‾͟͟͞(((ꎤˋ̫ˊ)—̳͟͞͞o

A knock on the door aroused a large man from his thoughts. Rising to his feet, Hattori Heizo scowled as he marched to the door. He had not yet gotten over the last visitor Heiji had brought home. He was not enthusiastic about meeting another one of those kids.

To his great relief and surprise, Heizo opened the door to a vaguely familiar face. The name on the tip of his tongue, Heizo briefly wondered where he knew the man from. He wasn't one of Heiji's teachers, nor was he a subordinate in the prefecture. He wasn't the parent of any of Heiji's friends. Heiji didn't have many friends, so Heizo knew each of their parents personally. The more he thought about it, the more unfamiliar the man before him became.

His hair messy, standing up all directions as though he'd run his hands through it in frustration multiple times. His face resembled that of a raccoon's: dark bags under his eyes, an unkempt jungle of a beard sprouting up along his chin. Worry lines like war trenches ran across his forehead. Sweat stain shades darker than his suit smelled days old creeped out from his armpits, his cheap undershirt stained with various substances Heizo knew would be best left unknown.

"Are you Hattori-san?" Accusing and confrontational, his voice raspy and hoarse as if he'd shouted for hours, his eyes blazing as though he was prepared to do it again.

Heizo did not fail to notice the stance this stranger took. Feet perfectly spaced, poised to whip out a weapon at any moment. If there had been a bulge in the stranger's coat, Heizo's hand would've flown to his holster in self-defense; however, the stance was slightly off. The stranger almost imperceptibly swayed forwards and backwards, his fatigue evident in his trembling muscles. He tried in vain to keep himself steady, firm, intimidating.

Every initial instinct screamed at Heizo to close the door, lock it, and get some officers to his house to arrest this unstable and potentially dangerous man. Heizo hesitated, let his hand leave the door. While he was not as observant or perceptive as his son, Heizo knew the look of a desperate father when he saw one.

"Yes, I am. Who are ya?"

"Mouri Kogoro," said the stranger.

"Come inside, Mouri-san. Ya look tired." Heizo stood back to let Kogoro inside, suddenly recognizing Nemure-no-Kogoro.

Kogoro opened his mouth to protest. The biting words died in his throat, however, as a large yawn cut him off. He went red, scowled. "Excuse me."

A small, understanding smile. "Come. My wife makes excellent tea. Shizu? We have a guest." Heizo led Kogoro inside, a hand on his back to guide him.

Kogoro's steps were hesitant, unsure, stumbling at times. Heizo let a flash of concern crossed his conscience. How long had Kogoro been out and about? At least the day by the smell of him, presumably more if the scraggly beard was anything to go by.

"Mint tea or jasmine?" Shizuka's voice traveled down the stairs and she descended.

Heizo said "mint" at the same time Kogoro muttered "jasmine." Shizuka took one look at Kogoro as her husband said him in a chair. Kogoro met her eyes, but he didn't raise a finger to attempt to flirt with her.

"Mint it is."

As Shizuka prepared tea in the other room, Heizo sat across from Kogoro. "Mouri-san. I don't believe we've officially met b'fore."

"Your son is close to my brat," Kogoro muttered absentmindedly.

Heizo raised his eyebrows, but Kogoro didn't notice. Heizo cleared his throat after a beat of silence. "What brings ya here? Ya're out after hours, an' I don't think that's on accident."

Kogoro lifted his eyes to meet Heizo's. "Ran went on a camping trip with your son and his girlfriend. Conan and his friends went, too. Hakase was their chaperone."

Heizo carefully watched Kogoro, searching his eyes for an intent. "I'm aware," he said when Kogoro didn't elaborate. "Heiji broke his leg because of a flood. Was your daughter injured?"

Kogoro shook his head. "Not Ran. She's-- she's fine." Kogoro folded his hands. Not a beat later, he pulled his hands apart to run them through his hair. Letting his arms fall to his sides, he shook his head again. "It was Conan. The brat got a cold. He's never been the healthiest, and he's needed hospitalization more than once."

Heizo's thoughts flickered to their uninvited guest upstairs.

Kogoro tapped his foot, glanced at the stairs before his gaze landed on Heizo. "Hakase brought Conan back to Beika early. He said by the time they got to his house, the brat felt fine, so he took him back to my place. Hakase got called away for a repair job and left Conan alone.

"The house was empty when Ran came home that evening."

Heizo didn't know how to respond for a moment, lacking confidence in his knowledge of the situation. After a silence that lasted a beat longer than it should've, Heizo found the words: "What would ya like me ta do?"

"Kudou Shinichi." Heizo's eyes narrowed for a fraction of a second, an action that did not go unnoticed by Kogoro. "He left with your son. I need to talk to him."

Heizo shook his head. "I cannot do that for ya."

"The detective brat is Conan's only relative in the country," said Kogoro, anger prowling in his undertones as his patience wore thin. "I asked around, and more than one of your neighbors saw him come into your house." Heizo's permanent scowl deepened. "I'm not trying to arrest the kid. I'm just trying to find Conan. If you know where he is--"

Heizo remained callous. "I do not. My son might have an idea of Kudou-kun's whereabouts."

Kogoro would not be swayed. "Then I'll ask him. Is he here? I'll go talk to him." Kogoro shot to his feet.

Shizuka emerged from the other room, a steaming mug in her hands. "Heiji went out with friends earlier."

"When will he be back? I need to talk to him," said Kogoro insistently.

"I'm not sure," Shizuka said carefully. She placed the mug in Kogoro's hands, gently pushed him back into his chair. "Will ya tell Heizo where ya've searched? There are still some officers on patrol who can keep an eye out for Conan-kun."

"He's not in Beika," Kogoro began.

Shizuka held up a hand, pointed to the mug in his hand. "Drink. Then talk."

Remembering how she'd handled the man with a katana, Kogoro nodded silently and obeyed. When he set the cup down again, it was empty.

"Conan-kun is not in Beika," Shizuka prompted.

Kogoro swallowed. "Yes. We started looking as soon as I got back with Megure-keibu. Every available officer under his jurisdiction has been looking for him. He hasn't been found in any of the typical places to dump a body. None of his friends have seen him. No one at Poirot saw him go into the Agency. No one between my house and Hakase's saw him. He hasn't been seen on any buses or subways or trains or taxis. It's like the brat vanished from the face of the earth."

Shizuka folded her arms. "Ya came ta Osaka next."

"Yeah. Conan likes hanging around your kid. I thought he'd be hiding somewhere out here if he managed to get a flight. He's clever enough to do it."

Shizuka shook her head. "He can't be older than six. How would he get on an hour an' a half fight without a guardian?"

Without so much as a glance in her direction: "You tell me," he muttered darkly.

Heizo lurched forward, opened his mouth, fists clenched and eyes alight with fury. Kogoro flinched, but he refused to look up. He had nothing to lose here. The Hattoris knew something about Kudou Shinichi that Kogoro didn't. If he found out anything, anything about where Shinichi might be, it would be a lead to finding Conan.

With one swift motion, Shizuka grabbed her husband by the arm and pulled him back into his seat. "Heizo." A warning.

Giving a low grunt, Heizo reluctantly relaxed into the couch.

"Mouri-san, what exactly can I tell ya that ya'll believe?" Shizuka's eyes lost their gentle glow, dimmed to a hardened defense.

Kogoro took on an incessant, unrepentant determination. "That you somehow managed to sneak him through an airport and into your house. That you're hiding the detective brat somewhere here. That you can get him to me so that he can find my son," he shouted.

Shizuka bristled. "Mouri-san, only Heiji knows--"

Kogoro lifted his head, met Shizuka's eyes with a smoldering glare of his own. "And how long do you think I'll sit here and take that? Even if your kid's smart, they don't get anything past us. You don't think I've heard the footsteps overhead? I know someone's upstairs. Either he comes down here or I go up there and start--"

The front door crashed open. "Oba-chan! Occhan! Conan-kun is safe!" Kogoro stopped, mouth gaping as Kazuha burst into the front room, waving her phone. "Kogoro-ojisan. What're ya doin' here?" Kogoro said nothing, gaped at Kazuha.

Shizuka rose to her feet, crossed the room to Kazuha. "Kazuha-chan, what's this 'bout Conan-kun?" she asked quietly.

Prying her eyes from Kogoro, Kazuha turned on her phone. "I got a text from Ran-chan. She said that Shinichi-kun's parents confirmed that Conan-kun's okay."

Kogoro stumbled to his feet. "Where is he? What did Yuki-chan say?"

Kazuha resisted the urge to back away. Kogoro reeked of alcohol, sweat, and cigarette smoke. "Conan-kun's parents took him ta America. He'll be back in Japan once they think he's ready for it. They thought he was gettin' too sick too often here."

Staggering backwards, Kogoro fell back into the chair. "Conan's with... his parents?" He lifted his arm as though to run it once more through his hair, but it just hovered in the air. "My apologies, Hattori-san. To you too, Shizuka-san." His arm dropped back to his side, and he made a move to stand again. "My outburst was--"

"--Justifiable," interrupted Shizuka. "Our children often make us do things we don't expect." A brief smile before a regal, impassive expression replaced it. "We can get ya a ticket on the next flight back. I can accompany you to the airport, if you would like."

Kogoro nodded numbly. "Please. I need to get back to Ran."

With a short nod, Heizo helped Kogoro from his seat. "Ya may want ta clean up b'fore ya return to your house. From what I've heard of your daughter, she would have our heads if we sent ya back ta Tokyo in such a condition."

As though for the first time, Kogoro took notice of his clothing. "I've been worse," he muttered, "and I don't have anything else."

"While I get ya a ticket-- Shizu? Will ya take him ta get another suit?" She nodded. Heizo lowered his head to Kogoro's ear and dropped his voice. "I do not appreciate your conduct towards my wife. Be mindful of that." Kogoro swallowed, nodded, knowing that he was at Heizo's mercy. "However, I do not condemn a man who sacrifices everything for his child."

Kogoro looked at Heizo, shook his head. "No. No, he's not my kid. He's got parents. He's with them."

Kazuha silently slipped upstairs, Heizo's response reaching her ears as she ascended. "Blood is not all that makes up a family, Mouri-san."