The afternoon passed quickly after the bong made its rounds. The rainmaker battle under the bridge had begun around an hour or two after lunchtime, and by the time Ophelia had taken her first hit of the goodies, the sun was already starting to sneak toward the western horizon. The group was not finished after Ula's generous double-helping, though, thanks to an ever-growing uproar of nagging from her and Bella to refill the chamber and ignite a hasty round two. The Splatfest voting would last for several days, they reasoned, so there was no rush to stow their stuff and super-jump back to the downtown area right away. They found it more suiting to stay back and celebrate for a bit longer.
The decision didn't really bode well for Aurora, much to her embarrassment. Her friends' pestering had amped up a bit after she announced her team vote, resulting in a brief interrogation session that had left her sweating. Apparently, "nobody" was not an answer Bella nor the others were willing to accept when asking about love interests, even while they were mentally incapacitated on seaweed. They were all brutally honest with each other when they were on the stuff, and it seemed like they were kind of expecting the same out of her, especially when her answer had sent their suspicions through the roof. Eight was the only one that remained silent during the ordeal, likely out of respect for her friend's clear discomfort under scrutiny.
Despite her shy nerves and ignominious developing crush, Aurora was still looking forward to her first Splatfest. Seldom spoken were her and her friends' joyless years in the grim, sprawling trenches of Octo Valley, alienated from the extravagancies of inkling culture and the Great Zapfish that gave it all its power. The Splatfest was a legend they were finally about to live for themselves after growing up on nothing but natural light and limited rations. Music, dancing, drinks, heart-throbbing turf wars, boys…they were going to get intoxicated on all of it. Aurora's immigration by her friends' sides made her a changed octoling, and when Off the Hook took that stage in less than a week, she would be celebrating her life's upturn to the fullest extent. She didn't care how she would do it.
Today, however, she had gotten carried away with her infatuations. In the end, Aurora wound up regretting her choice to abstain from smoking with the others. She had managed to bend awkwardly around her friends' questions until they eventually lost interest and continued talking about the Splatfest, which gave her some relief for the time being. She knew it wasn't going to be the end of it yet, anyway. As the Splatfest, now the talk of everyone in the city, drew closer, day by day…she anticipated at least a couple of her friends to start introducing her to some lucky octo boys, assuming they'd manage to be as charming as they claim. Ula would struggle a bit in that department, she felt, though she caught a bit of guilt thinking about it. Regardless, once the hot pieces started rolling in, her friends were going to start wondering where the hell hers were. The truth was…she was beside herself with thoughts about the inkling with the Squiffer…coupled with daydreams of spending her first Splatfest with him. Her beans were going to spill eventually, and then…who knew what would follow?
About an hour into their second run, the group began to develop a gnarly craving for junk food. They each had eaten only small morsels for lunch earlier, ignoring the obvious fact that they were going to suffer for it as a result. Everyone in the gang, Aurora included, had dangerously gluttonous appetites. It was one of the few traits they all shared as a group. Therefore, they collectively agreed to cut their session short, gather their weapons and belongings, and jump back to the city to satisfy their pangs and place their Splatfest votes. Crusty Sean's selection of deep-fried, high-calorie snacks were on the mischievous octolings' minds primarily, and his truck was conveniently located right in the bustling center of Inkopolis Square.
Everyone's shadows were steadily getting longer as Aurora and her friends approached the famous food truck from down the street. As the square, Inkopolis's most popular hangout spot, came into view, the group realized they would be spending quite a bit of time there that evening. The line for the food truck stretched all the way to the entrance of the nearby arcade, and the line for the Splatfest kiosk stretched even farther. They already knew, from Ophelia's news, that the Splatfest had first been announced just earlier that day, but none of them could've expected the square to become so…busy as a result.
There were inklings everywhere. Aurora and the others had no trouble locating a few octolings in the mix, though their numbers were severely lacking in comparison. Not a single empty table could be found in the area, nor was there a bench in sight that wasn't straining under the weight of crowds of inklings laughing and happily trying on their new Splatfest t-shirts. Inklings in their squid form even dotted the sidewalks, slithering and jumping around among their friends, who stood against the walls of the shops with their cellphones out. It was kind of an impressive spectacle, they had to admit, considering how underpopulated the square had been at lunchtime.
Bella bit her lip as she surveyed the square's incredible density. "Are you girls sure this is a good idea? I still feel a little bit high right now, and…there are tons of inklings here."
Aurora glanced over at her and risked another few words. "Would you be more comfortable if they were octolings?"
"Yes, actually. At least octolings are more likely to forgive us for walking near them with seaweed smell on our asses!" She answered frantically.
"Hey, hey." Ophelia cut in. She waited until she had Bella's attention, and then she imitated a slow, calming, deep breath. "Just relax. Paranoia seems to get you good on this stuff."
Bella had seemed a lot more at ease by the canal, since she was surrounded by friends and nobody else. It was also much easier for her to mouth off to disdainful inklings when there were only a few of them, unlike the hordes that populated the square. Not being perfectly sober certainly didn't help either. She simply had to remind herself that most denizens of the city were friendly and accepting. The prejudiced few were exactly that. The few.
Ula led the charge into the square, caring little to none about her and her friends' impaired state. She was known for being stubbornly direct with what was on her mind, and right now…her hunger was the only thing on her mind. Aurora followed closely behind her, with Eight picking up her stride thereafter. Eventually, Bella and Ophelia lagged along. Bella was the only one in the group that showed any sort of nervous energy.
"These lines don't seem to end." Ula muttered irritably. She turned around and panned her gaze across her friend group. "How are we going to do this?"
Aurora took a peek around Ula at the gargantuan queues that seemed to snake all around the square. If they were lucky, she and her friends were looking at a wait of about twenty minutes…in each line. They were all starving, and with both Bella's paranoia and Ula's gripey impatience nipping down her neck, Aurora felt like it was going to feel much longer. Cutting the line would obviously result in public ridicule, especially if they chose to piss off the wrong inklings, so they essentially had no choice but to endure each line individually and hope they moved quickly.
Just as she was about to swallow her minor trepidation and submit to the wait, Eight surprised the group again by providing another clever suggestion. "Well…we could split up. You three can wait for the food truck, since you have the tickets on you, and Aurora and I can stand in line for the Splatfest thing. We'll be on the other team, after all."
For a few seconds, no one said anything, just like the last time Eight had provided a suggestion. Eight was easily the most passive member of the group, and she was always open to objections, but no one ever had any to give. Whenever she threw in some input, her friends' problems were always solved.
"That's…a pretty good idea, actually. We should be able to cut the wait time in half if we do that." Aurora added. "As long as you guys manage to get our food before we finish placing our votes."
Ophelia shrugged, prompting both Bella and Ula to do the same. Once again, it was the best idea they had. "Alright, fair enough. Tell us what you want from Crusty's so we know what to get."
Aurora answered almost immediately. No matter the day nor the time, she always got the same thing from the Crust Bucket. It was surprising that Ophelia didn't already have her order memorized. "Double-Fried Super Schwaffle and a Special-Charge Shake, please."
"Extra whipped cream, right?" Ophelia asked, pointing at her for confirmation.
"Right." She nodded her head. Maybe Ophelia knew her order after all, she thought. Or maybe it was just a lucky guess.
Ophelia and the others looked to Eight for her order after Aurora's reply. Eight met her friends' gaze and knew it was her turn to answer, despite their silence. She cleared her throat softly.
"…Main-Up Guava is fine."
Ophelia waited for a second. Another second. One more. An awkward silence eventually settled among the group as they each waited for Eight to say something else…but she never did. Either her high had completely worn off, or…she just wasn't hungry somehow. Or both.
"Is…Is that all?" Ophelia stammered. "The Grizz pays me well in tickets too, you know. There's…definitely no shortage."
"…I'm alright."
Irked by her friends' cumbersome exchange, Ula cut the discussion short by throwing her arms above her head in a fake stretch. The loud, exaggerated exclamation she made nearly interrupted Eight's last response. "News flash, everyone; Eight doesn't want any food. Now, I don't know about either of you, but I'm going to get two Galactic Seanwiches and a Short-Respawn Mocha with an espresso shot!"
Bella let out a robust scoff, causing some spit to settle in her bandana. "Chill out, Ula, you're literally going to kill yourself with an order like that."
"Works out for you, then." Ula fired back through the uncompromising glint of her shades. "It'll be easier for you to pry my mocha from my cold, dead tentacles."
"Your tentacles aren't even going to be dead for at least another twelve hours if you drink a mocha around dinnertime." Bella returned with crossed arms. "And that's not even getting into the number of calories you'd be tacking on with two Galactic Seanwiches."
Ula stared at her friend with an ever-increasing level of vexation. She couldn't immediately tell if Bella was being serious…or if she was just trying to mess with her again. "Since when did you become my mom? Let me consume my calories in peace for once."
"Alright, well…we're going to go wait in the other line now." Aurora declared suddenly, sensing the rising tension between the two bickerers. Eight nodded her head in agreement.
"Cool, we'll catch up to you soon." Ophelia answered dutifully. She pretended, ineffectively, to ignore the typical episode unfolding in front of her. "I'll just go stand in the food line…with these two…for a while."
While it was clear that Ophelia's sendoff was an implicit cry for help, Aurora and Eight made haste to flee the scene before they could witness any more quarreling from Bella and Ula. As Aurora sloppily shimmied her way through some of the bystanders in the crowd on her way to the back of the kiosk line, she did not look back. Eight followed behind her with similar urgency, though she had no issue dodging and sliding through the masses with skillful agility. They both knew how Bella and Ula got when their highs started to decline, especially if late-day exhaustion played an additional factor. They found it better to bail on that trainwreck before it had the chance to escalate.
Luckily for them, finding the back of the kiosk line didn't prove to be a difficult task. While it did seem to weave around a little bit, its end was not too far away from the center of the square, well in their sight from their original spot by the food truck. Even though their line was longer than the food line, it seemed to them like they were going to be reaching the front around the same time as the others. After all, placing a vote at a kiosk and receiving a t-shirt didn't seem like the kind of activity that would take longer than waiting for food to be prepared. They just hoped the others would finish in their line soon enough to join them before they could finish the deed and have to wait in the line a second time.
Upon reaching the line's tail, Aurora was the first to plant her feet in her spot and begin waiting. Eight stepped around to the other side of her and did the same, opting as usual to do so without saying a word. They stood behind two sunny-looking inkling girls, both wearing flip-flops and skimpy tank-tops and giggling innocently over something they couldn't hear. The sound of it was quite inviting, as were the numerous, peaceful sounds of fellow citizens enjoying the city. The evening sun on their skin was always welcome, too.
Aurora didn't mind busy settings so much. Though her social skills were nothing to write home about, she rather enjoyed how clear her mind became as an average bystander in the presence of ambient crowds. They were a way to keep her grounded, in a sense. Her tranquility just depended on there being no unexpected disturbances, which, on the flip side, were more likely in populated areas. Her and her friends' repressed memories from their first days in Inkopolis could attest the dangers of living as an octoling in an inkling's world.
In the process of casually surveying her surroundings, while remembering what she was standing in line for in the first place, Aurora's thoughts eventually trailed back to the upcoming Splatfest. The tension in the turf wars had to be ludicrous, she imagined, considering the extra weight placed on the victories. The atmosphere was going to be invigorating as well, as she and the others had never battled it out after dusk before, let alone with the festival lights and booming audiences that were likely going to accompany the venues. Also…there was the thought about splatting it up against Bella, Ula, and Ophelia for once, which…had some of its own effects on her. She pictured a scenario of herself and Eight, donning the color of Team Personality, facing off against their three friends in a venue like Moray Towers under the starry, night sky…with a stadium's worth of inklings watching from the high-rise parking structures nearby. Needless to say, the thought caused a small rush of adrenaline to course through her chest.
Everyone knew, though, that turf wars weren't the only things that defined the Splatfest. Getting to splat her friends on the battlefield was one thing, but having such thoughts led Aurora to wonder just what was going to come of her friends in the event…and whether they were really going to grab themselves dates for the festivities. There was no way they were going to be able to land any of the hot ones, right? The girls had a fun range of personalities, of course, and she knew they were feisty enough to find out how to please a boy if they wanted to, but she couldn't picture them being capable of wooing guys that were out of their leagues.
She certainly wouldn't blame them for trying, however. For the expense of only some minor humiliation, at worst, the reward of putting themselves out into the dating sphere was well worth the risk. After all, nothing was more titillating to Aurora than the thought of getting swept off her feet by a confident stud under the raving strobe lights of a roaring Splatfest.
With that imagery now passing through her, she shifted rather quickly to the inevitable. The inkling boy with the Squiffer came flooding back into her mind full force, saturating her senses with the illusory sensations of a powerful fantasy.
He came with no warning, pushing fellow inklings aside as he approached her at her spot, eyes fixed assuredly on her own. He wore his Squiffer proudly on his back as a message of defiance to any of his potential opposers. Off the Hook's wild and fresh beats filled the square around them in the moments preceding their union, gripping them both with the same euphoric energy that embodied the greatest event in Inkopolis history. Their eye contact did not break as he stepped right up to where she stood and placed his hands on her shoulders. He studied her…seeing for himself the curves she flaunted under her shorts and her Team Personality t-shirt, the hypnotizing glint of the party lights on her full-moon glasses, and the expectant plea for his touch in her feminine body language.
He did not hesitate to oblige to her desire by wrapping his arms around her hips and pulling her towards him for a silent kiss. His face, at point-blank, was the last thing she saw as she melted completely against her inkling lover, her eyes closing after falling victim to the overwhelming sensation of his lips against hers. Her appendages fell limp at the mercy of his embrace under the stars, surrounded by countless dozens of partygoers with dumbfounded looks on their faces. Their stares only worked to escalate her excitement.
The nameless inkling with the Squiffer worked away at her like that, slowly, until he could feel the readiness in her through his hands and his pelvis. He knew how badly she wanted him. Hell, in the heat of the moment, he knew everything about her. He was about to show his octoling prey the proper way inklings celebrated the Splatfest, and he had his weapon poised on his back in case anyone wanted to object to it. It all began with the work of his hands against the back of her waist…and the gentle tug they made against the bottom seam of her t-shirt…morphing subtly into a blooming tingle as he snuck them underneath the fabric. A dull whine escaped her throat, against her every effort to withhold it, resulting from her insatiable craving for the final deed. She wanted more. And luckily for her…he knew that, too.
"Aurora, are you okay?" Eight's voice chimed suddenly.
Aurora, after jumping a mile in her skin, blinked a few times. Her visions of intimacy ended as soon as her daydream was interrupted, leaving her gazing awkwardly at Eight while regathering herself. Her friend's expression seemed to reflect a bit of…concern.
"Um…what?" She cleared her throat a few times, though they both knew she didn't really need to. "What did you say?"
"I just asked if you were okay. You've been acting kind of strange today." Eight reiterated. Aurora could practically count the number of sentences Eight had spoken today on one hand, so her choice to initiate a conversation came as a bit of a shock.
"I'm…I'm not acting strange. You've been acting strange." She babbled defensively.
Eight kept her eyes fixated on Aurora's. Her expression did not change at all. Aurora waited a moment for her to say something, or to at least reciprocate, but…once again…she got nothing. After a few seconds, Eight merely shrugged her shoulders and returned her attention to the front of the line. Aurora had no way of knowing whether such an apathetic response was born of actual apathy, forgiveness, annoyance, or outright contempt. Nothing Eight ever did nor said could be deciphered that easily, and quite frankly, it often drove her nuts.
Eventually, she cracked. The defeated sigh she gave off caused Eight to turn back toward her. "Okay, I'm just…a little embarrassed, I guess."
Eight raised a brow, showing more interest all of a sudden. "Embarrassed? …What for?"
Already, Aurora hadn't expected to get this far in the conversation with her friend. She didn't talk to Eight much, especially without her other friends around, so she couldn't exactly understand why she felt compelled to confess her afternoon to her. Perhaps it was because she felt desperate to get the words out to someone, and Eight was easily the most indifferent and absorbing octo in her friend group. At least…that's how Aurora perceived her. Standing next to her like that, gal-to-gal…gave her just enough comfort in the matter.
"I don't know…just all this talk about boys…" She muttered.
"The Splatfest?"
"…Yeah, I suppose." She acknowledged with a nod. Her eyes were focused on the ground, but she could still see Eight looking directly at her with a cocked head through the corner of her sight. "I kind of hope I can get a date…"
Eight maintained her gaze. Aurora knew she was being looked at, and she deliberately avoided looking back at her because of it. She felt a bit sensitive about the situation, even with the twinge of confidence she got talking to her, since…she found it to be less of a laughing matter than her friends did. She had no evidence that Eight would sympathize with her, or if she would shrug it off carelessly like she did with everything else. She also felt irrationally worried about getting called out by her impassive companion for the reality of things.
Eight hadn't put all the pieces of the puzzle together yet, though. "I would like a date, too. It sounds nice."
Aurora grinned just slightly. "Mmm…it does."
"Our friends seem to think it's nice, as well." Eight added. "What could be embarrassing about it, then?"
The closer Aurora got to the breaking of the ice, the more nervous she became. She could only hope that Eight would take the news lightly, and…in addition…that no one standing near them would overhear her. Why was she picking now to come clean, anyway? What was it about Eight that made her feel more secure about doing so? Nothing made sense, it seemed.
Most of her response came out as a long, incomprehensible stutter. "It's just…I…you see…there's…er…"
"…Is there someone you like?" Eight asked, saving Aurora from her dead end.
"Yes! Yes, there, um…there is. Thank you." She let out another huff, which Eight interpreted as weary. She was just so incredibly bad at explaining things sometimes.
Just then, the departure of a large group at the front spurred movement from the line. Aurora and Eight walked forward with it accordingly, making a subconscious effort to avoid getting too close to the inkling girls ahead of them. They looked like a friendly pair, sharing laughs and good vibes with each other, but that didn't keep Aurora and Eight from playing it safe anyway. Their business was their own, and as long as they kept it that way with strangers, there was never a chance of encountering any issues in public. Such rules sat engrained in their heads…almost as much as their ability to morph into octo form.
"It's okay to have a crush, Aurora." Eight mentioned as soon as they stopped moving again. Her gaze remained on her even still, having never left since the moment Aurora had begun to talk to her. Aurora couldn't help but be a bit impressed with the amount of openness her otherwise-silent friend was displaying. It only made sense that her behavior was a result of her other friends' absence at the moment.
She glanced up at her in an effort to stop looking so awkward, and her gaze met Eight's for a brief moment. "Do…Do you have a crush too?"
Her question was met with another long pause. Eight's gaze fell to the side a bit, her emotionless expression seeming to change…without actually changing…to suggest thoughtfulness. Aurora began to grow aware of the ambient noises around her again from the conversation's sudden halt, and for a few seconds, she thought her question was going to go unanswered. When she did finally hear her response, she found it to be a bit…lackluster.
"…I'm not sure."
Aurora let that reply ring in her head for a second. She couldn't help but be curious about what it meant, and whether it would've been unfair to ask her more about it while having yet to reveal her own crush. She didn't get many opportunities to talk to her friends individually, so she found herself developing a nagging urge to know more details about Eight. There was also the fact that Eight had been quick to ditch the rest of her friends in favor of joining her on Team Personality, despite not knowing her true intentions behind choosing it in the first place. Maybe they could go shopping at Arowana Mall sometime to catch up a little more before the Splatfest. She figured they could also grab a bite and watch a few turf wars there while they were at it.
That question would have to come later, though. While Aurora was pondering this, she heard the sound of a group of footsteps heading in their direction from behind, accompanied by a flurry of male voices. She and Eight kept their eyes forward as the footsteps grew closer, until they eventually came to a stop right behind them. The voices continued, of course, carrying with them the sounds of plain, intermingled conversation. From what she could hear, Aurora assumed it to be a group of dudes…inkling dudes, that was…entering the line behind them. Her spot in the line was already starting to feel a bit cramped for her comfort.
Her better judgement told her to avoid interaction with the boys, considering her position amongst them. She and Eight only had themselves to rely on for a while, and the more she listened to their idle shuffling, the more she could hear the sounds of…weapons. In particular, two heavy thumps pattered through her ears around the same time the footsteps stopped, suggesting that a couple of them were hoisting some behemoths around the square. Didn't they know it was illegal to open-carry splat weapons around the city square?
Aurora only managed to ignore the arriving group for ten to fifteen seconds before subtly glancing over her shoulder, her curiosity having quickly betrayed her. It was a bit difficult to catch a glimpse of the boys without making her interest obvious to them, since they were standing almost directly behind her and Eight. A couple of them were standing just far enough to the side for her to see them with the corner of her eye. When she did so…she gasped sharply and nearly collapsed into her octo form.
It was the Squiffer inkling. He was standing directly behind her and Eight. Though she had only caught the briefest of glances before turning back around, she noticed his head buried in his phone…and his weapon strapped cozily to his back. He still had his headphones on, so he likely hadn't heard her little exclamation upon seeing him. At that point, it didn't take a detective to know that the rest of the boys behind them were actually her and her friends' opponents from the battle earlier. She did not expect to see them here at such a time.
Aurora suddenly stood with considerable discomfort in her stance. Her foot began tapping gently as a hint of nervous energy worked its way into her. Clearly, fate was giving her this chance…right? Or was it a warning? Was she supposed to make a move? Was something going to happen on its own? After all…she had just finished having an embarrassingly intimate daydream about this guy, and…now he was standing right behind her. What were his friends going to think if she did something?
"Aurora…?"
"Hmm? What?" She jolted. Eight seemed to be glaring at her, looking concerned again.
"I'm just checking on you."
"Oh…I'm fine. Nothing's wrong."
Eight raised a brow. "…Nothing?" She leaned to the side a bit so she could get a better look at the inklings standing behind them. "…Are you sure?"
"Yes, I'm sure, Eight. I'm just…thinking about stuff." Why did the quietest of all her friends suddenly have to know everything so insistently? Now that the subject of her abashment was standing within ten feet of her, her confidence was completely gone.
"…I would like to help." Eight stated blankly.
Aurora put a hand on her hip and shot her friend a slightly annoyed look. "You would like to help me think about stuff?"
Eight didn't seem at all fazed by her sarcastic remark. She shook her head slowly while maintaining her usual, featureless expression. "No, I would like to help you feel better. You seem stressed."
"Oh, well…" She greatly appreciated her friend's selflessness, though…she wished it didn't have to be at such a bad time. "…that's really nice of you, but…it's kinda…hard to explain right now."
Eight cocked her head a second time. She seemed increasingly invested in what was going on with her friend. She thought she was being fairly outgoing, but…Aurora didn't seem to want to reciprocate her advances. It felt like a good time to see what had been making her act so tense since the battle earlier, seeing as how they were standing alone with each other while their loud and manic friends were busy in the other line. Strangely, however, she got the feeling that Aurora didn't truly feel alone while standing next to her. She seemed to be acting like someone was breathing down her neck.
Suddenly, her thoughts were interrupted. She turned at the same time Aurora jumped, both having been stirred by the voice of one of the inkling boys behind them.
"Hey, look what Judd dragged into the square!" The voice uttered snootily. "It's the adorable lil' octo girls from the canal!"
"Heeey, you're right!" Another voice chimed. Almost immediately, three of the four inklings proceeded to chatter wildly about Aurora and Eight. Aurora closed her eyes and took a deep, calming breath as she felt their collective glares fall onto her. Apparently she didn't even have to interact with them to fuck that up.
"Where are your lil' friends?" The first voice jabbed. "Off losing another turf war? Or maybe sharing needles behind a dumpster again?"
Rounds of laughter trickled from the conceited group, and Aurora was silently wishing that Bella was with her at the moment. Bella knew how to deflect verbal attacks like a master…a black-belt in sass. Surely, she would know how to put the Squiffer guy's brutish pals in their places. For this one, though…she and Eight would have to deal with their crap on their own. They both turned to face the gang, figuring there was no longer any point to ignoring their presence. It was then that Aurora got a proper eyeful of the boys.
True to what she had suspected, the rest of them were all carrying their weapons in the square, in clear defiance of the city's regulations. Both the .96 Gal dude and Aurora's favorite Squiffer guy stood with their weapons harnessed to their backs, while the guys with the Splatling and the Dynamo Roller kept their colossal weapons poised on the ground next to them. The Splatling guy, who had also been the one mocking her friends a second ago, was leaning on his weapon as if it were a lamppost on a shady street-corner. He wore the most puffed-up-looking grin Aurora had ever seen, looking visibly satisfied with his rather assumptive insults. Aurora also noticed, from closer inspection, that he was dressed entirely in black, with a FishFry bandana around his head, a long-sleeved Kensa coat, and a pair of pitch-black hi-top shoes, the brand of which was unclear to her. To put it nicely…he looked pretty edgy.
In contrast, the guy with the Squiffer…her rapidly-developing crush…was looking as fresh as ever under the evening sun. His head was tilted down while he scrolled through his phone, causing the floppy appendage of his hair to droop almost entirely over his right eye. Even just standing there with his usual lack of interest, he looked immensely cute to her. That also wasn't to say that everything he did wasn't with an alluring degree of deliberation. He presented himself as the type that never hesitated, never second-guessed himself, and never made mistakes. Right down to his wide-legged stance, in fact, he was proving to the entire world that he wasn't taking crap from anybody. Aurora couldn't get enough of it. He was everything she wanted in a Splatfest date.
"Are you gonna answer me?" The Splatling guy jeered suddenly.
Aurora shook her head a few times to rid herself of her trance. Every time she started looking at, or even thinking about, the inkling with the Squiffer…she seemed to lose touch with her surroundings. "Uh…my friends? They're…um…they're not…here right now."
"Well…no shit! I can already see that!" He replied with a slightly raised voice, which startled Aurora a bit. He then stopped for a moment and gave a quick sigh, which looked to her and Eight like an attempt to regain his composure. Finally, he continued at his original volume. "What are you two doing here at this time of day? The slums are on the other end of town, you know."
Yikes, this guy was becoming a bit harsh. Aurora and the others had assumed, after his mocking at the battle earlier, that the Splatling guy was just a cocky and competitive individual. Ever since he got into the line behind them, however, she and Eight noticed that his insults were getting kind of…directed. They started catching on to their pattern.
She shrugged it off to avoid any escalation. It didn't help that Eight seemed too reluctant to step in and say something on her behalf. "We're…just waiting to vote for the Splatfest."
The Splatling crossed his arms. "Ahh…that's cute. You octos think you're gonna contribute to the Splatfest this year? You think you're gonna win it big?"
"I don't know…" Aurora responded sheepishly. She began tapping her fingers together as she struggled to make eye contact with the haughty inkling. "…We were hopefully just gonna have some fun…"
He grinned again. "You hear that, guys? The lil' octo girls are gonna have themselves some fun this year!" He glared back at her smugly while the other two guys chuckled amongst themselves. The Squiffer dude still didn't react, as he was still distracted by whatever was on his phone.
The .96 Gal spoke up from behind his friend. "What team will you octos be slithering into this year?"
Aurora was quickly getting off tilt by how often the boys were referring to them as "octos." Her and Eight's species didn't seem like an important detail to her, yet…in talking to this group of inklings…she couldn't seem to stop receiving the reminder. The way they kept saying it, especially with their condescending tone, left a really bad taste in her mouth. And that wasn't even getting into the offensive jokes they were pulling about her friends.
"We're both going Team Personality." She answered as boldly as she could, with the tallest stance she could muster.
"Oh, brilliant." The Splatling muttered. "Maybe our goody-two-shoes Squiffer will carry you enough to win a battle for once. If you're lucky, that is. He thinks he's too fresh to go Team Looks like the rest of us."
At this, Aurora perked up a bit. Did she just hear what she thought she heard? The Squiffer guy was going to be on Team Personality with her? Her eyes widened a bit as she felt a flutter of excitement course through her. She had taken a huge risk jumping onto the opposite team as her friends on such a fragile whim, but it seemed like it was going to pay off! Of course, her team selection wasn't final until the moment she voted at the kiosk and received her t-shirt, so if she had heard of the guy going for Team Looks instead, she would've probably changed her mind in response. Still, the news filled her with elation, and she spent the next few moments trying to hide the fact from everyone around her.
"He's going to be…with us?" She asked timidly.
The Splatling guy turned to the Squiffer guy and addressed him by name, completely ignoring Aurora's question and catching her off guard. "Yo, Midas!"
The Squiffer guy glanced up from his phone with a certain sense of disinterest, having faintly heard his name through his headphones. He turned his head toward the Splatling guy and paused his music. "What's up?"
Aurora blushed a bit when she heard his name for the first time. It seemed his name was Midas, apparently. It was a name more closely tied with the inklings, who, unlike the octolings, were less likely to put vowels at the ends of their names. She felt like the name was rather suiting for him, at least from the impression she had of him. It immediately struck a chord with her, as with many of his other features. She, of course, loved it.
"Just a fair warning to you, if you're still planning to fight against us on Team Personality." The Splatling guy lectured his friend, his grin steadily fading. He pointed at Aurora and Eight. "You're gonna be stuck with these octo girls from earlier today if you do."
In following his friend's pointed finger, Midas turned to look at Aurora. As he did so, he reached up with his free hand and brushed aside the hair appendage that was covering his eye. He did so in order to clear his view and get a better look at the girls, but…unbeknownst to him…Aurora found the gesture to be extremely tantalizing. Just watching him stare at her again, with both of his eyes, she felt a jump in her heartrate, coupled with a warm tingling sensation that seemed to bloom upwards from her chest into her cheeks. She figured her blush must've deepened by quite a bit, adding to the embarrassment she felt.
Aurora frantically tried to find a way to mask how she was feeling all of a sudden, but nothing was coming to mind. Before long, she feared that her attraction was going to start becoming obvious to someone, which was certainly not the way she wanted anyone finding out, especially Midas himself. It was insanely unnatural for an attraction to feel so strong within mere hours of first sight, she thought. What was going on? And how badly were these feelings going to escalate in the few days leading up to the Splatfest?
Finally, Aurora responded to Midas's glare in the only way that felt appropriate to her. She tucked her arm against her hip, and…with her other arm…she waved at him. She tried to be cute while doing so, meeting his gaze directly and flashing him an innocent, toothy smile. She shifted her stance onto one foot and raised her other knee slightly before realizing it, contributing involuntarily to her mediocre, unrehearsed flirting stance.
Midas watched the display with skepticism. He gave her a quick once-over, glimpsing at everything on her figure: from her Full-Moon glasses, past her exposed shoulders under her long-sleeve Annaki Drive t-shirt, down to her black Truffle Canvas hi-tops. The only physical reaction she seemed to get from him was a raised eyebrow. His expression didn't change, he didn't speak, and he certainly didn't wave back at her. A couple seconds went by like that, with his ongoing silence slowly eating a hole in the back of Aurora's mind. Ultimately…he never acknowledged her gesture. Instead, he wound up turning back to the Splatling guy and shrugging his shoulders.
"It doesn't matter that much. I probably won't end up battling with them anyway." He mumbled before looking back down at his phone. His hair appendage drooped back in front of his eye, but he didn't bother to adjust it again.
Aurora's smile dissolved rather quickly after that. Her waving hand fell back to her hip, and her raised knee straightened underneath her. Just as the line resumed its movement, spurring her and Eight to continue walking forward with it, she had returned to her original, uncomfortable position. Midas and his friends still needed a moment to catch up behind them, thanks to their large weapons stunting their mobility. Aurora's first attempt at flirting, if she could even call it an attempt, had been met with rejection. She let out a debilitated sigh, which Eight did not fail to notice.
Eight looked over at her again the moment they stopped moving, though she didn't seem to pick up on it until she addressed her another time. When she decided to do so, she had no trouble being blunt about the thing she had just witnessed.
"…Aurora?"
Aurora planted a hand on her forehead. "What?"
"…Is that inkling…your crush?"
The question hung in the air for a while. A simple yes-or-no question, it was, and yet…it seemed to completely corner her. The hand that was on her forehead slid aside to her cheek as she stood in utter, discomfited silence, her gaze remaining locked on the ground in front of her. Eight kept her eyes on her friend, as she always did when she was awaiting an answer, though her expression did not intensify. Even in a moment like this, it was still impossible to tell just how Eight was feeling about everything, and whether she approved or condemned Aurora's emotions. The matter was…the longer Aurora kept silent, the more she felt like she was implicitly answering Eight's question.
With a slow, defeated breath, she finally sated Eight's anticipation. "…I suppose you see now…why I choked at the end of the battle earlier?"
She assumed that Eight recognized Midas as the one that had shot her with the Squiffer earlier that day, and that he had been the reason for her little slip-up thereafter. It certainly must've answered many more of her questions, she figured. Then, when she saw Eight nod her head, she knew it to be the case. Eight was an intuitive octo, after all.
More silence sat over the duo for a few moments while Aurora allowed Eight to stomach the information. Knowing her friend, Aurora knew her secret wouldn't be spilled to her friends unless some outside force decreed it. Still…she hoped she could confide in her friend on the matter.
"I think that's…kind of cute, Aurora." Eight uttered plainly. Still no smile…still no gesture…still no discernible reaction of any kind. She could've been talking with dense sarcasm right then, but Aurora had no way of knowing it for sure.
"Please don't try to be nice, Eight." She emitted another sigh. "It's really embarrassing. I've…never felt this way before."
"Oh…sorry." She stood still for a moment and introduced another moment of silence before continuing. "But…Aurora…?"
Aurora was already listening, so her friend's constant need to reestablish her attention was getting kind of annoying. "What is it?"
"…Octolings aren't supposed to date inklings."
There it was. That damn line again. Aurora was absolutely sick of hearing such a phrase at this point, several months after moving to the big city. She couldn't exactly say that she had expected Eight to drop it on her like that, especially when seeing her in such an insecure state, but…she could see why it had to be said. Everything in Inkopolis seemed to come down to her species, unfortunately. As a species rooted in opposition to the inklings throughout history, particularly in the Great Turf War, octolings were held in rather low standing within the city's borders. Shortly after their exodus from Octo Valley, octolings were usually seen walking around the city streets in groups, since it was often difficult for them to find places in inkling cliques. Some shop owners have even been known to arbitrarily raise prices against octoling customers, while others have opted to refuse their business entirely. In such an unforgiving social climate, interspecies couples were among the rarest things one could find when exploring the city. In a trend that had not yet died with the times, octolings were expected to mingle and mate amongst their own ranks, unless an inkling specifically took a liking to them. Any attempts to sneak themselves into inkling culture that intimately were usually met with scorn.
Things had certainly improved since the days the exodus was going on, however, but nothing was perfect just yet. Many inklings began to see that their newfound octoling neighbors were rather friendly, with only the best and kindest intentions. Most of them were simply moving to Inkopolis in search of a purpose for themselves, particularly after DJ Octavio's capture left them without an identity. Inklings and octolings now lived in harmony for the most part, but the ones who were unable to overcome their prejudices still shared the same city streets, owned the same shops, and participated in the same turf wars. It was that fact, coupled with the lack of time they've had to adjust to the city, that was responsible for the slummy conditions in which most octoling immigrants lived. Aurora and her friends were just one example of that effect, and it sometimes frustrated her a bit.
"I know, I knoooow." She lamented. She took a few heavy steps forward with her friend as the line continued to shrink. "But…do you think there's still a chance?"
Eight said absolutely nothing. Aurora, having laid all her cards on the table with her, stared at her desperately. Coming clean to Eight about her crush being an inkling had not been on her itinerary for a while, and the horridly inconvenient circumstances in which it had happened made the whole thing even less pleasant for her. At this point, she was standing beside her friend in a truly humbled position, having fallen so far as to plead to her for reassurance.
"…I do not know." Eight finally stated.
Aurora was becoming unsatisfied with the vagueness of Eight's answers. She craved closure, even for the expense of diving a little deep. "I'm asking you, Eight…as a close friend. Don't you believe in pursuing a true love interest? Even if…maybe…it involves breaking the rules a little bit?"
It was a query of dynamite proportions. Aurora could kind of see it in Eight's expression, which changed ever so slightly at the end of it. A quick tinge of regret welled up within her as she realized she may have just asked a bit too much of her friend. She seemed to give the poor, quiet octo a little too much to think about…and a little too soon, at that.
"That's…a big question, Aurora."
"Yeah…maybe you're right." Aurora felt like she could use a drink. Or maybe two. "…I'm sorry."
The two of them fell into more prolonged silence. They walked together with the line as it shrunk some more, bringing them within a few more minutes of their turn at the kiosk. Midas's friend group dragged rather far behind them, since the Splatling and the Dynamo Roller kept having to hoist their weapons everywhere they went. During that time, with their lack of interaction lasting longer than it should've, Aurora got the feeling that her conversation with Eight was pretty much over. It was definitely nice of Eight to try breaking out of her shell in order to talk to her, but…it seemed she may have taken advantage of her friend's selflessness. Eight was a very reserved individual, and Aurora had to respect that.
Then, to her surprise, Eight actually answered her.
"I believe you would be very courageous to give it a try."
Aurora grinned, delighted with the unexpected, belated reply. "Thanks, Eight."
"Just…be careful."
Around the same time Midas's group caught up behind the pair in the line, Aurora and Eight heard a familiar voice calling for them from the direction of the food truck. They promptly turned to the sound of the call, and sure enough, they found Ophelia and the others swiftly approaching them through the crowd. They each carried armfuls of food with them, with Bella cradling both Aurora's and Eight's orders against her hips. Ula's hands looked the fullest by a considerable margin, though all the food she was carrying was her own. It looked like Bella and Ula had stopped bickering, thankfully.
"Glad we found you guys so close to the front of the line!" Ophelia beamed. "Looks like Eight's plan worked wonders!"
"Sucks we won't be finding a place to sit and eat this stuff, though." Bella added with a shrug. She glanced over at Ula, who was already sloppily chowing down on one of her Seanwiches without a free hand. "Or…perhaps that's not going to be a problem."
Aurora held up her hand again and waved at her friends, immediately remembering how she had done so for Midas not long prior. She buried the idle thought. "Oh, hey, girls. How'd you get through the food line so quickly?"
Bella stepped around Ophelia and handed Aurora her Schwaffle and her shake as soon as she and the others joined the line. She also handed Eight her Main-Up Guava with a smile, thinking nothing of Eight's typical failure to return the expression. Her friends usually just assumed that she didn't know how to smile.
"Well, we kind of got lucky on that front." Ophelia explained. "Many of the folks in our line got sick of waiting and left to go to your line before reaching the truck. We moved up kind of quickly, which was nice."
Aurora nodded in understanding. Then, Ophelia was cut off enthusiastically by Bella, startling her just slightly. "Oh, oh, also! You're gonna love this. A dude actually hit on me while we were almost at the front of the line!"
This elicited a sizable gasp from Aurora, at roughly the same time she saw Ula silently roll her eyes. "Really? No joke?"
Bella wore a massive grin on her face as she shook her head. "I wouldn't make this shit up!"
"…Was it an octo dude?" Aurora blurted.
"Duh, of course it was." She answered with a playful scoff. Aurora quickly realized how stupid the question was on her part. "You think I have what it takes to make an inkling like me? Don't flatter me!"
"Will he be taking you to the Splatfest?" Eight asked upon taking the first sip of her guava drink. Aurora seconded her question.
Bella's energy remained at peak amplitude while she spoke. "Pfft, nah, I totally rejected him. He was, like…a six-out-of-ten at best, and he was planning to join Team Personality. I still got a few days to find myself a real playboy!"
Aurora found herself empathizing with that octo's pain. While Midas hadn't outright rejected her in the line earlier, necessarily, she still got the message that he wasn't really interested in her. At least…yet, if she had something to say about it. Imagining what he must've felt…swallowing whatever nerves he must've had to ask out a date and get turned down, right in front of the date's friends…well, it wasn't a very enjoyable thought. She feared, rather deeply, in fact, the possibility of having the same outcome if she were to try asking out Midas directly. She would have to bide her time on that.
"I guess you gotta respect his courage, though!" Aurora squeaked, hoping it would help Bella see things from her admirer's perspective.
Bella thought on it for a moment before nonchalantly shrugging her shoulders. "Meh, I suppose."
Suddenly, not long after they squeezed into the line, Aurora's friends got called out. Their conversation was abruptly interrupted as the Splatling guy behind them took notice of their presence.
"Hey! What the hell do you all think you're doing?"
All five of the girls turned around at the barking sound of his voice, alerted by the furious tone it conveyed. It took Aurora's friends almost no time to recognize him and the others, considering the staunch rivalry they had shared just earlier that day.
"Oh, shit, it's you guys!" Bella taunted. "I take it your fragile egos couldn't handle an evening in the square without your weapons here to support them?"
"Cut the shit, octo. This ain't post-battle banter anymore." The Splatling hissed with a dismissive hand-flap. He didn't break eye contact, and neither did Bella.
"What the fuck are you gals cutting the line for?!" The Dynamo Roller piped up, adding to his friend's aggressive quips.
Aurora started getting disturbed by the prevalence of swearing that was accumulating in the situation. Bella's exchange with the inkling boys after the battle earlier had been rather irksome, sure, but it certainly had not been hostile like this one was becoming. The speed at which the tensions seemed to be rising this time, especially between Bella and the Splatling guy, caused Aurora's comfort to rapidly deteriorate.
"What does it look like? We're standing here with our friends, just like you ladies are. And, unlike you, we actually brought food for them." Bella retorted.
The Splatling guy stopped leaning against his weapon. His arms crossed in front of him as he assumed an upright stance, trying, with varying degrees of success, to intimidate Aurora and her friends. "You've got a lot of nerve talking to me like that, for a pit-dweller. You'd better watch yourself."
Aurora and Eight turned away shamefully the moment they heard the incredibly offensive slur roll off the guy's tongue. Ula, on the other hand, seemed to receive the insult with a whole new level of irritation. She set her food and drink on the ground next to her and immediately got engaged in the quarrel. "Pit-dweller? Are you fucking kidding me?"
Bella made her best attempt to ignore the remark, despite holding the belief that no octoling deserved to be called a pit-dweller. Her expression faltered slightly, but she managed to keep up the pressure. "What are you going to do? There are five of us…and four of you."
"Why don't you keep fucking testing me, and maybe you'll find out?" He threatened coldly. He took several muscly steps in Bella's direction as he said this, expecting her to retreat under his immensely unfriendly glare. The stunt worked well on Aurora, Eight, and Ophelia, but not on Bella nor Ula. When the Dynamo Roller saw this, he also stood up and prepared to support his friend.
Bella merely smirked in the face of her foe, an action which caused Aurora to flinch internally. Her friend's overbearing confidence, while on the verge of being beaten up, was too much for her to handle. "You'd really hit a girl? And a pit-dweller, no less? Your mom should've raised you better than that."
Finally, as the Splatling guy appeared to be rolling up his sleeves, Ophelia stepped forward and rested her hands on Bella's and Ula's shoulders, ushering them away from the agitated group of boys. Midas hadn't been paying attention to any of it, of course, but no one was looking to piss off more inklings than they already had. The two defenders resisted Ophelia's pull, but the gesture itself was enough to communicate the point to the Splatling guy and his cohorts.
"Alright guys, enough of this. We're going to the back of the line now." She declared.
"No fucking way, 'Lia. I'd like to punch this moron's lights out for thinking he can diss us like this." Ula rasped in reply.
To her shock, though, Ophelia stood her ground. "Girls, I said we're leaving. We're already starting to attract a lot of attention." She gave the girls' shoulders a good yank, making them stumble backwards a couple steps. Ula almost knocked over her mocha, which was sitting close to her heel on the ground. Ophelia then turned her gaze to the Splatling guy. "Look…we're sorry for getting in your way."
The Splatling's stance seemed to become more relaxed at the sound of that. He could tell that Ophelia was going to keep her friends under control. "That's the shit I like to hear. Make it fast, so we won't have to look at you anymore."
Ula leaned down and scooped her meal back up, snarling furiously at the inklings standing over her. "Piece of shit…"
Aurora glanced over at her friends sadly. She felt horrible for being unable to stand up for them when things started escalating. "…I guess we'll meet you guys back there after placing our votes."
Ophelia simply nodded her head in reply. Aurora and Eight then watched her lead the others toward the back of the line, which was now much farther away than it had been when Midas's friends first joined it. The entire time, she could see Bella's glare remain fixated on the Splatling guy, a clear indication that she still wasn't willing to back down. Aurora really worried for her friends sometimes, and…at the same time…she didn't know what she'd do without them.
To her utter dismay, however, the Splatling guy didn't seem to be done yet. As soon as the others were out of the way, he spoke up again with the same irritable tone that had caused her to fold from the sidelines just moments ago.
"By the way, I saw the way you were eyeballing Midas earlier. Don't think I didn't catch that cringy little mating dance you did while he was looking at you."
Aurora's hearts were practically beating out of her chest. "A…All…All I did was wave at him…"
"Makes no difference. You're even stupider than I thought if you think you have a chance with any inkling, let alone Midas. Learn your place, octoling." He spat. Aurora was at least glad he had enough decency to avoid calling her a pit-dweller again.
The Splating guy seemed deeply adamant about keeping octolings under his inky boot, Aurora thought. Not even the .96 Gal nor the Dynamo Roller seemed to share the level of racism that he had, though their obvious insensitivity resulted in similar behavior anyway. The only one that appeared to be indifferent about the whole deal with Aurora and Eight…was Midas. To her, that fact was already a huge bout of luck. She figured there was no way he could've stood in the middle of that fight earlier…with several of his friends fixing to send Bella and Ula to their early graves…and not noticed it happening. Clearly, he must've been taking a backseat on purpose. If that meant he at least kept an open mind about octolings, Aurora saw it as a golden opportunity to make him hers, in reckless spite of his friends' opposition. The hard part was figuring out a safe and appropriate way of asking him out, as the mere act itself was already a blatant taboo.
She knew that, if she could get his friends' blessing, asking Midas out would be easy. He would probably feel a lot more comfortable reciprocating her overtures if his friends were onboard with the pesky fact that she was an octoling. And even then, that was assuming he'd actually find her attractive enough to give her a shot. It all seemed hopelessly farfetched. Earning the blessing of a group of inklings that had just called her and her friends pit-dwellers…well, it sounded quite ludicrous.
But…then again…Aurora was never much of a realist. Aurora was a dreamer. Midas was practically an obsession she had developed in her mind since the battle earlier, and whenever Aurora got consumed by an obsession…she was known to drive herself into the ground trying to attain it. If she couldn't feasibly earn the blessing of Midas's friends, then, she thought…
…What if she could force them to give it to her?
"…Could I suggest something, maybe?" She babbled hastily. No going back now, she figured.
The Splatling guy didn't seem likely to entertain any input from her, but to her surprise, he yielded. "What?"
"M…My friends are probably going to be upset about all of this for a while." She began, swallowing a big lump in her throat. "What would you say to a rematch battle? Sometime tomorrow, maybe? You know…to settle things?"
The .96 Gal and the Dynamo Roller shot her their attention the second they heard her proposal. The Splatling guy, whose contemptuous gaze was already on her, didn't give an immediate reaction. Eight raised a brow from the sidelines, confused by her friend's sudden, bold intentions. She didn't expect such a heedless suggestion to come from her at such a time, freshly after their friends had gotten snuffed out of the line by the inklings in question.
Eventually, a grin appeared on the Splatling's face, and he began to chuckle. "A rematch? Are you serious?"
Aurora nodded her head, determined to carry through her plan with confidence. "Sure, why not? Same time as today's battle, whatever mode and venue happens to be in rotation. If you win, we'll never show our faces around you again."
The Splatling guy looked around at his friends with growing amusement, touching base with both the .96 Gal and the Dynamo Roller with nothing more than a brief, shared glance. Midas, on the other hand, still wasn't paying any attention to the exchange going on.
"And what do you expect us to do if you win?" He rebutted.
Aurora crossed her arms in front of her and raised her knee again, reviving her flirty pose without having to think about it. She mustered up a cocky smirk. "If we win…you have to set me up on a date with Midas. You'll let us hang out together for a day before the Splatfest, and then you'll let him decide if he wants to take me to the big night."
The Splatling guy nearly cut her off with a rapturous burst of laughter. The .96 Gal and the Dynamo Roller promptly followed suit, shrouding Aurora and Eight in an overbearing display of doubtful arrogance. Eight shot daggers at her friend when the terms passed her lips, though her wide eyes and woefully uncomfortable frown went completely unnoticed.
"Wow, that is adorable!" The Splatling guy guffawed. "You're really something else, octo. I'll give you that."
Aurora did not give an inch. "So, do we have a deal?"
"Sure, loser. Seems like you've been learning a thing or two from that bitch friend of yours. The one with the ponytail." He punctuated his agreement, as well as his backhanded jab at Bella, by holding out his hand for a shake, which Aurora took dutifully.
His grip was as firm as steel. Aurora, in her effort to maintain her dominance in the situation, fought against the urge to wince at the strength against her palm. Before letting go, she broke eye contact to glance over at Midas, who still appeared to be scrolling mindlessly through his phone like nothing was going on around him. Hot damn, he was cute. She wished she'd get to see his face when his friends broke the news to him, probably later that day. If he wasn't into her now…he was going to be.
Not long after the end of their exchange, the last of the inklings waiting in line ahead of them finished their turns at the kiosk. Aurora was distracted a bit initially, thanks to the uncontainable blizzard of thoughts that were rushing through her mind, but eventually, a gesture from Eight snapped her attention back forward. After an eventful wait in the line, Midas and his friends didn't seem too bothered by her slowness. After all, they now had battle strategy on their minds.
A small, googly-eyed jellyfish was stationed next to the kiosk when Aurora and Eight made their approach. He held a large, bulky-looking clipboard in one of his outstretched appendages, and in the other, a ballpoint pen. Behind him sat two sizable piles of t-shirts, one for each team in the Splatfest. The shirts in the stack for Team Looks were a fiery shade of orangish-red, while the Team Personality shirts were some derivative of beachy cyan. They were both beautiful colors in Aurora's opinion, but she knew which color would be belonging to her.
They each gave their name to the jellyfish, along with their team declaration. The jellyfish took a few seconds to write their names down on his clipboard, during which Aurora found herself noticing the small sticker that was pasted on the front-facing side of the kiosk. It read, "REMEMBER: All Splatfest votes are final!" She didn't think it to be a necessary reminder, but…the nature of the statement still left her with a slightly strange feeling. It totally wasn't regret, though.
After he was finished, he shimmied to the side and allowed Aurora and Eight to grab their own t-shirts from the Personality stack. Aurora reached forward and grabbed two of them, handing one of them to Eight immediately thereafter. As she stared down at the symbolic piece of clothing, her entry into her first ever Splatfest, a feeling of wonder welled up inside of her. That Team Personality insignia was the thing she would be standing by, donning as her banner in the heat of battle on Splatfest night, for the glory of proving that personalities were indisputably hotter than looks!
…Weren't they?
As the two of them turned away from the kiosk and began to depart for the back of the line to join up with their friends, the Splatling guy stopped them again. Aurora sighed internally, feeling burned out from the events of the evening and wishing they would just leave her and Eight alone, in peace, until the time came for their rematch. Reluctantly, they both turned their heads to see what the guys wanted.
"Just thought we'd give you girls a parting gift." The Splatling guy said with a cheeky grin. As he was saying it, the .96 Gal ran up to Eight without warning, swiped her Guava drink right out of her hand, and splashed it all over her. Aurora gave a sharp gasp and put a hand up to her mouth, appalled by the unexpected attack.
Despite not having the reflexes to dodge the spiteful inkling's cheap trick, Eight was able to clamp her eyes shut and swing her Splatfest t-shirt out of the way before getting drenched, preventing it from getting any stains. When the deed was finished, and the .96 Gal threw Eight's now-empty drink cup at her feet, she did not react. Even as the group of boys, minus Midas, of course, proceeded to laugh at what they had done, her expression did not change at all. Aurora, on the other hand, was left staring in dumbfounded shock at the spectacle.
"While you're back there, tell your hotheaded friends that that one's on them!" The Splatling guy sneered. More laughter spilled from the group with the closing remark.
Aurora looked over at Eight with pure misery in her eyes. "Oh my cod, Eight…are you okay? I…I'm so sorry they did that to you…"
Eight shook her head wildly for a moment to force some of the fruity liquid out of her hair. Without saying a word, she set out for the back of the line, her expression remaining…as always…perfectly neutral. Aurora followed closely behind her.
"I am fine." She insisted calmly. "Just…please be careful, Aurora."