A Splatastic Family: Misadventures in Inkopolis
Episode 02: Squid Sisters On Air

Bleu had recently finished bringing most of his belongings from his old apartment over to the vacant one next door to the Squid Sisters with the aide of them and even Cap'n Cuttlefish. The remainder of it, his larger furniture, would be brought over tomorrow thanks to Jelly Fish Movers. It is now growing later into the night as Bleu was preparing to head over to join Marie for her podcast, Marie After Midnight. She invited him to join her and Callie as a special guest. But the problem Bleu initially faced was who to watch over Pyke and Ranha, the "new" Agent 3 who became his bunk mates. Luckily, Cuttlefish offered to watch them while he was busy with the podcast. He is about ready to head out before stopping to speak with the ex-captain once more while Pyke and Ranha are asleep in bed, the Inkling holding the small Salmonid in his arms. The little salmon gurgled and cooed as well.

"Thanks again for agreeing to watch them, Cap'n. I won't be gone that long, just next door to join Marie for her podcast." he said. The captain chuckled, bracing himself against his trusty cane.

"Don't worry, Agent Four. You can count on ol' Cuttlefish to make sure Agent Three and his little buddy sleep soundly." the elderly squid replied. Bleu lightly sighed, shaking his head.

"Cap'n…you DO remember those aren't their real names, right? Just like how you don't have to keep calling me "Agent Four"?" he asked "We told you about this literally a couple hours ago." Cuttlefish tilted his head before laughing.

"What? Ho ho ho! Of course I know his name is Ryke!" he proclaimed.

"It's PYKE. And "Smallfry" is Ranha." Bleu retorted.

"Uhh…Tyke and Manna? Who you talkin' about, Agent Four?" Cap'n replied while scratching his head. Rather than banter longer, Bleu heavily groaned and shook his head, fearing the recent experience caused something to his memory or hearing.

"N-Nothing. Just…watch Agent 3 and Smallfry until I return. Okay?" he asked while turning towards the door. Cap'n Cuttlefish saluted him from behind.

"Don't worry, Bleu! Leave lil' Pyke and Ranha to me!" he proclaimed. Flabergasted, Bleu quickly spun around to look at Cuttlefish, waving back silently, before groaning with a headshake.

"Not now, Bleu….NOT. NOW." he thought, massaging between his eyes as he left. Once gone, Cuttlefish scratched his head again.

"Huh….wonder what's got Agent Four so bent outta shape?" he thought.

~ Next Door | Callie & Marie's Apartment ~

Bleu took his seat at the table, still groaning in frustration over Cuttlefish's bizarre behavior, while Marie was setting up the microphones and her laptop. Callie was first to break the ice with Bleu.

"D-Don't mind him, Bleu. I'll bet you two cents he was just squiddin' with ya. Gramps DOES love his jokes." she said.

"Still, something could have happened to him when Mister Grizz nearly dehydrated him. Maybe we SHOULD bring him for a check-up just to be safe." Marie replied. Bleu sighed, deciding to focus on the podcast. Just then, a realization hit him.

"Oh…Marie? I forgot to ask earlier, but have you heard from Koda?" he asked.

"Huh? Agent Eight? Last I remember, he was going to be acting "Octo Ambassador" for the new Octolings coming to Inkopolis after he and gramps left the underground." she said "He wants to make sure all the Octolings get adjusted with moving here while guaranteeing they get treated the same way as Inklings." Bleu lightly chuckled, resting his head against his hand.

"Really? Huh. No wonder why he never picked his phone up." he said. Callie smirked.

"You want a rematch with him, don't you?" she asked snarkily. Bleu laughed.

"What can I say? He and I? We're RIVALS when it comes to Dualies…and I'm not about to admit he's better than me…not yet." he replied. Marie lightly sighed, shaking her head.

"The way you and Koda interact with one another, you'd think you were lifelong rivals…like a pair of high speed hedgehogs." she said, Bleu glancing her way "I meant that because of your "similar taste" in haircuts." Bleu snickered, picturing Koda's face in his mind. He stared back at Bleu with his radiating reddish eyes and a look of determination in his expression.

"Just you wait, Koda…" he thought, smirking quietly. After one final check over, Marie nodded and told the others they would be live in about a minute. All around Inkopolis, squids and octos were already beginning to tune into the channel that Marie After Midnight was being held on. This also spanned as far as the Splatlands, even reaching the radio of Deep Cut. Silently counting down the last ten seconds, she signaled to both Callie and Bleu.

M: Hello and good evening, citizens of Inkopolis. This is Marie of the Squid Sisters…welcoming you to another brand new episode of "Marie After Midnight". If this is your first time tuning in, this is a show where, along with special guests and all of you, we talk about big things going down in this little pool of a world we live on. Feel free to submit any questions you have on the livestream and maybe we'll answer them. But, before we start, I'd like to make one quick announcement…

C: Hey! Hey! What up, Inkopolis?! It's yer girl, Callie, back with my cous for another show!

M: Heh heh…yep. Starting from this episode going forward, my "dear cousin" will be joining as my co-host. Hmm. Maybe we ought to consider changing the name of the show to "Squid Sisters After Dark" or something…what do you think?

C: I wouldn't object! After all, Marie, that's been our label as one of the biggest things to hit Inkopolis since Inkling and Octoling first learned to shoot ink.

M: Don't get a fat head on me, Callie. It's only your first episode being co-host. Or did you let the popularity of our "Squid Sister Reunion" special already get to you?

C: (giggle)

Bleu watched their exchange go on for a while longer, grinning himself, while Cuttlefish was also seen in his apartment listening to the cast thanks to a small radio next to him.

M: Well, with that out of the way, allow me to introduce another special guest joining us for this episode of "Marie After Midnight". If you've been around Inkopolis Square or the Turf War community, you're most likely to have heard of him. Please give a hand for tonight's guest, Bleu the "Deep Blue Dualist"!

Both girls started to clap while Bleu looked on, spaced out at first. Once realizing it was his turn, his eyes widened briefly before nervously facing the mike set up. He already could imagine the eyes of all Inkopolis weighing on him and he hadn't even spoken a word yet. But feeling Marie's hand on his shoulder helped ease his nerves.

B: Uhh…h-hi everybody. My name's Bleu. Ehh...sorry if I sound a bit…shaken up right now. It's..heh…it's my first time being on a podcast like this. So, I hope you'll be able to put up with me.

C: Don't worry, Bleu! I know you'll do great…as I bet everyone listening tonight are as well.

M: Yeah. Just…don't forget to breathe.

B: R-Right. Heh.

C: A bit of "Marie Trivia" for you listeners tuning in tonight. Bleu isn't just your average Inkling on the Turf War scene. He's also my dear cousin's BOYFRIEND for what's been going on at least FIVE YEARS SO FAR!

M: C-CALLIE! Not while we're recording! Do you want to start a flame war?!

C: Hey! I had to make sure folks knew ONE of us was taken already.

M: UGH…

B: (withheld snickering) It's okay, Marie. Remember what you told me on our first date?

M: Yeah…yeah. (sigh) I was hoping to cautiously set the tone before I decided to share. But, once again, Callie spoiled it…

C: Uhhh…heh heh heh…I'm not fired, am I?

On the laptop nearby, Marie was already starting to read comments flooding in. Mostly all of them were congratulatory messages or words of praise for her relationship with Bleu. All the praise made her blush slightly while scrolling. Bleu smiled as well.

M: W-Well, thank you everyone for all the positive waves you're sending our way. But…let's put that aside for now and get to know the squid that snagged my heart. Anything you'd like to share with the listeners, Bleu?

B: Oh sure. Uhh…hi again. Like I said, my name is Bleu and I am an active player in the Turf War community. As for my nickname, if you couldn't guess, I'm a relatively good sharp shooter when it comes to using Dualies. They're, what you may call, my "trademark weapon" for whenever I jump into battle. I…just hope those I may have splatted during matches AREN'T still upset with me.

C: Holy shrimp…Dualies are not MY cup of mocha, I tell you. Why do they want you to be an expert at MULTITASKING when it comes to using two of them?! Just give me a Splattershot and I'm good.

B: Heh heh. Yeah. I know. That's what I hear a lot of newbies say when they try picking them up the first time. But they are a real awesome tool to use in Turf Wars, whether it's to get the jump on an enemy or making a quick roll out of the line of fire. In fact, in my spare time, I offer lessons to Inklings and Octolings who want to learn how to make the best out of their Dualies.

M: Oh? That sounds neat. When did you start doing that?
B: Not too recently. Maybe about a year or so after we started going out? I've had a couple of squids calling me their "teacher" by the time I shared all I knew with them.

C: Wow. Someone's already "Teach of the Year" by the sounds of it. I gotta ask. Since you say Dualies are your specialty, what's the weapon you hate the MOST?

B: UGH. Do you have to ask? If it isn't Rollers surprise jumping me, it's those annoying buckets! Whenever I see an enemy player step onto the field with a Bubbler, I have to ask whose BRIGHT IDEA it was to turn the LITERAL "kitchen sink" into a weapon.

C & M: (laughing)

C: I know what you mean! I ALSO wanna ask what genius gave the Splat-brella users such durable shielding AND the ability to shoot through! That ain't fair!

In another location of Inkopolis, seen looking on at the ruined remains of NILS Statue, is Koda. He is holding his phone while listening to the podcast with a pair of wireless earbuds in his oval ears. Mostly dressed in a red and black ensemble outfit, he had his tenatcles slicked back in a prickly-like fashion. As he listened to Bleu talking, he slowly closed his eyes and thought back to their first meeting, roughly a week after he first came to the surface.

Bleu: W-What the? What's an Octoling doing up here? Don't tell me you're here to free DJ Octavio?!

Koda: (Octarian) What? W-Who…Are you talking to me?

(Bleu pulls out his Dualie and points it at him)

Bleu: What's the matter? Squid got your tongue?

(Koda huffs before pointing his Splattershot straight at him, the two in a stand off)

Koda: (Octarian) I think you need to get your ears cleaned out, squid….unless you wanna go right here and now.

(Both their eyes narrowed before, with a huff, Bleu decided to retract and walk off but took one last glimpse over his shoulder at him. Koda soon did the same)

Laying on the ground where Koda sat was a pair of Octarian-style Dapple Dualies. He took a glimpse at them before, once again, fantasizing about their eventual friendship.

Bleu: Whoa…hold up. What kind of Dualies are THOSE? I never seen that model before.

Koda: Hmph. These aren't ones made by squid tentacles…if THAT'S what you mean.

Bleu: Uhhh….o-okay. Sorry. Geez. Just thought I'd ask.

(Koda turned away as he begun polishing them, Bleu surprisingly taking a seat next to him)

Koda: What do you want now?

Bleu: Y-You know…I've been thinking. Thinking about how mean spirited I came across when we first met. It took me a while to find out from Cap'n Cuttlefish that…you helped save Inkopolis and you were taken into the Squidbeak Platoon.

Koda: Huh? You know the old man?

Bleu: Uh huh. If he didn't bring it up before, I'm "Agent Four". Marie, Cuttlefish's niece, was the one who told me we had an Octoling in our ranks. Wish I knew that earlier…before I started that fight.

Koda: What "fight"? We never had one. We just got fed up and walked away.

Bleu: Heh. Guess we did.

(Silence falls between them)
Bleu: I'm…uhh…not annoying you more by talking still, am I?

Koda: (Sigh) Not…really. It hasn't been easy trying to converse with other Inklings since I came to this city. W-Wait. How are we…?
Bleu: Able to communicate? Well, I found an Octarian dictionary that Cuttlefish kept around since his early days and studied up on it…in the slight chance I ran into you again.

Koda: Why do that?
Bleu: To say…I'm sorry…and to ask…if we can maybe start things over.

(Bleu extends a hand to him)

Bleu: Since we both like using Dualies, maybe we could be…friends? I can…help you learn how to speak more fluent Inkling…if you'd like.

(Koda silently eyed Bleu before glimpsing at his hand, shaking it afterwards)
Koda: Fine….with me. If we're starting over, then….my name's Koda. And, no, I wasn't a part of Octavio's forces when he abducted your friend.

Bleu: Oh…okay then. Thanks for clearing that up. Then…you can call me "Bleu".

Koda: Seriously? THAT'S your name?

Bleu: Ugh. I KNOW! Blame my parents.

His flashback ending, Koda picked up his Dualies and begun walking off. He tucked his hands, holding his phone, in his jacket pockets while still listening to the podcast playing. In the time since it began, Bleu slowly begun to open up and communicate better while with the Squid Sisters. He truly felt a part of the conversation, bringing a smile to Marie's face as they talked on into the night.

END OF EPISODE