On a clear, beautiful day when the sky was clear for miles and adorned by white puffs of clouds, a slim, red-haired girl stepped off of a plane that had just arrived from the United States at the bustling airport in Tokyo. The girl, whose red hair reached just past her shoulders, had flawless white skin and was known to her friends as Ai Haibara. A gleaming pearl drop earring hung from each of her ears, and she wore a deep green t-shirt and a pair of khaki shorts. She appeared to be a normal young woman in her early twenties. However, she wasn't. If one looked deeply in her blue eyes, pain and wisdom, neither of which could ever be lost or forgotten, could be seen clearly. More wisdom than a person could have gained in two short decades and more pain than anyone should ever have suffered were covered by dense clouds, hidden, but still in existence. Ai Haibara sighed and inhaled deeply. It had been a long time since she'd set foot in Japan. Five years ago, she had left, thinking that she would never return. She had hoped a new life and new surroundings would help her blot away all of her memories. She had poured heart and soul into her new life, but as she stepped on the familiar land of her birth, memories that she hadn't thought of for years were suddenly alive and vivid in her head.
"Haibara, give it to me." Conan Edogawa put forward his hand, ready to receive what he was asking for, what he was always asking for. His brows were furrowed, and he fixed an intense stare on the girl with the red-blond hair that stood before him. Ai tucked a strand of her hair neatly behind her ear before making any sort of reply.
"What?" she turned to face him, her brows arched, a cool expression on her face, anticipating a challenge.
"The antidote! What else?" Conan grit his teeth in frustration. "Haibara, it's been months since you had the temporary one. Haven't you got it yet?"
Ai closed his extended palm and pushed it back to his side.
"It's not an easy matter. You know that. You know that I don't have much data. You don't even know how much I have worked on this. Do you know how long it took to create APTX-4869? Even after all the years, it wasn't the perfect poison. You and I are proof of that. You think creating the antidote would be an easy matter? A matter of days? Weeks? Or months? It's not. I spent two years just doing preliminary research before I even created any test pills."
Conan drew back, shocked.
" How long have you worked on it?" he whispered.
" My entire life. It was all I was brought up for. Did you think I was suddenly just ordered to make it? That I created it in a day? The only reason I was kept alive was to make it that poison. Before, all anybody wanted was the poison, and now, it's the antidote. Ironic, isn't it?" Ai asked bitterly.
Ai shook her head. No, no, no. She didn't want to remember. Would she never be free of these memories? Even as she asked herself that question, she knew that she couldn't forget. The memories were etched too deeply in her mind. They had become an intrinsic part of who she was. She clenched her teeth as she felt goose bumps appear on her arms. Her long fingers tightened around the strap of her bag and she picked up her stride. Tomorrow, she reassured herself. She just had to do one thing, and she would be on a plane heading back to America by tomorrow night. Resolutely, she walked towards the exit of the airport with her luggage.
An hour later, Ai checked into a hotel in Beika. She was in her hotel room, changing, and preparing herself for what she had to do. She had just taken a shower to relieve herself of the fatigue that accompanied sitting for hours in a cramped plane seat. Drops of water dripped onto her robe as she brushed her wet hair. After drying her hair, Ai donned a somber black dress. Then she pinned up her distinctive red hair and hid it under a black hat. She slipped into a pair of black shoes, put on sunglasses, left the hotel, and walked out onto the streets of Beika.
In the streets, dozens of vendors shouted as they tried to peddle their wares. But Ai was interested in only one thing.
"Miss? May I help you?" A flower vendor asked hopefully as Ai approached her. Ai didn't speak; she just nodded and pointed silently to a large bouquet of red roses.
When the roses were purchased, Ai walked through Beika, holding the roses tightly to her chest. Many people glanced curiously at the girl who was dressed in black and carrying a bouquet of roses fit for a bride, but Ai didn't appear to notice the looks cast her way. She just moved toward her destination: a graveyard in front of a small church on the outskirts of Beika.
"Haibara, give it to me." Conan Edogawa put forward his hand, ready to receive what he was asking for, what he was always asking for. His brows were furrowed, and he fixed an intense stare on the girl with the red-blond hair that stood before him. Ai tucked a strand of her hair neatly behind her ear before making any sort of reply.
"What?" she turned to face him, her brows arched, a cool expression on her face, anticipating a challenge.
"The antidote! What else?" Conan grit his teeth in frustration. "Haibara, it's been months since you had the temporary one. Haven't you got it yet?"
Ai closed his extended palm and pushed it back to his side.
"It's not an easy matter. You know that. You know that I don't have much data. You don't even know how much I have worked on this. Do you know how long it took to create APTX-4869? Even after all the years, it wasn't the perfect poison. You and I are proof of that. You think creating the antidote would be an easy matter? A matter of days? Weeks? Or months? It's not. I spent two years just doing preliminary research before I even created any test pills."
Conan drew back, shocked.
" How long have you worked on it?" he whispered.
" My entire life. It was all I was brought up for. Did you think I was suddenly just ordered to make it? That I created it in a day? The only reason I was kept alive was to make it that poison. Before, all anybody wanted was the poison, and now, it's the antidote. Ironic, isn't it?" Ai asked bitterly.
Ai shook her head. No, no, no. She didn't want to remember. Would she never be free of these memories? Even as she asked herself that question, she knew that she couldn't forget. The memories were etched too deeply in her mind. They had become an intrinsic part of who she was. She clenched her teeth as she felt goose bumps appear on her arms. Her long fingers tightened around the strap of her bag and she picked up her stride. Tomorrow, she reassured herself. She just had to do one thing, and she would be on a plane heading back to America by tomorrow night. Resolutely, she walked towards the exit of the airport with her luggage.
An hour later, Ai checked into a hotel in Beika. She was in her hotel room, changing, and preparing herself for what she had to do. She had just taken a shower to relieve herself of the fatigue that accompanied sitting for hours in a cramped plane seat. Drops of water dripped onto her robe as she brushed her wet hair. After drying her hair, Ai donned a somber black dress. Then she pinned up her distinctive red hair and hid it under a black hat. She slipped into a pair of black shoes, put on sunglasses, left the hotel, and walked out onto the streets of Beika.
In the streets, dozens of vendors shouted as they tried to peddle their wares. But Ai was interested in only one thing.
"Miss? May I help you?" A flower vendor asked hopefully as Ai approached her. Ai didn't speak; she just nodded and pointed silently to a large bouquet of red roses.
When the roses were purchased, Ai walked through Beika, holding the roses tightly to her chest. Many people glanced curiously at the girl who was dressed in black and carrying a bouquet of roses fit for a bride, but Ai didn't appear to notice the looks cast her way. She just moved toward her destination: a graveyard in front of a small church on the outskirts of Beika.