"That's thirty five Rands sir, our fine for late book returns is thirty five."
-Says a lad that looks aloof his twenties behind a book counter.
"That's quite a hassle, are you hustling me youngin?"
-A middle aged respectable man rebuttals whilst laughing to gest that he is messing with the lad.
The lad now finding the situation awkward since he can't read the room calls for the bookshop's owner.
"Pah Yang! Pah Yang!"
-The lad shouts in a softened manner filled with respect.
"
-Asks the old man in Chinese as he treads lightly down the staircase that seems to creak even when a fly lands.
-The two discuss the case in Chinese for about a minute, and the man waiting in front the counter is left in awe.
"Well I'll be." He says, "Yang how'd you get your Coon to talk like that?"
-Shaw loses his cool and as he is about to cuss the living hell out of the old hag, Yang holds out his arm to call him to a halt. He obliged.
"That is not how you speak to Children, sir."
-Mr. Yang humbly critiques.
"Ain't it now?" Says the middle aged man condescendingly whilst giving a mean stare to Shaw, and tossing the money that is due for the expired book rental across the counter.
"Make sure you kneel for that money boy! I work for this darn country."
-The man says as he leaves the bookshop.
"Pah Yang, why would you stop me and let him say all that? Let me at him!"
-Shaw says with tears streaming down his cheeks.
"Silly Child, you think I don't share empathy? I know your thoughts and I've been in your shoes, unfortunately, I had no one to stop me from fighting with my money, just so that I can eat my own rage!"
-Mr. Yang says whilst pulling Shaw closer to console him.
"He attacked what he believed Shaw not who you are or what you represent, he showed us both that he knows nothing about what a human is."
"Well he best not be getting used to it, my mood's afoul these days, I feel like punching something every now and then."
-Said Shaw whilst scratching his Afro.
"You practised Bah Gua Zhang?"
-Asks Mr. Yang.
"Yup, from 03:00 am to 07:30 sir!"
-Answers Shaw in a cheeky manner.
"Calligraphy?"
-Asks Mr. Yang.
"I started with Hanzì, now I'm tryna do Kanji sir!"
-responds Shaw blatantly.
"Chores?"
-Asks Mr. Yang.
"Well uh.. see about that Pah."
-Shaw replies with relent.
"See who should be punching who right now?"
-Mr. Yang refutes with a vein bulging above his right eye.
"On it! On it! I just had to tend to the Bookshop since you were occupied at the rooftop master!"
-Shaw states whilst revolving his index fingers like he's shying away from eye contact with a lion.
"On it! No excuses boy, you know why we don't skip chores right?"
"Right.." mutters Shaw.
"Ow? And why's that?"
-Mr. Yang leans in for the answer.
"Because you can't drown in a sea bed, when the sea weed if folded and packed."
-Shaw says doubtfully.
"Good, now attaboy!"
-Mr. Yang says as he pushes Shaw up the staircase with a smile on his face.
"Still doesn't make sense.." mutters Shaw as he displays a grumpy face.
"What was that?" Asks Mr. Yang.
"Nothing sir! I'm going! Spare me a few books as rewards!"
-Shaw adds with a grin.
Mr. Yang has been Shaw's guardian for eleven years now, and the boy has been nothing but the shimmer of light he needed in his life, how he found him is story of irony.
Nine years after the incident at the Poultry Asylum, a Chinese man in his 50s is seen sprinting to and froe his bookshop with new books, and doing deliveries. Everyone is fond of Mr. Yang, he has a prejudice problem, he mistakes his vanity for empathy, so he naturally believes that everyone rejoices in his presence, it wasn't always like that though, and that's what has been bothering him recently. He keeps seeing this young runaway, or so he believes, and the young lad as muddy and dusty as he is, he is always reading a clean copy of Oliver Twist, he's been seeing this young chap very often, it started off as something that occurred by chance, Mr. Yang usually takes his car out for deliveries, but since South Africa and refined Petrol have a complicated relationship, he decided to walk on a route he'd use with his daughter.
The route crosses through Central Park and landed him straight to the Suburbs, where he's most two beloved customers reside, Mr. Van Wyk and Ms. Khawula, so on the grandest day of their first encounter Mr. Yang was in a hurry and quickly got distracted by the newspaper delivery man, Stan, who had a lot to share. Mr. Yang polite as he was, couldn't find it in him to remain focused throughout Stan's rants, as his eyes wondered, he came across a muzzled picture, his eyes couldn't look away, his mind got so invested in this concept, till he convulsively cut off Stan's monologue, and asked him.
"Hey Stan, that boy, is that a fresh Oliver Twist book on his hands?"
-Asked Mr. Yang.
"Why, yes it is, did he nab it from your load Yang? If so then I'll show him two in quarrel!"
-Said Stan whilst folding his sleeves, looking determined to beat the hobo up.
"No, no it's nothing like that Stan, I wasn't carrying any Copy from Charles Dickens, that's HIS book, or at least that's how it seems to me. Trust my judgement for today, there's no need for native blood to be spilled over a colonizer's asset."
-Mr. Yang said whilst grinning as he concluded his cheeky speech.
"Well played Yang, Well played." Stan says as he trots back to his car claiming he still has a lot of newspapers to deliver, and Mr. Yang offered a delivery man's courtesy, as he headed towards the slum rat reading a classic piece of literature.
To test the boys composure he spooked him by acting like he doesn't speak English.
""你好,你的加什么?""
『 Hi, what's your name?』.
""对不起,我不会明白中文,我会说一只.""
『 I'm sorry, I don't understand Chinese, I speak a little bit of it.』
-Shaw replied, with an uncanny accent of Chinese.
"Uhh not bad, I see you're reading Oliver Twist."
-Conjuncted Mr. Yang.
"I didn't steal it, my mother left it for me."
-Shaw states with his demeanor changing.
"Calm down lad, I wasn't accusing you of such, I was just, amused."
-Said Mr. Yang.
"Confused by a hobo reading a novel?"
-Asked Shaw.
"Well, to be blunt, yes."
-Said Mr. Yang with shame and pitty written all over his face.
*Chuckles* *giggles* "That's understandable, some of us even do bible studies now."
-Shaw says in a sacarstic tone.
"Do you fancy a chat over a meal child?"
-Asked Mr. Yang.
"Am I meant to be an escort?"
-teased Shaw.
"No, you're meant to be a child with a bright future."
-says Mr. Yang with a full teeth smile of Ernest belief.
"Wait here a bit, I have to deliver these books I'll be back so we can have that meal boy, and I'll get to pick your brain, it seems intriguing."
- Mr. Yang said as he continued with his sprint.
〔Some Time Later〕
"Huh? I could've sworn the boy was conceding to my request to have a meal, so where did he go? I guess I did get delayed a lot by Van Wyk's political opinions, and Ms. Khawula always shows me her patio, and highlights how great she is at Banzai, *cackle* I bet she still thinks I'm Chinese… well anyway, let me be on my way, I'm fated to see that gifted Child soon anyway, I've never seen such an urge from Ether, it was as if he was a magnetic field, and he didn't even know.
「
『 E T H E R 』
Classification: Threads of reality, Antimatter, the last Element.
Field: Reality Warping, Time Travel, Clairvoyance.
Skill Ranking:
-1st Tier: Reality Warping: Teleportation [ minimum distance of 5km within a space you're familiar with.]
-2nd Tier: Reality Warping lvl 2: Summoning faes and hatchlings of demons | Teleportation [minimum distance of a Country + portal station creations of lvl 1 capability].
-3rd Tier: Reality Warping: Unique celestial awakening + Time bending, probability manipulation and elemental authority.
Teleportation[infinite range | unsighted tracking risks of falling to the Ethereal Plane].
-4th Tier: Tribunal Calling: Enhanced unique skill, and immortality.
Teleportation [all knowing spectator | capable of utilizing RESONANCE to scrape every tachyon in existence or outside existence]
World Forger | and Dream Tower management. 」