[RLS] Hawaiian Monk Seal Release 1

Prompt 2 - Finding Food (600 WC)

Dr. Juan Alvarez broke the surface of the water with a gasp, coughing a little bit from the sharp tang of salt on his tongue. Gross, he hated getting exhibit water in his mouth but he hated getting all rigged up in the diving gear more so he accepted it as an even trade off. The fish, crabs, and squids he'd come in with were now successfully hidden around the entire exhibit, ready to be "found" by their two young release candidates, Oat and Barley. Oat was the older of the two, a male and very bold, Barley, the female, was often referred to as "Barely" in text messages between keepers and the accidental nickname fit her shy behavior quite well. They were both fantastic release candidates for their own reasons.

Dr. Alvarez stood and dripped his way to the exhibit door. He knew there were quite a few guests on the other side of the one-way exhibit glass, the feedings were scheduled daily and this young pair had become quite popular online. He was a handsome man, he knew it, everyone else knew it, he looked good in the wetsuit he had to wear to enter the water in the Hawaiian monk seal exhibit, it was part of life. It was part of the reasons his zoo was receiving increased donations, honestly. 'Thirst trapping" was popular these days but he did it while teaching people about beautiful and unique endangered animals, so was it really all that bad if he was thirst trapping for a cause?

Once in the back room it did not take long for him to peel off the wetsuit and hurry back into his daily uniform, excited to see how Oat and Barley would react to their new enrichment. It was very important they learn how to find food on their own now that they were weaning. Oat and Barley tumbled into the exhibit in a cascade of cute little barks that warmed Dr. Alvarez's heart, clamoring over each other in an effort to get ahead. Their parents would have already eaten half the food by now, but the pair were bickering, biting and playing as they rolled down the fake beach towards the tank portion of the exhibit.

That was when Oat seemed to catch the smell of food. Oat followed his nose right to a piece of squid tucked under rocks near the edge of the tank, snapping it up quickly before sliding down into the warm, clean water. Barley followed, sniffing where her brother had found food but deciding to hurry up instead of inspect for more morsels. Oat found another piece of squid followed by a cut up mackerel and frankly Barley was starting to get mad. She tried to beat him to the next hidden food but was unsuccessful, barking at him under the water in a flurry of bubbles. The zoo guests who had turned up to watch the 11 am feeding were enamored as the pair bumbled around the tank in a way only a young seal on a mission could.

It only took about ten minutes for the siblings to find all of the hidden treats, but they continued to circle and snuffle about in the rocks and crevices of their exhibit for some time after. The zoo guests were not visible from the inside but Dr. Alvarez could see them on the security monitor, crowding together against the glass with phones recording. He felt a little hopeful for these two little seals, hopeful that one day their kind might come back from the brink of extinction.

Prompt 4 - Social Skills (414 WC)

Oat and Barley were young Hawaiian monk seals, critically endangered and completely unaware of it. They were rough and tumble and they fought each other like cats and dogs. Or, well, like two young seals? The point was they drove Dr. Alvarez crazy when they beat each other up and frankly they were almost to the point of being separated if not for the fact it was essential for their mental development they interact with other seals.

One of the problems with turning out critically endangered animals was that it was frankly difficult to find more of them. Hawaiian monk seals were also not commonly kept in zoos, the breeding pair that lead to Oat and Barely were more a fluke than on purpose and even then their genetic diversity put them at second cousins.

Oat and Barley were fighting again and Dr. Alvarez was afraid blood was going to be drawn if they escalated any further. He didn't typically get involved and was relieved at least they were doing this in the back rooms rather than the display exhibit. Everything was less fun when there were guests watching, they nitpicked every movement despite having no experience with such rare and unique animals.

Barley gave up first and bungled her way to the pool, barking in protest. Dr. Alvarez was just as surprised as Barley was when Oat didn't pursue her. They were getting older, after all, and the bickering seemed to come down to space more than anything. Barley wanted to be in Oat's space most of the time, being less confident, and Oat wanted her to take a long waddle down a short pier. Dr. Alvarez was hopeful they might at least stay together for some time once they were released, but there was little that could be done about that. He could barely interact with them now, once they were released he wasn't legally allowed to do anything for them.

Oat rolled onto his front and clamored over to the heat rock, rolling onto his back on it and giving a big yawn. Barley splashed out of the pool and hurried over. Cuddling on the heat rock was her favorite activity and any previous fights were forgotten. Dr. Alvarez let out a sigh as the siblings relaxed side-by-side on the slab and turned away from the camera feed to go back to his paperwork. Their release was soon and he wasn't sure he was ready for it, even if they were.

Prompt 5 - The Release (623 WC)

The Big Day was here and Dr. Alvarez wasn't ready for it. It was arguably one of the most important days of his career thus far but it was difficult to be excited when he had so much to fear. They'd tried to make sure the seals were prepared for anything, they taught them the difference between plastic and food, they taught them to fear human presence, there wasn't much left but to allow nature to take its course.

Unfortunately the release site was far from perfect. A small cove on a small island surrounded by sharks. But it was a small cove on a small island where other Hawaiian monk seals had been spotted with their young. It had been several weeks since the last pup was seen but sub-adults had been visiting and resting there for months. Maybe it was a good hunting area, Dr. Alvarez hoped, but not for the sharks. They'd done a study on the cephalopods in the area, they'd researched the shark populations, this was the best possible place to release them, even if it wasn't the perfect place. He'd wanted better numbers, better survival estimates, but in an ocean falling apart at the seams, "best possible" was all they could do.

Dr. Alvarez could see Oat and Barley shifting around as the boat moved up and down against the slight chop, the engine roaring behind them. They were probably panicking in there; they'd been trained to fear the sound of boats and people. But would that save them if they became another life entangled in a net? Or would it cause them to panic and drown faster if people attempted to free them?

"This is it, Dr. Alvarez," the captain said, "Far as we go." The engine died and they drifted gently on the calm ocean. Dr. Alvarez stood and looked at the cove, squinting against the sparkling sun until a pair of binoculars appeared at his elbow. "There's a few up there," the captain said. There were three sub-adults in the sand. They looked healthy. Dr. Alvarez put the binoculars down on the seat behind him and unzipped his camera case. Going through the familiar motions of attaching his long distance lenses calmed his frazzled nerves. He took several photos of the seals on the shore before switching lenses again.

Oat and Barley, tagged with trackers and ID bands, were oddly quiet in their kennels, unable to see more than the small air holes allowed. The silence was likely deafening inside the metal crates without the roar of the engine banging around in there with them. Dr. Alvarez had turned down media presence, too many people would add to the stress, besides the last thing he wanted was for the general public see such a beautiful cove and decide to visit it. He checked the seals' trackers on his phone, both active and good to go, then helped the captain slide the transport cages to the back of the boat.

"I got it, Dr. Alvarez," the captain said, "Get your camera ready." The captain sat down on top of the two transport cages and grasped the sliding doors in each hand. "Ready?"

"Ready," Dr. Alvarez said. The clank of the doors opening startled the seals briefly. They bounced back though and swiftly turned into two dark gray blobs slicing through the blue as they sped away from the boat. Dr. Alvarez captured them in his camera's memory as they resurfaced for air. They'd never seen outside before. They'd never felt the ocean before. They swam around at speeds they'd never known they were capable of and Dr. Alvarez couldn't help the laugh that bubbled out of him as they headed towards the small, imperfect cove.