Princess Callie

Chapter 27: Callie and Marie

I could hear barely audible voices in the distance. The world around me was pitch black. I couldn't feel my body. Am I dead? Did Marie have me killed? Is this some kind of after life? Slowly but surely I started regaining my senses. It was like one reality replacing another.

I found myself tied to a support column in the middle of a lit up room. I must be in the cabin I saw earlier. I noticed I was alone, Marie and what I presume to be Agent 4 were outside. At least this was good news. If Marie was here she'd probably start torturing me or worse. My heart was racing at the thought of what Marie might do to me. I tried to take some deep breaths, now wasn't the time to panic. Then I heard the door slide open.

Marie came in first. Upon seeing her I instinctively began struggling. Using whatever strength I had, I tried to break out of the ropes.

She noticed my fear and immediately rushed to me. She placed her hands on my shoulders and stopped me from struggling further. "It's alright Callie. You're safe now." She came face to face with me and I could see the concern in her eyes. Not at all like what I expected. I thought she would gloat.

Something felt off. "Where are my shades?" I felt naked going out without them.

"Destroyed." Marie answered.

"What?!" I screeched.

"Callie. They were brainwashing you!" Marie replied her voice growing more desperate.

I summoned whatever strength I had left and thrashed against the ropes one last time. However the ropes held firm. Out of options I hung my head and began to cry. "I want to go home." I cried. Octavio would never know what happened to me. I wished I stayed in bed.

Marie hugged me. "Callie. It's alright. I'm not going to hurt you. You don't have to be afraid."

I tried to wiggle out of her embrace. "Why do you care? After everything you did to me?"

"What do you mean? What did I do to you?" Marie asked. Was she for real?

"You know what you did. You used to beat me. When you were bored of me, you and gramps threw me out on the street. You said you never wanted to see me again and hoped I would die out there." I answered.

Marie had a look of horror on her face. "None of that's real. The Octarians brainwashed you. Please you have to remember the truth." Marie begged.

I closed my eyes and prepared myself. "Don't pretend to care about me. If you're going to kill me. Just get it over with." I whimpered.

Now it was Marie's turn to cry. "Please Callie. What would it take for you to come home?" Marie sobbed.

I noticed someone come up behind her and place his hand on her shoulder. It was a yellow inkling boy. He was wearing an agent outfit. This must be Agent 4. "Maybe it's time to change tactics. We should take her someplace else. That might trigger some memories." Agent 4 suggested.

"Where would we even go?" Marie asked.

"You said you lived in an apartment with Callie. That's one place." Agent 4 answered.

"Good idea. Let's go there." Marie livened up.

"I guess I'll come with you." Agent 4 said.

"Agent 4 aren't you supposed to work a Grizzco shift soon?" Marie reminded him.

"Well I really need the money but I think maybe I should come with you." Agent 4 replied.

"That won't be necessary. We'll meet back here in a few hours. Good luck." Marie waved goodbye. She wasn't in the mood to negotiate.

"Wait! Are you going to be okay by yourself? She almost killed you last night!" Agent 4 exclaimed.

"Yes, I'll be fine. Now go. You wouldn't want to be late." Marie shooed him away. Agent 4 left through the sewer grate without another word. Once he was gone, Marie started to untie me.

"So... you live in an apartment now?" I asked.

"We live in an apartment. We've been living together since we left Calamari County." Marie corrected me.

I still had many questions. Why did she hate me so much in the first place? Why does she trust me not to run away? Why didn't she torture me when she had the chance? It's not like she ever held back before. I thought about asking her but decided it was better to trust time to reveal the truth.

Marie's voice broke me out of my thought. "No offense Callie but you might attract the wrong kind of attention with that outfit." Marie said while rummaging through a small closet.

I looked at the door. It would be so easy to make a run for it. Yet Marie hadn't tortured me like I thought she would. In fact she had been acting completely out of character ever since I saw her. She seemed more caring than anything. I really wanted to see this through if nothing more than to satisfy my curiosity.

Marie pulled out some strange yet oddly familiar looking pink outfit and placed it on a nearby table. "Perfect. These are your clothes. Do you remember them? Try them on." Marie started changing her clothes as well.

I stared at them for a bit. They certainly looked familiar. I quickly changed out of my performing outfit and put on this strange outfit. It was perfect for my size too. Then I noticed Marie had a similar outfit of her own. It wasn't an exact copy but the most notable difference was the fact that it was green instead of pink. Since when did we have matching outfits? "Alright Marie. Are we ready to go?"

"One last thing. Does this remind you of anything?" Marie then struck a pose.

I responded by striking a similar pose causing Marie to smile. Why did I feel the need to do that? "Hmm... not really." I answered.

Marie smile immediately turned into a frown. "It was worth a try. Let's get going."

I followed Marie out the door and noticed it was dusk outside. How long was I out? I followed her through the sewer grate and entered some kind of square. Marie immediately grabbed my arm and pulled me away. "Come on Callie, we have to go quickly." She said. She led me away from the nearby inklings and we ducked into a nearby alleyway.

"What was that all about? Why did you pull me away like that?" I asked.

"We're famous here. We might get mobbed if they see you. Don't you remember that at least?" Marie answered.

"No I don't." I replied.

Marie looked disappointed. "Let's just go. The apartment is not too far away."

Marie and I used the alley ways as cover whenever anyone looked like they might notice us. During that time I had the opportunity to reflect on the night before and the circumstances leading up to it. Pretty soon I was lost in thought. I realized I didn't remember anything that happened this week. It's as if I had skipped a week of my life. My decision to go to Inkopolis also felt more like someone had guided me there rather than a decision I consciously made. Not only that I have never gotten angry enough to attack someone unprovoked. It's as if someone forced me try to kill Marie. Ever since she took my shades away, I felt like I was in full control over my own actions. All of this raised one question in my mind. Was there something wrong with my shades?

While Marie and I were walking I felt a pair of hands grab me from behind and violently pull me away. Another set of hands held a rag at my mouth and nose, preventing me from screaming.

"Callmmrph mrrrg!" Marie tried to call out. I noticed she was trying to fight off her own set of attackers. After a few seconds Marie ended up falling unconscious first. I tried to hold my breath and stay awake for as long as possible but eventually I had to give in. I fell asleep shortly after.