Chapter 5: A Helping Fin
Sandrastar1: Thank you! And yeah, the poor fry. Rest in peace, Allison.
Dory was now seven years old. For two years she had been knowing how to survive. Since last year, she forgot what she was looking for. The young fish saw a couple of teenage fish. They were both girls, and they were talking to each other.
Dory swam to them. "Hello! I'm Dory, and I suffer from short term memory loss!"
They both gasped. "Oh, that's terrible!" one of them said.
"I need help. I'm looking for somebody, but I don't know who," she explained.
The teenagers exchanged glances.
"I'm sorry, but we don't think we can help you."
"Yeah, sorry."
"Oh." Dory frowned. "It's okay. I'll just ask somebody else." She swam away.
She sighed sadly. Dory suddenly perked up. She heard a roaring sound.
Her heart was beating fast. She turned around and saw a barracuda coming right at her. The poor fish screamed at the top of her gills. She swam fastly.
The barracuda chased her, roaring at the process.
Dory hid in a small cave. The barracuda tried to get in a cave, but it was too small for him. He tried to eat Dory.
Dory shook in fright, her heart pounding in her chest.
A Moorish Idol was swimming around until he heard a roar. He looked and gasped when he saw the barracuda trying to eat Dory.
The Moorish Idol was not afraid. He glared his eyes at the barracuda before picking up a small rock. He swam towards the barracuda.
"Hey, barracuda!" he called.
The barracuda turned around. He saw the Moorish Idol holding a rock.
"Leave her alone, you big bully!" He threw the rock hard. It hitted the barracuda.
The barracuda roared in pain. He swam away.
Dory stood there in shock. She looked at the fish.
He smiled and swam to Dory. "It's alright. You can come out now."
The forgetful fish slowly came out. She smiled and hugged him. "Thank you so much! I thought I was gonna be eaten!"
The male smiled. "No problem, kid."
"My name's Dory. I suffer from short term memory loss."
The Moorish Idol frowned. "I'm sorry for your disability. My name's Gill."
"It's nice to meet you, Gilly." Dory smiled.
Gill blushed. "It's Gill. But you can call me Gilly."
Dory smiled hugely before saying, "I lost someone. But I don't remember who. Can you please help me?"
"Sure. How long did you know this fish?"
"Hmm... I don't remember, but something tells me that I known this fish since I was born."
Gill thought for a moment. Then he gave a gasp. "Dory, you didn't loose one fish. You lost two! You lost your parents!"
Dory suddenly remembered. "Oh my gosh! I did loose my parents!"
Gill smiled. "Excellent! We'll start looking for them right now."
"Yay!" Dory exclaimed.
The two began searching.
It had been hours, and there was no luck.
Dory sighed. She settled down a sponge bed.
"Now, now, Dory. Don't get upset. We'll search for them another time." Gill stroked her.
"But I miss them, Gilly. I really miss them."
"I know, kid. I promise we'll search for them another time."
The forgetful fish smiled.
"If you want, I can stay with you until you find your family. That way you won't be alone," he explained.
"Really?" she asked.
"Yes, really. I can even teach you how to defend yourself and be dependent so you can take care of yourself if I'm not there."
Dory hugged him tightly. "Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you!"
Gill giggled. "Anytime, kid. Now, do you want me to teach you now?"
"Yes," she replied.
"Okay. So, if an attacker makes like a punching gesture with their fins, be prepared. Get ready to fight. I'll show you a couple of fighting moves."
Dory watched Gill.
Gill's fins curled up into balls. He did some punches. He then swung his tail, hitting against a sponge bed.
"Wow! Cool!" Dory exclaimed.
"And if the attacker's moves get impossible, swim away as fast as you can."
Dory nodded.
"And if someone grabs you, you either punch them in the face, or bite them. Also, if you fall, fall on top of your attacker and aim for their face."
"Okay. Any more?" Dory asked.
"Yes, there's one more thing you should know. You should poke an attacker's eyes. No one can defend an eye poke."
Dory smiled. "Thank you for teaching me all this stuff, but are you sure I'll remember all of them?"
"I'm sure you will. Tomorrow, I'll teach you how to be independent."
"Alright, thank you." She then looked up at the surface.
The young blue tang grabbed his fin. "Come on, I want to show you something."
They swam up to the surface. They poked their heads out of the water.
Gill's eyes widened as he saw the sky filled with bright stars. "Oh, my... This is beautiful."
"I know. I always look at the stars."
Gill smiled hugely as he stared at the night sky with his new friend.