"And that's all the time we've got!" announced Pearl to the camera.

With the turf war stages announced, it was time to wrap up another show. Pearl along with her partner and friend Marina began their usual routine of signing off, it can get tiring and monotonous but such is a performer's life. Pearl jumped off her seat while Marina rolled away her table stand where her DJ setup rested on.

"Until next time..." Pearl began as the duo struck their poses.

"Don't get cooked... Stay off the hook!" the two chorused.

Pearl inwardly smirked; the pose and quote was her idea but Marina thought it was silly at first. However, she eventually came to accept it as the studios showed their approval, it seemed that they desperately wanted another pair of Squid Sisters. Seeing the cameraman hold up a finger, signaling them to wait, the two held their pose patiently until he dropped the finger.

"...And we're off the air!" he announced, letting the camera sag on its base.

"Finally!" Pearl exhaled and then unceremoniously plopped herself back on her seat and fished out her phone.

The set crew relaxed and began to chat and walk around, some passed the two girls and paid them compliments which Marina responded with warm smiles and 'Thank yous' while Pearl just gave a mock salute without looking. Pearl peeked from her phone to see most of the compliments from the crew were directed at Marina, particularly from the males. Marina had come a long way from when Pearl first met her almost two years ago, from being prejudiced to being beloved. Their journey to get here was such a blur that Pearl felt as if she had met her just yesterday yet had known her all her life, a strange feeling. After all those rejections and that one viral video that jump-started their careers, Pearl felt proud of what they had achieved but although Marina has now gained a huge following, Pearl's reputation has mostly remained the same. After seeing Marina wave at her fans who were cheering from the other side of the glass window, Pearl leaned back into her seat, stretched her free arm towards the ceiling and snapped her fingers.

"Yo Marina! Get me an iced latte with whipped cream and the usual sprinkles wouldya?"

Marina blinked as well as most of the crew members who stopped what they were doing to look at them.

"What, Now?" asked Marina.

"Yuuuuup, doing this stuff is exaaasusting and I need some of dat cold sugarness in my veins, ya feel me?" drawled Pearl in a whiny fashion.

Marina knitted her brows and pouted in thought for a moment and then got up, a frown still on her face.

"Um, sure Pearlie. So I just use the card you gave me then?"

Pearl nodded while inwardly grimacing at her given nickname, she doesn't remember when the octoling started calling her by that name but for some reason she found it, along with that pout of hers, annoyingly adorable, but mostly annoying. Before Marina could leave, one of the crew members, a jellyfish, rushed in front of her.

"Miss Marina! If you be wanting, I can do the buying of the beverage you need!" The jellyfish offered with his strange dialect.

"Thanks Jelenzo but it's alright. Pearl's tastes are pretty specific." said Marina with a smile and then made her way out the building.

Pearl chuckled at the mention of her tastes, she obviously liked the finer things in life and was almost a perfectionist when it came to her likings but it was surprising to her how quickly Marina picked up on them in the duration of their relationship. It was to the point where Pearl didn't have to accompany Marina when buying take-out. Pearl's thoughts were interrupted she noticed Jelenzo narrowing his eyes at her.

"What?" she asked annoyed.

The jellyfish just slowly shook his head at her and shuffled away. She wondered what was that was all about and then noticed from the corner of her eye Marina's fans, who were outside the glass window, giving her that same look too, some more furious with arms crossed and some with fist on hips. It wasn't just with them, most of the crew members on set were whispering to themselves and eyeing her.

"Whatever." she grunted with rolled eyes and diverted her attention back to her phone.

She didn't know what the big deal was. Marina always got stuff for her as long as she paid for it, she is her friend after all, that's what they do! She may have groaned about some of her requests but because Pearl ended up paying for everything she felt it was fair and did them with few complaints. Sure, she banters and mocks her when on air but that's just for show, for the most part anyway. Throughout their relationship, Marina has been pretty subservient.

It was with that last thought when it hits her, that subtle nagging feeling of constriction and tiny pin pricks in her insides, the dryness of her throat and the heat on her back, she wondered what it was at first but a while later she let out an exasperated sigh and palmed her head. Who was she fooling? she knew exactly what the feeling was, it was guilt and regret: the language of her conscience. She knew that Marina was never a lackey and didn't deserved to be treated like one. She begrudgingly admitted to herself that earlier, she hadn't been acting like the friend she's supposed to be, she guessed that she had fallen back to her old ways of how she used to treat people who decided to hang out with her.

"A'ight conscience, I get it. Now get off my case!" she softly muttered as she flicked against her phone to call Marina.

She paused before dialing, rehearsing what possible lines to say to her. The urge to say 'I'm sorry' was quickly squished by her pride, she was too stubborn to go down that route. She decided that she would first ask her how far she was from the studio; if she was close by, Pearl would tell her to forget the whole thing and make it up to her later, if not, she'd offer Marina to use her card to treat herself to whatever she wanted, in addition to buying her that latte of course! Satisfied, she tapped on the dial icon and waited but only to hear that annoying Wet Floor song that Marina chose for her ringtone, emanating from the device on her DJ setup.

"Of course she would leave her phone behind!" she snapped.

Pearl's frustration began to build due her nagging guilt and figured it would be best to just wait for her return, she was not known for her patience and could already feel the minutes tick agonizingly slowly, more fuel to the fire in her mind. Her little outburst earlier was misconstrued by some of the crew members and caused them whisper among themselves again. One in particular was an over-excitable fellow who remained unaware of the energy he put into his voice which was unfortunately pitched in a way that made it easy to carry across the room.

"Can you believe that girl? I don't know why Marina puts up with her when clearly she's the more talented one! I say she's just holding her back from her true potential and would be better off without her!"

Before the person whom he was whispering to could stop him, the damage had been done. Pearl's eyes widened at first and then narrowed dangerously, she was normally thick-skinned and used to every barb that could possibly be thrown at her but she felt that one. The atmosphere in the studio set turned tense and everyone froze in their tracks then some rushed to appease the livid celebrity, some damage-controlled the crew member's actions and some was willing to throw him under the bus.

Outside the studio, some of the denizens of Inkopolis Square noticed something was going on behind the glass window of the studio and didn't waste the opportunity to crowd in front the glass with their phones out ready to record the whole thing. To their disappointment, the only thing that happened was Pearl getting up from her seat without a word and walking out the door. They could see one of the crew members motion to stop her but was held back, it seemed they knew that the only way to deal with Pearl when she was in one her moods was to let her walk it off.

Pearl couldn't help but feel embarrassed that she allowed things to escalate like it did. She used to be known for her tantrums a long time ago but since then, well, she didn't exactly mature but she had learned how to keep her composure; it helped when she first started out in the more 'underground' circles, the art of putting someone down meant being able to take it as well. She still couldn't understand why she lost it and knew had she not just walked away, she would've probably done something that would've endangered her career and unfairly Marina's as well.

She chuckled to herself realizing her partnership with the Octarian seemed to influence her in unexpected ways. This line of thinking brought her back to the reason she was set off: what was surprising to her was that it wasn't even that bit about her being less talented, although she admits it did sting, it was what was said after. "Marina is better off without her.", "She's only holding her back.", these words continued to plague her mind and brought back those primitive emotions she used to feel when she was denied something. But what was scary to her was that her brain was entertaining those ideas, like they made sense?

Pearl quickly shook those thoughts off and decided that the best thing for her to do was find Marina and just ignore everything else. She glanced at her phone to check the time and found that three minutes had passed since Marina left.

"What the heck is taking her so long?" Pearl wondered.

She figured she probably either got stuck in a line or got accosted by some of her fans but after walking the usual route and peering into windows of the local coffee shop, she found that there was no sign of her. At that point her heartbeat began to speed up and she began to feel a slight wave of panic. She found herself running back and forth from one end of the square to another, almost aimlessly, her frantic mind made her unsure where to look or who to ask. It didn't make any sense! Inkopolis Square is a pretty small area, where can a popular celebrity like Marina disappear to? It was with that thought when Pearl's hearing picked it up. Although squids technically don't have have ears (fun fact: they hear using organs called statocysts), one could say that Pearl had an 'ear' for music and that helped her detect the faint voice of her friend among the usual cacophony of the square, and it sounded distressed?

Without a second thought, she dashed off towards the source, between two buildings into one of the back alleys which ironically looked similar to the alley where she first encountered Marina and like before, she found her but this time she was with someone else! The person, decked in full lime green and wearing a cap of the same color, whirled around at her presence and Pearl could see that the face was concealed by a surgical mask. Marina, who was behind the person and standing on top of a drain grate, looked surprised to see her.

"P-Pearl?"

Immediately the person whipped out what looked like a Splat-charger! It was almost too fast the way he aimed and fired but Pearl managed to ducked out of the way, yelping in fear. The person quickly trained his sights and the muzzle of the weapon towards Marina before there was any reaction.

"Get in. Now." the person said, motioning the muzzle downwards towards the grate.

Marina hesitated and her voice froze, her eyes darting towards where Pearl was. Her immediate fears centered around her friend and felt if she wanted Pearl unharmed, then it's best that she co-operate. She shakily nodded and transformed into her octopus form and slid into the grate, the stranger also transformed, but into a squid, and disappeared into the grate as well.

Pearl picked herself up from her hiding spot and quickly approached the drainage, the smell immediately assaulted her senses making her scrunch up her face and reel back with an "Ew!". Looking at where the two disappeared, her panic returned with full force and the pace of her heart quickened.

"Oh man! Ohmanohmanohmanohman!" she whimpered pacing back and forth.

She's never been in a situation like this and usually this would be the part where she'd just run back and cry for help. But how would that turn out? Would anyone even believe her? The other issue was that the emotional and irrational part of her brain was tugging her the other way, she could feel that previous guilt pricking at her again: her friend was in trouble all because she ordered her to get her a stupid latte! In retrospect, Pearl doesn't even know why she acted the way she did but that was for another time. She stepped toward the grate, the smell hitting her once again.

"Aw Man..." she groaned, unable to believe what she was about to do.

He brain was screaming that this was a dumb and dangerous idea and worst of all, she was going to get her clothes and shoes all dirty and gross! But deep down, she knew that she'd never be able to relax until she had at least told Marina how sorry she was. With that last thought, she transformed into her squid form and slipped through the grate.

A certain three letter acronym came to Pearl's mind when she discovered where she found herself. The best way she could describe the place was as if 'someone barfed up a construction site and then someone hit pause as those chunks few in mid-air', a disgusting description but almost an apt one: it really did look like floating chunks of land, the larger ones were flat like the one she was standing on and they were littered with remnants of small buildings. Some of those remnants didn't look like they were complete to begin with as there were tarps, construction tapes now dangling in the wind, wooden scaffolding, sheets of steel diamond plates placed like ramps and held by rivets and under all of this, way down below, one could see a lake filled with purple liquid. Pearl grunted, massaged her temples and wondered if the stench along the way did more to her senses than she thought.

"I'm havin' a bad trip, aren't I?" she groaned, not sure if she meant that literally or not.

Pearl began to wander around when her hearing finally picked up their voices again, Marina and the stranger with the Splat-charger. She found them situated within the half shell of a building, the walls were dilapidated, covered in graffiti and the lack of a roof left them exposed, a distance from the side where there was no wall were scattered a bunch of crates which Pearl immediately used one of them as a hiding spot. She could hear them having a heated argument about something and from what she could see from peeking, Marina was sitting on the floor while the stranger still had the weapon trained on her.

Pearl began weigh her options: She was unarmed but even if she was, it wouldn't have helped. If there was one thing that was true about the banters she and Marina had on air, it was that she was not very good at Turf Battles. It pained her to admit it but it was true, she was never a team player and always resorted to camping in a random spot which resulted in nobody wanting her on their team and her minimal battle experience. So a direct confrontation was a no-no, which only left sneaking closer to them and waiting for an opportunity, it couldn't be that hard, right?

"I'll ask again, Where is she!?" she heard the stranger bark.

"And I'm telling you again, I don't know whom you're talking about!" she heard Marina bark back. She never heard Marina sound this tense before, it felt out of character.

Peeking from her hiding spot, she could see the stranger look to the side as if something caught his attention and then let out a sigh.

"Hold that thought." she heard him mutter.

She then saw him expertly hold the Splat-charger with one hand and with the other, pull out a long piece of rope. He then proceeded to tie up Marina, she could see that her friend didn't seem to resist and instead just looked annoyed with her tentacle-hair wriggling in agitation. When the person walked off, Pearl saw her opportunity to get closer and began to alternate between tip-toeing and slithering in her squid form from crate to crate. Feeling she was making progress, she ditched her squid form entirety and simply started dashing towards each crate. It was when she dashed to the sixth crate that she saw the stranger standing right in front of her as if waiting for her all this time.

"You're not very good at this stealth stuff, are you?" he asked sounding bored.

Or was he a 'He'? Now that Pearl was up close to the strange individual, she felt that the voice sounded female but wasn't sure because it was muffled by the surgical mask.

"Oh yeah! well,..." Pearl began to cycle through her mental lexicon of retorts and comebacks.

"That outfit makes you look fat!" she finally blurted.

Both Pearl and the stranger were wide-eyed and froze, the only audible sounds were the gust of wind and the flutter of birds flying. Pearl couldn't help but palm her face at her own fail, she supposed that her mental reflexes weren't very good when there was a weapon pointed at her.

"Ugh! Can I try that again? I'm usually better at retorts." Pearl groaned.

The stranger blinked and then let out a sigh.

"Look, just go home kid."

"Huh?" asked Pearl.

"This doesn't involve you, I only have business with the Octarian."

"That Octarian is my homegirl and I ain't leaving without her!" snapped Pearl while pointing in Marina's direction.

The person in front of her blinked in surprise and then eyed her in disbelief.

"You're kidding right? You DO know what she is, right? How well you even know her? Do you even trust her?"

The words "I trust her with my life!" nearly escaped Pearl's lips. Where did that come from? she's never had this kind of blind faith in anybody before and it was more unbelievable considering that, like it or not, the stranger did have a point: she barely knows anything about Marina aside from her personality, or at least the side of the personality Marina allowed her to see. Was there a side to her friend she didn't know about? Marina never talked about her life before entering Inkopolis, she always side stepped that subject. But on the other hand, Pearl didn't bother to press her about it; After all, she didn't tell Marina about her past either so she guessed they were both even.

"I trust her a heck more than you! Hiding behind your piece and takin' shots at me!" she finally said with a glare.

"I only did that to scare you off. I was aiming at your feet, you weren't in any danger. Believe me..."

The stranger leveled the muzzle of the Splat-charger towards her as if to prove a point.

"...I'm actually very good at placing my shots."

Pearl gulped and wondered if that last bit was a threat, she wouldn't find out because of what happened next.

"GET AWAY FROM MY FRIEND!"

From behind, the stranger was whacked against the head by a wooden plank, sending him down. To Pearl's astonishment, it was Marina holding the piece of wood.

"Ma-Marina!?"

"Pearlie! You're okay!"

The octoling discarded the piece of wood and tackled her into a fierce hug. Pearl found it difficult to breathe with the grip she had on her and felt a light blush across her cheeks, even after all this time she still wasn't used to the way the octoling expressed her affection. Feeling the girl's struggle, Marina pulled back with a sheepish smile.

"Hah. I'm okay!? I thought I was rescuing you! How'd you get free anyway?" Pearl gasped.

"Uh, Duh! I transformed. Octopi can squeeze out of anything." Marina stated matter-of-factly.

The reunion of the two girls was immediately cut short by a voice.

"Ow! Seriously, Ooooooowwww...!"

The two girls turned their attention to the stranger who has now roused and is nursing the pain where Marina's plank hit. But what surprised them was that the surgical mask had come off from the impact! From the unmuffled voice, Pearl could now tell that the voice was definitely female and from the exposed face, she was definitely no stranger. In fact, there wasn't many people in Inkopolis who didn't know who she was.

"Whoa wait, ain't you..." began Pearl, only to be interrupted by the excited girlish squeal of her partner.

"OHMIGAWD! IT'S MARIE FROM THE SQUID SISTERS!"

It was. Seeing the recognition on their faces made Marie touch her mouth area and gasp at the confirmation of her exposed identity. Pearl was shocked while Marina was still jumping up and down in her excited fan-girlish glee.

"Ohmigawd!Ohmigawd!Ohmigawd!Ohmigawd! Wait! I totally just hit you! Ohmigawd!Ohmigawd!Ohmigawd!Ohmigawd!" Marina's excited glee shifted drastically to panic and nervousness.

Recovering from her shock, Pearl's face morphed into one of her trademark smug looks as she approached Marie.

"Ooooh, I see how it is! Trying to bump off the competition huh?"

Marina reeled back at this. Marie was one of the Squid Sisters! They would never do something like that, would they? She glanced at the former idol who was now standing with a raised eyebrow at Pearl.

"Yeah, you're salty now that WE'RE Inkopolis's newest hotness and that you're now archived trash! Watsamatter Girl? Irrelevancy too much for ya? Well, get used to it. No matter what you do, you can't compare to us, we're on another level! Don't even try it, Girl. Heck, look at my nails! Where do you get yours done? At a sawmill?"

Marina looked on nervously as Pearl continued her trash talk but it seemed that none of Pearl's words had any effect on Marie as she just stood there with her arms crossed and an unimpressed look.

"Are you done?" she asked in a bored manner.

Marie was still annoyed that her identity has been compromised but it couldn't be helped. She still felt as Agent 2 of the New Squidbeak Splatoon, she had a job to do.

"Kid, I could care less about you or your obvious insecurity issues but like I said, I still have questions for her." said Marie with a finger pointed at Marina.

Pearl wanted to fire back for that crack about her supposed insecurity (she swears she doesn't have any, really!) but instead looked back at forth between her and Marina.

"This again? Yo, what is up with you? Marina is harmless! All of Inkopolis has pretty much accepted her, why can't you!?" Pearl snapped with a point of her own finger.

"I'm not taking any chances! She may have affected all of you with her Hypno waves but not me!"

Both Pearl and Marina froze and looked at each other in utter confusion and looked back at the former idol with the same expression

"Hypno...?" began Pearl.

"...Waves?" finished Marina.

Marie looked at them with suspicion, then disbelief but soon her brain began to piece together facts and the tiny observations she made which formed a much clearer picture. She reeled back at the realization that she may have made a huge error.

"Wait, you mean you're not...? And she isn't...?" Marie looked back and forth between the two girls, looking flabbergasted.

"Well this is awkward." she sighed while scratching her cap, eliciting more confused stares from the two.

Pearl and Marina had no idea what the Squid Sister was going on about. Even a huge fan like Marina was starting to question her idol's sanity.

"Soooooo...You guys want some tea or something?" Marie offered sheepishly.

"So lemme get this straight, you're part of a secret organization that keeps the Octarians at bay?" asked Pearl, her voice tinged in disbelief.

The two girls found themselves brought to a small Japanese style home which Marie proudly dubbed "Cuttlefish Cabin", though in Pearl's mind it looked more like a shack. Marie, who changed out of her disguise to a black yukata, had served them some green tea and was seated across them at the short table. Pearl was personally not a big fan of the tea so she took baby sips at intervals, Marina on the other hand seemed to have liked it.

"And you thought Marina here was a spy who was using some kind of hypnotic device to brainwash everyone." continued Pearl with a raised eyebrow, each word rolling out was laced in doubt.

"Imagine that. My music being hypnotic! Don't know if I should feel flattered." giggled Marina.

Marie bit her tongue and massaged her forehead.

"Ugh! I know, it sounds stupid. I guess the info we got was bad."

Pearl could've sworn she heard Marie mutter "I'm gonna get you for this one, Sheldon!" under her breath. Unbeknownst to the three of them, the information was partly accurate, The Octarian's plot did involve brainwashing of some kind. Marina shook her head with a smile, her hair-tentacles swinging slightly.

"I wouldn't dismiss it that easily. With my people, something like that wouldn't be so far fetched. But Marie,..."

Marie was slightly taken aback when Marina leaned forward and focused all her attention on her.

"I assure you, I don't mean anybody any harm. I left the Octarian Army and haven't looked back since." Marina said with sincerity.

Marie blinked, her negative experiences with the Octarians made it difficult to process the honesty she could see from Marina's turquoise eyes but she couldn't deny that it was there.

"Well, I'm inclined to believe you. You obviously seem to care about at least ONE inkling." said Marie, touching the sore spot where Marina whacked her while shooting a glance towards Pearl.

Marina's eyes darted towards Pearl who didn't seem to have noticed that last bit from Marie as she was struggling with her latest sip. Marina felt thankful that her skin tone made it difficult for people to notice her blush.

"But I gotta ask, why the desertion though?" questioned Marie.

This definitely got Pearl's attention. She remembered Marie questioning how well she really knows her friend which brought back all the times Marina side stepped this issue to mind. The subject of the Octarians or Marina's relationship with them or the reason she left them were all responded with vague answers. It never bothered Pearl before but right now she couldn't help but feel curious. Glancing at her companion, she could see that the octoling already began to knit her brows and pout in thought but surprisingly it seemed that she already has an answer in mind.

"Actually, I have partly you to thank for that." she responded. Both Marie and Pearl were caught off guard by this answer.

"You see...I...I was never cut out for soldier life and was often called...inadequate. But over there, we were given our roles and are expected to fulfill them and so we did without complaints. Even though I was the odd person out and felt like I didn't belong, I sorta accepted it."

In some ways, Pearl felt she could relate to that. She's considered a princess by many, a title said with endearment by her parents but with disdain by so many others. And with that title came expectations: the way she looked, the way she behaved, whom she could socialize with. Although she rebelled against what she was taught were norms, it did little to to change the way people in her life viewed her.

"That was until two years ago, when I saw the Squid Sisters for the first time."

Marie's eyes widened, she put two and two together and realized there was only one event two years ago where an octoling could've seen them. The memories of that fateful battle between the octopus leader DJ Octavio and the newly recruited Agent 3 as well as her impromptu performance came back to her. Marina clasped her hands and her eyes almost sparkled as it seemed that she was lost in a dream-like state.

"You guys...when you went up against my...our leader, It sorta open our eyes, especially mine. Watching you perform, that music and that energy, it rekindled something inside me, something I thought I could ignore but realized I just couldn't and I knew then I would never be happy with myself where I was. So...I came to Inkopolis."

Despite appreciating the emotional explanation, Pearl couldn't help but notice that Marina had a little too much control over some of the words she used and wondered if she was telling the whole story. Marie on the other hand, couldn't hold back her smile.

"Heh, I had no idea we had fans among the Octarians. I feel bad for suspecting you but you gotta understand: with the Great Zapfish missing, I had to be absolutely sure."

"Oh yeah, that thing's been happening. They said the Octarians copped it last time. What? ya think they did it again?" asked Pearl.

"Gra-Our leader...is kinda old fashioned and stuck in his ways so I wouldn't be surprised if they did but that's not the only thing concerning you, is it Marie?" asked Marina with her eyes fixed squarely on Marie's, the former idol tried keeping her cool but her nervousness was evident.

"You kept asking me over and over 'Where is she?'. You were talking about Callie, weren't you? You think they took her, don't you?" Marina prodded. There was slight dread in her voice and her her hair-tentacles curled in anxiousness.

"WHOA! Hold up! You mean both Callie and the Great Zapfish going missing at the same time is actually connected!?" balked Pearl.

Marina and Marie turned their half-lidded eyes towards Pearl in sarcastic disbelief.

"What!? I thought it was just a coincidence!"

Marie still tried keeping her cool and adamantly maintained her silence for a while but Marina's puppy dog eyes managed to put an end to that.

"Okay! Okay! You got me. Quit looking at me that! Yes, I'm looking for Callie."

Marina exhaled at the confirmation.

"I don't get it. Didn't you guys, like, have a falling out or something?" asked Pearl.

Pearl mostly gets her news from social media regardless of where the source actually comes from, this leads her into taking rumors at face value but one of the biggest rumors to have come out at the time was that tensions behind the scenes caused the Squid Sisters break up. The rumor snowballed as it spread from media outlet to media outlet and before long, it became "fact".

"One of the reasons I came to Inkopolis was to meet you guys but when I heard the news I was kinda heartbroken. I just couldn't believe the two of you would just split!" said Marina.

Pearl rolled her eyes as she remembered that time when Marina was down in the dumps after she told her what she'd heard, the octoling was like that for almost an entire day, over something so trivial. It was so annoying that she literally had to kick some sense into her to get her to stop. Marie sighed, this was a subject matter she wasn't comfortable talking about but since she had already revealed too much to them, she figured why not?

"It's not like we had problems with each other or anything like that. Like most things in life, it sorta just happened."

And so she told them, about the results of the final Splatfest, their rise to super-stardom, their solo hits, the eventual tug that pulled them into separate paths, the time they lost and the schedules that kept them away. She told them how heavy her heart felt at the thought of her partner resenting her and the guilt that plagued her mind. Marina was emotionally engrossed in Marie's tale while Pearl's mind began to reel, she began to wonder if the same thing would happen to her and Marina.

It was obvious that Marina was the more popular one among them and the public would probably choose her if they had a choice. In fact, hasn't that happened already? Those words spoken from the set crew member floated back into her mind, "She's better off without you!", "You're only holding her back!", she was unable to deny how true it felt: It seemed inevitable that the future had no room for both of them. If it can happen to the Squid Sisters, it can happen to them...and maybe it should.

"I-I'm sorry, I didn't know. No wonder you were being so rough with me." said a shell-shocked Marina.

Regret began to bite at Marie. With her grandfather and Agent 3 gone to who knows where, she felt an uncomfortable weight on her shoulders these past few days. It was made even worse considering how laid back she preferred to be. Despite being scatterbrained, it was usually Callie who took initiatives, she was the go-getter of the two. Being alone against the Octarians has taken a toll on her emotions and she didn't mean to come off as judgmental as she had appeared to be.

"Look, I'm really sorry you guys. I guess I was so desperate for answers, I was willing to believe some stupid info like that."

"Nah, it's cool. You're just worried about your sis, I get that." said Pearl with a nod.

Marie couldn't help but chuckle, it was a common misconception how the Squid Sisters were actually related due to the name.

"She's actually my cousin but...I feel she may as well be my sister." she said with a fond smile.

It was later decided that Marina and Pearl should probably head back to Inkopolis Square. They didn't know how much time had passed and even though they knew the folks at the studio would be worried, they were more concerned about the inklings waiting for the next stage announcements; they can be very antsy. Outside the cabin, Marie pointed the way to the grate that would take them back to square.

"I really wish we could help but I have no idea what the Octarians are up to and Pearl's battle skills frankly suck." said Marina with a furrowed brow.

Pearl scowled with one of her oval eyebrows twitching.

"You could've kept that on the down low, Marina." she grumbled.

"It's alright guys. I was anyway planning on standing for hours in the Square waiting for some random inkling to recruit."

Pearl snorted at that but then dropped her jaw with realization that Marie was actually serious.

"It worked last time." she said with a shrug.

Marina walked up to Marie and, to the latter's surprise, took her hands into hers.

"You'll find her. I just know it!" Marina said with a positive smile.

Marie was stunned and could help but feel touched while Pearl simply frowned and sighed softly to herself, those negative thoughts beginning to prick at her mind again. She was mentally chiding her friend for annoyingly bringing sunshine and rainbows to everyone, for being such a decent person. She began to wonder why someone like that would want to hang out with a spoilt, self-centered brat like her? Pearl paused at that last thought, was she feeling sorry for herself? She's never done that! While she has changed as she got older, two things that remained consistent with her was her confidence and her entitlement. This feeling of not deserving something was an alien one.

"Thanks, Marina. You're actually pretty cool." replied Marie, returning the smile.

With a fond farewell, Marina turned and walked the way back home, Pearl was about to follow her but then paused and looked back at their former host.

"Yo Marie!" she called.

Marie responded with a questioning look.

"Y'know, Splatfest is coming up and we'll be performing at the square. You should come! Y'know? to check us out!" offered Pearl.

Pearl had to hold back some snark that threatened to leave her lips. Although she viewed both Squid Sisters as rivals, she found herself taking a small liking to Marie.

"Heh, I'd like that." said Marie with a smirk.

"Well, don't forget to holla at ya gurl! Peace!" Pearl waved with a mock salute as she turned to follow her companion.

Marie shook her head with a smile and headed the opposite direction towards Tentakeel Outpost.

"This has been the craziest break we've had yet! But let's keep this to ourselves, alright Pearlie? The last thing Marie needs is unwanted attention." Marina says at the two approached the grate.

"Hey, Marina?" called Pearl, suddenly halting in her tracks.

Marina turned around, with her attention and an inquisitive look directed at Pearl. Pearl found herself unable to figure out what to say, she was usually expressive but her thoughts were so jumbled that she found it difficult to string the words together to convey them. Marina blinked and tilted her head in confusion at Pearl's silence, the scene was oddly reminiscent of that night where the two had their first awkward conversation but it seemed this time, the roles were reversed.

"Um, W-where do you see yourself...y'know, like, five years from now?" Pearl finally blurted out.

Marina froze with a blank expression and then suddenly burst out laughing. Pearl scowled in annoyance at this.

"What!? What did I say!?"

Marina didn't hear her as she was still laughing uncontrollably, she eventually mustered her willpower to compose herself and wipe a tear from all that laughing.

"Pearl! That's like the stock questions we get asked during interviews, like 'what's my favorite color?', 'how we met?', 'am I seeing someone?'..."

"Ugh! Enough! I get it already! I meant to ask...!"

The words froze in Pearl's mouth again, Marina was starting to get nervous seeing her like that. After taking a breath the inkling tried again, slowly forming her question.

"I meant to ask...have you ever considered...going solo?"

Marina's hair-tentacles twitched and her eyes widened, she wondered why such a question would be asked and when her mind calculated an answer, her expression morphed into being horrified.

"Pearl...you're not thinking of breaking us up are you?"

Pearl gulped, she had hoped the question came off as being a general one and couldn't believe her friend came to that conclusion.

"Wait, I never said..."

"Ifit'sbecauseofsomethingIsaidordidI'msorrybutyoucan't...!"

"Whoa, hold up..."

"...YouknowIonlyroastyouonairbecauseofthescriptI'msorryIdidn'tgetyouyourlatte..."

"Marina, I'm not breaking us up!"

That brought Marina back from her panicked ramblings but she could still see the conflicted look on Pearl's face.

"I mean...I dunno! maybe? It's somethin' to think about?"

Pearl tried not to make eye contact as she could feel the octoling's eyes bore into her, searching for some kind of clarification. It was after a while when she noticed those same eyes narrow as well as the fists being clenched and trembled. She had never seen Marina look angry before and it slightly unnerved her.

"What's there to think about!? We wouldn't have gotten this far if we weren't together and now you don't want to do this anymore!?" snapped Marina while throwing her arms wide.

"I'm not sayin' that! I'm jus-...I mean, what if the same thing that happened to Callie and Marie happened to us?"

"THAT'S what this is about!? Pearlie, that'll never happen."

"YOU DON'T KNOW THAT!" Pearl yelled.

She didn't expect to loose it, she could hear her voice faintly echoing across the canyon and hoped that Marie didn't hear it from wherever she was and didn't return to them; it would've made the situation unbearable. But Pearl couldn't help it, she was sick and tired Marina having an answer for everything, that she could say things with certainty when life wasn't. She huffed and puffed from the sudden vocal exertion and kept her eyes down, she almost knew that if she looked up, she'd see the shocked and hurt look on the octoling's face and she didn't think she'd be able to handle it.

"Pearlie... what's gotten into you? Why are you saying these things?"

Pearl flinched at the sound of fear and hurt in her voice. Once again she proved herself to being a lousy friend. With a sigh, she decided to come clean; she figured that she at least owed her an explanation.

"I...I've heard some guys talking and...they say you'll do great on your own and...being with me is just holding you back."

"That is not true! Pearl, Off the Hook wouldn't be the same without you! You're the one who writes our music! You're the one who works the crowd!"

Pearl chuckled and shook her head in an almost state of pity.

"But you're the one that everyone wants."

Marina felt her throat go dry and at that moment, some things about Pearl's behavior were beginning to make sense to her. She didn't know what to think or say, the only thing she was certain about was that she didn't like seeing her friend this way: with a forced smile, chuckling nervously at intervals, looking vulnerable instead of the confident, brash and cool girl she had known for over a year. No, "didn't like" was putting it to lightly, She HATED seeing her like this!

"Marina, I'm gonna be real here. I'm...I'm happy and proud that everyone adores you. You've come a long way from when we first met and at this point? Girl, the world's your oyster! Don't get me wrong, I...I like what we got. I like Off the Hook. But...if you wanna go do your own thing then...then that's cool."

Pearl wasn't sure if she imagined it but she felt her voice crack a little at the end. She was about to get uncomfortable seeing the octoling just furrowing her brow and pouting in thought and was about to suggest they just shelve this whole thing and move on to their destination when she felt Marina firmly grab her shoulders and her intense eyes bore into hers.

"I am NOT leaving you!" the octoling firmly stated.

"Marina!?"

"If that's what they're saying about you or me,...then I don't agree! And that's on them!"

Seeing Pearl's unconvinced look, Marina released her with a small exasperated sigh put her hands at her hips. She had a firm and collected expression, a look that Pearl had never seen on her before. It seemed that both girls had a sudden shift from their usual natures today.

"You know...of all the stock interview questions I get asked, I'm surprised the one question I never get asked is about my inspiration." said Marina.

Pearl raised an eyebrow, not sure why she brought this up or where she was going with this but decided to play along.

"You'd probably just say it was the Squid Sisters or something." Pearl said with a shrug.

"Probably. But then I'd probably also say that: Yes, it was the Squid Sisters who helped me get started, but it's YOU who helps me keep going!"

Pearl's eyes widened, her mind went completely blank and was at a total loss for words. Marina simply shook her head at her reaction, her hair-tentacles swaying.

"You don't realize it, do you? Have you forgotten that when I wasn't as adored as you say I am now, there was one person in the whole world who had my back? Or how about when I was devastated after hearing about Callie and Marie, you pushed me to stop depending on their image and instead shape my own?"

Pearl reeled back at this. She could've sworn the only reason she did that was because Marina's moping was getting on her nerves. She had no idea it had such an impact on her.

"Heck, even today! I was in a dangerous situation that could've gotten worse but you just had to charge in right after me! I mean, who does that!?" Marina chided while throwing her hands up in exasperation.

Pearl was now getting confused, earlier it sounded like she was being complimented and now it sounded like she was criticized. Her confusion only grew when she saw Marina's expression soften and had her shoulders gripped again.

"I'll tell you who..."

And before she knew it, Pearl was yanked into a warm and tight hug.

"The best friend a girl could ever ask for!" finished Marina.

Pearl felt like a ragdoll, even her brain felt limp and with their height difference, she felt herself being pulled slightly upwards, having to balance on the tips of her toes. She could already feel the blood flowing into her facial skin, making her face heat up and turn bright red.

"Please. I can't do this without you."

She heard Marina whisper this as the hair-tentacle caressed her and felt her breath hitch. Nobody ever had this kind of faith in her! It felt unnatural and yet there it was. Looking over Marina's shoulder, she glanced at her raised gloved palms before finally settling them on Marina's back, slowly returning the hug. Pearl admitted to herself that she still doesn't feel fully resolved or vindicated, maybe someday she will. But for now, whether she liked or deserved it or not, the two of them were stuck together and she'll be darned if she looked a gift seahorse in the mouth.

"We...We should probably get going." Pearl finally said.

Marina's eyes flashed open and then awkwardly released Pearl from her embrace.

"Oh! erm, Right!" she gasped.

For a moment the two didn't say anything. Mentally, they felt they were in a state of disarray and were putting themselves back in order.

"Sooooo, Are we cool?" asked Marina.

"Yeah, Yeah. We cool!" Pearl waved off the concern with a grin.

Marina exhaled as Pearl ran up to the grate. It seemed that the young inkling was herself again.

"C'mon. We made 'em wait so long, they're probably already rioting and busting caps on eachother. And I wanna go watch!" said Pearl excitedly and with that, she disappeared into the grate.

Marina blinked. She knew that Pearl was joking (At least she thinks so) but was starting to get worried so she hurriedly followed her.

Luckily, Pearl's inappropriate assumptions of street violence was not correct but it was quite chaotic back in Inkopolis Square. A large number of young inklings have gathered outside instead of engaging in their usual activities, half of them in front of the studio's large window and the other half glued towards the Jumbo Screen on top of Deca Tower that was currently displaying the words 'WE ARE EXPERIENCING TECHNICAL DIFFICULTIES'.

Naturally seeing the two celebrities pop out the grate in front of Ammo Knights made them go ballistic and Pearl and Marina had to make a mad dash towards the studio back entrance while avoiding their concerned fans and the ones who are impatient to get back at the Deca Tower. Arriving at the studio set, gasping for air, they were immediately accosted by the worried studio crew, especially their producer who was sweating more than usual.

"Where the heck were you two!? And WHAT is that smell!?" he exclaimed.

Of course to protect Marie and her mission, they had to make up a stupid cover story about them getting lost which the producer unsurprisingly bought; Nobody said he was particularly bright. The crew member who said the harsh things that Pearl heard apologized and bowed profusely but Pearl dismissed it and mumbled an apology of her own for causing unnecessary drama.

Needless to say, their disappearance almost became a headline. The citizens of Inkopolis were usually laid back, It was hard enough to remain that way after the disappearances of both the Great Zapfish and Callie but the same thing happening to Off the Hook would've sent them over the edge. But in the end, a crisis was averted and nobody had to get fired.

Turning towards the glass window, the two girls could see their fans gathered and cheering. They were waiting for them, not one, not the other, them. With a smile, Pearl patted Marina on the back.

"Showtime, partner! Our public awaits!" she declared.

"Right!" Marina returned the smile and flashed a thumbs up.

With that, Pearl plopped on her seat while Marina took her place behind the DJ setup. Taking the cue, the crew members got to their positions and the cameraman focused the lens at the usual spot and called everyone's attention as he waved his finger.

"Okay, Places everyone! We're on in THREE!...TWO!...ONE!"

"Y'all know what time it is!"

"It's Off the Hook, coming at you LIVE from Inkopolis Square!"

Such is a performer's life. A routine that can get tiring and monotonous but for some reason, for those two girls, it didn't feel that way this time.

A few days and a single player campaign later...

Marie could see that Octo Canyon looked weird in the night time just as it did during the day but the newest additions to the weirdness outside the cabin, a TV, a sofa and a snow globe housing a certain wasabi loving Octarian leader who continued to sulk, felt welcome. She guessed Sheldon had the TV and sofa placed outside due to Cuttlefish Cabin being a mess as it is.

Seating herself on the sofa, she mindlessly flipped through various channels, not really paying attention to anything until she felt the other side of the sofa sag a little from a newly added weight.

"Heya!" came a voice.

"Hey." Marie responded a she turned a see her cousin dressed in a black yukata with violet trappings.

"Where the heck have you been? You just disappeared right after we got back!" asked Marie with annoyance.

"To find my agent, duh! I couldn't find him anywhere! How am I supposed get back to filming New Sardine!?" Callie complained.

Marie blinked at this, did Callie even know how much time had passed since she was kidnapped?

"Callie, I don't know how to break this to you but...New Sardine got canceled."

"What!? No way!" exclaimed a shocked Callie.

Marie simply nodded. After Callie's disappearance, the show's production team recasted her character due to network pressure, it was a move that caused a lot of internet outrage that seemed to cement New Sardine's downfall.

"But for the record, it had nothing to do with you. The critics slammed it for the hackneyed writing and that it had too much water, whatever the heck that means."

"Oh...guess my career is saved then! Thanks mister DJ!"

Callie cheerfully waved at the snow globe encased Octarian leader who just grumbled in response.

"By the way, where's Agent 4? I didn't get to say 'thank you'." Callie asked.

"Probably at the Deca Tower. I swear, that kid can't hold still for a second."

Marie said this glowing smile. Through the course of this little adventure she had grown quite fond of that inkling and hoped to introduce Cap'n Cuttlefish and Agent 3 to their newest recruit when they'd return.

A peaceful silence fell between the two cousins until it was broken by Callie's uncontrollable giggling. Marie turned towards what Callie was looking at and could see dancing specks of light in the air, she then turned to Callie with a questioning look.

"Fireflies!" chirped Callie.

Marie raised an eyebrow, not knowing what the big deal was; to her they were just bugs with glowing butts. She was half expecting Callie to admonish her for not being a romantic and promise to help her get a boyfriend again but what Callie said instead caught her off guard.

"What? Don't tell me you don't remember?" Callie asked, sounding surprised.

Marie just looked back with a blank expression.

"That night after the youth-folk singing competition, we used to chase fireflies together!"

The recollection in Marie's mind began to click as the memories resurfaced.

"You mean YOU used to chase them! I was chasing after you! You were about to get your clothes dirty." groaned Marie.

"Well in the end, we both got our clothes dirty." said Callie sheepishly, sticking her tongue out.

"And we both had to take a bath together!" Marie said with a grimace.

Marie was a shy girl back then and at the time, the thought about sharing a bath with someone made her a nervous wreck.

"The look on your face was priceless!" laughed Callie.

The two cousins shared a pleasant laugh and started throwing back and forth reminisces from their childhood as well as their journeys into adulthood, stories beginning with "Remember when...?" or "How about that one time...?". They were silly, inconsequential and not particularly funny stories but to them, they held such nostalgic value. For Marie, even the bad times were looked back with fondness because even then, being together with her made it less terrifying.

"I missed you." Marie softly blurted out before she could stop herself.

Feeling embarrassed, she kept her eyes downward until she felt an arm slung around her shoulder and her cousin nuzzling her head against hers.

"I missed you too." Callie softly replied.

They just sat there looking at those floating specks of light, it was silly and cliche but it was a moment that the two felt, with all the chaos that happened and probably will happen, that they desperately needed.

"So, who are these new kids who replaced us again?"

AN: This fic ended up being way longer than I expected and I was debating whether or not to turn it into a Two-shot but ultimately decided against it. After completing the Splatoon 2's story mode, I felt a little disappointed that Callie runs off somewhere off screen and you couldn't even interact with her, which led me to write that little epilogue. And of course, Feedback will be appreciated.