Check 21 - Those who will not risk cannot win.

The bowl of rice porridge Daisuke found placed in front of him was not amusing and the corners of his lips turned down. He knew Baymax had told him he should take it easy on eating until he was sure his stomach could handle it, but this was ridiculous. It had to be Suzue's doing. His only consolation was that he wasn't the only one who seemed to have the invalid food. Hiro also had a serving of it, though he wasn't sure if that was out of consolidation or because he also felt a bit unwell.

Not that Daisuke really felt unwell in the traditional sense. Having taken the mild pain medicine, his headache had subsided to something more than manageable, though his jaw throbbed a bit where he still sported a nice welt. Cass had insisted on applying a medicated bandage to it, giving him a somewhat garish look, but he supposed it couldn't be helped. At least they weren't fussing over him as much as they could be.

While waiting for their meal to be prepared, Daisuke had taken the opportunity to take a quick shower and change into his more usual everyday wear. He was grateful no one had insisted they follow him all the way into his room, though Baymax and Hiro did sort of trail them until he was safely behind the closed double doors. It wasn't like he was experiencing any type of dizziness or other issues that should give them concern.

Maybe that wasn't strictly true. The headache had been disorienting. And his muscles were on the stiff side, probably more a side effect of his workout the day before, especially since he hadn't had a proper cool down after the fact. But the shower had been nice. And he definitely felt more himself as he'd adjusted his cuff links on the way down to the dining room. He almost felt naked without them, and his earring, things he'd left off the day before in case of injury.

Suzue, Cass, and Katou all sat on the same side of the table, leaving Daisuke to sit next to Hiro. Their settings contained the more traditional Japanese offerings he was used to. Perhaps they'd put him and Hiro on the same side on purpose. But, then again, there was only so much room at the table without opening up a new leaf, which wasn't necessary. All the same… rice porridge.

Noticing his scowl, Hiro seemed to give a wink and a smirk. What was that about? But thinking about the teen reminded him of his dream of being in Hiro's lab. Was that just a dream? Or had he actually managed to connect with Hiro's mind? And if that were the case, did that mean everything he'd seen was true?

There had certainly been a sense of vulnerability in the experience, and yet an almost clinical one as well. Hiro had presented these memories as if he'd studied them in a lab, not experienced them. Perhaps it was a defense mechanism. Such events would make the most ordinary of people uneasy, breaking them beyond repair. And yet Hiro wasn't an ordinary teen. By his own admission, he wasn't even entirely human anymore. And if that were the case, just what was he?

"It's better when it's still warm," Hiro said, probably noticing Daisuke had yet to even taste the porridge. He'd already taken a few hearty spoonfuls. He'd added some salted salmon to his, though there were a few small dishes with other potential toppings available, including green onions, shredded nori, and umeboshi, or pickled plum.

Realizing he was right, and that the two ladies present were trying to take covert glances his way while still talking amongst themselves, Daisuke reached for the green onions. This was definitely not what he'd wanted, but he supposed he'd have to deal. The last time he'd made a fuss about the food had ended in his walking all over Tokyo before spending the night in Katou's tub. And while the chances of such happening again weren't high, they were never zero. Besides, he had to abide by the lock down just as much as anyone, if for no other reason than to set a good example.

Whoever had made the porridge had known what they were doing, not that it was difficult to make. At least he didn't think it was. But there had to be an art to it otherwise it might not taste as good as it did. He surprised himself by eating it, slowly, but consistently while his mind continued on various lines of thought.

The fact that all the sports drinks provided had been poisoned had to mean what he'd previously thought, that both he and Hiro were targeted. That meant the only ones not currently in the potential line of fire were Suzue and Katou. It also meant someone on property had to be involved, someone who had access to, or the ability to learn their intended plans in real time. With all that in mind, this had to be an inside job. Or, at the very least, whoever was involved had an inside man, or woman.

Daisuke set his spoon down; surprised he'd finished his helping. And, despite familial concerns, his stomach didn't seem inclined to reject it either. He sipped his tea. He'd have to request something more substantial later, guessing Hiro would probably want to join him there. Again, there was the question why the teen had opted, or had opted for him, the far simpler meal.

"I suppose we should discuss next steps," Katou spoke up, noting most were finished or close to finishing their meals. "Hoshino all but demanded we accept protective custody. He thinks there have been far too many incidents on the grounds for coincidence, and I tend to agree."

Suzue gave him a look but it didn't seem to deter the detective. "I have no problem helping with your continued investigation, but it might be time to take some more extreme precautions."

Fingers pressed together, elbows on the table, even though he knew it was considered rude, Daisuke looked steadily at his work partner. "And what would you suggest?"

That seemed to give Katou pause as he spluttered a bit, trying to come up with something. "I don't know, but we can't just sit here like fish in a barrel."

"If we limit our activities to the manor, that might help," Suzue spoke up, looking thoughtful. "Of course that might also put us in more danger if anyone involved is inside the house. I noticed Cass being a bit jumpy yesterday. And while it's understandable, maybe it's not just my imagination."

Now in the lime light, Cass seemed to freeze a bit before forcing herself to relax. "I did think I saw someone familiar," she admitted. "But not at the same time. It's hard to explain. It was kind of like seeing a ghost."

"A ghost?" Daisuke couldn't help but recall Katou's comments from the morning before, mostly wondering if Hiro hadn't been one, or inhabited by one. But the notion was intriguing. "Perhaps it was someone from the past, or someone who looks like them." There was one way to find out, though it did include bringing Cass either down to the control room, or using his watch projector again. He'd prefer it be somewhere they could monitor her reactions accurately though. "HEUSC, compile a list of all employees currently on the grounds. Include their pictures."

"Right away, sir."

Everyone but Hiro seemed to look at him in question. He still wasn't sure if he wanted to bring his aunt down to the brain center of operations though. Maybe it would be best, to keep it from whoever might be involved. It left a bad taste in his mouth, knowing someone might have slipped through the cracks when he'd run background checks on everyone after the incident with his grandmother. He'd have to have HEUSC and Suzue dig deeper to make sure they hadn't overlooked anything.

"Once you're finished eating, I'd like to show you something," Daisuke said, now looking directly at Cass, who had a chopstick's worth of food halfway to her mouth. "Perhaps we can figure out who this potential ghost of yours is."

Looking a bit hesitant, Cass stared for a moment, meeting his eyes with a gaze steadier than he'd have given her credit for earlier. "I'm fine with that. I'd prefer to think I'm not getting too jumpy because of all this business."

It would be understandable if that were all it was, but it was better to be safe than sorry. "I think everyone else should join us," Daisuke added, giving Katou and Suzue a meaningful look. It was hard to do the same with Hiro, since he was off to one side.

Hiro lightly touched Daisuke's elbow, drawing his attention. "Since we're both finished, could I have a word in the other room?"

More than a little intrigued, mostly because he wasn't sure what the teen wanted, Daisuke agreed. So, after excusing himself, Hiro doing the same, he followed the younger man out into the next room over, leaving the others to finish their meal.

…..

The moment the two were alone, Hiro double-checking that by reaching out for any trace of active auras in the room that weren't his or Daisuke's, he let out a sigh. Baymax didn't count, having followed them, but it never hurt to be thorough.

"I gather you wanted to discuss something away from the others," Daisuke prodded when the teen didn't immediately speak.

One of the staff walked past the room in question and Hiro motioned him closer, both now standing within a few feet of each other. "I wanted to ask you about Frantz Weinski."

Daisuke pulled back, straightening a bit as he leaned away, eyes widened. "Where did you hear that name?"

"From you." Hiro wasn't sure how to gauge the reaction. "Before I showed you some of my memories, I accidentally saw some of yours. Or, more accurately, the ones you were reliving during your delirium."

A scowl crossed Daisuke's face. "I wasn't delirious."

Hiro gave him a look, the kind you'd expect to see over the rim of a thick pair of glasses, telling him he didn't believe him. "Whatever you want to call it. I saw you and Katou on a cargo ship fighting this guy. And I know I heard Suzue's voice saying he was the personal bodyguard to a Thomas Matheson, some international arms dealer."

While the whole incident with the cargo ship wasn't entirely a secret, the identity of various individuals was. Frantz Weinski's name had gone on the report, the man now serving a sentence for his involvement. But someone had deleted the information connecting him to the arms dealer, someone Daisuke realized he'd overlooked while cleaning up loose ends. It was a mistake on his part, one he definitely needed to rectify.

"My grandmother hired him to act as a bodyguard and security for Hattori, who was masquerading as my father at the time," Daisuke stated. "They were transporting a shipment of Adollium to Poliador through Panama, disguised as other types of cargo. It is my understanding Thomas Matheson was the intended recipient, but he somehow slipped through the cracks."

This admission galled the man more than he cared to admit. Hiro saw it in his eyes and the clenching of his fists. "Fact or theory?"

Daisuke sighed. "At this point, it might not make much of a difference. The shipping manifest indicated the intended delivery to a shell corporation, which connected to another, and another. The police were still working on it last I heard."

Hiro puckered up his face in thought. "I guess HEUSC wasn't much help there then."

Sighing, Daisuke released the tension in his body, realizing it wasn't doing him any favors in the pain department. All things considered, he probably should have been worse off, but he chose not to dwell on that. "Suzue tried. Apparently, when Hattori was pretending to be my father, he had super user access and used it to delete all information connecting Thomas Matheson to the incident."

"So theory then," Hiro confirmed. It made sense, considering Weinski was the man's personal bodyguard. He doubted a man of Matheson's reputation, or status, would lend his bodyguard out like that if he wasn't somehow connected. Not even if a lot of money was offered. "But a credible one."

Daisuke's brows rose at that, lips pressing together. Credible in Hiro's eyes or not, now that he thought about it, there was the possibility the arms dealer might be involved in current events. And, in a way, since his digital footprint had almost been entirely erased, it did make him a ghost of sorts. But he somehow doubted Matheson had gotten onto the grounds. It was even less likely Cass knew what he looked like, or that she'd met him. The man hadn't come into the picture until a few years ago, as far as he knew.

"I somehow don't think it will be that easy," he admitted before realizing he hadn't voiced his theory aloud. "Finding who all is behind this."

The teen nodded, almost like he'd heard exactly what Daisuke had been thinking, an unnerving thought to be sure. "Probably not. Don't forget, I sensed two entities involved so it's safe to theorize there's at least a partner of some kind involved."

Another complication he didn't need reminding of, Daisuke sighed to himself. That headache was coming back.

Voices came from the direction of the dining room as Suzue, Cass, and Katou headed their way. "We can finish this discussion later," Daisuke decided. Now was not the time, not when he'd already told Cass he wanted her to look at a few things. Part of him wondered if the aunt had seen Hiro's home base for crime fighting and if it resembled anything like his.

…

When Cass stepped out of the elevator, she was not prepared. Not having been given much warning, other than that Daisuke was going to show her some pictures of the staff to see if she could identify whoever it was she thought she'd seen prior to their time in Japan, she had had no idea what to expect. A futuristic, high-tech room the size of a sports arena was not it.

She stared around in a mix of fascination and awe. "What in the world? How is this even possible?"

Behind her, Daisuke had a slight smirk on his face. Suzue and Katou weren't too far behind her, minus the self-gratified looks. And then came Hiro and Baymax, filling in after the others.

The massive screens flashed and changed as footage from various security cameras was shown from around the grounds. On the further, higher up monitors, various grids and other data either scrolled or played out in a pattern the proprietress couldn't understand.

Daisuke gently led Cass towards one of three chairs currently waiting in front of the main control area. There were two small tables between them, one looking more like a temporary item. "HEUSC, show me the compiled staff images."

On the monitor most central to their location, the others having moved around the nephew and aunt, the first of many photos appeared, along with a brief background for the individual pictured. Cass blinked up at the image as she sat in the offered chair. It almost felt like she was at a police lineup looking for some culprit. And, in a way, she supposed she was. Not that it meant the party was guilty of any crime, just that she might somehow recognize them.

"Record and analyze all reactions," Daisuke continued.

"As you wish, sir."

If the head of the Kambe house thought he'd get any kind of surprised reaction of her with the talking AI butler, he was disappointed. Having met JARVIS, this wasn't as surprising as it could have been. The room had certainly taken her by surprise, mostly due to the sheer volume of space it presented. And all underground, no less.

Without thinking, Daisuke placed both hands on the back of the chair Cass was using, noting Hiro taking up the chair on the right. Suzue took the one to the left, leaving Katou and Baymax to stand on either side. "Take your time," he said in a somewhat gentler tone than he'd used a moment before. All the pressure seemed to be making her jittery. "Just let us know if you recognize the person on the screen. If the answer is no, we'll move on to the next."

Cass willed her suddenly pounding heart to calm down. With the others standing, or sitting, all around her, she felt more than a little unnerved. She nodded, looking up at the man on the screen. She studied the shape of his features before shaking her head. "No."

Perhaps it was all an exercise in futility. One after the other, Cass rejected the different images presented her. A few she said she'd seen during their visit, but none elicited the response they were looking for.

Katou began to fidget as the parade of images continued. He'd had no idea there were so many people working on the Kambe estate. But it made sense. The place was immense, to say the least. He had no idea just how much money the upkeep alone must cost, but found the thought staggering.

"Wait," Cass spoke up, leaning forward in her chair. She scrutinized the image on the screen. "This one looks familiar." She tilted her head a bit as if trying to get a different angle. Her hands gripped the arm rests a bit tighter than was perhaps necessary, looking a bit confused. "But the wrong age."

Suzue fiddled with something on the control panel and the woman on the screen changed in appearance, becoming younger, now looking almost like a teen. "Like this?"

Cass stood, leaning against the panel, thinking. "No. That makes her too young now."

Both Suzue and Daisuke exchanged glances before Suzue aged up the photo, going from someone in their thirties to someone closer to fifty. "How about this?"

The result made Cass stiffen a bit. "The nose is a little different, and so is the hair color and mouth, but I know I've seen those eyes before."

"Please explain," Daisuke requested as he gave a nod to Suzue.

Cass described a mouth that was thinner, a nose that was smaller, and hair that was darker. Suzue made the adjustments, waiting for the verdict.

Watching from the side, Baymax studied Cass Hamada. "Your heart rate has accelerated significantly," he stated.

Before Daisuke could suggest Cass sit back down, the woman all but fell back in the chair, staring at the modified image on the screen. "That's her." She shivered, pulling her arms up to her chest.

Daisuke and Katou exchanged looks. This reaction was more than they'd anticipated. "HEUSC, display all known relations to the woman on the screen, as well as their affiliations and current information."

"As you wish, sir."

Several smaller images appeared on the screens next to the main one while Hiro turned to his aunt, placing one hand on her knee. He could feel her trembling down to her core, not entirely sure what the reason behind it was. "Aunt Cass?"

Cass closed her eyes, seeming to draw into herself. "I… don't remember. I know I know her, but I can't remember." Her breathing seemed to get faster.

Hiro nudged her. "Hey. Aunt Cass?"

"Aunt Cass appears to be experiencing a trauma response," Baymax reported, causing more than one head to turn his direction.

"To illicit such a reaction, something must have happened in the past that she's repressed," Daisuke mused. He looked directly at Hiro, expression difficult to read, eyes intense.

Hiro had, meanwhile, removed his hand from Cass's knee, looking a hint ill. "I hope you're not asking me what I think you are," he stated, voice a bit unsteady as he looked up at his older cousin.

To the one side, Suzue and Katou exchanged looks. "Asking you to do what?"

The overall atmosphere in the room seemed to have changed in an instant as Cass's arms tightened around her torso as if she feared flying apart. Hiro looked more than a little like he might want to throw up. And Daisuke, standing technically over the two of them, continued the same unreadable expression.

"Surely you don't mean Hiro should try and delve into her memories," Katou stated with a sense of horror. "This isn't some game! You remember what happened two nights ago. I don't care what kind of special abilities his trauma's given him. It's not worth it."

Looking more than a little confused, Suzue looked up at her older cousin. "Master Daisuke? What's he talking about?"

Daisuke didn't deviate his attention from watching Hiro, despite being directly addressed by another member of their party. "Hiro has the ability to slip into the mind of other people. It's what he did the night Cass passed out, inadvertently tapping into the memory she was reliving. He did it again yesterday morning in this room when we were going over security footage from before the fire."

The woman looked at Hiro like he might grow a third eye or a set of wings and five tails. "How is that even possible?"

"That's not important right now," Daisuke replied. "What is important is the fact that something about this woman on the screen has triggered a reaction in Aunt Cass that is causing her pain."

Almost as if hearing that had somehow activated something inside Hiro, the teen swallowed hard, a look of determination filling his face. "I've never used my ability so much at one time before," he warned. "But if you think that will help Aunt Cass—"

Carefully evaluating things in what was likely only a blink of an eye, Daisuke gave a curt nod. "I do."

While they could render Cass unconscious, sedating her with the same agent they'd used on the head of the house, it wouldn't solve the problem. Judging from everything that had happened, whatever this reaction was, it was caused by something Cass's inner psyche deemed so horrible it could tear her apart from the inside out.

Mouth feeling more than a little dry, Hiro closed his eyes, breathed in deeply, then exhaled before standing. "Okay."

"Master Daisuke!" Suzue protested.

But Daisuke put out his arm, indicating silence from all in the room. He could see that Hiro had weighed out the same information he had on hand and had come to the same conclusion.

Hiro ran one hand through his mess of hair. "It's okay," he said, now looking down at the floor. "I'd do anything for Aunt Cass. It'll be fine." He turned to look at the healthcare bot. "Baymax?"

The robot moved to position himself behind the teen as Hiro rotated Cass's chair to face away from the console. "I will monitor both of your vitals during the procedure," he promised.

Katou stared with clenched teeth. Having seen several instances of Hiro using his abilities, he wasn't sure he wanted to see any more, but he also knew Daisuke and the kid were right. And they did need answers, especially if they helped solve their current predicament. He just wished he knew if it somehow connected to it or not.

"Whenever you're ready," Daisuke said, a hint more compassion in his tone than was perhaps normal.

Hiro nodded. "Nothing to worry about," he said under his breath. This would hopefully be no different from the first time he'd deliberately asked the Doctor to help him connect with the Makt. He'd been just as nervous then as he was now. Okay, maybe he was more nervous now than he had been back then, but if he didn't think about that, he was less likely to throw up.

Reaching out a hesitant hand, the teen glanced once more behind him to make sure Baymax was there. The robot wasn't quite as close as he'd maybe like, but he did need a little distance to be able to accurately monitor them both. "Here goes nothing."

The moment Hiro touched Aunt Cass's face, he felt like he'd entered the Heart of the TARDIS all over again. His body arched backward a bit, every muscle tensed to its max, jaw jutting out as his lips parted in a scream he couldn't hold back. Then there was a bright flash of light and he felt himself being thrown backwards before everything shut down.