[Summary: Souji isn't fooled by the change in his big sis, Naoto's deductions aren't well received, and Saki doesn't have a swimsuit.]

[7/17: Sunday]

"Big sis...?"

Nanako was watching television with Souji. Rather, he was watching, and she was lost in thought. His voice brought her reluctantly down to earth. "What is it, Souji-kun?"

He looked down and fidgeted with the gummi bag, but he didn't answer.

"What is it?" she repeated with a tired sigh. "Come on, you know you can tell me."

He was still staring down at the gummi bag. "You didn't..." he mumbled. "You didn't sing the song..."

"Huh?"

"L-Loveline song... You didn't sing it."

She hadn't, and she wasn't finding much enjoyment in the show this morning. It felt like it wasn't her show anymore.

"Big sis... what's wrong?" He looked up at her with concern-filled eyes. "Y-you've been... s-so..."

The tone of his voice was what made her move around the tea table and wrap her arms around him. "Hey, it's okay," she cooed. "I worried you last week, didn't I? I'm better now."

Souji's body did not relax in her embrace. "Y-you're not better…" She frowned down at him and he looked up at her evenly. "You're not."

They were having a stare-down, and those gray eyes were winning. She broke the gaze first and tried to run her fingers through his hair to distract him. "I'm not better," she conceded. "But I will be. Soon."

As soon as she caught the killer.

He shifted away from her grasp. "You're different, big sis," he said, "and I don't like it."

"Sou-chan—"

"I know s-someone died," he said. "And I know… you won't see him again, just like I won't see Papa."

"S-Souji... your dad..."

But he wasn't going to be distracted for the moment. "Big sis... You're hurting, right? I w-wish Papa was still here, but I know he's gone. Mama told me it's okay to cry, s-so if you need to..."

"Your mom told you that?" she asked, surprised despite herself. Aunt Seta deserved more credit, didn't she?

He gave a small nod, and Nanako scooted closer to scoop him up in her arms once again. "It's confusing sometimes," he confessed. "Papa loved me, and he was nice, and... But Mama, she put all our pictures of him away. Sh-she won't answer when I ask about him. Like with Adachi-san. A-and I just want to know why."

"She misses him, too," Nanako murmured.

"Wh-when Papa came home, she used to... to give him a kiss," the boy said quietly, like it was a secret. "I miss that. Because they were happy. I liked it… when they were happy."

"My parents do that too," she remarked. "It was cute, right? Seeing your parents in love."

He nodded against her chest. He was finally starting to relax. "I miss it a lot..." He sighed. "But now Papa's gone and this house is all sad. Sometimes I d-don't want to live here, but then Mama would be alone..."

"It's all right to feel that way, honey," she assured him. "Being sad, or angry, or feeling lonely... Everyone feels that way sometimes. If you need me, whenever you need me, I'm here."

"Y-you too, big sis," he said. He shifted in her arms to look up at her. "I'm happy... that you've come to live with us. I w-want you to get back to normal, but... I know you're sad, so..."

She made a sympathetic sound and kissed his forehead. "Thanks, Sou-chan. I... I've always wanted a little brother, so... I'm glad we're getting along." She drummed her fingers against his belly for a moment in thought. "I know you're worried about me. I can't... I can't make any promises. Buuuuuut, speaking of promises, you said we'd go swimming together. Why not this Saturday? And Takeyoshi-kun is coming too, no ifs, ands, or buts."

"All right," he said. "I haven't gone swimming in a while…"

"Look forward to it, Sou-chan! We can bring Rainbow Fish and Foxie, too, although Foxie can't get wet, especially after her surgery. Oh, Yuuta-kun can come too, if you'd like to invite him. It can be a little party!"

"I don't know," Souji said slowly, "if his mom will let him."

"I'll just kidnap him from the daycare. She won't even miss him."

After exam week, she'd need a break. Now she had even more reason to look forward to the weekend.

[7/20: Wednesday]

Nanako had been doing well so far in remaining focused on her exams this week—she'd even spent the Ocean Day holiday studying in her room—but it was ruined today by the rumor mill.

The police had made an arrest.

She should have been overjoyed. Should have been.

She tried to find out more information, but no one had any hard facts, except that apparently the arrested culprit had confessed to all of the murders. It was completely ridiculous. And his name was still being withheld from the public.

She had a text message from Naoto.

MY PLACE COME ASAP AFTER SCHOOL

Now her mind was even less prepared for today's exams.

Apparently sensing her muddled mood, none of her friends even tried talking to her, though she sensed that Yosuke had wanted to say something, probably to the effect of 'at least they got him!' Maybe he'd finally learned some self-restraint. Chie gave her a funny look before class started, and she hadn't bothered to try and interpret it. Yukiko, for one, was focused on the notebook in front of her.

Nanako decided to follow Yukiko's example, and she powered through the day as best she could.

Naoto didn't offer her tea this time. He sat across from her and spread his hands across the table in a candid gesture. "I must congratulate the police for catching their suspect. However..."

"However, we know he only killed Mr. Morooka," Nanako finished for him. As much as I want him to hang for that alone.

"Indeed. Nanako-san." Naoto paused, apparently steeling himself. "I have been taken off the investigation," he told her. "And I'm no longer welcome around the station."

Nanako leaned her head back, dispirited. "You mean they didn't like your report? It's bullshit politics getting in the way of the truth."

He nodded. "That's exactly it. Someone didn't like the conclusion I presented with my report. There is so much push to solve the serial murders that those heading the investigation are, it seems, more than willing to ignore the evidence and pin all the murders on their suspect."

"The confession helps," she remarked, "along with the fact that there hasn't been a murder following the true killer's method in months. But that's only because I've prevented it!"

Naoto smiled bitterly. "The case is likely to be closed. That is, unless someone else dies."

"We can't let that happen!" Nanako declared. "Damn it! First I can't deal with Mr. Morooka's killer myself, and now the true killer gets off scot-free? That won't—" She cut herself off with a frown because Naoto had put on a humorless smile.

"The true killer's little game won't end here," Naoto promised. "The public must be made aware of the police's folly. That folder before you. You might recognize its contents. Before submitting my report, I made a copy of all of my data. It's a race against time. I have a plan, but I will need your help."

"Tell me more," Nanako requested.

[7/23: Saturday]

Freedom. Nanako shared the feeling with all of her classmates when school let out that afternoon. No more exams, and summer break began next Wednesday. Just two more useless days of school to end the term.

But she couldn't relax like everyone else around her, nor feel any relief over the killer's capture. Her friends, too, knew it wasn't over.

"What are we going to do?" Yosuke asked her while she was in the classroom, packing her stuff to leave for the day.

"You are going to keep watching the news and the Midnight Channel," she told him. "Got that?"

"Y-yeah," he replied. Again she sensed he wanted to say something more, but he just bit his lip and turned away to start sweeping the classroom with a broom. He had cleaning duty today.

"I think he's just upset that he can only see your ankles," Chie remarked playfully. She, too, had noticed his hesitation in speaking with her.

Nanako looked down at her long skirt. She was starting to like wearing it. The way it flared out when she made a sudden turn was nice. She couldn't get used to all the stares she continued to receive for it, however. Contrary to what the entire school's population seemed to believe, the new wardrobe wasn't a bid for attention. Some of the teachers had been more disapproving than others about it; Mr. Yamada had tried to tease her, but Ms. Sofue had only raised an eyebrow. In all honesty, she didn't care what anyone thought about it—least of all Yosuke.

"That was a joke, Nanako," Chie said. "You're supposed to laugh."

"I'm not ready to laugh yet," Nanako told her.

Chie seemed to be at a loss for words. "W-well, Nanako," she eventually said. "Don't forget that you can call any of us up, anytime. If you want to go out, or... Hey, do you wanna go training tomorrow? I didn't call you last Sunday because we were all studying."

"Actually, Chie, I'm busy tomorrow," Nanako replied. "I have a Plan to see through." A Plan with a capital P.

"Really? You're not gonna let me in on it, are you?"

"You should probably watch the news tonight, too," Nanako advised evasively. "We all need to stay on top of this case. Actually, could you tell Yukiko that, too? I have a date with Souji-kun, so I need to get going."

Chie blinked at her. "Wait. Speaking of Yukiko, she wanted to talk to you."

Nanako paused in putting her bag over her arm. "If it's about studying, it's a little too late. She could have called."

The other girl was shaking her head. "It's not. I told her to wait until after exams. It would be nice if you could find some time to see her. I think she's still around campus. She just wanted to ask Mr. Hosoi a question about the story we had to write about today."

Nanako checked the time on her phone. It was still early enough. "Sure, I'll go find her."

She'd met Yukiko in the hall by the faculty office, and now the two were sitting on a bench outside the school.

"It was so difficult to concentrate on exams," Yukiko said with a soft sigh. "When Ms. Kashiwagi proctored, I kept thinking of him."

Him. She didn't have to say it for Nanako to know she meant Morooka.

"You probably did fine," Nanako murmured. "You always do."

Yukiko ignored her token reassurance. "Nanako, I wanted to tell you that he was helping me. He'd given me some advice. Mostly that I shouldn't make any rash decisions, and about how the situation might look like from someone else's perspective."

Nanako's pensive look became a puzzled one. "So he told you not to leave Inaba?"

The innkeeper-in-training shook her head. "Not exactly. He actually had the same idea that you had—that I should go to college in the big city and see what life is like there before committing. I told him that my family doesn't see college in my future, and he gave me some ways to work on changing their minds. He suggested I find stories of other girls who went on to get hospitality degrees and how it helped them in their businesses, for example. He was going to help me look into colleges, but then..." Yukiko hesitated for a moment. "Then he was killed."

Nanako leaned her head back on the bench until it was touching the wall of the school building behind her. He wasn't supposed to die.

"I wanted to thank you for having me talk to him," Yukiko continued. "You were right. There was more to him than he showed the world. I'm not sure why he was the way he was, but..."

"Now we'll never know," Nanako replied simply.

They sat together in a brooding silence for a while, both thinking about the teacher they no longer had.

Nanako had wondered how she was going to 'kidnap' Yuuta, but she needn't have bothered. The boy was present at the Seta residence when she arrived. Apparently Souji had taken care of that for her. Heh heh. He really was a blood relative, wasn't he?

Takeyoshi-kun was there, too. He was a husky boy with dark hair. By rights, Souji-kun should be his size, Nanako thought, from all the takeout he ate and his lack of exercise. But she'd noticed by now that Souji didn't eat everything set in front of him. He might also have a good metabolism.

Standing with Takeyoshi, though, was a woman who was apparently his mother. She seemed to be supervising the boys until Nanako arrived. As Nanako introduced herself, the woman's expression became stony, and her reply introduction was stiff. "I'm not sure about this..." the woman muttered at the end.

"About what?" Nanako asked, tilting her head. "We're just going swimming at the flood plain. I mean, I'm no lifeguard, but I doubt we'll have a problem. I'm a good swimmer and I know CPR."

The woman sucked her teeth. "I just don't know."

That's when Nanako realized the woman was staring at her long skirt... and judging her for it. "Listen, you!" Nanako exclaimed. "I'm a respected worker at the daycare. The kids love me. Right Yuu-kun?"

"Y-yeah," Yuuta said. "Everyone wants Boss to be their big sis!"

Takeyoshi looked up at his mom, who mouthed, 'Bad influence,' under her breath while shaking her head.

Nanako's DEATH glare hadn't seen some use in a while, and she was about to bring it out when the doorbell rang. Before she could get it, Souji was already heading there to open it. "Oh, hi," came a voice from the front door. "My, aren't you cute. Are you Souji-kun? You're in that picture I took at Tatsumi Textiles. My name is Saki... Is Nanako in?"

"Uh, umm, y-yeah..." was Souji's muffled reply.

"Come on in, Senpai!" Nanako called, and soon Saki joined the group crowding the Seta family living room.

"Oh, Saki-chan!" said Takeyoshi's mom. "Are you, perhaps, going with...?"

Saki nodded. "Yeah, Nanako invited me and I couldn't resist a chance to meet her little cousin." She patted Souji on the head, and Nanako stared, because the boy didn't back away even though he'd only just met Saki. In fact, he seemed to be smiling.

"That's good," the older woman said in obvious relief. "I know I can trust you with the boys. Listen, I'll be back around seven tonight. Are you going to feed him?"

Saki turned to Nanako with a questioning look.

"Just takeout," Nanako replied. "Since I can't cook much. Oh, dang, you just reminded me that I forgot to bake cookies yesterday!"

"Cookies...?" Takeyoshi's mom was frowning.

"D-dinosaur cookies, big sis?" Souji asked. "We had d-dinosaur cookies once," he explained to a curious Yuuta. "Takeyoshi-kun had one because I brought some with my lunch one day."

"It was a triceratops," Takeyoshi reported.

Takeyoshi's mother was giving Nanako an appraising look. "Well, takeout is fine." She then turned to her son and gave him a kiss on the nose. "Be good, Ta-chan!"

After the woman left, Yuuta snickered. "She called you 'Ta-chan.'"

"S-so?" said Takeyoshi. "She's my mom, so..."

"I call Souji-kun 'Sou-chan' all the time," Nanako informed the boys. "A nickname's cute! Wanna be called 'Yuu-chan'? I'll do it."

Yuuta's face grew pink, perhaps in the shade that was his favorite color. "N-no thanks, Boss!"

Nanako then told the boys to use the bathroom one last time—not that she cared if any of them piddled in the river. While they were doing that, she finished packing her bag with towels and made sure she remembered to put the sunscreen in it.

"So, our party is three boys," Saki observed. "I can handle three boys."

"Psshh," said Nanako. "You could handle a dozen."

"I'm sure I don't know what you mean," Saki replied, but she nudged Nanako playfully on the shoulder while she said it.

Nanako led them to the river at the flood plain, right by the picnic area. Saki slowed, expecting her to stop there, but she continued along the river towards the northern part of the town, and the older girl followed her, mild confusion on her face.

"So, Ta-kun, tell me about yourself," Nanako requested.

Takeyoshi lifted his head and recited, "I'm 6 years, 7 months, 3 days, and, umm," – he looked down at his wristwatch – "18 hours and 46 minutes old."

"That's oddly specific," she remarked with a bemused shake of her head, and he seemed to glow with pride.

"Takeyoshi-kun w-wants to be an astronaut," Souji contributed. "And work on the s-space station."

"I wanna be a space pirate," Yuuta interjected, jogging up to them. He'd fallen behind because his shoe had gotten untied. Saki had helped him with it. "And steal all the treasure!"

"What, like that episode of Featherman?" Nanako asked. "Then you'd better be a good pirate or the Rangers will get you!"

"Uh, umm..." Yuuta looked downcast all of a sudden. "Y-yeah."

"Something wrong, Yuu-kun?"

"D-didn't see that episode," he muttered.

"Yuuta-kun hasn't seen any episode," Souji threw in helpfully.

Yuuta glared at the other boy. "You weren't supposed to tell anyone! You promised!"

Souji looked taken aback and more than a little hurt at his tone. "B-but it's big sis...!"

"Hey, hey," Nanako said. "It's okay if you don't like Featherman. I'm not a huge fan myself. Loveline is my one true love." Or rather, it used to be, she added in her mind.

"But I do like Featherman," Yuuta protested. "It's just..." He looked down with a scowl.

Nanako stopped walking to stand by him.

"She watches TV during it," he finally confided, "so... I can't watch it."

"She? Oh, you mean your stepmom." Nanako nibbled her lower lip while she considered this problem.

"Yuuta-kun," Saki mused. "That's right. Your stepmother is Minami-san."

Nanako looked at her friend. "Oh, do you know her? I feel like... I'm gonna have to get involved at some point. I don't know anything about her except Yuu-kun doesn't seem to like her."

"It's not that I don't like her," Yuuta mumbled. "But..."

"She's not his real mom," Takeyoshi pitched in.

"That doesn't matter at all, honey," Nanako said, looking at both of the boys critically. "Real or not, a crappy mom is gonna be crappy. And a good mom is going to be good, full of love and support, regardless. Most moms are somewhere in between. Sometimes they just need a bit of guidance to push them in the right direction. I'll have to find out where your mom stands, Yuu-kun."

"She's a bored housewife," Saki informed her. "At least, that's what I hear. Uh, but we probably shouldn't gossip about her."

"I don't care," said Yuuta. "All she does is watch TV. I don't talk to her, and she doesn't talk to me. I hate being at home."

"What we have is a breakdown of communication," Nanako mused. "You should try talking to her, Yuu-kun."

"No way," he said.

"Just simple things," she went on, "like about what you learned in school today, or something funny one of your friends said. I can't imagine living in a house where no one talks to each other."

Yuuta was looking at the ground. He kicked away a stone by his foot.

"It's worth a try, Yuu-chan!" she said. She took his hand and began to tug him along. "Come on, let's go swimming."

Of course, Yuuta couldn't be the only one holding her hand, so she grabbed Souji with her other hand. Takeyoshi was walking along just a little bit ahead and completely oblivious to the hand Souji held out to him. It was both sad and cute. She squeezed Souji's hand and sent him a smile when he gave up trying to get his friend's attention.

They continued on their way like that, the three holding hands only separating when a tree or boulder got in their path. At some point, Saki interrupted. "Nanako, if we keep going this way, we'll end up in the woods."

"I know," Nanako answered. "When I told Takeyoshi-kun's mom that we were going to the flood plain, I lied. But we are swimming in the river."

Nanako led them farther along the river. Soon the riverside sported a thick growth of trees, vines, and other vegetation. The boys grew quiet, perhaps in respect of their peaceful surroundings, until Yuuta pointed out a woodpecker high up in a tree.

"It's Picus awokera," Takeyoshi said. "You can tell because it has a green back."

"What is that, the species name? How do you know that?" Nanako asked.

"T-Takeyoshi-kun is r-really smart," Souji stammered. "He reads all these books with big words, and..."

"Actually, I saw it on a TV show about birds in Japan," Takeyoshi admitted.

"Cute," Nanako said. She set her bag down. "Let's stop here. This should be far enough away from prying eyes."

"Ah, so that's why we're so far away from civilization." Saki nodded. "Privacy."

"Heh, heh," said Nanako. "That's right. Okay, boys, go ahead and change into your trunks so we can get to swimming!"

"But big sis, I don't have any trunks," Souji protested.

"I know," Nanako replied. "And that's why you're going to have to use your birthday suit."

Saki laughed out loud. "Didn't have time to go shopping for him, eh?"

"I sort of forgot, what with exams and everything," Nanako said, "and it's really not that important. I bathe with him all the time, so. Come on, Sou-chan." She moved to the boy and helped him unbutton his dress shirt. "You know, Senpai, he doesn't have any play clothes. He's always dressed nicely like this. It drives me nuts."

"Big sis...?" Souji murmured. "I'm s-sorry..."

"Huh? Don't be, Sou-chan! I love you just the way you are!" Nanako pulled him into a hug, and Saki aww'd at the sight. "Group hug! Yuu-kun, Ta-kun, you too!"

"Yay!" said Yuuta, and he eagerly joined the hug.

"You're really good with kids," Saki observed.

"Me?" said Nanako. "Nah, it's not about good or bad. You just got to love them, and love being with them."

"I think you have to love life in general," Saki murmured.

Nanako looked up at her because her tone sounded pensive, but Saki was presently pointing her camera phone at them. It was apparently group photo time as well! At least Souji wasn't in his birthday suit quite yet. He still had his shorts on.

After that, Nanako pulled the sunscreen out of her bag. Yuuta was first, since he'd changed into his trunks the fastest. Then she turned to Takeyoshi, but although he'd put his trunks on, he was still wearing his shirt. She set a hand on her hip and told him to take it off or he'd get it all wet.

"I don't want to take my shirt off," he muttered. "People always tickle me, or poke me..."

Oh, so he was self-conscious about being a little chubby, huh? "I promise I won't," Nanako said. "But it might tickle when I put the sunscreen on you!"

The boy's face flushed, but he finally relented and pulled the shirt off with a little help from Saki.

With the boys sunscreened up, she gave them the okay to go in the water. She warned them not to go too far and watched them swim a bit to gauge their ability in the water. Yuuta didn't seem to be as adept at swimming as the others.

"Are you going to get changed now?" Saki asked. "I can watch the boys. You know... I told Souji-kun earlier that I came along today to meet him, but I really just wanted to see how you looked in that bikini."

"What bikini?" Nanako asked.

Saki blinked. "The one I helped you pick out for the camping trip. It was bright yellow and orange."

"That was a joke," Nanako explained. "Because I didn't bring it with."

"Oh, so you're not going swimming."

Nanako laughed, and patted her shoulder. "No, we're both going swimming!"

"But I didn't bring a swimsuit either," Saki said.

"No, you didn't."

Saki gaped at her for a moment, and then closed her eyes and shook her head. "No wonder you wanted to go so far up the river. You wanted to skinny dip! Is that why you invited me?"

"Yeah," Nanako admitted. "I think you're the only friend I have who'd go along with it. Well, I'm sure the boys would—Kanji-kun and Yosuke—but that's different." Plus I already had my fun with them at the bathhouse, she added in her mind, but Saki was better off not knowing that.

"Fine," Saki said, "but you're stripping first."

Nanako laughed, and soon the two girls were in the water and swimming with the boys. The river wasn't all that deep; she could reach the bottom with her head still out of the water. She almost suggested the boys could try and swim to the bottom, but the way Yuuta kept dog-paddling just to stay above the water made her decide against it.

Instead, she had them play with Souji's bath toy, the plastic rainbow-colored fish, and let it 'swim' down the river to be caught by one of the other boys. She'd tied a long string around it earlier like a leash so that it would be harder for them to lose.

When they tired of that, they had some fun splashing water up at the plants on the shore and watching the dirt and tree bark get darker from all the moisture.

Souji yelped at some point, and then giggled. "A f-fish touched me," he explained.

While the boys were still occupied by their splashing contest, Nanako noticed the somewhat pensive expression on Saki's face. She was watching the boys play. Maybe it reminded her of her brother. "Did you and Naoki-kun skinny dip before?" she asked.

"Yeah," Saki said, looking back at her with a small smile. "It's actually not that uncommon out here, especially when we were in grade school."

Nanako wondered briefly if her dad had ever gone skinny dipping with that Takeshi guy, and then decided that he had to have.

"It's freeing, isn't it? It's—" Nanako paused because a pair of swim trunks were floating by. "Very freeing, I suppose. Yuu-kun! You lost something."

"S-sorry, Boss!" he panted when she handed his trunks back to him. His flailing in the water had probably loosened them. He headed back to the shore to put them back on.

"I wonder," said Saki, "what would happen if a hiker came upon us."

"A dead body would happen, is what," Nanako declared instantly.

Saki laughed, but the laugh trailed off awkwardly and her expression became pensive again.

I wish I'd found the killer, Nanako thought for the nth time.

Suddenly, a big splash of water came at Nanako's face. "H-hey!" she spluttered, guarding her face with her hands. "Who did that?"

"Y-you splashed big sis..." she heard Souji say. He sounded awed. "T-Takeyoshi-kun!"

"It was an accident!" Takeyoshi claimed.

"He is p-pretty strong," Souji conceded.

"Strong nothing," said Yuuta. "He did it on purpose. I saw him!"

"Oh, so we have a liar on our hands?" Nanako said. She swam towards the boy with exaggerated slowness. "Bad boys get punished. Do you know how?"

"Uh, umm." Takeyoshi seemed unsure of himself now. "I'm sorry..."

"That's right," Nanako said. "They get," – she held her hands out of the water and curled the fingers – "tickled!"

"Please, no!" the boy wailed when she made a grab for him.

She chased the boy through the water for a bit, the others laughing and getting splashed in their wake. She stopped when it seemed like Takeyoshi needed a rest to catch his breath. Silly boy. Hopefully he'd learned his lesson.

Some time later, Yuuta got out of the water because he was tired. The haphazard way he swam tuckered him out faster than the others, but it was probably a good time to call it a day. Nanako got out, too, and found the towels for everyone. She and Saki made sure the boys dried themselves off well before putting their clothes back on.

Once everyone was clothed and ready to go, they headed back to the Seta residence. Nanako made the boys hold hands so that she could keep a better eye on them on the way.

Saki came up to her and matched her pace. "You know... I think this was good for you, Nanako."

Nanako looked at her sidelong, and took a long moment to answer. "Honestly, Saki-senpai... this has been the most normal I've felt since last week."

Saki nodded. "The pain doesn't go away. But you can ignore it for a time."

The long, eventful day was coming to a close. Takeyoshi's mother had picked her boy up, and now Saki was seated on the couch in the Seta family living room. Souji and Yuuta were sprawled out on the floor on either side of the tea table, napping. Nanako handed Saki the melon-flavored drink she'd fetched from the fridge and joined her on the couch.

"So, uh," Saki said quietly. "What are we gonna do about Yuuta-kun?"

"I should wake him and get him to call home, but..."

"I know. They look so peaceful sleeping, don't they?"

Nanako was tempted to cuddle up next to Souji on the floor, that was for sure.

"Worst case scenario, I get hauled in for kidnapping," Nanako said cheerfully. "I never actually asked Souji-kun how he brought Yuuta-kun along. I don't think they're in the same class at school. Heck, I don't even know if they're the same grade."

Saki rubbed her chin. "Well, the police already know both of us pretty well. We can probably chalk it up as a misunderstanding. If that happens."

"Then we could be cellmates," Nanako suggested. "Thus starts my prison adventure."

With a sigh, she pushed against Yuuta's shoulder and woke him up. He blinked up at her groggily and she handed him her cell phone and told him to call home. He wrinkled his nose. "Can you... talk to her for me?" he pleaded.

"You need to start talking to her," Nanako told him, not unkindly.

He put on a brave face and dialed home. But when the other end picked up, he clammed up and wouldn't say a word.

"Hello? Hello?" a tinny voice came from the phone. "Yuu-kun? Is that you?"

Still Yuuta wouldn't answer. Nanako sighed and gently took the phone from him. "Minami-san? Hi." She introduced herself and explained where Yuuta was. "I can drop him off after the news tonight, or you can pick him up, or—"

"Can I just stay here?" Yuuta asked with barely-disguised eagerness.

Apparently Minami heard that. "Oh, he wants to stay the night? I don't mind..."

Nanako's mouth made a flat line. She didn't want to have to drop the boy off in the morning. She was going to be busy tomorrow. But the pleading look on Yuuta's face was hard to resist. And she knew Souji would be really happy to have a friend stay overnight. At the same time, Nanako knew she should actually ask Aunt Seta's permission first... but Aunt Seta had proved to be pretty cool lately, so she assumed it'd be okay.

"Yeah, okay. Here, I'll give you the house number so you can call when you're coming to pick him up tomorrow."

With that settled, Nanako asked Saki to stay with Yuuta while she found some more blankets for him to bunk in Souji's room for the night. She also took the opportunity to close the door to her room so that Yuuta wouldn't see her stuffed animals.

When she came back downstairs, Yuuta had fallen back to sleep. This time he was lying up against the couch, so Nanako had to step over him and place her feet in an awkward position so as not to awaken him.

Then she set her hand on Saki's arm. "Think you could stay over, too, Senpai?"

"I don't know if I trust sleeping in the same room as you," Saki answered with a teasing grin.

"Heh heh," said Nanako. "If you can't stay the night, you need to at least stay for this." She leaned forward and grabbed the remote from the table and turned it on to the local news channel. She muted it for now so as not to wake the kids.

"Some show you wanna watch?" Saki asked. She seemed to be racking her mind for a show that could be on soon that would fit the bill.

"Just a few more minutes," Nanako murmured. "And you'll have all the answers." Or more questions, possibly.

When the segment came on, she unmuted the TV and squeezed Saki's arm lightly to get her attention.

"Good evening, and welcome to Niteline's special Nitewatch Report," the well-dressed woman on the TV announced. "A suspect in the murders in Inaba was safely arrested recently. But what few people know is that the mastermind who brought him to justice was a high school detective. Tonight's report will focus on this Detective Prince, Naoto Shirogane, whose handsome looks are sweeping the nation. Thanks for being on the show."

Out of the corner of her eyes (for they were fairly glued to the screen), Nanako saw Saki take in her breath in surprise.

Naoto, wearing his aqua shirt and yellow tie ensemble, was sitting rather comfortably in the studio's big white interviewee armchair. He had one leg crossed over the other and his hands folded in his lap. "No, no, the pleasure is all mine," he said. "But I must inform you that I am here under false pretenses."

The interviewer paused for a moment, then went on, "First, congratulations to you and the police for your recent arrest of the culprit."

Naoto shook his head. "The public has been criminally misinformed. The suspect that has been apprehended was merely a copycat killer. He had nothing to do with the serial murders, and I have substantial proof to back this claim."

The interviewer frowned. "Shirogane-san, the police have released an official report that states the culprit was involved in all three murders. Were you not part of that process?"

"I was left out of that process," Naoto explained, "because I brought attention to aspects of the case that none wished to consider. When one looks at the facts, one cannot help but see the inconsistencies between the latest victim, Kinshiro Morooka's, death and the previous two killings. The cause of death, for instance, remains ultimately unknown for the first two victims, whereas Mr. Morooka's was blunt trauma to the occipital cranium. If the current suspect was the serial killer, why, then did his methods not match up?"

"But he confessed to the crimes!" the interviewer protested.

Naoto nodded determinedly. "A copycat killer would do that, either to cover up for the true killer, or perhaps to obtain the fame the true killer has achieved. The why of his motives is a matter for a criminal psychologist. But I can say with full confidence that the police are unwise to close the case as it stands now. It's both premature and foolhardy—the true killer is still at large."

At that proclamation, the interviewer gaped at him, her face pale. She began to shuffle through her cue cards as whispering from the off-screen studio audience grew in intensity. "That is, err, a v-very unexpected announcement. We have been led to believe that it's all over, and you're saying otherwise."

"The police welcome the public's gullibility in believing such a thing, for it makes them look good to have such a high-interest case put to rest. They want to reassure the public that they are on top of the situation when they clearly aren't." Naoto produced a file folder and handed it to the befuddled interviewer. "Due to my dissent, I've been taken off the case. However, they never made me sign a non-disclosure agreement. You will find the facts laid bare before you. Ah, I do not expect you to pause the show to peruse them. I'll summarize them for your audience."

Naoto stood up and proceeded to speak directly to the camera. While he was setting forth his arguments, the noise from the studio audience grew ever louder, and the interviewer, now in the background of the scene, stared down in surprise at the contents of the file. After only around half a minute of this, the camera was shaken, as if someone had pushed it. "Cut, cut!" shouted a man off-screen, and the camera turned and tried to focus on him, but Naoto continued his exposition, heedless.

The last image shown was the boy detective's grim but satisfied smile before the show cut to a commercial break.

Saki had taken to her feet halfway through the program. She blinked a few times. "Is he right?" she whispered.

"Yes," Nanako replied simply.

Saki sank onto the couch with a long sigh. Then she put her hand on Nanako's arm. "I think I'll take you up on that offer to stay the night."

Nanako drew the girl into a comforting hug.

[AN: I don't think we'll have a social link with Eri Minami (Aunt Seta is our Temperance, after all), but we'll probably do something about her eventually for completion's sake.

Can you guess where this is going? Hehe.

Next Chapter: To Catch a Criminal

The Plan comes to fruition.]