Chapter Text
Sara only had her fathers shoulder to cry on after Keiji was carried away, passed out after the punishment she inflicted on him.
“It’s my fault!” She sobbed. Because she didn’t stick to what dad told her. Because she wasn’t good enough. Because she went back on her deal. She couldn’t protect him and now she did something she couldn’t take back. “He… he must hate me now…”
It was irrational to vent to him, but she has no other option. It was dad or loneliness. Dad knew everything, or he left her in the dust or did something worse. It was better to have a moment of comfort, no matter how temporary than to risk anything else.
“There, there… no tears. Your dad’s gotcha.” Dad said warmly. “You don’t need him. You’re gonna do bigger and better things.”
Bigger and better… She knew what that meant. Sobbing into fathers shoulder for her future, she heard another shush.
“Sara… no more tears. Didn’t I say that?” She felt him pulling away… no… “Do you need to go take a rest? I know it was a long day.”
Resting meant an isolation period. Sara couldn’t be isolated after what just happened. She just couldn’t. She swallowed her tears, choking back the crippling despair she felt at the pain she inflicted, on somebody she loved no less- someone connected to Ryoko, what would Ryoko think- no. Just…
“There… that’s better.” Her dad wrapped her in another hug. “That’s my Sara.”
“I’m sorry.” She whispered to him.
“Heh… it’s fine.” He assured her. “You did everything perfectly. Now let’s get back to work.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sara on her 19th birthday, before the celebration, was assigned to work with a woman named…
“Asuka Shinonome?!” She shouted out, looking at the file in surprise. “The same one?!”
“Oh, you recognize her? It was such a long time ago.” Dad laughed. “But yes. She’s been incorporated into Asunaro quite smoothly since our meeting with her. We’re glad to have her aboard. I told you didn’t I? Your little interruption didn’t hurt anything.”
Sara gulped, clutching Asuka’s file close. Couldn’t do a thing.
“It’s just making sure someone doesn’t get out of line. And I’m giving you…”
She knew what was in the box that was being passed to her. She took it without opening it, smiling in her usual way.
“It’s an honor.”
“Yep. Let’s go.”
~~~~~~~~~~~
Asuka didn’t really look at Sara much when she was dropped off at a donut shop. The eyebags seemed a lot deeper and her eyes darker since Sara saw her. Like that clock she’d been running on had run out. Finally gave up. The words I’m sorry… I wish I did more… rested on her tongue but… she knew she had no right to say that.
“… Asuka Shinonome.” She tried to keep her voice from shaking as he approached a woman who was her victim in everything but name. “I’m Sara Chidouin, the heiress. You may recognize me?”
Asuka looked over, quietly looking Sara up and down.
“Yeah. You’ve got one hell of an aim.”
Sara bristled at the memory. The loud bang, the stench of fresh blood, the pounding in her ears, it was all coming back back back…
“… sorry. Poor taste.” Asuka held out a hand. Sara was snapped out of her flashback. “Thanks again for that. I don’t know why you did it, but it helped.”
“… I could’ve done more.” Sara took the hand and shook.
“Yeah well…” Asuka shrugged, “Naive as you are… I’m a little jealous.”
Sara would make the meeting go off without a hitch. She had the public speaking skills to get what she (dad) wanted with little effort and hopefully nobody would get shot.
“These mass produced doll limbs are becoming impossible to afford!” The woman banged her fist on the table. “If it keeps at this rate we gotta cut wages!”
“Oh…” Sara suddenly had a good feeling why dad assigned her to this of all things “Well, perhaps you could use cheaper materials than the death game dolls for the prosthetics? The ones there are a lot more lifelike, but these just need to function.”
“So we just make an entirely new model? We’re manufacturers, not inventors!”
“Right, right, right…” Sara bit her thumb. This was not going to end in ‘give up on doll prosthetics that could save lives.’ She needed something good.
“Why are you agreeing with me?!”
“I-I-I just was going over stuff in my head!”
“She’s inexperienced.” Asuka shrugged, “Lay off.”
Sara felt her cheeks grow hot at being called ‘inexperienced.’ She knew plenty.
“Man, why'd The Godfather send his brat after us? This is sad.”
“‘The Godfather’ would be a lot less patient than I am.” Sara snapped. “So be grateful.”
The motion Asuka made and Sara’s instantaneous regret at that comment made her realize it was probably not a good move to say it.
“Did you just threaten me kid?!”
“N-no! Not at all!” She put up her hands, dropping the box- no- the box- the gun- they saw- they saw it- the look in his eyes…
Sara didn’t remember much after that. Flashes of Asuka being grabbed, because of course the lower grunt was more at risk than the heiress. Inability to let one person she helped go.
However it went, Sara walked out covered in blood while Asuka was still pristine.
“… I’m supposed to walk you to your next job.” She said, “Then we part ways.”
For her birthday party her dad got her a new gun. He told her she’d be using it a lot more than the old one.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sara on her 20th birthday was allowed to celebrate with her dad with her first drink. She didn’t really know what kind it was. She didn’t bother asking, too transfixed on one of dads… keepsakes that he kept around his office. Three fingers, preserved in a jar, like a hard won trophy.
She gulped down the wine once it was poured, and accidentally let it spill just how she felt about one of their business partners once the conversation turned to him. That’s probably why she saw herself being forced to interact with him more the following year.
~~~~~~~~~~
Sara, on her 21st birthday, said she wondered if the survivors or Ryoko remembered if it was her birthday. Dad told her they’d moved on by now. Besides, why would Keiji and Ryoko want her in their lives after what she’d done?
~~~~~~~~~~~
Sara, on her 22nd birthday had a big celebration party. Bigger than her first year post death game. Dad reminded her fifty times during it that the survivors, like Sou or Keiji, would never bother with something to this scale. Having it be a huge party with sniveling businessmen was also less exciting than last time. At least nobody was there to listen to her complain about them this time.
Sometimes it was better to be alone.
~~~~~~~~~~~
Sara, on her 23rd birthday, laid in bed with high fever. She was so ashamed. She couldn’t even hold up enough to be healthy on her birthday . At least her dad was at her side through all of it. She grasped his hand for dear life through suffocating heat, hating her own weakness.
The worst part was pantomimes of memories coming back in her state, dreams of worse days.
“You damn murderer…”
“Stop…”
“Does even your best friend mean nothing?”
“Ah…”
“Sara…”
She looked over. Right. She remembered somebody comforting her during this.
“Kei…ji…”
Evidently the wrong thing to say. Her dad’s face scrunched up like he smelt something foul, feeling her head for her temperature.
“Keiji isn’t here. I’m your father.”
“No…” she started to tear up “I want Keiji back… I want Kanna and Qtaro… I want Reko and Alice… I want Nao and Mishima and Gin…”
She knew she was being childish but her feverish brain was crying out to say those things, and it wasn’t like her nose was getting less runny. The last thing she remembered on that day was her dad asking the next person who came by the room for sedatives to calm her down.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sara, on her 24th birthday, signed yet another contract. Yes, she knew people would die if she went along with this venture, but… so what? She had destroyed so many innocent lives- this was just drops in the bucket. Dad was as proud as ever, telling her once again how hard it must be. She accepted it. She’d get her damn birthday celebration after this. Just like the awful human being she was.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sara, on her 25th birthday, watched the simulations. Probably an unhealthy activity but she just had to see them. She was desensitized anyways. Might as well watch herself as she clawed. Killed. Schemed. Died.
I wonder what would happen if I died in the death game… she thought to herself It’d spare the world a lot of suffering.
She had looked comprehensively out the window in her room before. The building they were in was in a public space, already a pretty ugly way to go. She sometimes wonders if the people walking around would save her if she asked… but it’s not like she could take their offer without endangering those she already hurt. She couldn’t die for that reason either. Dying meant going back on the deal. She’d make sure she’d live before letting that day happen again.
The her in the simulations agreed that living was the right answer, too. Sara watched her use people like Ranmaru, then toss him away. A tear in her eye, but no more. She watched herself strangling the life out of people for intimidation. She saw herself outwitting Keiji, and getting him voted over and over again. With the variety of executions presented, she kept holding her breath for the one that’d show his fingers getting cut off.
Even though he kept all his fingers he truly did look like he hated her in his final moments.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Dad was on another one of his business trips. That was all that was happening. Sara held herself tight proclaiming that dad was coming back, and he still loved her, and she’d be in his arms, glad to have him back (and regretting every bad thought she’d had about him).
Unfortunately that wasn’t the case (well aside from the last part.)
“There was a shootout.” The messenger said quietly. “Your father…”
Sara felt a sick feeling. She knew what was going to finish the sentence. An absolutely unacceptable thing to end with. Her father was… flawed. He was stubborn, set in his ways, and sometimes she hated his ways of persuasion, but he was her father. Although not biological, she understood every bit of his love for her was like that of true family. Her father was the best thing she had left in life. She needed to hear a different word from what this man was about to deliver. So she stared directly awaiting what he had to say.
“… your father died.”
To just say that… like that could possibly be reality…
“No…” Sara shook her head, denial rising. “No he didn’t.”
“Ms. Sara.”
He was trying to calm her. Like this person had ever had a single meaningful conversation with her. Sara wouldn’t have it.
“My dad didn’t die!” She screamed pulling at her own hair. “He’s coming home! Because he loves me! And he wouldn’t leave me like this!”
“Ms. Sara… this is probably a shock…”
“MY DAD ISN’T DEAD!” She fell to her knees breaking into her hands. “He’s not he’s not he’s not he’s not he’s-“
On Sara’s 26th birthday she was arranging a funeral.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sara slowly adjusted to her new seat as CEO. Running things in honor of her late father. She did her best not to change too much of the way the company was run. She knew he wouldn’t be happy with her doing so. She knew… she knew he was watching her. He always was in life and would be in the afterlife. All she lived for was him.
At the funeral she gave no speech. She had nothing to say to the crowd of urchins who came to see her father. Her feelings were in a note put in his coffin. Though despite her entering her grateful words privately, there were evidently some people nearby who didn’t keep their thoughts private.
“It’s weird for him to just die in a shootout… You think he just… decided…”
“Eh? Why’d he do that?”
“Maybe he was trying to trigger something…? I don’t know…”
“You’ll stop what you’re saying right now.” Sara demanded of the two gossipers. “My father isn’t the type to drop everything and die.”
“Ah! Ms. Sara!” They were evidently squirming at being caught. “We mean no harm…”
“Good.” She turned back to her father. “Then leave me alone with him.”
They did so immediately. After all, she was feared.
Despite having fathers ghost watching over her, she didn’t make as many… harsh decisions. She didn’t have the same threats hanging over her if she chose ‘wrong’ so she did sometimes indulge herself in sometimes making the choices that ‘good people’ would make, even if she would see suffering to Asunaro itself because of it. She hated ruining the company, the thing her father left to her. But little things once in a while couldn’t hurt right?
It felt especially good to take surveillance off of the survivors and Ryoko. No more worrying about their safety. Gin’s mom would be a lot more peaceful. Though, it’s then that she received a mysterious letter with the return address attached.
Her first thought was that there could be a bomb attached to this. Her second thought was that she was really curious why she was getting sent this, so with a careful application of a letter opener, she took out a note gasping at the opening line.
Heya Ms. Prospective fashion designer
She clutched the note close. Would she get in trouble if she was caught with this? Surely not… She was in charge now… but…
She snuck back to her room. Why was Keiji contacting her? Was he in trouble? Did he need Asunaro’s resources? Was he telling her how angry he was for that incident 10 years ago?
Tentative shaking gloved hands took out the note reading the words with preparation for the worse.
I found out you got a promotion… CEO… It’s probably rough. I haven’t seen you since our fiasco. I know you probably don’t wanna see me after everything you’ve been through but I wanna chat.
Sara read the note five times probably. Keiji wanted to see her? Was she going mad? He hated her didn’t he? Well, come to think of it, she’d mostly just said that herself and dad agreed… but why wouldn’t he hate her? She was the CEO of Asunaro and she chopped his finger off! It made no sense!
Though that probably wasn’t her biggest problem. Keiji was allowed to feel however he wanted about her. She just didn’t know if it’d be possible to get in contact. Seeing how she lifted surveillance with ease she could do the same for talking right? Maybe? This… might be a matter to keep private. Or, not do at all. Maybe she should ignore this. Forget she saw it.
But… she didn’t want that.
She did have a phone now that dad was out of the picture. It helped her make company calls and was a lot more convenient. She also unfortunately knew Keiji’s private data enough to be able to send a text.
Shaky hands dialed in Keiji’s number and a message before stopping on the send button. Did she…. Want this?
….…
… Yes.
SC: I’ll meet up with you. Give a date and time and somewhere we can’t be noticed. I don’t want to be caught.