Putz12 Plus One

TWENTY SEVEN | FOUND IN TRANSLATION

Her eyes were tricking her. Or it was the bad guys from the castle, maybe they were capable of shapeshifting. She squinted and looked closely. Before she could accuse her of being a liar, a deceiver, faces, faces she knew and some she didn't, popped up everywhere. Of course, instead of being welcomed, they had scowled. Her face turned red and she froze.

What, is her ex here or something? He thought, scouring the place with his eyes. Yeesh. Most octolings were so... ugly. What gave her the genetic jackpot?

"Hey, I thought we got rid of that girl. Why is she here?"

She pleaded with her eyes to be forgiven, and Pheobe shut them up with the raise of her hand.

"You never left. But there were guards."

"If we left, they would have caught on. We were quiet for days. It was horrible."

"And smelly." Marcus admitted.

"Well, you guys better be grateful for her." He could only think of DUDE, and how he didn't belong with the in crowd of Inkopolis. "Because of her, mostly ME, we lead the guards to a different direction. We--"

"Hey," Said one of the heretics from before. "There's bio blood on the girl's neck." 

The crowd gasped and Pheobe shrugged. Condri, who had just chugged down some SquidSoda, came marching in the room, stern as ever. "Leave." His voice, theatrical and fierce, hit her the wrong way. "Else you want trouble--"

"Condri--" Pheobe pleaded.

"We had a deal." He enforced. "Why did you even let these hooligans in here?! You were to be on guard."

Her heart sank and the idea of leaving suddenly wasn't so bad. The words she said. How she'd find her. But she didn't do jack squat. And she was only left with the shred of her parents' memories, and could only imagine what they would do if she were gone. But it wasn't time to ask her now, the rumbling came back stronger, and she noticed they all had their bags packed.

"Someone here's a whistleblower, I say." Said a stout kid with a broken tooth in the front. "How else would she know to show up on the day we get ready to leave?"

"Relax. It was a coincidence, Porky."

'Porky' was quite offended, rushing up to fight him, but was too short. Iza laughed even though she shouldn't have. Inkling Boy, something about the way you have no regard for assholes, bottom-of-the-barrel bullies puts a smile on my face.

As Condri's eyes weighed down on her, the smile faded. Marcus came up, eyeing Putz, then Iza. And somehow Putz knew just what those looks meant, and walked even closer to her.

"Anyone notice how the blood on her neck is fresh?"

"Demon!" Shouted Condri, more fearful and loud than ever. "Back! Your kind isn't welcome here! Murderer! Murderer! Murderer!"

The chanting of  'murderer' lead them both into a corner now, and Pheobe yelled, risking her place in the sector, holding her little sister's hand with remaining strength. "Enough! This is my sister, she is no murderer."

"She killed the guard at 316, she had to have!" Shouted a girl. The crowed yelled, fierce for justice.

"Wait, hold up. Aren't the guards against you?!" The crowed went silent. "So why would it be wrong to--"

"Going out of our way!" The same girl said, standing tall and proud, almost as if she were reciting it. "To kill is wrong! We took a vow to only kill in self-defense! We are not like them! We are not like The Order!"