Making use of his sneaking skills, Shinichi escaped the supervision of the nurses in the play area to leave the hospital building. The sun was setting, marking that a full day has passed since he left Agasa's house.

His current goal was figuring out how he was going to get back to Beika, as travelling alone during late hours while he wasn't in top shape didn't sound ideal. He would rather not push his luck any more than he already did. From listing his options before, he had considered calling someone. But to ask them to come all the way over here just to pick him up seemed a bit indulgent.

While debating his choices, he continued walking down the path laid in the middle of a wide, open space created for patients to get some fresh air and outdoor exercise. Just ahead on the paved ground, Shinichi spotted someone with a familiar face and hair seated at a bench. Naturally, he recognized those features because they resembled his own.

Shinichi walked up to Kid who was pretending to not notice his approach by looking at his phone. "What are you doing out here? You better not be planning something else again."

"Is this how you should address your nii-chan who has come especially to accompany you back home?" Kid put away his phone, a smirk appearing on his face as he always did whenever they greeted each other with a snarky remark. "Besides, what happened to us being friends like you said to Ran-chan yesterday?"

A part of Shinichi had expected Kid to tease him about the slip, and here it was. "Tsk. We are friends at this point."

"Heh. Anyhow, I have to go back to Beika myself. Got some stuff to return to her." He yawned, looking not too eager to move anytime soon. "Maybe I'll stay over at your place too. I don't feel like going back home yet."

Without any masks or make-up to hide his face, Shinichi could see how tired Kid looked despite supposedly getting almost a full day of rest. Since Shinichi was in no hurry to get back now that the major storm had blown over, he sat on the empty spot on the bench next to Kid. "Well, are you going to tell me now?"

"Huh? Tell you what?" He was midway through another yawn when he glanced back at him.

Shinichi vaguely moved his hand in a circular motion. "You think you're the only one who remembers something from the day before?"

"Seriously?" Kid stared at Shinichi as if he was suddenly as welcomed as a cockroach in the kitchen.

"You owe me an explanation at the very least after I stuck my neck out there with you." Shinichi shot him a glare.

"You're such a petulant brat, Kudo." But after a brief moment of consideration, he relented. "Fine. Not that I'm lacking in practice when it comes to spilling all my secrets lately…"

"Good." Shinichi broke off from the angry stare he had been giving Kid.

Slumping down in his seat, Kid's mannerism seemed less like 'Kudo Shinichi' and more like the real person behind the thin disguise. "I...lied back at Agasa's place."

"Am I supposed to be shocked that you lied?"

"Of course not." He stuck his tongue at the irreverent response. "What I want to say is that I lied about why I was caught off-guard. It wasn't bad timing. Well, partially it was. But still, I had…avoided going into the room where I kept all the Kid stuff after my last heist."

"Why?" Shinichi certainly had not foreseen the truth to be that.

"How should I phrase this?" His shoe scraped against the ground. "It sounds dumb, but I was having doubts about my goals as 'Kid'. I was close to regretting the role I took on."

From the few bits of information and hints Shinichi had compiled together about Kid, he was not stealing for the thrill nor for the profit. Whatever Kid was looking for, it resided inside gems and was sought after by a criminal group. "Why didn't you seek help? Is it because you don't like the police or other people getting involved? Thieves not mixing with detectives and all that." That was one of the excuses Kid had used often during their planning phase against the Black Organization whenever he wanted to leave early.

Kid laughed, half mocking Shinichi's question. "Come on, Kudo. I'm not that petty and naïve."

"That's what I can conclude from the whole lot of nothing you said so far about the problems on your side, Kuroba Kaito." Getting Kid's name had been extremely simple once he put two and two together.

Without batting an eye, Kid responded frankly. "I might 'dislike' the police out of my principle as a thief. But contrary to popular belief, I've been surrounded by them my entire life. Practically raised by one of them even." Kid sat back with his arms crossed, head tilted skywards in reminiscence. "Nakamori, the officers working under him, Aoko, and now the people I would call my friend group. Ha…Ironic that I turned out like this, isn't it?"

After listening to Kid's short spiel on his history with the police, Shinichi nodded with a short hum. "Still, that doesn't explain your reluctance to cooperate with us."

"All right, let me ask you a question." Kid lowered his head, his eyebrows creasing. "Have you ever encountered a case with evidence so weak that you knew something wasn't right?"

Hearing him bring up the topic of cases out of the blue, Shinichi could safely guess that somebody Kid was close to had died. "You've found something about Kuroba Toichi's death?"

"I never believed the police reports when they said it was an accident. Not for a second. Over time, it only became more obvious that something was off the more I thought about it." The look in his eyes darkened. "None of the tricks listed in the program pamphlets involved fire. An electrical spark wouldn't catch the entire stage on fire so rapidly. And I can't imagine my father, of all people, letting any grievous mistakes go unnoticed."

Shinichi allowed a few seconds of silence to pass before he spoke. "It sounds like you have proof that there was foul play involved, but the fact that his murder is related to how he was Kaitou Kid prevents you from bringing it up to authorities. Am I correct?"

A scowl briefly flashed on his face, but he forced his displeasure from showing too overtly. "Even if I hid that particular bit of information about his identity, I'm not at liberty to reopen a closed case to begin with. Not to mention that it'll attract suspicion on my day-to-day identity and the people near me if I asked. That is why I've been using Kaitou Kid's name."

Shinichi understood that the image and name of 'Kaitou Kid' had served as a way to draw attention while investigating. "Making use of Kid's established fame, I see. Not a bad idea."

"Well, that didn't protect anyone for long." Kid shifted in his seat, but winced slightly when he moved his injured shoulder a little too roughly. "If those bastards knew of my father's true identity, then they already had eyes set around Ekoda for some time to track him down. It should've been obvious, and yet I hadn't thought of that. Their inactivity might have misled me into thinking I was completely safe by hiding behind 'Kaitou Kid'."

"Now that you know that, will you bring your case to the authorities now?"

In a semi-joking fashion, Kid sighed as a smile formed on his lips. "Ah, I was beginning to really get a liking for the police after hanging out with them so often in the evenings. But following what I saw happen recently, it might have undone all the good will I had stockpiled."

"Don't lie to my face again. I know that you still trust Inspector Nakamori and his team. Kaitou Kid was officially enlisted to help. Have you forgotten already?" The scene from yesterday at the headquarters was a strangely memorable moment. Similarly bizarre was how he currently found himself lending Kid some advice. "You can take this opportunity to cement yourself as a secret ally to the police, and then bring their attention to the group you've been trying to take down."

He went quiet, dipping his head down to stare at his lap with a light melancholic expression. "...Wouldn't that be selfish of me? To use them like that?"

"Use? The police would only be doing what they're supposed to be doing anyways." Shinichi narrowed his eyes in puzzlement at the other's words.

Kid had a conflicted look before he settled back to a passive one, further slumping against his seat. "I…asked the inspector to keep my identity a secret last night, and I'm still shocked that he agreed." The resemblance of a chuckle escaped him when he shook his head. "Even after all the problems I've caused. I don't know if he's willing to hear me out anymore."

This feeling of being a burden to those around him was something Shinichi was familiar with due to his physical condition and wanted status by the Black Organization. With time, he learned to accept that some people were willing to lend a hand without anything in exchange. However, that notion had been tested when it came time to tell Ran the truth.

"Not long ago, I asked something from Ran that was pretty selfish."

With a blink, Kid's eyes swivelled back to him. "Really? What did you say to her?"

"It was when I told her everything about the poison, the people that wanted me dead, and the dangers that I caused by being near her. Once I did that, she was the most upset I'd ever seen her." Shinichi shivered as he remembered the sight of her face and her clenched fists shaking. It had also been the time he found out he wasn't as good as he thought he was at hiding from Ran while living with her. "After that, I asked her to forgive me. I might not have deserved it, but I said it." He had crossed his fingers that she wouldn't toss him out through the windows in a fit of rage right afterwards.

It felt as if all the guilt he accumulated and brushed off had returned with a vengeance back then. Yet, there existed a tiny bit of him that had clung to the hope that Ran would understand him even if she would choose to sever their relationship.

"Based on what I saw back in Beika, I would guess that it worked out for you in the end. Nice!" Kid responded with a congratulatory grin.

There was something infectious about Kid even outside of his costume that made Shinichi return a smile of his own. Clearing his throat, he went back to the topic at hand. "My point is that I don't think you were wrong to ask Inspector Nakamori to keep your secret. Try to put some faith in the people around you. It might be more beneficial than not to do so at this point."

"...Hm." His smile stayed as he closed his eyes for a few seconds in contemplation. "I was not expecting to be lectured when I decided to retrieve you."

"It wasn't my intention, but take it as you will." When Kaitou Kid first joined forces with him to plan out their infiltration of the organization's headquarters, Shinichi had his doubts on Kid's motives for helping. Shinichi knew through Hakuba that Kid was reluctant to share knowledge about his goals, yet the thief seemingly dived headfirst into danger all for the sake of taking down a great evil.

"Well, then. Enough talking for now." As if tossing aside his previously glum tiredness, Kid pushed on his leg as he rose up from his seat on the bench. "Let's go before it gets too dark. Wouldn't want to cause any more worry for Ran-neechan, don't we?"

The sun was indeed rapidly descending past the horizon. Shinichi agreed that they should set out but not until he said what he had wanted to say. "One last thing."

"Yeah?"

He jumped out of his seat, catching up with Kid in a couple of strides. "You helped get Haibara and me out of trouble quite a few times now. So, I believe that it's my turn to lend you a hand."

"You didn't really have to tell me that." Kid beamed back without a moment of hesitation. "I know you won't let me down, Great Detective."

"Thank you all for coming!"

An excited voice travelled down the corridor after the doors to the elevator opened. Upon recognizing it, Hakuba figured out why Kuroba and Aoko had disappeared from the classroom halfway through the day.

Spotting a gathering in the lobby section of the Division Two offices, Hakuba headed to the source of the noise. In a seating area that had been cleared away of chairs and tables, people stood with their attention drawn to the pair in the middle. Side by side with hands linked together, Kuroba and Aoko bowed to mark the end of their performance.

Kuroba raised his free hand in a way that brought focus to Aoko. "Another round of applause for my lovely assistant!"

Leaning his back against a wall with his arms crossed, Hakuba waited for the handclapping to die down and the small crowd to clear away before approaching them. "That was hardly subtle of you, Kuroba-kun. I could have mistaken it for a heist happening right inside the police headquarters."

"You're fashionably late for once, Hakuba." He grinned ear to ear as he walked towards him with his hands clasped behind his head. His face had a noticeable red colour on it, as if he just came back from a run.

Guessing the cause of the other's flushed appearance, Hakuba pointed it out with a smirk. "Had cold feet?"

Trying to maintain a nonchalant air at the remark, Kuroba frowned. "Amazing deduction. How did you know I would be a little nervous performing here?"

"Personally, I would have chosen a more inconspicuous place to hold a celebratory show." In his mind, Hakuba had to admit that the boldness fit Kuroba perfectly.

"Practice show, Hakuba. Practice. I'm not celebrating anything." He corrected him without putting in much effort before making another point. "Besides, I didn't have time to organize it somewhere else and then invite everyone there all at once, okay?"

Approximately a week had passed since the incident, and the neighborhood in Ekoda where both Nakamori and Kuroba's residences were located remained under surveillance in case of any repeated attacks. The official cover story was that a group of people holding a grudge against Inspector Nakamori had targeted his daughter and close family friend after he had played a key part in arresting their comrade years ago.

For a few days, Kuroba hid in Beika while Aoko went back to her normal routine. Kuroba only returned to Ekoda once it was deemed to be safe by both the police and Kuroba himself after there appeared to be no signs of potential attackers lurking in the area. Hakuba surmised that the little event Kuroba and Aoko hosted at the headquarters was a show of gratitude of sorts.

Joining them with her phone in her hand, Aoko grinned brightly as she looked up from it. "All right! The video looks good. You missed the show, but I'm glad you're here, Hakuba-kun. You'll have to watch the video if you want to see it."

"Thank you, Aoko-san. I'll be sure to give it a look in my free time." With a courteous smile, Hakuba nodded in response and then addressed his curiosity about the fact she brought up. "Did Kuroba-kun ask you to record the entire performance?"

The click of the tongue came from Kuroba who turned his head with a theatrical sigh of annoyance. "No way. Come on, it was only like ten minutes. Nothing to go crazy over. Gimme your phone, Ahoko."

"Hands off." Keeping her phone clutched to her chest, Aoko pivoted away. "Chikage-san asked me to record your first public show and share it around. I'm helping you get famous, dumbass!"

"This isn't even my first!"

"I-I'm in it with you, so it's special." Puffing her cheek, her face—already reddened from the adrenaline a few moments ago—grew a shade darker. "I'm going to upload it online now, got it?"

"Whatever, go ahead. Not that I care much either way." Kuroba shrugged, and caught sight of Hakuba smirking amusedly at him giving in to Aoko. "H-hey, being filmed and cheered at as myself is different from…that."

Chuckling as he shook his head, Hakuba was unable to suppress a laughter rising inside his chest from Kuroba's unusual bashfulness. "I can't say that I'm familiar with that feeling."

After putting her phone inside her jacket, Aoko walked away. She turned around at the last second to announce where she was headed. "I'm going to ask Dad if he can drive us back home soon or not. You get started with the cleanup, Bakaito."

"Right. The 'fun' part…" Looking down at the floor, Kuroba shifted his feet to move some of the paper confetti and streamers left behind. The mess on the floor wasn't anything terrible, but it was enough to make it seem like some sort of party went down. After estimating the amount of cleaning he had to do, Kuroba turned his attention back to Hakuba. "Anyways, where did you come back from?"

Before answering, Hakuba briefly glanced around to make sure there was nobody that lingered close by for too long. The risk for unwanted eavesdropping was small but he wished to mitigate any risk. He had already received a complaint from Kuroba to be more mindful about his words. "My father summoned me to a private meeting between him and a representative sent from the FBI. She has agreed to provide assistance as long as we cooperate in their mission as well."

Kuroba appeared not too surprised by the outcome. "Kudo told me that the American agents have been met with an unexpected hiccup on their end. I wonder if they'll mention what it is to us."

"True, I would like to know as well." Whatever it could be, Kudo wasn't allowed to reveal it to Kuroba nor him. Asking directly about the specifics simply out of curiosity would be stepping out of bounds, but there was still hope for them to find out. "I had a formal meeting arranged for later in order to present more details about our case to the FBI and Superintendent Chaki. Needless to say, I expect a certain someone to be there with me."

"Ah, that would be no problem." Shooting Hakuba a smirk with a Kid-like glint in his eyes, Kuroba snapped his fingers. "When is the exact date of this fateful council meeting?"

"This Friday, after school." For the sake of his own and Kuroba's daytime schedules, Hakuba had set a time most convenient for them both.

"Duly noted." After a short nod, Kuroba's gaze swept around the place. "Well, I'm gonna go plunder the maintenance section of the floor for a broom or something. Aoko would yell at me if I left this mess for somebody else."

"I'll let you work in peace then. See you tomorrow, Kuroba-kun." Hakuba left him to his own devices, having done with all he needed to do in the headquarters and with the intention to head back home for the evening.

Things seemed to have settled back down to normal. But lingering in the back of Hakuba's thoughts was how deceptive that feeling was, if he were to go off of what happened before. After dealing with the questioning and injury in the wake of the Karasuma Group's downfall, Hakuba had once thought that peace would return with one source of trouble gone. However, knowing that the FBI ran into a problem worthy of their attention so soon afterwards only gave him an uncomfortable feeling that Kudo's enemies left a ripple effect that went under all of their notice.

Somewhere in another place, a man smiled.

Closing the laptop he had been looking at, he then stood up to face the sprawling city skyline beyond the glass. Contrasting with the darkness inside his personal office room, the outside was glowing with lights from a variety of establishments and vehicles. At the thought of the footage he just saw, his heart swelled up with pride—a feeling that had been occurring more frequently as of late.

But enough dreaming of a bygone life. It was time to go back to work on his project. His next move would surely change the tides, and he needed to prepare for the consequences.

Author's Note:

And…It's done! Hooray!

I started three fics at the same time, and this one was the first to be completed. (Also this is the first fic I outlined. Can you tell?) It actually all started when I wanted to write someone using a crossbow. I forgot why and how I got that idea though. When it came to writing Aoko's lines, I actually forgot that she had a quirk of referring to herself in 3rd person. In the end, I told myself that she's older now and would speak more 'maturely' so I left it that way lol

Now you might have noticed that this is part of a series (on AO3), so yes, I've outlined a sequel but I haven't started typing it out yet as of writing this. This fic will act as a background to the next one, and I do plan on a recap section for the stand-alone sequel.

Looking back, the average chapter length for all of my works have gotten longer. And the quality got better, maybe? (I hope so.) Not gonna lie, I started this one with only a very vague idea of how it would end unlike my other fics. I was even considering leaving it unfinished since it was more to test the waters out with a tamer idea. But here I am, with a continuation in mind!

By the way, feel free to check out my other works! As of writing this, I have two other works in progress published. Both are AUs/canon-divergent. One is where Kaito didn't grow up with the Nakamori family but he meets them later instead, and the other is if he were part of the Black Organization. Even though I know there are other BO!Kaito fics out there, I have yet to see one completed or not a one-shot. So I thought: "Fine, I'll do it myself". (Hopefully I will finish it one day because the outline is a whopping 25+ chapters, excluding extra chapters to wrap some things up. The longest outline I have ever planned.)

One last thing. With school, other projects, life, and plot bunnies keeping me occupied, I will publish my stuff more slowly from now on. Damn, do I wish I could focus on one thing at a time. Well, that's all I have to say for now. Thanks for reading!