Last Shot at Love

(This was written yesterday. So boo)

She's working on the picture: Wow. I woke up really early this morning to Pokemon. I figured it was a sign, 'cause there was this little kid that looked a little like Conan. Maybe I'm still just halfway asleep... Well, at any rate, I have a diet coke, some music (yay for Vengaboys and J-pop!!), and a whole lot of insomnia induced writing...goo? Yeah. Writing goo sounds neat. Like it came from Invader Zim. I have Penny, The lucky piggy to help me, too. And now i'll talk to all my reviewers 'cause I'm nice like 'at.

Nittle Grasper Fan Joshie: I won't even ask about the name, despite how oddly dirty it sounds. And that illustration would be cute. I actually got the concept art for it done last night. It's as kawaii on paper as it is in words -falls over twitching from sheer overload of cute-

Kitsune 55: Aw. And ruin any sequels that I might make for this? No way. Mebbe later. Plus, isn't it more fun to watch the turmoil? And I'm mad at you. Your review for chapter three reminded me of the horrors of Love, Actually. Alan Rickman. Snogging. -shiver- I've watched the Harry Potter movies way too many times not to feel really sick about that.

Yoh's Girl: O.o; -cough- 's long. It's really, really long. I mean, that's longer than my pet rat's tail. Both of their tails ((Yesh. I have two pet rats who I love wholeeeee bunches -cuddles Lily and Meiko- Who're my girliesssss???)) Not really. Their tails are much longer. XD But that review is still the official longest I've gotten thus far. You get a sticker as a prize. And thanks for all the ideas XD I may just use one or two in my fic. However, dun get your hopes up about a really mushy kissy scene in the future. The end will be REALLY fluffy, but I don't think it'll involve Jimmy. Not much, anyways. You'll all have to deal with that. If I do get enough people nagging me about it, though, I may write a short, cute little Jimmy/Rache fic that involves so much fluff, you'll suffocate in it. Maybe. I'll have to obtain more pocky, cookies, and a whole buncha gatorade. Or powerade. But mostly gatorade. Oh...and apparently I've found a fellow Shaman King dork. I salute you. Wow. Lookit how long my response is. Ha. Now we're even.

Feh. You're all 1 review away from ANOTHER picture. I'm going to have to be a drawin' fool for the next few days, aren't I? -lesigh- Keep suggesting picture ideas. I'll need it. Anything you can think of (besides kissing. I don't do kissing well at all ..; Not with anime... realism I can do... I'm not really good at hugging or sitting, either) is welcomed. Stuff from the fic or just junk you come up with in your empty heads is allllll fair game.

Disclaimer:... People, I'm running out of witty and sarcastic remarks for these. You all ought to know that I don't own Detective Conan/Case Closed. Not yet anyways.

And now, I write!

Last Shot at Love, File 3

Meanwhile...

Rachael struggled furiously at her binds in her corner. The poured cement floor was making her sore and cold, and listening to these people was making her feel sick. That's all she could do...listen. They had her blindfolded, gagged, and bound. All she could really accomplish was wiggling around and making a series of muffled, angry noises. It didn't get her far, but it made her feel considerably better.

"...then we torture him by drownin' the girly real slow like in front of him. Then we beat him up real bad and then we kill him." one of the thugs in black was saying. "Joey" was sitting, playing a handheld game of sorts. It looked like solitaire. The other thug shrugged.

"I think we get the kid, nab him, hold his hands and make him strangle her. Then we says to him 'you killed her' while we kill 'im." He glanced at the squirming girl, giving her a toothy grin. Well, a not so toothy grin, actually. Although she couldn't see it, Rachael

still had a cold chill speed up her spine. She shuddered, abandoning her struggle for a moment to allow the hairs to quit raising. Joey paused his game, sighing and glowering at his comrades.

"I don't care HOW you kill them. Just make sure they don't get away, or i'll kill both of you myself." The two men gulped, glancing at each other, nodding to him, before resuming conversation.

"That's real original like." thug number one commented, stretching a tattoo on his lower arm for amusement. "I think that's what we should do. We make him choke her 'till she turns purple." At this, Rachael resumed struggling with new strength, her noises even louder than before. Joey glared, pausing his game again.

"Make her shut up... I have some chloroform over there. Soak a rag and knock her out." The screech of chairs moving reached the girl's ears, and she promptly ducked her head to her chest. It didn't save her, though. Within the minute, she had a rag to her face. Her thoughts became blurred...

Back at Amy's house...

Amy got back up, rubbing her head, mumbling 'ouch'. Conan put on his thinking face, pondering. Shortly there after, Amy's mother called them down for cookies. As the children nibbled happily at the warm, gooey treats, Conan continued to think, eyes darting around the room. He needed a plan badly. He was confident he could find where they were, it was just a matter of getting how to get Rachael out of this. He didn't have much to work with. He was roughly three feet tall and his only partner was a love struck seven-year-old. That's when he saw it. Lying on the coffee table... Amy's Junior Detective League walkie-talkie. That gave him an idea about how to get their attention long enough to get Rachael out. He glanced at his watch. It was almost 6pm. That gave them about an hour and a half of daylight. He smirked, finishing his cookie. "Amy, when is your curfew?"

She blinked. "Well. Mommy calls me inside when the streetlights come on so I can take a bath and eat dinner before bedtime. Why?" Conan just closed his eyes in thought. The lamps came on at about 7:15... So they had an hour before Amy was needed home. He definitely needed her for his plan to work, and he wanted Rachael out of there before it got dark. They said 4 tomorrow, but you could never be safe. Each passing minute decreased her chances of coming out alive. Conan jumped off the couch where they'd been eating, walking into the kitchen. Amy's mother was placing another batch of cookies onto a plate to cool. She was a pretty woman. Amy looked a lot like her. He tugged her apron gently.

"Mrs. Yoshida? Is it alright if Amy comes over to my house to play for a while? I don't live far at all and I'll bring her right home when it starts to get dark."

She smiled. "Of course, Conan. Just have her home by...7:30, okay? That gives you guys a whole hour and a half." He nodded, smiling sweetly.

"Thank you, Mrs. Yoshida!!" With that, he dashed into the living room, grabbing Amy's walkie-talkie and putting it in his backpack (along with the paperweights, he'd packed his skateboard and walkie-talkie as well). "Amy. Go bundle up. I have a plan." She didn't question him. That had been part of the deal, after all, returning shortly clad in a coat, snow boots, long pants, mittens, and a hat. She'd be warm enough, he thought. He couldn't have her getting cold. It could foil his entire plan. He lead her outside, going to Amy's small garden and picking up five or six good sized rocks, handing them to Amy. "Hold on to those. We'll need them later." The child shoved them into her pockets. She still didn't know what was going on here, but she trusted Conan. He'd never lead her and her friends badly before. He walked back near his house, stopping Amy quickly. He really didn't think that they knew he was Jimmy when he was in this state, but who knew? Time for phase one. "Amy. I need you to walk past, drop this walkie talkie into that bush there, then walk off. Wait for me to signal you, then run back, grab it, then follow me, okay?" she shrugged, nodding, and executing her task without a hitch. She turned the corner ahead, peering around, waiting.

Conan hid from view, turning on his walkie talkie, getting his bow tie out and setting it to Jimmy. "Hey. You. Yeah you. I will provide my own transportation. Yes, I know where you're hiding." He could hear the men who'd been set on watch jump up, looking around dumbly. He stifled a snicker. "Get into that bucket you call a car and go tell your boss to be expecting me within the hour." Thankfully, these weren't the sharpest tacks in the box, and they did as they were told. As they got into their car and started off, Conan signaled Amy and took off after them. He only hoped he could keep up...he had reason to believe that they were close to where Rachael's karate tournament had been held. He had only slept for about an hour when they called, and Rachael sounded desperate. If she had just gotten there, she would have been snappy and firey still. Amy panted but kept up well enough.

Conan's theory had been correct. They were hiding in an old, unstable looking storage shed. He waited behind some dead brush for Amy, who came bounding down moments after he got there, panting. She extended the walkie talkie to him, plopping down, her chest heaving. He smiled. Good job, Amy. Couldn't do it without you. He peered around the side, watching where they got in and looking at windows. This was going to be a bit more difficult that he thought. He was still confident in himself, however. He was, after all, the great Jimmy Kudou. This would still work well, though. The shed was against a chain link fence and very low. It had several cracked windows, as well. More than likely for ventilation of some sort.

"Amy, how well can you climb?"

No. Really. She's not reading comics instead...: HAH! I fooled you ALL. Yes. It's SHORT. I know that. I'm fishing for reviews. I'm so mean. Actually, this is so I can have a break from all this typing to play with my rats and prepare for orientation tonight. I do know EXACTLY how all of this is going to work out. There will be a very feel good moment at the end, so for those fluff-heads -nudges Yoh's girl- you'll be pleased. Maybe not quite the mush you desire, but it will still make you smile dumbly and go "awwwww". I'ma go draw, too. That's another reason I'm waiting to finish. This allows me to have somewhere to post the link to the lovely picture that I'm working on! I will check periodically for new suggestions throughout the day. Put some thought into them, too. If I like two ideas enough, I'll draw both XD yeah.

Oh. And thug number one is dedicated to Allison and Elisha XD He sounds a lot like Rasputin, dun 'ee?...everyone else disregard this message entirely. Inside joke.

This idea was egged on by Yoh's Girl. She gets a tuft of my doggie's fur for giving me inspiration.