Author Notes - I'm sure everyone who's read the chapter title has finished the line in their head. In case that title doesn't make it obvious enough, we'll be meeting Deema today! She's my favourite Guppy in the show, so you can imagine how excited I am to finally get to her.

CHAPTER TEN - YOU'VE CERTAINLY…

Brianna still couldn't believe it - they actually got Gil on their side! She didn't even know that he was in Big Bubble City, and there he was. Even if he joined somewhat reluctantly, it was something! And as they were swimming through the city, heading straight for 'The Right Place', Brianna noticed something else.

People were looking at them now. They had a few looks before, but now that Gil was here, it seemed like the old band was a lot more recognisable. All sorts of citizens stopping and gaping at them as they swam by. Brianna could've sworn she even heard a few of them murmuring, saying things like 'are they the Bubble Guppies' and 'they have gotta be the Bubble Guppies'. Her heart swelled with joy. It was all because of her that these old friends were back together!

Better yet, there were just two more to go - Deema and Molly. Truth be told, Brianna was a little more worried about those two than the others. Most of the other Guppies weren't really celebrities anymore. Zooli was the closest, 'starring' in multiple documentaries that many an animal lover had watched religiously. But Deema and Molly were world famous, beloved by all. Would a double-Goldfish-winning actress and a chart-topping singer really pay their motley crew any mind?

But did Brianna let that stop her? Of course not! Not when she'd come this far. The odds of recruiting these famous celebs was low, but not zero!

'You know what would've been really cool?' Oona said, looking at Gil. 'If you had the alarm in your firetruck going. That way, the cars in the street would have to move out of our way!'

'I really hope you're joking,' Gil said, going straight back to that 'super serious' tone. 'Because that would be a waste of petrol. And of my time. And probably the police's time too, when they inevitably get mad at me for inciting panic among a crowd.'

Oona's smile faded. 'Oh. Right. Probably not the kind of thing you want someone joking about.'

'No. No it isn't.'

Nonny looked at the time on his phone. Unsurprisingly, it was getting pretty late at this point. Just as a precaution, he looked up 'The Right Place' to see when its closing time was. The closest one to them (seeing as it was apparently a whole chain) wouldn't close for another hour or so, fortunately.

'And there it is!' Brianna said. 'We've certainly come to the right place!'

She held her hand out towards the massive structure before them like she was unveiling a statue. The other Guppies except for Gil, having never seen the store in-person before, gaped and marvelled at the fabulous building. It was a massive two storey shop, painted with the brightest and sunniest shade of yellow you can imagine. Topped with the yellow bubble-like structures that reminded Brianna of the school seen so often in the band's promotional material.

If that didn't tip you off already, the big sign above the glass doors that red 'THE RIGHT PLACE' in big bold letters certainly would.

'From what I remember about Deema,' Nonny said. 'This is exactly the kind of store she would run.'

'You remember a five-year-old,' Gil remarked. 'Not a fully grown woman.'

Goby gulped. 'Oh god… Am I really going to talk to Ms Swimmer herself? Anyone got butterflies in their stomach? Is it really hot right now, or is it just me? Am I about to faint?!'

'Woah, hold your seahorses, Goby!' Zooli said. 'For all we know, Ms Swimmer isn't even in her store right now. I mean, she's a super famous actress. How do we know she isn't shooting a new film or at some festival?'

'We don't!' Brianna replied with a big smile. 'That's why we gotta go in. We won't know until we go!'

The other Guppies, deciding that the logic was solid, followed her into the grand building. It was even more grand on the inside. Just about everything you could imagine being sold was on display. Clothes, sports equipment, toys, hardware tools, even basic groceries. And that was just the first floor! People of all species were going to and fro, buying everything they'd ever want and taking their big bags of things to the cashiers.

'Woah…' Zooli said, verbalising everyone's feelings. 'This place is… amazing. For a store, anyway.'

'This is one hell of a store!' Oona said. 'You could live here if you wanted to!'

'Those shirts over there look pretty spiffy…' Gil said.

'Let's not forget why we're here,' Nonny said. 'And that's to find Ms Swimmer, or at least a lead on her. Don't get distracted. The store closes in about an hour.'

'Nonny's right!' Brianna said. 'And I know exactly what we have to do to find her.'

After she said something like that, the other Guppies assumed she had some sort of master plan to track her down. In actuality, all she did was approach one of the workers. Easily identified by wearing a uniform that depicted Ms Swimmer's famous orange-spotted tail pattern. The nearest worker was a snail man, who greeted them with a smile.

'Hello to the Right Place!' He said. 'Whatever you want, you've certainly come to the-'

'Hey, uh…' Brianna said, peering at his name tag. 'Dale. Would the awesome Ms Swimmer happen to be here today?'

'Oh,' Gil said. 'That was her plan. Simple, but effective, I guess.'

Dale hardly seemed surprised that Brianna asked such a question. Seeing as this store was being run by a world famous actress, it was probably asked more often than 'where can I find this item'. Brianna sighed in relief when Dale smiled wider.

'You're lucky!' He said. 'She finished shooting for her next movie just a few weeks ago. Comes out next month, by the way. What do you want to see her for?'

Brianna opened her mouth, but was cut off.

'No, wait, let me guess,' Dale said. 'You wanna get her autograph!'

'... You're not wrong,' Goby said.

'I knew it! Everyone wants to get Ms Swimmer's autograph. And who wouldn't! Right now, she should be in her office. Second story, at the front of the store. There's a big yellow star on the door. You can't miss it!'

'I'm sure we'll find a way,' Gil remarked.

'Then what are we waiting for?' Oona said. 'Let's go talk to Deema again!'

They said their goodbyes to Dale and headed straight for the escalators. The second story was just as jam-packed as the first, if not more. Paints, car parts, pet stuff. A bunch more people with hands, fins, and claws full of shopping bags. Good thing there were several sets of escalators, or traffic would be backed up as all hell.

After getting a little lost in the candy section ('I told you we'd find a way,' Gil said), they found the office. The big yellow star on the door was a dead giveaway. But if that wasn't enough, the name 'Ms Deema Swimmer' printed under the star definitely was.

Goby gulped. 'A-Are we really gonna do it? Oh god, I think I'm gonna puke.'

Gil crunched up his face. 'Please, don't. I'm not cleaning it up.'

'We didn't go all the way to Big Bubble City and sleep in a cheap hotel room just to chicken out now,' Zooli said. 'So who's going to-?'

'Brianna's on it,' Oona said.

Brianna was already approaching the door with her fist out. She paused right before her hand hit the wood. What were the odds that a celebrity like Ms Swimmer, even one with a reputation of interacting with her fans regularly, would pay them any mind at all? Well, zero, if Brianna didn't even try. With this logic in mind, she knocked.

Once.

Twice.

Thrice.

She almost knocked a fourth time when the door finally opened.

'Can we wait a few minutes?' The woman on the other side spoke into her phone. 'Someone wants to see me. Yeah, I know auditions are in, like, two weeks. I got a store to run, honey!'

Brianna gasped. So did the others. There she was. Ms Swimmer. Deema herself! Standing right there. In front of them! Brianna could hardly believe what she was seeing. She had seen Ms Swimmer in all sorts of movies and TV shows before, but this was the first time she had ever seen her in person and not on a movie set. Deema wore a boring brown business suit with her nametag on it, and her arms were just a little hairy. Her voice was a lot deeper than it was on the old albums, and quite a bit deeper than most women's voices for that matter.

But one bit about her certainly hadn't changed over the years, and that was - of course - her iconic hairstyle. The 'stack of golden cinnamon rolls' style, the one that anyone would recognise. The kind of hairstyle that only Deema could have and make look good. When every other Guppy had changed their look, sometimes drastically, Deema stood out by keeping that same hair even decades later.

Deema held a phone in her hand, on the call to someone who was clearly getting impatient. She looked down at Brianna, and the others, with that irritated 'do not waste my time' kind of look.

'Oh, let me guess,' She said. 'Fans of mine? Sorry, but I'm a little busy right now. But, I always have the time to sign some autographs. So, what am I signing? Books? Photos? Foreheads? I'll sign anything, but I draw the line at butts.'

The other Guppies had been rendered almost speechless by the knowledge that a world famous celebrity was standing right in front of them. Goby in particular could feel his heart racing in her presence. He tried to say something, but all that came out was tongue-tied stammering.

'Sorry!' Brianna said with a smile. 'But we're not looking for autographs. See, we're actually-'

Deema groaned. 'Look, I love talking to my fans. I really do. But I'm on the phone to my agent right now and she will not let me reschedule the call. Believe me, I have tried. If you don't want autographs, then this better be important.'

'Fair enough! But I think you'll find that this really is important. See, these guys you see behind me know you really well. You were all a part of the world's greatest band when you were kids. And you were known as… the Bubble Guppies!'

'… The Bubble what now?'

By this point, Brianna was used to this routine. She expected it by now. It didn't damper her spirits one bit. Not after going through this several times already.

'The band!' Oona said, 'stepping' forward. 'I know it was years ago at this point, but I'm sure we can get that old memory jogging in no time! Remember me?'

Deema cocked an eyebrow. '... Random woman with short purple-ish hair? Nope.'

'Oh. Well, we were the best of friends when we were in that band!'

'Okay, listen,' Deema said with a sigh. 'I get a lot of people insisting they knew me when we were kids, cos they think it'll make me want to spend more time with them than I really have. First few times, it worked. I'm a forgetful type so I could believe it. But I'm really fed up with it now.'

'But-'

'I can't let just anybody butter me up! I need my own space too, you know.'

Oona, seeing as she wasn't getting anywhere, went silent. Goby tried to speak up again, but still couldn't quite put his words together.

'I knew this was a waste of time…' Gil muttered. 'Let's just get out of here.'

'Nope,' Zooli said. 'I did not come all the way here just to get rejected after a minute. We're talking, Deema, whether you want to or-'

Deema responded by closing the door. Hard. Brianna could hear her continuing her phone conversation inside of her office.

'Oh,' Zooli said. 'Uh, never mind. I guess that's the end of that.'

'I'm so sorry, Brianna,' Nonny said. 'But it seems that Ms Swimmer won't be joining our group any time soon.'

You'd think Brianna would be sad. Crushed, even. But she wasn't. Not even disappointed. Not happy either, of course, but not upset. She stared at that star on the door, ignoring the announcement through the building that 'The Right Place' was 'certainly' going to close soon.

'We should try catching her at a better time,' She said. 'Just in case.'

'Bri-' Zooli said.

'I know. Maybe I should move on, but I think we might be able to have a real conversation with her. Just not while the store is open and she's calling her agent.'

'Good point,' Gil said, crossing his arms. 'But when the hell are we going to be able to talk to her when she isn't busy?'

'I… I don't know. But I'm sure I'll figure it out.'

'Either way,' Nonny said. 'We should be getting out of here. Maybe have something to eat and head back to our hotel.'

There was only one thing that put a damper on Brianna's mood. The same way Gil was no longer that silly and turbo-charged boy, it seemed as though Deema wasn't that hilarious and dramatic goofball anymore either.

Deema sat down at her desk, listening to her agent ramble and ramble on about this new role and how 'important' it was. Another romantic lead. She loved a good romance as much as anyone, but she was really hoping for something different this time. A comedy. Historic. Sci-fi. Even a horror! She still hadn't crossed 'Western' off her bucket list.

She was supposed to be listening, at least, but her mind was wandering. Thinking about that random group of Guppies who had insisted they knew her. It was a card she was sick of the fans pulling. But there was something about that group that made her keep thinking. They did seem strangely familiar, except for the little one, and around the same age too. It wasn't implausible, she supposed. But if she did remember them, where from?

They talked about this band. Called the… Bubble Guppies, was it? The name definitely stirred up some old memories. Maybe if she focused on that a little more…

She gasped.

Thousands of memories flashed before her eyes.

She dropped her phone and slammed her hand onto the button that activated the PA system.

'WAIT!' She shouted. 'STOP!'

Author Notes - Spoiler alert: Deema has changed a lot less than Brianna seems to think. While I changed the hairstyles of the other Guppies to reflect how much time has passed, I certainly did not change Deema's hairstyle. I feel like it's simply too iconic, and it's such a big part of her character that I feel like changing her hair would change Deema herself. It always rubs me the wrong way when people change it. If you want to, there's nothing wrong with that! But that hairstyle is Deema, and I bet Deema herself would tell you so.

Out of all of the Guppies, I think Deema has the most obvious career path ahead of her. Everyone seems to agree that she'll become an actress when she grows up, mostly thanks to the episode 'Who's Gonna Play the Big Bad Wolf' establishing it as something she wants to be. It certain fits her overdramatic nature, after all. But seeing as she's usually the shopkeeper in the shopping segments, I feel like it's also appropriate for her to be running her own store. ReaderandWriter9000 did something similar by having her study business in university, with Molly even commenting that she thought Deema would go into acting and Deema saying it'll be her second career. I've just chosen to name it 'The Right Place' for the sake of the pun.