Just a one-shot fic I worked on earlier tonight. :) Please enjoy!

An Unbreakable Bond

A Detective Conan Fan Fiction

"Looks like it's finally over."

Conan –no, high school detective Kudo Shinichi thought at the back of his mind as he stood and watched the dead bodies of Gin and Vodka in the middle of a chaotic-looking Tropical Land. Yes... that place where it all started, built for fun and enjoyment, but became the bearer of mischief in the lives of some. Who knew that, by a twist of fate, they would all end up back here to finally settle the score?

"Shi-", a trembling voice approached the young detective, finally reunited with his true body -for good, of course. ".. Shinichi..." Despite hearing his own name from the mouth of his one beloved, Shinichi could not turn to face her –Ran. He couldn't allow her to see him... covered in tears. ... but why? He had just claimed victory in a war he had been determined to win for so long...

"It's alright, Shinichi..."

Right after hearing that soft, trembling whisper, Shinichi felt arms wrapping him from behind, a head resting on his shoulder, soft hair tickling his cheek... and tears dripping on his blood-stained shirt. No, he wasn't shot, and it isn't his blood tainting his shirt a dark shade of red.

In truth, it was... his partner's –Haibara Ai...

Shinichi could recall the events clearly. Just as Gin was about to shoot him with his favorite Beretta M9, she ran right to his front right on time to catch the bullet head-on in his place. Shinichi had never imagined that she would be so willing to do that for her –dying in his place, that is. It was a side of her that he never saw before, in all their times as Edogawa Conan and Haibara Ai. Why would she go so far as to do that for him? For him… Exactly, what did she think of him as? Just an ordinary friend? That would be too bizarre. They share the same secret, trust each other as hard as silver, and are both willing to risk their lives for each other's safety. He had done it before… when she decided to stay in a bus with a bomb to commit suicide. He had gotten himself hurt in that incident just for her… and just then, she had returned the favor… but perhaps a bit too much.

"Ran…" Kogoro uttered, interrupting such an intimate moment between the two childhood friends. "We have to go to the hospital to treat your injuries… that detective boy too," he said somewhat feeling embarrassed to have proceeded with his interruption and started heading for one of the patrol cars.

"Shinichi, we have to go…" Ran spoke under her breath, slowly freeing Shinichi from her embrace. He had been frozen the whole time, his eyes glued to the corpses of his enemies. "Shinichi… Shinichi..?" It was only then that Shinichi had finally returned to his senses and turned his head to side, only to find Ran worried for perhaps a hundredth time.

"Shinichi?"

Shinichi looked up to see Ran –her right thigh covered in bandages. She had been shot by Gin earlier on. Seeing that gave Shinichi a feeling of guilt… not that he hadn't been feeling guilty at all.

"Your parents called… they said they'd be here tomorrow," she said kindly, taking a seat beside him at Beika General Hospital where they had been staying at to treat their injuries. Finally taking notice of Shinichi's odd gloomy behavior, Ran smiled at him. "You don't need to worry… Ai-chan –I mean, Shiho-san is fine. She's resting in her room." Shinichi merely shot her a look, and so she added cheerfully, "you've been worried about her, right? You should go see her." Receiving another dead stare from him, she joked, "well? What are you waiting for? Better hurry! We have a ton of talking to do… Conan-kun." She especially emphasized on that name she had been calling Shinichi unknowingly, causing Shinichi to crack a smile –perhaps the first since all that's happened.

"… Yeah," he told her before disappearing to find the coffee-haired scientist.

ROOM 402
Haibara Ai-san

Reading that on the door, Shinichi smiled to himself. It was most likely that the police were the ones who fill out her confinement papers… and of course, they wouldn't know that Haibara Ai never actually existed. They weren't around when everything had been revealed by Gin either. That thought aside, Shinichi turned the knob and entered quietly, careful not to make a noise in case she had been sleeping.

… He had been right –as expected from the Heisei Holmes.

Trying not to make a sound, Shinichi closed the door behind him slowly and walked over to the coffee-haired girl lying down on the hospital bed. It seems that she was lucky because Gin didn't hit any of her vital spots and so she had no serious injuries. Observing her sleep, Shinichi couldn't help but think how beautiful she actually looked. Sure, she looks rather the same as when she "was" Haibara Ai, but right then… she just looked a gorgeous woman.

"Hm…?" Shinichi noticed a bouquet of flowers on the table beside the bed. "Daffodils…"

"They symbolize rebirth, or new beginnings," spoke a rather monotonous voice, heard so clearly in the small room. He appeared to have awoken her. "Thoughtful, huh? It's that girl at the detective agency who brought them," she added, now his eyes turned to face her.

"Ran came here?"
"Yeah… about an hour ago… She said the police were questioning you. Have you told them –about the organization?"
Shinichi shook his head.
"You haven't? Why not?" Her eyes widened in combination of fear and shock. "Don't tell me that the organization–"
"N-no! That's not it! Gin and Vodka are dead for sure, along with That Person… and the others are being held in custody."
"Then… what is it?"

Shinichi felt uneasy, scanning the room in tension as she continued to wait for his response. It wasn't that he didn't know what the answer was. It was just that he was rather hesitant to reveal it to her.

"Well?"
"I…" Shinichi started, somewhat nervous.
"What is it? I'm getting impatient."
"I was worried about you, okay!?"

Immediately after blurting that out, Shinichi crossed his arms and turned his head away to hide his flushed face from her view. It was his soft side that was rarely ever revealed to her eyes. It was something almost only Ran could make him show… in the past, that is.

"My, my, I'm so touched, Kudo-kun!" She teased with a grin, just as she always did to Edogawa Conan. It's the first time Shinichi has seen her do this in her "true form". "Shut up," he hissed with a red face –again, just as he often did before.

"So, have you finally told her?"
"Huh?"
"That girl at the detective agency…"
"No, I haven't…"
"Why not? Isn't that why you were so determined to get your body back?"
"Yeah, but…" he paused for a moment and turned his head away, "… can't I let it wait just a while?"
"Don't tell me it's because you love me now instead of her," she teased once more, chuckling in amusement.

She had always been like that… Teasing Conan whenever there was a chance for her to do so, often saying she has feelings for him but claims it to have been a joke…

"Seriously, Haibara…"
"Hm?"

At that point, she had stopped laughing, sensing the sudden seriousness in the voice of the young detective.

"What do you think of me?"

She was rather surprised at his inquiry. What does she think of him? It had been a mystery ever since… but it doesn't take a detective to figure her out. But ironically, the so-called Great Detective of the East apparently doesn't have a clue.

"Why do you ask?"

He could have sworn her voice shook while saying that just then… could she be nervous? Regardless, he decided against mentioning it.

"I'm waiting, Haibara."
"It's Shiho."
"Huh?"

Right then, Shinichi realized that although she had been calling him "Kudo-kun", he had never once called him "Shiho"… even now that she's returned to her normal body.

"You aren't my friend."
"Huh…?"
"Is that answer satisfactory?"
"I'm… not your friend…?"

"You're a lot more than that to me." She turned to face the only window in the room, with what seems to be a look of nostalgia. "More than friendship, or romance –if you'd like to put it that way. You can say that we have a strong bond that can't ever be broken."

At this point, she had already turned back to face Shinichi with a sweet angelic smile.

"H-Haibara…"

That was all that Shinichi could manage to utter in response to her true-to-heart honesty. He had never thought that she thought of him to be so valuable. More than friendship… or romance…

"Didn't I just tell you? My name is Shiho."

It took a short moment before Shinichi broke out of thought and grinned at her.

"I prefer calling you Haibara."

She threw a confused look at him… and so he added with a smirk…

"I think of it as a term of endearment."

It took a second or two before it sank in her mind, and teased him back.

"So then shall I start calling you Conan-kun?"

"You never even called me that!" He reasoned out as she laughed at him. Something strange about her calling him 'Conan-kun' made him feel embarrassed and uncomfortable.

"First Ran, now you… Geez. Conan doesn't even exist anymore and he still annoys me."
"Edogawa-kun annoys you?"
"Well…"

As much as Shinichi wouldn't admit it, he enjoyed being Conan for the short while. If it weren't for him –Conan, he never would have met her… and of course, the rest of the Detective Boys. Truly, Conan is a part of his life that he couldn't imagine letting go of… even though he had been wanting to before.

"So, aren't you going to tell her?"
"Huh?"
"The girl at the detective agency…"
"Geez, she has a name, y'know."
"Well, are you going or not?"
"… Yeah. See ya, Haibara!"

Like an excited child, Shinichi dashed out of the room cheerfully to find Ran. Right after closing the door, he thought to himself, smiling, "An unbreakable bond, huh? So that's how it is, Haibara."

"Shiho, why didn't you tell him?"

She imagined her beloved older sister asking her right as Shinichi left the room.

With a smile, she answered…

"… because he's a great detective. He can deduce it himself."

Thank you for reading! :)

Referenced Episode/s:
Episode 231