He saw.

He saw her.

He saw her change right then and there, uninterrupted and in the open, and there was no way for Jade to change that now. No way to undo tonight and the strain that was sure to follow with her friend.

Would he even call her that again after what he's learned of her?

Neither dared to move their gaze away from each other. How could they? The other would surely take the very small window of opportunity to flee or otherwise react if either were to do so for even a moment. So they could not, would not allow them the chance to flinch or scream or jump or do any sort of sudden moves.

Jade could smell Khal's terror, so strong and pervasive she could practically feel it in her just as well as her own. It was overwhelming, made her let out a shaky breath as she kept her gaze on Khal. She's probably brought back a handful of nightmares to the boy just by showing her snout again, now that she thought about it..

Hearing him trying his hardest to suppress the slightest of noises from his mouth only made Jade feel all the more awful.

She so wanted to comfort him; to take him in her arms, embrace him tight and reassure him as much as possible she wouldn't hurt him again and that she'd always be there for him. He needed it, damn it!

But her rational side had to stop her from trying that, the knowledge that such an action in her current state would only drive the boy into a panic grimly setting itself in her mind.

But by the time she was fully aware of that fact, she had already lifted a claw and reached out to Khal.

Of course he'd recoil and flinch. Of course he'd finally yelp out his fright upon seeing her scaly hand move, and of course he'd be overtaken by so much fear and anxiety he would run off. What was Jade expecting, an understanding hug?

Dunce.

Khal's yelp snapped Lena's attention, as her head quickly turned towards the source of the noise. She found nothing of course, but kept staring at the spot Khal was in for some reason. She looked at Jade again, her expression now appearing oddly authoritative.

"Stay here," she commanded simply, breaking the embrace and standing up to leave the room soon after.

Jade watched her descend the stairs and sighed. She hoped Lena wouldn't have had to deal with her problems some more, but it seems that was to be the case...

The girl hoped this new day could pass quickly, if only to skip ahead to when all the difficult, friendship-straining stuff would be done and over with. She was not looking forward to her next meeting with Khal in the slightest.

She rose from bed sluggishly, taking off the blanket over her with lazy motions and slowly rubbing the sleep off her eyes. Jade yawned and stretched her arms. She was just going through the motions of waking up.

Then came her clothing. Her choice was singular, what with her full wardrobe laying dozens of miles away in her abode; Consisting of a silver Tentatek-branded vest with black gloved sleeves, some dark red sweatpants and a pair of dark gray rain boots with green highlights, the attire was a little too restrictive for her tastes. She probably should've consulted with Lena before she went off on her shopping errand..

"Not exactly my style.. but it's serviceable," Jade commented while grasping the vest gently. The girl quickly dressed up, and after a quick look in the mirror and a nod she walked out of her room. She felt no hunger at the moment, so she turned down Lena's offer of breakfast when the woman greeted her from the kitchen. She did notice Khal eating his breakfast on the nearby dinner table, but gave little more than a small wave once he did notice her. He waved with similar enthusiasm— or lack thereof— in turn. She didn't even see a smile on him.

It affected him that bad, huh?

She didn't want to look at him further. Not with that poker face of his, at least. So Jade felt it ideal to merely go outside for a walk. Clear her head, perhaps.

Lena did give her a glance as she stepped outside, before turning her gaze towards her son, who for some reason had stopped actually eating and was now resorting to merely poking his food with his fork. She frowned sadly; she, too, felt unwilling to look at the boy in his current mood. Though perhaps she could give him a small push..

"Khal, could you please accompany Jade while she's out?" Lena requested in the usual sweet tone of hers, stepping over to Khal's side.

"Huh? She seems to be fine on her own.." He responded glumly, barely giving a glance to Lena and still playing with his food.

"It costs nothing to give company to a friend, sweetie. Remember that."

"What about hurting a friend, huh?"

"Okay.." He only gave a slow nod, however, as he stood up from his seat and walked out the door.

Khal did his best to remain hidden as he trailed Jade, or at least as discreet as he could. Never stepping too close, never looking up at the back of her head, and never daring to speak up. Distant enough to not bother Jade, and close enough to please his mother. But unbeknownst to him, Lena was gazing at him from where she stood in the house's porch as he departed.

She frowned sadly at his actions. "C'mon Khal.. You can do it."

It took a bit of time for Jade to notice Khal's presence behind her, and upon doing so a pang of apprehension struck her. She quickly moved his gaze away from him and focused strictly on the pavement. She still saw that glum face from earlier on Khal, and now with every thought regarding it, she grew more and more agitated. What was she supposed to say, or even do, to regain his trust?

"Um.. maybe I can start by easing his tension? But then how'd I do that? No matter what I say, he's not gonna be relaxed at first, and if I try to be friendly too much then I'll bother him more! Oooh, this is so hard.. I don't know what to do!"

She stopped herself before her panicking mind could continue. Khal was her friend, someone she knew and could at least trust, not some dishonest cheater who would turn on her at the drop of a hat. Perhaps she could simply speak to him, let him know that she wouldn't hurt him again and eliminate his fear. Surely he would listen, no?

Jade knew patience was key, lest she gain the opposite of what she wanted. So she began addressing the boy with a simple greeting.

"Heya, Khal.." Jade said with slight shyness. "How's your morning been?"

He flinched ever so slightly at the sound of Jade's voice, and responded with slurred words. "Uh, it's been fine, I guess."

That didn't reassure Jade in the least. Still, she just had to keep trying, and maybe then she could cheer him up.

"Good. Nice, uh.. weather today, right?"

"I guess…" The boy repeated, not even bothering to look up and verify.

What a dunce. That was the worst thing she could've possibly said! It did nothing at all!

She looked away from the boy and closed her eyes. "C'mon Jade, think! what could you do to make Khal trust you again?"

Clearly, small talk would be useless in this situation. She had no intention of directly addressing what occurred the previous night either. And she still lacked of a way to properly ease any worry he might have.

Jade felt her head beginning to throb with so much thinking and pondering and discerning. Oh, if she could only forget all this and go play at the square in peace.

Wait a minute.. that's it!

She enjoyed playing, and Khal did as well. And in that case…

"Hey Khal, is there anything you wanna do today?" Jade asked once more in a peppy tone as she looked back at Khal.

"Not really. I have no idea, honestly."

"Hmm, I know! Maybe we could use today to have some fun the square!" Jade proposed eagerly. To her satisfaction, She could see Khal's eyes light up ever so slightly at the mention of Inkopolis Square.

"That sounds nice," he responded softly, "But I've gone there so many times this week, I'm not sure why I'd go again today."

"Weeeell, I've been away from turf for long enough that I started to feel a bit.. rusty. I could use some help getting back in shape."

"Really? It doesn't seem like you need it."

"But I do. And I'd really appreciate it if you were the one to help me along," Jade smiled warmly as she stopped and knelt down to Khal's level.

"If you say so.. It can't be so bad, right?" He acknowledged with a small smile of his own.

"Right!"

The pair had arrived at their destination in a relatively short amount of time. The square looked as lively and bustling as ever as they passed through the crowds, and both of the inklings' moods had improved slightly since their conversation. Jade especially felt relief: everything was going smoothly for now.

They had turned a corner into an alley, and were almost at the Deca Tower when they heard a strange noise. It sounded like shuffling and muttering coming from the nearby alley…

She could make out a shape in it, even if it was largely obscured by the shade from a nearby building. Jade changed directions and crept closer and closer to the figure, motioning Khal to do the same. But as their features became clearer, so too did the pair begin to recognize him. Him and his green jacket, tan skin, light green hair and blue beanie.

With only a grasp of his shoulder, Yzel jumped with a start and and quickly turned toward the pair. "It's not what it looks like, I swear! I'm not hiding something suspicious or anything, not at all— ..."

Khal and Jade merely stood there, glancing at each other and then at Yzel with blank stares.

"Uh.. hey, you're both back! Been a while since I've seen either of ya," Yzel spoke again, though he was unable to dillude the current awkwardness of the situation.

"What are you doing here, Yzel?" Khal asked curiously, leaning to take a peek at the bag that lay behind the tanned inkling. He quickly moved it out of his sight, however.

"Oh you know, resting in this shade. Don't wanna stay out in the heat for too long," Yzel explained with an unconcerned wave of his right hand.

"The weather seems fine to me," Khal shrugged.

"Yeah. And what's with the bag?" Jade pointed at the aforementioned object.

"Just my belongings. A guy's gotta be prepared if anything happens, ya know?"

"I didn't know someone's belongings could move on their own.." Jade replied in a dubious tone, eyeing the blue bag that was seemingly bouncing about on its own accord.

Yzel glanced at the bag in turn, and for the briefest of moments Jade could see panic in his eyes. "Oh, uh, it's probably my phone ringing," He 'explained', gripping the bag tight and attempting to hold it still. He tapped the bag harshly, and all movement from it ceased. Khal and Jade gave each other a confused look, before turning their attention to Yzel again.

"Sooooo… I take it you two have been catching up?" Yzel asked in a lax manner.

"Sort of," Khal muttered. "There wasn't much to catch up on."

"Yeah. I mostly just crashed into his house.." Jade added with an awkward chuckle. They both remained silent afterward.

"Okay.. Anything else or.."

"Nope! we're fine, in fact we were gonna go to the square now and.. have fun! Yeah!"

"Y-yeah, what she said," Khal added quickly, looking away from Jade.

"Am I missing something? Because it feels as if there's something going on between you two."

"Whaaat, of course not!" Jade reassured with a dismissive wave, "We're just glad to be back with each other!" Jade dismissed once more, while Khal once again gave a meek nod.

Yzel frowned.

Suddenly, the sound of a ringing phone was heard, and immediately Yzel pulled his phone out of his pocket and put it to his ear.

"Ah, Salem! How's it going, buddy? Any progress on that formula of yours, or your analysis or whatever?"

A few beats of silence and garbled noise from the phone followed.

"C'mon, ya need to be faster than that. We don't got all year, you know."

Jade was stricken with puzzlement. Had Salem made no progress on, well, anything regarding a remedy to her condition?

"Sure, I get things take time, but... Ugh, Jade isn't gonna like this."

It was her turn to raise a brow. What wasn't she going to like?

"You know, why don't you come here, hm? I think you should tell her all of this," He demanded with annoyance in his voice.

"Hold on, tell me what exactly?"

He exhaled before answering. "Some bad news, to be honest.."

"What's he talking about, Jade?" Khal's voice perked up, looking at the girl with equal confusion as hers on his face.

"Your guess is as good as mine."

The trio did have to wait several minutes, but eventually a fourth face did enter the alley. Dressed in a blue shirt, jeans, and a Denim cap, their very own Salem looked as unamused as ever as he approached the trio.

He gave a greeting to each of the inklings, his orange gaze trailing over all. He wordlessly motioned Yzel to move Khal out of the alley, and he right away complied, despite his and Khal's noticeable confusion.

His gaze landed on Jade once again before he spoke. "So.. I take it your time on the island was cut short?" He first asked simply.

"Gee, ya think? However did you come to that conclusion?" Jade mocked.

Salem merely shook his head. "It makes no sense. Yzel and I made sure you were as inconspicuous as possible while we carried you to the boat. No one was following us, either."

"I dunno, Someone covered entirely in rags isn't very discreet."

"It did the trick. I'm surprised Mr. Grizz fell for it… no, wait a minute."

"Huh?"

"You're right, rags aren't very convincing of a disguise. Maybe Grizz did see right through your disguise, and he simply played dumb. Then when you felt safe, when you were vulnerable, he sent a squad to get rid of you before you could realize it," Salem speculated, his body bent over into a thinking posture. "What I don't get is how he managed to find you."

"Rags? Island? Just what is going on?" Khal questioned mentally, as he overheard the conversation between Jade and Salem.

"Well, before the attack, I found a silver ball that was beeping in the island I stayed in, and a Grizzco ship came not long after, stopping in the same area where the ball was. That thing must've been a tracking device.." Jade explained in turn.

"Silver ball?" Khal wondered, "I think I had one during my last shift but.. Oh. Oh no.." Fear dawned on Khal's face as a realization hit him.

"It wasn't stored away on our boat, otherwise Grizz would've sent a crew immediately after we arrived at the smokeyard. So then.. you didn't go to any salmon runs, did you?"

Jade remained silent and looked away with embarrassment.

Salem grumbled. "Are you kidding me. I'd almost think you were a masochist."

"Hey, I didn't know they were giving trackers to everyone after I left! And it's not as if I carried the thing back willingly, with my own two hands, you know!" Jade protested, poking her tongue out at Salem.

And while the two inklings continued to bicker, Yzel and Khal remained outside, their attention divided between the passerby and any comments loud enough to slip in their ears.

Khal whined as he took another peek at the alley before turning to Yzel. "I wonder if they're arguing about something."

"Arguing? Nah, they're just.. strategizing! Yeah, that!" Yzel tried to assure with a grin, putting a reaffirming hand on Khal's back. Judging by his mellow shrug and turnaround toward the alley, however, it seemed his words had little effect.

"That doesn't sound like strategizing to me.."

Neither of them noticed the bag moving once more.

"So not only was the plan of staying with the salmonids botched, but coming up with a cure has been pretty much impossible on my end. Ugh.." Salem bemoaned with a palm to his face.

"Maybe it wasn't a very good plan to begin with," Jade snarked.

"Maybe it would've gone better if you hadn't strayed from very simple instructions in order to do something dumb," He argued back.

"Oh yeah? Maybe you should've worked harder and got something done during all this time."

"I-is everything okay?"

Jade and Salem both turned their heads toward the source of the voice, and saw Khal standing nervously outside the alley alongside Yzel.

"Yeah. Sorry if it got too loud for you.." Salem was the first to reply with an apologetic look.

Khal gave a slow nod in response. "I don't really know what's going on between you two, but I hope it's nothing strained."

"No, not at all," Jade brushed off. "Don't you worry about a thing, Khal."

Suddenly, Yzel's bag bounced about with increased fervor. Something was pushing out from the side, straining the fabric more and more, until soon after a small snout burst out of the bag, tearing through the fabric with a high-pitched yell.

Jade, Khal and Salem were left speechless. What was a smallfry doing there?!

"Hey! Get back inside, you little bugger!" Yzel reprimanded, as he grabbed the rowdy salmonid and shoved it back into the bag before it could escape. His hand was placed over the hole it made, and the inkling could feel its snout rub and bash against his skin repeatedly.

"I swear this thing never sits still."

Khal had hidden behind the inkgirl upon laying eyes on the smallfry, and meekly poked his head out to send a nervous gaze at Yzel. Salem had crossed his arms and sent an annoyed glare at the tanned inkboy.

"You've got to be kidding me.."

"Look, it's real simple to explain!" Yzel put his hands up, "I found it alone on the beach and kind of.. OK, I felt pity for the thing. And might have decided to bring it along from that point on."

"You felt pity. For a smallfry," Salem repeated in a very disgruntled manner, his eyes narrowing further.

"It had nowhere else to go! What was I supposed to do?"

"You splat it, or you throw it back into the ocean. You know, like a normal person would."

"If this were a salmon run, maybe. Bit too cruel for my taste though."

Jade's expression softened as she listened. She didn't know why, but she felt glad knowing Yzel went out of his way to shelter the little one, and that another salmonid had managed to escape the carnage of Salmon Island. For now at least.

Khal remained less than pleased, however. "Are you crazy?! That smallfry could hurt you bad!" He whisper-shouted in a panic.

"It's a smallfry, dude. Just one of the buggers isn't gonna do anything too serious."

And as if on cue, Yzel yanked his hand away from the bag with a pained grunt, and clutched and caressed it tight. The diminutive fish took the opportunity to hop out of its confines. In the nick of time, however, Jade caught it in her hands.

Their eyes locked with one another as she held it. She could still feel its scent even as an inkling, and the fish both looked and smelled very familiar for some reason. She kept staring for a few more moments..

It suddenly clicked in her mind as to why.

"Skipfin?"

The smallfry's entire frame flinched at the mention, his googly pair of eyes widening and looking at her oddly. She had no idea if he understood her or simply recognized her voice or whatnot, but she could definitely see familiarity in his gaze.

Jade was startled when the fish slithered up her arm and began to sniff at it repeatedly.

"You know it?" Khal and Yzel asked at the same time, stepping closer to get a better look at the affectionate smallfry.

"Him. I'm surprised he recognized my scent though," Jade corrected at first, glancing between her friends and Skipfin, who had quickly clung to her.

"Well it seems you made a friend out of that debacle," Salem remarked with a shake of his head.

"I.. guess that's a thing between salmonids now..?" Yzel remarked dryly, though he sounded more confused than anything as he glanced away.

Khal, on the other hand, merely looked on at the smallfry. The boy's face fell, his shock and fear from earlier vanishing almost completely. His gaze was downcast,

"Oh. I get it now…"

The inklings all stared at him with faces of confusion.

"You didn't want to tell me, did you? That you're one of them now?" Khal said, his voice low and hoarse. "That the monster who roamed the streets that night.. was you."

Yzel winced at that, sparing a glance to the girl. She seized up, her grip on the smallfry tightening involuntarily.

Now, more than ever, Jade felt powerless. No way to beat around the bush anymore, for the inevitable had come.

Jade sighed as she turned her gaze towards Khal.

"Khal, I.. you might've seen me already, and I am sure you're probably scared but.. I want you to know I'm sorry."

The inkboy did not reply at first, his widening, fearful stare fixated on the girl.

"I know I hurt you, and I know that can't be undone. But please, if there is anything I can do to calm you down or.. or assure you that it won't happen again, please let me know."

Her words did nothing to ease the mounting worry in Khal, for the fear in his gaze did not diminish, and his body remained tense and unmoving. He muttered something, but it was too soft and fast for either Jade or the other boys to understand.

She took a step towards him. "Khal—"

"NO!" The boy yelled, launching himself against the concrete wall. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to pull your glove off that time! I-it won't happen again, I promise!"

"That's not what I-!"

His gaze beheld utter terror as he continued. "I won't get in your way, heck I won't even bother you anymore! Just don't hurt me!"

"I won't do that Khal!"

"Yeah, right! You know, i-it's fine if you do, or if you wanna strangle me, o-or eat me, even! I probably deserve it, right?!"

"But I don't—!"

"Of course I do. Stupid, useless Khal, making others pay for your stupid mistakes," He continued covering his face with his hands and sliding to the floor. "Now you're definitely in trouble!"

Jade's expression was that of anguish as she looked on with silence. Did he truly believe all those things he was saying? She knew he seemed scared of her salmonling form, but to this extent..

She slowly extended a hand towards him, only for it to be swatted aside as soon as it made contact with his shoulder with such speed that Jade was left stunned. His wide, terrified orbs met Jade's own fearful ones, and immediately he sprung from where he sat and ran away from the alley.

"Khal, wait!" Jade called out desperately, but just like before, her words were left unheard by the fleeing boy. So she felt no choice but to sprint after him.

Yzel was about to follow them both as well, but was stopped by a hand on his shoulder, courtesy of Salem.

"What gives?" Yzel asked, his voice laced with annoyance.

"This is their issue. I know it's hard to watch, but it will be better for them to solve this on their own." The blue inkboy clarified, his gaze fixated on the horizon.

"True... Doesn't mean I can't give 'em a few pointers, though," Yzel replied as he broke into a run after Jade.

She hadn't gotten very far, or even felt any real fatigue in her legs, yet despite that Jade didn't want to run any longer. She slowed to a stop and simply stood in the sidewalk. Alone. Defeated. Heartbroken.

In frustration, she yelled and kicked a nearby trash can, toppling it over. She dropped to her knees, and with hands covering her anguished face, she began to sob. They were quiet at first, Jade forced them to be that way, but ever so surely they grew in volume despite her attempts to not cause a big scene.

"I guess.. you don't want to play in the square with me anymore, huh..?" Jade whimpered with a soft laugh and a sad smile, hugging her knees. "What a joke…"

Minutes passed, and Jade merely laid in the same spot. She could do nothing but bask in her sorrow, crying as much as she wished to, until either her voice gave out or her tears ran dry.

Author's Note

Hello again to any and all readers. I must say, writing this took far longer than I'd like, and there were times in which I felt unsatisfied with the result, but I nonetheless hope that this latest chapter is to your liking.

I guess I could say that now is when the story should start to progress again. There's still quite a ways to go, however.

Good luck in your endeavors, and until next time...