Despair and Degradation

Her sidekicks had left first. Men and women, mostly women, that she had brought in and trained up... they fled like rats from a sinking ship. Her name was rapidly becoming toxic and they had bright futures ahead of them. Most of them anyway. She hoped.

She still wrote up letters of recommendation for all of them, even the ones who quit on the spot. None had requested them, and she wondered if some would leave a gap in their resume rather than risk bringing her up, but she hoped that someone, somewhere would value her name. She also had to hope that she might receive some good reference in kind.

Next came staff cuts. Thankfully most found work before she had to contemplate laying people off. Like her sidekicks the smart ones found got out quickly. Unlike her sidekicks she had time to watch them filter out. Working for a sinking agency wouldn't leave a blemish on a secretary's resume, nor on a police liaison's. The marketing team was a mixed bag, half of them running for the door, the other half gamely trying to build up their reputation as being able to rebuild a bad reputation. It was a losing battle, but she appreciated the effort. They even tried to hide the nastier comments people were making about her, which was kind of them. It didn't work, but it was still kind.

By the time the Hero Commission summoned her though, they all knew it was a lost cause. All of the departments were down to a skeleton crew at that point though.

Surprisingly her agency hadn't been forced to close, but it may as well have been. She was officially banned from taking unpaid interns for ten years, as if anyone would accept an offer from her at this point, and they were going to audit not just her finances but her previous business transactions to ensure that she had properly compensated her sidekicks and interns. And if she hadn't they would make sure she did. They also issued her agency a ruinous fine and topped it off by ordering her, personally, to perform four hundred hours of unpaid community service.

Sitting in her office, she considered quitting. The police work was her only income at this point. She still had fans and her own merchandise, but all of her other business deals had gone up in smoke. She was down to five employees; the rest of her previously busy office was empty. She could probably lease out the space, if anyone would risk having anything to do with her.

There was a knock on the door and she reluctantly looked up. "Come in."

The door opened and her remaining staff, barring her remaining police liaison, filtered in. Uwabami sagged in her chair, "Are you here to quit?" In spite of herself, her eyes began to water.

The very last member of her marketing staff, a rookie who hadn't had the good sense to get out, dithered for a moment before her secretary, previously her personal secretary, nudged him. He looked chagrined, holding a packet of folders, "Uh..." he cleared his throat, glancing at the rest of her staff for support before continuing, "Uwabami-sama, I received a call. You have offers."

"What?" Uwabami almost laughed, "Are you sure they're for me?"

He shifted uncomfortably, "T-they aren't for a lot of money, they might not be worth it." The rest of her staff glared at him, her accountant most of all, and he quailed under their gaze.

Uwabami felt her stomach sinking. This was it, wasn't it? This was rock bottom. Offers she couldn't refuse that she never would have contemplated accepting. She steeled herself, mustering all the resolve she could muster as a disgrace. "What are they?" Her voice was barely more than a whisper.

Casting last minute sideward glances at her remaining staff the rookie marketer reluctantly approached her desk, his every motion stiff. He placed down the three packets, "T-the one on the left is for an anti-wrinkle cream, the one in the center i-is a," he grimaced, "uh... hemorrhoid cream, and the one on the right is for... adult diapers."

Uwabami glared at the vile manila folders. Anger blossomed in her chest. These were an insult, a sneering provocation, an utter humiliation to a heroine known for her grace and refinement. She rose up to shout them down, to fire him for daring to bring the offers to her. But as she opened her mouth she saw her staff, the last few people who had stuck with her intentionally or not, even now that she was nothing... and the last traces of pride ebbed out of her. She sat back down heavily and closed her eyes, "Tell them I'll do all three."

Author's notes: This chapter was a bit harsh, but it actually came out very easily. The commercials were definitely chosen to inflict the maximum amount of humiliation possible on Uwabami, but I'm not sure if they were expected to be accepted. Also, I am saying this here: unlike the compensation that was offered to her former classmates Momo didn't influence this. This was purely her mother being vindictive. There will probably be a bit on that later, but that probably won't happen until the last chapter.

I think this little series has two or three chapters left. Next up though? Momo's determination to improve finally gets to shine through...