Chapter 16: Chapter 12: Hostile Takeover (II)

“LITTLE SIS?!” Pearl gawked, steam coming out her ears as Marina and Marino hugged. “I didn’t even know you had a sister! You didn’t tell me she was living up on the surface, either!”

“I didn’t know she was here, either!” said Marina, looking into her sister’s eyes. “Marino, how long have you been up on the surface? You could’ve called me, you should’ve known I was here too…”

Marino sighed, taking a seat. “It… Wasn’t that simple, Marina. You managed to escape in the heat of the confusion after Octavio’s defeat, while the Imperial government was in disarray and so many Octarians were reeling from experiencing the Calamari Inkantation, and as talented as you were, the government considered engineers like you to be replaceable. As you know, I was in special ops. It took a bit longer for me to find my exit, and by the time that happened, the government had declared the Calamari Inkantation to be squid brainwashing (pot calling the kettle black, really) and was cracking down on those affected. I had to fight off entire teams during my escape.”

“Oh, Marino…” Marina frowned, sitting down next to her, taking her hand. “That must’ve been awful.”

“Yeah, it was. I was on death’s door when I finally reached Inkopolis,” Marino nodded. “But then an Inkling girl stumbled upon me - a university medical student. She nursed me back to health personally, and let me stay at her place until I could find my footing here in Inkopolis. And then I found out you were a star. I’m not gonna sugarcoat it, sis, I felt like I’d disappoint you if I approached you as a nobody in this city. I wanted to make a name for myself-”

“Marino. Stop.”

Marina hugged her again. “No matter what, you’re always my dependable big sister. You don’t need to keep holding up your pride just for me - I would’ve been happy to help you get your start here.”

Marino hugged her back, smiling softly as tears began to stream from her eyes. “You’ve grown so much since I last saw you. You took that leap of faith first and came out stronger and happier than you ever were before. I’m so proud of you, Marina. I just wish our parents could be here with us.”

Marina was crying too. Maybe, someday, all Octarians could live on the surface in peace with the Inklings as well. “I’m just happy you’re here, alive and well…”

“Uh… Sorry to break up the heartfelt reunion, but we do have to come back from break in like five minutes,” said Pearl. “Still, congrats, ‘Rina! I’m really happy for you!”

As the hug was broken, Marino wiped her tears… And her signature smirk emerged on her face. “Oh, so this is Pearl. I’ve been hearing all kinds of saucy things about you two.”

Marina squirmed, “sis, really…? At a time like this…?”

Marino laughed, “nah, we can save the gossip for after the show. Nice to meet you, Pearl. Also, break my sister’s heart and you will regret it.”

“SIS!” Marina groaned.

“Nah, she don’t got anything to worry about, as if I’d do that,” Pearl grinned. “Well, this’ll definitely boost our ratings like crazy. Seriously, Marina’s long-lost sister being another celebrity showing up as a special guest star?”

“Not that long-lost, Pearlie, but I get what you mean,” said Marina as she stood up. “Well, let’s get ready to blow our audience away.”

❖

“Finally, here we are, Inkopolis Square! The current new hottest destination for every fresh Inkling and Octoling around,” Artemis grinned as the agents arrived at the Square. “It’s got everything you want - food, fashion, weapons for ink battling! And of course, Off The Hook records live here, too, so if you wanna wave to Pearl and Marina while they’re on break, you can do that too.”

Orion couldn’t blame his sister for having the absolute time of her life doing this - they had been spending the afternoon walking around Inkopolis and showing the two Octolings the freshest places to go. There was no way his sister wouldn’t love just hanging out with new friends. Orion himself was still getting used to hanging out with such a large group, however, especially with two seniors.

“WHOA! This place is the freshest! So many people around!” Axl grinned, spinning around to absorb what he was seeing all around. He had a set of blue Noise Cancellers, a Blue Tentatek Tee, and a pair of Orca Hi-Tops.

Iris nodded, “it’s almost overwhelming, but… At least we’re not the centre of attention.” She was wearing a simple but cute rose-coloured dress apparently picked out by Callie, along with a pair of simple black shoes and stockings.

“Inkopolis Plaza has become a ghost town by comparison, now, which is a bit of a shame, but it’s also a good place to go now if you want somewhere relatively quiet,” Ethan nodded. He and Ayane were wearing their agent gear, which nobody seemed to bat an eye at because odd but still fresh fashion choices were not pretty typical for Inklings. (Personally Orion thought the Hero Hoodie set looked cooler, but he was not gonna say that to his seniors.)

“That’s kind of the problem with a lot of Inklings - what’s ‘fresh’ changes as often as the tides. Can’t just stick to one thing,” said Ayane.

Orion couldn’t help but recall Tartar’s criticism of Inklings and Octolings. As vile as he was, Tartar did have something of a point. Inklings could be hedonistic and lazy, while Octolings took their grudge too far.

“Hey, Off The Hook are doing an interview with an Octoling!” Hinata said, pointing to one of the big TV screens.

Everyone looked up to watch, as Pearl and Marina finished their introductions and the stage rotations. Sitting with them was an Octoling girl in a rather fancy dress, who had a notable resemblance to Marina. Pearl grinned, “now with that out of the way, we’ve got a special guest! As it turns out, a very special guest, in fact!”

“Indeed, Pearl. She’s been hot on the fashion circuit, but she’s also special for another reason - she’s someone I’ve looked up to for the longest time. Everyone please give a big hand to Marino Ida, my older sister!” Marina smiled.

“Thank you, Marina, Pearl, it’s an incredible pleasure to be here this evening,” Marino chuckled. “My little sister has moved up a lot in the world.”

“Oh, Sis…” Marina blushed.

“Okay, that came out of nowhere,” Liam blinked. “Marina has an older sister, that’s new!”

“I completely forgot about that! Marino was in special ops,” explained Iris. “Reconnaissance work and such. In fact, her team was responsible for kidnapping the Great Zapfish the first time around.”

“She looks awfully familiar. I can’t put my finger on it,” Ethan mused.

“We’ve fought a lot of Octolings, she was probably one of them, I guess,” Ayane shrugged.

“Well, it’s getting late, we gotta grab a bit to eat while we watch this,” Karlene stretched, “I could really go for a burger right about now.”

“Um… What’s a burger?” Axl asked.

Everyone except Iris stared at him like he was crazy. “What?”

“Wow, Octarian society really sucks - no offence,” said Koji.

“Isn’t a ‘burger’ just a sandwich?” Iris asked.

“Oh. My. Cod.” Artemis immediately took Iris’ hand, and started pulling her towards the nearest fast food store, “that settles it, we’re getting burgers! There’s no way I’m letting you go another day without experiencing the divine taste!”

“Um, okay, sure…?” replied Iris, completely bewildered.

Not that anyone else complained, finding a few tables, ordering their meals and sitting down, passively listening to the interview, their drinks coming first. Orion found himself sitting with Ethan and Axl.

“It’s been a while since I hung out with so many friends,” Ethan smiled. “And hanging with Octolings is new. Ayane and I have met some Octolings who earnestly wanted to escape, and helped them out, but we never really made friends with any of them.”

Axl was looking down at the table. “I still can’t believe I’m here. I was just another soldier. 10,007 of 10,008 test subjects who ended up in the Metro, and yet I was one of two who hadn’t been converted or blended. Maybe it was just luck.”

He’s got some kind of impostor syndrome going on, Orion though as he shook his head. “That’s not true. I’ve seen you in action, you’re amazing, especially the whole mimic octopus thing you’ve got in your repertoire. You’ve earned your place here, Axl.”

“Listen to the kid, he’s right,” Ethan grinned. “You kicked my butt. Sure, I was brainwashed and couldn’t fight at my best, but what you did was no small feat.”

Axl looked at the pair, surprised, but smiled at them. “Thanks.”

“Stop calling me ‘kid’, I’m only like two years younger than you, Ethan,” Orion grumbled.

“Yeah, my bad. I guess perhaps Ayane and I grew up a little too fast,” Ethan smiled softly, looking down at his milkshake.

What the shell went down in Octo Valley? Orion thought to himself.

“You don’t need to be mad about it, Orion,” Axl said.

“I didn’t mean to, it just felt… Condescending? I don’t like it when I feel people talk down to me like that,” Orion frowned. “I get singled out as a target for being pushed around because I’m short, quiet and not that social…”

“And yet you held your own against Octavio.”

“Yeah, with a group of six other people…”

“And you fought your way through the Octarian forces with just your sister helping for most of it. That’s no mean feat. I’ve seen your Charger skills,” Axl chuckled. “Take it from me, Orion, next time someone tries to push you around, challenge them to a 1-v-1, and make their life miserable.”

“He’s right, Ori!” Liam called from one of the other tables. “We keep telling ya to stand up for yourself more!”

Orion mentally chewed on that for a bit before the burgers and fries finally came. Orion and Ethan watched expectantly as Axl took a bite out of it, spent a few seconds chewing… And then his eyes lit up, eagerly tearing into it with his teeth. He looked like he was on the verge of joyful tears. “Shooooooo goooood!”

“Don’t talk with your mouth full, moron,” Ayane said from the table where she, Artemis and Iris sat.

“And take it slow, you can savour the taste, no need to rush,” Ethan laughed. “You look like a hungry Salmonid!”

Orion took a look over at Iris, who also looked like she was also about to cry tears of joy as she ate. Artemis had taken a picture with her phone. Of course she’d find it adorable.

Of course, not that he was particularly immune to Axl’s own dorky eating either. He didn’t know why, but something about the Octoling made him feel weird. And not in a bad way, either, just… He wasn’t really sure what to think about it, but he didn’t think it was bad.

“Anyway, guess I should give you guys an update on how the rest of the Splatoon are doing,” Ethan said, after taking a few bites himself. “The Cap’n is doing just fine, despite the near-death experience. X and Zero are now honorary members of the Splatoon, as Agents X and, well, Zero.”

“Because Zero is still a number and X is a variable, so it works,” Orion nodded.

“Callie and Marie are basically on break now. X said when they got home that both of them broke down crying,” said Ethan, before taking another bite.

That caused Orion to pause before he took another bite of his burger. He put it down, eyes narrowed as he looked at Ethan. “I don’t believe you.”

“Don’t believe me about what?” Ethan blinked.

“About Marie. Crying.”

“I’ve known her for much longer than you have, Ori. Even she has her limits. X didn’t give any specifics, but I think I might have an idea,” Ethan chuckled. “But those two need the space and some time with the Cap’n. And as you know, X has been running himself ragged with the Metro. Zero should be fully repaired soon.”

“Is it possible we might be able to recover the bodies of the other robots?” Orion mused.

“Maybe. But Gamma emerging flooded the entire interior of the NILS statue, so it’ll be a while before we know for sure,” Ethan sighed. “Good thing that area was sealed off automatically, otherwise the rest of the Metro would’ve been flooded as well. Either way, though, that particular route to the surface is useless now, hence why X is clearing the path he used.”

“I just hope X can figure out a solution for everyone still stuck down there…” Orion muttered.

“By the way, you guys heard about this ‘phantom thief’ going around in the news lately?” Koji spoke up. “Uses some weird grappling hook tech and a disguise, and steals corporate secrets and tech.”

“Not exactly our wheelhouse, as long as they’re not hurting anyone,” said Karlene. “It’s mostly stuff that should be public, anyway. That thief’s exposing some shady stuff.”

As his friends continued to gossip, Orion wondered if it wasn’t really that simple… He had a feeling the thief would be something they’d need to deal with sooner or later.

Once everyone finished their meals, Iris checked her phone. “Oh, Marina says she and Pearl want to meet us by the metro entrance!”

“What’re we waiting for, then? Let’s go meet them!” Artemis grinned, standing up.

Orion was not adverse to that - it would be nice to meet Pearl and Marina again after that mess…

❖

As expected, Pearl and Marina were waiting for the group by the metro entrance, but they were accompanied by Marino, who was still in her dress.

“Hey, everyone. Sorry about the surprise regarding my sister, but I was pretty surprised myself. This is Marino - she’s my older sister, and used to be in the Octarian special forces,” Marina smiled.

“Hello, everyone, nice to meet you,” Marino smiled softly, “especially you, Iris, Axl. It’s been a while.”

Orion immediately made a note of that - it seems the three Octolings were previously acquainted.

“Likewise, Miss Marino,” Iris said. “It’s kinda nice to talk so casually… And without ranks.”

“Oh, hey! Now I remember you!” Ethan grinned, “you nearly killed me back in Octo Valley! Geez, it’s been a long time, how’ve you been?”

Everyone’s jaws dropped, except Ayane’s, because she was facepalming.

Marino’s eyes nearly bulged out of her head as she seemed to recognise him. “What the… YOU?! Oh this is so embarrassing…”

“Yeah, you’re the crazy chick who pinned him down at gunpoint and started gloating about how the Octarians would win ‘this time’ and all that, right before I sniped you,” Ayane groaned.

“Wow, is that true?” Pearl blinked.

“Actually, I do remember Marino coming back to base, looking absolutely furious and ranting about how she totally had Agent 3 dead to rights,” Marina said. “This was before we were both exposed to the Calamari Inkantation, of course…”

“Right, well…” Marino looked utterly flustered. “I didn’t know any better. I’m sorry about what happened. I understand if you hate me…”

“Eh, water under the bridge. You’ve changed your ways and you feel bad about what you did, it’s all good,” Ethan smiled as he extended a hand, “I’m willing to let bygones be bygones if you are. Besides, I kinda owe you for giving me a reality check back then.”

Orion noticed Marino’s face cycle through multiple expressions in quick succession - first apparent regret, then uncertainty, a few more he wasn’t sure about, and then a soft but nervous smile as she shook his hand. “Sure, I’d be happy to…”

“Awesome, that’s one less Octoling we don’t have to make an enemy of!” Artemis grinned.

Marino blinked. “Wait. Marina, are all these kids in the New Squidbeak Splatoon? I thought it was just the Squid Sisters and 3 & 4…”

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“All ten of them, yeah,” Marina chuckled. “Apparently Marie went on an unintentional recruitment drive when Octavio broke out of his prison.”

“Another thing I apparently missed…” Marino frowned, “by the way… Those stains on your faces. What happened to you two?”

Orion realised how little he had dedicated any thought to the stains left behind by Tartar’s mind control goop. He could only imagine how bad it was to have a constant reminder of what happened last week on their faces, possibly permanently…

“We got mind-controlled by a crazy AI who was trying to wipe out all life on the planet and start anew. No big deal,” said Ayane.

“It was irritating for like a week, but now it’s just a stain,” Ethan nodded.

Or not. Either it wasn’t that big a deal or these two had been through so much that this barely phased them. The latter was not particularly comforting to think about.

That also seemed to give Marino significant pause, as she was utterly bewildered. After ten seconds, she asked, “what the shell did I miss?”

“Oh, you have no idea how much, girl. Why don’t we go somewhere else and explain?” Pearl chuckled.

Everyone else seemed to agree. Orion wasn’t sure how much he’d contribute to that, but he did notice Marino’s expression continue to change in subtle ways. It was obvious she was trying her best to put on a pleasant front, but she felt uneasy. Orion got this feeling it wasn’t about the people around her, however. But he didn’t really feel it was his place to ask her, either.

“Hey, Ori, you’re gonna be left behind at this rate,” Axl said as he put a hand on Orion’s shoulder. “You alright?”

That snapped Orion out of his focus, as he realised that the whole group was on the move. “Oh, sorry, I just thought Marino looked… Kinda uneasy, I guess? Not with any of us, but…”

“Huh. Wonder what that’s about,” Axl blinked. “Well, let’s get going.”

Orion also glanced at Ethan, who glanced back with a contemplative look. Did Ethan overhear what he just said?

Either way, though, Orion jogged a bit to catch up. He had a lot to think about.

❖

After Gaudile and Cinnamon both assured him that Ahato would be just fine in their care, X decided to finally go back to Callie and Marie’s apartment. As much as he really wanted to keep working, he had to admit to himself that he needed a physical and mental recharge every so often.

“I’m back,” X said, after teleporting right past the front door.

“Welcome back~!” Callie called out from the kitchen area, before returning to cooking and humming to herself.

“Hey,” Marie waved from the couch, just watching TV. “You look like carp. What’s the status on the Metro?”

“I’ve still got way more work to do,” X sighed as he sat down on the couch next to her. “I’m technically now Kamabo’s CEO thanks to Marina’s hacking, but that only gives me a bit more control over the situation. And I was carrying a sanitised Octoling until I could get her to Professor Gaudile for analysis and treatment, so now I gotta wait for that to run its course and hope for the best.”

“How are you so exhausted? Robots shouldn’t be able to feel fatigue,” Marie remarked. She was just wearing a shirt and shorts.

“It’s simulated fatigue, to indicate a mixture of mental strain and physical wear and such,” X explained, as he relaxed. “Even if I am a machine, my neural circuits do need self-maintenance every now and then.”

“Well, sounds like your body is yelling at you to take a freaking break already,” Marie chuckled. “Seriously, you’re not racing against time here. The Metro is still going to be running as usual, anyone who’s already desperate to escape is already out. The Professor is working hard to fix that Octoling. And you run Kamabo now, so you can keep tabs on what’s happening down there. It wouldn’t kill you to spend some time off. You’ve done almost nothing but run around doing heroics for the entire time since you’ve been activated.”

“I hate it but you’re absolutely right,” X groaned, leaning his head back on the backrest.

Marie chuckled, “I’m the smart one here, I’m always right.”

“Like shell you are! If that were true you would’ve won more Splatfests than me!” Callie called out, sticking out her tongue playfully.

“Ugh, don’t remind me…” Marie groaned.

“Well, you are still pretty smart. I owe you a lot for helping me get my bearings in this new world,” X smiled, putting an arm around her waist without even really thinking about it.

Marie smiled softly, blushing a little bit. “Hey, you’d be pretty hopeless without me and the agents. Probably would just be wandering around in armour standing out like a sore tentacle.”

“Hey now, that’s uncalled for,” X chuckled. His sensors detected her muscles were at their most sensitive roughly where his fingers were at her sides. “If you’re going to tease me, Marie, I have my ways of retaliation aside from snarking back at you.”

“Oh, the peace-loving robot is threatening retaliation, whatever shall I do,” Marie smirked. “You’ve got no ammunition in this fight, X, I’ve got way more experi-”

Then X began to tickle her lightly for a bit.

Marie’s eyes widened, and her head turned to X in panic. “Wait, you wouldn’t dare-”

“You infringed on my honour, Marie, and I can’t let it slide,” X grinned. “Take that comment back and I won’t have to resort to drastic measures.”

“Please, as if I’ll yield to mere tickling-” Marie immediately had to bite her lower lip as X proceeded to tickle her much more strongly, trying her absolute best to not laugh. She was taking deep breaths, “c-come on, is that all you’ve-”

“You may be strong enough to handle X’s tickling, but NOT MINE!” Callie suddenly came up behind them, and started tickling Marie’s underarms. “I know your weak spots, Marie~!”

Marie struggled, holding her breath, but X held her down against the couch. Then she began howling with laughter, suddenly changing into squid form, but X still held her tight, allowing Callie to tickle her tentacles. “STAAAAAAAAP! OKAY OKAY I take it back, that’s enough!”

X, satisfied, let go of her. “Thank you. Sorry if we went too far.”

“No, it’s okay. I need a good laugh. And speaking of which… Dang, can’t tickle you, I guess… So…” Marie looked at Callie, and immediately tackled her to the floor, “time for my counter-attack!”

“Wait, I’m not ready-AHAHAHAHAHAHA!” Callie laughed as Marie tickled her relentlessly.

X looked on as the cousins proceeded to have an intense tickle-fight that, after a few minutes, left them both sprawled out on the floor. “Had enough fun, you two?”

“Yeah… I think we’re good. Wow, haven’t had a tickle-fight like that in years,” Callie giggled. “You’re right, Marie, we totally needed that.”

As far as X was concerned, that might’ve actually been an understatement. The cousins had been bottling up a lot of emotions over the last couple of weeks, and the dam had broken a couple of times - first after the victory party at Octo Canyon, where Callie and Marie had broken down crying with joy over the fact that they were together again, and again only last week, after they, X and Cap’n Cuttlefish had returned to the apartment…

“We keep telling you to not worry us, Gramps! Kidnapping is one thing, but you almost DIED!” Marie was clearly struggling to hold back tears as she turned towards her grandfather. “I almost lost Callie, and now you!”

“Oh, Marie… I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to get into such a pickle,” said Cap’n Cuttlefish sadly, but he tried to shift the mood, “but I would’ve come out of that just fine, you know I’m stronger than that!”

“Don’t kid yourself, Gramps! We were SO WORRIED!” Callie hugged him, tears streaming down her face, “seeing you in that blender was terrifying! We almost lost you!”

“And from what I hear… I almost lost the both of you as well,” Cuttlefish sighed, hugging her back. “Dagnabbit, Octavio really crossed a line this time… I’m giving him a piece of my mind the next time I see him!”

“Settle down, old timer, you’ve got plenty of time to do that, after you get some rest,” X smiled, putting a hand on his shoulder.

“I know, I know… And I have you to thank for me being here at all,” Cuttlefish said. He looked Marie in the eyes. “You don’t have to hold back on this old fool’s account, Marie. The two of you mean the world to me, and I don’t know what I’d do if something happened to you.”

Those words were enough for Marie, as tears erupted from her eyes, and she hugged her grandfather tightly. “Gramps…”

As Callie went back to checking on her cooking, Marie sat back down next to X. “Well. Now at least you’re taking the time to enjoy yourself.”

“Well, it’s always more fun with friends,” X chuckled, putting his arm around her waist again. “And you definitely enjoyed that too.”

“If there’s one thing I can say about you… Is that you’re always good to have around,” Marie smiled, leaning against him. “Such a shame you’re going to move out when Zero’s repairs are finished.”

“Well, I can’t just crash on your couch forever. What, are you actually going to miss having me around?” X remarked. “You do know Zero and I are gonna be living in the same building, right?”

“I-I know that,” Marie said. “I guess I was just getting used to having you living with us, and now…”

“I can come over whenever you want, Marie. I’m always one teleport away,” X remarked. Marie wasn’t easily flustered, but when she was, she was rather cute. Then again, Marie was always cute.

Where did that thought come from? X wondered to himself.

“Marie has a cruuuuussssssshhh~!” Callie called out in a sing-song voice.

“NoIdon’tshutup,” Marie grumbled, blushing.

“For what it’s worth, I’m not against going out with you,” X whispered to her. “Well, maybe once things have settled down a bit more.”

“We haven’t even known each other for even a month. I think dating is a bit premature, don’t you think?” Marie asked, blushing deeper.

“That’s why I said we can wait. I can wait until you’re more comfortable with it,” X smiled softly, as he kissed her on the cheek.

Marie’s cheeks were beet red, and she was looking away, but the smile on her face spoke a thousand words.

The two of them were content to just sit together like that, until dinner.

❖

“Oh man today was nuts,” Artemis said as she sat down on the couch in her dorm. “Still, home sweet home. How do you feel about it, Iris?”

While Iris had been introduced to the dorm briefly while changing outfits, this was the first time the Ocotling girl actually spent more than five minutes in it. “It’s… Different, I guess. I’m more used to having my own private bedroom in my family’s manor, or my own officer’s quarters. I’ve never actually slept with anyone else before.”

“Phrasing, Iris,” Hinata giggled.

“Shush,” Karlene said to her.

Iris seemed to ignore them, though. “But I kinda like it. It’s a nice change, I get to hang out with friends all the time, and… There’s just enough space for me to do my daily exercises, too!”

Before Artemis could inquire about that last part, Iris moved over to the empty space between the couch and the TV, beginning to stretch. The Octoling had changed into a simple black tank-top and shorts, for what Artemis had initially assumed was just to hang out casually, but now…

And then Iris dropped to the floor, immediately doing one-handed push-ups. This drew Artemis’ attention to her surprisingly toned arms and legs. Artemis could also hear her counting the number of push-ups.

“Well, you did say you work out regularly,” said Karlene, leaning over the couch. “Nice. I like to work out, too. Shame these two lazybones don’t do it as much as they should.”

“Hey, we get enough of a workout from practice and ink battles, I think we’re just fine with regular training,” Artemis shrugged.

“What?! That’s not true!” Iris suddenly shot up to her feet, looking borderline offended by the notion, and started counting with her fingers, “there’s plenty of reasons to work on your whole body for ink battles! It makes moving around with weapons easier, you can throw sub-weapons further, you can super-jump faster…”

“Wow, someone’s passionate,” said Hinata.

Suddenly, Iris’ entire body language shifted, and she spoke in a lower octave, eyes narrowing. “That’s it. You two. Start stretching. Once you’re done, drop down and give me twenty.”

Artemis blinked. This was… New. “Whoa, settle down, Iris, we just got back from a big-”

“Did I stutter, Private?” Iris asked, with a cadence that was still sweet and yet had an undertone that was utterly terrifying.

“NO MA’AM!” Artemis found herself blurting out as she shot up from the couch, and immediately started stretching. Hinata was quick to join her. The moment they were done, Artemis started her push-ups. It had been a long time since she had seriously done proper push-ups, however, and she was struggling a bit, but she managed to do twenty in a fairly reasonable time.

Hinata had somewhat more trouble, prompting Karlene to step in to help her.

While Artemis sat down to rest, Iris squatted down next to her, and started feeling her arm muscles. Artemis initially thought she was still acting like another person at first, but then she realised her eyes were a bit different. Also, personal space, much? “As I thought. We’re going to the gym tomorrow. You really need to work on your arm muscles.”

“Uh… Sure, but… Geez, you’re a good actor, Iris. You came off like you were a totally different person for a minute there,” said Artemis.

Iris blinked. There was a flash of recognition in her expression, and she sighed, “ah, right… That wasn’t an act. Ever since I was a young girl, I didn’t want to fight, but between my parents’ expectations and what I was expected to be as an Octarian soldier, well… It made me imagine I had a big sister who could step in to fulfil those expectations in my stead. By the time I left the academy, ‘the Colonel’ became a whole separate person in my head. She surfaces from time to time whenever I need to make hard decisions or potentially hurt someone.”

The three Inklings were stunned silent. Karlene spoke up first. “You developed a full-blown split personality. Seriously, girl… That’s never a good sign when it comes to your mental health. You really need a therapist.”

“I-It’s not that big a deal! I’m fine, real-”

Artemis immediately hugged her. “Iris. It’s okay to admit you’ve got problems. We’ve all got stuff we need to work through. You don’t need to be tough in front of us - you’re one of the sweetest people I know, and, um, we’ll support you every step of the way, I guess? Sorry, I’m not used to doing these-”

“No, it’s… It’s fine. Thank you,” Iris hugged back. Artemis couldn’t see her face, but she could feel the tears on her shoulder.

“It’s sappy, but we’ve got your back, no matter what,” Hinata chuckled.

Karlene nodded in agreement. “That’s what friends are for.”

“For a long time it was just Axl… And now I have so many wonderful new friends… It’s just so overwhelming…” Iris sobbed.

Artemis let the Octoling girl cry on her shoulder for as long as she needed to. In the middle of all of that, Artemis swore she heard the Colonel softly whisper “thank you” into her ear.

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