N/A: This is the next chapter guys! Chapter three, baby! I'm pumped. Keep it coming muse! Today is the long awaited trip to Teitan. Will Conan be able to properly protect 'Shinichi' from curious questions and wandering hands? And what about Heiji? Will his jealousy make him snap in front of Shinichi's classmates?
On with the next installment to Friendship Status!
It's show time!
Chapter 2
A Visit to Teitan High
Conan was trying really hard not smash his head against the closest solid surface. Unfortunately, if this kept up, that effort would be in vain.
Sitting on a public bus, he sat between Hattori and what appeared to be Kudou Shinichi, currently Kuroba Kaito in disguise. Kaito was making a maximum effort to try and avoid Hattori's scorching gaze as the Osakan tried to glare a whole into the side of his head. It wouldn't have been so bad if the idiot hadn't been making his new friend so uncomfortable. The thief was as on edge as he usually only was on heists.
When he got home he had to make sure to lock the door before anything else.
Ever since Hattori arrived yesterday, things had only went down hill between the two. He understood that Hattori was worried about him, but it was irritating when the teen wouldn't listen to a single word that Conan tried to tell him. He had attempted time and time again to tell the boy that Kaito wasn't going to take his place, but he wouldn't have it. It was almost like he refused to believe that Kaito was actually virtually harmless outside of heists.
He also had to wonder why it seemed impossible to have more than one best friend. After all, Ran was his best friend as well and Conan would sooner listen to what she had to say than Heiji. Not to mention that he never saw Hattori complaining about her.
Almost everything that came out of his mouth was some kind of conspiracy theory about KID planning to kill Conan after gaining his trust. If it hadn't been for their heart to heart and him seeing just how sweet and thoughtful Kaito could be when it was just the two of them, he probably would have agreed with his friend.
At least Kaito hadn't tried to rat him out to Ran when he refused to tell him something. He just pulled the puppy dog face and Conan found himself caving in and telling him anyway. It was kind of scary how much Kaito's puppy eyes were like Ayumi's. It made it impossible to tell him no.
He was jerked from his thoughts by the bus stopping in front of his school. It was about lunch time and it was likely that most of the students would be in the halls or eating at their desks or in the cafeteria. He could only hope that they didn't attract too much attention. It wasn't everyday that you see three famous detectives walk into a high school.
He almost gave a start when warm arms wrapped around his waist and lifted him. Kaito gave him an apologetic look as he rested the pseudo-child against his hip. Leaning forward he whispered into Conan's ear, "I know that you're not some little kid, but please don't be mad at me for this. It's for my own peace of mind."
When all the boy could do was blink owlishly at him, Kaito pointed to the school grounds. Multiple students were wandering the campus and most of them seemed in a hurry. That was when it hit him. Kaito was worried about him getting run over by a thoughtless teenager who wasn't paying enough attention. It was actually a little sweet. At least he wouldn't pick him up just to annoy him like Hattori did.
He ignored the growl from behind them as Kaito grabbed his backpack from the compartment above their seats. It was sometimes unbelievable how thoughtful the magician could be.
As they exited the bus, they seemed to almost immediately gain the attention of the school's population. He watched as several students stopped and stared as they made their way through the front door. Some pointed fingers as others (mostly girls) snapped photos. Apparently, it was adorable to see 'Kudou Shinichi' carry his cousin around. The thought almost made Conan want to bury his face into Kaito's neck and never look up again. The reassuring pat that he received to his back calmed him a little.
As they made their way down the stairs, the mini detective couldn't believe just how much attention they were receiving. Several girls had already fainted from the 'Kudou Duo Effect', as Kaito liked to call it. He nearly caved into the thought of turning around and darting back out the door. Ever since he had taken up the life of Edogawa Conan, he wasn't used to people paying this much attention to him, especially this much.
They had to stop at almost every three doors because someone had wanted to take a picture or catch up with Shinichi. Kaito was ridiculously good at weaving tales about what he had been up to, ranging from just normal cases to some that sounded so bizarre that Conan was shocked everyone was buying it so easily.
It was usually thanks to Hattori butting in that they were able to continue on their way when a conversation seemed to take too long. At least he was doing something other than grumbling threats under his breath.
By the time they finally reached the Shinichi's class, they were almost an hour late. Kaito gave a sigh of relief as he opened the door. The classroom was mostly empty except for a few seats that held a few students who didn't even look up as they entered. The teacher looked delighted to see them as she lit up like a Christmas tree.
"Kudou-kun! It's so good to-," she cut off as she took notice of Conan and Hattori. She looked stunned for a second before she finally took the position that Shinichi was holding his cousin.
She promptly fainted.
Kaito immediately sat Conan on the desk as he rushed to the teacher's side. He was gentle as he checked her for any injuries before pulling a blanket out from the backpack (why did he even have that) and settling it over her. He also pulled out a pillow and raised her head so that she wasn't resting on the floor.
Just how many things does Kaito have in his backpack?!
The thought left Conan stunned as he watched the thief reach into his bag once more, this time pulling out a stack of papers. It was the pages of homework that he had retrieved for Conan last month. He could observe in silence as Kaito left the homework on the desk next to him and opened the teacher's desk.
"Whatta ya doin'?!" came Hattori's bemused shout. Several of the nearby students almost jumped out of their seats before shooting glares in the Osakan's direction. He looked confused for a second before shaking his head and focusing his attention once again on the bane of his existence (after that blonde bastard, of course).
Kaito only gave him an amused glance as he waved a folder in front of Heiji's face. "This is where Sensei keeps my homework, Hattori. I have to retrieve it somehow." Several students laughed at the sarcastic tone that Kaito had used. When it came to pretending to be friends with Hattori, Kaito could impersonate Shinichi perfectly (as well as in every other way for that fact). It was funny to watch as Heiji's face turned a violent shade of red. Conan could practically see the steam coming from his ears.
"Don' act like Kudou aroun' me!" he whispered vehemently. At this rate, he was probably going to destroy the classroom any second if he received any more provocation, intentional or not. Kaito looked stunned for a moment, but then his face fell. He really hadn't meant to get on the Osakan's nerves. He was hoping to show the detective just how much he respected his close friendship with Shinichi and show that he also wanted to be friends, but apparently all he was doing was making it worse.
As if sensing his inner turmoil, a small hand tugged on his sleeve. He looked down and met bright tanzanite eyes that looked at him in understanding. Conan had a look of resignation on his face that spoke of having to deal with this often. Unexpectedly, the small boy raised his arms in the universal sign of wanting to be carried. Kaito couldn't help but laugh at the cute image before complying. Once he was situated on Kaito's hip once more, Conan wrapped his arms around his neck in a comforting gesture. It felt a little awkward, but also very easy as if he had done it a thousand times before.
Kaito was beaming at this point. He gave Hattori a smile before picking up the bag and heading for the door. He wouldn't give up on becoming friends with Tantei-han yet. He would prove that he understood how the teen felt and that he wasn't a threat to his self declared Best Friend status.
They were halfway out of the school when it finally happened. Conan had hoped that Kaito's special seduction ability would stay ineffective for today at the least. In the past two months that he and Kaito had been friends, he noticed that it seemed to turn off and on at random. One day they would go somewhere and nothing would happen when the next Conan would be forced to use his sneakers to keep a particularly handsy person from outright molesting the poor magician. Kaito didn't seem to really notice anything and Conan couldn't tell if he was happy or irritated by it.
The scene pretty much played out like this.
Hattori had been in front of them for once as Kaito trailed behind him. One second, they had been walking down the hall towards the exit. The next, Kaito had somehow dropped Conan when he was roughly pushed up against a locker.
Students were pointing while some took out their phones once again, probably for videos this time. When Conan finally recovered, he turned around to ask Kaito what was wrong before the scene suddenly registered in his head. A boy he didn't recognize had pinned a startled Kaito against a locker.
He didn't look like he was from his class, but nothing really stood out about him either. He had normal length black hair that was slicked back against his head and his brown eyes seemed to try to look at as much of the teen in front of his as possible.
This was the first time Conan had seen anyone react like this to Kaito's Secret Seduction Ability. Most people had just stared or tried to touch the boy inappropriately, but never had any of them gotten this physical.
Before he could do anything, however, the offending teen was suddenly eating dust as Hattori slammed him against the ground. Conan was stunned for a moment, before giving Hattori a appreciative grin and rushing over to Kaito. As the shock had finally left the thief's mind, he had slumped against the locker door as he gripped his right shoulder. The throbbing from the bullet wound was dull, but it still hurt. He barely registered the detective crouch down in front of him with a look of concern.
"Oi, Kuroba. Are you okay?" A grunt was the only reply he received. His look of concern turned into anger as he whirled around to glare at the teen responsible for causing his friend so much pain. Hattori was currently still pinning him to the ground. The Osakan appeared to be hissing something under his breath to the student as he held his hands behind his back.
He made his way silently over to the two boys before stopping just in front of them. Hattori seemed to catch on to just how angry Conan was as he scrambled to back away. It was kind of shocking to see the glare that Kudou saved for murders come across his face when not even an attempted murder had been committed.
The unknown boy looked confused when a teen that was bigger than him seemed like he was afraid of a child. But when he locked eyes with what looked like a miniature demon making its way towards them, he could suddenly understand.
Conan's face was pulled into tight glare that looked like it may break his face. The sunlight from outside caught his glasses, blocking out one of the lenses as a dark aura seemed to permeate from him. The only visible eye was so cold that it probably could have frozen hell over.
It was safe to say that he had never been so terrified in his life.
Hattori could only watch in stunned silence as Kudou leaned in and seemed to whisper something into the offending boy's ear. He could only wonder what he had said when the student blanched. And was Heiji's eyes playing tricks on him or was the teen shaking? What the hell was Kudou saying to him?
As abruptly as the secret conversation ended the teen was on his feet and running out the door. His face was so pale that it could be mistaken for a paper mache mask with eyes so wide that they threatened to fall out of his face.
When Hattori looked at his friend, he was slightly shocked to see the triumphant smirk on his face. However, his eyes were still dark and his entire body language was tense, as if he was trying to stop himself from doing something unsavory.
Hattori couldn't keep back his question, "What the hell did you tell him, Kudou?"
Conan turned his still sharp gaze to meet Heiji's own confused, searching blue eyes. After a moment, Conan seemed to regain himself and calm down enough that the glare disappeared from his face. At least he just looked tired and not like he was about to commit murder.
It was then that Kudou finally answered his question. "I just told him what would happen of he ever pulled a stunt like that on Shinichi-niisan again, that's all." It was said without any heat and Hattori was able to safely say that the danger had passed.
As Conan went to check on Kaito once more, Hattori was left with his thoughts. The situation had been so bizarre that Heiji had been left stunned for a moment before he could react. He had been infuriated that anyone would make Kudou fall like that and not even seem the least bit sorry.
It wasn't until he looked over to where Kudou was fretting over Kuroba that he noticed that the younger teen seemed in pain. Was the thief injured? It would make since if Kudou had reacted the way he did.
He watched as Kuroba tried to convince the shrunken detective that he was fine while said child was obviously able to tell that he was lying. He just gave an irritated sigh.
Maybe the thief wasn't so bad. But, he still needed to pass Hattori Heiji's Test if he wanted to prove it to him.
The rest of the day was spent at the Kudou Manor as they rested in the libarary. Conan was sitting at a desk as he mulled over his homework. Heiji was standing in front of a bookshelf as he tried to look for a book that wasn't by Conan Arthur Doyle. Sadly, he wasn't really having much success except for books that were written by Kudou Yuusaku. Kaito was sitting by the window on the far wall as he gazed at the sky outside. He had been given quite a scare today and his mind was still in a bit of a frenzy as he tried to calm his still slightly racing heart.
What he didn't notice was when both Conan and, surprisingly, Heiji sent him concerned looks.
To Be Continued...
I was slightly caught off guard by throwing some HeiKai friendship there at the end. But that kind of is the idea of the story, Kaito finally earning Heiji's trust and proving that he wasn't a threat to Shinichi's life. It will take a while before Heiji finally drops his guard around Kaito, but it will all be in good time.
I have decided to have the first challenge will be in the next chapter. Hakuba will also be making an appearance near the end, probably. I'm not sure what to do about his intro, though. Dramatic or simple?
For now, ladies and gentlemen, the curtain is closing for the next act.
See you next chapter!
