AN: Here's chapter 11. Sorry for the long wait... But, exams are sort of over for now (yes, sort of), so I'll be active on ffnet again :)

Let me know how it is!

Enjoy~

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"Dialogues"

'Thoughts'

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Note:- The manga translation for this case is messed up, seriously. It's so difficult to make sense of the dialogues...and the anime is not much help either... Also, the dream was pretty hard to write. Linking cases together and keeping the story in flow was alos a bit hard to manage, but I hope I've gotten it right.

Anyone feeling like they're not getting it, please go back and read chapter 10: Opportune Phone Calls; I'm very sorry for the late update that caused this confusion. Anyway, here you go!

Chapter 11: Dreams Spell Disaster

At first, Heiji had no clue where he was. Everything was dark and hazy and unclear. There was a foggy mist curling up around his ankles. And despite the atmosphere he was in, Heiji felt strangely the mist slowly parted to reveal someone. A figure, shrouded in darkness, was slowly moving towards him. Yet, Heiji remained lax. Unmoving. Unbothered.

It was Kudo.

And then Heiji had to blink – because it really was Kudo! Not Conan, but the seventeen year old, arrogant, self-assured version of the Eastern Detective; Kudo Shinichi!

"Kudo! W-What…?"

"Hey, Hattori," Kudo spoke as if this was a completely natural thing.

The darkness had begun to recede now, and Heiji could make out streets, lamp posts and houses. They were in Osaka.

Osaka? Wasn't Kudo supposed to arrive this weekend? Or was it already the weekend? Things weren't making much sense to him…

Both detectives started walking, side by side, in complete silence. The quiet atmosphere felt neither oppressive nor comforting. In fact, it didn't feel much like anything at all.

But, it seemed, Heiji's senses were perfectly content with not knowing anything about of the situation. Deciding to simply go with the flow, Heiji said nothing, accompanying Kudo to where it seemed they were going.

The hazy background cleared out soon and a street came into sharp relief. And there, lying in the middle of the road was a dead body.

"Another case?" Heiji muttered in disbelief, but readily began the investigation.

The scene changed; a sudden and drastic change that left Heiji feeling disoriented. His momentary confusion fading, he realised that he was running. In front of him was a man – presumably the culprit – and he and Kudo were chasing him.

"Stop!" Kudo called out authoritatively, but the man ignored it.

Heiji wondered how he came to the conclusion that the man was the killer, but nothing made much sense anyway, so the Osakan detective just went along with it.

Time seemed to slow, or was it perhaps faster? Heiji didn't know, didn't understand…but the next moment, the culprit had drawn out a knife and rushed towards them, plunging the knife into Heiji.

"Hattori!" Kudo's frantic shout made the killer turn towards him, the knife being pulled out of Heiji's side.

Heiji slipped down to his knees, a hand clasped over the wound. The blood kept flowing from between his fingers but strangely there was no dizziness, no pain, no…

"Die! All of you die!" The culprit let out a crazed shout as he then began to stab Kudo repeatedly.

'This is wrong,' Heiji thought suddenly, 'That we'd be so easily hurt…with all my kendo practice he shouldn't have been able to land a single hit on me! And Kudo's athleticism should make him equally agile! This is wrong…'

But no matter how wrong it was, it didn't stop Shinichi from collapsing and growing as still as the cold and dead corpses Heiji saw as a homicide detective. The murderer laughed manically, standing poised over Kudo, knife held in a victory pose before he turned tail and ran. Heiji…Heiji didn't care about the killer, scrambling up to run towards Kudo, bending down and pressing two fingers against his neck to check for a pulse – nothing. No pulse.

"No!" Heiji shook his friend roughly. The red of Heiji's own blood seemed to mingle with Shinichi's, painting the whole scene with its bold shades. Red… there was too much of red…"You can't die! Kudo, you can't die…a few simple stab wounds? No!"

Heiji's vision clouded, everything was so blurry…but Kudo's dead body beneath him felt so real…

Heiji.

It was the same face he'd seen all those weeks ago, smirking and sweating as the Heisei Holmes made his appearance at the diplomat's house to make his deduction. Nothing about it seemed false…everything was real…

Heiji.

But Kudo couldn't die! Not like this, not when he still had that huge case to solve! Heiji hadn't even truly helped him out there – even though he'd thought about it countless times, thought about telling Kudo that he could lend a hand, that they could work together again. Two heads were better than one, right?

Heiji!

Yeah, they still had to bring that darn organisation down. Kudo wouldn't be alone, Heiji would help him out. Heiji would never let him get hurt like this…die like this…so why wouldn't Kudo wake up?!

Wake up! Damn it…Kudo couldn't lie so still…so dead. This was not right…this…was…not…

HEIJI!

Heiji's eyes snapped open. Leaning over him, his mother's concerned face swam into focus.

"Hei-chan?"

Heiji sat up, breathing harshly. His face was matted with sweat and his nightshirt clung to his chest.

'Perspiration,' Heiji concluded, his mind analysing, sifting and concluding – even as he sought to re-orient himself, 'I was…dreaming? Kami! That was one messy, horrible dream!'

"Hei-chan?" Shizuka ran her fingers through her son's hair, moving some of the strands that stuck to his forehead with sweat.

"I'm fine, Okan," Heiji replied, "Just…I'm fine,"

"You were tossing and turning in your sleep," Shizuka said in worry, "Are you sure?"

"Yeah," Heiji gave her a reassuring smile, or at least he hoped it was reassuring.

Shizuka looked unconvinced but left the matter alone. Heiji could handle things himself and if he hadn't gotten nightmares from seeing all those dead bodies he encountered in his cases, she was sure nothing else could spook him to such a level.

Heiji waited till his mother left the room before leaving the bed and snatching up his phone from his study table. He knew it was a dream, but the horror he'd felt in it had been real. And knowing that Kudo was actually in danger, from the syndicate that had tried to kill him, made the possibility of that dream all the more real and threatening.

Walking onto his balcony, Heiji dialled Conan's number. It was rather early to call – only five o' clock in the morning – but hearing his voice and knowing that he was safe would relax him.

"Ha-Hattori?" A yawn sounded through his mobile and Heiji grinned slightly, "What's with your totally unconventional times of calling?"

Ah, Kudo was annoyed. But Kudo being annoyed was better than Kudo being dead (Even if it was only in a dream) and Heiji was satisfied.

"Hattori?" Kudo repeated, now sounding more awake, "Oi! If you're going to call, you could at least say something!"

"Kudo," Heiji began jovially, "How are ya this fine mornin'?"

Heiji wouldn't tell Kudo about the dream just now; to acknowledge it would be accepting it and Heiji felt the need to forget it currently, deny that he'd ever seen it. He'd rather talk about inconsequential things for now.

"What." Kudo actually did seem annoyed now, "You called me at bloody five in the morning to ask me how I am?"

Heiji chuckled, falling into familiar banter with his rival, who soon warmed up to him. They talked about trivial matters, not delving into any cases. Kudo seemed to have picked up on his mood, for he steered clear of it as he told him about a new music video released by Two Mix and his father's latest, Night Baron, volume publication. Heiji was glad for that.

Half an hour later, Ran called for him to put the phone down and help out with breakfast, "If you're going to be up, you might as well help me instead of talking with your friends on the phone!"

"Guess I'll have to go now, Hattori,"

"Yeah, see ya this weekend," Heiji replied.

"Yes, this weekend." Kudo confirmed before ending the call.

Heiji smiled, deciding to follow Nee-chan's advice and see if he could help Okan out, he needed something to keep him busy either way. Thinking about the dream would only make him feel depressed; perhaps he could chop some vegetables?

"No!" Shizuka declared loudly when she heard his suggestion, "Out of my kitchen, Hei-chan!"

"Eh?"

"I only trust you with rice and soup, you stay away from my vegetables or they'll end up shredded!"

"I don't shred them, Okan!"

"Yes, you do!" saying so, she shooed him out.

Oh well, there's always kendo otherwise. He'd best leave the cooking to Kudo, perhaps that was not a very good pastime for him.

Shinmei Nintaro, author of the famous Detective Samonji series, breathes his last:

On the 8th of this month, the jovial and venerated writer, Shinmei Nintaro-san passed away in the presence of his wife and daughter. The newly re-opened series of Detective Samonji and the completion of the first book – The Climax of ½ – will be taken over by his daughter, Shinmei Kaori-san.

"I will continue writing this series my father was so fond of and make the legend of Samonji live on for the readers," Shinmei Kaori-san says.

The legendary writer and his ever evolving stories of the brilliant Samonji will be missed profusely. We look forward to his daughter's first publication and the legacy of Samonji's genius skills that has been passed on from father to child.

Heiji folded the newspaper, pushing it aside to concentrate on his breakfast. Kudo and the Mouri family would be arriving in an hour and he had to go and receive them from the station.

Reading about the case from the newspaper, no one would ever realise the final mystery that had been created by the late author – the clues hidden in his book 'The Climax of ½' that was only meant to challenge the readers.

'…I want to see it just once; a reader, with a face full of confidence, who solved the mystery before I gave the answer away…'

Kudo had told him of the writer's last wish, but unfortunately the old man had passed away before he could realise that his final wish had indeed been fulfilled.

'Not one, but two, Occhan,' Heiji mused thoughtfully, 'two readers understood your message, at the very least. And both Kudo and I appreciate and acknowledge the thought and precision put into the story to develop that code…'

"Don't you have to leave, Heiji?" Shizuka asked her son as he stared thoughtfully at the folded paper, "The Mouri's will be arriving soon."

"Aa," Heiji gulped down his water, setting the chopsticks down, "Oyaji left rather early today, didn't he?"

"Hmm," Shizuka nodded, "A rather troubling case, I suppose. But don't go chasing after cases now, Hei-chan! You're supposed to be touring the Mouri's today!"

"No problem," Heiji snorted, putting on his cap as he got to his feet, "I've got no intention of it,"

'This is meant to be a visit, only a visit! No cases, no murders, no nothing!' Heiji nodded decisively as he slipped on his shoes, walking towards the station.

"That's the imperial temple's zoological garden!"

"That's Osaka dome!"

"And there's Tsutentaku!"

Ran smiled at Heiji's exuberant exclamations, his eyes practically shining with glee. Conan peered through the observation telescope, scouting out the Tsutentaku that looked a bit like the Tokyo Tower, his mouth quirking up in a small grin as he spotted it.

"So?" Hattori spread his arms out to emphasize with great pride, "Isn't Osaka a great place?"

Ran smiled and nodded, amused as she praised, "What a great panorama!"

"Yeah, but," Mouri countered, "That's not very different from the Tokyo Tower, you know,"

"You're joking?!" Hattori seemed scandalised, "You're not comparing the Tsutentaku to that boring red thing?"

Conan listened with one ear as he spun around the telescope again, taking in the sights. He had to admit, Osaka did have quite a few beautiful attractions. Hattori and Mouri got into a short and friendly argument about how wonderful Osaka's tower was, as Ran tried to smooth over the ruffles.

"Let's stop talking…let's eat!" Mouri suggested after a while and Conan had to agree, it had been since morning they were roaming the place and he was getting hungry.

"Ah, a little more patience," Hattori replied, glancing at his watch, "It's nearly time!"

Conan hopped down from the stool he was using and made his way to his western counterpart, grabbing him by his sleeve and pulling him a slight way.

"Oi, Hattori!"

"What?"

"A little more time?" Conan repeated, "Have patience? You haven't called me here for another case, have you?"

Hattori chuckled, "Nah, it's our transportation! It's special, so we'll have ta wait a while till it gets here."

Conan frowned, "Sure no case, right?"

"What do you go imagining?" Hattori grinned, shaking his hand dismissively, "This time it's not fer work! I only called ya here to visit, thinking ya might like ta see Osaka,"

Hattori sighed then, leaning against the railing of the observational deck, "Besides, life is short. No one knows when they'll die…"

His words were true, but the way he said it was odd.

"Hattori…What are you talking about?"

Hattori turned away from him for a while, gazing out, "I had a strange dream…"

"Dream?"

"Yes, I was stopping a murderer as usual, but this time he stabbed me," Heiji turned to look at him then, a wide smile on his face, "You were in it too! You even died!"

'Fake,' Conan realised immediately, 'That smile is so utterly fake…that dream must have troubled him greatly, but he's trying to make light of the situation. Trying to forget by laughing about it…okay, I'll go along with it if that's how you want it.'

Appropriately, Conan let out a deadpan, "Ha ha."

With the acting skills he'd learnt from his mother, they were delivered with just the right amount of incredulity, cynicism and acceptance. Heiji's tense shoulders relaxed a bit and Conan knew he'd succeeded; succeeded in conveying to Hattori that his dream was absolute rubbish and that he'd never let such a thing happen. Hattori didn't need to fear him dying.

Because, despite all the bodies they came across – whole and cooling or warm and twitching, complete or mutilated, bloody or surgically clean – there was always something different about seeing a stranger die and seeing a friend die.

Of course, the first actual death one saw was always gruesome. The feeling of inadequateness when all their attempts to save them, with all their knowledge and first aid training, fell short… it was demoralising. Seeing a dead person and seeing a person die were two different things. And successful detectives were those that could pick themselves up after seeing a death and move forward, knowing it was not their fault and now their duty was to catch the culprit instead of wallowing.

But even then, seeing your friend die would be a whole new kind of shock. And even if it was in a dream –

"Hattori-kun!"

Conan looked up from his musings to see a medium height man, with dark hair and spectacles, run up to them.

"Here you are, at last!" Hattori exclaimed.

"Sorry, I'm late," the man apologised sheepishly, and then turning towards the Mouri's, he bowed slightly, "Hello, I'm Inspector Sakata Yusuku!"

"Inspector?" Ran asked with surprise.

'Oi,' Conan internally face-palmed, 'Don't tell me this guy…'

Conan's guess turned out to be right.

Sakata was here to be their gloried 'chauffer' and their transportation was a police car. And despite Heiji's insistence at what a wonderful model the car was – Conan knew better cars than that, thanks to his mother – it was still a police car. But, damn, Conan had to admit, it was fast! Sakata was well under speed limit (Unlike Yukiko's reckless driving, which Shinichi did enjoy despite protests) but the car drive was smooth and without bumps.

"I have to say, police cars are luxurious! With them there are no traffic jams!" Heiji turned to face them from his seat next to the driver's, "So, everyone! Where do you want to go first?"

"You…" Mouri silently seethed before exploding, "You want us to tour Osaka in a police car?!"

Conan's lips twitched in amusement at Heiji's genuine confusion at Mouri's statement.

"What? You don't like it?" Heiji asked, surprised, "It's the latest model! Brand new!"

Conan coughed into his fist, trying not to burst out in laughter. Heiji shot him a strange look to which he simply shook his head. Attempting and failing to pacify them, Heiji offered to put the siren on too, but Ran quickly shot that down.

Leading the trio into a small, but decent, ramen and udon joint – Mouri-tantei hadn't really said where he wanted to go, so he'd decided himself – Heiji waved to the chef, who grinned back and ushered them forward, giving them good seats in front of the cooking area so as to serve them better. Heiji grinned back; this was the perks of knowing the owners of a shop personally, it guaranteed you good service.

"Ya should really try the udon here, Nee-chan," Heiji said as he slipped on to a stool next to Conan, Ran seating herself between her father and pseudo-brother, "Ya eat it once and you'll never forget! What do ya say, Conan?"

Heiji remembered to not say 'Kudo' this time, thankfully, and ordered three bowls for the Tokyoites. Minutes later, three steaming bowls of udon were laid in front of them; the noodles were thick and the broth was clear, small condiments and a few sliced and boiled mushrooms were used as seasonings. The aroma was heavenly.

"Well?" Heiji grinned, "Give it a try!"

Ran obliged, taking a small sip of the broth, "The taste is light, but it's good!"

The shop owner and chef smiled at her genuine praise, "Hattori-kun, where did you get her from?" He levelled him a mischievous look, lifting his little finger towards him, "Is she your new one?"

"Why? Does it look like it?" Heiji scratched his head jokingly, smirking at him and earning a laugh from the chef.

Conan, who'd seen the chef insinuate that Ran was Heiji's girlfriend by indicating his little finger, reached out to give him a sharp pinch on his thigh.

"Ouch!" Heiji hissed softly before smirking at his eastern counterpart, "Oi, take it easy, Kudo. Just joking! Nee-chan's all yours."

"Not Kudo," Conan murmured, glaring at him lightly but taking the ribbing sportingly.

"So, how d'ya like it?"

"It's good," Conan admitted, slurping up a few noodles with his chopsticks, "Aren't you getting a bowl for yourself, too?"

"Nah," Heiji shook his head, "Not now. We've still got places ta show ya. I'll probably eat something then."

And that was true. Because after the udon, they visited a takoyaki restaurant and then a ramen shop and then sampled a few shrimps on a roadside stall and then…Well, it was certainly a food fiesta going on. And when Mouri expressed a desire to visit a local okonomiyaki shop, Heiji groaned.

"Can't have told me tha' before the takoyaki? We'll have ta take quite few U-turns now and the traffic's crazy…"

"That's no problem," Sakata-keiji said, "I know one around here. How about I take you there?"

"Good enough for me," Mouri sat back, satisfied.

Kazuha knew it when Heiji had given her that call – Kudo was coming to Osaka. And she'd been invited to dinner with them. Heiji was planning on introducing that Kudo girl to Shizuka-baa-chan and Heizo-jii-chan – were they already on the introduction to parents stage?! No, no, no…that mustn't be! But, either way, she had her doubts and what better to do now than confront them?

So, she'd made up her mind. She was going to follow them; trail them oh so carefully that even Heiji's detective sixth sense couldn't pick her out! This was only to make sure Heiji was in good hands, of course! Nothing nefarious…really. She just wanted to see what kind of girl this Kudo was. And probably make sure Kudo wasn't stringing Heiji along, yeah that too… Argh! How she hated her! How she hated that she was the one who brought smiles to Heiji's face, the spark in his eyes as he talked about cases they'd solved together.

And then, at the same time, she couldn't help but be happy that Heiji was happy; even if it was because of Kudo. Which was why, through the tangle of emotions, Kazuha had decided that the least she could do was make sure this Kudo knew about her – about Toyama Kazuha's existence and that should she hurt Heiji, she was going to get it from Kazuha! And that led her here…

Kazuha made her way to a couple of places Heiji was sure to show them. Waiting at the station when she didn't know the time of their arrival was stupid, but she knew Heiji would bring them to the Tsutentaku around lunch time. It was the closest to the restaurants Heiji preferred, so the timing was perfect. And she was right.

Heiji, an older man, a young woman who seemed to be around her age and a little boy, all of them trooped in about noon to see the sights. Kazuha would have been proud at her deduction if she wasn't fuming with jealousy – she was right! Heiji was going off to Tokyo to see a girl!

'The girl is pretty,' Kazuha admitted, looking at the family as Heiji chatted animatedly with the young boy, 'and Heiji seems to get along well with all the Kudo's. Even the young child!'

But no matter how pretty that girl was, Great Detective of the East or not, she wasn't going to get Heiji so easily! Who did she think she was? Behaving so familiarly with him, oh – they're even wearing matching turtlenecks and jackets! Going for the couple look, were they? A tiny part of her chastised her; jealousy was an ugly emotion and she shouldn't let herself be consumed by it; but when she remembered the delightful smile on Heiji's face every time he talked about Kudo, Kazuha couldn't help but feel slightly bitter even as another part of her was happy for him.

"Occhan! Don't forget the rice!" Heiji called out, snapping Kazuha out of her musings.

Heiji told his guests something about calling his mother and disappeared around a corner. Taking the chance, Kazuha got up from her seat, moving towards the Tokyoites. She slipped into Heiji's seat, nonchalantly resting her head between her palms as she gazed at the brunette two seats over. The little boy right next to her gave her a confused glance as his elder sibling smiled at her politely.

"Excuse me, but that seat is taken –"

"So, you're Kudo, huh?" Kazuha cut her off.

"Heh?!"

Conan and Ran gave her incredulous glances as she spoke.

"You're all Heiji can talk abou', ya know," the girl said, slowly raising Conan's panic levels inch by inch, "Almost all the time…"

"Eh…wait!" Conan waved his hands in front of her, anything to get her to stall, 'Damn! What has Hattori been telling this girl?!'

"Don't pretend ya don't understand," the girl continued, "I know everything,"

'Everything? Everything?! That blabber mouth, no good, pig-headed, Detective of the Wes –'

"Yer name is Kudo! And after meetin' ya, Heiji was completely smitten!" the girl had now leaned over Conan to glare at Ran.

'S-Smitten!' Conan blinked, before realising what was going on. He wondered briefly, if he should feel incredulous or insulted, that Hattori's friend thought 'Kudo Shinichi' was a girl living in Tokyo. He settled for insulted, 'Damn that Hattori! I'm going to pry out everything you told this girl, just to make sure you haven't given me away. Nearly gave me a heart attack, she did…'

"A-Ah," Ran stuttered in embarrassment, "It's a mistake, I assure you –"

"Since you're here," the girl overrode Ran, almost ignoring her words, "Let me tell you something. Heiji and I were once joined by chains of iron –"

Conan blinked incredulously at the way the girl fired up, nearly thrusting her fist into Ran's face, 'Geez, this girl! And the hell is 'Chains of iron'?'

"– So if ya want ta get ta Heiji, you'll have ta go through me first –"

"Kazuha? What are ya doin' here?"

Conan gave an inaudible sigh of relief at Heiji's appearance. The girl, Kazuha, abruptly paused whatever she was saying, looking sheepish.

"AH HA HA HAAHA!" Heiji thumped his hand on the table, nearly doubling up with laughter, "I can't believe it! Kazuha… That Kudo I was telling ya about is a guy! A guy!"

Conan levelled him a slight glare when Heiji had the audacity to wink at him, before dissolving into chuckles once more. Pink faced and now quite ashamed, Kazuha mumbled inaudibly as she twiddled her thumbs.

"And anyway," Heiji smirked, pointing at Ran, "She's his girlfriend."

"Eh?" Ran shook her head, "Oh no! Nothing like that!"

"She says she's not, though," Kazuha pointed out sullenly.

"Yeah, coz she's embarrassed," Heiji added, unable to stop himself, enjoying the way Conan's expression morphed from irked to furious but still unable to say anything in present company.

"And why didn't you invite Kudo too, then?" Kazuha asked, crossed, "Inviting his girlfriend but not him? How odd, Heiji…"

"Er," Heiji paused, "Well, that's because," Conan gave him a wide eyed look, cautioning him not to give away too much and Heiji settled on something simple, "Because he's busy…"

"Busy?" Kazuha narrowed her eyes in slight suspicion.

"Anyway, could you tell us about it?" Ran asked with curiosity, thankfully derailing that conversation, "That 'chains of iron' you mentioned?"

Heiji did not remember feeling so simultaneously embarrassed and happy – Joyous? Content? Why though? – at the same time as Kazuha told Kudo and the Mouri's about the incident with the handcuffs. He levelled a mutinous glare at Kudo when he snickered as Kazuha and Heiji denied being in a relationship; really, how had they come to talk of this again? Though, he did resent the fact that Kazuha called herself his elder sister – why, she was only a few months older than him!

"Hey, Hattori," Conan asked him as they made their way out the restaurant, "was it her? The one who was following us back then?"

Heiji nodded, both he and Conan had been worried about their mysterious tail when they'd first felt its presence, "Yeah, I asked her. She's been after us since the Tsutentaku. Don't worry, Kudo, I'm pretty sure none of those guys are here!"

"Don't call me that," Conan scowled even as he relaxed, "and even if it wasn't them, anyone following us makes me feel uncomfortable. But," he levelled a glance at Kazuha where she walked in front of them, "she's pretty good. Her father's an Inspector, you say?"

"Aa," Heiji nodded, a grin quirking up as he saw Conan admire Kazuha's skill at stalking. Geez, what a thing to admire something about someone, but that was Kudo for you. Besides, Heiji couldn't say much, he admired people for much the same reasons, "Toyama Ginshiro, works under my Oyaji."

"Well," Mouri called out loudly as they left the shop, calling everyone's attention to him, "that was good! The okonomiyaki here is delicious!"

Heiji beamed, "Isn't it? Now, where do ya want ta go next?"

"I'm coming along." Kazuha declared, as she marched towards the parked car and opened the back door before sliding in.

"Eh?" Heiji blinked, sliding into the passenger seat and turning around to face her, "Who told ya that ya could come along? You'll be meeting us for dinner anyway, aren't ya? We won't have enough space in the car!"

"Of course we will!" Kazuha retorted, "Ya can have the little kid with ya up front, I'm sure Ran-chan won't mind me sitting at the back with her, right?"

"O-Of course not," Ran smiled hesitantly, feeling Kazuha's insistent gaze upon her as she took her seat, Kudo right next to her.

Conan, on the other hand, scowled at being called a 'little kid'. Heiji would have poked fun at that, claiming not to mind – and wouldn't Conan-kun like sitting with his Heiji-nii-chan? – When a startled gasp caught their attention. Heiji turned away then, poking his head out of the window, seeing Conan do the same from the back seat – he'd gotten in with Ran and Kazuha in the end – from his periphery vision.

"Look!" A man pointed upwards and pedestrians hastened to scramble out of the way.

Heiji and Conan were only a moment too late in realising what was happening.

Crash!

Down and onto the bonnet of the police car, a corpse landed heavily. Its eyes were wide and unseeing, mouth gaping open in horror and the paleness of the skin only further proved that the man was long dead. Upon his chest, a wallet lay pinned across his heart, pierced through with a knife. Dried blood clung to his suit, now stained a dark brown after exposure to air.

Kazuha and Ran let out muted screams as Heiji unfroze, both he and Conan jumping out of the car in instinct, running towards the body. More for procedure than out of any real hope, Heiji pressed two fingers against the man's neck, only confirming his suspicions that the man was long dead. A silent shake of his head to Conan and the both of them turned around.

"Who is this man?" Mouri asked in surprise as he looked at the corpse.

"I don't know!" Heiji snarled in frustration, he was as clueless as the others here, "He just fell onto the car! From the roof of tha' building!"

At his own words, Heiji turned to look up, a dark shadow and silhouette of a man peering from the roof top catching his attention, 'Someone's up there! Damn, is that…?'

"Sakata-han!" Heiji called out as he and Conan rushed towards the entrance of the building, intent on making their way up to the roof, "Call the police!"

"Heiji?!"

Ignoring Kazuha's questioning and incredulous shout, Heiji continued, "Mouri-han, let no one enter or leave the building!"

Kudo and Heiji rushed up, taking two stairs at once, panting heavily as they reached the roof and threw open the door.

'Well,' Heiji thought as they saw the man, standing against the edge, still peering down below, 'it seems like my plan for a peaceful visit is outta the window now.'

"It's strange to stay at the place of crime without even running away," Conan began with a smirk, making the man turn towards them in surprise and shock.

Heiji followed it up with his own quip, "Not that you can run away. No way out fer ya now. So, care to tell us, why did ya drop a body onto a police car?"

"Eh? No, no!" the man shook his head, raising his arms in defence, "I didn't do anything! You're mistaken!"

Heiji and Conan exchanged long-suffering glances. Well, this was going to be a long case.

AN: Soooo, how was it? Being out of touch from this fanfic for a while, I'm not sure if the flow has come out well. Do let me know, okay?

I would also like to give my thanks to all my faithful reviewers for being so patient and kind - espeacially my guest reviewers winx club and Rockster. Thanks a lot for your dedicated reviews! They really encourage me to write!

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To Rockster - Thanks for reviewing! It's good to know that Kazuha's pov made sense...And I've changed "Kyuu" to "Dan". Thanks for that! And actually, no...I don't know what joke is there behind 'Glegle' or that there even was a joke :/ Oh, I didn't really think of the internet back then. Also, considering the internet articles only post headlines or very important news and not everything the newspaper does... I don't think online newspapers were a thing back in 1990's. Er, were they? Guess I don't really know. Aww, but I'd have to go back and change EVERYTHING then. Pls, let's leave it at that and not get Glegle into the story for now?

Yup, I do wait for your comments! Just as I wait for all my regular reviewers :) One, because you actually do enjoy the story and getting to know your feed back makes me feel acccomplished. Two, you make a very, very good attempt to read through and point out any mistakes I've made so that I may correct them; I'm one of those people who appreciate critics and good reviews that point out the 'well done' part and the 'needs improvement' part :P Three, you put forth questions and scenarios that actually make me stop and think...is this how I should write it? Or should I change that scene? And did that part make sense or is it not being conveyed properly?

SO, yes. Your reviews are AWESOME! And they're thought provoking, perceptive and keep me on my toes! Which author doesn't want such an interactive and thoughtful reader? :) So, yeah, I do anticipate your comments!

Hey, that's fine. I was not sure if you'd even read A Case of Identity , so that you actually did read it is surprising and heart-warming in itself :)

And yep, harsh AND honest. Both very important things a reviewer must be. 'Coz if you're not honest, how will the author ever improve if the reviewer never points out any mistake? So, that was a compliment. No offense meant :P And seriously, I don't know about others, but DON'T tone down your criticisms. I wish other reviewers would not be oh-so-polite when they review, so you telling me exactly how the chapter was, is a good thing. Great review as always!

And thanks, once more, for reviewing!

To winx club - Thanks for reviewing! I'm glad you enjoyed the interlude. It was short, I know, but hopefully well explained :) Hope this chapter was well received too! Let me know how you liked it!

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All of you silent readers out there - I hope you are liking this story. If you are (and if not) do please let me know by reviewing! It does not take much time and highly encourages me to write faster! But, thank you all the same :)

So...

REVIEW!