AN: It's that time of the year- new story time, that is! I figured that I should probably start writing this one before movie 21 comes out sometime in April, especially because the idea has been floating around since August or so! Boy though is it going to be quite the doozy, but it's a doozy that I'm looking forward to writing! I hope everyone else is just as excited about it as I am, because I've got a bunch of things planned for it that, I, personally, think are really cool.

As always, don't hesitate to leave a review, especially since this is just the first chapter! And what a first chapter it is indeed.


Chains of Iron

Chapter One

A Lovely Day in Osaka


"If ya don't hurry up already Heiji, I'm goin' ta leave ya behind!" Planting her hands firmly on her hips, Toyama Kazuha pivoted on her heel, casting a sharp look back towards her childhood friend. Ever since he was a child, he had a tendency to drag his feet when he was doing something he wasn't particularly interested in- and it appeared that today was no different.

Even though he'd been the one to invite her out for a change. To be more exact, he had only just asked her if she had anything planned for today- the two of them both had the day off from school because of the founder's holiday- and she was the one who had decided on what it would be that they were doing today. Still, she hadn't gotten the impression that he was so disinterested in the plans that she had made that it would cause him to sulk- although she suspected she already knew what the real reason for such behavior was.

"Yer annoyin'." Grumbling more than a little, Hattori Heiji tucked his hands in his pockets, lips twisting in a deep frown. "I'm comin' already. There's no need ta rush, the department store isn't goin' anywhere."

"That might be so, but ya shouldn't be actin' so glum when yer the one who invited me out in the first place, Heiji." Kazuha noted, folding her arms in front of her chest, carefully walking backwards so that she could look him in the eye. "If ya wanted ta do somethin' else, ya should have stepped up an' made the plans yerself."

"I was just expectin' that those two would be with us today." Heiji pointed out, quirking a brow. "An' after I went through the trouble of invitin' them an' everythin'."

"It can't be helped. Ran-chan got the date of her school's holiday wrong, an' it's not like Conan-kun can come all the way out here by himself." Kazuha told him. "Besides, they'll be comin' here tomorrow still, so it's not like ya won't see 'em. There's no reason ta sulk. It's our own long awaited holiday, so we might as well enjoy it, Heiji!"

"M'not sulkin'." Heiji protested, shooting her a rather annoyed glower that did anything but prove her wrong. Judging from the smug expression her face took on, she knew it too- and instead settled for averting his eyes from her. "I'm just a little disappointed. That's different."

"It's basically the same thing." Kazuha pointed out, shrugging her shoulders as she once more pivoted on her heel, facing forward. "Well, cheer up, Heiji! Isn't that mystery novel that ya've been wantin' ta read comin' out today? Ah, but that doesn't mean ya can spend the whole time after ya pick it up ignorin' me in favor of readin' it, ya got that?"

"I won't." Heaving a long sigh, Heiji finally picked up his pace, so that he fell into step with Kazuha. "Speakin' of which, ya haven't even told me what ya needed ta pick up at the department store today."

"I did!" Shooting him a rather fearsome glower of her own, one that had her childhood friend flinching, Kazuha heaved a sigh. "In the first place, I'm not goin' there ta pick up anythin', I'm goin' there ta help out with the show that's takin' place on the roof today. Remember? I told ya about it before. That's why Ran-chan an' Conan-kun were supposed ta come over so early today, so they could see me doin' that!"

"Ah, now that ya mention it, I get the feelin' ya might have said somethin' like that." Glancing away from her, Heiji scratched his cheek, letting out a nervous laugh. Honestly, he hadn't actually been listening to her after she had informed him that Ran and Kudo weren't going to be able to make it today after all- and here he thought that they would have a chance to spend some time together in his own hometown for a change, rather than in Tokyo.

It wasn't like he didn't like going up there to visit them, but it was nice to have them down here for a change every once in awhile. It also meant that he wouldn't have to put up with that uncle's snoring either, which was always a plus. He didn't understand how it was that Kudo could sleep through that, night after night.

"But just in case I forgot somethin' ya said, why don't ya tell me again what it is we're doin' here?" Heiji asked, not daring to look in her direction, least he have to directly face her wrath. She could be pretty scary when she wanted to be!

Heaving another long sigh, Kazuha couldn't help but wonder what it was that she saw in that idiot that had caused her to fall in love with him in the first place. It was a question that she already knew the answer to, even if it was one that she found herself often asking these days. Of all the luck- out of all the guys she knew, she just had to fall in love with the one who was the densest by far. Given his reputation as a great detective, it was almost hilarious, were it not such a pain for her.

"Like I said, I'm fillin' in fer one of our classmates. Since Aiko-chan broke her leg the other day, she needed someone ta fill in fer her usual gig today. She can't miss the chance ta make a bit of extra money on today's holiday, an' she already promised the show's manager that she would work today." Kazuha told him. "Since I'm around the same size as her, she asked me ta do it."

"The one who works as an announcer for that hero show, right?" Heiji asked. "Now that ya mention it, I do remember that. But are ya sure it's fine? Ya aren't gonna be embarrassed about puttin' on such a show in front of a bunch of people, are ya?"

"Of course not. It's mostly little kids an' their mothers anyways. Aiko-chan does it all the time with no problems, so it can't be that embarrassin'." Kazuha told him, turning away from him. If there was anyone that she might be embarrassed about doing it in front of, it was that idiot next to her. But when she took a second to remember what a thick skull he had, suddenly any feelings of embarrassment that she might otherwise have floated away as if they were never there in the first place.

"Well, if ya put it that way." Heiji noted, shrugging his shoulders. "Ya sure ya got the lines memorized?"

"Of course. It's not like it's that hard ta remember. It's a hero show, not a Shakespeare play." Kazuha noted, placing her hands on her hips, as she cast a quick smile up towards him. "But rather, I should be askin' ya the same question, Heiji. Are ya sure the famous high school detective of the west isn't gonna be embarrassed ta be seein' watchin' a kid's hero show?"

"Idiot, of course not." Taking a few steps forward so that he was now walking in front of her, Heiji folded his arms in front of his chest. "Besides, there's no way I could miss yer big stage debut~."

"Who knows, maybe I'll get scouted an' become famous?" Shrugging her shoulders, Kazuha quickened her pace so that she once more was keeping up with his long stride. If that was how he was going to be, then she could more than roll with that. "Wouldn't that be great fer ya, Heiji? Ya can become the childhood friend of a famous star. I promise that I won't forget ya when I'm part of the big leagues."

"Well, well, I'm flattered ta hear that!" Flashing her a broad grin, Heiji nudged her in the shoulder, a playful expression crossing his face. "Well, at least ya won't have ta worry about any stalkers or anythin' like that. Ya'd take care of anyone dumb enough ta want ta follow a brute of a girl like ya around in a flash."

"Who knows? Maybe I'd get typecast as a damsel in distress, an' really give some asshole a surprise later on." Kazuha noted. "Although I think Ran-chan would probably give 'em a bigger surprise than I would. Did ya see that video she sent us of her last karate match?"

"She's really somethin', that Neechan." Heiji noted, before his expression fell once more, brows furrowing together in annoyance as he was reminded again of the fact that she was supposed to be here right now. "Although it would be nice if she had double checked when her school's holiday really was. I thought it was almost a bit too good ta be true that we had one on the same day. Not ta mention that Ku-" Stopping himself mid-sentence, Heiji nearly froze midstep, before he quickly continued on, hoping that Kazuha hadn't noticed anything. "...Conan-kun's school is closed today too. Speakin' of which, why was that again?"

"Repairs, I think." Kazuha said. Sometimes it felt an awful lot like it was in one ear and out the other with him. "Somethin' about pipes or somethin' like that. Well, it can't be helped. Like I said before, it's not like Conan-kun could take the train out here by himself. He might be smart, but there's all sorts of bad people out there! Someone might want ta target him because of his connections with Ran-chan's father, after all."

"Well, I guess that's true." Heiji admitted after a moment, glancing away from her. There was no way that he was going to tell her that not only could Kudo catch a train by himself just fine, but she had actually gotten her scenario reversed- if there was anyone in danger from their connection, it wasn't Kudo himself, but rather, it was that detective agency's uncle.

Not that he could blame her for thinking that way. To Kazuha, Edogawa Conan wasn't anything more than a normal, if not rather smart, first grade student. He couldn't imagine how she would react if she ever learned that he was actually Kudo Shinichi, the one that she spent quite a bit of time complaining about having left Ran behind like that.

Well, no, that wasn't quite true. He could more or less imagine exactly how she would react- in that she would almost definitely try and beat him up.

"Anyways, we've still got an hour before the show starts, so ya should have plenty of time ta get that book ya wanted first, Heiji! Once it's over, we can get lunch, an' then we can go watch a movie! I just happened ta get some tickets from yer mom the other day." Kazuha told him. She had known that glint in Shizuka's eyes when she had handed the tickets over to her, but she wasn't going to fool herself into thinking that Heiji thought that anything about today seemed like a date.

To him, it was just another day spent with his childhood friend, a common occurrence between the two of them. Nothing special at all.

"Oh, sounds great!" Flashing her a wide grin, Heiji's expression just as quickly shifted to that of a frown. "But we're not goin' ta see that cheesy romance movie all the girls in class are talkin' about, ya got that? I've got no interest in somethin' like that."

"Don't worry, don't worry. They're fer the spy thriller." Kazuha reassured him, waving a hand. "I was goin' ta go see that movie with some of the girls from class next weekend anyways, an' ya'd just spend the entire movie bein' grumpy, so there's no point in bringin' someone like ya in the first place."

"Then, that's fine!" Heiji noted, tucking his hands back into his pockets, casting a quick glance down towards her. Watching the way her ponytail bobbed and weaved as she walked, Heiji quickly averted his eyes from her once more, unable to help but briefly think that maybe it wouldn't be that bad even if they did go see that romance movie together. Who knows? Maybe it would even serve to help set the mood between the two of them.

Well, it wasn't like today was a day to confess anyways. After all, Kudo had done so in front of Big Ben in London- and as much as he loved Osaka, doing it here just wouldn't work. It had to be somewhere else- somewhere special, otherwise it would be practically meaningless.

It wasn't like it was just because he wanted to show Kudo up or anything like that, although that certainly was a part of it. It was just that Kazuha deserved the best, especially after how long he had kept her waiting already- something like that blurted out, spur of the moment confession back on Ebisu Bridge wasn't anywhere near good enough.

Besides, if he had no intention of confessing to her this time, maybe nothing would happen that would get in their way today. No nues, no JSDF members, and no murder cases- just a nice day shared between childhood friends, where nothing went wrong.

That wasn't too much to ask for, was it?


"And? Are you are that hero show right now?"

"Yeah, it's probably gonna start in a few minutes." Glancing down to check his watch, Heiji leaned his head closer to his shoulder, holding his cellphone in place with it as he did so. "It's too bad though, that ya have ta miss it. A hero show is just perfect fer a little kid like ya, don't ya think?"

"Shut up." At the sound of Conan's grumbling from the other end of the line, Heiji couldn't help but laugh, something which only served to annoy the shrunken high school detective all the more. "I don't want to hear that from you."

"What's that supposed ta mean?" Heiji asked, narrowing his eyes. "Yer not gonna try sayin' somethin' like I'm childish again, are ya? Listen, just cause it took me awhile ta realize my feelings fer Kazuha doesn't mean-"

"Considering the fact that it's obvious that you've had them ever since that case in Tottori, I don't think that counts as just awhile. Most people would notice sooner." Conan observed, cutting him off. "Well, it's possible that you might have had them even before that, but I wouldn't know that much, considering I didn't even know either of you before this year."

"Ah, that's true. It's a bit funny when ya think about it that way." With a slight frown, Heiji rested his head back against the pole he was leaning on, waiting for the show to start. Casting an eye over the small sea of mothers and young children, he couldn't help but smile a little, wondering if Kazuha would really be alright. She might have said that stuff earlier, but once she had gotten in costume, it was clear to him that she was starting to get nervous.

Hopefully a familiar face in the crowd would help calm her down. She'd probably be fine- she was always tough like that. Something like a little stage fright wasn't nearly enough to break her down. Honestly though, she was always agreeing to do stuff like this. He was starting to wonder if she even knew how to say no to people asking her for favors.

"So? Do ya wanna watch the show?" Quickly changing the topic, a broad grin spread across Heiji's face. Judging from the faint sound of music that had just started playing, it was probably going to start soon. "I could show ya the whole thing usin' video chat. It's Kazuha's big moment, after all."

"I don't think working as announcer for a department store hero show counts as a big moment." Conan dryly observed. "I bet you're just excited because you get the chance to see Kazuha-chan in a cute costume."

"Shut up, that's not it. An' it's weird ta hear someone with a little kid's voice sayin' that." Grumbling a little, Heiji's brows furrowed together, for a moment grateful that Conan wasn't actually here. Otherwise he would have been able to tell just how red his cheeks had gotten at his comment, and that would only just serve to make his teasing worse.

It didn't help that she did, in fact, look really, really cute in that outfit. Not that he'd ever admit something that embarrassing out loud!

"Not my fault. I can't do anything about it right now." Conan told him. "Those three dragged me out to play soccer today, since we all have the day off, so it's not like I can use the voice changer around them. I wouldn't use it just for something like that in the first place either."

"Well, I suppose that's true." Heiji noted. "Ah, but it's startin' soon, so I should probably hang up. If Kazuha sees me talkin' on the phone durin' her show, she's definitely goin' ta get angry at me. Ya are still actually comin' tomorrow, right? That Neechan doesn't have any last minute change of plans brewin' again?"

"We're coming, don't worry about it. Ran's looking forward to it." Conan noted. The look of disappointment that had crossed her face when she had returned home from school the previous day, after she had realized her mistake, was one of those things that he didn't like to see. Well, he had been kind of looking forward to seeing Heiji and Kazuha again as well- hopefully this time, with no murders involved.

"Then, that's fine then! Make sure ta keep it that way, Kudo!" Heiji said, nodding his head. "I'll pick ya up at the station bright an' early when ya get here. Me an' Kazuha both."

With that said, Heiji hung up the phone, tucking his cellphone back away in his jacket pocket. Folding his arms in front of his chest, a slight smile crossed his face as he watched the excited chatter of the children, who were realizing that their favorite heroes would be coming to the stage soon. Even though the weather was a bit chilly outside, it didn't seem to bother them in the slightest.

This kind of thing wasn't bad every once in awhile, he supposed. He could still remember going with Kazuha to see shows like this when they were both around that age- it had always been a highlight when one of them had been selected by one of the heroes on stage to help them.

"Hm?" Catching something out of the corner of his eye, Heiji turned his head in that direction, a small frown crossing his face. It was a somewhat stocky man with a large backpack, who seemed to be searching around the roof rather nervously- was he trying to meet up with someone, maybe?

"Everyone! We're all super excited ta have ya here with us today!" As the sound of Kazuha's voice came out over the loudspeakers, Heiji's attention turned away from the strange man, watching as she emerged from the side of the stage, a bright smile on her face. As a soft smile spread out across his own, any thoughts of the man with his backpack were put out of his mind for the moment.


"So? How was my stage debut, Heiji?"

With a bright smile as she took the seat across from him, Kazuha had to admit, she was a bit glad to be off of her feet. She could understand why her classmate wasn't able to go on stage with a broken leg, even if she was only just the announcer, and wasn't actually doing any of the stunts involved herself. Not to mention that that costume wasn't exactly the warmest thing to wear in the chill of late winter- she was glad to be out of it, and back in warmer clothes.

She had to admit, she was a little bit upset that Heiji hadn't told her that she looked cute in it or anything like that. Not that he was that type to begin with, but it would have been kind of nice to hear, especially because it looked like he was actually thinking that, if only just for a second.

"Ya seemed like ya had real star potential ta me, Kazuha." With a broad grin, a mischievous glint twinkled in Heiji's eyes, as he reached over to snatch one of her fries, in spite of having an untouched carton of them himself. "Especially durin' the part where ya got captured by the bad guy's underling. That was some serious actin' right there, pretendin' like ya were some kind of weak little flower!"

"Well, it wouldn't be much of a hero show if the announcer freed herself from the bad guys. At the very least, not fer the kids." Kazuha noted, reaching across the table to steal one of his fries in return. "But it was kinda fun! Maybe I should do somethin' like that again?"

"Oh, ya get interested in actin'?" Heiji asked. "Well, not that ya can really call that actin'. If ya were playin' one of the heroes, maybe..."

"Well, if they were to cast ya in one of those shows, ya'd probably end up as the villain, Heiji." Kazuha noted, a mischievous glint of her own dancing in her eyes. "Do ya remember the time ya got cast as one in our fourth grade class play? Ya got so upset about it at first, even though ya got really into it in the end!"

"Shut up, don't bring up somethin' from that long ago." Folding his arms in front of his chest, Heiji leaned back in his chair, shooting her a dirty look. It was hard to forget that play- he had ended up accidentally defeating the hero that was supposed to defeat him, and the narrator had to scramble to change the ending at the last minute. He was pretty sure his mom still had a copy of it on tape somewhere, in spite of the fact that he had asked her to get rid of it. "An' of course I got angry. Honestly, castin' a police officer's son as the villain- what were they thinkin'?"

"They were probably thinkin' of that infamous temper of yers." Kazuha noted, taking a bite out of her burger, pausing to wipe her mouth before she continued. "Well, ya have mellowed out a little since ya were a little spitfire of a kid, though I'm sure there would be plenty of people who wouldn't believe that at all."

"What's that supposed ta mean?" Quirking a brow, Heiji reached out to take a fry- one of his own this time, idly munching on it. "Ya make it sound like I was some kinda menace."

"Well, you certainly could be somethin' of a handful at times, Hei-chan." At the sound of a voice that they both quickly realized they recognized, the two turned to face the source of it. With a rather knowing smile on her lips, the middle aged woman who had called out to them looked more than a little pleased. "But I hear that ya've shaped up ta be a fine detective since then, just like yer father."

"You're-!" Heiji began, quickly recognizing the woman who had called out to them, what started as a bristling reply at being compared to his father quickly turning into a bright smile. "Inoue-han! What are ya doin' here? Last I heard, ya had moved ta Aomori."

"That's right, I did." Nodding her head, the woman rested a hand on the head of the young child standing next to her, half hiding behind her skirts. With a mop of dark brown hair, and large, equally brown eyes, he didn't resemble his mother that much- not with her dark red hair, which had only just started to turn gray at the edges. "But we had the day off today, so I thought I would bring this little one here ta see the town his mother was born in."

"Heh, is this yer son, Inoue-han? He's really cute!" Beaming brightly, Kazuha leaned a bit closer to him, growing a bit curious when he shied away from her a bit. He looked just a little bit younger than Conan, she found herself thinking- and definitely a good bit shier. "I'm Toyama Kazuha. Yer mother used ta be a good friend of mine, when I was just a little older than ya."

"That he is! His name is Hiiro. We were actually just watchin' the hero show just a bit ago. I was quite surprised ta see ya up on stage like that, Kazuha-chan! That's probably why this one is actin' so shy right now." Glancing between the pair, a hint of a sly grin worked it's way onto the woman's face. "But I see the two of ya are gettin' along as usual. I guess some things really don't ever change, huh?"

"Well, I couldn't get rid of this girl even if I wanted ta." Heiji remarked, turning his gaze down towards the child hovering by her side, before it worked upwards towards the hand that was still resting on his head, his eyes narrowing slightly. Three fingers were lightly twined with her son's messy hair, the other two ending in stumps at the first joint. "How have ya been doin' since that incident?"

"I've been gettin' along." Removing her hand from her son's head, she cast a somewhat rueful look down towards it, flexing what fingers remained. "One of my friends who lives there offered me a job at her bookstore when I retired from the police force because of it, an' I've been workin' there ever since. It's a nice place. The two of ya should drop by when ya have a chance."

"We'll keep it in mind if we ever end up there, then." Kazuha told her, flashing another smile towards her son, who meekly responded with a small nod this time. "Are ya goin' ta be stayin' in Osaka long?"

"No, we'll be headin' back tomorrow." Shaking her head, she paused to glance down at her watch. "Ah, speakin' of time though, the two of us have ta head on. We're supposed ta meet a friend of mine here fer tea."

"Cake too, mama?" Tugging at his mother's skirts, Hiiro glanced up towards her, a hopeful look in his eyes.

"Yes, yes, there'll be cake too." Quickly reassuring her son of this fact, she cast a glance back towards the pair of teenagers. "Then, it was nice seein' the both of you again. Make sure ta pass my greetings on ta both yer fathers if ya get the chance, you two. Not ta mention Otaki-han- he is still workin' for the police, right?"

"That's right. He got promoted ta Inspector since ya retired." Heiji remarked. "Well, be sure ta ingrain into yer kid how great a place Osaka is while yer here."

"I will, you don't have ta worry about that. It's the town that his mother grew up in, after all! There's no way I could let him have a bad impression of it." Flashing the pair another small smile, the middle aged woman nodded her head. "Well then, perhaps we'll see each other again. I hope the two of ya enjoy yer date."

With a slight hint of laughter, she made her escape, before either of the pair managed to gather up enough of their senses to protest the fact that this definitely wasn't a date, fading into the crowd. Grumbling a little, leaning his chin into his hand, Heiji couldn't help but wonder if it really looked that way- so much so that someone they hadn't seen since middle school made that mistake.

Or perhaps people had been thinking of the two of them that way ever since way back then. No, reflecting back on it now, he was pretty sure that was the case- but he had always just assumed that it only extended to his middle school classmates, and not to the adults around them. His mother excluded, of course.

"Now, now, there's no need ta have such a look on yer face, Heiji. It's not that big of a deal." Holding up her hands, Kazuha flashed him a small smile. She couldn't help but bothered by the fact that he looked bothered at the fact that someone had mistaken them as a couple- maybe she really had just been hearing things back on that bridge. Ran might keep saying something about a premonition of love every time she paid her a visit these days, but maybe they were both completely off the mark.

Of course it was a big deal- but not for the reasons that Kazuha probably thought. Leaning back in his chair, Heiji picked up another fry, unable to help but dwell on the fact that literally everyone else had seemed to notice his own feelings for Kazuha long before he had. Honestly, some great detective he was, not even being able to pick up on something as simple as that.

"But that was nice~. I didn't expect ta run into Inoue-han here. She's lookin' a lot more cheerful than she was in the past. I was really worried about her, when she suddenly moved away like that." Kazuha noted. It wasn't that she could blame her, considering what had happened back then- but it was good that she seemed to be recovering. "An' she's even got a son now! I guess she must have gotten married again after all?"

"Either that, or she just adopted a kid on her own." Heiji noted, grateful for the change of subject. "They don't really look anythin' alike, that mother an' child." Closing his eyes, a hint of a smile crossed his face- the last time that he had seen Inoue Haruka was when she had been handing in her resignation to Kazuha's father after that incident. That was back when he was still in middle school, nearly four years ago. "Well, I suppose ya don't have much time ta be depressed about the past when ya got someone dependin' on ya like that. It's probably good fer her."

"That's true." With a nod of her head, Kazuha picked up her burger again, glancing across the table towards Heiji. "We might call it an accident, but they never found him, did they? The guy who was drivin' the other car?"

"Well, the old man thinks he wasn't a local ta begin with, so he probably left the city after the crash." Heiji noted. "There's no reason fer him ta stick around here, not after that bastard did somethin' like that, even if the crash itself really was an accident. Still, it bothers me that the car was rented underneath a fake name. Makes ya wonder what he came here ta do in the first place."

"Not ta mention that it made findin' him so much more difficult. I guess the case was pretty much dropped after Inoue-han moved away, though. I don't think anyone wanted ta bring up such a painful experience for her again." Kazuha noted, taking a bite out of her burger. With a slight frown, she noticed the way Heiji's gaze trailed off in another direction again. He had been doing that every so often for awhile now, she couldn't help but notice. "Is somethin' wrong? Ya keep lookin' around."

"Ah, no, it's nothin'." Fixing his gaze back on her, Heiji shook his head. There was another one- a somewhat out of place looking man. In addition to the one that he had spotted on the roof earlier, this made the third one he'd noticed so far. This one didn't appear to be carrying anything with him, like the previous two had been, but he had to admit that it bothered him.

Just in case, he'd take a picture of this one. Carefully, so that Kazuha wouldn't notice, he pulled out his cellphone, snapping a photo of the guy from underneath the table. It was possible that it was nothing, but it was also possible that it was something. All of his instincts were telling him to check it out a bit more closely, but...

He really didn't want to ditch Kazuha today. She had been silent on the entire train ride back home from Tokyo the other day, and the last thing he wanted to do was abandon her again, especially when it might very well be nothing at all.

"Well, that's good!" With a bright smile, Kazuha seemed satisfied with that. As long as it wasn't something that was going to drag him away again, she would put up with it. "I'm really lookin' forward ta seein' this movie! I heard from Sachiko-chan that it was really good! She got ta see the early release of it the other day."

"Ah, the one from yer club whose old man runs a movie theater, right?" Heiji recalled. She did have pretty good taste in movies. "Well, in that case, it's probably as good as she says. The trailer did look awfully interestin', from what I remember."

For today, and today only, he'd put the matter aside. If it didn't become anything serious, then there was no need for a detective- and he'd already been interrupted by cases too many times to count. That definitely wasn't going to happen today, not if he could do anything about.

Maybe it was for the best that Kudo wasn't here right now. If he were, then there was no doubt that he would have talked him into following one of the strange men. Honestly, sometimes that guy seriously couldn't read the mood.

Although he supposed that he shouldn't be the one saying that.


"Ah, hold on just a second, Heiji!"

Turning back on his heel, glancing back towards Kazuha, he quickly took note of the way that she had started to dig through her purse, a somewhat frantic expression on her face. "What's up, Kazuha? Ya forget somethin'?"

"Yeah, my cellphone. I was sure that I had put it in here, but..." Fumbling through her purse for a second more, she heaved a sigh, apparently giving up. "It's not here. I know I had it with me when I left the house this mornin'."

"Maybe ya left it in the dressin' room?" Heiji asked, glancing back up towards the department store that they had just left. "I don't think ya could have had many other chances ta lose it, aside from that. I guess it's possible that someone might have taken it from yer bag while ya left yer purse behind durin' the show, but if yer wallet's still there, then I doubt it."

"Yeah, it's still there." Nodding her head, Kazuha gave him something of an apologetic smile. She had been so worried about him running off on her, and now she was the one messing things up. There was a hint of irony there. "Then, why don't ya head ta the movie theater before me, Heiji? I'll run back up ta the dressin' room real quick ta see if it got left behind there."

"There's still over thirty minutes before the movie starts, an' it's barely even a ten minute walk ta the theater from here. I'll just wait here." Taking a seat on the bench behind him, Heiji flashed her a quick grin. "Make sure ta check with the lost an' found too, if ya can't find it up there. Someone might have already turned it in."

He knew that it wasn't the cellphone itself that was so important to her- but rather, what mattered most was what was attached to it. Reaching into his pocket, his fingers brushed over that of his own- one of a pair of charms that she had made, with a small link of a handcuff chain tucked securely inside the pouch. He couldn't say if those things actually worked or not, but he knew just how important that they were to Kazuha.

"Then, I'll be right back, Heiji!" Pausing to give him another quick smile, Kazuha turned on her heel, pulling the strap of her purse closer to her as she hurried back towards the department store. Watching as she disappeared back into the building, Heiji leaned back on the bench, pulling his cellphone from his jacket pocket. He knew that body language of hers all too well- no doubt that she was doing her best to cover just how worried she was.

Maybe he should go ahead and call it, just in case. It would be terrible if someone had found it lying around somewhere, and had decided to take the chance to help themselves to it. He doubted that they would answer his call if they had, but it was a worth a try.

Well, at the very least if someone had decided to do that, there was a chance that they might have removed her charm first. It would make the cellphone stand out too much, and they wouldn't want something on it that would allow it's real owner to quickly identify it as their own. If that was the case, even if they couldn't manage to find the cellphone, it wouldn't be that big of a deal. Something like a cellphone could always be replaced.

But to Kazuha, that charm was an irreplaceable treasure. So much so that when he had accidentally given away, she had gone all the way to Tokyo just to search for it. Reflecting back on that case, he now realized that the person who had scribbled all over the photo of himself that had been tucked away in the charm probably hadn't been Kazuha at all- but that guy he had accidentally given it to.

When he had mentioned that particular revelation to Kudo, his friend had given him a long look, muttering something about him taking long enough to figure that out underneath his breath. That guy sure spoke big sometimes for someone who probably wouldn't have realized the feelings his own childhood friend had for him if he hadn't heard them directly from her. As far as he was concerned, he had basically cheated.

"Eh?"

His cellphone suddenly starting to vibrate in his hands, Heiji frowned, glancing down at the screen. The incoming call was coming from Kazuha's cellphone- and there was something that wasn't quite right about that. Sure, the lost and found was on the first floor, so if she had decided to check there first, she would have been able to make it there by now, but there was no reason as to why she would have to call him from there. And there was no way that she had made it up to the dressing room already, which was on the very top floor.

Had someone else found her phone after all, and were trying to get into contact with the person who owned it? That was strange though- why would they call him, as opposed to Kazuha's parents? They were both listed as the first contacts in her phone, and there was no reason he could think of that her mother wouldn't have answered, even if her father was busy.

Might as well answer though. If it really was someone kind enough to try and find the owner of the phone they had found, he had no reason to ignore the call. And if it was Kazuha, he already knew full well that ignoring her would only annoy her.

Hitting the button to pick up the phone, Heiji placed it next to his ear, getting to his feet. On the off chance that it was her- "Is that you, Kazuha? Did ya find yer phone already?"

There was a long pause at his words, silence hanging in the space between them. Narrowing his eyes, something bothering him about this, his grip on his cellphone tightened, the charm he used as a makeshift cellphone strap brushing against his knuckles. He didn't know who this was, but there was no way that it was Kazuha. She would have answered him right away. "Oi, who is this?"

The voice that came across on the other end of the line definitely wasn't Kazuha's- and if he didn't miss his guess, it wasn't the real voice of the person speaking either. Unless they were using something as sophisticated as one of that Professor's voice changers, it wasn't that hard to tell when someone was using something to change their voice- as such was the case here.

"You are that high school detective, Hattori Heiji, are you not? It would be terrible if I had somehow gotten the wrong number."

"Yeah, that's me. But who are ya supposed ta be? This ain't yer phone, but I'm sure ya know that much already." Narrowing his eyes, Heiji took a step forward, his gaze instinctively finding it's way to the top floor, where Kazuha probably was right now. Who was this person? Why did they have her phone? Had they stolen it from her? If that was the case, how would they have known that she was going to be here today, and what exactly was their objective?

There were too many questions, and Heiji got the feeling that he wasn't going to like the answer to any of them.

"I'm afraid that's something you will have to discover on your own, Hattori-kun. If you're really as skilled as they say you are, it probably shouldn't be a problem." The voice on the end of the line was so distorted, that he wasn't able to tell if it belonged to a man or a woman- but their words alone were more than enough to send a chill down his spine. At once, those strange men from earlier flashed back into his mind, a cold grip of fear taking him firmly within it's grasp.

What if the reason that third man didn't have a bag was because...?

If that was the case, then he needed to hurry up and get Kazuha out of there right away, or else-!

"I see that you seem to have realized it, but it's a bit too late for that, O great detective." Their words did nothing to halt Heiji's pace, as he made a break for the department store, almost not hearing them over the pounding of his own heart. Some part of his brain was still working however, as he found himself hitting the record button on his phone. "You did me quite the favor in the past, so you can consider this a little present from me to you. I do hope it's to your liking, Hattori-kun."

The first blast was more than enough to knock him off of his feet, throwing him backwards from the sheer force of it. It was a testament to how tight his grip was on it that his cellphone didn't fly right out of his hand, as he found himself thrown into the pavement, hitting his head on the edge of the sidewalk. Around him, cars served to avoid the fallout from the blast that had come from the department store- in the back of his mind, he dimly noted that it's origin was from the third floor. Forcing himself to maintain his awareness in spite of the blow to the head, Heiji gritted his teeth, forcing himself back to his feet, forcing himself to take another step forward.

In the back of his mind, still aware of things other than his increasingly desperate need to know exactly where Kazuha was, he was still counting. After the first blast, there one, two, three, four- but for the life of him, he wasn't able to say which of the blasts triggered that dreadful sight, horrifying enough that, for a brief moment, he felt his heart stop in his chest.

He'd been called hotblooded by more than a fair share of people in the past. But as he watched the roof of the department store start to collapse into the floor directly underneath it, he could feel his veins turn to ice. For a moment, his mind went completely blank, unable to process anything that he was witnessing, perhaps wondering if this was some kind of horrible nightmare.

She couldn't... she wasn't there, was she? She couldn't be... she couldn't be... because of him, she couldn't be...

Faintly, ever so faintly, he could still make out the sound of the voice on the other end of the line, though their words weren't registering with him at the moment. The person who had set this all up. The person who had taken Kazuha's cellphone. The person who had ensured that she would go back into the department store. The person who had done this, because of him.

"This is only just the opening act."