Whitestar Shopping

## WhiteStar Mall: The Group Splits, 8AM UTC, 11/28/2018

It took the group a few streets to realize they had made it to the WhiteStar Mall. Turns out it wasn't a single building, but a whole sector of the station; shops upon shops upon shops, organized in no way immediately obvious. Racks of weapons stand next to boxes of toys and tanks of creatures, with no particular explanation on whether they're food, pets or customers (maybe their equivalent of a seating area?).

The shops themselves are as eclectic. Some scream for attention like their lives depend on it, others are wedged in between pillars, easy to miss unless your eye happens to catch on one of their strange curios.

They stop beneath a big sign, some sort of map meant to assist customers in finding what they want. Above, large holographic letters shifting between twelve different languages reads **"WELCOME TO WHITESTAR MALL".**

"Do you think they'll have a cinnabon in here?" Parrot asks, holding a large empty bag.

"I don't know what cinnabon is, but I imagine they would! I have never seen a market this large. The ones in Avalon usually just have cheeses, or the occasional jackalope hide. Mundane things! This place, though..." Elle gets much closer to Parrot's helmet and whispers. "I saw a whole building back there dedicated to what I can only assume are houses for mice!"

"I would like to get something for GAIA, as well as Lady Rhiannon. I feel kind of bad for abandoning her as easily as I did, even if I had no idea this trip would be quite what it ended up being."

Parrot excitedly bounces on the balls of her feet as she listens and nods.

"This place is astonishing," Gwen says, "it's kind of overwhelming. At least they have proper directions with signs and such. I'd like to get some souvenirs and gifts too. I owe Rhiannon something good for sure, and I want to get something nice for Olivia. Maybe we'll find some other things suitable for the rest, too. Oh! And data for SPEAR--so they can't chastise us for forgetting about the mission or whatever."

"I've got a bit of a list of people to get things for as well." A clipboard is slipped from under Parrots jacket "I'm not sure how much time we should allocate to this- though we do have three days"

"Ohhh, you got a list, huh?" Gwen remarks coyly.

"No. I have... an assortment of... a category of people to- I'm going to split off now, let's meet back at lunch?"

Elle has been trying to catch a glimpse of the list, not realizing it was meant to be private. "Oh! Uh, yes! Where?"

"That seems like a good idea. How about over there?" Gwen points at a central building of the mall that towers over the surroundings. The ground floor looks to have some sort of cafe, and by the signs flashing all around the upper floors there appears to be some kind of pet store above it.

Parrot wastes no time in casing the variety of wares each store has. Through a long process of weaving her way through the mall, taking pictures, asking around with mixed success, and checking out both the people and storefronts she surfaces with a mixed bag of treasures and checked off categorical report.

A small pink ‘Earing of Encouragement’ that periodically whispers nice things to the person wearing it, a bit wonky as its alien compliments are translated to Earth English. For Challenge.

The Encyclopedia of Creatures: A Complete Visual, Auditory, and Sensory Guide. The book is thick as a tomb, covered in soot, and contains information on entities from Dryax to Alcmete and more. For Wild Thang.

A High tech Sector Planetarium. Switches allow the user to feel like they're seeing the stars from any one of the several planets included in the little cubic holo-projector machine. For Lavender.

A shapeshifting mask. The illusions won't be quite as good as the wearer can make them but it temporarily gives the user a face (and nothing else) mask of one of 250 alien species. For Freedo (to use irresponsibly- please.)

She struggles to find personal items for a good amount of the team. Bouncing from one store to another and back. Purple Leosic (plastic like substance) flowers that smell like mint cheese and spin in waves for Rhiannon, sparkling texturized blue crystals for Spectre, a gelatinous encased Claw for Squire, and the *Galaxies Best Blorp* cup for Crisp. She briefly considers the dinosaur bone for Bestiary but thinks better of it, opting for a Russian doll like set of alien tech capsules.

Settling eventually on getting an array of rocks and preserved plants for SPEAR as well as multiple copies of the discographies of Brightney Stars (a popular artist on Whitestar station) for herself.

With a satisfied smile and full bag she realizes she has an hour left until lunch, which she will need to get herself unlost and back to the agreed meeting spot.

After a moment or two spent standing around feeling abandoned, having assumed they'd go shopping together rather than separately, Elle wanders around the enormous mall. She spends ten minutes in the mouse-house shop, picking up a collapsible house around the right size for Trevor. She then spends another thirty minutes chatting up the salesperson, an alien resembling several snakes wearing a fancy robe, and leaves the store a Trevor-house and space-phone number richer.

Most of the hours are spent this way. She visits every shop that catches her eye, and talks to every alien that does as well. In one store, a huge hall full of pillars of blinking lights and electronic sounds, she gets a disk of alien antivirus software for GAIA, the shopkeeper (a sentient shade of lavender on the wall - Elle tells him he's the prettiest lavender she's ever seen) having told her it's like a 'nice luxurious self-care bath' for AIs. In another, a dusty tower with floating stairs, she grabs a book on Thean Magic for Rhiannon, as well as a science textbook (from the kids' section) for Bestiary.

She spends a full hour at a food court, mingling with a group of tourists from Leus, and buying some of them what she assumes is a type of donut, before impulse buying some of what she assumes are functional laser pistols at a corner stand for Sherman and Squire.

Finally, she makes her way back to the cafe Gwen pointed out, only to get distracted by something across the street...

Gwen clocks herself to make sure she doesn't spend too much time in any one place, but it's incredibly tempting to linger. Around every corner and every bend there's more to see, hear and smell than her senses can handle all at once. She runs her hands over many an alien object that seems safe enough to touch and doesn't even bother to resist the urge to glimpse into the past of everything. After having been the end and the beginning of the universe on three separate occasions, her inhibitions about seeing more, feeling more, BEING more of everything, have waned like wax in the neutron star sun. She finds more than she could've bargained for.

A hoodie that inflates into a big, cushy safety jacket when the wearer accelerates too fast for Freedo. "So he can land softly after a yeet."

A potted giant four-leaf clover that cascades with iridescence at the slightest touch for Rhiannon. "Of course you'd find some super extra luck of the Irish in space, and I gotta make up for losing the keychain."

A black box that, when tapped, unfurls into a black, blue and pink metallic rose that gives off a scent reminiscent of cake and bubble tea and glows in the dark, for Olivia. "I feel good about this. It's pretty, it's cool and it makes you feel better. It's perfect!"

As lunchtime approaches, she realizes there's still so much to do, so much to see, so much to trade for. She quickly gets Hesperus a jar of moon dust, an extremely spiky star-shaped half-face mask for Lavender that she assumes is some kind of glasses, and a towel for DomDom that has a constellation pattern on it that the store owner swears includes Sol (which Gwen verifies in her own way). On her way out she grabs a bag of complementary food bits in colors she hasn't ever seen on Earth. "Must be some kinda space trail mix. Perfect for Crispy."

And she rushes to the cafe.

## WhiteStar Mall: The Group Reunites, 12AM UTC, 11/28/2018

On the other side of the street, a vaguely-humanoid pile of shopping bags produces Elle’s voice. She’s excitedly talking to an alien resembling a middle aged human woman with four eyes, one of which orbits her head. The alien pushes a few more bags into Elle’s hands before waving her off with a handkerchief as she slowly approaches the cafe, trying to balance the bags.

Parrot, having grabbed a holo-map of the Mall and tediously found herself back where she should be, watches in appreciation as her Avalonian friend lifts the plethora of bags.

"Um, are you okay, Elle?" Gwen calls out as she walks up next to Parrot, wearing a box-shaped backpack. All the stuff she bought can be found inside of it, as if the box-backpack is larger on the inside, going thrice as deep as one might expect it to.

Elle plops down the bags on a spare chair as she sits down next to Parrot. "Hi, yes! Oof, it feels good to put all that down. Did you two find everything you wanted?" Her face is a bit flushed, but there is a smile on her face. She quickly wipes away something on one cheek that leaves behind a vague green smear.

"Indeed." Parrot unfolds a towelette from her pocket and hands it to Elle "It seems you found that and more" she says with a smirk in her voice, as she unpacks the bags. "You, Gwen?"

The squire starts reaching into various bags and putting things on the table. She puts a bottle of Premium Helmet Wax in front of Parrot (Guaranteed to remove even the toughest Vormax Scourge stains!) and a figurine of a black-dressed knight with a glowing red sword in front of Gwen.

"I found some stuff I wanted, yeah," Gwen responds to Parrot. Her eyes go wide when she sees what Elle is putting down in front of her. "WHAT! That looks amazing! What is this? Oh my god... This is beautiful." Then she sees what Elle puts down in front of Parrot and her joyful expression of wonder falls. She's silent for a moment, then gets an idea.

"Wait here, I'll be right back!" She jumps up, leaving the box-pack behind as she runs off.

Parrot gently wraps the wax bottle and seats it next to herself. She unlatches her helmet and seats it in her lap, watching Gwen go. "She... might still feel guilty" a gesture towards Elle "Sorry if you feel awkward. This is very nice."

Elle looks puzzled. "I... Oh. I admit I missed most of your... fight. I was distracted. Was it related to helmets somehow?"
She looks over a holographic menu that appears on the table, then picks something. A few moments later, a hotdog appears.

"N-No it uh." She flushes for a moment thinking. "It wasn't really about something- or it was but. I mean not." She starts tapping a bit nervously on the top of the helmet as she pushes it further under the table. "I wanted to ask you a question actually."
Elle smiles widely at Parrot over her hotdog. "Yes? What would you like to know?"

She receives a smile back briefly but it falters as a serious look settles itself across Alex's face.

"I've been a little confused lately, or probably misunderstanding." The tap tap tap gets slower as she works herself up to speak. "I had thought you were upset- or I knew you were with all the baking and the looks you had- but I thought it was with us or nervousness about the fight."
A breath. "But me n' Gwen are okay and we're well prepared for battle... And you had this... look about you. Like you had seen a ghost. When you came back to us in the wizards tower."

Elle grows quiet, smile freezing. She puts down the hotdog and looks down. "Uh, well. Haha. You know how I went into the spirit world of Thea? And... Arcturus told me I looked familiar? And he had a spear that looked like mine?"

Alex exhales a bit. "Mhm." she orders an Everything Ramen. Wasting no time in indulging.

Elle takes a deep breath, and continues. "And I'm kind of Gwendolyn's father? The one in hell?"

Mouth full of inky black noodles she immediately chokes. Beating against her chest for a moment she rasps out "Hell?"

Elle nods, eyes wide. "That’s how it was explained to me. Like, hell, but a prison. I assumed you knew."

"OH-Oh." She clears her throat. "Okay. Right yes I knew he was in jail yeah."

"Well, the village in Thea's spirit realm had a mural of him fighting Horrid, with my - or his, I guess? this is confusing - spear, and losing. Arcturus told me he was there about ten years ago. That's... eleven years in my future."

"I see..." Alex's mouth screws up to one side in consideration. "Is that scaring you?"

Elle looks into the distance for a second, as if considering what to say. The next words sound hollow, like they're not what she really thinks. "I suppose. It's weird to think that something like that is in my future. It feels..." She inhales sharply, and the lines that follow have more emotion behind it. "It feels like an impending doom, like something I can't avoid. I know what has to happen and I know it will be bad, but I can't not do it, because I have as good as promised. It feels like I only have a short time to live, and even that short time is hard to enjoy when I spend every moment of it thinking of what's coming, what I have to do soon. It feels like there is no after. When I try and look forward into the distant future, I encounter it looming and blocking my sight, like a gigantic foreboding wall. When I try and look into the near future, like... Thinking of what to do tomorrow, I see it still, looming in the background. I can't ignore it." Tears form in the corners of her eyes, and she wipes them quickly as if to hide them.

Alex's face crumples as she talks. A wave of sympathy overtaking her she leans in to hug her. Faltering a bit she reconsiders and places a hand on her arm.

"I'm so sorry you've been dealing with this by yourself." And steels her face into a look of resolve. "You don't have to though. I-I don't know quite how... this works or what is... part of it but I. Look I want to help."

Her hand slides off her as she steadies herself to turn fully towards her. "I don't know how but I will. I refuse to believe you're... doomed forever or- Or destined to kiss a gigantic foreboding wall or something. What can we do?"

"I don't know that you can help. I don't really know how this works either! I wasn't given any instructions, or even a word of advice, I was just flung into Halcyon like a chick being thrown off the tree to either learn to fly or die on the rocks.

It... helps to talk about it, though." She smiles weakly, and puts a hand on Parrot's. "This isn't something I feel like I can talk about with Gwendolyn. She has enough to worry about, and I sense that she tries not to think about who or what I am. I don't want to complicate her family or her life."

Alex smiles at her for a moment... she takes in a few breaths flips her hand over and kneads- thinking...

"You don't- You don't deserve this whole-." Her jaw clicks as it shifts as she tries to work through the issue. "The universe is a bitch for pushing you to trace his footsteps and you don't deserve that. You don't have to. I'll square up with fate or whatever, me and Gwen both- she doesn't even have to know what she's fighting with if it’s for you. And everybody else who cares about you on Earth too, they would." A huff as she realizes she’s ranting. "I'm sorry I'm getting a little heated I just. This sucks… I won't tell Gwen if you don't want me to- though she might want to know if you're in trouble."

"I would prefer you don't tell her."

"Thank you, Parrot. You've been a great friend to me for this entire trip. I hope I can call you a friend? You did save my life. For my part, I am sorry I was not there during your fight with Gwen."

Her face softens a bit as she spins back towards her food. "I would prefer colleague but you could call me whatever you'd like. Within reason." A joking tone. "And hey- I've got your back. I know you have mine." She starts edging her helmet back towards herself. "Thanks for uh... telling me. All that. I know it's hard to."

"Honestly, I didn't think I was going to. I don't know why I did. I suppose I felt... safe? To tell you? Either way, uh..."

"Is Parrot a normal Earth name? I had been considering getting a new pet and I'd like to name it something appropriate"

Alex struggles to hold down a smile as she bumps a shoulder against Elle. "It's a bird." She moves to slip her helmet back on but pauses "You can call me Alex... Pets names can really be anything though."

A short while later, Gwen comes jogging back to the cafe. She stops and leans on the table, out of breath. Wisps of blue and purple smoke are rising from her left arm, trailing behind her.

"Here!" She says, thrusting out a roll of what looks to be duct tape, offering no explanation about the smoke. "I wanted to say I'm sorry about your helmet, Parrot! I wanted to get this for you to make up for it and fix it. The store owner told me it works wonders."

Parrot sighs with a smile and pulls her helmet back off "Thank you... why is your arm smoking Cap'n" she asks as she tries to tape it up.

"Part of the trade, don't w--Parrot," Gwen's voice suddenly pitches up and she looks quickly at Elle, "a-are you sure about taking your helmet off here?"

Alex shrugs a bit - hunched over her helmet. Her tongues out in concentration and she seems to be ignoring her for the most part but red creeps up her neck as she puts the tape into place.

A 3D hologram pops out of it with some alien hieroglyphs that keep changing as if its adjusting the language, until settling on asking Parrot to select “COLOUR” and “TRANSPARENCY”. She does so, selecting red, and the hologram sinks into the tape, which then dissolves and leaks into the cracks of the helmet, mending it perfectly. The only remaining sign it was ever broken is the red-coloured traces of the cracks across the surface of the helmet.

"There is nobody around to recognise her, I think!” Elle says, looking back at Gwen, “We are not on Earth, after all, and I have already seen her face very up close."

Gwen leans in towards Parrot and her voice becomes a conspiratorial whisper. "Did you two canoodle after all?"

Alex's slowly looks up at Gwen with a deadpan "I did not fuck your dad.”

"Sorry, just--you didn't want me calling you, y'know, in front of her before, so... I'm sorry," Gwen leans back and kind of looks away, ashamed for asking.

Alex snorts a little at the awkwardness. But grins at her newly fixed gear. “Thank you, Gwen. This… is really important to me. It’s kinda’ a loaner too so.” She coughs to cover up some emotion. Sensing the sudden tension she packs both things up. "Uh.. do you wanna eat right quick so we can get the real party started?" As she points at the pet shop above them.

Elle grabs the way out of this situation as quickly as she can. "Yes! Yes I would like to visit the animal store, so you should eat! I can recommend the warm dog, though the stringy thing Alex had looked very good as well."

"Oh, uh... I'm not hungry. I'll just grab something for later." Gwen looks over the holographic menu and looks undecided for a few long moments, before she slowly reaches out for one of the options. A few seconds later, a tiny quiche appears with something glowing and purple leaking out. It smells like teen spirit.

## Bipet, Quadrupet, all Pet's Emporium, 1:30PM UTC, 11/28/2018

The upper floor of the cafe hosts a pet store the size of an apartment building. It provides an interesting contrast; where the rest of the mall is a disjointed and unorganised labyrinth, the pet store is clean, well-organised, and well-labeled, and hosts a large amount of uniformed aliens caring for the various animals.

The group starts around a big central tank filled with some sort of greenish water. Inside the tank, a school of creatures appear to be jellyfish one moment, then phase out and back into existence as some sort of crab, then a fish, then a cuttlefish, etc.
A sign next to the tank reads "Name: Something? Origin: Somewhere. Instructions For Care: Do your best"

Alex quietly frowns at the label. "Perhaps we need a shop keep to guide us to the... care-able critters." She gestures towards the shop keeps.

"That's a good idea!" Elle picks one, a crystalline creature with four arms currently in the process of stacking some boxes of spacecat food, and waves them over. The crystalline creature - their name tag says Jane - nods and gestures to follow, before starting what appears to be a tour of their recommended pet-species.

Gwen, smoke-free, looks around at all the areas and well-delineated and structured passages leading further up and to other rooms. To their left, she notices a smaller passage with a curtain hanging half-open over a doorway. She thinks nothing of it at first and moves to join Elle and Alex at the jellyfishfishcuttlefish tank, when she hears a high-pitched noise that sounds in-between rattling and cooing. She stares curiously at the passageway. Remembering a line from a book her father once read to her when she was little, "heroes always seek out the darkest places to bring the light to", she begins to walk towards the doorway.

"I'll catch up with you two in a bit," she says.

Elle does not notice, distracted as she is petting several small snakes with butterfly wings flying around an artificial tree.

The shop is organized with terrariums that vary biome to unearthly biome. Each floor of the building seems uniquely specified to the planets the creatures came from.

Small boulder encrusted six legged creatures crunch crystals in their mouths on a floor decorated like a cavern. "Name: Xorn, Origin: Cave of Xafloth, Instructions for Care: Keep in dark damp home, give crystals to bite so they don't bite you."

"Oh! Ooohhh, we should get one of these!" Elle excitedly pats Alex's shoulder. "It would make a great gift for the mole people!"

"The- wh-." She shakes her head. "Can they afford to feed it?"

"They live in caves, I'm sure they can!"

The tenant waves a hand towards a wall, which a thin translucent alien walks out of. They hold a bubble in their hand and holds it to Elle. "Pick one." it clicks.

Elle smiles, picks up one of them - resembling a multicoloured geode - like it's a box of plushies and deposits it in the bubble.

On the second floor which resembled a dry forest they find and see little snake like, but furred, creatures flitting about. The beings have earth like (and alien) animal heads but are small and long. "Name: Tatzelwurm, Origin: Tatzel, Instructions for Care: Each is different. Get to know them!"

In the center of the room what could have been mistaken for a statue shifts, and sneezes (it sounds like a kazoo.) It's head crowned by horns, mushrooms, and butterflies. Its quadruped body layered with vegetation. "Name: Puer Viridis Bonus, Origin: It just showed up. Instructions for Care: Love."

Elle spends about twelve minutes’ oohing and aahing over a cat-headed tatzelwurm, but the wurm seems uninterested in her, and she walks away sadly.

Alex pats her on the back as they are directed upwards again.

While her father's past and fist-kissed friend were walking about in awe, Gwen skulked through the darkest part of the huge pet store. This room seemed smaller than the others and felt grimier, less taken-care-of, though the creatures within did not appear neglected at all. They were just thriving in a different environment from all the others. She walked up to a water tank that was backlit brightly, yet somehow didn't illuminate its surroundings.

Inside of the tank, in a bed of seaweed amidst small models of ruined buildings, lay a vaguely humanoid creature with large bulbous eyes, a be-tentacled face, webbed hands and feet, and vestigial wings that curled around its body protectively. "Name: Elder Godspawn, Origin: we daren't ask, Instructions for Care: create a cult to praise it and feed it with knowledge!"

On the opposite wall, there's a glass cage that rattles as Gwen walks past it. She presses her nose against the glass and peers through with squinted eyes. Something inside throws itself at her and she jumps back as the cage almost tips over, barely prevented by rattling chains holding it down. "Name: Phase Kitten, Origin: Sydowvon system, Instructions for Care: Requires etherean-proofing your home or it will phase away your possessions to play with."

Then, she hears the rattling and cooing again and turns to the far end of the room, where there's a wall with a lot of boxes, chests, bags and other containers that seem to be filled with food, judging by the smell. She walks closer and hears the sounds again, softer, but faster, as if urgent. Frightened. She squats down and slowly holds out a hand.

From inside of a bag, a small smooth snake-like head peers out. It opens its maw and on the sides of its head small spines vibrate as it rattles and coos at her uncertain. Gwen reaches inside her pocket and withdraws a small bag of trail mix. She deposits some pieces into her hand and reaches out again. The snakehead comes closer and snaps at a piece, consuming it. Then, another head appears, and another and another, each slightly differently colored. The bag sloughs off the creature, revealing the heads are attached to long necks that are attached to the same body. She gasps. "You're absolutely adorable," Gwen squeals softly, as the hydra snakelet snaps up the last few pieces of trail mix, opens four mouths at her, and coos without rattling.

A being phases through the nearest wall shifting towards Gwen, a bubble in hand.

Gwen looks up, completely un-phased by this sudden appearance--as if these sort of things are just normal now, out here in space--and her eyes shimmer as she tears up with joy. "Yes please." She says.

Shortly thereafter, Gwen comes walking out of a dark doorway several floors higher up, and appears behind Parrot and Elle. "Hey again!" She says with the expression of someone too happy to be concerned with the alien geometry and architecture of the building to allow for her sudden reappearance in a convenient location.

“Oh, welcome back, Gwendolyn.” Elle smiles at her friend’s reappearance, though she still looks sad over the tatzelwurm rejection.

The tenant gestures for them to follow them into a tube. They are sucked through a length of glass that leads through the aquatic floor and are greeted by various murky, neon, evanescent, and malleable figures. Smaller translucent fish like creatures trace their movements with precision. The Tenant considers the hatch which would allow them in but seems reluctant to allow the humans to fully explore this area and hurries them to the next. Groups of glowing eyes follow them as they are escorted further.

The next and last floor of the tour is a room decorated with a slimy grass like flooring. Small dens are holed into the walls and grey cylinders are scattered about which several people, smaller- perhaps children, are seated on as they ogle or interact with the creatures in the room. A large sign says "Touchable. Keep hands out of mouths!"

Elle plops down on a grey cylinder and interacts with some creatures, but her heart evidently isn’t in it.

A line of deer bird like hybrids with little horns hop past the girls in sync. "Peryton" whispers the tenant. "Popular." as they weave past Elle.

"I can imagine," Gwen mutters as she stares after the peryton. She looks at Elle. "Are you okay, Elle? Is something the matter?" She tries to be serious about this, but it's rather difficult after a fist-sized mushroominoid toddler plops down on her head from above. It's surprisingly light. It waves its stubby little arms at Elle with a big smile on its face.

“Yeah... I was really excited about all these animals, and I still am! They’re wonderful! Like, I don’t even know what this is on your head, but it’s very cute. It’s just that I don’t really know how to make them like me. Animals, I mean. I can make people like me very easily! Perhaps too easily. But animals...” she shakes her head. “I really wanted that Tatzelwurm, but it was just ignoring me, and that would not be a good life for a pet.”
“Even that mushroom boy would probably turn on me eventually.”

“Awww, don't say that!" Gwen picks the mushroom boy off her head and looks at it. It smiles its goofy big smiles and wiggles. She puts it down and it gives her ankle a hug before it waddles off.

"You've just got to find the right animal, like... not necessarily a specific species, but just one single animal or other creature that likes you." She puts a hand on Elle's knee. "Look, Elle," Gwen starts, and then stops. "You... hrm... in the fu-... wait. Okay. My father wasn't liked by all animals, sure, but there have been many that absolutely adored him. We had several dogs when I was little, and we had a cat in Halcyon, and he's had an amazing horse and a gorgeous falcon."

She pauses for a second, thinks, and leans back, lifting her hand. She casts a look at Parrot and gives a curious smile. "And... this one time, he brought home a gramlin."

A little purple alien with arms outstretched is watching in awe as a Colorful Winged creature climbs along her with its lengthy limbs. They are seated on a boulder, or what was a boulder. The alien is promptly knocked off as the rock shifts and four limbs coil out. "Ah... don't sit on the Elementals... please." The tenant says softly and shifts away from the group, leaving them alone.

Alex raised an eyebrow at Gwen trying to conceal a smile as she spins to look at something else.

“We did have gramlins back home, yes. One of them has actually been with the family since I was young, and tended to look over me like I was its own gramlet. I suppose that one did like me.

You are right. Maybe I just need some guidance on how to care for non-gramlins.”

The uniformed alien in the corner that was snoring with a furry four eyed, big eared, elephant baby sleeping snuggly on their flat head startles awake as a muffled sound comes from what can be assumed to be their earpiece (though it is in the middle of their face.)

Now holding the elephant like creature they, in a booming voice, say "Relinn there is a request down stairs. Returns."

The original tenant looks upset by this news and makes way for the stairs again, quickly apologizing to their tourists and making their way down the stairs.

"That's the spirit," Gwen softly punches Elle's shoulder, "you see? You can't keep a du Lac down. Too much good stuff in there. How about we just keep looking? I found things in pretty unusual places I didn't think to look at first, so..."

Parrot nods at Gwen's words. "I've no doubt you'll find something suitable." looking after the now absconded tour guide she says "We can always try another store."

“Yes! Let’s.”

The girls make their way back to the ground floor and come across a confrontation.
A large bulbous Alien, body twice the size of an earth’s sumo wrestler and skin buttery as it slips and slides along their surface, is frustratingly addressing the tenant. Suddenly it reaches a large arm up and unceremoniously into its mouth.

For a brief horrifying moment the tenant watches as they tug, elbow deep, at something. Until finally two bubbles pop out of their gargantuan form. Each holding soft looking inky balls with pairs of eyes and ears.

“Oh dear lord they’re adorable” Elle whispers at Alex.

"I- they were just inside a..." she pauses. “They’re so cute."

Now emptied the Alien shouts some choice words at the workers and slides out of the store. Leaving a wet floor and two bubbles, recognizable from the store, hovering where they fell. One softly mews while the other is still.

Elle rushes forward to scoop up the mewing bubble, examining it.

Gwen stands frozen, perplexed at the initial appearance of the inky balls of eyes and ears, horrified for a split second before their forms coalesce into mewing blobs and she mutters. "Are they... blobs... catblobs?"

Alex frowns as she puts on her gloves, picking up the other bubble coated in slime. "Cat blobs seems accurate though." Lifting it she watches as the small white thing scurries to reposition itself and little tentacles slide along the bubble. "Oh gosh."

Elle squeals and holds her black catblob close to Alex’s white one. “Do you think they’re siblings? We probably shouldn’t separate them if they are.”

The black blob stares with two dilated pupils at the person holding it but shifts to get closer to the other as the bubbles are brought side by side.

"I feel like my heart is going to melt right out of my chest right now." Alex looks at Gwen, then Elle. "Can we actually keep them? I mean I'll- I can have them at home sometimes and you can take them home sometimes."

“Yes! Yes that sounds wonderful I could convert a room into a catblob room I am sure Rhiannon will agree that is necessary. We could be co-parents!”

Gwen looks from Parrot, to Elle, to Parrot. She smiles warmly, then awkwardly. She already had to deal with Elle being technically her father--she hopes nobody would start joking she had catblob half-siblings and that Parrot was the mom, but... on second thought, she is pretty okay with that part.

"This looks like the start of a beautiful family," she remarks, only half sarcastically.

The Tenant warily watches this before piping up. "Are you certain? I am asked to give away as many of these creatures as possible but these are-" they seem to halt and then hurriedly say. "Great pets. Do have a good time with them."

Elle ignores the Tenant. “I will name mine... Blat? Short for blob cat? Catto... Nameles? Sir Blob. I could just go for the classic Gilbert, of course...”

Alex giggles as the two blobs try their best to play with each other through their barriers, flopping and rolling about the bubbles. "Um I- Gilbert sounds okay. I'm hm. Mines... uh..." she looks at Gwen and then up at the ceiling for a second. "Percival."

“Percival! Powerful but noble... then, this one is a Fleur. Percival and Fleur.”

Gwen's face falls and her face turns just the slightest bit paler. Her mouth hangs agape, her eyes are wide. Her arms fall slack and just barely hold on to the bubble she was cradling. Her knees are shaky. She looks as if her worlds been shattered--and in a way, it is. Without knowing, Elle and Alex have given their catblobs the same names as Gwen's younger siblings.

## **SPACE- EARTH CUSTOMS LIST**

**FOR S.P.E.A.R EYES ONLY**

The following is an itemized list of equipment, souvenirs, data and creatures procured by the Big Team Expedition and brought back to Sol.

**GWENDOLYN ‘CAPITAN’ DU LAC:**

* A box-shaped backpack of which the inside is three times as deep as its outside appearance would suggest.
* Auto-inflatable vest
* Potted giant iridescent four-leaf clover
* Black box containing a metallic rose, coloured black, blue and pink, pleasantly scented
* Jar labelled “moon dust”, moon unknown
* Alien sunglasses, spiky and star-shaped
* Towel with constellation pattern, alleged to include the Earth’s Sun in its pattern.
* Container of small pebble-like edibles. Gwendolyn called it “space trail mix”. Labeled as a gift for Cyclone.
* Bubble, material unknown, labeled ‘Rushmore’. Contents: small hydra-like creature. Snappy, but docile. Estimated danger level: like a trained dog.
* A mask resembling a partial, eyeless (alien?) skull. Labeled “Charade’s Mask”. Allegedly the source of her shapeshifting powers.
* A squeaky object resembling a dog toy. Changes shape and colour at every squeeze.
* A large sky blue instrument that resembles a guitar with two curved necks and twelve strings. Shoots bubbles when played. Labelled “for Rescue; love, the Girls”.

**ALEX ‘PARROT’ RAMIEREZ:**

* Earring of Encouragement
* Encyclopedia of Creatures: A Complete Visual, Auditory, and Sensory Guide
* ‘Sector Planetarium’, a high-tech device that allow the user to view stars from various planets.
* Shapeshifting mask of illusions; not to be confused with Charade’s Mask.
* Purple plastic? Flowers.
* Blue crystals, sparkling.
* A claw encased in gelatin.
* Mug, probably porcelain. Text says ‘Best Blorp in the Galaxy’
* Set of alien tech capsules. Fit into each other.
* Space Flex Tape
* Helmet Wax
* Bubble, material unknown, labeled ‘Percival’. Contents: Pure white creature resembling a blob with cat eyes and ears. Playful. Estimated danger level: It’s adorable.

**LANCELOT DU LAC?** ***(Legally does not exist. Please someone at Headquarters fix this ASAP, it’s causing all of us in Accounting major headaches)***

* Collapsible alien pethouse. Made of unidentifiable plastic-esque material. Lancelot claims it is for a ‘Trevor’.

* A large amount of multicoloured shopping bags of an unidentifiable material, all labeled on the inside as ‘responsibly sourced, certified safe for touch by 875 species, no stars harmed guaranteed’.

* Bubble, material unknown, containing a ‘Xorn’; Sextupedal animal resembling rock. Lancelot claims it is a present for the ‘mole people’. Estimated danger level: Unknown

* Bubble, material unknown, labeled ‘Fleur’. Contents: Inky black creature resembling a blob with cat eyes and ears. Playful. Estimated danger level: It’s adorable.
* “The Magic of Thea: An Introduction, Introspection, And Glossary”; a book about magic. Fiction? Labeled as present for ‘Lady Rhiannon’

* A golden chain, previously seen in use by the alien villain ‘Dredful’. Specs unknown.
* "Science: The Basics Anyone Can Understand”; a science textbook. Despite its name, abundance of pictures, and large text, the contents are highly advanced. Labeled as present for ‘Bestiary’
* Two flashy, dangerous-looking laser pistols, already labeled as presents for a ‘Sherman’ and ‘Squire’. Toys, and probably harmless.
* A cheap-looking folder of incomprehensible pictures entitled ‘The Dankest Whitestar Memes’

* Mug, probably porcelain. Text says ‘Best Glorp in the Galaxy’
* Mug, probably porcelain. Text says ‘No. 1 Zethrop’
* Mug, probably porcelain. Text says ‘For my favourite 1677CH-8”
* The file continues for several more pages, describing a lot of space junk.
* A large amount of pieces of paper or other similar materials, each covered in strings of numbers akin to phone numbers.

**Present on GAIA, but unclaimed by the above 3:**

* A flashy, deluxe box of alien antivirus software. Lancelot claims this was a present for GAIA, and is therefore their property.

* Approximately 23 boxes of uneaten cookies. There might be more, we have not checked all cupboards.

**Voluntarily handed to SPEAR:**

* Accounts on the Plastho, Risganja, Thea and Whitestar systems, with estimated population counts and threat levels.

* Star maps of the Plastho, Risganja, Thea and Whitestar systems and many systems connected to Whitestar Station.

* A 40-volume encyclopaedia with brief summaries of ten thousand different worlds, both in digital and book form
* An assortment of thrifted fossilized and or preserved biotic material, including: Plants, eggs, bones, bugs, and imprints.
* Bottles of abiotic material from planets ranging from Dryax to Leus.