A big, heartfelt thanks to too-much-romance, whose wonderfully enthusiatic reviews have made this plot bunny shove his way to the front of the line! And thanks to all my incredibly patient regular readers and reviewers as well! I'm sorry for the overall lack of updates; real life has been attacking. However, one of my New year's resolutions is to update much, much more frequently going forward.


"Here we are- Room 3012." Agasa knocked firmly on the door after the comment. The sound of muffled, shuffling feet on the other side of the door was quickly followed by the crisp snap of the door's knob turning before Daniel Fenton opened it, the teen offering a grateful smile to both of them. "Thanks for bringing my school card all the way here. It's a real pain to have to get them replaced."

Shinichi's mind worked furiously for a couple of seconds as he peered into the room, giving Danny the same cheery expression he'd used on the clerk downstairs along with a happy nod. He then turned to Agasa with a quick 'cover me' look as he let his child's mask slip back into place. "Is there a bathroom in there?" Shinichi deliberately asked the question in Japanese, hoping to leave the other boy with the impression that he wasn't fully bilingual. After all, he or one of his friends might accidentally let something slip in front of me assuming I won't understand it...and that might be to my advantage at some point.

This got a chuckle out of Agasa, who gave Shinichi a nod of understanding before offering Danny a polite half-bow. "You're very welcome, Daniel; Conan here wanted to make sure that you got it." He managed to make himself look slightly sheepish. "I'm sorry, but could I please trouble you to let Conan use your restroom if you have one?"

"Oh!" Danny laughed and nodded, stepping aside to let the two in. "Yeah, sure. It's the door to your left just up ahead there." He waved to his left as they stepped in, also loosely indicating what looked like a large pile of newspaper articles and documents heaped up and around a coffee table. "Sorry about the mess- we're in the middle of a research project."

Yeah, I know you guys are researching. What I want to know is why you guys are spending so much time looking into the victim. As Shinichi let his keenly trained eyes gloss over the papers while he passed them, he realized to his puzzlement that at least one of the piles contained what looked like a bunch of funeral notices from different newspapers. Obituaries? This keeps getting weirder and weirder... As soon as he flushed the toilet to give the appearance of using the restroom, Shinichi was shaking his head in disagreement with his initial thought that they might be random, his intuition whispering in his ear. No, that can't be right. I really doubt they're random, but what's the connection? Dead people can't commit murder- unless it's someone else assuming the dead person's identity, that is. He turned on the sink and let it run a bit, his mind mulling over the various possibilities. When he shut off the sink after what he deemed a long enough time, Shinichi overheard a name that piqued his interest even further.

"Hey, Danny, did that Saguru guy call you back while we were gone?" This was asked by an unfamiliar, feminine voice.

Saguru? Could they be talking about Hakuba Saguru? Shinichi opened the door, deciding it was time to play the role of innocent, curious child in order to get whatever names he could from those obituary sheets- and to try and figure out if they were indeed talking about the half-British meitantei.

"Saguru? Hakuba Saguru?" Shinichi kept his tone bright and inquisitive. "I met him!" Get them talking...keep them distracted... He paused by the stack of obituaries with his back to Agasa, giving the older man a 'keep going' circular motion with one of the hands he tucked behind his back. The meitantei then quickly pointed towards the papers with that same hand, hoping that Agasa would pick up on what he was trying to convey.

"Actually, yeah. That's him," replied Danny with a nod and an arched eyebrow. "Tall blonde guy with a British accent and a hawk? You've met him?" Danny turned to the girl that Shinichi had seen him with in the library earlier and nodded his head. "I did, Sam, but he hasn't called back yet. He might be in school or something. I'm sure he'll call back when he has a chance."

Shinichi feigned puzzlement, then turned to Agasa for a translation that he didn't really need. After the older man took a few steps in such a way as to at least partially block the view of the table from the three teenagers, Shinichi quickly began going through the stack of obituaries, frantically scribbling the names that he could find down in a notebook. Don't have an excuse to stay in here much longer...gah!

"So," began Agasa with a broad smile, "how are you children enjoying Japan so far? Well, aside from getting mixed up in this awful murder, that is."

There was a knock at the door after Agasa asked the question, a familiar, slightly superior-sounding voice drifting through the door. "Mr. Fenton? Are you in there? It's Saguru Hakuba."

"Just a sec." Danny gave Sam and Tucker an 'I don't know' look and shrug before walking over and opening the door.

"Thank you," began Saguru as he walked into the room. "I believe you left me a phone message?"

"Uh, yeah I did call. I didn't mean for you to actually show up here, though." Danny edged slightly towards the door.

"Mmm, I prefer to do my talking face to face when I can. If you don't mind, that is." Saguru glanced briefly at the others in the room, offering Shinichi a polite half-smile and nod after he saw him. "Hello, Conan. It's been a while." He then fully turned to Danny. "Was I interrupting something?"

"Just a bunch of paperwork" shrugged Tucker as he pointed at the pile of papers on the table, which Shinichi was in the process of quickly moving away from. "A big school project we've gotta do as part of going on this trip."

Saguru quickly walked over to the table as Shinichi finished moving away from it, his expression moving from neutral to mildly curious as he studied the articles. He then looked at Sam, Tucker and Danny in turn, eyes filled with suspicion. "That must be a very...interesting school project." He maintained an even tone, but there was no mistaking the accusation in it.

He's figured out that they're up to something, too. Of course, Shinichi really hadn't expected anything less from his fellow meitantei. He studied the trio of Americans closely from where he was standing behind Agasa and Saguru, wondering what their reply to Saguru's not-question question would be.

"Busssssted," whispered Tucker quietly into Danny's ear as he leaned over towards Danny a bit, still looking at thier visitors.

I knew this guy was gonna be nothing but trouble! Gah! Danny felt a pack of leaden butterflies suddenly migrate en masse into his stomach as the blonde waited for an answer. It's not like I can deny that we're looking into the dead guy, either - not when he's already had an eyeful of obituaries and shady business dealings. He decided that honesty was probably the best policy, even if he was only being honest because they'd been caught red-handed. "We're looking at some stuff about the victim. We were, uh, curious is all."

Saguru shifted his eyes towards the table full of papers behind him for a moment. "That's a rather large pile of curiosity, Mr. Fenton." He loosely indicated the hotel room door with a gesture of his hand. "I believe you and I should have a little chat before I head back to the detectives." The manner in which Saguru spoke indicated that he wasn't giving Danny a choice in the matter.

Looks like he wants it to be just the two of them. Shinichi dug into his backpack, producing one of Agasa's sticky listening devices as he wandered over closer to Saguru. Sorry Hakuba, but I have a feeling this conversation will be too interesting to pass up listening in on. He carefully edged a little closer to the other detective before quickly unwrapping the sticky bug with his back turned to everyone. This was followed by him 'accidentally' tripping, pressing the translucent bug into the back of Saguru's heel before Shinichi helped himself up, shrugging off assistance with a carefully childlike smile.


Let's start by you telling me what you really saw that night, Mr. Fenton.

As Danny flew high through the night skies of the Beika district, heading in what he hoped was the direction of a now abandoned, burned out building that Akai Yorinoko was supposed to have had a hand in destroying, his mind was half on his mission and half on how he could get the rather dogged Saguru Hakuba off of his heels. He was very careful to keep himself invisible as he continued to soar at a high altitude, looking down at the ground and trying to make sure that he didn't overshoot his target. Of course, this little gambit also depended on luck...depended on the man who had died in that fire sticking around after his death.

I told you what I saw!

No, Mr. Fenton. You didn't tell us what you saw; you took an assumption that Detective Takagi made and ran with it- a little too eagerly, I might add. I just played along.

"Should've known that he let me off too easy at first," Danny muttered under his breath as he landed in what he hoped was the correct abandoned building, staying intangible and invisible so he could look around without fear of being spotted or knocking things over. As he continued to survey the damage, he nodded to himself. Burn marks on the walls and scorched stuff everywhere...this looks like the place, all right. Even with only the somewhat dull streetlamp light to help him, he could still see several skeletons of warped, twisted metal filing cabinets and large, rusty metal desks in the neatly spaced rooms that told the tale of what the place used to be. From what they'd been able to find in newspapers it had been a small office complex until a fire had roared through with strange intensity and burned up everything in the place- including an unfortunate janitor who had been working an unusually late shift that evening. The fire had been ruled an arson, though the police didn't suspect that the janitor's death had been intended at all.

It was someone in white, just like I said.

I don't think it was someone, Mr. Fenton. I'm beginning to suspect that it was something...

"Who are you? What do you want?"

Danny jumped slightly at the male voice issuing from the Babelfish in his pocket before he remembered that he had it with him. He then looked around for the source of the ghostly-sounding voice that had triggered the translation in the first place, growing a little frustrated when he didn't see anything. He began turning himself in a slow circle, eyes still darting around the building searching as he mentally prepared for a fight, if it came to it. "I'm looking for Masato Hayagawa. I need to talk to him about something."

"You mean Akai doin' a swandive through his window?" This was followed by bitter, spectral laughter before a ghost shimmered into appearance in front of Danny, a slightly plump middle-aged man still wearing the janitorial uniform he'd died in. His hardened eyes looked Danny up and down warily, the ghostly mop he was carrying slung over his shoulder. "Who are you, and what're you lookin' for me for?"

"My name is Phantom- Danny Phantom. And I was trying to find out more about Akai Yorinoko's death, actually." He kept his tone even, hoping that this ghost would be at least somewhat cooperative. There was a silence that lingered for several moments after the Babelfish finished translating.

"You're tryin' to help that guy they arrested then? Suziboshi Takeo?" Masato's stance relaxed a little as he asked the question curiously, the mop sliding down his arm until the mop end met the floor.

Danny nodded, hoping that the relaxation was a good sign. "I'm going to try. I saw a ghost fly out of him- I know that he was overshadowed. I'm trying to figure out who did it."

"Got ya." Masato nodded in approval and shrugged before beginning to 'mop' the floor, apparently purely out of impulse or habit. "G' luck with that, and I really mean that. Everyone that knew him hated the bastard."

"I've kind of noticed." Danny sighed, feeling like he was getting nowhere in a hurry. "So you haven't heard anything, I guess."

"Nope, sorry. I'd help if I could- guy doesn't deserve to be in prison when he didn't do it." He then stopped mopping long enough to turn and face Danny. "I didn't do it, if you're wondering. It was my fault that I was here so late that night. I kinda caught a nap for an hour or two and had to make up the time...I shoulda been long gone by the time the place went up." Masato shrugged. "I don't think he meant me- or anyone else- to actually be killed or hurt." He suddenly seemed to get an idea, brightening a little and snapping his fingers. "You could ask the guy with the top hat!"

Guy with a top hat? Lemme guess... "Does he dress entirely in white?"

"Naw, not that guy. The ghost that travels with him sometimes." He went back to mopping the floor. "Wears the same kinda hat though."