SayakaQuest: Trauma is a Thing

[TheOneMoiderah]

OOC: Now imagine what happened to Miho in canon.

[x] HUG MOM. OH GOD HUG MOM.

The door creaks as you slowly open it. "Mom?"

You can hear something faintly as you walk forwards through the hall. As you do...it begins growing louder. It's sobbing. When you reach the living room, the TV's been smashed, the stand holding is destroyed, the couch seems disheveled, and a piece of porcelain has been broken. On the ground, you can see a broken frame with glass shards all around it, covered in a little bit of blood. You can see your mom right above it, teeth clenched. You can't see her eyes, but you can see tears streaming down her face.

You choke a little. "...M-mom?"

"I..." She sniffs. "...Everything's fucked up. I fucked up by letting him go and not being there when I should have been and-!" She lets out another sob. "I'm jobless now. I'm fucking jobless!" She looks at you. "And...it...you could have...!"

You don't let her continue. You immediately run over to give her a hug, and you ignore the pain when you step on some of the glass shards. You wrap your arms around her, and she sobs over your shoulder. "I...why did you go there?!" She says. "You...you could have...!"

"We wanted to see if it was true." You say, quietly. You blink away some of your own tears. "The explosion happened before we got there."

"Y-you could have died!" She says. "It could have gone off again!" She's a mess. "Y-you-!" She pulls you away and puts her hands on your shoulders. "I c-can't-!"

You can see her clearly. She looks worse than she's ever been, with red eyes, tears streaming and hair disheveled. When she wipes her eyes, you can see blood on her knuckles.

[OPTION SELECT]​

[] Keep up the hug.

[] Keep talking to her.

[] Wait until she calms down.

[] Apologize.

[] Go back to your room.

[] Go to sleep.

 

[TheOneMoiderah]

[x] Keep up the hug.

You keep up the hug, and all the while, you just stay there as she sobs over your shoulder. You can feel her crying, as she hugs you tightly.

"I'm sorry, mom." You say, quietly. "I'm so sorry." Your grip tightens as you start crying yourself. "I'm sorry."

"I-It's okay, Sayaka." She sniffs again. "J-just don't do it a-again." She grips you tighter. "Please. J-just d-don't."

[x] Skip school. But call in. There's no way this isn't an acceptable excuse, even for Japan.

Yeah. You're not going to school tomorrow. You just can't right now.

[x] Stay with mom

She needs the support. After all she's done for you, you can't just leave her like this.

[OPTION SELECT]​

[] Go to sleep.
-[] In your room.
-[] In the living room.
-[] On the couch.

[] Keep talking.

[] Keep hugging.

 

[TheOneMoiderah]

[x] Keep talking.

"H-hey..." You say quietly. "M-maybe being r-rejected isn't th-that b-bad." You sniff.

She hugs you tightly again. "Don't say that."

"B-but you..." You immediately start crying. "Your job and-!"

"It's okay." She says. But even now she's still sobbing. "Y-you're a kid. Your problems are s-stil imp-portant." She sniffs. "You c-can cry." She wipes her eyes again. "Don't trivialize your problems like that." She says, even though she keeps crying. "J-just don't."

[x] Keep hugging.

After a while, you just keep yourself in the hug. Even as she stops sobbing, she still holds onto you tightly.

[x] Sleep.

"...The couch is a bit of a mess." She murmurs. "...Sorry."

You nod. "...We can just use my futon." You say. "Alright?"

She nods. "I...uh...okay." She wipes her eyes again. "Sorry."

"Mom, it's okay." You smile thinly. "You...you kind of need some support tonight. More than I did."

Eventually, you break out of the hug, take a shower, and go to sleep. By the time you do, she's already in the futon, sleeping like a rock. You just sigh and go to it yourself.

Today's been a trying day for the Mikis.

At least they had one moment of peace.

[The clock keeps ticking.]​

​

When you wake up, you notice that your mom's out of bed and already doing something. "...Mom?" You murmur. You already know you're not going to go to school, so you haven't even changed. When you check the time, it's ten in the morning. It's way too late to go to school anyway.

​

[OPTION SELECT]​

[] Call the school.

[] Go in late.

[] Check on mom.

[] Go back to sleep.

 

[TheOneMoiderah]

[x] Text Madoka and Hitomi, tell them know we're all right again.

To-Hitomi, Madoka

Hey! Just letting you know that we're okay! Mom just hit a rough spot. Her job...it's...

...

We're going through a rough spot right now. Okay? Don't worry. We're okay.

Really.

Click to shrink...

You send it. Yeah. Real convincing there, Sayaka.

[x] Call the school. If they have a problem with it, let them suffer the wrath of Miho.
You do so, and quickly, they pick up.

"Hello, this is the Mitakihara Secondary school administration office, how can we help you?"

"Uh...yeah." You murmur. "Can you let my teacher know that I'm off?"

"...Shouldn't you be in school."

"Yeah, but...we're having a rough time." You say. "She just lost her job."

"You should be in sch-" You hang up. Yeah. Fuck that. You don't need it right now.

[x] Check on mom.

You walk over to see your mom actually cooking something. She's still dressed in the same thing as last night, and her hands are bandaged. "Hey." She says. "...Decided to just make an easy breakfast today." She flips something. "...How does toast with eggs sound?"

"Fine by me." You say as you sit down. "...Are you okay now, mom?"

She gives you a smile. "I'm fine." She says. "I'm just fine."

She comes close to put a plate on your table, but you stop her in time to wrap your arms around her waist and just give her a big hug.

Immediately, she pauses, before she gives you a smile. "...I just need to find a new job now." She laughs a little, but it sounds hollow. She's still hurting from last night.

[OPTION SELECT]​

[] Just talk.

[] Relax.

[] Hang out on the internet.

[] Meet Kyouko for training.

 

[TheOneMoiderah]

OOC: Welp, I still haven't gotten tired of it. I really want more mechs. And Del Toro. And that fucking ATMOM ADAPTION. YOU HEAR THAT, LEGENDARY?! GREENLIGHT THAT SHIT. Or, you know, we could have a real-robot movie with serious stories and shit. That would actually be just as cool in a completely different way.
[X]Relax
-[X] Just Talk.

"...Hm." You look at her. "Mom, you don't have to pretend."

She laughs quietly. "Oh. I'm that transparent, aren't I?" She smiles. "...It fucking hurts." She says. "It really fucking hurts."

"I know." You say. "...But you can find a job, right?"

"Heh." She murmurs. "Doubtful. Maybe Junko can help me but..." She lets out a shuddering sigh. "...I'll get one more paycheck and I'm completely fucked because some idiot ruined everything." She grits her teeth, before she sighs. "I'm going to look online." She says. "Just...fuck it."

[X] Huggles.

You quickly give her a hug around the waist, and she quietly puts her hand on yours. "...I probably needed that." She murmurs quietly.

You just nod. "...I hate it when you're like this." You say.

"Yeah...me too." She says. "Sorry, Sayaka."

You don't say much else. You just nod a little.

[x]Clean up all the broken glass.

After breakfast is done (it's kind of burnt), you and your mom manage to clean up the living room. The TV's broken, but you still managed to haul it out as well as much of the debris from yesterday. You throw a destroyed TV stand out, and most of the glass. It's then that your mom notices. "Sayaka, your foot!"

"Mom, it's okay." You say. "It's nothing to worry about."

"Yes it is!" She says. "Why didn't you say something!" She runs out of the room. "I'm getting you a goddamn bandage!"

After about three hours of cleaning, everything's done. The room looks cleaner than before, but otherwise, kind of empty. That's partially because the TV took up a lot of space. "...Do we have a spare?" You say.

"Well, I didn't throw the old flatscreen out." She says. "The resolution's lower. Only 1080."

"...Those numbers mean nothing to me." You say, flatly.

"We'll use it, then." Half an hour later, your new (old) TV's up and you can both watch it again. The couch is set up, the DVD player works, and things seem to be back to normal.

Normal-ish, anyways.

Your mom still looks kind of hurt, but she's at least wearing a much more genuine smile than before.

"Thanks for helping, Sayaka."

You lean on her shoulder. "Thanks for being my mom."

She laughs quietly. "...Well, that's kind of a given. You're stuck with me."

"I'm still happy for it." You say. "Thank you."

She rustles your hair a little. "...You're welcome."

[OPTION SELECT]​

[] Keep talking to your mom.

[] Relax.

[] Watch TV.

[] Go train with Kyouko.

 

[TheOneMoiderah]

[X] Try contacting Kyouko via telepathy to let her know about the situation, and that it's likely that we'll either be late for or not be able to make training together as we planned.

'Kyubey?' You start.

'Yes, Sayaka?' The voice says.

'Is it possible to contact Kyouko from here?'

'Actually, yes. It's entirely possible.' Suddenly, you hear a very different voice on the other end.

'I'm fucking busy, you furry little fuckwit.'

'...Oh, I'm sorry.' You sigh.

'Wait, what? Sayaka?!' Suddenly, she sighs on the other end. 'You're nearby?!'

'No.' You say. 'Long-distance telepathy is a thing.'

'...Oh. Oh, cool! So I actually don't need a phone.'

'It might still be useful with my mom and Madoka, so you might wanna still get one...but that's not why I'm calling.'

'Hm?'

'I might not be able to go. Or if I do, I'll probably be late.'

'What happened?'

'Remember that plant that exploded?' You say.

'...Yeah?'

'That was my mom's workplace.' You frown. '...She's out of a job.'

'...Oh.' She pauses. 'Yeah, I understand. Okay. Thanks for telling me.'

'I'm sorry.'

'No, no!' She says. 'It's okay! You've kind of had a shitty day yesterday! Just...just hope things are better today!'

'Yeah. Me too.' You sigh. '...Thanks, Kyouko.'

'Not a problem, Blue.' The telepathic call cuts out, and you lean back.

[X] Keep talking to your mom.
[X] Relax.

"So now what?" You say.

"Well..." She shrugs. "We could watch a feel-good movie."

"Like what?" You murmur.

"We don't have many options...wait. Wait! I know!" She leaps up to the DVD collection and pulls out a film.

"...Oh, no." You blink. "No. I am vetoing this movie."

"Pffffft! We've seen plenty of terrible movies. What's another one?" She whips it out. "It's a classic. Come on, you want to. I know you want to." She smirks.

You stare at her...then you sigh. "...You're gonna play it anyway, right?"

"Parental rights!" She fist pumps. "Woo!"

And so...the film begins.



...Your mom has terrible, terrible taste in movies.

[OPTION SELECT]​

[] ...Watch it anyways.

[] PEANUT GALLERY.

[] Training time.

[] Talk to mom.

[] Just watch.

 

[TheOneMoiderah]

[X] ...Watch it anyways.
[X] PEANUT GALLERY.

"Oh. Oh this dubbing is the best."

Your mom flaps her mouth open and shut for several seconds. "...HELLO SAYAKA." She says, finally.

You do the same thing back. Except then you move it wildly. "HI, MOTHER. HOW ARE YOU." Then you do it for several more seconds.

"I AM GOOD. AND YOU ARE?"

"MEDIOCRE."

"OH NO." About halfway through it, you both then laugh wildly.

[=]​

"Falling tombstone."

"Yup." She leans back. "Falling tombstone."

"...Wow. I...uh...there are no words." You say. "...Do you have wine?"

"Sayaka, you're not old enough to drink."

"I don't care. I want to get drunk. Why the heck did the tombstone fall and why is ANYTHING IN THIS MOVIE-!"

"Sayaka. Sayaka you're losing it."

"I DON'T KNOW WHAT ANYTHING IN THIS MOVIE IS."

[=]​

"So a strange man enters a room. What do you do? Why, you calmly get up and scream only when running out the door when he's clearly slow as hell and nowhere near an actual threat."

"...Mom, are you okay?"

"Actually, I'm fine." She says. "Are you?"

"NO."

"Didn't think so."

[=]​

"STUPID HUMANS WITH YOUR STUPID MINDS."

"Oh yeah? Well, fuck you!" You shout.

Your mom actually looks at you. "Whoa. The movie got you swearing."

"With your stupid writing and your stupid lines!"

"I knew it was a classic, but I didn't think you'd start sweraing."

"I hope you die in a FIRE."

"Actually, Wood's dead."

"...Wait, he is?" You blink.

"Yeah." She says. "Died of a heart attack."

"Oh...uh...how long ago?"

"1978."

"Oh." You blink. "...FUCK YOU WITH YOUR STUPID WRITING AND YOUR STUPID LINES."

"Wow." She snickers. "Wow you really don't like it."

"WHY."

[=]​

Eventually, the movie's done, and when you're done screaming and yelling and laughing at the movie's more terrible dialogue, you sigh. "...That was awful." You say with a giggle.

"Yes. Yes it was. That's why I love it." Your mom sighs. "So now what?"

"Well..." You put a hand to your chin.

[OPTION SELECT]​

[] Training time.

[] Talk to mom.

[] Just watch.

[] Relax.

[] INTERNET.

 

[TheOneMoiderah]

[x]Relax and talk to Mom.

"We could just talk." You say. "Frankly, just doing that would be nice." You look at her. "...Like about what happened with Kyousuke yesterday..." You murmur.

"Oh. Oh yeah." She says, quietly. "...Heh. And I was a good parent for once." She scratches her own cheek.

"Don't say that." You say with a frown.

"I was kidding!" She says.

"...Didn't sound like it." You say back. "...Well, there's the matter of my new friend."

"Who's pretty damn cool." She says. "I like her. Oh! Maybe she can come over later!"

"Actually, I was gonna hang out with her after school but that kind of changed."

She frowns. "Hey. Don't be like that! You can still do that!" She says.

"No, I don't feel bad at all. I mean, she's pretty awesome, but you're my mom." You smile. "Family over everything else, right?"

She smiles. "...Yeah. Family over everything else." She gives you another hug. "Thank you for being here."

"...It should be a given." You say back.

[x] Once Mrs. Kaname gets off work, want to see if we can go over? I want to talk to Madoka and Hitomi.

"...Maybe we can go over to Madoka's house after Mrs. Kaname gets off work." You grin.

"I like that idea." She says. "...But what about your meeting with Kyouko? Or does she know about that already?"

"...I sent her a message." You say. "On the computer."

"She has a computer but not a phone?" She blinks. "...That's weird."

"Yeah. It is." You say. "But she's getting one today! So hopefully that should change."

"I'd hope so." Your mom mutters.

​

[OPTION SELECT]​

[] Go meet Madoka and Hitomi.

[] Go meet Kyouko.

[] Go with Mom.

[] Go alone.

[] Stay here.

 

[TheOneMoiderah]

[x] Head over to Madoka's with BestMom.

"Let's start headin' over to Madoka's." You say.

"Hm?" She murmurs. "I don't think Junko's off until six or something."

"She might be." You say back. "But still. I kinda wanna talk to Hitomi and Madoka."

"Heh." She grins. "Alright. I'm good with that." She says, and you both start going over to the Kaname household.

[OPTION SELECT]​

[] Walk.

[] Bus.

[] Talk to your mom.

[] Just go over to the Kanames.

 

[TheOneMoiderah]

[X] Bus.

You decide that you really really don't want to run into anything right now. So instead, you decide to take a bus. You both get on, straight to Madoka's house.

[X] Talk to your mom.

"Do you think she'll get you a job?"

"Hm?" She looks at you.

"Madoka's mom."

"Oh, Junko?" She smiles. "Yeah. If I can't find one."

"But...it's Mitakihara, right?" You say. "I mean, there should be plenty of places to work."

"Well, yeah." She sighs. "But...well...I actually had about twenty interviews before working at the plant. And that time, I already had a job elsewhere to support me. This time? I don't even have that." She frowns. "It's competitive. And I really can't afford to waste time."

"I think you're being a little pessimistic." You say.

"Or maybe I'm being realistic." She says. "I know I told you to look up. But it's hard to do it myself." She sighs. "...Look at me. You're better at listening to me than I am!" She laughs.

"You should do that more." You say. "I mean...you have some pretty good advice."

She smiles broadly. "Maybe, but you actually remember it!" She rustles your hair. "You little rascal, you!"

Eventually, you get off of the bus and walk over to Madoka's house. It's pretty damn nice. Hard to believe that Madoka's mom is just this well off, but...actually, that's not hard to believe at all. Junko Kaname's job is extremely lucrative. Just as you reach it, you can see Madoka and Hitomi talking, somewhat worried. It's then that they notice you and your mom walking over to her house.

Madoka's the first to wave. "Sayaka! Ms. Miki!"

You wave back. "Hi, Madoka!" You smile like an idiot as Madoka walks over, and Hitomi waves slightly.

[OPTION SELECT]​

[] Talk to...
-[] Mom.
-[] Hitomi.
-[] Madoka.

[] About...
-[] Why you skipped.
-[] Job.
-[] Being meguca.
-[] Kyousuke.
-[] Idle chatter.