WIZARDY

Wizards, magic, wizardry...

Masumi, despite her logic driven upbringing, secretly yearns for magic. She doesn't just want to experience it though. She wants to live it, embody it... Ever since she was a young girl, since that one incident that has shaped her life since, she has spurned the entertainers in search of a magic so deep and true, it can only come from science.

It is why she chose to become a detective. Sure, fighting bad guys is a bonus, but it is so easy to forget that villains are people too, too easy to slip into the skin of one oneself. Being a detective is about treading the thin line between truth and deceit, between shining a light and blinding... And deceit is such a useful tool for a detective. As a girl, to be taken seriously, she finds it best to dress boyishly. Being of frail thin appearance as a result, she uses that to her advantage, her training in Jeet Kune Do a surprising string in her bow when it comes to facing bullies and desperadoes. She swims in lies, in her search of truth, that magical truth... Even her smile hides her tears, her frustrations.

And then she meets her.

The woman who makes her realise that there is more to the magic she seeks than the mechanical unveiling of truth. She is the one who shows her that for every revelation, there is a mystery born anew.

Ran Mouri is the girl who waits, despite knowing it to be futile. Masumi can tell, can see the same tears hiding in the girl's eyes, but there's something different in her smile.

Ran Mouri is the girl who doesn't need to put on a show of being strong, because she's not, really not... Not unless it matters, and then beware the one on her warpath. Masumi still remembers her punches, her kicks from their first encounter. She remembers the way her leg didn't pause because of her skirt, the confidence with which she stood up for her friend.

Masumi Sera admires her for that. The America-proven detective teen envies Ran her ability not to let her being born a lamb stop her from being a lion. She envies the way her heart is on her sleeve, while still hiding the depths of her soul, her thoughts.

She envies Ran for her honesty, while she hides in lies, her name confusing, her face a mask, her motives unclear.

If only she wasn't waiting for the wizard to make his impossible return.

"Hey..." Sera whispers; her words are but a breath in the dark between her and the longer haired teen.

Ran Mouri stills. Apparently she hadn't noticed her there. The girl turns, her eyes damp with fear, fret and worry.

"Sera-san?"

Masumi still finds it adorable how awkward Ran can be towards her.

"Hey, it's okay. Your father and Conan are away to figure out who killed the lights." The jean clad detective kneels down beside her friend. "Meanwhile we're just to stay put and safe. The killer's still bound to be around after all."

"You..." Masumi can barely make out the tremor of Ran's lip in the light from the wristwatch the young Edogawa had left her with. The long haired girl turns hesitantly towards Masumi, a shuddering breath escaping as she tries to calm her frayed nerves. "You have an idea who it is, don't you?"

Masumi Sera remains quiet, a habit born from too many years playing her cards close to her unfortunately flat chest. After a long, drawn out moment in which Ran's gaze remains steadily glued to her eyes, Masumi nods.

"I do." And before she can think, she's gripping Ran's shoulder, her forehead finding its way to hers. "And I won't let them anywhere near you."

And it is magic, wizardry happening all over again, because suddenly Masumi's mask has dropped, and there's a striking earnestness in her voice, in her eyes as she gazes into Ran's dark orbs. She feels the close warmth of the young woman before her. She smells the scent that she's started to associate with those thoughts she tries to keep buried but always fails. Her arms shake, but it is not for the fear of some sick killer.

"Good." And Ran smiles, her face suddenly a complete mystery as Masumi finds herself in the girl's arms.

Screw hiding her feelings. Masumi is entranced, terrified and elated.

"Sorry, wizard," she thinks, unsure if the thoughts find themselves voiced in a murmur or not. She finds she doesn't care. If Ran is a lamb with the heart of a lion, then, Masumi decides, Sera shall be the wolf in the guise of a mouse.

Shyly, she places a chaste kiss on Ran's brow, before leaning back the better to admire her features. The gesture had been calculated, deliberate and devious yet... As she sees the blush suddenly spreading across Ran's cheeks, the understanding beginning to dawn in her eyes, Masumi Sera finds herself smiling in earnest.

"I love you." And it's the most impulsive thing she's ever said.

Part 1 of 3: To be continued...