T.A series Volume 7: Feathers of Fury

Chapter 7 - The Stalker

Whenever 6-year-old Mouri Ran cleans up Tantei Association office, it usually is a form of coping mechanism for her.

After the intense confrontation between her, Moriko and Reina, she found herself back at the Tantei Association office feeling overwhelmed and emotionally drained. The weight of today's events still lingered in her mind. Ran sighed, feeling a mix of frustration, hurt, and confusion. She knew she needed a way to cope with all these emotions, and cleaning had always been her go-to method.

After all, this always seem to work for her after her parents had separated.

The office was cluttered with case files, detective gadgets, and various knick-knacks scattered around. For Ran, cleaning up the mess was like sorting out her thoughts and feelings. As she picked up a file and placed it neatly in the cabinet, she felt a sense of control and order, even if it was just in the physical space.

It is the only control she has within Tantei Association that her enemy, Kudo Ranran, doesn't. She may have been the founder of this place, but she ain't the tidiest in organizing if one were to compare side by side. Although Ranran isn't messy like Shinichi is with his bedroom, she definitely doesn't have Ran's attention to detail when it comes to keeping things organized.

Ran's mind kept replaying the harsh words exchanged between her and Ranran during their confrontation. It hurt to hear Shinichi speaking ill of her behind her back, making her feel like she was just a burden and an annoyance. Ran knew she could be headstrong and stubborn at times, but she never expected her ex-childhood friend to treat her this way.

With each item she tidied up, Ran felt a bit of the emotional weight lift off her shoulders. It was as if the act of cleaning was a way for her to regain some control over her feelings. She was taking charge of the chaos around her, just as she wanted to take charge of her emotions.

As she carefully dusted off the shelves and arranged the detective gadgets, she thought about what Reina and Moriko had said earlier. She was annoyed, it's natural for them to say this because they are Ranran's friends.

Yet....apart from this, for some reason...Mouri Ran can't help but think they may be onto something.

Maybe there was some truth to Ranran's actions. Something Ran isn't seeing.

"Ran-san, do you need to stop cleaning and take a break?" 10-year-old Fuyuko Junko who is wiping her spectacles remains on her seat, typing down the entire report of their case files on the tablet.

"Ah no, it's alright," Ran reassured her before continuing to do her job.

"Let her be, she had it hard thanks to Ranran's script writing for the play by making Mouri's character ignorant and an idiot," The ever-observant 9-year-old Miyama Emiko was once more busy sketching the scenery of the street view outside their Tantei Association office on the sketchbook without looking at Junko.

"Seriously, I can't understand what was going through Ranran's mind when she did this to Mouri!" Junko then glared at Ranran's close friend, 6-year-old Hikari Takuma, the head of the American Football Club of Teitan Elementary School/ member of Tantei Association, who is lazily laying down, using the meeting table as a bed. "I know that Ranran and her had bad blood, but did Ranran have to take things too far!?"

"In the first place, it was her best friend Sonoko's fault for butchering the character of Snow Queen that was meant for Ranran, it was clearly obvious she had the intention to make Ranran look rather pathetic. Let alone, get the entire school to hate her." Takuma rolled his eyes casually at the glaring secretary, "Also, who was the one at fault for breaking into Ranran and Shinichi's house when all of this was going on? Otherwise, Ranran wouldn't have been able to take away Sonoko's scriptwriting privileges in the drama club despite not being a member. Sonoko and Mouri both asked for it when they decided to mess with Ranran."