Disclaimer: I don't own DCMK.

A Touch of Magic

5: This Peace of Mine

He saw the barrier long before he saw the school. It shimmered like a glass dome over the entire school complex (so the messenger bird probably hadn't gotten through). Meant to keep any intruders at bay, he didn't need his father's monocle to see it. But the monocle told him that it had been constructed by five different sorcerers, all fairly well trained. Although it seemed they hadn't quite mastered group spell casting yet. Instead of being a seamless blend, they had pieced their powers together like a jigsaw puzzle.

Which meant all he had to do was apply some pressure at the right points. He grinned. This was far too easy.

X

The journey back to Sorgan was quiet without Kaito. He'd hitched a ride on a passing wagon with a rather quiet farmer. The whole way home he'd found his thoughts filled with the magician, wondering if he'd gotten back in time—praying that he had and that he would be all right. He couldn't imagine what it would be like to finally go home after so long and find his friends and family hurt or worse. No one deserved that kind of horror. And it angered him to think that anyone could be so arrogant or so cruel as to believe they had the right to inflict such fates upon others for a mere handful of power (not that it would be right for any reason, but such selfish aims he couldn't even begin to understand).

Thanking the wagon's owner as they came to a stop where the path to Sorgan branched away from the main road, he climbed off and walked along the river until the familiar village roofs came into sight.

Debating what to make for lunch, he came up short when he saw the two men in his yard. One was a rather bony man with a grim face who was walking along the perimeter of the yard. Even as Shinichi approached he disappeared around the corner of the house, head bent and turning from side to side like someone searching for something. The other intruder however was someone he recognized.

"Why are you here, Toma?" he demanded.

"That's Lord Toma to you," came the disdainful response as the other's gaze glanced over his shoulder before focusing on his face. "So where's that outsider friend of yours?"

"I do not see how that is any concern of yours."

"Oh really?" A sly smile played around Toma's mouth. "I just thought you might wish to inform him that he will need to find lodgings elsewhere from now on. You see, some friends of my father's have recently decided that they would like to spend some time in the countryside. This village has no inn, but luckily we remembered we still had this house here. It isn't really big enough for so many guests, so I'm afraid your friend will have to go."

"No."

One thin eyebrow rose. "What?"

"I said no, I am not going to play host to whoever these people are just because you say so."

"And yet you let ill mannered outsiders reside in this house."

"He was injured."

"I believe that was a rather long time ago. Besides, you do remember you're only living here because we let you borrow it on our good graces, so as I see it you can either play host, as you put it, or leave. Unless, of course, you want to try and buy the place—oh, but you can't really do that, can you?" He paused, obviously enjoying himself. "But tell you what. I'm in a generous mood today. If you get down on your knees and beg me I might consider giving you that servant job. Servants quarters are better than being out on the street, no? Or you can just be a good host. It's up to you."

"Give me ten minutes to pack. I'll be gone in fifteen."

Green eyes blinked, taken aback. "What? But—where can you go?"

"I don't see how that's any of your concern," Shinichi replied, walking past the gaping noble and into the house. He was so angry he was actually finding it difficult to breathe. His heart was pounding in his ears but he refused to give the man the satisfaction of getting a rise out of him.

X

The sight that greeted Kaito's eyes as he stepped through the shattered gates into the Nakamoris' home was pure chaos. The head of the house was standing in the middle of it all, his face livid and scowling with his equally enraged daughter at his side. Scattered all around him were his students, many clutching injuries, some out cold, with only a handful as yet untouched. The smell of ozone and burning things was thick in the air through which crackles of power still danced. The intruders however were mostly unharmed but for the trace of ash on their clothes. There were about ten of them, all dressed in green cloaks.

Even as Kaito arrived, he saw spell fire burst to life in the hands of three of the intruders, leaping at their command towards the remaining opposition.

Nakamori Ginzo grabbed his daughter and turned to shield her from the attack but the brilliant, blue flames splashed against an invisible barrier before it could reach them.

"Hey, who did that?" the tallest of the intruders exclaimed at the same time five of his companions' heads turned.

"The barrier's gone!" one of the five cried out, her voice rough with shock.

"You can't exactly expect such patchy work to keep people out," Kaito drawled, stepping fully into the courtyard. He was instantly the attention of everyone still able to pay attention to anything. Under other circumstances, he would have been reveling in it, but now wasn't the time (not that he couldn't enjoy it a little. He would treasure the sight of their shocked faces for years to come).

"K—Kaito!" Aoko gasped, looking around her father at the newcomer standing at the courtyard entrance.

He waved at her. The motion turned into something much more decisive as three of the cloaked intruders simultaneously hurled three different spells at him.

The spells flowed together with Kaito's gesturing hand. They gathered into a tight little sphere of blinding yellow light hovering between his palms. He grinned at the spell casters who were gaping in open shock at him.

"That's a rather rude way to say hello," he remarked, bouncing the ball of power up and down before dividing it into ten smaller spheres and beginning to juggle them. "Here, why don't I give these back to you and you can try again?"

A moment later all ten balls shot back towards the green-cloaked sorcerers. Kaito counted six who were able to bring up shields in time. The other four wound up painfully on their rears where they were instantly pounced upon by the students they had almost forgotten about. Angry yells once again filled the air but Kaito ignored them, focusing his attention on executing the plan he'd hatched on his way here.

He had spent the past minute or two studying the invading force through his monocle. The flow of energy was strong in them and the center of that energy was fairly easy to find, especially when they were in the process of casting. Reaching out with his mind as everyone else in the courtyard tried to come to grips with the situation, he grabbed those centers and twisted.

Six shields flickered and vanished. One of the downed invaders shrieked in outrage as the flames attempting to fry the three students holding him down went out. The last three simply went limp with shock.

It was the tall one who, once again, found his voice first. "Wha—what did you do to us?"

Kaito's smirk widened as he held up his hands to show that they were both empty. "Nothing really. I've just sealed off your powers. Think about it as a taste of your medicine, only mine is probably a mite more bitter than yours." And the beauty of it was that the seals were being powered by their own magic. Kaito smiled inwardly. It was a neat little trick he'd never gotten around to trying out before. Bindings, while rare, was something Nakamori had made sure all his students studied, but Kaito had only ever read about actual seals and he'd always wanted to try out the theory. Rather than simply preventing power from leaving the body, they actually cut off a person's ability to reach their own magic, making them impossible to break without outside help. "Well, I suppose you might be able to change that if you find a strong enough magician willing to help you, but somehow I doubt there're going to be any of those in prison."

"What? You—you can't do that!"

The magician's expression grew grim and the nearest of the no-longer-sorcerers took several involuntary steps away, nearly tripping over their own feet to get away. "I just did."

For a long moment silence reigned over the courtyard. It was Nakamori Ginzo who finally broke it.

"Get them out of here!" he ordered, turning to the students who hadn't been injured. "Tell the authorities what happened and let them deal with these disgraces."

The courtyard came back to life as the students scrambled to do as instructed. Two of the faster runners were dispatched to head to the town on the other side of the river. Several of the green-cloaked invaders tried to make a run for it but they were pursued and tackled to the ground before being hauled over to join their companions. Those who had suffered more minor injuries ran to the severely injured and set about tending to their wounds. As they did so Nakamori Aoko pulled herself out of her father's protective grip.

"Kaito!" There were tears in her eyes as she ran up to him. "You're alive! When you didn't come home or send word or anything we—we all thought…" She cut herself off, visibly struggling to bring her emotions back under control.

Looking into her face, he could see the shadows that anxiety had cast over her features. He had expected her to yell at him like she usually did whenever he did something she thought was stupid or wrong, but instead she stood there and stared at him like someone who feared that any movement might shatter the illusion. A wave of guilt washed over him at the realization of just how worried she had really been. Shinichi had been right, he thought a bit glumly, he should have at least sent word. It had been selfish of him to think that he could just throw away the past because he wanted to.

"I'm sorry Aoko," he said finally, and he could see her start both at his voice and the apology (apologizing had never been something he did often, or at least not with such sincerity). "I didn't mean to worry you."

"Well that's good to know," Nakamori Ginzo said gruffly, walking up to stand beside his daughter and place a soothing hand on her shoulder. "But where have you been? And why the hell didn't you let us know? If you're going to run off you should at least give me a heads up. I still have your parents to report to in the next life you know."

"Can I give you that heads up now?" the magician inquired, slipping easily back into the familiar, joking tones.

The older man frowned slightly, studying his face. "This isn't one of your jokes, is it boy?"

Kaito let the smile slip from his face, holding the older man's gaze. "No."

"I see." Letting out a long sigh, Nakamori nodded. "Well then, we'll need to know how you got here right on time and what you knew so we can report that to the authorities. As for the rest…don't forget to write this time."

The magician blinked, not quite believing his ears. "What?"

"I'm surprised you stayed as long as you did. But keep in mind boy, I expect to hear from you at least every other month. Understood?"

Kaito blinked again then grinned. "I suppose if you insist, I can hardly refuse."

Nakamori snorted, grumbled something under his breath, and went to see to his students.

"That last bit was supposed to be a thank you," Aoko said once the man was gone. Then she frowned slightly, turning back to the wild-haired magician. "Kaito… Are…are you really leaving?"

He nodded, watching her carefully. She didn't look very happy at the answer, but she accepted it.

"I don't suppose you're going to tell me where you were?" she demanded, her tone growing much more stern.

He laughed. "That's better. You were starting to scare me there with that quiet act."

She scowled. "I'm trying to be serious here!"

"Okay, okay, no need to get angry, sheesh. You haven't changed one bit."

"And apparently neither have you. So where've you been?"

"A village not too far from here. Sorgan. You might have heard of it."

She blinked in surprise. "Really? I thought for sure you'd have gone farther than that."

"Well…I suppose you could say I met someone interesting."

"Oh." She glanced away then back at him with serious eyes. "You know, it doesn't matter where you are, or what you decide to do in the future, we'll always be your family. So just—just remember that, okay?"

Stepping forward, he gave her a quick hug. "I will."

Later, as he was on his way out trailing goodbyes and carrying a rather hefty pack pressed upon him by the Nakamoris and the students who had known him, he spotted a blond teen with his arm in a sling standing in the shadows by the gate. Ah, he'd wondered where Hakuba was.

"You know, I never figured you for the storytelling type," he mused just loud enough for the blonde to hear him.

Hakuba flinched, his mouth pressing together into a thin line. "I'm…sorry," he said rather stiffly, staring hard at a point over Kaito's shoulder.

"And you'll be sorrier if I ever hear that you did something that stupid again," the magician agreed. It probably wasn't the nicest thing to say to someone giving an apology, he knew, but some lessons needed teeth. Frankly he didn't care what the blonde wanted to do with himself in the future (he didn't have time for fools), but if the guy was going to be staying with the magician's (surrogate) family then Kaito was damned well going to make sure that he'd learned from his mistakes.

The blonde didn't say anything to his claim, so Kaito bid him a cheerily chilly farewell and continued on his way.

X

Sitting on the riverbank just far enough downstream to be out of sight of the village, Shinichi watched the waters shimmer with the light of the late evening sun. He wasn't sure how long he'd been sitting there. Hours? It felt like years.

Once the anger at Toma had worn off he had found himself feeling a bit lost. After all, he really didn't have anywhere to go. This place had been his home for all his life and he'd never been anywhere else, not really. Hadn't wanted to. Everything and everyone he knew were right here.

Then again there wasn't really any pressing reason to stay either. Maybe a change of scenery wouldn't be so bad.

But what about Kaito? If the magician did come back, he…wanted to be here. Or at least be able to let him know what had happened. Then again, if Kaito had been able to make things right with the people he'd left behind (which Shinichi hoped he had), then he might have decided to go home after all. In which case there wouldn't be much point in waiting.

Letting out a quiet sigh, Shinichi picked up a pebble and tossed it into the river, watching as the running waters swallowed it without a trace.

So there he'd sat all this time, the same questions chasing themselves through his head, wishing he could just go home and knowing that that was the one thing he couldn't do now.

He'd gone to see Ran earlier to let her know he would be leaving. She had been rather the opposite of thrilled to hear what had happened and she'd been all for going to her mother over the matter, but he'd told her not to bother. He was tired of the constant back and forth of the issue. Getting out from under Toma's thumb actually sounded very appealing. But maybe he'd been a bit rash about that. There must have been a better way to handle things.

He picked up another pebble and threw it after its fellow. It too disappeared without a trace.

He started as a hand appeared in his field of vision. He hadn't heard or felt anyone coming. The hand gave a snap and a blink later the hand was holding a white rose.

He twisted around, gaze following the arm up to a familiar, grinning face.

"K—Kaito," he stammered, surprise and confusion vying for possession of his expression. "What are you doing here?"

The magician's eyebrows rose. "I did say I'd be back, didn't I?"

Blue eyes turned back to the river, watching as the sunlight danced in glimmering flakes over the water. His heart had begun to beat a little faster but he did his best to ignore it. "You…didn't have to…"

There was the shift of cloth as the magician sat down beside him. When a hand took his and pressed the rose into it, he glanced around and was startled to find himself almost nose to nose with Kaito. His instinctive reaction was to jerk backward but he was caught by the intensity in the magician's gaze.

"I wanted to."

"But…" He gestured a little helplessly at the traveling pack sitting neglected a little farther up the bank. "I—I can't stay here anymore…"

Kaito nodded slowly. He'd gone to the house first and seen the inspector who'd been hired to check the place over and he'd had a short talk with Ran who'd given him the story. It was probably a little petty of him, but he hadn't been able to resist leaving a spell or three for the lord's brat before leaving. The man wasn't going to enjoy his next visit to that house. But Shinichi probably didn't need to hear about that right now.

Reaching over, he pulled Shinichi to him as he'd been wanting to do all this time. The smaller boy tensed slightly but didn't pull away.

"So where are we going?" the magician asked instead.

Shinichi looked down. "I don't know…"

"Well, I've always wanted to see more of this world. We could just travel for a while and see where it goes from there."

Shinichi blinked slowly then laughed. It was a rather quiet laugh but it was real and full of relief. "That sounds good."

"It's settled then!" Kaito declared. He smiled when Shinichi finally relaxed completely in his arms. Tilting the other's face towards him, he caught and held those bright, blue eyes. This time when he brought their lips together, Shinichi closed his eyes and leaned into him, and Kaito could feel himself beginning to grin into the kiss. He just couldn't help it. It was, he realized, the first time in a long time that he had had no shadows weighing on his mind. So this was peace… He could get used to this.

Owari

A.N: Well, I hope you all enjoyed it. I certainly loved writing this one. The idea of writing something on their travels sounds fun too, but I don't really have any plot ideas on that front at the moment so I guess we'll see what happens. Either way this one ends here. Thank you all for reading!