#Maybe she should have realized it by the fact Shinichi would never be able to coordinate his wardrobe to dress in such fashionable way

[lupizora]

Honestly, I was pretty scared about watching M23. There were so many expectations riding on it, even before I started watching DetCo around this time last year. It was the most popular movie featuring KID. For a time, it was the first crossing movie of the whole franchise. It was the movie I saw referenced or written about the most in the fanfic tags for the series.

Well, having said all that, I finally reached the point in my DetCo watch-a-thon were I could watch it and IT DID NOT DISAPPOINT!! If anything, I think it just became my favorite KID-related movie! It really had everything. Mystery! Intrigue! Twists galore! KID and Conan buddy magician-detective comedy! So many near-death experiences. They even blew up the place all over again, and Conan skated down a building on a deck chair lmao.

I think the most surprising thing I got out from this movie was the plot around Sonoko and Makoto. It was a convulted one imo. Was honestly any of what happened to them worth the effort, ya know? I have my doubts. But the movie writer managed to convince me of their relationship in under two hours, the way the overall series hasn't managed in all the episodes I've seen so far. They are precious and ridiculous. Truly meant for each other.

Overall, I had such a good time! I'm still in such high spirits, it's a rush. While I can admit that with this cast, it was another fanservise movie for the ages. But at least this time I could suspend my disbelief way way easier~ 😁

[yzkhr]

Love Language miniseries for Shinran!

I dedicate this corny and cringe worthy miniseries to @meitanteisachi for giving me inspiration through her gifset and her wonderful fanfictions.

-

Acts of Service- a language that can best be described as doing something for your partner that you know they would like, such as filling up their gas, watering their plants, or cooking them a meal.

"Not sick, huh?"

Shinichi glared as Ran leaned back from the table, unamused. He was working on a difficult case in their—now only his— mansion, when she showed up unannounced after he forgot to attend school. He was wearing his school uniform but lost sense of time being too absorbed at the new case Inspector Megure gave him.

"I told you I'm fine." he avoided her scrutinizing gaze, being stubborn. Ran wouldn't have any of it however, bringing her left hand to her waist like a stressed mother.

"Fine? You're burning hot and your face is even redder than a traffic light!" she argued and his face produced an even darker shade, acknowledged.

He wanted to protest and retaliate how can it not be when she literally put her face in front of his without any sort of warning, brushing his unruly bangs upwards with her soft hand and letting their foreheads touch as he froze while she remained unbothered.

The detective restrained himself however, not wanting any further embarrassment to occur.

He heard a sigh from Ran, forcing him to turn around. She was now arranging the stack of messy papers and documents, bringing them to side.

"Oi, what are you doing?" he frowned as he stood up from the swivel chair and held Ran's hand to stop her. It didn't go unnoticed how Shinichi flinched at the coldness of her skin.

Ran eyed their physical contact before giving him a stern gaze.

"I'm fixing all of these so you can rest. You won't be touching files until your fever's gone." she effortlessly shook his hand away, continuing.

"Ran, I told you I'm fine. I have to end this case cause if I don't---"

"Then you can let Megure-keibu and the other officers to handle it until you're well again." she was consistent at putting all the paperwork aside, not even sparing a glance.

"I told you I'm fine didn't I? It's just a fever."

Finally done with her task, Ran faced him with an expression that resembled his mother way too much for his own comfort.

"You're not fine. You have a horrible fever and along with it is a terrible headache. You didn't actually expect to read all of these with those blurry eyes of yours, did you?"

She squinted, gesturing at more than fifty papers on the side. He opened his mouth to deny her claims but retreated seeing her eyes squint even more, as if challenging him to lie. Ran was right. He'd been trying to ignore the throbbing of his head and the haze in his vision while reading through the entire case.

He sighed as his misty eyes finally having the time to observe her. She was still wearing their uniform, which means she went here as soon as classes were over. He suddenly remembered an important thing.

"Wait, don't you have an upcoming Karate competition? You have training everyday after school right?" he smirked internally, finding out a plot hole.

But instead of seeing a look of panic and rushing out the of the doorway like Shinichi expected her to do, Ran simply grabbed his hand towards the door making his cheeks turn red out of surprise and something he would never dare name of.

"I'll just skip it for today. Besides, I have something more important to take care of." she squeezed his warm hand, hinting what—or who— important thing she meant.

Blushing even more at the implication certainly did not make his illness any better.

-

After a few stumble here and there, they finally got to the bedroom in one piece. Minutes seemed like an eternity, with his headache feeling like he was being hammered. He was freezing and sweating at the same time not knowing if he should undress or add more layers. It was good thing that Ran immediately slumped Shinichi down the bed, and started removing his blazer.

Wait, what?

"Umm..." he spoke weakly, but still complying and accepting her help. He thought that she was done but she suddenly kneeled in front of him and leaned in, making Shinichi hyper aware of everything around him. Her hands went straight to his uniform which he did not predict. She was now untying his neck tie, making their faces inches apart. She was so close that he could feel her breathing at the open part of his longsleeve. Despite his mind telling him not to, Shinichi's eyes went directly to her face, which seemed too focused at her task, with her slightly furrowed eyebrows and violet orbs concentrated at undoing the knots. He would never admit it, but Ran looked too innocent and pure that it was killing him.

It didn't help that her scent was literally intoxicating him. A combination of honey and lemon, Shinichi noticed. Flustered and a bit shameful, he looked up,having butterflies in his stomach with his childhood friends' soft and nimble hands slowly removing the fabric from his neck.

He jolted awake when she begins unbuttoning his polo however. On instinct, Shinichi took a hold of her hands before they can go further. Shocked and confused, Ran looked up.

"I," he breathed heavily. "I think I can do this myself, Ran."

As if broken by a spell. Her face instantaneously turned crimson red at the realization that Shinichi might have thought she was the one with the fever. She stood up straight away, turning around and making a beeline to the door. She had been uptight all day that he was a bit glad the usual Ran came back.

He wanted to laugh at her reaction but was too tired to do so. Even slightly moving drained him, but it didn't mean he wasn't capable of undressing himself.

"I-I'm sorry! I got lost in my thoughts! I'm going downstairs!" she squeaked and left in an instant, closing the door with a loud thud.

Now alone, Shinichi struggled to move his shaking hands to undo the buttons. After a few more attempts, he was finally able to fully strip and drag himself to the closet. Nauseated and feeling like the world weighed on his shoulders, he randomly put on a white pajama and went straight to his bed, curling a bit like a kitten. His eyelids getting heavier and heavier, Shinichi closed his eyes, immediately falling asleep.

-

"Shinichi? Shinichi?"

Hearing a faint voice from behind, Shinichi turned around languidly and opened his eyes, meeting a concerned Ran.

"Hmm?" he hummed, still sleep deprived.

She brought up a steaming hot bowl of food, smiling.

"I cooked you chicken soup. Sit up, you have to eat." she ordered gently.

Despite feeling pain all over his body, he obeyed, knowing that he needed energy. Sitting up groggily, Shinichi faced his caretaker.

Ran sat beside the empty space of his bed, chicken soup in her hand. He frowned at the sight of the food.

"You still cooked my favorite style? Even though you know I won't be able to taste it anyway?" she shrugged as a response, bringing a spoonful near her and blowing weakly.

"Well, you might not be able to taste it but your stomach will surely enjoy it, so why not?" something in his chest swelled after hearing such words. Still, he kept it to himself.

After a few more blows, Ran brought the spoon near his mouth, gesturing for him to eat it. Face flushing and coughing slightly, Shinichi took a bite at the soup. Albeit tasteless, he couldn't help but smile mildy, knowing the effort put in.

Ran laughed a little looking at him as well, but said nothing and continued feeding him.

After five minutes or so, the bowl was finally empty. She told him that he could have just ate half but Shinichi argued that he was hungry(he really wasn't but he would never stand having a food Ran cooked for him go to waste but he'll die before she even find that out).

He was now inclining back to the comfort of his own bed when Ran spoke.

"Seriously, don't overwork yourself Shinichi." she berated, masking her worry with exaggeration as she arranged the plate and the soup, slowly making her way outside.

"I wasn't, I just got a little busy that's all." her saw how Ran rolled her eyes at his excuse as she replied.

"A little busy? You rarely get sick. I was so close to believing you were invincible to fevers." he scoffed at her remark, being defeated with yet another fact. Maybe the pain he felt was a lot worse than he expected.

"Look, I'm glad that you're trying to save as many people as you can but you also can't forget about yourself." he winced at the obvious disappointment and seriousness of her scolding. Instead of meeting her gaze that bore holes into him, he averted his stare into the lamp.

"I'm fine."

"No you're not. And besides, if you don't take care of you, think of all the people that will need you but won't have you." he stayed quiet, getting her point. Shinichi knew it was irrational being stubborn and pushing himself to the limits but he just couldn't help it. He may be a cocky bastard as a lot of people call him, but he wasn't someone that can stand not being able to help when he clearly can.

He sighed, giving in.

"Fine. I promise I'll take better care of myself." his answer seemed to satisfy Ran as she smiled contently.

"Good." as he heard the creaking of the doorframe, Shinichi instinctively flipped his head towards the sound.

"You're leaving?"

He didn't know why, but an infallible amount of upset coursed through him at the thought of Ran leaving. She paused by the door and looked back, inclining her head to the side.

"You want me to stay?" she teased in a light-hearted manner, making Shinichi's cheeks flushed.

"N-no, just wondering.." he played it cool by keeping his voice even, now being reminded how pathetic he must have sounded like asking her if she was leaving.

"I'll stay. After all, someone has to make sure a certain mystery otaku doesn't go back to the library just because he's feeling a little better."

He glared at her jesting and turned to the other side, lying down.

"Barou, it's not like I can do that with my entire body in pain."

Ran laughed, knowing she annoyed him enough.

"Then that's more reason for me to stay right?"

Before he can even think of a reply, she already closed the door and all Shinichi could hear were the sound of her shoes walking downstairs and the erratical beating of his heart he hoped was a side effect of the fever and not..... entirely something else.

[trouvelle]

I love all your Heizuha contents!!!! Oneshots, drabbles, etc (memes too lol). And your ANGST FICS???? I'M DESTROYED. Just curious, if you are accepting requests, can you write happy shinran and heizuha oneshot? I need something to heal from your angsty AUs 😢😢😢😢💦💦

Hi hello thank you so much 🥺 AH YES HEIZUHA I’m HEART-EYES FOREVER 😍!! My hot-blooded Kendo boi and his Aikido (and Karuta) queen ugh they make me feel so soft. Wait—don’t be destroyed pls omg I have a shinran oneshot first for you right here! And yes it actually is a happy one. Although I gotta say I’m probably even worse at doing happy sappy fluff. But still, I hope you like this! ❤️❤️

Fandom: Detective Conan/DCMK Pairing: Shinichi/Ran Rating: G Genre/Tags: Romance, Fluff Summary: Ran hates being apart from Shinichi. All she wants is to feel his warmth next to her. 

•

Ran is happy to be with Shinichi, even if it means not being physically together and having to survive long distance.

Now she would be lying if she says it doesn’t bother her in the slightest. After they got together and she finds out that Shinichi still has to leave for his ongoing case, her initial thought is that it wouldn’t bother her. She’s grown so used to it by now. It’s not like he’s never coming back, because he always does. After all, they just started dating, and maybe this way they’ll still be in their honeymoon stage for years to come.

They have been doing alright with frequent calls and texts sent to each other. Although she is slightly upset that they can’t physically go out on any dates, hearing Shinichi’s voice always makes everything worth it. She knows she’s going to forget all this as soon as she sees him again.

She does expect Shinichi to be as sad and lonely as she is, but she never asks about it. She doesn’t want him to think that she’s already turning clingy after only a few months into their relationship. And because she is an understanding girlfriend, she never tells him how she feels about it. She has been saying “I love you” more often though, now that she’s more comfortable saying it, which he always happily returned. She never once doubts Shinichi either—he gives her zero reasons to. Besides, they have short meet ups every now and then, and those feel like they are enough for her.

There are certain things that leaves her feeling an extra amount of longing. When she sees couples out and about in the streets, or strolling around the park, or fooling around in the hallway of their school, it breaks her heart a little. She wants Shinichi by her side, to be able to cuddle into his warmth. She wants to walk next to him and hold his hand, to go to the movies and check out cute restaurants.

“I miss you,” Ran mumbles into her mic, only one side of her earphones on. She is lying on her bed, on a call with her boyfriend who is still away, on yet another case. She has to cherish all their calls together because time is all she can afford.

She traces her finger on her phone’s screen, outlining his name that’s currently displayed, yearning to touch him. She can't help but feel disappointed when all she can feel is how hot her phone is. She should probably get a new phone soon. 

“I miss you too. More than words can describe,” Shinichi replies guiltily, sad that Ran is so troubled. He has been trying to ease her pain by sneaking away to call her more often these days. He sees the longing in her eyes, always wondering what he can do for her. He hates it, hates seeing Ran’s face contort into sadness and what seems like disappointment. It never gets any easier. 

If only she knows that they are actually together literally every single day.

“Anyway, how is your day?” Shinichi asked, trying to change the subject to distract her. 

Ran huffs. “Conan-kun left on a weekend camping trip with his class. I’m worried about his safety. They’re elementary students, they’re not supposed to go camping in the mountains yet!”

Shinichi smiles fondly. Yep, he’s definitely on his camping trip all right.

“Also, it is kind of lonely here when he’s not around.” Lonelier, she adds to herself.

“You have nothing to worry about, I’m sure he’ll be okay,” Shinichi reassures, grinning.

“I suppose it’s true. Conan-kun does know how to take care of himself. What are you doing, anyway? Do you have to go soon? Can we switch to video call?” The hope in her voice is unmistakable. He purposely ignores Ran’s questions while wrecking his brain for a believable excuse to not switch to video call. But it is too late, she has already pressed the button that requested for him to accept the call.

Uh oh.

Shinichi curses silently. As soon as their cameras are on, he raises his phone up close to his face, careful to leave the streetlights out of view. “Hi!,” he says, hoping she wouldn’t detect the nervousness in his voice. Ran squints at the blurry screen. She can’t see much, but it is enough to make her whole evening better.

“You know what, Shinichi? It’s okay, you’re probably busy and tired, I understand! Have a good night or morning, wherever you are, okay?” Ran yawns, turning to lie on the other side as she reaches out to switch off her table lamp. “I’m already getting ready for bed anyway. Please stay safe out there. I love you.” 

“NO!” Shinichi yells, before realizing how loud and unnecessary it is. He stops to look around, praying that no one around him is affected by the noise he is making. Ran is decently surprised. “Shinichi, what’s wrong?”

“I, uh, I’m staking out a criminal’s possible hideout. It’s really boring here because nothing is happening so far and it’s probably deserted. Keep me me while I wait?” Shinichi asks sheepishly, belatedly realizing how dumb of an excuse he just gave. Is it even believable in the slightest? “I’m just walking around the place now,” He adds as he quickened his pace. 

Ran yawns but he can see her nodding her head in the dark. “Don’t you have to be aware of your surroundings, though? What if the bad guys creep up on you?”

“You’re right,” he says half-heartedly, not really paying attention to what she’s saying anymore. He’s trying to climb up the stairs as fast as his feet can take him. He is so close.

Ran mumbles something sleepily in return. How she wishes for body heat, but she only had her blanket to make up for the warmth. She closes her eyes, unaware that the line has gone silent. After a few more beats of silence, she hears the front door being unlocked. She sits up, suddenly alert and forgetting about her call with Shinichi. It is definitely not her father, since she can hear his snores very audibly from his room. Is it Conan, coming back from his camping trip a few days early? But—it’s literally the middle of the night, so if it actually is Conan, he has some explaining to do. She tip-toes to the door just to get ready in case it is an actual robber.

As the door unlocks and the intruder enters, Ran’s eyes widen and her hand flails around for the switch to turn one of the lights one as she recognizes the familiar silhouette. It can't be.

“Surprise.” Shinichi is standing there, smiling widely at the sight of his dumbfounded girlfriend.

Ran stares at the boy in front of her for a good while before reaching out for him in a frenzy. “You’re kidding,” she chokes out, wrapping her arms tightly around him, afraid he will be gone again as soon as she let go. 

“I’ve missed you too,” Shinichi sighs, hugging Ran back just as tight. They stand like that, hugging at the door silently, choosing to ignore the fact that her father can very well walk out of his room at any given moment. Shinichi pulls away, frowning, when he realizes that she is crying.

“Hey, don’t cry.” He whispers softly, bending his knees to look at Ran who has her head down. She shakes her head, opting to bury her face in his chest instead. Shinichi run his hands up and down her back, gently kissing the top of her head. “Don’t cry, I’m here.”

Ran looks up, a few droplets of tears streaming down her face. “That’s exactly why I’m crying! You’re back now, for.. God knows how long, and then you’re gonna have to leave me again. Probably in a few hours, or in the morning if we’re lucky,” she cries, sniffling. “I’ve missed you so much.”

Shinichi remains quiet as Ran cries her heart out in silence. Then, he very gently lifts her up, carrying her to the bedroom and setting her down on the bed. “Actually, I have a few days to spend with you.”

“Wh-what do you mean?”

“I mean, you’re right. And I’m not gonna lie to you, I will have to leave again, but not until Monday. So.. I’m yours for the whole weekend.” Shinichi says, hoping for her acceptance, despite how little he is offering her right now.

“The whole weekend?” Her smile is back on her face at this point. Sounds like she will just have to make the most out of this weekend, then. It’s a good thing she doesn’t have anything yet planned. She wipes the tears off of her face. She can’t waste their time together by crying like this. “Oh Shinichi, there are so many places that I wanted to go with you to!”

“We can go anywhere you want,” says Shinichi. That already sounds perfect to him. Truth be told, any moments spent with Ran were perfect. The Where and What weren’t all that important. Like right now. Even in the dim light, he can see how bright she’s smiling. God, all he wanted to do is stare at her and admire her beauty, amongst everything else.

He hates lying to Ran, although it is done to protect her, to shield her. He will have to lie to her some more, but this time, he does not want to make any more promises he can't keep. “It will all be over soon, I promise. I’ll come home for good.” You’re my home, he wants to say.

She has missed him so much—she missed his voice, his scent, his warmth, his presence. She crawls towards him, unable to hide the overwhelming sense of hope that arises after his declaration. “Really?”

“Really.” Ran can feel the tears welling up again. This time, out of happiness. “It hurts so much to not be able to be by your side.”

“I’m here,” murmurs Shinichi quietly as he reaches out to wipe some of her fallen tears away with the pad of his thumb. “... and I’m always watching.” he adds quietly, wrapping an arm around her as he hugs her to sleep.

Ran nods in silence. She has so many things to tell him, but she is content with just enjoying his warmth and presence beside her for now. Truly, nothing can compare to the homey feeling and the familiarity of being next to Shinichi. She lets him hold her to sleep, his voice a lullaby that carries her out of consciousness.

“I’m always with you,” he whispers, leaning down to kiss her forehead, “There’s nowhere I’d rather be.”

[purplellamanator]

Hi! I saw your list and that make me so excited. My request is ShinRan for Arranged or Foreign Thank you

Thanks so much for the ask anon!! I really enjoyed doing this one. Of course it got a little out of hand cause I have no self control so it is extremely long! Further in the story you’ll probably notice I had the other language being spoken as Japanese. I am not fluent and my knowledge of the language is very slim! Anything in the story was translated from google translate which I know is not a good source but if you notice the mistakes, I do apologize! Feel free to correct me and I will try to edit it as I go. Also, I know I say it every time but I am so sorry for the wait. I work in a pharmacy so as you can probably guess, work has been crazy during all of this covid stuff! I hope everybody is being safe and healthy and that even if it is such a small thing, that I can provide some decent entertainment for someone that is stuck in quarantine! Be safe y’all! Arranged~ Person A is royalty and has to wed. They choose Person B, and B is not happy about it

Foreign~ Person A and B have been arranged to marry to keep peace between their lands. Too bad Person B can't understand a lick of what their fiancé has to say

oOo

"It's the law."

Shinichi rolled his eyes before petulantly saying, "I thought you always said my word was law."

The old man sputtered, having his words twisted around. Finally his adviser waggled a finger at him. "Your father will not be pleased by this, Shinichi-kun!"

"Is he ever?" Shinichi shrugged uncaringly and reaching his blowing point, the adviser stormed from the room, almost knocking into the head guard as he made his leave.

Staring at where the old man had made an angry exit and back to the Prince, Hattori chuckled. "I take it you're still looking for a bride," he called casually as he entered the dining hall.

Shinichi snorted before rolling his eyes. Not bothering to acknowledge the guard, he slammed his elbow on the table and braced his chin in his palm.

"You know the more difficult you be, the longer and more painful this process will be," his friend said in a sing song voice.

Huffing, he still refused to move from his position. "I could care less how long this takes. If they're worried about that, then they should call this whole thing off."

Hattori actually full on laughed at that. "Yeah, you know that's never going to happen," he said, his lips still twitching from trying to contain his giggles.

The Prince frowned. Of course he knew that but he could always hope.

"Come on," Hattori baited as he sat himself on the armrest of the chair the Prince sat in. "What was wrong with the last one? She was pretty... Well endowed," his friend wiggled his eyebrows as his gaze shot to his chest playfully.

His friend was joking. They both knew that there was no way he'd ever settle on Princess Momiji. So spoiled, and her voice grated on his nerves. She was pretty all right but she was too aware of that fact and when she realized her womanly wiles would not work on him- she had tried them on his guard.

She was not his worst option by any means. At least she was the same age. Shinichi was not really a vain person and looks were by no means what he based his decision on, but he had no desire to marry someone that could be his mother.

"You're being too picky, Shin-chan," his actual mother griped. "Maybe I'll just choose for you."

His eyes had gone panicked at the threat. He could just imagine her choice. Bubbly, full of energy, never a quiet moment. Someone that was exactly like her. And he would sooner throw himself off his balcony then be forced to share a bed with someone like that.

There was one thing he would agree on. Shinichi was being picky. He had met just about every Princess that was eligible for marriage. And not one of them were what he wanted. None of them were all the same either. Some of them wanting as much to do with him as he wanted them. Which meant not at all. Others were all over him and he knew he would never get a moment's peace.

One thing they all had in common though- their kingdoms. Each one of them had their own laws; their own norms they needed to abide to. But for the most part, they were pretty similar to his own kingdom's and Shinichi didn't understand the point of marrying one of them when they had nothing new to offer his people.

His kingdom was not struggling. His people were flourishing; the society thriving. Which was likely why he had so many offers. Because his kingdom had so much to offer while theirs had nothing but a dowry at best. And he had no need for that. He had plenty of money. He had plenty of land.

Shinichi didn't know how to explain that- or rather he did, and everybody just didn't understand. It was out of complete desperation that he had finally made his choice however. After being summoned by the King- his father, he knew he had taken too long. If he didn't have someone in mind, then a bride would be chosen for him.

But as he stood in his father's study- staring angrily at the desk his father sat before as he practically got reprimanded, his eyes focused on the map that lay sprawled out.

"How about the kingdom in the northern islands?" The thought had hit him as he continued staring at the map- the little cluster of land that was out in the middle of the ocean.

"Northern Isles?" The King furrowed his brows before noticing his son's gaze and following it.

Shinichi could understand his father's trepidation. The Kingdom of the Islands wasn't necessarily their enemy, but they also weren't their allies. After the Great War, and the threat of other more powerful kingdoms showed their colors, they had resorted themselves to complete isolation. That being said, it was a practically unknown kingdom- an entirely other world just to the north of them.

"Getting a response- let alone a positive one, is not likely," his father still appeared confused. "That and we don't even know if they have someone that is eligible for a union with you."

The King caved however. He would send a messenger with their offer. But Shinichi had already been warned.

"If this falls through- I am choosing for you."

The threat made Shinichi sweat. Not that he didn't trust the King. He trusted him more than the Queen. It was just the idea of his choice being stripped away from him.

The plans did not fall through. The response was not quick nor was it immediate, but they had indeed responded. The only thing was, the Princess would not be leaving the islands. Not until he came to visit and presented himself formally.

And got an approval.

As promised, the King left the decision up to his son. So Shinichi packed his bags.

oOo

Though many had traveled to his kingdom in hopes of having their daughter cross his eye, this would be the first he actually had to leave his own land as a possible suitor. Not that it was unusual. It was actually quite odd that he hadn't been doing it that way. But what was more unusual was the amount of effort he was putting in. The amount of effort he was putting in on trying to woo a woman he had never met let alone seen.

Well, some didn't understand but he knew the King was able to figure it out easily.

A foreign land. A foreign kingdom. Foreign Princess. There was so much to be gained from that. Knowledge wise anyway. And since he was confident his kingdom didn't lack anything else, that's all he wanted. He didn't even care to know what the Princess looked like.

And there was so much to learn about this place. The moment they were in what was considered their waters, Shinichi could already feel it from the way the humid air just lifted. The days that he was used to in his kingdom were hot ones and sometimes even the nights. The sun was always out and blazing while there was hardly ever a rainy day to cool it down.

Here, as their ships pulled even closer, a fog seemed to surround them. But the waters were calm and the mist, relaxing. Thankfully they had no issues docking even though the fog was not something they were used to though according to his escort, was very much the norm here.

Shinichi was fascinated either way. He took in the architecture of the buildings, the way people dressed, the way people looked in general. It was so different to his own land and people. He was thankful that if anything, no matter how this meeting went, at least he had seen a place so refreshingly new. Honestly, he envies what their palace looked like and was amazed of how open it was. There were no guards and practically no doors. The buildings for the most part were without windows and if they had them, they were open wide.

And he realized, there was no fear for safety here. Everybody was so open and trusting and though he got quite a few bizarre stares, nobody looked at him in any way short of polite. Shinichi was fully amazed.

But the most baffling thing yet- he needed a translator.

"The Princess can not speak in your tongue."

Shinichi almost couldn't believe his ears. He wanted foreign but maybe this was a little too much. . . How could he marry someone that he couldn't even speak to without someone else standing there to translate for them? Of course he knew that she'd have to learn his language but . . . could he really make that work. . ?

Still, he came all this way. He would meet her. It would be rude to make such a bold offer and to just leave without a word. Not to mention his father would be furious with him and also. . . be picking his future bride if he came back alone.

Shinichi shivered at the thought.

But upon introduction, the way his breath stuttered and how he could practically feel a nervous blush crawling up his neck, was humiliating. That and his instantaneous thought.

He could make this work.

"Her highness, Princess Ran."

The translator was who pulled him out of whatever reverie he had been trapped in and hurriedly, he snapped his mouth shut after having realized it was slightly agape. Stumbling over himself, he quickly bowed his head forward in respect as well as gave a greeting that he could briefly hear being translated to both monarchs.

It was at the quick quip that the Princess replied back that had him looking up slightly from his still bowing position. Of course he didn't understand a word she said but from her tone. . . he could guess. Still, he found himself looking to the translator expectantly.

The man cleared his throat awkwardly. "Uh. . The Princess welcomes you and your guests. Says she prays you had a safe journey." His eyes were not meeting the Prince's as he spoke.

Yeah- that was definitely not what she said . . . Even now, she was glaring at him with such discontent till finally as if getting sick of looking at him, she looked away, turning her nose up.

Figures. The one Princess he thought he could actually tolerate and she wanted nothing to do with him.

oOo

After their initial meeting and at the refusal of his escort to translate anything the Princess actually said, dinner was a . . tense affair. The King and his wife were welcoming enough. Albeit they obviously didn't trust his intentions quite yet but they hadn't showed any outward malice like their daughter had. It also probably didn't help his image in their eyes if the Princess couldn't even bare to say something the slightest bit kind to him.

Even though it would all have to be said through his escort, Shinichi tried to begin any conversation with her. And each time the translator would look at him almost tired, as if asking if Shinichi were really going to make him try to talk to her again. Shinichi couldn't very well respond properly if he didn't know what she was actually saying to him. It was clear she didn't think highly of him and that the escort was merely trying to keep them cordial. He knew they were aware of how influential his kingdom was and it was clear he didn't want their Princess to risk making him angry with her disrespect. But he couldn't fix what he didn't know.

It was exhausting. And the language barrier was making it all the more frustrating. He was a full day in and had somehow angered the very woman he had basically already proposed to. Shinichi wanted to yell at the escort to cut the formalities- to just tell him what the Princess was saying. Before he could have the chance though, she was already spouting words that sounded as aggravated as she looked. The King responded in kind with the same amount of annoyance but this time, directed at his daughter.

Shinichi could only watch, lost.

The translator gave another uncomfortable cough. "The Princess is not feeling well. She apologizes, but she'd like to take her leave."

Shinichi was pretty sure she wasn't sorry at all but still, he nodded his head slowly while looking at her. "I hope she feels better."

If possible, she seemed even more angry with his response and in a huff, she was spinning out of her chair and exiting the dining hall.

Not long after that, they all excused themselves. Of course his escort showed him to his room. But Shinichi couldn't help but want to wander- though at the moment it may not of been a good idea. He was in foreign lands as it was and already things were tense between him and the Princess. He didn't want to aggravate the situation even more by offending their hospitality- though he'd say what the Princess showed him could hardly be called that.

That line of thinking lasted till he woke up early morning. He was usually a late sleeper but he figured due to the unknown environment, his body woke him up sooner than usual. And he sat in his designated room for about thirty minutes before he concluded that this wasn't going to work.

The Princess already showed she held no interest in his proposal- which was disappointing but there was nothing he could do to change that. The woman wouldn't even look at him unless she had to. So Shinichi figured he'd soak up this opportunity as much as possible for as long as he could. He was only invited to be here for a week, which would shorten if they gave him a response to his proposal earlier. He already had a feeling he'd be turned away so there was no use on dwelling about it or worrying if he'd upset her further. This was a new place for him- a new Kingdom. They spoke another language, held different customs. He would experience everything within his reach before he was forced to leave.

He was up, dressed, and wandering the palace halls in no time.

Again, he couldn't help but be struck by the beauty that went into the kingdom itself. Natural light flooded their halls but the fact there were no windows allowed the cool breeze from outside to flow through easily. Shinichi couldn't believe how . . . open everything was. Had they never had to deal with a threat before? To not even have guards walking around the halls- it amazed as well as reassured him. It was nice for once not to have someone breathing down his neck constantly.

This all was almost like a vacation. A vacation to get him a wife . . . but still-a vacation! He hadn't had one of those in . . well ever. The past few years had been his parents scrambling to get him engaged. As the days passed on, the scrambling got more hectic when they realized he was not making it easy.

But here, it was so open. For once he could experience a nice, sunny day without it being unbearably hot outside. And he had hardly got to experience the town when he arrived. He had been hurriedly rushed to the Palace but that was mostly by his guards wanting to get him somewhere secure. Now that no one was there however, he wondered to one of the larger windows.

He was not insane enough to take a leap from this high up but from this vantage point he could at least look upon what he had walked right by. And it was. . tiny. Not tiny in a bad way but compared to where he lived, the town was so small and quiet. And underdeveloped. But again- that wasn't in a bad way. It was fitting to the kingdom he was standing in. There were more trees and it was all colorful. There were even more animals which had him surprised. Again, his town was too large and noisy for anything to want to come close. And that was if he could ever see over the giant stone wall that served as a barrier between him and his people.

There was no barrier here. And he envied that.

Wind brushing his hair, the tree that was just beside the window finally caught his eye. Like everything else that was outside, it was so bright and full of color. It was filled with vibrant purple flowers that he definitely had never seen before. They were . . breathtaking. And he had never been one to care about such things but even he found his hand reaching out.

He wanted to take one. See if he could possibly press it into his journal to take back home. He had never seen any flower with such bright petals and he was curious if someone at home would be able to identify it for him. Someone he could ask without the use of that terrible translator.

Suddenly someone was yelling out. And from the way he was all alone, he could only assume it was directed at him. Before he could even look over though, his hand that had been leaning forward was roughly slapped and had him stumbling back in shock. Hand ringing from the sharp sting, it was probably funny how he stared at it- eyes wide and blinking.

No one had ever raised a hand to him.

Staring intently where he had been hit, he saw that it was already turning a scorching red and swelling. It honestly hadn't hurt. It was just startling. And finally looking at just who had hit him, he was even more stunned.

"Sorera ni furenaide kudasai!"

The Princess. She was yelling at him looking absolutely furious to the point tears were brimming her eyes. She was angry and that was all he could understand because he still couldn't speak her damn language. For her to slap him though he must've been about to do something awful.

Rubbing his sore hand, he glanced back at the flower he had been about to pluck and realized he had probably greatly offended her. Shinichi had been to other kingdoms where it was forbidden to remove anything from their land- places where they worshiped the actual ground they stood on and it was a crime to simply pull a flower off its branch. Foolishly he thought he'd been alone but he should've known that in a palace, there were eyes everywhere.

When he started rubbing the red flesh attempting to sooth away the sting she gave him, that must've been when she realized what she had done. Even for her it was wildishly outlandish of her to be so forward enough to hit him.

Her violet eyes got huge and she looked almost frightened. He noticed her swallow hard as if gulping before all he could see was the crown of her head, her pretty brunette hair sliding down her shoulders to hang low.

She was bowing. And saying the same thing over and over repeatedly.

"Gomen nasai! Gomen nasai! Gomen nasai!"

She was apologizing for hitting him. He didn't need to know exactly what she was saying to get that much. But honestly, he didn't even care that she did. His first instinct had told him he was the that should kneel and grovel. He was the one that was wondering around a foreign palace as a guest and with no regard to their laws or customs. Watching her panic though, he could only freeze up. He had not been expecting her to say sorry. She wasn't stopping though and it was beginning to make him uncomfortable.

"Uh. . R-Ran-?" Shinichi asked uneasily to get her attention. He did not know anything about her kingdom or their titles but he was sure if he used his own from his home she would've been confused. But he cut himself off when he realized that calling her by her first name alone definitely would've been offensive. That and her name sounded so odd on his tongue. Even with it not being his own language, he knew he sounded every bit the foreigner when he just said her name alone. It probably sounded as awkward as it felt for him to say it.

At his nervous call though, she definitely detected her name somewhere in there because she straightened abruptly to look at him with a red face.

"Don't apologize. I'm sorry," he said belatedly forgetting that she couldn't understand a word he said. When he could practically see the question mark on her face, he looked back at the flower pointedly before pressing his palms together in front of his face as if praying. "I'm sorry." He said that three times as she had done to hopefully get the meaning across as well as he bowed his head slightly.

When he finally looked her in the eye again, she was watching him intently; curiously. She was thinking about something, probably a way to speak where he could actually get what she was saying. She looked both troubled and frustrated that she couldn't properly communicate with him. To make it easier on him, he pointed back to the flower and everything else that was within his reach.

"I won't touch anything," he said firmly as he held his hands up in a defensive gesture. He assumed that's what she had been trying to tell him. That he was not allowed to touch anything that wasn't explicitly handed to him. But when she frowned he got the feeling he was wrong that or he had completely lost her.

Softly she said something, that of course, he could not understand. Her pointing finger at the flower he had just been about to touch gave him a clue though. That as well as why she actually stopped him earlier when she was taking that same pointing finger and dragging it across her neck in a straight horizontal line.

"Shi."

The very obvious and universal symbol for dead.

His eyes widened a bit at she continued to speak. If he hadn't just had the sudden realization he almost died from touching a flower, he would've found it amusing that her tone seemed kind of slow. As if not talking as fast would still help him comprehend another language. But again, he could guess. She was probably explaining what the flower was and how it would've killed him.

It made him frown because he really was curious. He would have to ask once she learned English. That and why did they have a flower that was so deadly, practically inside their palace walls where anybody could make his mistake.

Realizing his mind had already assumed and gotten used to the idea of her leaving with him to his home made him want to slap himself. There was no confirmation yet. If anything he'd probably get the opposite. It was hard not to think that though when she was looking at him for the first time without any malice or disdain. Sure it took him almost dying to get that, but at least it meant she didn't truly hate him. If anything she looked concerned.

That was when he realized her earlier expression of what he thought had been anger hadn't been that at all. It was similar to the one she was staring at him with now. It was panic- worry. Panic that he was that dumb and worried he almost touched a deadly plant. He almost died and wondered what his face looked like as he came to that conclusion.

He really wouldn't touch anything after this.

The Princess seemed to have other ideas. Suddenly she started speaking again and pointing out the window. The blank expression he gave her hopefully showed that he didn't understand but just in case he was sure to tell her that.

Looking outside where she was pointing, he looked back at her drawing a total blank. "I don't understand," he shook his head while shrugging. Hopefully they would be able to communicate through these small gestures. She'd have no way of knowing what he really said but she'd at least be able to guess.

Ran only grinned, probably expecting that. Alarming him, with a soft hand, she gently grabbed his own. His face immediately got a small blush but as he looked at her in shock he realized it wasn't nearly as crimson as her own. By the way it kept getting darker, he knew she was aware that he was watching her intently. She wouldn't look at him though and simply pulled him forward. Her tug wasn't forceful or hard though as her significantly tinier fingers latched onto his palm.

If he had been paying attention to anything but her pretty face, he would've noticed what she was doing a lot sooner. It wasn't till his fingers were brushing against something light and smooth that he looked away.

She had placed his palm on another plant. It was attached to some vines that seemed to coil around the window. This one looked simpler and not nearly as intriguing as the deathly one he had been about to grab, but it was something new all the same and was still able to fascinate him. But when she started rubbing his hand into the petals and in doing so rubbing her hand against his- he recoiled and snapped his hand out from under hers.

Face scorching, it was his turn to swallow in nervousness as he took a small step back. Though he knew she would not understand, he couldn't help but ask, "What are you doing?" He didn't know if it was good or bad that she only stared up at him with the most innocent look. It was clear she didn't get why he pulled away. Was that normal to . . . touch people . . like that. . . ?

But then she was laughing and pressing her own palm into the leaves, rubbing her fingers delicately over the petals. When she was done, she stepped forward till she was almost chest to chest with him. Her proximity was starting to make him anxious again but she didn't seem to be as affected. Before he could attempt to move back, she was holding her hands up to him, palms facing upward.

Confused, he didn't really know what to do. Was she asking him to kiss her hand like that snob Princess Momiji? But then she was shoving her fingers forward, as if telling him to hurry up. She kept nudging her head giving him the go ahead sign but it was only when her palm was just under his nose that he understood.

Forgetting his nervousness for a moment, he leaned down slightly towards her awaiting hands. Curiously, he sniffed the tops of her fingers.

His eyes shot open.

"Vanilla?" He questioned completely surprised and also completely forgetting she probably wouldn't understand.

But surprising him, she nodded her head happily. "Banira!" She had a happy smile spread across her face.

Well at least they both understood one word.

Proving his earlier assumptions wrong though, not wasting a second she broke the flower from its tangled vine and held it out to him expectantly. Since he had been thinking it was a crime for him to take such a thing, he only stared at it suspiciously. But her hand shoving closer to him forced him to grab it.

She must've realized he wanted to take one. Twirling the flower by the stem, he looked at it before flicking his gaze back to her. "It's pretty," he complimented to the gift she gave him.

The Princess's head was tilting to the side again in her confusion. "P-pretty. . . ?" Her voice stumbled over the word uncomfortably; her accent twisting it cutely.

Shinichi nodded before nudging his head at her. "Pretty," he said addressing her like an example of the meaning before looking at the flower again. "Pretty," he repeated.

She wasn't getting it. Her brows scrunched as a small frown turned down her lips. But as far as he was concerned it wasn't important to address any of that. Especially if it would be embarrassing for him the moment she did understand. Instead he thanked her for her gift, sticking to his charades to hopefully get their meaning across.

oOo

After his brief and almost fatal exploration, she was kind and escorted him to the dining hall where they could be served breakfast. The moment he was in sight, the translator had been attached to him, almost panicking and wondering where he had been for the entire morning.

Shinichi was never one to lie. He was upfront and explained that he had walked around. Of course he left out the part where the Princess slapped him and just . . . the Princess in general. When they had started talking, he hadn't even been thinking.

It was incredibly offensive to just be walking around alone with a Princess- especially one you had proposed to. They were both unaccompanied and since he didn't know their customs very well, it would probably be best to assume that that was the same no matter what kingdom he journeyed to. As way of excuse for walking in with her, he explained that they had run into each other just outside the door. The translator didn't seem to care to question it and wanting to get further away from the topic, he asked to be shown a tour.

His escort knew a lot, Shinichi could tell. But the man mostly seemed focused on explaining their laws. Some of their customs were bizarre. They had . . female guards. It wasn't unheard of for a woman to want to become a knight in his kingdom but it seldom ever happened. They didn't grow up with the same league and in most cases, fell behind and became outclassed. Here, it seemed it may have almost been the opposite.

"The Princess took some lessons herself," the translator boasted proudly and Shinichi's brows raised further. It was odd enough for a woman to do such things but a Princess?  But now that the topic had reverted to Ran, he became curious.

"Princess Ran," he started slowly while looking at his feet as he trailed along beside his escort. "Why does she dislike me so much?" He knew it was bold of him to ask such a question so outright but he didn't know how else to get a straight answer. The Princess herself would probably tell him if she could but with their language barrier that obviously wasn't a possibility.

Like he knew it would, the subject made the translator uncomfortable. He did not want to address this topic and Shinichi was pretty sure it was because he didn't want to upset nor offend another monarch from another kingdom. The Prince didn't say anything however and simply waited for a response.

When he thought he wouldn't be getting an answer and that the translator looked like he wanted to claim he himself couldn't understand, the man sighed in defeat. "She doesn't like how . . . popular you are," his escort said a little unsurely.

Shinichi's brows raised. That had not been what he was expecting and he was honestly confused by the response. They were royalty. Weren't they all popular in their own right?

The translator winced. "That wasn't the best way to say that. You must understand your language is not my first," he apologized. "It's not you necessarily that she doesn't like. It's what your kingdom represents."

He still wasn't following. His face must've shown that because the older man looked troubled trying to think of the vocabulary to get his point across.

"Your kingdom is known far and wide, Prince. Even in our isolated state we knew of you. Her being an eligible maiden, our King was also aware you were looking for a bride."

"So she does not want to be married . . . ?" Shinichi questioned doing his best to understand.

"The Princess does not want to change," the man clarified. "She knows that if she were to marry you, she would have to leave with you; not meaning just her home. She would have to abandon her customs, her laws- her language."

Suddenly it all made sense to him. And all at once he felt like a jerk. But at the same time, he also felt like he was extremely misunderstood. He had no intention of forcing her to conform. He had no desire to change her. Yes, if they were to be wed, she'd have to learn the language of his home. But that didn't mean he wanted to completely eradicate her own. Because if they were married, it would no longer be just his home or her home. It would be their home.

Maybe his intentions hadn't been clear enough.

When he happened to find her alone again, he came at her like an explosion.

"I don't want you to change!" His voice was raised and he probably looked angry. It wasn't at all surprising that she took a step back. He was probably scaring her. But he took the same step forward and noticing she had a book in her hands, he pulled it from her without even thinking.

She gave a startled gasp but did not fight him. Again, she looked like she wanted to put some distance between them. But he wouldn't allow her to. Much like she had done to him yesterday, he snatched her hand into his own and tugged her closer.

He wasn't thinking clearly. If he had been he would’ve stopped the moment he heard her small yelp but he just wanted her to understand him. She thought wrongly of him and he wanted to correct that image of him. He wanted to change the incorrect assumptions she created about him.

Taking her palm that was latched in his own, he forced her fingers onto the page that was wide open; the page she had been reading before he rudely bombarded her. "Teach me," he said completely serious, his eyes staring into hers intently. "I want to learn."

He knew she was probably still freaked out and had no idea what he was saying. She probably thought he was losing his mind, which he very well might be. He just snatched a book she had been reading and started yelling at her in a language she could not understand.

But when she finally glanced up to meet his gaze, his breath hitched. She had been staring bizarrely at where he had forced her hand, but once she was looking at him directly, she didn't look frightened anymore. She looked incredulous and still a little unsure.

"Your language," he reiterated slowly while also pantomiming and gesturing to the writing that was very clearly in a language he could not discern- her language. Then he was pointing at his chest that was heaving from how worked up he had gotten. "I want to learn."

[detectiveran]

What about prompt 135 😗👀👀👀?

#135: “I know that people usually kiss under mistletoe but... I had other things planned.”

Prompt list here.

So here ya go. AU. Hope you like it anon!

College had been a whirlwind of opportunities. He got to experience a lot of stuff he didn’t imagine himself having. Drinking alcohol, partying all night long, bunking classes and just goofing around with his friends, all normal stuff for many people but to him, they were all new experiences. Being raised by strict, traditionalist parents didn’t offer him a leeway to just enjoy. Not like all of his peers were. 

So, yeah, college was full of new and exciting. Romance and sex were still eluding him though. Well, it wasn’t as if he was actively looking out for them. Not when he had a good reason not to. His peers on the other hands, loved the girls. Apparently, girls in colleges were a different breed than the high school ones. They were more experimental, more prone to going out, more confident and sexy, yada yada yada. Shinichi tuned them out. He wasn’t interested. At all.

His friends found him weird for his stoic stance when it came to dating and relationships. He truly didn’t give a fuck if a girl asked him or not or if he looked good or anything of that sort. And so, it irked them even more when girls would go for Shinichi rather than them. His devil-may-care attitude was attractive to the girls. Well, so was his face and body. Shinichi was a soccer player and his athletic build had attracted a lot of attention. He was extremely intelligent and always helpful. He should have and could have been the it guy on the campus but he wasn’t. And he chose not to be that guy. Something was truly wrong with his head, they concluded. 

Or.

Or he had a girlfriend already and he wasn’t willing to spill the deets to them. Well, he had another thing coming if he thought he would be keeping this girlfriend of his a secret. And so, the light questioning and slight stalking began. He went out to eat alone? There they were, hiding behind a building, sometimes in the same restaurant as him, disguised in itchy wigs and sunglasses. He was busy on his phone? There they were, looking over his shoulders, trying to figure out who this ‘R’ person was whom Shinichi texted a lot.

When all was said and done, he was very private. He didn’t flaunt his personal life like some guys did. He rejected all blind and group dates, choosing to stay in, no matter how much they begged him. They reached their limit when the queen of their university, Takeyama Haru, had straight up asked him out and he had the audacity to say “Thank you, but, no” to her face. 

What. The. Fuck. Was. That?

Who turned out the black haired, blue eyes, porcelain skinned, legs running for miles, her body shaped like an hourglass, her trance inducing gait Takeyama Haru down? And that too, so quickly? The asshole didn’t even give her a second to breathe before he rejected her.

Yamaguchi, Satoshi and Kirishima had their theories on his rejection. Number one theory: He was gay. It was strongly rejected when they deliberated on it though. He had never shown any romantic or sexual interest in other guys. Some theories on him being closeted were thrown out but they doubted it. Shinichi, himself, had very progressive views and they doubted that if he were gay he would hide it.

Second theory: He was aromantic or asexual and didn’t care about love or sexual attraction. They were leaning more towards it. The boy was infallible. No amount of beautiful girls and guys, in some instances, would ruffle his feathers. He had shown no interest in anyone in a romantic or sexual sense since the six months they had started to attend university and at that point, they had assured themselves that Shinichi was in fact asexual or aromantic. They never asked him though, silently vowing to support him and his quest to say no to every attractive girl or boy that came his way. 

The day they had their Christmas break though, everything changed. Shinichi’s apartment was tiny but large enough to accommodate the four of them whenever they needed to hang out. His place was clean and closer to the sushi place they loved to eat at. So, with no Christmas dates, a heavy heart and empty stomach, they made their way to his apartment.

They were confused when they saw how decorated his house was. Mistletoe hung, streamers adoring his half way opened door. When had Shinichi converted to Christianity? Oh well, maybe they would get some cake then. Wasn’t there a saying the more, the merrier? Well, they were going to be very merry if Shinichi had some cake. 

When they fully opened the door though, their feet froze. They could hear a girl giggling and Shinichi’s chuckles. Their eyes widened and they looked at each other as if they had discovered a big secret.

There was a girl with him. 

Now, they knew. They knew how Shinichi was. There was no way he would invite girls over in his apartment. So what was a girl doing here? Maybe it was trick, Satoshi’s eyes narrowed. Maybe it was April’s Fools rather than Christmas Day. Yep, that made sense. 

There was silence as they mulled over the situation they had stumbled upon.

Wait! There was silence!

What were the girl and Shinichi doing that there was silence? They silently walked in, making sure to hide themselves and hid behind the sofa. The three of them held their breaths, knowing that their world was about to change. Today, they were going to witness something miraculous. Huh. Maybe Santa was real and had heard their plea to find out what Shinichi’s deal with dating was.

Swallowing thickly, they nodded at each other. They had to look now. They would know now. There would be no turning back and wondering what was up with him. And so they peeped, only for their jaws to drop.

They were kissing! 

What. The. Fuck!

And Shinichi was enjoying it!

What. The. Fuck!

He had his hand curled around the girl’s neck, tilting her head up. He was into it. Holy fuck, Shinichi was actually into kissing a girl. And was that a smile? Was that a fucking smile? What the hell was going on? 

When they separated, they could clearly hear Shinichi suggestively say, “ I know that people usually kiss under mistletoe but... I had other things planned.” 

Well, there went the asexual theory.

The girl giggled and stepped up on her tip toes and whispered something in his ear and the three of them were astounded when a grin crept up on his space. They had seen that grin many times. They knew what that meant. 

Kirishima couldn’t hold himself in and he burst out from his hiding place, effectively making Yamahuchi and Satoshi very visible. Yamaguchi and Satoshi were too flabbergasted to even notice that Kirishima had outed them out. Shinichi and the girl broke apart and she took a step in front of Shinichi and widened her stance as if she was going to attack them and said, “Shinichi, step back.” 

Shinichi tapped the girl on her shoulder and said, “It’s fine, Ran, they are my friends.” 

The girl, Ran, apparently, relaxed her stance and smiled, “Oh, sorry about that. Hello. It’s nice to meet you. I’m Ran Mouri.” 

The girl was real. Oh god, the girl was real. She was talking and smiling and wow, she looked so beautiful. 

Satoshi managed to gather his bearings first, noticing that the girl, Mouri-san, had started to look a bit uncomfortable at their blatant staring and silence, leaning back against Shinichi a bit, and said, “Hello, Mouri-san, it’s nice to meet you. I’m Satoshi Kai.” 

The gir- Mouri-san, relaxed a bit and smiled at him. 

Wow, she was so beautiful. He looked at Shinichi and noticed how wide his smile was and how sparkly his eyes were and how he had his hand curled around her shoulders protectively. 

He didn’t need to ask the question to know what his answer would be if he asked what their relationship was. It was quiet obvious.

But Yamaguchi did apparently, “You have a girlfriend?” he asked, not able to withstand not knowing anymore.

Satoshi and Kirishima hit the back of his head. Even they knew how rude that question was and started to apologize, “Ah, sorry, about this idiot, Mouri-san. Don’t pay any mind to him.” 

Mouri-san giggled though, shrugging off their apology and said, “It’s nice to meet Shinichi’s friends. I’ve heard a lot about you guys.” 

Oh, had she? 

“Oh, has she?” Yamagchi said teasingly to Shinichi and continued, “I would like to say the same, Mouri-san but this guy,” he pointed his thumb at the guy in question, “hasn’t mentioned a word about his girlfriend.”

Shinichi rolled his eyes and said, “Well, you guys never asked.” 

The three of them looked at him in confusion. Wait, had they really never asked him if he ever had a girlfriend? Realization dawned on them as they went over every conversation they ever had about dating and girls. They really never asked him if he had a girl. They just thought that he didn’t since he never mentioned anyone. Wow, were they a bunch of idiots.

“And anyway, Ran isn’t my girlfriend,” Shinichi said. 

Jesus Christ, were they getting shocks after shocks. So, Shinichi, was really a player? Somehow the image didn’t fit. 

Mouri-san was blushing though and they were confused. Wouldn’t any girl be mildly offended if a guy relegated her to a hook up in front of his friends? What was going on?

“She’s my wife.” 

[sternentinte]

Emogust - 14.08.|In which character A. protects character B. from danger

He gets the box.

Heiji is in an appropriate state of panic—Kudou disappeared, was taken away by his mother that doesn’t exist (read: Edogawa Fumiyo) and Neechan doesn’t even know it yet. She’ll know soon though, as soon as she realizes that what she just perceives as a weeklong break in between her boyfriend’s more or less regular phone calls, is in fact a perhaps permanent stop.

Heiji dreads this happening, but he knows it’s coming. What he doesn’t know is what the hell is actually going on, and no matter what he tries he can’t figure out where Kudou is and for what reason he doesn’t know.

What he knows is that a) the little neechan from the professor’s house is missing, too, and b) said professor doesn’t know what happened either. It is strange because Heiji knows that the professor is Kudou’s number one confidant. More important than Heiji (even though that hurts a little) and more important than Neechan (but that’s because he insists on not telling her things to protect her. Ridiculous, in Heiji’s opinion. If there’s one girl that can defend herself it’s Neechan. Except for Kazuha, of course, he amends. Kazuha might be even better at it, if only because she’s not as nice.)

He still decides to go to Tokyo though, because there is no way he is going to give up on his friend, on his best friend, and that is where he gets the box.

“I was debating on whether I should show you this”, Professor Agasa says, his face tired and years older than the last time Heiji saw him. It’s scary in a way.

“What is it?”, he asks, eager for information, for any information on what happened. He wants to do something, dammit.

“This.”, Agasa says, and puts a box on the table. It’s made from cardboard and not exactly tiny, but also not huge. It seems like something that would contain old CDs or maybe letters. The more interesting part of it is how it’s covered all over in duct tape. And the little note on top of the cover.

Professor, give this to Hattori-kun ONLY if my or Haibara’s body is found.

“I probably shouldn’t be giving this to you”, he says, and the guilt is obvious in his every motion.

“But surely, this also counts?”, he mumbles, more to himself than to Heiji, “They disappeared, and the Black Organisation is after them… I can’t even track Shinichi-kun’s glasses.”

So maybe whoever took them knew about the glasses, Heiji’s brain suggests, making the deduction near automatically, or he left them behind purposefully.

“You don’t have to take it.”, the professor says, “maybe you shouldn’t open it until-” His voice almost breaks. “-until the conditions are met. It seems so serious, but-”

“I’ll take it.”, Heiji says. This is what he needs. He needs some way to make this right.

-

He opens the box as soon as he is home. Some of the contents he understands immediately, others not so much. But either way, he knows what this is. Evidence. Evidence, little signs and theories, names, and information. It’s a lot, but it also isn’t because surely there must be more information that Kudou could compile about this organisation in almost a year, but there isn’t. So maybe he didn’t. It’s a terrifying thought, because Kudou is brilliant, maybe the best detective Heiji knows—probably better than himself, even though he never would have said that out loud. Not before for sure.  

This is a treasure, he decides, because he has a hunch that this might be more than anyone else knew about this organisation, ever, without being a part of it. This is a treasure and he will make sure he will use it to his best capacity. And if it’s the last thing he does.

“Heiji!”, Kazuha calls from the hall and Heiji hurries to hide the box and its contents before she enters the room.

“Did you just get home?”, she asks, looking at the jacket he’s still wearing. He didn’t even notice he forgot to take it off.

“Seriously, where were you?”, Kazuha asks, “I went looking for you.”

“I was just looking into a case.”, Heiji lies and that’s how it starts.

-

The more Heiji looks into the material, the more he realises he can’t do this the way Kudou did it. He can’t be a teen detective going over his head. He feels the deadliness of his secrets and it haunts him in his sleep. He can’t get himself killed, or disappeared, or whatever, because then he can’t find Kudou.

He needs to find Kudou.

(He feels guilty every time he has to tell Neechan he’s trying. She still looks so hopeful.)

He can’t do this on his own—but he can’t pull anyone else into this. He needs to be better.

-

Kazuha confesses to him a couple of weeks before they graduate high school. It’s almost been a year now and Heiji hasn’t made a lot of progress—not enough. It’s right after the Gosho Girl’s first concert—at Ran’s school—and it was a huge success. Heiji is so happy for them, not only because they have found something for themselves but because Neechan looks happier than he has seen her in a long time.

Then Kazuha says it. They are in the small room that constitutes backstage and somehow, they are the only ones there—Heiji doesn’t quite understand how, but it’s not what’s important there.

“Heiji”, she says, so carefully and quietly, as if they are the most important words in the world. Maybe they are.

“Heiji, I am in love with you.”

Heiji’s heart soars and he is so happy, so, so happy, but at the same time his heart breaks.

“I wish you didn’t say that.”, he says, because it’s honest and he can’t bring himself to say, “I don’t feel the same way.” Because that’s a lie and Heiji’s still terrible at lying, especially to Kazuha.

“Why?”, Kazuha says and he can see the tears forming in her eyes and he hates himself.

He finds himself being honest again. “Because I can’t be your boyfriend.”

“Why?”, Kazuha says, her voice raising, half-angry, half-upset.

He shrugs unhappily, because he doesn’t know what to tell her. He’s given up on the idea, he doesn’t quite know when, it was a gradual process. He finally understands why Kudou lied to Neechan like that, it’s for the same reason. And Heiji can’t do that to Kazuha, he can’t bring himself to. Even if he can’t tell her the secrets, for her own good, he can’t make himself lie. And if he has made it his goal to do this, no matter what it takes, he can’t be her boyfriend. Because if he was, he fears, he won’t be able to make himself do it the way it needs to.

And he has to learn from Kudou’s mistakes. (He can’t disappear on his girlfriend because they are getting to close. He can’t get himself killed either.)

-

Heiji starts training for the PSIA immediately after graduation. It’s not what he wanted, originally, he had always wanted his own agency somewhere, be a detective on his own terms, but this is the way he needs to go if he wants to solve the secrets in the box. He needs to be smart about it, and this is the best way.

Kazuha forgives him even before they graduate.

“Why?”, he asks, because he honestly can’t fathom any reason he’d deserves it.

“Because you’d kill yourself on accident if I wasn’t there to look out for you.” She shrugs like it is the most obvious thing in the world.

He isn’t sure if it’s the real reason, but he is glad either way.

They move to Tokyo together, Heiji for his training, Kazuha for the band, and naturally, they share their apartment. Heiji’s so glad she is there, because without her, this awful city might kill him, even sooner than any idiocy on his part that Kazuha might like to cite. So maybe she is right, after all.

They are good as roommates because they are good as friends, always were, but sometimes it hurts, because Heiji knows it’s not quite what he wants. Still, he’s glad he has a familiar face to come back to at the end of the day and he knows Kazuha is happy—the band is doing so well—even if in the back of his head he wonders if she would be happier.

Heiji’s training is awful, especially at first. They take him in easily, he has a good track record with all the work he’s done as a high schooler, but at heart, he’s not the right kind of person to be an agent. He’s a terrible liar and a worse actor and he doesn’t do well at hiding his emotions at all.

“Are you sure you want to do this?”, his educator asks him at the end of the first week.

“You are a smart kid, I can tell, but maybe you’d be better off somewhere else. This kind of work rips good people apart all the time. There are other ways you can do good.”

Heiji looks at him and he knows the guy is right. He’s trying to do him a favour and he’s right because this is not what Heiji was made for. But it is what he will make himself be made for, because he has no choice.

“I have to do this.”, he says, and the educator nods, sadly, tiredly, like he’s heard it too many times before.

-

The next day, he gets a phone call from the professor.

The new envelope has a computer stick in it; the data heavily encrypted. But that’s not important—well it is—but not as much as the handwriting on it.

Add it to the box.

Kudou is still somewhere out there. And Heiji can’t disappoint him.

-

More envelopes come, sporadically as much as irregularly, over the years as Heiji rises in the ranks. They rarely put him out to do field work; somehow, he has come to be better at gathering data, trying to make sense of it. Maybe that’s because it’s what he’s been doing all the time. Trying to make sense. No matter what the others say, he still doesn’t feel like he’s very good at it.

While he tries to make himself be the person who can do this, Kazuha and the girls take off.

One concert becomes many and then they release their first album. Heiji is so proud of them. By now, he can almost smile at Neechan again.

After their album comes a Japan-wide tour and Heiji misses Kazuha terribly while she’s gone. When she comes back, he wants to kiss her, but he doesn’t, and they watch a silly movie together instead, and she tells him about all the places she went and the people she’s met. It’s not quite what he wants, but it’s still pretty good.

He tries not to be jealous when she goes on dates, but he’s pretty sure she notices anyway.

-

It’s been three and a half years when the pieces finally start coming together. It’s not only Kudou’s information by now, but a mixture of that and his own investigation, gathered information, small hunches, his people’s observation, suspicious news stories. It all comes together, and he starts seeing the enormous web he’s caught.

It’s only a matter of time now.

(Oh, how he hopes it is—he is so tired. He works with his old educator sometimes, and the man looks at him too knowingly. It’s the same look Kazuha gives him when he comes home and feels like he’s dead inside—no matter what he does he’s still not made for this job. But he can do it and he’s so close.)

It’s two months later when he finds them. The FBI finds them first, but that doesn’t matter—not really, anyway, but they’re alive and Heiji wants to stand on Tokyo Tower and yell it into the world, but that wouldn’t be a very good strategy, so he doesn’t.

He pulls a few strings (more like a thousand and his gut slowly out of his mouth, at least that’s what it feels like—the FBI is crazy protective) to organise a meet up.

Kudou looks tired. He looks different and weak, like he’s sick maybe, like he has been for a long time.

But then he looks up and his eyes are the same.

Heiji throws himself at him with a hug. They never were friends that hug, but does it matter now?

“Hattori.”, Kudou says, when he’s finally let go, “How?”

“I am the PSIA contact that has info on your organisation.”, Heiji explains, like it’s the natural thing.

He pulls out his folder, then the box.

Kudou looks at it, like it invokes mixed feelings.

“You weren’t supposed to get that-“

“Not unless I found yours or that little neechan’s dead body, I know. I have it anyway and I think I did a pretty good job with it.”

Kudou sighs.

Then he looks up. “You don’t figure you might have seen our cat, have you?”

-

It takes them about a month to compare notes. Technically it’s Heiji taking Kudou’s witness report, but they both know that’s garbage. Even though the critical part is not quite done yet, Heiji feels as if a weight has been lifted off his chest.

Kazuha notices, too.

“You’re doing better.”, she says one night, when Heiji almost falls asleep watching the News the third time this week.

“Eh?”, he asks. Him being crazily tired from work usually doesn’t count as him doing better in her books.

“You’re smiling.”, she says, matter-of-factly, but she’s smiling, too.

“Oh.”, he says. “Work is going well.”

She nods and doesn’t ask further. Heiji tells himself he’s not lying to her, just omitting the truth. It’s been his policy this far, or maybe always—don’t lie to Kazuha, keep your secrets if you must. He’s sure she knows there’s more to it, but she won’t ask him about work. She’s not cruel enough to.

“You know”, Kazuha says, and snuggles into his side as they sit next to each other on the couch, “I feel like things are changing, for all of us.”

“What do you mean?”, he asks, even if he feels like he already knows, but those are things Kazuha can’t know, never could guess.

“’M not sure.”, she says, yawning, “For all of us though. You, me, Ran-chan, Aoko-chan, Sonoko-chan. Something’s changing.”

“Think it’ll be good?”

She looks at him, and she’s so close, and Heiji wants to kiss her, but he doesn’t.

“I hope so.”, she says.

“Me too.”

-------- @mintchocolateleaves, @sup-poki

[cupidsmusings]

The Affair That Never Happened

Description: It was here third and final and final year at Seishun High School. A year that was coveted by most and looked back on with cherished memories. For this particular student though, she found herself in a peculiar situation that set a catalyst for things to come.

Rating: PG-13

Series: The Affair That Never Happened

Chapter 3: To Pen and Paper and Out the Door

Couples: Eventual reader x Shinichi, unrequited reader x Chiharu

Author’s note: In Japan, some love hotels have age restrictions while others do not. In Tokyo, the legal age is 20, which is why the MC is worried about entering a love hotel. Another thing, most love hotels don’t have your normal front desk workers and instead have a touch screen TV in the front lobby to pick which room you’d like. Most staff working in the love hotel are never seen, which is why none were included in seeing her enter the place.

Chapters: 1, 2

   Fuck. Literally what the fuck. She would be finding the entire situation hysterical if it weren’t for the fact that she was almost about to piss herself from fright. What was she supposed to do? Thank God he looked too concerned with keeping himself from vomiting again to take notice of her.

   “Sorry,” Was all he managed to say and held out his hand to her.

   What did he want? Was he having trouble standing and needed help? Moving to the side of him, she grasped his other arm and threw it over her shoulders so he could properly lean against the side that wasn’t covered in vomit. Wait… This could become an even more troublesome predicament. She couldn’t take him back to the dorms. He was drunk as a skunk and she doubted she could handle a fifteen-minute walk back with a grown man basically leaning atop her. Also, it seemed that he hadn’t noticed her, so if she thrust him into a cheap hotel room for him to sleep everything off, she’d be able to leave quickly and return back to the dorms without trouble.

   “Just hang on okay, I’ll find you a hotel for you to stay at tonight.” She told him gently and started to walk forward.

   He released a noise and made a heavy thrust of his head. What an interesting way to nod, but to each their own. The two of them walked at what felt like a snail’s pace and {Name} found herself more and more agitated as the minutes passed. Where was a damn hotel that wouldn’t suck the life out of her wallet?

   “I’m sorry for taking so long,” she apologized and made sure to keep her face out of view of his gaze as she looked about them. “It seems that I’m having trouble finding you a cheap hotel.”

   Without a word, he tightened his grip on her shoulders and guided them down the streets of Tokyo. Despite not being aware of where she was being taken she let herself be guided to a row of hotels. Love hotels. Oh wow. She looked up at him and was fairly amused by the triumphant smirk on his face.

   “Found some.” He slurred, and she couldn’t hold back her laughter.

   “I can see that.” She hummed and looked at the prices listed outside.

   Indeed, love hotels were cheap. What worried her was that she was underage. What would she do if they asked her for her ID? Well, maybe not? A high-school student wouldn’t be out so late with a drunk man. With forced bravado, she guided the two through the entrance of what she thought to be the cheapest hotel amongst them. And when she went to the front desk, she found herself curious about the “themed” rooms mentioned. Imagining the ever so serious Kagari-sensei waking up in a ludicrous room was far too tempting to pass up.

   “What kind of themed rooms do you have?” She found herself asking with a kittenish smirk.

   She clicked the themed rooms button at the top of the touch screen panel and found herself abuzz with excitement. Which one should she pick? The Princess Room? Carnival Room? Medieval Room? A heavy S&M inspired room?

   “Which room would make you squirm the most?” She asked him with a cock of her head.

   He didn’t say anything, and she didn’t expect him to, but when he pressed a button on the Carnival Room, she stared at him with widened eyes.

   “I can’t believe you’re afraid of Carnivals.” She whispered in slight disbelief.

   “Not scared,” he shrugged, or at least tried to but it honestly just looked like he had gotten a cold chill. “It’s just girls like Carnivals, right?”

   That’s when he was staring down at her and she was so stupefied by his answer she forgot to look away. The key-card popping out for them to retrieve was what broke her attention.

   “Well, whatever, let’s hurry up.” She grumbled, a little saddened that she couldn’t choose the S&M room for him.

   The two made their way to the elevator and once on their respected floor, the black tile lit up, pointing them in the direction they needed to go. That was pretty neat.

   “Love hotels are kinda cool, huh?” She commented as they walked to the door of their room. She rummaged through her purse for her wallet, but the large man that might as well have been a large child moved to go through his own pockets.

   “Calm down, I’m paying for it.” She said and tried to swipe her card, but he shoved her hand away with his own so he could swipe his.

   “A gentleman should pay.” He said.

   What a weirdo. It wasn’t as if she was going to stay the night with him, so he didn’t have to act like he was paying for both of them. It made sense for him to pay for it, she knew this because he would be the one staying the night after all. But her stubbornness roared its ugly head and she was more determined than ever to pay for his stay. She shoved his hand away and went to swipe her card, but he, in retaliation to her retaliation, took her wrist in his free hand and moved it sluggishly away so he could successfully swipe his own card.

   Again, that stupid smug smirk was plastered on his face once more. She rolled her eyes and patted him between his shoulder blades.

   “Good job, you true gentleman you.” She commented dryly as she swiped the key card in the door to open it.

   What greeted her was cotton candy-colored walls with large surgery sweets painted on them. The floor was a sparkly pink with blotches of see-through glass randomly placed atop it. Upon further inspection, she could make out glass confections in the shape of balloons and wrapped candies that were surrounded by a gentle layer of soft stretched cotton that gave the falsehood of it being cotton candy. The bed was king-sized, with the four posters striking upward all the way until it touched the ceiling. It twisted and turned like a unicorn's horn and was painted rainbow with a sparkle finish. Carved into the backdrop of the bed was a carousel with nude women and men having sex atop the different animals. There was a couch to the right of the bed that was an ungodly bright shade of yellow with hot pink trimmings. The ceiling was covered with sheets that gave the impression that they were inside of an outdoor circus tent.

  “Toilet,” he managed to mutter out before wrenching himself from her to clumsily make it to the bathroom in time.

   She watched him with pity and slight curiosity. What made him go out drinking so heavily in the first place? Was it the sorrows of love? Was he in debt? Did he realize he’d never get a woman with his rude attitude? Well, that last one could be a part of the sorrows of love but it was an extra jab she couldn’t help giving him. With one final once over of the impressive room she walked into the bathroom. She crouched down beside him and ran a soothing hand up and down his back.

   “You sure did drink a lot, huh?” She smiled at him, not bothering to hide her amusement. “Did you get dumped?”

   “No,” he managed to say after he heaved a few junks in the toilet. “Just met up with an old school buddy that wouldn’t let me leave until he had me drink my fill.”

   “You’re an adult, right? You had the choice to say no, so don’t blame it on your friend. You’re not young enough to experience pure pressure anymore.” She laughed and restrained herself from playfully smacking him on the back.

   “What an astute answer.” He couldn’t say much more because he was throwing up before he could.

   “Not astute, just true.” She hummed and went to gently comb her fingers through his hair. When her father was dealing with a hangover, he liked her mother doing it, so she unconsciously assumed it would help him.

   She should remove her fingers, she knew this, but his hair was so soft. She had never felt such feather-like hair. To be fair she wasn’t going around delving her fingers into the hair of strangers, but it was an honest comment none the less. Once it looked like he was finished, she went ahead and used her already dirtied cardigan to wipe away the leftover vomit that coated his lips.

   “Feels nice.” He smiled at her, and oh boy if he smiled like that more often he would definitely have more suitors.

   “Glad to hear it, I guess.”

   She helped him to his feet and dragged him over to the plush comforter and what seemed to be a thousand pillows that decorated the bed. She watched him sit up and laughed as he put on a dramatic show of trying to remove his suit jacket. Not wanting to waste any more time there than she already did, she hurried to help him remove his jacket. Once out, he reached out and with a contradictory of unsteady but firm hands he tried to undo the buttons of her cardigan, to what she guessed was in order to remove it from her person. She very much liked it on her person though, so she gently pinched the foreskin of his hand.

   “Quit it,” she said but he looked up at her with a stern expression.

   “We have to get you out of your dirty clothes.” He told her, his tone matching that of someone who was telling another that they were about to go into battle.

   “You should take a bath as well,” he started just as she opened her mouth to protest. “You got some in your hair.”

   “I what?” She almost snapped but was thankful that her voice came out more confused than shrill.

   “Here.” He said and gently cupped a few strands of her hair underneath his fingers.

   “Well, that’s just disgusting.” She grumbled on the verge of hurling herself.

   “But it wasn’t when I threw up on your cardigan or when you cleaned my lips for me?” He asked, sounding rather amused despite being the source of her problem.

   “That was on my clothes, but my hair is part of my body, so it’s grosser that way.”

   “Is it?”

   “Yes! Yes, it is!”

   Why was he the one sounding amused now? With a huff, she walked over to the bathroom door before turning a sharp glare at him.

   “If you peek I’ll do some not very nice things to your baby maker.” She warned him before she shut the bathroom door.

   She gently peeled her cardigan off her and made sure that no aspect of vomit touched her skin. Time passed and though she only meant to wash her hair, she had been too tempted by the jetted tub. She had never been in one before, so it was purely for curiosity reasons. It was definitely not because she felt weird leaving the bath after a shower in front of her teacher. Because that would just be silly. And she was a mature woman that didn’t get embarrassed by such things.

   She had been soaking in the jetted tub for about ten minutes when the door was thrusted open, with Kagari-sensei running in. He did not run to the toilet and instead went over to where she was.

   “What the hell are you doing?” She growled and sunk her shoulders deep into the water.

   Thankfully the bubbles from the jets prevented the intruder of seeing her nude form.

   “There’s a camera in here. I pressed a button on the remote and the bathroom popped up on the screen.” He explained, but that was it.

   “One: When did you do this and how much of my body have you seen? Two: Why did you feel the need to enter the bathroom while I bathed? It would have been easier to just pretend like it never happened.” She sighed and quirked a brow at him.

   She wasn’t embarrassed, not at all. Because she was a mature woman and mature women didn’t grow nervous over such things such as the bizarre situation she found herself in. Screw it. This was so embarrassing. She wanted to die. Thankfully the room was also quite dim, so she doubted he could make out her face, let alone her body. But still, death would be appreciated at that point in time. Or the power to teleport. Or the power to erase memories. Both would be amazing to be quite honest.

   “But that would be lying.” He stated firmly. “And I don’t lie.”

   “Everyone lies.” She found herself arguing.

   Was now the time to be arguing? No, no it was not. But here she was, naked as the day she was born arguing with her teacher.

   “Not me. Lying is wrong.”

   “It’s also wrong to come barging into a bathroom where a lady is busy trying to clean herself. Especially after it was the said male that came barging in that caused it. You might as well be the one bathing me.” She replied soddenly.

   That was when he knelt beside the bathtub, readying himself to bath her. She looked to the wall opposite of him, clearly mortified. But with him so close she couldn’t take the chance of him seeing her face. But he saw her face before this right? Maybe he was too drunk to notice? He had not made the comment of knowing who she was. That wasn’t the point though. The point was that she was being sarcastic.

   “I wasn’t being serious. You can leave.” For the love of God leave.

   “Oh, alright.”

   She listened to him walk to the door and waited a minute or two after he left to sink her entire head into the warm water. What a nightmare the night turned out to be. When she left the bath she hurriedly dried her body and only dried the bare minimum of her hair, because if she did all of it, it would take way longer than she would have liked. She just wanted to leave. When she dressed herself she didn’t bother putting her cardigan on and instead opted to just hold it.

   Once out of the bathroom, she found Kagari-sensei’s shoes, pants, and shirt strewn about the floor. He was neatly tucked underneath the sheets like a child. All peaceful and blissful in his drunken state. Screw him for that.

   “Alright,” she started and made sure to reframe from saying his name. “I’ll be leaving now, do you think you’ll be okay?”

   “You can stay too, it’s late after all.”

   “Can’t do that.”

   If he found out who she was he would get her expelled from school before resigning himself in shame. He was far too serious for his own good. At least he seemed to let loose at some points in his life, which was interesting. It was then that she considered that perhaps her school’s teacher’s actually had their own lives outside of being prude-y and stuck-up.

   “At least leave your cardigan.” He urged and before she could reply he gripped the front of her shirt.

   “Fine,” she let out a troubled sigh. “I’ll leave it with my phone number so text me when you’re finished washing it or whatever.”

   “Or whatever? What else would I be doing with it?” He asked, amused once more.

   “Just go to sleep.” She snapped and gently smacked her palm against his forehead. “Set your phone alarms so you don’t oversleep. Bye.”

   She laid her cardigan out on the armchair of the couch before she quickly wrote down her number on a napkin from the bedroom’s wet-bar. She put the napkin on the bright pink coffee table and made sure it was in plain view for him. When she looked at her phone and, upon seeing the time, let out a curse.

   She turned to glare all her frustration out onto the bastard that caused her such trouble. He was, of course, peacefully asleep. With gentle steps not to wake him, she walked over to the bed. With care, she removed his glasses from his face and placed them quietly on the night-stand before leaving the room. It wasn’t until 2:20 that she got back to her room on campus.

[jaroslavlewis]

ShinRan Shorts: The Curious Case of Holding and Knowing Mouri Ran

Title: The Curious Case of Holding and Knowing Mouri Ran

Author: Jaroslav Lewis

Fandom: Detective Conan

Pairing: ShinRan

Summary: Like Holmes, he could figure out a person so easily just by one look in the eye and one touch of the hand, but with her it was just different. There was so much more to learn, so much more to discover that it was hard to just observe.

Disclaimer: I don’t own Detective Conan and any of Gosho Aoyama’s characters. I simply borrow them when I’m lonely. 

Shinichi realized Ran's hands were small.  

 He was surprised for she could throw such hard punches. But when she laced them around his, the first time they walked to school as a couple he realized how soft and gentle they felt intertwined in his own.  They fit perfectly in his.  He never noticed it even as he held her hand to school countless times back when he was Conan. 

 Of course, Shinichi was intrigued because how could he, a world-renowned high school detective who has such a keen eye for details, miss that part of her? It amazed him that he had known Ran his entire life. He thought he knew everything about her but as it turns out there were still more things to discover about her, parts of her he never really noticed before.

 And so he found himself holding her hand to school every day. Ran didn’t even have to initiate anymore unlike the first time. He would automatically take her hand in his and with such simple gesture, Shinichi made interesting discoveries.

 Shinichi found out that Ran swayed her arms a lot when she is happy so when she’s in such a good mood, Shinichi’s arm would be swayed along with the hand that’s holding hers. She’d also be humming to an upbeat tune. But when Ran’s having a bad day, she would just stay silent. She wouldn’t be swaying her arms but instead, she’d be holding his hand a little tighter than usual and she’d cling unto him for support.  When she’s scared, she’d be squishing his hand so hard that he’d feel it going numb. He also found out that Ran’s hands could get cold easily, so during the winter, he’d be keeping her hand in his pocket to keep her warm.

 And every time, no matter the circumstance Shinichi would happily oblige to hold her hand and he’d always find himself smiling every time he does.

 Ever since they started dating, Shinichi had gotten so accustomed to holding Ran. Often times his peers would tease him and make fun of how he suddenly turned into such a clingy, protective boyfriend.  Shinichi didn’t care though. There was no point in denying. He is so head over heels for her and quite a sucker for her touch.

 Of course at first, it surprised him. He never really pictured himself to be the touchy-feely type. It was cheesy in a way but as their relationship progressed Shinichi found himself touching and holding Ran more often than not. He’d find himself playing with her hair when they are doing their homework together. Sometimes, he’d scooch closer to her when she’s concentrating on solving a problem and then he’d inhale her scent that smelled of orchids which was quite fitting because her name literally translates to the kind of flower she smells of.

 Soon, holding Ran’s hand just wasn’t enough for him anymore. Shinichi started pulling her into his arms to feel more of her warmth and once again, he discovered something that surprised him.

 Ran was smaller than him.

 And she felt even smaller when she was when she is in his arms, like a fragile, precious being that he needed to protect at all costs. It was weird because he knew very well that Ran is more than capable of taking care of herself.

 But despite all that, he would still wrap his arms around her whenever they would watch a movie on his couch. It didn’t matter what genre they were watching but he made sure to hold her extra tight when they’d put on a horror movie. So, he found himself watching more horror movies with her more often.

 On bad days, he’d pull her into his arms and he liked it so much when she’d rest her head on his chest. To comfort her, he’d rest his head on top of hers, encaging her in a full embrace. When it’s still not enough, he’d kiss her forehead to assure her that good days will come.

 And then Shinichi learned that the more he touched her, the more he would crave for her. It was selfish but he wanted more than just holding her hand, more than just embracing her…

 He thought it was intense, how powerful the sense of touch was but also how intimidating it would consume his being. Whenever he’d touch her, his mind would shut off, almost like his other senses didn’t matter and reason was not an option. He just needed to feel and he craved.

 It was a dangerous thing. He could remember quite well, when she kissed him on the cheek during their school trip to Kyoto.  He snapped and he threw all reason away, grabbed her by the shoulders more forcefully than he would ever. Then, he leaned in for a kiss but sadly failed in his attempt when he felt the antidote wearing off. Though he wasn’t able to kiss her then at the Kiyomizu Dera, he knew that he would’ve kissed her senseless had the situation been different, if he only had enough time…

 So when things got back to normal, Shinichi made sure he treasured his moments with Ran and he wasted no time showing her how much he loves her. So when holding her hand wasn’t enough and when it warranted more than just hugs and forehead kisses, Shinichi kissed Ran any chance he’d get.

 There was no denying, Shinichi is well acquainted with Ran’s body. Though they never went as far as beyond making out when they’re alone, Shinichi knew how to touch Ran in the right places. He was gentle but had the right amount of roughness and boldness to make her squirm.

And it continues to marvel Ran, how much he seemed to have mapped every intricacy of her body and how his body seems like safe haven she’d perfectly fit in. She wonders if it’s another one of his detective tricks.

 But Shinichi knows it was restraint that brought him to how much he knows her now. Holding back for so many years, he never knew what he was missing until he held her hand. Then suddenly, what started out as a small gesture is what lead him to crave for much more. It opened a gate to such desire, such need for something more.

 Maybe as a detective, it was innate for him to be curious. But she was something else. She was so much more than his curiosity could handle.

 So he figured maybe there will never be a time when he’ll stop learning more things about her. Because he knows very well, he’ll never get enough of her. Ever.

 AN. So the idea for this started out when I made a blog post about Shinichi being a boyfriend. (Here’s the link: http://jaroslavlewis.tumblr.com/post/182018815115/random-dcmk-things-shinichi-as-a-boyfriend )

 Then I figured I should make a fanfic for it and some peeps said that I should too. So this is what I came out with. This is a little different for the others I’ve written since there’s totally no dialogue in this one. It felt weird at first. I had about three drafts before I finished this fic. I had difficulty writing it from the middle part towards the end.  When I finished writing, I realized that the actions were enough to tell the story. I know this is different from most of my fics, but I hope you guys liked it and I hope that Shinichi wasn’t OOC in this one. I really struggled! This is probably too long to be a ShinRan Short, but I’m still including it in the series just because I can. LOL.

I’m gonna be writing a new ShinRan fic after this. It will be a 3-5 part fic about a broken up ShinRan, in contrast to the one shot I wrote, From Where We Left Off ( If you haven’t read it already, Here’s the link: http://jaroslavlewis.tumblr.com/post/182140111795/from-where-we-left-off ) I’ll be posting a preview exerpt later. ;)

I also want to inform you guys that the ShinRan Shorts Series is open for requests. I’m also taking KazuHei requests. As a matter of fact, I’ve already received a request for a KazuHei Lemon from @anissa51-blog. I already have an idea for it and I’ll be working on it as soon as I’m finished with my upcoming ShinRan fic. If you guys have requests, just hit me up! Keep me writing, coz I really want to make up for my hiatus last year! <3 

~J

[setsunameioh]

how about a roleswap kind of thing where the childhood friends were swapped around (as in, ran in kazuha's place and kazuha in ran's place)? canon pairings still though!

I can do that, anon!

For this oneshot, I wrote it mainly with Shinichi and Ran in mind, since their relationship would face the most complications given Shinichi’s whole... situation and all. It’s set around Desperate Revival, given that it’s the first time she would have the chance in canon to meet “Kudo Shinichi” (after their brief meeting in preschool, that is).

you can also read this on AO3!

He hadn't seen her in over ten years, and yet, from the very moment he set on eyes on her, he knew who she was right away.

...alright, so that was a bit of an exaggeration, Shinichi would admit. It hadn't been right away- not until after she properly introduced herself- but he had gotten the inkling that he knew her from somewhere even before that. It counted, right?

She, on the other hand, didn't seem to recognize him at all.

To be fair, that was to be expected- even if she did have cause to remember the boy with whom she had briefly gone to preschool with, she would have expected him to be around her age right now. Not six years old again, as he so happened to find himself. While he'd fallen in love with her at first sight- at first smile, really- he doubted that he'd amounted as much more than a small blip on her radar, easily forgotten as the years went by.

Sonoko, she would probably recognize, but Kudo Shinichi? The odds of that were low.

He'd never actually expected to see her again himself, to be honest. It had all been such a mess after she had transferred away, after that whole Efune mess. It could have been much worse than it was, he knew that now- but at the time, the news that Mouri Ran would be leaving them, moving to Osaka with her father, was nearly enough to devastate him.

He'd kind of assumed that his feelings for her would fade with time- and to be fair, they did, somewhat. But not to the extent that he would have thought- and upon seeing her again, after all these years, all he could think of was that she had gotten even more beautiful than he could have possibly imagined.

And to think, Hattori had been hiding her all this time. Payback for stealing away his own childhood friend, maybe.

He wasn't serious, of course- though it was surprising that they had managed to essentially swap the two of them. He didn't know what to make of it when Hattori Heiji first turned up at the Toyama's place, and he and Kazuha had just started shouting at each other for a good half minute.

If only he could have been half as recognizable as Hattori was, he glumly thought to himself. Not that it would matter much given his current situation.

Right now, he doubted that the girl he was- and apparently was still- in love with, would see him as anything more than the six year old child he appeared to be. Even if he did literally hurl himself in front of her to protect her from a knife.

"Are ya alright, Conan-kun!?"

Still... having her fret over him in concern honestly wasn't really so bad. He should count himself lucky though, that the lucky charm that Heiji had lent him had ended up catching the knife like it did- Kazuha sure as hell was giving him an earful about it, even as Ran tried to calm her down.

(He honestly didn't know if she'd be more or less mad at him if she knew the truth. Probably more, he guessed.)

Well... at least this way, he'd be able to see a lot more of Mouri Ran from now on. Perhaps there would come a time yet with which Kudo Shinichi could try and get to know her a little better- and not just Edogawa Conan.

(Suffice to say, he was very annoyed with Hattori when he turned up next with no Ran in sight. Bring her with you next time, you idiot, and maybe you won't get shoved off a goddamn cruise ship.)

He'd been so focused on the case, that he'd barely had the time to give thought to her presence. Now, however, she was staring him right in the face- and he came to learn later that the person who had actually carried him to the nurse's office in the first place had been Ran.

If it wasn't clear enough that he'd done it on purpose, then the way he escorted everyone else out of the room on some rather thin excuses made it crystal clear to Shinichi. It wasn't that he didn't appreciate the alone time with her, but as it stood, the last time the two of them had talked to each other was back when they were both in preschool.

And to think, he'd only taken this form in order to convince Kazuha that he wasn't Conan. At least he'd managed to work things out there.

"We've met before, haven't we?"

Taken aback by the sudden question, Shinichi blinked, before slowly nodding his head. "Y-yeah. We were in preschool together, for a short while."

"I see." It almost looked as if a weight had been taken off her chest- up until now, she had looked somewhat uncertain of herself. "Heiji told me that the two of us had met before, but since ya were never around..."

"Ah, I guess it would be hard to remember." Shinichi said. "We weren't together for very long before you transferred. I'm Kudo Shinichi, by the way. You're Mouri Ran, right?"

"That's right." Ran said, giving him a small smile. "If I recall... ya were the boy I made that paper nameplate fer, right?"

"Oh, you remember that?" Shinichi asked, hoping that he didn't sound too eager about it. From the sound of it, she hadn't remembered it on her own- Heiji's apparent mention of him had likely jogged her memory. He would have to thank him for that later, although he couldn't help but be curious as to what, exactly, he had told her about him.

"Just a little." Ran told him. "It's nice to meet ya again, Kudo-kun."

"You as well, Mouri-san." Shinichi said. "Though it seems like I worried everyone, collapsing like that."

"Are ya really alright?" She'd asked him that question before as Conan too, but somehow, it felt a bit different now. She was asking it of an equal- albeit one that she didn't know all that well, as opposed to a child. "Heiji said that ya'd be fine, so we probably shouldn't make a big deal out of it, but..."

"Yeah, I'll be fine." Shinichi was quick to reassure her. "Sorry about that."

As to be expected, the pair fell into something of an awkward silence there. Racking his brain for something to say, Shinichi cleared his throat. "...did you enjoy the play?"

"Ah, yes." Nodding her head, Ran smiled at that- and lord help him, but he felt his heart pound at the sight of it. "It was very interesting. It's a shame we didn't get ta watch the whole thing through."

"I'm sure if you asked Sonoko, she'd show you the script." Shinichi told her. "I could even ask her, if you want."

"I am a bit curious." Ran admitted after a moment. "But ya don't have ta trouble yerself like that, Kudo-kun. I can always ask Suzuki-san myself."

"I suppose you could." Shinichi admitted, recalling the way that they had been chatting backstage like old friends. As he thought, the two of them really did remember each other- but well, it was to be expected. Still, he couldn't help but admit that he was just a little bit jealous of Sonoko.

...and there was that awkward silence again. Racking his brain for something to say, he decided to try and go out on a limb.

"...are you going to be in Tokyo for awhile, Mouri-san?" Shinichi ventured.

"At least until Sunday evening." Ran told him, tilting her head. "Why?"

Good, he had a chance then. The fact that Ran wasn't showing any outward signs of nervousness was an encouraging sign, but he had to admit, this was a bit of a gamble. The last thing he wanted to do was to force her into doing anything she didn't want- and Ran, as he had learned, was something of too nice a girl to always strongly refuse polite requests. The last thing he wanted to do was to take advantage of that, but well...

Since he had gotten his real body back, he might as well take a chance.

"Actually, I thought it might be nice to give Hattori and Kazuha a chance to spend some time together." Shinichi told her, honestly making this up as he went. "You know, since the two of them seem to be childhood friends in their own right."

"Actually, I was thinking the same thing." Ran admitted, giving him a small smile. "I don't know if ya know this, Kudo-kun, but after he came back home that one time, all he could talk about fer awhile was both ya an' Kazuha-chan."

"Heh, is that so?" He actually knew that already, but as this was information that he had gleaned as Conan, it was best to pretend he had no idea. "So... what I'm trying to get to is, that if you want, it might be nice to maybe... go somewhere to get to know each other a little better while they're doing that."

"Ah, only if you want, though." Shinichi said quickly, holding up a hand. "If you have other plans, then that's fine."

"I don't mind." Ran told him. "Truth is, I don't know what I'd do by myself. If ya could show me around Tokyo, Kudo-kun, it'd help."

"Sure." Nodding his head, fighting the urge to let out a great big victory whoop, Shinichi tried not to seem too overeager. "I don't mind. Of course, we just need to get Hattori and Kazuha to agree first."

Though given the fact that he was pretty sure the two of them were spying on them from behind the door, he didn't imagine it would be hard.

It was only after they had been seated, and handed their menus, that he realized that he might have made something of a mistake.

He'd known, of course, what restaurant this was. When Ran had asked after it, after seeing such a well dressed couple enter the hotel it was located in, he'd been more than happy to tell her all that he knew about it. It was, after all, a restaurant that his parents frequented when they happened to be in town.

When she'd looked interested in it, saying that she really didn't have many chances to eat in such a fancy place, he hadn't hesitated to ask if she would like to have dinner there. For a moment, he almost wondered if he'd gone too far- but she accepted his invitation after some thought. Perhaps she just thought it would be rude to say no at this point, which had been the main worry filling his mind- right up until he realized the bigger problem.

This wasn't just the restaurant that his parents frequented- it was also the restaurant his father had proposed to his mother at.

It wasn't as if he had forgotten, per say, but it had just sort of... not been the first thing that came to mind for him. He was, after all, only trying to make today's 'date'- if one could call it that- about getting to know Ran- and more importantly, giving her a chance to get to know him. So that he could be something more than the boy she'd briefly known in preschool, Kazuha's childhood friend, and Heiji's rival.

Right now, it was all he could do to keep that thought from showing on his face.

"I've haven't been in a restaurant this fancy since Heiji's father was promoted." Ran observed, even as she tried to downplay the way that she was so very obviously looking at her surroundings in wonder. She needn't do so- to be honest, he only thought of it as cute.

"Really?" Shinichi asked, hoping to relax her some. "Truth be told, I don't really come to places like this much myself either. Not unless my parents are dragging me somewhere."

His words seemed to have their desired effect- as Ran gave him a small smile in return. "Your mother is an actress, right?" She asked. "Kazuha-chan mentioned it during the play."

At the mention of his mother, his thoughts briefly drifted back towards what he was trying not to think about- though he really only had himself to blame for this. "Yes, she is." He said, nodding his head. "That's probably why Sonoko wanted me to play the knight so badly."

He fought back the urge to twitch as he said that, trying not to think too hard on the real reason why- namely, that Sonoko thought he was the only guy in the class dramatic enough to say half of the lines that she had written in any earnest. Honestly, if she knew that, why had she gone through the trouble of writing the character like that in the first place?

"Yer acting was pretty good." Ran observed, her smile taking on a more amused edge. "Better than Heiji's, at least."

"...ah." Giving her something of a nervous laugh, Shinichi leaned back in his chair. "If you're going to ask why he dressed up as me, to be honest, I have no idea myself. You'd know him better than I."

"I do, but sometimes even that doesn't help." Ran lightly joked. "I'm sure he an' Kazuha-chan are having a lot of fun right now."

"Probably." Shinichi said, shoulders slumping that she had let go of that topic so easily. "You're staying over at her place, right?"

"Yes." Ran told him. "Her mother always offers ta let us stay there whenever we come visit. I always tell her that it's fine, but, well..."

"Yeah, she can be pretty insistent." Shinichi told her, feeling somewhat more at ease now himself. "Big on hospitality."

There was another, slightly awkward pause then, as the two of them searched for a topic to discuss- and he noted the way Ran's lips pursed together as she scanned the menu. "Is it really alright, though?" She asked. "Fer us to eat in a place as fancy as this. We're only high school students, I mean."

"Don't worry about it." Shinichi reassured her. The last thing he wanted to do was make her uncomfortable- or even worse, guilty. "My old man lets me use his card every once in awhile for emergency expenses."

"I don't exactly think this counts as an emergency expense, Kudo-kun." Ran noted, lifting her brows.

"Well... what he doesn't know won't hurt him." Shinichi said after a moment, grinning a little. "Besides, I've never actually been here myself, so I got a little curious myself."

"They don't bring ya here?" Ran asked, tilting her head.

"No." Shaking his head, Shinichi cursed himself mentally for walking back into the topic he had been trying to avoid thinking about again. "Never here."

"Why not?" Ran inquired, a glint of curiosity in her eyes. As much as he was glad to see that she was interested in anything regarding him, the answer to that was...

Thankfully, he didn't have to give it. Good fortune must have been on his side for once, for the waitress to interrupt them right at that timing.

...or not.

Of all the timing... he'd just solved a murder case yesterday, he couldn't have possibly run into yet another one, could he? Even his luck wasn't that bad- at least, he didn't think it was.

Debating for only a moment, Shinichi eventually let out a long sigh, pushing back his chair. "Sorry, I better go check that out."

"It's okay, I understand." Ran told him, a knowing look on her face. "It happens all the time with Heiji too. Go on, Kudo-kun."

"So I've gathered." Shinichi observed, reaching into his pocket and pulling out his wallet. "Here, use this to order yourself something nice for dessert. I'll be back when I can."

"Then, I'll wait fer ya right here." Ran told him, taking the card from him after a moment's thought. "At least we were able ta finish dinner first."

Giving her a wry grin at that, Shinichi made his exit. A murder case it was indeed, as it turned out- but nothing that he couldn't solve. He'd wrap this up quick, and return to Ran's side, where he would apology for the delay and would finish the evening by escorting her back to the Toyama house.

At least, that was the plan.

What wasn't in the plan was for a familiar pain to stab his chest- one that left him gasping for breath, and one that he recognized. Though he managed to muddle through it, solving the case at hand, by the time the case had been closed, it was all he could do to stagger into the bathroom, clutching his chest and praying that it would go away again, as it had before.

When Ai appeared behind him, reflected in the mirror, still dressed as Conan, he knew that it wouldn't. As if she were some kind of ominous grim reaper, gazing down at her wristwatch, it sunk into him that Kudo Shinichi would not be returning to the date, so-called or otherwise, that he had left behind.

So much for making a good impression.

"I knew it!"

...eh.

If he hadn't expected Ai to show up, he'd expected Toyama Kazuha to turn up all the less- much less that she would burst forward from one of the stalls. And judging from Haibara's reaction... suffice to say, she'd expected it even less.

"K-Kazuha...?"

He didn't even have the presence of mind to tack a neechan onto that, even though he'd returned to Conan form, all but swimming in the clothes he'd put on that morning as Shinichi.

"I knew it!" Kazuha repeated, a triumphant expression on her face. "You tried to pull a fast on me with Ai-chan here, but you couldn't fool me! I've got you now, Kudo Shinichi!"

At a loss as to what to do in this situation, Conan opened and closed his mouth, before just giving voice to the first thought that came to his mind.

"...this is the men's restroom, you know."

The hand that she clamped on his shoulder was not one that brokered any arguments. "Don't try and weasel your way out of this with irrelevant observations, Shinichi."

"...yes ma'am."

"Good." With a firm nod of her head, Kazuha reached out her other hand, preventing Ai from taking the first chance that she saw to escape. "Now then, I'm going to have the two of you tell me what this is all about, in great detail~!"

Exchanging a glance with each other, both Conan and Ai alike agreed on one thing- that this was not the outcome that they had been expecting of this evening.

(At the very least, after some prompting, he managed to convince Kazuha to keep quiet about this to Ran. She'd even been more than happy to come up with an excuse for her as to why Shinichi had left so suddenly.

...on the other hand, well... he sure hoped his father was ready for tonight's price tag.)

[raifuujin]

You seem to have non-biased opinions about the matters in DCMK and I would love to hear a non-biased pinion about which of the two works best ShinRan/CoAi (or Shinichi/Shiho)? (Because the shippers of these 2 will always be biased no matter how deeply they analyze imo)

Well, even a non-biased opinion would be looking at it just based on the series, where it’s clear that Gosho was always intending to make it clear Shinichi and Ran are romantically interested in each other, while the only relationship with Haibara is one-sided, and I’ve stated once before that I don’t even fully see her feelings as romantic. But for a full look…

Shin/Ran would still work best by default. The simple truth of that is because of emotions. People could argue that they’re only friends, but Shinichi was shown to want a full future with Ran from the very first chapter. He himself was on the immature side in the early chapters, so that could have been wishful thinking, but his feelings throughout the series have been clear. He wants to be with Ran, and he’d like to keep her as happy as he’s able to with his current situation.

Ran’s emotions and actions when it comes to concern for Shinchi could come from the fact that her parents are separated. She might be able to see her mother when she really needs to, but I doubt Eri leaving left Ran ‘okay’ with the idea of other people leaving her, which is why she’s so emotionally compromised when Shinichi seemed to have disappeared without a word. Unlike with Shinichi, she doesn’t have wild fantasies about marrying him, though to be fair, we don’t see that from Haibara either. Or really from much of any female character outside of Sonoko when it comes to any fantasies. Hers is a more general caring about his well being and happiness, but we do get signs from early on that she’s more self conscious about him (whenever he’s the topic of discussion in regards to her), and it’s not the sort of ‘stop saying that you know that’s silly’ and more of a ‘don’t bring that up’ that indicates a leaning past the ‘just friends’ role.

I’ve also said this before, but the biggest thing that makes their relationship believable is that they respect each other. They admire the other’s strengths, there’s no criticism aimed at weaknesses (except maybe teasingly but I can’t think of a time at the moment), and they support each other when the other needs it. It’s not just a ‘we’re friends but now I want to kiss too’, they admire traits in each other, already know each others flaws, and still show the signs of wanting to be with the other in the long term.

Co/Ai is a one-sided interest, or more realistically, fan admiration. Most of the times we’ve seen Haibara show feelings of possible attraction towards Conan, it was during, and a bit after, the Vermouth arc, when she was the most vulnerable and scared of the world. Conan had been very blunt about not approving of her the first time she fully introduced herself, and only accepted that she was a person in need of help after she broke down, he realized she’d been Akemi’s sister, and that she really wasn’t okay after saving herself by sheer accident when she’d meant to kill herself. She slowly developed an admiration of him, but he’s never felt the same in return. Even beyond first impressions, they just didn’t see eye to eye when it came to people. A lot of people like this as a ship based on their chemistry, but the only time they’re ever in sync with each other is in having the unique shared experience of being shrunken teenagers. He can push her to do things she’s not comfortable with, and give her some amount of courage…. but again, it’s not something reciprocated. The only thing Haibara can give Conan in return is plot information, paranoid advice, and hope for a cure. Conan impresses her. More than once, he’s been a hero. But there’s nothing emotionally that he’s gained from her, aside from maybe that being with a criminal organization doesn’t mean you would be a bad person. But he technically learned that from her sister, so. *shrugs* Sassy comments and snarky comebacks to not make romantic chemistry, even if they can work for a fine friendship. There needs to be more genuine give and take for anything truly supportive to form.

I will never be able to see Haibara’s feelings as anything more than her being a fan. Nowadays, we can see she forms that sort of attachment to people and things. She’s the biggest fan of Higo after getting attracted to his story and success, to a point people are also shipping her with him. She’s always been a fan of designer items, notably Fusae’s brand (even if she’s unaware that she met the creator of the brand). And she’d gotten attached to Yoko and her music, but that one hit trouble because being a small fan of Yoko doesn’t outweigh being a fan of Higo. So with the behavior we see now, I can’t see her attraction to Conan/Shinichi as anything but admiration as a fan. Just back then, she’d been cynical of the world and wasn’t opening up to other people, so her showing feelings for anyone had more impact, and the one who surprised her and made her drop her guard most often was Shinichi.

There’s also an issue that he flat out doesn’t trust her. He’s protective, but since she openly said that she’s only a child because she’d tried to kill herself and it failed from her being ‘lucky’ enough to survive the APTX, I should hope he would be. Moonlight Sonota made him never want to see even a genuine serial killer kill themselves, much less a scientist who hadn’t meant for what they’d been working on to be used to kill people and feel internally beat themselves up about it. He never keeps her informed on how BO progress is going, he doesn’t want her involved. If I consider Haibara’s feelings are those of an admiring fan, than Shinichi’s are just those of a detective. I wouldn’t go so far as to say Haibara would only be a client, since she is a bit closer than that, but it’s more clear he’s helping out someone who desperately needs protection. When Haibara acts odd, he doesn’t consider anything wrong with her emotionally, nor does he even try and figure out what’s going on with her. He’s more likely to just ask ‘what’s wrong with you/what’s with your attitude‘, which isn’t as personal and pretty rude. [ Going by his attitude towards her when she kept accidentally shocking herself because she’d been wearing the wrong fabrics. ] ( Especially when he goes into a tizzy trying to figure out what could possibly be going on with Ran whenever anything seems out of place in the slightest. )

[hotcocosharing]

Glory Days Part 28 (IM RP AU- Shun & Midi)

Part 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7 / 8 / 9 / 10 / 11 / 12 / 13 / 14 / 15 / 16 / 17 / 18 / 19 / 20 / 21 / 22 / 23 / 24 / 25 / 26 / 27

BOYS FIGHT!

❥ ❥ ❥ ❥ ❥ ❥ ❥ ❥ ❥ ❥ ❥ ❥ ❥  

Yukihisa’s POV I’ve tried to behave - honestly, well.. no, not honestly. There’s a pretty little line of over the top dressed women who stand in my line of sight all craving attention in one way or another yet only one manages to catch my attention. Tall and slender wrapped in a silver gown that looks like the perfect present anyone would be lucky to receive on Christmas morning, I half dance - half slide past bodies in the crowd to get closer to the girl I’ve chosen to prey on; chuckling to myself when I get close enough and finally realize who it is. “So you’ve gotta tell me the secret”, I whisper over Eriko’s shoulder as I walk up behind her, hearing and relishing at the sound of her hitched breath as I catch her by surprise, “…with a dress this figure-hugging - just how did you manage to get into it?” Without seeing her face on I can already sense that she’s rolling her eyes and yet I couldn’t care less - this woman has done nothing but taunt and tease me for the past week and I feel as if I should at least try and put all this to an end. Hands on her waist; I urge her to turn with a half step and when she looks up finally so that we’re seeing eye to eye, face to face; that usual sly and cheeky grin isn’t there - like I was expecting. Her expression is solemn - and from the interesting stories I’d heard days ago from a not so sober Toshiaki and free liquor pouring Shun I can possibly guess why. Taking her wrist, I guide the ever so sexily oozing femme fatale off to the side of the dancefloor and pull out a seat for her, waiting for her to accept before tucking it in beneath her. Next, it’s a quick and quiet crouch down in front of her. Perhaps if I’m not seen as overly dominant or possessive our little chat will go better than expected. “Fuck….”, the word curses out between my lips as Eriko crosses her legs and shows off a little skin, “..you have to stop feel tight beneath the belt.” “You’re an idiot”, she half mumbles, half chuckles shoving at my chest and I can’t help but be grateful for even the slightest bit of contact. “So… what’s the deal with you and your date? He looks a little plain compared to the men I’ve seen you take notice of; and I’m wondering if tonight”, I questioned biting my lip whilst smiling; placing a hand on her knee, “..if you’ll make an exception.” Abruptly cut off by the fact Shunichiro has rushed by and asked me to follow him, I leave Eriko with her thoughts wondering what the fuck I’m needed for. Midori’s POV After the less than ideal silent rebuttle between my best friend and the puppy who has seemed to lose his way, I sigh - chasing Toshiaki outside after he mumbles beneath his breath again that he shouldn’t be around and that Eriko deserves better. Deserves better what? At the rate that their both managing to grind on my nerves I’m thinking they’d make a perfect couple - the attention queen constantly feeding the pathetically naive who wants to make a good impression on her yet just isn’t confident enough to do so. I’m thankful that I swapped from the heels, running in flats its so much easier and after bumping into classmates, tutors, waitstaff and a man who looks like he’s a member of the live band that’s playing I’ve managed to, breathlessly, make my way outside. Where the hell is he? Ughhhh! Rolling my eyes, I begin to get frustrated about how this night is turning out. Every moment Shunichiro and I manage to get together is ruined at no fault of our own by the environment we’re stuck within. Boy drama, drunken nights, petty arguments, friends who have no idea what they should do or should be doing, classes, assignments due – I’m under the impression that from this attempt of a relationship nothing is going to eventuate. “You need to stop running every time life looks like it’s going to get difficult for thirty seconds”, I explain, walking up to the boy that I’ve found sitting on a small set of steps, wondering if I should have bothered to try and drag him out of the dorm if only this was going to happen. Hands on my hips, I try and catch my breath - rolling my eyes at the fact Toshiaki from his pockets is pulling out a cigarette. Snatching them out of his hands, I place them behind my back. “Please tell me you didn’t pick up this habit from Tachibana?” My question is met with nothing but silence and this gets on my nerves even more. “Look - stop acting like a god damn brat and fucking talk to me.” Without waiting for a second longer he explains that it’s not that he doesn’t to do this but that he can’t do it - that he feels guilty for the death of his ex and he hasn’t quite moved on yet. That he likes Eri’s company but is near certain that after a short period of him that she’d be bored and get over him. That he’s not good at relationships. That he’s not good at opening up. That he’s not good at talking about what he’s feeling. Sighing with a deep breath, I can’t quite find the right words to explain that he’s doing that all now without my constant prompting but I keep quiet - anything that I can or might say may have the opposite effect. We want two steps forward not two steps back. “Ok.. that’s all you had to say - for a relationship or whatever it is she want’s you’re not ready. Easy huh? Repeat after me ‘I’m not ready!’” Toshiaki doesn’t bother yet I do get the smallest of faint laughs coughed up from him which makes me feel as if I’ve done something right. Snapping my fingers and telling him to stand up; I explain within a single breath that we’re walking back inside and that he’s going to act as if it’s a fresh start and that nothing ever happened. A fresh start is what they need - it’s what everybody needs; but before that can happen, I’m pushed out of the way and hit the ground, a fight underway in front of me. Rikiya’s POV Kagari’s presence is enough to get beneath my skin but when I  see the guy that’s been causing Eriko problems - the one that’s made her cry and forced me to spend time wiping away her tears, I’m on the verge of snapping. It’s been a long, long time since I ever let my temper get the better of me but within seconds and a single punch, I have blood on my knuckles even though I’m not bleeding. “What the hell man - she see’s you for 30 seconds and you’re already making Eri fucking cry?” What I’m asking comes out half in aggravation, half with a choke when he finally manages to get his hands onto me. The scuffle between the both of us ending after a minute or so of rough-housing before security has pried us apart; the girl in question over all of this watching with a bit lip from the distance. “Mononobe, we’re leaving.” Shinichi’s voice barely cuts into my register as I shove him away, wanting space from anyone and everyone that seems to have surrounded me.

Eriko’s POV

Whoever says having guys fight over girls is romantic, because I feel far from it.The people around the boys are still shouting out fight as if wishing for them to do some real damage, but they are smarter than that. Impulsive, protective but definitely smarter.

On the contrary, I as the reason behind this mess is watching from afar, hoping to be unnoticed, wishing to be gone for good. My disappearance shall restore everything to its rightful order, everyone back to their lives with friends who spend quality time together and occasionally checking out the opposite sex without causing a scene.

I put my hand up and hail at a cab coming my way, slipping in without looking back and asks the driver to take me to a place where’s save for me to drink at this time of the night. Around 15 minutes later, it stops with a grand hotel in sight. Thanking the man generously, I head to the bar like it’s one of my regular.

The place is fancy, not that I’m in the mood to judge but sitting on the bar stools with the soft rhythm of the piano playing in the background makes me fit in right away, a few tables with patrons sipping drinks, talking, laughing, having fun. Well maybe I do stand out a little all alone in a freaking open back nightgown but this is the best I’d do for one drama-free night.

I already had two drinks and was contemplating about having a third. Maybe it isn’t such a good idea but what harm could it do with just one extra drink?

“Care if I join?” asks an older man. It’s obvious his suit is tailed made and expensive nevertheless he’s still unappealing.

After a while, with a bit of chatting- more of a Q & A. I finish my drink and excuse myself to the ladies room, standing in one of the stalls, I rest my head against the wall. Three drinks never make me this loopy. I feel nauseous and having a hard time thinking straight through in truth I haven’t been able to do that in quite some time now. I sigh, close my eyes in a wince and put my hand on my forehead. Feeling oddly hot, like some kind of heat is pooling in my stomach, and barely manage to drag myself back to the stool, bumping into someone in a lavender shirt.

“Hey?” A new voice says but I couldn’t quite see who it is. A soft pounding, soft drumming of pain beats in my head before I vaguely notice a smirk, the man in tailor-made suit now has his arms around my shoulders, “Sorry, my girlfriend is a little tipsy.”

“What? I’m not your girlfriend, I am nobody girlfriend. I …. I’m gonna go home myself…” Blurring the words out, I shake off his hands and stumble few steps further.

“Hey!!!”

Few voices are shouting at the same time but I have no strength left to turn around and check, my feet feel weak and I need to lay down, now.

The unsteady and bouncing movement beneath me is almost startling, I still feel the sweltering heat all around me and when I momentarily manage to open my eyes I find myself being carried and once again a glimpse of a lavender shirt.

My eyes are too heavy to be lifted but I could faintly identify some kind of short conversation bet two men.

“I don’t know what she’s taken but she’s not waking up. Why am I always cleaning up your mess.”

“This isn’t my mess, just drop her off at the hospital anonymously.”

Yukihisa’s POV

Couldn’t say I was surprised when Shun dragged me away to find Toshiaki, the man hasn’t been himself lately and hell, I haven’t been myself ever since Eriko has entered our lives but witnessing the worried and desperate expression that we unfortunately are too familiar with isn’t a good sign at all.

Being the first to watch her flee the scene was helpful with Midori ringing her non stop and ended up splitting in three teams, the other two plain guys going after her by cab, Toshi and I to wait at our dorm then Shun and his girl waiting at her dorm, only none of us had seen Eri since.

4 hours later- still no news from her yet. Midori says she could have met some guy and decided to spend the night but the rest of us differ. Riding in cabs around the town seems useless but it’s better than sitting ducks till the auburn hair of the duo suggests to try the hospital. As soon as one of the ER doctor has seen Eri’s photo and we know, she’s here but the information could only be revealed to her direct family.

Now no longer with the revolting taste in my mouth, I lean alongside a wall and pull out a packet of cigarette, sharing with the rest of the guys and watch Midori pacing in circles, cursing to herself with the phone in hand. “Fuck, I seriously don’t want to be the one to call her dad.”

For better or worse; I want nothing more than a hot shower and good night sleep then possibly a make out session from our little troublemaker.

Eriko’s POV

The air feels heavy. How is that even possible?

Inhaling sharply, the air fills my nostrils- heavy and stale. Hospital. Am I in a hospital? Why? How? I renumber the fight, heading to a hotel’s bar, and then the next thing I remember I was lying down, staring at a white ceiling. My eyes open slowly, blinking as the light assaults my vision, and I try to sit up, which is instantly regrettable. My mouth feels dry, sandpaper tongue stuck with a sour tasting mouth. Before I could, however, speak or move another muscle, there is a hand on my shoulder helping me up.

I would have screamed but no sound ’s heard.

I scan the place and see seven pairs of eyes on me, mostly with concern but there’s one particular pair that could simply kill me with his piercing glares but to my surprise, he hasn’t yelled.

“Young lady, you have seriously gone too far this time. You were this close, this close to…”

His stern voice trails off, biting his lips like a cat has got his tongue but my guess would simply be my father trying to not cause a bigger scene in public eyes so here goes my perfect chance.

“This close to what? Send me away?” Good to have my voice back and the rest of my thoughts just fires away. “Fine, do it! Who cares? Nobody! You hate seeing me anyway. You stopped seeing or hearing me years ago, what difference does it make now?!”

Midori jumps and attempts to cover my mouth which I just manage to dodge, “No, stop pulling me back Midz! You know it, I know it and he knows it! He’s been punishing me for the past three years, I am done playing your puppet!! I’m done playing your vase, go get your wife to the ball, she loves the attention!”

“Enough! Show her some respect!”

“Respect?! When did your wife ever respect me then?” It’s so easy to get my father to raise his voice, mentions his wife and my dead brother- work every single time. “I’m sorry I am not Eiji, and I never will be so go ahead send me away. No one gives a damn anyway!”

Breaking down isn’t pretty but with everyone here who has pretty much seen it before, well apart from Maki who I swiftly look away from, I have next found myself buried in Midi’s arms, crying and sobbing something I have not even admitted to myself.

“I miss him, I’d do anything to bring him back! He loved me for who I am, he never judged he never questioned he never takes, all he ever did was give…. It should have been me, I should have been the one to die……”

“Stop Eri!”

“No!!!!!! I listened to all of you and who, who listens to me?! I have fun and mess around, people pretend to like me then call me the whore of century; I behave and make friends then you lots think I’m taunting and manipulating. Fine! I’m done, I’m done trying to impress people who clearly don’t even want to lay eyes on me or listen to what I’ve got to say. Most of you just want to get into my pants anyway so none of you even care!!!! Get out, all of you, OUT!”

Raged, annoyed, frustrated and ashamed, I pull the sheet over my head and decide to hide underneath it for eternity.

[meitanteikazuha]

In Reverse: The Twenty Year Old Murderous Intent: The Symphony Serial Murder Case

Hello yes, it’s me again, back with some more Heiji/Kazuha roleswap fic. Please enjoy! If you want to learn about the roleswap, check out the about page here, or start from the beginning of the fic here or here!

Air.

It was the realization that there was none that sent him into a panic. As he gasped for it, water rushed into his lungs, the presence of it's crushing pressure around him only now making itself known.

It was in that instant, as he found himself gasping for what was not there, that he realized that this was most likely a dream. In doing so, the water which had sunk into his lungs expelled itself all at once, leaving him coughing, hacking, but able to breathe. This dream, he dimly realized, was not about himself.

As he caught a glimpse of flowing hair, caught in the dim light of the moon that penetrated the water's surface, he felt a surge of fear that was more powerful and more intense than it ever would have been had the dream simply been about himself. The dark brown color of that hair, the ribbon that broke free in the flowing current...

Though he knew it was merely a dream, he found himself reaching out for her anyways. But as if it were a fate that he couldn't change, no matter how far he stretched out his hand, it simply wouldn't reach, as she instead sunk further and further down into the ocean, a yearning pit underneath longing to become her final resting place.

It was only as their eyes met, the deep green piercing through the darkness of the waters, that he jolted awake from his nightmare. He was drenched, not from sinking into the ocean, but from his own cold sweat, his heart hammering loudly inside of his chest. Swallowing, he placed a hand over it, trying to draw in breath, finding it just as hard to do so as if he were actually drowning.

Slowly though, the pounding of his heart settled, and he forced himself to draw in one, long breath. Swinging his feet out of bed, he reached for his cellphone, already dialing Kazuha's number.

The number you have dialed is-.

Not even letting the automated message finish, Heiji changed out of his pajamas at almost a lightning pace, barely even pausing to grab his shoes and keys. Dimly, he could hear his mother's voice calling out to him as he made for the door, but he didn't stop to chat with her, the grip of fear in his chest too tight.

When he had dreamed about Kazuha being shot the other day, he had been worried, of course. But that dream had been different than this one.

She hadn't looked at him.

No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't get that sight out of his eyes. In the back of his mind, a part of him knew that Kazuha would never be the type to blame others, but the silent message that had been carried in them as they dimmed into lifelessness was enough to make his blood run cold.

This is your fault.

Whether the coming future really was the result of his actions, he didn't know- but even if it wasn't, it wasn't something that he would just idly sit by and allow happen. Once and for all, he would-!

"Heiji?" Until Kazuha's father spoke to him, he frankly hadn't even been aware that he had already made it to her house, much less knocked on her door. He must have though, acting purely out of instinct, if nothing else. For a moment, his head went blank, almost forgetting why it was that he came here.

Then he remembered, and fought back a shudder.

It might seem silly, to put so much faith into mere dreams- but they'd never proven to be wrong before.

"Is Kazuha around?" Heiji asked, only now half considering the fact that he probably looked like a mess. He'd taken the time to change, but he hadn't so much as taken a brush to his hair, leaving it to stick out in every direction, and upon second glance, he was actually wearing two different pairs of sneakers.

Composure, he supposed, was not really an option.

What time was it even, he found himself wondering. Usually he was the type to wake up before the crack of dawn, but the sun was already high overheard. Dimly, he recalled that he had stayed up rather late doing... come to think of it, he couldn't actually remember now what it was that he had been doing the previous night, all of his other thoughts more less drawing up blanks. It was probably much later than he would have liked it to be, he realized with a small grimace.

"No, she left about an hour ago." The words were spoken so casually, and somehow, they still managed to make his blood run cold. "Is something wrong, Heiji? You look out of sorts."

"Did she say where she was going?" Heiji pressed, ignoring the question about himself for the moment. Why had that idiot left to go somewhere without him?

"Just that she was going to Tokyo." Ginshiro told him, shaking his head. "I assumed that she was heading to the place of that Mouri Ran girl that she's become friends with lately. Is there something wrong with my daughter?" It was at this point that Ginshiro leveled a far sharper gaze on the disheveled young man, a tight frown forming on his face.

This wasn't exactly the first time that he had come over to their house, early in the morning, looking for Kazuha in such a state. It was, however, the first time since that incident, which for once, seemed to be the furthest thing from his thoughts. He'd been putting in an effort to avoid the Toyama residence since then, so whatever it was that had driven him to come here must have been something indeed.

"Ah." Opening his mouth, and then just as quickly shutting it, Heiji forced a smile on his face. At the very least, if she was really with Neechan, he could at least call her and tell her to keep an eye on her. It didn't provide him with much comfort, but with some, enough to compose himself... or as much as he could, given his appearance.

"No, I just had a bad dream, an' she wasn't pickin' up her phone, so..." Heiji told him, taking a slight step back, a hand straying up behind his neck. "I see, so she went ta Neechan's place in Tokyo! Then, sorry ta bother ya, uncle. Maybe I should head there myself!"

"Heiji-." For a moment, it seemed almost as if Ginshiro wanted to say something else, before he thought better of it, instead shaking his head. "Make sure to wear a matching pair of shoes this time."

"Aw, but I was tryin' ta start a new trend!"

If she had to be honest, she was actually feeling a bit nervous.

It had nothing to do with the strange letter she had gotten, even if it had been stuffed to the brim with no small amount of money. It hadn't been the first time she'd gotten an odd letter with no return address- it had already happened once or twice before. If anything, th reason that she was so nervous was simply because...

...well, she'd never actually been on a ship this big before.

It wasn't as if she was entirely a stranger to the fancier things in life- Heiji's mom did seem to have some fairly impressive connections, so she'd been to a formal party once or twice before. Still, it was never an environment that she could find herself staying calm in, especially not when she was alone.

It wasn't as if the letter had told her to come alone or anything. Actually, she had tried to invite Heiji that morning, before she left, only to find that he was still in bed for a change. Since that was usually a sign that he hadn't gone to sleep until the early hours of the morning, she had decided to let him be, and had instead come to Tokyo herself.

Really, she'd been hoping to invite Shinichi and Ran as well, but that hadn't worked out either. She'd called, but nobody had picked up. Since there was a chance that she'd miss the boat entirely if she went to check the agency herself, she instead decided to go straight to the port where she was to catch it.

Just as the letter had said, showing one of the old style bills that she had gotten in the letter had let her right on. At first, she had thought it was meant as payment- but instead, they had let her keep the note, confusing her to no small degree. Well, while she wasn't one to look a gift horse in the month, it certainly went a long way to make this whole trip even more mysterious.

But speaking of sleeping in... letting out a loud yawn, Kazuha blinked her eyes, the fact that she hadn't gotten that much sleep the previous night either only now sinking into her. Though they hadn't left port yet, the rocking of the boat didn't really help with her exhaustion, only adding to it, if anything.

Well, they still had some time before they departed from the sound of it, so a quick nap wouldn't hurt. After all, one couldn't conduct an investigation on so little sleep!

...though it would be kind of nice to know what, exactly, she had been called here to investigate.

 "A detective? You mean there's another one on board?"

 "That's right. They don't look that much like one, though."

In hindsight, those words should have perhaps served as something of an omen. Still, when Toyama Kazuha burst out of the room they had been trying to gain access to, irate at the noise that they were making, he'd found himself being taken by surprise. Perhaps not quite as much as the person in question herself, though her surprise had very quickly turned into delight.

Which had just as quickly turned into curiosity, as she asked after the reason why they had been making so much of a racket in the first place. Not that he ever doubted it from beginning.

"The Gray Planner?" Kazuha asked. "Now that ya mention it, I've heard that name somewhere before... I think my father mentioned somethin' about him once before. I thought he was dead, though."

As she let Kogoro catch her up to speed on the one once known as the Gray Planner- or rather, Kanou Saizou, his real name was, Conan didn't miss the way he saw gears turning in her head. Once he had the chance, he'd have to ask about it later- what, exactly, had brought her to this ship today. Given the situation, he doubted it was just a coincidence.

Well, then again, she might have just seen the ad in the paper and had decided to come. She did seem like the type to like dolphins.

Which, apparently, was just as much Ran's theory as his own.

"Eh? It wasn't because of the ad that you came, Kazuha-chan?"

"I'm not sure what kinda ad yer talkin' about Ran-chan, but my reason fer bein' here is different." Kazuha told her, shaking her head. For a brief moment, her gaze flickered over towards Conan, and he could only twitch at the slightly teasing expression that lingered on her face. No doubt she found some amusement in the idea of him going along with Ran on a three night trip to spot dolphins. "I got a weird letter in the mail, filled with old bills, so I decided ta come on this ship both ta see what it was that they wanted, an' ta return the money."

"I see." Ran noted. "I guess you didn't bring Hattori-kun with you this time."

"I tried, but he was still asleep when I went over ta his place this mornin'." Kazuha told them, pausing to a sip of her tea. "He'll probably be full of complaints when I get back, though. Ever since that incident with Sakata-han, he's been awfully noisy whenever I try an' go off ta case without him."

"Isn't he just worried?" Ran asked. "You did get shot, after all."

"I guess." Kazuha admitted. "But well, if I have ta be honest, it's just a bit annoyin'. Between the two of us, he's got the worse luck, so bein' lectured about somethin' like that is sort of... ya know?"

Well, whatever the reasons, if he had to be honest, Conan was almost grateful that she hadn't brought Heiji with her this time. He wasn't a bad person, he supposed, but he was someone that he found himself having trouble getting along with. It was a combination of the fact that he perceived him as a child, and very clearly did not have any idea as to what one was supposed to do with a child, and the fact that he was just a bit too perceptive for Conan's comfort.

Well, he supposed that with his father being who he was, that much was to be expected.

"I think it's cute, though." Ran noted. Though the smile on her face was bright, there was a trace of something else beneath it. Knowing her as well as he did, Conan quickly picked up on it- and hoped that Kazuha hadn't. Were she to, he knew that he would be in for another chiding about keeping secrets, something he'd rather avoid. "Having your childhood friend worry about you that much."

Letting out a snort, Kazuha only rolled her eyes. "There's nothin' about Heiji that I'd call cute, Ran-chan. When he was a kid, maybe, but..."

Realizing in that instant, she had already said too much, Kazuha turned a bright shade of red, slamming her teacup down. "A-anyways, let's forget about that guy!"

Come to think of it, they had disagreed like this the first time they met, too.

Perhaps disagree wasn't quite the right word- arrived at different conclusions was better, if not more wordy. In truth, it was a thing that made her nervous- the last time she had come to a different conclusion, she had allowed herself to be mislead by the culprit, falling into a trap that they had set up. Normally, she wouldn't have made a mistake like that, but though the challenge hadn't been her idea, she had nonetheless found herself getting caught up in it, being blinded by it.

Though, suffice to say, she didn't expect her first impression of Kudo Shinichi to be that of a guy who looked like he was about to collapse on his feet. No wonder Ran had been so worried about him at the time, she had thought- it was only later that she had come to understand the reason behind the source of his strange sickness, as well as both his sudden appearance and disappearance.

That too, had been Heiji's idea, come to think of it- going to that Holmes fan gathering, that was. In truth, she didn't care all that much for Sherlock Holmes- the mysteries were interesting, but the as for the man himself, well... she always had preferred female detective stories, and for a reason. But Heiji had seem convinced that she'd run into Kudo there, and in a way, it almost chafed her to admit that he'd been right.

Especially since the logic behind his assumption had been so strange to begin with. But well... this was the same guy who not only believed in ghosts, but believed that if one tried hard enough, one could definitely punch them.

Still, nervous though she was, she didn't think that she was wrong- at least, not until she saw that. It was as if everything had clicked, all at once- everything but the culprit, that was.

Because she wasn't the only one who had been wrong.

"Then, if it's not them, then who...?"

When the answer struck her, it was quite literal.

It was the sound of something falling into the ocean that caught his attention. Even if it were a small sound, it would have still piqued his curiosity, but the loud splash that caught his ears nearly caused his heart to skip a beat.

Call him paranoid if you will, but the first thing he thought of was to ask where Kazuha had gone to. When one of the crew members had informed him that she had borrowed a large flashlight to look around the deck of the ship, he swore for a moment that his heart stopped beating entirely.

While his legs might be considerably shorter now than they had been in the past, when he wanted to, he could more than make up for that gap. If that splash was what he thought it was, then...

When it came to someone being in danger, his act tended to slip. But since he'd outpaced everyone who was following after him, it barely concerned him, calling out Kazuha's name until he made his way up to the deck, from where the source of the sound most likely came from. It was only when he was met with nothing but empty ocean, and the burnt remains of the corpse that had started this all, that he found himself halting.

Even then, it only took him a few seconds before he pulled himself up onto the ship's railing, once more calling out her name to the open ocean. It couldn't be... it couldn't be!

If she'd really gone overboard, in a place like this... and in the darkness of night, at that! Something like that couldn't have...

The ocean had no answers to give.

She supposed that she should count herself lucky that the blow to her head hadn't been enough to knock her out. Even though it hadn't managed to do that, it still disorientated her for longer than she would have liked- by the time she finally broke to the surface, gasping for air, the ship was already long gone.

Expelling the last of the seawater that she had swallowed, Kazuha fought to keep her head above the water. Already, her mind was racing, trying to figure out the best way out of this predicament- of which there weren't that many options. Even if she knew which way it had gone, there was no way she could catch up with the ship, and trying to swim against the current would only tire her out faster than simply trying to stay afloat.

The best thing to do was wait for rescue- hopefully someone on the ship would noticed that she was missing, and put two and two together. Failing that, she'd have to do her best to draw one to her. A quick check proved that the flashlight that she borrowed was still in working order- thank god, it must have been waterproof.

That bastard... if he really thought that she was going to just give up and die that easily, he had another thing coming! While she could count on Shinichi to solve the case in her absence, there was no way she would be satisfied with that. She'd definitely survive this, and come right back, and make him pay for what he'd done.

The life of high school detective Toyama Kazuha wouldn't end this easily!

"Achoo!"

"Are you alright, Kazuha-chan?" Hovering worriedly by her friend, Ran could only frown. She had been worried when they couldn't find Kazuha anywhere, but she never could have imagined that she had been pushed overboard! It must have happened back when Conan had heard that strange splash, and she couldn't help but blame herself for not acting sooner.

Thank god though, things had turned out alright.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Kazuha told her, giving her something of a sheepish smile. "I'll be better when I can get back ta my room. Thank god I brought a change of clothes with me, or I'd be in trouble!"

"Trouble...?" Ran blinked. "Ah, that's right, yours must be soaked."

"Ah, well..." Glancing away from her, feeling her cheeks tint a bright shade of red, Kazuha drew the blanket that she had been given closer around her. She knew he was worried too, but honestly, that Shinichi- couldn't he hover somewhere else? If there was one thing that she was grateful for, it was how long the blanket that she had been given was. "That's true, but that's because most of them are still in the ocean."

"Eh, you mean...?" Placing a hand over her mouth as she realized, Ran's face turned a bright shade of red. For just a moment, her gaze flickered down towards Conan, so fast that Kazuha nearly missed it. It seemed to be enough to spur her into action though, scurrying behind her, pressing her hands against her back. "I-in that case, let's hurry and get back to your room, Kazuha-chan!"

"Ah... yeah." Slowly nodding her head, Kazuha pursed her lips together, briefly wondering what that was about. Well, to be honest, right now she really did just want to change into a nice, dry set of clothes, so any other worries could come later. "Let's go, Ran-chan."

"Then, can I come with-?"

"Conan-kun," there was something in Ran's voice which very nearly bordered on a threat, if he wasn't mistaken, "...you can stay here."

"Kazuha."

"...nice ta see ya too, Heiji."

She had to admit, she hadn't expected to see him here at all. She knew full well that he'd be annoyed that she had ditched him, but not to this point. How had he even known where to find her anyways?

"That's all ya got ta say ta me?" Heiji asked, taking a few steps forward, all but brushing aside Ran's greeting. Though Heiji and anger were two things that often went together, it was rare to see him this angry. "Ya went an' put yerself in danger, an' all ya got ta say ta me is that it's nice ta see me?"

Not much of one to be a shrinking violet, not even in the face of the rather intense anger that was radiating outwards from him, Kazuha narrowed her eyes, straightening her back. "Yeah, that's all that I've got ta say ta ya, Heiji! What's with ya lately anyways? Ya've been actin' like ya think I need an escort or somethin'."

"Ya nearly drowned!"

"Nearly. Didn't." Kazuha told him, folding her arms in front of her chest, locking eyes with him. "Big difference."

"Barely a difference." Heiji insisted, clearly not backing down here. "Ya could have died, Kazuha."

"I didn't." Kazuha told him simply, her shoulders slumping slightly. Angry though he was, the source of it was concern for her- and it wasn't like he was entirely wrong. She really was lucky that a fishing boat had come along, especially so late at night. If it hadn't, she probably would have...

...ah.

So that's why he was so angry.

"I'm alive, Heiji. Short one change of clothes, but alive." Kazuha told him.

The anger didn't quite fade from him, but at the very least, she'd told him something he clearly wanted to hear. Just seeing it with his own two eyes apparently wasn't enough- it must have been a very bad nightmare indeed if he needed a verbal confirmation. In that sense, she couldn't entirely blame him for being angry.

That wasn't to say that she liked it. Or rather, his anger was fine, understandable, even. The problem was... well, the problem was that she didn't really care to hear words that she knew he was repeating from his father come out of his mouth. She had thought that she had helped distract him from what was troubling him the other day, when they went to the amusement park together, but it seemed like she had been mistaken.

"Why'd ya go without me?" Heiji asked finally. "I would have come with ya."

"Ya didn't hear from Auntie Shizuka?" Kazuha asked. "I did, but ya were still fast asleep. Since that's not like ya, I figured it would be best just ta let ya keep doin' that, an' went ta Tokyo on my own."

Opening and shutting his mouth, as if there was something that he wanted to say to that, Heiji let out a long sigh, finally stepping back and giving her a bit of space. "Ya invited Neechan."

"She just happened ta be there, that's all. Besides, from the sound of it, I would have thought ya'd have liked it better if I wasn't alone." Kazuha told him, ignoring the fact that it had been her plan to do so in the first place. "I'm really fine though, Heiji."

"...ya sure?" Heiji asked, his shoulders finally slumping. In truth, he was more relieved than anything. "Ya didn't get hurt anywhere, or anythin' like that?"

"Nothin' serious." Kazuha promised him. "Now then, Heiji, are ya gonna ignore Ran-chan an' Conan-kun fer the rest of the mornin', or are ya gonna at least acknowledge they exist?"

"Ah." As if only now fully realizing that he had ignored them, in spite of bringing up her name earlier, Heiji could only flash them a sheepish smile. "...my bad."

[tetragon4-blog]

The Identity of Ano Kata

Today, I would like to reflect on an idea that came to me when I re-read some of the speculations about the Black Organization, and especially its boss, ano kata. Since I haven’t seen this theory floating around yet, I am claiming it as my own.

 It is possible that Aoyama has been misleading us intentionally: At the beginning, some people considered Vermouth aka Sharon Vineyard to be ano kata in secret, mainly because she is able to move more freely than her colleagues. However, the fandom discounted her altogether, after somebody sent her a text message that orders her back. Aoyama’s earlier hint that there is a relationship between the boss and Vermouth that exceeds employer and subordinate has since been forgotten. Few speculations take this into account, although it probably is NOT a red herring. She takes more liberties than the other members, she is not as afraid as them of being killed as punishment. It is likely that there is some form of attachment between her and the boss that is akin to a safety net should her deceit become known. I doubt that her gratefulness to Shinichi would be enough for her to risk her own life multiple times to save his.

Now, there is not much that we can say about Vermouth, because her identity is shrouded in darkness and lies. However, she is committed to one saying that might be the key to understanding her role in the black organization:

“A secret makes a woman woman.”

Keeping in mind that we are dealing with a mystery manga that incorporates fictional characters of Western stories, there is only one woman: Irene Adler whom Sherlock Holmes referred to as “the woman.” Although her role is very restricted in Doyle’s universe, she has been immortalized through countless adaptations, wriggling her way into the limelight. I can see some parallels between Adler and Vermouth, mainly her appeal, the cleverness, and of course, like Adler and Holmes’ first encounter, her first showdown with Conan was based on compromising pictures.

Now, there is a second oddity around Vermouth that is worth mentioning: She calls Conan and Akai silver bullets. This is a metaphor, of course, and the medium of comparison is their intention to take down the boss/organization. But there is another element to this curious phrase: Silver bullets take down werewolves. What if werewolf is a reference to the boss?

There is a non-canonical theory that Irene Adler had a child with Sherlock Holmes: Nero Wolfe, the detective of the eponymous novels. In Japanese, the pronunciation of were and Nero are very close to one another, because the w is not realized as as a /v/ sound as in violence, but rather as the ou in the French oui. The l and r are basically the same sound, and due to that, werewolf and Nero Wolfe are almost homophones (words that have the exact same pronunciation).

Since Adler is the “mother” of Nero Wolfe, this leaves us with two possible readings:

1.       Vermouth was ano kata at one point, but lost the position, making the organization her brain “child”, respectively

2.       Ano kata is literally her child.

3.       Possibility 1 and 2 are not mutually exclusive.

 Before I go any further down the rabbit hole, I would like to address the relationship between Vermouth and the boss once more. We know that their interests diverge, pointing towards the fact that they are different people: On one hand, Vermouth is attempting to protect Conan, on the other hand the boss encourages Bourbon to get close to Mouri. It is not clear whether there is an open disagreement between Vermouth and ano kata, or whether she is going along with the situation. However, the two of them are distinct people with different goals, no matter how they are related to one another.

  In fact, it is quite likely that the original boss who started the research on APTX is not the current ano kata. Unless they are stuck like Vermouth, the person would have to be at least 70, if not 80 years old, because the BO began investigating aging processes more than half a century ago. Few is known about their initial interest, and I am deliberately vague on this term. So far, we have had the shrinking effect, which seems to revert its victims to youth. Then there’s Vermouth who stopped aging. It is possible that, at some point, the organization researched how to age up people’s cells until they die, too. Assuming that Vermouth was at most a victim of the earlier experiments, that would render her about 70 years of age, and a child of hers 50 years at max. However, her hatred of the Miyano family may hint at their involvement in her condition. Since Ai’s parents took over the research project about 30 years before the current timeline, that would make Vermouth at most 50 years of age, and put a child at about 30 years. This is actually a curious timing, because I deduced in Vermouth’s Curse that “she has looked 28 years of age since at least since 21 years ago”. This would put her at 49 “lived” years. If Nero Wolfe refers to a biological child of hers, then it would be less than 30 years of age.

There is also some evidence of a change in leadership when you consider the muddy history of APTX: The “first” boss seemed to be very interested in the project, so much as to involve a foreign researcher without ties into the organization (Miyano Elena) and her husband. Yet, after the lab burnt down about 17 years ago, the project was scrapped entirely. At first glance, it might seem like all research data was lost in the fire, but Ai claims that when she took over, the organization provided her with the past results. There was no reason not to employ other researchers in the following years. Yet, the project was put on indefinite halt.

It is actually possible to pinpoint a rough date as to when a change in leadership might have occurred: Five years before the current timeline, the organization suddenly reached out to Shiho, and groomed her to continue her parents’ work. Their interest in the project suddenly pops up again. Also, for the first time, we may safely conclude the purpose of the research, because Pisco comments that Shiho managed to advance the project when he sees her child-like form. APTX is supposed to regain youth, not just stop the aging process like it did with Vermouth. It is not about re-creating that effect.

As such, it is likely that the boss’ identity changed roughly five years ago.

  Now, if we assume that Sharon was actually Vermouth’s real identity, because her supposed age matches the age I determined through logical conclusions:

Her husband might have been the real deal, too.

As such, we need to re-evaluate our information concerning Chris Vineyard, the supposedly alter ego of Sharon.

  Yes, I am finally at the stage where I may proudly state my theory: Sharon’s supposedly fictional daughter Chris is ano kata. She took over after ceding her identity to her mother who approached the end of her ability to mask her lack of aging.

Of course, there is no proof, but there are certain aspects that point towards the fact that it is POSSIBLE.

1.       The song Nanatsu no Ko that is associated with the boss is about a mother crow feeding her chicks. Crow is a homophone of the Japanese word Kuro, which means black. It is not farfetched to assume that ano kata is female, because the phone number may belong to the “mother” of the black organization.

2.       Chris is supposed to be 29 years old. Thus, she fits the profile.

3.       It is difficult for people to completely shield their private life. Sharon had been in the public eye for about 20 years, because she was already famous when she met Yukiko at Toichi’s. Depending on this calculation, Chris would have been nine years old, and Sharon cannot have posed as a child due to the different body structure. Either Chris appeared out of nowhere as an adult, or there must have been a child at some point.

4.       In an interview, Chris once claimed that the relationship with her mother is strained. This might have been a cheap lie to explain that they were never seen together in the same place (being the same person), or maybe there is a grain of truth in this statement: Vermouth’s relationship with ano kata is strained, too, after all.

5.       It would explain ano kata’s interest in regaining youth. She now is older than her own mother, being 29 while her mother appears to be around 25 years of age. It would also explain why Vermouth is dead-set against the boss finding out about the shrinking effect. She may not wish her own fate on her daughter, having to watch as everybody else withers and dies.

  I really would like a twist like this to become canon, because the manga is dragging it out, and if the reveal fails to be surprising, it would be quite disappointing. Also, a female boss would fit with Aoyama’s tendency to represent women in power positions, which is rare in shounen manga.

[trouvelle]

Dreams

A/N: I apologize in advance for any mistakes and errors in the story. Fandom: Detective Conan/Case Closed Pairing: Hattori Heiji/Kazuha Toyama Rating: G Genre/Tags: Soulmates AU Summary: His mother told him that the dreams would go away, that the dreams would stop. They never did. The dreams never stopped coming.

How can you miss someone you've never met?

Heiji didn't know how that works, all he knew was that it felt like there's an enormous, painful hole in his chest that refused to go away. It got worse when he woke up, when the dreams were still fresh in his mind, branded into his memories.

He had been having them for as long as he could remember, dreams filled with an wide eyed child about the same age, full of images of a life that wasn't his. Now, Heiji wasn't an unhappy child by any means—he's pretty loud and rowdy—but the only time he felt truly happy, was when he was asleep. When he was awake, it just felt wrong.

Like something was missing.

Someone.

Some nights the dreams didn't come to him and those were the best and worst nights of all. They were the best because he wasn't haunted by visions of big emerald eyes, free to actually dream like a normal person, but also the worst because somehow the emptiness grew even larger with the absence and eventually engulfed him, suffocating him.

He'd only ever told one person about his dreams. When he was younger he hadn't realized that other people don't dream of the same person over and over and over. That it's not normal. His parents had dismissed it as an imaginary friend, someone Heiji had created in his mind.

He had believed it too for a while.

But there were things that made him doubt.

He never saw his imaginary friend during daytime, to start with. He never played with her, not even in his dreams. It was more like catching glimpses through the window to someone else's life. He had seen her play with other children but never with Heiji. It was very odd.

The only face he seemed to be able to remember upon waking up was that one girl—chubby cheeks and pig tails and skinny limbs—no matter how many people she encountered and interacted with in his dream.

He was expecting to grow out of his dreams just like his mother said he would. One day, she had said, he wouldn't need his imaginary friend anymore and the dreams would stop all on their own.

They never did.

It didn't matter how many friends Heiji had, how many parties he went to, how much he had grown. They never went away. Always the same person, the same girl.

Heiji thought that maybe he's mad.

When he was younger, Heiji wanted to be friends with her. The moments when he watched her, playing with her friends in his dreams, she always looked like she had fun.

She's a bit prickly, not liking to be the butt of anyone's jokes, pleasantly overbearing and easily overwrought, but she never seemed to bear a grudge about it. Just a quick thump and whump on the arm ("Kazuha-chan, that hurts!" whined one of the other kids—freckles and braids) and then they're back to running around like idiots.

No, Heiji wasn't lonely. He had friends at school. He played over at their houses. But there was just something about this girl that had him intrigued. It was strange because she didn't really seem the type Heiji would hang out with normally (all of his other friends were, well, boys. No girls allowed!). He did play around but he seemed equally happy to be quiet.

He liked reading. He liked playing police and thieves. He couldn't sit through any movies without any talking—unless it's a mystery movie. He often wondered whether this meant he and the girl in his dreams couldn't be friends if, you know, the girl was real, because people always said opposites attract.

And Kazuha was just as loud and as boisterous Heiji was.

That thought made him quite sad. Not that he was turned down (which did make him sad for a day or so but he got over it quick enough) but that she wouldn't like him. Heiji liked her a lot, but he didn't want to change himself just for her to like him. That was not Heiji's way of ninja. Heiji was not going to change for anyone. Instead he'd just have to bother the dream girl until she likes Heiji back. That'd definitely work.

Once Heiji grew older he realized more and more how childish that sounded. 'Bother her until she likes me back'? He sounded like a kid who was plotting to pull his friends' pigtails to make them notice him.

...which actually seemed like a fantastic idea. Although there's a slight problem now. Kazuha no longer wore her hair in pigtails. She had been keeping it in a ponytail ever since she joined her school's youth cheerleading club and started taking Aikido lessons. He wondered if pulling on a ponytail would have the same effects as pulling on pigtails.

Stupid, he thought. He's nine. He's grown up enough and observed enough to realize that if he wanted to be Kazuha's friend—best friend—he needed to tow a fine line between playful banter and genuine annoyance. You know. If Kazuha existed. That's what he'd do.

He was twelve when he finally found out where Kazuha probably lived. He was reading the last chapter of one of his Ellery Queen book in his father's office when he was practically forced to put it down and greet his father's guest. The tall stern looking uncle called Ginshiro was once his father's partner, and Heiji's eyes shone bright when he heard that he was previously the Chief Detective of their police district. That was, before she eagerly took a transfer to Interpol, and was allocated to London afterwards.

They were chatting, probably updating each other about their current lives. He eagerly revealed that he had a child, pulled out a photo and showed it to Heiji’s father. Now, Heiji was a tall and growing boy. From his height, he could make out the silhouette of a girl in a school attire that wasn’t commonly seen in Japan. Heiji watched Kazuha often enough to immediately recognize that the outfit in the photo was in fact, her school uniform!

Before Heiji could ask if he could see the photo as well, the topic of their conversation was already changed, and the photo was shoved back into Uncle Ginshiro’s wallet.

—

He was seventeen when he first realized he's in love with the girl and he felt sick. He knew because she was all he had ever thought about (aside from cases and kendo and school lessons, of course. He may be a detective but he's still in high school).

He had no choice at night but even during the day he found himself remembering what movie Kazuha had been watching. He thought about Kazuha's seemingly soft hair and toned arms. He daydreamed about Kazuha's wide eyes and how much wider they would go if Heiji surprised her with a kiss.

A kiss. Sharing a kiss with Kazuha.

Kazuha, who wasn't real.

Heiji woke up then.

That night before he went to bed, he put his hands over his burning cheeks. He had fallen for someone who didn't even exist. It's abnormal. He had imagined a person and then fixated on them like some kind of creep and that was absolutely messed up whichever way you think about it.

He spent the next two years of his life dating anyone who asked him out. The relationships never lasted. He could admit to himself that he wasn't really interested in any of them the way he should be. They were pretty, he enjoyed their company and everything was cool but something just wasn't right. Never seemed to be enough. So bad they weren't even relationships anymore.

It felt like he was searching desperately anyone to fill the hole in his chest, to take away the ache he felt when he woke up and realized once again that the girl he was in love with didn't even exist.

Then Kazuha's mother died. Heiji's dreams were filled with heart-wrenching sobs so painful that he wished he could reach out and comfort Kazuha. She never cried during the day, only at night.

Heiji watched day after day, night after night, as she withdrew into her shell. He heard her calling out for her mother, repeating it until it sounded weird. He wanted so much to hug and kiss Kazuha's pain away.

Heiji tried to stop sleeping after that.

It wasn't what he wanted anyway. Heiji wanted love. Seeing Kazuha mourn over her mother made him realize that he should make the most of the time he had. He didn't want to waste time on meaningless relationships anymore. He didn't want to think about some unreal person anymore.

He knew that until he got rid of his feelings for Kazuha, he wouldn't be able to move on. The only problem was that he simply didn't know how. But he knew for sure that he couldn't just spend the rest of his life hung up on a figment of his imagination.

He had tried dating other people and that hadn't worked. He even tried not sleeping for three days in order to break the cycle. It turned out to be a terrible idea. He had collapsed in class, raving about imaginary people around one beaming, glowing one, and unfairness, and the same wide eyes and ponytail.

He was not doing that again in a hurry. He didn't know what else to do except burying himself in studying and friends and hoping it all goes away eventually.

So that was exactly what he did. He continued dreaming and waited and hoped always.                                                

Hattori Heiji was now twenty one, a third year criminology student. He had been solving even more cases than he used to in high school, sometimes competing with Kudo Shinichi, but most of the time teaming up with him instead. His grades were impressive, as per normal, but things had been such a constant and he really needed more activities aside from studying and solving cases and kendo.

So when his their other friend (Kuroba Kaito, excellent Mechanical Engineering student and magician, also a prankster) told him one of their friends (Hondou Eisuke, surprisingly competent future Environmental Engineer) had had to leave his part-time job due to university commitments and was looking for a replacement, Heiji jumped at the chance. A job's after all. A young man’s gotta save up as much money as he could.

And that was how Heiji ended up working at the one and only invention shop which sold geeky gadgets in the city. The owners, one very lovely but unique old man called Agasa (who in fact, was Shinichi's neighbor) and one girl who turned out to be Shiho (Shinichi's sarcastic girl BFF nonetheless).

Eisuke was one of the clumsiest person Heiji had ever met so how any of the gadgets in this shop survived was a mystery to Heiji. Or at least, how Professor Agasa was able to invent and fix and refix and refix. Heiji figured he was probably the most patient old man alive.

Then Shinichi started helping out at the invention shop too.

It's pretty dull, he'll be honest. There's rarely any customers, so Heiji did more homework than he did actual shop assisting. And solved more and more cases.

Once, Shinichi showed up with dark, dark circles under his eyes. He looked miserable and horrible. Heiji guessed he must've looked just as miserable and horrible when he avoided sleeping back then.

"Haven't been sleepin' well?" Heiji teased him.

Shinichi rolled his eyes and stifled a yawn. "Ugh. You wouldn't understand, Hattori."

“Oh? Try me.”

—

A few months after Heiji started working that he met the girl in his dreams.

It was just another day. No customers, no rain, no cases, no particularly good food. He had already cleaned the place so there was nothing to do but try to work on his recently assigned essay.

The bell rang. Someone walked in and Heiji looked up from his papers to give the customary greeting of the shop when the words died in his throat.

Standing before him, the all too familiar emerald eyes already scanning the gadgets lined up in the shop, is the girl from Heiji's dreams. She's a little taller than Heiji was expecting, less than five inches below Heiji's own height, but he would recognize that face anywhere. The girl didn't seem to notice him, just going about her business in the shop, eyes darting back and forth at the racks, seemingly at random.

Heiji felt like his brain had stopped.

She's not an imaginary friend. She's never just an imaginary friend. She's real.

Finally she plucked something out from one of the compartments—it might be Agasa's voice-changing bow tie or whatever, Heiji really wasn't paying attention to it at all, he was too engrossed in observing her features, her expression—and headed to the register. She looked up. Their eyes met. Time seemed to stop.

There's a momentary widening of the girl's eyes but then, nothing. She didn't recognize Heiji. Heiji didn't know how he felt about that.

Relieved? Scared? Excited? Worried?

Heiji rang up her purchase and mumbled his way through the sale—he didn't remember what he said, he was just so fixated on the girl's face—and then she's gone, just like that, walking out of the store and Heiji's life.

Of course this was the moment Kaito chose to waltz through the door, loudly announcing his entrance with a 'Tadaa!'. Heiji didn't even greet him back with his usual 'Yo!".

"Hattori, you okay?" Kaito said, in an uncharacteristic show of concern as he approached the counter. "You look like you've just seen a ghost."

"Yeah." Heiji says distractedly. "Fine. Just tired."

He's not fine.

The girl of his dreams did exist. She's real. And had a life that apparently did not include weird stalker dreams of Heiji.

Oh God.

Is he insane? Is he a psychic or something?

Oh God.

Kaito gave him a skeptical look. "You don't look fine. You look like shit."

Then Shinichi and Agasa walked out from the stockroom (seriously, why was everyone coming at once? Heiji simply wanted to freak out in peace goddammit).

"Kaito-kun!" Agasa called. "It's nice to see you! You haven't been over in so long!"

"Hakase!" Kaito shouted back, immediately draping himself over the elderly man. Both Kaito and Shinichi indulged Agasa's need to bestow affection on them at this time. At least it meant they weren't paying attention to him.

His mind was all over the place, trying to comprehend what just happened. He didn't even know where to begin.

It made him dizzy. He looked around and saw Shinichi watching him like a hawk, his expression inscrutable. He had his detective mode expression on. Heiji gave him a weak grin but Shinichi didn't return it—he just made some kind of humming noise and turned around.

Maybe I should wait till I get home ta think about this, Heiji decided.

He'd never told anyone about Kazuha and with good reasons. He's not going to let anyone find out now.

—

The rest of his shift was a torture. Time had dragged on like a limping athlete crossing a finish line and he's all but ready to weep tears of joy by the time the end had rolled round. He hadn't thought about Kazuha at all, but he had thought about not thinking about Kazuha more than he'd care to admit. It's frightening.

Kazuha.

His mind raced. How was this even possible? Honestly he almost preferred the idea that he was a creep with an imaginary friend than this—that he'd been dreaming of a real person.

He knew Kazuha so well. How she looked when she smiled, what would make her cry, the ticks that show she's nervous. While he's glad he's not the kind of psycho that made up a person down to those fine details, it's just weird to know these things about a person you've never ever met. Or supposedly just never met. Whatever.

Maybe it wouldn't have been so weird if Kazuha had shown any sign of knowing him but she hadn't. She hadn't so much as blinked in Heiji's direction, let alone gasped or anything that might have shown that Heiji wasn't alone in this madness.

Could Kazuha had been dreaming about him too all this time? Isn’t it possible, if Heiji had been dreaming of the girl? Maybe it could be true the other way around too. Heiji needed to know. It's so tiring, carrying a secret alone. Besides, Heiji was not the type to sit around passively when opportunities are handed to him.

That's it, he decided, I have to find her.

Worst case scenario Kazuha thought he's crazy and well, if that happens it's probably because Heiji really was going crazy.

Best case scenario Heiji gained a friend.

Friend or not, he just really wanted to see her up close in the flesh. He decided everything was worth the risk.   

—

Three days later Heiji was again at work and there's still no sign of Kazuha. In addition, Heiji had gotten no further on his quest to find something more concrete about her. His dreams were full of Kazuha's smiles (which were very beautiful and Heiji appreciated them, honestly) but nothing that might lead to them meeting again.

There were notebooks in his vision but he didn't have time to read them. Files. A lecture hall. Is Kazuha a student here then? But there were plenty of universities in Tokyo so that's not much help at all.

Heiji groaned and let his head fall with a thump onto the desk. Why hadn't he paid more attention to his dreams before? Maybe he could have even found Kazuha way before this, if he'd actually entertained the thought of Kazuha being a real person.

Then the bell on the door rang.

Heiji lifted his head from the counter. Time seemed to slow. There, standing in the doorway, framed by the sunlight cascading into the shop was Kazuha. The girl of his dreams. For a second Heiji thought he might still be dreaming.

Time seemed to slow.

"Kazuha?" He whispered.

Shock passed over Kazuha's face.

"Do you know me?" She asked slowly. Heiji mentally kicked himself because this was not how he wanted to reveal this. Maybe after he talked to Kazuha like a normal person instead.

"I…I know you."

"From school?" Kazuha looked curious now. Her eyes did that slight widening thing that Heiji had seen them do in his dreams when Kazuha was interested in something and, holy moly, she's even cuter in person.

He should answer. He wanted to but the words kept getting stuck in his throat. His palms were sweating. His face might be sweating. He's pretty sure he looked gross and all that cycles round his brain was this is not how I wanted this ta go, this is not how I planned this!

"Not really." He managed to say.

"Oh. I'm sorry, I'm not good with faces." Kazuha shrugged apologetically but Heiji was sure she's acting. The Kazuha he knew from his dreams was very good at remembering faces—and acting. Did this mean the Kazuha in front of him is not his Kazuha? Or was she lying?

"Yes you are." He accused mindlessly. "Ya've always been good at it."

Then he realized what he had just said.

Kazuha was looking at him like he's a particularly interesting puzzle, which was one better than disgust or panic but there's nothing deeper than Heiji can read. Blank.

"Why do I hate the swings in the playground?"

"Huh?"

"Why do I hate the swings in the playground?" Kazuha repeated calmly.

He looked up at Kazuha, who was waiting patiently on for Heiji's answer. She seemed calm. A little defiant even. And… nervous?

Could it be? Could it be that Heiji wasn't alone in this?

"Your mom," Remembering a certain word he used to hear in his dreams, a person who used to be the main source of her great distress, he answered carefully, knowing full well that this was a particularly touchy subject for her. "You and your mom used to play on the swings all the time. You don't hate them, they just remind you too much of her."

Kazuha's expression didn't change, but something in her eyes did. Heiji felt his heart sink in his chest. Had he read the whole situation wrong?

"I've never told anyone that." Kazuha said grimly.

"I know."

"You dream of me."

And it wasn't a question.

Heiji stepped out from behind the counter. It took two seconds to cross the distance between them and gather Kazuha up in his arms. She smelled good. Kazuha's arms wrapped around Heiji and he let out a sigh of relief.

"You're real." He murmured. "Thank god."

"Of course I'm real, aho." Kazuha muttered into Heiji's collarbone. "Just took me a bit longer to find you than I'd anticipated that's all."

There's a million things Heiji wanted to say to that—how did Kazuha know he's not a figment of her imagination? How long had she been looking?

He wanted to apologize for not looking for her himself. He wanted to thank Kazuha for doing the searching for both of them. But of all he wanted to tell her—

"I love ya."

Kazuha sighed. "I know. You say it a lot, you know?"

Heiji smirked. He picked Kazuha up by the waist and swung her around in the store, barely missing an electronic flying surfboard.

"Aho! Watch it!" Kazuha squeaked. Heiji grinned again, but stopped.

"I love ya." He said. He waited for a response, marvelling as he did so at the gorgeous woman he had in his arms. Kazuha looked like she's trying very hard to suppress a smile.

"I'm not saying it." Kazuha whined grumpily. "You've still got to make it up to me for not believing I was real and making me do all the work."

"How long will that take?" Heiji asked, aghast.

Beamed she did. "Forever. You better start now.”

—

Heiji introduced Kazuha to everyone as his childhood friend who had just recently moved back to Japan from London. Which was... extremely true no matter how they think of it, because it turned out that she had also been having dreams of Heiji for so long since she could remember.

Also, the dreams had stopped.

But he no longer felt empty when he woke up. In fact, on some mornings he woke up to find her curled up next to him, and he dared not kid—it was one of the best feelings ever.

But he hated it when they had morning classes, which meant his joyful morning routine had to be ruined by waking her up.

His joyful morning routine included re-draping their sheets over her bare shoulders and just.. watching her sleep and breathe. Dreams or not it didn't matter, he loved watching Kazuha.

And waking her up could get disastrous. She was an excellent actress (no worries, he's an excellent detective who could see through her masks) and she could be very very persuasive. And most of the time, he ended up back in bed with her.

Not now though, he was sitting in a coffee shop with Shinichi and Kaito, both of whom were successfully persuaded into having blind dates with Kazuha and her two friends. Heiji grumbled. Not that he minded hanging out with his buddies and girlfriend-slash-childhood friend-slash-girl of his dreams. But he wanted to have more alone time with her, seriously.

Kazuha didn't keep them waiting for too long. And when she stepped into the coffee shop with two other girls who looked disturbingly alike (one with side fringes called Mouri Ran, and the other with slightly messier hair by the name of Nakamori Aoko) that Heiji thought were twins had it not been for his sharp observation skills, he saw Shinichi’s and Kaito's eyes went as wide as saucer plates.

At first Heiji didn't think of it much. He merely smirked when he saw his friends rendered speechless, probably striked by their beauty or something.

Kazuha's hotter, he thought to himself.

But when he heard Kaito and Shinichi murmuring what sounded like "Oh God." and "She's real?” simultaneously from his left and right, realization dawned on him.

"Yeah," Heiji whispered, a grin on his face as he turned to watch Kazuha, who was ordering her food. He could finally talk about the dreams he used to have.

"They're real."

[purplellamanator]

Hey are you still takimg prompts? I'd like Fantasy(6) for ShinRan plz!

A/N~ I hope this was okay but I put this in the same AU as the first Hero/Villain prompt I did with the red string/quirks! Thank you so much for the ask and I hope you enjoy the drabble :D As usual this one is extremely long LOL I’ll try to post the link for the first part here just in case anybody missed it! *magic link*  If it doesnt work Im sorry and if you look up in my tags you should be able to find it as well! Enjoy!

Hero/Villain~ Person A is a Hero. Person B is a villain. And both have an undeniable attraction to each other

oOo

Today was not a good day. Ran was not in a good mood, which she'd easily blame on a certain Villain that had stumbled into her life. He had added an extra kink into her already chaotic life that she did not need. Like him though, she agreed- or rather he wouldn't let her forget it. She could not ignore fate. She needed to at least acknowledge what her Quirk bestowed upon her.

A soulmate.

A criminal with a deadly Quirk that was wanted in three separate countries- but a soulmate no less.

But like she had to come to terms with who he was, he needed to do the same with her. Ran was a Hero. She was just as well-known but obviously for more honorable reasons. And because of that, they could never been seen together.

After probably about a hundred times of explaining this to him and why it was risky every single time he decided to break into her house, he finally listened. But it was with a cost. It was one that she didn't really like but she could agree on.

Hotels.

Jokingly he first said Love Hotels but the moment her fist went flying towards his face, he ducked with a nervous laugh.

A Love Hotel? Was he out of his mind? She had a feeling they would be noticed there far more easily than at her house. But when she suggested in all seriousness that they go to his house, the smirk quickly vanished and turned firm.

"No."

His curt response annoyed Ran. He didn't even think about it nor did he give a reason for why not. Thinking back to the first few times they met up, she was reminded of their first obstacle they struggled to overcome.

Trust. Neither trusted the other. Whereas she thought she'd be ambushed the moment she was alone with him, he thought she had plans to have him arrested at any moment. Ran thought they were past that now. But from the way they were both grumbling and readjusting on the uncomfortable chairs, she was second guessing that. When he made his complaints even more vocal about the hotel they were currently eating dinner in, she couldn't hold back her snappy retort.

"If we just went to your house, we wouldn't have to deal-"

She hadn't even been able to finish her sentence before his own sharp words rang out. "I said no!" he barked out. His tone was so hard, his voice even more deepened with his anger. It made her jolt in her seat; her heart stuttering with a brief second of fear that she didn't really feel but knew he had seen all the same.

Even not expecting him to give a valid reason for why his actual house wasn't an option, Ran was still furious all the same when he didn't offer one up. If anything, he looked more apologetic for making her flinch. She could tell because he was softening his tone more, using gentle words with her.

Ran didn't care for any of it. When they were going to part ways for the night and he had leaned in to brush his nose against hers, she sharply turned her face away. If he didn't even trust her, then he shouldn't be allowed to touch her.

He looked like he was about to force her to comply but her hand shot out to his chest and shoved him back firmly. "Next time be on time," she said brusquely and she slammed the door shut behind her.

Admittedly, after she left she felt extremely guilty. Though that wasn't the only emotion flowing through her. There was the fact she was furious at his refusal to explain anything to her and her annoyance that she even felt guilty in the first place. Anything she said or did to him before leaving, he deserved.

But almost like the world was telling her she was wrong and she needed to be punished, Ran was late for work the next morning. All it did was fuel her anger. She argued that if Shinichi had been on time and if they met at their agreed time of 9 and not midnight, this wouldn't of happened.

Unfortunately she didn't have a time Quirk and she was indeed very tardy. She was pretty sure her whole agency heard her get chewed out by her boss. And to add to it, as her punishment, she could do paperwork for the rest of her shift- not just her own. In all of this craziness and because she got reprimanded, Ran hadn't left the agency on time. She got out a little before 8 which most would think was enough time to meet up with her Villain but since said Villain would only meet up in the most abandoned part of the city, she worried she would be late- and after scolding Shinichi no less. She did not want to hear his mouth too when he would be on time and she was the one that was late. She'd never hear the end of it.

But of course that didn't happen. Because he wasn't there. He was late- again, for their meeting. Ran told him to be on time for once.

As usual, he was not. And it burned Ran up that she actually believed he would take her seriously and be there. She was done playing the fool though. She was done with strolling into work like the walking dead. She was stressed beyond belief. Between working a full time, life threatening job that was physically and mentally draining and then dealing with her moody counterpart, Ran was just too tired. He argued that they were soulmates. He was the one that fought for this even though she argued it was too difficult for the both of them. She had given in though. Yet . . . why did it feel like she was the only one making sacrifices? Why was she the only one trying to make it work?

She left. Normally she'd sit and wait for him but she just didn't have it in her. She wanted to lay in a bed that was actually comfortable; her bed. Ran wanted to get a full nights sleep for once. That and that part of her that was still simmering inside wanted to prove a point to that dunce. Her point being that he needed to take her seriously and that he was not the only thing going on in her life nor was he the priority.

Walking through her front door, a small part of her was afraid that he'd be there waiting for her. It was dumb and she couldn't believe herself for being this way, but she knew the paranoia stemmed from her guilt. Ran actually felt guilty for leaving because he had been late and technically stood her up for what felt like the hundredth time.

Ran's house was completely silent however. When it came to that Villain that meant absolutely nothing though and she made her way to her bedroom quietly. Something else to make her feel stupid! Sneaking around her own house as if she weren't supposed to be there! Stubbornly, she forced herself to be as loud as she could.

It made no difference though. Shinichi was not there and her heart ached with a disappointment that she did not want to acknowledge. If anything, she should be happy. She'd actually be able to go to sleep on time tonight. She'd get a full night's rest.

None of those thoughts did anything for her nerves. She kept expecting to walk into a room and find Shinichi sitting there with a scowl, waiting for her. They were still trying to figure each other out but she understood him well enough to know that he would be at least a little annoyed that she hadn't waited for him.

He was never there though and slowly, her paranoia turned into concern. Now she was worried that something actually happened to him. That maybe he tried to show up on time and he ran into trouble. He was a Villain after all. . .

Abruptly she shook her head. Her emotions were running crazy with all the stress she was going through. It wouldn't do her any good to worry about things she could not control nor situations that had not even happened yet. It was with those thoughts that she forced herself into bed.

She struggled to fall asleep that night. She had tossed back and forth the entire time. It was only when a sudden noise had her shooting up in her bed that she realized she had managed to fall asleep at some point. Looking at her bedside clock that read 1:47 in solid green numbers, she knew it had only been for a few hours.

A noise coming from the foot of her bed had her gaze flying over there again. Immediately, Ran was on the defensive. It was completely dark in her room but her eyes had been adjusted enough already. Being able to make out the form of someone standing near her bedroom window, she felt any sensation of sleep trying to draw her back recede as she prepared to make her move. The figure suddenly turned though and she froze.

"Shinichi?" It was sad how much she had lowered her guard around him. From the realization that it was Shinichi, all at once she felt completely relaxed.

And irritated.

Coming to her feet, she practically stomped towards him. She had finally lost her patience with him. How dare he yell at her for the mere suggestion of going to his house and he can just walk in here whenever he pleases. Why did they only need to follow his rules yet anything she said, he disregarded?

Not anymore. She wouldn't allow it. She was sick of it.

"Shinichi! I already told you- you can't just show up at my house whenever you-!"

Not another single word came out of her mouth as it was suddenly fused hotly to his. As soon as she had been in his vicinity- which she made it quicker for him since she had been storming towards him furiously, his arm had grappled around her waist and hoisted her into his chest.

Unable to think properly, Ran was struggling to comprehend what was currently happening. Shinichi hadn't given her a chance to do anything but comply. Not that she was fighting. She wasn't proud of it but she easily sagged in his arms before moving her lips just as roughly against his own. Her own arms that had been squashed uncomfortably between their chests when he grabbed her, forced some distance so that she could tangle them around his neck and yank him even closer.

Probably getting sick of leaning down to reach her height, her breath stuttered against his lips when he just as quickly picked her up. One of his hands that had been holding her against him had dropped to her thigh and from there he easily pulled her to reach his height where he pressed different parts of their bodies together.

This wasn't their first kiss. This wasn't even the first time they had done what this was quickly leading up to. They were not strangers to each other's bodies yet she couldn't help the small gasp of excitement when her weight was suddenly being picked up off the ground. In a matter of seconds her back was pressed roughly into the wall that was by the window he had likely just snuck into only moments prior. That elicited a completely different noise from her mouth that turned into another airy breath when his hurried movements suddenly found her sitting atop her dresser. Briefly she could hear some things being jostled or even falling over but again she couldn't be bothered.

Something was different though. From the abruptness of his . . . well . . attack; that had been her first hint. Shinichi always liked to take his time. It was always her that was worried or concerned that they were taking too long. That at any moment someone would suddenly bust in on them and catch them in the act- her and a Villain. Ran never wanted to be in the same area with him for long for fear of any of that whereas Shinichi was always lax and seemed like he didn't have a care in the world.

This Shinichi was not that same Villain she had come to known. His movements were hurried and rushed; desperate almost. He was all over her and surrounding her, his mouth not once leaving a part of her body.

Ran had no complaints as of now. As it was, her legs had already wrapped tightly around his waist, cinching at her ankles to make sure he didn't move. Since he was no longer having to brace her weight himself, it allowed him to free one of his hands where he had it sliding into the hair at her nape. His fingers dug in roughly, tightening around the strands but not to the point of causing her any pain. It was just enough pressure where he could easily direct her wherever he wanted. Like now where he seemed to want it tilted to the side so that he could leave love bites up and down her throat.

The break allowed her time to breathe.

And think.

The fog that had been slowly circling around her head receded some and dazedly her eyes tried to open before fluttering shut with a moan at his continued assault on her smooth skin. She was not one to back down easily though and before she could get completely taken over again, she said his name breathy but also with a hint of seriousness.

She wanted to ask him why he was there. Ran wanted to know what was wrong with him. Something was obviously bothering him for him to suddenly be there and practically smothering her like this.

He must've heard that she wanted to say something. And when he pulled back slightly to meet her groggy gaze, she also realized it wasn't the time. She knew it before he was tugging at her bed shirt a little roughly.

"Take this off."

When her and Shinichi had first agreed that they could not ignore this red ribbon that bound them together, it had taken her some time to get used to certain things about him. Like how every plea he made, he worded like a order. At first she had been annoyed, thinking he assumed that since he was a Villain he could just demand her to do what he pleased. Soon after though, she easily realized that was not the case at all. Often any of his requests would come out with that exact same no bullshit tone but she quickly adjusted to the fact that was just how he was. That and he didn't have many people in his life so he didn't exactly have the best social skills. Overtime, she grew to like that.

That didn't change in this moment though he must've taken her silence for annoyance because he threw out a small but firm, "Please."

He was really asking her politely to take her shirt off. That added to her reasoning that something was really wrong. She complied with his request but when he went to grab her again, she placed a hand against his chest. It wasn't rough or forceful. She wasn't even denying him because she had even taken her shirt off already. If anything it was gentle. But she knew it was firm enough to get her message across.

Wait.

Ran gave him a moment. Most of the time she didn't even need to ask what was on her mind. He was usually pretty good at deducing that himself. Shinichi was like that; answering her questions before she even had to ask them.

This time his mouth stayed shut.

His hands were resting leisurely at her thighs. He had already gripped her there for when he had tugged her forward so that she sat on the edge of the dresser. His silence was upsetting her though. It was making her more concerned.

Unable to contain it because at this point she knew he would not be saying anything first, she swallowed nervously. "Is. . . Is everything okay?" Her question that had come out so shaky, she knew was a loaded one.

What's wrong? Are you okay? Are we okay? She knew he heard all of it but still, he said nothing. His gaze seemed to be focused on her lips but on closer inspection she realized he wasn't really seeing. His stare was solemn and avoiding.

Like he could read her, it was in moments like these where she could do the same. Shinichi did not want to talk right now. He was upset and he wanted comfort.

So he came to her.

Feeling the fluttery sensation within her chest, Ran decided that whatever they needed to talk about could wait. First off, she had to take care of that depressed expression that was quickly taking over his features.

Ran gave his shirt that he was still somehow wearing a single, firm tug.

"Take this off."

oOo

Shinichi hadn't left that night. Usually she was pretty quick to part ways but he didn't look like he wanted to go. Truthfully he never did but with the way he had been acting before, she didn't want him too either. So she said nothing when he settled himself almost on top of her. He had an arm loosely thrown over her waist but the weight of it gave her the impression that he didn't want to chance her trying to move. She didn't make a move to get up though. Instead she allowed her fingers to comb through his hair as his head laid against the smooth skin just under her breasts.

It was completely silent in her room. She couldn't even really hear his breathing and though it had to be into the early hours of night, Ran didn't want to go to sleep. She wanted to address what just happened. It was weighing too heavily on her mind that something was seriously wrong.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Her voice was whispered but she knew it probably sounded piercing with how quiet it was.

Shinichi didn't answer at first and she was about to assume he had fallen asleep. She knew he hadn't when his frame suddenly tensed. And she knew what that meant.

"Not really."

Ran's features pinched in annoyance. She knew he figured that out when she suddenly stopped brushing her fingers through his hair. She probably would've rolled over to give him her back if it wasn't for the fact he was laying on her. An iciness that she knew was pooling off of her though was quickly filling the space and he sat up to frown down at her.

He had pissed her off. He knew it too. And she knew he would quickly scramble for an excuse.

"You left." His tone had a hint of irritation and he was scowling to fit the part, but Ran wasn't buying it. Ran knew there was no way her not waiting for him had caused all of this. There was no way that Shinichi was that dramatic. It had to be something else- something bigger. Fixing him with a stony stare, she gave him a chance to correct himself.

"You should've waited."

So he was sticking with that?

Since his weight was still pressing her down, she did the only thing she could do. She turned her head to the side. "I have to work early tomorrow. You should probably go."

He did not appreciate her dismissal.

"Are you serious?" he said disbelieving. When she stayed quiet she could hear his huff of frustration. "Are you really just going to kick me out?"

Yes. Her refusal to acknowledge him practically screamed the answer.

He was as stubborn as she was though and he was not making it easy. The Villain made no move to leave and instead said her name warningly. His tone as well as his blatant disregard to tell her the truth finally set her off.

"If you don't trust me then stop coming to my house." Again, it was a loaded statement. If he didn't trust her, he could forget her entirely for all she cared because she would not want to see him otherwise.

Her words did nothing but set him off. His eyes narrowed. "Don't talk about things you don't understand." Ran knew what he was hinting at. He loved to throw the same argument in her face all the time. That if he didn't trust her, he probably would've gotten rid of her by now. The fact that he keeps coming back to her being that he trusts her more than he did anybody else.

It was all bullshit.

"Oh, you trust me?" she asked him daringly. It was a rhetorical question and though it made him simmer, he stayed silent. "You are allowed to come and go as you please; keep whatever secrets you want- yet you trust me? I don't know a damn thing about you. I don't know where you live, what you do during the day- nothing."

This explosion wasn't all just from his refusal to answer her question. It was a buildup that started the day they met. She gave him a moment to respond but he still sat silently still looking furious.

She didn't care.

"You're delusional, Shinichi."

Leaning back, his look of frustrated disbelief intensified. "If this is about me not taking you to my house-"

"It's not!" she snapped frustratedly. "It's everything and I-!" 

I don’t think I can do this anymore. 

Abruptly she cut herself off snapping her mouth shut. It would probably be for the best if she didn't finish her sentence. All it would do is piss him off and she didn't need to hear any more of his empty threats. A little nervous, she wouldn't meet his gaze afraid he'd be able to it in her eyes.

She should've known by now that wouldn't do anything. He was always able to read her like an open book. He was too smart for his own good; a genius even. So she braced herself for the, no doubt, angry retort.

"I had to meet up with an . . acquaintance."

Startled by his response, her eyes snapped back to his completely wide. He answered her question. He actually gave her a proper response to her question earlier. By the fact he wasn't looking at her as he spoke, she had a pretty good idea what kind of person this acquaintance was.

A Villain.

Ran stayed silent. She wanted to ask which Villain it was. As far as she knew, Shinichi never had a partner or anyone he worked closely with. Other Villains liked him about as much as the Heroes did. But Shinichi was being honest with her right now and she would not interrupt him. She especially did not want to push for too much. So instead, she continued to watch him patiently waiting for him to elaborate.

"They told me I was being monitored- someone's been following me." As he said the words his own brows furrowed in confusion and without him even explaining why, she already knew the answer.

On more than one occasion she had heard him boast that no one could ever sneak up on him. With his level of paranoia and brains- it just didn't happen. And with the Quirk he had, nobody wanted to anyway. The fact that someone had been able to tail him without his knowledge must've greatly disturbed him.

"Do you. . do you know who it is?" Her voice came out timidly, still unsure if it was okay for her to ask any questions yet.

Shinichi shook his head and she was left to stare at her hands deep in thought. Ran didn't know what to do with this information. Everything about this relationship she had with him was overwhelming. And to see that Shinichi, the Shinigami himself, was nervous- it scared her.

"I know it frustrates you and I don't want you angry with me, but I cannot let you anywhere near my personal life."

Head shooting up, she knew she looked every part offended.

It made him sigh. "It's likely a Villain. A Hero would've shown themselves by now."

So what, she wanted to say. Who did he think she was? She was a Hero. It was her job to detain Villains and he thought she should be nervous because of one?

"Ran," he said warningly. She hated when he did that because it actually made her nervous. She knew that it meant he was getting serious and he didn't want her arguing with him.

But she was never one to back down.

"I can help," she said slowly but confidently. He was always underestimating her and she hated it. She could take care of herself. She had been a Pro for five years by now. That and being a professional Hero, she was always being watched as well. Whether it be by fans, paparazzi, or her agency; Ran was always being monitored.

She knew she had made a mistake when his eyes hardened. They narrowed on her as if daring her to add anything else to that and it made her want to gulp. Them suddenly softening however was not what she was expecting.

When his hand gripped her chin gently to make her look at him, she jolted slightly. She thought he'd yell at her. . . Not this. He took it a step forward when he was leaning forward and suddenly his forehead was pressed against her own. While her eyes were widened, his were shut serenely.

"Shinichi-?"

He barely even let her start her sentence.

"I know it doesn't seem like it but I trust you with my life," he whispered and his admission made her heart speed up and a blush come to her face. But nothing could've ever prepared her mentally for what he was going to say next.

"And I know I'm a Villain and I shouldn't expect anything of you, but I'm asking you to trust me. Believe me when I tell you that nothing else matters to me but you." His eyes were still shut so she couldn't really gauge how he felt about the admission, but she reckoned it was his pride. It didn't matter though. His words were distracting enough.

"Please listen to me when I tell you me distancing you from my life is not because I don't trust you to be apart of it. I have people watching me too," he swallowed hard. "And these people won't arrest you."

His words made her eyes water and her lip tremble. They made her feel guilty. She was so dumb for jumping to conclusions. Here she was complaining he had no regard for her private life while she clearly assumed he didn't have one of his own. And his reasoning made a lot more sense.

Based off his tone and his actions though, it was clear he didn't hold any of that against her. All he did was ask, "Okay?" and she couldn’t help but get stuck on his tone. For once he was truly asking her. It didn’t sound like a demand and it told her just how worried this other Villain had made him. 

And though it was an odd sensation since her forehead was still pressed against his, she gave a slight nod. "Okay."

[comicteaparty]

August 9th, 2018 CTP Archive

The archive for the Comic Tea Party chat that occurred on August 9th, 2018, from 5PM - 7PM PDT.  The chat focused on Himawari Share by Harmony Becker.

Featured Comment:

Chat:

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

COMIC TEA PARTY START!

Good day everyone~! This week’s Comic Tea Party is now officially beginning~! Today we are discussing Himawari Share by Harmony Becker~! (https://tapas.io/series/Himawari-Share) For those new or in need of a reminder, discussions about the comic are freeform, so please feel free to bring up whatever you wish. However, every 30 minutes I will be dropping in a discussion question to help those who would like a prompt. These questions are totally OPTIONAL to answer, and you can pay them no mind if you wish. If you miss out on any though, they’ll be pinned for the duration of the chat once they’re posted~! Remember, constructive criticism is allowed, but the primary focus here is to have fun and appreciate the amazing comics that the community makes~! As a bonus, each chat a top comment will be picked and featured in the archives and on an ad for CTP! All that being said, let’s get started and have a great discussion!

QUESTION 1. What is your favorite scene in the comic so far and why?

snuffysam

It's really hard to pick, but I'd say the Hyejung-focused parts (chapters 5 & 6) were my favorites. Focusing on her studies, not knowing what she wants to be, tearing out her roots to move to Japan, getting homesick and feeling guilty for it.

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Hello!

snuffysam

like, emotions and stuff

also hello justin!

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

hey~!

yeah heyjung's backstory is a lot more tense than i was expecting. but i loved how everything was visually framed

although my favorite moment had to be when she went to that counselor and she just flat out couldnt say what she wanted to do with her life

cause man have i been there and that moment so purely relateable

snuffysam

yeah that was a big turning point, and my favorite moment in her backstory

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Thanks for the greeting~

I have to run a quick errand but I'll be back!

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

i also loved the aftermath though of all the others bringing her stuff for her hangover. like that was just sweet and heartwarming.

snuffysam

sweet and heartwarming seems to be the general theme

for example, the scene where tina brings nao a soda

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

yes. also a great scene. but also that scene made me like tina a whole lot. it had that element of goofiness (since she just picked her favorite) but had that immense kind-hearted underbelly. because i mean really, i dont know anyone who would bring me a soda to congratulate me on my first day of school.

i think my personal fave scene is actually when nao and masaki are walking together and each just having these thoughts about how they should interact and the various scenarios. especially nao imagining the music would bond them as friends while masaki is like "oh no i will be looked down upon for liking lady gaga."

snuffysam

and then they both end up too afraid to talk to each other lol

relatable scene, and i love how it helps build the characters of nao and masaki

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

yes. i also love that it shows a good side to masaki in that hes basically just an average, socially awkward dork who is probably having some language and cultural gap problems. since ya know, our first impression of him was just rudeness otherwise.

i want to say in general i really love this comic's pacing though. like i always feel like the emotions are given time to be showcased but dont drag on too overly much.

snuffysam

the pacing is a real strong suit of the comic, agreed

were we ever told what masaki and shinichi's nationality/native language was?

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

no albeit i assume for shinichi its japanese since he doesnt seem able to really do english and speaks quickly. which generally if youre a native, the quicker you speak. at the very least theyve gotta be fluent.

snuffysam

wait, i guess they aren't international students, because the comic description only says there are three

so they're just two japanese brothers who happen to live in the same house as three international students

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

yeah. for reasons O_O. although i am curious if anyone else lives there. cause nao asks tina who the curly haired guy was and tina was like "hmm maybe masaki" and then nao had to say rude for tina to be sure

so either this is just a writing goof or its implied more ppl live there?

snuffysam

yeah you'd think if it was only the five of them, "curly haired boy" would narrow it down quite a bit

also i think we ignored @Sa💅

hello Sa!

not really a scene per se, but i really like the way the comic scratches out words that aren't understood

like this page: https://tapas.io/episode/756155

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

ah i just thought it was a reply to the hellos. welcome @Sa💅 if you felt ignored O_O;;;

of all the things that is my fave part

cause i was skeptical on the language thing when i read the description

but man do i think it actually captures the language gap well

since it is what happens

you know lots of words but then theres always those difficult ones where youre like "omg wtf was that"

snuffysam

hamini really delivered in terms of showing how second languages work

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

i also selfishly enjoyed that nao and i are decently close in japanese language understanding cause i wound up reading a lot of the japanese she could understand.

but then kanji

always kanji everywhere all the time

snuffysam

i took a semester of japanese four years ago and flunked lol. i can get through "はい " and that's about it.

i'm a bit better with spoken, but not much

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

hey its something.

this reminds me, i really liked that scene where tina applied language knowledge to figure out vacuum

snuffysam

that was a really cool moment!

as were the rest of the parts where tina had to figure out the instructions given to her

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

yes. like man do i give tina all around props for that. i would have left crying cause new jobs are stressful enough without adding a language deficiency to the mix

QUESTION 2. Of those staying in Himawari Share, Shinichi and Masaki are the two we know least about in the current story. Do you think there’s any particular reason the two are staying at Himawari Share, or does it just happen to have a convenient location for them? Like the other characters, do you think they have personal histories or pasts that will come to light? Do you think that it is significant in some way that Shinichi and Masaki are mentioned to be brothers? As time goes on, do you think the others will bond with Masaki, or will the language and culture gap keep interfering? What about Shinichi? Will Nao, at least, become able to understand him better, or will his fast talking still prove too much?

i want to go out on a limb and just say theyre there cause convenient location. but i do think they got some sort of hidden past history. cause at the very least shinichi and masaki dont really look like theyre related. so it makes me wonder if this is maybe a half-sibling relationship going on

snuffysam

oh theory time?

i think they are actually brothers, they just happened to look different. that's how it goes somethimes

i think himawari share is a convenient location for them, but i have no idea what it would be convenient too. like, what are their jobs?

also, my guess - nao is going to start understanding what shinichi is saying, but at first it'll only be, like, she catches every other word.

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

yeah im confused at what the share is. cause the girls make it look like its like a special house dorm house for international students who are coming to work and learn in japan. but shinichi and masaki definitely dont appear to be international, so what are they doing there? now its possible they are also going to college in some fashion. but im not entirely sure since it still seems weird to have potentially two natives with three international students.

but to be fair, maybe they own himawari share

cause shinichi and masaki are def both first name

s

snuffysam

yeah maybe that's just their family home that they rent out

perhaps there are plenty of other people there, and the girls just don't hang out with them because they don't relate as much

international students sticking together and stuff

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

yeah that could also be. although the house seems in a residential area so there cant be too many

alternatively

theres only one other dude living there and hes a shut in that you see once in a blue moon

and theres gonna be some other festival and suddenly hell come out and nao will be le gasp

snuffysam

that sounds about right, yeah

and it would explain tina not knowing who nao was talking about

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

alternatively alternatively, it is just the 5 of them and tina just happens to know a lot of people who look like masaki and forgets who even lives with her

snuffysam

maybe masaki doesn't live there, he just really likes the bathroom

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

masaki lives never door but his bathroom broke and hes too lazy to fix it. comes over to his brother's place all the time.

i really hope we get to see more of shinichi cause of all the characters he seems the most one note atm. and idk what to make of him. although i do like that hes kind of like their tour guide who take sthem to festivals

snuffysam

i think it's just that the comic isn't particularly long yet and shinichi isn't one of the main characters

the description says romance is in the cards, but it doesn't say between whom

that may be where shinichi gets some development

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

it could be. and to be fair, shinichi's mystery kind of suits the fact that theres the language gap cause he clearly doesnt know english well or at all. so its hard to get to know someone well when theres only so many words shared between

like how that convo between nao and hyejung was really formal and stifled before they realized they both spoke english

snuffysam

well, hopefully shinichi is more open to talking about his interests than his brother

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

yeah. although backing up the train for a moment, id like to know why both brothers seemingly dont seem to know any english. cause english is generally required learning in japan and while a lot of ppl arent good at it, theyed probably at least know a few basic phrases. so it strikes me as interesting neither has attempted that much. tho tbf has masaki even said anything?

snuffysam

i think masaki corrected the neighbor lady about his name

but that's it

we don't know if they can speak english or not, i think

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

yeah i mean they could. but i could also see them choosing not to since the girls are all there to kind of learn japanese

snuffysam

oh no wait, there is a page where it's shown shinichi doesn't understand english

https://tapas.io/episode/839877

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

QUESTION 3. One of the comic’s themes revolves around finding yourself, and this issue has given many characters quite the obstacle. In the case of Nao, do you think she will come to terms with that missing part of herself by being in Japan, or will there forever be a gap no matter how much time she spends there? As Nao spends more time there, do you think she’ll feel the culture gap grow or shrink, and how might that affect her? In the case of Hyejung, do you think she’ll figure out what she wants to do with her life, or do you think that still might remain elusive? Additionally, do you think she’ll be able to reconcile with her family? Lastly, in the case of Tina, do you think her part time job will work out, or will the language gap make things too much of a struggle? If she does lose her job, what do you think she’ll do and how might this affect her reasons for being in Japan?

snuffysam

do we know why tina is in japan?

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

i dont think so. and if you dont think so, im gonna feel safe in saying we havent been told

although tina seems like the type to just like adventures

although whereas nao and hyejung give me the impression that they might someday go back to their home countries, tina gives me the impression that this is a permanent thing

at least compared to hyejung, tina seems to care the least about reliving her own culture persay

snuffysam

i think it's not going to turn out how any of the girls' plan. maybe hyuejung finds her purpose is back in korea, maybe it's in japan, etc.

nao is here to reconnect to the missing part of herself and re-learn japanese. while she may end up learning japanese, i don't think reconnecting with her past will happen so much.

she'll see a large culture gap, or get distracted with something else

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

I'm back!

snuffysam

hi justin!

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Hey Snuffy!

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

wb!

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Thanks!

Ooh, a Japanese festival?!

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

there was one in the comic, yes already, yes.

tbh i do think hyejung isnt going to find exactly what she wants. because i feel her desire to go to japan was driven more by a desire to escape her reality versus thinking "yes this is the place where i can find myself"

and shes the one who seems most homesick as well

not ot say i think the journey will be in vain

and i think shell at least learn things about herself

like how to live independently for herself

away from the parents

in nao's case, i think shell...come to terms that she cant have a different past. im actually thinking whats going to happen is shes going to run into something that makes her go "whoa wait america was way better in this aspect" and then shell realize that if she had stayed in japan, she also wouldnt know the american culture she grew up in.

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Perhaps

snuffysam

at some point nao likened it to having a twin that was separated from her at birth. and i think her journey will involve coming to terms with the fact that she can't recover that lost twin. she's gone forever.

lots of great metaphors in this comic btw

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

I thought Nao was from Korea.

snuffysam

no you're thinking of hyejung

nao is the one who was born in japan but grew up in america

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Oh right, my bad I saw this page and I thought wrong because of it https://tapas.io/episode/1021922

snuffysam

yeah that chapter follows hyejung

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

aye, thanks

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

yeah i do think thats the case with nao. shes going to have to realize that she cant have two pasts or that other half. but i do think being in japan will be both good and bad for it. cause on the plus side, she gets to see what she missed out on, but on the otherhand shes also going to feel the sting of that gap cause im sure shes gonna run into a festival where shes plain just like "i dont understand this"

although assuming her mom is still alive(?) then itll be interesting if she can talk to her mom in japanese again or something

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Yeah.

You know, reading this comic made me remember how much I thought it'd be cool to visit Japan back in high school and planned to go there as a graduation present. How wrong I was.

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

this comic gives me the should go to japan itch again. especially to eat the food

which im glad food is involved a lot

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Mmm

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

cause thats a huge facet of the culture

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

I wish I loved Japanese food.

more than I do now

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

on a side note

i loved that little moment where hyejung bitched that the kimchi wasnt even spicy

and how it was made by a japanese run restaurant

cause i liked that detail that just how america amercanizes certain foods, other countries do the same

or at least japan does for sure XD

their mcdonalds are crazy

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

lol yeah

This hit home for me, in a way

like it's not "authentic"

snuffysam

I’ve had Korean food in a restaurant owned by Korean people. And yeah, it’s a lot spicier

I don’t blame Hyejung lol

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

nah i dont blame her either. cause regardless if you grow up used to one flavor, you probably arent gonna be a fan of change

QUESTION 4. Given the focus of the comic is on international students and cultural gaps, to a degree, there are lots of interesting potential scenarios. Did you find the comic’s unique method of showcasing language gaps interesting? How did it change how you viewed the characters’ experiences? Are there any cultural experiences that you’re looking forward to seeing the characters experience? If so, why? Do you feel our heroines will continue to be able to wing it, or will they commit some sort of cultural blunder? If the latter, how do you expect that to play out and emotionally affect the culprit? On a more character oriented level, what other struggles do you think the characters might have in their everyday, personal lives? Do you think everyone will continue to get along, or might tension in Himawari Share grow for some reason? Lastly, do you think romance might be in bloom with any characters?

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

It's certainly very interesting and it shows up the potential troubles of going out into a whole new world

snuffysam

Everyone gets along so well, I just know someone’s going to mess up

Call me a pessimist lol

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

lol

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

snuffy, youre a pessimist

but no i agree

they have been getting along real well

and at some point theyre going to fight

cause at the very least living together isnt easy

cause everyone has different habits

and call me biased, but pretty sure if its a living together thing tina is gonna be the cause of it just cause she has the most unreserved personality

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Yeah.

Eventually all that rage and stress will just need to be all let out.

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

one thing i didnt mention about the language thing was that i was glad to see there was a difference between nao and tina. cause tina clearly has a better grasp and that shows, both in how much she understands and how she has learned to learn via context clues.

snuffysam

yeah there's a clear difference between everyone's skill level

even just the "yeah it took me a while to get used to shinichi talking" is an example of that

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

It's great seeing everyone talking in all the different languages(edited)

Especially since it's not easy to do Japanese and Korean in comics unless you're overly familiar with the language yourself (or have a translator)(edited)

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

yes thats also true with the shinichi talking part. i really felt for nao in that moment.

cause its an easier said than done thing

im gonna ship nao and masaki. thats where im putting my shipping chips

snuffysam

perhaps a source of conflict comes from romance coming about with an odd number of people in the house?

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

I made it for the last bit. O.o Though you mentioned a lot of the stuff I liked in the first half hour already, I'm noticing. The bit where Tina brought the soda for Nao and the bit where the two characters were having different music conversations in their minds.

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

eey Math

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

I enjoyed those two. The Hyejung at the end, I can see how it's very relatable, and it was emotional, but I guess I just like a bit of funzies in my fave scenes. ^.^(edited)

I'm gonna ship Nao and Tina, because you KNOW me.

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

hi math~! was even just thinking "aww i guess math isnt coming after all."

plz math

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

mmm, ships

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

clearly tina and hyejung are the ship

they have more history

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

That's just it, they haven't fallen in love yet. Chips go on the new relationship.

Also, related to what SJ was saying before, the author must be very good with languages or know many herself... I have zero clue if it's right or not, but it's a pretty gutsy venture.

snuffysam

yeah either the author knows three plus languages, or has some really good friends

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

the japanese is correct from what i can tell. at least the parts i could read.

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

There's also those little things that can trip one up in translation, like the "Let's Eat" kind of being the Japanese thanks for the food thing. I think the author even pointed it out once, with the part time job, both of them thanking the other for working, not really being an English thing.

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Yeah, I wouldn't ever think to do a foreign language in something of mine unless I rely on a translator.

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

I didn't totally pick up on the skills of the individual characters either, but since you did, it's cool that it can come across too.

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Yea

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

I'm bilingual for English and French and even I'm not sure I'd want to do it.

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

what you mean you dont want to do a strip where all the tans start speaking french? XD

i feel like shinichi would be the one to bring a relationship in from the outside

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

Not so much, no.

Yeah, we haven't seen much of the guys (which I notice you mentioned earlier)... honestly, I'm okay with that. I like the focus on the women (and not just because I ship that way) as they all have sort of a bond.

snuffysam

shinichi seems a bit more outgoing, so i wouldn't be surprised if he turns out to already be in a relationship

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

Oh, and the speed-talking thing was well portrayed.

I also want to say it was neat having that character who lives across the street come back in a later scene, when they were going to the post office. Helps make things extra real, incidentals like that.

snuffysam

i liked how she didn't know masaki's name lol

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

Lol

snuffysam

he might not get out much

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

Could be to avoid talking. And just not wanting to talk even to strangers for fear of making a mistake.

Maybe that explains the rudeness too.

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

to be fair, i dont know a single one of my neighbors. and if you dont interact with your neighbors, you dont know their names

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

If you start with rudeness, people won't talk to you either, and you won't have to interpret. Yeah, I don't know my neighbours either. ^^;;

Superjustingo of ✨Time🕑&Space☄✨

I don't even have any neghibors

MathTans the super Pun 👑Prince👑

Final thought, super impressed by the translation stuff. Including the blurring of just some words, which was also pointed out earlier. I don't think I've seen anything like that.

Also, Nao + Tina.

✨🐱 RebelVampire 🐱✨

COMIC TEA PARTY END!

Unfortunately, the scheduled Comic Tea Party time is now up~! Thank you everyone so much for reading and joining this week’s chat~! We want to give a special thank you to Harmony Becker, as well, for making Himawari Share and volunteering it for our reading queue. If you liked the comic, please be sure to support Harmony Becker’s efforts however you’re able to. All that being said, if you would like to continue discussing this week’s comic, we highly encourage you to do so~!

For next week, Comic Tea Party will focus on Raison d'Etre by Cloud Fourteen (Funari and Leigh). As always, please use the next several days to read as much of the comic as you would like. We hope to see you next Thursday on August 16th from 5PM to 7PM PDT for the chat~! Until then, happy reading~! Comic: http://raisondetrecomic.tumblr.com/