Detective Conan: Chibification Nation a work of Detective Conan fanfiction by The Eternal Lost Lurker Chapter Two: Commence investigation! APTX-4869. (Disclaimers and notes at end of chapter.) =========================================================================== Officers responding to reports of a disturbance in the main shopping street of Beika-cho that night found no signs of any perpetrators, and no direct witnesses--those who had heard the muffled shouts and yells in the street had been too panicked to actually look. Inspector Megure had not responded directly to the disturbance call, but had informed the investigating officers to notify him of anything unusual at the scene--anything out of place. He knew it was a remote chance, but his intuition and instinct were nagging at him. Something was amiss...there was a hidden mystery under his nose, and damned if he wasn't going to find it. He may not be in the same league as Kudou Shinichi when it came to detective work, but he didn't make the rank of chief inspector by being an idiot. An officer walked into his office, carrying a pair of sealed cardboard boxes. "Megure-keibu," he said, "here's the evidence collected at the disturbance call." Megure blinked. "What the--? What on earth is all that?" The officer set the boxes down on a chair. "All I know is I was told to bring it to you, and that it hasn't gone through processing yet--the boys on the scene just said you'd want to see this." He paused. "Oh, and here are the photographs of the scene." He handed the inspector a thick envelope, bowed, and left. Megure frowned as he opened the envelope and took out the pictures. There certainly had been a disturbance, he mused grimly. Evidence of a struggle, a handgun and a knife lying on the street...blood? Not enough to be a gunshot wound, though...and-- He blinked. A soccer ball--embedded in a brick wall?! * * * * * * * * * The night seemed to go on forever. At half past two, Kogoro finally passed out from too much drink, and Sonoko, having been slightly refreshed by her impromptu drug-induced nap, finally wound down and decided to catch a few hours' sleep before heading home in the morning. That left Ran and Conan awake--and Ran was clearly in the mood to talk. "But not here," she said softly. "Let's go down to the office." Conan nodded, and the two of them padded silently down the steps to the detective office on the second floor of the building. After locking the door behind her, Ran stood at the broad windows, looking out at the night sky, arms crossed. In the dim reflection, Conan could see the beginning of tears in her eyes--and stormclouds in her expression. "Ran," he began. She whirled around, and her face was furious. "You absolute *bastard*," she hissed. "You knew I suspected--you knew all along, and yet you kept doing things..." The young detective bowed his head. "Gomen ne, Ran." "An apology isn't going to cut it, Shinichi," Ran snapped. "You've put me through too much pain...too much worry. You could've been dead a dozen times over by now--I had to give you BLOOD, remember? When you were SHOT?" "If I'd really been a kid...if I were really Conan, and not Shinichi...I'd still have been shot, and you'd still have--" "That's beside the point!" Ran yelled. She took a deep breath, and turned her back on him. "I don't want to hear excuses, or bullshit about the kurozukume, or lives in danger, or any of that. Do you hear me? You hurt me. You hurt me by making me worry, and you hurt me worse by lying to me. By not trusting me." "I trust you with my life," Conan replied softly. "Liar," Ran said bitterly, tears streaming down her face. "If you really trusted me with your life, you'd have TOLD ME." "I trusted YOU with MY life," Conan replied. "I didn't trust ME with YOURS." Ran turned and looked at him, blinking. "Huh?" "Ran, if...if something happened to you, because of me...because of my stupid..." Conan sighed, rubbing his eyes. "If anything happened to you, and it was my fault...and I wasn't able to save you..." He swallowed thickly. Ran sighed. "Shinichi..." "You--to me--are the most important thing in the world, Ran," Conan said, walking towards her. "I've been dying inside, these last months, knowing how much I was hurting you, and not being able to...knowing what'd happen if..." He scowled, looking down at the floor, trying to compose himself. He then looked up at her, locking his sharp blue eyes on her face. "I couldn't live with myself if something happened to you because of me." "But...something DID happen to me," Ran countered. "I spent months hurting inside." "I did too." "And you could've ended it all, with just a few words..." "And if you'd gotten hurt on the *outside*? Because of me?" "At least I'd have known the truth." They stood, staring at each other. Conan sighed. "I guess it doesn't do much good to keep going back and forth like this," he said. "I guess not." More silence. "Ran...I know it doesn't help, but I really am sorry. I never meant to hurt you--if I'd known, that night, what living this lie would mean...if I'd known how long it'd go on...I'd have told you right away. I'd have ignored Agasa-hakase and told you. Even if it meant putting you in danger with me. I..." Ran shook her head. "No. You wouldn't. You know it, and I know it. You'd never let anyone in if it meant putting them in danger. I *know* you, Shinichi. You never meant for me to know what had happened to you, even after you found a cure." Conan hung his head. "You're probably right. But...so many times, I really DID want to tell you. It hurt, watching you..." "So we've both been hurting, all these months," Ran said, kneeling to face him on his level. "At least that puts us on equal ground. Now, we both need to heal." The young man in a child's body nodded. "I..." He paused. "There's something I've wanted desperately to say to you, for so long. But...I don't want to say it now. Not like this. Not with this voice, from this body. I want to say it as me." He looked up at her, eyes shimmering in the dim light from the windows. "Please wait for me, Ran. Please wait...until I can be Shinichi again, and tell you..." "I've waited months, Shinichi. I can wait a little longer. And...right now, I don't think I want to hear those words...not yet. I need time too." Conan nodded, swallowing a lump in his throat. "I'll wait...until we're both ready. Until we both heal." * * * * * * * * * Gin was shaken awake roughly by Vodka. "Oi, get off," he grumbled. "Aniki, wake up. Mezcal's here." "Mezcal...?" Gin blurted in confusion, sitting up...and wincing in pain. "Agh, SHIT!" A dry chuckle. "Please...try to limit your movements, Seņor Gin," a rich, lilting male voice said. The shrunken killer looked up to see an olive-skinned man with dark brown eyes and curly black hair standing over him, an amused smirk on his face. "Aggravating your injuries before I attend them will only make the pain worse." The glitter in his eyes said that he wouldn't be sorry to see Gin suffer. "Mezcal," the assassin spat. "She just HAD to call you, of all people, didn't she?" Mezcal laughed richly. "My dear Seņor Gin, I am presently the only qualified surgeon available to attend you. You are most fortunate I was not away on...business." "Your little 'medicine' racket in Tijuana?" Gin sneered. "I'm surprised they let you keep that going, considering--" "Considering he deals in more than illegal narcotics there, but also information crucial to the Organisation," Vermouth interrupted smoothly. She strode over to stand beside Mezcal. "So, Mezcal...what's the verdict?" "Guilty of terminal stupidity and carelessness," Mezcal said, smiling. At Gin's narrowed eyes, he amended, "Ah, it is only a joke. You need to develop a sense of humour, no?" Shaking his head, he held up a sheaf of X-ray photographs. "We took the liberty of examining your leg while you were asleep. It is fortunate the medication also kept you sedated...it would not have been pleasant for you, even with the morphine." "How bad is it?" Gin grunted, clenching his teeth. "I am afraid that your right leg is...rather extensively damaged," Mezcal replied. "Possibly beyond repair. I see no need to amputate, but..." He shook his head. "The force of the blow completely shattered the tibia, and snapped the fibula in half. The fibula can be repaired with surgery and immobilisation--it was a clean break, and seems to have remained in that condition despite the...change. The damage to the tibia, however..." He shook his head. "It is completely shattered, and the injury was aggravated drastically by your transformation. Ordinarily, this would be a case in which we would insert a plate and a number of screws to correct the damage. However, between the rather...nasty results of your metamorphosis, and the fact that inserting that much hardware into your leg which would have to be removed as you, ah, 'grow', and then re-inserted..." He smiled. "I have recommended the application of an external support brace for the leg. You will, of course, require a crutch, once you are able to walk again." Gin scowled. "One of those cripple contraptions, like the old polio victims wore?" "Oh, nothing so primitive as that," the doctor said in oily tones. "You see, for you to remain, ah, useful to the organisation, you will need something far more durable." "Useful?" Gin asked. Vermouth smiled. "Ordinarily, I'd have just killed you for your incompetence...but I believe I can use your situation to my advantage. You are of little use as an assassin now, obviously. However, as a spy..." "A spy?" "Yes. Kudou, as well as Sherry, are...diminished, as you yourself are. It stands to reason they're keeping their cover by hiding in plain sight. You, in your current state, will be able to do the same." Gin thought about that for a minute--then his eyes widened. "You can't be serious." "I believe I am," the blonde said with a smile. Gin hissed. "Alright, so I'll have to wear a stupid leg brace." "Ah...it is slightly more complicated than that," the Latin doctor said. "How much more complicated?" Gin asked. "A brace ordinarily assists the joints of the leg, preventing an unwelcome collapse due to paralysis or limited range of movement," the doctor explained. "Your problem is rather more severe than weak or immobile joints. Keep in mind that the bones in your leg can no longer support any weight. In fact, there is nothing holding the leg...in a leg shape, as it were. The tibia is shattered completely through." Mezcal showed Gin the X-ray; the young assassin paled. "A knee-ankle-foot orthosis, of the type once used for polio victims, would be of no practical use to you in this condition; it would at the very least reaffirm the proper shape of your leg, but it would not facilitate any regrowth of the bone--I am not ruling out the possibility, however small, that the bone might heal partially. It will never heal fully, but..." He shrugged. "The human body is a strange machine." "So you're saying I'm basically lamed," Gin replied. "In a sense...however," Mezcal continued, "I have devised a procedure which will allow you to remain upwardly mobile...if rather limited in that mobility." He paused for a moment. "We will, of course, put a cast on the leg once I operate on it to insure the fibula is aligned properly and the bone fragments are not in danger of piercing any major blood vessels. After a period of bed rest, you will be fitted for a special brace, which will involve a combination of upright supports, cross straps, and an intramuscular frame of titanium rods." "Intramuscular?" Gin asked, not liking the sound of that. "I am afraid," Mezcal said, his eyes glimmering with barely-concealed mirth, "There will be much, *much* drilling." Gin glared at the doctor and Vermouth. "Give me a gun, so I can fucking shoot myself." Vermouth laughed. * * * * * * * * * Despite the extremely long night, Ran and Conan both woke up fairly early the following morning. As it was a Sunday, they didn't have anything in particular planned, but there was one thing Conan wanted to take care of straight away. He picked up the phone and his calling card and punched in a number he knew by heart. Ran watched him curiously, wondering what new surprise this small boy who wasn't a child at all would bring into her life. "Oi, Hattori, it's Kudou," Conan spoke into the phone after a moment. "Sorry to call so early, but we had an interesting night last night." Ran noticed the smirk and the twinkle in the young boy's eyes, and realised, not for the first time, that she really WAS looking at Shinichi--how had she ever missed it before? She must be the most blind, foolish person in the world... "Na, Hattori...how'd you like to help me out with the missing-persons case from hell?" * * * * * * * * * Megure frowned as he examined the plastic-wrapped, carefully tagged objects taken from the disturbance scene. The largest two pieces were somewhat disconcerting: a soccer ball, one side covered with brick and mortar dust, and a motorcycle helmet with a wide crack on the back side and a few drops of dried blood on the crown. There was also what looked remarkably like a scuff mark from a shoe around the location of the crack. The other evidence included a gun with a silencer, a dagger, and a cigarette butt. For a moment, he wondered why the investigators bothered collecting this last piece--but after all, he had instructed them to be thorough, and cigarette butts certainly had their uses in forensic investigations. But the soccer ball--and where it had been found--and the cracked, blood-stained helmet bothered him the most. The helmet had, according to the report, been stolen off the back of a nearby motorscooter (the owner had been contacted), and the damage pattern obviously did not indicate use for its intended purpose. But... ...the only thing he could think of, based on appearances, was that the helmet had been *kicked* at somebody. But that didn't make sense, right? Nor did someone who could kick a soccer ball with enough force to put a dent in *brick*... Frowning, he picked up the phone and jabbed at a button. "Megure," he barked. "Tell the forensics boys to come get this crap from my office." When a lab tech arrived a moment later, Megure stood, scowling. "Run this stuff immediately. I want the soccer ball given priority." The technician blinked. "But...the gun and the knife, sir..." "The soccer ball is PRIORITY," Megure repeated. "I want the fingerprint match results *yesterday*." "H-hai!" As the harried technician left with the boxes of evidence, Megure examined the photographs of the crime scene again, frowning. *Enough force to put a soccer ball through brick...and kick a motorcycle helmet hard enough to crack it...* He drummed his fingers on his desk. *...Kudou?* * * * * * * * * * "Whaddya mean, y'don't know *WHO'S* missin'?" Hattori Heiji snapped into the phone. He was still pissed at Kudou for the baseball incident, and now the obnoxious brat was playing games with him at eight in the morning...? //That's why it's going to take the two of us combined to solve this one,// Kudou's voice answered calmly. //You see...we're not sure who our targets are...but we DO know what we're looking for. Sort of.// "....that's really not very helpful, Kudou," Heiji said. The younger boy chuckled. //We're going to be looking for victims of APTX-4869. We suspect there are at least three others like me, not including Haibara. So we're looking for people who vanished mysteriously--and little kids who appeared out of nowhere.// Heiji's eyes widened. "Kudou, what the hell's goin' on over there?" //Like I said...we had an interesting night.// * * * * * * * * * Kogoro finally woke up a short while after Conan's call to Heiji; he spent several minutes in the lavatory before emerging to look for breakfast. Luckily for him, despite their relatively early start (considering how late into the night they were awake), Ran and Conan had not gotten around to breakfast yet; Ran quickly prepared breakfast for all three of them. As they ate, the detective kept shooting nasty glances at the small boy across from him. Conan did his best to ignore this, but finally, he could take no more. "Oi," he grunted. Kogoro snorted. "You're lucky I'm not throwing you out, Kudou," he said. "You're not exactly my favorite person right now." He frowned. "But...things have gone a lot better for me and Ran since you showed up like this. And you did save Ran's life last night--even if it was your fault she was in trouble in the first place. And...Ran'd probably throw ME out if I threw YOU out." He paused to sip his tea. "So, I'm going to let you stay--the expense account your parents set up is still good, so I'll just start taking rent out of it now that I know the truth. Two things, though." "Hai?" "One. No funny business with Ran." The girl in question choked on her miso soup. "OTOUSAN!" Ran shouted, face flaming. "Shinichi wouldn't...besides, it's not like he CAN, like that--" At the expression on the boy's face, she became even redder. "Gomen ne, Shinichi..." "It's okay," Conan sighed. "I've gotten used to it. BELIEVE me, I've HAD to." Nodding to Kogoro, he added, "Agreed. Like she said, I would never do that anyway." *Not that I wouldn't WANT to, it's more that she'd pulverise me...* "Condition number two?" "Condition number two," and here his scowl became nastier, "No more 'Sleeping Kogoro'. Understood? It's a miracle I haven't developed some kind of terminal illness from all the drugs you've been shooting me up with." "The stuff in my darts is more or less Valium, at a lower dosage than you'd take to go to sleep at night," Conan said. "It just kicks in a hell of a lot faster." "That's beside the point!" Kogoro growled. "I won't be...*used* like that, do you hear me?" "Haaai," Conan said. He sipped his tea. "I have a couple of conditions of my own, though." Kogoro raised an eyebrow. "Oh?" he asked dangerously. Conan nodded, and glared sharply at him. "One. No more hitting me on the head or throwing me around like a rag doll. I put up with it because I didn't have any choice before. If you try any of that crap now, I'll kick the nearest solid object into your groin so hard you'll never so much as *think* about girls ever again." Kogoro winced. "I...suppose that's fair." "Two. No shooing me out of an investigation or ignoring anything I try to say during a case. You know who and what I am now. I'm a detective. I catch clues you and Megure-keibu miss a lot of times." "Only because you're so much closer to the ground," Kogoro grumbled. "Otousan!" Ran chided. But Conan actually grinned. "Yeah, that's right. I *am*. It's one of the little advantages I've found this body has." He paused for a bite of rice. "And I *will* be actively involved in the investigations from now on. I agree that doing the dummy thing isn't an option now--I'm amazed it worked for as long as it DID. And I've tried using a conscious person as a dummy; it doesn't always work very well. So instead, we'll just have to work out a way to work *together*." Kogoro snorted. "As if I need YOUR help." The other two just stared at him for several seconds. "Che...alright, we'll work out something. Maybe we can say you're my new apprentice or something, so we can 'confer' and make it look like I'm teaching you." "That works," Conan said. Inwardly, he thought, *Him, teach ME? As if.* "So, any more 'conditions'?" Kogoro asked sarcastically. Conan shook his head. "Nope...except, of course, that both of you need to remember to call me Conan. As far as anyone outside is concerned, I'm NOT Kudou Shinichi." Kogoro snorted. "You already blew your secret to the guys you were hiding from, didn't you? So is there even any point to pretending you're not Kudou anymore?" Conan nodded. "Yeah. There's people who aren't involved in this at all, who don't need to be--if the police found out, for one, they'd want to get involved in *my* case, and *I'M* gonna be the one to bring those kurozukume bastards down. And..." He sighed. "Then there's the 'Shounen Tanteidan'. Edogawa Conan is their friend. I can't disappoint them by letting them know he doesn't really exist." He shook his head. "Life'll be much easier all around if I keep being Conan until Haibara works out a cure. Then I can get my life back, and Conan can..." He shrugged. "Go back to America, and never be seen again." Ran frowned. "Shi--err, Conan-kun...how many people know your secret again? With everything going on last night, I really lost track of some things." Conan paused to think. "Okay, there's you two, Sonoko, Agasa-hakase, my parents, Haibara, Hattori, and of course Gin and Vodka. And that means their bosses know--the whole organisation knows." He frowned. "And...I might be wrong, but I think two other people either know, or suspect me." "Who?" Kogoro asked. "Jodie Saintemillion, and that obnoxious thief, the Kaitou Kid." Kogoro spluttered. "KAITOU KID?! The hell?!" Conan shrugged, putting his hands behind his head. "I've had a few run-ins with him, and he's shown up disguised as me--I mean the real me--before. He seemed to know the truth about me...for a thief, he's no slouch in the brains department. Even keeps *me* on my toes." "You almost sound like you admire him," Ran said. Conan glanced up at the ceiling. "I respect his intelligence and cunning," he replied. "And from what I know of him, he seems strangely honorable and decent. But he's still a thief, which means it's only a matter of time before he slips up, and ends up in jail." He smirked. "I wouldn't mind being the one to put him there, but catburglars are small-fry, even famous ones like him. I'm more interested in solving murder cases and the like." Kogoro shot him a sideways glance. "Oi. That's a little sick, you know?" Conan shrugged, closing his eyes lazily. "Meh, betsu ni." * * * * * * * * * "You sure you're alright, dear? That was an awfully worrisome sneeze." "I'm fine, 'kaachan. Must be somebody gossiping about me. What's for breakfast?" "I thought we'd have omelettes today. And Kaito? Do stop pulling coins out of your nose when you blow it. That's disgusting." "Sorry, 'kaachan." * * * * * * * * * A little after ten, the door chime rang. Ran greeted the caller at the intercom, and breathed a sigh of relief when the voice that chimed through the small speaker was that of Yoshida Ayumi. //We were hopin' Conan-kun could play today,// Ayumi said. Ran frowned. "Just a minute, Ayumi-chan," she replied. She glanced over at the small detective, who was idly scanning the newspaper on the sofa. Switching off the intercom, she called, "Shinichi? Ayumi-chan-tachi are downstairs..." Conan sighed. "Dammit. I'm tired from being up all night, and I don't really have time for them today, but..." Shrugging, he stood up, putting the paper down. "It'll look suspicious if I don't keep up the act, so..." Ran nodded, and switched the intercom back on. "He'll be down in a minute, Ayumi-chan." Clicking it off again, she knelt down next to Conan as he approached the door. "Be careful, Shinichi," she whispered, enfolding him in a tight hug. "I will, Ran." He smirked. "They're not going to do anything in broad daylight with lots of witnesses. I'm more worried about YOU, really." Ran shrugged. "Like you said, it'd be a little too noticeable if they acted in broad daylight." Conan nodded, exchanging his slippers for his sneakers. "I won't stay out too long," he promised. "I need to sleep sometime...and I need to pull my weight on this wild goose chase, or Hattori'll have my ass." Ran giggled. "To think, a few days ago, I'd have scolded you for talking like that." The small boy chuckled, putting on his best 'Gee-I'm-cute' act. "Mata ne, Ran-neechan!" He was out the door and gone before Ran could formulate a response. * * * * * * * * * As the four kids shuffled out onto the sidewalk, squinting in the bright morning sun, Conan looked at the others. "So, what's on the agenda for today?" "We have a case!" Genta declared proudly. Conan blinked at him. "A case? Not another missing cat?" "Nope! A missing PERSON!" Mitsuhiko exclaimed enthusiastically. "A missing person?" *Who'd ask three little kids to look for a missing person?* Conan wondered to himself. "Un," Ayumi declared. "We're gonna solve the case of the missing Shinichi-niichan!" Conan spluttered, coming to a dead halt. "WH-WHAT?!" "We're gonna find Shinichi-niichan," Mitsuhiko replied. "Cuz the police can't find him." "But Conan-kun's real smart...just like niichan!" Ayumi exclaimed. "I bet you can find him in no time!" Conan sweatdropped. "Ah...heh..." *Oh, wonderful. Now they've got me trying to find myself.* * * * * * * * * * Toyama Kazuha couldn't help but notice that her long-time friend and personal aggravation was a bit preoccupied, sitting at the desk next to the phone, chin cupped in one hand, nervously drumming the fingers of the other. "Heiji? Is somethin' wrong?" Heiji glanced up, and shook his head, laughing. "No, no...just thinkin'." "Y'sure? You're awful spaced out there..." Heiji swore under his breath. "Just got a call from Kudou," he shrugged. "Nothin' to worry about." "Eeeh? Kudou-kun?" Kazuha raised an eyebrow. "Wasn't a social call, I reckon." The teen snorted. "Not hardly. He needs my help with a case." "Kudou Shinichi...needs help with a case." "Yeah." "Must be SOME case." Heiji chuckled. "That's an understatement." Kazuha frowned. "Any way I can help?" "No!" Heiji bit off sharply. He then winced, and amended, "I mean...thanks, but this is really Kudou's thing...kinda personal, y'know? I don't wanna get you or anyone else mixed up in it if I can help it." Kazuha sat down, frowning. "Is Kudou-kun in some kinda trouble? Is--" she paused, blanching slightly. "Is Ran-chan--?" "Neechan's fine, as far as I know," Heiji replied. "This has to do with..." "With?" Kazuha prompted. Heiji was silent for a very long moment. "Actually, y'know? Maybe there IS a way you can help--but I hafta tell you, we gotta do this under the radar. Nobody--an' I mean NOBODY--can know what's going on." Kazuha's eyebrows went to her hairline. "What, are you a spy now instead of a detective?" Heiji chuckled. "Sometimes." He then became serious. "Kudou'll kill me for this, but...I don't think we're gonna pull this off without every resource we can get our hands on." Kazuha smirked. "A 'resource' now, am I?" Heiji swatted at her playfully. "Ahou. What I mean is--" "I know what you mean, ahou. So...what're we doin'?" Heiji took a deep breath, knowing that his next words would break Kudou's confidence--but if what he suspected was right, it probably no longer mattered. "We're lookin' for two things: unsolved missing-persons cases, an' related incidents of young children suddenly showin' up outta thin air..." * * * * * * * * * Early in the afternoon, Professor Agasa looked in on Ai, who had sequestered herself in the basement and had asked not to be disturbed. He figured she would be hungry, having skipped breakfast, and brought her a large sandwich and a glass of juice. "How's it going?" he asked as he placed the food next to her. Ai was typing furiously at her computer, her eyes darting rapidly from the figures on screen to the microscope next to her. A number of test tubes were bubbling and frothing over a row of burners on the counter beside her. "I'm breaking down the original formula to see why my first antitoxin didn't work properly, and testing another sample's reaction to the antitoxin to figure out how to improve the duration," she responded. "The results so far are not especially useful, but I didn't expect this to be an easy task." She glanced at the sandwich beside her. "Tuna salad?" "Aa...hai." Shrugging, Ai picked up the sandwich, took a bite, and set it down. "Thanks," she replied. "Ayumi-tachi came looking for you earlier. I told them you were away for the weekend, and might not be at school tomorrow." "Thank you," Ai said again, her eyes never leaving her work as her small fingers flew over the keyboard at speeds most adults would be jealous of. Agasa watched her for a long moment, then sighed and trudged back upstairs. * * * * * * * * * "So just how did you guys expect to find Shinichi-niichan again?" Conan asked the three children. It was now late evening; soon, it would be time for them to part company and head for home, and they were seated in the park, snacking on onigiri bought at a nearby convenience store. "Um..." "Ano..." "Eto..." Conan sighed. "Look, you guys have your hearts in the right place, but this just really isn't a job for us. Did you stop to think maybe he doesn't *want* to be found?" The three wannabe detectives blinked. "But why wouldn't he wanna be found?" Genta asked. "I got lost once, it's scary," Ayumi said. "Doesn't he care that people are worried about him?" Mitsuhiko put in. *They don't even KNOW the real me well enough to worry about me...* "Look...he's a detective, right?" "Yeah..." "And he knows how to take care of himself, right?" "Well...yeah..." Conan nodded. "Now, I know that Shinichi-niichan calls Ran-neechan every couple of weeks. So he's okay. He always says he's on this big case and he can't come home, but he calls to let her know he's okay. So he's only missing because he doesn't want to be found." The others stared at him for a long moment. "Why didn't you tell us that sooner?" Genta bellowed. "We wasted a whole day we coulda spent at the arcade!" Ayumi's eyes brimmed with tears. "He's really okay, Conan-kun?" Conan nodded, smiling confidently. "Un. Trust me on this." Ayumi flung herself at Conan, hugging him tightly, causing him to sweat. "Arigatou, Conan-kun!" "Ah...hai..." * * * * * * * * * Monday saw the return of the usual routine. Ran and Conan got ready for school and said their goodbyes as they parted ways on the walk, but it was hard for them to keep their true emotions in check and show the world the face of big sister and little brother that had, only two days before, been so natural. Throughout the day, Conan was distracted by Haibara's empty seat and by the worry that Sonoko would blab his secret all over Teitan High. Meanwhile, Ran was equally distracted, wondering how Shinichi was doing, hoping he wasn't too bored out of his mind...but hadn't he been doing this for months already? "Ne, Ran," Sonoko whispered during a break between classes, "how's Shi--" "SHHH!" Ran hissed. "Not here, Sonoko!" "Right, right," the rich girl replied, dropping the subject. "But later, ne?" "Un." Kogoro spent the day in his office as usual, waiting for cases--but none came; with the revelations of the last thirty-six hours, he was beginning to wonder if his fame as a detective had been flicked off like a switch the moment he found out the truth about Kudou. But that was absurd, wasn't it? Still, he had little to do over the course of the day except read the newspaper, watch a horse race, and go through most of a case of beer. And as for the kurozukume... "AAAAAAAGH!" "In a bit of pain?" "YOU GODDAMN SON OF A--" "Such language, Gin. Please, do relax." "KILL YOU, YOU FUCKING--AAAAAAAGH!!" "I do believe you should refrain from such struggles and obscenities. I would not wish to...get nervous and make an error." "SHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIT!!!!" * * * * * * * * * Megure sat in the break room, a cup of coffee on the table next to a stack of manila folders. He had one folder open in his hands and was deeply engrossed in its contents. As he'd expected, the prints found on the soccer ball belonged to Kudou. However, after receiving this report, he'd gone down to the forensics lab and asked the technician to run the prints again, and stayed and observed the process. As before, the technician had matched the prints to the database record for Kudou Shinichi. However, as he was about to clear the search, Megure stopped him. "Continue running matches...no. Tell the computer to pull up the print records for Edogawa Conan." "Edogawa Conan?" "Do it, and let's do a visual comparison." The technician shrugged and did as told. The two men crowded around the screen, examining the fingerprint patterns on the left (Evidence Set #43297) with the patterns on the right (Edogawa Conan). The lab tech, a seasoned veteran who had worked for the Beika-cho police for seventeen years, frowned suddenly. "I can see fifteen matching points of comparison without even trying hard," he said. "In fact, the match is much clearer than the Kudou Shinichi match--the prints are the appropriate size." Megure nodded. "That's about what I expected." The tech frowned. "Megure-keibu...do you want me to put the computer into full analysis on these prints? It takes a little time to do a complete match, down to the last ridge, and I do have a lot of other work piling up--" "It's fine, Takeda. I've got what I need. Thank you." So now, Megure had a real puzzle on his hands. The case files for the past several months showed that Kudou Shinichi had been identified as present at a lot of crime scenes he personally knew the teen detective had been nowhere near. Simultaneously, Edogawa Conan was, according to the forensics reports, completely absent from the scene--which, again, Megure knew to be incorrect. He scowled. *Some of the newer labrats need to be reprimanded for laziness. This should've been caught months ago.* Edogawa Conan had appeared at the same time Kudou Shinichi disappeared. And now, Megure had tangible evidence which suggested the two were, in fact, the same person. The only thing left to figure out was *how*. Unfortunately, that particular answer didn't seem to be anywhere in his files. Megure sighed, sipping his coffee, and began poring over the documents again, looking for anything he had missed. * * * * * * * * * "How was school, Ran-neechan?" Conan chirped as he met up with the tall girl outside the gates. Ran blinked down at him, and seemed to be unable to answer for a moment. Then he flashed her a wink and a cheeky grin, and she giggled. "It was fine, Conan-kun. You?" "Mm, okay. So, are we gonna pick up groceries for dinner?" "Sure. What do you feel like having tonight?" Conan made a great show of pondering this. "Hmm...how about tempura shrimp?" "Heh, otousan would love that. Okay, we'll do it." And they headed off for the shopping street, unaware of two sets of eyes watching them: one belonging to a blonde American woman standing in a classroom window two floors above ground... ...and the other, also belonging to a blonde American woman, disappearing behind a black-tinted window in the back seat of a black Porsche. * * * * * * * * * Satou and Takagi found Megure in the break room, a stale cup of coffee forgotten on the table as he rifled intently through a number of manila folders. "Megure-keibu?" Satou asked, setting her own coffee down across from his and seating herself at the table. "Is something wrong?" "Everyone's noticed you've been a little preoccupied today," Takagi commented, sitting beside his partner. Megure grunted noncommittally, mustache twitching, as he reflexively reached for his coffee, took a sip, and nearly spat it out on the papers he was reading. "What the hell's wrong with the coffee today?" he rumbled. Satou smiled. "You've let it sit for a few hours, maybe?" The heavyset inspector blinked. "A few...hours?" He glanced at the clock, and swore. "THREE HOURS?! How did I let THREE HOURS pass? I've got things to do--!" * * * * * * * * * "Tadaima!" Ran called as she and Conan arrived on the second floor landing. They were halfway to the door to the detective office when it burst open, and Kogoro stuck his head out. "Oi, runt," he rumbled gruffly, "Message for you. Call Hattori." He shut the door just as quickly, and they heard him stump back to his desk. Conan and Ran blinked at each other, then shrugged. Ran dug out her keys as they trudged up the next flight of stairs, and unlocked the apartment door. Kicking his shoes off as soon as he was inside the apartment, Conan immediately headed for the phone and repeated his procedure from the day before. //Mosh'-mosh',// Hattori Heiji's voice rang out on the other end. "Oi, Hattori, it's me," Conan said, settling onto a chair. Ran casually took his backpack and set it in his room, and went to deposit her own things in her room before shuffling into the kitchen to start dinner. //Hey, Kudou! I think I found somethin'.// Hattori sounded positively excited. "Hmm?" //Kaneda Chitose, age twenty. University student from Okayama. Disappeared visitin' relatives in Kyoto. The cops found all her stuff, even some of her clothes, in an alley, no sign of her...presumed dead after a month-long search.// He paused. //Ouch. She was engaged to a Matsura Kenichi, an' she was two months pregnant.// "Damn. That sucks." //After her 'death', her father up an' moved to Tokyo--the family's loaded, an' he moved into one of their estates in the city. It belongs to his cousin, Mihama Norio, but Mihama-han's been in England for the last five years, an' the house has pretty much been empty all that time. Kaneda-han does most of his office work over the Internet, an' only goes into the office once or twice a week. But that's not the best part...// "Oh?" Conan imagined that Heiji must be wearing that confident, excited grin that said he'd found something truly interesting. //He's been made guardian of another cousin's daughter--Mihama Chiyo, age eleven, who just five months ago passed high school entrance exams--aced 'em, in fact--an' was pushed all the way up from the fourth grade to first year high school. Her records say she's a child prodigy with high aptitude scores...a certified genius.// "Wish I'd thought of that," Conan remarked. //Heh. Well, here's the kicker--I did some checkin', an' it looks like the only teacher at her old school who remembers her ever bein' in any classes was her fourth grade teacher.// "Maybe she'd just transferred--" //Ahou! You think I didn't check that? Yeah, a different school's listed for her for the first few years of school. Thing is, I checked around, an' nobody there'd ever heard of her.// Conan grinned. "Sou ka...this sounds like a real lead. Thanks, Hattori. I'll take it from here." //Right. I'll keep diggin' to see what else turns up. I didn't expect it to be this easy, to be honest.// "Neither did I. I'm surprised you found it first. //Well, actually...// Heiji coughed nervously. "Eh?" A pause. //Kazuha found the file on Kaneda Chitose.// Conan blinked. "Toyama-san did...? Masaka...Hattori, tell me you didn't..." //Kudou...Neechan knows now, doesn't she.// It wasn't a question. "Ah...hai." //Then this is really high priority stuff now, isn't it?// "Yeah..." //I thought so. That's why I've got Kazuha helpin' me. I haven't told her any details yet--only what we're lookin' for now. But--// Conan sighed. "I understand. It's...it's okay, go ahead and tell her." //Don't worry, you can trust Kazuha. She won't blab your secret.// The young boy snorted. "There IS no secret anymore. They know I'm still alive, and what the apotoxin really does. That's why this is so urgent." A pause. //THEY *KNOW*?! *AHOU*! WHEN WERE YOU GONNA TELL ME THIS?!// Conan laughed nervously. "Um...I guess I should've mentioned it..." //DAMN RIGHT YOU--// "Listen, Hattori, I gotta go. Thanks again, and tell Toyama-san thanks for me!" //DAMMIT, KUDOU--// "Mata ne!" *click* Frowning, he looked at the names he had written down on a notepad while talking to Hattori, then headed for the row of phone directories stacked on a shelf in the corner. "What did Heiji-kun want, Shinichi?" Ran asked. Conan flipped through the pages of the phone book quickly, scanning. His eyes landed on the name he was searching for, and he quickly copied down an address. Hopping up, he called, "We've got one. I've got to go check it out." "Eh? But...dinner..." "I'll be back in time for dinner!" Conan shouted, already halfway out the door with his skateboard and soccer ball. Ran stared at the closed door where he had once again disappeared. Then, she sighed. "Good luck, Shinichi." Without further thought, she returned to the kitchen. Her little detective was going to be hungry when he got home. * * * * * * * * * From his perch in a tree, Conan watched the street corner intently. Several minutes passed, and then he saw two girls, one short, with carrot-coloured hair, and one older, extremely tall, with long raven hair. The younger girl was chattering animatedly at the taller girl, who was silent, but had a small, content smile on her face. Nodding, Conan leapt down from the tree to begin the game. As the two girls drew near, he stood on the sidewalk opposite the large residence with the nameplate 'MIHAMA', kicking a soccer ball against the boundary wall. As the girls drew closer, he carefully, precisely aimed his next kick a bit too high, sending the ball sailing over the fence. "Oh, NO!" he cried loudly. "Kaachan's gonna kill me!" The two girls stopped, blinking. "What's wrong?" the younger girl asked. Conan put on his best 'distressed little boy' act. "My kaachan just got me a new ball for my birthday an' I just kicked it over the fence an' I saw a big scary dog in that yard an'...an'..." He sniffled for effect. The pigtailed girl smiled, patting his head. "It's okay," she said. "This is my house! And my dog is really nice. Come on, let's get your ball." "Hontou? Arigatou, oneechan!" The young girl preened slightly at being addressed thusly, and the taller girl chuckled softly. Conan followed them into the yard. Inwardly, he frowned. *I need to get this girl alone to talk, but...* He noticed the tall girl walking hurriedly to the large white dog which was bounding up to them, and sighed. *I have a feeling she's gonna be here a while.* "Ne, oneechan," Conan asked his target, "Is that your oneechan?" The girl laughed. "Iie, Sakaki-san is my friend from school." She bowed. "Gomen, I forgot to introduce myself! Mihama Chiyo." "Edogawa Conan." Conan made a show of running over to grab the 'lost' ball, and bounced it on his knee as he ran back over. "Arigatou! ...ne, oneechan, can I stay in your yard an' play for a bit? Kaachan don't like me playin' in the street, an' maybe I won't lose my ball again this way." Chiyo smiled. "Sure thing, Conan-kun." She smiled. "Ne, why don't I play with you? I don't need to do my homework right now, and I could use the exercise." "Hontou? Sugee!" *Perfect. Now we just need the big girl to leave.* Fifteen minutes passed, and Conan allowed himself to be lost in the simple fun of horsing around with a soccer ball and a new friend. After a bit, the tall girl suddenly stirred from her reverie. "Chiyo-chan," she called softly, "I just remembered, I've got to pick up stuff for dinner--I'd better get going." "Ah, okay! I'll see you tomorrow, Sakaki-san!" "Ja," the tall girl called as she left, lingering just long enough to watch the two children at play before disappearing from sight. After a moment, Conan idly commented, "Ne, oneechan...Sakaki-san's your friend from school, right?" "Hai!" "But you don't look a lot older'n me," he pressed, kicking the ball toward her. "She's gotta be in high school." "Un," Chiyo replied, stumbling a bit as she returned the ball. "I'm in high school too." "Eeeeh? Wow, you must be really smart, oneechan!" Chiyo blushed slightly, but there was an unmistakably proud grin on her face. "Eheh...I guess." Conan tucked his hands behind his back and began bouncing the ball from his knee to the top of his head and back. "Y'know, I'm pretty smart, too. I bet I could be in high school." "Really?" Chiyo commented, watching him with an amused smile. "Un. I know lots of things. I know math, I know English, I know history..." He paused, stopping the ball under his foot, and dropped the 'cute little kid' act. "I know secrets." "Secrets?" Chiyo asked, tilting her head. "Un." He rolled the ball back and forth under his toe. "Big secrets. About bad men who wear black. And detectives. And kids who aren't really kids at all." He fixed her with a sharp, calculating stare. "Like you, Chiyo-neechan...iie, Kaneda Chitose-san." Chiyo paled, her eyes wide. "Wh...what..." She stammered. "Wh-what're you..." He smiled. "Saa, Hattori was right." He took off his glasses and pocketed them. "Relax...and I think we should go inside before we talk any more, don't you?" Chiyo nodded mutely, swallowing. "H-how did you...I mean...wh-who *are* you?" "Kudou Shinichi," Conan replied, tucking his ball under his arm. "Tantei sa." Chiyo's eyes tripled in size. * * * * * * * * * "I'm not the only one, then," the chibified girl said as she sipped the tea she'd just poured. "Nope. There's at least three others, including me, but we suspect there may be more." "But how did you--I mean, we were so careful..." Conan smirked. "I told you, I'm a detective. And obviously, I know exactly what to look for." He frowned. "Kaneda-san..." "Chiyo," the girl insisted. "Kaneda Chitose is dead. Please...please just let me be Chiyo." The smaller boy shrugged. "Chiyo-san, then. The reason I'm here is that I may need your help." "MY help?" Chiyo snorted. "Do I look like I'm in any position to help anyone? I seriously doubt you need tutoring in your homework, and that's about all I'm good for these days." "No...that's not true," Conan replied. "You're a witness. You've seen them. You know. You're living evidence, like me." "You want me to testify against...*them*? The men that did this to me?" Chiyo laughed bitterly. "I'm sorry, Kudou-san, but...they've already done worse than kill me. I..." She choked down a sob. "I've lost more than you can imagine..." "I know," Conan said softly. "And I'm sorry. But...don't you want to make them pay for what they've done to you?" The small girl glared fiercely. "No. I've got a new life, and new friends, and I'm happy. I don't want...anything to..." Chiyo began to cry silently. "I just want to forget..." Conan stood, walked over, and placed a hand on her shoulder. "I understand. Believe me, I understand. But I...we..." He sighed. "The truth is, they know what that drug of theirs does now." Chiyo's eyes widened in horror. "They...they *know*? About...me?" The last came out as a squeak. "THAT, we can't be sure of," Conan said. "We don't know if they knew who you were before, after all. But they DO know that APTX-4869 isn't the lethal poison they thought it was, and they're going to be...well, obviously, they don't want potential witnesses running around who can expose them." "Just who ARE 'they', anyway?" Chiyo asked. "Yakuza, or...?" "Much worse," Conan said. "Much, much worse." He fixed her with a piercing gaze. "Which is why you may be in danger. Which is why my partner and I tracked you down, and why I'm here now." He paused. "This is very important: you must be extremely careful to avoid suspicion. You already stand out too much as it is, a grade-schooler in high school. But that in itself isn't terribly suspicious, so just don't blow your cover if you can help it." "I don't intend to," Chiyo said, scowling. "But the fact that WE found you, is proof that so can THEY. So you really need to be on your guard. I'm not saying you need to jump at every shadow or anything, but just remember that you ARE in danger now." He paused. "And...I'm not promising anything, but there's a chance we may have an antidote, and soon." Chiyo blinked. "An antidote? You mean..." She looked down at herself. "...I could be...that person again?" Conan nodded. "Yeah. If you want." He sighed. "I know what you lost. I know you...were pregnant when you were changed. And I can understand if going back to that life, and having that loss on your heart, would be too much for you. I just thought you deserved to know that there may be a way back, if you want it." Chiyo swallowed, and her voice was thick when she replied. "Thank you." Conan stood and handed her a business card, which she pocketed. "I'll be in touch if I have anything new to tell you, or if I need your help. If you need to contact me, call. And don't forget that I'm in hiding, like you, although a lot more people know my secret than I'm guessing know yours." He paused. "Take care of yourself, Chiyo-san." She nodded. "Thank you, Kudou-san. Iie, Conan-kun." She smiled, wiping tears from her eyes. "Ne, is it okay if I tell my father what you told me? He's been running himself crazy these last months, trying to find those guys who did this to me..." Conan nodded. "Sure. But don't mention my name, okay? The fewer connections to me you have, the better. I'm a major target for them right now." "And I'm not?" Chiyo asked, arching an eyebrow. Conan grinned. "You didn't use that drug on one of *them*. I did." "You..." Chiyo blinked. "You turned one of THEM into a kid?" "Yep." Chiyo squealed. "That's great!" She paused. "But that's why they know about us now, isn't it?" The smaller boy scratched his head nervously. "Aheh...probably." Chiyo sighed. "Well, better you than me." Conan chuckled. "I'll be in touch," he repeated. "Take care of yourself, and call me if you have any problems." "Thank you." As he neared the door, Conan paused. "I almost forgot. Do you happen to remember what the men who poisoned you looked like?" Chiyo frowned. "A bit. It was dark, and I was really scared, but...one of them had the coldest, creepiest eyes..." "Did he have long hair, the colour of straw?" "I...think so." "And the other one, was he stocky, kind of a brick-like face, sunglasses?" Chiyo thought about it, then nodded. "That sounds about right." Conan pulled out a notepad and scribbled something on it, nodding. "Okay, good. That accounts for one of Gin's pills. Thanks." "Gin...?" Chiyo asked, tilting her head. "Gin and Vodka. They're the same ones who got me. I took down Gin the other night, so I know exactly how many capsules of his supply of APTX-4869 were missing. That's why we're looking for people like us. Trying to account for everyone Gin got." "And this...Gin...was he the only one who had the poison?" Conan shrugged. "We don't know. For all I know, there could be dozens like us in Tokyo. But it seems more probable that Gin was the only one actively using it. More than a handful of cases like ours...it'd draw too much attention after a while, ne?" "Ah...un." "Oh, one more thing..." "Hai?" "If you drink strong alcohol like Paikaru while you have a fever, you'll change back for a little while. It hurts like hell, though, and it'll only work one time. Oh, and a certain acquaintance of mine has developed a temporary cure which works for twenty-four hours, but taking it is somewhat dangerous. I've taken it once, so I can vouch for its effectiveness." Chiyo blinked. "Just thought you might find that useful," Conan replied with a shrug. "Thanks," Chiyo answered. With a final wave, the detective left the house--and left a young girl who was really a young woman with a lot to think about. * * * * * * * * * "DADDY!" A tiny ball of energy erupted into the room, bouncing up and down happily. "I'm gonna go find a big frog!" A twentysomething man with long, stringy hair smiled tiredly at the excessively genki child. "That's great. Don't fall in any water. Be home in time for supper." "Yeah! Frog, frog, frog...gonna catch a FROG!" The little girl barely remembered to put on her shoes before barrelling out of the house. 'Daddy' sighed, slumping against the wall. His hair obscured his face as he jammed his hands into his pants pockets. "One more day...to keep going..." He looked up at the light fixture. "It's all for her...it's all for her...I can do it." He pulled an old, creased photograph out of his pocket; it showed a beautiful, smiling woman with long green hair, wearing a kimono. He smiled sadly at the picture. "Hinoto-chan..." Tears streamed down his face as he broke down, shoulders trembling with silent sobs. --------------------------------------------------------------- Author's notes and disclaimers: There are two ways in which a Kansai dialect is usually translated: a Brooklyn accent, or a Southern accent. Being a Southerner myself, I choose the latter. :P Disclaimers: Meitantei Conan belongs to Aoyama Gosho, Shogakukan, Yomiuri Television, VIZ Communications, and Funimation. Azumanga Daioh belongs to Azuma Kiyohiko, Dengeki Comics, Genco, JC Staff, and ADV. No permission has been obtained from any of the copyright holders for the use of characters and situations from these series. This work of fiction is not for profit and not intended to infringe on copyrighted intellectual property in any significant or harmful way.