Author's Note: May or may not be out of schedule. Oh well, loss of motivation is such a bitch. Regardless, on to the story, a lot's coming down. Edit: Art consumed my whole April, and then Red Alert 2 later…
"So, this…group." Evan began. All three of them listened and waited with bated breath as Evan was about to tell the truth behind the group they heard about on the news just now.
"The group is dedicated to…uhm…turning back Inkopolis to what it was once, before the Octos came, to put it lightly." Evan sighed. "However, they are doing it any way they can, with intimidation and outright violence as the main theme behind it all." he continued. "They operate with the premise that Octolings don't deserve Inkopolis." he added.
"Buncha scumbags…" Nate growled.
"This is deplorable use of force…" said Lina in a low tone, "Resorting to bullying for their flawed philosophy."
"And that's not all…the leaders…are my parents." Evan said with a heavy tone. "They wanted me to train up to take their mantle one day, but I didn't want anything to do with it." he added. "That's what brought me to Inkopolis." he told them.
"Must have been hard, growing up with them?" asked Chris.
"For one, they sanitized the house of any copy of the modern Calamari Inkantation, along with anything remotely modern." he sighed. "And they only ever talk of 'restoring Inkopolis to its former glory' whenever they're around. "I've never heard modern music before I made it to Inkopolis." he sadly told them. "Simply put, they want to make sure Octolings are never seen in Inkopolis, ever again. Purification, they say."
"That must be really sad…" remarked Lina. "To be so far behind your peers…if they even allowed any…"
"Yeah, my upbringing was a lonely one…" sighed Evan. "They have guys anywhere that harass, and sometimes, in the worst of cases, permanently kill their targets." Evan told them, starting to fume in horror. "I'm surprised they haven't gone for Marina yet…probably because she's too high-profile…and they don't like unnecessary attention." he added.
"How did you manage the first time you were here, dude?" asked Nate.
"Fortunately, Jelio managed to secure my savings account and my trust fund too." He remarked. "And not much else, unfortunately." he added. "Good thing he wasn't caught with that…" he remarked.
"Well, that and your earnings did help with this place, for sure." Chris remarked. "Doing mighty fine for a runaway." he smiled.
"Thanks to you guys. And also, to Callie and Marie as well." he smiled, reminiscing. "They…gave me a home when I ran to the Square." he narrated. "And then…the rest happened." He smiled, getting some of the popcorn Chris set down.
"Just tell us whatever you need Evan." assured Nate, "Not that you need much, material wise." he joked, chuckling a bit.
"Heh, thanks." said Evan, reacting to the joke.
"You're one suave dude, casually friends with the Squid Sisters and all." Chris remarked.
"Yeah, how did you manage that?" Nate gasped.
"Well…let's just say I did them both a huge favor." Evan smiled.
"Being Agent 4, I assume?" Lina asked.
"Yes." he simply answered her, sighing. "I owe much of my skill to Marie's training." he told them. "She has helped me a lot." he said.
"They probably detest Off the Hook, huh?" Chris scoffed. "Must have hated them more when they let that bomb loose." he remarked.
"Frankly, I don't give a flying squitch, because it'll be all tripe with them." Evan scoffed. "I do worry about my younger siblings though…what are they doing to them when I'm not around…" he said, worry crossing his face.
"Maybe we can spirit them away?" Lina asked…"Maybe…" she said sadly.
"But at any rate, we should start a drive against the Squid Supremacist Society." Nate spoke up. "Perhaps involve the Squid Sisters and Off the Hook as well?" he asked.
"He is friends with the Squid Sisters, after all." Chris stated.
"I can't let the likes of Shannon and Josh be wasted by these thugs." Evan said angrily. "Alright, let's see what we can do." he said with a great resolve.
"Where do we start though?" asked Lina.
"Well, here would be nice." Chris quipped, still munching on the popcorn he made. The quartet however, proceeded to play video games for hours at end. They then later transitioned to watching a movie together, and then they planned their anti-racism initiative.
*Meanwhile…somewhere else…
Joshua was still slightly fuming about what he saw earlier, but he was trying to keep it within reason, actively shutting down seriously bad thoughts about earlier. He then finally resolved to send her a text or two.
"Hey, I wanna meet up later. I wanna ask ya somethin'." he typed. He then hit Send, waiting fpr a reply. He then sent a follow-up to it. "I saw you and those creeps earlier, just checking on you." he typed. He then proceeded to his house, where his mom was waiting for him.
"Ah, you're home already." Mrs. Catfish greeted, who was cooking dinner. "Looks like it's just and your dad…" she mused, stirring the pot. "So, how has Turf gone, son?" she asked him. Josh set down on the table.
"Well, it was fun, alright…what isn't was what came after." he said in a dull tone.
"I can tell…those gashes, what are those?" she asked him.
"I helped a security guard being harassed by those thugs." he answered.
"What?! What happened?" she asked shocked.
"There was these three thugs that were about to assault the lone security guard in the convenience store my friends were about to go to for snacks after we Turf-ed." he narrated.
"Good grief, Joshua!" she exclaimed. "Here, lemme see that…" she said, rushing to the blue Octoling. A few blue nicks could be seen crossing his face, but nothing too harmful. She then slightly blown off before facing Josh again. "You shouldn't be getting into fights like that…" she sighed, still managing her cooking. "The guard can handle those punks no problem, he's an adult, ya know?" she added.
"I had help." he said dully. "I had another guy help me out with those thugs." he added.
"Seeking out violence is never a good idea, Joshua." the elder Octoling told him. "Only defend, never attack." she told him.
"Understood, mom…" he said in still a dull tone. The family soon ate their dinner, joined by the father and then sister. Later, he saw that Ecca already replied to him, checking what she said on the message.
"Where do u wanna meet?" the text asked him. At once, he replied to her message.
"Tomorrow. The Square." he replied, "I wanna know everything." he then sent his response, with a slightly heavy sigh. Tomorrow then came soon enough. He prepared for another day, choosing his gear and clothes diligently. He then bade his mom farewell and set out for the Square. He then waited in front of Bisk's shop for the female Octo.
Soon, the green Octoling female arrived. She was slightly uneasy, as evidenced by her facial expressions, but otherwise fine. She then looked around and saw the blue Octo waiting for her.
"Ecca." he spoke first.
"Josh." she sighed. "About that encounter…"
"What happened?" he asked.
"Fabian came to apologize to me about the bar incident. We then turfed a bit afterwards, then got snacks in the local SquidStop, and then those three thugs harassed us." she narrated it all to him.
"Were you aware that I was there?" he asked her, in a flat tone.
"U-uhm, no, actually." she replied, "We were more concerned about getting away from those bullies…" she faleteringly said.
"I see." Josh said. "Well, what did he say when you approached him about what he did?" he asked the green female.
"Well…I did tell him that he deserved what you gave him." she told him. "He did bring up that incident again, but I told him it was an overestimate and you truly regret it." she added.
"Damn right he did deserve that." Josh scowled. "Drunk or not, that was foul of him."
"I did warn him to not pull another stunt like that again." she says to him. "…and about that time when you saw us…we were just having snacks and drinks after Turfing, so to ease the air. And then, those ruffians came…" she told him.
"Yeah, me and my friend fought them, helping the security guard." Josh tells her.
"I hope you weren't injured that much…" Ecca said, a bit worried.
"Don't worry, it was just a few small cuts." Joshua assured her with a smile. "Besides, the security guard zapped them before too long." he added. "He even gave us free snack and drink, on him." he stated.
"That's real nice!" Ecca glowed. "That was really nice of him to do that!" she exclaimed.
"Yeah, was taken by surprise too." Josh recalled. "The little gals did enjoy those though." He went on, "and me and Ezio's wallets too." he chuckles.
"I'll bet." Ecca said, laughing. "Well…care for a bite, babe?" she asked him.
"Sure. You treating?" Josh asks, smiling.
"Yeah. This is for what you've done in my stead." Ecca said, smiling. The two get themselves a Seanwich each, and a fruit drink to accompany them both. Later…
"So, what have you been up to after all that?" he asks her.
"Nothing much." she shrugged. "I just went home and played my games." she replied, swigging in the last of her drink. "So, do we hang out later?" she asks him.
"Sure, where?" Josh asks, crumpling his Seanwich wrapper. They then discuss where they'll be going later.
*Later, night time…
Evan was in his apartment. He just got off the showers, and was getting dressed to meet Callie for the night. He got one of his sleek polo-shirts to pair with a pair of black jeans. Evan then texted Callie that he's about to meet her in a short while.
"Hey Cal, I'm coming in just a little while. Probably gonna SquidBer going there…" he texted. Not too long after, Callie replied.
"Gonna be waiting for you hun." Callie replied. Evan then gathered his belongings and packed his Hero Shot 2 in a discreet compartment of his bag. He then called up a SquidBer to the restaurant he and Callie were meeting up. Soon, he arrived.
He then asked for a table for two.
"Mmm, sir, table for?" the crewman asked him.
"Table for two…Callie Cuttlefish." he told the crewman. Soon enough, Callie, in a fuchsia and black tie-dye dress that nicely matched her hair waved at him. The crewman was shocked, stumbling virtually into famous former Inkopolis News reporter Callie's beau. He then pointed him right into their table.
Meanwhile, in the cousins' home, Marie just came back to an empty house. Sheldon was busy with crafting various weapons and gadgets for the Squidbeak. The gray-lime Inkling then went to the workshop to ask about Callie.
"Hey Sheldon, know where Callie is?" she asks the horseshoe crab, who was busy testing some mechanism on a weapon.
"Callie? Said Sheldon, putting down his goggles. "Told me she's meeting up with Evan." he breathed, seeing the tense expression on the female Inkling.
"I see. Thank you, Sheldon." she says, abruptly exiting the workshop to go back inside the house. There she silently seethed, her feelings for Evan, her feelings of being disregarded, and the feeling that she's always assigned the heavy paperwork all swirled inside her.
*Meanwhile, back in the restaurant…
"Glad you can make it, Evan." Callie cooed, putting her hand on Evan's face. "Our first date since being officially a couple!" she beamed excitedly.
"It is nice to see you, Cal." Evan smiled. They both then soon got to their own menus, picking out their dinner for the night. Money would be an issue far from both parties' minds, as both were loaded in their own right. They then soon called up the waiter.
"Waiter!" Callie chirped up. Both then stated their orders and the waiter soon enough was off on his way to the kitchen. He told them the wait would be 30 minutes for all of it. While waiting…
"So…" started Callie, "I've looked up reviews on them sites, and this place has merit." she tells Evan. "Much of the reviews I saw were 4-star and up!" she happily chirped.
"Well, this should be a good dinner." Evan smiled. "Well, it's good already, I'm with you already." Evan told her with a wink. The statement made the long-haired former pop-star blush pink.
"Aww, Evan." she bashedly said, looking away. "But yeah, it's nice having these moments with you." Callie said. "Especially for people like us." she then lowered her voice,"Our line of work doesn't allow much moments like this off the field." she added.
"True…" Evan sighed. "And now with two, and possibly three threats, moments like this I fear would be more and more rare…" Evan pondered, slight sadness marring his features.
"And that's why you, me, and all of the Splatoon should give it all. For the fate of Inkopolis." Callie said, a determined tone ringing through her voice. "But first, this sumptuous treat!" Callie said, returning to her normal excitable tone. Soon enough, said sumptuous treat was served. The two then dug in without a second thought.
Meanwhile, Marie was devolving into a crying mess, sputtering incoherent and angry words at random intervals, huddled into the corner of her room, not even bothering to close the door. Sheldon tried to console her but…
"GO THE FUCKFISH AWAY, CRAB!" she yelled at him, her tears glistening as she suddenly faced the horrified weaponsmith. "You…don't understand…what's going on you stupid crab…" she snarled, tears staining her face. "I…taught him…gave him everything…" she mumbled, shaking.
"I…" Sheldon stuttered.
"Just go." Marie growled. Sheldon did as asked, scooting away. She then was left to mumble alone, spewing random incoherent words.
"Callie…squitch…Evan…ungrateful…saved…sacrifice…" Marie sputtered, huddling her pillow. She was like that for who knew how long, her mumbling grew faint as it went on.
Meanwhile, Sheldon dialed a few numbers from his phone, mainly Marina, Pearl, and Three. He texted them the same thing:
"Come over here at Callie and Marie's place. I need your help…Marie suddenly became a huddled mess, and is crying and is ranting random words. Be here on the double." he frantically tapped, then sent it to his intended recipients.
Soon, his phone rang up.
"Sheldon?" a strict female voice answered the line: Jesse.
"Good Cod thank you for responding!" Sheldon breathed a sigh of relief. "So, about what I said…Marie isn't taking too well to Evan and Callie being a thing.
"Huh, they did it huh? They actually did it…" came Jesse's voice on the other end.
"Yes, and Marie needs someone right now!" Sheldon urged her.
"Right, I'm on my way…" Jesse sighed, the sound of rushing audible through the phone. Said Inkling hurried over to their place, telling Celia and Cap Sheldon called him for something before hurrying on out. Soon enough, the stoic, orange Inkling was ringing the bell. Sheldon hurried to open the door to him.
"Thank goodness you came. Jesse!" exclaimed the harried weaponsmith.
"How bad is it?" asked Jesse.
"Just…get in…" Sheldon gasped, straining for breath. Both of them rush through the backdoor, then from there, they parted ways. Jesse came straight inside, while Sheldon returned to his workshop, unsure how to process what just happened there.
*Meanwhile, at the restaurant…
Evan and Callie exchanged laughs and giggles, enjoying their first date as an official couple. They were very happy, happy with each other's company. They already chowed down their main course, and was fast finishing their desert.
"Mmmm-mm!" Callie happily said, finishing the last of her ice cream.
"Callie you have such a sweet tooth, it's a surprise you still haven't rotted it out yet." chided Evan jokingly.
"Well, I do take care of my teeth, even out of the spotlight." Callie assured him. "I still do endorsements after all. And I do want to look the best for you." she smiled.
"Heh." Evan smirked. "Cal, when a girl makes me quit the game, you know they're the best for me." he told her. "You do remember how I met you right?" Evan said, reminiscing, sitting back in his seat.
"Oh you, of course I do!" Callie chided. "I mean, that's exactly what Marie hired you to do, right?" she scoffed. "Although…that was a dark time…" she added somberly. "Marie and I…we got separated by our own ambitions…" she sighed, putting down her ice cream goblet. "Thankfully, you were there to help us reconnect once more." she added, brightening up.
"And you were there when I needed a refuge." Evan said in reply. "When I said there were three threats, that included my own family." he said hesitantly. "Yes, they're leading those attacks on Octolings…" he sighed. "That's why I left my home on my own." Evan narrated. "I couldn't stand the bullsquit they were trying to teach me…" he sighed.
"That's…horrible!" Callie exclaimed, but not before asking the waiter for the bill. "Why are they doing that?" she asked, horrified.
"Well, they believe that the Octolings should have been completely eliminated in the Great Turf War…" Evan told her. "They…" he breathed in, "don't believe that Octolings deserve Inkopolis." he sighed out.
"Does anyone know about this yet?" Callie asked.
"Only my friends so far." Evan said, lowering his voice. "You're actually the second time I told this particular detail about me." he said. Callie then pouted a little.
"Why did you not tell me sooner?" Callie asked him, as the bill arrived.
"It was actually just a snap decision, once news of the beatings began cropping up on TV." Evan quipped dismally. "My squad was there with me that time." he added, as they were non-verbally arguing who'd pay the bill.
"I see. A moment's decision." nodded Callie, agreeing to pay the bill. Later, the two decided to go home.
*Back in the house…
"T-Three? Jesse?" Marie sputtered, recognizing the orange inkling.
"Marie." Jesse called her, patting her on the back. "Hey." Jesse chided her softly, sitting down beside her.
"I…gave him everything…my resources, myself…and what do I get in return?" Marie muttered, still crying a bit. "That…ungrateful…" she snarled.
"Hey…it's alright…I'm here now…" Jesse offered, soothing her back. "It's alright, okay…" she confided to her. "I'm sure they didn't mean to hurt you like that…they were gonna say it sooner or later…" Jesse comforted her.
"When, when they feel like it?!" Marie sputtered in rage. "When-everyone knows but me?" she blurted out. "Why…?" she sobbed. "I gave my all…in my Agent work, in my celebrity work, for crying out loud I won against her in OUR Splatfest!" she said, sobbing again. "WHY?!" she sputtered.
"I'm sure they both have their reasons." Jesse said, assuring her. "They didn't mean nor intend to hurt you." she assured her, continuing to rub her hand on Marie's back.
Right then, the door opened. Marie then looked to see who it was. To her manic delight, and to Jesse's worry, it was Callie and Evan, sharing a laugh. Marie rushed to "greet" them, Jesse unable to catch them.
"YOU FUCKING WHORE!" yelled Marie in a bloodthirsty manner, slapping Callie full force out of nowhere. Callie was utterly dazed and confused, while both Jesse and Evan were on tenterhooks.
"Marie what the actual—?" Callie sputtered.
"YOU FUCKING SQUITCH!" Marie yelled, furious. "I devote everything to making up with you and you do this?! And you…" she snarled, turning on Evan. The tension was now on a high. "You ungrateful little bastard…" she menacingly mumbled, slapping Evan. "I teach you and give you everything, and what do you do?!" she growled at the clueless male Inkling.
Alright, this took me too long, I'm just glad to get this out on the open. Hope I didn't make Marie too OOC with this. Do tell me pointers if it is a bit too OOC. And with that…see you next chapter.