Eight didn't know what was going on when something hit her on the top of the head. She instinctively thought it was ink and went into a defensive stance, looking upwards, but saw nothing except dark clouds and the tall buildings that surrounded her.
She had been following Agent Three for the past hour or so. The inkling was leading her to Captain Cuttlefish's base where she hoped she would finally be able to meet her idols, the Squid Sisters. She and the Agent hadn't spoken a word to each other but there was clearly no animosity between them, and she behaved like a soldier in the process of following her orders, something Eight was familiar with and actually found somewhat comforting after what Marina told her regarding the chaotic manner in which inklings went about their lives.
Another drop splashed against her forehead, but it didn't feel like ink. It was cool and colourless, oddly refreshing to her skin. She gently swiped it with her hand and stared at her now glistening palm. Water from the sky… this was rain!
She had only heard about rain before. Part of the standard octarian education was to learn about aspects of the surface world, including the concept of weather, and her mother had told her about one time long ago when she had experienced real rain. She had described it to her very young children as being in a shower that seemed to engulf the whole world. Eight had found that difficult to imagine then, but now she was about to see it with her own eyes and feel it with her own skin.
More drops started to fall around her, striking the ground with little wet smacks and creating little dark circles on the pavement. It was mesmerizing, almost like the ground was becoming speckled.
Under the tears of the sky, I stand
The clouds tell the earth their woes
Grey turns dark with sympathy
Dry turns to wet across the land
Strong fingers suddenly wrapped around her hand and Eight felt herself getting pulled along. Green tentacles flapped in front of her face as Agent Three hurried them along underneath a small footbridge that crossed over the pathway. Seconds later, the pitter patter of raindrops on the ground grew to a roar as the heavens opened up and more rain than Eight thought possible to exist in all the world, began to fall.
For several minutes, Eight stood in silence, simply watching the spectacle. The streets and pathways turned glossy, street lamps glowed yellow, and people ran for cover. For Eight, it almost didn't seem real. As the scenery beyond the bridge gradually vanished behind a curtain of falling water, part of her mind was frantically thinking about how to collect as much of this water as possible for future use. However, the larger part of her mind was entirely focused on absorbing as much about this new experience as possible.
The air, formerly hot and sticky, cooled rapidly and the smell in the air changed. Was it the rain that made that smell or was it something else. Shouldn't water from the sky be odourless? She seemed to remember something about that from her education.
Eight instinctively wrapped her arms around herself as the rapidly dropping temperature reached a point that it gave her a slight chill. Her black synthleather outfit was designed to help keep her cool in the heat of battle and offer freedom of movement. It was rare an octarian felt the need to try and keep warm.
Eight's eyes were drawn to Three as she quietly removed her dark red hoodie and held it out to her. Eight stared at it for a second before she recognized that Three was offering it to her to help her keep warm. She put up her hands in polite refusal but Three didn't seem willing to take 'no' for an answer, so she simply shoved it down over Eight's head until it popped up again under the protective cover of the hood.
Eight looked at her inkling guide indignantly but Three had already turned back to stare blankly out into the rain. At this point, Eight thought it would be rude to refuse and so slipped her arms up into the sleeves and accepted it.
Eight had never worn a hoodie before. It was loose, yet warm, still retaining some of Three's body heat, and the material felt soft and pleasant to her skin. Octarians had a more advanced sense of touch than inklings, which was one reason they prefered tight fitting clothing. Looser attire like the hoodie could rub against the skin, which could be irritating as well as distracting with their better touch-sense, but Eight decided that she liked this particular garment.
As she assessed the hoodie, a new scent gently wafted its way into her nose, a pungent odor that felt familiar but she didn't quite recognize. Was this Agent Three's scent? She pushed her nose into the fabric and breathed in, mulling over the smell. There was a power behind it, and admittedly, most of it wasn't pleasant. The hoodie smelled like it hadn't been washed in some time, but there was an underlying scent that seemed to cling to the hoodie rather than emanate from it. It had a sweeter, gentler smell, with just a hint of… spice? Yes, spice to it. This had to be Three's scent, the part of her that stuck to her hoodie and now entered her lungs with every breath.
She wrapped her arms around herself and let out a slow breath as the warmth the hoodie offered finally began to take effect, bringing her body back to a more comfortable state.
Your warmth and care forced over my head
Loose and soft it drapes on me
Breath by breath, I take you in
My mind buzzes with new sensations
Eight glanced over at Three, now clad only in a white t-shirt and black shorts that were close fit on her but didn't seem quite as utilitarian as her own. If lacking her hoodie made her cold Three didn't show it in the slightest. She stood up straight and tall, gently shifting her weight from left to right, causing her long tentacles to gently swing to and fro. For the first time, Eight noticed the dots of light purple glowing faintly on the white underside of her tentacles. She didn't remember anything about that from her education regarding Inkling anatomy. Was this normal or was it unique to Three?
Eight realized that this was the first time she was getting a good look at an Inkling female up close. She and Three were about the same height and age but Three was sleeker in form and her long, broad tentacles made her appear broader. Her green mantle reminded her of the dark forests she had seen pictures of during her education but there were small blue ripples going across its surface as Three stared out into the pouring rain. Eight suddenly wished she could see her eyes instead of staring into the back of her head.
Perhaps sensing she was being stared at, Three turned her head around, one eyebrow raised in question above a deep red eye, unknowingly granting Eight's wish and letting her peer into their crimson depths.
Eight always thought Three had hard eyes, and they were, but now, looking- really looking, much closer, she could see a softer layer beyond the surface, almost like thin ice with unfrozen water rippling gently beneath. It was a contrast to the intense passion and drive she had when in battle, when those crimson pools would turn into hard rubies, and seem to gleam when she defeated an opponent, but it was a pleasant one.
Fury and Passion swirl together
Deeper and deeper I fall into you
Glittering rubies sparkle in your depths
Each one a soul vanquished but remembered
Eight shook her head, telling Three nothing was wrong. Three didn't appear convinced but she looked back ahead and let Eight be.
Eight chastised herself lightly for staring so much but she couldn't help her fascination and natural curiosity. Inklings were so different from octolings and she found those differences compelling. It made her want to learn more, but that could wait. She and Three didn't know each other yet, not really. Perhaps when they were better acquainted.
Eight stepped forward in order to stand beside Three and the two stared out into the rain together. By now, all of the sidewalks and streets were submerged as water overwhelmed the drains in the gutters along the streets, and passing vehicles made large splashes and waves as they passed.
Eight closed her eyes and listened to the sound of the rain. It was a little bit different now with the ground essentially under one big puddle. It sounded familiar though, and it took several moments for her to realize that the sound the rain made is it struck the ground was similar to the sound she heard whenever there had food on a skillet back in her days as an octarian soldier. That thought unearthed some of the few pleasant memories from back then, but they seemed distant now, almost like a dream or another life. Then, almost as soon as it had begun, the rain stopped.
Eight blinked as if there was something wrong with her eyes. The rain, in the span of less than a minute, went from coming down so thick and fast that one could barely see the other end of the block to being scarcely a drip.
Without the roar of falling water, a deafening silence held for several more minutes before people began to emerge from their various shelters and the city came alive again.
Eight's spirits sank. Was the wonder of rain so fleeting? Did it always end so abruptly? And all the citizens suddenly bustling about again seemed oblivious to the wonder they had all just been a part of. Did they not realize how amazing- how precious it was?
Three grasped Eight's hand and, gently this time, pulled her out from under the bridge and down the pathway. Eight, followed along obediently, trying not to look too upset, but her eyes fell to the wet ground as they walked along.
Eight's boots splashed through the thinning film of water on the pavement and the smell of the rain rushed into her nostrils. It was an odd, refreshing kind of smell, almost like the air had been purified. Or maybe it just felt like that because it was no longer just the soiled hoodie she was smelling.
Then, Three suddenly pulled her to the left and led her down a narrow alleyway, her pace quickening and Eight felt the sudden burst of urgency in her. Eight's own combat instincts started to kick in and she was about to ask what was wrong when Three rounded another corner and slowed them to a halt.
A large area of green spread out before them, separated into quarters by two perpendicular footpaths. Lush green grass covered the ground, small trees and bushes decorated each quarter and the sound of birds rang through crisp and clear over the ambiance of the city.
Eight had seen birds before but never this close and never had she seen so many. Some sat perched on the tree branches, while others hopped across the footpaths, bathing themselves in the puddles.
Eight uttered the tiniest of gasps as she took in the scene and Three let go of her hand. She bent her knees and ran her hand across the wet grass, the green blades tickling her hand and moisture clung to her skin. This grass was so much softer than the grass she knew and so much greener, and darker. In fact…
Eight looked back up at Agent Three and crimson orbs looked back, but Eight's eyes were concentrated on her mantle. Three's colour was a bit darker but not by much, and the notion of a connection amused her. That alone was enough to make her soul feel lighter.
Eight looked back at the grass and rubbed one of the blades between her thumb and index finger, feeling the tiny grooves along its surface and recalled something from her childhood about the gods having a name for every blade of grass on Earth. Suddenly, she had a whole new appreciation for that.
Eight stood up and gave Three a small nod and she nodded in return with a tiny smile that Eight bet she had on her own face. This time, Three didn't hold her hand but simply led her back down the alley. As they left, Eight glanced over her shoulder at the small patch of nature in the midst of this vast city, until it vanished behind the red-brown bricks of the alleyway..
As they rejoined the main walkway, Eight wondered how Three had been able to guess what she'd been thinking so quickly. Eight had been accustomed to keeping her emotions well buried. Expressing one's individualism had generally been frowned upon in the Octarian Military. Perhaps Three was the same sort of person she was or perhaps Three also appreciated the rain.
The sound of a pair of familiar voices emanating from a nearby stereo in a nearby shop reminded her she was on her way to meet her idols, and such thoughts could wait for now. Instead, she focused on the two inklings that had revealed the possibility of a better life for her, the ones who had set her spirit free. But one thing that was different from before was that she didn't just want to learn about them; she now had another Inkling she wanted to get to know, another Inkling who seemed to appreciate the green and the rain.
From different worlds we came
In an alien place we met
To a new home you have brought me
In a new world, I seek to explore
That world I found in you, Under the rain