How I Feel
Chapter the eighth: Run Away
Arthur sat next to the unconscious Kogoro, watching television blankly. It was boring. So boring he thought he could just drop dead and not even realize it. Kogoro snorted in his sleep and rolled over, crushing a few beer cans in the process.
"Stupid drunkard," Arthur muttered darkly. Conan came out about an hour later, a smile present on his face. Arthur raised an eyebrow.
"Is Ran back yet?" he asked.
"No," Arthur answered. Conan's smile faltered, but came as quickly as it left. He plopped down on the couch next to Arthur and watched the television. Arthur eyed him wonderingly for a few minutes before turning back to the television.
At about eight o clock, there was a knock at the window. Someone was below, trying to get someone's attention. Conan and Arthur peered out the window to the ground and let out startled yelps, jumping back at the same time in alarm as a bullet crashed through the window and embedded itself in the ceiling. Kogoro jolted out of his slumber. Arthur and Conan hunched under the coffee table, trying not to get hit by the shattering glass and ceiling tile as more bullets rained upon them. Finally, it stopped.
Conan stuck his head out from under the table and looked around. Kogoro was kneeling behind an old bookcase, and was unhurt. Arthur crawled out from under the table and stood, careful to not touch any glass. Everything was covered in glass shards and debris. The ceiling had numerous holes and was cracking. Police sirens echoed in the distance, headed their way. There was the screeching of tires on the pavement outside and a black car sped away into the night. Kogoro cursed under his breath.
Conan gave Arthur a look and the both headed for the door. They fled out into the street, searching around for any clues. The fresh skid marks on the concrete road signaled that the shooters had gone left down the street. They looked at each other and nodded. At once, they were both on their way, following the mysterious shooter, filled with fierce determination. Whoever was shooting at them had to have something against them. They had to figure out who it was.
They ran hard, desperate to find out who would try to kill them. They soon came to a fork in the road and didn't know where to go.
"Right or left do you think?" Conan asked, out of breath.
"I don't know," Arthur gasped.
"Maybe – Maybe left?" Conan asked.
"Yeah, there's a tree knocked down there, let's try it," Arthur agreed. They headed off again. They had no way to tell how long they were running, neither had a watch on them. Conan had his Detective Boys badge pinned neatly to his shirt though.
"How could you remember to put on that stupid pin but forget your watch?" Arthur asked incredulously.
"It's just a habit, okay?" Conan snapped.
"Okay, okay!" Arthur replied defensively. They kept running. Finally, they stopped in front of an old building with a garage. It was a dead end, they panted heavily, trying to catch their breath.
"Do you think this is the place?" Conan asked. Arthur shrugged. Neither of them liked the eerie feeling of unpleasant awkwardness that was present outside the house. They lingered outside for a few minutes, looking around. A light switched on inside the house, but was dimmed quickly as the shades were pulled closed.
"I don't like this place," Arthur muttered.
"Yeah, me either," Conan agreed. "Maybe we should turn back."
"I think that's the best idea you've ever had," Arthur agreed.
They turned and started to go. They made it about half a mile back up the road when they stopped. Conan could have sworn he'd heard voices. And Arthur was almost completely positive that he'd heard footsteps. They walked slower, listening intently. A bright light suddenly shone in their faces. They each brought up an arm to try and block the light. Conan squinted and when he saw who the shooters were, he let his arm fall limply to his side and stared wide eyed at the two men he'd been looking for, for over three years. They seemed to recognize both of them.
"If it isn't Kudou and Hattori," Gin smirked. Conan couldn't move, he was shocked senseless. All he could think was:
'I found them! I can't believe it! After all this time!' he began breathing heavily. Arthur backed away slightly looking frightened. Conan began to back up too but stopped, checking behind them. Rum and Martini stood there, blocking their only other way of escape.
"What do we do?" Arthur whispered in panic. Conan swallowed hard and his eyes darted around, looking for an escape. Where could they go? He didn't dare make any movements, in fear of both their lives. Arthur seemed to be thinking the same thing. Suddenly, Conan had an idea.
"On three, run to the right," he whispered almost inaudibly. But Arthur heard and nodded slightly. The men in black started to advance on them.
"One, two," he whispered. Vodka suddenly aimed a gun at them. "Three!" They darted out of the road and into the forest. Vodka cursed and fired at them. They dodged expertly and kept running. The four in black followed them through the thick underbrush. The branches and thorns scratched their skin and tore their clothes, making them bleed, but they didn't stop. They were far ahead. The boys stopped and his behind a tree, waiting. There was silence. Conan chanced a glance at Arthur, who was looking terrified.
There was quick movement in front of them and Gin and Vodka appeared, both had guns trained on them steadily. They froze.
"No escaping now, Kudou," Vodka smirked. He fired. Conan clenched his eyes shut and waited for impact, but instead of a bullet, a tranquilizer dart shot out at him at top speed and he felt the sharp pain in his neck before everything faded. Arthur watched in horror as Conan slumped to the ground, unconscious. Then there was a sharp prick in his neck and he too was out cold.
---
Conan awoke tied to a chair around his waist with his wrists tied to the armrests. He blinked groggily and his head lolled on his chest. He tried to lift his head, but it felt incredibly heavy to his neck, and he let it fall back onto his chest. He wondered how long he'd been out for. He eyed the room warily and saw Arthur was also tied to a wooden chair in the same fashion.
His breathing was labored. If he had a mirror, he was sure he'd be pale as paper. His neck throbbed and stung from the dart. Arthur was starting to wake up as well. After a while, he was fully awake and looking around confusedly. Conan caught his eye and looked away quickly, feeling guilty.
"What's going on?" Arthur asked.
"Be quiet. We don't want them to hear us," Conan whispered back. Arthur nodded and let his head fall onto his chest heavily. There was no way to tell how much time had passed, but it was a long while before they heard the voices of their captors. The door at the far end of the room opened widely and Rum entered. He smiled and walked up to them.
Rum forcibly opened Conan's lips and shoved a pill into his mouth. He held his mouth closed and forced him to swallow. He choked and coughed, but swallowed in the end. Rum repeated the process on Arthur and left afterwards, leaving two sets of clothes on the table next to the door. There was an audible click as the door locked from the other side. Shinichi felt a familiar twinge in his heart and knew they'd been force-fed the antidote.
The ropes binding them broke and their clothes shredded as their bodies grew to normal size. They bother were lying on the ground, completely out of breath. Heiji lie still for a few minutes, breathing heavily. Shinichi crawled over and got dressed, throwing the other clothes to Heiji. When he dressed, Shinichi helped him to his feet.
"Damn, that hurts," he muttered.
"I know," Shinichi said. "But I think we have bigger problems."
---
Kentaro walked Ran home from the movie later that night with a smile on his face. Ran was smiling too, her eyes bright with laughter. Her smile faded and her happy expression turned to horror as she saw the police cars surrounding her home. She dropped her beautiful flowers and ran up the stairs, Kentaro's jacket falling off of her shoulders as she ran.
"Dad!" she cried, entering the apartment. "Dad! Conan-kun? Arthur-kun?!"
"Ran!" her father asked. He hugged her tightly to him and stroked her hair, shuddering with relief.
"Dad what happened? Where are the boys?" she asked.
"Someone was shooting at us," he said, "But its okay! No one was hurt. Those kids ran out of here as soon as the car drove away."
"Oh dad, thank god you're all right!" she cried, burying her face in his chest.
"Its fine Ran, everything is okay," he assured her.
"I think I should go look for Conan-kun and Arthur-kun," she said. Kogoro nodded and released her.
"Good idea. The police will probably be here all night. It's about eleven thirty now, you better go get those little brats before someone calls the cops," he said. She nodded and departed, grabbing Kentaro's arm on the way and dragging him along. They stopped outside and Ran looked around.
"Where could they have gone?" Ran wondered aloud.
"The woman who lives to street that way," started a police officer that overheard, pointing to the street. "Says she saw two boys run by after she heard the gunshots." Ran's eyes brightened and she grabbed Kentaro's sleeve, dragging him after her.
"Ran, what are we trying to find? What if the boys just went to a friend's house?" Kentaro suggested.
"No, Conan-kun would never pass up a chance to solve a mystery. We have to find him before someone else does."
They followed along the path for a long time. It was twelve o'clock midnight when they reached a fork in the road. Ran leaned up against a tree, exhausted, and took off her shoes. After a short rest, they left, heading for the nearest house where Conan's friends live, which was Ayumi's. She knocked on the door and waited anxiously. A sleepy looking Mrs. Yoshida answered the door.
"Ran?" she yawned. "What are you doing here?"
"I'm so sorry Mrs. Yoshida, I know it's late but we can't find Conan-kun or Arthur-kun. They aren't here are they?" she asked. Mrs. Yoshida rubbed her eyes tiredly.
"No dear I haven't seen them," she said. "I can help you look if you wish. Wait one minute, I'll ask Ayumi," she headed into the house, motioning for them to follow. They followed her to Ayumi's bedroom and stood in the doorway as Mrs. Yoshida woke her sleeping daughter.
"Wake up, sweetie," Mrs. Yoshida whispered. Ayumi rubbed her eyes and squinted at her blearily.
"What's going on?" she asked.
"Sweetie, have you seen your little friend Conan or Arthur lately?" her mother asked.
"Not since school," Ayumi answered. "Hey! Conan might have his detective badge!" she exclaimed, suddenly wide awake. She jumped out of bed and took the badge off of her dresser, clicking it on. Ran anxiously kneeled down in front of the little girl.
"How does it work?" she asked.
"Like this," Ayumi said, bringing the speaker up to her mouth. "Conan? Are you there?"
---
Heiji and Shinichi looked at each other and nodded in agreement.
"One," Heiji started.
"Two," Shinichi followed.
"Three!" they said at once. They rammed their shoulders against the door repeatedly, trying to get free. But it didn't even budge. They collapsed on the ground exhaustedly and breathing heavily.
"What are we going to do?" Heiji panted.
"I have no idea," Shinichi answered heavily. When they caught their breath, they just sat there, leaning against the concrete wall and waiting for death. They both knew it was coming. Heiji was silently wishing he could have told Kazuha how he felt. Shinichi was wishing the same thing about Ran. The two broken hearted teens were lost in their thoughts, and jolted out when a voice sounded through the room.
"Conan? Are you there?" Ayumi's squeaky voice asked. Heiji blinked and looked over at Shinichi, bewildered. Shinichi gazed wide-eyed at his pile of shredded clothes. Ayumi's voice was coming from his badge! He crawled over and yanked the badge off the shirt and held it to his mouth.
"Ayumi? Is that you?" he asked. He cursed silently, knowing his voice was back to normal.
"Who is this?" she asked curiously. There was a shriek in the background and a new voice sounded from the badge.
"Shinichi!" Ran shrieked. Heiji crawled up next to him as Shinichi answered.
"Ran, where are you?" he asked.
"I'm at Yoshida Ayumi's house," Ran answered. "But Shinichi, why do you have Conan-kun's badge?"
"Because," he started. "I stole it."
"What?" Ran asked curiously.
"Never mind that now. We need your help," Shinichi said seriously.
"Who's we?" Ran asked.
"Me and Heiji," he answered.
"What is going on?" Ran asked desperately.
"We found the kids on the street and brought them to a safe place. Don't worry about them. But then we got ourselves caught," Heiji lied expertly. "And we need your help."
"What can we do?" Ran asked. Shinichi and Heiji gave her directions to the house they had seen. They were positive that's where they were. Ran listened intently and wrote down their instructions. It was hard for her to keep her tears locked up inside as she listened to her two missing friends ask for her help. She cleared her throat when she finished and nodded determinedly.
"Alright," she said. "I'll get there, and I'll bring help."
"Thank you Ran. But just –," he stopped. Both his and Heiji's heads turned and stared at the door. Footsteps and low whispering could be heard coming towards them.
"Oh no," Heiji said.
"What's going on?" Ran asked.
"I'm sorry, we have to go, they're coming and – oh - !" he cursed loudly, making Mrs. Yoshida clamp her hands over Ayumi's ears.
"Shinichi?! SHINCIHI!?" Ran screamed. But he'd clicked off the speaker and they couldn't hear her anymore. Shinichi shoved the badge into his pocket hastily and backed away as the door flung open. Vodka and Gin entered the room. Gin held a coil of rope and Vodka had a gun aimed on them.
"Time to leave, boys."
---
hee hee!
Jimmysgrl4evr - here it is!
PRIVATE - lol
Firestorm2004 - lol, yes he is
Sphinx -awwww thank you!