65 years after the great world burning…
...our world practically looks the same. Well, almost looks the same. The eyewitness would notice many small differences between the two worlds for sure. At first glance, there would only be some uncertainty surrounding whether you were really in Tokyo now. There is a lack of bubbling car traffic on the streets, houses and parks are built on the highways, but trains still running. Second, you would also notice that there are nowhere skyscrapers and tens of storey buildings. Only three storeys of houses towering over your head and nowhere higher than the enormous amount of trees around them. If you had wings and flew up, you couldn't see a single trace of the buildings, just greenery everywhere.
Maybe even that wouldn't be suspicious, as you could be in one of the peripherial districts. Which would finally convince you that it is certainly not the beginning, but at the end of the 21th century, the iconic crossroad of Shibuya. The pedestrian's crossings are on their place, but they are instead of being on roads, crossing a big, green park, where kids are running around, lovers are kissing, and old people are playing chess, go and mahjong at tables under the trees.
Those people are rarely use the original crossroads, but a girl is still using, she is hurrying and pulling a floating handcart behind her on the white-gray stripes lined with blossoming plum trees, bulging cheerfully. The girl with the handcart is a pretty, elegant phenomenon. Her features are delicate and clean, as if she were a descendant of an old, noble family. This overall effect was slightly exacerbated by a wrench, which she used to tie her brown hair, as well as the oily palm prints adorning the back of her elegant dress. And what finally shook the idea of noble origin is the huge yawning she is released on the street corner. Then she shook her head to help herself remain awake, cast a smile on her face and turn into a side street.
Here, you must be amazed, for she has turned into a lively, crowded trading district. There isn't any remaining sign of the previous anime-past of the district. This place has become the centre of the metalworks and mineral oil sources. The Wreck Quarter now is full of young people bidding or yelling at each other. The shops holding the sale seemed to be like an ordinary shopping process right in the middle of an anthill. However, there is no mangas on the counters, but all sorts of electronic gadgets, semi-built or disassembled machines and robots, a higgledy-piggledy mix of new and used items. The crowds around the outdoor stalls is as great as inside the stores. The brown-haired girl doesn't get into the killing races, where people certainly got into fighting over a piece of metal at times.
She purposefully heads for a small sidestreet. The tiny, elegant shop, where she is stopping, is modestly hides at the foot of large, high-rise department stores, as if it would be invisible. Yet the door is open, a wind chime is ringing above the entrance, and two small flags are swinging the side with the inscription "Daisuke's second hand shop". A few, soft-spoken shoppers come here, and all of them is searching for exclusive items, and all of them appreciate the goods, the prices, and the discretion of the owner, the old Daisuke.
He is sitting behind the counter, and slowly sipping tea from a well decorated cup, when the girl cheerfully enters. The owner and his three sons are immediately cheering up the sight of her at the same time.
"Miss Runa!" The old man smiles at the girl. "Welcome to us! What can we serve?"
"I have brought a list. Do you keep these in stock for Uncle Daisuke?"
She hands over a piece of paper on the counter and three hands reached for it at once. It's a wonder the paper hasn't teared into small pieces under their efforts ! The three boys tramples on each other as they run back to the store's warehouse to get the requested goods.
"The Delivery Deadline is slowly approaching, right? " The old man squinted. "How are you with the invented piece?"
"There are only the final touches left."Runa replies with a smile, then adds with a sigh." If Kitchener hadn't replaced half of our reserved parts for a working AFS capacitor yesterday, we would be ready tonight!"
"You are lucky. It's pretty hard to get."
"That's why I have kept him alive!" She winked.
However, the conversation cut in two because of a little boy who brings a broken toy robot crying, and hands it over the counter. The old man thoroughly examine the faulty toy, then wraps some parts of mechanical pieces into a paper funnel and, after some guidance, hands it over to the child, who leaves reassured and smiling. Runa stares after him in some nostalgic mood.
"Youth does not change! It was like it was only yesterday when a little girl came here with her mother's broken chronometer!" Uncle Daisuke says also in nostalgic mood "Now you're ready for the National Invention Competiton!
" Yeah. " Runa laughs softly, on the memory. " It's a shame I couldn't fix that gadget until years later! My mom was able to see that works, at least."
Runa's beautiful, but tired face are clouded with the thoughts of her mother. Daisuke has suddenly regretted mentioning Runa's mother, who is vanished with Runa's father and sister in the outer world, researching the dangerous chimeras. Poor girl! She is an adult now, but the lack of the family is always painful. Daisuke is suddenly looking at his three, a bit clumsy sons with a big love.
"I see my order has already arrived!" Runa takes some strength from the necessary items, and smiles again.
"Miss Runa!" One of the boys flustered up to his ears calls her. "You will be the best!"
"We all barrack for you." The other boy stutters to her.
"Thank you very much!" The girl's mouth runs up to her ears, which makes the boys become even redder.
"Will we be lucky to see next time Miss Harper, too?" Daisuke's third son asks hopefully, and Runa's smile faded a little.
"I will sure send a shopaholic for shopping! Even she is one of the richest leader's daugther." She says to herself fumingly, but says only out loud. "I have to hurry now, the others are waiting! I'll pop in after the results are announced! With an extra large bottle of champagne!"
"Thank you very much for the champagne." Daisuke says after clearing his throat.
"I know, you love it." Runa smirks at him.
"It is a very rare delicacy! Who would have thought, that in the before times people drank it like water."
"There were everything better in the before times." Runa laughs to the man behind the counter, but in a low key, not to upset the old man. It would mean the prices running high.
But Daisuke didn't miffed at laughing on the before times, so the bill was fair. Runa gives him the money without haggling. After that, she lifts the carefully packed handcart and leves the store. She didn't get far. There was a loud big bang around the corner, then some swear words, that don't suit to a lady, and finally the angry Runa reappeared in the store.
"Uncle Daisuke!" She is panting for a while from the anger, before she could speak again. "Could you give me a shock absorber to the cart?"
"I'm sorry, miss, at this time of year it is in short supply even in my store…"
"Damn! I will kill Kitchener."
"Who said I don't have?" The old man, Daisuke smiles at the angry girl. " There is a price for everything. But I just have two pieces."
Runa could kill even Daisuke at the moment. She almost get a heart attack, when the opportunity of not having such an important item. The old man has asked the price well for the two shock absorber. Moreover it is not enough, Runa needs four of them. The old man is generous, and let her to leave the cart with the goods in his shop, while she is trying to get two more shock absorber to the cart.
Three hours later Runa returns to him, empty handed.
"There isn't a single one in the whole district! Not even a wrong one!"
" I told you, that it is in a short supply." Daisuke says to her in a comforting tone, and gives her a cup of tea. Runa drinks it in one gulp.
"How will I bring all of this to home?" She sigh.
"Well, I don't have more shock absorber, but for this I have a solution."
"What kind of solution?" Runa's curiosity has arised.
"Simple and easy. You, engineers are always overcomplicate things."
And the shopkeeper put an adhesive tape to the counter.