The Kudou mansion hadn't been this busy since Shinichi was 3 years old.
Now that both Yukiko and Yuusaku were back in Japan; the takedown of the Black Organization behind them, they had decided that a celebration was in order and what better day to do it than on their son's birthday, with a Kudou style party.
Kudou Yukiko was a woman of many talents such as acting, designing, fighting with her husband, embarrassing her son but her favorite would be planning parties. Her Shin-chan had gone through a lot of trouble the past year -what with being shrunk and all- so a birthday party with all his friends was assured to make him happy.
At least that's what she told herself, Yuusaku had been too scared to rebut after seeing his wife's expression when she had gotten the idea.
When her heart has been set on something, nothing in the world could stop Kudou Yukiko. Rumor has it, she would have stopped the BO in half the time it took the FBI if she had put her mind to it.
It's a shame that the great actress was not a fan of criminal organisations, an anonymous FBI agent said.
Within no time, Yukiko had gathered the email IDs of all of Shinichi's friends and sent them details about the upcoming surprise birthday party she was planning for her son. From the FBI to the PSB to the detective boys and the Kaitou KID task force, everyone had been sent an email.
She had glared at her husband when he so kindly pointed out that it wasn't a good idea to invite both Akai-san and Amuro-san and he immediately quieted down. After all, it was a future Shinichi's problem and not his.
Yukiko read through the mail again and nodded at the content. It was perfect.
Hello,
Hope you all are doing well.
This is Kudou Yukiko, mother of Kudou Shinichi and I am reaching out to all of you in order to invite you to Shin-chan's surprise birthday party. Hope you will keep this a secret from him (especially Hattori-kun and the detective boys). I expect to see all of you there on the 4th of May at the Kudou Manor at 6pm.
Please don't bother asking me where I found your email address. I have my ways. You'll never find out (you know who you are, it'll just waste my time and yours, so don't even try).
Yours lovingly,
Kudou Yukiko
"Is the last paragraph really necessary?" Yuusaku asked, as he read the mail over her shoulder. Yuusaku knew what strange things went inside his wife's head but calling out the top intelligence agencies like this; not even he would bother doing that. A quick look at the recipients list in the mail made it even more baffling for him.
Why the hell was Interpol and the Lupin Gang included there.
"Of course it is, I don't want to read replies from all these intelligence agencies asking me about it, it gets repetitive after a while. Which. Is. Boring." Yukiko signed, as she attached the file with all the instructions and details regarding the party in the mail.
"Do you really think Lupin the Third will show up to a party full of police officers hell bent on throwing him behind bars?" Yuusaku said, not for the first time wondering what was going inside her head.
"Hmm?" Yukiko asked, not really paying much attention, "Of course he will. He reached out to me first, you know?" Yuusaku did not know that.
"And anyway, Lupin-san said that they all missed Shinichi -especially Jigen Daisuke-san, so I thought it would be fun. The officers really wouldn't try to arrest someone on my son's birthday now, will they?" she said, turning to look up at her husband with a silver glint in her eyes.
(The chill that probably crept up the spine of every police officer in the vicinity was duly ignored by Kudou Yuusaku.)
The famous actress never did anything half-assed. Especially when it pertained to her only son. He will be getting the grandest, most extravagant birthday party ever seen.
"Now, do you think Kaito KID would show up or should I have another magician on standby?"
"Nee, Ran-chan? Did ya also receive the invitation from Kudou Yukiko?" Kazuha asked, as she read through the email again. They were currently en route to Matsumoto Castle, walking a bit behind the two detectives who were complaining about god knows what. It seemed like whenever the Detective of the East and West collided, their energies combined made everyone stand on the edge. Kazuha still had to figure out how they worked so well together. Their auras seemed to overlap yet also compliment each other.
She had yet to meet a more chaotic duo than these two.
"Yeah, I did," Kazuha had almost forgotten what they were talking about, but focused back on what Ran was saying, "Yukiko-san has a funny way of doing things. I'm tasked with keeping Shinichi out of the house on his birthday and make sure he doesn't get a clue about the party being planned. Well, even if he did get to know about the party, I'm sure he won't be able to deduce what it's going to be about."
"Huh? Why wouldn't he know about it?" Kazuha questioned as Ran sighed. An exasperated yet fond look crossed her face as he stared at her boyfriend in front of her.
"Shinichi might be detective geek-slash-genius but he always forgets about his birthday," Ran said, smiling back at Shinichi who turns to look at her when he notices her gaze on him. She turns towards Kazuha before whispering in a low voice, "That's why I'm not really worried about him noticing. The problem comes with the second task!"
"What second task, Ran-chan?"
"His mom asked me to keep him murder free on his birthday," Ran said, a bit of panic in her voice now, knowing how prone to stumbling upon criminals and dead bodies Shinichi was.
"Wow, talk about the impossible. I'm sure-" Kazuha was cut off as a scream suddenly came from the front. "Oh god, I spoke it into existence. Ran-chan, I think I'm cursed now."
They both went after the detectives who had taken off right as they heard the scream. Ran was already on the phone calling the police and the boys were taking care of the scene. Turns out, that the two's chaotic energy had finally fallen out and turned into another murder scene. Kazuha was already thinking about preparing a Omamori for Shinichi-kun.
As the girls stood by the side, watching the two move around the scene talking to Inspector Yamato, Inspector Uehara sidles up to them with a wide smile on her face.
"Ran-chan, Kazuha-chan," she greets, waving at them, "It feels great seeing you two again."
The girls return the greetings and asked her about the case.
"Don't worry about the case, it seems like those three already have everything under control," Uehara-san throws a fond look at the three milling around, deep in conversation.
"I actually came to talk to you about Shinichi-kun's birthday party. It doesn't look like he knows about it yet." She throws another look at the latter who turns to look at her. Thankfully, he doesn't think anything about it and sends her a smile and wave, which she gladly returns. What a cutie.
Ran and Kazuha exchange looks, enough to know what the other was thinking. Just how many people did Kudou Yukiko invite?
"Hey, do you think any famous actor or actress might show up? Since you-know-who is planning the birthday?" Uehara-san whispered, her eyes moving around as if expecting someone to be eavesdropping.
"Wait, don't tell me, we won't be able to come anyway," she says, a disappointed sigh leaving her.
"Ehh? Why not?" Kazuha and Ran asked at the same time.
"We won't be able to get time off on that day sadly. Though even if we did, I don't think Kan-chan would be willing to go. You know how he is about things like these." All three of them sighed at that before laughing.
"What are you three laughing about on a crime scene?" Inspector Yamato said, his eye narrowed as he took in the three women, "Oi Uehara, get back to your work!"
"Yes," Uehara-san replied, a small smile on her face before turning to the two girls. "I'll get going. It was great meeting you two and sorry about that."
"It's a shame they won't be able to come. Shinichi really respects them," Ran said as she turned to look at the officers. Kazuha hummed in agreement.
Her eyes went towards their two detectives as they made their way over, no doubt having solved the case. She could tell that in her sleep with the way their eyes screamed with joy. Boys.
"Whatcha babblin' bout here?" Heiji said as he turned his cap. Kazuha watched in shock as he suddenly lifted his hat to put it on Shinichi's head. A small groan came from the blue-eyed detective but he still looked at Heiji with a mix of exasperation and gratitude. She suddenly felt a huge urge to move out of the way and leave the two alone.
Maybe she hadn't been really wrong about her first impression of Kudou.
She turned to look at Ran and could only shake her head when the other just laughed at them. Ran-chan was surely an angel and Kudou Shinichi certainly did not deserve her. She should just marry her instead.
"Let's move to the Castle now! We're already late because of you two," Ran scowled, before grabbing Shinichi's hand and forcing them to move. Heiji turned towards her and told her to move as well.
Kazuha broke off her stupor before following the others. Maybe she would keep her thoughts with her. For now.
She thanked her lucky stars when they reached the Castle without anything else happening. They all stood at the red bridge, taking in the beautiful view of the castle and its surroundings. A peaceful silence draped over them, blanketing the four in its warmth.
They moved around the castle, looking over the structure in awe. Ran and Shinichi moved forward, hand in hand, pointing at various things and Kazuha couldn't help but smile while looking at them. The animated way they spoke to each other, the playful jokes and full smiles made her think that Shinichi did cherish Ran as he ought to.
"Ya Kazuha, look at that," Heiji pointed at the armored warrior moving around with a weapon in hand.
"You idiot, you shouldn't point at people like that," she said, hitting the detective. It quickly turned into a full out argument, only breaking off when Shinichi and Ran came between them with talks of souvenirs and food.
"When will my luck turn out as good as Ran-chan's?" she turned to ask Ran, only to be met with confusion. Well, she couldn't really blame her.
Putting it all behind her, she took Ran's hand to lead her to the souvenir shop, forgetting about a certain stupid detective.
Finishing up with their shopping, the two looked back at the detective as they -for the lack of better word- scrutinised the rows of gifts in the shop.
Ran moved towards them, tapping them on the shoulder, "We're done here, do you want to go eat some soba, I've heard that there are a lot of famous restaurants here for that."
They smiled as Heiji whopped, complaining about his empty stomach. He threw one hand over Shinichi's shoulder before tugging him out of the shop. The two heard Shinichi complain about the hand but made no move to remove it.
"Hey Ran-chan," Kazuha said, a serious tone in her usually lighter tone. "Heiji and Shinichi-kun are really close aren't they," a nod from Ran was all it took for her to continue with her next sentence, confusing Ran even more, "I think both of us should really watch out."
With that, she took her hand and followed after the detectives.
"Kazuha-chan, what do you mean by that?" Ran asked after a lull in their conversation, her eyes shifting from the two to the girl beside her.
"Hmm? Nothing much," she replied, the suspicious look on her face said otherwise but Ran didn't poke at it, "Let's make sure Heiji doesn't spill something to Shinichi-kun on the way. Yukiko-san gave me special instructions to make sure that I keep Heiji in check and he doesn't blurt out about the surprise."
"Seems like Yukiko-san really gave this a lot of thought," Ran wonders aloud.
"Oh she definitely did. Heiji got really mad when he read the mail," Kazuha laughs, remembering the two of them reading the mail together when they had gone out for food.
They had been arguing about whether they should go eat Ramen or Sushi when both their phones went off at the same time. Kazuha glared at Heiji as she took out her phone, checking her mail.
"Oi Kazuha, did you also just receive mail?" Heiji asked, focusing on the sender. "I don't really remember seeing this email ID before."
Kudou Yukiko, isn't she the famous actress? Where did she get her email ID? Wait a minute, Kudou Yukiko- Kudou…
"Heiji, isn't she Shinichi-kun's mother?" Kazuha shouted, her curiosity skyrocketing. She quickly read through the mail; snickering at her calling out Heiji like that and cooing at her setting up a surprise birthday party for her son. The last paragraph had been ominous, but she left it for the detectives to look after. After all, it had been a while since she went to a party and this certainly sounded fun.
"Yah! What does she mean I'll spill everything to Kudou? I'm great at keeping secrets!" Heiji seethed, his left eye twitching as he read the whole mail. Though his focus was still on that one point.
"Well, it makes sense. Since you two talk a lot, you are the one who is surely going to spill everything to Shinichi-kun before anyone else even has the chance," Kazuha replied, matter of factly.
"HUH? I'd never do that!" Heiji growled, a nerve appearing on his forehead. God, how is he so easily riled up.
Kazuha rolled her eyes before focusing on the mail. She opened the attachment and smiled at what was written. Damn, Kudou Yukiko is not a woman to mess with.
"Here, read the whole thing, idiot. She only said this because you are his 'Best Friend'. She wrote here that it is most important that you be there for this party because otherwise it won't be fun for Shinichi if his best friend isn't there," Kazuha said, her smile growing into a teasing grin as the anger wore off her childhood friend's face. It was so easy to mess with him.
"I guess that's true, I am after all his number 1 best friend. I'll never let him know about it," Heiji nodded, as if telling himself that and confirming it to be true by himself.
Kazuha stared at him, a deadpan expression settling on her face as Heiji went from hotblooded to smug in a matter of minutes. How was this idiot a well reputed detective?
She should definitely talk about this to his mother.
Ran laughed as she recounted the story, silently agreeing to the Aikido master's thoughts. Heiji would surely be the first one to spill everything.
"Guys, hurry up," Shinichi shouted, pointing to the restaurant in front of them. As they all settled down, Heiji and Kazuha sitting in front of Shinichi and Ran, they quickly began to order. After a murder case and then visiting the Castle, they all were famished.
"So what were the two of you discussing?" Shinichi asked, a small smile on his face as he looked at Ran.
"Huh?" Ran and Kazuha shared the same panicked expression before Ran sighed, her usual smile on her face as she replied, "We were just talking about the Matsumoto Castle and shopping, weren't we Kazuha-chan?"
"Ya that's right!" Kazuha said quickly.
She looked at Shinichi as he quickly scanned their faces, hoping that the other detective wouldn't notice anything off. She let out a sigh of relief when he just shrugged and went on to talk to Ran about the sight they had visited. Soon their attention was switched to the food and they stopped talking to focus on their food.
They ate peacefully, small happy sounds filling the silence as they ate. When they were done, they all groaned and went out of the restaurant. As they moved towards the train station, Shinichi suddenly started.
"So," he coughed, bringing all their attention to him, "What are all of you hiding from me?"
The three of them sweated under the Heisei Holmes narrow eyed stare and they looked anywhere but him. At the end, it was Ran- bless her soul- who opened her mouth first.
"Just because you think we are hiding something from you, doesn't actually mean we are, you idiot detective," Ran said, moving the topic subtly. "I mean, look at Heiji-kun, do you think he can ever lie to you?"
At the sudden shift of attention, Shinichi turned his eyes to Heiji who sweated more than before. It took a subtle pinch to the side of the Osakan detective to make him shake his head and refute the claim.
"Of course I w-wouldn't, Kudou!"
"See, he would never, Shinichi," Ran said quickly, expertly taking the attention away from Heiji, "Now you have to buy all of us ice cream to make up for being suspicious of us!"
"What?" Shinichi exclaimed.
Ran took a sulking Shinichi towards the ice cream shop, sending a small thumbs up behind her back.
Kazuha and Heiji breathed out at the same time.
Crisis averted successfully.
Jodie walks into the house, looking around the place for the telltale signs of Shuichi, while James followed her. His hand opens his phone again as he looks at the mail for the 10th time, wondering if he had done something great in his past life to be able to meet Fujimine Yukiko, one of his favorite actresses, and he even got an invite to a party being held by her.
Jodie, on the other hand, was dying to figure out how in the world the actress had gotten her email. She called out for Shuichi before finding him lounging in the kitchen while drinking bourbon.
"Shu, did you get the mail?" she said, sliding into the seat beside him.
"Hmm? By Yukiko-san?" Akai confirmed, before nodding.
"Did you, by chance, give her our emails while you were staying at their place?" Jodie asked, wondering how on earth she had gotten them.
"Well now Jodie, Yukiko-san mentioned in the mail not to worry about that," Akai chuckled, remembering the mail that had caught him by surprise only a few hours ago. "And from what I know, you really don't want to question her."
While she had been nothing but nice to him, he had to admit he had seen how frightening she could be; especially when it concerned her only son.
"But Shu, we can't let a citizen have access to our mail IDs just like this," she went on, trying to make the other two see her way.
"Don't say that in front of her," Akai turned to James, who only shrugged at the whole debacle," She'll just say her son was also a citizen and then you won't be able to say anything."
Jodie groaned, laying her head on the kitchen counter as Akai's words took up space around her. She knew what he meant, but would you really call her a son a normal citizen?
She already was aware of how terrifying Kudou Shinichi could be, she just wasn't ready for his whole family to be the same. She was excited about the party, it might be fun as well but what she was dreading was seeing the whole Kudou family together. Wait-
"Shinichi-kun's father is the famous writer Kudou Yuusaku right? Did you meet him? What kind of person is he?" She was pleading that the writer was at least more normal, though her hopes turned to ash when Akai just laughed.
"Oh he is the most terrifying of them all and he is smarter that Shinichi as well," Akai had all been ready to invite the elder Kudou to join the FBI when he had met the man. Sadly, the other man was more than happy with his current lifestyle. Though, Akai made sure to let him know that the offer will always stand.
"We should just ask that family to join the FBI," James mused, thinking about how great it would be to work with such famous people.
"I already tried recruiting them."
"Wait Shu, can you do that?" Jodie asked, confused if the other was joking or not.
"Well, I don't really have the authority to but believe me, those three will be a great asset to us if they ever agree," he said, getting up to put the alcohol away.
"Will you be going to the party then?" Jodie asked, ignoring how James immediately nodded.
"Hmm," Akai turned to stare at the other two, "Well, it would be a shame not to see as we are still in Japan."
Akai turned towards his alcohol cabinet, wondering if giving Shinichi alcohol as a birthday gift would be more hilarious or offensive. He made a mental note to buy some Rye on his way to the Kudou manor.
He heard the quiet sigh of relief coming from behind him and he smirked while adding.
"Also, you don't want to get on the bad side of Yukiko-san."
Furuya Rei was walking towards Cafe Poirot when he heard the ping of his phone, a sign he had received a mail. He continued walking towards the cafe, leaving the mail for later. He was still on a vacation, after all. No way was he giving up his precious time off for something insignificant. Being on the organisation's tail for so long has made him take care of his precious time off.
He greeted Azusa-san on his way inside, feeling a bit weird as he sat on the stool in front of the bar inside of going to the other side. Working at the Cafe had been surprisingly wonderful and sometimes he wished he could go back to it. Just for a while.
Yet, he had no reason to be back here, other than the fact that he simply missed it.
After ordering a coffee, he took out his phone to look at the mail and couldn't help but let out an amused snigger at its content. He laughed at the last paragraph but let it go knowing not to question anything a Kudou does by now. Rei had learnt it the hard way, after all.
"Amuro-san? What are you laughing at?" Azusa called, while putting his coffee in front of him. The handsome man in front of her typically kept a poker face on; never quite laughing in the way he just did.
"Ah nothing, just a mail I got," he replied with a small grin. This was sure to be interesting and Rei wondered if the great detective had gotten a clue about it or not by now.
Azusa shrugged at his reply before turning to the move towards the kitchen, it wasn't her business anyway.
"Azusa-san," he called, waiting for her to turn towards him, "Do you have any recipe to make lemon pie?"
"Ayumi-chan, you will be going to Shinichi-nichan's house for his birthday right?" Mitsuhiko asked, referring to the mail they just got.
"Of course, Ayumi will go," she said, her hands in fists clutching onto her skirt, "Do you think Conan-kun would also show up?"
Mitsuhiko's smile dimmed a bit at the thought; they all terribly missed their friend. But he was back with his parents and was living happily with them, so as long as that was true, he would keep being happy for this friend.
"Don't worry Ayumi-chan, Conan might come if he is done travelling with his parents," he assured.
"Anyway, we have bigger things to worry about," Genta exclaimed, satisfied when all of them turned towards him.
"Hey, what is it?"
"What are you talking about?"
"We need to make sure that they serve eel rice! The food has to be good," Genta finished, imagining all the great food they will have at the party. Cake, eel, curry…
The other two sighed at the boy, wondering how he could only think about food.
"You wouldn't need to worry about that," Ai piped up from the counter, where she had been reading the latest Vogue magazine, "I'm sure they'll have plenty of food."
"Yes yes, Yukiko-san throws great parties. You'll find everything there." Agasa said, reminded of all the parties she had hosted for Shinichi when he was little. The food was especially exquisite.
The detective boys cheered at that, before gathering around to make plans for what birthday gift to give Shinichi-nichan.
"Looks like they are already planning on playing soccer with Shinichi and what all they will eat," Agasa said, looking from the kids to Ai.
"Let them plan," she replied in her I don't really care voice, "But you better not make any plans like that, you're still on your diet."
All the kids immediately ignored the groan that their Professor let out.
Inspector Megure smiled at the mail he had gotten from Yukiko. He remembers when Shinichi was born, the parties she had planned for him upto his 3rd birthday. By then, Shinichi had started being annoyed at every single noise he deemed to be insignificant to him and so Yukiko had stopped planning parties for him.
That boy had a strange fascination for mysteries and nothing else since he was young. Megure blamed Yuusaku for all of this.
"Megure-keibu, did you receive the invitation?" Sato asked, smiling brightly.
"Ahh, yes I did."
"Takagi and I will also be going, it's going to be really exciting I'm sure," She said, already imagining all the people who are going to be there.
"Believe me, exciting is an understatement. Yukiko knows how to plan a party," Megure said, knowing Shinichi will think of it as nothing more than a headache, "We'll be more than happy if someone doesn't die or anything there."
"Well, I don't think anyone in their right mind will try something with so many detectives and police officers there," Sato said, cracking her knuckles at the same time.
"Isn't this a good thing, Keibu?" Takagi came to where they were standing, a police report in his hand, "Though I doubt we'll be able to hide it from Kudou-kun? He'll surely pick up on any suspicious behaviour."
It was true, ever since he came back, the young detective seemed to sniff out danger like no other. He knew whenever someone was looking at him, what was going inside someone's head and what they were going to say or do.
He was extremely attentive to his surroundings -he had once found out their detectives, who were following him in order to make sure he doesn't get in any trouble and had confronted them about it; it hadn't been easy explaining that to him, for sure.
Besides his attentiveness, he was way more cautious with his words than he was before. Megure had thought that once his big case was solved, he would go back to how he used to be, a bit arrogant and always in the eyes of the public.
He couldn't be more wrong though, the other had become more closed off and wary than ever, using his words carefully and his arrogant attitude had been stripped off of him.
Megure was a bit happy with the change that had taken place in Shinichi, he was kinder and more observant in a way he hadn't been before. He was more attuned with the feelings of both the officers and the victims; something which clearly stood out.
He still refused to let the public know about the cases he solved, remaining on the silent side. He was paranoid at times which didn't require it and the Tokyo Metropolitan Police had been surprised to see the Detective of the East's desk. After much thought, they had decided to unofficially allot him one, seeing how much time he already spent there. The desk was way too clean for someone who was bound to come back.
It was as if the boy was trying to hide all clues about his existence, and if Megure didn't come in contact with Shinichi during cases he would start believing that the other was in hiding again. Frankly, the thought scared the shit out of him. He just wanted his pseudo-grandson to be happy and free from all the things that continue to haunt him.
As Megure dwelled on these thoughts, Takagi went on, "Kudou-kun has been solving a lot of cases these days, so his paranoia has been high."
"Don't worry about it, if Kudou-kun ever questions you on your behaviour, just come up with an excuse," Sato said, lightly patting the other on his shoulder. "I heard from Ran-chan that he tends to forget anything related to his birthday, so I'm sure he wouldn't be able to guess it."
"That's true," Megure laughed, "And I think it will be a perfect way for him to relax and enjoy a day without any problems."
As Sato and Takagi agreed with the Inspector, unbeknownst to them, they had forgotten one very crucial thing.
The party is bound to the source of the greatest stress the Great Detective has ever received.
Nakamori Ginzo, Aoko and Kuroba Kaito had been having their dinner together when the Inspector cleared his throat and looked at the two kids.
"Do you know about Kudou Shinichi?" Nakamori-keibu asked, watching recognition flash across their faces. Aoko smiled while Kaito kept his expression the same as before, though he could recognise a hint of curiosity behind his eyes.
"Dad, isn't he the famous detective who helps you capture that idiot Kaitou KID?" Aoko exclaimed, excited to hear more about the detective. She had seen him from the sidelines during a recent KID heist and had been instantly charmed at the way he handled things. Even from afar, he looked as intelligent and brilliant as the newspapers often portrayed him as.
"Well, we got an email from his mother today," Nakamori continued, letting out a sigh, "She invited us to his surprise birthday party."
The statement surprised the two kids, who didn't expect such a gesture from someone they had never met before.
"Isn't his parents quite famous as well?" Kaito pondered. He knew exactly who they were, "Kudou Yuusaku and Kudou Yukiko right?"
Nakamori nodded, "I was thinking to take you all as well, even that Hakuba brat. Though I'm sure he got an invite already."
Aoko squealed and shook Kaito by the arm in her excitement. Kaito, on the other hand, was wary with where this was going.
"Are you sure we can come? And I don't really think the KID taskforce is that close to Kudou Shinichi to be invited to his birthday party?" After all, the detective handled more of murder cases than theft.
"Well, we were all confused as well but everyone agreed to go."
The indignant squak of Why? Made the Inspector cover his ears. He had been a bit ashamed of the fact that everyone mostly agreed because they would get a chance to meet Kudou Yukiko over the fact that Shinichi has been really helpful during heists since he came back.
"Are you guys coming or not? It'll be fun for you since Kudou-kun is near your age."
Aoko and Kaito looked at each other before simultaneously agreeing. No way were they missing such a big event.
The big day arrived and Ran couldn't help the jitters which seemed to sneak up to her as she and Sonoko made their way to the Kudou Mansion.
"I get why you have to keep Shinichi away from the house but why do I have to tag along with you for that detective geek," Sonoko complained, as she had been doing since Ran had decided to include her in her plan.
"Well, it's more convincing that way, isn't it?" Ran smiled, remembering how they used to go on various shopping trips before and Shinichi used to sulk all the way. "And it's more fun this way!"
"I get that," Sonoko snorted, not really believing what the Karate champion was saying, "But he is your boyfriend, so going out a shopping date with him won't really be suspicious."
"Sonoko! Please, I'm afraid I might accidentally spill something to him," Ran pleaded, turning to Sonoko with her puppy eyes. Not even the Death God could refuse her anything when Ran looked at them with those eyes and she knew it very well, ready to use it whenever she wanted.
"Okay, okay! But you owe me for this," Sonoko threw her hands up, smiling when her best friend hugged her with delight before pulling her towards Shinichi's house.
They stood in front of his house while Ran rang the bell. Sonoko looked around the house as she sulked, wondering what was keeping up the idiot detective from coming out.
"Ah Ran-chan, Sonoko-chan, come in!" the peppy voice of Kudou Yukiko called out as the door opened. Ran and Sonoko bowed at her, moving inside the house.
"Thank you for this, girls," Yukiko smiled, "Shin-chan is upstairs right now, I'll just go get him. You two can wait in the living room. I'll get the tea."
"Ahh don't worry, I'll go get Shinichi, you must already be quite busy," Bless Ran and her angel soul, as she left Yukiko and Sonoko in the living room alone. Feeling awkward, Sonoko turned to Shinichi's mom and asked if it would be alright to help with the tea.
"You two are such polite girls, my Shin-chan must be happy to have you two as his friends," Yukiko chirped before leading them towards the kitchen.
Sonoko deadpanned at the thought of that detective to ever be happy about such a thing. She didn't say anything to her, not wanting to bring down her bright mood in any way.
While they quietly prepared the tea, Yukiko struck up a conversation with Sonoko about the latest fashion magazine she had read. Sonoko immediately turned to look at her before replying with her thoughts on the same.
By the time Shinichi and Ran came down, both Sonoko and Yukiko were seated and animatedly talking about the upcoming end of spring line by Fusae. They didn't notice the other two standing besides him for a while before Shinichi coughed.
Yukiko and Sonoko turned towards him before turning back to each other to finish their conversation. Shinichi let out an annoyed sigh before rolling his eyes while Ran laughed.
"It's a promise then," Sonoko exclaimed, shaking Yukiko's hand.
"It is! I would love to take the two of you out," Yukiko replied, laughing at how excited the other was.
"If you two are done gossiping, shall we go?" Shinichi muttered, his tone laced with annoyance. "I had to wake up early on my day-off because of you two."
"Calm dow-"
"Well so did we. You aren't special, you idiot detective," Sonoko said, eyes narrowing at the other. How come whenever the other opened his mouth, she felt the incredible urge to punch him. Ran was surely an angel for bothering to love that geek. Shinichi didn't deserve her.
Before Shinichi could retort, Ran grabbed both of them by the arm to drag them out of the house. She called out a goodbye to Yukiko-san who just laughed at them.
It sure was going to be a long day. With dread, all three realised.
The three made their way towards the shopping centre, Shinichi looking around while Ran and Sonoko talked about what they were going to buy.
"Ran, look at how cute it is," Sonoko shouted, pointing to a knitted yellow sweater hanging off a mannequin. They rushed towards it as Ran agreed, "It would look great on Makoto-san."
"It would!"
They both ran into the shop to look for it, Sonoko excitedly chattering about the sweater and Makoto. Shinichi followed at a slower pace, wishing for the day to get over already.
As he looked towards the two girls, his hand unconsciously went to grip his chin as he replayed the last few days in his mind. From Hattori's unusual behaviour to Haibara constantly smirking at him to Takagi-keiji refusing to talk to him about anything but the cases. They were acting really suspicious these days, yet Shinichi had no clue why. If it was something related to a case then they would have instantly told him, same going for any new information that they gathered from the BO.
But he quickly eliminated the thought. If it wasn't related to cases, then what could it be? An upcoming festival, something in the news, maybe the detective boys did something or maybe Kaitou KID? Shinichi started cataloguing everything in his mind, trying to find anything that could be a clue.
He was startled out of his thoughts as someone grabbed his hand, looking up to see Ran gesturing him towards the exit.
"What are you doing Shinichi?" Ran questioned, while Sonoko rolled her eyes at him, "We're done here. Let's go to another shop."
"Oh okay," Shinichi replied, shaking himself out of the haze," What did you get?"
"Ah just something for dad," she replied, looking straight ahead while Sonoko laughed.
Suspicious.
Indeed, the most suspicious thing which has happened these past few days is today. An outing with both Ran and Sonoko.
While it wasn't something huge, Shinichi was aware that Sonoko wasn't really happy with him leaving for long and constantly badgered him with angry remarks whenever she could. It was slowly dissolving into saying snide comments everytime the other was there. So it didn't make sense why Ran would bring them out together for something she could have done with either of them. Shinichi made a mental note to ask Ran later.
After going to a couple of shops, they finally made their way to the food court.
"Oh thank god, I was getting tired of listening to you complaining all the way," Sonoko said, throwing a look at Shinichi who had somehow ended between Ran and her.
Shinichi, like the good boy he is, ignored her in order to focus on his food. Ran looked between her two best friends and sighed. She had been waiting all this time for them to grow closer but it looked like there was still something missing.
They talked a bit as they ate, mostly Ran and Sonoko keeping the conversation going while Shinichi just spoke a bit in between, offering tidbits of information that he had on shopping.
By the time the clock hit 4 o'clock, the three were ready to move towards another shop they wanted to visit. This time, Shinichi sat outside the dressing room as the girls tried the hoard of clothes they had gotten. Shinichi never really understood why the two were so into shopping but over the years they had somehow realised that he had a 'good eye' when it came to clothes, whatever that meant. So, now he had to help them choose between all the clothes they tried.
"The red dress looks better than the blue one."
"Try more subtle colors if you are trying to impress Makoto-san."
"No, don't wear white and blue, those are KID colors."
"But you are going on a date with your boyfriend and not KID."
"Ran, your mom would like the purple better."
"No, I will not catch KID for you."
The back and forth went on for a while, Shinichi finally relaxed a bit as the two went back inside to change their clothes. He looked around and immediately stood up.
"Ya detective geek, what do you think about this," Sonoko said, as she pulled the curtain away. Her eyes widened as she saw the empty space in front of her and moved outside to find the other in order to shout at him.
She looked around a bit around the shop, wondering where the other had run off to and was about to go back inside when she saw the familiar cowlick. Oh, she was really going to give him a hard time for this.
"Yah Shini-"
She stopped suddenly as she saw him talking to a man, about 10 or so years older near the entrance of the shop. What was the idiot thinking? This better not be another case.
"Hey, let me go," the guy said in a hushed tone, his eyes roaming around the shop as if to look for anyone listening. God, this guy was suspicious.
"I'll let you go if you give me that camera you're hiding." Camera? What is this about?
"What are you talking about, you brat? Why would I give you my camera?" the guy shouted, sweat breaking out.
"Taking pictures of people without their permission is punishable by law. Give me the camera now or I would call the police," Shinichi replied, his tone calm yet even Sonoko could hear the anger in it. Shinichi was holding onto the guy's hand and Sonoko saw the flinch as he tightened his hold. Go Shinichi! Teach the guy a lesson.
"I never did something like that, you brat. Now let me go or I will be the one calling the police," the guy leered, clearly thinking he had the upperhand. Huh, stupid idiot, he clearly had no clue who he was talking with.
"Sure, go ahead," Shinichi beamed, his expression more threatening than anything. "Tell them Kudou Shinichi is holding you as hostage."
The guy's face finally crumbled as he finally realised who he was talking about, while the little crowd that had started gathering around them suddenly started whispering his name.
"Is there a problem here?" An employee went up to them, though she addressed only Shinichi.
"There isn't," the guy replied quickly, shaking his arm out of Shinichi's hold.
"There won't be, if you hand over that camera and never do such things again," Shinichi repeated, never taking his eyes off the other.
The guy snarled, before taking in the crowd that had gathered. Probably thinking about the better course of action.
"You'll pay for this, kid," he said before thrusting the camera at him. He was about to rush out of the store when Shinichi grabbed him. It was probably too low for the others to hear but Sonoko could hear it perfectly from her hiding place.
"Try your worst. But if I see you near my girls again, you won't even know what hit you."
The fear that took over the bastard's face almost made her scream in joy before slapping her hand over her mouth. The guy left before Shinichi turned to the employee to explain the situation. Sonoko quietly went back to the dressing room where she heard Ran calling out her name.
"Sonoko~ where did you go," she said, half her body hidden behind the curtain.
"Oh I had something to get," she conveniently ignored the fact that she had nothing in her hands, "What is it?"
"Can you help me with this dress?" Ran said, a small blush on her face. Sonoko laughed before moving to help her friend. They quickly looked over each other before Sonoko went back to her own changing room, forgetting about the dress she was wearing.
As they both came back out in their normal clothes, Shinichi came back inside the room.
"Are you two done?"
"Yes! Where were you?" Ran asked, wondering where the other had gone at the end.
"Just went to grab some water," he lied smoothly, a sheepish grin on his face as he rubbed the back of his head.
Though there wasn't any water bottle in his hand, Sonoko let it go this time as they moved towards the counter. Maybe the other wasn't so bad after all.
The three finally arrived at the Kudou Manor, just a little bit after 6pm. Shinichi checked his watch before commenting on how late it had gotten. They had been out for over 5 hours!
"That's true, so treat us to some tea before we leave," Sonoko said, her timing was perfect. Now they had the excuse to go inside his house.
"Why do I have to treat you? It should be the other way around," he grumbled, before letting the other in anyway. That brat always has to have the last word.
As they walked into the house, Shinichi called out for his parents, wondering if they had gone out. The lights were off and Shinichi couldn't hear his dad typing away on his keyboard or his mom singing to herself.
"Maybe they are in the library?" Ran said, trying not to fidget.
They moved towards the library, where Shinichi hesitated before opening the door. What if something bad had happened and they were about to head inside without any plan?
Before his thoughts could gather, Sonoko pushed him forward and opened the door for him. "What are you waiting for, dumbo?"
As they entered the dark room, the room suddenly lit up, almost blinding Shinichi who was in the front. He quickly pushed Ran and Sonoko behind him as he heard the crackers bursting.
"Happy birthday, Kudou Shinichi!"
Shinichi watched with wide eyes as he took in the scene before him. The room was filled with loads of people, those who he had befriended while he was Conan and had kept the friendship going as Shinichi. He opened his mouth to say something but nothing came out. He smiled at everyone and bowed a full 90° to everyone.
His parents came forward with a cake as everyone cheered. Shinichi took a second to close his eyes before blowing the candle out as everyone burst more party poppers. Shinichi cringed as his Mom grabbed his face to kiss his cheeks as everyone laughed. He nodded at his Dad who patted his shoulder before turning towards Ran. He hugged her as she wished him, ignoring the Don't touch my daughter, you brat! That came from the group.
"So this was what you all had been hiding," Shinichi said to the group, his eyes meeting Hattori's. He rolled his eyes as the other just grinned and laughed before moving towards him.
"I don't know how you managed to keep quiet, Hattori," he said, landing a small punch to his arm.
"It was very difficult keeping him in line, Shinichi-kun," Kazuha replied, remembering all the time the detective had almost spilled the truth.
"Wait, that meant you all were hiding something from me back in Nagano," Shinichi shouted, realization finally dawning upon him.
The others laughed as he grumbled under his breath. Shinichi was never trusting them again.
The detective boys came running to him, calling his name out as Shinichi kneeled to be on eye level with them.
"Happy birthday, Shinichi-nichan," they chorused, before grabbing his hand to pull him towards Nakamori-keibu and three teenagers, one of whom was Hakuba and the other two he didn't know.
"Shinichi-nichan, Kaito-nisan was showing us some magic tricks before. He is a magician!" Ayumi chimed, happily waving the rose that the latter had given her.
Shinichi took in the other male before exchanging pleasantries with all of them. The magician called Kuroba Kaito and the girl was Nakamori's daughter, Aoko.
Kuroba suddenly put his hand in front of Shinichi, before taking out an azure rose which he presented to the detective.
"Happy birthday, Meitantei."
Shinichi took the rose from Kuroba before his eyes widened. That voice!
His eyes snapped towards the other, about to let his suspicions know but his eyes strayed to his dad, who was watching the whole exchange from afar. The smirk on his dad's face all but confirmed what he had thought but he let it go. Not wanting to ruin the atmosphere. He'll bring it up another time.
This was starting to become really stressful. Just who all had his parents- no, it was probably only his Mom- invited?
Shinichi excused himself from the group -after exchanging numbers with both Kuroba and Nakamori-chan -when he noticed Hakuba and Hattori making eye contact. Knowing they would just start passive-aggressively fighting with each other.
He saw Akai-san leaning towards the desk and he moved to greet him but something caught his attention from the corner of his eye.
"Is that Arsene Lupin!?" Shinichi shouted, turning towards the window. A shadow suddenly crossed the room before landing on Shinichi.
"Shin-chan, I missed you," Lupin said, clinging to Shinichi and rubbing their faces together, "Look how tall you've grown!"
Shinichi pulled an annoyed face before hugging the thief back. He missed the other and Jigen as well. They had saved him quite a few times, ignoring how they were the ones who usually put him into this mess.
A hand suddenly ruffled his hair as he heard a greeting.
"Papa!" Shinichi called out, grinning his familiar cheshire grin as the other cringed at the name.
"Stop calling me papa! Your actual dad is in the room," Jigen pointed towards Yuusaku, who was casually talking to Kaito on the other side. He looked at the three of them before shrugging and focusing back on Kaito- who was being smothered by Yukiko, Shinichi just noticed. Of course, his parents would personally know Kaitou KID.
Shinichi looked back at Jigen before shrugging and continuing to call him Papa. He froze as he realised just exactly where they were. Turning around to look around the room, the inspectors were watching him with shocked expressions while Akai-san laughed and Jodie-sensei took pictures. Even Amuro-san had an amused look on his face. His eyes widened as he saw Sato-san and Zenigata-keibu also standing on the side, making no move to capture the thieves.
"Why isn't everyone capturing you?" Shinichi questioned.
"Your mom is apparently very very scary~" Lupin replied, his voice several pitches higher.
Shinichi felt his eyebrow twitch. Of course she is.
The detective boys suddenly appeared, calling out Lupin's name as they tried capturing them. Shinichi laughed, "Seems like not everyone is."
"Happy birthday Shin-chan~" Lupin said, landing a kiss on his cheek before both of them ran away.
Apparently, that was enough to shatter the lull which had covered the room. Now, both Zenigata-keibu and Sato-san were running after the thieves. Lupin and Jigen both ran in different directions and yelled out a huge Sayonara as they left the house. Zenigata wished Shinichi well before following the two out of the house while Sato went towards the champagne and the detective boys moved towards the food.
Shinichi shrugged the incident away, going to greet Akai-san. The green-eyed agent waved at him, before wishing him as well. Shinichi struck up a conversation with the other, noticing how Amuro-san kept glaring at the other as well.
Oh god, when will these two stop?
Shinichi slowly turned towards Amuro-san, subtly bringing the FBI and PSB agents together. It was too late by the time Akai-san noticed, the latter immediately glaring at him.
"Amuro-san, how are you? Are you enjoying the party?" Shinichi asked, his smile as innocent as Conan's usually was. Even before and now, no one could say no to him when he did that.
"The party is great, Kudou-kun. Well-" he cut himself off as he side-eyed Akai-san.
"That's good to hear. Now you two can talk to each other, I have a few more guests to greet." Shinichi grinned, his eyes screaming You better talk or else.
His grin widened as they both gulped, before moving towards the other agents. Megure-keibu was already talking to the other FBI agents. Though, it seemed like he was scolding them more.
"Keibu," Shinichi greeted, stopping their conversation in between.
"Ahh Shinichi, happy birthday," Megure smiled, before glaring at the other two who were looking thoroughly chastised. "I was just having a pleasant conversation with Jodie-sensei and James-san about your involvement in the big case you had."
From their expression, even the detective boys would have been able to guess that it wasn't actually a pleasant conversation for them.
Not wanting to get into this mess, Shinichi straight away fled the scene. He bumped into Agasa at the food table, who was trying to sneak a few fatty treats while Haibara's eyes were turned away.
"Hakase, what are you doing?" Shinichi sidled up to him, taking a pie piece out of his plate. "Haibara will get made if she sees you."
"Shinichi, it's your birthday. I should have a few extra pieces at least," Agasa pleaded, looking forlornly at his plate.
Shinichi grinned, turning to search for the small scientist. He was surprised to see her having a conversation with Sonoko. Out of everyone, those two had the most different personalities and were least likely to get along well. But it seems like Shinichi had been wrong on that.
Listening to their conversation, the two were talking about the latest fashion magazine they had read to a brand Agasa had brought her for her birthday to what all brands Sonoko had. The list was quite long and Shinichi left the two alone.
"You should have as many as you can, looks like she is a bit busy right now," he said to the Professor, "Just don't let her catch you or you'll lose."
He smiles at the other, before looking at everyone. Aoko, Kazuha and Ran were talking energetically, no doubt already good friends with each other. The Detective Boys had taken KID away from his parents, forcing the other to show them more magic tricks. The Tokyo police force was talking to each other and James, talking about the FBI and whatnot. Heiji and Hakuba were recounting the past cases they had solved; trying to find out who was the better detective.
What amused him was how his parents along with Ran's were talking to Akai-san and Amuro-san. Seemed like his mom's fascination with Akai-san hadn't disappeared over time and even Eri-san was looking at the other with a captivated expression. His dad had wrapped a protective arm around his wife's waist while Kogoro just fumed a bit behind his alcohol glass.
Maybe, this will help push Ran's get-her-parents-back-together agenda. Good for them.
Shinichi silently snuck out of the room, so much interaction with different people leaving him exhausted. He went up to his bedroom, closing the door behind him. Seating himself on the edge of his bed, he looked out of the window towards the full moon.
The day had been a bit hectic for him, while he was thankful for his mom to plan out such a thing, meeting so many people surely left its toll on him. She had gone above and beyond for him, even managing to get Kaitou KID and Lupin the Third for the party. Shinichi was sure that now all his friends were terrified of his mom; serves them right for not telling him about it.
Shinichi relaxed as he continued staring outside, his muscles loosening as his back hit his mattress. He was about to close his eyes when the door opened and he looked to see Ran outside.
"Shinichi, you good?" Ran asked, not taking a step inside in case the other wanted his space.
"I'm good Ran. Don't worry," he smiled, placating her worries as he patted the space beside him. Ran made her way inside and took the space he had offered. He breathed out before leaning towards her, his head settling on her shoulder. Ran stiffened a bit before relaxing, this was after all new to her as well.
"Thank you for today," Shinichi mumbled into her shoulder, "And thank you for the gift as well."
Ran hit his thigh before settling the gift on his lap, "At least let me give it to you before thanking me. And today was all thanks to your mom."
Shinichi carefully opened the present, a grateful grin gracing his face as he ran his thumb over the red hand knitted sweater.
"Do you like it?" Ran asked, a bit of weariness in her voice.
"I love it, Ran. Thank you," Shinichi said, pressing a small kiss on her forehead.
"And thank you for being with me today, I'm glad you are here," he continued, pressing another kiss on her cheek before dropping his head back on her shoulder.
"Idiot, of course I'll be here with you," Ran smiled, a small blush on her cheeks.
They both stayed like that for a while, noises from below creeping in between. Leaning into each other, the two looked at the beautiful moon and Shinichi truly felt happy.
Smiles graced both of their faces as they intertwined their hands, both content with the way things were.
Ran started up the conversation after a while, as Shinichi asked her about her friendship with Nakamori-san.
"Aoko-chan is great, she looks a bit like me just with messy hair," Ran laughed at the thought, having not realised it until Kazuha had pointed it out, "Kazuha-chan had pointed it out, which reminds me she got you an Omamori as a birthday gift."
Shinichi pulled a face at that but made a note to thank the girl later. Hopefully, it'll work out well.
"It's a charm to keep you out of danger," Ran said, "Heiji-kun got you an Ellery Queen novel, by the way." Shinichi will make sure to give him a punch for that. "I heard Amuro-san baked all the lemon pies for you. He must like you a lot." He doesn't think the secret agent really does but he'll thank him as well.
"Apparently, your mom invited a lot of people," Ran said after a lull in their conversation.
"More than these?" Shinichi said, thoroughly shocked. It seems like he had gotten a better deal than he had previously thought.
"Well, Yamato-keibu and all couldn't get a day off. Sera-san and her mother are out of the country," Shinichi signed in relief at that. He didn't want to deal with that duo on his birthday, "There are a few more officers who couldn't come as well. Though I'm surprised Zenigata-keibu came all the over from America." Ran laughed at that and Shinichi joined her.
"Pretty sure he would follow Lupin to the moon." They both snickered at the thought of them on the moon.
"Ai-chan and Sonoko were also having a lot of fun together," Ran mused, delighted at seeing the other two becoming close, "I think Sonoko is more open to you now as well."
"What do you mean?" Shinichi hadn't really noticed a big change in her today. She behaved in the same way she did usually.
"You might not have noticed something like this," Ran snickered, "But I know immediately if something is different in the way she acts."
Shinichi shrugged at the thought, he didn't particularly care.
"Sonoko doesn't mind you now," she continued, "I don't know what happened today but I think she's finally happy that you returned."
"You better not fight with her again," Ran glared at her boyfriend, bringing her fist forward. Shinichi put his free hand up, promising her not to fight with the other; as long she doesn't start it first.
Ran sighed at that, but knew it was the best she could get out of him.
They both settled down once again, deep in thought about various things. Ran wondered what the others were up to downstairs, hoping they wouldn't make a mess of things.
"I think," Shinichi started, continuing when he knew he got her attention, "That your 'get mom and dad together' agenda might move forward tonight. I saw that Kogoro-ojisan was quite troubled when your mom talked with Akai-san and Amuro-san."
Knowing the effect his words would have on her, Shinichi smiled as she immediately let out a small happy shriek. He was sure the other was already imagining various scenarios where the two could get together and knew nothing could stop her from enjoying it. Shinichi had to resist pinching her cheek because she just looked so cute right now.
"Now, if only Heiji-kun and Kazuha-chan confessed their feelings to each other," Ran groaned, wishing her best for the two.
"Don't worry," Shinichi smirked, "I have a small plan for that."
This time, Shinichi stopped her delighted shriek by leaning down.
A very happy birthday indeed.