-FIRSTS-

Disclaimer: The works of Detective Conan and Magic Kaito belongs to Gosho Aoyama-sensei.

Warning: KaiShin relationship.

A/N: Why won't Google Docs let me save?! I lost a majority of what I wrote...now I'm sad.


First Tears

Kaito stared at Shinichi sitting across from him in the dining room, both had their phones out; Kaito with the burn phone, Shinichi with his personal phone. They showed each other the contents of their message. The resulting expressions were identical on both face.

On Kaito's burn phone, the one with the number they gave to some of their informants and one particularly useful informant, showed an unfinished message starting to the characters "H" "E" "L" but abruptly ending. On Shinichi's phone, the one given to their normal contacts, showed a very short message containing a two word "PULL OUT".

Whilst neither are the type to curse out loud, they could not help but do so as Kaito quickly tries to dial for the number on his phone and Shinichi running over to switch on their TV as he started up a laptop on the side. Shinichi was quick to flip through the channels until they landed at the news. A headline was already running through the bottom of the screen and both pairs of eyes were glued towards the running characters.

"Major explosion in East Shinjuku, traffic has been re-diverted. Drivers are encouraged to take alternate route travelling towards East Shinjuku. Metro trains will not be stopping at the following stations…"

Kaito tapped impatiently for the phone to connect but the dial tone remained until it was diverted to voicemail. He quickly pulled out another laptop, this one he connected to his burn phone to act as a wifi router, and began plowing his way through cyberspace to track a particular phone number's location.

"Police raid in Kabuki-cho, apprehended 6 suspected of human trafficking with 9 brought in for question. 15 injured during the arrest, all suspected to be members of the same human trafficking ring."

Kaito saw Shinichi was flipping through various webpages and social media sources with high concentration. He could easily see his detective was looking for a trend between everything that was happening today.

"Traffic holdup in Sanchomei Shinjuku…"

It was clear The Organisation was moving against Casablanca's related group and it did not take a genius to work out where their stronghold was. Glancing at the map on his own laptop, it showed the last known location of the phone he was tracking to be located somewhere in Kabuki-cho.

A shrilled ring saw both Kaito and Shinichi jumping out of their seats. Shinichi responded by muting the TV, still with a running headline of various incidences around Shinjuku and the surrounding area. Placing the call on speaker, Shinichi did not hesitate to address his opponent.

"Vermouth, what are they up to right now?" Shinichi demanded.

"My, no hello, how are you? Or a have you eaten yet? Tsk tsk. Where are your manners Silver Bullet?" Her voice was amused even with the raging sirens in the background. It was clear she was on the scene of the crime. Kaito was beginning to see the trend in the nickname used for his detective and the intention behind the call. Calling by Silver Bullet often expects some sort of action, a certain expectation to see justice being served. Calling by Cool Guy is often linked with trying to use the detective for certain gains or trying to recruit his detective into The Organisation's affairs.

"Get to the point Vermouth. I'm running out of patience. Especially since you lot decided to put things to action so early in the game."

"By you lot I'm assuming you mean higher powers?" She laughed on her end of the phone, "I really shouldn't underestimate you Shinichi-kun."

This was the first time Kaito heard her addressing his detective by name. There was a sense of affection, as though she seemed proud of what Shinichi had done. Kaito narrowed his eyes, hoping that the actress was not plotting something devious.

"I bet your Dove is bristled right now isn't he? Don't worry, I'm not about to steal him away." It was unnerving to know Vermouth could predict him so easily. "Though I must say, your choice in flowers are a bit strange. I would have never thought you to be the bold type Silver Bullet."

And then they were back to using code names and obscure phrases. Kaito felt that Vermouth might be making this call to gloat. 'Though what purpose would it serve?' He had to ask. Silently he signalled towards Shinichi, hoping his detective might shed some light. But he too shrugged.

"And the pair of you should really make better efforts at curbing the number of people becoming involved in this game of yours. The number of participants is growing to be unmanageable I might say. A single board cannot accommodate so many players." What Vermouth was not saying was there are currently unaccounted people intervening with their operations.

"That I'm aware of. Though all my guests are registered participants in the game. I'm guessing these new people heard about it and decided to drop in." Shinichi quickly pulled out a sheet of paper and began scribbling on it before pushing it towards Kaito. It was a list of people to check up on and he quickly moved towards the window. Letting out a shrill whistle, he gathered his doves to sit on the windowsill before pulling out his phone. He kept mugshots of all the important players on their team and it seemed like the incident in Shinjuku was a way of drawing out their players. Kaito systematically showed each dove a single person before directing them back out for the search. It would take them quite some time, to search the whole Beika and Tokyo areas and he would not be hearing from his doves for several hours at least. But there was another method. He took control of his laptop again and began going through the security around street cameras.

"But sometimes it is not only your players that you need to keep an eye out on."

"What do you mean?" The tremble at his detective's voice caused Kaito to stop his typing, focusing all his attention to the stilled form on the couch.

"Just know that I did try but I've been waylaid Silver Bullet." The grim voice caused shivers in Kaito. He knew something bad had happened, something they dread. But the only thing he could think of would be a direct attack on those they deemed dear. Wasting no time, and although he did send out his doves, he used his phone to begin calling their friends one by one, starting with Mouri Ran. Kaito knew how much the girl mattered to his detective.

'Please don't let any harm come to them.' He prayed, as he waited for the dialing tone. 'Come on…'

Unfortunately, there was no dialing tone. In fact, there was no tone. With fear in his eyes, he looked towards his detective, where Shinichi was already at the edge of his seat.

"What have you people done?!" He demanded over the speaker. But before any reply could be heard, the call suddenly dropped off and fell silent. "What just happened?"

Kaito stared incredulously at the darkened screen of the TV then back to his laptop that somehow froze. The live security feeds all ground to a halt, showing people and vehicles in mid-motion. "I'm disconnected from here as well."

"No…" Shinichi's' eyes widened. Whatever conclusion his detective was drawing must not be good. "It couldn't be…"

"Shinichi, talk to me." Kaito abandoned the now quite useless search and moved back to his detective's side, holding close onto the slightly trembling shoulders.

"It's...it shouldn't be possible...but…" Shinichi glanced over at the direction of their bedroom. "If...somehow…" He shook out of Kaito's hold and disappeared into the bedroom. The sound of drawers opening then closing before his detective re-emerged with a black box.

"The Key?" Kaito asked, conclusions slowly drawing in his own mind. "We've already established what many of the keys would do…"

"Yes, most are information based. But what if, one of the keys contain information on how to knock down all forms of telecommunication? Rendering the city to a halt." Shinichi opened the box, confirming the key was still inside.

"But why would someone do that?" Kaito stood to peer inside the box as well, to check with his own eyes that it was truly the actual key. He compared the nicks and blemishes to what he remembered. So far, nothing seemed out of place and Kaito could safely conclude the Key had not been stolen and replaced.

"They were afraid…" Shinichi's facial expression changed from apprehensive to anticipatory. The blue eyes widened as comprehension dawned. "They wanted to make sure something was not leaked out." But with the same realisation, came the guilt. It was clearly visible from the tight frown. "They knew! And I practically signed for her execution." Shinichi slumped into the ground, the box clattered beside him as it fell. The Key rolled out of its protective box, running along the grooves of the floorboards and stopped where Kaito stood. Carefully, Kaito lifted the Key from the ground and palmed it in his hands.

"It's not your fault Shinichi…" He walked to the box and picked it up, carefully placing the key back into the specially designed box. The Professor had made something similar to a Faraday Cage for the Key, just in case it would be receiving to transmitting signals. It was an added protection though if someone had broken into their apartment and stole it, it would be a different matter all together.

"How is it not my fault? I was the one to ask for her to help us investigate that group. I was the one who wanted the information so we could bring The Organisation down! I was the one who…"

"But I was the one to suggest to you to have Casablanca do our investigation for us. Your parents, my mom, and I all put forth the same suggestion." Kaito kneeled down and wrap around Shinichi's shoulders. "The blame is not yours alone to bear."

Shinichi's internal struggle was evident to Kaito as his detective practically turned into a statue in his arms. Breathing was barely there even when Kaito held close so his detective's face would be resting on the crook of his neck. It was as though his detective held onto his breath to hold the emotions at bay.

"You can cry, you can yell. But don't give up Shinichi. And don't try to take all the blame on yourself." Kaito patted the back. It was the action needed for Shinichi to let his emotions loose. Fists tightened on his shirt as Shinichi tries to bury himself into Kaito.

Kaito tries to shield Shinichi as best he could with his arms, letting his detective cry in frustration. He stared up at the ceiling, wondering for how long would this case need to be dragged on. Too many people have become entangled in this, too many people were hurt and died because of The Organisation. Most importantly, his detective had been burdened with far too much concerning this case. Kaito tries to, time and again, help with the burden so his detective would not be bogged down by all the pain and sorrow.

"Sh….I'm here. I'll keep you safe. I'll make sure nothing would happen to anyone else we care about." Kaito knew they might be empty promises, but he still would try his best to keep them. He knew it would be near impossible to keep everyone safe, though he could at least tell this small white lie if it meant his detective could sleep easier at night.

-TBC-