Author's Note: Umm... I didn't forget about it... not at all... it's still Friday here! XD Either way, I thank everyone (especially Neyane) for all the support, and enjoy the chapter!

Chapter Twenty-Five: Expounding Enigmas

"Hattori, wake up!"

Heiji could hear someone trying to wake him, but he was too comfortable in his nestle of blankets to actually move. "Five more minutes, Kudou…"

"No, Hattori, this is important!" Conan jumped up and tried to remove Heiji's blanket.

Heiji's eyes slowly blinked as his mind was forced awake. "Kudou, wassup? Didja have 'nother nightmare or somethin'? 'Cuz I didn't think ya'd actually tell me 'bout it."

Conan bit his lip. "I did, but we can talk about that later. For now though, help me solve this riddle." He handed Heiji his glasses and instructed him to wear them. "You can't hear it unless you're wearing them."

Heiji listened to the message and gasped. "Oi, is that yer dad talkin'? How is he doin' that? I thought he was kidnapped 'long with Oyaji."

Conan let out a deep sigh and rubbed his temples. He was starting to get a serious headache from all of this. "He was, but he has a device built in his glasses that enables him to send messages like this to me or Kaa-san. Of course, he's the kind of person to give hints instead of flat-out telling us so we don't get the answer handed to us."

Heiji frowned. "Well, judgin' by how it's worded, I'd think that this companion that's takin' the kid into the forest is Black. After all, his real persona could be real nice, but he's all dark an' evil inside. But who's the kid? Is it his next victim? 'Cuz I'd think that it wouldn't be 'til eight officers are killed like last time."

Conan twirled his pen as he thought. "Maybe he's getting impatient," he mused. "After all, wouldn't it be easier for a serial killer to only kill half the intended amount? That way, they can accomplish their goal faster and make the opponents more confused." He tilted his head. "I feel like I've heard that phrase somewhere though. The child possessed with hope. I think it was Tou-san that said it, actually."

Heiji hummed. "Well, maybe it's a play on words. Try writin' down a few symbols an' see if they match up." The next few minutes were in silence until Conan gasped.

"H-Hattori…look." He showed Heiji his notebook, where the symbols 有, 希, and 子 were beside each other. Yukiko. Conan was trying to say his mother was the next target.

"But Kudou, how can ya be sure that's yer mom? Fer all ya know, it's a police officer named Yukiko! Besides, ya can't be sure that's the only solution, right? It could be somethin' else."

Conan shook his head. "It's her, Hattori. The word 'nurse' can also be used as an action when someone looks after another. A synonym for that…is mother."

Heiji's expression saddened. "But Kudou, what can we do 'bout it? S'not like she can just get 'erself outta danger."

Conan's brows furrowed. "That's where we hope for luck. We can send her back to America and out of the country, and hopefully Black won't go after her. Judging by how he hasn't yet, I can't say he will want to."

Heiji huffed. "While that doesn't sound bad, Kudou, how can ya be sure he's not just gonna kill 'er early? On that note, he could find someone else ta kill instead o' yer mom. No matter what, someone's gonna be at risk o' losin' their life."

Conan ran a hand through his hair. "I know, Hattori. That's why I said all we can really do is hope for the best." He suddenly yawned, which made him smile. "Well, I guess we should continue this once we've had a bit more sleep. After all, it's only two A.M."

Heiji lied back down knowing Conan wouldn't get much sleep, and a thought occurred to him after a few more minutes of thinking. "Oi, Kudou, ya still up?" he whispered.

A stir. "'Course I am. What's up?"

"What was that nightmare 'bout that woke ya tonight? Ya looked like it was worse than the others."

Conan didn't respond, but Heiji knew he wasn't asleep. "C'mon, ya said ya'd tell me, didn'tcha? What happened this time? Was yer Neechan killed again? Was I?"

Still nothing. Heiji finally opened his eyes and turned over, his breath catching in his throat upon seeing Conan. The shrunken detective was curled up tightly under his blankets and trembling. He looked even more like a child in this position, and his eyes were filling with tears. "K-Kudou…"

"I can't do this, Hattori. Ran's already dead because of me; who knows how many other people will face the same fate! I'm the true murderer…for not solving this case."

Heiji pinched the bridge of his nose and mentally counted to ten. "Kudou, why are ya suddenly losin' faith in yerself? Ya should know that even if we're not gettin' any big clues right now, they'll still come ta us meitantei eventually. Don't even try ta tell me that's all yer worried 'bout right now 'cuz it's complete nonsense!"

Conan sniffed and slowly sat up, his half-lidded eyes gazing out the window at the full moon…the same moon he saw Black in front of laughing at Ran's death. The death he caused. And that number would only rise if he continued playing this game. "Hattori, I…I just don't think I can keep playing this without hurting more people. My best friend's already dead—I don't want everyone else dead too."

Heiji smiled a bit. "Ya can't really get outta this though, can ya? They're gonna get hurt even worse if ya back out like this. Believe me, Kudou, I've considered doin' the same thing with what he's done ta Kazuha an' Oyaji. But I know that I gotta keep goin' so I can make sure he doesn't hurt 'em again. I know I gotta be the one ta put 'im behind bars fer good. I know I need yer help ta accomplish all that."

Conan buried his head between his legs. "Why does Black hate us? Why does Black have to do all of this to us and make us suffer?"

Heiji stood up and slowly approached Conan. "'Cuz he's crazy, that's why. He's got some kinda grudge against ya an' the police force as a whole, so he's tryin' ta get 'is revenge in all the wrong ways." He bent down beside Conan and ruffled his hair. "An' that's why we gotta be there ta teach 'im what's right. We gotta let 'im know that what he's doin' is wrong an' that he should feel sorry fer it."

The room was still for a moment until Conan laughed. "Wow, I wasn't thinking, was I? I don't live up to the name azuma no meitantei anymore if I couldn't see something as simple as that." He looked up to Heiji, the sparkle of determination in his eye once more. "Okay, I'll tell you about the nightmare. Hopefully then, we can both figure it out…"

Heiji listened to the description Conan gave, as well as the riddle Black presented at the end. "So whaddya think the riddle is tryin' ta say then, Kudou?"

Conan rubbed at his eyes and yawned. "I'm not entirely sure yet. It could be possible that Black is referring to a cold case that happened long ago with the wording 'shed light on.' Using that theory, it's also possible that this cold case is the reason why Black holds a grudge against the police."

Heiji nodded. "Yeah, that makes sense. It must be someone close ta Black that was kidnapped or killed—it says 'child that writes,' an' I doubt he'd be involved with a case that's not personal."

Conan leaned back against his pillows and blinked rapidly. The world was starting to get hazy already, meaning he was more tired than he thought. "Maybe he's giving us wordplay too?" he mumbled sleepily. "We can always try that…"

Heiji began writing things in a notebook, and Conan was able to address his incoherent thoughts. I know I have to warn Kaa-san…but can she get out in time? His body began to slump forward, but he snapped himself upright. Ugh, I'm so tired…maybe a little sleep would help…

NO. Another voice yelled in his mind, this one more urgent. We can't risk sleeping now; we have to warn Kaa-san so she can get out of here! Besides, Hattori may think of something that he could either forget or could give you an answer to something!

Conan clutched his swimming head and shut his eyes. "Sheesh, this is harder than I thought it would be…"

Heiji looked up from his writing and laughed. "Wow, Kudou, yer 'bout ta fall o'er already! Get some sleep; I'll letcha know if I get a big breakthrough."

But Conan, his voice already slurred, heavily protested. "Hattori, I can't risk it…I still gotta call Kaa-san, an' I might hear somethin' that makes me remember…"

Heiji crossed his arms stubbornly. "Well, I'm not gonna say anythin' ta ya 'til ya've slept. In fact, I'm not even gonna letcha call yer mom; I can do that myself. Even if ya may 'ave been lyin' lately o'er how much sleep ya've had, it's obvious that ya've probably gotten five hours…the whole week."

Conan's body gave in to sleep at those words, and he fell back against his pillow, the nightmares staying far away from his priorities for once. They wouldn't come again tonight—he would get the sleep he needed, and he would spend the next day helping his mother escape Black. There would be no way he would allow Black to do something like that…again.

"Well, now that that's dealt with…" Heiji stood up and grabbed his phone off the nightstand, dialing a number he never thought he'd call, let alone at this time and place.

"Heya, Yukiko-han. Can I ask a favor o' ya?"

X

Kudou Yukiko took the information surprisingly well, all things considered. Sure, part of it was due to her only being half-awake when Heiji called, but she snapped awake at the words she was given. She agreed that getting her out of the country was probably the best thing to do, so she quickly packed a couple suitcases and prepared to board the soonest flight to New York. A friend was there, she said, that would help protect her.

"Well, just try an' be careful 'til we know yer safe," Heiji advised, "since we're still not sure if Black's gonna try an' go after ya."

Yukiko giggled. "Oh, don't worry, I know how to stay out of sight! I'm not called a famous actress for nothing!" She paused a moment to let the amusement fade away. "Um, Hei-chan, how is Shin-chan doing? Does he still have those nightmares?"

Heiji hesitated. "Yeah, he does. He hasn't been gettin' much sleep again, but he fell asleep not that long ago after he had 'nother nightmare 'bout Black…an' 'is Neechan."

Yukiko huffed. "Well, I'm not very surprised, especially with Ran-chan just dying not that long ago. He really loved her, so he's probably still feeling responsible for it. If it were me, I'd try and distract him from it for a while so he'll see how he wasn't the one that did it. He must be short on sleep too if he's having a bunch of nightmares, so distractions would really help."

Heiji agreed. "Yeah, it really helped last time I tried doin' it. The only thing is that I doubt I can really keep 'im away from the case 'til the second movement's over. I'd really like to, believe me, but I'm gonna need help with all o' Black's riddles. Sure, I could do 'em myself, but we don't know how long that would take. Fer all we know, we could only have an hour or two ta solve the one hintin' o' 'is major victim. I don't know 'bout ya, but I really don't wanna risk a life like that by not gettin' help."

Yukiko bit her lip. "I-I see what you mean, Hei-chan, but still try to be careful with him, okay? I know how sensitive he gets at times like these, even if he tries to cover it up. Don't let anyone close to him get hurt again…he'll break for good if that happens."

Heiji yawned a bit. "I getcha. I'll try ta keep 'im outta this as much as I can, but I doubt he's gonna go without a fight. Speakin' o' which, I should probably letcha go so ya can catch yer flight. Lemme or Kudou know if somethin' happens ta ya or if ya see Black. If anythin' happens ta ya, we'll try an' get there as fast as we can."

Yukiko smiled. "Thank you, Hei-chan. Make sure you get plenty of rest." She ended the call and quickly began calling someone else—the daughter of her best friend, who was once a partner in training but now dead like their master.

While the retired actress was scrambling around trying to escape the country, the two meitantei that saved her life were asleep. They were both quite tired and didn't wake until early the next afternoon at the sound of a phone ringing.

"Hattori, go answer it…" Conan muttered in his sleep. "S'probably from Kaa-san or Otaki-keibu…"

Heiji rolled over and picked up his phone, for he knew Conan shouldn't be woken. "Hello?" he asked a bit groggily.

Otaki chuckled. "Ah, did I wake ya, Hei-chan? Sorry 'bout that. I was just wondering where ya were."

Heiji sat up and rubbed his eyes. "Whaddya mean, Otaki-han? I'm still in Shibuya tryin' ta investigate Hiro-han's death. Are ya tryin' ta say there's already 'nother victim?"

Otaki sighed. "Yeah, there was one found in Saitama. I haven't seen the note from Black yet, but I heard it wasn't pleasant ta see."

Heiji jumped to his feet, all traces of sleep gone in an instant. "Wait, I was right? How much do ya know 'bout 'im so far? Do I need ta hurry on o'er there?"

For some reason, Otaki wouldn't respond. "Oi, Otaki-han! Tell me wassup, will ya? Do I need ta go ta Saitama right now an' investigate?"

Again, silence. Heiji, quickly growing annoyed, began to raise his voice. "Otaki-han, answer me! Unless ya want me ta blab yer secret ta everyone…"

"N-No, Hei-chan, ya wouldn't!" Otaki finally spoke. "Ya know how personal that is!"

Heiji sighed and sat back on the bed. "I know, Otaki-han, but I just wanna know more 'bout this next victim. Why aren'tcha tellin' me anythin'? S'not like ya can afford keepin' secrets 'bout it."

It took so long for Otaki to answer that Heiji was on the verge of hanging up and marching down to the crime scene. "Hei-chan, I…I'm starting ta get worried 'bout ya. Ya keep getting yerself in danger, yer not even close ta catching Black, yer obviously short on sleep, and…and yer just not safe."

Heiji grinned. "Ah, I see how it is—ya've lost faith in me! Ya don't think I can solve this case even though I'm the nishi no meitantei! Even if I've got help with all this, yer still doubtin' me. Man, ya gotta trust me, Otaki-han! Sure, I haven't caught the guy yet, but I will eventually! I doubt anyone else has ever encountered 'im in person 'sides me an' Kudou that 'ave lived ta tell the tale!"

Otaki frowned. "Kudou? Do ya mean yer rival Kudou Shinichi?"

Heiji could sense the unimpressed face on his fellow detective as he slowly sat up and yawned. "Uh, yeah, we encountered each other a while ago when I was still in Beika. I'm not real sure where he is now, but he's still tryin' 'is best ta help with the case!"

Otaki understood now. At first, he was starting to think something absurd. There's no way that's possible, he reasoned with himself. "Okay, Hei-chan, I guess yer right. I should be trustin' ya with this case, but I just don't know if it can get solved 'fore more officers—possibly yer dad—are killed. The next body's at block 14, and I heard it's in pretty bad shape. Again, please be careful of what yer doing, Hei-chan."

Heiji thanked him and hung up, turning to Conan with a grin on his face. "Well, ya were sayin' how ya wanted a potential lead towards Black, weren'tcha? 'Cuz we just got one!"