Blinky prided himself on preparedness. Unfortunately, New Jersey was not in any of his books.

He stood in an alley, four arms occupied with a notebook, spectacles, and a suspiciously processed human snack.

"Curious," he muttered.

Then he felt it. Magic.

Blinky froze, all six eyes lifting toward a figure at the alley's mouth. The strange hum seemed to tighten around them.

"Well," he murmured, studying them with growing fascination, "that is... new."

He closed his notebook.

"You are either precisely what I've been searching for—or something I entirely failed to account for."

His expression softened.

"You are not from here... are you?"