-FIRSTS-
Disclaimer: The works of Detective Conan and Magic Kaito belongs to Gosho Aoyama-sensei.
Warning: KaiShin relationship.
Warning II: Character torture...ish?
A/N: Uh...Please don't kill me? I does get better, please bare with it. (This chapter so was close to being M rated...but I toned it down somewhat. It WILL be re-rated in 2 chapter's time)
First Capture
KID groaned, his head felt like it had been run over by a semi and his shoulders were aching from being pulled back. He could feel the metallic handcuffs biting into his wrist, obstructing blood circulation and causing discomfort. He kept his eyes closed and breaths even as he wriggled his fingers to check for maneuverability. It was limited but he would have to make do for now. His senses were telling him there was at least one other person in the room so he was on his guard. He tried to pull up the last thing he remembered, which was a heist.
-Some time ago-
"Really Meitantei, do you think blocking my way to the building's edge could stop me from escaping?" KID taunted as in stood by the doorway. Tonight, the Heisei Holmes managed to arrive to the rooftop before the thief and had anticipated his escape route.
"No, but at least I hope it will make your escape more bothersome." He rolled the soccer ball beneath his foot. "Or you might make a mistake again tonight."
"And when have I made a mistake in the first place?" KID cocked his head to one side, not really bothering hide his face now that the detective knew of his identity.
"By sending me your heist note." Shinichi took the flat card from his chest pocket. The card was unnaturally flat for being on his person for such a long time.
"Your presence is greatly valued at my shows. Without you here, I lack the luster and the night would seem bland." KID could not waste the chance for a little flirting whilst the rest of the Task Force and Hakuba were stuck in the jewel room. This was the first time they met as thief and detective after their date.
With a flick of his hands, a stem of viscaria appeared between his middle and fore fingers. KID twirled the flower in his hands before throwing it up in the air, where one of his doves caught the stem in mid air in her beak. She flew over to the detective and landed softly on his shoulders, earning a scratch as she motioned for Shinichi to take the flower. He smiled, eyes creased at the edge, joy and happiness barely hidden underneath the sharp sapphire orbs.
The dove flew a circle around the pair when she was relived of her package, and landed back on her master's shoulders. It seems the dove knew she did a good job as she puffed up her feathers with pride.
"I guess like-pet-like-master?" Shinichi giggled into his hands, having taken by quite a lot of the doves' antics the more he sees them perform.
"I did raise them from chicks." KID gave the dove a scratch before directing her away.
KID was about to say something else when he heard the detective yell. He could not make out the words as he was hit on the head, knocking his hat over, and he crumpled onto the ground. He vaguely saw a flying blur by his head before his head met the concrete and passing out into darkness.
-Present-
"There is no need for you to pretend to be unconscious Kaitou KID." A sinister voice echoed in the room. KID knew it was useless to remain on the floor and slowly sat up, using the wall behind him to support his movements since his hands were tied. He sat with his back leaning against the unnaturally cold wall.
"And who do I have the pleasure of greeting?" KID kept his voice levelled even though his head was still out to kill him. He gave his captor a once-over. In the dim lighting he could make out a small, stout silhouette. There was only one person inside the room with him, it could be that there were lots more outside the doorway, which is directly in KID's line of right.
"You may call me Boss. I've been given the privilege by That Person to oversee the conquest for Pandora." The voice belonged to a middle aged man. One that he heard very early on, not long after he picked up the KID mantel. "From now on, you'll be working for us Kaitou KID."
"Oh? You're assuming quite a lot here." He was well aware that his face could be fully seen. KID knew his captors can easily threaten his civilian identity. His first and foremost thought was what happened to the Heisei Holmes who was also with him on the roof that evening.
"We know who you are Kuroba Kaito. Or do you need some more incentive?" The way the last word was pronounced caused KID to snarl. The Boss pressed a remote and the room lit up from the wall KID was leaning on. KID turned his head to glance behind.
The wall was not really a wall but a slab of glass pane, a window into another room. The light stung KID's eyes, he squinted his eyes for a moment then widened when he realised the room held another captive.
In a room of pure white, Shinichi sat on a steel chair like a jarring shard, with his arms and legs secured onto the chair. KID growled when he saw the treatment of his detective but was grateful that Shinichi was blindfolded as KID was sure his expression was murderous at the moment.
"Say hello to Kudo Shinichi. We took a lot of pains to bring him in." A sinister smirk reflected from the glass.
"Who?" Shinichi's confused voice came through the speakers, which KID noticed were placed on the four corners of the room. The voice held none of the sharp qualities KID usually hear (and adored), it was likely that he only recently regained consciousness much like the thief.
"Good evening Kudo Shinichi. I have someone here who wants to meet you." The Boss leaned closer to KID's ear to whisper without having it being picked up by the room's microphone. "Now, say something before we have to force it from you."
"Meitantei."
"That voice, Kaitou KID." There was recognition and trepidation in his voice.
"Very well done." The Boss clapped. "But surely you know him more intimately by another name."
"There's no one else who'll use that tone that I know of."
The Boss dared to laugh, gwaffed loudly, annoying both captives. "I see, I see. You probably would recognize the voice better if he were screaming in pleasure right?"
"Who are you talking about?" KID could tell from the harshness of the voice that Shinichi was livid.
"Kuroba Kaito."
"He's not even in Japan now. He left for Las Vagas this morning to meet with his mother." KID could not believe his ears, the detective was making up an excuse for him.
"Deny all you want. But I'll leave you two to bond for a while. I do hope you'll reconsider your answer." The last phrase was directed towards KID.
The guards inside the other room moved away and out the door in time with The Boss's leaving, giving them a sense of false privacy as both captives knew there were bound to be some monitoring device set up inside with them.
"KID? Are you ok? Are you injured?" Concern evident in the tone.
"I'm fine Meitantei. Though I do wonder how you managed to get caught."
"I should throw the question back at you. How could you let them surprise you!" KID winced at the not-quite shout. He turned fully so that he could rest his forehead on the glass pane whilst kneeling. This separation is emotionally painful, especially since he could not check whether his detective was injured or not. "You let yourself become too carried away!"
KID let his detective speak his mind. Shinichi was clearly worried.
"What if I wasn't there? You would have gotten seriously hurt! They were going to kill you!"
"But they didn't." KID whispered, not expecting Shinichi to hear. Unfortunately, the detective not only have sharp eyes, but also attentive ears.
"Bakamono!" Shinichi was now shouting, he tried to move but rattled his restraints instead. As his seat was secured onto the ground, he was not able to move an inch. KID could see the detective was agitated and extremely angry, he had even foregone the usual tone and the word no longer sounded like a term of endearment. "You rely too much on your luck! Have you become so cocky? This is not the thief that I chase! Use your skills, your head for once!"
KID closed his eyes, letting the detective's words flow even though it does hurt. He knew it was all just worried-speech, but it feels as though he disappointed Shinichi. It sounded as though KID was not worthy of the detective's time anymore. KID tried to tune out the words, only focus on the ups and downs of the detective's voice.
"Why aren't you saying anything KID? Finally admitting you're no better than the average thief?"
This taunt sounded wrong to KID. Shinichi may insult but to be so pushy and degrade someone was out of character. It is at this moment that KID realize this was all an act. Shinichi was buying time for KID to break them out.
"...Meitantei, finished your rant yet?" KID tried to project impatience through his voice. Shinichi huffed in reply. "You never answered the question, how did you get caught."
"I couldn't just leave you undefended." The detective muttered. He tried to turn away from where he was facing, but being confined to a chair does not leave much room for movement. "I convinced them I could be good leverage against you."
"You what?!" This time, it was KID who was angered. "Why on Earth did you do that! A normal person would try to flee!"
"Look, they were about to shoot you! I wasn't about to let them commit murder in my face. That and they'll finish off any witness, that is myself, on the scene. I'm just saving my own life in the process. Be grateful that that I was one the roof and not any of your Task Force!"
"Grateful?" They were slowly developing this to a shouting match. "How am I supposed to be grateful? If anything were to happen to you, my number one fan would be devastated! How am I supposed to answer him then?" It was strange for him to be referring to himself in third person but he had to keep up the act.
"So you're admitting to stalking me now."
"Those people just mentioned his name! Kuroba Kaito. I met him once before. He was anticipating me on a roof at the end of a heist." KID was making this up as he went along. It was a good thing he was good at improvisation. Though, now that he had the time, and with their voices loud enough to cover up the sounds of escape, he went about testing his restraints. It was a simple set of handcuff, could be easily picked. The hard part came from how to get to Shinichi and escape together. Although the glass pane was thin and he could cut it with the diamond cutter he had hidden in his sleeve, he was not certain he could get the detective out off his restraints before their captors noticed. "You're not supposed to leave people you care about behind!"
"He's in the States, why bring him into this? Though, now that you mention it, he should be trying to contact me non-stop ever since his plane landed. He'll probably be worried."
What was worrying for KID was how the detective was jumping all over the place in the conversation. He briefly wondered whether the drugs those people gave Shinichi were having an adverse effect when combined with all the chemicals already in his system.
"See! This is the sort of thing you shouldn't be doing!"
"If you two are quite done." Another voice echoed through the speakers. KID narrowed his eyes as soon as he heard the hateful voice.
"Snake." KID hissed out.
"I do hope you have a good answer for us." Snake walked into view in the detective's room. Their captors most likely feel more safe with the bound detective. "Unless you need more motivation?" Snake held out a small remote with a button and a dial.
"What do you think you're doing." KID growled, escape momentarily forgotten. "Don't you dare touch a hair on him!"
"But I won't be touching, you see." Snake smirked, crouching in front of KID from the other side of the glass. "This boy is quite bothersome. Last time he escaped us, we had to dispose of the whole team because he saw their faces. We took precautions this time, but we know he could escape us again. So no more chances." He dangled the remote in front of KID. "Do you know what this little thing does?"
KID had a very bad feeling as he remained silent.
"This device is your motivation to helping us locate and retrieve what we want."
Snake's thumb hovered over the button, brush over the surface like caressing a female body. Snake looked directly into KID's eyes, he gave KID a sinister smirk before depressing the button. A resounding click followed by a hiss from behind Snake, who slowly turned up the dial and KID's eye widened at the convulsions from Shinichi.
"Stop." KID managed to pronounce through his teeth. Snake's thumb remained in position, though he had stopped turning up the dial. "Stop it now!" KID shouted, head resting on the glass, forcing back the tears and trying to escape from the image of his detective suffering in the other room.
"Only if you agree KID."
"No." Shinichi's choked out in between rasps and pants. Electricity coursed through his body like liquid fire, causing involuntary actions and jerking against his restraints. His voice was extremely weak but still made KID pause before answering. KID was just about to agree to spare the detective but Shinichi beat him to it. "Don't." It seems it was taking all of his control to contain the scream and pain.
"Shut Up!" In a fit of rage, Snake lifted his thumb from the switch and stalked over to the detective. He backhanded the detective, a resounding smack came through the speakers. The detective coughed, grateful for the respite from the electric shock, and fortunately not spitting out blood.
"You'll pay for that!" KID glared from his position, kneeling on the floor, eyes ablazed with cold hatred.
"Try all you want KID." There was a sudden ringing, a familiar tone of the detective's mobile. "Saved by a call, young detective. I'll be sure to answer them so they won't miss you. But then, you suddenly disappearing is nothing new." Snake walked out of the room, leaving a panting detective with the silent thief. Their captors were most likely thinking this would break them, this physical separation and mental torture.
"Shini..." KID wanted nothing more but to reach out and touch Shinichi.
"Don't." The detective's voice was forceful once more now that he had a chance to breath again. "Don't address me like you know me."
It was equally painful for KID not being able to call the detective by his name. But they have to keep up with the charade so not to endanger KID's civilian identity.
"You're nothing to me but a thief I chase on my free days." The lie hurt more than the electroshock.
"But Shi..."
"I said no. Just don't. Don't think just because you know how to impersonate people's voice means you can do everything. You may be wearing their face, it's a facade." Shinichi breathed in deep, steadying for his next words that he knew would hurt the thief more than anything, even though there is not a grain of truth to it. "You're a nobody. Not Kaito, not anyone special."
KID tried to tell himself it was just a lie to mislead their captors. That none of the detective's words meant anything. But the way Shinichi said it, sounded too real and too truthful, it cut through KID's heart, wounding the thief badly.
"What is the meaning of this!" The Boss actually came into view in the detective's holding room. (KID had a hunch that they were afraid that the even a restrained thief could easily overpower them and escape.) The Boss threw the detective's mobile onto his lap.
"I'm guessing that was Kaito right?" Shinichi actually smirked. KID could not believe he had the nerve to do this. But seeing The Boss recoil is so worth it. For a moment, KID was afraid Shinichi would be hurt again.
"Impossible!" The Boss's voice was loud enough to cause reverberations in the speaker. "He's here in the holding cell! No where near a phone."
"I told you, that is Kaitou KID. A thief at best. You people are delusional."
KID was laughing loudly from the other side of the glass, easily drawing The Boss's attention away from the detective.
"How many times must you people make the same mistake. Haven't you ruined enough of that family yet? I'm the Phantom Thief, Kaitou KID, ageless and eternal until your organisation has been destroyed." KID's laughs was forced to the trained ear (read: Shinichi) but it sounded condescending enough to everyone else. "Trust me, you'll regret hurting innocent lives and taking a hostage."
The Boss laughed nervously. "It's not your policy to go out and harm people."
"I'm willing to bend the rules for you and your band of merry-man." He flashed him his toothy signature grin. "And by the time I'm through with you, you'll wish you were never born."
It is true that he would never inflict physical harm but the mental traumas he induce would make them wish KID would just pound them to a pulp. Nothing is more painful than involuntarily reacting to normal everyday occurrences and KID knows just how far to go to make it happen. He had toned down (and themed) his pranks for a reason, just so that his audience (read: victims) would feel the weren't threatened.
"However," KID supplied, after seeing The Boss sweat cold tears that even he could feel from the other side of the glass, "I could try and cooperate..."
"What?" Both occupants of the other room exclaimed simultaneously. KID had to wince at the loudness. No doubt Shinichi wanted to throttle KID because it seems as though he was agreeing to be their lap dog.
"Get rid of this glass. I need to confirm the safety of the Meitantei before I agree to anything."
"You're trying to escape aren't you." The Boss was quick to catch on. But would KID's cooperation be worth the risk?
KID shrugged his shoulders, with some difficulty. "Who knows."
From KID's observation, the glass pane is not a permanent fixture, if he could take care of this then it means there will be two exits available. The restraints on the detective would be a bit more difficult, he had to unlock them quickly and without The Boss noticing. Fortunately, only The Boss was in the room and taking him out would buy them time.
"The only thing I know is that you'll need my skill if you don't want Them to know." KID wasn't sure if the bluff would work, but after hearing what the little scientist said about the rivalry between the two groups, it just might be the clincher.
From what KID could make out, he saw The Boss gritted his teeth, hands balled by his sides in silent frustration. KID knew he won and it was only a matter of time the glass was lifted. He discretely picked the lock on the pair of cuffs on his wrist, careful not to let the metal fall to the ground. He continued to pretend he was restrained, that he was playing by their rules, when in fact the game had already changed.
Tense minutes passed by but KID patiently wait it through. More taunts at this point would only be detrimental to his cause. Then, with much reluctance, The Boss took out another remote to lift disengage the glass pane. (KID wondered how many remote controls does it take to run a criminal organisation. It seems he could bring the organisation down just by jamming their signals at this point. No wonder Shinichi said these guys are lousy at the hard-core criminal activities.) KID gracefully stood up and walked nonchalantly in the detective's direction. He noticed the extremely cold temperature inside the room, and he feared his detective could become sick by just sitting in the near freezing temperature. The Boss, who was standing behind and using the detective as a shield, took a step backwards, to which KID only smirked.
'He seems smart...but not smart enough.' He stopped slightly to the side of the chair, giving The Boss all his attention. There was a near imperceptible shiver from the middle-aged man.
"Too bad really." KID broke the silence. He could see a smirk slowly forming on the detective's face. Even blindfolded, Shinichi could read his intention. With this move, KID could now make their great escape.
KID stopped all pretense of being restrained and sprinted the last few steps towards The Boss. Within milliseconds, he was in front and gave the man a well-deserved punch in the guts. The Boss was left winded and could not react to the next assault, a blow to the back of the neck, then crumpled onto the ground. Just to be on the safe side, KID took out a sleeping gas spray and gave the man a good whiff.
Shinichi was about to ask what happened. He could hear faint sounds of assault, the very soft grunt and thud, not enough to make a conclusion of the situation. He felt soft cotton pressed against his lips, two gloved fingers, indicating silence. Shinichi assumed there were acoustic surveillance on the room but no video feed. With the removal of the thief's digits, he felt the fabric around his eyes loosen. Careful about the light levels, he slowly opened his eyes. Shinichi had a bit of trouble focusing, but he was relived to be able to see again. Being robbed of his sight was very unnerving, it made all his other senses more susceptible to external influence. Turning his head, he saw a slumped figure of their captor. His gaze were soon drawn onto the bob of chestnut hair crouched in front of him. KID was working on the restraints on his legs, his wrists had been freed earlier and he was rotating them to restore circulation.
"How do you feel?" KID mouthed without a sound, placing a hand on the detective's knee. The amethyst gems were burning with concern. Shinichi smiled in return, placing his hand on top of KID's. His hands were shaking as he lifted them from the arm rest.
"Do you feel good enough to move?"
Shinichi nodded. The longer they stayed, the more dangerous it becomes. KID assessed the detective's physical appearance, not too confident but also knowing the need to escape is more important, reluctantly helped the detective from the chair. Shinichi wobbled when he was pulled upright, using the thief as support. KID took a step back, leading Shinichi away from the chair. But the detective stumbled and started falling forward, right into the thief's chest. He smiled sheepishly but KID scowled. Shinichi shook his head and smiled encouragingly, hoping to ease the thief's worries and convey to KID that it was alright to continue.
Slowly, and not too confidently, they walked further towards the other room. But before they crossed the threshold, KID left Shinichi leaning on the wall and doubled back towards The Boss. With much effort, KID strapped The Boss back into the chair, restraining him, and stuffed his mouth with the discarded blindfold. KID rummaged about the pockets for any remote controls and possible keycards to help with their escape. He then rigged the room to start smoking and emitting sleeping gas when the door was opened. Satisfied with his work, he led the detective into the other room and brought the glass pane down once more as though nothing happened. They were careful when in front of the exit, not sure what to expect. KID brought his ear to the door, listening for traces of human activity. Finding none, he searched for the doorknob and eased it a sliver. He peeked out into the corridor, which was lit unnaturally bright. Once he was sure there would not be any danger, he opened the door fully.
Shinichi was leaning heavily on the wall as KID checked for safety. He was weak and his muscles were complaining at each of his actions. Being able to walk is a feat after being subjected to the previous shock and he was thankful that he had a healthy heart (though it was expected seeing as he was able to withstand the multiple transformation) and did not go into cardiac arrest. He knew that when this was over, Kaito would be mothering him to a near unbearable point.
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They kept their eyes opened for both the exit, suspicious sounds, and possible doorways leading to incriminating evidence. No point in wasting a good chance to do some snooping.
Their luck did hold out (again, expected as KID is here in person) as they stumbled into an office when KID was looking for a place to allow Shinichi to rest.
The office was spacious, with one of the walls filled with operable windows. There is another door leading into the room, offering them multiple points of exit should they need to flee in a hurry. Floor plants framed the blank spaces along the wall. KID led Shinichi to the high back chair behind the table and sat him down, his body looming over the detective. He hugged the sitting detective, nearly suffocating Shinichi with his shirt.
"How do you feel?" KID asked out loud now that they are away from the room and in relative safety.
"I'll live." Shinichi stretched his arms to loop around KID's back, returning the hug. He tried to wriggle out but KID was strong against his current condition.
"We can stay here for a while. You probably couldn't recover so quickly." KID buried his nose into the detective's hair, losing himself in the scent to assure himself of the detective's condition. In a moment of weakness, he admitted to the detective, "please don't scare me anymore."
"I can't promise you that. But I'll try." He was trying to be honest but this meant causing distress. As long as he remain a detective, he will continue to run into dangerous situations.
KID, though not liking the answer, let go of the detective. He stepped away "Doesn't matter. Lie to me for now." He needed an excuse to have a peace of mind.
Shinichi reached upwards weakly, cradling KID's face and allowing unobstructed view of the thief's eyes. "KID. I'm fine." He tried to convey all his feeling into a single expression.
KID allowed himself to be fooled, just for once, and tried to relax into the hold. He closed his eyes and concentrated on his breathing, trying to erase the previous incident from his mind. Once calmed, he moved away from the detective fully and was about to pull the detective up but was met with resistance.
"Wait." Shinichi pointed at the computer screen showing a screensaver. KID moved away to allow Shinichi access. It was very sloppy for this group of crooks to leave the computer logged in.
"Wow. When you said they were lousy, I wasn't expecting them to be this awful." KID tried to contain his glee at having uncovered possible evidence to bring the organisation down.
"Let's see what we have. Do you have a memory drive?"
KID rummaged around the drawers to find a USB. Shinichi wanted to say that they shouldn't mess with the room in case it draws unwanted attention. But it would be a moot point seeing as they were trying to have these people arrested. KID produced a non-descript memory stick after relocating a majority of the drawer's object. Shinichi was also handed a small gun, which KID stated as a means for protecting himself now especially since he would not be able to kick anything in his condition. He acquiesced, slipping the gun into his waistband.
The computer contained an absurd amount of incriminating evidence much to both KID's and Shinichi's surprise.
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They were taken aback when their escape was met with no resistance.
"You weren't kidding about their incompetence either." KID commented, having changed out of his white suit and into a simple black tee and jeans. They now looked like a pair of teenagers returning home from a restaurant rather than two previous-captives having escaped a criminal stronghold.
Two blocks down the road, Shinichi's muscles were over-stressed. His legs crumpled beneath him, scaring KID.
"Shinichi!" KID exclaimed.
"I'm fine. Or at least I would be." Exhaustion slowly emerging through his voice as the adrenaline and urge to flee were beginning to wind down.
KID practically carried the detective, he looped his arms under the detective's. Shinichi leaned all his weight against KID, not caring if he was showing his weakness. KID had wanted to bring the detective to the hospital, but he did not want a repeat of the previous incident.
They managed to arrive back at the Kudo Manor without Shinichi collapsing from exhaustion again. Kaito called next door for the little scientist. He was given a very long lecture (starting from her examination of the detective and a full hour afterwards) and an over abundant of cold glares.
"Don't worry so much. I'll recover with some rest. If it'll rest your mind, I'll even call in to miss school next week." Shinichi was confined to the bed for the next twenty-four hours to allow his body to recover properly.
Kaito laid down next to Shinichi, hands caressing his detective's face and brushing the stray strand of hair. He leaned down to place a tender kiss on Shinichi's temple.
"Have you called the police? Have them track my phone's GPS for the location..."
"Shinichi," Kaito reprimanded, "stop worrying and concentrate on recovering."
But Kaito knew the detective would be reluctant to rest until he was sure that justice is served. He sighed, somehow hating how stubborn the detective was.
"I called Megure-keibu," Kaito had made a point to have all the contact information of Shinichi's usual police acquaintances in his phone book, "they are on the case as we speak. Takagi-keiji and Sato-keiji will swing by to get the USB from the Professor, who's making a copy of the data just in case. We can contact your Acronym friends when you feel better."
"Good." With that comforting thought, Shinichi allowed his eyes to close and surrender to oblivion.
Kaito stayed by his side through the night, barely getting any sleep, as he listened to his detective's heartbeat and breathing. His exhausted body lasted until dawn, where his last thoughts were whether he could convince Shinichi to take a vacation with him soon.
-TBC-
