Splatoon 2: Lost In The Dark

1- Two for One and Four for Three

Sweat inched down Katsu's neck as she hauled a duffel bag and roller to the train station entrance. Just as she reached the weapon check-in waypoint her phone rang. After handing the roller to a beleaguered crab manning the booth she answered.
"Kendra Antigone Katsu! The tournament updated it's final placings. Fourth place. Really?"

"Hello to you too, Mother" she grit her teeth.
"Honestly Kendra I expected more."
"I know."
"Were you up against some long-range fighters? It's not too late to squeeze in a special training regimen into your schedule--"

The crab coughed, "Excuse me, any more weapons to stow?"
Katsu furrowed her eyebrows, "No."
"Please step through the detector then you should be good to go"
One step later and an aggressive beeping filled the station. The crab sighed.
"I'm going to have to check your bags."

Reluctantly she handed him the duffel bag, and he fished out a pair of dualies among the wads of clothes.
"What do we have here?"
"Hmph, forgot about those."
The crab stared skeptically at her. Katsu glared right back.

"Fine, anything else you've forgotten?"
"No."
"Alrighty then, you can pick up your weapons at the waypoint in Inkopolis station," he gave a pained smile, "Have a fantastic day."

Wordlessly, Katsu passed through the gate and put the phone back on her ear. She frowned, her mother was still talking.
"If you drop that little first aid elective class your taking it'll leave plenty of room for some extra training. Thank goodness this was the last tournament of the summer season, I don't think your rankings could survive another match--"

"Mom, school starts tomorrow, it's too late for my schedule to be screwed with, okay."
"Ahh, right, speaking of school your brother--"
"Ahh, I got to go. My train is pulling in, bye" Katsu hung up before her mom could get another word in.

She boarded and slipped into a deserted seat, scowling deep enough to discourage any fellow passenger from sitting next to her. The train started to hurtle down the tracks to Inkopolis. Memories of the tournament rose unbidden in her mind.

It was a close match, if I had only been a little stronger, faster then perhaps my team could've won. Frustration welled in her stomach, but she shoved it aside and picked up her phone. There were no new notifications, but she clicked open the message app anyways and reread the last conversation.

Wednesday 4:07

@gentT1de: Just finished with supervising the incoming first years tryouts. They were so amazing XD! Let's sort them all into teams! :)

That's not how tryouts work
:@katsu1st&4most

@gentT1de: aww, but they were all great and better then we were in our first year!!

-_- :@katsu1st&4most

@gentT1de: I*
Anyways, plz?!?!? T^T

Fine.

You can try to get everyone on a team. Show me the list once I get back from Calamari County
:@katsu1st&4most

@gentT1de: thx! Good luck at your tournament!! XD

She turned off the phone, no longer scowling quite so hard, and looked out the window. Outside the countryside melted into a green blur. An issue of Turf World magazine lay in between the seats. Absent-mindedly she picked through it as the train inched ever closer to Inkopolis.

Hours later Katsu disembarked, reclaimed her weapons, and headed for an off-campus living apartment by the new Deca Tower shop and turf district. Despite it being almost midnight the square's screens were lit up with breaking news about some celebrity and the great zapfish gone missing. She frowned, Tide had enough on his plate what with starting his senior year at Inkopolis academy. Perhaps I should ask him if a surge in Octarian activity is happening? Unlocking her door, Katsu stepped inside her apartment. I'll ask him tomorrow.