Disclaimer: I don't own DCMK
A Curse Marked Fate
25: Of Possibilities and Perspectives
They had a simple lunch of sandwiches and salads at a nearby café, after which Kaito insisted on dragging Shinichi into Umeko's Ice Cream Parlor.
"They've still got the best ice cream in Tokyo," he told Shinichi with the firm conviction of the truly devoted fan. "Trust me, I've tried every ice cream place in the city by now, and I haven't found anyone who can compete with Umeko's yet."
"That's pretty high praise coming from you," Shinichi noted, having learned well that Kaito was quite the connoisseur of good food in general and tasty desserts in particular. Although his tastes in the latter tended towards the little too sweet, in Shinichi's opinion. Still, any eatery that Kaito praised that highly had to be worth trying at least once. Indeed, it was with great curiosity that Shinichi followed Kaito into the pastel-colored parlor.
The girl behind the counter greeted Kaito by name and asked if he wanted his usual, but the magician asked for a pair of menus instead.
"I thought I'd check out what's new," he told her as she handed the menus over. "And little Co-chan here's never been."
The girl beamed down at Shinichi, reaching a hand over to pat him on the head. "Well, we do have a lot of new specials. If you like fruit, I totally recommend the Berry Berry Sundae. The Orange Dream Sundae's pretty amazing too. A bit tangy but very orange, if you like citrus. Of course, our traditional flavors are all amazing too. Don't choose too fast. Check out the menu and let me know if you want to sample anything before you make up your mind. All right?"
"Um, okay." Shinichi accepted a menu and offered the young woman a hesitant but grateful smile.
Hiding his own smile at his young friend's sudden shyness, Kaito ushered the boy to one of the pastel peach tables and onto a similarly pastel yellow plush cupped chair. They spent a few minutes perusing their menus before the counter girl appeared to ask them for their orders.
"I've decided to go with my usual after all," Kaito declared. "What about you, Co-chan?"
"Can I try the Lemon Chiffon Sundae?"
"Of course." The girl beamed. "That one's really popular with my little sister and all her friends. It's light and refreshing, excellent for a hot day."
When their orders arrived, Shinichi wasn't sure if he was amazed or horrified by Kaito's triple scoops of double chocolate chip chocolate ice cream drizzled with copious amounts of hot fudge and sprinkled with another layer of dark and white chocolate chips then dusted with smaller, finer chocolate flakes.
Catching him watching, Kaito scooped up a spoonful and held it out to him. "Wanna try some?"
"What? Uh, no, really. Thank you, but I think I'll stick to my lemon sundae."
Kaito shrugged. "Your loss." And he proceeded to eat the entire chocolate-stuffed and encrusted monstrosity with the blissful expression of someone who had tasted the food of the gods.
Shaking his head, half amused and half worried about just how much sugar his friend was consuming in one sitting, Shinichi dug into his chiffon sundae. As the counter girl had promised, it was light but still managed to be surprisingly rich in flavor: smooth and refreshing.
"So?" Kaito asked as they left the parlor with Shinichi in tow. "Isn't Umeko's the best?"
"It was good, but I'm not sure I can really tell different ice creams apart," Shinichi admitted. "But you know, you didn't have to pay for me."
Kaito waved away his concern with a laugh. "Nonsense. A proper gentleman doesn't make his lady pay on dates."
Shinichi immediately turned bright red and spluttered. "We're not dating! And I'm not a lady. Besides, even if I was, that kind of ideology is old fashioned."
"Ah, but it's not old fashioned to say that adults don't let little kids pay," the magician countered with a cheeky grin. "Midori-san would never have let me hear the end of it."
"Oh be quiet," Shinichi grumbled, but by then they had once again entered the institute. The elegance and prestige of the building fell over them in a hushed silence that even Kaito was loathed to ignore.
Kaito led Shinichi to Clover Institute's largest presentation hall. They were among the first to arrive, and so they had their choice of places to sit. The two of them ended up at the very front of the room where Shinichi's small stature wouldn't be as much of a hindrance.
"See that number on the inside of your armrest?" Kaito asked, directing Shinichi's attention to a silver disc set into the side of the armrest to his right. On it was etched the number six with the corresponding Braille underneath. "That's your seat number. If you have a question or comment, you press this blue button here, and the presenter will call out your seat number when it's your turn to talk. When that happens, you hold down the green button. Anything you say while sitting in this seat and holding down that button will be broadcast so that everyone in the lecture hall can hear you without you having to shout."
"What's the red button for?" Shinichi asked.
Kaito grinned. "Emergencies. Like if you catch fire or smell poison gas or whatever."
"…Does that happen?"
The magician shrugged. "Only once that I know of."
Which was one time too many for Shinichi's liking, but he kept that thought to himself. All around them, the seats were beginning to fill. Spurred on by his ever insatiable curiosity, Shinichi found himself studying the various people trickling in through the lecture hall's open doors. Many of them appeared to be college students or professors, but there were also a handful of teens Kaito's age dressed in casual vacation clothes like they had just come in from a day at the park. On the other end of the spectrum was a small crowd of stiff-backed businessmen in black suits and black ties that would have been more at home at a funeral. Where most everyone else chattered away with each other as they moved around in search of seats, the suited bunch remained grim and silent. They planted themselves all together in a block at the back of the hall where they would be close to the doors.
"I don't think I've seen them here before," Kaito noted, following Shinichi's gaze to the group of grim-faced men. "Probably business investors. We get a lot of them coming around to check out what's new and what might be profitable. They tend to be a bit, ah, money-minded, but they do occasionally have a good idea. Though I must say most of them tend to be at least a little bit happier than this lot. The people you should really pay attention to are the Furahari Sisters. They're those girls over there in the really fancy, butterfly-themed dresses."
The magician directed Shinichi's attention to another stretch of seating where seven girls all dressed in rather artistic garb, each with her own butterfly theme, were sitting down and pulling out large, rounded cases that looked almost like ostrich eggs.
"They've been working on how to improve and preserve ecosystems. They've done some really amazing work. I'm not sure what they'll be presenting today, but it should be cool."
Kaito went on to describe a few more of their fellow audience members and potential presenters as the room continued to fill. Soon, every seat in the enormous hall was occupied, and the last few stragglers to slip past the doors had to content themselves with leaning against the walls.
A peppy young woman in a pearl gray business suit stepped up onto the stage, and the lights dimmed.
"Okay, welcome everyone to Clover Institute's monthly project review. We have a lot to share today, so we're going to jump right in. First, let's welcome the Furahari Sisters!"
The girls in the butterfly dresses took the stage to a storm of applause, and the presentations commenced.
The Furahari Sisters were apparently working on ways to begin cleaning up the oceans that mankind had and was still polluting. The tool they had brought to show today was a device that could actually extract micro plastic from sea water. It was, they hoped, one step forward on the road to eliminating the plastic waste that was already wreaking havoc on seaside ecosystems.
They were followed by a presentation on the findings of a team who was studying the extent to which humans could communicate with animals using Earth Magic. They had proven that most animals had a certain level of sensitivity and even understanding of magic, but they were still designing the bulk of their study. Then there was a team who had created a prototype device based on the theory behind compass magic that could detect and pinpoint cancer cells in the early stages of the disease. If successful, it could prove invaluable to the creation of easier and more effective cancer treatments and maybe, one day, even a real cure.
Though not every team of presenters had results or complete creations to show off, they all had something interesting to share—new ideas and discoveries, debunked myths, research anecdotes, hopes and dreams. Shinichi drank it all in, fascinated. Here were people who had devoted themselves to blazing a trail to a better world for all through a combination of not only Sky and Earth Magic but other sciences and fields as well. In their eyes, he thought he could actually see a brighter and more beautiful world and the possibility to grasp it.
No one here was inventing for the sake of raking in the cash or encouraging the commercial desires of the masses of trinkets and fripperies they really didn't need. This was magic as a free and wonderful resource and a path through which humans and all other life on earth might be able to find a better path forward that just might save them from the downward spiral that previous decades of reckless pollution and destruction had taken them down.
It was amazing. Inspiring!
It also made him feel all the more acutely his own inability to participate. But, well, maybe that was all right. They had their strengths. He had his. Each of them had their own roles to play and their own niches to fill in this vast and complex world.
Still, that didn't mean he didn't occasionally wish that things were different. Then again, that was human too, wasn't it?
"Co-chan?"
Drawn from his thoughts by Kaito's gentle prodding, Shinichi looked up into a pair of warm, concerned indigo eyes. "Yes?"
"Are you all right?" the magician asked, keeping his voice low so that the audience members seated around them wouldn't be able to hear.
Shinichi smiled. "I'm fine," he said, and it was true. "This is all really interesting. There's a lot to think about."
Kaito didn't look as though he believed the little detective's declaration, but he let it go for now. "I'm glad you're enjoying it. Just wait until you hear what Dad's been up to."
Kuroba Toichi, both as the founder of Clover Institute and its resident Archmage, typically gave his presentation last when he had something to present. Yet when they saw the tall, dark-haired Sky Mage rise to take the stage, not a single person rose to head for the door. Instead, everyone leaned forward. Even the college students, Shinichi noted, had stopped whispering and were waiting in what he could only describe as anticipation.
Clearly, no one was going to miss his presentation just because it had already been four hours, and it really should be time for dinner.
"Now," Toichi began as the entire audience chamber fell silent. Listening. "As I have mentioned to some of you, I have been working for quite some time now on finding a way to help people born with Curse Marks live more normal lives unconstrained by their individual curses. This process is a very complex one, and it is delicate, considering the nature of Curse Bearers and their role in the natural order of our world. But we don't really have time to go into that right now. If you're interested in that particular subject, I welcome you to attend my Magic and Social Evolution course next month. Today, I want to focus on this one Curse Mark."
He snapped his fingers, and the glass panel behind him began to glow. Then a familiar Curse Mark surfaced in the middle of the glass. Kaito had seen this same mark quite recently when he had visited his father, but, to his surprise, Shinichi didn't seem to know it.
"You've really never seen it before?" Kaito whispered.
"No," Shinichi whispered back. "Should I have?"
"It's your Uncle Kogoro's Curse Mark! You know, the one you have to live with if you don't want to go spreading bad luck everywhere."
Shinichi blinked. "Oh." He looked at the image with renewed interest. "I had no idea it looked like that."
"Really? I mean, you've been living with the man for how long?"
Shinichi looked amused. "Uncle Kogoro's Mark is on the bottom of his left foot. That's not a part of someone you see very often even when you live with them."
Kaito blinked. "Oh." Well, that made sense. A mental image of his father examining the bottom of Mouri Kogoro's bare foot with a magnifying glass popped into Kaito's head, and he was hard pressed not to burst out laughing then and there.
Oblivious to Kaito's silent howls of laughter, on the inside as they were, Shinichi stayed focused on the Archmage's presentation, drinking in every word and burning every idea into his mind. These theories, whether they were solid yet or not, might hold the key that might, just might, one day free him from his curse.
If Kuroba Toichi's theories proved correct, he might be able to develop and amulet that, if not actually able to nullify magic, might still be able to offer the kind of mild magical disruptions that would allow people like Shinichi to at least be able to take longer trips without Kogoro as a constant chaperon. The amulet would have to be charged regularly by a Sky and Earth Mage respectively, but even so, if the prototype proved successful…
The possibilities whirled through Shinichi's head, and he barely heard the finer details of Toichi's explanations as the possibilities danced and beckoned.
"Excuse me," one of the suited men in the back said, rising to his feet. He had everyone's attention in an instant. "I understand the genius of this little project of yours, Archmage, but don't you think this might be one of those things it would be better for mankind not to explore?"
Toichi laughed. "If I did, I would not be exploring it. This field of study has the potential to free some very unhappy people from burdens that they were forced to bear through no fault of their own. I cannot see how anyone could find anything objectionable in such an endeavor."
"You are overlooking a very important fact," the man in the dark suit said, words crisp and hard. "A magic nullification tool that can be used by anyone anywhere would spell the beginning of the end of our society. So much of what we have and need every day is built with and runs upon magic. Our greatest achievements in everything from medicine to architecture in recent years would never have been achieved without magic. But anyone with a device like the one you propose to create could cause irreparable damage to any of our institutions just because they were in the wrong place at the wrong time. And that is looking at it optimistically. These little nullifiers could be used to kill patients relying on magically run medical treatments and to break into banks using magical security systems. I could go on, but I am sure that your own considerable intellect and powers of imagination can fill in the rest for you far better than I could with another hundred hours to talk. So tell me, Archmage, can you still justify pursuing this project?"
Toichi's expression was grave as he inclined his head towards the speaker. "I understand your concern. And I assure you that I have given such possibilities serious consideration as well. However, at this point in time, I do not believe that we need to be overly worried about the kind of sabotage you were describing, whether intentional or otherwise."
"Why not?" the man asked sharply.
"Several reasons. First of all, all my research suggests that magic nullification requires the simultaneous use of both Sky and Earth magic. As I am sure you know, no one person is capable of using both these types of magic—"
"Which won't matter if you're making amulets. All anyone would have to do would be to find someone willing to power it up for them."
"Please, let me finish," the Archmage said mildly.
The other man quieted, though he looked like he had plenty more to say.
"The second reason you need not be concerned is that, for better or worse, it appears that each nullification amulet will have to be tuned to a specific target. You see, though I have been speaking of mimicking the powers of the magic nullification Curse Mark, the fact of the matter is that the powers borne by those with Marks lies outside of the realms of magic that Sky and Earth mages can use or even truly comprehend. In other words, they deal with forces we can neither measure nor control. It is only because this particular Mark, by its very nature, must interact with our Sky and Earth magic that we can even consider emulating it."
"Which does not change the fact that you are trying to emulate it," the other man pointed out.
Toichi smiled. "Let me put it this way. By studying the way this Curse Mark disrupts a light spell, I can attempt to combine and use the magic available to us to affect that light spell in a similar manner. However, I would need to create an entirely different spell to, say, mimic the way this Curse Mark affects a warming spell."
"So it's kind of like if you find a footprint from an animal you don't recognize," someone else in the audience remarked. "You can recreate the print and make a good guess as to the appearance of the foot, but you can't ever really find out what the actual animal that made the print looked like."
Toichi laughed. "That is certainly an interesting analogy. And of course, this too is only one of many theories. Suffice to say, yes, it is possible that an extremely determined and unscrupulous person who set out to do harm might be able to use this research to create something terrible, but, for better or worse, such a person would find it a great deal easier to pursue their agendas through other means."
The suited man didn't look satisfied, but he at down and said no more as other hands went up.
X
"So what did you think?" Kaito asked, taking a long sip from his hot chocolate. They had migrated with everyone else from the lecture hall to the lounge, where the refreshments provided by the various guests had been laid out for everyone to enjoy.
Shinichi was a little surprised to realize how hungry he was. After all, it wasn't as though he had been doing all that much—just sitting and listening to a lot of presentations. On the other hand, considering the contents of those presentations, his brain could certainly use some refueling.
He accepted the hot chocolate Kaito handed him and took an almond croissant from a tray full of pastries that had been set on the end of the lounge's long counter.
"It was interesting," he said slowly before taking a bite out of his pastry and chewing it thoughtfully. "I didn't understand a lot of the technical things though."
Kaito shrugged and laughed. "To be entirely honest, I don't get it all either. But hey, I'd be more surprised if anyone but Dad claimed they understood every word. Half of what Dad was talking about was guesswork anyway. Like he said, it's all mere theory at this point. But it's got potential."
"Yes, it does," Shinichi murmured, gaze growing distant. "I was just wondering. That summer when we met, you always said you were waiting for your parents. That was your dad meeting with my parents, wasn't it?"
Kaito quirked an eyebrow at that. "As a matter of fact, it was. I thought you knew."
"I guess I suspected," Shinichi admitted. "My parents did tell me that a friend of theirs—Mom's old teacher, they said—had been helping them look into my Mark. They never actually told me who they were talking about though." He grimaced at some private memory. "And they certainly didn't say anything back then. They're not big on explaining things."
"Well, my old man wasn't exactly a fount of information about you either," Kaito said, ruffling Shinichi's hair and laughing when the smaller boy squeaked and ducked away from him. "Something about confidentiality and all that. I had to track you down and figure out what was going on with you by myself. Although," he added, tone growing lighter and a little wistful. "I think it really was better that way."
Not sure how to interpret the odd tone in his friend's voice, Shinichi peered up into Kaito's face, searching. All he could see there, however, was a wry grin and ever sharp eyes that gave nothing away.
Still, he supposed he could guess at least a little at what Kaito meant. In their clumsy (well, clumsy on his part anyway) attempts both to evade and to uncover one another's secrets and queries, they had discovered not just that old connection but a stronger, more open friendship.
There were times when going the long way had its advantages.
Kaito drained the last of his hot chocolate. "Well, are you ready?"
Shinichi blinked, coming out of his musings with a start. "Ready for what?"
Kaito laughed. "To meet Dad, obviously. Come on. We have to catch him before he leaves."
TBC