Author's note: Special thanks to xfilesfanatic for beta reading this, giving me support while writing it, and for inspiring me with our fandom conversations, which I enjoy so much.
This story takes place in season 3 of Psych and season 2 of The Big Bang Theory. I really hope everyone has a great time reading it!
"We're here, Shawn. Shawn?"
Shawn heard Gus' voice but refused to open his eyes.
"Shawn, wake up. Shawn!" Before he could move, Shawn felt Gus slap him across his face.
He sat straight up in the passenger's seat of the Blueberry and yelled, "OW! Why—why? A million times why!"
"We're here. You need to be getting more sleep at night." Gus got out of the car and Shawn did the same, his head a mess of sleepy fuzz.
"How long of a drive was that?" Asked Shawn as they began to walk towards the gigantic convention center.
"No more than ten minutes."
"Really? I haven't had a nap like that in years." He rubbed his still stinging cheek. "Man, Gus, where did you learn to hit a person like that, The California Institute of Torture?"
"Nothing's standing in my way today, Shawn!" Gus said, determined and excited. Shawn stared at his friend, fully dressed up like The Flash.
"Just know that I'm not going to be able to take you seriously all day with that costume on. Anyways, tell me again why I'm here?"
"You need to experience Santa Barbara Comic Con, Shawn."
"I've already experienced it! Two years ago, when we were helping Jules with the whole Red Phantom case."
"We were working then, Shawn. That hardly counts as an experience."
"Why didn't you make me go last year?"
"I couldn't get tickets again."
They walked in to the building, all of a sudden overwhelmed by masses of costumed people and brightly colored booths. "Well, what do we do?" Asked Shawn.
"We walk around and explore, unless we want to see a certain scheduled event. Do you still have that map I gave you earlier?"
Shawn reached into his back pocket and unearthed a wrinkled brochure.
As Gus began to rattle off lists of events and special booths, Shawn let his mind wander. They passed countless Superman, Spiderman, and Star Trek costumes. He had yet to see a good Cat Woman.
"Gus, weren't there girls at this thing last time?"
"Have you been listening to a word I've been saying, Shawn?"
"To be honest, no."
Gus pursed his lips, but continued. "Shawn, there are plenty of girls around. Look." He nodded towards a pretty blonde woman, dressed in a red tank top and short denim shorts. It looked like she was looking for something.
"She could be lost, we should go help her," said Shawn. "Excuse me!" He yelled, before Gus could answer. "Hello, might you be lost? We have a map."
"No, I...no. I'm just looking for something." She smiled at Shawn.
"Perhaps I could be of some assistance. I'm psychic detective Shawn Spencer, and this is my partner, Slide Weatherby."
"I'm Penny. That's so cool. I've never heard of a psychic detective. Actually, we could use a lot of help. I mean, I can't pay you..."
"Oh, Penny, please, we require no fee," said Shawn.
"What are you talking about, Shawn?" Gus said fiercely.
"I mean, in the name of Comic Con, we should provide our services for free."
"Since when do we do any work for free?"
"Oh please, this is no big deal," said Penny. "My friend Sheldon lost one of his collectible toy thingies and he won't shut up about it. We've all been searching hard for a solid hour and nothing has turned up. I mean, I guess I could pay you..." She took a hot pink wallet out of her purse and finished, "...ten dollars."
"It's a deal," said Shawn. He and Penny shook on it.
"But Shawn-"
"Gus, let it go. A deal's a deal," said Shawn, giving his friend a sympathetic pat on the head.
"Well, you're the psychic," said Penny. "Where do you want to go first?"
"Take me to your friend Sheldon. I need to get a reading on him before I can locate said collectible toy thingie."
"All right, we can find him. But just know that he's not going to want to be read. Although, he might respond to you pretty well, Slide. He came dressed up as the Flash, too."
"No offense to you, Penny, but my name is not Slide. It's Gus."
"Then why did Shawn say-"
"Shawn likes to joke."
"Does he?" said Penny, smiling at Shawn flirtatiously yet again. He responded in part.
"So, how did you wind up here? You don't really seem like the Comic Con type," Gus asked.
"Well, I'm not, but my friends always talk about it like it's the greatest thing ever, so I decided I'd come to see what the big fuss was about. Of course, they didn't tell me about waking me up at five in the morning so that we could leave because according to Leonard we just HAD to get here early. They also didn't tell me that we'd all be stuck in the same car for the two hour trip over here! So far, I really, really hate myself for agreeing to come."
After searching for almost a half an hour, they approached a group of four men in various getups, the most prominent being a tall man in a vibrant Flash costume. He was the only one standing; the other three were sitting on the floor.
"Hey, guys," said Penny. "Did you find it?"
"No, we've given up for now," said a man in a suit and tie. He had an FBI badge pinned to his lapel.
The tall man Shawn knew to be Sheldon said, "I still can't believe you've all stopped looking and have stooped so low as to sit on the floor! Are you aware of the multitude of GERMS you're currently resting your buttocks on-"
"Sheldon, give it a rest, will you?" Said the same man. "Thanks to this you've effectively ruined Comic Con for all of us."
"Please, weary friends, have no fear," said Shawn. "Psych-Man and Magic Head are here!"
After getting some strange looks, Penny said, "Um, guys, this is Shawn and Gus. They work for a psychic detective agency and I've hired them to help us out. This is Sheldon, Leonard, Howard, and Raj."
"Fake. Faker," said Sheldon, pointing at Shawn. "Psychics aren't real. You're a faker."
Shawn sized up Sheldon, looking at his rigid stance and how well put-together he looked. Judging by that and his obvious fear of germs... "If I'm fake, how do I know that you have a different pair of underwear for every day of the week?"
"I-well-you must have intense observational skills, like Sherlock Holmes. But you are NOT psychic by any means."
The man Penny had introduced as Howard stood up and approached Shawn. From the times he had watched Doctor Who with Gus, he thought it looked like the tiny man was wearing a Tardis costume. He had on a tall, blue top hat with the words "POLCE CALL BOX" across the front and an elaborate navy blue suit. "Listen, none of us really believe in psychics, but I'll pay anything if you can get Sheldon to shut up. We've looked everywhere."
"Not to worry, my good man," said Shawn. "Penny has already covered the matter of payment. And might I say that that top hat makes you look considerably taller."
"Now, what lost item do you want Shawn and me to find?" Gus asked.
The other two men, Leonard and Raj, stood up and joined Howard. "Sheldon lost his Princess Leia action figure," Leonard said.
"Lost it?" Sheldon exclaimed. "I do not lose things, it was stolen! And I'll have you know that I believe it to be one of the most valuable collectibles I own! Mint condition, still in its original package."
"Explain what happened," Gus said.
"Well, I only brought it to get appraised," he responded.
"You can get stuff appraised at Comic Con? What is this, Antiques Roadshow?" Shawn asked.
"At this convention, certain booths are open for appraisal for collectible items. Anyways, Leonard and I were trying to locate the appraisal booths first thing this morning, and I had the item in hand. At one point as we travelled, something began to itch inside of my mask. I was afraid it might be some sort of tiny insect, so I untied it and sat Leia down on one of the booth tables. Leonard selfishly kept going without me. Unfortunately, I was unable to diagnose the issue, so I put the mask back on, and when I looked over, poor Leia had vanished."
"Take me back to the place where you last saw it," said Shawn.
"Well, all right, but know that I have an eidetic memory, so I haven't foolishly left anything out of the story. If you're wanting to try to find something I've missed so that you can make a faulty psychic reading, the best of luck to you," Sheldon said.
"You may have an idiotic memory," Shawn began.
"Eidetic, you mean eidetic," Sheldon corrected.
Shawn continued, "You may have an eidetic memory, but the psychic forces can outsmart even the smartest of the smart!"
"Liar! Liar!" Sheldon yelled.
Penny giggled, trying to stifle it, yet failing.
"Don't you laugh at him, Penny, he hasn't said anything amusing! Psychic forces are merely stories told to entertain children and the feeble-minded!"
"Come on, Sheldon, show us the last place you saw your dolly," said Penny.
"It is not a dolly," he replied, crossing his arms over his chest and pouting.
"You guys go have fun. We're just going to stay here and try not to die of thirst and starvation," said Howard.
Raj nodded, and the other three went and sat back down on the floor.
With that, Shawn, Gus, Penny, and Sheldon were off.
"So what's up with that silent guy in the Tenth Doctor costume?" Gus asked Penny.
"He can't speak in front of girls unless he's drunk," Penny responded.
"That's got to hurt," said Shawn.
Penny nodded. "You have no idea."
Sheldon stopped in front of a booth with t-shirts of all different colors and designs hanging from it. A man wearing a "Live Long and Prosper" shirt was manning it, leaning over a comic book.
"This is it. This is where Leia and I departed," Sheldon said, sadly.
"Excuse me," Shawn said to the man, "Sheldon here stopped in front of your booth an hour or so ago. Do you remember?"
The man studied Sheldon. "Tall and skinny Flash? Yeah, I remember. Why?"
"Do you recall him setting down an action figure on your table?"
"Oh, yeah," he said, "someone stole that while he wasn't looking."
"I knew it!" said Sheldon.
"If you knew someone stole it, why didn't you say anything?" Gus asked.
Finally, he looked up from his comic book. "Because it wasn't my problem."
"What did the thief look like?"
"I don't know, but he was dressed like Thor."
"Well, that's very helpful! Do you know how many people bedecked in Thor costumes I've seen so far? Precisely seventeen! And how do we know that you are not the one who stole my Princess Leia action figure?" Sheldon asked.
It was obvious to Shawn the man wasn't lying. He was making direct eye contact and didn't look nervous in the least bit. "The psychic fruits taste of truth," he said.
"Shawn's right. I know when men are lying, and he's not," Penny assured Sheldon.
"Well, I know you've had a lot of experience in that arena, so I suppose I can count that as valid," Sheldon replied.
"Well, what do we do now?" Penny asked. "We can't hunt down all of the Thors in the place and ask them if they stole the doll, can we?"
"Wait," said the man. "I just remembered. This Thor's cape was weird...I think it was purple. Thor's is red, you know."
"Well, of course, who doesn't know that?" Sheldon asked.
"That's a start," said Gus. "So, I say we go back to the others and split up to look for this guy."
"That's a great idea," said Sheldon. "And I don't often commend the menial ideas of others. It's just that I rather like your costume choice."
"See?" Whispered Penny to Shawn.
"Well...thank you, Sheldon," said Gus.
"So, uh...what are we looking for again?" Howard asked Gus.
"A man dressed like Thor, but with a purple cape."
Silence passed between them. When they had all met up again, everyone split up into search teams. Gus had assumed he'd be with Shawn, but Shawn had shooed him away so he could be alone with Penny. Sheldon, Leonard, and Raj had left before he had gotten a chance to join them, which just left Howard.
"This is turning out to be the worst Comic Con ever. I can't believe I spent three hundred dollars on this costume to walk around and look for Purple Thor," Howard muttered.
"I feel you. My mom made this costume for me, and I was really looking forward to wearing it."
"You live with your mom?"
"No, I paid her to tailor it for me. She loves to sew. Why?"
"No reason. Go on."
"Suddenly, Shawn wants to take a case for ten dollars and I don't even get to buy a mug!"
"I know...it seems like every time we take Sheldon somewhere he pulls something like this."
There was more silence until Howard offered, "You know what the best part of Comic Con is?"
"What?"
"The girls."
"So...how do you know this guy's even still here?" Penny asked Shawn. "Oh, is it because of the psychic thing?"
"You're exactly right," said Shawn. Truthfully, he was only about sixty-five percent sure the perpetrator was still lurking around somewhere, but he figured it was worth a shot.
"Since you're a psychic...what vibes are you getting from me?"
Shawn put his fingers to his temple. "You are a waitress...at a place that serves cheesesteaks. No, excuse me, cheesecakes. I sense you aspire to be something...I see cameras...a model, perhaps? No, if you wanted to be a model by now you'd be living in a mansion in Palm Beach..." Cheesy line, but Penny blushed nevertheless. "An actress. You want to be an actress."
"That's exactly right. You're really good!"
"How you flatter me." In reality, Shawn had seen a list of this week's cheesecake specials scribbled on Penny's hand and an old sticky note with the address of Flycatcher Studios when she had opened her purse earlier.
"Maybe it was a good thing I came here after all," said Penny, taking Shawn's hand.
Before he could respond favorably, Shawn suddenly saw a flash of purple flicker through the crowd. "Come on!" He yelled, holding tight to Penny's hand and starting to run.
"Was it me, or did Penny seem to sort of like that guy?" Leonard asked.
"Oh, who cares?" Raj snipped. "I'm sure they'll get married and have half-psychic babies. I'm too tired to think about this."
"Tired? We haven't even had lunch yet!" said Sheldon, still ever vigilant for the Purple-Caped Thor.
"Exactly! This search for Princess Leia has worn me out. Not to mention that I'm really hot under this trench coat, but I can't take it off because it kind of makes the costume," said Raj.
"I almost wish I hadn't gone with Mulder for a costume this year," Leonard said. "These dress shoes really aren't the best for walking."
"Not to mention that you are nowhere near tall enough to portray an accurate Mulder," said Sheldon.
"I see his point," said Raj. "Perhaps you should have been Scully."
"Very funny," Leonard muttered. He then reverted to sulky silence.
Raj sighed, reminding everyone again how tired he was, yet uttering, "Well, even if Penny is into the psychic guy, at least he doesn't seem to be a total idiot like some of her other boyfriends."
"But he's a liar! All psychics are fakes."
"Yes, we know, Sheldon," said Leonard.
"Besides, I'm sure he doesn't live in Pasadena," Raj assured him. "They'd have to keep up a long distance relationship, and that can be hard when you've just met someone."
"That's true," Leonard considered.
"You two aren't looking at all!" Sheldon exclaimed. "Instead of worrying about whether or not Penny is interested in the fake psychic, what you should be doing is aiding in the search for the assailant who kidnapped Leia!"
"You mean Jabba the Hut? I think we would have seen him by now..." Raj joked.
"Oh, you mean like in the movie as opposed to my action figure. Funny." Sheldon gave one of his quick and breathy chuckles and went back to searching.
Shawn fought through the crowd mercilessly, his hand still clasped in Penny's. The purple-caped culprit had caught on to the fact that he was being chased and Shawn knew he was heading towards the exit.
A man on his cell phone saying, "Whaddaya mean, in Malibu? I'm busy-" stalled them for a moment, standing in their way, but Shawn practically shoved him away so they could keep moving.
They followed the assailant as he ran in and out of tight places, trying to lose them. Finally, he ran through the main doors. Once they were outside, Shawn yelled, "Hey! Come on, man, just..." He ran out of breath before he could finish.
Suddenly, the suspect stopped and flipped around. "Look, I don't know what you want!"
"Yeah...yeah you do!" An exhausted Penny yelled back.
"I did what you wanted me to, didn't I? I got the package and I put it where you said," Thor continued.
"Shawn, what's he...what's he..." Penny still hadn't caught her breath.
"Now please, just give me the antidote," the stranger finished.
Before Shawn could say anything, the man began to cough.
"Shawn...what's happening?" Penny asked.
"Oh crap." Shawn handed her his cell phone. "Call an ambulance. I think he's been poisoned."
"What? Poisoned?!"
Shawn went over to the man, who was now on the ground, unconscious. With the sound of Penny's frantic phone call way in the distance, he looked and found a red puncture wound on his arm from a needle. The man wasn't breathing, and Shawn hunted for a pulse, but couldn't find one.
He turned to Penny, finished with her call. "Okay, don't freak out, but I think he's dead."
"Don't freak—don't freak—What just happened?!" She screamed.
"I think I know why he stole Sheldon's doll. He thought it was something else."
"Something else like what?"
"I don't know, Let me see the phone. I gotta call someone."
"Dude, have you never had a churro before?" Gus asked. Howard had inquired about their interesting name as they stood by a concession stand.
"No..."
"That's messed up. We've gotta get you one."
"All right."
They stood in line at the stand for a good five minutes in more silence. Gus took off his mask and took out a twenty dollar bill from a sewn-in compartment in the top. Howard commented, "Smart."
"Thank you." He paid for two very expensive churros and handed one to Howard, who thanked him in kind.
"Wow, this is really good," he said.
"I know," Gus replied. "They're the epitome of deep-fried joy."
Howard nodded, and they kept walking. "Honestly, do you think we're gonna find this guy?" He asked.
"No idea. Although, unfortunately, Shawn usually isn't wrong."
"Also, do you really think he's psychic?"
"I do. I was a skeptic too, at first, but then Shawn proved himself to me. You know, he has solved over thirty cases for the Santa Barbara Police Department."
"You guys work for the actual police?"
Before Gus could answer, he saw Juliet approaching him. "Yes. In fact, here's one of our friends from the police station. Hello, Jules. What are you doing here?"
"Hi, Gus. I love your costume! Shawn asked me to-"
"Hi," said Howard, deepening his voice and extending his hand. "Howard Wolowitz."
"Uh, hello," Juliet responded, shaking his hand awkwardly. "I'm Detective O'Hara."
"Well, Detective, might I say that you're looking very professional in that pantsuit of yours."
"Thanks," Juliet said flatly. "As I was saying, Gus, Shawn asked me to find you and tell you what's going on, and I did, because I couldn't get tickets for Comic Con this year and I really wanted to come inside."
"You collect?" Asked Howard, amazed.
"I do," she answered, moving farther away from him. "Gus, Shawn found the man in the purple cape. Unfortunately, he's dead."
"What? Did he find the action figure?" Gus asked.
"No. He thinks that the man in the cape, who's been identified as Wendell Pine, was forced into being a possible carrier of stolen merchandise, or maybe drugs, through being poisoned. We think whoever's behind this injected him suddenly and told him that only through taking the package and delivering it would he be given the antidote."
"That's insane!" Howard exclaimed.
"Why would drugs be in a Princess Leia action figure box?" Gus asked.
"Who knows? Maybe the poison was causing Pine not to think straight," Juliet responded. "Anyways, Mr. Wolowitz..."
"Please, call me Howard," he instructed.
"Okay, Howard, Shawn says you have some friends who need to know this too."
"Gus and I can help you find them," Howard told her.
"All right," she said, trying to keep as much distance from Howard as possible as they walked. "So Gus, uh...who's that girl with Shawn?"
"That's Penny. We just met her. She's friends with these guys. You know Shawn; naturally he's all over her."
"Really? Oh." Juliet tucked a strand of hair that had come loose from her bun behind her ear and looked at the ground.
"Sheldon, I'm just going to prepare you..." Leonard began.
"Don't say it!" Sheldon said, putting his hands over his ears.
"...you might not get your action figure back."
"Drat! I still heard it." Sheldon lowered his hands.
"Leonard's right," Raj said. "It's been a long time, with three different groups searching. I know this place is big, but I still think that if that guy were still here, we probably would have found him by now."
"But it isn't fair! The villain never wins; good must triumph!" Sheldon responded.
"Life doesn't always work like that," said Leonard.
"Oh, I know. How else would one explain the fact that Spock is merely fictional?" Sheldon lamented.
"Look, there's Gus and How..." Raj's voice was choked when he saw the woman walking behind them.
"Guys, look who's come to talk to us," said Howard, winking.
Leonard rolled his eyes.
Gus introduced Juliet to the three guys, and she explained the situation once more. After shocked reactions, Sheldon asked, "Police lady, will I get my action figure back?"
"I really hope so, sir. Shawn told me how important it is to you, but right now I think everyone's going to be a little more concerned with finding our killer..."
"Can we help in any way?" Leonard asked.
"I don't think so, but thank you," Juliet said.
Leonard, Howard, and Raj were about to rejoice that finally they could enjoy Comic Con like they had intended when Juliet added, "Unless you want to keep looking for Sheldon's action figure."
"Yes," said Sheldon. "I rather like you, police lady."
Juliet smiled. "I'm going to head back to the crime scene. Gus?"
Gus nodded and Howard asked Juliet, "May I join you?"
Frustrated, she responded, "Howard, I will have you arrested."
"Bye," he responded quickly, turning back to his friends.
As Juliet and Gus left, Sheldon said, "Well, where shall we look now?"
"There are no more places to look!" Raj exclaimed. "We're all tired and none of us want to help you anymore. If you want to look for Leia, do it yourself."
"Fine! Then maybe I will!" Angered, Sheldon marched off, carrying his yellow boots high into the air.
"Should we go after him? I can see him getting lost and that would be another thing we'd have to look for," Leonard said.
"No," Howard answered. "He has a cell phone. He'll be fine."
"Well, what now?" Raj asked.
"Gus, there you are!" Shawn yelled as Gus arrived at the crime scene. Juliet went to join Lassiter, who was standing near his car, otherwise unoccupied.
"I'm here. Hello, Penny," Gus greeted.
"Hey. Is this crazy, or what?" She replied.
"I heard you were there when this guy died. Are you all right?" He asked her.
"Well, yeah, it was just...I barely saw it happen, it was all just so fast. And, I grew up on a farm, so I've seen a lot of things die."
Gus eyed Penny with vague peculiarity, but didn't respond.
"Listen," she continued, "I'm really hungry. I think I'm going to find some lunch. You guys wanna come with?" Penny smiled at Shawn, dropping a hint.
"As much as we would love to, Gus and I have some psychic sleuthing to do. We'll catch up with you later," Shawn said.
"All right. See ya." Penny began walking back towards the building.
"So, what've we got here, Shawn?" Gus said.
"I don't know. So many things in this case just don't add up."
"Like what?"
"Penny and I chased this guy for a long time because he thought we were the guys forcing him to do this. Why? Right before he died he begged us for the antidote. If we had it, why was he running away from us for so long? And then, why would anything illegal be inside a Princess Leia action figure box?"
"I asked that question too. Jules mentioned the poison might have had some effect on the guy..."
"Why would they give a drug that would make him too messed up to do what they wanted him to?"
"That's a lot of whys, Shawn."
"I know it is.
"Do you think these guys are still around here somewhere?"
"They've got to be. Obviously, Wendell here didn't get the right package. Whatever he was supposed to get is still out there somewhere. The question is, how do we find it?"
"Well, what do we know about the place he took it from? It was sitting at a t-shirt booth in the south end of the building. That's a start."
"All right. Let's see if we can get Jules and Lassie to help us out."
Sheldon sulked through the crowd, arms across his chest. He couldn't believe his friends were abandoning him in his time of need! He enjoyed Comic Con just as much as they did, but there were more important matters at hand!
His Mee Maw had given him the action figure for his eighth birthday. His Mee Maw! Of course, she had given him many wonderful gifts through the years, but that was perhaps his favorite. Even though Sheldon had come to get an estimate of its worth, he'd never dream of selling it. He had decided he wasn't going to give up on Leia and he wasn't leaving until he had found her, even if that meant staying overnight in the convention center, hiding under perhaps a table or in a maintenance closet. Then, he'd crawl out in the darkness of night and search, avoiding any security guards that might be lurking about. It was an excellent plan.
Sheldon had been searching solo for about an hour now, but he had found nothing. "Oh, Princess Leia, where are you?" He moaned sadly.
Suddenly, he heard a voice. Sheldon, it whispered.
"Leia?" He said softly.
Don't speak aloud, she said. You may give others the impression that you're insane.
But I'm not insane, my mother had me tested, Sheldon responded.
That is of no importance to us now. If you want to locate me, you're going to have to put yourself in grave danger.
Danger? I can't say I care much for danger. Sheldon was beginning to get concerned.
Come, Sheldon, be brave, like all of your heroes. Your bravery is the only thing that can save me. Now, go to the men's restroom one hundred feet in front of you.
Sheldon saw it and began to walk toward it. Once he had gotten there, he tried pulling the door open, but it wouldn't budge. Leia, I can't open it, he told her.
It's jammed, as I expected it to be. Those who have done this to me have made it that way. Put your ear against the door and listen.
Put my ear against the door? Leia, are you sure you're thinking correctly? I could get an ear infection.
Will you be brave, Sheldon? Will you risk an infection to save me?
Sheldon paused. Well, all right.
Under Leia's instruction, he listened.
"In case you hadn't noticed, we've got a body out there."
"Well, who screwed up?"
"He got the wrong package. What are we supposed do to with this?!" Sheldon heard the sound of a plastic package hitting the floor. Poor Leia, he thought.
"Where's the right one?"
"I don't know. Harlow's the one that made the delivery and told the caped guy where it was."
"Then how do we know that the stuff's not in there? You haven't opened it."
"No!" Sheldon whispered. He heard the horrifying sound of the packaging being ripped open.
"Nothing."
"Come on, let's get out of here."
Run, Sheldon, run! Leia yelled.
But Sheldon was still frozen in shock. The door opened and he stood face to face with Leia's kidnappers.
"I've never seen this many dorks in my entire life," Lassiter muttered as he and Juliet walked around the busy convention center, searching for a suspicious package. A few other pods of officers were searching as well as Shawn and Gus.
"Carlton, be nice," Juliet admonished.
"I can't believe you're actually into this stuff."
"Oh, I'm sorry I have a hobby that's not target shooting or learning how to free myself from zip ties..."
"Hey, that is something that you can actually use in life!"
"Haven't you ever really liked a movie or TV show, Carlton?"
"Well, sure, but I can't say I've ever wanted to dress up in a costume because of it."
Juliet shrugged. "Your loss."
Suddenly, a yell penetrated the air. "DANGER! DANGER!"
Juliet recognized the voice. "That's Sheldon!"
They drew their guns and began to run towards the sound. Sheldon was standing outside the men's restroom, surrounded by three men with guns. "SBPD, drop your weapons!" Carlton yelled.
A few other officers had arrived, and the three men surrendered. Arrests were made and Juliet asked Sheldon, "Are you okay?"
"I believe so."
"Well, you're very brave," she assured him. She then went back to Carlton.
"I am, aren't I?" Sheldon said to himself.
Sheldon, aren't you forgetting something?
"Of course, Leia!" Sheldon ran back into the bathroom and there she was, on the floor, torn plastic and paper packaging around her. He picked her up.
Thank you, Sheldon. Your valor has saved me.
You're welcome. I just wish you were still safe beneath clear plastic.
Sheldon cleaned up the packaging from the floor and went outside, Leia in hand.
"Sheldon, are you all right?" Penny asked, walking up to him. "I was walking by and Detective O'Hara told me what happened."
"Yes, I'm fine. Look, I found Leia."
"Aww, good for you, sweetie. Where are the rest of the guys?"
"I'm not sure. They abandoned me."
"Can't say I blame them," Penny mumbled under her breath. "I'll call Leonard and tell him to come get you."
"Well, all right, but don't expect me to cordial towards him."
Shawn and Gus sat on a bench at the police station, eating stale donuts left over from the day before. Lassiter and Juliet were still interrogating the three men from Comic Con. So far they had found out that they were drug exporters who had wanted to pick an unassuming place for their trade, but little else was known for sure.
"Man, it's four in the afternoon already," Gus lamented. "The day's practically gone and I've barely spent any time doing my thing at Comic Con."
"What are you talking about? We spent the whole day there."
"You know what I mean, Shawn. We've been working."
"I know, man, I'm sorry. Look, tomorrow we'll got to the Renaissance Fair and get us some mead and a turkey leg."
"You know that's right."
"Guster, for Pete's sake, would you please take off that idiotic mask?" Lassiter asked, approaching them with Juliet.
"I like it and I'll wear it if I want to," said Gus proudly.
"Well, those guys don't know where the real package is or even what it looks like," said Juliet. "But they gave us a name, Richard Harlow. They think he's still in the general area. We put out an APB on him."
"That's our killer?" Gus said.
"Yes, assuming they're telling the truth."
"By the way, the tox screen came back," Lassiter said. "Pine was injected with a large dose of Flaxinol A. In a small dose it's just lethal, but when there's a large dose it messes with the mind of the victim, which explains why he grabbed the wrong package."
"So, we've done everything we can?" Shawn asked.
"Unless you're getting anything about the package or Harlow's location, yes," Juliet answered.
"Well, I'll keep my psychic sensors open. In the meantime, Gus and I will be at Comic Con. Jules, wanna come?"
Juliet looked pleadingly at Lassiter, who answered, "No."
"Come on, please, Carlton? I'll reorganize your file cabinet..."
She kept a solid puppy dog look until Carlton caved. "Fine. But I want my file cabinet organized by nine tomorrow morning."
"Thanks, bye!" Juliet turned around and followed Shawn and Gus to the parking lot.
"Sheldon, I still can't believe you faced men with guns!" said Leonard, as they strolled leisurely around the still packed convention center.
"How did you find your dolly?" Penny asked.
"For the last time I remind you that she is not a dolly!" Sheldon paused and pursed his lips. "And she guided me," he said softly.
"You mean Leia...talked to you in your mind?" Howard asked.
"Well...in essence, yes."
"Do you talk to your action figures often?" Leonard said.
"My tiny Spock action figure and I have had a few chats, yes."
Raj whispered in Howard's ear, and he said, "Raj wants to know if you're sure your mother had you tested for insanity."
"Yes, Raj, I am positive!
"Oh my goodness, Shawn, you have to get a picture of Gus and I next to Aquaman!"
"That's the best costume I've ever seen," Gus said.
Shawn remarked, "Yeah, well, he's a professional, Gus, he's one of those guys the convention pays-"
"Yeah, yeah, I get it."
Juliet handed Shawn her cell phone to take a picture with while she and Gus stood next to Aquaman. Shawn couldn't help but notice his hand around Juliet's shoulder, pulling her closer to him...or so it seemed. He took the picture and handed the phone back to her.
"Aww, that's a good picture. Thanks, Shawn."
"Yeah, you're welcome," he said.
She stopped at a booth selling superhero themed candles and Shawn whispered, "Is it just me, or was Aquaman totally feeling up Jules?"
"It's just you."
They jumped as Juliet dropped a candle lid. It didn't break, but it reminded Shawn of something.
"Whaddaya mean, in Malibu? I'm busy..."
"Gus," Shawn started.
"What, Shawn?"
"I think Penny and I ran into Harlow when we were running. He was talking about Malibu, that's where he is."
"How do you know it was him?"
"Because he dropped something. I shoved him out of the way and he dropped something. It landed on my foot. I think it was the package."
"Again, how do you know?"
"I didn't give it much thought because we were running, but it looked really suspicious. Jules!"
Juliet turned around. "Yes?"
"What description did the three guys give of Harlow?"
"Um...average height. Brown hair. They said he was wearing a red shirt today."
"That's him. I know where he is."
"Really? Where?"
"Uh...the forces are telling me...I see beaches...Malicious. No, Mali—Malipan. Mali..."
"Malibu?"
"That's it! Call Lassie. Harlow is in Malibu."
While Juliet called, Penny, Sheldon, Leonard, Howard, and Raj turned the corner. "Hey guys!" Shawn greeted.
"Hey, Shawn," said Penny. "I just realized I haven't paid you yet!" She dug in her purse and handed him his promised ten dollar bill.
"Thank you for your help," Leonard told him.
"The psychic forces are always ready to aid in the pain of the wounded," Shawn responded.
"Shawn, the psychic forces barely helped at all," Gus muttered. "Sheldon found the action figure himself."
"Well, anyways, you're welcome," said Shawn.
"We'd love to take you guys to dinner," Leonard said.
"Gus?" Asked Shawn.
"Well, all right."
"Can Detective O'Hara come too?" Shawn asked Leonard.
"Please say yes, Leonard, she's so nice she reminds me of my Mee Maw," Sheldon said.
"Sure, she can come if she wants to," Leonard told him.
They decided to go to a nearby Cheesecake Factory for dinner. Penny remarked how strange it was to sit down and eat there for once instead of wait tables, and Sheldon talked about how wonderful it was to be served by a competent waitress for once.
Sheldon and Leonard tried to describe their professions the best they could to Shawn, Gus, and Juliet, and Howard talked about the things he'd designed and explained what Raj did. In turn, Shawn and Gus talked about the adventures they had been on and the cases they'd solved, with a few contributions by Juliet.
Just before everyone left, Shawn invited everyone to the Renaissance Fair the next day, and they all made plans to meet up. As everyone began to stand up and say their goodbyes, Shawn asked Penny, "Shall I see you at the fair, my dear lady?"
"Well, usually I'd say no way, but if you're going to be there, I think I can make it." Penny kissed Shawn lightly on the lips; meanwhile, Juliet and Leonard pretended not to see.
Not long after Shawn and Gus got into the Blueberry, Shawn's phone rang. "You were right, Shawn. They got Harlow. The Malibu PD was able to track down his rental car. Nice work," Juliet said.
"Thanks, Jules. Sure you don't want to come to the Renaissance Fair with us tomorrow?"
"Well, I would, but I have a file cabinet to organize."
"Oh, yeah. Well, see you soon, Jules." He hung up and told Gus the news. "This hasn't been such a bad day, has it, Gus?"
"Well, we made some new friends. I got to go to the Cheesecake Factory dressed like the Flash. We solved a murder. You're right, I suppose it hasn't been that bad."
"See? And, while Penny and I were off by ourselves, I kind of felt bad about leaving you, so I got you something."
"What?"
Shawn grabbed a bag from the back. "Well, I saw on the map that William B. Davis was signing autographs..."
"William B. Davis? The Cigarette Smoking Man from The X-Files?"
"Yup. I got you this." It was a X-Files t-shirt, and on the bottom was the autograph.
Gus read, "To my number one fan...Slide Weatherby? Shawn, you can't be serious!"
"I think it's a pretty cool name."
"Shawn, I will slap you again like I did this morning."
"I don't see why you're so upset! I thought you liked when I gave you the cool nicknames."
"I hate you, Shawn."
The End