Yeah, I don't own DC/CC. You don't have to rub it in! Yeah. Normal disclaimer stuff. People are probably getting out of character now. Ah well, it's my story so there. Hope it isn't so bad this far. This should be a longer chapter compared to the others. Oh yeah, sorry if this story seems completely unorganized. I've got the general ideas in my head, I'm just having difficulties filling in the details and sorting out what goes where. Heh-heh! Oh! You know what else I like? Those dot dot dot things you know (...) those things... see! I just used them! OKAY! Enough of that! ON WITH MY CLICHÉ STORY!
This chapter's a longer one to make up for not posting soon enough!
"I'm writing fanfiction!" talking
'I'm writing fanfiction!' thinking
Other stuff in Italics is usually a flashback or onomatopoeias or something.
Chapter 4:
Flashback-Finding Wallets and Finding Hope! / Nail That Sucker!
Back to the present... ('Cause you know, last chapter...)"What?" was the collective response to Conan's sudden shouting and movement. Puzzled expressions were evoked from all present and the commotion woke the slumbering Richard.
"What's going on?" He mumbled. The drunkard then happened to glance in the same direction as Conan. His eyes widened and his voice caught in his throat. He was too surprised to move. "Oh my God!" he mouthed.
Harley was the first out of his seat. He reached out a hand to grab his young friend's arm. "Conan, what the—"
"Rachel's here!" Conan yelled cutting him off and jumping out of Harley's reach.
"WHAT?" Elle, Aunt Saku, and Terry shouted. All three were shocked and showed small traces of fear and worry on their faces. But no one seemed to notice how strange it was that these three were reacting to the situation in such a manner. They were all too focused on Conan and some brown haired figure at the door.
The thirteen-year old/twenty-three year old detective ran straight past Elle, Terry, Aunt Saku, and Inspector Megure. He was so excited at seeing Rachel he nearly ran over poor Elle on the way to the door. "RACHEL!" he yelled again.
Everyone turned their heads to the entrance of Sushi Sam's. Everyone's jaws dropped.
Rachel Moore stood there smiling.
"Hey, everyone." She softly greeted, her voice filled with emotion. "Miss me?" She opened her arms and Conan flung himself at her.
"Oh I missed you so much!" Conan cried. He was so happy; he didn't want this moment to end. He didn't want to stop holding her. He couldn't think of anything but her, not even about how her arrival couldn't possibly make any sense... 'Rachel...you're all right. You've come back to me...finally.'
Flashback!
'It's been thirty freaking minutes since that McAlester man left to confirm those reports! Where the hell is he?' thought a distraught Conan.
Richard, Inspector Megure, and Conan had all been waiting for McAlester to return. The fire had been put out and police were finally able to go through the explosion site for clues. Megure was patient enough, but Richard and Conan were silently trying to deal with the growing panic within them. Richard was pacing back and forth while Conan was sitting on the ground, hugging his knees. Both were very pale and held expressions of pure anxiety.
All three of them snapped their heads to attention when they heard footsteps coming. McAlester was running towards them with a plastic bag containing a burnt object.
"Inspector!" McAlester panted. He held up the bag. "This was found inside the warehouse. Deep breath It was amazing it wasn't burnt to a crisp!"
Conan, Richard, and Megure all crowded around McAlester to better examine the object. Megure carefully pulled out the bag's content. On closer inspection, the three realized it was a wallet.
"Open it, Inspector." Conan urged. 'Don't let it be Rachel's, don't let it be Rachel's...'
The inside of the wallet wasn't as damaged as the outside; the three could make out some money, what could have been a library card, and an ID card. The picture on the ID card may have been burnt, but the name was still readable...the card was Rachel's.
"No..." Richard gasped. He couldn't move, he couldn't breathe, he couldn't do anything.
"Richard, I am so sorry..." Megure murmured. He was so shocked; he didn't know what to say to console Richard and Conan. He never expected this to happen, not to such a good kid.
"RACHEL!" Conan cried. "Why? SHE NEVER DID ANYTHING TO DESERVE THIS!" He broke down on the pavement. Tears were running down his face. 'I never got to tell her...she never even knew what happened to me...I'll never forgive myself for not telling her...I'm so STUPID! All that work done, just to return to her, just to keep her safe...all for NOTHING!'
"She never knew I loved her..." Jimmy barely whispered. It was almost as if time was standing still for him. He never noticed how it started raining, how the police, the firemen, and paramedics were beginning to wrap things up, or how Eva Kaden, Rachel's mom, showed up after being called by the Inspector. All he could think about was Rachel and how much he hated himself for taking her for granted. "You'd think I'd have learned to appreciate her more after what happened at Tropical Land."
"Conan."
"Conan."
"CONAN!"
Conan slowly looked up towards the person who was calling out his name.
It was Richard.
"Come on," the older man said. "Eva's giving us a ride home." Richard's voice sounded so lost.
'If anyone could ever begin to understand how I feel right now, it's him' Jimmy thought. 'She was...my world...and judging from your reaction, she was your world too, Richard, even if neither of us showed her that.'
As soon as Eva got him and Richard back to the agency, Jimmy locked himself up in Rachel's room and refused to leave with the exception of going to the bathroom. He wanted to be where she used to be and be surrounded by her presence, something her room seemed to emit. He would have gotten reprimanded for his behavior, but in a surprising gesture of understanding, Richard defended him. It was quite logical that the boy would act like this, Richard argued, considering that Conan's "parents" were both nearly killed in an accident. He said the poor kid had it rough; the only person that came close to a parent to him was Rachel. And with that, everyone just let Conan stay in her room, bringing him food and watching him for any sign of trouble (aka suicide and the like). (A/N: Gasp! I know, I made Richard make sense and be nice to Jimmy/Conan! I can't believe it either!)
Two weeks went by. The explosion was mentioned in all the papers and on the t.v. Rachel was presumed dead and since she was the daughter of the "Great Detective Moore" reporters would sometimes call and ask for interviews only to be screamed at for being insensitive by the dearly departed's loved ones. Jimmy's parents had flown in as soon as they heard the news. Harley had come in as well. They were afraid Jimmy would do something stupid and all sorry to hear of Rachel's untimely demise. Jimmy would barely eat or talk; they couldn't get him to go anywhere or do anything.
Richard was up late one night sitting alone on the living room couch thinking. He couldn't believe it; his baby girl was gone. He just couldn't believe it. He knew he wasn't the best detective and that somehow someone else was solving all those cases for him and giving him the credit. He knew what this wallet implied about Rachel's fate...but he couldn't believe it, nor would he ever. He just couldn't accept the evidence. He saw the complete police reports; no body was ever found. They just assumed his daughter, his very strong and capable daughter, was burnt up in the blast. 'No wonder they always needed that little boyfriend of hers to solve a crime. They're worse than I am.' He thought.
Richard was so caught up in his thoughts he didn't notice Conan walk up to him. The small boy had all of his things packed in a bag.
"Richard."
"Huh?" Richard looked down at Conan. "Oh, finally decided to come out?"
"I'm gonna leave." Conan said. He pointed to his bag on the floor. "I know you never liked me. Rachel was always the one who convinced you to let me stay, so I'm gonna move in with Dr. Agasa."
"Oh." Richard replied. He wasn't really sure what to say to the kid. It wasn't that he hated the boy, it's just that, he got so annoying sometimes, poking around cases and all...then there was the fact that Richard felt Conan was always hiding something from him. "If that's what you want, and if you talk to your parents about it, of course. You can do that."
"Before I go, there's something you need to know about me. I really should've been telling this to Rachel, but since she's-she's..."
"Just say it," Richard suggested. He couldn't admit that his daughter was dead either.
"I'm not who you think I am." Conan said. He looked away, his guilt for deceiving the Moores resurfacing. "I'm sorry. You and Rachel gave me a home, and all I ever did was lie to you."
"I don't think I'm following what you're saying, kid."
"I'm really...Jimmy Kudo."
Hence, Jimmy confessed everything to Richard. He told Richard about the amusement park, the cases, the tranquilizer dart watch, everything. Richard just sat there, taking it all in and becoming angrier with each word. By the end of Jimmy's narrative, Richard's eye was twitching and a vein was popping out of his forehead.
Jimmy saw all this and said, "You can hit me if you want. You have every right to. I've done so much to disappoint your daughter, not to mention everything else. I deserve the pain." The young man closed his eyes and waited for the blow but it never came. He reopened his eyes and stared questioningly at Richard. It seemed that the grown man had restrained his rage and managed to replace the anger in his eyes with calmness.
"I won't. She wouldn't appreciate it." Richard told him quietly. "You can go ahead and leave now."
Jimmy nodded after spending three seconds of wondering at the effect Rachel had on people, even in death. He picked up his bag and was about to open the front door to leave when he heard Richard speak to him.
"Hey, kid."
Jimmy turned around. "Yeah," he replied.
"Thanks for telling me. And you know, I appreciate your reasons for lying to her all those times, trying to keep her safe. I don't approve of the lies, but you have good reasons. You're not so bad."
Jimmy's eyes widened. Did he hear Richard correctly? Was Rachel's dad actually complimenting him?
"At least she wasn't in love with an axe-murderer."
Jimmy shook his head and allowed a sort of almost-smile to creep onto his face. 'You've got a crazy dad, Rache...'
Jimmy made the short walk to Dr. Agasa's in no time, but once he got there, Agasa's front door swung open before he could knock on it.
"Jimmy!" Dr. Agasa called. "I have some exciting news! This could really get you over Rachel's 'death'!" The portly man was smiling as if he had just won the Nobel Peace Prize.
Jimmy looked up at the doctor skeptically. "Yeah right, doc...you know about how I feel about her..."
"Just give me a chance to explain!" the good doctor exclaimed. "Richard just called. He wants you back at the agency!"
Conan was puzzled. "What? Why?"
"He said that after you confessed to him, he realized something very important. After everyone got the news of the explosion and Rachel's 'death,' Richard just couldn't believe it. So, without anyone ever knowing, he went out and looked for clues around the explosion site and also asked all the surrounding buildings for surveillance tapes from that day. And guess what he saw on one of the tapes." Agasa said dramatically.
"What?" Jimmy sighed. "And could we possibly finish this inside? It's cold."
"JIMMY!" Agasa shouted. "LISTEN! This is important! On one of the tapes Richard saw two figures coming out of the warehouse. One was tall and lanky, the other shorter and stout. And both were in black."
This last piece of information definitely caught Jimmy's attention.
"And do you know who else he saw leave the warehouse on that tape?" Dr. Agasa continued.
"A little girl..." Jimmy gasped.
"In what seemed to be oversized clothes. He says he couldn't tell if it looked like a younger version of Rachel, but right after you told him your secret and left he suddenly remembered the tapes. When he first saw those three on the tape he just dismissed them because they seemed like they didn't have anything to do with the explosion, but after your story..."
"Doc, do you know what this means?" Jimmy whispered.
"Yes, my boy," the older man replied, "it means Rachel is still alive. She could be in another form perhaps, but she is still alive. Richard checked his attic. It was broken into and some of Rachel's old clothes were stolen."
"Oh my God! Rachel! YOU AREN'T DEAD!" Jimmy shouted. He was smiling now. He felt like dancing. Rachel wasn't dead! "If I didn't lock my self in her room maybe I could've gotten to her! We've gotta find her, Doc!"
"That's exactly why Richard wanted you back at the agency! He needs to show you that tape! He actually admitted that he needs your help, Jimmy! He wants to find Rachel too!"
"Then let's go! You can come see if there's anything you can do to give us a closer look at the people on the tape!" Jimmy said leading the doctor to his car.
"You know she probably had the same idea as you did." The doctor stated as the two got into the car. "The 'Keep away from your loved ones to protect them' type of thing. She just has a better cover story than you do though—she has death."
"Speaking of death," Jimmy responded. "You lied earlier. This news didn't get me over Rachel's death."
"What?" Agasa was perplexed. "How can you say that? Look into that mirror and tell me whether or not that's the face a happy boy!"
"How could I get over her death when it never occurred." Jimmy grinned as he bounced around in his seat in delight. 'Rachel...your alive! Don't worry about anything, i'm gonna find you, wherever you are...'
End Flashback!
"I missed you too, Conan!" Rachel cried. She pulled away to take a good look at Conan. "Look how much you've grown!" the young woman exclaimed. She ruffled Conan's hair and gave Conan another hug.
She was about to walk over to the others when she was caught in a bone-crushing hug. The faint smell of alcohol filled her nostrils.
"Ugh...dad!" she gasped.
"RACHEL!" Richard bellowed. "Now we've got a real reason to celebrate! Not just the twerp's birthday! Haha! My daughter's back!"
"Ack...yeah, dad, I missed you too." The woman gasped. "Could you maybe ease up on the hug? You're crushing me..."
The Kudos, Harley, Megure and Dr. Agasa all got up and followed Conan and Richard's example. The young woman they were so excited to see was soon enveloped in several more hugs.
"Aunt Saku, Terry, Elle!" Vivian called. "Come here and meet our good friend Rachel!"
This request knocked the three out of their stupor. Aunt Saku and Terry cast worried looks at Elle. The girl's face was full of worry, suspicion, and most of all, fear. They knew how she felt. If you were shrunk ten years younger by an international crime syndicate, forcing you to run away and hide your identity to protect your loved ones, and came home to find someone impersonating you...well...geez. To be frank, you'd be scared shitless. You'd be frightened not only for yourself, but also for the lives of those around you. That is a lot of fear.
"Just one moment dear!" Aunt Saku replied. "I really must speak with Elle for a second." The old woman turned her eyes to the anxious young girl/young woman.
"What if it's them? The ones who did this to me? They're all...all of them...and I-I probably led them here...Oh, God, what have I done..." Elle whispered. "To think I was planning to tell them all who I am...that I actually believed it was safe for them to see me again..."
Fear had Elle rooted to the spot. She knew that she'd increased her training hours, tried to learn more fighting techniques, and had psyched herself up in case of an unexpected confrontation with those crooks in black. She did everything she could to find out more about the Black Organization and the drug they had slipped her: break into police records, hack into government computer files, even get mixed up in Terry's cases! The fact that Jimmy, her father, and her friends were all there, however, seemed to shatter all those years of preparation. She couldn't risk them getting hurt during a fight, especially when she wasn't at all sure whom she was up against.
"Rachel," Aunt Saku whispered to Elle, a.k.a. the real Rachel. "Listen, you've been training since you were a small child. You are a talented young lady and you've worked so hard to prepare for a situation like this. Don't give in to fear. Terry and I, we believe in you. And remember, you aren't alone in your battle against those men." Aunt Saku nodded towards the group surrounding the fake Rachel.
"Aunt Saku's right," Terry added in. "Your Jimmy is a great detective, right? So he'll know that woman is not the real Rachel. If he really loves you, he can figure out that he's been hugging the wrong girl. And you know, Aunt Saku and I are here for you as well."
'They're right. I've gotta have more faith in Jimmy and my friends and family... Not to mention myself.' Elle thought. "Okay. You're both right. Those people there love and they know me inside out. They'll know something's up. I've just gotta keep my cool and then I can figure out the safest and fastest way to expose that phony." Rachel quietly stated. "OH! But I still can't help worrying!"
"Things will be fine in the end dear. You'll see!" Aunt Saku encouraged. "Now, let's get over there so no one will get suspicious all right, Elle?"
"Yeah," Elle said. "And I can find out more about this woman who thinks she can just waltz in and take my identity!" She had a fiery look in her eyes that her two friends knew very well. She was determined to "nail that sucker," even if it was the last thing she did.
The trio headed over to where the others were. Elle's look softened. She always hated being the bearer of bad news, even if she did have good news to deliver as well. Everyone looked so happy right now, she couldn't even find words to describe it.
'That means it'll be even more devastating when they find out she isn't really Rachel.' Elle thought. 'Even if it is for their own good.'
Hmm...I guess I'm okay with this chapter; it should work for the story. A lot has happened! My, aren't we just blazing through the events after Rachel's supposed death? Yikes! Nice Richard? Where'd he come from? Gasp! Are he and Jimmy like friends now? Woah! And yay, Rachel's not dead! Guess you were too wrapped up in thinking about her alleged death to even notice her breaking into her own home huh, Conan? Now you're too wrapped up in seeing Rachel again to even notice that isn't her you're hugging! Oh golly! You're a good detective right? So get a clue! Real Rachel/Elle, go help him out! Expose that fake! See what happens in the next chapter of my lamebrain story! See you next time! MOSTLY ALL TYPE OF FEEDBACK IS WELCOME (EXCEPT FOR THE MEAN KIND)
