ACT II

Somewhere in Tokyo, Black Mansion (b/c where would you live aside from a mansion?)

"Hey, guys?" Kaitou said, slowly turning away from the mirror, "I'm not so sure I want to go to this masquerade thing anymore." Kaitou looked doubtfully at his two friends, Jii and Akako.

"Oh, c'mon Kaitou, you look great," Akako reassured.

"I have to agree, young master. You look stunning in white," Jii added.

"But what the heck am I supposed to be dressed up as?" Kaitou asked, fiddling with his cape and top hat.

"A gentleman thief, of course," Akako replied.

"A gentleman thief?" Kaitou repeated.

"Someone who steals away the lady's heart," Akako said with a smirk.

"Are you sure I don't look silly?" Kaitou asked again, turning around to look at himself in the mirror. He didn't want to make a fool of himself in front of Aoko. And quite frankly, the monocle was a bit too much...

"You look fine," Akako insisted. "All you need now is a mysterious name."

"Why would I need that?" Kaitou asked.

"Because ladies dig mysterious guys," Akako replied, slightly annoyed at Kaitou's apparent ignorance. "Hm," she thought, tapping her chin, "how about, Phantom Thief? Oh, that sounds mysterious!"

"Phantom thief," Kaitou repeated to his reflection. Phantom thief…yeah…he could get used to that. Kaitou, the Phantom Thief, he thought, seeing the grin in the mirror.

Somewhere in Tokyo, Cullen Mansion, Conan's Room

"Mother, why do I have to do this?" Conan protested, holding up the costume.

"Because it's a masquerade, Conan," his mother explained, her tone suggesting that such an obvious question needn't be asked.

"But why this costume?" Conan pressed.

"Well, don't you think it'll be fun?" his mother replied.

"How will this be fun?" Conan asked.

"Just think of it as a guessing game for Ran. If she can pick you out, won't that mean that her love for you is genuine?"

"But mother," Conan started, but his mother cut him off.

"Conan, this would make Mother really happy. You want Mother to be happy, right?" his mother asked, looking at him expectantly.

Conan just sighed, gave up and nodded his head.

"Wonderful!" his mother said excitedly, giving him a hug. "Haibara! Do be a dear and come in and help Conan get into his costume."

"I can dress myself, Mother," Conan said, but his mother had already waltzed out of the room. Conan just sighed again; he couldn't keep up with her sometimes.

"Alright, let's get you into that costume," Haibara said, walking into the room.

"No, that is, I mean, um, I-I can do it myself," Conan said, blushing.

"Come now, Conan, there's nothing to be embarrassed about. I've been doing this for you since you were born," his nurse said, grabbing ahold of the boy.

"Wait, wait," Conan tried to protest, but Haibara was already busy pulling his shirt over his head.

"We don't have much time, Conan, so stop your squirming," Haibara directed.

"But," Conan started when a sudden giggling fit hit him, "Haha, that tickles, haha."

"Hold still," Haibara instructed firmly.

"Wait, Haibara," Conan said between laughs, "I said, 'wait'! Wait! Hey! Hey, watch where you're touching!"

Somewhere in Tokyo, Outside the Cullen Mansion

"Welp, this is it. This is the Cullen Mansion," Akako said as she led the other two up the front steps. She turned around and looked at Kaitou, an annoyed expression crossing her face, "Kaitou, can you please stop looking like you're about to die?"

"But I am about to die," Kaitou said melodramatically. What if Aoko sees him dressed up like this and just bursts out into laughter. Kaitou didn't think his heart could handle it. He didn't get to think about it much longer though as Akako abruptly grabbed onto his hand and dragged him into the mansion.

Kaitou gasped when he entered, amazed at the festivities going on inside. There was dancing and singing, eating and drinking. People were laughing, at each other and themselves, just generally having a good time. A giant spread of food was laid out and an orchestra was playing in the background.

"Let's go!" Akako said excitedly, rushing into the crowd and disappearing.

"Let's see if anything interesting is happening," Jii said, pulling Kaitou along.

Kaitou darted his head around, looking for his love, Aoko, but she was nowhere to be found. Maybe she hasn't arrived yet, Kaitou mumbled to himself. But a sudden silence in the room snapped him out of his thoughts. The orchestra had stopped playing and everyone had suddenly grown eerily quiet. Kaitou looked in the direction everyone was facing and noticed they were all looking at a young girl, maybe twelve, certainly no older than thirteen, dressed in a vibrant sky blue gown. Kaitou opened his eyes a little wider, as if hoping to get a better look at the young girl. She's beautiful, Kaitou thought, entranced.

The girl had a violin in hand, which she promptly raised and started playing. Moonlight Sonata was the piece of choice. As the girl moved the fiddle back and forth, Kaitou felt as if she were playing with his heartstrings instead of the violin's strings. Each tug resonated with something deep in his heart, the ebbs and flows of the song causing him to sway where he stood. He was lost in the melody.

Only when the song had ended and everyone started clapping was he suddenly snapped back into reality. Kaitou quickly raised his hands in applause as well.

"That was impressive, wasn't it, young master," Jii asked from next to him.

"Yes," Kaitou said absentmindedly, his eyes busy tracking the girl as she walked away and into a connected hallway. "Hey, Jii," Kaitou said, eyes still fixated on where the girl had gone, "I'll be right back." With that, Kaitou dashed off, in the direction of the girl, Aoko completely gone from his mind and his heart.

Cullen Mansion, An Exterior Balcony on the Second Floor

Conan sighed, putting his violin back into its case. Would Ran really be able to recognize him in this ridiculous gown? Well, at least it was comfortable. Conan set the violin case down and turned around, leaning on the balcony as he let his gaze wander over the city of Tokyo.

Actually, he suddenly thought, Ran's going to be dressed up too, right? Would he recognize her? When Conan really thought about it, he realized that the last time he had seen Ran was years ago. How much has she changed since then? Conan sighed again. This is why he didn't like his parents' over-the-top plans. A sudden noise startled Conan out of his thoughts, causing him to spin around.

"Ah, I'm sorry," a voice said, coming out of the darkness of the hallway and onto the balcony, "I didn't mean to scare you."

Conan took a look at the figure that stood in front of him. It was a man dressed in a white suit, with a cape, a top hat, and a monocle around one eye. A small breeze caused the man's cape to flutter a little. Looking at the man (or perhaps it was more a teenager, Conan thought) Conan couldn't help but giggle at the extremely flashy costume.

"What's so funny?" the teen asked, looking worried.

"Your costume," Conan said, pointing.

"You think it's ridiculous, don't you," the teen asked, looking depressed.

"Ah, no," Conan quickly said, "I think it's rather fitting."

The teen looked up, curious, "What do you mean?"

"Well, you being clad in white under the full moon, there's something poetic about it, isn't there?" Conan said, giving the teen a smile.

The teen just stood there, as if trying to find the right words to say. Finally, he managed, "I was looking for you." Conan's eyes widened a little at that and looked at the teen curiously. Was it Ran in disguise? "I-I mean," the teen stuttered, suddenly looking flush under Conan's gaze, "I wasn't stalking you or anything. I-I just," the teen paused again and took a deep breath. "I really liked it when you played the violin before," he finally said.

"Thanks!" Conan said casually, giving the teen a smile. Well, Conan thought, if this is Ran, I guess marriage might not be so bad.

"Um," the teen started again, "if you don't mind me asking, could you tell me your name?"

"Cona-uh" Conan began but paused as a thought suddenly came to mind. He was supposed to be testing Ran, right? "-ninianara," Conan finished, trying to stay in character and giving himself a more girly sounding name.

"Conaooninianara," the teen tried to repeat. Conan just laughed at the teen's attempts, causing the teen to burst into laughter as well. "My name Kaitou, the Phantom Thief," the teen said with a slight bow. Oh, so it's a double guessing game, eh? Conan thought. No doubt his parents had decided to plant a few impostor Ran's for him, just to make the game more interesting. Alright, he'd play along, for now.

"Hello, Mr. Thief," Conan replied, "It's a pleasure to meet you." Conan did a little curtsey just for added effect.

"The pleasure is mine," Kaitou said, a grin spreading wide across his face.

END ACT II

Hope you guys enjoyed reading the chapter! I certainly had fun writing it =P I mean, what kind of parody would this be without Conan in a dress? Anyways, some more characters castings, just so you guys know:

Haibara = Juliet's wet nurse
Akako = Mercutio

See you guys in ACT III!