FicWad

Delilah stepped out onto the balcony of her and Julius' lodge. They were staying in Cabin 2, called Edgewater. She gazed out at the sparkling sapphire sea - or straight. It was the Georgia Straight she was looking at. It was high-tide and the water lapped over the sandstone rocks below. Yep, this was paradise.

The serene mood was interrupted as Nosey barged into their cabin. He was staying next door, with Ursula and Emmet in Fairview.

"Hey guys!" he greeted, all smiles. "Do you want to come down to the rocks with me?"

"Sure, Nosey," Delilah agreed. "Just after I finish packing."

An arm wrapped around her shoulders as Julius argued with her. "Come on, De, the weather's perfect. Your suitcase can wait 'til later, can't it?"

Delilah sighed. "Oh, I suppose so."

"Great!" Nosey exclaimed. "Let's go!"

As soon as Delilah was down on the rocks, she was glad that she hadn't stayed behind. There were loads of tide pools to look in and watch the hermit crabs, fish and sea plants. A scratching caught Delilah's ear.

"What's that?"

In an answer, Julius lifted up a rock. Dozens of tiny crabs scuttled for cover. Delilah stepped back a pace. She wasn't a huge crab fan.

"Hey guys!" Nosey cried. "Look at this!"

Nosey was standing over a large tide pool, pointing with a stick into the plants at the bottom. Julius stepped on a rock and leaned forward until his nose almost touched the water.

"I don't see any -" He leaped up so quickly that he nearly toppled over backwards. "What is /that/?"

Delilah peered into the water and gasped. She was staring at the weirdest crab she had ever seen. Its head - body - whatever - was half the size of her fist, and its legs and pincers shot out from the dark brown body. Nosey knew what the strange thing was.

"It's a spider crab." he murmured, prodding it with his stick.

Delilah was fascinated by it. She pulled out her camera. "Julius, pick it up so I can get a picture."

Julius looked horrified. "I am not touching -"

"Pleeeeease!" Delilah pleaded, looking very sad.

Her partner sighed and reached for the spider crab. "I can't believe I'm doing this. I really can't believe I'm - Yowch!"

Julius yanked his hand out of the water, with the crab clinging to his index finger. He shook his hand around wildly, trying to make the creature let go.

"Get it off!" he hollered. "Get it off!"

A flash from Delilah's camera stunned the crab. The last they saw of the spider crab was it sailing out to the open ocean. Nosey and Delilah burst into a fit of giggles. Julius glared at them.

"Next time you pick it up, and see how it feels," he muttered darkly.

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Later that evening, the five vacationers drove to the small market in their rental car, a Dodge Caliber. They found it closed, but Delilah made a discovery.

"Look," she called, pointing to a movie poster. "Dead Man's Chest is playing tonight at the Community Hall. Wanna go see it?"

"Sure," Julius answered. "That movie's awesome. When does it start?"

Delilah checked the poster, then her watch. "Half an hour."

Nosey was already on his way to the Dodge. "Let's get going!"

Five minutes later, the five Academy agents were inside the hall, ordering five bags of popcorn. They entered the main room and found five seats in the front row. A few moments later, a man came out and informed everyone of the movies playing the next three nights. Then the lights dimmed and the trailers started.

The first was for a movie called Deja Vu. Julius leaned over and whispered in Delilah's ear, "It's a re-make." She snorted into her drink.

A few times in the movie, Delilah grabbed Julius' hand - mostly during kraken attacks. He watched as she laughed at the human-shish kabob part. She looked so beautiful when she laughed. He was glad they were going out now.

When the movie ended, it was completely dark outside. Julius couldn't help but admire the stars in the sky. You never saw stars that bright in the city. You could even see the Milky Way.

The Dodge lurched to a stop, bringing Julius back to reality. Delilah held him back as Nosey, Ursula and Emmet went inside Fairview. She looked into his eyes and said very quietly,

"Julius ..."

He shivered with anticipation.

"Do you think Jack will come back?"

Julius' jaw dropped. Before he could walk away, Delilah planted a kiss on his lips. "I'm kidding, silly."

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Somewhere out there, in the dark calm water, something stirred.