I know, I know. Another damn chapter without Dory. But the next one is full of Dory-ness. I hope you all had a nice Halloween!
~Cel
Chapter Nine: Fin-Shakes All Around
While Nemo chattered on aimlessly, bouncing around Gill with the familiar, perpetual energy that of an eight-year old boy, the Idol's mind was in a different place at the moment. He was truly trying to listen to Nemo's story, but his attention was diverted to his troubled thoughts.
It had been fifteen years since he had the notion of family. The Tank Gang was different. He was their leader, and they had all respected him and his authority. He knew that he couldn't just barge into another family's life and expect to be welcomed with open fins. Perhaps he didn't belong here after all. He had his chance at family, and had forfeited it. He couldn't suddenly arrive in the reef and just expect to be inducted into someone else's family, a family that had lived and played and loved, probably for many years by now. A topic of the different species didn't matter. He had known several families in his youth that had taken in little orphans after their parents were wiped out in the Sickness. He remembered a parrotfish family that had taken in an orphan butterflyfish, and a lovely seahorse couple that had adopted a Royal Gramma girl.
What troubled Gill the most was his love for Nemo. He loved the little one like his own son, no matter how much he tried to fight it back. While still trapped in that thrice-forsaken, be-damned glass prism, he had struggled with his emotions towards the little clownfish. He had fought viciously within the confines of his own mind, knowing that it was absolutely foolish to love the clownfish. Nemo had a loving, caring father in Marlin, and the little one seemed perfectly happy with that. Gill had his chance twenty-three years ago when he first heard the tiniest snapping sound in the ocean – the sound of a miniscule fish egg breaking. And then, eight years later, he had forfeited that chance when he failed…
Gill was so absorbed within his distressed thoughts that he didn't even notice when he and Nemo came to a halt in a small, secluded area of the reef. The beautiful clusters of coral surrounding a magenta and orange anemone were all different shades of indigos, purples, and blues. A magenta structure of branching coral stood out behind the anemone. The light orange tentacles of the fascinating little organism swayed gently and leisurely in the pulsating waves. Nemo was excitedly bouncing about the anemone, calling for his father. Gill could only float there, his ruby eyes clouded over and unfocused as memories of the past viciously fought to take control of his mind and unhinge it. Struggling to regain his usual cool composure, Gill shook his head and looked ahead.
"Daddy, Dad, c'mere!" Gill could hear Nemo's excited, young voice as he dashed into the anemone. He was completely oblivious of the peaceful looking, albeit deadly tentacles that would probably paralyze any other fish if he dared to try and stick his nose into the clownfish household and try to harassed its inhabitants. Gill waited patiently outside, gazing around and inspecting his surroundings. It was gorgeous here, shafts of sunlight streaming down on the little home of the clownfish. His attention snapped back to the anemone as he heard a different voice answer Nemo.
"Alright, Nemo! What is it you want me to see?" The voice said, a trace of laughter in it. Out of the anemone swam an adult male clownfish, no doubt Nemo's famous father, Marlin. Nemo looked very much like his father, except his eyes were a slightly lighter orange color. Marlin looked like a slightly older parent, yet younger than Gill, about forty or so. He had deep frown wrinkles on his forehead and between his brows, but smile lines emanating from the corners of his eyes. These lines could easily be seen as the clownfish was quickly ushered out of his anemone home by his excited son.
"Not an it, Daddy, a who! Look!" Nemo exclaimed, and that was how Marlin had officially entered Gill's life. The clownfish looked extremely startled to see such a fearsome-looking male swimming right outside of his home – and having his little boy so very excited to meet him! Gill was slightly surprised as well. After hearing about all the things he had endured and was willing to undergo to save his only son, it was hard to picture a common, everyday single father who lived in orange anemone. Marlin halted in front of Gill, frozen, eyes widened. The two men stared at one another for a few moments before Marlin spoke, quickly and nervously.
"I'm sorry, sir. My son is a little too curious. Whatever he's done, I promise I will fix it. Or has he been bothering you? Him and those friends of his, they like getting into mischief. Have you been hanging around with that Sandy Plankton again, Nemo? He is so naughty! I promise, good sir, it will not happen again –" Marlin said in a rush, looking quite anxious and casting his son a quite annoyed look. Nemo rolled his eyes, far too elated to be embarrassed for his father neurotic nature. Although far more outgoing from previous years, it was still who Marlin was. Nemo faced his father, waving his good fin frantically in front of his bewildered father's face.
"No, no, Daddy! Look, don't you remember him? He's an Idol! He's Gill!" The little clownfish boy couldn't contain his sheer excitement as he introduced his mentor to his father at last. Marlin blinked his slightly darker eyes at his son in disbelief. His jaw dropped, and he tore his wide eyes from his bouncing, elated boy to the fish whom his son was convinced had died saving him. Gill didn't show any sort of offense to Marlin's open-mouthed stare. He had somehow expected some kind of reaction from the clownfish he had heard so much about. After all, he remembered that seahorse named Bob had mentioned that a Moorish Idol hadn't been seen in this part of the reef in years. Marlin probably had never seen one either, and never realized how fearsome they looked. After a few moments, Marlin must have realized that he was just staring. He quickly closed his mouth and coughed discreetly.
"Oh, um…hi there. Uh, yes! You're Gill?" He asked, and the Idol before him nodded. Marlin finally smiled, grinning widely in both relief and welcome. "That's wonderful! My boy here, he has missed you so much. You made it back into the ocean, that's great! Oh, my name is Marlin." Marlin said, and it sounded like he was rather flustered with himself for this less-than-warm welcome. He stuck out his left fin, offering it in a fin-shake. Gill blinked and grinned crookedly, and stuck out his left fin as well. Marlin's expression became rather confused until his eyes finally fell upon the severed fin on Gill's right side. His expression turned into one of embarrassment and he quickly switched fins. Gill chuckled, trying to look as less intimidating as possible. He placed his good fin into Marlin's own, and they shook.
"My bad. I do remember now, Nemo telling me about your fin." Marlin quickly apologized, knowing that he probably wasn't making the best first impression. Gill just grinned more, illuminating crinkled lines in the corners of his ruby eyes.
"It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Marlin. This is some son you have here," Gill said, removing his fin from Marlin's grasp to gently ruffle Nemo's dorsal fin, earning a giggle from the young lad. "But I guess bravery must run in the family." Marlin became all flustered once more with the compliment, his cheeks growing an even darker shade of orange as he blushed.
"Oh…r-really, it was nothing. Y'know, I just…I had to find him. I mean, he's my son, and I love him with all of my heart." Marlin cast Nemo an affectionate look, patting his boy's head. Nemo smiled right back up at his father with love, and Gill's heart clenched. The smile faded from his long face for a moment as he watched the silent exchange between father and son. He remembered a time when he shared that same smile with a little lad…
"Daddy, remember when I told you how he saved me!" Nemo said excitedly, continuing to bounce around the two adults, making them both smile down at him. "Oh, and I forgot to tell you? Remember when Dory was caught in that huge fishnet and we had to tell all the fish in the net to swim down? Well, Gill taught me that! He saved me when the dentist had caught me in a net!" Nemo said to Marlin, waving both find with enthusiasm. Marlin raised both brows at Gill, who kept his eyes fixed on Nemo. He wasn't used to having fish highlight the greatness of his heroic deeds. Usually the things he did to try and help his fellows often ended in terrible failure. He didn't know how to react to it.
"Wow, Mr. Gill! I'm quite glad you were with Nemo in that tank. If it wasn't for you, I would have lost a very dear friend, as well as my son. Thank you, very much." Marlin said, casting Gill a wide smile. Gill gave a small, hesitant smile in return. In truth, he was quite bewildered and rather startled. He had greatly expected Marlin to reject this harsh-looking, heavily-scarred veteran that was suddenly imposing himself upon the clownfish and his son. He had been preparing himself for Marlin to be frightened of him, or to chastise him for trying to take over the role of parental dominance. But Marlin seemed to have accepted him, or at least his presence in the reef. He was probably doing this merely out of gratitude for the old Moorish Idol saving the life of his only son.
"Gill, Marlin. Just Gill. None of this 'mister' nonsense." Gill said, attempting a good-natured tone, which was extremely unnatural for him. He was used to being a stony loner who never depended on anyone. He was tough and dauntless, and nothing would ever stand in his way. Now, ever since he had begun this whole insane trek to come home, he felt like his very soul was fraying at the seams. Memories that had haunted him for fifteen years, yet ones that he had tried to keep back, were resurfacing and breaking down all of his emotional barriers. For the first time in a long time, he truly felt confused.
Marlin chuckled at Gill's comment as Nemo floated beside them, his wide grin stretching from cheek to cheek. His eyes were darting from one man to the other. Oh, this was absolutely brilliant! Gill and Marlin seemed to be getting along really well. Nemo had a slight fear as he had lead Gill throughout his reef home that Marlin might not like his friend, and would send him away forever. It didn't look like that was going to happen anytime soon. Nemo couldn't stop grinning, even though his cheeks were beginning to become rather sore.
"Alright, Gill it is." Marlin agreed. Nemo then suddenly looked like he was hit with an exciting idea. He jumped up, darting between Marlin and Gill. Both adults jumped slightly, startled, although Marlin was much more used to it. However, they both grinned and slightly envied the young boy's restive, endless energy.
"Daddy, Gill hasn't met Dory! He's gotta meet Dory, I know she'll really like him! Oh, Gill," Nemo exclaimed, whirling around to the grinning Moorish Idol. "Gill, you've gotta meet Dory! She's Dad's friend, and she's my friend too. She helped him find me! I know you'll like her!" Nemo said, bouncing in excited circles around the adults. This was one of the best days in his entire life, and being this happy felt wonderful! After the murky cloud of pond scum that had been hovering over his head for the past two days, the cheerfulness made his heart soar.
"Alright, Nemo, alright! We'll find her. Last I saw her she swam out of the pick-up clearing like a shark was chasing her!" Marlin said, rolling his eyes in playful exasperation at his dear friend's eccentricity. Nemo nodded as Marlin began to swim forward, Gill at his side. Nemo swam in between the two, still grinning widely as if this was one of the best days ever. Marlin patted the boy's head, looking down at his son with nothing but unconditional love. Gill smiled down at the child as well, but kept his expression slightly impassive. If he had made such a good first impression, he didn't want Marlin to begin to think he was imposing on his parenting. He would be sure to keep his distance in the near future – that is, if he really stayed.
Marlin looked up from his boy to see Gill's expression. The Idol looked worried about something, his dark crimson eyes downcast, and his thick brows furrowed. For just a moment, the older clownfish was distracted by the scars that lacerated the poor fish's side, severing his right fin to shreds. Nemo had said that Gill had landed on dental tools during his first escape attempt, trying to break free of that tank in the dentist's office. The scars made the Idol look even more fearsome, and it made Marlin even more nervous.
Why was his son so attached to this strange man, who had appeared out of nowhere? An Idol hadn't been seen in this part of the reef after old man Willem had died all those years ago. A young family had lived beside the drop-off, near the rocks, but Marlin had never seen them, and some fish had said that after a diver had invaded the reef that some of that family had died. Nevertheless, Marlin knew that perhaps he was being nervously overfriendly, as he often was when he met new fish. Taking a deep, pure breath, he patted his son on the side.
"Why don't you run along ahead, Nemo? Go see if Dory is in the clearing." Marlin instructed Nemo, who nodded eagerly and darted forward. Soon his little orange and white form disappeared behind a corner. Right after he vanished from view Marlin must have had a sudden, important afterthought for he immediately called, "A-and if she's not there, wait for us!" Gill could swear he could hear the little one's voice call faintly, "'Kay, Dad!" He smiled a bit to himself and shook his head, keeping his eyes down.
Great. Now he was alone with the father. Gill knew as a rule, that he mustn't be as anti-social any longer. In a secluded glass box with only six other fish, he was able to easily escape into his plastic skull. They knew as a rule not to bother their leader when he was thinking. Out here in the open ocean where there were billions of fish, he would have to interact with them some time. An uncomfortable silence followed for a few moments as the two men swam together. Marlin coughed discreetly, breaking the silence first.
"Well, uh…I just wanted to thank you, to really thank you." Marlin turned to look up at Gill, still swimming along. "I know that, without you, my little Nemo wouldn't have survived. He told me about that strange girl in the office. Darla, I think. She was…hurting my boy, shaking him in a plastic bag. Then she dropped him and the bag exploded. Then you shot yourself out of a…volcano?" Marlin looked up at Gill for confirmation, who gave a halfhearted nod. "Okay, a volcano. Then you managed to get him into some water and back out into the ocean. And he told me how you taught him to properly swim." Marlin said, looking slightly agitated for a moment. Then he looked seriously up at the intimidating Idol. "You saved my son's life. I give you my extreme gratitude. If he hadn't made it back to me…I don't know what I would have done. Thank you, Gill."
The Moorish Idol could only offer a small smile in return, still trying to remain impassive. "It was nothin' Marlin. The poor kid, well…I had to save him. That's some boy you have, Marlin. He's such a smart, great kid." Gill said quietly, looking ahead and furrowing his brows. As he swam along, he could almost picture a different little lad bouncing up and down in front of him, his dark, freckled face all lit up with pure delight, his eyes shining like ruby stars. Marlin coughed again. It almost looked to him like he was somehow offending the Moorish Idol.
"So, Dory." Marlin began, desperately trying to change the subject. He nervously wrung his fins, but attempted to remain cheery. "She's my dearest friend, and without her I would have never made it to Sydney. I do love her, but she…ah, well, she has a condition called short-term memory loss. She can't really remember names, or things that have happened in the last ten seconds…well, anything really, for that matter. She's gotten better at remembering my and Nemo's name…and that's about it. She's a little eccentric, if you know what I mean." Marlin chuckled, picturing all kinds of scenarios in which his dear Regal blue tang would greet the Moorish Idol beside him. Gill however, forced a chuckle out of him, knowing that he was probably acting a little too unfriendly to Nemo's father.
"She sounds…exciting." Gill said, choosing a word that would seem to fit this woman. Marlin nodded in agreement, huffing with a smile.
"Oh, yeah. To tell the truth, she exhausts me." He admitted as they entered the clearing. Gill pondered within his vast mind. What was this woman really like? Was she just as kooky as Marlin described her, or was he over exaggerating? As they swam over a small hill which dropped into the pick-up clearing, Gill looked up, his sharp eyes catching a hint of bright blue zooming through the reef. Well, looks like he was about to find out about this lady fish named Dory…
