It had been a simple mistake, but that is all it took to get this point in time, within a couple of seconds, although Shotaro had currently no idea what that mistake was. It was like fighting another Dopant, the way the silence was a heavy presence in the room. Shotaro stood at the front door to the office, one hand resting on the wooden doorframe, the other hanging by his side. He was looking out at the brick hallway, with Philip staring at his back, an unusual expression across his face. Well unusual in the fact that the expression on Philip's face was that of intense anger; aimed directly at Shotaro. Akiko's and Terui's faces were blank, the best way to conceal emotions, or in Akiko's case, a late reaction, as the flying slipper soon hit Shotaro in the back of head. The latter grabbed the back of his head and turned glaring at the girl, the room broke into action then.
"Shotaro!" Akiko almost screeched as she paced over to where the detective was standing looking down at her from his position on the steps and his height over her.
"That hurt!" Shotaro protested, all he had wanted to do was go out to meet Queen and Elizabeth, to gather some information on the newest case that someone had come to him this morning about. Akiko glared at him; if she had been taller at this point she would have looked quite fierce.
Akiko promptly ignored him as she usually did and almost pounced on Philip like she was trying to protect him from Shotaro. "Philip let's go" she said in a soft tone that was normally only reserved for her husband, Terui. Philip nodded, obviously deciding that a non-verbal response would do. Shotaro's bottom jaw almost fell off as the trio made their way past him through the door, pushed off the steps to the wooden floor by non-other than Philip, followed by Akiko holding her green slipper up like a weapon and Terui made up the end, closing the door gently like he normally did giving no indication that he had been affected by the previous conversation.
Shotaro was broken out of his silent and shocked trance by the stag phone battering into his head, indicating he had a call. He picked up the phone as it dropped to the floor, glancing at the time briefly, 11.35. He had been sitting on the floor for coming up to an hour! Flipping open the phone he placed against his ear, only in the next second he wished he hadn't. Akiko sounded more pleasant when shouting from the other side of the room than shouting directly in your ear and the phone only amplified her voice. Shotaro could have sworn the stag phone was also ganging up against him, but he didn't make any comment on that fact, more concerned about the fact he had missed the first couple of sentences because he had to tear the phone away from his ear which seemingly had contained the reason why everyone was so angry at him because he only managed to catch on part through Akiko's last few sentences, "and because you seem set on solving cases instead, we met a couple who wants to find their son, so I directed them back to the office. They should be there soon." The dial tone followed within a macro second, giving Shotaro no time to reply. With a long sigh, he pulled himself off the floor and rehung his hat on its hook on the door. Making his way back to his desk, he grabbed the dairy that belonged to Akiko which had been left open on the tall table. Sitting down at his desk he flicked to the day's date and blanched at the written contents. The words 'visit graves' stared out at him and mentally Shotaro kicked himself as he remembered that they had all agreed to visit the grave of Terui's family and the last places where the boss, Akiko's father, and Philip's family where last seen. No wonder they had been angry at him. A year since Philip returned to them, two years since he was returned to the earth along with the majority of his family and four since their first meeting on 'Begins Night' and the death of the Boss.
Thinking of family made Shotaro jump from his seat and slide a look at the cabinet containing the Boss' cases. It seemed family meant so much to everyone in the office, everyone but Shotaro. He found himself walking towards the cabinet. Terui's family had called out to him as the Weather memory killed them. Shotaro's hands were moving of their own accord, searching through the many files. Wakana had given her life up for Philip, and he had gained his family's blessing. Shotaro's hands were quivering as they pulled free some sheets from the plastic wallet. The Boss had prepared himself for a lifetime of hatred from Akiko, in order to protect her. Shotaro stared at a younger picture of himself, in his teens, smiling at the camera, pretending that everything was alright. The dust on the sheets indicated that they hadn't been touched in years. Making his way back to his desk, Shotaro placed the sheets on the surface. He was trembling; his whole body wouldn't stop shaking. It was like relieving the Terror memory attack all over again. Only this terror gave him nightmares and clutched at the very frame of his being. This fear had formed him, controlled him for the majority of his childhood. This was a case and a secret he couldn't tell anyone, a secret he even had to lock away from Philip.
A knock at the door freed him from the over stifling fear and gave him the air needed to pull himself back into action, if somewhat shaky. It was likely to be the couple Akiko mentioned earlier. As the door opened, Shotaro grabbed at his case file to keep from prying eyes.
"Welcome," he said, eyes still on the papers, sorting them out, as the couple walked through the door, leaving it open behind them. "I solve cases hard-..." Shotaro's voice came to an abrupt as the papers in his hands dropped to the floor, fear rising through him again.
"Hard-boiled style. Yes?" the woman asked as she lifted a familiar site from her pocket into the space where a metallic driver linked around her waist. "How very similar to your predecessor."