Midnight Madness

Disclaimer: Detective Conan and Magic Kaito belongs to Aoyama Gosho. Persona Series belongs to ATLUS. The author owns none of the characters and places that appear in here.

Pairing: KaiShin, HakuAo

Rate: T

Genre: Supernatural, Fantasy, Adventure, Romance, Friendship

Note: English is not my native language, so I apologize for spelling and grammar errors. And you don't really need to know Persona Series and its characters to follow the story.

Summary: Kudo Shinichi moves out to Ekoda in the hope of a new beginning and everything would be different for him. But the changes that happened are nothing like what he had been expecting. Not necessarily bad changes at all, just…out of the ordinary.

Chapter 1: Brand New Days

The door of the Kudo mansion creaked opened to reveal a dark-haired teen standing in front of the door frame with a large black luggage in his hand and a satchel bag on his shoulders. Stepping out into the bright light of the afternoon sun, he was greeted by the soundless wind that grazed his hair and skin softly. He smiled and then his sapphire blue eyes looked up to the clear sky.

The sky still looked the same, but for him it was different. To the rest of the world, nothing had changed. But for him, a lot of things—almost everything—had changed.

For one of the most important things was that the long battle against the Black Organization had finally over. They were finally gone for good this time. And the second thing was that he finally got his body back to normal. All of it had sounded like a dream, however a dream that managed to come true. All his hard works didn't go to waste.

"Shin-chan… Do you really need to go?"

A feminine voice could be heard coming from behind him. Without the need to turn around he knew it was his mother's voice, asking the same question for the umpteenth time this afternoon. He let out a sigh as he started walking down the path to the front gate where a yellow beetle car parked just outside of it. A little girl with strawberry blond hair could be seen leaning against the car's passenger door, and there was a white-haired old man stood beside her.

"Do you really, really need to go today?" Yukiko asked again, following his son with her husband trailing close behind.

"Yes, Kaasan, I need to go. And yes, it has to be today," Shinichi replied before his mother asked any more questions. Not that it would stop her for voicing her thoughts though.

"You still can take our offer to go with us to America instead, you know?"

"No," he declined right away. "But thanks for the offer though."

Honestly, he loved his parents and he did care about them. However he didn't want his sanity suffering from their constant weirdness. It was bad enough for the past months he was forced to live with them again in the Kudo mansion for a while.

Well, they toned down their…unique habits a bit. But still, he'd rather not spend much more time with them than necessary. Especially when the reason they went back to America was to, once again, running away from Yuusaku's editor. And there was no doubt they would finally resume their travelling hobby around the world. They seemed couldn't even stay at the same place for quite long time.

"Hah… I still can't believe my little Shin-chan will go far, far away and lives by himself… Leaving me behind, here, in the old house… I will miss him—oh no, I'm starting to miss him already…," she said in dramatic tone, suddenly leaning to her husband's shoulder who standing beside her.

Yuusaku didn't say anything. He just patted her head lightly, trying to comfort her from her worries. It made Shinichi realized that apparently his father was already corrupted into the same madness as his wife.

Shinichi rolled his eyes to the drama being display in front of him. He chose to ignore them in favor loading his luggage onto the baggage of Agasa-hakase's car. It was a normal thing to happen anyway. Leave it to his mother to say something as dramatic as like that. Leave it to his father to play along with her just like that.

But really…did she forget that he already lived by himself ever since he was thirteen? And he didn't move out that far away, just another city. Not to mention, they would leave as well in about an hour or so. So technically, no one left anyone behind. Besides, they were family. Family meant no one being left behind. No matter how far away they were from each other, their hearts were always close.

"Shin-chan, you can—no, have to tell us all what had happened at least once a week. And if it turns out you don't like it there, just say so! We'll come and take you back right away. I'm serious, Shin-chan! We'll definitely come and visit you if you don't call us!"

The dark-haired teen froze after hearing that. He could already begin to see the horror of that sentence could bring to him if it really happened.

"Yukiko, I think you don't need to do that. He's not a kid anymore. There's no need to be overprotective," Yuusaku said.

A pout was seen in her beautiful face as she turned toward her husband.

"Well, you can't really blame me for being worried, Yuu-chan. Last time we left Shin-chan lived on his own he got himself into dangerous situation and nearly died. It's not like I don't trust him enough and I do understand he can take care of himself, but after last time—"

"Kaasan… I'll be fine, I promise. I'll be more careful than before," Shinichi said, trying to reassure his mother who looked like genuinely worried about him.

Yukiko still didn't look convinced but she stopped her rambling. She walked up to him, and before he knew it, suddenly she warped her arms around him, giving him a motherly hug. Shinichi stood awkwardly then slowly warped his arms around her as well.

However as the seconds ticked by, he realized the motherly hug was transforming into the bone-crushing hug. Panicked, the boy tried prying himself out of Yukiko's clutches. Unfortunately it only made her tightening her hold on him as if he was a large plush toy. After a moment finally his mother let him go, but not before landed an embarrassing peck on his cheek.

In the background, Yuusaku could be seen looking at the scene with amused smile. Haibara Ai, who standing near the car, had a smirk adoring her face while there was a cell phone in her hand—clearly she had just secured a blackmail material. And on the other side of the car there was Agasa-hakase who smiled in understanding—being the neighbor of the Kudo family for years made him already being used to the their strangeness.

Shinichi looked embarrassed but recovered quickly as he threw an annoyed look at Yukiko and a glare at Haibara. Glancing at his wristwatch, he realized he only had thirty minutes to get to the station if he didn't want to be late.

"I need to go now. I'll be late. Bye Kaasan, Tousan."

Yuusaku smiled then gave his son a pat on the shoulder. "Take care of yourself and don't be reckless," his father said.

"I will."

The dark-haired boy got into the back seat of the car and Agasa-hakase sat on the driver's seat while Haibara slipped into the passenger's seat. Shinichi throw one last look at his parents and the mansion in general, somehow feeling sad. It was the first time he was the one leaving the house and for quite a long time as well. Before now, he didn't realize how much the house meant for him, it was the place he grew up after all.

The engine turned on and the car began to drive away from the Kudo mansion.

"Shin-chan! Don't forget what I just tell you!" Yukiko shouted loudly, waving her hands.

"Yes, Kaasan," he said in whispered tone.

"Your parents are interesting," Haibara said from her seat.

"No, they're a living nightmare."

"That's what made them interesting."

'Devil's spawn!' Shinichi thought.

"By the way, how do you feel today?" she asked suddenly.

Shinichi glanced at her. "Fine, I guess. And for your information, I did ate breakfast and lunch."

"Good. At least you don't skip them like yesterday."

"I told you, it wasn't on purpose. I was busy and besides you made me ate a lot of food during dinner afterward."

Because busy was the only word that could be used to describe what his life was like for the past months after he had came back to his normal self.

"Yeah, yeah, busy," Haibara replied, rolling her eyes. From her tone it was obvious she didn't buy his excuse. "There is something I want to give to you."

She pulled out a small vial with a lot of tablets on it. Shinichi blinked at her for a moment then reached out and took the vial from Haibara. He examined it closely.

The tablets were small and white in colored. But its shapes were quite unusual ones. Some of it was flower shapes, but there was also heart shapes, bunny shapes, cat shapes, and even crown shapes. He didn't know it was possible to make tablets like that, but apparently Haibara could. There was a piece of paper with Haibara's neat hand-writing "Drink me!" being tagged in it, making him sweat-dropped. Definitely she got influence from Ayumi's new likeness toward Alice in Wonderland.

"That is the supplement for you—for your health. It was meant to help you get the nutrition you need for your body. Because I just knew you most likely would neglect your meals."

"I didn't neglect them, I just sometimes forgot to do it," he murmured quietly.

"Really? You forgot about your meals yet you don't forget about your coffee. It is amazing, isn't it?" she said with sarcasm dripping in every word as she crossed her arms.

"Okay, okay… I won't forget about my meals."

"Good. Don't forget to take the supplement as well, one tablet per day. I advice you take it during breakfast," the strawberry blond-haired girl said then glancing outside of the window.

"Yes, Ma'am…," Shinichi replied quietly. He put it on his pocket without saying anything more and judging from her posture, it seemed Haibara had nothing to say more either.

It was quiet in the car apart from the noise of the machine and the hustle and bustle other transportation on the streets. Resting his head against his knuckles, Shinichi looked out of the window. He didn't need to be a detective to know that she still felt guilty about what had happened to him and felt responsible about it too—even if it wasn't her fault. She did more than enough already, so she should be no longer feel guilty.

He still remembered that day. It wasn't long after the Black Organization had been taken down…

.

.

.

Conan walked down the stairs to the basement uncertainly, because it was unusual for Haibara to suddenly want him to come to her laboratory. What could it be she wanted from him? Most likely she wanted him to be her test subject or needed more of his blood. Well, whatever it was he needed to be remain calm. He knocked on the metal door of the basement and waited for an answer. (She had been upset at him before when he came in there unannounced, because apparently the basement/laboratory was her territory.)

"Come in," came the muffle voice from the other side of the door.

He opened the door and stepped inside. Looking around the place he realized it still messy as ever, but there were some small different that would go unnoticed if they hadn't been there as many times as him before. He saw Agasa-hakase sat on the chair near the table. The old man smiled at him when their gazes met.

Walking around a table with a lot of unorganized chemical liquids, he found the strawberry blond-haired girl stood calmly in front of her computer. Her gaze directed at his every move like a scientist observing her test subject. Well, that was not so far from the truth. She was a scientist and he was her victim, ah, test subject.

"It's finish," Haibara said calmly, pulling out something from her lab coat then put it on the table.

Conan eyed the thing which turned out to be a small white pill then looked at the little scientist questioningly. Did she finish another experimental antidote again and want him to try it out?

"It's the permanent antidote."

The little detective's eyes widened. "R-really? It is the antidote?" he asked disbelievingly. Gingerly he took the pill, intended to just gulp it down right now right there.

"Yes, I already checked it numerous times. It's indeed the permanent one. But before you take it, I advice you listen to my explanation first," she replied while gesturing Conan to take a seat on the empty chair beside the table.

Conan just nodded. It wouldn't hurt to wait for a while. No need to rush when his main goal was already in his hands. So he sat down while Haibara sat in front of him on her own chair.

"As you already knew, the temporary antidote could return you back to normal even if only a short time. It forced your immune system to drop drastically. When you accidentally drank Baijiu and catch a cold at the same time, you could change back to normal as well. From those two cases I tried to make an experiment from different angle and finally I found the answer. However I think you might be won't like the answer that I got."

The little scientist glanced at the small vial with red pills on it. "The experimental antidote I made before the final antidote has a bigger side effect than the temporary ones. It could change you back to normal, yes, but it would kill you. It would slow the hearts so low that it eventually just stopped beating. Certainly the experimental one's a failure. However it indeed had a small amount of success. So I tried to lessen the side of effects of it."

She paused and let her word sink in the silence that deafening the room.

Agasa-hakase still sat on his chair without making any indication to move but it was clear that he also listening to her explanation albeit a bit calmly, as if already heard it before. Maybe he indeed had heard it. Haibara made a habit telling the old man if there was something important or something that had to do with Conan after all.

Meanwhile Conan found himself lost for words, his eyes widened at the news. With a curt nod from him, she continued.

"The final antidote still has a side effect—not as much as the experimental but more than the temporary ones. It will lower your immune system, much lower than normal permanently. Your body will be weak against illnesses—making you sick easily, especially cold. From then on you will need to be extra careful about your health," she explained. "I'm sorry; I can't make the side effect disappear."

"But it's still working, right?"

"It will work, I guarantee it will. But unfortunately I can't guarantee your safety."

"What do you mean?"

"You took a lot of temporary antidotes beforehand and your body going a lot of changes for such small period of times. Not only it put strains to your body but it also made your body build an immune system to the antidote, not to mention there were a lot of different chemicals on your body as well. Since the dose of the final antidote slightly different than the others, this time will be the last chance you can take it. There is a chance you will die because of it."

"What!?"

She let her gaze fell on the floor guiltily. "It is too risky, Kudo-kun. You don't have to take it if you don't want to."

"No! No, no, no, it's fine Haibara. It's not your fault," he said quickly.

"It's still my fault. If I hadn't made the poison, you wouldn't have to be in this kind of situation. You wouldn't need the temporary antidotes. You wouldn't have to wait for so long for me to finish the permanent one as well."

"But you worked hard to fix everything right again, didn't you?"

"You're the one who clean the mess, Kudo-kun. Not me."

"Well, true. But I'm not the only one. You still worked hard to help me find the antidote. You said it will work, so I believe it indeed will work," Conan said as his blue eyes behind the glasses looked at the tiny pills sat innocently in his palm. "About the side effects… I think it was inevitable since APTX 4869 messing up our systems already, the temporary antidote or final antidote only messing up my system more, but not yours. It's gonna be fine for you, right?"

Haibara looked up and shook her head. "No, I won't take it. I don't need it, Kudo-kun. I'm no longer Miyano Shiho. I want to start over my life as Haibara Ai," she said with a small smile.

He found himself smiled back at her. He knew she indeed needed a new beginning for her previous dark life as Miyano Shiho. It was a second chance for her and she took it gladly. And with the Black Origination gone, she was free. He was happy for her.

"I will take it then," Conan said determinedly.

"Shinichi-kun, are you sure about this?" Hakase asked him as he stood from his chair, approaching them with worried eyes. "The risk is a bit too high."

"I know the risk but it was my goal from the start, to come back to my real body. I don't want to be stop when the answer already in my hands. I want to be back. I want to be Kudo Shinichi again. I want to be myself again."

"We won't stop you. We only want you to make a wise decision."

"Yes, I know, Hakase. It's my choice. Besides, Conan already said his goodbye to everyone."

Agasa-hakase gave him a small smile of understanding.

"You do realize there are a lot of problems and explaining to do if you come back, right? Especially about Ran-san and your school. Are you sure you want to just suddenly come out of nowhere after disappearing almost two years like that?" Haibara said while looking at Hakase who opening the cabinet to take out a glass and a bottle of minerals.

"That's one of the main reasons I need to come back."

Haibara didn't say any more but she handed him a pair of pajamas—Shinichi's pajamas—to change into before he transforming back. Conan took them and ran into the basement's bathroom to change quickly. The pajamas were soft, comfortable, and big enough that it wouldn't get in the way of the growing process of his body.

When he stepped out, there was a futon already laid down in the middle of the room. Agasa-hakase stood beside Haibara while pouring the water to the glass. Conan walked up and sat comfortably on the futon. The old man handed the glass of water to him who took it gratefully. Looking at the pill one last time, he thought that it was ironic such a small thing could change a life of another so greatly. Finally he took a deep breath then swallowed it and gulped down the water.

At first nothing had happened, and a thought occurred to him that maybe even the final antidote didn't able to work on him anymore. It wouldn't be a surprise, really. But the steady gaze on Haibara's eyes and the worried gaze on Hakase's eyes washed away his doubts. Especially when suddenly he found his eyes widen as the antidote immediately started to take effect.

The pain was white hot and searing. It sent the hottest of roaring fires from inside his whole body, as if his body was being burn alive on the fire. He could felt it, his bones beginning to grow along with his muscles with abnormally fast speed. His heartbeat thundering in his chest loudly that he swore Haibara or Hakase might be able to hear it. Then he realized it was beginning hard to breathe.

He trashed around as he grabbed the sheet tightly in his hands. He arced back and opened his mouth to let out agonizing scream, but there was no sound came out of his mouth.

It hurt, it hurt, it hurt so much that he started squeezing his eyes tighter as the tears beginning to fall from them as well. It hurt, the pain was so unbearable. It was different in so many levels than the spasms he usually got when taking the temporary antidote. It was worst.

Was he going to die?

Was he dying…?

He didn't know the answer nor had the chance to hear the answer, because on that moment his vision was blurry then his world went black.

He woke up twelve hours later. His body ached, his mind was still hazy, and he couldn't quite recollect what had happened. When he glanced down he realized that he was once again had became a teenager named Kudo Shinichi.

'It worked! The permanent antidote worked!'

Before he had a chance to celebrate, Haibara suddenly came in. She declared she wanted to begin her inspections. And so she began to do some simple tests, just like a doctor would do to him all the while writing at her clipboard, for about three hours.

"Haibara, how is it?" Shinichi asked as he sat on the futon, still not being allowed to move around much.

"Your brain functions normally. There isn't any memory problem as well. Your organs are fine, no damage or complications. Though, there are some little problems," she replied while looking at her clipboard. "Your height measurement is still the same as before you shrunk and unsurprisingly you are underweight."

"Okay… What else?"

"I'm afraid your body isn't going to be as strong as before. Just like I told you, the side effect already messed up your immune system."

Shinichi kept silent, because he didn't know what to say to that. He understood the consequences and he already accepted it. It was a price he needed to pay to get back to normal. Yet hearing it now, when he was in his rightful age, it was kind of different.

"I think you already know this… Kudo-kun, you shouldn't reckless anymore during cases. You need to take care of yourself more carefully."

A faint smile formed in the dark-haired teen's lips. "I know, Haibara. Thank you."

It couldn't be help if he wouldn't be the same as before. Right now the most important thing was the antidote had worked and he lived…

.

.

.

Shinichi pulled back from his thoughts as the yellow beetle car finally stopped in front of the train station. He got out of the car with Hakase and Haibara following soon after. He opened the baggage and took his luggage and satchel out. After a while he finally stood in front of Haibara and Hakase who looked at him beside the car.

"Haibara, thank you," he said with a small smile of gratitude.

He didn't need to explain what he meant by that 'thank you', because he knew she knew what he meant. It was stand for a lot of things she did for him, mainly the final antidote she made that brought him back to his normal body.

"No, I'm the one who should say that," Haibara replied back. "Thank you, Kudo-kun."

And he too understood what she meant by that.

"Well, thank you for both of us then." He looked at Agasa-Hakase. "And thank you for the drive, Hakase."

"It's fine, Shinichi-kun," Agasa-hakase said. "Take it easy and don't push yourself. Just call if you need anything, I will try my best to help you."

"Yes, I will. Don't worry."

He said his goodbye then went inside the train station.

The place was packed with a lot of people, hustling and bustling around. Shinichi walked around the crowd of people carefully, making his way to the platform after bought his ticket. Fortunately he didn't need waiting long for his train to arrive. In about five minutes later the train screeched into a gentle halt. The door slide open and people rushed to get inside.

After got into one of the car, Shinichi chose to sat at the seclude area by the window. His luggage was put on the shelf above his seat while his satchel bag rested on his lap. He glanced around at the few passengers that littered the car. So far no one was looked suspicious and none of them so much as glanced his way, everyone mined their own business as usual. He couldn't help but sighed in relief, hoping there wouldn't be any cases on the train.

The train began picking up speed along the track as it slowly leaving Beika into its new destination. For a moment he looked out the window watching the city fade into the distance, then took out a mystery novel from his bag. It was a goodbye gift to Conan from Mitsuhiko, a new released mystery novel from equally a new author as well.

Shinichi didn't give much high expectation about the story, but he would still try it anyway. At least it would be enough to keep him busy for about an hour or two until the train reached the destination. And maybe it would turn out to be an interesting mystery novel. He opened the first page and began reading it.

.

.

.

"Next stop, Ekoda! Ekoda!"

Announcement for Ekoda Station could be heard from the intercom. The black-haired teen looked up from his novel, closed it then put it back on the bag. As much as he wanted to enjoy it a bit longer he didn't want miss his stop, besides he could just read it again later.

The train pulled into the destination station without any accidents. And for once, Shinichi felt it was like a miracle happening to him. After all he had never been able to go to any places without worrying about something might happen. Sure, he liked mysteries—whether it was murder case or not—but that didn't mean he liked the misfortune that befallen to the victims and their families. In fact, after many years as a detective, he felt wanting to just enjoy quiet moments where he didn't need to deal with the murder cases.

When the door opened, the dark-haired boy stood up and got out of the car with the other passengers. After struggling a little while he moved through the crowd in the train station, finally stepped out into the warm light of the sun. He couldn't help but breath out sigh of relief. It wasn't a long ride but the noisy atmosphere made him felt uneasy.

As he walked down the pavement his blue eyes saw a clock tower in the distance. Without he knew it he began walking toward the direction of the clock tower.

When he arrived at the park in front of the clock tower he let his eyes wandering around the area. It was a nice park. The trees, which mostly were sakura trees, hadn't been blooming yet but he could see some buds on their branches already. The park would be looking more beautiful when the flowers bloomed and he couldn't wait to see it.

He remembered he had only seen the clock tower once before, long time ago when he was still quite a newbie detective trying to gain trust from the police. Megure-keibu and some of the Division One trusted him almost immediately after seeing his work, but not the others. So when he heard there was a thief trying to steal the Ekoda Clock Tower, his first thought was that the thief definitely crazy.

'How would he steal a tower? There was just no way,' he had thought.

But at the same time he thought that it could be a good opportunity to show his capabilities to Division Two as well. So he asked Megure-keibu to take him there too.

He set up a multiple traps for the thief and he was so confident he would be able to catch him immediately. However it turned out his opponent was a very clever one who able to get away from his grasp easily. Not only that, the crazy thief also successfully stole the clock tower with his own way.

That day he learned that the word "steal" was not always a bad thing. And he had to admit it had been fun battling the thief even if he didn't even know the thief's name.

But the most shocking experience was equally long time after that—after he had been turned into Conan—when he heard from Nakamori-keibu that KID tried to steal a clock tower once before. That was when he realized the crazy thief he fought before was Kaitou KID. Well, he supposed he shouldn't be surprised though, KID was indeed crazy and insanely genius.

"I doubt KID knew it was me, the detective who tried to catch him back then," Shinichi mused. "And…I don't think I'd be able to attend his heist anymore."

Glancing at the clock one more time he realized it was almost four o'clock. Deciding it was time to go, he began to walk down the sidewalk all the while taking out his phone. He looked around, checking the street direction then once again looking down to his phone for the navigation system. He still remembered the address of his new apartment—Tsukishiro Apartment in block 2, Building B, Room 221—he had come there before to arrange the place after all, but unfortunately he hadn't memorized yet how to get there.

Now though, it was a good opportunity to start memorizing. And with the navigation application as his guide it was going to be easier.

Following the street direction Shinichi reached the street where many small shops lined up along the way with a few people were milling about. He stopped at the crossroad, waiting the light to change before crossing the street. In the far corner of the street there was a small park with a public basketball court and a playground. Some teenagers around his age could be seen having a game there. He observed them for a second before turned left.

As he walked along the main street he noticed how different Ekoda was from Beika. The buildings, the streets, the transportation, etc. were still the same just like Beika or any other big cities. It was still quite noisy and busy as well. But somehow the air felt pleasant. There was a peaceful and tranquil atmosphere that seemed to be serene even. He didn't know why he felt like that, maybe because he was still new to the city or maybe because the city was just like that.

Crossing the street once again he resumed walking to the more residence area. After a few minutes he found himself staring at the five stories building with a small garden at the front. He climbed the stairs to the second floor then walked to the first room with a number 221 on the door. This was his new apartment. Pulling out a small key from his pocket he used it to unlock the door, stepped inside, and locked it again.

It was smaller if being compared to his house in Beika, but in his opinion it was a much more reasonable size for only one person living in there. The walls were colored in light blue and the curtains were white, making it felt like a cozy place with simple atmosphere. It was pretty bare but some furniture he need—like sofas, chairs, tables, refrigerator, television, bed, cupboard, bookshelves, and coffee maker—had been placed there a few days ago.

The living room and the dinning room were already being arranged nicely, courtesy by his beloved mother who insisted on organizing his apartment. The kitchen unfortunately hadn't been stock with food yet, but he already made sure to stock the coffee beans at least.

"Right, need to go grocery shopping," the detective said, letting out a sigh as he went to his bedroom. "I'll do that tomorrow."

His new room was a big mess with boxes could be seen littering the room haphazardly, an uncovered bed sat in the corner beneath the window, and several tools littering the desk. The room hadn't been organized yet because he refused to let his mother did that to him. Who knew what she would do to his room, he didn't want to risk it. Besides he had never paid much attention to design, decoration, or even luxury. He wanted it simple and comfortable, and had everything he needed.

Putting his luggage and satchel down beside the desk, he realized there was a thin layer of dust covering the furniture in the room—and maybe even all of the furniture in the apartment. It seemed he needed to do a quick clean-up before started unpacking and organizing his room.

It took quite some times for him to finish sweeping and dusting the apartment. Then finally Shinichi could begin to unpack his luggage and arranged his clothes into the closet neatly. For a moment his blue eyes lingered at his new school's uniform, a midnight blue gakuran. It was nice, albeit very different from his old school uniform, not only from the type of uniform but also from the color.

After it was done, he opened one of the boxes which containing his novels, arranging his books on the bookshelves on the corner of his room orderly. He didn't bring much, only some mystery novels like Sherlock Holmes, Detective Samonji series, Ellery Queen's novels (gift from Hattori Heiji), and other novels he got as goodbye gifts.

Glancing toward the window, his blue eyes saw the last traces of sunlight disappeared slowly as the sky gradually turned black. It was night already, no wonder he was tired. Shinichi set down his cell phone on the nightstand then plopped himself down on the bed, feeling exhausted.

'A new city and a new school… Hopefully it would be a new beginning as well…'

With a lot of new faces and new places, hopefully in Ekoda everything would be different for him. Hopefully tomorrow would be the new day for him in his new school, Ekoda High School, since Teitan High School was no longer the place where he belonged. (That was the main reason he had decided not to bring his old uniform with him, he didn't want to dwell on the past.)

He closed his eyes and within a few minutes he drifted off to sleep.

.

.

.

It was a beautiful night. The sky was dark but filled with stars glimmering like millions diamonds. A cool spring breeze flew through the air, bringing leaves of the trees with it. A tiny glow appeared from the shadows of the trees. It was a butterfly. A blue butterfly flew around in the air gracefully as if dancing with the wind. A faith blue glow could be seen following its wings in every movement. The butterfly was shining, even without the light of the moon that was shining in the night sky.

Suddenly the blue butterfly moved down and landed on the railing of a balcony.

Beyond the balcony was a dark room. But with the moonlight shone through the slits in the middle of the white curtains in the window, it was enough to see inside of the room. Peeking through the window, the butterfly could see its only occupant. A boy with black hair was sleeping soundly on his bed.

Blue wings flapped a few times. With a beat the blue butterflies took off, flew straight towards the moon above in the sky. And then in the blink of an eye it vanished, seemingly disappeared like a mirage.

To be continued…