Carol's nightmare

Carol tossed and turned in bed as she had a nightmare. It was one she had experienced far too many times that always began with her remembering her first day of college back in 2018.

...

It was August of 2018, and Carol was in the car being driven by her mother, Theresa, to college in Washington DC.

"Zinnia, tell me will happen today," Theresa glared.

"Uh, I start college?"

"MORE specific!"

"Uh, I hit it off big?"

The car screeched to halt as Theresa slapped Carol across the face. "You insolent, immature, young woman. Today's the day you make your political debut. As such, you are to act like a mature woman worthy of the Broadstone name."

"Thought you always said women should express themselves the way they want-"

"DON'T YOU SMARTASS ME, YOUNG LADY!"

Carol trembled in terror as another harsh slap befell her cheek.

"Your immaturity is a disgrace. Now I expect you to hit it off well with Miss Berrinche, the head of the Misericordia faction of the political club here on campus-"

"Lol, Imma join the Ratiocinatio-"

Before Carol could finish, Theresa clutched her jaw and slammed her head into the seat. "You utter such filth again from your lips I will have you sent to a behavioral correction facility. Do I make myself clear?"

"But it was just a joke-"

"We do not "joke" in this family, nor do we laugh like loons, support degenerate media and actions, nor try and wisecrack like you always do. And if you think you can just gallivant and try to engage in degenerate acts behind my back at this campus, you're wrong. This is a sacred college for the political elite, and prides itself on producing young political minds. Now, are you going to behave, or will I have to delay your enrollment to have you spend a year at a correctional facility?"

Carol trembled and stared into her mother's bloodshot venomous eyes and tearfully nodded that she did. Theresa glared and released her before taking her foot off the brake.

"Every time, why does she always gotta be so venomous when it comes to cracking jokes and just being funny? I thought the Misericordia party was all about compassion," Carol thought.

...

"...!"

Carol shot up and began panting as she woke up from her nightmare. She frantically darted her eyes around the room and didn't calm down until she realized she was in Japan and not back in her college dorm.

"Ugh, in times like these, just stay up till morning," she grumbled as she got up.

Still, she had to wonder why she had this nightmare. Imelda and Pewler were both dead, and had freed LinZay from her horrible fate. Sure, she had some nightmares about LinZay from time to time, but this nightmare was a flashback nightmare, the kind she only tended to get when someone from her past decided to come near her.

"My first day of college... Why did I dream about it again?"

...

"So what's with the bags?" Iori snickered as she met up with Carol at Ryokoma.

Carol coyly replied that she had forsaken sleep because "binge over sleep any day". It wasn't entirely false as Carol had spent the night binging anime until the early afternoon. She also figured this would tire her out to the point where she'd fall right back asleep at night.

"So how are things going with your secret puzzle cafe?" Iori asked as she sipped her boba tea.

Carol informed her that they were in the process of currently rebuilding the Secret puzzle cafe at Triple Cedar, or more specifically the room used to access it. Carol had wanted to have an arcade section be the way to access the secret puzzle cafe via entering a code into a chess arcade machine. However, the original proposal to just remodel the salon had been turned down, leading to the construction of a new arcade area at the hotel. Since the arcade area would be right next to the salon, it was easy to connect it to the already existing secret puzzle cafe and close off the entrance from the salon.

"Well that's convenient. Oh yeah, Mimo-chan said SPCMs could compete in the qualification thingy or something. Ya gonna take a shot?" Iori asked.

"Hmm, maybe, but I don't really wanna qualify since I'm not keen on leaving the country. All I really wanna do is raise my elo a bit and that's it. Then again, if I'm a SPCM I'll be able to warp back and forth so why not."

"I'm pretty much getting drafted into this, but not like I mind since an all expense paid trip is an all expense paid trip."

"You shouldn't say you've won before it happens."

"Heh, never said I did. All I talked about was the trip."

As the two bantered, a news blurb on the TV suddenly caused Carol's heart to start beating nervously. Iori took notice, but didn't seem to understand Carol's anxiety.

"Says, 'Mahi Makihara released from prison after pardon from late President Pewler'... What's got ya in a tizzy?"

Carol breathed heavily and gulped before explaining. "That woman was once a client of my aunt and mother's law firm, in fact they ferociously defended her even though she was clearly guilty of the crime. That woman is apparently a big shot here in fact-"

"She was my mother," Itsuki sighed as she approached the table. "I remember that fiasco, lawyers were relentlessly calling me to come to America and testify, but I was terrified to leave, so they all came to me and I gave my testimony in a court here. Her getting her life-sentence was largely thanks to my testimony so I was told, but it seems some idiot commuted her sentence."

Iori theorized that Pewer had likely pardoned her and possibly others before she had the chance to use the DESPER key, though shockingly enough, a quick internet search showed only Mahi had been pardoned and not anyone else. Though what upset Carol more was the fact that Mahi was appearing alongside the woman that had once been Pewler's running mate,  her aunt, Fiana Kunninganna.

...

In America, Fiana Kunningana scowled as she stared at a video on her computer. The video in question being Carol and Iori's DNA test video which revealed their Kirikawa lineage to the world. Fiana clenched her fist and gritted her teeth as she kicked her heel into her nearby sheepblossom servant and dialed up her sister, Theresa.

"Fiana?"

"Theresa, you're heading off to Japan to accompany Miss Makihara, yes?"

"That is correct, though I won't be staying for long."

"I see, then in your time there, eliminate your daughter before she brings us all down."

"Naturally, I've been setting something up for just an occasion."

As soon as the call ended, Theresa pocketed her phone and headed back towards the airport terminal where a buff bald woman covered in tattoos was sitting.

"I apologize for the sudden call, Ms. Mahi, and to make a personal request."

The woman smiled and pulled a DESPER out of her pocket. "Not in the slightest. I sympathize entirely with you as I too have a daughter that strayed from her path and fell to degeneracy. I'm lucky they taught us chess in prison; now I can discipline two bad girls peacefully and legally."

Theresa nodded as a malicious smile began to form on her face. Carol would soon be faced with one of her biggest trials yet.