Where You Belong

The Grocery Store

Within the hour, Lexi herded Shachi and Penguin into her truck, which still dripped water from the storm the night before. They climbed in, and Lexi took the driver's seat.

"What is this thing anyway?" Penguin asked, and she gave them a incredulous look.

"You don't know what a truck is?" They shook their heads. "It's an automobile. Basically, like a ship for land." She compared, remembering they were pirates. Turning the key, the engine sputtered to life, and she shoved it into drive before heading down the second half of the looped gravel driveway.

"Hmm, what is it made of?"

To Shachi's question, she shrugged. "No idea. They make them in big factories." Seeing no one on the road, she turned it towards the small town of Fairview.

An awkward silence fell over those inside, and Lexi decided to fill the void. Grabbing a CD from the holder above, she slipped it into the player.

"What's that?" She smiled, glancing at the two in her rearview mirror.

"You guys don't have CD's in your world, huh?" They shook their heads again.

"CD's?"

"Yeah, they play music. You burn the music onto the disc and then you can play it in the CD player." A moment later, the opening bars of Bad to the Bone came on, and Lexi nodded her head up and down with the music. The gentle hills passed by as she steadily drove the long stretch of road to the town. Every once in awhile, a car would pass by.

"What kind of music is this?" Penguin questioned, eyes wide with wonder. Shachi looked to be in the same kind of trance, listening to George Thorogood sing the lyrics.

"This, my friend, is classic rock." She tapped her wheel with her finger to the beat.

"I broke a thousand hearts, before I met you. I'll break a thousand more baby, before I am through. I wanna be yours pretty baby, yours and yours alone. I'm here to tell ya honey, that I'm bad to the bone!" Lexi sang, catching the attention of the two in the back.

"You know the words?" She chuckled, nodding her head.

"It's easy to memorize these songs when your radio doesn't work." She clicked on the radio, but the only sound that came through was an ebbing static. She switched it off, placing both hands on the wheel again.

"Wanna learn the words?" She asked with a grin, and they nodded enthusiastically. She cranked up the volume, and started the song over again.

~~~

Law sat on the couch, eyeing the infernal device Lexi had labeled the 'TV.' She'd thrown him a rectangular object called a remote, neglecting to explain what exactly it was supposed to do. With the unhelpful instructions to 'knock himself out,' she'd left with his two engineers.

Nana, who'd wandered back into her room early on, was fast asleep on her bed, and was therefore no help to Law. He sighed deeply, and Bepo wandered over.

"Maybe you press one of the buttons?" The bear suggested, pointing to the remote. He glanced at it, picking it up in frustration. Eyeing the numerous buttons that adorned its surface, he took a shot in the dark and pressed the only one that wasn't black. The red one at the top was pushed down, and a small click sounded. They both looked up at the TV, but it was still dark.

"Hmm..." Law muttered, but suddenly the screen turned on and produced a very loud noise.

"-FOR THE VERY BEST DEALS IN USED CARS. WE CHALLENGE YOU TO FIND A BETTER PRICE WITH OUR COMPETITORS." The TV blared, causing both of the pirates to jump.