Room 5: The Giftshop - A large room that looks as much like an exhibit of miscellaneous treasures as it does a well-organized giftshop. There are no prices, and while there doesn't seem to be any true organization system, the room doesn't appear the least bit cluttered. Shelves climb toward the ceiling, each crowded with objects ranging from beautiful to baffling. There is no shortage of curiosities--trinkets, jewelry, instruments, tools, books, stones, toys--just about anything can be found here in some form. Nothing here was meant to stay for long, and visitors who came early in the evening might find a very different stock by the end of the evening. At the front of the room, and within perfect sight of both the door and every aisle, Almadel stands watch behind a gorgeous desk. The room is well lit and has a large window along the back wall, allowing an extensive view of deep space. Unlike the other exhibits, there doesn't seem to be a ban on snacks, as Almadel has a bowl of strange candy, and a tray of individually wrapped pastries that look oddly similar to Cosmic Brownies.
If he hadn't walked into the room and seen it for himself, Gimle would never have imagined that the Gift Shop might compete against the other rooms the museum had to offer as something to be impressed by. He had been imagining something similar to the average museum gift shop, stuffed with silly little souvenirs. Small knick-knacks, space-fashioned shirts and sweaters, refrigerator magnets and keychains, plushies of some of the exhibits on display—and all flavored by some logo that represented Almadel or his museum.
Boy, did he get that wrong.
Thank goodness for his almost compulsive desire to "complete" things.
After closing his mouth, which had fallen only slightly agape as he stepped into the space, Gimle started down a random aisle. He took in as much as he possibly could, doing his best the entire time to look with his eyes and not with his hands. That was in part because he wanted to be respectful, but also he wasn't sure what he might come across. What if something popped out of something and tried to attack him? Or blew up? Or worse? Thankfully he was too focused on browsing to think too hard about those sorts of possibilities. His brain had stopped at "be careful" and that was enough for him to keep his hands to himself.
Mostly. The instruments section had been particularly difficult, but he made it through. Worse than that was the collection of books, which he quite literally could have spent hours just browsing that section alone. And actually, it was his last stop before he made his way to Almadel at the very fancy looking front desk. The teen gave him a polite smile and bow of his head as he stepped up.
"Hi," he said, then paused to quickly clear his throat because he felt his voice threatening to break. "Sorry, excuse me. Um. Mr. Almadel. My name's Gimle. Thank you for the invite. Your museum is beautiful. And this gift shop is..." He paused again, eyes falling to the display of treats as he shopped around for a word. Eventually, he looked up again.
"I mean, definitely not like any gift shop I've ever been in. It's huge, for one!" Excitement crept into his voice as went on. "And the stuff isn't boring souvenirs like what you find at a gift shop at our museums back home. Everything here is a thousand times better. Oh, but I tried really hard not to touch anything! Um. Just in case. I hope I did okay, but– um." He came to a slow stop at that point, fidgeting with his hands as he tried to formulate his actual question.
"I noticed there weren't any prices, so. Um. Sorry. I feel like I missed something, but...is the stuff here just on display?"
The Space Cauldronn
