"And there we go!"
Ashe grunted as she threw the last trap over the side of the ship, having stocked it full of bait that would hopefully attract something worth eating, "Now on to the main event, how's that bait coming along?"
I put down the long, sharp fillet knife as I finished cutting the head off the final bait fish, "All done, though I usually don't keep the heads."
"Well, that's because the head ain't for you," Ashe tisked as she walked over and looked at my handwork, which was a bloody cooler with the disembodied heads of the baitfish bobbing up and down in the icy water, "But you better believe that the bastards we're trying to check will go crazy over those heads."
I grinned and nodded my head in surrender, "I'll trust the expert, but just how are we supposed to put these massive things on a hook?"
"Like this," Ashe bent down and grabbed a head before walking over to the heavy-looking rods that were practically bolted to the ship, mounted to swiveling platforms equipped with padded chairs and what looked like a thick seatbelt that would go across the waist.
'Just what do they expect us to catch out here, where we need that type of equipment?' I let my criticism pass as I watched Ashe reach up and grab a barbed hook from her rod and pulled, putting some slack on the line.
Then with her free hand, she managed to pry open the jaws of the fish head and fed the hook through the mouth and out the gills. She repeated the loop at least seven times before she took the hook and forced it through the cheek of the fish, exposing the barbed tip that was sure to get caught on anything that decided to take a curious bite.
"And there you have it, now you're ready to cast. Want me to do yours for you?"
"No, I think I got it from here," I politely refused Ashe's help as I grabbed my own fish head from the bucket and walked towards the unbaited rod. "I have to ask, though, how often do you go fishing?"
Ashe paused and li"It's honestly been a while. I used to go on a fishing trip every summer with my father. But the boat was one of the first things to go when the farm went south. Been over five years since then."
I worried for a moment that my question had ruined the atmosphere before Ashe grinned at me, "So I guess I have you to thank again for restoring another long-lost hope of mine."
"Knowing what you're thanks usually entails, you are most certainly welcome," I replied with what I was sure was a goofy grin as Ashe laughed, "Oh, don't worry, we'll have some more alone time later, but for now let's get our bait in the water and see what bites."
"Yeah, about that, just exactly are we expecting to catch? We're not that far out from the coast, so the fish can't be that big, right?"
"Not normally, no," Ashe replied as she grabbed her rod from its mount and moved to the very edge of the boat, "But right now we should be in the middle of Striped Bass season, and they can get decently big. Then there's also the possibility we can catch what eats the Striped Bass, which would be great because I've been craving a good fish fry for longer than I care to admit."
"Oh, really, what kind of fish eats the bass?" I inquired while picking up my own rod and moving to mirror Ashe, who grinned, "Some cod go for the smaller bass, but the real prize is Hake. The bigger ones can get up to 40, 60 pounds, and a couple of feet long. If we can net one or two of those, we'll be set for dinner, along with whatever we managed to pull up in the traps."
"Well, since you're most likely gonna be the one to actually catch anything, any request for what you want for dinner? Besides the fish fry, of course."
"Hmm, all I can think about is seafood, shrimp, crab legs, lobster, anything with a shell that tastes better dripping with butter would be perfect," Ashe muttered with a look in her eyes that flickered between ravenous hunger and dreamy as if she could already taste the meal I would cook.
"I think most things taste better in butter, but I get the message," I chuckled before looking down at the rod in my hands, "Now tell me how you do this again, you put this part down…"
"Not so fast there," Ashe quickly held out her hand to stop me from most likely making a fool of myself. "Watch me, first you wanna put your pointer finger on the string like this to hold it in place, then you want to flip up the bail. Now there's nothing stopping the line from casting out, just let go with your finger and momentum will do the rest."
Ashe slowly demonstrated what to do, and I nodded along, "Once that's done, you're ready to cast. Just make sure there's no one around you to get caught on. No quicker way to ruin a good fishing trip than having to go to the hospital to get a three-inch hook taken out of you."
After her cheery anadote, Ashe stepped a few feet to the side as she hefted the rod back over her right shoulder, loading it up like a catapult before throwing her arms forward with a grunt. About halfway through the motion, I watched Ashe lift her finger, followed by the high-pitched whine of the spool as the bait was sent flying through the air before splashing into the water over 10 meters from the boat.
"Now, once the bait is in the water, close the bail, put your rod back in the mount, and take a seat," Ashe narrated as she did exactly that, with a satisfied sigh.
Grabbing my own rod, I copied Ashe's movement, and a second later, my bait was in the water as well. "So now what? We just wait and hope that something comes along?"
"Yes but forgot the most important part," Ashe grinned as she leaned over and flipped open the cooler she had brought, revealing the chilled cans of beer inside, "You drink to pass the time."
I caught the can that Ashe tossed my way, but by the time I had managed to pop the tab, she was already halfway finished with her judging by how far back she was tilting the can.
Following her example, I brought the beer up to my lips and resigned myself to sip the carbonated beverage. I must have done a worse job at hiding my distaste because I heard Ashe chuckle, "Not a beer guy?"
I let the can drop and wiped my lips with a small grimace, "Let's just say your cider has spoiled me, speaking of, what do you think we'll need to start up an-"
"Ah, ah ah!" Ashe interrupted, holding up her hand before pointing to the dock, "There's no business talk on a fishing trip. We come here to forget our worries and enjoy the beauty of nature."
"By hunting and killing the things that live in it, to eat," I clarified, only for Ashe to grin and toss me another beer, "Now you're starting to get it!"
With a strict ban on all things serious and work-related, and the increasing number of beers consumed between us, the conversation quickly devolved to the most ridiculous subjects.
"There's no way, not happening."
"What's wrong, scared?"
"It's just not worth the risk."
"But doesn't it interest you the least? To find out why this happened to you and see if there are possibly others?"
"A little bit, but trying to open a portal to hell or summon a demon without knowing what I'm doing is a good way to royally fuck myself, offer. There are like a thousand movies and books with plots centered around a deal gone wrong with demons!"
"Yeah, but how many of the characters in those stories were demons themselves?"
"That still doesn't-"
My reply was cut off when, out of the corner of my eye, I watched as the tip of my rod suddenly jerked. Ashe caught it as well and instantly sat up, "Finally, some actions."
"What do I do?" I asked as I stared at the rod, which jerked again.
"Pick it up!" Ashe hissed her voice brimming with excitement, "But don't move the bait around too much, you've got to wait until the fish takes a real bite and then you're gonna want to haul back on the rod to set the hook."
"How do I know what a real bite is?"
My question was answered for me as my rod jerked again, this time with enough force to bend the pole, before the reel started to whine as the line was rapidly dragged out.
"Fish on!"