Looking out the window, I saw the buildings with distinctive colours for the third time. Seeing it twice could be a coincidence, but three times usually means driving in circles. Why would we be driving in circles? No clue. Ever since Dino and I got into the car with Ivan and Dino's subordinate, Claudio, no one has spoken a word. While Claudio was driving, Ivan was texting profusely on his smartphone. I knew some things are better off not knowing, but I could not help to be curious. Especially because the mood was suspiciously heavy.
"Even if you ask, Princess, I can't tell you any details." Uncle's voice rang out, breaking the long silence. Glancing over the front passenger seat I saw him looking over his shoulder, frowning. "You can only know that we did this out of precaution. One of Dino's men spotted a few figures who are on our blacklist. Chances that either of you were their target are as good as zero, but we couldn't take any risks."
My eyes narrowed at his words as my look hardened. I did not like what he had said. The fact that he mentioned our blacklist left me sour.
"Are you trying to say that assassins were close by?" I rephrased, almost dangerously low. "Meaning, someone is going to be murdered?"
"Well, that's what assassins do, Princess." Ivan said, along with a small chuckle.
While he neither confirmed nor denied, my intuition told me that I was not far off anyway. I know activities like assassinations come with the job being part of the mafia, but that still does not mean that I fancy it.
Ivan heaved a small sigh before he looked in front of him as he pointed to the left. When Claudio turned the steering wheel, we drove into another street as Ivan resumed to talk. "Listen, I know you know several activities come with our profession, but you have to know we can't just interfere with other organisations. Vongola may be the most powerful, but that doesn't mean we can decide what's wrong and what's right."
Letting out a small sigh of my own, I turned my head again to look at the passing buildings. "I'm aware of that, Uncle." I said, slightly in defeat. I could not possibly argue against diplomatic politics. There were still so many things I did not understand. Feeling my hand being covered, I glanced over to my neighbour, who was looking out of the window too. As Dino carefully glanced over to me, he gave me a small wink and a warm smile, before he looked out of the window again. Smiling softly at the gesture, I squeezed his hand as I, too, resumed to look at the passing buildings.
As the minutes went by I noticed the change of scenery. The high buildings were slowly replaced with shorter ones. From the looks of it we were entering the suburbs.
"Princess, Dino." Ivan started as he looked over his shoulder again. "I have to ask you to stay with an old acquainta–"
Wondering why he had stopped talking, I looked over and saw him frowning deeply as he stared intensely at the spot between Dino and me. Following his line of view, I saw that my hand was still enveloped with Dino's. Like Dino had the same idea, we both let go at the same time and I felt my cheeks grow warm as I quickly glanced at the blonde next to me. Apparently he, too, did the same because our eyes met. As I quickly glanced away while holding back a shy grin, Ivan coughed loudly.
"As I was saying," He continued as he glanced at Dino with unamused eyes. "I want you to stay with an old acquaintance till we pick you up this evening. He owns a billiard bar, so you can play pool to pass time. The owner is a master in the game, so you can learn from him if you want."
Ivan's tone was stern and there was no room for discussion. His decision was final.
"I suppose you'll get our luggage from the hotel, then?" I said, sighing softly. Finishing our weekend in confinement was not exactly what I had in mind. Glancing over to Dino, he just smiled softly at me, saying that it will be fine.
"Yeah." Ivan replied gruffly as his frown deepened even more. "And Dino, if you do something funny to my Princess before our conversation on Thursday, I will assure you that you'll be sorry."
"Uncle!" I called out loudly, raising a protective arm between Dino and Ivan. "Don't say things like that! We had this conversa–!"
Before I could finish, Dino lowered my arm gently. Turning my head, he gave me a reassuring smile before he looked back at my foster father.
"You have my word, Ivan." Dino said firmly. "Not as the leader of the Cavallone Famiglia, but as the Vongola Princess's beau."
Almost choking on my spit I could only look at blonde in disbelief. Did he seriously say that out loud?
"Very well." I heard my uncle say, and my eyes flashed back at the muscular man. Without saying anything else, Ivan turned around once more, and gave the last instructions to Claudio.
Redirecting my eyes to Dino, I saw him smiling contently and I pulled the sleeve of his black jacket. When he turned his head I gave him a look, asking for an explanation for his choice of words, but he only gave me a cheeky wink. Frowning at it, I knew he would not explain it to me, at least not at the moment, and I let out a small sigh as I looked once more out of the window.
About fifteen minutes later the car stopped. "We're here." Ivan said before he got out of the car. Just when I unbuckled the safety belt, the door on my side opened and I looked up at my foster parent who had opened the door. Quirking a brow at this actions, he sighed as his face showed some discomfort. "Just… get out of the car, Princess."
Having a hunch that it had to do with Dino, I smiled slightly as I got out of the car. Turning around I saw the illuminated letters "Billiard Bar Blue Parrot" and underneath the sign I saw a staircase going up to the first floor. If it wasn't for the sign, no one would have guessed that this was a bar. The bricked building was in fact between two other apartment buildings, looking like just another apartment building.
"Just mention the name 'Walker' and the owner, Jii, knows." Ivan added, as he gently pushed me towards Dino. "I'll pick you up at six."
As I stood next to Dino, we watched Ivan getting back into the black sedan and a moment later they drove away.
"Shall we go then?" Dino asked as his hand gently touched my back, escorting me towards the stairs of the bar. "I can teach you the game."
"You play billiards?" I asked, pleasantly surprised at the revelation as we climbed the stairs.
"Somewhat. Reborn made me learn it." He smiled, though it soon turned into a grimace. "Through his typical methods…"
Already imaging several Spartan methods, a bitter chuckle escaped from my lips. "Must be horrifying, playing billiards of death."
"A little."
As we laughed, we reached the entrance and we stopped in our tracks as we heard heated shouts from the other side. "– deserted with all your customers flockin' to the boss's pool bar!"
Not exactly knowing what to do, I looked at my companion and he shook his head, suggesting that we should wait for a moment.
"The boss has the Legendary Cue at his place. That's why nobody's comin' to your hole in the wall!"
As the door was opened from the other side, a man with bleached hair and sunglasses walked out. "Get lost, punk!" was shouted from the inside.
"Yeah, I'll do that." The man with sunglasses called back. "The next time I come, it will be to buy this place from you dirt cheap!" As the man slammed the door shut, he grunted something inaudible before noticing us. For a second he looked at us and sneered. "I'm tellin' you, this place is no good. My boss's place is much better for folks like you!" He laughed, rather nastily. "It's called American, it's in front of the station. I can show you the way."
Not liking his attitude, I opened my mouth to refuse his offer. However, Dino beat me to it.
"Thank you for the recommendation, sir, but no thanks." He declined politely as he grabbed the door handle.
"Hmfp. Suit yourselves, then."
As the guy walked down the stairs, Dino and I entered the bar. "Geez… what was that all about?" I muttered. "Such a dislikeable character he has. If he really wants to promote his boss's place, he has to change his approach."
"Hm… I've heard of the place. It's a little bit shady, if you know what I mean."
Glancing over to Dino, he gave me a meaningful look and I understood what he meant. Illegal practices. The billiard bar called American is probably the headquarters of some small organisation with dubious activities.
"K-Kaito! W-What are you d-doing!?" a young woman's voice suddenly shrieked through the bar, and my head turned to the unexpected commotion. A girl of my age stood stiffened with reddened cheeks as I saw another person, or rather a few strands of hair and a hand presumably from the one called Kaito, behind her. Next to the flustered girl stood an older man with a grey moustache and round glasses, dressed in a casual bartender outfit and I labelled this gentleman as the owner. At the same time I found it ironic that the man was called "Jii".
"Ah, welcome." The older man greeted us with a polite smile, before he put a billiard cue in a nearby cue rack on the wall. "How can I be of your service?"
As he walked towards us, I smiled politely in return before bowing. "Good afternoon, sir. My name is Lin Sharon and this is Cavallone Dino. We are acquaintances of Walker-san." I introduced ourselves as the gentleman's expression changed into surprise when Uncle's surname left my lips. "We were wondering whether we could spend our afternoon here until Walker-san picks up later today."
"Walker-san, you said? As in Ivan Walker-sama?"
Quirking my brow slightly at the honourable addressing, I glanced sideways to Dino. Seeing him just as confused, I just nodded.
"Oh, my. That is not a problem at all! Welcome, welcome to the Blue Parrot." The elderly smiled heartily as he gestured us to the bar. "I am the owner, Konosuke Jii. It is an honour to meet Walker-sama's acquaintances. He helped us out greatly in the past. We are indebted to him."
Before either Dino or I could say anything in return, a young man's voice interrupted us loudly. "What!? You know them, Jii-chan!?"
Turning around I saw a young man with dark, messy, brown hair in a white shirt. He was looking at the elderly like he heard something outrageous and when his gaze moved towards us, our eyes met. It was only for an instant, but I had a strong feeling that I knew the guy from somewhere and automatically I released the limiters of my sensing ability.
Kaitou Kid.
Recognising the young man's energy, I could only stare dumbfounded at my find. However, a second later I felt the corners of my lips crinkle up at the irony. No way in hell I would have thought that I would find the true face of the man, or rather young man, behind the disguises so soon.
"I know their acquaintance, young master. But that is a story for later." Jii answered, as I looked back at the owner when he addressed the young phantom thief with such formality. He walked around the bar and gestured to sit on the polished stools. "Please, have a seat. What may I get you?"
"Well, it's a little early to have a drink, so an espresso for me." Dino said as he sat down.
"The same." I added, placing myself next to Dino, not before glancing one more time at the glaring young man behind the girl.
As Jii was brewing the coffee, Dino leaned closer to me. "What are you smirking at?" Dino asked, in a hushed voice so only I could hear it. "I may not have Hyper Intuition, but something tells me it's that guy."
"Well, my dear Valentino, you're right." I replied with a small smile. Leaning on my elbow I looked at my companion with amusement. "You would be surprised if you knew."
Dino frowned and glanced at the pair who were audibly arguing about something. "You're sure?" He muttered, as I followed his line of view. Presumably, the two of them resumed what they were doing, playing pool. At least, an attempt to play it. The girl tried to hit the billiard ball with the cue, but for some reason the ball moved differently from what she wanted, and the frustration was shown on her fine features. It was obvious that she was a beginner, and the boy teased her about it. However, even when they argued, I noticed quick glances from the phantom thief to our direction, and I had my fair share of possibilities of what might be running through his mind.
"Absolutely." I grinned, looking back at the Don. Receiving an impassive frown, I failed to repress a snort. "I'll tell you later, okay? Let us enjoy our drinks first, shall we?"
"Here you go. Two espressos." Jii said as he presented us two little cups of pitch back liquid and a small tray with sugar and cream. The bittersweet smell of the coffee entered my nostrils, and I smiled at the lovely scent. Taking the teaspoon, I scooped a spoonful of sugar, whereas Dino took a sip of the concentrated liquid without any additives.
"I still can't understand how you're able to drink espresso just like that." I commented as I stirred the sweetened mixture. Remembering drinking my first black espresso with my grandfather, I cringed at the thought. While it had a slight sweet aftertaste, the hot beverage was just too bitter to drink it without squirming. At least grandfather got his share of amusement then. "Pops drinks it black too."
"Maybe it's a man's drink?" Dino offered when I put the cup to my lips. Smiling at his reply I took a sip. The intense, yet soft, taste of the slight sweetened liquid tickled my taste buds, and I nodded slightly in satisfaction as my mind relaxed. The coffee was good.
"Maybe." I repeated softly. It was also then that I noticed the soft jazz music, and subconsciously my thumb moved along with the relaxing music. Perhaps staying at the bar till six was not as bad. It had a nice atmosphere.
As the owner polished some glasses, Dino and I drank our beverages in silence as I listened to the background noise of the two teenagers at the pool table. I learnt that the phantom thief was, funny enough, called Kaito and the girl Aoko. Apparently she is the daughter of inspector Nakamori and I could not help to find their relationship somewhat… ironic. From what I could tell, the teen was on good terms with the inspector. The very same inspector who wants the young man's alter persona locked up in prison. Initially, it is somewhat comical that inspector Nakamori was looking for the person who is basically living next to him, however, thinking about it more carefully, there was more to the story than the eye meets. Just imagine what could happen if the inspector and his daughter discovered that the young man is actually a wanted criminal, it made my heart heavy. To hide your identity for a certain goal, in the phantom thief's case, finding a gem that shines red in the moonlight…
"What's the matter?" Dino asked, feeling his upper arm touching mine. "Is there something wrong? You don't look as cheerful as before."
Smiling at his attentiveness, I shook my head as I sipped my espresso. "I'm fine, thanks. I've just reminded myself again how complex life can be."
As Dino slightly frowned, Jii spoke up. "For someone young as yourself, miss, to speak of these words… If I might ask, did something happen?"
Smiling again, I put my arms in the air as I stretched them. "Something did happen indeed to make my life a tad more complex, Konosuke-san." I laughed quietly, thinking of how my life has been sort of messed up from the moment I was given a second chance. "But I have friends and family I can count on, so it's alright."
Seeing Dino look down in his empty cup, I felt another twinge in my heart. While my reincarnation was one thing, there was still the topic of being a descendant of Vongola. Or being involved with the mafia in general. Dino claimed he had a change of heart when he learnt I was Vongola Nono's granddaughter, but I know he is still somewhat sensitive towards the topic that I got involved. He will never admit it, but deep down, he is still blaming himself for not be able to protect me, for getting me somehow into the shadier part of the world. I have told him on several occasions that he was not at fault, and that I would have eventually end up with the mafia, but despite of this, I still get this vibe of regret whenever the topic surfaces. Perhaps it has to do that he tried his hardest to keep me out of his mafia life when we were younger. For that sole reason, we kept our contact to emails only despite that we had each other phone numbers.
Leaning against him, I put my head on his shoulder as I closed my eyes. Feeling his shoulder relax, I smiled to myself. Whenever Dino was distressed, a simple touch or hug would do the trick. Feeling a soft kiss on the top on my head, I reopened my eyes as I felt my face grow warmer. Looking at him, he just smiled lovingly and I could only smile back shyly.
"Bleh, I'm cringing! Please get a room you two!" Kaito suddenly called out, and my ears burnt up at his words. In that small moment I had completely forgotten we were in a public place.
"K-Kaito! You can't say that to people!" Aoko called out to him in a hushed voice.
"Why not? This is a billiard bar, not some romantic smooching spot."
"Young Master…" Jii sighed as I cleared my throat.
"No, he is right." I said before I turned around on my stool. "Others may feel indeed uncomfortable seeing intimate interactions in public, so we should behave properly. Thank you for reminding us."
As I gave Kaito a small smile from the bar, he visibly gulped before he turned around with a small huff, pretending to resume playing billiard.
"Ah, talking about proper behaviour…" I muttered as I remembered the rough looking man from before. "Dino, that guy from before… He was quite rude. Saying bad things about this place just because his chief has some kind of cue? What was it called again?"
"The Legendary Cue." Dino nodded as he turned towards the barman. "May I ask what that is, Konosuke-san?"
"Yeah. What was that thug saying about some "Legendary Cue", Jii-chan?" Kaito entered the conversation as he came over to the bar.
While I drank the remaining espresso, Jii poured coffee into a mug before explaining. "The Legendary Cue is inlaid with countless of diamonds and emeralds." He said as he gave the mug to his master. "It is said only a champion can wield it."
"D-Diamonds and emeralds!?" I called out, almost choking on my coffee. "Such an extravagant cue exists!?"
Jii nodded briefly and I could only stare at him like I had heard the most outrageous thing ever. Which, kind of is. I guess rich people never fail to amaze me.
"Ah, Aoko knows about the place that has the cue." The girl said as she walked over to the bar too. "It's the pool hall called American in front of the train station. It goes around that you have to be eighteen and over to get in. Also, you have to dress up in evening clothes."
As Kaito hummed, Jii sighed. "Billiards should be fun to play. Age and clothes have nothing to do with it."
"While I agree with you that billiards should be played for recreational reasons, Konosuke-san, owning such a cue comes with privileges. It is after all a cue of a kind." Dino said. "We people think just like that."
"Privileges or not, I'd like to get a look at an awesome cue like that." Kaito said excitedly, already visualising how it could look like.
"I used to own it." Jii said, somewhat dejectedly.
Hearing that, we all called out in surprise. "You used to own it!?"
"Then why don't you have it now?" Kaito asked further.
"Well, Young Master, this was a long time ago. Even before I met your father." Jii started as he reminisced about the past. "Back then, I played a game of pool with that cue at stakes, and I lost. I was earning my meals as a pool shark."
"A pool shark?"
"Playing pool by using a combination of deception, talent, and intimidation. Some call it pool gambling." Dino clarified as Jii nodded.
"Yes. Nowadays, pool is an enjoyable pastime for me, but back in the day, it was all about gambling. I was a lone wolf who never lost, but some people didn't accept that kindly." Jii continued. "I received a challenge and Hasura Tsujiro was my opponent. He was sharp hustler who worked for a syndicate. He was on top of his game, and we were tied. But I made just one error, and from that point on, Hasura had control of the game. I never got another turn."
"But you were an expert, right, Jii-chan?" Kaito asked. "How could you have blown it like that?"
"Unbeknownst even to Hasura, the syndicate boss tempered my chalk."
"That's cheating! Why didn't you object!?"
"Konosuke-san probably noticed it afterwards." I answered with mixed feelings. I felt bad for him, because he lost his priceless cue because of a greedy boss. But in a sense it was also his own fault. He accepted the challenge while he knew he was playing against a corrupt syndicate. "A showdown is a showdown, Kaito-san. As a professional, you cannot go back on your word. If you don't notice that you've been played during the game, then that's on you. Complaining about it afterwards makes you only look like a sore loser."
As Kaito was about to say something, Jii raised his hand along with a slight shake of his head. "Lin-sama is correct, Young Master. It was not only the cue at stakes, but also my pride. I didn't notice it then, and I lost. As a professional I accepted my loss without protest. Besides, I'm sort of glad it was against Hasura I lost. He really was talented."
"It's still unforgivable, Jii-chan." Kaito countered. His tone told me that he had decided on something. "You've done a lot for me, so I'll get that Legendary Cue back for you."
Glancing at the young adolescent, I saw the shimmering in his eyes and instinctively I knew that he would not back off on his word.
"Then I would suggest you hone your billiard skills, Kaito-san. From what I've seen, or rather heard, you still have a long way to go." I said, smiling at his resolve as I returned the empty cup on its saucer.
"What did you say!?"
"Hehe. She is right. Kaito is worse than me." Aoko giggled, gaining an annoyed look from her friend.
After taking a sip from his coffee, Kaito looked at me with confidence. "Then what about you, onee-san? Are you any good?"
"Zero experience. So I'm probably worse than you." I returned without any shame. Seeing his face falter slightly, I held back a grin. "But then again, I've never had a cue in my hand, so we won't know until we try. Fortunately I have someone who can teach me the game."
"Hooh… So onii-san knows the game then?"
"I know how to play, but I'm certainly no professional or hustler for that matter." Dino answered with modesty.
"Neither I am." Kaito smirked as he suddenly had a white ball between his stretched index and middle finger. In smooth motions he got a second and third white ball between his middle and ring and index and thumb respectively. Only to transform them into a red rose. Presenting me the flower, he grinned cheekily. "I'm a magician."
Despite that I knew the young man's identity as Kaitou Kid, I was still impressed at his little magic trick. "Hm… Is that a hint?" I hummed meaningfully as I accepted the rose. Seeing the young man freeze up ever so slightly, I chuckled as I winked. "Or something like that."
Turning towards my beloved, I just grinned. "Well then, Dino, shall we hit the pockets?"
Disclaimer: Magic Kaito 1412 belongs to Gosho Aoyama (author of Detective Conan). Case is derived of Magic Kaito 1412 episode 3.
