A/N: Sorry about the wait! I was away at camp for 10 days... and I'm boarding a plane for a long-overdue vacation tomorrow, so expect some longer breaks for the next two weeks ;)

This is only the first part of chapter one (I haven't finished the second part yet), so it might seem shorter, but I felt like I should at least post something before I leave... Let me know what you think!

- Eight years ago -

"Shinichi!" Mouri Ran dashed after her raven-haired friend, backpack bouncing against her back. "Wait for me!"

"Geez, what took you so long?" Kudo Shinichi grumbled good-naturedly as he stopped and turned around, hands in his pockets.

"I had to go to the bathroom!" Ran replied defensively. "And there was a really long line!"

"Then couldn't you have just waited until you got home?" Shinichi retorted as he resumed walking.

"But Kaa-san always told me to go when I need to!" Ran protested as she caught up to her friend. "She said it's not good for your health to hold it in!"

Shinichi shook his head, unable to suppress an amused grin. "Mou, don't laugh at me!" Ran complained, but she was smiling too.

The two nine-year-olds walked in an unusual but comfortable silence for a few blocks. Ran stopped a few paces ahead when she felt someone grab her arm. "Eh?"

She turned, expecting to see Shinichi looking back at her, but the person holding her arm was actually a tall middle-aged man with shaggy brown hair. "Who are you?" she asked in confusion. The man didn't respond, instead tugging her down a narrow alleyway. "Wait!" she cried out as she attempted to pull her arm away. Then the realization hit her. "Wh-Where's Shinichi?!"

"Shut up, brat," the man growled as he dragged the struggling girl towards a black van hidden in the shadows. He roughly tossed her inside and slammed the door.

"Why didn't you just knock her out?" the bulky man sitting in the driver's seat asked as the tall man got in the passenger's side.

"Must've dropped my handkerchief somewhere," the tall man gruffly admitted. The driver let out an exasperated snort as he started the van.

Ran jumped as a cold hand gripped her shoulder. She slowly looked up at the woman sitting beside her, terrified. "Hello, love," the woman drawled. She was thin and fair-skinned, with short red hair and dark lipstick. A white cloth appeared in her hand and Ran began to squirm away from her.

"Now, now, you wouldn't want to leave your friend all alone, would you?" the woman admonished, a sinister grin spreading across her face. Ran gasped as she spotted Shinichi's limp body sprawled across the seat on the woman's other side. "Come here, be a good girl," the woman continued, leaning down. Ran tried to fight as the cloth covered her nose and mouth, but numbness quickly spread through her limbs and her eyes began to close...