Chapter 10: Exsolvo

Several minutes after Ai left the room, Agasa showed up looking mildly worried. "How are you feeling Shinichi?" he asked quietly, taking in Ai's absence and both the detectives' pensive expressions.

"I'm all right," Shinichi replied. "Not hurt or anything."

"That's good," Agasa said with a soft sigh of relief. "Ran-kun said you weren't physically hurt, that it was a precaution to keep you here, but you know how I worry."

"Yeah," Shinichi smiled fondly.

Agasa took one of the chairs against the wall and moved it closer to the bed, next to where Heiji sat. "Do you know when you'll be released?"

"Today actually," Shinichi told him. "They're done with the tests to make sure I didn't get hepatitis or anything from accidentally swallowing something. The doctor should have left a message for Ran or occhan to let them know."

"That's great!" Agasa beamed.

"Yeah, out of the hospital and back to getting into trouble," Heiji teased. "Think I'll stick around a couple of days to make sure ya don't get into anything too dangerous." He fixed Shinichi with a meaningful look. "If there is some psycho out there gunning for ya, he'll have ta go through me first."

"You get shot enough as it is," Shinichi retorted, cheeks a light red. "Kazuha would kill me if something bad happened to you."

"Not while you look all cute and stuff," Heiji chuckled, ruffling Shinichi's hair.

"Baaro," Shinichi huffed, rolling his eyes and swatting at Heiji.

Agasa chuckled, glad that the boy he thought of something close to a son was all right. "Oh, Ai-kun!" he greeted as she entered the room, her face pinched. "Shinichi is getting released today!"

"That's good," Ai said with a short nod. "I've barely been able to fend off the kids' questions as it is."

There was a somewhat heavy silence, and Agasa looked from the detectives to Ai and back. "Is everything all right?" he asked with a frown.

"We had a disagreement on what constitutes concern," Ai said with a scowl in Shinichi's direction.

The inscrutable expression on Shinichi's face made Agasa's frown deepen before he decided that this was probably something that the kids should deal with among themselves without outside interference. "So, Heijii-kun," he started. "How are things in Osaka?"

They made small talk for a while before Ran arrived, a warm smile on her face. "Hello," she greeted Ai and Agasa before focusing on the boy in the bed. "How are you feeling Conan-kun?"

"I'm fine Ran-neechan," he replied with a bright smile. "More than ready to leave."

"Otou-san's filling out the discharge papers now," she said. "Oh, and I brought some clothes for you." She handed him a small bag she drew out of her schoolbag.

"Another set?"

"What?" Ran asked.

"The doctor said you brought a change of clothes for me yesterday," Conan replied.

"Yeah," Heiji agreed.

"Well, I didn't," Ran said, a slightly worried frown creasing her brow.

"He did say "Mouri-san", maybe he meant occhan," Conan suggested, finger under his chin as he stared at the clothes.

"Would've been nice if he'd said something," Ran huffed. "Honestly, forgetting about something like that..." She stalked over to the door and called down the hall, "Otou-san!" before walking down the hall.

"I believe that is our cue to leave Ai-kun," Agasa said, rising from his chair with a slight groan. "My knees just aren't what they used to be," he complained.

"Let's go," Ai said, ushering the professor to the door before turning back. "Be careful Kudo-kun," she said in a low voice.

He nodded to her with a serious expression before she and Agasa left, going down the same hall Ran had just gone.

"Do you really think it was occhan?" Heiji asked. Before he could get an answer Ran and her father entered the room, the former dragging the latter by the ear, with Dr. Furude following behind them.

"Really otou-san, you could've just told me!" Ran scolded before letting go of his ear.

"But I didn't!" Mouri protested, rubbing at his ear. "I would remember if I did something like that!"

"Mouri-san, according to the nurse on duty at the time, you dropped the clothes off," Dr. Furude said to Ran.

"I didn't though," Ran said with a worried expression.

"Maybe it was Kaitou KID," Heiji said, thinking aloud. He looked up, feeling the eyes of everyone in the room on him. "With how good he is at disguise, it'd be easy enough for him ta do something like this, right?"

"I guess so," Ran agreed. "After what happened at the heist, maybe he felt sorry."

"Tch! Why would he, he's a criminal!" Mouri said, crossing his arms and glowering.

"Ran-neechan's right," Conan piped up. "He usually tries to make sure innocent people don't get hurt. It wasn't KID who planned this heist, but someone else using his name."

"Whoever it was, he'd better not do it again," Mouri growled. "What kind of sick bastard..." He trailed off, muttering darkly to himself.

Ran rolled her eyes a little but smiled at her father. "Otou-san, don't talk like that in front of Conan-kun," she chided gently.

Dr. Furude cleared his throat. "If nothing else is needed, I'll be going."

"Eh? Yeah, yeah, we're fine," Mouri said.

"I hope not to see you again for a while, Conan-kun," Dr. Furude said with a small smile. "Stay well."

"Un!" the boy nodded before the doctor left the room. He then grabbed the clothes Ran had brought. "I'm going to go change."

"Heji-kun," Ran said once Conan had shut the door to the bathroom. "How is he doing?"

"He's doing... okay," the Osakan replied a little hesitantly. "Couple nightmares, but overall good."

"That's good," Ran said with a slight sigh. She sat on the chair Agasa had used. "He doesn't really open up about the important things, you know. Always getting into trouble-" She shook her head.

"Maybe putting a leash on him for a while would help," Mouri suggested from where he leaned against the wall.

"Otou-san!" Ran huffed while Heiji snickered. She looked out the window at the bright sunlight filtering through the trees. "What a pretty bird," she remarked absently.

"I'm ready to go," Conan announced, coming out of the bathroom in a green t-shirt and jeans.

Ran and Heiji stood up, and the former extended her hand. "Let's go home," she said, and Conan nodded in agreement with a bright smile.

"Let me out of here," Vodka growled from the cot he was strapped to.

"Now now, you know I can't do that," Vermouth drawled from the other side of the room. Her fingers itched for a cigarette. "You tore your IVs out twice already; gave poor Mimosa such a fright."

"I need to get out of here and find that bastard!" he snarled, bloodshot eyes that were normally hidden behind shades glaring at Vermouth.

She glared straight back. "Need I remind you that "that bastard" killed one of our best operatives, and put you in critical condition?"

"He killed Aniki," Vodka said in a whisper. "He needs to fucking die."

"Welsh got the upper hand because you underestimated him," Vermouth said. "Because he was a low level member. We'll catch him," she reassured him, "but you need to rest and recuperate. It's what he would have wanted." She frowned down at the text she'd just gotten. "Someone's been snooping," she murmured. "Naughty, naughty detective."

Chapter title translation: Release

A/N: Hey everyone! New chapter, new information, new complications ;3 Hope everyone has enjoyed the chapter despite its length, and I cackle evilly while rubbing my hands together at the thought of future chapters and what everyone's reactions will be.

Remember to review please!