Disclaimer: I do not own Detective Conan/Case Closed.

A Case of Wishes

[Nature of Love series]

Part 2

"I didn't realize you were the Kudo Shinichi," the young man who had introduced himself as Yanagi Houji exclaimed, eyes wide in startled awe. "Maybe you really can help me."

"So can you tell us what's going on then?" Shinichi asked patiently.

He, Kaito and Yanagi were currently seated at a corner table in a bustling coffee shop not far from the place where they had met. They each had a cup of piping hot coffee before them.

Yanagi picked up his cup now but made no move to drink. Instead, he held the cup in both hands and just stared down at it, clearly lost in some fierce inner debate.

Knowing that pushing might very well be counterproductive, Shinichi and Kaito let him think.

"I'm going to get a brownie," said the magician, rising from his seat. "Want one?"

"All right."

Kaito returned a few minutes later to dump a pile of pastry bags on the table.

Shinichi gaped. "That is not two brownies."

Kaito laughed. "Well, they also had lemon bars. I thought you'd like one of those. The peanut butter crunch cookies and carrot bread looked good too, and so did the almond croissant. We don't have to eat them all now," he added. "Besides, if the expression on our new friend's face is anything to go by, I doubt he's been eating or sleeping properly. He could use a boost."

Shinichi had to concede the point. And the lemon bars truly were delicious.

When Yanagi finally did begin speaking, it was to ask a question. "Do you know of the Ogamachi Company?"

Shinichi frowned. The name did ring a bell.

"They deal in real estate, right?" he asked.

"They were a big deal some years back," Kaito recalled. "But I believe they've been on the decline."

"That's them," said Yanagi. "That house we were at was theirs. Minako is their only daughter."

He paused to take a gulp of lukewarm coffee before continuing.

"I met Minako in high school, and we became friends. She's an amazing musician! You should hear her sing. We were both in our school choir. We even started writing our own music together. We started dating when we started college. We were happy. We even made plans to get married after graduation, but…things didn't work out the way we planned."

He scowled down at his cup, clearly seeing something else. "When we went to see Minako's parents about getting married, they wouldn't hear of it. Her father flat out told me that I wasn't good enough to work for anyone from their family, let alone marry one of them. And it turned out they had already arranged for Minako to marry the heir to the Ruitori Foundation, Ruitori Taichi."

Kaito let out a low whistle. "That's big money right there."

"Yeah. I'm sure that affected their decision," Yanagi said bitterly before he sagged in his seat, anger shifting abruptly into melancholy. "I guess I'm not being entirely fair though. The truth is, Ruitori-san's a pretty decent guy. He and Minako have known each other since grade school. He's always been good to her. On top of that, he's an alpha, and she's an omega, so her parents must have felt it was an ideal match for everyone all around."

"And Minako-san?" Shinichi asked. "How does she feel about it?"

Yanagi hesitated. "She…told me Ruitori-san's always been like a brother to her. I know she was surprised by her parents' announcement. They arranged the whole thing without asking her. She went back to try and talk to them about it again three weeks ago, but she never came home. When I went to their house, they wouldn't let me in. Then I get this text message from Minako saying that she talked things over with her parents and she's decided that they're right and she should marry Ruitori-san. She said she knew I cared about her but that, since I'm a beta, we'd never be able to actually bond and there would always be something missing in our relationship, and so it was better for both of us to part now. And she wrote that she thought it would be easier for both of us not to see each other anymore and not to come by again."

"And you said this was all in a text," Shinichi said.

Yanagi nodded gloomily.

"And you believe it was really Minako-san who wrote the text?"

"Of course not," Yanagi snapped, indignant. "I'm not stupid. I thought for sure her parents must have taken her phone and sent the message—or forced her to send it herself. So I tried to go see her, but they kept telling me that she was out. So I kept watch on the place for a while, but I never saw her coming or going. They have to be keeping her locked up. I was going to break her out today, but you two got in the way." He glared at them with renewed ire. "Today was my last chance!"

"You wouldn't have made it even if we hadn't shown up," Kaito informed him. "You'd just have gotten yourself arrested, and then where would Minako-san be?"

Yanagi bristled.

"So let's see if we understand this," Shinichi cut in hastily. "You and Minako-san were planning to get married, but her parents said they had already arranged a match for her. When she went home to plead her case, she disappeared. You believe that her parents are holding her at home."

"I know they are," he said vehemently.

"To what purpose though?" the detective asked. "And you said today was your last chance. Why is that?"

"This," Yanagi said, fumbling his phone out of his pocket. A few minutes later, he turned the screen around to show them a very elegantly designed announcement of the upcoming wedding of Ruitori Taichi and Ogamachi Minako. It was to be a small affair to take place in a week. "That's when Minako's next cycle starts. I'll bet anything they're going to make sure she bonds to the mate they chose for her when it comes. Once they're bonded, that'll be that since bonds can't be broken."

"I thought you said this Ruitori fellow was a good guy," Kaito commented. "Have you considered talking to him about calling off the wedding?"

"I tried," said Yanagi. "I couldn't reach him either. I approached some of our mutual acquaintances, and apparently he went missing shortly after Minako did. I think maybe they're keeping him prisoner too."

Shinichi frowned thoughtfully. "You're making some serious accusations."

"Yeah. What you're describing sounds like something out of the dark ages," Kaito added. His tone was light, but his eyes were grim.

Such arranged bondings had once been tradition. Back in ancient times, many cultures had seen such bonds as a failsafe way to form alliances because a bond once formed could not be broken. And, back then, the scientific knowledge to create bond preventing medications had yet to be discovered. As such, most alpha and omega children born to more influential families had been given little to no choice in partners. Those who were lucky ended up with partners they could live with and, on occasion, even love. Those who were not typically died young due to long-term stress and depression. Some even went mad or took their own lives.

The practice of arranged bonds had persisted among the aristocracy and others obsessed with maintaining their bloodlines long after everyone else had declared it unconscionable. Nowadays, the practice was considered inhumane and uncivilized by just about everyone and was outright illegal in most countries.

Yanagi hung his head. "I know I might be jumping to conclusions. Maybe something else happened, or maybe Minako changed her mind and just hasn't been able to tell me yet. I don't know. It's just…" He trailed off, apparently at a loss. "It's hard not to think the worst," he muttered finally. His tone if not his words said quite clearly that he was just about ready to give up.

Shinichi watched him with a sympathetic frown. He could imagine how frustrated and helpless Yanagi must be feeling, and he agreed that the situation was troubling. It seemed a little premature, however, to assume the worst. And even if Yanagi's hypothesis was correct, there might still be time to rectify the situation.

"Yanagi-san," he said and waited until the beta met his gaze. "It's too early to give up. If you'll work with us, we can help you find out what happened to Minako-san."

Yanagi took a moment to collect himself, touched but still hesitant. "Thank you for the offer. It means a lot, but… Are you sure you want to help me? Minako's family aren't as influential as they used to be, but they're still well-connected. It might not be wise for you to get involved."

Kaito let out a bark of laughter. "If you think that'll slow us down, you don't know my Shin-chan."

-To Be Continued-