Maid: I'd like to finally welcome you all to your new form of residence in Calamari Lodge!

Now Within a big and cozy lodge, everyone ran around like kids in a candy store. A jelly maid watched them all with a smile. She grabbed a ring of keys within her pocket and turned towards Gabby, giving them directly to her.

Maid: here's your keys. If you need anything, don't hesitate to call me.

Gabby: got it.

The Maid bowed in respect towards Gabby, and just as she walked away, Gabby tossed the keys up and caught them repeatedly in her hand, looking around to see that all of her friends were nowhere to be found......but their loud and amazed voices was enough for her to roll her eyes.

Cynthia: HOLY SHIT, THEY HAVE A INDOOR POOL!!

Otto: FUCK THE POOL!! THIS PLACE HAS A THEATER!!

Gabby:....*sigh*....okay guys!! Can we all just gather around for a second!?

Gabby waited....but got no response....only hearing more screaming and wailing from the amazing features from the Lodge, which made her grumble and tap her foot impatiently.

Gabby: GUYS!!

Otto: Uuuuuugh! Ruining the moment as usual!!

Gabby: just get over here dammit!

She soon heard many footsteps, watching her friends once again show their faces to her. They gathered around, and Lux took a small peek towards Aryll, noticing her eating ice cream from a bowl.

Lux: where did you get that!?

Aryll: *nom* the kitchen fridge?...

Lux: I want som-

Gabby: shut up, shut up, shut up....since all of you guys wanna hurry and go do stuff....I'll make sure to cut this short.

Gabby held the keys up for everyone to see.....there were surprisingly a lot of keys, with 99% of them being pink, leaving one key to be blue instead.

Gabby: these are our room keys, okay? Each bedroom has 2 beds, so we all are gonna bunk with a partner.

Cynthia: oh shit, sweet.

Bella: makes sense to me.

Miles: wait, why are there so many pink keys?....what's the blue one for?

Gabby: I was getting to that.

Gabby began to unclip the pink keys from the ring one-by-one, and tossed one to each of the girls.....after they all caught their respective keys, only the blue key remained, and Gabby looked towards the boys, tossing the blue key to them, and Otto reached out to catch it with a confused expression on his face.

Otto:.....uh.....

Gabby: you boys are all sharing a single room.

Otto: WHAT!? ALL OF US!? WHY!?

Gabby:......*ahem* ....

Gabby then pointed towards Otto, slowly moving her hand to point a trail starting from Miles.

Gabby:........you....Miles....Yasu......and Leon........there's only 4 of you, and us girls completely outnumber you guys....did you seriously expect me to pay extra cash for unnecessary extra rooms?

Otto: it wasn't only your money! You can't play that card, Gabriella! that's not fucking fair.

Gabby: it is fair........I mean...I didn't totally toss you guys in the ditch here......on the bright side, you all have the biggest bedroom in the lodge.

Otto: you totally did toss us, you fucking bitc-wait, biggest bedroom?

Gabby: did I stutter?.....cramming you guys into a single room isn't what makes this unfair. What WOULD specifically make this unfair is for you all to have the same sized room as us girls. I basically gave you guys the "Royal bedroom", so Think of it like that.

Otto:.............oh.......

Gabby: you're welcome, bastards.

Miles: wait, "bastards" as in multiple!? What the hell did I do!?

Otto: shut up!! Let's go!!

Gabby: now hold on for a second!

Otto: uuugh! What!?

Gabby: it's decently late in the afternoon, so try to focus on unpacking today and we can start the actual "fun" tomorrow.

Otto: are you serious!? That's fucking dumb as hell! I wanna explore right now!

Gabby: we're gonna be here for a little while, Otto. We just got off a long plane ride, and also sat in a bus for at least 2 hours, so it makes sense to start when we're all fully energized after a nice rest. Plus we can't even get into the main district of Calamari lodge without this.

Gabby reached into her pocket and pulled out a golden emblem that was about the size of an average inkling's palm, glistening with a radiant pink and green glow that illuminated off the squid sister's iconic logo.

Yasu: huh.....now that's a little piece of beauty I must say....

Cynthia: gotta agree~....do you mind if I just-

Gabby: hands off, Cynthia. You're the last one I'd ever give this too!

Cynthia: awe what!? Why!?

Gabby: because you'd either break it, sell it, or fucking lose it!!

Cynthia:.....that's........not totally true....

Otto:....what the heck even is that?.....

Gabby: this is our Lodge Emblem. It looks very nice, yeah, but this also serves as our "Pass" into the actual fun vacation district of Calamari Lodge. Showing this emblem is the only way for security to let us though the gates.

Otto: ah~....so that means-

Gabby: what I said towards Cynthia also applies to you too, Otto!! We paid way too much cash just to get here in the first place!! The next chunk of cash we have is completely reserved for our fun and relaxation!!

Otto: awe come on!!!

Gabby: NO!! This emblem is staying in my possession for the entire vacation!! If we lose this thing, we won't have enough money to get another one, but also have fun too, idiot!! We would've wasted our entire vacation not being able to explore this damn place!

Otto: well you still have a chance to lose it too, so shouldn't you keep multiple eyes on it just to be safe?~

Gabby: yes, but definitely not yours or Cynthia's! Maybe someone who's actually organized and responsible like Obsidian, Amira, or even Yumi.

Otto: what about Miles!? The little dork is organized and responsible!

Miles: please don't drag me into this....

Gabby: I would, but you're gonna be near him all the time....i don't trust Miles when he's with YOU! You're a bad influence on him, stupid!! and uh.....I also don't want Lola to mistaken it for a cookie, then choke on it or something......

Lola:......*looks away*...

Otto:...*sigh*...man...you're so bossy.....sheesh...

Gabby: I know, I know.....look, I'm trying not to be because it's obviously a vacation.....duh.....it's just because I'm the only one here doing the actual planning and math with this shit.....I'm a bit stressed still, okay?.....I planned out the exact amount of Cash we needed to spend to get HERE, to get HOME, and to have FUN in between....I don't wanna fuck up the numbers....

Gabby slid the emblem back into her pocket, being the first to walk off after grabbing her bags since she was the only squid to not officially step foot in her room, and as she moves, she grumbled to the two.

Gabby: No...that's your final answer.

Otto: dammit.....ugh fine, let's go unpack our shit, guys......

Otto grabbed Miles by the shirt and dragged him along as Yasu and Leon tagged along behind them, hearing Miles yelp and flail his arms. From the pack of girls, Cynthia saw Amira's small gaze towards the boys, but obviously it was more centered on Miles. Cynthia smirked and simply placed her hand on Amira's shoulder to grab her attention, then began to whisper towards her.

Cynthia: looks like my final plan to assist you and Miles before you two swam as a duo was a bust, girl.

Amira: what?

Cynthia: I was gonna check out the area of the district to try and get a head start of plans and locations for you and Miles to spend the day together. I would've went out with a bang! The romance queen was sadly shot down before her last mission could take place.~

Amira:.....oh..........I actually wanted to um.....speak with you on that.....if you have the time....

Cynthia: oh?~...

As everyone began to disband and properly settle into their vacation, Cynthia walked by Amira's side, seeing her form a small blush.

Amira: I wanted to try.........to....plan my confession.......to him.....I want it to be perfect......

Cynthia: perfect? Well when were you planning on doing this?~

Amira:.....I.....want to share this vacation with him as his....girlfriend......so.....tomorrow at least.....

Cynthia: that early in the vacation, huh? I'm diggin' it. What exactly do you want from me then?

Amira:......c-can you look out for us?.....

Cynthia: what do you mean?

Amira: I want your support when it comes to our privacy........to uh.......make sure that no interruptions will occur.......

Cynthia: so just keep everyone away from you and Miles? *shrug* seems simple enough. I can totally do that with ease.

Amira: are you positive?

Cynthia: absolutely positive. The ironic thing is how Miles is thinking on the exact same level as you when it comes to this. Even he stated that we don't really give you guys any breathing room.

Amira: *nod nod*

Cynthia: jumping back and forth in between you two is a literal hobby for me at this point. I basically have the exact same conversation with the both of you. I'm gonna tell you exactly what I told him.

Cynthia reached over to Amira, and exactly like what she did to Miles, she grabbed her facial cheeks and began to pull on them, making Amira whimper.

Cynthia: He. Loves. You. Idiot!

Amira: ow ow....Cynthia please!

Cynthia: now if I hold up my end of the bargain and keep everyone away, you better ask him out with whatever form of plan you have in that head of yours, understand!?

Amira: yes!

Cynthia: you promise?

Amira: I promise!

Cynthia: pinkie promise!?

Amira: I do!!

Cynthia: omega pinkie promise!?

Amira: Cynthia!

Cynthia chuckled a bit and let go of Amira, seeing her grumble a little.

Cynthia:.....you got this. It's pretty obvious on what the conclusion of this will look like, so use that to build the confidence and push through the finish line. You're SO close, girl! Don't wuss out now!

Amira:.....I....can do this...

Cynthia: hell yeah you can!!.....but since we're at the home stretch here.......

Cynthia turned her head and glanced out of a nearby window within the lodge, seeing the fun district in the distance.

Cynthia: one final risk wouldn't hurt I guess......

~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~

As time passed and the sun finally set, everyone was in their rooms, leaving nothing but silence to roam their current home. Within the boys room, Yasu, Leon, and Miles were all sleeping in their bunk beds. After a small debate, the 4 finally figured out which bed they would take during their vacation, with Miles and Otto taking the bottom bunks while Yasu and Leon took the top bunks, and Yasu sharing his bunk above Otto while Leon was above Miles.

Surprisingly the 3 boys all slept soundly......but only 3, not 4......with the one pain in the ass being Otto, who was the first to fall asleep and immediately snore as loud as fucking possible....but after they all finally managed to close their eyes and sleep, Otto's snoring vanished without them noticing......kinda....

Miles slept on his back and let out small and silent breaths with one of his hands hanging off the bed while his other was gently resting and comforting Lola, who was curled up and snuggling into his chest, with her little cucumber body slowly expanding and retracing while she slept as well.

Just then, within the boy's room, a small thud could be heard, and soon being followed up with a small grunt of pain, making Miles slightly shake and groan.

All that was heard afterwards was a familiar voice whispering under their breath and then only let out a long chain of only saying "fuck" way too many times.

Miles barely opened his eyes before seeing the nearby door to their room close completely. The small click from the door was enough to make him lean his head slightly up from his bed...

Miles: mmmh.......who the hell was that?.....

Miles looked towards Otto's bed, seeing that he was nowhere to be found.....then he sighed in annoyance.

Miles:......you can't be serious......

Miles looked at Lola who rested on his chest, and he gently grabbed her and raised her up, feeling her limp cucumber body dangle against the floor, and all he could do was shake his head with a small smile.

Miles:.......at least someone is having a good nights sleep.

He placed Lola down next to him, allowing her to lean against his pillow before sitting up with a small groan, stretching his body. Miles stood up from his bed and walked out the door, making sure to not disturb the sleeping Leon and Yasu.

He crept his way through the halls and followed the noises into the main living room to notice two cephalopods in the slight darkness near the front door of the lodge. He heard their mumbling, and after recognizing the voices, he grumbled in annoyance as he walked down the stairs to confront the two.

Miles: Cynthia....Otto.....what the hell are you two-

Just then, Cynthia within fear and quick reflexes turned around and quickly threw her shoe straight at Miles, hitting him directly on the face and knocking him straight down onto the ground with a thud.

Cynthia: *low yelp* Zombie!.....oh.....wait.....shit, Miles!?

Miles: ow.....jeez....do I look like a zombie to you!?...

Cynthia: sorry dude, I had to stay up with Gabs and throw on horror movie after horror movie until she finally fell asleep. That's usually what she watches when she wants to find something to knock her out.

Cynthia waddled over towards Miles in her socks, still holding her other shoe in her hand. She kneeled down and offered her hand to him, also nudging her head towards her nearby shoe that hit Miles, sitting right near his side.

Cynthia: c'mon.....also, do you mind grabbin' that for me?....

Miles grabbed Cynthia with one hand as his other grabbed her shoe, and once he was pulled up, he handed her shoe back to her and began to gently rub his own forehead as Otto scoffed and looked away from the two, sliding his jacket on before reaching towards his own shoes.

Otto: I had a small hunch that I woke you up dammit.....

Miles: what are you two even doing? Why were you watching horror movies this late with Gabby, Cynthia? And why are you both getting...........dressed.........while everyone is..............asleep....

Cynthia/Otto:.........uh....

Miles:.......*glares* you two better not be doing what I think you're doing......

Otto: what man?....we were just.......going to take a walk......

Cynthia: yup yup. Get some fresh air!.....ah...um.......heh.......

Miles rolled his eyes and walked towards Cynthia, lifting his hand and gently pushing her on her shoulder, making her stumble backwards, but with only socks on while standing on a polished hardwood floor, she effortlessly lost her balance and slipped backwards, but Miles grabbed onto her hoodie, noticing a dense object weighing her pocket down.

While she was basically helpless, Miles reached into her pocket and pulled out the Lodge Emblem that was once in Gabby's possession. He let out a small grumble as Cynthia chuckled embarrassingly. Miles let go of Cynthia, allowing her to fall straight on her ass, then looked at both of them, clearly disappointed.

Otto: oh brother...

Miles: seriously guys? Come on, you couldn't wait for one night?

Cynthia: okay, okay dude look. I can give you an absolutely logical reason why I have that little beauty in the first place.

Miles: *sigh*...oh really?

Cynthia crawled towards Miles as her feet slipped all over the ground, grabbing firmly onto Miles and dragging herself up his body as her legs trembled, making Miles tense up from how close she uncomfortably got to him, wrapping her arms around him with a awkwardly scared smile.

Cynthia:...*pant*....okay.....cod, that maid lady definitely went all out when it came to polishing this floor......

Otto: well she gets paid very well, so what did you expect? Of course she's gonna put a bit more "effort" into her job.....

Miles: yeah.......now explain yourself.

Cynthia: fine fine, the main reason why I got that thing is because of.......Z-Zombie.....

Miles: what?

Cynthia raised her shoe one again from behind Miles and threw it past him, making him turn around as the Octo girl slipped off of him and flopped on the floor once again. Miles saw the shoe fly in the dark, towards another figure, hitting them straight in the face as well and making them fall over.

Miles: you've got to be kidding me, man.......

Miles walked towards the figure and once he was close enough, he made it out to be Leon, completely in a state of shock as his glasses laid right near his face.

Cynthia: ugh........did I get it?...

Miles: *whisper* oh no....Leon! Are you alright!?

Leon:.....yes ma'am......

Miles:.......*sigh*....alright, let me help you up.

Miles helped Leon regain his senses and lifted him to sit him up straight. He grabbed onto Leon's glasses and offered them to him, and just as Leon as about to grab his glasses with a small smile for a thank you, another shoe flew past Miles and knocked Leon straight in the face once again, making him fall back down onto the ground, and Miles glared straight towards Cynthia once again.

Miles: Can you stop throwing your damn shoes!?

Cynthia: wasn't me this time.

Miles:..........*looks at Otto*......

Otto:............had to secure the kill.....ya know....double tap.....

Miles:......well you definitely "secured the kill" alright....

Otto: *fist pump* fuck yeah!

Miles: alright just......look you two.....enough of these distractions. We might as well cut straight to the point since I already know you two are planning on leaving tonight to explore calamari lodge by yourselves. Thank cod I woke up, and now I'm gonna hold onto it until I see Gabby in the morning...even if that means staying up for the rest of the night to make sure you two don't take it from me.

Cynthia: no no no! Miles, I know this seems very sketchy and messed up, and I was genuinely gonna do this all by myself......I just....heh...considered this as my last mission as the romance queen.

Miles:....what?....

Cynthia: when we were heading to the lodge after we got off the plane, I was thinking on my final plan to get you two together, and that involved me going ahead of everyone once we placed our bags down so I could scout out calamari lodge. I was gonna find some nice rides and activities for you and Amira to share, plan out a path you two lovesquids can take.

Miles:......

Cynthia: buuut I wasn't expecting strict security, and everyone to be as exhausted and laid back as Gabs to wait until tomorrow. Once we were turned down, I was gonna give up, but Amira talked with me.....and she....mentioned the same things you did.....how you two never have any proper privacy.......and the girl asked for my help on that......so I couldn't turn down breaking the rules after that, dude.

Miles:......Amira asked you to do this?.....

Cynthia: she didn't really ask me to break the rules and take the emblem.....but....she was aware of the potential chance of me doing it after our little chat if that makes sense.....

Miles:.........well.....what about you, Otto?....

Otto: huh?....

Miles: I'm guessing you're just....."tagging along" with Cynthia cuz why not?

Otto:.......

Cynthia: *smirk* he actually has a logical reason too-

Otto: don't you dare!

Miles saw Otto pinch the bridge his nose in slight embarrassment, looking away from Miles and holding his hand out to him.

Otto: give me my other damn shoe....

Miles stood confused, but grabbed Otto's shoe and tossed it his way, seeing him catch it awkwardly enough with a grumble.

Cynthia:....hm......hey.......

Cynthia shimmied on the floor towards Miles, grabbing his ankle and dragging herself up his body once more.

Cynthia: how about you tag along with us?

Miles: w-what!?

Cynthia: c'mon Miles, don't be a sour squid please. This is such a benefit for you.....can't you.....break the rules and let loose?.....just for a little while?.....in and out of Calamari lodge with us....just a small peek inside to see what we're getting ourselves into to get ahead of the game, ya know?

Miles:.....um...

Cynthia: this trip is meant for Bella and Yumi to support their little....."get together" eh?.....buuut after finding out the two already sealed the deal between each other......the romance side of this trip has to go towards someone else, right?~ don't you think it's a little crazy how Bella and Yumi have a much more deeper and complex relationship, but they got together before you and Amira?~

Miles:....I.........I-I don't know Cynthia....

Cynthia: Miles.....dude...you know I got your back with this, and I'm gonna stick with ya until I see you two kiss, and then also see ring on Amira's finger eventually...........I understand with my beautiful appearance and amazing supportive nature, that I'm one of the greatest friends you could ask for.

Miles: *rolls his eyes*

Cynthia: why do you think I gave you my phone at the airport so you could delete those pictures of you and Lux on the plane? It's a symbol of trust.

Otto: awe what, You deleted those!? What the fuck!?

Miles:....

Cynthia: I'll tell you what.....you can hold onto the emblem the entire time we're out. You're on the trust list for Gabs in a way, so even if things go south and she finds out we left, she'll at least know it was safe in your possession. I'll take the blame for you.

Miles:.......y-you don't need to take the blame for me, Cynthia.......cuz I'm not going....my answer is no,

Cynthia: what? Dude, wait!

Miles walked off with the emblem and Cynthia lost her grip on his, slipping and sliding, trying her hardest not to fall again while being a little embarrassed.

Cynthia: Miles! Hold on man!

Cynthia wobbled like crazy, and she soon lost her balance, falling backwards as her shoe slipped from her hand and flew into the air, but before Cynthia could hit the ground, she felt Miles grab onto her to catch her, holding onto her shoe from earlier that she hit Leon with, and soon saw him catch her other shoe that tumbled back down with a smirk.

Miles: sike.......*chuckles*....I'll tag with ya....

Cynthia:....huh?....

Otto: *snicker* did you actually fall for that, Cynthia? He literally just walked away to grab your other shoe.

Cynthia:......*blush*.....dammit....

Miles: you look so humiliated. I could get used to that face honestly.

Cynthia:.....

Miles: what?....I had to get you back eventually for the constant teasing.

Cynthia: alright, alright I'll admit, you got me, not bad.....now give me my shoes.

Miles handed Cynthia her shoes and saw her sit on the floor to put them on as he simply tilted his head at her.

Miles: I've never seen someone struggle this hard to balance on a polished floor with socks on before.....sheesh....

Otto: tell me about it.....

Cynthia: well excuse me!

Leon:.......uuuugh.......my head....

Otto:.....oh....I forgot about that dork......you wanna hypnotize him or something and make him think this was all a dream?

Cynthia: eh, we can drag him along too if you guys want.

Otto: I vote no.

Miles: I vote yes.

Cynthia: and I vote yes as well.

Otto: why!?

Miles: if we're doing this for me and Amira....then I think it would kinda help Leon too....with his situation with Coraline......or well...."Mellow"...

Otto:.........oh........true.......*grumble* that bitch....

Cynthia nodded in agreement as Miles walked over to help Leon up alongside Otto.

Cynthia: still don't understand why the gal is so negative towards us.

Otto: *poke poke* wake up, shithead.

Leon: h-huh?.....

Otto: we're going to go do stupid things that will potentially get us in trouble. You're committing these bad things with us with no form of say in the matter.

Leon: W-What!!?

Cynthia: sssshhh!! Okay seriously we shouldn't be raising our voices anymore, so chill dude.

Miles: yeah, let's just go before we wake anyone else.....

Otto: *mumble* I'm surprised we haven't......we're lucky

Leon: *looks at Miles* y-you're in on this?

Miles:....uh.......yeah a bit.......

Leon:.......but would if we get caug-

Otto: yeah we already went over that, blah blah blah. Now come here and put your fucking shoes on.

Leon: I-I don't want to...

Otto: put your shoes on! I didn't want you to come, but these two did, stupid!

Leon: no!

Miles: guys, c'mon....

Otto began to aggressively shove a pair of shoes onto Leon, with the Octo holding them back, quietly nagging towards each other.

Otto: shoes!

Leon: I said no!

Miles annoyingly watched on as the two scrambled against each other, and after a small shrug, he felt Cynthia knock her hip against his, nudging her head towards the door.

Cynthia: they'll catch up.

Miles took one last glance at the two boys before shrugging and walking with Cynthia to the door, opening it and seeing the slight snow falling outside. Miles reached over to a nearby wall of hooks to grab his coat, zipping it up, feeling Cynthia push a spare beanie on his cheek, which he accepted and put it on, closing the door behind them, then they began to walk on the crunchy snow, only noticing calamari lodge from the distance by its bright lights between the trees that surrounded their current home.

Miles held the emblem in his hand, seeing his own reflection in it, with Cynthia looking at him, then putting her own hands in her pockets, calmly walking alongside him.

Cynthia: something kinda clicked for me recently when it came to our discussion on Lux from earlier today.....everything kinda fell into place.

Miles: what do you mean?

Cynthia:.....so.....Lux breaking up with you is just the sole reason why you.......are the guy you are today.......physically and mentally that is......that one moment in your life truly did make a big impact on you.

Miles slid the emblem safely in his pocket, then thought on Cynthia's words as he looked at the scar on his hand, the same scar given to him by Willow, remembering her thrusting her knife straight through his palm, and giving him many more stab wounds with scars as well.....then soon thought to the scar on his arm....given to him after falling roughly onto Bluefin Depot during his argument with Echo......

Lastly, the sealed wound from his stomach inflicted on him by Yuka......he should've died during the exams.....yet he didn't......Yuka gave him and Amira their lives back.....after regaining her memories thanks to him......but also seeing the deep love between the two squids.......that wound was only given to him for wanting to protect the Inkling he loved.....the Inkling he potentially would've never loved if the breakup between him and Lux never occurred.......so many negative things happened to him......all because of complex love....

Miles:.......heh.........yeah, you're definitely right........I've thought on that many times......

Cynthia:........also have you uh.....heard from Echo at all recently?....I know how much she meant to you.

Miles: I have....*smile*...we made up. We're on nice terms with each other.

Cynthia: for eel!? That's great man, thank cod!

Miles: you sound more relieved than me.

Cynthia: hell yeah I am! The amount of guilt I felt was horrible! If I knew Echo liked you, I would've never pushed you and Amira together like that.

Miles:..........I know...

Cynthia: when did you two make up?

Miles: right before the trip.....she gave me some extra cash to put towards this stuff......*chuckle* like what she said.....it's embarrassing how Lola could recognize her before me.

Cynthia: whatcha mean?

Miles: she changed herself.....she had black tentacles and contacts to change her eye color....different gear and glasses as well......she even changed her name to Nova.....

Cynthia: sheesh......she really took it to the extreme when she left.....didn't expect a whole identity change........even her own name....."Nova?"......

Miles:...me neither.....she really must've hated me that much.....

Cynthia:......well....things are better now dude......she came back and you two can finally go back to hanging out and junk....

Miles: she's not coming back to Inkopolis, Cynthia....she's staying away with her new friend....

Cynthia: new friend?...

Miles: Mhm....I think she said her name was Guppy....

Cynthia:.....heh....thats cute.........it still bums you out though huh?....

Miles: a bit....im glad Echo found someone however......she can finally write her own story......as she always wanted......

Cynthia:.........

Miles:.....without........me in it.........

Miles looked down and continued to walk with Cynthia in silence.....despite their recent makeup......he still felt a little guilt towards it all......letting out a small sigh........which concerned Cynthia.

The silence however didn't last too long between the two, because suddenly, Miles saw Cynthia's hand grab onto his shirt collar, tugging it out, and before he could speak, Cynthia shoved a handful of snow down his shirt with a playful yet teasing smile on her face being the only thing Miles saw before she quickly made distance between them.

Miles: AAAAAH!! CYNTHIA WHAT THE HELL!!?

Cynthia: can't have ya goin' all depressed on me man. *chuckles* just wanted to lighten the mood a bit.

Miles: How is this lightening the mood!!? You shoved snow down my damn shirt!!......

Cynthia saw Miles grunt and fall to his knees curling up as he held his stomach from the cold snow. The octoling let out a small sigh with a smile and walked towards Miles, squatting down in front of him to offer a hand.

Cynthia: c'mon you big baby. Can't handle a little snow?

Just then Miles Grabbed Cynthia's jacket and shoved his own handful of snow under her shirt, making her tense up and fall back on her ass just as Miles Stood up, already making another snow ball in his hands as he stood over her.

Cynthia: o-o-okay I see what you mea-

Miles dropped the snowball straight onto Cynthia's face with a smirk of his own, walking off in triumph as she began to wipe it off of her face.

Miles: caught you off guard twice Cynthia. You've been getting a lot more soft with me recently.

Cynthia: *smirks*.....reaching under a girl's shirt like that....pretty sure you skimmed my bra doofus.

Miles: *blush* no it wasn't like that! I was just trying to get back at you for doing that dumb trick-

Miles turned around only to catch a snowball straight to his face, making him stumble, then wipe the snow off simply to get hit with another right on his chest, then another on his shoulder, and when he looked at Cynthia, he already saw her holding her own stash of snowballs with a little chuckle.

Cynthia: and I can still tease you to get the same results.

Miles: how did you make so many snowballs so fast!?

Cynthia: oh don't worry about how I made them, you should be more concerned about where the hell they're going.

Miles:....oh no...

Cynthia began to throw snowball after snowball at Miles, and all he could do was run from her while quickly making some of his own. The two had a small snowball fight going back and forth hitting each other and dodging when they could.

Miles: is that the best you got!?

Cynthia: okay tough guy! just wait until you see my-

Just then, a snowball blitzed Cynthia and hit her straight on the head from an awkward angle that couldn't have been from Miles. Cynthia flopped to the snow and Miles turned in the direction the snowball came from only to take a snowball once again straight to his face, making him fall over as well.

The Inkling and Octo both looked up from the ground to see who threw the snowballs, noticing Otto standing with Leon by his side.

Otto: looks like you two are having fun.

Cynthia: if you consider reaching into people's shirts as fun, then sure~

Miles: shut up!

Otto: wait what?

Miles: nothing!

Leon: why did you have to drag me along?...

Otto: *sigh* look.....you want Coraline back right?

Leon:....y-yeah...

Otto: well maybe tagging with us will give you some ideas on how to bring her back while also doing all of us a favor and getting rid of Mellow.

Leon:.....well.....

Otto: seriously......that girl is such a pain.....

Mellow: and I can say the same about all of you.

Everyone jumped at the sound of Mellow's voice, turning to see her leaning against a tree, glaring at all of them.

Otto: where the fuck did you come from!?

Mellow: I was simply just watching you idiots scramble around ever since this whole "plan" of yours kicked off

Cynthia: you were stalking us?......

Mellow: *shrug* it's not like I wanted to. You all simply just got in my way......but I do thank you for making my job easier.

From her own pocket, Mellow pulled out the emblem for them to see, and Miles began to immediately check his pockets.

Miles: wait what!?...how did she!?

Mellow: also....I don't understand how that "Echo" girl could forgive such an idiot like yourself.......it was a truly stupid relationship......it brings a tear to my eye knowing how she was in paradise......only to cripple down and return to the fool....

Miles:.......

Cynthia: okay, now you're going too far, girl!

Mellow: I'm just speaking the truth.....look at him.......Echo made the best choice she ever could by separating from this.......embarrassment of a squid.....

Otto:.....this bitch......

Cynthia: *glares* listen.....just because you're Coraline, I won't hesitate to-

Miles: Cynthia...

Cynthia felt Miles grab her shoulder and she looked at him, seeing a small smile.

Miles: it's cool....*chuckles* I don't want you to turn into Gabby or somethin'

Miles took a deep breath as Cynthia stood down, calmly walking towards Mellow.

Miles: Mellow.......listen....we don't want any trouble, okay?.....if you wanna tag along with us, you can. We can have some fun together, ya know? Get to know each othe-

Mellow: shut up.......seriously.....that is an automatic no on my end......I would rather eat dirt than "hang out" with you all.....

Mellow leaned off of the tree and began to toss the emblem up and down in her hand.

Mellow: I've been forced around by all of you for long enough. I never asked to be dragged into this pathetic vacation in the first place. You're keeping me around because you want HER back......well let me just say it nice and firm for you all to hear.....

Mellow looked straight at Leon, glaring deeply at him, making him freeze up in fear.

Mellow: Coraline.........is gone......and never coming back.......

Leon:....

Otto: alright that's enough out of you! Give us the damn emblem already!

Mellow:........you waste my time......and I'll waste yours....

Mellow turned into her octo form and super jumped away, with snow blasting off in all directions. The 4 covered themselves from the snow, seeing Mellow make her way towards the vacation district of Calamari lodge.

Otto: dammit! Get her!!

Miles and Otto turned into their squid forms while Cynthia and Leon turned into their octo forms, super jumping after Mellow. They all soared through the air, seeing Mellow break the distance between them even further than before.

Miles: ugh!! How is she so fast!?

Otto: how did you let her just blitz you like that and take the emblem you idiot!? We literally gave it to YOU to hold onto it for safekeeping and you lost it!!

Miles: you're acting like we knew she was with us in the first place!! Don't start pointing fingers!!

Otto: your ex is literally the fastest squid ever!! You can track her just fine, but you couldn't track Mellow!!?

Miles: I never said I could track Lux like that!! She catches me off guard all the time!!

Cynthia: even in bed?~

Miles: shut up!!

Leon: uuuugh! This was a mistake!

Otto: oh hush! Even if we didn't take the emblem to begin with, Mellow would've taken it instead! We just gotta catch her before she does anything with it!

Cynthia: uh....we already might be a little too late....

Otto: WHAT!?

As Mellow landed firmly on the ground, in front of her stood two big, golden gates, and once she took another step forward, she was greeted by a robotic voice.

AI: [Welcome! Please insert your Lodge emblem!]

Below the speaker from the AI voice was a hole perfectly carved out in the shape of the lodge emblem. Mellow walked towards the hole and placed the emblem inside.

AI: [verifying emblem......verifying emblem.......verifying emblem.........verification complete!]

The doors opened up to show the huge district awaiting Mellow, and once she grabbed the emblem back and walked inside, Otto, Cynthia, Leon, and Miles all landed together, bolting towards the district doors.

Otto: HEY!!! DON'T YOU FUCKING DARE!!!

Mellow:......hm.....I see so much in the distance.....it's rather warm as well......ah......and one more thing......

Mellow turned towards the 4 and held the emblem in both hands, using ridiculous strength to break it in half right before their eyes. As the doors closed, Mellow tossed the broken emblem out beyond the doors and into the snow, then gave them one last wave.

Mellow: I "appreciate" the free experience, you disgusting worms....

Just as the gates closed, Otto slammed against them, too late to catch her as Miles walked over to the broken emblem to pick it up.

Otto: DAMMIT!!!......THAT FUCKING!!...UUUUGH!!

Cynthia: she really used it as a one way ticket, huh?....

Miles: I'm surprised she was able to even break this thing in the first place........

Cynthia: yeah.....like, thats a fucking emblem....a medal in a way......she just snapped it like it was a potato chip.

Leon: well.....I guess that's one way to show off enhanced strength......

Otto: enhanced.......strength?.......excuse me?....

Leon:....well.....that's what my grandfather explained to me a little..............since Mellow is also Coraline......her strength is kinda.....multiplied?......she's extracting Coraline's strength and merging it with her own.

Otto: and you're telling us this now? Are you serious!? We would've been so much more cautious around her if we knew what she was capable of, you fucking dumbass!!

Leon: I'm sorry!!! I didn't expect something like this to happen!!!

Miles: well that explains how she blitzed me and snapped this thing.......

Cynthia: dude we're so screwed........the second gabs sees this, she's gonna freak the fuck out...

Otto: *tsk* hand it over.

Miles offered the two snapped pieces of the emblem and Otto snatched them from him, marching over to the door and trying to fit the pieces inside to unlock it.

AI: [ damaged emblem detected ]

Otto: c'mon man!...

AI: [ damaged emblem detected......damaged emblem detected ]

Cynthia: maybe if we glue it.....nobody will notice....

Leon: I'm almost positive everyone will notice....plus I doubt it'll work for the door.....

Otto: uuugh!! Why does this place have such high security anyway!? People come here for a vacation, not to be secured on a fucking lockdown.

AI: [ if your emblem is broken or damaged in any capacity, please contact the proud and dedicated owner Mika to purchase a new emblem. Thank you ]

A screen turned on near the speaker to show an Inkling girl giving a proud smile alongside an address and phone number, and Otto stared at the picture of the girl.......

Otto:........*mumble*......wait a minute......is....that?.....

Cynthia: well how about we call this chick and try to negotiate. Mellow literally stole our emblem and broke it...so maybe if she hears us out, we can get a new one for free or something, right?....

Miles: I hope so....

Leon: we can try....

Miles pulled out his phone and began to dial the number on the screen, but before he could call, Otto gently placed his hand over Miles's phone, gesturing for him to stop.

Otto: no...

Miles: no?....what do you mean no?

Otto:......not.....this way.....you'll get immediately rejected over a call.....

Cynthia: so you're suggesting we go in person?

Otto looked back at the picture of the girl one last time.....leaving his friends confused as it took him way longer to give a response than expected.

Otto:......yeah.......

Cynthia:........you cool dude?......you are giving off weird vibes......

Otto:............just......let's go to that address.......

Otto began to walk ahead of the group, leaving all of them slightly concerned in his sudden change of behavior.

Otto: I have a plan....

~~~~~

*story art*

New Book cover with Bella and Angelica.