Fear
"Being brave isn't about being unafraid. It's about functioning through the fear."
-Jessica Anderson
They came like a tornado, bursting through the door guns blazing. It wasn't much of a surprise, he'd later come to recall. It was bound to happen, what with that last case blowing his cover of death. It had been revealed by the one person he thought would never be a problem. The one person who despised him more than anything. The person who had been more than content to take all the credit - but that was just it. This time, it wasn't credit - it was blame. Blame for messing it up - for grabbing the wrong guy and letting the murder get away. Blame for missing something so simple - so incredibly small that it wasn't a surprise the great Kogoro Mouri missed it. But Shinichi Kudo, the High School detective of the East, should have seen it. He should have known something was missing, but he let his guard down. Let himself relax. That was his first mistake. Haibara had been so close to figuring out the cure for the Apoptoxin, he was going to soon be returned to his body. But then another murder. All eyes had fallen to Kogoro Mouri, who under the scrutiny of the entire nation, had cracked. He said it was Shinichi Kudo who'd given them to information.
So that's how, only a little over a week later, Conan Edogawa found himself staring down the barrel of Gin's .50 Pistol. The blonde assassin's eyes skimmed over his shrunken form, confusion clear on his face. Vodka stood behind them, equally as confused. "Shinichi Kudo," Gin sneered. The detective merely stared back. "So the poison didn't kill you." No, it had done exactly the opposite, but the detective remained silent. The hit came suddenly, unexpect, from behind him and darkness swallowed him whole.
Everything led to that moment. The moment the door flew open and all eyes fell on him, he knew there was no use fighting. He knew what he looked like. What Haibara looked like. He knew no one would understand. Hell, not even he truly understood. He stared down at the clothes in his hands, his old clothes. Conan's clothes. "Co..Conan…" he knew that voice, he'd know it anywhere, but he couldn't bring himself to lift his head. The strangled sob that followed just made him shrink into himself. Conan Edogawa was no more. Ran's screams bounced from stone wall to stone wall. It was then the clothes were taken from him and an arm circled around his shoulders, helping him stand on familiar legs that strangely no longer felt like his own.
"It's a'right, Kudo," a voice whispered in his ear. "Yer safe now." He was safe. He was himself - but he didn't feel like himself. He was too tall. His legs too long. Every step he took was heavy and unstable, his balance off centered. The tan arm around his shoulder gradually moved to his waist to help steady him. The Osakan lead him out of the gothic building, pausing only for a moment when Shinichi himself froze in shock. Gin. Vodka. Chianti. Korn. Bourbon. Each and everyone were being loaded away, stuffed carelessly into the backs of different Squad cars. A sense of calm settled over his tired limbs as Shinichi was once again lead away. "What 'appened? Yer… You." Heiji Hattori spoke softly, voice barely above a whisper when the pair of Detectives made it to an empty squad car. The Detective of the West arranged his companion to sit comfortably in the back before climbing in after him. Shinichi said nothing and just leaned back into his friend, eyes falling shut. Heiji's sigh barely registered before those tanned arms were back, holding the pale teen closer. When the officer who would be taking them to the hospital arrived, neither moved and the officer was wise enough to not say anything.
Hours later, when the doctor finally allowed visitors, only the Osakan was allowed in. At night, when visiting hours had ended, the Osakan remained at the weakened detective's request. When the nightmares began, the Osakan as there to chase them away. Things were never going to be the same, the Osakan knew. Shinichi Kudo had returned - but at what cost.
Hey guys, Kaelrah here. So, I'd like to take this moment to thank those of you who decided to read this, and I hope you liked it! This will be continued (i.e it's not a one shot) and I would love some feedback. This is my first fic here, and my first Case Closed/Detective Conan Fic. I've recently begun watching this anime again, and this idea showed up in a dream I had last night. This won't be ShinRan. I'm not sure if it'll be Slash though either. As of right now, it's mostly just Heijichi friendcentric. In chapters soon to come, Kaito will also make his appearance. Also, if this is hard to understand I am dearly sorry! It will all be explained in the following chapter!