Takigawa whistled a cheerful tune as he headed through the station's bullpen, waving a good morning to the detectives along the way. It was rare for regular beat officers like him to be called into homicide, but whatever it was had to be important. He stepped into the glass office to find his partner already waiting, standing smartly with his hands uniformly held behind his back. He guessed it was a pre-programmed pose. He'd noticed a lot of androids used it. Charlie stood straight, looking forward like an obedient machine. The middle-aged man at the desk was completely ignoring Charlie, his jaw almost tense as he typed away. He probably wasn't used to having an android staring blankly in his direction as he worked.

"Morning, Charlie!" Takigawa greeted cheerfully as he clapped a hand on his shoulder, his superior raising an eyebrow. It was odd, seeing someone interact so genuinely with a machine. Weird and frankly disturbing. He watched the dark-skinned android turned to regard Takigawa with something that almost looked like warmth. It was creepy the way they could do that. The android nodded smartly, as he was programmed to.

"Good morning, Takigawa," he replied politely as Takigawa slumped into one of the comfortable leather chairs in front of the large wooden desk. The desk was almost bare besides the work terminal, but there was a small family photo by the monitor and a golden nameplate that read Captain Reynolds. The desk was almost as uniform as the portly, balding man who sat behind it. He was wearing a neat suit, the jacket hung on the back of his large chair in the warmth of the office. Reynolds sat back in his chair and almost sighed at Takigawa's casual nature. Usually officers were scared stiff when they were called in by the imposing man, though Takigawa had done nothing wrong and had no reason to feel that way.

"You named the thing?" Reynolds asked almost incredulously as he gestured towards Charlie. Charlie and Takigawa looked at each other momentarily, as if they didn't understand the question. Charlie quickly returned to his former position, awaiting instructions and recording the relevant details. Takigawa tried not to feel bad for him. His presence clearly made Captain Reynolds uncomfortable. He'd noticed it with a lot of officers around the station. There were a few who didn't mind using androids, but a lot of them were aggressively against it.

"Of course! You didn't expect me to call him CH200 forever, did you?" Takigawa retorted in disbelief, and Reynolds relented. When he said it like that, it made sense. There were a few CH200s about, so they had to separate them somehow, and Charlie did roll off the tongue better than the model number. "What's going on? It's rare for you to call me up here," Takigawa added, thinking it was probably better to get straight down to business. Reynolds nodded his agreement. They were a little short staffed with all the deviant investigations recently. There had been a marked rise in android incidents these past few months, which Takigawa didn't need to be reminded of. It had been all over the news for a couple of weeks now. Bad things were happening in Detroit.

"To put it bluntly, you're too damn good to be wasted on the streets. What do you think? Can you help me out here?" Reynolds asked almost pleadingly, knowing from experience that Takigawa was set in his ways. His father had been a beat officer up right until retirement, and Takigawa was keen to follow in his footsteps. He loved the thrill of chasing down bad guys and racing through the streets, the danger that went with being the first responder. It was a lot to give up for more paperwork and slower detective level tasks.

"Sir, you know I'm not the desk job type..." Takigawa replied evasively as he eyed Charlie, but he remained silent as expected, refusing to look at him. Takigawa quietly wondered who would get Charlie next if he got promoted. Would they treat him well? He knew a lot of beat officers despised these new androids. They took human jobs, and with all these deviant incidents, there was a growing distrust brewing. Takigawa understood the way they thought, but the choice to bring in Charlie wasn't the android's fault. It also wasn't his fault that other androids were malfunctioning all over the place.

"How about I sweeten the deal? I know you like this...Charlie thing. I'll have it upgraded. It can act as your desk clerk. You do the legwork, Charlie will do your writeups," Reynolds compromised, watching Takigawa pause thoughtfully. It was a good offer. The excitement and extra pay of a higher rank with less desk commitment, and he wouldn't have to worry about Charlie either. He looked at Charlie and tilted his head a little, giving the machine a subtle, what do you think? look. Charlie didn't nod exactly, but he did blink his dark eyes once. Takigawa's lips quirked.

"When do we start?" he asked, Reynolds looking relieved as he held a grateful hand out.

"As soon as I get your new badge and you get out of that uniform," he instructed almost jovially, taking Takigawa's badge as he handed it over. "Go home for today. I'll have the...Charlie updated overnight," he added with a small huff, watching Takigawa clap a hand on Charlie's shoulder assuringly before leaving. Since he now had the day off, Takigawa drove home and changed. He didn't have many suits, so he headed into town to get measured up and place a couple orders. He could hardly go into the office wearing jeans and a t-shirt, not on his first day. Most of the detectives were usually smartly dressed unless they were on a stakeout or undercover, though he'd noticed a few of the more experienced detectives were laxer with the dress code. Maybe I should get Charlie something...He'd worked alongside him long enough to know his model size. All he'd have to do is stick on a couple of Cyberlife insignia so people knew he was an android.

While in town, he stopped by his favourite coffee shop. It was small, squeezed cosily into the main square. He'd often take Charlie there for lunch while they were out on patrol. Charlie would sit patiently while he drank coffee and ate a sandwich or cake, sometimes both depending on how hungry he was. Charlie had often warned him about the excess sugar. His lips quirked. It was almost strange going there alone at this point, especially in the middle of the day. He stepped up to the counter and was greeted by his favourite sight.

"Morning, Mai!" he greeted brightly as he leaned by the register. The girl behind the counter was petite, still very much a teenager despite her maturity. Her short honey hair bounced as she jerked her head up from the coffee machine in greeting. She looked up at him in delight. This was her parents' shop, or it had been. It was currently being kept by her grandmother until she came of age. Her parents had been killed a few years ago in a robbery. He'd found Mai afterwards, shaking and crying over their bodies in the middle of the café. He'd been protective ever since. Her hazel eyes were bright as she began preparing a caramel latte, his usual drink of choice.

"Good morning! No Charlie today?" she asked, looking around a little sadly. She had a soft spot for Charlie. He'd tilt his head in confusion at Takigawa's jokes and try to reason them out. Mai would laugh brightly as she explained the jokes to him, watching him file it away for later. He liked to think Charlie liked Mai too. He always had a smile for her. Sure, it was a programmed response to their social situation, but he swore it was always a little warmer for Mai than anyone else.

"He's getting an upgrade. I was promoted this morning!" Takigawa said cheerfully, accepting Mai's congratulations as she declared his coffee on the house and added a slice of his favourite chocolate cake. When the café was busy, Takigawa would usually sit by the window out of the way, but today the counter beside the register was free. He took a seat there and talked to Mai idly as she cleaned and got ready for the afternoon rush. He watched her pause almost anxiously. She waved hesitantly at the window, where Takigawa saw the most stunning woman he'd ever laid eyes on. The redhead's hazel eyes widened as she realised she'd been caught staring and she hurried away. "Someone you know?" Takigawa asked curiously, swearing he'd seen her somewhere before.

"No, not exactly...she's just turned up for the past few days...She never comes in though," Mai replied, which was strange. Maybe she doesn't have any money? Takigawa pondered thoughtfully, smirking as he saw a familiar face headed their way. Mai's cheeks flushed, and her hands clenching in her little white apron. She tugged her cute maid styled dress straighter as she waited and tried to look busy. The bell sounded moments later and Mai brightly greeted the handsome Asian android. Takigawa had to admit the people at Cyberlife knew what they were doing. He was a handsome young man who barely looked older than Mai. He had the bluest eyes Takigawa had ever seen besides John's, only they were somewhat flat and lifeless. He had thick glossy black bangs that brushed his perfectly curved eyebrows and gave him an almost coy look.

"I would like-" the android began in a neutral tone, cut off as Mai started the coffee machine.

"Two flat whites, one cappuccino, a decaf latte, a caramel latte with three pumps, two Americanos, and a double espresso," she listed brightly as she worked. The android voiced his mechanical agreement and stood by the counter patiently. Takigawa felt sorry for them. Both of them. Mai was flushed and shy as she made the order, knowing the office android would never look at her twice. The android himself simply waited for the order to be completed with no comprehension of Mai's feelings. The pale android didn't even blink as he stared forward at the board and waited with neither patience nor impatience. He was wearing a new Cyberlife suit. Simple office attire consisting of a white shirt and black tie with a matching blazer that had a blue triangle on the back. His model number was embroidered beneath the triangle and on the breast. He was a fairly new model, an NA200.

"Good to see you again. How have you been?" Takigawa asked politely, watching as the android processed that he was being spoken to. Some form of social program kicked in and he turned his head with a polite business smile. Takigawa returned the friendly look, noting the way Mai fumbled as the android started talking in smooth tones. His voice seemed a little older than his outward design.

"I have been well, and you Officer Takigawa?" the NA200 replied his usual deep and slightly gravelly tone. It was a surprising choice for an office android, but then maybe the tone helped a little with speaking different languages. The NA200 series were designed to be both office workers and business translators. Takigawa returned the friendly small talk until Mai had completed and packed the order. She accepted the wireless payment, her cheeks flushing as her hand brushed his in the handoff. It felt so warm and soft even though he was a machine. He took the bags from her and nodded politely before heading out. Mai sighed as she leaned her head on her hands and watched him walk back up the street towards the banking district.

"I should probably take this moment to remind you he's a machine..." Takigawa teased gently, though from her somewhat saddened expression he knew she was more than aware. He ruffled her hair affectionately, and she was soon back to her bubbly self.