out of him. Until he saw the hat with the
bug in it. I had picked up as a souvenir. He knew there was no possible way he
could find the little guy.
"Oh well,"
he laughed at least we got some chips and Tiberius gets a new cook pot!"
Winking at me he continued speaking and you my dear Shel got a handsome hat."
Biting into a chip he continued. "Might as well invite the crew in with some
drinks and chip-dip." So it was that we had a party and ate all of those good
potato chips. Soon the pot was empty.
But the next day we when awoke we found
the pot full once again! It turned out that every day at dawn if the pot was
empty it would magically be filled with potato chips. "Looks like we found a
cornucopia." Said Topcat. Panther laughed. "No its a POTATOcopia!"
