V.E.: Finally doing another oneshot! And once again in a fandom I have yet to write in. I've just recently gotten into the Detective Conan universe and have a read a good portion of great fanfics. I really like how much basis the relationships are given, almost all of the couples I feel have genuine chemistry (which is more than can be said for a good number of other anime pairings).
Surprisingly, I'm not writing on any of those couples, or rather I'm writing about two people who we don't get to see much of. It's been everything but outright stated in the manga and anime that Vermouth and Yukiko Kudo were trained in the art of disguise by Toichi Kuroba, the first Kaito Kid and Kaito's father. The only time I've seen the two written about together was under the Magic Kaito Crossover section in the fic Perfom. Anyone who likes this should really check it out.
And now without further ado, let's start this show!
Quote: "A good teacher, like a good entertainer first must hold his audience's attention, then he can teach his lesson."- John Henrik Clarke (I feel this quote fits Toichi very well in the context that I'm writing about him.)
Vermouth knew the date before she had even opened her eyes that morning, the same way she woke up knowing the date for the past eight years. A date on the calendar which made her wish she really was as heartless as most people saw her.
Before she knew what she was doing that morning, she had gotten dressed all in formal black, very different from the more sensual way she dressed when the Organization wanted her on a formal job. Matching hat, sunglasses, gloves; all black.
She briefly debated whether or not she should have disguised herself, the off chance of someone noticing the famous American actress Chris Vineyard and posting about it on the Internet was not attention that Vermouth wanted. Whether it be noticed by fans, paparazzi, or worse the FBI or any other organization that was too curious.
But in the end, she decided to leave as it is. It was fitting she went as she really was to see the person who she had never been able to fool, the one who had seen through all her masks and had let her seen through his.
It wasn't that far driving one of the cars (as much as she liked her Harley Davidson, she did not want to ride it wearing her formal clothes), arriving to her destination after a quick stop to a shop to pick up something for the visit.
Unlike others who would hang back in discomfort at the entrance to put off visiting the proof that someone they cared about was no longer with them, Vermouth walked briskly through the entrance like a quick errand that she would get done as fast as possible.
She stopped taking a look around the cemetery, noticing the differences between gravesites in Japan and America. Whereas American graves often had rolling green lawns as blankets to cover the deceased and had some degree of space depending on the location, Japanese cemeteries seemed spaced with relatives together and white pavement leading to visit deceased loved ones. She could also catch a hint of incense that someone must have lit earlier.
Vermouth didn't need to look around the graves and resumed walking, she knew where she was going. After all, the funeral had been pretty well publicized, even reaching where she was working in America at the time, back when she was still Sharon Vineyard.
A couple of minutes of walking, she stood in front of the grave she had been looking for. She stared passively at the marker as the engraved Japanese characters seemed to stare back at her.
Toichi Kuroba.
She knelt down, her voice soft as she placed the bouquet at her teacher's grave. "It's been a long time, Sensei. I'm sorry I couldn't make it to the funeral."
Standing back up straight, she could picture Toichi Kuroba smiling at her with a sly twinkle in his eyes and an understanding smile. "Talking to a grave as if the person were still there? And I thought you didn't believe in life after death, Sharon."
She smiled smugly, her thoughts answering the words. Well, I did have an angel give me a bit of faith back.
Her smile faded and eyes misted as she remembered the encounter she had with Ran Mouri back in New York when she was Sharon Vineyard. 'No angel has ever smiled upon me.' And when I finally met someone who could understand me, you were taken too early from this world.
Vermouth could remember the first time she had met Toichi Kuroba. She had been waiting in the café for over an hour for him to show up, skeptical at getting lessons in disguise from a magician. She had gotten the distinct impression that she was being watched, glancing around to find that the waitresses that had brought her a drink had been giving her rather subtle glances. Paranoia kicked in, as she also glanced at the spy while analyzing the ways to corner the sneak and take her out before the sneak could contact whoever she was spying for.
It was while thinking those thoughts that Toichi's assistant Jii had shown up, bowing to her and apologizing profusely that his master wouldn't be able to make it today. Thoroughly ticked off at having waited this long for nothing, she excused herself to go to the restroom. As luck would have it, that same waitress followed her discretely and she had smiled coldly as she hid out of sight as the waitress looked around, confused at having lost the blonde.
The confusion didn't last for long as Vermouth had gripped the waitress' arm, dragging her outside into the back alley and demanded to know who she was and who sent her. The waitress was in shock for a moment before stammering out in a soft feminine voice that she had no idea what the American was talking about and she had just wanted to use the restroom. She was just about to get the gun out of her purse when Jii had come from the back door and told her it wasn't what she thought it was.
She could remember what happened next clearly.
Jii's voice was layered with concern and panic as she would not let go of the frightened waitress. "Please Vineyard-san, if you would just allow me to explain…."
Her eyes sharpened as piercing as hawk, her grip not loosening as the graying man seemed to shrink back in fear at the actress' presence. "Explain what?"
A deep throaty chuckle echoed through the back alley, her head turning sharply to find it coming from the woman she had trapped smiling as if having a pleasant time, surprised enough that she let go as the voice of a man came out of the waitress' mouth. "That's alright Jii, I can take it from here."
Her hand went to her neck and, with a snapping sound, pulled off her face to reveal a young yet handsome looking face of the Japanese magician she had been expecting to meet. Her voice kept calm as she felt her hands shake ever so slightly. "You're…Toichi Kuroba."
He simply kept his sly smile on, his eyes twinkling as he spoke in a deceivingly light manner. "Yes, sorry for all this. I do this to all the prospective students who come to me, I wanted to see if you would have the right instincts for this. Though, no one has ever that kind of reaction."
Inwardly, she cursed for jumping the gun on her reaction. No normal person would ask someone watching who had sent them, but she couldn't think up a convincing lie for once. It was as if the man's gaze was seeing through everything as it bore into her with a sly gaze.
The tense moment was broken as the magician cleared his throat. "Well, you pass on identification. Pretty surprised at what's under mask?"
Her curiosity piqued as she looked over the female form that was part of the man's disguise, fascinated by how the realistic the ensemble looked. "Very, impressive padding. What kind of voice changing device did you use back there?"
He smirked as two of his fingers tapped near his Adam's apple. "No technology, just my voice."
Her eyes widened in disbelief as she kept her vision on him. "What?!"
One fingering pointing as he shook it slightly, his face still in the same sly and deceivingly calm expression. "One of the many tricks I have, given enough practice you could probably manage it as well. That is, if you're still interested in becoming my student. Also, you'd have to share the lessons with my other student, another actress I get the feeling you'd get along pretty well with. It's hard work to get into the art of disguise, but with enough time and the right teaching, you'd probably pick it up easily. I have a pretty good read on people and you've got potential for it."
He seemed to be waiting for her answer, the two staring each other down in the beginning of their own private poker game. "Well, what do you say?"
Vermouth smiled coldly, yet intrigued by the enigma of this man as she answered in a challenge known only to the two of them. "Count me in."
Toichi hadn't been lying, it was hard work, but it Vermouth counted those days among some of the best memories she had. After being introduced to her other student Yukiko (who just as the magician expected she got along with swimmingly despite her first impressions), Kuroba quizzed them on what each of them knew as actresses and went from there. It was the first time she had realized how much she had to learn as Toichi was able to find flaws within seconds of assuming another identity.
As smiling as her teacher could usually be, in teacher mode he was a perfectionist and quick to criticism as he gave her a piece of advice she would use to this day. "It isn't enough to know the person whose identity you're assuming, you have to become that person. From the way they talk, the way they walk, the way they grimace, even to the way they sneeze. If there is even one tiny inconsistency, your mask will shatter and people will know you're a fake."
That isn't to say he wasn't capable of praise, he fully complimented her on how realistic her disguises would look. Yukiko was jealous how good she since most of her disguises came off as goofy and cartoony, wailing in jealousy and shame. Vermouth truly laughed for the first time in a while and gave her some pointers.
At first, she was nervous that her teacher would ask her about her reaction in the back alley, but after that day he seemed to be pretending as if had never happened. Slowly, she fell into routine, but the paranoia never died away. Why did he never confront her about it?
However, it didn't take long for her to notice the cracks in her teacher's famous "Poker Face." A trick demonstrated in practice that looked like one used by a certain Phantom Thief in a heist the month after, a bad shoulder the day after it was reported the white cloaked thief was shot in that general area, how flawlessly Kaito Kid could imitate anyone from police officers to the very clients he was trying to rob from. Frankly, she was a little surprised Yukiko had never put it together, but not that much (she privately thought Kudo probably knew considering his relationship with Kaito Kid).
But perhaps as a result of having her own secret not asked about, she never pressed him nor revealed his identity to her superiors (who definitely would have found the piece of information useful). She simply smiled, commentating how he should go easy on his night performances when it was just the two of them. The first time she said it his face froze, like a child finally caught in wrong doing. His expression gradually returned to it's regular Poker Face as the two went on with the lesson.
Perhaps it was gratitude of keeping his secret or the sensing of a kindred spirit in her, but after that his teaching of her became more intense, show her tricks of the trade he didn't show Yukiko, even inviting her to his home for dinner where she met his fiancée Chikage in person. At that time, Yukiko teased Sharon about falling for an engaged man, but she had started dating Kudo at the time so she didn't pay that much attention to the two.
But it wasn't like that for her, Toichi Kuroba was one of the very few men that had earned her utmost respect, someone she considered her equal. Not only for his skill at disguise, but also his trust in her as he did eventually start to chat about why he was doing what he did yet he never asked for her circumstances. It was an act of good faith, the likes of which she would not experience until years later in New York on that rainy night.
She still kept in touch with Toichi and Yukiko after returning to America, despite how normally she would have cut all ties once she done with an assignment. Though unable to attend either of their weddings, she was somewhat touched when each had sent photos of their infant sons (which she had to label to tell which was which, it was kind of disturbing how much the two looked alike aside from the hair). She also followed her teacher's 'night job', giving a smug smile at every trick pulled on the unsuspecting fools that were charged with protecting his targets.
She even returned to Japan on an assignment from the Boss and dropped by for a quick visit, getting a chair in one of her teacher's infamous Poker Nights. Afterwards, for the first time she ever openly expressed concern about his role as Kid. The last heist before she came had more than a few snipers and she had heard general rumblings that she wasn't the only taking an interest in the Phantom Thief's exploits. Toichi remained as tight-lipped as ever as he told her he could handle it himself, his eyes seemed to accusing her of her own lies and deception.
The actress went back to America the next day after the job had been completed. Barely a week later, international headlines proclaimed the death of one of the greatest magicians of the age in a tragic stage accident.
Vermouth snorted in front of the grave. Accident her ass, there was no way that someone as skilled as Sensei died from neglecting a piece of his act which he was obsessive compulsive over. Unless someone else had tampered with said component…..
Unfortunately, work from both of her lives had been on her plate and That Person specifically told her not to pursue it any further. She didn't think the Organization took him (she would have been grilled for a lot more details considering her personal connection, even possibly having her carry out the hit herself), but the Boss obviously knew who did and didn't want her going off on her own private revenge mission while the Organization had actual work for her to do.
Now that she was back in Japan again though, she was going to start stirring to see if some fish bites. I know you probably wouldn't approve Sensei, after all you always made it a point to make sure no one ever got hurt during your heists. But you are a much better person than I will ever be and I wasn't a saint to begin with. When I find the people responsible for your death, believe me if there is an afterlife they will begging for your forgiveness on their knees.
Vermouth would continue to stare at the grave had her ears not picked up the sound of approaching people. Quickly, she darted to around a rather large looking grave nearby before taking out a mask of an older looking Japanese women and quickly put it on. Discretely glancing out of the corner of her eye, she spied the approaching group of three of whom were very familiar to her.
Kaito Kuroba looked just as handsome and so much like his detective counterpart Shinichi Kudo's adult form, almost as much as the young lady next to him resembled Ran Mouri though there were some definite differences with their hair. She was pretty sure that she was Inspector Nakamori's daughter Aoko. The third tag along was no one she was personally familiar with, but recognized as the teen detective Saguru Hakuba that often was present at the Kaito Kid heists.
Needless to say, her teacher's son did not look happy at him being there. "And who invited you to come along Hakuba? Shouldn't you be figuring out the riddle on Kaito Kid's latest notice?"
Hakuba simply smirked. "I already figured it out last night."
Kaito still glared at the British detective. "That didn't answer my question, this is very personal for me, you know."
Aoko gave a swift right hook to her best friend as she gave an interested expression to the other boy. "For the record, I invited him because that's what friends are supposed to do, support each other! Though I honestly didn't expect you to say yes, Hakuba."
Hakuba's smirk relaxed more into a smile before turning his deathly curious expression at Kaito. "I didn't have much else to do today with the heist being next week. Besides, I'd like to pay my respects o Kuroba-san's father, considering he's the one who taught him all about magic."
Vermouth had to give credit where credit was due, Kaito's expression was a perfect match for his father's Poker Face. Which must help him a lot considering he's taken up his father's night job.
When it was announced that Kaito Kid had returned, she had taken the first reports of it to be a copycat, none of it sounded like her sensei's style. But shortly after that, the reports changed and it stunned her. She knew it couldn't have been her Sensei, but the style and the physical features were practically identical to that of her late mentor. Vermouth pondered who it could have been, it had to have been someone close to Toichi to copy his style to near perfection, something even the Organization spy wasn't sure she would be able to pull off.
It took only a few minutes and a memory of a child on his father's lap during a poker game to have Vermouth put everything together.
She smiled, Kaito really did take after his father and was just as good in magic as he was in disguising himself. It made her want to see him in action. Perhaps one of these days, I'll have to disguise myself for a heist. The trick is not letting him know I'm watching….
While Vermouth finished the thought, the small group had reached the grave and stopped suddenly as they saw the colorful bouquet left at the magician's grave.
Knowing it was time to go, she slipped quietly away in a different route back to the entrance.
Unknowing the departure of their spy, Kaito was the first comment with surprise. "What's this doing here?"
Aoko turned to her best friend in concern. "Do you think your mom came here earlier and left it?
The teenage magician shook his head as the confusion shone clear on his face. "No, Mom's in Las Vegas right now and Jii isn't getting back from visiting some old friends in Osaka until later tonight. Besides, neither of them are the type to leave flowers."
Taking the chance to investigate even the slightest oddity, Hakuba had knelt near the flowers and inched closer to take a whiff of the white and yellow blooms, craning his head to get several different angles. "Very interesting, freshly cut, most likely bought this morning on the way here, driven by someone who doesn't usually take their car. I'd guess it was a woman due to the strand of long blonde hair in the bouquet, it probably fell in when she wasn't looking. The choice of flowers is definitely telling."
Aoko looked at Hakuba with a curiosity. "How so?"
Hakuba tilted one of the blossoms up, giving the two a better look at what particular flower it was. "Do you know what the Zinnia means in Flower Language?"
Aoko looked a little confused but answered as Kaito turned his attention to Hakuba. "It means loyalty, right?"
Hakuba smiled but shook his head slightly as he went on to explain. "In Hanakotoba, which is the Japanese version of flower language, yes, but I believe the person who left this was Western since the meaning has much more depth if you look at it from that translation."
Kaito put aside his scrutiny for curiosity to ask the teen detective. "What's the meaning of zinnias there?"
Hakuba kept his focus on the flowers as he explained his deduction. "Firstly, like some other flowers, a zinnia's meaning is based upon their color, but this bouquet is interesting since it mixes two different colors of flowers. The meaning of mixed zinnias is Thoughts of an absent friend or In Memory of an absent friend. In this case, we can definitely say it's the later."
Then he pulled two different colored flowers from the bouquet, having his fellow students' full attention. "Then there are the colors themselves, white and yellow. White means Goodness while Yellow means Daily Remembrance. If you put the three meanings together, the person almost seems to be saying I remember your goodness and the time we shared every day."
Hakuba pushed the flowers back into the bouquet as he still kept his attention on the flowers. "One might consider the message romantic, but in reality it seems to be more platonic or based on utmost respect. Moreover, flower language was meant as a means of communication without truly saying anything. The person crafted this message they knew would have been understood by the person receiving it, so not only did Toichi Kuroba probably know Western flower language, this person knew that he knew it."
It was then the teenage detective seemed to notice the two giving him some rather unusual looks. "What's the matter?"
Kaito leveled an eyebrow at him as he spoke. "Question Hakuba, how do you know so much about this flower language anyway? I mean, I know you're a detective and they know lots of weird stuff, but flowers?"
Hakuba's eyes lit up in understanding before rolling as he explained. "Oh, that. Back in England, my presence would be required by Mother for her garden parties. I think she thinks of it as one of the very few ways she gets to spend time with me between her charity work and my cases, especially now that I'm here in Japan. One of her friends is quite knowledgeable about the subject, I spent an entire afternoon with her talking my ear off as I sipped tea politely."
Kaito half smirked, his teasing sense piqued. "So it seems the proper English gentlemen can't say no to his mom, ey?"
Once again, he was treated with Aoko's jab. "Well, I think it's sweet. Besides, it's nice to hear you talk a little bit more about yourself Hakuba, you never mention much."
He shrugged before turning his attention to Kaito. "There's not much to tell about it. Moreover, can you think of anyone your father knew like this? A blonde foreign woman that was close to him, you probably met her at least once."
Kaito sighed, as he looked at his English critic skeptically. "You're asking me about who was close to my dad when it's been eight years since I last…."
He stopped suddenly, a flash of a memory of looking up at a blonde woman's smile as she held cards out in front of her, the only woman at that card table. "A secret is what makes a woman a woman."
Aoko looked at her friend in great concern, which Hakuba was matching as she asked. "Kaito?"
Slowly, Katio broke out of the memory in a quiet tone. "I...did meet a woman like that. It was barely a week before he died at one of Dad's Poker Nights…"
His best friend pressed him in concern. "Really? What happened?
But he may as well have not heard her, as he swept back into the land of memories, back into a memory that he had pushed aside but might have been a lot more important than he realized. Something he would have to look into later on.
"Dad?"
His father's looking of deep concentration broke as he turned to look at his son's inquiring face, the two holding hands as they were walking down the streets of Tokyo home from the short distance of where his father's Poker Night had been. "Hmm?"
"Are you sad?"
His father smiled warmly at him, as if the dark and contemplating look a second ago had never been there. "Oh no Kaito, I'm just thinking."
"Did you and that lady friend of yours have a fight? You were yelling at each other earlier."
That seemed to take the magician aback as his face became tense and somber, an expression Kaito couldn't remember ever seeing on his father. "You heard that then."
He nodded to his father. "A bit of it, though I couldn't really hear what it was about. Is she really important?"
His father's expression didn't change as he simply walked next to his son, seeming to draw closer to him. "Yes, I had a bit of a fight with her. And yes Sharon is very important to me, she was one of my students before your mother and I got married. I never told her, but I get the feeling she'll surpass me in a couple of years."
"She was learning how to be a magician?"
His father shook his head. "No, I was teaching her how to disguise herself."
He brightened up in understanding. "You mean like that time you put makeup on me and taught me how to change my voice to fool my teacher into thinking she lost me for being so mean?"
Toichi smiled at Kaito, some of the graveness leaving the man's face. "Yes, exactly like that. Though I have to admit, those acting skills of yours could give her a run for her money in a couple of years."
Kaito's smile died as he remembered his best friend's reaction. "Aoko was mad though, she said it was lying and I shouldn't lie."
Toichi seemed to chuckle at the young girl's words, no doubt thinking she really was Ginzo's daughter.
Kaito seemed to think on that before he spoke again. "Is that why she was mad? Did you lie about something?"
For the longest time, his father was silent as he seemed to thinking about what he wanted to say. Finally, he did speak. "No, Sharon's just concerned about me, that's all. It's nothing to worry about."
His father stopped, catching Kaito off guard as the two were back in front of their house, opening the door to let his son in. "Well, looks like we're home. Better go see what your mother has left out for our dinner."
Kaito shuddered as, his voice low in a chant as he hesitantly went through the door. "No fish, no fish, no fish, no…"
Unseen and unknown to the young boy, Toichi Kuroba chuckled to himself as he watched his son continue the little chanting charm inside. He was about to follow him before a catching a glimpse of the almost gleaming full moon hanging in the sky right above him. Looking at the moon always reminded him of the Moonlight Magician Kaito Kid and that lead him back to the argument earlier that evening.
He sighed a deep one, his Poker Face cracking as an expression of regret. "I'm sorry…Sharon. But I need to do this."
He goes through the door, the sound of it shutting firmly putting his regular expression back on as he went to catch up with his son.
V.E.: Might do a follow up, depending on how well this is received. Hope it does well, this was a lot of words!