Pure Hearts
A high school girl in the Azabu-Jūban district. It wasn't a lot to go on and it had taken him a few different trips to a few different schools in the area over the span of several weeks, but Kaito had finally managed to pinpoint who exactly was holding his next heist target.
Tsukino Usagi was definitely not the type of girl he'd been expecting to have this supposed "magical crystal" he'd caught rumors of. To be honest, he'd been expecting the daughter of someone rich or publicly important, and wouldn't have looked too closely at Usagi had it not been for her best friend Osaka Naru, whose mother owned a well-respected jewelry store. While observing Naru, Kaito had taken note of the unusual compact that Usagi seemed to keep with her at all times.
A little casual stalking later, all he'd managed to determine was that she never seemed to open the thing, which was odd on two counts: One, he could see it was made to open, so if it was just something ordinary, surely she would do so every now and then; two, if the crystal really was inside it, as he was starting to suspect, why did she keep it hidden? She wore the compact as an accessory half the time, so why not show off the crystal itself? It didn't seem to fit with the girl's personality not to do so. That meant she was keeping it with her at all times, but also keeping it hidden. Like she was protecting it. That was certainly telling.
Making up his mind, Kaito wrote up a notice and left it propped against the mirror of Usagi's vanity, and slipped a listening device behind the mirror for good measure as well.
That night, he waited on her roof for her to come home, lying back with his arms folded behind his head, just enjoying the night air. A high-pitched, over exaggerated yawn was the first thing he heard when she walked into her room.
"I'm so sleepy. Maybe I'll just go to bed early…"
"Usagi-chan…"
Kaito blinked and sat up, his hand moving to the speaker in his ear. He hadn't seen anyone come into the house with her, and that voice didn't sound like any of her family.
"Not now, Luna, I'm tired."
"Usagi-chan. There's something on your dressing table."
For a few seconds, there was only silence. Then a startled squeal sounded, loud in Kaito's ear, and he winced at the light thud that followed.
"Luna!"
"Take a look at this. I think someone is after the crystal!"
Kaito's face split into a sharp and wicked grin. "Bingo~!" he whispered to himself.
"What? Let me see that!"
He could hear the paper crinkling as it was snatched from the vanity. There was a frustrated sort of grumble.
"This doesn't make any sense!"
A longsuffering sigh. "It's a riddle, Usagi-chan. I think it's meant to tell us when whoever wrote this is coming for it."
Whoever wrote this? Kaito thought, indignant. The KID doodle on the page was clear as day. How could they not know it was him? Had these people been living under a rock for the past three years?
He was distracted from his wounded pride when Usagi spoke again, her voice edged with nervousness.
"Do you… Do you think it could be the Death Busters?"
Death Busters… Kaito's eyes narrowed, taking on a sharp, dangerous heat. Another organization after Pandora?
"Mm. It could be a trap. At any rate we need to solve the riddle. We should call Ami-chan."
"Right!"
Kaito sighed and stood, stretching the tension out of his limbs before slipping the speaker from his ear. It was hardly any concern of his whether they solved the notice or not. He'd all but confirmed that he had the right girl, and that was good enough for now. Besides, he had much better things to do with his night. Grinning, he slid down off of the roof and onto the ledge of a balcony before hopping down to the yard wall, then to the side walk and heading off into the busier parts of town. There was someone waiting for him, after all.
.
Mizuno Ami set her homework aside the moment her communicator beeped. "Usagi-chan, is everything all right?" she asked.
"Er, yes? Or maybe no? Luna thinks–"
"Ami-chan," Luna pushed into the small picture on the screen on Ami's watch, her paw pressed into Usagi's cheek. "Someone sent Usagi-chan a warning. They're going to try to steal the crystal!"
"Do the others know?" Ami asked, already pushing away from her desk. "You shouldn't be alone, Usagi-chan."
"We don't know when they're coming," Luna said. "They left a riddle; we were hoping you could help us solve it."
Ami gave a small nod, pulling out a notebook and flipping to a blank page. She slipped a pencil from where it was tucked at her ear and quickly jotted down the words of the notice as Luna read them out.
"We should let the others know," she said, her voice a little distant as her eyes moved over the page. "Maybe stay the night at the temple so we can all be nearby–"
"Ooh, but I can't!" Usagi said. "I'm grounded…"
"Oh, Usagi-chan… The English test?" Ami was not unsympathetic. She knew Usagi had done her best to prepare for it, but it always seemed like something would come up to take her attention away from her studies. "Is there a retest?"
Usagi nodded, a faint pout on her lips. Ami offered her a small smile.
"Don't worry, Usagi-chan. How about I come over to your house to help you study? That way at least one of us will be with you when they show up…"
Luna blinked down into the screen. "Did you solve it already, Ami-chan?"
Ami's smile brightened. "Midnight," she said with full confidence. "Two nights from now."
.
A minute to midnight on the appointed date found Ami, Luna, and Usagi all sitting up in Usagi's bedroom, watching tensely as the seconds hitched by on Usagi's cheerful-looking rooster clock. Just as all three hands clicked into place, there was an explosion of dark blue smoke and Kaitou KID appeared in the small room, his eyes shadowed by the brim of his white silk hat and shark's grin gleaming as he swept out an elaborate bow.
"Good evening, ladies," he said, and light flashed off of his monocle as he straightened up. "I have come, as promised, for the Legendary Silver Crystal."
"Not a chance!" Ami shot back, leaping up and stepping in front of Usagi who was still recovering from her panic on the bed. There was an elaborate blue pen in Ami's hand and KID watched, curious, as she raised it. "Mercury star power – make up!"
He didn't have time to wonder what she was doing. Light shimmered out from everywhere at once, her whole body glowing with it, and KID leapt back, putting as much distance as he could between himself and whatever was happening in the small room. His hand came up to shield his eyes, but he thought he caught glimpses of something like ribbons forming from nothing and spiraling around her. Seconds later, the light faded and that same girl was standing there… in some kind of blue modified sailor outfit.
What… the hell, Kaito thought behind a perfect mask of stoic interest.
"You won't get your hands on the crystal!" she warned.
"That's right!" Usagi finally leapt up beside her, the odd compact clasped tightly in one hand. Then she raised it up. "Moon cosmic power – make up!"
Kaito felt no compunctions about giving up "stoic interest" in exchange for wide-eyed staring at that point. Because at that moment the compact floated out of Usagi's hand and the cover came off and vanished into the air, revealing a large pink heart-shaped crystal that gleamed as Usagi's fingers brushed against it. It hovered down, coming to rest against her chest as that same shimmering light overtook her.
KID did not look away this time. His left eye squeezed shut, but with his right he watched through the treated glass of his monocle, made to soften the effects of flash bombs. It was still bright enough to have him squinting, but he saw the glowing ribbons form from thin air and wrap around the girl before morphing into pieces of an outfit not unlike her friend's. There was no mistake, and no trick that he could see. She had just… transformed.
Kaito wondered vaguely if he was dreaming as the light finally flashed out and another sailor-suited girl stood in front of him, the compact closed again on her chest. Either way, it didn't really matter, he decided, since whether in dreams or reality there was no way KID would let a target get away – which meant he'd better get moving because the girl in blue had just grabbed her friend's hand and made a dash for the window.
"This way, Sailor Moon," she said urgently.
"Ah! Wait, what–?" The two of them leapt out the window, and the black cat that had been nearby followed.
KID ran over and leaned out of the frame, not quite sure what he was expecting to see since they were on the second floor. Apparently, that hadn't been a problem for them. The two girls were sprinting down the street away from the house, the cat racing after them. KID's eyebrows lifted momentarily, but the next moment he was out the window as well and chasing after them.
"We've got to lead him away from your family," Sailor Mercury breathed out as they ran. "Luna, we'll keep him busy; go tell the others."
"Right!"
KID saw from a distance the cat veer off and scamper away from the two girls, and distantly found its behavior odd, but he had better things to worry about. The girls seemed to be headed for a park up ahead and he rushed past them, giving them a wide berth so as to go unnoticed, then appeared before them on a broad, tree-lined path, cutting them off.
Sailor Moon and Sailor Mercury pulled up short and immediately Mercury threw her arm out, standing between KID and Sailor Moon. "Did the Death Busters send you?" she demanded.
KID's eyes narrowed. "Who are the Death Busters?" he said, watching them carefully. "Another crime syndicate?"
"Another…?" Mercury murmured. "…What do you want with the crystal? Why are you trying to steal it?"
KID let his signature grin slip across his face and raised a hand to tug lightly on the brim of his hat. "It's in the nature of the kaitou – and we never let a target escape." There was an explosion of smoke and streamers and KID vanished. A moment later, Sailor Moon let out a shrill, startled yelp as KID reappeared behind her, reaching around to grab the compact at her chest. He'd had every intention of snatching it and taking off before either of them even knew it was gone but…
What the hell? It won't come off! What is this… weird feeling? Almost like it's a part of her.
"No!" Sailor Moon cried, grabbing on to his hand. He felt a fierce heat radiating out from the metal and wrenched away from her as quickly as he could, sending her spinning into Mercury's arms as he made a hasty retreat into the surrounding treetops.
What was that? he thought, casting a quick glance at his singed glove. Tucked low against the rough bark of the tree trunk, he peered down at the two girls and blinked hard when a soft blue glow rose up around Mercury.
"Bubble Spray!" she shouted, and KID braced himself against a blast of cold air that swept out through the park, ushering in a dense, chilled fog. He immediately lost sight of the girls, of the path below, of everything but the monocle resting against his right eye.
Oh great, he sulked, feeling around for the tree branch beneath him and working his way carefully lower. I hate working blind. He got his feet on solid ground as quickly as he could and put the tree to his back before pulling out a pair of infrared goggles, but they showed him nothing. The girls might have run, or… He waved his own hand in front of his face. Nothing appeared. Biting back a sigh, he slipped the goggles off again and tucked them away. There's got to be some kind of trick to this… he thought. How is she doing it?
Movement caught his eyes a short distance ahead and his muscles tensed. The girl in blue was standing there just a few feet away, with her back to him. But he still couldn't see anything else.
An illusion…? Is there even a fog at all? Dammit, is she a hypnotist?
Safe in the cover of the fog, Mercury reached up to press the stud in her ear and her visor materialized before her eyes. "Are you all right, Sailor Moon?" she asked as she began her scan of the area.
"Yes," Sailor Moon responded with a quick nod, but she kept her hands clasped over the compact. She moved a little closer to Mercury, her eyes sliding over the foggy park. "Where did he go?"
"There," Mercury said, pointing a little ways down the path. "But this is strange. I'm not getting any demonic readings off of him. I think he might be human – ah! Wait, he's moving. He's running away…?"
KID shook his sleeve back down over the bite mark he'd just given himself. It would probably be a bruise later – that was annoying. And it hadn't helped. The fog was still there, thick as ever, so either it was real, or he was under one hell of a hypnotic suggestion. But he'd seen a good deal of strange things today, so really, what was one more? Making up his mind, he pushed away from the tree and took off down the path, away from where the girls had been when he'd lost sight of them. He was running blind, but he'd memorized the layout of the area the moment he'd arrived, and his sense of direction was impeccable. With the exception of any people or animals that might be wandering in the mist, he was certain he wouldn't run into anything. With any luck, he'd find the end of this fog–
KID skidded to a stop when the all-consuming cloud of white very suddenly vanished all around him, leaving his vision abruptly clear. He whipped around, expecting to see perhaps a wall of white, but there was nothing, and there, down the path, were the two girls, right where they'd been when the fog had first come. How–?
His thought was cut short when a rose from nowhere shot down in front of him like a throwing knife and stuck, stem-first, into the cement at his feet. He stared down at it, blank-faced. What the hell is going on around here?!
An oddly familiar sound of rustling fabric had KID turning sharply and his eyes were drawn upwards, into the trees. Standing among the branches was a man in a black tuxedo and top hat, a white mask set before his eyes and a long cape billowing around him in the night air. A grin sharpened KID's features as he stared up at the man. "And who might you be?" he asked.
"Tuxedo Kamen-sama!" Sailor Moon and Sailor Mercury were running up the path toward them and KID allowed himself a small laugh as he looked Tuxedo Kamen over.
"Well it's fitting, I suppose, if a little uncreative." His grin shifted to an arrogant smirk that held even as Tuxedo Kamen jumped from the tree, landing right in front of him and glaring openly behind his mask.
"Who are you?" he demanded. "What do you want with the crystal?"
"I find it interesting that you all are so interested in those two things. Isn't it enough that a thief be after a precious jewel? Who says there's any more reason to it than that?"
There was a muted chirp from Mercury's visor and her hand came up, adjusting the stud in her ear for the new flow of information. "There's no time for this now," she said, her eyes flicking in synchronization with the scrolling data. "The enemy has appeared in the city. Someone's in trouble!"
Sailor Moon hardly hesitated. "Lead the way!" she said to Mercury, and the two ran off again, headed for the busier parts of town. Tuxedo Kamen turned from KID, unsure of whether he should follow after them or deal with the strange thief in white first, but when he turned back, KID was already gone. Tuxedo Kamen whipped around, searching the park, but he was alone. His jaw set stiffly and he pushed out a short, frustrated sigh then took off, his cape winging out behind him.
.
Shinichi certainly hadn't been expecting the small stream of terrified, screaming people fleeing the hotel across the street from the café where he'd been waiting for Kaito, but he wasn't all that surprised either. Even as he got up and sprinted toward the chaos, he considered taking Hattori up on his standing offer of a charm to counter his unfortunate luck.
Shinichi dashed through the automatic glass doors and into the lobby before jerking to an abrupt stop. A young bellhop was backed against a wall of elevators by… a glass statue? Shinichi blinked hard. It certainly looked to be made of some kind of clear, faceted glass, but the thing was moving, long strands ornamented with pieces of crystal and tipped with lights slipping over its shoulder with soft tinkling sounds as it leaned over the terrified young man.
"Hey!" Shinichi shouted, his hands already moving to the soccer ball belt Agasa had refitted for him after he'd returned to his teenaged body. "Get away from him!"
The thing twisted around. Twin pinpricks of light glared out where eyes should have been on the polished face and Shinichi's fingers twitched, releasing a soccer ball. It hit the floor and he kicked it as hard as he could before it could come back down for a second bounce. The ball shot right off of the thing's face in a hard ricochet.
"Who are you?" the thing screeched, its voice carrying the shrill squeal of friction on glass. It started toward Shinichi, long, gleaming legs that ended in a sharp heel and toe like high heeled shoes clicking brightly against the floor. The bellhop pushed away from the wall and fled the lobby without a glance back.
Shinichi braced himself at first as it approached, but thought better of it and took a step back. The soccer ball had had no effect and it certainly didn't look like a tranquilizer dart would do anything. Really, he didn't think any attack he could try would make a difference, but this thing had to be a robot or something, right? There had to be a way to deactivate it or lock it in the lobby somehow so it couldn't hurt anyone while he looked for whoever was controlling it.
He dodged to the left, trying to determine if the thing would follow him or make for the doors. Fortunately – or possibly not so fortunately – the thing turned as well and Shinichi suddenly found himself being bombarded by small shards of lighted crystal that seemed to be forming from nothing in the air around the glass creature. He dove to the ground to avoid the first wave of them, trying not to think too hard about exactly how any of this was possible so he could concentrate on not getting cut up by flying glass. Scrambling to his feet again, he cut a wide arc around the thing and threw himself down behind the abandoned front desk, and heard more shards shattering against it as the thing screeched out, "Where is my target?! You made me lose my target! I'll take your heart as punishment!"
Take my heart? Shinichi thought, ducking down again and covering his head as more crystals rained over him. The angle of the attack had changed, he noted, coming down from the ceiling now, but he didn't dare expose himself to look at how that was possible. Instead, he pulled out his phone. There wasn't much he could do, but maybe the police…
At that moment, the doors of the hotel slid open again and Sailor Moon, Sailor Mercury, and Kaitou KID ran inside, followed shortly by Tuxedo Kamen.
"Stop right there!" Sailor Moon shouted, pointing an accusatory finger at the empty lobby. "Huh?" She blinked, bewildered, and looked around. "Mercury, where did it go?"
"The ceiling!" she replied, staring up. Three heads turned to see the glass daimon swaying back and forth through the air as she hung by one hand from an empty chandelier hook high above.
Shinichi stopped short of dialing, baffled by what he was hearing. With the pause in the attacks, he chanced a look over the top of the counter and his eyes widened as they fell upon KID in the midst of three oddly dressed strangers. KID was taking in the scene with quick flashes of his eyes – the monster on the ceiling, the empty lobby, the broken shards scattered across the floor. Then he spotted Shinichi peeking over the front desk and caught his eye, silent questions hanging in the air between them. Shinichi's eyes flickered up to the monster, whose focus was now on the scouts, and back to KID who shrugged subtly.
"Sailor Scouts?" the thing grated. "I'll take all your hearts!" She reached out toward them, a black star marked on her transparent palm. A black light flickered around it, snapping like electricity.
"Move!" Mercury shouted, mostly for KID's benefit. He didn't know what exactly was going on, but he took the hint and leapt out of the way with her as Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Kamen dodged to the opposite side of the lobby.
"What is that thing?" KID asked.
The daimon shrieked and fired off a shower of blazing crystal pieces before Mercury could answer and KID grabbed her, covering her as they crouched against the wall. Luckily the attack was too widespread to do much damage since the daimon had split its focus between the two pairs on either side of the lobby.
"Just let us handle it," Mercury said, slipping away from him and moving to stand between KID and the monster. "You should run. Just get out of here."
"I still have some business with your friend," he said. "You won't get rid of me that easily." He pulled out the card gun and fired off two quick shots over Mercury's shoulder, but the cards just pinged off of the creature with no effect at all. It threw its head back, long crystal strands clinking, and laughed.
"Not too bright are we?" she crowed, turning her focus more directly onto KID. Her pinprick eyes flashed and she gasped, her whole body lighting up as she stared at him. "A target!" she screeched with glee. A long white cord appeared on the hook and she switched her grip over to it as it extended toward the floor, using it to swing down, flying through the air toward Sailor Mercury and KID. She collided bodily with Mercury with enough blunt force to knock her across the lobby and into a wall.
"Sailor Mercury!" Sailor Moon shouted, running for where Mercury was not quite managing to lift herself from the floor. The daimon swung back around and landed a kick squarely in the center of Sailor Moon's chest, throwing her back, away from Mercury and right into Tuxedo Kamen.
Shinichi vaulted over the front desk and ran for Mercury. "Hey, are you all right?" he asked, dropping down beside her to try to stop her from standing.
"Yes," she answered, but her hand moved to her head before jumping away again as she touched a newly tender spot. Shinichi cast a quick glance over his shoulder at the creature but it seemed to have lost interest in the scouts. It aimed its next swing at KID, but before it could reach him, a red rose sliced through the cord and the daimon crashed to the floor with a screech. A web of fractures exploded across one smooth arm, but she hardly paused, launching herself back to her feet and running at KID, oblivious to anything but her target.
KID didn't flinch. He stood his ground as the thing barreled toward him, and something appeared in his hand, flashing out in quick movements as soon as the monster was in reach, but a moment later she'd opened her hand and the crackling black light hit his chest with a force that knocked his breath away.
He had a moment to wonder why he wasn't falling before his thoughts were wiped away by a wrenching shock of pain. The glass cutter in his hand dropped to the floor with a clatter and he felt himself being lifted up by some unknown force, a fierce, bursting pressure building in his chest as the strange light flickered there. Something lurched inside him and for one terrifying, sickening moment he thought his heart might actually be ripped from his chest. His hand came up, fingers twisting into his shirt, trying to hold himself together, to remain whole through a force of will, and he heard, as if from a distance, Shinichi calling out for him. Calling him "KID." Keeping his secret. Always keeping his secret. So that he wouldn't have to keep it alone.
"Give it up!" the daimon cried, and with a harsh flash, KID's hand fell to his side, his eyes going blank as a rose-tinted cluster of crystal passed through his chest, hovering there in a faint, warm glow. "Tch, about time," the creature muttered. She passed polished fingers over her own chest where KID had managed to leave a clean X in the gleaming glass. "Anyone so rude should hardly be considered 'pure,'" she sniffed squeakily, but she scooped the crystal out of the air with a quick hand nonetheless. KID's eyes fell closed and he crumpled to the floor.
"KID!" Shinichi's feet slipped on shards of shattered glass as he made to run toward them, but Mercury threw herself forward, catching his arm and holding him back.
"No! You have to stay back!" she said, her grip unyielding.
The thing turned from KID, its eyes bright as it stared at the glowing crystal in its hand, but it couldn't enjoy its success for long. Tuxedo Kamen, his arm still around Sailor Moon's shoulders in a protective kind of support, threw another rose and it cut through the air, lodging neatly in the daimon's chest, right at the intersection of cuts that KID had left there. The creature froze and everyone in the lobby stared in hopeful silence before a sharp crack sounded and a series of pronounced fissures snapped across the glass body. One reached out, meeting up with the faults in her arm, and the limb suddenly shattered, coming free at the shoulder and hitting the floor in broken chunks. She staggered away from KID, her mouth open in silent shock, and the pink crystal slipped away from her to hover slowly back toward its owner.
Shinichi turned sharply back to Mercury. "Let me go," he said, but Mercury wasn't paying attention to him. She was staring over his shoulder.
"Kaolinite," she said, and Shinichi turned back to see a pale woman in a bright red dress seated in thin air in the middle of the lobby. The strange crystal cluster was cupped in one delicate hand.
"I'll be taking this," the woman, Kaolinite, said, and laughing, she promptly disappeared.
"Wh-What?" Shinichi stammered.
"Hold it right there!"
Everyone in the lobby turned to look at the door through which the distant shout had carried. Then a fierce crack of thunder sounded with enough force to rattle the shards on the floor.
"Jupiter!" Sailor Moon cried, relief in her voice. She ran for the doors and out onto the street, Tuxedo Kamen close behind.
Mercury's eyes flicked across the lobby, but the daimon seemed to have vanished, probably with Kaolinite, so she turned and ran through the doors after Sailor Moon.
The moment Mercury had let him go, Shinichi ran across the lobby and dove to his knees next to KID. He didn't appear to be injured but Shinichi could not get him to wake.
"KID…" Gritting his teeth, he brought his hand to the side of KID's neck and felt a jolt of something like panic jump through his chest. There was a pulse there, but it was weak and slow and Kaito was barely breathing. Fighting for calm, Shinichi bent low over him and whispered close against his ear, "Kaito, come on… Please…"
He straightened up again quickly when he heard a soft click behind him – glass heels against the floor. Slowly, carefully, he glanced back over his shoulder, one hand slipping under KID's jacket to grab the card gun. His other hand found KID's and gripped it firmly even as he shifted around to look up at the monster. The rose was still embedded in its chest, but its eyes were bright and flashing as it rasped out, "Well, well… that heart of yours… You were hiding it from me."
Its hand came up, the black star flickering with light, and Shinichi drew the gun, firing off two quick shots right into the center of its chest. The cards lodged into the fissures there and the thing jerked to a stop. There was a beat of silence before a shrill scream of rage drowned the sounds of cracking glass and it rushed at Shinichi, its one good hand reaching out in a claw around a field of crackling black energy.
Shinichi leveled the gun steadily, but before he could take another shot, Mercury dashed through the doors. "Shine Aqua Illusion!" she called out, and Shinichi nearly dropped the gun as a swirl of bubbles rose up around her and exploded into a rush of water and ice that encased the monster in its entirety.
Sailor Moon wasn't a moment behind. Scepter in hand, she called out, "Moon Spiral Heart Attack!" and Shinichi threw his arm up over his eyes as a blinding pink light filled the lobby. When he cautiously lowered it again to look around, the ice and the monster were gone and a large chandelier lay in pieces on the floor right beside him. A small white pod squeezed out of one of the broken crystals and dropped to the floor where it cracked in two, releasing a shadow that rose up, cackling, and disappeared.
Shinichi's hand tightened around KID's. "I think I've finally lost my mind," he breathed out. The lobby was suddenly filled with girls in modified sailor uniforms of varying colors, as well as two cats and the man in the tuxedo. The man was walking toward Shinichi now, the pink crystal cluster resting lightly in the air above his palm. Shinichi had to fight down the urge to point the gun at him.
"It's all right now," the man said. He stopped a few feet away, apparently sensing Shinichi's distrust, and extended his hand in a slow sweep, guiding the crystal out into the air. It hovered forward of its own accord, coming to rest above KID's chest before dissolving into a field of sparkles and light that sank down into him and disappeared. Shinichi watched it go with painfully wide eyes and thought he felt KID's fingers twitch in his grasp.
"KID?"
There was no response, but KID's breathing seemed to be deeper now, and when Shinichi shifted his fingers up to KID's wrist the pulse there was steady and strong. He turned to look up at the scouts assembled around him.
"What was that?" he asked. "What did that thing do to him?" His voice sounded unsteady to his own ears and he realized he was shaking – the adrenaline rush wearing off, he told himself, and probably shock setting in. "Who are you people?"
One of the newly arrived scouts, this one in an orange uniform, gave him a cheerful smile. "Pretty soldiers in sailor suits, looking out for the people of Tokyo and fighting the forces of darkness!" she answered.
Shinichi managed to give her a fairly unimpressed look before letting his head fall against his knee, making a conscious effort to keep his breathing slow, deep, and even.
Luna leapt up onto Mercury's shoulder. "What are we going to do about the thief? It's pretty obvious he's not the enemy, but he saw you transform."
"We'll just have to talk to him about it," Mercury said.
"We can bring him back to the temple," Mars offered. "It doesn't look like he'll be waking up anytime soon."
"What about him?" Artemis asked, and Shinichi's head came up a little too quickly, confused by the male voice that did not belong to the man in the tuxedo. "He doesn't look so good," Artemis finished before casting another glance over at Shinichi. His tail fluffed out slightly in alarm when he saw Shinichi staring back. "Oops, er, nyah~?" he said, shooting for innocence.
Shinichi blacked out.
.
"He did break into your house," Rei pointed out.
"And he actually grabbed the crystal, remember?"Ami said apologetically.
"But we know he has a pure heart," Minako countered.
"Maybe there's a good reason he needs the crystal," Usagi agreed.
"Yeah, like when Mamoru-san was looking for it," Makoto added, nodding thoughtfully.
"He did help us fight the enemy. He even tried to protect you," Mamoru said to Ami.
Shinichi blinked slowly, the sounds of conversation washing over him but not quite adding up in his mind. Then, with a jolt, he sat up and looked around. He certainly wasn't in the hotel anymore. This place looked more like someone's house. He was sitting on the floor in a traditional looking room with sliding shouji doors and tatami mats, and there, seated around a low table, were five girls and two cats, and a young man was standing off to the side against a wall.
"You're… You're those sailor suit girls, aren't you," he said. "And the guy in the tuxedo…" He actively avoided acknowledging the cats. They still gave him the creeps. Instead, he tried to focus on what he could remember from earlier that night, but for some reason whenever he tried to picture one of the girls as they had been back at the hotel, his mind refused to focus on any details. If he hadn't passed out in one place with all of them there and woken up in another with a similar group, he might never have made the connection.
"Ah, you wouldn't mind keeping that a secret, would you?" Rei said sweetly.
Shinichi's hand moved to his forehead, absently checking for a fever. "Don't worry," he answered. "I intend to forget all of this ever happened and…" He lost track of what he was saying and suddenly turned. KID was lying behind him. It didn't appear that he'd woken up at all.
"KID…" He reached out, hesitantly taking hold of KID's hand once again, and KID finally stirred. "KID?" Shinichi tried again.
Kaito woke slowly, swallowing back a groan. As his eyes focused, he acknowledged the monocle in place in front of one of them, but Shinichi was there too, leaning over him and looking worried and relieved all at once.
"What hit me?" KID murmured.
Shinichi laughed and the sound was only slightly strained. "I have no idea," he said. He held his hand out and KID took it. It was something of an effort to move, but he did not let it show as Shinichi helped pull him up to sit beside him. KID glanced around the room, his eyes landing quickly on Usagi, but Ami spoke first.
"KID-san, we were wondering… What you saw tonight…"
"Don't tell anyone, right?" KID said. "Don't worry. I know how important some secrets are." He tugged the brim of his hat down just slightly, KID grin firmly in place. "But could I ask a favor?" He looked to Usagi and reconstructed his mask into a soft, gentlemanly smile. "Ojou-san, I have to apologize. I shouldn't have tried to take that crystal from you. But if you could… There's something I need to see. If you could just show it to me in the moonlight… That's all I wanted to do. I did intend to steal it, but I never intended to keep it."
He was met with some understandably skeptical looks, given that none of them seemed to know Kaitou KID's reputation, but Usagi smiled and shifted over to pull open the sliding door behind her. Moonlight was streaming into the yard and she removed the compact from her chest.
Mamoru was watching KID closely, but though the thief's eyes were fixed intently on the brooch, he didn't even try to move. He remained seated on the floor, leaning subtly against Shinichi beside him, as Usagi opened the compact and cupped it delicately in both hands under the silver rays of light. The crystal had a brilliant shine, but it did not appear to contain Pandora.
"That's good," KID sighed, and the relief was clear in his voice.
"KID…?" The concern was just as evident in Shinichi's, but KID just grinned.
"I'm all right, Tantei-kun. Though I have to ask. Is that really the Legendary Silver Crystal?"
Usagi laughed, her hand moving up behind her head in a slightly sheepish gesture. "Well, it sort of changed recently."
KID did not miss the shy glance she stole at Mamoru, or the fact that the two of them had both acquired a faint blush.
"I see," he said calmly, though he wasn't sure he did, and Shinichi was giving him that look he always had when he was trying to read through Kaito's poker face. "Well, we should be heading out now, don't you think?" he said to Shinichi. "No need to overstay our welcome." He reached around him to pick up the card gun from where it had been left lying on the floor and made it vanish in a little puff of smoke, earning a few bewildered stares.
"What welcome?" Shinichi muttered and KID laughed. "Hold on a second though," Shinichi said. "That… glass… thing, and the woman in red. What were they doing? I mean, what were they after?" He consciously held himself back from reaching for Kaito's hand again. There were only so many reasons for someone to look at KID and call him a "target," and most of them weren't good. Actually, probably none of them were good, including Suzuki Sonoko's occasional use of the word.
"They're looking for a pure heart with special powers," Makoto explained, as though this were a normal, acceptable answer.
"They're looking for hearts," KID stated, and it sounded like agreement, but Shinichi knew better.
"You know what? Never mind. You're right KID, we should go." He stood and offered KID his hand to help him up.
"Thank you for your help, ojou-san, all of you," KID said.
"Yeah, sorry for all the trouble," Shinichi offered.
The scouts watched them go, enjoying the comfortable breeze through the open door overlooking the yard. From a little ways off, they saw KID stop Shinichi in the middle of a word with a finger on his lips, and offer him a red rose from nowhere. Shinichi blushed and looked away, but KID only grinned and tucked the flower into the breast pocket of Shinichi's jacket, and Shinichi, for all his stubborn lack of acknowledgement, walked a little closer at KID's side as they disappeared down the temple steps.
"Aw, they're so cute together," Minako sighed wistfully, resting her chin in her palm. "It's too bad though; KID-san was definitely my type."
"Minako-chan…" the other scouts all chorused on a sigh, but they were smiling, and Makoto leaned her shoulder against Minako's as they devolved into light conversation and laughter.
.
As soon as they were out of sight of the temple, KID said in an offhand tone, "So, back to the original plan?"
Shinichi cast a surreptitious glance over at him that, of course, KID did not miss. "Are you sure?" he asked.
"Yeah. Five minutes, I promise."
Shinichi reluctantly agreed and KID disappeared in a cloud of blue smoke, leaving Shinichi to go on ahead to the all-night café where he'd originally been waiting for him before this whole mess had started. He checked his watch obsessively as he sat at the little outdoor table, nursing the strongest coffee the place had to offer and fiddling with the lid of the second cup on the table. Kaito slipped into the chair across from him unseen a few minutes later, and Shinichi jumped slightly when he looked up and saw him there.
"Hey," Kaito said, grinning. "Sorry; were you worried about me?"
"Shut up," Shinichi muttered, looking away as he pushed one of the foam cups over to him.
Kaito smiled and wrapped his hands around the warmth, taking in the scent of chocolate curling up through the opening in the lid. "Come on. Let's go home."
They started back toward the subway station and Shinichi noticed immediately that Kaito was being unusually quiet, just sipping his hot chocolate and walking very close at Shinichi's side. When they passed a park a few blocks later, Shinichi grabbed Kaito's wrist and offered no more explanation than, "Come here," as he dragged him off toward a line of benches along a path.
"Shinichi, I'm fine," Kaito insisted, correctly interpreting Shinichi's actions, but he sat without argument, leaning his elbows on his knees and clutching his hot chocolate in both hands for the warmth. Shinichi dropped his empty cup into a nearby trashcan and sat down close beside him.
"Then tell me what's wrong," he said, and Kaito laughed a little at the use of what he liked to call Shinichi's "detective voice." He set his cup aside and leaned back against the bench, looking up at the moon.
"…It was a magic crystal," he said after a while. "It was a magic crystal."
"Yeah…?" Shinichi said carefully, a little lost. "Isn't that why you went after it in the first place?"
"Yeah, but it was just rumors. I've run into a few stories like that, but they never turned out to really be… magical." He huffed out a harsh sigh and ran a hand quickly back and forth through his hair. The effect on the already wild mess was negligible.
"Kaito…?"
"Shinichi… Do you think Pandora really exists? I always thought it didn't really matter if all the stories were true or not. If people were getting killed over it, then that was what mattered and that was what had to be stopped. I guess… part of me didn't really believe there could actually be a stone that cries tears that grant immortality, but I would keep looking for as long as they did… But now? …I don't know. What do you think?" He looked over at Shinichi, earnest, and Shinichi hesitated, thinking it over.
"I don't think anything has changed," he eventually answered. "You're right. As long as they believe it exists – as long as they're willing to kill for it – you'll keep looking, and if you find it one day, you can destroy it. You can stop them."
Kaito smirked. "So it might be better if it was real."
"Heh." Shinichi leaned back and tilted his head up to look at the moon, and they both watched it for a few quiet moments, the wind drawing soft sounds from the trees.
"Shinichi?"
"Hm?"
"I think it's real."
Shinichi was quiet for a short time. Then he smiled, just a little. "You'll find it."
He glanced at Kaito out of the corner of his eye to find he was smiling too, and Shinichi took his hand and gave it a subtle squeeze. Kaito inched over to rest his head against Shinichi's shoulder. "Hey," he said softly. "I'm sorry I worried you."
For a few long seconds, Shinichi was quiet, debating with himself. Then he shifted a little, slipping out from under Kaito and turning so he could catch the thief up in a gentle kiss.
Kaito's hand tensed under Shinichi's as he felt some pressure lift from his chest that he hadn't really been aware of until it was gone. Suddenly feeling much lighter he pressed closer, deepening the kiss and grabbing on to the front of Shinichi's shirt without really realizing it. When he finally let Shinichi go and grinned back at him, Shinichi blushed bright red and Kaito laughed.
Shinichi relaxed again quickly and rolled his eyes. "Pure hearts, huh?" he said, all skepticism.
"Oh, the purest," Kaito said wisely. "But I'd rather you take my word for it. Monster-san didn't seem like the best judge of character, after all."
Shinichi laughed, earning another grin from Kaito that was all beaming happiness and no sharp edges.
"Come on. Let's go home."
.
Author's Note
Hi everyone! Just want to mention real quick that I'm actually working on another kaishin fic right now. This one is just straight up DCMK and it's going to be a very long one, so I probably won't start posting it for a while yet, but if you liked this one you might want to keep an eye out for it :3 It will be called Fall into Flying.
I hope you enjoyed this crossover :) Thanks so much for reading!
~DS