Okay, the Omake is here and this story is finally over!
Thank you to everyone who has stayed with me through this crazy ride. Its been great!
Also, I am going on a missions trip to Jamaica with my school and will appreciate any prayers!
Lion seethed from his position in the jail cell, his eyes burning with fury. That little brat Kitten had gotten him into this mess. The punk was going to pay. He already had plans to escape. Night had fallen not long ago, and Lion awaited the signal. He kept his gaze peeled, a smirk rising up his lips when he saw two glowing lights in the darkness, as green and steady as a cats gaze at night. The man rose to his feet, making his way to the grate door as alarms were heard. It was time. The free cats were coming for the king of the jungle. This zoo could never hold him long.
Within moments the man walked free, his head held high and a superior smirk on his face. Take that kitten and your stupid mutts; take that Kinkalow, who sided with the mice. He wouldn't let the empire he worked so long to create be destroyed by two children and their dopey officer. He would enact his revenge, but first things first. He had a kingdom to rebuild.
The man slunk through the twisting alleyways of Tokyo, his remaining wild cats following behind him. Lion led them to the one location, the one place that the cats owned that wasn't on any record or map. A place only Lion knew about and only he entered. The home where he remained to oversee the full of his kingdom. A comfortable, out of the way house he had dubbed Pride rock. (Honestly, Lion was more proud of his analogies than he would ever let anyone know)
When they were safe inside their villainous refuge, the King of the Jungle looked around with disgust and disappointment. In all, only seven of eight of his dozens of had made it out. Tiger hadn't been one of them. He sighed slightly as he watched them get comfortable, each one tired and curing the cops, the lawyers, the court, and Kitten as they emptied the liquor cabinet. Lion sneered and cursed Kitten as well, vowing his ultimate revenge. He would make that brat pay. Him and his closest friends too! And that officer and his girlfriend. They would all pay, every last one of them. Not yet though. First he needed to regroup. He needed more hideouts, more funds, and more members before he could even think of doing anything.
He lest the complaining and lazing cats to disappear into his room and office. A bulging file lay in a safe under his bed. The information in this file wasn't on any computer, those could be hacked, and it wasn't known by anyone, not even Tiger. It was a file of prospective members. People, usually young, with enough ability or hatred to merit a position as a Cat. He opened the first page, cursing as he saw the triumphant face of Kitten smirking up at him. The man carefully took down the pages with that child's information, vowing to copy all of the pictures and use them as targets at the shooting range.
He idly flipped through the pages, trying to figure out which not-yet-kitten would be the best choice. He needed to know what he needed most. A thief! Yes, he needed someone he could train as a perfect thief, especially now that Abyssinian was gone. A slow smile slid up his lips and he chuckled lowly.
Yes, this boy was perfect. His father was long dead and gone; his mother was always away on vacation. It was breeding grounds for anger, hatred, and loneliness. He was a teenager, a little older than Lion would like but not too bad. And best of all: he was a magician. The kid would already be a master at deception and at sleight of hand. His hands were already lightning fast and he knew how to make things disappear and pick locks.
Lion smirked and looked at the boy's name one final time before replacing it in his mind as Kitten. Kuroba Kaito
And we can all guess how well that'll work out for him.
Okay, that is too much of an incredible idea to leave, I had to do something with it. This is a small continuation.
Lion growled as he looked at his newest Kitten. So far he had resorted to cuffing him against the wall, Cuffing him at the ankles, knees, and calf, tying him up in a strait jacket, completely stripping him to make sure he didn't have any tricks, burning the clothes. (Some of his Cats were permanently died pink because of this), coving his mouth with both duct tape and cloth, locking him in a dog crate with a padlock inside a room with three electronic locks and a fingerprint recognizer. There, if that didn't hold him, Lion didn't know what would.
Suddenly there was a puff of smoke and Lion heard a low roar behind him. The man whirled to see his newest Kitten, fully dressed in his old clothes, leaning against the doorframe and playing with a stuffed lion. He squeezed the toy and it let out another low roar.
The teen smirked at the befuddled man even as the cops neared. "C'mon crazy-cat-lady-san. If you couldn't hold tantei-kun, what makes you think you could hold me?"
AE 2, what if the kids never came? Warning: Character (Takagi) Death
The boy closed the glasses and handed them to the detective. "I'm still sure that I'll find a way out of this. But just in case I want you to take these. Put them in your pocket so that when they find you they'll see these. Hattori or someone else will take them as a sign that I was with you. Hopefully they'll realize that its a sign that I'm still alive. Listen to me though. I will find us a way out of this. I'm Shinichi Kudo, and I will not let a friend die in front of me."
Takagi placed the spectacles in the chest pocket of his coat. The two said nothing for a great deal of time, finally Takagi just sighed and relaxed, closing his eyes as his mind wandered to his love for what may be the last time. He could picture her face, bright and smiling as they had fun on a date, and he could see her cool and serious as she faced a criminal. He opened his eye slightly. "You know, I just keep on expecting her to come crashing through the door, or for some other miracle to happen."
Kudo looked up sharply, poised to argue before he simply nodded. Suddenly the door at the top of the steps burst open, and the two looked up in hope only for their faces to fall when it was only Lion, Tiger, and Tabby standing at the top of the steps.
The trio walked calmly down the steps, malicious grins on their faces as they anticipated what they were going to do. Only Tabby looked nervous, his eyes darting between his two superiors as he carried a long fire poker with Takagi's police badge attached to the end and a small box of red hot coals. Lion held his trusty gun, his eyes alight with glee. Tiger held his preferred weapon as well, a small dark staff. Lion smirked as Tabby set the box on the ground and placed the badge into the dark coals.
"Well Kitten, have you decided yet?"
Conan looked to the ground, refusing to meet the criminal's eyes. Tiger smirked and leaned against the wall, knowing the kid would crack.
"Well?" Lion asked, his own smirk changing into a sneer. "Speak quickly child. If you take too long, then I will decide." Conan looked up to meet the man with a hard gaze, and Lion felt his breath catch as he saw the extremely intense eyes that for the first time were not covered by glass.
Conan spoke calmly and clearly, speaking with confidence that showed that he was choosing his decision, that Lion was not forcing him into it. "I choose to accept the deal that you have offered. However, once the time period is up, know that I will be no more your Kitten than I am now."
Lion grinned a feral grin, showing his teeth. "We'll see about that." He stepped closer to the cell. Tiger meanwhile smiled broadly at the child's words. This Kitten was interesting. He may actually pose a challenge to crack. This could be fun.
Lion gestured Tiger over and the leader crouched at the cages entrance. The man looked to Conan. "Come here." He commanded. Conan hesitated and looked nervously between the gun and Takagi. Lion growled at the hesitation and Tiger fingered the poker. "Are you breaking the deal already? I said come here." Lion asked. A look of anger crossed Conan's face, but he did as he was told and came up to where he normally stood when speaking with Lion. However, the criminal wasn't happy with just that.
"Closer. Come up to the bars."
Conan obeyed, though by his expression it was clear that he wanted nothing less. Lion reached his hands through the links of the cage, Conan tense as his muscles called for him to run when he was unable to. Lion moved slowly, obviously relishing the fact that the child wouldn't dare move away. He grabbed the shoulders of the boy's shirt, lifting him from the ground as the boy glared at him.
Takagi felt bile rise in his throat at the scene. He hated how much Lion was enjoying this, but he knew that the safest thing for him was to stay out of their reach for as long as possible. Lion gestured for Tabby to come and the lower ranked man gripped the boy while Lion stood and began to carfully prep his gun.
Takagi and Conan felt even more fury ignite at the movement, knowing full well that Lion could have made Tabby grab Conan from the beginning, but the leader wanted to show his superiority, and they could do nothing about it. Tiger stepped up from behind and undid the locks, Tabby never losing his grip on Conan as he moved back to accommodate the opening door. Takagi pressed himself against the wall, but there was nowhere to go. Tiger was smirking as he advanced, holding up his small wooden weapon. Takagi attempted to elude the man, but with a flash of movement and a burst of pain, Takagi found himself lying in a still daze as the man drug and bound him to the very same wall that had bound the killed Cat earlier. Before the officer could get his wits about him, it was too late. Lion had pressed his gun against Takagi's skull. With a nod from Lion Tabby dropped the child and Conan scrambled to the fence as the officer could only struggle vainly as he saw his death approach. Whatever your plan is Kudo-kun, please do it quickly.
"If you go through with this, then they will catch you." The false-child said suddenly. Tiger went towards the poker again, but Lion held up one hand to stop him, deciding instead to humor his newest member.
"And why is that?"
"With us disappearing they'll look into the cases more, both the one we were investigating when we disappeared and when they find Takagi-keiji. They'll notice that they're both copies and they'll catch on. We have friends, both of us do, friends that won't give up until you are in jail. This will just give them a lead."
"Oh, they already know about us."
"You shou- wait… what?" Conan stopped, looking at the villain with wide eyes.
"Seems like your little friend here knew about us before now. His little notebook was filled with theories and ideas and now that he's gone everyone else saw it and decided to take it seriously. You should see the police station. Everyone is all in a tizzy because it is their last day to save him." He gave a barking laugh. "Too bad they're too late. Your poor girlfriend is so distraught, poor girl. Oh well, perhaps my Ocelot can console her later, after all it seems like she is involved in a lot of major cases. It would be nice to have an in like that."
Takagi growled and struggled against the chains. "She wouldn't fall for something like that."
Lion just laughed. "She will if she isn't guarding against it. After all, there is a major flaw in all large organization theories, in all serial killer plots. If there is one, and only one, discrepancy then the whole theory crumbles. If a serial killer has an alibi for just one of his many kills, he is no longer suspected. If an unknown organization goes against its M.O., well then people doubt that it exists."
He moved the gun from the officer's head to his chest, resting over the man's heart. "In this case a body found dumped in the park, no badge branded, no handcuffs, and shot through the heart with a gun not his own, well that doesn't sound like the officer murders, does it?"
BANG! With no more talking, no more threatening, and no more bragging, he pulled the trigger.
Takagi's eyes widened, his breath catching his throat and his gaze staring blankly ahead as the shot's echo bounced around the room. A huff of pained air left his mouth as a fire burned over his heart. Wait… hurt… pain? If it hurt then that meant… he was alive? The officer groaned and coughed as the pain tore through his heart, sagging in his chains in relief. His ribs hurt horribly, they were surely cracked, if not broken, but what did that matter? He was alive.
The Cats stared in shock at his breathing form, there wasn't even any blood. The only evidence that there was a shot at all was a hole in the man's shirt and the scent of smoke in the air. Lion slowly reached into the shaking officer's pocket and pulled out a pair of large glasses, the bullet embedded in one of the bulletproof lenses.
Lion whirled on the child, absolute anger in his eyes. "And for that little Brat, you can consider our little deal null and void." He turned to Tabby. "Get the officer's gun. It's time I did this as I should have in the first place."
He held out his hand for the poker, and Tiger placed the thin metal into his hand, a wicked grin on his face. Finally, he was worried about not getting to see anything. This could be interesting. A pity that Tabby would miss it, oh well. Better him than Tiger.
Takagi struggled vainly and profusely as the hot metal neared his skin. He whimpered slightly as it got closer and closer, finally crying out fully as the scalding metal finally met with his cool, pale skin. He screamed and writhed in agony, Conan crying out as he clanged against the chain link of the small cage.
"No! Stop! No! Takagi-keiji!" The child cried out in absolute panic, his eyed wide and horrified as he watched one of his friends and one of his secret's protectors be tortured and prepped for killing in front of his very eyes. And he could do absolutely nothing about it.
Finally Lion dropped the poker, once again laying its tip in the coals. Takagi crumbled, his body sagging and held up only by his restraints as his breath came out in large, pained huffs. The officer glared half-heartedly at the man even as he grimaced in pain.
Conan dropped his arms as he breathed deeply, his eyes locked on the officer. His glasses-lacking gaze was filled with righteous anger, frustration, and guilt as he looked to his tortured friend. A moment of suspended silence filled the room as Takagi panted in pain and Conan still, his gaze nearly defeated. Lion smirked and rolled his shoulders back, looking for all of the world like a man who had done a job he loved and done it well. Tiger stood silently, a humongous grin on his face as his depraved mind took in the scene of the torture.
Suddenly the door burst open, Tabby standing in the doorway holding Takagi's gun in a gloved hand. It was as if time started again. Takagi began to grunt and struggle in vain against the bindings, the metal digging into his wrists. Lion's smirk only grew as he gripped the pistol's handle and Takagi's heart grew cold as he stared down the familiar barrel.
Conan screamed and banged against the mesh door, shouting words no child should ever know. Lion held up the gun to Takagi's forehead, smiling slightly as he glanced down at the struggling child. He said nothing more as he slowly pulled the trigger, relishing every look of fear on horror on both of his victim's faces.
BANG
Takagi's form fell lifeless as his blood splattered the wall, his eyes blank and his face still twisted in a horrified scream. He was held up by the cruel metal that kept him tight against the wall. His body lay suspended and his head fell.
Conan yelled in horror, crying out the officer's name as he rattled the bars more and more, but the man didn't respond. He never would again. Conan had failed. Kudo had failed. Takagi was dead, and his chances for escape were shrinking. He screamed at Lion, calling him worse names than Nakamouri would dare to ever call Kid, but the Cats simply smirked down at him, making him feel smaller than he ever had before.
Takagi's blood pooled and dripped down into the cage, further staining the sole of Conan's sock with crimson blood. Lion crouched down to meet Conan's defiant gaze. The child spoke first, spitting in the criminal's face. "This was a mistake. I will never be your Kitten, no matter what. I swear that on my friend's body."
"Well then I promise you he will soon be spinning in his grave." Lion smirked and stood, signaling for the Cats to follow him as he left, leaving the officer's body in its suspended state. The man turned around at the top of the steps. "Now Kitten, I know that you know very well what the… consequences of refusing this deal are. If you don't want this to happen to another of your little friends, I suggest you settle down and accept your fate." He closed the door soundly.
Shinichi looked to the corpse with dead, depressed eyes. He sighed out a shaking breath. "I'm sorry, Takagi-keiji." He wandered to the bed and folded his legs up, burying his small head in his legs. He wouldn't be Kitten, never. He would never be Kitten, he couldn't turn into that. He looked up and was met with Takagi's sightless eyes and it was suddenly as though it were Ran's large blue orbs staring back at him. Conan gulped slightly and hugged his legs, burrowing his head into the safety of his arms were he wouldn't have to look at the dead man.
For hours he remained in place, his mind dull and sluggish as he ran through a few ideas about how to escape, what he should do now, how to keep from being Kitten. At each thought he saw an image of his Ran, lying dead. Finally the door opened again, but Conan didn't move as a Cat, most likely Tabby, moved the body of his friend. His eyes burnedand he internally snarled, fighting hard to keep his anger from boiling. He wouldn't let his emotions get the better of him. He wouldn't give the Cats a hand, wouldn't show any weakness. He would NOT become Kitten. He owed that to Takagi…
Lion came down the steps soon after the body was taken away, and the scent of food flooded Conan's nostrils. The boy simply buried closer in himself. He felt pure anger and hatred rise up in him at the Cat's approach, emotions that the man would surely use to his advantage. There was a creak of metal and Conan peeked through his arms to see the man leaning against the door. Lion was smirking all-knowingly.
"Well boy, how does it fell knowing that you could do nothing as a friend was murdered in front of your eyes?"
The small-detective unfurled himself but said nothing as he glared at the man. Lion continued to speak, that infernal grin upon his face. "Hungry?"
Conan glared even as his stomach betrayed him by growling.
"Come and get the food. Special treat for today, you don't even have to beg."
The child didn't move. Lion's smirk fell, ten reappeared and intensified. "Oh dear. I was hoping that you may have realized the stupidity of your little rebellion. You wouldn't want to bring your friends to harm because something as foolish as some stubbornness and dinner now would you?"
The tiny-tantei's gaze burned as he glared, but Lion's smirk didn't waver.
"It would be easy pickings tonight after all, they're all crowding around together and mourning over your silly little friend."
Conan stood quickly. He wanted to shout, curse, attempt to attack Lion, but that was what the man wanted. He forced himself to calm down and went up to the gate, accepting the food without a word. Lion grinned none the less, watching intently as Conan shoveled the food into his starved body. As stubborn as he may be he was still hungry. He didn't realize until too late that something was wrong. As he finished the last of his meal he paused. His mind was fuzzy and slow and he felt exhaustion stalling his limbs. He looked at the empty plate with horror as he felt his eye lids weigh down. Lion must have put something in.
The boy's body fell to the ground and he looked up blearily as Lion came into the cage, gingerly picking him up and carrying up the steps. The child attempted to struggle, but his body refused to move. As Lion opned the door Tabby slip past him, cleaning supplies and a trash bag in his hands. Lion took him out to the garage, placing him in a large plastic dog carrier and laying a blanket over him until only a tuff of black hair remained showing. There was a low rumble as the car started and fear ignited in Conan's heart when he realized he would soon be lost, alone, and at the mercy of Lion, perhaps forever. That terrifying thought was his last one as his eyes closed completely and he became lost to the world.
Satou bit her lip as she watch the second hand of her watch slowly make circles around itself. Tears threatened at the back of her eyes but she refused to let them fall. She and many other officers stood hidden around the roof of the police office. This was the final day of the officer muder's deadline. Takagi was likely already dead, and they were just waiting to catch the guy as he finished the last step and left the body at the precinct's roof. The woman shook her head and got the image of her love, dead and limp, out of her mind's eye. Even if it was too late to… to save him, she vowed to catch his murderer. She had to, it was all she had left.
Suddenly there was a strangled yelp and one of the rookies emerged from a dark alley below. The thought crossed the woman's mind, 'I wonder why he was down there', however it was quickly pushed aside when she saw how pale and frightened the young officer's face looked.
"I- I-I-" He stammered. "T-Takagi-san- I-he-"
Satou was down in an instant, making it from the roof to the ground nearly before humanly possible. As she stepped into the alley her heart stopped and she could no longer contain the tears that threatened to flow. They fell freely down Satou's face as she looked into the lifeless eyes of her dead love. In her mind's eye she saw her father's funeral, an explosion on the Ferris wheel, and she knew that she could never love again.
In the background she could hear Ran sobbing as her friends tried to comfort her, tears flowing down there faces as well. Hattori stood against a wall, cursing as he beat the brick until his hand came away raw and bloody. Mouri stood back in the corner with his wife, their faces stuck in horror-filled positions. Chiba and Shiratori were beside Satou, and they cried as well as they stared into the face of their dead friend. Megurue's fac was folded to the floor, his hat casting shadows across his face, hiding it from view completely.
As Satou allowed the tears to flow freely she knew that those around her were not only grieving for Takagi, the loveable, devoted and kind officer they all knew so well. They were also grieving for Conan as well. The child, the brilliant, promising and unimaginably clever boy who could have been the next Holmes, his life most probably snuffed out to fulfill some sick organization's M.O. It was sickening, but it was the truth. And no one would see either of these two incredible people ever again.
Months later Conan lay curled up in a small cell similar to the one he and Takagi had been kept in, struggling to reign in his emotions. He was a favorite of Lion, all of his training was overseen by the big boss himself. It was a "privilege". He hated it. What he hated more was how beneficial some of the training had actually been. In the past few months of horrible intense training he was now at a higher ranked belt in Karate than Ran, and in a few weeks would be able to contest Hattori in Kendo. He could shoot a gun as good as any sharpshooter or sniper, throw knives, pick lock in a few seconds and hack into moderately complex firewalls. However there was one thing he refused to do, refused to learn. He would not use these skills to help Lion. He would not become Kitten.
He would never become what the man wanted him to be. He refused. However, that isn't to say that there weren't times that his resolve would begin to crumble. There were times that only the memory of Takagi, Hattori, Agasa, Ai, his parents… Ran, kept him from succumbing to the desire to let it all end and give in. He would think of their belief in him, the disappointment they would feel if he gave in, and the crumbling walls of his resolve would reform and strengthen. He would not go down. He would fight until he came out on top.
Lion was slowly growing to hate him. Conan obeyed just enough to protect his friends. He learned every lesson and learned it well. He was respectful, hardworking, and intelligent. But he would not be broken. New scars littered his body, and his body constantly ached from beatings, broken bones and sprains as Lion attempted to break his will and spirit. The child refused to go down, even when the imagined screams of his closest friends littered his mind. He flinched as terrified yells sounde in the room, fighting to stop from reflexively covering his ears with his hands. It was a new tactic of Lion's to play recordings of his friends screaming. At least, he prayed that they were just recordings.
After a while the recordings stopped, and Conan leaned back against the wall, whimpering slightly. Lion may not have broken him, but he had certainly changed him. The boy was a shell of Conan, and far from the Shinichi he once was. All that remained of the detective was an ironclad will and stubbornness and a desire for justice and truth. Nearly all else had been stripped away.
The boy looked up as the door opened, expecting to see one of the lower cats, perhaps the young Kinkalow, bring him his meal. His eyebrows rose in shock when Vermouth entered the room, her usual smirk softened by sympathetic eyes. The woman looked him over once, seeming pleased. "Well Silver-bullet, it seems that you've made it. You're stronger than Lion, that's for sure."
She walked a few steps in and dropped a ring of keys on the table outside the boy's cell.
"Turns out our King of the jungle underestimated a certain female officer and a group of detectives. Not one of your little friends could bear to rest until you and Takagi's "Murderers" were brought to justice. They may have gotten a few hints along the way as well." She winked and Conan rose to his feet, his voice raspy from little use.
"W-wait, you mean…" Vermouth simply smiled as she walked out, calling out behind her.
"Stay strong, Silver-bullet-kun."
The child fell to his knees in relief as sounds of running feet sounded in the hallway, quickly joined by the no-nonsense tone of officers. The door outside of his cell opened, revealing the much older eyes of Satou Miwako, seeming for all the world like an avenging angel whose work was finally done.
This is an ending I was considering for if I had been planning on doing a sequel quickly. If I make a sequel it's not coming out for a while. So I put it here. Not really an ending, more of an extra tidbit.
Vermouth walked slowly up to That Person, giving her report with an arrogant air. "The Cats are gone. They took a couple of unnecessary risks that caught up with them."
That Person looked over some files on his desk, police reports talking about the incident in question. He hummed interestedly. "Interesting that he should fail so soon after finally gaining this 'Kitten' he had been so obsessed with. Who was the child again?"
Vermouth hid her discomfort as she answered. "Conan Edogawa."
"Ah yes. The boy who had come so close to catching that annoying thief Kid. Interesting."
He pulled up some more files and Vermouth began to file her nails, feigning disinterest. "I looked into him a little when I heard that Lion got him. Seems he knows nearly every detective in Japan. It isn't exactly surprising that one of the found him."
That Person hummed in agreement, looking over a few papers. "Lion was a fool, but this child interests me. I want him watched."
"You want me to spend my time following some little brat?"
"Oh no. I want to save you for much more important things. I have others who would be more than happy to watch this child… more than happy."
He took a small piece of paper from the file and walked over to his desk, pulling out an empty file. He paper clipped the paper to the front of the file and lay it on his desk. Vermouth leaned forward, her blood running cold as she recognized the smiling face of Silver Bullet-kun staring out from the picture attached to the files front.
Next Alternate ending. Kinkalow decides to stay a Cat
I was going to have Takagi die in this one too, but I thought that would be repetitive, so I didn't do that.
Conan sighed in relief as Haibara's hand snatched the small black tracker. He waited a moment with bated breath as he feared that the door would burst open, revealing Lion or Tiger. Luckily no Cat came, however it was best not take chances. He looked back to his friends. "Okay, now you guys should get out of here before someone comes. Remember, call the police as soon as possible and-"
The boy cut off, his heart beating and his blood running cold as the door at the top of the staircase opened, a familiar looking cat's face peering through.
The entire room froze as the door opened, all of its inhabitants' eyes locked on the door. The tension never left, even as the small, shocked face of Kinkalow appeared around the door. For the moment not a word was said, and every person in the room was dead still. Six detectives stared in fear at this one child cat. Kinkalow stared at them in shock and confusion. Suddenly the child yelped and jumped back, slamming the door shut behind him. The detective boys all yelled and stormed up the stairs, desperately slamming against the door, but Kinkalow had already locked it, slamming the deadbolt in place. The children banged their fists on the door, screaming "Help, let us out!" But there was no reply from beyond the door.
On the other side Kinkalow sat leaning against the wooden frame, breathing heavily with his eyes wide. What was he supposed to do now? He should tell someone. He should call Persian. No. He was a Cat now, not a Kitten. He would call Lion. Slowly he stood, reaching for his cell phone only to stop as Puppy's voice rose above the clamor of the children.
"Kinkalow you don't have to do this."
The boy froze. He didn't?
"You don't have to listen to Lion. You don't have to be a Cat."
He didn't? What did Puppy mean? If he wasn't a Cat then what could he be? Was Puppy saying that he could be a Dog too? Or… or was he trying to make him be just another mouse, like everyone else. No. He had worked hard as a Kitten to become a Cat, and this was what he was going to be. It was what he wanted to be… wasn't it?
He could hear Puppy yelling again, but he held his hands over his ears. He grabbed one of the large, heavy chairs from the kitchen and pulled it over to lean against the door. The child ran to the other room, far away from Puppy- no, Kitten- and his deceptive silver tongue. He dialed the memorized number and bounced nervously in place as he waited for the leader to answer.
"What?" Lion asked, sounding murderously angry. Kinkalow gulped before answering.
"K-kids have infiltrated the scratching post with Kitten! They were in the holding room, talking to him when I found them."
"What! Where are they now? Is anyone else with them?"
"I locked them in with Kitten. I think they're alone."
"They must be the brat's little friends, coming to the rescue." He muttered mockingly before addressing the young criminal once more. "Keep them there, I will arrive shortly."
Lion hung up and Kinkalow allowed himself a deep breath. The Cat leader always made him nervous. The child silently made his way back to the door outside the cell. The children were no longer screaming and begging to be let out, but he could hear them talking to Kitten and the officer. The child sat in the chair he had leaned against the door, hugging his knees to his chest and wondering if this was truly what he wanted to do. His eyes traced around the room as he thought, noticing idly a bit of black plastic on the floor. He stared at it for a while, but felt neither the inclination nor the energy to pick it up.
He leaned against the door, straining to hear as the prisoners talked among themselves.
Conan had cursed when no reply had come from Kinkalow. He thought for sure that the boy had potential for a life after the cats, but it seemed that he had no desire to leave the life of crime. The small detective grimaced and looked down at the terrified children who had given up at the door to crowd around the mesh of the cage. Haibara looked at the detective boys in sadness but determination. She would get these innocent children out of this. She wouldn't let something happen to them because she convinced them to investigate a "haunted house" instead of looking for Conan.
"W-what do we do now?" Ayumi asked fearfully, looking to Conan for guidance. The boy closed his eyes in thought.
"Haibara, try to throw the tracker under the doorframe. If anyone is using my tracking glasses, they'll find it."
The girl nodded and moved to toss the small black plastic through the gap. She knew that in all likelihood no one would find them. Kudo knew it too. He was just trying to give the children hope.
"If Lion- or anyone- comes in, let me handle them. Don't say or do anything."
Mitsuhiko looked at Conan and Takagi. "S-shouldn't Takagi-keiji deal with the kidnappers?"
The officer shook his head sadly. "They don't care about me." He said, wetting his dry mouth as he spoke. "They only care about Conan-kun."
Kinkalow looked up as Lion came into the house, both Tiger and Tabby behind him. The child scrambled off of the chair and to his feet. "They're all still in there." He reported, and Lion nodded.
"Good. How many?"
"There were four, two boys and two girls."
The man nodded. It was Kitten's old friends all right. "You stay up here while I deal with them. Make sure no one else was following them."
The boy nodded and took up a post by a window, watching the adults out of the corner of his eye. Lion was looked at his phone's screen. He nodded to Tiger who placed a silenced gun to the door's wooden frame. With a tremendous crack of wood a hole was blown through the door and childish screams sounded from the other side.
"Do I have your attention?" Lion asked rhetorically. "Good. Backs against the cage, all of you."
He watched on the camera feed until four small bodies made their way against the mesh gate, only then nodding to Tabby to open the door. He walked in, smirking proudly while Tiger followed, gun in hand and aimed at the children. Lion eyed each of the children.
"Well well. How interesting, Kitten's little friends come to play the heroes. Seems we got hostages without even trying."
The children each gulped, not daring to move even as Lion pet Ayumi's head, the terrified girl barely flinching away.
"Leave them alone." Conan ground out lowly, menacingly. Lion simply smirked and nodded at Tiger, watching as the violent man grabbed Haibara and held her in a deadlock, placing the gun against her temple.
"We have quite a few hostages here Kitten. Which means that they are fairly… dispensable don't you think? I suggest you do what I say."
Haibara glared coolly at the arms that held her, but could do nothing about the dangerous weapon held tight against her skull. Conan audibly growled at the men, but was equally as powerless. Lion smirked and continued to speak.
"Get away from the door, to the bed."
Conan and Takagi glared, but did as the man commanded. Lion nodded to Tabby, watching as the children shied away from the Cat. Tabby opened the door and forced the detective boys in, smirking in amusement at how the boys "protected" the little girl. Finally, Haibara, still in the arms of Tiger, was the only child left outside the cage. Lion looked up and met eyes with Takagi.
"Come." He commanded simply. The officer gulped and looked down to Conan before ultimately obeying. He didn't struggle even as Tabby attached him to the very same bindings which held the dead Cat earlier. The man's eyes were locked on Haibara and the other children, knowing that he would soon be killed in front of their very eyes.
When the last restrictions were finally set in place Tiger roughly threw Haibara in the cage with the other children, locking it quickly as the Detective Boys surrounded their friend. Conan made his way up to the grate, scowling as Lion smirked.
"Well then, I suppose I had better prepare. No use wasting time now, is there." He crouched down until eye level with Conan. "And in case it wasn't obvious, I no longer have need for our little deal."
He turned to leave, stopping when Kinkalow's startled yelp sounded from outside the door. Tiger snarled, handing the gun to Lion as he reached for his staffs. Lion reloaded the chamber, letting Tiger go first as they made their way up the steps.
Hattori sprinted down the streets his heart beeting wildly as the small blinking dot neared the center of his glasses. He was almost there, almost to Kudo. He stopped as he was met with a large, empty-seeming house. Kudo was in there, he just knew it. He texted Satou the address, making his way into the building. He slowly snuck up to the house, noticing a distracted child in a window. Silently he made his way through the garage and into the house. His eyes alighted on the door with a huge bullet hole through the wood, sneaking behind the child. Just as he was nearly past the boy his phone buzzed, likely Satou responding to his text.
Kinkalow spun around with a yelp, and Hattori leapt over, gripping the boy by the back of his shirt, just as he did to annoy Kudo. However, it was too late and a pair of criminals stormed up the steps.
Tiger attacked, leaping at the intruding teen with his staffs in hand. Hattori gasped as he jumped to the side, recognizing the dark wood from in the alley. Tiger swung again, and to the man's intense surprise Hattori grabbed one of the sticks rather than dodging, using the Cats own momentum to flip him over and gain hold of the staff. He held it like the bokken he was so familiar with, and Tiger grinned at the stance. Oh boy, a challenge.
The two clashed, both masters in fighting. The staffs cracked against one another as the two fought. Kinkalow watched in amazement as the finesse and skill of the two locked in battle. Lion calmly held the gun, no amazement in his gaze, simply waiting for a good shot. Hattori slammed the Cat to the ground, momentarily leaving his chest wide open. Lion sighted his gun.
BANG! A scream ran out.
Hattori and Tiger both turned in surprise as Lion fell, clutching his leg. Behind him stood Satou, a furious and determined expression on her face. The cavalry had come. Police began to flood the room, grabbing the cats and storming the house. Hattori called Ran, shouting the good news. Conan had been found, they'd saved him. The girl got the address and promised to hurry over, hanging up the phone almost immediately. Suddenly there was a shout from behind the wooden door. "Nobody move."
The police ventured over, stopping dead when they saw Tabby, still in the room and backed against the grate, a gun pointed at the still bound Takagi. The officer's stood frozen, staring at the still Takagi and Tabby as the lower Cat glared. No one noticed the small Conan sneaking up behind the man, an open detective badge in hand.
Tabby yelped and spun as the sharp needle dug into the back of his leg, giving the officers the opening they needed to thunder down the stairs and tackle him. Conan smiled as handcuffs circled the Cat's hand and Takagi sighed in relief. It was over. They were finally done.
Okay, final crack ending!
Lion placed the gun up to Takagi's head, glancing over to smirk at the child in the cage. "You thought you were smart, huh Kitten? Thought you had outsmarted me with your little glasses trick. HA! How can you expect to outsmart an opponent you don't truly know!" With a flourish Lion gripped the edge of his face, tearing it off to reveal Yukiko Kudo. Conan sputtered and backed up, his mind nearly stopped in shock.
"M-m-mom!" He exclaimed, looking over to Tiger as the man took off his mask as well, revealing his father.
"Hello son."
Now Takagi looked more confused than ever. He had given up struggling to simply slump in confusion as the Cats began taking off their faces to reveal the Kudo family. Conan's eyes darted to Tabby, no longer surprised when the last cat turned out to be Agasa.
"B-b-but you killed someone!"
"Oh that was the son of one of my old acting coaches. Didn't he do a wonderful job with that scene?"
"Persian and Kinkalow?"
"Persian was the same kid, and your little friend Haibara-san helped us with the boy."
"You mean she was in on it too?"
Yukiko and Yusaku laughed. Takagi glanced between the family members as the parents released him and Conan. "Um, why would you go through all this trouble?"
Shinichi shrugged and rolled his eyes. "They always do this when they come into town."
Yeah… that was… interesting I guess… I know, ton of plot holes with that one, but it is a crack ending so…