Case Closed AU
By: FunahoMisaki
(A/N: I own nothing and read last chapter)
"I don't know why but I just feel the need to protect you, and like I'm bringing home a little sister or even a daughter for the first time." Rachel said smiling down at Irene who grinned up at her from her spot next to the taller girl.
"I wouldn't know Rachel-san. What's it like to have a kaa-chan or nee-chan?" Irene asked, she of course knew what it was like to have a kaa-chan but not a nee-chan besides as far as Rachel knew Irene never knew her kaa-chan so it was a valid question.
"No need for the formalities, just call me Rachel or even Nee-chan if you feel like it. Hmm…I don't know what it's like to have a nee-chan but…having a kaa-chan is like having someone you know loves you watching out for you all the time and protecting you from everything while still letting you grow and try new things." Rachel said her eyes far off as she thought of her mother, Eva Kadan, who was a pretty famous attorney called the 'Queen of the Courtrooms'.
"So you have your kaa-chan still?" Irene asked letting herself act like the small curious child she currently looked like.
"Yes I still have my kaa-chan. You might get to meet her if she's not too busy." Rachel said breaking out of her stupor and smiling down at the little girl holding her hand and looking absolutely adorable to her. Irene merely smiled back up at Rachel and opened her mouth to say something else but was cut off when Richard Moore came out of his office at a very fast pace and nearly bowling the two over. Rachel reacted to the threat before she even knew what she was doing.
One second Richard was stumbling down the stairs yelling 'I did it I did it!' and about to squish Irene the next he was flat on his back behind the two girls after Rachel used one of his own Judo moves to throw him a safe distance over Irene's head.
"Wicked! Do it again!" Irene said eyes wide and just about to die laughing on the inside as Rachel ignored her groaning but still grinning dad and proceeded to look Irene over for injury. All the times she'd seen Rachel do Karate back when Irene was Jimmy he had never seen the black belt do Judo moves, let alone on her own dad.
"My first job in six months. Some rich guys daughter had gone missing, kidnapped by some men in black." Richard said quickly jumping to his feet while Irene stiffened and looked shocked, could it be the same men who did this to her?
"Irene-chan wait!" Rachel said rushing after Irene when the small brown haired girl jumped into the taxi with Richard, the man not even noticing them for several minutes.
"What the hell are you doing in here?" Richard asked leaning across Irene to look at his daughter.
"I was trying to get her out." Rachel said simply in response while Irene's mind was racing quickly before she tugged on Rachel's sleeve, the perfect reason for being in the car coming to her in an instant.
"Hey Rachel-san. The coppers said it was some guys in black that killed my tou-san, are they the same people that took the rich guys daughter?" Irene asked innocently and causing Rachel's eyes to widen as they shot down to the young girl tugging on her sleeve.
"We don't know Irene but I guarantee you if they are they're going to be getting sent to a hospital free of charge courtesy of me before they go to jail. You just stay close to me the whole time my tou-san's working on the case okay?" Rachel asked schooling her features quickly and smiling warmly down at Irene who nodded her head, only to all but scramble onto Rachel's lap when Richard stuck his face really close to hers.
"Who is this?" Richard asked his daughter, pointing at Irene who growled at him for sticking his finger in her face.
"She's a relative of Dr. Agase whose parents are dead and stop it you're scaring her." Rachel said wrapping an arm around Irene protectively.
"I don't care get her out of here." Richard said glaring slightly although that changed when Rachel slammed his face into the window with her free hand.
"Oh yeah how? You want me to toss her out the window in the middle of the highway? Not gonna happen tou-san." Rachel said glaring at her dad who kept his mouth shut for the rest of the ride while Rachel kept Irene entertained until they arrived.
"Can I see the picture?" Irene asked jumping up to try and catch a glimpse of it, only to have to snatch it from Richards hand when it was within her reach.
"Can you tell us everything that happened mister?" Irene asked after getting a good look at the picture of the small ten year old girl who was hugging a dog in the picture.
"Who is this child?" The girl's father asked looking at Irene who was promptly snatched up by the scruff of her shirt by Richard.
"Rachel do something with he-YEOUCH!" Richard began only to drop Irene when the girl bit his hand before landing on her feet and hiding behind Rachel's legs.
"You little-" Richard began trying to be scary only to back away when his daughter shot him a sharp look.
"Well what do you expect? You picked her up like she was a bag of potatoes and scared her! Of course she would react!" Rachel scolded her father much to the staffs' amusement until Richard regained his composure and asked the butler for what had happened prior to the kidnapping. Irene listened attentively to the butlers' story as she held her hands behind her back.
"Did you get a look at the kidnappers face?" Irene asked with her head tilted to the side as Richard growled at her while the butler remarked that his eyesight was really poor.
"Oww!" Irene said rubbing the top of her head when Richard smacked her, causing Rachel to hit him on the head.
"What was that for?" Richard demanded turning to his daughter and rubbing his sore head.
"Why'd you hit Irene-chan? An adult should never hit a child! Come on Irene-chan. Let's get out of the way while tou-san works." Rachel said going from angry to gentle in a heartbeat while the man remarked about the ransom, causing the butler to be shocked. Irene furrowed her brow and idly did a few soccer tricks with a ball she had found as she thought through all she had learned.
"You're pretty good at soccer huh Irene-chan?" Rachel asked watching as Irene pulled off a few moves she had seen Jimmy do before.
"I dunno. Never played but Jimmy-nii showed me a few tricks." Irene said with a smile, it was true Irene never played but Jimmy had and since she was technically Irene she had never played but had learned from Jimmy. So busy thinking was she that she accidently head butted the ball at an angle and it went flying towards a bush. She ran to get it only to fall back when a large brown dog barked and jumped at her, causing everyone to start in alarm while Rachel ran for Irene.
"Irene don't mov-"Rachel was cut off by the sound of Irene laughing as the giant dog licked her cheek before she spun the ball around on one finger like a globetrotter.
"You're very lucky young lady. Jumbo doesn't usually take to strangers so quickly." The man said while Rachel knelt down to look over Irene but stopped when Jumbo growled at her and nuzzled Irene to his side.
"It's okay boy." Irene said patting the top of the dogs head and causing him to stop growling but watch in attentiveness as Rachel checked Irene over. Irene though had a sudden brainwave and smirked for just a second before hiding it, although Rachel caught it.
"He's too nice though. He doesn't bark at everyone like that does he?" Irene asked looking up at the businessman and his butler curiously.
"Oh yes if he doesn't know them. Jumbo's an excellent guard dog." The business man said while the same thought hit Richard and his confronted the butler that was trying to sneak away although Irene realized that something was off. It wasn't until the phone call from the other kidnapper that Irene pieced everything together, the girl was kidnapped TWICE. The first time by the butler, the second by a far more dangerous man. Her clues as to where she was being kept helped him narrow down where she was though as she looked at a map she had found.
"What's with the map Irene-chan?" Rachel asked noticing what the young girl was doing and causing Irene to grin slowly.
"Well the kidnapper can't have gone too far with a little girl along so that narrows down the schools." Irene pointed out causing Richard to voice his own agreement but Rachel was distracted at the moment.
"Irene what are you doing?!" Rachel demanded worried and alarmed when Irene suddenly hopped on Jumbo's back and they took off like a shot.
"Follow that dog!" Richard yelled causing Rachel to nod before taking off after the dog and its rider. It was ten minutes later when Irene got to the school and stopped the kidnapper from killing the girl.
"Sick him boy!" Irene ordered Jumbo who barked and tackled the man into a bin of volleyballs while Irene undid the tape on the girls mouth.
"Who are you?" The ten year old asked looking up at the eight year old curiously and thankfully.
"Irene Edogawa. I'm a detective." Irene said grinning and wondering if it was normal for her to adapt to her female body and name this quickly.
"A…detective?" The girl asked before a smack with a baseball bat sent Jumbo running off while the man loomed over them. After a minute of Irene mentally cursing her small and rather weak body she was hit in the stomach with a bat and thrown towards where the kidnapped girl was still tied up.
'Son of a bitch! That's it I'm asking Rachel for Karate lessons as a just in case option!' Irene thought as she sat up and glared at the man defiantly while holding her stomach in pain. What she didn't see was that Rachel entered the room just in time to see the criminal raise the bat over his head in order to bring it down on Irene's. Irene closed her eyes waiting for impact but opened them at the sound of the bat hitting something other than her.
"R-Rachel-san!" Irene said surprised as she saw the teenager holding off the metal bat with her forearm.
"You just sit tight Irene-chan. Let me take care of things from here." Rachel said looking over her shoulder and smiling warmly at Irene before turning back and glaring at the criminal. A series of rapid punches to his stomach sent the man to his knees while a flying kick to his head knocked him out.
"So how did you find us?" Irene asked standing up and wobbling over as Rachel undid the rope around the poor kid.
"I was following you and when I saw Jumbo come running out of here I knew." Rachel said turning and smiling at Irene again as Jumbo came bounding in and licked the poor kidnapped girl with Richard behind him hesitantly. A few minutes later and they were back at the compound with Irene being held by Rachel as the young girl was reunited with her father…and promptly explained that being kidnapped by the butler was all her idea because her father was so busy with work that he didn't pay any attention to her anymore. The butler was then punished by having to make arrangements for the man to spend a weeks' vacation in Australia with his daughter.
It was as they were leaving that the girl bounded over to Rachel and beamed up at Irene and Rachel both.
"Thanks for your help Ms. Fighter, Ms. Detective!" The girl chirped dumbfounding everyone before she ran back over to her daddy and butler.
"Ms. Fighter?" Irene asked amused while Rachel raised an eyebrow at her in return.
"Ms. Detective?" Rachel asked right back causing Irene to grin sheepishly while Richard muttered mutinously under his breath that the girl had thanked the two females but not him.
"So dad, about Irene. Dr. Agase asked if we minded letting her stay with us for a while?" Rachel asked as they were on the way home in the taxi, Irene being held on Rachels lap by the teen herself with the seatbelt strapped around them both. Richard thought about it for a moment, on one hand he would have to put up with another person, especially another female, around the house but on the other hand as soon as she came around he got a rich client.
"So can she, tou-san?" Rachel asked eyes bright with hope, she liked having the little girl around it was like having a baby sister or a smart daughter of her own. Richard suddenly reached over and began slapping Irene on the back, his mind made up.
"What are you kidding? As soon as she comes around I get a rich client and crack a tough case, it's like she's a good luck charm!" Richard began grinning.
"Damn right you can stay! Welcome to the family!" Richard finished before laughing again while Irene made a small cat like whine and rubbed her back. That hurt Damnitt! Rachel then took notice of the bruises on the smaller girl and her eyes widened as she mentally kicked herself. How had she not realized the girl was hurt sooner?!
"Ah Irene-chan you're injured! Taxi step on it! Don't worry Irene-chan I'll bandage you up and put some homemade bruise cream on your wounds as soon as we get home." The rest of the car ride and night was spent with Rachel fretting and fussing over Irene maternally. The next morning though Irene was mentally cursing everything under the sun.
She had to go through elementary school again! Damn those men in Black Coats!