Chapter Text
1. Ichikawa Leno
When he has time in between training and rest, and the chaos that is their new officer life, Leno makes it a habit to go down to the Research & Development Bay tucked into the basement of Tachikawa Base’s training arena.
The place is nothing to write home about. They only have a few in-house scientific officers after all, most of their equipment built off-site and delivered by an Izumo Tech facility operating close by. The Third’s armory in comparison is almost six times the size of the lab. There are still the rudimentary dissection benches and storage freezers for the odd kaiju parts that are hauled over for further analysis, and a few tables where weapons can be tinkered with by staff if need be.
Recently, Leno has started finding especially this part of the work interesting, even a little fun. Knowing how each different type of their equipment works, how you can mix and match weapons and ammo to suit exactly what you are fighting, is almost like figuring out a puzzle. He likes puzzles. More than that, Leno likes being prepared. What other kind of kid would have signed up for often unpopular monster clean-up work on the off chance that it would be relevant in an exam?
It’s still pretty early in the morning, on a Saturday no less, but it’s hardly a surprise to see Sir already elbow deep in some yonju guts on one of the benches in the back. He just grins and waves silently before going back to whatever he is doing, and letting Leno settle into what he has come to consider his bench.
Leno hums along to the music playing from his headphones satisfied, as he sorts out some notes he took of new kaiju trait combination bullets a couple weeks ago. There is order here, peace. He really appreciates mornings like this. He has always liked listening music a lot, but there is not much occasion to put on his favourite albums and unwind in the middle of a military compound on active duty.
He glances over to the back. People think Sir is loud and silly, and he can be, but he can also be really considerate and gentle, in ways many people don’t even notice. But Leno knows if he has his headphones on when he walks into the lab, Sir will just wave silently from his spot and not walk over or try to engage him conversation until he pulls them down to his neck and turns towards the other man himself.
Over time Leno has noticed Sir tends to become quickly aware of what others around him need, unspoken, and he likes taking care of his people. He was the same way with their Monster Sweeper Inc. crew. It’s one of the many reasons Leno has come to respect and idolize the older man. He also wants to be the kind of person who can take care of his comrades in ways that make them feel as comfortable, and as inspired, as Sir makes Leno feel.
He goes through the routine of disassembling and cleaning his standard issue rifle on the bench, and finally takes a pause to pull his headphones down over his neck. “You know, Sir, I could not have guessed you enjoyed dissections this much from the way you reacted to intestine duty back at Monster Sweeper Inc.”
Sir moves to scratch the back of his neck, a habit of his whenever he is embarrassed. There is already a warning on the tip of Leno’s tongue, but at the last moment he seems to notice his thankfully glove covered hand is dripping with blood, and lord knows what else, and thinks better of the action. Leno huffs amused. “Everybody hates intestine duty Ichikawa,” he shudders, “But I don’t think I would have stayed in that job as long as I had if I did not genuinely enjoy some parts of it.”
That’s fair. It’s a thankless, tiring job, but actually doing it had in fact made Ichikawa appreciate the intricacies of such work, and how so much hands-on anatomical knowledge could be surprisingly useful in the field. He understands now why clean-up was used as a trial for the Defense Force hopefuls.
“Don’t you think it’s at least a little cool?” Leno hears the older man ask.
Sir doesn’t even wait for an answer before he goes on excitedly, “Like, how these things even evolved like this?” Leno moves closer to the guts covered bench but stays out of what he considers the Enthusiastic Splash Zone of Sir’s gooey gloves gesturing as he works through a new thought.
“Venoms are just a cocktail of proteins that evolved for a specific function at the end of the day, just like any other protein. Different animal venoms have evolved with different functions because they have been selected by different evolutionary pressures. Their habitat, their prey, how they need to immobilize or kill said prey…”
“And kaiju evolved to kill humans,” Leno ventures.
“Maybe,” Sir hums, “But why would kaiju, as big and deadly as they already were, would evolve venom to prey on humans?”
Leno shrugs, “Happy coincidence?”
“They don’t need it,” the other man laughs looking back down at his instruments. “Not for humans at least, but maybe this venom has evolved to be able to fight against other kaiju?” He briefly cleans his scissors with ethanol before moving to cut another section closer to the neck.
“No, think about it! We are so busy just looking at all kaiju as our enemy that we don’t consider the hierarchy among them. If some evolved venom to kill another, would others also become poisonous as a defence against other kaiju higher in the food chain than they are?”
Sir is cheerful and loud, he is thoughtful and kind. Something a lot of people also miss because of his usually silly demeanour though, is that Sir can be really smart. He has always been interested in kaiju physiology sure, but Leno knows the man also stays up a lot to study all he can to increase his knowledge about how these monsters operate.
The man in question lifts up a truly horrendous looking sack of some kind, bubbled over with a viscous light purple substance. What Leno assumes is the venom gland, that spurred on this discussion.
“Gross, Sir.”
“You say that now, Ichikawa, but imagine how cool it would be to have poison ammo strong enough to actually affect kaiju?”
Huh. Well. There is something to that idea.
He grins wide, and Leno almost wishes for some protective goggles, that’s how bright Sir is.
*
The youngsters of the “Third Division Monster Generation”, as they had dubbed themselves in secret in honour of their monstrous big brother, tries to meet up at least a few times within the year if their posts allow it.
They have all settled into their lives in their new Divisions, but it’s hard to forget the bonds formed in training and your very first combat, especially if they involved events as traumatic as what their class had gone through together.
When Leno and Iharu walk into the izakaya in Koto Ward closest to the First Division that’s quite popular with Defense Force officers, Haruichi and Aoi are already waiting for them by the counter. They don’t ever mention it but there is an agreement among the four of them to meet closer to the First instead of the other bases more often than not, because Kikoru is the one most restricted in her travelling due to her new position. Shinomiya Kikoru, true to her character, valiantly pretends she is totally not aware of this and not at all touched by the gesture.
Seems like Aoi already has little bit of a flush forming on the dark skin of his high cheekbones, and Leno fondly remembers that despite his stature Aoi is somehow the biggest lightweight among them. Haruichi is the one who notices them walk up shouting a cheerful greeting, and gets one of the servers to move their party to one of the more private rooms in the back that have unofficially become theirs. The best for the Izumo Tech heir, of course.
As soon as they sit down Iharu has his arm thrown over his shoulder, and it makes Leno feel warm inside, even though he has yet to order a drink. He surreptitiously leans back into the touch.
They order their food and drinks, refills for Haruichi and Aoi, catching up with the usual So what’s the latest gossip in your Base?, and something in Leno slowly relaxes to know he is with his best friends again, safe. Kikoru is running late again, though also true to her character, she is usually the last to arrive to any gathering. In as dramatic of a fashion as she can get away with.
Leno and Iharu’s relationship does not constitute as “the latest gossip” in any stretch of the imagination, but Haruichi switches from a convoluted story about how the Second’s Captain Igarashi-san has sworn to make Okonogi her girlfriend, to teasing them as soon as Iharu, always more physically affectionate when he’s tipsy, leans all over him to give him a kiss on the cheek.
“Yeah, no, Hibino is a nice old man, but imagine getting the shovel talk from Monster #8,” he says with a theatrical shudder.
“No one is getting the shovel talk-”
“Are you guys stupid?”
And there is the woman of the hour.
Four heads simultaneously turn towards Kikoru standing in the now open screen door with her chin tilted up in regular fashion. She wastes no time walking to her spot at the head of the table, shimmying out of her coat, and settles down, reaching for Leno’s drink without pause.
“Hibino Kafka will immediately start tearing up if you ever tell him you plan to make an honest man out of this guy,” and she ignores Iharu choking on his beer in the background to continue, “And then he’ll give you a big bear hug.”
She has a point. Leon knows Sir adores both Kikoru and himself, like his errant siblings at his best and his precious children on his worst sentimental moments.
“Hm, but if he does transform out of excitement he might break your spine with that hug?” Aoi nods sagely from his corner. “I can’t decide if I want to see how Hibino Kafka would react to you telling him the news or if I want to spoil the beans and ruin your surprise,” Kikoru says in mock contemplation.
She would never. Leno stares her down with a blank face, “You are so annoying.”
“Look who’s talking!”
Not to be outdone, Leno steals his drink back.
“There, there, now children,” Haruichi breaks in, “I’m sure Papa Hibino loves both of you equally.”
Both him and Kikoru go, “Shut up, Izumo!” without breaking their intense stare off. Iharu, the traitor, says “Siblings, amirite?” to Haruichi’s fake sniffling and Aoi rubbing his back in consolation in the background.
Ah, damn, Leno has missed his friends.
They are walking back to their temporary lodgings side by side, when Leno leans his weight a little bit on Iharu to get his attention, and says with all the seriousness in the world, “Sir will be happy, don’t worry.”
As expected, Iharu shoves him away with an angry blush on his face yelling, “Shut up! I wasn’t worried!”
They clear another block before Iharu speaks again, this time softly. Something about his voice, when it gets more quiet like this, always does something to Leno’s insides.
“Would ya’ like that?”
Leno is so distracted thinking about the other man’s voice in other circumstances that he has a bit of trouble catching back up to the conversation. What.
“What?”
It’s dark outside but the streetlights are enough for Leno to still make out the redness on his boyfriend’s cheeks and up to the tips of his ears. Iharu coughs and turns his face away, “Tying the knot. I know there ain’t no rules against officers being together unless it’s between like a captain and a cadet or somethin’, hell half of the force would get fired otherwise,” he laughs, “But, uh, we could. Do it, I mean. If you wanted.”
And Leno wants. Leno wants that so, so much.
“Are you proposing to me right now?”
“No! I mean- Fuck! Not like this! Even I can be more romantic than that.” He can’t help but chuckle quietly at Iharu’s embarrassment, but before he can get even more worked up Leno reaches for his hand threading their fingers together. He is still looking the other way but he squeezes Leno’s hand back.
“I’m just, checking, for future reference. Yeah.”
Iharu then turns back to face him grinning with all his sharp teeth on display. Oh no, he really is too handsome.
“Don’t get any ideas though, dumbass. You ain’t the one who’s gonna be proposing, I’ll be the one proposing to you.”
Leno whispers, “It’s not a competition,” but lets Iharu drag him down the street by their joined hands, grumbling something that sounds like The hell it isn’t!
Leno laughs without reservation this time, he can’t wait to actually tell Sir.