A couple roads off of the main shopping area was a little bright blue shop called the Madman's Box. The inside contained shelves and aisles of books and other things. There were a few tables for clients to use, crayons and paper in the middle for young ones. It was like a coffee-less cafe. The ceiling was covered in little star decals and the walls in the occasional child's drawing. Despite it's slightly off-putting name, a brilliant and more than generous man owned it. He was young, just out of an early graduation from the University of London, with a flop of stylish brown hair and a pair of ridiculous suspenders. He looked like the kind of kid you'd find sipping chai tea in a cafe, reading a worn book and taking pictures of his biscuits with his bow ties and thrift-shop button ups. That wasn't too far off, minus the chai and pictures. The Madman's Box was a bookstore, everything from Dickens to Roth, but he also stocked up on anything he thought was cool. Hats were cool and bowties were cool, along with other miscellaneous things he'd picked up on weekend travelling.

The strange man went by the Doctor. He got the nickname as a kid, and it had stuck through his life. He thought it was much less boring than his real name, John Smith. He ran his bookstore with two friends, Vastra and Jenny. They ran the shop when he so fancied a trip elsewhere. They were his closest friends and the only people he had. When he was twelve he had been adopted by a professor who saw potential in the boy and moved from Leadworth to London. The Professor had died when he miscalculated some chemicals in his lab when John was 19 and in his second year of university. After that, the Doctor got his own flat and opened his shop under it when he graduated at 21.

The Doctor was where he spent most of his time, behind his counter, feet up on it, reading a good book and munching on fruit. He greeted his customers, looking up only when he heard the bell on the door chime.

"Ahh! Good afternoon, Mrs. Connolly," The Doctor stood to greet the elderly woman as she approached his desk.

"Johnny," She greeted him sweetly, having always refused to call him by his nickname. "Sweetheart, I need your help. My little Tommy is visiting with his mother Rita and I'd like to get a new baking book to do with him."
The Doctor stood with a smile and held out an arm for the woman, "Right this way."

The old woman had rapid question about each book and the Doctor readily answered her. He missed a customer entering, but they didn't seem to need his assistance seeing as they didn't call for him. After the woman was satisfied, she paid him in cash and was on her way.
"See you soon, Mrs. Connolly," He waved fondly as he opened the door for her.

The Doctor went back towards his stool when he heard little noises behind a shelf on the left. He peeked back behind the shelf to find a petite woman on her tiptoes trying to reach a copy of 'A Tale of Two Cities' that not even he would be able to without his ladder. He chuckled a bit.

"Can I help you?" He inquired from behind her and she turned to him with a start.

"Oh my stars! You could at least announce yourself you know!" She looked at him with bright honey brown eyes. He noticed she had just a slight dialect shift, Lancashire. "You could take someone's eye out with that chin."

He smiled, "I'm sorry. You just seem like you need a bit of help."

"Just because I'm short-"
"With all due respect, miss, I think we'll need a ladder for that copy," He pointed to the little library wheelie ladder he loved so much. "I can help unless you rather get it yourself."

"I'm wearing a dress," She replied, arms crossed. "You can grab it. Eyes front, soldier."

He chuckled, wheeling the ladder over and replied over his shoulder as he climbed, "Mine always are."

She smirked up at the handsome man. She didn't really mind his help now. He seemed a dork with his bow tie and suspenders, albeit a charming one, but his bum wasn't half bad. "Mine aren't."

He could hear the sass from where he was. Lancashire and sass. He reached up for the book and his fingers froze a moment. His face flushed as he realized what she meant by that. He quickly grabbed the novel and scrambled down, earning a stifled giggle from the brunette. He tried to hide his flustered face as he handed the book off.

"Thank you," She smiled up at him.

"Doctor," He introduced himself.

"Doctor who?"

He laughed, never getting tired of that question. "Nothing after. Just the Doctor."

"What kind of rubbish name is that?" She challenged him.

"An old title," He crossed his arms right back at her, fighting back the urge to grin at this difficult girl.

"Suit yourself," She brushed past him with a smirk, towards the counter.

He followed swiftly and sat behind his counter. "So is that all, miss?"

"I was actually wondering if you've got and books on travel. Maybe Paris or Scotland?" She folded her hands over the counter.

"I haven't got any travel books on hand, but I could order in if you like. I have a lovely associate in Glasgow named Strax. Actually, he's not very lovely at all. He's a bit of a potato."

She gave a short breathy laugh. "Really, that's okay."

"Oh. Well, what are you interested in?"

"Stirling castle," She answered quickly.

"Ahh, common answer tourist attraction," He shook his head lightly and laughed.

"Oi! I've done my research and I know exactly what I'd like to see," She gave him that challenging look again. He found himself attracted to the defiance. "It was built into a mountain and there are chains of vaults underneath that I'd love to be able to explore. Medieval architecture is absolutely brilliant. When did we get so lazy with wood and plastic?"

The Doctor watched her carefully as she spoke. It was clear that she yearned to travel and see greater things. There was a little spark in her eye that made her seem more intelligent than the simple things she was saying.

"You still listening, Chin Boy?" Clara was looking at him with a raised brow now, a transition he'd missed while stuck in thought.

"Yes, sorry," He blushed a bit and glanced down to the computer to type an email to strax. "So I never did get your name."

"Is there a name for total screaming genius that sounds modest and a tiny bit sexy?" Clara smirked at him, lips curled up on one side.

"I already told you, my name's Doctor," He quipped back with a bit of suave he didn't know he had in him.

"Well then, Doctor," She raised her eyes to meet his, noticing how green they were. "If you are so brilliant, you can figure out my name."

She handed him eleven dollars and took the book from the counter and spun on her heels to leave. He stood up as if to stop her, but he thought the better of it and sat back down. He barely knew the woman. He didn't see, but she bit back a smile as she heard him stand and sit. She opened the door and turned back to him, "See you around maybe."

"Yeah, maybe," He waved and she turned to leave.

Author's note: Hey guys! I'm going to give this little AU a shot! I hope you like it. Review and let me know.