A retelling of Beauty and the Beast. Shirl visits an alien bakery and accidentally steals a Zib. She thought it was a free sample. The baker doesn't accept Earth money. Shirl must wash dishes to pay for the Zib. But there's no hot water. So, first she has to fix the alien engine before she can wash the dishes to pay for the Zib. The engine needs wires. The alien baker lets her go to the flying saucer to take wires out of her radio, that she needs to get home. She has the chance to escape, but she gave her word, and she will keep it. When she gets the engine working and the dishes washed, the baker takes her to an old broken-down rocket ship and tells her to fix it. Shirl is angry. How much work is that zib worth? But the rocket ship is not another chore. It's a gift. It's what Shirl has always wanted!