The Time Traveler's Guide to the Universe

World 1: Tokyo, Japan, The Beginning of the end

The sun had begun to set, casting long streaks of crimson and lavender across the sky, as Hana hung up her apron in her locker. She stared at its black lace ruffles outlined with white for a few minutes before she shut the cold metal door and checker her reflection in the bathroom mirror. Picking up her school bag, she left the maid café where she worked and set off down the slightly cracked sidewalk. The warm spring air crept up her legs and ruffled her skirt as it picked up, carrying the scents of the city along.

A ratty cardboard box squished in between a narrow weedy alleyway caught her attention. As she approached it, she saw a small white puppy sitting on several towels that padded the inside of the box. Its ears perked up as she stopped and crouched down in front of it. The dog gave her a friendly bark and wagged it's small tail, it's face lighting up endearingly. Hana managed a smile and stroked the dog's furry ears.

"Are you all alone too?" she asked it quietly and it replied with a bark. "I see; we are the same then." Hana pulled out her lunch bag and fished out the leftovers of the sandwich she had been saving for dinner. "Here, can't have you going hungry." She tore off a piece and offered it to the dog. The puppy lunged for it eagerly and polished it off in a few bites, begging for more. "I guess you can have the rest; I'm not really hungry anyway." Hana gave the rest to the dog and watched quietly as it ate. "I'd love to take you home but I don't know if my cat would like it…But I can't just leave you here, right? It wouldn't feel right; I wouldn't want to be left here all alone…"

Her eyes fell a bit and she grew silent, her heart suddenly feeling very heavy. The dog just licked her hand, unaware of the sudden change in mood. I wish, she thought, that I could leave this place and go someplace far away. This place…holds to many painful memories. Perhaps things would have remained as they had been if we had stayed in America. Is we hadn't moved here to Tokyo then maybe they'd still be here…Hana was too absorbed with her thoughts to hear a car pull up next to the sidewalk behind her. The car door opened then slammed shut and the dog growled angrily at something behind her. It was only then that she turned her head slightly to find a man dressed in a white suit standing over her. A black Mercedes Benz was running idly, its engine making a soft purring noise. It was obviously a car belonging to a rich person, probably the guy standing in front of her, she thought.

"Are you Hana Everdeen, the daughter of Rachel Everdeen, the eldest child of Marianne?" the man asked, removing his sunglasses and running his fingers through his platinum blonde hair.

How does he know mother? Who is this guy? "Why do you ask?" she questioned, growing alert. Hana picked up the growling dog and stood up, facing the man.

"Just answer the question: Are you Rachel Everdeen's daughter?" He said again, pulling out a manila envelope. He opened it and studied its' contents.

"And what if I am? Who are you and why do you need to know?" the man showed her the folder containing several files. Hana stiffened as she saw a photo of her paper-clipped to the papers.

"Your grandmother sends her condolences."

"It's a bit late for that; my mother has been dead for a year, along with the rest of my family. If she wanted to send her condolences then she should have done so at their funeral." Hana eyed the man with distrust.

"It was a tragedy, but it was not a priority." The man told her and Hana's jaw stiffened.

"Well I'm sorry that my grandmother feels that way. And what does my dear grandmother want with me? She disowned my mother and our family; she hasn't made contact with us since my mother married."

"Your grandmother wants to meet you and discus things. I am here to escort you to the airport. You will meet her in America where you will talk things over."

"And when does she expect me to leave?"

"By today. I will drop you off by your house to pick up a few things that you would like to bring, but you will not be needing much stuff."

"What about my house and school?"

"You will not be needing the house and as for school, you will be transferred to a school in America of her choosing."

"Who are you?" she demanded, thoroughly annoyed.

"I am your grandmother's ace butler Michel Williams."

"Alright, Michel," she said curtly, "I don't like you showing up here and suddenly telling me what to do."

"They are not my words. They are your grandmother's."

"Well I don't appreciate the woman who disowned our family telling me what to do."

"It's for your own good, she says."

"And what does she know what's for my own good? She doesn't even know about me."

"On the contrary, she knows everything about you and your family." Michel told her. "She always has."

"So she left us to fend for ourselves while watching us from the shadows?" Hana's anger was beginning to rise to dangerous levels.

"I cannot answer that." the butler's voice was monotone.

"Where was she when my family was killed? Did she know about that when it happened? It sounds like she did and yet she did nothing to help out her own family?" Hana snapped furiously.

"I cannot answer that."

"Can you answer anything?" Hana asked icily and he just stood like a tin soldier. "you know what, forget it. you can tell her that I will not becoming. That woman doesn't understand what it's like; I can't just get up and leave everything all for her sake. I have my own dreams to follow."

"There is a time when you must set dreams aside and take up what it needed of you."

"Oh? So that woman needs me? Why can't she ask her other sons and daughters and grandchildren?"

"You are the only surviving grandchild of her oldest child. Only you can inherit the family title."

"Sorry, but I have better things to be my grandmother's puppet." Hana told him and turned to leave.

"She thought you might say no so she told me to bring you by force if necessary." Michel reached out to grab her arm, but Hana saw him, ducked, and took off running. "Wait, Hana Everdeen!" he called as he pelted after her. She could hear his heavy footsteps thundering behind her,

"Not a chance!" she shouted as she took a hard left. Her heart was pounding as she ran, the puppy clutched close to her chest. The sidewalk ahead of her stretched on for what seemed like forever and was lined with tall office buildings. It was an unfamiliar street to her and at this rate she might end up lost if she wasn't caught first. Looking over her shoulder, she didn't see the man so she stopped to lean again a blank wooden fence. I can't keep this up for much longer. She thought, gasping for air. The dog in her arms licked her chin and whimpered. Maybe if I can find a police station, I can tell them that I'm being chased by a stalker. Then I might be safe.

Behind her, Michel's voice was growing steadily louder. Lafayel looked around for a place to hide but found none. This is bad. At this rate, I'll be caught. She spotted a walkway along the fence and peered in. sitting there in what she had thought was an empty lot between the office buildings, strangely out of place, was a quaint little house with a green roof and gold half-moons on the roof and doorway. Hana stared at it curiously, not knowing what to make of it. The lights in the house were on so she assumed someone was home. Trees dotted the front yard; two were plum trees in full bloom.

"Has there always been a house here? I thought it was only an empty building lot…Odd place for a house to be…" She glanced up at the towering office buildings with their glittering lights. The house had a double door with multiple windows on it and seemed to be inviting her in. "maybe I can hide here until that creepy butler goes away. I don't want to intrude on whoever lives here…Perhaps I can just hide in their yard." Suddenly, Michel appeared around the corner and, panicking, Hana rushed for the house. Without thinking, Hana reached for the door, but it opened on its own and she fell in.

"Oh great, now what've I done? I've entered someone's house without asking. I hope I don't get arrested." She thought as the door shut behind her. Standing up, Hana glanced around at the room she was in, the entryway she guessed. It was decorated in a traditional Japanese style. There were large butterflies painted on the soft yellow walls.

"A customer?" a small voice said, making her jump. "at this hour?" Hana looked down and saw two girls standing before her.

"A customer for the mistress." The other one said.

Wh-When did they get there? Customer? Hana thought and the puppy barked at them. The girl on the left was dressed in a maroon tailcoat with tiny devil wings in the back and matching shorts. Her hair, which was tied up in two ponytails on the side of her head, was a baby blue color and curled almost all the way to the floor. Her eyes were blue and stared up at her curiously. The other on the right was wearing a white dress with tiny angel wings on the back by her waist and had a red ribbon tied around her middle. Her hair was short and pink with two small buns on the top. Her eyes were pink with an equally inquisitive look.

"A customer for the mistress!" they both said cheerfully.

"Who? Me? Oh no, I just happened to pass by and I came here to hide because I was being chased. I'm sorry for intruding and I think I'll go now. This is all a misunderstanding, purely coincidental." She apologized.

"There is no such thing as coincidence." An unseen voice said from deep inside the house. "Your coming here was something that was meant to happen; it was inevitable."

"Inevitable?" Hana repeated.

"Maru, Moru, bring the guest here."

"Bring the guest, bring the guest!" They sang and dragged her along. The puppy jumped out of her arms and scampered around eagerly.

"Wait a minute!" she protested as she was pulled further into the house, her shoes slipping off at the entrance. "What is this place?" The girls led her to the back where a table and chairs sat. The shoji doors were opened to reveal the now darkened garden.

"Sit, sit!" the girls urged her and she sat down warily, unsure what to make of her situation. Hana sat, looking around the room.

"Uh…excuse me…I'm sorry for the intrusion, but what is this place? I'm really sorry for bursting in like this…" Hana said to the empty room.

"This place is a shop." The red doors on the other side of the room slid open and a tall slender woman dressed in a red kimono stepped out.

"A shop? That sells what?" Hana asked as the woman walked over and sat across from her. Hana met her maroon eyes and watched her carefully as he long black hair settled along her back.

"Wishes. This shop sells wishes. I can grant any wish, for the right price that is." The woman smiled as Hana's eyes got wide.