Hello :)

This is my second DC fic. ^^ I actually started writing this one-shot ages ago but it took more time than I first expected and kinda got out of hand as well ^^' But I wanted to finally post it anyway. Hope you'll enjoy :)

I consider all the movies to be canon so Kid knows Conan's identity.

Disclaimer: I don't own Detective Conan and Magic Kaito.

Confidences au Clair de Lune

"Are you okay with that, Tantei-kun?"

The shrunken detective didn't have to turn around to know who had spoken.

Kid.

Usually, he would have thrown a snarky remark his way like 'Are you stalking me?' or a half-hearted 'Leave me alone.' but tonight was...different. He wasn't in the mood to entertain the thief by playing along with whatever scenario he had thought of. Not...tonight. Just...not tonight.

Ignoring the man standing a few feet away from him, he resumed admiring the scenery before his eyes.

Tonight, the moon was full. It was so big and shiny that the stars next to it seemed really dull, vainly trying to rival with its brightness. The blue of the night sky was so dark that it was almost black.

Black.

Over the past months, he had come to hate this color. It brought to his mind way too many bad memories. Black was why he was in this mess in the first place- no. It wasn't only Their fault. It was his. Everything was his fault. If only he hadn't been so curious...if only he had been more aware of his surroundings...if only...if only he had been more honest...

But 'if only's wouldn't change the present situation.

It was over.

Completely over. He hadn't meant for her to find it out this way. He had meant to tell her at some point, but now...

He was afraid that it didn't have meaning anymore.

Two days before, Agasa-hakase's house

"Please!" Conan's voice turned pleading as he clasped his hands together in front of him.

The answer came flat and emotionless. "No."

Conan's blue eyes lifted to stare into cold gray ones as he gave the shrunken scientific his best puppy eyes. "Please, Haibara!" he tried again, wishing for her to change her mind and comply with his wishes for once.

The answer stayed unchanged as Haibara gave him a flat unimpressed look. "No." she repeated before turning to resume typing on her computer.

Conan straightened up to his full height (which stayed hatefully small) before staring at the working girl in front of him. He had come to ask for an antidote once again and surprisingly (it really was not) she had refused. As she did all the hundred or so times he had asked before.

But this time was different. He needed it - not that he hadn't previously but now he really needed it.

At last, they had managed to gather enough information about the men in black to launch an assault against Them the day after and he needed to have his body back if he wanted to participate. Even if he had found ways to compensate his shrunken self's lack of strength, if he happened to be ripped of his gadgets, he'd only be a helpless child again and he couldn't let that happen. The FBI wouldn't let a child take part no matter how intelligent he was, with reason, and he couldn't bear to just stand and watch on the sideways when they could finally put their hand on the poison that had cursed him in this form, APTX 4869. They had confirmed the fact that it would be there and he was really excited to finally have it and with it, the chance to make a permanent antidote. He couldn't let this chance pass by and he would be there when they took it, but for that, he needed a temporary antidote.

The sound of fingers hitting the keyboard filled the room as Conan thought about how he'd convince the girl to give him a pill. He hadn't wanted to involve her so he hadn't given her a real reason before but if it came down to it, then he had no choice but to tell her.

"We found Them."

A sharp intake of air resounded in the now silent room as Haibara froze mid-typing and Conan knew that he had all her attention.

"Tomorrow evening, we'll launch an assault. They're going to have a meeting with all the influent members at 6. We confirmed that the APTX 4869 will be in there as well." Conan paused as he let the information sink in. "I can't take part as Conan. I need to have my body back if only for a few hours. Please." Conan asked once again, his voice filled with sincerity as he stared at Haibara's still profile.

Silence fell on them as tension filled the air.

The shrunken scientist knew there was no dissuading the detective when he was like that and she knew he wouldn't back out this time. He never did when it had something to do with Them.

Wordlessly, she opened a drawer and took two pills that she dropped into his waiting hand before she resumed typing, trying to look unaffected by this turn of events.

Conan looked at her for a few seconds before storing the pills away and turning to exit the laboratory but not before glancing back at her and letting a sincere "Thank you." get past his lips.

Haibara waited until she heard the door click closed before stopping typing once again and dropping her head into her hands while trying to suppress the shivers that came with the thought of Them.

It's finally time, huh...?

One day before, FBI van

Shinichi's blue eyes slid from his Osakan self-declared best friend to his hands as he checked the gun he had been given once again. His mind was silently reviewing the blueprints of the place and the labs' location as this was where he had the highest probability to find what he was looking for. APTX 4689. This was the best shot he would ever have at putting his hands on it and the FBI hadn't really wanted him to implicate a civilian into the fight even if he already was as implicated as he could be. He had tried to at least dissuade Hattori (despite knowing that it was utterly futile, he had to at least try) from taking part but he just wouldn't budge, claiming that he wouldn't stand still and let his best pal go affront that dangerous organization alone and even if he wouldn't admit it, his presence actually reassured Shinichi a bit. Just as did the FBI. They wouldn't have been foolish enough to try and take them on alone after all.

Shinichi had even managed to include Kaitou Kid in his plans. Okay, he hadn't really been given much of a choice seeing as the thief was hunted by a smaller branch of the Black Organization and had kinda invited himself, though he had been kind enough to actually let them know he would and participated in the elaboration of a plan during their meetings despite wearing a different face each time. He had actually dared to come as Shinichi the second time and seeing as Conan had informed the FBI that his cousin had been his anonymous informant, no one protested his presence and even if Conan itched to just kick a ball into his face for that, he actually managed to hold back since it reinforced the belief that Shinichi and Conan were two different people. But that didn't mean he wouldn't kick some soccer balls up his ass if given the opportunity. He still remembered the last time he had disguised as himself and the whole ordeal with Ran on Suzuki Jirokichi's aircraft after all...although he still didn't know exactly what had transpired between the two to elicit such a reaction from the girl...

But he had no time to be thinking about that right now. They would launch the assault in less than thirty minutes now (he checked his watch) and he had to focus all of his attention on the upcoming conflict. A moment of distraction could very well mean death and he had to avoid that. He couldn't die now, had too many things to come back to to just be killed here.

Refocusing on his surroundings, Shinichi listened to James's voice as they started the last briefing before the start of their mission while briefly wondering about Kid's actual location.

oOoOoOo

When he next opened his eyes, the first thing he saw was a white ceiling. Slowly looking around him, he noticed that the ceiling wasn't the only white thing as most of the things in this room were white as well.

What happened? Where am I?

It wasn't long before the events of the previous night (it was obviously late afternoon right now given the position of the Sun and the current sky color) came back to mind.

He had been shot.

It had occurred right after successfully retrieving an APTX 4869 pill box. In his joy, he had been careless for a second and hadn't immediately noticed the reflection of the light on the gun barrel pointed at him. When he had seen it from the corner of his eye, it had been too late to even think about getting out of the way but thankfully, he had had the time to slightly move and avoided taking the bullet in his brain.

However, he hadn't been able to avoid the next one who had gone through his shoulder, the only part that wasn't protected by the bulletproof vest he was wearing under his clothes. They had tried to get him to wear the whole ordeal but he had refused, saying he would be fine without it and that it would only hinder his movements since he wasn't used to wearing it. Nonetheless, they had forced the vest upon him and he was glad they had because he probably would have been dead by now without it. Two more people had succeeded in shooting him that night. The first one had been aiming at his right lung and the second one at his heart. Thanks to the vest, except for possible broken ribs and ecchymoses from the impacts, he had no other injury.

But this last shot had gotten him alright and he had been bleeding profusely. He had taken cover under a nearby desk until he had heard another shot soon followed by agent Camel's voice telling him that the cost was now clear, the man who had shot him now laying unconscious at his feet. Shinichi had then tried to compress the wound but it hadn't really stopped the bleeding. He had therefore decided to ignore it until he could properly tend to it, as they had still been in the middle of the assault, and left with Camel after tying the man up under a desk and taking his gun just in case.

A few hours later, the fight was over and all that was left was to chase the fleeing members who were Vermouth and some other members who had a less prominent role in the organization. Though, Shinichi doubted they'd ever be able to catch Vermouth and since he had promised not to chase her in exchange of her fleeting cooperation, he wouldn't be joining the chase. Plus, he had done his part. Ano Kata, Gin, Vodka, Rum, Korn and Chianti had all been arrested and had been taken away. Now, it was up to the FBI to finish cleaning up and catch all the fleeing members - which should be easy since they had retrieved a list of all the BO members earlier that evening.

With a relieved sigh, Shinichi had finally collapsed. The adrenalin had been the only thing keeping him on his two feet and now that it was over, he didn't even have the strength to stand. He probably had lost too much blood... The last thing he had seen before giving in to the darkness that was luring him was Jodie-sensei's worried face as she had run towards him.

It didn't take much time after all that reminiscing before he shot up, realizing that he was in a hospital room, fully alert and slightly panicked. Looking down at his hands, he realized that they were the right size and he knew it wouldn't be long before he changed back. The first thing he checked was the time. 5 p.m. Shinichi sighed in relief. He still had a bit less than an hour but it could have been worse, really.

Now, he had to get out of there.

He was about to stand up and make his way to the window to figure a way out when the door opened.

"You shouldn't get up already young man! Your wounds are still fresh and you need to get some rest in order to heal properly!" a feminine voice reprimanded him.

Shinichi tensed up and turned around to discover a nurse with a deep frown over her features conveying clear disapprobation as her fists rested on her hips. But...something was off.

This nurse...

After staring at her some more, he relaxed.

"Drop the act, Kid." Shinichi said in a flat tone.

"Act? Kid?" the 'nurse' asked in confusion.

Shinichi just leveled 'her' with a flat stare.

After a few seconds of silence, Kid pouted and crossed his arms "Che. You're no fun, Tantei-kun."

"...right." the teen detective only sweat dropped at his childish behavior.

"Now let's get you out of here! Wouldn't want you to become some Guinea pig for scientists, right?"

After saying that, he had intended to get him out through the front door - with a mask he had prepared beforehand - but as he was settling him on a wheelchair, Kid heard steps coming their way and the voice of Shinichi's doctor who was talking about running some more exams just to make sure he really was alright.

"Oopsie, time's out! Time for plan B." Kid announced with a large grin as he changed in his Kid outfit.

Shinichi was about to ask just what was plan B when Kid scooped him up in his arms after opening the window.

"Ready?" Kid asked as he looked down at him with a mischievous glint in his eyes.

Shinichi had p a bad feeling about this and looked uncomfortable when he started to ask "What should I-"

But he never got the chance to finish his sentence. Reason? He was rapidly free falling towards the ground. Just as the door had opened, Kid had jumped head first from the window's edge and they were now both heading to a certain and probably gruesome death - well normal people would have at least.

Just when the ground was starting to feel way too close for comfort, Kid spread out his hang glider and they rapidly rose back to a more comfortable height before letting the wind carry them to their destination.

oOoOoOo

Fifty minutes later, they both entered into the grand mansion that was the Kudō household and Shinichi let out a shaky breath of relief. While flying with Kid hadn't been a bad experience, being held in his arms like that had made him feel quite uncomfortable. Plus, his white outfit was way too eye-catching - which was why it had taken so long to get there. It had really been a long road...

Shinichi's house wasn't all that far from the hospital (maybe 15 minutes if you flew) and they could have been there much earlier but when they had seen police officers on the way, and for caution sake, they had landed in a dark alley not too far from the hospital and next thing he knew, Shinichi had been disguised as a girl.

("Wha- what is the meaning of this, Kid?!" he asked indignantly. After a single poof, Shinichi had found himself wearing a blue summer dress with all the necessary accessories and anyone who would see him would only think of him as a beautiful girl.

Innocent blue-violet eyes looked back at him from behind the glasses Kid was now wearing along with normal clothes and a dark cap. "What are you talking about, Meitantei?" Kid asked, seemingly confused.

A vein pulsed against Shinichi's temple. "Stop playing dumb!" he hissed.

The thief swiftly placed his right middle finger before his lips as he shushed his companion. "Shhhhh! You don't want to attract attention on us, do you?" he asked as he calmly checked the surroundings and made sure no one had taken notice of them.

Deeming it as safe, Kid looked back at his companion and stifled the laughter that begged to be let out under his impassible poker face. Who would think that a great detective was hiding behind this beautiful girl's facade? The wig, breast pads and makeup had done wonders just like he had thought. The only thing that he hadn't touched were Shinichi's blue eyes. Lots of people had blue eyes anyway so it shouldn't give him away - not in that dress up. At that thought, Kaito cackled in his mind once more without letting anything show.)

Then, they had taken the train until Beika station where they had come off to continue on foot after changing disguises (this time, Kid was the one cross dressing...if it was cross dressing at all. It fitted him so well that Shinichi almost doubted his gender for a second here...) until they had reached the alley where the Kudō household proudly stood.

That's when the situation changed.

All of a sudden, Shinichi started panting as he promptly clutched his heart with his right hand. The first spasm appeared and Shinichi knew that he only had little time left. Now that he thought about it, he had been quite hot for a while now which always preceded his transformation.

Kid who had never seen the boy transform was instantly alarmed by the pained face of the detective but concealed it all under his mask.

"Hang on, we're almost there." he said in a voice that ought to be reassuring as he took his critic's arm and wrapped it around his shoulders before putting his own arm around his back and picking up his pace.

Finally reaching the house, Kid decided that it might be safer to go in using the back door. Once they were in the safety of the house, Kid wasted no time in making his way up to Shinichi's room and quickly looked for some clothes that would suit his soon-to-be shrunken rival.

Cracking an eye open, Shinichi tried to send the white clad thief a suspicious look despite the pain and murmured "Do I want to know how you know where my room is?"

Kid glanced at him and took a pensive stance before finally answering with "Well...I think you'd rather not." accompanied by a shameless grin which was hiding the concern he was currently feeling, the boy didn't look good at all...he had never seen his critic looking so pale before. This couldn't be good.

Shinichi instantly scoffed at him and parted his lips to talk.

"You -"

But he never got to finish his sentence as it soon turned into a horrible scream. He had been unable to hold it in since he already had his mouth open and he reached for his pillow, trying to muffle the sound as best as he could as he rolled over his stomach. It felt as if fire was consuming his body from the inside, and he couldn't focus on his surroundings anymore. Then, remembering that the thief was still there, he painfully cracked an eye open but all he could see was his blurry form and as another spasm came to him, he shut his eye once again, muffling his screams into the pillow.

On the other side of the room, the thief had frozen up, unable to tear his eyes away from the scene. He had known that Kudō Shinichi and Edogawa Conan were one and the same and that he must have been shrunken somehow but knowing it and seeing it were two different things and he felt his poker face slip up completely - not that anyone would see it anyway giving the current situation.

Kid tried to speak but no sound exited his mouth and so he was forced to watch the events unfold, completely unable to do anything.

Under his eyes, the teenager's limbs slowly disappeared under his clothes as they shrunk, causing smoke to surround the detective and after a while, Kaito could no longer hear any sound from the boy except for his ragged breathing which was making the clothes rise and fall rapidly.

After a long moment of silence which allowed him to regain his composure, Kaito finally saw the familiar head of his small critic emerge from his now way too big clothes.

Azure clashed against indigo in silence for a long moment before the smaller boy's voice broke the silence.

"Give me some clothes." he simply asked as he sat up on the edge of the bed, trying not to wince in the process and unsurprisingly failing.

The thief wordlessly dropped a smoke bomb on the floor and smoke instantly filled the room. When it dissipated, the boy was changed and the thief was once again wearing more manly clothes. This trick of him certainly was useful, though Conan had to wonder how he managed to do that that quickly since he had barely felt the clothes slipping on him. He stared at the seemingly innocent teenager for a while before he mentally sighed and decided to let it slide for now.

"Thank you." Conan simply said as he let himself slid over the edge so that he could stand up. "And sorry you had to see that." he added as if he was talking about the weather. It was hard to believe that it was the same person that had been screaming in pain less than five minutes ago...oh well. He was probably getting used to it by now, no matter how sad this was.

Kaito let the silence fill the room for a second before he grinned. "No need to be sorry. I'm honored that you allowed me to assist to this grand mystery show that allows you to shrink." he declared with a wink. "Actually, I'm sure that there's tons of people who would give a lot to be able to see that...I should have recorded it." Kaito added as he let out a regretful sigh and shrugged.

Next thing he knew, a pillow was flying right towards his face. He managed to avoid it at the last second and indigo eyes fell onto the unamused frown of the smaller boy as his lips stretched into an amused grin.

"As if I would have let you." Conan stated almost menacingly.

Kaito looked at him with mirth filling his eyes. "Not that you would have been able to do much in that state." he reminded him jokingly and Conan's face grew darker.

"You -"

Creak

The sound of the wooden hallway floor creaking cut him off and both their heads wiped towards the direction it had come from as Kaito reached for his card gun and Conan's watch clicked open. Then, exchanging a glance, they both nodded and Kaito completely opened the door in a swift movement, pointing his gun at whoever was there.

They both froze at the sight that met their eyes.

Disbelieving blue eyes were looking at both of them before they settled on the smaller boy, their owner's head slightly shaking in denial. This couldn't be true, right? Because if it was then, he had spent that entire time lying to her...hadn't he? There was just no way...right?

The detective's eyes grew as large as saucers as he stared at the girl standing in front of him, his hand releasing its hold on his watch. She seemed to be trembling a little...how much had she seen? How much had she heard? Probably more than enough to understand just what was going on if her current appearance was any indication. Aside from the sporadic trembling, her eyes had widened and they appeared to be gleaming with unshed tears...there was no way he could lie his way out of this one, he just knew it.

The silence lasted for what seemed like an eternity or two as time itself seemed to have stopped.

Then, Shinichi's lips slowly parted and a breath went past them, carrying a single word with it which seemed to echo in the stillness of the house.

"Ran..."

That seemed to break the spell they were all under and Ran took a step back from the scene causing Shinichi to take one step forward in instinctive response which made Ran break into a run as she fled away from him. Seeing that, Shinichi tried to catch up with her but by the time he had reached the main door, she was already out of sight.

"Ran..." he murmured as the entirety of the current situation dawned on him.

It's over...

All that Kaito had been able to do was watch, watch in horror as the events unfolded before his eyes. He had been careless. He hadn't verified that the house was empty as he usually would and this was the result. He couldn't help but feel responsible for it. Moreover, when he had seen her in that hallway, he had seen Aoko, walking up on him and discovering the secret he had been keeping from her for all this time. The fact that the two could pass as twins hadn't helped at all and now he just couldn't tear her expression away from his mind...just as it would be forever burned into Shinichi's mind.

Present time

Shinichi was startled out of his thoughts by someone settling next to him on the edge of his mansion's roof. He saw white appear in the corner of his eyes and immediately guessed that it was the thief.

He really was pitiful.

So pitiful that the only person out there to comfort him was a thief, a rather unusual one and one who he tentatively considered a friend but a thief nonetheless. His Osakan best friend was in the hospital with his in-denial girlfriend, and Ran -

The boy sighed and hang his head even lower than before.

Ran...probably wouldn't speak to him before...a long time. If she ever did speak to him again...he wouldn't blame her if she didn't. He deceived her. Repeatedly. He deserved whatever treatment she decided to inflict on him.

"Are you going to give up just like that?" Kid's voice was firm and serious.

It wasn't often that he heard him speaking in that kind of tone. The guy always seemed to be cheerful and happy-go-lucky, or teasing and downright annoying. But rarely serious. Not a single trace of humor was present in his tone.

Shinichi turned his face away from him as the atmosphere around him darkened, the air suddenly tense as he fell further into his depression.

"There's nothing I can do." he mumbled dejectedly.

His voice was completely void of his usual cheekiness when he had understood a trick and proudly explained just how he did so, or of his irritation when Kid had just succeeded in getting away from him after a long chase, or of his stubbornness when refusing to give up when he knew he was right and nobody believed him, or any other emotion really. His voice was void of...life. It was the voice of someone who was resigned to his fate and had completely given up on struggling to make it better.

In short, it wasn't a tone that suited him and Kaito frowned in disapprobation.

This was so...wrong. This guy was stubbornness personified, he wouldn't give up even if the whole world was against him. Where was the guy who had driven him to corners by chasing him with all he had even if he knew he'd somehow escape in the end? Where was the guy who spent hours chasing him even if his legs couldn't possibly keep up with his quick pace? Where was the guy who provided him with a good challenge at every heist he attended?

It seemed that he had spoken those questions out loud because the small detective replied quietly in a dark and lifeless tone.

"He's not there anymore. He finally disappeared like he was supposed to almost a year ago."

The thief's eyebrows furrowed in displeasure.

"You know what you are?" Kid asked rhetorically and Shinichi's ears perked up in curiosity - detective habit. "You're a coward." the white-clad thief stated simply.

A sharp intake of air could be heard. As if sensing that something important was about to take place, the wind stopped blowing, making the air even denser than before.

After what seemed to be an eternity, Shinichi spoke up, breaking the silence. "...Excuse me?"

"You heard me. You, are a coward, Kudō." the thief repeated.

Azure eyes widened at the use of his name. Kid never called him by name. He always used a nickname of some sorts. He must have really ticked him off if he called him that. But he chose to ignore that fact and favor the irritation that was building up instead.

A vein pulsed against his temple and when he next spoke his voice was full of barely contained anger.

"... And why is that, pray tell?" he muttered through his teeth as he clenched his fists and slowly turned to face his rival and somewhat friend, letting the anger that build irrationally quickly replace his sorrow.

The look that the thief gave him clearly conveyed 'You're here sitting there, mulling over matters instead of taking measures to repair what you can, and you're asking me why?' and the detective was understandably even more irritated by his companion's attitude.

"And just what do you want me to say?! Tell her that I love her?!" the pint-sized detective snapped, "That I'm sorry?! That I was scared of losing her?! Scared of letting her go?! Scared of never being able to be myself again? Of seeing her forget about me? Of seeing her...moving on? That I felt terribly guilty when I heard her crying herself to sleep because of me?" His voice had gradually lost its edge and was now barely over a whisper.

The azure-eyed boy couldn't count the number of times he had gone to sleep only to wake up in the middle of the night to the sound of her soft crying. He couldn't do anything to comfort her and knowing he was the cause of her tears only made it harder to step into the room to provide what little comfort he could.

"How do you think I felt during those nights where she cried because of me? Unable to wipe her tears...forced to listen to them knowing I was the one causing them... What do you want me to do? Go and tell her everything? What if some of Them were around? What if they heard her addressing me as Kudō Shinichi? Do you even know how They operate?"

Shinichi paused to catch his breath and for a long moment, no sound could be heard apart from his slow intakes of air. After a minute or so, he opened his mouth is to continue.

"They wouldn't be satisfied with just killing me! No, They'd go and kill every single person who was involved with me. Every. Single. Person. And They wouldn't show any mercy. Not even towards the children... They're just that kind of people. And who are the first people they'll go after?" Shinichi stopped and looked into the thief's eyes before continuing. "Those who took me in. Ran and her family. That's who They'll kill first. They even might kill them all before my eyes before killing me. That's how cruel They are." At that, Shinichi grimaced and frowned in pain. "And you want me to risk watching her die before my very eyes? Never. Not if I can help it. I'd rather have her mad at me and breathing than forgiving me before dying." the detective finished, his voice now barely above a whisper as he closed his eyes and turned his head towards the moon once again.

Kaito just looked at him without saying a word. He feared that if he spoke up, the boy would clam up once again and stop talking. So he settled for watching him expressionlessly. That proved to be a challenge...keeping that expressionless mask that is. Kaito could completely relate to the boy's feelings. He was passing through the same struggles daily with Aoko and...he couldn't tell her. Not now. Not when she was in danger just knowing it. Not when some of Them were still running wild somewhere and probably after him. Not when he might...literally lose her if he did.

After a while, the smaller boy continued, bringing him out of his thoughts.

"So yes, I might be a coward but I prefer to be one and keep her alive than to be brave and lose her. I...wouldn't be able to live knowing she won't." Shinichi whispered quietly, so quietly that if Kaito had so much as breathe, he probably would have missed it.

Silence fell upon them once more as a small breeze caressed their faces and hair, as if even the wind wanted to support them and cheer them up somehow.

They stayed like that for a while before Conan's voice broke the silence once again.

"If it was you, what would you do?" he simply asked the thief, looking up to the thief and in his eyes, Kaito could see the fierce conflict that was raging inside the boy. It was kind of weird to see him like that because...every time he looked in the mirror after thinking about Aoko, his eyes held the same conflicted emotions.

When Kaito looked beyond that, he saw a boy seeking an answer from someone he knew was having the same problem and he knew that he would answer truthfully to his question. He still remembered the day they had officially...met.

Ekoda mall, some months ago

"Damn it... Just where is Aoko?" Kaito said as he continued walking around the mall, his eyes never stopping sliding over his surroundings, looking for the familiar mop of unruly hair that characterized his childhood friend. She had wanted to look at a restaurant but he had had a sudden urge to pee so he had told her to go ahead, assuring her that he'd catch up to her afterwards but he was now beginning to regret his earlier words...just where had she disappeared to?

As he rounded another corner, Kaito finally saw what he was looking for and he sighed in relief. She seemed to be talking with someone but he couldn't see them from that far away so he just shrugged and opted for his first plan.

"Ahoko," he started in a complaining voice when he found himself in hearing distance, "just how far did you intend to go -"

Kaito's next words got stuck in his throat as a pair of deep azure eyes looked up to him, analyzing him as they did so. His brain froze for a quarter of second before it launched again, deciding to act as if there was nothing out of the ordinary - which would have been the case provided that Tantei-kun hadn't been standing just a few feet away from him and staring at him in wonder. It was only a matter of time before he unveiled him and so, the only thing Kaito wanted to do was run away from there...but naturally, he couldn't since it would raise the suspicion of the smart brat.

I'm so screwed... Kaito thought as he mentally face palmed. Well, it's time for acting.

Kaito blinked once, then twice before slamming his fist into his left palm as he allowed recognition to shine into his eyes. "Ah!" he exclaimed, "You're the Kid killer, right?" he asked rhetorically, in a happy voice.

Then, he crouched down to Conan's level and said "Even if you're never going to catch him, you're really good for always getting back those treasures, you know?" he added with a grin as he ruffled Conan's hair.

Conan predictably swatted his hand away and put both of his own hands on his hair to protect it from any other attack while complaining with a whiny "Stop it, Onii-san!" which elicited some chuckles from Kaito who then stood up properly again and grinned down at him while leisurely putting both his hands behind his head.

That's when Aoko intervened.

"Mou...Kaito! Stop teasing Conan-kun!" she reprimanded with a slap behind his head.

"Ow!" Kaito said as he nursed the back of his head. "Ahoko! What do you think you're doing?" he barked at her in response.

Aoko just harrumphed at him and turned her head away before she leaned down towards Conan-kun,

"This is Kuroba Kaito, the childhood friend I was talking about." she briefly introduced and a cold sweat started to drip under Kaito's clothes. "Say, do you want an ice cream offered by Kaito as an apology for his rude behavior?" Aoko proposed with a large smile, making Kaito's eyes widen in indignation.

"Yes!" Conan exclaimed, radiating with childish happiness as he slightly bounced on his feet. "Thanks Aoko-nee-san!" he added with a big grin.

Straightening back up, Aoko turned towards her childhood friend and gave him a stern look as she extended her palm towards him, clearly waiting for him to put some money in it.

Kaito looked at her for a moment but seeing that she wouldn't budge, he eventually started to look in his pocket for some money, all the while mumbling things that suspiciously sounded like "Why do I have to pay him an ice cream...stupid Ahoko..." before reluctantly putting two bills in her hand to which she responded with a grin, not wasting a second before going to the nearest ice cream parlor.

Kaito watched Aoko's back disappear around a corner with a pout as he internally freaked out, not letting anything but discontentment show on his face. This girl had left him all alone with his nemesis! Way to go, Ahoko... and what was he doing here in the first place...?

He stared a little longer than necessary in the direction she had disappeared into, buying some time to think of a plan, before he turned back towards the child who seemed to want to read his mind with his penetrating azure eyes. He felt a chill run down his spine before he grinned at the would-be child.

"Looks like it's only you and me, Conan-kun." he said with a grin.

The shrunken detective didn't bother replying to that statement, deciding to stare at him instead. Unable to take it any longer, Kaito asked what he really wanted to know.

"So, what are you doing all the way down to Ekoda, Conan-kun? I think I read that you live in Beika somewhere..." Kaito asked lightly, trying to make small talk.

Conan gave him a suspicious look before it was replaced with a look of pure childish innocence.

"I heard that Saguru-nii-chan was going to school here and I decided to visit him!" he said in an excited voice. "Ran-nee-chan and Sonoko-nee-chan came with me and wanted to stop by the mall but I lost them both..." he whined as his big eyes teared up a little as if reliving a sad event.

Truthfully, they had wanted to try on clothes and he had said he'd go to the library instead, not wanting to wait for hours...then when he was wandering around he thought he saw Ran's back but it turned out to be Aoko. He had really been surprised, the girl could pass as her twin! Much like the teen standing in front of him could pass as his actually...

"And then, I mistook Aoko-nee-chan for Ran-nee-chan." he added with a sheepish look and Kaito couldn't help but nod in understanding. The two really looked alike after all.

"Eeeh? You know Ran-nee-chan, Kaito-nii-san?" Conan asked as he allowed his eyes to grow wide in stupefaction.

Oops...! Kaito's brain stalled as he realized his mistake but hurried to cover it up with some. plausible story. "She's Sleeping Kogoro's daughter no?" he asked rhetorically, "I saw her picture somewhere." Again, he answered vaguely, just to be safe.

He really hoped that the brat would buy it as the boy hummed in thought before grinning and nodding, allowing Kaito to breathe in relief.

"Wow! You're amazing Kaito-nii-san! You instantly knew I was talking about Mouri Ran!" Conan exclaimed with all the excitement of a seven-year-old and Kaito resisted the urge to flinch. For all of his excitement, he could still see that sharpness behind it all and knew that he would be screwed the second he let his guard down.

"Well, it's nothing that extraordinary really." Kaito started with a grin, "I heard Nakamori-keibu say that you were staying with Sleeping Kogoro and his daughter at some point. He was complaining about people who had nothing to do with Division two showing up at Kid's heists." he explained further with a small laugh as if reminiscing about a fun memory.

Conan stared up at him too long for comfort but Kaito kept a kind smile on his face as he looked down at him and then the faux-child spoke up again.

"Say, Kaito-nii-san, do you know Shinichi-nii-chan?" the smaller boy asked in all his childish innocence and Kaito could feel sweat rolling down his back. Just what was up with that question ?! He couldn't say he didn't but was saying he did safe? It might be more dangerous if he said he didn't...

Here goes nothing... Kaito thought as he took a small breath and answered, completely casual in his tone and body language.

"Hmm...what's his full name?" Kaito carefully asked before getting ahead of himself once again.

"Kudō Shinichi" Conan replied instantly, and Kaito may have imagined it but he could have sworn his expression turned predatory for a second there.

"Isn't he the Heisei Holmes everyone was talking about some months ago?" he asked with the air of someone who was raking up their memory and Conan excitedly confirmed that fact with a big grin that didn't reach his eyes...it looked like he was still suspecting him and wouldn't let go of it before - actually, he probably never would.

"Yes!" Conan exclaimed enthusiastically, "You know, Kaito-nii-san, you look just like him!" he added as his voice dropped by at least an octave and Kaito could swear the guy had seen through his mask all the way to the deeper corners of his soul as he shuddered.

"Hmm? Really...?" Kaito asked as if considering that fact and trying to remember the detective teen's features. "I guess we do look alike now that I think about it..." he stated as he took a pensive stance.

"Yeah!" Conan confirmed animatedly, "You really do look like him! So much that if you just changed your hairstyle a little, you'd easily pass for him." he finished as his voice gained a sharp edge that clearly said 'I know who you are' along with his penetrating azure eyes.

Multiple shivers ran up and down Kaito's spine as he internally cursed. He was so screwed...of course, his poker face didn't let anything through and he decided to maintain his clueless facade.

He was about to answer when what always happened around Tantei-kun happened. Someone screamed. And Kaito felt a little bad for feeling so relieved for that scream but it had helped him. A lot.

As soon as the scream rang through the air, Conan's head whipped towards its origin and completely letting his suspicion fall, focused all of his attention on the problem at hand.

One second later, he was gone, running towards the scene to see what happened and Kaito stared at his disappearing figure in relief for a moment before his right hand collided with the back of his neck, scratching it in frustration.

He just couldn't let him go alone...this guy was a trouble magnet and he always succeeded in getting in improbable situations like being kidnapped or being buried in snow while attempting to save a village (he had done his research) or such and knowing him, he would be way too careless if it meant saving a life.

Kaito sighed before he looked up into the direction the boy had disappeared into and silently cursed. That boy was lucky he never went anywhere unprepared.

It turned out to be an escapee who had been cornered by the officers chasing him and had decided to take a woman in hostage to guarantee he wouldn't be followed. The poor woman was the one who had screamed and she was clearly panicking as the man held a knife against her neck.

Kaito observed the scene for a while, trying to see what he could do, and from the corner of his eye, he noticed Conan quietly cursing as he let his watch glass fall into place. There must have been too many people for him to make a clean shot.

That's when it had gone downhill.

Apparently, the shrunken teen had found it a good idea to make the man trip, making him lose his grip on the woman who immediately fled and to be taken as an hostage instead. Which would have been a good idea if he had actually tried to shot his tranquilizing dart at him right away but of course, he couldn't when they were so many witnesses, but more importantly, it would have been a good idea if he had considered the fact that the man might crash into a wall with him, sending his little arm flying and making the watch take the impact, thus rendering it useless as a weapon.

This guy was an idiot. A justice driven one but an idiot nonetheless.

Now, Conan had no choice but to wait until he found another opportunity to use his shoes maybe and his hellish soccer ball - which might not come for a while. And the man was getting more and more desperate if the crazed look in his eyes was any indication.

Kaito watched the display until he couldn't take it anymore and he cursed under his breath, already regretting what he was about to do.

Without wasting another second, he dropped two of his smoke bombs on the floor, creating a smokescreen that allowed him to quickly draw his card gun and shot the knife out of the man's hand, making sure not to hit anyone in the process. Then, he knocked the man out with a dose of sleeping gas and when the smoke cleared, the robber was lying unconscious on the floor, Conan standing next to him, unscathed.

You would have expected him to act as the scared child he was supposed to be but he couldn't care less at the moment as he looked straight into Kaito's eyes, allowing a smirk to stretch his lips and Kaito knew it was over. That little brat had done it on purpose...! And he had just run straight into his trap. He mentally freaked out at the possibility that he'd just take him to the police but settled for throwing an annoyed look his way.

Then, Conan decided to act as a weeping child and ran towards his new found nii-san as a terrified boy his age probably would and Kaito decided to play along and took him up in his arms to 'comfort' him, bringing him to ear level.

"Your parents have an odd sense of humor, Kaitou Kid." the boy whispered and Kaito could just hear his triumphant smirk.

"You have drastic ways to force someone to confess." Kaito whispered back, "Reckless detective..." he added, irritation dripping from his voice.

He didn't clearly admit it but he didn't deny it and that was all that Shinichi needed, the detective thought with a small smile. It had been incredibly unfair for Kid to know his true identity while he didn't know his...now they both knew the other's identity and Shinichi was content with that. He pulled back from the older boy's embrace and looked into his indigo eyes before grinning and slipping towards the ground.

Then taking, the taller boy's hand, he started to lead them away from the crowd and policemen who rushed to apprehend the man.

"So?" Kaito asked when they were far enough not to be overheard by unwanted individuals, "Should I expect the police at my doorstep tonight?" he asked nonchalantly and Conan only glanced at him before replying.

"That wouldn't be fair. I didn't uncover you at a heist after all." the detective simply stated as he continued to walk.

Next to him, Kaito gave him a surprised look before he was reminded that Tantei-kun wasn't like a certain Brit he knew and that he seemed to enjoy the chase and the thrill more than actually getting to arrest the thief even if that didn't mean he wasn't trying with his hellish soccer balls and his tranquilizer watch. Just who had thought it was a good idea to give those things to him anyway? They only served to torture a pure and harmless thief...

Kaito was brought out of his thoughts by the familiar voice of his loud childhood friend.

"Kaito!" she called out from the distance and Kaito turned towards the direction her voice had come from to see her running towards them with two ice creams in her hands.

They both stopped in their tracks, letting go of the other's hand and waited for her to catch up with them. When she did, she panted a little before asking with a halfhearted glare "Just where have you been? When I came back, you two had disappeared!"

They both grinned sheepishly before briefly explaining that there had been a case and they had gone to see what had happened. Aoko only sighed and shook her head in response before smiling and giving Conan a vanilla ice cream cone. The faux child beamed with joy as he took it and started to eat it gleefully.

"And me?" Kaito asked, indignant and the girl only smiled at him in fake regret.

"Sadly, I only have two hands." she said, completely unrepentant as Kaito started to sulk, even more aggravated by the look of amusement the smaller boy gave him over his ice cream.

They spent some more time together until Conan's phone rang. As expected, it was Ran asking him to meet up with them at some clothes' store. He agreed and waved goodbye to his new acquaintances before disappearing into the crowd.

Present time

After that, he hadn't really met with the detective out of heists but their moonlight conversations had gotten significantly longer before they began the chase which often ended with Kaito throwing the jewel his way (not Pandora) and making his escape after hearing footsteps making their way to the rooftop.

But that little encounter had significantly deepened the detective's knowledge on Kid's civilian identity. He had already know that the thief looked like him but that had been all since there was no certitude that he was using his real voice as Kid or wasn't wearing make up and such. Now, he not only knew the thief's appearance but his civilian identity and childhood friend. And he had seen the look in Nakamori-san's eyes. The girl clearly had feelings for his doppelgänger and from their dynamics, he had guessed that the thief did too. But Kid clearly was in the way, just like Conan was in his. Having a secret identity wasn't all fun and games when you actually had people who didn't hesitate to kill after you.

Shinichi had learned about the existence of Kid's pursuers at a heist some months ago. ...let's just say that it hadn't a pleasant experience.

*Flashback*

Kid grinned down at the detective who was almost literally dripping in annoyance as he dangled his watch above him, out of reach of Shinichi's currently shrunken body.

"Looking for something, Tantei-kun?" Kid taunted, his voice dripping with amusement, even as the force of the glare leveled his way intensified.

Conan growled in irritation as he grudgingly glared at the thief.

The magician had waited for him to slam the door of the rooftop open before appearing out of nowhere and restraining him in his arms, encaging the little boy against his body as he swiftly took a hold of his watch. He would have gone for the belt as well but an imminent well-placed kick had him dropping the boy on the floor, strategically taking a few steps away from the detective.

Which led to the present situation, Kid glowing at his critic while the latter glared right back at him.

The smaller boy had then opened his mouth to speak but Kid would never know what he had been about to say because in a fraction of second, Tantei-kun had gone from thoroughly annoyed to alarmed and had plunged into his chest to get him down. Not even a second later, a bullet shot through the space his head had previously occupied.

Not wasting time, Kid turned to the direction it had come from and made out a rifle barrel on a rooftop not too far away from this one. Recognizing the black clothes of the organization that was after him, he unconsciously hissed under his breath "Snake...", not realizing that the detective was still within earshot and charged towards the edge of the building while carelessly throwing the watch and jewel backward before taking his flight and getting away from the heist location. He couldn't afford to have people being caught in the fire.

The rapidly recovering detective could only watch him in stunned silence as he flew away before his azure eyes hardened. The thief knew his assailant. He had let a name slip from his lips. There was no way he was going to let that sniper get away after that. He'd have to confront the thief and soon.

*End of flashback*

True to his words, at the next heist, Conan had confronted the thief about the sniper but the magician had refused to go into details, only confirming that he knew of them and that he was looking for a special gem that the organization that was chasing him wanted to find before he did. After that, he had done his own investigation and eventually found out that his pursuers were somehow related to the BO as well. That's when he had started to plan for their annihilation as well as the BO's. He had actually led the operation against them from the shadows a week or so ago, without actually informing the thief.

Let's just say that the magician was less than pleased when he had found out about that certain piece of information. Kid had eventually gotten over it though and decided to continue looking for Pandora, if only to put his father to rest. He had died trying to find it after all and he wanted to at least see his mission through. He'd put down the mantle after that.

Until then, Kid was and always would be in the way of any real pursuit of his love interest. Given, he could just reveal everything to Aoko but he didn't know how the girl would react and, if he was being completely honest with himself, he wasn't sure he could bear it if she decided that she didn't want anything to do with him anymore. The betrayal he had seen reflected in the eyes of her lookalike wasn't helping as he had no problem placing that same look in his own childhood friend's eyes.

The detective and thief really had more in common that first met the eyes and he knew where the sleuth came from and actually understood his choices. Yes, they could have done better but it was what they had thought would be the better choice at that point, not wanting to endanger or worry their friends and love interests. It was justified at first but now, maybe they were just afraid to lose them.

Which was looking more and more probable of an outcome with each passing second in the detective's case.

After what felt like an eternity, Kaito's lips finally parted to allow him to speak. "I...don't know." he whispered honestly, the wind carrying his voice into the stillness of the night.

At the sheer sincerity of the answer, Shinichi only nodded and let his gaze fall back onto the night scenery.

He had accused the sleuth of being a coward earlier but maybe they were birds of a feather. He honestly didn't know how he'd react if it had been him in the detective's place and he'd probably be depressed as well but...

"But I think I'd want to at least try to explain. There's no guarantee she'd be willing to listen but I'd find a way to have her hear me out before making her decision." Kaito said in a quiet voice before adding barely above a whisper, "And if she still wants to cut ties with me after that, then I...I'll have to accept her decision."

A ghost of a smile passed across Shinichi's lips as he lifted his gaze up to the moon still brightly shining over them. That's what he should do. He wasn't one to give up before giving it his whole after all.

...he'd probably never admit it out loud but now, he was glad it had been the thief with him tonight. Maybe he wasn't as pitiful as he first thought he was.

As silence fell upon them once again, a moon ray found its way to the both of them as if the celestial body itself wanted to provide them with emotional support and remind them that even in the darkest moment, it was still there, giving its light and breaking the dark of night.

END.

I don't know how good or bad this was but I hope you could enjoy it at least a bit anyway. Thanks for reading :)

Ja ne