In which our friends find the Shiva Linxan and Another Very Odd Shop

"So." Freya stared at Alex, sipping her third expresso that morning. (Interesting side effects include: excessive energy, excessive annoyingness, raised volume of speech- caffeine was amazing. Humans were amazing.) "I think this is stupid."

"I agree. Which part?"

"You agree but you don't-" Freya muffled her laugh with her hand- it really wasn't that funny. A smile tugged at Alex's lips. "I mean, going on this whole- side quest, if you will, is just stupid and pointless. We don't need a cat to help us make an ethical decision-"

The cat growled.

"-Especially a big-headed one. We're just wasting time."

"Okay, first off, I think you hurt his feelings-" Alex said over the cat's yowl. "Second, I agree. Wasting time on Earth is stupid, and we need to get back home before we're in too much trouble."

"But we need to help the humans! There are more cases of COVID-19 by the day! Around three different countries have shut down! We are the only ones capable of stopping this-"

"Slow down there, Freya. Humans will move on. They always do. Nothing we could throw at them holds them back- don't you, of all people (a figure of speech) think that humans are amazing and whatnot? Someone that won't move past this is Easton."

"I disagree."

"I know."

Freya sighed. "And this is where the cat comes in. Look, we've only been missing for a couple of hours. It can't be that bad."

Alex raised an eyebrow. "It is that bad. I promise you."

"Look, how about this," Freya said, suddenly inspired. "You were right that we shouldn't have gone to Earth, giving you moral points or whatever."

"Thank you."

"Buuuut, I have noble intentions, which gives me ethical points."

"Are you saying we're in the...same boat here?"

"I love human analogies..so fascinating...but no," Freya turned back to reality. "I'm totally right. It was just a thought."

The cat rolled their eyes.

"How long will take to find the-the what's it," Freya ventured after a long pause of heavy silence.

"You mean the Shiva Linxan? Probably an hour or so. That being around a forth of a gewel," she added, referring to the Dopomolian's unit of measurement.

"I know my gewels-to-hours," Freya almost snapped. She took a deep breath. "Sorry. So, I think we should continue finding the...."

"Shiva Linxan," Alex supplied.

"Yeah, that. It's not ideal that you don't see you're wrong, but we'll make do, as the humans say."

"You just love being on Earth, don't you," Alex said, eyeing Freya as she gazed, wide-eyed, around the coffee shop.

"This is basically a humanologist's dream. And I've been studying humanology for three hundred years, twice as long as anyone else in my class. On purpose."

"I suppose."

Freya frowned. "Don't you love Earth? It's literally your job."

"Yeah," Alex went quiet. "I know."

Freya did not know where she just went, but she suspected it wasn't anywhere good.

"Come on. We have a, um-" Freya looked helplessly over to Alex.

"Crystal tonic," a small smile graced Alex's face.

"A crystal tonic to find!"

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Freya was finding she quite disliked crystal shops. The air was heavily perfumed, the space was crowded with tables and rocks, and the only light was of the glow of a 'crystal salt lamp'. Why one would make light out of salt, Freya had no idea.

"Mreow," the cat said flatly.

"Oh really," Freya whispered back.

"Hello?" Alex called. "Er- ma'am?"

"Allow me," Freya stepped in front of Alex. "EXCUSE ME, I REQUIRE ASSISTANCE. AND I VERY MUCH, CERTAINLY EXPECT TO BE PURCHASING FROM THIS -er- LOVELY SHOP." Freya turned to Alex, who whispered: "What the hell?"

"Now you say, 'it's so cute and quaint.'"

Alex sighed. "It's so cute and quaint," she said, with all the excitement of a child getting vaccinations.

"Why, thank you!" a poof of white lace clothing appeared in front of them. Rather, a short, rather exuberant white woman dressed in white, with crystal after crystal on her neck, stood in front of them. "What can I do for you-" her eyes lingered on Alex's piercings- "lovely young ladies today?"

"We need a crystal tonic of Shiva Linxan," Alex said.

"Oh! Are you sure, dear...." a flush appeared of the woman's cheek.

"You feel embarrassed," Freya guessed. "Or upset?"

"Shut up," Alex hissed through gritted teeth. Louder, she said: "Yes, we're sure."

"Meow," the cat said emphatically.

"Well.....I'll be right back!" the woman dashed off.

"She called us young ladies," Freya said proudly.

"Of which we are neither."

"We're being mistaken for locals! This is a huge first step, according to Unraveling the Human Race."

"First off, no one- no one- in New York wears a coat like that 'out and about'. It's the clothing of human scientists. Second, you read that book?"

"- It was required for training! Plus, it's also a beloved classic."

"Third, did you notice how weird that lady was?"

"Yeah," Freya shook her head, "anyone who works here has to be, as the humans say, 'off their rocker'."

"No, I mean her reaction to the Shiva Linxan. It was weird."

"Oh...then no, I didn't."

"You folks looking for Shiva Linxan?" a voice rang out.

"Middle-aged, male, coming from that direction," Freya whispered to Alex.

Alex rolled her eyes and followed the voice. "Yeah."

"You better be careful with that," the owner of the voice said. As Freya predicted he was a rudy, middle aged man, sitting behind the cashier. Freya noticed a beer was in his hand, but his eyes were focused and clear. Odd. "Very dangerous, that one is."

"Why?"

The man lowered his head. "They say it's a witch's potion. They say it makes cats talk and toads sing." The cat leapt onto the counter from the floor, not helping the man's impression of them. "They say," he looked straight back up at them. "They say if a drop touches you- nasty, nasty things will happen. Only the bravest- or most stupid, if you ask me- dare to handle it."

"Well," Alex said cooly. "Thanks for the advice."

"Here you go!" the woman bustled out of what seemed like nowhere. She handed Alex a vial shaped package, who passed it to Freya. "That will be one sliver. And, dears- do come back to be when you're done. Trust me, it's for your own good."

~*~*~*~*~*~

"Alright, that was an extremely odd encounter," Freya hissed as they walked down the sidewalk. "She wanted a sliver pound? And you paid for it? Like, you just had a hunk of valuable human metal on you? And what does she mean, "it's for your own good?"

"I told you," Alex muttered darkly. "Bad things happen to Dopomolians who overstay their welcome."

"Oh," Freya said softly, once again suspecting more was at foot then she knew about. Although this response was not at all helpful in any other way. "Well-what do we do now?"

"Now?" Alex turned back to her, a wicked grin on her face. The darkness was gone. "Now, we see what this baby can do."