Chapter Text
For his first six hours at the Trojan Aquarium, Jean, who was sedated for transport, is supported in the quarantine pool by Jeremy. Jean is too heavy to be out of the water, lest his own weight suffocate him, but the sedative and his gill infection mean his head needs to stay above water so he can use his lungs to breathe. Enter Jeremy, Jean's head supported by his shoulder, standing on his tiptoes in the five foot deep quarantine pool, walking Jean in slow circles around the perimeter to keep his circulation up. As the sedation wears off, Jean takes more and more of his own weight, until sometime after noon, when he wakes up fully. His first move once awake? To dart under the water and press himself against the corner where the pool wall meets the floor. Despite his inflamed gills, he begins to breathe under the water, causing blood to balloon around his thin, haggard face. Jeremy instinctively goes to pull him above the water again, knowing that breathing through his gills must be painful, but stops short of actually touching Jean. Jeremy knows how powerful consent and choice can be when it comes to handling a scared animal. He's fear-free certified, after all.
Instead, Jeremy takes a deliberate step away from Jean, and speaks loud enough to be heard under the water.
"Hi! I'm Jeremy Knox. I'm the lead behaviourist here at the Trojan Aquarium. I'm sorry if that was scary for you, but we needed someone to keep your head above water while the sedative wore off, and I was the person free this morning. Why don't you come to the surface, and I'll give you some lunch?" Jeremy watches as slowly, like a man facing his own execution, Jean moves from his corner. He pokes his head above the water, eyes Jeremy warily, and comes to the center of the pool. After a moment's hesitation, he spins in a circle, like a dog performing a trick.
Not like a dog performing a trick. More like a dolphin, or a seal.
After his spin, he reaches out a hand towards Jeremy, waiting for something. Jean's face is carefully blank, jaw slightly clenched. Jeremy is so stunned he almost doesn't react, mouth hanging open in shock.
"Oh, no no no no. I'm so sorry. You don't need to do tricks for your meals. Let me just-," Jeremy pulls himself onto the edge of the pool, and reaches behind him for a cooler full of chopped squid, courtesy of Laila. Jean is so malnourished that the team decided it was vital he have access to food from the moment he woke up, and the vets approved free feeding him until his next health check. Privately, Jeremy thinks Jean will probably need to be free fed for the rest of his life, given the damage the long-term abuse has likely done to his metabolism. As the behaviorist, that isn't his call to make, so he's kept that thought to himself.
Jeremy leans forward to hand Jean the chunk of squid, and Jean takes it from him delicately, and then swallows the food whole.
"Oh my goodness! Please don't choke!" Jeremy gasps, watching him closely for signs of asphyxiation. Luckily, Jean seems practiced at shovelling his food down as quickly as possible, and is no worse for wear.
Maybe a slow feeder puzzle, then, Jeremy mentally notes. For now he'll stick to slow hand feeding.
Jeremy grabs another chunk of squid, and messily pulls it apart into smaller pieces with his hands. It isn't frozen, just chilled, so it comes apart easily. He feeds Jean, one morsel at a time, until the cooler is half empty. Jeremy's hands are cold and staticky from handling so much cold squid, but it's worth it to prevent a serious medical emergency.
A merman Jean's size should easily be able to put away three cooler's worth of food a day, plus enrichment treats, but Jean seems full after only half of one, and that's after missing breakfast while in transport. He refuses a chunk of squid from Jeremy, only acquiescing when Jeremy insists. Jeremy thinks he could probably command him to finish the cooler, but he doesn't want to push his luck, or overwhelm Jean and make him sick. Instead, he calls out for Laila, and when her head pops into the quarantine room, he motions to the cooler.
"Could you bring this to the freezer for me? We're not feeling a full cooler for lunch. And please send Jeffery or Ashley when they have a minute. Our new arrival is awake." Laila nods frantically and moves in to grab the cooler, propping it on her hip and waving at Jean before rushing out in search of a resident veterinarian. Jean watches her curiously, before turning his attention back to Jeremy. He's still near the middle of the pool, and keeping his own head above water, so Jeremy is counting lunchtime bonding as a win.
Within two minutes, Jeffery has arrived to relieve Jeremy of his duties. The vet sends him off to spend some time with the seals in their care, and reassures him that Jean will be the star of the show at the end-of-shift recap tonight. Just as Jeremy is leaving the quarantine room, turning right towards the mammal exhibit and public areas of the aquarium, he hears a shout, followed by a large splash, and the sound of sloshing water. Jeremy rushes back into the room, already calling a code red into his walkie-talkie, when he realizes what's going on.
Jean, apparently prone to tantrums when he's still coming up from sedation, has tail slapped the surface of the water. His large, black, open-ocean-optimized tail has managed to spray over a gallon of water over the room. The walls, Dr. Davis, and even part of the ceiling are dripping salt water. Jeremy quickly calls to cancel the code red, laughing into his receiver. Drama queen.
He approaches the pool slowly, passing a still-sputtering Jeffery, and tilts his head at Jean.
"What was that for?"
And to his shock, Jean responds. Jean, whose every file indicates is mute. Jean, who has never communicated with a human before, in any capacity. Jean, who says, loud and clear as day.
"You were leaving."