Among true friends (Wynn, tags any)

[Wynn Sumner]

Wynn arrived at the comic book shop a few minutes early, since the boss was on vacation he had the pleasure of opening. He parked his scooter and chained it up and unlocked the door and went in. After disarming the alarm he set about his usual morning duties, counting the registers for the morning shift, boot up all the computers and read over the daily email, his job was set, he'd be filling all the online orders that had come in over night.

The time had come to open, he turned the lights on and started a printout for the orders to be filled then unlocked the door for the business day.

He was trying not to think about the horrible thing he had done to Haley but as the song said 'She had it comin, she had it comin, she only has herself to blame...' but it was done in black and white. He knew it was the right thing then why did he feel like such a heel about it?

In came the usual assortment of kids, collectors and the curious. He never pushed them into buying anything, sure it would mean more hours but he thought people should enjoy their time browsing.

He started in on a online order when he noticed someone who looked a little lost. He put on his best smile and approached them "Hey what can I find for you today?"

[fryn]

Chance and a good sprinkling of fortune had seen Takumi find the store he'd been seeking. He'd scoured the streets a few times but as that had happened whilst riding his red Vespa he hadn't been unduly put out. In fact, the adventure had been all the more interesting as he'd discovered parts of town that he hadn't known existed... Not until this morning.

He'd found the comic store listed in a small leaflet that had arrived with the morning mail onl yesterday. It had boasted a large assortment of magazines, comics nd... to his utter delight... manga. Possibly not in Japanese or all that recent but still... it was *manga*!

And so he braved the hefty winds and managed to at least stay free from rain. The skies were riddled with clouds, though, making his return trip a little less certain.

He parked the Vespa alongside another scooter and tugging his jacket down a little he headed inside...

... only to grind to a halt as he faced a very alien environment. No otaku paradise as he was used to back in Osaka. Instead he faced an array of bewildering covers. Some with sports on them... others with craftwork... and another... He blinked. Hello Kitty? Things were looking up for sure.

He looked left and then right before glancing left for a second time.

"Hey what can I find for you today?"

Thank goodness for a friendly face and Takumi returned the boy's smile. "Ohayu... I am looking for manga," he replied. And he'd be back to flick through that Hello Kitty magazine before he left the store! "Can you point me towards it, please?"

[Wynn Sumner]

"Sure no problem." Came an enthusiastic reply from Wynn. "Its right over here." He lead him past various boxes of X-Men comics, assorted titles, even some for younger readers.

"It's so popular we had to give it its own section." There were a few kids in there looking them over and some who were wrapped up in it. "Any titles you were looking for?" He picked up a title. "'Deathnote' has been very popular lately thanks to the DVD that had come out recently." There was the customer service kicking, recommend titles for someone. "I've been curious about manga but get confused on how to read it." He added laughing slightly.

"Until I started working here the only things I knew of were 'Pokemon' and 'Sailor Moon' and those were only the cartoons. I had no idea they even had used them in book forms." He leaned on one of the shelves.

Wynn thought about asking what else there was out there, clearly there had to be more than they sold at the store. "Anything you'd recommend to someone new to the maga world?" It was a good way to make the small talk and pick up on a few titles as well.

[fryn]

Takimi barely glanced at the more traditional comic books, his attention firmly fixed on the far corner. The one that bore books with writing he recognised. Sure, their titles were also translated into English but the Kanji script was a welcome addition.

<<<Ahh... so... Desu Nōto," he said with a nod and a smile as he took the Deathnote book from the other boy. "It is a good story," he added. "It is here in a movie?" He'd seen the original back home, of course, but would definitely enjoy watching the western version. "It is easy to read," Taki added. "You just start at the back and work across the pages to the front." He flicked open the front cover. "See? You get a warning not to start here," he added with a grin. "It spoils the whole story if you do," he said with a wink.

"As for what I would... ah... recommend to you. Definitely not Pokemon!" He raked his eyes over the shelves. "Aha!" he exclaimed and he shot out a hand to grasp one particular book. "Sayonara, Zetsubou-Sensei... You would like this one perhaps." The cover depicted a bespectacled man with a noose around his neck." It is funn," he added as he read the Eglish title. "Goodbye, Mr Despair," he said slowly. "Yes you should try this series. Also any Dōjinshi perhaps. Comics done by small publishers. Amatuers," he tried to explain.

"I am looking for issue 5 of 'Kami no Mizo Shiru Sekai'... If it's only in English that's also fine as I am trying to learn your language still. Or 'Pandora Hearts'... aah there it is..." He scooped up the manga comic book that showed a pretty grotesque half human half rabbit figure on its front. "You have a good choice of manga," he said to the boy.

[Wynn Sumner]

"I haven't seen the movie myself but I saw ads for it, I heard mixed reviews about it. The die hard fans all complained about it but those who maybe heard of it or read the first couple of books enjoyed it. I've seen a few episodes and the animation just astounds me, makes my drawings look like grade school work!" Wynn laughed.

"I pretty much avoid Pokemon, unless its a real young reader who knows the animated series." Wynn examined the cover. "Goodbye Mr Despair," he blinked, sounded like how his life was going at the moment. "Will look this over, as well as the other title." After all it was good to be in on the trend.

"Kami no Mizo Shiru Sekai" Wynn repeated as he wrote the title down. "I haven't a clue as to what it means but let me look it up here."

Wynn's fingers danced across the computer nearby. "Ahhh 'The World Only God Knows' its nice having an interpeter on here sometimes!" He scanned over the screen. "Looks like we have it on order right now which should be here by Tuesday or Wednesday of next week or if you really need it now, I can make some calls and see if anyone else has it. Personally, I'd wait cause I can add your name to the computer here and when it comes in, you'll have a copy in your hands."

"I'll let the upper management know you like the collection, the more they hear the better!"

[fryn]

"You are mangaka?" asked Takumi in increasing interest. "Manga artist? I would be honoured to see your drawings... if you would show me..." He listened to the boy as he checked on the delivery date for 'Kami no Mizo Shiru Sekai', nodding in approval when he told him it was due in early next week.

"Domo arigatou," Taki thanked him. "I would very much like you to add my name." He tilted his head to one side. "I will make a list... of the other popular manga and bring it to you here... so that your management knows what is popular in Japan." After all, if it was popular there it was sure to be the same way here in America in time. Manga looked to be picking up all over the world... Something for which Takumi would be for ever grateful.

"I will take this one now, though." Takumi picked up a copy of 'Kai Doh Maru'. "... aaand..." He shot the boy a grin. "This." He added the Hello Kitty magazine to his purchase. "Harô Kiti' is very... ah.. popular back in Japan, too." If Takumi had scored any 'cool points' they were surely lost now. He half considered saying the comic was fot his little sister but his deep and dark secret would be out soon enough anyway... More so if the pier had any gashapons that sold the small toy capsules.

He shrugged and smiled ruefully. "I should leave my phone number? For 'Kami no Mizo Shiru Sekai'? Or I should phone you here instead?" Takumi wasn't at all sure how things worked in the USA but didn't want to miss out on his copy!

[Wynn Sumner]

"I guess you could say I'm an artist," Wynn replied proud that a new person had an interest in his work. "I haven't tried any thing with manga yet. I still do the traditional looks but I'm always willing to try something new when it comes to art."

The thought of says 'Mr. Roboto' after the teen had said 'Domo arigatou' had crossed Wynn's mind but he didn't know if he'd be offended or know what it meant. "My pleasure, the more a person spends the more hours I get which means the sooner I can get a car and not use the scooter any more." Even though he loved riding the Vespa. "The list would be great and even if we can't get it to sell regularly we can try and special order titles for people." That probably made no sense to anyone listening but Wynn knew what he was talking about. He didn't say anything about the 'Hello Kitty' magazine, after all what people bought was their business. "Oh yeah Hello Kitty is a phenomenon! I know someone who did their room in the theme. The only that disturbed me was the use of pink but then in America they really aim her for young girls."

"Either way, though if you need to do an order again we can find you in the system with your phone number."

[fryn]

Takumi wouldn't take his fondness of Hello Kitty to that extreme but he knew many girls back home who had. "Your scooter... It is the same kind as mine," he stated. "I think it will be some time before I try to learn to drive here in America. The cars go so fast!" Osaka, while a city, was a lot slower paced... at least in the region where Takumi had lived. "And you drive on the wrong side of the road," he added with a grin. Taki had learnt that the hard way the same day the Yoshino family had arrived in California. He wouldn't make the same mistake again and counted himself lucky that he hadn't hit anyone.

"My phone number..." He dug into his jacket pocket, frowning a little. Taki tried his other one and when that came up empty as well he threw the boy a wry shrug. "No... it is here..." he rummaged in his jeans pocket and drew out the Sony Ericsson with a flourish. The keys bore kanji symbols and was one he'd brought with him from Osaka. "I have yet to put my new number into my brain," he explained. Taki called up his own number and handed the phone across so that the boy could make a note of it. While that happened Taki forraged once more in his pockets, pulling out some crumpled dollar notes and a handful of coins. He picked a few jelly beans out of the coins and pushed them back into his pocket.

"What is it that I owe?" he asked. The trip to the comic store had been very much worthwhile and Takumi had a feeling he'd be back soon enough. Definitely early next week to collect his order...