Wonderland, Octopi, Gardens || Erin
The aquarium was a beautiful place to work and Marly had thought so ever since she first arrived in Sumner. The enclosures for the animals were huge, despite the aquarium being only one story. None of the animals were ever bored. The octopi were given enrichment programs to keep them from being bored. The largest animals they had were the whale sharks. They refused to keep whales, dolphins, and other sea mammals. Everyone that worked there had seen Black Fish and knew it was wrong.
Marly’s primary job at the aquarium was taking care of the animals, making sure their enclosures - including the large aquariums (which she would dress in scuba gear for, though she didn’t need to) - were clean, making sure they were fed, and spending time with them to make sure they didn’t feel sad or upset by their...imprisonment wasn’t the word Marly would use, but it was close. Of course, she couldn’t personally get to know every animal as she couldn’t take most of them out of their enclosures, but that didn’t stop her from trying. Ever since she was very young, Marly had loved animals. It was the main reason she’d applied for a job at the aquarium.
Her other job was tour guide. She didn’t enjoy that job nearly as much, but it was fun giving tours to people who were genuinely interested in the animals she was showing them.
That was not her duty today, however. Today she was taking care of the new seasonal exhibit: the Dumbo octopi. Even cleaning their tank, she smiled as she watched them flap about, a few landing on her hands every now and then to see what she was doing. She would talk to them as she worked, reassuring them that she was making sure their home was clean for them to live in, so they didn’t get sick. Though she couldn’t really talk to sea animals, she felt they understood her anyway. As always she thought that animals were more capable of understanding complex language and voice tone than people gave them credit for.
After the tank was clean, it was time to feed them. No one was allowed to see her cleaning the tank, but they were allowed to watch her feed them. It had become quite the attraction since the octopi had been brought to the aquarium. The managers were considering trying to find some Dumbo octopi they could keep year-round since they were so popular.
“Are you hungry?” Marly asked the octopi as she cut up their food. One of the octopi placed a tentacle on the glass. They seemed to be gazing at her, saying, Yes, we are ready for our lunch. “Good,” she replied. “I have a lot of food for you today. It’s about to go bad, so you have to eat it up.”
She finished cutting up the food, brushed it into the their tank and walked around to the other side to watch the reactions of the people who had come to see the octopus feeding. She put her hands on her lips and smiled as she watched people go wide-eyed with wonder. She was glad people found the animals she considered her friends as wonderful as she did.
