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It was yet another sunny day for Inkopolis, and everything was just as normal as ever; squidkids are battling in Turf Wars, the Jellyfish folk are going around in their businesses, and the daring workers of Grizzco Industries are scuffling against the barbarian Salmonids for a small fortune. Among the folk of Inkopolis however, two not-so-normal Inklings are casually strolling down a pavement near an apartment block.
"It's so nice walking around with you like the old times, Marie!" A small, peppy Inkling cheered and tossed her arms up into the air while her cousin just smiled silently behind her. Most of the Inkopolis populace had forgotten the Squid Sisters ever since Off the Hook took their role as news hosts, but both of them didn't mind. "Sometimes, being unknown is a luxury", their grandfather usually said.
What the public didn't know at all was that the two popstars are also Agents 1 and 2 of the New Squidbeak Splatoon, a covert society of secret agents tasked to keep the Octarians under watch and make sure they are not up to any plans to wreak havoc. They, along with a young girl codenamed Agent 3, were responsible for saving the Great Zapfish for the first time two years ago. Since the respite however, their popularity had skyrocketed, resulting in more companies requesting them for more jobs and consequently busier work schedules and less free time. Over time, their work schedules had forced them to spend less time to even see each other, and when Marie finally decided to dig up some time to spend with Callie, she had disappeared without a trace. Overridden by guilt, Marie soon quit all of her jobs and even slipped into depression, but weeks of talking with her grandfather filled her with determination to bring Callie back no matter the circumstances. She began solely working on searching for any clues to her whereabouts, but with her grandfather and the leader of the New Squidbeak Splatoon gone out to a trip, Marie soon found it hard to do everything just by herself. She needed some help. Thus, she recruited a young boy, codenamed him Agent 4 and tasked him to scouting the Octo Canyon for Callie's whereabouts. Agent 4 was reliable, excellent in the missions and fearless of anything thrown at him by the Octarians. In a span of only a single month, they successfully defeated DJ Octavio and rescued Callie and the Great Zapfish from his imprisonment. Since then, Agent 4 had gone separate paths, but he had assured Marie "If ya need me, gimme a ring. I'll come to you immediately."
"Yeah, it felt like forever since we last did this." Marie was more than ready to finally make up for the lost time after rescuing her cousin. She spent 1 month contacting the police and search parties to call off the search for Callie and also to take care of her cousin by herself, feeding her and bringing her back into her prime. Callie didn't receive the best treatment by the Octarians even when brainwashed into loyalty.
"Do we seriously still have to live in that small place in Flounder Heights?" Callie moaned. "It's so far away from the Square!!"
"Well," Marie smiled wryly. "I've been planning to rent a place around here." She pointed at the apartment block just across the road.
"Really?!" Callie whirled around and looked at her cousin with beady eyes. "Seriously? Truthfully? Honestly? You're not squidding me, are you?!"
"Yes, yes, I'm not pulling your tentacle." Marie nodded. "It'll take a while, but everything should go into place."
"YAY!!" Callie threw her arms into the air once more. "Can we go to Urchin Underpass and get those chocolate sundaes later on?"
"Hrmm, if you want." Marie shrugged. "You know I never really liked sweet stuff." The two cousins turned their focus back to the road in front of them and continued walking in silence, until a young boy ran and bumped right into Marie, rebounding and falling onto the pavement back-first.
"Hey, watch it, squiddo!" Marie chastised, until her vision cleared from her initial shock and she was able to make out what the boy looked like: his green tentacles were gelled into five laid-back spikes, his skin was a fair tone of peach and a small wound rested on his right arm. His yellow hoodie very much resembled the hoodie that Marie gave to Agent 4 as his uniform, and his gray shorts had a small red clip on the side of each leg. His Green Lace-Ups were visibly covered in dirt near the sole, implying he hadn't washed his shoes for quite a while.
Most interesting however, were the headphones he was wearing. They were mostly black, but they had flashing orange lights, something that most definitely rang a bell in Marie's mind. "T-Those are the Hero Headphones…" She slowly calculated a conclusion. "Y-You are Agent 4?!"
The boy stood up and stared at both Squid Sisters with his golden yellow eyes, and a big grin slowly formed on his face. "Well, if it isn't the Squid Sisters. Or should I say…" He then leaned in close into Marie's ear and whispered, "Agent 1 and Agent 2. Nice to see you girls again."
"I called it!" Marie grinned back. "Nice to see you again too, Agent 4."
"Um…" The boy flashed a peek at the few Inklings and Jellyfish on the pavement. "Please call me by my real name, Nicholas. Codenames would sound weird and suspicious."
"I know." Marie nodded. "I thought I'd never see you again, kid."
"Hey, I did tell you I will come if you need me, didn't I?" Nicholas reminded.
"Eh, since we've locked up Mr DJ, Octo Canyon has been pretty quiet. Oh and, heh…" Marie turned back to look at her cousin, who, as expected, was grinning stupidly at the boy. "Callie's been dying to see you again."
"I never even got to say thanks!!" Without a warning, Callie pounced on Nicholas and hugged him tightly, squeezing out a stifled gasp from him. "Ghh!!"
Although he had never told anyone, ever since he got to look at her properly after rescuing her and bringing her back to the Cuttlefish Cabin, Nicholas had been drawn to her, but he never found the courage to tell her or even seek help from anyone. Oh geez, she's hugging me. Oh my cod oh my cod oh my cod…
"Heheh, c'mon Callie; you're making the kid flustered." Marie chuckled at the sight of her handy protégé being reduced into a silent blushing wreck. Callie giggled as she let go of Nicholas and skipped back to her cousin's side, "Thank you, Nicky."
Wow, nickname already. Oh geez, this is all so sudden. Nicholas struggled to keep his cool as he cleared his throat, "Hey, h-how about you girls come over to my place for a while? We can chat about... you-know-what there. How's that sound?"
"That sounds like a good idea, 4." Marie nodded. "How 'bout you, Cal?"
"Oh, I'd love to come!" Callie jumped up and down with excitement. "Let's go!"