"So you really plan on helping him…" said Conan, adjusting his glasses thoughtfully. Shinichi nodded slowly, hoping his younger self wasn't thinking him as crazy as he was thinking himself. "If he was telling the truth, these people could be anyone, even officers in the police force."

"Yeah. We'll have to pick who we bring with us carefully."

Conan nodded, his glasses slipping back down his nose.

"Do you think…. Could they be the same as the men who drugged you…. er… us?" Conan asked hesitantly. But Shinichi only shook his head.

"From the way it sounded, I think they've made attempts on Kid's life before, and the easiest time for them to do that is during heists. Even since I've been going to cases again I haven't seen or heard about them. No suspicious activity on their part, either."

Conan nodded again, and walked back to the door before stopping and turning back around.

"Is everything alright?" It sounded like a stupid question considering the events of that night, but he knew his older self would know what he meant.

"Yeah," Shinichi responded. "I'm just thinking about this whole thing…" His gaze drifted distractedly. With that, Conan left and shut the door.

Shinichi, putting all thoughts of heists aside, allowed his mind to wander back to Ran. There were so many regrets. If he had only told her straight out how he felt. It might have been different. He would never make that mistake again, if there was an 'again', he thought, laying back on his bed. Closing his eyes, he drifted off into an uneasy slumber.

He awoke the following morning to his alarm clock screaming in his ear. After mumbling something incoherent and slamming the snooze button, he sat up groggily, peering out his window into the warm, sunny morning. His bedroom door eased open silently, Conan's small figure slipped in, already dressed in his usual school getup.

"Shinichi," he chirped in his little kid, "Time to get up!" He stood in the doorway adjusting the small bow tie around his neck. Shinichi mumbled something else and stood up, still dressed in his school uniform. Conan tilted his head to one side questioningly, studying his older self silently. Sensing Conan's unease, Shinichi forced a tired smile and leaned down to pick up his schoolbag.

"Just a little exhausted." he said, walking past Conan and out the door. Not completely convinced, Conan followed him down the stairs to the front door and watched his older self trudge down the sidewalk, his shoulders sagging unusually. Shrugging to himself, the boy detective closed the door and went to get breakfast.

When Shinichi arrived at school, he fought his way through the crowds to his classroom, knocking into more than a few people in his half-daze. Taking his seat, he lay a book out on his desk staring blankly at the pages, uncharacteristically quiet. Suddenly a large group of people, all crowded around a single person in the center of them all, shoved their way through the door, making a large commotion.

"That's amazing!" exclaimed one girl, clapping her hands excitedly. As the bell for the start of class rand, Shinichi glanced up just in time to see a mass of people disbanding from around an unfamiliar boy. He took an empty seat as the teacher walked in, clapping irritably to get the classes attention.

"Class, we have a new student today, so please try to be welcoming. Now-" Without warning the boy bounced to the front of the classroom.

"My name is Kuroba Kaitou. Pleased to meet you all." he said smiling, taking a deep bow. Half the classroom erupted into applause. After taking a few more bows, he was ushered back to his seat.

The school day dragged by slowly, and a wave of relief washed over Shinichi, as well as the rest of the student body, as the last bell of the day rang. As he began packing his books away, waiting for the classroom to empty, he felt a hand on his shoulder. Peering up, he found himself peering into the smiling face of Kuroba Kaitou.

"Kudo Shinichi, I assume? I've heard a lot about you. Quite the detective, huh?"

"Yeah, I guess so." he replied awkwardly, rising to his feet. He had the strangest feeling of familiarity, but he brushed it aside for the moment.

"Maybe you could show me around some time, if you have the time, that is. I just moved here so it'd be nice to know somebody." Kaitou said, following Shinichi down the hall.

"It seems like you've already got quite a fan club here." replied Shinichi, remembering the crowd of people that morning. Kaitou just shrugged, stuffing his hands into his pockets.

"Fans and friends are different. Friends you get to spend time with, get to know. So, what do you say?"

Shinichi pushed open the door to outside, squinting his eyes against the sun.

"Sure." he replied. "Is tomorrow after school alright?"

"Let's see… tomorrow is Friday…" Kaitou said thoughtfully. "Yeah, sounds good to me! Catch you later!" he said hurriedly, flashing a thumbs-up before dashing off and seeming to disappear into the crowd. Shinichi grinned to himself. Friendly, outgoing, this Kaitou guy seemed like someone he could get along with, even if he was a bit strange. Especially if he enjoyed a good mystery.

>>>to be continued…

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First off, I truthfully didn't think people would actually like this…

Thank you sooo much to everyone who reads this!

Cookies all around!

Holy crap. It's actually another chapter.

Whether this is a good or bad thing, I have yet to determine… o.O

sarcasm Yes, this chapter is where it gets so original.

I am going to hate myself for this later.

Tried to fix up some of the things people commented on (one being writing a character's actions after another character's quote. Bad me).

Also, a short explanation as to why I decided not to use honorifics (such as -chan or -kun)--- I am lazy. Very lazy. That is all ;

Ha. Laziness…which reminds me of all the other unfinished fics I have somewhere… kicks self