Perilous Danger
Chapter 9: Perilous Friendship
Conan collapsed to his knees, panting and unable to run any further. He had just run as though his life depended on it—which it quite possibly had—but had not made it far before his head began to pound again and he found himself stopping more out of the fear that he would return to the gasping, helpless lump again than actual necessity.
Great. Paranoia. Just what he needed.
His irritation was heightened when he heard footsteps behind him and found himself jumping out of his skin as his heart racing at a mile a minute.
This isn't like me, he told himself firmly. I'm calm collected, and quick-minded. I do not panic and jump at the slightest hint of danger.
"Well, well, well…" Conan spun around at the voice behind him, mentally cursing for being consumed by his thoughts. "If it isn't a lost little kid. And all alone."
Okay...maybe a little panic isn't out of place here...
There was something unpleasant about that voice that sent a chill down his spine, and his detective instinct flared, the 'criminal alarm' going off at full speed. But in his current state…he wasn't sure whether or not to trust that criminal alarm. He was suffering paranoia, and that wasn't good for instincts.
There were three persons standing before him—probably in their teenage years. They were looking down at him with eyes that he didn't like at all. One had his hair spiked and purple at the tips; another had dyed his long hair brown and tied it in a ponytail; the other was a girl with short hair with pink streaks. They all wore black; the boys had chains around their neck, and the girl wore clothing that was not too revealing, but still exposed her bellybutton ring.
Conan mentally cursed. A gang. Here and now, of all times and places!
Inwardly cursing like there was no tomorrow, he turned and broke into a run. Of course, he ought to have known that it would be useless. He had hardly gotten five steps ahead when he was lifted by the collar and found himself facing the serene face of the girl—young woman, actually—and being held very uncomfortably by the collar.
"Uh-uh," the woman's voice was sweet, but there was a hint of steel in it that allowed no argument. "Little children like you shouldn't be out on their own at times like this. It's getting dark, did you notice?"
Conan gulped.
"So, kid, where do you live?" asked the purple-spiked boy—young man. "Just tell us, and we'll take you home to your mommy and daddy, okay?"
Conan's mind was in a whirl. What should he say? What could he do? How could he get away? He was done for. There was just nothing to be done!
And then he closed his eyes and slammed down on the whirlwind in his mind with all the mental power he had. Panic and hastiness were bad when in a delicate situation. If he kept his cool and had his wits about him, he would be able to seize the moment when an opportunity of escape presented itself.
"Don't go to sleep, kid!" said a third voice, impatient. "How're we supposed to get you home if you don't tell us where you live?"
Conan opened his eyes and glared at the longhaired man who had spoken.
The young woman twisted her body to look around to glare at him as well.
"What do you think you're doing, talking a kid like that? What makes you think he'd tell us where his home is if we snap at him?"
But as she scolded her friend, Conan felt her grip slacken ever so slightly. And he knew that this was his chance of escape.
In a flash, his sneaker was activated and lashing out backwards. It hit the girl's arm, and she released him with a shriek of surprise and pain. He reactivated the sneaker as he fell to the ground, and when he landed on his right foot, the sneaker sent him propelling upwards again.
Conan almost winced—he had been aiming to kick cracks into the concrete to distract the three gangsters, not send himself propelling into the air—but caught himself at the last moment and returned his mind to the present and what he could do. He glanced down to see how far up he was—and his eyes fell on his wrist. When had that string gotten coiled around it?
But he was beginning to fall again, and had no time for questions. With a quick, expert flick of his wrist, the string was in his right hand. He flung it out to the building that towered on his right, and saw it catch on the latch of an open window.
His sharp descent to the ground was halted with a jerk, and he was slammed into the wall. He probably would have let go of the string and fallen if he hadn't anticipated that and clutched his right hand with his left. He remained in place, eyes closed, for a moment as he gathered his strength once more. He ignored the pain of pulled muscles in his arms, and the pain of impact in his head and upper body. Instead, he concentrated on pulling himself up and into the window.
He did not look down to see what the gangsters were doing. He could hear their voices, but jumped down into the room beyond the window without trying to hear what they were saying. If they were not from the Organization or the police force, then they had no reason to target him specifically. He ought to be able to get away.
Conan looked around, but the room that he had entered was bare. Warning himself to be cautious, he tiptoed across the room and opened the door-
No. It was locked, and there was no keyhole or lock on the inside.
Sighing and swallowing his frustration, Conan made his way back to the window and looked down. The gangsters were gone—that was a good thing. He was one storey above ground level—that was a bad thing.
He remembered Ran leaping down one storey out the window once. But how could he, in this unfit body of a child? He'd definitely break a leg or two—and, depending on how he landed, possibly an arm, a back, or a neck to go with it.
Conan forced down the frustration that began to well up inside him. Calm. He needed to be calm.
He noticed a drainage pipe making its way down the wall beside the window. Conan looked at it thoughtfully. Yes, it looked like it could probably hold his weight. And the space between the pipe and the wall where the regular metal fastenings attached the two was large enough that he could probably fit a foot or a hand in one for support.
Conan grinned to himself. Yes, his wits were definitely back about him.
He clambered up onto the windowsill and carefully reached out to take hold of the nearest of the metal bars with his right hand. Then, holding the pipe with his left, he reached out his foot onto the one below. And then he climbed down, ever so slowly, until he saw the rock wall coming level with his feet. He released the pipe, leaping lightly onto the top of the wall. When he jumped off, back into the street, he was grinning to himself with satisfaction. He was quite sure that he could not have even thought of doing something as easy as that a couple hours ago.
He hurried on his way, for fear that the three teens should find him again. However, he still had not seen them when he saw the next station ahead. Sighing in relief, he slowed his steps. A glance at his watch told him that it was four-thirty.
Conan winced. This was taking much longer than he'd thought…he must still be tired.
"Conan-kun!"
Conan winced. And forced himself to calm down. It was paranoia. He had heard nothing. He couldn't possibly have heard anything. There was no way that they would just happen to be here at a time as late as this… Yes, he had just imagined it. But just as he was beginning to head on his way…
"I said, Conan-kun!"
Conan winced again. Or not. But maybe he was just thinking that it was Ayumi's voice and it was actually someone else…
But when he turned and looked at the person behind him, it was, indeed, Ayumi; and worse, she was closely followed by Genta and Mitsuhiko.
It was official: Conan had never suffered a worse case of luck. He could have cursed his luck straight into the underworld just then.
In fact, that was what he did do. He balled his fists and let loose a string of curses to the sky, pounding his head wildly.
When he finished, he looked up, panting for breath, to see his current classmates gaping at him.
"Wow," Genta said in obvious awe, "I've never even heard half those words!"
"Yes," agreed a disapproving Mitsuhiko. "But I remember Mother telling me not to use some of them. You really should not use words like that, Conan-kun."
"Come on, guys!" Ayumi chided the two boys, concerned for Conan. "Conan-kun, did something happen? You don't look too well."
Conan would have dearly loved to snap at them that yes, he had had a horrible day, and they were the (decaying) cherries on the (curdled) icing on the (rock-hard) cake. But he had enough sense to take a deep breath, swallow the words, and greet them with a (fake) smile.
"No, no, I'm perfectly fine!" He hoped that they didn't catch the (rather obvious) sarcasm in the statement. "I just haven't had much sleep."
"Oh," said Ayumi, pacified. "Okay."
This is not to say that none of the Detective Boys noticed the strain in their friend's smile or the odd tone in his statement. However, they decided that he just had a little cold and was pretending he didn't.
"You have to take good care of your body," Mitsuhiko told him firmly.
"Aw, don't be so stiff," said Genta. "We're all going to my house to play video games and have a sleep over! Want to come, Conan?" All three looked at Conan with eyes so wide with enthusiasm that, under normal conditions, he would have been unable to refuse.
However, things being as they were at the moment, Conan did not even consider it.
"No, sorry guys. I've got to be at Tokyo Tower by five."
"Five?" repeated Ayumi, looking at her watch. "But Conan-kun, it's 4:35. You'll take longer of that walking."
"Why are you walking, anyway?" asked Mitsuhiko.
"Yeah, it's not that hard to use the trains, you know," Genta added.
Conan placed a hand to his forehead. He was getting a headache, and could foresee himself snapping at the three seven-year-olds in the near future if he didn't do something about it soon.
"I know, I know," Conan muttered. "I'd be on the train right now if I had more than twenty yen with me."
"Oh, that's it?" asked Genta, suddenly grinning. "Okay, then. We'll all pay for your ticket, and then we'll all go to Tokyo Tower!"
Conan took a deep breath, well aware that he should not shout.
"It's getting late. Shouldn't you guys be getting home?"
Of course, he should have expected the piercing glares that he fell on the receiving end of with that statement.
"Honestly, Conan-kun, you're the same age as we are!" chided Ayumi. "Stop acting like you're a grown-up talking to kids when you're talking to us!"
"Oh, yeah, I'm your age, alright," Conan could not resist muttering to himself. "I just happen to be ten years older, too."
Unfortunately, this reached his friends' ears.
"What? Ten years older than us? But that would make you…make you…" The calculation was made extremely difficult for Genta, as he could only get up to three years older—after that, he ran out of fingers.
"Seventeen," Mitsuhiko supplied. "And almost eighteen. Conan-kun, you're seven years old. Almost eight. See? I'm taller than you. You'd be much taller if you were seventeen."
He was speaking as though speaking to one who was mentally deranged. And indeed, perhaps Conan was, because it took much more mental power than it should have to keep from shouting that he was ten years older than them, and the only reason that he was so short and looking like a child was because of that #$& $!+# pill!
…Obviously, the symptoms of lack of sleep were beginning to show—and rather strongly, too.
"Look," said Conan with forced calmness. "I really need to get to Tokyo Tower, okay? So I'll just see you guys…later."
But of course, anyone who knew the Detective Boys could have foreseen that not one of them would let him simply walk away like that. And so that was how Conan ended up on the train, the Detective Boys chattering happily beside him.
"Listen, I really don't think you guys should be coming with me," Conan tried feebly, even with the knowledge that the attempt would fail.
"Stop it, Conan-kun!" frowned Ayumi. "We're all friends, and so we'll stick together and help each other. Don't try to throw us off like we're in your way. We're your friends!"
Wonderful. Conan was having trouble resisting rolling his eyes. Just what I need. Friends—otherwise known as ready-made blackmail material.
"But your parents will worry, you know," Conan muttered
"Mother should not be too angry if I am back by seven," said Mitsuhiko confidently.
"What if I told you that I might not be finished by seven?" snapped Conan, sending Mitsuhiko a piercing look.
"Come on," groaned Genta. "You're going to Tokyo Tower when it's already dark! There's not much to do there."
"I'm not going to do things," Conan snapped back. The Detective Boys stared at him for a minute, and then their faces broke into grins.
"I smell a mystery," said Mitsuhiko.
"What kind of gold's hidden in Tokyo Tower?" asked Genta enthusiastically.
"Tell us, Conan-kun! Tell us!" That was Ayumi with sparkling eyes.
Conan took a few moments to gather his wits. He could not afford to let anything important slip.
"Look," he said slowly, glaring at the three children. "What business I have there is my business, and mine alone. After we get there, we are going our separate ways. And I know that you're going to want to follow me, so I'll tell you this." He paused a moment. "I am involved in a mystery, and that is precisely why you should not follow me. I'm dealing with something much bigger, scarier, and much, much more dangerous than anything you've ever done. So just stay away, okay?"
The Detective Boys stared at him for a moment. Then they glared.
"You always try to do that!" complained Genta. "It's always 'you're not going to be able to deal with it, so go home and stay out of it'."
"Well, Conan-kun, you are just as young as we are," Mitsuhiko went on. "If it is too dangerous for us, then it is too dangerous for you. So then you should be staying out of it, too."
Conan rubbed his forehead.
"I'm already in this neck-deep, okay? I can't stay out of it, because I'm a part of it."
"That doesn't make sense," frowned Ayumi. "Here, Conan-kun, why don't you tell us all about it? If it's too dangerous, we'll help you find a way out of it."
Conan's forced calmness broke. He leapt out of his seat.
"Did you not just hear me say that I can't get out?" he snapped sharply. "Hell, I'm probably way past neck-deep! I'm submerged! Just the fact that I'm sitting here talking with you is proof of that!"
And then he realized what he'd done. Conan dropped his face into his hands. He heard the Detective Boys speak in curiosity and concern, but he turned his back on them and walked to the train door. When it opened, he walked out as swiftly as he could.
"Wait, Conan-kun!" he heard them call from behind. He heard their footsteps as they ran after him.
Conan tried walking faster, but he heard them continue to follow him and call to him to stop or wait. Finally, when he had almost reached the base of Tokyo Tower, he stopped and turned. Genta froze where he had been about to tap Conan on the shoulder.
"This has nothing to do with you whatsoever," said Conan slowly and clearly. "Go home."
With that, he spun around and walked off as fast as his little legs could walk. This time, he did not hear them trying to follow.
"You're late," came a voice to his left. Conan jumped and spun around.
"Oh," he sighed in relief. "Kuroba."
"Indeed," said the young man, looking the child's body up and down. "You look in much better physical condition. You took my advice and went to a doctor, I take it?"
Conan snorted.
"No. I collapsed on the street, got kidnapped and threatened by a police officer, ran away, and was saved by a little old woman who lives in the sewers and knows everything."
Kaito blinked.
"Pardon?"
"I collapsed on the street, got kidnapped and threatened by a police officer, ran away, and was saved by a little old woman who lives in the sewers and knows everything."
"Yeah, I heard you the first time," said Kaito, waving a hand. "What I mean is, what's this about a police officer and a little old woman?"
"Well, it would appear that the Organization's been putting some members undercover in the police force. And it seems to be pretty widespread. For instance, I saw Inspector Shiratori talking with people from the Organization. And…I think the old woman told me to remember something else, but I forgot."
"Wait, wait, hold up. The Organization's in the police force? But that'd pretty much mean that we have no allies, wouldn't it?"
"Kuroba. We're involved in a huge Organization that seems to have no single purpose…" Conan trailed off, his eyes distant.
"Kudo?" called Kaito, leaning down to his height and waving a hand in front of his face. "Kudo, you all right?"
"Vermouth told me," said Conan, his eyes distant, "That the Organization was formed with a single goal in mind, and that everything they do is for the sake of that one goal." Conan looked up at Kaito. "If we could figure out that goal, don't you think we'd be able to do quite a bit more than we are now?"
Kaito stared.
"Why're you only telling me this now?"
"I'd forgotten."
"Okay, okay. But we don't have any clues to that single purpose now, so what's this about a little old woman?"
"She's a little old woman who lives in the sewers and knows everything."
"Yes, you've said all that already. Isn't there anything else you know about her?"
"She keeps warning me of…stuff."
"Stuff?"
"Yeah. Like she told me I should hide when a police officer was coming along. I didn't listen to her, and he kidnapped and threatened me. Then, when I ran away, she popped out of a manhole right in front of me while I was running and pulled me in and led me to this little hole that she seemed to live in. Then she fixed me up and told me that she really thought I should sleep, but that I didn't have time because I had to meet you. Then she hinted that the Organization had people in the police."
"What? Why'd you tell her you were meeting me?"
"I didn't. Didn't I just tell you that she's a little old woman who knows everything? I mean, she even knew that you were in the Organization's headquarters and that I'd just come from there."
Kaito stared a moment, then shuddered.
"Creepy. And you say she was where the police officer kidnapped you, and then shortly after that she was where you ran away from the guy?"
Conan's brow furrowed.
"You know, I never really thought of that… It'd odd enough that she knew exactly where I'd run away, but it's even odder that she was right there—I mean, I was in a car and she didn't have any vehicle at all."
"Everyone knows cars aren't the best method of transportation in this country—it probably crossed too many railroad tracks and met too many red lights- Okay, sorry, sorry. It was probably just driving around in circles, anyway." Kaito swiftly retracted his joking at Conan's glare. "So anyway, what now?"
"How'd you get away?" asked Conan.
Kaito shrugged.
"Pretty easily. You'd be surprised how little they use their closets. When they found the chains empty in the basement, they assumed I'd already escaped, so they weren't looking for me inside."
"Lucky you," muttered Conan.
"Oh yeah," replied the chipper Kaito. "It seems that all your luck's been transferred to me in recent days, doesn't it?"
"You call being kidnapped on a heist 'lucky'?"
"Apart from that," shrugged Kaito. "After that, I got information, food, and water. Pretty lucky considering my situation, wouldn't you say?"
"Again, lucky you. So what're we doing now?"
"Well-"
CRACK!
Conan felt something brush his left cheek. A moment later, the gentle brush turned to a burning pain. He reached up and touched it, and felt something warm and wet.
"Great," he muttered to himself. "More blood."
But just then there was another CRACK! and at the same time he felt himself being lifted and thrown to the side by the scruff of the neck.
"Jeez, Kudo!" shouted Kaito, throwing himself on the ground beside Conan. "I understand that your body's in dire need of sleep, but couldn't you do us all the favor of noticing when people are shooting at you? You know, with those black shiny things that shoot out this little balls so fast that they dig holes right through you? I believe most people refer to them as 'guns'. Does that ring any bell?"
"Stop mocking me-"
But Kaito had lifted him and thrown him to the side again as another CRACK! resounded through the air.
"Pay attention!" Kaito snapped angrily.
And then Conan was suddenly aware of the people screaming as they ran left and right. He leapt to his feet and looked around for the shooter.
When the next CRACK! came, he had already leapt into the midst of a crowd of people—the person probably wouldn't try to shoot him there.
But he could not stay in the crowd too long, for he could not afford to become separated from Kuroba.
There was another CRACK! Closely following it were children's screams.
"Conan-kun!" he heard a horribly familiar voice scream. "Someone's shooting at us!"
Conan spun around, eyes blazing. He grabbed his friends and shoved them behind a small shop with himself.
"I told you not to follow me! Didn't I say I had to do this alone? It's too dangerous, so you go home!"
"Too late for that," said another voice, joining them behind the shop.
The Detective Boys stared up at the young man in horror, and made to back away. However, Conan held them firmly in place and refused to let them move. If they backed away, after all, they would back out from the shelter of the shop.
"They've seen them with you, and that you know each other. You know that that's damning enough for them."
"You know, you really should not use words like-"
"Shut up, Mitsuhiko!" snapped Conan. The Detective Boys stared at him, wide-eyed in shock.
"Normally, I'd tell you not to snap at children like that, but I think there's something else I'd like to say to you instead." Kaito's falsely cheerful tone dropped, and his eyes narrowed dangerously. "What in the world possessed you to bring innocent little children into this, you blasted psychotic moron!?"
"Look, I happened to meet them, I kept letting things slip by accident when I tried to stop them coming, and the end result is that they're being shot at, too. If I weren't so tired-"
"And didn't have a concussion. Let's not forget the concussion."
"Actually, I think the old woman healed that."
"Really? How?"
"She knows everything, that's how. Shouldn't we be trying to stay away from the- Run!"
Conan and Kaito dragged and shoved the Detective Boys out of the way. The person with the gun, masked with a black scarf, had taken the time of their conversation to walk around to the back of the shop.
"Now what?" groaned Conan through pants as they ran.
"I could give you a couple options if we weren't dragging three kids along!" snapped Kaito.
"Stop talking abou-"
"Shut up!" This time it was both Kaito and Conan who shouted at Ayumi.
She cringed, wide-eyed, and ducked her head to hide the tears that came to her eyes. She had just wanted to defend her friends. Why were they so angry? She, Mitsuhiko, and Genta had wormed their way into a fair number of mysteries that Conan was trying to hog. He had often been mad at them, but would always give in after a time. So why was he so upset with them now? He definitely didn't look like he'd be changing his mind about that any time soon.
Ayumi couldn't suppress the shudder that ran down her spine. Somehow, she was beginning to get the feeling that this was one mystery that she and the other two shouldn't have poked their noses into. Were they going to be killed? Would Conan and this big teenager die with her, Genta, and Mitsuhiko, all because they had gotten themselves involved when they should have just gone home?
She sniffed.
VVVVVVVVVV
Ran sighed.
Maybe it would have been a better idea if she had chosen to remain with Akako and Saguru. They were kind and intelligent; surely it could not have been that bad?
But she quickly shook off the thought. They had different goals. Saguru and Akako were looking for two people who had gone missing for who-knows-what reason, as was she, but the chances that Nakamori Aoko, Kuroba Kaito (or Kaitou Kid), and Kudo Shinichi (or Edogawa Conan) were all together in the same location were very slim.
Most likely, the three of them were scattered in completely different locations. Shinichi and Kid captured (by different people for different reasons, most likely), and Aoko searching for her childhood friend: it would, in fact, be rather strange if they were all together.
But even so, wandering around all alone was not very appealing to her—especially when she had no idea where to go. She had just gone back and tried her home. All the windows were closed and the doors to both the residency and the office were locked. Where had her father gone?
Sighing, Ran was about to make her way to the nearby building to see if Detectives Takagi and Sato were still there…and then she thought that perhaps she had better check the Professor's house, as well.
She was not feeling very hopeful as she rang the bell, and so jumped out of her skin when the Professor opened the front door and darted out. He looked rather disappointed when he saw her, however,
"Ah, Ran-kun," said Professor Agasa, giving a forced smile. Ran felt decidedly odd—normally, the Professor wasn't one to disguise his emotions. "You wouldn't happen to have seen Shi- Conan-kun at any point in the recent past, would you?"
"No, actually," said Ran casually, pretending not to notice his slipup. "I've been looking for Shinichi since last night."
"Shi- Shinichi-kun?" Professor Agasa repeated nervously. "Why would you be looking for him? He's on a case, and he'll be back when it's done."
"Oh, yes, because he's been here all along, hasn't he?" said Ran. Her eyes glinted with suppressed frustration. "Always trying to puzzle out the mystery that surrounds him, living in my house in disguise, never bothering to let me know, all because of this stupid case!" Professor Agasa cringed. Not to say that he hadn't expected her to find out someday, but the timing was just…
"Well, let me tell you something," Ran went on. Tears were beginning to pool in her eyes, and she couldn't stop them anymore than she could stop the words that were rushing from her mouth in a whirl. "Last night, three FBI agents came into my house. They told me about Shinichi being Conan, and how Ai-chan's in the same condition. They told me everything, and then told me that Shinichi and Ai-chan were actually in deliberate disguise to help this criminal organization by spying! And they wanted to take me hostage so that they could catch Shinichi through me. But I couldn't—I can't—believe that Shinichi would do something like that, and Ai-chan… Well, she's mysterious and quiet and not at all childlike, and I know that she doesn't like me at all, but she's obviously smart, and there're times when you can just see that something's hurting her inside, and she obviously has a good heart that's hurting. I don't know her all that well, but I just know that she'd never do that!"
Ran took a deep breath in an attempt to steady herself and calm her mind, but when her breaths grew a little more steady, what remained of her emotional barriers came crashing down. The tears began to flow in rivers, and she fell to her knees on the ground where she rocked herself back and forth with her face in her hands. She hardly noticed Professor Agasa kneeling beside her in concern.
"And there's the FBI and there's this organization and everything's so messed up, and somehow the Japanese police force is getting involved, too! The FBI came after me and I ran away, but after that when I tried calling Dad no one was home, and Mom left her office, and you weren't home, and Shinichi's phone was off so I tried Conan's number but this man shouted at me… And I found Detectives Sato and Takagi and asked them to help me, but they were suspicious of Shinichi and Ai-chan too, and then they got a letter from Shinichi that said there was a bomb, and they went to deal with that, but I went on my own and met Saguru-san and Akako-san, and they were looking for people, too! They have a friend named Kuroba Kaito who was also Kaitou Kid, but Kid disappeared on his last heist and no one knows why, but he didn't do it himself because after that he disappeared, and then his friend Nakamori Aoko didn't look too well the day after that, and then after that she suddenly disappeared and no one knew where she'd gone! And I'm so scared, Professor—it's like people are just disappearing off the face of the planet one after the other: Shinichi, Mom, Dad, and even people I'd never heard of before! And I almost expected everyone to be gone, and so I was so shocked when I rang the doorbell and you were here, because everyone's just vanishing and never reappearing! I even tried calling Hattori-kun and Kazuha-chan in Osaka, and no one answered at either house! Oh, Professor, I'm just lost…and I don't know where to look anymore…"
The Professor was rubbing Ran's back soothingly as she sobbed.
"It's all right…" he said to her calmly. What she needed at that moment was something solid in a world that seemed to be turning upside down before her eyes. "Things aren't always as bad as they seem, Ran-kun."
"Not as bad?" Ran asked with a bitter laugh as she raised her tearstained face from her hands. "You could always say that everyone decided to take a vacation without warning in some other country, but who'd believe that?"
"No," said Ai, coming out and speaking calmly as the Professor stood, helping Ran up with him.
Ran looked at the girl, unsure of how to look at her. She found, however, that she could hardly look at her at all. In fact, strange thoughts were beginning to circle in her mind.
This girl—woman, actually—had known who Shinichi was all along. She had been one of the few people who had known. No, scratch that—not only had she known that Edogawa Conan was Kudo Shinichi, she had worked with him on whatever the mess was that surrounded him, and her as well. Being the only two people in that condition, no doubt they had formed a connection or bond of sorts that could be understood by no other. Ran felt her chest tighten at the thought. All this time, had she been a burden? Shinichi had been trying so hard to solve the case and return to normal, and all the while she had only constantly scolded him to come home, and, on occasion, held suspicions about his disguise. No doubt that had only served to stress Shinichi out even further and increase his workload. Had Ai-chan been Shinichi's pillar of support throughout all that? When he had been tired of trying to convince her that he was Conan, not Shinichi, had Ai-chan sat beside him and comforted him, telling him that it was okay, that Ran simply didn't understand?
Ran guiltily averted her eyes. Why was she thinking this way? Ai-chan had never done anything to her, and her eyes were now compassionate. And all she could do was think about how Ai-chan might have been comforting and supporting Shinichi in the ways that she had wanted? Of all the times to be jealous…!
"In this case, almost everyone you mentioned is, in fact, in grave danger and tangled in the dangerous web of the Organization," Ai went on. Already in emotional turmoil as Ran was, it probably was not very easy to see from the outside that it had just gotten worse. "But we do have a Nakamori Aoko in our care. We haven't been able to get a word of sense out of her, but you're in a situation similar to her own—maybe she'll talk to you."
That was all that Ai said before she stepped back into the house, holding the door open for Agasa to stagger in, supporting Ran.
Inside, he sat her on a couch. Through the fog in her mind that was clearing much too slowly for her liking, Ran managed to notice that Ai had vanished. That brought her thoughts back to what she had been thinking moments before, and made her wonder.
She remembered that though Ai-chan had joined Conan's group of friends fairly early on after appearing, she had always made an effort to avoid her—Ran. Had Shinichi talked about her as Conan? No doubt he couldn't tell his classmates anything about her, for as Conan, he could see her as nothing but a guardian. But the fact of the matter was that they were best friends who had known each other all their lives, and Ai-chan knew that Conan was actually seventeen. So that meant that they had most likely had conversations as two adults when they could. Had Shinichi ever mentioned her to Ai-chan in such conversations?
Ran felt numb. Had he mentioned her with affection, causing Ai-chan's jealousy to direct her way? Or had he mentioned her constant prying and nagging with annoyance, making Ai-chan wary of her? The second sounded more likely. After all, the first assumed that Shinichi liked her in ways she was sure he didn't, and that Ai-chan liked Shinichi in that same way. Of course, it was possible. Just not as much as…
She felt her chest tighten so much that she couldn't breathe. Of all the silly things to do! All those times that she had guessed his identity, she had known that there was a reason why he was keeping it from her. But the thought that he was lying to her had been unbearable, and she simply had to ask him. Now that she thought back, however, she had probably only caused more trouble. She should have trusted him—trusted that he would tell her when he could.
She began to choke, attempting to hold back sobs. She pulled her legs up in front of her and buried her face in her knees. Her jeans smelled terrible, she noticed vaguely. And yet the smell was somehow calming. Not of washing and cooking as her clothing usually smelled, but of dirt and trees and grass. The smell freed her, she realized. Because it told her that she had made an effort. That she had been running around, hiding in trees, and overall doing the best she could for the missing best friend that she loved.
So she stayed that way for a time. She heard Professor Agasa come in quietly and place something on the table before leaving again, but she did not look up. Eventually, the tears were all soaked up by her jeans, and her choked sobs had subsided as well. She slowly drew her face out of her knees.
She saw a mug of tea on the table in front of her—doubtlessly what Professor Agasa had brought—but did not question why he had brought it only about a minute after leaving her in the living room. Perhaps they had already been making tea for that other girl—Aoko. They had said something about her being distraught, hadn't they?
Giving an imperceptible shake of her head, Ran dried her tears on her sleeve and took a sip of the tea. She couldn't even find the energy to curse herself when the warm comfort that filled her from the inside with that one sip of tea brought two more tears slipping down her cheeks. And to think that some people called her strong…
"Are you…Mouri Ran?"
Ran did not even jump when an unfamiliar voice addressed her from behind. She looked around to see a girl standing there. She was about her own age, and she supposed they did look a little similar, although the other girl's hair was much shorter than her own and in her opinion, even their faces did not seem much alike. And yet that girl's own friends had mistaken Ran for her? Strange... Maybe they were lacking sleep as much as she was. Or maybe they were just over-stressed.
"Nakamori Aoko, I suppose?" asked Ran quietly.
"Yes," said the girl. She walked over, sat on the couch beside Ran, and picked up the cup of tea waiting there.
Normally, one would wait to be invited before sitting and drinking tea that way. However, at that particular moment, neither had the energy for formalities.
"A boy named Conan stays—stayed—in my house," Ran began, staring into her tea. "One night, he got a strange note from a woman who came to see my father—he's a detective. Dad was a little annoyed, and told Conan-kun to read the letter. It sounded like a threat, or maybe blackmail. But then Conan-kun ran off, saying that he'd come here. That night, as I found out later, he was attacked not far from my home and kidnapped soon afterwards. But at a ridiculously late hour at night, three men came to my house. They wanted to talk to me. They said that Conan-kun was actually Shinichi, a childhood friend of mine who disappeared on the same day that Conan-kun appeared, and that he'd shrunk himself as a disguise. Ai-chan was in the same condition too, they said, and they were convinced that the two of them were spies for some criminal organization. But Shinichi's a detective, and I was positive that he'd never do anything like that, so I ran away. I spent the night in a park, and in the morning went to some detectives I know. I also tried calling my parents, but I couldn't reach either; I tried Shinichi's phone, and it didn't work, so I tried Conan-kun's number. A man answered and shouted at me. Then I found out that Conan-kun had been attacked and kidnapped, and the detectives who were helping me found out that there was a bomb in the building that we were investigating from a letter from Shinichi. I don't know what to make of anything now, because they say that Shinichi was kidnapped, and yet he wrote a letter about the bomb and had it delivered. Does that mean he got away, or that they threatened him into writing it?"
Ran sighed. Then she looked up at the other girl.
"After that, I met two people—Saguru-san and Akako-san. I believe they're friends of yours. They were looking for you and a friend of yours named Kuroba Kaito." Aoko averted her eyes and did not reply. "What happened to you?"
Aoko remained silent for a time. Ran did not press her for a reply. She swirled her tea, watching the light reflect on the surface as she took the occasional sip.
"I was protesting against Kid on the night of his heist," Aoko began. "But when he disappeared, and not in any usual way either, I was probably more shocked than I should have been. Kaito was staring at these papers for all of last week, and that made me nervous. I always tried to read them, and he'd never let me. I tried to convince him, but he wouldn't listen. The most I got was a glance at one at lunchtime on the day of the heist, but that scared me. It was written in letters from the newspaper—the kind that people do when they're writing threats and don't want to be known. And so I was already shaken that night, and when I heard that Kid had just disappeared, and not in his usual flamboyant way, I was nervous. The next morning, I just wanted reassurance that the world was still turning the right way, so I went to Kaito's house a bit earlier than usual. Only…he wasn't there, and apparently hadn't been since the night before. I was even more nervous, so I tried climbing into his room through the window. I found the notes—they were right under his pillow. They were all threats—'hand over the Pandora now' and 'do as we say if you value your life'—but they were all addressed to Kid. I just didn't understand why letters to that…that thief would be in Kaito's room, but then I heard people at the window. I did the first thing I could think of and hid other the bed. I think it must have been two men that came in—I heard two men's voices anyway—and they were just talking and talking and talking. They said how it was odd that Kid was so young, and they mentioned that they 'couldn't leave without the evidence'. They wanted the letters, I guess, because as soon as they saw them on the bed where I'd left them, they took them and left again. But throughout the whole thing, they were talking like Kaito was Kid! I couldn't believe it! Of all the absurd…! But then I got to school…"
Aoko's lips were trembling now. Ran still did not press her. She pitied this poor girl. She herself had not been too shocked to learn that Conan and Shinichi were one and the same—it was a suspicion that had always lingered at the back of her mind, after all. But this girl obviously cared for Kaito and despised Kid. To learn that they were one…
"At school, Kaito was absent. I thought he'd come—I waited and waited—but he didn't. And then I started to wonder, what if he actually was Kid? And oh, I felt so horrible for thinking that. But Kaito didn't come all day. I got worried, then, so I did the only thing I could think of—I went out to look for him. I was lucky that those men in Kaito's room had loose jaws, because I had some information. They'd mentioned taking 'the thief' to Haido City Hotel, and something about a boy and girl they wanted from Beika City. I was pretty sure that if they thought Kaito was Kid, then he was probably the thief they were taking to Haido City Hotel. So I went there. I asked after Kaito at the reception. They said that they had seen someone like that, and he'd left that morning. I was surprised that they all remembered what he looked like, and they shrugged and said anyone would have. I asked why. They said…" Aoko took a deep breath. "They said that he'd had two large, muscular men in black on either side, his clothes were in tatters, he was bruised with one cheek bleeding, and there were black circles under his eyes like he hadn't slept in ages, but he was expressionless as though nothing was wrong. I asked if they knew where he'd gone, but they were looking at me suspiciously and said no. So I left alone. I only had a little money, and it was night by then, but I didn't want to spend the night in a hotel and use all that money up at once. So I wandered around, and eventually went to sleep in a park. I started wandering around again this morning after I bought a small breakfast at a 7-11, but then I had no idea where to look again. When I was wandering around, asking in various places if anyone had seen anyone like Kaito, the Professor here found me and asked what was wrong. I guess I was panicking at that point…so he calmed me down and brought me here."
Aoko took a deep breath. Then she narrowed her eyes and looked straight at Ran.
"Kaito can't be Kid. I just know he can't!" Ran blinked in surprise. "I mean, if he were Kid, that'd mean that he's been lying to me for years, right? He wouldn't do that! Unless, maybe if there were some reason that made him really determined to be Kid, but Kaito doesn't have that kind of seriousness in him! He might have an excellent poker face, but he's only occasionally serious—he's generally a goofball! If he really had something serious enough for him to go all over the place stealing and returning jewels and lying to everyone about it, he wouldn't have the time or presence of mind to joke around the way he does! And he would have told me!"
Ran stared. Aoko's eyes were fluttering left and right, and her eyes were narrowed with a defiant light shining in them. This reminded her of something…didn't she act like that sometimes? When did she act this way? But Aoko wasn't finished.
"And what about those times that I met him at Kid heists? How could he do that if he were really Kid? Kid may be a magician, and Kaito may be able to do some silly tricks, too, but even the best magician can't talk to a friend and watch while he steals something five hundred feet away at the same time! It just doesn't fit! Those guys must have been wrong—maybe they caught Kid and then Kid got away and kidnapped Kaito to put in his place to keep them from realizing that he was gone. I know it sounds ridiculous, but the idea of Kaito being Kid is even more ridiculous! It can't be! Kid's a cheeky thief that steals precious gems just for the fun of it, and even returns them later. Kaito's a goofball with irritating moments, but he has a good heart underneath it all. Those people must be wrong!"
Aoko crossed her arms with a huff and glared at Ran as though daring her to contradict her.
And then it struck Ran. Denial. Goodness knows she had acted that way often enough when she hadn't wanted to believe something—granted, she generally tried not to do it in public. When she was young, she had found that people could tell when she was in denial from her tendency to argue much more than she ordinarily would have. It was better to just not mention it.
Ran herself had had no need for denial upon hearing that Conan was Shinichi. Conan hadn't even been living with her a month the first time the thought had crossed her mind. And after that, with every time that she suspected and was somehow proved wrong, her suspicion had grown. By the time that she had been told that Conan was Shinichi, it really couldn't even have been called a surprise anymore. On a subconscious level, Ran had expected to learn that very fact for sure at any given time.
But things were obviously different for Aoko. It was apparent that she had never suspected it—no, perhaps she had suspected before, but either the evidence had been too weak for her to take it very seriously, or she had shoved the suspicions aside and refused to look at them full in the face. Well, if she hated Kid and loved Kaito (and she obviously did, and though Ran was not so presumptuous as to assume what sort of love it was, she had her suspicions), then it would make sense that she would not want to see the truth. It was one matter to realize that two separate identities that you were familiar with were one; it was ten times worse when you had strong emotions for both of the two—strong emotions on opposite ends of the spectrum.
Ran sighed and shook her head.
"You don't believe me?" Aoko asked. Ran looked up quickly, but the girl's face was emotionless.
Ran quickly shook her head. She mentally reprehended herself. She was acting as though Saguru-san and Akako-san were right and Kuroba Kaito was Kaitou Kid. Who was she to judge? She had never even met the person in question, and the three people that she had spoken with who did know him on a personal level were not people that she had known before today. Of course Aoko would be in denial! She had been forced to look the possibility that Kuroba Kaito was Kid in the face. Whether or not Kuroba Kaito was Kid was not apparent.
"That wasn't what I meant. I was just thinking that we're faced with similar situations—hearing that two people we were familiar with were the same identity—and reacting in completely different ways. I'm sorry—I really can't say much in the way of believing or disbelieving what you say, since I really don't know all that much. I just know what I'm hearing from you now, and what Saguru-san and Akako-san told me earlier."
"Oh yes," said Aoko, suddenly alert. "Did they have any idea what might have happened to Kaito?"
Ran did not hesitate for more than a moment before shaking her head.
"No. Nothing. That was why I separated from them—none of us had any leads, so there really wasn't any point in hoping that I'd do better by going with them." Something told her that it wasn't a good idea to tell this girl that her two friends believed Kuroba Kaito to be Kid as well. She herself knew nothing, so she would do best to not spout more possibilities to the already distressed girl. Even worse would be to mention what the FBI agents had said to her—she had deliberately left the part about the photo album out from her story.
Aoko blinked a moment, and then suddenly smiled. A light blush rose to her cheeks, as though she had only just realized that she had ranted to someone who was almost a complete stranger about her opinion on something that did not concern her in the least.
"I'm sorry," she apologized. "I didn't mean to have you put up with all this. I really just meant to tell you what happened, but I got sort of caught up… I'm a little anxious at the moment."
Indeed, her smile was a little shaky.
"Don't worry," Ran smiled back. "All of us caught up in this mess are in trouble. I think we'd do best to pretend we've known each other for years and drop all the formalities."
Aoko laughed.
"Unorthodox, isn't it?"
"I, personally, don't have the time or energy left for 'orthodox'," Ran replied.
"Good," sighed Aoko tiredly. "I don't either."
"So do you think Shinichi and Kuroba-san are caught up in the same mess?"
"Probably," Aoko sighed again. "I mean, all these disappearances happening in one night? Maybe that criminal organization you mentioned is up to something."
"Or the FBI," Ran added.
"About that," Aoko said with furrowed brows, "What's the FBI doing in Japan?"
"You're asking me?"
"Well, you've met them."
"They didn't say anything about it."
"Yes, but you talked to them, right? They didn't say anything that you could make a guess from?"
"By the sound of it, they weren't concerned with anything but putting every single member of the Organization behind bars, using whatever means they could think of."
"But America has nothing to do with it!" protested Aoko. "This organization can't possibly be that wide-spread, and it's rooted in Japan, from the sound of it. So what's the FBI doing?"
"You know," Ran murmured thoughtfully. "I think there might be someone I can ask about that."
"Ask?" Aoko looked at Ran dubiously. "Do you mean to say that you know someone who can get in touch with the FBI?"
"No," Ran replied with a winning grin as she stood. "But I might know someone who's in the FBI."
VVVVVVVVVV
It was not until six hours later, when the sun had already set and all was dark, that the two girls stood in front of the apartment nervously. The Professor had convinced both of them to take baths, and then had noted the circles under Ran's eyes. So she had taken a short nap. Then she had realized that she could not remember the address, and so had asked the Professor for the spare key to her apartment that he kept in his home (which had been there since an incident involving Conan, a forgotten key, and nobody home).
"Don't get your hopes up," Ran said quietly to her new friend as they got into the elevator. "She might have moved. Actually, she said she'd be leaving six months ago. I'm just guessing—you know, if the FBI's still here, then maybe, just maybe, she ended up staying, too."
Aoko just nodded nervously.
Neither said anything more. The elevator opened, Ran led the way to the apartment in question, they rang the doorbell, and then they waited with their hearts in their throats.
Their hearts leapt when the door opened…
…And dropped right back into their stomachs when it was a middle-aged Japanese woman who appeared in the doorway.
"Why, hello," she said with a kind smile. "Can I help you?"
"Well…" Ran hesitated. But what other options did they have? So she threw caution to the wind. "We're looking for a woman named Jodie Saintemillion… Do you know her, by any chance?"
The woman's brows furrowed.
"Why, yes…" she replied. "She is the previous owner of this apartment."
"Then please," Ran begged in desperation, "Could you tell us where she is now?"
"I'm afraid I can't-" But the woman abruptly cut off her words and stared at Ran's face. "Is something the matter?" she asked instead, her tone suddenly concerned.
Aoko glanced curiously to the side, and almost staggered back in shock. Ran's face had suddenly gone white as a sheet.
Aoko opened her mouth to ask, but,
"Jodie-sensei?" Ran murmured faintly, looking ready to pass out. This woman couldn't possibly be her teacher—her Japanese was flawless, she looked Japanese, she acted Japanese…and yet she could have sworn that she saw a glimpse of her teacher, as though the corner of a mask had fluttered out of the way for a brief second.
The woman in the doorway shook her head.
"I can't talk here," she said quietly. "But, Mouri-san, I believe that I know why you're here. Listen. Meet me at the café by the bookstore in half an hour." Then her voice rose again, returning to its normal level. "I'm very sorry that I couldn't be of assistance. I hope it doesn't inconvenience you too much."
Her eyes urged them to play along.
"Oh no," Ran hastily objected, bowing as though to a stranger. "I was just hoping to speak with her again… It was nothing important."
"I really am very sorry…"
So, exchanging polite nothings as any strangers would, the woman retreated back into her apartment and Ran and Aoko left.
"Ran-san?" asked Aoko hesitantly. "You don't mean to tell me…" She trailed off. What else could she say?
Ran simply shook her head. "I have no idea…but we'll find out soon enough, won't we? Let's go straight to the café. It'll give us time to think, and it's not like we have anything better to do."
Aoko sighed her agreement, and they headed for the café.
Author's Note: Okay… I'd appreciate it if you'd not go for the razors and jackknifes and saws… I'm very sorry for the delay. Again. So much for that promise, right? Which is why I'm not making any promises this time. I'll just say this: I will try my best to have the next chapter up within the month in apology for the wait so far. Sure, it sounds ridiculous, but it actually doesn't take all that long for me to write—once I get settled down in front of the computer. It's that part that takes a while.
Thank you so much for the reviews! For those of you who haven't reviewed, I'm still replying to reviewers—only in a different way. There's this wonderful thing called review replies, which I'm (finally) making use of. And even if you're an anonymous reviewer, if you leave your email address, I'll send you an email in reply. Good? Good.
Another apology—it's taken ages to try and upload this thing. I tried day after day and it just wouldn't work... And in the end, I ended up copying everything into a .txt file. Which, of course, meant that I had to go through the whole thing after I'd uploaded it and redo the styles in html format. So can we agree that I've already paid the price for my late update?
One last thing: even though I haven't been good about expressing it, reviews are what keep this story going… So review!