Work Text:
“I love it,” Sonoko said, throwing the stack of papers onto Shinichi’s coffee table. She sat back, arms crossed and face smug.
Shinichi, who had just been about to take a swig of his coffee, looked up from his newest case file. It was 64 hours on a new poison-murder, so excuse him for being a little slow on the uptake. It took a few minutes as he looked to her, then the stack of paper, then back to her, eyes widening in horror, “What?”
“Your idea pitch,” Sonoko leaned forward to give the stack a tap, “I love it.”
Shinichi dropped the mug of coffee into his lap.
To best understand the current situation, one must know where this story really began.
* * * * *
In high school, Kudou Shinichi was a genius detective (and still is). The Tokyo police department constantly asked him for help on cases that would have been considered ‘cold’ otherwise. His name made the local papers every day. He was considered the “Savior of the Police Force.”
Mouri Ran, his childhood friend and (at the time) girlfriend was a champion martial artist. She, in turn, was friends with Suzuki Sonoko, one of two heiresses to the Suzuki Company. The two met in preschool and had hit it off. They went through elementary, middle school, and high school together, much like Ran and Shinichi had. Years later, they still lived in each other’s pockets.
But that’s where Shinichi’s problem started.
In high school, Sonoko got this bright idea to be a playwright, then an author, and then, when those two didn’t work, an agent. Since Shinichi’s father was a world-renown mystery novelist, Sonoko ordered Shinichi to write a novel for her to market to editors and publishing companies.
Since she was the best friend of his girlfriend, Shinichi never stood a chance.
Instead of dragging his feet, Shinichi just rolled up his sleeves and got to it. He based a lot of the mystery on a case he’d been working on (and subsequently solved) and wrote minimally of a female sleuth (more on Sonoko’s insistence than his own choice). Shinichi had never written a novel before (and he refused to ask his father how it was done), but the sooner he finished, the sooner Sonoko would give up on him for lack of talent.
It turned out, Shinichi had a knack for it.
Thus, Deduction Queen Shizuka was born, followed by a sibling series, the Sleeping Totoro, loosely based off Ran’s father, Mouri Kogoro. Both series did well in the genre. Deduction Queen brought a lot of attention from the younger audience while Sleeping Totoro managed to grab the interest of the older, more mystery-smart populace. The popularity of the two series soared as they made their way through their main arcs and a couple other side stories and cross-over with other authors.
Now, in addition to a wonderfully heavy case load, Shinichi got to spend his vacation days on national and international flights for appearances, book signings, and other conventions.
Shinichi… wasn’t really complaining, actually.
He’d always wanted to be Sherlock Holmes. He got that title with the Tokyo police department. They called him Heisei Holmes. Now, he also got to be Sir Conan Doyle, the man behind the greatest mind the world has ever known. It was the best of both worlds.
Though, Shinichi despised the knowing looks his father sent him. So what if Shinichi had said he’d never become a mystery novelist? Technically, his first job was still homicide detective! Technically, he didn’t lie!
He and his father were seated together at one too many panels in Shinichi’s opinion.
Other than that, things were going great in Shinichi’s mind. Great job, fantastic second job, two award-winning series –who could ask for more?
Apparently, Sonoko could.
She was happy with the Deduction Queen, but Sleeping Totoro was more grizzled and old-fashioned than she’d wanted. She wanted to see modern, stylish, and ‘cute’.
“Something to get our female readers interested!” she’d said when she accosted him roughly two months ago.
Shinichi had tried to deliver.
Shintetsu, teen detective looking into local mysteries, was a no go. “It’s not supposed to be an auto-biography, Shinichi!”
Hanaji, hot-blooded teen spirit detective, was also shut down. “Ghosts are a nice touch, but it’s too far from your usual stuff. Plus, that’s just you with an accent.”
Subaru, foreign detective looking for a master thief, was dropped after chapter one, “What did I say about the accents?!”
Fed up, Shinichi created a story so convoluted, so utterly unrealistic and plot-hole filled that he was sure Sonoko would finally, finally, give up on him for good. He thought for sure it was a story she would never, ever go for –that it would never, ever see the light of day. Unlike murder cases though, Shinichi is not always right.
Which brings him to now.
“I’m sorry, can you repeat that?” Shinichi asked after he’d done his best to clean up his coffee. His favorite chair was saved, but his pants were a lost cause.
“Teen detective turned elementary kid is exactly what we need to grab the attention of female readers,” Sonoko gushed, “It’s got the mysteries of your previous novels for the more sophisticated reader –I’m sure a cross-over with your other series could work too! –but it’s also got a cute wrapping with a child detective squad and star-crossed lovers feel with the female lead, Rei! Those things draw in girls like flies to honey! I should know, considering…”
“But, I-!” Shinichi sputtered, “It’s illogical! No one can shrink like that!”
“Science,” Sonoko waved her hand, “There, explained.”
“Science doesn’t work like that!”
“It does in fiction!”
“There would be legal ramifications to deal with –birth certificates, social security-!”
“It’s fiction! Make something up! His parents made forgeries for him!”
“-and star-crossed romance?! It’s practically pedophilia! He’s six!”
“But he’s got the mind of a 16-year-old! It doesn’t count! Besides, you don’t have them kissing here! Besides, if you made him shrink, you could always make him grow in order to… you know…” a suggestive eyebrow wiggle.
Shinichi finally broke and slammed his hands onto the desk he was at, “I wrote it so you would leave me alone! You’re not supposed to like it!”
Sonoko grinned that smug grin of hers and Shinichi knew he was caught. She propped her feet up on the coffee table beside his manuscript and settled her hands on her stomach. That smug look persisted as she spoke, “I knew that’s what you were doing. You started this out of obligation to your girlfriend. I’m sure you thought you were done two years ago when you broke up, but I relented on Sleeping Totoro. I knew if I pushed too hard, too fast, you’d stop altogether."
That smug look intensified as she continued, “But I knew I had to get you passionate again. Deduction Queen came from an attempt to get me to give up on you. I had to get that same feeling from you again. After the main arc of Sleeping Totoro ended, I saw my chance.”
“And you pushed and pushed until I finally cracked,” Shinichi groaned and buried his face in his hands. He fell right into her trap.
“I did,” Sonoko chirped and reached forward to shift the manuscript into her lap, “And I must say, I am very happy with the results. Better clear up your weekends, because this baby is going to take you to the next level!”
And thus, four years after he started his authoring career, Elementary Conan was born.
The first book alone sold millions of copies world-wide and won three separate awards.