Since his uplifting, Hunter had proved to be a helpful addition to the Animalians on Mieni. Like many of the others, he seemed to prefer a fairly Spartan lifestyle, often because the lives for mundane animals were not always so ornamental. About the only uplifted Animalians that often seemed to like things that were often parts of Human society in terms of decoration and culture were often various rodent and bird Animalians. Hunter, as an Orca, didn't fit into those categories. But he did bond with the woman that had been there when he'd beached himself before his uplifting, Svetlana Smirnov... and that lead to some interesting events.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
"So, you could understand everything that was being said before you were uplifted?" Svetlana asked as she and Hunter sat in a restaurant that was part of the main hotel on Mieni's main island. Much of it was to also serve as a bit of a tour for Hunter, who was new to the island.
Both were dressed fairly casually as Svetlana wore a fairly casual set of soft pants and a tank top while Hunter wore a pair of tan cargo shorts that Svetlana and Ran had helped procure for him... among the rest of Hunter's clothing. It then allowed for a bit of a tour, and Svetlana was more than happy to work with the tour, particularly as she'd been at Mieni full time for a while by now. To Hunter there was some attraction, but it appeared that Humans didn't instantly take mates. To fill the time, the pair also shared some information on themselves and their lives, and Hunter actually started with some things on what he remembered seeing after departing the Philippines, where he'd flipped a small barge and ate the pigs that were on it... ultimately leading to what brought him to Mieni and lead to his uplifting.
"It wasn't quite "understanding" in the way you would think of it," Hunter answered, "at the time... I could hear you speaking, and since I was a wild Orca, I hadn't been exposed to a repetition of words to pick out a command. But I could pick out the emotions that sounded like concern and worry to me. It's like my suffering made you worry."
"I don't like people suffering... particularly for things that really aren't their fault," Svetlana answered, "I mean... you were sick because of parasites that are normally in animals that Orcas don't eat... or at least don't normally eat. And you said that if it weren't for the pig farmer throwing rocks at you, you wouldn't have flipped his boat or ate his pigs. So, that really isn't your fault."
Hunter blinked and looked over to Svetlana and noted some rather downcast eyes at that moment. There was some pain in her voice and something in the back of his mind told him that she was referring to more than just him.
"Well... I thank you for caring for me," Hunter offered, "though... something sounds like you're pained by something else..."
"Some of it is from my own past..." Svetlana answered, "as I told you... I am Russian and have come from a relatively well to do family and was married to one who had some business success in Russia. And for a time, I thought... and felt... that things that went on in the world went as part of some odd game of chance and influence and all were willing participants. And then Russia invaded Ukraine, and while the government reported all sorts of nonsense, everyone else noted it as Russian aggression and unprovoked aggression. It fed a lot of small doubts that had been there before, and I couldn't take it anymore. I divorced my husband, stole my parents' yacht and left Russia. It's left me as an exile here... and mostly hoping that some security agent wouldn't pull something on an Animalian colony."
"What the Russian government does isn't your fault," Hunter answered.
Svetlana gave a small smile, "in terms of decision making, sure... in terms of votes, technically yes. As my family was among those that voted for Putin when he first came to power and benefited under his rule. Maybe we couldn't have stopped him... as he is a dictator... but, we stood by and accepted the wealth that came from supporting him. And that was a big part of why I fled Russia. I... I couldn't take him down and I couldn't defend what was going on in Ukraine, and that my former husband and my parents DID try to fend the invasion... I couldn't stand it and I couldn't... so... I came here."
"I will defend you," Hunter responded.
Hunter wasn't sure on what all was going on between Russia and Ukraine, beyond this mention of a war. But he could sense a lot of Svetlana's pain at what was going on and that she didn't like it. In this, he made his decision in part because she was a female that he found to be rather pretty and in part because there was going to be some need to pay her back for caring for him before he could be uplifted.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Of course, the next few days followed in helping Hunter get used to things on Mieni Atoll and finding on how much the atoll depended on tourism as the main point of its business. He at least knew of the things that played to that. He's also gotten a chance to see some of the museums that had been built on the main island. The history museum on Mieni's past, including its roles as a very minor Japanese base in WW2 and then a US base in the Cold War were interesting. The piece on the USS Pennsylvania being offshore and that Mieni was marked as part of Kwajalein for administrative reasons at the time was also interesting but odd. The thing that held Hunter's interest was the science museum and its exhibits on the ocean depths, along with the body of the Giant Squid that had been battled in Animalia's first year. He marveled at it with some degree of interest, which caught Svetlana's attention.
"Have you seen any out in the ocean... before you were uplifted, I mean?" Svetlana wondered and the looked up to the large glass case suspended in the air and holding the body of the Giant Squid, preserved in fluids designed to prevent the squid's body from decaying.
"I don't think so," Hunter answered, "and a lot of it is more the mental image of what I hear, not what I see," Hunter explained, "I have decent eyes... but that all still depends on things being well lit and there being nothing obstructing my vision. In the areas where my pod swam, there could be cases of sand and silt being stirred up by either the currents between islands or by some of the larger ships that occasionally moved between them. About the only time when we'd really see anything was when we were in shallow water and away from areas being heavily traversed... or even heading out from the islands for a little while."
"So... how would they look to your echolocation?" Svetlana wondered, "I know it's a like a natural version of a submarine's sonar... but I've never had the chance to talk with someone who would have that ability..."
Hunter gave a small smile, happy at the conversation and took Svetlana's hand in his own webbed fingers. She didn't resist, though Hunter made sure to be as gentle as he could.
"It's sort of like a mental image," Hunter said slowly, "like we'd hear the sounds come back to give us an outline of what we sent the sound out to. With the squid we did come across... it was sort of like a straight cylinder with pointed ends moving in the water. A lot of the other identification would then come on the basis of memory. Like when we'd come across things like small fish and squid before... and under conditions where we could see them once we got close enough."
Svetlana then watched as Hunter released her hand and held up his own to give the approximate dimensions of the squids he'd come across before. She was curious in that the sizes Hunter presented weren't all that big.
"You've never gone after anything like this one?" Svetlana wondered, thinking back on the reports that this Giant Squid had been brought down by Ran, Gaz, Rapier, and Gladys in order to save one of Horizon's minisubs as part of checks on the sunken USS Pennsylvania . And Hunter was well bigger than Ran, and likely would be well stronger.
"Giant Squid like this generally stay pretty deep," Hunter answered, "we Orca can dive... but not that deep. Particularly when most of our prey don't go that deep. It's going to be some of the deep diving whales... like Sperm Whales that are most often going after these guys. They dive down that deep."
"But if one came up... for whatever reason, could you take it?" Svetlana asked.
"My pod could have taken one, but that'd be similar to like what happened here," Hunter answered, "superior numbers takes down superior size. But... again, squid this big wouldn't come into our area often, if at all."
"And now you're alone..." Svetlana said slowly.
"Not completely," Hunter replied, "as you've been with me... even if you aren't an Animalian... or if you aren't romantically interested in me... simply being there and being a friend. That does a lot."
Svetlana only smiled. She knew that Hunter had some interest in her, and to a degree, some of that was mutual. As Animalians were all physically impressive, and a part of her mind also figured that if she became an Animalian, she'd be safer from Russia's security apparatus wanting to get revenge for some one's betrayal. She wouldn't drop her first name, but she hadn't used her last name since arriving on Mieni. As an Animalian, she wouldn't look like she did before, and thus even if Putin's agents found her by her first name, they might be looking for a Human woman and would miss a female Animalian. However, she wanted to make sure that if she converted, it was for love or something more than just hiding, as she didn't want to show fear. And spending time with Hunter seemed to show that while he was relatively obvious in courting her, he wasn't going to be truly pushy either. Svetlana did like that.
"Well... you were hurt and alone," Svetlana answered, "it would make sense to be a good friend."
"Maybe more?" Hunter replied, "as I've heard there is a way that you could become like me... you'd be safe and we could then form our own pod."
"If you play your cards right," Svetlana did her best not to giggle and took Hunter's hand in her own.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The pair ultimately also enjoyed some of the same things that many guests that came to Mieni often got to enjoy, swimming. For while the lagoon inside the atoll's circle of small islands covered a large amount of space, and Human guests were advised to stay within sight of the lifeguards on the beach, Animalians based on animals used to the sea had a bit more freedom and Hunter was more than happy to take advantage of that and offering his size and strength to help Svetlana move through the water. This enabled them to move out into the lagoon with some degree of safety, though Hunter also got a warning that Svetlana wouldn't be able to hold her breath as long as they could. Hunter, however, promised that he would make certain that Svetlana would take no undo risks, as some of this swim was to show her more of the oceanic world and maybe assure his place in her heart.
And to a degree, judging by the tight light blue one piece swimsuit that Svetlana wore, Hunter wondered if she was playing with him as well. The swimsuit hugged her body tightly and, in some ways, let her show off her own muscular legs. In a way that Hunter couldn't explain to himself, he actually liked her legs the most. They were well muscled and very smooth, and Hunter liked that. His only guess was that because he didn't have legs before being uplifted, that was something that just appealed to him because it was a feature that was so new, and that Svetlana knew that as well. As she did occasionally pose in a way that looked like she was trying to show them off. Hunter could only work with that and try to remain a gentleman to her.
"And how do these snorkels work again?" Hunter asked to Svetlana as they treaded water at the surface over one of the areas where the water was shallow and there was some coral to look at and see, "do you breathe through them?"
"No," Svetlana answered and adjusted the clear plastic tube that was fastened to the side of the goggles she was wearing, "if it were to be something I breathed through, I'd have an oxygen tank strapped to my back and there would be a set of tubes that would carry the gas from the tank to my mouth... and any air breathed out would come out in a stream of bubbles under water. About all the snorkel does is mean I don't have to come completely out of the water to breathe. Sort of like how whales and dolphins have their blowhole on the top of their head so that they don't have to jump out of the water to breathe."
"That's often more part of the fun and showing off," Hunter answered, "and you'll be fine with all that?"
Svetlana nodded and moved the mouthpiece for the snorkel to her mouth and made sure the goggles were secure over her eyes. She then gave Hunter a thumb's up and the two then dove down. For Hunter, it was easy. His eyes adjusted as they normally did. Becoming an Animalian didn't change the adaptations his yes had to function and see underwater, and with-it being daytime in a relatively shallow spot and in fairly clear water, he could see things fairly well and he was sure Svetlana could see as well with her goggles. That would let them get a closer look at the corals that were all around the lagoon and areas... particularly away from the main beach areas, even on the lagoon side. Hunter had learned enough to know that a lot of that related to tourism and people not wanting to step on coral, live or dead, or on animals that might be under the sand in those areas, but to a degree, some of these things appealed to him more and he felt they appealed to Svetlana too.
And she did like it. To a degree, snorkeling and looking at the things on the reef was something that she'd enjoyed when she'd last been to Mieni with her husband... before the war and everything else drove her into exile from her homeland. As the colors that came from the corals and anemones was all vibrant and worth looking to. There were also various small fish that swam about. She noted that they stayed close to the ground and among the corals and other materials, likely moving to avoid Hunter. Some of that was a surprise, as the Animalians she'd met and talked to generally said that mundane Orcas didn't come into Mieni all that often, or at least not long enough to come into the lagoon. Often because the "transient" pods that passed the atoll were often following the larger whales in the open ocean and those larger whales didn't come into places where they'd risk being stranded. Of course, maybe these fish sort of identified Orcas in a very general way, which would make them out into threats similar to other species of dolphin, various sharks, and so on.
Yet, even with this, it was lively and vibrant. Svetlana happily pointed to various fish or crabs or other animals as they made their way around the corals, some of which swayed in the relatively gentle currents inside the lagoon. At one point, she even saw a small octopus move from one area of cover as Hunter swam over it. Though, as he circled back to her, Svetlana pointed up for a moment to get air. Hunter followed alongside her and made sure things were okay. She blew out the water that had gotten into the snorkel, which Hunter noted seemed fairly similar to how his pod would blow water away from their blowholes before his uplifting. After that, they dove again and got another look. And here, they saw more fish as the moved about. Svetlana wanted to get closer when Hunter began making a series of low and threatening sounding clicks and she saw a black and white flash in front of her, with only the yellow of his swim trunks interrupting that. That puzzled her for a moment, and she paused while staying down and treading water in her spot in the water...
Then she saw it. A lone Whitetip Reef Shark had been swimming up into the area along the floor of the lagoon and began to get curious and was turning toward Svetlana. However, as Hunter began to give his auditory warning and moved past her, Svetlana noted that the shark saw Hunter, and turned and swam away with as much speed as it could muster. Hunter really didn't chase it very far. Once it was away, Hunter dropped his pursuit and came back to Svetlana as the two drifted back up to the surface.
"I'm sorry if that scared you," Hunter said to her as they reached the surface.
"To be honest, I didn't see it until you went after it," Svetlana answered.
"He looked rather young and curious," Hunter assured her, "I don't think you were in any real danger... but, better to be safe than sorry. Particularly for us that are having to start things anew... Me without my old pod, and you in exile from your country with the Humans..."
"Finding you has made it worth it, though," Svetlana replied with a small smile, "and it's been fun... don't you think? Seeing all the things here?"
"Yes," Hunter replied, "have you done things like this before?"
"Not this far out into the lagoon... or with anyone else," Svetlana admitted, "my former husband... his interest in Mieni... well... I get the sense he was hoping an Animalian swimming or playing beach volleyball would bounce out of her swimsuit."
"Sounds like a real man of class," Hunter said slowly, tilting his head to one side.
"You had more class than him when you were first uplifted," Svetlana answered, "and you've been a perfect gentleman over these past few days."
"Well... I will be honest in hoping that it would include hopes for winning your heart," Hunter said as he slowly treaded water.
"And I think you've earned it by now," Svetlana answered as she swam forward a bit to hug him.
"You'd become an Animalian?" Hunter wondered.
"To be with you, yes," Svetlana answered and she kissed him as they hugged in the water, "a real gentleman and a loving protector."
Hunter smiled and tried to kiss her back, though all that ended up being a sort of "lip nibble" on Svetlana's lips. His teeth never touched her and her soft skin pulled up on the front of his own lips, as he tried to get them to pucker the way he'd heard Human lips could do. This only raised a playful giggle from Svetlana.
"We'll have to work on your kissing after my conversion," Svetlana playfully teased him, "though, first will be some efforts to make sure I will have appropriately sized clothing and we'd know who is moving in with who."
Hunter only just happily held the hug.