Something to say at the begin? Egad! Anyway, Callie and Marie have a duet in this chap, so to sum up,

This means Callie is singing

This means Marie is singing

This means they're both singing

Got it? That is all for now.

"Alright girls, you'll be on soon. Are you ready?"

"We're ready!"

"Wonderful! I'll come get you both when it's your turn!" The older Inkling male exited the room to leave the two cousins alone.

"Ugh. I swear, I love Splatfest, but I hate our part in it,"

"Come on Marie. It isn't that bad. I thought you liked to sing,"

"I do. Just not the same song for six hours straight with no break," Callie let out a small chuckle before returning her sights to the party in the streets below. Marie took out her phone and started fiddling with it. "It's been awfully quiet lately huh?" The room fell into silence for a moment. Well, as silent as a room can get with such a big party going on outside of it.

"You think we should check on gramps soon?" Callie asked as Marie shrugged behind her.

"Maybe. We'll run and see him tomorrow," Callie waved at a fan as they made eye contact before returning to her seat across from her sister and waiting for their turn to sing.

Upon returning to the plaza the group pretty much did the same thing as the first time. All but Inkay moved onto the dance floor while Inkay simply observed. He eventually wandered over to Spyke's little corner and chatted with him for a while before returning to his bench. They had been there about half an hour when the music quieted down as another Inkling took the mike.

"What up my party squids?! Y'all having a good time?!" The crowd burst into cheers as the Inkling nodded his head. "Alright alright. Now it's that time of the night again. Now which one of you fresh squids want to get up here and show us what you got?!" Again, the crowd erupted into cheers and shouts of approval. "So here's what we're going to do. We gonna get one of you lucky squids to come up here and sing us a song. Afterwards we're going to have a short break then you will be entertained by the one, the only, Squid Sisters!" Biggest cheer yet. "So who wants to come up and sing for us?"

The crowd chanted "me" as bodies jumps and hands were raised high. The Inkling scanned his eyes over the crowd humming to himself as he choice the lucky contender. He broke into a wide smile as he made his choice.

"How about you little lady?" The crowd quieted down as they followed his finger to the target. Cerata stood wide-eyed as all eyes became transfixed on her.

"M-me?"

"Come on up here and sing for the crowd!" The Inkling smiled.

"I-I…Um..,I don't think I…Should…um…" Cerata was twiddling her thumbs wildly and trying to avoid the gaze of literally everyone there.

"Aww, she's shy. What're you waiting for folks? Let's give her some encouragement!" The crowd erupted into cheers again and a few Inklings in close proximity to her nudged her towards the trucks.

"Well…I…Um…Ok…" Cerata slowly made her way towards the truck the Inkling stood as the crowd cheered her on. All she could think about however was how much of a bad idea this was. Just being out in public was risky enough. What if she was exposed now? This had to be the worse place to get exposed. Sure not everyone in the immediate vicinity had a weapon, but the large majority did. And she would be front and center.

Cerata could practically feel her heart beating against her chest and reviberating in her ears. She slowly made her way up the steps to the top of the truck where the Inkling took her hand.

"What's your name beautiful?" The Inkling ask.

"Ce-Cerata…"

"She's still shy! Let's give it up some more for Cerata!" The crowd erupted into more cheers and the Inkling gave Cerata a microphone. "Just read what's on the teleprompter in time with the color transitions ok?" The Inkling whispered to Cerata. She nodded her head and he patted her back. Cerata looked over the crowd and the feeling of unease got worse. She swallowed as the music began to play.

Right before she prepared to turn her eyes to the teleprompter, she caught glimpse of Inkay and his squad standing at the back of the crowd. They were of course all looking at her, waiting for her to start. She locked eyes with Inkay who gave her a small wave. She swallowed and took a deep breath. She just had to calm down. She could get this over with quickly. She opened her eyes and read from the teleprompter as it began its transition.

"I want your tongue twister,"

The crowd erupted in cheers and wolf whistles.

"You got my body shaking, head spinner. I want it. I want it. Let's get loud. Cause I can't stop the feeling of your tongue twister. I want it. I want it,"

The crowd had once again begun to dance in beat with the music. Cerata stole a glance back towards Inkay's squad. They were all dancing save for Inkay, who instead chose to bob in rhythm to the music. Which was a start. As the crowd continued to cheer, Cerata calmed down a little.

By the time her second verse came, Cerata was full on dancing. She rocked her body and swung her head back and forth much to the crowd's enjoyment. By the time the song was over, the crowd had gone into a frenzy at the display and Cerata was panting heavily.

"Let's give another shout out for Cerata!" The Inkling called out as the crowd cheered. The Inkling guided Cerata to the steps to get off the truck and returned to center stage. "Alright, we're going to have a short intermission then we'll listen to the beautiful melodies of The Squid Sisters,"

All Inklings in the area began to gather with their squads and chat. As Cerata headed back to the Inklings she knew, she was swarmed by Inklings praising her performance. She both liked the experience as well as feared it.

Back with the Squad, Inkay had returned to his benched position. Kelp and Lyra had went to go grab a drink from the nearby drink machine while Shiro simply chatted up members of the crowd in an attempt to make new friends.

Inkay simply watched over the crowd. He felt like he would enjoy himself more if he danced, but that wasn't something he did. So instead he studied the crowd and let his friends have all the fun. It wasn't long after Cerata's performance that Shiro came and sat by him.

"Man I love Splatfest. I knew the Turf Wars were fun but this is great too!" Inkay chuckled at his friend's excitement.

"I thought you were more interested in the after party," Shiro shrugged as he smiled at his friend.

"Honestly I don't care what we do. I just like hanging out with you guys," Shiro said patting his friend on the back. "Which means I want you to have fun too. You need to go out there and shake a tail fin or something,"

"Sorry man. I don't have one,"

"Ah come on. Everyone has a tail fin,"

"Nope. I must have a birth defect," The two chuckled to themselves as they looked back over the crowd.

"How tragic," Shiro muttered as they looked over the crowd silently. They sat for a few minutes before Shiro spoke again. "Man. I need to find myself a girlfriend," Inkay turned towards the Inkling with an amused expression.

"And why would you need one of those?"

"Well I can't be the only one in our little squad who doesn't have someone to coddle with,"

"What are you talking about?" Inkay questioned as no one in their squad was currently in a relationship. Shiro responded by pointing into the distance. Kelp and Lyra were leaning against a far off wall chatting as they sipped their drinks. They both wore huge grins and were standing shoulder to shoulder. "You know it's going to happen. Just you wait," Inkay titled his head and shrugged.

Shiro then turned his attention towards the opposite side of the plaza. Cerata was surrounded by a small group. Though the group consisted of a few females, there was a majority of males that seemed to being trying to get close to her. Inkay looked at Shiro understanding his implication and let out a huff.

"She's not my girlfriend,"

"Whatever man. I'm just saying," Inkay turned back towards Cerata's position and noticed that quite a few guys had gotten closer to her. "Don't let the catch of the day get away," With that, Shiro stood up, stretched his arms and headed back out to find a dance partner.

Inkay returned his sights to Cerata, who seemed to be uncomfortable even though she wore a smile on her face. A bit annoyed at the amount of attention she was getting he stood up. He wasn't sure why he was annoyed, but he was.

He headed towards Cerata's location at a calm pace. It wasn't long before he was close enough to hear what was going on.

"You have a really nice singing voice," One Inkling said as he took a step closer to Cerata. "Where did you learn to sing?"

"T-thank you. That actually was my first time singing," She got a collection of 'oooo's' and 'aaaa's'.

"Was that also your first time dancing?" Another asked.

"No. It was actually my third," The Inklings around her chuckled with her.

"Just a talented little thing aren't you?" a third asked. "hey, what do you say that when The Squid Sisters come out, you and me have your fourth dance together?" A third Inkling said as he took her hand in his.

"Um, sorry? I'm not interested," Cerata slowly pulled her hand away from the Inkling with a tiny blush on her face. The second Inkling spoke up.

"Why not? Are you still acting shy? Come on gorgeous. Dance like you did on stage," The third said trying to scoot his hand closer to Cerata's again. She was preparing to move away when someone cleared their throat. They all turned to see Inkay standing there with a pretty neutral look on his face. He didn't say anything. He simply extended his hand towards Cerata.

Cerata's cheeks darkened a lot as she stared at Inkay's extended limb and then him. In almost a trance like state, she reached out and took his hand, letting him guide her from the group surrounding her. A few of the girls giggled while the majority of the guys seemed disappointed.

Inkay led her back to his bench and sat down. She of course sat down beside him. The two sat quietly in each other's presence. It wasn't an awkward silence, it was just they couldn't really think of anything to say, so they let the silence be. The personal silence gave Cerata a bit of time to think. Mostly about her reaction. She glanced over to Inkay, who was once again watching the crowd.

When he stepped through the group of men and offered her his hand, her heart fluttered and her breath caught in her throat. Honestly she was hoping he'd request a dance, but the image of him all dressed up and offering his hand to her was enough to overlook the disappointment. She wasn't sure why she felt the way she did, but the feeling was there. She found herself smiling.

"It's about that time isn't it?" Inkay sadly broke the silence. Cerata tilted her head in confusion until she followed Inkay's line of sight. In the distance was a grate. Cerata's smile faltered. She kept her sights away from Inkay and turned them towards her lap instead. The idea of returning to Octovalley now had an even stronger bittersweet taste to it. She opened her mouth to voice her feelings.

"Um…Inkay?" Lights suddenly turned on. The crowd once again raised the volume as the Squid Sisters approached the trucks. They smiled and waved as they descended the stairs from the studio. Though they were glancing around, Cerata could have sworn that the green one locked eyes on Inkay then whispered something to her sister. The other one glanced over and chuckled as well. They continued their walk forward. They climbed onto separate trucks and adjusted their microphones, the crowd quieting down for them.

"Good evening Inklings!"

"Are you ready to party for real?!" The crowd let out the biggest uproar yet.

"Well what are we waiting for?!"

"Let's dance!" Music began playing as the theme of Splatfest began. Cerata watched as other Inklings had already begun to bob and dance to the music. She guessed she would just sit with Inkay and watch them. She noticed there was suddenly a hand in front of her. She followed the arm up to its owner to see Inkay's smiling face.

"Dance with me?" Cerata blushed again but quickly regained her composure, trying her best to mimic Inkay's smirk.

"Oh? But I thought you didn't dance," Inkay chuckled as he stood up, hand still offered to her.

"I guess I'll make an exception for you," Cerata's heart fluttered again as she placed her hand in his and he guided her to the dance floor.

"Come on, come on, now!
Get ready right now!
You've gotta let us know what's your team!"

"Turn it up right now -
Get ready, Inklings, to bring it"

"You ready? Go!
We're gonna, bring it real loud!"

"If you're not ready…
Get yourself ready until you're steady.
Don't rest your head not knowing who'll be the best.
So baby, pick who you'll root for, you ready?"

"Pick who you'll root for, the team that won't fall!
Pick who you'll root for, and give it your all!
Don't rest your head, we're gonna rock through the Fest!
So baby, pick who you'll root for, you ready?"

Cerata and Inkay stood at the edge of the group of bodies and danced to the beat, waving their hands and twirling their bodies. Somehow, the crowd seemed to absorb them into it, and before long they were pressed against each other to avoid others, but neither seemed to mind. So they kept dancing.

"You heard the boss! Move move move!" Octarians quickly moved into a giant ship, either carrying or riding their weapons. Octameri was leading the charge, standing in the entrance of the ship, demented smile on her face. Honestly, she could pull off this mission by herself. The only reason she didn't was because her superior told her not too. And she needed someone to drive the ship and fly it away when their target was secured.

Nevertheless, she was bringing just enough soldiers to do that and give a little bit of fire power. On the off chance that she needed it. The last of the soldiers entered the ship and it began take off. She wouldn't have to wait much longer for revenge. And the sweet thrill of the kill.

Cerata fanned herself. Did Inklings always party like this? Inkay and the others seemed a little tired but nowhere near as tired as she was. They were sweating just a little, and though their breathing was a bit quickened, Cerata was practically gasping for air. She honestly didn't know how long Inkay and her danced, but if the music hadn't slowly died down and people started leaving she would've kept going. She was having so much fun.

"So what do you guys want to do until the after party starts?" Shiro questioned, the top two buttons of his undershirt unbuttoned to help cool him down.

"I say we should just walk around. It's cool tonight. We walked in the warmth yesterday. Might as well even it out," Inkay suggested.

"Well alrighty then. After you," Kelp said motioning Inkay forward. Inkay bowed as he walked ahead. The rest of the group chuckled and followed close behind.

Cap'n Cuttlefish turned off his TV. He always enjoyed watching his granddaughters dance and sing on the old tele during Splatfest. Or any time really. But alas, it was over. Until next time. He stretched his old limbs and prepared to head to bed. He glanced out his window and noticed a large cluster of stars. He shrugged it off ad glanced towards Octavio. He also seemed to be interested in the stars.

"Good night Octavio," He wasn't expecting a response. He just had to make sure he said it. He closed the blinds and headed off to bed. It wasn't until he was snug under his covers he heard a small humming sound. No, it wasn't a hum. It was a beat. Music? No one should be playing music this late this far out.

With a groan, he exited his bed and headed towards the window the noise seemed to be coming from. He peeked through the blinds and saw Octavio…dancing? Wait, was Octavio making the music? How was that possible?!All he had were his wasabi sticks! Cuttlefish would admit that the old DJ knew how to make a beat or two, but music from wasabi sticks? That was unheard off!

Now that he really listened, the music was exactly the same as when Octavio and Agent 3 had their fight. And it was getting louder. Cuttlefish adjusted the blinds just enough to somewhat follow Octavio's gaze. His mouth almost fell past his beard as the cluster of lights he original thought were stars turned out to be a giant ship. From said ship a giant claw dropped down, grabbing on to Octavio's prison like a prize in a hook machine. Even more startling was that it seemed to be an Octoling holding on to the base of the hook.

Cuttlefish watched as the Octoling and Octavio seemed to be talking of something. It wasn't long before both Octavio and the Octoling looked towards the window. Cuttlefish quickly closed the blinds, clutching his cane tightly in his hand as he ran and locked the door. He hid in a dark corner of his house and waited as the music reverberated throughout the house. After a small while, the music began to quiet down, as if the ship was flying away.

Cuttlefish waited in his hiding place a bit longer. Just when he thought it was safe to come out, his door was kicked in. What startled him was that it only took one kick. He peeked out of his hiding place to see the cause and noticed the Octoling standing in the doorway.

"Here Inkling, Inkling," She whispered as creepily as she could. Cuttlefish didn't respond. Instead he looked for a weapon. The Octoling's tentacles were glowing and she had an ink tank, meaning she had a super ready, but Cuttlefish couldn't see a weapon her. If he did he could guess what super she was carrying and maybe be somewhat aware of what he should do. "Come out and I'll hurt you a little less," She hissed. This wasn't good. He had to get in contact with somebody. He glanced towards where his communicator was. He had to somehow sneak over to it.

"I know you're hiding over there," The Octoling suddenly said. "You can either come out now or I can just go around breaking your shit," Cuttlefish took a deep breath. He slowly stepped out of his hiding place, arm behind his back and cane supporting him. "Oh, don't you look calm. Accepted your fate huh? That's good. It'll make this easier," Cuttlefish still said nothing. "Don't worry, I was told not to kill you. Octavio wants you alive to see your face when he destroys your city," Still nothing. But the Octoling did raise her fists towards him.

That's when Cuttlefish saw it. Her gauntlets were using ink. They were her weapons. Well, he was wrong when thinking that if he knew what her weapon was he'd know her super. He knew nothing about those weapons. Regardless, he returned his gaze to her. With a small chuckle, the Octoling shot forward, fist held back ready to strike.

There was gun fire. Ink shot out towards the Octoling. Her eyes widened as the stream approached her. Cuttlefish's eyes widened when somehow, the Octoling moved her body just enough out of the way for the shot to be nonfatal. Instead, the right half of her torso was covered in grey ink.

The Octoling had barrel rolled the shot and was now on a knee holding her side, letting the ink of her gauntlet slide over her hit side. She glared daggers at the old Inkling and the item he had used to attack her.

"Your cane is a weapon?" She asked dumbfounded. Cuttlefish wiggled his mustache at her. Honestly he didn't know what to do now. He was banking on his bamboozler to be a one hit killer in this situation. The element of surprise was pretty much the only thing he had at the moment. Oh well. Go down kicking.

The Octoling stood to her full height. The condescending smile on her face replaced with an animalistic snarl. She charged forward at full speed. With an arm still behind his back, cuttlefish aimed his bamboozler to his right, shooting a trail of ink in that direction. Thinking he was going to take that path, the Octoling changed the direction of her attack slightly. That second of misdirection was all it took for Cuttlefish to turn into a squid and slide underneath the Octoling from the first trail.

He quickly popped out at the end of the trail and fired again. The Octoling leaned back, the ink flying over her. She charged again. Cuttlefish sank into the ink and the Octoling threw her fist where he was last. Just as it was about to connect, Cuttlefish jumped out of the puddle Super Jump style and slammed himself into his opponent. They both flew backwards and slammed into the wall, causing items all over the little house to fall over from the force.

Cuttlefish knew that in his younger days, this Octoling would've been dead. But now, the force knocked just as much air out of him as it did his foe. Maybe more. By the time he collected him and pointed his weapon at the Octoling, she rolled out of the way and ended up beside him. She grabbed the Inkling by his beard with her left hand. She pulled him forward and swung a hard uppercut into his gut. When her gloved fist connected with the elderly Inkling, a large amount of purple ink seemed to explode out of his back.

Cuttlefish coughed up purple ink as he went limp, his opponent the only support for his body. She held the old man up by his beard as his eyes rolled around in their sockets.

"One hit old man? Come on. Already your coughin' up ink. And it's purple too," She dropped the Inkling's unconscious body to the ground. "That means you're close to getting splatted…" She clicked a few dials on her gauntlets and her smile returned. "Don't think you're getting off that easy," She said lightly smacking his face to wake him up. "I'm just getting started,"

It was time for the after party to begin. Inkay and the group returned to the plaza. A tall, stereotypical bouncer was standing at the entrance.

"I'm gonna have to see some IDs squiddies," He said holding out his hand. Inkay stepped up first, handing the bouncer his ID and letting him scan it. "Level 50. Nice. Level 50s get access to the VIP bar for special discounts," The man said handing Inkay his ID back.

"Thanks for telling me," The rest of the squad showed their IDs before standing on the opposite side of the bouncer to wait for Cerata.

"Um…I don't…have an ID…" She muttered honestly scared of the Inkling's response. His eyes narrowed as he returned his arms to their crossed position.

"Wait a minute. Aren't you that Inkling that was singing during Splatfest?" Cerata blushed and took a sudden interest in the man's shoes.

"Y-yeah. That was me," The bounce gave a coy smile as he looked over his shoulder at the other Inklings.

"She wit you?" He muttered causing the squad to nod. "I'll let it slide this time," He said letting Cerata pass.

"Thank you!" Cerata said giving a bow to the man and standing beside Inkay.

"Just don't tell anyone ya hear?" The squad nodded and entered the plaza. The trucks were gone and replaced with club like bars, each with an assortment of drinks lined up.

"Ok, everyone stay together. We're just here to check it out and get a few drinks. Don't want anyone caught in the weird stuff. The group nodded and headed towards a bar. Shiro approached the bartender with a large grin on his face.

"Good day my good man. I would like to order a shot of Truth Serum for my friends and I," He said putting on his coolest voice. The bartender raised an eyelid at him as he began preparing the drink.

"You sure you can handle it kid?" He asked as he poured the drink into little cups everyone could wrap their thumb and ring finger around. Shiro scoffed as he picked up his drink, still smiling.

"Please,I can handle anything your little cart can dish out," He said. He looked at the bright blue liquid in his glass, his squad waiting for him to try it first since it was his idea. He downed it in one gulp, and even though his entire body lurched as soon as it touched his lips and again after he swallowed, he kept it down. "Whoops. There go my organs," Shiro's face collided with the bar as his friends jumped.

"Oh my god, is he going to be okay?!" Lyra asked shaking her friend.

"He's fine," The bartender responded as he was cleaning a glass. "That's everyone's reaction if they have close to zero alcohol tolerance. Give him about three minutes and he'll be the life of the party," The group stared at Shiro's apparently unconscious body.

"Welp. We came here for a reason," Kelp muttered as he downed his glass like Shiro before him, a large chuckle escaping his lips for seemingly no reason. "I suddenly feel…like the bucks of a million," He stuttered. "Yo barkeep. Can I have another?" Lyra and Cerata looked at each other worriedly before Lyra raised her glass to her. Cerata expected her to just clink the glass, but instead the Inkling girl linked her arm with her and brought her drink to her mouth. Cerata did the same, though with much more difficulty. She almost threw it back up as soon as it touched her lips. It was very sweet, yet somehow it burned like a spice.

Lyra let out a loud "WOOOOOOOOOO!" As she finished her glass, many people in the ever growing crowd woo'ing with her. Cerata on the other hand began rocking off balance. Like Shiro before her, her head met the bar. Inkay simply stared at his drink before letting out a sigh.

Suddenly Shiro threw his arms and head back in a loud "WOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMYYY!", making Inkay almost jump from his seat. "I feel like a mile-high, pastrami on rye, on the fly from the deli in the sky!" He screeched as he jumped off his stool and ran out to the dance floor. A bit more horrified, Inkay looked over his drink.

"Over the teeth and through the gums I guess," He downed his shot, and as it slithered its way down his throat, he could practically feel his pupils constrict.

Inkay didn't exactly know where he was, but he knew he was enjoying himself. He and Cerata were having a good time laughing about nothing. Boy this Truth Serum was some good stuff. Oh yeah, he was at the plaza cause of the after party. That's where he is. Him and Cerata were just sitting at the bar telling each other slurred stories as the rest of the squad had went to who knows where.

"So, I, I, I…I had this…dream. I don't, it's been trying…it's been trying to come back to me," Cerata stuttered out. "But I can't quite…catch it. Ya know?" Inkay overly nodded his head, his entire body moving with the exaggerated motion.

"I, I know. Do you remember anything about it?"

"I remember…little somethings. I was chasing em…but I was doing it for fun…wait!" She said throwing her hands out at a sudden realization, almost knocking over a bottle that sat in front of the next group. "You were in it,"

"I was? What was I *hiccup* What was I doing?" Cerata stared at Inkay for a moment before shrugging.

"I don't know…say, is it a good idea to be drinking something called Truth Serum when I have a special problem the public shouldn't know about?" Cerata thought she whispered the second part but in reality everyone within six feet heard it.

"Naaaah. You're fine. No one is gonna find out about your…that," Inkay said trying to find the words before quitting to just gesture to Cerata's tentacles. "Saay, where are everyone else?" Inkay slurred as he and Cerata began looking around.

"Your friends are over there," The bartender said. It took a while before the two sorted out where 'there' was, but when they did both of their jaws dropped. Kelp was sitting on the bench with Lyra straddling him. Her hands were running up his chest while his rubbed up her outer thigh and toyed with her dress.

"Holy sea cow they're making out," Inkay muttered dumbfounded. "The fucker was right…We gotta go before they get involved in something bigger than themselves," Inkay said struggling to stand. Cerata stood and followed, approaching the two Inklings ignorant of their arrival.

Inkay grabbed Lyra by the shoulder and pulled her back some and away from Kelp. Both parties' mouths were open with their tongues sticking out, that one glimmering trail of saliva connecting them.

"Ok, gross. Come on. We're going home," Lyra seemed to be in her own little world as she stared at Kelp, her index finger poking at her lips.

"Why so soon man? The night's young," Kelp said just as slurred as Inkay. Inkay simply stared at Kelp. "Alright, alright, I'm coming," Kelp slowly pushed Lyra off of him and onto her own two feet, causing her to pout and let out a sad whine.

"Where's Shiro?" Inkay questioned. Kelp pointed over to another bench where Shiro's unconscious body laid. "Oh Shiro…"

When the squad made it home, Kelp and Inkay dropped Shiro's unconscious body on the couch. The entire room let out a tired yawn.

"Welp. It's beddy bye time. Good night everyone," Inkay said returning to his room. Everyone said their good nights and went to their own beds. As Inkay lay in his, he glanced at the clock. 2:57. Ugh. He'd have to get up in a few hours to sneak Cerata back. He snuggled under his covers and went to sleep.

It wasn't ten minutes before his door opened up. He glanced at the figure before it closed the door and approached the side of the bed he was closest to.

"Cerata?" He asked rubbing his eyes. What are you doing here?"

"I wanted to see if I could sleep in here with you,"

"Why? What happened with you and Lyra?"

"Nothing. I just let Kelp stay in there,"

"Aw, what? In my guest bedroom? Come on. I'm going to have to burn those sheets now," He said rubbing his face and placing his head on his pillow.

"I think they deserve some time together,"

"Well I do too but my guest bed? Ugh. My little sister sleeps there," Cerata giggled.

"So can I?" Inkay simply rolled over and moved the sheets so Cerata could get in. She got under the covers and they laid back to back.

"Good night," Cerata whispered.

"Good morning," The room fell into a silence for a few minutes until the rustling of sheets broke it. Inkay at first planned to ignore it and chalk it up as Cerata shifting in her sleep. Then her arms slowly slinked their way under his until they were wrapped around his body. "What are you doing?"

"I'm cold," She whispered.

"That's what the covers are for,"

"I'm under the covers. I'm still cold," Inkay let out a sigh.

"You just want someone to cuddle with don't you?"

"Lyra and Kelp look so cute as they hold each other…" Inkay let out another sigh and removed Cerata's hands from around him. Hurt, she prepared to turn back around and go to sleep. She was softly pulled closer as Inkay wrapped an arm around her shoulder and pulled her to him. She smiled to herself and nuzzled into his warmth. Surely she would have good dreams tonight.

"Ugh. So exhausting,"

"What is? Losing so much?" Callie smirked at her cousin who gave her a glare.

"Hey, it's not my fault what I represent is always so popular," Her cousin responded crossing her arms. The two were in their apartment prepping for bed, Marie dressed in her green undergarments while Callie wore purple sleeper pants and a t-shirt.

"What's that got to do with anything?"

"Well, since we have more members, our good/bad ratio is much broader, meaning it's more likely that a group of bad people will team up and cost a lot of victories,"

"Wow," Callie chuckled. "Kinda harsh for your fans don't you think?"

"Hey, if they suck, they suck,"

"Whatever. Hey, did you see that Inkling?" Marie looked at Callie with a blank stare. It wasn't like she wasn't just singing in front of an ocean of Inklings for the last six hours. Callie grew a wide smile and Marie's mouth dropped in realization.

"Oooooh. That Inkling. I wonder who that was,"

"I don't know. We'll have to ask him tomorrow. After we visit gramps,"

"Yeah. Anyway, good night." Marie called as she headed towards her room.

"Good night,"

Inkay awoke from his sleep at about five o'clock. His body groaned from exhaustion and his head was spinning from the Truth Serum. He rubbed his eyes to get rid of their blurriness. He glanced down beside him to see a sleeping Cerata clutched to his chest. What did he do last night?!

Oh wait…he didn't do anything. The Truth Serum had him high as hell. Or was he drunk? He didn't know, but it was like he ran on autopilot. Cerata just came in here purely to sleep. And now that he looked at her, her tentacles had come undone, revealing her Octarian features. He slowly tried to remove himself from her grip.

"No. Don't go. Keep me warm," Cerata muttered as she held Inkay tighter. Inkay gently unwrapped Cerata's arms from around him.

"Cerata, it's time to get up," He whispered. "And your tentacles have come undone,"

"I don't care," She muttered trying to nuzzle back into him.

"We need to get you back," He said lightly tapping her face to wake her up. She eventually fully opened her eyes and looked at the Inkling.

"Right now?" She muttered still half asleep.

"It's the best time. Go get your Octoling gear," Cerata sighed and got out of bed. She snuck back into the guest room and grabbed her gear, tiptoeing into the bathroom to change. She snuck back into Inkay's room as he finished dressing.

"Here. Put this on," Inkay said handing Cerata a hoodie. Cerata took the hoodie and did as she was told. The two snuck out his apartment, Cerata taking a sad glance back before heading out.

They silently made their way down the streets of Inkopolis, trying to stick to the shadows as much as possible without looking too suspicious. They finally reached the grate that had been sealed a few days ago, and looked around before making their way in.

Safely away from Inkopolis and somewhere to in the far west of Octovalley, Cerata returned Inkay's hoodie to him. He thanked her as they began their search for a grate back to the Octarian civilization. The walk was a silent one as once again, neither really had anything to say. They found one pretty quickly and turned towards each other.

"You sure this one will get you back?" Inkay asked as Cerata smiled at him.

"I'm sure. I've actually traveled down this one before," Inkay didn't question it.

"So…I guess this is it," Cerata sadly whispered as Inkay nodded.

"I guess so," The two shared a sad smile as Inkay turned towards the grate.

"Well. It's been fun Cerata," Inkay said as he extended his hand towards Cerata. Cerata reached out and shook it.

"It was. Thank you so much Inkay. For everything," Inkay gave a bigger smile.

"No problem. I'm glad I met you," Cerata blushed madly and smiled.

"Same. You're truly a nice person," Cerata took a few steps back towards the grate.

"Well. I'm off. Thank you again. Never change,"

"Don't plan on it," Cerata turned around and walked to the grate. She stood on it and looked down. She was about to go back. It was time. And she felt…surprisingly sad. She looked over her shoulder at Inkay. He gave a small wave. That was it. A wave. Cerata turned back and shook slightly.

"Wow. You're kinda dumb," Inkay tilted his head. Cerata turned around sharply, fists at her side and her head down concealing her face. Inkay knew what she meant. He watched as she stepped down from the grate and stood quietly as she took angry steps towards him. He already knew what she was going to do when she paused in front of him, visibly shaking and her tentacles still hiding her lowered face. He let her take the collar of his and pulled him down.

Cerata pressed her lips against his. Inkay at first sat completely still, but it wasn't long before he wrapped his arms around the small of her back. He closed his eyes and sank into the kiss as he pulled her closer to him. Feeling Inkay accept her kiss, Cerata softened.

She moaned into his lips and her grip on his collar loosened until her hands were simply resting on his chest. She ran her hands up his chest until her arms wrapped around his neck as Inkay gently rubbed her back. They pressed themselves fully against each other and enjoyed the feeling of each other's lips upon theirs.

Eventually Inkay slowly pulled his lips away from Cerata's. They both kept their eyes closed to fully take in the feeling and rested their foreheads against one another's. Both took soft breaths as they took in the situation. Cerata slowly slid her hands down Inkay's shoulders and rested them on his chest. Inkay rubbed his hands up her arms until they cupped her face.

When Cerata opened her eyes to see Inkay's purple ones so close staring into hers, her heart skipped a beat. It fluttered when he once again pressed his lips against hers. Her grip on his shirt tightened again as her legs felt weak beneath her. She closed her eyes and again moaned into his lips.

The second time they parted, they again rested their foreheads on each other's, breathing a bit harder than previously. Cerata, as content as she was in this moment, had a question she needed to know the answer to.

"Will I ever see you again?" They both kept their eyes closed as they contemplated the answer. Ever so slowly they both opened their eyes. In Cerata's there was a longing look that pleaded for the answer she wanted. In Inkay's there seemed to be nothing but fear. He gently caressed her cheek with his thumb.

"I'm afraid of what would happen if you do…" Cerata didn't quite understand what he meant, but she knew a tear somehow escaped her eye. She closed her eyes and once again rested her head on his.

"Inkay…I think…I lo-" Inkay once again pressed his lips against hers, causing her breath to hitch in her throat. The kiss didn't last as long as the previous ones but Inkay was once again the one to break it. Cerata gave herself a moment to catch her breath before speaking again. "That dream I mentioned? I remember what it was about. We had li-" Inkay cut her off again with another kiss. Cerata was going to push him off and question why he wouldn't let her speak when the realization dawned on her.

She felt so sad in this moment. Yet at the same time she had never felt happier. Was this even a thing? She had so many emotions welling up inside of her she simply froze. Tears freely ran down her face as she let herself melt into Inkay once again. When he pulled away she kept her eyes closed and just let the tears flow. Inkay wiped them away with his thumbs and she slowly opened her eyes.

"You should go…" Inkay whispered. Those three words nearly shattered Cerata's heart, but she knew they were true. She nodded slowly and she ran her hands down his arms and he did the same until their hands passed over each other, trying to prolong the other's touch as long as possible. Inkay took off the turquoise Inkvader hat he had been wearing and placed it on Cerata's head.

Cerata ran her hand over the clothing and sniffed with a small smile. She turned and headed towards the grate just as the sun began to rise. She stood on it and paused. She looked back with a bigger smile though tears still fell from her eyes.

"Stay fresh," She said mimicking The Squid Sister's hand poses. Inkay chuckled as he shook his hands as well.

"Stay fresh," Cerata turned around and turned into an Octopus, effectively falling through the grates and back to the Octarian civilization. Inkay stood for a second before he turned and began heading back home. A small smile crossed his face as he chuckled softly to himself.

"Sorry Shiro. I let her get away," One more tear fell on the ground in Octovalley.

Don't that just break your little hearts? Now, if I was a really cruel person, I'd end the story right there. .3. But there's too many ends left too loose. But before you celebrate that the story is going to continue, remember that starting next chapter is going to be a war. Now ask yourself this, would you prefer to lovers to separated because of their societies, or would you want one, or both of them to die in a war between the two societies? Remember, this is rated M for a reason. Don't think I won't kill a motherfucker.

I'm also going to go ahead and apologize for any errors in this, or the previous chapter. I literally, did not sleep Wednesday, went to sleep at 4 in the morning Thursday, and 4 again yesterday. But, in life's defense, yesterday the reason I was up so late was because of Splatfest while the other two days was because of school work. I apparently hate my body and am slowly killing myself.

But I really wanted to get one of these chapters up at least while Splatfest was going on. It was funny, I was no more than five matches in and I was like "Yep. Burgers fukin one this one because my pizza teammates are literal shit,"

But back to my apologies, I was typing and typing and I couldn't be bothered to do a full read through and glanced over it before submitting. Also the things I wanted to point out in the story and write about happened at different times. In previous chapters, line breaks happened when the scene changed completely. In these it was because time jumped and I feel weird about these chapters...It makes em feel rushed to me.

And lonely, don't apologize. It's just me. I hate to keep people waiting. I'm too much of a nice guy. I tend to put other's wants above my own. Don't know why. I just do.

I'm rambling. *clears throat* So, this "chapter" altogether was 12,090 words, and in it, we saw the squad play a few games, dance, get drunk and have a pretty awesome time. Cuttlefish however got his ass handed to him by Octameri. What will the Squid Sisters do when they find out? And what Inkling are they talking about? And why was Inkay being so cryptic with Cerata? Welp. You'll just have to wait til next time.

Like always, I thank you for reading, special thank you to those who reviewed chap 7, and I hoped you enjoyed. Until next time.

Astalabyebye,

Bang.