#HeizuhaWeek2022

[coneedogawa]

Miss You

Another Heizuha fic for @heizuhaevents's Heizuha Week 2023. The prompts for this one were Sports, Club Activity, and Being Separated. I know it's technically late but I still plan to do all the days, whether or not they are on time. : ) Without further ado, I hope y'all enjoy the fic.

The only sound Kazuha could hear was the snores of the karuta club. Their teacher chaperone dictated that now would be the time that everyone would sleep, yet Kazuha couldn’t seem to keep her eyes shut. Mikiko was lying next to her, long asleep. She didn’t know any of the other girls well either, and they were all asleep too. There was no one to talk to and nothing to do, except maybe stare at the ceiling.

Kazuha snuck her phone under the cover of her sleeping bag. The screen lit up dimly as she scrolled through her contacts, coming across a certain name. She wouldn’t see him for another 3 days, which unnerved her. Part of her worried that he’d find himself in a dangerous case again. The other part just missed him.

Having grown up together, it was pretty weird to have no contact for this long. Usually, when they’re apart, she always at least convinces him to message her to remind her that he’s safe whenever he goes somewhere without her, much to his annoyance. This time though, there’s not really a reason for her to even send him a message or vice versa.

Kazuha sighed, turning her phone screen back off before sliding out of the sleeping bag. She crawled over all of the others, trying to be as quiet as possible. Reaching the door, she stood up and walked softly down the hallway until she reached the main door, exiting onto the porch.

Technically, she wasn’t allowed outside during the night. Right now, however, she couldn’t care about the rule. Pulling her phone back out, she selected his contact and her thumb hovered over the call button.

He probably wouldn’t even answer to begin with, or he would answer, but just to yell at her for waking him up. It was 2 in the morning, after all. But she really wanted to hear his voice.

‘Hopefully it’ll go to voicemail.’

Before she could fully press the call button on the screen, an incoming call popped up. Her eyes widened as she read the name of who was calling her. Pressing ‘accept’, she put the phone up to her ear.

“Heiji?”

“Hey.”

His voice sounded drained and rough.

“H-hey…” She responded softly.

“Sorry, did I wake ya?”

She shook her head as if he were there to see it. “No, I actually haven’t been able ta get ta sleep yet.”

“Me neither.”

They sat in silence for a moment. Adjusting the phone in her hand, Kazuha lowered herself to sit on the edge of the porch. She raised her head to look up at the bright stars in the sky.

Taking a deep breath, she spoke, “So… Why’d ya call?”

There was more silence for a moment before he answered.

“I miss ya.”

Her breath hitched in her throat. “W-what?” She stammered.

“It’s just weird not havin’ ya around ta nag me an’ all that.”

Even despite the insult, his voice remained lacking its usual energy. Still, her eyes narrowed at the slight and she tried to respond in her typical fashion.

“Hmph! Well, I haven’t missed ya one bit! Been havin’ a great time with Mikiko an’ the others.”

“Really?”

His voice remained weak, though now it was tinged with something akin to hurt. It made her feel a little guilty for being, even jokingly, mean, even though he was the one who had started it.

So, she decided to be honest. “No…Actually, I miss ya too.”

“Miss me yellin’ at ya?” He teased.

She chuckled. “Yeah, totally.”

A laugh echoed back on the speaker. “Is everything going good there?”

“Yeah, it’s pretty fun. A little tiring though, the poem tapes are starting to haunt my dreams.” She joked. “How has it been back home, though?”

“It's been okay.” He let out a long sigh. “I’ve just been solvin’ cases. Ya know the usual.”

“Ya haven’t been gettin’ into danger, have ya?”

“Nah. But they have been pretty exhaustin’.” Heiji yawned, as if to emphasize the point. “We should hang when ya get back. It would be nice to have a day to relax. Just the two of us.”

She blushed, feeling her heart skip a beat. “Y-yeah. We should.” Her eyes started drooping as she yawned, the stars blurring in her vision.

He chuckled. “Maybe it’s time we get some sleep.”

“Yeah, maybe.”

Looking up at the sky, she smiled and yawned again.

“Goodnight, idiot.”

“Goodnight, Kazuha.” As she ended the call, she could tell his voice sounded more relaxed now and could almost hear the smile on his face.

[heizuhaevents]

HeiZuha-Week 2022

August 8th until August 14th!

This year the first HeiZuha-Week will take place in August! The date is chosen because August 10th happen to be Hattori-Day (^_^)

You like the couple Kazuha and Heiji? Then you're at the right place!

The theme for this first Event happening is

First Times

And here are the daily themes:

8/8 : First Meeting/Childhood Memory

8/9 : First Case Experience

8/10 : First Trip/Schooltrip

8/11 : First Day (as a couple? as friends?)

8/12 : First Love

8/13 : First Date/Kiss

8/14 : First Anniversary

It’s free for your interpretation but you can send an ask if you need some inspirational hints (^_^)

I hope for a lot of enjoyable creations!

More Infos below the cut!

Some Guidelines

Use tag #HeiZuhaWeek2022 and/or #HeiZuhaWeek and tag this blog by using @heizuhaevents so I can find your entry(s)!

You don't need to participate daily, just choose the topics you like or only use the overall theme to create a piece!

You're free to choose what you want to create! All kind of fanwork is appreciated, open to all creators of all skills! (^_^)

Follow this blog to not miss any of the creations or infos and updates on the event!

Spread the Word! (e.g. by reblogging this post) So we can gather a lot of participants to make this event a great experience! (^o^)/)

Have fun!

I'll reblog on this blog all creations, though my birthday is on August 14th and I might be a little slow on that day. (^_~)

(I'll reblog this announcement over the next weeks again as a reminder, but wanted to give enough time for everyone who's short on it!)

[elfchensdcartblog]

HeiZuhaWeek 2022 - Day 7: First Anniversary @heizuhaevents

(Happy Birthday to me 🥳 What a (real!) coincidence the week ends with this prompt! I hope everyone had fun and I would love to see them and also more people joining in maybe next year when the HeiZuhaWeek reappears!

Now have fun with my last piece for this week!)

„And then there was the story of-“ Heiji began another monologue.

„Shhhhhh… He fell asleep!“ Kazuha interrupted and looked with a soft smile at her son sleeping on her chest.

„But I had some really great stories left…“ Heiji had lowered his voice to avoid waking the baby.

„You’re never running low on stories,“ Kazuha teased, trying to avoid a chuckle. She looked at the photos which Heiji spread on their coffee table. Their son was to small to be able to look at them but mister detective needed his evidence for his stories.

„I’ve an exciting life!“ Kazuha chuckled again at his words.

She lovingly caressed the head of her baby boy. „One day he’ll be able to recognize and cherish all of yer stories.“

Heiji let out a sigh. „Okay then… I’ll bring him to bed. We wanted to have some time for us on our first wedding day, am I right?“ But Kazuha didn’t move an inch. Her husband raised an eyebrow.

„Look how peaceful he sleeps…“, she whispered totally in love. Heiji rolled with his eyes and leaned back with a smile.

„Okay…“ He took the remote. „But then I’ll choose our tv program for today!“

Kazuha took a deep breath but let her body sink deeper into Heijis embrace. „But nothing too scary - Hei-Chan might wake up and would be traumatized.“

Her husband chuckled. „Yeah, sure…“

[heizuha-queen]

First Love and Kiss

Heiji and Kazuha sat on the roof of his house as they were looking at the full moon and listening to the dancing tree leaves. Usually Heiji wasn’t the type of person to be interested in doing something like that, but Kazuha really wanted to do it. She had this weird obsession with the moon and the night sky. 

“Heiji?” Kazuha asked, “Who’s yer first love?” 

Heiji choked on his spit and started coughing. What’s with this random question that came out of nowhere. He looked at her with questioning wide eyes and said, “What on earth made ya think about that now?” 

Kazuha looked at him with sad eyes, “Is it the Geisha in Kyoto? I know it’s her, but I just want to know if you’re still in love with her.”

“Wha-”

“I saw on multiple internet posts that men never get over their love and just settle for any girl after that. Ya always went after her, looked for her, for years and years so I’m sure you’ll never forget her, but do you still love her? Tell me honestly.” Kazuha eyes were filled with tears as she said that, her heartbreak so clear and painful to see. 

Heiji felt a pang of pain in his heart. God he hated seeing her in pain, he hated seeing her in pain like this. 

He wasn’t thinking at this point. It was all instinct, instinct to make her feel better. To see her bright beautiful smile that shined like the full moon above them. 

Heiji grabbed Kazuha’s shoulders and made her face him as he passionately said, “I am still in love with my first love.” Kazuha flinched and closed her eyes, “I love the girl that I saw bounce her ball in front of the temple waiting for me. I love the girl singing her cute Kyoto song with her cute pigtails. I love the girl in front of me, and will never forget her.” 

Kazuha opened her eyes with shock, “Heiji...” Her eyes filled up with tears again and fell on her face. 

She looked so serene to Heiji’s eyes. Her pale skin softly glowing and sparkling tears under the moonlight. 

He just couldn’t handle it anymore and held the back of her head and guided her towards him and kissed her. 

His kiss was hard and full of passion, and showed the intensity of his feelings for her. 

Kazuha caressed his hair and reciprocated the kiss with the same energy, until they had separated for the lack of oxygen. 

She smiled as she looked at him and said, “I love you too, Heiji.” 

-.-

@heizuhaevents

[konfuchsius]

First Trip

So this is long overdue but I actually began to write this for the third day of @heizuhaevents. ^^" Sometimes I'm just stuck while writing so I hope you don't mind. It's still the same AU as in "First Times" so maybe some strange sentences from there will make sense now.

"And no transformations, understood?" reminded Shizuka the children.

"Yeeeeess. Of course not", Kazuha and Heiji returned, both annoyed and in sync.

"We're serious," Ginshiro now added as well.

"And don't make any other trouble either," Heizo said. "Especially you Heiji." The latter rolled his eyes, which earned him an angry look from his father. Quickly, Kazuha intervened.

"I'll make sure Heiji doesn't do anything stupid."

"Hey, I never do anything stupid. Idiot!" complained Heiji immediately.

"Don't argue already. The first kids are already getting on, see?" Ginshiro pointed to the bus.  With a quick glance at it, Kazuha began to whine.

"Do we really have to go?"

"You'll have a lot of fun there, believe me."

 "But then why aren't you coming?"

"I have to work, we've been through this before, princess."

"But I don't want to go without you!"

"Now don't be such a crybaby," Heiji grumbled next to her as tears now welled up in her eyes as well. Kazuha immediately took this personally and jutted her chin up to stop the tears.

"I'm not a crybaby!" she huffed, wiping her cheeks dry. Then she hugged her dad as if to prove it and was all set to go. She really caught herself quickly when it came to her pride. "Bye dad."

"Bye princess and bye Heiji. Don't fight and don't forget, no transformation!"

The two didn't answer that anymore, but had already turned to the bus and got on.

"How many times were they going to tell us?", Heiji finally murmured to her in their seats.

"They're just worried," Kazuha argued.

 "We're not little kids anymore, though."

"You act like one most of the time, however."

"Not at all!" Heiji glared at her irritably and started to growl, however Kazuha immediately pressed her hands over his mouth.

"See? That's why I have to watch out for you." After all, their first class trip was supposed to be a fond memory and not to end in disaster. 

<<;<>>> 

"Kazuha has puppies hidden in her room!"

"What?! I want to see them too!"

Marie-chan, the stupid cow, had burst into the room just like that and had immediately announced her discovery to the entire hostel. Now the kids were pushing and shoving each other out of the doorway outside their room, as everyone wanted to catch a glimpse of the puppies sitting there on Kazuha's bed.

"They' re so cute, I want to pet them!"

"Me too! Me too!"

It wasn't long before the children were no longer just filling the doorway, but crowding into the room as well, reaching out to touch the little animals there.

The two puppies flattened their ears and slowly backed away to the wall that the bed was against, but the children came closer and closer and even the growling of the black animal didn't make them flinch. Then, when the first hands rushed forward and passed through their fur, the white puppy began to whimper bitterly. This only seemed to make the black one angrier, which is why he snapped furiously at the hands, his jaws always slamming together just before reaching them. He had even pushed himself in front of the other pup and was now shielding him with his body, ears and tail set high. However, this turned out to be a mistake because now the kids were grabbing the tail and pulling on it. That was enough.

He bit.

<&lt;<>>>

"Are you out of your mind?!!" Heizo could not believe it. There the boy was left alone once and then something like this happened. "Biting your classmate- you're not some wild animal!"

The class trip had been stopped immediately after the boy who had pulled Heiji's tail had to be taken to the hospital. Of course, the hostel had been thoroughly searched for the wolf pups afterwards, but they had not found them and all the guests had been evacuated for safety. As a result, their first school trip ended after just a single day. And now Heiji stood here and had to listen to his parents' telling him off.

"We specifically told you no transformations!"

"It was only for a short time. I can't help it that Marie-chan just burst in like that!", Heiji defended himself.

"You were both forbidden to transform. What would you have done if she had caught you in the act?!" Heiji had never seen his father so enraged, and that meant something. He was scaring him. "It's bad enough you were seen at all, but then you bite someone too?!"

"They were hurting me!" It wasn't like he hadn't warned them. As if he hadn't tried to protect her in other ways. But his father showed no understanding.

"And whose fault was that?!" He gave Heiji such a burning look that he slowly but surely ducked his head, but then Shizuka intervened.

"Even though I share your view that what Heiji did was foolish, they are still children. We could have guessed that something like that would happen. However, it also taught them their lesson and they certainly won't do something like that again, right Heiji?" She had placed a hand on her husband's shoulder reassuringly and indiscreetly urged her son to apologize.

"Y-yes, I'm sorry ..." In reality, though, he wasn't, he was just sorry they'd been caught. They had only had a little squabble after all, and they would never turn in front of anyone else to begin with. They weren't that stupid, even if their parents thought they were.

"Good, then go to your room now."

Heiji didn't need to be told twice and stomped up the stairs full of defiance, but he would only seem to obey that order as well. Immediately after closing the door behind him, he opened the window and slipped outside.

<<;<>>> 

They met at their usual place, a large badger burrow that they had found abandoned and expanded. It was located directly under the roots of an old tree, so the entrance was always in the shade and looked as inconspicuous as any other animal burrow. Inside, however, they had spread fairy lights and pillows, the floor was paved with blankets, and their secret lair did not lack for amenities in any other way.

When Heiji arrived, Kazuha was already sitting in front of the entrance in her wolf form, waiting.

"What took you so long?" she asked with a tilted head.

"You're still asking that?" he grumbled in response as he squeezed past her into their secret hiding place. "My parents scolded me, of course." Kazuha followed him, twitching her ear slightly in irritation.

"Mine scolded me too, but that was over an hour ago."

"Not everyone is lucky enough to have parents who let them off the hook so easily." It annoyed him when Kazuha acted as if this was normal. To her father, she was the little princess, and being a girl surely helped. Anyway, his father always blamed him, even when they had caused trouble together.

"Easy, my tail! They were pretty mad and grounded me," Kazuha protested. Heiji gave her a meaningful look.

"Wow. Grounded, you're not going to abide by it anyway."

"So what? They were still very angry." Offended, she slipped under one of the many blankets, transformed, and wiped a tear from her eye that was still left from her parents' telling her off. The idiot didn't know how much it affected her when her parents were disappointed in her. 

Heiji sat down across from her, leaned against a large pillow, and closed his eyes. He didn't feel like having another argument right now, and certainly not with her. It was enough that their parents were mad at them, they didn't have to fight each other on top of that.

"Someday we'll make our own trip, all by ourselves, and then we can transform as many times as we want," he explained, thus steering the conversation to a new topic. It seemed to work, as Kazuha cautiously peeked out from under her covers again.

"Just the two of us?" The idea seemed a little strange to her, but somehow she liked it too. "Then we'll make a trip to a Koventree sometime, yes?"

"A what?"

"A Koventree! I saw that on TV, when it blooms, all its leaves turn into fireflies!"

Heiji looked at her skeptically. "Are you sure that wasn't just a fantasy movie?" When Kazuha glared at him so angrily, he immediately regretted his words.

"I can still tell fantasy apart from a report!"

"It's okay, it's okay," Heiji tried to calm her down again. "Then we'll make our first trip to a Kofentree."

"Koventree!" she corrected him.

"Either way, but first we have to serve this house arrest."

"I bet it'll be beautiful." Kazuha's eyes were already glittering with the image of thousands of fireflies. Perhaps she had guessed then that one day she would actually get to see it.

Here is also an picture of them plus Otaki xD ... Yes, the whole Osaka Police department are werewolfs. They just seem like a big family because the police will drive those kids arround everywhere (he got a police car for sigthseeing!) and Kazuhas mom casually asks Heiji to bring Kazuha a waterbottle to her sport. And Heijis aunt will ask Kazuha to go to a wedding with him. So why not a pack?

[coneedogawa]

Hot

For @heizuhaevents‘s Heizuha Week 2023 Event. This is for the prompts: Summer homework, Melting, Heat. It’s really short because I don’t have much of the energy to write but hopefully it’s at least somewhat enjoyable. : )

“It’s so hot~!” Kazuha whined. Her AC was busted and as such she’s been burning in the sun for the past 2 hours. To make matters worse, the teacher gave them extra difficult math homework to complete over their break. The heat was only making the assignment harder to complete.

Normally, she’d turn to Heiji for help completing the assignment. As much as he’d groan about how much of a bother it was, he always said yes anyways. However, this time, Heiji was busy practicing Kendo for an upcoming tournament, so he’d have no time to-

“Oi Kazuha, ya really should crank up the AC here!”

-come help her? 

She turned her head to the doorway, watching him wipe his forehead to emphasize his comment. Her eyes turned into half moons as she glared at him.

“The air conditionin’s busted.”

His mouth formed a little ‘o’ as he began examining the damage. “What did ya do ta it? It’s nearly in pieces!”

Turning back to her homework, she scoffed, “I accidentally dropped it tryin’ ta get it in the window. Don’t ya have Kendo practice ta get back ta?”

“Ouch, tryin’ ta kick me out that quickly?” She chose to ignore him, focusing on the next problem.

“Kazuha?”

‘Find X. Well, there’s 5 X’s here and these 3 are squared so if I factor them out…?’

“Kazuha…”

‘Now that’s 11 X’s… Why are there so many?’

“Fine. Ignore me. I can go back ta Kendo. ‘Was just thinkin’ I’d help ya with yer homework but-” He began to walk out the door but she yanked his sleeve to pull him back.

“Wait! Please help me~!” She gave him her classic pleading eyes.

He chuckled before turning back around and crouching down next to her. “Fine.”

30 minutes passed and the heat only seemed to get worse. Heiji had abandoned his shirt about 15 minutes in and Kazuha was desperately trying to keep her eyes from wandering towards his toned chest. One thing she had come to realize as they grew older was just how physically fit her best friend was. Especially now, after years of kendo and chasing criminals. He was very… hot, to put it simply, and she was pretty sure the heat was getting to her head. It was no wonder why he had so many fans.

“Now you want to take the X and… Kazuha?” He raised an eyebrow at her as she snapped her eyes up from his body to his face and then back to the problem.

“I-I’m payin’ attention!” She yelped.

He grew concerned, placing his hand on her shoulder.. “Do ya need water? Ya look dazed.”

“I’m fine.” Her face grew red with his touch as she jerked her head away from him.

‘This idiot’

Heiji sighed as he stood and stretched his arms and legs out. “Maybe it’s best we get somewhere cooler.” As his arms raised, his chest became more prominent, catching her attention once again. She could see his muscles ripple with his stretching and his chest rising with each slow breath. Suddenly, her brain became mush again and she could no longer process anything else.

“We could go out for some ice cream or somethin’?” Being as distracted with his chest as she was, she didn’t notice his face go red as he proposed the idea. 

She also didn’t notice how his face got even redder as he noticed her silence and followed her eyes to his chest.

“Uhh… Kazuha? Are ya... starin’ at my chest?” He asked nervously, almost unbelieving.

Finally her brain snapped back to attention. “H-Huh? Yer chest? I uh…” It took a minute before she fully processed his question. The red on her face grew even more vibrant as she squeaked. “N-no! I wasn’t! I was uh… lost in thought about the next few math problems! They look really tricky!” She laughed nervously.

For a moment, he seemed confused. Then his eyes grew wide in realization and started to smile, his face turning even more red. “Well… let’s just ignore the assignment for now and go get ice cream.” Without giving her time to respond he walked out of the room with a wide grin.

Kazuha stared at the open door, somewhat confused by his demeanor.

“By the way, ya were on the last problem, dumbass!” She heard him yell from downstairs. 

Her eyes widened she blushed in embarrassment. 

“Huh?!”

[coneedogawa]

First Meeting

For the first day of Heizuha Week, I might as well add my own take on how they met. Sorry if the writing’s not the best, was in a bit of a time crunch to make it so I just hope it’s not too bad. Will probably post this to ao3 eventually but for now, here it is.

~~~

Contrary to popular belief, Kazuha wasn’t the one who latched herself to Heiji the day they met. It was actually quite the opposite. When they came face to face for the first time, Kazuha had clung herself to her dad’s leg, hiding her face from the strange young boy in front of them.

“This is Kazuha, my daughter.”

Her dad tried to push her forward, but the girl continued to cling to the back of his leg, hiding her face in the pants’ fabric. 

“I’m sorry, Hattori. She’s just really shy.” He chuckled before turning to look down at her. “Kazuha, come on, introduce yourself.”

She shook her head, burying it deeper against his leg. 

“It’s okay, my son is quite hyper, I bet he’s just scarin’ her.” The other man ruffled the young boy’s head, causing the kid to whine and push his hand away.

“Am not! I wouldn’t scare her!” The young boy protested. 

“Ya may not intend to, but ya sure are, Heiji.” The man said sternly.

“Heizou, really, she’s just shy.” Her dad interjected. “Come on now, Kazuha. He’s a nice kid.” She felt another pat on her back and arched her head around his leg to see the boy fully. He had ruffled hair, dark, freckled skin, and vibrant blue eyes. 

As soon as he saw her look at him, he held out his hand, making a big grin that showed off a missing tooth. “I’m Hattori Heiji!”

The young girl flinched back for a second, only to feel a reassuring pat on her back from her father. Looking up at him, he smiled back at her.

“Go on.” He spoke.

She looked forward at the kid, still smiling, and took a step forward, gently reaching her hand to wrap around his. 

“My… umm. My name is…” Taking a deep breath, she locked eyes with him and lightly shook his hand. “My name is Toyama Kazuha.”

“Kazuha? That’s a cool name!” The boy smiled again.

The little girl blushed and turned her eyes away from him. As she tried to pull her hand back, he held on, instead tugging her towards the door. 

“Come on! Let’s go play!” She squeaked as Heiji dragged her into the house with him, the two older  men laughed as their kids wandered off, settling into conversation of their own as they left to work. Kazuha struggled to keep up with Heiji’s speed, tripping over her shoes. 

“Do you know ‘Cops and Robbers’?”

“‘C-cops and Robbers’?” She stammered.

“Yeah!” He turned to a staircase, pulling her with him as they made their way to the top. “It’s an easy game. One of us plays a cop, and the other, a criminal.”

At the top, he pulled her towards a room. It was lined with bookshelves that surrounded a large desk in the center. Here, Heiji let go of her hand, reaching into the desk to look for something. 

“The criminal has to try to escape their cell without bein’ tagged by the cop. And if they get tagged…”

Kazuha watched as the boy pulled a pair of handcuffs from a drawer, dangling them in front of his face with a smile. “They get handcuffed!”

“Ya were really dumb back then ya know.”

“Yeah yeah, whatever. Not like ya were any better.”

Kazuha leaned against her dresser, kicking an empty cardboard box aside. She held a photo in her hands, a photo of them with handcuffs linking them together with pouts on their faces. 

“At least I wasn’t dumb enough to screw around with police grade handcuffs.”

Heiji sighed as he set back down the end table. “And who was dumb enough to let me?”

She scoffed. “Ya dragged me upstairs the second I said my damn name and didn’t even give me a chance to argue.”

He strode over to her in three steps, putting both hands against the dresser on either side of her, trapping her there. “Ya not grateful? If I hadn’t’ve dragged ya, ya know ya never would’ve given me a chance.”

“I would’ve.” He raised his eyebrow at her. “Eventually…”

Heiji laughed, “Well I’d say,” He reached up to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear, “I’m pretty damn glad I did it.”

“Yeah?” She asked, using her free hand to cup his face. 

He smiled at her and leaned in, “Yeah… Definitely.”

[coneedogawa]

First Kiss

Here’s my take on the prompt, ‘First Kiss’ for Heizuha Week. I was feeling a bit tired tonight so I decided to finish an old fic I had sitting on the back burner and repurpose it for today’s prompt. This fic was based off of a theory I had that Heiji would have a confession that’s reflective of Shinichi’s (where he would run after Kazuha because she got the wrong idea). I hope I captured the idea well and made it enjoyable to read!  @heizuhaevents 

~~~

“Idiot!” He huffed, breathing heavily. She was going to lose him in the crowd any second now, he couldn’t let that happen, not tonight. 

He caught her arm, clutching her wrist tight while she tried to squirm away. Struggling with her, he maneuvered her closer, reaching for her other wrist.

“Please, let go!” 

Heiji grit his teeth as a memory flashed before his eyes. In that moment, he saw her, dangling over that cliff. He remembered how he held onto her hand for dear life, his blood staining her arm as she was begging him to let go. He had decided that day, that he would never let her go, ever. 

Catching her other wrist, he tugged her into him, sealing her lips with his. 

She let out a small muffled squeak, but he didn’t let go. Her lips were soft and warm, though salty with her tears. His lips were pressing bruisingly hard against hers as he wrapped his arms tight around her waist, one hand splayed out on her back. She froze up, stunned, and placed her fists against his shoulders, not quite pushing him away, but not really relaxed either. 

As he pulled away, he studied her face, glaring into her wide eyes. “Idiot.” He tightened his grip even more. “I told ya I’d never let go, didn’t I? I told ya not ta let go either, dumbass.”

She lowered her head with tears in her eyes and he almost began to regret kissing her, fearing that he scared her. But he was quickly reminded of why she had been running away to begin with, why she had tried to get away from him.

He raised one hand to her face, gently wiping the tear off of her cheek. Yer the one I love, idiot. Not Momiji, not that dancer from Kyoto, you.”

“But-“

He shook her gently and glared at her. “No. Don’t start with that. Yer not ugly, annoyin’, or stupid. Ya mean the damn world ta me, ‘Zuha, and I’m not gonna let ya keep puttin’ yerself down like that.” He cupped her cheeks with both hands now, forcing her to look directly at him. “I love you. Please just believe me when I say that.”

She turned her head down again as she starting sobbing harder. He felt his heart breaking until she stepped closer, wrapping her arms around him and burying her face in his shoulder. He lowered them both to the ground as he wrapped his arms back around her. He smothered his face in her hair as he shushed her, gently rubbing her back.

“I love ya, ‘Zuha. I love ya.”

She kept sobbing but he didn’t need to hear her response. After all, he’d heard it earlier.

‘It hurts so much, Heiji. Because I love ya too much but you’ll never feel the same and it hurts so bad.’

He cursed himself for being an idiot. For letting her think he liked someone else. For not realizing that she loved him just as much. 

He kissed the top of her head and continued to comfort her until she pulled back. 

She looked up at him, her eyes shining from the tears. “Yer such an idiot, ya know that?” She blubbered out, her voice slurred from her crying. 

He laughed and reached his hand up behind her head, pulling her face close again. “I know.” He closed his eyes, feeling her warm lips smile against his. 

[elfchensdcartblog]

HeiZuhaWeek 2022 - Day 6: First Kiss @heizuhaevents

It wasn’t easy as a mother.

Especially not if you tried to get a good shot of your son and his now girlfriend.

Shizuka had her camera with her for some days now. Since she was banning every important moment of her son on paper, she wanted to get some nice shots of him and Kazuha after they finally became an official couple. Shizuka and the mother of Kazuha had often talked about that scenario. Well, she never doubted about their final fate, ending up together. It had been obvious, especially since some month.

And since then she had her camera with her. Waiting. She already had some cute shots to share with Kazuhas mother. And to show Heizo (even if he wasn’t very interested in seeing every moment, she took them so he was able to take part in his sons life beside his work life).

But they had been cautious the last days. Even if Shizuka was able to take some pictures of them holding hands on their way of school or some cuddles, she wasn’t able to see a kiss between them. But Kazuhas mother and herself had been waiting for it. It was just a matter of time.

Was her son too afraid to do this step?

Or did he get her presence?

No. He was for sure in Love Mode enough to ignore his mom.

Shizuka wrapped his lunchbox in a cloth, while Heiji was eating at the table in her kitchen.

„How’s things going with Kazuha?“

Coughing sounds behind her back showed her again that her son was still too much in puberty to talk about those things like a grown up. So maybe she already missed out on their first kiss. But until it wasn’t banned on paper she won’t count it.

„Need ta go!“ Heiji took his lunch and quickly left the kitchen to avoid further questions. Shizuka watched and heard him leaving the house, doing her dishes calmly.

————

Today they returned together and Shizuka knew it would be a great opportunity for her to get her picture. So she kept an eye on them while they were doing their homework sitting together on the tatami floor at the kotatsu. Every time she brought some snacks or drinks she read the atmosphere between them. They were easy to read. Typical teens when it came to love.

When she noticed the change in atmosphere, she smiled at them.

„I’m now doing the laundry so I won’t be able to bring you any drinks. Please help yourself as long as I’m away.“ She stood up as elegant as ever and left the room. Behind herself she closed the Shoji and left it behind. After some normal steps over the wooden floor she turned around a corner to reach the veranda which connected all rooms in the house.

————-

Heiji listened the steps of his mother getting further away. For a moment he raised his head and looked to the door where she disappeared. But it remained closed.

The detective stood up and opened the shoji just to take a look into the empty corridor.

„Finally that old hag left us alone…“, he murmured.

„Ya shouldn’t call her that!“, Kazuha gave him a strict glaze. Heiji showed her a grimace.

„Ya forgot she was stalking us all these days with her camera?“

„Well… it’s surely just these first days… it’ll be boring for her soon. I find it kinda cute.“

„It’s creepy.“

„She did this all yer life. Why’s it creeping ya now?“

Heiji blushed and sat down beside his girlfriend. „Because it’s just between us.“

„Well, I wouldn’t do emberassing things in public anyway!“ Kazuha blushed as well. What would the neighbours think about them and their families if they kissed in public on the streets?

Heiji took a deep breath. „Anyway,…“ He came closer to her face and with a short glimpse at her lips and then into her eyes he showed her his intention without words. They hadn’t shared a kiss the whole day and Heiji was in need for a taste of her lips as much as herself from his. Kazuha smiled and leaned in a bit to welcome his lips, but interrupted midway. While he approached further, Kazuha moved her face away. „Heiji… Wai-“

CLICK.

There it was. She was able to see the small gap in the Shoji door which lead out to the veranda. And behind it some observant eyes waiting for their moment.

That was the moment she pushed her boyfriend over while her head exploded in heat.

[elfchensdcartblog]

HeiZuhaWeek 2022 - Day 4: First Day (as a couple) @heizuhaevents

Sadly I caught a bad flu and wasn’t able to finish further pics. So I’ll just upload their current state and add them later in finished state via reblog. 🥲

So please enjoy anyway!

——————————————————————————-

How many times had he took her hand normally and never thought about it?

Heiji Hattori was on his first date with his now girlfriend Kazuha. It was their first day as a couple and one would’ve lied if not calling his behavior awkward.

His mother gave him a suspicious glare when he went off, checking his appearance once again before leaving the house.

But it didn’t matter.

He. Had. Finally. Confessed.

And they ended up as a couple.

Finally.

There wasn’t anything else going on in his mind for now. He was happy. Finally satisfied in his attempts.

——

When he picked up Kazuha she looked beautiful. He never remembered her so beautiful before, she seemed to be even shining. But then Heiji reminded himself that this must be just the hormons going crazy in his head and body. She has looked beautiful ever since. He was sure about that.

Naturally he wanted to take her hand and drag her with him. But… just before reaching her hand, hesitation hit him. And then Kazuha went ahead calling him to hurry for the movie they wanted to watch. The moment to hold her hand was over.

Heiji looked a bit confused at his hand. Why did he stop? He could’ve taken her hand like thousands of times before. Just naturally. Like the most normal thing in the world. But his body reacted in a different way. Hesitation. Why on earth would he hesitate to take her hand?!

The high school student shook his head, then hurried to keep up with his girlfriend. After he caught up, he walked by her side. Even if she scolded him about dragging his feet just to miss out on the movie she chose for them he was able to see how happy she was about this day. Her eyes were shining, her cheeks had a healthy red tone to them. The smile on her face even while scolding him.

Heiji was sure, the whole world was able to see how happy they were. Again his hand reached out to take hers, but again he stopped right before being able to take it. Kazuha also raised her hand to search something in her pocket. Again a moment lost.

Was it his fate to fail again what stopped him to just get over this distance?

——

When they reached the cinema, Heiji was sure the Kamis weren’t with him. Why on earth wouldn’t he be able to take her hand just normally like all the times before?!

He has tried so many times on the way. And something hold him back every single time! (He stopped counting the times when Kazuha needed her hand in the exact same moment for anything else.)

After he purchased the tickets for the movie, some snacks and drinks, they settled down in the seats in the cinema. Even during the movie he wasn’t able to reach her hand as he wanted. The bucket full of popcorn would’ve been a good excuse to just ‘accidentally’ touch her hand ending in some cute and lovey-dovey giggles and holding hands. That was some trope he read before. But nothing. They never met in this stupid bucket. Even worse - it was so big it took the whole space between them preventing every try to reach her otherwise. He blamed himself for being this hungry. But he wasn’t able to eat a bit this morning.

——

After the movie Heiji was frustrated. Half of their date was over and he wasn’t able to make a move. While he was waiting for Kazuhas return in front of the toilets, he was pondering about the reasons for his failure.

Was it fate?

Or did something hold him back from inside?

“What’cha doing, Heiji?” Kazuha took the hand of her boyfriend as soon as she reached his side. “I called your name several times!”

The detective startled. Then looked down to their hands which already naturally entangled.

He blinked once. Then twice.

That was so easy. Why was it so easy this suddenly?!

It felt so good he was hearing his own heartbeat rising.

With a blush on his cheeks Heiji tug her hand and so also Kazuha closer to himself.

“N-nothing. Just feeling sleepy from that stupid tearjerker…”

Kazuha looked with a disbelieving glare at him. “So… it’s nothing to do with yer failed tries to take my hand?”

Heiji jerked a bit and tried to play cool by rubbing his neck and avoiding eye contact. “Ahō. I didn’t try anything, there was just mosquitoes and so on-”

“Mosquitoes in winter, Heiji, wha-?”

“-But if ya insist in holding hands and doin’ stuff like this… ya don’t need ta daydream ‘bout it anymore!”

“Oh, Heiji!” Kazuha giggled with red cheeks. “Ahō!”

[coneedogawa]

First Trip: I decided to do a drawing for day 3 of Heizuha Week! I hope it looks nice. I’m now wondering what would’ve happened if Heiji reached Kazuha when they were kids at the temple. He’d be so embarrassed lol.  @heizuhaevents

[heizuha-queen]

Don’t Leave Me

This is for day 3 Heizuha Week @heizuhaevents 

She sat in the hotel lobby as she waited for Heiji to check in. It was their first trip together as a couple and after Heiji and Shinichi beat the Black Organization. 

She was excited to finally spend time with him, especially since she hasn’t seen him in months. For months she was worried sick, crying every night and every day. She would always wonder whether he’s okay or even alive, but now she can make sure he is because she’s never leaving his side. She doesn’t care if it’s clingy, after all these depressing and anxious months he’s not leaving her side, not even for a second. 

“Kazuha?” Heiji called her name, “Come on, I got the room key.” 

She got up and followed him to the elevator, then eventually their room. It was a beautiful room, or should she say suite. 

“Heiji?” Kazuha exclaimed, “I thought you booked us a normal room?!” 

“Well, I wanted it to be special for us, since you know...” He looked a bit shy, and Kazuha understood what he meant. The last time they’ve been romantic was when Heiji confessed before leaving for the Black Organization, they shared a kiss but that was it. Ever since he came back, he was in the hospital then court and they had no time to spend together. 

She knew that Heiji hated the fact that the confession wasn’t amazing and grand like he expected it to be, Heiji liked to be dramatic. But in Kazuha’s heart it was more than special. She didn’t care about the scenery, or the place, she only cared about him. 

She looked around the living room, it had a one big couch and two small others, and it had access to the big balcony that connected to their room. 

She went inside the room and blushed at the sight of the king sized bed. Heiji noticed her blush and said, “Don’t worry about it, I’ll sleep on the couch.” 

“Oh.” 

-.-

They walked towards their pool chairs and put their stuff right next to it. 

Kazuha didn’t miss the way Heiji’s eyes looked at her when she took off her summer dress. She can’t lie and say she didn’t enjoy it, the way he desired her. 

She grabbed her sunscreen and rubbed it all over her body to make sure she didn’t get burned on their first day here. 

“Heiji? Can you help me and apply the sunscreen on my back? I always get burned there because I can’t put sunscreen there.” 

“Uhh sure.” Heiji said, his ears red. 

Kazuha lied on her stomach on the pool chair, and to tease him a little she untied the string on her back. 

Heiji applied the sunscreen on her back, in a slow motion, almost like he didn’t want it to end. 

When he was done, he tied the string back and tapped her on the shoulder so that she would get up. 

“Thank you, Heiji.” Kazuha said with a smile. 

“N-no problem.” Heiji said as he was rubbing his neck. The fact that she could see a little redness on his cheeks despite his dark complexion was so cute to her. 

“Come on let’s go swimming.” Heiji said and held her hand. Now it was her turn to blush. 

He went down the ladder and into the swimming pool, pulling her towards him. She shivered a bit as the water was a bit cold compared to the weather. 

Heiji slowly started pulling her to the deep part of the swimming pool till they reached a point where Kazuha wasn’t able to reach the floor anymore and her entire body went underwater. Suddenly she couldn’t breathe, she was suffocating, she couldn’t see anything, she felt like she was dying. Just like when he left. 

Heiji pulled her up, and laughed at her. “Seriously Kazuha? Why didn’t you come up, Aho? Did you forget how to swim?”

“Kazuha?” 

Heiji was surprised to see her crying, he didn’t understand what just happened. He grabbed her face and made her look at him. 

“Kazuha what’s wrong? I was just joking I didn’t mean it.”

Kazuha didn’t know how to explain it. The feelings inside of her just wanted to make her explode. She didn’t want to talk, she wanted to feel him next to her, with her, alive and breathing. 

She put her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist and hugged him hard and started crying even harder. 

Heiji put his arms around her and hugged her even harder. He was worried sick, what just happened? What did he do wrong? 

“Heiji, p-please don’t leave me,” Kazuha cried out, “Please don’t leave like you did.” 

Heiji laid his head on her before kissing her head gently and said, “Never.” 

[elfchensdcartblog]

HeiZuhaWeek 2022 - Day 1: First Childhood Memory

His eyesight was still blurry and it was hard to remember everything happening since he first was aware of himself in this world.

But since some days there was this annoyance around him, somehow teasing him, trying to tease him.

Gladly this 'thing' wasn't able to reach him. But it tried. Everytime it was around. 'It' wasn't like his Mom or Dad. Or the other visitors. It was small. And not talking. Only babbling.

Himself was annoyed, that he wasn't able to move. He'd liked to move away from 'it' when it reached out. And 'it' seemed to be able to move more than himself.

He knew - someday 'it' would reach him and wouldn't let him go again.

———————————————

Today is the first day of the first Heizuha-Week of @heizuhaevents!

I took the first prompt to take my try on one of Heijis first memories meeting Kazuha "canonically". We know, that Kazuha is around a month older than him and they met very early, so she most likely had been a bit ahead in her upgrowth. And small kids have a hard time recognizing other kids as humans, too. So he might've had a hard time. While Kazuha saw him as some sort of toy. x'D

[elfchensdcartblog]

HeiZuhaWeek 2022 - Day 3: First School Trip @heizuhaevents

It was their first trip in primary school and Kazuha had been quiet for some time. Heiji wasn't sure what was up to her, since she was babbling all day before.

When they were walking throigh a forrest in groups of two, he decided to stop keeping silent about her state.

"What's up, ya feeling sick from the bus?"

Kazuha gave him one of her disgusted glares. "Why do ya expect that of all things?"

"Ya kno', this one time we went-"

"I was ill at that time! Stop complaining 'bout that!"

"Okay, okay. You're quiet since three days now so what happened to all that 'we'll do this' 'n 'we'll do that' stuff ya bugged me with?"

Kazuha gave him another death glare. "Ya should've just told me to stop if ya bugged ya, mister loudmouth!"

Heiji rolled his eyes. "Ya would've bugged me more if I did because I wouldn't want ta hear it, blabbermouth!"

"I'm sorry Mister Oh-So-Silent! But I was excited for the trip!"

"And then?"

"What then?"

"Why'd ya stop being excited?" He looked at her in curiousity.

Kazuha's eyes widened, then she looked at the ground. "W-well..."

Heiji waited a second, but she didn't continue. "Well?"

"I thought about leavin' Mom 'n Dad behind...", she mumbled and her hand was clenching around the strap of her backpack. "... and felt sad."

"So you're homesick." Kazuha responded with a sad nod. "Ya don't need ta be." Heiji took her hand in his. "Because I'm here with ya and like yer home on the go."

Kazuha looked a bit puzzled. "Not really a good alternative."

"Take it or leave it!" Heiji gave her a grumpy face.

"Toyama 'n Hattori are holding hands! Are ya lovey-dovey?" Some classmate behind them joked.

"WE'RE NOT!", both of them shouted back.

While Heiji was going on discussing with their classmate, Kazuha looked down at their still folded hands and blushed a bit.

[konfuchsius]

So, I had a really big writer block, but I still wanted to do something for @heizuhaevents, so I finished this (+translation) 13 minutes bevor the 08.08.

I will just hope it's good and not bed-time-gibberish, because if I don't post it now I fear I won't post it at all. uwu

"First times are magical, you can't repeat them."

First Times

"First times are magical, you can't repeat them." This is what his mother had once said to him, and he had always followed this phrase. No first time Heiji Hattori had ever contested had been unworthy of the term "magical." He always gave his best and so it should be no different for his first love.

Fate however, seemed to have other plans, for whenever he tried to confess his love to her, something unforeseen happened. This ranged from a simple interruption, to zombies and ghosts. It was as if the world had conspired against him, as if it didn't want to give him that one perfect first time. But Heiji did not give up.

"Come quickly!" He urged Kazuha to hurry, even partially pushing her ahead of him just to make it go faster.

"What's the matter? What do you want to show me anyway?" , she asked, completely confused. Her plans for the evening had actually been to lie in bed and read a good book, not be dragged into the woods by her best friend.

"You'll see when we get there. Come on, hurry up."

The last time Heiji had goaded her into hurrying like this had been on his first full moon. What on earth was he up to?

"Into the forest? Now?" Kazuha stopped before the boundary between the meadow and the patch of forest beyond. Her bare feet were already touching the first pine needles and the mossy smell of the trees rose to her nose. She liked being here, but she also liked her sleep in her warm, fluffy bed.

"Right now! Now don't make such a fuss, just come with me!" There was an expression of such urgency on his face that Kazuha didn't ask further, but followed him. If it was that important to him, then she would just go and see what he had to show her.

"Well, hopefully it's something really exciting," she expressed her slight displeasure nonetheless.

After a few minutes of marching - and they had walked briskly - they finally came to a small clearing, in front of which Heiji stopped.

"Here it is," he declared, and Kazuha looked around in wonder.

"What's supposed to be here? All I see are trees, and I don't smell anything either."

"Trees exactly. Don't you see it in the clearing? That's a Koven tree." Heiji pointed ahead and when Kazuha's gaze found what he was referring to, she got all excited.

"And that one's blooming tonight?"

Heiji nodded. "You mentioned once that you wanted to see something like that in real life."

"And you remembered that?" She covered him with wide eyes, which filled Heiji with pride.

"I heard from Otaki that they were supposed to bloom this year, so I immediately reserved the best spots for us." Grinning, he pushed down a branch beside him so that the leaves revealed a picnic blanket. On it lay several pillows and a thermos, as well as two cups.

"You brought all this here?" Kazuha was downright amazed, and she was overcome with the feeling that there had to be more behind this. As Heiji led her to the blanket and they settled down on it, her cheeks took on a redder and redder tone and her heartbeat seemed to quicken. Heiji didn't usually do things like that. That could only mean one thing, right? What if she was wrong?

"There, it's starting!"

Heiji's words snapped her out of her train of thought. Quickly, she looked up so as not to miss any of the unique moment that now followed. Unlike most trees, Koven trees only blossom once in their lives and then die. The first time they bloom is also their last. If they do not get pollinated, it was all for nothing.

Somehow this thought made Heiji melancholy; he, too, had only one chance to get it right.

"Look, they're shining even brighter than I thought was possible!" Kazuha watched in excitement as the leaves slowly folded into small spheres and began to radiate their light. Whereby " small spheres" didn't really hit it. Finished, they looked much more like insects, like fireflies that had been folded from a leaf in the best origami art.

Although this spectacle was truly breathtaking, Heiji's gaze was much more often on Kazuha than on the tree. In her eyes there was so much wonder, so much joy, that his heart felt warm and his courage rose.

Fortunately, she herself did not notice his stare. Her eyes were completely fixed on the tree, with its thousand shining swarmers.

"Do you want to see one up close?" He only whispered, not wanting to destroy the magic of that moment.

"Up close?"

Her curiosity piqued, Heiji stood up and caught one of the glowing gushers out of the air, using only his hands. The swarmers couldn't see anything - after all, essentially they were just a kind of pollen - so it was easy to catch them.

"Here." Carefully, Heiji opened his hands and let the swarmer crawl onto Kazuha's flat hand. The single antenna, consisting of the leaf stalk, wobbled up and down in the air in searching motion while the non-insect reoriented itself. As fragile as these creatures were, it was truly a miracle that they found the next Koven tree safe and sound at all.

"Doesn't it look beautiful?" Kazuha was already completely entranced by the little swarmer, while Heiji was enchanted by the brief touch of her hands.

This moment was perfect. It was now or never.

"Kazuha, I've been wanting to tell you-" At that moment, rain began to fall. Thick, hard drops slashed through the canopy of leaves above them and also tore all the swarmers from the night sky. This Koven tree would not be able to reproduce anymore, and Heiji's confession had also been shattered once again. "You've got to be kidding!" He wanted to get up and take them both to safety from the rain, but Kazuha didn't follow him. She had simply remained seated.

"What have you wanted to tell me?"

"It doesn't matter now. You're getting all wet and so is the blanket."

"I don't care, what did you want to say just now?" There was a defiant expression on her face, and Heiji dropped his shoulders with a sigh at the sight. When she looked like that, she usually got her way. This stubborn one would catch a cold.

"I can't tell you now. The thing I want to tell you- I only have one chance to make it magical. I don't want to blow it like that tree."

"Only one chance?" Kazuha scrunched her eyebrows together questioningly, still not moving a bit even though the rain was getting heavier.

"There's only one first time."

"What are you talking about?" By now her hair was sticking to her face soaking wet, but for some reason she didn't brush it aside, so Heiji did.

"Well for my confession!!!" A few seconds after Heiji had blurted this out in exasperation, he would have loved to sink into the ground. Now he had completely ruined it. Kazuha saw his features literally slip away.

"You mean ... this is really meant to be your declaration of love? You mean it?" She didn't dare to jump for joy just yet. With Heiji, you never knew how he really meant it.

"No!" he answered quickly, but then corrected himself when he saw her disappointed expression. "Er-well, yes, but- It was supposed to be one just-" With helplessness, he babbled out the one thing he had never wanted to tell her, "My mother once said that first times can't be repeated and that they should be magical and that's why this was supposed to be perfect. But now the rain has destroyed it, just like the swarmers."

Slowly it dawned on Kazuha what had been going on in Heiji's mind all this time and that she was probably not wrong about the many other times she had suspected a confession. Her features softened and a gentle smile settled on her lips.

" Oh, Heiji. First times are magical but not because you make them to be, they are because it IS the first time. That's all it takes. Just like you don't need to be more than YOU for me to love you."  Now she had said it. Her heart was up to her throat, but she didn't regret it, and her expression was determined.

"And as for your swarmers-" now she stood up and showed him what she had been holding in her hands all this time. She had been protecting the little pollen bearer from the rain. "Sometimes you do get a second chance. And if I let it fly after the rain, the sight may not be as new as the first time, but it's still just as beautiful."

Heiji looked first at the small creature in her hand, still glowing with fervour despite the fate of its comrades, then at Kazuha's eyes, and he understood. No matter how wrong each of his attempts had gone, they all would have been magical. All he had to do was to dare.

"I love you, Kazuha Toyama."

[coneedogawa]

First Case

Here’s a one shot for day 2 of Heizuha week. Forgot to tag @heizuhaevents last time so here’s it this time! Hope y’all enjoy this one! ~~~ None of the detective stories he’d read could’ve prepared him for a real dead body. The rotting smell of the corpse, the pale fingertips caked in blood, the contorted body and face. He figured he should consider himself lucky, managing 13 years without coming across one for real, but mostly he was just ready to retch up his dinner and call it a day. 

The problem was that there was no ‘calling it a day’. He had wanted this and he was determined to do things right. And, if he did show his hesitation, Otaki wouldn’t be so keen on letting him near these cases in the future. So, Heiji put on a stern face, and leaned down to examine the body. 

Unfortunately, the smell was definitely more potent up close and he could feel the way his throat filled with vomit. Choking it back down, he quickly pulled himself up. 

Maybe it would be better to start with the witnesses.

Kazuha had been finishing her homework when she heard a loud gagging noise downstairs. Rushing down the stairs revealed Heiji’s dad, who gave a curt apology for the noise, and her own dad, who was currently patting Heiji’s back while he threw up a week’s worth of meals into the kitchen trash can. 

“What happened!?” 

Heizou looked disappointed as he spoke, “Otaki gave him a good look at a real crime scene.”

Before she could respond, her dad raised his head to her, “Kazuha, darling, could you grab some damp towels and a glass of water for him?”

“Uh… yeah.” She was a little stunned, glancing quickly at a puddle of vomit in the entryway, before turning back to her father, “I’ll be right back!”

By the time she returned, Heiji was resting his head against the trash can and looked ready to pass out. Ginshiro, who was standing just behind him, still patting his back, turned to her. 

“Kazuha, we have ta hurry back ta the station, another case came up. Do ya think ya could watch over him tonight?” He asked, flinching when Heiji keeled over the trash can again, letting out more of his already empty stomach. 

When his stomach settled, Heiji breathed a harsh sigh and leaned back against the wall, caked in sweat. Kazuha knelt in front of him and pressed the wet cloth against his forehead, earning a content hum. “I think I can manage him.”

By the time she finished dragging Heiji to the couch, she was thoroughly exhausted and plopped down next to him(and a large bowl just in case he wasn’t finished yet) on the floor. She turned to look at him lying on the couch, and he looked awful. His hair was wet with sweat that dripped down his paled face and he had curled himself into a ball the second she laid him down. 

“How’re ya feelin’?” She asked as he let out a pained groan. 

He didn’t respond, so she assumed that he wasn’t in the mood to talk, and she couldn’t blame him. Since he was so tired, she thought she’d let him sleep, standing up to go back to her room.

“‘M sorry.” 

She winced at how frail his voice was. “Fer what?”

“Being so damn weak.” His voice cracked as he spoke. “What kind of detective can’t stand a dead body? An’ now ya have ta watch over me. Sorry.”

“Hey,” She leaned down right by his face, grabbing his hand. “Don’t worry ‘bout it. Yer still a human at the end of the day. A sight like that’s not good fer anyone. An’ I don’t mind watchin’ over ya.” 

He chuckled at that. “Really?” He asked sarcastically.

“Yer my best friend, an’ I…” She trailed off, her face growing red. He looked at her curiously. “I care about ya… I know we don’t say stuff like that often but…”

“I care about ya too.”

She raised her head to see him smile at her. A smile tugged on her face in return and she giggled.