The meat was simmering away in the pot, steam was whimsically floating out of the rice cooker, and the meal boxes were neatly laid out beside, ready to contain the food and keep it warm. All this was under the watchful eye of Ran Mouri, as she vigorously rubbed her hair with a towel. There hadn't been a Karate session that afternoon. Their tutor had had a personal emergency and was unable to find a suitable replacement at such short notice. Usually the young woman would have been disappointed, but today...

Today, she smiled.

She knew exactly what use to make of this sudden amount of free time.

It seemed an eternity since she had last slept over at Sonoko's. Oh sure, there had been the odd occasion, but there had always been some murder to delay plans, the odd incident Conan would have gotten into that required her to keep a closer eye on him for a while. It was all fine going off to places like Izu, or some mansion in the mountains, but that was not like the sleepovers they had grown up with and come to love.

Ran had missed that special girl time with her best friend... And for once her father had no case to solve. For once she did not need to worry about Conan... Especially now that Shinichi had come out with the real truth behind his absence. For once Sonoko had agreed to forget about chasing the boys or looking for adventure.

But that wasn't the only reason Ran was looking forward to this evening.

For the first time since Shinichi's return, she was going to be able to have a decent talk with Shiho Miyano, the one she had first met as Ai Haibara.

She checked the time, noted that the meat still had a couple of minutes to cook, and turned to her night bag. She had her sponge bag and change of clothes ready. Her pyjamas were nicely folded at the top of the pile. There would most certainly be enough room for the food. That and a little more...

With a contented smile, Ran pulled out of a drawer a pack of photos. They had been taken a while back now, but she had only recently got them developed. The disposable camera had lain for months, forgotten, in her room.

There were photos of Conan amongst them, photos of outings with the Detective Boys which Ran had chaperoned. There were also photos of Ai-chan smiling, unaware of what Ran had been doing.

Ran had always been a generous and caring person. Her gift to Sonoko that evening would be a lovingly cooked meal. Her gift to Miyano? Mementos of a happy time, and a reminder that she did not need to forget old friends just because of a name change.

Noticing that the food was ready, Ran dropped her towel and packed the food, careful to leave a plate for her father and a note.

"What's taking her so long?" Sonoko Suzuki whined.

She wasn't used to people showing up late. Ran would always call her if some mystery came in the way, and most of the other people she would invite to outings tended to be on the early side anyway. Heavens, Makoto had gone as far as to camp out weeks before a rendezvous, just to make sure he didn't miss it.

The host of the evening fidgeted with the sandwich display she had organized with the help of a maid, moving one set of sandwiches this way, then that way.

"Don't worry Sonoko. I'm sure she has a perfectly good reason for being this late. We did clearly tell her at what time we expected her, didn't we?" Ran, her calm and optimistic self, was busy messing with the oven, trying to find the best way to keep the food she had brought warm without letting it dry out.

"Yes, we did. We said six pm sharp, and it's already quarter to seven!" With an exasperated swing of her arms, Sonoko twirled around from the sandwich platter to face her friend as she closed the oven door. "I saw the look on her face when we invited her Ran. I don't think she's going to come."

"Now what makes you say that?" Her long haired friend replied. Her face wasn't as serene any more. A small wrinkle of worry had found its place between her eyebrows. She remembered Miyano's expression too. But she also remembered asking Shinichi whether he could make sure Miyano didn't feel too intimidated to come over. If there was one thing Ran was now certain of, it was that Shinichi did keep his promises.

"She didn't want to come, Ran. When we asked her she looked as if we'd just asked her to chop her hand off."

"Then why did she accept? Seriously, if it were that bad coming here, I don't think she would have bothered telling us she would come and then not call up with some excuse to cancel. She's not that kind of person!"

The two friends glared each other in the eye, one defending the absent girl and the other feeling bitterly disappointed at being stood up.

"How do you know?"

"Huh?"

"How do you know she's not that kind of person? We hardly know her! She transferred some time during the last year into the class above us, and all we know is that she helped Shinichi out on that stupid case of his and that she likes to hang out with Eisuke from time to time. How can you tell whether she's the type or not?"

Stunned, Ran opened her mouth but no answer came forth. How could she tell her best friend that they hadn't told her the whole truth, that there was more to Shinichi's absence than just some case? And even if she did, how could she prevent Sonoko from sketching it down to Ran making up some incredible scenario to comfort herself after Conan and Ai's departure?

With a sigh, she replied.
"It's not simple to explain. Look, just trust me on this. She helped Shinichi out for starters, and that's enough for me."

Dubious, Sonoko relented.
"Right. But if she's still not here by seven, we're going to go and have fun without her!"

Ran smiled in a resigned manner as Sonoko went to get some glasses and pour herself something to drink. Hopefully Miyano would arrive any minute now. She would be so disappointed if it turned out the older girl had lied about her intentions of coming.

There was a ring of the doorbell.
Suddenly both alert and hopeful, the two young women simultaneously dropped whatever they were doing to head briskly over to the front door. All the servants of the household had already left, leaving only them to let their friend in, if it were at long last her.

The door opened, showing a slightly dishevelled woman of about nineteen years. Her auburn hair dancing in the slight evening breeze, she dropped her backpack to the ground and bowed her head.

"Sorry. The Professor needed a hand rearranging his lab and..."

She didn't need to continue any further, as the host of the evening and the detective's daughter promptly decided to enthusiastically welcome her in.