Detective Conan In A Nutshell

Again with redrawing a scene from detco

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1412

writing? oh, i’m definitely writing. in my head. during the most inconvenient times. like in the shower or when i’m about to fall asleep. actual typing? no, no, we don’t do that here.

they match each other's freak no comment

Anyway, have some Heiji 💚💚💚

(I might have to add this one to the shop honestly)

please🙏

⛔Stop a minute‼️

Get to know Hashem's family

My name is Hashem from Gaza. I am 32 years old and my wife, Samar, is 27 years old. We have a child born in the eighth month of pregnancy. His mother was premature because of my wife's fear of war. My large family consists of 8 members: my father, mother, four male brothers and 2 females. My father died in the war due to a lack of medicine in hospitals as a result of the fierce war on Gaza.

My story began when we were displaced from our home in northern Gaza in mid-October 2023 after a letter threatening eviction, and then the house was targeted and destroyed. Between this Exodus and the current fifth Exodus there are many stories and sufferings.

We now live in plastic tents, which are thermal ovens, which are not suitable for living and do not provide the minimum necessities of life, in addition to the spread of epidemics and diseases, which puts our lives in danger.

Through this campaign, we are trying to collect enough money to meet our needs and get us out of the Gaza Strip safely. We ask you to stand by us and protect us from this severe danger.

Support and share🤍

gofundme.com

Donate to Help my family survive and start a new life, organized by Hashim Friend

Hello everyone, I hope you take a minute to read our story. I’m Hashem Al-S… Hashim Friend needs your support for Help my family survive an

best wishes:

Hashem alshawish

Note:

The campaign was documented through:

@90-ghost

@gaza-evacuation-funds ( @el-shab-hussein @nabulsi )

Palestine Pride List:

@buttercuparry @appsa @malcriada @palestinegenocide @sar-soor @akajustmerry @annoyingloudmicrowavecultist @feluka @sayruq @tortiefrancis @flower-tea-fairies @tsaricides @riding-with-the-wild-hunt @visenyasdragon @belleandsaintsebastian @ear-motif @kordeliiius @communitythings @brutaliakhoa @raelyn-dreams @troythecatfish @theropoda @4ft10tvlandfangirl @queerstudiesnatural @northgazaupdates2 @skatezophrenic @awetistic-things @baby-girl-aaron-dessner @nabulsi @el-shab-hussein @timetravellingkitty @transmutationisms

NEW LINK ON CHUFFED 🍉🙏

Hello my friends, I am Yousef from Gaza. I created a new link on Cuffed, as the link for GFM has problems with the transfer, I hope that you will support me and help my family and my sick child who has been suffering from separate respiratory since the beginning of the war on Gaza.

He needs urgent treatment that cost 2000$ per week, rent cost 2000 per month and a vaporizer device 1500$

My link campaign 👇

Chuffed

Help Yousef al-Habil and His Family

Hello,

Please Donate and spread my campaign everywhere

Thanks 🙏

@heydreamchild @comrademango @holograph-skullz @90-ghost @spacebeyonce @manaosdeuwu @a-shade-of-blue @nabulsi @gaza-giving-tree @sayruq @gaza-evacuation-funds @writerqueenofjewels @dykesbat @riding-with-the-wild-hunt @ramelcandy @labutansa @sammywo @tortiefrancis @sparklinpixiedust @feluka @revcuse @golvio @rainbowywitch @annoyingloudmicrowavecultist

@habits-white-rabbit @klugpuuo @utane-uta-town @frodig-skog @bag0fsnakes @origulator @flesh-and-guts @leaving-earth @lusitanian-luser @bedcorpse @l-art-stuff-l @reveristmain @once-and-future-fandoms @whyamistillawake @armani9-9 @revui @sunflowersmoths @mewttie @femmefitz @solardeedle @flamejob

dumb loser girl

quiet night in

my first i didnt know where else to go fic

Isuka was enjoying a quiet night in, with no roommates, no fuss and no noise. She was all alone, and she could not be happier as she turned on the TV. She could finally watch what she wanted, with no judgement and no interruptions. Or at least that's what she thought. As she took a spoon of her ice cream, someone knocked on the door. She prayed internally it was a delivery of some sort and not one of her roommates back way too early and most likely crying.

She placed the ice cream on the coffee table and padded towards the door, 'I'm coming!'

She, however, did not expect to throw open the door and find one Portgas D. Ace leaning against the wall, injured. It was a well-known fact that the both of them did not get along in school, with Isuka being a stickler for the rules and her trust in authority meant she wasn't too fond of Ace's carefree nature. They'd argued about plenty of things in school, like Ace's uniform not being up to standard, about his poor attendance and his tendency to get into fights. She barely saw him now that they no longer went to school or lived anywhere near each other.

'Oh, thank goodness you're home. I didn't know where else to go,' Isuka gasped as she took in his appearance. He had bruises and cuts on his face, fresh ones as if he'd been in a fight. Scrapes on his arms and legs, almost like he'd fallen out of a tree and some bigger ones which definitely needed to be dressed. There were bruises on his stomach, like he'd been kicked, visible because, as usual, his shirt was open.

'What on earth happened to you?' She draped his arm around her shoulder to drag him in. She sat him down on the sofa before frantically trying to search for the first aid kit; no, maybe he needed to be taken to the hospital.

'If you're worried about me, you should see the other guys,' he smirked at her despite the fact he was clearly in pain, wincing when he tried to move. He kicked off his shoes and placed them to a side, his bag was on the floor, and he emptied his pockets onto the table. He also took off his shirt to make it easier for her to access all the cuts and grazes.

Isuka had managed to find the first aid kit fully stocked because of a certain someone's clumsiness. 'Why are you here?' She waited for him to sit up before opening the kit and pulling out what she needed; most of his injuries were minor cuts and grazes, but the bruises made it seem a lot worse. 'Are your brothers terrible at treating wounds? That would be horrible considering the fights I've seen the younger one get into.'

'That would be Luffy,' he laughed, coughing as pain shot up his side, 'and yes he's a terrible doctor, you're better off not going to him for this sort of stuff. He's also with his friends so I can't really bother him.'

'Noted,' she smiled at him before opening a packet of sterile wipes to clean the wounds, starting with his legs. She could feel him tense as she held his ankle to tug his leg onto her lap.

'Sabo, you can trust, he's pretty good at this stuff,' he caught her eyes again as she focused on his other leg, 'but he's out with his girlfriend right now, he might murder me for ruining his date and then murder me again for getting into a fight and getting injured.'

Isuka chuckled, 'he sounds like a reasonable person,' before adding, 'well anyone would seem more reasonable compared to the both of you.'

Ace held out her arms for her to clean next, 'yeah he's always been the smart one. I figured they would murder me if I didn't do anything at all about these wounds and I don't know anyone else around here.'

Isuka continued to clean his wounds. After getting through about five wipes, she made sure everything was good enough to move to the next step, cleaning the skin around the bigger wounds. She dabbed the cotton ball with antiseptic before signalling for him to come closer.

She heard him suck in, 'sorry I'm trying to be gentle. What are you doing here? You're pretty far away from home.'

'This is home,' he had an indecipherable look on his face, 'I had some time off so I came back to visit. It's been a while since I've seen everyone.'

'Yeah, it has,' she thought about the last time she'd seen him, younger and more carefree, as school ended. Then he moved away, and in all this time, Isuka's career hadn't gotten any further; she heard about his achievements, and some part of her was happy for him even if they had their differences.

'It's been even longer since I've seen you, I see my brothers way too often,' he looked up at her, but she didn't address the statement.

'Sorry I couldn't help more. This is all we have,' she apologised as she tugged his arm closer.

'Oh don't worry about it, you've already done more than I expected,' he smiled gratefully.

'What did you think I was going to do?' She continued her work, focusing on the cuts on his lip and nose.

'Honestly? Wrap me in bandages and send me home.'

'We may not like each other Ace, but I'm no heathen.'

'We don't?'

'Huh?'

'No, nevermind,' he waved it away. He watched her work, her concentration as she tried to only dab the skin around the wounds. Whenever he winced, she apologised before carefully going back to what she was doing.

For a while, Ace sat there watching her work. Isuka had always been kind, almost too kind for her own good. He knew she didn't like him that much, but she had been nice enough not to say it to his face, so hearing those words from her mouth was somehow different. 

She pulled out small plasters for his nose and lip and pieces of gauze for the bigger cuts on his arms and legs. She placed the plasters on, 'so why did you fight them?'

'Huh?'

She began placing the gauze on the wound on his arm and took out something to wrap it with, 'I mean you didn't just fight them for no reason right?'

'Oh that, of course not what do you take me for?'

'Didn't you get into fights a lot for no reason when we were back in school?'

'What?' he chuckled nervously and rubbed the back of his head after Isuka was done wrapping his arm. 'It's been a while, I was young and stupid, I've changed since then.'

'Oh so you admit you were stupid?' she teased as she focused on a cut on his leg.

'Hey, I have changed, give me some credit,' Isuka knew that to be true, but his flustered expression was way too funny to ignore, 'I really did have a reason.'

She shook her head affectionately as she finished up the last bandage, 'let me put this away, then I'll get you some ice for those bruises,' she gestured to his stomach. She packed everything back into the first aid kit and got up. When she got back, she walked over to the kitchen. 

'You don't have to worry about an ice pack, I'm pretty sure these will just fade,' he called out to her.

'No, that's really not how it works, in my opinion you should get checked in case of internal bleeding but since you insist things will be okay the least you could do is ice it,' she replied as she bent down to open the freezer. She pulled out the first ice pack she saw, wrapped it in a towel and made her way back to the sofa Ace was now lying on. 

He let her place it on his wounds before sitting down on the floor next to him, 'why do you even have an ice pack?'

'Sports injuries are very common in this household, you've got to be prepared,' she shrugged as she gently iced his injury.

'I can do this at the very least,' he placed a hand on hers to get her to stop.

'If you'd like,' she sighed and got up, settling herself on the armchair next to the sofa.

Ace continued icing the area before speaking, 'they were trying to attack this girl.'

'Who?'

'The guys I attacked.'

'Oh right.'

'After I went to Sabo's and he gave me the leave and if you accept any offer to third wheel our date I'll murder you look,' Isuka chuckled, picturing Ace's teasing look and Sabo's murderous one. 'I took that as a signal to leave the lovebirds alone and was making my way to Makino's bar,' Isuka was familiar with Makino, the kind woman who ran the only bar she enjoyed going to, 'I was cutting through this alley when I heard a voice shouting for help. So I went over to where I heard the voice and I saw four guys cornering this girl. She looked terrified so I stepped in, she ran away as soon as she had the opportunity and I fought them to make sure they didn't try to chase after her.'

'You got beat up pretty badly, you sure there were only four of them?'

'They had weapons, this bruise is probably from the bat they hit me with,' he pointed at the bruise he was currently icing.

'A bat? You sure you didn't break a rib or something,' it didn't feel broken when she touched it, but there was no harm in double-checking.

He ignored her concern at first, 'I couldn't bother Makino with my injuries. She's busy,' but he quickly added, 'stop worrying so much. I've broken ribs before; this is nothing compared to that.'

'None of that statement makes me any less worried,' she shook her head disappointedly. 

'You worry too much. You should know by now nothing hurts me that much,' he glanced over at where she was, but she didn't look convinced; like usual, she thought too much. 'Have I ever told you you think too much?'

'Yes,' she sighed, multiple memories coming to the front of her thoughts, 'multiple times.'

'Oh, well you do, maybe you should think less Isuka, you look stressed.'

'I'm stressed because of you! You can't come to my home, for the first time, injured and expect me not to worry.'

Ace was quiet before he spoke again, 'I tried visiting you before, but you were never home, always holed up at work,' Isuka opened her mouth to try and deny the statement, but he continued, 'your roommates told me.'

'Well, I can't say they were wrong but I do take breaks; matter of fact, I was taking one before you came,' she leaned over to grab the half-melted ice cream; she might as well put it back in the freezer.

'Oh that's right, it's quiet, where are your friends?'

Isuka grabbed two cups of water before making her way back, 'Tash is on a date,' she placed one in front of him and sank back into her seat, 'Koby and Helmeppo are doing something or the other. I didn't question it.'

'Oh so you're home alone? Must be fun,' when he was younger, being home alone was a luxury he rarely had, but when he did, the peace and quiet was something he appreciated.

'Well I planned on bingeing some show until I passed out on the sofa and was woken up by my roommates,' she signalled to the stack of blankets and pillows she'd moved to make space for Ace, 'but as usual I can never catch a break.'

At first, Ace didn't quite clock what she was talking about before realising he was very much the problem, 'ah, sorry about that.'

'Nothing you can do about it now,' she waved off his apology, 'have you eaten? You mentioned being on the way to Makino's.'

'Now that you mention it,' he hadn't eaten; he was planning on clearing Makino's stock, lovingly as her sort of younger brother.

'Let me see what we have,' Isuka got up yet again, she had eaten a big lunch and decided eating a whole tub of ice cream was good enough, so she hadn't had dinner yet. She opened the fridge, which was startlingly empty; not even the basic things like eggs or milk were present; she really needed to go grocery shopping. She and her roommates were always busy, meaning lots of takeout and tons of leftovers in the fridge, but apparently not today.

'It doesn't have to be fancy!' He shouted, supposedly helpful, but not when the fridge had a single energy drink and a strawberry, the one Koby picked from their strawberry plant the other day.

She returned to Ace, 'yeah turns out we have absolutely nothing,' she pulled out her phone to see what places would deliver.

'What were you planning to eat?'

'Ice cream.'

'For dinner? And you say I make terrible decisions,' he teased.

'I don't make them on a daily basis, just sometimes, plus I'm not on the clock. Let me relax,' his annoying, bother Isuka voice was making a comeback, 'do you want pizza?'

'Yeah sure.'

She placed her usual order and let him pick what he wanted before paying, not without a small argument about who should pay. Isuka won, her main reason being he was in pain to simply fish his card out of his bag. With food on the way, they sat in silence.

Ace broke the silence first, 'so what have you been up to,' he hadn't heard much about her in the past 3 years. He got updates about basically everyone else through his brothers, but Isuka wasn't friends with them, so he didn't have a real reason to ask them about her. He was not about to call his grandfather to try and get information about his subordinate. Skull was able to get snippets of information about her from time to time, but it was not much.

Isuka thought for a moment before replying, 'well work I guess, there hasn't been much time for anything else.'

'Is that why you're home alone on a nice night like this.'

'Like you're any better, you ended up at my place, injured on a nice night.'

'Like I said I would've bothered someone else, but unlike you they are with other people.'

'There's nothing wrong with enjoying some alone time.'

'Sure,' he really had a way of making her annoyed. Damn his stupid face and addictive smile. 'Are you still fencing?'

'Huh? Oh yeah, but it's just for fun, I help out with a kids class too,' she smiled, remembering the little kids who watched in awe as she demonstrated different moves.

'I see, that must be a lot of work,' Isuka had almost become a professional, representing nationally and even had an offer to take part in an international competition. That was until she gave it up because of personal circumstances.

'Yeah but it's a lot of fun seeing the younger generation interested in it.'

She smiled sadly, he hadn't known her for long, having transferred into her school a little late, but her friends had told him enough. She was once one of those kids eagerly attending every session. Even in the time he knew her, her passion for the sport was astounding.

He wanted to say something of comfort, but she broke the silence first, 'so what about you? What's it like living away from your family?'

'Of course I miss my brothers and home, but I've found a family there too. They're good people.'

'That's good,' she'd been worried about his reckless nature, but he'd found people who'd helped him settle down.

Silence took over again. Ace fiddled with one of his bracelets, 'so, um, what show were you gonna watch?'

Isuka looked puzzled, 'oh, my show. It's nothing really, a friend recommended it to me. It's one of those murder mystery shows.'

'I see,' Ace wasn't someone who spent a lot of time keeping us with tv shows. If it was on, he'd watch it, but he spent most of his time outside with others. Deuce would always be rambling on about some show or book; in all honesty, he'd learned to tune him out.

'Do you want to watch something? While we wait?'

'Oh sure, we can watch your show if you want,' he felt bad that she was missing out on her form of relaxation.

'You sure? I don't mind watching something else if you'd prefer,' she offered.

'Nah, murder is interesting enough.'

'Okay then, murder it is,' she turned on the TV and pulled up the show. She hadn't started watching it and planned on not sleeping (or trying not to) until she finished it.

~ ♡ ~

The both of them watched quietly as the show began, setting up the murder, introducing the victim and then the main character. Ace winced as the murderer stabbed the victim, and Isuka laughed, which then prompted him to call her psycho for enjoying this sort of stuff. They watched as the murderer hunted for the main character, and the doorbell rang, causing the both of them to jump, before Isuka realised it was the pizza, paused the show, and went to collect it. 

'There you go,' she placed the boxes on the coffee table.

'Almost thought we were going to be murdered.'

Isuka laughed and said, 'don't worry there are enough weapons in this house to protect ourselves with.'

'Oh right, you guys have a bunch of swords and stuff,' Ace sat up slowly and opened up the boxes as Isuka went to grab some glasses for the drinks.

'That would be all of us but Koby, he's more of a martial arts type person,' they each had their own interest, with made for an odd assortment of weapons in the house.

'Right, remind me never to try to surprise you. I might end up riddled with holes,' he watched as she sank back into her seat, 'can you even see the TV from there?' Isuka nodded, and Ace added to the question, 'I mean properly? Isn't the angle kinda weird?'

'It's not too bad, I'm used to it, all four of us can't fit on one sofa,' the four of them tried to eat dinner together as often as they could, which was very rare and always caused arguments about what to watch.

'Join me,' he smiled, patting the seat next to him. The sofa was quite spacious, and at first, Isuka denied the offer, stating she was quite comfortable where she was. Ace, however, was insistent, and she caved, getting up to join him.

He clicked play when she picked up a slice of pizza and leaned back into the seat. They were mostly quiet, their attention focused on eating and the show.

'Who do you think did it?' Ace asked when they paused to clear up the mess.

Isuka pondered the question before answering, 'I think it's too early to know, but the uncle is suspicious.'

'Right? He gives me the creeps.'

They sat back down on the sofa, Isuka grabbing the blankets and pillows so they could get more comfortable. Isuka wrapped herself in the blanket and sat with her legs up on the seat. Ace accepted a pillow and placed it behind his head.   When the show started again, the both of them talked a bit more, Ace making a comment about the dumb ideas the police had and Isuka complaining about how reckless the main character was.

At some point, Ace made a noise of discomfort, and Isuka made him lie down on the sofa, putting the pillow below his head and draping a blanket over him.

'You don't have to baby me, you know.'

'My house, my rules, you are injured, you don't get a say.'

'Yes ma'am,' he saluted as she sat back down, lifting his legs to sit down before placing them on her lap.

~ ♡ ~

It wasn't very long until Ace fell asleep, he tried to fight it, but the nice hot meal and being tucked in made it really difficult. He woke up, the room was dark, and the only light was the TV; Isuka was still awake. 

He watched her as her expression changed, her hair tucked behind her ear, making it all the more easy. Her eyes seemed tired, but she stared intently, barely moving.

'What's happening?' She seemed a little startled as she turned to face him.

'Oh, how was the nap? If you want you can take my bed.'

'Nah, I'm good,' he wasn't going to admit that he likes being on the sofa with her, 'did they find out who did it?'

'Yeah, it was the uncle, but they haven't caught him yet.'

'So we were right? Wow I'd make a great detective, maybe I should join you Birdie.'

'I don't think you should quit your day job too soon, Fire Fist,' he smiled at the use of nicknames, well more like Birdie was what he called her to annoy her, and Fire Fist was what most people knew him as, but it was still cute she remembered.

He smiled to himself before turning his attention back to the TV, the show was clearly coming to an end, and he wondered what time it was. Isuka grabbed them the ice cream she planned on eating later, and they finished the whole thing, laughing at each other when they got a brain freeze. 

When the show ended, Isuka got up, stretching her limbs. He wanted to do the same, but the pain made him stop.

'That was a good show.'

'Yeah, Deuce was right,' Isuka chuckled, and Ace did too until he clocked her words.

'Deuce?!'

'Yeah, he watched it a while back and told me it was good and I should check it out.'

Ace hadn't wrapped his head around the fact she'd just said Deuce. Deuce, who was absolutely terrified of her and used every excuse to avoid being in her path, that Deuce was now exchanging TV show recommendations with her? He vaguely remembered Deuce mentioning a murder mystery show, but then again, he hadn't been paying attention, so he wouldn't know.

'You talk to Deuce?'

'Occasionally, he usually texts me. Skull too, he tells the funniest stories.'

'They have your number, but I don't?' He was even more shocked that Skull had also kept in contact; he always mentioned admiring her from afar, not exchanging stories weekly.

'Well you never asked, Deuce asked before we finished school. Skull asked a little later.'

He muttered under his breath, 'those traitors,' he'd mentioned Isuka multiple times in the past couple of years, and apparently, they never thought to mention that they were in contact.

'You can have it now, if you'd like,' she held out her hand, and he scrambled to find his phone for her to enter her number.

'So it's just me you don't like?'

'Huh?'

'Earlier, you mentioned not liking each other, you really don't like me?'

Isuka stared blankly at him before bursting out laughing, 'Ace you really crack me up, sure I didn't like you when we first met. I thought you were annoying as hell.'

'And?'

'I still think that,' Ace's hopeful look immediately fell, and Isuka started laughing again. 'However, I never really hated you. I mean, we were just similar people with different views; we could have been good friends.'

'Could have? Can't we? Like now, we can be friends right?'

Isuka saw the look in his eyes and realised he was being serious about getting closer, 'sure.' His face immediately lit up; Isuka always thought he looked adorable when he smiled. 'I do think, however, since it is four in the morning, we should get some proper sleep.'

'Yeah that's a good idea Birdie.'

'You're not letting that nickname go are you?'

'Oh, absolutely not,' he smirked, and Isuka questioned what she was getting herself into.

~ ♡ ~

Come morning, Isuka woke up with a crick in her neck and her arm numb. She'd fallen asleep on the armchair, Ace sprawled out on the sofa. She got up and stretched, making her way to her bedroom to freshen up. When she got to the kitchen, she was met with a slightly bemused Tashigi.

'Looks like you had a fun night,' referring to the sleeping figure of Ace on their sofa.

'I could say the same about you, when did you get home?'

'About 10 minutes ago,' she took a sip from her cup, 'should I be happy or worried for you?'

'Happy, I think,' she opened their cabinets to make herself a coffee.

'Well, I guess our guest is staying for breakfast.'

'Let me check,' she abandoned her quest to make coffee and instead turned her attention to waking up Ace.

He woke up, a lost expression on his face, 'where? Who? Birdie?'

'Yeah, it's me. I was wondering whether you were going to stay for breakfast.'

He sat up, Isuka helping him. He rubbed at his face before looking back up. Tashigi had made her way to the living area, so he waved at her, and she nodded back. 

'Well, considering I told Makino I was going to see her yesterday then disappeared, it would be a good idea to drop by and let her know I'm not dead. Plus I have invaded your space enough for one visit.'

'Okay, if you want you can use the bathroom over there and I'll pack your stuff,' he nodded, getting up.

When he came back, he looked a lot more awake, and Isuka handed his bag over, 'thanks, Birdie.'

'No problem, Fire Fist. Make sure to take care of those injuries.'

She opened the door to let him out, 'I look forward to seeing you again, now that I have you I'm never letting you go Isuka.'

She could feel her cheeks burn as he turned around, waving as he disappeared down the stairs, 'I look forward to it.'

~ ♡ ~

conversations in secret

now with a chapter 2 :)

Chapter 1: to be close to her is to be vulnerable

~ ♡ ~

‘Tough case, I hear.’

He sighed as he took a seat opposite the woman, and she continued to flip through the file. He had a long week, with Tsujimura constantly on his back about reports and endless case requests. 

They had a serial murder case at a Tokyo restaurant: guests had been dying mysteriously. Initial reports couldn’t find traces of any poison in any of the dishes, and combined with the fact that the guests had all previous health problems, it had been ruled out as natural causes and coincidence. However, the latest victim had ties to the government, and that meant they were called in. It turns out that the maitre d’ had been poisoning guests that looked down at him; years of anger had led him to take such drastic measures. Of course he had ended up dead at the end of it all, his prize swordfish being his undoing. 

‘Yeah, well,’ he took out his kiseru and lit it, ‘we got him in the end, so what difference does it make?’ 

After the whole Kyogoku ordeal, he had promised to visit occasionally. To keep her updated on her daughter’s situation. She seemed to look forward to their meetings; she obviously couldn’t have too many visitors. Considering she wasn’t technically alive, and even though Ayatsuji pretended it annoyed him, she knew better. 

‘I heard she threatened to quit.’

‘She does that from time to time,’ he leant back, blowing smoke, regarding the pattern on the ceiling. ‘She never has though.’

Tsujimura has her phases; he’s not sure what brings on these mood swings, but they are quite entertaining. She had accidentally fallen into the fish tank attempting to retrieve a possible piece of evidence, blaming him for not holding her. He had warned her that he had only been contracted to solve mysteries, not entertain wild goose chases. He had also apparently deliberately kept her out of his plans, leading her to once again be thrown at a wall. So still damp and in pain, she told him that if he kept up with this, she would quit.

‘I’m sure you would regret it if she actually did quit,’ she chuckled at his recollection of events. She had already read both of their reports, and Tsujimura’s one had clearly been written with bitterness, her writing looking extra scratchy when it came to his name.

‘Yes,’ he took another long drag from the pipe. ‘No one else in her department is quite so easy to control.’

She shook her head, disappointed but not surprised. She knew her daughter’s character, her stubbornness, her strengths, and her weaknesses. She could be partnered up with worse people; she knows the department is full of them.

‘And?’

He shot her a confused look, ‘And?’

‘How much longer are you going to deny it?’ She’d read about the Kyogoku incident in detail. Details that her daughter was never made aware of, like how he had made the choice to let Kyogoku go in order to save her life—of course that was before he knew the whole truth. Or how initially he had chosen her life over his. It was exasperating to watch him put on this performance of not caring.

‘Deny what?’

She shut the folder and sighed. She forgot how difficult he could be. With that sharp tongue of his, ‘Aren’t you tired of this?’

‘Again, I’m not sure what you’re talking about,’ he sat up, making eye contact with her. ‘Mizuki Tsujimura-dono.’

She shook her head, the lengths he would go just to avoid talking about things he didn’t want to. She could see why her daughter struggled to take charge of him; she was much too insecure in her own strength. And perhaps unaware of just how much power she had.

‘After everything you’ve done for her, are you still going to deny what she means to you?’

‘Ah,’ he went quiet for a second, choosing to look away. ‘You seem to forget that your daughter isn’t like us.’

‘Meaning?’

‘In this business you have to keep everyone an arm’s length away,’ more cryptic nonsense. He went back to leaning, choosing to smoke instead of elaborating. He just couldn’t admit it, could he? Even though they both knew what he was thinking. However, what was clear was that he had put a lot of thought into this; how anyone could forget he was human was beyond her.

‘I fear you might be past that now.’

His response was almost immediate and almost too quiet for her to hear: ‘She doesn’t know that.’

‘You underestimate her, Ayatsuji-kun; she’s grown so much,’ she smiled fondly, recalling all the reports she’s read about her daughter over the years.

‘I don’t disagree,’ he remembered the first time he had seen her. It had been soon after she received the news of her mother’s death. She had just started at the military academy, and Ango was offering her a job after she graduated, courtesy of her new ability. To everyone’s shock she had requested to be placed near him, usually people requested the opposite. ‘Tsujimura-kun has changed considerably, but I—I don’t know.’

'Don’t know what?’

‘I don’t see a future where it will end well.’ Their lives were in constant danger. His is in the hands of the government; what happens when they decide they don’t need him anymore? Tsujimura didn’t take the last kill on sight order well. Well, she didn’t listen at all, choosing to risk her life instead. Would she do that again? More importantly, he didn’t want her to, nor did he want to hear her cry like that again.

‘You forget Ayatsuji-kun, that even you cannot predict the future.’

‘Well forgive me for being a realist,’ he stood up to leave, dusting his clothing and tucking in the chair before turning away.

‘Leaving so soon?’ Of course he would leave like nothing important had been said.

‘She’s going to chew my ear off about being late to some meeting or other,’ he gestured noncommittally; at least this time he was attempting to lie.

‘Think about it, Ayatsuji-kun,’ she called out to him as he walked away.

He didn’t bother turning back to answer, just waved as he waited for them to open the doors again.

He’d thought about it enough.

~ ♡ ~

Chapter 2: your feelings amongst the rubble

~ ♡ ~

Tsujimura dusted off the debris on her blazer, struggling to get up off the floor.

‘Tsujimura-kun!’ She heard her name being called from somewhere nearby. She tried to reply, but all she could do was cough.

The last thing she remembered was Ayatsuji-sensei identifying the killer in their latest case. Then the guy tried to use her as leverage to escape. Unfortunately for him, she tackled him to the ground, and he began crying quite pathetically. Sensei revealed that his ability would soon kill the man, and he screamed something along the lines of, ‘It’s not fair!’ Before activating a bomb of some kind, how she hadn’t noticed it was beyond her. It was supposed to destroy the exits to the building, trapping everyone in so that he could kill them all one by one. Due to the frailty of the older structure, the explosion caused cracks to form in the ceiling above where Tsujimura was disarming and handcuffing the man. Ayatsuji yelled out for her to move or she would be crushed. 

She looked up, there wasn’t enough time to move. Someone, or something shoved her out of the way just in time, knocking the air out of her lungs as she collided with the wall.

She must’ve been out momentarily, waking up to dust and debris everywhere. Her head was throbbing, and her muscles ached; she must’ve hit her head. Using the wall to get up, she tried to make out where everyone was. There were multiple other people in the building as Ayatsuji-sensei pointed out the killer. She saw a hand from under the rubble, the watch on the wrist told her it was the culprit, getting what he deserved.

‘Tsujimura-kun!’ The voice was closer this time, and she was almost sure it was Ayatsuji-sensei calling out her name. She tried to make out where he was, but her vision was blurring, and when she touched her head, she felt blood. Using the wall as a guide, she tried to take a couple of steps towards the voice, though it was useless as she felt her knees buckle.

In the rubble, on her knees, she felt a sense of dread fill her. Was she going to die in this building?

The last thing she remembered before waking up in the hospital was Ayatsuji-sensei crouching next to her, telling her that she would be okay. He seemed to have suffered some slight injuries in his attempt to reach her. He was never going to shut up about that.

~ ♡ ~

‘I see you didn’t make it out of this one unscathed either.’

He shot her a glare as he made his way across the room. He had a bandage on his face and scrapes on his arm and back. He sat down in his usual chair, leaning back slowly so as to not aggravate the healing skin. She watched as he lit his kiseru as usual and relaxed for a bit before continuing. 

‘So?’ She was stifling a laugh as she took in his slight wince as he moved around. ‘Shocking to see the supposedly indestructible homicide detective injured.’

‘Why are you surprised? Isn’t it part of the job?’ His eyes were shut, and he was breathing carefully; his ribs must hurt. ‘Injury and pain?’

‘Yes, but it has been a while since you sustained significant injuries in any case, correct?’ If she remembered correctly, even during the waterfall confrontation, he had a few bruises from falling into the net with force, but that was the extent of it.

He nodded, 'It has indeed.'

‘Reigo Island, I believe,’ she chuckled, clearly amused by the memory she was recalling.

Ayatsuji seemed less entertained. ‘That ability of yours has no sympathy.’

‘In my defence, I was acting under orders.’ She had been instructed to kill the ability user when she was assigned there. ‘You held your own against us, even if it was for a short time. You must have been trained well.’

‘You still seem shocked about it,’ he was sitting up straighter now. Facing her as she continued to reminisce.

‘I was informed that despite your powerful ability, you lacked any combat skills. Imagine my shock when you tried to parry Shadowling with a nearby stick.’

‘I do not wish to talk about that time in my life.’

‘Which part? The part when I nearly killed you? Or the time you learnt to fight?’

His face soured when she brought up the fighting. ‘I think you know what I’m referring to.’

‘Fine, you’ve been through enough; I'll leave this conversation for another time.’

‘Bold of you to assume we would ever have that conversation.’ His face remained unchanged and slightly horrified.

She laughed, ‘Yes, yes. I know you have no inclination to discuss your past.’ She’d tried to bring it up before, having read all the files the government had on him. He’d shot her down then too. 

‘So? Is that all you wanted to discuss? Seems pretty mundane, even more than usual.’

‘What did you expect? You haven’t done anything of national importance lately.’

‘You haven’t enquired about your daughter once. Isn’t that why you wanted to meet? You could at least ask how Tsujimura-kun is,’ he folded his arms.

She smiled, he had an of way saying he cared, ‘And how is she?’

‘Well.’

It would seem he was being bratty for her earlier intrusion, ‘And is that all?’

‘Her injuries, like mine, were minor; she is fine.’

‘Fine? Was she not put under strict orders to rest because of a concussion?’

‘Miraculously,’ he seemed to be throwing some sort of tantrum, continuing to be petty. ‘She recovered.’

‘Well,’ she laughed, he could be such an annoyance sometimes. She felt it was her karma for not spending enough time with her daughter when she was a child. ‘That’s good.’

They lapsed into silence; he seemed to be out of things to say, or be sassy about.

She spoke first, ‘And how are you?’

‘Like I already said, I’m fine.’

‘No, I mean, you saw her in quite a bad state,’ she studied his expression, and although it remained largely unaffected, there was a flicker of something in his eyes. ‘I imagine that was not easy.’

~ ♡ ~

He was shaking her as she lay limp on the floor. ‘Tsujimura, wake up!’ He had watched her try to walk before collapsing. Running towards her as fast as he could.

Now, he was sitting against the wall, pulling her into his lap so she wouldn't be on the cold ground anymore. She was still breathing, so he felt her pulse; it wasn’t as strong as usual. He wasn’t expecting this to happen when he caught the criminal; the man wasn’t supposed to have bombs. He tucked the hair out of her face, taking in her pale countenance. He should’ve noticed the explosives in the building. Why didn’t he?

How was he supposed to get her out of here when the exits were blocked? She desperately needed some medical attention to check the head injury wasn’t serious. 

Thankfully, he knew Tsujimura and trusted she had contacted the division already, as was protocol whenever they’re sent on cases. They were the ones who clean up the messes left by his ability and make sure the others on the scene are questioned about the situation. They were already on the way, but they needed extra support.

He pulled out Tsujimura’s phone and tried to turn it on, but the crack on the screen was telling. He threw it aside and pulled out his own, contacting Ango, ‘Sakaguchi-kun, we need ambulances and the fire department now.’

‘Sensei?’ He motioned for Aoki and Murakoso. ‘What happened?’

‘There was a bomb; the exits have been destroyed. I don’t know how many people are hurt, and Tsujimura-kun is unconscious.’

‘Understood.’

He ran his hand through his hair; this was all his fault, and all he could do now was wait. He looked back down at the woman in his lap; she seemed so cold. Taking off his cape, he wrapped it around her. ‘And you called it pompous; who’s benefiting from it now?’

~ ♡ ~

‘Like I said, she recovered.’ 

‘But somehow that’s not what I asked,’ she had struck some sort of nerve, but what didn’t annoy him? Any mention of her and he seemed to clam up. 

‘I’m tired of this conversation,’ he stood up from the chair. 

She reopened her book, accepting that today wasn’t the day. ‘How many conversations will you just simply refuse to have?’

‘As many as necessary,’ he headed towards the exit.

He may act indifferent, but she had read the reports of the responding agents that day. How he had carried her out of the building, covered in injuries himself. Or how he had been insistent she receive medical care immediately, pushing her into the arms of the nearest EMT. Refusing to be seen until she had.

One day he was going to have to face facts, and she knows he’s not going to enjoy it one bit.

~ ♡ ~

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