Lee and Callie are out for a walk at his favorite park; walking through a shaded fitness trail veiled by trees.
CALLIE: So then Marie walks up to the guy, and she isn't too happy, and I'm just there trying to peel my banana. Let's just say that by the time we were done, Walleye Warehouse would look pretty empty by comparison.
LEE: If only people could be more patient
Just then, Callie spots a wishing well just off the path.
CALLIE: Ooo, Cutie look, a wishing well!
LEE: Ohh yeah, I forgot that was around here.
They approach it and look inside to find loads of coins in the crystal clear pool of water. Callie starts to think and she flashes a smile at Lee.
CALLIE: Hey Cutie.
LEE: Hmm?
CALLIE: Wanna know a secret?
LEE: Umm-- sure.
CALLIE: Promise not to tell?
LEE: Umm-- okay, I wont.
CALLIE: *starts to sing* But we're standing by a wishing well.
Lee gasps and smiles, realizing what she's trying to do.
LEE: *starts to sing with her* Heh-eh! Gonna make a wish into the well?
CALLIE: Yep, that's all you have to do.
LEE: And if you hear it echoing,
CALLIE: Your wish will come true!
LEE & CALLIE: I'm wishing
ECHO:(I'm wishing)
Callie fishes in her purse for a coin and throws it in
CALLIE:For the one... the one... ahh, there we go, For the one I love!
CALLIE: To find me
ECHO:(To find me)
CALLIE: Today
ECHO:(Today)
They both have a laugh, realizing how silly and childish that whole thing was.
CALLIE: Are you gonna make a wish to, Cutie?
LEE: Nah-- let's just say I got everything I want, ya know?
He glances down into the well water, his eyesight focused on Callie's reflection
funny thought for Wonder Inkling Jr. and Agent One
Together Junior and Agent One had worked together to conquer the villain of the week. As they mercifully allow him to raise to one knee he grumbles in accepted defeat, “Arrrgh, even just one of you Wonderful Ones packs enough of a wallop for 100. And your lady,” he turns to Agent One who is standing by with her Hero Roller, “I’d be lying if I said she wasn’t a total Knock Out, especially her beauty.”
The two heroes turn to look at each other only for Junior to reply, “To tell the truth, she had me knocked out from the very beginning; she’s what I fight for, my everything, and I’d do anything to protect her!”
Agent One gasped and clasped one hand over her heart, “Ohh Junior that’s so sweet.” She then let out a snicker and laughed as she tapped his arm with her fist, “But who are you kidding, you’re the one who always needs protecting.”
Shrugging his shoulders and smiling sheepishly, Junior admitted, “I know I know. Can’t a kid dream, you know, of being like one of his favorite super heroes,” he said with a wink to his partner.
Why Lee and Callie shouldn’t play Turf Wars together.
Another Turf War was under way, it was just like any other; a group of four Inklings against another but one team had a particular pair with a special relationship kept secret from the rest of the world.
The two teams took Inkling form at their home bases-- all eagerly awaiting the start of the match, but as the ever-present spectating camera focused on the team dubbed as The Good Guys, two stepped forward.
“Bad Guys listen, and listen up good,” Lee lowered his Splattershot Pro and pointed dramatically across the field. He had the strangest, most unnatural tone to his voice, and made the strangest movement of posing with a wide stance, one arm held out, and his weapon held close to his body. He spoke with valor and brevity like he was mimicking some sort of super hero, “The righteous will ink the most turf!”
Following him was Callie, disguising herself with sunglasses and a knit hat big enough to hide her tentacles, who twirled around with her back turned to the opposition, one leg folded up and holding her Splat Roller behind her back. “Those who splat without inking will be punished!” She spoke in the same exaggerated tone that Lee did.
They moved to change their poses; Callie lets her body weight fall to the side as she raises one leg up high but Lee catches her as he dramatically crouches on the ground with one of his hands firmly planted to support himself and her. “Justice will fall from the sky like an Ink Strike,” Lee delcared.
Callie added, “Goodness will scream at you like a Killer Wail”
They next hook their arms together and lean back to back. “We’ll come at you again and again like a Bomb Rush.”
Callie then spins Lee around and catches him in one hand as he holds out one arm and one leg in another bizarre pose. He shouts, “Think you can face The Great Inker Boy?”
“And The Great Inker Girl?”
Finishing off, they both stand tall and proud, weapons in hand, pointing dramatically, “Together we’ll save the day,” they said in unison.
Silence.
With the spectating camera focused on them the entire time both opposing sides saw the entire display and were equally at a loss for words.
The first reaction was by a member of Lee and Callie’s team who immediately pulled out his competition tablet, tapped the power button, and disconnected; poofing away from the battlefield.
Just before the starting whistle blew, a member of the enemy team stuttered, “That-- that just might be the dorkiest thing I’ve ever seen in my life.”
Lee and Callie on the other hand, they had nothing but pride as they spent hours choreographing that routine before coming to play
Lee and Callie, Have you two ever heard or been to the place called "The Home Depot"? It's a store that we human go there to pick some home-related products, since that's what store sells. So if two willing to go there, what items that you would like to buy?
Lee & Callie: ???
Lee: “I guess if they sold tools I could look for some new tools, I’m always using them for--”
Callie: “Ooo! Cutie, let’s go shopping for patio furniture!”
Lee: “What, but i don’t have a patio.”
Callie: “Neither do I but wouldn’t it be fun to go looking and imagine them in our own house?”
Lee: *face is flushed* “Uhh-- heh-eh, uhh-- our own house? E-e-yeah, that would be fun.”
Lee & Callie have a little fun before Callie has to go on an extended world tour-- but it might be a little more than Lee bargained for.
“Oh boy, oh boy, I can’t believe you’re in town for a whole week, Callie,” Lee clenched his fists and smiled from ear to ear with breathless excitement. “What do you wanna do first, ohh I’m so excited!” Callie had sprung it on him just moments ago that she was spending a whole week in Shee-Booyah. They were supposed to spend one day together, as they often did on her days off from work, but having her for a whole week made him positively giddy.
Callie on the other hand, didn’t share his excitement, in fact she seemed more reserved and quiet about the whole idea. “Yeah, I’m-- really excited to, Cutie.”
“Is something wrong,” he asked, getting a sense from her murmuring and faltering features.
She said, “Well you know we’ve got a Splatfest here next week, right?”
“Uh-huh”
“And I’m going on tour next week, right?”
“Of course,” he was well aware of that; an eight month worldwide tour to promote the Squid Sisters’s new album, one that he’s already listened to at least two dozen times.
She began to explain, “Well, the thing of it is, we’re pretty much going to be in and out of cities night after night without much of a break.” Lee was kind of clueless, mostly because he didn’t want to think about what that would mean until she spelled it out for him, “We’re barely gonna be able to see or talk to each other for eight whole months!”
Lee was about to open his mouth to respond when Callie threw her arms down and nearly screamed in frustration, “I hate these long tours! I can’t do anything; I can’t do water colors on tour! I can’t play Turf Wars on tour! And I can’t work out on tour!! Uggh,” she groaned, much to Lee’s dismay
“Umm Callie,” he stammered.
“What,” she answered, her agitation causing her to yell at him
In response, Lee sunk his head down between his shoulders and backed away on one foot, “I-- I promise I’m willing to do whatever you want when I’m not in school.”
Her mood immediately shifted to one of excited anticipation, “You will?! Ohh Cutie, I’m so glad,” she squeezed the life out of him with how hard she hugged him; making the blood rush to the surface of Lee’s face, and a goofy smile wrinkled his cheeks. He kept the same look as Callie pulled away and said, “This is gonna be great Cutie, just you and me for 5 days straight.”
“Yeah,” he replied dreamily, “You and me for 5 days.”
“Ohh, and these headbands,” she finished, producing a pair of Tennis Headbands from behind her back.
-----
Their first day had been a straight marathon of nonstop Turf Battles. It was dusk by the time they had finished.
“Woo, what a workout,” Lee declared. He had trouble keeping up with Callie; he always did with his friends but with her she was always one giant leap ahead of him. He clutched his lower back and said, “I’m gonna be feeling this tomorrow,” only for his upper body to collapse backward while his legs were still standing, “Ow.”
Callie removed bits of her disguise; her sunglasses, and the cap she wore to keep her tentacles hidden, “I gotta say Cutie, I’m impressed with your hustle, you’re really fun to play with.”
Still on the ground, Lee gave a satisfied smile and said, “You really think so? That’s great-- but I better get home before Mom and Mooky start to worry.” In a rather comedic fashion he walked back to his apartment, dragging the top-half of his body on the ground the entire way. He made it home and collapsed into bed, ready for a well deserved rest.
As soon as it felt like he fell asleep, the noise of his window opening and a voice made him jump, “HEEEEEY CUTIE!”
“AHHHHH,” he nearly hit the ceiling with how bad it scared him.
When he regained his wits and fumbled to put on his glasses, he looked to see Callie hanging out of his bedroom window. “What the-- what-- Callie-- what are you doing here? We’re like-- 20 stories up, and there’s no balcony out there!”
Callie gave a shrug, “Yeah, so,” he always seemed to forget that they were squids and that heights and such weren’t a problem for them. “I’m here to come get you, we’ve still got more games to play.”
He stuttered, “B-but what about sleeping? I got school in--,” he checked the time on his phone, “--In a few hours.”
“That’s plenty of time then,” Callie smiled, “Now come on,” she grabbed his wrist and pulled him out of the window, “I got something real fun for us to do!”
-----
Lee came to realize he didn’t know how in over his head he actually was when it came to Callie and her fun. Her games became increasingly more unusual and daring...
As the sun was coming up, the normally serene shoreline near Shee-Booyah was rocked by the screams of Lee who was being chased along the sand by a flock of seagulls. He ran and ran, weakly swatting at them while holding onto his head, “Nyeh, ehh, gyeh, AHHH, AHHH,” he screamed as they swarmed around him.
“Isn’t Seagull Starling fun, Cutie,” Callie asked as she punched one, then another out of the air.
He ground his teeth together as one pulled at his hair tentacle and said, “Yeah-- it’s great.”
-----
Later, they moved onto an activity, “Okay Cutie, were gonna wrestle,” Callie said, taking a fighting stance inside of a square they made in the ground out of ink.
Lee thought he would enjoy this so he excitedly declared, “Cool, I like wrestling!”
Callie started the match and she immediately tackled Lee to the ground; putting him in a submission hold where she rested her weight on his back. Lee gagged for breath and tapped his hand against hers
Like something out a cartoon, they spun around in a whirlwind, only to end up with Callie putting her weight on his back again and bending his leg, with Lee slamming his fists on the floor.
They spun around again and this time Lee was on top of Callie’s shoulders, with her bending him in such an unnatural position before throwing him down to the floor. “Come on Cutie, I thought you liked wrestling.”
“Ohh is it my turn now,” he wondered, dizzied by the impact from the hit.
-----
“Okay Cutie, this is gonna be fun,” Callie gave the rules of their new game at their next location. She and Lee both had Ink Brushes, “We just whack each other with these Ink Brushes until one of us falls off,”
Lee timidly held onto his and looked down as Callie counted down, “On your mark-- get set--.”
He interrupted, “Umm Callie, are you sure we’re supposed to be standing up here?”
“GO!”
She smacked him with the brush, knocking him clean off the tower at Booyah Base which they stood at the top of. As Lee fell from the dizzying heights, the Great Zap Fish watched his entire descent, and winced painfully as it saw his body splat against the ground. “Ouuuuch,” it said in response.
-----
They played more of her games until it was time for Lee to go to school, which felt like it lasted an eternity. Lee continuously nodded in and out of consciousness throughout the day. Even as he was leaving he dragged his body, sleeping while walking, only to be waken up by Callie shouting out to him, and taking him away for more of her fun.
Two days later Lee was reaching a breaking point; he had barely gotten any sleep the entire time, and his body was so sore that it was about ready to quit on him. Never before in his life could he recall being pushed to such extremes. It all came to a head when Callie arrived after school, “HEEEEY CUTIE,” she waved ans smiled happily to him while sitting on a tandem bicycle. “Get ready for today, we’re going on a tandem ride through the park!”
“Gee, that sounds good,” Lee smiled, “Where to?”
Callie answered, “Ohh, we’re going to the test fire park,” hearing that put such a look of horror on Lee’s face, “Yeah we’re gonna have to dodge killer wails, and people’s bomb rushes and ink strikes, doesn’t that sound crazy fun, Cutie?”
Lee didn’t answer, he was just frozen in dismay.
“Cutie? Cutie? Come on, we’ve only got two more days left to hang out!”
“CALLIE,” Lee yelled, drawing the attention of everyone in the school courtyard, “Please, we’ve got to stop!” He took in a deep breath and he fought back tears welling up in his eyes as he yelled and made a scene. “I CAN’T PLAY WITH YOU ANYMORE! THESE GAMES-- THEY’RE TEARING ME APART,” he illustrated what he meant by ripping off one of his hair tentacles and throwing it on the ground. He then dropped to his knees and cried at Callie’s feet, multiple people all looking at him but totally speechless over his behavior.
At the same time Callie looked down at him in a mixture of confusion and worry as he sobbed, “I’m sorry, I can’t do it, it’s all too much for me, I’m sorry-sorry Callie, if you wanna go spend your time off with someone else, I’ll understand.”
Pausing for a moment, Callie finally replied sweetly, “If that’s how you felt why didn’t you say something?”
“Huh,” Lee wondered, looking up at her from where he was on the ground.
“I thought we were having fun,” she said, dismounting the bike, “But if you’re not up to this stuff then that’s fine.”
Lee sniffed back a bead of liquid dribbling out of his nose as he was helped back up to his feet, “Really?”
She answered with a nod, “Yeah, I just wanted to spend time with you, Cutie.” That made his heart skip a beat. “Tell you what, we’ll have a rest day, what do you wanna do?”
His mouth curled as he gave it a thought, “Can we go get some ice cream, ya know, at the usual place?”
“Of course,” she said with the same big, sincere smile he always loved seeing on her, “But let’s take this bike since i rented it for the day.”
“Okay,” Lee said more enthusiastically, “These things are hard to pedal, my mom and I tried once and it took forever.”
Callie laughed as he got on and they started to ride, “Are you kidding me, try pedaling this thing on your own, my legs feel like they’re dying.”
“Your legs, you should see mine--,” their conversation continued all the way down to the ice cream store
Lee and Callie discuss “Build a Snowman vs. Build a Sandcastle”
Chat log recorded from the computer of Lee Daniel Squidly
Incoming call from PrivateCallie...
Call ended... MegaManta.LEEXE didn’t pick up
PrivateCallie: HAAAAAYY Cutie <3 <3 <3
MegaManta.LEEXE: hi callie.
PrivateCallie: what’s up, how come you didn’t pick up? i finally had some free time so we could talk. it’s been a week and i miss you <3
MegaManta.LEEXE: I’m sorry, but I don’t feel very good.
PrivateCallie: WHAT?! ;( tell me what’s wrong Cutie
MegaManta.LEEXE: I don’t think I should.
PrivateCallie: TELL ME TELL ME TELL ME TELL ME TELLME TELL ME :O
MegaManta.LEEXE: ....
MegaManta.LEEXE: It was this month’s Splatfest. after the news announcement the fan page on Squidbook just EXPLODED with all these comments, none of them good
PrivateCallie: People didn’t like it? Marie and I thought it was so funny! The best party was how Marie completely owned the reaction :D Nobody does them better than her.
MegaManta.LEEXE: Didn’t like is an understatement.
PrivateCallie: :( :( :(
PrivateCallie: Were they rude?
MegaManta.LEEXE: Let’s just say some of the things I read were not things a 14-year-old should be hearing.
MegaManta.LEEXE: AND THEY STILL KEEP COMING!
PrivateCallie: Maybe you should take a break Cutie if it’s making you feel so bad (:|
MegaManta.LEEXE: I just don’t get how people can be so rude, and mean, even on the internet. Even if it’s all jokes
MegaManta.LEEXE: I don’t even want to imagine what they’re like in real life.
PrivateCallie: Cutie I’m not bothered by what people say about me and you shouldn’t be either
MegaManta.LEEXE: I just can’t handle so much negativity all at once
PrivateCallie: you’re such a sensitive boy
MegaManta.LEEXE: I’m sorry I wish i was more of a man
PrivateCallie: NO NO NO YOU ARE A MAN
MegaManta.LEEXE: no i’m not.
PrivateCallie: YES YOU ARE!
PrivateCallie: Cutie, there’s always gonna be mean people who don’t care and don’t care how their words effect other people even if they’re not directly talking to them. I’m not gonna let anyone bother me, I am who I am, and I like who I am. But the fact that you care and you wouldn’t do things like that says so much about you and thats how I know I can always be myself around you <3 <3 <3
MegaManta.LEEXE: :D
PrivateCallie: So which team are you on Cutie?
MegaManta.LEEXE: I don't like sand. It's coarse and rough and irritating and it gets everywhere. Not like snow. Snow is soft and smooth.
Incoming call from PrivateCallie...
“Pffft HAHAHAHAHA,” Callie called, and this time Lee answered, and he was met with her slapping her knee and falling back on her hotel bed, laughing so hard. “Cutie, isn’t that a line from Sea Star Wars 2?”
“Yes,” Lee answered, slightly embarrassed that he remembered that scene in particular well enough to quote it and alter it slightly.
Between fits of giggles Callie finished, “We gotta get you on the show for next Splatfest, that was too funny.”
After his harrowing adventure in Octo Valley, Lee became friends with none other than his idol, Callie of the Squid Sisters-- who just happened to also be the girl he admires most and loves more than any other in the world. These are all the moments they’ve spent together, cultivating their relationship and letting it grow into something wonderful.
It was the end of the Squid Sisters’s Valentine’s Day Special Broadcast; everything was wrapped up and the cast and crew were leaving for the day. Callie had been left alone for the time; Marie shocked her by revealing she arranged a date for the evening She was, of course, ecstatic for her cousin; she didn’t date very often so finding someone, especially on today of all days, they must’ve been quite special to her. She didn’t even mind that she didn’t particularly have any plans herself; it was a long day, a long broadcast, a long week, and they had more to do tomorrow. It’ll be great to just go home and lay down, until later that is, she thought. She did have plans much later in the evening but for now, laying down in bed would be great.
She was just about to leave when something caught her eye, a trio of Grips were lounging about, with cookies. She did a double take; the shape of them, the chocolate shell, and the minty inside, they couldn’t be the same ones she was familiar with, could they? “Huh, hey, where did you get those cookies,” she asked?
With a half-munched one falling out of his mouth, one of the t.v. crewmen answered, “Some little green kid gave them and a card to me when I was on my break. I didn’t even know him, he just gave them to me, they’re good cookies.”
“Yeah they are,” the second Grip said, excitedly reaching for another.
Callie’s eyes went wide, little green kid? “Hey, was he about this tall,” she raised her hand up to just under her neck, “And did he have these big blue eyes?”
The third one confirmed for her, “Yeah, that sounds like the kid you were telling us about.”
She stiffened and became alert, and she said in a hurry, “Did you see where he went?”
The Grip holding the cookie box shrugged and said, “That was like an hour ago, I dunno where he is by now.”
Callie left without another word; a peculiar sense of excitement and intrigue overcoming her as she exited the studio out onto the city streets. All the while she kept thinking, THAT’S LEE, she practically screamed in her head.
She picked a random and started to walk, miraculously running into other people along the way with the same style of car, and even a cookie box ocassionally. The ones that hadn’t callously thrown the cards away pointed her in the direction of whom she was searching for; the gifts acting like some sort of bread crumb trail. She didn’t know why she wanted to find him so bad, she knew he was out handing cards and treats to whomever would accept them since he was just that kind of kid. She would be seeing him later tonight, they made a date to watch Squidtube videos together and listen to music but knowing he was close by… Callie wanted to see him.
So many cards, so many different directions, he was somehow really slow getting around the area but was super fast and elusive in just an hour. She was getting parched so she resolved to stop at an ice cream store on a street corner. As she entered, she stepped into a rather interesting conversation.
“Here you go Mr. Haddock, my mom baked them fresh this morning!”
“Well thank ya kindly, so when’s your mom gonna take me up on that offer to let me use her recipe for an ice cream topping?”
“Heh, probably never I’m afraid.”
“Ahh what are you gonna do, well, thanks again, the misses and little Wilson are gonna love them.”
Callie stood quietly the whole time, unable to believe the serendipity of this moment as one of them turned around, gasped, and nearly fell backwards he was so surprised.
“Aiye– I– eee– ahh, C-C-Callie, what–!” Lee was out of breath and utterly surprised to see her.
She was just as much, but she subdued it with a happy smile and a giggle, playing it off like she hadn’t spend nearly an hour looking for him. “Hee Hee, well hi Lee, fancy meeting you here.”
As he took in seeing her, the old store manager inquired, “Callie? Oh wow Lee, is this that girl you got a thing for that you’re always telling me about? Dang she’s even cuter than you said.”
Lee just bit his tongue and looked at the older squid behind the counter, but Callie just put her hand over her mouth to hide her smile. “You talk about me to other people? Lee if you’re not careful, people are gonna think we’re an item.” In response, Lee just looked down at the floor, twiddling his thumbs, and blood coming to the surface of the skin on his face.
Mr.Haddock snapped his fingers and a really excited grin about him as he said, “Hold that thought, this is something I’ve wanted to do forever,” and he began to meander about behind the counter.
Meanwhile, still embarrassed, Lee sat down at one of the stools lining the serving bar, and Callie joined him. “I–I– didn’t tell him or-or anybody about who you actually are and– and,”
Callie interrupted his nervous stammering with a shush, “Cutie, don’t worry about it, I know you wouldn’t spill our secret, and I’m just messing with you.” She trusted him completely and it really was quite cute the way he got so nervous and skiddish.
He was just about to strike up a conversation with her when out of nowhere a tall, spiral shaped glass filled with soda, hefty scoops of ice cream, and a number of toppings was placed directly between them. Mr Haddock explained to the bewildered Inklings, “Did you know in the 15 years I’ve owned this place I’ve never gotten to make an ice cream float for a cute couple? It’s a travesty I tell ya!” They examined it more closely; three scoops of ice cream in a sea of cola with sprinkles and crushed cookies in a pillow of whipped cream, chocolate sticks, and a cherry on top with two straws both pointed at them.
The elder seemed a tad too excited for something so simple but he said as he aimed the camera of his phone at them, “You two can have that for free if you let me take a picture?”
Both of them just looked at each other; Lee sinking his head between his shoulders, glancing between Callie and the float while Callie couldn’t hold how wide her smile was getting. “Well Cutie,” she started, “What do you say?”
He replied, “I– I– I would never say no to ice cream.”
Using that as an agreement, both Lee and Callie shared the treat together as per the shop owner’s request. He got his picture and with a satisfied smirk he left them to enjoy, “This one’s going up on the wall!” Neither one of them paid attention to him; they just looked at each other, trying not to giggle too much between sips at how random and old fashioned this scene felt.
“Say Callie,” Lee whispered.
“What is it Cutie,” she pinched her straw to stop soda from splashing out.
He chuckled, “Did you ever think we’d be doing this?”
“Hee hee, nope, if I did, I’d have got a poodle skirt and got my hair done,” Callie laughed, and so did he.
