Quoted By:
That should be your cue to say something. Better not miss, or else you’re going to sound insane! And knowing Chio, if you fail, it can spell unmitigated disaster! Just look at Mirjam, she never recovered.
“There are more than that gawky Deborah and the midgets?” Chio sounds more surprised than annoyed, her way of reacting hasn’t changed in all of these years. “This is a pleasant surprise.”
“M-Mother, please, mind your words.” Nariko sighs.
“Please, if anything, the cocky one was far more bothersome than I can be.” Chio remembers her disdain for Yu Yan. This pleases her.
“Who is she calling a midget? She’s not as tall as Nariko…” Amelia grumbles.
“Hey, weird question for you, ma’am?” You interject! You’re going all in! “Did you ever have an odd dream about going on a date with a guy with glasses who got them stolen by a waitress, then after getting thrown out of the restaurant you went to, immediately starting up a food stall named after your future daughter with both your date and the waitress to mess with the fat guy who owned the place?
“Mother, are you alright? Are you suffering from a migraine?” Nariko worries as she notices her mom having a less-than-stellar reaction.
“W-What bunch of nonsense am I listening to? Do you have your television on, Nariko?” Chio is gobsmacked by the incoherence that is your story. Feels like this is your moment to enter the frame.
“Actually…” You gently grab Nariko’s hand and tweak it to zoom to you and Crossbill! “It’s us. How is it going, business partner?”
“Who… in the world… are you…?” Chio’s eyes widen as she places a hand over her forehead. Slowly, her cheeks turn redder. She looks like a wiser Nariko, who has turned back to evil again. Also, double brushes behind her neck.
“Aww, don’t say you forgot about me too, Chio?” Crossbill pouts.
“<span class="mu-i"><span class="mu-s">Charlotte…</span></span>” Chio grimaces. She remembers. Crossbill pumps her fist! This is her win!
“These are the good people I want you to meet! Johnny helped me become who I am today!” An over-polite Nariko takes over the conversation. “And I believe you recall his friend, Crossbill.”
“<span class="mu-i">Johnny</span>, you say…?” Chio recovers from the initial shock and sneers.
“You remember him?” Nariko is pretty excited.
“I don’t recall any Johnnys.” Chio looks so confident now! “One Jonathan though. He was a nutcase.” Chio doesn’t have good memories of Kobashi…
You wanted to mention Dustin the Manager, but Chio appears to not remember the bubble stuff… or at least, she’s pretending not to…
