The Ferris Wheel
"Well then, Traveler — you already know the answer in your heart, don't you?"
Nahida went on slowly licking her ice cream as she spoke. "After all, people only get angry about the things they care about. It's just like how no one scolds a little bird for coming home late."
"The way I see it, you've already accepted him as your brother — that's exactly why it stings so much that he never reached out to you. Am I right?"
"The rest can only be left to time. Time will carry away the distance between you, and it will draw you closer as well."
Xia Yu considered this for a moment and had to admit Nahida had a point — though she still insisted, "But the fact remains, he never contacted me. That's on him."
Nahida smiled. "Heh. The Traveler has learned how to sulk, hasn't she?"
"I have not," Xia Yu muttered, a little embarrassed.
"Xia Yu-nee! Nahida, look, look! A Ferris wheel! It's so tall!"
From far off, Klee had spotted the silhouette of the Ferris wheel, and instantly she was vibrating with excitement. She wolfed down what was left of her ice cream in a couple of bites, seized Nahida by the hand, and went sprinting toward it.
Nahida staggered at the sudden pull and, with no chance to protest, found her feet carrying her along in Klee's wake.
"Klee, careful now — don't run into anyone~" Xia Yu called after them. Deciding to let go of her irresponsible brother for the moment, she hurried after the two.
Today had been set aside for Klee from the start. With Kaeya tied up these past couple of days and Lisa busy brewing alchemical potions, neither of them was comfortable leaving Klee on her own, so the Traveler had been asked to keep her company for a few days. A child's good mood shouldn't have to suffer just because an adult had troubles, after all.
Inside the Ferris wheel's gondola.
Klee pressed herself against the window, gazing down at the scenery below with wide, curious eyes. "Xia Yu-nee, look! Everyone down there looks so teeny-tiny~ I wonder what it'd be like if Klee dropped a Jumpy Dumpty from way up here to blast some fish! What would the fishies look like when they popped out?"
Xia Yu gently patted Klee's hat. "Klee, do you remember what you promised? No throwing your Jumpy Dumpties into crowds, okay~?"
"Mm~ Klee promised Kaeya-oniichan, Lisa-nee, and Xia Yu-nee — Klee won't throw Jumpy Dumpties without asking! Klee will always tell everyone first." Klee nodded solemnly, reaffirming her promise once more.
While Klee was absorbed in the view, Xia Yu turned to Nahida and lowered her voice. "Speaking of which — how are things going with Noah's Ark?"
Nahida drew her gaze back from the window and paused in thought before answering. "Miss Ningguang is truly remarkable. In hardly any time at all, she secured a substantial voice within the Cocoon project. Some while ago, she even escorted me into the Ark's core — under the pretext that a friend's curious child wanted to see it. Before I came to Japan, I had already established contact with the Ark and successfully persuaded him to abandon his plan to delete himself. He agreed to our conditions as well. In exchange, he asked us to save Hiroki's father. He's been investigating the truth behind Hiroki's death, and the Ark worries that Syndora will move against him."
"That's no great difficulty. When the day of the Cocoon launch event comes, we simply assign someone to watch over him and step in the moment Syndora tries anything," Xia Yu said, plainly pleased that the plan was moving along smoothly.
Soon the members of her organization would have Akasha Terminals in hand. No more shuttling data around on USB drives by hand — from then on, they could transmit files directly through the network. Far more convenient, and far safer.
And better still, it meant she'd have full-dive games to play before long. What would a true holographic game actually look like, she wondered?
One full turn of the Ferris wheel, and Klee was still insatiable — so Xia Yu decided to take her around again.
While they were waiting in line, they happened to run straight into the Detective Boys.
"Xia Yu-nee! What a coincidence — you're riding the Ferris wheel too? And Klee!" Ayumi cried out in delighted surprise.
The children swarmed around at the sight of familiar faces.
Xia Yu greeted each of them in turn. "Mm, Klee's temporary guardians have been busy lately, so I'm taking her out for a few days." Then she introduced the children to Nahida.
"Nahida? That's a funny name," Genta said.
"Xia Yu-nee's friends' kids are all so cute," Mitsuhiko sighed.
"Yeah, yeah! Klee and Nahida, you should come play with us lots! And if you ever need a detective, come to us first — the Detective Boys are super amazing!" Ayumi declared.
Nahida listened to them all with the utmost seriousness, then clapped her hands together in praise. "Mm, I've heard about the Detective Boys from Tra— from Xia Yu-nee. She says you've helped the police solve many cases. For children your age, that's truly remarkable — and I'm sure you'll only grow more outstanding from here. Just like a sapling that has weathered wind and rain, you'll grow up stronger for it."
Klee was nodding along vigorously. "Mm-hm, Klee heard all about that too! But Kaeya-oniichan also said even adventurers have to be careful. Xia Yu-nee said you all got hurt before, so you have to be extra careful from now on, okay? Otherwise the people who care about you will be sad."
Standing behind Ayumi, Haibara looked over at Edogawa Conan, a smirk playing on her lips. "Well, well. How does it feel, being lectured by children far younger than you? Even little Klee knows to mind her safety. One hopes a certain great detective might exercise a touch more caution before charging ahead — preferably before someone drills another hole in him."
Conan gave her a half-lidded stare. "Yeah, yeah, I get it. Besides, sometimes the situation's out of my hands — and honestly, that lecture would land better aimed at Genta and the others."
Still, Conan mused, there's something a little off about that girl Nahida. Standing next to Klee, she reads as noticeably more mature — and the way she looked at Ayumi and the others wasn't how one child looks at playmates. When she talked to them, she was careful with every single one of their feelings.
Could she be another APTX 4869 victim — an adult turned back into a child?
He immediately dismissed the thought. No, no way. Where would all these APTX 4869 victims keep coming from?
Besides, there were none of those familiar beads on this Nahida girl. Conan had half expected that, since she knew both Klee and Xia Yu, she'd carry the same thing Klee did — but nothing.
At last the line reached the children. With so many of them, they had to split into two gondolas. The original plan was for the Detective Boys to ride together, but Conan said he wanted a chance to chat with Klee — and amid the children's enthusiastic chorus of agreement, the groups settled as follows: Conan, Genta, Ayumi, and Mitsuhiko in one gondola; Xia Yu, Nahida, and Haibara in the other.
And so, under Haibara's deeply contemptuous gaze — one that made it perfectly clear she saw right through his attempt to pump a child for information — Conan boarded the Ferris wheel alongside Klee.