Hi, it's me, Shadow Madeleine number thirty-six, back again to hit you up with the big news. I'm stuck on a raft.

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Yeah, that's it. I'm stuck on a raft, floating in the middle of the Endless Sea. How did I end up here? Well, I was kind of curious what would happen if a shadow tried to board a ship. Turns out they'll let you on. Usually, you have to buy a ticket and show some form of identification, but as a shadow, I'm technically considered a monster, and apparently, those laws don't apply to monsters, so the crew of the ship just let me on. 

The kicker, however, is that we got super unlucky. First, it turns out whatever magic circle thing they use to navigate the seas was sabotaged, then a storm steers us into a different direction, then out of nowhere came a giant squid which destroyed the entire ship aside from this single raft, which I just so happened to land on, alongside three others. Since I can't talk to them nor listen to them (The latter is a choice), I guess I'll just tell you about them.

The first is the captain and the reason we haven't gotten killed by the giant squid after it crushed the ship. You should've seen him in action. He went wham, and the squid went bleh, then he went sham-a-wham, and the squid went blah-bleh, then one thing and another, and now the squid is in a humanoid form and hugging the captain's arm.

The second is the squid that's now a human. Actually, technically a beastman… beastfolk… beastfellow? Physical Madeleine isn't one to be consistent with terms, which carries over to us clones, I guess. This raft only had three people on it (If you consider me a person), with the squid being a late addition. I think the squid likes being beaten into submission. What the fuck did I just think? On to the next person.

The last person is in the middle of this raft in a fetal position, shaking and crying. Considering how shaken up she is, I'm surprised she even made it on the raft. She's been like this the whole time, in fact. Ever since I saw her board this boat. She was being carried by her father while kicking and screaming. A very funny sight, I have to say… although someone should calm her down. I looked at the captain, who seemed too preoccupied with the giant squid turned obsessive hugger. Welp, guess I'll go poke her or something.

I walked over to her, squatted down and started poking her hips. She didn't show any reaction to this, but eventually, her sobbing was replaced with laughter. "Stop it, stop it! I'm not crying anymore! Enough, I give!" I stopped poking her, and she rolled over to face me. "Thanks for that, I guess."

Satisfied with my work, I stood up and turned to go back to my comfy corner of the raft when I felt a hand grab my leg. I didn't even know I could be grabbed. "Can… Can you stick by me?" She looks at me with tear-filled eyes. Huh… so this is what the others meant by 'It turns out good-looking women are the weakness of us shadow clones'. "I'd like someone to vent to. Is that fine?"

I sat down next to her and gestured to her to talk on and on. Not like I have anything better to do right now, considering we're floating in the middle of nowhere on a singular raft, and the only other action going on is whatever the squid thing is trying to pull on the captain, which I do not want to watch. "I'm taking that as a yes." She pulled herself up and then stared at the raft. "I was forced to go on this stupid trip, you know. My dad really wanted to go on a cruise, which I hated since I'd rather stay home, and plus, who knows what could go wrong! Turns out everything could go wrong! The navigation goes wonky, we get hit by a storm, a giant squid fucks the ship, I get separated from my dad, I end up on a raft with the annoying captain, the squid who caused this shit, and a random shadow that no one knows what her deal is, and you know what's the worst thing?!" She turned to me, making eye contact with me.

"I have motherfucking hydrophobia!" Oh damn, that does suck.

Hi, it's me, Madeleine here. I'm currently on a date, and I know I said earlier that I'm able to ignore, but it's really hard to ignore one of these Side Note screens when its Sacred Power is called 'Nail Biter'. Fortunately, I held back the temptation, swiping it away before I could further read it. Speaking of those Side Note screens, for some reason, a bunch are popping up while on this date. Man, where do you have to be to bump into someone who has 'Genius War Tactician'?

"Madeleine, I know you're bored waiting for the food, but you don't have to ramble to the voices in your head. I'm here, you know."

"I know, I know. Can I finish up, though?"

"Fine." Mel rolled her eyes.

Good. Time to finish off my thoughts… I forgot what I was going to think about. Oh well. "Mel, you look beautiful."

"And you're cute, Madeleine. We've already established this."

"Oh… you come here often?"

"We're still in the mansion. The mansion we live in. We literally eat in this room together daily."

"Oh yeah… uh…."

"Madeleine, can I just cut to the chase? I want to talk about our relationship from this point forward, especially since sister and Myka are busy in the kitchen. I don't want any more eyes and ears to observe us."

"Something serious, huh."

"Yes, something serious."

"Umm… I'll try."

"Good." She looked at me with a serious look. Damn, we really are being serious right now. I slapped my cheeks, trying to go serious mode, when Mel spoke up again. "Although, give it thirty seconds."

"What? Why?"

"Leave Merida and some others on a cliffhanger, obviously."

"Makes sense."

Character profile: Doris Marine

Sacred profile: Hydrokinesis

Favourite fish: Flounder

Description: The hydrophobic holder of Hydrokinesis. Doris always considered herself a bit unlucky due to the constant stream of irony she's hit with in her life. Her mother was a former pirate, yet she loathed ships. Her father was a retired general of a navy fleet, yet she loathed the sea. Her hometown was Coast City, which was famed for its beautiful beaches, yet she loathed beaches. It was discovered she was blessed by the Goddess of Water Andu, yet she loathed the water. It felt like the universe was against her, giving her things that would be blessings for literally anyone else that wasn't her. She would soon end up in a situation that would either make or break her. I wonder how she'll fare?

Chapter namesake: The Raft by Fat Freddy's Drop

pojlk

I've just remembered the slow romance tag exists. Maybe I'll add it at some point, give or take two months.