File Ninety: The Book of Revelations

This is getting nowhere.

Even if the target, the infamous Kaito KID, hadn't been there discussing ways to capture him, Kudo Shinichi could tell this wouldn't have worked either. How are we supposed to make out a counter-plan… He refrained from sighing, watching as Aoko sat back, finger against his chin, deep in thought. … if we don't know what KID's plan is?

In fact… Glancing at the magician, the urge of rolling his eyes was strong. I'm sure he doesn't have a clue of what he's doing most of the time.

Kaito noticed he was being stared at, but Shinichi couldn't care less about the annoyed glare he received. Can't just get up and leave, huh? He leaned against the counter of Blue Parrot's bar, and mentally lamented he didn't have to work on Sundays ─ at that time, he seriously considered bringing that to Jii another day. Well, guess I can't really complain…

Things are being rather peaceful for a change, huh?

They all stopped talking suddenly when a tingling sound broke through the room. It took a moment more than needed for the detective to realize that the phone was his but, when he did, he immediately retrieved it from his pocket. I have no choice… He grumbled to himself. I'll just have to tell whoever this is that I'm… busy...

That idea was thrown out the window when he read his little brother's name on the display. "Sorry!" The boy received an odd look when jumped out from his stool so suddenly that he almost knocked it over and darted to the bathroom. "Need to take this."

What could have happened? His mind began to run before he could even think of stopping it. Conan almost never calls, unless it's really important… By the time he closed the door behind him, he was already gasping slightly, winded for such a sudden sprint. It couldn't… Finally, he gave the phone a serious look before answering. It couldn't have been Them, right?

"Oniichan! Oniichan! Guess what?"

Out of all scenarios his mind had created against his will, this hadn't been one of them, for sure. So, instead of a proper answer that the child was most definitely waiting for, Shinichi could only blink stupidly at his reflection in the mirror, then slowly retire the phone away from his ear.

Odd ─ it was Conan's number.

"Are you still there?" He heard clearly, even if the device wasn't in his ear. "Hey… Hey."

"A-Ah, yeah..." Hurriedly he put the phone back in place, laughing nervously as he did so. "Of course I'm still here."

He heard a pout ─ he was certain. "So, uh..." Shinichi tried to act as if nothing had happened. "What am I supposed to 'guess'?"

"Where I'm going next week." It sounded like he was grinning ─ Shinichi couldn't help but wonder what could have happened. "So, there. Guess."

"How am I supposed to guess that?" Scratching the back of his head, the detective hummed in thought. "I don't know... Osaka?"

"... Seriously, that's your guess?"

"Give me a break. I'm good at deduction, not guessing." His head tilted while he thought really hard about it. "Kyoto?"

"It's not in Japan."

"Not in Japan? Hey, you aren't visiting Mom and Dad in America, are you?"

"Thank goodness, no."

"I give up."

"No fair! You didn't even try!"

"What's with you, being all this mysterious? Just say it already."

Then a laugh reached his ears, prompting his lips to curve into a rather tender smile on their own accord. I wonder when was the last time, he thought, leaning against the sink while he waited for his little brother to explain everything. When was the last time he sounded like this?

The kid proceeded to tell him a story, but his words came out rushed with excitement to the point that Shinichi couldn't really understand what was going on. But instead of letting him know, he continued on listening to his senseless ramble, the tip of his lips twitching in pure amusement ─ it was so rare yet endearing at the same time that he barely restrained the urge of chuckling right then and there.

"So this woman invited us to her home..." Shinichi's curiosity grew, attentively waiting for him to finally mention this place. "... in London!"

Smile dropping and eyes widening slightly, the detective stood there, frozen, "Say that again?" and blurted out without thinking.

"Are you deaf? I just said London!"

"Ah..." Slowly, the teenager recovered his composure. "Oh, I see. That's nice."

There was a brief silence in which Shinichi was certain Conan eyed the phone suspiciously. "What's with that reaction?" He was most likely raising his eyebrow right now. "Is there something wrong with London?"

"What could be wrong about that?" Shinichi aimed for a quick response. "I'm happy for you, Conan."

Judging by the period of silence that followed, the older detective deduced he hadn't sounded convincing enough. "Oh, I see..." It was soon broken by Conan's teasing tone. "You're just jealous you aren't coming along."

He was grateful his brother wasn't there, because he would have seen him flinching otherwise. "N-No." Not that his reply was any better. "Of course not. I'm not a little kid."

"Uh-uh."

"You don't sound convinced."

"Great to know you aren't hearing things that aren't there."

"Hey-"

"Either way, I need to hang up. I don't know when Diana-san will call to arrange our trip..."

"Conan, flying from Tokyo to London takes at least twelve hours. Expect her to call tomorrow, at least."

Conan hummed in response, as if he hadn't thought about that. "Oh, well… I'll need to hang up anyway..." Adding a snort, he continued. "Wouldn't want to make you cry, Oniichan."

"W-What's that supposed to mean?!"

"Later."

Really, he shouldn't have been that surprised when he heard he had disconnected the call before he could get a word out. That brat, he thought, eyebrow twitching while he stared at the phone in his hand. Did he just call to rub it on my face?

A knock on the door had him scrambling to put it back, but when the door finally opened, Shinichi felt himself sigh. "What the-?" he groaned at the magician making his way inside. "You scared me."

"Like you're the one to speak." Kaito raised his eyebrow. "You had this scary face when you left."

"Ah, sorry. False alarm." Shinichi shrugged, walking closer to the door. "It's unusual for Conan to call, so I worried a bit."

Kaito would argue that 'a bit' fell a little short, but let it slide for the time being. "So, why did he call?" He crossed his arms behind his head. "Did Tantei-kun's terrible luck bring another ugly case to him or something?"

"More on the contrary." Shinichi paused for a moment, not yet facing Kaito. "He won a trip to London."

"Ah, London? Quite fitting for a little mystery-geek like he is..." Kaito chuckled at his own statement. "He must be delighted right now."

"Definitely. You should have heard him," Shinichi said, laughing a little as he said so. "It was like actually talking with a little kid..."

"Two little kids chatting, huh?" The detective spun around, confused at the unexpected comment. "What's with that look? I'm just stating the facts here." Shinichi opened his mouth to speak, but then Kaito grinned sheepishly. "It came into my attention the moment I walked in that you were pouting."

"What?! I wasn't-"

"Just like a little kid that yearns, with all his might, another child's prized toy."

"... You need to get your eyes checked."

"I have a perfect vision. Thank you for the lovely concern, Meitantei."

The magician then proceeded to burst out laughing, leaving the detective to grumble to himself, scowling at him ─ he grinned widely instead. It all vanished into thin air, however, when he opened the door and got the scare of his life to see somebody standing right outside.

"H-Hakuba..." Once the initial fright was gone, he breathed out. "You almost gave me a heart attack there."

Well, they say you reap what you sow, thought Shinichi, none the amused, staring blankly at the other detective who, far from apologetic, was smirking. It was frustrating, he decided ─ determining what was going on in Hakuba's head was close to impossible.

"Aoko-san sent me to check on you. She was worried that you two have run into another murder," he replied with a sneer that none of the other boys particularly enjoyed. "And almost panicked when Akako-san suggested that you could be the victim, Hirai-kun."

Shinichi refrained from sighing. "Gratefully, that wasn't the case," he replied, walking past Hakuba to exit the bathroom.

"If I were to guess, though..." Hakuba continued regardless, following close. "I'd say that there isn't a lack of people desiring to kill you."

Shinichi flinched at that. H-How did he-?

"Relax, Hirai-kun." Hakuba's laughter succeeded in everything except helping him to relax. "I'm just joking."

"Ah, yeah?" He let out a strangled laugh. "You scared me there."

"Really? Forgive me for that."

All the while, Kaito could only grimace and force himself to walk as slow as humanly possible behind the two teenagers, that laughed amicably at each other ─ that was scary, he concluded, wondering if being downright terrifying was a feature intrinsically embed to the species known as 'detective'.

Expectedly Aoko was rather vocal when she expressed her disagreement with their long absence yet Kudo had smiled sheepishly, apologizing for worrying them ─ he used 'them', but both the magician and him knew he shouldn't have used plural for this. As per usual, she didn't find the point of arguing over it any further and let it slide ─ which, definitely, wouldn't have worked so well if it had been Kaito instead.

"Well, thanks to you two..." commented Akako, while looking through the window to see that the sun was setting already. "It has gotten rather late."

"Hey, we haven't been gone that long." Kaito huffed. "If there's anyone to blame, it would be the poor work of that shabby organizer over there."

"Who are you calling-?!"

"Anyway. KID hasn't sent a notice yet, has he?" Kudo intercepted them before another set of arguing would begin. "There's no need to hurry. Why don't we continue this next Sunday?"

"That would be nice..." spoke Hakuba. "But I'm afraid I won't be able to join you."

"What?!" Aoko whined. "Why not?"

"I'm going back to London next week." Kaito did not miss Kudo's head perking up. "That's rather unfortunate, isn't it?"

"Too bad." The magician shrugged. "Guess we'll have to leave you out of this."

"Kaito!" Aoko sounded angry ─ he was so used to it already that it barely affected him. "We can't just do that! Hakuba-kun is such an important member-"

"Then, that's settled. We'll just leave it for another day."

"Hey, Kaito!"

Hakuba's soft humming gathered the thief's attention once more ─ his arms were crossed in front of his chest and had a focused frown on his face, which honestly didn't settle well with him. "Oh, I know." Kaito's bad feeling only increased tenfold when the blonde detective looked up, finger raised, as if an idea had just struck him. "Why don't we all gather at my house?"

"What?!" Kaito and Aoko chorused, while Akako simply sipped in her coffee, a pleased smirk still plastered all over her face.

It didn't bother Hakuba ─ if anything, it only made his smirk grow.

"I see no problem in that," Akako nodded her head, turning to the other girl in the group ─ she was beaming. "And from what I can see, I assume that's the case with Nakamori-san."

She nodded in response, looking radiant as ever.

"What about you, boys?" Kaito held back a wince when her gaze fell on the two of them. "Do you have any objections?"

This couldn't be good, the magician decided with a frown. "Well, I'm glad you asked because we-"

"None at all."

"Yeah, yeah, exactly… Wait, what?"

Blinking twice, Kaito turned to stare, rather dumbly, at the disguised detective standing beside him. Hey. He was deadly serious, staring back at Hakuba with a determined frown on his face. Hey, hey… Did he really?

At that point, Kudo's eyes were twinkling so lightly that he would have missed it if he hadn't been looking for it ─ it made him want to smack his, or alternatively Kudo's, forehead hard enough to leave a mark… or two.

That idiot!

Being completely honest, Conan would've much preferred skipping the flight on itself, and he wasn't the only one, judging by the grimace shaking Kogoro's body when he took a brief glance towards the window. The kid would be lying if he said that he didn't feel a little uncomfortable when gazed at the pure white clouds for an amazing amount of two seconds before turning back his head to Ran, sitting in front of him ─ she smiled in sympathy in response.

Admittedly, he had gotten a little better after being forced to jump out a moving helicopter to a plane just over a month ago, yet he couldn't say he had completely overcome it. It doesn't matter. Despite it all, he felt himself grin when his gaze settled on the book in his lap. I can endure this.

London, though… I can't believe-

"I can't believe this." Conan's eyes instantly flickered to his side. "How in the world…?"

All of her other words abandoned her before she could say them and, honestly, Conan had to resist the urge of actually snorting at the unusual sight ─ cool and collected prodigy, Haibara Ai, staring wide eyed at the passport between her hands.

"When you first suggested that we come along, I didn't expect you to be serious." Agasa commented, his bewildered gaze roaming around the place. "Diana-san is very generous to pay for our trip as well… First class, too…"

"... This…" continued the girl, now louder, shoving the passport all over the startled boy's face. "This is illegal."

"Umm… My entire existence is illegal, so…"

He could understand the shock the girl was going through ─ seeing a fake name on a passport was definitely weird, but he had no other choice. Thanks to his parents, Kudo Conan was legally dead, so it would have been hard to take him out of the country otherwise. It made sense, the kid had reflected, that his passport had been fake all along.

Come to think of it, in all other flights he has been on in the past, it had been his mother or brother who had arranged things for him, so it wasn't that odd that he had never looked at it before.

"And it never crossed your mind, I don't know, maybe tell me about it?" began Ai, an accusatory glint taking over her gaze. "No matter how many contacts your parents have… You can't possibly arrange all this in a single week."

"Actually, Shinichi told me about it," interjected Ran ─ an action that Conan was quite grateful for. "He had been talking about this with his parents for a long time now..."

"Birth certificate, passport… Apparently, they had it solved before I could ever think of it." Conan rolled his eyes, slightly annoyed about the fact. "Well, all that he wanted was for you to live as an ordinary elementary school student, Haibara Ai-san, with no worries, so I suppose it wasn't all that bad, was it?"

Followed by that sentence, the kid quietly focused back on his book, a bright smile drawing itself on his face as he opened it. Ai said nothing, eyed it curiously to realize that it was The Sign of Four and couldn't help but shake her head ─ she had lost count of how many times he had seen him reading that old book.

Her gaze fell on the passport in her hands and gingerly opened it. The words 'Haibara Ai', written beside a photograph that she barely remembered ever taking, stood out in the middle of a page filled with other non-important information of her fake identity.

It was funny, though, how it didn't feel fake, to her anyway.

A yawn had her covering her mouth with one hand, and closing the passport with the other, privately wondering what had possessed her to agree to come here ─ right now, she could have been making progress in the experimental antidote she had been preparing, but no. She was there, stuck inside a plane beside a certain mystery maniac that was shaking with excitement in his seat.

I even had to leave Irene-chan with Tsuburaya-kun. Even if he had sworn that he would protect the cat 'with his life,' Ai couldn't help but be concerned about it.

He better do it, or else…

A shiver suddenly made Mitsuhiko drop the science book he had been reading. What's this? He didn't pick it up immediately, however. Instead, he brought his hands to his forearms, hugging himself tightly. It's nearly July, so why is it so chilly here?

It passed quickly and, before long, summer's merciless warmth came back again ─ which was so weird.

He shook that thought right away at the feeling of something jumping and landing on his lap. "Hi there, Irene-chan." Mitsuhiko smiled. "Are you hungry?"

The kitten meowed in response, prompting him to stand up. He needed to hurry, since Ayumi and Genta were going to arrive there soon ─ without Agasa's home as a meeting spot, he had offered his house to spend the day playing video games.

It's not as fun as going to London. He couldn't help the tinge of jealousy he felt over his two friends, yet he shrugged it off right away. Conan had invited the other three members of his detective club, but their parents had turned down the offer ─ the UK was too far away for them to be comfortable. But to think that this lady was willing to extend the invitation to us as well… Mitsuhiko wondered how much money she had.

It didn't matter. The Professor had already promised them they would do something fun together next weekend.

In the meantime… Crouching down next to the cat to pat her head. I'll take good care of Irene-chan.

I can't let Haibara-san down!

Raising her head, Ai glanced at the boy at her side. He didn't have to bring the Professor and me along. She watched his eyes flickering across the words on the pages. What is he intending?

Maybe she was thinking about it too hard, she decided, watching as his hand separated from the book ─ to flip a page, she assumed. Perhaps… A faint, almost unnoticeable smile tugged her lips upwards. This won't be so bad after all-

All her thoughts stopped short when she saw him raising a finger, then, in a swift movement, licking his fingertip, just barely. "Stop it right there." His head snapped towards her before he could turn the page, startled by her sudden call-out. "That's… gross."

"What?" He still didn't get it.

"Your germs!" She was genuinely disgusted by something. "You even lent me that book! I can't believe it..."

When he finally understood, an irritated sigh escaped his lips. "It's not such a big deal-"

"Do you know how many germs-?"

"Germs can also be transmitted by air, but I don't see you trying to hold your breath all day."

"But Ai-chan is right, Conan-kun," Ran spoke up before the little girl could respond. "You could get sick."

There was nothing he could possibly say about that so the boy, while avoiding the triumphant smirk Ai was definitely sending his way, had no other choice but turn back to his book, huffing as he did so ─ causing Ran and Agasa to chuckle at the scene, and Kogoro to raise an eyebrow.

But then there was a thud. A book had fallen onto the floor, so suddenly it took them a moment to realize it, but nobody went to pick it up.

"Conan-kun?" Instead, Ran asked worriedly as she, like everybody else, looked at the kid who had, completely out of the blue, stood on his seat, facing backwards, and, far from answering her, narrowed his eyes, carefully every single corner of the place.

Ai frowned at his odd behaviour. "Did you see something?" she asked, sinking further in her seat, as if it would magically make her disappear from plain sight. "Don't tell me…"

Blinking, the boy stared at her for a few seconds until he finally realized what she was talking about. "Ah, no. I don't mean that."

Ai gave her an odd look in return, which he ignored in favor of giving the back of the plane one last, suspicious gaze. "Nevermind." Shaking his head, he turned back to the group, offering them an apologetic smile. "Must be imagining things."

"Geez," sighed Kogoro, crossing his arms in front of his chest, rather annoyed by the whole thing. "Don't scare us like that."

With another quiet apology, Conan slid back into place, finally picking his precious book from the floor, and went back to read it. Before long, the adults simply shrugged it off and went back to their own business. Ai, though, couldn't just pretend that nothing had happened. Still as a doll, she continued to sit in place, shooting worried glances from time to time to the corridor, as if she expected something to jump on her if she let her guard down, even for a second.

"Sorry." The girl jumped slightly, eyes flickering towards the boy sitting beside her. "I didn't mean to worry you," he added, closing the book on his lap. "What I meant was something else entirely. I can't smell them, anyway, so..."

She wasn't amused. "Calling me a dog again?"

"Uh, no..." He laughed nervously, unconsciously inching away from her in fright. "Not that I could call you that. I might not be able to tell when they are close, but I could feel that other presence..." After that, the boy trailed into silence, allowing his fingers to reach for his chin. That annoying, unpleasant presence…

I must be mistaken. He shrugged it off, deciding not to give it more transcendence ─ he couldn't think of a single reason for a guy like that to be there.

He remained completely oblivious of the relieved sigh that could be heard just a few rows past the little boy's place. There, crouched behind the seat in front of his own, a teenage boy let his head fall. "That was close," he mumbled, wiping the cold sweat collected on his brow. "Tantei-kun is scarily sharp, for sure."

"No kidding…" The other boy wasn't all that much better. "Well, he is the KID Killer." His laugh was strained as he, realizing that trouble had, somehow, been averted, sat straighter. "I wouldn't be surprised if he ended up developing a 'KID sense' at this point."

"Don't joke like that." He definitely did not need that. "But to think that we would wind up in the same plane as Tantei-kun and the rest…" Huffing, he sat back in his place. "Guess Lady Luck isn't on my side today."

Probably, I'm the one to blame for that, lamented Shinichi, straining his head to take another look past the row of seats that separated him from the group. Everyone is there. He cringed. That kid… He even brought Ai-chan...

That would be troublesome at best.

Shaking his head, he let a heavy sigh escape his system. Leaning back onto his seat, he felt exhaustion creeping on him even if they had just taken off ─ at least the seat was comfortable, he supposed.

"I wonder what he's scheming..." At first, Kuroba didn't understand what he was talking about. "Paying us all a trip to London, first class." He watched the detective hum to himself, crossing his arms in front of his chest. "He didn't have any problem paying us another flight when I said something had come up either..."

Evidently, that had worked just fine for him ─ 'Hirai Arthur' didn't have a passport, and getting through customs as Kudo Shinichi would have been impossible with Aoko and the others around. Now that he calmly reflected about it, however, he couldn't help but find all that sudden kindness a little odd.

Annoyance took over Kuroba's features immediately. "You should've wondered about it before," he said while he leaned back, head cushioned with his arms. "Of all people, I thought you would know better than to make a deal with the devil."

"... It was London."

A grunt escaped him, and the phantom thief didn't even try to fight it. He's hopeless, he decided, hand pressed against his face. How will we survive this?

Peeking through his fingers, Kaito eyed the little boy sitting a few rows ahead, and just barely repressed the impulse to break the window and jump down.

I stand corrected ─ how will I survive this?

In Conan's mind, Ran's question about where he wanted to go first had been utterly unnecessary, yet he had given his answer, regardless. He was soon beyond delighted he had ─ as expected, the renowned Sherlock Holmes Museum surely lived up to his good fame.

"So cool~!" was all he could say, repeatedly, twirling around to make sure he didn't miss any detail of the place he had dreamed of visiting for so long. When his eyes fell on a certain armchair by the fireplace, he couldn't help himself ─ in a flash, he had run that way and excitedly asked the friendly worker dressed in black if he could sit there.

Thus, he was overjoyed when he was allowed to.

The moment Conan sat on that armchair, Ran decided that coming here had been totally worth it. She couldn't remember when was the last time she had witnessed that sparkling gaze that took into everything around him, or the bright grin that spread from side to side in his face ─ so infectious it was, at that, that she was already replicating it from just watching.

Seeing him so lively, especially after what he had gone through a few weeks prior, made her sigh in relief.

I bet Shinichi would be just as cheerful if he were here, that thought had crossed her mind before she could stop it.

That guy… He may have said that he didn't want any souvenirs, but I have a list of things to buy for him! She didn't know if the little boy there had noticed, but her father had caught her in the middle of her research, and warned her that, while this lady called Diana was going to pay their traveling expenses, souvenirs were definitely not covered.

Alright. Still smiling to herself, the girl fished out her phone from her pocket. Why don't I give him a surprise?

"Who would have thought..." Conan looked up when the female voice crossed his ears. "Even a place like this can be slightly attractive to the eye."

Ai was sitting on the armchair right in front of him, her inexpressive gaze looking everywhere but his form. "What do you mean a place like this?" His own expression dulled, eyebrow raising as she shrugged. "Too bad you don't seem to appreciate art."

"I appreciate it. I simply do not obsess over it," she answered right away, then ignored the dirty look she received. "But I have to admit ─ the famous Sherlock Holmes Museum really lives up to its reputation." She smiled slightly. "It must be a dream come true for every Holmes' enthusiast."

It was almost disturbing how easily Conan brightened up with that. "Right?"

"Which begs the question… Why am I here?" The boy flinched lightly at the unexpected question. "You never told me why you decided to invite the Professor and I."

He averted her gaze right away, which struck her as odd. "You never told me why you accepted either."

Ai hesitated for a second. "Just out of curiosity."

"For real?"

"Yes. Now that's out of the way-"

"Stupid Shinichi!" Both children jumped at the abrupt yell booming through the entire place. "Stupid, stupid, STUPID!"

Soon they were not the only ones staring, and when she realized it, Ran's angry shouting diluted into muttered apologies in English for making a scene. At first, Conan was confused as to what triggered such a response, until he spotted something in her hand ─ a phone, of course.

Hopping off the armchair, a sigh escaped him before telling his friend that he wouldn't take long. She didn't question it, probably knowing beforehand what was up ─ the phone in his hand, and the visually obvious annoyance painting his face, were a telltale of what was going through his mind.

"Geez, what did that idiot do this time?" the boy grumbled to himself, fumbling with his phone as he descended the stairs. Ran-neechan sounded mad. After quickly dialing his number, he waited for his older brother to pick up the phone ─ now he definitely would hear it from him...

Or not. His eyebrow twitched when he realized he didn't get an answer. That coward… He retired his phone from his ear to simply glare at it. He just doesn't want to pick up, doesn't he?

I swear, when I get a hold of him-

"You're lying to me!" that brought him off his murderous thoughts ─ it was obviously English. "I know Holmes is here! Let me see him!"

Curiosity prompted him to keep still in place, listening carefully to the conversation coming from outside. "I'm sorry." That voice belonged to a man, drastically older than the one from before. "But Mr. Holmes is out on an investigation."

"What kind of investigation?"

"Well, he is..."

"See? You're lying! Someone will be killed right away if we don't do something right away! And nobody can stop it but Holmes!"

At the unexpected mention of death, Conan completely forgot what he had walked out for and rushed down the last couple of stairs. "Oh, no! Look at the time!" Peering out to the street, he saw a blond boy about his age holding what seemed to be a lemonade ─ there was a bit of something white that he had most likely forgotten to wipe out from his face. "My sister's match is about to start!"

"Can I be of some help?" the security guard offered.

"Nevermind!" Conan blinked at the sudden Japanese reaching his ears. "Cheapskate!"

Before he could fully process that new fact, the blonde boy took off running, leaving the clueless security guard to stay behind, wondering what had just happened. It took barely a second for Conan to follow him.

"Hey!" He called, and the boy stopped, waiting for him. "You speak Japanese?"

"Y-Yeah," he replied, still a little apprehensive. "I've lived in Japan before."

"Could you tell me about that case you were talking about back there?"

The boy frowned, "Why would I tell someone like you anything?" and said, rudely and without a second thought.

Conan stopped short, words leaving his mind before he could try to put them together. He was… kind of right ─ why would he share such a thing with a Japanese kid he had just met? Conan would be reluctant himself, if he was honest. Though, he couldn't just up and leave there without getting a grasp about what was going on ─ he had said people would be killed, hadn't he?

What should I say? The impression he gave this boy would be crucial to get the information needed… Oh, he was staring at him oddly ─ had he been quiet for too long?

"T-That's because…" He took a deep breath, hoping that it would set his thoughts back in order. "I'm… Uh…"

The boy was waiting for his answer. Conan gave him a last, scrutinizing look before forcing a hopefully convincing smirk.

"I'm Holmes' apprentice, Glass-kun."

Apparently he had succeeded ─ in creeping the kid in front of him out, that was. "H-How do you know my name?"

"An elementary deduction." Conan pointed at the corner of his own mouth, causing Glass to wipe his face. He was surprised to see there was something white on it. "That's the cream and sugar you put over strawberries, correct? Besides, the container you're holding…" He shifted his attention to the object in question. "Limes, cucumbers and mint ─ you'd think it would be Pimm's, right? But since you aren't old enough, I suppose they just gave you regular lemonade instead of liquor."

Glass simply stared back, dumbfounded.

"A sport where you can routinely get strawberries and Pimm's while watching has to be tennis at Wimbledon." The widening of his eyes told Conan he was on the right track. "Considering the date and time, your sister must be participating in the second match. You don't look Asian, therefore Wang Hai-li, whose parents are Chinese, is not her. Thus her opponent, the one dominating Wimbledon for four consecutive years, ranked number one in the world and nicknamed the Grass Court Queen…" The bespectacled detective felt his smirk widening. "Minerva Glass must be your sister."

Besides the Wimbledon VIP lounge badge inside his shirt pocket, yet that made it all the less interesting, he figured. So he kept it quiet, a smirk firmly in place, waiting for a reaction.

Which never came. The blonde boy was staring so intensely now that caused him to take a step back by reflex. Did I say too much? he thought, fearing that he had just freaked him out ─ Conan wouldn't be surprised if he did, honestly.

An adult was easy to deal with. Just a carefully placed smile then, an innocent blink there, and he would get the information he needed. But children of his age were infinitely more complex.

Usually, he would let Ayumi and the others deal with these kinds of things… Yet, he was on his own right now. What should I do?

"A-Amazing!" He blinked ─ rather stupidly, Conan was certain ─ when he saw Glass beaming at him. "You really are Holmes' apprentice, aren't you?"

In return Conan laughed clumsily, then proceeded to ask about the entire story. Glass told him about a strange man, whose face had been obscured by a hat, who said that someone was about to be murdered in London, right before his eyes, and gave him a weird paper.

"He then said 'Tell Scotland Yard it's my Book of Revelations'." The blonde boy said, passing him the note in question. "And that 'if it doesn't make sense, go to Holmes'..."

Conan actually feared he had been bluffing too much when he introduced himself as Holmes' apprentice, since he didn't get a thing of the code, obviously written in English, he had been passed:

"I was awakened by the loud sound of a rolling bell.

I'm a long-nosed wizard in a castle.

My morsel is a boiling egg that's gone cold like a corpse.

I'll finish my meal by gnawing on a whole pickle.

Now I remember, I should order a celebratory cake in advance.

The sound of the bell rings again and stirs up my hatred.

It tells me to finish everything by piercing the white-coloured back with two swords."

Squinting his eyes, Conan raised the paper closer to his eyes, and a low groan eluded him. He definitely didn't have a clue of how such a creepy little poem related to a murder in London ─ it was a big city. How in the world was he supposed to…?

"Oh, there you are." His gaze rose to meet a man running up to the two of them. "Don't go running off by yourself! I've been looking for you."

Conan stared at the man for a second before turning to Glass. "Who is that?" he questioned, pointing at the person in question.

"My sister's former coach, Ares. I heard he used to be a really strong tennis player," he explained right away. "My mum is on good terms with him and how he helps us with all kinds of things ─ my sister is busy with her tours, and our mum's eyes are bad."

"Oh," replied the boy with a nod. That's a lot of information, for sure.

"Come on, Apollo." Ares grasped the boy's arm, leaving Conan to secretly wonder if there was a trend of taking names straight from mythology books ─ but then remembered that he shouldn't be the one to talk. "Let's get back! She's about to play!"

Apollo hesitated, sending one last look at the Japanese kid that stood there stiffly.

"Just go ahead. I'll take this to the police." Nevertheless, Conan forced a smile. "If he told you to take such a baffling letter to the police, it means he's allowing some time to figure it out ─ nothing is going to happen right away."

He seemed to relax with that. "I'll give you my mobile number. Let me know if you figure anything out." Conan nodded and watched him gather his phone from his pocket. "My name is Apollo Glass, and you?"

"Edogawa Conan."

"Conan?" Apollo grinned. "Sure is a name suitable for an apprentice of Holmes!"

He wasn't all that sure how to reply, so he just contented himself to wave at the duo after giving him his contact information, promising once again that yes, he was going to call as soon as he knew something. Shortly after that, he was left alone again, with a letter in English that made as much sense to him as an entire novel written in Ancient Greek.

"An apprentice of Holmes, eh?"

He jumped out of his skin ─ probably he wasn't all that alone, after all, he realized when, upon spinning around, he found Haibara Ai's ever unemotional gaze piercing right through him.

"A-Ah, no…" Conan let out a stiff laugh

"Conan-kun?" Behind her was Ran, followed by the rest of the group. "Who were those people?"

Agasa looked concerned. "Was there some sort of trouble?"

Kogoro, on the other hand, was definitely annoyed. "Don't tell me you're getting into trouble even when we're overseas…"

"Well, actually…"

They didn't understand the nervous grin he gave them then, or why he was telling them they should get to the police so suddenly. Despite this, Ran quickly called a taxi, and they departed to their next destination. Once there, he took his time, and explained that weird encounter with Apollo Glass, leaving not a single detail out.

Obviously, they were all gaping by the time he finished his story, except Ai, of course, who simply reached out and silently snapped a photo of the letter with her phone ─ Conan privately wondered why something so crucial and elementary hadn't crossed his mind before.

When he arrived at the place in question, it was Conan's time to get shocked. There, inside the police station, were tons of children with the same note. The story he had heard from Apollo proved to be true for everyone else ─a dark-skinned man with dreadlocks and a hat had given them that note ─ on the street, in parks, it didn't matter where; he had whispered the same thing in their ears...

A person was about to be murdered in London soon.

"Hey, hey..." Kogoro was terrified at the implications of it. "If that man had said the same thing to other children..."

"Someone is going to die in front of each child's eyes." Conan nodded, slowly. "In order words, it means a large number of people might be killed at once."

Ai crossed her arms in front of her chest. "Mass murder, most likely."

Ran and Agasa were understandably horrified at that, looking eye-widened at the two children calmly drawing conclusions about it. "Which means..." Kogoro continued to think. "He plans to carry it out in some place where many people gather."

"At this time of the year…" Agasa added. "Tennis at Wimbledon would be suspicious."

"I see!" Ran exclaimed suddenly. "Since everyone's watching the match on TV-"

Ai shook her head before she could finish. "A fair number of the kids were wearing racing-style bike helmets," she explained. "They said they were glued to the TV every day, watching the Tour de France." Kogoro opened his mouth to speak, but the girl cut him off quickly. "A bike race held in France, which broadcasting matches air concurrently with Wimbledon's." She gave the detective a side look. "But, surely, you were aware of that, weren't you?"

"O-Obviously. Who do you take me for?"

The girl's eyebrow raised, and that was enough for the older detective to avert his gaze. "Anyway," she said, placing her hands on her hips. "First, we should focus on checking out places where people might gather." Followed by that, she turned to face her friend, who had gone strangely silent for a while. "Isn't that right?"

Yet when she did, she paused. At first, she had expected him to be deeply in thought, finger scratching his chin as he let his mind run for every possibility, but she saw none of that. Instead, a look of utter shock had taken over completely, eyes big as two plates staring at something behind Ran.

Confused, she was about to look as well, until he seemed to wake up from whatever stupor he had been immersed in.

"Yeah, you do that!" Without warning he took off, dragging a poor, clueless Professor Agasa with him. "Meanwhile, I'm going to try and crack the code with the Professor!"

Of course, Agasa had protested, but helped little with his case. "W-Wait!" In fact, Ran's startled shout had made more difference, even if it was to make the child glance over his shoulder. "We'll be eating dinner at the hotel with Diana-san tonight!"

"Yeah!" Conan did not stop, though. "We'll be back before then!"

Just like that, the pair was gone, leaving the other three alone to stare back, trying in vain to find an explanation for such a weird behavior. It was the little girl, whoever, the one to give up first ─ with a shrug, she turned around, figuring they would get an explanation later.

It wasn't until they went around the corner that the kid finally let go, leaving the Professor to get back the air that his lungs weren't getting after such a sudden sprint. "H-Hey..." he began, but the boy didn't even glance at him, just continued to look ahead. "We could've gone and investigated with the others while trying to solve the code, you know..."

"First of all, we have no idea when, where, or what's going to happen ─ it's wiser to split up and gather information." Well, he was right, Agasa realized with a thoughtful hum. "Besides..." His eyes narrowed. "There's someone following us."

The professor couldn't help the violent jump his body gave then, and just barely avoided running into the boy who had, all of a sudden, halted into a stop.

"They say curiosity killed the cat," he said, eyebrow twitching unnaturally. "But instead of an innocent cat, there's a third-class stalker that calls himself a 'detective'. Wonder if the result is still the same..." Swiftly he spun around, and the professor did the same. "Do you want to find it out..." The kid's bored eyes fell immediately on a teenager that winced, looking distinctively terrified about something. "... Arthur-niichan?"

A nervous smile had drawn itself in Arthur's face, Agasa observed. "Y-Yo, Conan," he muttered, too, raising a hand to the boy, who slowly but surely approached him. "It's such a surprise to see you here-"

"Don't give me that nonsense!" When the boy was close, the teen took another step back. "What were you doing, hiding like that? How old do you think you are?"

"Uh..."

"Wait, you don't need to answer. You just were scared of Ran-neechan." The teen flinched again. "She was mad ─ what did you do this time?"

"Hey, what makes you think I did something?"

"Experience." Conan gave him a blank look in return. "That, and that you were afraid to pick up the phone even when I called."

The teenager seemed to be left out of words at that statement.

"Conan?" Luckily for him, the Professor spoke up, relieving him from thinking of a suitable response. Both of them turned to the old man, in perfect synchrony, to note the puzzlement bringing his eyebrows together. "Do you know this person?"

He stared at him for a moment more than needed. "Oh, I don't know..." the little boy then said, arms crossed behind his head. "Do you?"

"Eh?" Agasa blinked.

"Long time no see," the teenage boy, confusing the professor even further. "Professor Agasa."

And then, the two flashed him with a smile. The identical cheeky grins that met his eyes made Agasa's eyes widen, dramatically.

"S-Shinichi?!"

"Shh! Keep it down!"

A/N:

CherryGirl 21-6: Yeah I've actually started reading a bit ago and so far it has been so great! I haven't gotten that much time, but I'm definitely going to continue it later.

F.C. Meyer: Well about the first thing, yeah, that's exactly it. All characters are one or two years older than they were at the beginning. For the second thing, unfortunately that's not the case. In fact, I'll be going through exams at that point :( Finally, about the movies, I'm planning to cover The Darkest Nightmare after The Raven Chaser, and I'm tempted to add Zero the Enforcer, but I'm not that sure about that. I might change my mind along the way, but that's what I'm thinking about right now.