Makoto woke up late the next morning, much to her surprise. She hurried to get dressed, thinking how usually she rose early to make breakfast for everyone as well as restock anything in the bakery that needed it. She noticed Mayumi was at kindergarten and Ittou at work already, so she just tried to resign herself to the thought she'd just have to make it up with dinner for them.

She made note of the bakery's stock and tidied up the place, remembering to turn on the small TV she hung on the wall for the customers, then opened up, getting swept up into her routine. Custom orders were rare and some customers preferred to sit inside and drink, treating the bakery as more of a cafe, but she never minded so long as nobody caused trouble.

After her break, she was greeted by a super tall woman with sunny features in a suit, carrying a box. "Hello! We're doing a promotion!"

"Whatever you're selling, I'm uninterested," Makoto eyed her.

"My company is giving away our newest cake for free! We're just so confident that you'll love it! We're giving these out to every bakery and convenience store in the area!" The woman opened the box to reveal a chocolate cake with iced frills and strawberries on top, a very typical design for a birthday cake. "If you don't like it, just throw it out! No harm, no foul!"

Makoto kept staring at the woman, taking the cake from her. "What's the name of your company?"

"Emotional Eating! It's a bit of a work in progress." She walked off, waving from behind. "Goodbye!"

Makoto stared at the cake, finally putting it out on display. Most customers ignored it, but a few bought pieces from it, seeming to float out the door as they took a bite. She turned the TV up more, serving coffee to the seated customers. During one of the slower periods, she sat behind the counter, reading. She remembered how when she was younger, her dream was to be a baker and florist both, but the economy tanked at the start of the new millennium and thus she only had enough to buy and revamp a foreclosed shoe store. She married her beloved Ittou a month after she graduated high school, dating him for two years prior. She didn't want to wait; she had finally found her prince. She got pregnant a year later and never looked back. She was truly happy.

After the day ended, she cleaned up and closed up, hanging up her apron and heading to Mayumi's daycare, expecting Ittou to be home much later that evening. She'd have to make a huge dinner to make up for waking up late.

"Mommy!" Mayumi greeted the second Makoto walked through the gates, running up to her. She wore her kindergarten outfit, a blue skirt and knitted pink sweater with a yellow hat and red backpack. "I missed you this morning!"

"Sorry, I slept in late," She smiled apologetically. "I'm making a big dinner tonight to make up for it."

"What is it?"

"Meatloaf and mashed potatoes,"

Mayumi's eyes widened. "Yummy! I love your meatloaf!"

Makoto gently took her daughter's hand and walked home, noticing that most of the nearby shops and bakeries all sold the cake that woman gave to her that morning.

"It's delicious! I can't get enough of it!" A woman gushed.

"Right?! Perks me right up! I don't even remember what made me sad anymore!" Her friend laughed.

The two arrived home and Makoto got started on cooking instantly, letting Mayumi get settled into the living room. She instantly turned on some cartoons and started dancing around to them, spinning about.

"That smells delicious. Is my wife cooking something?" Ittou teased, walking up behind her to give her a hug. "Mashed potatoes, huh? Any gravy on those?"

"You know it," She blushed as he hugged her and leaned into his touch, keeping her focus on the food. She loved his touches as she changed a lot physically over the years, having a bigger set of hips and wider thighs with a thick, sagging stomach. Sometimes it just felt great to be loved. "It's going to be really good tonight."

"How was work?" He asked, stepping aside.

"Boring. A strange woman came in to give out a free cake and now I see it everywhere in town. It's weird so I'm keeping my eye on it."

"Huh. One of my coworkers had a slice of free cake today and instantly collapsed from depression." Ittou stated. "You don't think…?"

"Oh, I figured. Tomorrow I'm throwing it out." She wiped the sweat off her brow. "But first, we eat dinner," She served everyone theirs, pouring the drinks and helping Mayumi sit up in her chair. Her and Ittou clinked their glasses together and sipped before digging in.

"Delicious."

"Mommy makes the best food!" Mayumi praised alongside her dad, eating hers quickly.

"Awww, you guys flatter me too much." Makoto blushed beside herself. "It's just dinner,"

Yes, she was really happy like this. Trade it away to become Sailor Jupiter forever, strong but emotionless? She didn't think she could do it. Maybe years ago, when she was still young and foolish and felt she had nothing but her friends, but now she had more. She had others outside of her friends to protect, she had genuine happiness. She understood Ami's reluctance as Rei had described it, and Ami really only had a husband. She had a husband and a child. She couldn't throw them away just for some idealistic future.

And she wouldn't.

/+/

The next morning, Makoto dressed more warmly in a red turtleneck and jeans, walking around town for a bit to get her blood flowing before opening up the bakery. She still had stuff from the previous day to display, so she wasn't worried about that. She passed a group of TVs displaying the news, pausing.

"Many young people, primarily females, have been obsessed with a new chocolate cake that's been swarming the market as of late. Consumers explain they feel giddy and lightheaded, often citing improved sexual appetite in the bedroom. The happiness soon leads to depression, however, as these same girls find themselves collapsing on the streets from exhaustion or depression, despite being fine only moments ago. Doctors are confused by what this new disease could possibly be. Is this all just a weird case of mass hysteria?"

Makoto frowned at the report, jogging off. She had to get rid of that cake before it caused any more problems.

When she arrived at the bakery, a few people were in line, but most were sitting at the tables, kissing heavily. One couple near her was moaning rather loudly, unable to keep their hands off each other.

"I just don't get it! One bite of this cake and I'm like a sex goddess!" One girl raved. "I need more of it!"

Makoto went behind the counter, starting to fill out the order of the first person.

"I don't want anything else, just give me some of that chocolate cake!" A teen boy begged her. "My girlfriend and I can't get enough! We have enough drive to do school projects months in advance!"

"I want a slice too! I want to give my fiancé a treat tonight," The older girl behind him moaned, toying with the bottom of her skirt.

"No! As of today, I'm not going to be selling this cake anymore!" Makoto announced, removing it from the display case. The whole bakery stopped what they were doing and watched her in silent shock. She marched over to the trashcan and dropped the cake in, making the patrons cry in agony.

"You can't do that! You can't!"

"No!" They begged.

"Whatever it is is bad for you! People are collapsing in the middle of the road from this!" Makoto said. "I'm doing you a favor!"

"You must not have a man in your life you love," The promiscuous girl huffed, storming out. The rest of the patrons followed suit, glaring at her. Makoto just stared right back.

"Ittou-kun would appreciate me not becoming some sort of drooling, brainless tramp over him!" She snapped as the door closed.

"New delivery!" The sunny woman announced, carrying in two boxes. "These things are flying off the shelves. I bet you're happy too, huh?"

Makoto said nothing.

"What's with that face? Maybe you need a piece. It'll improve your productivity, make you delightfully lightheaded, and improve your sex drive! You won't be able to get the men away from you!"

"People are collapsing from depression, and it's your doing!"

The woman sighed. "I really didn't want to fight, but if you insist." She set the boxes down on a table and took out a paintbrush and marble tablet, painting something with quick strokes. The boxes burst open and Makoto dashed outside, trying to minimize damage from her bakery.

"Kéik!" The monster announced, having dark skin and a white frosted bikini and red shiny hair. "I'm delicious!"

Makoto transformed and saw the sunny woman rip off her own disguise, revealing her true form. She frowned and fired an attack at her, pushing her into a power pole.

"Oh, you're going to play dirty? Won't you fight my monster?" The girl sighed. "Fine, I'm Zeus, let's fight I guess," She snapped her fingers and summoned a bolt of lightning, which she threw at Sailor Jupiter. Jupiter managed to dodge it, during her own attack.

"You can't just ignore me!" Kéik whined, firing white frosting out of her fingers at Jupiter, sticking her to a telephone pole. "That's what you get! Kéik!"

Zeus wandered over and grinned at her. "Jupiter, is it? How fascinating. Hermes said there's one for each of us."

"What do you want?" Jupiter demanded, struggling to get out of the frosting.

Zeus just laughed and snapped her fingers again. When she aimed the thunderbolt, Jupiter gasped and used all of her strength, snapping the hardened frosting and rolling out of the way.

"Jupiter! Oak Evolution!" She spun around and hit the both of them with her leaves, making the monster cry out and melt into nothingness, while Zeus winced. "Supreme Thunder!" Her next attack hit Zeus where she wanted, forcing her to the ground.

Almost instantly, a warm green glow surrounded her, transforming her into a green Eternal outfit and flowery green lipstick. She stared at herself in awe.

"I'm out of here. This isn't worth it!" Zeus huffed, vanishing.

Jupiter detransformed and thought over what just happened, running back to her bakery. The customers from earlier hadn't come back, but a few were listlessly sitting in chairs, holding their heads.

"Are you okay?" She asked everyone, gently nudging them awake.

"Hm…what happened?"

"You just dozed off," She reassured them with a smile. She refilled any tea or coffee that needed it, waving to those who left.

"Heya!" Minako greeted eagerly as she walked in. "How are things going in here?"

"I'm about to close up." She offered Minako a smile, happy for her company. "How have you been? We haven't had a chance to properly catch up."

Minako, dressed in an oversized violet sweater over some white slacks, sat down and lounged around, waiting for the bakery to clear out. The instant it did, she broke into a huge grin.

"Kyoto was so boring! I couldn't wait to come back home! Just constant work!" She pretended to sob. "And I'm jealous of you! Hot hunk of a husband and a cute daughter?! You're living it up!"

Makoto just shook her head at her friend, heading home for the night. Not very many people knew, but the name of her bakery, A Taste of Love, was Minako's suggestion. Makoto labored over a name for a year and a half, thinking to just name it after herself, before Minako got some cupcakes to share at her Hokkaido tour. Upon taking a bite, she proclaimed they tasted like being enveloped in warm loving hugs, and 'I'd know a thing or two about love, myself!' The name stuck.

"I'm serious! I'd give anything for that!" Minako continued to lament as she followed Makoto.

"Really? What about that one guy? Tanaka-san?"

"That stuff is all just flings for the tabloids! We don't even kiss! All of them are annoying!" Minako said breezily as she stepped into the living room. She wandered around until she found a table covered in family photographs. The biggest was of Ittou and Makoto dressed in their wedding outfits, Makoto smiling a heavenly smile. Her gown was a huge hoopskirted princess gown in white with flowers in her hair. Ittou wore a white tuxedo trimmed with a cream color.

"Well, who would you have dated, had you had the chance? You had plenty of guys as a teenager," Makoto cheekily reminded her. "Yaten-kun?"

Minako laughed. "No way! Once I found out she was a girl, I lost all that attraction!"

"You're home!" Ittou gasped as he walked inside. "Well, Mayumi is already in bed, and did you defeat the villain? Uh-"

Makoto waved him away. "Yes, everything is taken care of. Minako-chan is just here because she is."

Ittou nodded and walked into the kitchen while Minako looked at more photos. Makoto couldn't detect any jealousy in her eyes, but there wasn't kindness or sadness in them either. Just a hardened expression.

"Bye! I'm leaving now!" She finally waved.

"I just have to ask…what's with that hair? Never took you for a short gal,"

"You like?" Minako flipped it. "I thought it was time for a change, and the bob is very popular right now! How could I resist?!" She flipped it again. "When it grows out again I'm thinking of getting it crimped," She left then, leaving Makoto to have dinner with Ittou alone, Mayumi in bed just as he said.

/+/

Kéik-Greek for cake

In case you're wondering why I chose Mayumi, the name most commonly translates to 'spindle tree' but can also mean 'truth' or 'elegant'. Due to Makoto's association with wood and the fact the two names sound alike, I thought it'd be the perfect name for her!