A/N: Ha! My record of pages: 25! :D And this time it didn't take as long :o (I think only two and a half weeks) and that's only coz I was hit with a no Internet ban for two weeks. One the bright side, I finally have my Internet back, and it gave me plenty of time to write this chapter! :)

25 whole pages... well, I did have to fit a lot into this chapter... Thanks so much for the reviews!

C/A: Um yeah. Gin very casually curses somewhere in this chapter.

C/H: I guess. Lol, be prepared! ;)

Not much more to say... so enjoy!

-Icie911


Ran's eyes clouded over as she listened to the doctor ramble. Kogoro looked weary but Eri, Yukiko, Yusaku, and the hakase listened intently. Haibara (Shiho, Ran kept correcting herself), had gone home to watch over the house and see if she could work on anything. Hattori had to leave, regretfully looking back at Conan, lost in amnesia. There was a sudden case that had sent the police officers racing off, and Hattori had gotten a call… since he was the Great Detective of the West. He brought Kazuha along with him as well, so he could get her familiar with the police in case anything happened and find a safe place for her to say. However, for once in his entire life, Hattori didn't feel a single bit of joy at rushing off to solve a case. Conan couldn't even remember his name, let alone his deduction skills. Even worse, he was in Tokyo, his territory. Not Hattori's, but Conan's. This time, the meitantei couldn't tag along with him, couldn't solve the case with a sweep of his piercing blue eyes.

And speaking about his eyes… Ran thought sadly, they aren't Shinichi's anymore. Not even the Conan I used to know… Without his maturity, his personality, the usually brilliant blue eyes were slightly clouded, and softened around the edges. They were large and innocent, the genius of the tantei smoothed over. Although Conan and been a child before, his eyes, his being, were truly ones of a child now.

Ran felt someone gently shaking her shoulder, and looked to see her mother staring worriedly at her. Ran felt tired, exhausted. She had been put through so much, from seeing Conan dying in front of her to his sudden coma to learning his true identity and shadowed past. And now this… it seemed too cruel. Too cruel… just two months ago she was a normal high schooler, albeit waiting impatiently for Shinichi to return. And suddenly an invisible hand had just shoved her through to this world, full of lies and peril and darkness.

But mostly, under all of that, she felt guilty. Immensely, immensely, guilty. The small worry that Conan's well being was her fault had already faded to a mere pinprick, this shame was brought on by the fact that she was already breaking. It had barely been a month and she was already cracking, falling apart under the pressure. If she thought this was unfair, living like this, how would Conan have felt? Enduring the life of a seven year old while striving to rub out this syndicate, and at the same time protect everyone. Not to mention the fact he had to keep his identity a secret, and help her father rise to the top. It must have frustrated him a lot, Ran thought, to have her otou-san take all the credit, and not to mention be a jerk at some times. Ran knew this was all partly his fault, but she couldn't blame him for it. Chasing after justice is what Shinichi's love was, to stop it at any sign of danger would be to imprison a free, soaring bird. Killing his freedom was equal to killing his soul. And she felt extremely guilty that she couldn't even last a month, even with the support of her family and friends…

And, she was a terrible actress right now and she knew it. Ran could feel every emotion revealed through her indigo eyes, every doubt written across her face, every expression betraying her inner turmoil. Eri could see all of it in one glance.

"Ran, honey, maybe you should rest." Eri soothed, her voice gentle. "We can discuss this later."

Discuss… talk… later? Conan…? His… condition…? Amnesia… Ran's thoughts were moving slowly, like syrupy molasses dribbling off a jar. Suddenly, a thought like a flash of lightning struck her mind. She hadn't listened at all to the doctor. She heard him say Conan had amnesia, but an idiot could figure that out.

"Wait-" Ran's throat was dry, her voice whispery like the wind. She cleared her throat, swallowed with some difficulty, and coughed. "Wait—what's Conan's condition? I mean, what type of amnesia does he have?"

She could see the pitying looks the doctor and her father sent her, as if she had been too traumatized to hear anything he said. Okay, well, maybe that was true, but suddenly Ran resented the looks with so much fury she surprised herself. The fiery light must have reflected in her eyes, for Ran saw Eri smile faintly and Kogoro raise his eyebrows in slight surprise that his strong daughter had returned. However, a few minutes passed with the doctor still shuffling his papers, as if preoccupied and too busy to address anyone.

Ran realized with sudden rage that the stout doctor had completely forgotten about her question. His pudgy round face was rosy and his head was balding; wisps of gray-silver hair attempted to cover his head. The doctor's hands were smallish and his fingers slightly resembled sausages. Tiny rectangular glasses perched precariously on his squared nose, flashing occasionally if the light hit them at the right angle. His eyes were a dull pebble gray, and he squinted fairly often. Feeling her anger build up, Ran felt a twinge of satisfaction as she noted a little bit of her old self starting to poke through.

"Did. You. Hear. Me?" Ran asked, her voice dangerously quiet. Her voice was edged with spikes and poison, all directed at the doctor- Dr. Faro (which was printed on his name tag in small, slanted handwriting).

Eri and Kogoro shared an amused look. Under different circumstances, they would have stopped Ran, but both agreed it would be good for Ran to release some pent up emotion. Eri was a bit offended as well at the doctor's rudeness, but Kogoro had seen this anger directed at him so many times it simply filled him with childish joy to see someone else suffer under the wrath of Ran's fury.

Agasa, unused to seeing Ran's anger in person, looked a little confused. However, just by judging the circumstances, he knew the doctor was in for a bumpy ride. And, well, maybe he wouldn't mind seeing it. After all, this greasy looking Dr. Faro was the one who nearly screwed up Conan's immediate treatment, not hooking him up to the vital drips and the heart monitor. *

The doctor looked up, squinting at Ran as if trying to analyze her. Ran hated this doctor more and more vehemently as each second passed. Finally, Dr. Faro spoke.

"I'm sorry, what?" he simpered, his voice scratchy and wheedling. "Did you need something, girl?"

That was it. Ran's eyes blazed and she took a deep breath. Kogoro instinctively crouched protectively, as if Ran were about to smash him to bits. Her face was tensed and her body stiff, ready to spring into action.

"WHEN I TALK, YOU HAD BETTER LISTEN TO ME!" She roared furiously, her foot snapping suddenly. A mere second later, the table was splintered into bits where her deadly roundhouse kick had landed. She leapt onto the table, landing softly like a cat. Or more like a tiger. The doctor looked confused, as if summing up the chance that the frail looking teen had just smashed his desk.

Too late.

To Ran, Dr. Faro was still ignoring her. Before he had the chance to make out what was happening, Ran lifted her fist high into the air and brought it down with all her force, pummeling her clenched fist down onto Dr. Faro's 'precious' research papers, shredding the majority of them in the process. Also her fist landed approximately three inches from his face.

Only seconds later, the smoke and debris cleared, and there crouched a very pissed off Ran, staring directly into a stunned and frightened face of Dr. Faro. Being so close to his greasy face would have made Ran sick if not for the cold fist of anger he had brought upon himself. Her fist still smoking from the impact, she flashed her teeth in more of a snarl than a smile.

"Do. You. Understand?" she asked, her voice sharper than a knife.

Dr. Faro, staring at the mess this single girl had made of his office and seeing the dangerous look on her face, gulped and nodded.

"So." Ran commented, as she nimbly jumped back off the table. Brushing some wood splinters off her chair, she sat as if everything were completely normal, as if she hadn't just annihilated Dr. Faro's desk. Dr. Faro looked shaken, Ran's display of karate frightening him just as Ran meant for it to. After giving him three minutes to calm his jumping nerves he managed to mumble something.

"A-an-and t-t-that desk w-was m-ma-mahogany t-t-too…" he mumbled quietly, his teeth involuntarily chattering with shock.

"What's that?" Ran asked, her voice cool.

By now Dr. Faro had pretty much realized that with this girl, even the most innocent questions can provoke sudden anger. And he had enough of her anger to last him for about…fifty years. Plus, it didn't help that the silver haired professor and the couple that spawned that child looked immensely amused, their lips pursed as if trying not to smile or laugh. But he could see it. He could see their laughter in their eyes and the glow of their faces. He fumed silently, but then suddenly realized if he stayed to quiet his beautiful rolling chair may not survive the day either. For that matter, maybe even he wouldn't.

"N-n-no-nothing…" he stuttered out, suddenly swept by fear at the guarded, intense indigo gaze the girl fixed him with.

"So." Ran repeated, settling into her chair. Pleasantly, she asked, "What type of amnesia does Conan have again? I was preoccupied when you mentioned it."

Dr. Faro shuddered as he felt icy daggers swing toward him, locking their target into his wide face (which, btw, would make an ideal target). Her teeth smiled but her eyes were icy and he could feel that she had no patience at all. He had a quick flash thought: this is what a tigress must be like- beautiful (for the girl really was quite pretty with her tumbling dark hair, bright violet eyes, and slight smile) yet hiding a fierce strength, and once it was displayed you could never look at them quite the same way as before. Suddenly, every feature seemed sharper and it seemed like danger could be triggered with a mere slip–up, a simple mistake.

And speaking of mistakes, the girl's patience seemed to be starting to wear thin again. Dr. Faro may be a greasy good-for nothing but he wasn't a complete idiot. He wasn't going to make the same mistake again.

Clearing his throat, Dr. Faro answered Ran.

"The boy, Edogawa Conan, has been diagnosed with retrograde amnesia."


Crime scene where Hattori and the Beika Police are at…

Heiji fingered the brim of his hat, his leaf-green eyes flashing confidently. Inspector Megure noticed Heiji's expression, and whispered in his ear. The Osakan teen's eyes flashed back and forth as he whispered back, explaining his deduction to the inspector. Megure's head bobbed up and down as he listened to Heiji's impeccable deduction. Hattori's cocky air and quick deduction reminded Megure of Shinichi. And although he had paid no attention to the child, if he thought carefully, Conan was like that as well. Speaking of Conan-

"Oi, Hattori." Megure said, his voice quiet.

"Ne?" Hattori responded absentmindedly. He was turning over the evidence in his mind, checking that they were rock-solid.

"How's Conan doing? Er, I mean Shinichi."

Heiji's attention snapped back to the present, his eyes darkening to a forest green. His face muscles tensed as he turned his hat back forward. He had solved the case, but his usually emerald eyes were shadowed by the cap's brim.

"That well, huh?" Megure said grimly.

A quick nod was all that he received, along with a promise that the Osakan detective would explain later. But for now, Hattori Heiji, The Great Detective of the West, had a case to draw close and a murderer to arrest. Let the deduction show begin!


Agasa Residence

Haibara muttered some swears under her breath as she sat onto the couch. She knew Edogawa's feeble life was held only by the thinnest string, and it could snap any moment. The Black Org. was out and loose, ready to strike from the shadows. And Haibara knew from her time as Sherry that there could only be one reason the Anokata hadn't sent Chianti or Korn on someone to kill Conan- because they must be preoccupied with someone else. And most of the time it was someone more important they had to kill, which usually meant a high ranking member was to be assassinated. Haibara knew this was very, very rare as the high rankings were all sharp and knew better than to try and escape. It was a stroke of pure luck…but no matter the person, they never lasted more than a week. They were chased until their finely honed skills started to unravel, and most started to go delusional, trying to escape and survive 24/7. Back in the organization, it was a good thing- if anyone escaped the whole organization could collapse. Living people caused trouble. Dead people didn't.

After all, dead people can't talk.

And Haibara knew that because of all this, Conan had a chance. She was riding on the hopes that when he awoke, they would gain the police as an ally and be able to overcome the organization. They could think of details on the way, mapping out strategies and such.

And it didn't seem like such an impossible dream 24 hours ago.

But with this sudden amnesia attack, it seems the tide had turned in the organization's favor once again. It always did. They always won… But Haibara couldn't afford to think like that.

She also knew the chances that Conan would regain his memories in such a short amount of time and be ready for action were slim. Some cases have occurred that the victim of amnesia never regains his/her memory, although the stories all ended with the patient starting a fresh life, usually recovering better the younger they were.

She pushed off the sofa, walking towards her lab. If she couldn't help Kudo right now, she'd have to push her genius to the limit to work something out. As she walked though, thinking about the headlines of a young girl who had been able to start a brand new life, she had a feeling of dread build in her stomach. Conan may be eight soon, but the Shinichi inside of him was a teenager. And no matter what, if he didn't recover from his amnesia, there would be no chance for him to restart. No, there would be none of that.

An icy fist of sorrow clenched Haibara Ai's stomach.

If Edogawa Conan didn't regain his memories, and soon-

He'd be dead.


May 4th (Two days later)

Anokata was angry. Last night they had been so close to killing Gin. But he had somehow evaded, using some scrap of energy to flee once again. It seemed that although his intelligence and sanity had deserted him, he still clung onto his survival skills. And his survival skills were the best out of all of the higher rankings; Kir, Chianti, Korn, Vodka, Bourbon, etc… and even Vermouth. She clenched her fists in danger. One more day. 24 more hours until the deadline she gave her assassination group expires. And only 24 hours until Gin became the first organization member to last more than a week. She refused to let it happen.


The park outside the Beika Hospital

Ran sighed in despair, her hand holding tightly to Conan's smaller, slight one. Conan Edogawa had truly become a child. He remembered the basic functions of life, but not a shred of his past. Not Ran, not his parents, not his friends, no one. She could see him trying hard to remember, especially when she asked him to.

His eyes would focus as his brow drew together, and for a few intense moments he would strain to remember anything. And after those moments he'd clutch his head and shake it vehemently as he battled against his amnesia. But so far, he had never won.

Conan felt Ran's grip tighten. He felt warm, tingling, safe. But he didn't know why. He couldn't remember anything. Not the two people who said they were his parents, not the dark detective Heiji-niichan, not the hakase, not Ran-neechan. And he was confused. He knew he was seven, almost eight. But he remembered the coffee-haired girl- Ai, saying something else. He was also Kudo Shinichi, a seventeen year old. How could he be seven and seventeen and two different people? Ran's grip tightened a little more.

"Ran-neechan, is there anything wrong?" Conan asked. "Because if there isn't can you let go a bit? I think you're crushing my hand…"

Ran started in surprise, and loosened her grip. She smiled at Conan, who grinned back at her. She felt a sad pang as she missed the secretive half smiles she usually saw on Conan's face, but mostly on Shinichi's.

"Conan-chan, I'm going to introduce you to some of your Teitan Elementary schoolmates. Do you remember their names? Ayumi, Genta, and Mitsuhiko."

Conan tapped his lip thoughtfully for a few seconds, and then replied, "No, I don't think I've ever met them before." Seeing the expression on Ran's face he worriedly said, "I'm sorry… did I do something wrong, Ran-neechan?"

"No, no…" Ran said quickly. "Nothing wrong. Well, maybe meeting them will trigger some memories…" But there was no hope behind these words anymore, which she repeated time and time again…

Conan squeezed her hand reassuringly. His small face was bright as he promised, "Don't worry Ran-neechan. Conan will do his best!"

It absolutely broke Ran's heart.


Three hours later…

"Man, can you believe it?" Genta asked, his legs swinging against the car chair. A gray seatbelt stretched over his front side. He and Mitsuhiko had the window seats and Ayumi sat in the middle. They were carpooling away from the hospital. "I mean, seriously, how could Conan forget us?"

Ayumi looked troubled. "I don't know…" she said softly. "I'm really worried for Conan-chan though. Ran-neechan looked kind of sad and worried too…"

Mitsuhiko said, "Well, I'm sure he'll recover soon. No worries, Ayumi!" he tried to cheer her up.

"I don't know…" Ayumi thought hard. "I just had this… really bad feeling. Like Conan was in danger."

Genta tried not to scoff. Struggling to keep his voice light, he asked, "Well, how do you know?"

Ayumi just frowned. "Woman's intuition."

Mitsuhiko and Genta sweat-dropped. "Ah… I see…" they muttered in unison. But the dark mood in the air couldn't help but catch on.

The rest of the car ride was in silence. Each one was preoccupied in their own thoughts.


To Gin!

Hiding in another dark alley, Gin grimaced in a sort of disgust. It was always dark alleys. He couldn't hide anywhere else. He knew his time was drawing near, and it disgusted him that he'd die in filth and as a useless assassin. Growling, he vehemently shook his long silver hair out of the cap. To disguise himself, he had to tuck away his conspicuous long silver locks into a baseball cap. He wore shades, and more of a civilian's clothing. However, from the various encounters with the Black Organization his clothing was already in tatters. Knife slashes and pocketmarks from bullets and sparks were spread all over the faded blue and green clothes.

How he hated that stupid child, that idiotic tantei. He was the cause of all his troubles. Gin would be dead soon, but there was one thing he wanted to do more than anything else before he died. Gin drew a knife from his sleeve, a dull silver color but strong and sharp. Inspecting it, he quickly tucked it back in. He pulled out the shotgun tucked in front of his heart, and made sure the safety was off so he could shoot in a second if he needed to. It was fully loaded. Putting it back in, he suddenly remembered something. Some amateur murderer, Hosokawa or something, had hospitalized the meitantei. Hospital… which hospital? Suddenly Gin grinned ghoulishly. He made a new goal, one last goal. A goal to achieve before he died.

He was going to kill Edogawa Conan.

He was going to finish what he started that night in Tropical Land with Kudo Shinichi.

If he could only just find out where that brat was being held. Tokyo was a big place, and there were quite a few hospitals. He knew it was useless to barge in every single one just to find mini-Kudo. And surely the news would spread fast, about a man bursting into hospitals everywhere to find a person. Gin would die before he even laid eyes on the stupid child. No, he was going to have to be careful. He needed a surefire way to know which hospital Edogawa was in.

Judging by the darkening sky, it was around six thirty. Gin's eyes lit with cold fire one last time, this hunt bearing the last prize he would ever gain. He was ready. Not single shadow of doubt crossed his mind.

The night is still young, he thought devilishly. Let the hunt begin.

It never once crossed his mind that maybe; just maybe...

Conan wouldn't be in the hospital anymore.


Mouri's Car

Ran looked worriedly at Conan's sleeping form. She really wished she was a better actress- although she had pretty much guessed that Conan wouldn't remember Ayumi and the others, there was still a disappointment. A last, flickering flame of hope snuffed out. She assumed that Conan had seen it and felt sad as well, since these days he seemed to try and mimic what Ran felt, as if it were too hard to think of any feelings himself. Ran, thinking that Conan had decided to take a nap, left him alone in his room while she went out to buy some food and cook. At around six she was going to go in and wake Conan up, only to find him writhing in pain on the ground, clutching his head.

The doctor had warned Ran and Kogoro about this. If Conan tried too hard to remember something, yet his brain was still incapable of remembering, he might have a breakdown. His brain would shut down to simple functions and he would most likely experience painful headaches. Ran had immediately dragged her father to the car and carried Conan carefully down. It scared her how fragile and light he was, so easy to carry.

After about five minutes of soothing, Conan had fallen asleep… But he was sweating and Ran was thinking he might have caught a fever. As Ran saw the hospital building draw near, she desperately hoped that Conan would be okay, that everything might just turn out. But as time wore on, even Ran's usual sunny optimism had taken a spin for the worse.

Inside the hospital, Haibara was waiting for them. Three police officers and the inspector flanked her, and she started explaining almost immediately.

"We notified the doctors already, they're ready right now to take Conan in and examine him." At this, Kogoro was sent off the bring Conan to the doctors, Ran sending him racing. "No matter what, concerning his conditions lately they've decided he has to spend the night." Haibara continued, directing her dialogue toward Ran. She lowered her voice a bit, "However, I have a bad feeling that the organization is just about ready to strike. They won't be expecting him to stay in the same hospital though, since I know better, and also they wouldn't expect him to still be hospitalized because of Hosokawa's attack. However, just in case, we have some police protection." Ai gestured at the four police.

Ran nodded numbly. Kogoro huffed as he ran back, and managed to get out what room number Conan would be staying in, and that he would be fine.

"They," Kogoro coughed, "sedated him- to keep him- calm." He took a deep breath. "He'll wake up- in about- an hour." He sat down on the chair, breathing hard. "You guys-" he waved his hand, "go on. I don't think- you guys - need me anymore. Make sure- the kid's alright- okay? I'll go home- once I get my breath- back." They nodded and set off towards the room.


Ten minutes later, give or take. Time: 6:45

Ran sat down on the couch across from Conan's thin hospital bed. Haibara was sitting on a chair in front of the coffee table, her laptop out and flashing. A blue light washed over her face as she typed furiously. Research, Ran guessed. The pale cream curtains rustled slightly in the wind. Ran remembered with a sudden start that today was Shinichi's birthday. Things didn't seem to be going well for him…

Ran remembered his birthday a year ago. They had been stuck, together with a handful of other people in a tall building. She was there to celebrate the night before his birthday, but a deranged architect had set a bomb in the building. It was up to them two to disable the bomb, yet somehow the architect had managed to trick them. Every direction, every wire to snip, was there. Except the last. Two last wires, red and blue, were remaining as the clock ticked on. Time was running out… and it was past midnight. I almost forgot… Happy Birthday… Shinichi. She remembered saying. I just wanted to tell you… in case I never get another chance.

And he had told her to cut a wire, any wire she pleased. We're dead if you don't do anything anyway. So just choose one! Any wire you please. And they had survived.

Lost in memories, Ran gazed at the still form of the young boy. How could everything just be thrown away like that, with just a wave of amnesia? Everything they'd been through together in the short years of their lives. Her indigo blue eyes sad, Ran continued to replay memories as the hour slowly ticked away…


Haibara clenched her fists. Due to her calculations, tomorrow would be the last day. It would have been a week since the news came out, since the organization must have been set out to kill somebody. With any luck, the person would last until tomorrow. But most likely he or she would die today, or had already been killed. Which meant only one thing. Time was up for a certain Edogawa Conan.

She never imagined that the person to be assassinated might be Gin. And she never imagined that Conan staying in the hospital overnight had just been one more stroke of luck in the organization's favor.

Ran was giving her a strange look. Haibara nodded at her coolly, her eyes saying, I'm okay. No need to worry. But maybe if Ran paid a little more attention, if she were a little bit more skilled at reading body language, she would've noticed that Haibara had clenched her fists so hard her nails left red marks, that her jaw was tense and her body stiff. And maybe she would have read that 'Ai-chan,' or rather, 'Shiho-san,' was keeping in a lot of worry. That she wasn't telling Ran the full extent of Conan's danger. Otherwise, why would she be so worried about a simple headache?

But perhaps it was best that Ran simply turned away, that she didn't push any further. Haibara wanted to keep the thoughts away from the already unraveling teen girl, and simply lock herself away. Her face muscles tensed and her eyes trembled with uncharacteristic anger. It wasn't fair! They were so close. They had gotten so far, just to have everything fall apart now. Why? Why did things always end up like this? It just wasn't fair!

As the last ten minutes ticked away, Haibara abandoned her laptop. She saved, and shut down, watching the pulsing blue light slowly fade to black. She drew her knees up to her chin, and hugged them to her chest. Ai relaxed against the back of the couch and tilted her head toward the windows, staring at the night sky. She imagined, briefly, that one of the twinkling stars might be Akemi. Her beautiful, warm, sister. She could be a star…Haibara thought absentmindedly. She was so pure… she sparkled in every way. She liked the idea of her sister becoming a star in the sky, pushing aside logic at the moment, not to mention her knowledge of space.

Akemi. She thought sadly, choosing the brightest star in the sky and addressing it silently. Akemi-neechan… Is it nice up there? She tilted her head toward the velvet dark and shimmering stars. Is it better? Are you free now? An immense feeling of loneliness hit her, settling over her like a familiar blanket. Do you… miss me?

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Conan stir a little. But she kept her blue gaze directed at the star, focusing on it and it alone. Nee-chan… do you think I'll be able to be with you? Do you think…maybe…that I could go up there and see you again? Things might not work out anymore. I didn't want to think like this…but I think that there really might not be a chance. You understand though, don't you nee-chan? We tried our best… For those simple moments, Haibara felt her ice-cold demeanor, her iron shell of protection melt away, and she felt like she was nine again. Raw and exposed. She gazed longingly at the stars. What would it be like to see her precious Akemi again? To be with her for all of eternity…?

Ran suddenly stood up and rushed to Conan's side. Haibara snapped out of it. She felt her cold shell and her icy calm attitude return. She slowly stood up, her muscles stiff. She stretched a bit, and walking slowly towards the thin white hospital bed, she felt all the doubts and worries swing back, heavier than before.

"Ran-neechan?" Conan asked sleepily, confused. "What am I doing here?"

Brushing back a stray strand of his hair, Ran replied gently, "You had a little headache and the nice doctors decided to let you stay the night."

"Okay." Conan nodded.

Ran ducked her head, her hair falling across her face and hiding the drops of tears that were forming around her eyes. It had already been pretty much three days, but Ran still couldn't get used to the way Conan was really like a little kid. Haibara was standing stiffly next to the bed, pretending that she didn't see Ran's tears. Megure poked his head inside.

"Um, hey." He greeted awkwardly. "Uh, it's been pretty much seven thirty now, so it's been an hour since Conan was sedated. He awake?"

Conan replied in a thin, child's voice, "I'm here Megure-sama."

Megure looked a bit flustered to see Conan. "Oh, um, hi. Nice to see you… uh, awake." Turning his head as to address Ran and Ai, he gruffly reported, "Nothing much is happening. We panned out and are searching, but since they're only four of us, we communicate by radio and can't be a very thick protection."

Haibara nodded as Megure continued. "So we're thinly spread out, and I'll be the one posted near this room. Sato is near the elevators, Takagi is down near the other wing on this floor, and Shiratori is pacing around the rest area, near the vending machines. They're kind of spread out, but it's the best we can do right now." And with that, he disappeared, closing the door quietly behind him.

Ran's throat suddenly felt dry as a feeling of anxiety rushed over her. She felt a cold dread gather inside of her. She tried to shake off the feeling, but it returned, stronger than before. It swirled around her, thick and dark as night. Suddenly, feeling chilly, she wrapped her arms around herself. Its fine, she reassured herself. Inspector-sama, Takagi, Shiratori, and Sato are all out there. Besides, what can happen to Conan here? There are so many people…surely the organization can't sneak into here without someone noticing… But she still found it hard to swallow, and engulfed by a terrible premonition, just like that night a year ago.

In the pocket of her jeans, Ran found some change. Holding the bright coins in her hand, she decided to walk over to the vending machines and buy a juice or something.

"Hey, Shiho-san-"

And about that. Haibara kind of found it annoying that Ran used her old name so easily. She had gotten used to the name Haibara Ai. She decided right then that no one would use her old name, Shiho Miyano, except Akemi. And since Akemi was gone, she decided to discard the name. But it would always be somewhere in the back of her mind, linked solely to her memories of her beloved nee-chan.

"Mouri-san." Haibara interrupted, putting her hand up. Ran looked confused. "First of all, I don't really want you calling me Shiho. For pretty much a year, I've gotten used to the name Haibara Ai, and I kind of like it. Even if we manage to destroy the BO, I think I'll start going by my new name instead. So please don't call me Shiho-san anymore, okay?"

Ran looked surprised. "Oh, okay then Shih- I mean Haibara-san. Do you mind if I call you Ai?"

Haibara shook her head. She wasn't as used to it as 'Haibara,' because not many people called her 'Ai.' But before this, Ran had always called her 'Ai-chan' anyway, so…

Ran suddenly continued, as if a thought had struck her. "But, it's on one condition." Now it was Haibara's turn to look confused. "You have to stop calling me Mouri-san, okay? From now on it's Ran, or Ran-san or something."

Haibara raised her eyebrows but couldn't hold back a smile. They shared a warm smile for a few moments, until the sudden resemblance between Ran and Akemi overwhelmed Ai. She broke away and spoke to Conan.

"No worries, Conan. You're safe here."

Conan's brow wrinkled. "I wasn't safe? Why? Are bad guys trying to hurt me?"

Ran realized the awkward tension and quickly replied, "Like Haibara said, there's nothing to worry about? Okay?"

Conan nodded. "Okay!" he agreed happily.

Changing the subject, Ran asked, "Conan, are you thirsty? I could buy you a juice or a soda."

Thinking deeply for a while, Conan finally answered, "I think I'd like an apple juice in a box. Oh, and with a bendy straw too!" he added.

Ran blinked three times and nodded. Smiling at Haibara and Conan one last time, Ran left the room to get some drinks. As the door swung shut, both "children" could hear muffled talking as Ran explained to Megure where she was going.

"Ran-neechan's gonna be alright, right?" Conan asked, his eyes wide. "The bad guys won't hurt her, right?"

For the first time, Haibara felt the wrenching pain Ran did whenever Conan acted so innocent, so much like a little child. For the first time, she missed the Kudo part of the meitantei. Imagine that… she thought wryly. Whenever he's around, he can be so annoying. All chasing after the truth and such. You'd think by now I'd have learned to appreciate who I have before they're gone.

To Conan, she simply reassured, "Ran-neechan will be fine. Remember? Shiratori is near the vending machines. He'll take care of her."

"Okay!" Conan said happily once again. Haibara hadn't made much contact with the Conan after his amnesia, deciding instead to lock herself into the lab and try to research her worries away. Today, she finally realized what Ran had to go through, the agonizingly slow days with a young child shadowed by what he used to be. She clenched her teeth. And even through three straight days of work, she hadn't managed to make much progress.

She glanced at the smooth blue pills she had brought with her in a small, compact case. They would only help an amnesia victim regain their memories, albeit slowly, if they received a strong shock from their past. And it seemed like not even Kudo's love was enough to make him remember. Haibara couldn't think of anything stronger than the former Shinichi's affection toward Ran.

"Wait here, Conan-kun." She ordered Conan. Looking baffled, he obeyed, sitting patiently with the thin sheets drawn around him. She returned half a minute later, carrying the case of pills.

"What's that?" Conan asked, straining to see what Haibara was holding.

Haibara knew that explaining what they really were would be too time consuming and confusing for Conan's now primitive mind. He was already confused enough as it is with his hidden identity and the huge danger of the Black Org. She wanted to see if maybe, just maybe, her pill would work without needing some strong mental shock. So instead of the truth, she told a harmless white lie.

"Edoga- I mean, Conan-kun. Remember the hakase? Prof. Agasa?"

Conan's eyes lit in remembrance. "Yeah, that chubby old man who said he was a scientist?" Haibara had to stifle a snort at Conan's description. She could see the hakase's childishly hurt expression already.

"Yes, him. Well, he thought you were being exceptionally well, trying to remember everything, and he decided to give you some candy."

Conan's bright blue eyes sparkled. "I like candy!"

"Yes, so here it is!" Haibara produced the pills with flourish, their smooth blue surfaces shimmering under the soft glow of the table lamp.

Conan's eyes widened. The pills were rounded and somewhat flat. There were two, both about half the size of a penny.

"Whoa…" he breathed. "They look cool! Do they do anything special? Like all the cool toys Agasa-san made for me?" Haibara winced slightly. The hakase's gadgets were most definitely not toys.

"Um…yeah!" Haibara thought fast. "These pills should do something very interesting. You'll just have to wait and see what happens!" That wasn't totally a lie… They are supposed to help regain his memories… sort of…

Conan was about to take the 'candies' and put them in his mouth when Haibara stopped him. "One more thing, Conan. You can't chew on them; they have to be able to work. You have to swallow them, preferably with water." She gestured toward the glass of water on the small bureau.

Conan looked at the blue pills. "But don't you only have to do that with medicine?" he complained.

Haibara kept forgetting that although he lost his memory he still wasn't a complete child. He had the brain of about an eight year old, after all.

"Um, yes, usually. But these are special pil- candies, remember? Agasa-san made them and to let them work you have to swallow them whole."

"O—kay…" Conan said doubtfully. But he dutifully swallowed the pills with two gulps of water. He licked his lips. "Hey." He said, surprised. "They actually leave a sweet taste in my mouth. Like… sugar."

Haibara was glad that Kudo had complained the first time he tried her antidotes about the bitter taste. Back then she had found it annoying that he seemed so picky, but from then on, she had always added some harmless sweetener into his pills. Force of habit made her do it this time as well, and it made a handy supporting factor.

"Yes, well, they are candies after all." Haibara said mildly. Nothing to do but wait now. The pills will only be active for about six hours…

And speaking of time, where was Ran? She'd been gone for nearly ten minutes. Surely it shouldn't take that long just to get two juices from a vending machine on this floor. The vending machine probably got stuck or maybe she's just talking with Shiratori-san. Haibara dismissed.


It was true. Just down two hallways, Ran was glaring at the vending machine. The two juices had somehow managed to get stuck just as they were about to fall down the slot. They were sort of mashed together, the cardboard boxes crinkling a bit near the edges. Shiratori was ramming his shoulder on the vending machine, attempting to knock the drinks free. Finally, they teetered and fell.

"Yes!" Ran cheered. "Finally! Thanks, Shiratori-san."

Shiratori wiped his brow. "No problem. Those juices sure put up a fight though." He smiled.

They never noticed the man with a faded cap and tattered clothing slink by.


Haibara looked at the clock and sighed. It'd been fifteen minutes already. It was about time for Ran to-

There was a loud thumping noise outside, and a cry of pain. Haibara was instantly on guard.

"What's that?" She asked worriedly. "That sounded like Megure-"

The door burst open and a man with wild eyes burst in. Gin.

Haibara would recognize those eyes anywhere, not to mention strands of silver were loose from his cap.

And he was holding a gun in his left hand.

He raked the room with his piercing glare. His intense gaze fixed on Conan, sitting in the bed and seeming quite bemused. Gin tensed and then flipped a viciously sharp knife from his sleeve. He gripped it tightly and pointed the tip of the blade toward Conan.

"You." He snarled angrily.


Well well. It seemed just when Haibara Ai managed to get hold of a situation, just when she thought she would be pretty much ready for whatever the world threw at her; things like this happened. She felt the situation slipping out of her grasp once again.

Haibara suddenly recognized the wild look in his eyes. The cornered, caged looked. It seemed the organization was hunting Gin, of all people. And he seemed intent on killing a certain Edogawa Conan, before the organization could even get their paws on the meitantei.

Haibara supposed she and Conan should be honored that the world seemed out to destroy them.


*Yeah it was Dr. Faro not Dr. Mikihiko... he was the nice-ish doctor Conan got later on. :P

Well? What do you think? Not too bad, right? Here the actual literal action starts :)

Ohhh yeahhh and I really like the reviews and stuff :D I'm gonna try it again, a little bit differently?

5 reviews= To make me start

10 reviews (counting the previous 5)= For me to publish

Come on, I'm not asking for that many reviews... .

Annnywayssss... see y'all in my next chapter! :)