Disclaimer: I wanted Detective Conan and Fushigi Yuugi for my birthday, but I didn't get them. :(
Ran and Sonoko were walking home from school, discussing Shinichi's call to Ran over the weekend. "Finally, that mystery geek takes some interest in things that actually matter!" the blonde huffed. "Yeah, finally," Ran agreed, laughing nervously.
Her conversation with Shinichi had been rather frightening, actually. The reason he had…lain low, as he called it (disappeared, her mind whispered) was because he was hiding. Of course she'd yelled at him. Who in their right mind wouldn't, after all the worry he'd put her through? But those worries had been well-founded, part of her brain reminded her.
A not-quite-shriek from Sonoko startled her out of her thoughts. Her friend quickly took refuge behind Ran. The brunette looked to see what the problem was.
There was a large dog blocking their path, growling at the girls. The left half of his face had a scar running down it, and the ear on that side was torn and tattered. "Go on, shoo! Shoo!" Ran scolded, swinging her book bag at the animal in an effort to drive it away. Sufficiently cowed, it slunk away.
A sigh of relief escaped Sonoko. "I absolutely hate dogs," she complained.
"Why did you get so scared, anyways?" Ran wondered. "I mean, I know you don't like them that much, but I've never seen you like that." The blonde paused a moment, trying to think up an answer that wouldn't make her best friend think she was crazy or something.
"Werewolves," she said after a moment. "I ran into one when I was little." She nodded seriously at Ran. Then a huge grin spread across her face. "Just kidding! Actually, I saw an old horror movie about werewolves the other night."
"Honestly, Sonoko, you get into the strangest things!" Ran teased her friend. The two laughed together, each reminiscing each other's mishaps.
'Oh, Miaka-Ran-chan, I wish you remembered so that I wouldn't have to keep secrets like this! I mean, we're best friends; have been since grade school, as well as before. You, me, and Shinichi; just like in our previous lives!' The willow seishi sighed wistfully, then caught what Ran was saying.
"You know, I had another weird dream again last night," Ran said as they walked down the sidewalk.
"Really?" Sonoko asked eagerly. "What was it about?"
"Well, I was trapped under this pile of rubble, and Shinichi was holding it back with his body, shielding me. He told me he was going to protect me." A blush and nostalgic look came across the brunette's face for a moment before Sonoko cleared her throat meaningfully. "Oh! And then, you came along, and started to pick up the rubble and throw it out of the way!"
"Wow! So I'm a superhero in your dreams, huh?" Sonoko teased, her voice infused with enthusiasm.
"Something like that," Ran laughed sheepishly.
"You know, you should write them down; I bet they would make for some pretty interesting stories!" Sonoko suggested. 'Maybe if she's exposed to her dream-memories enough, she'll start to remember for real. Wait a minute. Doesn't Mitsukake have a copy of The Universe of the Four Gods?'
As the light at the intersection they were waiting at turned green and the girls started to cross the street, Sonoko stiffened. She felt something coming. Something really bad. The sound of a horn honking on the nearly empty street made her turn. "Ran!" Sonoko screamed as the car hurtled straight toward her friend.
Closing the small distance between them, she threw herself between Ran and the car, pushing her friend out of the way, her hand coming up instinctively to shield herself from the two ton metal structure. A sudden burst of power flowed through her as she felt metal crumple beneath her hand.
Ran looked up in amazement from where she'd fallen to the ground when Sonoko had pushed her. The other girl was holding back the car with one hand, the fender crumpled and bent from where some incredible force had pushed in. A small red spot glowed through her shirt, right above her heart.
"Sonoko," Ran whispered disbelievingly.
"Hey," Sonoko replied somewhat cockily. "I worry about you and then suddenly find myself here. Can't you do anything without me?"
A/N: Sorry for the late posting! To make up for it, I've posted more than one chapter today! And a happy occurence for me: I got a laptop for my birthday! Now I can typitty-typpity-type! XDD *clears throat* Um, anyways, please remember to R&R!
Preview of the next chapter: Just then, the kitchen door opened, and Sonoko came back in, accompanied by Takagi-keiji and- "Hattori-kun?" Ran questioned.