AN: Someone wanted a continuation of the oneshot from chapter 39, Forget me Not, from Conan's POV, and I was more than happy to oblige that request! I'll probably touch on this idea one more time in the future, purely from Heiji's perspective, so look forward to that!
Until next time~!
Some(one) is Missing
Characters: Edogawa Conan, Hattori Heiji, Mouri Ran, Toyama Kazuha
Summary: Sometimes, one doesn't realize what's important to them until it's no longer there.
"So ya must be Conan-kun, right?"
The words struck him with the force of a bullet. It was a fairly accurate comparison, all in all- he'd been shot before, so he'd know. This, he determined afterwards, felt very much the same.
He'd known there was something wrong from the moment he walked in the door. Were it due to his detective's intuition, or simply because he had come to know Hattori Heiji so well, the fact that there was something off here had struck him right away. He just didn't know quite what- not until he'd heard Kazuha introduce them to Heiji. If there were any question left after hearing that, Heiji's own question had firmly answered them.
He didn't know if prior warning would have helped- it would have let him brace himself, if anything. He couldn't blame Ran for it- though judging by the looks she had exchanged with Kazuha, she had been warned ahead of time, he knew that it had simply gotten caught up in a jumble of other thoughts. After all, they had been told that Heiji's life had been hanging by a thread for awhile- if Kazuha had arrived any later than she had, if she had been unable to call for help when she had, things could have turned out far worse.
This was... definitely better than that.
It was definitely better, but... even so, though he was still here, it almost felt as if he had lost Heiji anyways.
That Conan-kun was so genuine, he didn't even need Kazuha's rushed explanation afterwards to know that something had happened to Heiji's memories. Most likely, he'd lost them entirely- there was no spark of recognition that flashed through his eyes as they entered the room, no trace of the quick grin that he had come to associate with his rival in sight. It was as if he were meeting him for the very first time.
Because he was.
"Eh? Didn't ya tell him?" The question wasn't directed towards him, Heiji's gaze going past him, and towards Kazuha, a confused expression on his face. "I thought ya said somethin' like that, Kazuha-san."
As if she didn't want him to see it, Kazuha hid the twitch of her fingers behind her back, not letting the expression on her face so much as waver. It might have been hidden from Heiji, but he was able to see it clearly from where he stood. He'd always known that Kazuha was strong- but maybe she was even more so than he had given her credit for.
The sight served as a stark reminder that, though having someone he'd come to view as a friend had forgotten him was painful, he wasn't the only one suffering here. Far from it, really. He'd only known Heiji for half a year, while she'd known him for her entire life. To have someone like that suddenly forget everything about you... it couldn't be an easy thing to take.
It was just those forgotten who were suffering. Though it didn't show on his face, he couldn't imagine that Heiji was taking this easy either- to wake up with no idea as to who you were, nor who any of those around you were... it was a notion that sent a cold shudder down his spine.
Hattori Heiji was still alive. But at the same time, it was almost as if he had disappeared. Maybe not for forever- his memories would eventually return, given time, he knew that much already. But knowing that didn't make dealing with it any easier- even he found himself falling prey to the worry that they might never return, if only for an instant.
"I'm really sorry, Conan-kun!" Clasping her hands together, Ran was quick to apologize. "It must have given you a shock, right? I was so worried about Hattori-kun being in the hospital that I forgot to tell you the most important part."
"No, it's alright, Ran-neechan." Shaking his head, Conan gave her the best smile that he could force himself to make. He didn't feel like smiling at all, not really- but for everyone's sake, he needed to wear one right now. "You were just worried about Heiji-niichan, right?"
"That's right." Ran said, nodding her head. Judging from the expression on her face, his smile hadn't entirely fooled her- but as long as she didn't understand the real reason behind it, that was fine. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to cause you a shock. But the doctors say that in time, Hattori-kun's memory should return." Glancing towards her friend, the reassuring smile on her face this time was for Kazuha's benefit. "Isn't that right, Kazuha-chan?"
"Ah, yeah!" With a quick nod of her head, and a slight note to her voice that gave hint to the fact that she wasn't so convinced of this, Kazuha forced a smile of her own on her face, one meant to comfort. He almost hated the sight of it- she was the one who was probably suffering the most right now, but because he had the appearance of a child, she felt that she needed to bury all that to comfort him. "That's right, Conan-kun! Besides, memories or no memories, he's the still the same Heiji-niichan he's always been!"
"Yup, I know!" There were times when it was harder than others, much harder than others, to keep the mask of a child plastered on his face- and this was very much one of them. But now, more than ever, he had to- because the last thing he wanted to do was to add to anyone's worries in this situation.
But it was hard. Because Kazuha wasn't entirely wrong- but she wasn't exactly right, either.
Because the Hattori Heiji that knew his secret, the Hattori Heiji that he could completely be himself around, in a way that he couldn't be with anyone else, was gone. To the Hattori Heiji here, he was nothing more than a genuine first grade student, probably one that he had been told that he got along well with. To him, he wasn't Kudo Shinichi, trapped in the body of a child, he was just Edogawa Conan.
Maybe it wasn't so bad. If it was like this, then he didn't have to worry about Heiji ever trying to poke his nose into anything involving the Organization. Like this, he would be safe- the deeper he dove into the Organization, the less that he found himself wanting to involve his Osakan friend. It had nothing to do with any doubts about his actual ability, and a lot more to do with the fact that the more he'd come to know him, the more he dreaded the thought of ever losing him.
He was more than able to find trouble of his own, even without them. If anything, this incident had only proven that.
There was no way he could tell him, either. Short of proving it by taking the temporary antidote right in front of him, there was no way he would be able to convince him. Besides, the last thing he needed to worry about right now was the problems of someone that he didn't even remember. It was true that he might have ultimately learned his secret by basically blackmailing it out of him, but looking back on it, it wasn't the worst thing that could have happened.
It had provided him with something invaluable, in the end- a friend that he could show his true face to. Without someone like that around, he could only imagine that things would get harder from here on out. While it was true that there were others that knew his secret, even with the one he was the closest to, the Professor, it just wouldn't be the same.
Honestly, when exactly had that idiot become so important to him? And to think that same idiot would have gone and forgotten him... if there really were such a thing as fate, he had more complaints than ever to lodge with it.
But he couldn't afford to allow any of that to show on his face, not here, not now.
"Then, let me introduce myself again, Heiji-niichan." Even though he had called him that countless times in the past without much more than a slight grumble, for some reason, today the words stung. "I'm Edogawa Conan!"
Even though there had been a part of him that had almost been longing to see that familiar expression ever since he had walked in the door, now that that quick grin had set itself on Heiji's face, he almost didn't want to look at it. It was that, that made him realize that this was going to be even harder than he had first thought. It took everything he had in him to force himself to keep looking his way, to keep his own smile from faltering.
"In that case, it's nice ta meet ya again, Conan-kun!"
"Were you calling Hattori-kun again, Conan-kun?"
Glancing up at the sound of Ran's voice, even as he nodded his head, Conan was grateful that his back had been turned to her just then. He would have no easy way to explain the kind of expression that had doubtlessly been on his face just now, and it would only worry her besides that.
"Yeah, I was!" Tucking his cellphone back away, Conan gave her a bright smile. "Heiji-niichan told me he started going back to school today. Apparently everyone had a bunch of questions to ask him during class, and Kazuha-neechan got mad at them."
"Well of course she would!" Ran said, not needing to read between the lines to know the rest of the story. Kazuha had called her just the same to complain about it, after all. "Treating someone with amnesia like some kind of spectacle! What on earth were they thinking?"
"Kazuha-neechan called you too, didn't she?" Conan asked, allowing a more genuine expression fall into place of the false cheer. Ran had come to understand, at the very least, that 'Conan' was distressed to have Heiji not remember him, but was trying to put on a good face for everyone about it. He needed to pretend less around her, and in a way, it was almost comforting.
At the same time, it bore the risk of accidentally showing her too much. He already knew she was worried about Kazuha, he couldn't burden her any further by making her worry about him.
"She did." Ran told him, with a firm nod of her head. "And? How did your phone call with Hattori-kun go? Did he remember anything?"
"No." Shaking his head, Conan slipped a bit of his guard back up at that statement. Since he'd gotten out of the hospital, he had been calling Heiji as often as possible, in hopes that some part of his memory might have stirred. "Nothing. He said the school seemed a bit familiar, but apparently he didn't recall anything specific."
"That's what Kazuha-chan told me too." Ran said, kneeling down in front of him, reaching out a hand to lightly stroke his head. "I'm sure he'll remember in time, Conan-kun. The doctors did say there was a chance that it could take a few months, or maybe even a year."
"Yeah, I know." It bothered him when anyone else did it, but right now, there was something about Ran's actions that almost felt a bit reassuring- if not a bit embarrassing. "We just have wait, right? But I still can't believe it sometimes, that Heiji-niichan would lose his memories like that."
Really, even now, it sometimes felt like a bad joke. Every time he called him, he still half expected to be greeted with the usual exuberant Kudo!- instead of a name that made his skin crawl when uttered with such conviction by Heiji.
"Well, he did go through a rather traumatic experience. We're lucky that's all that happened to him, in the end." Ran told him, pulling her hand away from his head. "We just have to do what we can for him. Ah, but speaking of which!"
Judging from the way that she perked up, Conan could make a pretty solid guess as to what was coming- and for once, it was an idea that he found himself actually dreading. Talking to him over the phone was one thing, but as for actually seeing him in person...
"Kazuha-chan told me that she was thinking of bringing Hattori-kun up to visit us next weekend!" Ran told him, a bright smile on her face. "She says that it might be a good idea to show him around places in Beika that he's been with us. Doesn't that sound fun?"
"Yup!" With an eager nod of his head, Conan swallowed back such thoughts. For all he knew, maybe it would help- and if it did, then it was well worth putting up with the discomfort that might come with it. "I'm looking forward to it, Ran-neechan!"
To be fair, it wasn't as if he was avoiding him on purpose. If anything, he had been doing it without thinking- he'd barely even noticed at first, until he'd noticed the slightly aggressive way in which Ran was trying to fix that.
He felt bad about it, of course he did. Even if he didn't remember anything about him, Heiji had been told enough to know that the two of them were apparently close- like brothers, Kazuha had apparently told him. That it troubled him that someone he was supposed to be close to was actively avoiding him was written plain as day on his face. The way that Heiji wore his heart on his sleeve hadn't changed, even with the loss of his memories.
But talking to Heiji on the phone was, as he thought, completely different from trying to deal with him in person.
"What do ya think, Conan-kun?"
"Eh?" Breaking out of his thoughts, Conan turned a startled glance upwards, wondering since when Heiji had been talking to him. Given his behavior towards him the first time they had met, he had been half expecting that Heiji would mostly ignore him- but if anything, the exact opposite had proven true. The fact that the idea that they were friends had been planted firmly in his mind had something to do with it, he suspected- and he kind of wished that wasn't the case.
It would be so much easier to deal with him if he were met with disinterest- and less painful at that. As it turned out, Heiji was eager to try and get to know this kid that he once knew again, and in doing so, didn't allow him to forget for even one second that he no longer saw him as Kudo Shinichi, his rival and best friend, but as just a kid.
Hell, he didn't even know if Heiji even had any idea that someone named Kudo Shinichi even existed. He'd entertained the idea of calling him using his voice once or twice, but each time, he had turned down the idea- if nobody had told him anything about him yet, it would only be one hell of an awkward conversation.
For that matter, he didn't even know if anyone had brought up to Heiji the fact that he was a high school detective. He hadn't mentioned a single thing about any cases since he had gotten here. Considering that was a topic that was usually fresh on his lips, it felt weird to not hear about it at all.
"Sorry, Heiji-niichan." Quick to apologize for his mistake, Conan tried to look as engaged as possible. "I just spaced out there for a second. What were you saying?"
"Ah, I was just talkin' about where ta get lunch." Heiji repeated, a hand straying behind his neck, rubbing the back of it. A nervous gesture, Conan knew, a habit that had been ingrained into him that remained behind. "Kazuha-san an' Ran-san," in some ways, hearing that from him was even weirder than hearing him say Conan-kun in all sincerity, "...seem ta wanna get lunch at this family restaurant or somethin', but I'm not sure if I'm feelin' it myself."
"Family restaurant?" Conan blinked, tilting his head, before a spark lit in it. "Ah, is it the one where the two of you met Agent Camel?"
"Agent Camel?" Heiji asked, his brows furrowing together in thought. "Who's that?"
"Apparently he's an FBI agent on vacation in Japan." Ran supplied. "Awhile back when the two of you came to visit us because of a case, Kazuha-chan stopped in that family restaurant in order to pick up some curry for her mother, and ran into a case. When she called you for help, that was when we met Agent Camel, the main witness."
"Case?" Heiji blinked, his gaze flickering over towards Kazuha, watching as she nodded her head. "Now that ya mention it, ya did say it the other day, that I used ta do detective stuff all the time. But did somethin' like that really happen? I would think I would remember meetin' an FBI agent, at the very least."
"Eh? You know?" Conan hadn't meant to blurt out the question that he had- but it came out anyways. "You hadn't mentioned anything about it, so I thought for sure that nobody had told you yet."
"Yeah." Almost perking up at the way the engaged way with which he was being addressed, Heiji couldn't help but smile a bit. That was a bit more like it! From the way the kid had been avoiding him since he had got here, he had been wondering if he'd done something wrong.
"Kazuha-san an' I ran into a bit of a case the other day, an' she told me about it then. Or ta be more exact, it almost fell right on top of us." Heiji told him. "That's when she told me about the whole high school detective thing."
"Eh? Is that really true, Kazuha-chan?" Ran asked, clapping her hands together. Why hadn't she told her something that important? If Heiji had returned to detective work already, wasn't that a good sign? "Then, did you solve it, Hattori-kun? The case?"
"Eh?" Blinking a little, almost tilting his head at the excitement in her voice, Heiji couldn't help but frown. "Well, I guess I did, but..."
"Heiji's still gettin' used ta the idea." Kazuha chimed in, as if sensing her friend's nervousness. "I kinda forget ta tell him about it before then, so it seems like he got a weird idea fer awhile there."
"Ya don't have ta tell them that." Grumbling a little, Heiji narrowed his eyes. "But well, that's how it is."
"Well, I think it's a good thing!" Ran chimed in, before she quickly rethought the implication of her words, an almost apologetic look on her face. "Not that you ran into a murder case, that is- but it might help your memories return if you do the things that you used to do, Hattori-kun."
"Well, I guess ya do have a point there, but..." Scratching his cheek, Heiji's gaze trailed off, half lost in thought for a moment. "Solvin' a case isn't quite like doin' kendo. Besides, what are the odds that I'll run into somethin' like that again?"
At the strange silence that settled over the other three, Heiji could only blink, glancing between them, clear confusion written on his expression. Had he said something weird? "Yer not goin' ta tell me that this is somethin' that happens often, are ya?"
"Well... a little bit." Kazuha spoke up, letting out something of a nervous laugh. Now that it had been brought up, she almost half felt as if something would actually happen. "But more importantly, I was thinkin' of takin' ya back ta that restaurant in hopes of goin' there might jog yer memory! After all, Kudo-kun came up with a really clever way of ferreting out the culprit!"
"Ya actually want ta go back ta restaurant where someone was killed?" The incredulity was clear as day on Heiji's voice.
"It might help ya remember if we do!" Kazuha told him. "What's the harm?"
"Well, I guess ya've got a point there, but..." Rubbing the back of his neck, Heiji frowned, casting a glance downwards towards Conan. "I'm just not sure this is the kind of thing that should be talked about in front of a kid. Murder cases, that is."
Judging from the blank look his words earned him there as well, he got the feeling that he had once again, said something weird.
"Ya say that, but you were the one who always dragged him around with ya on cases in the past, Heiji." Kazuha pointed out, planting her hands on her hips. "He would follow ya around an' absorb things from ya like a sponge, ta the point of imitatin' ya sometimes."
"Eh? Is that true?" More than a little startled by this, Heiji's gaze flickered down towards Conan, for a moment, wondering what kind of person he'd been to allow a child to investigate murder cases with him. "But why would I have done somethin' like that? I mean, Conan-kun's like what, five?"
"I'm six!" Conan piped up, quickly correcting him. That wasn't the truth either- but at the very least, he didn't want to be placed in kindergarten! "And it's fine, Heiji-niichan! After all, I want to be a detective one day, and you're always telling me all sorts of interesting things!"
"Yeah but..." Trailing off a little, looking at a loss for words, something so novel that for a brief moment, Conan actually allowed himself to enjoy said expression. "Murder scenes? Please tell me there's never any actual corpses around."
"Well, about that..." It was Ran who spoke, her thoughts doubtlessly flickering towards the very first time they had met each other, when he had berated her for bringing a child with her to a murder scene.
"Are ya serious, Ran-san?" As if trying to determine whether or not this was some kind of joke, Heiji searched her expression for any hint of a lie. "Yer serious."
"I'm fine with it, Heiji-niichan. It's not like you ever dragged me with you on a case, or anything like that." His lips twisting in a frown, unsure if he should marvel over the fact that losing his memories had apparently instilled within him something akin to common sense. Considering that it was working against him right now... probably not.
"Well if ya say so, but..." Still not looking convinced, Heiji decided for the moment to give up, instead heaving a long sigh. "Well, whatever. I'm too hungry ta think about this fer much longer."
"Then, shall we go?" Kazuha asked. "To the family restaurant?"
"Yeah, fine, fine, bring me ta yer dang murder restaurant already."
"Oi, you three, give him some space already!"
Heaving a long sigh, wondering how it had ended up like this, Conan could only watch as the three children that had clustered around Heiji barely paid his words any mind. To his credit, Heiji was putting up with them remarkably well, but he supposed there was a difference between well meaning children, and people your own age pressing you with a million questions.
He'd kind of expected this actually- from the moment that they had learned that his so-called 'detective master' had lost his memories, the three Detective Boys had been filled with the desire to help restore them. Granted, they didn't know the first thing about amnesia, other than what Mitsuhiko had read about it on the Internet, but that didn't cause their determination to waver one bit.
"Somehow I don't think they're quite listening to you, Edogawa-kun."
"You could at least help out here some, Haibara." Shooting her a rather exasperated look, Conan could only heave a defeated sigh, knowing right away from the expression on her face that she would be of no use here. "Those three have been pulling Hattori around like a rag doll all day. I'm amazed he hasn't snapped yet."
He was actually being surprisingly docile, all things considered. It wasn't as if his temper had gone anywhere, but memory loss had made him more hesitant to lash out at people. Even his usual bickering with Kazuha didn't happen half as often as it used to.
"You should be careful of that, you know." Brushing off everything else that had been said, Ai leveled her gaze with his. "If he hears you call him that, it might lead to questions that you could find hard to answer."
"I know that." Conan grumbled. "I'm not going to make that kind of mistake. Besides, it's already been two months now. I've gotten used to it, at this point."
That was the worst part, really.
"I suppose that's true." Ai noted. "It's probably for the best, really, that he lost his memories. I won't saying being honest is a bad thing, but Hattori-kun's honesty was always a liability. It's better for us both that he thinks of you now as nothing more than Edogawa Conan."
"This isn't just about us, you know." Narrowing his eyes, Conan bit back any other remarks that he wanted to make. He hated to admit it, but she did have something of a point- it was just a point that he didn't want to accept. "And it's not like he's going to never remember. It's just easier if he remembers on his own, rather than have me tell him about it."
"Is that really the only reason?" Ai asked, tilting her head to the side. "It's hard to imagine that you really would put up with your rival treating you like a child just because of that. Surely you must realize that he's probably safer this way."
"Idiot, of course it is." His reply came a bit too quickly, and he fully realized this- but as much as he was keeping any number of things from her, there were still some things that he couldn't manage to hide from the likes of Haibara Ai. "Hattori's my best friend. I don't enjoy having him treat me like a kid. But even if I told him, it would only just sound like a bad joke, and there's no way you'd give me some of the antidote just to prove it."
"Of course not." Ai said simply, taking a step forward. "That said, I can't imagine you enjoy having to act as one for him either. I'm amazed that you've been doing it so well, really. But..." her gaze drifting forward, a rather plastic smile crossing her face as she caught the eye of the one who was glancing back towards them, "...perhaps he's already noticed something strange."
"What do you mean?" Blinking, Conan followed her gaze, just in time to catch Heiji looking away from him. His lips twisting in a tight frown as he mentally noted that was the fifth time today he had done that, he tucked his hands into his pockets, glancing back towards Ai. "Well, it's true that he has been giving me strange looks all day, but this is still Hattori we're talking about here. If he remembered me, wouldn't he come out and say something?"
"I never said that. Only just that he might have noticed something." Ai told him, lengthening her stride as much as she could. "Now then, come on, Edogawa-kun, pick up the pace. Otherwise those four are going to leave us behind."
"Oi, wait a second, Haibara-!"
If it weren't for the fact that Ran had insisted, he wouldn't be doing this.
Sure, it was an idea that had cropped up on it's own every once in awhile, ever since he had heard from Kazuha that Heiji had been told about him. What if the sound of his voice helped stir up some memories? Besides, it was strange that he'd call himself Heiji's friend, and then wouldn't so much as call to check up on him. Both those things were true, but even so, it was hard to bring himself to actually do it.
But he wasn't much one to argue with Ran, so when she had insisted that it would do Heiji some good, he had finally resolved to make his first call to him not as Edogawa Conan, but rather, as Kudo Shinichi. With his voice changer in hand, Conan had braced himself to make the call.
Besides, maybe if he did, he could figure out if Heiji really had remembered something about him or not. Another month had passed since Ai had pointed out that much to him, and while Heiji had never confronted him about the matter, the strange looks hadn't exactly stopped. No matter how he looked at it, it wasn't like him to avoid the subject if something was bothering him- but then again, that was Heiji with his memories.
Without them? It was a tougher call to say what he might do.
"Do you remember me, Hattori?"
His question prompted a long silence on the other end of the line- to the point where he had to double check to make sure that his call hadn't been dropped. Just as he was starting to wonder if he might have said something to bother Heiji, his voice finally piped up on the other end of the line.
"Ah, sorry, sorry." Letting out a slight breath at the sound of his voice, Conan was relieved to note that it didn't sound the least bit annoyed. "I was just tryin' ta place ya. Kazuha's told me about ya before, but yer Kudo-han, right? That other high school detective that Ran-san is datin', right?"
"Well, we're not exactly dating, but..." Trailing off there a little, Conan quickly cleared his throat, realizing that now was not the time for that. Still, was Kazuha really saying that sort of thing about them? "That's right. I'm Kudo Shinichi."
"So ya really do exist." He knew that Heiji hadn't meant for the words to cause him to flinch, and frankly, he was grateful that they were speaking over the phone right now, so that he couldn't see it. "Since ya never tried contacting me at all, I almost thought that Kazuha was pullin' my leg or somethin'."
"I can assure you, I'm very much real. Besides, I don't think that Kazuha-chan would do something like that." Conan noted, unable to help but smile at the more familiar way he'd come to call Kazuha. They had started to trickle in, Heiji's memories about Kazuha- he'd heard that much from Ran.
Though from the sound of it, just as he thought, Heiji didn't remember him.
"Well, I guess that's true." Heiji admitted. "So? What are ya callin' me fer so suddenly? Sorry, but ta answer yer question from before, I don't remember ya that well. Kazuha told us we were friends though, so... well, sorry, I guess."
"No, no, it's not something you have apologize for, Hattori." He really should have buckled down and done this sooner, he thought- it felt better than he had expected to have Heiji treat him like someone his own age again. Even if it was just over the phone. "I heard all about it, after all. Do you really still not remember anything?"
"Bits an' pieces here an' there, but aside from that, not much. Although, ta tell ya the truth..."
"To tell me the truth?" Blinking a little at the way he had trailed off, Conan couldn't help but frown. "What is it, Hattori? If there's something you need to tell me, you can. You might not remember, but it's true that we're friends."
"Ah, no, it's just that it might sound kinda of weird." Heiji spoke up after a moment, the hesitation as clear as day in his voice.
"Don't worry about something that. Just tell me." Conan told him, his curiosity now more than a little bit piqued. Maybe he really had after all...?
"Well, if ya insist..." Trailing off a little, Heiji paused, seeming to consider his words carefully. "Ya know that kid at Ran-san's place? Ya know, Conan-kun?"
"I do." Conan said simply, biting back a dry comment that of course he did, that was him. "What about him?"
"It's just... the other day, I thought I had recalled somethin' about ya, but when I told Kazuha about it, she just laughed an' told me that it wasn't about ya at all." Heiji told him. "Apparently it was actually about Conan-kun, as it turns out. S'not really the first time that's happened ta me either. Weird, right?"
So that was it.
It made sense, really. Kudo Shinichi and Edogawa Conan had once been closely linked existences in Heiji's mind, so it was no surprise that he might be mixing up his memories of them as they slowly trickled back. If it happened only once or twice, it was likely something that he could dismiss as being some kind of mental hiccup, but since it happened more often than that...
No wonder he had been looking at him strangely. The seeds of the connection were there, but the vital memories that would have linked them together once more were not. Still, it become something of a problem if he kept asking Kazuha about it every time, so he should probably do something about that.
"No, it's not that weird." Conan told him, a trace of a smile on his face. To be honest, he actually wanted to tell him the truth straight out- but there was a chance that Heiji might think he was making fun of him. He didn't want that. "That kid and I are a bit alike, so that's probably why you're getting us a bit mixed up."
"Ya think?" Still sounding somewhat unconvinced, Heiji nevertheless seemed to largely accept that explanation- after all, it made a hell of a lot more sense than them being the same person. "Well, I guess that makes sense."
"Doesn't it?" Conan asked. "Well, don't worry about it, Hattori. Your memories will come back eventually. But if you think you've remembered something about me, you can always call me and ask. You don't have to bother Kazuha-chan every time. That kid always calls me after he's been involved with a case, so I'd know right away if you were talking about something that happened with him."
It would do. For the moment, until he remembered everything, it would have to.
"Please tell me that was you that I tied a rope ta, an' had walk out on the top of Osaka Castle."
"Actually, that was Conan."
"I'm startin' ta get the feelin' here that I'm not very good with children."
"No. No you're not."