Author's Notes:
This fic is meant to be canon-compliant up to approximately episode 1077 in the anime, or chapter 1061 in the manga. So there will be spoilers if you're not caught up to that point! (If you would like a refresher on any of the characters, you can find all the info you could ever want here.)
Note that I'm ignoring almost all the most recent canon updates on the BO, such as the entire mystery of Akai's dad, the shoji piece, the other Rum candidates, and how the officers from the different districts are involved. I don't have a great reason for this other than "the canon plot is getting quite complicated and confusing my poor little brain." I have Conan briefly explain everything they "know" at this point, but if there's anything that's still confusing, please ask!
Thank you for reading (and for your patience)!
Conan crawled under the folding table in the study, muttering to himself under his breath. Sure, it made sense for him, the smallest person on the team, to be given the task of squeezing behind furniture to plug in the projector, but he would've been significantly less grumpy about it had it been his own idea. Instead, he almost felt morally obligated to struggle as much as possible in attempting to reach the outlet, just to prove his dad wrong for once.
"Need help?" Kaito asked from somewhere behind him.
"I've almost got it, just— ah, there!" The cord finally connected with the outlet, causing the machine to whir in response. Conan carefully backed out of the tight corner, looked over his shoulder, then promptly jerked up, smacking his head against the table above him. He bent forward to rub his head and hide his face.
"Are you ok?!" Kaito hurried over to him, voice full of concern.
"Fine! I'm fine!" Conan was not fine! Why on earth was Kaito wearing one of his formal suits, and why did it look so damn good on him?!
"Are you sure? That looked like a nasty bump," Kaito said, kneeling beside him and gently rubbing his head, which absolutely did not help the situation.
"I'm fine! But why are you dressed up? You're not even arriving at the front door like the rest of the guests!"
"It was your mom's idea," he shrugged. "Besides, maybe I wanted to impress you~" he added with a flirtatious smirk. "Is it working?"
It really would've been nice if Conan had been able to deny it instantly, but unfortunately, the suit was rather distracting with how it accentuated Kaito's well-defined muscles. Traitorous clothing, it had always been slightly loose on him! So, naturally, Conan's mind blanked out and refused to provide him with a single respectable thing to say for an embarrassingly long time before he managed to huff out a lie. "…it looks better on me!"
"Such a bold claim," Kaito replied nonchalantly. "You'll have to hurry up and get back to normal so you can prove it~"
"Right," Conan drawled sarcastically. "Because the first thing I'm going to do when I get my body back is model my own clothes for you."
"Hmm." Kaito tapped his chin in mock thoughtfulness. "Well," he said, in such an innocent tone that Conan instantly felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. "If you'd prefer to not wear clothes in front of me—"
Conan made a horrified, strangled sound and lunged forward to cover Kaito's mouth with his hands, but Kaito just rocked back on his heels in a burst of joyous laughter. Conan turned his back to him, fumbled for the projector's remote, then desperately tried to look busy by flipping through some random slides.
What was he supposed to say to something like that? Sometimes he liked to give the magician a taste of his own medicine and tease him right back, but at other times it was just impossible to keep up with him. This seemed to fall into that latter category.
Before he could decide, the opportunity passed, as his mother came into the room with another tray of hors d'oeuvres to arrange in some stylish fashion on the increasingly elaborate snack table at the back of the room. Right as she left, Akai carried in a truly impressive number of folding chairs and began to place them in a semicircle around the projector.
Well, it was as good a distraction as any. Conan hurried over to help set up the chairs while diligently not looking at Kaito, who trailed after him as if attached by an invisible rope, bringing his aura of humor and cheer wherever Conan went.
—
Mary and Sera arrived about fifteen minutes before the meeting was scheduled to start. The two of them entered the study, Sera's cheek still pink from being pinched at the door (a necessary precaution to avoid Vermouth showing up uninvited), and walked straight up to Akai.
Conan noted with amusement that Sera had, in fact, opted for a suit while her mother wore a sleek, elegant dress that was very much at odds with her current appearance.
Witty remarks already prepared, Conan stepped toward them but caught himself short when he noticed Mary's steely gaze locked firmly on Akai. He suddenly realized that he didn't actually know if anyone had told her that her son was still alive. Either way, this felt like an important family moment for them, so he respectfully backed away to leave them some space. He retreated to sit on the folding table that held the projector at the front of the room, and Kaito followed to stand by the table next to him.
As the silence stretched unnaturally long, Conan became increasingly nervous that something might be wrong. He chanced a peek at the reunited mother and son, but they were still staring each other down as if in a shoot-out, while Sera waited nervously to the side.
"You're alive," Mary finally said, in a tone that sounded almost distasteful.
"So are you," Akai answered, unfazed.
"And you're still investigating those people, even though I directly told you not to."
"Yes," he agreed amicably. "And you're small."
Conan's eyes widened, and his fingers twitched toward his watch, ready to tranquilize one or both of them if it started to look like they might physically attack each other.
But Mary just scoffed in a dry, humorless way that must've been her version of a laugh. "As observant as ever, I see. I hope you at least have some progress to show for all your foolish risks."
"It's good to see you too," he smiled in answer, not even sarcastically but in a manner that suggested this was really just how they talked to each other. Then Akai turned to greet Sera, who was bubbling with enthusiasm and seemed to have endless questions for her big brother.
Conan turned to catch Kaito's gaze, and the two of them held a quick wordless conversation through various surprised, confused, and freaked out expressions that ended in helpless shrugs and maybe some muted laughter at the oddness of the situation.
Fortunately the strange atmosphere surrounding the little reunited family didn't last too long, as the rest of the FBI team — Jodie, Camel, and James — arrived and joined their conversation.
Yukiko finally finished preparing the last of the refreshments and decorations, and she took a seat near the back of the room.
Chikage came next. She paused in the doorway just long enough to shoot Conan a dirty look that made him want to hide under a rock, then walked up to Yukiko and greeted her like an old friend. The two women immediately fell into an animated conversation, and though he was too far away to hear what they were saying, Conan couldn't help but watch them out of the corner of his eye and try to read their lips.
"Hey!" Kaito hissed in his ear and tugged on Conan's sleeve. "What is he doing here?"
Conan's eyes flicked to the doorway to follow Kaito's gaze. "Who, Hakuba? He's been part of the team for a long time now. Didn't I tell you?"
Hakuba glanced over, smiled warmly, and stepped toward them, only to be stopped by Jodie for a friendly greeting in English.
"But," Kaito insisted in an urgent whisper, "what if he sees me?"
"Of course he's going to see you," Conan answered, confused and mildly irritated about being distracted from his spying. His mother and Chikage now seemed to be discussing something about contracts. This felt like something he really wanted to hear.
"But he'll find out that I'm KID!"
"He already knows."
"Yeah, technically, but he's never been able to prove it!"
"Prove it?" Conan echoed, incredulous. "He literally already knows. What 'proof' are you talking about? Besides, you have immunity now, remember? Why does this matter at all?"
"You're missing the point!" Kaito whispered. "He can't find out because…" He cut himself off and adopted an obviously strained smile as Hakuba finally bowed out of the other conversation and headed over to them.
"Kudou-kun, Kuroba-kun," he greeted them. "A pleasure, as always."
"Yeah, you too," Conan answered, as politely as he could while his attention was still divided between them and his mother. She had just said something that looked a lot like, 'not at all, he's just very stupid.' Conan frowned. He needed to know what they were saying.
But Kaito still hadn't answered Hakuba, and when Conan glanced at him, Kaito had the fakest Poker Face he'd ever seen, and he looked to Conan with eyes silently pleading for help. Conan really really wanted to go eavesdrop… but he couldn't. Not when Kaito needed him. So he mentally tore himself away from his covert investigation and smiled warmly at Hakuba.
"By the way, Hakuba," he said casually, "I never had a chance to thank you properly for all your help in getting that contract for Kaito. The connections you brought from MI6 really made a difference, and I know how much time you put into it and how many favors you had to call in."
Hakuba blinked and frowned slightly in confusion. "There's no need to thank me. It's only natural that I would help. We are all on the same side, are we not?"
Kaito held Conan's gaze for no more than a few seconds while the two of them communicated through a series of rapid-fire micro expressions. Kaito seemed to view this reconciliation as some sort of admission of defeat; Conan urged him not to be stubborn and tried to wordlessly offer his support. After a few more instantaneous exchanges, Kaito turned back to Hakuba with a much smaller and more genuine smile.
"No, we should thank you," Kaito said with a small sigh of resignation, and Conan beamed at him in pride. "You didn't have to help me without asking for anything in return like that. You could've held it over my head or used it against me in our petty rivalry, but you didn't."
"Of course not," Hakuba answered, confused. "That would have been irrational and counterproductive for our mutual goals. Not to mention, the so-called 'rivalry' is nothing but a front to avoid raising suspicions among our classmates. That is why you insulted me to prevent us from interacting at school these last few weeks, correct?"
Conan raised his eyebrows slightly at Kaito, fully prepared to nudge him if necessary, but it seemed Kaito already knew what to do. He offered Hakuba a pleasant smile and simply said, "Of course. I knew you'd figure it out, Hakuba."
Despite the British detective's apparent confidence in his statement, he still visibly relaxed at Kaito's confirmation, and his tone was ever so slightly less formal when he answered. "Good. I think it's much better if we're friends, Kuroba-kun."
"Call me Kaito," he corrected. "And yeah, I agree. I'm sure that would make Aoko happy too, huh?"
"Indeed," Hakuba answered. "Especially if the three of us do attend university together."
"Oh, so you finally decided to stay in Japan for school? Are you still thinking about Tokyo University?"
The conversation then took on the easy familiarity of old friends with common experiences and interests. But it was a conversation that Conan couldn't contribute to, given that he wasn't their classmate and still didn't know if or when he would get his old life back. So he slid down from the table and snuck away as subtly as he could. He'd done his part in averting disaster, and now the two of them were getting along well, as desired. His intervention had been a complete success, so there was no reason to feel so bitter about it. He should be happy about this. Easier said than done, apparently.
To get his mind away from the stupid, irrational jealousy of being left out of one conversation, Conan refocused on the other conversation that he was left out of. He slowly meandered toward his mother, trying to make it seem like he was heading toward the food. His stealth mission met an embarrassing end when both women abruptly stopped talking and turned to smile sweetly at him the instant he came into hearing range.
So they had been talking about him! Well, now that he'd been spotted, he had to play it off and at least greet them properly before this got any more awkward.
"Kuroba-san, it's good to see you again," he said respectfully.
"You too, Shinichi-kun," she replied, giving him such a professionally crafted smile that it actually looked genuine. If Conan didn't know for a fact that she hated his guts, he would've sworn she was actually pleased to see him. But the fact that he couldn't see a single crack in the façade sent shivers down his spine. It was downright creepy! Something was wrong here. What was she planning? Was he in danger? What had his mother been saying about him?!
He had to get to the bottom of this, as subtly and as quickly as possible. His mind immediately began racing, trying to find a smooth way to fish for information without them noticing.
"Shin-chan!" Yukiko bubbled. "What a coincidence, we were just talking about you! I was telling Chikage-chan all the embarrassing stories about how adorably dense and socially inept you are! Would you like to join us?"
Ah, so that's how a balloon feels when it's stabbed with a sharp object. Ouch. Way to take all the fun out of a mystery! Had she done that on purpose? Wait, no, this was his mother he was talking about: of course she'd done it on purpose. He resisted the urge to rub his temples or make a face at her.
"No thank you," he answered through his teeth while both women giggled at him. He started backing away slowly. "I'm going to… get a drink or something. See you."
The women laughed as he retreated, and he felt his cheeks heating up. At least this meant Chikage was probably just mocking him and not planning a gruesome murder, but still, he couldn't help but feel a little betrayed. Wasn't his mother supposed to be on his side?
Fortunately, like all other feels, this one could be successfully treated with coffee. But, since the coffee pot had been conspicuously placed at the far side of the table, Conan got a little stuck trying to find a way to reach it without accidentally knocking over any of the other displays in the way.
Someone walked up beside him, took the coffee pot, and began to prepare a cup exactly the way he would've.
Conan smiled up at Kaito, who gave him a cute pout in return. "You left me alone with Hakuba," he complained quietly.
"Sorry," Conan said, smiling broadly and accepting the offered cup of coffee. He wasn't even a little sorry. Actually, he felt rather smug, as if he'd just won some imaginary competition against Hakuba. Which didn't even make any sense, and certainly wasn't fair to Hakuba, who was his friend and had done nothing wrong. So Conan tried to push those thoughts out of his mind as he allowed Kaito to lead him back to their spot at the front of the room.
Takagi and Satou had arrived by now and joined in the small talk. Then the Professor and Haibara entered, one making a beeline to the snacks and the other taking a circuitous route to avoid interacting with anyone on her way to the chair nearest the projector and furthest from the rest of the group.
Conan met her eyes and gave her an encouraging smile, even as she crossed her arms and glared furiously at him. He knew it was just nerves. She was never comfortable around large groups of people and had been reluctant to attend this meeting, even after they'd secured all the necessary documents granting her amnesty for her time in the organization. It was a major victory that she'd come at all, despite her fear.
The last to arrive was Bourbon, accompanied by Yuusaku, who had been welcoming people at the door. Bourbon immediately started glaring daggers at Akai and looked like he would love nothing more than to pick a fight, so Yukiko skillfully gestured for everyone to take a seat while Conan stood up on the table to get the group's attention.
"Alright," Conan began, trying to make his too-young voice project across the room. "Now that we're all here, let's get started."