Chapter One
Tavros took a breath, clutching his resume, and tried to calm himself down. It was going to be okay. His credentials were outstanding and he had people who could speak highly of him if needed. He'd been to vet school and worked at numerous jobs with aquatic life. Everything was going to be fine. And yet he couldn't stop his nerves from acting up. This wasn't just some itty bitty aquarium, star attraction of a speck of a town. No, this was THE Aquarium; the one everyone went to, children talked about, adults dreamed of working there, home of some of the most exotic and rare aquatic life the world had to offer. They had sea goats and manatees and sharks and octopus and jelly fish and giant squid and whales and even penguins. There were otters and fish and sting rays and—Tavros shook his head, dispelling the mental list. He needed to focus.
"Dr. Nitram?"
Tavros looked up to see a man standing before him, arms folded like the blades of scissors, "Yes?"
"Ms. Peixes is ready to see you now." He sniffed, looking down at Tavros over his nose, lips curled slightly in distaste. He had numerous rings on his fingers and his clothes smelled like soap and lemon, instead of fish and salt water. He even had dyed a streak in his hair and then slicked it all back with copious amounts of hair gel, making him look more like some rich daddy's boy than an employee at THE Aquarium.
"Thanks." Tavros stood and walked into the office of the woman who owned the place of his dreams. The second he stepped inside his face lit up and he couldn't stop a smile from curling up the corners of his lips. In the center of the room was an enormous aquarium filled with coral and tropical fish. The fish flashed this way and that with the sharp shine of silver.
"Like it?"
Tavros tore his eyes away, feeling a little guilty, "Yes, it's beautiful." He walked over to the desk and held his hand out, "I'm Dr. Tavros Nitram."
The woman behind the desk took his hand and shook it firmly, and the smell of fish and salt water hit him instantly. "I'm Feferi Peixes, nice to meet you Tavros! Please have a seat." She gestured in front of her and Tavros sat. She was wearing a clean cut suit, despite the fishy smell, that was lined with hot pink which matched the rims of her glasses. Her hair was braided out of the way and she wore hot pink lipstick to match. Behind her desk was another aquarium, and inside it was a cuttlefish.
Tavros handed her his resume and watched as she skimmed through it, feeling his insides squirm like wet seaweed.
"Oh my glub you worked as a marine biologist studying seals?" She said, looking impressed, "If you don't mind my asking, why do you want to work here instead?"
This question was thankfully easy to answer, "Because I love working with animals, not studying them from inside a cold metal container. I love interacting with them and helping them and letting them get to know and trust me."
"I sea. Well Tavros you definitely are over qualified for the job. We'd be happy to have you here!" She stood up and offered her hand, which Tavros took in relief.
"Yes! Oh yes thank you very much!" He couldn't believe this stroke of good luck, and could only half way pay attention to her instructions of where to go.
"He is the janitor but he's been here the longest and knows the most, so he'll show you around. I hope you don't mind, but I'm going to throw you to the sharks today." She grinned and Tavros smiled.
"Not at all."
The janitor turned out to be a young man who looked like he was constantly in a bad temper. "Listen up fuckass," he said, startling Tavros with the language, "this aquarium is fucking huge and you'll be in the west wing, got it? So stay the fuck there. No wandering around. You feed the fish, check the fish out, and then get the fuck out of there before they decide they're still hungry. Got it?"
"Yes." Tavros said, hoisting his gear over his shoulder and following the grumpy man, "Um, what's your name?"
"Karkat Vantas." The man snapped, halting so suddenly Tavros almost ran into him, "Here's the fish, now don't fuck this up." And then he stomped off, the keys on his belt clanking with each step.
"Thanks…." Tavros said, and then turned to the tank. It was the visitors section, so it was merely a massive sheet of glass which showed large hunks of coral and some sea weed. But Tavros knew where to look, and he broke into a smile as a sleek bodied shark swam past.
A little boy was standing by the glass, watching with opened mouth amazement as the shark swam past. He reminded Tavros a little of himself, and he couldn't help but walk over, "Do you like sharks?"
The boy eyed him nervously, "I'm not supposed to talk to strangers…"
"No you definitely shouldn't." Tavros agreed, and then knelt down, "I work here though," the words filled him with pride, "want me to show you my badge?" He held out the laminated card he'd received with his name and the words 'employee, doctor' written on it.
The boy studied it seriously and then handed it back, "Sharks are my favorite."
"Can you name that one?"
The boy turned back to the glass and nodded, "That's a Tiger Shark. You know, because of the stripes on its back and stuff."
"You're pretty smart." Tavros smiled, watching the shark glide by, "Did you know it's the most dangerous shark there is?"
"I thought the Great White was the most dangerous?" The boy asked, his nose practically pressed against the glass.
"Actually the Great White is a rather docile shark, but the Tiger Shark is really nasty. It'll eat anything, even birds resting on the water. Did you know that the Tiger Shark is the second largest shark out of the top three most dangerous sharks? They're also called the swimming trash cans."
The boy giggled, "They eat trash?"
"They eat everything. They've been found with tin cans, shoes and even an alarm clock in its stomach!"
"Woah…"
Tavros smiled and stood, leaving the boy gaping at the swimming monster separated only by a thin sheet of glass. In the staff room he changed into his wet suit and grabbed his tank and mask, heading over to the less dangerous Lemon shark tank. Normally you didn't have to get in the water with the animals, but this was something Tavros loved doing.
He sunk into the cool water, fastening his breathing mask to his lips and submerging himself with the bag of fish. Lemon sharks were some of the more docile creatures, and Tavros fed them by hand as they swam around him, though he was wearing very thick gloves, just in case. Once all the food had been dished out, Tavros took a moment to swim with the sharks, running his hands long their slippery, smooth sides. They paid no mind to him, used to people after being raised in captivity, and Tavros resurfaced with as many fingers as he started out with.
After peeling off his wetsuit and using a towel to dry his hair in the staff room, Tavros began to look through all the documents they had. He learned that in addition to the Tiger shark and the Lemon sharks, the Aquarium also had Hammer Heads, Great Whites, Shortfin Makos, Bulls, and one Angel shark. They all had relatively good health records and Tavros knew how to care for them all. With a satisfied sigh, he put his things away and looked around the small room. It had a view to the Tiger shark tank, which gave the room a watery blue look. There were numerous file cabinets and one couch that looked like it had seen better days. There was a door that Tavros had walked through to enter and another that looked like it hadn't been used in a while.
Curious, Tavros walked over and tried the handle, surprised to find it locked. He went back to the bag he'd been given and pulled out his set of keys. He'd been told which had opened what, mostly one key was used for all maintenance doors and special keys were used to the tanks. Picking out the maintenance key Tavros tried it, only to find the door resisting his efforts to unlock it. Shrugging, he put the keys away and grabbed his bag, turning out the lights as he left.
The Angel shark was notorious for its hide-and-seek skills, and even Tavros had to really look to find him. It was like a game of 'where's Waldo' if Waldo could camouflage himself under sand and mud, waiting to swallow you in one gulp. The Angel shark, Tavros knew, would wait under a thin layer of muck for a fish, or the person trying to feed him, to swim by and then explode upwards, it's gaping maw swallowing the employee whole. That was an experience Tavros could live without.
So instead he sat on the edge of the tank and reached into a bucket, pulling out a large silvery fish that flopped and twisted frantically in his grasp. "Sorry buddy." Tavros said mournfully, and tossed lunch inside.
The fish darted away and seemed to hover for a moment, before swimming along the bottom, thinking it had gotten away.
As it passed over an expanse of sand, the ground suddenly burst to life, consuming the poor fish before it knew what was going on. The Angel shark settled once more on the bottom of the tank, looking quite pleased with itself as it waited for dessert.
Tavros made a note to himself that the Angel shark seemed perfectly healthy, and waved bye to it as he picked up the now empty bucket and walked off to dispose of the water inside.
He'd been working here for almost two months now, and his job had been expanded a few weeks ago to sting rays as well. He enjoyed sting rays; they seemed more likably than the cold blooded creatures with more teeth than strictly necessary. Once he was done feeding them, he'd stay a while and swim around, smiling around his air piece as their gentle flaps would wash over him, always mindful of their barbed tails. At one point he's spotted the same boy from the shark tank watching him play with the sting rays. Tavros then dove down to the bottom of the pond-like tank and picked up a small, serrated sting ray tooth, resurfaced, and gave it to the boy who looked so unbelievably happy.
Feeling like he'd just made someone's day, Tavros was in high spirits as he returned to the tiny staff room behind the Tiger Shark tank. He had walked in and peeled off his wet suit, pulling on a pair of boxers right when he heard a voice.
"God dammit again? How the ever loving fish fuck did you even manage to get your ball up in the fucking rafters? I swear you do this on purpose you little shit."
Tavros blinked, pausing with his t-shirt in one hand as he looked around to see where the source of the noise was coming from. Something caught his eye, and Tavros blinked in surprise as he spotted the locked door was ajar.
The voice came again, "There. I got your fucking ball for you—AGH NO DON'T HUG ME GOD DAMMIT YOU'RE ALL WET!" There was a loud splash followed by a string of swear words, and Tavros crept closer to the door.
"Alright yeah it's good to see you too, you obnoxious shit. Try not to get your ball stuck in the god damn rafters again, alright?"
Tavros peeked in cautiously. It was another room, bigger than Tavros had expected, with a large pool taking up most of the room. The janitor, Karkat Vantas, was standing with his back to Tavros, scolding whatever was in the pool. Was this another tank? Why was it closed off? Karkat shifted his weight and Tavros jerked back, heart pounding. Whatever the reason, it was obvious that door was locked to keep people out. He could hear Karkat's footsteps approaching, and Tavros made a split second decision to dive behind the couch right as the surly tempered janitor walked in.
"Don't give me that look, I'll come see you tomorrow." Karkat grumbled, and then shut the door firmly. There was a small 'click' of the lock and then he was gone, leaving Tavros alone.
Standing up, Tavros hastily pulled on his shirt and hopped into his shorts, buttoning them as he walked over to the door. He placed his ear on the door and held his breath, closing his eyes and straining to hear through the thick metal to no avail.
Tavros sighed and stood back, eyeing the lock with a scowl. It looked like a simple door lock. Maybe…maybe he could—no! No what was he thinking? Breaking into a room he wasn't supposed to be in was bad. But technically since he worked here…he'd been told to stay in the west wing of the Aquarium. Wasn't this the west wing?
Tavros walked away and grabbed his bag, stuffing his things inside and leaving. Tomorrow he'd check behind the door.