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Paperwork, the bane of every employee's existence.
When joining the Hunting Dogs Jouno did not expect to be filling out so much of it, but now he sees that most of his work will be set behind a computer screen, listening to the screen reader and typing away after every mission, providing every detail he can. Annoying.
No matter the time, this work had to be done, so here they were, both him and his Vice Commander stuck in the office after a sudden mission they had completed not too long ago, the clock already coming close to striking midnight, and the two of them more than ready to pack it up and go home.
“Agh, this is boring! I’m exhausted!” Teruko whined, spinning around in her office chair, continuing to test Jouno’s patience.
“I can’t say I don’t agree,” Jouno gave a tired response. “But they need to be done as soon as possible after the mission’s complete so we don’t forget what happened.”
“You think I don’t know that!?” Teruko snapped, slamming her hands on the desk to stop her rotation. “But come on, they should give us exceptions for late night missions like this!”
Jouno only sighed. He whole-heartedly agreed with her, but they both knew they couldn’t simply not do the work, whatever punishment they would need to face if they did so would be far worse than simply late-night paperwork.
For a moment the room returned to silence, well, as quiet as it could be. Accompanying the sound of keyboard typing and the robotic voice coming through Jouno’s headphone was the sound of rain hitting the window.
It only started after they made it back to base, thankfully, – fighting in the rain was a pain in the ass – but it only continued to pick up, to the point where it was almost irritating to Jouno’s ears.
They finished up soon after that, thankfully, practically rushing to pick up their things and get home as soon as possible.
Thankfully, Teruko was going to drive them home, to their shared quarters with the other Hunting Dogs. “Fall asleep in my car and I’m leaving you there,” she said, skipping along with Jouno’s hand in her own.
“Your car smells like sour candy and dog hair, I’d rather–”
Bang!
Jouno was ashamed to admit he flinched at the sound, halting in his tracks at the suddenness of it.
Thunder. Shit.
Teruko stopped as well, turning to him with a quizzical look, almost laughing, “You alright?”
“You know my senses are a lot–”
Bang!
Once again, stopped in his tracks. Dammit!
He couldn’t tell her the truth, that ever since he was a kid, before he lost his sight and his senses evolved into what they are now, thunder terrified him.
It was stupid, so fucking stupid, he knew damn well that lightning couldn’t hurt him, the chances of getting struck by lighting were so incredibly low, and even if it happened he was a Hunting Dog, for crying out loud! He had already taken hits way worse and will continue to in the future!
But still…
“Don’t tell me you're scared,” Teruko snickered. Jouno’s could feel his face heat up with embarrassment slightly.
“Of course not, that’s ridiculous!!”
Another roll of thunder, this time louder than the last, forced Jouno’s hands to his ears before his mind could even process his actions.
Teruko laughed, and Jouno couldn’t help from getting more embarrassed, but the harsh beating of his heartbeat continued. His movements felt stiff, the only thing forcing his hands to finally move from their place over his ears was his pride.
After only a couple seconds, Jouno was anticipating the next bang of thunder more than his focus on his Vice Commander, Teruko hopped up, knocked off his cap and placed something against his ears.
“Headphones,” Teruko explained simply, reaching down to pick up his hat off the ground before smacking it against his chest. He grabbed onto it just as thunder rumbled just outside once more.
While the sound itself still caused him to stiffen, the noise was at a more bearable level. He reached one of his hands up to inspect the headphones, recognizing them. “Did you steal this from the range? I didn’t think you knew how to use firearms.”
Teruko punched him in the arm, “Of course I know how! I was there just before the mission today! I wasn’t thinking and accidentally stuffed them in my bag. I’ll return them next time I go there, but they came in handy, didn’t they?”
Jouno supposed they did. Teruko was being awfully kind, but he supposed there was a catch to all this.
“Don’t worry, I’ll keep this little secret between us, but you owe me.”
There it is.
“Of course,” Jouno sighed. He hesitated for a moment. “I supposed I should thank you.”
“Don’t get sappy on me,” Teruko sounded annoyed, but she couldn’t hide the smile in her voice from him, even with the headphones on.
They made their way to Teruko’s car in mostly silence, the Vice Commander taking his hand once again, but he could tell how she held on tighter this time.
~~~
Maintenance was always a pain for Teruko. It could not be rescheduled, it was mandatory for her survival, and she needed shots before and after.
Every month was the same song and dance. Come in, change into an adult form for a safer procedure, meet up with the doctors, and get the necessary injections and blood samples prior to the surgery.
Every month she put up an unnecessary fight.
Her knee bounced as she held her arm out. In the past she’s tried everything. Shutting her eyes, turning her head away, talking her own head off, but every time she flinched away from the needle. It occasionally went in slightly wrong or with too much force, and every time she was in more pain at the source than she should’ve been.
She wasn’t even sure why she felt this way, it was a needle, not a bullet or knife, all things she’s been hit with plenty of times but still holds no fear over, but why needles, of all things? They were uncomfortable, perhaps, but that was the closest thing she’s come up with in terms of answers.
She had gotten better, though. She remembered early on how she could involuntarily kick or hit whoever was around her. Perhaps she was too used to the battlefield so anything even remotely causing her pain was a danger to her, but even now that she had spent years with this she still continued to flinch away.
Apparently, today of all days, the doctor was not in the mood to deal with Teruko.
“Suehiro!” She called out, and Teruko’s face paled. Tecchou must’ve been walking just outside the room, what he was doing in the medical ward after he had already recovered from maintenance, she wasn’t sure, but she cursed at the timing regardless.
Tecchou poked his head in, “Can I help you?”
“Yeah, mind holding down your teammate? She likes making it difficult for us to give her injections,” the doctor explained, crossing his arms.
Teruko’s eyes met his for a brief but awkward second before she snapped, “I’m a grown woman, I don’t need someone to pin me down for shots!”
“Oh, if you’re a grown woman then act like it, stop whining like a brat, you’ve been getting these surgeries for years!” The doctor snapped back. Teruko crossed her arms and huffed.
Tecchou took a couple steps in, “My apologies, Vice Commander.”
She wanted to tell him off, to force him to leave, but when it came to their health, especially their maintenance, the doctors had more control over even the Commander.
“Tell anyone about this and I’ll have your head,” Teruko warned as Tecchou grabbed her arm.
“Noted,” Tecchou responded earnestly, taking the seat beside her and holding her arm in place.
The doctor finally grabbed the first needle and stepped up to them. Teruko tried to stay still, she truly did, but when the needle brushed up against her bicep she pulled back, or at least tried. Tecchou seemed to be using his full strength just to keep her in place.
The process repeated for the rest of the injections. The whole process couldn’t have taken longer than a few seconds, but it was an eternity for Teruko. When all was said and done, Tecchou stood up casually, saying nothing more than, “Good luck with your maintenance, Teruko.”
Teruko was incredibly lucky it was Tecchou who walked by and not Jouno, at least he was polite and wouldn’t utter a word of this.
“Thanks for the help, Suehiro,” the doctor smiled at him. She reached into her pocket and offered him a lollipop, “Here, a sign of my gratitude.”
Tecchou stared at it with wide eyes, Teruko could have sworn they were sparkling. He took it with a quick, “Thank you,” before quickly unwrapping it and stepping out the door.
“Hey! Why do I never get lollipops!?” Teruko griped.
“You’ll get one when you can take your shots without causing everyone around you trouble!”
“That’s not fair!”
~~~
A Hunting Dog’s life was not entirely spent fighting, thankfully. Occasionally, Fukuchi’s fame led him to be dragged to fancy dinner parties and the like, and the rest of the Hunting Dogs were also taken along with him.
While only the people actually working with the military even knew their names, the title of Hunting Dog still held weight, and they needed to come to be “shown off like trophies,” as Teruko once put it. Tecchou was never one for fancy clothes, his tie always felt like it was suffocating him.
This time, they were dragged onto a cruise ship, drifting somewhere off in Japanese waters.
Tecchou didn’t like it, he didn’t like being so far from shore, even for one night, and he especially didn’t like being on the ocean.
Perhaps it was because it was getting late, or because the party atmosphere had already gotten too much for him, Tecchou decided to go out and watch the sunset. Something to calm his nerves a bit.
That turned out to be a mistake on his part. He could not focus on the elegant colors of the sky, but instead his gaze was cast downwards at the water below.
He couldn’t see anything.
Below him was nothing but the rolling of waves hitting the side of the ship. It was dark, almost murky, impossible to tell how deep it was, impossible to tell what was down there.
It’s not as if Tecchou couldn’t swim, in fact he was an amazing swimmer, he could possibly swim the entire way back to shore if he so chose, but the thought of there being something just beneath him as he did so was haunting.
“Hey,” a voice called from behind him, pulling him out of his trance. Tecchou turned around to see Tachihara walking up to him, blazer undone and tie slightly loose. “Was the music too loud or something?”
“Something like that,” Tecchou shrugged, his gaze returning to the water below.
Tachihara walked up to him, crossing his arms and leaning up against the railing beside him. “Something down there?”
Tecchou’s hands just barely tightened on the railing, “I don’t know.” And that was the problem, he had no idea if there was something down there. He had fought monsters that people only thought existed in fairy tales, who knew what could be lurking just beneath their ship.
What if there was? What if it attacked? He couldn’t save everyone.
“There’s probably just a bunch of fish, maybe we’ll even see a whale if we’re lucky,” Tachihara grinned, a spark of excitement in his eyes.
“What brings you out here?” Tecchou asked, turning his attention to the younger.
“Oh, about that,” he rubbed the back of his neck, “Both Jouno and Teruko got drunk and I’m worried they’re gonna start a fight or something, and I have no idea where the Commander went.”
Oh, that was definitely a problem. Both Jouno and Teruko get pretty emotional when drunk, amplifying their aggression tenfold at times. As for Fukuchi, Tecchou was just scared he had fallen overboard, it wouldn’t be the first time.
“Let’s go,” Tecchou stated, stepping away from the edge of the ship.
“Ah, right!” Tachihara said as he followed along.
Silently, Tecchou thanked Tachihara.
~~~
It was rare for the Hunting Dogs to have a break. Of course, they would still need to drop everything and go if they were needed, but simply not needing to train all day and do a bunch of paperwork was more than enough.
At that time there was a fair in town. It was Teruko’s suggestion to go, of course, claiming she hadn’t had the time to go in years, and the rest followed suit for a day of mindless fun.
Jouno didn’t want to go at first, of course he didn’t, but Tachihara saw just how competitive he was when it came to carnival games, especially against Tecchou and Teruko.
Even if Tachihara wasn’t exactly keeping up with the other’s antics he was still enjoying himself. Coincidentally, the Black Lizard was also given a day off by Hirotsu, something about a family member’s birthday. Tachihara jumped at the opportunity to head home for a day.
One thing he wasn’t quite enjoying, however, were the clowns that wandered the streets, covered in bright colors and faux smiles.
Tachihara knew there were just people in costume, people that probably didn’t get paid enough to be laughed at for a living, but he had always found something about them so unsettling.
Maybe it’s because their facial features were always so big and uncanny, he knew the reason behind the extravagant makeup was so that people could see them from far away, but it simply bothered him.
He had been doing a good job avoiding them, and they tended to focus on entertaining kids more than people his age. He and Fukuchi were simply hanging back as the other three ran off to play yet another game.
“They’re like little kids,” Tachihara chuckled, placing a hand on his hip, the other wrapped around a shark plushie he had won earlier in the day.
Fukuchi laughed, “I can’t blame them, it’s been a while since we’ve had a day to just relax like this.” Fukuchi had been prepared for this little trip of theirs, bringing a large bag to carry all the other’s prizes in, always being designated the team’s bag-holder.
“You should go play some more, too, infiltration isn’t easy on the mind,” Fukuchi suggested.
“I will in a bit, let’s get something to eat firs–” Tachihara took a step back as he spoke, readjusting his stance, only to bump shoulders with someone. He turned around and began to apologize, just as the stranger did the same.
Unexpectedly, he was met face to face with a big red nose and a permanent frown. He shrieked, instinctually a fist flying out to get that face away from him.
Only when he heard the smack of his fist connecting with the clown’s did he realize what had happened.
“Shit! I’m sorry, I’m so sorry,” he began, hands reaching up so as to not feel useless as the clown held their nose.
The clown hissed in pain, “Damn, you hit hard. Sorry for scaring you.”
Before Tachihara even realized it, Fukuchi was standing behind him. “Sorry about my nephew, he can be jumpy. You alright? Should I call an ambulance?”
Nephew? Tachihara shook it off, still feeling incredibly guilty. He held his shark plushie tighter.
“I should be fine,” The clown waved a hand, “This happens more often than you think, I’ll just grab an ice pack.”
Tachihara noticed as blood began to leak from under the clown’s fake nose. Quickly, he pulls a pack of tissues from his pocket, plucks some out, and hands them to the clown.
“Thanks,” the clown smiles, as best he can through the now-smudged sad face paint.
The clown left after that, Tachihara still felt the guilt eating up at him, he should’ve done something to compensate other than just hand him some tissues.
“What was all that about, boy?” Fukuchi asked, placing a hand on Tachihara’s shoulder in concern.
“Oh, uh, he just startled me,” Tachihara half explained.
“I guess it’s typical to be a bit jumpy in this line of work,” Fukuchi sighed, “But think with your eyes before you think with your fists, alright?”
Tachihara gulped, “Will do.”
“Commander!” A cheerful shout called to him. From the crowd out came Teruko, carrying a massive pink teddy bear above her head. “Look what I won!”
Jouno and Tecchou followed close behind, carrying smaller prizes in their own arms. “Celebrate when you win something fairly,” Jouno huffed.
“Hey, I won this fair and square!”
“She was more lenient with you because you look like a child going up against two adults!” Jouno exclaimed. “You had three missed shots that didn’t count because of how close they were, she didn’t even give me that leniency and I’m blind!”
“Maybe you should just suck less!”
Teruko stuck her tongue out and Jouno returned the favor. Tecchou, on the other hand, looked happy to even have a prize, transfixed on his new teddy bear and wiggling its little arms around with his hands.
Yeah, he would rather come face to face with another clown than have to deal with his team’s off-duty shenanigans.
~~~
Meeting after meeting, party after party, Fukuchi’s life was a busy one. Off the battlefield he always seemed to be doing something, but he supposes it comes with the title of war hero.
Today was yet another party he was dragged to. He never cared for hanging out with politicians, in fact he quite hated it, but his fellow soldiers were welcomed company any day, as was any form of alcohol.
This time, the party was on an op rooftop bar a couple dozen stories up, looking over the city, and Fukuchi hated it. Heights were never his thing, he could handle them, of course he was forced into aircrafts at least once a week, but still, he would avoid them at any cost.
The sight of a large drop made him woozy, and not in the fun drunken way, but rather in the way that felt as if it was dragging him down to fall.
But hey, the bar was in the middle of the building, no possible way to look down. Besides, he had no reason to leave the bar in the first place.
“Commander,” there was a tap on his shoulder. Fukuchi turned to see Jouno standing just behind him, arms crossed and a quite uncomfortable look on his face. “Finally you respond, I nearly began shouting.”
“Ah, Jouno!” Fukuchi cheered, raising his glass. “Come for a drink?”
Jouno only pinched his nose, “I’d rather throw myself off this building. Commander, I have some questions to ask you in private, would you mind coming with me?”
“Can’t they wait until after the party?”
“I don’t want to try and ask you anything when you’re drunk and hungover.”
He had a fair point, Fukuchi planned to drink until he didn’t remember the night, and due to his enhancements that would take a lot of drinking, and if it was important enough for Jouno to want to drag him out he had better be as sober as possible.
Fukuchi stood up, taking his glass with him as he followed Jouno farther away from the bar area, and farther, and farther, until they reached the edge of the building, right beside the railing.
“This is the only quiet place here, apologies for dragging you out,” Jouno’s apology was more out of courtesy than actually being genuine.
“Don’t worry about it, just make it quick,” Fukuchi replied, doing his best to be casual, but his eyes kept glancing at the street below. It was far, the cars driving just under them looking like ants from this height.
“I overheard some people talking about how there is an overabundance of new recruits to the military, and how they planned on having us Hunting Dogs aid in training them, is that true?” Jouno asked, arms crossed.
“Ah, that,” Fukuchi began, but he couldn’t quite focus on what Jouno was saying. “Right, I had mentioned it to a few people a couple days ago, but no concrete plans have been made.”
“And you didn’t bother asking us about how we would feel teaching toddlers how to crawl?”
“I planned on having a meeting after I thought about it more,” Fukuchi replied, now almost fixated on the cars below. He knew if he fell he would be perfectly fine, but still the uneasiness in his gut felt like a knot, a knot that could be washed down with a drink. He took a sip from his nearly-empty cup.
“Commander, are you alright?” Jouno asked, eyebrows pinched. “You’re not acting right.”
Shit.
“What do you mean by that? I’m perfectly fine, just a little tipsy,” Fukuchi laughed.
“No, no you don’t act like this when drunk, and your hands don’t shake. Don't tell me…” Jouno’s voice hushed slightly as he thought. He leaned forward slightly and sniffed the drink in his Commander’s hand. “No, no one was dumb enough to try and drug you. Don’t tell me…”
The noise amplifier in Fukuchi’s heart seemed to be working perfectly, but Jouno, the perceptive bastard that he was, was not easy to fool.
“Is something making you nervous, or perhaps scared?” Jouno divulged, a small grin growing on his face.
Fukuchi laughed, hoping he didn’t sound too nervous, “What? No, of course not! I’m just a bit tipsy.”
“Don’t try and lie to me, I’m already well aware of all your stages of drunkenness, Commander,” Jouno’s smile grew. “Now, what could possibly make our dear Commander tremble in his boots?”
“Jouno, there’s no need to play these games, just ask the questions you need to.”
“Apologies Commander, but this is the most fun I’ve had all night,” Jouno chuckled. “And it’s heights, isn’t it? That’s what you’re afraid of?”
He couldn’t hide this any longer from Jouno. Usually he was a much better liar than this, especially when it came to his plans, but he supposes his tells were a little too obvious when it came to his childish phobia.
“I… just get this knot in my stomach looking down at big drops like this,” Fukuchi admitted, a little embarrassed in himself.
“Hm? This drop doesn't look that big to me,” Jouno shrugged, leaning his head over the edge.
Huh? Fukuchi was just looking down, they were several stories up– Oh, did Jouno just… make a joke?
“Very funny,” Fukuchi sighed.
“Aw, I wanted to make you look.”
“You’re a cruel man, you know that, Jouno?”
“A cruel man who now has something on his Commander.”
“Are you sure about that?”
Jouno’s smile dropped, an eyebrow raised in confusion.
“You yourself have a fear of thunder, don’t you?”
The color drained from Jouno’s face, but he laughed slightly, “What makes you think that?”
“I stay at the Hunting Dogs dorm every once in a while, and a few times I’ve come in to see you sleeping on the couch with sound proof headphones on stormy nights. I guess that makes us even, huh?”
Jouno looked like he wanted to retort, but nothing came. “I suppose this is what I get for challenging the Commander,” he almost looked like a kicked puppy.”
“I suppose it is, Fukuchi patted his shoulder a couple times. Jouno was smart, scarily smart at times, but in situations like this Fukuchi knew his subordinate well. “If you don’t say a word neither will I, how about that?”
“I’ll keep silent,” Jouno sighed, smacking away his Commander’s hand.
Fukuchi nodded once, then began to make his way back to the bar to continue with his goal of drunkenness.