Disclaimer: I do not own Detective Conan/Case Closed.

Pairing: KaitoxShinichi

In Other Shoes

Chapter 9 - The Scent of Spring

"A token to remember me by until we meet again."

Kaito's parting words continued to echo in Shinichi's head long after the man himself had departed. It followed him as he returned to the apartment above the café and changed into his uniform for his evening shift.

It was strange how normal it felt now to be wearing the frilly, black and white maid's uniform. He wasn't sure if he should be dismayed or not by the fact that it no longer made him feel awkward. But he supposed people were just adaptable that way.

At that point, he ran into the problem of the rose itself.

He wasn't sure what to do with it.

His first instinct had been to find it a vase or, failing that, a suitable cup and some water. The problem was that the sudden appearance of the rose was most certainly going to draw his mother's attention. And then she would start asking questions. Before he knew it, she would have convinced herself that he'd gone on a date with Kaito and that they were about to fly into some sort of whirlwind summer romance or whatever. She might even take it into her head to "help" them along, and oh he shuddered to imagine what would happen after that.

No. The last thing he needed was for Yukiko to see the rose. Of course, this also meant that he couldn't just leave it lying on the nightstand either. But what choices did that leave?

The easiest solution was to simply throw the rose away. Yet, though he knew it would quickly and efficiently solve his problem, Shinichi recoiled from the idea as soon as it crossed his mind. It just felt wrong to throw away a gift like that. It wouldn't be fair to the rose either, which was a beautiful and vibrant specimen.

He would, he thought, gazing at the elegant, deep crimson folds of its petals, be rather sad to see it wilt away. If only it could be kept just the way it was.

It was that thought that finally gave Shinichi his solution. He couldn't keep the rose the way it was, but he could preserve its beauty to one extent and hide it from plain sight at the same time.

Getting several sheets of baking paper from the kitchen supplies that Miyako kept in her apartment, Shinichi arranged the rose carefully between said papers between the pages of one of the novels he had bought after arriving in Iroyamura—the first book, in fact. It seemed poetic if an unintentional choice. He closed the book carefully around its new charge and stacked the rest of his books on top for the weight and the camouflage.

Then, feeling quite pleased with himself for reasons he couldn't put into words, he hurried downstairs to start his shift.

He quickly lost himself in the hustle and bustle of the maid café which had become his new routine. Smiling and chatting with customers—once a nerve-wracking experience salted with landmines—was now easy, comfortable dialogues touched with laughter and understanding and perhaps the kind of friendship that is found when you see that everyone you meet is just a little bit like you just as you are a little bit like them.

"Miss Shinko," a young man, a regular, said with a bright smile when he saw 'her'. "You're looking really cute today. Did something good happen?"

Shinichi blushed, wondering what that was supposed to mean, but the boy didn't seem to have noticed his sudden discomfort. Fortunately, he didn't wait for an answer either. Instead, he waved Shinko over.

"I told my friend you're crazy good at memorizing the orders," he told her. "And he didn't believe me. So I thought you should show him, if that's all right."

Shinichi looked politely baffled. "How do you mean?"

"You know, like, we'll make some really complicated orders that you don't write down. And if you get them all right, he pays the bill. If you don't then I owe him dinner."

Shinichi blinked. "Are you sure you want to do that? It occurs to me, Young Master, that in trying to make the result come out his way, your friend is almost certainly going to order a lot and complicatedly. One or the other of you then is all but guaranteed to end up with an abnormally hefty bill."

Both boys paused at that, eyeing one another speculatively.

Shinichi cleared his throat. "Might I suggest you two split the bill this time and simply owe the winner dinner at a future date?"

"No wait, I have a better idea," the regular said. "If he doesn't finish all his food, he gets the bill regardless of the outcome."

The boys seemed to find this proposition agreeable (much to Shinichi's befuddlement. Teenagers were weird sometimes. And yes, he was still a teen himself, but he often felt like he simply didn't think the same way his peers did, and it was the little moments like these that brought out that feeling most).

The boys had apparently made up their minds though, so Shinichi decided to say no more on the subject. Instead, he waited as they scoured the menu, trying to come up with just the right combinations and calculating portion sizes and flavor balances as well. It was a surprisingly intensive selection process.

Then they finally finished, and Shinichi was sent on his way to the kitchen with a very long mental list indeed.

He was very proud to say that he didn't miss a single item or modification.

"I told you so," the regular told his friend smugly. "Shinko-chan is amazing."

"So why haven't you asked her out yet?" his friend asked as Shinichi was walking away. It was pure chance that the detective heard the question, but it made his steps falter even as his ears strained in their direction. Had he really heard what he thought he had heard?

"I wanted to," the regular said more quietly, probably not wishing to advertise his thoughts. "But I think she's already got someone."

"Did she say that?"

A sigh. "No, but she often gets this look on her face—like she's far away and thinking about something. And then she gets this light in her eyes and, well, I know she has to be thinking about someone important."

Ears and neck turning red with a rising blush, Shinichi hurried away, but their conversation too would join the many others already haunting him. Yes he had had someone on his mind a lot lately, but no, it wasn't a love interest. So why did everyone keep saying that it was? And why did their comments haunt him so when they really shouldn't mean anything. They were just words—assumptions made by random people who knew very little about the facts of his life. Who didn't even know who he was.

They were making a lot out of nothing.

Yet when he sat down in bed with a book later that evening, his gaze was drawn to the book currently housing the rose that had been gifted to him by Kaito, and he felt something warm and fluttery in his stomach and an altogether different kind of warmth in his heart.

The presence of the rose made him happy. That was it. But why it did so was the question—one he wasn't sure that he was prepared to answer yet. If ever.

"They're wrong. It's just gossip," he told the empty air. "It's not like that."

"What's not like that?"

Shinichi nearly jumped out of his skin. "Mom!"

"Yes?" Yukiko dropped her pile of shopping bags on the living room couch and came to stand in his doorway, blue eyes bright and inquisitive.

Shinichi blushed and very pointedly did not look towards the rose inside its book.

"I didn't know you were back," he said lamely.

"There was a sale at one of the boutiques Miyako recommended to me," Yukiko replied, brightening. "I saw these two adorable dresses that should fit you perfectly. Come try them on."

Shinichi cringed. "But Mom, I don't need more dresses—"

"Yes you do," Yukiko cut in before he could finish lodging his complaint. "We're going to be here all summer. Unless you plan on going around town in that cute maid uniform of yours half the time, you're going to need a few more outfits."

"But they don't have to be dresses," Shinichi attempted to argue anyway even though he suspected he was fighting a losing battle. "Plenty of women wear pants these days. It's not like we're living in the dark ages."

"But Shinko-chan's been wearing dresses since she got here," Yukiko pointed out, sounding reasonable—a fact that was pretty terrifying all on its own. "A good disguise persona needs consistency. And since you don't want to be found out, you should pick some consistent features that differ from your norm. The change in hairstyle only goes so far, especially since we didn't hide that adorable cowlick. As we're not really using any makeup on you either, the easiest distraction from the truth is to use clothes that are clearly not what you as Shinichi typically wear."

She went on in great detail about how a good act was dependant in large part on the expectations of the audience and so on and so forth until Shinichi had completely zoned out.

At least she'd forgotten to pursue the issue of what she'd overheard him saying to himself. He would try on a dozen dresses if it meant he could avoid that particular conversation.

-0-

Kaito was in the midst of adjusting his tie when a knock sounded at his dressing room door. He recognized the weight and rhythm of that knock.

"Come in!" he called.

The door opened, and his mother slipped in. He greeted her with a smile, which she returned.

"You look happy," she observed.

He laughed. "I had a very productive afternoon."

This earned him a curious look. "Really? Productive how?"

"Well~," he drawled, eyes gleaming with private mirth. "I helped out some kids at the park and ran into quite the adorable little sparrow. We shared a very pleasant meal together."

"I see." Chikage considered this as she handed Kaito his top hat. "Would I be right in guessing that you plan to do some more bird watching in the near future?"

Kaito pulled his hat on then flashed his mother a grin that was all mischief and bright anticipation. "Oh, I plan to do much more than watch."

Coming here really had been a good idea, Chikage thought as she watched Kaito running through his final pre-performance checks. She had noticed how her son had been growing progressively more restless over these past few months, and she had begun to worry. It didn't help that he rarely ever confided in her.

It wasn't just that he was bored, though she had seen signs of that too (and woe be to anyone who failed to take heed of the warning signs of a Kuroba getting bored). It was also—perhaps more, she had felt, as though he was searching for something. Perhaps he'd needed a new challenge. Or maybe it was something else altogether. Whatever it was though, he seemed to be finding it now.

That excitement and passion was back in his eyes, and that was everything she could have asked for. All that boundless energy that was Kaito at his best was once again unfolding, this time on the stage that should always have been his. One filled with light and laughter and the smiles of those who longed for wonder.

Watching from the sidelines as her son dazzled his audience with miracles and sorcerous tales, Chikage smiled, and the warmth in her heart swelled until she felt feather light on her feet.

Kaito was finally really reaching for his dreams.

She couldn't be more proud of him. And she knew without a doubt that Toichi was proud too. She could feel it. He was watching their son just as she was, and he, like her, knew that this was only the beginning of his journey. And a splendid journey it would be.

She wondered who his little sparrow was (she had a suspicion but no proof as yet) and if it was their meeting that had helped kindle this change. Because she could see the difference even in the show Kaito was putting on tonight. There was a new energy to his performance this night. He had everyone on the edges of their seats all the way until the curtains closed.

And the cheers that followed! Like an ocean of pure elation in sound.

By the end of the summer, Chikage had no doubt that Kuroba Kaito was going to be the most famous and well loved performer in this entire town.

-To Be Continued-