Like Emil said, they found a "house" to live in. It was more of a large shack. It didn't have an owner and no one was using it, as the inside was covered with a layer of dust when they found it, so they decided to "borrow" it. No one would wonder why a bunch of kids were hanging out in a shack outside of town, as it seemed like they were a bunch of misfits forming a club.

The three swept it up and cleaned it a bit before making themselves at home, but with nothing but a rabbit, a doll, and a few blankets and clothes, they could only sleep on the hard floor at night. Not that they minded, as they were used to it.

One night, while Angel was asleep, Emil proposed an idea to Access.

"We send out a notice. With can do it, he's really fast, and no one will notice."

"But… that's dangerous! Letting them expect us?" Access frowned. They had never done that before.

"Who cares? It's a new challenge! Let's take that Hikari down a notch. He thinks he's all that for being wealthy and foreign… and besides, his art… there's just something about it. And, we can use With to fly. No one will expect us to steal from the air! We're on our own; Sister Natalia isn't keeping an eye on us anymore; we don't have a time limit or someone checking up on us! Let's do it! Let's show the world a new and improved us!" Emil seemed excited. "Come on… I don't want to do this without you. Let's debut together!"

"Well… I suppose so. Okay. Why not?" The younger redhead grinned, his crimson eyes glinting with mischievous light.

"And I have the perfect name for us too! You know, to sign the notice."

"Oh yeah? What is it?"

"Kaitou Dark."

"Did you hear about that new thief? That shadow thief scares me…. He's so mysterious. Do you believe the rumors about his wings? And his name is so odd, but is has a dark feel to it." Angel shivered a bit. "And he's so daring, letting people know beforehand when he's going to steal something!"

"Yeah…. What makes you bring that up, all of a sudden?" Emil asked idly. It was night, and they had lain down to sleep, Access already snoring away.

"Well, I heard some women talking when I was at the market today." Angel said. "They said he was going to steal again tonight."

"…You still don't like stealing, do you?" Emil sighed, turning over to stare at the ceiling.

"Well, I just want to understand why someone would do such a thing…" Angel said in a small voice, yawning.

"Well… remember when we first met, and I said I had to steal to survive?" Emil said, glancing at her out of the corner of his eye.

"But that's different. That was stealing money and food…. This stealing is for art. What use does art have in survival?"

"Maybe it's just… a thrill? Maybe someone's being held hostage, and he's being forced to do it." Emil shrugged, "Or maybe he's a fallen angel, just trying to make trouble." He smirked.

Angel shivered again. "Fallen angel? Like a demon?" She curled up a bit, "How frightening!"

"Don't worry. If he comes to steal you, I'll protect you."

"Steal me? Why would he steal me?" Angel squeaked, huddling closer to Emil.

Emil laughed softly, running his hand up her side. "Because… You are more beautiful than any art in the world."

"Emil…" Angel rolled her eyes, "Hey, no touching." He had become rather 'clumsy' and perverted lately, trying to find ways to touch her and see her… Sometimes he would do something ridiculous like spill hot water on her dress. She got mad at him for that though, so he didn't try it again… with hot water.

"It's true. Or maybe, he'll come to steal you because you took something from him." Emil teased, pulling her closer, not obeying her much. "Thieves hate it when their things get stolen."

"I…? I didn't take anything!" She pouted, slightly panicked. She didn't protest when Emil held her, though.

"Don't worry; I'll protect you… because I love you." He kissed her on the forehead.

I want to steal you away… because you were the first person to steal anything from me.

Angel smiled a bit, closing her eyes. "You're hopeless, Emil." She yawned, turning over as her breathing slowed. "Good night…"

After Emil was sure she was asleep, he sat up. He brushed her bangs aside a bit.

You stole my heart.

He stood up, and With, already awake, jumped onto his shoulder. He grabbed his pack and they snuck out. Time for his heist!

A few minutes after the door shut, Angel opened her eyes.

Emil? She frowned, getting up. Where was he going? She didn't like that he was hiding things from her, but she had known for a long time that he and Access had their secret hobbies.

She followed him into the night. She could hear his nearly silent footsteps ahead of her. She had always wondered why he stepped so lightly the way he did, but she had just dismissed it as being careful or something of the like.

She bit her lip as she saw the boy stop suddenly. She hid behind a tree. He looked around, seeming to sense his follower, but shrugged it off. He ran on. She waited a few moments before she came out and followed him once more.

And then suddenly, the shadow of his figure jumped into the air. It was an impossibly powerful jump. She couldn't see why he was doing so, until she heard the flutter of wings and suddenly a silhouette blocked out the moon. It was the shape of an angel.

W-what…?! That's… the shadow thief! The one with wings! Angel thought in shock, Emil is…?!

She ran to the place she knew the heist would be. She had to see… she had to make sure!

When she got there, it was crowded with bodyguards and other sorts of security. It was a public museum after all, the whole gallery filled with all kinds of art made by the Hikari who had come to Munich before.

She had known that Emil had an eye for art, but to go out and steal such things…? Did he not want others to see the beauty of the art that he could see?

She saw him then, hiding among the darkness, clad in black so that he would blend in. His smile glinted in the moonlight, and then suddenly, he dived, disappearing from view. She waited anxiously for him to come out. Would he be caught?

Suddenly he burst through the front doors, laughing tauntingly at the guards, running past them and suddenly sprouting wings, taking off. She had never seen him more… alive than in this moment. He was truly having fun… being himself.

He teased the shocked crowd of guards once more before he flew off, a faceless phantom in the night.

Angel was amazed. How had he done such a magic trick? Had he made a deal with the devil himself?

She realized that he was probably heading back to the shack, and she hurried off. However, by the time she got back, Emil wasn't there. She wondered where he was, but she took the opportunity to slip back under her blanket and slow down her beating heart.

Everything about this confused her…!

About an hour later, when she was just drifting off again, she heard the door open again, squealing slightly on its rusty hinges. She could tell that Emil was trying to be quiet though, but she still pretended to be asleep.

"It was a success." He whispered in Japanese, so quiet that Angel was surprised she almost couldn't hear it in the dead silence of their little home. She could only barely understand him, but she had to listen hard. Who was he talking to?

"You got the sculpture?"

Access? Angel realized that he had stopped his snores a long while ago. Did he know that she had snuck out? Had he been awake the whole time?

"Yup. It's safe and sound in our 'vault'." The more mature voice of the elder sibling said. "They beefed up security… Next thing we know, they'll have dogs on us."

"Don't worry. We'll be fine." Access assured.

"I wonder how With will work under pressure, though? He's afraid of dogs…"

With? Angel was confused now. What did that little rabbit have to do with anything?

"Well, we'll see when it comes to that. Was it like the rest?"

"Yeah, it had that weird feeling about it…. With even hissed at it this time."

"Huh, weird… Maybe someone else was there?"

"Who, though?" Emil sounded thoughtful, "Maybe… Hikari? I've only seen him once though…"

"And it's only ever when I'm not with you." Access reminded him.

"That's true… and With hissed at him then, too. It might've been him, then… but I don't get it. He's kind of a nice guy. A humble artist, you know? So why would With dislike him? I think he takes his art way too seriously though… He might see our little thefts as great compliments. After all, he's not all that well-known except in the upper quarter…"

"So a lowly thief like Dark giving him publicity is a good thing. Man, this is so messed up that it's confusing…" Access paused, seeing With crawl over to Angel and nudge her nose with his. Her face contorted a bit. "Gak, With…! Don't do that!" He hissed.

"I think it's time to turn in." Emil chuckled, crawling under the covers, beckoning With to him. The furry white creature hopped over, snuggling with the elder Niwa. "We'll talk tomorrow."

"Right, let's not risk waking her up…" Access nodded, lying down. "Night."

"Good night."

When all was silent, Angel's thoughts drifted off as slumber took her.

Emil… is Kaitou Dark?

For a few months, Angel kept it a secret that she knew theirs. If they wanted to tell her, then she would wait for the day when they would.

She still fought to understand why they would keep stealing the arts of one specific man… and she kept trying to figure out where they hid it.

One night, when Emil and Access were both out on their heist, she followed them once more. She saw them split up to play a trick on the guards. When they got the target, they broke down the street, the guards trailing just behind them.

"Get them! There are two of them!"

"Shit! Big bro, don't wait up for me! Go, go!"

She had been hiding in an alley way, but she could see that they were losing ground. They were just about to run past when she called out, "Guys, this way!"

They looked surprised, stopping for just a moment. Emil was a lot faster to recover though, and so he grabbed Access' hand and followed her. Angel grabbed his hand, leading him through the maze of alleys. The moon was her guide, letting her see the tops of buildings silhouetted against it so that she would know where to turn.

They lost the guards a long while later. Panting and out of breath, they stopped in the middle of a wide alley, their hands on their knees to support them. Emil looked up, wiping his brow and his eyes of sweat.

"Angel?!"

She gave a nervous laugh. "Um… Hi." She grinned, not sure what else to say. "You guys okay?"

"What the hell…? You knew?" Emil asked incredulously.

"Yeah… at first I thought it was just you, Emil, but then I figured out Access was Dark too." Angel admitted. "And With! You're amazing! I didn't know you could do that!" She grinned at the small creature on his shoulder. She had only recently discovered that the wings that Dark sprouted were the shape-shifted form of With.

"Why didn't you say anything?" Access asked. "You don't mind? I thought you hated seeing us steal…"

"I don't hate it… I just don't understand it. You guys have some explaining to do later! I thought you would tell me when you were ready. I've known for a while. But anyways, you guys looked like you were in trouble, so I thought I'd help." Angel shrugged.

"…How did you do that, anyway? I mean… the dark… and… it's a maze!" Emil seemed absolutely stupefied.

Angel gave a broad grin. "You're not the only one with a few tricks and secrets up your sleeve." She stuck her tongue out at him, "I know a few things too… like pretending how to sleep. I must make it look pretty convincing if you keep talking about things in the shack."

The boys blushed. Angel certainly was a mystery as well.

Angel stood up straight, taking a deep breath and composing herself. "Hey, what are we waiting for? Let's go home," She smiled at them, "Kaitou Dark."

"Ah… there's just one thing, though…"

The Niwas took Angel to their secret vault of arts, a cave deep in the forest just outside their shack. It was protected by a large boulder that the boys had to push aside slightly to make enough room to squeeze through, like a tunnel to a sacred treasure trove.

"Hikari makes a ton of stuff. Every time we steal something, he just makes something else. I think he's trying to get better… or faster… or make something worth stealing for us." Emil said, depositing their latest target among the scattered collection of art.

Angel looked around in awe. "All of this…" There were paintings propped up against the wall, sculptures gathered in one corner, and other things all about the cave room. Somehow, everything as it was sent a shiver down her spine.

"Only a few month's worth, but I think we did good." Access grinned.

"What if someone finds it all?" Angel asked as they ushered her back outside.

"They won't." Emil reassured, confident. "So, Angel, now you're burdened with helping us keep Dark a secret. What will you do?" He glanced over at her, his hands on his hips. He seemed oddly nonchalant.

Angel looked down at her feet. She twirled her hair with her fingers in thought. "I… I just want to know one thing."

"What is that?" Emil and Access asked simultaneously.

"Why do you steal that Hikari's art? I hear talk in the market, and the rumors seem true, from what I've seen in your… collection. It's what everyone has been talking about ever since Kaitou Dark appeared…. They say that without an exception, the pieces are fantastic… and anybody who looked at them would see something that made them seem almost as if they were living creatures…."

Emil nodded. "Precisely… those are the exact reasons we steal his art. He is… a scientist, experimenting, trying to create the perfect life form. We are the detectives, here to stop his madness." He smirked, "Of course, it's a little different from that, but there's just something about those arts…. They're… Well, it's almost as if they are…"

"…Alive…." Angel and Emil said together as Angel made a realization.

"But… they're 'things', aren't they? How can they be 'living things'?" The blue-haired teen asked, confused.

"They do carry some sort of power… I can sense it. They magic to them… and some sort of will, almost. But… though simply 'things' they may be, they are not 'living things', Angel." Emil seemed oddly serious, as if… bewitched by this idea. "But they're almost there, aren't they? That's why it's so fun to keep stealing them. To see the progress Hikari is making… and to see what he is trying to accomplish."

"…Because he is definitely up to something." Access added, his head bobbing up and down in agreement. "It's something like a war…. We're at war now. Our goal is to find out what he's planning."

Angel frowned, deep in thought. Their question was then answered. "…I'll help you."

Access cheered. Emil gave a boyish grin. He reached up, ruffling her hair.

"Then you… are now Dark as well."

The Niwa boys and Angel were coming back from a visit to the old orphanage. The boys couldn't stand letting them live poorly, since before, it was them who supported the whole place. Of course, Sister Natalia had no idea that they had visited.

Angel discovered that it was the Niwa boys who had been the anonymous donors to the church orphanage. She was amazed. Their thieving skills had been put to a good cause? She supposed it was like the magic in the fairytales they used to read. It wasn't the magic that was good or bad, it was the person who cast it.

Revisiting the children from their old home got her thinking, so she asked Emil as they walked, "Do you ever think about the future?"

"Of course. Why?" Emil answered easily.

"Do you ever think about… oh, I don't know, having kids? Or maybe adopting one of those guys?" She motioned behind them, where they had left the orphanage.

Emil nearly gagged. Access started coughing nervously. Both of them were as deep red as their hair.

"W-what makes you ask that?!" Access had a look of mock disgust. "I mean, adopting, of course, but… we're too young to adopt!"

"We should take care of ourselves first…. Once we can figure out if we can support ourselves, then we'll see if we can add one more to the crew." Emil said, not looking at her, but rather, ahead.

Angel giggled. "You guys are so funny. I meant in the future."

"Well, I think about the future sometimes then. For now, it's the present." Emil scoffed. Access looked between him and Angel.

"Yeah. Hey, does thinking about tonight's heist count as the future?"