July 25th, 2013

The Anchor's Shore

This wasn't her first performance, but the feeling never got old. MudMoths, the band she'd joined, had a decent little following already. The moment she'd heard they were looking to experiment with a vocalist, she jumped at the opportunity. She was learning how to actually write lyrics, but she wasn't new to it at this point either. Still, it seemed like Fuckin' Dudes be Fuckin' Sleepin' was shaping up to be her best so far. All she needed to do really was shape up the ending, because right now she kind of just let her scream fade out into the roaring guitar.

But the crowd likes it well enough, so she was content to let the ending ride for now. She carried her mic and stand down and over to the band's table a few seats away from the stage. Someone else would be going up in a few minutes, so they needed to clear their stuff off so they could set up. Everyone exchanged high fives as they all sat down, gear pushed aside to make room for them all. Conversation was quick, but didn't last long before the next band came on.

Pearl watched with rapt attention, adoring every second of the music she got to hear. She wasn't sure how long passed before someone handed her a plastic cup with some beer in it. Pearl took it gladly, only hesitating a little before throwing it back. She was still warming up to the flavor, needing to take a few seconds to make sure she didn't send it right back up, but soon after she started to enjoy the buzz as her bandmates laughed and cheered.

There was one more band after this next one. At least, the was pretty sure. It didn't really matter in the end, since she was going to end up crashing in a motel with the rest of the band anyway. All that mattered right now was celebrating a successful show and not thinking about tomorrow.

March 9th, 2014

Meeting room inside Houzuki Co HQ

How many more times am I going to let him hook me into these stupid things? I can fucking stand it in here.

"I appreciate your cooperation Mr. Finkner, apologies for such short notice." Father smoothly greeted as he lead the older octoling towards the table.

"Its no bother Mr. Houzuki," the octoling spoke, his nasally voice grating strongly against Pearl's remaining patience.Just, shut up and sit back here for an hour. That'll get him off my ass for a few days.

"Well, we thank you anyway. It's best to keep a positive outlook on these things." Father chuckled as he sat down. It was hard to miss the punitive glance he sent towards her over his shoulder. "Now, onto the business."

Oh fuck this. Pearl shot up from her chair in the back of the room, her heel slamming on the ground in a distinctly unprofessional way. Fuck this and Fuck you. She gave her father a death glare, before wordlessly stomping out the door. She didn't stop moving, plowing past anyone in the hallways, stairways, or elevator until she was finally marching out of the front of the building and onto the streets.

The fucking GALL to give ME a side eye in the middle of that shit. I was there to shut him up, and he has the FUCKING GALL to shade me! She was nearly dead to the world as she shouldered anyone out of her way. Fucking prick taking any chance he gets to try and shame me back into being a good little girl for him. FUCK THAT! NEVER AGAIN! The crowd around her grew thicker as a copious amount of people suddenly sopped moving to stand around. Not Pearl. No shot I ever spend a damn second in another room like that ag--

"It's Inkopolis News time!"

Pearl stopped dead in her tracks. An almost sickly warmth spread down her body, making her skin feel clammy as sweat beaded on her forehead. That voice... she knew that voice. Pearl wheeled around, looking desperately for the source.

"Let's unveil the current regular battle stages!" A voice she didn't recognize shouted.

"The day's regular battle stages are Arowana Mall, and Kelp Dome!"

“I saw chips growing there the other day! I think...”

“I'm pretty sure that was just a dream, Callie.”

Callie... No, there's no way, right? Pearl slowly turned around and looked up, staggering for a moment as her head throbbed. There, on the screen, was Marie. She was older, and behaved almost anthemically to the girl she knew, but the golden eyes, lime green ink, tentacle swoop, it was all there. That was the friend Pearl hadn't seen in seven years. On the screen. Hosting the fucking news.

She's...? Multiple things raced through her mind. She was happy to see her friend doing well, incredibly well even. She was shocked to see her hosting the news, Marie never seemed like the kind to go in front of crowds either. Deeper than that though, a part of her was almost revolted to see her old friend doing so well. Marie was younger than Pearl, yet there she was with her life in order, and everything working out for her.

Pearl's dizziness returned in force. What the hell is even happening anymore? She wanted to stay where she was, to keep watching, but her body demanded her entire attention, so Pearl found herself shuffling to a side alley to spill her guts.

"Oi, watch were yer hurlin' mate. Some of us are tryin' to work down 'ere."

"Shut the hell up." Pearl snapped back. She looked over the arm she was bracing herself on the side of a building with. A lanky sea urchin with a massive head of spines glared up at her. He wore a bizarre poncho, a slew of bracelets, and Pearl didn't care enough to recognize anything else. Without waiting for him to say anything else, Pearl pushed herself off the wall and started walking further down the alleyway. The urchin guy started to say something else, but Pearl dropped a handful of bills on the ground as she trudged past. She didn't know how much she dropped, nor did she care.

She needed to get... somewhere. Not here. Pearl didn't know where she was going to go, but it needed to be dark so her head would stop fucking hurting so much.

August 30, 2014

The Koi Pond, a bar in the depths of Inkopolis' residential district

She stumbled her way up to the bar, where a stern spider crab worked behind the counter mixing several different drinks at once. "Another!"

The bartender paused all his mixings specifically to give her a warning look. Pearl rolled her eyes and lazily pulled out 10000g and slapped it onto the counter. He averted his gaze, and returned mixing drinks. About a minute later, a three fresh shots of cranberry vodka were set on the counter in front of her. She grabs one and slams it instantly, savoring the burn and the buzz that soon followed. With a graceless flourish, she scooped the remaining two shots into her hands, and made her way back into the crowd.

She staggered her way around the outskirts of the club, until she made it to a loveseat. Pearl [flagrantly] dropped onto the seat, causing the other girl on it to squeak in surprise. She was an inkling, a bit taller than Pearl, with shoulder length tentacles tied up in a bow, and a cute little face with a perpetual frown. Pearl didn't even know her name.

"Here ya go, just like I promised." Pearl held out one shot glass to her, which she slowly took.

The girl hesitated for a moment, looking Pearl up and down, before finally relenting with a smile. "Thanks." She says, while holding the glass out for a toast.

"To a great night!" Pearl cried as she sloppily tapped her glass against the girl's, before they both took their shot. They both relax back into the seat with a content sigh. The girl's hand finds its way to Pearl's thigh a few moments later.

Pearl lazily raised an arm, feigning a yawn as she laid her arm along the girl's shoulders. When she looks over, the girl meets her gaze, an inviting look in her eyes. And then her memory went fuzzy after that.

April 13th, 2015

the Sea Leaf Cafe in downtown Inkopolis

That was how Pearl found herself walking through the streets of downtown, trying to pass the time. She'd been out here for at least a few hours, stomping her way up and down the street, trying to find any kind of relief or reprise from the world.

Unfortunately, that proved a lot harder than she wanted. No store could hold her attention for more than a handful of minutes, and any attractions or spaces only reinforced just how isolated she felt. That left her walking into a small cafe nearly twenty minutes out of downtown, to rest her legs after her hours of walking.

"Welcome to the Sea Leaf cafe!" The server behind the counter chipperly called to her.

Pearl froze, caught completely off guard. All the cafes she'd been to before were quiet, formal places where you'd be sat by a server and then left to conduct business. She was not prepared for the open design of this place, nor to have a server yelling at her from across the building.

The server, seemingly unfazed by Pearl standing in the doorway for 30 seconds, just smiled and said "Just let me know whenever you're ready to order."

"Uh..." Pearl's eyes scanned the room, until they finally landed on the space above the counter. A massive chalkboard spanned the length of the wall, with an extensive hand-written menu on it. Small sandwiches, soups, and a few pastries, took up about a third of the menu, while coffee took up the rest. Expresso? Cappuccino? Full city roast? What does any of this mean?

"If you're not sure what to have, we have a daily special that's an absolute treat if you like chocolate." The server, called, knocking Pearl out of her thoughts.

"Um... sure!" Pearl answered without thinking.

"Great! Do you want a pastry to go with that? We've got croissants, muffins, and--" the girl pauses, glancing at the case-- "well, I guess that's all we have right now. You interested?"

"Um... no." Pearl's brain finally kicked back into gear, and she hastily slapped a "Thank you!" right at the end.

"Alright! That'll be one double fudge chocolate mocha, one shot of expresso, bringing your cost tooooo... 3000g even!" The server smiled, her short orange tentacles bouncing as her head moved.

Pearl hesitantly offered her card.

The server hesitated for a moment, before hopping in place as her eyebrows raised. "Right! Just a moment!" She ducked under the counter, and a few moments later, stood back up with a card processor. "Here we go! Sorry about that, we mostly get turfers in here, and you know how they always have cash in hand."

Things were kind of awkwardly quiet as Pearl scanned her card. The machine eventually beeped, showing a green light for an accepted transaction.

"Would you like your receipt?"

"...No."

"Alright!" The server violently snatched the white strip of paper the moment it spat out of the machine, balled it up, and dropped it presumably into a trash can. "You just take a seat, and I'll bring it out to you when it's done."

Pearl wordlessly walked from the counter, picking a random table to sit herself at. Small relief flooded her system immediately as she took the weight off her feet. What am I even doing? She thought as she propped her head in her hands. *Walking into random stores to kill time, rather than showing my face down there again...

Cod. I didn't even mean to blow the speakers! I just got too into the moment again and I--

Her thoughts were interrupted by the lights suddenly flickering, before they shut off completely, the windows providing the only light inside. "What the?" She asked, before the lights suddenly flicked on again, though it was obvious they were dimmer than before.

A quick look out the front window revealed that, while the power was back on, the light up display across the street wasn't. That's odd. the power isn't supposed to drop tiers like that unless a Great Zapfish is off the gird. I don't remember any... eh. The exhaustion of the day quickly caught back up with her as the small excitement faded.

"Hhaaa..." She let out a deep sigh while massaging her face with the palms of her hands. *What am I going to do? No chance in hell I'm wandering around downtown again tomorrow, so I guess I'm gonna have to show my face and own the damage... again. Please cod just let someone else need a voca--"

"Here you go!" The energetic voice jolted Pearl from her thoughts. The server stood at the edge of her table, with a large chocolate drink in hand.

"Thanks--" Pear squinted at the girl's nametag-- "Nora."

"No problem!" Nora smiled. "Sorry about the wait, that power flash messed up the machines a bit."

"No worries." Pearl assured.

"Enjoy!" And with that Nora wandered off, leaving Pearl only with her thoughts... and a double fudge chocolate mocha.

November 3rd, 2015

Buckly Station

She knew it was coming. Pearl had known this was coming for days at this point. She saw how they whispered amongst themselves when they thought she couldn't hear. The way they looked at her, with a reluctant pity in their eyes. She'd fucked it all up. Again.

Despite this, she still walked ahead of the group with her usual bounce and swagger. It didn't do her any good to capitulate before they said anything. Besides, maybe they'll pussy out and not abandon me like everyone else has.

"Pearl," Karla, the band's bassist, quietly called to her.

Fuck. Pearl spun on the spot, using the easy motion to hide the way her body flinched at the call. She gave the group an easy, almost disinterested smile. "Wha'sup?" It wasn't hard to get a read on the situation. Karla, despite the shell covering her face, had obvious nervousness throughout her body.

Their drummer, Ryu Chang was similarly wrought with nerves, the large koi carp was nearly doubled over in hesitation. "We need to make... a decision. As a group."

"What're talkin about then?" Pearl inspected her fingertips, glancing overtop of them at the poor carp. "we got another show conflict coming up?"

Ryu Chang floundered under her gaze. "Well... we've all been talking, uh..."

Ronnie, the band's guitarist sighed and stepped forward. "We need to part was." The largehead hairtail was the only one of the three who didn't seem nervous, more annoyed. "This won't work for much longer, and it'd be easier on all of us if we just stop it now."

It felt like the world was spinning. The space behind her eyes burned, and her legs wanted nothing more to give out from under her. But Pearl didn't let that happen. "Ha, just like that then? No apology? No thank you? Just gonna throw me to the side then like a piece of trash then."

"Pearl, no. That's not—"

"Save it Ronnie." Pearl flatly stopped him, the humor gone from her voice. She put it back in a moment later, laying on just how much she didn't care. "If that's what yall want, I'll fuck right off them!" Without waiting for a response, Pearl turned and started stomping away. She made sure her back was straight, and her pace unbothered. "You'll regret this, you know! You're fucked without me! I'm the best damn thing that ever happened to this shit band!"

They called out to her again, but Pearl didn't stop. She stormed her way right up the stairs out of the metro station and onto the street. Now away from the gazes of her ban— former bandmates— tears threatened to spill from her eyes unabated. Again, she didn't let it happen. She'd been dumped far to many times to let it affect her anymore, so she'd make sure everyone knew that.

Through the streets she wound, nearly shoving anyone in front of her out of her way, until finally she slammed her way through the front door of the Koi Pond. The irony of the name was not lost on her. She was early enough that the night scene hadn't really started yet, so the space was still thankfully quiet. She threw herself right up to the bar, thankful that Agatha was the one behind the counter today. She didn't ask questions, and hadn't needed a bribe to serve Pearl before she was old enough. When it came Pearl's turn to order, she pointed straight at the largest bottle of Mitchy Mick's whisky she could see, and gave the bartender a look so hard that she was handed the entire bottle a moment later. Without hesitation, she knocked the cork out with one hand while slapping her card onto the counter with the other. This place may be shady, but they wouldn't dare fuck with the credit card of a Houzuki.

With an unceremonious sigh, she brought her amber escape to her lips before she could feel the guilt of swinging her last name around again. The familiar burn struck her an instant later, but she didn't so much as flinch at the sensation. A third of the bottle vanished in a single chug before she slammed it back onto the counter, her head already starting to swim. In the back of her mind, that annoying, incessant part of her mind was asking questions like 'How are you going to get home?' and 'Is a pounding hangover really the thing I should be giving myself right now?'

Truthfully, she didn't care. That was the part of her that was raised to be a stuck up piece of shit people pleaser. She didn't get anything by listening to it, especially during times like now, when everything was coming apart.

In her pocket, her phone buzzed.

Somehow, each notification managed to hurt her in a different way. The family meeting would invariably draw comparisons between her bother's return and her departure. The mere thought of the future made her head spin worse than the alcohol.

The birthday one was something she'd set up years ago, when there was still something to look forward to when growing up. She'd meant to delete it but it always slipped her mind. It stood out as its own omen about the future, almost mocking her for once having things to look forward to.

The show time especially hurt. It was where she and her band-- her former band-- were performing next. At least, until she got fucking curbed again.

When the feelings threatened to overtake her again, she grabbed the bottle off the counter and took another deep swig. Those complex emotions and thoughts sizzled away under the scorching burn of whisky, and she couldn't be more grateful. The stress and anxiety were still there, really Pearl doubted she'd know life without them again, but the were dulled, and shoved to the back of her mind for now.

That meant she could focus on more pressing matters, like getting to tomorrow without passing out in an alleyway.