Chapter One: Keep Your Eyes On Me
As a note, this is a sequel to "Inkling Fraternization," however, I am carefully writing this to ensure that the fan fiction does not need to be read for this one to be enjoyed. Thank you for taking notice, enjoy...
"Keep going," a soft and approachable voice whispered to herself.
Another figure of darker complexions sits beside her and takes a peak at the monitor that the Inkling is staring at. The monitor vividly glowed of green and pink, causing the dark Octoling to blink a few times to adjust her eyes.
"He better win this one, he's that close," the Inkling whispered, responding to the peaking of the teal-tipped Octoling.
"He's going to pull through," the tall and crazily-tentacled Octoling replied.
The grey tentacled Inkling caressed her own arm and continued to watch meticulously a green ponytail-bearing player. Her eyes tracked the smooth movement as the Inkling morphed and transformed in between his humanoid and squid form. She looked down as she traced her dark near-black sweater from Toni Kensa. The sweater echoed of the Inkling on the screen, which appeared covered and soaked in pink ink. Her sitting position gave her an opportunity swing her legs to distract some nerve in her mind from telling the rest of her mind to panic. Each leg ended with a pair of Marinated Slip-Ons, which was gifted to her by the Octoling that she sat beside.
"Marie," a short light and bubbly Inkling called from across the small table, causing the wobbling from the grey-tentacled Inkling to stop, "fans, look at the square."
Marie postured herself the way she was more familiar to, leaning her left elbow on the chair's armrest and resting her head with that same arm. Her slight laziness struck through her as she waved, not being able to raise her arm all the way up. She crossed her legs and sat more comfortably, offering herself a more relaxing posture. Marie smiled, however, her weak-almost smug-smile was still her signature face.
"Marina," the same short crowned Inkling called as she pointed to her right towards the glass.
"Oh right," Marina responded as she took her concentration away from her laptop and looked to the left to wave at the fans.
Marie continued to wave at the mix of Octolings and Inklings gathering across the glass to see their idols in person. She remembered visiting the studio she is currently sitting and wondering how she taught Pearl to be come off less rude. Marie took a quick glance at Pearl and saw that her round ergonomic seat was actually turned towards the fans. Pearl's waves were actual waves, instead of her half-invested pose. The three's public approval most likely shot up the roof since her visit, as Marina would always text moments of fans taking photos with Marina and Pearl in the background while they posed. Marina was always the more friendly and approachable one when compared to Pearl, memories of Pearl always being annoyed of fans looking through the glass still lingered. Marie remembered the times that Pearl would complain about the public open studio, which she sometimes still express her gripes about. However, it seems like the situation has changed, with Pearl becoming more friendly, while Marina would always be too distracted about the music and her equalization levels.
The fans left, happy and joyful, still talking about how cool the instance was. As the three returned to their areas of concentration, Pearl started a conversation with the other two.
"We must look pretty chill right now," Pearl commented, looking at Marina and Marie.
Marie and Marina's heads shot up at Pearl, who leaned forward, leaning her chin on both of her hands as the arms' elbows rest on the table. The two looked at each other and saw the situation of the entire room. Marie was looking at her laptop watching a Rainmaker game, Marina was on her music creation kit, adjusting her highs and lows, while Pearl just sat around, checking out the map rotation through her squidphone.
"I mean," Marie started as she pulled her sweater, causing it to become slightly baggy, "yeah, I can see that."
Marina nodded as she looked at Marie's screen, which she figured was obviously visible to the public. Pearl scratched her head and smiled as the two inspected every single detail and figured if that detail would be considered chill.
"Marie being chill always makes sense, but Marina's just sitting around adjusting levels instead of writing something new or planning out a splatfest," Pearl added, "not saying it's a bad thing of course! I'm just sayin' you know."
Marie smiled as Pearl's explosive personality did not destroy any opinions or happiness.
"Is that a bad thing," Marie asked, "well, for me at least..."
Pearl smirked and shrugged, "Depends, are you an agent or a pop-star right now?"
Marie shook her head and chuckled, crossing her arms together, "Marie. I'm Marie."
"Thanks for the obscure answer there," Pearl knocked herself back, leaning on her bean-like seat, "good attempt at being philosophical."
Marie leaned back on her tall seat and rested to continue to watch the screen. With Marina sticking her eyes back onto her laptop, and Pearl checking out the map cycle, Marie decided to return her line of sight to the screen. Her eyes saw the green Inkling freaking and exploding, celebrating every millisecond, however, her mind did not process that information. Pearl heard the quiet sounds ringing through the screen's speakers, and leaned to the right to come closer to Marie.
"So um...Marie," Marina whispered, seeing Marie staring at the screen with almost no happiness, "you do see what's going on right?"
"Yeah I see what's on this thing," Marie responded as she sighed, "yeah, Agent Four just won his game and holy carp! He won his game..."
Marie quickly stood up and rushed out the open studio. She caught the eyes of Pearl and Marina, who kept track of her till she disappeared behind the studio door. Pearl looked at Marina with curious eyes, which caused Marina to giggle slightly and begin to answer Pearl's questioning.
"Marie just realized that Agent Four became Rank X," Marina answered smiling at Pearl's adorable curious face.
Pearl stomped up, "Wait huh!? Agent Four is X now!"
Marina laughed, seeing Pearl whipping her neck to the left to face the door. She kicks the door down and sprints down the rest of the studio to reach the alley behind the building. Marina's bubbly and bright expression swiftly turned straight as she saw the door slowly let go of its grasp from the frame and fall down. Pearl sprinted down the hall way, turned to the right, then another right to enter Inkopolis Square. Her eyes tracked Marie jogging down the square and quickly stopping at the end of the Battle Lobby. Marie stood patiently as the glass walls of the outdoor entrance of the Lobby shaded her from the blistering sun. She looked her shoulders to see passing Inklings and Octolings catching a glance of her, smiling and pointing at her. Marie smiled knowing that the looks she is receiving is that of appreciation and positivity. Her mind kicks back memories of being told that Agent Eight unlocked her consciousness by listening to Calamari Inkantation.
"Missed me," Agent Four called, causing Marie to turn back forward.
Marie smiled as the players passed her, causing her vision to only focus on Agent Four's figure. His smile reverberated in her mind as Agent Four slowly approached with his Kensa Splat Dualies hanging from his hip. Marie walked forward, and with only a few seconds passing, they were in each other's arms.
"Yes, yes I did Four," Marie answered as she rested her chin on Agent Four's shoulder.
Agent Four wrapped tighter, not giving a care to any pair of eyes that may fall on them. He slowly pushed Marie to create distance between them, as Four showed his bright and bottled celebration.
"Marie," Agent Four whispered before exploding, "I'm finally X!"
Marie responded with shaking, causing Agent Four to shake with her. The two celebrated by bringing each other back into each other's grasps. Pearl was immediately behind the two, but decided to leave them be, seeing Marina looking at her with a straight face through the glass. Marie and Agent Four caressed wherever their hands landed, causing a comfort after the celebration. She remembered the old days of Marie keeping an eye on Agent Four as he climbed up the ladder. Marie was there for the hardest times, seeing him fall three times in a row. However, she was also there for the best times, seeing him finally reach S+ and seeing his bright face. Agent Four, to everyone, deserved to be in X, his determination and pure skill made him an adversary to anyone and everyone who comes against his aggressive and pushing play style. He became more dangerous, when he mastered both the Dualie Squelchers, and the Kensa Splat Dualies, complementing his aggressive and extending-heavy style. Coupled with the fact that he essentially mastered rolls and their properties, gave him an edge in any situation that allowed mobility to reign supreme, which was almost all, if not all, engagements.
"So, did you enjoy watching me there Two," Agent Four asked as the two pulled apart to finally talk to each other.
Marie showed her weak, half-smile, which this time showed embarrassment, "Yeah..."
Agent Four knocked his head down and shook his head, "Why are you so afraid of telling me that? You've been keeping tabs of every game I've had for almost a year."
"I know, but still," Marie responded as she shrugged.
"Hey um...Marie...Four," Pearl desperately called, being drowned out by the surrounding population, "you two done?"
Agent Four and Marie smirked at each other before Marie guided herself to face Pearl, placing herself beside him.
"Yeah we're done," Marie smiled as she interlaced her fingers with those of Four's.
"Still good seeing you two being lovy-dovy," Pearl giggled, "congrats Agent Four."
"Thank you Pearl," Agent Four nodded, surprised by Pearl's respect, "Oh, where's everyone else? Marina, Callie, Three, Eight?"
"Marina is over there at the studio," Pearl pointed to the glass wall of the studio, with Marina waving while she's on her laptop, "I do not know about Callie, Three and Eight though. You're going to have to talk to them if you want to find where they are..."
Pearl motioned her head to invite Agent Four and Marie to begin making their way to the studio. Both agents agreed and followed the crowned stubby inkling. The three began walking down the square, catching more than a few pair of eyes. Surprisingly however, they were not stopped for an autograph. Some were eager to ask, however, Agent Four seemed to be the reason fans were not running and tripping over themselves. Agent Four, being flanked by Pearl and Marina, looked more tired than usual, so it seemed as though that the fans were giving Agent Four respect. Moreover, Agent Four's powerful announcement of him becoming Rank X gave him a new elite status, so respect was to be expected.
"So," Agent Four started as they passed by a bright yellow food truck, "I do not know what I am going to do now..."
"What do you mean Four," Pearl responded.
Agent Four tightened and raised his shoulders as he straightened his mouth, "Well, I'm Rank X. I'm not bragging or anything, but what else am I supposed to do? Yeah be the best player, for what though?"
"You got a point there," Marie commented as she begins to realize the massive amounts of burnout Agent Four must've received from playing too much Ranked.
Marie's memories rushed back to instances when Agent Four would come home under their shared roof with Callie. Seeing Agent Four tired and exhausted, expressing having little to no motivation to come back the next day, only to do the opposite, always gave Marie concerns. It has been a while since Marie and Agent Four were called in to do a mission, their last mission was not even planned. That mission was that of Commander Tartar, the notorious green glob ambushed the entire New Squidbeak Splatoon in an empty train, causing a massive lock down on any Splatoon activities. The train they were ambushed on crashed, causing a massive investigation, luckily, no one was injured, except for the ones who were involved. Commander Tartar landed a mind-controlling mask on Agent Four, which Marie shot off, ending with Agent Four mentally damaged and unable to fight. To regain his ability to not go numb, Agent Four entered matches of Turf War and Ranked day in day out, slowly relying on these battles to pull himself back into his body and not to the time where he almost eliminated Marie. His consciousness still lingered that moment when he did not control his body, watching as the world unfolded around him. With Rank X finally achieved, there is no other driving factor into becoming better other than to distract himself. Otherwise, he has no reason to keep on playing, which in turn, will cause him to return back to memories of seeing his body running after Marie with the intent to hurt her.
"Marie," Pearl called as she snapped her fingers in front of her face, "you there?"
Marie shook her face, not knowing where they were. She looked around to find herself outside the studio, surrounded by the looming studio shadow and a chain-linked fence. In front of her was Marina holding open the door, Pearl still up close with her, and Agent Four inside the building staring at her, with a face that signalled that he was looking at someone adorable. Pearl side stepped to her left, letting Marie through, prompting Marie to walk in with not a single word muttered. Marina motioned her head to make Pearl move closer, to which Pearl did. She closed the door behind her, with Pearl moving only a breath away from Marina.
"Is something going on with Marie," Marina whispered.
Pearl shook her head in denial, "No, at least to my knowledge."
"Well I hope nothing's wrong," Marina responded.
"Haha, don't worry Reena," Pearl added, "it's the first time we've seen her like that, so it's probably a one time thing. We know what she looks like when she's upset, and she does not look like her mind was taken to another dimension."
"Good point," Marina worryingly responded before opening the door, letting Pearl inside the back room of the open studio.
"Congrats on the Splatfest win there Marina," Agent Four complimented Marina once the door closed behind her.
Marina and the rest grew confused as she squinted her eyes, "We haven't even announced the Splatfest yet there Four. Besides, the last one I lost..."
Agent Four chuckled before scratching his head, "No, no, I'm just predicting you're going to be winning this time. It's going to be a Marina win."
Pearl pouted as Marina clapped her hands together at Agent Four's comment. Agent Four settled himself on a seat just adjacent to the door of the glass-walled studio, the chair was that of comfortable fluffy material, suiting his exhausted state. Marie sat beside him, also sitting on a seat that echoed that of Agent Four's seat.
"I remember the last Splatfest I had," Marie smiled, "good thing I kicked Callie's butt, or else I wouldn't have seen the last of her nagging."
"Pearl always nags me every time she wins a Splatfest," Marina responded.
Pearl confidently crossed her arms and tilted her head up to show power, "Which by the way, is almost all the time."
"I mean, no one can deny that here," Agent Four laughed as he sits up to remove his backpack from his back.
The four giggled at the comment, as it was a mix of a happy joke and a hardcore fact. It has become a joke for participating players in Splatfest to pick Marina for the better opinion, and to pick Pearl to win. While Marina may be agreed on by many to have better points for her opinion, Pearl always won games and the other factors in a Splatfest.
"Yo, the Pearl Club always gets the better players," Pearl celebrated with pride.
Marina crossed her arms, "Yeah, but I still have more loyal fans..."
Pearl turned forty-five degrees to the left to face Marina, "Are you sure about that?"
"Swear to me that less than a third of the people who pick your opinion are just the ones who want to win Splatfests," Marina smirked, dropping the bomb in the room.
"Dang," Marie whispered to herself before leaning over to the left to catch Agent Four's attention, "Callie and I's Splatfests were not this intense!"
"Well Marina, you can't admit that some of your fans just suck at Turf," Pearl fired back.
In a blink of an eye, a war had ensued. Agent Four and Marie continued to watch as each side roasted and shot at each other, not holding anything back. The two began laughing as clever mixes of rhymes and well thought out roasts were flung at each side.
"Had you and Callie have this moment," Agent Four asked while resting on his right hand, with his right elbow rested on his chair's arm rest.
Marie shrugged, "We had moments. But this, this thing we have not had before. Like seriously..."
The topic shifted, as Agent Four wanted to catch up to Marie's day, "So what did you do all afternoon while I was gone?"
"Watching your game," Marie answered, timidly, not wanting to admit to a secondary objection, "yeah..that's it."
Agent Four looked at Marie and smiled, "Marie.."
"Fine," Marie responded, "I kind of ate like three orders of Shwaffles from Crusty Sean..."
"Knew it," Agent Four chuckled as he crossed his arms, "you haven't eaten from that place in weeks!"
"So you're going to cut me some slack?" Marie asked sincerely.
Agent Four shook his head, "There's no slack to cut. Besides, you've been on my Ranked games for almost a month now. So if anything I should be apologizing to you for missing out on hours together."
Marie smiled, "There's no problem Four. Thanks for caring though."
"Isn't it the boyfriend's job to care?" Agent Four jokingly asked.
"That's both of our jobs there, Four," Marie responded as she shook her head with a bright smile.
Agent Four felt the need to flirt a little, as he missed a few hours with Marie, "You're adorable, you know."
"I know," Marie brightly smiled as she grew pink, "I've been told more than a few times."
"Well, I hope you haven't been locking eyes with anyone else other than me while I was gone," Agent Four whispered as their eyes met.
Marie giggled, "No, no. I only look at yours Four. You're too good to pass by and let go."
"Good to hear, seeing that I'm just, at most, a random Inkling who plays really good Ranked," Agent Four joked, "and you're a pop-star who's envied by every other Inkling in existence."
Marie knocked her head down a little and looked up to keep her eyes locked on Agent Four's, "I know you look at me differently, Four. I know you did not fall in love with me because I'm a pop-star."
"Yeah, if I did, that would've been weird," Agent Four nodded.
"Haha," Marie laughed as a memory is retrieved, "I still can't let go of the fact that you didn't recognize me back at the outpost."
"Yeah yeah I know," Agent Four chuckled.
"That makes no sense though, Four," Marie started again, "So what, you didn't know me right? So you just followed some random Inkling in a kimono through some grating?"
"I mean...yeah," Agent Four responded, "I don't remember having a reason to follow you."
"You're weird," Marie giggled, "I love it."
"Now that you have brought that up to me, I'm glad I was not squidnapped or something," Agent Four joked as he shook at the possibility.
"I don't think a lot of Inklings or Octolings want to kidnap someone random. Besides, you could probably defend yourself well." Marie reassured Agent Four.
Agent Four nodded, "Well I'm glad I didn't have to defend myself. I'm glad I had to fight to fight to retrieve back a loved pop-star that is hypnotized, and The Giant Zapfish who is essential to the powering of the entirety of Inkopolis!"
"I mean..." Marie responded, realizing that the situation that she placed Agent Four is more impactful than a simple squidnapping.
"So how about we head home," Agent Four suggested.
"That would be lovely," Marie responded as the two stood up at the same time, not catching Marina or Pearl's attention.
The two decided to not disturb Pearl and Marina's playful argument, defending their fans, so they sneakingly left the studio. Agent Four and Marie slowly opened the door, and quietly closed the door behind them. The two did not have a vehicle with them, so they decided to use Inkopolis' train system. As the two turned to the left at the end of the alley, avoiding Inkopolis Square and heading towards Inkopolis Plaza. Although the Plaza became deserted of Inkling culture, it is still a hub for business and services, which included a major train station. Weirdly enough, the station is an open air station, not an enclosed track surrounded by hard walls.
"It's here," Agent Four nudged Marie as he sees a grey train approaching their location.
He turned to the left to look straight forward, stretching as he went. His body was slightly sore from the hours of Ranked, however, his body had gotten used to the several hours of intense activity. Moreover, he had been playing Turf and Ranked for hours for years, starting back when Inkopolis Plaza was the Inkling hub.
"Can't wait to get home and sleep," Agent Four expressed as Marie tightened her grip on Agent Four's hand.
"Me too," Marie whispers back as the train grew larger on the horizon.
Only a few seconds passed till the train finally arrived, opening its doors in front of the couple. As Agent Four and Marie entered the train, which gave both a shot of fear.
"Bad things happen in trains," Agent Four whispered to himself as Marie sat down on the nearest seat.
"Yeah..." Marie responded, remembering moments of bad instances starting in trains.
Agent Four sat to Marie's left, switching positions with her. Marie hums to herself as the windows showed passing trees, with silhouettes of buildings slowly crawling to the right. The glass was glossy, but was not glossy enough to block the wonders of Inkopolis and the sinking sun. Marie smiles as she observes the sun slowly turning the blue sky yellow. Agent Four maneuvers his right hand and interlaces his fingers with that of Marie's. The two grew more tired, but less exhausted, especially for Agent Four, who needed the good sit. Like always, the train was empty, moving against the popular time to go home after hours of grinding on Turf War. Marie rests her head on Agent Four's shoulders, although less comfortably than the usual, as both are the same size.
"So, you ready to head to bed and break your sleep schedule again," Marie jokingly asks as the train enters a tunnel and slightly darkens the interior.
"Well, I've given up on fixing it," Agent Four responded, "but maybe this time."
"Knowing you, you probably will fix it for a night, and break it the next night," Marie joked as she fiddled with her fingers.
With the downtime, Agent Four's mind began rushing new ideas to the forefront, starting with the adorable inkling resting on him. He will never get used to Marie wearing anything other than her more traditional kimono. For him, the idea of seeing her in anything other than her green and black kimono uncomfortably sat in his heart. It is the clothing that he first saw her, and it is what she was wearing for the time that he was in the process of rescuing her cousin. Although she began wearing clothes other than her kimono after Callie's rescue, Agent Four still thought about how she looked in her kimono. The flowing dress danced in the wind, being shadowed by the accompanied parasol Marie would always carry with her. Her less traditional clothes just sat there, clinging to her skin, if not, bagging around gaps of air. Oddly enough, he preferred the dancing colors of her dress, rather than the still and ambient material that Marie preferred to wear.
Finally, when Agent Four thought he would be used to seeing Marie in anything but her kimono, after months of not seeing it, Marie just had to urge to dance. The dance, more specifically, was that of the more traditionally flavored version of Calamari Inkantation. To her defense, Marie still clutches on to her family's traditions, even if she is a beloved pop-star, it is still a noble cause. That specific dance brought back Marie and her classic look, geta and everything. Although Agent Four missed her more traditional look, a small portion of his mind still connects with the look of Marie in her traditional clothing, rather than in anything else. His mind was slightly annoyed now that a portion of his mind's precious resources will be spent on imagining Marie's grey-green look. However, his mind also thanks him for a slight benefit, seeing Marie smiling brightly at an activity she passionately loves. He is not expecting to remove this allocation of resources, the parasol was placed very openly in Marie's display board, directly eye level to him.
As the sun retreated to the horizon, the train approached the couple's intended station. Just a few minutes of walking to Marie's humble house. A few minutes passed and the two were forced to pull out of their resting state, their bodies whining to sit for a few more minutes. As the train stopped and the doors opened, the couple finally stood up and their bodies begged to sit down.
"Let's just get home quickly," Marie complained as she pulled Agent Four by the wrist out of the train, his mind still compensating for the sudden rise.
"I uh-I um," Agent Four stuttered as he was dragged out of the train, the rays from the nearest star blasting its rays on his eyes.
As buildings and their shadows passed the two Inklings, their destination grew closer and closer. The house was very small, almost a speck, but was enough motivation to keep their legs driving. Marie was still dragging Agent Four, as he constantly adjusted his backpack, his Dualies hitting the back of his leg. This minor annoyance was enough for Agent Four to simply keep on walking. The two glimmering silver dots meant that the vehicles were not used, which means that Callie must be home. Otherwise, Callie is walking on foot and is outside, which is very unlikely, despite her outgoing personality.
Agent Four giggled as a random though blew past his train of thought, causing Marie to look back in confusion, "Huh?"
"Hehe," Agent Four continued to giggle, "didn't you pick money over love during that one Splatfest?"
"What Splatfe- OH," Marie whispered to herself, "yeah what about it?"
"Do you have a change in heart," Agent Four jokingly asked with an almost drunken face.
Marie smiled as she continued to pull Agent Four, "Well, that was like what- two years ago? Quite a lot of things changed. A certain person in my life made me switch sides,money is quite more important than love."
"You can live with either love or money, or even both," Marie continued, "but there's a real question. Which one can you let go of, and still be happy?"
Agent Four was dumbfounded by Marie's sudden output of philosophical words, "Well, at least I know I won't be replaced or something like that."
"I feel like I've told you that indirectly in more instances than one," Marie chuckled as their home grew larger on the horizon.
With the sudden change in atmosphere, and the presence of the surrounding humble houses, Marie and Agent Four felt warm with each other. Both felt important within each other, thanking the circumstances that led them together. A few more minutes passed and the two ended up on the street of their house. Marie and Agent Four crossed the road and to their silent home. In front of the home was a parked car, with Agent Four being its owner, which blocked half of the slightly uphill front yard. The rise gave the home's basement room to stick a few windows on it. To the right of the front yard was a drive-in space for Marie and Callie's vehicle, with a roofed garage in front of it. The garage leads the eyes to ponder to the left, following the house' roof and the modern, thin-beveled windows that stuck bellow it. A line divided the garage, with the garage taking up a third of the face of the house, the other chunk of the face had a simple secure door that leads its center. The entirety of the house was that of a grey, white, and black pallet, giving it a modern kick.
As Marie unlocked the door with her phone, she was presented with a set of stairs up that leads to her and Agent Four's bedroom. To the left was a living room that was walled with a television, being faced by a set of bucket shaped couches. Looking right presented the dinning area, a simple long glass table was flanked by comfortable white chairs, being lit by a white cylinder directly above the table.
The two took no time to rush up the stairs and greeted the door that rested on their left. Marie quickly opened the door, which like it was choreographed, the main door closed shut and automatically locked. Marie and Agent Four took no time to take off their clothes, cutting down to the basic thin shirts and shorts, and jumped onto the bed.
With her back firmly rested, Marie looked to the left to see Agent Four pulling the blanket up, "Goodnight Four,"
"Goodnight Marie," Agent Four responded before kissing Marie's inviting lips.
He immediately fell on the two pillows he combined into one, and so he fell into dreamworld. Although Marie was not intended to fall asleep before dinner, she thought to herself that she might as well join Agent Four. Her eyes closed, as so did her consciousness, pushing her towards the void known as sleep, joining her agent.
We are back. Fan fictions from me are going to be weakly now, reaching around 5000-6000 each chapter. It keeps me alive, and alleviates some pressure on me. Thank you for understanding, it's good to be back! Thank you for reading the first chapter!