AN:In 2014 I save the prompt "It's always been Kaito Kid as the thief and Saguru Hakuba, the detective, sent to catch him. However, what if Kaito was the detective and Hakuba was the thief? This can be an AU or simply the two characters are finding themselves in reverse roles." from the DCMK Yaoi kinkmeme on LJ. I didn't write it then, but since there wasn't a kinkmeme this year I got nostalgic and pulled out old prompts to see if anything bit. This one did. And refused to be a nice, easy, porn fic like I had intended. (Because it never works that way.)
I started writing and mental Saguru cleared his throat and went "You realize this requires backstory and progression to be logical, correct?"
Kaito laughed in the distance. This fic exploded much longer than intended. Hope people find it fun.
o*O*o
There were whispers of thieves in the air. Things going missing overnight without warning, reappearing elsewhere seemingly without cause. Across Europe, and then into Asia, now into Japan. Kaito tapped the news article thoughtfully. This sounded right up his cousin's alley. More than that, really, since Kaito was aware of the thefts elsewhere in the world from some of Shinichi and Uncle Yusaku's passing comments. The primary target was gemstones above a certain carat, most often stones that had some sort of history attached to them. There was never any warning and never any sign of who had taken them; they simply vanished.
It brought to mind ghosts and trickster spirits. Perhaps a literal phantom thief? Kaito snorted. Shinichi would have a lot to say about that theory, but then Shinichi was always a bit of a skeptic with the supernatural. (Kaito on the other hand had a few up close and uncomfortable encounters with a witch and had formed an expanded, more liberal view on what was and was not in the realm of possibility.)
Or a very careful thief.
Kaito tapped the news article a few more times. …It really wasn't Kaito's business. Shinichi was the one that enjoyed mysteries. Kaito was just a magician.
…
…
Yeah, no, he was curious. Kaito made a mental note to bug Aoko for whatever she knew. And maybe call up Uncle Yusaku. Or Kaa-san and Oyaji, wherever in America they were touring right now. Someone had to know something more about this thief. In the meantime…. He pulled out his phone, pulling up a web browser. In the meantime, Kaito had some research to do.
*o*o*
It was almost eight years to date since Saguru last set foot in Japan. He didn't hold many fond memories here. Between being somewhat ostracized for his mixed heritage as a child—his personality quirks aside—and witnessing his father's death, Saguru could only have more negative than positive associations with the country. Now, far from London and the life he'd left behind, Saguru found he didn't feel much of anything at the moment. Even the warm welcome from his grandfather hadn't drawn much from him.
But then, not much did lately. There was a peculiar sort of numbness that accompanied a surrender to extensive planning and exacting logic. When one aimed to destroy objects of power out from under the noses of shadowy organizations, there was not much room left for emotion or doubts.
There was the research, the plan, and the execution. Everything else was maintaining the proper facsimile of a high school student.
That was simple enough.
Saguru straightened his new school uniform and put a neutral smile on his face as he left his room so that his grandfather's driver could take him to his first day of Japanese high school. It was one more mask among many. He never stayed in one place long enough anymore for people to learn to see that it was fake let alone see through them.
*o*o*
The first gem stolen in Japan, taken in Kaito's own neighborhood. Aoko's dad was on the case apparently. Kaito snorted at his paper, ignoring the influx of students around him as they trickled into the classroom. Nakamori-keibu wasn't a bad detective but he didn't have the skills for this sort of level of thievery. The missing gem was a ruby said to be cursed since its previous three owners had met sticky ends. Cursed or not, it had been from a private collection, and Kaito had been expecting the first target to be from a museum or something a bit more high profile. It had been returned last night, found on the owner's bedside table with no other clues around it. If Kaito was doing that sort of thing he'd at least leave a note, though he supposed it left people guessing all the more without one.
Kaito was jolted from his thoughts by an elbow in the side. "Ow." He frowned up at Aoko, but she looked excited rather than annoyed with him for once.
"Bakaito, we're getting a new student!"
"Oh?" The last new student had been Koizumi Akako. And hadn't that been fun. "Guy student or girl student?"
"Dunno. Keiko-chan was saying that she thinks they're foreign though. Maybe they can help us with English?"
"They might not even speak English." Interesting. A potentially foreign student and a foreign thief all in the same week.
"Or they might, and we can have them help," Aoko insisted.
The door rattled as the teacher entered. Aoko slipped away to her desk and Kaito put his paper away. A beat behind their homeroom teacher a young man with light brown hair entered. Kaito could see Akako's creepy smile halfway across the room at having another potential male libido to manipulate. The transfer student was dressed like he was a dummy modeling the school uniform, every button in place, and the uniform tailored to fit perfectly. He looked distant and uninterested and Kaito disliked him instantly. Too much order had always brought up a desire to mess it up a bit in him. Like pulling the uniform a bit off center or messing up the guy's hair.
"I'm sure all of you already have heard that we've got a transfer student," their teacher said. "Hakuba Saguru will be joining us for the rest of the school year. Hakuba-kun is transferring here from London."
"Please look after me," Hakuba said in textbook-perfect Japanese. He didn't have an accent. He didn't look like he planned on making friends either. As he took the available seat toward the back of the room, he didn't even pretend to show curiosity for his surroundings or the other students. Hakuba was either a stone cold bastard with his emotions on lockdown, or he had a poker face that could rival Kaito's.
Their classmates whispered excitedly amongst themselves. Kaito turned back to the news. A thief was more interesting than a new student.
o*o
Trees were surprisingly comfortable places to do stakeouts. Of course, Kaito had to keep shifting every now and again or his butt would go numb, but as far as random places to sit and wait, he'd had worse places. The tree was up a hill and far enough away to be the perfect vantage point while still being close enough that Kaito wouldn't have to go searching for high tech observational equipment. It was the second night he'd staked out the museum because he was sure it was where the thief was going to strike next. The only problem was when. Why couldn't this thief have been a gentleman—or woman—and left a kind message informing when and where an item was going to be stolen at? That was what all the phantom thieves in stories did. But no, they had to be like a shadow only twice as fricking illusive.
To make matters worse, Shinichi had been shit about returning messages lately. Kaito had the phone to his ear again, glow covered by a case he'd made, his eyes still trained on the museum. He'd decided that the side was more likely where the thief would enter than the front or back where it was more closely watched.
"C'mon, pick up your phone…" Kaito murmured. There was a click and—yes, this time was Shinichi and not the voice message system. "Moshi moshi, Shinichi, about time you answered."
"I've been a little busy lately, Kaito," Shinichi said back. Hmm, he sounded tired. And annoyed. Annoyed wasn't a new emotion when it came to Kaito though.
"So have I," Kaito said. "I just wanted your opinion on that thief again. I've been doing some research and I think it's pretty likely they're going to go for the Purple Eyed Man's eye next—not sure how since it's literally set into a giant bronze statue, but—"
"I haven't had time to look into this more," Shinichi said. "I'm kind of surprised you're still looking into it. You always complain about cases when you're with me."
Kaito wrinkled his nose. "You almost exclusively deal with murders. Do you know how unsettling dead bodies are? Besides, those are serious life or death scenarios; this is more like an interesting puzzle where all the pieces are the same color, and maybe a chunk of them have gone missing. I mean, the thief gives the things they steal back. Who does that?"
"Your mystery thief, apparently," Shinichi said drily. "What did you want my opinion on?"
"Theories, potential next targets, how the thief's getting in and out unseen…anything really." A shadow moved near the door down below, but no, that was a cat. "Right now my working theory is that this thief is looking for a gem more than 20 mm in diameter, with a preference toward gemstones that are opaque or known to have unique light reactive properties. Now most of the gems they go for have some sort of legend or reputation attached to them, but not all of them, so I can't say for sure whether this person thinks they're looking for some kind of supernatural rock or not, but it's a higher percentage for than against."
"Supernatural rock…"
Ah Shinichi, ever the skeptic. He hadn't believed Kaito about the whole spell thing, or the brainwashing thing Akako had going on, or the thing with the robot… Actually, Shinichi didn't believe a lot of his stories and probably humored Kaito more often than not. The jerk.
"Yeah, yeah, you don't believe in mumbo jumbo. I got that. I'm saying that maybe our thief does." Shift because his butt was falling asleep…shift again because that was a painfully placed twig. His legs unhooked from the lower branches and swung aimlessly, burning some of his restless energy. "They go after famous stones, but also have targeted private collections. In fact, based on some of the thefts in Europe, even some of the collectors that are private about what they have were targeted. They don't know how the thief would have even learned about the gems. A lot of them have been family heirlooms or things that have been set in jewelry for generations."
"You're thinking this thief has connections to old wealth, aren't you?" Shinichi asked, voice sharp with interest.
Kaito grinned. This was why Shinichi was the best cousin (he was Kaito's only cousin but that wasn't really the point). "Yup. It would explain how they might have had a chance to case some of their targets." Of course it was kind of equally likely that this person could have set themself up as some sort of servant like position—the help were easily overlooked after all—but Kaito's gut feeling was that the thief had private wealth and connections. It took money to travel all over Europe and Asia, money to get the kind of tech necessary to overpower security systems, money that was not coming from what the thief stole from all appearances.
"That doesn't really narrow things down much," Shinichi pointed out.
"Shush. I know that, don't rain on my parade. It's a start though."
"…I wonder if Sonoko might know them."
Suzuki Sonoko, Ran's friend and daughter of some very wealthy people. Yeah, hmm. "Maybe. But it's more likely that her family has a gem that would become a target. I should look into that." Wow, things just kept piling up. This detective work required more research than any paper Kaito had ever had to write. It was a pretty interesting challenge though, he could see how Shinichi could get addicted to seeing the pieces line up. "For now I need to see if I can at least catch a glimpse of this person. They don't leave evidence, so I have to have something to go off of—height, age range, sex, nationality, something."
"Well, you have some sound theories to work with. Although I'm sure you already have thought about the holes in your wealthy thief theory. I'm not sure what you need me for at all."
"I think better with an audience," Kaito said, only half joking. "And you're the detective; maybe I missed something."
"You notice as much as I do," Shinichi sighed. "Anyway, I need to go soon."
"Already?" Kaito stilled, pouting to himself. "I've hardly heard from you at all lately. And we haven't met up face to face for months."
"I've been busy."
"With what?" There wasn't much that could challenge Shinichi for long in Kaito's experience. Unless Shinichi was involved in something a lot bigger than the usual murders of passion he tended to stumble across. "You're not in some kind of trouble are you? Because you know I'd drop this and help you with whatever case you're working on if you needed me to. This is just for fun."
There was silence for a half second that didn't inspire any kind of confidence in him that Shinichi was fine. "I've got everything covered," Shinichi said after a moment. "You have fun figuring out your mystery thief. I might be hard to get ahold of for a while though. The case I'm on looks like it might be a long one and I'm not home much."
Kaito let his attention slide away from the building for a moment to focus on the phone. "You sure you don't want my help? If it's that big…"
"It's fine. Besides, Dad's helping with this one."
That…didn't really relieve any of his worries. Shinichi usually hated when his dad stepped into his cases because Yusaku had the effect of making everyone around him feel really stupid sometimes. It was annoying as heck and Shinichi wouldn't turn to Yusaku unless he had to or Yusaku had stepped in and taken the choice from him. Chalk this up as one more thing to look into. Kaito was due a call with his parents soon and last he knew the Kudos were still visiting wherever it was his parents were now. Vegas? Might still be Vegas.
"Well if you need me, I'll help. You know that I—" There was movement down near the museum and he found his attention focusing on the thin patch of moonlight near one of the museum windows. Kaito brought up the binoculars. A fuzzy, shadowy, humanoid shape was there. "We're going to finish this conversation another time," Kaito said. "I think my thief might have just shown up."
"Good luck," Shinichi said and Kaito disconnected the call.
A deep giddy feeling bubbled in the pit of Kaito's stomach, but now was not the time to be smug about guessing right. He stared a few seconds longer just to be sure that the thief was getting into the building the way Kaito had theorized before sliding out of the tree with a few quick hops. By the time Kaito reached the museum—dodging the cameras; he couldn't be sure they were actually dead and he didn't want to get arrested—the thief was already in the building. They'd left the security system disabled on the window though.
To break in or not to break in, Kaito thought. Shinichi would probably say something about detectives following the law when a life wasn't at stake. Then again, Shinichi could be a little shit when he wanted to, and Kaito was sure he'd broken laws in the sake of cases before. Really, Kaito was a lot more morally flexible in the matter. He slid through the window. After all if he caught the thief, no one was going to care that he'd trespassed to do so.
It felt a little like a game of laser tag to get to the right room. Don't let the night guard see you, stay out of visual lines for cameras, avoid any motion sensors, yadda yadda. This thief had to be pretty fit. If Kaito didn't have the habit of practicing gymnastics and theatrically modified parkour, he would have had a lot of trouble in places. Kaito turned into the room holding the statue and stopped.
The thief was barely visible despite being in the open at the moment. Whatever he was wearing, it was dark grey and slightly mottled to blend easily into the dim lighting. And it was a he if Kaito was getting the silhouette right. A bit above average height, stockier build than Kaito was expecting, and a mask—or was it a helmet?—covering the majority of his face and part of his head. Well, the height could easily be explained because he was a foreigner…
Kaito moved forward on silent feet, years of pranking and working as his dad's occasional helper backstage giving him a light step. As he got closer, he could see that the thief had already removed the stone from the statue somehow. The man cupped it in one gloved hand, observing how the moonlight reflected off it or something. Then he looked up, pinning Kaito in place eight meters away with a dispassionate stare.
He couldn't have heard Kaito, shouldn't have been able to see him with his back turned like it had been, but somehow he had known.
Breath caught in Kaito's throat as the thief walked towards him. Kaito's hand moved to where he had his card gun stashed. It would be useless in a full out physical confrontation, or against a real weapon. His heart sped up. He probably should have prepared better for, you know, confronting the thief, but it was a bit too late for that. Well, when in doubt, bluff like hell.
*o*o*
The amethyst glimmered in the dim moonlight—Saguru didn't think it was the stone. There was no presence to it, nothing that would indicate a second internal stone. It shone clear and bright, but he would keep it to check properly all the same. Saguru rolled it on his palm before feeling the hair on the back of his neck stand up—he was being watched.
Saguru took a breath and rolled the stone once more around his palm before he made any movement to look. He would not panic. He would not fear. Panic led to illogical decisions and actions, and illogical choices led to mistakes. Saguru could not afford mistakes.
He looked up, in control, confident, the way he needed to be perceived. He was the one in control of this encounter, not his watcher.
Saguru was not expecting Kuroba Kaito from his class. He didn't let that trip him up though. Kuroba looked as at ease in the empty museum as Saguru did.
"You know, I expected someone taller to be the famous Shadow Thief," Kuroba said conversationally, hands in his hoodie pockets. Saguru had looked up his classmates after the first day of class. Kuroba was the son of Kuroba Toichi, world famous magician, and had a magician's skilled hands himself. There were any number of tricks that might be hidden on his person.
"I expected someone older," Saguru said in return, buying a bit of time. There were six escape routes in the room between the windows and the three doorways. "Playing the detective are we?" Kuroba grew up around detectives. Friend to Nakamori Aoko, daughter of Nakamori Ginzo, who was well known on the police force for working thefts. Close to the Kudo family, the same family that produced Kudo Shinichi, a famous teenage detective. Kuroba had been in news articles alongside Kudo. They claimed to be cousins, but so far as Saguru's search had found, there was no actual blood relation.
"Who's playing?" Kuroba said. "I successfully deduced your target and caught you in the act. I don't see other detectives getting this far." He smirked, slouched and infuriatingly casual. "And the police are already on their way."
Saguru held very still for half a breath—but if the police were coming, why had Kuroba confronted him alone? Why not wait for the police to surround Saguru and neutralize him then gloat over his own cunning? Because, Saguru concluded, the police were most likely not coming. A bluff to, what, scare Saguru into something? He decided to change tracks.
"I've seen you in the papers. With Kudo Shinichi, yes? You hang onto a real detective's coattails and expect to become one yourself."
Kuroba almost bristled. Saguru could see the tense and release of his shoulders. "Please, I played an active role in solving those murders."
"I'm sure you did," Saguru said, making sure to sound like he didn't believe it at all. "And what would your supposed cousin think to know you confronted a criminal on your own?"
Kuroba raised an eyebrow. "He does it all the time."
"Ah, but you're not Kudo Shinichi." Saguru stalked closer, predatory steps that would put Kuroba on the defensive. "And Kudo Shinichi deals with murderous, dangerous human beings where the danger is plain to see."
He could see the moment when Kuroba thought he may have truly miscalculated, the twitch of an arm toward something—a weapon?—and a slight tightening of lips. Details, all things that Saguru had trained himself to notice. He'd out bluffed Kuroba and taken power over this confrontation.
"I don't need to be Kudo Shinichi to confront you," Kuroba said.
He wouldn't budge, wouldn't break, so Saguru went for the kill. "You know what, detective, I don't believe you did call the police. No, you wouldn't would you?" He sized Kuroba up, piecing together the actions now with what he had compiled in class. "You're arrogant. Confident that you can pull off anything and too self-centered to call the police even though you have an in with them through Kudo." And Nakamori Aoko. "But you're not a detective or a magician or anything else yet; you're just a child standing in the shadows of the people around you hoping for attention."
Kuroba flinched, and perhaps it was cruel to stab at half-guessed weaknesses, but Saguru would take what advantages he could find.
Kuroba still didn't back down and Saguru was almost in arm's reach. "What are you looking for?" Kuroba demanded suddenly. "You're searching for something, a stone. Why?"
Saguru smiled. "If you want to be the detective so much, figure it out yourself." He had all of Kuroba's frustrated attention on him so… Saguru looked up and to the right, sharp, and Kuroba looked in that direction automatically. It was enough distraction to dash past him and off down the hall.
"Wait!" Kuroba called, loud, too loud; there were guards patrolling somewhere, not here yet for another few minutes, but they could hear. Kuroba followed, pounding after him and catching Saguru's sleeve.
It was ingrained instinct and muscle memory that sent Kuroba flying with a judo throw. From how he coughed on landing, the breath had been forced from his lungs. Saguru didn't look back.
*o*o*
Ow. Shit, ow ow ow. Breathing hurt, everything hurt, and Kaito really should have expected that. Mostly he was pissed because how dare that bastard stab him with words and throw him into a wall?! Kaito staggered to his feet, breaths coming uneven still—how had an alarm not gone off?—and took off after him at a slower pace.
He was going to arrest that fucker.
….Get him arrested. Close enough. It was faster going back through the maze of cameras and alarms than it had been getting to the room, but that was because he knew the way now. Kaito reached the window, just a bit out of breath still. He lifted a hand to open it and paused.
Now that was just petty! He'd reset the alarm!
Kaito swore vengeance as he pulled out his tool pack. Thank goodness Oyaji had pressed upon him that you didn't go anywhere without tools.
It was the work of a minute to disarm the alarm and return to the evening chill. By then, the thief was probably long gone though. Swearing under his breath, Kaito trudged back toward his earlier vantage point to collect his things.
*o*o*
Saguru, despite his first instinct to run and keep running, hid not far from his point of escape to observe how Kuroba would react to finding the window. He was reluctantly impressed at the speed and ease in which Kuroba disarmed and fixed the alarm before stomping past Saguru's hiding spot—all while maintaining care for the camera blind spots.
Kuroba could have been a skillful thief, but he seemed intent on playing out the hand of the law in this scenario. Clearly a morally skewed hand since Kuroba had broken and entered just as much that night as Saguru had, but still. In another life, perhaps their roles could have been reversed. Saguru could certainly remember wanting to be a detective as a young child.
Interesting. There was no time to appreciate a rival, though. A rival was only another word for a threat to his goal. All the same…it had been a while since doing this had felt challenging, and Saguru had always thrived off of challenge.
*o*o*
"I'm going to catch him and I am going to catch him without your help," Kaito said when Shinichi picked up the phone. Kaito was home now, in his bedroom, pacing with restless, irritated energy that had no outlet for the moment.
"I take it you saw the thief," Shinichi said.
"I did. He's an asshole."
"Uh huh."
Kaito pulled out his card gun and shot at the target in the corner of his room in rapid succession. He was pissed at himself for failing to use it earlier. "He mocked me, then judo flipped me into a freaking wall. If that wasn't bad enough, he took the time to reset the alarms with me still in there!"
Shinichi sighed. "Kaito, you just admitted to breaking into a museum."
"Well how else was I supposed to confront the guy?"
"By having the police surround him?" Shinichi suggested.
"He'd have been long gone by the time police got there. He works fast."
"So, you're okay, right? Considering you were thrown into a wall?" There was real concern there at least.
Kaito tossed himself onto the bed. He was still sore, but he'd had worse training on his own. "I'm fine, just annoyed. I've had worse from Aoko." Kaito felt a little calmer talking to Shinichi though, and now that he had his venting out of the way… "Anyway…at least tonight was partially successful."
On the other end of the line, Shinichi muttered something that sounded like 'it better have been,' but Kaito pretended not to hear it. His cousin should totally be used to late night phone calls by this point. "What did you learn?" Shinichi asked after Kaito patiently waited for him to stop complaining.
"The thief's a man," Kaito said, "around 175, 180 centimeters in height, stocky build, athletic." He ticked things off on his fingers. "Knows judo, looked up police and detectives in the area probably since he recognized me being in a newspaper photo with you. Good with tech, though that was obvious with how he gets in and out of places…" He trailed off as a thought occurred. "He knew I wasn't actually your cousin. He phrased something as 'your supposed cousin.' He shouldn't have known that. The papers call you my cousin." Heck, even Aoko thought that Shinichi was Kaito's biological cousin, and they looked like cousins. They could have been brothers for how similar their faces were. It was the sort of thing that someone could only know if they'd dug into Kaito or Shinichi's lives, not some casual check to see who might be a danger. "Well. That's great. You must have really caught his attention."
"Just what I wanted, a stalker," Shinichi said, though he sounded a little unnerved. "I suppose you have his attention now though."
"Yeah." It wouldn't be too hard to learn more about Kaito either; it wasn't like his family was low profile. "Ugh. I'm going to have to do so much research to try and keep a step ahead of him. There's at least a dozen possible targets I can think of offhand and that's not even including ones I don't know about in people's private collections."
"How do you think your theory of wealth is holding up?"
"Nothing to negate it yet. He could have been anywhere from twenty to forty or maybe older if he was in great shape… Spoke perfect Japanese. Should he speak perfect Japanese if he's only been in the country a little while?"
"Polyglot?"
"Maybe." There were so many questions whirling around in his head. Kaito twitched to just dive right into the research process.
A yawn from Shinichi's end brought back the reality that it was the middle of the night when most people would be sleeping. "I need to go," he said. "Don't expect me to pick up the phone this late all the time."
"Yeah, yeah." Kaito smiled. "Good luck with your case."
"Thanks. Oh," Shinichi added before he hung up, "Your parents say hello, through my parents. They were visiting."
"Okay?" He had a skype call planned with his mom on Saturday. They had phones. There wasn't any reason to go and do a roundabout contact. And weren't Shinichi's parents supposed to be in Vegas too right now? Their parents were weird. "Talk to you later, Shinichi."
"Goodnight, Kaito."
Kaito hung up the phone and looked over at his laptop computer. …It wasn't quite three in the morning yet…. He turned on his computer.
o*o
Words blurred in and out of focus on the page in front of him. It took Kaito a minute to realize this was due to Aoko waving a hand between him and the paper and not just from his eyes as the last dozen times had been. "What?" Kaito asked.
"I said, when was the last time you slept? Because you look like a zombie." Aoko poked his cheek.
Kaito swatted her away. "I slept last night." For an hour or so. He's underestimated just how hard it would be to track down a comprehensive overview of different possible targets. He'd been researching every spare moment since the first confrontation.
"Uh huh. And how many hours have you gotten in the last week?"
"…ten?"
"Bakaito!" Aoko snatched his paper up before Kaito's compromised reflexes could stop her. "That's it! No more reading, you're going to the nurse's office and sleeping."
Sleep sounded wonderful but… "I'll sleep tonight," Kaito said. He made a grab for his collection of notes and printouts. "Just let me finish up with these!"
"Nope!" Aoko held the papers well over her head. "You've been out of it in class and at home and I don't care what kind of trick you're planning, you're just going to mess something up if you don't sleep. Now!"
Kaito scowled at her. She scowled back. "If I nap the rest of lunch, will you give them back?"
"I'll give it back tomorrow once you've slept," Aoko said.
"…fine." Kaito would just have to steal his papers back before the end of the day. Until then…well, he did need a nap. As he crossed his arms on his desk, he could see Hakuba watching from across the room. So was Akako. The two of them could be creepy together then, he guessed. Aoko'd probably whack them if Akako tried anything in his sleep at least. Kaito blinked, and in the space between the next two blinks was asleep.
And he was pretty sure where the next target would be now…
*o*o*
It had been ridiculously simple to acquire today's heist. Saguru had been fortunate enough to attend a high society fundraising event with his grandfather and had scoped out ideal targets there. The Suzuki family, he noted, had a large percentage of gemstones that fit his target size. Even more than first appeared once he had done a bit of digging into their private collections. The event had been held at the Suzuki home, so the casing of the heist location had been taken care of as a tour of the home; there was nothing a wealthy socialite liked more than to show off their collections.
Somehow he hadn't accounted for Kuroba to show up too—a guest, it seemed, of the younger Suzuki daughter. The two interacted like old friendly acquaintances, if not actual friends. It was a bit hard to tell actually, between Suzuki Sonoko's outgoing personality and Kuroba's flirtatiousness, but they had a physical distance in their body language that hinted at not being quite as familiar with each other as they acted.
While Kuroba had been a surprise, he hadn't been an issue. It had been simple to stay out of his sight and he wasn't looking for Saguru anyway. Undoubtedly, he was looking for the Shadow Thief, as the media had recently taken to calling Saguru's alter ego, and no one expected a thief to be a teenager.
The growing frustration on Kuroba's face the longer the night went on had been rather amusing. And no thief had appeared to confront him of course. So Saguru ended the night with intel, the first of many potential gemstones from the Suzuki family collection, and the pleasure of one upping an incredibly nosey classmate. Saguru did like coming out on top.
*o*o*
Kaito knew, knew without a doubt, that the next target had to be either a Suzuki piece or from the museum again. He had itemized lists of potential targets, had grilled Sonoko back and forth about what her family owned until they were on the outs (which was unfortunate, but they tended to either get along like a house on fire or get on each other's nerves depending on their mood), and had lost more sleep than he was willing to admit trying to catch the stupid Shadow Thief in the act a second time.
It was only because he'd asked Ran to be a go between that Sonoko had let him set up camp tonight. Technically it was her uncle's home, and technically it was her uncle who had beefed up security as some sort of challenge to the thief after one of his gem collection was found missing a few weeks ago, but it was Sonoko that had convinced her uncle that Kaito could be an asset rather than another person underfoot. At least Sonoko's uncle liked Kaito more than he liked Inspector Nakamori. Nakamori was left to prowl outside the building while Kaito got to go over security with a fine tooth comb.
He'd come up with ten ways he could steal a gem himself within the first hour.
Kaito was perched high up on one of the ceiling beams. It was the perfect vantage point and more comfortable than sitting in some cramped corner of Suzuki Jirokichi's modified display room. Modified because in a matter of days it had gone from casual displays to resembling a high security museum. Kaito eyed the pair of ladies' shoes under him with their large gems. It was gaudy as hell and the case around them made the moonlight refract more off the stones somehow than before they'd been sealed up. Why did he even have a pair of women's shoes in his collection?
On the whole, the new cases would be useless. There were wires that could be cut easily enough. The alarm systems were avoidable, the laser grids navigable, and the cameras might not have blind spots, but Kaito was willing to bet that the thief would take his time to either cut wires or somehow block them. Heck, all he really had to do was cut the power and all the fancy alarms and cameras would be useless.
As if on cue, the background hum that Kaito was so used to was gone. Below, the red blinking lights from various alarm systems were dark.
Kaito had totally called that one. The power outage wasn't through the whole building; out the window Kaito could still see the lights on in Jirokichi's study. A flipped switch on the circuit breaker? A purposely blown fuse?
He tensed as one of the doors opened a crack, just enough to let in a dark clothed figure.
Kaito grinned to himself and pushed the button he had on him that was meant to let the police know the thief was there. He had learned from their last encounter after all; no bluffs this time. The thief moved with confidence toward the case directly below Kaito. Like he knew exactly what he was looking for and where it would be even though the gem he'd taken before hadn't been part of the collection in this room. Interesting.
Kaito waited until the Shadow Thief was almost directly below him before he made his own entrance.
*o*o*
Everything was going to plan until it suddenly wasn't. The last thing Saguru expected was for Kuroba Kaito to all but fall on top of him. Saguru wasted a half second staring at where Kuroba had landed deceptively lightly in front of him—controlled fall with a pulley system?—before he looked at the target. The shoes were missing from their case.
"You know," Kuroba said, "you have to wonder what an old man is doing with a pair of fancy ladies' shoes in his personal collection." He had one of the shoes in his hands, tilted so that its central gem glinted in the moonlight. But not quite at the right angle for Saguru to see if it or its pair were the stone he was looking for.
He felt a burst of irritation, quickly smothered. His lips pressed flat before he let the tension go. "Perhaps," Saguru said, falling into his role of thief, "he enjoys the Purple Nail's history. Maria Theresa of the Holy Roman Empire was said to have coveted those gems at some point."
"Hmm." Kuroba compared the shoe to its mate. "Still. Feels a little weird. I have to admit, I thought you'd go for one of the more notable targets first. Kirin's Horn or Blue Wonder. I mean after the Green Emperor, a little surprised you went for the shoes." Saguru felt a growing urge to flee as Kuroba made no move to detain him or to get the heist target as far away as possible. Something was wrong.
He stalled. If he could get the shoes from Kuroba and leave… "After the Green Emperor, of course it was only natural to go after the stone associated with an empress."
Kuroba raised an eyebrow. "Okay, nice association I guess." He took a step back when Saguru stepped forward. "Ah, ah, no shoes for you."
"Says the man who stole them from their case," Saguru said. He stalked closer. Kuroba looked inclined to circle right. Saguru hedged him left. "You know, you'd make an impressive thief." Mess with him…
Kuroba snorted. "I know right?" Well, that route failed. "But," Kuroba said, bouncing a bit, "unlucky for you, I'd rather catch a thief than be one."
"Really. With your wonderful deductive abilities," Saguru drawled.
"I'm here aren't I? And you haven't got the Purple Nail yet."
Kuroba had an irritatingly large ego. Saguru's eyes narrowed behind his mask. He feinted left and lunged, bowling into Kuroba. They went down in a tangle of limbs. Saguru felt hands twitch along his mask, searching for its method of removal and was glad that it took a bit of effort to get it off. His hands went for Kuroba's clothing since his target had mysteriously disappeared halfway into his lunge.
"Hey!" Kuroba yelped. He scrabbled at Saguru's wrists and they rolled across the ground, trying to win out over the other.
This was so far from control of the moment, Saguru wanted to scream.
Saguru's fingers bumped one of the shoes for a split second before Kuroba twisted in a way that felt like it shouldn't be humanly possible. Saguru found his wrists pinned near his shoulders and a grinning Kuroba pressing his full weight down on him to keep him pinned.
"You're not the only one that knows a little bit of martial arts," Kuroba said. He looked like a cat that had cornered a mouse. "Now just sit tight. Should be any second now for the police to get here."
He wasn't bluffing this time. Saguru could see it in the set of his jaw and the confidence in every line of his being. Saguru had been in the room for five minutes and roughly forty seven seconds. It took less than eight minutes to reach this room from the ground floor if someone was moving quickly.
Kuroba laughed as Saguru went very still. "You thought I would make the same mistake I did last time? Heck no, Nakamori-keibu was on standby the whole time."
The shoes were in Kuroba's shirt, front, lower right, but no hand to grab them with. Saguru's hips were pinned preventing him from throwing Kuroba off that way. The only thing that wasn't was… Saguru forced himself to relax and smirked. Control. Control.
"...What are you…?" Kuroba muttered as Saguru failed to get angry or panicked like he undoubtedly expected.
Saguru leaned up, shoulders protesting the strain, and kissed him.
*o*o*
Kaito flopped into his desk face first, groaning. Last night continued to play behind his eyelids whether he wanted it to or not. Kissing. Kissing. The worst part of it all was that the distraction had worked and the bastard had gotten away. With only one shoe, yeah, but still.
"Aoko," Kaito mumbled into the laminated desk surface. "I'm no longer pure."
"What the heck, Kaito?" Aoko stared at him. "You're being weird even for you."
Kaito looked up at her, trying to look as pitiful as he felt. "I've been defiled. The only cure is a kiss from you."
Aoko turned bright red and smacked him over the head. "Bakaito!" His head whapped back onto his desk. "See if I worry about you again!" she growled, stomping off to be with other classmates.
Kaito lifted his head slowly. "Ouch." And now his nose was bleeding. Great. Well, it had been worth a shot. Wouldn't change the fact that it was Kaito's first kiss outside of a dare though.
A hand tipped his face up. "I'll give you a kiss, Kuroba-kun," Akako said, leaning over him seductively. Kaito could tell she was doing…something…but as usual it didn't affect him at all. He pushed her hand away.
"Yeah, no. I like my soul where it is."
"Romantic troubles?" a voice asked.
Kaito looked and realized it was the transfer student. The guy that never spoke with anyone and usually had his nose in a book or his phone or something. The guy—Hakuba right?—looked amused by Kaito's misery. Apparently it took someone having a bad day to get the guy interested. That kind of made Kaito dislike him more.
"Hell no," Kaito said. "Just an issue with some jerk."
Hakuba opened his mouth, no doubt to say something along the lines that it would take one to know one—Kaito had heard that sort of thing from people before—but their teacher called the class to order. As everyone filed back to their desks, Kaito couldn't help glancing at Hakuba again. He leaned away from Akako when she passed by him. Odd, since most men did the opposite, but Hakuba was weird all around. Seeing a bit of sense shown toward Akako did take the dislike for him down a little bit though. Just a little.
o*o
Kaito moped on his bed for almost half an hour after school before he reached a decision. He pulled out his phone, dialing without looking.
Shinichi picked up on the other end sounding frustrated. "What?"
"Oh, good, you picked up. This is the third time I've called in the last twenty four hours."
"Do the words 'I'm on a case' and 'I don't know how often I'll be available' mean anything to you?" Shinichi grumbled.
"Yeah, but we're practically family. We're always available for each other." Kaito would totally drop anything he was doing if Shinichi called him. Not that Shinichi tended to call often. Actually, Shinichi was kind of horrible on communication so Kaito had taken it upon himself to initiate it as often as possible a long time ago. "Case giving you trouble?"
A sound somewhere between a snarl and a groan was his only answer.
"Are you even in Japan?"
"Yes, I'm in Japan. For the moment. What was so important that you had to call me rather than sending a text?"
Kaito frowned. Why text when talking was simpler? He shook his head and flopped onto his back. "You missed it. Last night I had another run in with the bastard thief."
"I take it this time went about as well as the last time."
"Shush, no. I'm talking, you're listening." Kaito kicked his heels with remembered restless energy. "I was staking out Sonoko's uncle's place—with his permission of course—"
"Of course," Shinichi muttered under his breath.
Kaito stuck his tongue out at his ceiling. "Anyway, I had the whole room layout clear, a good position to wait, a button to call Nakamori-keibu, even a pretty good idea which things were the most likely targets and the Shadow Thief came. Knocked out the power and stalled out the backup generator to kill the alarm systems. In comes the thief and I drop down on him."
"…were you on the ceiling? Wait, no, this is you, of course you were somewhere high up."
"I drop down on him," Kaito repeated, "he goes for the target, we end up in a scuffle and I pin him." His free hand clenched in a fist. "But he…distracted me… and managed to get one of the gems and out the door less than a minute before Nakamori-keibu burst through the door."
"…distracted you how?" Shinichi asked, because he always noticed when Kaito skipped something.
"He kissed me," Kaito mumbled, scowling again. It was just as troubling as earlier, but now he kind of wanted to punch the thief.
"What."
"Exactly. Who does that?" Kaito sat up, hand waving in a sharp arc. "I mean I expected more an attempt at a knee to the groin, not a kiss." His eyes narrowed. "But you know what? If that's the way he's going to play it, I'll be prepared to call his bluff next time."
"Kaito. What?"
"Thinks he can kiss and run. I won't fall for those tactics again. Heck, I bet I could turn it on him and beat him at his own game. Let's see him get away if he's distracted."
"Kaito…Kaito, no, that is a stupid idea."
"Shush." Kaito snapped his fingers, brain running through all the ways he could potentially catch the Shadow Thief off guard. He was pulling out Oyaji's disguise lessons for this one. Catch the thief's eye, lure him in, bam! Haha, joke would be on him! "Turning the tables would make revenge for the embarrassment perfect."
"Do I have to point out how you don't know this person's age? Or face? Or anything?"
"He's not old from what I can tell; voice is younger, no wrinkles, in really good shape too."
Shinichi sighed. "…you know what? Okay. You go play gay chicken with a wanted criminal. It's your life."
Kaito scoffed. Like Shinichi wasn't the type to meet someone head on. He'd challenge this thief and want to beat him at his own game too. Okay, maybe it wasn't really Shinichi's style to out sexually harass his opponent. But like hell if Kaito was going to let that pass without paying back in kind. "It is my life. And you know what my life needs? Some time with you in it. It's been months since we've hung out." It was weird actually. Usually they got a meal out or just spent an afternoon together at least once a month. If they got busy it wasn't too odd to go longer, but it was nearing the three month mark, and that wasn't normal at all.
"Multiple phone conversations a week isn't in your life?" Shinichi tried to joke before letting that fall flat with a sigh. "Yeah, still too busy here."
"And you don't want my help."
"I've told you, I have things covered. Besides," Shinichi said, "if this is how you approach a case I'm not sure I want you along."
"He used the tactic first, it's perfectly sound to use it against him," Kaito reasoned. He grinned. "Hey, you think I could pull off a woman well enough to seduce the guy into letting his guard down?"
"Because that's morally sound."
"Morals are made to be bent, Shinichi," Kaito said with a shrug. "Or was I imagining that time when you used the lock picking I taught you to break into those buildings?"
"There were lives at stake and you know it!" Shinichi sputtered.
Kaito snickered. The heaviness and tension he'd been carrying all day had all but melted away between his resolve and Shinichi's familiar banter. "Anyway, Shinichi, make time sometime soon. Even if it's just an hour. If you're in the area, I'll come to you and you can bounce your ideas off me and I can test new tricks like usual."
"Like I'll jump on the chance to be your guinea pig," Shinichi said. It wasn't a yes. Kaito waited and got a sigh. "Look, I don't know when I'll be in the area next. If I am, I'll let you know though, okay?"
"You'd better."
Kaito made a mental note to bother Shinichi about it more later. He knew when Shinichi was being evasive and there was definitely something going on. If he could just get Shinichi to talk about his case… Well, there was always calling up Shinichi's parents…though that tended to be an experience every time Kaito did. Yukiko and Yusaku were fun but they were also as eccentric as Kaito's family and just as likely to think in circles around him. That always got frustrating fast.
"…Look, I have to go," Shinichi said. "Don't do anything too stupid, okay?"
"Good night, Kaa-san."
Shinichi snorted and hung up on him. Rude. Kaito stared at his phone for a moment before tossing it away. So many questions, so little answers. But… He moved in on his closet, a smirk growing on his face. He had some revenge to think up. After all, the Shadow Thief had to come back for that second shoe now didn't he?
*o*o*
The Purple Nail—or at least the half of the pair Saguru had—was not Pandora. The chances of the second gem being what he wanted went from a rather low percentage to an even lower one. The Purple Nail could hold off for a while on his priority lists as much as it irked him to leave a job half finished. There were other targets to worry about for a while.
Saguru straightened his tie in the hall mirror until it was perfect. Behind him, his grandfather moved to set a hand on his shoulder.
"You look all grown up," his grandfather said, something like pride and grief on his face. "Soon you'll be the one inviting people to events instead of being someone's guest."
"I'm sure that is a ways away," Saguru demurred. "I am only in high school after all."
"You were only in elementary school and now look at you." His grandfather smiled. "Seeing you now reminds me of when your father was your age. You look a lot like him."
Everyone said he looked like his mother. Saguru didn't argue with the statement though.
"I'm sure he'd be proud to see the young man you're growing to be."
Saguru's throat felt tight. He didn't have any illusions that his father would actually approve of what Saguru was doing with his life. The son of an upper level police officer turned to a life of theft and near vigilantism. At the same time…
"Look how tall you're getting," his father had said a long time ago in a situation much like this one. "I'm going to blink and you'll outgrow me."
Saguru placed his hand on his grandfather's. "Thank you." He would hope his father would approve of something about him. Saguru was doing this because of him after all.
"You're a good boy, Saguru. I'm glad to have you here."
Saguru smiled although it felt forced. The sincere warmth his grandfather had showed him since he arrived in Japan felt like a punishment. It was different deceiving someone who cared for you than it was to do the same with the rest of the world. The person his grandfather cared for was not the person Saguru was. "I'm glad to be here," he lied.
o*o
Upon arriving at the party, he was left with a group of people within his age range, presumably to make friends, though Saguru skeptically saw it as forging social ties for mutual future success. It involved more small talk and measuring up of each other's social standing for Saguru's comfort, and he said the minimum of niceties before ducking out.
In that group had been Suzuki Sonoko, though so far as Saguru could tell there was no sign of Kuroba this time. It left him relieved and vaguely disappointed at the same time for reasons he had no desire to examine. Instead, he drifted, sipping juice from a wine glass in lieu of actual wine. No one would have cared if he drank underage, but Saguru wouldn't risk dulling his senses just for a brief alcoholic buzz.
There were targets here, jewelry worn by the guests, and a few pieces displayed in the decor around the ballroom. No doubt the hosts were attempting to subtly show their superior wealth compared to some of the other guests. It was easy enough to snag a gem, check it under the pretense of getting fresh air, and return it to its owner with minimum effort throughout the night.
It was minutes after returning one of these gems that Saguru found himself pulled out onto a balcony by a red lace-gloved arm.
Clearly somewhere in his return to Japan, Saguru had miscalculated, because before him was Koizumi Akako. One classmate interfering with his thefts was an anomaly, having the daughter of the inspector put on his case in the class was unlucky, but having Koizumi Akako in his class was a whole different level of bad karma.
"We need to have a chat," she said, in that dangerously sweet tone of voice that held no doubt about his cooperation in said discussion.
Saguru eyed her and her elaborate burgundy dress uneasily. Of all their classmates, he had found the least about her. Her name didn't match her supposed mother's foreign surname, and there had been no record of a father. No patrilineal line to be seen from her mother either, or even any clear sign that the woman was in the same country as her daughter. Wealth with no clear income source and an unnerving amount of charisma had been more than enough to avoid her. Especially once he added in…whatever she did. Saguru found his eyes lingering on the way her hair glinted red in the moonlight and the dress's plunging neckline.
He tore his eyes away. "What are you doing here, Koizumi-san? I wasn't aware that you frequented this social circle."
"I know what you're doing," she said, ignoring his question.
"And what might that be?" Saguru asked like he didn't suddenly feel cold inside.
"If you plan on keeping your hobby a secret, you shouldn't practice it with your face on," Koizumi said, eyes dark, dangerous. She couldn't have seen him earlier; Saguru had been very very careful about where and when he timed each theft and return that night.
"I'm not sure what you're implying," Saguru said, all masks firmly in place.
"Of course you aren't." Her eyes narrowed. Her hand snapped out and gripped his wrist hard. He couldn't look away from her eyes—they were reddish too, like the red wine guests were drinking, framed by long eye lashes. He wanted to tell her whatever she wanted to hear, anything to make that hard look soften, to get a smile. For her lips to—Saguru shut his eyes.
"Stop that," he said, edging away. Her tight grip on his wrist was unrelenting.
"I'm not doing anything," she said.
"I don't know what it is, but you are doing something. Stop, or this conversation is over now."
"Funny, you don't seem to be the sort to believe in powers."
"I believe there is a lot more out there than science can currently understand," Saguru said evasively. "Magic, powers, mythic beings; who am I to call them false?"
"Hmm." It was like a weight was suddenly lifted off of him that he hadn't realized had even been there. It left him feeling disoriented, and he staggered back a step. When he opened his eyes, Koizumi was watching his reaction. "Interesting. How did you even tell I was doing something?"
Saguru no longer found his eyes drawn to Koizumi's body or any compulsion to please her. He shuddered, much as he had the first time he'd come out from her effect. "Simply put, I have never been attracted to women and I highly doubt you would be the exception." He yanked his arm free, resisting the urge to rub away the feeling of her hand in his skin. There was nothing more alarming or unsettling than feeling something you should be incapable of feeling, knowing it was impossible on an intellectual level, yet feeling it anyway.
Koizumi's eyes narrowed further. "Interesting. And that brings us to what I wanted to talk about, coincidentally enough." She leaned forward. Saguru leaned back. "What kind of game are you playing with Kuroba?"
"Pardon?"
"Don't play dumb," she snapped. Koizumi's teeth glinted white for a second in a silent snarl. "I know you're the Shadow Thief." The chill in his stomach became ice. "What are you playing at with Kuroba?"
He digested that she knew (how? How could she? He had let nothing slip) and accepted it. Turned it around and the chill turned to anger just as swiftly. Who was Koizumi to call him out about this? And to call him out over Kuroba of all the possible things to target? "There is no game," Saguru said, as close to losing control over his emotions as he ever had been in the last few years. "I am not playing anything." He leaned back in, unease or not, because how dare she imply otherwise? "Every single move I make has been made in full seriousness. If anyone is playing, it is Kuroba, pretending to be a detective."
Saguru stared Koizumi down, meeting her challenge head on. "You had better not be playing with him," Koizumi said, "because he is mine. Break him, and you'll be facing worse than a seduction spell."
Saguru scoffed. He didn't doubt that she meant her threats, but the premise behind them was flawed. "You don't own people. Any mess Kuroba gets into, he will be bringing onto himself. I intend to look out for my own interests. No more. No less."
She didn't like his answer. Her lips went tight and the air tingled with something that made Saguru's hair stand up along his arms. "Let me make it clear that I'll be watching tonight."
Saguru blinked. "Kuroba is here?"
Koizumi smirked. "Yes. I'm not telling you where. You can find out for yourself."
She left him on the balcony. Saguru took a moment to replace his masks and reclaim his calm. One person knew. Koizumi didn't seem inclined to talk, but anything he did from here on out would have to acknowledge that she knew. Okay. Kuroba was somewhere at the party, but not immediately visible. Okay. There was a chance Kuroba had also seen him at the party, but that did not mean he would come to the same conclusion as Koizumi. Saguru could continue on with the rest of the night as a normal party goer, or he could finish what he started and slip away to get a glimpse of the host's prize star sapphire.
It wasn't really a question which he'd choose.
*o*o*
"You owe me," Sonoko said, playing with one of the many fiddly bits of the antique telescopes in their host's observatory. "Like, quadruple owe me by this point."
Kaito shrugged. "I intend to pay up all the favors. You know I'm good for them." He tapped one manicured fingernail against the sapphire necklace draped over the marble bust of a young woman. Andromeda, probably, considering the observatory's star theme. Star sapphire to go with constellations. Andromeda was supposed to be a lovely young woman, but Kaito thought he pulled off a young woman better than the bust did. "I'll even throw in doing makeup for your next date," he joked, sending Sonoko a teasing smile.
She wrinkled her nose. "And what's wrong with how I do my makeup?"
"Nothing, I could just do it better."
"Just because you had people flirting with you, you think you're prettier than me," Sonoko scoffed.
"Ooor, I could help you out with that guy you've got your eye on?" He batted makeup enhanced lashes in her direction.
"You…Did Ran tell you or?"
"Shinichi actually." Kaito left the sapphire alone. It was remarkably unguarded all things considered. The owner must believe the rest of his security was sufficient enough that no one could get this far. "Kind of surprised he mentioned it since he barely notices that kind of thing."
"You're telling me," Sonoko muttered. "How the heck does he have time to talk to you if he can't even talk to Ran lately? Where did he even hear about that?"
"Good question." And ah, yet another thing to get to the bottom of with Shinichi. "But about your guy—he likes you, right? I could stage something, see if he gets jealous, see if he makes steps to romance you off into the sunset to keep you away from handsome competition~" He grinned as Sonoko blushed.
"You're awful." She pouted. "And I hate that you look that good in my dress."
Kaito admired the bit of ankle peeking out from under his dress. He made a damn good woman. "It does flatter me, doesn't it?"
"And so humble." Sonoko snickered when he stuck out his tongue at her. "Ah well, yeah, help me with my boy troubles since I'm helping you with yours."
"Ouch." Somehow Sonoko was convinced that Kaito was trying to seduce the Shadow Thief. She wasn't wrong, but her reasoning wasn't exactly right either.
"I'm bored," Sonoko said after another moment. "And thirsty. I think I'll head back to the party. Want to go with me?"
"Nah." Kaito had a good feeling about this gem. He wasn't ready to go quite yet. "Go flirt with all the boys for me since you're not technically taken yet."
"Of course," Sonoko said with a grin. "Gotta have fun now. Who knows, maybe one will catch my eye."
"Uh huh." Kaito shook his head as she left. He owed her soooo many favors, but it was worth it. And it wasn't like he really minded spending time with Sonoko most of the time, just lately it was more than he had ever spent with her without Ran and Shinichi around.
He wandered back over to the sapphire and used a handkerchief to pick it up. Kaito held it up like he'd seen the Shadow Thief do before. Artificial light glinted off it, but what he was supposed to be looking for, he couldn't tell. It was a black star sapphire, not the more common blue, and the star shape shot through in bright gold. Pretty, undeniably valuable as it was almost the length of his thumb, and smooth, but not any more remarkable beyond that. He set it back down, the necklace it was set it settling back into the hollow of the bust's throat. What was the thief looking for anyway? He'd taken an amethyst, two sapphires, a ruby, a beryl, and a garnet since he had arrived in Japan, and those were only the ones Kaito had found out about. He'd been so sure that the thief would try for this one too, but so far, nothing.
Kaito turned to the window, trying to look out at the grounds below only to freeze as he caught sight of a person reflected on the glass. The thief.
He was wearing a suit and tie like the other party goers, but the mask was the same Kaito had seen him in before. The thief didn't hesitate at all at finding the room already occupied, merely strode in with confidence and poise like he had expected to find someone there. In the back of his mind, Kaito added a tally in favor of the Shadow Thief being a member of the upper class. Kaito took a breath and settled into his role, widening his eyes in surprise.
The thief glanced at him, but his attention was on the bust and the star sapphire in its center. "Andromeda was supposed to be a beauty, but her parents' pride in her looks offended Poseidon. I wonder, what is a lovely woman doing here now?" Eyes slanted in Kaito's direction. "Fulfilling Andromeda's role or are you really the sea monster threat?"
Kaito settled his weight to one side, jutting a hip out, dress falling more pleasingly and showing a bit more leg at its slit. Think Akako. A woman who had been momentarily startled, but new what she wanted and was confident about it. "That depends," Kaito said. "Are you Perseus in this situation?" And wouldn't that be the irony, the thief casting himself in the hero's role. Kaito moved closer and the thief made no effort to run or to stop him.
The thief watched him as Kaito smoothed a hand against the smooth cloth of the suit jacket. "One must wonder what I would be saving you from if you are supposed to be Andromeda."
"Perhaps I'm both?" Kaito said, coyly looking at the thief from under his eye lashes. He wet his lips and felt a stab of victory when the thief's eyes were drawn to the motion. "Maybe you're saving me from myself?"
The Shadow Thief snorted. One gloved hand removed Kaito's hand from his chest. "Does that sort of line work ordinarily?" The other hand smoothed along the curve of Kaito's face before dropping away. "I'm here to carry off the true lady in the room," he said. "Andromeda's Eye will be leaving with me tonight."
"Say it like that, and you'll hurt my feelings," Kaito said. Rebuffed. And yet he hadn't imagined that glance, wasn't imagining the flicker of eyes at his exposed leg either.
"It's only the truth. You aren't a lady, after all." He stepped toward the necklace.
Kaito caught his wrist. "And what makes you say that?"
"I know it's you, Kuroba." The lips below the mask pursed. "You made an effort, but however you hoped to affect me, it is not going to happen. You make a convincing woman except that you can't hide everything—skillful makeup, yes, but a masculine neck and hips and shoulders under that padding. You were familiar with Suzuki Sonoko. And really, who else would be waiting with the most obvious target in the building? You hoped to surprise me, or better yet, seduce me." He scoffed. "A pretty face isn't enough to distract me from my task."
"But you do find it pretty," Kaito said. He clung to the role even as it started to fall apart.
Kaito was surprised to see actual anger flit across what bits of the thief's face were visible. The thief pulled away. "This is all some elaborate game to you, isn't it? The role of detective or the role of," he waved a hand at the dress and Kaito's apparently feminine personage, "seductress. But a detective doesn't chase criminals for fun or for a challenge. He chases them because he wants to learn the whole story of the crime and to bring the transgressor to justice. A real detective wouldn't treat this like a game. A real detective would seek out the why, the truth."
The words shouldn't cut; who the hell was a thief to tell Kaito what he was? But they did hit, and Kaito felt the same frustrating coil of self-doubt he'd felt that first time they'd crossed paths. His hands curled into fists.
The Shadow Thief picked up the necklace as if Kaito wasn't even a threat anymore. Like Kaito was nothing more than a slightly annoying piece of furniture in the middle of the room. He walked to the window and held it up to the moonlight. Kaito still couldn't see what he was looking for. Maybe the light wasn't clear enough, or there were more tests he needed to do, because he tucked the gem into his suit jacket without changing expression.
As he walked past Kaito, he leaned in close. "And for the record, if you want to use seduction as a distraction, make sure you aren't vulnerable to it being used back at you." He caught one of Kaito's hands and uncurled his fingers from their tight clench before kissing the palm. "Madame," he said sarcastically.
Kaito growled low in his throat and hooked his free hand into the thief's tie to yank him forward. The man smirked. "You should watch the same," Kaito hissed, face millimeters from the thief's. Pull his left hand free, lean in for the kiss to pickpocket… The thief's hand caught his before it could slip into the suit jacket. Kaito could feel his smirk in the kiss and it was infuriating.
"The secret," the thief said against his lips, "is to always be focused on the end goal." He pushed Kaito away, hard, and Kaito was left clutching a silk tie in an empty room.
*o*o*
"I think I'd like to go home," Saguru said to his grandfather. Andromeda's Eye sat heavy in his pocket, and he was beyond glad that he'd thought to put his spare tie on before entering the observatory.
Mingled irritation and exhaustion filled him and Saguru wanted to just check the damn gem properly and go to bed. Kuroba irritated him. The number of gems he'd checked and come up with nothing from in one night irritated him. The lingering tingle in his lips from Kuroba's angry kiss irritated him. The unnecessary complications that Kuroba's pursuit brought irritated him. And most of all he was getting tired of forever chasing and never finding what he was searching for.
He must have shown some of those emotions on his face because his grandfather disengaged from the conversation he was having and put a hand on Saguru's shoulder like he had done earlier that night. "Is everything alright?" his grandfather asked.
"I am merely tired," Saguru said. "The number of people is a bit more draining than normal."
"Let's give our respects to the host then," his grandfather said. He smiled, warm and caring, and Saguru felt more energy slip away with the burden on the lies he held up.
As they moved to leave, Saguru felt Koizumi's eyes on him. He didn't see Kuroba among the crowd at all.