Current mood:	accomplished
Current music:	All these things into position All these things we'll one day swallow whole
Entry tags:	magic kaito

[Magic Kaito] The Kings and Queen of Mayhem (2/2)
Continued from Part 1

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Saguru bit his words back out of respect for the crying boy, looking at the Kid’s crumpled glove in Connery’s dead hand. Connery had fallen, the opals in his hand and Kid had tried to pull him back up. The firing of the cardgun he’d heard was the Kid removing the Nightmare mask from Connery’s face, for the sake of the sobbing child.

Things became frantic, calls made, the paramedics arriving to remove the body, the newly orphaned Kenta clinging to his dead father. A female officer pulled him aside, talking quietly and soothing the small child.

Saguru moved Aoko away, providing a shoulder for her to hide her face in as a few tears slipped down her cheeks, biting her lower lip to muffle the quiet sound of her sobs. “Kid…” She whispered. “He didn’t… he wouldn’t…”

”He tried to save him.” Saguru whispered into her hair as he watched Nakamori direct his men to collect evidence. The men were grim-faced, their eyes tight an anxious as they scurried around, fearful of what the evidence might find. He raised his voice, so everyone could hear. “The Kaitou Kid isn’t a murderer.”

Aoko nodded, hiding her face in his jacket. Saguru awkwardly wrapped an arm around her shoulders, giving her what comfort he could. He should be out there, collecting evidence to prove the Kid’s evidence, and he would, just not right now. Saguru wished he could see Kuroba, talk to him, let him know that he had done everything he could.

Eventually Aoko let him go and he arranged for an officer to get her home, with Nakamori’s permission. After that, he marched through the investigation, tearing through the evidence, setting the wheels in motion to prove the Kid’s innocence. The mood changed from uncertain to determined, their steps lightening as they snapped to the orders.

Nakamori and himself went to Jack Connery’s apartment, finding Nightmare’s masks and paraphernalia. Mixed along with the official Interpol reports were more personal reports on the thieves he’d worked with in the past, and how he’d gotten the Kid to do his bidding.

The Kaitou Kid had accomplices. An old man and a young woman. Connery had threatened their lives, thus ensuring the Kid’s cooperation.

Nakamori bit through the stem of his pipe. Accomplices were a surprise to Saguru, but it made sense as well. There were times that the Kid’s actions seemed impossible, especially for someone working solo, but became more understandable with the premise of assistants.

He didn’t bother trying to sleep that night as he built the case proving the Kid innocent of murder as tight as he could. Security footage was found, the rooftop the Kid and Nightmare having been standing on being free of cameras, but the space below was caught on video tape, a camera watching the warehouse doors below. A black-clad leg sliding into camera view, followed by Nightmare. Nightmare’s decent suddenly stopped as he hung from one arm, a gun falling past him. Nightmare’s apparent free hand was clasped shut and refused to open as he argued with the person above him. Nightmare falling, one white glove in the hand he’d been hanging from. A white-clad arm with a bare hand at the top of the screen trying to grab him as he fell, then hanging there dejectedly for a second before retracting, Nightmare’s body laying below.

The card flying through the air, removing the mask barely a second before Kenta, Aoko, Saguru and Nakamori reached the scene. The time stamps lined up with Saguru’s own observations.

Nightmare had fallen off the rooftop, probably at the sound of his son’s voice, and Kid had tried to save him.


There was no explanation for Nightmare falling off the roof, nor was it likely to ever be one, but it made no sense for the Kid to throw him off the roof and then attempt to save him. The official report read that Nightmare accidentally slipped off the rooftop during a confrontation with the Kaitou Kid and the Kid attempted to pull him back to safety and failed.

Saguru was exhausted and tiredly jubilant when he staggered into the classroom the next morning, several periods late. Kuroba and Aoko were subdued, leaning against each other as they sat next to each other, both looking haggard.

With the Kaitou Kid cleared, Saguru found himself at a loss of what to do next. He couldn’t exactly go up to Kuroba and apologise, Saguru had nothing to apologise for. Except maybe not arriving earlier, which was the Kid’s damn fault for delaying him. ’I’m sorry that you couldn’t save the person who tried to kill you’ didn’t sound quite right either.

But he couldn’t think of anything else to say other than ‘I’m sorry’. He ended up staring at the back of Kuroba’s head the rest of the day, his sleep-addled brain mulling over the case and what to say, coming up with a big fat zero.

The next day, the newspaper reports covered the aftermath of Kid’s heist, sensationalising Interpol Officer Jack Connery’s death, although he was grateful to note the fact that the Kid tried to save him was blasted equally as loud. Nightmare’s identity was left a mystery, he noted with some confusion, until he got word from Nakamori that Interpol wanted to keep it quiet that one of their officers was a high ranking criminal. It was probably better for Kenta as well.

Aoko shot him a wavering smile the next day, reading the paper over Kuroba’s shoulder. “Thank you.” She said quietly.

”I didn’t do anything.” He shrugged. “Just followed the evidence.”

She gave him small soft smile, turning back to the newspaper over Kuroba’s shoulder. Kuroba looked slightly better than the day before, but still not up to his sparkling personality. Saguru made a mental note to keep an eye on Kuroba for a while, he didn’t like seeing the magician so down.

It was a rather large surprise when the next week, he started hearing whispers, followed by furtive looks in his direction. Saguru made a point of not paying much attention to the local rumour mill at school. He listened just enough to keep abreast of potential leads or something that might prove of interest, but the majority of it was mindless tripe.

However, discovering his apparent ‘crush’ on Kuroba through the local gossip lines was just the slightest bit of a shock, as one might say. Apparently his concern and long-term bickering with the magician had been misconstrued.

It was most annoying since he did most emphatically did NOT think of Kuroba 'that way'. He admired Kuroba’s skills and brain, but that was as far as his feelings went.


His protests annoyingly fell on deaf ears as the rumours swirled and grew almost with a life of their own, his 'longing' for the wild-haired brunette growing stronger and more bizarre with every passing rendition. It only took a few days of whispered words to drag Saguru down from the Golden Knight from England to social outcast and pariah, people apparently afraid to get near him for fear that it would ‘spread’.

Aoko finally caught him by himself a few days later, her eyes a mix of concern and merriment, asking if he did have a crush on Kuroba, then laughing at his vehement refusal.

He sighed, running a hand through his hair as he slumped against the wall. “I am concerned for him.” He admitted tiredly. “That is all.” Because Kuroba was likely the Kaitou Kid. Although he was getting increasingly tired of this game.

”Okay.” She smiled at him, slow, sweet, and secretive. “I'll get Kaito to take care of it.” Aoko promised before she turned and walking away.

Saguru watched her go, wondering what she meant by that.

The next day, a new rumour had hit the gossip mills. Aoko apparently had a crush on Saguru. Which was silly really, because Kuroba had such an obvious crush on Aoko. A love triangle! How exciting! And poor Saguru, he didn't have a chance...

He stared at Aoko when he first heard it. Was this what she meant by ‘take care of it’?

Kuroba caught him staring first, nudging Aoko. She turned and tossed a wink in his direction, a secretive smile on her face before she turned away. Kuroba smirked at him before turning his attention back to that day’s newspaper, which was unfortunately free of Kid activity.

Saguru caught himself staring at the couple a few times after that, trying to figure out what the hell was going on because it felt like he’d just been dropped in way over his head.

It didn't help that before he could figure out what the heck was going on, Suzuki Jirokichi made a re-appearance, showing a pair of legendary amethyst jewelled women's shoes in the middle of a busy public crossroads.

There were days when Saguru seriously wondered about that old man.

He decided to try his hand at chasing the Kid this time, but got lost in the crowds, trying to figure out what tricks the Kid was going to use. Once he got past the 'busy public crossroads' bit, he could kind of see the logic behind it. Heights hadn't worked, if anything, they worked to Kid's advantage, so therefore Suzuki was removing the advantage of Kid's hang-glider.

Although the crowds were to Kid's advantage. It would be interesting to see how it would play out.

Kid flew in on his hang-glider, a small propeller driving him forward. Saguru noted the propeller with amusement, because it meant that the one in the sky was a distraction and the real Kid was....

-Jumping onto the pedestal holding the fancy shoes as the one in the sky disappeared in a cloud of smoke. Classic.

The nets as Kid were a bit of a surprise and more than a little claustrophobic, being trapped -inside- with several screaming fans. Several called for Kid to take on their appearance, which made Saguru wonder how much thought went into that suggestion. While the sentiment was admirable, it showed a distinctive lack of fore thought. Kid would be rather easy to pick out with two of the same person running around.

He was not expecting the Kaitou Kid to Teleport, just vanish like he did.

Although the cards floating through the air were a nice touch, before his re-appearance and subsequent flight away. Something shot through the air, striking the Kid's face, and something fell as the thief escaped into the night sky, unimpeded by the nets.

Saguru tracked the falling objects, ignoring what appeared to be a deflating soccer ball and grabbing the smaller object before it hit the ground, ducking several fans, who were vocally disappointed at missing their opportunity to grab a souvenir of the Kaitou Kid. He ducked behind the shouting Nakamori and his men to lose them before examining his prize. It wasn't the large amethyst, like he'd guessed it to be, but the Kaitou Kid's monocle.

Saguru stared at the prize in his hands, unable to believe what he was seeing, what he was holding.

Nakamori bellowed at him and he startled, shoving his hands into his pockets, hiding the monocle before he made his report. Nakamori grunted, then sent him away with an irritated growl for being a lack of help.

He went home, feeling slightly in a daze.

The next morning, he walked into a fight between Aoko and Kuroba before school started. "-Play with -your- pet detective!" Aoko's voice was sharp and annoyed. Kaito's response was low and muffled, Saguru unable to hear what he said. He did see Aoko throw up her hands, looking highly irritated at her best friend. "Fine. But you don't get to mock me for my favourite detective either!"

Kuroba made a strangled noise in his throat, spotting Saguru. Aoko spun, noticing him for the first time. "... Oh." She said, cheeks staining pink.

"Favourite... Detective..?" Saguru repeated, aware of one eyebrow creeping upwards. Kuroba had a bruise under his right eye, like someone had taken a punch at him.

"I'm cheering for Touchan tonight." Aoko said smoothly, crossing her arms. "Kaito's cheering for someone else. And the Kaitou Kid."

"Oh." For a minute there, Saguru thought they might have been talking about him.

Aoko brightened, as if flipping a switch. "We'd better get to class." She said, grabbing Kuroba's sleeve. "Come on, Hakuba-kun. We're going to be late!"

Kuroba rolled his eyes, allowing himself to be pulled along and Saguru chuckled softly to himself as he followed after.

The next night, Saguru found himself pressed against the corner of a building, unable to move because of the press of bodies trying to get as close to the intact multi-story nets as they could. It was getting to the point of a safety hazard, but none of the police could do anything about it at the moment.

Then the Kid cancelled 'The Magic Show', sending the crowd into a mad rush, tearing at the nets. Saguru was caught up in the surge of people. Time seemed to slow for a moment as he caught a flash of metal, the silhouette of gun in a hand. It was like watching through a strobe light as people streamed by. A glimpse of Edogawa standing still, posture stiff and expression grim. Kuroba crouched behind him. The Kid's cardgun in Kuroba's hand, aimed for the back of Edogawa's head.


And then Kuroba lifted the gun into the air, firing off another card. The Kid's voice echoed above the noise of the crowd, but Saguru didn't quite hear it, trying to track where Kuroba disappeared to. It was almost like Kuroba was a ghost, the way he moved among the mass of people.

And then the Kid was there, on the pedestal again, the mocking smile on his face as he arrived the same way the dummy had the day before. Saguru hadn't been previously aware that the propeller had enough power to actually push the weight of a person along. He was too far away to hear the comment Kid made to a pale faced and panicked officer, but he could see the almost man-eating grin. What ever the comment was, it was enough to make the other guards stay their hands as the Kid vanished.

As the night before, there was the pause before the Kid's re-appearance. It was longer this time, the silence stretching out after the '3, 2, 1' countdown. Then Kid re-appeared, sticking out sideways from the side of a building. At the top, it looked like there was another figure staring down at the Kid, a very short, small figure.

Edogawa.

Kid pulled out the card gun, shooting at something and the white banner hanging next to the banner Kid was standing on started to fall, revealing a second shadowy figure. "Come!" Kid ordered, the hang-glider snapping out as he grabbed his assistant’s hand, the of them gliding away over the nets to the crowds outrageous cheers.

... The Kid's assistant looked a heck of a lot like Kuroba.

Saguru stared after them, the monocle weighing down his pocket.


It was still in his pocket the next day in class. He fiddled with it in class, pondering his conclusions. Kuroba was directly related to the Kaitou Kid, yes, but perhaps he'd miscalculated. Kid was supposed to be old, according to Nakamori. Perhaps Kuroba was training to be the Kid and wasn't the Kid himself?

How far off were his deductions, really?

But then there was the bruise on Kuroba's face....

Aoko broke him from his musings and he realised that he'd pondered his way through several classes. Aoko was 'casually' leaning over the desk, wanting to know what he was playing with.

He glanced around, finding Kuroba and Koizumi's sharp interested eyes watching him and he slowly pulled out the monocle, setting it out on the desk. Aoko made a hissing sound, a sharp intake of breath before shoving it back in his direction. He hid it under his hand, pulling it closer to him, shielding it with his body. "I do not know why, but I have yet to turn it into Nakamori-keibu." He confessed quietly.

"Touchan would scream." Aoko breathed softly.

"Yes." And knowing Nakamori, not in a pleasant way.

Silence descended.

"It's not gonna help you in your investigation." Kuroba said gruffly. "Right?"

Saguru debated a moment. "If there were fingerprints, perhaps. Otherwise I already have the DNA, there is nothing more it can tell me except to verify what I already know."

Kuroba and Aoko exchanged a look before shrugging, like that explained everything right there. Then someone threw a chalkboard eraser and everything went back to normal.


Finals loomed and the Kid's appearances dropped away again. He spent less time with the Task Force, spending more time in his studies. Aoko and Kuroba disappeared during lunch, hiding in the library and talking to each other in hushed whispers, locked apparently in some sort of long running argument.


Tests were taken, Koizumi talked one student down from a ledge and committing suicide, and just as things started calming down slightly, Aoko came storming up and grabbing his wrist. "You're good at secrets and stuff?" She demanded.

He nodded dumbly. "I'd like to think so, yes."

"And research too?" She demanded.

"I'm an analyst for your father." He pointed out.

"Perfect."

With that, she pulled him down two flights of stairs, across campus, up another flight of stairs and into the library. Kuroba looked up from a table stacked with piles of books and raised one eyebrow in a disbelieving look. "Him?"

"Yes." Aoko nodded, jaw set stubbornly.

Kuroba rested his cheek on a fist, holding his head sideways. "Y'sure?"

Aoko shrugged. "Better than we're doing now."

"Hmmmm. Point." Kuroba made a thoughtful sound before motioning at the seat across from him. "Sit."

Saguru frowned, but did as he was bid.

"You any good with astronomy?" Kuroba asked, sitting upright and pinning him with his gaze.

"A bit." Saguru shrugged, resting his elbows on the table and lacing his fingers together at chin-height. "It's not my forte, but I do know some, yes."

"Good." Kuroba shoved some books towards him. "We're looking for a comet that passes by Earth on a 10,000 year cycle."

Saguru glanced at Aoko, but she was already immersed in her own stack of books. "And this is for-?"

"Secret." Kuroba shrugged, his attention already back to the book he was currently reading.

"Of course." Saguru muttered to himself, looking at the books he'd just been handed. Dull, dry and boring, he could tell from just looking at them. He was about to mutter a complaint when he looked over at Aoko and Kuroba's books and realised that they were reading the exact same sort of book.

Never mind then.

"In that case, it is highly unlikely to uncover." He said, picking up the first book in the stack. "A 'short period' for a comet is less than 200 years old, because it is nearly impossible to verify anything longer than that."

Kuroba set his book down, piercing him with dark eyes. "Explain."

"The rise of astronomy came about in the western world with Galileo Galilei's improvements to the telescope 400 years ago." Saguru tried to keep his voice from falling into the 'lecturing tone', which would only earn him their ire. "10,000 years ago would be 8,000BC, the end of the Ice Age and the start of the Neolithic, or New Stone Age. Sheep were just started to become domesticated."

"In other words-" Kuroba slumped forward, resting his head on an arm. "-It's not likely they were watching the skies and documenting it."

"Comets that arrive close enough to Earth to be seen with the naked eye are exceptionally rare." Saguru added as gently as he could.

"So it's a dead end, is what you're saying." Kuroba muttered darkly.

Saguru hesitated, not wishing to crush Kuroba's hope. "Not... necessarily." He said slowly. "Merely exceedingly unlikely." As in, 'he didn't wish to calculate the odds because they'd be so infintensiably small' unlikely.

Kuroba snorted. Aoko nudged her best friend with an elbow. "I'm not going to say 'I told you so'." She said fondly.

"-But you told me so." He waved it off. "Yeah, yeah." Kuroba muttered, straightening in his seat. "So that avenue is a bust. We've still got the other."

Aoko made a face. "That's an even longer long shot." She complained.

One of Saguru's eyebrows rose. Interesting.

"Okay, Tantei-san." Kuroba leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms in front of him, his drawl filled with challenge. Saguru had the strangest sense of deja vu, that wasn't the first time he'd been called that. "What would make something glow red in a comet's light?"

Something that would glow -red- in a comet's light? He frowned. Extrapolating from the previous question, he'd assume that 'something' would be some sort of rock or stone. But to make it -glow-.... "Comets produce a fair amount of Röntgen radiation, or x-ray, which is a type of electromagnetic radiation." He sounded out. "Some types of stone, such as diamonds, glow a faint red when exposed to x-rays. If there were something in a stone was to react to that electromagnetic frequency, it might do the same and glow." He ventured.

Kuroba released a breath he'd been holding. "So not impossible."

Saguru shrugged. More likely than finding a comet with a 10,000 year rotation.

Aoko exchanged a look with Kuroba. "So there is still a chance." She said and Kuroba nodded, a hopeful, contemplative expression on his face. Saguru glanced between them. If Kuroba was the Kaitou Kid, or the Kaitou Kid's apprentice, did that just mean that he had aid and abeded a known criminal?

On the other hand, did this mean that the Kaitou Kid was looking for a stone that glowed red under the light of a comet that appeared every 10,000 years? Or was this all an elaborate ruse on their part to confuse him?

"So..." Kuroba drawled, leaning forward again. "Neolithic, huh? What followed that?"

"Bronze age." Saguru tilted his head to the side, mentally verifying that. "Height of the Ancient Egyptians. First Dynasty in China." Although the 'Bronze Age' was rather hard to pin down in China.

Kuroba not quite, but almost purred. Aoko didn't, but the look on her face was remarkably similar to a cat with a warm bowl of cream.

The Kaitou Kid's next heist was stealing an Ancient Egyptian scepter. The next was an Xia Dynasty jade pendant. Saguru was not entirely amused. He debated avoiding Aoko and Kuroba after that, giving some serious thought to it, but in the end found himself dragged along anyway. This, like the monocle, he figured couldn't hurt. It wasn't impeding the investigation and he still lacked proof that Kuroba had anything to do with the Kaitou Kid.

The searching feeling, like he was missing something, faded when he was with them as well, chuckling over Kuroba's sharp-tongue comments about ancient civilisations and Aoko's light teasing laughter.

He was present at the next heist, hanging around in the background at a large temple and observing. The heist seemed to involve something about attempting to capture a duck using a hatbox and a bowling pin, Saguru was rather sketchy on the details and wasn't entirely sure he wanted to know. Something about a jewel the size or shape of an egg.

And then things got... hectic. He wasn't sure if he heard the sound of gunfire or not, but people were stampeding and he got pushed by a fleeing crowd. His head hit the brick wall on the way down and things got fuzzy. Saguru thought he hit the ground, but he wasn't sure. He was aware of hands grabbing him and pulling him away from the sound of the crowd. He followed them blindly, his eyes squeezed shut against the pain in his head, allowing them to move him on blind trust.

He was set under a tree, somewhere quiet in the shadows were the light wasn't so bright on his skin. "Thanks." He muttered, squinting upwards at his blurry rescuer.

It was the Kaitou Kid. Even backlit and not being able to focus properly, it was unmistakably the Kaitou Kid.

Two Kaitou Kid actually.

One grabbed the other by the arm. "Gotta go." Was the whispered comment and they vanished in separate directions. Saguru sat there in a daze, unable to gather the mind power or energy to follow them.

He told Nakamori when the Inspector found him later in a thick slurred voice, clutching the large bump on his head with one hand, the duck egg jewel sitting in his lap. He was taken to hospital and treated for a concussion and a sprained hand, where someone had stepped on it.

Someone had opened fire on the Kaitou Kid on temple grounds, prompting the panicked crowd. Nakamori told him to rest and not worry about it.

The next day at school, Kuroba and Aoko kept constant vigilance on him, hovering around him with worried expressions. He would have paid more attention to it if his head had hurt a little less.

Two Kaitou Kid. Kuroba and someone else. Probably someone close to him. He stopped the flow of logic right there, before it could be carried to a conclusion. It was the concussion talking. After all, people often saw double with a head injury, right?

Hah. It was his job to catch criminals. The Kaitou Kid was a criminal. It was his duty to catch the Kid.

…. So why did it feel like he'd betrayed himself by telling Nakamori that he'd seen double? Saguru clutched the monocle he was still carrying around in his pocket and held his tongue, even as Aoko invited him to their 'study' sessions.

He went, but stayed silent, his thoughts in a blur. By not saying anything, that made him an accomplice now. The Kaitou Kid was supposed to be assisted by two people, a young woman and an elderly man. Aoko mentioned Kaito’s uncle one time.

It all fit. He knew who the Kaitou Kid was, he knew who was assisting him. He felt slightly nauseous and wondered if he could blame that on the concussion as well. How had he fallen so far?

Kuroba and Aoko watched him for concern. The cynical, analytical part of him wanted to complain that it was because they were worried that he’d spill their secrets and were therefore keeping a close eye on him. The rest of him wanted to believe that they were honestly concerned for him, that despite his accusations, however correct that they might be, that they were friends.

He wasn’t sure what to accept.

Saguru was restless for the next couple of days, his world feeling off-kilter in ways that had nothing to do with his head injury as he questioned his logic and everything he’d done since he’d moved to Japan for the first time. Perhaps he would have been better off staying in England.

The logic was solid. Kuroba was the Kaitou Kid. Aoko was assisting him. It not only fit, it explained several mysteries of how the Kaitou Kid was able to operate. Saguru was not wrong.

Aoko and Kuroba continued to watch him, but held their own silence, giving him the space that he desperately needed as he tried to reconcile everything.

And then the Kaitou Kid sent in a notice. It was plastered across the headlines of the newspapers Kuroba was reading. Saguru said nothing as he silently took a newspaper from Kuroba’s desk without permission and read it. There was a large rare diamond on display in a private showing for one night before it was sent on to Hong Kong for sale. Logically, if the Kid wanted to get to it, he had to act fast.

He was distantly aware of everyone in the classroom watching him as he read the paper. It was public knowledge that he’d been quiet since being injured chasing the Kaitou Kid and everyone wanted to know what he was going to do next. He glanced up from reading the paper, to Aoko and Kuroba’s guarded hopeful looks as they watched him, Aoko gripping Kuroba’s arm in a crushing grip that belied her placid expression.

”Excuse me.” He said with as much dignity as he could, putting the newspaper back on the table. “I need to go commit ritual suicide now.”

Scattered confused applause followed him out as for the first time in many years, Saguru cut class.

He spent the afternoon in his Uncle’s laboratory, going over data on automatically pilot as he debated his best course of action. It was late afternoon when he finally decided to do what he had always done. Go chase the Kaitou Kid and play it by ear.

Nakamori and the Task Force were as lively as they ever were, bristling with barely restrained hostility and enthusiasm, eager to start the hunt. Saguru watched them, feeling detached from the group, unable to bring himself to join in. They seemed to flow around him, enveloping him in their fold without touching.

Then the Kid made his appearance and they were off. The seller of the diamond was a rather jealous man with quite a large arsenal of disreputable looking bodyguards and security officers dressed in black at his disposal, most of them who were not-so subtly armed, despite the presence of the police. Saguru found himself keeping a wary eye on them. The Kid had been fired upon during the last heist and the circumstances were ripe for disaster.

He heard the unmistakable sound of gunfire and screams, heading in that direction, following the flow of officers, some of whom who were belatedly demanding to see the permits for said firearms.

A flash of white caught his eye and Saguru ducked the mass of police, dashing down a side corridor. The only thing in it was the dim light at the end of a fire escape. A quick closer examination showed that the alarm on it had been dismantled, rendering it mute. He stepped through the door, nerves on edge as he glanced around the dim alley.

Saguru paused as he spotted a flash of dirty white behind a trash can. He stepped forward, freezing in mid-motion as his brain took in the scene in front of him.

The Kaitou Kid had been shot, the white shoulder bright red from blood, a black gloved hand applying pressure on the wound. A large diamond, tonight’s heist, sparkled in the Kid’s white gloved hand. Kid looked up at Saguru, hat knocked askew, giving him a clear look at the Kid’s face.

The Kaitou Kid, who was Nakamori Aoko.

Aoko was curled up against a black-clad Kuroba Kaito’s shoulder, Kuroba giving him a narrowed eyed look, as if daring Saguru to say something.

Saguru swallowed, the facts crashing down on him. In the distance, he heard the rush of feet, some of the officers having finally caught a clue and following him out the non-locked exit. He had a matter of milliseconds to decide their fate.

”The hat.” He croaked out, his mouth deciding before his brain caught up. “Give me the hat. And the cape. Now!” Aoko stared at him, eyes frozen in shock. Kuroba was faster, tossing him the top hat and reaching out and tugging on the fastenings of the cape, disconnecting it. Saguru quickly grabbed both of them, shoving the too-small hat on his head as he rapidly wrapped the cape around his shoulders, clasping it closed with one hand just as the fire door opened.

”THERE HE IS!”

With a quick breath, Saguru was off and running, the cape billowing out behind him. He was several centimetres taller than the Kid, and his clothing was tan, not white, but he hoped that they wouldn’t notice the slight discrepancies as he ran through the back roads, officers chasing his heels. He’d studied the surrounding area, in case he’d have to chase the Kid through the streets or rooftops and he relied on that knowledge now to keep himself from running down a dead end.

A few dizzying, heart pounding turns later, and he’d gained enough of a lead to feel confident to take off the hat and cape, tossing them in a dumpster before running back the direction he’d come, nearly colliding with several officers in the process. “Saguru-kun!” Hands grabbed him, keeping him upright as he panted for breath. “Did you see him?! Which way did he go?!”

He pointed down another alley, breathing too hard to speak. They nodded, patting him on the shoulder before they took off again, chasing after the phantom.

Saguru made his way back to the building, his lungs and legs burning with every step. He hadn’t done a flat-out sprint like that in a while, much less that sort of distance.

He passed by the trash cans he’d left Aoko and Kuroba, finding them gone. He wouldn’t have known they had been there at all except for a single white rose where they had been crouched, its damaged petals just beginning to bloom. He picked it up, cradling the blossom in his hand for a moment elation blooming in his chest. They’d made it. They’d escaped.

Nakamori and the rest of the Task Force congratulated him on tracking the Kaitou Kid, promising that they’d capture the Kaitou Kid yet. He smiled and nodded in return, the white rose safely tucked inside his jacket pocket.

Saguru eventually made it home after dealing with the massive amounts of paperwork that a Kid appearance always generated, falling face first into his bed without bothering to change his clothes and slept deeply for the first time in a while.

He was a bit nervous and anxious going to school the next day, wondering if anything would change now. Aoko and Kuroba greeted him in class with smiles tinged with almost shy hesitation, as if they were not sure what to do now either. They circled around each other for the rest of the day, which should have felt awkward but didn’t. Aoko showed no sign of the injury she’d acquired the previous night and he was hesitant to bring it up, especially at school.

He got jumped on during lunch, unable to sneak away to talk to them and then the troublesome duo disappeared as the final bell for school rang, leaving them having exchanged only greetings the entire day, much to his private annoyance.

Which faded as Aoko tapped him on the shoulder as he walked home, flashing him a mischievous grin. “Can’t catch me.” She teased, dancing around him as Kuroba appeared at his side.

”What?” He had just enough time to ask before she took off running, long tanned legs flashing in the sun as she laughed, her wound not slowing her down. He blinked, then took off after her, Kuroba taking off at the same time. Aoko was fast, the best track runner at the school and he pushed himself hard, trying to close the gap between them. The streets seemed to pass by in a blur and he was vaguely aware of Kuroba falling back behind him as her lead grew to a half a block before she drew to a stop at a major intersection, the traffic running against them.

She braced her hands on her thighs leaning over as she attempted to catch her breath. He drew up along side her, panting for breath as well, Kuroba following behind. Aoko glanced over at him, then looked at Kuroba, a crooked grin growing on her face. “He’ll do.”

Kuroba… Kaito nodded, wiping the sweat of his forehead, a crooked grin of his own mirroring hers. Saguru recognised the smile, having seen it many times on the face of the Kaitou Kid during a heist. “Yeah.”

He grinned back as they all struggled for the breath to speak, his own grin coming out as brilliant and crooked as theirs. “Alright.” He was already an accomplice with his silence, he might as well go all the way.

They all had different strengths. Kaito was the master planner and infiltrator, able to mimic anyone and everyone he wished, slipping into places with the ease of a cat, his acrobatics aiding him where his mimicking ability failed. Aoko’s was their physical re-enforcement, the one who went in when strength over subtly went in, especially if any sort of chase was required.

Saguru stuck with the same strengths that he had in the police department, analysis. After he’d gotten over the scepticism he’d had when told about ‘Pandora’ and ‘crying tears of immortality’, he’d thrown his attention to tracking down the legends and fables, narrowing the field down to specific targets, which meant fewer heists. Fewer heists meant less danger for all of them.

He was content with his role, acting as double agent in the Police Force. He still tracked down criminals, gaining satisfaction in uncovering criminals and bringing them to justice, but he also preferred guarding the Kaitou Kid’s back to chasing the illusive thief.

Still, it came as a surprise to find himself on a rooftop several months later, dressed in a white suit and top hat of his own, hair temporarily stained brown, and the monocle he’d found ages ago on his face. Aoko, with her hair wrapped up in a bun top of her head, and Kaito were dressed in their own white suits and capes, standing next to him in preparation of a heist.

Three Kids meant more confusion for Nakamori and the Police. It was a scheme that had Kaito grinning like a coyote in expectation of the mayhem they were about to cause.

Saguru grinned back, his heart pounding in anticipation of his first heist as the Kaitou Kid.

He’d come to Japan to discover what he was missing in the exciting life of an internationally famous travelling teenage detective. He’d found what he’d been searching for in two close friends and taking up the trickster lifestyle of am internationally wanted phantom thief.

In becoming the Kaitou Kid.

-fin-

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Notes:
Periodic Comets.