Mikau: Hello again everyone. Thank you for returning for the third chapter. Thank you very much to meme, YouthfulLily, LMeg9.20, and DayDreaming0f y0u who reviewed. I think this chapter has a lot of good parts that I'm happy with, but, unfortunately, there are a lot of parts that I wished turned out better as well. Let me know what you think if you have the time or motivation. Please enjoy.
Disclaimer: If I owned it, I think I would've snapped and killed someone by now. He's been working on Conan since 1994. Eighteen years is a long time to have your mind consumed with nothing but new murder tricks. Must be stressful.
….
The Clock Tower
Kaito had always assumed that he would eventually end up married to Nakamori Aoko. Not that he really minded—Aoko was a peach. He loved her spunk, and she was the only one who accepted him as is, no matter what.
There was a certain amount of chemistry there too, so the magician had just assumed it was meant to be.
Then Kid happened.
Suddenly there was no one to talk to, and the secrets and the lies just kept piling up until he felt like he was drowning in them.
For the first time since his father had died, Kaito felt utterly alone.
There was now a divide between himself and Aoko like a deep gorge that he couldn't see the bottom of.
Try as he might, he could no longer reach her. There was nothing he could do to bridge the gap.
Aoko herself had even told him that he sometimes felt like a stranger to her.
And then there was Hakuba. He was actually nice once you got past the inverness coat and cocky attitude, and the dork of a detective had a soft spot for the inspector's daughter.
Aoko had seemed to take notice of the blonde as well.
They started dating, and Kaito saw fit to bow out gracefully while he still had his pride. He'd threatened the Englishman with bodily harm, should he ever cause Aoko to cry, and that was that.
That was the end of Kaito's first love.
He threw himself into his work after that. He didn't even try to love again.
After all, Aoko had been it. Who else could possibly make his heart race like she did when chasing him with a mop? She'd known him nearly his whole life. Who else could understand him like she did?
There was no one else out there for him, so he gave up on love. Besides, he had his job. It was time-consuming and dangerous, so perhaps it was better to be single anyway.
That's what he thought until the night he stole the clock tower.
He had done it for Aoko. Kaito still loved her immensely, despite trying to persuade himself otherwise, and he had done it to make her happy. He wouldn't admit it, but he'd done it for himself too.
The clock tower was their special place—he'd actually been planning to propose there someday—and he couldn't let it be destroyed.
Kaito hadn't been expecting to fall in love a second time at the same place.
That night was different from his other heists.
Hakuba had been called back to England to clean up someone else's mess, so Kid was expecting a cakewalk of an evening.
Needless to say, the thief was extremely surprised to be anticipated at every turn.
It was like someone was reading his mind.
They knew his every move and thought just as quickly as Kaito himself. They saw through him.
It was thrilling.
The chase was breathtaking, leaving Kaito giddy and craving more.
He'd finally found someone that could play on his level, someone who understood him. He'd met his match in Kudo Shinichi.
The next few weeks were spent on recon.
Kaito gathered everything he could about his antithesis including, but not limited to: case history, profile, pictures, hobbies, and likes and dislikes. He was very thorough in his methods.
Once he was sure that he understood the inner workings of his target's mind, he sent out a heist notice for the following week.
He waited in barely contained anticipation for his chance to face off with his newest obsession once again. He couldn't wait to feel the exhilaration of being hounded by Shinichi once more. He might even let the detective come close to catching him just to give the sleuth a glimpse of the thief in all of his glory.
But Shinichi never came.
Kaito tried not to let it get him down.
Maybe his detective was wrapped up in a difficult case?
It got harder and harder as the weeks wore on and the Detective of the East failed to make even a single appearance at one of Kid's heists.
The magician began to fear that maybe his crush hadn't felt the same way he had during the clock tower heist.
Maybe Shinichi hadn't found the kaitou as mentally stimulating as Kaito had the detective.
Weeks turned into months, and Kaito sank into depression. No matter what he stole—however big, expensive, or famous—every single heist had failed to attract the attention of the one he desired.
The answer to Kaito's problem came unexpectedly one day in March.
Hakuba was reading a book of riddles before the start of class.
The violet-eyed boy stared.
"Can I help you, Kuroba?" The Brit raised an eyebrow in suspicion, mentally preparing himself to be pranked.
"Detectives…like riddles, don't they?" the magician mumbled.
Hakuba blinked, wondering just what was going on inside of the Kid's head. "Yes. Most of them do."
Kaito nodded, a smirk blooming on his face. "Thanks."
The European detective had a very bad feeling about that smirk.
Shortly after that seemingly harmless exchange, the Kaitou Kid started writing his heist notes in the form of riddles.
He thanked his lucky stars that Shinichi had rich classmates like Suzuki Sonoko to steal from, and he sent out his first riddle, hoping that the Suzukis would consult the great detective.
The result of his plan was slightly different than what he had imagined. Instead of Kudo Shinichi appearing on the roof of the Hyde City Hotel that night, there was only a grade schooler with glasses who bore an uncanny resemblance to his target.
After the Black Star heist ended in utter failure, Kaito did some investigating into this "Edogawa Conan, tantei sa."
In all honesty, the kid was finny-thingy. He was too smart, and it was obvious that he was hiding a calculating interior behind those oversized glasses. Plus, Conan made Kaito feel giddy.
It was the same feeling the thief got from matching wits with Shinichi, and he was no pedophile, so that left only one impossible option.
His suspicions were confirmed when found absolutely nothing on "Edogawa Conan." The boy hadn't existed up until about a year ago. That was also the time when Kudo Shinichi had dropped off of the face of the planet.
It wasn't hard for Kaito to put two and two together. Sure it was supposed to be impossible, but he was searching for a gem that cried tears of immortality. What was one high schooler shrinking compared to that?
So Kaito shifted his focus and learned to see past the glasses and chubby cheeks. It was Shinichi's mind he had fallen for in the first place anyway.
After a while, just seeing his beloved at heists wasn't enough. He wanted to sit down and talk with the other teen, to hang out, to become friends.
One night after a successful heist, Kaito decided to do something stupid.
"Excuse me. You're Edogawa Conan, aren't you?" he called out to the boy who was just leaving the crime scene. "I've seen your picture in the papers. You're the one who always stops Kid, aren't you? I'm a big fan." He put on his best smile as the shorter brunette turned around.
Conan blinked, staring at Kaito in suspicion. "You're my fan?"
The magician laughed, producing a red rose with a flick of his wrist. "No. I'm Kid's fan, but I admire your work. Good job tonight."
Conan blinked, taking the flower and inspecting it. "Did you want something from me?"
"Just…to hang out and chat, if that's alright?" The taller teen held his breath.
"You want to be my friend?" The pint-sized detective raised an eyebrow. "What did you say your name was again?"
"Kuroba Kaito. A magician…sa."
The shrunken Heisei Holmes rolled his eyes. "Is 'Kaito' seriously your real name?"
"Yeah. Why?"
With a shake of his head, Conan started to walk away. "It's just ironic, that's all. Come on; I'll let you buy me a cup of coffee."
After that, they had taken to meeting bi-monthly. Bi-monthly turned into weekly, and Thursday afternoons quickly became Kaito's favorite time of the entire week.
Half a year later, he'd found himself certifiably mad for the little detective, and he was pretty sure that Tantei-kun reciprocated the feelings at least a little bit.
Conan at least trusted the thief implicitly. It wasn't uncommon for the shrunken sleuth to confide in Kaito about things, so he wasn't really surprised when he received a 'can we talk?' text at four in the morning one day.
Worried, but not surprised.
The worry increased exponentially when one of his classmates told him that they had seen his 'cousin' get into a car with the witch after school the following day.
Kaito borrowed a bike and pedaled his hardest to that accursed mansion in the woods, calling Jii-chan for a ride home while en route. He arrived about thirty minutes later, ready to break the door down; he was pleasantly surprised when the scary butler welcomed him inside and willingly escorted him down into the dungeon.
His mind was in a state of panic the entire time. One of his greatest fears was that Akako would one day find out about Shinichi and try to do something to him in order to hurt Kaito. (She had a bad habit of trying to get to him through his loved ones.) He was afraid that day had finally come.
Our hero was shocked, to say the least, to find his love in two pieces. He stared silently, trying to understand what he was seeing, as he half-listened to what they were saying.
Shinichi was free to go, but Conan would be trapped in the body of an eight year-old forever.
It was too cruel.
"Akako, you put them back the way they were right this instant!" he found himself shouting.
"I-I can't." The startled witch raised her hands in defense.
Apparently she thought Kaito looked like he was about to get violent.
"It's done. I can't undo it." The redhead slowly backed away.
"FIND. A way," the magician growled.
"It's fine," a tiny voice whispered.
Everyone turned to look at Conan.
"It's okay," he repeated. "She warned me that there would be a price to pay—that I would lose something of equal value to what I gained—and…" The child looked sadly at his adult counterpart. "We can't make Ran wait any longer. Go be happy with her. Just…don't go back to being the way we were. Don't be selfish and arrogant anymore. Remember what you learned during your time as me, and be a better person in the future, okay? I'll never forgive you, if you go back to being the same Kudo Shinichi we were before."
Shinichi nodded, a grave expression on his face. "Don't worry. I understand now. I know what's really important, and I'll never forget…but…what about you?"
The smallest brunette shook his head. "I'll continue on like I have up until this point. There's nothing else I can do."
"Tantei-kun…" Kaito whispered, slowly approaching his little love.
The tiny sleuth smiled bitterly and looked away. "Hey, Kaito."
The magician looked at Shinichi as he picked Conan up. "Let's go. My ride should be here soon. I've got somewhere I want to go with Tantei-kun, but we'll drop you off at the Mouris' place."
"I'd appreciate the ride, Kaito." Shinichi smiled sheepishly, swinging his legs over the side of the stone altar.
The drive was quiet for the most part.
Shinichi gazed out one window while Conan stared blankly at the other from atop Kaito's lap. Jii-chan thankfully didn't ask any questions, and Kaito didn't volunteer any answers.
The older detective thanked them as he got out of the car. He spared Conan one last grim, guilty look before whispering, "Please take care of him," and turning to enter the Mouri Detective Agency.
Conan buried his face in Kaito's shoulder, biting his lip to keep from making a sound.
The younger teen held his beloved tight as his little body shook. "Everything I could possibly say to you sounds wrong. 'I'm sorry' is nothing more than empty sympathy, and 'It'll be okay' is just a lie. I wish I could make it better, but I'm powerless."
The former Kudo Shinichi shook his head, wiping the tears on the magician's sleeve. He started to laugh bitterly. "Sorry. I just…I don't even know how to feel right now. I'm empty and bitter and sad and angry and… Thanks. Just…thanks."
"You're welcome?" Kaito blinked, unsure of how to respond.
"You wanted to take me somewhere?" the Holmes fan looked up at the other teen, cocking his head to the side.
"Yeah. Actually, you can pull over here, Jii-chan. We can walk the rest of the way. Thanks for always going out of your way for me."
Conan looked around.
They had arrived at a park not far from Ekoda Station.
He raised an eyebrow at Kaito as the magician picked him up and started walking. He started to tear up again.
"I know…what it feels like to assume that things are going to turn out a certain way only for everything to be turned on its head," Kaito started, a little unsure of himself. "I know what it's like to love and lose to another guy. I've been lost and utterly alone. I've felt trapped. I've known my share of despair. I've felt hopeless. It's not exactly the same, but it's similar."
"Are you offering to lick my wounds, Kaito?" Conan chuckled softly, closing his eyes.
"Mmhm." The thief smiled, tightening his hold on the boy in his arms.
"Thanks."
It was silent for a while as they continued to walk.
"Kaito? How did you get over the heartbreak of losing Aoko-san to Hakuba-san?" the bespectacled boy asked after several minutes.
"I buried myself in work at first. It helped that Hakuba's a good guy. Seeing Aoko happy made it easier too. Then, one night, unexpectedly, I fell in love again." Kaito couldn't help but grin, thinking about that fateful meeting.
"You never told me that you had a girlfriend," Conan pouted accusatorially. "You've been holding out on me."
"I don't have a girlfriend," the thief laughed. "My love is still one-sided, but…it gives me hope. Tantei-kun, I know it sounds a little callus to tell you to get over Ran-san, but that's exactly what you should do. You don't have to let go right away or all at once, but, a little bit at a time, try to move on. I don't want you to miss out on your special someone just because you're still stuck on Ran-san. She wouldn't want that either."
"Thanks for the advice, but, unfortunately, I think it'll be a long time before I'm able to love again," the miniature gumshoe sighed. "Everyone my mental age is too old for my physical age, and everyone appropriate for my physical age makes me feel like a pedo."
"What about that mad scientist girl?" Kaito suggested.
"Haibara is…I'll keep the thought in reserve."
"What if you found someone who could see past your physical age and fall in love with your mind?" the magician dared to ask.
"Oh, if only such a person existed," Conan giggled, mood swinging wildly from one end of the spectrum to the other.
"What if I told you that they do exist?"
The detective blinked. "Oh? What's the catch? There's always a catch when someone says something too good to be true really is true."
"They're male."
Conan blinked, processed the information, and blinked again. "Kaito?"
"We're here," the magician announced, ignoring his love's piercing gaze.
The smaller brunette looked up at the clock tower. "Why here?"
"This is a special place for me. It's a place of new beginnings and second chances. This is the place where I met Aoko. This is the place where I met you. I've fallen in love twice here." He held his breath as he looked back at the little boy in his arms.
The look on the older teen's young face was pensive. At least there was no disgust.
Conan was silent, so Kaito took the initiative to speak. "I love you whether you're Kudo Shinichi or Edogawa Conan. Your appearance doesn't matter to me because I love you for you. If you think it's gross, you can just say so, and we'll go on being friends, but…if you're not freaked out or disgusted, I'd be willing to love you until you can find the person you're meant to spend your life with.
"Regardless of your answer, I want you to just keep this one thing in mind: what was taken away from you was your future as Shinichi, but what was given to you was a future as Conan. It might sound a little hypocritical coming from me, but it's better to focus on what you've gained than what you've lost. Think about what you can do with those extra ten years. Make something positive out of the situation. As for my proposition, you can take all the time you need making a decision."
The silence after that was broken by the clock tower beginning to strike six.
Both boys turned to look up.
"Kaito?" Conan mumbled as the third chime sounded.
"Hm?" The magician-thief didn't look. He didn't want to see what kind of face Shinichi was making as he turned him down. Kaito didn't want to see the disgusted, pitying, or even mocking look in those cerulean eyes.
"You shouldn't settle like that—saying that you'll love me until I find someone else. Where's your pride?" the detective prodigy scolded. "Can you really be satisfied with that kind of relationship? What's wrong with you? Don't you think you deserve someone who loves you for you too?
"And another thing," the little sleuth was fuming by the time the clock struck five. "How can you say you'll just hand me over to someone else like that? You don't love me at all, do you? Not really. If you really loved me, you'd fight for me, wouldn't you? I don't want to fall in love with someone who'd give up on me so easily. Now, do you love me or not, Kuroba Kaito?"
Kaito blinked, staring at the glaring gumshoe in wide-eyed surprise. He smiled. "I love you, Tantei-kun."
"Then you'll fight for me if such a time ever comes?"
"Tooth and nail," Kaito vowed.
"And you won't change your mind about being gay or leave me for someone who looks your age or get frustrated because I have a curfew or decide having our dates constantly interrupted by people dropping dead like flies around me is too troublesome or—"
"—Tantei-kun!" the magician cut him off when it got to be too ridiculous. "I swear to you."
"Then…" Conan licked his lips nervously. "I'll let myself fall in love with you too, Kaito." He closed his eyes, leaning in and placing a butterfly kiss on the younger teen's lips.
They pulled back and looked at each other with gauging expressions before breaking into twin grins and giggling softly.
"Oh god. I'm dating an eight year-old," Kaito laughed.
"Oh god. I'm dating a criminal." Conan rolled his eyes, still smiling.
"No one can prove anything, and, believe me, Hakuba's tried," the kaitou assured.
"I was talking about your pedophilia, not your kleptomania, but, now that you mention it…"
"Okay, Jailbait," the indigo-eyed teen grumbled, shifting Conan to his hip. "Let's go get some pizza and rent a movie."
"Is that your idea of a romantic first date?" the sarcastic little detective scoffed.
"Do you want me to change my mind about being madly in love with you?" Kaito glared, spewing empty threats.
"Pizza and a movie it is." Conan quickly changed his tune.
"We'll do romantic next time, my love," the magician whispered, gently nuzzling the blushing sleuth's ear.
"Un," the former Shinichi mumbled, beginning to think that this curse might be a blessing in disguise.
Sure, being eight had its disadvantages, and he and Kaito would most likely encounter issues with the age difference, but at least he wasn't the one who had to explain where he had been the last two years to Ran. At least he didn't have a crazy crime syndicate out for his head anymore.
He may have lost his shot at a future with Ran, but who was to say that a future with Kaito wouldn't be better?
…
v(Q-v-Q)v
Mikau: It's my new and improved owl. Unfortunately, that's the end of the main story. Sorry to disappoint all of those that wanted an epic. There may, however, be omake snippets in the future. In fact, I think I feel one coming on right now. Please feel free to send in suggestions of omakes that you would like written; I do take requests, and maybe something you send in will spark inspiration for a longer fic. Thank you very much for supporting me and sending in feedback thus far. Please drive home safely.