Steel Resolve (Prologue Season)

Episode 1: The Steel Son Arrives

"Excuse me, mam? Do you know where I can find some ice-cream?" Sam asked? He wasn't too used to having to raise his voice; but in the middle of the afternoon at FoodieMart Japan, he had no choice. Especially when crowds of people would storm this mini-mart in the heart of the city precinct daily. 

"Ah yes, yes. You look for Mochi, no?" an elderly Japanese store clerk asked. Sam could tell that this clerk was tired, potentially from working long hours from tending the store and entertaining either locals or tourists such as himself. It had been 3 years since the day he revealed his more inventive mind to his father at PNC Park, and today started a brand new journey for himself and his city he called family.

He cleared his throat and tried again. "No thank you, mam. Just some ice-cream." He politely deferred. The lady just gave him a confused, scrunched look in response. He couldn't tell whether the lady couldn't hear him due to the crowd noise, or if she really brought into the ancient myth that American tourists were stupid. 

"No no no, you want Mochi!!!" She shouted, to try and get her voice above the crowd noise. If Sam wasn't used to crowd noise from the busy city of Pittsburgh, then he would've just panicked and tried to compete with the noise himself. While he knew that sometimes it was necessary to raise his voice in these specific scenarios, it was never a good idea to let his emotions escalate or the moment control his tone or the way he carried himself. 

"It's ok, mam. I get you're very busy today. I might try some Mochi later, but I'm gonna go find some i..."

As Sam turned to leave, he felt the elderly woman grab on his sleeve and attempt to drag him down as if she were a beggar on the street. He turned to see tears form in her eyes as she knelt and tugged on the back of his shirt. 

"No no no, I promise you like the Mochi. Ok? Mochi very good for you. The soul food of Japan, it is." she pleaded with him. Sam looked at the woman with compassion, but a look of confusion spread across his face as well. 

"I know Japanese people are a little different, but is she ok? Also, when did she start turning into Yoda?" Sam thought to himself, as he pondered his next course of action.

"It's ok, Ms. Madarachi. I think this tourist is just looking for other things first." Sam turned to see a rather skinny, yet strong looking gentleman. His hair was light blonde and looked kind of like a lion's mane stemming from all directions. His blue eyes seemed to indicate that he too needed to get his shopping done as well; but was open to helping whoever needed it. His face was almost like a downward trapezoid somewhat, and he also observed that he had a very strong jaw about him. Honestly though, if a quicker conclusion needed to be made; Sam figured that the tired gentleman was winded, but still happy and willing to help Sam out in this increasingly awkward situation.

"Ms. Madarachi was trying to tell you about her Mochi ice-cream. It's a yummy treat made of a special cake dough and has ice-cream inside. Almost like a dumpling of sorts." the gentleman explained. Sam's mouth opened slightly and then he smiled and nodded to verify that he understood the concept. Then he looked back down at the woman, who was now gently hugging his legs. While not as desperate as she seemed but a few brief seconds ago, she was still holding onto him with a firm yet gentle grip. "That poor woman's been working hard to sell her treats for about 20 years now because her dream's been to make her own Mochi stand. She never had the chance because she's been busy helping raise her children and grandchildren. And now, she's hoping that somehow, if enough people support her cause; she'll be able to die happy, finally doing something for herself after helping others for so long."

The stranger's words permeated through his head like water into a sponge. Having taken his discussion into account, he finally deducted the reasoning for this seemingly crazy woman's desperate attempt to coerce him into buying a treat he had never heard of. "She wasn't crazy, her dreams must have been hanging on by a thread. Had this guy not stopped me, I would've missed out on a chance to do what I came here to do in the first place." he mentally scolded himself before snapping back to attention seconds later. "Did you make those treats yourself?" he finally thought to ask, wanting to clarify and confirm the situation before potentially being conned off in his first day in Japan. Seeing how wearily the woman nodded, and combining that with other bits and pieces of information around him; he knew there was only one logical conclusion.