Nightmare or Reality
Chapter 3: Love's Tragedy:
It would be so simple to say it was all in the past, but the small Tantei looked beyond all help. He was lost. Not the good lost either.
Kaito had to ask had to know.
"What happened to Mouri-chan?" Kaito asked.
Conan sucked in a breath and his eyes seemed to lose what little life they had. Kaito had only seen that look once. On his own face when his father died.
Tragedy would be to weak a word to describe the look in Shinichi Kudou's eyes.
The what ifs were still haunting him.
"Ran." Conan said.
A single word a thousand regrets.
"Tantei-kun you have to talk about it. You have to get over it." Kaito said.
Only to feel something smack his face.
"How can I forget Ran? She was everything to me. Everything. You'd never understand how it feels. Knowing she is gone. And it's all my fault." Conan said.
"My father was murdered. I can understand how it feels to lose someone you love." Kaito said.
Conan's eyes were lit up with anger. Kaito stood his ground he had to know. If he was going to fix this awful place. He had to know where to start.
"Haibara died before she could finish the cure. Ran.. Ran… She found one of Haibara's old pills. I thought they were all gone. It was only a rare side effect. I was lucky. Ran wasn't so lucky." Conan said.
And once again told a tale of heartbreak and death.
Conan stared. He was standing at Haibara's funeral. The Detective Boys were not as happy and upbeat as they once were.
Conan knew their innocence was dying. He was sad to see it go. Everyone had to start growing up at one point or another. This was theirs.
Ran placed a hand on his shoulder. She was smiling sadly at him. She didn't know. Didn't know what else had died that day. Shinichi Kudou had lost his chance at living again. And Ran was only concerned about her small charge and the fact he lost an important friend.
She didn't know what else had been lost never to be found again. He had to tell her. It was only right. With Haibara's death and the capture of the Black Organization.
He could tell, but this was the never the way he would ever have imagined telling her. He'd thought he'd at least be Shinichi. No Fate wasn't even nice enough to give him that.
"Ran-nee-chan, after the funeral can I talk to you?" Conan asked not much of a child left in his voice. What use was there for his mask?
"Sure Conan-kun." Ran said.
Conan went back to watching them put Haibara casket in the ground.
'Ai Haibara. Loved child.' Was all it said on her gravestone. Conan hoped she was finally with her sister.
Ran led him out of the cemetery. Back towards Agasa's house. Conan started towards his old house. What better place then home. Bourbon was no longer there so it was safe.
"Conan-kun that's Shinichi's house." Ran said.
"I know. Come on I want to tell you something." Conan said pulling her past the gate.
Ran looked sad, almost as if she knew what he wished to talk about. Conan knew she would not like all she heard.
Conan took out the house keys from his pocket. Ran looked surprised , but not as surprised as Shinichi hoped she would be. She knew.
Maybe she had always known. Shinichi let Ran go in before him. After Shinichi closed the door of his home Ran wrapped him in a hug.
"Shinichi." Ran said.
Shinichi nodded into her shoulder.
"Ran, I'm sorry I never told you. I wanted to so badly. But everyone was telling me not to." Shinichi said.
Ran pulled back and looked at his small form. Shinichi explained everything. From the horrible day at Tropical Land, to Haibara, to the raid on the Black Organization.
Ran listened to it all. Shinichi looked tired and afraid.
"Ran, I.. without Haibara. I don't think I'll get a cure." Shinichi said.
"It's okay Shinichi. I'll wait for you." Ran said hugging him again.
Shinichi smiled…
Shinichi couldn't find Ran anywhere. She wasn't at home with her father. Where on earth did she go?
Shinichi went over to Agasa's. The scientist had gone somewhere for the week. Shinichi opened the door and knew something was wrong. Something awful had happened.
Shinichi looked around nothing seemed out of place. The basement door was open. Shinichi froze before running to the basement.
He ran down the stairs and stared.
Ran.
Conan shakingly called Megure-keibu. Dropping the phone Conan ran over to Ran. He knew she was dead. Haibara's work table looked like it had been gone through.
He couldn't stand seeing her like that slumped against the wall. She didn't need to do that it wasn't right. Why why why WHY? Why did she have to go through Haibara's things. What the hell had she be thinking. Looking at her limp form he knew. He knew why and it would stare at him in the mirror for the rest of his days. She took one of the pills for him. So they could be together. Baka. Shinichi smiled tears dripping down his face. The Baka.
"Baka Ran." He was sure his voice cracked just a bit.
He knelt down and slide his too small fingers through her hair. She was beautiful even in death. The tears fell faster. A small amount of blood came from her mouth. Her eyes closed in pain. Her hands fisted in the hem of her skirt. Though she had experienced a large some of pain. That was to much.
"Damn it Ran. You should have known. All my fault, all my fault." Shinichi.. Conan breathed.
Ran hadn't known it was only a rare side effect. Something in the one and a million chances. He was lucky. So lucky to be part of the 5 % that survived. Ran.. What in his past life or current did he do to disserve this? Who did he piss off to have her taken away from him?
"Ran.. Come back please. Please. PLEASE!"Conan finally broke down.
Ran's form did not move long since dead from the APTX 4869 pill she had taken for him. She did not move as Conan cried at the front of her body. She did not move as Megure and the other officers came into the lab to find them.
She did not move as Conan was torn away from her body. Screaming, crying like the child he truly was. She only moved when the grim faced Megure and Takagi placed her in a body bag and took her away.
Kaito had to stop the Detective from hurting himself. He was crying. It seemed like Conan had been repressing some things.
"It will be okay Tantei-kun. I'll make it okay." Kaito said.
…
Okay some really revealing things here.
Poor guy.
This Chapter was inspired by the fact every future story I've read. Always has Ran either away, not knowing, or with his as a child.
Not everything has a happy ending. So I created this story as an oppisite to all those stories out there that say they make it work.
Never think it will always work out.
Next Chapter we start steering it away from sadness and hate.
R&R
KKS