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

Pairing: KaitoxShinichi

Chapter Rating: T

Warnings: None

Collection Summary: No matter where or what they are, their lives are always entwined. KaiShin stories in fantasy settings.

Chapter Summary: Their investigation into the death of Kuroba Toichi lands Shinichi and Kaito in the middle of a city-wide battle.

Cloak and Dagger

[Castle Verse]

Part 1

Only two days in the city and they were already running for their lives. Shinichi didn't know if he should be surprised or just exasperated. When Kaito had first told him that he had found a lead, this was definitely not what Shinichi had had in mind.

Skidding around a corner, Shinichi's eyes widened as he saw three armed men running towards them. Beside him, Kaito cursed. The magician made a gesture with his hands. A bolt of white energy caught the lead man in the chest, throwing him to the ground unconscious. One of the others retaliated with a magical blast of his own. Kaito deflected it. By then, their two assailants were close enough to wield their swords. Shinichi didn't stop to think. He kicked the man in front of him between the legs. The guy's face went white and he dropped his sword, curling up into a fetal ball and whimpering.

Kaito, having dispatched the other armed man with a paralyzing spell, grabbed Shinichi's hand and dragged him into the mouth of a narrower side street. "This way."

-0-

Shinichi still remembered the day two weeks ago when Kaito had come bursting into the castle library.

"I know what it is!"

Shinichi had been in the middle of rebinding an old volume on the agricultural sciences and hadn't bothered to look up. "Don't yell. This is a library, even if it's a private one. And I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Pandora," Kaito elaborated, undaunted by Shinichi's lack of excitement. "I found someone who should be able to tell us what it is!"

That had gotten Shinichi's attention all right. Pandora… It was the name of the mysterious artifact that Kuroba Toichi had been murdered for. Ever since that talk he and Kaito had had about he person or people who had orchestrated Toichi's death, the two of them had been working together scouring the library and every other source of information they could think of in order to figure out exactly what Pandora was. They hadn't had any luck so far, so the news that Kaito might have found an answer was pretty big. But being the responsible person that he was, he finished his repairs on the book before straightening and moving to stand in front of his work desk, leaning slightly against its edge and looking to where Kaito had thrown himself into one of the library's overstuffed armchairs.

"So you don't actually know what it is yet."

The magician rolled his eyes. "You should be telling me that I did a great job."

"But you didn't actually find the answer."

"Yet. And I said I got a lead. That's something."

"Okay, congratulations. So what's the lead?"

Kaito didn't look entirely satisfied, but he decided to let it slide for now in favor of sharing the big news. "It's not definite, but I was visiting Aoko this morning, and I thought I'd ask her if she knew anything. After all, dragons live for thousands of years. She might be young for a dragon, but she's still been around a while. She's never heard of Pandora before, but she told me that there's a witch who's said to have access to all the knowledge of the past, present, and future."

Shinichi frowned. "I don't think it's possible for one person to know all that."

"Ever the skeptic, I see. But really, she doesn't have to really know everything to be able to answer our questions. Even a little bit of new information would be good, right? Wouldn't you say it's worth a shot?"

"It's better than nothing, I suppose," Shinichi conceded. "So who is this witch? And did Aoko tell you where you can find her?"

"Her name is Koizumi Akako. Aoko didn't know where she lived, but I did some digging. It turns out she's quite famous in the magical community. Might be almost as famous as me."

"Yet you have never heard of her."

Kaito chose to ignore the comment. "Her current abode is actually not all that far from here. It's a city about a fire hour carriage ride from the borders of my territory. She deals in information, unsurprisingly, though I believe she might also handle some trade in magical items. I hear she's not easy to deal with, but I'm sure that between the two of us we should have no problems."

Shinichi blinked. "The two of us?"

"Of course. You did want to come, didn't you?"

"I—well, yes, yes I do. It's just you wouldn't let me come before when you went out to look into this…"

The magician's expression grew serious. Rising from his seat, he walked over to stand in front of Shinichi. Once there, he placed his hands on Shinichi's shoulders and stared into his eyes. "I promised I wouldn't leave you out anymore. I keep my promises. But you have to promise me that you'll stay safe. Okay?"

"I…" Shinichi swallowed, mouth dry. "I promise."

The smile that crossed Kaito's face was warm and much more genuine than his usual mad grin. It made Shinichi feel warm and just a little bit giddy. But the magician's smile was soon replaced by a smirk as his hands slid off Shinichi's shoulders and down to rest on his hips. He leaned down to brush his lips across Shinichi's cheek before murmuring into his ear.

"Now I think we need to work on your speaking skills. You're far too cynical. It's not healthy to focus on flaws. You should learn to say more nice things about people."

And so they had set off. It had taken some time to prepare for their departure and make sure that all their affairs were in order. Kaito had to arrange for people to cover his duties while he was away. Fortunately everything had been peaceful in the castle and its surrounding lands for a while. They had planned to be away for two weeks.

Of course, looking back, that probably wasn't going to be long enough anymore. Shinichi cursed the witch for pushing them into this. And he cursed himself for not being more insistent about going home when he'd had that bad feeling.

-0-

When they had arrived in the city, it was to discover that while Koizumi Akako was indeed a famous name, she was not in fact very easy to find. She was the kind of person that almost everyone had heard of but whom no one knew anything solid about. And no one knew where she lived. By the end of the first day of asking around, Shinichi was seriously beginning to wonder if the woman really existed or if she was some kind of urban legend.

Exhausted from a day of running all over the city, they had retired to the Black Pearl Inn. It was a thriving establishment packed full of customers and good cheer. Because business was booming, they'd only had one room left. Unfortunately, it was one of their more expensive rooms. Money wasn't really a large concern for them, but Shinichi still didn't approve of spending more of it than was necessary. He'd suggested finding different lodgings for the night. Kaito had overridden him though, saying that the Black Pearl was one of the only reputable inns in the area, and a little extra money was worth not having to worry about shady characters lurking around while they slept. Shinichi could see the merit of that idea, but he had the sneaking suspicion that Kaito's reasons for insisting they stay also included the fact that the one available room was meant for new couples and had only one bed.

"Why did you tell them that your name was Kozuki Kaito?"

Kaito threw open the curtains to let in the night sky before turning to grin across the room at him. "Just a precaution. It'll be easier to poke around if people don't know who I am. But enough of that. What do you think of the room?"

"It's okay. Seems normal enough." Shinichi eyed the rather large bed and the ornate set of table and chairs set up in the corner like a miniature sitting room. There was an equally ornate vanity chest with a rather large mirror too. In fact, everything in the room was big and fancy. Rather more so than Shinichi thought was natural. A complimentary basket of fruits had been left on the table. The vanity on the other hand was sporting a collection of different candles and what appeared to be scented oils. "The view is good."

Kaito glanced back out the window. They were on the inn's top floor. The city lay spread out below them, bathed in moonlight and dotted with lamplight.

"Sure is. Would have been better with a balcony, but I guess we can't have everything."

Shinichi set about unpacking their things. Kaito watched him for a few moments before wandering into the bathroom for a look. He whistled.

"Hey Shinichi, you should see this tub. It's practically a small swimming pool!"

Placing their empty packs in the back of the wardrobe, Shinichi shut the wardrobe doors and went to peek into the bathroom. "Wow, that's…excessive."

"We should try it out. It's not every day you get to bathe in such a fancy tub."

"It looks like a waste of water to me."

"Ah, but if we use it at the same time then it wouldn't be~."

Shinichi blushed. "Shouldn't we be going to get something to eat?"

"I am pretty hungry," Kaito agreed, much to Shinichi's relief.

The two of them made their way back down to the inn's common room. With all the customers there, they assumed that the food couldn't be too bad. So they found seats at a small corner table and ordered the day's special—a grilled chicken dish with stir-fried vegetables and candied yams. It was indeed quite good. They had finished and Kaito was perusing the dessert menu when an old and slightly hunchbacked man approached their table.

"Excuse me," he rasped at them. "But I heard tell that you two have been asking around about Lady Akako."

Shinichi stiffened. Across the table, Kaito lowered the dessert menu and turned to look at the old man with an amiable smile that gave nothing away. "May we know who's asking?"

"My name is Igor," the man replied with a shallow bow. "And I merely wished to know because, if it is true, then I may be of some service to you."

The magician arched an eyebrow. "How so?"

"I can introduce you to the lady."

"And what would you ask for in return for this service?"

The man made a quiet hacking sound that might have been a laugh. "I require no payment. You see, bringing prospective customers to my lady is my job."

"I see. So then, let's say we're looking for some information. Do you think your lady would be willing to help us? We have heard that Lady Akako has access to a great deal of knowledge that has been lost to the rest of the world."

"That she does," the old man agreed. "And I am sure that she would be happy to supply you with the information you seek. For a price."

"Of course. I assume the details of any deals will be negotiated between us and the lady herself."

"That would be correct. I take it you are interested?"

"We are."

Igor nodded, unsurprised. "Then please follow me."

"Isn't it a little late?" Shinichi asked. "It would be rude to impose on the lady at such an hour."

"Not at all," the old man assured him. "My lady prefers to conduct her affairs after sundown."

That sounded kind of shady to Shinichi. He glanced at Kaito. The magician nodded and rose from his seat. They had, after all, come to see Koizumi Akako. And this was their first promising lead as to her whereabouts.

"Just stay alert," he mouthed to Shinichi.

Despite the late hour, the city streets were still quite lively. The old man led them through winding streets, taking multiple turns this way and that. Shinichi was almost positive that they passed by the same buildings multiple times. It had to be a way to confuse them. With the darkness and the unfamiliarity of the place, it was easy for them to lose track of exactly where they were. He wasn't even sure how long they had been walking when Igor finally stopped in front of a building at the end of a rather narrow and unremarkable alley. The place had no sign, and the building itself didn't give anything away either.

Stepping inside, they discovered themselves standing in what appeared to be an antiques shop of all things. It was currently devoid of customers.

"Please wait here," Igor told them, gesturing to a corner of the shop where several large, antique chairs with red velvet cushions sat. "I will let the lady know that you are here." The old man disappeared through a set of deep crimson, velvet drapes. They heard the creak of old stairs as the cloth fell back into place behind him.

The two young men sat. They examined their surroundings as they waited. A few minutes later, the drapes shifted and the old man returned.

"She will speak with you now. However, she asks that one of you remain here."

Kaito frowned. "Why?"

"It is custom. She never receives more than one guest at a time. It is a matter of privacy."

"But we're here together."

"Yes. However, as I said, it is our custom. There is no need to be concerned," he added. "We ask the same of all our guests."

Kaito glanced back at Shinichi.

"I'll be fine," the smaller boy assured him.

"I won't be long," Kaito murmured back. "Right then, Mister Igor. Lead the way."

Shinichi watched the magician go, trying not to fidget. He was more worried about Kaito going up there by himself. But then again, he knew that the magician was more than capable of taking care of himself. He was, after all, one of the most powerful magic users out there. Still, everyone said this Lady Akako was a tricky person to deal with.

He gave himself a shake and sat back in his seat. All he could do now was stay alert and wait. Spotting what appeared to be a stack of newspapers atop a nearby table, he picked one up and began to read.

On the other side of the curtain, Kaito followed the old man up a narrow flight of wooden steps. They emerged into a fire lit sitting room. It was decorated with rather fancy rugs and furniture, but it had no windows—or at least none that he could see. The heavy fabric hung across the walls could easily be hiding windows. A door on the far side of the room was opened, and then he was being shown into a chamber with a circular table set between two plush couches. There was a crystal ball sitting on the table. A fortune teller's room?

Seated facing the door was a woman with long, crimson hair. She was stunningly beautiful, and she held herself with the elegant bearings of a noble. Her ruby gaze met his and a sultry smile slid across her face.

Igor bowed to her and left the room, shutting the door quietly behind him.

"Please, have a seat. My name is Koizumi Akako. And you must be Kuroba Kaito."

Kaito stiffened. He hadn't told anyone in the city his real name.

As if reading his thoughts, the woman laughed. "Come now. You would not be seeking my aid if I were the kind of person who couldn't find out such a trivial little detail as a name. Besides, your reputation precedes you. I have been following your career for quite some time. I am very pleased to finally have this chance to meet you face to face."

"I see." Pulling a pleasant smile across his face, Kaito regarded the woman with wary intensity. "It seems the stories of your abilities do indeed have some basis in fact. Would you by any chance know what information I am looking for?"

"I may," Akako murmured. "Or I may not. You will forgive me if I do not wish to show my hand. It would be bad for business."

Kaito snorted behind his Poker Face. Figures. "I'll get straight to the point then. I am looking for any information you might have about an artifact called Pandora."

"Ah yes, Pandora." The woman's smile widened just a fraction. "You will have to be more specific about your question."

"I want to know what it is."

"In that case, I may indeed be of some assistance. But before I can share this information with you, you must do something for me."

"And what would that be?"

"Oh, just a little errand. There is an item that I would like you to deliver. You will pick it up at the location I give you tomorrow. Deliver it safely to its destination and I will answer your questions about Pandora."

Kaito considered the offer. He doubted it was really as simple as it sounded, but it didn't seem unreasonable either. "Do I have your word that this is the only payment you will require for this transaction?"

"I swear on my craft, complete this errand and the information is yours."

"Okay then."

"This is the location of the pickup." Akako traced a sign in the air. A small slip of white paper materialized to be plucked out of the air.

Kaito held out his hand. The witch placed the paper on his palm, her fingers brushing rather unnecessarily against his own. Withdrawing his hand, Kaito read over the address on the paper.

"What about the destination?"

"You will be told when you receive the package."

"Right. I will be taking my leave then."

"You may stay the night," the witch offered, leaning forward slightly as her smile turned seductive. "I have quarters upstairs."

"I thank you for your offer, but I already have rooms at an inn."

Back downstairs, he found Shinichi engrossed in reading newspapers. He didn't even look up when Kaito approached. When Kaito cleared his throat, Shinichi started and looked up.

"Kaito!" He shot to his feet. "How did it go?"

"I'll explain when we get back to the inn."

As if on cue, Igor appeared. "I will show you the way."

-0-

"So what was the lady like? Will she help us?"

Having procured cups of coffee from the kitchens, Kaito and Shinichi were now seated at the table back in their room.

"I'll say this much, she's definitely not someone you want to mess with if you can help it. She knew who I was, by the way. Said she's been following my career." He made a face. "And I think she may have wanted to sleep with me."

Shinichi choked on his coffee. "What—that's not the kind of thing you should just say about people! What makes you think that anyway?"

"Well she basically said as much."

"And what did you say?"

Kaito pulled on a mock wounded look. "I'm hurt. What do you think I said?"

Shinichi blushed. "S—sorry, I didn't mean it like that. I just… Did she really say that to you?"

"Not in so many words, but just about. I got the feeling that she knew more about me than she was letting on."

Not knowing what to say to that, Shinichi decided to focus on what was important. "So what about Pandora? Did she know anything?"

"She knows what it is. She'll tell us once we've delivered a package for her."

Shinichi blinked. "She…wants us to deliver something for her?"

"That was the payment we agreed on, yes. This is where we're supposed to pick up the package." Kaito slid the piece of paper he'd gotten from the witch across the table. "She said we'll get the package's destination tomorrow when we pick it up."

Shinichi rose to fetch the city map he'd packed. Returning to the table, he laid the map out and read over the address. "It's a bit far from here."

"Well, she didn't mention a time. So we have all tomorrow to get it."

"Don't you think this is a bit strange?"

Kaito shrugged. "It is a bit unusual, but for all we know this is the kind of thing she always asks for. Frankly, it could have been worse. Besides, it's the only lead we've gotten. We can't just pass it up."

"I know." Shinichi let his breath out in a sigh. He had a bad feeling, but he wasn't sure why. "I just have a hard time believing it's going to be that simple."

Kaito's expression grew serious. "Me too. But you can't solve problems until you know what they are. I say we go along with it and deal with any trouble when—if—it comes up. And hey, maybe it really will be as simple as it sounds."

Shinichi looked skeptical. He didn't have any proof otherwise though. A gut feeling was a weak reason to abandon the first lead they'd found in their self-appointed mission to uncover the artifact that Kaito's father had been killed over. It was a sobering thought. He knew how much this search meant to Kaito. And they had known from the beginning that it would not be without its risks.

They had to stay and see this through. No matter what.

-0-

"It's a pub."

"Wow Shinichi, I would never have guessed."

Shinichi scowled. "Don't patronize me. Are you sure we're in the right place?"

"Yes I am. Honestly, it's not that surprising."

"But they're closed."

Kaito hummed thoughtfully. "Let's go around to the back."

They found the back door open. Inside, a man was un-boxing bottles of assorted liquors. He looked up when Kaito rapped on the doorframe.

"Can I help you, Sir?" he asked.

"We're here to pick up a package," Kaito said. "For Lady Akako."

The man's eyes widened. He glanced around as though expecting eavesdroppers before stepping to the door and speaking in a low whisper.

"You have her sign?"

Kaito blinked. The witch hadn't mentioned any sign, but… Flicking his wrist, he produced the slip of paper with the address on it. As soon as the pub owner touched it, it flashed and dissolved into a fall of crimson feathers that vanished as quickly as they had appeared.

"I'll be right back with your package."

The man disappeared into the depths of the pub only to return a few minutes later with a wooden box about two inches across on all sides. It had three locks holding the lid shut (one on each side without hinges). The box itself was otherwise quite plain.

"This arrived with the package." The man added, holding out a plain, white envelope. "I believe it may be further instructions, though I was told not to open it. You will see that the seal is still intact."

"You have done very well Sir, thank you."

The man nodded, glanced around surreptitiously again, then asked in an even quieter whisper that Kaito, despite being right in front of him, had to strain his ears to hear. "Do you know what it is?"

Kaito raised a mental eyebrow, though outwardly his expression remained bland. So this guy was a middleman too. "It is unwise for a messenger to ask too many questions."

The man flinched. "Ah, right. Sorry. Did you need anything else?"

"No, thank you."

The man nodded and bid them a good day.

A few minutes later, the magician and his librarian were sitting on a bench in the plaza before the pub's main doors. A dry fountain stood behind them. Kaito tucked the box into a pocket then broke the seal on the envelope. Inside was a slip of paper much like the first he'd received from Lady Akako. On it was another address.

Shinichi pulled out their map and opened it. It took him a moment to find the right street. "It's all the way on the other side of the city."

Kaito snorted. "Yeah. Somehow, I'm not surprised. Let me see that."

Shinichi passed the map to the magician. Blue eyes darted up to the sky. It had been clear that morning, but clouds were beginning to thicken up there. It looked like it could start raining soon. Just what they needed.

It was because he was looking up that he saw the glint of metal on the roof.

There wasn't any time to speak. Shinichi threw himself at Kaito, pushing the magician off the bench just as a crossbow bolt embedded itself in the wood of the backrest.

Kaito rolled to his feet, indigo eyes immediately spotting the projectile. "What the hell?"

"There's more of them!" Shinichi exclaimed, scrambling to his feet.

And indeed, there were three shadowy figures on the roof of the building opposite (the direction the crossbow had been fired from). Two dozen more were detaching themselves from assorted shadows around the small plaza. All were headed their way.

-0-

So here they were now, dashing through random city streets and alleys past startled passersby, ducking and weaving between carriages and carts so their pursuers wouldn't be able to get a clear shot. The problem was that neither of them really knew this city. They might have studied its maps, but they didn't have time to stop and read street signs, and no map could have told them about which streets were busier when and all that stuff that only locals could know for certain.

Considering that, it was no surprise that they inadvertently found themselves racing down an almost deserted street. If there was anything lucky about their situation, it was that at least it wasn't a narrow street. Things were not looking up. Not only did they have pursuers behind them, but their pursuers had also circled around and were appearing out of side streets. Some were even coming towards them. They were surrounded.

A fat, icy drop of water hit Shinichi on the cheek.

Oh great, he thought. Just what they needed. Rain. If the visibility dropped, their pursuers with their knowledge of this city would be at a clear advantage. Well, even more of a clear advantage. They had to find a way to ditch these people now or they never would.

Blue eyes swept across the street. There! An unguarded crack in the wall just big enough for a single person to pass through at a time. It didn't look like much, but he recognized the architecture of this particular stretch of buildings from his readings. That crack of a path should lead to steps that would take them to the rooftops. From there, there should be a corresponding flight of steps down the other side. They were considered more decorative than anything else, and they would be easily overlooked. Their pursuers, whether they knew of them or not, probably didn't expect them to be able to even guess that the steps were there. Of course he could be wrong, but he felt the risk was worth taking.

"Kaito, that opening!"

The magician didn't bother asking questions. He just picked up his pace, heading for the opening Shinichi had picked out.

They didn't make it.

Ten feet from their goal, a fireball flashed across their path. It seemed someone in the masked ranks knew how to use magic.

Making his decision, Kaito stopped and turned to face the open street and the cloaked figures racing towards them.

Shinichi halted too. "What—"

"Shinichi, run."

Shinichi's feet were moving again before he could protest.

No! he screamed at himself. He wanted to go back—needed to go back. He couldn't leave Kaito behind.

But his feet wouldn't listen to him. The magic in the magician's command propelled him forward—away—despite his desperate struggle to stop.

He felt more than heard the explosion behind him. It rocked the ground beneath his feet. His heart leapt into his throat.

No.

-To Be Continued-