Disclaimer: I don't own DCMK

A Curse Marked Fate

53: A Voice in the Smoke

Shinichi froze.

So did Kaito.

Their gazes met over the tops of their noodle cups.

"Did she just say what I think she said?" Shinichi asked in a whisper as though afraid that speaking any louder would cause this reality to shatter around them, taking with it this sudden and unexpected opportunity.

"I do believe she did," Kaito murmured back, indigo eyes gleaming with contained excitement.

"Did he say when?" Takagawa asked.

"At your earliest convenience," the secretary replied.

"I see. I suppose I better get up there then."

Abandoning the cupped noodles, Shinichi snatched his notebook and pen from where they had been sitting at the other end of the table (a healthy distance away from the food and any potential stains) and hurried back to the sparrow. He spent a moment staring at the dark windows, willing them to show them something—anything—beyond the inside of their host's pocket, but there was no change forthcoming from that quarter. On second thought, that was probably a blessing. The last thing they needed just before they got the chance to eavesdrop on a conversation with the person in charge of this operation was to be discovered.

Shinichi took a deep breath to calm his suddenly jittering nerves and sat down next to the sparrow, notebook open on his lap, pen poised just over the top of a fresh page.

Kaito came to stand beside him, hands once again busy shuffling one of his many decks of cards.

Through the sparrow, they heard Takagawa trading casual greetings with other colleagues as he made his way through the Foundation building. They heard the beep of the security system allowing him passage into the more secure portions of the building. That was followed by longer stretches of silence punctuated by more pleasantries.

A familiar ping was followed by the rumble of elevator doors opening then closing, and it suddenly struck Shinichi just how strange it was to know that they were in a moving elevator but to feel none of the accompanying lurch of sudden upward or downward movement. Instead, there was only the whir of the machinery and the beep as they passed each subsequent floor.

"Fourth floor," Kaito muttered under his breath, eyes narrowed in concentration. "Or third basement. But I'm guessing the boss's office would be at the top of the building."

"Which would mean the fourth floor," Shinichi agreed, recalling the blueprints that Shiho had forced them all to memorize. The girl herself had never gone up to the top floor of the building however as she had mostly worked in the labs, which, from the way she talked about it, could have been its own separate world as far as the building's ecosystem was concerned.

Once the elevator doors had closed behind them, they noticed that there was music playing in the halls outside. It was a soft, classical piece that Kaito classed as mood music. It was sweet and subtle, light and a little airy. It made him think of spring blossoms dancing lightly on a gentle breeze beneath soft, morning light.

"That's a beautiful song," Shinichi murmured, eyes closed to better focus on the sound of the music. "It's…relaxing."

"Yeah," Kaito agreed. He found himself wondering why they had been so excited just a moment ago. Then he shrugged off the question as unimportant. All that mattered was to listen to and enjoy that lovely music.

Wait. That wasn't right.

Starting out of the strange stupor that had overtaken him, Kaito glanced down at Shinichi. He saw the moment that Shinichi had the same realization that he'd had. The little detective nearly dropped his pen and notebook.

"That's…not normal," he muttered, looking up at Kaito. "Did you…?"

"I felt it too," Kaito confirmed. "I'll bet it's more Marked magic. I might even know which one if I sat down and thought about it for a bit sans distractions."

"We'll brainstorm later," Shinichi concluded, making a note of it.

Even knowing that the nearly overwhelming sense of peace was being engendered by an external force couldn't stop the boys from feeling it. The best they could do was try and push it to the back of their minds and focus on trying to listen beyond the melody for even the tiniest sound that might interrupt the flow of notes. It was more difficult than either of them would have liked. Kaito ended up sitting down cross-legged on the floor with his back to the wall beneath the windows and going through some mental meditation exercises he had learned from his father when the man had first started teaching him how to use magic. It helped, but it was a constant work in progress.

They were both relieved when someone finally spoke.

"It seems we have a visitor," the voice of an old man murmured, and the piano playing stopped. There was a squeaking of someone shifting on a padded, leather piano stool.

"Ah. This is Takagawa Daisuke. I believe you two have met before. Is that right?"

Silence. There must have been some form of non verbal response though because the old man chuckled.

"Yes, that's the one. Anyway, I'm sorry, but it seems we will have to cut our session short today so that Daisuke and I can go over some matters of business. You were doing very well though. So just try to remember how that felt when you practice on your own, all right?"

More silence.

"Good. Go get yourself something to eat in the refectory. I will send for you when it is time for your next class. I want you to pick a song with a faster pace to work on as well before then. Something you would use to inspire. I recommend consulting Mashita-san if you need ideas."

Still no vocal response. But they heard the sound of light, swift feet running off and a door closing then locking.

Those footsteps, Shinichi thought, had been the light, quick steps of a child much like himself.

Silence reigned for a moment as the adults left in the room rearranged themselves. Shinichi imagined that the old man might have moved to take the pianist's bench or possibly stepped away from the instrument to a desk where there would be a much more imposing, leather desk chair waiting for him.

"So," said the old man, and suddenly there was a shifting in the atmosphere, or so it felt to those in the library, and the voice that continued to speak had changed.

"What did you think?"

Shinichi's eyebrows furrowed. A moment ago, he would have sworn that the person Takagawa was meeting was an old man. Now, however, it sounded like a young man—possibly even a teenager no older than himself at his proper age. And yet he could hear the old man in that young voice as well—it was in the timbre of the voices and the cadence of its speech.

Takagawa grunted. "He's coming along well. He has a strong drive for recognition. It will take him far."

"That's what I thought," the young (old?) man agreed with a light laugh that definitely sounded like it would have been right at home in the halls of Teitan High. "Such wonderful talent. People simply do not appreciate the wonders of the Marked. The potential! The majesty. They are heaven's gift to us to fix this badly organized mess we call the world."

"I just returned from speaking with Eiko-san."

There was the sound of liquid splashing into a glass. "And?"

"She is growing impatient. She was trying to hide it, but her condition is worsening."

"I see. And do you think she will take the offer?"

"I do."

"All right then. I will deal with the matter once she fulfils her end of the bargain. Good work. I did not, however, ask you here to speak with you about Miss Eiko. Here."

"Thank you."

There was the clinking of ice cubes in a glass. Shinichi supposed that the two men were sharing a drink. He wondered if it was an indication that they were actually friends as opposed to mere boss and subordinate. Takagawa's speech was very formal as you would expect from someone speaking to a superior, but the other man (boy?) was being fairly casual. On the other hand, perhaps the boss could be as casual as he wanted.

"I have a new assignment for you," the youthful voice said now, losing its relaxed edge and becoming crisp and sharp. "I want you to take over the search for Shiho."

Shinichi stiffened.

On the outside, Takagawa seemed confused. "Me? But I have never even spoken to the girl."

"You have seen her though."

"From a distance, yes."

"Then that is good enough. You see, Narukami's team were able to determine that she has not left Tokyo. That being said, why have they not been able to find her?"

"I have no idea. But I would guess that the girl has found someone to make her some sort of magic to throw off the standard search spells."

"Indeed. But I would also wager that she has changed her age."

"But," Takagawa said slowly, "for doing that to alter her appearance enough to make it a disguise, she would have to have made herself quite young. And that would limit her resources."

"She has always been cunning. She will have found allies. I have no doubt of that. With their help, she will strive to blend in. And, for a child, that would mean going to school."

"You really think she would enroll herself in a school? It would mean being out in the open nearly constantly." Their host didn't sound convinced.

But the boss's tone remained that of one who was totally unconcerned. "I do. Because you see, she doesn't know about you. So this is your assignment. I have arranged for you to give presentations on the Choice Foundation at several of the city's elementary and middle schools. You will be promoting our cause, naturally, but you will also keep an eye out for a young woman who should not be in class with the children. You've seen her before. You should know her. But even if you don't recognize her, if she is behaving as though everyone else in the room sees her as a child and the children respond to her accordingly then you will know you have found her."

"Do I bring her back?"

"Not yet. I have already taken fifty years or so, so I'm in no rush. We can deal with her after the expo. Just observe then report. I want to know who is helping her. She would have told them things. I want to know what."

Takagawa sighed. "I understand."

"I will have my secretary send you the schedule and the presentation materials. Feel free to revise them as you see fit."

"All right." The clink of a glass being set down on a table. "Is there anything else?"

"That is all for now. I suggest you begin reviewing the materials as soon as possible. Your first presentation is tomorrow afternoon at Teitan Elementary."

"So soon?" Takagawa asked, startled. "I thought you said you were in no rush."

"Not to bring her back," the other agreed. "But like I said, she'll have talked. We need to know who and what might attempt to interfere with our plans so we can prepare accordingly."

"I see. I will get started then."

"Good."

"We can't keep waiting," Shinichi said the moment that they were certain the conversation between their host and his boss was over. "We need to get out and warn Haibara."

"You're right," Kaito said grimly. "Once they find her, it'll only be a matter of time before they connect her to the rest of us. If that happens before the expo, we lose any advantage we might have had."

Shinichi closed his eyes and inhaled deeply, firmly clamping down on the urge to panic. They had time. Not a whole lot of it, sure, but it was better than nothing.

Briefly, he wondered whether this should be considered bad luck or good. On the one hand, it was pretty awful luck that, out of all the elementary schools in Tokyo, the Foundation would decide to start with Teitan. On the other hand though, it was good that they had advanced warning. Yet you could also say that finding out about it while being uncertain as to whether you could get out to act on the knowledge was lousy timing, a.k.a. bad luck. It was certainly food for thought.

Kaito suddenly leapt up, making Shinichi start violently and nearly topple off the windowsill.

"What?" he demanded, looking around as though he expected an enemy to have materialized in the library.

"Our noodles!" Kaito exclaimed, diving for the table. "We completely forgot about them. Ah damn, they've sucked up all the soup!"

TBC