The female main character's name is Amira. But she uses nicknames such as Ari, or Mari

Amira had always been inspired by Captain Billy Bones' stories of pirates and adventures. Not only was she inspired, but it inspired her best friend of seven years, Jim Hawkins, as well.

Tonight was no different. Captain Bones told his usual pirate tales around the table to the guests that surrounded them. 

". . . . No one knows today who has old Flinty's map," Billy Bones declared once he'd finished the story. 

"Now ain't that a story worth hearing," half the people in the bar chorused at once. 

"I'll drink to that!" someone else cheered. 

"But who has the map now, eh?" Billy Bones continued. "Is it some black-hearted, blood-sucking buccaneer? Or maybe, is it our very own Jim Hawkins and Amira Wells? Eh, Jimmy and Amira?" 

On cue, Amira and Jim had arrived with their trays. Amira noticed that Jim grinned at the thought of owning Flint's treasure map. 

"If Mari, my friends, and I had that treasure map, we wouldn't be serving you rum all day, Mr. Bones," Jim answered casually. 

Everyone around them laughed. 

"That's right!" Gonzo put in. "We'd be out there in the unknown, finding that treasure, sailing the Seven Seas on a five-year mission — boldly going where no man has gone before! Say, that's kinda catchy!" 

Rizzo scoffed. "Nuh-uh. Not me. If I had that treasure map, I'd be trading it for a decent meal." 

"Of course, you would," Mari muttered under her breath. 

"Hey, Gonzo. You think that he's going to eat this?" 

Without another word, Rizzo plunged himself into Billy Bones' leftover meat that he had barely finished. 

"Oh, aye! But beware the one-legged man! He's the one to fear! Even old Flinty feared him." 

"Don't worry, Captain," Mari reassured the drunken man. "If he comes to the pub, somehow, we'll watch for him." 

"Yeah, I'll be looking out for him — if he's delivering a pizza!" Rizzo joked, laughing hysterically. 

Billy clearly had enough. He slammed a bowl over Rizzo's head to get him to shut up. "Even old Flinty feared him. If he ever comes poking around this place, you guys come looking for me whippety-quick!" 

Mari sighed, clearly having enough. Jim looked annoyed as well. 

"Don't worry, Captain," Jim reassured him. "If he comes poking around, we'll tell you." 

"Yeah!" Gonzo agreed. "One hand, three heads, a couple-dozen noses; if anything weird happens I'll —" 

"Hey!" said Mari defensively as the retired pirate grabbed Gonzo by his hooked nose, pulling him forward. But the old pirate, however, ignored her. 

"It ain't no joking matter, hose-nose," he growled threateningly in return. "The one-legged man brings death!" 

 A loud, clanking noise was heard from one of the rooms. Miss Bluveridge appeared, banging a spoon against a metal pot to gain everyone's attention. And it did. 

"Closing time, gentlemen!" she declared. "It's closing time! Pay ye bills and then shove off!" 

"Moo!" a lone cow protested drunkenly. Miss Bluveridge gave the drunk cow a look of disgust. 

"Ugh. Drunk again, ain't ya?" She glanced around the room before proceeding to scold Mari, Jim, Gonzo, and Rizzo. "Children, look at this place!" Jim hastily began to wipe down one of the empty tables in haste to avoid being shouted out. "How come this place is always such a pigsty, huh?" 

"Eh?!" one of the pigs in the bar exclaimed in offense. Miss Bluveridge quickly caught on, giving them fake smiles. 

"No offense, gentlemen. No offense." 

"Here's to you, boys," Billy Bones declared. The sound of a coin dropped onto the wooden table. "I'm away to me room." 

Everyone paid their bills and quickly left the pub. Amyra let out a sigh of relief. It had been a long day and she felt tired. 

"Don't forget to come back for our lunch time special, roast suckling — potatoes," Miss Bluveridge hastily corrected herself. She closed the door shut before turning to the two children and the Muppet friends. "All right, children. Once you've finished cleaning here, you can go clean up the kitchen. I've left some table scraps for you for your dinner. Oh, yes. And children . . . . last night you forgot to put out the lantern. If anything like that happens again, you'll be left with no table scraps for a week. Bah!" 

"You're standing on my ear, Rizzo!" Gonzo protested. 

"I'm not on your ear!" Rizzo protested back. 

Mari huffed as she watched her trio of friends anxiously. They could get themselves hurt if they weren't careful. 

"I hate my life!" Jim declared at last. 

"I hate your life, too," Gonzo reassured him.

"If I had a life, I'd hate it," Rizzo confirmed. Everyone ignored him.

"I should run off to sea like my father did," Jim continued to rant. Mari didn't blame him. "He was my age when he sailed to China as a Cabin Boy. He eventually wound up as first mate!" 

"Run off and just leave everybody?" Rizzo asked in amazement. 

"Who's 'everybody'?" Jim protested bitterly. "I'm an orphan. I've got no family."

Mari could feel her heart break for Jim as he made that confession. 

"You have us, Jim," she commented in a hushed voice. 

"Yeah, Mari's right," Rizzo pointed out. "We're family. Got it." 

Jim tripped and they came toppling down on top of each other. Mari hastily approached them, making sure that her friends were okay and weren't hurt. 

"Are you guys okay?" she asked anxiously as she crouched down next to them. 

Jim ignored her and scoffed. "Some family we are. Face it, Rizzo. We don't exactly look alike." 

"Okay, okay!" Rizzo answered hastily. "So I'm a rat, you and Mari are humans, and Gonzo is a —"

"Huh?" Gonzo asked. He had been lost in thought. "Oh! I'm a whatever." 

Mari rolled her eyes. 

"Yeah, but . . . .," Jim protested, looking thoughtful. "I wish that my life was more like in one of Captain Bones' adventures — sailing the High Seas in search for buried treasure." 

"Yeah, and discovering lost islands and meeting weird civilizations!" Gonzo put in, laughing as an afterthought. 

Jim took out his father's compass. "Navigating with my father's old compass, to wherever the wind may take us!" 

"Yeah! Off to Zanzibar. To meet the Zanzibarbarians!" Gonzo added enthusiastically. 

Rizzo was not pleased. He shook his head. "Here they go again." 

Jim pointed in the direction of his compass. "To the southwest — pirate galleons!" 

"To the southeast — multi-armed Zanzibarbarians shark-women! And their exploding wigs of death!" 

"To the northeast — Mermaid's cove!" Mari put in. 

"There is no such thing as mermaids, Mari!" Gonzo chided, giving Mari a glare, which she returned. She was about to retort, when Miss Bluberidge's voice came through like a whip smacking through the air. 

"To the northwest, dirty dishes!" 

Everyone stared off to space, amazed that Miss Bluberidge could hear them. Gonzo shook his head in amazement. 

"How does she do that?!" 

"Might as well," Jim sighed at last. "I guess that Mari and I will hand-wash." 

"I'll dry," Gonzo put in.

"I'll break," Rizzo grumbled. 

*****************

"ENOUGH OF THIS SINGING!" Billy Bones roared unexpectedly as he came in on them during their chores. "I NEED RUM! RUM, LADS!" 

He began knocking things over, crashing things to the floor. Mari tensed, afraid that he'd hurt her, Jim, or any of her friends. He was already drunken enough. 

"GIMME MORE RUM!" 

"All right, all right!" Jim answered hastily, sitting up a wobbling Billy Bones. "Just one small one, though." 

"DON'T BE GIVING HIM ANY MORE RUM!" Miss Bluberidge's voice shot through the air once more. And once again, they were shocked. 

"How does she bloody do that?!" Billy Bones exclaimed in disbelief. A knocking noise was heard at the door. "Shh! Shh!" 

They listened carefully. Jim cautiously approached the door. Mari began to grab for his elbow to pull him back, but Jim just brushed her away in return. 

"Be careful, Jim!" she hissed anxiously. 

Jim grabbed the door's handle and wrenched it open. At once, an obnoxious laugh filled the air, confusing Mari.

"Billy Bones! It's me — Blind Pew." Everyone gave Billy Bones a look of confusion. Billy just gave the blind man a look of disgust. Everyone continued to stay quiet in hopes to not get caught. Blind Pew continued to talk nonsense. "I know that you're in here, Billy! You snivelling a curve!"

"He must be a blind fiend," Gonzo whispered.

"Or yet, a visually challenged blind fiend," Rizzo corrected.

Billy tried to shush the duo, only to be interrupted by Blind Pew. He was not so easily fooled. And not quite as dumb as Mari thought he would be.

"Ah-ha!" Blind Pew declared triumphantly as he waved his walking stick around in the air. "I heard that! There's someone here! No? Over here!"

Mari quickly found herself backing up towards the cabinets where they held the liquor.