AN: Chapter eight is here! We're now beyond the territory of chapter one, all caught up and moving forward into the future! I hope everyone's excited, because I know I am! As always, thanks for reading, and please leave a review if you could be so kind!
Twist of Fate
Chapter Eight
Hattori Heiji
The first thing Shinichi was struck by when he went looking for information in regards to Hattori Heiji, the missing high school detective from Osaka, was just how much that Kaname brat looked like him. It was enough to give him a brief moment of pause- before he concluded that the two of them obviously had to be related. There was, after all, no reason to suspect that a seventeen year old and a seven year old could be the same person.
Especially not one half as bratty as that kid had been. Even now, Shinichi was still annoyed by it.
True to Shiho's word, any mention of the Osakan high school detective had suddenly stopped around three months ago, when he was supposedly given the poison known as Apotoxin. He'd scoured the papers looking for any trace of him, but had turned up no results. Reading through the newspaper articles that he could find in regards to him, he was able to shape something of a picture about the one the media had dubbed as his rival. Who he had, admittedly, never heard of himself before now, and honestly felt a little bit bad about it. Especially when he considered that there was a high chance that his fellow high school detective was now dead, cut down far too early in his life.
From his photos, he couldn't help but feel that he had an altogether more easygoing, carefree vibe than Shinichi had himself. It appeared that he was quite skilled at kendo, and there was a brief mention of him being able to ride a motorcycle in one of the articles. All in all, he sounded like an interesting person- one that he probably would have actually liked to have met when he was alive.
No, no. He was investigating this lead on the off chance that he might still be alive, after all. He knew that was what Shiho was hoping for- that her sister might have survived, considering that no body had ever been found. Considering that there had been no news coverage of Heiji's supposed death, it was entirely possible that he was still alive- and if that was the case, it meant only good things for the missing Miyano Akemi.
If it was true that he was still alive, then he might very well be in hiding somewhere. It would be bad news if the men who had tried to kill him found out that he was still alive, after all. With his father being the chief of Osaka's police force, disappearing would probably be something of a simple task. From what he understood of Hattori Heizo, he was a formidable man, someone who rivaled even his own father. Even if his son really was dead, Shinichi could only imagine that the man would become a valuable ally should he approach him with the truth.
Making a trip to Osaka should be something he should plan on doing in the near future, he thought to himself. Obviously not this weekend- he already had plans with Ran, after all. She would never forgive him if he passed them off to dart off on some kind of case, even if it was one that was rather important. Besides that, as much as he had tried to downplay it to Shiho, he was actually looking a bit forward to this trip to the amusement park- even if Sonoko was also coming along with them.
Eyes carefully studying the photograph of Heiji displayed on the monitor of his laptop, Shinichi carefully studied every feature, etching his face into his memory. It was a rather hard one to miss. Blue eyes stared back at him, and once again, for a brief moment, Shinichi couldn't help but be struck by how much they looked like those that Kaname possessed, taking note of the unusually long eyelashes, and the thick eyebrows that went with them. Recalling the pair's own Osakan accent, he couldn't help but wonder if they perhaps knew Heiji- if Kaname was related to him as he suspected he was, then it was entirely possible.
That girl that had been with him had been something of a detective in her own right, even though she'd stumbled over her own deduction in a few places while telling it to the Inspector. Had she picked up such a thing from Heiji, then? Judging from the way that Kaname was talking to him, he couldn't help but wonder if he was comparing him to the one dubbed as the high school detective of the west. That would explain that challenging look that the child had leveled at him, now that he thought about it.
As much as he never wanted to see that brat again, Shinichi had to admit that starting with those two- with Kaname, and that Kazuha girl, would be the best place. That other girl with them, the slightly older child- it was possible that she also knew something as well. Briefly wondering what her relationship to the pair was, Shinichi leaned back in his chair, closing his eyes.
There was something about that braid and glasses look that tugged at his memory, but he couldn't quite think of why that was. Perhaps he'd understand it better the next time that he saw her. Until then, all he could really do was keep pouring through articles, looking for any information about the one known as Hattori Heiji.
Who hopefully, wasn't actually dead.
"Is it really alright if I go with you?" It felt as if it was the hundredth time that she had asked the question, but really, she felt as if she was intruding. Nanako had tried to turn them down at first, wanting instead to spend her Sunday searching for any traces of her sister, but they had both been insistent on the matter. She needed to get out of the house for a little while, and try and at least relax for one day. As worried as she was, turning herself into a withdrawn ball of stress simply wasn't good for her- and she had to admit that they were right.
"Of course it's okay!" Kaname reassured her, flashing her a broad grin. "We got three passes after all!"
"That's right." Kazuha said with a nod, glancing down at the girl who sat by her side. She was sandwiched in between the middle of them, Kaname having slid into the window seat of the bus before anyone could really stop him, his eyes fixed on the streets of Tokyo as they passed them by. "You don't have ta worry about a thing, Nanako-chan. Just try an' enjoy yerself as much as ya can fer today."
"Thank you." Giving the two of them a small smile, Nanako couldn't help but wonder how long it had been since she had someone in her life to worry about her other than her sister. Probably not since Dai had been in her life, really, unthinkingly using the name she already knew was not his real one. It was what she had come to know him as, so she really couldn't help it.
Sometimes, she couldn't help but wonder what he was doing right now. Most likely something dangerous, given his line of work.
Not that she couldn't say that she wasn't in a dangerous situation herself. Really, it was amazing how at ease Kaname seemed sometimes, knowing as he did that if the truth came to light, that if people learned that he was really Hattori Heiji, that it could put himself and everyone around him in danger. Maybe being the son of Osaka's highest ranking police officer provided him with some comfort, and even Nanako had to admit that residing in such a house did allow her to relax somewhat. Hattori Heizo was a very competent, intelligent man, that much she had gathered, so to have him as an ally was invaluable to her.
Perhaps it was simply just a difference in their personalities. Kaname never did seem to be the type to let things like worries and anxieties weight him down. Perhaps it would be good for her to learn a thing or two from him, in spite of being his elder.
"There's nothin' ta thank us for!" Kaname told her, not pulling his gaze away from the window, even as he waved a dismissive hand back towards Nanako. "We're in the same boat, so we've got ta look out fer each other, right? 'Sides, I haven't been ta an amusement park in awhile, it'll be fun."
"Well, hopefully yer still tall enough to ride the rides." Kazuha's teasing voice finally drew his attention away from the window, fierce blue eyes set in a glower at her words.
"Like I said, I'm not that short!" Folding his arms in front of his chest, Kaname huffed. "The only kid in my class taller than me is Kenta!"
"Yes, yes, that's true." Kazuha said, nodding her head. Well, even if that were true, she couldn't help but stack him up against his real height- and in that regard yes, her childhood friend was now quite tiny indeed. "Well, I do want ya ta try an' have fun, Nanako-chan. I know yer worried about yer sister, but it's good fer the brain ta take a chance ta relax every once in awhile. I mean, just look at Kaname-kun. He's always relaxin' his brain when he isn't workin' on a case."
"What's that supposed to mean, Kazuha?" Shooting her another dirty look, Kaname's brows furrowed together. "I'm always thinkin' hard, idiot!"
"Really?" Kazuha asked, a skeptical tone to her voice. "Ya could have fooled me."
"Come now, don't fight you two." Nanako spoke up, glancing between the two of them. She knew full well by now that their usual bickering really didn't amount to much- she just didn't want to be caught in the middle of it when she was sitting between the two of them. She wondered if they would get angry if she remarked upon how alike they could be sometimes, and wisely decided against it. "See, isn't that Tropical Land just ahead? It looks like we're nearly there."
"Oh, yer right!" Kaname observed, turning his attention out the window again. "I wasn't expectin' much, but it looks bigger than I was thinkin'! I'm kinda excited now!"
When Sonoko sent her a message telling her that she couldn't make it, because something had suddenly come up, Ran could only heave a long sigh. Thinking back on it, there had been a slightly suspicious glint to her eyes when she had offered her the tickets in the first place- she really should have seen something like this coming. At this point, one would think that she would know all the warning signs that were attached to Sonoko's ploys, having gone through any number of them.
Honestly. Between constantly calling Shinichi her 'husband' and her attempts to bring them closer together by inviting them somewhere and then suddenly ditching them like this, it was if Sonoko thought that she was in love with Shinichi. He was just a mystery geek, who would fall in love with someone like him?
She would, Ran admitted to herself after a moment, heaving a long sigh. As much as she tried to deny it, she was fully aware that at some point, feelings other than friendship for him had blossomed inside of her chest. Sometimes she really didn't understand what it was that she saw in him- but then she saw that face he made upon solving a case, and she knew all at once how she had fallen so hard.
"Ran!" Picking up Shinichi's voice from the crowd, Ran turned her eyes towards him, deciding to put such thoughts aside for the moment. She couldn't help but wonder if Shinichi had suspected Sonoko's true intentions behind inviting them to Tropical Land today. "Sorry, I made you wait. I got a bit held up on the bus." He told her, giving her a small smile, before glancing around in confusion. "Oh? Is Sonoko not here yet?"
"She can't make it, apparently. She just messaged me earlier." Ran told him. "It seems like it's just going to be the two of us."
"What, again?" Shinichi blinked. This was hardly the first time Sonoko had flaked out on them like this- he was starting to suspect that she was doing this on purpose. Still, at the prospect of exploring Tropical Land with only Ran by his side, he felt his heart rate quicken, the faintest tint of red just brushing his cheeks. "Well, if that's the case, I guess it can't be helped. It would be a waste to not use the tickets that we've been given, after all."
"That's right." Nodding her head, Ran placed a hand over the strap of her bag. "Shall we go, Shinichi? It's already starting to get a little crowded, it looks like. Although we'll have the park more or less to ourselves when night comes. I'm kind of excited for the preview party! I've never been to one before."
"Neither have I." Shinichi admitted. "I wonder if we're dressed alright for it." He noted, glancing down at the rather casual hoodie and jeans that he had picked out that morning, wondering if perhaps he had gone too casual.
"Ah, now that you mention it..." Ran trailed off, glancing down at her own outfit, giving something of a sheepish laugh. "Well, it can't be helped right? I'm sure there will be other people who dressed for a day of playing at the amusement park instead of a formal party besides us. It'll probably be fine."
"You're right. There's no point in worrying about it now." Giving her an easy grin, Shinichi agreed. "The owner of Tropical Land and his wife are supposed to be at the party, right?" He asked, turning on his heel to start heading towards the entrance gates, pulling out his ticket as he did so.
"Yeah, so I've heard." Ran told him, quickly following behind him, likewise pulling out her own ticket. As they handed them to the person at the booth, they were given a pair of wristbands to strap around their wrists- one that were a slightly different color from the usual, she realized. It probably recognized them as party guests. "I've seen pictures of his wife before. She's really beautiful! It's a shame that she doesn't speak much Japanese."
"She's Korean, right?" Shinichi asked, briefly recalling having read that somewhere. "Well, getting to ride the new attraction before anyone else does have me a little bit excited. Maybe it's for the best that we came dressed the way we are though. Can you imagine people in formal wear trying to ride a roller coaster?"
At the slight snort that earned from Ran, Shinichi's own grin couldn't help but grow. Maybe Sonoko's ploy to get them alone together wasn't really a bad one after all. For once, he was determined to have this be a fun day between the two of them- no murders, no kidnappings, no shady men in black, nothing to get in the way of the two of them spending time together and enjoying each others company.
Hopefully fate would let it work out that way.
"Well, well, well!"
All at once, Shinichi recognized that voice, and all at once, he grimaced at the sound of it. He'd only heard it once before, but the owner of it had managed to plant a pretty solid impression of himself in his head, so it was rather hard to forget. The heavy Osakan accent certainly helped matters.
Heaving the longest sigh of his life, Shinichi slowly turned around, coming face to face with none other than the Kaname brat- and had to fight the urge to audibly groan. Granted, he'd been planning to go to Osaka himself and meet with the child, who resembled the missing high school detective of the west too much for them not to be related somehow, but it wasn't as if he wanted to randomly run into him when he was trying to have a fun day with Ran.
Accompanying him were the same pair from the other day- the ponytailed teenager whose name had been given as Kazuha, and the slightly older girl with glasses, whose name had been given as Nanako. With a broad grin spread out on Kaname's face, it was clear that at the very least, he was excited about this sudden encounter. The two girls who flanked his sides looked considerably more surprised. Glancing down at their wrists, Shinichi sucked in his breath, realizing that their wristbands were the same color as his and Ran's- in other words, they too, were guests at tonight's party.
"If it isn't the detective of the east himself!" Kaname beamed, folding his arms in front of him. He thought that cowlick had looked somewhat familiar, so he'd taken the chance of calling out to him- and had been delighted to learn his instincts had been on the mark. Maybe this was some kind of fate, given that he hadn't had the chance to ask him the questions that he wanted the last time they had met. "Ya on a date or somethin'?"
At the way the pair of them turned a bright red shade, each of them mutually squeaking, Kaname was pretty convinced he'd hit the mark. Glancing over at the girl by Shinichi's side, he looked her up and down, memorizing the appearance of the one he filed away in his head as 'Kudo's girl'.
"Come now, Kaname-kun, don't tease them." Kazuha lightly scolded him, before giving a small smile towards the pair. "It's nice ta see ya again, Kudo-kun. I'm sorry about this kid. He really doesn't think before he speaks."
"No, no, it's quite alright." Shinichi said quickly, casting a smile towards her. As ineffectual a babysitter as she seemed to be, he didn't doubt that dealing with the first grade brat in question was nothing short of a huge hassle, so he couldn't help but feel a little bit sympathetic. "It's fine. This is my childhood friend, Mouri Ran, by the way. And we're not on a date."
"It's a pleasure." Ran told them, feeling the heat that had risen up in her cheeks slowly die down a bit. She didn't recognize the group at all, but judging from the description that she had gotten from Shinichi of that bothersome child who had messed around with the crime scene, she was able to come to a guess in regards to who the trio was.
"No, no, the pleasure's mine." Kazuha said. "I'm Toyama Kazuha, an' these two are Tsukiyama Kaname an' Hanasaki Nanako. I'm lookin' after the pair of them today."
"Not very well." Shinichi muttered underneath his breath, something which earned him a sharp elbow to the side courtesy of Ran, whose expression barely even shifted. "Well, it's quite nice to see you again, Toyama-san! Judging from the color of your wristbands, it seems like you're here for the same debut party as we are."
"That's right!" Kaname was the one who spoke up again, having caught notice of the wristbands already. "It looks like it's fate that we met again, Kudo!"
Briefly wondering if the child before him even knew how honorifics or speaking to his elders even worked, Shinichi fought off the beginnings of a headache. "Coincidence, surely." He said dryly.
"Come now, Shinichi, don't be that way." Ran lightly chided him, before she knelt down in front of Kaname, reaching out her hand to ruffle his hair. When that earned her a rather grumpy expression, she couldn't help but chuckle a little. Shinichi had described him as a bothersome brat, but all she could see was a cute, slightly rambunctious child. "I heard that you met Shinichi at a crime scene before, Kaname-kun. You must have been very brave to deal with that without getting scared."
"There's nothin' that scary about crime scenes." Quirking a brow, briefly befuddled by her statement, it took Kaname a moment to recall that he was in fact, a child at the moment. "W-well, bein' scared of that kind of thing is fer babies anyways! I'm already seven years old, I don't have anythin' ta be afraid of anymore!"
"His relatives work with the police." Nanako said smoothly, a graceful smile on her face, covering up for where he had faltered. "It appears that he's always been rather curious about that sort of thing ever since he was much younger. It's nice to meet you, Ran-neesan."
Her eyes briefly lighting up at the neesan attached to her name, Ran turned her attention to the young girl this time. For a moment, there was something that tugged at her memory, as if it weren't the first time that she had met this girl- but she quickly put it out of her mind. Shinichi had described all three of them to her, after all, so it wasn't that strange that she might feel that way. "No, the pleasure's all mine, Nanako-chan."
Rising to her feet, Ran turned towards Kazuha, her bright smile not faltering in the least. "I heard that you helped solve that case, Toyama-san. That's amazing, you know."
"Ah, no, it's was really nothin'." Kazuha said quickly, shaking her head, ignoring the pleased look that Ran's words earned from Kaname. One would think that he might be somewhat upset at having to give credit for a case that he solved to someone else, but it appeared that when that someone else was his childhood friend, he really didn't mind it all that much. "There's no way I could just let the culprit walk free, knowin' who he was, right?"
That sounded suitably detective-like to say, Kazuha thought to herself. Honestly, how had she gotten herself into this mess? The less people who knew about it the better- she didn't want to get a reputation for being as much of a mystery idiot as Heiji was!
"An' just Kazuha is fine, ya know." She added after a moment. Somehow, she couldn't help but get the impression that she really liked Ran, however much they had only just met.
"Then, Kazuha-chan it is!" Clapping her hands, Ran beamed almost from ear to ear. "You can call me Ran as well. Ah, but since the three of you are already here," she began, ignoring the audible groan that she heard from Shinichi, who obviously knew where she was about to go with this. "...would you like to explore the park with us?"
It was true that she would be a little bit sad to see her time alone with Shinichi was coming to an end, but when it came to amusement parks, it was the more the merrier, right? Besides, she was curious about Kazuha, especially now that she had actually met her in person. She got the feeling that she was someone that she would be able to get along well with.
"Oh, that sounds real fun, Neechan!" Kaname spoke up, all but butting his head into the conversation. Briefly, Shinichi couldn't help but notice the way that Kazuha bristled at the words neechan coming out of the kid's mouth- probably because she couldn't get him to call her that, he suspected. "We'd love ta, right, Kazuha?"
"Well, since yer offering." Kazuha said with a small smile. "What about you, Nanako-chan? Are ya okay with this?"
It was a loaded question, but Shinichi and Ran had no way of knowing that. Heiji had told her that the detective that Nanako had contacted in Tokyo to locate her missing heist partner was none other than Kudo Shinichi, so she didn't want to risk taking an action that might put her true identity at risk. Granted, she didn't get any bad feelings from Shinichi, and Kaname was already considering trying to bring him into the fold himself, but she didn't want to push her to do anything that she didn't want to do.
"It's sounds fun, Kazuha-neesan." Nanako told her, a polite smile on her face. Given that the detective hadn't yet recognized her, she didn't suspect that he would, at least not on his own, at any rate. It would probably be just fine- if anything, turning the offer down might be more suspicious. "Thank you for the kind offer, Ran-neesan."
"No, think nothing of it. Amusement parks are best enjoyed when together!" Turning back on her heel, glancing at Shinichi, the smile on her face warning him that there would be consequences if he put up a fight. "It's alright with you, right, Shinichi?"
"Y-yeah." Slowly nodding his head, doing his best to put on a smile, knowing full well that it was rather strained. The last thing he wanted to do was to earn Ran's wrath, having known her long enough to know when to pick his battles with her, and when to give up. "Sounds fun, Ran."
As he watched Kaname light up like a Christmas tree, a wide grin that nearly went from ear to ear on his face, Shinichi could only wonder what he had done so wrong in his life to deserve this. He didn't know who had raised this kid, but they had obviously done something wrong somewhere with him- if only he was half as polite as the prim and proper Nanako.
Which was, he admitted, a little bit strange in and of itself. He'd pegged her as fourth grader last time, but he couldn't help but wonder if she was actually older than that, and perhaps just didn't look her age. He had very little doubts about Kaname, on the other hand- the boy himself had willingly given out his age as seven, which more or less was around what he thought it was.
Well, since they were all here, at the very least he could try and find some time later today to ask them about Hattori Heiji. Not while Ran was still in earshot- he didn't want to risk her overhearing anything in regards to his investigation of the Organization. The less she knew, the safer she was- Shiho had been rather implicit about that. She was even against him telling his parents about it, even though she admitted that she had heard of Kudo Yuusaku's reputation before.
Perhaps if it turned out that the high school detective of the west really was still alive, then Shinichi would be able to start working with him in regards the Organization. If he really had survived the poison somehow, then Shinichi didn't doubt that he was already trying to chase their shadow, much like he was. Everything that he'd read about the young man in question told him that this was most likely the case- he'd been described as hotblooded, quick tempered, but above all else, as a clever young man with a quick wit and strong sense of justice (he'd also been described as being 'afflicted by the occult', a description which baffled Shinichi).
Of course, now that he'd seen him in person once again, Shinichi couldn't help but be struck by just how strong the resemblance was between the missing Heiji and Kaname. It was even greater than he'd thought it was, the two of them near mirror images, save for age. It struck him as curious, that much was true- but it wasn't as if the child in front of him was somehow none other than Hattori Heiji himself. That would simply be absurd.
After all, there was no way this brat was anything but the child that he looked. Even if he hadn't so much batted an eye at that woman's corpse. Which, now that he thought about it for a moment, was actually a bit odd. Children normally weren't that indifferent to seeing dead bodies, and he had unfortunate cause to know that much. He had already had to deal with a sobbing, frantic trio of children on his doorstep who told them they had found a corpse while searching for a lost cat, and that was how he had come to expect children to react to finding a body.
"Don't just stand there like a dead tree, Kudo! The line's movin' already!" Kaname's voice broke his thoughts, as the child tugged on his hand, trying to get him to move up. Shinichi couldn't help but take note of the calluses on his hands as he did so- from kendo, perhaps? "Let's go!"
Yeah, there was no way this kid was anything but a kid, Shinichi thought to himself, begrudgingly allowing himself to be pulled along.
When Shinichi had asked her about Heiji out of nowhere, Kazuha had very nearly dropped her drink, thanking all the powers that be that the person himself was nowhere near hearing range at the moment. He had gone into the hall of mirrors, alongside Ran and Nanako, leaving Shinichi and Kazuha to busy themselves with getting lunch for the rest of them. They had been able to do so in short order, and just in time too, since the food court of the park quickly began filling up not long after they sat down. Shinichi had been right to suggest it.
But now she couldn't help but feel that he'd done it to get her alone.
"Of course I know him." Kazuha said finally, giving him a quick grin, hoping that he hadn't picked anything up from her. "The two of us have been together since we were babies, after all. But why are ya askin' about him all of a sudden?"
"I was reading about him the other day, actually." Shinichi told her. Judging from her reaction, this girl probably knew something. Briefly he couldn't help but recall the way she'd stumbled through her deduction in places, unable to help but wonder if she'd actually gotten it from someone else- like from her childhood friend. "I couldn't help but notice how much Kaname-kun looked like him, so I suspected that they might have been related."
"Ah, yeah." Slowly nodding her head, Kazuha didn't quite buy that story. She might not be a detective herself, but even she could sniff out when something seemed fishy. "Heiji is Kaname-kun's relative. They really do look a lot alike, don't they? He's been gettin' comments like that ever since he came ta live with me, actually. Well, he's pretty fond of him, so it's not like it really bothers him all that much." Ending her sentence with a laugh, she hoped it was enough to throw him off.
"He's living with you?" Shinichi asked, biting back his urge to finish that question with 'my sympathies'. Over the course of the past few hours, the impression that he had gotten of Kaname had not changed much- if anything, it had gotten worse. An impulsive, hotheaded child who didn't seem to listen to anyone, who didn't seem to have any idea as to how social tact even worked. Who even raised this kid?
"Yes." Nodding her head, Kazuha gave him a small smile. "His parents moved overseas recently, so they left him in our care fer the time bein'. He didn't want ta leave Osaka."
"Hmm." Shinichi couldn't help but frown slightly, before moving back to the topic at hand. Kaname wasn't what he wanted to focus on here. "I couldn't help but notice that Hattori-kun hasn't been doing much lately. Since around three months ago, actually. Did something happen? Did he get hurt or something?"
"Ah, well..." Trailing off a little, wondering what she was supposed to say to that kind of question, she almost let out a breath of relief as she caught sight of the other three returning out of the corner of her eye. "Looks like they're back already!" Quickly cutting off any further conversation, Kazuha got to her feet, waving her hand to catch their attention. "Kaname-kun! Nanako-chan! Ran-chan! Over here!"
"Thanks for saving us a space, the two of you." Ran told them as she approached, blissfully unaware of the mood between the two of them. "It looks like it got pretty busy here."
Kaname, however, took one look at the expression on Kazuha's face, instantly recognizing it for what it was, and his eyes quickly narrowed, turning a sharp gaze towards Shinichi. The serious expression on his face was at total odds with how young it looked, an expression that didn't suit a child. Had that guy been saying something weird to Kazuha? He knew that look on her face all too well. Even if he had found that his rival was an interesting person who he was eager to get to know better, if he had been saying something to upset Kazuha then he'd deal with him himself, their current height difference be damned.
It was an expression that gave Shinichi considerable pause. That was definitely the kind of look he'd never seen on a child's face before, and for the briefest of moments, he almost felt half-intimidated by it- before he remembered that he was pretty sure that he could tuck this child underneath his arm and carry him around, no problem.
"No, no, it's no problem." Kazuha said, shaking her head, before her gaze darted down towards Kaname, quickly taking note of his expression- and something else beyond that. "Oh? What's with this bump on yer head, Kaname-kun?" She asked, kneeling down in front of him, brushing his bangs out of the way.
"He walked into one of the mirrors." Nanako dutifully reported, sliding into her seat. "Twice, actually."
And then, in an instant, gone was the unusually serious expression on his face, replaced by a flustered and angry look, one that he directed towards the shrunken woman. "Don't tell her somethin' like that, idiot!"
"Geez, ya gotta be more careful." Kazuha frowned, checking him over carefully for any other signs of injuries, even as he grumbled and fussed underneath her touch. She ignored it- if Shinichi was starting to ask questions about Heiji for some reason, then she didn't need to give him any reason to suspect that this child was anything but a real child. It was time to put on her best concerned older sister act, even if she knew Kaname didn't like it. He'd understand when she explained it to him later. "Well, ya don't look too hurt, Kaname-kun, but let me know if yer head starts hurtin'."
"Geez, yer not my mom, Kazuha." Kaname grumbled, breaking away from her touch to pull himself up in his chair. "It's just a little bump. Don't treat me like a baby cause of it."
"Sorry, sorry. I just worry about ya." Kazuha told him- and that much was the truth, really. Sometimes she worried that in spite of having three months to adjust to it, he didn't really understand just how small he was now. It was something that was likely to get him into trouble somewhere along the line. "Anyways, since we're all here, let's dig in, shall we?"
With slightly narrowed eyes, Shinichi considered Kazuha for a long moment- before he cracked a smile, deciding to put the matter aside for the moment. He got the feeling that she was definitely hiding something in regards to Heiji- and judging from how she acted, he didn't think it was the fact that he was dead. She had described him as her childhood friend- if someone like that had suddenly been removed from her life, he doubted that she would be able to smile like she was. Nobody was that strong, not in the face of death. Had Heiji really survived somehow then? And if he had, did that mean that there was in fact, a chance that Miyano Akemi could still be alive?
There was unmistakably a mystery here, and it was one that Shinichi intended to get the bottom of. Whatever had happened to Hattori Heiji, wherever he might be, he intended to find out- because in doing so, he was certain he would gain himself an invaluable ally in his quest to bring down the shadowy Organization that haunted his thoughts. Whether that was Heiji himself, or perhaps his father, he couldn't say for certain yet.
And with any luck, he'd be able to reunite Shiho with her older sister. As the developer of the poison, nobody would know better than her if it were possible that someone could have survived it. She didn't say as much out loud, but it seemed that Shiho had something to back up her conviction. He hoped she was right, really. Nobody deserved such a cruel fate as having to live with the knowledge that their only family member had died by a poison that they had created.
"Oi, Kazuha! Those are my fries! If ya wanted some, ya could have just gotten some of yer own!" Kaname's loud voice broke Shinichi out of his thoughts, bringing him back to the here and now with a long suffering sigh. That was right. There were still questions he needed to ask of the kid himself- and that was a task that he wasn't looking forward to.
"I was the one who bought them in the first place, Kaname-kun~." Kazuha noted lightly, as she quickly snatched another fry from his container, stealing one last one before he protectively pulled it closer to him. "Therefore they're my fries just as much as yers!"
She'd have to make sure to tell him a bit later that Shinichi was asking questions about him. If they were going to involve Kudo Shinichi in all of this, it would be on their own terms, not his. That was, of course, if he hadn't already gotten himself involved- which was what Kazuha knew Kaname suspected.
Although, at the very least, this detective of the east didn't seem to quite be the type to believe that people shrinking was possible. Perhaps it was for the best that they kept it that way, until they knew where his interests really lay. Because it would be a cold day in hell before she let anyone dangerous anywhere near her childhood friend while he was in this state. No matter who they were, she'd take them all on.
Even if they were shady men clad in black, armed with dangerous things.
