Cyanea

The blue octopus nestled in the finger coral, his tentacles wrapped around the base as he watched divers move along the reef slope. His colors matched the surroundings so well that he was invisible. It was early morning, and the reef was coming to life. Purple sea fans swayed with the pulsing water, and schools of fish moved around and through coral canyons. The octopus wasn’t concerned; divers were frequent visitors on the reef and seemed harmless.
One diver paused, looking at the finger coral. Something had caught her attention, but it took a while for her to see him. It was the octopus’s large expressive eyes and pulsating head ridges that caused her to draw a deep breath and hold her position. Today, her team was checking the slope for coral bleaching and assessing coral health, a constant concern in warmer seas. However, Alana had a special interest in octopuses, her primary field of research back in the United States. She signaled her team to pause, moved to a patch of sand, and settled in to watch the creature.
The octopus looked at Alana and wondered if he had seen this diver before. He thought so. Some divers brought treats, and this could be one. Releasing his hold on the coral, he jetted into the water and floated down, spreading his arms like a net, and settled onto the sand. He was still a safe distance but near enough for Alana to see him clearly. She reached into her bag to retrieve a small crab for her visitor.
He released his hold on the coral and rose into the open water. Using a pulsing motion, he moved close to Alana, then settled onto the sand before her. He reached for the crab with a tentacle. After eating, he moved toward Alana, walking across the sand on his tentacles.
He gazed into her mask for one still moment, making eye contact. Then he reached and embraced her with all eight arms, gave a squeeze, then released and jetted away.
Alana looked at the space where the blue octopus had been, now a wispy cloud of black ink. She shook her head, and a burst of bubbles came from her regulator. With her subject gone, she packed up her camera, swam over to her dive partner, signaling her excitement with her hands, and motioned for him to follow her back to their boat.
Dave gave her a thumbs-up and wrote “Wow” on his slate. Then he added, “That was wild.”
“Yes, it was,” Alana replied, pointing toward the boat. They were on the reef slope at a depth of fifteen meters and had been underwater for almost forty-five minutes. It was time to surface.
At that depth, all colors other than blue were gone. The reef was majestic. A grouper eyed Alana from beneath a ledge while large schools of surgeonfish and snappers darted between coral heads and filled the reef with motion.
Reaching the boat, Alana handed the camera gear to Jim, the team member charged with monitoring the two of them while they were below.
He took the equipment and helped her into the boat. “Anything unusual?”
Alana tossed her gear under the bench. “Yes, wait until you see the video. I just got a hug from an octopus!”
Her dive partner, Dave, climbed onboard. “I got it on camera, too. That was amazing.”
Jim looked at the sky, with dark clouds marching toward them.
“It’s good you guys came back a bit early. I’ve been watching the sky, and I think we are in for some nasty weather. Unless you guys really need to go back down, we should skip a second dive and head in.” Jim didn’t mention the shark he had been watching. Alana, like many Americans, seemed skittish around sharks.
Alana nodded. “I agree. As much as I’d like another dive, this is my last day on the island, and I wouldn’t like it to end with an uncomfortable trip back in a thunderstorm.”
“When do you head back to the States?” Jim asked.
“I leave for Brisbane tomorrow and have three days to finish my lab work, write my final reports, and pack up. I leave for the States on Friday.”
As she dried her hair with a towel, a fin appeared just off the back of the boat. They all watched as a sizable tiger shark swam by.
“Just our luck,” Dave said.
“What luck?” Alana asked.
“If he’d come earlier, we could’ve gotten some great shots.”
Alana laughed. “I can live without taking pictures of a tiger shark. I’d rather watch from up here.”
She looked thoughtful and added, “I hope our octopus friend is okay.”
“Me too, Dave said.