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Death may be easier than seeing the dead.

Chapter 2: The Linchpin

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Conan stepped out of the house, his eyes instinctively surveying the surroundings. Oh my god is that an eye? He resisted the urge to turn his eyes away, knowing that he needs to get used to this sight. If not for the wonders of what could happen should he be found, Conan knew he would have just locked himself indoors, Amuro’s worries be damned.

Taking a deep breath, Conan smiled to the sky. “Wow, isn't this a beautiful day.”

He took the chance to close his eyes and breathed once more. The mantra he had always mumbled since he started such detective work replays in his mind. After counting to three, he nods and closes the door, waving goodbye to Amuro and walking.

He allowed his body to move on its own, the familiar twist of roads and buildings decorated his view. His own mind on the other hand, decided to recede into itself, the screams from people he knew and the anticipation at meeting past people gone clashed in a battle of wills.

What is he supposed to even do with this… Power? He wondered, he was doing fine with just the nightmares and now he would be haunted even awake. This is so not going to go well-

“CONAN!”

Flinching from the shout, Conan turned to his right and immediately jumped backwards. The roar of an engine and honks of a car accompanies the shouts of, “Stupid child, fuck off the road!”

Conan’s eyes were wide, he looked once more at his surroundings to see a junction, crowded with people instead of cars. He was about to heave a sigh of relief only to see Seiji frowning at him, hands on his hips.

“What are you even thinking in that head of yours to get so distracted that even a car horn keeps you lost?” Seiji said with a frown.

Conan shook his head and whispered, “It’s nothing, I’m just lost about this new situation.”

“It doesn’t look like that is all you were thinking about,” Seiji flosted back to Conan’s side once the light turned green. “Just know that I'm here for you okay? I’m literally the only link you have to the new world anyways.” He ended off in a teasing tone, but Conan could see the furrow between his eyebrows.

“Noted.” Conan stopped in his steps to avoid a collision with the woman before him. ”Oh sor-”

“Shut up!” Seiji hissed.

Conan glanced at Seiji in question only to feel a wave of dread along his spine. He lowered his head to see his shadow, the realization hit him like a ton of bricks.

“You can see me?”

Water started to pool at his feet, the odd feeling of drowning strangled his throat and every gulp of air hurt. He was rooted to his spot, the jello like water continued to rise up his stubby legs, as if ready to pull him into their depths.

YOU caN SEE mE?

The water continued to rise as he bent down, touched the concrete and sighed.

“Thank gosh I stopped, This crack is going to kill someone one day.”

The woman lowered herself,  and Conan can only clearly see the hair falling from her head, the dry strands caressing the ground before him. He took the time to observe her, the bloated hands pushing her white dress towards herself, snippets of her swollen lips with signs of pinked teeth pulling back into a gruesome grin.

The head suddenly tilted up and Conan stood up, walking around the crack. He forced the shivers out of his body, eyes closed into what he hopes is a satisfied smile.

Don't look back, don’t think about it.  One step after another, the park is just around the corner -why did I even entertain Seiji?-  You’re breathing too fast, slow down, it’s too deep now. Calm down, you saw nothing.

JUST BREATHE IDIOT!

With a turn around the corner, Conan walked straight to the public restroom, his plastic smile still forced in place. His cheeks were starting to hurt from the strain he was putting into the facade.

Once the doors were closed, he broke down. Arms around his knees, his face between his legs, a string of curses flowed from his mind. Chattering of teeth accompanied his words, only for him to jolt from a cold touch.

Conan fell from his perch on the toilet, his arms raised over his head. The chatters turned to shudders and within seconds he returned to his former fetal position on the ground, uncaring of the germs.

“Sorry Conan, I wanted to warn you but she appeared out of nowhere.” He could hear the guilt plaguing Seiji’s words and gave a shaky nod.

“The road… They-”

“Yeah, all ghosts, I guess I wasn’t the only one who chose punishment huh.” Seiji gave Conan an awkward smile, the smile simmered to a grimace. “She- Those types of ghosts are rare Conan, not everyone that chose to remain are vengeful ghosts-”

“So am I just lucky? Hell, I don’t need this type of luck, Seiji.”

“I know, sorry for the lack of warning.” Seiji lights up at Conan’s return smile and moves away to give him space. “We need a proper method of communication…”

“Or maybe I just don’t talk.” Came Conan’s sarcastic reply.

“Would be funny to see, but you can’t keep it up forever.”

Conan raised a brow, “Is that a challenge I hear?”

Seiji chuckled and shook his head. He could still see the small twitches from Conan, but he understands where he is coming from. He just wished that Conan would have such moments where he could just be himself. Just without the life threatening situation, Seiji shook his head, thinking.

“I think I’ve got it, can’t you just freeze me yourself?” Conan pushed himself back up the seat. “You know, like whatever that… person did to me before.”

“Those are the powers only Vengeful Ghosts have, I don’t exactly have any attachments to follow that path.”

“Damnit,” More softly, “what good are you as a warning system then?”

Seiji pouted, “I’ll have you know Mr Little Detective, that at least I didn't get turned into a literal child, so shush.” A hand on his cheek, Seiji continued to think. “Can’t I just call out to you?”

“And that has totally helped us out earlier,” Conan rolled his eyes before reaching his hand out, “wow, I really can’t touch you.”

His hand phased through Seiji who swiped a hand at Conan’s head, there was a slight chill that came from the action but as Seiji said, it was not to the level he preferred.

Conan sighed and leaned his head on the door. Flashes of fear still pop up here and there, but he knew that he was going to see worse. He needed to get used to it, whether he liked it or not.

He took the time to breathe. 

In. Rotting teeth falling out of their holds…

Out… Silent giggles around him...

In. Words being croaked out, garbled and warped ...

Out...  Hands around his neck, squeezing…

In… And snap.

Out.

"Okay. I can get through this. It's just a bunch of ghosts, they can't do anything to the unknowing."

Conan stepped out and saw his reflection. Even the gelled up hair was frizzy, stray strands falling out of line. He seemed to have aged years, eyes dreary and widely blown. Twitchy lips and shifty line of gaze...

I see, breathing exercises are a scam.

He walked to the sink, took off his glasses and turned the tap on. He let his hands soak under the rushing water, and before it wrinkled, he splashed it onto his face.

While breathing was useless, the cold from the water certainly woke him up. Another few splashes and his glasses returned to his face, he slapped his cheeks, leaving a red print on either side.

"Yup, I think I'm ready."

Seiji shook his head, tugging on his coat, careful of any human flesh. "Conan, we can return first if you want…"

His dubious gaze only served to push Conan harder, however, as he headed deeper into the park. Seiji continued to float by his side, switching between the surroundings and Conan.

The walk was surprisingly peaceful. There were ghosts, no doubt about that, but most of them minded their own business, with some at most crowding around certain people.

Conan let out a sigh of relief as he enjoyed the warmth. He kept to one side of the path, refusing to pay any ghosts more than a minute's worth of his gaze. Anytime their gazes meet, he would swerve to the sky and speed up his pace.

Seiji knew more about the other side and opted to pay more attention to those ghosts, edging Conan away from some of them. However, his eyes spotted something, and understood the position they were in immediately.

"Stop."

Conan instinctively froze in his steps, a cold sweat trailed down his cheeks as he turned to look at the trees. It was fortunate that a bird flew out of the very trees as Conan spotted a little girl by the side.

Dilated eyes stared back at him. Conan ignored the bile that rose and took the chance to observe the girl, ensuring that he followed along the tree branches, and falling leaves instead.

She was wearing hospital attire, the institution was quite far away from the neighborhood according to Conan's memory. It has burnt marks at the corners and small flecks of blood around the collar. Her appearance looks quite normal otherwise, dark ebony hair with an unnaturally wide smile.

"Seiji, thoughts?" Conan said below his breath, turning to walk towards the tree.

Seiji, seeing the blaring alarms in Conan's head, was tempted to lie but as he watched the small boy turn around, the words got stuck in his throat. Conan's eyes were sharp, it looked almost similar to that time and Seiji knew his words would get him nowhere.

He must have noticed something. Clearing his throat, Seiji nodded to Conan's unspoken question.

Conan looked up, fists clenched. He sifted through his memory of hospitals in the past year and tried correlating any recent children deaths. He came to a cold realization.

"Recently, we have been seeing a spike in suicide cases," He caught sight of ebony hair twisting around the bark of the tree, its force cracking it.

Conan gulped.

"But what's to say that some of the cases weren't actually homicides… Right, Inoue Sachie-san?"

A grotesque face fell before his eyes, sending him slithering backwards. The girl had jumped down, her neck twisting to an unsung beat as did the rest of her body. They made methodical clicking noises, spinning around their loose sockets. Even her eyes were dancing, pupils expanding into immeasurable sizes, flashing like fairy lights in the darkest of nights.

"so You See mE."

"Y-yes," Conan was pushed further back as Seiji stood before him, arm outstretched. "And I would like to know more about your situation, Inoue-san."