Detective Conan and Magic Kaito characters, settings, and ideas do not belong to me but to Aoyama Gōshō.
Misinterpretations
By Taliya
"What did she tell you?" Only the question was not a question—it was a demand and there was a definite hint of accusation in the tone.
Kaitou KID laughed, tucking the Maiden's Heart into a pocket after a brief inspection in the moonlight. "Who told me what, Tantei-kun?" he tossed back cheerily, swiveling from his place at the center of the helipad. The strong night breeze snapped at his cape and twirled the clover charm that hung off his monocle. "A great many people have told me numerous things. You'll have to be a little more specific."
"Ran," Conan snapped, in no mood for the thief's games. He huffed a little, still winded from sprinting up the staircase from the last floor with an elevator to the roof of the tall business and retail Kitte Building in the heart of Chiyoda-ku. "What did she tell you?"
"Hmm," KID hummed, delicately scratching his cheek in thought. "Well, she still hasn't told me her bust, waist, and hip measurements yet…"
The shrunken detective saw red. "Why, you dirty little…" The soccer ball was out and spinning towards the phantom thief, who dodged it with a yip. "You filthy pervert!"
"Oi oi!" KID snapped back, drawing his card gun and taking aim. "Look who's talking!" He shot several cards at Conan, who skillfully avoided them. "Pot, kettle," the gentleman thief mocked.
"She told you something!" Conan snarled, wishing he had more items to kick at Kaitou KID. "And, I quote, 'It's a secret that only KID and I know!' So what did she say?"
"Hell if I know," the magician shot back, confused by both the topic of conversation and the detective's perseverance regarding said topic. "Aside from speaking to her as Shinjo Isao on the plane, the only other time I spoke to her that night was when I disguised as a medical officer. And I certainly didn't get anything out of her then. I only complimented her flying skills." KID twisted away as Conan lunged at the thief, intending to snag his legs. The gentleman thief hopped several times to regain his balance, warily watching the seething detective pick himself off the tarmac.
"She told you something! She said so!" he yelled, staggering to his feet and uncaring of his scraped knees.
KID's brow crinkled in worry, having never seen his young critic so off balance before. Logic had always won in Edogawa Conan's mind, but tonight, his head was being submerged by the emotions in his heart. It was clear to him that Kudou Shinichi harbored a deep and longstanding crush on Mouri Ran, but what did this have to do with anything? "Tantei-kun," he said slowly, clearly befuddled, "Ojou-san has never mentioned any secret to me."
Conan panted, barely registering the sting of his bloodied legs. "She mentioned it was safe from me—whatever that secret was," he explained, calming a little at KID's unabashedly baffled tone. "And that I would need to arrest you to find out what it is."
The magician scoffed with a chuckle. "Arrest me? You haven't been able to catch me, let alone arrest me!" He toned down his teasing at the narrow-eyed glare coming from the shrunken teenager. "But in all seriousness, I don't know what she said." He held up his hands, palms facing the Modern-Day Holmes in a placating gesture. "I promise."
"You swear?" Conan asked, eyes focused solely on the thief.
"Omertà," KID replied solemnly, and though it was used in a completely wrong context—Conan was assuredly not a criminal—the boy understood what the thief meant.
The miniaturized detective sighed. "Fine," he acceded, and simply sat down on the helipad where he stood.
KID blinked, staring at the seemingly defeated form of the detective. "Tantei-kun…?"
"Go," Conan said softly, the reflection of lights on his glasses shielding his eyes from view. "I don't feel like pursuing you any further tonight."
The magician regarded his rival for several moments before approached the dejected child. He grasped the boy's shoulder and squeezed gently, wordlessly sympathizing with the detective before he briskly strode to the edge of the rooftop. "You know," he said conversationally, "if she somehow thought you were me at some point after I had left the plane, you do realize she's told you her secret, right?" And so saying, he hopped off the building, soaring out into the night with his prize.
Conan had frozen at KID's words, realizing the truth in the thief's rationale. His mind churned as he replayed the conversation he had had with Ran as Shinichi, recalled how Ran had berated him for never being there, how his heart had almost stopped at Ran's confession, how he had directed Ran and Sonoko on how to land the plane, how he had wished with all his being that the plane stop before—Ran's confession. Ran's confession.
Ran's confession.
Was that her secret?
"Atashi wa suki da yo, Shinichi…"
Conan chuckled ruefully, slumping where he sat on the tarmac even as he felt his heart flutter.
"… suki da yo, Shinichi…"
"Ore mo daisuki da yo, Ran," he murmured as he unfurled onto his back to stare at the cloud-dotted night sky. Something hard jabbed at his left backside, and with a wince Conan reached into his shorts pocket to find a corner of the heart-cut ruby winking at him in the light of the full moon, a strip of paper wound around the majority of the loose gem. The shrunken detective unwound the paper and read the note.
Maiden's hearts are precious, Tantei-kun. Don't ever drop them lest they shatter.
Conan laughed. There was no way KID could have known, and yet somehow, he knew. "Damn it all, KID," he muttered to the windblown sky. It looked like he had a gem to return and a thief to pay back once he could find it in himself to get off the ground.
Omertà – [Italian] A cultural expression and code of honor common among the crime syndicates of southern Italy that places legitimate importance on a deep-rooted family sense of a code of silence, non-aggravation with authorities, and non-interference in the legal actions of others; the concept that criminals do not compromise the activities of other criminals
Atashi wa suki da yo – I like you
Ore mo daisuki da yo – [masculine] I like you too
Author's Note: This is a short one for once! Honestly, I'm a little surprised no one bothered to pursue this little line of thought. I figured it would drive Shinichi nuts trying to figure out what exactly Ran's secret with KID was, not knowing that he actually was told her secret. I seem to have a tendency to abuse Kaito the most in my fics and have him leave little notes all over the place, don't I? It's probably because he is my favorite character of this particular Gōshō-verse. I hope you enjoyed it.
Completed: 02.07.2015