------
Kaito stared at him wide-eyed, as if Shinichi was the last thing he'd expected to see, clearly in plain shock.
It was probably the truth.
But, almost as if a switch had been flipped, Kaito suddenly surged into action, grabbing a box and sliding out of the room, letting the portrait fall closed as he began pushing Shinichi back out of the room, babbling frantically.
"Really, Shinichi, you shouldn't be walking, it's not good for your injuries, and while you're at it why don't you just forget what you've just seen. Dad just liked to cosplay. Yeah. I found the first aid kit, so let's go fix you up and watch a movie and totally forget everything, kay?"
Shinichi let himself be pushed, Kaito's babbling fading into the background as everything clicked and made sense. Kuroba Toichi died eight years ago. The first Kid disappeared the same time. He'd bet he'd find a pretty good date correllation with that too. And of course a son would want to honor his father...especially if the father had some grand purpose like Kid seemed to have. And Kaito never did like to talk about Kid, and was never around on heist nights...
Really, it had to be true.
Hands pushed on his shoulders, and Shinichi blinked as he realised that Kaito had led him out the recreation room and all the way back to the living room and was sitting him down on the couch. He'd been too absorbed in his deductions to notice. Kaito was still babbling, running through the same dialogue as he shakily opened the first aid box, hands trembling almost too much to undo the catch.
Shinichi sighed, reaching out and covering Kaito's hands with his own, steadying them and undoing the lock for him. Kaito looked up at him, startled, and Shinichi almost flinched at the blind panic and fear in his eyes. Kaito honestly thought that Shinichi would hate him now.
But, despite all he'd been taught, Shinichi couldn't. He could no more blame and convict Kaito than he could sprout wings and fly.
But...he still needed to know. Because he wanted to understand.
"Kaito..." he murmured softly. "I can't forget such a thing. I'm sorry, but the evidence is against you."
Kaito took a deep breath, letting it out in a long sigh.
"I guess...there's no convincing you otherwise...? You really believe I'm Kid..." He murmured, dropping his gaze to his hands as he pulled out a deck of cards and began shuffling them nervously.
Shinichi shook his head. "It's too obvious...you have to be the Kid. There's just no other way."
Kaito closed his eyes, holding the cards tightly. "You sure I can't just trick you and you'll believe it? It'd make everything easier..." He laughed weakly.
The detective flinched a little - he didn't want to do this to Kaito. But he wanted to know why, and he was not going to be denied.
Even if it was Kaito, the person rapidly becoming the most important person to him.
Kaito sighed again, leaning forward with his elbows on the table, steepling his fingers as his blue eyes regarded Shinichi with a piercing, extremely serious stare.
"So, Shinichi...now that you know I'm Kaitou Kid, what do you intend to do about it?"
There it was, the question he wasn't sure how to phrase the answer to.
He wouldn't pursue Kid - he couldn't, not now. Not when it was Kaito. Somehow, something deep inside of him just revolted and flat-out refused to contemplate the idea. Well, Father would be disappointed, but that couldn't be helped.
"What I intend to do..." Shinichi began slowly, "...is to ask you a question."
Kaito watched him with those blue eyes, the worry and fear still present in their depths. Shinichi only hoped he didn't do anything more to add to those fears, only allievate them if he could.
So he steeled himself and looked directly back at Kaito.
"Why are you Kaitou Kid?"
The other closed his eyes, slumping faintly as if admitting defeat. "Do you want the short reason or the long story?"
"The long story, please." He wanted-no, needed to know. He had all the time in the world, after all. When it came to Kaito, he'd wait forever.
Kaito took another deep breath, spreading out the cards between his hands, studying them carefully. "Well, you know how my dad died and everything..."
Shinichi nodded silently, merely sitting and trying to be as open as possible. He didn't want Kaito shutting him out, not now.
Plowing on, Kaito continued. "Well, it wasn't an accident...it was a planned murder. He'd been the original Kaitou Kid - I'm sure you're figured that out by now - and a few years before his death he'd been hired by an organization to find a certain jewel. Well, after a while he realised how bad of a group they were, and he resigned from them. They didn't like that too much, especially as he began searching for the jewel himself, in hopes he'd get it first. And well..." Here Kaito paused, closing his eyes and sighing. "They got him out of their way."
Shinichi reached out to touch Kaito's shoulder, unable to help himself. He was tense under Shinichi's touch, and Shinichi knew how difficult this story must be to tell. So he decided to move the story along. "What's this jewel? Is that why you're Kid? To find the jewel first as well?"
At his touch, Kaito relaxed slightly, nodding. "Yeah...don't know if half the stuff I've heard about what it can do is true, but..." Kaito's eyes hardened, his voice low with determination. "People are willing to kill for it, so I'm not taking any chances. I have to find it, so that evil organization will never be able to use it."
"I see" Shinichi murmured softly, gaze turning inward as he digested this new information. An evil organization. A supposedly magical jewel. A quest partially for justice, and partially for the good of all.
It felt like some bad fantasy novel. If he'd heard it from anyone else, he'd have scoffed in their face.
But it was Kaito, and therefore Shinichi had no choice but to believe. Nodding to himself in resolution, he looked back up at Kaito, his determination shining in his eyes.
"I'll help you."
This caused Kaito to double-take. "What...Shinichi...?"
"I'll help. You're up against a really bad, big organization, right? You need someone to help you. So please, Kaito..."
Kaito shook his head, almost numbly. "Shinichi...I can't...what if you get caught by them? I've been doing this for almost two years now, I can take care of myself. You don't need to feel obligated, this is my fight. You don't need to be dragged into it..."
"Kaito." Shinichi was firm. "I'm a detective. I just can't sit back and let you do this on your own, not when it's you it's happening to. I'm sure I could be of some help...I could investigate in ways you can't as Kid. You really do need the help...who would help you if you got captured? So please..." Here Shinichi reached out unthinkingly, grabbing Kaito's hand, and the retort that Kaito had been forming seemed to die on his lips as his face softened.
"Please, Kaito...I just want to make sure you'll be safe..." He whispered, almost to himself, and Kaito squeezed his hand softly.
Kaito studied him for a long while, before sighing. "I'm not going to change your mind, am I? You're going to insist on helping me if I like it or not."
Shinichi merely nodded. He wouldn't let Kaito be alone in this anymore.
Flopping back onto his heels with a sigh, Kaito merely shook his ehad. "Better with me where I can keep you protected than flying off the handle...allright, you can help. But please, Shinichi, only do what I ask, don't go running off willy-nilly to investigate."
Shinichi couldn't help the happy smile. "Of course, Kaito, whatever you want." He happily sat back himself, satisfied with the current situation, when suddenly Kaito moved, coming up to sit on the couch beside him. SHinich barely was able to turn towards him, question on his lips, when Kaito suddenly wrapped his arms around Shinichi, drawing him into a tight hug. Shinichi felt himself freeze - Kaito was entirely too close for comfort right now and all the thoughts that had been forced down by the current crisis surged back up, and Shinichi licked his lips in a desperate attempt to compose himself. He was now far too aware of how warm Kaito was and how strong and comforting his embrace felt and how nice he smelled and all sorts of thoughts he really shouldn't be thinking.
"Thank you..." Kaito murmured, barely audibly, and suddenly Shinichi's discomfort faded into the background. "Thank you...for accepting me..."
Helplessly smiling, Shinichi settled into Kaito's arms. "For you...I would accept anything."
Kaito pulled back a little then, giving him an equally helpless, almost vunerable smile, and Shinichi found himself wrapping his own arms around Kaito, returning the hug as he rubbed Kaito's back soothingly. It must have taken so much for Kaito to admit all this, and Shinichi felt rathered honored Kaito had considered him worth it. It was the least he could do to accept him. He couldn't help but accept him.
"Thank you." Kaito repeated softly, hugging Shinichi tight. And Shinichi hugged back, laying his head on Kaito's shoulder as he gave into the feelings Kaito made him feel. There were worse things to feel, after all.
So long as he remained by Kaito's side, that was all that mattered.
------
