Irene Fletcher, shortened to Ren - Ran Mouri
Nicholas Holmes, shortened to either Nick or Holmes, prefers Holmes - Conan Edogawa. He'll be given the nickname Lock, though it will be a while before people actually call him that, or sometimes Sherlock. - Shinichi Kudo
Elizabeth Watson, shortened to Liz - Ai Haibara - Shiho Miyano
(Although Ran is still 17, Heiji Hattori and Kazuha Toyama are now 18 and live together, though they still won't admit their feelings for eachother.)
"Wait, Haibara, you're saying there is a government research project looking for a way to age or de-age someone by a year with a small pill in Japan?" Conan gawked, nonplussed by his excitement.
"No, there was one; the research project was just completed and they're now looking for human test subjects. Thing is, all subjects have to move away from anywhere they've lived in the past, and pretend they're different people, they don't want anyone finding out about this. It's so secretive that if you refuse after being offered you're given a drug that wipes away all memories within 5 hours of being taken, well, unless you're friends with people in the PSB, like we are. I doubt even the Black Organization knows, and if they do, I still doubt they'd realize who we were, when we shrunk, this technology was still in its infancy, only working on test subjects 0.0000326% of the time." Haibara explained.
"I'm not taking it, I want to stay with Ran, I can't leave her alone." Conan sighed.
"That's what I thought you'd say, and I'm not taking it unless you're taking it. I'll leave the papers with you just in case though. If you change your mind tell me." Haibara ordered.
"Yes ma'am." Conan agreed, doubting he'd have to take her up on her offer.
Back home, after Conan falls asleep
"I should clean up Otosan and Conan-kun's room, I'm sure there are beer cans everywhere, making the room too stinky for Conan-kun to sleep." Ran thought to herself, quietly entering the room.
After cleaning everything up, she accidently knocks over Conan's backpack, only to see a couple of strange papers fall out.
Organization on Research of Ultra-Fast Aging and De-Aging (ORUFAD)
Warning - If you read this paper and do not have a member of the Japanese government or member of the ORUFAD with you, you are automatically put under an oath of secrecy.
Dear, Conan Edogawa, Ai Haibara, or anyone else of their choice, you have been selected to be eligible test subjects for either our new Quick Age drug or our Quick De-Age drug. If you choose the Quick Age drug you will be able to age one year per every one of the pills you swallow. On the other hand if you choose the Quick De-Age drug you will regress one year in age. The De-aging drug has no effect on the brain, but the aging drug does have an affect IF you age to a point later in puberty, or to a point during puberty. It is estimated from results on other animals that this drug has a 99.99% to 100% chance of success.
(You can tell your legal guardians, any siblings, and your best friend if they're deemed safe to tell.)
(Also, Heiji Hattori and Kazuha Toyama will be the people taking care of you, assuming you're still a minor, and that there are three or less people who sign.)
Conan Edogawa, Sign Here - _
Circle drug you want to take - Quick Age/Quick De-Age
Requested amount of pills - _
Ai Haibara, Sign Here - _
Circle drug you want to take - Quick Age/Quick De-Age
Requested amount of pills - _
_, Sign Here - _
Circle drug you want to take - Quick Age/Quick De-Age
Requested amount of pills - _
_, Sign Here - _
Circle drug you want to take - Quick Age/Quick De-Age
Requested amount of pills - _
_, Sign Here - _
Circle drug you want to take - Quick Age/Quick De-Age
Requested amount of pills - _
_, Sign Here - _
Circle drug you want to take - Quick Age/Quick De-Age
Requested amount of pills - _
"Why would Conan-kun have something like this? And why Ai-chan? Wait, they have many friends in the government, I already know that, so it was probably just an offer. It isn't like Conan-kun has signed his name or anything. Hmm… maybe I should do it? Maybe it is just what I need to get over Shinichi… I don't think I can wait much longer… But what about Otosan, Okasan, Sonoko, and Sera-san? What about all my karate friends? I- I'll think about it overnight, and I'll talk with Conan-kun about it too." Ran quarrelled internally, placing the papers back into his bag, then she went to bed.
The next day...
"Conan-kun, I want to have a talk with you and Ai-chan, about something I found in your bag…" Ran whispered to Conan so her father couldn't hear her.
"E-ehh! Y-you looked in my bag!" Conan stammered nervously.
"Yeah, where can we meet up to talk about this?" Ran asked.
"Uhm, Hakase's house I suppose." Conan answered in a mature voice.
"Okay, let's go there after breakfast, today is a weekend afterall." Ran smiled at Conan, though confused about his change in tone.
"Why isn't she angry? Don't tell me… she wants to use it?" Conan worried.
Hakase's house
"Haibara, for once something bad happened and it wasn't my fault, but yours." Conan yelled as he entered Hakase's house with Ran.
"She found that?" Haibara asked, furiously thinking, "Ugh, the whole reason I wanted to do this with Kudo-kun is so that I could get him to like me instead of her! If she does this too then Kudo-kun will just continue fawning over her! No, shut up! I don't love him! That isn't why I want to do it… just safety… safety..." Haibara repeated in her head, trying to convince herself she wasn't in love.
"Yeah, and from the way she's acting it seems like she wants to use it, though for what reason I have no clue." Conan answered.
"First, I want to ask if you two planned on using it." Ran told them.
"No, Haibara would only do it if I would for some reason, and I didn't want to do it because then you'd have nobody to comfort you about Shinichi-niichan. We were both tempted though, we don't exactly fit in with our age groups, we're too smart, too cultured, too mature, too skilled, etcetera." Conan answered.
"Well, I want to use it, I want to de-age a couple years, I'm tired of waiting for Shinichi and I feel that this would help me do it." Ran admitted.
This made Conan want to cry, but he couldn't admit that, he couldn't let her know that he was Shinichi, she wasn't safe. Conan instead said, "I feel like doing this would have an adverse affect, you'd become isolated from your age group, you'd want that someone who would take you seriously and care about you like an equal even more. For us on the other hand, we already don't fit in with our age group, quick aging could bring us to an age where we could fit in more easily."
"Thing is, Kazuha-chan and Hattori-kun will be there, knowing our identities, right?" Ran countered.
"Ahh… I suppose. Well, know this, if you do do this, you'll lose nearly all your friends, never being able to tell them you're actually Mouri Ran, and that's assuming you meet them again." Haibara butted in.
"Well, we'll be allowed to tell Otosan and Okasan, Ai-chan can tell the professor, and we can each tell one other person, I could tell Sonoko, you could tell Shinichi, and Ai-chan could tell Sera-san." Ran countered again.
"Shinichi already knows, so I'd tell Subaru-san instead, but are you sure you want to do this? I think it'll only be a matter of time before Shinichi-niichan can come back!" Conan nearly begged.
"No, I'm positive, I want to do this." Ran, now very determined, answered loudly.
Conan was on the verge of crying, but then remembered, that he could then be the same age as Ran, and said, "Fine, but Haibara and I are going to age to the same age you're de-aging."
"This feels weird, I'm going to have to treat him more like an equal than a kid brother, well, he'll look like he's my age, and he is mature for his age, perhaps it'll actually work out…" Ran worried.
Conan got out the paper, and laid it down on a nearby table, and got out a pen.
Conan Edogawa, Sign Here - _Conan Edogawa_
Circle drug you want to take - Quick Age/Quick De-Age
Requested amount of pills - _6_
Ai Haibara, Sign Here - _Ai Haibara_
Circle drug you want to take - Quick Age/Quick De-Age
Requested amount of pills - _6_
Ran Mouri, Sign Here - _Ran Mouri_
Circle drug you want to take - Quick Age/Quick De-Age
Requested amount of pills - _4_
Understandably, the explanation to Ran's parents and Sonoko was tough, but not so much the explaining to 'Okiya Subaru' and Masumi Sera.
Explaining to Masumi Sera
"So, basically, you two are taking a drug to reverse the affect of you being shrunk by that Organization, and Ran is taking a similar drug to shrink herself like they did to you?" Sera asked.
"So you did know about that, but no, that's not what we're doing. Haibara and I are only aging 6 years, we'll be about the same age as your mom hiding behind that doorway over there. Ran is de-aging 4 years, that way all three of us will be the same age." Conan pointed to the teenage blonde girl behind the door.
"Ahh, so you had figured that out. Well, if you ever need anything just call, Kudo-kun, same for you, Miyano-san, and for Ran."
"Thanks." Conan smiled, Haibara just glared, not enjoying being called that name anymore.
Explaining to Okiya Subaru
"Ahh, Haibara, I can handle this myself, you should just go back to the professor's." Conan suggested.
"Fine." Haibara agreed, sighing.
"Akai-san, the Japanese government has developed a drug that allows them to quick-age or quick-deage someone a year at a time, and Ran, Haibara, and I have been nominated as test subjects and we agreed. Ran is going to de-age by 4 years, while Haibara and I will age 6 years. Tell the FBI that so that it shouldn't take them that long to find me if they need my help." Conan explained to Akai/Okiya after Haibara left the vicinity.
"You won't be staying in Beika?" Akai asked.
"No, Ran, Haibara, and I are going to move in with Hattori and Kazuha who recently bought a house and started living together. So we'll be in Osaka, not in Beika." Conan explained.
"Ahh, well, if you ever need my help, Kudo-kun, just call." Akai smiled at the young boy.
Conan let out a small chuckle at the fact that two people had revealed that they knew Conan's true identity in the same day, the same day he was was changing identities again.
Conan, Ran, and Haibara in the ORUFAD laboratory
"Edogawa Conan-kun, here are 6 Quick-Aging pills, I hope they have the desired effect. Don't chew them, just swallow. " The doctor told Conan who then did as he was told, he then did the same to Haibara, then turned to Ran Mouri, "So, you want to De-age 4 years? Just as you're about to become an adult. May I ask why?"
"I've given up hope that the one I love will ever come back, and I'm hoping that if I go back to when I was around 13 I could find someone new to love." Ran admitted.
"Ahh, so, here are 4 Quick-De-Aging pills, I hope they'll have the desired effect in quelling your love for this man." The man said, handing her 4 pills.
Conan moaned painfully, the doctor commented, "That's odd, usually even the adults are crying in pain right now…"
To emphasize his point, Ran was crying in pain, yelling, screaming, curling up into the fetal position. Haibara also curled up into the fetal position, but didn't scream as loudly as Ran, only moaning around the same level as Conan.
A few minutes later, Conan was now about 1.6 meters tall (Or 5 foot 4 inches tall.), and had a runner's build, Haibara was approximately 1.5 meters tall (Or 5 foot), and was very attractive, Ran was also approximately 1.5 meters tall, and had an attractive athletic build.
"Now that you've all aged or de-aged properly, you had better think up new names, and decide whether or not you want to be 'related'." The doctor informed the now-all-physically teenagers.
"I don't want to be related to either of them." Conan answered immediately, "As for a name, I think… Sherlock Holmes would be good."
"Baro, that name is obviously fake! No one will take you seriously with that either!" Ran yelled, then sighed, "You're such a child! I shouldn't have let you age yourself."
"Geez, it was just a joke. Besides, even if I was childish, the hormones will start to take effect soon and I'll start maturing rapidly." Conan countered, "I think I'll actually change my name to Nicholas Holmes. If we say that I'm English or American it won't be that weird of a name."
Ran sighed, then said, "I guess I'll be Irene Fletcher, for short just Ren." Then blushing she said, "I didn't choose Irene because I like Sherlock Holmes, just because it can be shortened to Ren, which is close to my actual name."
Haibara decided, "My name will be Elizabeth Watson, for short you can call me Liz or Watson."
Shinichi, Conan, or now Nick Holmes, thought, "Heh, Sherlock Holmes, Irene Adler, and John Watson, the brilliant detective, his love interest, and his assistant and best friend. Also, funnily enough, Nick is the name of a famous Private Eye book character, Fletcher is the name of a famous ameture detective character, and Elizabeth is the name of a famous forensic specialist character. What perfect names for us."
The three thirteen year olds were then escorted into a room with many other people of various ages, ranging everywhere from 5 to 25, sitting in desks, holding number 2 pencils in their hands.
"Sit in the back, you'll be given a test to see how well you'll be able to blend in with your peers and whether or not you're smart enough." The doctor told them.
"Hai." The three agreed.
Ran's/Irene's test
1. - What does x equal in 2x+6=9x-2(6-x)?
Answer: x=2
2. - What is the square root of 36?
Answer: 6
3. - Is it common for 13 year olds to watch Kamen Yaiba?
Answer: No, only the nerdiest of them do.
4. - Is it common for 13 year old girls to have boyfriends?
Answer: Yes
Etc...
Haibara's/Liz's test
1. - What is the element with the atomic number 17?
Answer: Chlorine
2. - What is (9^2*8^5)?
Answer: 2,654,208
3. - Give an example of a middle school girl's uniform.
Answer: Modified red sailor uniform with a short skirt.
4. - Is it common for 13 year old girls to have boyfriends?
Answer: Yes
Etc...
Conan's/Nick's test
1. - What is luminol?
Answer: A white to pale yellow substance that when in contact with an oxidizing agent will exhibit a light blue chemiluminescence.
2. - What is the square root of 3249?
Answer: 57
3. - Give an example of a middle school boy's uniform.
Answer: Black suit with bright yellow buttons with black pants.
4. - Is it common for 13 year old boys to have girlfriends?
Answer: Yes
Etc…
After the testing was over, the doctor who had given them the pills drove them over to Hattori's and Kazuha's house, who already know of the situation.
"Hey Heiji-niichan, err, Heiji-san?" Nick Holmes aka Conan asked.
"Ahh, let's just go inside, we'll discuss what we'll call each other there." Hattori suggested.
"Yeah, probably a good idea, come Ran-chan, Ai-chan." Kazuha waved to them, smiling and kneeling, then remembering that Ran was actually 17 she apologized, "Sorry, when there's a chance someone can see us I need to treat you guys like you're your physical age, despite how old you actually are."
"It's fine." Ran answered, though starting to feel the first pangs of regret for her decision.
When the 5 went inside, Kazuha said, "Since Heiji here is so bad at lying, we've decided that we're going to call you by your new names even when no one else can see us, that way Heiji will get into the habit of calling you those names rather than your actual names."
"Okay, so, you guys will call me Holmes-kun, you'll call Ran Irene-chan or Ren-chan, and you can call Haibara Elizabeth-chan or Liz-chan, right?" Conan, now Nick Holmes, asked.
"Wait, K- I mean, Conan-kun, you got the chance to make up a completely new name, and you chose Holmes? Seriously?" Hattori laughed.
"Yeah, I'm Nick Holmes, Ran is Irene Fletcher, and Haibara is Elizabeth Watson." Conan answered.
"Conan-kun, that's Ran-NEECHAN to you." Ran scolded Conan.
Unlike usual, Conan actually talked back to his caretaker, though now ex-caretaker, "No, it really isn't. We're now the same age, so you're Ran, or, now I guess Ren. Get used to it."
Needless to say, 'Ren' was taken aback by this. Haibara held back a chuckle, while Hattori started to just laugh.
"Well, I suppose you can call me niichan and Kazuha neechan." Hattori answered the question from earlier.
"Ahh, okay, now we just need to decide what to call each other." The three pondered.
"I don't think it's that hard, Ran, what did you call Shinichi when you were both in middle school? You called him Shinichi with no honorifics, am I wrong? So, as we're all good friends here, we'll just call each other our new first or last names with no honorifics." Nick suggested.
Hesitating, as she didn't want the kid she thought of as a brother calling her her name without honorifics, she grudgingly agreed, "Fine."
"That's fine with me, you'd do it even if I told you not to." Liz agreed.
"Ahh, I need to have a private conversation with Ku- I mean Co- I mean Holmes-kun now." Hattori told the rest of his new housemates, and Kazuha, and then dragged the young boy to his bedroom and said, "Spill it, what happened?"
"Ahh, so, I wasn't planning on using the drug, nor was Haibara, but she put it in my backpack in case I changed my mind, but much to my surprise Ran found it and wanted to sign up. She said she wanted to do it to help her get over Shinichi, and since I love her and the only reason I didn't use the pills to grow up again was because I wanted to be with her, and I couldn't use the pills without being forced to not live anywhere near where I've lived before, I decided to grow up to her age too. Haibara grew up with the pills because I did, and that's what happened." Nicholas explained.
"And you expect you'll be able to reach over the age barriers Ra-Ren-chan thinks there are between you two?" Hattori asked doubtfully.
"I don't know, I hope so. If not I can always blame the sudden gaining of sex hormones for any flirting I do." The young teenager chuckled.
When Nick and Hattori came back down, Ren asked Nick if he wanted to shower together, making Nick's face go scarlet, and he sarcastically snapped, "You're asking a teenager going through puberty to take a bath with you?"
This made Ren blush, though not as much as she didn't know who he really was, and angry, throwing her hands in the air, she complained, "Sheesh, you take 6 pills and now you're suddenly a completely different person!"
"Yeah! Well, that was pretty much the point of the pills! Besides, earlier weren't you complaining about how I was still acting like a kid?" Nick snapped back.
"Heiji, aren't they acting just a little too much like a married couple for people who were basically brother and sister less than a day ago?" Kazuha asked.
Hattori just chuckled.
"What kids." Liz complained.
"What irony." Kazuha thought outloud.
"If you knew the whole story it'd be more confusing than ironic." Hattori muttered.
"What was that, Heiji?"
"Nothing."
The three pseudo-teens then went and bought clothing and what they needed for school, along with a school uniform, while accompanied by Hattori and Kazuha.
The next day before school…
"Ugh, I go from wearing a nice looking blue suit and red bow tie everywhere to wearing a plain black suit everywhere." Nick complained.
"Hai, Hai, we know you love your formal-wear. Oh, on another note, are you still going to wear your glasses?" Liz asked.
"Hmm, good question." Nick pondered.
"What do you mean? Don't you need them?" Ren asked.
"No, not really." Nick started, then seeing Ren's look of alarm and confusion, he lied, "I only wore them because of all the gadgets Hakase put in them, but I think now I'll just keep them in a case." He then showed her the glasses case he had bought the day before.
"Then why did you say you had bad eyesight the first time I saw you without glasses?" Ren asked.
Nick sarcastically answered, "Yes, because you'd totally have let a young 7 year old child have a pair of glasses that could track and listen in on people, let me see things over a mile away as if they were right in front of me, not to mention they're night vision, allowing both ultraviolet and infrared vision."
"YOUR GLASSES HAVE WHAT?" Ren yelled, then remembering that they were both now of equal ages, Ren, though still angry, asked in a less motherly-scolding way, "I mean, why do your glasses have those, I mean, you were only 7."
"Because I'm a child genius, a prodigy in all fields besides music and video gaming. Seriously, what other child do you know who knows the calculations to jump a car from the roof of one tower to the other during an explosion, and can solve murders?" Nick asked.
Something clicked in Ren's mind, then angrily accused, "YOU'RE ACTUALLY SHINICHI, AREN'T YOU?"
"No! That's impossible! At the time I appeared the technology used to make the drug were still in infancy, they couldn't revert the age of a test subject half a percent of the time!" Nick half-lied.
Still angry, Ren shouted furiously, "Then how come you've changed so much!"
"I haven't changed! I've just stopped acting more childish than I really am!" Nick snapped back.
"So… all the time I thought I knew you… I really didn't…" Ren fell to the ground, looking dejected.
"No! Ahh! That's not what I meant! Most of the stuff you knew about me is true! The only big difference is my behavior! I still hate crime, I still love soccer, I still love mysteries, I just don't like Kamen Yaiba, or most anime really, nor am I as childish as I acted." Nick attempted to comfort Ren.
Kazuha and Hattori came down and asked Liz what was going on, she answered, "A marital spat."
Kazuha wondered, "Is that shotacon? I mean, she is technically near-18, and he's 8. But they're both physically the same age. Agh, this is confusing."
As Ren, Nick, and Liz walked to school
"I'm sorry for earlier Holmes," Ren apologized.
"It's fine. We were both in the wrong. You for accusing me of identity fraud, me for hiding so much about myself." Nick apologized back.
"Great, so the new Holmes couple has made up with each other." Haibara teased, though in fact she felt bitter and jealous.
"C-couple? Yeah right! There's a decade difference in age between us!" Ren snapped, taken aback.
"No, there's less than a year difference between us in age, I'm actually a little older than you now. I'm not saying we're a couple, but you need to get used to our new ages." Nick corrected Ren.
"Ahh, yeah." Ren blushed, embarrassed. She also felt a little bitter towards Conan for how he was acting. Until the day before they were like brother and sister, now he's acting like he was her new Shinichi!
When the three pseudo-teens arrived at class, their teacher had them introduce themselves.
"Hi, I'm R-Irene Fletcher, I prefer to go by Ren," Ren introduced herself nervously.
"Hi, I'm Nicholas Holmes, though I usually just go by Holmes, or Sherlock if you'd like, though it isn't actually my name," Holmes said, using the cool voice he would often use when explaining his deductions, "Oh yeah, I'm also a genius." Holmes added.
"I'm also a genius, though not as smart as Sherlock over there. My name is Elizabeth Watson," Liz introduced herself coldly, purposely leaving out that she could sometimes be called Liz as she didn't want people calling her unless they were close.
"These two are good actors." Ran noted, "Unless maybe it is more that they are no longer acting? They did say that they didn't fit in with their age group…"
"Pheh, arrogant snobs. I doubt they're actually geniuses." One student grumbled.
Another of the kids in the classroom yelled inquisitively, ignoring his peer, "What's up with your funky accent?"
"Ahh, we're all Tokyoites, we just moved here." Holmes answered politely, also ignoring the rude child.
As class started, the three pseudo-children zoned out, that is, until the teacher called on Holmes.
"Nicholas-kun, what is the measure of the first leg of a right triangle if the second leg has a measure of 6 and the hypotenuse has a measure of 9?"
Much to the teacher's surprise, he didn't get out a calculator or frantically look around, he immediately muttered just loud enough for her to hear, "Approximately 6.70820393."
"C-correct." The teacher stuttered, then turning to the next child, Liz, "What does x equal if 3x+9^2=9y-62(7+3), and y=9?"
Again surprised, the teacher immediately heard Liz state in her cold monotone that, "206 and ⅔ equals x."
"C-correct," The teacher grudgingly admitted, then turning to the final child, Ren, "Ren-chan, please tell me the slope-intercept form of 5x-2y=-7.5x-3y-97.23."
The teacher was forced to grudgingly admit that the three children were geniuses, as the third child had immediately, if not close to it, told her the answer, "y=-12.5x-97.23."
The class was gawking by the immediate answers of the children, and were quickly fact checking. The child who had asked about their accents earlier, confirmed, "They're correct."
The one who had insulted them by calling them arrogant, muttered, "They probably cheated."
After class ended a few girls came up to Ren, and a few guys to Holmes, though only one child went to Liz as most of them were scared of her.
Ren's perspective
"Hey, Ren, what's your relation with the other two new kids?" One of surrounding girls asked.
"Are you two boyfriend and girlfriend?" Another asked.
"Or is he dating that Elizabeth chick?" Another asked.
"I-I'm not dating that immature kid." She huffed.
"Oh? Is he immature? I dunno, he actually seemed a little… overly mature to me. Like he'd seen a lot. Y'know, wisdom beyond his age." An intelligent looking glassed girl said, "Oh, by the way, I'm Amelia."
"Hmm?"
Nick's perspective
"Hey, Lock!" One kid yelled, running towards the kid.
"Locke?" Nick asked.
"Yeah, because you're last name is Holmes, and you said we could call you Sherlock, but Sherlock is a lengthy name so my friends and I decided to shorten it to Locke." He explained, making a hand signal to point at his friends.
"Ah. So, you are?"
"Gomen, I'm Johny. My friends and I wanted to ask you what your relationship with those two girls were." He told 'Lock'.
"Oh, we're just friends. Ren and I have been arguing recently, and Liz is a good consultant for my issues. My relationships with the two are strictly unromantic, at least at the moment." Nicholas answered, then realized his mistake and cursed silently.
"Oh? So you like one of them? Which? The icy cool genius, or the beautiful maiden?" Johny asked.
"Uhm… I didn't say I liked either of them! I just said that my relationship with one of them may change in the future!" Holmes assured him, blushing furiously.
"Oh… so you wouldn't mind if we hit on them?" Johny asked.
"Not if you don't mind getting either punched in the gut by Ren, or flat out rejected by Liz." Holmes smirked.
"S-seriously? Maybe I will stay away from them. Anyways, see yah later, I have a non-honors class at the moment, and you're obviously in all honors and gifted classes." The kid said, leaving.
"Bye."
Liz's perspective
"Hey! You're Elizabeth, aren't you? I'm Akemi Dai." She introduced herself.
"..." Liz looked stricken, quickly turning away and hiding her emotions.
"I-is something wrong with my name?" She asked, concerned.
"N-no, it's fine. I just used to have a person who was very close to me named Akemi. It's fine." Liz answered reluctantly.
"Oh, I'm sorry. You can call me Dai then." She told Liz.
"That's even worse, the person who as good as killed her was named Dai." Liz answered.
"Oh… How about Aki?" Akemi said after a moment, struggling to think up a shorter version of her name.
"I guess that's fine. What do you want?"
"Oh, I… I wanted to know if you or your other friend had a relationship with Holmes-kun." She asked.
Hesitating a moment, wondering if she should mention Holmes's love for Ren, said, "No. Neither of us are dating him."
Looking relieved, the girl asked, "Well, do you want to be friends?"
Hesitating even longer, Liz shrugged, "Knock yourself out."
Taking that as a yes, the girl hugged Liz.
Throughout the rest of the school day, the three children continued to far surpass everyone academically...
After school…
"Hey, Ren-chan! If you want I can walk you home from school!" Amelia yelled to Ren.
Similarly, Johny walked up to Holmes and asked, "Hey, do you want to walk home together?"
Identically, Akemi Dai, aka Aki, went up to Liz and asked, "Hey, Liz, want me to walk you home?"
All three agreed. The three of their friends introduced themselves to those of the group who didn't know them.
"Heh, Liz, who thought you could make a friend so quickly?" Nick teased.
"Oi, C- Holmes, don't be so immature." Ren shouldered him.
"Sorry Ren," Holmes apologized, rubbing his head like he always did in this type of situation, "But could you please stop treating me like a little kid?"
"Eh? Oh, Gomen." Ren apologized, embarrassed.
"They fight like an older sister and younger brother do." Amelia commented.
"Yeah, and I know from experience." Johny agreed.
"Wait, but isn't Holmes-kun older than Ren-chan?" Aki asked.
"Yeah, he is. But she's a bit bossy towards him." Liz explained, shocking the three who had forgot about her presence, "Heh, this is nothing like their fights at home, I'd prefer this any day to one of their marital spats."
"Besides, he wasn't even being immature, just cracking a joke. If you asked me I think the kid needed that, he seems too serious." Johny added.
"Eh, Ren, I don't think we should fight about this in public." Nick laughed nervously as the 4 others stared at them, three of whom were strangers.
"Oh, yeah, right." Ren agreed.
When the three reached their house, their three new friends gawked to see them all entering, and Amelia yelled, "Wait, do you LIVE together?"
"Huh? Yeah, something wrong with that?" Ren answered.
"Yeah! Like, I dunno, isn't three middle school kids living together wrong? I mean, if you were relatives I'd understand, but you aren't, right?" Amelia answered, jealous of how her friend got to sleep in the same house as the boy she liked, and she didn't even like him!
"Uhm, Y-" Ren started, then Conan stepped on her foot and irritatedly answered, "No, we're not. We're just living with a family friend of mine, our parents died in an avalanche so this was the only place we could stay."
"Why did he stop me? And why is he so angry?" Ren thought to herself bitterly.
After the three left, not thinking anything of what Ren almost said because the Japanese word for no was yeah, a word that started with y, Ren asked Holmes, "Why'd you stop me, and why were you angry about it?"
"You were about to say we were related! As we've already agreed, we're not related! Don't you remember right before we chose our names we agreed we weren't related." Nick reminded her, though his actual reason was, "Sheesh, I can't eventually date her if she says we're related."
"Oh, sorry, forgot about that." Ren apologized, embarrassed, bitterness from earlier fading.
"Just don't do it again." Liz stated coldly, if they were supposedly related she couldn't date Holmes even if the unlikely occurrence of him no longer having a crush on Ran occurred, though she'd never admit that that was the true reason behind her tone.
"H-hai." Ren agreed, nervously wondering whether or not Liz was was truly a child mentally. Then, slowly, she remembered that she now had hormones she didn't before, technically giving her the brain of a pubescent teen, though not the experience.
The three then entered the house, and saw Hattori and Kazuha.
"Hi Ku- I mean, Holmes-kun, Ren-chan, and Liz-chan." Hattori greeted.
"There he goes again, nearly calling me Kudo." Nicholas thought irritatedly, then before anyone could comment on his almost mistake, he loudly greeted Hattori, "Hi Hattori! Hi Kazuha-neechan!"
"Oi! Co- Nicholas-kun! Even if you are thirteen now, you should still refer to Heiji with honorifics!" Kazuha tried to scold the newly grown Conan, but failed as he just walked away ignoring her. She then groaned, "What's up with him?"
"Ahh, Kazuha, don't worry about it. He even called me that a lot before he grew 6 years." Hattori attempted to calm his 'best friend' down, but failed, as her rage only flared up more, though the target changed.
"And you let him? How are we expected to take care of 3 children when you don't even know how to teach one to use proper etiquette?" Kazuha shouted at her 'best friend.'
TBC (To Be Continued)