I'm extremely sorry for how long this has taken me. This chapter has been written twice, but this is the one that actually sounds decent. The next chapter should be along a bit faster. (It will be the eqivalent of the Black Star heist, if all goes according to plan.)
Thank you all for your patience, and I hope you enjoy this chapter.
Kaito leaned over his new book, pulled along by the suspense. His mother had apparently gotten it from a friend of hers who knew the author, and Kaito was hooked only 100 pages into book one: Damien Corbeau, Gentleman Thief. The hero, Kaitou Corbeau, as he was known to the police, was just about to tell his lover his true identity, despite knowing her brother was a detective…
"Kuroba, I have a warning for you," Akako interrupted. He buried his surprise and mild alarm under a cool façade. She did not need to know she could still sneak up on him. Absolutely not.
"Busy. Can it wait?"
"No," she said, rolling her eyes. She leaned back and settled one hand on her hip, flipping her hair off her shoulder with the other. "Besides, shouldn't you be studying? Your exam is in an hour, isn't it?"
"My exam for lighting? I've got that in the bag. The prof loves me."
"I meant the chemistry exam."
"Shit," Kaito groaned, tucking his bookmark in with a defeated pout.
"That's what I thought," Akako said, smug and preening with it.
Sometimes, when Kaito was feeling especially vindictive, he missed the defeated and quiet Akako from before. She, at least, was easier to deal with than the confident and vicious Akako she'd become after high school. Although, the new Akako was happier…
"Now, Kuroba, pay close attention: Danger is lurking in the shadows, though a noble ally also lies in wait. With the sparrow on your side, the storm can be weathered."
"Akako, seriously, why," Kaito pressed a hand over his eyes. "Just—can't you speak without the cryptic bullshit for once?"
"If I speak without my, ah, 'cryptic bullshit,' your death will be at hand. Bear that in consideration. I will only speak plainly if the straits are truly dire." Akako looked away. "As it happens, I'd rather if it didn't come to that. You're annoying, but you are my friend, despite the odds."
Kaito frowned at her, considering. They'd known each other for going on three years now, but this was probably the first time she'd ever actually admitted to considering him a friend. A grin split his face.
"Aw, Akako, you really do care!" Kaito gathered his things and started to walk, wrapping an arm around her shoulder. "I always knew you must like me at leasta little, but to find out you consider me a friend, well, I'm honored, Akako!"
"You should be," she huffed, choosing to ignore the arm instead of shrugging it off. "Besides, you need all the friends you can get, especially with Hakuba traveling as often as he has been…"
"You worry too much. If anything, you should be more worried about Aoko's plans for this weekend." Kaito winked. (He wasn't worried about Hakuba. The guy was tracking leads on some pretty bad people working with the "storm" or "crows" or whatever Akako wanted to call them. He'd be fine, probably.)
"Ah, you mean the surprise party she's planning for me."
"The very same."
"As long as she keeps it small this time, I'm sure it will be fine," Akako sighed, eyes betraying her fondness. "Should I expect a present from you or a performance?"
"You could say my presence itself will be a gift," Kaito grinned. She sighed again, not amused by his excellent pun.
"Good luck on your chemistry exam, Kuroba. And good luck against the sparrow—he might not seem like much of a threat, but he and his partner are more observant than they let on. His eyes might be sharper than our hawk's."
"Like that could ever happen," Kaito rolled his eyes, dropping his arm. "See you later."
She waved without looking back, walking on to whatever class she had next. Kaito sighed and hunted down a place to do some last minute cramming. How could he forget chemistry? This was definitely not a good sign. No wonder Akako had given him her warning.
Despite her warnings, Kaito could not seem to catch a break.
First, his car's battery died. He didn't have time to replace it or jumpstart it, so he was stuck taking his motorcycle. His motorcycle was very flashy, which meant he needed to slightly alter his disguise with that in mind. Having to switch plans on such late notice made him fashionably late to the start of the Suzuki family's gala. Luckily, the persona he had in mind was the type of person to arrive several minutes late to things.
As he swept into the ballroom, he surveyed the attendees—mostly the fabulous and the fabulously wealthy. The Suzuki family was in the center of the large room holding court, minus the youngest daughter who was against a wall speaking with three other people.
Inspector Nakamori and his officers were spread throughout the room, especially at the exits and near the guests of honor, Suzuki Reina and her soon-to-be fiancé Nakayama Taiga. Miss Reina was a cousin of Ayako and Sonoko Suzuki, hence the fantastic engagement party the family was throwing for her.
At the peak of the evening, Nakayama would present his would-be bride with a necklace called The Moon and Stars, a beautiful rainbow moonstone pendant strung onto a necklace with six pure star sapphires flanking it on either side.
It was considered a sign of good fortune for the couple it belonged to—if the couple failed to present and accept the gift, however… Well, eternally unlucky in matters of the heart was a pretty heavy burden to bear. (He hoped this necklace wasn't Pandora.)
The story behind the necklace was pretty romantic all said, Kaito thought. Most of the gems he went after had tragedies attached, but this story was overwhelmingly positive. Two lovers were separated by both circumstance and objections made by either family. Before the man was sent off to war, he gifted his lover with the necklace as a sign of his love.
"Our love is like the moon and stars, shining even through the darkest of nights," the man reportedly told his lover. "When things seem hopeless, remember this and be at peace: I swear I will return to you once the war is over. Nothing on this earth could keep me from your side."
The woman wore the necklace every day her lover was at war, and every day, she was beset by suitors intent on "stealing" her away from the love of her life, some of whom were no doubt arranged for by her parents. Every day, she turned the men away, one hand ever resting on the pendant as she thanked them and sent them away with a sad smile.
As he'd promised, her love returned to her after many years, scarred and wearied from his battles, but as earnest in his love as when he'd first given her his promise. The woman's parents were so impressed by the man's honor and courage in battle that their prior objections seemed petty. The man's were equally impressed by the woman's constancy and fidelity, and their objections were likewise deemed irrelevant.
The two were married the following spring and lived happily ever after, and the necklace was passed down from mother to son for generations. Even after the family line was broken, the necklace was continually given to a person's lover as a sign of their love and their hope for their future. The necklace was said to bless the union of those who gave and received it, while those who were unable to give their love the necklace were considered cursed, their marriage doomed.
It all seemed a bit heavy for such a sappy love story, but Kaito figured people needed an excuse for their superstitions. He'd seen enough "cursed" jewelry to have figured that out—though he'd yet to find a stone capable of granting immortality…
Normally, Kaito wouldn't have bothered with this gem, but it had been a while since his last heist and there were whisperings of a different group attempting to steal the necklace, possibly just to destroy the impending marriage of Nakayama and Miss Reina.
Someone stealing the necklace before it could be given to the bride-to-be would certainly be a bad omen to those who believed in them.
As his eyes drifted past the happy couple, they fell on someone who had no right to be there, especially not when he was supposed to be in London. Why hadn't he called ahead?
He was still staring intently at Hakuba when Hakuba caught his gaze. Before Kaito could wonder if he'd been recognized, Hakuba smirked at him nodding subtly toward the younger Suzuki sister, Sonoko. Kaito raised an eyebrow and turned to give her another look. (No use wondering how Hakuba had recognized him, really.)
She was still standing where he'd last seen her, speaking animatedly with a young woman and two men. She was leaning into one of the men, likely her boyfriend, Kyogoku Makoto—not someone to mess with—and waving a piece of paper at the other man. If he wanted to see what she was holding, he'd have to get closer…
When he looked back at Hakuba, he'd already moved on, speaking with Nakamori. Damn. He'd just have to slip closer then.
"Come on, are you a detective or aren't you?" Sonoko was saying, still waving the page at her friend. The guy sighed. (Was this why Hakuba had sent him over here? There was another detective in attendance? Did Hakuba think he was actually a threat?)
"Sonoko, I'm not going to explain the notice to you just so you can meet Kaitou Kid. Besides, your boyfriend is right there. Doesn't this bother you, Kyogoku?" the guy asked, crossing his arms. (Explain, not solve, meaning he already knew what the notice meant. Interesting, if he got it right.)
Kyogoku shrugged impassively, "Not really. She chose me, after all."
Sonoko beamed up at him, throwing her arms around him and pressing a kiss to his rapidly-reddening cheek.
"You're out of excuses, so help me out, already," Sonoko whined.
"You might as well tell her, Shinichi. You know how she gets," the other girl said reasonably. Kaito sincerely hoped he'd listen to his friend. He needed to know how much trouble this was going to be.
Before the guy, Shinichi, said anything, though, he and the reasonable girl both noticed him at almost the same time. The girl only looked curious, but the guy looked almost immediately suspicious, shifting his stance accordingly.
"Need something?" he asked Kaito.
"Ah, sorry," Kaito bowed awkwardly, "I only wanted to pay my respects to Miss Suzuki. You look lovely tonight," he bowed again. "My apologies for interrupting."
"Masayoshi, wasn't it?" Sonoko asked, tipping her head in consideration.
"Yes, ma'am," he smiled, quickly covering his surprise. He'd only used this alias around her once. How did she remember his name?
"Thank you for the compliment. It's good to see you again. You were an aspiring magician, weren't you?" she asked.
"I am. It's very kind of you to remember as much," he said, bowing again. She waved it off.
"You should go say hello to my sister. I'm sure she'd love to speak with you again. No one else talks with her about film at these things, you know?" she smiled.
"I'll be sure to do that. Sorry again for the interruption," Kaito bowed for the last time before leaving, fading into the surrounding crowd. He'd have to be careful about her. She was more observant than he'd given her credit for and her friends were definitely onto him, at least until she addressed him by name…
He glanced back, startled to meet the guy's eyes again. Caught, he turned back to Sonoko, evidently explaining the heist notice now that Kaito was out of earshot. Just his luck.
"So, what do you think?" Hakuba asked from his side. The instinctive jump was channeled into a slow turn. "He's sharp, isn't he?"
"Fairly," Kaito shrugged. "What are you doing here, Hakuba? I thought you were in London for another week?"
"I was supposed to be, but one of my leads hit a dead end. Besides, Nakamori mentioned a party for Koizumi and a Kid heist on the same weekend. I could hardly miss either," he said, smirking. "His name is Kudou Shinichi, by the way. Some people call him the Detective of the East."
Shit. He'd definitely heard of someone like that…
"The Heisei Holmes," Kaito sighed. This was such a bad day for this.
"The very same," Hakuba said, glancing back. "I've spoken with him, and he figured out your riddle as quickly as I did, at least."
"Well, that's not saying much," Kaito teased. Hakuba shoved at his arm, rolling his eyes.
"Be serious, please. If you're not careful, you could lose to this one."
"That's certainly a problem. I thought I was only allowed to lose to you, detective."
"Exactly, burglar. You need to be careful tonight."
"You are the second person to tell me that," Kaito mused. "Guess I should heed both warnings, huh?" He snorted a laugh. "Well, I better get going, detective. It's almost show time."
Kaito slipped away into the crowd and made his way to one of the doors out of the ballroom, making note of any suspicious characters (two men, one woman). When he looked back, Hakuba and the new guy (Kudou) were both discussing something intently with the occasional addition from the inspector.
That was probably not a good thing.
He slipped out the door toward the bathrooms without drawing much notice from the guards. From the bathroom, changing and slipping into the vents were child's play. He tuned his earpiece into police frequencies and settled in above his entrance to wait.
"Listen, kid, I know what I'm doing here. I don't appreciate detective wannabes getting in the way."
"Inspector Nakamori, I agree with Kudou. It's highly likely this line means Kid will literally 'descend from the stars,' meaning we should definitely do a sweep of the ventilation system."
Damn it, Hakuba, Kaito thought.
"Not you, too, Hakuba," Nakamori groaned. "Listen, let me do my job. I know your father has given you permission, but this kid is a nobody as far as I'm concerned."
Kaito winced in sympathy. If this guy had half the pride Kaito did… Well, Kaito steeled himself for a harder fight than he was initially anticipating. A detective's pride was on the line, and Kaito wasn't going to risk getting caught just because Nakamori pushed some buttons.
Before Hakuba or Nakamori could say anything else, Kaito dropped a smoke bomb and followed after it, landing on the stage just in front of the happy couple. Nakayama was quicker than Kaito was expecting, pulling Miss Reina behind him without hesitation. How sweet.
"Ladies and gentlemen," Kaito projected. "Excuse me for interrupting you all on such a fine evening, but, you see, I also wish to pay my respects to the happy couple." Kaito turned to smile at the couple in question. "Would you allow me to look at that necklace for just a moment? You have my word that it will be returned to you safely. I only wish to be sure this gem is as it should be."
"You promise you'll return it?" Miss Reina said, stepping out from behind her fiancé to both his and the inspector's alarm.
"You have my word, miss. I am not one of those who wishe to ruin your happiness."
She strode forward and held out the gem. The audience behind them gasped, though it was hard to hear beneath Nakamori's bellows. (He hadn't heard Hakuba or the new guy yet…)
Kaito accepted it with a bow, grateful for both her cooperation and the skylight over the stage. He'd calculated the time just right—the moon shone directly onto his position, making it easy to check the gem.
It wasn't Pandora.
Turning back, he took a knee, presenting Miss Reina with her necklace once more.
"Thank you, miss, for allowing me a moment with your necklace. I wish you both happiness in your future together." Kaito rose to his feet once more, winking at them both and bowing. "Farewell." He dropped another smoke bomb and vanished back into the crowd below, swiftly changing into his previous disguise.
He took three steps out of the smoke when someone brushed past him, leaving something in his pocket. Spinning did not grant him a look at the person, so he resigned himself to seeing what they'd left behind. In his left pocket was a folded note written in calligraphy.
You should be more careful, Kaitou Kid.Your detective caught a few rats in his trap today, but there was more than one crow ready to strike had I not intervened.They have sharp eyes and sharper knives.- Night Baron
What the hell.
What. The hell.
He refolded the note and tucked it into one of his hidden pockets, scowling internally. What the hell was a Night Baron? How pretentious was that? And who did he think he was, Tuxedo Mask? Kaito was not Sailor Moon in this scenario, no matter how well the theme fit.
"You were such a good distraction tonight, we managed to nab all three people who wanted that gem," Hakuba preened, startling Kaito with his appearance. "Kudou caught one even I hadn't noticed. She wanted to ruin the marriage more than take the gem, so she wasn't really on my radar."
"Hakuba, do you have a crush?" Kaito asked, quick to bounce back. "Do you want to solve crime together and adopt dogs?" Kaito crooned, batting his eyes at him. Hakuba huffed, but blushed just slightly.
"Hardly. Kudou is a good detective, that's all. And he's read Sherlock Holmes as well, so we had a lot to talk about." Hakuba frowned. "More importantly, aren't you worried about him knowing one of your aliases?"
"Pfft, no," Kaito snorted. "He doesn't have any proof, so it's fine."
"Uh-huh. Anyway, have you decided what to get Akako for her birthday yet?"
"A soul, maybe."
"Be serious, please."
"I am; the woman clearly doesn't have one. Wouldn't that be a thoughtful gift?"
"Not even remotely. Aoko would hit you."
"Probably. Well, looks like it's time for me to go. I hope you have fun with Kudou."
Hakuba laughed sarcastically, but slipped away from his side. Kaito frowned to himself. He knew why Hakuba hadn't chased after him, but Kudou… What was Kudou doing? He glanced over his shoulder, eyes finding Kudou's faster than expected.
Kudou was watching him.
If he knew… wouldn't he have turned him in already? Why wasn't he…? The girl with him laughed at something, grabbing his arm. Kudou looked away.
Kaito shivered. The guy was intense to say the least. Hopefully, he wouldn't turn up next time. He was too unnerving by half. As he was stepping toward the door, the guard stared at him, faltering.
"K-Kaitou Kid," he shouted. Kaito blanched, gesturing at himself uselessly, as if asking if the guard meant him. The guard used his radio to put out the alert.
Kaito bolted.
The next 20 minutes were spent dodging the cops at every turn, never quite able to make a clean get away. Who had smeared some kind of paint on the sleeve of his jacket?
What had he done to deserve this?
"Well, Kuroba, did you meet them?" Akako asked while Aoko was distracted by one of Hakuba's stories.
Kaito sighed, "I think so? The sparrow is an asshole, and the "noble" ally is a pretentious asshole."
"Is that right? Well, then, I'm sure the two of you will get along famously. At least, you will someday," she chuckled cryptically, sweeping away to rejoin their friends' conversation, her new sapphire bracelet (appropriately from Aoko) flashing in the room's light.
Didn't she mean three…? Oh well, whatever, Kaito sighed again, putting on a smile. It was his time to shine. After all, what was a party without entertainment?
"Now, are you all ready for my Super Special, One-Night-Only, Birthday Extravaganza?" Kaito beamed, clapping once. Akako smirked at him while Aoko cheered. Hakuba only raised his eyebrows as if he was unimpressed.
Challenge accepted.
