ONE

Rina blinked open a big orange eye at the sound of familiar voices coming through her television speakers. Disoriented from sleep, she sat up rubbing her eyes. Above her bed, sunlight was gleaming in through a window, pooling light over the mess of blankets. Guess I overslept. She looked across the small room at her TV...must have left it on last night. Who was talking on screen?

Oh. It was just Callie and Marie. Rina rolled over and sat on the edge of the bed, might as well watch for a bit. They seemed more excited than usual about something.

"It's been a few months now since the Great Zapfish was returned!" Callie flashed a fanged grin.

"We still never found out who saved it, did we Callie?" Marie looked thoughtful. Rina scoffed. The Squid Sisters were good at acting, as always. They knew perfectly well who had done it; they helped, after all.

"Nope! The secret hero is still out there, wandering the streets of Inkopolis!" Callie's eyes were wide and dramatic, "I bet they're so cool!~"

"Someone has a fangirl..." Marie enthused with a smirk.

Callie jumped up, grinning, "You bet! And in celebration and thanks to this mystery squid, we're gonna throw a party!"

"Don't get too carried away, Callie..."

"Everyone's invited! Dance party at Inkopolis Plaza! Maybe the Inkling who brought back the Great Zapfish will be there?" At this, Callie leaned forward and winked at the camera. Rina narrowed her eyes at this. She suddenly got a bad feeling that wink was directed specifically at her. What were those two hooligans plotting?

"Or maybe not, if they don't wanna be jumped on by Callie the crazy fangirl." Marie teased with a small smile.

"We'll be singing and dancing just for you! Come tonight, Inklings! And as always..." Callie grinned at the screen and they both struck a pose.

"Staaaaaay fresh!"

"Staaaaaay fresh!"

Rina sighed and stood up, walking over to click the OFF button on the television. A party? For her?

Not that anyone knew it was for her...luckily. It was exciting at first, saving Inkopolis from the Octarians. But...it wasn't the same as Turf Wars. It was a fight that determined survival. Kill or be killed. Rina had to take lives, and almost lost her own on multiple occasions. She still dreamed about the struggle sometimes. Callie and Marie didn't quite understand, but at least they were someone to talk to.

Who knew that by saving Inkopolis Rina would become friends with two of the world's biggest idols!

Even if most of their relationship was secretive.

Rina looked out her window. She lived in a fairly small apartment, but it was comfortable. And close to Inkopolis, too. Not that she went out much anymore. Turf wars just wouldn't be the same, she knew it.

She walked over to the bathroom. Gazing into the mirror, she tied her favorite red bandana onto her head, the bow sticking up like ears of some kind. She twisted her body around, looking at herself. Rina didn't like to style her orange tentacles very much, so she just let them hang down. Most Inklings did the same. Callie and Marie have tried making her style them, but she had become pretty good at escaping the pair.

Rina sighed softy. Walking out of the bathroom, she noticed that it was very quiet. Suddenly there was a knock at her door, frantic and noisy. Rina let out a small shriek and jumped, recoiling away from the noise.

"Riiiiiiiina! Let us in, a mob of fans are trying to catch us!" Rina heard a loud whining coming from the other side, followed by more pounding. She stood in the hallway, puzzled.

...Callie?

"Hey! Don't leave us hanging. Are you still sleeping, lazy-tentacles?" Marie's voice called impatiently.

"O-oh! Coming!" Rina called and walked down the hallway to the white door. As she was clicking open the locks, she heard Callie whine out a "hurry!"

"Why do you even lock your doors? We're in Inkopolis, not some crime-riddled shanty." Marie frowned at Rina with her arms crossed when she swung open the door.

Rina shrugged as Callie suddenly squealed, "Yes! Sweet freedom!" She leaped through the doorway and darted into Rina's apartment. Marie followed suit, but with a bit more dignity. Rina heard the sounds of many Inklings coming down the hallway, calling for interviews and pictures. Rina quickly slammed the door shut.

Being a nobody had it's perks.

"W-why are you guys here?" Rina stuttered when she came back into the main room, where Callie had made herself comfortable on her windowside bed and Marie was inspecting some trinkets with narrowed eyes.

Marie looked up, still holding Rina's little figurine, "We came to talk." She said like it was obvious.

Callie grinned and rolled onto her stomach in Rina's tangle of blankets, "Did ya see our news announcement?"

Rina frowned and mumbled, "Yeah...but why didn't you just call me?"

"That's no fun! Rina, we haven't seen you in sooooo long." Callie let out an exasperated sigh and hung her arms over the edge of the bed. Marie was now eyeing Rina's messy kitchen with distaste.

"That's not my fault!" Rina blushed in embarrassment. "I can't hang around famous people!"

"We're your friends, Rina. We're your fellow Agents." Marie gazed at Rina with a blank expression, folding her arms across her chest. Rina frowned and looked away. "You've become a recluse. You don't talk to anyone, you avoid going outside. You didn't even participate in the last few Splatfests!"

"There's nothing wrong with that..." Rina mumbled, not wanting to have this conversation.

"Is there something bothering you?" Callie said in a small voice. Rina shifted uncomfortably under both of their gazes.

"I'm fine..."

"I don't think you are." Marie said sternly.

"Did something happen back in Octo Valley?" Callie wasn't smiling anymore.

Rina huffed in exasperation, "A lot of things happened in Octo Valley. I don't want to talk about this, why are you here?" She said angrily, sending a hostile glare at the two girls.

"We're here to help."

"I don't need your help! Everything's fine, right? We got the Great Zapfish, we beat the Octarians. Everything's...fine." Rina realized she had been shouting at them. She averted her eyes to the ground again. "Sorry...I'm just a little stressed out."

"A little?" Marie raised a white eyebrow and shook her head.

"Yeah, Rina. We beat the Octarians and got the Zapfish back. Life is back to normal." Callie smiled reassuringly at Rina's tense form.

Rina was hugging herself in apparent anxiety, "Yeah...back to normal."

"I think you need some fun to get your mind off of it." Marie tapped her foot, her voice softer now.

"Yeah!" Callie jumped up, bouncing on Rina's bed, "Dance away your troubles!"

Rina couldn't help but smile slightly. Pretending to groan in annoyance, she said, "You're talking about that party, aren't you?"

"Sure thing!" Callie winked, falling with a 'thump' back onto the bed.

"You should come, Rina. Even if just for a little while. Hang out with the other Inklings, smile and dance like you used to." Marie shot Rina a small smile of encouragement.

Rina sighed, "Well I guess I don't really have a choice...Maybe I'll show up."

"You definitely will! We're gonna have a blast!" Callie giggled and jumped off the bed, slamming into Rina with a hug.

Marie let out a laugh, "I told you that the crazy fangirl would jump on you." She walked over and pulled Rina into a hug as well.

Rina giggled, "Stop it guys, you're embarrassing me." She hugged them back, Callie squealed "Group hug!" Everyone laughed, stumbling around and hanging onto each other.

Maybe they were right. Maybe the Octarians really were gone for good. Maybe Rina could go back to being a regular kid.

"Thanks guys..." Rina whispered, smiling softly.

But the nagging fear that something wasn't right still tugged at Rina's insides. Something was going to happen... she hoped that she was wrong.

first chapter? I've had this idea for a while, and i've also been wanting to write for a while. What better way to do that than by writing about your favorite game? ;D

Give me feedback! Is it good so far? How's my writing? Are the characters alright? I always love hearing from people, and nice comments usually keep me motivated. I wanna write some action soon! (and yes, there is going to be an Octoling ally) Stay tuned! And staaaay fresh!~