#!isamu

Upon hearing that voice, the old man’s face beamed in delight. “Plant!” he exclaimed, “Oh it’s so good to hear from you again! How are you? Oh, give me a moment to get your milkshakes.” Before long, he emerged with two green tea milkshakes. Just as he had made for them the first day. “If you ordered two, that means Metal is here too.”

Life mostly went on as usual for the old man.Pay the bills.Clean the shop.Live quietly until evening then the real work starts.Once that’s all over, he’d close shop.Once in a while he’d get some exciting visitors. But life otherwise was mundane.Today was not exactly one of those days.He heard the chimes and the footsteps.“Hello, welcome!”

Isamu knew he received a letter, but it wasn’t written in Braille. He had to call Shio over for some help.When he heard the contents, the old man beamed in delight.“I’m so glad to hear that they’re doing fine!” he exclaimed. “Oh, and Plant could write now. That’s a huge milestone for the boy. I’m so proud!”“The Metalkid seems to be improving...” Shio commented. “Have I told you about Reploids yet, Ojii-san?”“Oh no, no. You haven’t. Is that an other-universe term too?”“Er, yes.” It’s best to let the old man think so for now. “They’re robots with human free-will. They’re free to grow without Robot Master limitations.”“Fascinating! Wait, that means the brothers came from a different world? Well, well, now everything makes a ton more sense! Aaah, if only I knew this earlier. Maybe they would still be around.”The ninja didn’t think so. “I’m afraid not, Ojii-san. The bakemono would still consider them as foreign entities, and thus they can’t stay for long.”“So desu ka...” the old man frowned. “I suppose that part of anime logic applies too. I’ve heard plenty of stories that take that route. Visiting is fine, right?”“Yes.”“Then please tell them that they can come have a milkshake anytime! I miss them dearly and I’d love to catch up with them again. Oh, they don’t have an address. How are we supposed to pass the message?”As an old saying goes: when there’s a will, there’s a way. Shio replied, “I could ask around for help. But first, let’s record your message.”

“Ano… You’re Toshiyuki– Oil’s brother right…? Time?”Isamu heard the quarrelling, although it was too hectic to understand what they fought about.“Help is always good, but do you have serving experience? We get very busy in the nights. If you have good with calculations, I can assign you as a cashier.”

( improvedrelics ) Isamu asked what happened to the calligraphy student. Oh boy. Sooner or later he will ask. Shio tried his best to explain the situation without making it sound too ludicrous. ‘Traffickers’ to explain hunters. ‘Orphans’ to explain the children. Throughout the story, the old man listened with intent. Topics shifted from their condition to each child’s personality. Names kept vague for the man’s sanity. “I want to meet them,” said the old man. “Hmmm... especially that problem kid. You know that sometimes customers just need someone to talk to.” The ninjabot’s jaws went slack. “But but but he attacked me! I can’t trust him with you.” “Dear, dear Shio. People behave different when they’re out of home. As long they’re not drunk they should behave well enough. If you’re worried so much, you can stay in the living quarters upstairs.” It’s too late to change his mind.

Name: Isamu Akiyama Species: Human. Age: Mid 60s Family: Kelly Russell (wife, deceased), Masaomi Akiyama (daughter), Yuuta Akiyama (son). A kind and gentle blind man. He makes no discrimination against robots, humans or anything in between. Everyone is either a friend or a customer. He had converted his home into an Asian teahouse. Although he opens early for an occasional friend, most of his business concentrated in the night after-work crowd. Isamu had no idea that his teahouse became a meeting point for otherworldly robots. Although, he wouldn't mind it anyway. Strange visitors bring a small piece of adventure to his otherwise peaceful life. He believes that names mould a person. Typical robot names were considered too shallow for his tastes. If he had time, he will bestow a proper one to a robot guest.