Chapter Text
This fic is dedicated to my younger self, who kept going even in the darkest hour,
and to all the random street performers who've unknowingly impacted my life.
Beginning of
☆ Arc I: Discovery ☆
Pearl continued down the streets of the back-end district of Inkopolis, her hands shoved deep into her white jacket pocket. She kicked a discarded can to the side, flinching in regret as she listened to the scrap of metal clank obnoxiously against dirty concrete; the sound akin to dragging one’s nails across a chalkboard. Letting out an annoyed sigh, Pearl absentmindedly pulled out her phone and began to scroll through social media.
⦿ Just got hired at my new job!! ☆☆ I’m excited to see what lies ahead! #newjobwhodis
⦿ Me and the fam went on vacation last week to Calamari Country! Here are some pics we took~♡♡♡
⦿ Just three more days until I graduate from Inkblot Art Academy! I’m oveR IT (ㆆ_ㆆ)
Pearl continued to flick her thumb across her screen as she stared blankly at the posts. She snorted, almost disdainfully. Pearl didn’t understand it; or rather, she couldn’t understand it. People from all over were enjoying their lives to the fullest potential, yet, here she was, walking aimlessly through life, chasing a dream that seemed so far out of grasp. Ever since she was a little ink-goopy squid, Pearl had been told to follow her passions, to make a name for herself, but to actually put said words into action and bear fruit from them proved to be a rather daunting task.
It’s not that Pearl didn’t have a supportive upbringing, far from it actually. Her parents were an encouraging duo who made a fortune and always gave their little girl whatever she wanted. However, when Pearl moved out, she had opted to want to do things on her own. All things considered, Pearl was grateful to them, but she declined that they were to provide any financial aid to her adult life. Everything had been given to Pearl on a golden spoon when she was younger. For once, she wanted to work to get something on her own.
That being said… this passionately driven musician was beginning to have second thoughts about that decision she made when she was eighteen.
Living on your own was hard.
Pearl wanted nothing more than to be the next big artist in the music world, but getting there was proving to be a lot more challenging than what she initially thought. She hadn’t been able to find any agents willing to take up her music, let alone, sell very many of her original songs. Unfortunately, this forced Pearl to turn music into a glorified side hobby while she worked at Mako Mart to barely make ends meet.
She stayed in a small, one bedroom apartment in Inkopolis, and even that was proving to be a financial hassle to maintain. The apartment itself was far from the fancy living that she'd known, but at least she could say that it was hers. Pearl’s parents had always said that she could move back in, or ask for help if things ever became too difficult, but Pearl was too stubborn to ask for help, even if she knew she needed it.
So, she continued to walk down the sidewalk towards home after working her shift from her dreaded day job. Pearl knew this point in her life was temporary, and only that. It just... had to be. She wouldn’t be here forever, she couldn't be, she refused to be. Pearl was too ambitious and tenacious to live a forgettable life. But… that didn’t make going through the process any easier or appealing. Especially when it seemed that she wasn’t making any substantial strides towards success, given the stout amount of work she had been putting in over these past few years.
Pearl sighed deeply, the all too familiar feeling of yearning emptiness creeping up around the edges of her chest. Her thumb began to swipe faster across her phone— a speed that was now much too swift for her eyes to fully digest. Her legs also seemed to increase their stride, subconsciously guiding her away from the direction of home, and back towards the train station.
Tonight would likely be another night Pearl would seek comfort from far-beyond Inkopolis' streets. A place far off in nature, protected by the cool embrace of the nightly winds, and the welcoming shelter of low-hanging tree leaves and other assorted plant-life. A place where Inkopolis looked like a tiny battery-powered child's playset from the distance and height that Pearl would be staring back down at it from on top one of the region's highest mountain peaks.
A place where no one could hear her violently scream out her anger, frustrations, and fears of her unknown, uncertain future.
+ Music is the center of life — that is why your heart has a beat. +
Suddenly, Pearl halted mid step, her foot frozen in time. She straightened her posture and perked her ears in interest. Something… something intriguing had caught her attention. Surely, she wasn’t hearing things, right?
Putting her phone back into her pocket, Pearl listened intently to the many sounds around her.
She scowled immediately.
It was nearly impossible to hear anything over the obnoxious roaring of cars rumbling across the asphalt at the adjacent traffic intersection. Impatient honking and wheel screeching blared at terribly loud decibels while the loud electronic advertisements blasted impulsively overhead.
But still… Underneath all of that unneeded noise, Pearl heard it once more. Although soft, it stood out because it was natural, not artificial. Faint yet present, it carried throughout the back streets of Inkopolis like a gentle breeze up-drafting billows of cherry-blossom petals in the beginnings of spring weather.
Pearl took a few steps forward, trying to locate the source of the wonderful sound. Upon realizing that she was going the wrong direction, she pointedly turned on her heels and chose another way. Her pique of interest gradually grew in volume and presence, indicating that she was now going the right direction. Pearl increased her pace, following the source of the melody. Eventually, she finally broke a corner and came face to face with what had caused her to take such an unconventional detour.
Sitting against the side of a vacant business building was an lone inkling — a girl, Pearl realized— wearing washed out, ripped jeans and an oversized green jacket with the hood pulled up, covering her face. In her hands was a simple, love-worn acoustic guitar, emitting a steady, soothing tone. The stranger was using a technique Pearl had never seen before. With one hand, she strummed chords ardently with her fingertips while using the palm of her hand to hit the body of the guitar, creating a dense bass drum sound. Essentially playing two instruments at once, it was multi-tasking at it's absolute finest. And as if that wasn’t already impressive enough, singing was also added into the madness, the stranger's head gently bobbing up and down to the rhythm of the beat.
Pearl stood, mouth ajar, as she watched in astonishment. Although music was a massive part to inkling culture, it was relatively uncommon to come across a street performer. Pearl found herself unable to really understand what the hooded girl was saying, as it honestly sounded like a completely different language. Whatever the case, Pearl appreciated the fresh beat regardless, tapping her foot subconsciously to the gentle groove. Music was never really something you ever understood, but something you just... felt.
Suddenly, some random inkling playing with their phone bumped past Pearl. They mumbled an apology under their breath, but carried on as if nothing had happened. Pearl frowned as they walked past, her face twisting in disbelief. Standing rigid, she looked up and down the street, noting how everyone passing by were keeping to themselves and minding their own business.
Her scowl only deepened.
How could anyone just walk past the singer without paying her any attention? Her voice and skills were exceptional.
In front of the performer was an open guitar case. A piece of cardboard with scribbled writing on it leaned next to it.
Anything is apreciated appreciated.
Thank you.
Like a heavy stone sinking to the pit of her gut, Pearl found herself extremely humbled in this moment. Even though she was struggling herself, it was a stark reminder that others' also went through rough patches— some worse than others.
Squinting her eyes, Pearl noticed only a few, pitiful gold coins in the case and some pieces of… trash? It appeared that people were throwing literally anything into the case.
What a bunch of asshats, Pearl thought, angered. The sign ain't literal...
Reaching back into her pocket, Pearl pulled out her wallet. She frowned once again, realizing that she didn’t have any physical money on her person, only card. Even though she knew she was pressed tight on money herself, Pearl knew she couldn’t just walk away without giving something of value.
Hang on, I’ll be right back...
Pearl quickly turned on her heels and ran a fair distance to the nearest food station — Crusty Sean’s.
The bright and sunny shrimp smiled upon her appearance at his stall. “What’s Kraken, squiddo?" He greeted. "What can I—”
Pearl cut off his charismatic shill by slamming her card against the metal counter of the food truck, causing the little advert signs to bounce nervously.
“I need a Triple-Fried Galactic Schwaffle, to go. Stat!” She panted, head lolling as she heavily leaned against the counter. “And—!!"Good cod, I'm so out of shape! "...And a large—!! Cup of water—!! As well—!!" It was a concious, intentional choice for Pearl to chose the most caloric-dense meal on the menu.
Who knew when the last time that girl had something to eat?
Crusty Sean gave Pearl a frazzled look, his whiskers twitching rigidly before nodding to go prep the meal. Once Pearl eventually received the precarious heap of food, it was a balancing act as she walked as fast as she could back to the lone street performer's area.
Pearl smiled inwardly to herself, thinking how this would probably make the hooded girl’s day. Not that she was doing this for praise or anything though; she just felt an external force, a sudden desire to help. Perhaps it was because she understood how hard it was to be a musician, making her already have a connection with this stranger, even though she knew nothing else about her.
Pearl was beyond dismayed when she didn't see the mysterious girl upon her return.
She walked up to the spot where she was sitting, looking around the area to see if she could get a glimpse of her. Unfortunately, it didn't seem as if the singer had left any trace that she was ever even there.
She’s gone… Pearl realized.
Sighing in defeat, the dejected inkling walked home with her shoulders deflated, and a meal that was much too big to eat by herself.
Days passed on, but Pearl still never caught sight of Hoodie. That... was the unofficial name Pearl had decided to give the mysterious musician. Pearl remained hopeful though, more than certain that they would cross paths again.
They just... had to.
Pearl was intrigued by that elusive girl; she wanted to know more about her. She continually went to the same spot where she last saw the singer every day afterwards. Additionally, Pearl carried a large bundle of crackers and water bottles with her at all times, determined to give Hoodie something when they met again, and to avoid the mishap that happened last time.
And it truly wasn't a matter of if they met again, but when.
Pearl was certain of it.
And sure enough, after coming home from work two weeks later, Pearl finally heard the strumming of a guitar in the distance. Hope and excitement swelled up in her chest as she took off in a full on sprint towards the sounds of live music.
After turning the customary corner, Pearl saw her again.
Hoodie was wearing her signature… well, green hoodie. Only this time, her clothes appeared more dusty and battered than before. Hoodie was arranged in the same set up as last time, guitar in her lap and case opened up off to the side.
Pearl slowly walked up to her and stopped just a few paces away. The other girl didn’t notice her approach, eyes shadowed by her hood. Naturally, Pearl began to nod her head to the beat, letting the music course throughout her body. Somehow, the girl’s music was even better than the last time Pearl heard her.
This… is so good, Pearl noted inwardly. Wow...
Pearl didn’t know why, but she felt a strong urge to play along with the performer. Knowing that she didn’t have anything to really play on, Pearl awkwardly cleared her throat as discretely as possible. It had been a while since she had really sang— sang, not rapped — but she still did from time to time.
Quietly, she began to hum along with the chords Hoodie was playing. It was a very simple, yet effective chord progression. Once Pearl identified the basic notes, she started to add her own spin to it, matching along softly in harmony.
When Hoodie spoke a line with that strange, yet, endearing voice of hers, Pearl parried with an echo. At the sound of Pearl's voice, Hoodie flinched and abruptly stopped singing, as if startled, but kept the beat and chords alive with her fingers, as if they were strumming on auto-pilot. She even seemed to curl more into her guitar at Pearl's sudden appearance, as if trying to hide behind her music.
Pearl leaned forward for a brief moment, gently nudging Hoodie’s knee in encouragement for the girl to continue with her. “C’mon, now. Don’t leave me hangin’,” She reassured, in rhythm with the music.
Pearl didn't want to subtract from Hoodie’s spotlight, but rather, she just wanted to add to it— with her. After a few more measures of vocal silence, Pearl heard the sitting girl pipe back up, seemingly gaining a bit of her confidence back, and the two began singing along with each other once more.
If Pearl could describe this experience in her own words, it'd be "holy shit", uttered in a tone of amazement.
To dissect this further, Pearl felt absolutely euphoric; She absolutely loved rare moments like this.
There was just something charming and special about having a jam session with someone you didn’t know. The only thing the two girls shared between each other was their obvious love for music and whether they realized it or not, that immediately made them have a bond.
Pearl wasn’t sure how long they sang together, but when she reopened her eyes at the end of their impromptu duet, a small crowd had gathered around them. They clapped in awe when the two finished, many of them stepping forward to drop dozens of gold coins into the guitar case. Pearl looked down to Hoodie with a cordial smile, giving her an applause of her own. After all, she was the one who really made the show.
After some more celebratory regards and donations, the crowd thinned out, and it was soon just the two girls again.
“That was amazing,” Pearl gawked, practically bouncing on her toes in excitement. “Never heard someone play guitar like that, or sing like that! Talk about shella fresh!"
Hoodie glanced down to her guitar, further obscuring her face while her hands retreated into her sleeves, leaving only her fingertips visible.
"How long you been playin'?” Pearl asked, curious as anything.
Eventually, she was rewarded with a quiet response.
“Just... a bit... there and here...” Hoodie murmured, not looking up.
Woah...
Pearl felt the tips of her ears rise in temperature.
That…
That was a very unexpected accent. A very different and intriguing accent. Pearl had never heard anything like it.
“I’m Pearl.” She blurted, shaking her head to recollect her wits. “What’s your name?”
After a brief pause, Hoodie seemed to spare a bit of courage and lifted her head in Pearl's general direction. Her eyes still remained shadowed by her hood, however.
"Marina." She answered, although it came out as a tone of questioning, rather than of confirmation.
Marina…
That is wayyy better than Hoodie, Pearl thought, laughing to herself.
“Nice to meet'cha, Marina!” Pearl beamed, flashing one of her iconic, toothy grins. She leaned down and patted Marina’s shoulder. The sitting girl immediately shrunk back, startled by the sudden touch. Pearl quickly pulled away, regretting that she had made Marina uncomfortable. She mentally kicked herself for acting like a hyper-active teenager.
“I— S-Sorry…” Pearl stuttered in apology, glancing away. “Your music just really… fired up somethin' inside me.”
It'd been far too long since Pearl felt this excited about music that she'd reached out impulsively, without thought or consideration.
Marina scanned the guilt-ridden inkling up and down, slowly shifting so that she sat with a bit more posture.
“...Are you musician?” She asked quietly after a few moments of pulsing silence.
"Y-Yeah." Pearl sheepishly glanced back over to Marina, the warmth of shame still dissipating from her face. “Rappin's more my gig, but I sing from time to time, and at least know what sounds in tune. I do play cajon for fun, though." Pearl thought about the portable drum, realizing that it's been a rather criminal amount of time since she brought out her favorite wooden box. She should change that sometime soon; it'd be nice to slap some rhythms on it again.
Hoodie— Marina— nodded slowly in understanding. “I... I sing, and do piano, also." She spoke with a slow tongue. "Piano is... not able to move easy, so I taught myself to play guitar.”
Pearl blinked in astonishment. “You're self-crafted? That’s even more amazing!”
“I suppose...” Marina shrugged and glanced away, “Music is... not appreciated were I am from, so there was not the other choice.”
“Really?” Pearl asked, bewildered. Music was integral to inkling society, so what uncultured city didn't follow that mantra? "What crazy city didya roll-out from?"
Marina seemed to tense at the question, deliberately tipping her head down to allow the hood on her face to nearly swallow all visible traces of her features. She remained silent, not answering Pearl's curious question.
Pearl immediately backed off, sensing that she had hit a sensitive subject. “Hey, no matter where you’re from.” She released a small sigh, running a tired hand through her bobbed tentacles. “We all gotta go somewhere n' all that, y’know?”
After a contemplative pause, Marina looked over with an unreadable expression as she watched Pearl drop down to the hard concrete to sit beside her. Pearl shuffled through the small bag she carried and pulled out her batch of crackers and bottles of water. Opening the bag, she made a gesture towards Marina to grab some as she popped one into her own mouth.
Marina gave Pearl a calculated look, hesitating, although Pearl noticed that she subconsciously licked her lips. Thumbing just a few more crackers for herself, Pearl dropped the rather large bag into the other girl’s lap, giving her no other choice. Marina stared in disbelief at the sudden act before carefully taking a cracker between her fingers, which were... tipped in teal?
Huh.
Pearl chewed on her own cracker in thought, not really sure on what to say next. While Marina was distracted with the food, digging in eagerly after a brief moment of being modest, Pearl took a quiet moment to observe this intriguing girl. Now at a closer distance, she could see that her clothes were terribly worn out and aged. The jacket she wore was several sizes too big, and her shoes were caked with dried mud and other debris. Torn, battered jeans revealed rich, dark-skinned knees poking out from the patchy holes.
Pearl frowned inwardly.
Yeah... her life wasn't great at the moment, but seeing Marina as she was really forced Pearl put her own situation into perspective.
Maybe the gang was right when they called me self-centered... Pearl glunched, gnawing miserably on her final cracker as she allowed silence to drift between her and Marina.
After some passage of time, it appeared Marina had her own fill of the crackers. She then made the attempt to pass the bag back over to Pearl.
A pale hand waved dismissively. "Keep ‘em." Pearl insisted. "They’re yours."
Marina halted, opening her mouth as if she was about to protest. She quickly seemed to think the better of it though and instead, shifted to hug the bag close to her chest.
“Thank you...” She murmured quietly, lifting her chin.
In this moment, Pearl met Marina's eyes for the first time and heard the noise from the outside world dim down into muffled ambience. Although they were still covered partly by the hood, Pearl managed to catch a glimpse of a pair of stunning, teal and pink eyes before Marina skittishly glanced away.
But Pearl continued to stare at Marina for several, silent moments longer, golden eyes unblinking. Her round eyebrows set themselves in on a furrow— though not one of disgust or anger.
Rather, it was curious confusion.
Meeting Marina's eyes like that just now... It was strange, but not at all unpleasant.
For a brief moment, it was as if this complete stranger somehow felt... familiar to Pearl. As if she was experiencing some grand epiphany that she wasn't even close to having the answer to.
Pearl shook her head, finally looking away from Marina. With this one action, the noise of the city slowly ramped back up to full volume.
“Things... will get better.” Pearl muttered after another stretch of silence, almost more to herself than to the person beside her. She leaned back against the wall behind her, her expression falling with thought. “That’s what I keep tellin' myself, at least. Things gotta get better, right?”
Pearl wasn’t sure what compelled her to start talking to Marina, but once she did, she found that it was difficult to stop. She vented about her frustrations with not advancing in her passion and desire to make it big in the music industry. Pearl must've sounded like a flabbergasted, fast-talking blubberfish— she had been keeping her music woes to herself, so perhaps she was just in desperate need to get this negativity off her chest.
As Pearl continued to rant, Marina seemed to slowly take a genuine interest— listening intently to her and even adding in some quiet input every now and then. The two girls continued to engage with one another as the busy world around them passed on. Only when the sun had dipped below the horizon did Pearl realize that it had gotten late.
Pearl knew that she should probably be on her way, however… She didn’t want to just leave Marina here all alone and go to cod knows where.
“So, uh, hey…” Pearl reached behind and rubbed at the back of her neck. She swallowed nervously, unsure of how to really ask her question without sounding rude. “You, uhm. Well, shit... It looks like it's gonna rain soon, y'know?”
There wasn't a single cloud in the sky.
“You… gotta place to stay dry?”
For a few moments, Marina didn’t respond. She wrapped her arms around her knees, hiding her face completely.
Eventually, she solemnly shook her head from side to side.
“Well… you can crash at my place, if you want.” Pearl offered as casually as she could muster. “It ain't some prestigious hotel, but I gotta roof, food— stuff like that.”
Marina immediately sat back up at hearing her words, her shadowed eyes widening.
“What? I could not possibly—"
“It’s okay," Pearl stood up and reached a hand out, a light smile falling upon her lips. "I don’t mind, and it ain't too far from here, either.”
“No, thank you…” Marina murmured, bringing one her hands up to her chest. “I am decent as is.”
Pearl frowned, not only to the rejection, but also to Marina's rather peculiar speech patterns. “You sure? I know we just met, but...”
I’m worried about you.
Pearl didn’t dare finish her thought out loud. She didn’t want Marina to think she was some creep.
The other girl shook her head fervently, toying at the hem of her hoodie as she also arose to her feet. Pearl held her breath as she realized Marina was taller than her, much taller.
Well... Pearl wasn't offering much in the height department to begin with— she was often mistaken as a grade-schooler— but there was just something different about Marina being taller than her that made her head spin. Perhaps it was because Marina seemed to have such a small, collected presence when she was sat there on the ground, seemingly trying to take up the least amount of space possible.
Pearl watched with unblinking eyes as Marina appeared to be in deep thought for a moment. With lips pressed in a thin line, her eyes flickered cautiously around at their surroundings before reaching her hands up to her hood. Led by careful fingers, Marina slowly pulled it down, revealing her face to Pearl for the first time.
Upon seeing Marina's face, Pearl felt warmth fizzle across the expanse of her face. Her mind seemed unable to compute, or make coherent, complete thoughts for several moments.
W-Well, damn… she's… she's very...
[GAY ERROR 404]. The system has over-heated. Please turn off and wait [T-5 MINUTES] before rebooting.
To put it simply, Marina was absolutely gorgeous.
Pearl wasn’t even sure where to begin first. Marina had large, long teal-tipped tentacles that were gently wiggling left and right with a shorter one at the front of her forehead. Were her suction cups on the outside of her tentacles? How odd. Her skin was smooth and perfectly sun-kissed, a tone that complimented her tentacles rather well. Pearl found herself being drawn to Marina's large and brilliantly teal eyes more than anything. Now being able to see them in full light, they were unlike anything she had ever seen before. Marina's pupils were also an odd shape and odd color— a salmon-pink.
Pearl felt a shiver shoot through her spine when Marina gave her the tiniest of smiles as she brushed one of her long, loose tentacles out of her face. “I will be decent on my own,” She insisted. “Thank you for the food and company." Marina continued, offering a small, polite bow. "It has... been a while since someone has offered me looks.” She admitted, tone of voice weathered.
Pearl blinked rapidly to recollect herself. System reboot successful. “Hey, no sweat.” She gave a small smile of her own, rubbing the back of her neck once more. “Can I— ah... will you be here tomorrow?”
Marina’s eyes seemed to sparkle in the last of the gathering sunlight. “Well... I am normally on the other side of—” Her smile quickly fell as she caught movement out of the corner of her eye. Her eyes lost their vibrancy as they became frosted with fear, and hardened with heeded caution. Marina hastily threw her hood back over her beautiful face, much to Pearl’s dismay, as an oblivious inkling walked past them on the other side of the street.
Pearl’s eyebrows furrowed in concern as she watched Marina shrink back into herself.
“I will return here, tomorrow.” Marina murmured under the mask of her hood. "Same time as now."
Pearl stood confused, but she decided against asking any questions. Instead, she gave the other girl a sharp-toothed grin.
“Tomorrow, it is!”
Later that night, Pearl lay awake in her bed.
Her mind couldn’t stop thinking back to Marina, and how completely intriguing she was to Pearl. She was so different and unique, interesting and mysterious. Not to mention that she was absolutely breath-taking; it should be illegal to be that gorgeous.
In all honesty however, Marina was a rather... odd-looking inkling. A good— great kind of odd, but still odd nonetheless. What, with her foreign accent, gradient fingers and tentacles, unusual eye color, and inverted suction cups, Pearl couldn't help but want to put on her detective hat and ponder what made Marina so much different from anyone else she had ever come across.
She'd deduced it down to a fleeting hunch, but she didn't want to make a faulty assumption.
Her thoughts soon began to think back to how Marina quickly crawled back into her shell when she saw someone else walk by. Sidestepping Marina's appearance inquiries though; Pearl was moreso wrapped up in the fact that she was worried for the other girl. By the way she avoided direct eye contact and physical proximity, she was clearly terrified of something… someone, perhaps?
Pearl wanted to know Marina's story— which was likely to be a rather intricate one at that— but Pearl knew she couldn’t just dump all of these questions on Marina. Walking up to Marina and asking what her damage was would be unreasonably rude.
But cod... that sensation Pearl felt when they'd jammed out together, and that feeling of familiarity when their eyes had met for the first time...
It was surreal... Pearl mused in awe.
Pearl just... had some type of positive gut-feeling about Marina, and she couldn't help but feel that this was the beginning of something... big. Something bigger than what she's ever experienced in her life. Like a hidden-gem of a book that sat at the back of the library, eagerly waiting to be picked up and thumbed through. Pearl had never been much of a reader, but she found herself eager to get swept-up and lost in whatever this story was planning to offer her.
And she was certain that Marina would be along for this saga.
Releasing a tired, content sigh, Pearl promptly fell asleep with a faint smile on her face.
Tomorrow couldn’t come soon enough.