“I just saw an octopus, Claire. A real. Live. Octopus! Living free and in the wild!”
“Okay, you win.” She tousled her brother’s sandy hair. “I guess that’s better than chlorine and concrete.”
“Will you go snorkeling with me?”
“Not at noon.” She glanced unhappily at the glaring blue sky. “Maybe later.”
“I’ll go,” Zoe offered.
“Yes!” Pete threw both hands up in the air. “Let’s go! Mom, will you take care of Rikki?”
“Sure.” Anne held her hands out and accepted her son’s pet. The pup was getting stronger every day, well out of danger by this point and eating solid food. They would have to discuss long-term plans for the creature… some other day.
She settled into the shade and put off the tent setup a while longer. The mongoose pup stretched his long little body and then curled up again, content to sleep the day away in her lap.
“I thought you said those things are diurnal,” Claire said to Pete.
“He’s a baby, Claire! Babies need naps!”
She rolled her eyes. “Whatever. Say hi to the fish for me.”
“I will!” He grabbed his gear and ran off down the beach with Zoe close behind him.
By the time they came back from snorkeling, Claire had figured out the tent setup all by herself. Dawn was building sandcastles with her youngest three granddaughters, and Oakley had made lunch for the whole crew.
“It’s so good having everyone together,” Dawn said when she walked up to camp for a sandwich. “I just wish Akemi was here. I loved having all of my girls on the island.”
“She’ll be back soon,” Oakley said.
“Hey Grandma Dawn?” Pete asked, sitting next to her on the sand.
“Yeah?” She reached out and brushed some sand off of his cheek.
“You seem better.”
Dawn smiled, but her eyes were sad.
“Are you better?”
“I’m still sad, kiddo. I still miss your grandpa. I always will. But yes, I’m better than I was.”
“You’ll always be sad?” Pete asked, blue eyes wide.
“Probably. But I can make room for joy, too.”
“Like when we were building sandcastles?”
“Just like that.” She scooted closer and put an arm around him.
They built a fire that night, and the kids got to roast their marshmallows. Oakley grumbled about sugar before bedtime, but she was overruled by Dawn and Halia, who told her to let the kids have their fun.
The kids made one last trip down to the tide pools to wash the goo from their hands, and then they put all of the younger cousins in one tent to whisper and giggle until they eventually fell asleep.
Zoe was more relaxed than Anne had ever seen her, at least as an adult. She joked with Claire, spoke to her mother without rancor, and even let the baby mongoose fall asleep in her lap.
“I can’t believe you made friends with that thing,” Claire told her.
Zoe winked and said, “It’s not his fault he was born in Hawaii.”
