Chapter 14: Stranger Friends

"First," the blond continued, putting a hand to his shoulder. "No more shooting me. That kind of hurt."

"Sorry." Conan didn't look or sound very sorry but then again that was nothing new. It wasn't like he really knew or it had been his fault. He didn't look all that injured so Kaito didn't care. "So what happened? Why are you here?"

"I had been at the agency. Ran-san had come down to thank me for bringing up a present, which I distinctly remembered not doing. I came to investigate a little further. Of course I was a little weary of the cupcakes she seemed to think had been from me, but they hadn't tasted like I should be running anyone to the hospital, so I figured they were from a client and left, winding up here about an hour after." The man spread one of his hands before him. "I'm assuming that this is some drug-based illusion from that – since nothing else particularly eventful happened to me in that time - but it all feels very real, so I've been at an impasse with myself whether or not it is. Seeing you now, when my mind is clear, leads me to believe it's not. I'd have imagined you up if I were in a more desperate situation earlier on. So I need to ask you what's going on."

Conan shrugged. "I ate a cupcake too. I was there when some girl popped out of no where, claiming this was all because of him." The boy pointed a finger back at him as if Kaito were an offending object now. "She says it's magic and, until proven otherwise, I can only take it as such. We've been trying to either beat the storyline of the game to get out or at least stay alive to have another friend of his, that he is hopeful will notice what's going on, rescue us."

"It's not like we have any other options so stop making me sound like an idiot."

"Right. You're just so clever that you make so many enemies that stuff like this happens." Conan waved his hand more. "Kuroba Kaito. And this is Hakuba Saguru and you met Heiji-niichan."

The man nodded. "Amuro Toru. Don't let the teeth fool you, I don't bite much."

Kaito had to snort at the bad joke, relaxing a bit. "How did you end up here? We were all in the forest quite a distance away."

Amuro shrugged. "It's not only me. Mouri-san and Ran-san were near me when I woke as well after all those configurations the game forced on me. Like this," There was a touch of distain to his words as he touched one of his ears. "I remember being shown lists and forced to pick between options before I could wake, though this 'werewolf' thing seems to be a bug."

Kaito shook his head. "Randomly generated when making a new character. 1:1000 chance. I guess you just got unlucky."

"So we woke already with the races we played." Conan put a hand to his chin. "Ran-neechan never played the game with me, so she never had a character. I doubt you and occhan were ever interested in it, so you didn't either. Having no race I suppose it took longer to mold you into this world. It's possible we just missed you."

"I woke in the forest though this town was close enough to see. Anything's possible." Amuro yawned, covering it. "Sorry, I've been up for a while. I hadn't planned on staying out as late as I did, but I smelled a bunch of others and had to check it out. You and a group of bandits seem to be in the area, so I'm going to go warn the others. Follow me."

"Wait, sir?" Hakuba spoke up, taking a step forward. "I'm sorry, I'm just rather curious. I thought I had most of this game's rules down but you don't seem to have the spell pouch that Conan-kun has and you're wearing no armor and have no weapons. If there is a group of bandits, maybe we should take them on."

The blond laughed. "Don't think too hard on it." He reached into his shirt and pulled out a little spell pouch that was hidden in there. "I had to figure out a way to keep something with me and I noticed, while I can't carry weapons, I do somehow manage to hold onto my clothes. These are leather too, so they work well enough as armor." He lifted his shirt, showing off an intertwining belt around his waist. Pulling at it a little, it came loose, showing off a whip. "Not the strongest weapon but one I'm good with. When I fight I typically keep my teeth and claws as long as the people here don't see me. That and I have this."

It was kind of funny, watching the look Hakuba had on his face when Amuro reached back into his shirt to replace the bag and pulled out a small flute.

"And that does-"

"He's a bard." Kaito raised an eyebrow. If there were one class he would never, ever pick to be unless he had a large group, it was a bard. They were terrible fighters on their own or even in smaller groups from what he noticed. "I suppose being able to turn into a wolf has helped with some of the disadvantages of that. Maybe you were lucky instead of unlucky."

"No." The blond smiled but it wasn't real, Kaito noticing when he looked up that he had bags under his eyes as if he hadn't slept in days. "Not lucky. I wish I had known what I was doing when I made some of my decisions but I based them on assets and not on the fact that I would have to be living with them. In any case, the bandits weren't much further off than you were, and I am hurt, so maybe it's a better idea that I stay back. You all know how to fight I take it?"

"Duh."

"Hurry up then. I'm sure the other two could take them on even without me, but there's likely not time and I am kind of interested. If you can't take on some bandits, I'd be worried."

"Might as well, if they're headed this way anyway. I doubt the people here like us much." Kaito put his hands behind his head, feeling very put off once more. There was something about this guy that was just… wrong. He didn't like it. "What's wrong with you?"

"Mmm, you'll have to be more specific than that. I'm not sure what you mean." The blond took off, clearly trying to get to the edge of town and not running away from the question so Kaito continued as the rest of them ran off with him.

"You look sick or tired. I didn't think that came with being a werewolf. And the city here, some of them have to have guessed what you are. I even said it aloud. They don't seem to care. Why?"

"Ah, that. I suppose that would be the history this game gave me. Apparently if I'm alone people are far more friendly with me than normal, so I try and stay in one form around them and, since I can spot danger first, I've been testing out my abilities here for the last week or so."

"I don't remember a background like that aside from his," Kaito pointed to Conan. "And a folk hero doesn't typically out you from the group like that."

"I choose 'haunted one.'"

Kaito winced. "Ouch."

"Yeah, but it's not all bad. I just get tired more than usual now and then when I have issues going to sleep – or staying asleep." He turned back and smiled as he walked. "I'm actually not that great off right now, which is why I won't be fighting."

"Well be fine. Its just bandits, right?"

Amuro nodded. "I'd say half a dozen or so, no more than ten. It's hard to tell when I had to keep my distance. I'm not as good sneaking around when I'm tired."

"We've been there, done that."

"Can I ask one more thing?" Hakuba was at his side, where he was behind Amuro, Conan stepping up his game and walking besides the man even as his legs were shorter. "Do you know if they're human?"

"No, they're elves. We haven't been getting a lot of human attackers. These bandits are good at hiding in the trees, so it's been hard to get rid of them permanently."

"They were also saying something about a monster."

"We tried taking that on. It… it didn't end well. If you all want to help it should be simple enough. I tend to be a liability in battle."

Kaito winced again, repeating himself. "Ouch."

"Yeah. It hurt me more than it hurt them but I can't say it was pleasant."

"Hm?" Hakuba looked between them. "What?"

"Werewolves as party members are incredibly risky because of one big, obvious fact. If they get hurt enough, they lose it. Like, they go crazy while they're hurt and bleeding all over and just attack everyone."

"It wasn't quiet that bad but yes, that's more or less what happened."

"You're an upfront fighter too." Kaito didn't make it a question. Bards weren't meant to be close range. They were singers, good with a bow, good at speaking. Nothing about them made them good on the front lines."

"Yes, though not like this. Being in an in-between wolf form makes casting spells hard, though I do more damage. It all depends on the situation but no, I'm not typically in the back. Mouri-san has my sword. It's hard for me to keep it on me."

"Ouch, ouch, and ouch. So, what level are you guys?" Their little group of four had just barely made it to level three, though to be fair, they had been detained for a few days.

"Four, but only just. The bandits have helped a lot with that, though that monster in the ocean was far more than a match for a us a few days ago."

Now Kaito felt bad. "Four? With just the three of you and a werewolf to deal with, you're all a higher level than us?"

"I suppose so if that's how it is. Maybe I'm just a better tactician than you take me for." Amuro touched his nose. "I'm the leader of our group, so what I say goes. I may not know what's going on, but I pick up on things fast."

Kaito wanted to say he was the leader but really, they barely turned to him. When they did they never took his advice. Hakuba and Hattori working together were far better than them as a team, and even adding the two it was hard to get along. "We don't have a leader I guess."

"That makes battles a little harder. If you can't agree on how to move, you'll contradict each other all the time." Amuro clapped his hands together. "For this fight I'm you're leader. Tell me, Kuroba-kun, right? Do you use that bow much?"

"No." Kaito really didn't. He knew he could but he did way more damage up front with Hattori. "Why?"

"Because, while I don't like using a bow, I can, and my own crossbows are back at the inn we're staying at. I wouldn't mind the whip but I can do more damage and over a distance with your weapon."

Kaito got it off his back, handing it and his arrows over. He really didn't need them, especially against bandits. "Have at it."

"Thank you." The man just threw the bow over one shoulder and reached for his flute again, looking around as he reached the edge of town. "I don't have much time for this. Which of you all will be doing the most damage?"

"I lost a spell so I'm only good for another few hits but-"

"Not him." The little guy missed way too much and when he didn't, he always put himself in far too much danger. "Hattori-kun can't see in the dark but we can light something so him and Hakuba-kun for sure. How many can you spell?" Kaito didn't know about bards much, but their spells were made to affect more than one party member.

"Three, but you can't do anything with this power until I say, alright?" Amuro looked between them. "Who's being left out?"

"Just ferget me. There's gonna be too much arguin'." Hattori waved his hands at the others. "Gettin' kinda sick 'a it. I kin handle myself fine without whatever yer little trick is."

"Alright. Just stand there and enjoy the music then. I wish I had more than my flute but I can't carry the others." He put it to his lips and played.

It was quiet, nice, and calming. For some reason, instead of making him feel tired like he thought it might, Kaito was almost trapped in the music. He could have moved, he was sure, if he wanted to. But he didn't want to. Game or not he had never heard such quiet, peaceful, almost painful music before, and he was sure he had never heard it in the game.

"Okay, follow me and keep quiet if you can. Tell me about your abilities in less than 20 words." Amuro stopped, making Kaito sad that he had, taking off back down the street and into the forest. Kaito took care to make sure his own footsteps were as quiet as possible as he followed, Hattori doing the smart thing and staying behind him while Hakuba was at his side and Conan – being the stupid little squishy wizard who never listened, followed in front.

Kaito wasn't sure about going back into the forest before dawn with Hattori. It wouldn't be far off now. The bandits there would strike before the light came out though.

Hakuba splintered off almost as quietly as a breeze, hiding behind the trees as they went. Conan stayed beside the blond, Hattori staying back with him, though Kaito was thinking about hiding among the trees as well. He had no bow so that would be pointless.

It was dark, and he could have been wrong, but the blond man's steps were far too loud to his sensitive ears and, looking closely, he could swear that the man's hand was shaking subtly as he moved.

Either coming to the conclusion that there was no way he could walk quietly through the forest or simply giving up on the fact, Amuro stopped, sighing, and put a hand to his head. "Well, that's pointless. Even like this you all stink. There's no point in hiding."

Kaito thought he was talking about them before another elf calmly walked out from behind a tree. He was clothed in some weird garments that none of the others had worn – lots of bright colors and tassels, not something ideal for going through the forest with, yet there was no mud on them. Gold bracelets pressed tight against the elf's dark wrists and he probably would have twinkled had there been sunlight with all the necklaces and earrings he was wearing. Dark hair tied back, he looked like something out of India.

"You again, huh? You're really bothersome, do you know that?"

Amuro smirked. "I can say the same, Lord Bravira. I'm kind of surprised you stuck around."

The elf looked over Conan-kun, a smirk of his own on his face. "You made this visit a little more interesting. What happened to your other friends? Did some of mine take them out?"

"If you want to think that, you can."

The elf never once looked in Kaito's direction so he backed up slowly, hiding himself better in the shadows. No one said a thing about his retreat aside from Hattori being close enough to him to notice and thankfully keeping quiet about it.

"Are we going to make this a fight again? You lost last time, you'll lose again."

"Possibly," the elf admitted. "Or possibly these friends of yours are not a powerful as the last. I'm unsure where scions stand in that matter, but it's worth a shot to find out." Snapping his fingers, Kaito could almost hear arrows being knocked as several other elves made themselves visible among the trees.

The other bandits that Kaito could see wore hoods over their faces, making their race hard to tell and their eyes impossible to see. The elf before him wasn't as hard, running up to Amuro who did his best to dance away from the blades, the smaller one getting him somewhere Kaito couldn't see – the blood on the other hand wasn't as hard.

"Someone's not feeling too good tonight, are you mongrel?"

Amuro didn't care to answer, speaking some words to a spell Kaito was unfamiliar with, quickly wishing he wasn't as he had the urge to block his ears.

It was like a siren went off in front of him and he wasn't all that surprised when one of the bandits fell, clutching his ears and blood running between his hands. The elf winced at the sound, rubbing one of his ears when the noise vanished. "Damn it, you're loud."

Amuro smiled kindly. "Well, it is better to let everyone know where you are. Do you still plan on fighting?"

The elf scowled, looking around before grinning again. "We'll have this done before anyone gets here."

Hattori was still behind the blond and moved besides him to get a better angle in this fight. It wasn't like this was their first time or anything, though what happened was rather strange.

Hattori got in a good hit, slipping through the elf's armor, pushing Amuro as he did, growling out for him to back up – the man actually listening as if he had to – the elf before them not having a chance to get at the blond again. Now closer to Kaito himself and out of the other elf's range, the little fire wizard attacked.

Sure Kaito would have advised him to move back instead, so that Hattori was the closest and he could step in when he got the chance, but Conan never listened to him.

The weird sparkly ball of energy hit the elf, making him cough of blood, worry staring to paint his features but it was far too late for that. Kaito ran up to him, unseen, and slashed his sword at him, ruining his fancy clothes, missing with his dagger as the elf stepped back, Hakuba's arrow hitting the elf in the side and making him notice the both of them for the first time.

An arrow from one of the tress hit the little guy in the arm, a yelp coming form him as the boy turned, fire flickering around his body, and – scary enough – his attacker bursting into flames. Whether he was dead or not, Kaito wasn't sure, but that had to be a horrible way to go either way.

"So." Amuro put his hands on his hips, the elf before them bleeding all over the ground and breathing heavily. "Are you sure you want to stick around?"

"Damn you." Baring his teeth, the elf turned. Any of them could have struck him but no one did. Kaito didn't really feel like seeing more blood today. "This isn't over, you filth."

"Until next time then."

They all waited, a few others moving from the tress that Kaito hadn't seen earlier. He wasn't sure how many were left as they waited a few minutes for the group to move on.

Amuro let out a breath first, wiping a hand at his side. "Being a wolf is simpler. I don't usually go into battle with so little. You guys weren't bad. Conan-kun, did you cook that guy though?"

"Sorry. I might have." The little guy looked authentically worried when he stared over at the man who turned out to be an elf, most of his clothes burned and his face an ashen-charcoal color. "It just sort of happened."

"Let me see." Hakuba stepped over, crossing the darkness and checking the body over. Kaito had to wonder if they had pluses and breath the way normal heath was determined. He had never actually cared much to get that close to one of the inhabitants of the world, now that he thought about it.

"Yes, he's dead." Hakuba stood, shaking his head. "Not likely the first bandit that we've killed. I am sorry about that as well. Sometimes it is hard."

Amuro sighed. "Yes, but now we're going to have some issues with Bravira. It'll be fine though. It was an accident." The man put a hand on Conan-kun's head. "Come on. The others probably heard that and we don't want them to get lost in the forest now, do we?"

"Speak for yourself. I can see just fine," said a voice most definitely not coming from one of the group.

Everything in Kaito's body just hurt for some reason – a mix of fear and too much tension in so short a time. He turned to the voice, the speaker crossing their arms, robes of a dark red that blended well with the night. There were curved horns on his head and if not for the stark black hair and mustache in the totally clashing style not at all matching the new appendages – and a lizard looking tail – to go with the red skin, Kaito never would have figured out how he was.

"Mouri-san, you know better than to go sneaking around." Amuro didn't look startled at all when he said this though, smiling and tipping his head.

Kaito almost missed the much smaller person behind the new, demonized, sleeping detective. By elimination it had to be Ran, but the person there only shared her hairstyle – like Mouri.

They were short, as short as Conan, with pointed ears. Unlike Mouri who wore only robes and Amuro who wore only leather clothing, Ran was wearing a thick shirt with large, folded collar and metal armor of some sort poking out from underneath with a lot of pouches hidden in the folds of the cloth.

"Ran-neechan?" Conan took a few steps towards her, looking her over as if she were a new species of animal. She kind of was.

"Conan-kun!" Ran wasn't as hesitant, running forward and hugging the little guy, pushing him back hard enough that he tripped and his dragon squeaked from wherever it was hiding, flying off. "Oh it's so good to see you!"

Kaito had to hid a laugh behind his hand. Looking them over, both being relatively the same size and him knowing that they should be, made the scene look rather cute. Better than when he'd last seen them together in any case. The little guy was going to have fun with this.

"What's the brat doing here?"

"I don't know. We haven't had time to talk. We'll have more than enough right now, though we should hurry." Amuro tipped his head over his shoulder. "They have a causality on their side. They'll be back for that. I really need some rest myself. Together we should be fine, so we don't need to get the city dwellers involved again."

"Yeah, fine." Mouri looked over the others. Clearly he recognized Hattori but that would be about it. "And the other new guys?"

"We met before. Hakuba Saguru." Hakuba bowed slightly to him. "I'm not sure if you remember. This is a classmate of mine, Kuroba Kaito. It is not such a long story as to why we are here but it is one we don't fully understand either."

"Conan-kun, don't move." Ran shifted, noticing the arrow the little guy still had in his arm from earlier, singed with black as well. It came out easily enough with a little wince of pain, her hand going to the wound and glowing slightly. When she removed it the wound was gone.

Standing with a smile, Ran turned toward Amuro. "Amuro-san, come here too."

"Thank you." Amuro went to a knee in front of her as she placed his hand on his side as well, more light and another wound gone. "That should be fine for now. Come on, we all do need to talk."

Conan nodded, leading the way again with the others, Ran looking him over as much as he was looking her over, though Conan's was subtler – at least, a little. It was clear they were happy to see one another, even in this world.

Kaito wasn't sure how he would feel about Aoko being here and hoped she wasn't, alone somewhere and separated like this group seemed to be. She could be considered an enemy of his – and of Akako's – if she wanted to be.

"You look worried." Hakuba walked over to his side, tipping his head. "There are more of us now, in a larger town and less danger. I would think you would be happy."

"Betcha it's 'cause ya ain't so special anymore, ain't it?" Hattori was behind them, clearly using them so he didn't stray off the path in the dark. "Now that there's a bunch'a us and they seem ta know what they're doin', we don't gotta go around askin' you no more."

"That isn't the issue." Kaito tipped his head. "They have no good reason to be here. Maybe one of them, by the standards that our little messed up witch is running with, but only one."

"Yeah, ya know, I still never got that. Every time I go ta ask one of ya, ya just kinda ignore me even though ya seem to know why we're here."

"You are here on accident, if you remember." Kaito didn't feel like justifying anything to Hattori. It wasn't like it was his fault, even though it kind of was. There was no good way of going around who he was in that explanation either, which was why he never gave one and… it seemed the little guy and Hakuba hadn't either. That was kind of nice on their parts.

"To be honest, a classmate of ours has powers. I didn't wholly believe in them, even after seeing a few enacted around me, but it seems true nonetheless. Kuroba-kun has a way of ticking people off and it seems this became of it. Conan-kun and I know him, and he is rather an annoyance of ours as well, so we were brought here more or less to become one in return. Obviously when it matters we're not about to do that, but our little harasser is nothing more than a child, so it isn't as if they would predict that. We could have left Kuroba-kun in the woods alone if we had wanted." Hakuba smiled to him. "But then again, he is a classmate, and he does know more than we do still. You know, you have been a lot of trouble since we've gotten here."

"Duh." Kaito waved a hand Conan's direction. "I was alone with him. You saw how that went."

A flicker of a frown went across Hakuba's face before he nodded. "In any case, you're right. If she were simply trying to get Conan-kun, and the boy did admit that Hattori-kun was a mistake, then the others don't make much sense."

Kaito nodded. "That's making me worried. How many others are here? And if you're here… is Aoko?"

"I hadn't thought of that. She would be, considering the criteria."

"Ah." Kaito used both his hands, scratching at his light hair and messing it more. "I don't even want to think about that. If she's here, where is she? Why wasn't she with us? And why were they all the way over near this city while we weren't? I can kind of see why having to create a character from scratch would have taken a while, and we did move a little, but… I don't know."

"Aoko-kun then might be alone somewhere. That's what you're worried about."

Kaito nodded, knowing Hakuba, even as annoying as he was in return, did care about Aoko's safety. "I can't leave, not if she's here somewhere."

"We can't stay either. There's-"

"This girl yer lookin' fer. I'm guessin' it's someone ya like 'er somethin', if yer that scared 'a leaving her here. Aren't there like, spells ta find people in this game though?"

Kaito nodded. "We have none of them."

"It's a big city. Maybe someone here kin do it."

That wasn't a bad idea. Kaito felt the tension refuse to leave his body though. So much more wasn't making sense, unless of course Akako's sister simply involved the other three trying to get Conan-kun. He and Hakuba were the ideal targets. His mind kept swimming with thoughts of Aoko though, even as they returned to town and dawn was breaking, the lights fading a bit as it did.

'Damn it, Aoko. You'd better be safe' was all he could think.

…

Conan had known she was here when Amuro had first mentioned it. So much had been going on though, and the threat of the bandits had taken Amuro's attention away from them, that he hadn't been able to ask much.

Now she was before him, her eyes bright as she smiled, hands behind her back, and walking the same height as he was. It was a bit disturbing at the same time it made him smile, shifting the fake glasses better on his face.

"Cute pet."

"Thanks." Conan still had his hood down and Hirai had returned after he explained to the little guy that he hadn't meant to get him squished. Petting his head, the dragon let Ran stroke him too, touching his wings and putting up with far more than the little guy likely had to. He was in her arms in no time and half asleep. "Have you been… okay?"

"Mm." Ran nodded with a smile. "Amuro-san read all the rules when we started and gave us a lot of pointers. He kept saying he thought it was some kind of weird dream and we weren't real though. It was a little strange but interesting too." She reached into a bag at her side with the hand she wasn't holding the dragon with, pulling out a box that she flipped open. A song of a slightly higher pitch and a soothing tone came out of it. It kind of reminded him of the one Amuro had played earlier. "I can make stuff like this now, even though I know I had no idea how to make a music box before. It's kind of fun."

"Fun…" Not a word Conan would have used to describe all this. Maybe he'd been looking at it the wrong way though. "I suppose it could be. What about your dad?"

"He's just as grumpy as usual." Ran shook her head. "I don't know how he can be. Everything around here is so strange and exciting. I mean, some of the fights are a little scary, but Amuro-san is really good at fighting and I can heal when we get hurt most of the time." Her face creased with worry as she looked ahead at the blond who was speaking with Mouri. "Most of the time. He won't let me make him better. Apparently there are cures for the werewolf curse, but he won't let me try. He gets hurt a lot more than we do and I feel bad when we have to hurt him."

"Hurt him?"

"Mm." Ran nodded again. "He kind of… goes crazy some of the time, and we have to stop him. He's better when he wakes up after, and of course he doesn't remember what happens when he's like that, but I still feel bad."

"Yeah. We didn't know a lot. I think I might have killed a few of the bad guys here." Conan was trouble about that, but not much. Theses people seemed real but they couldn't be. If they were currently imposing on another world it might get him to trudge up enough regret to feel badly for a while, but this was a game. A world, a real world, that resembled as close to a game as this one did, seemed highly unlikely. "None of us can really heal."

"Are you hurt somewhere else?" Ran looked him over but his clothes hid his wounds that he'd gotten with Kuroba, so she couldn't see them.

"Not anymore, but sometimes it leaves marks." Conan did have a few on his arm and all he had to do was lift his sleeve to show the cut. There weren't many, not nearly as much as Kuroba had, but he did have a few. "We weren't exactly sure why but had to guess we get scars when we're exhausted."

"That would make sense. There's more than a few Amuro-san has that I can't make go away, and my dad and me don't have them. I didn't really get why. I thought it was because he's a werewolf." That clicked something in her mind and she touched the blond man on the back. "Hey, did that leave a mark?"

"Hm?" Amuro turned towards her, lifting his shirt a bit where it had been cut. There was a small mark there where the dagger had gotten him, even though the wound was closed. Conan didn't miss a few others he had along his midsection. "Looks like it. Don't worry though, it doesn't hurt."

"No, but Conan-kun just explained to me why I can't heal you all the way." She folded her arms and stopped. "You never came back last night. Did you sleep? You were on watch the night before and helped me with the music box yesterday before we started scouting the shore."

Amuro's smile was kind but his eyes were half closed after he blinked. "No, I ran into them rather early and didn't get time to sleep. I had trouble the night before. I think I should try using your music box myself, if you don't mind."

"Not at all. Here." She handed it over. "Just let me fix it up some time after you sleep so that it won't break again."

"I can do that." He held it, looking at the other two. "What about the both are you? I wasn't sure if I interrupted your sleep or not."

"Hmph, we were. Ran heard you and woke me. We'll just go back to sleep. Kids here seem to need it anyway."

"I'm sorry, but where are you all staying?" Hakuba still had some time before the sun was blinding but Kaito saw him pulling at the cloak again. "We don't have that much in way of currency so a few of us have been camping. With the bandits out there, and in your own words seeking repentance, I don't think we should stay there today."

"We can cover a few rooms for you." Amuro looked them over. "You fought bandits yourself, right? Didn't you pick up enough currency to at least get by?"

Kaito tugged at his weapon and nodded to the bow of his that the blond still had on his back, Conan looking between them and realizing that Amuro had never given it back. "We went with weapons over lodging, and Conan-kun doesn't need any money to stay in a room."

Amuro shared a smile with him. "I don't either. It's been helpful as far as money is concerned. Being the town's 'watch dog' also has its perks. I never have to pay for food."

Conan smiled and tipped his head to Hakuba. "We've had a hunter so we haven't had to worry about that either. We've actually fought a lot more monsters than we have bandits."

"Well, we're not short on those around here." Amuro yawned, turning and looking at the sun. "I'll sleep with the two of you tonight. Here, I won't need this as a wolf, but please don't spend it all at once." Taking a pouch from his side, Amuro handed him what had to be the coins he had on him. "Well talk in the morning, how about that?"

"I don't mind."

"Conan-kun can stay with us then. I'm sure they won't mind. We can even share a bed." Ran happily grabbed his hand, making him blush and Conan hoping she didn't notice. "They're full sized so it's more than big enough."

Ignoring the snickering behind him and knowing who it was coming from, Conan nodded. He handed the pouch back, Hattori reaching over and grabbing it.

"We'll see ya guys in the mornin' then. Have fun."

There was more snickering, this time a second voice with it, as the others watched off, the two adults watching them.

"I'm sure they know where there's an inn but did they not want to stay with us?" Amuro pointed behind himself, still facing Conan. "We're not that far away."

"It's fine. Maybe they don't want us all to be in the same place if something happens. We've been split up before so I think it's stupid but…" Conan shrugged. It wasn't like he could control them… or he didn't want to in any case. He wasn't sure what the repercussions of that would be.

Amuro yawned again, his eyes falling closed. "You can all get settled then. I'll be right back. Leave the door open so I don't accidentally leave scratch marks this time."

Ran nodded, her dad huffing before the blond walked off, likely going somewhere to change. If it was as painful as it sounded, Conan could feel for him. It wasn't best to do that in public either, if the city wasn't sure he was really a werewolf.

"Does he always turn into a wolf?" It had to be impossible to speak or use spells that way.

"Only when we're in town. A lot of the elves here don't like him for some reason. He seems to know why but he won't tell us. They were speaking some weird language with him when we first arrived and, ever since, he's been walking around as a wolf when he can. He changes when we know we're going to fight, but he doesn't always have the time."

"Hm. I wonder why." Conan would have to ask him, and if he wouldn't answer, Kuroba seemed to know a lot of weird facts that had nothing to do with fighting.

They walked up to the room, Mouri closing the door like he was told not to before turning to him and looking frightening. The demon features made his normal scowl look evil. "Kid, we have to talk real fast. I don't blame your friends for walking off, and I doubt they even know the half of it. Ran," he held the door back open. "Stand watch for me real fast?"

Ran nodded, doing as she was told without questioning why. She did smile and pat his shoulder before vanishing on the other side though.

Mouri waited a second after the door clicked shut before turning back to him. "Amuro-san's got something wrong with his head. He still thinks this is all some kind of delusion of his. He's helpful, sure, but he's damn near fatal with that attitude of his. Guy barely sleeps, which probably makes him even crazier. Has nightmares all the time so don't freak out if you hear him. Ran usually muzzles him, which is just freaking sad, but there's nothing we can do about it. Don't listen to him. We have a voting system we agreed on so the guy can't go off and get himself killed if Ran and I don't agree with him on something. He's still okay, for now, but I have to say, watch out. Tell the others too, in private. We don't want to make him even crazier by making him think we're talking behind his back."

That was what they were doing but Conan wasn't going to bring that up. Amuro hadn't seemed all that strange when they'd been with him earlier. He fought the same way they all had. "You sure?"

"Damn sure. Ran noticed right away too. We've been with him for about a month now. It's hard not to. Being a wolf he's a little calmer. I'm not sure why."

Animal intelligence. It would make him slower, more- "I'll watch out. Thanks."

"Sure." Mouri opened the door, letting Ran back in and not closing it all the way this time. "When the guy's not dead on his feet he's near impossible to notice, so make sure."

That was the last he said as Mouri took one of the beds, falling onto it before closing his eyes and turning away from them, seemingly going to sleep.

Conan turned to Ran, his voice low. "Are you afraid of Amuro-san too?"

She moved, uncertain. "I don't know. Yes and no. He cares about us, he doesn't go rushing us off into danger, but he goes out alone all the time and it's like he has voices in his head. With us, he's fine. If he's not a wolf and spends too much time alone… yes, I'm afraid of him then."

"Well, there's seven of us now. There's no reason he should have to be alone." Conan looked from Ran to the bed and back to Ran and back to the bed, his head bowed and a blush back on his face.

Maybe he should have gone with the others. He'd never be able to get any sleep tonight.