Chapter 1
It was a cool October morning, and the wind was just strong enough to take seawater and turn it to mist. Jasmine had grown up near the sea, and even now the smell of saltwater made her feel at home. At her side, her golden retriever Luffy stared out to sea, letting the air sweep through his coat and ruffle his fur.
“I always liked the ocean,” Luffy said, shaking out his fur. Jasmine smiled, knowing he wasn’t hard to please. Luffy liked anything that meant he could stay outside, and that included the beach.
“Well, I’m glad you’re a fan. We’re going to be seeing it a lot on the cruise.”
That idea didn’t sit as well with him, and he went back to the same whining that he had been doing since Jasmine had first suggested the cruise ship idea.
“Are you sure we have to go? There are lots of other ways to celebrate finishing your writing program that don’t involve leaving dry land behind for days at a time.”
“Maybe. But there aren’t a lot of ways to enjoy that and Halloween all at the same time. I’m kind of at a weird age for Halloween, and this cruise is a great excuse to get into costume without really having to go anywhere.”
“I don’t even like my costume,” Luffy complained.
“I let you pick out whichever one you wanted from the pet store,” Jasmine reminded him. It’s not my fault you regret your choice."
“I didn’t know it would be so uncomfortable.”
“We’ll look at it back at the hotel. I’ll see if I can make it a little more comfortable for you, but either way you’re going to look great.”
“If I agree to the costume, can we skip the cruise and just go run around back home?”
Jasmine wasn’t sure where home would be. Her mind went first to Blackwood Cove, but she had spent far more time at Wildwood lately. Now that she was done with her writing program, she could go almost anywhere in the world, but she still wasn’t quite sure what the future would hold for her. Until she figured that out, home was a bit of a vague concept.
“You’re going to like the cruise. It’ll be fun.”
“I saw all those pictures you showed me. The rooms are tiny, and even when you’re on the deck you aren’t really outside. There won’t be any squirrels to chase or dirt to dig up all week. It will just be a whole bunch of people.”
“You survived Tokyo, and that had way more people than the cruise will.”
“But you’re squishing them into less space. It’s going to be way worse.”
“It’s going to be fine. We’ll spend most of our time out on the deck and you can look at the ocean and feel the wind.”
“But not run around or dig any holes.”
“You can do all of that now. Maybe get it out of your system.”
Luffy took her seriously and ran off to enjoy what little time he had left on dry land. Jasmine stayed where she was and enjoyed the sea breeze and the sun a little while longer. She knew they should head back to the hotel to put on their costumes and make sure everything was ready for the cruise, but it was nice enjoying the moment. She wanted to stay for just a little while longer.
“Hey there,” someone said. Jasmine didn’t respond at first, but soon realized she wasn’t the only one on the beach. She looked up to see a blonde man in a thick winter jacket. He was smiling broadly, showcasing a row of abnormally white teeth.
“Sorry, was my dog bothering you? Here, Luffy!” she called her dog over, more for reassurance than concern.
“No, no, he was fine. I just saw what you are carrying on you, that’s all. I’m going on that cruise too.”
Jasmine looked down at her backpack. It had been a gift from the cruise line, and it had the words “Costumed Cruise 2020” printed on it in cheap white letters.
“Oh. Cool.”
“What is it?” Luffy asked, finally making it over to them. He looked the mysterious man up and down before sitting down, waiting for Jasmine to tell him anything more about what to do.
“You don’t exactly sound excited,” the man asked. “Not a fan of the water?”
“I like the water just fine,” Jasmine said. She was about to add that she had grown up near the sea, but she didn’t want to give the stranger more information than he needed.
“Me too. I’ve always been into sailing. I wasn’t too excited about being a passenger instead of a captain, but now that I’ve seen you, I think I’ve changed my mind.”
Jasmine thought that sounded an awful lot like flirting, but her actual life experience was pretty much limited to her high school best friend’s years of pining for her. She gave the blonde man the benefit of the doubt.
“That’s nice.”
“I think it will be. I’ll have more time on my hands for fun and food. Have you heard about the on-board restaurants yet? I’d love to take you to one.”
That was all the confirmation Jasmine needed. Now that she knew that he was definitely flirting, she needed to shut him down. Dating was the last thing on her mind, especially since the last time she had taken a fancy to someone, it had gone horribly wrong.
“I’ll be alright on my own,” she said, hoping that she didn’t sound too rude.
“If I can’t take you for food, maybe I’ll just buy you a round of drinks.”
“Again, I think I can manage on my own,” she said, standing and starting to turn away from him. “I should really get back to my hotel room so I can get my costume on.”
“Is that an invitation?”
“No.” Jasmine turned sharply and walked away. “Luffy, keep an eye on him.”
“He’s a creep,” Luffy said. “I can’t believe you’re going to get on a ship with him.”
“I know. Hopefully, we’ll be on completely different sides of the ship and I can ignore him.”
“It’s not that big of a ship. And all the hallways will be cramped, so you’re pretty much guaranteed to run into him at some point.”
“You’re probably right. Maybe—” Jasmine caught herself before she questioned going on the cruise at all. She could see what Luffy was doing now. “Nice try, but you’re not getting out of the cruise. I’m sure we won’t even see each other, and even if we do, it won’t be a big deal.”
“Ugh,” Luffy whined. “I really thought you were going to take us home.”
“I would never.”
Despite her external confidence, her brief encounter with the stranger had dampened her mood a little. She had been putting off going back to the hotel before, but now she was glad to be back.
“We’ve only got an hour before we need to check in for the cruise. We still need to pack a few things up, check out of the hotel and get into our costumes, so we don’t have a lot of extra time.”
“Okay,” Luffy said. It was clear that he didn’t understand why he was being told this.
“That means I don’t have time to fight with you about the costume. Can you please make it easy for me, just this once?”
“Can I fuss about it as soon as we’re on the ship?”
“How about after we’ve left the dock?”
“Alright. Let’s get this over with.”
Even with Luffy being most cooperative, Jasmine spent the most part of an hour trying to get him into his costume. The headband with the little devil horns was easy, but the fake leather outfit, the red cape and the plastic demon tail were harder to get in order.
Luckily, her own costume was easier to handle. She was going as a witch, which meant a simple black dress with a few Halloween accents, and a tall pointed hat. She also had a fake broomstick, but she wasn’t sure whether she could take it with her on the cruise. She brought it with her to check in, just in case.
The line to check in for the cruise wasn’t that long, but it was densely packed. Couples and families and groups of friends were all gathered in bunches. Jasmine didn’t see anyone else traveling alone or with a dog, but she saw plenty of costumes. She recognized a few characters from popular movies and other media, but mostly everyone had stuck to more traditional Halloween creatures. She had worried a bit that the witch costume would be generic, but it seemed she was going to fit right in.
Her ticket was quickly checked, and she was welcomed on board with the others. Most people were heading for the rails, and Jasmine was going to do the same, but Luffy seemed to hold back.
“Are you okay?” she asked. There was enough going on around her she didn’t think anyone would notice her talking to Luffy.
“I don’t like this. Being on a ship doesn’t feel good. Everything is swaying.”
Jasmine looked around. The ship was big enough that it felt just like solid ground to her, and they hadn’t even left the dock yet. “I don’t feel anything.”
“You’re not a dog. I can smell things you can’t too.”
“I know. Do you think it would help to go look at the sea?”
“I don’t think—” Luffy started to say, but he was quickly interrupted from a voice behind Jasmine.
“If that dog gets sick, I hope you clean it up yourself.”
Jasmine turned to see an all too familiar face. It was the man from the beach, dressed in a torn outfit that looked more like a hand-me-down than a costume. Jasmine could only tell that he was a zombie because of the young woman standing next to him in pretty much the same outfit, but with a lot more care into makeup.
“Don’t talk like that, Jeff,” the woman scolded. Turning to Jasmine, she added. “I’m sorry about him, he just wants to make sure they treat all the workers well. He used to work for a place like this and he had to clean up seasickness all the time.”
From how Jeff was staring at her, Jasmine got the feeling that his problems with her ran a little deeper than that. She didn’t think he was all too happy about her walking away from him earlier that day, so she turned her attention to the woman doing the talking.
“Thanks,” she said, trying to be casual as she added: “How do you two know each other?”
“We’re engaged,” the woman said brightly, holding out her finger to display a perfectly shining ring that didn’t match her ragged costume at all. She was smiling and bouncing on her feet as she continued. “He just proposed last month and we’re going on this cruise instead of having an engagement party.”
“They’re engaged?” Luffy asked, his voice a little groggy from his seasickness. “Wasn’t he hitting on you at the beach?”
Jasmine was thinking along the same lines, but she was too polite to prod further. She was still holding onto the hope that she wouldn’t have to see much of this Jeff guy on the cruise. Having an argument with him would admit that he was having an influence on her trip.
“Sounds like you two are going to have a great time,” Jasmine said with a fake smile.
“My Annie thought it would be fun,” Jeff said, and Jasmine remembered his comment before about not being much of a fan of traveling on someone else’s ship. She probably should have guessed that there had been someone else dragging him along on the trip.
“It will be,” Annie assured him. “We can even go inside for the cast off, so you don’t have to be part of all the waving that you hate.”
“Definitely sounds better than being out here for it.”
Annie turned to Jasmine. “We’re going to head inside, but maybe we’ll see you around. Your dog is really cute.”
“Thanks,” Jasmine said, but as soon as they had turned their backs Jasmine was glad that they were gone. Annie seemed sweet, but Jasmine didn’t enjoy knowing that her fiancé was already on the way to being disloyal.
“He kind of seems like a jerk,” Luffy growled.
“He is. But he’s gone now, and I think the ship is about to cast off. Let’s get to the rail before we miss anything.”
While Jasmine had been talking to Jeff and Annie, almost everyone else on the ship had checked in, and they had taken most of the places by the rail. Jasmine hurried towards a gap between an old couple and a mother with a toddler at her side. Luffy walked up next to her and stuck his head between a few of the bars. He was still wobbling a little as he walked, but he wasn’t complaining anymore, so Jasmine had to assume he was doing better.
“Puppy!” the toddler exclaimed upon noticing Luffy. He ran around his mother to get to Luffy and threw his arms around the dog.
“Noah!” his mother exclaimed. She grabbed him by his arm and pulled him back from Luffy. She turned to Jasmine apologetically. “I’m sorry about him. He gets excited about dogs and forgets to ask if he can pet them.”
“He can pet me,” Luffy smiled. “He can dish out a wonderful hug, and he’s cute!”
Noah was indeed very cute. He was wearing a round little jack-o’-lantern costume and his curls stuck out from under the orange cap. Jasmine couldn’t help but smile.
“It’s totally fine,” she assured Noah’s mother. “He can pet Luffy all he wants.”
The woman looked down at her son. “Okay, Noah, you can pet the dog now if you want, but say thank you to this nice young lady.”
“Thank you,” Noah blurted, then instantly kneeled to pet Luffy.
“Thank you,” the woman said, more genuine than her toddler. She stuck out a hand to shake. “I’m Abigail.”
“I’m Jasmine,” Jasmine responded, shaking her outstretched hand.
“It’s nice to meet you. I like your costume.”
“Thanks,” Jasmine wanted to return the compliment, but she couldn’t quite tell what Abigail’s costume was. She was wearing a shirt with bats on it and some black wristbands, but it wasn’t exactly a costume. Jasmine finally settled on complimenting Noah instead. “I like your little Jack-o’-lantern.”
“He’s so cute in that outfit,” Abigail agreed, looking down at her toddler. “I’m glad his costume turned out so well. I used to go all out for holidays like this, but I didn’t think I could spend a week chasing him around in full costume. I think I still kind of got the message across.”
Abigail lifted her arms and Jasmine realized that the black bands around her wrist were connected to sheets of black cloth. When she held her arms out the fabric unfurled into a rudimentary set of bat wings to go with the themed shirt.
“Oh, yeah. I like it, it’s creative.”
“It’s good enough for a cruise ship. I might switch it out for something a little more intense when Halloween actually rolls around.”
Jasmine was going to respond, but a ruckus erupted all around them. People towards the back of the ship had clapped and cheered and it was spreading like wildfire all over the ship. It wasn’t until Jasmine felt the ground lurch a bit underneath her feet that she realized what was happening.
“I think we are setting off.”
“Yep. Noah, come here and wave goodbye, okay?”
“Bye, bye doggie!” Noah said and walked back over to his mom. She put a hand on his shoulder and they both waved back at the shore. Jasmine mimicked them, even though she didn’t have anyone to wave at on the shore.
“I don’t like this,” Luffy whined. “I don’t feel good.”
“You just have to make it a few more minutes,” she said, rubbing his head. “I don’t want to miss cast off.”
Luffy groaned, and Jasmine kept stroking his head as the ship moved away from the shore. It wasn’t as bad as Luffy had made it out to be, and she knew she would adjust to it pretty quickly.
After a few minutes of waving, people seemed to get bored. They all headed towards the front of the ship.
“Where is everyone going?” Jasmine asked Abigail.
“The captain’s going to give a little welcome speech. It’s not mandatory, but it’s on the schedule.”
Jasmine looked at the papers they had handed her when she checked in. A bright blue box on the front told her exactly what Abigail just had.
“We can walk over there together if you want.”
Jasmine glanced down at Luffy. He didn’t look like he was doing too well. He said nothing, but he had laid down on the ground.
“Thanks for the offer, but Luffy doesn’t look too good. I think I need to figure that out before I do anything else.”
“I understand. I hope you two have a fun trip,” Abigail squeezed Noah’s shoulder. “Say goodbye to Jasmine.”
“Bye, bye, Jasmine,” Noah said, looking at Luffy instead of at Jasmine. He was cute enough that Jasmine didn’t mind.
Once Noah and Abigail were gone, Jasmine kneeled down next to Luffy. “How are you doing, buddy?”
“Not good,” he said, laying his head on his paws. Jasmine felt bad for not doing anything earlier, but she wasn’t sure there was anything she could have done.
“Why don’t we go check out the Animal Relief Area?” Jasmine suggested. She didn’t want to admit it, but she was a little worried that Luffy was going to be sick like Jeff had mentioned. If that was going to happen, she didn’t want it to be out here on the deck of the ship.
“Okay,” Luffy said, still sounding a bit down about everything. He ambled as Jasmine followed the map towards the center of the ship. The Animal Relief Area was on the same level as the main deck, but it had been tucked into a little room towards the back of the ship. They had to go through two doors before they found the one with the symbol of a dog on it.
The area itself was a lot like the ones Jasmine had seen in the airports on her trip to Japan. There was a small patch of fake turf with free disposal bags and a trash can at the side. Someone had added a little fire hydrant to the corner for style and they painted one wall in blue with cartoony clouds.
The bigger surprise was that the room was not empty. There was someone sitting on a bench against the back wall. They were wrapped up like a mummy, including all the way over their face and it took Jasmine a moment to realize that it was an actual person and not some kind of Halloween prop. The thing that tipped her off was not the person themselves, but the very much alive dog sitting on the floor next to them. It was wearing a red vest with the words “SERVICE ANIMAL” stamped onto it and had a stiff handle sticking out of the top of the vest. When Jasmine walked in, the mummy’s hand moved to that handle.
“I guess we’ve got company, Snowy. Or was that a ghost I heard opening the door?”
“I’m not a ghost,” Jasmine said, sticking her hand out to shake. “I’m Jasmine.”
The mummy didn’t move at all, but revealed themselves to be a man. “Well, hello Jasmine. Welcome to the Animal Relief Area. You probably made a wrong turn, but if you go down one more door, there’s a help desk.”
“I am meant to be here,” Jasmine said, looking between the mummy and Luffy. She dropped her hand; it was becoming clear that the mummy couldn’t see the gesture. “I have a dog too, and he’s feeling a little seasick. I thought this would be a good place to come.”
“Seasick, huh?” the mummy said, nodding slowly. “This must be your first time taking him on a ship.”
“Yeah,” Jasmine admitted. “He was fine on a plane, but something about the ship’s been throwing him off.”
“Dogs are more sensitive to this kind of thing. It’s the same reason that they can feel earthquakes before they happen. Here, I’ve got some medicine you can borrow.”
“Medicine for Luffy?” Jasmine asked as the mummy went through the bag sitting next to him.
“I’m assuming that’s the dog, and if I’m right, then it’s a yes,” he said, handing her a small blue bottle. She hesitated to take it from him, and he added. “Don’t worry, they’re over the counter. Read the bottle if you don’t trust me.”
Jasmine took the bottle from him and read the drug facts on the back. It did claim to be an over-the-counter drug to help with motion sickness in animals. Part of her wondered how she hadn’t known this existed, but she quickly remembered that she had grown up in Blackwood Cove. There were a lot of benefits that came with living in a small town, but stocking drugs like this in their pharmacy was not one of them.
“Thanks,” she said at long last, and she poured out a pill to feed to Luffy. She put the cap back on and tried to hand the pill bottle back, but the mummy had lowered his hand to his side and didn’t lift it again to take it back. She turned to Luffy instead. “Do you think you can eat this? I know it’ll taste bad, but it might make you feel better.”
“Don’t you have any treats to go with it?”
“You aren’t going to get him to swallow a pill by asking nicely,” the mummy said. “Here, I think I’ve got some dog biscuits in my bag, but you have got to come prepared.”
“I have some treats in my backpack. Don’t worry about it.”
“Good. At least you have some idea of what a dog needs on a trip like this.”
It wasn’t a delicate thing to say, but Jasmine dismissed it since he had shared his medicine with her. She tossed Luffy a few of the treats from her backpack and he swallowed the pill. Again, she tried to hand the bottle back to the mummy, accompanying it this time with her voice. “Here you go.”
“Are you talking to me or the dog?”
“You. I was handing you back the medicine you let me borrow.”
“You can keep it. I’ve got more in my room and Snowy is pretty used to things like this. You’re obviously an amateur. You need it more than I do.”
“Thanks,” Jasmine said. She looked at Luffy. He still had his head on his paws, and it was clear that the medicine hadn’t kicked in yet. “I might hang around here for a few more minutes if that’s okay.”
“I don’t rule this place. Do whatever you want.”
“Okay,” Jasmine said, leaning against the wall. “Cool.”
She kept an eye on the mummy. He mostly just sat there, and Jasmine kept waiting for him to do something else, like pull out a phone. He kept staring straight ahead, making the entire room feel awkward.
“So, uh… how come you’re not at the big welcome speech if you’ve got the dog under control?”
“Not that it’s any of your business, but I’m hiding out. My parents didn’t think I could handle a trip this big on my own, and they hired someone to watch over me.”
“Your parents,” Jasmine repeated to herself. She couldn’t tell how old the mummy was from the bandages covering him from head to toe, but she could tell that he was taller than her by several inches. If not quite an adult, he was definitely a teenager. “Why didn’t they think you could handle it? It’s just a cruise. It’s not like there’s a ton of danger.”
“My parents think everything is a danger to me. They always seem to forget that I slogged through six years of martial arts and have a dog constantly around to protect me.”
“You definitely sound like you could protect yourself.”
“I know that. Everyone else just seems to forget it because I’m blind.”
Jasmine had been assuming that for a while now, but it was nice to get confirmation. She didn’t want to insult him by assuming he was blind when in reality he just couldn’t see through the thick layers of costume over his eyes.
As if to prove his point, the door pushed open and a middle-aged man dressed as a pharaoh walked into the room.
“Finn, there you are. I looked away for just one second during cast off and you were gone. Do you know how much of a fright you gave me?”
“I was just taking Snowy to the relief area,” the mummy said, confirming his name to be Finn. “Go on, boy.”
On cue, the service dog ran off to do his business on the artificial lawn. The man in the pharaoh costume noticed Jasmine for the first time.
“Oh, Finn, I see you’ve made a friend. Hi there, ma’am. I’m Walter. I look after Finn and make sure he doesn’t hurt himself.”
“Hi,” Jasmine said, and shook his hand.
“She’s not my friend.”
“Well, whoever she is, she seems like a perfectly nice girl. We really ought to be on our way though, Finn. We’ve missed most of the opening speech already.”
“Fine,” Finn said, sitting up straighter. “Can you take care of Snowy for me?”
Walter sighed, but he went to clean up after Snowy. As soon as the dog was done, he reported immediately back to Finn’s side, and the boy rested his hand on the handle of his harness. Soon he was standing, and Snowy led him around Jasmine and Luffy towards the door. It was a little cramped in the small room with three people and two dogs in there, but Finn and Snowy didn’t seem to have any trouble.
“I would say I’d see you around, but we both know that’s not true. If you’re lucky, you might see some more of me.”
“Maybe,” Jasmine agreed and watched Walter hurry out after his charge. They left her alone in the room with Luffy, who was looking a little better at last.
“How are you feeling, buddy?”
“Better. My mouth still tastes like medicine, though. Do you think I could have a few more treats?”
Jasmine knew he was probably just trying to get more treats out of her, but she felt bad enough for him that she caved and gave him a few more. He was no longer lying down, and Jasmine was confident he wasn’t going to be sick anymore.
“Do you think you’re ready to head out of here?” Jasmine asked. She checked the papers they had given her to see that there was an opening day meet and greet at the front of the ship as soon as the welcome speech was over. “If you’re not, that’s okay. But if you’re feeling better, I think we could have some fun.”
“I’m up for it. I still wish we were on dry land, but I think I’ll be okay.”
Since they were there anyway, Luffy went and took care of his business on the artificial turf. Once Jasmine had cleaned up after him, they headed towards the front of the ship. It was nice to be outside again to experience the fresh sea air and Jasmine took a deep breath to center herself. So far, the cruise hadn’t gone exactly as she had hoped, but she could still turn things around at the meet and greet. There was still a lot of time left on the cruise to make friends and memories, and Jasmine was sure she was going to make the best of it.
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