Even if I try to scatter doubt in the blue winds,

I was unable to carry the burden with this small chest.

Kaito blinked at her when she raised her head to look at him but held her gaze away from him. "What's wrong?"

He stretched his arm to shake her shoulder but Aoko stood up and moved away, turned to her father who just finished instructing two newly arriving police officers, clad in usual uniform than the rest of them.

Nakamori squeezed his shoulders and stood up, glanced first at Aoko and then the crowd before he moved towards her, lay a hand on her shoulder and stared into her eyes. "I'll leave him to your care. I'll do my best to catch Kid this time, so don't worry."

Aoko glanced away and bit her lips as she quietly nodded, not having it in her to tell him that she didn't come this time to watch him and cheer for him but to satisfy her own curiosity and to dispel the suffocating doubts that plagued her mind.

That Kaito wasn't Kid.

The crowd gathered around him moments prior were chased away by Nakamori's loud shouts and pointing fingers, whilst Kaito was helped up by the two newcomers glaring coldly at him as they grabbed either side of his arms like a criminal ready to be taken into custody.

"I can go by myself." Kaito tried to wring out of their grasp. His body still hurt from his fall and their grip of steel was making it worse.

"Hold still," Aoko pinched his cheek from where she walked behind him. "You're making their job harder. You shouldn't complain."

Kaito opened his mouth to protest but one glance at Aoko's glare silenced him. At least until they reached the spare room where the officers thrusted a First Aid Kit into his hands and disappeared out the door with a mumbled goodbye of something Kaito couldn't catch and neither particular cared. He threw himself on the couch, head pounding painfully and muscles aching. Kaito sighed, enjoying the quiet once again until it was broken by soft rustles and metal clucking. He lifted his head when a cold breezed brushed passed his legs, staring down at Aoko's frowning face, "You're bleeding."

Kaito's gaze travelled at his bare leg and wondered when Aoko pulled his trouser up and how he didn't notice the dark stain on it, much less the pain. He gave her a questioning look and Aoko huffed, annoyed and very much upset about something Kaito couldn't figure out.

He watched her quietly, trialling the slow and soft motions of her fingers as she cleaned his wound and pressed the gauze harder than necessary- Kaito was sure she'd done it on purpose and complained rightfully so against her brutal handling which she returned by giving him an earful. Kaito was starting to regret of having opened his mouth in the first place as the whole fiasco only made his headache worse.

"You're such a baby," Aoko rolled her eyes as she swatted the band aid on him, ignoring the way Kaito cried out and clutched his leg in protest. "Do you have any other injuries?"

Kaito gave her a lingering suspicious stare before he inspected the rest of his body. Aside from minor scrapes and bruises there wasn't much else to work on. "Nothing major to worry on."

Aoko nodded and busied herself, stuffing the equipments back inside the box and placed it besides her on the carpet. Kaito's eyes flickered down on her. A strange silence elapsed between them as Aoko tried her best to evade his gaze. That was what he thought until she raised her head, looking him straight in the eye before standing off the floor. "You should sleep for a while. You look like you need it."

Kaito shook his head. "There are some stuff I still need to do."

"In your condition?"Aoko rose a sceptical brow and threw a cushion at him rather forceful. "Don't kid yourself and take a break."

"Are you mad?" Kaito asked, catching it. He waited for a reply that never came. Aoko was too busy gazing at the many pictures hanging on the wall. "Aoko, are you mad at me?"

"No, I'm happy." Aoko's eyes flung at him, hot and blazing as she canted her head back towards his direction. "I'm so happy, you got shoved down the stairs by some freak and I was so awfully glad to see you laying on the staircase. I'm just so happy that you don't even care about it at all."

"I do care about it." Kaito replied, still not entirely sure what the problem was. He expected to be attacked to be at some point. Reika and Hondo warned that something like this might happen. Though, Kaito was surprised they'd do it so soon at the beginning. There were still ten minutes left until his prescribed time.

"No, you don't. You're too careless." Aoko rushed on, now towering over him, cheeks flushed with apparent anger. Kaito shrank back. "What were you thinking helping my dad like that? You're going to contaminate the whole building. You should've stayed in bed."

"No, I won't." Kaito pointed at his mouth mask. "I've thought things through."

"Not enough." Aoko placed her hands on her hips and she leaned forwards. "Kaito, do you even bother to think about anyone else beside you're stupid desires?"

"What's your problem?" Kaito snapped, annoyance building up under his skin. "Shouldn't you be glad that I'm helping your Dad?"

"I am but that's not the point!" Aoko shouted loud and unrestrained. "You could have told me!"

"What would have been the point?" Kaito shouted right back. Headache be damned he wouldn't stand for this. "I'll do what I want anyway. Telling you wouldn't have changed a thing."

"But at least I'd know, Kaito! I wouldn't have to worry about you so much."

"There's no need to worry. I'm fine!"

"No, you're not!" Aoko screeched and Kaito clutched his head. "A normal person doesn't walk around like this! And whatever you're doing is not helping you either. You've been like this for months and you keep getting worse!"

"Maybe because I am like that!" Kaito shouted exasperatedly. "How many times am I supposed to tell that I'm fine until you'll believe me?"

"You're not though!"

"I AM."

"YOU'RE NOT!"

"I SHOULD KNOW BETTER!" Kaito shouted. "IF I SAY I'M FINE I MEAN- I AM FINE!"

"YOU'RE FACE IS NOT NATURAL!" Aoko shrieked right back, voice high and shrill he's never heard before. "WHY WON'T YOU JUST ADMIT YOU'RE NOT OKAY!"

"BUT I AM!" Kaito breathed out sharply, shutting his eyes from the pulsating throb in his head, pressed his hands over his ears, droning out the rest until he felt a pair of hands on his wrist, tugging his hands down and pushing him back to sit on the couch.

"See? You're not." Aoko kneeled, roaming through the First Aid Kit, pulling out a pack of painkillers and threw it to him along with a water bottle from her own bag. "Why will you never listen to me?"

"I don't understand why you're so emotional about this." Kaito murmured and handed her the bottle back, wiping his mouth with his sleeve. "I just fell."

"You almost died." Aoko pointed out and Kaito didn't know whether it was the weight of her words or her voice itself that got his hair stand on end.

"What?" he cleared his throat, whipping his head back to face her. "Aoko you thought that-" Kaito shook his head, face scrunched up in vague disbelief. "Why would I die from that?"

"It can happen," she forced out, gazing away, slightly shrugging. "People die from that, too."

"As if I would ever die from that," he tried to laugh, "Come on Aoko, it's me. My head is harder than that."

"How am I supposed to know what you'll die from?" she whispered and rose her head, glowing sapphire eyes boring holes into him. "We can die from practically anything."

"So what do you want me to do?" he asked, brows furrowing slightly. "As far as I know it's something that we have to accept."

"I know. But I can't help it. It has always been like that." Aoko's voice quieted down and looked straight at him, and only now Kaito saw the wetness in her eyes, the red tinges on her nose and the glowing crimson swimming in the whiteness of her eyes. Kaito forced his lips shut and looked away, swallowing his oncoming words back down as his blue orbs moved towards the end of its sockets, peeking back at the rapid rising of her chest, tightly clenched fists, trembling shoulders and lowered head that had her bangs cover her eyes and forehead as she bit her bottom lip, mumbling, "Sometimes I just feel like I'm losing sight of you."

So quiet. Slow. Suffocated. Kaito just wanted to cover his ears again. Her voice echoed between them in constant turmoil and Kaito's only wish was to hide away from the dead heaviness coming of her words. But he could never ignore her nor the unsteady sound of her voice. So he forced himself to listen, to hold his breath and wait for her to finish, fingers clenching tight whilst her voice wavered through the air. "And today I realised it wasn't just a feeling- it was a fact. You're slipping right through my fingers." She looked up with eyes so glassy. "And I don't want that anymore."

Kaito's hands fisted by his side. Not liking at all the way her breathed hitched between each word as though she was moments away from tears and Kaito prayed she wasn't. He didn't want to handle this. Not now. "Aoko," Kaito breathed out long and drawn, rubbing his neck as his feet shuffled two steps forwards, body facing her as his mouth opened up again but she only shook her head, head still sunken as her voice carried through the air again, thick with such sharpness it pricked Kaito's skin.

"I know that you're uncontainable, Kaito. A wild boomerang that's out for destruction- that seeks some invisible excitement that can by no means satisfy you. And I don't mind it. It's just-" she swallowed and gazed away. Somehow Kaito got the feeling that she had those thoughts in her head for awhile now. His brows drew down. How long has she been thinking like this? His lips parted once more- about to let out strings of soothing words and reassurement when Aoko's voice ruled over his again, gaining more firmness despite the suffocation that clung to her voice, that still tucked her breath away. "You're getting farther and farther away. And I can't keep up. You always leave those holes and cracks I'm constantly toppling over and ithurts, Kaito. I-" she fluttered shut, blinking away the tears that brimmed in her eyes. "I can't keep doing this. I can't hold on forever."

Kaito stared. Astounded. Surprised. So out of his element. What was he supposed to say? What was there to say? He rubbed a hand over his face as he gazed at Aoko whose head was yet again lowered, shoulders sagging from a weight that was undeniably too heavy for her to carry. Kaito sighed as he stuffed his hands into his pockets. "Aoko, you idiot," he wanted to say. "Stop using your head and open up your eyes. You don't need to chase afterme. I'm right here."

But that wouldn't have been true. Aoko stood there- only metres away from him. He could cross the distance in four big steps in a matter of seconds. So why did it seem as though she was much farther? Like millions of miles away or as though stretching eternities were placed between them. For a moment Kaito wondered whether Aoko felt this distance everyday.

"You can go." Kaito looked up. Aoko turned away from him, walking with measured steps towards the door, a foreign tone interlaced in her voice that Kaito has never heard before. His airways constricted. "There's something you have to do, right? You seem to be okay. I won't stop you. You're free to go."

"But-" Kaito glanced at her uneasily. She has completely quiet down. So different from her usual flamboyance and boisterous ways.

"You can go," she repeated once more softly, hands holding onto the door knob. "I won't keep you anymore."

Kaito stomach dropped. Suddenly he got the notion she wasn't talking about the little errand he had to do anymore. This was something else. Something with a meaning he still didn't know about. "Do you want me to go?" Kaito's eyes roamed around her, looking for signs that might help him figure out what she was thinking about. But she only shrugged.

"You do whatever you want. Telling you what I want doesn't change a thing." Aoko glanced at him from the corner of her eyes, using his own words against her and he felt bad. So bad.

It wasn't supposed to be like this.

The door opened and after a moment she fluttered out, door closing behind her with a silent click and Kaito was still rooted to his spot when his heart pumped with unexplainable anxiety. Somehow he felt like Aoko was going to walk away from his life- leave him in the wake of his dust whilst she moved onto the horizon- whilst he still wallowed in the depth of the past. In his Dad's past.

Kaito could barely feel his leg as he staggered towards the door. Time seems to have slowed down as the sound of a ticking clock rang inside his ear, thoughts loosely forming themselves as he opens the door and with clammy hands, heart beating way too hard and too loud to be considered normal. He cleared his throat and shouted out her name, about to force his legs into a sprint to catch up to her when- he blinked. The knot in his heart loosened up and a light smile grazed his lips. She was there. Near the end of the hall. Still in reach. Still in plain sight.

"What do you want?" she turned slightly, still not meeting his eyes but Kaito didn't mind. Sort of relieved at the fact she hasn't disappeared, that he was able to find her before she could've gotten away. He walked up to her, the sound of footsteps cushioned by the velvet carpet beneath him.

"You don't need to keep up with me." Kaito voiced out once he was close enough, trying his best to keep the widening holes to small burst. "I never asked you to." Aoko's shoulder's stiffened and before she could storm off, he grabbed her arm as captive and was glad she didn't retract. "I never expected you to," he breathed out, moving Aoko to face him, raising her chin up and stared at her deep in the eye. "You never needed to," he shook his head, "There was never a point in doing so."

Aoko swatted his hand away from her chin, glaring heatedly at him as she repeated with vague disbelief, "There was nopoint?"

"You're only tiring yourself out." Kaito shrugged, smiling a tad bit ruefully. "Don't force yourself to catch something out of your reach- it's unhealthy."

"So you want me to let you drift away?" the expression on Aoko's face changed completely. Was it dread? Fear? Shock? Anger?

Kaito didn't know anymore but he knew his stomach twinged painfully when he said: "I'm a free bird. Let me fly wherever I want to."

The colour on her face drained away and left was a sickly pallor he never seen before anybody's face much less his own. Brown shocks of hair fell forwards, veiling her face as she lowered her head again as though he punched her. "Okay." It was whisper, maybe even fainter. Kaito strained his ears to catch her voice, slightly leaning down. "It's fine. I don't mind."

Aoko's eyes were shining brightly, way too brightly when she glanced up to him and belatedly Kaito noted they were very tear filled too. She took a step back and tried to smile despite her shaking shoulders and uneven breath. "This would've happen either way. It was a matter of time. I knew and yet-" she shut her eyes but the tears fell anyway, streaming down her cheeks the curve of her chin as she clenched her hands into a fist, knuckles turning white under the pressure. "I don't know why I let myself believe otherwise. I'm so stupid. I should have known that you would- that Kaito would-"

His heart coiled or at least if felt so. "Aoko, what do you mean?" he stepped forwards but Aoko retreated, kept a distance, dodging all advance from him to reach out to her whilst her shoulder violently shook as she curled into herself. Kaito frowned but let his arm fall to his side, feeling completely helpless as he watched on. She turned away, bangs still hovering over her eyes and leaving him no chance to figure her out.

"I won't bother you anymore," she forced out, staggering away from him but Kaito pulled her back and to his surprise Aoko didn't wring out of his grip.

"Explain." Kaito racked his eyes all over her. "I don't understand."

"Don't mind it."

"Aoko," he tightened his grip on her arm. "Tell me."

"You're a bird- fly wherever you want to. I don't care- just go." Aoko gave him a sharp glare with her red puffed eyes.

It took a moment to register her words but when it clicked, Kaito shoulder's slumped. "Do you really believe that?" he swallowed, "Do really you believe that I don't care whether we're friends or not?". . .whether you're here with meor not?

She didn't response but Kaito felt her tense up. So she did.

"Even a bird needs a nest to return to, Aoko," he murmured, arms tentatively circling around her, "And I got mine right here."

I'm here.

Right here.

"But is it enough?" she mumbled, pushing away from him and glaring right at him."Will it be really enough?"

"As long as you stop tripping and hurting yourself, yeah I guess," he roamed his eyes over Aoko's puffed face, the red rimmed eyes, the smudges of tears across her face and the quantity of snot she held back with her constant sniffing. "You'll be enough. Don't worry about anything anymore." Kaito placed her head back on his shoulder, fingers caressing her flowing mane. "I'll fix this."

She raised her head back up. "But-"

"Trust me," he mumbled against her hair, breathing in the faint strawberries emanating from her hair. "I will make this alright."

He felt her nodding, breath still shuddering and shaking against his jacket, hiccuping into it, head sinking deeper into the crook of his neck as her hands tighten around him. "Alright."

"It will be alright. You'll see."

"Okay."

I'll believe in the hand stretched out to me.

"Why is it that Conan always in the middle of the action?" Genta mumbled with arms folded behind his head, kicking the red carpet as though it was dirt.

"It's not necessarily a good thing." Haibara gave him a stern look. "Those guys have seen him, wouldn't you think it's better for you, who they not know of?"

"Yeah!" Mitsuhiko looked up as though he came to realise something important. "Now, that they know Conan has seen them, they might be planning to hush him."

Genta drove his thumb across his throat with sound effects that got Ayumi screaming: "I don't want Conan-kun to die!"

"Then, let's save him!" Mitsuhiko pumped up his fist, about to ran away with the other two when Haibara yanked him back.

"Nobody will die. If they intended to shoot us down, they would have done so the moment they saw Conan and I," her eyes fluttered shut before she rose a brow, "What did you plan on doing anyway? They had a gun if you haven't noticed. What good would you be against it?"

"Well," Mitsuhiko looked down, averting his gaze from her to his friends, "Perhaps we could find out who the person was that shot the victim lying on the floor, then?"

Genta nodded. "We're the detective boys after all!"

Ayumi frowned, slightly canting her head to the side. "But don't we know that already?"

"We do?" the two boys stared at each other in united confusion.

"Yes." Haibara did her best not to roll her eyes. "It was them. The ones we just spoke of."

"The ones that saw you and Conan?" Genta asked surprised. "But why would they kill one of their own?"

Haibara regarded them through calculating eyes, weighing the merits of telling them until coming to a conclusion at last. "Did you noticed anything happening on your way here?"

"Ah, I know!" Ayumi brightened up. "I saw a lady feeding her cat!"

Genta looked confused with his brows furrowed deeply. "What's so special about that?"

"It's because I saw a sign near the entrance that meant: no animals allowed." Ayumi looked at Haibara. "Isn't that what you meant?"

"Sorry." Haibara shook her head. "That wasn't what I had in mind. Do you have any other ideas?" Mitsuhiko shook his head and so did Genta, both looking equally clueless. Haibara sighed. "Haven't you listened to their conversation just now? They mention something about someone falling. . ."

"Ah!" Mitsuhiko cried out, raising finger. "I remember they said somebody fell for the stairs."

"That's right. He was pushed down." Haibara gazed back where they came from. "One of Snake's man was told do so but apparently didn't do to a very good job."

"So, they shot him because of that." Ayumi look down, frowning slightly before she brightened up. "Maybe we should check upon the victim- you know the one who fell!"

"Why should we do that Ayu- ow!" Genta howled in pain, clutching his foot and hopping on the spot. "Why did you do that for, Mitsuhiko?!"

"If Ayumi-chan says she wants to do something, she wants to do it!" the brunette gave him a pointed look, whispering at him, "Don't question her motives. She's not a suspect. Ayumi-chan deserves better."

"This reminds me," Ayumi spoke up, turning to Haibara. "Didn't the lady Momoi-san call the poor guy 'Kaito-kun'?"

"Did she?" Genta's eyebrows rose as he thought, tracking back into his mind. "I can't even remember."

"She did." Mitsuhiko's eyes roamed across his notepad. "I've made notes. It's was one of the things I have placed a question mark on. I wonder whether she knows him."

"Perhaps, it's the guy over there." Haibara motioned her head towards the corridor in front of them and the trio tried to squint through one of the opened doors to where he stood.

Genta ran closer before pointing a finger at the distant figure whose back was turned at them, looking rather shocked. "Eh!?" Genta's eyes popped out, "Isn't that the guy we have met before? The one with the bird Alva?"

"Dove." Mitsuhiko immediately corrected. "It was a Java dove. But yes, that's the one. I wonder what he's doing there. What do you think Ayumi-chan?"

"I think he is with someone." Ayumi squinted her eyes, stretching her head out further to get a proper look, "I'm sure it's a woman."

"Really?" Mitsuhiko mirrored her action. Behind them, Haibara closed her eyes, breathing deeply in through her nose and out from her mouth, relaxing her shoulder in attempt to calm herself.

"Now, let's go before he sees us. I don't want to be pegged as a stalker." Haibara spoke up, about to walk away but stopped when she noticed they weren't following her but were rather sneaking closer to the wanna be magician. "What are you doing?" she whispered-like- yelled when she followed them, hiding with them behind a closed door and peeking through the opened door next to it.

"We lost track of him last time." Mitsuhiko answered. "It's only natural we resume where we left off from."

"You trailed him before? Does Edogawa-kun know?"

"Yep!" this time Ayumi answered, crocking her head back at Haibara and smiled cheekily. "Though he lost us after awhile."

"We're suspecting him to be Kid." Genta supplied too, narrowing his eyes on the target. "He showed us some cool magic trick last time that left no room for doubt. I could bet servings of braised eel and rice on this."

Haibara blinked, not quite sure what to think of this. "Are you talking about the trick that Edogawa-kun told me of? That he made cards rain down?"

"Yeah." Mitsuhiko nodded, eyes still trained on the figures in front of him before his eyes widened. "The target is moving."

"It was a woman!" Ayumi pointed out as their suspect stepped back, releasing a girl from his arm and placed a hand on her back as guided her away. "And she's been crying, too."

"Maybe he made her cry." Genta tched and narrowed his eyes on him. "What a meanie. I expected better from him."

"Perhaps his sickness got to his head." Mitsuhiko thought out loud. "I mean, he was so kind when we met him. What could possibly have happened to him?"

"Or perhaps he is showing his true colours." Genta narrowed his eyes further. "I could smell he was fishy from the start. How can someone so good at magic think lowly of himself? I don't know about you, but that guy doesn't strike to me as modest at all."

"He doesn't?" Mitsuhiko's brows drew down. "I thought he was pretty modest."

"No, no. He's not," he shook his head before raising a finger, leaning in as though Genta was telling Mitsuhiko a secret. "If he were modest he would've done a small magic show instead of such a big one. He is a show off. Definitely." Genta nodded to himself, arms crossed over his chest, seemingly happy of his 'flawless' deduction.

"No. I don't think so. He might have had other reasons. I mean, his magic attracted attention to him, didn't it? Maybe, he had done it on purpose."

"Why would he?" Ayumi titled her head to the side. "He must have known it could be dangerous. Why would he put himself in such a position?"

"I don't know but why don't we find out?" Haibara suggested and pointed at the wanna be magician that was slowly walking off the opposite direction, still trying to calm the girl beside him. "I could use some fun. And by the looks of it you guys are already too deep involved in this, aren't you?"

"Yeah," the trio pumped their fist into the air, whisper-like-shouting: "The detective boys are on the move!"

Trouble welled in the pits of Nakamori's stomach, despite his awareness on the fact that his job was to concentrate on solely Kid capture, wasn't it the reason why he pushed the murder on his collegues who had a better expertise on the matter? After all with his recent transfer to the Second Division, his skills to track criminal down has considerably dampen due the lack of use. However, he is aware that this situation was the gateway to catch both criminals as well as clear up a murder, especially when the murderers were identified too. The best course of action would be to established a battle arena. Away from the civilians to reduce the possibilities of subjecting them to harm, which in turn conflicts with Kid's demand of having an audience. But even Kid wouldn't moan for that when the lives of people may be at stake? Yet even more so, who was Nakamori to inflict such bases? What evidence was available for him to stuff up his assumption that civilian were to be harmed? That it would turn out the be dangerous? What were those assumptions even based upon?

My instinct, Nakamori realised with clenched fits. This is bound to get dangerous. I can feel it! Yet, this was not enough proof to persuade Suzuki to end this exhibition, not when he spent much preparation and money to open it up in the first place, and yet despite all this it is necessary to organise a plan to evacuate them without causing too much disturbance…

A light bulb shone above Nakamori's head, perhaps the civilian don't need to be evacuated at all. But of course not, instead he should focus on getting them away by themselves!

With new found rigour Nakamori issued orders through his radio. Precautionary measurements, he thinks to himself, just to be save.

It was one of those rare days Nakamori engaged himself in making up a little rumour.

Your budding memories tangled with the inevitable thorns.

Pitch black. The darkest shade. A low murmur, somewhere admits the welling darkness, raising volume slowly, slowly. Hondo's eyes squinted through the dark, stepping further in Hideki's office, straining his ear, waiting, waiting-

Nothing.

A passing thought. Penetrating silence. A halting breath. Hondo marched further in, eyes adjusting to the dark, "Hideki," he called, "Hideki."

No response.

Glimpsesof fleeting shadows.Silent footsteps. Staggering breaths.

Hondo sighed. "I know you're here."

The door slammed shut.

Quiet.

Quiet.

Until-

"Did you know?" a quiet murmur, almost a low growl. "Did you?"

"What are you talking about?" Hondo turned to look at him, fingers anxiously gripping and clenching in his pocket, "Know about what?"

"Michi," was all he said with a breath too shallow and fingers too ready.

Hondo answered not, looked straight at him instead.

"Don't lie to me," Hideki neared him, feet dragging along the carpet, fists trembling near his sides, breath shaking and far too uneven, "Hondo….did you?"

He looked away andswallowed deep.

Took a deep breath and clenched his fists.

"So what if I did?"

The look on Hideki's face was etched deep into his memory.

Hondo groaned as the memories flooded his mind. Practiced fingers flitted from the rim of his shades to his closed lidded eyes, massaging slowly whilst he breathed out deep and slowly, cursing his mental picture to death, to not attack him like this again- at least not when he was doing this.

Concentrated eyes strained on the screen whilst the hard sound of tapped keys lulled through the small room. Hondo blinked once, twice and squinted his eyes, winding back and forth, cameras flicking with images here and there as he speeded through it until- there, he smirked, found it.

He played it forward and zoomed it, trailing after the figures- first two girls, one of which Hondo vaguely recognised as Nakamori-Keibu's daughter crawling out of the passage before someone else appeared on the screen. One of his targets. He gazed at time displayed ad the bottom corner before resetting the other screens roughly at the same time and voilà- he fished out a self constructed print out of the exhibition hall. With quick fingers he marked the spots the figure on the screen lingered seconds too long. Got you. A satisfied smirk bloomed on Hondo's lips as he threw the pencil down and deleted each video by pushing a single button. Game over. He leaned back in his chair, stuffing the paper into his pocket before shutting each of them down.

He'll make them all pay.

"Are you done yet?" the door opened from behind him, flocks of maroon hair peeked through, framing hazel eyes that were gazing straight at him.

"Yeah," he swirled his chair to face her completely, watching her frown at him as she came closer, closing the door behind her. "But what are you doing here? You shouldn't be wandering around."

"I don't need you to tell me that." she shot him a look, gazing flicking at the blank screens, "I was just wondering what you were up to."

"Nothing. Now go back. I don't need you here."

"You're always so mean," she dismissed his retort with flick of a hand, easily sliding into the seat next to him, hazel eyes locking on his as though they looked right through him. "Sometimes I feel as though you're forgetting that I'm here to help."

Reika adjusted herself in her seat, propping her chin onto her folded arms resting on top of the chair as she stared long at him. Hondo frowned slowly, a strange idea formed at the back of him mind but he dismissed it. Reika couldn't have known about his plans. And even if she did, Reika wasn't the type to stretch her hand out in help for it, rather she'd try to stop him. With all her might. It was against her moral code after all.

"Only when you become a bother," he mumbled back and glared coldly at her. "Just do what you're told for once."

"But I haven't been given an order." Reika rolled her eyes and slowly stood up, already foreseeing a new order.

"Tell Tanaka to get ready then. The police will be coming soon." Hondo watched her walking out the door but not without mumbling something under her breath that he couldn't quiet catch. Probably a complain.

The door opened again and he half expected Reika to march in in refusal but was slightly surprised to see someone form the forensic team stood in the doorway, a handful of pictures and a plastic bag in his gloved hand. "I thought you'd like to see these."

The quiet, lulling wind that brew since the first rays of sunlight shone above the skyscrapers, was rushing now, whipping and lashing at the surrounding people. Megure stepped out of the police car parked near the exhibition hall, hand clutching tight on his hat until he walked inside the building. A shuddering breath escaping his lips before he looked around and saw a hand waving frantically at him, beckoning him. It was a waitress, perhaps one of the witnesses who have seen the murder directly happening. Megure walked towards her with his colleagues right behind him, and all the while Megure's brows furrowed deeper as fasted on the waitress's face, staring minutes longer with the recurring notion that she was vaguely similar. Has he met her before? Before he could divulge into the matter, Takagi raised an unashamed finger and squeaked out in pure recognition. Satō rose an eyebrow at him and crooked her head to the direction she believed him to be staring at him before frowning slightly, a tad bit confused that Megure could all too understand, after all it was only a waitress he was pointing at, not necessarily something frightening that was able to stir up such a reaction.

"What's the matter?" Megure heard her asked and listened in too, quite curious, and leaned his head slightly towards them, catching whiffs of vocalised mumblings and whispers when it suddenly hushed, and Megure had to roll his eyes at the couple secrecy. So it had nothing to do with the case, after all.

Coughing short into his hand to regain the air of professionalism and authority, Megure tipped his head at the waitress and asked her to lead the way when he noticed that she wasn't quite looking at him. Indeed, she was looking right behind him, at something she found personally amusing if anything from the widening smile on her lips was something to go by, and as if Megure had spoken the truth, the waitress tipped her head to the side to gain a better access at the view in front of her that were moments ago obstructed from Megure's head. He was in the way, Megure realised with sinking brows and as if to tip the matter off the waitress gave a sudden laughed.

"Excuse me-" Megure intended to dive straight into the matter, to apologised for his straightforwardness in passing and get the investigation rolling. There was simply not time to be staring at people and laughing at their expense. It was a pursuit to be done in one's own free time.

"Keibu-dono!"

The sudden shout alerted Megure in more ways than one. Even from a far, Megure was able to recognise his former colleague running towards him or rather fighting with transcendent effort to pass through the stream of people walking against him towards the exist. And indeed, it brought a quiet comical picture in itself, Megure thought as he gave the waitress and apologetic look for his previous thoughts. And yet, somewhere in the back of him mind Megure slightly wondered why those people were leaving already, it was nowhere near time for closure as he far as he knew- and yet totally unnecessary, at least for now. Megure needed to filter his thoughts and purely concentrate on the investigation. He waited until the private detective came to a sudden halt in front of him, and only then proceeded to talk to him.

"Oh, Mōri -kun, how fitting for you to be here just when a murder occurred. Are you sure you're not secretly instigating them up yourself? Your constantly appearance cannot be a coincidence anymore." Megure turned him and motioned him to follow them as the waitress resumed her role as an escort and guided them to another set of silent glass doors that guided them towards the inner hall that led to the main hall where the main attraction was held but was secured off later, when it was time for it to be shown in the main event. They followed the waitress who guided them to the control room where they will be filled in the occurrences by a supposedly more reliable source than herself.

"Ha ha! It seems as though your knack for humour never truly died out. Of course, I merely here to help out." Mōri laughed uneasily at Megure's sceptical brows. "You see, I thought I'd help catch that lousy Phantom Thief. A great way to put my skills in use, wouldn't you think so? After all, Kid won't stand a chance against The Great Detective Mōri Kogorō."

"If you seem to think so," Megure shrugged, slightly wondering how far they needed to go still when he caught the sight of two familiar ladies running towards them, or specifically towards the self proclaimed 'Great Detective'. "A 'coincidence' you say," Megure mumbled and halted for them to catch up to them.

"Sonoko invited them into the exhibition as you can probably imagine- it's hosted by her Uncle after all." Mōri explained and Megure nodded absent mindedly. So, I can expect the whole gang to be present.

"What happened here!?" Ran inquired almost immediately once they were in range.

"A murder. The details have not been told yet, but as afar as we know the culprit has been identified." Megure clarified as they started walking again at brisk speed to catch up with with the others walking many meters in front of them until they came to stop by a door, waiting for them to catch up before they could walk inside together. That was until Tanaka stretched a hand out to block Ran and Sonoko from entering.

"Only authorised personnel," she said and shook her head but was quick to change her minds after a few weak words from Mōri, which necessarily would not have had an effect were it not supported by Megure's own.

"If it's like this," she smiled and entered, escaping the wrath emanating from Sonoko and her raised fist.

"Come on, come on," Ran ushered her friend inside just as the waitress loudly announced their arrival to death ears as the steward's eyes were still trained on the screen before him. Megure had to rub him eyes and blinked several times but his eyes were not deceiving him. "I thought the room only permitted entry for authorised personnel?"

"Of course!" The waitress gave him a strange look before her eyes widened in realisation. She wiped her head back at the steward who was already rolling his eyes and he took his shades off, dark blond shaggy hair fell over his bright glowing amber eyes, as he inspected Megure with critical eyes.

"I'm surprised you didn't recognised us, Megure-Keibu,"

"Hondo..." Megure's eyes instinctively narrowed before fastening onto the waitress, who was now smiling sheepishly. "Then you must be that crazy air-head, who has more abstract notions in her head than my previous colleague ever had." Megure said, sneaking a glanced at Mōri, who look perplexing back at him, muttering in thought, "Did you ever had a colleague like that?"

Megure sighed internally and shook his head in a rather sadden fashion. Leave to Mōri to not realise the joke was on him. Even Ran, who Megure was able to see from the corner of his eyes, hid her face beneath her hands, telling Sonoko off for her cheeky remarks.

"You're mistaken." The waitress was now frowning at Megure, who snapped his attention back at her. She stepped forward, a hand placed on her hip as she pushed her chest forward as though the motion raised her level of seriousness, or perhaps authority? Megure could only definitely discern from this movement that it lacked any sort of menace. "I'm-"

"Tanaka-san!" Hondo's voice was sharply, "Have you informed Reika and Tachibana, already?"

"What?" The waitress blinked confused and shook his head, her eyes bore a unique mixture of reluctance uncertainty that Megure wasn't able to dismissed easily. How weird. "Of course not, I thought-"

"Do it now," Hondo interrupted her, "and tell them to not leave their post, regardless of what happens. Especially Reika, for some reason that woman likes to wander off." Tanaka nodded mutely and fished her phone from her pocket before leaving the room but not before giving Hondo a glare that spoke murderous intent. Megure broke a sweat, so she wasn't as harmless as he originally thought. "He deserved it," he heard Sonoko mumble rather loudly, "What a prig,". As a matter of duty Megure gave a stern look at her direction, silently telling her to behave which she not entirely understood as she glared right back at him in full, but thankfully Ran did and tried to veer her friend's disapproval down.

"So, about the murder..." Satō started and walked further into the room, notepad open and ready to be scribbled on. Hondo glanced at her from the corner from his eyes and nodded. He walked over to the desk where the pictures lay which the forensic police took of the crime site.

"That's the victim," Hondo swiped a picture forward with his pointer finger. "Estimated to be roughly in his thirties. His identity still unknown, though. The only belongings he had on him are these-" he steered their attention to the other half of the table where a plastic wrapped two-way radio lay, a gun, a second pair of gloves, a pack of tissues- all in all nothing too unusual in Megure's opinion, nonetheless he listened to Hondo further. "But what's striking me the most was this little thing he had-" he held up a plastic bag containing a stunt gun.

Satō frowned. "Yes, I agree, it would be strange for a victim to have such a weapon, but this victim is a member of Snake's group, isn't he? Wouldn't you expect him then to carry something like that with him?"

Hondo looked at her for a moment as though he was measuring her worth, might Megure added as he turned to look at Takagi's gaping mouth with furrowed brows. A smirk curled on Hondo's lips. "I'm glad you're informed to that extent. Saves me time to skip on the details. Are you then aware of the causal nature of his death, too?"

"He was shot." Satō answered, glancing sharply on the picture he initially put forward.

"A clean shot, wouldn't you think? And? Any thoughts regarding that matter?" his smirk gained on length, giving Megure's crew a rather pointing look that gave a thin air of layered satisfaction that Megure was able to sniff through in seconds. In a strange sense to him it appeared as though Hondo was dangling vital information in front of their eyes that he was not quite ready to give and watched rather amusingly at them struggling to reach for it.

"Not necessarily." Satō shook her head and glanced back at her collegues who were also motioning their heads negatively. "Would you fill us in?"

"That's why I am here," Hondo stepped forward and tipped a finger at the picture, specifically at the spot where the blood started to gush out of the victims head. "Snake has a brutal nature that was often picked upon. With that in mind it is clear that this is not the work from himself per se, but rather from one of his henchman with an excellent aim, and why? To end matters quickly. It's safe to assume that they didn't want to stir too much attention on the matter, nor on themselves- and personally I get the notion that this is far from over. In fact, it may only be a clumsy start on their plans that they may wanted to righten."

"A clumsy start?" Takagi and Ran echoed, both expressions were equally matched with raised brows.

Hondo nodded and motioned to the stunt gun again he placed on the table. "Why did you think he needed that for? It's not exactly something you just carry in your pocket for no particular reason."

"He wanted to use it on someone," Megure followed up and looked at Hondo sceptically, "But on whom exactly? I have a feeling you haven't told us everything yet."

"Of course not." Hondo closed his eyes briefly and slowly filled them in the gasps. Megure listened attentively as he recounted the most likely reason for his death which in turn erupted a short winded discussion of the importance of having a workplace free from possible threatening hazard that this Kuroba person was, as well as the incredulity of the involvement of not only a teenager in Nakamori's workplace but also Hondo's team

that Chaki-Keishi felt the need to include. This act alone showed Megure how close Nakamori was to be expelled from the Second Division since his direct superior ensure for him to have such additional help. Well, if he ever were to be discharged Nakamori could always revert back to his post in the First Division, Megure easily dismissed, knowing that that never will be the case. Nakamori was too stubborn to even lose his current position in the first place.

But returning to the matters at hand, Megure still had trouble believing that a gang as dangerous as Snake's was out to harm a still considerable child with a some years of experience in magic, although Hondo stressed that he was still green behind the ears and nothing like the real Kid- if they ever happened to think that only because his forename was in a visual perspective of rōmaji lettering very similar. Megure supported the view by giving a long side glance at Mōri as well as the two laddies at the back who wore rather astounding expression on their faces at hearing that Kaitou Kid may has a potential rival. Megure noticed with a sinking feeling that Sonoko could barely hold herself off from flipping the phone in her hand open and send this new found revelation to the world. Thank goodness Satō was able to persuade her otherwise.

Yet, this did not mean Megure was fully content with the situation, in all honesty he was still baffled as to what benefits the involvement of teenager was supposedly bring to the capture of Kid (mind, Kudou was an exception). It's not like sharp mindedness alone is enough for that and neither quiet was hard-shipped determination- else Nakamori-Keibu would have succeeded long ago. Whether having a like-mindedness individual to bridge the gap between the world's most sought thief and the police was fairly sceptical with countless reasons, but Megure was open mindedly enough to look at the development they would make in their investigation, regardless of how slim it may be.

Personally, Megure always thought that the tightest security imaginable would do the trick to catch him and fairly easily at that, but surely was he mistaken. It must be harder than that, after all the thief has been chased after for complete eighteen years. The number alone makes one forget, or at least question, the mortality of the person behind the mask. Sometimes Megure wondered whether he was a human at all. Before Megure could ponder more his thoughts were distracted by the loud sound of the door when Tanaka stepped in again and gave the man clad in steward clothes a curt nod which indicated that his order were received. For a second Megure noticed that the tiny order she has been giving took up some time, and in the next he noticed she has been missing most of the explanation….

Megure shook his head to get rid of the silly idea. It was most likely she was already informed of all the theories and possible explanations beforehand. She couldn't have been purposely left in the dark. Concentrating back on the matter, Megure looked around. Beside his investigation team and themselves, there was no one else present. Megure felt his eye twitch. "So, where is everyone involved?"

"They disappeared before I could do anything." Tanaka voiced in with an exasperated glance with an unsaid implication that her authority has been overlooked upon due the clothing she has been forced to wear, and snapped a quick finger in annoyance at the situation itself as her eyes fastened on Megure. "Just like that, can you believe it?"

"You were supposed to secure the scene! I don't know how many times I've got to tell you that." Megure patience was running thin as he lay hand over his eyes and massage them. It was always the same matter with them, messing up the crime scene before he arrived and give him in turn those poor excuses. Sometimes Megure couldn't help but speculate whether they were messing the scene up for their own personal gain, as irrational as it sounds. With flaring anger he motions towards the door, ordering for them to get them in his sternest voice.

"That would be quiet unreasonable." Hondo drawled and pointed towards the screens hanging walls, "We have all people involved on footage. There's no need to chase them up like wild dogs."

"Exactly!" Tanaka moved to rewind the film material enough for them to observe the occurrences in chronological sequence as well as the different aspects of the same scene. It hadn't even been five minutes in when they recognised out loud the little heads running passed the people and the majority of the accumulating group afterwards near the corps, but what didn't make sense was why Snake would risk to unveil their whereabouts? Surely he would know that they would be ambushed the moment their backup would arrive. The more he thought about it the more it seemed like a trap. He couldn't help but have a bad feeling about this.

"Alright," he sighed, massaging the bridge of his nose, "I guess we could proceed by questioning the witnesses themselves. Perhaps they caught something we have yet to see."