Nothing seemed out of place. Everything was normal.
They went camping, like they did every weekend. Professor Agase had accompanied them to their respective houses, like he always did. Mitsuhiko first, then Genta, lastly Ayumi.
They talked and joked and laughed like they always did, dropping the two boys off as they waved them off cheerily.
When it was Ayumi's turn to get out of the car, she jumped out happily like she always did, turned around and waved her friends with both of her small arms with a bright smile on her face, watching them returning the gesture and then drive away. Just like always.
But…
The little girl couldn't help but feel her smile slowly fall down into a confused expression, looking at the car slowly getting more distant from her.
Maybe it was the way Conan looked at her, smiling sad and sweet. The fact that Ai gave her a quick smile and turned away, facing the car's window, even though there's wasn't a nice scenery to look at. Professor Agase's bitter smile as he simply kept his hands on the steering wheel.
Or it could be only her imagination.
Did they do that when they dropped off Mitsuhiko and Genta too? She couldn't tell, because she was sitting with them and screaming and yelling happily that they would see each other tomorrow in school, and not to forget about their homework.
Ayumi went to held her chest, suddenly feeling a weird pull on her heart, still looking at the turn where the yellow car had disappeared mere seconds ago.
Nothing was out of place, and everything was normal. They went camping like always, and the Professor was bringing each of them off to their respective houses.
And yet.
Conan's sad, sweet smile was stuck on her mind.
It felt like…
A bitter ending.
Like they would never see each other again.
/
The day after, Conan and Ai didn't come to school.
The remaining members of the Detective Boys went to Agase's house, only to find it empty. They searched the usual place where he had the spare key, in case they left something at his place when he wasn't around – but it wasn't there.
And Ayumi couldn't help but think at the glassed boy's smile, the other girl that turned her head away from her, and at the almost apologetic look on the Professor.
/
They went to the Uncle's detective agency. But their concern and anxiety were only meet with confusion – that quickly turned into fear and worry.
They called the police. Even if they didn't find a clue, nor anything at all, the three kids kept hanging out with Takagi and Sato, but it wasn't the same anymore.
/
Friday came along, with no news.
As they exited from school, Genta's father offered to bring them camping out in the forest.
They refused.
/
More days passed. Weeks, even. Almost a month. Normal, boring life went on.
Then, six months went by. Time didn't pass that fast, on the contrary, the remaining members of the Detective Boys felt like each day was getting extremely longer and empty.
Genta and Mitsuhiko gave up in going every day to ring at Agase's house, Ayumi didn't.
The two boys suggested to only go there like, one or two times per week. The police did break in and search the house, after all, and didn't find anything weird, they insisted, worried for their small friend. But said friend wasn't a scared little girl anymore, she didn't need anyone to fuss and hover protectively on her.
So she kept going there every day.
Ring.
No answer.
Check the spare key.
Nothing.
Ring.
… No answer.
Repeat.
/
Another couple of months passed, and Ayumi was walking with her gaze low, lazily watching her feet.
She had stopped hoping to see the weird and old yellow car parked inside the gate, but couldn't help herself when her eyes still automatically darted up to see through the fence, still, somehow, hoping that –
Someone's at the door.
A man, dressed in black, giving her back to her.
Ayumi blinked, rubbed her eyes, and looked again.
Who's that?
She saw him crouch down, hands reaching out to something –
"Who are you?!" She all but screamed out, confused, angry, immediately sprinting to get inside, desperately trying to keep her eyes on the man through the fences, and bushes, but he moved in a blur, seemingly deaf at her pleads to just wait there!
But when she reached the front door, the man was nowhere in sight, no matter how frantically and quickly she whipped her head around, right, left, up and down.
Though, at her feet, lay a little package, with the spare key on it.
/
A whirring sound. A click, then, some buzzing noises.
"Oh, it's on! Shinichi!" Agase's voice echoed through the static.
"Wha- Just like that?" A boyish and childish voice answered him.
Then, the tape started, a couch slowly fading out into view through the static, some muffled voices were heard as the camera was moved and placed on a steadier surface. Soon enough, some brief and wet laughs echoed filled with white noise while the whole scenery took a much rather clear aspect, and that was –
Agase's house. The blue couch, the bookshelves behind it, all the random things just laying around. There's no mistaking it. That's the place the Detective Boys basically lived.
"So we're just improvising? I mean, not that I'm against it." The boy's voice became clearer and louder as he popped into view from the right side and went to climb and sit on the couch, bright red shoes coming into view.
The child sat comfortably and tugged on his glasses, easily taking them off, bright and blue eyes flickering towards the camera.
"Well, let's see…" He started as he let his gaze fall on his lap as he carefully turned around the glasses with his small hands.
"Ran, and Uncle Kogoro." A small and sheepish smile took over his face as he brought back his gaze to the camera, one hand going to rub the back of his head. "For what it's worth, I'm really sorry…?" He talked softly, smiling sadly and a little awkward, but still had a warm and soft look into his eyes.
Then, seemingly remembering something, he looks down at his lap at the glasses again, still smiling warmly.
"And Officer Takagi? If you happen to hear this too." He talked gently, seemingly amused by some kind of inside joke, as he went to hold up the glasses next to his face. His finger moved to press something on the edge of the glasses, and a little aerial popped out from it, and the kid smiled satisfied.
"My name is Shinichi Kudo." He paused, retracting the aerial and folding the glasses, placing them back onto his lap.
"Long story short, I was with Ran – remember our last totally-not-a-date to the amusement park? Well, eventually I stayed behind, followed some shady men in black and then-" He paused to gesture at himself, defeatedly. "This happened. And it's kind of Agase's fault if I ended up living with you and Uncle, with a name made-up on the spot."
The child snickered knowingly as he pinched the edge of his small nose, and two other small laughs followed from somewhere behind the camera. "Okey, that was awful, can we start again?"
"Maybe we should have really thought this through." Agase's voice spoke kindly as he walked into view too, the kid following him with his eyes while smiling amused, waiting for the old scientist to sit down next to him as they exchanged one of their usual smiles.
"I can assure you, it's all true." The old man spoke brining his full attention towards the camera. "Couldn't believe my eyes! And yes, I sent him to you, Ran-kun and Kogoro-kun, because I thought it was the best and fastest way to get some clues without being suspicious to cure, well… Shinichi's condition…" He spoke awkwardly, ruffling the little boy's hair which only made a face that screamed – ah, ah, very funny.
"Well, that too didn't turn out how we wanted to." The child intercepted, giving him a scolding look, made rather ineffective by the warm smile he had on his face.
"We didn't really have a clue on how to turn me back, well, until…" The kid trailed off, looking somewhere on the right side of the camera, a smile that was half exasperated, tired, amused and knowing.
"Until I came along, of course." A little girl's voice completed the phrase, covering the camera briefly as she walked out and went to sit on Agase's other side. She adjusted her hair behind her ears with her eyes closed, a rather smug smile adorned her. When her eyes opened again, they were cold and dangerous, but the other two looked at her fondly and exasperated.
"My real name is Shiho Miyano. I am almost twenty years old, and of course, I look like this because I was treated the same drug Edogawa-kun… Well, Kudo-kun was forced too." She had let her eyes fall back into her normal warmth the more as she spoke, giving said boy a smug look.
The young boy holds back a snort, as he added quickly. "Yeah, this must sound so confusing to you, whoever is watching this, but we're kind of out of time already."
What sounded like a bell door ring distracted them, making all three turned to the far right – where was the front door, in the other room.
"I'll go get them." The Professor quickly reassured, patting his legs as he stood up and cleared his throat. "To make it short, please listen carefully!" Agase said as he held one finger up, a thing he often does when he's explaining something. "There is a dangerous organization around, and that's the main reason we had to lie to all of you about Conan-kun and Ai-kun real identities."
"I'm the one responsible in the making of that drug, I was part of that very same organization." Shiho explained briefly, following the Professor's figure as he walked out of sight.
"And now we're working together to bring it down." Shinichi concluded, bringing his attention back to the front. "I hope you all understand why we couldn't risk getting you involved, more than you already are, just interacting with us."
"Please, forgive us." The shrunk scientist pleaded with her eyes, smiling warmly.
"There are so many people we should apologize and be thankful too. Some of them already know part of the story, like Heiji-niichan." Shinichi spoke with a bitter smile, pausing for a brief moment, because Shiho laughed a little and snickered while mocking. "Heh, niichan."
"It's a habit!"
"It's cute."
The two exchanged a brief look – one annoyed, the other quite amused – when again another sound distracted them. Or, well, to be specific, three children laughing somewhere.
Shinichi was the first to snap out of that, looking back at the camera once again while unconsciously gripping on his glasses.
"Ayumi-chan, Mitsuhiko, Genta." The boy stopped, closing his mouth, seemingly struggling to find other words to express himself, but still finding the strength to look straight ahead. "You're the best friends that I ever had. I would have loved to grow up with you."
"Even if you didn't know it, you made all of this the more bearable for us." Shiho talked, one hand on her heart, as she finally looked back too.
"Since we are older and all, I would like to leave you some piece of advice or something, but…" She trailed off, weirdly sounding unsurely.
The shrunk teenagers exchanged a look, and the boy conveyed the message, laughing a little.
"We know you'll be fine. You are the Detective Boys, after all. Just, promise you won't go and follow some suspicious men dressed in black in a dark alley or something. Don't be stupid like we were."
The tape ended abruptly, interrupting Shiho's laughter.