Author's Note: Yay, another chapter! So the plot starts to unravel itself in this chapter, but I like to think that it doesn't really start thickening until... a certain scene later on. The kinda "beta reader" I had (which was my best friend, who heard it on Skype calls) loved the whole story, so I would hope that you all enjoy it too. Judging by how there are people reading it, I will have to say at least someone is. I figured it wouldn't be as popular as Life's Full of Surprises with that being a KaiShin story, but I'm still content with the progress so far. Thank you for all the support so far, and enjoy the third chapter~!

(And since I just noticed this like three minutes before uploading the chapter, thanks to "mar" for the review! I am so happy to see that people are enjoying my stories, and it makes me want to write even more! *huge KID-like grin*)

Chapter Three: Recovered Recognition

Conan somehow managed to maintain his composure even though his mind was screaming at him to do something. That means he's part of the Organization! He's already onto you and your secret! If you're not careful, everyone around you could be hurt or worse! Feeling that worrying and stressing wasn't the way to handle it, he chose to use his book as a distraction until they got to their destination a half-hour later.

"Okay, we're here!" Heiji stood up and stretched, noticing Conan's tense figure. He placed a gentle hand on his friend's shoulder and gave a reassuring smile. "S'okay, Kudou, I can help ya solve this case."

Conan's shoulders sank in relief. "Thanks, Hattori. I need to remember that I came here to distract myself and not worry about the case." They exited the train and admired the scenic Sakuranosuke Park from the platform as they began their all-day hike.

Meanwhile, back in Osaka, Kazuha was getting ready to leave her home. Okay, I have everything they wanted me to bring, so… She tiptoed to the front door but was stopped by her father Toyama Ginshiro.

"Kazuha, where are you going?" he asked, making her flinch.

"Ah, I was goin' ta Heiji's since we're goin' ta the Sakuranosuke Park in Kyoto!"

Ginshiro raised an eyebrow. "You said last night that you weren't supposed to leave until this afternoon. Was there a sudden change in plans?"

Kazuha smiled. "Nah, I just need ta find a surprise gift fer Conan-kun!" She took the moment her dad thought as an opportunity to escape, sighing once she was far enough away. I thought he'd never stop askin' me questions! She checked an address on her phone and began moving south for a few minutes before arriving back at the warehouse from last night.

"Where are ya…?" she started to holler, but a hand was placed over her mouth.

"Hush, ojou-sama, I don't think you want anything bad happening because of your stupid mistake. I'll let go of your mouth, and you'll promise me that you won't yell, record our conversation, inform authority, try to run away, or even look at me."

Kazuha nodded, and the hand was released. "I will say you're rather brave coming here, ojou-sama; I didn't think you'd actually do anything about that note except maybe show that Hattori Heiji boy." The person laughed. "I should say foolish instead, but I guess I haven't heard your story. Why did you choose to come here, especially alone?"

Kazuha gulped. "I-I wanna help Heiji as much as possible!" she replied, breathless from her fear. "I know he's gonna get 'imself hurt if he gets too far, so I'll do it fer 'im!"

The person clucked their tongue. "My, such a naïve young girl you are. So you'd rather be hurt yourself and risk your life so a homicide detective doesn't? Alright then, I'll teach you a little lesson."

Kazuha braced for some sort of pain, but none came. She began relaxing when something inserted itself in her lower back, causing her to fall on her knees with a small whimper.

"See? This is why you don't trust the bad guys." The person ran away, but Kazuha could catch one of the person's defining factors, which surprising her.

It can't be…that's impossible… As the world began to fade, a high-pitched ringing entered her ear as if calling out to her to stay awake. But she was too tired, so she fell forward and let the darkness embrace her.

"That's odd," Heiji noted aloud as he put his cell phone away. "I figured Kazuha would answer 'er phone."

"Where is she anyway?" Conan inquired. "I thought she would come with us again."

Heiji shrugged. "Dunno. She said that somethin' came up that was urgent fer her ta go."

Figuring it wasn't important at the moment, the two completed their hike and were about to enter the shrine when Heiji turned around. "Kudou, ya should see this."

Conan stepped beside Heiji, and his breath was taken away. "Wow…" Seeing the large forest from so high up was incredible, and they stood in silence for a moment until Conan broke it. "Hey, we should see the shrine before it gets too late."

Heiji nodded, and they wandered around the old shrine, making sure to leave a donation, before starting their hike back down. Once it was finished, the sun was beginning to set.

"Well, I will admit that was enjoyable," Conan yawned as they walked to the train station. "It almost makes me want to stay another…" He suddenly froze as his face went chalk-white.

"Kudou, what's up?" Heiji followed Conan's gaze, where there in a parking lot sat a single black Porsche in front of orange-and-red deciduous trees. "Oi, ya know that can't be…"

The statement was interrupted when a man wearing solid black began walking to the car. For some reason, Conan was trembling immensely even though he didn't recognize the man. He's one of them; I can sense it. But what is he doing here? Is he investigating me already? Does he plan to hurt anyone? Those were questions he began asking before one replaced them all: Why does this seem so familiar?

The Porsche left a minute later, but Heiji noticed that Conan was still staring at the vacated spot, his eyes as wide as that of an abandoned child seeking for help. "Oi, snap outta it, Kudou! Ya know that wasn't one o' them guys that shrunk ya!" He bent down beside Conan and shook him, but it was no use.

"It seems so familiar," he continually mumbled to himself, "I feel like I should remember." Then, his eyes rolled back in his head as he fainted.

"Oi!" Heiji exclaimed in shock and tried to wake Conan, but it took almost five minutes for him to regain consciousness.

"Hattori?" he asked weakly as he clutched his head. "What happened? Why does my head hurt so much?"

Forcing a smile, Heiji helped him stand. "Yer just a bit tired, Kudou; after all, ya ain't slept much lately! Let's get back ta my place, an' I'll see if Kazuha can come o'er fer a little while 'fore ya gotta leave." He led Conan onto the train, and the ride home was in complete silence as they both struggled to grasp what happened in the parking lot.

So I just collapsed from not sleeping enough? Is that really all that happened? Conan closely watched Heiji as he followed the Osakan out of the train station. What else am I missing, Hattori?

Just then, Heiji's cell phone rang, making both detectives jump. "Heya, wassup?"

"Heiji-kun, where is my daughter?" It was Ginshiro, and he sounded angry. "I figured she would be back by now."

"Whaddya talkin' 'bout, old man? I haven't seen Kazuha all day!" That wasn't a good sign.

Ginshiro sighed. "Heiji-kun, just tell me where she is. She's not usually the type to lie to me about where she's going, and she said she was going with you and Edogawa Conan to Kyoto."

Heiji froze. "But—but she told me that she had somethin' important come up all o' a sudden that she had to skip the trip fer. Does that mean she's missin'?"

Ginshiro didn't respond for a moment. "I guess that does," he replied. "She won't answer her phone, and neither of us know where she went." He suddenly stopped. "Hey, don't you still have that tracking app on your phone?"

Heiji grinned. "Ya bet I do! I'll use it ta track 'er signal an' letcha know where she's at." He ended the call and began tapping his screen.

"Hattori, did something happen to Kazuha-chan?" Conan inquired. "She doesn't seem like the person to do something like that to you."

"She's not," Heiji said through clenched teeth. "An' I think I know where she…" He stopped as the map came up on the screen. "Wait, why's she…?" He began to run, leaving a confused Conan behind. He followed the instructions his phone gave him, where he found it was indeed correct.

"Hattori, what's up with you?" Conan leaned against a building and gasped for breath. "It's almost like…" He looked up and saw Heiji's worst fear come to life:

Kazuha was lying on the ground with a knife in her side and a pool of blood around her.

X

"We'll try our best to help her," the paramedic tried to comfort Heiji. "We would let you come with since you're so worried, but you know the policy—only family members are allowed. You can visit her when she awakens."

Heiji and Conan watched the ambulance leave, the first pounding the warehouse walls in frustration. "Kuso, if only I coulda figured out where she was goin'…I coulda stopped it."

Conan closed his eyes. "Hattori, you couldn't do anything to stop it. It was completely unexpected, and she didn't give us any sign of potential danger."

Due to his quickly-growing fear, Heiji stayed facing away from Conan. "So what now, Kudou? What are we supposed ta do ta stop this? He's gonna kill everyone 'round us without feelin' the slightest bit'a remorse!"

"I don't know yet. We just have to go back to your place and come up with a plan." Conan slowly approached his fellow detective. "And believe me, I'm as concerned as you are about him hurting innocent people. If I could have made it so I got hurt instead of Kazuha-chan, I would have in a heartbeat. But we're detectives, Hattori; we can solve this before anyone else gets hurt."

Heiji lowered his arm from the wall. "Yeah, yer right. Thanks, Kudou, I really needed that." They returned to the Hattori home, and both found themselves weary from the long day. "Ya can go ta bed," Heiji said to Conan. "I still gotta call Otaki-han an' let 'im know what happened."

Conan trudged to his room and flopped into bed. I feel so tired, but I know I'll just have the same nightmare again and won't be able to sleep after it. Maybe reading some Sherlock Holmes will help. He pulled out his book and read a couple chapters before sleep grew too strong to resist. As he predicted, he did have a nightmare again, but this time it was quite different.

Red and orange lit up the world around him. One of his size would have thought it as a firework show, but it was much more deadly. He stumbled away from the bright colors as panic flooded through him.

'Why did this happen?' he thought as his disorientated self began walking home. 'Why did I have to be so foolish?'

The sound of a deep, echoing laugh awoke Conan, who broke out in a cold sweat. "Kuso, another one. And this time, it was way different than what I expected." Before he could calm himself, a voice spoke from the doorway.

"Thought ya were havin' another nightmare. I could hear ya through the wall tossin' an' turnin' an' mumblin' in yer sleep." Heiji entered, wearing a sad smile on his face. "Was it the same one ya've been havin' fer a couple days?"

Conan put his head in his hands. "No, but I actually wish it was. This new one's caught me off guard, and I don't know what either of them mean yet."

Heiji sat himself on the edge of the bed and tilted his head. "Can ya clarify on that? Ya haven't told me 'bout either o' them nightmares yet."

Conan shook his head as his body shook. "They just don't make sense…" he quavered. "Nothing about them makes sense!"

Heiji patted Conan on the back. "Yer worried, ain'tcha? Yer worried that yer Neechan could be hurt by Black. That's the only explanation fer why yer so panicky 'bout somethin' as simple as a nightmare."

Conan nodded, his head now rested on his knees. "I am. I wouldn't normally think as a nightmare being important, but with everything going on and these ones being reoccurring…" He hesitated. "I've been so tired lately too, but all this makes me feel like something will happen if I sleep."

"Ah, that must be why ya suddenly got nightmares then! Yer worried 'bout yer Neechan 'cuz yer away from 'er an' can't protect 'er from them guys in black that haven't done anythin' in a while." Heiji quietly laughed. "An' ya were the one that said ya'd come 'ere ta distract yerself from that, right? So why are ya worryin' so much?"

No response. Heiji studied Conan's breathing and came to a conclusion he finally fell asleep. "I wonder how long he'll be able ta sleep this time," he couldn't help but mutter as he lied Conan down and adjusted the covers. "Let's hope ya don't get another nightmare again tonight; I'm almost startin' ta worry that…"

"I'm fine," Conan whispered softly as he turned to face Heiji. "I won't have another nightmare tonight."

Heiji ruffled Conan's hair. "Ya better not. 'Night, Kudou." He too went to bed, and both slept well into the next morning.

Back in Beika, Ran was about to leave for school when seeing her phone on the coffee table. "Ah, I should do that real quick!" She picked it up and dialed a number.

"Hmm~?" Conan could hear his phone ringing, but he felt so comfortable wrapped in his blankets. Forcing his eyes open, his arm reached to the nightstand, where he saw Ran's caller ID. "Ohayō, Ran-neechan," he said sleepily, "how early is it?"

Ran giggled. "I woke you, didn't I? Sorry about that. I was just wondering how everything's gone in Osaka so far with Hattori-kun and Kazuha-chan."

Conan was too tired to think straight. "It's good," he mumbled. "I've been all over seeing really neat things."

"Well, I'm glad you're getting better!" Ran exclaimed happily before gasping. "Oh, I forgot! Conan-kun, when are you leaving Osaka? I was wondering if Hattori-kun would let you come home this afternoon."

Extra Note: For those of you that were wondering why I would end the chapter with this line, it's because that line creates a bit of suspense when you stop to realize Conan may not be able to continue searching on this case with Heiji. *shrugs* I wasn't really sure how else to end it either, so... yeah. That's what I decided to put.