Going Through the Motions - Nightmare


The nightmare had been bad—waking up with a scream on his lips and a sweat-drenched t-shirt bad.

The bathroom mirror reflected his reflection in the pale, ghostly bathroom light. He looked old, despite his too-young face. He felt old. And he was not the only one; he saw it in Haibara, the tiredness, the exhaustion.

"How far are you with the antidote, Haibara."

"Be patient, Kudo-kun."

"Haibara—"

"Stop asking! I'll notify you when the new version is ready."

"Here, Haibara, drink this."

"Thank you, Kudo-kun."

"I'm tired."

"I know."

"Don't be too excited, this antidote will probably only last for the next eight hours."

"Idiot."

He sighed, brushing some damp strands of hair out of his face and switched off the light with a click, plunging his surroundings in darkness. Shinichi shivered and quickly left the cold tiles of the bathroom behind, trying to shut out the traces of his nightmare, his small feet making no sound on the carpet.

Death, red, and black. It chased him. They chased him. Followed him into the depths of sleep and back into awakeness. However, he would not let them win. He had sworn to protect everyone— to protect her— Ran. Nails buried themselves into the palms of his too-small hands, but he didn't notice the pain. That was his burden. That was his responsibility.

His act as Conan was proof of that. He would struggle forward, he would bring them down, without a doubt.