Choice

EDIT: I hope that all typos/spelling mistakes are gone..

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Detective Conan.

Choice

'It's all going well...'

That was the thought that kept running in Conan's mind, despite the tension of the moment.

-

The window shattered as the soccer ball flew out of it. Vermouth looked up, startled, but wasn't fast enough to move back or crouch down. The ball collided with her hand, sending her gun flying meters away from her reach. He had saved Jodie-sensei from being killed by Vermouth. He had caught her off guard: she didn't think it was him but her.

Sensei had been surprised too: he vaguely caught her expression out the corner of his eyes while he peeled the mask out of his face and declared his identity.

"Conan Edogawa!" he said, facing the blonde woman in front of him, "Detective."

'Got to praise Kaa-san's disguising abilities..' He made a mental note to himself as he saw the criminal's stunned expression. He opened the aimer of wrist watch.

"Don't move." he warned her, "I'm targeting your body with this watch." He slowly positioned himself in front of Jodie-sensei: she was bleeding from her waist.

'I have to be quick..' he thought, 'Got to take her to a hospital.'

He looked up at Vermouth.

'But first..'

Never lowering his arm, he looked straight into the ice blue eyes of the woman in front of him.

"So.." he said in a cool tone, "Let's have you get into the car after Jodie-sensei. Let's drive to the police."

-

'It's all going good..' he thought again with more confidence this time. She was under his stun gun's aim. They would go to the police now. She would be finally arrested.

It was all going perfectly.

A sudden movement from afar caught his eye. He heard approaching footsteps.

"Eh?" he said and turned to his left, taking his attention away from Vermouth for a second.

His heart stopped.

He felt the blood freeze in his veins and all colour must have drained from his face as he saw the person in front of him.

She was there.

A voice in his head taunted him.

It's not going so well now, isn't it?

--:--

She woke up slowly, giving her eyes some time to get used the light.

It was all so bright. Had she left the lights turned on? No wait, she never left the lights turned on. Heck, she hardly ever lit them. This wasn't her room.. Then where-?

Her eyes opened with a start and she immediately recognised her surroundings. It was the lab: she was lying on the couch that Hakase had set up for her since she spent hours working there. He told her that she could lie down there when she got tired from work.

She slowly rose up and she heard the voices of Agase and Kudo-kun coming from upstairs.

"I wonder if it's ok to leave Ai-kun alone like that." Ai felt a small smile tug her lips as she noticed the hint of concern in Hakase's voice.

"It should be fine." Kudo-kun was speaking now. "We heated the room and left some food and water; there's no problem."

As she sat up, the wet cloth on her head slid down on the blanket. She coughed and caught sight of the tray on top of the computer table: it had a plate of sandwiches and a bottle of water.

She slowly got out of bed, half listening to the chattering from above: Kudo-kun was asking Hakase to play with the new game he had invented.

'He really is turning into a child..' she thought amusedly. But then, she realised that it was nonsense. He didn't want to be a child. Even less behave like one. So why-?

A sudden thought crossed her mind and she walked over to the computer table and opened the first drawer. It was all neat and tidy.

'The placement of the things inside the drawer is... slightly different...' She shut the drawer close and coughed again. 'He must have searched..'

Her eyes clouded as she realised what his plan was.

'To fight them.. all by himself..'

Did he think so little of her? Or did he think that she wasn't capable of helping him? Or defending herself? Did he consider her a burden? Or-?

She sat down on the couch as a sinking feeling got into her.

'Doesn't he still.. trust me enough?' she wondered.

She remembered the argument they had that very morning when he had asked her about Vermouth.

Vermouth.. Only thinking of that name sent a shiver run down her spine. She knew her. She knew what she could do. She knew what she had done.

And that terrified her.

If she found her, what would she do? What would she do to the traitor?

There was no need to answer. She would be killed on the spot.

She had felt her presence during the memorial and on the bus. She was sure that she would have found her, despite her... disguise, her childish form. She was sure that the woman would catch her and kill her. But she wouldn't have allowed her to do so. She was ready to die by her own hands rather than by Vermouth, the killer with golden hair.

But he was there.

He saved at the memorial from Pisco. From being shot to death.

He had come despite what she had told him. She had told him that they shouldn't have talked again: she would have hidden the disk with the data and he could have come to retrive it when the coast was clear. When the Black operatives would have gone. When she...

'But, of course, he never listens to me..' she thought, 'When does he ever do so?'

She had decided to stay on the bus until the explosion. She was there: she had sensed her. Even if she got away, during the questioning she would have seen her again. And then, it would be the end.

Hakase, the kids... him..

If she had died, there wouldn't have been any connection between them and the Syndicate. They would be safe: no one would have harmed. The Blacks wouldn't have harmed them.

But he was there again.

He had risked his life to get her out of the bus, injuring himself in the attempt. Moreover, he had made her leave, smearing his own blood on her legs, so that to an onlooker she would have looked injured. He had helped her. Twice. And his words..

"Don't run away, Haibara.. Don't look away from your fate."

Ai smirked.

'Kudo-kun can see right through me at times..'

Since her betrayal, she had always been running away. She had gone seeking for help and went to him, the last person that would ever want to help her. Kudo Shinichi. And he helped her, though he had refused at the beginning.

She had found comfort and comprehension in his neighbour. That old scientist, Hiroshi Agase, with a grandfather-like appearance but a hidden childish attitude that often irked the hell out of her. But he wasn't naive or stupid. He was just.. good. Good to the point to believe a little girl that claimed to be an ex-member of a criminal organisation. Good to the point to accept her in his house. Good to the point to help her gain a new identity so that she could be safe.

Ai sighed as she rested a hand on her face.

She couldn't let something happen to them.. To Hakase, to the kids, to him.. They were the closest thing that she had that could be defined to as.. family.

She heard the voices upstairs, chattering and this brought her back from her stream of thoughts to the main problem in her mind.

He had gone alone to meet Them. To meet Her.

And she was there, locked in the lab. She walked to the door and saw that it was closed. She pushed it; a voice in her head was mentally telling her that she was a fool to only think that it might be-

There was a sharp click.

Her eyes widened.

The door was open.

-

The clock was ticking ominously.

Ai was standing in the hallway, wondering what to do and what had happened after that she had been stunned by Kudo-kun.

She had been taken to the lab and had been locked in. Yet she had come out because a lock had been broken. From the outside.

'Why?' she thought, 'But most of all.. Who?'

Not Hakase. Definitely not Kudo-kun. Then who? Who would have broken purposely a lock of the door so that she could have gotten out after having awaken from her forced sleep?

Ai looked around the house: everything was in order. Nothing was out of ordinary and no one was home. She had feared to find a different scenario once out of the lab. The thought that the broken lock was a expedient to bring her out and make her fall in a trap had crossed her mind. But it wasn't.

All in order. Though..

She had changed her cloths and had noticed that her jacket was missing. Only one person could fit in that besides her.

'Why did he take it?'

She looked around again. She had taken her decision and he wasn't there to stop her this time. She glanced at the table next to her and took the pair of glasses that were on top. She had hid them well and he didn't find them. She pressed the button on the rim and a fluorescent grill appeared on the left lens.

She swiftly put the glasses on and a half smile appeared on her face.

"If you wear it, no one will recognise you. Did you know?"

"This time they will.." she muttered as she walked to the door, "She will nevertheless.."

As she touched the knob, feeling the cold metal surface under her palm, she took a deep breath.

One step out and she would be in danger. One step and she would see if her choice to risk was worth. Was is it really worth after all?

The image of familiar faces danced before her eyes. Hakase, the kids, Kudo-kun. And then, Akemi.

Her sister had made a choice because she cared for her. She had been faithful to her decision till the end.

"I won't run away.. this time." Ai whispered softly and opened to the front door.

She wanted to finish everything tonight. No more hiding or running.

It was time to face the danger. Not for herself but for the people she cared for.

There can be no peace with someone who wants to kill you.

- David Horowitz

--:--

'Ha... Haibara?'

Why?

It was the first thought that crossed his suddenly frozen mind.

He had locked her in the lab! She couldn't he here... She shouldn't be here! She should be at Hakase's house, locked in the lab. Recovering from her cold. Mad with him because he had used the stun-gun on her. Furious for having being left out. Angry because he hadn't listened to her.

But that wouldn't have mattered.

She would have been safe.

His mind was jumbled with these thoughts, fogging his reasoning. Her sudden apparition was making him loose his calm.

'Maybe, it's just an hallucination..' he told himself, 'I'm just seeing things because of the tension..'

But she was there. Sweaty, breathing heavily; it seemed that she had run. But it was her expression that stunned him most.

Shock. Fear.

Then, he noticed another thing. His hidden fear had become true. He had tried to find them: he had looked everywhere but just couldn't get them anywhere.

'The backup pursuit glasses...' His eyes locked with her azure ones. 'I knew it..'

Security is the mother of danger and the grandmother of destruction.

- Friedrich Nietzcshe-

--:--

Ai didn't know how she did it.

She had taken a taxi till the harbour and had run the whole way after, following the signal on the glasses. A building sense of dread was overcoming her along with the fatigue and the lack of air. Running long distances with this small body wasn't easy.

Where was he? What was he doing so far from the ship?

He had been moving for the first minutes and then he stopped. And she noticed that the signal hadn't moved an inch for while.

'What's going on, Kudo-kun?' she wondered, running down a street. The signal was getting closer...

She skidded as she turned round a corner and stopped abruptly.

There were two cars: one had blocked the other's way. There were three people: two women and...

'K.. Kudo-kun..'

One woman was on the ground, clutching her side and leaning on a car: she looked in pain. Ai noticed the growing dark mark at the height of her waist. She recognised her: the English teacher on the bus.

He was standing in front of her. Firm, cool and composed, his stun gun pointed to the criminal. As she thought, he was wearing her jacket.

Vermouth was standing opposite of him, visibly surprised. Uncomfortable. Maybe, even a little fearful.

Ai had taken all of this in one quick look. But her presence hadn't gone unseen.

He turned.

He saw her.

He paled and his eyes widened.

She never remembered to have seen such a shocked expression on his face since she knew him.

And she also saw fear. He was scared.

It took her a few instants to understand. After boring into his dark blue eyes, she understood.

He had left her out because he was concerned for her. Hadn't he done similar things before? Hadn't he avoided to tell her facts that might have worried her?

He always had that protective attitude towards her. And this time, he had done the same.

She saw her too.

Ai felt a shiver run down her spine when she saw Vermouth smile.

--:--

'You hid them!'

His screaming accuse couldn't reach her. He was too shocked to speak or even breathe.

'Why are you here?' he thought once again and kept his stare fixed on her, eyes locked during the silent conversation. 'Why did you come here?!'

But she didn't do anything: her shocked face mirrored his own expression.

His rationality slowly came back. It wasn't the moment for accusations, not the moment for regrets. Later maybe, but not now.

He only had one thought in his mind at the moment.

Go away! Save yourself!

"R..Run, Haibara!" he yelled, turning his head at her, "Hurry!! Get away from he-"

He turned around abruptly when he caught sight of a shadow moving in front of him from the corner of the eye.

"-re...."

Vermouth grabbed his wrist and twisted it towards him. The stun-gun, the faithful weapon that he had used so many times, was aimed at its' bearer.

It happened very fast: the last thing he remembered before blacking out was her face. Shock was clear on her pale face but the features slowly changed.

As he slowly fell back, Conan saw that expression on her face again. The same one that she had the day after the hooligan's murder.

"You told me not to run away from my fate."

Calm face, trusting eyes..

'What-?' he thought feebly, 'What are you thinking, Haibara? What are you going to do.. Ai?'

It seemed that she knew what he was thinking, as she did so many times before. She kept her eyes locked with his and smiled. That typical half-smile..

And then it was all black.

--:--

"You're going to protect me right?"

"Yes.."

Ai could only do that as she recalled his promise.

Smile at him.

'It could be my goodbye, Kudo-kun..' she thought. She watched Vermouth lay him against the car and get the gun hidden in her socks.

"Welcome Sherry!" she greeted the child, aiming the weapon at her.

Ai was scared. She felt her body freeze as she watched the gun pointed at her.

"Stupid woman..." Vermouth stated, never taking her eyes off the petite blonde. "Wasting that boy's plan." She laughed slightly. "To have taken all that trouble to come and get killed."

The girl looked at her.

'I made the right decision.' she reminded herself and slowly took off the glasses. His spare glasses.

It was time to end everything. No more escaping.

"I didn't come here just to get killed.." she retorted, putting the glasses away. Her tone was light, emotionless. Fearless. She gazed at the murderer in front of her. "I came to finish everything."

She stole a quick peek to the sleeping form of the boy that shared her common condition. Her eyes softened slightly.

'I'm not running away this time, Kudo-kun.'

She looked back at Vermouth.

'Let anything happen... I have made my choice.'

There is nothing so likely to produce peace as to be well prepared to meet the enemy.

- George Washington-

Another old one-shot. Another edited story. I hope to see some feedback.

Help me out of my writing block!!

A.N 1: I didn't realise that the open door would create some speculation. I read the manga years ago but I think that it was Heiji that left the door slightly open. He wanted Haibara to help Conan if anything went wrong.. At least, that's my thought of it..

I hope I got it right .. ^_^

A.N 2:I changed a little mistake in the story. Thanks to Dagron for letting me notice it!

Bye and REVIEW!!