Dwindling Reminiscence
-By Shelling Ford
Props to Ember Mage, Ytak, Ke, and Sachi-chan for your words of encouragement. And I feel the urge to correct Sachi-chan (nothing personal, SPOILER WARNING for everyone else).
Haibara didn't go into the witness protection program, Jodie offered her the opportunity, but because of something Ayumi said, she refused it. This was in manga number 43.
And speaking of spoilers, this fic, is again, not for English dubbers and those who hasn't watched at least up to the fourth movie or episode 300. I'll try to leave Jodie out of it, but it might not be possible for plot development. And Meitantei Conan doesn't belong to me.
Now enjoy!
Chapter Two: A Boy, A Man, A Detective, A Father
January 9th, Thursday
Mouri Kogoro stepped into his office only to see his young charge sleeping peacefully on his couch. He eyed the kid warily for a second while he hung up his jacket. His morning went extremely well. Not only did he finish setting reservations, he also found a beautiful silver brooch that Eiri will no doubt love. The clock said 11:40, his daughter was due back in twenty minutes to fix the brat lunch.
Kogoro slumped into his chair but didn't turn on the television. He didn't want to risk waking up the kid; he looked like he was overdue for a good sleep.
He took out his secret stash of beers and opened a can. As the bitter liquid sank into his throat, he still didn't take his eyes off the mystery known as Edogawa Conan.
Mouri Kogoro was confused, mystified, absolutely bewildered by the existence of the little boy. He can admit to himself that he was not the best detective in the world, but there were some things that he couldn't dismiss even if he tried.
For example, he couldn't deny that Conan was one proficient lucky charm. "Nemuri no Kogoro" was born just after Ran brought home this boy. From then on, it was as if he was cursed to meet with all kinds of murders and mysteries. In fact, he only fell asleep for the real criminal cases. "Nemuri no Kogoro" didn't exist for infidelity cases.
Conan's presence alone unsettled Kogoro. This child was never afraid to see bodies. If anything, he was always the first to charge forward and examine the crime scene. His movements around a crime scene were experienced to a sinister degree. He knew to wear gloves, to use handkerchiefs, and even to look for cause of death. The child was a genius, to say the least. Kogoro had no doubt that he would grow up to be a fine detective.
Conan didn't act like a child, and at times, he didn't sound or even look like one either. But those weren't what really perturbed Mouri Kogoro.
Korogo never said this to Ran, but this boy grew to resemble one Kudo Shinichi more and more. That Kudo boy practically grew up with his daughter, Kogoro certainly remembered what he looked like as a child. The resemblance was uncanny. This rattled Kogoro to no end. If Conan truly matured to be a carbon copy of Kudo Shinichi, what would Ran do?
Kogoro sipped his beer again. The drink didn't drown out his growing curiosity as he wished. In fact, the more he looked at Conan, the more the boy resembled Kudo, especially since he didn't wear his glasses. Kogoro shivered.
A bright "I'm home" brought Kogoro out of his reverie. He looked up to see his daughter and her rich friend enter the room. Suzuki Sonoko greeted him in her usual manner, but Ran didn't even look at him twice, for she had already run to check on Conan.
"I'm so relieved, his fever's gone!" Ran whispered as she pressed her forehead to the boy's. "Heh? Where did his glasses go?"
Eager to put an end to his own worries, Kogoro decided to revert back into his other personality.
"Oi, Ran, I want lunch!" Kogoro leaned back completely into his chair and lifted his feet onto the desktop.
"Otousan, don't yell, you'll wake Conan-kun." After Ran took the manga out of Conan's hand, she went to the kitchen with a chatty Sonoko and began her house work. Kogoro, to play the part of the arrogant idiot, turned on the TV rather loudly. Thankfully, the kid didn't even stir.
Ran finished their simple meal and came down to call her father. Sonoko followed her footsteps. Kogoro was about to walk upstairs as Ran tried to wake Conan.
"Conan-kun, it's lunch time," Ran shook his shoulders. "Conan-kun?"
Kogoro paused in his movements.
"Conan-kun, wake up. It's Ran-neechan, lunch is ready. Conan-kun?"
Ran was starting to sound a bit panicked by now. Kogoro didn't blame her; the kid was a light sleeper. And loudmouthed Sonoko wasn't helped matters as she joked, "Did the kid kick the bucket?"
Kogoro glared at her from the corner of his eyes, he never liked that girl. He then rushed to the frantic Ran's side and gently pried her away from the unconscious boy.
"Oi, brat, wake up," Kogoro shook Conan's still body one last time for good measure. Next to him, Ran was still shouting the kid's name. And from the sound of it, she was slowly breaking into tears. Sonoko absorbed the seriousness of the situation and decided to stay quiet by the door.
Kogoro placed his index and middle finger on the left side of the boy's neck. "He still has a pulse," he announced with slight relief. But he didn't have a chance to relax.
Suddenly the pulse faded into nothingness. Kogoro felt the blood escape from his head as fear took over. He kept his fingers in place. Almost ten seconds later, the beautiful sensation of the boy's pulse returned. Kogoro barely had time to breathe before he registered the eccentricity.
Conan's body remained eerily still, but his pulse indicated that he had just run a marathon. It didn't make sense. Just as Kogoro was about to measure the numbers of beats, Conan's pulse returned to its normal pace, only to stop again like before and to beat erratically ten seconds later.
"Otousan..." Ran's nervous voice brought Kogoro back to reality.
"Ran, call for an ambulance. "
Ran, however, remained still with a horrified expression on her face. "Now!" Kogoro shouted. The two girls broke into a scramble, both reached for their cell phones at the same time.
Kogoro kept his fingers on the boy's neck to measure the abnormal pulsations. Conan slept on unaware. None of the noises were able to wake him. His eyes remained closed, even as Ran broke out into silent sobs in her father's arms.
Mouri Kogoro glared at the boy's still figure, no longer able to disguise his own growing fears. He whispered words that no one heard: "You better live through this, brat, for Ran's sake, you better."
A dark skinned teen jumped into the taxi which carried him away from the airport. He grasped a handful of his cargo pants and shook involuntarily.
Hattori Heiji was worried.
It didn't make sense, none of it did. He just got home from school when Mouri Kogoro made a call to his house. The old man's voice sounded so solemn and serious that Hattori didn't even recognize it.
"Conan's in a coma," Mouri tantei had announced gravely. "Ran thought you would've liked to know."
Hattori practically destroyed his phone after he asked Mouri where Conan currently was. He jumped onto his motorbike immediately and rushed to the airport. He almost went homicidal as the flight agent told him that the earliest plane to Tokyo didn't leave until two hours later.
The darkness descended around the city, only the neon lights held Tokyo alive. Despite the warmth inside the green vehicle, Hattori still couldn't stop shivering. He was glad that Kazuha was sick from a recent flu epidemic and couldn't follow him. He wanted so badly to be along and to sink into his thoughts, to come up with an excuse for the current situation. If he arrived at Beika Central Hospital and found it all to be a joke, he won't even get mad.
Please, Hattori prayed over and over, please let this be a joke.
But a part of him laughed at his naiveté. A part of him told him that this was as serious as it can get. The truth was just that: Kudo Shinichi may really die this time.
As the taxi stopped at the front steps of BCH, Hattori threw a wad of bills at the driver and rushed out without getting his change.
BCH's front lobby was still decked with New Year's decorations. Aside from the rows of couches and distasteful plastic red chairs, there were three TVs promoting healthy ways to brush teeth, and a rather large reception desk. Less than five nurses strutted around with wooden clipboards in their arms. The waiting area was clearly filled to capacity. Amongst the families of the numerous patients this hospital housed, sat some of the faces that Hattori saw all too often.
The first people he noticed were of the Detective Boys. Kojima Genta, Tsuburaya Mitsuhiko, and a red-eyed Yoshida Ayumi huddled together with blankets over their bodies. Next to them, the woman who used to belong in the syndicate sat demurely, her eyes revealed nothing. Agasa Hagase was pacing frantically, his mustache twitched as he inhaled and exhaled with a heavy heart.
Next Hattori's eyes fell upon the five policemen. Megure, Takagi, Sato, Chiba, and even Shiratori keibu came. Sato wore a leaden frown with Takagi and Shiratori around her, both trying to comfort the usually strong woman. Megure and Chiba were talking with Kisaki Eiri, all three had the similar look of anxiety on their faces. All five of them were usual visitors to the hospital, and yet they still looked amazingly out of place.
However, out of all of them, Mouri Kogoro stood out the most. He positioned himself next to the large windows and had his back turned toward everyone. Hattori saw his expression very clearly in the reflection of the glass. The man was worried and angry, and clearly in need of a cigarette.
The rest of the occupants of the room stole nervous glances at the odd group. None of them noticed Hattori's presence.
"Eh? Aren't you Ran's friend from Osaka?" A familiar and annoying voice caught Hattori by surprise. While he turned to face Suzuki Sonoko, everyone else looked at him in shock.
"Where's neechan?" Hattori was surprised to find his voice still intact. His nervous, however, were on the verge of total collapse.
"Ran's in the room with ochibi," she pointed to the elevators. "He's in room 507, but only one visitor is allowed at once, so I couldn't stay with her." She said this loud enough for everyone. "And it's almost nine-thirty. The nurse said visiting hour would be over soon."
Everyone heard her, but no one made an effort to move, not even Sonoko had any intention of leaving. Hattori ignored the stares and walked over to Mouri Kogoro, the man hadn't moved a muscle since Hattori came in.
Hattori stood next to the taller man. He had never felt so nervous to be in someone's presence before. There were a million questions that he wanted to ask. But what could he had said? Despite the punches and insults, it didn't take a detective to see that Kogoro cared about the shrunken Shinichi. Hattori swallowed his questions and proceeded to stand next to the suddenly imposing man. Both of them stared into the darkness, each lost in his own contemplations. It was Kogoro who broke the silence.
"Thanks for coming, but don't you have school tomorrow?"
Hattori frowned at the sound of Kogoro's voice. This didn't sound like him at all. This was the voice that Conan used through his bowtie: Deep, serious, and strong.
"I'll call my school in the morning and tell them I'm on a case."
Another long moment of silence passed before Kogoro spoke again. "I didn't expect you to come straight away. Ran told me you and that kid were close, but I didn't expect this."
"Did you expect the police to show up?"
Kogoro remained very still. Hattori had almost forgotten his question when a soft "yes" broke through the older man's lips.
Hattori took a deep breath before he fired his next question. He had to tread carefully, but he also wanted some answers, badly. "Can you give me some details? I still don't know what happened."
He saw Kogoro's reflection stiffen further immediately, as if that was even possible. "The kid got sick," Kogoro muttered through gritted teeth. "He had a fever so he stayed home today. I went out early to get my wife her birthday present, and Ran had to go to school. When I came back around noon, he was asleep on the couch. It wasn't until Ran finished cooking lunch that we realized we couldn't wake him up."
Kogoro took a deep breath. "I thought it was the fever at first, but his head wasn't warm at all. I checked his pulse, and it was erratic. So we called an ambulance. He hadn't waked up since then. The doctors took some blood sample for testing, but they said they've never seen anything like it. Ran has been in that room ever since. And just to keep myself busy, I called some people."
Mouri tantei's face suddenly scrunched up in disgust. "Adults that aren't even related to him came to visit, and his parents are nowhere to be seen. The brat has been living with me for over two years, and his mother came to see him only once. They never called or sent any letters. And now their son is in a goddamn coma, and Agasa has trouble finding them!"
In a sudden fit of rage, Kogoro punched the bullet-proof glass with uncharacteristic strength. Hattori froze; he didn't know what to do. He couldn't tell Kogoro that Conan's real parents were Kudo Yusaku and Yukiko, and he certainly couldn't inform Kogoro the real reason why they couldn't be reached. During their last phone conversation, Kudo had brought up the fact that his parents retired to their mansion in Hawaii and cut off from the outside world so Yusaku could focus on the finishing touches of his latest Night Baron book.
Kisaki Eiri came to her husband's side and put a gentle hand on his shoulder. Hattori left the couple as they exchanged whispered words and intimate gestures. His next stop was to see Ran, but knew it was not possible, so he jointed the Detective Boys. Agasa shot him a grateful look and resumed his pacing. The three kids took one look at his serious expression and withdrew back to their huddle. Haibara was unmoved.
Time passed quickly. The waiting area cleared considerably, but all of Conan's visitors still remained. Kogoro hadn't moved from his spot, and neither did Hattori.
Finally a nurse approached the solemn group. Her copper-brown nametag read "Aiwara Midori".
"I'm sorry, but visiting hours are over. It's best if all of you come back tomorrow," she said politely to the group.
"Ran-kun..." Megure keibu started.
"That girl in 507? Are you her family? If so, please ask her to go home. She looks like she needs some rest. You're all allowed to stay in the lobby, but..." she glanced at the three kids who were clearly dozing off. "It's perhaps better if..."
"Aiwara-kun," a voice interrupted. A doctor in his late forties entered the scene. "It's okay. I'll handle the rest."
The nurse bowed and left. The plump and short doctor with mustache like Kogoro's shook hands immediately with Megure. It was clear that the two were old friends. The black lettering on his copper tag glimmered "Ichikawa" under the flickering florescent light.
"Ichikawa-sensei, what is Conan-kun's condition?"
Doctor Ichikawa didn't even need to check his chart. "It's a strange case. We had his blood tested immediately. The results came back moments ago, and I must say, it's a mystery. The boy shows no symptoms of sickness at all, not even a cold like Mouri-san said. His body is in perfect health. His erratic pulse returned to normal within an hour of his arrival. If anything, I'd say he's simply exhausted and is merely catching up on his sleep. We cannot find a cause for his earlier coma. But the good news is, if all goes as we predict it, the boy should wake up tomorrow morning, as healthy as ever."
A unison sigh of relief spread through the area. Kogoro finally relaxed and sat back down, his wife patted his hand with a smile on her face. Mitsuhiko and Genta were shaking Ayumi and Haibara respectively, screaming something along the lines of "did you hear that? Conan's alive!" Even Shiratori's stoic expression gave away to a slight smile.
Hattori was so happy that he nearly fainted in his chair. He hadn't realized how tired his body really was until now.
"This is great news," Agasa sat down and faced the kids. "It's time to take you home."
"Aw," Mitsuhiko was the first to complain. "But we want to see Conan-kun."
"He's still asleep. I'll take you back here tomorrow, and you can see him then."
The kids had no arguments for that. After a long good-bye, Agasa ushered all four of them out. Ayumi and Genta were both fighting yawns.
"Speaking of which," Doctor Ichikawa turned to Mouri Kogoro. "Mouri-san, we told your daughter the test results and tried to convince her to leave, but she wouldn't believe us and refuses to budge. So maybe if you talk to her, she'll consider..."
"No way," to everyone's surprise, it was Suzuki Sonoko who cut in. "Ran cares too much for ochibi to leave his side now. No one can convince her to go home."
Doctor Ichikawa looked onto the Mouri couple for help, but the look they bore told him that he was not going to get any results. The good doctor knew better to argue with worried parents. He turned away from the stares and whispered some incognito words to Megure. From their mutters, Hattori managed to pick up a line from Megure: "If she's still not in by tomorrow, we'll contact her family."
After a few words of goodbye, Ichikawa went back to his work. The police left a few moments after.
The clock rang eleven times, and Kisaki Eiri finally broke away from her husband's side. "I'll drive Sonoko-chan home," she indicated the girl who had fallen asleep on a blushing Hattori's shoulder. "I'll come as early as possible tomorrow."
Kogoro squeezed her hand in gratitude. Five minutes later, the lobby was empty with the exception of Kogoro, Hattori, and a couple of nurses.
"You can take a taxi back to the agency. I'll give you the keys so you can have a night's rest."
Hattori shook his head fervently. "I don't think I can fully relax until I see Ku... Conan opened his eyes myself. I understand that neechan can't break away now; there are just too many 'what ifs'."
Kogoro nodded. "I'm going outside for a cigarette."
Hattori was staring at his sneakers as Kogoro disappeared.
Something was off. Hattori didn't know what, but his detective instincts were practically screaming at him. Something was wrong, and Hattori Heiji was not going to leave Tokyo until he found the source to this medical mystery.
If someone wanted to hurt Kudo Shinichi, they would have to answer to Hattori Heiji.
Chapter two, just like I promised. From chapter three on, it's gonna get longer, and more complicated. So make sure you read every detail. I can't write mysteries like Doyle or Christie, but it'll still be tough to follow through if you skip a part.
Tanoshimini!!! Ja, mata atoude ne! Arigatou, mina-san.
Review please!