Chapter 7! ^^ I tell ya, the beginning of this chapter is so much like an episode that I was picturing it like an episode, laugh track and all! Even saw the camera views in my head, and the character's expressions. This is what happens when I have a real "writing spree". A writing spree is, in essence, the polar opposite of a writer's block. Unfortunately, for me, they tend to come BEFORE a writer's block. XD Which is, in fact, what happened.

But then these chapters aren't that lengthy (I have another story in which I had to break one chapter into two parts and another into three because they were so long- the one I broke into 3 parts is 27 pages long! College ruled. That's my record), so the updates have been relatively fast.

Also, before this chapter, this story (including my author's notes) had 12,321 words. XD 1-2-3-2-1!

Anyways, I will shut up now. Enjoy the chapter!

Chapter 7- Mind Your Own Business

.~GI~.

Mary Ann set her hands on her hips. "Gilligan, you can't lock yourself in a closet for the rest of your life," she said, standing outside the food locker.

Gilligan opened the door and poked his head out. "Not for the rest of my life, but at least for the next few days!" he said before quickly shutting the door again.

Mary Ann sighed hopelessly. "Don't be silly, Gilligan," she said. "Nobody lives in a little wooden box."

"You'd be surprised," came Gilligan's muffled response. "It's actually kind of nice in here. I have room to move around, and there's even food in here."

Mary Ann folded her arms. "If you come out of there I'll make you your very own coconut cream pie," she said.

The food locker door opened again. Gilligan's head poked out again, his eyes hopeful. "Would you really?" he asked.

"Of course," said Mary Ann. Gilligan smiled. It's working, thought the girl.

"What if I come out for pie and go right back in afterwards?" the young man asked, his eyes twinkling mischievously. Mary Ann shook her head. Gilligan's eyes stopped twinkling. "No thanks," he declined politely, shutting himself in again.

Mary Ann gave up. If pie couldn't lure him out, nothing could. She left the hut.

Almost right after she left, in sauntered the Howells. Mr. Howell had bundles of cash in his hands and a wicked sparkle in his dark eyes. No man can resist the temptation of cash, he thought, not even Gilligan.

"Are you sure this will work, Thurston?" Mrs. Howell whispered. "You know Gilligan doesn't usually respond to bribes."

"Always a first time, Lovey, always a first time," said Mr. Howell. The couple approached the food locker. "Gilligan," Mr. Howell addressed. "I've got something for you."

Gilligan's head poked out again "If it's a bribe, it won't work," he said before once again disappearing into the locker.

"It's not a bribe, just some, ah, gentle persuasion," said Mr. Howell. "Persuasion with cash, that is. What, say, ten thousand to get you to come out?"

"Nope," said Gilligan.

"Twenty thousand?" No reply. "Still no? How's thirty thousand? Forty? Fifty?" His hopes faded as each offer was silently rejected. "One million dollars? ...A puppy?" He seemed to break. "J. P. Morgan, my boy, what can I offer you to get you to come out?" he exclaimed.

Gilligan opened the food locker door again and poked his head out. "Mr. Howell," he began, "you could offer me the world and I wouldn't come out." With that, he shut himself in again.

Mr. Howell finally gave up. "Come on, Lovey," he said quietly. "He's mad." The couple left the hut again.

Then Ginger came in. She had a plan up her sleeve, for this was the sort of thing she did best. She knocked on the locker door. "Gilligan," she said in a sultry voice. "Please come out. I want to see your handsome face."

The door slowly opened as Gilligan's head inched out, until his big blue-green eyes were peeking up at Ginger. He didn't come any further. Ginger smiled seductively. "There you are," she said. "Now, there's no reason a good-looking young man like you should be all locked up in there," she said, bending over.

"Sure there is," said Gilligan, wary of her tone. "I carried the Skipper and the Professor to some place in the jungle. Any one of you could be next and I don't want that to happen."

Ginger opened the door a little more and reached in. She carressed Gilligan's cheek with her fingers, ignoring the uncomfortable shifting he made at her touch. "That doesn't matter," she said.

"And..." Gilligan gulped, tracing the path of Ginger's fingers with his eyes, "...why not?

"I know you don't mean to do it," whispered Ginger, edging closer to the young man's face. "Some silly berries aren't going to keep you away from me, now, are they?"

Gilligan grabbed the door to the food locker and backed up. "No, but this door will," he said, quickly shutting the door.

Ginger looked surprised for a moment before turning towards the audience and shrugging. Then she too left the hut.

.~GI~.

"Nothing we've tried has worked," said Ginger, sitting around the community table with Mary Ann and the Howells.

"I don't know why he wants to stay in that tiny little box," commented Mrs. Howell. "It seems so cramped!"

"He turned down my bribes," Mr. Howell said.

Mary Ann rested her cheek in her palm. "He turned down my offer for pie," she said.

"I don't blame him, after what happened yesterday," said Mr. Howell, casting a slight glance at Mary Ann.

"There has to be some way to get him out of there," said Mary Ann, choosing to ignore Mr. Howell's somewhat biting remark.

"Well, we can't sit here thinking all day," said Ginger. "The Skipper and the Professor are still missing."

Mr. Howell suddenly stood up. "Ginger, that's it!" he exclaimed. "If we let Gilligan come with us to search for them, he might just come out!"

"Oh, Thurston, darling, you're so terribly clever," said Mrs. Howell, rising and drawing closer to her husband.

"Great idea, Mr. Howell," said Mary Ann. "Let's go tell him."

The four castaways hurried back into the hut. "Gilligan? Gilligan, we have a deal to make with you. All of us," said Mr. Howell.

Gilligan's head poked out of the food locker again. "What is it?" he asked.

"Well," Mary Ann began, "We wanted you to come help us search for the Skipper and the Professor."

The young man's expression brightened. "You do?" he asked, a smile creeping onto his lips.

"Of course, Gilligan," Ginger agreed. "You know this island best, after all."

Gilligan grinned shyly. "I guess I do," he said. He climbed out of the food locker and shut the door behind him. "Can we go look now?" he asked, looking at everyone.

"Why not? The day's not getting any longer, you know," said Mrs. Howell.

Gilligan observed each of their four faces. "Well... if I do go after those berries, you all have to promise to hold me back," he said.

They all promised. Then, the five castaways headed off into the jungle.

.~GI~.

The Professor stirred to consciousness. He blinked several times and observed his surroundings, trying to get an idea of where he was. Steep, rocky, dirty walls rose up above him by many feet. Sunlight barely shone through the thick coating of fern leaves and brush covering the top of the hole.

"Professor, thank goodness you're awake!"

The Professor looked up to see a familiar face. "Skipper!" he declared, sitting up. "So this is where he took you. And it seems he took me as well."

"I wish I knew where he took my hat, said the Skipper, folding his arms and shooting an incredulous glance up at his head. Then he sighed. "Do you know what's wrong with my little buddy?" he asked with concern.

The Professor sighed. "Well, Skipper, I'm afraid Gilligan has an addiction to the janupa berry," he said.

The Skipper was startled. "An addiction?" he asked. "But... how?"

The professor looked pensive. "I'm not sure," he said. "But I'll continue to think about it. All I know is that these berries have turned him into a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde."

.~GI~.

The party moved through the jungle. Gilligan suggested looking in the secret places he knew. They didn't find the men in any of these places, but the other castaways did realize that Gilligan knew a lot of places that they didn't.

"Have we looked everywhere, Gilligan?" asked Mary Ann.

Gilligan shoved his hands in his pockets. "Everywhere I can remember," he said, hanging his head.

"You've got to remember where you put them, my boy!" Mr. Howell exclaimed.

"I wish I could, Mr. Howell," said Gilligan. "I know it's somewhere up there. Gee, I wish the Professor was still here. Then he could hypnotize me into remembering."

"I know how to hypnotize people," said Ginger.

Gilligan looked at her hopefully. "You do?"

"Yes, I do! Come on, let's go back to camp and try it." The group headed back with renewed vigor, hoping that hypnotism would help.

.~GI~.

"All right, Gilligan. Are you ready?"

Ginger and Gilligan were sitting in chairs opposite each other in the girls' hut. Gilligan nodded unsurely. "Ready as I'll ever be," he said.

"All right, then we can begin," said Ginger. She raised the ball on the chain and began swinging it back and forth. "You are falling into a deep sleep. A deep, deep sleep," Ginger whispered softly.

Gilligan's eyes were trained on the ball. Slowly, it grew fuzzier and fuzzier, until he dropped off into unconsciousness. Ginger put the ball down. "Now Gilligan, you have to remember. Remember what you did to the Skipper and the Professor. Remember where you put them. Now, when you wake up, you will remember everything."

"When I wake up, I will remember... everything," Gilligan mumbled.

Ginger snapped her fingers. Gilligan's eyes shot open. "So? What do you remember?" asked Ginger. Gilligan stared back at her without a word, but merely with blank eyes. "Gilligan?" Ginger waved her hand in front of his face, with scarcely a blink from him. "Gilligan? Ooh, Gilligan." She snapped her fingers a few more times.

Did I do something wrong? she wondered. "Oh... everyone, I think I messed up the hypnotism!" she declared, running out of the hut. "After I woke him up, he just sat there and stared at me with this glazed-over look in his eyes."

Ginger and the other three castaways hurried into the girls' hut. they gasped. "He's gone," Ginger said.

Mr. Howell uneasily checked over his shoulder. "If he was in the state you said he was in, I wouldn't want to encounter him," he said, producing his teddy bear. He hugged the toy nervously.

"We may have to," said Mary Ann. "What Ginger described sounds just like what Gilligan looked like when he went after those berries he's addicted to."

"Oh, I do hope he gets over that dreadful addiction of his," said Mrs. Howell.

"Should we go after him?" asked Ginger.

"If it's anything like last time, we have to," said Mary Ann.

"Well, I can't allow you two girls to go by yourselves," said Mrs. Howell. She then looked thoughtful. "What does one wear to a chase?"

"We don't have time to worry about that now, Mrs. Howell," said Mary Ann. "Gilligan could be hurting himself out there."

"Well, all right," consigned the eldest of the ladies. The three women started off. Mrs. Howell paused and turned back around. "Aren't you coming, Thurston?" she questioned.

Mr. Howell hugged his teddy bear tighter. "With a demented Gilligan out there, waiting to pounce? I'd rather stay here, where it's safe!" he declared.

"Suit yourself," said Mary Ann. The girls wandered back off into the jungle, leaving Mr. Howell to himself.

"Can you believe them?" he asked aloud. "I'll just stay here alone and guard the camp." He suddenly looked frightened. "I'm alone," he said. "Why... I'm a sitting duck!" Mr. Howell jogged off after the women, shouting things like, "Wait for me! I don't want to be here alone! I've changed my mind, I've changed my mind!"

.~GI~.

The chapter title? referring to the hypnotism.

I'm not entirely sure what all my plans for the next chapter are, but I'm mainly glad I finally finished this chapter. Whewf!

I had a lot of fun writing the Howells in this chapter, though. Heck, that whole opening scene was a lot of fun. XD

Hopefully I can post a story preview at some point... x.x I am, as I said, trying to work in three projects at once already. Please review. ^^