It was around 8 pm, the ideal time for dinner.

Yoshida Saiichi already had dinner served in front of him, but he did not really have much apetite. He was playing with the rice on his bowl using his chopsticks.

"It's bad to play with food you know?" Yoshida Mitsuki, his wife teased him.

"Ah, sorry about that." Being embarrassed, he stopped playing with food and continued eating.

"Honey, is everything alright? Is there something bothering you?" Mitsuki had a concerned look on her face.

"N-no its nothing, just a little tired from work."

"...Hun, we've been together for twenty years. Twenty six, if you also count the years we've dated. Even more if we consider our childhood days." Mitsuki sat on a chair beside her husband. She put one hand on his shoulder and looked straight into his eyes. "I know the difference between you being simply tired and being really worried about something.
...Its something about the office again, isn't it?"

Saiichi took a deep breath. Truly, nothing was ever hidden from his wife. He still remembers how she once managed to sniff out a different kind of perfume and deduced that he went to a hostess club. In his defence, it was his colleagues that took him there forcefully.

He took off his glasses and slowly rubbed between his eyebrows. "Its happening again, Mitsuki. I barely managed to escape it last year, I am not sure I'll be able to do it this time too."

Mitsuki frowned. "Another 'restructuring'? Just how much bad is your company doing to go through something like that twice in a row?"

"They are helpless. The Tennouji group has set their eyes on the company. Last year, I barely escaped from being laid off by working my ass off and licking others boots."

"And then you got a terrible fever but still refused to take a leave so I had to accompany you to work, yeah I remember." Mitsuki was really angry at his company that time. If it was not for her husband's pleas she definitely would have sued them.

"This year, the Tennoujis will probably take over the company. They have a preference for young employees with outgoing personalities. You know that I am... neither of those. I don't think I'll make it this year, Mitsuki. What am I going to do once I get fired? There's this mortgage and... Saki's high school... I... I-" Saiichi started hyperventilating. Mitsuki hurriedly brought an inhaler and held it in his mouth.

"Shushhhh... Its going to be alright. Don't panic, okay? We will definitely figure out something. Breath now. Easy. Easy."

It took a while for Saiichi to calm down. Mitsuki handed him a glass of water. He slowly gulped it down.

"...Saki isn't here yet?"

Mitsuki had a troubled expression on her face. "...I'll go and ask her again."

Saiichi watched his wife go to his daughter's room to call her for dinner. Their daughter, Saki, really takes after her mother in appearance. Unfortunately, she did not receive her mothers cheerful personality, rather got his introvert one, which also affected her appearance in return. Actually, his daughter is at least ten times more of an introvert than even him. She does not open up even to her parents. Mitsuki... while she was able to bludgeon her way into his heart, it was not really easy to do the same with her daughter.

In short, the parents and their daughter did not really get along.

Things got worse after she graduated from the middle school, after she had her panic attack. She inherited even that from him too. She became even more withdrawn.

At least he had an annoying childhood friend who never read the mood and forcefully dragged him out of his shell. She was like a sun to his dark bland world. He was really lucky to obtain that sun in his life.

But it became difficult even for her when the other party was her own daughter. She was old now, just like him. With age, as you become a mature adult, you learn to see the world as how terrible it really is, lose your naivety and childlike innocence. She couldn't be her cheerful naive old self anymore, not even in front of him. Even harder in front of her daughter who was 25 years younger than her.

Who will be there for his daughter, to bring her out of her shell?

Saiichi sighed. After dinner, he would go have a look at the job circulars.

'Sawashiro sensei, can I talk to you about something?'

Yoshida sent a message to the only person in his school who she managed to hold a decent conversation with. The person who was beside her at her worst moment a year ago.

The reply came sooner that expected. 'Of course dear. Is something bothering you again?'

'No, I just... I want to ask my mother again.'

'About makeup?'

'...Yes.'

'Finally deciding to have a high school debut after a year, hm? I must say I am looking forward to it.'

Saki felt her cheeks getting red. She totally forgot about how his classmates would react! A high school makeover after a year?!! She would be the talk of the whole school! Like in a humorous way! Everyone will make fun of her!!!

'Don't worry about others. If anyone asks you anything, just tell them that you are to attend an important family gathering and you have to put up a good appearance. At worst, you will have a rumor about having a fiance. Its not that bad.'

Saki stared at the reply. She should be surprised, but Sawashiro sensei was really good at figuring out what was going through the other's head. There came another message.

'But that's not what you want to ask me. You are worried about those voices again, aren't you?'

Saki decided that it was pointless to get surprised anymore.

'Yes. What if I start to hear them again?'

'Then it will be in your home where you have your parents around, right? Not in the middle of a road.'

'But'

'If you want to change yourself for the better, you have to take the step forward without any fear. Nothing like a good makeup to boost a woman's confidence. Don't worry dear, everything will be fine. I have faith in you.'

'...Thank you sensei, I'll try.'

At that moment, her mother opened the door.

"Saki, the food will get col-"

"Mom!"

"Wha?!" Mitsuki got a little surprised. Her daughter was looking at her with her eyebrows frowned and both of her hands clutched. Did she make her angry by suddenly opening the doors? Should she have knocked before entering? But she was her mother right? But Saki was not a chil-

"Mom, c-can you teach me h-how to do makeup?"

Sawashiro Kurona, whose original name would drive any lesser being to madness, took a slip from her special wine collection.

This wine was brewed by a level 77 [Elixir Maker] of another world. She was drinking a wine made by someone who had not reached the max level? Of course she was. In that world, it was extremely hard to gain levels, specially in production classes. Level 77 was the highest anyone achieved as an [Alcohol Brewer] and [Alchemist]. He was awarded with a unique class consolidation [Elixir Maker] because he was the first to figure out how to make a permanent youth potion. Unfortunately, that very thing got him hunted down by... everyone. The very fact that she was drinking his wine meant that she acknowledged his skills as well as Skills. Not many people earned that honor.

Content with her drink, she watched as Yoshida Mitsuki happily took her daughter to a beauty parlor, thinking that she finally had a chance to connect with her daughter, totally oblivious of the terrible fate that was about to befall them. Last year, she let the girl hear the voices of the concerned Watchers, buying her another year of peace in this timeline. But this year, she did not stop her. She was quite curious this time.

What would the Wild Cards do?

"Do not disappoint me, UBS31415926535, and you too, Gojima Kenzaburou."

happypanda

It is really interesting to dive into the psyche of Saki's parents, because I never really understood what drove them into doing whatever they did to her in the original.

Spoiler

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That piece of shit Hayato, I understand his motives. Those asshole classmates of hers? I have heard about cases of violence against homeless people, as no one would miss them if anything were to happen to them. But her parents?

Maybe there are some deep psychological stuffs I am not really knowledgable of. Maybe they did whatever they did just because the plot demanded so. Well, if they do not have a story behind them, I will make one.

[collapse]

Speaking of the Yoshidas, I am actually using characters from someone else's work, aren't I? It was not really my initial plan, though. It necessiates that I add the tag 'fanfiction', even though it would probably cover less than 25% of the total story. I wonder what I should do about it.