Mary Lou pouted in her cage. The fools had confused Evelyn for her, and had given her a new name - Lizzie. As in "Lizzie the Lizard".
Oh, how original and cute, she thought sarcastically.
She absolutely hated her new name. In truth, her old name wasn't that great. It was something her human captors had bestowed upon her. But it was her name, the only thing that was truly hers. And now they had taken that away.
They had taken everything away, actually. Her home, the mate she desired, any hope of escape....... And it had left her severely depressed. She would have stopped eating, but the stupid injections the zoo staff gave her made her so hungry she couldn't resist.
Mary Lou looked around her empty cage, and was even more depressed. She was so alone. No one shared her cage, and now that Evelyn - excuse me, Mary Lou - had taken over her spot at center stage, the humans hardly even bothered to come by anymore. She never thought she would miss the gawking tourists, but anything was better than living in isolation. What she really wanted more than anything - even more than freedom - was a friend.
The door to her cage suddenly opened, and a small human with bright red hair entered her enclosure. In the past, she would have fought any intruders aggressively. But now, she just didn't care anymore. It wasn't worth the energy. Besides, she remembered this human. Most of the staff treated her with disdain, but this one was different. She was gentle with her, and seemed to generally like her.
Idly, she wondered what the human wanted. In her enclosure, days and weeks drifted by without notice. Every day seemed the same when you were alone and nothing really changed. She saw a bottle in one hand, and a scrub brush in the other.
Is it bath time already? thought Mary Lou. It seems like I was just cleaned.
Usually she would have protested. Most of the staff would drug her, and scrub her body painfully. But this one - Kim, I think she was called - was different. She was gentle, scrubbing softly and deeply, getting every hidden crevice of her body clean. It was almost like a nice massage. So she rewarded Kim with docile behavior when Kim cleaned her.
"Hello, Lizzie, how are you this evening? " said Kim cheerfully.
Mary Lou turned away from her and sulked.
"Oh, c'mon, don't be that way. I just wish you weren't so sad, " said Kim. "I know. A nice bath always seems to cheer you up. And if you are really good - and behave yourself so I don't have to drug you - I might have another surprise for you. A little deer meat, maybe?"
Mary Lou began to salivate uncontrollably a little bit. The girl was good. She smiled a little as she turned.
"That's a good girl. You're the best Lizzie, " said Kim. "And look. We are going to try something new tonight. I found this strange shampoo in the store room. Let's see if it is any good."
Mary Lou's eyes went wide when she saw what was in Kim's hands - the Indigo Shampoo! She had thought that all of that stuff was lost at the lake. But here it was - right in the girl's hands. And she was going to use it on her. She felt something she hadn't felt for a long time - hope. Her tail began to wiggle back and forth behind her in excitement.
Kim backed up towards the door. "Whoa, girl, settle down. I don't think I have ever seen you this worked up. Maybe I should go get the sedative."
Mary Lou focused, and controlled her tail. She needed her wits tonight, and she couldn't afford to get drugged. She did her best to look submissive and docile. But it was difficult to control her excitement. Mary Lou turned and presented her back to Kim, inviting her to begin the bath.
Kim was a little confused. She had never seen such behavior in an alligator before. It almost looked intelligent, like it understood her. "Okay, girl, I know you don't like the sedative. Neither do I. I'm going to give you a chance tonight. But just in case, I better leave the door open."
Kim reached forward, and slipped a muzzle across Mary Lou's snout. Normally she hated it, but because Mary Lou knew that a bath was close behind she was ecstatic. She heard Kim pour the shampoo into her bucket, then work it up to a lather with her sponge. Finally, after what seemed like an impossibly long time, Mary Lou felt the brush run across the thick hide on her back. As Kim leaned her other hand on Mary Lou's back, she felt the familiar warmth spreading across her body, and she couldn't help but smile.