Missjennifer54: Thanks for the review! I enjoyed writing that part, and the past chapter had many funny parts to it.

10th Squad 3rd Seat: Thanks for the review! I liked the fluff parts as well!

Tea Unicorn: Thanks for the review! Me either!

JasminDragon92: Thanks for the review! I love it as well!

A/N: I apologize for the delay of my continuation. This work was intended to be released long before now. I've made the chapter longer than usual to make up for my long absence. But I couldn't update any faster because a very dear family member of mine was extremely sick, but she's in a better place now. I hope she rests in peace.

Disclaimer: I do not own Detective Conan, Gosho Aoyama does.

Ch 12 Red Spider Lilies

Shinichi and Heiji walked inside of the gates of Dr. Agasa's house. They opened the door, and walked inside. Heiji closed it, and walked inside. Ran, Kazuha, and Ai were sitting at the table. Shinichi kissed Ran on the cheek, as he sat beside her. Heiji sat beside Kazuha as she finished eating. Ai was sitting there in between Ran and Kazuha. The only thing in front of her was a cup of coffee. Everyone sat in silence as the girls finished eating. They then got up, and exited the house. Kazuha felt nervous as she continued to walk toward Teitan Elementary School. 'Why do I feel so nervous? I've already been through this before,' Kazuha thought to herself as she looked down at her feet. She then looked ahead of herself and looked at Heiji. He turned around and gave her a reassuring smile as they stopped at the gates of the school. Ayumi, Genta, and Mitsuhiko were walking from the other direction.

"Hey you guys!" Ayumi said cheerfully. She was wearing a pink dress with a pink bow in her hair.

"We were talking about next week with the Kaito Kid. It's going to be so exciting!" Mitsuhiko said as he put his fist up in the air.

"Hey, who's that?" Genta asked, as he pointed behind Rishou. Rishou stepped aside, and pushed Nikki forward. She put her hands together as she looked down at her shoes nervously. She then looked back up to notice the three children staring back at her expectedly. She let out a little sigh, and then started to speak.

"Oh, hi, I'm Watanbe Nikki, and who are you three?"

"I'm Yoshida Ayumi, that's Kojima Genta, and he's Tsuburaya Mitsuhiko," Ayumi said as she pointed at the different people. Nikki nodded at them.

"So, what brings you to Beika?" Mitsuhiko asked. It was obvious that he had taken a liking to Nikki.

"My parents and I are from Kochi," Nikki said.

"Oh, did they move here with you?" Ayumi asked.

"No, they went on a book tour, and they thought I needed to go to school."

"Are you living with Dr. Agasa too?"

"Yeah, I am,"

"That's cool." Genta said. They then made their way into the elementary school. Nikki had made sure that she was in between Rishou and Addy at all times. She did not know how to explain it, but being turned back into a kid made her feel as she did at the age of seven: shy and timid. Rishou gave her a pat on the shoulder, and Nikki blushed. Conan and Addy walked close together.

"So, do you remember what we were talking about last night?" Conan asked. A blush made its way across Addy's cheeks.

"I do not know what you are talking about," Addy said as she turned away from him.

"It's okay Adi-chan, I think it's a little cute," Conan said as he put his hand on her shoulder. She gave him a little smile, and then covered her mouth as she giggled.

"Alright, Conan-kun," Addy said as they walked into class. The teacher stood in the front of the classroom. She waited for the children to settle down. She stood there, with her hands clasped together.

"Good morning class!"

"Good morning Miss Kobayashi!"

"Now class. Today we will have a more fun approach to class. I assume you guys have seen the news recently?" The children's' answers varied. Some just nodded, the rest answered, 'yes,".

"I understand that you guys have heard that the Kaito Kid has, once again, written another note about taking away some jewels. He incorporated the folktale, "The Little Peachling", into his riddle. Are you familiar with this story?"

"Yes, Miss Kobayashi!" The children answered.

"That's great!" Miss Kobayashi answered. "Now, we are going to sing "Momotarō-san no uta, (Momotaro's song)," the children cheered. They then began to sing,

" Momotarō-san, Momotarō-san (Momotarō, Momotarō)

Okoshi ni tsuketa kibidango (Those millet dumplings on your waist)

Hitotsu watashi ni kudasai na? (Won't you give me one?)

Agemashō, agemashō (I'll give you one, I'll give you one)

Kore kara oni no seibatsu ni (From now, on a quest to conquer the ogres)

Tsuite kuru nara agemashō (If you come with me, I'll give one to you)"

"That was great class! We'll break for recess." All the children ran outside. Ayumi had managed to climb on top of the jungle gym where she sat. Mitsuhiko was standing on one of the bars of the jungle gym. Nikki was hanging upside down from the jungle gym, and Addy was playing a hand game with her. Ai, Genta, Conan, and Rishou sat on the swings and nearby benches.

"I wish there was something we could do about Kaito Kid," Ayumi said as she locked her feet underneath a bar.

"Yeah, we should capture him," Genta said.

"It is our obligation to society, as the Junior Detective League, of course!" Mitsuhiko said. The three of them did a fist pump into the air. Conan and Rishou's eyes closed a little, and a sweat drop fell from their head. Nikki and Addy were giggling. Ai had no expression on her face.

At the end of the school day, everyone met at their lockers.

"We need to make a plan to capture Kaito Kid!" Mitsuhiko exclaimed as he shut the door to his locker.

"So Conan, what plans have you made up?" Ayumi said. She had straightened her hair out, and readjusted her bow.

"I haven't thought of anything," Conan said as he finished putting his shoes back on.

"Wait, what?" Genta asked as though he were told that he couldn't have any more eel.

"Come on Conan, you need to think of something!" Ayumi said.

"We need you!" Mitsuhiko said as he rattled Conan a little bit. Rishou sweat dropped, 'He isn't the only detective in this group, ya know,'

"I'll see you later, guys!" Conan said as he ran and waved.

"What the…" Genta said.

"That Conan…" Mitsuhiko said.

"I've got to go to ya guys!" Rishou said as he ran to catch up to Conan. When he finally did catch up to him, he took a break so he could catch his breath.

"Kudo, what are you doing? Training for the marathon?" Heiji asked sarcastically. Shinichi shook his head, and he and Heiji walked back to the Detective Agency. As they walked past Detective Mouri's office, they noticed someone was in there with him.

"Oh, the old man has a client," Shinichi said as he went to open the door.

"Oh no ya don't," Heiji said as he stopped Shinichi. "Ya need to get ready for ya date with Ran. I'll see what's going on with Kogoro," Heiji then opened the office door, and shut it. Shinichi went into the house through Ran's room, and he went in to take a shower. While Shinichi took a shower, Heiji sat down in the office. Kogoro gave him a weird look, but continued to talk with his client. Something seemed off about the woman. He noted that her name was Hara Nanami.

"Please, you need to help me find Noguchi!" the woman exclaimed. Tears pulled in her eyes as she took a picture of Noguchi and held him so Kogoro could see. It was a Somali cat with amber fur. The cat had greenish-bluish eyes. In Heiji's opinion, even though he is not a cat expert, this cat had seen better days.

"I apologize ma'am, but I do not solve those cases. If you would like, I can recommend a detective who solves those particular types of cases," Kogoro said nicely.

"But please, sir, there is no other detective better than you," The woman continued, "I tried talking to Kudo Shinichi, but he laughed at me!"

"I apologize on behalf of Kudo's rude behavior, but there is nothing I can do for you," Kogoro said, thrilled to hear that someone thought he was better than Kudo.

"But Mouri Kogoro, my sister passed away. Other than Keiko, Noguchi is all I have!" Hara Nanami exclaimed as she put her head in her hands and began crying.

"I apologize, ma'am, but there is nothing I can do," Kogoro said as he put his hand on her shoulder.

"Get your hand off of me," Hara Nanami said as she pushed his hand away, "and, quite frankly, you aren't even that great of a detective anyway. Just you wait! You'll never work in this town again!" Hara Nanami walked out and slammed the door. Kogoro rolled his eyes at the woman. He then grabbed a beer, and turned on the television. Okino Yoko was on the television speaking about his brand new song. Heiji then decided to walk up the stairs, and opened the door to the apartment. Heiji walked to the room that Shinichi and he shared. When he opened the door, Shinichi was putting on his bowtie.

"Hey Kudo, I guess you're ready for your date," Heiji asked.

"Yeah, I am. What was that case about downstairs?"

"A woman wanted Kogoro to find her cat, but he explained to her that he doesn't solve those types of cases anymore. The woman threw a hissy fit and left."

"Good for him," Shinichi said as he combed his hair.

"But there was something off about that woman."

"What do you mean about that?"

"Well, first off, she brought up your name," Heiji said as he sat on his futon.

"What do you mean she brought up my name?" Shinichi said as he looked at himself in the mirror.

"She said that she called ya about her cat, and ya laughed in her ear."

"No, that never happened. I would never laugh at any potential client. No matter how ridiculous their request may be, I would have politely declined. Then I would tell you so we could have a good laugh," Shinichi said as Heiji laughed.

"Yeah, and she was extremely rude too. The woman wanted Ran's old man to find her cat named Noguchi," Heiji said. He noticed that Shinichi just froze. His expression turned solemn. Shinichi went to Ran's room, and came back with a book. He put it on the desk, and turned it to the page he was looking for. When Shinichi found what he was looking for, he pointed at something in the book.

"Wait, do you mean?" Heiji said as realization dawned on him. Shinichi only nodded once.

Meanwhile, back with the rest of the group, Nikki and Addy decided to go home.

"Let's go home," Addy said.

"I agree," Nikki said. Ai wordlessly followed them home.

"Wait for us!" Mitsuhiko, Genta, and Ayumi shouted. They then ran to catch up to the three girls. They opened up the gate, and walked inside of the house.

"Hello children!" Dr. Agasa said. Ai walked toward a door. She opened it up, and took a step inside.

"Nobody bother me," Ai said as she shut the door to her lab. Mitsuhiko, Ayumi, Genta, Addy, and Nikki sat on the same couch together. Dr. Agasa had the biggest smile on his face. Ayumi leaned over toward Genta and whispered, "Why does he have such a big smile on his face?"

"I don't know," Genta whispered back, "But I wish he would stop, it's creeping me out,"

"Okay, children, I got a riddle, and I bet you guys will never be able to solve it," Dr. Agasa said with the utmost enthusiasm.

"Alright, doc, let's hear it," Addy said, trying to show interest.

"Okay, so a zebra with wide stripes marries a zebra with narrow stripes. Their first son has no stripes, what do they call him?" Dr. Agasa said, his eyes wide with glee, and a grin from ear to ear. The children looked really confused because they have no idea what the zebra's name was.

"Is it Nashi?" Mitsuhiko said. Dr. Agasa shook his head. Mitsuhiko's smirk fell. Off to the right side of the couch, Nikki and Addy were trying to find out the answer to the riddle.

"Do you have any idea what it is?" Addy whispered to Nikki.

"I have no clue, do you think that Conan or Rishou might know it?" Nikki whispered back.

"I have no idea. Do you think Ai knows?"

"Probably not. I doubt she really cares about that kind of stuff."

"Do you guys know the answer?" Dr. Agasa said with a smirk.

"No, we give up." Mitsuhiko and Genta said at the same time.

"What about you three?" Dr. Agasa asked Ayumi, Addy, and Nikki. They both shrugged. Dr. Agasa smiled and said, "Alright you guys, here is the answer, their first child, they named him… Arthur."

"Wait… what?" Mitsuhiko said. He was scratching his head as he tried to find reasoning behind this. He looked over to his right, and everyone else looked just as stumped as he was.

"But doc, that doesn't make any sense," Nikki said.

"Sometimes riddles do not make any sense," Dr. Agasa said.

"Now you're just being silly, doc," Addy teased. Everyone else began to laugh, and Dr. Agasa just stood there.

"Hey, I'll have you know that I am a doctor who has created multiple gadgets that have received patents," Dr. Agasa said with a mock glare. The doctor then went to his kitchen, and brought some soda for the children to drink it.

"Here is some soda for you guys," Dr. Agasa said, and the Junior Detective League cheered. They all picked a glass up.

"So, has Shinichi-niichan say anything about Kaito Kid?" Mitsuhiko asked.

"I haven't heard anything from him, Mitsuhiko, he's been busy recently." Dr. Agasa said.

"Hasn't Ran-neechan gone with him?" Ayumi asked. Addy turned her face away from the rest of the group and her face had a light blush. Nikki notices this, and she pokes her in the shoulder. Addy turns and gives her attention to Nikki. Nikki raises her eyebrows and smirks. Addy rolls her eyes at her.

"From what I have heard," Dr. Agasa said as he picked the tray up. There was a creek, and a twist of the knob. Ai, having completed what she had set out to do that day, had sat down on a sofa separate from the rest of the gang.

"Hello Ai," Mitsuhiko said with a smirk on his face. He began to fiddle with his thumbs.

"Hello Mitsuhiko," Ai said with a smirk.

"Oh, hello Ai," Dr. Agasa said as he entered into the sitting room. "Would you like some soda?"

"No thank you, doc. And you shouldn't be having any either," Ai said as she motioned to his hand. He let out a little chuckle as he set it on top of the table.

"Oh, look at the time," Ayumi said, "we have to go." Genta, Mitsuhiko, and Ayumi said their goodbyes, and left. This left Ran, Kazuha, and Ai.

"Hey Ran, are you going to start getting ready?" Kazuha asked excitedly. Ran nodded, and they both ran to the bathroom giggling. Ai remained in the main area with Dr. Agasa. She sighed as she put her head in her hand.

"Is something bothering you Ai?" Dr. Agasa said as he sat down next to her. He put his arm on his shoulder. He knew she was worrying about something.

"I don't know Doctor, I have a bad feeling about tonight," Ai said forebodingly. Dr. Agasa's hand remained on her shoulder. He did not know what words to reassure her, because he, as well, had a bad feeling as well. Ai's phone rang, and she went straight back down into her laboratory.

"Look Ran!" Kazuha said as she held up a dress that was creamy green. Two small white buttons were at the top of the dress. A soft yellow sash wrapped around her waist. In the back, it formed into a bow. Kazuha had also pulled some white Mary Jane shoes. "I think it would be perfect!"

"I don't know, Kazuha," Ran said as she looked at the dress.

"Is something wrong, Ran?" Kazuha said as she placed the dress in front of Ran so she could have a better look.

"It doesn't look good enough, Kazuha," Ran said as she went to her closet. Kazuha went to her closet, and pulled out a miniature cardigan.

"Would this look better?" Kazuha said as she put it with the dress. Ran looked at it and ran her hand down the sweater.

"But Kazuha, this sweater is yours," Ran said as she took her hand off of the sweater and looked at her.

"Wear it Ran, it completes the dress," Kazuha said as she smiled. She put her arm on Ran's shoulder. "You wouldn't want to keep Shinichi waiting, do you Ran?" Ran blushed and looked away. She then pulled at her shirt, and then looked back up.

"Kazuha!" Ran shouted, and Kazuha started to giggle. Ran started to giggle as well. "I owe you one," Ran said as she started to get ready to take a shower. After she had dried her hair, she put on her undergarments, some tights she took from her sock drawer, her dress, the cardigan, and her white Mary Jane shoes. When she was done fastening her left shoe, there was a knock on the door.

"I'm coming!" Ran shouted as she opened the door. Ai stood outside the door, and Ran invited her in. Ran shut the bathroom door, and stood next to Ai. Ai motioned for her to sit on the chair in front of the mirror. Ran nodded, and sat down.

"So Ai, what's going on?" Ran said as Ai started to brush her hair. After Ai thought Ran's hair had been brushed enough, she pulled something out of her back pocket. Ai took her hair and brushed Ran's hair a few more times. She then took a yellow headband that wrapped around Ran's head. There was a yellow bow that sat on top.

"I was just completing your look. I hope you don't mind," Ai said. Ran giggled. She then did something that caught Ai completely off guard. Ran jumped up, and gave Ai a hug.

"Thank you Ai," Ran said happily. Ai just stood there shocked. She then recovered.

"You're welcome, Ran, watashi no imouto," this caused Ran to pause, turn around, and smile at Ai. She then went to the main room to sit down. A few minutes later, the doorbell rang. Ran opened the door, and Shinichi stood there in his usual blue blazer, white shirt, red bow tie, blue shorts, and of course, his glasses.

"Hey Shinichi!" Ran said as she hugged him. Shinichi hugged Ran back, and took a step away from her.

"Wow Ran, you look beautiful," Shinichi said.

"You look handsome yourself," Ran said as she blushed. Shinichi then offered Ran his arm, and she took it. They began to walk toward Happiraisu. The place wasn't at all what Ran expected. She had heard about it, from friends, and some of the police officers. They offered nothing but praises toward this place. But from the given name, she thought this place was going to be casual. Oh, but the name given to this place was a misnomer. It made someone believe that children were running around, or that it was a family restaurant. But this place was in between semi-formal and fine dining.

"So that's why Kazuha made me wear this dress," Ran whispered aloud. Shinichi looked at Ran with a questioning look.

"Oh, nothing," Ran said as she and Shinichi walked inside. The walls were painted a deep royal blue, and the tile was the color of soft silver. Each party had their own private room.

"Edogawa," Shinichi said toward the waiter. The waiter gave them a questioning look, but led them to their table. When the door opened, they noticed they had a view of the garden outside. A bunch of red spider lilies aligned the walkway. Chrysanthemums were multiple, they were put together in bunches, but there weren't a lot of them. They were some purple, red, yellow, and white varieties of them. There were some bonsai trees growing sporadically. There were also some Japanese white pine trees as well. The rest look like Cherry Blossom trees. There was a water fountain in the middle. It was a beautiful gray concrete design. The two heard a cough, and they both turned around and looked at their waiter.

"Hello, I am Saito Takeo, and I will be your waiter tonight. Our special tonight is the Nikujawa. It is a stew with pork, potatoes and vegetables."

"What are you thinking, Ran?"

"I'll have the Nikujawa."

"Okay, two bowls of Nikujawa please," Shinichi said.

"So, what is going on over at the doc's house?" Shinichi said as he spun his chopsticks around.

"Oh, everyone came over, and once again, he did one of his riddles," Ran said. Shinichi let out a sigh.

"Which one was it now?" He asked.

"A zebra with wide stripes marries a zebra with narrow stripes. Their first child has no stripes, what do they name him?"

"Arthur," Shinichi said.

"Wait, what? How did you figure it out?" Ran asked. She had no idea how Shinichi got the riddle. This was one of the riddles that didn't make any sense.

"He has this really old joke book. And when I was younger, I would flip through it. The riddle was one of the first ones you see,"

"So, basically, he pulled a random joke out of a book, and it doesn't even make sense,"

"Exactly, Ran, you guys need to have more of a vivid imagination. There was once a quote from Dr. Watson, Lestrade couldn't even see the stripes of a zebra. Do you know why, because he lacks imagination." Shinichi said. Ran was trying really hard not to let Shinichi see she was not interested in hearing about Sherlock Holmes. 'I can't believe he's bringing up Sherlock Holmes. Okay, I take that back, it is expected that Shinichi would do something like that. I mean, he is a Holmes otaku for crying out loud. But I deserve some credit, don't I? I didn't even know they even mention zebras in Sherlock Holmes? This is the first time it has been brought to my attention.' Ran thought as she put her head in her hand.

"So Ran, what are you thinking about?" Shinichi asked. This caused Ran to jump a little bit, and she glared at him as he let out a laugh. The door opened and the waiter entered with their Nikujawa.

"So, how is the Detective Agency nowadays?" Ran asked. She then broke apart the chopsticks to begin eating her soup,"

"Your dad just had a client who threw a temper tantrum because he wouldn't take her case," Shinichi said as he wiped his face with his napkin.

"Well, isn't that a little extreme? At least dad was polite about it? Why wouldn't he take it anyway?" Ran asked. She then took a sip of water.

"He wanted her to find her cat," Shinichi said. Ran just paused.

"Wait, she wanted him to find her cat?" Ran asked.

"Yeah, and he politely declined, and even tried to recommend someone who specializes in those cases. She didn't want anything to do with that."

"Oh wow, that's crazy Shinichi," Ran said. Soon afterwards, they finished their meal. Shinichi was going to pay for it, but Ran also wanted to help pay for it as well.

"No Ran, I picked the place, I'm paying." Shinichi said as he put the money down.

"But Shinichi, I don't want to be too much trouble," Ran said as she played with her fingers.

"Don't worry Ran. I don't mind," Shinichi said.

"Can we go walk in the garden afterwards?" Ran asked.

"Yeah, that sounds like a good idea," Shinichi said. They both got up, and Shinichi extended his hand, and they both walked hand-in-hand out of the restaurant. Shinichi opened the door, and motioned for her to exit first. As they walked through the garden, Ran couldn't help but admire the gorgeous flowers that were blooming.

"It's so amazing, Shinichi, all of these flowers that are growing out," Ran said as she went to sniff one. Shinichi plucked it out of the ground, and handed it to Ran.

"Oh thank you Shinichi," Ran said. She then gave him a peck on the lips. She felt him put his arms by her face as he returned the kiss. They then went and sat down on a bench by the water fountain. He wrapped his arm around her, and she rested her head on his shoulder. The water was soothing and relaxing, and staying around it too long would make someone fall asleep. Shinichi began tracing circles on her shoulder. Ran looked up at Shinichi and smiled. Nothing could ruin the moment, except for Shinichi's phone ringing. Ran sat up straight, as Shinichi dug into his pocket to pull out his phone.

"If this is Hattori, I'm going to kill him," Shinichi muttered under his breath, as he flipped open the phone to answer it.

"Shin-chan!" The other voice said as soon as he answered. It was so loud that even Ran could tell who was on the other end of the line.

"Hey mom, I don't want to be rude, but I'm busy," Shinichi said. Ran poked him in the side, and Shinichi turned around and looked at her. She mouthed to him, "It's okay,"

"Shinichi, I have horrible news!" Yukiko said. Some noise could be heard in the background.

"What is going on, mom?" Shinichi asked.

"Son, Kazuha's parents never showed up at the airport,"

"Wait, what!" Shinichi shouted.

"We talked to the flight attendant, and they said that they weren't even on the plane. I called up one of my good friends who works at the airport in Osaka, and he said that not only had they not even entered the plane. They checked the security cameras and they did not even set foot on the premises,"

"Oh my God," Ran said as tears pooled into their eyes. Shinichi took Ran's hand, and sat her down on the bench, and he wrapped his arm around her. Ran began to cry into his shoulder.

"They have already gotten to them," Shinichi said.

"Yes, my son. You and Ran need to be careful," Yusaku said as he hung up the phone.

"Shinichi, what are we going to do?" Ran said as she wiped the tears from her eyes.

"The only thing we can do, Ran," Shinichi said. He dialed another number, and waited for the recipient to pick up.

"Hey doc, it's Shinichi, there's been an emergency," Shinichi said.

"You two hang tight, I'm on my way," Dr. Agasa said as he hung up the phone. He ran to the counter and got his keys.

"Doctor, what's going on?" Ai said as she noticed his worried demeanor.

"You stay here, Ai. I'm going to pick up Shinichi and Ran," Dr. Agasa said. He was out the door before Ai could say another word.

Please R&R, no flames, please. But constructive criticism is more than welcome.