Disclaimer: I do not own Detective Conan/Case Closed.
Pairing: KaitoxShinichi
Heroes and Villains: Blue Moon Island
[Superpower Verse]
Part 5
The Blue Moon Sculpture Garden was small but filled with truly incredible works of stone and coral. They had been chiseled and molded by combinations of the natural forces of wind and wave and the hands of mankind into beautiful pieces, some abstract and others so lifelike they looked about to begin breathing . Shinichi spent an entire minute just staring at these shimmering curls of pearl and lavender coral that all but seemed to glimmer from within even as they crashed in frozen waves upon a jagged shore of pink and peach cliffs. Looking at it, he could almost hear the roar of the ocean tide.
They ended up taking a whole album's worth of photos.
They also got their caricatures drawn by three different artists. The results had Kaito still cackling as they made their way into the biggest bookstore on Blue Moon Island.
Shinichi paused for a moment just inside the shop to inhale deeply, relishing in the scent of new books. It was a comforting smell that brought with it all sorts of good memories and a sensation of mixed contentment and excitement. This particular brand of anticipation was something that only books could inspire, he thought.
"I assume it would be safe to say that we've found your favorite place on the island," Kaito teased.
The younger agent rolled his eyes but didn't disagree.
Although the bookstore was far from the largest of its kind he had ever visited, the Hidden Treasures bookstore was definitely well-stocked. It carried both classics and new releases, and it offered a decent mixture of popular names and unknown authors. There was also a small section dedicated to a combination of locally authored books and books of local tales.
Shinichi found his way into the mystery fiction part of the store as though magnetically drawn to it. In no time at all, he had two books tucked under one arm and was choosing another from the shelves when Kaito popped up beside him to show him yet another book.
"Look at this," he said, laughing. "They've even got books about that ship already. Seriously, it's like that ghost ship story's taken over the whole cultural scene on this island, and it hasn't even been around that long."
Sure enough, the book that Kaito was holding up was called Blue Moon Island Legends, and there on its cover in spooky shades of white and silver was an elegant if stylized rendition of the aforementioned ghost ship. What surprised Shinichi, however, wasn't the fact that people were already writing books on island tales that featured the ghost ship. No, what made him gape was something else entirely.
Taking in his partner's stunned expression, Kaito frowned and glanced down at the book in his hands. "What is it?"
"That ship," Shinichi said slowly, eyes fixed on the image as though hypnotized. "It looks exactly like the one I saw."
Kaito blinked, taken aback. "You mean the one you dreamed about last night?"
"Yeah. But if it's the same, it, well…" He hesitated, not quite yet able to bring himself to finish the sentiment.
So Kaito finished it for him. "Then it probably wasn't a dream."
Shinichi nodded mutely.
The magician studied the image on the cover for a long moment. "It's a little different from what they drew on those T-shirts," he noted. What went unspoken was that the difference meant that Shinichi's not-a-dream ship probably hadn't been influenced by said shirts. "But I wouldn't say this is anything to worry about. It just proves that people really have been seeing something. If it's a sign that there's a piece of Pandora here then all the better for us."
"I…guess that's one way to look at it," Shinichi said dryly then sighed. "It does make me wonder though."
"About what?" asked Kaito.
Shinichi frowned. "Well, why, I guess," he said. "I mean, why is there a ghost ship? If there really was a piece of Pandora in the treasure they dredged up, well… It can't actually be a curse like people are saying, can it?"
It was Kaito's turn to frown. "I don't know," he said slowly. "I wouldn't rule it out. That's the thing about Pandora. Its powers are…unpredictable. What I do know is that it makes possible a whole lot of things that would otherwise be beyond the realm of imagination. It was created to allow the impossible to be made possible after all, so that's what it will do in one way or another. So yes, there really could be a curse if Pandora is involved. But as for why…" He shrugged. "I'm not sure how to answer that. Pandora has a certain level of awareness. That's how it's able to hide itself and how it's able to respond to people, but it's not really alive the way we think of living things."
"You're saying there's no way for us to know what it's thinking."
"If it's thinking," Kaito corrected him. "So asking why it does something is a pretty pointless question. And really, all that matters is that it does do things."
Shinichi made a disgruntled face at that. "Yeah, but it would help to know what might cause it to start acting up in certain ways. Then we'd at least have some way of deducing where we could start looking for it and whether things like this ghost ship might actually be dangerous."
Kaito chuckled. "I won't argue with you there. But if you stop and think about it, we do have clues. We know roughly when the ghost ship started showing up. The next step is to look at what changed just before that time. And hey, we know that too. Some divers found a sunken ship with treasure in it."
Shinichi had to laugh. "Okay, you're right. I guess we should head up to the museum then."
"My thoughts exactly." Kaito tucked Blue Moon Island Legends under his arm and turned towards the front of the store where the checkout counter stood. "Let's go make our purchases then. I'll ask if they can have our books sent to the Blue Moon Rose for us. If they can't then we may want to double back and drop them off before we head for the museum.
Shinichi hastily snagged two more novels off the shelves then trotted after his partner.
It turned out that the Hidden Treasures bookstore did indeed offer a delivery service, and the Blue Moon Rose was a common destination for them. The owners of the two establishments were good friends, and they often hosted related events in one or the other location. The boys found themselves with an invitation to a food tasting party to be hosted at the Blue Moon Rose the following evening.
"I'm sure you know the owner of the Rose is an incredible chef," the shop clerk explained. "She does these tasting parties before she releases new cookbooks. She and several of the island's other cooks and their friends get together to test all the recipes to be put in the new book, and everyone else who can squeeze through the door gets to try them and rate the dishes. You can even suggest names for them. It's pretty awesome. And everything's always so delicious that you have to be careful or you'll have to roll home. That or get a room at the inn." The clerk snickered at that. "Maybe that's why they always make so much. The food is free but the board isn't, so they feed you until you have no choice but to get a room."
"You know," the man in line behind them commented. "You might be onto something there. But it's worth it."
Both islanders agreed and insisted that Kaito and Shinichi put the time and date in their phones so that they wouldn't miss the party.
"Tourists don't often get to do the tasting parties since they only happen when there's a new cookbook in the wings. No point letting the opportunity pass you by, especially when it's going to be delicious."
"I like this island," Kaito commented as he and Shinichi finally left the bookstore, hands free and wallets somewhat thinner. "Everyone here's so friendly and talkative. They always have tidbits to share on things you should try or see or eat. It's great."
"Yeah," Shinichi agreed, taking a moment to watch as a young couple giggled over a caricature they'd just been handed by an artist. The three chatted amiably for a while, laughter ringing bright in the warm summer air. Then they parted ways, each party happier for the encounter and the exchange.
"If everyone could just be like that," he mused out loud. "I think the world might be a step closer to real peace."
Kaito glanced at the departing couple then at Shinichi, confused. "What do you mean?"
But the younger boy only shook his head. "Sorry. I just often think sometimes that I really don't understand why mankind has such difficulty getting along. If everyone treated everyone else like they're friendly and vice versa then they could talk and laugh and get the chance to see what's special about each person too. And the more people you learn to appreciate, the more you realize that all that fighting and hating and discrimination is just pointless, tiring and just not worth anything to anyone."
Sighing, Kaito slung an arm over his partner's slender shoulders and began propelling him up the street. "I understand what you mean, and I totally agree with you. But I'd say we should leave that sort of philosophical whatnot for another time. We're on vacation, and we even have our very own bonified mystery! Let's go solve it, yeah?"
Shinichi blinked then had to laugh. "Yeah. Let's."
-To Be Continued-
