The Curio Shop

The bell tinkled as the door opened. The store smelled musty and old. Shelves crammed with books and odd trinkets were all over the place, lining the walls and sitting in clusters all over the room. Strange bits of metal twisted into odd designs were hanging from the ceiling. The Doctor would have probably bumped his head on a few of them, but Sadie, having not been blessed with a very good height gene, was perfectly safe.

"Greetings, mortal," came the gravelly voice from behind the counter. Sadie jumped in surprise and then whirled around to see who had addressed her. Seated behind the counter on one side of the shop was an apparently very old creature. He had an orange-tinted, cone-shaped head, with a small tuft of gray hair sticking out from the very top. One red eye was staring uninterestedly at her, the other eye covered in a large blue patch. Whatever the creature was, he was round shaped, and Sadie imagined he would waddle rather than walk. All in all, he seemed exactly the type you'd find in a store such as this.

"Can I help ye find anythin'?"

"Oh, um, I don't think so," Sadie said, feeling a bit awkward. "I was just looking. But thanks." The clerk snorted gruffly, and said nothing more. Sadie began to walk slowly through the shop, examining the various knickknacks with great interest. Trinkets intrigued Sadie very much, since there seemed to be an endless supply of them in the universe. The Doctor seemed to have a certain fondness for them as well. She had accidently stumbled across an entire closet full of them once, while searching for the bathroom in the TARDIS. She'd have to drag him in here to see these particular knickknacks, she decided mentally, moving from those shelves over to the ones containing books.

Sadie loved books dearly. There were several libraries in the TARDIS, and when the Doctor would begin to tinker with his beloved ship, she would venture off to find one of them (after asking directions, of course, she was NOT getting lost again!).

She ran a finger down the spines of the books, glancing at each title. Thanks to the TARDIS' translation circuits, she was able to understand what each one said. There were plenty that looked like novels, especially romance novels. Some of them looked like they might be textbooks, and there were a few cookbooks scattered throughout. One book in particular caught Sadie's eye, and she tugged it from the shelf to give it a closer look.

'Ghosts of the Earthen Planet' was the title. The cover was illustrated with a painting of the Earth, with a large pair of glowing yellow eyes staring from behind it. Sadie thought she saw the eyes blink, but she wasn't entirely sure. Partly because the cover spooked her a little, and partly out of curiosity, Sadie flipped the book over to see what was written on the back cover, but it was blank. There wasn't even an author listed anywhere.

"Like the looks of that one, do ye?" the clerk asked, making Sadie jump yet again. "That's a good 'un." Sadie nodded, still clutching the book.

"Where did it come from?" Sadie asked, checking the inside covers of the book. "There's no author, publisher, or anything listed." The clerk shrugged.

"No one rightly knows where it came from. 'S jes' been here, 's all." Sadie's interest was definitely peaked.

"Ever read it?"

"No, ain't read it, but've heard tales of people who have. Comes pretty highly recommended, from what I heard."

"Really…" Sadie flipped the book back over to look at the cover once again. The eyes seemed to bore into her, sending a cold chill down her spine. That settled it. She had to have this book. "I didn't see a price on it…could you tell me how much it is please?" Nevermind that she didn't have any money on her…she'd find a way to get this book.

"Ye ain't from 'round here, are ye?" the Clerk asked, giving her a knowing look.

"No, I'm travelling through with a friend…but how did you know?"

"Jes' have that look about ye." Sadie felt a bit awkward yet again.

"Um, yeah…so can you tell me how much the book costs?" The clerk grinned, showing a mouthful of rotten teeth. Sadie grimaced inwardly.

"'ll give it to ye fer a kiss." Now Sadie grimaced outwardly. The clerk laughed heartily. "Jes' kiddin' ye. Ye seem nice enough, and 'd think ye'd enjoy it. So 's yers."

"Really?!" Sadie exclaimed, her earlier disgust giving away to excitement. "Oh wow! Thank you so much!" She tucked the book safely inside her bag, and poked around the shop for a few more minutes before deciding to head back outside to find the Doctor. As soon as she left, a grimy, satisfied smile crept on the face of the clerk. Success at last, he thought.

Sadie made her way through the crowded street to find the Doctor. The planet they were visiting now was called Tekram, and could best be described as just one huge shopping destination. Nothing but streets lined with various shops, and in front of the shops, lining the sidewalks, were booths and tents full of vendors. You could find anything and everything here, the Doctor had told her. Sadie scanned the crowds, looking for the familiar face. After several minutes she started to get frustrated.

"It figures that on a planet where you can find anything and everything, he would be the hardest to locate," she muttered. Finally, and somehow through the madness around her, she heard his voice. She followed it, and found him standing underneath a tent, arguing with the vendor.

"This is NOT an antique," he was saying. "I should know! It's only twenty years old!"

"It is, sir," the vendor replied. "We've begun going by Earth guidelines." The Doctor's eyes widened.

"You have got to be kidding me," he exclaimed. "Have you ever been to Earth? Do you realize how backward, how inane, how completely and utterly-" At this point, Sadie coughed loudly, alerting him to her presence. The Doctor immediately froze, and looked down at her. Sadie gave him a pointed look. "Right. Lovely antique you have there!" The Doctor spoke quickly and then steered Sadie in another direction. "So, find anything interesting?"

"Just a book," Sadie replied, making a mental note to have a discussion with him later about the vendor incident. "The clerk was awfully nice and he let me have it for free."

"Oh, that's nice! It's amazing, isn't it, how you can find good people anywhere in the universe?" The Doctor said, stuffing his hands in his pockets as he strolled along. Sadie knew the signs. He was getting ready to go off on a tangent, and the only thing she could do was just smile and nod as he jabbered on and on.