Epilogue
About two days had passed and a lot had happened in that time. Pearl and Marina informed Inkopolis of the Chaos Vs Order Splatfest, Callie and Marie joined them on stage for the performance during it, and almost all of the city participated in the tournament.
"Wow, that Splatfest was something, wasn't it?" Jack sighed as he sat down on a bench to relax. He placed his hero shot down next to him as he leaned back.
"I wouldn't know, I didn't participate." Adstrum replied as he worked on chaining his Outrunner to the back of the Squid Sisters tour bus. He decided to drive around Inkopolis and see the sights while all the idols performed during the competition.
"Well, it was hectic. But I had fun." The agent chuckled. "I think everyone else did too. Have you seen Cici anywhere?"
"Did she participate?" The black tentacled inkling asked.
There were some kids chatting. One of them had a pink squid napping on their Afro.
"Sweet hat! Where did you get it?" One of the guys asked.
"Not hat. I dunno… It nice though." The octo smiled.
Adstrum noticed the kids and chuckled at the familiar squid on top of the afro.
"What?" Jack looked over and pinched the bridge of his nose. But he was trying to hold back his laughter. "I had a feeling she'd do that to someone."
"Oh, it isn't a hat? Who's this kid then?"
"Can keep?"
"You can't keep kids… That's against the law."
Jack stood up and walked over to them. "Funny thing, she's not a kid. She's just a very sleepy squid."
"Zzz soft." Cici nuzzled the afro.
"...Who likes sleeping on people's heads." Jack smiled and petted her. "Sorry about her."
"Me like. Happy squid." The octo smiled.
"I like her too." The agent nodded.
"Here you baby" The octo gave Cici to Jack.
"Thank you." He took Cici and hugged her. "How long have you been on his head?"
"I'm 17…." Cici muttered, "A few hours…"
"Well, you don't always act that way." He gently tickled her mantle as he sat down on the bench again. "Was it comfy?"
She nibbled his fingers.
Adstrum smiled at the two as he finished chaining his car to the bus. He heard a loud yawn and turned to find two familiar idols walking up. "Well, how was the splatfest, you two?"
"Fun...but exhausting…" Callie face-planted against the side of the bus.
"I slept on a kid's head… I'm not allowed to play." Cici swam onto Jack's head.
"You slept on a kid's head? Why?" Callie turned herself toward Cici, noticing Jack point at the one kid with the afro. "Oh, I see. That does look comfy."
"I'm a tailor."
"We know, sleepy squid." Jack moved his tentacles over her, trying to lay them on her like a blanket.
"A very talented tailor." Adstrum nodded and turned toward the Squid Sisters. "Did you two have fun?"
"Yeah! But now…" Callie leaned against him. "Time to give our voices a break…"
"It's time to finally head back, huh?" Marie asked.
"Yeah. After you guys get two more weeks to just relax when we get back." Cici replied.
"Anywhere you want to go to relax, Marie?" Callie looked at her cousin.
"I have no idea…" Marie shrugged, "I guess just get settled."
"Okay. Well, Cici gave us…..too much money...to use on a vacation. Guess we can figure out a destination after getting settled. Maybe to that island we saw advertised a few years ago." Callie shrugged as well. "But we can worry about that after settling."
"I think I want to think about what I want to do with my life now. It's honestly a bit foreign to me to be changing from Inkopolis."
"We'll all help you get used to it, Marie." Adstrum smiled at her.
"But should I really move? I can just commute there."
"If you want to, Marie." Callie nodded. "I'll try to visit you as often as I can."
"Callie, if you want to move closer to your cousin, feel free to." Adstrum shrugged. "I can always visit you."
"That's an idea as well. I did miss Inkopolis." She sighed and sat down. "Now I have a lot to think about. Heh."
"But Inkopolis is two cities away…" Cici pointed out.
"Yeah, commuting back and forth would be costly." Jack added.
"Oh...true…" Callie rubbed her temples.
"It will take a while by car, too." Cici went into Jack's shirt.
"AH!" He jumped in response and laughed. "Cold! Haha!"
"Don't you already own the house next to mine and Callie's in Carti Ridge, Marie?" Adstrum asked.
"Huh? When did I have time to buy a house? At the very least I rented out."
"There's a chance Cici might have bought it for you without us knowing." Jack chuckled.
"Hold on, my brain is working." Adstrum raised a finger in the air.
"I knew I smelled smoke." Callie giggled when she got a deadpan look from him.
"What if you and Callie owned a house together in Inkopolis, but kept the house you have in Carti Ridge? There are people who own different houses in different cities. Maybe your Carti Ridge home can be your summer home or something." He suggested.
"Like a vacation home?" Callie asked.
"Oh I see. I guess that works." Marie shrugged.
"Yay!"
"What about you, Cici? What are you going to do now?" Jack asked as he helped Adstrum chain up his car.
"Hug the hobos in Carti Ridge." She smiled.
"That's not a good idea." Adstrum chuckled. "A kind and caring idea, but they are not ones you should hug."
Jack sighed and pet Cici again. "A sweet squid. That's what you are."
"It would maybe make them less salty."
"Maybe. But don't count on it."
"Hey, where are Ari and Blue?" Callie asked as she stood back up.
"Up on the tower." Cici replied.
"Ooh, are they on a date?"
"Are they?!" Cici giggled and started sprinting up the tower.
"I don't think that's any of our business." Jack chuckled. "But I'd wager yes." His eyes widened as he saw Cici sprinting and quickly ran after her. "CICI!"
"Haha! There she goes!" Callie laughed.
Marie chuckled as she watched him run after her.
"Sleepy one minute, and the next she's got more energy than a zapfish." Adstrum smiled watching the two of them run.
"It must be nice to be like them. I really need to think more about my life."
"Don't worry about how they spend their lives. Just think about how you want to spend yours and we'll support you." Adstrum replied as he finished chaining his car up.
"I'm not. I'm just thinking about how I'm supposed to have a life outside being an idol…"
"It's easy!" Callie put an arm around her cousin. "I can show you how."
"Yeah I bet it was easy for you. Since you actually got to do so. Maybe I should get a dog… at least then I won't be lonely."
Callie sighed and looked down at her feet. "I hope you meet that guy again."
"Guy said never again, so I'm not holding my breath."
"Pastelli said something about a dog. Maybe ask her?" Arisara walked up to them with Cici and Blue.
"Yeah, we can visit her after getting settled if you want. And never say never. I'm sure you'll see him again someday." Callie looked back up at Marie with a small smile.
Jack ran up to the group, panting with his hands on his knees. "Where...does she get that energy from...out of nowhere?"
"There is Jack," Blue put Cici on him, "I'm not him."
"How does... she keep…*huff*... getting us confused?"
Blue shrugged.
Cici crawled onto Jack's head and nuzzled his tentacles.
He smiled and petted her.
"You two have fun?" Callie looked at Arisara and Blue.
"We were just talking to Captain." Blue rubbed the back of his head, "Apparently he closed the way to Octo Valley and Octo Canyon so we don't really have a job any more."
"Oh…"
"Just because he closed the ways doesn't mean the job is done. Who knows if Octavio finds another way into Inkopolis?" Jack stood up.
"Of course not. But Inkopolis will be fine without many agents. Since players are pretty ruthless anyways." Arisara chuckled.
"True. So true." He chuckled as well.
Callie laughed for a moment before noticing two familiar faces walking toward them. "Pearl! Marina! Come to see us off?" She ran up to them with her arms open, picking them both up in a hug.
They hugged her back.
"Ya know it! Until we hang out again soon!" Pearl beamed.
"We will be eagerly waiting!" Marina cheered.
"That splatfest was a lot of fun. And quite a unique theme, too." Jack nodded.
"It was just an idea. Basically it is like a fresh new start for us, and I guess for yall too." Pearl grinned.
"Yeah, but seeing how Chaos won, I'm a bit worried." Jack chuckled nervously.
"I'm not!" Adstrum had a wide smile on his face.
"They said it's always world changing… I don't think I understand what they mean." Marina shrugged.
"Probably a good idea to not put much thought into it. Whatever happens, well, happens." Adstrum shrugged.
"Huh, alright then."
"A Fresh New Start, huh? I could use something like that." Marie chuckled, "Got a memory wiper?"
Callie giggled. "Doubt that. Wouldn't be fun to forget everything."
"Maybe not everything, but I wouldn't mind forgetting a lot of things."
"Me too, actually."
"We all have stuff we wish we could forget." Adstrum sighed.
"Well, no sense living in the past." Jack smiled. "All we can do now is think of the future and try to live it the best we can."
"The past made us who we are. Who we become is in our hands now. It's a Fresh New Start for everyone." Cici rolled around on Jack's head.
"That is true. But what I meant is that we should stop worrying about the mistakes we've made in the past and try to do better now and in the future." He smiled and tickled her.
"Nooo…" She wrapped her tentacles around his fingers.
"Aw, you cheater." He struggled to move his fingers, feeling her nibble them.
"The way they interact is so cuuute!" Callie squealed.
"So we are actually going with yall to Carti Ridge and then to vacation." Pearl smiled.
"You are?"
"Yeah we meant it literally seeing you guys off to Carti Ridge." Marina smiled, "And Blue and Arisara are hired to be our bodyguards"
"Wh-what?" Blue looked puzzled.
"What a twist!" Adstrum yelled.
"We are getting more passengers?" Jim asked, standing in the tour bus doorway.
"Don't worry. We have our own."
"Oh, okay." He went back inside.
"Yay! More time to hang out!" Callie jumped up with her fist in the air.
The three of them cheered.
"Well, we need to get back there first." Adstrum chuckled. "Is everyone ready to go? Have any last minute things you have to take care of?"
"I'm all set," Marie shrugged.
"Me too!" Callie nodded.
"Squishy," Cici hugged Jack's head.
"Heh, I think Cici is ready. And I know I am." He gave a thumbs up as he pet her with his other hand.
"I can move back into a box!" Cici seemed excited.
"I don't get why you like living in a box so much." He chuckled.
"It's cozy."
"I'll take your word for it." He looked at Ari and Blue. "You two coming, or staying here?"
"Um, can I come?" Blue asked.
"We kinda need to since we have that job now," Arisara smiled.
"A job? What job?" Callie asked, excitement in her tone.
"Apparently we are Off the Hook's bodyguards now…"
"Oh, right. Thought you got a job somewhere in Carti Ridge." She chuckled, her face a bit red from embarrassment.
"Well, then, everyone who's riding the bus, get on board." Adstrum said as he headed for the door.
Everyone followed shortly behind him, with the exception of Pearl, Marina, Arisara, and Blue. They all hopped onto the tour bus and took seats in the dining area, Callie looking out the window at Inkopolis with a smile on her face.
"See ya later, Inkopolis. Hope to be back someday." A tear fell down the side of her face and she sniffed, wrapping her arms around her cousin. Marie smiled and returned the hug, trying to comfort her.
Adstrum smiled out the window as the bus started moving away from the city, giving it a wave. "Thanks for all the great memories, Inkopolis. While there were some moments I wish never happened, I'm still happy to have grown up there. But now…" He turned around and smirked. "It's time to see where the road takes us all next."
Author's Note: More than a year and the final chapter is finally posted. I feel really bad making you all wait this long, but at least it wasn't left unfinished.
Reasons for the long wait? Well, lack of motivation for one. And that's because of how much my love of Splatoon diminished due to the second game. It did do some good things, such as give us Salmon Run and Octo Expansion. But the story mode of that game legitimately felt like a kick between the legs for a Callie fan and a Squid Sisters fan in general. Luckily, Splatoon 3 felt like somewhat of an apology to the fanbase for how bad they handled 2. Three has rekindled my love of the franchise, and hopefully it stays this time.
Other reasons are that moving to a new state and getting a job got in the way. Motivation is hard to come by nowadays as well as time for other things.
As for this fic, it has been a fun one to write. Not as fun as the first one, but was fun to write nonetheless. Writing with Apikachua on this was a blast and I would love to do it again someday. Hope you all enjoyed reading it.
As for future projects...That will remain to be seen. I've got multiple ideas (mostly just retellings of games with an OC inserted), but two Splatoon ideas have popped up into my mind, with one of them being a redo of my first fic. I'm still proud of it, but kind of want Callie and Marie's relationship to be better in it. I wrote the original as a sort of way to bash on Marie, but I've started to like her a bit more, especially with how she acts in 3. A lot less narcissistic. Thinking of redoing my first fic but Callie still keeps in touch with Marie. But time will tell if that ever comes to fruition.
If you read all this, you are awesome. Thanks for reading and hope you all greatly enjoyed this fic! Hope you all have some wonderful days ahead of you!
