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Algie had not been lying when he told Sunny he was going to go straight for Aleksy. Of course that involved a small google search because he wasn't completely sure who Aleksy was. The local small business listings were a good help and he aimed his car back in the right direction and pulled quietly up outside of the flower shop.

He ended up knocking first on the door, before truly registering that it was a business and he could just walk in. There was something ominous in the fog that crept slowly along the roads and seemed to be closing in around him.

"Hello?"

"Aleksy?" Algie adjusted his glasses and blinked at the lighting change from outside to in.

"My name is Algernon Mixlin." He approached the counter and held out his hand politely. Algie was very clearly English and by default seemed to be automatically associated with Jeremiah by anyone who knew the detective.

He seemed to pause, bottom lip caught in his teeth for a split second of thought before he just said it, "Sunny sent me to you."

He wasn't wrong. Algie really only carried standard stuff when it came to russian literature, the stuff everyone knew, but it wasn't exactly his area of expertise. It still made him huffy, "Well I can certainly order things in with properly placed requests... Maybe something not so gloomy.."

Another huff. Not why he was here.

"The b***h has sent my friend the detective and my ONLY current employee off to other ashdown." His hand withdrew and curled into a fist on the counter top. "And I know what Jeremiah saw. I know about his nightmares. I know what she told me about all of it-"

He still remembered the way she called it a cage that gave him a hollow worry in his gut.

"I need to do something. Help them get back. But she says I'm not ready-" A hand wave as if that were garbage, "She said you and Finn can go there at will. And that I would like you better," there was a snort of a laugh, "because you hate her."

All of this was so exasperating. It wasn't Aleksy in particular but it seemed like everyone connected to all this nonsense liked to be difficult and avoidant.

"I don't think Jeremiah was given much of a choice!" He didn't yell but his voice raised and his hand slapped to the counter with a rattle where he was clutching the police detective's car keys. Jeremiah's cell phone was produced in the other hand. "His car was in front of my house, unlocked and with the keys in the ignition and his cell phone on the floor. I've seen her disappearing act- I'm fairly positive he had little say in the matter. He'd never leave unprepared."

Algie's fist clenched again and his tense shoulder sagged again, "I apologize for raising my voice... but she's already had me swear away some vague responsibility and now I owe her a set of ******** books. I'm just looking for some bloody help."

"What?" Algie tilted his hand, looked at it and then looked back with a shake of the head. "Everything weird has happened to me in the last few days. Since those kids went and disappeared."

Algie hand slid to the edge of the counter, gripping a moment, as his eyes were drawn to the dangling keys. There was a honey badger keychain that had been a gag gift to Jeremiah several years ago and it caught his eye before he pulled his gaze back to Aleksy.

"Would you like a bulleted list? Starting with Sunny showing up in my shop and giving me a book bought from me by by one of the missing girls. And then the questionable deal that followed? Before she just POOFED of course." His hand then ran through his hair in agitation. He got very huffy and jumpy when he was upset.

"Then waking to Jeremiah's nightmares.. " He shook his head, "And the goddamn cat."

He gave a very nonplussed look suddenly and open palm gestured to Aleksy, "Which brought me here."

Algie noticed the tattoo, and typical of a write, realized he'd been working on a character that something similar would suit immensely.

"What?" Algie then leaned too, not seeing whatever Aleksy was.

"Please?" He was very good at polite pleading voice.

"Well I- I haven't seen it." He hadn't quite admitted it to Jeremiah but the part of him that wanted information, that want to be equally involved had been jealous. Even with the horrible nightmares and how shaken Jeremiah had been- he wanted to understand and relate. Not be left out.

But the term incubate sounded a foul.

"I got the impression the dreams were horrible... " But Aleksy made them sound inevitable, or at the least necessary.

Not terrifying? Why had Jeremiah had such a bad time? It was true he remembered the other having nightmares when they were younger but-

Didn't matter. This was about himself.

"I don't know anything about powers." Jeremiah never mentioned powers.

Algie's agitation seemed to have tempered with Aleksy's calm, "But I never have remembered my dreams since I was young. Maybe... 3 times in my whole life." He'd like to think some miraculous eerie dream that would give him powers - powers??? - would be remembered.

"Does this have anything to do with getting them back?" Would incubating mystery powers help him? Was he supposed to take a nap and see? "Will this help me? Because at this point my help list was you- Finn-" Who he also didn't know, "Or going back to the beach to wait with Sunny under an umbrella."