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It's a peaceful day at Leblanc. Sojiro has a couple customers in his shop, both sipping coffee, one eating a curry. Mellow music is playing, the lighting is cozy, and the coffee is as good as ever.
He nods a greeting as Akira enters the shop on her way home from school.
Ryuji nods. "Curry'd be great. Dunno about coffee, though. Never had it before."
"Two curries, one coffee for Ann and one for me, and how about a cocoa or something for Ryuji?"
Sojiro nods and starts the curries, then brews the coffee and cocoa while that cooks.
Joker slips into front.
"Alright," she says. "Let's get down to business. I've called you all here today to discuss two cases of people who need their hearts changed. One of them is a relation of Sojiro's, one Futaba Sakura. Sojiro is the expert on her case: I've asked you all here in person so you can hear the briefing on her directly from the horse's mouth, so to speak. Sojiro, when you're ready, please lay out the situation with Futaba to the best of your ability."
Sojiro arches an eyebrow, a wry, impressed smile crossing his face for a moment.
Then he sighs and nods. "Now, where do I start.
"Futaba is... my adopted daughter. Her mother and I knew each other long before Futaba was born. Her mother was a bit of a weird one, but we got along well for some reason. She was sharp-witted, somewhat stern, a little socially inept, but always carefree."
Ann's brows draw together. There's an obvious question, but she doesn't want to be the one to ask it.
Ryuji opens his mouth to ask, sees the expressions on his girlfriends' faces, and then closes his mouth.
"When something piqued her interest, that'd be all she focused on. She always worked deep into the night. I thought that'd change after her kid was born, but having Futaba didn't do much. Even with that, she always took good care of her. I guess raising Futaba alone turned out to be tough on her in more ways than one."
Suicide, then. Or a similar break — perhaps an addiction or a serious mental illness. But she doesn't think Sojiro is the type to say "was" about someone he cared for if they aren't in the ground.
He nods. "She was. She raised Futaba without any sign of the father, whoever he was. She certainly never said anything about him. She was single when she gave birth to Futaba, and single when she raised her. They were an ordinary loving family. You could really tell how much she cared for Futaba."
He looks down and sighs, passing out Ann's coffee, Ryuji's cocoa, and a curry each, then comes around the bar and sits down on a barstool with a coffee of his own.
"But one day she left... leaving Futaba behind."
Joker nods. "Something tells me you wouldn't be saying 'was' if she was still among the living. You're not the kind of person to give up on someone like that easily."
Joker gives Sojiro her full attention. "I know it must be hard to relate, but any detail could matter, so I'm going to have to press you. What happened?"
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