Revealing Memories Chapter 1: Remembering, a detective conan/case closed fanfic

Revealing memories

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Detective Conan.

REVEALING MEMORIES

Part 1: Remembering

Shinichi Kudo stood in front of a hospital room, observing the figure lying on the bed through a glass panel. He still couldn't believe what had happened.

She had taken the bullet in his place. He should be on that bed instead of her. He should be fighting for his life, not her.

'Why Haibara?' he wondered, 'Why did you do it?'

She had finally made the antidote and had given it to him only a month ago, taking it herself as well. He had contacted FBI and had managed to convince Jodie Santemillion and James Black to let him help them bring down the Organisation. He had asked Haibara to help too and she had accepted despite her initial reticence. Haibara.. no, Miyano Shiho didn't want to expose herself: the men of the Organisation were after her and if they knew, or even had a hint of her new residence, all the people that knew her would have been silenced. Agase and him in first place. She was worried for them even more than for herself. Shinichi sighed, glancing at her again.

It had happened so suddenly..

FBI had raided the Organisation's headquarter only yesterday. They had captured all it's members, including Gin, Vodka and Vermouth.

He remembered everything as though it was a video replaying in his mind.

Jodie was handcuffing Vermouth while two agents were doing the same with Gin and Vodka. Miyano was standing next to him, not too far from the criminals. And it happened.

Gin punched the agent and got his gun, aiming it towards Miyano. Jodie and Mr Black didn't waste time and fired at unison at him, wounding him at the waist and right arm. Despite the injuries, Gin had managed to fire but not to Miyano. The bullet was going towards him. However, before he even realised what was going on, a hand grabbed him, pushing him aside. He remembered his shock when he saw the bullet hit Miyano square in the chest. He grabbed her before she fell to the ground while a group of agents took Gin, Vodka and Vermouth away. Miyano was breathing heavily, gasps of pain escaped her lips. He didn't dare to move her: blood was soaking her white blouse and he saw the small black hole near her heart.

He felt.. desperate. It was his fault: she was in this state because of him. He called her continuously, trying to keep her conscious while Jodie-sensei called an ambulance. Miyano wearily opened her eyes when they were heading to the hospital: the paramedics had hooked up an IV tube to her arm and had managed to slow the bleeding from her wound.

He was in the ambulance with her since Sensei had to take care of the Organisation's captives. He felt.. well, he couldn't describe his feelings. Anguish, fear, concern and guilt were raging through him. He had to do something: we wanted to help her. In any way.

But what happened later, confused him even more.

Miyano noticed him sitting close to her and when the paramedics turned their backs, she looked at him. He immediately crouched closer to her.

"How are you feeling?" he asked, not knowing what else to say.

She smirked slightly.

"What do you think?" she asked, a ghost of her usual sarcasm in her tone.

"I'm sorry." he whispered, "It's.. it's my fault."

"Don't be ridiculous, Kudo. Gin shot me, not you."

"You took the bullet in my place." He stared at her. "Why did you do it?"

She looked at him and a small smile flickered on her face.

"You are really clueless, you know meitantei?" she remarked.

He saw that she was trying to get up and immediately stopped her half way.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" he exclaimed, bending down on her, "You shouldn't..." He stopped speaking when her eyes met his; those light blue orbs seemed to enchant him. Her face got closer to his and his eyes widened when he felt her soft lips touch his in a light kiss. When he finally took in what had happened, they had parted and Miyano was looking at him.

"Do you understand now?" she whispered and lay back down. The last thing she did, before falling unconscious again, was smile at him.

Shinichi glanced at the sleeping figure behind the glass panel.

She liked him or maybe even more than that. That's why she did it.

'But..?' he thought, 'What about me?'

The answer to his question still didn't have a solution.

"Excuse me?"

Shinichi jumped and turned around to the voice. An elderly nurse was standing there, holding a clipboard with many papers.

"Y.. yes?" he asked.

"Are you a relative of Miss..." She flipped through the papers, "Miss Miyano Shiho?"

"Well, no but her.." How could he define Agase? "Her.. guardian should be coming: I called him less than ten minutes ago." It was true: he had called Professor as soon as Miyano had come out of the operation theatre. The old man nearly fainted on the phone and promised to come immediately. The point was that the hospital was far from Tokyo: it was a small surgery that Jodie-sensei had found close to the Organisation's Headquarter.. well, ex-Headquarter. Add that it was raining and that the local police and FBI, who were still working, had blocked many roads. Agase would have come very late. "Why do you ask?" He questioned her as an after thought.

The nurse didn't answer and he felt a strange sense of foreboding rush through him.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"I'm sorry but the information regarding patients are reserved to relatives." the nurse replied, not without a hint of sorry in her tone. She saw that the boy was worried.

"But..."

"I'm sorry." She turned around, ready walk away. She stole a peek to the boy and noticed his dejected face. "I presume the doctor should be in his office." she remarked airily.

Shinichi looked confused but then he understood.

"Thank you!" he said and dashed to the room at the end of the corridor. The nurse smiled.

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Dr. Hirohata wiped his glasses on his white coat and looked at the boy in front of him. There were still disbelief and shock in those dark blue eyes. He had seen that look many times in his career but he still couldn't get used to see it.

Shinichi moistened his suddenly dry lips.

"Coma?" he repeated, hoping he had misunderstood.

The man nodded.

"Miss Miyano has been seriously wounded." he said seriously, "The bullet has grazed her vital organs and has caused an inner bleeding. We treated her and have removed the bullet, despite it's difficult position but she isn't out of danger. Her vital values are highly unstable and we had to put her in pharmacological coma till they come to a safety level. But we don't when she will wake up: it could take days as much as weeks or months. We doctors can't do anything now. It's all up to her, her strength and her desire to live."

For some unknown reason, this last bit scared Shinichi more than the rest.

'Her.. desire to live?' he thought as he walked back to the girl's room. It was nearly ten at night and it was raining heavily. Nobody had still come. 'Agase must be blocked in a traffic jam. And FBI is still at work.'

The doctor's words came back to his mind.

"It's all up to her, her strength and her desire to live."

Hadn't Miyano voluntarily taken the APTX-4869 rather than allowing the Organisation to accomplish her death sentence? Hadn't she chosen to end her life with her own hands instead of being killed by the same people that had murdered her family? Fortunately, her creation had betrayed her, shrinking her to the size of a seven year old. Funny, isn't it? It had killed many people but not her, it's creator.

And even as Ai, hadn't she often thought that her life wasn't as worthy as the ones next to her?

Shinichi couldn't help but remember the times when Haibara had chosen to sacrifice herself for her friends safety. For his safety as well.

"Okay, Kudo, listen carefully, the drug that turned us into kids, APTX 4869... It has the power to cause the victim's body to kill itself. We depend on our ability to control cell production to survive."

"Hey, what are you saying?" he asked in puzzlement.

"So if we increase the speed at which cells multiply..."

"Huh?" His confusion was increasing. Along with his nervousness. "Don't speak anymore! If you're talking whether you can escape, no matter what you say.."

"Listen to me!" she ordered. "I can never..." He noticed that her tone had softened: there was a hint of sadness in her voice. "I can never speak to you face to face.."

"What?"he asked in disbelief.

"Don't you understand? They could find and capture me even when I'm in child-form. Even if I do escape, they'll find me again soon. This way, you, Hakase and everyone connected to me..." Her tone softened again. "To keep their secret, they'll kill all of you.. So it doesn't matter if I am killed or escape from here. I will never see any of you again..." He clutched the earring phone tighter as he heard her say this. "So now you have to remember everything I tell you about the drug.."

'Ai...'

(1)

'You were in danger, Ai..' he thought, touching the glass panel and looking at her. 'You. But you thought of getting all the data for the antidote.. for me. The same person who kept pestering you day and night for an antidote.'

Shinichi felt a pang of guilt when he thought of all the sleepless nights she must have spent working in Agase's lab, trying to get the antidote ready. Agase would tell him that there weren't ways to get her away from her desk, so much she was concentrated.

Shinichi looked around and when he saw that no one was around, he opened the door of her room and swiftly got in. He took a chair from a corner, placed it next to the bed and sat down.

"You will wake up, right Haibara?" he whispered. Then, realising his mistake, he corrected himself. "Sorry... Miyano." He smiled slightly, imagining her face at his error. "You have to wake up. I still have many things to tell you. Promise me that you will wake up."

A light beeping coming from the machineries was the only reply he got.

It was nearly midnight.

Shinichi was still sitting next to Shiho, unable to fall asleep despite the long day he had gone through. Agase hadn't still showed up. For a moment, Shinichi wondered what would be the man's reaction at the sight of the young girl on the bed. A vivid image of Hakase's face with a very concerned and anxious expression crossed his mind.

He knew how much the man cared for his.. adoptive daughter. Yes, she was like a daughter for Agase and Shinichi knew that. The man had trusted the little reddish-blonde haired girl from the beginning. He had helped her when she had fainted in front of his house, he had given her a new name and had been close to her whenever she needed him.

Unlike himself.

Since I have no place to go, my only hope left was you.. Shinichi Kudo.." she glanced at him, before turning back to her magazine, "Because I thought.. you could certainly understand me who was sharing the same fate with you.."

He had heard enough.

"Li.. Like Hell I could!" he shouted, "How could I understand a person who created poison to kill people?"

Hakase stepped forward to calm him down.

"Hey, hey.. Shinichi.." he said.

"You don't understand, do you?" he bellowed, "Because of your damn drug, only God knows how many people were..."

"It can't be helped." she remarked, cutting through his sentence, "It is not like it was my intention in the first place.. to create a poison.."

"WHAT?" he asked, anger building again. Agase stopped him, putting his hands on his shoulders.

(2)

"I'm such an.. idiot." Shinichi muttered to himself.

He would never forget the hurt look on her face when she tried to explain that she had been forced to develop a poison. And also when he shouted at her. He didn't give her even a chance.

Shinichi looked at her, lying on the bed, various tubes attached to her body. She had her usual face: calm, composed and barely showing any emotion. As she always did.

"But you revealed your emotions to me that day." he said softly, "Your poker face crumpled down for a few moments at the end."

"We have no choice but leave." he said, "Let's get out of here first.." He turned to the girl behind him. "Hey, you too. Hurry."

She didn't move for a minute. Then, suddenly, he saw a stream of tears run down her cheek.

"Why...?" she asked with a broken voice that made him start in surprise, "Why didn't you... help my sister?"

"Sis.. Sister?" he stammered, wondering why she was accusing him but a odd feeling was building in his stomach.

"You don't get it yet?" she exclaimed, tears still flowing from her eyes, "Masami Hirota is my sister's fake name taken from Professor Hirota's name!"

His eyes widened and the sinking feeling in his stomach doubled.

"It... it couldn't be.." he mumbled, "Masami Hirota.. The perpetrator of one billion yen robbery?"

Detective Yokomizo turned around to the source of commotion and Agase looked worried.

"H..Hey.." he said to the two 'children'.

"If.. If you have such that good deduction skill.." she continued, "You should be able to recognize my sister's disguise easily.."

He was speechless.

"But..." he muttered, "But..."

She stepped forward, clinging to his shirt with her hands and she fell on her knees.

"WHY...!" she exclaimed once again.

(3)

"I let you cry." he whispered, "Your heart splitting cry reminded me of that case that had signed me deeply. The woman that I couldn't.. didn't save.." He looked at her. "And her sister saved me today." A bittersweet smile crossed his face when he thought that that day she showed him her real face and it immediately vanished, a pained grimace taking its place.

"You have to wake up.. Miyano." he said, "You have to come back.. on your own. I can't help you this time... I really can't... Not like that day with Gin at the Beika Hotel..."

He gasped for air. He had run up the whole flight of stairs but had nevertheless arrived in time and stunned Gin's arm. He reached for his bow-tie.

"GO!" he yelled, using his own voice, "GO IN THE CHIMNEY!"

"WHO ARE YOU?" Vodka roared and started to fire at the door. He ducked and hit behind the door and the wall.

"QUICK!" he yelled and only when he heard Vodka curse, he knew that she had escaped.

(4)

"Not like the day of the bus-jack..."

"This girl is hurt! Take her and the rest of the group to the hospital!"

Detective Takagi looked baffled. Everything was happening so quickly..

"What?" he asked, looking down at the little boy.

"I can go to the police myself!" he said firmly. There was also a note of urgency in his tone.

"Ah.. Ok." the man replied. He crouched down and took the little girl in his arms delicately, noticing the blood on her knee. "Let's go."

Takagi had hardly straightened that a serious, calm voice reached him.

"Don't run away, Haibara.." He looked straight at her as he said this, "Don't look away... From your fate." The girl just looked back at him. Takagi looked even more confused.

(5)

"I... I just can't."

The words came out as a whisper. A whisper barely audible over the low but steady beeping of the machineries. He sighed and leaned on his chair.

At least this he could do it.

Wait.

Wait with her. Wait for her.

Wait for her awakening.

(1), (2), (3) Manga #18 The Girl from the Black Organisation

(4) Manga #24 Meeting with Black Organisation

(5) Manga #29 The Bus Jack

A.N: I made a few minor changes here and there and corrected the mistakes