Title: Tricks of the Trade
Summary: Conan and Kid supposedly teach each other the tricks of the other's respected trade of the fabric variety. An exchange of tips and a little hands-on work takes things a little out of hand.
A/N: Why can't I make summaries anymore?
Ooh, one of those DC fics I promised. Wrote this the other day. Don't think it's on par with Petty Theatrics so excuse me while I say in Derpy Hooves' original voice: "I just don't know what went wrong."
Try and find all the pony references I made!
"Alright, let me see it." The thief shook his head. "… Let me see it. Please?" The child requested, with more force in his tone but still gentle.
It didn't work as Kid pouted and turned away. "No." Conan sighed in reply.
"Kid… Truly at this moment you resemble your namesake of a child." The child facepalmed himself as the thief continued to pout. He nudged him. "Come on, it can't be that bad."
"Trust me on this one, Tantei-kun. It's really stupid. I don't want to taint your eyes with such horror," Kid covered his hands behind his back with a theatrical flair. "I myself am ashamed at this monstrosity that came from my hands. How do you do it?"
The detective sighed. "That's what I've been trying to show you! Let me see it and I'll help you!" He smiled warmly and Kid found it hard to deny that face anything.
Just a few more seconds...
The thief relented. "… Fine. But no laughing!"
"No laughing, promise." Conan raised his right hand in a swear.
The child gasped in surprise as Kid grabbed his hand and pulled him into his lap. The mini-detective turn to his captive and frowned in confusion but Kid continued to smile happily.
"Pinky swear?" The phantom thief stuck out his pinky to the child, who sighed but took Kid's finger in his own.
"Cross my heart, hope to die or stick a cupcake in my eye!" Kid winked as they released fingers. Conan stared as Kid's happy, content kitty face.
"… What the hell was that?" He deadpanned.
Kid just placed his index finger in front of his lips and grinned. His tone was serious, however. "No laughing, you hear? You pinky promised. Swore. We did things with our pinkies!" And on that note, Kid snapped his fingers and in a cloud of smoke appeared what looked like a bundle of a knot in Conan's hands.
It was pretty convincing, as he was able to get Aoko to try it. For her first attempt, it was much to be desired. Of course, it was because she was doing it on the fly.
The two stared at it for a good thirty seconds, Kid with Aoko's shame and Conan with shock. Afterwards, the thief finally got a reaction from the detective.
"… Pfft," Conan stifled down a giggle, but it still reached Kid's ears and caused the phantom thief to turn a dark red blush like a cherry.
"I knew it!" Kid covered his eyes with his sleeve and cradled the diminutive detective with his other arm, making him go "Gak!" "You promised not to laugh! You broke your promise!" Would a tear be too much?
For Conan, it wasn't enough, but all he could give. He had to wipe the stray tear from his eye. "It's just, it's just..." He removed a correctly tied bowtie - that actually looked like a bow - from his pocket. "Look at this," then he held up what Kid handed him. "Compared to this."
Oh, the phantom thief could see the difference alright.
"… Screw this, I'm sticking to ties and clip on bowties." Kid had a new resolution.
"N-no, wait we can do this," Conan let out his final chuckles. "Let me… uh..."
Kid snapped his fingers and the bowties became undone. Conan blinked. "Oh, well yes that would work. Thanks."
"No problem, Tantei-kun." Kid smiled. Ready puppy eyes. Go!
"So, teach me please?"
Conan sighed, but smiled at the request. "Alright then, guess it can't be helped." He reached up from his seat of Kid's lap and pulled on his orange tie lightly. "First off, let's remove this."
"Okie dokie lokie!" Kid undid his tie and brought it around Conan's neck. The detective blushed and coughed.
"Yes, well, uh, watch my hands, okay?" He brought the untied bow to the thief's neck and concentrated on his work, not noticing the thief's eyes not paying attention to the tie work but rather on the teacher.
"Okay, see how this side on the left end is longer than the other on the right? It should be about two inches longer than the other end." He adjusted it as such.
Conan crossed the fabric. "Cross the longer end over the shorter one," He pulled the left side. "Now see how there's a loop? Pull the left end up and under it."
He lifted the flap. "Now, double end the other end over itself. This will make the front base loop. See?" He looked up to the thief.
Twinkling eyes was something that he was not prepared for and the Conan blushed under Kid's gaze.
"Oh yeah, I see it alright." Kid smirked. "Continue?"
"R-right." Conan looked back to his hands around Kid's bowtie. Shaking, it took him a few moments to steady his hand as well as himself.
"A-anyway, now you loop the left one over the center of the formed loop from before," he said as he did so. "Make sure that you are holding everything in place, double end the left back on itself and poke it through the loop behind the bowtie. Did I lose you?" He looked up to the thief, who continued to watch the child.
"Got it all in here." The magician poked his head. "Almost done, right?"
Conan nodded. "Right! Now all you need to do is adjust the tie by tugging at the ends of it and straighten the center knots." He pulled on the ends. "And there!" He smiled. "Bowtie! Just like magic!" Kid was so glad for the bowtie, Conan's happiness at teaching was too adorable.
He chuckled. "Indeed, magic. And who else knows magic better than me?" The moonlight magician snapped his fingers and an orange tie replaced the red bowtie around Conan's neck. "Want me to teach you how to tie a tie?"
The child pouted. "I know how to tie a tie."
"Do you?" Kid narrowed his visible eye.
Conan blushed. He answered, "… Bowties are harder than ties anyway."
"Is it?" The phantom thief was sad at a lost opportunity.
Conan scratched his head, feeling somewhat depressed as well at his companion's own despair. "… Well, I suppose you could teach me your technique..." He trailed off, looking towards the starry sky.
Kid beamed. "I'm just might have to take you up on that offer, Tantei-kun." He reached out for the detective and brought him in his arms as he stood up, taking the child with him.
"W-wait, what are you doing?" Conan questioned as he was tucked under the thief's arm. It came to him and he groaned, Kid chuckling at his reaction. "Oh god, you don't mean -"
"Still have a heist to perform," the phantom thief winked at the now struggling detective. "And now I have a protégé! Yay~"
"Eh hehehe," Conan let out a dry laugh as Kid jumped off the roof. The detective widen his eyes. "What? No, no no!" He started screaming as they free fell for a few moments before Kid steadied themselves on the edge of the platform sticking out of the museum.
He frowned as he tried to quiet the child. "What are you doing? Don't you trust me?"
Conan ceased his shrieking, and glared. "I trust you to protect me, but that doesn't mean that I want you to steal the Moon's Tear! So excuse me if this is the only way for me to attract attention." He proceeded with his screaming.
Kid rolled his eyes as he hushed the child. "Come on, I humored you with your teaching, it'll only be fair for me to teach you as well." The phantom thief covered the child's mouth as he cracked open a window and smuggled the two inside. Keeping his hand on Conan's mouth, they sneaked inside and caught some distracted guards in the hall. The thief placed the child down and kneeled to his eye level.
"This is a perfect place to start. Now, the thing about disguises is that they are somewhat like acting. Got any favorites?" Kid looked at his reluctant apprentice expectantly for an answer.
Knowing that there would be no other way out of this until the magician got an answer, Conan replied, "… Kudo Yukiko I suppose." It would be only practical to name her his favorite.
Besides, he wasn't willing just yet to admit to the person in front of him of his great respect of his skill.
He vaguely wondered if Kid was in the drama club in his school.
"Excellent choice! Amazing actress she is," Kid commented, brining Conan back from his thoughts. "Make up could be a plus, but it doesn't have to be necessary." He studied Conan's face. "Besides, at your age, it's probably for the best to not use it. Make up too early would ruin your already flawless skin." Conan blushed at the complement.
Seeming to ignore the blush, Kid continued, "Disguise-wise, you don't need /can't even use one, as you would be the only child allowed on the premises anyway." He grinned. "Look at you! Being able to get in behind enemy lines like that. Your skill." Kid studied the guards on their coffee break.
"Hmm, with that in mind, it would be annoying to have to explain what you're doing with a random guard. And other reasons as well."
Kid placed Conan on the ground, and keeping a strong grip on his hand so that he wouldn't get away, removed his suit to shift into the doppelganger of Kudo Shinichi. He smiled. "Oh yeah, this'll be much easier."
Conan twitched before struggling even harder. "Why do you always dress as me?" he muttered, exasperated.
Kid raised an eyebrow. "What was that?"
"Uh, I mean," Conan looked away before turning back to the thief, determined. "I won't let you besmirch Shinichi-nii-chan's name!" He began to struggle some more, but it was futile with his current strength.
Kid shrugged before kneeling back to the child and placed a hand on his small shoulder. "Anyway, a disguise is like getting the main role in your play." He smirked in a way that Shinichi would when explaining a case and tsked. "You have to make sure to take your character's self into your own and bring them to life."
Shinichi rolled his eyes as Edogawa Conan. "Yeah, acting, got it." Shinichi was pretty sure that he definitely got acting down.
Kid grinned. "Excellent, you're pretty quick! As expected, apprentice." Before Conan could argue, Kid grabbed his hand and stepped out into the hallway, raising the child into the air. "Found him!"
"K-Kudo-kun?" The inspectors did a double take. "What are you doing here?"
"Nice to see you, Megure-keibu," Kid greeted and nodded in acknowledgement to Nakamori-keibu. "I heard that Conan-kun went missing when I arrived, so I gone and got him back." He replied, smoothly evading the question that he was asked.
"He's lying! It's Kaitou Kid disguised as Shinichi-nii-chan!" Conan yelled to the task force, who proceeded to tug on Kid's face at the child's insistence.
But it wouldn't work. It wouldn't reveal that the moonlight magician was wearing a mask. It never worked while Kid was masquerading as Shinichi.
"Yet another reason as to why I'm Shinichi, is because I don't need a mask," whispered Kid into Conan's ears for him to hear alone, winking as the detective turned to him to see his own teenage face smile at him.
"Alright, well, I'll take him with me while I search for Kid. You guys go on ahead." Kid waved them off as his captive glared. The two inspectors nodded before leaving the pair alone in the hallway.
"Do you really look like Shinichi?" The reluctant student questioned. Kid shrugged in reply before pointing to Conan's watch which was now on his wrist.
"Oops, it's almost show time. Ready for your next lesson?" the thief asked as he held Conan's hand and led them/dragged the child to the gem's main room.
"Not really, no," Conan curtly replied. Kid rolled his eyes at this answer but nevertheless it didn't break his spirits as they entered the room containing the Moon's Tear. The glass casket itself holding the jewel was guarded at all sides by the various security guards. Conan stared at the Kid, who just smiled at the supposed challenge.
"Alright, because this really can't be taught. More like I need to put you in a boot camp for this lesson. Nimble fingers, nimble fingers and quick reflexes. Also, it would be best for you to always do your research. Besides the jewel, it would be best to take some blueprints of the museum itself as well as do your best to eavesdrop on Nakamori-keibu and the rest of the task force to upstage any surprises they may have in store. I am a showman after all." He winked, to which his student rolled his eyes. Kid frowned. "What's wrong?"
Conan frowned as well and looked to the floor as if in shame. "Well, besides the fact that I don't want to be here, the whole idea of you teaching me how to perform heists wound me." He raised his head and tilted it at an angle. "Do you think that I would be unable to steal the jewel myself? Not that I would per se, but still…"
Kid blinked. He did not see that coming. "Awe, Tantei-kun!" The Shinichi lookalike pulled him into a hug. "I would never do such a thing! Of course I don't doubt your theft skills. Don't worry, it's almost over anyhow."
A chime went off from a pocket watch deep underneath the costume. "Show time." He pressed the remote's button that cut the lights as well as release a few sticky cannons in the darkness.
"A few pranks just for the hell of it," said Kid as he removed Shinichi's outfit to switch back to a white suit and tucked his pupil underneath his arm once more. "Hmm, let's change this." Conan felt himself weightless for a moment as the lights switched back on.
"Gah!" He saw his reflection in the window to find himself wearing a replica outfit as the phantom thief, save for the monocle as he was wearing glasses.
"It's Kaitou Kid!" exclaimed the speakers of the sound system. Catching sight of Conan, he gasped. "With a child! He's literally kidnapping now! Catch him!"
The groans of the sticky guards attached to the floor were the Inspector's answer as Kid handed Conan the gem before jumping off of the stand and glass case and up to a conveniently placed staircase that would lead the pair to the roof. "Gotta love those blueprints," Kid mused as Tantei-san was bound to arrive after them any second.
"I thought you wanted to teach me how to tie a tie!" Conan hysterically exclaimed as they heard footsteps follow them.
"Oh, we could do that. Why didn't you say so?"
Conan fumed in frustration.
"Now, there are many ways to tie a tie. As for me and heists, I prefer the Windsor knot." Kid said as he magicked an orange tie into existence. "Let me take this," he poofed away the previous tie on Conan's neck and worked with this new, undone one. He flipped the child's collar high towards the sky and placed the fabric around the small neck.
"The Windsor Knot is a thick, wide and triangular tie knot that projects confidence. Not only that, but it's easy to do! Let's start!" Conan's bored expression didn't kill his spirits.
"Similar to that of the bowtie, make the wide end longer by about twelve inches to the narrow end. Or at least, that's what it's supposed to, but with your stature I made this tie half what an adult tie would be. So it would be six in this case." Kid adjusted it as such, ignoring but keeping for future reference of the detective's blush as their faces at such a close angle.
Compared to earlier, the child was underneath the magician's chin while teaching the tie of bow while now Kid was just over his face.
"After, you cross over the wide end over the narrow one," He crossed the ends. "Then bring the wide end up through the loop it created between the collar." A white, gloved hand brushed over Conan's nose and glasses, lingering for a few seconds longer than necessary on the lips. "Before bringing the wide end back down." He tugged the fabric and smiled at the detective, who continued to blush.
"Now, this is where it may get a little tricky," the magician said, bringing up the ends of the fabric.
"Pull the wide end underneath the narrow end and to the right." Kid twisted the fabric. "Look, see? Now back through the loop and to the right again so that the wide end is inside out." He tugged on the wide end, bringing it to attention.
"Bring this across the front from right to left." He swayed the end across before pulling it up. "Then you pull it through the loop once more." He did so before he pulled it downwards. "Afterwards, bring it back down through the knot that was made in the front and carefully," he said with quick fingers, "You tighten the knot and draw it up to the collar. When you get as good as me, you could use one hand. For now you might want to stick with both." He winked.
"And voilà! C'est fini! Ta cravate!" Conan twitched at the French before looking down at his neat little tie around his neck.
"Oui, merci beaucoup," The detective replied. Sirens could be heard at a distance as the two sat back to back from each other.
"… You knew how to tie a bowtie, didn't you?"
"And you knew how to tie a tie, didn't you?"
Both were silent as they refused to answer each other's question.
"So you faked your horrid bowtie skills so that I could teach you?" Conan turned to address the thief face to face when said thief grabbed and placed him in his lap. "Wah!"
"You know, Tantei-kun," Kid snuggled him close. "You look so cute while teaching."
Conan blushed, pushing the thief away from his face. "S-shut up, you idiot."
Kid grinned, bringing cheek neck to the detective's. "It's true. And you have a nice neck too."
Before Conan could respond, the thief brought his mouth over his neck and kissed it gently.
"W-what do you think you're doing?" the shrunken detective stammered out as the sirens grew louder.
Kid pulled back. "Damn, thought we had more time."
Conan grabbed Kid's chin. "A few more seconds is ample enough," he said before capturing Kid's lips in his own, gently coaxing for the tender lips to open up.
Kid was shocked at his apprentice's boldness and allowed for Tantei-kun's tongue to play with his own. As the sirens grew louder, Conan pushed away, eyes hazy.
He crawled out of Kid's lap and reached out for his backpack. "Here," he handed the phantom thief a few books. "Read some of these, and I'll call you when I have to go on a case with Oji-san."
Kid eyed the covers before placing them back in Conan's bag. "I've already read the Sherlock Holmes novels." He winked. "Just call me when you want to test me."
"Will do," Conan replied as doors burst open, police storming in along with Tantei-san. Kid ruffled Tantei-kun's hair before taking his leave to the edges of the roof.
"Until then, Tantei-kun," he winked once more before jumping off and flew away on his hand glider.
Conan unloosened the perfectly tied orange tie around his neck and watched as Kid grew smaller in the moonlight, smiling."Until then."
"And that is why he is the murderer," Mouri Kogoro pointed at the suspect. "Take him away if you would, Meguri-keibu." He laughed.
"Wow, first time he solved a case without the stupid accusations and the sleepy appearance," the Inspector commented as he handcuffed the criminal to bring him to the station. He turned to Conan who was watching from the corner of his eye. "Nothing with Conan-kun either."
Kogoro laughed. "Of course you don't doubt my skill!" He pat the man on the back as he escorted the criminal into the police car.
"Wow, Tou-san, that was amazing!" Ran praised. "Very different!"
"Right, right. Thanks, Ran. Say, why don't you go on ahead and meet up with Sonoko? I'll go wrap up my report and take the little brat with me." Ran nodded and moved to take her leave. The man ignored his daughter and kneeled to the diminutive detective, who had been silent this whole time.
Kid adjusted his voice. "How'd I do?"
Conan was bored. "Well, at least you had the right person. Took too long for my taste. I expected better from you. So you get a C."
"A C? A C!" The disguised thief was flabbergasted. "That's the worst grade I've ever received in my life!"
"Well," Conan murmured, "Perhaps you need some tutor lessons."
"Ooh," Kid whispered back, "I wouldn't mind that at all."
The two left the hotel that would suffer from the murder case, hand in hand.
"Well, this is strange, walking with Oji-san like this," Conan commented.
"You're telling me," Kid looked at his outfit. "Look at this tie!" He pulled it off. "It's a clip on!" He shook his head. "Shame, shame, shame."
The pair chuckled and Kid scooped the child into his arms. They walked along the sidewalk in silence for a few moments.
"You should wear a bowtie to a heist," the detective said and the thief thought about it. "Preferably a red bowtie. That's not mine."
"If you wear this orange tie," An orange tie poofed in Conan's hand. "Then perhaps."
"Do I have to tie it?" The detective pouted.
"Do you know how?" The thief watched him carefully, hoping that his meaning will be brought across.
Conan stared into Kid's eyes and smiled. "Wanna teach me?"
Kid sighed, but grinned. "Suppose I might as well."
A/N: Don't feel like beta-ing, which I will regret, so please ignore any mistakes/errors.
It's strange. I really don't know how it ended up like this. Originally it was just supposed to be the bowties and ties but, again… "I just don't know what went wrong." Sorry to have disappointed you. Promise the others are way better. And with an actual plot and everything.
Anyway, Happy Leap Day 2012! Only comes once every four years! So the next one would be my senior year of college. O_o Woah.
Reason as to why I'm posting three things today.
Review?