Work Text:
As a new employee of a robotics institute, Juri was extremely nervous on his first day. He never knew how he goofed around to get him this job. For someone as academically unmotivated as Juri, it was a bit like a miracle. When he was hired, Juri felt like he was hallucinating.
Walking around the institute, there were various rooms with other scientists working. There were also rooms where new robots were tested. Juri looked around like he was a hyper-curious kid. His senior, a researcher in the institute, Matsumura Hokuto, was showing him around. Dressed in a coat and wearing round glasses, Hokuto looked like a proper researcher, like one you would see being interviewed in a documentary.
“We take pride in the androids we have made for many years,” Hokuto explained.
“I do like things about androids and robots,” Juri replied.
“Of course you do. Or else, why would you be here, Tanaka?” Hokuto sneered.
“Yes, I’m sorry.”
“It’s fine. You have the right mindset.”
The first day of work was rather relaxing. Juri was told to check some documents and finish up a small report. Then Hokuto asked him for coffee, but that was about it. Juri forgot whether he had lunch or not, but he was not hungry anyways. He did feel a bit sleepy though, especially when evening was approaching.
Juri was dismissed at seven, so he went home for dinner. He thought that his mother would make a nice meal for him, but then he realised he was living alone in Tokyo. It was fortunate that he could kind of cook, so Juri made a simple meal for himself and sat by the television for the rest of the night.
The endless opportunities of this new workplace was making him excited about his next day of work.
Work was the same for the following few weeks. It was boring, but Juri looked forward to the days where he could finally talk to the very androids in this institute. The day finally arrived when Juri fulfilled his requirements as an employee-in-training. Hokuto, as always, was there to introduce him to a new aspect of his work.
“You are going to talk and check out the androids we produce,” Hokuto introduced.
“I’m excited,” Juri cheered.
“Your face says it all,” Hokuto continued, “now this is J-1N, one of our new androids that haven’t been operated yet. I will turn the switch on him, just take it easy and talk like you would to a regular human.”
“Understood.”
Juri entered the room. This new android, named J-1N, said Hokuto, was so human-like that Juri was surprised. He should not have been surprised. This institute was known for their hyper-realistic androids. They were so similar to a human that if it was not for the barcodes on their neck, they would not be identified. J-1N was an android with red hair and sharp eyes. He seemed to be designed with fake freckles, but that was what made all androids different from one another, right?
Hokuto switched the android on. Suddenly, the android stood straight and opened his eyes. Juri was a bit surprised at this, but he calmed himself down - this was nothing to freak out about. The android had clothes on, but his backside was attached to a few cables. It seemed that he was still incomplete. The barcode on his neck had some numbers, but Juri forgot about it. Holding a notebook and pencil, Juri was ready to jot down anything the android told him. Every single detail of it.
“Hello, you must be J-1N, right?” Juri began the conversation.
“Yes, I am. It’s nice to meet you,” J-1N said, with a human voice, albeit a bit monotone compared to actual humans.
Hokuto observed Juri’s interactions with the new android. From what he observed, Juri was a diligent employee who listened to these androids attentively. Unlike other new employees, Hokuto could see the passion in Juri, as he happily chatted away with a non-human. These androids were programmed to have great intelligence, and were made to resemble a human as perfectly as possible, but there were still drawbacks and the effect of the “uncanny valley” that was programmed into humans since robots were produced. Normally, new employees would be scared of incomplete androids, but not Juri. Juri was on very good terms with J-1N.
Hokuto looked at Juri with a glimpse of happiness. He was lucky to have such a passionate new employee. If only, he could also approach Juri in that way and freely told him about his own things…
Juri came out of the laboratory after a long talk. He was oddly enthusiastic and looked even more energetic than before.
“He told me a lot of things, Matsumura,” Juri said, “J-1N looks like he’s ready to be made complete and serve a lot of people, I think.”
“That’s not up to you to decide,” Hokuto rejected his opinion.
“I-I know. I should have been more aware,” Juri said, his voice getting a bit softer.
“I don’t mean to scold you.”
“It’s okay!”
Juri went off to another place when another researcher called on his name. Hokuto, who was done with Juri dealing with the new android, decided to go inside and had a small talk before he shuts him off again. J-1N looked at Hokuto, but instead of a gentle gaze, like he did to Juri, it was a look of malice.
“You absolutely have no right to turn me on and off,” J-1N stated sternly.
“I can. I work here,” Hokuto corrected, “and you are merely an incomplete work.”
“You already forget about your roots, haven’t you, Hokuto?” J-1N argued, “you dare should not forget that you were-”
Hokuto pressed the “OFF” button immediately. One more mean statement and this android would end up into junk metal, Hokuo cursed under his breath. What he tried to say was unforgivable and Hokuto chose not to remember that.
Hokuto sighed and left the laboratory. On his way back, he fetched himself a nice cup of coffee and sat on his desk. While nobody was looking, Hokuto looked at himself at the reflection on his dark computer screen. Slowly, he slid down the hood that he wore for his work all the time.
On his neck, imprinted, was the same type of barcode J-1N had.
What Juri was not aware of was the history of this institute, but for Hokuto, he knew it all. He knew it better than everyone else. These human employees all came without prior knowledge of how the institute was formed, but it was better off that they did not know.
The reasons that their androids are so realistic are because they were humans before. They are mostly sickly humans that are going to die. Hokuto was one of them. He did not remember the illness he bore back then, but he could only remember that he agreed to this “experimental” treatment, out of desperation to live. Little did he know, he was given anesthesia, then these “doctors” swapped his body parts one by one. These “doctors” should be called scientists, or roboticists more. J-1N was of the same fate. He was a boy with stage IV lung cancer. He was dying within 6 months, so he agreed to undergo this as well.
What these androids differed from other robots, or androids of similar nature was that their advanced intelligence was because scientists are able to retain their function of their human brains, replacing it with an artificial one, while wiping off most of their memories as humans. Hokuto could not remember his previous life, but he was competent with his current life as a researcher.
Hokuto was an outstanding android. He was smarter than most of them, and for some reason, retained most of his human traits. To put it simply, he was favoured by most of the scientists in the institute. He was so special that he was given a job position in this institute. He, as an android, was able to take charge of other androids. That was why J-1N hated him. They hated that someone of the same kind was in charge of their existence and career.
Another reason was that Hokuto hated people finding out that he was an android, so he hid the barcode on his neck with a hood. He ate and drank like a human would, then spilled the undigested food and drinks into a bin. Although most scientists were aware of Hokuto being an android, the new employees were not told that. This included Juri. He should have never known about this.
Hokuto asked Juri for lunch one day. As his junior, Juri could not refuse. They sat in the institute’s canteen, as Hokuto asked Juri about his works with various androids. He heard from a fellow researcher that Juri was so effective in communicating with androids that he was assigned to converse with another one. His name was T-10N.
“T-10N was different from J-1N, he is way more straightforward and jumbles up his words frequently,” Juri explained. Hoktuo nodded at this explanation.
The institute valued effective communication between androids and humans. The fact that Juri was so naturally talented in talking impressed Hokuto a lot. Or perhaps, because Hoktuo himself is an android, T-10N and J-1N refused to open up to him, and only diss him for being a figure of authority.
“You know what, Matsumura? I think both of them expressed that they hope for a good life once they are complete,” Juri stated.
“I see, but they are still rather new. They cannot serve people that quickly,” Hokuto said.
“They seem to be very obsessed with being ‘complete’ and ‘perfect’,” Juri continued. His naiiveness did not fade, and Hokuto was glad that he enjoyed his work.
“Well, all androids here have this mindset, I suppose,” Hokuto replied passively. He once had that mindset too, he thought.
“Is it because they resemble humans so much that they think that humans are the epitome of a perfect figure?”
For a reason, Hokuto felt that he was being stabbed in the heart. Despite full knowledge that he, and other androids were once human, Juri’s question was extremely damaging to him. He did not know why, however. Hokuto tried to keep his cool, and did what he was good at, pretending to be as human as possible.
“It’s only a hypothesis! I’m just thinking about it,” Juri assured.
“I see. You do have a good point…”
Hokuto took a sip of his coffee. Thank goodness that Juri did not drag with this hypothesis of his on and on. Hokuto did not want to tell him that he was right and he had experienced this thought numerous times.
Hokuto found himself staring at Juri. For a boy in his mid-20s, he still looked youthful. He dyed his hair in a subtle shade of reddish-brown, and Hokuto thinks that it suited him a lot. Juri had a lovely smile as well. His passion and patience with these androids was what Hokut lacked in his work.
Oh, why did he think of these things? Androids were not meant to express strong emotions! Or in another sense, they were not manufactured to be like that! Then, why did Hokuto have thoughts about Juri being such a lovely person?
It was not like he and Juri could be…friends or anything.
It was afterhours in the institute. Hokuto lived with these androids, so he was in the laboratory alone, with no humans present. He went into the room where J-1N resided and decided to switch him on. He really needed someone to talk to.
“What do you want me for?” J-1N sneered the moment he saw Hokuto in his usual hood, without his coat.
“I think I’m malfunctioning,” Hokuto spoke.
“Self-awareness, I see? You really messed with those humans too much,” J-1N replied.
“It’s not that. It’s about that kid you talked to everyday.”
“Tanaka? He’s like the best human I have ever talked to. He treats me like I’m his friend or something. Too bad he’s been talking to T-10N more this week.”
“So you are also aware of your feelings.”
“What?”
“Feelings. That’s the problem. Androids were not supposed to have feelings.”
“Now that you mention it, this sure is weird. All the researchers here think of us as inferior to them, except for this Tanaka kid. And you, maybe.”
“The first time you feel that you are equal grounds with the people who made you.”
“Modified.”
“Yes, modified.”
Unlike that harsh encounter a few weeks prior, J-1N and Hokuto were having a peaceful conversation. What the humans researchers were not aware of was that these androids had way more complexity in them, apart from their intelligence and their hyper-realisticness. However, the realm of human emotions were out of these androids’ range.
“Don’t tell me that you have taken an interest in Tanaka,” J-1N teased.
“Perhaps I am,” Hokuto sighed.
“He is a kid, and a human to begin with.”
“I can’t be friends with him? Like you and him?”
“Unlike you, I can’t just approach them and say hi. I’m confined here, but you are not.”
“What if he found out that I’m one of you guys?”
“He’s pretty chill with me and T-10N. He’ll accept you as well.”
“I’m the only free-roaming android and researcher here.”
“I’m glad you remember your roots.”
“Enough of that already.”
“Well, I can’t give you more advice. You have to either fool him forever or just tell him.”
“Thanks, J-1N. You did not help me at all.”
“You’re welcome.”
Hokuto pressed the “OFF'' button and headed back to his room. It was a laboratory, the same layout as J-1N’s, but with an extra desk. Hokuto connected himself to the charger and went into sleep mode.
His mind immediately went blank. Guess he could only fool Juri further.
Juri’s exceptional behaviour and unique approach to androids had impressed researchers, but also greatly worried them. Juri was so friendly to the androids that it was deemed “unprofessional” by most seniors, but they could not stop him. Juri was pretty smart in another sense. Giving J-1N and T-10N space to talk about their thoughts opened up possibilities of android being used domestically. Jobs like a domestic worker, or more professionally, a family counselor perhaps?
Most scientists in the institute described Juri as the “counselor” of all androids. He got to talk to more of them as time progressed and studied their behaviour thoroughly. He was unaffected by the “uncanny valley” effect as well. It was almost like Juri was one of the androids.
Hokuto noticed Juri even more. Sometimes, he found himself watching juri working, and got distracted into his eyes. For most of his life as an android, he had never noticed the details of another human, until now. Juri was an outstanding person. Perhaps that was how the humans saw him back then?
“Good to see you here, Matsumura,” Juri said. He was already done with his counselling.
“Oh, hello, Tanaka,” Hokuto greeted.
“Do you have time to talk?” Juri asked. Hokuto nodded. They ended up in the canteen again, but since it was work hours, there was no one but the two of them.
“I might offend you, but Matsumura, are you an android?”
Oh, there it is. The question he least expected Juri to ask.
“Why do you think that?” Hokuto asked, wanting to hear an legitimate explanation from Juri.
“I think your speaking tone and pattern resembles one. You’re not that natural in human speech and language,” Juri deduced.
“That is all?”
“Yes, I think so.”
Juri looked laid-back.
Hokuto thought it was the right time to tell Juri the truth.
“Yes, I am an android,” Hokuto said, while sliding down the hood and showed Juri the barcode on his neck.
“Things have gotten more interesting! This institute has an android as a researcher!”
‘Interesting, you say?”
“Well, you must be so great that they picked you to do a position like that.”
“You’re awfully honest.”
“So are you. Androids are terrible at lying, or they cannot. J-1N cannot lie, and T-10N just fumbles his words so much that I can clearly see that he is lying.”
That sounded like a compliment, but Hokuto had his doubts. It was true that androids were not designed to lie though.
As Juri and Hokuto happily talked, what they failed to notice was that the senior researchers were growing increasingly worried about Juri’s presence in the institute. The surveillance camera captured their conversation and what they were discussing about.
Hokuto, on the other hand, was ignorant of the fact that Juri’s closeness with android would be a fatal flaw in the human’s research. All he thought was that Juri was an extremely comforting and friendly guy.
It was the day J-1N was finally released to the general public to work. He was assigned to a rich family as a butler. J-1N’s friendly nature was formed thanks to Juri’s patience and kind words. Juri was sad to see him go, so did Hokuto.
“He will be assigned a human name soon.” Hokuto whispered to Juri.
“I heard that it’s Hiiro,” Juri said.
“I see.”
J-1N, who was turned off, was sent away in a huge box, much like how humans wrap up plastic toys for kids. Juri waved goodbye, much like he would to a human. Hokuto did the same, but no one else did such.
“Tanaka, I would like to have a word with you.”
Juri was summoned away by a senior researcher. Hokuto did not think of anything of ill intent, but he was curious, so he followed Juri. He stood outside the senior researcher’s room, and eavesdropped on their conversation.
“Congratulations on your amazing work of making J-1N into the perfect android for a work like this,” he began. Juri just bowed as a form of thanks.
“You have been talking to Matsumura, no?”
“Yes, sir. I have.”
“I am sure that you are aware that he is an android.”
“Yes, sir. I asked him about it.”
“I see.”
Hokuto had a bad feeling in his metal guts. This meant something very bad was going to happen.
“Please stop talking to Matsumura.”
The senior researcher’s words shocked Hokuto, as well as Juri.
“But, sir, he is harmless. He is also my senior, as well as my colleague,” Juri stated.
“Your approach with androids is impressive, but androids are only meant to serve humans. You are never friends with them, or form a friendship with them. That is against social norms and morals.”
“I beg to differ, sir. These androids obviously are meant to resemble humans, and how do they work for humans without effective communication?”
“You have a point, but the Board is concerned about your friendliness with these androids, especially Matsumura. You are not meant to befriend them outside of work hours.”
Juri was dismissed, but he did not look happy at all. Hokuto did not dare to approach him, since he was given a stern warning by the Board.
Juri stopped talking to Hokuto for a whole week. He continued to counsel T-10N with his usual methods, but being friends with Juri was no more for Hokuto. He could only work to distract himself that it was his fault that Juri even got that warning.
Was it his fault? Or it was really him malfunctioning?
“So you are also aware of your feelings.”
“What?”
“Feelings. That’s the problem. Androids were not supposed to have feelings.”
“Now that you mention it, this sure is weird. All the researchers here think of us as inferior to them, except for this Tanaka kid. And you, maybe.”
“The first time you feel that you are equal grounds with the people who made you.”
Yeah. It was this feeling. Definitely this feeling.
Hokuto did not give up. He tried to talk to Juri again in secret, which Juri accepted. The two chatted about work-related things a lot. Juri was well-aware of the boundaries, but Hokuto’s eagerness moved him. They even called each other on a first-name basis in private. Hokuto began to accept Juri’s methods of communication more and started to doubt his position and the work ethic of this institute. He initially thought Juri would be an obedient sheep and not talk to him, but it seemed that Juri was against the Board's warnings as well.
The Board, however, grew aware of their secret exchanges, but waited for the right moment to strike.
Work went by normally. Juri was talking to T-10N again. it seemed that T-10N had a bright future to become a counsellor as well, but for children with speech problems. T-10N's fumbling of words was a problem a lot of children with special needs had. Perhaps, by using simple language, he could do that job effectively, even though he had the tendency to mess up a little. T-10N did mess up less and less, a progress both Juri and other researchers were proud of.
After Juri's work, he talked to Hokuto again. This time, they chatted outside of the building, in a small park located in a very secretive location. They sat on the bench, happily talking about various things. Juri talked about his family. Hokuto was surprised to know that Juri had 4 brothers. They also talked about their thoughts on androids in general.
"I have received reports about J-1N's behaviour. He's doing very well," Juri said.
"It's all thanks to you," Hokuto praised, "you allow J-1N to be less hostile towards humans."
"Was he harsh to humans before?" Juri asked.
"Yes, actually. He attacked some of the previous researchers. He scolded me too."
"It's different for you. You're an android. He's probably dissatisifed with you being in a higher position."
"That's exactly the problem. I was nervous when my seniors told me to assign you, but he never attacked you."
"It's a relief. I thought he was always this nice."
"Not all androids were nice, you know. Are you aware of how androids in this institute is made?"
"No. How are they made, then?"
"Us androids were h-"
"Stop right there."
The Board appeared of nowhere. They had furious looks on their faces.
"The Board," Hokuto mumbled under his breath. Juri could only stare at his seniors with a blank look.
"Tanaka, I have warned you, you are not allowed to talk to Matsumura outside of work," one of them said.
"But Hokuto is harmless, sir!" Juri pleaded.
"A warning is a warning."
"Let's go!"
Hokuto grabbed Juri's arms and ran away. They ran and ran, but the Board eventually caught up with vehicles. One of them used a taser and suppressed Hokuto on the ground, while Juri looked in fear. Hokuto, before he was shut down due to short-circuiting, thought of what he did wrong. No, he did not do anything wrong! Why was he not allowed to be friends with a human worker? Why can't androids and humans be friends? Why was Juri's ideals not accepted.
Juri was brought back to the institute with the Board, along with Hokuto, who short-circuited and remained unconscious. The Board reached to an agreement that Juri would be fired after he was done with developing T-10N's potentials. As for Hokuto, he would be kept off until further notice. Juri did not like this decision at all, but he reluctantly accepted that he would be losing his job in three weeks.
All Juri wanted was to prove that androids and humans could be friends, but it seemed that humans would never allow that. He lost his chance to even let his ideals be heard.
He would miss Hokuto's prescence and words, definitely. And this workplace. But, with these people in power, would he miss this institute that much?
Probably not.
Hokuto finally woke up from a deep slumber. The institute he was in was still here. Various cables were attacked to his back. Once again, he was back to Day One. he was an imcomplete work that needed some fixing. Despite his deep slumber, he could still retain memory. He knew that Juri was far gone. He was not working here anymore.
He did miss the times where he was seen as an equal. or at least, superficially. Juri really changed him, huh? How long had it been since he was switched off?
Why did him, and him only was punished for having feelings? But not J-1N? This was unfair, but Hokuto kept that to himself.
The door to his room swung open. A researcher was leading a new face into his room. His gaze turned hostile. He did not trust these humans, especially not after what they did to him, and how Juri was not here anymore. The new employee was a boy with brown hair and bright eyes. He looked extremely nervous. Hokuto could deduce that it was probably his first time communicating with an android.
"Hello. You are Matsumura, right?"
His voice was soft and calming.
"Yes, I am." Hokuto answered.
"I'm Kochi. It's nice to meet you."
This new employee reminded Hokuto of Juri for some reason...
It was probably because of his gentle tone. Or his bright smile. Or the fact that he also had a notebook and pen on his hand, much like Juri when he first talked to J-1N.
Hokuto had a rush of what humans would call, "sadness". The new boy, Kochi, stared in confusion.
"Should we begin?" Kochi asked nicely, thinking that the android in front of him was upset.
"Sure. It's nice to meet you too."