Continuation Shota Aizawa x Akemi Yuriemoto (Aizawa)

Chapter 296: Reiko's song

Reiko was next. She walked up to the microphone and sighed softly as her soft spoken voice was heard by everyone.

"My name is Reiko Yanagi. My Legacy Paper is not on pro heroes like the others, but rather on three very important people whose stories I want you all to hear."

She smiled softly and hummed a tune to a song before speaking with her eyes closed. "Once upon a time I was just like any other four year old girl...happy and innocent of responsibilities...at least until the day I got my quirk."

"All my life I've lived in a well to do family. The descendant of famed Japanese scholar Kunio Yanagita who is considered to be the father of Japanese native folk-stories."

"Despite my family background I'm not as wealthy as Yaoyorozu, but that never mattered to my family. We were close enough in respect to be taken seriously in a crowd of higher status businesses. When my mother was only 20 years old she got engaged to a businessman in the stock market. Despite that fact my father left the family after my mother became pregnant with me before the wedding."

"She caught him cheating on her with another woman and used her quirk, which I inherited, to throw a large terra-cotta vase at his head."

Reiko chuckled when she saw her auntie smirking in pride.

"Thankfully my mother had a loving home to live in with her beloved twin brother and dearest sister-in-law. Sadly she died tragically in childbirth from complications. I was raised by my auntie and uncle. My family have our hands buried deep within the facets of the tourist businesses. The Yokai Parade is always a huge boost in the revenue for the companies that my family sponsors over."

"My uncle however wasn't the typical businessman of high society. He was a rather down to earth man, like how my mother Rumi had once been, at least that's according to him and auntie. He said my mother had his same eye color but hers were more beautiful than any lapis lazuli gemstone. She had eyes that shined with the brightness of her smile and showed the deepest warmth of overly caring heart."

Her eyes dimmed as she smiled softly. "I loved my uncle's view of the world and he was always kind to me. He never scolded me for getting dirt on the fancy rugs, or if I accidentally broke something. He never denied me the chance to be myself. To be a child."

She closed her eyes and sighed softly. "When I got my quirk there was a dinner party with the other company businessmen. The outcome was disastrous and it was not as funny to my auntie back then as it is to her now. I was just so excited to see what I could do with my quirk. I didn't mean to fling the soup bowl at Mister Yoshida's face. It was an accident. I probably shouldn't have laughed at him but I just couldn't help it. His face just looked so funny when he spat out the soup from his mouth like a fountain. My uncle looked like he was struggling not to laugh along with me!"

Reiko's aunt actually covered her mouth to suppress a giggled laugh. Reiko closed her eyes over the memories of her uncle. She missed him dearly. She remembered the day he died and sighed heavily.

"Twelve years ago there was a bank robbery, my uncle was one of the hostages. This is also where the other two people of influence come into play within my presentation."

Hitoshi's eyes wavered as Reiko opened her eyes and smiled softly at him. "Hitoshi Shinso's parents Shouma and Riena Shinso were off duty police officers at the time of the hostage situation. They sacrificed their lives to protect the other hostages...and my uncle...only for it to all be in vain. I-I remember hearing about the massacre from the coroner as I sat on the stairs with an emotionally grieving gaze as my auntie placed a strong hand upon my shoulder and tightened her grip. It took a long time for me to realize that her strict demeanor towards me was only to hide the grief of my uncle's death as she tried to create a future for me to succeed in."