A/N: Holy crap… I'm so sorry. I didn't even realize it's almost been a year since I last updated… Stupid me. Anyways, Happy Belated Birthday to Awesome D.T. and thanks for pushing me to update (I'm sorry I really didn't think it'd been that long… T_T)

I realize the pace of the story has been pretty slow so far so please let me know if you want to story to pick up the pace. IA's mostly just been doing some questioning so far but I promise there will be plenty of big revelations coming up (I hope XP)

Thanks for reading!

"So where are we going now?" Kaito asked as IA shut the door behind them.

"Rin mentioned that the teacher and the doctor had pictures of the crime scene, so I thought I'd go and see if they have anything else they can say about the murder. After that…" IA trailed off as she glanced up at the sky, the sun slowly sinking into the horizon. She was suddenly struck by how tired her legs were, having forgotten how long she'd had to walk to Shimori in the fresh excitement of starting a new case. "I think I'll head off to see the village chief, find out where I'm supposed to be staying and everything. He'll probably be able to tell you a bit about yourself too."

Kaito didn't respond. IA glanced over at him to find him staring up above, seemingly enraptured by the darkening skies, the heavy clouds illuminated in a brilliant fiery orange against the faded dark blue background. It was a sight IA had seen more than her fair share of, but seeing the amazement in Kaito's eyes at the sight of an average sunset somehow made the sky above them just a little bit more magical.

IA had to smile to herself a bit as she let Kaito enjoy the moment. There was something special about seeing someone look at something you took for granted as if it were the most amazing thing in the world. It had a certain childlike innocence that almost made her nostalgic for the days when she could wake up everyday looking forward to everything her day had in store for her. Almost nostalgic, because being nostalgic only led to remembering bad memories that IA wasn't about to deal with just yet.

For now she would rather settle with interrogating and talking to people.

It didn't take long for her and Kaito to arrive at the doctor's house, and Dr. Kamui was quick to invite Kiyoteru over when IA asked to see him. He was quick to return from his walk to Kiyoteru's house, reporting that the young teacher would join them after he finished his work. IA didn't mind, having wanted to chat with the doctor first anyways. From what IA could tell, Dr. Kamui was also a city-person, serious with his work and sincere with his friends, and very much frustrated about not knowing the truth.

"How long have you been working here?" IA asked, sitting down at the table in the living room of the doctor's house, admiring how neat and tidy the small home was kept.

"Almost two years, ever since I got out of medical school," Dr. Kamui replied, setting down two glasses of water for IA and Kaito. "Kiyoteru invited me here. Said he was going back home to be a teacher and asked if I'd be interested in becoming the village doctor."

"I'm guessing you don't like the city that much?"

"The city's nice and all, but I do like a nice breath of fresh air once in a while," Dr. Kamui replied with a small smile, sitting down with the two while tucking a strand of hair behind his ear. He was wearing more casual clothes than when IA first met him, trading his white lab coat for a black turtleneck, his lengthy purple hair let down from his ponytail, giving the doctor a softer yet serious look. His smile quickly vanished as he commented, "Though never in my life would I have imagined having to deal with a murder."

"No one expects it," IA said. "It sounds like you dealt with it pretty well though."

"I tried my best," Dr. Kamui replied with a small smile. "I haven't been here long of course so I guess it didn't impact me as much as it did the others. I think Kiyoteru took it pretty hard since he came back here because he kept saying how he sometimes regrets leaving the village ten years ago."

"Ten years ago? When Kaito disappeared?" IA asked, quick to notice the detailed timestamp of Kiyoteru's leave from the village.

Dr. Kamui frowned and shrugged. "Maybe? Luka did mention something about Kiyoteru running away from something but like I said, I wouldn't know."

IA noted the slightly bitter tone in the doctor's voice. She decided it best to change the topic and asked, "I was talking with Rin and she mentioned that you should have pictures of the crime scene?"

"Ah yeah, that," Dr. Kamui sighed, turning around and fumbling through a drawer before producing a thick folder. "They're not professional quality of course but we did what we could in case someone needed to see them. I hope you've got a strong stomach."

IA recalled the scene Kaito had recreated and silently agreed. If the murder scene had looked gruesome in ice, it'd only be worse in reality. She opened the folder and glanced briefly through the pictures, mostly just to check if what she'd investigated in Len's room matched the pictures taken. Remembering how Kaito had shrieked and hidden behind her back in Len's room, she made sure to keep the pictures out of Kaito's sight as the doctor distracted Kaito by asking how he was feeling.

As Dr. Kamui had said, the pictures weren't of great quality, but then again, she doubted anyone without training would be able to calmly take a picture of Len's mutilated body. It was just as she remembered, only this time with real flesh and blood reflected in the pictures. They betrayed nothing out of the ordinary so IA chose to quickly close the folder again, almost glad she had Kaito's magical abilities rather than the actual corpse to deal with. She might've been more comfortable with the dead than most people, but even she couldn't quite stomach the sight of Len's murder scene.

Handing the folder back to Dr. Kamui, IA's eyes drifted back to Kaito, who had begun to walk around the room, again with a confused look. She asked, "Are you remembering something again?"

"No, it's just, this room looks familiar, but it feels unfamiliar too. Like this place was important, but it doesn't feel right," Kaito said, his hand running along the edge of his chair as if looking for something familiar in the woodwork.

"That's probably because Gakupo's been living here for a while, so it's different from how you remember."

IA looked up to see Kiyoteru walking in, hanging up his coat on the coat rack and waving at them. She asked, "Do none of the houses here have locks?"

"Nah, we all know each other well so we just come and go as we please," Kiyoteru smiled. His expression quickly sobered up as he continued, "Though with Len's death there's been a lot more tension around here for sure."

IA processed the thought quickly before deciding there was little she could do with that information now. After all, the Kagamine house had been filled with people at the time of Len's death. Anyone entering the house would've been seen for sure. She continued, "Well going back to what you said. What's the importance of this house?"

Kiyoteru took a moment to sit down at the table. Scratching his head, he replied, "Well, this used to be where Kaito lived with his parents."

"I used to live here?" Kaito repeated, looking round more intently. Brow still furrowed, he suddenly asked, "So then where are my parents?"

Kiyoteru bit his bottom lip, a shadow crossing his face as he hesitated. Finally, he replied in a soft voice, "I'm sorry Kaito, but they passed away a few years ago."

The hopeful look in Kaito's eyes died immediately. He stared down at his tightly crossed hands for a while before shakily saying, "I—I see. I mean, I don't remember them so I guess I don't feel that sad but… but…"

Kaito's bottom lip began to tremble. Immediately, Dr. Kamui got up and put a reassuring hand on his shoulder, inviting Kaito to get up and follow him into the patient's room, probably to give him some privacy and offer some support. IA watched them go quietly, her mind suddenly flashing back to when she was in Kaito's position, only without a doctor or really anyone at all.

Kiyoteru's sigh brought IA back to the present. She took note of his solemn look and asked, "There's more to that, isn't there?"

Kiyoteru shot IA a glare that was probably justified, considering how easily IA had busted his previous lie to Kaito. He changed the subject and asked, "Did you want something?"

"Mind if I ask about what Len was like while he was alive?" IA asked, choosing to follow Kiyoteru's lead and not press the issue any further for now.

Kiyoteru stopped in the middle of taking off his glasses and frowned. "Haven't you asked his friends yet? They'd know more about him than I would."

"Well I want to know what your opinion of Len was like," IA replied.

Kiyoteru eyed the detective carefully before tilting his head back to look at the ceiling, wiping his glasses lenses with the bottom of his shirt. IA noted the weary look in the young teacher's eyes as he let out a long sigh and finally put his glasses back on. Hesitantly, Kiyoteru started, "Len… was a lot different as a kid."

"What do you mean?" IA inquired.

"He wasn't exactly the most sociable kid when he was younger. He had this kind of… coldness to him," Kiyoteru explained hesitantly. "I know he was pretty popular with his friends before he died, but I can't help but feel like there's something wrong about him going from the cold, quiet kid he was to his outgoing popular teenage self."

"Could he just have grown out of his shyness?"

Kiyoteru shrugged. "Maybe, but I doubt it. From what I heard, Len's personality suddenly changed when he was a lot younger, probably around after I left the village, which makes me think Kaito's disappearance was probably the trigger. Which just doesn't make sense to me since the two of them were surprisingly good friends."

IA pondered the thought and had to agree. If what Kiyoteru was saying were true, she couldn't quite imagine how the disappearance of his best friend could turn Len from a quiet kid to the outgoing teenager that she was being led to believe he'd been. Something was off about that process, a missing puzzle piece to the mystery that Len the victim himself seemed to be. What that was, IA had yet to discover, but for now, there were more mysteries surrounding her own suspects than the murder victim himself.

Continuing the conversation, IA asked, "How did Len and Kaito become good friends?"

"Oh, well, Len had a hard time socializing with his peers at the time, and Kaito visited one of my classes and they just… bonded," Kiyoteru replied, his eyes glancing away quickly as he finished his sentence.

IA cast Kiyoteru an unimpressed stare, which he returned with a slight quirk of his mouth as he gave a disheartened sigh. "Yes, I know, that's probably not the answer you were looking for, but I can't describe it too well myself. Kaito was never good with people but I guess he saw something in Len that made him open up, and that's what Len did in return. Friends aren't made through a clear cut process after all."

"True," IA conceded, though it'd been a long time since she'd considered anyone a close friend. Having noticed the smile creeping up on Kiyoteru's face as he began to talk about Kaito, IA said, "I'm guessing you were close to Kaito before he disappeared?"

Kiyoteru dipped his head down a little as he smiled at the statement. "We were all close to Kaito before he disappeared. We as in Meiko, Luka, and I. We're around the same age so we naturally grew up together as friends. When he disappeared, I…"

It was brief, but IA caught the frown that quickly fazed over Kiyoteru's face before he looked up again with a smile and continued with his words. "I'm just glad Kaito's back. None of us ever thought we'd see him again."

"Hmm," IA hummed in agreement. Seeing that the young teacher was back in a good mood, IA took a chance and said, "So what actually happened to Kaito's parents?"

Kiyoteru's eyes narrowed immediately, any sign of friendliness towards the detective again gone in an instant. He coldly replied, "That's not important to your investigation, is it? Why do you even want to know?"

IA remained unfazed. "I just think it's important to know the truth, and that includes learning about people and their relationships with those involved in the case."

"Well, the truth is that they've passed away," Kiyoteru said irritably, his eyes flitting away from IA briefly.

"But that's not the entire truth, is it?" IA pursued.

"Why does it matter?"

"Any small detail matters," IA rebutted, "and besides, I think Kaito deserves to know how his parents died so he can honor them properly."

"Oh, then do you want to be the one to tell him?" Kiyoteru suddenly asked, his voice dull and indignant.

IA felt a small chill run down her spine, strangely unnerved by the cold glint in Kiyoteru's eyes daring her to find the truth she had been hired to find. Not one to back away from the truth, she took in a deep breath and asked, "Tell him what?"

Kiyoteru's glare only hardened as he said with obvious spite, "That his parents committed suicide after he disappeared?"