Title: Rehashing the Facts
Pairing(s): Togusa/Meijiro
Genre: Alternate Universe
"What's that?"
Togusa pulled off his shoes and arched his back forwards, kneading his spine with his fists. God, I'm tired. "What's what?"
Meijiro gestured with her wooden spoon at his jacket. "That paper in your pocket." She then continued to stir inside her pot.
"Oh. That." Togusa pulled it out, frowning. "It's a letter of request from Mr. Aramaki Daisuke to join..." he unfolded it and flourished, "Public Security Section 9."
Mei raised her eyebrows. "Bit of a mouthful, isn't it?"
Her husband crossed the floor to the stove making noises of agreement as their daughter squealed with delight upon seeing that her father was home.
Once Togusa had managed to pry her off his leg, he returned to the subject. "It seems to be a government run black-op. Very secretive, very shady." He shooed Shiori back to the living room. Meijiro leaned over and plucked the paper out of his hand.
"Anti-cyber-terrorism unit, huh?" She shook her head. "No offense, but I don't think you'd be much help in that area. Now, if they wanted something stolen..."
Togusa smiled a little. "That's what I told Major Kusanagi. But she kept on insisting that I'd be able to do it, if I'd just have the courage to...'pluck myself out of the rut.'"
Meijiro burst out laughing. Togusa raised his voice over her guffaws. "She was pretty interesting! She kept on talking about how if I really wanted some excitement, I ought to be willing to branch out and try new things --"
This only made her laugh harder. The idea that her husband wanted more excitement in his life was simply too ridiculous.(1)
Once she had calmed down, he continued. "She had full prosthetic body, too. You don't see too many of those."
"How were you able to tell?" Meijiro chortled, wiping tears from her eyes.
"Breasts that large don't get so perky with a waist that small, without one."
That wiped the smile off of her face. "And what," she asked flatly, "Were you doing looking?"
"I couldn't not; she kept on shoving them in my face!"
His wife did not look impressed by this argument. Togusa pushed onwards hastily. "Apparently the rest of her team is the same. They're at least twenty-five percent artificial."
"That would be hard for you to keep up with..."
"It would, indeed."
Togusa took the paper back from her. He studied it carefully.
"So...are you going to join?"
His answer was ready. He'd decided on his way home.
"No way."
"What?"
Togusa resolutely ripped the paper into tiny shreds and threw it into the trash. "It sounds like they have to fly under the radar to get anything done. I'm not interested in being a vigilante -- not anymore. Besides, I love my job. I have good friends at the force. What kind of a lunatic would give that up?" The question was rhetorical, but also not. He smiled at her a little. Then he sniffed the air. "Is something burning?"
With a cry of horror, Meijiro sprang on the forgotten pot, which was belching out oily looking smoke. Her husband chuckled and went to set the table.
(1) C'mon, the man has two kids and a wife to look after, and a full-time job that could get him killed!
