Trust is a Two-Way Street
Disclaimer: I own nothing.
Warnings: Do not read if not caught up to at least the "Scarlet" arc in the current storyline.
Unbelievable.
Shuichi Akai studied the child in front of him. No, not child. Not really. Shrunken teenager would be more accurate. The child that had baffled him on more than one occasion, including now. The boy in question sat surrounded by the other Detective Boys. They were over at his place – well, Kudo's place – watching the latest Kamen Yaiba movie. Agasa's movie projector broke midway through the opening credits, and the children lamented missing the movie until Akai had conveniently shown up, holding a pot of curry, and suggested they watch it over at his place. After all, Kudo had a great entertainment center.
Conan Edogawa – no, Shinichi Kudo, Akai mentally corrected - had cleverly formulated the most amazing plan. Even better than his own. The kid's brilliance perfected the flaws in Akai's logic, including accepting his own death, should it have come to that. He never knew why the high school detective hated death so much even as he constantly stumbled into that darkness on a near daily basis. But the kid's eternal hope and optimism had slowly drawn Akai from his own grief. Gradually, he began to heal. And now death didn't seem so appealing to the agent.
Though Conan had understood his grief – and honored Akai's request to keep an unspoken promise – the kid still tried his hardest to include Akai in everyday events. Even if they ended in murder. Which they usually did.
Still, he enjoyed the challenge of trying to solve the case before the detective. The kid's intelligence rarely failed. Akai attempted to tally the results, but lost count soon after starting. He had a vague inkling the score was at a 60-40 ratio, with the better side going to the kid. Often by only a few moments.
It really shouldn't have surprised Kudo that Akai would try to investigate him. After all, Akai had plenty of spare time on his hands. He suspected early, proved beyond a shadow of a doubt a bit later, but still to this day had no acknowledgment by the kid himself.
Unbelievable.
No, not the fact that Kudo had de-aged into a child. He guessed that when he first saw Shiho.
No, Akai currently fumed in silence over something else. The kid still didn't trust him enough to personally confide in Akai with his secret. Akai trusted the Kudo family with his life; both in faking his death and his continued persona as Subaru Okiya. And the kid couldn't even return the favor. Even though Akai had dropped numerous hints that he knew. The kid would shrug it off with a nervous, high-pitched laugh and hope that allayed Akai's suspicions.
Or maybe the kid wasn't as smart as he had given him credit for.
Whatever it was, it was most certainly frustrating. But what would having Conan tell him actually accomplish? He frowned for a moment as the new thought rose to his mind.
So what if he knew? So what if Conan didn't want him to know? Would it really change things?
Conan caught onto the change of expression. The kid turned toward him. "Subaru-san, is everything okay?" he asked, concern evident in his voice.
Akai allowed the placid mask to reappear. He nodded. If Conan refused to tell him, he could have a bit of fun, right?
"Ah, yes, Conan-kun," he said, his voice full of cheer. "I was just reminded of a similar scenario I saw in a photograph of the Kudo family I found."
No such photo existed. But Conan – ever the paranoid one who removed all photos eons ago – didn't know that.
"Ah," he replied, paling slightly. "Where did you see the photo?"
"I can't recall," Akai said, placing one hand in mock thoughtfulness under his chin. "But I believe it was taken a long time ago. Shinichi-san looked to be about your age."
Conan blanched and Akai had to stop himself from breaking into a smile and ruining the fun. The kid studied him a moment longer before turning back to his friends.
Yes, he thought, it does matter.
Once he had dismissed the notion that Conan was no ordinary child, back when he believed he was just a genius, the two of them excelled at devising a foolproof strategy. With their combined teamwork, they were unstoppable. A force to be feared.
It required trust.
But who was he to talk? He, who deceived his closest friends? Was it so different?
After a long moment, he decided it was. Akai trusted Conan and admittedly he felt a bit betrayed that Conan didn't trust him the same.
Suddenly, the front door slammed open. Akai and Conan jumped and turned toward the sound. Akai readied himself for an attack.
"Hey, Kudo! If I'm going to visit you all the way from Osaka, the least you could do is tell me where you're going to be!" a loud voice bellowed from the entryway. Akai noticed Conan roll his eyes and deflate, plopping back down on the rug.
Never one to waste a perfect opportunity, Akai smiled at Detective Boys. "I'll go see what our visitor wants," he said. "You continue watching the movie."
"It's just Hattori-san," Genta said, distracted by the action on the screen. He reached for the remote to turn the volume up a couple of notches. The other two children eagerly leaned in. Haibara yawned and continued flipping through her fashion magazine.
"I'll go inform him Shinichi-san isn't here at the moment," Akai said.
"I'll go with you!" Conan cried, jumping back up.
"No, no," Akai replied with false cheeriness, "you stay here with your friends. I insist."
Conan frowned but couldn't very well argue with him. He hurried out of the room before Conan could follow despite Akai's warning.
He intercepted the Osakan detective near the bottom of the staircase.
"Hello," he greeted, "you must be Heiji Hattori."
The teen whirled around and appraised Akai. "Who are you?" he asked, suspicion evident in his voice.
"Subaru Okiya. I'm temporarily residing here at the gracious approval of the owner."
"Oh, uh, nice to meet ya," Heiji said.
"If you're looking for Shinichi-san, he isn't here at the moment. But it's a pleasure meeting you. I've heard a lot about you from Kudo-san," Akai replied.
"You have?"
Akai nodded. "Oh, yes. He says you're a great detective." Let him stew on that for a bit, Akai thought.
Heiji smiled. "Haha, yeah we make a pretty good team." His expression turned serious. "If Kudo-kun isn't here, how about Conan-kun?"
Oh no. He wasn't letting the best opportunity he's had in a long time escape that easily. "He's watching a movie with his friends. Let's leave them be," Akai said. "Perhaps there's something I can help you with? I enjoy solving puzzles, myself."
"Ah, I would really prefer to talk to Conan-kun," Heiji began.
Akai channeled every fiber of his being into his next action – intimidation while appearing casual. He was fairly good at it. Haibara usually sensed it even when he wasn't studying her.
Heiji sensed it, too. "Er, well," he amended, "maybe I don't really need to talk to him right now."
Akai eased up on his intimidation. "Perfect!" he beamed at Heiji. "I'll just go tell the children."
He poked his head into the study to find all but Conan engrossed in the movie. Conan had been watching the door. He hopped up immediately. The kid certainly had boundless energy. Akai's knees would be killing him right now had he been in the same situation.
Akai put out a hand to stop him. "Hattori-san and I are going out for a bit," he explained. "Hattori-san needs some help with adult things."
"I'll go, too," Conan chirped, already reaching for his bag.
"No, no, I couldn't tear you away from your friends. This is adult stuff. Unless there's a reason you feel you should go?"
Conan backed down, shooting Akai a confused look as if to say "what are you doing?" He dropped to the floor. "Tell Heiji-niisan hi for me," he said at last, quiet and forlorn.
With one last smile, Akai closed the door. Heiji had been texting on his phone in the meantime, no doubt to Conan. He slipped the phone in his pocket when Akai approached.
"Shall we?" Akai asked.
They walked in silence for a long time, each one allowing the other to lead the way. Heiji occasionally checked his phone and texted short replies. As a result, they ended up several blocks away and slightly lost, though neither would ever admit it to the other.
"Phew, it's hot out!" Heiji exclaimed, pushing the brim of his baseball cap up a bit as he wiped his forehead. The kid had turned it around to shield his face when they had started down the sunny street. "Let's stop in here for a cool drink," he suggested, motioning to a nearby coffeehouse. Akai readily agreed. Turtlenecks in summertime, while stylish on a young graduate student, did not make for a comfortable journey.
They selected a secluded booth in the furthest, coolest corner. Akai sat with his back to the wall, facing the door. Old habits never die. They placed their drink orders. Heiji studied Akai.
"So," he said at last, "when are you going to tell me why you wanted to get me alone?" Heiji winked. "If you wanted to ask me out on a date, I should tell you right now I have a girlfriend."
"Funny," Akai retorted, "from what Kudo-san tells me, you and Kazuha-san aren't an official couple. In fact, he tells me you haven't even told her you like her yet."
Instead of riling the teen, Heiji fixed him with an even stare, leaning forward. "Kudo told you that?"
Akai shrugged. "Or maybe it was Conan-kun. I get the two mixed up all the time."
"They are related."
"So I'm told."
Heiji studied him. Akai sipped his drink. "So what did you want to know about Conan?"
"What makes you think I want to know about Conan?" Akai shot back.
"You refused to let him accompany us. You know very well he can handle almost any adult situation, and probably come up with a solution or two to the problem."
Ah, Heiji really was as good as they say. He would have to remember to consider using him in future plans. But wait, Akai thought, recalling nearly the first big mission with Conan. Back before Akai knew the truth.
Heiji had disguised as Kudo, hadn't he? He remembered reading something like that in the report. That verified it. Heiji definitely knew, and he had helped him in the past. Akai was tired of the long con. He wanted answers.
"You're pretty deep in thought over there," Heiji's voice cut through Akai's musings.
Akai looked up. "I apologize for my rudeness," he said. "Do you still need your hat brim facing forward indoors?"
Heiji smiled. "Do you still need a turtleneck in this heat?"
Touché.
"Has Kudo-san told you about me?" Akai asked.
"He mentioned a grad student that was living temporarily in his house."
"That's not what I meant," Akai said.
Heiji studied him in silence for a long moment. "No," he said at last, "but he doesn't need to. I've figured out a good bit myself."
"Oh?"
Heiji cast a quick glance around the restaurant, certain no one else was paying them any attention. He leaned in and lowered his voice anyway. "You're hiding. From dangerous people. Probably the same ones Kudo is after. He doesn't tell me much, but likes to pretend everyone else is as unobservant as Kogoro Mouri-san."
Akai favored him with a thin smile. "Impressive."
"Thank you."
"Is that all?"
Heiji froze with his drink halfway to his mouth. "Huh?"
"Is that the extent of your deduction?" Akai challenged. "I suppose I expected more from the Great Detective of the West."
Heiji frowned as he set his drink back on the table. "You're so much like Kudo, it's scary," he said under his breath. Louder, he continued, "You are both supposed to be dead, yet you're not. You're both wicked brilliant in planning and strategy, yet also able to improvise on the spot. Your accent is impossible to place, thanks in part to Professor Agasa, though I'm certain I could draw a rough composite of your real face. A mask would be unbearable to wear day after day, so makeup and a wig. But why a wig? So it can be vastly different from your real hair. A brown, straight-haired, slightly-long wig? I'm guessing you have short, wavy, black hair." Heiji paused to take a sip of his drink before continuing. "A wig also means lots of people know your face, not just a few you may only run into by pure bad luck. Since Agasa and Kudo are in on this, and the little kids hang around you often, then someone else could recognize you that you are often around. Police? Ran-san? Both?"
Akai smiled at him, confident in his deduction ability. "Brilliant," he praised. "Why do you think Professor Agasa is helping me?"
Heiji pointed to Akai's neck. "I've seen voice changers in action often enough to know what to look for now."
"I'm sure you have," Akai replied, and a brief image of Conan holding a bowtie to his mouth flashed through his mind.
Heiji picked up his drink again. "Now, if I've passed your test, will you tell me what you want? Or do I have to prove myself to you even more?"
"That won't be necessary," Akai reassured him. "I had to be certain."
Heiji nodded but didn't speak.
Gathering his thoughts, Akai really didn't know how to work it. He sighed and decided just to stumble ahead. "I know Shinichi Kudo is really Conan Edogawa," he admitted. Heiji nodded, unsurprised, silently encouraging him to continue. "I discovered it... well, the details are irrelevant, but I know. In his Conan persona, Kudo is the one who came up with the plan to hide me. Marvelous, intricate, requiring complete trust, and a whole lot of luck."
"So what's the problem?"
"Kudo doesn't know that I know. I believe he suspects, especially with the abnormal amount of hints I've dropped to tell him, but... he doesn't trust me enough to confide in me and tell me his biggest secret."
To his utter astonishment, Heiji burst out laughing. Loudly. Somewhat taken aback, Akai glowered at the teen. "I'm glad a lack of trust by the one man responsible for my life amuses you so," he declared, venom dripping from his voice.
Heiji held up his hands, attempting to placate the irate agent. "Ahaha, it's not like that," he tried to explain, only to receive a stony glare in reply. "You're scary like that, ya know?"
Akai intensified his icy look.
"Fine, fine, turn off that death stare," Heiji relented. "Look, if you're expecting Kudo to tell you anything, he won't. He never even told me his secret. Well, not really."
"What?"
Heiji leaned in. "I figured it out on my own. Well, I kinda blackmailed him after into telling me the whole story, but I figured out his secret all on my own. In fact, I'm pretty certain the only one he's ever actually told is Professor Agasa."
Akai's mind reeled. "Professor?"
"Yeah. Kudo said he was the first person he ran into after those men poisoned him. Everyone else who knows has figured it out on their own."
"Even his parents?"
"Yep. Well, sorta. They got verification from the professor, but Kudo's dad is pretty sharp."
Yes, he knew that, from reports of how Yusaku had handled himself against Bourbon.
"So Kudo's never going to tell me himself?" Akai asked.
"Probably not. Not unless you confront him. Is it that important?" Heiji voiced the very question Akai had pondered hours earlier.
He nodded. "Every ally is important. Trust is important. It's how we will win. I know it."
Heiji grinned. "Yep, just like Kudo. Say, you never did tell me your name. Your real name."
"Oh no. I've seen how often you mess up with Kudo," Akai said, shaking his head.
"This is the first time we've met!"
"But not the first time I've heard you," Akai countered.
Heiji gaped at him for a moment, then sat back and harrumphed. "Stalker," he muttered.
"Cautious," Akai corrected.
"What about all that talk about trust?"
Akai fixed him with a wolfish grin. "If you're so eager to know my name, put your deduction skills to good use and figure it out yourself."
Heiji smiled back. They finished their drinks, paid, and left the small cafe. Heiji turned his cap around.
"Won't the sun be in your eyes?" Akai asked.
Heiji shrugged. "My mystery's solved." He glanced at Akai's neck.
Akai noticed. "Mine isn't."
"For now."
And when they got back to the Kudo residence, Conan pounced on Heiji and demanded to know where they went.
"Sorry!" Heiji said laughing. "We got a bit lost wandering around the city."
Conan threw a suspicious look at Akai. Heiji pulled him away, but not before Akai called out to them.
"Conan-kun?" The two detectives turned. Akai opened his eyes fully. "I'd like to talk to you when you get back, if you would be kind enough to grant me an audience."
"Ah, okay," Conan replied meekly.
Heiji smiled at him, flashing him a quick thumbs-up for support. Then, they both left. And Akai headed to the study to go prepare himself for a very long evening.
Author's note: This story had originally intended to veer completely in a different direction. Then I got to thinking, really the only person whom Shinichi ever told he had shrunk was Agasa. Everyone else figured some/most/all out and confronted him. I figured I would build upon the tentative trust issue between Akai and Shinichi, with a little helpful advice from the worst guy ever to tell a secret to - Heiji Hattori. He means well, but he just can't help from shouting Kudo's name at the top of his lungs every chance he gets.
Thanks for reading, and I hope you've enjoyed this!