Barely finished this in time. Actually, I'm pretty sure it barely even counts as finished, with how rushed the ending is, but oh well...?
Warnings… uh, shounen-ai and grammar mistakes / error, as per my usual.
And AU information – about four years after the current timeline, so that makes the Detective Boys around ten years old and Shinichi, Kaito, Ran, etc. all about twenty.
Yes, I am aware that Halloween isn't as big in Japan as it is in the States, but we're just going to pretend that Beika is a place where it's celebrated and trick-or-treating is totally a thing. Cool? Cool.
Hope you enjoy...! – Luna
This Is Halloween
In Shinichi's defense, he wasn't wearing it because he wanted to. He was wearing it because the Detective Boys had really, really wanted him to be in costume when he went trick-or-treating with them, and Ran had just happened to have it on hand (for some reason Shinichi probably didn't want to know), and Shinichi didn't want to disappoint anyone.
That was why he was currently decked out in a Kid costume. Not for any other reason.
At least, that was what Shinichi was trying to tell himself as he stared blankly at himself in the mirror.
Holding the top hat in one hand, he dragged his fingers through his hair weakly. Now that he was actually wearing the outfit, he was starting to regret accepting Ran's proposal that he dress up as Kid. For one, the monocle was really uncomfortable, digging sharply into the side of his nose every time he moved his eyebrows – Shinichi had no idea how Kid managed to survive through heists with the thing stuck to his face – and for another, this was a lot more embarrassing than he'd anticipated.
Shinichi settled the hat back on his head, frowning at his reflection (and the monocle cheerfully jabbed into his nose. Lovely). This just felt… weird. The costume was pretty true to life – Shinichi could vouch for that – but still… it was just… wrong, almost.
Because he'd always associated the Kid outfit with Kid, and Kid, in his mind, was undeniably attractive, so clearly seeing himself in the Kid outfit felt, um...
Someone gave a quiet urk. Shinichi realized it was him after a few seconds.
Right, okay. Shinichi could not go out into public like this. He was about to tear off the costume and "accidentally" burn it before Ran could stop him when the door to the bathroom banged open and a four-foot-tall princess wrapped in bright pink tulle crashed into his waist, latching onto his thighs with the inhuman strength only a ten-year-old girl could possess. "Shinichi-oniisan, you look really nice!"
Patting her on the head awkwardly, Shinichi gently pulled her off of him. "Hey, Ayumi." Looking down at her with a mixture of amusement and dismay, because he couldn't very well strip in front of her, Shinichi offered a weak smile. "Do you really think I look okay?"
Ayumi beamed up at him with bright pink cheeks and a wide grin. "Mmhm!" Her smile turned coy as she shyly added, "Because Shinichi-oniisan always looks good."
"…Right." Shinichi gave a strangled sort of sound and a smile to match. Unfortunately, it seemed Ayumi's little crush on Conan had transferred to him after Conan had "gone to America," which was more than slightly awkward now that his body matched his mind.
He was saved from having to respond to Ayumi's excited bouncing when Ran appeared in the doorway, clad in an orange and black witch costume. "Ayumi-chan, I told you not to interrupt – oh." She drew up short, blinking owlishly at Shinichi.
After a full thirty seconds of being blinked at, Shinichi flinched and sighed, rubbing at the nape of his neck. "That bad?"
"Huh?" Ran started. She shook her head quickly, earrings slapping against her neck. "No, no, that's not it. You look… really good. A lot like Kid, actually."
"Oh, fabulous. Everything I ever wanted."
Ran shot him a halfway suspicious glance as she turned. "I think I'm detecting sarcasm, but I know I must be wrong," she chirped cheerfully, the warning in her voice as clear as if she'd just said complain about your costume and I will plant my foot in your face.
"…Of course not. You heard nothing."
Saccharine smile. "I knew it. Well, let's go. The boys are waiting."
Shinichi shuddered as he grudgingly followed after her, Ayumi trailing after him. He still didn't quite understand what had possessed his seventeen-year-old self to want to date such a violent person so badly. He could only thank his lucky stars that nineteen-year-old him had ended it.
(Although, fine, she was one of his favorite people and he still loved her to death. But dating her was just not how things should be.)
In the living room, Genta, dressed as a horse, and Mitsuhiko, a knight (neither of them could agree who got to be the prince to Ayumi's princess; they'd ended up with this setup as a compromise), were waiting, clearly irritated. Haibara was nowhere in sight – she'd declared Halloween to be a waste of time, much to the Detective Boys' horror. Professor Agasa sat at the counter, an oversized bowl of candy in front of him. He was in charge of passing out candy, though Shinichi wondered who had entrusted that job to him.
"You guys take too long," Genta groused, glaring as Shinichi, Ran, and Ayumi entered. "The good candy's probably already long gone. No thanks to you."
Ran smiled angelically and in direct contrast with her costume. "I don't know about that, Genta-kun," she remarked airily. "It's only a few minutes before seven, after all."
Genta just crossed his arms huffily, looking away with disdain.
"Well, everyone, let's get going," Ran called, heading for the door. "I hear Poirot is giving out strawberry Kit Kats!"
The Detective Boys gave a simultaneous cheer and bolted for the door. Ran followed at a less hurried pace, smiling to herself.
Shinichi glanced over at Professor Agasa, who smirked devilishly as he commented, "You look nice, Shinichi-kun" (Shinichi resisted the urge to glare at him), before stepping out into the cool October night.
The wind filled the cape, blowing it out behind him, and Shinichi momentarily felt like a superhero. So this is what Kid feels like?
"Hurry up, Shinichi-san!" Mitsuhiko yelled from down the sidewalk, and Shinichi adjusted the monocle over his face – it was still determined to drill through the side of his nose, he noted sadly – and hurried after their backs.
As he caught up to them, matching his stride to Ran's, Ran leaned over and commented, "Oh, hey, did I mention the thing about Kuroba-kun?"
Shinichi's heart nearly stopped. He was immediately on guard. "What… thing… about Kaito?" he asked, very carefully. Ran had a very suspicious look in her eye, one that just about screamed that she had been meddling, and he did not like it. At all.
Ran giggled disarmingly girlishly as they bypassed Shinichi's house, Ayumi and Genta engaging in an enthusiastic discussion on why Twix were the best a few feet ahead of them. It was a giggle that masked several million evil intentions, and Shinichi flinched visibly, breaking out into a sweat underneath the top hat. "Why are you laughing?"
"I was just thinking about how it's just so cute how you call him 'Kaito,' and how he calls you 'Shinichi,'" Ran explained, bright-eyed and pink-cheeked. Shinichi gaped in abject terror.
The conversation paused as Mitsuhiko pointed out that they needed to cross the street.
"Anyway," Ran continued, once the five of them had safely crossed the nearly empty intersection – there weren't many cars out – and were only a block or so from Poirot, "what I was asking is whether I told you that Kuroba-kun would be meeting us at Poirot."
It took Shinichi approximately four seconds to fully comprehend Ran's words.
…Shit.
Kaito had been waiting at Poirot for nearly fifteen minutes before he finally saw five familiar figures walking towards him. Finally.
He straightened from where he'd been leaning against the display window, dusting off the back of his vampire costume and adjusting his fake teeth. "You're la…" he started with mock irritation, but the words died abruptly on his tongue when the Detective Boys, Ran, and Shinichi drew closer.
Because, uh, shit, Shinichi was wearing a Kid suit. And looking damn good.
Kaito had never really considered himself a narcissist, but nevertheless, he couldn't stop staring as Shinichi came to a halt in front of him, cape fluttering behind him and monocle positioned neatly over his eye. The suit clung to him perfectly, a touch snug right around the hips, and the hat had shifted out of place, tilted back so Shinichi's face was very much visible, and the edge of the dark blue collar against the pale white expanse of his neck contrasted so sharply –
Wow. Um.
Trying to recall how words worked, Kaito's jaw jerked up and down before he finally gave up on breathing, let alone speech. He settled for choking out an awkward, strangled sound. "Er."
"I know, I know," Shinichi hissed, expression irate as he crossed his arms self-consciously over his chest. "Ran had the costume for some reason, and she didn't tell me you'd be here." He shot a glare over at his childhood friend.
The girl just rolled her eyes as she turned away from shooing Ayumi, Genta, and Mitsuhiko into Poirot. "Oh, be quiet." She gave Kaito a warm smile. "You're a Kid fan, aren't you? I thought you might appreciate the costume."
Kaito could only manage a weak gurgle.
Ayumi came hurtling out of the café, waving a stack of Kit Kats in various flavors. "Look! I got green tea, pear, strawberry, plain, and peach!" Stopping in front of Shinichi, she shyly offered him one. "Shinichi-oniisan, you like green tea, right?"
"Oh, uh, right," Shinichi answered, slightly surprised as he accepted the candy. He reached over to ruffle her hair, grinning widely. "Thanks, Ayumi. It's really nice of you to share."
Recovering his senses (to some degree – he still couldn't look directly at Shinichi for fear of losing all sensibility), Kaito placed his hands on his hips. "Wow, Ayumi-chan, I can't believe you," he scolded with mock seriousness. "You're giving one to Shinichi-nii, but not to Kaito-nii?" He shook his head. "And here I thought we were friends."
Giggling, Ayumi thrust a plain Kit Kat in his direction. "Kaito-oniisan likes plain chocolate, right?"
"How'd you know?" Kaito took the Kit Kat from her, cradling it tenderly in his hands. He pretended to wipe away tears, rubbing at his nose. "I'm so touched that you remembered, Ayumi-chan."
It was at that moment that Genta and Mitsuhiko emerged from the café, both shooting twin glares at Kaito. "Acting like that is so immature, Kaito-san," Mitsuhiko sniffed, and Kaito grinned.
"And you'd know how to treat a princess, right, Mitsuhiko-kun?"
"Of course!" Mitsuhiko struck a pose. "For I am Ayumi-chan's knight!"
"Hey!" Genta, who had been counting all twenty-two of his Kit Kats, looked up at that. "I'm Ayumi's horse! I'd know even better!"
As Genta and Mitsuhiko dissolved into an argument over which was better, a knight or a horse, Kaito snuck a fleeting glance at Shinichi.
The detective was unwrapping the Kit Kat.
With his teeth.
Lips parted, Kaito was transfixed as Shinichi held one corner of the wrapper and gripped the other between his teeth, dragging it downwards until the wrapper tore and the candy fell out, bumping against his face. Chocolate smeared over his bottom lip, and Shinichi seemed resigned as he gingerly took the Kit Kat in one hand and proceeded to lick the chocolate off in a motion that should not be performed in front of this many children.
Kaito gaped, his brain stalling.
Shinichi seemed to notice his gaze, meeting his eyes quizzically. "I can't open it with gloves on, you know," he reminded Kaito, and Kaito just forced himself to bob his head and pretend he wasn't imagining Shinichi ripping open a different kind of wrapper.
It was going to be a very long night.
Shinichi sighed as he shut his front door, leaning against it once it was closed. "That was tiring." They'd only just gotten back, around eleven forty, after getting Ayumi, Genta, Mitsuhiko, and Ran all back home safely.
Kaito, who had just pulled off his fake fangs, nodded in agreement. Shinichi took a moment to fully appreciate Kaito's elaborate costume – the red-edged black cape and matching suit certainly looked good on him – before reaching over to pull off his boots.
"And now that we're alone," Kaito's voice came, stopping Shinichi in his tracks, "we can discuss your costume."
"Uh…" Shinichi flinched. He'd almost managed to forget about the fact that he was still wearing the Kid outfit. "Right, well, like I said…"
"You look good."
Head snapping up, Shinichi gawped at Kaito, who was eyeing him appreciatively. "Uh?"
"No, seriously. You actually look… really, really good," Kaito said, and was that a flush on his cheeks, spreading down his neck he ran a hand through his hair? "I… um." He gave a small cough.
"Are…" Shinichi was finding this situation harder and harder to believe. "You… like the way I look in your suit? Are you some kind of closet narcissist?"
"When you put it that way…" Yes, Kaito was full-on blushing now, and Shinichi was following suit dangerously quickly.
"I don't mean it in a bad way," Shinichi got out, stumbling over his words. "Just – that wasn't the reaction I was expecting. I was expecting more annoying teasing and general mockery, I guess?"
"Oh, really?" Kaito hazarded a glance in his direction. "Uh, no, I can't really – think when I look at you, so… teasing and mockery are a little impossible."
Shinichi gaped for a moment longer before he smirked and swept across the entrance to regard Kaito with amusement. Kaito's indigo eyes were actually uncovered for once, due to his bangs being slicked back against his head, and Shinichi swallowed hard before he half-whispered, "Is that a confession?"
Kaito just stared at him.
Just as Shinichi was beginning to think this had all been an elaborate prank (his stomach dropped at the thought – well this is awkward), Kaito reached up and pulled off Shinichi's monocle. "And if I said it was?" he asked, voice low and rough.
"Well," Shinichi said, matter-of-fact, "that would be quite interesting."
He leaned up and kissed Kaito, and Kaito responded with much enthusiasm. The monocle fell from his hand, forgotten, and the top hat was quickly abandoned as well.
That night, Kaito did, in fact, get to see Shinichi tear open a different kind of wrapper with his teeth.
And now I'm going to go, because I'm pretty worn out. Please consider leaving me a review if you enjoyed this fic even a little~!
Hope to be back with the second part of Drinks On Me in a few more days. (Not entirely sure if that's an empty promise or not.) Love you all! - Luna
EDIT 11/8/14: Someone asked what wrapper I was talking about. *cough* condom wrapper *cough*