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Chapter Text

"Listen, I'm the most successful yakuza leader in all of Inkopolis Square. I don't have time to listen to you complain about how my minions won't collect your neighborhood's protection fees. Just threaten them! I'm your older sister, they know what'll happen if they don't do what you say."

Marina sighed as Pearl continued talking to her little brother Emperor about the protection fees in his neighborhood that he runs. Although Marina strongly disagreed with her girlfriend's actions, she stayed quiet. She didn't want to upset her girlfriend. She heard an audible "Ugh!" coming from Pearl's phone. Was everyone in her family as immature as her? Marina knew that Pearl was at least responsible enough to keep the yakuza running even after her father had died, she admired how the small inkling got so much people to respect and work for her. There was a lot of things she admired about Pearl, from her bright golden eyes, to her cute nasally tone. Marina loved when Pearl showed her sweet side, it was different from her normal annoyed self. Pearl rarely treated someone as nicely as she did Marina, except her youngest brother, Prince. It made Marina feel special. She glanced at Pearl, still yelling at her brother. She just wished the love of her life wasn't the literal Oyabun of Inkopolis's yakuza.

Pearl angrily hung up on her brother, putting down her phone. "I'm so sorry about that. What were you saying?" Pearl asked. Marina was slightly startled, and tried to remember what she was talking about. "Oh, well. I kinda like the idea of becoming a singer." Pearl smiled at the thought. "Well, your singing sure knows how to put me to sleep at night, Reena." Pearl complimented. "I like the idea. Want me to make it happen? I could get you on the radio station, maybe even on televi-" Marina smiled, and cut her girlfriend off. "I would appreciate it, Pearlie. But I think I should work for this. I want to feel the satisfaction of earning popularity. Not to mention, I'm not doing it for the popularity, I'm doing it because I love it."

Pearl looked at Marina. "You're beautiful." Marina blushed and looked out on Inkopolis, the city lights reflecting in her green eyes. The two were sitting on the balcony of Pearl's massive penthouse. Although the 21-year-old was very immature and bared such a measly height, she ruled over the square and it showed. Even with all of Inkopolis right in front of her, she chose to stare at her girlfriend's distant gaze. What was she always so deep in thought about?  Pearl loved Marina, she really did. But she struggled to understand how Marina, a quiet and kind girl, put up with the bullshit Pearl threw at her. She knew it must be stressful on her.

Because she was so successful, she believed it wasn't necessary for the public to know about her relationship with Marina.

"Listen, Reena. You're great. And I'd love to start dating you, you've been my best friend for a while, after all. But y'know, with my whole yakuza situation, I think it's best if we keep our relationship away from the public. Like, y'know, a secret? I hope you understand."

Marina had completely understood her, and never pressed on the subject, and Pearl assumed she didn't mind. But she did.

At first, she thought Pearl was protecting her from the whole "violent crime gang" situation. But as the months went by, Marina realized Pearl was only protecting her reputation. And unfortunately for her, Marina also realized she was in love with Pearl, so she never mentioned it.

She got it though. The Oyabun of Inkopolis's most successful Yakuza with a normal octoling would anger some. Despite the growing number of octolings, and those accepting them, there was a growing number of those who hated them as well. Marina avoided going out late at night because of this.

Pearl's phone started ringing again. She sighed. "So much for alone time," she said, standing up. "I think I should start heading home," Marina got up, ready to leave. "W-Wait! Are you sure? I can come with you if you want?" Pearl asked, grabbing a hold of the younger but taller girl's wrist gently. "It's okay, I have to apply for a job somewhere later today anyway. It's only 5" Marina said with a reassuring smile. Pearl let go of Marina's wrist. "Yeah, you go do that then." Marina bent down to kiss Pearl's cheek. The Inkling blushed and grabbed Marina's face, kissing her tall girlfriend on her lips.

Marina kissed her back before grabbing her bag and leaving with a small "love you". Pearl sighed. "Love you too."

•

It was getting dark. Marina just finished her interview for a job at a small night club, and was riding home on her motorcycle. She wasn't too fond of it, but it was something. The club reeked of cigarettes and alcohol but it wasn't the worst. It was just a place sleazy men go with their prostitute girlfriends to get drunk and stupid. Sometimes facing reality was just too much for Marina, and even though it was getting late, she thought she would take her bike around the town to get some air. She didn't want to think about her situation.

She did this often when she had too much on her mind. So she took a detour from her route home and decided to explore the city. She took a breath, and relished the smoke free air. 

She knew she could take up Pearl's offer instead of working at a gross night club, but she hated relying on Pearl for everything. Depending on how you saw their relationship, Pearl was practically Marina's sugar daddy. The octoling wasn't very financially stable before she met Pearl, but now? She could say Pearl was keeping her alive at this point. It had been hard for her to find a job until now; a recent law was passed making it illegal not to hire octolings for the sole reason of them being octolings. Marina was grateful for this, as nice as it was having your sweet girlfriend pay for everything, it felt patronizing too. She didn't really think she was much, especially compared to her girlfriend.

Despite Pearl's attempts to reassure her that she was in fact, "fucking beautiful! and amazing, and talented!" She had a hard time believing it. Up until a couple minutes ago, only Pearl had heard her sing, and Pearl thought everything she did was great. While that was nice, Marina knew she couldn't just rely on Pearl to judge her singing. Marina audibly sighed when she heard a snicker from an alleyway, pulling her out of her thoughts. Turning the corner she parked her motorcycle in the alley. "What is it this time?" She asked in disgust. "Oh I'm sure you already know." She grumbled. "Let me rephrase that then. How much?" she asked, turning to the blonde boy. "Same amount as last time," he informed with a smirk, his hazel green eyes reflecting in the city lights. "When's my due date?" Marina asked as the boy stepped into the light.

It was the least menacing person in the Yellow Gang besides Prince. His dark skin complimenting his glimmering hazel eyes made Marina feel somewhat comfortable around him. Although he didn't necessarily give off asshole vibes, he was still perfectly capable of doing horrible things. His yellow hair was buzzed short and his scarred eyebrows were always furrowed, making him seem pretty aggressive. He had told Marina he got the scar in a knife fight once.

"Next week, this exact time, and right at this spot." Marina scoffed. "You expect me to make 1,500 dollars in one week? I'm sure we both know that's impossible, Eging," she said, attempting to reason with him. "Oh, I know. But the oyabun needs it. And I don't think I have to remind you about what we'll do to your friends and family if you don't give us our desired payment by the deadline." Eging Jr. laughed as Marina made a somber face.

"Yeah. Yeah, I will. I'll see you in a week," Marina said. "Pleasure doing business with you," Eging Jr. said sarcastically and turned back into the dark alleyway, disappearing into the night. Marina sighed, "That night club better let me entertain, and fast." Marina grabbed her bike and headed home.

The Yellow Gang is one of Pearl's gangs. As the leader of the greatest yakuza in Inkopolis, she had a huge amount of people working for her. Pearl had allies, smaller gangs of her own, and just groups of people doing the dirty work for her. The reason the Yellow gang always threatened money out of her was because Pearl never actually told even her brothers about their relationship. Meaning they didn't know they weren't supposed to fuck around with her. Marina never bothered mentioning it with Pearl, but it was starting to get worse. She's been in debt 3 times every month, and the amount has been getting higher.

She parked her motorcycle in an empty spot, and climbed the stairs to her apartment. She was somewhat lucky she had at least the 3rd floor, as it was likely to find stalkers staring through your window if you were a girl living alone on the first few floors. She took out her keys and unlocked the door, closing it behind her as she walked in. She went to her living room, kicked off her heels and fell back into her old couch. She didn't want to think about her rising amount of issues, so she took out her phone and dialed one of the only other people she knew. The phone rang. "Hey Marina? What's up?" a high pitched voice answered.
"Hi Callie, you busy?"
"Not at all!"
"How's the business?" Marina hated asking this question. "It's going great, in fact I think you know one of our employees!" Marina went wide eyed.
"What?" She gripped the phone tightly. Who was running so low on money they had to resort to that?
"Yeah, uh lemme think... Agent 8 was her name I believe?"
Marina dropped the phone.

Chapter Text

"Marina? You still there?" Callie asked through the phone. "Hello?" Marina chuckled through the phone with disbelief. "Wait, seriously? You're kidding, right?" Callie made a confused face that Marina obviously couldn't see. "Uhm, yeah? Why, what's wrong?" Marina started stuttering, "I-I'm gonna go to sleep. Good night," and with that, she hung up. "Who was that?" Marie asked from behind Callie. "It was Marina," Callie replied, putting her phone down on her desk and counting the money that all the escorts made.

"What did she want?" Marie asked, writing a few things down on a clipboard. "Oh, y'know. Just checking up on us, I guess. Then she hung up when I told her about one of our employees that she knows," Callie explained. "Which one?" Marie asked. "Agent 8." Marie looked on her clipboard. "Hm, yeah. I hear they're pretty close," Marie said. "Oh, speaking of Agent 8," Callie said, "When was her last client?"

"Some chic named Metry requested her for an outcall around forty minutes ago. She still hasn't returned," Marie replied. "How much times has she been requested?" Callie asked. Marie started scanning her paper. "Seven times. She's been working since 6:00 PM." Callie looked at the time. "It's 10:30!" she shrieked. "Yeah, she's quite popular and she's only been here for two weeks. Can you blame everyone? The girl's got hips," Marie chuckled.

"I mean, duh. But that's more popular than almost all of our employees. That's even more popular than Agent 4!" Callie exclaimed. "Now that I think about it, why is Agent 4 so popular?" Marie asked. Callie snickered. "She's rough." They heard the door to their trailer open. "Speak of the devil," Marie said as Agent 4 came into view. "Got anymore runs for me?" she asked in her usual serious tone.

"Nope, but we'll let you know," Marie said as Agent 4 sat down. Just then, Hachi was at the door way. "Hey, 4. You're looking a little more grumpy than normal," he said as he sat next to Agent 4. She put on a sweet fake smile. "Hey, Hachi. You're looking a little more slutty than normal." He crossed his legs. "Glad you noticed."

Callie's telephone started ringing and she looked at the number before picking up. "Hi~! This is the Squid Sisters' Escort Agency, how can I help you~? I'm sorry, Agent 8 is busy with another client at the moment. Would you like to request someone else or have me call back when she's available? Of course. Will that be an outcall or an incall? Mhm, and your address? We'll have her over as soon as possible. Thank you for using our service~!"

"Who's it for?" Marie asked, ready to jot down all the information. "An outcall for Agent 4 at Mahi-Mahi Resort, 5th floor, room 14. Her name is Bamboo. I'd recommend being careful, she's part of the Yellow-Green Gang," Callie informed. "Understood," Agent 4 said and stood. "Any extra requests she made?" Callie shrugged. "Keep it interesting," Marie said. "Will do," Agent 4 said and left Octo Canyon.

Callie looked at the time again, it was about 11 already. "I wonder where Agent 8 is, she's been gone for quite awhile. Do you think she's okay?" She asked Marie. "Actually, I'm not sure. She's been gone for way longer than expected and she doesn't have a phone." Callie furrowed her eyebrows. " Who requested her last?" She questioned. "I don't know, let me check. So many people have requested her I didn't bother writing all their names down." Marie took out a sheet full of numbers and found the last number that requested Agent 8. "Huh, weird. I feel like I have that number." She said, dialing it into her phone. Ah, now she understood why 8 was gone for so long. "Of course, 3 called for her. She must've finally figured 8 out." Marie groaned.

•

"8, I know you want to help out but prostitution? Really? We haven't even had our first time yet-" Agent 8 interrupted. "I didn't let them-"
"Still!" 3 shouted. "3, we both know you can't keep working your ass off to pay rent! You work so hard everyday, and all I do is sit here and wait for you to come home! Nowhere else would hire me except Callie and Marie!" 8 retorted.

She and 3 had been dating for 2 months now, 3 took her in after she had been kicked out of her apartment for being an Octoling and the two couldn't help but fall for each other. Unfortunately, 3 wasn't able to support herself and 8 by working normally. Now she worked overtime everyday at the shitty night club she had been bartending since she was only 14. Callie and Marie's grandfather had owned it, and employed her at a young age, leaving her practically cursed with working there forever. It wasn't like she could find a better job though. She tried to avoid Inkopolis's yakuza and prostitution scene as much as possible, despite being friends with those who pretty much lead it.

"8, I get it. But I can't fucking deal with the fact that you're out there stripping naked for some jerks and whores! God, 8! It hurts knowing that your girlfriend might be getting fucked at any hour of the day!" 3 cried, pulling at her green tentalocks. "And it hurts knowing that my girlfriend is out there working 16 hours a day and coming home utterly exhausted! And I know you're getting into fights at the bar, I've seen your bruises 3!" 8 shrieked. 3 flinched, she thought 8 didn't notice. "I'm sorry, 8. I just- I don't want you to do this. You don't need to do this! For now, I'm making just enough money to go pay the bills-"
Agent 8 scoffed. "You haven't taken a shower in a week, just to lower the water bill." Agent 3 crossed her arms. "Look, I'm making JUST enough money right now, but I promise I'm gonna find a better job. And I'll find you a job too. But for now, I need to work overtime, and you don't need to do anything. I love you too much 8." Agent 8 sighed. "Fine, but only because I don't want to stress you out even more."

Agent 3 gave the Octoling a small smile. 8 bent down to give her a kiss but was interrupted by 3's phone ringing. The Inkling shrugged and picked it up. "Hello-"
"3 I SWEAR TO GOD YOU BETTER BRING 8 BACK BEFORE I-"
"Oh, hi Marie! Before you continue I just wanna let you know that 8 quits," 3 sarcastically intervened.
"Fuck!" Marie shouted and slammed the end call button.

3 winced, rubbing her temples. "Ugh, sometimes I can hate her." Agent 8 led her to their shared bed, "Headache?" she questioned. "Yeah, just a little tired." 8 nodded. "Go to sleep baby, you must be exhausted." 3 only yawned and sprawled out on the bed. Agent 8 got up to leave but was stopped by 3's hand grabbing at her own. "Stay, please." 3 mumbled. Agent 8 smiled warmly and placed a kiss atop 3's nose. She got into bed with 3 and pulled her close.

•

"Fuck!"

"What? What's the matter?" Callie raised an eyebrow at Marie. "We just lost our money maker," she groaned. "What? 8 quit?" Callie asked with a hint of disbelief. Marie scoffed. "Oh, 8 didn't quit," she said, putting on a jacket over her slutty outfit, "3 did it for her."

"Where are you going?" Callie asked as Marie opened the door. "Where do you think I'm going?" Marie asked. "Marie, just wait until morning please," Callie groaned. "What? Are you kidding!? She was our best employee! She only worked here for a two weeks and everyone requested her! We can't just lose her! What am I supposed to tell our regulars?" Marie exclaimed. "Jeez, you are such a fucking moron, Callie!" Hurt, the Inkling flinched at her cousin's choice of wording. "Marie, let it go," she said in a serious tone. "Why? Why should I?"

"You let 3 go."

Chapter Text

"Haha! Me? Take Goggles on a mission!? You're funny!"

"Are you sure he didn't follow you or something?" Specs asked. Bobble looked around. "Doesn't look like it!" she answered with a huge smile on her face that Specs couldn't see. "Dammit! Sorry for bothering you, go finish the job," Specs said. Bobble only laughed. "Okay! Bye, Specs!" she said cheerfully before hanging up and shoving her phone in her pocket. She grinned as she looked around. The Blue Gang's infamous assassin was standing on a roof near the almost abandoned Inkopolis Plaza, nobody went there anymore since everything just closed, making it like a ghost town. She grabbed her binoculars and searched for her target. "Ah, there you are!"

"Funny seeing you here, Bobble." She turned her head to see none other than N-Pacer. "Oh! Hi, Pacer! Funny seeing you here!" she giggled. N-Pacer scoffed. "And what are you doing here?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. "Just doing some business, that's all," Bobble said. "What are you doing here, Pacer?" she asked pointing at the scope wielding girl. N-Pacer furrowed her eyebrows in frustration. "A mission to kill some bastard trying to take down Sheldon's business," she replied, looking through her scope and looking for the target.

"Oh, isn't that funny?" Bobble said with a laugh, realizing she was there for the same reason. "I'm here for that guy too! Why don't we play a game?" she suggested. "What? A game? Why would I play a game during an assassination?" N-Pacer asked, giving Bobble a skeptical look. Bobble's expression didn't change. "Because it's fun! And it'll help us catch our target!" She explained. N-Pacer frowned. "I knew you were crazy but not this crazy." She looked at the slosher in Bobble's hand. "You're going to use that to kill him?" Bobble looked down at her slosher and smiled even wider. "It's the best way to kill someone! You should try it sometime. Just dumping ink onto the poor unsuspecting target! And splat! There they go, it's pretty even!" Bobble laughed.

N-Pacer looked at her in disgust. How could the younger girl just smile and laugh? N-Pacer almost envied her carelessness. She unfortunately didn't quite enjoy her merciless job. "You're sick." Bobble shrugged. "So game or not?" she offered again. "Fine. What's the deal?" N-Pacer asked. "It's real easy! Whoever kills the guy first gets the money!" Bobble explained. N-Pacer looked at her Splatterscope before giving Bobble a smirk.

"You're on."

•

Goggles sighed as he looked at the sunset. The sun was almost gone. He still had hope he was gonna come. But until then, he was gonna sit there and wait for that boy. Goggles had been sitting atop one of the Moray Towers for two hours. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and looked at all the missed calls he had with a smile. He wasn't gonna hear the end of it from Specs. He stuffed his phone back into his pocket and watched as the sun slowly disappeared.

"You're on our turf again." Goggles looked to where the voice came from and grinned. "Rider! You're here!" Goggles said running up to him. "And you are too, which is not a good thing. I told you to stop coming here, Goggles," Rider said looking around for any signs of his gang members. "If it were Stealth that caught you here and not me, he would've killed you on the spot," he said. Goggles grinned at him again. "I know but I wanted to see you."

"Tch."

Goggles grabbed Rider's hand and played with it. "So! Wanna go somewhere?" He asked, interlocking his fingers with Rider's. "Where would we go?" Rider questioned. "Blackbelly Skatepark! I like the view there!" Goggles happily exclaimed. Rider flew his hand up to Goggles' mouth to shut him up and looked around to make sure no one was there. "Be quiet, dumbass!" Rider scolded and took his hand off Goggles' mouth. "Oh, right. Sorry about that," Goggles said with a sheepish smile. Rider rolled his eyes. "We can't go to Blackbelly Skatepark, moron. That's the S4's territory."

Goggles gave him a small shrug. "And? What's the S4 gonna do?" Rider smacked Goggles on the side of the head. "Kill us, dumbass." Goggles just smiled. "No, they won't," he insisted. "And how do you know that?" Rider raised an eyebrow. Goggles grinned and gave Rider an enormous smile, his blue eyes almost twinkling. "Because I'm going to protect you, silly."

And really, how could Rider say no?

•

"This is a bad idea." Goggles laughed a little too loudly. "You're just being paranoid," Goggles snickered at the taller boy's caution. "I'm not paranoid!" Rider quietly snarled. "Of course you are! You're whispering for no reason! Calm down, we'll be fine." Rider almost believed Goggles words, even though they were definitely not the most reassuring he's heard.

They sat atop the large platform in the middle of the skatepark, watching the sky turn black. Goggles turned his head to face Rider and smiled. Rider turned to Goggles and frowned. "What?" He asked. Goggles laughed, "I'm just admiring you Rider. You're cute when you're paranoid." Rider turned back to look at the sky. "Shut up, you're the cute one." He said quietly. "What was that?" Goggles asked teasingly. "Nothing." Rider replied. "Aw pleaaasee Rider! Tell me!" Goggles begged, tugging on Rider's jacket. "I said you're the cute one, you little shit! Now I'm starting to see you as the annoying one though!" Rider whisper shouted. Goggles laid his head on Rider's shoulder "Look who's being loud now!" He giggled. "Tch."

"Hey isn't that Rider from the YG Gang with Goggles?" Aloha whispered. Army followed his gaze. "That's kinda cute, don't you think~?" Aloha smiled. Army frowned "They're on our turf." Aloha only waved him off.  "We have an alliance with the Blue Gang and Rider, well he's Rider." Army gave him an irritated look. "I never agreed to an alliance."
"Well Skull did, and shut up they might hear us!" Aloha said, watching the two talking and laughing.

"Should we do something about them?" Army asked. Aloha frowned. "Of course not! This is a precious moment!" Aloha whispered. "So, we shouldn't tell Skull?" Aloha smacked him lightly. "If we tell Skull, he'd kill Rider. We can't have that. I mean, what if  Goggles goes crazy?" Army groaned. "That wouldn't be necessarily favorable. He's the only moderately sane and kind one in this shithole." Aloha nudged his elbow. "Then what does that make me?" He asked. "An irritating asshole."

Rider watched Goggles as he looked at the sky, the stars reflecting in his blue eyes. The younger Inkling leaned against Rider and yawned. "Tired?" Goggles nodded, closing his eyes. Rider wrapped his arm around Goggles and leaned against the smaller boy, deciding to ignore the fact that the S4 could find them at any minute now. At this moment he felt at peace, like the world wasn't such a shitty place. He truly did love the sleeping inkling at his side, he was so naive and pure that Rider really couldn't bring himself to ignore his feelings.

Rider almost started dozing off until he remembered he wasn't on his own turf. "Goggles. Wake up," he whispered, shaking his companion gently. "Heh?" Goggles muttered. "Want me to give you a ride home?" Rider asked. "Yeah, that'd be nice," Goggles replied while standing up and stretching. "Can you give me a piggyback ride?" he said tiredly. Rider groaned. "Fine." Rider kneeled down as Goggles climbed onto his back.

"This is some Capulet and Montague shit," Aloha said. "The hell is that supposed to mean?" Army asked. "Y'know, Romeo and Juliet? Romeo was from the Montague family and Juliet was from the Capulet family. The Capulets and the Montagues has a whole rivalry. Goggles isn't supposed to be seeing Rider and yet here they are," Aloha explained. "You're hopeless," Army said. "I can't say you're the sharpest tool in the shed either," Aloha snickered. Army frowned and watched as Rider and Goggles left.

"Promise me you won't tell anyone about this?" Rider asked. "Promise," Goggles murmured tiredly. The gang leader smiled slightly to himself. "You're smiling," Goggles mumbled quietly. "How the hell do you know that?" Rider questioned while blushing. "I don't know," Goggles said with a yawn. Rider hesitated, but let it go. He carefully got on his motorcycle. "Hold on tight," Rider cautioned before revving his motorcycle and leaving Blackbelly Skatepark.

Aloha grinned. "Y'know they're cute really. But this doubles as great blackmail." Army sighed, "I knew there had to be some reason you didn't immediately ruin their fun."

•

"I win!"

Bobble laughed as she stood over the businessman's lifeless body, N-Pacer looking somewhat disturbed while Bobble wiped her victim's blood off of her face. "Looks like that 2,000 belongs to me! Haha!" The short girl smiled as N-Pacer groaned. "Yeah, I get it. Congrats, or whatever," she said, leaning her Splatterscope against her shoulder and turning to leave the building. "Oh, come on, Pacer! Don't be so sour! What kind of tea do you like? My treat!" Bobble offered. "Maybe another time," N-Pacer said before shooting a long line of ink out from her scope and swimming away. She made a mental note to avoid Bobble while on missions, she liked Headphones better for a reason.

Bobble sighed. "Definitely the worst part of the job is cleaning up," she admitted to herself. She picked up the body and dragged it to the corner of the empty room that was once the apartment of the corpse she carried. Once she was alone, her smile broke. "Is all this really worth the money?" She lamented. She stared at the ink staining her fingers "I guess it doesn't matter." She walked into the bathroom of the (former) businessman and opened a counter. She pulled out a bottle of bleach and nodded to herself "This'll do."

An hour later, there was no trace of what had happened to the poor man. Bobble wiped her forehead and looked in the mirror, frowning. "This is your job, this is a job many people have. Stop frowning." She forced a smile and sighed, tears started to roll down her face. "This isn't even the worst thing you've done, why are you crying?" She sniffed. The inkling pulled out her phone from her hoodie pocket. She held up a peace sign in the mirror and snapped a photo of herself, adding to the collection of post-murder selfies stashed in her phone. "Maybe one of these days I'll just turn myself in." She sighed as she closed the camera app and scrolled through her contact list.

"Hi Specs! Yup I'm all done, could you come and pick me up? I'll send you my location!"

Chapter Text

Agent 8 was startled awake by a loud knocking at the door. She carefully untangled herself from 3's sleeping body, and stood up to answer it. She made her way to the door and peaked through the peephole. "Oh, Marie!" She opened the door, revealing an annoyed Marie, crossing her arms, umbrella at her side. "Where's 3?" She said, anger tracing her features. 8 frowned, she should've known Marie would be angry at her girlfriend. "Sleeping." Marie groaned "Wake her up then." Agent 8 nervously nodded, and went to her and 3's shared room. She gently shook the sleeping agent's shoulder. "Hey 3, wake up. Marie's here." Agent 3's eyes fluttered open. "Huh?" She muttered, slowly sitting up. "Marie's here, and well. She doesn't look very happy."

Agent 3 rubbed her eyes and yawned. "Tell her to go away," she mumbled. Agent 8 chuckled nervously. "I'm not sure that's such a good idea. She, uh... She brought her umbrella." Agent 3's eyes widened and she immediately got up. "Shit, shit, shit," she repeated while running to the bathroom and splashing her face with cold water. "3, please just try to stay calm. And don't try to provoke her," Agent 8 advised. "Yeah, yeah," said Agent 3, who really wasn't paying much attention. She speed walked over to the door, flashing a sweet smile towards Marie, who was very clearly angry.

"Hey, Marie. How was your day? By the looks of it, you seem like you've been doing great," Agent 3 smiled. Marie scowled. "What the hell is your problem?" she growled under her breath, slinging her umbrella over her shoulder. "What do you mean? Wouldn't you be pretty damn upset if your girlfriend was a prostitute?" Agent 3 retorted. Marie scoffed. "Business is business. You're barely even making enough money for rent, 3." The shorter Inkling grimaced. "Th-That's not true," she muttered. Marie rolled her eyes. "3, you reek of alcohol and cigarettes from my gramps' stupid bar. Or is that what you use your paycheck on?"

Agent 3 opened her mouth to say something but closed it, deciding against saying anything. Marie smirked. "And you can't even deny it," she chuckled. "Shut up, I'm getting a new job," Agent 3 said, rather quietly. Marie failed to hold in another round of laughter. "And what're you planning on doing?" Agent 3 hesitated before saying, "I'm gonna be a drug dealer."

"Where the fuck are you planning on getting drugs from?" Marie questioned. She was ready to interrogate the Inkling before her. Agent 3 replied smiling. "The Oyabun." Marie was speechless. She put her umbrella to her side. She shook her head, trying to clear the thoughts running through her mind. "As if, who would ever buy from you?" Agent 3 smirked. "It's the Oyabun, Marie. I'm gonna have the good shit," she answered. "How the hell do you know Pearl?" Marie asked. She was getting real impatient, she just wanted to find a way to get Agent 3 upset. "Oh please, she loves 8." Marie glared at 3 and scoffed. "My costumers love 8 too."

This made 3 groan. "Look Marie, I don't care. I'm not gonna stand idle while 8 is just, selling her body. So don't even." Marie rolled her eyes, finally deciding to give up. "Whatever. Have fun with your drug dealing business, I'm sure it'll be real funny when I find out you're dead for selling in the wrong turf. I'll see you around, 3." Marie smiled maliciously, then swiftly turned and walked away.
"Bitch."

Agent 3 closed the door and dragged herself into the room. She let herself fall onto the bed, next to 8 and groan. "Marie can be such a pain." She wrapped her arms around 8, softly nuzzling into the octoling's neck. "What was that about?" Agent 8 asked, pulling the shorter girl closer to her. "Oh, nothing," Agent 3 mumbled, breathing in 8's scent. Agent 8 just nodded, placing a kiss on 3's freckled cheek. The inkling responded by planting a few soft kisses on her collarbone. "Hey, 8?" Agent 3 mumbled. "Hm?" Agent 8 hummed. "Please don't worry about the money." 3 said softly. Agent 8 sighed, "I'll try not to." She pressed her lips to her girlfriend's collarbone, resulting in a giggle. Agent 8 met 3's gaze and smiled warmly. "You're so cute when you're not acting tough y'know, not that you're ever not cute." Agent 3 only buried her face into 8's chest. "I love you so goddamn much."

"I love you too."

•

"I guess I can sort a few things out. I can tell some of my guys to lay off you too, I guess. Damn, you're really lucky 8 is your girlfriend." Pearl took a sip of her strawberry smoothie. Agent 3 glanced at a photo of 8 and Marina, taped on to Pearl's fridge . "Y-Yeah, I really am," she said with a small smile on her face. Pearl sighed. "I'll give you the good shit so you can pay your rent and spoil 8, how 'bout that?" Agent 3 blushed. "I'm not gonna be her sugar dad-"
"Sure, 3. You buy her so much shit even with your shitty bar job, she's always talking about it."
3 crossed her arms, and Pearl let out a laugh.

Pearl's phone started to ring. She quickly answered it, not exactly realizing it was a video call until Marina appeared on her phone. "I got the job, baby!" Pearl smiled. "You did? You're gonna be amazing, love!" Agent 3's eyes widened. "What..?" Pearl turned her head over to the agent. "Did 8 not tell you?" She asked. "Oh! Is 3 there?" Marina asked. "Mhm. Wanna say hi?" Pearl handed her phone over to Agent 3. "Hey, 3! How're you and 8 doing?" the Octoling asked. "We're doing good. Thanks for telling me about 8's little side job." Marina smiled. "What kind of friend would I be if I didn't?" Agent 3 giggled. "Seriously though, thank you." Marina just nodded, giving her a thumbs up, "No problem." Pearl groaned. "Can I have my phone back now?" The agent quickly passed the shorter girl her phone.

"Well, I'm gonna be working tonight so I better get ready. Love you!" Marina said sweetly. "Love you too." Pearl put her phone down once Marina and looked at Agent 3. "If you tell anyone that we're dating," She gave the agent a death glare, "I'll blend you." Agent 3 nervously chuckled. "I won't be telling anyone. I promise." Pearl let out a 'hmph' before taking another sip from her smoothie. "When do you need the drugs?" she asked. "As soon as possible. I'm planning on quitting tonight." Pearl sighed and stood. "Follow me." She made her way through the hallways of her penthouse, Agent 3 following behind and admiring the luxury, silently wishing she could have all this for 8 and herself.

Pearl approached a large metal door, hidden behind a bookcase with only about 2 books in it. Agent 3 immediately noticed a passcode was needed to open it. "Look away," Pearl said, making sure the green tentacled Inkling turned around before putting in the password. "You can look now." Agent 3 turned around to see a room full of vaults. Pearl pulled a key out of her hoodie's pocket and unlocked a vault with a holographic sticker on it. Agent 3 looked at her in confusion, not only did Inkopolis's biggest gang leader keep her important keys in her pocket, but she memorized where her drugs were by placing children's stickers on the vaults. Pearl noticed 3's confusion, "What? I'm not gonna put a label that just says crack. What's the fun in that?" She grabbed a gallon sized ziplock bag out. "Here. That's the good shit," she said, putting it in Agent 3's hands. "This is... a lot." Pearl gave her a look, "I'm a rich gang leader, 3."
"Oh, right. Almost forgot."

The two made their way out onto Pearl's balcony, the bag of cocaine stuffed into a Toni Kensa backpack Pearl decided to let 3 have. "Always make sure they pay you right away, and the exact amount. Once they realize they have even a cent in debt, you won't be seeing them anytime soon." Pearl informed 3. The agent nodded, "Got it." She gripped onto the backpack and turned to look at the city lights. "Um, how much do I owe you for this?" She asked. Pearl giggled. "You don't owe me anything. Just keep 8 happy." Agent 3's eyes widened. "But this is so much!" Pearl turned to her "That's about 3 kilograms, which would roughly be about 50,000 bucks. I don't think you'd want to pay me back that much."

Agent 3 stared at her, mouth agape. "I- 50,000!? What!? Oh my god, Pearl! That's so much! I have to do at least something in return!"  She exclaimed. Pearl just smiled "You already did enough by beating the shit out of 8's ex. Plus you always do side jobs for me. It's fine, 3."

The agent just stared down at the backpack. "T-Thank you, so much. I have no idea what I would do if you hadn't helped me."

Pearl patted her shoulder. "No biggie, need a ride to work?"

Chapter Text

Marina gazed at her reflection, she wasn't really sure how she felt about the skimpy outfit she was encouraged to wear, and the heavy makeup caking her face . "Are you sure you want me wearing this, Mr. Cuttlefish?" She turned to the old man, standing behind her. "It's Captain Cuttlefish. And, of course! Just style your tentacles a little bit and the crowd will think you look like a million bucks." Marina frowned. "What's wrong with my tentacles?" Cuttlefish shrugged, handing her a hair tie. "Nothing, but just do something with it. Makes us look a little more professional."
Huh, professional, of all things.
The octoling just nodded and pulled her tentacles into a ponytail.

"See? A million bucks!" Captain Cuttlefish said, nodding to Marina in the mirror. Marina grimaced at herself. It was all too much. The heavy stage makeup, the unnecessary amount of jewelry, oh and especially the outfit, it was just too much. She stared, and stared at the dozens of noticeably fake gold and silver bracelets adorning her arms, and the equally worthless hoop earrings hanging from her ears. She fixated on her outfit, suddenly feeling even more uncomfortable. The thin, tight fitting, white tube top she had reluctantly agreed to wear, felt suffocating. It was just too tight around her bust. And to top it off, the denim shorts she had been lended were tight and low cut, exposing more of her body than she was comfortable with. And unfortunately, she didn't have much of a choice in what she wore. Marina sighed, there was no use in dwelling on it. She put on a false smile, preparing herself to sing in front of the shitty bar. Why was she so nervous? Everyone was drunk anyways.

"You're up in 3." Captain Cuttlefish informed.

The octoling took a deep breath and began to hum the song she decided to sing. As she hummed she looked around backstage. The performer that was already on stage doing god knows what (magic? comedy? a college lecture?) finished up his little nonsense spiel and Marina mentally prepared herself, watching as he bowed and the makeshift tablecloth curtain closed, nobody clapped. She took a deep breath and went on the stage behind the curtain taking the other performer's place. He gave her a flashy smile, "Break a leg." Marina shyly smiled back, feeling nervous. She carefully made her way to the grand piano (really the only nice thing at the bar) at the edge of the stage, making sure not to trip on any cords or empty beer bottles. Very professional, she thought. She lowered the microphone on the stand next to the grand piano, and sat down.

"The next performer is a new face around here, one you've never seen before. Let's give a warm welcoming to Marina Ida!" Captain Cuttlefish announced as the curtain opened, revealing the aforementioned. She gave her award-winning smile that she practiced in the mirror. A low whistle was heard from the back, causing her to blush in embarrassment. She took a deep breath before placing her fingers on the keys. A pleasant melody filled the bar, as the audience stopped talking. Marina was playing an original that she had written when she was only a teen. She held the song near and dear, and often played it for Pearl. She had played it so much for her girlfriend that Pearl had even added her own rapping part, which went surprisingly well with Marina's voice. Ebb and Flow, she had named it.

The crowd watched, intrigued. Marina heard whispers among the crowd, and was only able to pick up a couple mentions of  the word "Octoling". She winced slightly, knowing that if they felt the need to say something about her race, it wasn't a good thing.
She looked down at her fingers dancing on the keys of the piano, and decided to close her eyes and tune the whispers out. She inhaled deeply and began to softly sing the words she knew by heart.

The bar went completely silent, everyone mesmerized by her heavenly vocalization. Her voice was breathy, but ever so pleasant and soft. Captain Cuttlefish watched from the backstage, amazed. The bar had never been this quiet and peaceful since the last performance from his granddaughters, years ago. He was expecting her to just plug in some instrumental pop song from her phone and mediocrely attempt a couple whistle notes, hence why he insisted the skimpy outfit, to make up for lack of talent and have the audience at least somewhat interested. But my cod, was he mistaken. Marina was talented, and he didn't understand why she was wasting said talent on drunken city Inklings.

Marina was too focused on the song to realize the stares. Everyone was in absolute awe. The people who made a nasty remark about her race suddenly seemed to take it back. Captain Cuttlefish suddenly came to the most logical conclusion in his mind. He sighed, almost reluctant. Marina would probably be better off at a better bar. She should get paid a lot more than Captain Cuttlefish was going to pay. With a talent like that, the captain decided it was a horrible idea for her to waste it.

"She's amazing. Where'd you find such an amazing singer, old man?" Captain Cuttlefish turned. "Iso Padre, nice seeing you here. She came to me," he greeted, watching as Marina closed up the song. "You got lucky," Iso Padre noted. "I think I'm gonna send her to a more high class bar. She shouldn't waste such a talent for these drunken bastards," Captain Cuttlefish said. "Not a bad idea. What bar were you thinking of?" The old man thought about it. "Do you happen to know where the Oyabun goes for a drink?" Iso Padre shrugged. "I can find that out." The captain just nodded. "Yes, yes. Do that."

Marina finished her song and stood. Her audience hollered loudly, hurting her eardrums a little bit. She smiled at their enthusiasm. The Octoling did a small bow, getting a flower hit in her face as she straightened her back. She giggled when she realized it was a fake gardenia. She put it in her hair, making sure it held between the hair tie and her tentalocks. Marina bowed once more as the curtain closed. She walked off the stage, laughing hysterically. "It wasn't that bad!" Captain Cuttlefish smiled at her and motioned her over to his office. "We need to have a talk."

•

"I can't believe this place is still up and running." Agent 3 shrugged. "I can't believe Cap'n Cuttlefish is still up and running." Pearl snorted. "It's a mystery to all of Inkopolis." The two Inklings got out of Pearl's fancy limousine and walked inside the captain's bar. "You didn't have to come along," Agent 3 said. "I could use a drink or two," Pearl replied. "I didn't think you would get a drink somewhere this low class."
"A drink's a drink."

Agent 3 and Pearl made their way over to Captain Cuttlefish's office. Just as the two approached, Marina walked out of the office with a huge smile on her face. Pearl's eyes twinkled with excitement as they made eye contact. Agent 3 sighed and pointed them to a janitor's closet, knowing they probably wanted some alone time. The couple giggled and made their way to the closet. The agent stared at Captain Cuttlefish's door, hesitantly knocking. "It's open." Agent 3 turned the knob and saw the captain typing something on his old laptop. "Hello, sir," she began, having a seat. "Captain," he corrected as he turned his attention to her. "What can I do for you?"

Agent 3 took a deep breath before saying, "I'm quitting." Captain Cuttlefish have her a blank stare, as if processing the information. "I'm sorry, I don't think I heard you correctly. Did you just say you're quitting?" he questioned. Agent 3 nodded. "I'm sorry, I can't keep this up anymore. I want to spend more time with 8. Besides, I got a new job," she explained. The old man sighed. "I guess I should've seen this coming," he muttered. "Wishing you well, Agent 3," he said with a small nod of his head. She gave him a smile and stood. "Thank you." She exited the room.

The Inkling approached the janitor's closet and opened the door. "'Kay, Pearl. How about that drink-" Agent 3 stopped herself as she saw Pearl and Marina making out. The shorter Inkling pushed the Octoling away gently and blushed. "Uhm. Yeah. Yeah, that." Marina chuckled nervously and whispered, "I'll see you tomorrow," before leaving the janitor's closet. "That was intimate," Agent 3 commented before Pearl glared at her. "Drinks are on you."

The two walked over to the bar. "Just a shot of vodka for me. What do you want?" Agent 3 asked as they sat down. "A glass of whiskey," Pearl demanded, somewhat grumpily. "You'll see her tomorrow," the agent reassured. Pearl looked at Agent 3 for a few seconds before asking, "How do I know you aren't going to use the drugs I'm giving you?" she asked. "Don't get high off your supply." Pearl raised an eyebrow. "Where'd you hear that from?" she asked as the bartender gave them their drinks. Agent 3 picked up her shot glass before shrugging. "A lot of gang members came here while I was bartending. Drug dealers talk loud."

Pearl just nodded and drank her whiskey. Her face crunched in disgust. "Seriously, how do people drink this stuff?" she asked. "Can we get a water over here?" Agent 3 asked the bartender. He nodded and slid a water bottle over to Pearl. She quickly opened it and chugged it. She slid the whiskey glass over to the agent. "You can have the rest." Agent 3 only sighed and finished Pearl's glass. She grabbed a twenty dollar bill and gave it to the bartender. "Thanks for the drinks," she said with a smile. She treated bartenders with respect, considering they work for hours and don't get payed much. Pearl and Agent 3 got up and left the bar.

•

"How was work?" Agent 8 asked as Agent 3 walked through the door with a smile. "It was great," she said, closing the door and kissing the octoling's cheek. "What was so great about it?" she asked with a giggle. "Marina started performing there and she brought in a lot of customers," Agent 3 lied. "She is an amazing singer," Agent 8 admitted, leading her smaller girlfriend to the couch. "You should ask Cuttlefish to give you shorter hours. I hear a new gang arrived in town and they're even worse than the S4. Please start coming home before dark, or at least before 9," Agent 8 said, worry prevalent in her voice. "Calm down, mom," Agent 3 said, placing her head into the crook of her girlfriend's neck. The Octoling wrapped her arms around the smaller girl and leaned her body onto her shoulder . "Please be careful," she whispered. Agent 3 didn't reply. "3?" She sighed as she realized the Inkling was already sleeping.

Agent 8 stared at Agent 3's face for a long time. She admired every small feature. She noted the dark circles under the sleeping agent's eyes, she was so grateful for the hours Agent 3 has worked to keep her happy. Agent 8 desperately wanted to help out her exhausted girlfriend, but no one would hire her, so at the very least she made sure it was known that she loved 3. Whenever 3 had a rough day, 8 made sure to bring her headache meds and sing her to sleep.

She traced the scar over her right eye that appeared after she was partially sanitized. 8 was so incredibly grateful for everything Agent 3 had done. She had saved 8 countless times and always ended up getting hurt. 8 kissed every small freckle on Agent 3's face. Despite her tired features, 3 had a baby face, and seeing the obvious exhaustion on her face always made 8 feel guilty. The Inkling wriggled slightly, wrapping her arms around Agent 8's body. At many times  Agent 8 felt like she didn't deserve her hardworking girlfriend, but 3 constantly reassured her that she did, and that 3 was doing this because she loved her.

The Octoling smiled, kissing Agent 3's forehead. "I wanna stay with you forever." She whispered. 3 mumbled something in her sleep. Agent 8 couldn't really make out what she said, but she did catch her saying "Nana". Not many people call her by her real name, her agent name stuck with her for a while. In fact, she often forgot her real name was Nana.

Agent 8 realized that the TV was still on. She reached over for the remote and turned it off. Agent 3 suddenly jolted up, clearly hyperventilating. Agent 8 flinched. "Are you okay?" 8 asked frantically, gripping onto 3's shoulders. "Y-Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine. Sorry. It was just a bad dream," she said, rubbing her eyes. 3 got up and went to the bathroom. 8 stood up and went to the kitchen, deciding to heat up leftover pizza for 3.

Agent 3 stumbled out of the bathroom. "Are you sure you're okay?" Agent 8 asked, making sure 3 didn't fall over. "Yeah," she said, her hand rubbing circles on her temple. The octoling frowned. "Did you drink any alcohol?" The Inkling looked at her. "Y-Yeah. I had a glass of whiskey and a shot of vodka at the bar. Oh, and a few more shots in Pearl's limo," she recalled, wincing at the pain in her head. Agent 8 shook her head, getting a glass of water and aspirin. "Alcohol is not good for you, 3. I understand it's not enough to get you drunk, but with your lack of sleep, size, and the side effects from when you were sanitized, it's not good for you." she said, pulling up a chair for her. She served the pizza on a paper plate and gave her the water and aspirin.

"Yeah, yeah. We've had this talk before. Sorry." 3 said, putting the aspirin in her mouth and downing the water. "It's fine. Just be more careful," Agent 8 said, a caring yet worried look on her face as she sat next to her girlfriend. "Don't worry about me," 3 said with a lopsided smile. "What makes you think saying 'don't worry' is gonna make me stop worrying?" 8 asked. Agent 3 just shrugged. "I don't know but I'm sorry I worry you." Agent 8 sighed. "It's okay."

"I love you. Like, a lot."
"I love you too."
"Don't say too."
Agent 8 tilted her head in confusion. "What? Why not?"
"Makes me feel like you're just agreeing to my statement."
"Fine."
"Wanna try that again then?"
"Sure."
"I love you, 8."
"I love you, San."