I'm writing this story at the same time as I work on "Reporting Kidnappers". That one will take longer time as I'm still waiting for inspiration to come the mean time, I will update this story as much as possible! It's the first story to the "Horror Reporter" series, so enjoy! :)

It all started with one shop.

Dave Arson, reporter of College Today, which was the weekly newsletter of the United College California in Los Angeles, stopped to stare at the shop. So did his friends, Stan Michaels and Jimmy Schneiz. It seemed old and gloomy from the outside, even though the sun was beating down fiercely. A skull, old books and other weird stuffs were displayed at the window. A couple of fake bats and a full moon hung in it too. Over the shop, the sign read in curvy old-fashioned writing:

Gastrange's Repository

"That's it? No flashy lights and colors?" Stan spoke up. He was commenting on the plain dirty sign.

"I never saw this store in my whole life," Jimmy remarked. "It is in downtown though."

"It must be new then," Dave said.

Stan snorted. "You call this new?"

Ignoring Stan, Dave leaned over to read the paper that was stuck on the door. " 'Need something, even a fortune telling? Meet Gastrange now!' Sounds fancy."

"Looks like antiques to me, though," Jimmy said, sticking his face in the window to see. "Yuck!" he coughed, wiping his dirty face.

"But it sounds cool," Stan piped. "How about we go in and check it out? It would be nice for our paper."

Jimmy looked at him as if he was crazy. "Yeah, like Tarrison would like it."

"You're not on the staff, Jimmy," Dave pointed out. "Besides, I think it will be fun. Maybe there's something I can get for Aurora."

Jimmy had no choice but to give in. He knew his friends.

Dave was the star reporter. He was bright, cheerful, and easy-going. He could smile for days, and it usually lightened other people's day. He was also adventurous, and his curiosity could get the better of him.

Stan was the photographer and partner to Dave in the club. He was also cheerful and a good joker. He had dirty blond hair and little freckles on his face. He was a professional in photography, and had won many awards out of it. He was also good in sports, especially football, even though he didn't look like a player.

Jimmy was in the computer club. He wore spectacles, had light brown hair and was a genius. He aced in computer and science, and could make it as a scientist or even an inventor one day. But he wasn't fond of adventure, and preferred to stay indoors and study molecules.

When Dave pushed the door open, a bell jingled over it. He stepped in, and immediately he felt a breeze ruffling his dark hair. His blue eyes squinted to see under the single light bulb. It was dark, and he noted that the place needed cleaning. There were many shelves filled with odd stuffs. A wind chime hung over his head, clanging noisily.

He and his friends walked over to the counter, where there wasn't anyone behind it. A skull sat on it, staring its eye sockets at him. Stan walked over to inspect a fish tank next to the desk, and his eyes widened when he saw small fishes with extremely sharp teeth tearing away meat at the bottom of the tank.

Jimmy took a book out of the shelf and opened it. He almost screamed when a rat suddenly pounced out of it, squeaking madly. It was then he realized that the page was about rats.

Dave pressed the bell on the counter. "Mr. Gastrange?" he called. "Is anybody here?"

"Yes, I'm here."

Dave looked around to see who was speaking. But no one was there. He peeked behind the counter. A rat scurried by in the empty space. He was puzzled, until he noticed the skull. It opened its mouth and said, "Hello."

Dave couldn't help yelling. He retreated a little, and ran into someone. He and Jimmy screamed at the same time, and realized that they had bumped into each other.

"What are you screaming about?" Dave and Jimmy turned to see Stan walking up to them. "Are you scared or something?" he asked with a smirk.

Dave was about to reply, when the skull started talking again, "Speak for yourself, young man."

Stan screamed, jumping to Dave's side. "T-That s-s-skull t-talked!" he stuttered.

"M-Mister Gastrange?" Dave asked with a slight tremor in his voice.

"I don't know about mister, but I'm Gastrange." This time, the voice didn't come from the skull.

The curtain behind the counter was pulled apart, and a woman stepped out. She was in her early-forties, and looked like a gypsy. She had a scarf tied over her head, and she wore strange garments. She had a purple cloak that had stars and moons on it. She had on star earrings, and she wore many bracelets around her wrists and rings on almost every finger.

"My name's Madam Magdalene Gastrange," she said in a misty voice. "It's pronounced Ge-strang-gee, not Gas-strange. People make that mistake all the time when they aren't Gypsies. How may I assist you on this fine day?"

"Um, we're just looking around," Dave replied awkwardly. "Did you just move in, Madam Gastrange?"

"Yes," she answered, looking around at her messy store. "Please, call me Madam Magdalene. Everyone does. It would be nice to get rid of some of these stuffs too. They are quite a trouble to me on my journey."

"You travel?" Dave asked, sounding interested.

"Yes," Madam Magdalene droned. "It had been a good hundred years, but I just need to settle down and catch up with some things that are on my list."

Dave exchanged odd glances with his friends. "Uh, hundred years, did you say?" Jimmy asked nervously.

"You don't believe me, do you?" she said, narrowing her eyes at Jimmy. Jimmy shrunk behind Dave, trying to hide himself.

"It must be very interesting," Dave said with a nervous laugh.

"Hey, look at that," Stan suddenly spoke up. He was pointing at some pretty bells dangling over the counter. They had shiny glitters over their golden surface, looking old lonely.

"They're beautiful," Dave remarked in fondness. "Aurora will love it."

"Well, if you want it, you can have it for two dollars," Madam Magdalene said, taking it down and carefully handing it to Dave. "But I must warn you- --never ring it. If you ring, something horrible will happen."

"Yeah, sure," Dave replied, slightly incredulous. "As long as Aurora likes it, I will do anything. Thanks." He paid the woman, then pocketed the bell. "Come on, let's get back to college," he said to his friends.

"I can't believe I'm saying this, but I'm glad you said that," Stan remarked. He and Jimmy rushed out as quickly as they could ahead of Dave.

Dave was about to leave when he heard Madam Magdalene speaking in a misty voice. "Farewell, Dave 'll meet again."

Dave looked over his shoulder in disbelief. "How did you---" But there was no one there anymore. The skull sat on the counter, grinning at him. Dave shook his head, and left.