11: the First Dove

Kuroba Kaito's first dove was the smallest of his father's flock. Kaito had been only five years old when sickly little Mizu had hatched, but he had loved her all the same and nursed her back to health as well as a five year old could. With a smile, Toichi had taught Kaito how to feed and water her, how to get her to willingly swallow medicine, how to wrap her in warm bandages without taking away mobility, and anything else he might need to know to care for the animals that would one day be his partners on the stage or, as the case might be, in crime.

Mizu for her part had been an excellent first pet. Despite her early illness and small size, she was a wonderfully cheerful bird and loved Kaito as much as he did her. She learned tricks quickly and easily and was very patient when Kaito messed up the first couple times. She wasn't afraid to give him a warning nip when he played too rough though. Still, they were perfect for each other.

The love the pet and master shared was the very reason why Kaito was so distraught the day Mizu went missing. "Did you check the bird-bath?" His mother, Chikage, asked, "you know how much Mizu has loved water ever since she was a fledgling." Kaito's eyes lit up and he ran to check, but… she wasn't there.

"Have you checked in the usual training area?" His father suggested. Mizu wasn't there either.

Considering where else she might be, Kaito quickly came to the conclusion that she was hanging out at his 'secret' training place. It was actually the backyard of one of their neighbors and wasn't very secret, but the old woman didn't mind his using her yard to practice his magic tricks. She had in fact, been witness to many of Kaito's practice sessions and had watched him master tricks he'd been taught by his father, many of them including his faithful dove's aid. Her backyard was also the perfect place for his dove to rest. There were a number of small trees in which Mizu could roost and a round pond full of koi fish that kept the air cool and moist.

It was quite the tragedy then, that when Kaito vaulted over the fence he didn't find Mizu in the trees. Sighing dejectedly he turned to leave when something white caught his eye. Kaito frowned; there had never been anything white like that in the pond the last time he came.

He walked over and gasped in horror, eyes widening in shock until tears were rolling down his cheeks. He ran and never returned.

For floating limply in the water was his dove.

Mizu's soft white feathers were soaked and heavy with water and her shiny black eyes were dull. Worse even than her death was that she had been preyed upon. Feathers had been shorn away in places, leaving nothing but slightly bloodied muscle and in the deepest places, the white glint of bone.

It was by no fault of Kaito's or any one else's that this had happened, but after several years of service Mizu had been getting old for a dove. It was merely a misfortune that it was on a branch hanging over the pond that she had fallen asleep, and that she just hadn't woken up again even as she fell from her perch.

It was also not the fault of the creatures that saw what they considered food and had set about eating poor Mizu, but… the young Kaito never forgot the image of his first dove's death. Nor did Kaito forget the slimy creatures with bulging eyes and puckered lips who dared to feed upon his feathered friend.

From that day on Kaito believed one thing, fish are terrifying. Fish are harbingers of death.

(Note: I know nothing about doves or pets in general, so I have no idea what the natural lifespan of a dove is. Also, I'm sorry, but I was sick of some of the more unbelievable and cheesy stories for why Kaito has ichthyophobia. I hope I did not crush anyone too much.)