"I think so too." Nika grinned briefly. "I think we both needed some time off. And I haven't even shot anyone yet."

"Which is good," Jason replied, grinning. "And your dad hasn't tried to kill me yet, which is also good."

"Yes, but let's not tempt fate," Nika said with a grimace. "Maybe he's still busy with something else."

"Yeah," Jason replied. He snorted. "The one time I wish I was like my sister: so I'd have some warning beforehand."

"Well, if she sees anything she'd tell us." Nika shrugged, resting against him. "Besides, we should be safe enough, for the moment."

"Right," Jason replied. He held her for a little bit, just watching the reef go by under the boat.

Nika spent most of the trip close to him, watching all the fish and the reefs and things. It was really very pretty, and she knew the water was warm enough to go swimming for a length of time and not freeze. Unlike off the coast of California.

Jason had no complaints about Nika spending the trip next to him, none at all. He stayed there with his arm around her, holding her close to him, as they watched the reef go by.

Meanwhile, Dawn was still happily enjoying Seth's company. Since she was allowed to be away from camp during the summer if she 'needed' to, she was more than happy to stay at her apartment for a while if it meant getting some time alone with Seth.

Nika relaxed there, debating what to do next. Because there was no shortage of options.

Seth yawned and snuggled in closer to her, opening one eye to look at her. "Still comfy?" he mumbled.

"What do you want to do next?" Jason asked, looking at Nika. "We can go snorkeling, if you want. Or we can stick to dry land for a while."

"Very," Dawn murmured, snuggling close. Leaning up, she gave him a soft kiss. "And as far as I can tell, Jason and Nika are having fun together. That's good."

"Snorkeling sounds good." Nika grinned briefly. "We should even be relative safe doing that, too."

"Mmhm." Seth grinned sleepily. "Keeps 'em out of the way, too." He kissed her again, taking his time this time.

"As safe as it's possible for us to be in open water," Jason agreed, grinning. "Could be worse, though. We could have pissed off the guy in charge out here."

Dawn returned the kiss enthusiastically. Oh yes, she enjoyed kissing Seth. She enjoyed it very much.

"Exactly what I was thinking." Nika watched as the boat turned around and started to head back to shore. "Snorkeling should be fun, though."

Seth grinned when he pulled back. "Having fun?" he teased, kissing her again.

"Yeah," Jason replied. He grinned. "Then it's your turn to pick what we do. Only fair after all."

"I could ask you the same thing," Dawn replied, a little breathless.

Nika chuckled. "Alright. Well, snorkeling sounds fine to me. And maybe hiking tomorrow."

Seth grinned and kissed her agan before he replied. "What do you think?"

"Sounds like a plan to me," Jason said. He leaned over and gave her a kiss.

"Mmm, I think you're having too much fun," Dawn teased, returning the kiss. She snuggled closer to Seth.

Nika nodded and stayed there, just relaxing for the moment.

Seth chuckled and pulled her closer, quite content with life for the moment.

The next couple of days were quiet, monster-wise, for everyone. It was only on the fourth day that Jason and Nika were gone that Dawn noticed something was amiss.

"Hey, Seth," she called from her apartment balcony, "come look at this." She was staring up at the night sky, but her expression had gone from dreamy to wary.

Seth moved out to join her, blinking. "What?" he asked, looking up at the stars. It took him a few moments to realize what was wrong, and then he froze. "Um. That seems a little... emptier than normal."

"Good, it's not just me," Dawn replied. She looked across the sky, trying to find familiar shapes. It took her a few moments to realize that some of them weren't there. "...Where's Orion? And Callisto? I don't see them, and they should totally be in the sky this time of year."

"I... don't know. They're clearly not here. But they should be." Seth frowned. "I wonder what's going on?"

"I don't know," Dawn murmured. It was worrying her. "I haven't seen anything... That's unusual, if something like this happened, I should have seen something."

Seth shrugged. "I don't know," he said quietly. "I mean, maybe no one else is paying attention? It might be nothing." He doubted it, but it could hypothetically happen.

"It's not nothing," Dawn said firmly. She was sure of that. "No matter what else, constellations vanishing isn't 'nothing.' They were put into the sky for a reason." She was quiet for a moment. "Something must be wrong, but I have no clue what."

Seth shrugged. "I doubt we'll know unless we ask someone. I don't know about you, but I don't really want to talk to my father."