Hey hey hey. I've written another one shot. Woe is me… Anyway I've been a total nerd lately, thinking of 'what if this happened' and 'so how would Conan react if…' It's a good way to pass the time, I suppose, but it leaves me feeling like a bit of a loser. (I'm bad at embracing my inner nerd.) So I wanted to write a fic to get it out of my system, but the problem is that I'm just not very good at writing fics like that, so I did a oneshot with Kogoro instead. It's like writing a whole bunch of fics, I'm just compressing all of them into the tiny attention span of Kogoro's thoughts. Clever, ne?

I need a hobby.

-basser

Dad,

I'm out with Toshi, dinner's in the microwave and Conan-kun's asleep on the couch. Make sure he gets to bed on time!

-Ran

Kogoro grumbled ill-naturedly at the note found taped to his front door, trying to read it, open the door, and hold up a grocery bag all at once. The balancing act was not working well.

"Sheesh… That girl.. How much time is she gonna spend with this Toshi guy anyway?" He muttered to himself, kicking open the now-unlocked door and storming inside. He set his bag down (cookies and beer, any man's essentials) and cast about the apartment as if expecting to find his dinner sitting pristine on the table. Of course it wasn't. It would probably be ramen again, like it had been so often lately. Damn the teenage dating spectrum and its interference with his mealtimes.

As promised by Ran's neat handwriting, Conan lay sleeping on the couch, curled up into a little ball at the end farthest from the door. Kogoro supposed Ran must have put the blanket on him, since it lay somewhat awkwardly over his face. She'd forgotten to take off the glasses, though. He scoffed and stepped over to pull the frames off the boy's face. (It wasn't as if he didn't care at all, really. Just let Ran accuse him of disliking Conan one more time… Had she forgotten his raising her? He was still a father, after all.) There. Little kids really didn't know how to take care of their things… He was surprised the glasses hadn't broken yet from all the abuse they took.

As if protesting the absence of his glasses, Conan mumbled a sleep-muffled irritation and burrowed deeper into himself, a flash of discontent crossing his face. Kogoro managed to keep from smiling (but man, the kid was cute wasn't he?) His fingers twiddled with the glasses frames in his hands as he absently stared at the eight year-old below him. There were dark circles under the boy's eyes and a strange desperation in which he curled himself so tightly in sleep… Normally not a problem (nightmares? Separation anxiety? What normalities would a kid go through with no parents?) and an issue he would gladly let Ran deal with… But she didn't seem to be paying as much attention to the kid lately. And of course her finally getting over that shifty Kudo character and getting her normal life back would just have to coincide with the kid taking a turn for the worse.

It had all started with Ran and that Toshi character.. Kogoro, fulfilling his fatherly duties, had been in opposition from the start. Ran, of course fulfilling her daughterly duties, had completely ignored him and gone off to a movie with the boy. Infuriating…

Though Kogoro could hardly care less who his daughter went out with, so long as they were somewhat respectable (and what had happened with that Kudo brat anyway?) although he was finding it highly amusing to note that Conan would hardly let her by so easily. He'd be at the door every time, scowling up at his ne-chan's potential suitor with the same angry glare, sometimes pretending she wasn't home, or directing the young man in the wrong direction to go in which to find her. It was cute, really; a chibi-sized version of Kudo fiercely protecting Ran from anyone who wasn't his double. Unfortunately Ran didn't find it nearly as adorable.

She'd stopped letting Conan answer the door, for one; and Kogoro could see the growing resentment as the kid was thwarted time and time again from tagging along on her little 'not-dates.' Eventually it grew from cute to interesting. What had Kudo said to this kid, anyway? (For it was distinctly clear that the high-schooler had given his miniature cousin some sort of orders to keep his girl free.) And why, after being shot down so many times, wouldn't Conan just give up?

Well it seemed he had, actually. By about the third week of Ran's 'not-dating' with her 'not-boyfriend' the interruptions on their outings had practically stopped. Conan had sunk into something like a depression, and hadn't been sleeping or eating well at all. Kogoro had retained his detached air when it came to the kid, but he couldn't help but worry a little. Especially when Ran's slight grudge on the boy's behalf (and, let's face it, the boy's grudge on hers) kept her from keeping quite as good a care of him as usual. Was it time for the great sleeping Kogoro to get more involved in his 'apprentice's life?

"Gawd, I need a beer." Kogoro yawned. He casually dropped Conan's glasses onto the coffee table and made his way over to the kitchen to see what his daughter had left him for food. "Sheeeesh… Ramen again?" He whined aloud, banging his head on the oven's door. He had half a mind to go wake the kid up and complain. A few seconds' worth of grumbling and staring at the microwave, though, and he had successfully punched in the proper combination of keys to get it cooking. Damn, this better be some good ramen…

As the food spun lazily around the microwave, Kogoro turned his thoughts to other things happening in his world. He was slightly perturbed to find a good deal of such things centering, once again, around the boy. What was it about that kid that just made things happen? Well… As long as it was something to distract him from the spinning ramen and empty hole in his stomach. Alright fine. Let's recap. Weird little kid acting weirder… Let's see…

Well for starters there had been the professor's trip; what had he said for? A scientist's convention? Well, in any case he had taken that creepy little girl with him. He knew for a fact that Conan had been against that. (Overhearing conversations seemed to be his specialty as of late.) The two had argued about some sort of antidote to something before realising they had an eavesdropper and switching to English. (Kogoro had then dismissed it as annoying little American kids being stupid and wandered off. What did he care anyway?) In any case the argument seemed to have ended badly, since Conan hadn't even spoken to Ai when they saw Agasa off at the airport. (Honestly, kids and their grudges… Probably refused to let him share her candy or something.)

Then were those health examinations at school that the kid had made such a fuss about. (No he was not going to sign a slip exempting him. What harm in a little physical?) What had happened with that? Oh yeah. The kid had gotten in trouble for refusing to take the eye test or something. What a baby.. Well, again, Kogoro didn't really care. He'd let Ran take care of the reprimand and watched some Yoko on TV. That seemed like pretty much it… Wait, no.

Except for that call. How could he have forgotten?

It had been the oddest damn thing, that call. He'd picked up the receiver expecting one of his 'my-wife-is-cheating-on-me-oh-dear-please-help' clients, but had instead been greeted by a young woman's voice (terrible American accent, too. Gawd, was it so much to ask people to try and talk normally when they moved to the country?) She'd explained something about being a teacher and asked for Conan. ("Conan? What'd he do?" "Oh, no! He did nothing! I just want to speak with him is all! And if you could please leave the room that would be nice too please! Okay thank you!" She'd said brightly, speaking the most terrible Japanese he'd ever heard. At the mention of his name Conan's head popped over the back of the couch. Was it a bad sign, him looking so worried?) Well, in any case he'd handed over the receiver –deliberately ignoring the odd lady's request for him to leave in favour of going back to his races on the radio- and had gotten the most interesting show played back to him through the kid's facial features…

First confusion, worry.. Kogoro assumed, somehow, that it had to do with his parents. Then a string of fast-spoken words in English (Kogoro had never excelled in that language… Slightly irritating that this brat could speak it so easily when he never could.) Followed by- what? Fear? Alarm? They'd talked for a minute more (sounded like an argument from this end though didn't it?) and the boy hung up, looking frustrated. He'd asked him what it was about, but all he got was the usual childish quip about English-something-or-other and school teacher day, before the boy had boldly stated that he would be going to Professor Agasa's.

"He's not home." Kogoro had reminded him, admitting to himself a slight interest in how the kid would react. The flash of emotions to that simple statement certainly didn't disappoint. Confusion, recognition, anger, fear, frustration… Exhaustion?

"… Shit." The kid whispered, before turning around and stalking to his room without so much as an excuse for his language.

From that moment on the kid had seemed to be in a constant preoccupied, frazzled sort of state. He'd skipped school a few days (very evasive about where he'd been, too. Of course then what could you suspect an eight year-old of doing? Not like he was some shifty, untrustworthy teenager.) The English teacher who'd called earlier had told Kogoro that the boy had just been sick and the school had forgotten to mark him as being in the nurses' office. He couldn't really argue with that, though he wondered why he hadn't been called to take the kid home. And besides which Conan hadn't been acting like he had a cold or anything. (No, he'd been acting like a mouse caught in the cat's shadow, hadn't he?) And anyway Kogoro really didn't trust that American lady and her excuses. After all, could a slight cold really cause one to look as if their whole world had come undone?

And that's how the kid looked, too. Totally worn-out. Ran had even tried to talk to him a few times, forgetting her irritation with his attempted date-crashing. He wouldn't drop his usual guard, though, and slipped through her questions just as easily as he ignored Kogoro's worried glances. Perhaps it was really time to do something about the little mystery in their lives.. Would a shrink help? (Bah, he hated shrinks. Stupid old bats trying to tell you how to act…) Nah.. He'd have to do something else… Something… Useful.

Maybe it was time (though he hated to admit the responsibility the thought entailed) to actually be the adopted father he was assumed to be. Everyone in Japan seemed to think the kid was his anyway. Might as well prove them right. (And besides, talking to Conan couldn't be that hard… He'd done it with Ran enough hadn't he?)

The microwave beeped, startling him from his reverie. Ah! The ramen! He grabbed a few oven mitts and carefully separated the hot food into two bowls. The balancing act to the living room was a bit interesting, but he managed. He'd done it often enough before, after all. He set one bowl on the table and turned to wake his 'son.'

"Food. Oy, wake up." He grumbled, shaking Conan by the shoulder. The kid was curled up so tightly it hardly made any difference… He'd have to settle for poking him. A few jabs in the shoulder enticed a suitably wakeful groan.

"Errrrgh… Unh?" Exhausted-looking, childish eyes peeped out from the folds of blanket. Kogoro scowled to himself and pushed the smaller bowl towards his young 'assistant'.

"Wake up for a bit and eat." The boy blinked owlishly at him, damned if he was going to let the kid starve, though. "I'll pour it down your throat if I have to."

"Okay okay, fine…" Conan managed to push himself up enough so as to grab the bowl, and still not leave the warm comfort of his blanket. Kogoro took a seat at his television and began to eat, trying not to look like he was worried at all that the kid had only taken a sip before setting the food aside. Okay, now talk to him, Kogoro… Ask him why he's been upset…

"… Where'd Ran-nechan go?"

Kogoro winced. Not a good way to start conversation. Still, he had to answer. Lord knew the kid would figure it out on his own anyway, what with that huge brain of his. "… Out with Toshi."

A sidelong glance showed him the expression he'd been expecting: broken-hearted. (But there again; why did the kid care so much who Ran went out with, anyway?) Kogoro scowled back at the TV and tried to think of some way to steer the conversation away from such subjects and back onto the matter of depressed little boys.. His mind left him strangely blank. Damn. He really wasn't meant for these touchy-feely sort of things. Ah, well, best to just ask outright and get it over with…

Just as he opened his mouth to speak, though, the boy beat him to it.

"… Jii-san?" Conan muttered, sounding somewhat pathetic. Kogoro kept his gaze trained on the TV in order to mask the relief he felt in not having to actually start anything. The kid was talking to him! Lucky!

"What is it?"

"Shinichi-niisan's an idiot."

Kogoro swallowed a mouthful of ramen rather quicker than he'd intended and had to clear his throat a bit. That hadn't been at all what he'd been expecting. (Shinichi? Where the hell did Shinichi fit into this?) He kept his eyes on the TV a second longer, somewhat startled. Something in those words carried a bitterness, a resentment, that Kogoro couldn't quite put his finger on..

But as soon as he'd thought to turn and ask the kid what he meant, the boy had gotten up and left the room, leaving Mouri to stare blankly at an empty couch. (And scowl deeply at a still-full ramen bowl. That damn kid was going to starve.) The sudden absence left him blinking. He started to get up but the urge to go after the kid was drowned out by the familiar face of his beloved Yoko on the TV screen. He sighed in defeat and sat back down to finish his ramen.

He never was any good at that dad stuff anyway.

End

Kogoro, my friends, totally rocks. (Why is my favourite character the idiot?) If you're trying to think of something to write, definitely go Kogoro-centric. We need more of 'em.

So anyway... If you'd like to take an idea here and run with it.. I'd… Like… Worship you. I really want to see a lot of these mentionings as stories but I just don't have the energy/talent to write them... :(

PUHLEEEEZE?
I'll love you forever. (Also as if you leave a review. That's a nice thing to do.)

basser