31_days | [September 4, 2008] [Detective Conan/Case Closed] A Toast to your Weirdness

Title: A Toast to your Weirdness
Day/Theme: September 4: Happy Thursday to you
Series: Detective Conan/Case Closed
Character/Pairing: Shinichi/Ran
Rating: G/K

The whole ordeal of what had gone on in their lives left its toll. Ever the observant detective, Shinichi had noticed it sooner than the rest. The way he and Ran held hands more now. Or the vehemence Kogoro had towards the practice of acupuncture.

There were other, more disturbing quirks as well – the way Ran didn’t like Shinichi to leave her side, at least at first, when things were still so fresh and real that she had good reason to fear for Shinichi’s well-being. Shinichi himself had gained an aversion to darkness. He supposed it was a deep-rooted, simple but strong objection of the color black.

Hushed discussion with Heiji proved that he wasn’t the only one who noticed these oddities. Heiji told tale of Kazuha’s new hobby of calling his cell phone; effectively checking up on him when he was on a case just to ensure that nothing weird had happened to him.

“She thinks she’s my mother,” he’d huffed.

Shinichi had consoled him with his own tale – he had, in no short terms, ended up buying a pair of Conan-sized shoes for his Shinichi-sized feet…and not noticed until he went to try them on.

“We need to get out,” Heiji decided then. “While Kazuha and I are still in Tokyo. We need to put this Syndicate business behind us.”

This idea was met with enthusiasm, not only by Shinichi, but by Ran and Kazuha as well. Plans were discussed. Ultimately, all parties decided against an outing to Tropical Land, and voted instead for a simple dinner; somewhere nearby, where the dress code wasn’t too strict, and the food was good, where they could just enjoy being out and not worrying about anything. The restaurant was decided, and the date was set.

All parties were very excited for what they viewed as their return to normalcy. Shinichi knew, that at least for him, this was a desperate want. He’d had enough of the strangeness he’d endured to last several lifetimes. Ran was keen to agree, when he shared this thought with her. She shyly admitted that she still liked to just look at him – touch him lightly sometimes – just to make sure that it was really him.

The night of the outing finally rolled around, and Shinichi, in his eagerness, was half an hour earlier than the time they’d set. Ran said she didn’t mind waiting, but it turned out they didn’t have to wait long, as Kazuha and Heiji strolled in a few minutes later, bickering as usual, but, it seemed, just as eager to set their evening in motion.

Perhaps it was that the expectations had been set so high…or perhaps it was simply that no one was ready to let the past be completely forgotten, but the first hitch in the plan was sooner than any of them had anticipated. The ordering of drinks.

While it was true that they were all of legal age, and within walking distance of anywhere they wanted to go, it also seemed that none of them wanted to order alcoholic beverages. Shinichi meekly requested water, and was surprised when the rest of the group followed suite.

Upon the server’s departure, Shinichi grinned apologetically. “You guys could have ordered what you wanted.”

Heiji just laughed. “Who’re we kiddin,’ Kudo? Not one of us wants to order the Bloody Mary or the Gin Martini, and we all know why.”

The gathered group sighed at Heiji’s comment. It was true…

A short silence followed, each occupied with their own thoughts, thinking how they had wanted this evening to be such fun…

It was Shinichi who finally took his water glass, raising it in a smart toast; “To this day, when the past is left in the past, and the future can move forward.”

Ran grinned, lifting her own water glass; “To holding hands and not caring.”

“To overprotection and all that it entails,” Kazuha said next, giggling at the indignant expression on Heiji’s face.

“To never mixing Vermouth and Gin for a martini…or anything else,” Heiji finally deadpanned, downing the glass in one go, like a shot. “Happy Thursday,” he added as an afterthought.

“Happy Thursday,” the rest echoed, drinking their own waters, and suddenly not caring about the quirks they all had gained since the ‘Conan fiasco.’

It’s not like they’d been normal to begin with anyway.

-o-

A U T H O R S N O T E

O.O

What? It made a cute image in my head, all right?

:lurks away:

~Ayaia