The soft, musical tinkle of windchimes mingled with the distant crash of the ocean’s waves. Starfish, mermaid figurines, and a curious variety of shells displayed in a shop window glimmered in the light as the late morning sun filtered into it. Whimsical paintings of mermaids lined a wall as they leapt and twirled and swam. The fantastical paintings gave more the impression of enchanted windows than of paintings. The mermaids in them seemed to wave at the customers or, at any moment, leap out of the picture and into the shop, so vivid they looked. A middle-aged woman with long hair that rippled down her back bustled within as she straightened up the shop, organizing inventory before it opened for the day.

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At that moment, however, the locked shop door mysteriously swung open. The middle-aged woman turned around, her pink sundress swishing around her. A slender, white cat with long limbs greeted her at the doorway.

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“Goodness, Celeste! You make your presence known as discreetly as the merfolk!”

The strange, white cat’s pale blue bow at her neck rustled, and her white sailor hat bobbed as she looked up at the shop owner with a capable air, her serious, yellow eyes staring keenly into the woman’s. “We’ve come to aid the one for whom you have sought help.”

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The middle-aged woman’s eyes sparkled with merriment in a rare, childlike way as she gave a low chuckle. “...Oh! ‘We’?!”

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Celeste, confused by the shop owner’s amused expression, followed her gaze and noticed a little, aqua-green colored jellyfish creature rummaging through a collection of glittery seashells, starfish, and other pretty, oceanic items.

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“Oh! Celeste!! This shop sells seashells coated with sparkly 

Pearl Essence Powder! I didn’t think any store in the human world carried these!!”

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Celeste, angered and embarrassed, tried to peel her partner away from the array of products. “Stella!! This is the fifth shop you’ve been distracted by! Would you focus on our mission?!”

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“Aw, you’re no fun! I don’t always get a chance to shop inland! And the land people here are so surprisingly creative, I can’t help but be curious about everything they sell!”

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Celeste struggled to regain her composure and turned to the shop owner again. “Anyway…!” The white cat looked up at the woman with earnest, glowing eyes. “Please! We need the items you put on hold for us right away!”

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“Of course!” The middle-aged woman walked toward a room in the back of the store, her long, wavy hair flowing behind her. When she returned, she bent down in front of Celeste and Stella and opened her clenched hand, revealing a sparkly, pink, shell-shaped compact and a matching pendant. “Here’s your order!” She winked meaningfully.

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The two magical creatures stared at the shell-shaped compact and the 

matching, shell-shaped pendant in awe. Lustrous pearls inlaid on the front of the compact gleamed in shades of coral-pink, aqua-blue, and the lavender of a coastal, twilit sky. The pendant’s enamel-looking front shimmered with flecks of gold like grains of sand.

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“Wow! They’re so stylish! I just love a matching set!”

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“Stella, these aren’t for you!” Celeste rolled her eyes at Stella, then took the compact in her mouth. After bowing her head in thanks to the shop owner, she swiftly ran out of the store and disappeared.

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Stella’s eyes brightened as she hastily snatched the shell pendant and put it on. “Oohh, thanks for letting me wear the Seashimmer Pendant, Celeste!” The magical jellyfish said as she struggled to keep up with her companion. The woman looked on for a moment, then cheerfully opened up her store for the day.