Interning on the Aronnax

Hanging Out in the Middle of the Ocean

A/N: I really give up on this chapter. I wanted to keep close to canon, but there are just... so many questionable choices made in that episode. I gave up on my third try but, hey, at least Fontaine isn't sobbing and screaming in this version!

Anyway. Jump ahead to Fontaine during Will and Kaiko testing her on her navigational abilities. Also, only the most vague knowledge of sextants going on here.

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Fontaine wondered how many teenagers got sent out in a rowboat into the middle of the ocean at five in the morning. She was willing to bet not many.

Sure, she could call her parents if she got into trouble. And it wasn't like Will had sent her out unprepared...

Fontaine regretted not studying the old-school methods of navigation as much as her parents had urged her. If she'd known that Will was going to pull her out of bed before the sun rose and sent her on an impossible mission to find Kaiko, she definitely would have practiced some more.

But, there wasn't any changing what she should have done. She was halfway through her time to find Kaiko, and she was still clueless as to where she was.

Until she finally lined up the North Star with the horizon.

"Oh, I get it!" Fontaine grinned. "I totally get it! I have conquered you, sextant!" She grabbed the compass. "And that means Mum should be right over... woah!"

In her excitement, Fontaine forgot to keep the rowboat balanced. She stood quickly, then found the rowboat rocking wildly beneath her.

"Woah!" Fontaine yelped.

Fontaine grabbed the edge of the rowboat, then felt the compass slip from her hand. It fell into the water, causing Fontaine to panic. If she lost the compass, she'd never find Kaiko! She reached quickly for the compass, forgetting that the rowboat was already off-balance.

The wood dipped sharply beneath her, and Fontaine's hand slipped. Before she could react, she fell face-first into the ocean.

Though she hadn't had time to grab a breath, Fontaine didn't let herself panic. She quickly righted herself and surfaced. She shook her hair out of her face, then took stock of her situation.

The rowboat was still right-side up, though climbing back inside would be nearly impossible in the deep water. The compass was completely gone. She was safe, had her life vest, and could tread water for hours, but she was alone in the middle of the ocean. Worst of all, Fontaine was pretty sure she'd failed her parents' test.

"Oh, no," Fontaine groaned.

Fontaine scanned the horizon. She could see Professor Fiction's island in the distance, so at least she knew which way to get home. Swimming so far in the ocean was a huge risk, though. She'd call her parents before she tried to swim back alone.

Fontaine turned back to the rowboat. Failing the test or not, Fontaine didn't want to have to be picked out of the ocean. Would it be possible to get back into the rowboat alone?

"Worth a shot," Fontaine murmured.

Fontaine paddled closer to the rowboat, then froze when something touched her foot. She looked quickly down, but couldn't make out anything in the water.

"Just a fish," Fontaine told herself.

Something hit her foot, hard enough to knock her off balance and briefly duck under the water. She flailed back to the surface, sputtering.

"Too big!" Fontaine yelped. "Please be a dolphin, please be a dolphin!"

Fontaine spotted a shadow in the water, and spun to face it. She braced herself as it rapidly grew closer.