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“Actually is wasn’t Adler….” He grumble softly to himself. Remind him of who? He was getting a little lost. The Bosocombe Valley Mystery …. that was the only story he had only read once and for obvious reasons. After Nightmare everything was too hard to read. He fell unnaturally silent. His emotions went dark as his mind ventured to past memories.

The words reached him, but it was his observations that really caught him. Smile twitching at the corner of his mouth, Hakuba sat back in his chair and looked down at the untouched soup in front of him. Right. He’d hoped that bringing up Boscombe would thrill the thief, but…

“That’s a shame. She’s a wonderful character. Quite interesting that she was introduced so early on in the series…” Hakuba let his voice trail off as he picked up his spoon to stir the soup, half wondering if he would end up doing anything more than taste it – which he did then. A fine representation, to be certain, but… “So, ah, you’ve read Holmes. I can honestly say that I’m a little surprised. I thought I might get a lecture about the superior virtues of Arsene Lupin…” 

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He picked up his water and took a long drink. This was beyond embarrassing.

“The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle is on the list as for my all time favorite … is  ..Ascanfelofbohenam” He muttered the last bit too quickly and felt his hands tremble slightly. 

There was a brief pause before Hakuba raised a brow, head tilting with the slyest of smirks. “Oh ho ho,” he said, voice almost purring in amusement. “A Scandal in Bohemia, very good choice, Kuroba-kun. Don’t tell me that you’ve fallen for the seductive charm of Irene Adler, too~?" 

He clicked his tongue in a teasing tsk tsk tsk, winking in his direction. "My, oh my. You know, she always did remind me of…” It was there that his train of thought derailed and Hakuba hesitated half a beat before continuing as if he hadn’t started the previous sentence.

“It’s The Boscombe Valley Mystery for me. God, it’s such a perfect illustration of the human condition and the ethical shades of grey in detective work…”

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Kaito pause completely and looked up at him slowly. He was trying to back track to when exactly he had told Hakuba he had read the series. He remembered the little book locked away in his makeshift library and felt his ears grow hot.

“What …. um, A Study in Scarlet and the Adventures of Sherlock Holmes.”  He answered reluctantly. Now he felt his whole face burn in embarrassment.

“The bread and soup is amazing.” He coughed and tried to levitate some of the pressure building in his chest.

Hakuba blinked, completely missing the comment about the food, leaning forward with sudden and total interest. “Ah-HAH!” he exclaimed, only barely able to keep himself from standing at once in his excitement. “The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes is my absolute favorite, yes! Good! God yes! Not that A Study in Scarlet is not brilliant in its own right, but – oh, oh, please, do tell, pray tell, which is your favorite in The Adventures Of?" 

Bright, sparkling eyes accompanied the question as the detective waited with baited breath for his guest’s response. Really, nothing else could be so important than that very singular moment – the moment of absolute truth!

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The question about college made him pause and remember that Hakuba was still going to return to England at some point. He swallow a soaked piece of bread and glanced away briefly angered and hurt. He turned back to him.

“I haven’t no. Its kind of hard to think about a college when you may not have a future. No?”

“Ah. Yes. Quite.”

Perfect. Offend your guest during the first course; always the mark of a successful dinner party. Hakuba leaned back in his seat, whatever small amount of appetite that he’d had suddenly gone completely. Nevertheless, he continued to tear the piece apart into even smaller pieces, letting it gradually disintegrate in his hands over the soup bowl. 

He needed another topic. Something light and pleasant. “Do you have a favorite Sherlock Holmes story, Kuroba-kun?" 

Perfect. 

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Kaito glance up at the staff then to the food and before he could say thank you they were back through the door. He bowed his head, gave thanks for the meal and barely restrained himself from tearing into the bread to quickly. Gods he was hungry. 

Although Hakuba was glad to see the healthy appetite and, he hoped, subsequent appreciation of the provided food, he was taken aback by the brief pause the other had taken, first. Kuroba wasn’t actually praying, was he? The detective tilted his head, almost forgetting his own silent prayer in the process, and mumbled a quiet ’itadakimasu’ before taking a piece of bread for himself.

“Have…”  he began to speak, tearing off a tiny portion of the bread in his hands, stomach tightening with anxiety as he considered his question. “…ah, have you decided which university or college that you’re to attend, yet?”

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“She sounds like she would be wonderful to be around.” Kaito said and lean forward on to his elbows. He expression wistful and soft. He was thinking about his own mother. Gods if she knew where he was right now she have a fit. He smiled at the last conversation he had with her. It had been about the man he was sitting with. The silence that settled around him was comfortable.

Hakuba set the glass back to the table, watching Kaito through the skewed reflection in the water. He loved that look on his face. It wasn’t one that he saw very often, but it was certainly one of his favorites.

“She is,” he said, and stole a glance at the door. The food would be arriving any moment, wouldn’t it? “I think that you would like her… other than her meddling tendencies, anyway, but what are mothers for if not to meddle?”

It was then, of course, that the two servants returned with soup – french onion – and sourdough, which they quietly set in front of the pair before whisking away to the kitchen again.

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“That sounds wonderful. I haven’t really eaten all day.” Kaito smiled and chuckled lightly. The food sounded amazing as did the prospect of coming back. He glanced around the room subconsciously remapping escape routes despite not wanting to really leave. He expression was soft and relaxed when he finally looked back to Hakuba. 
“This place really is beautiful.” Through he spoke about the room its meaning was for its owner. 

It was the expression that won him over. Hakuba tilted his head, smile hesitant as if silently asking what Kaito had meant by that. He thought he might know, but he didn’t want to dare hope. God, he really didn’t. Things had been so resolute before, and while he was no stranger to chaos theory and the inevitable variables that came with the human condition, he needed routine to function. Why did Kuroba throw wrenches – or in this case, shameless and distracting compliments – into everything?

“Thank you,” the detective said in response after a moment, deciding that he wouldn’t be able to pry a straight answer from the thief even if he were inclined to interrogate him like he used to. Like a criminal, not a guest. “I find it a tad excessive considering that there are only three people living here, but…”  Hakuba shrugged, glancing up to the ornate light fixture above the table. “My mum wanted something elaborate, and she’s not the type of person that you can say no to.”

He was quiet after that, reaching for the glass of water that had already been set out. It wasn’t exactly polite to leave the conversation on such an awkward topic, but he didn’t feel inclined to continue, opting for a moment of silent contemplation while he took a quiet sip.

It’s not as though he were playing the part of a good host, anyway.

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“Unshelled, the spoiled brat.” Kaito sighed and leaned back into his chair. Hand swiping his bangs back away from his face again. He was starting to relax now that the other was. Letting his bangs and hand fall back he smiled at Hakuba. “What are we eating for dinner?”

“I believe it’s roast beef with mashed potatoes, gravy, green beans, peas, carrots, rolls… that’s the main course, anyway. I imagine…” Hakuba let his own elbow rest against the corner of the table as he leaned back against the chair, humming. “There will likely be a bit of soup… fried artichokes… various breads… then the main course, another little something interim… and finally, dessert.”

It, like the room, was very western in style, but none of it contained fish, and Hakuba had high hopes that it would be well received. Who didn’t like roast beef, after all? 

“Again, a little formal, but it’s been a while since I played host, so you may have to forgive me. Next time, ah… ”  Hakuba glanced to his side, averting his gaze. “Next time, we can get takeout and eat it in the parlor.”

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“Hmm, just a bit …. its not bad though.” He explained and hesitated in taking the offered seat. A bubble of laughter slipped past his lips. “Sorry, this is … beautiful but Hakuba, its me, not the emperor of Japan. You didn’t have to go so far. Not that I’m not grateful its just … well you seem confined. You can relax with me.”

He took the seat and angled it slight towards the other. He crossed one leg over the other, propped an elbow on the edge on the table and lean his cheek into his palm. A deliberate act to break the formality of the air.

“Shirori is still pissed at the both of us for messing up his nest, by the way. So I recommend bring those seeds next time you come over. ” He grinned easily. 

As admittedly unconventional as it was, Kaito’s actions did seem to ease Hakuba somewhat, who let his shoulders slacken as he took his seat. “I imagine so. I’ll be certain to bring sunflower seeds next time, certainly. Does he prefer shelled or unshelled?”

Important questions for the dinner conversations, to be sure, and the detective managed a small, but genuine smile in their wake. 

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He smiled and carded a hand through his damp bangs from his shower. “Yes. “

“Great! This way, if you please." 

Hakuba led Kaito down the hallway to the dining room, opening the door and stepping inside to hold it open for him, incidentally passing the bottle off to one of the two servants that were finishing the final setup. The room was spacious, with a long, hardwood table, able to seat fourteen comfortably.  Of course, for the moment, only two seats at the far end were actually set – plates, napkins, several forks and spoons and the like. 

Nothing about the room, save for the giant mural depicting white cranes and horses was at all Japanese; wooden chairs and mantle over the stone fireplace English by design. Hakuba pulled out the chair to the left of the head of the table, and gestured for Kaito to sit, doing the gentlemanly thing to… help him, though he wondered just then if it were really necessary, abandoning the endeavor to move around to the opposite side of the table. 

”…apologies, this is all a bit too formal, isn’t it?“ Hakuba asked, wincing.