Chapter Ten: History Repeats Itself
November
Present
Nakamori Aoko releases a small, pleased sigh as she finally links her arm with her boyfriend's. "I haven't seen you all day," she complains lightly.
He bows his head down towards her with an apologetic smile. "You'll have to forgive me for not being able to turn tonight into a real date."
Hakuba Saguru looks absolutely dashing in his semi-formal suit, complete with a pair of comfortable slacks and a thin suit jacket. He has purposely chosen clothing that will allow him to chase after tonight's notorious guest, Kaitou KID.
Aoko smiles faintly, reaching up to adjust the collar of his dress shirt. They are not ones for public displays of affection, but there is certainly an unspoken intimacy in their closeness in this long corridor, where they are waiting to enter the Foam of Venus' display room. "Your shirt matches the color of your eyes," she murmurs, looking him up and down. He is not wearing a tie.
Saguru's expression relaxes incrementally with affection, knowing from her words and tone that she accepts his apology. He lets himself take in her appearance for the night - a black cocktail dress that emphasizes the lines and dips of her figure. Her dark hair is arranged simply yet elegantly to the side and her lashes are long, framing sapphire-like eyes.
A chill runs down his spine. At one point, KID had wanted to steal you, too.
He is grateful that is no longer the case.
With those feelings fueling him, Saguru abruptly pulls her in close, leaning down to whisper in her ear.
"You're beautiful, Aoko."
He feels more than hears her breath catch, releasing her just as quickly as he had embraced her. Luckily, none of the other couples and groups in the line to enter the display room are paying attention to them. Aoko takes the chance to turn her head away, a fist to her mouth as she attempts to calm her racing heart and stomp down the blush she can feel in her cheeks.
"O-Oh, I just remembered," she lets out with an awkward chuckle. Aoko turns to face him again but avoids his gaze, staring off to the side with a nervous smile on her face. "I went to lunch with Shinichi-kun today."
A single brow comes up. "'...Shinichi-kun?'" Saguru echoes.
Aoko flinches at his tone as if only just now realizing what she had said. "Um, yeah, I told him to drop honorifics with me this afternoon since it would cause confusion on the heist scene with my dad being around and all…"
Saguru gives an unimpressed hum in response. "I see. You mentioned lunch?"
As the dots connect in her mind, Aoko finally meets her lover's gaze again. Her eyes are glowing with fascination and mirth as she fights to keep an awed smile off of her face. "Saguru-kun, are you jealous?"
The blond blinks in surprise at her question, but when it registers, redness rises to his cheeks. "I-"
"You are!" Aoko lights up, more pleased than he had expected her to be. She tilts her head back in laughter as Saguru's expression becomes miserable. The blush in his cheeks burns brighter.
"Aoko-san," he presses, imploring.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," she says, beginning to calm. Her eyes are still twinkling with laughter and a smile is still tugging on the corners of her lips. "It's not what you think."
"What do you mean?"
Aoko sighs, and with that almost-wistful sigh, the energy and glee she had been radiating moments before is replaced with something on the edge of sadness. "He only invited me so that we could talk about Kaito in private."
"Kuroba-kun?" Saguru blinks in surprise, brows crinkling. "What for?"
She does not immediately answer, choosing instead to slide her arm into the crook of his elbow once more and lean comfortably against him. Her gaze is directed forward, but Saguru has a distinct feeling that she is seeing something far away - something out of his own sight.
"Their story is probably a lot longer than either of us will ever know."
August
Two Years Ago
"Ku-Ku-Kudou Shinichi?!"
The detective smirks, hands tucked into his pockets nonchalantly. "That's me," he says, head tilted back as amusement and confidence oozed from his stare.
The renowned Moonlight Magician is currently frozen in an awkward, far-from-elegant pose at the edge of the rooftop they stand on together now. His tophat is knocked askew on his head, from when the thief's hands had flown up in surprise.
In less than ten minutes from now, he is supposed to be downstairs, stealing a mega-sized diamond called Sirius despite it being the wrong season for this heist. Instead, here he is now, having just finished placing the final touches on his work for tonight's show, only to be cornered by none other than Kudou Shinichi.
"No way!" KID breathes, a grin ticking up to his mouth. "Meitantei, what happened? What about Tantei-kun?"
KID's excitement is contagious, and a little surprising. The smirk on Shinichi's face melts into a boyish grin as the thief's energy begins to affect him. "I changed back about four months ago."
The thief stares at him for a moment longer, and though he seems as if he wants to ask many more questions, he straightens up instead. Shinichi blinks in confusion as KID approaches him, but because he does not sense any danger from the thief, he remains still.
KID takes his hand, then bows to kiss the back of it quickly enough that Shinichi has no chance to jerk away. "Congratulations," he murmurs, a smile dancing on his face. It becomes a full-blown KID grin when Shinichi blushes a deep vermillion in surprise.
"Your teasing won't work on me, idiot," he scoffs, pulling his hand away. He holds it against his chest with his other hand as if to protect it.
"So it'll work if it's not teasing?" the thief returns eloquently, magicking a pristine, red rose from his sleeve in an impossible-to-follow sleight of hand. He tucks its stem into the breast pocket of Shinichi's blazer. "There we are," he murmurs, taking a step back harmlessly.
Shinichi's mouth opens and closes as if he wants to say something else, but the thief turns away and walks towards his previous position. "Four months, huh… I'm surprised I never heard anything about Edogawa Conan disappearing."
"His stay was temporary in the first place," Shinichi retorted, crossing his arms over his chest and willing the blush in his cheeks to die. "And are you admitting to stalking me, KID?"
The thief chuckles, neither confirming nor denying. "Two years is temporary to you, Meitantei?"
"Kaitou KID disappeared for eight."
"Touché."
Shinichi watches silently as KID checks over his clothing and the tools and materials he needs for his heist one last time. He has always known about the thief's meticulous nature, but it is something entirely different to see it with his own eyes.
He ignores the golden opportunity to capture the elusive phantom now.
Though KID is focused on his work, Shinichi can feel that his attention has not wandered from himself even once since this charade began. Slowly, the thief says, "If you've been back for four months but I haven't seen anything about it on the news, that means…"
Their eyes meet, swirling with seriousness.
"I see," KID says aloud with a sigh. "You and I sure have it hard, huh?"
Shinichi snorts. "Tell me about it."
"Well, I know one thing for sure," KID begins.
A particularly harsh gust of summer wind rushes past them, and the detective screws his eyes shut, raising an arm to protect himself. When he opens them once more, he finds that the wind has sent the thief's cape flaring and fluttering behind him. His suit seems to glow white as the clouds above them part enough to let beams of moonlight flood the scene.
Though he does not wish for it to do so, Shinichi's heart begins to race - to pound away at his chest relentlessly - at the sight of KID's smile.
"It's nice to meet you."
The wind dies, leaving behind only a stunned and expectant silence.
When the thief's words register, Shinichi blinks stupidly to himself before clutching his stomach in laughter. "What's with that?" he chuckles, brows furrowing upwards. "Aren't you being too much of a romantic tonight, KID?"
"One can never be too much of a romantic!" he replies, tone almost scandalized.
"You're just trying to distract me from your escape attempt," Shinichi accuses flatly.
"Why? Is it working?"
"Pfffft-!"
Something warm rises in KID's chest. He feels utterly compelled to make Shinichi laugh again and again if it means hearing such a wonderful sound. Still, the mood in the air shifts at the mention of the thief's escape and the detective calms, returning his hands to his pockets and his trademark smirk to his lips.
"You can't escape from me tonight, Kaitou KID."
The wind howls in their ears once more, whipping around the rooftop in a deadly dance much like the one they share. KID, ever relaxed, shoves his hands in his pockets with a confident smirk, unconsciously mirroring him.
"I escape you every time, Meitantei."
November
Present
Kudo Shinichi shifts uncomfortably, nursing a flute of champagne against the walls of the ballroom. From his position, he can see the majority of the banquet hall and its guests. Though he had not initially intended to join the party in this way, the reason for his current discomfort is not the social setting.
No, it is something far worse.
He swallows thickly, leaning his head back against the wall and unconsciously baring his throat. If anyone were to strike up a conversation with him now, he is almost certain that his voice would come out strangled if not suspiciously breathy. A chill runs across the line of his shoulders and down the sides of his torso, like a phantom touch.
This room is absolutely brimming with the presence of Kaitou KID.
And Shinichi, just as he has always been able to, can feel his gaze. But this is different - this is unrelenting, heavy, heated.
Where? he wonders weakly, knowing it is futile. He has been trying to locate the source of that stare for the past hour, but no matter how many times he sweeps his eyes through the crowd, KID is nowhere to be found.
Shinichi does not bother brooding over the question of why the thief has been staring at him so passionately. He knows why, and he knows what that gaze means.
He had felt it only once before.
Deep violet. So deep, that he thinks he will drown. He can count the number of times Kaitou KID has been this close to him on two hands, but never like this.
"Meitantei…"
Never before like this.
Shinichi jerks himself out of his memories and back into the present when the lights in the ballroom are abruptly shut off. Several guests in the crowd scream in fear at the party's sudden interruption and the police radio in his ear is already energetically relaying orders.
But before anyone can move, the lights flicker back to life.
There, standing in the center of the ballroom as guests frantically scramble away from him is Kaitou KID, in full regalia. The screams return, this time as affectionate cheers and awe, or, in Nakamori-keibu's case, anger.
"Ladies and gentlemen!"
A thrill shoots down Shinichi's spine.
"I have come here tonight to humbly present myself at your invitation," the thief removes his hat momentarily, holding it to his chest in an elegant bow. "Allow me to begin tonight's show!"
Invitation…?
And with a snap of his fingers, the heist begins.