Azule dials the phone again ready to tell his sister of the news he came across regarding Saint Henry, his face cold as stone with lifeless eyes as he stiffened at the thought of that man being on the streets; it irritated him. Sky picked up after a minute of ringing, her voice sounded content and busy since he could hear other sounds in the background-clanging of pots and pans.
"Hey lil bro, I'm just about to make some dinner. You want to come over and eat?" she said, her voice sounding welcome as always.
"N-no…"-he cleared his voice- "Thank you for the offer, but I have to decline. There is something else I want to talk about."
Sky was surprised to hear Azule decline food, especially from her, but she treated it as something minor. She continued with her dinner preparations, putting him on speaker as she checked her fridge for ingredients. Azule tightened his cap, taking a big gulp-his sister was a scary person after-all, and when it came to the person he was about to bring up, he knew how painful it was for her to remember. He breathes heavily into the phone, feeling a massive lump in his throat cut off his oxygen as he remembered the images in his head of his sister being defiled. His hands trembled as tears dropped onto them, his hands trembling not of fear nor sadness, but of vengeance. His face scarier than ever before, veins popping down the side of his face as he gritted his teeth, his breathing becoming heavier as the lump densed. He knew his sister felt the same way he did about Saint Henry, but he knew brigning his name up woulddo nothing more than rush all of those horrifying experiences back, but he felt the need to tell her what he learned; the first step to a true recovery was to get revenge, that's what he thought. Sky was confused-looking at the phone, wondering if it was static or her brother she was hearing.
"Azule…?" she called out innocently, taking the phone off speaker.
Azule closed his eyes, swallowing the lump that kept him from speaking-the thing that prevented him from having full conviction to commit revenge, "Sis, I found him…"
Sky raised an eyebrow, "Found who?"
Azule's hand trembled again, "The monster…the monster…"
Sky's eyes began to shake, knowing what she was trying so hard to avoid was becoming a reality; Azule learned of the whereabouts of Saint Henry, the target of Kosami's assassination. She kept silent as she wandered into her own world, unsure of how to address the situation: If she told Azule to keep away from him, that might cause Azule to want to act even more, since he was the kind of brother to never listen to his sister's warning. Azule began to give his name and whereabouts, to which Sky abruptly cut him off and told him to come to her home immediately, that mentioning his name wasn't wise over phone calls-something recorded by the government; Sky knew this quite well sicne she was technically a government worker.
After about half an hour passed, by then Sky already finished making dinner and had a plate ready for her beloved little brother when he came by. She sat at the dining table, listening to the white noise of the TV in the background as she stared at the kitchen sink, watching the water drip from the faucet. She had so many things on her mind, and it was at times like these that she could clear her head and keep herself form going insane, though now she felt like her head was swelling from the stress. Azule found out about Saint Henry, Kosami is looking to assassinate him, I have an important tournament in two days, business has been rather slow lately…just recon in different cuttlefish communities…-Sky massages her head while sighing, closing her eyes and leaning back in her chair, her hair began to change colors the more her head felt like swelling, turning from a vibrant sky blue to a faded ice blue- "Great Zapfish, please help me…" she said shaking her head as her hair color changed slowly.
There's a knock at the door, the familiar jingle of the hands indicated that it was none other than Azule. She got up, going over to open the door-as she opens, she saw her little brother before her, covering his face with the brim of his cap. He stood there like a statue, refusing to look up at his sister, for he knew what he was about to bring up; Sky's face softened as she put her hand on Azule's hand, gently lifting the cap off. When Azule looked up, he saw her in his face. Azule went back a little, surprised to see how drastically his sister's appearance had changed.
"You look different, sis…" he said in a hush tone, ashamed to come so far with unwelcoming news.
"It's called stress. Why, do I look bad?" she crossed her arms with a unconcerned yet curious expression, raising her right brow as she leaned into her brother's space; Azule felt uncomfortable by the sudden intrusion of space.
"You look normal…" he said looking away, unsure whether to compliment or be a real borther and playfully insult.
"Heh, is that so?"-she walks back into her apartment- "Come, dinner is ready."
It was silent the entire time Azule ate the meat with macaroni and cheese with vegetables-the entire time, he felt his sister's powerful stare; Azule was amazed by his sister's change in hair color as he chewed on the meat, noticing that she now had a darker blue color towards the edges of her tentacles, her sky blue hued hair now becoming a frosty blue instead with it nearly white at the top. It was an impressive sight, since he never knew inklings colors could change that way; he was aware that inklings could change their color at will.
"You don't have to stare. This is normal." She said with her eyes closed, feeling the stare from Azule.
"No, it's just that I've never seen you look like this…Is it really from stress?"
Sky sighed, "Yes, when an inkling undergoes major amounts of stress on short notice, their hair color can begin to fade out; it returns to normal once the levels of stress have reduced. Although, I know some cuttlefish and Octarian use this as a style…"
"Oh…"-Immediately rushing to Azule's mind were the two octarian princesses-"Well, I guess this new look could suit you."
Sky didn't look amused, she took his finished plate and proceeded to the kitchen sink to wash; Azule sat at the table with his hands clasped, twiddling his thumbs. The only thing to break the continuous awkward silence was the running faucet, scrubbing of the glass plate, and the TV that was on in the living room. After she finished, she saw her brother staring at the table hard, as if he was in pain.
"What's wrong…?" she asked with concern, seeing him try to hide holding his chest; huge drops of sweat were beginning to form as he tried to battle the pain.
"N-nothing…"-he took a deep breath, then exhaled calmly- "The reason why I'm here…"
"Don't do it." Sky said firmly.
Azule was silent for a moment-in shock of his sister's response, "What?"
"Did I stutter?" she responded with an attitude in her tone.
Azule's face slowly looked to become one of anger, "Why? Why should I not do it? What do you think I was planning to do?"
"You want revenge." She said with conviction and with a straight face of no emotion; opposite to Azule's face that was full of emotion.
"Of course, I do…"-Azule said in a struggled tone, gritting his teeth, clenching his fist, and glaring at his older sister- "He needs to pay for the sins he's committed!"
Sky walked over slowly, "Azule, let it go." She said in more authoritative tone.
Azule jumped out his chair and got in Sky's face with pleading hands out, "Why!? He's just in our reach! We can ki-"
A vicious smack across the face is all that follows from Sky, done with a cold and emotionless expression. Azule was stunned by his sister's action, never was she the type to hit seriously, and when he looked in her eyes, he saw another side of her that she never revealed-the agent side, the assassin side, the monster disguised behind the beautiful face and body. Azule put his hand to the mark left from his sister and stared at the floor, numb in thought and feeling.
"There are some things that we just shouldn't get involved in. Attempting to kill the future PM of this country will surely lead to your death…" Sky said with tears in her eyes, feeling the pain of having to discipline her little brother; the moment Azule saw her tears, he understood.
"Sis, I know you can't feel comfortable with that monster being around…"
"It doesn't matter how I feel…"-she put her hand to her chest- "what matters is that you'll be safe."-she hugs him, suffocating him with all the love she could, trying to make him understand that there was a bigger purpose to him being alive, for not being caught for the arson of that same orphanage; he was a miracle child blessed with incredible luck, yet cursed with the most disturbing of memories- "you must be strong, Azule. Never allow your emotions to consume you, because that is the first sign of defeat-never ever allow yourself to experience that weakness…"
Azule didn't know how to respond since it was rare to see his sister get this deep with him-there were times when they had their moments as siblings, but for the first time, Azule truly felt the pain his sister had been handling, and each time he felt her heartbeat against his body, the more he felt convinced to get revenge. It was for her sake, nothing more, and nothing less. That was the only thing Azule could think about as he felt his sister's warmth extend from her words, to gestures. Only recently had Sky begun to show more of her vulnerable side, never was she the type to lose face, cry, or even speak this deep, but whenever it came to Azule, she was weak.
"You're the only little brother I have…"-smothering him as she placed her hand on the back of his head, taking off his cap and giving him a kiss on the forehead- "I love you, little brother…"
Familial love. A word that Azule's dictionary had no definition for, since the times he did have it were clouded by other events. For the first time, Azule truly understood what it felt like to be loved by someone who truly cared for him-albeit familial-Azule recognized what love was, something that can move even the toughest of people. To see the stongest person in his life showing herself at her most vulnerable.
Azule looked up at his sister solemnly, "I love you too, big sis."
She pats his head and puts his cap back on, "Please, understand that I only care about your safety…don't get involved with such dangerous people."
Azule nodded, "Yes…I understand."
After their emotional moment, they both wiped away each other's tears-laughing afterwards. They both had gotten rather soft for kids that were toughened to the max growing up-perhaps this was the result of all those tough times, of the many times they had to hold back their emotions for the sake of survival; the two could finally feel again. Azule decided to take his leave after feeling much better, giving his sister another hug before leaving. After he left, Sky also felt better-feeling the heavy burdens finally be lifted from her shoulders. Unlike before where they had confessed to their friends, this time, she truly felt her burdens erased, having her own personal moment with the only person who felt the same pain and sturggles that she did. She smiles at the thought for what comes ahead, her road to recovery seemed to finally be seen as the light at the end of the dark tunnel, feeling confident for the upcoming tournament-her hair slowly begins to return to its original hue, though still in the faded form; she brewed herself a cup of coffee and sat in the living room to watch some TV. Outside of the apartment, across on a rooftop sat a person dressed in all black: black boots, black pants, a black sweater, a black scarf that wrapped around her neck and covered most of her face, a black beanie that covered most of her head, and her long flowing lime green hair blowing in the chilly wind. Her velvet red eyes peered from the rooftop, looking down at the window where she witnessed the gentle embrace of her two youngest children. She put her hands in her pockets, smiling in satisfaction that she could witness the touching moment with her own eyes after being absent in their lives for so long. Her phone rings, when she looks at the caller id, it says: Agent 4. She picks it up, but doesn't say anything; the voice on the other line spoke instead, one that had an enthusiastic and manly tone.
"Hey Agent 3, you want to meet up? I'm on my way to go see Lime and Teal-I mean Verde…geez, what's with him and this name change? I prefer the name you gave him, but hey, that's how he is, huh?"-She doesn't respond, instead she looks at the phone-irritated; the man on the other line can sense it through the phone- "I'll take that silence as in you're busy…"-he hangs up abruptly.
Agent 3 sighed shaking her head, her silence was the one trait that made her popular throughout the military-nicknamed "the Silent Warlord: Agent 3"-yet for some reason, this silence was different from the familiar silence. This silence rivaled the one that was present when she first arrived to inkopolis at the age of 14, but now, she was returning as a grown woman-mother of four children, two that she hasn't seen since they were very young. New adventures were approaching if the most iconic hero in Inkopolis, was returning to the playground that she made her name. Was she here to visit her children? Was she there for a mission? No one would ever know, since no one could ever tell what she was thinking.
"I'm back…" she said in a very faint whisper, turning around and walking away-her velvet red eyes beginning to glow the closer she came to the darkness.
