Okay, okay, I know what you're going to say... I'm pretty sure you know what I will say, as well though... Anyway, I am sorry for the delay of this chapter, I know I promised it would be up a lot sooner than this^^ But the fact is, that my trusty beta, TwilightReader1, had some problems at her place and I told her to postpone any editing until she felt better. Last week she sent the chapter back and I've already given her the next one^^ She also (as usual) had amazing ideas in the editing process and though I could not put them all in (sorry, Barb^^), I hope the end product is still quite good. I just finished the last part of this chapter a good hour ago and decided to upload right away before I retreat back onto my couch...
One other piece of news to anyone who is a follower of this story: I now have created a facebook-page completely devoted to my Alter Ego (the writer) and plan on posting updates on how the stories are going on FB. I thought of it because of several pm's I received, begging me to volunteer information about the story and its progress. And because I know that for every person that takes the time to write to me, there are usually four more wanting to say the same but do not take the time. So for anyone who is interested in me, the stories, and anything else I might come up with, feel free to friend me on facebook. The nick is: 'Callie Winters' (which is my writers-name)and the picture is of a black/white photograph of a woman with sunglasses and dark lipstick. Its basically like any other contact on facebook, with me being able to chat, pm, post and all the other fun things^^ So, if you feel like it, look me up on facebook and I'll post regular (or semi-regular) updates on the progress there^^ So: 'Callie Winters' is the name on the FB-page, come and find me, if you like^^
All that remains for me to say here is this: Enjoy the chapter and I sincerely hope the next will not be delayed quite as long, simply because we are moving into the interesting bits now^^ I also would like to apologize in advance (you'll know later why I apologized), but seriously, who believed it could be otherwise^^ I also would like to point out that I'm usually writing (as I've been told) 3rd person limited, which means that the prime protagonist of the scene STAYS the prime protagonist. As such, he's also unaware of the precise feelings and thoughts of those around him and if something happens where he's not around, naturally he does not know about it. It also means any thoughts that appear in that part of the chapter are the ones of the protagonist for that part... I had no idea that so many were confused by this. I had thought that it was a quite common way to write... *frown* So when I write 'this POV' or 'that POV' it means that I'm writing from that specific persons standpoint... (was that clear!? I'm kind of confused at the moment...) It will get important in the following chapters, so try to pay attention^^
The 'Send-Conan-to-therapy'-fund is growing steadily and I am SO glad I have such amazing fans who give me feedback so dilligently and stick with me! Thanks a lot guys and girls!
Chapter 12
Wednesday, 22nd September 2011
Morning
The clear skies of the day had given way to dark clouds during the night, so that before dawn broke, rain had begun to cascade over Tokyo. When Heiji woke up in the morning, the water was a steady drizzle falling from grey skies. Darker clouds on the horizon gave the impression that more was to come in the following hours.
Heiji rolled over, burying his head in the nearest pillow, while he tried to ignore the overly-annoying alarm he had set the previous night. He had wanted to get an early start today, but now, with that beeping blaring through the room, he deeply regretted ever thinking such a thing. After five minutes of vainly hoping the alarm would miraculously turn itself off, Heiji reluctantly rolled out of bed. He never had been much of a morning person. Yawning, he sat up and passed a few minutes just staring out of the window, before his mind told him what exactly he was looking at.
The rain left trails on the windows, it almost looked as if the world outside was a dreary, distorted mess itself.
"Great, just great," the tanned teen muttered crossly, "Just wha' I needed t'day. Rain. No' only does it put me in a bad mood, it also destroys any potential evidence. No' tha' da guy left any..." Tiredly he rubbed a hand over his brow, scowling darkly at the window.
He was still scowling as he descended the stairs in the Kudo mansion. Somehow he knew that this day was rotten, especially since it had already started out so badly. Almost as if on Auto-pilot, Heiji made his way to the kitchen and absent-mindedly fixed himself a cup of coffee. With it, he sat himself at the kitchen counter, going back to staring once more. Though this time, his gaze had fixed the coffee cup instead of the window. For a while the tanned Osakan just sat, staring into a mug filled with strong, brown liquid.
He had not slept much, most of the night he had spent looking over the research his fellow detective had left behind. When he did manage to fall into a light slumber, his over-active imagination had done a remarkable job of ensuring he got as little rest as humanly possible. Though, judging from the dark bags under Kudo's eyes, Heiji got off easy by comparison.
He took a sip of his coffee, before he went back to staring into the mug. Only this time, his expression had changed. He no longer wore the exhausted face of someone being awake far too early, now his gaze was troubled. His features had hardened, as if whatever he was thinking about was too painful for his mind to bear. His lips were a tight line, but his eyes were soft, sad even. The teen was worried, and the more he thought about his shrunken friend, the worse he felt.
The Osakan thought back to the previous evening, how his usually so energetic friend had seemed lethargic at best. The guy had looked ready to keel over where he stood. Heiji's hands tightened around the cup he was holding. It pained him to see Kudo like that. It was hard for him, Heiji knew that. There was a very thick line between innocence and evil, but when they merged, it affected everyone. Heiji himself believed that children should be spared the cruelty of the real world for as long as possible. Therefore he understood, but for Kudo it was much worse. Not only did he want to protect them as the eldest, they were also his friends.
Shaking himself out of his dark thoughts, Heiji downed the rest of his coffee, intending to make the walk to the Agency to talk to Kudo. He hadn't had opportunity to discuss the most recent events thoroughly with his shrunken counterpart and if he deduced correctly, Kudo meant to keep the girl he believed to be targeted under strict guard. That little fact he had found out from Agasa-hakase when he had reached the house last night. Good thing the old scientist had driven up just as Heiji had reached the gates to the mansion. Otherwise, the tanned teen might have had difficulty following the conversation when the police had called him a while later.
This was another thing that bugged the Osakan. Kudo was not really given to keep him out of the loop or forgetting to mention things, especially not when they were case related. And yet Heiji had to be informed by a third party about the most recent events.
Damn it all to Hell... Heiji thought darkly, briskly walking through the dreary drizzle, determinedly grasping the umbrella he had taken from the house. The tanned detective knew that usually nothing deterred Kudo's focus (unless it was one Mouri Ran), so it was more than a little unsettling that it happened now.
While walking, he mentally made a list of things he wanted to do today. First off, he wanted to walk all the kids to the school gates, ensuring they at least reached their destination without any mishap. Afterwards, he'd go down to Police Headquarters to talk things over with Megure-keibu and the rest of the force. Depending on how long that took (hopefully not too long), he meant to go and have a look at the place the Professor had told him about: the place where the bait had been left to lure the girl away. Afterwards, it would probably be good if he returned to the school to make sure the girl got to her home safely.
And after that...
In truth, he had no idea what would come after that. Heiji had been winging this from the moment he had stepped off the Bullet Train. It was Kudo's case, strictly speaking, and while Heiji was in possession of most of the facts, he knew that Kudo held all of them. He only hoped that Kudo would be willing to spill whatever was running through his head. It was one of the sole characteristics which his friend possessed that annoyed him to no end. Just like Holmes, the shrunken sleuth was in the habit of sitting on his deductions until it was time to reveal how they all connected. It was also one of the things Heiji had always hated about Holmes.
Before very long, the Mouri Detective Agency came into view and a quick look to his watch made Heiji sigh in relief. He had made it in time to pick Kudo up; not that his friend would be too keen on the idea of having a babysitter around. Closing the umbrella, Heiji leaned against the wall at the foot of the stairs, waiting for his friend to emerge. All the while still crossly staring at the rain prattling down.
Heiji passed the time in thinking about everything he had found out so far; about the evidence, the profile, the victims, overall about anything he thought might be relevant. He also thought about the research his shrunken friend had left behind one more time. It really had been an impressive read, though it had been highly disturbing, he freely admitted that. But the level of psychology involved made Heiji uneasy.
The values of mentally unstable people were difficult to comprehend, since they worked out of a distorted sense of reality to begin with. Everything made sense to them, but might appear illogical to any casual observer. But Heiji was no casual observer, he had seen the nether-depths of humanity and could at least understand a little of what made people tick. This person however was one giant question-mark. Heiji suspected it would make sense once they had a grip on their culprit.
The doll confused him though. Surely it made sense to the killer, but in a way, it confused the detective. Perhaps Kudo had some thoughts on the matter.
Heiji tried to think further into the mind of their culprit, but found he could not do so. He simply could not shut his sense of justice off long enough to get a glimpse of such a depraved mind. And even if he could manage, he'd probably be sick on the spot. There were few crimes that were as abhorrent to the tanned teen than that of killing a child. Of course, all murders were equally repellent, but murdering a child was by far the worst. Something so innocent should never have to die in such a terrible way. The tanned Osakan felt his face twist in a grimace of utter hatred at the thought. Luckily, his thoughts were broken by the sound of a door opening, followed by Neechan's and Kudo's voices.
Schooling his features back into some semblance of control, Heiji looked up and was shocked to see the pallor of his friend.
He hadn't looked THAT sick last night... did he?!
If he had looked bad yesterday evening, now the shrunken sleuth looked like the walking dead. Seemingly the insomnia Heiji had suffered was like a disease he had caught from Kudo, though a darker sheen in his friend's usually clear and precise gaze told of nightmares suffered. Not that Kudo would ever admit to that, but Heiji recognized the look. He saw it often enough in his own eyes. The movements of his counterpart were also somewhat sluggish, as if it took most of his willpower to remain upright.
He really looks like Hell...
The thought came sudden, unbidden and left the dark-skinned youth with an uneasy feeling he was unable to shake off. Heiji knew, with his fellow detective in such a condition, he really should not be left alone. But he also knew that Kudo would not stop until he had seen this through to the end. He was rather bloodhound-ish in that respect; it was ultimately impossible to shake the small detective off the trail.
Presently he became aware of their conversation, keeping his thoughts at bay.
"Conan-kun, are you sure you want to go to school today? You could stay home, you know?" Neechan asked, doing a very poor job at disguising her worry for her small charge.
The small adult managed a slight smile before he waved her offer aside. "I want to go to school. I fine, Ran-neechan, really."
Man, Kudo, if you were trying to go for convincing, you failed miserably...
Staying silent as to not disturb them, Heiji ran his gaze over both of them, immediately deducing heaploads of information. Neechan was concerned about the physical condition of the shrunken sleuth, but privy to the fact that her offer was not heeded. She knew before-hand that Kudo had his mind set to go to school today, but had been intend on trying anyway. The tanned teen witnessed the girl crouching down in front of Kudo, affectionately brushing a strand of hair aside. Interestingly, the chibi made no motion to deter her, he just stayed there, his tired gaze bound to hers. On any normal day, Heiji would have loved the opportunity to tease him about the whole exchange, but today was not such a day.
"I'm aware that you think so. You're a very stubborn young man, you know, Conan-kun? But it's not your job to save everyone. Sometimes, even the hero needs to take a break." Neechan continued softly. For a moment, Kudo seemed taken aback by the fact that the girl was aware of how beaten he looked. It only lasted a moment however, before his face hardened and Heiji knew exactly what his shrunken friend thought.
Kudo did consider it his job to save everyone, always had. Heiji understood that urge, he had it too. They both were what they were, and as such they had to do whatever was needed to ensure the safety of those around them. They simply had to.
Evidently Kudo meant to say as much to his surrogate sister, but she forestalled any argument by continuing.
"Just promise me you'll take care of yourself, okay? If you don't feel well, just give me a call and I'll come and pick you up. Also, when you get home from school, I want you to take a nap. There will be no discussion on the last point, you hear that mister? You look terrible." She told him sternly, but not without sympathy. For a bit, Kudo's face remained in its stern expression, before it softened out.
"Okay, Ran-neechan. When I get home, I'll catch a few winks, I promise." he answered, a somewhat brittle smile tugging at his lips. Seemingly he was also tired of playing the cute routine with Neechan, Heiji could see that. But it seemed as if his quiet agreement settled the young woman's concern.
Heiji stayed quiet as he listened in. Evidently he was not the only one concerned about the chibi's well-being, but he had counted on that. His slight concern eased a little, when Kudo waved off Neechan's remonstrance with something that might be called 'practised ease'. If he still had energy for that, it likely wasn't as bad as he had feared... at least he hoped so.
The miniaturized adult accepted the offered umbrella and turned to walk down the stairs, only now catching sight of Heiji who was still standing at the bottom of the stairs. Obviously displeased at his presence, Kudo let loose what was arguably the most petulant groan in the history of mankind, before walking down the stairs, Neechan behind him. The girl did not carry her school-bag with her, so it was obvious that she would not accompany them on their walk.
Good, then I can talk to Kudo normally...
Grinning involuntarily at his shrunken friends annoyance, Heiji waited patiently for both of them to reach his side.
"What are you doing here?" the faux child asked, sending a dark scowl his way for good measure.
"Aw, come on, ya could at least pretend yer appreciatin' me walkin' all da way here ta pick ya up." Heiji shot back, aware that Kudo didn't even make a good hearted attempt to play the kid.
"You really didn't have to. I'm perfectly capable of walking to school all on my own, you know?" the shrunken detective retorted with an air of extreme annoyance. It was no great surprise that the once-teen would react to his and Neechan's concerns with such hostility, but Heiji hoped his miniaturized friend would realize that he was vulnerable in his current appearance as a child. Whether he liked that fact or not, it was still a fact. Sighing slightly and smiling to himself despite the unwelcoming greeting, Heiji simply couldn't be mad. Kudo was just being Kudo.
His focus was diverted to Neechan however, who stood on the last step, throwing a worried glance over her small charge, before she addressed Heiji.
"Good Morning, Hattori-kun. I take it you are going to be walking Conan-kun all the way to school, right?" she asked.
Slightly taken aback and not entirely sure where this was going, Heiji just nodded.
"Okay then, I guess you should be on your way..." she ended slightly uncertainly, as if half hoping that the chibi would change his mind. Not a chance in hell there, Heiji privately thought.
"Don' worry, Neechan. He's in good hands." Heiji assured the young female quietly, which seemed to calm her down immensely.
For a moment, she just stood there, before she bent down to run her hand through Kudo's dark bangs once again. It was as if she was pondering what to say next. Then, throwing caution to the wind, she quickly pulled the small form in front of her into a hug, pressing a light kiss onto his forehead. Heiji could see Kudo colouring slightly, but he seemed to relax a little.
Politely the tanned teen averted his gaze. Usually he would relish another opportunity to annoy his fellow detective, but once again, the gravity of the general situation restrained him. Kudo was close to collapsing with the pure stress of the thing, every moment to relax was a good thing. Heiji was not going to make him uncomfortable by teasing him. After a few moments, the tanned youth dared to look over and discovered that Neechan had now released the small sleuth.
"Stay safe, okay?" she said softly, waiting until she saw her small charge nod, before she stood up again and walked back upstairs.
Both Heiji and Kudo remained for a few moments, before Heiji felt the inquisitive gaze of his friend on him. He met it with an easy smile, seeing the non-child relax further. Obviously the mini-adult had expected a jibe or something of the sort and was glad it did not come. Within moments they were on their way together, both walking quietly, passing the time in silent understanding.
After a while the silence grew too oppressive for Heiji and the exhausted look on Kudo's face too concerning however and the tanned youth decided that he had to get him talking.
"Can't blame da girl fer worryin', Kudo... Ya gotta admit, ya really 'ave a talent fer trouble." Heiji stated, knowing full well the reaction which would follow. It was always fun to rile his fellow detective and most of the time Kudo seemed to derive the same sick pleasure out of annoying him, therefore Heiji thought it best to needle a little bit. Maybe, by riling the non-child a little, forcing him to retaliate, he could draw him out of that black cloud that seemed to be hanging around Kudo's head this morning. Either that, or simply getting him to vent would help his friend to focus. Though, judging from the dark look that was immediately thrown his way, it seemed that venting would work best today.
"While that may or may not be true, it's still no reason to raise such a fuss! Besides, I'm not the one they should be worrying about!" the faux child argued heatedly.
Okay, maybe riling him up was not the best of ideas...
"I take it, they've been doin' tha' fer some time now?" Heiji asked quieter, taking care to put just the right amount of understanding in his words; knowing that while Kudo would accept sympathy, he would not accept pity. Another tired groan followed his question, causing Heiji to wonder exactly how often his friend had had a similar discussion.
"Weeks, Hattori! Weeks! And frankly, it's annoying!" the smaller detective went on to mutter crossly under his breath, leaving Heiji a bit wary of his mood. "I do understand their motives, I really do, but I am capable of taking care of myself! And they know it well. How many times have I saved everyone?!" Kudo wasn't one to gloat, but the small sleuth evidently wanted to prove a point. Not that Heiji could disagree with him, the point was sound. Kudo had solved more cases than Heiji had ever come across. His friend's quiet voice drew Heiji out of his musings and he listened carefully, for he could almost not hear his friend.
"It's not like I'm actually part of their family." As soon as the words had left his lips, Kudo flinched slightly, a startled expression on his small features. He knew full well that that statement was untrue. He might not be blood, but to the Mouri's he was part of their family. And Kudo knew that, judging by the guilty look that flashed over his features. Heiji kept silent, there was no need to tell his friend things he already knew.
In brutal honesty, Heiji had never seen his friend like that. Sure, him being annoyed at being treated like a child was positively commonplace, Heiji even counted on it. But him being utterly pissed off at the fact was something new and it told the tanned detective more than he was prepared to admit. Usually concerns expressed by his friends or even Neechan were dismissed with a shrug and a tolerant eye-roll, but now the chibi looked ready to burst a nerve or something. Obviously his dark mood stemmed largely from the murder investigation (and the fact that he had been excluded so far) and in a lesser degree (though Kudo would never admit to it) from his concern over his friends. He always got furious when one of his friends crossed the line of fire. Personally, Heiji could sympathise with that, he would not be far behind such a mood if he was in the same situation. But for Kudo, who usually kept his emotions under a very tight rein, it was way past weird.
I really gotta get his mind back on track here...
Looking back at the now silently walking person next to him, Heiji noted with some surprise that he probably wouldn't need to do that, as his friend's face had already assumed that pondering expression he was slightly more familiar with. Though there was still a scowl firmly placed on the childish features, now his eyes were almost vacant, evidently the small detective thought everything through again. After a few minutes of walking in silence, Heiji's curiosity could no longer be contained.
"So, anythin' new?" he asked, hoping for one to drag his friend out of whatever dark hole he was trying to hide in and get some new material.
"Besides the fact that the killer has likely chosen Ayumi-chan for his next target?" came the immensely sarcastic reply from his miniaturized friend. So sarcastic in fact that Heiji nearly did a double take. Both because of his friend's odd behaviour as well as because of the things he had said. Of course, Heiji had heard from the Professor that the girl was probably targeted, but the barely hidden wrath in Kudo's voice made him shudder uneasily.
Heiji just looked ahead, briefly silent. A strange feeling washed over him and it took all he had not to give into the shiver that ran down his spine. He felt as if this wasn't the end, wasn't anywhere near the end of this fiasco. There was more to come and it would be worse than anything they had imagined. Before Heiji could think more on that, his shrunken friend continued. The anger in his voice had subsided a bit, just enough to make exhaustion creep into his words and stance. Silently Heiji wondered how long this had been going on, his friend looked as if he had spent weeks without resting.
Knowing Kudo, that's entirely possible... Heiji quickly pulled his straying thoughts back under control; now was not the time to ponder such things.
"The kids luckily didn't mention my presence to the police. So the cops have no idea I was there yesterday evening." the mini-tantei said, his tired gaze scanning every person they passed.
"Yeah, I kinda figured as much when Megure-keibu didn' mention ya when he called me las' night. How did he get my cell-number anyhow?" Heiji asked, grinning slightly.
"Hakase probably gave it to them..." For a moment, the shrunken sleuth fell silent, before he winced slightly, "And I forgot to tell you about that, didn't I? Kuso..." The muttered curse was answered with a tolerant shrug. With Kudo, one had to learn to take things as they came. His friend had a talent for crossing any previously made plans.
"Eh, not that big a deal. Yer lucky though Hakase came back when he did, or else I might'a been more surprised. 'E filled me in wit' wha' I didn' know yet." Heiji answered as he noticed the two boys than hung out with Kudo these days. They were standing a bit ahead, nearly back to back, so as to observe both sides of the road.
Man, Kudo, that paranoia of yours is contagious, huh?
Their conversation stagnated as Heiji walked alongside his silent friend, whose eyes roamed the surroundings not unlike a startled rabbit. The other boys walked ahead of the two detectives, quietly talking to each other. Over all, the rain was the loudest thing as it continued to pour.
It took them barely ten minutes to reach the Apartment-Complex where the girl lived and less than a minute to be on their way again. Personally, if it had been Heiji's daughter, he would not have allowed her out of the house, but perhaps her mother had no time to look after her today. As it was, in very short time, they were all en-route to the Elementary School. On any ordinary day, Heiji would have provoked his shrunken friend to no end, but as he walked with the four kids (of whom only three were genuine kids), he could not shake that apprehensive feeling.
Heiji threw his shrunken friend a glance and chose to think about that ominous emotion later. Instead, he observed Kudo for a little while. All the kids were equally concerned and cast searching looks about them, but Kudo was in full blown paranoia. Every time a noise rose over the prattle of rain, his eyes would dart to the source until he was sure that there was no imminent danger. After about five minutes of watching his shrunken friend cast suspicious looks about himself, Heiji decided to intervene.
"Bein' a bit paranoid t'day, are we?" he stated, deliberately making his voice sound lighter than he really felt like. It took quite the effort, for he imagined he was just about as nervous as the rest of them were.
"This guy might be close by. You can bet he already figured out where Ayumi lives and is likely following her to look for an opening. Until we can figure out who and where he is, she's not really safe, not even at home. So I have a right to be paranoid, Hattori!" the shrunken detective hissed back, lowering his voice so that they might not be overheard by the rest of their small company. Heiji lowered his voice as well in quiet agreement. There was no need to frighten the kids any more.
"Not sayin' ya don'. But at da school it'll be better. Megure-keibu told me they were havin' a few cops there as well." the Osakan answered quietly, bizarrely glad that while Kudo still seemed mightily out of it, his mind was still working perfectly. His body was exhausted, but as long as Kudo's mind worked, it would be all right.
But how long can he keep this up I wonder...
Wishing his own brain would stop pointing out the obvious, Heiji concentrated on his friend again, whose eyes had assumed a thoughtful look, even though he still kept his surroundings under strict scrutiny.
"Speaking of, is there anything new? Occhan was out like a light about ten minutes after you left last night and the office is locked nowadays. Therefore I didn't really get any news on what the police are up to."
"Well, Megure-keibu tol' me they've checked da shops sellin' black sand in an' 'round Tokyo, but no one sold any in some time. Some couldn't even recall if they sold any. Least tha's wha' Megure-keibu tol' me. Way I figure it, there's one option left, but it ain't a good one."
"He ordered it to be delivered to him," the shrunken sleuth continued thoughtfully, "The problem with that is, he could have used a fake address or even a postal station. That way he could get the package without anybody noticing. Besides that, it is a while since this spree started, so that puts it back a lot. If he really ordered it online, then there's not much chance for us tracing him at the moment. There are hundreds of shops selling black sand, I bet. And that in turn means, the sand-angle is a dead end for the moment."
Heiji nodded as his friend had finished speaking. Their thoughts had once more taken the same direction. The sand wouldn't aid them in finding the criminal; it was something that could be traced back to him after they had a suspect I.D.
"Yeah. Sucks, don' it?" Heiji growled irritably. They had so precious few threads to follow in this case, it was annoying and disturbing if one of them snapped.
"You can say that again. This entire time, he always was one step ahead of us. Each time we think we can finally get him, we run into another brick wall. Its no wonder Kogoro drinks himself stupid every evening." the mini-tantei agreed and rubbed a weary hand across his forehead.
"We're gonna get tha' son-of-a -..." Heiji cast a quick look to the children walking in front and amended his speech hastily, "you-know-what." His slight slip of tongue at least provoked a small grin on Kudo's tired face.
Better than nothin' I guess...
"I never suggested we would not. I'm just wondering if we can catch him before it is too late." his miniaturized friend argued weakly and Heiji could see that the worry dared to overtake Kudo once again.
"Fer now, we're doin' da best we can. I'll go talk to da cops later and yer keepin' an eye out. Wit' da police close by, dis guy can't get close enough, rite? Even if he does, da police are there an' we can catch him then, eh?" Heiji tried to cheer up his friend, not knowing whether he would be capable of that. It was always so very strange to see Kudo when he was not his detached, clinical self.
Fascinated Heiji watched as a grim determination began to surface in his friend's eyes, while the hand that held the umbrella clenched around the handle. His expression was one Heiji was slightly more familiar with (much to the Osakan's relief).
"He won't GET close enough." the shrunken teen hissed venomously.
"There's one thin' I'm confused 'bout though." Heiji said, meaning to keep his friend's mind on track. A task which proved to be rather difficult this morning.
Who can blame him really?
"And what would that be?"
"Well, Hakase tol' me 'bout da whole 'doll-thing' in da park. I'm kinda confused 'bout dat doll. Wha' purpose does dat serve? To put a doll down an' wait for da right kid ta pass by?" Heiji said.
"I've been thinking about that as well," the chibi agreed with him, "There are more effective ways to lure children away than setting a toy down. The fact that he used a toy is special though. And while it's entirely possible that the wrong kid takes the bait, he'd been watching closely and there weren't many kids around to begin with. Granted, it was also possible that either Mitsuhiko or Genta had noticed the thing and that would destroy the trap. Overall, it's a risky thing to do as far as the trap goes. But maybe he's using the toy for a different purpose..." the small detective trailed off, his eyes growing vacant as his mind probably pounced upon a clue.
For a few moments Heiji remained quiet, hoping that whatever crossed his shrunken friend's mind would be explained to him. But after nearly a minute of complete silence, while the mini-tantei walked as if in a daze, Heiji could not reign his impatience in any more. Not that he was a patient human being to begin with.
"What?! C'mon man, don' leave me hangin'!" he exclaimed heatedly, shaking his head dismissively as the three kids in front turned puzzled glances at him. Luckily they did not decide to be included in the present discussion.
"Something that just now occurred to me. What if he uses the toys, his bait, as his trophies? If you read the research, and I'm willing to bet that you did, you'll know that Serial Killers often keep trophies. So what if... the bait is his trophy? If he bought a different toy for each child, it would make sense. He needs a trophy, it would make even less sense if he didn't want one." the faux child explained and Heiji saw the brilliance in that thought.
This guy was a Serial Killer with a psychological motivation, he would need a trophy to associate himself with the deed he had done. If he was a narcissist (on top of everything) it wasn't just a question of wanting a trophy. His condition demanded one.
"Makes sense to me. So why dat doll in particular? Dat girl into dolls, or wha'?" Heiji asked, feeling they were on the verge of having a lead at long last.
"Ayumi likes porcelain dolls. She said yesterday that it was a Western porcelain doll and mentioned the store the culprit could have seen it in. There was one on display in a toy-store some five minutes walk from Beika Park, on Ayumi's usual way home."
"And dat means, he followed da girl around." Heiji threw in, seeing his small friend nod grimly.
"Yes, and he must have been doing so for some time," the shrunken sleuth barely registered Heiji's presence anymore, he was thinking out loud, "It makes sense; he knew where she would be and what she would likely go for. Think about it, Hattori. If you passed by something you wanted every day and then suddenly you see it lying around somewhere, what would you do?" Kudo asked, throwing a glance in Heiji's direction.
"I'd go an' get it," the tanned Osakan agreed, "Which is wha' dat creep's been countin' on."
For a moment silence reigned as both detectives digested this newest piece of the puzzle, even as the school came into view. Looking at the large building, an unsettling thought made its presence known in Heiji's brain. He'd had that particular thought before, but had dismissed it earlier.
"Ya know, if he followed da girl 'round, then he also knows 'bout her friends." Heiji said quietly, watching the small sleuth's forehead crease in a dark frown.
"I know. He tried to get to Ayumi while only Mitsuhiko and Genta were with her. The more people with her, the more likely he'll be spotted by someone. It's a risk he's unwilling to take. Which is why I'm not letting Ayumi out of my sight until this is over." he answered determinedly.
SO not my point here, Kudo...
"Ahou! Jus' make sure ya guys don' end up on da wrong side of da gun, 'kay?" the tanned teen snapped back, knowing from experience that Kudo more often than not risked life and limb while protecting others. Although Heiji understood that tendency (simply because he sported it as well), it did not mean he liked it particularly. Just about as much as he disliked Kudo's usual reaction: Complete dismissal.
"We'll be fine. Call me when you're done at Headquarters?" the chibi-tantei asked, stopping after watching the three kids pass through the school gates.
Ahou...
"I'll give yer a call in yer lunchbreak an' fill ya in. After dat, I'll go an' check dat toystore. Can't be too many of 'em 'round Beika Park. Maybe we're in luck an' da shopkeeper remembers who bought it, eh?" Heiji suggested, throwing a quick glance around until his eyes had settled on the police-car which was set to watch the premises.
"According to Ayumi, the doll was pretty expensive. I don't think that a lot of people bought it. I also don't think that it's been too long since the killer acquired it."
"Good. Least dat's somethin'. Say, when does dis school o' yours let out?"
"Today? Three in the afternoon, why?" the chibi asked, momentarily puzzled as to the random switch in topic, before his brain caught up, "O-...Oy, Hatt-..."
Heiji interrupted hastily, not allowing a disagreeing word in. "See ya, Kudo. I gotta get goin'. I'll come by an' pick ya guys up. We'll get da girl home and then you an' me will do some sniffin' 'round. 'Tween da two of us, dis maniac doesn't stand a friggin' chance." Heiji explained, grinning as he walked away, leaving his friend to enter the school on his own. The small sleuth just rolled his eyes.
As Heiji reached the sidewalk, he turned and shot a glance after his small friend. At that moment, that apprehensive feeling returned and this time, the tanned sleuth did allow it. He knew, just knew, that something was about to go horribly wrong, but he couldn't lay his finger on the source of his discomfort. He didn't often experience such feelings and usually he dismissed them, but on occasions such as this, he had learned that his gut-instinct was a pretty good indicator for things to come. Something would happen and it would throw their plans completely overboard.
He just hoped they could wing it together, just like they had always done.
Wednesday 22nd September 2011
Location unknown
Time unclear
He'd spent the night angry. He hated it when he could not concentrate. He was supposed to have the girl with him, her delightful screams tearing through the gag, but instead he'd been alone. No screams, no pleas, nothing. It had been so dreadfully silent. The doll had been discarded on the decrepit table which faced his wall of honour.
The murderer had been furious at the silence. The hunt was spoiled; the target momentarily out of reach. And ultimately it was that little brat's fault. Four-eyes had shown up and ruined everything, forced him to retreat out of sight. Though the killer had spent a few precious minutes to observe the proceedings, vainly hoping he'd get another chance, eventually he had realized that there would be no hunt that night.
His hateful gaze had followed the boy around, witnessed as the kid searched around, the young, clear gaze piercing everything. The girl was in relative safety with that fat man. The murderer had watched as the kid had left the park without so much as a second glance.
It was that self-assurance the brat had shown which caused him to be furious for the better part of the night. He'd driven to his hide-out; the place where he would have taken the girl; had that boy not intervened. He had paced and cursed, damning the boy and whoever had sent him there that precise moment.
He was agitated, angry and disappointed; not a very favourable state of mind. He'd looked forward to the girl, had sacrificed days following her, secretly imagining her screams. And just because of the interference of one boy; who was not even in his teens yet; he had spent those days in vain. The maniac wasn't used to failure. For a moment he contemplated going on a wild killing spree, murdering every human that chanced to cross his path, but the rational part of his distorted mind kept the impulse in check. After all, going to jail was not part of his plan.
But then, sometime before sunrise, just as the rain had started to fall outside, he'd stood in front of the doll and had finally calmed down. It took him a long while to return his mind into the cold, heartless void he called a soul and had relaxed. And started thinking.
He had checked the girl's friends early on, mainly because he had always done so. As a result, he had found out that the brat lived with Mouri Kogoro, the supposed Great Detective. Maybe that had been the reason the kid had shown up. Maybe Mouri had understood it.
Cursed detectives! I hate them and their meddling!
The man took a deep breath to relax his overwrought emotions. He thought it through. Detective or not, no one could understand his greatness, his magnificence. It was impossible that Mouri understood him.
And yet that boy had appeared... his mind cruelly reminded him.
Yet, if Mouri had understood it (which he doubted), it would make no sense for the brat to show up alone. Surely if that had been the case, the park would have been flooded with police. So it was not Mouri. He tried to think about it, but ultimately gave up. Whoever was disrupting his entertainment, he would not be caught.
Just then, a sickly pleased thought entered his darkened mind. As he thought about everything, a deranged smile distorted his features. He'd wanted the fame originally, but for him to be famous he needed a better target than the girl. Suddenly his mind was going a mile per minute, planning through the best kidnapping this city had ever seen.
And who better for it than the boy under the care of Mouri Kogoro?
Not only was the boy known for his close relations with the police, he was also famed to be the only person to ever openly challenge KID. If he took that boy, he would be known all throughout this tiny land, both by KID's fans and Mouri's followers. This one child would make him famous beyond belief!
If the Sandman took that boy to the Dreamland, he would be immortalized by the fear sweeping through the entire city. They would know that no child was safe from him; no child could be protected from being led into the Dreamland. For if not even the most protected boy in all of Tokyo could be spared from the murderer's claws; then no one would be safe. They would fear him even more than they already did; their fright would cause them to turn onto the police and tear them to shreds. Everything would drown in a wave of panic and despair and he would be immortal in the minds of countless people.
He would be the one mothers warn their children of before going out. Years from now, parents would tell their children to behave, lest the Sandman come to get them. His fame would top even the worst urban legend. He would be THE urban legend!
He wanted the final one to be special.
And this boy was special.
Quickly he had scanned the boy's name and had determined that he also carried the magical number about him. Just like the girl had.
It was more than just great. This was perfect.
Even better than his original plan.
The maniac picked the doll up he had thrown onto the table and looked at it. A shame really, he had gone to such expenses to procure this gift and now he had no need for it. He had not spared any expense, desiring to make the last one as glorious as could be achieved. In the end, it did not matter to him any more. Carelessly he dropped the doll into a nearby trash-can. He had no need for a lure now. This time, the thrill would eclipse all previous hunts, because he knew the boy could not be lured away. His actions in the park had proven that.
The man walked over to a small valise he had placed there months before, containing his precious chemical agents, which had been used to send so many children into the first sleep. The chemicals which had ensured his victory.
It would hold the answer now as well.
His hands roamed the contents of the bag, picking up the bottle of chloroform he had acquired long ago, in preparation of his hunt. But thinking about it, he decided that he needed something stronger to incapacitate the boy. Apparently that kid had a talent for spoiling his plans and he did not want to take any chances.
So he put the bottle away again and reached deeper into the many compartments of the bag, producing a small glass vial, containing a clear liquid. His grin broadened as he thought about the fact that he had never used this before. He had taken it months ago on a mere whim, but now he was glad he had done so.
Yes, that is better...
It was somewhat risky to use this instead of the chloroform, but the murderer was unwilling to take further uncertainties. His other hand closed around a small syringe, just big enough to contain the necessary amount of the chemical.
He had been lucky no one had seen him take the chemical, but his superior at his former workplace had been quite ignorant of one vial that turned up missing. After all, it was not a large amount.
Storing the syringe and the vial in his coat pocket, the maniac thought through his plan again. He'd follow the boy today and as soon as an opening presented itself, he would strike. Of course he would have to be careful, since it was reasonable that the police were around to keep an eye on the girl, but they did not know that he had decided on a different kid already.
The boy was the unknown variable, and those bumbling fools had no idea about him. Naturally their attentions would be more on the girl than on the small boy. A delighted shudder passed through his frame as he imagined the thrill this time. He had never before taken such a risky venture.
But the boy was worth the risk.
His immortality was worth the risk.
Slowly, sporting an evil grin, he made his way to the door, shutting off the lights as he did so. He was prepared, ready to strike at his target and there was nothing anybody could do to prevent it. Just before he exited the room, he turned back to his collection of gifts and a malicious glint entered his eyes. This time he did not need a gift.
The boy would vanish today.
And then the Sandman would have his fun.
Wednesday 22nd September 2011
Teitan Elementary School
Midday
By the time noon crawled closer, Conan was just about ready to give up completely. He had a splitting headache and he'd nodded off during class so often, he had actually lost count. The guilty, sleep-depraved part of his mind actually wondered if he should use the remaining few classes to catch up on some much-needed sleep, but ultimately the shrunken teen decided against it. Firstly because he knew that Kobayashi-sensei had noticed his nodding off and would likely not permit him outright sleeping in her class, and secondly, because he really did not want to have another nightmare. It was easier to hide the dread of his nightly terrors from Ran and Occhan, mainly because the old man was usually dead to the world by the time he crawled into bed.
In the middle of a classroom filled with kids was not the best place for him to take a nap, considering the current circumstances.
Weakly the faux child rubbed a hand across his eyes and decided that if he could not sleep, he could at least attempt to reason this whole mess out. Ayumi was comparatively safe and as long as it continued raining, they would stay indoors, so her safety (while very important) was not an immediate concern. Especially not since Mitsuhiko and Genta took this very seriously.
And so they should... One slip-up and all might be lost...
Absently, the shrunken sleuth massaged his aching temples, hoping to clear his head for a bit. His mind was in roaring disarray, compared to his normal standard. While he was used to thinking outside the box (and in the box, around the box or without a box entirely) in this case there were too many variables involved.
The biggest one being the killer himself. That person still remained a mystery to the miniaturized adult. Even with all his brain-power and the time he had exhausted thinking about the murderer, Conan was still no closer in pinning a face to the elusive murderer. And though the profile had helped immensely in attempting to understand the psyche of a killer that complex, he was unable to determine a motive in the spree. There always was a motive behind every scheme, but usually the killer himself dropped hints towards that... unwillingly of course, but still. So far there had been no indication for a motive at all.
This series of murders was too erratic, too inconsistent, the only thing that bound the victims together was that thing with the names, which was still half a mystery itself.
Conan simply could not understand why the names would hold such significance to the killer. It clearly was something directly involving him, otherwise it just wouldn't add up. The mini-detective simply did not know what it was.
His thoughts continued to run in circles even as the lesson in front of him about addition and step-counting continued. Conan decided to face the inevitable and gave up the reasoning. Maybe some distraction would help clear his head. It had worked in the past, so the small sleuth decided to give it a good shot. He actually made an effort today and tried to pay attention to the lesson. The urge left quickly however, as Kobayashi-sensei had the class count first by two's and then by three's.
Losing the will to pretend, Conan just rested his head on his arms, his disinterested gaze peering ahead. While the rhythmic counting continued, Conan was unaware that his eyes slowly slid closed and darkness engulfed him. After more than three hours of fighting his desire, the small detective gave into sleep.
Suddenly he was no longer in the class-room, but in a deep, endless forest. Everywhere groves of trees stretched into infinity, while deep shadows gathered at every base and the edges of his vision. There were next to no sounds, only the sound of laboured breathing. It took Conan a while to understand that he created those sounds. He was running, hastening through these dark woods. He didn't know what he was running from, he was only aware of the clear urge to run as fast as he was able to. He realized he was terrified, but again, he didn't know why he was so frightened, he just knew that he was. He could feel it down to his shuddering muscles: he was in danger.
He stumbled, nearly fell as the terrain became more rocky. He was weapon-less, defenceless, and though he hated to admit it, he truly felt like the child he posed as.
Picking up the pace once again, an ominous feeling swept over him. His heart gave a nervous jolt as he heard something. A faint voice, somewhere in the darkness around him. Conan couldn't understand what the voice was saying, he could hardly hear it over the sound of his panicked breaths and the frantic thumping of his heart. But with every step he took it seemed to come closer as well. Subconsciously he steered his feet to approach the voice, and in doing so, he could make out the words this bodiless voice uttered. It whispered his name, over and over.
Suddenly, it stopped altogether and the world around him grew silent.
Conan stopped running, for the moment too confused and too frightened to take another step. His gaze roamed the trees around him, expecting the very shadows to advance and attack him. A moment later, he became aware of a movement to his right and looking over, he indeed saw that a giant shadow emerged from the woods, vaguely human shaped; just like countless times before. In a moment the shadow was coming straight for him, and with it, the voice returned. This time it screamed.
"Conan!"
With that, Conan shot bolt upright from his resting position at the desk and the forest disappeared and took him back to reality, his face twisting into a terrified expression. He was suddenly aware of the fact that he was still in school, had fallen asleep and had had another nightmare. Darting a nervous glance around, he saw every pair of eyes on him. In most of the faces he glimpsed confusion, but the faces of his three friends expressed concern.
Crap, this is what I was trying to avoid...
He also became aware of Kobayashi-sensei standing in front of him, her hand still on his arm. And though she appeared quite startled at Conan's sudden waking, the small sleuth could see that she was worried. It fairly radiated from her. The faux child knew he was probably as white as the proverbial sheet and no doubt she noticed it. Not that he had looked the pink of health earlier today either. Kobayashi-sensei had even asked him whether he was ill.
Thankfully he was saved from having to explain everything by the sound of the bell, signalling the lesson to be over. The teacher threw Conan a faint smile before she straightened up and announced their lunch-break. It was thirty minutes before the next class would begin.
I never was so happy to hear a bell before...
Conan quickly got up and fairly ran out of the room, taking only enough time to grab his cell-phone before he disappeared into the hallway. Hattori had promised to call him during his lunch-break and though he needed a bit of fresh air, he did not want to miss the call.
For a few moments, he simply stood in the stair-well, trying to reign his emotions back in. He would never say it out loud, but he was still creeped out by the dream. In the last few days, especially last night, he always had the same dream. He was running through the same woods, encountered the same black shape, which then proceeded to grab him and choke him. Usually that was when he woke up, drenched in sweat and nearly crippled with sick fear. Conan realized that the voice had most likely been his teacher, trying to wake him up, which was why he hadn't heard it before.
But still, it did not change the fact that he still felt his muscles shake and his breathing being way too rapid for his liking. Forcing himself to take deep breaths, the small sleuth closed his eyes and tried to shove all those unrealistic fears back into some distant corner of his mind. He would have to appear normal later on, because he could be sure that Kobayashi-sensei would want a word with him.
Slowly his breathing returned to its normal rate and his heart-beat followed suit. Throwing a glance around, the mini-tantei made his way downstairs, his legs now a little more stable and his hands no longer shaking quite as badly.
The ringing of his cell-phone pulled him out of his own thoughts again, just as he reached the ground-floor. Passing by the shoe-lockers, he answered the phone, but only managed a weary "Yes?" as a greeting.
"It's me. You guys doin' a'rite?" Hattori's hacked slang answered him.
"Sure. We're fine," Conan said, hoping his voice did not betray the lingering feeling of terror his nightmare had brought on, "The others are upstairs in the class-room. So, what's the news?" the faux child asked, forcing his brain to concentrate on the more immediate matters. When this was over, the nightmares would stop also, there was no need for him to be too concerned about it.
For a moment the line was silent, as if his tanned friend had picked up on the fact that Conan's reassurance had come a little too quickly. Thankfully, the Osakan did not decide to comment on it.
"I jus' got done a' Headquarters. Wish I could tell ya they got a lead, but they don'. They've been analysing da footprints they found las' night, thanks fer tellin' me by da way. Anyway, 'sides da size an' da brand, they got nothin'. Size 7 hikin' boots, brand is Jack Wolfskin. Not really common shoes, ne?" Hattori sounded vaguely annoyed and in truth, Conan couldn't really blame him for it. Doubtless Hattori had arrived at the same conclusion as he had.
"While that's true, it still gains us nothing, just like the sand. It'll only help once we have a suspect I.D."
"Then dat toystore is our best bet." Hattori sighed slightly.
"Seems like it." Conan agreed, feeling his frown deepening.
The shrunken sleuth had made his way to the front door, wanting to stand outside for a bit. The fresh, cool air would help settle his anxiety and help him to pay attention to the conversation. He didn't even bother to change back into his sneakers, as the ground directly outside the door was dry and he would be going back in soon anyway.
"Well, I'll go an' check it out then," Hattori continued, "Oh, by the way, is dat police-cruiser still there? Megure-keibu told me they were keepin' an eye through school-hours."
A weak grin played across Conan's tired features as his eyes quickly found the car, which just passed by the school-gates.
"Yes, they're still here. They've been circling the building all morning. Good strategy, I'll give them that. That way they can keep the entire school-grounds under surveillance without having an army of police officers nearby. I suppose the weather helps with that also. In this rain, the kids wouldn't want to get outside, but even besides that, the school has decided that they're not allowed anyway."
"Ya still think dat guy is around then?" the tanned teen asked, a slight hint of uneasiness in his voice.
"Honestly, I don't know," Conan answered wearily, "It would be borderline stupid of him to stick around with the police close by, but I've been thinking..."
"When aren't ya?!" Hattori interrupted him.
"Hattori, pay attention, will you?!" Conan barked, briefly irritated, "... I THINK it's possible that he feels invincible. This murder series of his has been dragging on long enough and, provided my theory is correct, he's a narcissist. He likes the attention he's getting. Besides that, the idea that he might get caught likely doesn't even enter his mind. He thinks he's too smart for us."
A brief silence emerged after Conan's statement, showing that his counterpart thought about it.
"But dat makes dis guy even more unpredictable! Kuso! As if dat prick ain't already unpredictable enough..."
"True... But as long as Ayumi is inside and stays close-by, he wont be able to get to her." the faux child said with false cheeriness in his voice. He didn't know why he even bothered, it wasn't as if Hattori wouldn't see through that right away.
"Assumin' o' course, he wouldn' randomly change targets or do somethin' desperate..." the tanned teen continued, thankfully refraining from calling Conan out on his bad attempt at acting.
"I don't think he'd change targets. He has a reason for all this. 'Method to the Madness' and all..."
"More like 'Madness to da Method', if ya ask me..." Hattori interjected, but Conan ignored him.
"As for doing something desperate... He might be attempting something like that. But as we both know, desperate killers are liable to make bigger mistakes, making them easier to catch." Conan argued, supressing a yawn.
"Normal killers, maybe. Dis guy's a looney. Ya can't predict wha' he'd normally do..." Hattori shot back, his voice holding a tremendous amount of concern, which in turn made the shrunken sleuth frown confused.
"What's with the worry? You're not usually like this..." Conan asked puzzled. The last time he could recall (at least off the top of his head anyway) when he'd heard his friendly rival use that specific tone of voice had been during their first case in Osaka together. The case where Conan had nearly been stabbed and Hattori nearly been killed. He'd had the same quiet and oddly concerned voice then as well, the time when Hattori had spoken of his nightmare.
His friend's deflective sputtering yanked Conan out of the memory and and involuntary grin appeared on his tired face. Hattori was always one to deflect when he felt he had bared too much of his emotion. Conan could understand that, after all, there were occasions when he had done it as well, but Hattori had the amusing capability of stumbling over his words, making him sound like a total idiot, even though he was anything but.
"It's nothin'! A-Ahou... I ain't worried! It's jus'..." the tanned teen hesitated, causing Conan to shake his head in amusement, "ya know, normally we don' deal wit' them nutso's dat often... Dis guy is jus' way up da crazy-tree..." Hattori ended quietly, sighing briefly.
"I know. But that doesn't necessarily make him harder to catch. It just... makes him slightly... well, unpredictable." Conan answered lamely, knowing fully well that he hadn't exactly disproved Hattori's statement.
"Which is wha' I'm worried 'bout, ya ahou..." Hattori muttered so indistinctly that Conan had trouble understanding everything.
"What did you say? I didn't really catch that..." Conan asked, holding back on another yawn. He could feel that his brain rapidly lost the ability to focus, now that the topic was not the case in particular anymore.
"Nothin'!" Hattori deflected (again), "I'll... I'll go check dat toy store now and ya guys keep an eye out, 'kay? Talk to ya later!"
With that, the tanned Osakan simply hung up on Conan, leaving the faux child standing with a puzzled frown upon his countenance.
"I wonder what's the deal with him..." the mini-tantei mumbled to himself, snapping the phone shut with yet another yawn escaping his lips.
His gaze wandered out over the school yard, still puzzling over his friend's strange reactions. It wasn't like Hattori to be worried, especially not since the situation was under relative control. It couldn't be because of something Conan hadn't been informed of... Hattori never would have withheld information from him. Not with the stakes so high.
Maybe he's just concerned...
A slight sigh escaped the shrunken sleuth's lips as he gazed over the yard in front of him, just as the police car drove by once again. The rain made for quite the dreary and bleak view, but nonetheless Conan was glad for the weather. It meant that he could keep any eventualities under relative control.
Absently noticing how bright the few remaining colours seemed to him, Conan put a firm stop to his thoughts. He was dead-tired, had next to no leads in a severe murder investigation while a friend was in direct danger and he hadn't really eaten anything the past few days. With his brain in such a condition, his thoughts more often than not turned towards the depressing side of things. He couldn't let the others see his mood however, he had to keep up the pretence that everything was under complete control, even if that wasn't the case.
Yawning once more, he pushed himself away from the pillar he had leaned against to throw a quick look at his watch. He stopped suddenly when he noticed that the watch was conspicuously absent from his wrist.
Don't tell me I forgot to put it on this morning...
Groaning he tried to recall his actions this morning at the Agency, but everything seemed kind of hazy. Another symptom of his lack of sleep, he supposed.
Damn... If I forget something as important as that, I really should get some sleep...
Inwardly cursing his forgetfulness, the shrunken sleuth turned to go back inside. He didn't feel calm leaving Ayumi out of his sight for so long.
However, before he could even reach for the handle of the door, he felt his senses roar to violent awareness with the feeling he was utterly familiar with. Someone was watching him. Panicked, the faux child tried to turn to face the threat, but an arm seemed to appear out of nowhere and closed around his torso, pinning his arms to his sides. Conan struggled, tried to escape the iron grip of the person even as his heart-rate galloped frantically away. But then he felt a sharp prick at his neck and his limbs grew heavy in a matter of seconds.
He tried to ignore the feeling, tried with all he was to shout out, to make someone notice what was happening, but a second hand closed over his mouth, preventing the shout from breaking through. Now he cursed his decision to come outside here alone, he should have known better. And all the while, his arms and legs grew heavy and useless, while the blood rushed through his veins. His cell phone cluttered to the ground, falling out of numbed fingers.
With every heartbeat his struggles became weaker, until only one thought dominated his mind; penetrated the dizzying feeling he experienced with absolute clarity.
I've been drugged...
The small human fought to stay awake, but whatever chemical had been introduced to his bloodstream pulled him under with unrelenting force.
Where the hell did he come from anyway?
With that last thought, his mind fell silent and unconsciousness claimed him completely, throwing him into an eternal abyss of darkened oblivion.
*ducks* I know, I know... I'm evil, giving you another cliffhanger... But, as I've stated above, I DID apologize and also pointed out that you'd know why if you kept reading... In all seriousness though, you didn't REALLY think that I'd have Ayumi suffer? That girl is 'cuteness walking'! I could never harm her... Weird that I could let our favourite detective endure it however... I'm a very strange person... *hides from lynch-mob*
Review if you like, it might be that my Saturday will be crappy and reviews cheer me up^^