Following the incident with the octo boys, Aurora struggled to return to a talkative state. She had prepared a few personal questions for Eight before asking her to come to The Reef that day, and their dinner together was supposed to be the perfect time to ask them in a private, peaceful setting. However, after nearly having her innocence stolen from her by her dastardly visitors, she couldn't muster the energy needed to carry on a conversation. Eight understood completely. Being the laconic cephalopod that she was, she avoided saying anything that would make Aurora uncomfortable, choosing instead to amuse herself with the events of the turf wars happening below. Aurora wound up doing the same after she and Eight had returned to the table with their food. As a result, the two octos spoke very little during their dinner.
The activity around The Reef never slowed down during the remainder of their stay. The girls were lucky to have found a table when they did, as another ten minutes in the shops would've rendered the terraces near the arena untouchable. Squids and octos were scattered all over the sidewalks, producing a constant stream of zestful chatter that never seemed to quit. Just like everywhere else in the city, the upcoming Splatfest was taking the hotspot by storm. Aurora even spotted a number of Splatfest t-shirts among the fray, and as her eyes scanned over them, she kept a mental tally of each side's popularity. For every aqua-blue Team Personality t-shirt she saw, she counted about…three Team Looks shirts. She didn't really know what to make of those numbers.
Over the course of their meal, which lasted roughly an hour, the turf wars continued on tap with raging, and rather entertaining, ferocity. Though some battles had longer waits than others, the overall density of inklings and octolings looking to splat away their evenings kept the arena lively the entire time. The girls had to guard their food a few times from rogue Sting-Rays and Ink Storms, but in their opinion, that aspect was part of the fun. It certainly beat sitting back at the apartment with Bella and Ula…considering the disharmony she had introduced between them.
Eventually, when the streetlights around The Reef began to illuminate, and the arena started to close down at the end of the last skirmish, Aurora and Eight were not quick to stick around. Shortly after the last shots of ink left the combatants' weapons, and the winning team was announced, the duo stood up from the table simultaneously, gathered their belongings, and removed their trash from the table to be discarded. A posh-looking inkling couple swooped in to take their seats as soon as they had vacated them, each glaring disgustedly at Aurora's tank top before sitting down. Aurora looked the other way and refused to let herself feel any more shame for her raunchy clothing choice.
Once everything was in order, the girls directed themselves toward Inkopolis Square and super-jumped before anyone else could hassle Aurora over her appearance. They still needed to recover their weapons from storage before heading back to Eight's apartment. It never took long for them to do so, of course, but after the way things had gone on the terrace, Aurora didn't want to take any chances. After all, the square was still alive with scores of Splatfest applicants, and it only took one pair of wandering eyes for things to start going south again. Eight had to break into a light jog to keep up with her friend as she bolted towards Sheldon's shop to retrieve their stuff. They knew Sheldon wouldn't judge.
It wasn't until after they had finished this task, with Eight's E-Liter on her back and Aurora holding her Splattershot in front of her chest, that the two octos finally spoke to each other again. Eight piped up first, just as Aurora was beginning to make her way towards the nearby metro station.
"Aurora…wait."
Aurora stopped and turned around. "What?"
"We should not take the metro." She uttered, pulling out her phone and tapping the screen with her finger. "I am calling a taxi."
"A taxi? But...the metro is so much faster."
Eight glanced up from the screen for a moment, meeting Aurora's gaze directly. Aurora tried to read her friend's expression, but to no avail. "I am just looking out for you. You are dressed very provocatively."
"…Oh…" Aurora mumbled. She stared down into the drooping collar of her tank top again while Eight summoned a taxi to the outskirts of the square through an app on her phone. As convenient as the metro station would've been, Aurora understood why Eight deemed it a risky move. The metro was used almost exclusively by octolings, the majority of which were likely to lack restraint upon seeing Aurora's exposed curves bouncing around with the movement of the subway car. Once again, her friend was doing her a subtle favor.
The taxi driver, a well-groomed inkling boy with a casual perm and glasses thicker than Aurora's, remained quiet during the ride back to Eight's apartment. Aurora was relieved by that fact, caring very little about whether he was doing it out of courtesy or contempt. As far as she was concerned, a quiet ride was a peaceful ride. She spent the entire trip leaning against the car door with her weapon on her lap, her eyes fixed on the sidewalk outside the window. A certain turmoil remained ever present in her mind, making it difficult for her to focus on one thought for more than a few minutes. It seemed like the problem was rapidly getting worse…with no end in sight until the moment she got her happy ending with Midas. She wanted to vent about it so desperately…to pour out her feelings in every last besotted, perverted detail…but she didn't know if Eight would be any more willing to listen than her other friends back home.
In such a jumbled state of mind, she didn't really notice the passage of time. The taxi zigzagged along the streets of the city, with the girls in tow, for about twenty minutes before reaching Eight's apartment building and coming to a stop along the sidewalk. Even then, it wasn't until Eight leaned forward to hand her card to the driver that Aurora noticed they were at their destination. The buildings had a tendency to start looking the same when her mind was lost in other things. Without waiting for Eight to finish paying, she stepped out of the car and began trudging toward the lobby doors. Eight followed her at a relaxed pace just a few moments later, after exiting the car herself.
Right away, two things jumped out to Aurora about the building that housed her dear friend. Firstly, there was the fact that it had an indoor lobby. In contrast, the stairwells and hallways of Aurora's home were all outdoors, resembling something like scaffolding instead of an actual part of the building's structure. Their place didn't even have a formal office on the first floor, while Eight's building had a long desk in its lobby that, from the looks of it, was occupied by a couple of octoling employees at all times of the day. Aurora could only imagine how nice it must've been for Eight to be able to report issues without having to pester the landlord over the phone. That aspect alone was enough to put Eight's living conditions a league or two ahead of her own.
The other thing Aurora noticed upon entering the blissfully air-conditioned building was the elevator on the back wall of the lobby. The humble octo almost couldn't believe her eyes when she saw it. Eight's apartment building actually had a real, functioning elevator. If the rest of the interior didn't already prove the superiority of the place, the elevator was definitely the deciding factor. Aurora had never even stayed in a hotel with such a luxury, let alone considered living in a place with one. She still had yet to see Eight's foyer at that point, and she was already flabbergasted by the gaping chasm that seemed to separate Eight's and her friends' economic standing.
Aurora kept a careful eye on the other octos in the lobby as she and Eight made their way to the mystical elevator. The lobby wasn't actually that crowded, considering the time of day, but Aurora preferred to be cautious anyway. The treatment she had gotten from those octo boys earlier had a way of making her wary of her surroundings. Therefore, she tried avidly to maintain an inconspicuous stride beside her friend as they approached the sliding doors. Even after Eight pushed the up-button on the panel, while they were waiting for the elevator to descend, Aurora stood very close to the doors with her back to the rest of the lobby.
It took the elevator about fifteen seconds to arrive at their floor. Aurora tapped her foot impatiently during the wait, eager to reach the safety and privacy of Eight's abode so she could change into comfier clothes for the night. When the elevator reached the lobby, and the doors began to open, Aurora stood herself as close to them as she could. Unfortunately, just as she was preparing to barrel into the elevator, she was startled by the sight of an octoling already standing inside. He stepped forward to exit into the lobby as soon as the doors granted him clearance, but he stopped once he caught a glimpse of Aurora's front side. The two of them gasped simultaneously, and Aurora whipped her body to the side to conceal her chest from the unexpected stranger.
With Eight watching vigilantly from behind, Aurora sidestepped her way into the elevator with her back turned to the octo dude. He merely stood and watched her as she moved, his eyes trailing to several different places.
"Damn, girl, are you lookin' for a Splatfest partner? We don't normally get cute veemos like you around here." He flirted.
"N…No thanks. I already have a Splatfest partner." She replied shakily.
The boy raised an eyebrow. "You sure you're happy with him, though? With the way you're dressed, you look to me like you're fixin' for someone else to take your reigns. Know what I'm sayin'?"
"These aren't for you." She repeated. She kept her back to him the entire time, unwilling to drive up his desire by giving him another peek. Eight positioned herself a little closer to her friend.
"Well, what are you showin' them to me for? And everyone else in the city?" He rebutted with a provoking chuckle. "I'm not the only guy who's gonna see all that and assume you're out for a mate."
Eight stepped between Aurora and the boy on the elevator, obstructing his view of her. She then faced him, narrowing her gaze to instill dominance in the situation once again. "Why are you still trying? You have been rejected. Move on."
He rolled his eyes. "Pfft, fine. A word of advice, try putting on a damn bra if you can't handle all the attention."
The boy marched off the elevator toward the front doors of the building without looking back. Hoping to avoid another unwanted encounter, Aurora urged Eight to press the correct button on the panel the second they had the elevator to themselves. Eight quickly obliged by leaning over in front of her and pressing the button for the fifth floor. Neither of them talked during the elevator's ascent, but Aurora was still ever grateful for her friend's protection. Without her, her clothing choice at The Reef would've probably gotten her abducted before long. She just hoped that Midas would provide her with the same security.
On the fifth floor, the elevator doors opened to reveal a junction, where the hallway extended an equal distance to both the left and the right. Aurora had never been inside Eight's apartment building, so she let Eight lead the way after stepping onto the carpeted floor of the waiting area. She followed her friend as she took the left side of the junction and strolled down the hallway toward her front door. Her E-Liter swayed slightly on her back with each step, the narrow tube on the end nearly colliding with the light fixtures on the ceiling on her way by. She seemed confident that her gigantic weapon wouldn't hit anything in the narrow space, which made sense, considering how often she walked through it on a daily basis.
With Aurora tottering close behind her, Eight stopped on the fuzzy welcome-mat in front of door number 588 and extracted her apartment key out of her new satchel. Aurora had always been curious of which exact room number Eight lived in, but once she saw it on the plaque above the knocker, she was not surprised by it. She waited quietly behind her friend while she briefly fiddled with the lock, anxious as ever to see the luscious interior of her middle-class apartment. The sound of the lock giving way after a few short seconds made her hearts flutter a bit. She couldn't wait to see how nice it was.
Eight turned the handle and pushed open the door, returning the key to her bag immediately after finishing with the lock. Aurora peeked over Eight's head using the added leverage from her high heels and observed what she could from the doorway. Right away, she was blown away by what she saw. It already looked like paradise on earth, but it wasn't until she stepped into the foyer and closed the door behind her that she got the most encompassing view of Eight's home.
The foyer opened straight through to the living room, which was teeming with the natural light of dusk from the tall windows that lined the back walls. The setting sun on the cusp of the city's skyline was actually the first thing Aurora saw upon entering the apartment, along with the orangish glow it cast over all the furniture. Compared to her own living room with the girls, which lacked direct access to the sun, it created a delightfully pleasant and refreshing atmosphere that could be felt the moment she had immersed herself in it.
The kitchen was located just left of the living room, and unlike the girls' kitchen, it was not separated by a doorway. Rather, it was connected to the living room as one large space, marked only by the floor's transition from carpet to tile. The kitchen itself was loaded with exquisite amenities, including a dishwasher, an oven with an electric stove on top, an overhead microwave, and even a stainless-steel refrigerator. There was even a bowl of fruit on the counter in the middle of the room. Aurora was most impressed by the open-style bar that faced the living room, allowing guests in the apartment to sit at the countertop without having to enter the kitchen. It was like something straight out of the TV shows.
On the other side of the space from the kitchen, a narrow, straight hallway extended beyond the right wall of the living room, ending in a trio of doors that couldn't be seen in much detail from where she was standing. She decided to wait for an invitation from Eight before bolting down that hallway to see what her bedroom looked like. As for the living room itself, the quality of its contents was second to none. The right wall hosted a flat-screen TV beside the entrance to the hallway, mounted above a glass entertainment center that served almost no purpose. A long couch with black leather upholstery was positioned facing the TV in the middle of the room, with ample space behind to walk around and access the bar. A coffee table sat right in front of the couch, just like in the girls' apartment, but its top was also made of glass instead of wood. Through the windows, much to her amazement, Aurora could see what appeared to be a balcony, with two lawn chairs and a miniature side-table bedecking its concrete surface before the falling sun. It wasn't immediately clear to her how to reach the balcony from inside, since the back wall did not have a door leading to it.
Everything in Eight's apartment, at least from what Aurora could see, was extremely clean and tidy. Aside from how spacious and cozy it was, the neatness was probably the biggest aspect that set it apart from the girls' apartment a few blocks over. The only object sitting atop the entertainment center beneath the TV was a mist-dispensing air freshener, which Aurora could smell the moment Eight had opened the front door. While there weren't many stray items to be seen throughout the apartment, the things she could see were arranged in a consistent, orderly manner. For instance, the TV remotes on the coffee table were placed perfectly parallel to each other, exactly the same distance apart. On top of that, the posters she kept on the front wall by the door were organized in a grid-like pattern, leaving no error in the gaps between them. Several of her posters matched the ones in the girls' apartment, but it threw Aurora off to see them exhibited so neatly.
"Holy kraken…" She uttered. "You live like an X-ranker compared to us…"
"It is sufficient." Eight replied. She bent over in front of Aurora and began taking off her shoes, prompting Aurora to do the same. It looked to her like Eight spent hours cleaning her home on a regular basis, so the last thing she wanted to do was track dirt and dust on the carpet.
"Sorry for asking, but…how do you afford a place like this? Do you work in one of the upper districts?"
Eight didn't respond right away. After setting her E-Liter against the wall and pushing her shoes aside with her foot, she walked across the living room and embarked down the hall towards the three doors. "I get help. From a friend."
"A friend? Is it the same friend that gave you your credit card?"
Aurora stayed right by Eight's side as she went, but Eight did not turn to acknowledge her. As usual, her friend did not seem eager to answer her question. She wondered if she was starting to get too personal for Eight's comfort, or if her pestering was annoying her into staying quiet.
At the end of the hallway, Eight stepped briskly into the door on the right, with Aurora following close behind. Once she got close enough to crane her head around and see what was inside, however, she stopped in her tracks and blushed sheepishly. It was a bathroom.
"Oh…I'm sorry. I'll…uhh…I'll give you a moment." She stammered.
Eight nodded once before closing the door behind her, leaving Aurora standing by herself in the hallway. Her first instinct was to turn around and dawdle back to the living room, since she didn't want to make Eight uncomfortable by standing within earshot while she was trying to freshen up. She was still curious as ever to see Eight's bedroom on the other side of the hall, but she knew she needed to be courteous in her friend's home. Especially considering how kind and selfless she had been to her all day.
On that note, Aurora returned to the living room, set her Splattershot next to Eight's weapon by the front door, and took another moment to drink in the sight of her spectacular residence. Her sense of awe was further amplified when she shimmied over to the couch and sat down, feeling the soft leather encase her weary appendages as she sank into the cushions. She couldn't wrap her head around the fact that her own friend…an octoling like her…was basically living like an inkling under her nose. Wealth and freshness, at least at the level enjoyed by inklings, were things she had accepted as being forever beyond her reach. Of course, even her humble little existence in the bottom-feeders' district was a step up from her childhood in Octo Valley, so she never really expected anything more. All this time, though…Eight had been secretly proving that a life of luxury could truly be lived by anyone. If only Aurora and her friends knew how she did it.
Thinking heavily about these things, and slowly dissolving from the blissful comfort of Eight's couch, Aurora let her gaze trail off toward the windows, where the tiniest shred of sunlight could still be seen backlighting the skyscrapers of Inkopolis. The city's lights were just about the only things illuminating Eight's apartment by this hour. The tranquil feelings they created were unlike anything Aurora had felt before. As far as she was concerned…her stresses were momentarily suspended by their glow.
However, it was not long before her mind returned to the present. While staring out at the city past Eight's balcony, Aurora noticed a small glint on the side-table from through the window. Her eyes focused on the disturbance, but without her usual glasses on, she couldn't tell what it was from the couch. Everything about the apartment made Aurora curious, and the contents of the balcony were no exception. The longer she stared, the more it bothered her. Eventually, without really having to think about it, she stood up from the couch and walked over to the window before pressing her face to the glass for a better look.
She couldn't make out much from the limited lighting, of course, but she was able to infer the shape of a thin, rod-like object sitting atop the foldable side-table on her friend's balcony. It looked narrow enough to be a writing utensil…of some kind. That would've made the most sense to the quizzical octo, but the object didn't seem to be accompanied by any paper, and she didn't find it sensible for someone as clean and organized as Eight to leave a pencil or pen sitting out on her balcony instead of on a desk or in a drawer. As if that weren't strange enough, the side-table also seemed to host a small collection of mint-sized pods, which were glassy in texture, and stored in a shallow dish that was barely visible under the conditions. It was a quaint little setup, and one that quickly piqued Aurora's interest.
After a few more seconds of staring, she was forced to withdraw her face from the window by the sound of Eight approaching from down the hall. Regardless, she kept her gaze fixed on the balcony. Eight was rather intrigued by it when she emerged in the living room in her pajamas.
"Are you alright?"
"Yeah, yeah, it's just…" She pointed out the window. "…what's that thing on the table out there? I've never seen anything like it before."
"My clear pen?"
Aurora turned to look at her. "Clear…pen? So it is for writing?"
"No, it is not for writing." Eight answered, shaking her head. "Those pods in the tray are filled with seaweed extract."
Aurora blinked a few times. She wasn't quite sure she heard her friend correctly. Eight continued to stare at her as she stood completely frozen in place, trying unsuccessfully to keep her shocked reaction under control. She stuttered incomprehensibly for a few seconds.
"Y…You smoke seaweed? On your own? I thought only lower-ring octolings like us did stuff like that!"
Based on Eight's temperate expression, she didn't seem to find the fact strange at all. "I did not used to, but Ophelia got me into it. If I am feeling stressed, it helps me go to sleep."
"That's just…so…wow. I did not know that about you." Aurora put a hand on her hip. "I didn't even know you could get stressed. You're like…the most rigid octo I've ever known."
"Everyone gets stressed, Aurora. There is a lot more to life than we are both aware of."
"Yeah…" She muttered weakly. She broke her gaze with Eight and glanced down at the carpet as more images of Midas passed through her mind. "…I guess you're right."
A moment of silence transpired between the two girls while Aurora stared at the floor. Neither of them moved from their spots. Aurora could not imagine Eight being stressed about anything, so it was difficult for her fathom the secret aspects of her life that would cause her to feel grief. She was practically rich, she lived in a nice place, she had a gang of tight-knit friends that cared about her, and she was, more or less, really good at everything. How could Eight, the octo with the golden toothpick, have anything to stress about? The answer was just going to have to come as another surprise. After all, with her, there were always many.
"Would you like to have some with me?" She asked suddenly, breaking the silence.
Aurora looked up at her. "You want to…smoke seaweed? Right now? On the balcony?"
Eight nodded while maintaining her straight face. "I do. It is a beautiful night."
"Uhh…I…well…" She hadn't expected such a question, that was for sure. Knowing how the stuff tended to mess with her head, especially with her big date tomorrow, she needed a moment to think it over. "…I suppose we could…"
Eight made a gesture with her hand. "Follow me. We can get to the balcony from my bedroom."
Aurora perked up at the sound of that. Eight turned around and began walking back down the hallway without waiting for her friend's response, but at that point, she had already grabbed Aurora's interest. Aurora promptly jogged across the living room to join the PJ'd octo in time for her to reach her bedroom door, which was across from the hall from the bathroom on the left. As Eight grabbed hold of the handle and pushed the door open, Aurora felt a greater level of excitement than she had while waiting outside the foyer.
Her first view of the room came when Eight stepped inside and headed towards the door to the balcony. Aurora's eyes immediately settled on the kraken-sized bed in the middle of the room. It didn't surprise her much that Eight had made her bed that morning, having tucked the comforter into the edges of the mattress with stunning expertise. The comforter itself was adorned with the famous logo of the Squid Sisters, featuring the cartoonish graphic of the celebrities' hands in the "stay fresh" position. The room itself was sparse on decorations, save for the bookshelf behind the bed, which displayed numerous specimens of Inkopolis memorabilia, ranging from album covers and figurines of the Squid Sisters…to framed pictures of Aurora and the girls on their many adventures in the city. She had framed several pictures of the girls together as a group, as well as a picture of each of them individually. It seemed that, from the looks of it, Eight liked to keep lots of memories.
While Aurora was most intrigued by the bed and the items on the shelf behind it, she also noticed a simple four-legged desk in the opposite corner of the room by the wardrobe. Atop the desk lay a small collection of pens, each a different ink color, along with a stack of notebook paper. Not a single sheet was misaligned in the stack, and the pens were all kept exactly parallel to each other, just like the TV remotes on the living room coffee table. It was set up like a nice little writing station. Aurora felt a sudden, powerful urge to go snoop around that desk the moment she laid eyes on it. Writing was the last hobby she would've ever imagined Eight having, so she felt inclined to discover what the quiet octo liked to write about. She didn't get the chance right then, however, as Eight was already waiting for her by the balcony door.
Aurora thanked Eight for holding the door open for her before stepping back out into the calm, late-evening air. The sun itself had recently disappeared from the horizon, and the last remnants of its radiance were just beginning to fade from the sky above. Despite this, though, it was still slightly warmer outside than in Eight's apartment. Aurora's tank top was drafty enough to make the weather feel beautiful. She admired the feeling of it, as well as the fifth-floor view that accompanied it, as she sat down on the lawn chair to the left of the side-table. Eight closed the door behind herself shortly thereafter and sat down in the other available seat, grabbing the clear pen from the table before Aurora had a chance to look at it more closely.
"You know…I never would've guessed that you'd be so into this stuff. Octolings like us usually do it, because…we don't really have anything else. Ula even says it's all she has…" Aurora babbled, trailing off slightly.
"I always join you whenever you and the girls have some." Eight replied blandly, keeping her usual expression while she twisted the end of the pen and removed the empty pod that was inside. "Don't I?"
"Well…yeah…" Aurora stuttered. "…but I just thought you were doing it to fit in with us. With all the nice things you have…and all your money…you remind me more of an inkling than anything else."
"I am an octoling, just like you. I like to have fun. You and the girls thought this was fun, so I joined you." She paused for a moment, setting the old pod carefully on the table and grabbing a new one from the dish to put in the device. "We are not that different."
Aurora nodded slowly. "I see. I guess I just found it interesting that you started doing it on your own. Y'know…without any of us around. And with that…weird…pen thingy."
Without looking at Aurora, Eight fastened the cap back on the clear pen and pressed down on a small button that was located on its side. She held it there, motionless, without blinking, until a tiny green light appeared next to the button. Aurora watched her do it with unbridled fascination. She had been around seaweed much of her adolescent life, but she had never seen such a strange way of doing it before.
"It is electric." Her friend explained. "It heats up the seaweed extract in the pod, which turns it into vapor. It is easier to inhale than smoke from a lighter."
"Whoa…that's the freshest thing ever. I didn't even know that was possible!" She stated keenly.
Aurora thought Eight was going to explain more about the intriguing contraption, but instead, she got right to demonstrating. With the little green light illuminating her thumb, she brought the straw-like device to her mouth, closed her lips around it, and drew in a slow breath. Aurora listened intently to the soft crackling noise made by the object as air was pulled through it into Eight's lungs. She wasn't sure how hard she would have to inhale, nor for how long, but she figured she'd get her answers by watching her friend do it. It looked quite slick to her, and without the added hassle required by Ophelia's bong, it seemed to hold a lot of promise.
Eight withdrew the pen from her face after a couple seconds and sucked in a larger breath to end her hit. Under Aurora's enthralled glare, she exhaled gently, releasing a pale mist of spent vapor into the air through her mouth and nose. She held the pen between her fingers while she expelled the cloud. Aurora couldn't get over how cool it looked compared to the bong. Ultimately dismissing her prior skepticism, she sat forward in her seat and waited eagerly for Eight to hand the pen to her, which she graciously did after allowing her hit to simmer for a few moments.
As soon as Aurora had possession of the device, she mimicked Eight by pressing down on the button with her thumb until the green light came to life in her hand. She then raised the tip of the pen to her mouth and sucked in greedily, her eyes widening to convey the gesture. Eight observed the spectacle with her typical, calm expression. Once the seconds began to tick by like that, with Aurora's lips still closed around the pen, she had to intervene.
"Okay, Aurora, I think that is eno…"
Aurora cut her off slightly as she sputtered once, dispensing a small puff of vapor from her face, and then instantly plummeted into a fit of violent coughing. She whipped the pen away from her face and managed to hold it out for Eight to take while she balled her other hand into a fist in front of her mouth. With each high-pitched cough that wracked her throat, a thick, hazy plume of vapor erupted from her mouth and enveloped her in her seat. The urge to cough had overtaken her so quickly, and now it was too late to rescind. She thought she was handling it rather well at first, as most amateurs often did, before her lungs were suddenly awash with fire from the hot mist.
"I thought…you said…that this thing was easier to hit!" She wheezed between coughs.
"It is." Eight insisted, fanning some of her friend's cloudy coughs away from herself. "But you are not supposed to hit it like a bong. Seaweed extract is very potent, so you do not need to take so much of it."
Aurora gained enough control of her coughing after a few moments to focus on Eight once more, just in time to see her return the pen to her mouth and take another hit. The same familiar crackling sound graced the balcony another time as Eight drew in a moderate amount of vapor from the device without so much as a glimmer of protest from her lungs. Aurora knew when she had handed it back to her that she had over-salivated on it as a result of her coughing, but Eight hadn't bothered to wipe it off before putting it back in her mouth. Rather, she seemed more concerned with showing her friend the proper way to hit a clear pen like a true middle-class octoling…and getting delightfully high while doing it.
The experienced octo removed the pen from her mouth and, while holding her breath, held it towards Aurora at arm's length for another try. Aurora reached up and shyly plucked the device out of her friend's outstretched hand, watching her exhale her dose at exactly the same time. She made it look so easy. Aurora was amused, and quite a bit impressed, at Eight's crafty little display of showmanship. If Midas were to ever take a hit of seaweed like that in front of her, she thought to herself, she would melt into a puddle right on the spot.
Eight sat back in her seat after her second hit. Aurora, with the pen poised comfortably between her thumb and index finger, let out the breath she was holding to prepare for her follow-up toke. Before taking it, though, she glanced right at Eight and attempted to make up for their missed conversation during dinner.
"So…you're a fan of the Squid Sisters, huh?"
Eight turned her head and looked right at her friend. As Aurora brought the pen to her mouth and drew in her second breath, she noticed a change in Eight's posture. Her ears seemed to perk up initially, followed by the rest of her figure as she adjusted to a more upright position.
"I am. Their music inspires me."
A short response, it was, but it was a good enough start for Aurora. She finished inhaling an ample dose from the pen, held it in for a moment, and then let it out with a calm, controlled sigh. Eight was right; the clear pen was a nice little piece when hit correctly.
She handed the device back to Eight, expecting her to raise it up for another hit. Instead, however, she saw her friend turn it off and set it back on the side-table.
"Two hits is good enough. I would still like to be able to walk in a couple hours." Eight declared.
Aurora giggled at her joke. Eight just kept her usual, straight face.
"Anyway, which song is your favorite? Do you have favorites?" She asked innocently.
"Of course. My favorite is the Calamari Inkantation." Eight answered. She kept every ounce of her attention on Aurora after she had started the conversation. "I love it very much."
"You know, I had a feeling you were going to say that." Aurora winked. "The Inkantation is sooooo good. It's what put the Squid Sisters on the map for most of us."
"Yes. If it weren't for the Calamari Inkantation, I would not be here today. I have been very fond of the Squid Sisters since the day I first heard it." Eight explained. Now that the seaweed was beginning to take root in her system, she was hopelessly stuck against the back of her chair with her arms splayed out on the armrests.
Aurora's eyes widened. "Whoa…so, you're saying…that the Calamari Inkantation…saved your life somehow?"
To that, Eight shook her head. "No, actually, I would say it saved…my future. I would not be here, living in Inkopolis, if it weren't for that song."
"Oh, I see what you mean. How did it do that?"
Aurora hoped she wasn't being too nosy with her questions. She was already quite impressed with how open Eight was being with her, considering how secretive she always was about her history. Aurora, along with Bella and Ophelia, had tried numerous times to learn about Eight's background in the past, especially while sharing seaweed from the bong, but they could never get the taciturn octo to crack. Aurora's biggest issue at the moment was wanting to know too much about her dearest friend…and not having the restraint to avoid prying. After all, she had just taken a thunderous toke off the pen, and as her body began to shut down and glue her to her seat, her mind took off like a motorboat headed for the Ruins of Ark Polaris.
Eight didn't say anything for a while. Aurora's question still hung in the air, awkwardly untouched, for several seconds while the two octos stared beyond Eight's balcony at the columns of lights that aligned the nearest buildings. Eventually, the escalating chaos in Aurora's brain caused her to forget about her question altogether and default to a zombie-like state, with a dead gaze that seemed to stretch on forever. Her eyelids felt heavy, yet her hearts felt like they were beating miles out of her chest. And they wouldn't stop getting faster.
Finally, Eight broke the silence. She completely dodged Aurora's question, though, opting instead to introduce one of her own.
"How are you feeling?"
Aurora couldn't think straight. She could hear herself taking slow, heaving breaths. "I…I feel…gone…"
"…Gone?" Eight echoed, turning her head sluggishly. "Do you…at least…feel good?"
"I…don't know. I th…think I do…"
"You took in a lot more than normal. You will just need to relax for a while."
"Oh, believe me…" Aurora wheezed. "…I am very relaxed." She giggled stupidly, despite barely having the energy to lift a single finger.
At this point, it was clear to Eight that Aurora was well beyond stoned. If her immoderate breathing and increasingly delusional tone didn't already give it away, her unfocused gaze certainly did. She was staring somewhere off in the distance without responding much to Eight's presence on the balcony with her. Eight knew it had been a while since Aurora's last hit of seaweed. With the way things now stood, concerning the big date at Albacore Hotel tomorrow, she didn't actually think Aurora would be willing to toke up on such short notice. Now that they had this time together, Eight tried to break out of her shell a bit more and address the things that had been bothering her all day.
"…Aurora?"
"Huh?" Aurora answered, responding as if she had just been startled out of a vivid daydream.
"Are you sure you want to go to Albacore Hotel tomorrow…dressed like that?" She asked monotonously. She wished her words would sound as emotional as she felt while saying them, but she never really learned how to communicate emotion.
"Of…course I do." Aurora replied between deep, gulping breaths. "How else…am I going…to win over Midas?"
"I will not be there with you tomorrow. What if you are harassed?"
"I want…Midas…to harass me. When he sees me in this top…and those new heels…he'll have to want me! He'll just have to!"
"Aurora…"
Aurora turned her head finally, cutting Eight off with the full brunt of her baked glare. Eight could already see discoloration in her eyeballs. "Boys are…simple creatures, Eight. I'm gonna show Midas…that I want the D! His cute, sexy…inkling D!"
Eight let out a huff. "This is not healthy, Aurora. There is something you should know about Albacore Hotel. And about inklings."
"Something I should know? What else…is there to know? Albacore Hotel is…my favorite place to splat. It's all nice and…tropical 'n stuff." Aurora produced another demented grin as she pictured the place in her head. "Midas and I are gonna get so drunk together…and kiss a lot…and maybe go flop around behind the concert stage on the water…"
"Please listen." Eight finally blurted, cutting Aurora off for the very first time. "I am not comfortable with you going to the hotel tomorrow."
"Wait…huh? You're not?" Aurora stammered, cocking her head slightly in confusion. Her eyes were far from white at this point, and Eight could see it.
Eight shook her head again. "No. Albacore Hotel is a dangerous place to go without friends to support you."
"That's…ridiculous. Albacore Hotel is…the nicest place in Inkopolis! Plus, I'm going to have Midas with me."
Eight was growing increasingly dissatisfied with the direction of their conversation the longer it went on. She had hoped that sharing seaweed with Aurora would settle the obsession in her mind and make her more receptive to a calm, open discussion, but it was actually the opposite that seemed to be happening. In fact, it seemed like the best part of their conversation on the balcony was actually the beginning of it, before the vapor had had a chance to go to her friend's head. Aurora was becoming rather manic now, thinking only about how hard she wanted to get inked by Midas while in the midst of a full-body stone that prevented her from moving anything below her neck. All of a sudden, Eight felt like she had done her pal a disservice by offering to share the clear pen with her.
"Aurora, Midas is not your friend. He will not support you. I think…" She hesitated for a moment before continuing, which was another rarity for her. "…I think he is trying to get rid of you."
Aurora was taken aback by that statement. She eyed Eight directly and let out a hearty scoff. "What? What…makes you think that?"
"You see…the thing about inklings is…they are very territorial."
"So? We are, too."
"Yes, but we are already in our territory. Albacore Hotel is inkling territory." Eight explained. "It is right in the middle of the richest part of the city."
Aurora, with a bit of effort, put a hand up to her cheek. "I…I don't understand. We've…been to Albacore Hotel before. We've had…turf wars there. We've even gone and…gotten drinks there before!"
"The splatting arena is for everyone." Eight mentioned. "The inklings at the bars like to watch battles. They do not care who is part of them. They also will not bother anyone that is part of a large group, which is why we have been able to go there and enjoy ourselves on occasion. But…if you go there with Midas tomorrow…you may not be so lucky."
"I…don't get it…" Aurora muttered, sounding slightly despaired. "I thought…there were only a few inklings in the city…that didn't like us. Why would the hotel…be any different?"
Eight could not be sure that Aurora was going to take her words to heart. All she could do was tell her the truth and hope she saw the risk for herself. She had to recognize Eight's experience in the city, right? Eight had seen more of the underlying nature of Inkopolis than all four of her friends combined, so she was confident in the dangers of trespassing into the wrong areas of the inklings' world. She prayed internally that she could get the message across.
She spent a moment trying to find the best way to answer Aurora's question. Aurora kept her gaze rigidly pointed at her in the meantime, waiting patiently in her dazed state for the explanation she was looking for.
"There are inklings in this city that have not forgotten about the Great Zapfish." She began, still hesitating occasionally in the pursuit of the best words. "After the incident with Callie's disappearance, they began to hate octolings like us. We were the cause of all their problems. Then, when all of you began migrating here from Octo Valley…they were angered. They had already claimed the whole city of Inkopolis as their territory. You, Aurora, are an intruder. And so are the rest of us."
"…Wow, I…wow." Aurora babbled. "Why don't they choose…to hate DJ Octavio, then? Most of us weren't even involved with him! Well…we think Ula might've been…but she won't talk to us about that."
"It does not make a difference to them. These inklings believe that all octolings are their enemies. That is why they often gather at Albacore Hotel to escape from us. It is the most upper-class hangout in the city."
Aurora sunk even further into her seat. The more she listened to Eight warn her about her upcoming date, the heavier her body began to feel. It was as if an invisible bundle of tentacles was wrapping itself around her and dragging her downwards through the lawn chair. Her eyelids drooped to the point of being nearly closed, and her rear proceeded to slide forward until she was slouched against the back of the seat. Everything felt like jelly. Her mind, however, was already severely outpacing the frantic thudding of her hearts, enshrouding her in a deranged stupor that left Eight's warnings hitting a wall in her ears. She understood everything her friend was saying, but the only thing her mind was able to process was her lush daydream. She still only wanted one thing, and she would not be deterred.
"Midas…wouldn't…do that to me." She mumbled, on the verge of incoherence. "Those inklings…should be able to handle at least one octoling…in their precious hotel."
Eight saw what was beginning to happen to Aurora. She strongly regretted the decision to bust out her clear pen for this discussion. "You would have to be quite lucky for that. Ever since Midas said he would meet you at Albacore Hotel, I have been hoping that you would not run into any trouble. However, if you go to the hotel dressed like that…there will be no hope for you. You are going to offend the other visitors."
"Come on, Eight…my clothes aren't that bad. I just wanna…push Midas's buttons a bit." Aurora replied with a roll of her eyes.
Eight rebutted by crossing her arms in front of her and giving Aurora a stern, disapproving glare. "Aurora, I can see one of your nipples. You have been flashing me for the past several minutes."
"Whaaat? Why didn't you…tell me sooner?"
Eight opened her mouth to respond, but she stopped herself from saying anything. Aurora remained slouched in her lazy position, waiting for Eight to give her answer without doing anything about her rogue breast. The two of them fell into another brief period of silence while Eight tried awkwardly to think of something to say. After Aurora's initial reaction, she didn't seem bothered by the fact that she was unintentionally exposing herself to her friend. She seemed to stare right through Eight with a plethora of lethargy and general disinterest toward her risks.
"Aren't you going to…cover up?" Eight finally asked.
"Mmm…meh. Too much work. I'm…comfortable like this." Aurora sighed in response. She sucked in a big, tired breath and let it out slowly.
Eight took that response with another huff. "I wish you would be more modest, Aurora. Your obsessions are making me worried."
"Well, Eight…" Aurora began with a dismissive flair. "…I wish you would be a little less modest sometimes. Why aren't you trying to find a date for the Splatfest, huh? What's got your tentacles in a twist?"
Eight was completely blindsided by that question. Her eyes widened, and her parental stance in the situation seemed to falter suddenly. She was facing Aurora from a different angle now.
"…What?"
"The Splatfest is the day after tomorrow, you know. I don't know why you're spending so much time worrying about me…instead of trying to put yourself out there. You'd…probably have at least one boy knocking on your door by now." Aurora muttered, still refusing to adjust her tank top. "Why don't you want a date?"
"…I do want a date."
"Then…what gives?"
"I am just trying to protect you." Eight mentioned diligently.
Aurora frowned. "You already have protected me, Eight. Back on the terrace, and also in the lobby downstairs. I'm…really grateful for that, by the way, so…thank you." She waited a moment for Eight to respond, but all she got was a simple nod. So, she continued. "But…it doesn't make sense that you're so bent out of shape over what I've been choosing to wear. The Splatfest is your chance to make a good impression to the boys! Why aren't you taking it?"
Eight wanted to avoid that question, and she made it known to Aurora rather quickly. She adjusted her sitting position and rested her hands in her lap. Her eyes also kept glancing down to the side, where Aurora's right breast was still shamelessly sharing in the glow of the city lights. Aurora watched her do this through her lazy, drooped eyelids. She always got a weird feeling whenever Eight struggled to answer a question.
"…Eight?"
"It is complicated for me. I am still trying to figure it out." Eight suddenly answered, pulling her eyes away from her distraction to look Aurora directly in the eye.
Aurora didn't feel satisfied with her response, but she knew it was probably the best one she was going to get. She and the other girls knew that Eight was rather inept at expressing herself, which was obviously a hindrance to picking up mates. It seemed like Eight just didn't know how to be flirty. Hell, it wasn't like Aurora was any better at vamping, but she at least knew how to demonstrate her attraction to a boy when the time came, even if her attempts were incredibly sloppy. Eight didn't even know how to smile when passing a friendly stranger on the street.
"…Uh huuuh." She hummed. "You just gotta try being brave. I get really jittery and nervous whenever I'm around Midas, but I managed to get this far by powering through it and focusing on how great it would be to mix colors with him at the Splatfest." She explained, giggling stupidly at the end as her mind was filled with another raunchy daydream.
Eight was beginning to lose her confidence. The seaweed had caused Aurora's shell to break down quite noticeably, unleashing a flurry of inappropriate thoughts and nosy questions that would otherwise go unshared. Unsure of how to move forward with the conversation, Eight glanced down at the ground for a moment, then back up at Aurora.
"…Brave?"
"Yeah, like…I wouldn't be any closer to having Midas as my boyfriend…if I hadn't faced those inkling boys and asked for that rematch." Her entire body lolled to the side against the armrest as she said this, causing her breast to come further into view through her tank top. Eight had an extremely hard time pulling her eyes away from it. "Once you find that perfect match…you just gotta go for it."
"Aurora…"
"Is there a boy that you want to date? Someone you think is cute? Or really sexy?"
Eight yanked her gaze away again, but this time, she didn't glance back. Her focus returned to the city-lit horizon beyond the balcony, where it remained for the next part of their discussion. Aurora noticed how long it was taking her friend to answer. Once again, she could not explain the feeling she got from it.
When Eight finally gave her response, it was not an answer to Aurora's question.
"You are not really on Team Personality…are you, Aurora?" She asked in a hushed voice.
It was a question with deep implications, but Aurora, in her impaired state, took it at face value. "Um…I guess not. I chose Personality because I thought Midas would be on that team. Why?"
Eight slowly shook her head, her gaze still fixated on the buildings before them. "…I will try being brave, like you have said. But, Aurora…your 'bravery'…I think it is reckless. It has divided us."
Aurora let out a long breath, which could be felt by Eight a few feet away. "Maybe a little…but it isn't something we can't overcome. We've made it through much worse together."
"Yes…but we have also never experienced a Splatfest together before. Bella and the others are mad at you…and we are also on opposing Splatfest teams. We are very divided. Is Midas worth all of that to you?" Eight queried.
"There will be more Splatfests." Aurora fired back. "But Midas is the one. I have to be with him. He has to love me back. He has to."
Aurora's eyes closed at the end of that last statement. With Eight still looking the other way, she slid further back against her seat to the point where her neck was propped up on the bottom of the backrest. The rest of her body protruded forward from the chair, distracting Eight again as her feet made their way into her personal space. It was as if a powerful trance had overtaken her upon letting Midas enter her mind again. Her grip on the world around her started to loosen…and be replaced by the lucid sensation of her crush's tentacles enveloping her body. It was happening again, just like it had in both the sleeping bag and the changing room.
When Eight snuck a glimpse in her friend's direction and saw her reaching under her tank top to squeeze her own boobs a few times, she immediately stood up from her chair and marched back to the balcony door. Aurora was jolted out of her hypnosis by the sound of the knob turning. Her eyes opened quickly, and she sat up fully in her seat.
"Wha…hey…wait! Where are you going?" She babbled.
"I am going to bed. The seaweed has made me tired." Eight declared somberly. "Feel free to sleep wherever you want."
"Wait, you can't just leave me out here! I still need to borrow some night clothes!"
Eight looked visibly displeased. "I never said you could not come inside. There are spare pajamas in my wardrobe for you to wear."
"Oh, uh…okay. Thank you."
Aurora stood up weakly from her seat, nearly collapsing back into it from her apparent wooziness. Despite feeling somewhat off tilt about the events of their talk, Eight gave Aurora mercy by holding the door open for her while she recovered her balance and waddled over to it. It was right as Aurora was passing Eight and stepping through the doorframe into Eight's bedroom that she made a dispiriting realization. She didn't have her Wah-Wah with her. He was still back at the girls' apartment, probably by the sink where she had left him that morning. When the fact crossed her mind, she whimpered sadly.
"Is something wrong?" Eight asked upon stepping inside and closing the door behind her.
Aurora trusted Eight not to make fun of her like Bella always did, so she felt comfortable explaining the cause of her woe. "…I left Wah-Wah back at home…"
Eight raised an eyebrow. "Wah…Wah…?"
"Yeah…he's a plushie. I've had him since I was a hatchling." She sighed. "I…I can't sleep without him…"
Eight stood behind her sulking friend without saying anything. Certain forces always seemed to act on the phlegmatic octo whenever she saw her friend in despair, like when she was forced to watch her mope in silence in front of the high heel display back at The Reef. Those forces were, of course, acting on her again, growing stronger with each wordless moment that passed between the two of them. Eventually, her agitated temperament began to dissolve. She looked down to the side again, entering a deeply pensive state for a few seconds. She thought about some of the things Aurora had said during their conversation.
"…Would you like to sleep with me tonight? In my bed?"
Aurora's response to that was…mixed, to say the least. She turned around slowly and glared at Eight with a confused expression.
"You'd let me sleep…with you?" She stammered awkwardly. "We…uhh…we don't…do that kind of stuff back at home…"
She couldn't help but feel like Eight's offer was a joke, but when she studied her face, she observed no change in her expression. As always, her face remained perfectly indecipherable. It was just so strange to her.
"Perhaps I am not like the other girls. I am happy to do it if you need company during your sleep." Eight stated.
Aurora pondered the decision for a few more seconds, murmuring and stuttering the entire time. It was quite an unusual proposition to her, especially coming from Eight, but it also sounded delightfully warm and thoughtful. Considering how she often felt trying to get through the night without Wah-Wah in her arms, she found the offer to be massively superior to sleeping on the couch in the living room by herself. She really couldn't refuse.
"A…Alright. I guess I can join you."
Eight's stance appeared to change completely. She nodded once. "Veemo. There are comfortable clothes in the bottom drawer. You can take anything from there and go change in the bathroom."
Aurora acknowledged her instructions, but something else had caught her attention. "Did…did you just say 'veemo?'"
"…I did."
"Um…okay." She chuckled. "I just…never heard you say that before."
"I can say it more if you would like me to."
"Nah, it's…fine. You can say whatever you want."
Aurora left Eight standing by the door to go raid her wardrobe for something to wear to bed. Eight clearly had nothing to hide, nor did she seem to favor a particular item in her wardrobe, but Aurora still wanted to respect her friend's belongings. Therefore, when she knelt in front of the wardrobe and pulled open the drawer beneath the main cabinet, she picked through the clothing items inside very selectively. They were, of course, folded as neatly as could be, while also being organized by the colors of the rainbow. She expected no less from her companion at this point.
Meanwhile, Eight had begun pulling back the comforter and the sheets on her bed with careful precision. She started on the side closest to the door shortly after Aurora had stepped over to the wardrobe, peeling the layers back as if she were peeling the world's most fragile banana. Then, while Aurora was still distracted, she walked around to the other side of the bed and peeled back the other side, revealing a perfectly linear strip of mattress where the pillows were nestled. After that, she climbed onto the bed and crawled steadily to the new crevice she had created, where she proceeded to insert her body under the covers and lay her head on one of the pillows. Such was her daily routine, meticulously finessing her bed every time she planned to get in or out of it.
By the time Eight was finished, laying in a snug position with her head slightly propped forward by her pillow, Aurora had already disappeared to the bathroom with a loose-fitting ensemble from the drawer. Eight merely laid there, staring at the opposite wall and reminiscing on her conversation with Aurora while she waited for her to return. Of course, since Aurora hadn't been wearing much to begin with, it didn't take her long to wrap up and return to the bedroom with her newly store-bought day clothes wadded up in her fist. She grinned at Eight as she stepped through the doorway.
"Just so you know, I didn't spend too much time looking through your wardrobe, because…there's something I wanted to ask you." Aurora mentioned as she turned off the light and strode over to the bed to join her friend under the covers.
"What is it?" Eight prompted.
Aurora dropped her day clothes lazily on the floor by the side of the bed. "Is it okay if I…sleep as an octo tonight? I'm usually pretty insecure about my octo form…"
Eight shrugged. "Of course. Is something bothering you?"
"No, no, I just…" She paused for a few moments as she struggled to find a euphemism. "…I just…kick around a lot when I dream. I don't want to disturb your sleep."
"Oh. Okay, then."
Aurora chose not to share the actual reason for going to sleep in her octo form. Looking back on the rest of the day, she knew that she had no choice. She was way too prone to touching herself whenever Midas entered her mind. The problem was especially evident at night, during her most intense dreams, if her friends' soiled sleeping bag was any indication. If she were to accidentally ink all over Eight's fancy bedspread…she'd certainly want to jump off the balcony before sunrise. Sleeping in her octo form was the only way she could prevent that from happening.
Eight watched her through the darkness of the room as she climbed onto the bed next to her and morphed into her octo form. She was about to help Aurora get under the covers by lifting them up and granting her entrance, but she seemed to have no trouble slithering up to the spare pillow and pulling the covers over herself with her wriggly tentacles. Once she was settled, she glanced at Eight with her big, googly eyes and blinked once.
"Goodnight, Aurora." Eight uttered in a quiet, soothing voice.
Aurora extended one of her tentacles and tapped Eight once on the thigh as a way to return the favor. But then, just as she was beginning to close her eyes and drift into a peaceful sleep, Eight did something that completely shocked and confused her. She turned her whole body towards Aurora under the covers, and…in a soft, gentle motion…she wrapped her arms snugly around her mantle. The perturbed octo's eyes initially shot back open as she felt this, but over time, she became deeply relaxed by the intimate sensation. Before she knew it, the warm, sheltering feel of Eight's grasp caused her to pass out within minutes.
One of the last things to pass through Aurora's mind before she slipped into her most blissful slumber was how amazing it felt to be close to someone else. Almost immediately after feeling Eight's arms close around her, she had completely forgotten about her Wah-Wah. It was almost as if…she didn't need him anymore.
One thing was certain. She could not wait for Midas to do this to her.