'Poof!'- The flurry of clear, effervescent bubbles scurried upward, around Kali as she swam quickly to the left. Shyly, she peered around the rock that was now in front of her. Just as she'd begun to watch the creatures that appeared about 10 feet in front of her, 'poof!'- again! Her consciousness was hijacked. She felt the strange sensation of swallowing a pill. To her bewilderment, she heard the epiphany of music. An observation appeared in her mind. "I don't understand this, I don't know how to approach it. But part of me wants to".
...Another thought! This one startled Kali. She couldn't say how she knew, but, she just knew that this thought was not her own. Like the pill & the music, she couldn't make sense of it. "The array of the animal kingdom! All the protozoa of eons ago paved the way for the most fascinating creatures of today!" Kali's strong muscles tensed as she sensed a focus directly upon her. She had strong instincts & kept a wariness of death softly steaming in her mind, at least quietly, all the time it seemed. But this focus, while direct, did not appear threatening. Kali's eyes shifted. They looked directly into what she knew to be the eyes of the creature focused upon her. Their gaze was locked.
The moment lingered. There was saltwater in between them, & air as well. In this moment Kali felt that she could be present with this curious being. She let herself be present, she felt their awareness of each other as easily as the cool temperature of the water all around her.
"Look at this badass!" Sam said softly & amusingly to her classmate. A smile had crept onto Sam's face & her gaze remained warmly on the octopus in front of her for a few more seconds. Before walking on she glanced at the plaque. 'Kali the Indonesian mimic octopus'. "Thanks for the dissertation inspiration Kali", Sam said.
That night as Sam settled into bed, she drifted off with a thought. "Hopefully the kids I'm babysitting this weekend will want to visit the aquarium instead of the circus".
(Story based on all 9 cube symbols! ;p)