Chapter 1:

"Come on Ran-chan, it'll be fun! I just know Kid-sama will appear soon!" Sonoko squealed while tightly grabbing Ran's arm.

"ah-Sonoko! Wait-" Ran cried, trying to separate herself from Sonoko's grip without much luck.

'Really...' Conan thought to himself as he walked along behind the two girls. 'What's the big deal about that criminal? Did Sonoko really have to buy this luxury cruise ship just to lure Kid in?' he wondered. 'The guy is nothing but trouble!'. Flashbacks of the past run-ins with Kid flashed through his mind, none of the cases ending with a clear victory for him.

"Ah Conan-kun, hurry up! We'll be late for dinner!" Ran called out behind her. Conan hadn't noticed that he had fallen behind while thinking.

" I'm coming, Ran-neechan!" he called, quickly running to catch up with the girls. The three of them entered the dining hall of the ship. Large chandeliers fell from the ceiling, filled with crystals as the sounds of conversations echoed throughout the room. The tables were filled with formally dressed people, enjoying a large assortment of expensive looking food. Ran quickly guided the other two through the sea of tables.

"I know he's around here somewhere" she mumbled to herself, looking around at the different faces and tables. "He better not be off drinking and flirting with-" before Ran could finish, she saw her father swinging around a beer can with a huge grin on his face as the liquid spilled onto the table, just missing the woman sitting next to him.

"Ah- ha ha! And then, just as I- The great detective Kogoro- was about to solve the insolvable crime, the dirty criminal decided to run for it!" He screamed, his red face turning a dark crimson as he got closer to the lady sitting next to him.

" DAD!" Ran screamed, her hands on her hips " I told you no drinking during a case! You're supposed to be looking out for the phantom thief! Not flirting and drinking!" she scolded, her cheeks turning red at the attention she was getting from the surrounding tables.

"Aw- Come on Raaan!" he answered cheerfully "That pesky thief won't be able to escape while I'm here! Bwa-ha ha ha ha ha!"

"Jeez" Ran complained while watching her father make a fool out of himself. 'Your lucky I love you' she thought to herself. Ran quickly decided that her father was a lost-cause and turned toward Conan.

"Say Conan, how about we get something to eat and head outside, it's a beautiful night!" she asked, eyeing the large buffet table.

"Yeah!" Conan answered, happy to get away from Kogoro and enjoy some time with Ran. At least he hoped he would be alone with Ran...

"Sonoko, what about you?" he asked, wishing she suddenly had something really important to do.

" I don't understand!" Sonoko cried, startling Conan and Ran with her sudden outburst. "The invitation I sent asked him to steal the King's pendent at midnight! He's 2 minutes late!" She complained, holding onto the large pendent hanging from her neck.

"Well, maybe he had a hard time finding the boat?" Ran said, feeling awkward she had to make excuses for a thief.

"Or maybe he was waiting for the right moment" said the lady sitting next to Kogoro, her unfamiliar voice catching everyone's attention. Conan stared hard at the woman 'something about her isn't right' he thought to himself. Almost as if the woman heard Conan's thought she smiled and reached into her pocket.

"Ah! Quick! He's-" before Conan could finish his scream a large pink cloud surrounded the table. A few people screamed, as Sonoko and Conan covered their faces from the smoke.

" He's here!" Sonoko screamed. She quickly grabbed her necklace. " If he want this he'll have to steal me too!" she said looking around ' and when he does, I'll steal his heart' she thought excitedly to herself. Suddenly there was a shadow coming near her in the cloud, her heart started hammering in her chest as she closed her eyes, ready to be swept away by her Kid-Sama. As the smoke settled, Sonoko slowly began to open her eyes. The first thing she noticed was that she was still in the exact same spot she was, looking at a very drunk Kogoro. She quickly spun to her left, and saw that bratty kid who was busy coughing and wiping his watering eyes. She spun to her right, and saw nothing but tables and random people.

" What the! He was supposed to steal me along with the-" Sonoko stopped complaining as she placed her hand over her now naked neck. "He stole the King's pendent and not me!?" she screamed, looking down to confirm that the pendant was gone. "That's so unfair, Kid-sama!!!" she cried, looking around the room for any signs of him.

' Jeez, using smoke should be against the rules!' Conan thought, as he finally stopped coughing and was able to look up again. "Hey, Ran, are you ok?" he asked looking in her direction. His heart stopping when he didn't see her

"Ran?" He said looking around, his pulse quickening. "Raaan!" he continued calling. He looked around and didn't see her anywhere 'That bastard!! He took her! Shit, if he hurts her!' he screamed to himself as he ran towards the exit.

" Uh where's the brat going?...What happened to the pretty lady?" Kogoro asked, blinking dumbly at the scene that just took place.

"Who cares!" Sonoko answered, pouting as she slid down into a chair, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Where are you taking me!?" Ran cried out, as Kid flew over the railing of the ship, his cape fluttering in the wind. The pendant dangling between his fingers as he held Ran, hoping she wouldn't be stupid enough to hurt him mid-air. "Somewhere we can talk" he answered, landing on the floor below.

"I've got nothing to say to a criminal" Ran said, trying to hide the fear in her voice. She began thinking of all the ways she could incapacitate him while holding her like this. She began raising her hands to strike, when she caught a good glimpse at Kid's face. 'So much like Shinichi' she thought. She was distracted and forgot all about the attack as Kid gently placed her on her feet.

"Well now!" He said cheerfully " I wasn't sure I'd be able to do that without you trying to kill me!" a goofy grin appearing on his face. Ran blinked and returned to reality, she wasn't sure what he was going to do with her, she looked around for an exit and found a door on the opposing wall. Kid followed her gaze and smiled.

"Oh I wouldn't escape just yet. You're welcome to leave once I explain why I brought you here. That seems fair doesn't it?" Kid said. Even though it was dark, Ran guessed they were in a bedroom, the outline of the couch looked similar to the one back in her room. She watched as Kid turned on a lamp, the light hurting her eyes as it lit up Kid's face, he sat down on a chair motioning Ran to sit down on the couch in front of him. She had no reason to trust him, he wasn't Shinichi 'No matter how much he looks like him' she thought to herself.

"How about I stand here and you just tell me what you want, then I kick your ass and escape?" Ran said, once again looking towards the door.

" Well, I suppose that would work too" Kid sighed standing, as he stepped closer toward her. Her gaze narrowed as she raised her hands.

"Easy easy!" Kid said calmly " I just want to talk, I may be a thief, but I won't hurt you" he locked eyes with Ran trying to assure her he wasn't going to attack. Ran stood her ground, not moving an inch 'Guess I'll do things her way' he thought in defeat.

" I'll get to the point, I need your help" he said quickly, waiting for Ran to attack him at any moment. He knew she was a champion at Karate, and he wasn't sure how well he would do against her, it had been awhile since he fought anyone hand- to- hand. 'My card gun made me a little rusty' he thought smiling to himself.

"Help you with what?" Ran asked. 'There's no way I'm helping him with anything, if I get him to talk maybe I'll be able to get to the door' Ran thought to herself, planning to make an escape as soon as he started talking again. But it wasn't his voice that answered her.

"That's where I come in" said a beautiful voice from the corner of the room, Ran could see the shape of a person walking towards her. Her arms began to tense up.

"Who's there!" Ran called, trying to hide her voice from cracking.

"Someone who can help you get Shinichi back, Angel" a beautiful blonde woman stepped into the light, holding a cigarette in between her fingers. She smiled when she saw Ran gasp at the sight of her.

"Sh-Sharon Vineyard?" Ran said out loud, regretting it immediately 'That's impossible... She wouldn't look like that, it's been so long... she should have aged' Ran thought, as her heart hammered in her chest.

"Wow, you know your actresses, I'm impressed. But I'm afraid I'm not much of an actress anymore, Nowadays I'm doing something a little different" She smiled, with dead eyes. " Oh, and these days I go by Vermouth"

"Wh-What do you want from me!?" Ran said, she couldn't help stuttering, the fear was getting to her.

" Oh not much" Vermouth said, flicking her lighter open to light her cigarette, "I just need you to be bait" she said as she flicked her lighter off.

" What do you mean bait?" Ran demanded, inching her foot toward the door.

"It's not as bad as it sounds, you'll be safe. We just need you to get that detective motivated" Kid answered quickly, trying to calm down the situation. He knew it was only a matter of time before Conan would find him, he needed Ran to agree quickly.

" I don't understand" Ran answered, she was worried about what detective they were talking about. She stopped trying to escape and decided to listen to the end.

Vermouth blew out a puff of smoke and began explaining "You don't know what happened to that boyfriend of yours do you?" she asked flicking her cigarette as a few ashes fell. "He's on a "Big Case" right? Do you know what that case is?" she asked Ran, smiling her wicked smile.

"..No, I don't" Ran admitted, feeling even more terrified now that Shinichi was being brought into this.

" I see" Vermouth continued " I'm surprised he didn't tell you, considering he lives with you now. He goes by Conan when stuck in that body" she said, keeping her eyes on Ran.

The accusation caught Ran off guard 'these people actually think Shinich turned into a kid?' she thought to herself before answering.

" Your insane, I'm getting out of here" Ran said strongly as she bagan walking to the door.

"Wait!" Kid called as he grabbed her arm "Listen, what she's saying is true, Shinichi was turned into Conan by a group of criminals, a group called the Black organization. He's tried to take them down before but hasn't been able to get close enough to get them. But if you're involved he'll try even harder." Kid pleaded "Plus if you're in the group you can help bring it down from the inside, like her" Kid pointed at Vermouth. " I tried to take them out myself, but I need help... His help, if he can't do it, I don't know who can"

" I'm not helping you... Your both criminals! Conan can't be Shinichi! I've seen them both at the same time!" Ran cried out, trying to convince herself that what she said was the truth. She had always felt that Conan was tied to the disappearance of Shinichi, the two of them were just too similar!

" What if I can prove that the kid is him?" Vermouth asked. Reaching into her pocket she pulled out a silver container labeled MRTY 1893.

"How?" Ran asked, trying to see what the silver container was.

" Just give him one of these pills and you'll have your answer" Vermouth said, handing the container over to Ran.

" Why should I trust you? Those pills could be poison! I'm not an idiot" Ran yelled.

"There not poison, you can have one yourself, these pills will only affect people who have taken APTX 4869" Vermouth answered, getting annoyed. She didn't have to be here answering all these questions, she was in enough danger as it was. Someone from the Organization could have followed her. She was willing to risk it, if it meant getting the 'Cool guy' to finally attack the Black Organization. ' I want this to end... I want the whole thing to be exposed...and he's the one that can do it' Vermouth thought to herself. In the distance she heard a child's voice calling for Ran, she knew her time was up. She placed the container on the table under the lamp.

"We'll be in touch" she said to Ran, as she quickly spun around and disappeared into the darkness of the room. Ran stared at the silver container, as the light from the lamp shimmered off of it.

" It's true... what she said... She is working for them, but for whatever reason she wants to take the organization down, if you agree to be bait like she wanted, I promise to help you and that detective" Kid explained to Ran, getting her attention away from the container.

" Why would you do that?... Why help take down criminals?" Ran couldn't help asking, the look on Kids face was getting to her, not because it looked like Shinichi, but because of the sadness and determination that shone through his eyes. Kid looked at Ran and contemplated answering her, he decided to tell her the truth.

"The black organization killed my father" he said looking down. Before Ran could ask him anything else he had disappeared. Just then there was a bang on the door.

"Ran! Ran, are you in there!? Answer me!" Conan screamed, banging on the door in a panic. "Raaan!!"

Ran looked back at the door and began walking towards it, until she stopped. The silver container was still on the table. She had a feeling that the answer was inside it, she might be able to get Shinichi back. She remembered when he left her; how she knew something was wrong but didn't move. She had never forgiven herself for that, this time would be different, this time she'll do something. Ran walked back to the table and slipped the container into her coat pocket before going to the door and letting Conan inside.