NaNoWriMo-ing, thought I'd give you an update.
Lots of cuddling and something that will likely make people yell at me but will really help Kaito's endgame in the long run.
Thanks to everyone who reviews. I'm sorry I'm not great at PM-ing a thank you, but they all are serious motivation for me writing.
Kaito was disoriented as he woke up. "Is that kid still following us?" One of his abductors demanded. Kaito shook his head, trying to get his bearings. The long hair from his wig fell into his face.
"Yeah." The big one mumbled. "Fast skateboard. How fast do you think it can go?"
"We have to ditch this car soon. How are we gonna do it if he's still on our tail?" Inigo asked.
"Shoot him." The short man ordered.
"He's a child." The gunman protested simply.
"So?! I thought I hired a part of hardened criminals, not whiney ninnies!" The boss snapped. There was a pause.
"You are not very nice." The big man commented.
"I'll shoot out his wheels." The gunman compromised, cocking his pistol.
"Can you make that shot?" The short man demanded. The gunman leaned in.
"I have dedicated the past ten years of my life to marksmanship." He stated flatly. "I can make the shot." He rolled down the window and leaned out.
"NO!" Kaito launched himself at the man, upsetting his aim.
"Hey!" The giant lost control of the wheel and the swerved wildly.
"Get off of him!" Kaito, the gunman, and the boss struggled. Kaito wasn't even aware enough to worry about his disguise. His only focus was on the gun being leveled at a child on an impossibly fast skateboard. The car screeched to a halt. The giant twisted and tried to get a handle on the squirming 'princess'. There was a click as the door handle was released and the gunman, boss and princess tumbled out of the car. Together they pinned their captive. Kaito's breath caught as he heard the telltale whine of the skateboard racing towards them.
"Grab him!" The boss shouted as the sound grew.
"Got him." Kaito craned his head in time to see the giant pluck Conan off his skateboard as it went by.
"Hey!" Conan yelped, dangling from the giant's hand by the scruff of his neck. Conan's hand went to his watch. Kaito saw the top flip up and a glint as the tranquilizer struck the giant in the neck. To the boy's obvious surprise the giant rubbed his neck and then walked over to the others as if nothing had happened.
"Got him, boss." The giant reported.
"Good, good." Vizzini straightened. "Now get rid of him."
"NO!" Kaito surged up, easily breaking Inigo's hold on him. Vizzini grabbed him by the hair and Kaito froze as he felt the wig start to give. Inigo and Fezzik exchanged a glance.
"How do you want me to get rid of him, boss?" The giant asked. Vizzini rolled his eyes.
"Take a rock or one of those big bricks over there and hit him over the head with it!" He snapped.
"I'd rather not." Fezzik objected. Inigo nodded approvingly.
"You can't!" Kaito- Buttercup cried as Vizzini began to grow red with rage. "He's- his name is Roberts Dread. He's the son of an earl!" Buttercup was shaking in fear. "The earl is one of the richest men in my country. You could probably get a better ransom for him than me!" Vizzini eyed the kid.
"The wealth would explain the fancy skateboard." Inigo pointed out softly. He frowned.
"Fine." He turned on Buttercup. "But you give us anymore trouble and I'll take care of him myself." He shot a dirty look at his employees. "Since these two are too squeamish." Inigo squeezed Buttercup's shoulder reassuringly.
"Back in the car." Buttercup allowed herself to be manhandled back into the vehicle. The giant put Conan into her lap and patted his head before he shut the door. Buttercup's arms automatically went around Conan and she buried her nose in his hair. Kaito breathed in deeply, trying to calm himself. Kaito wasn't a stranger to things that didn't go according to plan, but he'd always had some modicum of control when he had to improvise. Waking up, not knowing what was happening, with Conan, brilliant, brave, small Edogawa Conan in mortal danger, might have been one of the most terrifying moments of his life.
His arms tightened around Conan as he felt his throat constrict. Do not cry. He reprimanded himself. He couldn't risk tears ruining his disguise when he didn't have a chance to do a touch up. God, he almost never cried. He hid his face more deeply in Conan's hair. To his surprise, Conan shifted. He turned around and embraced him, adjusting Kaito's face so it was tucked into the space between his neck and shoulder.
"It's going to be alright." He murmured, stroking the long hair of the wig. "I'll protect you." Bizarrely… Kaito felt safer. Enough to let a few tears fall hidden in Conan's embrace, before turning his mind to their escape.
_|_|_
.^_O~
Kaito was ready to run when they came to a stop, but the hateful little man yanked Conan away from him before they had an opportunity. He put a gun squarely against the back of the boy's forehead and marched him about two meters ahead of Kaito. Kaito glared at him with undisguised hatred. The only reason he wasn't dropping the Princess Buttercup persona entirely was that he didn't see a way out… yet. The best way to protect Conan right now was to play along as the princess.
Kaito followed. His stomach dropped when he realized they were approaching a boat. He stopped. Once they were aboard they would be effectively trapped. But it was too lat. Conan was already on the boat and when the short man with the ruddy face noticed his abductee had stopped he jabbed Conan sharply with the gun, causing him to stumble. Kaito was up the gangplank and on the boat in an instant, leaving behind the two goons flanking him.
They were locked in a room with only one porthole, too dirty for anyone to see inside. Conan quickly walked the perimeter of the barren room. The space was small enough that every nook and cranny took less than a minute. Then he returned. Kaito opened his arms expectantly, sitting on the floor opposite the door, back against the wall. Conan hesitated before kneeling in front of him and returning the hug. Kaito dragged Conan on to his lap, keenly aware of the chill in the room and how cold Conan's small body already was.
"There aren't any cameras or bugs, but the walls are thin." Conan whispered into his ear. "As long as we are quiet, it's safe to talk." Kaito nodded. "How long until they find out you aren't the real Princess Buttercup?" Kaito smiled, because of course Conan had figured it out. "You're a double, right? So how long until the real princess is revealed?"
"I don't know." Kaito replied. "I'm not exactly a real double… Buttercup is running off with her soulmate. I'm just covering for her." Conan tensed, considering.
"So as far as anyone knows, they actually have the real princess."
"Yep," Kaito pulled back and took Conan's hands, blowing on them gently, trying to warm them up. "Is that good or bad?"
"It means their plans can go forward, so they aren't anymore likely to kill us than they would be if you were actually the princess." Kaito hummed thoughtfully.
"Tell me how you deduced I was a double, amor." He requested.
"You never spoke in your own language." Conan answered. "You seemed to understand it when it was spoken, but you always replied in Japanese." Kaito chuckled.
"My accent is something awful." He conceded.
"You also used the wrong silverware." Conan continued. "You eat like an upper-class French girl. Don't worry too much Florin has a weird way of eating." Conan shrugged. "Little things." Kaito smiled at him fondly.
"I'll have to remember them."
Abruptly the door swung open. "This blanket's too small." The giant held it out. "Do you want it?"
"Yes, please." Kaito answered immediately because despite his best efforts Conan was still very cold. He stood, lifting Conan with him and accepted the blanket. Fezzik patted his head.
"You have to share food. We didn't expect two." He explained. Then closed the door.
Kaito slumped back against the wall. His face buried in the crook between Conan's shoulder and neck. "That was nice of him." He mumbled.
"Yeah, he's real charming for a criminal." Conan commented drily. Kaito fumbled to unfold the blanket and wrapped it around Conan. "What are you doing? You're cold too!" The child grabbed the edges of the blanket and forced it around Kaito's shoulders, inadvertently giving him a hug. Then he leaned in closer so that it would cover them both more fully. Kaito sighed, strangely content. It might be a kidnapping, but he had never had the chance to be this close to his soulmate before. It felt… nice. If this was how the real Princess Buttercup felt with her Westley, then he was truly glad to have helped her. (And a little envious that she would get to have this all the time.) Conan patted him comfortingly. "It'll be okay." He assured him softly.
"You're amazing, Edogawa Conan." Kaito murmured. Conan's breath caught in surprise. "You saw someone who needed help, and you didn't hesitate to come to their rescue." His arms tightened around his soulmate. "To my rescue." He drew a slightly shaking breath. "And now you'recomforting me?" He chuckled slightly. When he had learned Conan's age, he would have assumed that it would be the other way around. That he would protect him, look after him, help him when he fell, for a while at least. Kaito had no doubt that Conan would grow up to be a great man, but he was still much older than him.
But here they were. Kaito kidnapped and Conan there to save him.
The knock startled Kaito out of his thoughts. He frowned at the door as it opened. "Your food." Inigo slid the tray across the floor. Kaito's eyebrows raised. In addition to the prepackaged bento (which Kaito noticed with a shudder was salmon teriyaki) there was an extra onigiri and a small bag of candy on the tray. He raised questioning eyes at their captor. "Fezzik got me umeboshi." He nodded at the onigiri. "I hate umeboshi." Kaito glanced down at the candy meaningfully. "The boss needs to eat less sugar." Inigo closed the door.
"We've got some softies on our hands." Kaito observed with a smile. "Mind if I have the umeboshi? I don't like fish."
. _
.^_O~
Kaito was staring at the porthole. He could get it open. He could get it open easily. He was less sure if he could fit, even if Kaito could fit, the water would completely destroy his disguise, but Conan would fit. Conan could swim to shore. Even as he thought about it, Kaito felt a lump in his throat at the thought. God there was so much that could go wrong between here and the shore.
"We can't get out that way." Kaito looked down at the young detective who seemed to have the uncanny ability to read his thoughts. "We're too far from shore and it's sunset." Kaito stared at him blankly, uncertain why sunset was significant. "Fish are most active at sunrise and sunset." Kaito blanched. "That includes sharks."
"Nope!" Kaito clutched Conan closer to him. "Nope, we are good in here!" Conan chuckled, his voice slightly winded with how tightly he was being held.
"Relax, we'll escape. For now, you should try to sleep."
"It's too early to sleep, Conan." Kaito whined. "Can't we talk?" Conan looked up at him. Kaito reveled in being the focus of his gaze so close.
"About what?"
"What do you think of soulmates?" Kaito's heart sped up. He wondered if Conan could hear it when they were so close together.
"I don't care about them." Kaito froze. He felt like he couldn't breath. Was he breathing? Oh god, if he wasn't breathing than Conan would notice and know something was wrong. "Nee-chan?" Conan's voice was colored with concern. Kaito, very deliberately, took a breath.
"Why is that?" His voice cracked. He had to get himself under control.
"My parents aren't soulmates and they're happy. My friend has parents who are soulmates and they make each other miserable." Conan answered. "Besides," Conan curled into him slightly. "I don't want someone who feels obligated to care about me. And I don't want to be forced to care about a stranger I don't even know." Kaito was trembling, he was sure that Conan could feel it and hoped he attributed it to shock.
"But…" Kaito faltered. Conan continued.
"Look, I know it's not the most popular opinion, but soulmates aren't the most important relationship in life. Not everyone has them." Conan shifted uncomfortably. Kaito distantly registered that what Conan was saying was logical. And that Aoko's friendship was probably more important to him than his relationship with Conan currently, but… Conan. Conan was so important to him. "I don't think that love is easy." Conan added. Kaito stared down at him. "Love, romantic or otherwise, takes time." Conan's sigh was heavy, heavier than anyone Conan's age should be able to give. "No one should be forced to love another person because they think they should." His voice hardened. "That's too much to put on them or me." Kaito swallowed. Conan's opinion was so mature. He knew that he should respect it… Even if it was breaking his heart.
"I don't think loving you would be a chore, mon amour." He said softly. Conan huffed a bitter laugh.
"That's because you don't know me very well." Kaito tried to suppress his keen of distress, but wasn't quite successful. Conan hugged him slightly. "It's alright. I have people in my life who love me anyway." Kaito felt him smile into his collarbone. "They aren't even my soulmates, and that's how I know that they love me for real."
"You don't know your soulmate wouldn't love you for real." Kaito muttered. "And what if you fell in love with him before you realized who he was." Conan shrugged, shifting the blanket around them slightly.
"I guess that what's important is that it's real." He answered. "I can't fall in love with a stranger. I won't." It sounded like a vow.
"But a friend?" Kaito's broken heart was filling with hope. "If you know them and they know you…"
Conan thought about it. "Only if their feelings aren't based on the mark." He answered. Kaito's helplessness was being replaced with determination. So this was going to be a little bit harder than he thought. He could handle that. For the first time he was grateful for Conan's age. Without that barrier he'd have revealed his soul mark to the detective long ago and Conan would never have believed his feelings were genuine.
He could handle this. He just needed Conan to love him before he told him the truth. More importantly, he had to prove to Conan that he, Kuroba Kaito, loved him before he revealed his soul mark. But first, he had to at least try to help Conan see that it wasn't so unnatural for him.
"Don't be too hard on your soulmate." Kaito said. "I don't think you would have trouble caring about them."
"Why is that?" Conan asked, sounding as if he'd heard whatever was going to come next a thousand times. Goodness knows that there were enough people trying to talk others out of his particular opinion.
"Because you cared enough about me to risk your life to save mine." Conan blinked up at him in surprise, Kaito smiled. "You know as much about me as you do about your soulmate." He commented. "Caring about others seems to come naturally to you, Conan." The detective blushed furiously and looked away.
Kaito released a breath in relief, he knew he was right. Conan cared about everyone. He just had to get him to care enough about him so that he wouldn't push him away when he learned who he was. And with Conan curled in his lap, both of them sharing a blanket to keep warm, there was no better time to start trying to win his affection.
"Hey, I know a few riddles if you think you're up for a challenge."
Conan looked up at him, a spark of interest in his eyes. "Riddles?" Kaito grinned. Yeah, he could do this. He pulled Conan close for warmth and comfort as he spoke.
"So, Lucretia Borgia invited a prospective victim to lunch…"
Yeah, I know. I'm breaking your heart. But hey! Cell cuddles! Plus, Kaito has a way better chance at wooing Conan now than he did at the beginning of the chapter! And I did try to make him feel as hopeful as possible. Plus... Cell cuddles. (And Kaito did let himself slip with the gender pronoun of Conan's soulmate because he was so distressed.)
Alright, so I found an incredibly Detective Conan-esque riddle for Kaito to tell. Here is the rest!
Lucretia Borgia invited a prospective victim to lunch. They ate a hearty meal of roast venison, with a selection of fresh vegetables, all washed down with the finest wine imported from Bordeaux in France.
After the meal they finished off with figs and grapes freshly picked.
"Just one apple left", said Lucretia, "I insist you have that. "No", said the guest, "I couldn't". "Tell you what", said Lucretia, "we will share it", and promptly sliced it neatly in two with her sharpest knife. The guest and Lucretia started to eat their respective halves when suddenly the guest's eyes rolled towards the ceiling and he keeled over backwards stone dead.
"Another victim successfully despatched," thought Lucretia.
Why was Lucretia not poisoned after eating the apple?
