Word Count: 4977

"Well done you two! Now get up here already!" Mr. Joestar went to throw the lifebuoy on a rope, only to be interrupted when several explosions went off in the boat. In a rushed panic, the crew lowered the lifeboats and everyone got inside them while Jotaro pushed you under water with him, avoiding the rubble and fire blast that emitted from the boat as you created some distance by swimming away.

Two boats were dropped into the ocean, most of the crew in one of them while the crusaders, the leftover crew and Anne sat in the other. You and Jotaro swam up to the latter and you were more than ready to get out of the water, feeling the salt sting in the cuts that littered your body from the fight.

"Y/N!" Anne waved at you as you two approached, a big smile on her face to see you were alright. You waved back, sending her a closed-eyed smile as you finally reached the craft. Just holding onto the edge for a second, you tried to catch your breath before you would start the chore of pulling yourself out of the water.

"You okay, Y/N?" Kakyoin inquired with a slight smile and you just tiredly waved your hand up and down as a response, not feeling like vocally answering.

Jotaro didn't seem to have the same problem you did, as he got into the boat as soon as possible, having Polnareff help pull him. The boat tipped a bit at the sudden shift in weight and the other men had to lean back to balance out the boat; Anne didn't expect any of it and you quickly put your hand up to stabilize her before she could tumble into the ocean.

"You should get out before you catch a cold, the sun is setting so it's going to get colder." Avdol noted as he looked at you while Jotaro took a seat at the bottom of the boat in front him. Polnareff and a crew member in a similar position in another section while Mr. Joestar, Kakyoin and Anne sat at the compartment at the front, where you were hanging.

You looked up at Avdol as he spoke, nodding as you started moving to get in. Mr. Joestar seemed to be faster though, as he leaned over and easily plucked you out of the ocean, setting your soaked body down on the bottom of the boat, next to him.

"Thank you." You said with a slight blush, not expecting him to so casually be able to lift you up. He gave you a grin and a thumbs-up, cheery as ever.

"Y/N." The mention of your name made you look up and you saw Kakyoin hold out your jacket for you from his position right in front of you. "I managed to grab it before we got off the ship. Everything else is destroyed I'm afraid."

"Oh! Thank you." You smiled as you took it from him. It was a shame of your stuff but it was nothing that couldn't be replaced. You packed light for a reason.

As you had these thoughts, the sun had sunk below the horizon and as you put on your jacket, hoping for it to keep you warm during the night, Anne walked from her spot by Kakyoin over to you. Plopping herself down without a care in the world, she leaned against your side, looking up into the starry night sky.

Avdol snapped his fingers and a flame appeared between you and Jotaro. It cast a soft glow around the boat and the heat it gave off was wonderful. Realizing Avdol was helping both you and Jotaro dry up, you sent him a grateful smile to which he gave you a warm one back. Jotaro seemed to just ignore the flame, slouching into a more comfortable position.

You looked down at Anne, the smile still on your face. It crossed your mind that Anne had no way of seeing Magician's Red's flames. So she probably thought your body suddenly exuded an abnormal amount of heat. Also, for you the boat was lit up now, but Anne still saw the same darkness. Since you could see in the dark where she couldn't, would that mean you had superpowers in her eyes? Even though you were kind of cheating since it was Avdol's flame and not yours. But then again, Stands probably were kind of a superpower. Right?

"Y/N, let me see your leg." Mr. Joestar suddenly said from beside you and you snapped your head up to look at him, seeing him hold out his hand as a small bit of Hamon flowed through it.

Realizing he just meant to help heal you, you politely declined. "You can heal Jotaro first, I think he's worse off than me. I-"

"Just shut up and let the old man help you." Jotaro, who sat right beside you, only divided by a plank, gave you a small glare and you just stopped talking and stuck your leg out for Mr. Joestar, making said man chuckle. He started doing his thing and Anne looked on in fascination and slight skepticism at the seemingly magical powers. The older man started to happily talk to Anne about his 'magical powers' coming up with ridiculous stories and facts, some of which you knew weren't true from what he had already told you. Anne however, just listened intently as she saw him demonstrate some of it on your leg. You happily played guinea pig since it meant Anne was more relaxed and, since Avdol had moved the flame from between you and Jotaro, to behind you both, you just placed your elbow on the plank to your left, leaning your head on your hand as your eyes started getting a little droopy.

"Alright, that should do it!" You heard Mr. Joestar say and retracted your leg so that you were taking up less space, thanking him quietly. You'd have to find a way to bandage it up later but since it was such small wounds, you figured it might not even need it by the time you got rescued – all thanks to Joseph's Hamon which was used to speed up the healing process. Anne, seemingly happy, snuggled back into your side, hanging onto your right arm and using it as a pillow as she started dozing off.

Mr. Joestar moved to sit on the plank dividing the sections of the boat – the same one you were leaning on – and started doing the same for Jotaro as he just did for you, only without the overblown magic show this time. You looked forward for a second, crossing eyes with Kakyoin. "Another night at sea." He joked and you scoffed amusedly.

"I was counting on it, just not like this again." Kakyoin chuckled at that and, as Mr. Joestar wrapped up his dose of Hamon to help speed up Jotaro's recovery, everyone then seemed to have the same idea of just getting some shuteye while waiting for rescue.

And so you dozed off, awkwardly leaning sideways into a hard-ass plank, most likely getting severe neck problems, while acting as a makeshift pillow for the little girl beside you.

- - - -

Your uncomfortable yet much needed rest came to a halt when you were sprayed with something wet. Sitting up in shock, looking around for what was going on, you saw Anne staring off to the side in shock while holding a water canteen, Mr. Joestar uncomfortably trying to explain she had to conserve the water.

Putting two and two together, you quietly whined in disgust as you realized the girl had just done a spit take on you, spraying you with the water she had just been drinking.

Anne's panicked stammering brought you out of it though and you looked down to see her pointing at something behind you while trying to say something. "E-Everyone, look!" Following her gaze, your eyes widened as a massive container ship cast a shadow over your tiny little boat.

- - - -

Jotaro stepped off the boat before you, turning around as you were following, stepping up onto the metal stairs beside him. Everyone else had already boarded the boat and was climbing the stairs, leaving just Anne in the boat on her own. You turned around as well, seeing Jotaro hold his hand out for her.

"Take my hand, kid. I'll help you up."

You looked between Jotaro and Anne; pleasantly surprised by his action. Anne seemed conflicted though and, after a second, instead of accepting his help, used the edge of the lifeboat to jump over and into your arms.

"Oh, okay!" You called out in surprise as you barely managed to catch her, not expecting it in the slightest. "Hello there." You smiled down at her, having her face so close to yours all of a sudden, and put her down, seeing her pull out her tongue towards Jotaro before immediately starting to climb the stairs.

"Yare yare." Jotaro just sighed and you smiled to yourself, sending him a quick glance before starting to follow the girl – Jotaro's heavy footsteps behind you indicating he was following.

Getting up on deck, everyone started exploring, looking for any signs of life on board, only to come up empty handed. Anne had ran off with Mr. Joestar while you just walked the gigantic deck of the freighter, same as Avdol. The sailor crew that you came here with was doing it as well, just scanning around. You crossed paths with them every now and then, giving them a wave or an awkward nod as you walked past; even asking if they had seen anything but the answer was always no. You searched everywhere you could, even inspecting the metal of the boat to see if that would give any clues as to what was going on. But when you all found absolutely nothing, you sighed and just congregated towards the middle of the deck where everyone else was.

Avdol was chatting with the crew members about a crane, seeing how functional it was while you just stood off to the side, leaned up against the railing of the boat.

Footsteps sounded from your left and you looked up to see the others walking towards you. They had just checked out the cabins and you decided to walk towards them, not being of much help with all the machinery.

"Found anything?" You asked as you caught up and Anne walked over to you.

"We found an ape!"

"Orangutan." Kakyoin corrected her. She was about to say something brash back when Mr. Joestar called out.

"Avdol! That sailor! Watch out!"

You turned around just in time to see the sailor that was closely inspecting the device be impaled through the head and mouth by the hook, immediately being hoisted into the air, just to dangle there.

Quickly grabbing Anne, you forced her to turn around and pressed her face into your stomach, having one hand on the back of her head while the other was around her shoulder, making sure she couldn't turn around and see more than she already had.

Your breathing was sped up from the shock, now seeing the man impaled and just hanging, the blood dripping down his body before falling down onto the deck far below, creating a pool of blood.

"Nobody touched the controls! The crane moved all by itself!" Some of the sailors called out in shock and a nervous feeling formed in the pit of your stomach, sharing a look with your friends around.

"Careful! Something's here." Mr. Joestar said what you all thought before turning to the crew and ordering them to go to the cabin below deck. "Anne, go with them." He then said to the girl but she shook her head, refusing to lift her face from your stomach while her arms were still tightly wrapped around your waist.

"Anne, come on." You tried to pry her free but she refused.

"No! I'm staying with you." She finally lifted her head and glared at you, making clear that she was very intent to follow up on her statement.

"Perhaps it is best if you stick with the girl and follow the crew members then, Y/N." Avdol interfered before things could escalate and you sighed.

"Alright. I'll keep an eye out below deck. Stay safe everyone."

With that, you patted Anne on her shoulder and she finally released you, only to grip your hand with a small triumphant smile, seemingly having forgotten the gruesome sight she saw not moments prior. You lightly shook your head at that fact before sending one last nervous glance back to those around you, starting to guide Anne to the cabin. Everything about being on this ship sent chills down your spine but for now, you'd just have to deal with it.

- - - -

"What's this?" You asked out loud as you walked with Anne into the back of the control chamber. All the way at the back against a wall sat a cage.

"This is that Orangutan we found." Anne clarified and walked closer. You stood in the doorway, still a little skeptical and warily watching Anne approach the creature. It held out its hand through the bars, offering a half cut apple. Walking forward, you grabbed Anne's shoulder and pulled her back against you slightly, trying to keep her away from touching the ape or apple. You didn't trust it. It could just be genuinely offering its food but even if it was, it had to be incredibly unsanitary.

Since neither of you moved to take the fruit, the orangutan just ate it himself before bringing his arm through the bar once again to point at the lock above it.

"You want us to let you out?"

"Anne..." You quietly hissed the warning through your teeth.

"I'm sorry but we can't." She concluded a little sadly and you let out a very quiet breath of relief that the girl at least still had some brains. Your relief quickly made way for disgust and confusion however, when the ape suddenly held a magazine in its hands. You had only closed your eyes for a second and all of a sudden it was holding the booklet. What disturbed you the most though, was the eyes of the orangutan. While it was holding a picture of a scantily clad lady right in front of it, its eyes moved from the page, to you and Anne, and back – repeating the process several times.

"Alright we're going." You shoved Anne behind you, not wanting the animal to look at her before quickly ushering the girl to the door beside the cage, where the sailors were, because honestly, you didn't want that ape to look at you either.

Once you stepped inside the backroom, you saw all the sailors sitting around, attempting to use a radio of some sort to contact the mainland but all they got was static.

Letting go of Anne, you stepped a bit closer. "I don't know if that is a good idea." All eyes turned to you and you suddenly felt very small. "I mean, uh. Anything that runs on electricity in this boat, I wouldn't trust it. Who knows if this suddenly lets out a deadly shock. Or does something like that crane..."

Despite the burly, rugged and intimidating look all these sailors carried, they nodded understandingly and you now understood why this crew was recommended by the Speedwagon Foundation. "You may be right. Besides, this isn't working anyways." The sailor sitting closest to the radio sighed, slapping the device in frustration before setting it down and shoving out his chair so he could sit more comfortably.

You nodded a barely noticeable nod, just going to stand by the wall and away from the group of men since you didn't want to intrude. They were a tight knit group of people that had been working with each other for years, so to say you felt like an outsider was an understatement. You then realized you weren't the only outsider and turned your head to Anne. Looking around however, you suddenly noticed she wasn't where you left her. Frantically looking around the room, you saw she was nowhere in sight.

"I believe I saw the little tyke walk out the door further into the ship." One of the sailors spoke up upon seeing you looking around. You thanked him before walking out the door he pointed to.

"Anne?"

"Y/N! Come they have showers here!" You nearly got a heart attack when Anne jumped at you out of nowhere, letting out a small yelp before immediately slapping a hand over your mouth to quiet yourself. Her giddy self didn't even give you time to recover before she grabbed your hand and pulled you along further down the hall.

"W-Wait, what are you talking about?"

"We're both sticky and smelly from the salt water, let's take a shower!" As she said that, she opened a door to the side to reveal showers. You were slightly taken aback before you came to your senses and awkwardly chuckled, patting Anne's shoulder.

"I don't think it is a good idea to take a shower here, sorry." You sent her an apologetic smile.

"What? Y/N, please. I wanna take a shower but I don't want to shower alone." She dug the toe of her shoe into the floor, clearly embarrassed.

You grimaced uncomfortably, not wanting to put her down but also not wanting to get in that shower. "I... don't really feel comfortable taking a shower here in an unknown place. I'd much rather wait until we reach a hotel or something." You started, feeling bad for the girl as you were rejecting her. "But, um. If you want, you can take one and I'll wait right here? We can chat while you shower and I'll be close by in case you need me?" You suggested and thankfully, Anne seemed to agree with that idea. "Alright, you go ahead and step in, I'll go see if there is a towel somewhere in this place."

With that, Anne stepped into the shower, closing the curtain behind her while you started searching through cupboard and cabinets. It took you less than a minute to find what you were looking for and you handed it to Anne's outstretched hand before using the same maneuver to accept her clothing and put next to you to keep it from getting wet.

The shower turned on and you just leaned back against the countertop, hearing Anne start humming quietly. As she went on to shower, your thoughts drifted back to whatever was going on. Being on this boat still gave you the heebie-jeebies. How could it possibly be that there was no one on here? The boat was clearly functional. Did it run on itself? But how would that even be possible? Was there a Stand user that made everyone invisible which was why it functioned but you didn't see anyone? But if it was, wouldn't you have accidentally bumped into at least one of said invisible beings? Did that mean it was a ghost ship? But if it was, how were you standing here right now? And, what was with that strange monkey? It felt mean to say but its face just unsettled you. The way its eyes moved and took in its surroundings seemed way too observant and aware. Something was amiss but you couldn't put your finger on it.

"So what're you doing on a trip with all these men?" Anne's voice snapped you out of your thoughts when she suddenly spoke up.

"What? Oh, I just came along to help in any way I can."

"So what exactly are you guys doing?"

"What did Mr. Joestar tell you?" You raised an eyebrow, curious as to why she wanted to know so much.

"Not much..." You could practically hear her pout and snickered quietly to yourself.

Your snicker was stifled however, when the door to the shower spaces was slowly opened.

"H-Hey, this is occupied, could you go somewhere else?" You called, only for your heart to miss a beat when you saw a hair covered hand softly wrap around the door, pushing it open more.

"Y/N?" Anne questioned from inside the shower and you snapped to.

"Anne, turn off the shower and get dressed, now." You heard the shower turn off and quickly grabbed her clothes, sticking your arm past the curtain while keeping your eyes on the orangutan who had now fully walked into the room.

"Y/N, what-?"

"Don't ask, just put your clothes on as fast as you can!" Thankfully, she did as you said and you could hear her shuffling around, presumably drying herself with the towel as fast as possible. The ape took slow steps, walking closer. Its eyes were focused on you, almost inquisitive on what you were doing. A shudder went through your entire body when you very clearly saw the animal looking you up and down, what could only be described as a perverted grin appearing on its face. Just then, Anne took the clothes from your hand, making some noise which caused the orangutan to look towards the shower curtain, lifting its hand towards it. "O-Oi!" You called out to get its attention but it only moved its head to look at you, stopping