Mikau: Hello there! Wondering where I've been these past few weeks? I kind of got distracted by my friend Taylor. Blame him. Anyway, thanks to all who reviewed last chapter: Sirastar, Shara Raizel, Minervana1, Athie Lestrade, and Aniki-xvi. All that's left is this and the epilogue; I hope you guys enjoy it!
Disclaimer: If I owned it, Genta-kun's bald spot would be the first to go. While it gives him character, it also annoys my OCD.
….
The Siege (or: Closure)
That very night the duo took a trip to Beika to visit Kaito's contact, "Chrysanthemum".
"Hopefully she's in," Kaito sighed, stuffing his hands into his pockets as Saguru knocked on the door. "Maybe we'll get really lucky and she'll be able to see me."
"Cross your fingers," the detective muttered, looking around for a doorbell or something.
"Intercom's to your right," the ghost added helpfully.
"Oh. Thank you," Saguru replied, pressing the button.
"Hello? Can I help you with somethin'?" a low, female voice asked in a slight slur.
"Uh, yes. Are you Chrysanthemum? You'll probably find this hard to believe, but I was sent by Kuroba Kaito. I heard from him that you were one of his assistants. I need your help. My name is—"
"—Come in," she cut him off.
There was the click of the lock being undone, and then the door slowly opened.
Saguru paused, tossing his friend an inquisitive sidelong glance.
Kaito just shrugged; Kiku-chan could be all mysterious and curt like that sometimes…usually when she was in a bad mood.
Gulping, the detective stepped forward into the unlit atrium.
He woke up approximately twenty-three minutes and fourteen point three seconds later, tied to a chair and gagged.
"You up?" the same voice from earlier chuckled darkly.
Saguru blinked as he came to, slowly processing his surroundings.
The woman—presumably Chrysanthemum—was a few feet behind him and to the left.
He could hear her pacing back and forth either out of boredom or in an attempt to intimidate him.
Kaito was right beside him, a hand on his shoulder. "Sorry," the magician whispered. "She's paranoid and doesn't trust people easily. I didn't think she'd react like this, but don't worry. I'll get you outta here in once piece, Saguru, even if I have to die a second time."
Saguru nodded, struggling against his restraints as he continued to look around.
He seemed to be in some kind of dressing room.
There were a few different varieties of mirrors, a vanity, a closet and various racks full of costumes, and a bookshelf of wigs. More disturbing was the cabinet full of guns that had been left open to the right of the vanity.
There seemed to be two exits: one going upstairs and another feeding into the living room and the kitchen beyond. (He could see into the other rooms easily, since the house didn't seem to have doors but curtains of beads and bells instead. It served as a nice burglar alarm, really, for someone as paranoid as Chrysanthemum seemed to be. She'd hear the beads rattle and bells ring whenever someone passed from one room to the next).
"Okay, Goldilocks. Here's how this is going to work: I'm gonna ask you some questions, and you're gonna give me some answers. Okay?" Chrysanthemum chuckled, words slurring together.
Saguru grunted, unable to do much more with the gag still in place. He made a note of the empty alcohol containers overflowing from the garbage bag lying on its side on the kitchen floor.
"Good. Now, before we begin, I just want t' let you know that no one's gonna hear you scream, so try to keep a lid on it. I'm not a sadist; I don't like yellin' and carryin' on. Besides, I've gotta headache." She was right behind him now, and he could feel cold metal brush his neck as she undid the gag.
A gun.
Saguru shivered involuntarily.
"So?" The woman came around in front of him, dragging a chair behind her. She sat down in the chair backwards and smiled, pointing the gun right at his forehead. "Are you here to kill me?"
Lord in heaven, she was scary.
Her hair was an unnatural shade of bright yellow, and her cat-like eyes were chartreuse. The gun and the half-crazy grin did not help—nor did the fact that she was obviously intoxicated and therefore most probably incapable of logical thought.
"N-No. I am not," Saguru replied, trying to keep his voice steady.
She could probably smell his fear.
"How did you find me then?" She cocked her head to the side, smiling like a hyena. "Only people that I work with and people that want to kill me know me as 'Chrysanthemum'; all others call me 'Chrisy Monroe'. You're not wanna my coworkers, and you say you're not here to kill me, so how did you find me, and how do you know I'm Chrysanthemum?"
"I told you. Kaito told me," Saguru stressed, trying to ignore the firearm pointed at his cranium.
People like Chrisy Monroe did not respond to sniveling and pleading. He had to remain calm and indignant if he hoped to walk away from this misunderstanding alive.
"Kaito sent me," the detective explained as the ghost himself squeezed Saguru's shoulders from behind.
"Kiddo's dead," Chrisy snarled, baring her teeth like a threatened animal.
The front door opened, and Chrysanthemum snapped to attention, getting to her feet and aiming her weapon at the doorway.
"You home, Chris?" a monotone male voice called.
"Kei? You're not supposed to be home until tomorrow!" Saguru's attacker sounded almost panicked.
A large, redheaded man pushed through the curtain and stepped into the room. He gave Chrisy a blank look upon witnessing the scene in the dressing room. "Crystal, you've been drinking."
"A little?" The other blonde smiled sheepishly.
"A lot. You're drunk. I leave t' go on a mission for a week, and ya can't even take care of yerself for that long. What were ya gonna do? Clean everything up tomorrow before I got home?" 'Kei' growled, but his facial expression didn't change much.
"Maybe?" Chrisy winced. "Look, I'm having a rough time, Kei."
"Doesn't matter," the redhead retorted, shaking his head and indicating Saguru. "And what the hell is this?"
"Oh, Goldilocks? He came looking for Chrysanthemum; obviously he knows too much. He says the Kiddo sent him. He said the Kiddo told him I was his assistant. We were just talking." Chrysanthemum glared at the detective.
"Chris, that's Hakuba Saguru, the Superintendent's son," Kei sighed, coming around to untie Saguru's binds.
"Really?!" The drunk broke down in peals of laughter. "Coronel Mustang's got a son?!"
Kei turned to Saguru, and his expression changed slightly. It sort of looked like a frown. "Forgive her. She's gone mad with grief, she doesn't read the paper much, and she's drunk." He then turned briefly to look in Kaito's direction before going back to Saguru. "Is that…?" He pointed to Kaito. "Can you see…?"
"Do you see him?!" Saguru gasped, hoping they'd found an answer to their prayers.
Kei shook his head, Prussian blue eyes glinting in the low lighting. "Just a little blue spirit orb, but that's the Runt, right?"
"If you mean Kuroba Kaito, then, yes," the detective replied with a small smile as he rubbed his sore wrists.
"What's goin' on?" Chrisy raised an eyebrow in suspicion.
Kei turned back to his partner and explained. "Hakuba-kun told ya that Runt had sent 'im, right?"
Chrisy nodded, willing to give her best friend the benefit of the doubt.
"Well, I'd believe 'im, if I were you. Runt's ghost is standin' right there with him." Kei shrugged, pointing out Kaito.
Chrisy dropped her gun (which Kei skillfully caught before it could hit the floor and possibly go off), and her chin nearly collided with the ground as well as her mouth fell open. She shook her head. "No way."
"Tell her, if she needs proof, I'd be more than happy to haunt her a little by putting almond extract on her food," Kaito chuckled.
Saguru gave his friend a curious look but relayed the message.
Chrisy stumbled, falling back down into her chair. "K-Kaito?"
"She's super afraid of cyanide poisoning," the apparition explained. "It's kind of entertaining to watch her drink almond milk."
"He says he's right here," Saguru lied for the young woman's benefit.
Chrisy broke down in tears, and Kei went to put his arm around her.
"I'm sorry!" she sobbed. "Kaito, I'm so sorry. I-I couldn't protect you. I've f-failed. I couldn't keep my promise."
"Saguru, tell her it's okay," Kaito sighed, going over to put his translucent hand on her shoulder. "You didn't fail, Kiku-chan, and Oyaji's not gonna be mad at you, 'cause you always did your best to protect me. Don't worry about it, 'cause there was nothing you could of done. Besides, I'm fine, but…I need your help."
"With what?" Chrisy looked up, the last of Saguru's words catching her attention.
"We're gonna do one last heist," Kaito explained with a smirk while Saguru provided a translation for the others who could not hear the ghost. "The comet's coming soon, so the organization's gonna be in a panic."
"How do ya know that?" Chrisy blinked, brow furrowing. "We've never known when the comet was coming."
"Is that the one in th' papers?" Kei looked to the glowing orb for answers.
"It fits the description." Kaito shrugged. "It's gotta be it. Anyway, if we're not sure, the organization's not gonna be sure either. They'll be in a panic, and we're gonna take advantage of that. We're gonna announce that we've found Pandora, get them all excited, lure them out, and once we've got them lured out, we're gonna capture them with the help of the police. We've already got enough evidence to sink Snake for my murder and two others called Gin and Vodka who were responsible for shrinking Tantei-kun. Once we capture them, we'll get them to sell out the others. We're gonna take the organization down one crook at a time, but I need your help, Kiku-chan."
"Name it." Chrisy shrugged. "You know I'd do anything, Kiddo."
"I need you to play the part of Kid, Kiku-chan. It's gonna be super dangerous, and I can't trust anyone else to do it without getting killed. I'm really sorry to ask this of you, but—"
"—I'll do it," Chrisy cut Saguru off with conviction. "Just tell me when, where, and what you want me to do, and I'll do it. Just have Goldilocks call me with the details, or come here to see me again."
"I want t' help too," Kei insisted. "If she's gonna be in danger, I wanna be there for her."
"Kei, I'll be fine," Chrisy sighed. "I'm a big girl. I can take care of myself."
"This from th' girl that I've been feeding and cleaning up after for the past two months," Kei scoffed.
Chrisy snorted back at her partner. "I'm better now…now that I know Kiddo's okay."
"Chris, you're still drunk. You're far from okay." Kei rolled his dark blue eyes, shaking his head fondly at her.
"I'll be sober tomorrow!" Chrisy argued.
"You'll be hung-over tomorrow," Kei corrected.
"But I'll be okay the day after that!" the blonde pouted.
Kei nodded. "That sounds 'bout right."
"Thank you so much for your cooperation." Saguru bowed with a grin. "I trust that Kaito has your contact information, so we'll be in touch."
000
The Black Organization Taskforce (in conjunction with the FBI, CIA, Kaitou Kid Taskforce, and Chrisy and Kei's own super secret organization) spent two weeks planning for the heist, and, by the end, they had the plan down to an art form.
The stage would be the Ekoda Art Museum where thousands of cameras had been installed around the perimeter, on every street corner so that the surveillance team had eyes everywhere and the ability to see the enemy coming and going.
The Kaitou Kid Taskforce was there, joined by the team that had been assigned to Kaito's case for added numbers.
The rest of the operatives from the other organizations were stationed around the museum in disguise as traffic cops, security guards, and a wide range of civilians.
Chrisy was in place, waiting for the appointed time, and Saguru was standing next to that night's target—the Gift of the Heavens.
Saguru sighed, mentally counting down the seconds.
"Nervous?" Kaito chuckled nervously, trying to keep still.
"How can I not be? People are going to die tonight," Saguru hissed under his breath. "People are going to die, and it's my fault. It's my own stupid plan, and people are putting their faith in it. There's going to be a gunfight when we try to roundup Snake and his crew, and people are going to die, Kaito."
"Yeah, but it's a good plan, and these people are willing to die for the greater good. They know what they're getting into, and you've worked hard to make sure everyone is as safe as they possibly could be. Don't let this weigh on your conscience, Saguru," Kaito encouraged softly, patting the blonde's head. "You did a really good job, and everything's gonna work out. Everybody believes in this plan…and you. We're gonna win, Saguru."
The detective nodded, taking a deep breath. "We're going to win."
"Better get ready," Kaito whispered, giving Saguru's hand a reassuring squeeze. "She's coming."
Saguru went back to counting in his head.
Thirty…twenty-nine…twenty-eight….
"Breathe, Tantei-san," Kaito urged.
"Fifteen…fourteen…thirteen…" Saguru muttered.
"Do you always get like this at my heists?" Kaito chuckled, gently nudging his friend. "Calm down."
Three…two…
The lights went out as planned, and glass shattered, a maniacal laugh filling the air.
Kaito blinked, gazing in awe at the Moonlit Phantom before him. "So that's what it's supposed to look like…" he mumbled, taking in the sight of Kiku-chan dressed as the original Kaitou 1412.
The phantom thief laughed, swiping the jewel and taking off amid heated banter.
"GET HIM!" Nakamori bellowed, and they were off.
Saguru ran as fast as he could, right on Chrisy's heels until she took off from the roof. He slowed down and came to a halt, just staring after her and panting for breath. He smiled, knowing that would be the last time he ever chased the white-clad thief.
He pulled out his radio and called the surveillance team. "This is Goldilocks to the Bird's Nest. Do you have eyes?"
"This is the Bird's Nest. We currently have eyes on several different buildings…ten in total. We're deploying units now."
"Go ahead." Saguru nodded, going to the lip of the roof and looking out over the city. He turned to Kaito. "Nothing we can do now. It's starting."
Kaito nodded back, leaning against the railing and looking up at the stars.
000
"What were ya thinkin' landin' on that rooftop and takin' Snake on yerself?!" That was the first and last time that Saguru ever heard Kei-san raise his voice. "You coulda gotten yourself killed!" he yelled as he cleaned the wounds his love had sustained.
Chrisy shrugged, trying her hardest to contain a grin. "I had a bone to pick with the guy. He killed two of the only people I've ever cared for."
"Toichi-san wouldn't of wanted ya to do that," Kei growled.
"Oh, there were times he wanted to punch that creep in the face himself. Toi-chan just had more self-restraint than I do. We can't all be saints, and I'm still breathing, aren't I?"
"It's a good thing the officers were already there, though," Saguru sighed, absentmindedly watching the less wounded of the officers receive first aid.
"Hey," Nakamori-keibu greeted loudly as he approached.
"Inspector!" Saguru jumped to his feet. "How many did we lose? Do you know?"
"Twenty-three," the older man sighed, collapsing into the chair Saguru had just vacated. "Not bad considering, but there's a lot more that's wounded."
"How many did we get?" Saguru asked softly.
"Forty-seven," the inspector laughed heartily. "We did good, Kid. Most of 'em are squealin' already, and we're workin' on getting even more as we speak. Only a couple of theirs died in the firefight, and some of 'em got away, but…I'd say we did pretty good."
"I'd say," Chrisy laughed as Kei wrapped her arm. "I've been waiting to get Snake for years for what he did to Toi-chan. Shame we can't get him for that crime, but the Kiddo's murder charge is gonna stick, isn't it?"
Nakamori nodded soberly. "He's turnin' on his partners faster than some of the others. We're sending out a squad to pick up those Gin and Vodka guys now."
"Good," Kaito sighed, leaning against Saguru. "I can't wait to tell Tantei-kun the good news."
"Oh yeah," Nakamori turned to Chrisy and held out his hand. "That jewel? You've gotta give it back, you know."
Chrisy blinked, feigning surprise. "Snake has it. He took it from me during the struggle."
"He what?!" the inspector boomed, getting to his feet and storming off.
The con artist fought a smirk.
"It's not nice t' lie, Chris," Kei chastised.
Saguru turned to the other blonde and gawked. "What happened to it really?"
She finally let herself smile fully. "Smashed it to bits."
"Why on earth would you do that?!" Saguru squeaked.
"No way…" Kaito breathed.
Kei paused, turning to look at his beloved with curiosity. "Seriously, Chris?"
She nodded. "When I was flying away with it, it caught a moonbeam and started glowing red. I landed to take a closer look at it, and it really did have another stone inside of it, so I smashed them both to bits and scattered the dust on the wind as I flew on. Nobody's using that thing for evil now. Now Toi-chan and the Kiddo can rest in peace."
"You too," Kei replied softly. "I know ya've been all preoccupied over whether or not Toichi-san died for nothin' all these years. Now ya know that there really was a stone of immortality and he died fightin' the good fight."
Chrisy nodded. "Now maybe I can get some sleep at night."
"Me too," Kaito cooed, smiling contentedly.
000
"It's beautiful," Saguru whispered, leaning on his balcony railing and looking up at the stars.
"Mmhm," Kaito agreed softly, keeping an eye out for the comet.
"Hey, did I tell you what I heard today, Kaito?" Saguru looked back at his beloved with a wide grin plastered to his face.
"No. What?" Kaito was having trouble summoning up pokerface enthusiasm.
"I heard from one of the guys on the BO Taskforce that a woman calling herself Vermouth came to surrender herself today. She's being really cooperative to lower her own sentence, and she's giving us a ton of other influential members' names and locations. If things keep going at this pace, we may just clean them out by the end of the next year or so. Isn't that wonderful?"
"Yeah," the magician whispered, trying to keep his smile in place.
"Look!" Saguru pointed as a star shot across the sky…or maybe that was the comet? A meteor? Kaito wasn't quite sure. "Make a wish."
Kaito was torn between wishing for heaven to exist and wishing to be reincarnated as someone close to his loved ones now. Maybe as Aoko and Saguru's kid? It was too soon for them to have kids. What would happen to him in the meantime?
"What did you wish for?" Saguru asked, smiling in absolute contentment back at Kaito.
"You know it won't come true if you tell someone else, and I need this one, Saguru," Kaito managed a genuine chuckle.
"But I'm curious," Saguru whined.
"You're acting like a hyper little kid," Kaito laughed. "What's up with you tonight?"
Saguru shook his head, the smile still stuck in place. "I'm happy, Kaito. We just saved the world not a week ago! My plan worked. Everyone trusted me, and it paid off. People are showing me respect now, and I…I made a difference, Kaito. I did something right for once, and…I'm happy."
Kaito nodded, smiling sadly at his friend. "I'm happy for you. You're a great detective, Saguru, and a great man. You deserve to be happy; I've got a feeling you're gonna be really successful in the future too."
Saguru raised an eyebrow at his friend in suspicion. "Kaito, what's the matter? You're acting off."
"Saguru, I've gotta go," the spirit whispered.
"To visit your mother?" Saguru smiled. "Go ahead. It's no big deal; I suppose I'll manage to live a day or two without you. Make sure to come back soon, though."
Kaito frowned. "Saguru, that's not what I mean. I'm gonna go see my mom before that, but…I'm leaving."
"L-Leaving?" Saguru swallowed hard. "You don't mean permanently, do you?"
Kaito nodded, closing his eyes so that he wouldn't have to see the devastated look on his friend's face.
"Kaito, you can't! I'll never see you again! Please," the sleuth begged, wrapping his arms around the apparition. "Please, Kaito. Don't go. I love you."
"I know," Kaito whispered, focusing his energy on hugging Saguru back. "I know you do, and it's holding you back. You can't move on and fall for Aoko because I'm still here. I need to move on so that you can too."
"No! I swear I'll move on and start a relationship with Aoko, so please don't leave," Saguru promised frantically.
"You can't start a relationship, if your heart's not in it," Kaito chuckled. "And…this isn't just about you, Saguru. I need to move on for my own sake as well. It's the natural order of things."
"B-But—" Saguru argued.
"Shh…" Kaito pulled back, pressing a finger to the detective's lips. "I know. It's gonna be a rough transition. You didn't really have time to mourn me when I first died because I was always right by your side, haunting you, and now that we've grown even closer, it'll probably be pretty hard, but…I want you to hang in there, and I want you to take care of yourself. Your friendship has meant a lot to me, and without you, I don't think I ever would have been able to rest in peace."
"Kaito…" Saguru tried his hardest to contain his tears as he stared into his darling's captivating indigo eyes.
"Shh…just one last thing. I really regret never noticing you before. I wish I'd known how you'd felt. I wish I'd been able to love you the way you deserved, 'cause there have been times over these past few months that you've made me wish I were gay. Do me a favor, and find someone that really makes you happy. Just be happy, Saguru," Kaito whispered, leaning forward and pressing his lips to his detective's cheek. "Goodbye, and thanks for everything."
With a wink, the magician vanished into thin air.
"KAITO!" Saguru shouted, sinking to his knees as his beloved disappeared right before his very eyes.
Saguru cried a great deal, locking himself in his room and refusing to eat. He didn't go to school for an entire month, but then, one Monday morning, he got up, got dressed, and carried on with his life.
….
む
Mikau: I've always thought that the hiragana mu looked like a cow. I know. You're probably mad at me now for ending it like that. I know it's a horrible cliffhanger, but I'm going to try to get the epilogue up before New Year's. Thanks so much for sticking with me up until now! You guys take care!