Captivity

Chapter 9: Oyster Shells

Webbed hands prodded along the rocky slopes and bends within the artificial reef; green eyes scanning around, searching the crevices and cracks with growing agitation. For most of the night, the jet black mer has spent scrounging the expanse of his tank with no success in finding anything of real use. Despite the similarity the tank had to the wild reef, it still lacked all the unique treasures and animals he'd hoped for. Aside from spooking a few crabs, he'd found no shells, no knickknacks buried in the sand, or small, shiny trinkets in which to forge a gift for his chosen maiden.

It was a frustrating endeavor. Ever since the two strangers had shown up, he'd found himself growing defensive. Even though he'd picked up on the behavior that the two were mated, he still feared that the male would steal his possible love away. Thus he needed to prove himself a worthy partner to the one his heart went out to; and to do that, he needed to have a means to impress her.

He'd seen the ritual done before, along the reefs of his old home. After coming to the realization that the intruder in his territory wasn't there to hunt, and finding the behavior peculiar, he grew curious and would watch from afar; watching as they collected any number of oddities to put together treasured gifts to woe potential partners. He, himself, had never been close to any female to go on such a quest, yet here he was, trying to find anything to complete the gesture, with a possible mate that held a higher rejection rate than any other. It was almost ironic.

Vibrations in the water distracted him from his thoughts, the source coming from the surface told of a visitor, and from the familiar twiddle it made he was able to register that it was the young scientist he'd come to tolerate. Heaving an exasperated sigh, Danny turned and made his way up to see what the man wanted of him this time.

Nate sat hunched along the pool's edge, wiggling his fingers in the water; a signal the mer had come to know by now. A smile grew upon his face as the mer responded and finally breached the surface; the creature making a few agitated circles as a sign of its impatience. He couldn't help but chuckle at the sight and Danny just let a short growl hang in his throat in response. His aquatic friend had never really come to like him, but tolerated him all the same. It was still a better experience than it was before, especially now that the beast didn't charge him.

"Hey there bud. I know it's early, but you seemed like you could use something to preoccupy yourself," The biologist smiled, knowing that the mer didn't understand him entirely; but the tone of his voice was enough to read as a friendly one.

As expected, Danny quirked one of his ears and pulled himself up, out of the water, eyeing the man with an inquisitive gaze. It was an amusing sight, and Nate couldn't help the grin that crossed his lips.

"Oh, you're going to enjoy this surprise."

The mer looked on with a mix of suspicion and curiosity as the man turned to pull a cooler over alongside them. Upon opening it, the crisp salty smell of shellfish wafted up, tingling the creature's nose while it eyed the chest with a growing intensity. Danny pawed at the ground anxiously, earning a look of amusement from the scientist.

"Now, now. Be patient," He chuckled, pulling out a handful of mixed shellfish; a mix of clams and mussels being laid out upon the tile.

The different variety of colors, shades, and smells tantalized the jet black mer with the thought of their various flavors. He was quick to snatch one up, sniffing at it and proceeding to turn it over in his hands, figuring out the best method to get at the tender morsel hidden inside.

Nate just looked on content with watching the mer mull over the next plan of action before turning to knaw on it. It seemed he was right about the treat giving his aquatic friend something to preoccupy himself with. Over the past week he'd been watching Danny's growing restlessness and decided to give him something to think on besides the confines of the tank.