Suzuki Touichirou was at a loss.

The sleep deprivation was not helping. He had been up all night weighing the pros, cons, and outcomes of his only two options. He could either kill Shimazaki or he could allow Shimazaki to…with Daughter…and that was…the thought of Shimazaki and Daughter being in any sort of relationship disturbs him in ways that he had not been aware were possible. She was just a little girl. She was ten and…and the internet had said that ten years old was when a lot of children began to develop romantic and even sexual feelings…and he had never hated the internet before but he hated it now…so the way that Daughter felt was normal. Ten was the beginning of a sort of pre puberty time…or just full on puberty….and girls developed faster than boys and…

And Suzuki was not prepared for this.

The idea of Daughter having feelings for a man had always been very abstract. He had this vague idea of Daughter in his mind as a grown woman. She had some sort of man in her life and some children and was happy. Daughter was always some sort of vague concept in his mind, then, but an older vague concept. The Daughter that existed in this reality was a ten year old girl…and he was not at all comfortable with…with any of this. He wanted her to have normal feelings towards the opposite sex…in an abstract sense…but with someone closer to her own age!

She was ten.

Why did she have to have feelings for a man thrice her age? Suzuki had never had feelings for a woman so much older than himself…well there had been the woman who worked at the manga store…and that one waitress at the place he and Fukuda used to get breakfast from all the time…and then also there had been his statistics professor….but he had been a grown man at that point even if she was middle aged…and there had also been that woman right before Masami….

Some people preferred older partners but this did seem to be a bit extreme.

Also Daughter was a different person from him…and it had been a different time then…and none of those women had ever returned his feelings. Yes, the disturbing part of all of this was the fact that he seemed to return her feelings…and he did not want that. She was too good for him. There was nothing about that man that should have attracted Daughter. He was physically attractive, true, but there were thousands of physically attractive men in the world. If she wanted to she could have had models or body builders or those androgynous men from the music groups that women liked, for some reason, even though Suzuki would have figured that they would have been more popular with homosexuals…how much overlap was there between what women and homosexuals enjoyed, actually? He had never given this much thought…but now he was…

How did that work?

How did they decide who was going to be the man and who was going to be the women? In domestic roles and sexually? And how did sex between two men even work? Well he knew what they did but it did not look mutually pleasurable. Sex should have been mutually pleasurable for both parties. Either do it right or do it by yourself. That had always been his thinking when it came to sex. He knew that other men did not feel the same way, which made no sense, and he worried for Daughter. There were so many selfish men out there in the world, not just sexually but in general, and maybe he should have just picked one out for her. Just held audition and then presented her with the perfect man. But not a homosexual even though women were into that. And not someone who was selfish sexually…though he had no idea how he was going to audition for that. Customer satisfaction surveys? Or maybe just an informal survey to every woman in Japan? Yes, if he collected the sexual histories of every woman in Japan and then cross referenced them…well there was more to a relationship than sex…

So then he would need more than one survey.

He could just have every woman in Japan rate every single romantic and sexual partner that they had ever had and he could then assigned every single man in Japan a rating based on the data findings and then he could find and bring Daughter the best one…or something. There were also her own personal preferences, too. Like how he would never be happy with just any woman. She had to be perfect. Like Masami….but perfect was hard to measure. The woman who he loved most in the world was not the woman who another man loved most in the world…

And if any men were after his wife, if they thought that they loved her, then he would have to open their abdominal cavities and leave them out on some kind of platform and then fill them with birdseed…or worms…whichever the birds liked better…and also sugar for the ants…

But nobody was after his wife. Just like nobody was after his…how he had gotten here? Right. Daughter. He needed to find a better man for Daughter than Shimazaki. What did women even like? He was not a woman, he had never been a woman, and he did not want to get a sex change so he was going to have to think abstractly. Women wanted…apparently Shimazaki was what women wanted. Apparently women wanted men who wore too much cologne and were obnoxious and annoying and butchered the Beatles, he was no music lover but he did know the Beatles and what Shimazaki sang was not the Beatles, and sat on desks and drank and smoked and were just so…annoying!

And also thirty. He was also thirty.

And apparently he ate candles, too, which was….not normal. Candles were not a food but apparently he ate them and Daughter was already planning on getting him a birthday party and he may not have been wise to the ways of women, they were very confusing beings, he knew that it meant a lot to a woman to get you a gift…and Daughter was going to get him gifts…and she cared for him even though she could have had someone better. Someone who fulfilled the criteria by which women chose men. They liked men who were physically attractive, provided for their families, were capable of keeping them safe, and were sexually skilled. There. That was what women wanted.

Daughter was not a woman.

Daughter was a little girl and some of those things should not have even mattered to her yet! She already had someone to provide for her and keep her safe! That was him! He was her father and he would give her whatever she wanted and he would keep her safe from all of those who wished to harm her! She didn't need anyone for that! And as far as sex went she was too young for that…right? He got the feeling that she was too young for all of that but the internet had said ten was the age at which some people started having sexual feelings….but it hadn't been the case for him. The incessant masturbation hadn't started until he was about twelve…but he wasn't female….and also he did not want to think about his Daughter having feelings like those. Because she was just a little girl….and even if she did have those feelings she could have done better than a thirty year old man.

He could have killed him.

It would have been easy…but he was very useful. He had saved Suzuki's life more times than he could count, saved Son's life, and saved a lot of logistical and travel time too with how he could teleport…though Suzuki did find care rides relaxing…but not enough to kill a man over…but he was not killing a man over that. No, he was killing a man for having romantic and possibly also sexual feelings towards his Daughter…feelings that Daughter may have returned…

He so hated to see Daughter unhappy.

She had just now gotten back to normal after he took power back from her. It would not have been worth it to upset her again. She was just a child and…and she still didn't have complete control over her powers and emotions…and she could have exploded when she realized that her father had taken the man she loved away from her…even though she could have had a much better man…but then again what did he know about choosing men? Nothing. Nothing at all…or maybe…no, he knew nothing. He knew nothing about any of this.

Why couldn't this have been Son?

Why couldn't Son have had feelings of some sort for an older woman, he meant, he did not wish for Son and Daughter to swap places. No, if Son had feelings for Shimazaki then his age would have been the LEAST of his problems. If Son had developed these sorts of feeling for a grown woman then the solution would have been simple. Reassign the woman to some far away branch of Claw and then keep Son away from her until he was at a more appropriate age. Even if the woman had been gifted with the same exact power set and amount of usefulness as Shimazaki Suzuki would still have reassigned her. No matter how much Son begged and pleaded for her to stay. Children did not date adults. It was simple.

Well it was simple for Son, Suzuki didn't care how he felt.

Daughter…he hated it when she was angry with him. He hated it when she cried. He just hated her negative emotions…well he hated all negative emotions but he especially hated hers. How she would not only cry but explode….and how he would have to deal with it…and also the pain that settled within him when he knew that he had hurt her for no reason. Punishing her was different but she so rarely gave him reason to…

He was not going to miscalculate again.

He couldn't afford to. He had almost acted too rashly and miscalculated last night. Last night when Daughter had been cagey about her feelings towards Shimazaki, she just wouldn't give him a straight answer, and when she did she said that she cared for him…well she said that she cared for him but he annoyed her…but that made no sense. If she did not want to be near him then she could have made him leave her alone…but she hadn't. For reasons that Suzuki did not know she let him stay near her…

He could not afford to miscalculate again.

He had messed up when it came to Baby. He could not do it again. He could end up permanently damaging her ability to bond with others or something like that. Also this was a very crucial part of her development and if he did get rid of Shimazaki then she may have decided to never enter into another heterosexual relationship again…and that would have been bad, too, for the next generation…or maybe not. She could have children but with more steps…but also she could better choose the children that she had. She could just choose a man and have him mail her his genetic material…so then she didn't even have to bother with sex…and then she could have been happy and she wouldn't have had to deal with some man hanging around her that was in no way worthy of her…and then she could have a female companion to play dolls with…or whatever grown women did when they were together…and then she would have ten Sons and ten Daughters….and then he could retire and rest and spend time with her family and make sure that her children were being raised properly…

Yes, this was a much better plan.

But the whole thing hinged on Daughter being homosexual…which she was not. At least not that he knew of. She could have been a bisexual….but he was not going to ask her that. Asking her about her personal romantic feelings had been difficult enough. Though if she were a homosexual his life would have been better….even if she did end up with someone like Minegishi…who may or may not have been female….of course the best partner for Daughter would have been Son…but then that would upset the family balance….

Daughter was only ten years old…why did he have to worry about this now?

Masami should have warned him about this. She should have…she should have been there so that she could have handled this. This needed a mother's touch. He could not be both mother and father. Hell, Daughter had been promoted to mother now…to her brother…he hadn't thought that one through, actually, because nobody was mother to her and now she had to navigate this on her own…but she seemed to be doing well. Sure she had picked the worst possible man to be her most perfect person but it could have been worse.

She could have chosen a non-esper.

Yes, that was…that was not something that he wanted. She could have chosen a non-esper or…or someone who worked against him….or one of the Awakened…or…or…someone even older than him! Yes, she could have found a man in his fifties….or something…since she did seem to prefer older men. He was loyal to Claw, too, and to Suzuki…as loyal as anyone in Claw was. Also he…knew how to groom himself well…which must have been a challenge being blind. Also…um…he was a very sociable person and…and he was good with Son, too, which meant that he would be good with children…oh God…but he wasn't um…he wasn't that annoying…in very small doses…and maybe Daughter just wanted to keep him around for…whatever physical uses she had for him…

Oh dear God why?

Suzuki rested his head on his desk. He had been awake all night. He needed sleep. He heard some papers flutter off of his desk. He would have let them hit the ground, let someone else clean them up he already had one mess to deal with, when he felt another aura enter his range.

He looked up.

"Hey boss, been here long?" asked Fukuda. Suzuki had been too exhausted and too wrapped up in his own thoughts to even notice Fukuda….which was not good. He could have been dead if it had been anyone else…but it was just Fukuda. He was harmless and loyal and…and also much more well versed in human social interactions. Yes, Fukuda would have the answer. He had always proven himself useful in the past.

He was the one who had found a home for Baby, helped him establish Claw, and also a million other things in the past.

"Since about five this morning." Said Suzuki. He had to answer the question given to him first. That was good manner. He may not have particularly care about what people thought but he was not going to act like he had been raised by wolves.

"Anything big going down? Because that is a lot of notes." asked Fukuda. Right to work, right to the point, just like Suzuki liked. This was what his mind needed to get off of that track it had been on. He had been like one of his old slot cars from when he had been young. Just going around and around and around…and around. But Fukuda had knocked him off the track and now he was ready to become a functional human being again.

And, judging by the papers everywhere, it couldn't have come too soon.

"These aren't about work. These are about the situation between my Daughter and Shimazaki. As far as work goes the biggest thing happening is the upcoming inspection of the Awakening Lab in the Seventh Division. I was going to send you and an entourage of your choosing." Said Suzuki. He used his powers to stack the notes on his desk. Yes…he could feel himself slowly returning to the present…and he was very tired…but he had work to do…so he would do it…because according to the clock the day was starting…

Oh. He had missed breakfast with Daughter too. A pity.

"When do you need me to leave by?" asked Fukuda

"Soon. After we get these Awakened sorted out. They're still so scattered." Said Suzuki. Yes, this was good. Work. He could think clearly about work. He could see solutions for problems at work. At work he had absolute power. He would easily get this sorted out…because he knew work. He understood work. Work was a thousand times easier than child rearing.

God, he loved work so much.

"Understood….and I can take anyone with me?" asked Fukuda. Suzuki mentally skimmed over everyone that he would have wanted to take. Yes, he had no pressing need for any specific person.

"Anyone." Said Suzuki. Fukuda would probably take a few Awakened to carry things and take notes, a few from the Tokyo science team, and someone to act as his body guard. Yes, Suzuki could spare the manpower. Especially if Fukuda could fix whatever was making these new Awakened so very childlike.

"In that case I would like to take Sho with me. If that's alright with you. He's a capable esper. In my opinion he's more than ready for his first mission. Also he's been asking me about when he'll be able to go on missions, too." Said Fukuda. Suzuki….needed a moment. He pushed all thoughts of Daughter and her wellbeing aside to focus on Son…this was an odd feeling…but he needed to focus on his other child. Son was nine…but he was more powerful than most adults…and he as becoming restless at HQ…and he could have used the field experience…and he could be grating…and Suzuki would have liked to have been able to spend time alone with Daughter…

But he was also having irrational feelings, too, that he should not leave his Son alone with Fukuda…

He exorcised those. He was just tired. Tired and, thanks to Daughter, his mind was looking for problems that weren't there. Son was capable. Son would be fine. The worst that could happen was that Son injured himself. There was nothing wrong with sending Son to Seasoning City, it meant nothing to him, and Baby…well it wasn't as though Baby would BE at the Division HQ. No, Baby would be at home with her mother. That was what the maternity leave was for.

Yes, this would be fine.

"Yes. I see no problem with that. You're right, he'll be ten soon. He could use the field experience." Said Suzuki. He saw a curious ripple across Fukuda's aura but did not know what to make of it. No, matter, no matter. He could, would, and had trusted Fukuda with his life. He would be rewarded handsomely when the day came and Suzuki ascended to his rightful place as ruler of the world. Yes, when the day came all who had stood by him would be rewarded for this hard work and dedication.

It only made sense.

When the day came then he could rest. Just rest and run the world for a bit and then leave it to Son and his children…and then he would spend time with Daughter and her children…who would probably end up coming from Shimazaki…and could take after him…including his condition…and would that be enough to put her off of him? The fact that her children could have been born blind? No, she cared too much about him…if she had chosen him as her most perfect person…and if she had chosen him as her most perfect person then there was nothing that he could do…

Fukuda was still talking.

"….at least a week. Maybe with a stopover in…." Fukuda was talking but Suzuki couldn't bring himself to listen. Not with his mind going a mile a minute again. Daughter…if this was her most perfect person…then he had nobody to blame for this but himself. He had been a terrible father to her. He had been weak enough to fall to his emotions, he had been selfish enough to abandon Claw, and also he had done something wrong, very wrong, to make her mother leave the family. Yes, no wonder she had terrible taste in men. That was why she had picked the worst man in all of Claw. Anyone would have been better for her. Her friend Minegishi, that gifted technopath in tech support, that scar with the katana, her own brother, that man from the foreigner squad who wouldn't stop the incessant smoking, a stranger off the streets, even Fukuda would have been better for her.

"…think, boss? Boss? Suzuki?" Fukuda was asking him something. Something was being said. What was it.

"Yes, that's fine. Do all of that." Said Suzuki. He had no idea what he was agreeing to but he trusted Fukuda with his life. He was a good man. He tended to overstep and he could be a bit too familiar at times but he was a good man. He was a loyal member of Claw, a powerful esper when it came to healing, he played a good game of Go, he may have had terrible taste in literature but at least he had taste, he looked pretty good for his age as a side effect of his powers, he had known Daughter since she had been two, he was good with children, women seemed to enjoy his company or at least Masami had, he knew how to make a good cup of tea, he smelled alright, he never built forts out of office furniture, he was very sociable-

"Are you attracted at all to my Daughter?" asked Suzuki. Fukuda blinked and his aura went very still. Oh, right, he had interrupted him. Well whatever, he was the President, he could do whatever he wanted.

"No…I'm sorry? No. She's…she's a ten year old girl. No." Said Fukuda. Suzuki nodded. Yes, he hadn't thought that question through. Most men were not attracted to prepubescents and being attracted to them was generally frowned about in their, and most, societies.

"I didn't mean now. When she's older. I think, personally, that she's far too young for a romantic or sexual partner now." Said Suzuki. There. That was much clearer. He needed someone for Daughter in the future, not the present, and in the future she would be grown woman. That would be more socially acceptable.

"I…have known her since you brought her home from the orphanage…so I'm going to have to say no…and also that's…that's an age gap. One that I would not be comfortable with even if she hadn't been your daughter." Said Fukuda. Suzuki nodded. Well that made sense. He may have been the president but there were limits, even, to his power. He could not force Fukuda to marry Daughter…well he could…but then Daughter would have been miserable.

"Understood. I do wish you would reconsider. I think that you would be a much better partner to her than Shimazaki." Said Suzuki. Fukuda was staring at him now. His aura perfectly calm but his expression unreadable.

"Shimazaki? So you…you approve of….this?" asked Fukuda. No, of course not. Of course he didn't approve but what choice did he have? Daughter had chosen her most perfect person and this was something that he, for once in his life, did not have the power to change. She had chosen Shimazaki Ryou as her most perfect person and…and even if he did kill him he would still have had a very distraught Daughter to deal with…because he knew what it was to lose your most perfect person…and he never wanted to put his own Daughter through that sort of pain.

"No. Of course not. I've been thinking the matter over for some time now and I have come to the conclusion that Daughter….I want Daughter to be happy and I don't want to damage this area of her development so…I'll see how it goes. I want to murder Shimazaki but he's more useful to me alive than dead." Said Suzuki. There was more silence. He had said the wrong thing? His logic was sound. Daughter was his second priority. His first was Claw. Therefore he needed to ensure Claw's survival, not killing his best bodyguard, and also Daughter's happiness, not getting rid of her most perfect person. There. It all made sense.

"If I may speak my mind?" asked Fukuda

"You may." Said Suzuki. If he had been a religious man then he would have prayed that Fukuda had come up with a better solution than letting Daughter continue to see the grown man she had fallen in love with.

"Shigeko is a child. She'll get a new crush next week, probably, and then another new one the week after that. He's a grown man and he should know to keep himself away from her. You're her father and you have final say over your Daughter and you're the President of Claw so you have final say over your employees." Said Fukuda

"Yes? And?" asked Suzuki. He was hearing a lot of statements that he had already known and not a lot of solutions to his current problem of what to do.

"If I were in your shoes I would kick Shimazaki's ass for daring to touch your Daughter and then kill him later on if he didn't start keeping a respectful distance from her at all times. Then I would talk to Shigeko and tell her that she's acting much older than she is and that she needs to stop and think about what she's doing. That's what I would do. You don't always have to go straight to the killing, you know." Said Fukuda. Suzuki nodded.

When Fukuda said it, when he just came out and said it, the whole thing seemed simple.

Suzuki was the one with all the power there. He commanded legions of followers. He could command one little girl to…to wait. To hold off for another few years. At least…well Suzuki had been thirteen when he had gotten his first taste of the worlds of love and sex…yes. That seemed better than ten, at least, though part of him felt as though he would never be comfortable with the idea of Daughter being with any man at all…

But at least if she waited, just until she was as old as he had been when he started, she would have time to find a better most perfect person than Shimazaki. Someone worthy of her.

"Thank you for your counsel. I will…I will do that. Thank you." Said Suzuki. He hated saying 'thank you' to his subordinates but he had to. Fukuda had provided very wise counsel once again and as always.

Now that he was no longer at a loss the work of Claw could commence.