Thank you so much to ShinyTogeticFTW, who was nice enough to beta for me on short notice,
along with helping me create the summary and a few other things ^_^
THERE IS NO OTHER STORY LIKE THIS! SO I WROTE IT BECAUSE I HAD TO PUT OUT THERE!
Hope you enjoy it 0_-
Unintended Consequences
Damn. Damn. Damn. Damn. Damn.
It was one thing for Nakamori to see my face. I had convinced him easily enough before that it was one of Kid's ploys. The spotlight also had a way of throwing shadows across me that it was easy enough to believe that it was a fluke that Kuroba Kaito's face and Kid's were the same.
Not this time.
This time I'd slipped up again and I had no way of deceiving anyone. There were at least three cameras on me at the time. I'd never messed up so badly before, let alone when it was caught on film.
There were a lot of people after me. I'd only been making more and more enemies since the day I'd decided Kid needed his own brand of justice back in the world. First it had just been Nakamori- and that, to a degree, was fun, even if I didn't like teasing the man so much. At least, not so much. I did like to tease him. Then Snake and his people made that go for my life and I found out all the things about my father's death that - some nights - I wished I'd never heard. Even with the gunfire, that was fine. It just made everything trickier.
Then Hakuba came, and that damn Brit could see through me better then all of my other enemies combined. He made things that more difficult because, unlike Nakamori, he wanted to know who the men in black constantly following me whenever a large gem that caught both of our interest came up were. That... was harder. But Hakuba, as good as he is, was more interested in how everything was done and why- that he didn't look past any of it when he couldn't get his answers. Who were these people? Who was Kid? Why were they doing this? Things like that. He just sat there and dwelled on his questions like an angry child.
Then there's Kudo, (or "Conan" - I don't really care what he calls himself. I have my own aliases, so I'm not going to bother poking at him for using one of his own). That little detective had an annoying way of messing up all my plans- and for once, it really bothered me that he did.
I'd always only targeted things near Kudo when I knew I could handle any screw-ups on my part. Some things fell out of my control, like the hijacking on the air ship, but I liked to keep most of my dealings with him as low-scale as I could, danger-wise. Publicity-wise was fair game.
I had no idea that Kudo would make the trip out to Chiba when I targeted my next emerald. The damn thing was so small, I didn't even think Snake would be interested. It was just one of those things that I wanted to make sure of.
Then, of course, Kudo and Hakuba ended up showing up. Snake made that all the more fun. While Hakuba had somewhat an idea of what was going on, Kudo didn't. And damn it if he didn't mess everything up.
I put a cloth to my head, trying to stem the blood flow. This amount of bleeding was customary with a head wound. I'd only had one falling off my bike years ago, but common sense filled in the rest. With how deep it was, I'd probably needed stitches. It was a miracle that the bullet didn't kill me, though it had the very troubling effect of tearing my hat off. Of course I wasn't in disguise at the time. I hadn't been planning on going up against all of them at once. Heck, I thought Hakuba was still in England. The guy lived there most of the time anyway.
A back alley was also no place to hide.
I heard footsteps come and go, some of them inches from where I was hiding. Damn it.
My hand was shaking where I held the cloth. Even at my best, it would be hard to escape. I was currently suffering from a good deal of shock and blood loss, so the odds were that this wasn't going to end well.
Once the noises stopped, I got to my feet, finding them shaky. Not good. Holding my hand up to my head threw my balance off, so I took it away and felt the blood run steadily over my closed left eye and down my cheek, where I knew it was staining my clothes and going to make a pretty good trail to follow if it kept on bleeding that much.
I wondered vaguely if this is what it felt like to be drunk. I knew my footsteps were uneven and I could hardly see out of the one eye I had forced open as I tried my best to jog down the alley. The garbage bins led the way like some distorted military guardsmen. All hail the honorable idiot.
There were many people rushing around the corner. I did my best to hide against the wall. White. Yeah, smart idea Dad. Let's keep teasing them until the day it gets us caught- me caught.
I suddenly felt as if I was going to be sick. Putting a hand to my stomach, I made some vain attempt to ward the nausea away. If my white outfit and blood trail didn't get me caught, the sound of me retching so close to them would.
With no way of moving and my stomach not listening to me, I slid down the wall until I was somewhat sitting, somewhat kneeling. Ugh, I felt so sick and so tired and my head was killing me. Maybe being caught wasn't such a bad idea. Yeah, and maybe pigs could fly.
Thanks to someone throwing out what looked like several microwaves - or maybe one was an air conditioner - I remained hidden. I waited and waited, hoping they wouldn't find me. When the sun started to come up, the throngs of people searching for me thinned out a bit and I knew this would be my only chance before another wave of officers were on duty.
I can't say it was as graceful as I wanted, but I got away from the bulk of activity. I was still wearing Kid's outfit, so I had to find somewhere to go where I could rest for a little. Going home the way I was now was physically impossible, and worse yet, the cameras had been focused on my face. Nakamori surely wouldn't have hesitated in having someone stationed at my house.
There were a lot of buildings here and I really didn't have anywhere else to go. I snuck behind one of them, ignoring the smell of the dumpsters, and settled myself against the wall where I wouldn't be seen. I lay down on my uninjured side and did what my body was craving to do - I fell asleep.
When I awoke, it was still light out. I'd been hoping to sleep through the day and get around at night, but that wasn't going to happen. With how badly I noticed my body was shaking and how terrible my vision was, there wasn't going to be a lot that was going to be happening.
I sighed, sitting up and ignoring my arm as it shook with the little effort it took to lift me up.
My eye wouldn't open at all, and no matter how I tried I couldn't rub the blood off my face. My clothes were badly stained. If I walked around now, there was no doubt the police would be called. I'd travled around in Kid's clothes before with no problem, but blood tended to catch the eye more than some eccentric person out on the town.
But where could I go now?
Couldn't go home, that was for sure. Aoko's? Also out of the question. I would have gone to Kudo's, but I'd noticed on my last trip over there that a new resident at taken over the house. I would have liked Jii's help too, but I couldn't do that either. If Nightmare was able to trace him back to me, so could Snake. He knew I was hurt pretty bad and this was an easy way to get to me without the cops knowing a thing about it.
And what options did that leave me with? None. Absolutely none. I had no one to turn to.
And then my body decided to shake some more. It was hopeless. Either way I was doomed to failure. I had no one to turn to. I didn't really have any friends. There was no one in my entire life that I could ask for help.
I needed help.
Shit. I had to get myself out of the depression I was falling into, but it all looked so hopeless. I never had a problem doing things alone before, but I'd never really needed anyone then. They were all things that I could do on my own. Growing up, I'd never needed anyone - well, besides my mother. They'd always needed me. I was the one people turned to with their problems. I was the one who helped them, whether they asked me to or not.
It wasn't like I was keeping people away on purpose. For all my talents in pretending to be someone else, I was terrible at making friends. A few people in my class knew me, but they only knew who I was in school. Aoko could run circles around them about all the stuff she knew that they didn't, barring Kid's identity. The whole world knew that one now.
So I stayed where I was. There was nothing to do. I knew I was hungry, but it wasn't as if I could go order something and come back with no one the wiser. I'd never felt alone before now. It wasn't as if I hadn't been alone, but now it was hitting me. I had no one. And it was all my fault that this had happened. I should have looked into what everyone was doing. It had just seemed so easy. This heist was supposed to be effortless. I had to chalk one up for the cops this time, and the detectives. They did their job last night, and they did it well.
"Kid!"
Hell. I jumped to my feet as fast as I could, spinning towards the voice I'd come to know so well. Hakuba was standing not ten feet from me and I hadn't heard him coming. His hands were tense at his side, expression just as stark as it spoke of his willingness to chase me should I run. That had never been an option before. I was much faster than him, and the detective may have been good when it came to physical abilities, but I was exceptional.
Now that I was hurt, there wasn't such a big gap separating us anymore. Not that I cared. I ran.
Hakuba took off after me, gaining a few feet at my initial hesitation. I didn't know where I was running, but I didn't care. I'd run through the streets of Tokyo well enough, even the sewers. Chiba was somewhere new to me and I didn't know the area as well as I would have liked too. A few quick sprints down several streets as I kept changing the direction of our chase so that no one would get a good look at me for too long, and I knew I still had the upper hand. Hakuba was lagging further and further behind me with each corner I rounded until he was a safe enough distance away for me to scale one of the buildings without being seen.
Before I could, something as ingrained in my as my persona as Kid told me to stop. Moments after, an almost invisible dart flew past me, missing my arm by mere inches.
"Tantei-kun?" I turned to the side, seeing Kudo in the corner of my vision as he ran at me from across the street. Damn.
I added some more speed, my body protesting against it. I couldn't let them catch me. I wasn't going to die. Not that easily. Snake was still in the area and I would make one hell of a target then.
Kudo was fast, even if he was small. While I'd stopped to avoid the dart, Hakuba had also gained the distance he had lost in our chase. Both of them were currently at my heels and I had to stay focused on not tripping over my own feet as I ran.
I'd been running on adrenaline since the detective had startled me in the ally. I could feel the burn run through my body as it kept telling me to stop while my mind forced each limb to move past its limits. My headache was gone, a fuzzy blur of images coming to me as I ran while I tried to find a way out of this situation.
"You're hurt, damn it! Just give up!"
I smiled, ignoring Hakuba's words. Sure I was hurt. I'd been hurt before. It had never been this bad, but heck, any injury was easier to live with than death. So I poured on some more speed as I felt renewed fear at their proximity to me. And that gained me enough of a lead for a while.
Up until the point I turned a corner and ran smack dab into two police cruisers. And I mean ran into. One was parked partially on the sidewalk so that both cars would have room on crowded street. I hit the hood, not expecting it to be there, and flipped over it a few times before landing hard on the ground. I didn't have time to see the officers or what they thought of my unexpected arrival before I took off again, ignoring my new bruises and feeding myself the information again and again that I'd now caught the attention of the police. That helped feed my fear and gave me enough strength that I was running as fast as I would've without my injuries.
The sirens blared in the background but they couldn't catch me as I ran through small side streets where vehicles weren't permitted. The two detectives had fallen behind again, so I took no time in trying a few back doors before one opened and I shut myself inside.
I sat at the base of the door, breathing hard and praying to whatever gods would listen that I wouldn't be found. If I was, there was no way I'd be able to escape again. My body was too worn out. If I was shaking before, it was like I was in an earthquake now. I took a few deep breaths, trying to calm myself down, only to realize that breathing was becoming difficult. I needed help. I really did.
I was almost willing to go out on the street and see if any of Kid's fans would be kind enough to hide me for a while. But I wasn't Kid anymore. The whole world knew who I was and, without the hat to hide my spiky hair, I was just Kuroba. And no one wanted to help some juvenile delinquent. Kid, maybe. He was amazing and mysterious, heartbreakingly dashing and daring. I wasn't. Maybe the daring part, but no one wanted to help someone like that.
So I sat there for a few minutes, my heart rate slowing when no one started banging on the door.
The tile floor was cool under my clothes. There was a light coming from somewhere in the building and I could hear indistinct voices in the distance, most of them female. That, and the fact that they had the air-conditioning set on high, was about the only thing I could discern. For now, this was a fine place to rest. It didn't seem like anyone was going to be coming to the back, the shelves around me proved this by the amount of dust on the items littered on the metal carts. So I let myself rest. I would have liked to sleep, but I was too hungry and too scared to dare it.
"Boy."
I jumped again, this time not having the strength to get to my feet, instead slamming my head against the door as I tried to look up and move back at the same time.
A man looked at me as if judging me, his face one that wasn't unfamiliar to me, though I didn't know the person behind it very well. His eyes bore into me and I didn't have any energy to do more than look back into them. We started at each other for a while, a long while. It wasn't uncomfortable but neither of us wanted to make the first move.
He reached out his hand and I twitched back, trying to somehow morph through the door.
"You did me a favor once. I guess it wouldn't be that bad if I repaid you."
"As if you'd help me," I spat, more venomously than I'd intended, anger resurfacing at the disparity of my situation.
"Don't be cheeky with me, boy. I said I'd help you to repay a favor, not out of the goodness of my heart." His hand stayed outstretched towards me and I looked him over again, wary of him. "That, or I call the cops right now and we get this over with. I don't feel like standing here all day."
Right. What choice did I have? If he was offering me sanctuary for a while, I wasn't going to pass it up, and if he was lying, it wasn't as if I could escape now, so I had nothing to lose.
I reached up, placing a red glove in his hand, noticing both that I was getting my blood all over him and that he had big hands. I could feel the strength in them when he helped me to my feet, stronger even than Nakamori's. I swayed once I was standing and leaned against the door with my head lowered as I tried to breathe normally.
"You're in pretty bad shape, aren't you boy? Here." He put his gray coat around me, covering up most of the blood on my suit as I stiffened at his touch. "You have a hat?"
"Yeah." I reached into one of my coat pockets and shuffled things around before coming up with a brown newspaper boy cap. I put it on my head, though it didn't really do much to hide my hair.
"Hold on a second, lad. You're bleeding still." He took the hat off and raised something to my face. I backed into the door again, trying to get away. He followed, the cloth brushing my face when I couldn't get any further. It hurt when he tried to scrape the dried blood off. "Wait here a moment. I'll be back."
I nodded, not really having any other choice. He wasn't gone more than a minute before the cloth was back on my face, this time damp so that it would be easier. He continued, wiping away the blood under my bangs and my neck. I felt more start to fall and smiled at the futility of his actions.
"Here. Keep this hat on and walk with me." He put the cap back on. "Fall behind and you stay behind, understand me?"
"Yeah, I got you." My speech was starting to slur and he kept going in and out of focus. I tried to take a few steps away from the wall, but it felt like I was trying to walk in a pinball machine.
"Keep that up and the whole world's going to notice you." He grabbed my wrist, removing my glove, then did the same to the other before holding my arm in his. "I'm serious. If you can't even walk, I can't do anything for you."
"I can walk," I spoke indignantly. My steps didn't agree with my mouth, but his arm was enough to keep me on my feet.
I laughed a little to myself when I noticed I was in a beauty salon. It was actually a great hiding spot. I had to wonder how the man had found me. The detectives seemed to be easy enough to fool. Then again, both of them dealt with reality. This man was more like I was. We both went over the top and knew even the least likely of options had a way of blossoming.
If the women in there were surprised to see us, they didn't show it. We walked by them as if it were the most natural thing in the world to see man walking through a beauty parlor with a teen who looked like he was drunk hanging off his arm.
There was a black car outside, vintage and painstakingly cared for by the look of the gloss and the new car smell that wafted out when he opened the door. I hesitated.
"Come on! Get in already. Do you see me calling the cops and having them arrest you? No? Then get in the car before they do start asking questions. They've been driving around here like buzzards."
Right. What was I worried about? I'd already lost, and the only thing I could hope for now was that he was telling the truth, so there was no harm in trusting him. I got into the back seat and he walked around the car to sit next to me. I eyed him, curious to why he didn't take the open passenger seat, seeing as a man in a black uniform was driving.
"Back to my house."
"Yes, Sir."
And just like that I found myself riding in a vehicle with a man who had made it his life goal to have me arrested. Why Jirokichi was going so far to help me, I wasn't sure. Yeah, I'd helped him when his dog was in trouble, but that was nothing compared to what he was doing for me. That was a dog and there was no danger involved. This was a criminal investigation and he had every chance of being implicated and put to trail with me if someone discovered us. Of course, I didn't think I'd live long after that, but he didn't know any of this. Hadn't even asked, now that I was thinking about it. Hadn't asked me about anything.
"Your house?" I raised an eyebrow. "You sure? It would be bad if anyone found me there."
"I'm sure." Jirokichi crossed his arms in front of him and looked ahead. "The hat's good enough and I have plenty of guests. There's a wing no one is allowed in- I do like the help but I also like time to myself. You can stay there."
"Thank you." I took the tip of the cap as if it were my top hat and forced it lower over my eyes in as good of a bow as I could manage without getting dizzy. "But can I ask why you're helping me?"
"I told you, you helped me. I'm returning the favor."
"I helped your dog out of a safe. I'm sure I wasn't the only one who could have done it. Sorry if I doubt your reasons."
"My dog means the world to me. If anything had happened to Lupin..."
The car became quiet and this time the silence was very uncomfortable. I had nothing to say. I could understand what he meant though. Animals were like family in my house as well. When I thought I'd lost one of my doves almost a year ago, I'd spent the better part of the night looking for her, even though I was damp from my unexpected and horrifying swim in the bay. I'd missed the cruise because of that, though I doubt I could have prevented the murder that happened there when Kudo couldn't.
I was nervous, because really, anything could happen now, and most of it wasn't promising for my future. What was I going to do? I still had nowhere to go and now my mother would be worried about me when I didn't show up and the police were at her doorstep. I'd send word, but the officers there would be looking for that and I wasn't going to give them any reason to arrest my mom if they thought she was helping me.
But I was tired too. The car ride was silent, and without conversation, I found my eyes closing. Every bump along the road woke me for a few seconds before my eyes closed again and I dozed somewhere between awake and asleep.
"Come on, boy. Up." Someone pulled hard on my arm until I was on my feet and there was sunshine in my eyes. I shielded them with a hand when the cap didn't help, feeling the damp blood on my face and wiping it back out of my eye. "You have to work with me here."
"Sorry." I tried to walk, but I'd lost so much blood and I hadn't eaten since... I didn't know when. However long it was that I'd been running. With both those handicaps, it made everything difficult. I still managed it because I wasn't going to look weak when I could help it. I still needed his arm to keep balanced, but I accomplished moving by my own accord.
There were long halls that I only half saw. We turned a few corners, passing a few people who tried not to look, though I caught their glances every now and then. We arrived at a room where I was grateful enough to fall into the bed that I didn't care if I was staining it. The comforter was nice and fluffy and I felt myself falling back to sleep before I had a chance to keep on worrying.
"That will do for now. I'll see about some food. You look half dead, boy... can I do anything for you?"
Food would be nice, but I didn't think I'd be awake long enough to eat it. A change of clothes also came to mind, as I could feel my own sticking to me with my blood. They were also Kid's clothes and it would be better for everyone involved if I wasn't in them. Several other necessary things came to mind that I wanted to ask him for, but I settled on only one- because I needed it done.
"My mother. Is there any way you can tell her that I'm alright?"
"Where is she?"
"Home. I think."
"Your address, boy. I'm not psychic and I doubt that the police are going to be giving away that type of information."
Hm. That would suck. It meant my mom was going to have to face the police by herself. I knew she had friends both in Japan and abroad, but they didn't know about me and wouldn't know that she'd need someone with her right now. She was a strong woman, but I'd seen her after my dad died.
So I gave Jirokichi my address. It wasn't as if it mattered anymore who knew. Heck, I was up to calling papers and telling them where I lived myself. At least that way, my mom might get some backup to fend off all the accusations. Even after this blew over, which it never really would, everyone who approached her would be suspicious. I was starting to doubt I'd ever see my mom again.
"That's it? That's all you want?"
I peeked one eye open and looked at the older man as he stood at the end of the bed. He really didn't look as old as he was, and he had strength behind his eyes and then some, to show that age had done nothing to wither him. I thought for a while and nodded. As long as my mom knew I was fine, maybe it would help her through all this. My dad wasn't here anymore and, while he may have started it, he also ended it. I began everything again so whatever happened from here on out was solely my responsibility.
"That's all." I let my eyes close again. The bed was comfortable and I was too worn out to pretend that I wasn't. I didn't care that he was still in the room. All I cared about was that I was safe right now and I'd sleep while I could.
...
Someone brushed their hand against my face and I opened my eyes to tell them to knock it off. I was trying to sleep.
When I saw my mom and enough of the room to remember exactly what had happened, I shot up, trying to make sense of it. That was a bad idea. I got an immediate headache and the room spun so much I thought I was going to be sick.
"Kaito, it's alright!" My mom put a hand on my shoulder, forcing me to lie down again. "The doctor said you shouldn't be moving around too much."
"Doctor?" If I couldn't find out the answers myself, I'd get them from her.
"Yes, doctor." My mother looked just as worried as I was when she turned to glance at the closed door. "I wasn't too sure about it either but you looked like death. So Suzuki-san brought in a doctor. He said the man was a friend of his and not to worry about anything, but I'm not so sure."
"Mom." I put my hand over hers where it was gripping the comforter I never got under. "What happened? How'd you get here?"
She turned to me and smiled. "By car, silly. It's too far to walk here from home."
"Not what I meant," I grumbled.
"I know," she winked. "Suzuki-san came to our house and picked me up. That was it. He told me what happened on the car ride over here."
Hm. "I don't know why he's helping me so much. I thought he'd turn me over to the cops the first chance he had."
"I'm still thinking that." My mother turned her hand so that we were holding on to each other and squeezed. "When you're feeling better, you think you can get out of here?"
"Nah, what's the point?" I turned to look at her. "I have nowhere to go."
"We can go anywhere. Together. Kaito, it doesn't matter. I didn't want it to, but I thought this might happen one day. I don't care where we go, but we can stay together. Leave Japan if we have to. I know we can do it." And her conviction was real. And hell, I probably could pull it off, but it would be hard on both of us. But then again, it was always hard on both of us. It had been since my dad died.
"Maybe. Ask me again when I'm able to stand up." I yawned, taking in the room. It was bigger than I remembered, white drapes snagging the cream colored carpet and soft-blue walls. There was a large vanity mirror, table and dresser. Not to mention the chair my mother was in along with a recliner near a built-in closet. The room itself still managed to be spacious even with everything in it. "How long was I out?"
"Just a few hours. You needed a blood transfusion."
"Hm. From you?"
"Yes." My mother smiled. "It wasn't much and the doctor was only here to check you out. He gave me a prescription that you have to take for the next week or two, to make sure you're fine."
"Got it. So... what are we going to do now?"
"Wait, I guess. That's all we can do."
I had a pack of cards on me, since all of Kid's stuff was still safely on my person and not in someone else's hands. So we played cards for a while before someone knocked on the door. I looked up at it, then at my mom.
"Yeah?" I asked. The old man came in, looking us both over and the cards spread out on the bed.
"I take it you're feeling better."
"Better than I was. Thank you." I bowed slightly to him. My mother did as well.
"Yeah, well." Jirokichi scratched the back of his head but his eyes never left me. "I helped you. That was the deal." Lupin padded in to stay by his master, glancing me over for a moment before sitting down and wagging his tail. "Now that I have you, I'm not sure what to do with you."
"Food?" I asked in a very childish voice I hadn't meant to use. When I was around adults, I tented to shy back to an age I'd long since outgrown physically. When I was around anyone, really. The only times I kept myself serious were when I had to be, and right now there was no point in doing that.
"That would be a start, I guess." He watched me, debating what to do. "That hat won't do it. Put something on and lets go."
"Go?" Both me and my mom asked at the same time.
"Yeah. What's the point in staying in here all day? Fresh air never did anyone any harm and I'm sure that the first place they go looking for you won't be with me."
I gave him a lopsided grin. The logic was sound enough. "One problem, I don't know how well that's going to work yet." I pushed my head to the side, indicating that my mom should get up. She did, offering me a hand.
I tried to get to my feet, feeling how unsteady I still was.
Jirokichi almost ran at me and I completely lost my balance, falling backwards with my mom grabbing me at the last second before I hit my head on the desk.
"Hey! What was that for?"
"Sorry." He looked down at me and offered a hand. I glared up at him from my new spot on the floor. "You can't blame me. You're nothing but a liar most of the time and to hell if I'm going to be taken advantage of by a kid."
"I didn't ask for your help, you gave it to me." I swatted his hand away. "You could have just left me. I was fine where I was."
The old man laughed. "You think you were safe there? How do you think I found you?"
That was something I'd been wondering about, though I hadn't really any time to ask.
"If there was one person that could find you, I knew it was the kid. Not to be mean, but the boy's one-upped you enough that I'd follow him over the cops. I was all in it to catch you, really. I hadn't planned on thing changing before I saw you. The kids didn't bother checking all the doors they passed, and I knew you'd be expecting company from the back. So I just took my time. I knew you were there somewhere."
"So you found me by luck?"
"Luck, and a good deal of ingenuity. I'm no fool." He paused and narrowed his eyes. "And neither are those two kids. If I hadn't found you, they would have."
And I had little doubts about that. Tantei-kun was sharp, Hakuba not as sharp but all the more determined. They would have discovered me before I found a safe place to retreat to.
"I'm not trying to take advantage of you, and I already thanked you for that. It's fine. I can take care of myself. I'll be out of your hair by tonight." I grabbed onto the nightstand and got myself up with my mom's help. Jii was out of the question, but he may know someone who could take us in until I could figure out where we could go after that. Right now I just needed somewhere safe to rest and think things through. "I didn't thank you for getting my mom here safely. So, thanks."
Jirokichi didn't speak up and I had nothing more to say. Things were better this way. At least with someone Jii knew, we could be comfortable around each other. Right now it felt like I had Nakamori breathing down my neck.
Lupin broke the tension by walking over to me, barking, and then nuzzling my hand with his cold nose. I petted him on his amber head, scratching behind his ear. He nuzzled my leg in thanks.
"I spent all this time trying to best a child." The old man smiled, mostly aiming it towards his dog. He raised his eyes to mine and put his hand out. "We make a deal then. Not a word you say to me can be a lie, and you and your mother can stay at my house until you want to leave. I need your word on this."
"And I have yours? No matter what, I won't have to expect the cops over here at any moment?"
"As long as you keep up your end of the bargain," he nodded.
I shook his hand. "Deal."
"Now, you little brat, figure out how to hide that face of yours and we'll get something to eat."
"But how?" I waved a hand down. "I can barely walk!"
"You'll get used to it, and we'll be in the car most of the time, so quit complaining." He opened the door and tipped his head. "My room is two doors down on this side of the hall. Knock twice when you're ready." He waited for Lupin to follow before shutting the door.
"Kaito, is this really okay?" My mother's lavender eyes were worried, and I noticed how irritated they were, now that I was looking. She must have been crying. My heist had been broadcast live, so it was no surprise that she saw me and what had to be a good deal of blood. Any mother would worry. I was glad the old man had brought her. And I'd repay him for it by keeping my word.
I nodded to her. "Everything will be fine."
By the time we were at Jirokichi's door, both my mother and I had on black wigs and some make up for my mom. I didn't really need any. I looked young and common enough that a change in hair design and the too-large clothes from the closet had me looking like a different person. The white button-up shirt I didn't have a problem with but the pants were too big and I had to use my tie to hold them up.
The old man came seconds later, his dog at his heels. "This has got to be one of the strangest things I've ever done in my life."
"Same here," I grinned.
If it weren't for Lupin, I don't think we would have made it out the door. The dog was a great buffer between us and he'd taken to my mom like she was the only person on earth. A few times he'd rub up against me for me to scratch his ears, but he'd always go back to her. He was even at her side instead of the old man's as we walked towards his car.
My eyes darted around the property and I felt my mom tense up as we passed a half-dozen of his employees.
"Calm down, boy. They think you're the son of a friend of mine. The way you look, I don't see why they'd doubt me."
"And my mom?"
"My friends wife. I didn't say why you two were here. I don't need to say anything to them. While it is in their nature to be nosy, I doubt they'll go around spreading rumors farther than these walls."
I nodded, watching one of the maids that I had actually come across last time. He'd forced most of his regular employees to go on vacation while I worked with him, but she was one that stayed. I couldn't remember her name, but her face was enough. She hadn't seen me so I shouldn't have felt as apprehensive towards her as I did, but there was danger everywhere now.
The driver was the same as last time, though this time I was in the back with my mother and Jirokichi took the passenger seat.
"Where to?"
The old man named a fast food place and I raised my eyebrow, though he couldn't see it.
My mom and I had nothing to say to each other. She was busy looking at me as if the world were going to end now that I was exposed to it, so I stared out the window instead and tried to ignore her fears as well as my own. It was okay. We were safe. Saying it over and over again really did have me starting to believe it, with just that little part of me in the back of my mind calling myself and idiot.
The chauffeur got us there and I could feel my stomach growling. I didn't know when the last time I ate was but it was far too long ago. I got out of the car first, trying to remind myself that I shouldn't be acting so rashly. But hey, what was the worst that could happen? I'd already almost been killed as Kid. Looking like someone else, the worse that I could think up was I could trip while I was trying to walk.
"Here." My mom got out next and offered me her arm.
"Thanks." I tried my best to walk a straight line and pulled it off better than I had in the house. My legs were reacquainting themselves with my weight and I was hungry enough to forget about most of the things that had been weighing on my mind.
"Kaito, keep-" my mom put a hand to her mouth and looked at me. My own eyes showed the same shock hers did. "That's not good. Um, what should I call you?"
I shrugged, letting my eyes wander inside to the driver who was the only one close enough to have heard. He didn't look bothered at all and Jirokichi was waving him off as he shut the door. The old man turned to the both of us and waited for us to decide what we were going to do.
"How about just Kai? There are a lot of boys named that."
"Sure." My shoulder relaxed and I let my worry seep away again. The old man nodded to show he'd do the same. Then again, he hadn't once called me by my name since I'd seen him, so it wasn't that big a deal.
My mom and I took the lead. She let me open the doors for her and Jirokichi. I was getting my balance back quickly and I was sure the food would finish off what was left of my fatigue. In passing, my mom smiled at me and whispered "if your eyes were any wider they'd fall out of your head."
"I'm hungry," I complained as she passed me.
"I've no doubt you are, boy. Now let's see about getting me something to eat too. Because of all this mess I haven't had any time to myself." Lupin barked at that and walked in.
"Are dogs allowed?"
"He is. Special exception here. If someone is sponsoring you, it's not as if you have any choice." The old man laughed heartily and I could feel my expression slide into my 'you really just said that?' look, one I usually saved for Aoko.
I put a hand to my chest though I knew the pain wasn't physical. At least, it wasn't caused by an physical injury. Aoko. What had happened? Was she okay?
"Kait-... Kai-chan, you feeling alright?" My mom shook my shoulder and I nodded, fighting the emotions away.
"Fine, Mom."
"Good, now let's go get something to eat, okay?" Her eyes showed that she knew what I was experiencing. I nodded again with a smile.
"Okay."
Jirokichi ordered first, getting himself two burgers chock-full of tomatoes and onions and everything else that could be stuffed between the two buns while it still could be called a burger. My mother got a burger as well, though hers was more average, as well as an order of onion rings and tea. I wrinkled my nose when she said 'tea'. I never liked the stuff. People said it was sweet but putting sugar in something sour didn't do it for me. I ordered chicken fingers and fries for myself, along with a chocolate shake. I wanted to order more but my mother's warning to 'take it slow' before I finished cut me off. If I was still hungry, I'd get something else.
Jirokichi paid for the food and we got a table while we waited, finding a booth in the corner. Most of the other seats were taken up by families and a few people who looked like they were dating.
Lupin jumped up in the seat next to his master as if it were natural, putting a paw on the table and eyeing my mom as if he'd rather be sitting next to her. Heh, go figure. My father had been Kid and now Lupin himself was going after her.
I laid a hand on the table, resting, and watched for the food to be ready.
"Kai-chan, staring at the workers will only make them nervous. Cut it out."
"But I'm huuuunnngrrryyyy..." I complained, smelling the meals all around me.
"And so am I. Honestly, you just had to go and scare the life out of me. Do you think I've had the peace of mind to eat?"
I turned my eyes to focus on her. "Sorry. I didn't mean to make you worry."
"You always make me worry." She wrapped her arms around me, forcing my hand away. She kept up the hug until she was satisfied. I wanted to apologize to her again, but it would be meaningless. She knew what I had been doing, though I wasn't sure how she'd found out. It could have been all the late nights, the missed calls, and/or the disappearances when I should have been home.
"Um-hm." Jirokichi cleared his throat and both of us turned to him. "Now, if you don't mind, what is all this?"
"All what?"
The old man tapped his finger on the table. "I didn't know how young you were, but even when I wasn't fighting over you about the articles" he clenched his fist to show it was still bothering him and I could feel myself sweat "you're good at what you do. Can't say that I would have liked my limelight stollen by some hack." His eyes were serious. I'd never seen the man look so... not upset, but there was a word close to it. Angry almost. "You've never so much as picked up a gun and I know more than my fair share of policemen since you came around. They would never have shot at you. Whoever it was, they ruined all my fun. I can hardly turn a gun on a fox when there is no hunt."
I laughed, raising my eyebrows. "So what's your question, exactly?"
"Who ruined my victory.?" He continued to tap his finger on the table. I shook my head with a smile.
"I can't tell you that."
That seemed to surprise him. "We had a deal."
"My end of it was only not to lie to you. I'm not lying."
"You're physically able to tell me, so that would be lying."
I bit back on my words. He did have a point there.
"Please, Kai-chan. I'd like to know too." My mother's gaze turned to me and under both of them, I saw no choice in the matter.
But, I didn't have to tell them at that moment.
"Food's ready." I got up and went to get it. My legs were unsteady but they held, and the tray didn't weigh that much. I brought it back to the table and started in on my food before anyone could ask me anything else. I barely tasted the chicken as I ate it, taking soy sauce and drizzling it on.
Jirokichi laughed at me, though it sounded like he was trying to hold it in. "Soy sauce?"
"Yes," my mother sighed. "I know. Kai-chan's been like that since he was little. If they had any sugar here, he'd be dipping it in that as well."
"They have sugar?" I looked up at her. "Can I ask?"
"Go ahead." My mom waved hand back over to the counter. "If you get diabetes, don't blame me."
I shook my head. "I doubt they have any."
Jirokichi laughed again. I couldn't see what was so funny. I raised my eyebrow to show I was confused, the black bangs of the wig falling into my eye. That only made him laugh more and my mom ended up laughing too. Adults. I'll never understand them.
"You really are a weird kid, you know that, boy?"
"I'm not that weird," I countered, eating some more chicken and dipping the fries into the soy sauce as well, which started another fit of chuckles.
"This is nothing. You should see him when someone makes fish."
A shiver ran through my body and my mom laughed at me. The old man seemed to have lost his distance and joined in making fun of me.
"What's wrong with fish?"
"They are nasty, disgusting creatures that only exist so the sharks won't starve so can we drop it?" My chicken was starting to look more and more like fish as they kept bringing it up.
"Sorry, Kai-chan. Eat your food." My mom kept her smile and took the first bite of her burger. "Thank you so much, Suzuki-san. I don't know what we would have done if you hadn't helped."
"Think nothing of it." It may have been my imagination but it looked like the old man was blushing. Gross. I went back to my food so I wouldn't have to watch.
"I know what your boy does, but what do you do for a living?"
"Me?" I could hear my mom hesitate, though it was more because I don't think any man had ever asked her about herself other than my dad. "I was the manager of a department store about a mile out of the city."
"Was?"
My mom stopped again and I felt my heart betray me a second time. "I don't think I have a job anymore."
"Hm. They shouldn't fire you for what your kid does."
She shook her head. "Negative publicity and all that. Besides, I'm going to go with Kai-chan. He's still only a minor and I can't leave him."
"I'm sure your husband isn't going to be too happy running around with the two of you. I tell you, if he were my boy he wouldn't be seeing the light of day for months."
"I'm not your boy," I growled out. I couldn't help it. "And if my dad were here, he wouldn't care. It would have just been his fault instead of mine. For someone who's been chasing Kid around so enthusiastically, you sure don't know a lot about me."
"Kaito!" My mother gave in and called me as she normally would. I didn't think anyone around us cared that much. My name wasn't all that uncommon to begin with, though it was a bad idea to be running around with it now.
"I've sworn to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth," I spat sarcastically. "He's the one who made the deal with me. Blame him."
"So," Jirokichi asked, ignoring my mom, "where is your father?"
"Long gone," I waved my hand at him.
"Long gone where?"
I shoved the rest of the fry into my mouth and licked my lips. "He's dead."
That sobered up the atmosphere again and I was almost happy that it was back that way. When you were happy for someone else's sake, it made it worthwhile. When you were happy when you knew it wouldn't last, it only made the fall that much harder.
"So, do the two of you live alone?" He turned the question on my mother. It wasn't hard to tell why. All my answers were biting. I wasn't trying to ruin everything, but I was angry right now and I had nothing to lash out at. I would have liked to lash out at Snake and his gunman, but the detectives had turned on me just as quickly as the murderer had. Everyone had turned on me. The only person in the whole world who knew a lick about me and hadn't abandoned me was at my side, and she was my mother.
"Yes. My husband passed away almost eleven years ago. It's been just the two of us since then."
"He didn't 'pass away'- He was killed." All those awful, hateful things that I was feeling were turned on my mother. "And you knew."
Her eyes grew watery but I didn't back down. It almost looked as if she were pleading with me. "Are you sure?"
The wickedness in me dissipated, falling into something along the lines of regret and comfort. "You didn't know?"
"I wasn't sure." She wiped her hand against her cheek before I could see the tear. "He never told me anything. It's been the same with you. I thought that someone may have killed him, but Ginzo-kun couldn't find any proof of that, and you didn't say anything to me about it. I thought that if you ever found out, you would have told me. I've been waiting so long..."
"I'm sorry, Mom." I hugged her, my forehead resting on her shoulder. "I thought you knew, the way you knew about me."
"It's okay, Kaito." She patted my arm and I let her go. "I always suspected."
Then something completely ruined the moment by slamming against the back of my head. I put my fingers up and felt ketchup, something that looked like an pickle dangling on my shoulder.
"Sorry man, he didn't mean it." A boy around my own age came up to me with his hands held out prayer-fashion. "Don't be mad."
I wiped some of the gook out and gave him the best annoyed face I could muster. It wasn't that hard. "No problem. It's not big of a deal."
"Yoshi! Did you catch it?"
The boy next to me turned and cupped his hands around his mouth to shout across the room. There was a wooden barricade in the middle where booths had been set up, blocking my view of his friends. "Of course I didn't! You hit someone you idiot! You shouldn't be throwing food!"
At this point everyone in the place was looking at us and I put my hand up to my face, pretending I couldn't see them. Idiot was the right word for him.
"Kaito, come on, let's go to the bathroom. There ketchup all over you."
"It's fine, Mom" I whispered. "A just a little stain. It's not going to kill me."
"WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU CRAZY KIDS ARE DOING!" Jirokichi's voice carried across the room as well as Nakamori's would have. The boy next to me froze before deciding to flee from the look in the old man's eye. His retreat wasn't pretty as he tripped over a chair and then knocked his side into one of the tables in his haste. I laughed a little at that.
"And you," he picked me up by the arm and dragged me away. My immediate response was to get him to let go, but his grip was too tight and there was something that told me that forcing him would only get me in a world of difficulties, not to mention pain.
He slammed the door to the bathroom open and pushed me in front of the mirrors. "You know, you could stand up for yourself. Those kids had no right to be acting that way."
"Come on," I grinned. "Weren't you ever young? They didn't mean it." While the opportunity presented itself, I took the time to get as much of the condiments off of me as I could. There was a large streak of ketchup going down my back and the white shirt made it look like blood. "I don't think I should be walking around in this anymore."
"Here." The old man place his beige coat over me and looked me over. "That will do just fine."
"You sure?" I waved the sleeves around to show how long they were on me. "I think I look more funny than I did with the ketchup."
He laughed and patted me on the back so hard I was seeing stars.
"Watch it!"
"You're fine, boy. Quit being such a baby! Come on now, your mother's out there all alone."
"I'm coming," I surrendered.
We both went back to our seats, the eyes of the whole place on us and one boy in particular cowering in the corner of a group of maybe eight or nine other teenagers. I rolled my eyes with a smile at them. The old guy wasn't really all that bad- he was just louder than most.
"Kaito," my mom beckoned to me. I sat back down and picked at the rest of my fries that had gotten cold. She ran a napkin through the wig and got most of the sauce that was still in it, out. "You really have to learn to dodge if a hamburger can hit you now."
I rolled my eyes again. "Mom, he got me from behind."
"And what if someone else does.? Kaito, I'm putting my foot down." She glared at me with resilience I hadn't seen since my father's funeral when she took over all the affairs of the house. "No more Kid."
"You have got to be kidding me." I placed my hand down hard enough on the table to draw the attention of the people sitting next to us. I lowered my voice so they wouldn't hear me speak. "I've been through too much to let this go, and so has Dad. I need to keep going. If I give up now, it will all be for nothing."
"You're chasing some sort of jewel, right? I've always kept tabs on both of you, and I noticed your father's unusual interest in them before... he was killed. So there's some jewel out there that you have to get, huh? Was it worth this?" My mother spread her arms around her. "Is it worth the life of both my husband and my son?"
"Mom, I can stop them. Who else can? Do you even see any cops going after the people who just tried to kill me?" I rested my head back against the booth. "No, you don't. And you won't. They're too good at hiding and have been doing it for too long. Mom, there is no one else. I stopped them from killing so many people already."
"Because of this gem?"
"Yeah."
"I'm making a change." Jirokichi's voice broke through our conversation. "Come on, boy, didn't you hear. I'm making a change."
"To what?" I asked, tilting my head and watching as Lupin did the same after hearing his master's tone of voice.
"I'm changing everything. First of all, though. I'm changing that little deal of ours. I'm not keeping you sheltered until you want to leave anymore."
"What?" I looked around quickly and my mom grabbed onto my hand.
"I didn't say I was turning you over to the police so quit jumping around like a fish out of water."
I twitched more at that word than I did at 'police', and it made the old man chuckle. "No, this is going to be a more permanent thing. You're going to stay with me until you're old enough to move out and stand on your own two feet. Until then, both of you are going to be under my roof and follow my rules, got it?"
Huh?
"We couldn't possibly-" my mom spoke up before being interrupted.
"-stay with me in Japan.," he finished her sentence. "Quite right, completely out of the question. That's why we're going to the States. I've got a summer house out in California that we can stay in and, from here on out, you can be my daughter. It's a great cover story and I've been working on it for a while." He tapped his head with the biggest smile on his lips. "It's a pretty good idea if I do say so myself. And after all, what better way to get rid of your enemies other than making them your friends!"
"Friends is one thing, you're trying to make us your family!" I hadn't intended my words to come out as loud as they did. I lowered my voice for the next part. "I am a Kuroba, and I always will be."
"And you always shall be. I'll make it so that you can keep your names. You may have to have two surnames, but Suzuki isn't the worst title to be walking with. I've got a few friends in the legal business who can pull some strings and hook you onto our family tree. I'll have to talk to a few of my family members about this, but they'll never have to know who you are, just that I've adopted two more into out already big mesh of a family. It's a wonderful idea, don't you agree, Lupin?" The dog barked, wagging his tail and ignoring the table as he went for my mom and started to lick at her face.
"But Suzuki-san, I..."
I waited for her to continue, to talk him down from this crazy idea, but she couldn't find the words. Lupin put his paws between us and I had to scooch over to make room for him. Something seemed to click for my mom and I turned to Jirokichi, knowing that she was the better of us two to shoot him down. She was my mother after all.
"I think that's a great idea!"
My eyes were wide when I turned to her. "You can't be serious?"
"Of course I am, Kai-chan. There's nothing for either us here anymore. I was thinking of going to the States anyway. Suzuki-san is offering us accommodations and a new life. I'm not going to pass this up."
"But Mom." I couldn't explain in words what was so wrong about the idea... it was just wrong.
"Boy." Jirokichi got up and placed a heavy hand on my shoulder. "You want to be Kid again and steal my headline, you have to get past me. No, you're staying right where I can keep my eye on you. I'll make sure you go to school and all that jazz." He was grinning from ear to ear, on the verge of that condescending laughter I hated so much.
"You have got to be kidding me." I looked between the two of them but both were serious and Lupin turned to lick me in the face.
"You've been inducted into a new family, be proud of that." He tapped his hand harder on my shoulder. "It won't be just the two of you anymore."
I gave in a smiled.
... so much was going to happen now.
Snake had taken my life from me. There was no question about that. He just hadn't done it in the way I thought he would.
Everything was going to be different. I'd be in a new country around people I didn't know and who didn't know me, getting used to customs that I'd never experienced before. And I'd be there with my mom. I'd lose Aoko, but she wasn't alone. She had her father and I knew Hakuba had a thing for her. Maybe she could start over too, this time without all the lies I'd had to feed her.
Snake may have taken my life from me, but he'd given me a new one, where I had a second chance to make my future what I wanted. It wasn't as if Jirokichi could keep me from Kid if I really wanted to keep it up. And maybe I would, just not the way I'd been acting before. This time, Kid would be like a secret whisper in the night where gunfire and danger couldn't find me. I'm sure, given some talking into and assurances that I wouldn't make the paper, I may have even found a benefactor.
Snake may have taken my father, but he'd unintentionally given me a grandfather in return.