A/N: Well, here's Chapter Two of Kyoko's Maternal Insecurities. As a warning, this chapter contains some politically sensitive subject matter. Please note that this chapter should not be taken as my personal commentary on the issue; it merely exists for narrative value. Anyways, please read and review, and enjoy!

The Ultimate Detective and The Ultimate Hope Gaiden: Kyoko's Maternal Insecurities

Chapter Two: Mother and Daughter Talk! Hana Naegi's Secret?

"…Come in."

Hana's curious expression turned to one of surprised joy, as her son Makoto walked in the door, her heavily pregnant daughter-in-law Kyoko waddling in right behind him.

"Hi Mom!"

"Makoto! Kyoko! I didn't know you were coming. Shingi, come downstairs; Makoto and Kyoko decided to visit us!"

As she waited for her husband to come downstairs from his office, Hana eagerly got up from her spot on the couch, walking over to embrace her son followed by her daughter-in-law.

"It's so good to see you two!" She then gazed down at Kyoko's sizable baby bump, framing it with her hands as she cooed "And how's my first grandchild doing today?"

Hana felt a light kick in response to her inquiry, making both her and Kyoko giggle. At last Shingi made his way down to the family room, smiling at seeing two of his children visiting. Like his wife, he embraced each of them before Makoto led Kyoko to the couch, the former Detective's hand resting on where her shirt ended and her skirt began as she sat down.

As Hana and Shingi followed suit, Hana asked "So, what's with the surprise visit?"

Kyoko's smile faltered briefly before settling back in place as Makoto explained "Kyoko wanted to talk to you Mom about some things. Dad, I was thinking you and I could have a father-son day while the women talk?"

Both parents smiled and nodded in agreement, with Shingi replying "Sure, son; where will we be going?"

Scratching his cheek Makoto stalled "I'll uh…I'll tell you later." He turned to his wife and assured her "We won't be gone long; not for more than an hour or two, so we'll stay close by. You have fun with your mother-daughter day, alright?"

Kyoko smiled, nodding before Makoto got up and kneeled in front of Kyoko, his face level with her abdomen as he untucked her shirt form her skirt, rolling the fabric upwards enough to expose her baby bump.

"Now be good, okay?" Makoto cooed before leaning downwards to lay a smooch on her popped belly button. "Daddy loves you!"

Makoto gave her belly one last goodbye kiss, feeling the baby kick in response. Hana's eyes watered at the paternal scene, feeling pride at how much her baby boy had grown as Makoto rolled Kyoko's shirt back down. Makoto and Shingi then walked towards the door, opening it and calling back one last time before closing it.

"Bye, Mom!"

"Bye, Kyoko!"

With the two boys now out of the house, Hana turned to face Kyoko, smiling with pride as she reflected "Makoto seems to be adapting to his incoming fatherhood very well."

Closing her eyes, Kyoko smiled and concurred "Makoto will definitely be an excellent father to our baby…Probably a better parent than I'll ever be."

"…I take it this has to do with why you wanted to talk to me, right?" At Kyoko's nod, Hana continued "And I presume it's also why your smile faltered briefly earlier? Don't be so surprised." Hana added after seeing Kyoko's expression. "Even if I weren't your mother, I'm a mother, and I've learned how to pick up on different tells over the years of raising your husband and his sister."

"I…I see…" Kyoko clenched her hands together and gazed downwards, confessing "You're not wrong. I…I've been feeling really anxious about raising this baby, about being its mother, and it's led to me having some nightmares for a few days now."

Kyoko briefly and calmly recounted the brief synopsis of her dreams that she had relayed to Makoto that first night. When she was finished, she felt Hana's hand rest over her clenched fist in comfort.

"Kyoko…I had no idea. But…why do you feel so anxious?"

Choosing to look her mother-in-law in the eyes, Kyoko revealed "Because I haven't exactly had the best parental role-model growing up. You might remember from that one Christmas I visited when Makoto and I were teenagers that I told you my mother had died when I was little, and in the aftermath of her death my father left me in my grandfather's care, so he didn't exactly teach me what it meant to be a parent. And my grandfather…as much as I loved him, he was never warm; parenting always came second to Detective training. As a result, I had nobody I really knew that could really teach me how to be a good parent. The closest one is Makoto, and he's my husband!"

Looking at Kyoko sympathetically, Hana tried to ease "Kyoko…my little girl…anxiety is normal for first-time mothers. Everyone feels scared about their parenting abilities with their first, me included."

Kyoko scoffed, waving off "I doubt that. Makoto must have been a perfect baby; I would be shocked if he gave you any trouble at all!"

Smiling wryly, Hana chided "Kyoko, there's no such thing as a perfect baby. I had my issues raising Makoto…as well as preparing for his birth…"

Hana's suddenly quiet admission piqued Kyoko's interest; she turned back to face her and asked "What do you mean?"

Hana bit her lip in hesitation before sighing, explaining "The story of Makoto's pregnancy is one that I haven't even told him about. If I tell you, you must swear never to tell him; this stays woman-to-woman, okay?"

Confused as to what could be so terrible as to make her promise never to confide in her husband about it, Kyoko nodded, curiosity overtaking her as she agreed "Very well; I won't tell Makoto. Now, what's the story of my husband's pregnancy?"

Taking a deep breath, Hana began "Shingi and I met in our last year f college; it wasn't exactly love at first sight, but it wasn't long after that we began dating. After we graduated, we rented an apartment together, to see how our relationship would fare if we actually had to be roommates as well as lovers. Then, when both of us landed our dream jobs not long after, we…" Hana blushed at the memory as she continued "We celebrated with an incredible night of passion. But…in the excitement, I had forgotten to take my birth control medication before we made love."

Kyoko's eyes widened in realization as she gasped "Wait…you mean…"

Hana nodded as she confirmed "Makoto's pregnancy was not planned. When I found out I was expecting him, I felt so nervous; we had planned to test the waters, get married in a couple years, then take some time to build up our professional careers. Having a baby fresh out of college wasn't exactly planned."

"…You felt scared" Kyoko concluded.

Nodding, Hana continued "When I told Shingi I was pregnant, he promised me that he would support whatever I chose. His parents weren't thrilled with the outcome, but they respected their son's capabilities in making the right decision. My parents however…they were not so understanding. My parents were very conservative; to them, having a baby out of wedlock was to bring dishonor to the family, and even though I was already a grown woman living with her boyfriend, they outright demanded that I…terminate the pregnancy to salvage our family's honor."

Kyoko brought her hand to her mouth as she gasped in shock; the thought of anybody wanting to end Makoto's life, before even meeting him, seemed utterly incomprehensible to her.

"And…I'm ashamed to say that I caved at their demands. I was never any good at standing up to my parents; in fact, I'm probably where Makoto got his initially passive demeanor from. The fact that I was nervous and scared due to the surprise of this pregnancy didn't help either. I told Shingi what I was going to do, he told me that he respected my decision, and quietly said his goodbyes to the baby he had helped to create. I then made an appointment with a nearby clinic for the following weekend."

Kyoko's eyes threatened to water at her mother-in-law's touching description of their saying goodbye to the baby that they might have never met. But she held it back, waiting for her emotions to fall back under her control before asking her next question.

"I take it you changed your mind, then? Otherwise we wouldn't be sitting here having this discussion."

Nodding Hana continued "I had just driven to the clinic, and was about to walk through the doors, when all of a sudden, I felt a strange warmth coming from my belly. It was as though someone had turned on a bright light inside me, a warm, resolute light, telling me that everything was going to be okay. I suddenly felt my anxiety and fear become flooded by a sense of hope."

So Makoto's Ultimate Hope talent manifested even from inside the womb! Kyoko realized as Hana continued her tale.

"It was right then and there that I realized…I couldn't go through with it. I knew that this baby was special, that I wouldn't want to give them up for anything." Hana gave a soft smile as she reflected "Of course, I had no Idea that my son would be the one to save the world from despair, but your adventures with him only proved I was right about him."

Smiling, Kyoko concurred "You're right; he is special."

With both women's moods raised, Hana finished "When I went back and told Shingi, he was over the moon; after promising he'd make me proud to be Makoto's father, he proposed to me right then and there. We were both riding emotional highs; and it's safe to say that the engagement sex we had that night was wild."

Both women blushed at that last remark, Hana out of fondness for the memory and Kyoko out of automatic embarrassment at hearing even the slightest details of her in-laws' sexcapades.

"The next day, we visited my parents and I finally stood up to them; I told them that I would welcome all the dishonor in the world with pride if it meant raising my baby, that I was going to raise this baby and that nothing was going to change my mind. They still weren't happy, but they relented, and after Makoto was born, they instantly fell in love with him."

…Makoto always could win over even the coldest of hearts… Kyoko mused as she recalled their days at Hope's Peak.

Hana then turned back to her daughter-in-law and stressed "Kyoko, there's no question I had a rocky start as a mother. You already have a leg up that I didn't; you and Makoto planned for this baby. But even though the circumstances were far from ideal, and even though I gave up my dream job to become a stay-at-home mom, Makoto turned out just fine; I couldn't be prouder of the fine young man I've raised. So even though you didn't have a warm parent growing up, I think you'll do just fine. Once you hold your baby, everything just starts to click. It did for me, and I have no doubt it will for you."

"Mom…Mommy…" Kyoko croaked, tears glistening down her cheeks as she awkwardly embraced Hana. She eagerly returned the embrace, palms caressing Kyoko's shoulders.

"Mom…would you mind giving me some pointers? About motherhood, I mean?"

Hana smiled as Kyoko's muffled voice vibrated against her dress; she leaned down to whisper in her ear.

"I would love to teach you what I know, my little girl."