Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

If he could go back in time and do the day over again, there were many, many things that Kudo Shinichi would have done differently.

The first thing he could have done was to obey his own wishes that morning and just gone back to sleep after shutting off the alarm clock. He could have just stayed in bed all morning then spent the afternoon happily buried in mystery novels until it was time for bed. It was, after all, a Saturday.

But Shinichi had always been too responsible to waste an entire day like that when there were unsolved cases waiting to be closed, and there, he supposed, was his problem. But short of getting a personality transplant, there isn't anything he can do about that. Besides, a personality transplant would make him someone else, and then he wouldn't be himself anymore, and so that would be kind of like committing suicide. And clearly the fact that he was thinking about such silly things at all was a sign. Though what kind of sign it was, he had yet to decide.

The next thing he could have done differently was to say no when Ran invited him to have lunch with her and Sonoko. But he had to skip so many outings with her because of his work as a detective that he made it a point to attend any outing she invited him to that he could actually make it to. It was, after all, a best friend's duty.

He had met Mouri Ran back in elementary school. As people, they had had very little in common. Shinichi had been a bookworm even then, and he'd been obsessed with applying the observational skills he read about to his daily life, which had led to him pointing a lot of things out to his classmates and teachers that they were not always happy to have pointed out. For instance, he hadn't been able to resist pointing out that the first edition and extremely rare collectable card one of his classmates was bragging about was actually a fake and that this other classmate couldn't possibly have written the poem she claimed she'd written because he'd seen it in a magazine that published only works by college students just last week. This had not made him a lot of friends.

Ran, on the other hand, had been quite popular as she was outgoing and friendly.

But the two of them had been the only rabbit hybrids in their entire elementary school. According to the history books, rabbit hybrids had been rare ever since hybrids had begun appearing more than three hundred years ago in the year now referred to as the Advent. In that year, humans had begun having children who sported the features of other animals. This had started all around the world at exactly the same time, but no one had been able to explain it. In only a few years, every child being born was a hybrid. At first, people had been afraid the way they always were about new and unusual things. Over time, however, people had come to accept that the human species as a whole had changed.

The advent of hybrids had brought about many changes that went beyond the cosmetic. Some people began to be able to understand and communicate with animals. Others became more empathetic. Still more developed a sense for the environment that was almost supernatural. These changes had led to a worldwide movement towards better environmental policies and a deeper respect for life that had, it was generally agreed, changed the world for the better. The results had inspired many people to claim that the Advent had been an act of God. Of course, no proof could ever be obtained one way or another.

Of course, though the world as a whole had become greener, cleaner and more peaceful, the human half of the New Race was still, well, human, and you still had your greedy and selfish individuals who committed crimes to satisfy their own desires. But we'll get back to that later.

Of the twelve types of hybrids that now made up the human race, only lizard hybrids, the only reptilian hybrid, were more rare than bunnies (dogs and cast were the most common, possibly because they were the animals that humans had always had the greatest affinity for—or so the scientists had hypothesized. Another fact that puzzled everyone was how hybrid genes were unpredictable. A cat hybrid who got together with a dog hybrid could give birth to a squirrel child. There was no real logic to who was born what). So, quite naturally, Shinichi and Ran had been rather curious about each other. Rabbit hybrids tended to be athletic. They were always fast runners, and they excelled at any sport that required kicking. Every time the two of them were on the same team during PE class for games like soccer, their team would win. One thing had led to another, and eventually they had become friends.

Though Shinichi had learned over the years to hold his tongue about certain things, he still didn't have many friends. This didn't bother him even if he had to admit, if only to himself, that it could get a little lonely sometimes. But that was all right. For one, he had begun doing detective work, and that took up most of his time. And, for another, he just didn't understand and couldn't connect well with most people his own age. They cared about silly things that he just didn't care about like celebrities, looking good and finding love. And they often didn't care enough about the things he did find important—like education, literature and the latest changes in criminal laws. Anyway, long story short, he wasn't and would never be a social butterfly, but he did understand the importance of appreciating the friends he had.

So Shinichi had met Ran and Sonoko, a cat hybrid from one of the city's wealthiest families who had befriended Ran around the same time he had, at a new fusion restaurant downtown that Sonoko had been itching to try ever since it had opened two weeks ago. As expected, the place was packed and noisy—qualities Shinichi did not particularly appreciate. But the place also had great food and, better yet, some of the best coffee Shinichi had had in a while. He could forgive it for all its other faults just for that.

"Uncle Jirokichi still won't let me wear the necklace for the heist tonight," Sonoko was complaining, brown tail waving in indignation. "He just doesn't understand how these things work!"

Shinichi let out an involuntary snort into his mug.

Sonoko rounded on him instantly, eyes narrowed. "What?"

"Nothing," he said hastily.

"Don't lie. You were laughing at me."

"Not at you," he objected. "I just think it's weird to say that your uncle doesn't understand how heists work. His property has been targeted by Kaitou KID more often than the property of any other person or organization. If anyone should know exactly how KID heists work, it's him."

"Ignorant as usual, I see," Sonoko sniffed. "I wasn't talking about the heist."

Shinichi blinked, now honestly confused. "You weren't?"

"Of course not. I was talking about life."

"…Huh?"

"If he really wants to stop Kaitou KID like he keeps saying he does then he would let me wear the necklace," Sonoko explained, confusing Shinichi even further. "When KID comes to take the necklace, he will realize that my heart is what he's been missing all along. He'll steal me away, and we'll take a wonderful, romantic trip together after which he'll ask me to be his forever. And he'll tell me how, if he could have my heart, he would never need to steal another jewel because he already has the most precious jewel in the world. Then we'll get married and live happily ever after."

It wasn't until Sonoko was done outlining her fantasy that Shinichi realized that his mouth was hanging open. He shut it with a click. He honestly couldn't think of a single thing to say—except maybe to suggest that Sonoko go see a therapist. But he had learned over the years that that was one of those comments that he should keep to himself.

"But Uncle Jirokichi just doesn't understand the ways of the heart," Sonoko concluded dramatically. "He still thinks he can actually outsmart KID-sama with all his fancy security technology."

"I'm sure he's also thinking about your safety," Ran put in. "I mean, I know that Kaitou KID doesn't kill people, but he's still a criminal."

"But when he falls in love with me, he won't have to steal jewels to find fulfillment anymore."

Shinichi suppressed the urge to roll his eyes. Sonoko was making a lot of big and baseless assumptions there.

The Kaitou KID had made his first appearance when the three of them had started high school. He was a thief who styled himself as a magician. He tended to target large jewels, and he always sent out a notice in the form of a riddle before he stole anything. He also had a peculiar habit of returning the gems he stole. The thief was best known for the fact that his heists were usually spectacular, magical productions. His skill as a magician and the mystery of his identity and motives had won him a huge following of fans who saw his criminal activities as harmless, free entertainment.

The police did not share their point of view. Even if KID didn't keep his loot, they argued, he was still breaking and entering and causing property damage. HE had been known, for instance, to blow things up to cause power outages and other such less than innocent things. He had also, they pointed out, assaulted several officers and civilians in order to impersonate them. Just because these antics did not cause lasting harm did not mean KID was harmless. Besides, they added, what if he changed his mind one day and decided that he wanted to keep some of those jewels after all? Or, heaven forbid, what if he decided to turn his formidable talents to crimes of a more deadly nature? Small crimes often led to bigger crimes after all. It would, therefore, be best for everyone if the police caught KID before that could happen.

Though their arguments were all valid, very few members of the general public seemed to care what the police thought on the matter. They simply wanted something exciting to look forward to and someone cool to root for. KID and his heists fit that bill nicely.

All the general public knew for certain about KID though was that he was male, and he was a fox hybrid (which surprised no one. Foxes were known for their wicked senses of humor, their cunning and their penchant for mischief. Be careful when dealing with foxes, everyone said. They can be either your best friend or your worst enemy). Shinichi, however, had been to several KID heists as a detective, and thus he had learned a few more things. One of those things was that KID had a greater purpose for stealing jewels than just to entertain himself and his adoring public. What that purpose was though, Shinichi wasn't sure. He just knew that it had to do with a specific jewel since the thief had told him on more than one occasion that one or another jewel was not the one he wanted. Because of that, Shinichi was a hundred and ten percent sure that KID wouldn't change his ways just because he found love.

"You know," Ran said carefully when Sonoko finally stopped her tirade about how the world (in her mind, anyway) was supposed to work. "For all we know, KID could already be in a relationship. Remember when he stole those jeweled slippers? He said something then about giving them to his girlfriend. I know it was a while ago and he didn't actually take the slippers, but it does kind of suggest that he's been dating."

Sonoko opened her mouth then shut it again, looking stunned and horrified. Then she rounded on Shinichi. "You! You've talked to KID-sama. Is he dating someone right now?"

Shinichi blushed. "Wha—what? How am I supposed to know that? That's not something he'd tell me."

"You're a detective aren't you? Deduce it!"

"I don't really—"

"Just give it your best guess."

Shinichi squirmed in his seat as certain memories that he had been trying to ignore flooded through his mind—memories of a razor grin and lips brushing across the back of his hand, of a red rose being held out to him in a white gloved hand, and of strong arms spinning him into a dip as a voice murmured into his ear, "Dance with me, Tantei-kun."

"Well?" Sonoko asked impatiently.

"He probably isn't in a serious relationship," Shinichi muttered, burying his nose back in his mug. "And I doubt he wants to be."

Sonoko brightened at the first half of his statement but frowned at the second. "What makes you say that?"

Shinichi gave a one-shouldered shrug. "It's just the way he acts," he said vaguely. "He's always flirting with the women at heists." The women and one Kudo Shinichi, but he probably only flirted with Shinichi because he knew it put the detective off balance. He couldn't really be serious about his advances.

Sonoko didn't look satisfied, but Ran had apparently picked up on Shinichi's discomfort because she hastened to change the subject.

That was when Shinichi noticed that they were being watched. He would have noticed sooner if Sonoko hadn't been distracting him. He had always been extremely sensitive to being watched.

He shifted discretely in his seat so that he could get a better look at the restaurant's other occupants. He immediately spotted several tables of high school and college students who were sneaking glances at them and whispering. He dismissed most of them as harmless. But there was one table of three who stuck out to him as potential trouble. One was a stocky, older man with ram's horns curling down on other side of his broad face. The other two were probably only a few years older than Shinichi himself. One had short, silver hair that shone under the restaurant lights, and the other had black hair and a thin, sharp face. They were dressed mostly in black. The younger two had leather jackets. Their older companion was actually wearing a trench coat. All their clothes were high end. It wasn't their attire that bothered him though. It was the feeling he got from them. Shinichi had always had an innate ability to sense trouble, and he was getting that vibe from this group.

Before he could look away, one of them caught his gaze. The silver-haired fox hybrid leered at him, and Shinichi looked away quickly. Despite that, he continued to feel those eyes raking over him.

He had gotten looks like that before, and they heralded trouble. Sometimes it was relatively harmless, everyday trouble. Sometimes it wasn't.

Another area of life that the Advent had impacted was that of relationships—or, more specifically, the sexual aspect of relationships. It turned out that a person's human half and non-human half were not always the same sex. Lizards could actually change the sex of their lizard halves. This disparity between the human and non-human halves of hybrids had come to light shortly after the first generation of hybrids began reaching maturity.

It was observed that mature hybrids had certain periods of time where their interest in sex would spike. For a while, everyone assumed it was a combination of mood swings caused by the social unrest of needing to adapt to the existence of hybrids and teenagers being horny teenagers. But prolonged observations revealed that they were experiencing mating cycles akin to those experienced by many other mammalian species.

The discovery had caused an instant uproar. At first, there was a lot of fear and, as was typical for the human race up until that point, that fear led to anger and obstinacy. But the facts were the facts. Arguing against the facts didn't make them less real, and so the world as a whole had been forced to move on.

The following years were fraught with confusion. Everything from public policies to the layout of facilities suddenly had to be reexamined and adjusted. School locker rooms, for instance, had sparked a heated debate. There were those who wanted every school to have four sets of locker rooms instead of the original two. Others wanted to pretend nothing had changed and keep the original two, pointing out that it was difficult to tell whether a hybrid's animal half was male or female before he or she hit puberty. Besides, information of that nature was very private and might lead to discrimination. By Shinichi's day, locker rooms were generally formatted into a series of cubicles so that everyone would have their privacy (which, ironically, led to most laces having co-ed locker rooms since everyone changed in separate stalls anyway).

Another huge wave of confusion had, rather naturally, surrounded reproduction. Years of observation and study later, it was determined that all hybrids with female characteristics, whether those be from their human or animal half or both, could conceive, but when and how easily varied. Hybrids as a whole had fewer children but longer lives. Those who were female on both the human and animal sides had the easiest time conceiving. Those who were male on their human side but female on their animal sides could only conceive when in heat—and even then it was very rare. It had something to do with both basic probability (two Y chromosomes couldn't produce a human being) as well as a general genetic predisposition (and, since they couldn't lactate, they needed to hire wet nurses or rely on baby formulas for nursing). Those who were female on the human side but not on the animal side were the opposite in that they were unable to conceive while in rut. They could sire children at that time, though, due to human biology, this had to be achieved with medical assistance. It was all rather complicated and led to yet more debates and uncertainty over gender and sexuality. The old labels eventually had to be done away with. Once things had settled down, however, people had slowly grown to accept the new state of things, though some people had teased those who were male on both their human and animal sides with being not strictly necessary anymore to the continued survival of the human race (though that sort of teasing died down as it was learned that, again due to the new genetics, couples where one partner was male on both sides and the other was female on both sides had the easiest time conceiving children. This was a relief to people worried about the sudden drastic drop in birth rates around the globe).

The long and complicated history aside though, with the disappearance of old stereotypes had come new ones. It was disheartening, but it was human.

Shinichi didn't care much for stereotypes. He was a detective, and a good detective didn't make baseless assumptions about people just because of some aspect of their biology or background that they had no control over. But that didn't mean he wasn't aware of the stereotypes and how many less intelligent people did indeed base judgments on them and act accordingly. One of those stereotypes (one that Shinichi really hated) was that rabbit hybrids were promiscuous about sex. Both he and Ran had received a considerable amount of unwanted attention because of that rumor from people who weren't interested in serious relationships and only wanted to 'have fun' (their words, not Shinichi's or Ran's. Neither of them were the type interested in casual flings). Because of that and the many unpleasant situations it had spawned, they could count the number of times either of them had gone out with anyone on the fingers of one hand. Sonoko thought this was a tragedy, but Shinichi would rather be prudent. Besides, he'd never met anyone he would actually want to date.

The image of a razor grin and one indigo eye flashed through his mind, but he shook it away hastily. He might be able to admit to himself (with great reluctance) that he found the insanely brilliant thief (emphasis on the insane) attractive, but he knew better than to even entertain the idea of a relationship. It could never work out. Besides, he was sure KID's advances towards him weren't serious.

Their current predicament wasn't about KID anyway. It was the two suspicious strangers who had been eyeing them who were now making their way over to their table. Unfortunately, Sonoko had gone off for a bathroom break, leaving two empty seats next to Ran and Shinichi respectively.

The silver-haired fox hybrid slid into the seat next to Shinichi while his black haired canine friend slid into the seat next to Ran. Shinichi pulled away when the stranger tried to put an arm around his shoulders, but this didn't seem to discourage the man at all.

"You're Kudo Shinichi, aren't you?" the silver fox asked, leaning in far too close for Shinichi's comfort. This fox hybrid was a lot taller than Shinichi was, and Shinichi didn't appreciate how the man was trying to use his height to intimidate him. He considered stepping on the fox's foot but decided against it for now.

"That is my name," Shinichi replied stiffly. "And you are?"

"Call me Sylva. My cousin here is Kuro."

Shinichi wondered if those were very uncreative false names or if the two had had very uncreative parents.

"And what's your name?" the so-called Kuro asked Ran with a smile he probably meant to be charming but which just looked sly.

Ever polite, however, Ran answered. "Ran. And I'm sorry, but my friend is using that chair. She'll need it when she gets back."

"Then I can use it in the meantime, right?" the dog hybrid quipped. "I'll just make sure she still has a chair when she gets back."

Ran blinked, apparently not sure how she should respond to that. Eventually, she shrugged and let it be. After all, she reasoned, the two strangers had yet to do anything actually wrong.

The fox scooted his chair another inch closer to Shinichi's. "You know, I've always wanted to meet you."

Shinichi's eyes narrowed warily. "Why?"

Sylva grinned, apparently unfazed by the note of suspicion in Shinichi's voice. "I see you in the news all the time. I'm a big fan."

There had been times in the past when Shinichi imagined that he would enjoy having fans. Once he became a great detective, after all, a fan or two was only natural. They would be part of the proof that he was doing his job well, and the idea of being acknowledged for his skills was understandably appealing. But that was before he realized that fans were only one small step away from fanatics. Not to mention the way publicity inevitably led to the eroding of any and all your privacy. To make a long story short, now even hearing someone claim to be his fan gave him an overwhelming desire to run away as fast as was rabbitly possible.

But he reminded himself that no one should judge another based on a few bad experiences and no real knowledge. The so-called Sylva didn't seem to notice his lack of enthusiasm as he leaned in just a little closer. Shinichi inched his chair away again and wondered why all the foxes in his life seemed equally unable to respect the concept of personal space.

"If you have the time, we could really use some advice," the silver fox continued, finally catching Shinichi's attention.

"Advice about what?" he asked with the professional interest of a detective.

"A trivial matter, really," Sylva replied. "We're new in town, you see. We moved here with our uncle. We'll be starting a business, but we'll be needing a few more people for our team. Perhaps you and your friend here would be interested?"

So it wasn't a case, Shinichi thought. He wasn't sure if he was relieved or disappointed. He settled for the former since he still didn't like the feel of these two.

"Thank you for the offer, but we've only just started college," Ran said politely. "We're not looking for jobs just yet."

"Perhaps just for the summer?" Kuro suggested. "The university should be letting out for summer vacation soon, right?"

Ran hesitated. "It is, but…"

"We've already made plans," Shinichi supplied. It wasn't a lie either. Megure-keibu, a longtime friend and police inspector, had asked if he would like to spend his summer with the force so he could learn more about the ins and outs of police work that went on outside of the actual crime scenes (with which Shinichi was rather more familiar than even most police officers). Shinichi had accepted the offer eagerly, though he hadn't yet made up his mind if he wanted to join the police in the future or begin his own practice as a detective. Ran herself would be attending a summer camp with the university's karate club and doing a bit of work with her mother, a prominent lawyer, and checking in on her father, a private detective with a small practice. Knowing Ran, she also had plans to attempt to get her stubborn parents to spend time together. Or if she didn't have plans, she no doubt would be making some soon. Ran had never given up on getting her separated parents back together. Shinichi had always very carefully refrained from pointing out that, though Mouri Kogoro and Kiseki Eri clearly cared for each other, no power on earth could ever make them live harmoniously under one roof.

"At least think about it," the dark-haired canine pressed. "It'll be fun."

"You haven't even said what your business is," Ran pointed out.

Shinichi didn't miss the way the two men exchanged conspiratorial glances before the fox spoke.

"I'm afraid we aren't at liberty to share the details just yet, seeing as we have competitors, but we'll be offering a variety of products and services. Arranging events and the like."

"So you mean like event planning?" asked Ran, slightly interested despite herself.

"That's right." Kuro grinned at her. "Interested?"

Shinichi could see Ran's curiosity kindling, but he had decided that it was time they bid these two goodbye. The scent of trouble he was getting from them was thickening. For all their apparent friendliness, these two were not what they pretended. He committed their features to memory even as he cleared his throat.

"Like I said, we already have plans," he said firmly. "But I'm sure there are plenty of other students who would be more interested in a summer job, especially if you're planning parties."

"Perhaps you could show us around town at least?" Sylva persisted, once again moving to lay an arm over Shinichi's shoulders.

Shinichi shrugged the arm off, beginning to get irritated. "No. And I think you should get back to your uncle's table. Our friend should be back soon." Frankly, he felt Sonoko should have been back long ago, but there were so many people in the restaurant that there was more than likely a line for the restroom. Casting a quick glance in the direction of the restrooms, he saw Sonoko's light brown hair. He stood up. "In fact, she's coming now. So we'll be going."

Ran took the cue and got to her feet as well.

The fox followed suit. "Don't be like that," he said, catching Shinichi's arm. "Your friend can join us too, if she'd like. Come on. Let us buy you dessert, and we'll all get to know each other better."

And here was the next moment in the day where Shinichi felt he could have turned things around. He could have politely explained (with more emphasis this time) that the offer was thoughtful but they would have to decline as they had prior engagements. Then they might have been able to part ways amicably. Instead, Shinichi, already at the end of his patience with this Sylva's unwelcomed advances and more than a little on edge with the sense of danger that had been gnawing at him since these two had approached, had instead said, "I would rather die."

When he looked back on that moment later, even Shinichi had to admit that that had been dumb. But like they said, hindsight was twenty-twenty.

Chapter Text

Shinichi would like to say that he realized his mistake the moment those ill-considered words left his mouth. After all, though he would never claim to be the soul of tact, he had learned to curb his tongue somewhat over the years. And he had seen more than his fair share of the nastiness that rude words could sew, intentionally or otherwise. If he had thought of all this, he might have apologized despite not feeling very sorry for the sake of peace. But alas, all he did was yank his arm from Sylva's grasp and glare at him.

There was a very awkward moment of silence before Kuro let out a bark of laughter. His cousin snarled and bared his fangs at him. "Shut up!"

And Shinichi took the opportunity to pull Ran over to where he'd seen Sonoko and usher the both of them straight out the door, believing that none of them would ever have to deal with the suspicious cousins (if indeed they really were cousins) again.

And that presumption too turned out to be a mistake.

As things were, he spent the next ten minutes suffering through Sonoko's complaints about being dragged away from the restaurant before she'd had the chance to order dessert.

"You better have a good reason," she huffed. She continued to scowl as he and Ran took turns explaining what had happened with the dog and fox hybrids who had accosted them. When they had finished, she turned her baleful glare on Shinichi.

"What is it with you and foxes anyway?"

Shinichi frowned. "What do you mean?"

Sonoko snorted. "Some detective you are. Haven't you noticed? There was that guy on our middle school soccer team and then that upperclassman who used to train with Ran at her dojo. And don't forget that waiter who just started at the café under Ran's apartment. I swear he's always watching you when we're there."

Shinichi opened his mouth then shut it again. He knew the waiter she was talking about, and he also knew that that particular fox hybrid had been watching him because the man was an undercover law enforcement agent who had been trying to recruit him, but as for the other two, he had no idea what she was talking about.

Sonoko must have read the confusion in his face because she sighed. "You really are hopeless. Honestly, we can't take you anywhere! If it's not one thing then it's another. Do you have any idea what kind of opportunity we just missed? That restaurant's strawberry shortcake won an award last year! And after we waited all that time in line too!"

Fortunately, they came upon a bakery that was offering special deals on strawberry roll cakes that a friend of Ran's from karate club had told them were divine. So they had their dessert there at the bakery instead. And the roll cake turned out to be splendid indeed—so much so that, when the girls each bought a whole one to bring home, Shinichi did as well.

With the cakes in hand, they decided it was time to head home. Ran suggested that they all head to her place where they could leave their cakes in her refrigerator temporarily so they could head to the site of the KID heist together. Sonoko agreed readily, but Shinichi declined. He wanted to go home and get at least a little time in peace before the heist. He would need his wits about him if he was going to be dealing with KID after all. He needed to rid himself of the frazzled feeling their encounter at the restaurant had engendered in him. A little reading in the quiet should help him regain his focus.

And so his chain of mistakes continued.

If he had gone along with Ran's plan then he wouldn't have been alone when he'd set out for the KID heist. He would also likely have been on one of the Suzuki family's cars because Sonoko most certainly would have called for one to ensure that she arrived at the heist location on time. If anything, Sonoko would have made sure they arrived at the heist location early so that she would have ample time to primp and preen in the hopes of capturing a certain thief's attention.

But alas, he was alone, and he was traveling on foot after disembarking from the train some ten blocks from the heist location. He was far from alone. The streets were filled with excited KID fans eager for a glimpse of the thief and his latest spectacular performance. There were so many of them that traffic was dreadful, and those who were just on their way home or looking for somewhere to eat their dinner were growing increasingly frustrated.

Even in the general mayhem of a lively city street, however, Shinichi spotted the suspicious shadow tailing a redheaded woman around the corner into a quieter side street. He is a detective after all, and he had trained himself to notice irregular behavior. Being a detective was also why he followed the two.

This might have been another turning point in his day except that he would have followed no matter what else was happening or how else his day might have gone. He had always believed and would always believe that it was better to try and help someone and fail than to walk away and wonder what awful thing you might have let happen by doing so.

Later, however, he would admit that he could at least have been more careful. If he had looked before he'd leapt, so to speak, he might have avoided being knocked unconscious the moment he rounded the corner.

Unfortunately, none of the many decisions he might have made differently that day had been made differently, and so here he was, swimming laboriously up out of the black well of unconsciousness as he tried to remember what had happened and figure out where in the world he was.

-0-

Shinichi's head throbbed. He couldn't move. Every muscle in his body felt as though it had been replaced by lead weights. It wasn't just his body though. The world itself seemed stuffed full of cotton wool. Sounds and smells alike seemed far away and indistinct—all fuzz with no defined edges.

His thoughts too were not unaffected. They came together then fragmented and drifted away like clouds on the wind. In this hazy world, he knew the muffled noises in his ears were voices speaking, but he couldn't for the life of him figure out what they were saying. The sounds were meaningless strings of syllables.

Slowly though, things were beginning to come back into focus.

His sense of touch was the first to return to some semblance of normalcy. He could feel that he was lying on a flat surface. It was padded but not exactly soft—perhaps a thin mattress of some kind. He had been laid out flat on his back, but his hands had been bound together to something above his head. The sensation of smooth metal against the soft skin of his wrists suggested handcuffs. Although frankly it wouldn't have mattered if he hadn't been tied up as he couldn't even twitch his fingers. He still felt as though someone or something else was in charge of his limbs. From the top of his head to the tips of his fingers and toes, nothing would respond.

Toes…

He wasn't wearing shoes or socks. Someone had taken his jacket too. He could feel the brush of air against his bare arms. In fact, he was positive he wasn't wearing his own clothes. Instead, the feel of the light fabric loosely draped about his body reminded him of something familiar.

A hospital gown. That was it. But…was he at the hospital? He remembered pursuing the suspicious shadow tailing that young woman, and he could guess that he was knocked out by something when he skidded around the corner, so maybe whoever had attacked him had left him there, and he'd been found by a passerby who called the hospital.

Except hospitals didn't typically restrain patients. No, this wasn't a hospital—or at least not a normal one, he decided. It was much more likely that he had been kidnapped.

Well that was a bother, but it was nothing to freak out about. Not yet anyway.

In his already lengthy career as a teenaged detective, Shinichi had been kidnapped before, so he knew that the most important thing he had to do in this situation was to stay calm and figure out exactly what was going on. If he panicked, it would be game over.

So he was secured to what might be a hospital bed in a hospital gown (he tried hard not to think about the fact that that meant someone had stripped him of his own clothes while he was unconscious to dress him in said gown). From the feel of the air and the sound of those voices, the room he was in probably wasn't very large. He could hear the distant rumble of traffic though, so they were still in the city. Somewhere busy.

With an effort, he turned his attention to the voices, trying to focus on them and force the sounds to begin making sense. It was difficult, but, gradually, they did. There were two speakers: a man and a woman.

"—initial examination is complete," said the woman. "And we've got the blood samples, so that's about everything we need to begin."

"Took you long enough," the male voice grumbled. If he could move, Shinichi's ears would have twitched. He knew that voice. He'd heard it just that morning—provided this was the same day anyway. It was the young man who'd called himself Sylva.

"You should really work on your patience," the woman replied, sounding amused. "It's a virtue you know."

Sylva snorted. "You're one to talk."

The two fell silent, and Shinichi could hear the sound of clicking keys and a soft whir of machinery. With another tremendous effort, he managed to crack his eyes open just a sliver.

As he had thought, the room was a small one. A closed curtain on one wall suggested the presence of a window. The other three walls were unadorned but for a single shut door. The furniture was equally lacking. Aside from the bed he was on, there was only a single desk. It was at that desk that a redheaded feline hybrid was typing away on a sleek little laptop.

It was the woman he had thought was being targeted by unsavory characters, Shinichi realized. Had the entire thing been a trap? That was looking more likely by the second. That, or this woman had also been up to no good, and so she had reacted badly to being followed by a detective. He supposed it didn't really matter at this point in time.

As he had thought, Sylva was standing by her chair, leaning over her shoulder to look at the laptop screen as she worked. Shinichi wondered what they were doing. The redhead had said something about an examination, which explained the hospital gown even as it brought up a million more questions. Whatever kind of examination she had done though, it apparently hadn't involved any other medical equipment. There was a suitcase on the desk that probably contained the blood samples the woman had mentioned and the related tools, but add the laptop and there wouldn't be much room left in said case for anything else.

Then the cat picked up a medicine case from where it had been resting by her laptop. It was the sort that had multiple small compartments to help users keep the medications organized.

"So which one shall we test on our little bunny here?" the red cat purred as she ran her fingers over the series of twelve compartments. "I say something from X1 to X9. We've had too much trouble gathering data on these rabbit types to risk this one up and dying on us just yet."

"Use the X4," Sylva said with a rather feral grin.

The red cat giggled. "Ah, because he spurned your advances? I didn't realize you were still so childish. But I suppose we do need the data. Just don't get carried away and forget to take notes."

Shinichi didn't like what he was hearing. It sounded as though they were planning to use him in some kind of experiment. And considering how he had ended up here, it must be an illegal experiment. The situation just kept getting worse. He really had to get out of here.

The problem was that none of his limbs wanted to move at all. They still felt like soft putty, all weight and no strength. The most he could do was twitch his furry ears and crack open his eyes a hair further—enough to see that the cat woman had stood up and walked over to the side of his bed.

Up close like this, he could see that she was clearly a few years older than he was just like Sylva. And like Sylva, her eyes were the sharp, clear, hunting eyes of a predator. The sight of those eyes sent a shudder through his body. It was fear. The fear that prey feels when under the gaze of the tiger about to pounce.

"So you're awake," she purred leaning down so that her face was mere inches from his. He could smell her spicy pepper scent that made him cringe.

"Such lovely eyes," she crooned, baring her fangs in a grin he could only describe as evil. "It's no wonder Sylva wants to keep you. Ah well, better get started then before old cranky pants looses his cool."

A pill appeared held between two manicured fingers. Before Shinichi could try to formulate a response, the cat had pinched the bridge of his nose and used her other hand to shove the pill as far down his throat as her long fingers could get it

He choked and gasped, working his throat muscles in a desperate attempt to get the pill out, but then water was being poured into his mouth while the cat woman held his jaw, keeping his mouth wide open. Having water flooded into his mouth and with his nose being pinched to block of that path for air, Shinichi could only choke and swallow both the water and the pill. Then that torturous moment was over, and his captors released him.

He immediately wrenched his head around to the side and tried to cough the pill out to no avail. It had already gone down the pipeline, so to speak.

"Don't worry," the red cat said lightly as she patted him on the head as though he was a child or a pet animal. "You're going to enjoy yourself. Just listen to Big Sister Scarlet. We won't hurt you. You're too precious."

With a last, tittering laugh, the cat woman shut her laptop and returned it to her suitcase. "Well Sylva, take notes on the timing of the stages. But other than that, just have fun. We all know you want to."

"Oh I intend to," the fox said with a leer and a low growl of anticipation that sent shudders racing up Shinichi's spine.

Scarlet picked up her suitcase then opened the room's one door. There, she paused as all three of them heard what sounded like a distant explosion. Frowning, the cat and the fox traded looks.

"I'll go see what it was," Scarlet said, earlier flippancy gone. "You stay here for now. But if something seems off, take our little bunny here and go. We'll meet back at HQ."

Sylva rolled his eyes. "I know, I know. It's probably just Jade and her blasted explosives though. Tell she'd better finish that cloaking system for the new base before she gets carried away with anything else if she doesn't want to be packed off back to HQ."

Scarlet chuckled. "You know as well as I do that Jade couldn't care less where she is as long as she has her toys. But I'll see what I can do. Anything to get out of this dump of a building." That said, the redhead slipped out of the room.

Sylva turned back to where Shinichi had given up on trying to cough up the unknown pill and begun trying to wiggle his hands out of their restraints. The detective hadn't made much progress however as, though his hands and feet were slowly beginning to respond to the instructions from his brain, he still couldn't exert any real strength. It was for that reason alone that he didn't kick the silver fox in the jaw when Sylva prowled over to perch on the edge of the bed.

He smirked when Shinichi glared at him.

"Aww, don't look at me like that. Aren't you happy to see me?"

Like hell, Shinichi thought, but he didn't bother to say as much. Admittedly, this was because he still felt like a cooked noodle, and he was afraid his voice would sound as weak as he felt. But Sylva didn't need to know that.

"Nothing to say? I'm disappointed. Whatever happened to that sharp tongue of yours?"

Shinichi half wished whatever that pill was he'd been given would just knock him out so he wouldn't have to listen to any more of this juvenile taunting. He thought again about trying to kick his silver-haired captor, but though he could move his leg a little, he couldn't lift it off the bed, let alone deliver a decent kick.

Sylva leaned forward, baring his fangs in a grin that set all kinds of alarms off in Shinichi's head. "I suppose we'll just have to find another use for that tongue of yours."

Shinichi could feel himself flushing, though he wasn't sure if it was in anger or a reaction to the heavy innuendos he could hear in the silver fox's voice. He became abruptly and unpleasantly aware of the fact that he was dressed only in a very thin and very loose hospital gown. And when he said dressed, he meant only that his arms had been slid through the sleeves. The gown itself had only been draped loosely about his person. The ties, as far as he could tell, hadn't even been secured.

And Shinichi wondered if maybe, just maybe, it was time to panic.

Chapter Text

Something was very, very wrong—and that wasn't even counting the silver fox hybrid hovering over him with that decidedly perverted leer or the fact that he had been kidnapped on his way to the latest Kaitou KID heist.

That flush that Shinichi had assumed was from his anger at his captor's lewd comments wasn't going away. Instead, it was growing and seemed to be spreading through his body like lava flowing through his veins—slow but inexorable. It wasn't just the heat though. There was this feeling…a growing restlessness and discomfort in his own skin—a craving for something he'd never had and couldn't put into words…

The heat was creeping now into his thoughts too, jumbling them. He wondered why he was having such difficulty breathing. He could hear his own heart beating like a quick and erratic drum in his chest.

"Ah, it looks like it's starting. Let's see. Took about ten minutes to kick in."

Even Sylva's voice is distant now. Distant and unimportant. The scratching of a pen on paper made even less sense than those pointless, nonsensical words. All that mattered was this growing sensation inside him—this burning need for…for… He couldn't finish the thought as his head spun.

Sylva was still talking, but Shinichi had stopped paying attention. He was focused inward, struggling against the sensations thrumming through his body and the odd fog in his mind that didn't want to let him string his thoughts together properly. With a horrified kind of detachment, he realized that, disregarding the unusual disorientation, he recognized these sensations. His body was going into heat.

But this was wrong, he thought dazedly. This was too early. It wasn't the right time.

Well, the tiny corner of his mind that was still able to formulate coherent thoughts observed, at least he now had a pretty good idea of what kind of drug he had been dosed with. But whether that knowledge was a good thing or not, he didn't currently have the mental capacity to decide. On the one hand, it probably meant he wasn't going to die. Yet. Sylva and Scarlet's conversation suggested that this might change in the future if he didn't find a way to get out of here and away from these unsavory people. But on the other hand, death might very well be preferable to becoming a—a test subject for mind-addling, heat-inducing drugs.

His heart was racing now, and it wasn't all because of the drug. Nor was it all the very reasonable fear at what was happening to him. It was also anger and frustration at his own helplessness and the carelessness that had landed him in this situation to begin with. If only he could think—! There had to be a way out of here. There just had to be. Except he still couldn't move, and Sylva was leaning over him again, predatory eyes aglow with an almost feral light. And Shinichi couldn't look away.

The world was spinning. A claw-tipped finger traced a line of fire over the jut of his hip bone, and he gasped and would have jerked away had he been able. Fangs flashed in the play of lights and shadows that were beginning to swim before his eyes.

He squeezed them shut. There was nothing he could do. The cold horror of that thought was nearly enough to break through the haze still dragging at his thoughts, but only nearly. The rest of his mind seemed to be sinking. His whole body seemed to be buzzing—he was both wonderfully and uncomfortably warm. He whimpered, breathing coming in shallow gasps.

A loud bang just outside the door snapped Shinichi's thoughts temporarily back into some semblance of clarity. It was at least enough for him to realize that Sylva had drawn away from him. This discovery sent a wave of relief crashing through him even as his body protested the loss of the other's presence—of his scent that promised the very pleasure Shinichi's body was telling him he wanted—needed.

Struggling between the instincts and desires of his own body and the rational part of his mind that knew this was all wrong, wrong, wrong, Shinichi could only watch as the fox stalked over to the door. Through it, the explosions and now shrilling alarm was being punctuated by shouts and the sounds of pounding feet.

"What's going on out there?" he demanded, wrenching open the door. "Some people are trying to have a little fun."

"It's the lab!" a panicked voice replied. "There was a malfunction in the equipment! We're having trouble shutting it off!"

Another explosion rocked through the building.

"Idiots!" With a snarl, Sylva stormed from the room, but not before casting Shinichi another look.

"Don't worry, little bunny, this won't take long," the silver fox promised with a toothy smirk. "I'll be right back to take care of you." That said, he bounded out of the room.

The hubbub outside receded. Left alone in the sudden stillness, Shinichi found that his arms and legs were finally responding. He still felt weak as wet noodles, but at least he could move a little, and he'd be damned if he just lay here and waited for Sylva to come back.

Shinichi was getting out of here or he was going to die trying.

Mind made up, he levered himself laboriously into a sitting position and slid his feet over the edge of the examination bed. He tried to stand only to sit right back down again when the world around him lurched. His knees felt like jelly. And his wrists were still secured to the bed frame. He had to free his hands first.

But how? His sluggish mind writhed in frustration, and again, he felt like he could barely breathe.

The door opened again.

Fear shot up his spine, and he looked up, dreading that he would see Sylva back again to finish what he'd started. But though the man in the doorway was indeed a fox hybrid, it wasn't Sylva.

This fox hybrid was dressed in an impeccably white suit and top hat with an equally white cape. His hair, ears, and tail were white to match his suit, though it was generally agreed that white was not his natural color. He was also wearing a monocle over one eye.

Shinichi stared. Had he started hallucinating? He blinked several times, but the apparition remained.

"Kaitou KID?" he asked hesitantly, still not really believing his eyes.

For once, the thief didn't smile. And it was the grimness of his expression that finally convinced Shinichi that he was real and not a figment of his imagination.

"We don't have much time," the thief told him. He crossed the room to Shinichi's side in two quick strides. A moment later, Shinichi found that his hands were free. "They'll be done with my distractions in fifteen minutes or so. Here, Put this coat on." KID pulled a long coat out of nowhere and handed it to Shinichi. The detective remained sitting where he was with the coat in hand, not sure whether he should try pulling it over the hospital gown or if he should take the gown off first. The latter made more sense, but the thought of KID seeing him naked made him blush to the roots.

"Here, let me help," KID said, apparently misinterpreting Shinichi's hesitation. The thief tugged Shinichi to his feet and solved his dilemma about the gown by simply throwing the coat over Shinichi's shoulders, gown and all, and helping him pull his uncooperative arms through the sleeves.

"Why are you here?" Shinichi managed to ask as the thief buttoned his coat for him. Under normal circumstances, he'd have been horribly embarrassed to have anyone, let alone the Kaitou KID, buttoning his coat for him like he was a child, but the drugs in his system were making it difficult to even stand up. He knew he wouldn't be able to manage buttons.

"To rescue you of course," KID quipped, flashing one of his infamous heart-melting grins and, for a moment, looking much more like the KID that Shinichi was used to seeing on heists.

"But how—"

"Hush. Like I said, we don't have time. We can talk later. Can you walk?"

That was a good question. Determined, Shinichi took a step towards the door—and nearly fell flat on his face as the world around him spun. KID caught him before he hit the ground.

"Guess I'll have to carry you," the thief murmured, more to himself than to Shinichi.

The next thing Shinichi knew, KID had scooped him up into his arms, and they were off.

Shinichi's heart was racing now for an entirely un-drug-related reason that was not helping either his thought processes or the tingling, thrumming sensations running through his body.

Shinichi really didn't remember much about what happened after that. All he could recall later was the sound of shouting, crashing, things exploding, and the familiar scent of wood smoke and roses that always made him think of moonlit nights and a wicked grin that he couldn't help but love.

-0-

The night air was cool and clear with a bite to it that Kaito welcomed because it distracted him from the warm bundle in his arms. Not being distracted was very important right now for a variety of reasons beginning with the fact that he had just stolen aforementioned bundle from what he was sure was a group of people he did not want to get to know and ending with the fact that he and his charge were currently several hundred feet in the air. The wind was good tonight, but his glider hadn't exactly been meant for two. It could manage (though it helped that his passenger wasn't particularly heavy—though that worried Kaito a little too. The detective really should be eating more and working less), but one wrong move and they just might end up crashing. That wouldn't do any favors for either his pristine, gentleman thief image or his chances at finally getting his detective to go out with him.

A low chuckle escaped him at the thought as he turned their flight towards the Kudo Manor. Yeah, a daring rescue wouldn't have half the impact if it ended in a crash.

Somewhere in the distance, he heard police sirens, but they were too far away to have anything to do with him at the moment. More likely, they were responding to the smoke pouring out of the building he and Shinichi had just left. Thoughts of the police reminded him that he had inadvertently left Nakamori and his task force—not to mention all his adoring fans—hanging. It would be the first time ever that Kaitou KID hadn't shown up for a heist he'd announced. He felt a moment of guilt at that. He hated disappointing his fans. But some things were just too important to ignore.

Things like an unconscious Kudo Shinichi being dragged into a nondescript van and driven away by suspicious characters.

Indigo eyes hardened at the memory.

Kuroba Kaito, known to most of the world as the infamous Kaitou KID, had known for a long time now that he had more than friendly feelings for Kudo Shinichi, his most challenging—and most delightful—rival. It had begun as a simple interest in a mind as quick and sharp as his own on a night at the Ekoda Clock Tower. That first encounter had piqued Kaito's interest, but it was only when the following heist had come and gone without any sign of his new rival's reappearance that he had decided to look the detective up. He had begun experimenting with ways to get Shinichi to attend more of his heists. After all, Kaito had been getting bored with the police and that uptight blond nuisance, and he hadn't been about to let this potentially entertaining new playmate get away.

What had started as simple curiosity and a desire for a real challenge had, however, grown very rapidly into an obsession.

Shinichi had turned out to be everything Kaito had hoped he would be and then some. He was smart and quick on his feet both literally and figuratively—a true challenge to Kaito's own considerable intellect. But he was more than that.

He was someone Kaito could really, truly respect. He was the kind of person who truly cared and who could look beyond the surface of things, and he didn't judge the worth of others. For all that he had seen and still saw the worst of mankind on a daily basis, Shinichi somehow still managed to believe in the goodness of people and their ability to change for the better. He valued all life, not just the lives of the people he liked, and he was willing to put his own wellbeing on the line to protect even those that most people would say didn't deserve it. That kind of dedication wasn't something you saw every day, and Kaito admired him for it even though he also wished Shinichi would take his own safety more seriously. Helping people was all well and good, but you couldn't help anyone if you were dead.

Kaito had started keeping closer tabs on Shinichi outside of his heists after the boy had landed himself in the hospital—again—after a particularly unpleasant case involving an insane serial killer who had deluded himself into believing that he could bring his deceased family back to life through some kind of occult ritual that required child sacrifices. Honestly, the awful—and stupid—things people would believe and do when they were desperate was just crazy! But anyway, the point was that Kaito hadn't liked the idea of his most interesting critic accidentally getting himself killed, and so he had decided to help ensure that such a thing didn't happen. Of course, he couldn't watch Shinichi himself all the time, but he had trained a few doves to help him stalk—er, look out for—the detective. And a good thing too! Kaito had nipped over more than a few times by now to, ah, make sure things didn't get out of hand.

Not that Shinichi knew this. Though it was for Shinichi's own good, Kaito didn't think the rabbit hybrid would take too kindly to learning that he was being spied on.

Over time though, he had found himself watching Shinichi less as a precaution and a method of studying his best rival and more because, well, he enjoyed watching Shinichi. It was funny how the boy could be such a sharp detective yet so adorably out of touch with regular, everyday things like the latest most popular band. Normally composed, he could nevertheless bubble like an excited five year old when he got a new book or when his favorite soccer team won a game. His peculiar combination of oblivious innocence and wisdom beyond his years was intriguing, and it certainly didn't hurt that he was just so fun to tease.

He also had the most beautiful eyes and a very cute blush.

He liked Shinichi's scent too—like spring with a hint of spice. It sang to him of honey and fire and the thrill of the race.

Kaito began to suspect that he might be beginning to develop more than friendly feelings towards the detective when he found himself scrutinizing everyone Shinichi interacted with on a daily basis and evaluating their relationships with his detective (and feeling gleeful when he had determined that Shinichi was still single—had never been in a romantic relationship, in fact). He began daydreaming about sweeping Shinichi away from his overload of work to a romantic vacation—just the two of them. Those daydreams rapidly multiplied and expanded to include rather less innocent fantasies.

Those same fantasies were haunting him now and making it extremely difficult to concentrate.

That honey and spice undertone was growing exponentially stronger, mixed in with another scent that was uniquely Shinichi that was making Kaito's pulse quicken. But that didn't make sense. He knew the schedule of Shinichi's cycle by heart (no, Shinichi never told him. So how did he find out? Well, let's just say that the skills of a phantom thief are good for more than just stealing jewels. And yes, he knows that's a bit creepy, but he would like to point out that he wouldn't be the first person to seek out such information about a desired mate. He just has more resources than most. He also knew that Shinichi typically holed up at home when in heat with several strong sleeping pills and a mountain of novels), and this was three whole weeks early.

He forced himself to focus on his concern over the wrongness and not on anything else as he flew. It was in fact a serious concern. While there were certainly aphrodisiacs out there that could affect hybrids (although different ones worked differently on different types of hybrids), none could actually induce heats. There were two that would induce what had come to be termed as false heats where a hybrid felt all the typical bodily reactions but could not conceive that had come out of failed experiments done by a lab worried about low birth rates, but both of those drugs had been made illegal everywhere because they had been found to be extremely dangerous to the recipient. Thankfully, they were both extremely difficult and expensive to make and the punishment for even trying to make them was extremely heavy in every country, so those who might otherwise have tried to make criminal use of them typically steered clear. But if one of those drugs was what Shinichi had been dosed with…

Kaito cursed himself for not having grabbed some samples from that lab before he'd set fire to it. But it was too late for that now.

Could whatever it was be flushed out of Shinichi's system if the rabbit hybrid drank a lot of water? It was the only idea Kaito could come up with at the moment that seemed remotely like it could work.

Landing in the Kudo Manor's back garden, Kaito carefully set Shinichi on his feet. He realized instantly though that the younger boy wasn't going to be able to walk. Whatever he had been drugged with also seemed to be messing with not only his balance but his thought processes. The glazed, unfocused look in his eyes were worrying Kaito even more than he'd already been. Fortunately—or maybe unfortunately considering what it was doing to Kaito's sanity—it was rather easy to get Shinichi to lean on him. Indeed, Shinichi seemed quite happy to attach himself to Kaito like a limpet.

By the time Kaito finally managed to unlock the backdoor and maneuver them both inside, Shinichi was half wrapped around him with one leg wrapped around Kaito's hip and his arms around Kaito's neck, pulling him close as the rabbit hybrid buried his nose in the crook of Kaito's neck, panting softly and making unintelligible little mewling noises that were sending all the wrong (right?) signals to Kaito's brain.

Kaito grit his teeth. Part of him wanted to give in to his instincts and all his fantasies and just kiss Shinichi already. To carry Shinichi off to bed and make love to him all night long. He had wanted it for years now. Dreamed of ten thousand ways to make it happen. None of which had anything to do with where he was now.

Kaito's resolve firmed.

He was not going to take advantage of Shinichi's drugged condition. After all, it wasn't just Shinichi's body he wanted. Kaito wanted the detective's heart too. If he took the first now, he would never get the second, and that was by far the more important of the two.

"Okay," he said out loud to help himself stay grounded. "Let's get you something to drink."

Chapter Text

Shinichi desperately needed to go to the bathroom. He felt like he'd downed a whole gallon of water. It was that one all consuming need that had him forcing his wobbly and unresponsive body out of bed (wait, this was his bed? How had he gotten here and when? Hadn't he been somewhere else?) and towards the bathroom. The world around him swam, and the ground beneath him heaved and rocked like the deck of a ship at high sea. He felt like he was going to vomit.

When he got to the bathroom, he did vomit. Thankfully, he managed to reach the toilet bowl just in time. He spent the next hour locked in the bathroom. A good brush with a lot of mint toothpaste and a hot shower, taken with painstaking slowness due to a head that refused to stop spinning and muscles that felt like they had been completely drained of energy, had him feeling if not exactly well then at least not quite as awful as he had when he had woken up. It also gave him time to sort through his jumbled memories in an attempt to figure out what had happened and how he had gotten home.

He remembered being abducted and then force fed some kind of odd pill—one out of twelve formulas, if he didn't miss his guess. He remembered the…effects of the pill too and Sylva's leering face. He shuddered at the memory of fear and that horrible sense of utter helplessness. Ran always told him he needed to be more careful ("Everyone makes mistakes," she'd pointed out once after he had landed himself in the hospital by confronting a child kidnapper only to realize a fraction too late that the man had an accomplice. "And the ability to kick someone's teeth in or hit a target with a soccer ball from twenty paces off isn't going to get you out of every nasty situation you throw yourself into!"). If KID hadn't shown up when he did…

That's right. He stared blankly at the bathroom's tiled wall as his thoughts cleared a bit more with the shock of recollection. Kaitou KID had rescued him. How had KID even known he needed help? Let alone where to find him? Well, maybe that didn't matter exactly. Shinichi should just be glad that the thief had known and had come, however it had happened. The fox hybrid had even brought him home and apparently changed him into pajamas and tucked him into bed.

A slow blush rose in Shinichi's face, and he turned to duck his head under the spray of the shower in an attempt to wash away his embarrassment.

With bits and pieces of his memories coming back, he could recall all too well the way he'd all but wrapped himself around the fox hybrid. He could remember burying his nose in the crook of the thief's neck—could remember KID's scent, like wood smoke and summer nights. Even the memory of it made him shiver and his knees go weak. Was the drug still affecting him? Maybe, but he couldn't be sure. Though he'd never admitted it even to himself until now, he'd always been drawn to KID's scent. The thief typically wore other scents to mask his own, but Shinichi had long ago unconsciously picked out what he had suspected and now knew for sure was the fox's real scent from the complex mix of odors the thief generally employed. The memory of that scent washing over him as the thief's strong arms held him close made him feel nervous and excited all at once in a way he really would rather not think about. Except he couldn't seem to stop thinking about it.

People always said that the more attracted you were to someone, the more strongly their scent tended to affect you. But KID had, as far as Shinichi could remember, been his usual Poker Faced self throughout the previous night's debacle. Did that mean that the thief's many advances towards Shinichi really were just part of the game? Shinichi had always told himself that it had to be so, but, deep down, some part of him must have hoped otherwise because he couldn't stop the surge of what he could only call disappointment that flooded through him now.

"Don't be stupid," he told himself as he got out of the shower and began drying himself off. It wasn't like he'd wanted anything to happen. Shinichi didn't approve of those people who slept with each other just because they were in heat or rutting. Such behavior, he thought, was base and unacceptable. Just because humans now shared some of the physical characteristics of wild animals didn't mean they had to behave like wild animals. If KID had taken advantage of the situation last night, Shinichi didn't think he would ever have been able to look at the thief the same way again. He wanted KID to stay as someone he could respect. So no, he was glad nothing like that had happened. But at the same time, he kind of wished the thief had shown some kind of reaction—just a bit so that Shinichi wouldn't feel like such a fool for falling for the man.

There. He'd admitted it. Now maybe he could work on getting over it.

"It's better this way," he said fiercely to his reflection in the mirror. "It's not like it could ever work out. You know that."

And now he was talking to himself. Great.

Sighing, he swung towards the door and nearly face-planted into it as his world tilted sideways. He staggered and caught the edge of the sink to steady himself. Clearly, whatever they had drugged him with was still in his system. He wondered if he should go to the hospital but dismissed the idea for now. He was feeling better, so that meant he was improving. Better to observe himself a little longer. He really would prefer not to have to go to the hospital if he didn't have to.

Best get something to eat then. He could just be faint from hunger. It had certainly been a long time since he'd last eaten anything substantial.

Making his way downstairs took considerably longer than it would have had he been feeling more himself. If he tried to move any faster though, he knew he would end up pitching head first down the steps. It gave Shinichi plenty of time to review the contents of his refrigerator in his mind and decide that he should just make stew. He was still considering what kind of stew, however, when his nose and ears twitched and he froze in mid step at the bottom of the stairs.

He could smell chicken vegetable soup. It was the canned kind you just had to heat, but it nevertheless made his mouth water. But he most certainly had not put anything on the stove in the recent past. Furthermore, he could hear movement from his kitchen.

There was someone in his house.

And whoever it is had made soup?

It could be Ran, Shinichi thought, except that he knew Ran and Sonoko were going to some kind of sale today in another city. They should already be on the road. Besides, Ran wouldn't have known he was feeling off kilter unless KID had called her, which Shinichi highly doubted he had done.

KID! It had to be him, But…why?

Shinichi took a deep breath then began creeping towards the kitchen, wondering if maybe some weirdo had broken into his house to cook himself a meal. It would make about as much sense as the Kaitou KID hanging around for hours in a detective's house to heat soup.

Maybe he was hungry, the still disoriented part of Shinichi's mind suggested, and he found himself suppressing a giggle. He paused to recollect himself again. If it really was KID in his kitchen, Shinichi didn't want to make a fool of himself by going over there lightheaded. He'd already made enough of a fool of himself last night.

Oh god, last night. He blushed and almost turned right around and went back upstairs. In the end, however, he continued on into the kitchen, though, if asked, he couldn't have said what made him do so.

Despite having already concluded that the person most likely to be warming soup in his kitchen was Kaitou KID, Shinichi was still shocked to see said fox hybrid, fully decked out in suit, cape, hat and monocle, standing in his kitchen and—

Juggling kitchen knives.

"What are you doing?!" he exclaimed. He took a step forward to stop the thief then thought better of it and took a step back. "That's dangerous!"

KID cast him a clearly amused look and promptly snatched all eight knives out of the air. Seven of those knives ended up lined up neatly according to size on the countertop without Shinichi having seen how they landed there. The last, KID twirled through his fingers before he used it to finish reducing the carrots on the cutting board in front of him into perfectly equal cubes. Then those perfect orange cubes were being dumped into the simmering pot on the stove, and the thief was pressing a protesting Shinichi into a chair at the dining table.

"I thought you'd need something to eat," the thief said as though this explained everything. In some ways, maybe it did. "I am sad to say that gourmet cooking is not among my many fortes, but I figured canned soup was better than nothing. I added some vegetables I found in your fridge for good measure."

Shinichi blinked. "…Huh?"

"Questionable drugs and empty stomachs don't go well together. You really should know that."

"I, well, yeah, but…" Shinichi continued to stutter, not sure if it was the fuzz rising up over his thoughts again or just persistent shock that was tying his tongue in knots because it couldn't be the warm fuzzy feeling of having the fox hybrid making him food.

"You…you're still here," was the admittedly lame but coherent sentiment that he finally managed to get out before another wave of nausea and vertigo had him nearly tumbling out of his seat, breath hissing out between clenched teeth. He would have fallen if not for the pair of strong hands that were suddenly gripping his shoulders, steadying him.

"—tei-kun!" a voice in the distance a long, long way off was saying. "Tantei-kun, what's wrong? Shinichi!"

It was the sound of that voice calling his name with such open panic that allowed Shinichi to drag himself out of the haze trying to devour his mind. His awareness returned, and he realized with a start that he was leaning against the thief's chest with the fox's arms wrapped protectively around him. He instantly turned bright red and tried to pull away, but another dizzying wave thwarted the attempt, and he wound up leaning even more heavily into the thief's embrace. This clearly did not reassure said thief that Shinichi was all right.

"I'm fine," the detective insisted anyway. "Just—a little dizzy."

The thief's grip only tightened. "Do you want to go to the hospital?"

"No!" Shinichi yelped, making another attempt to pull away. "No hospitals." He'd never liked hospitals. But the aversion struck him even harder than usual now as he remembered that dreadful feeling of lying on that examination bed in nothing but a hospital gown while Sylva and Scarlet plotted and schemed over his fate.

The fox seemed to sense something of his unease because he was quick to assure Shinichi that he would not take him to a hospital if he didn't want to go.

"But tell me if you start feeling worse," he added, holding Shinichi at arm's length and staring hard into his eyes. "We don't know what they drugged you with. There's no point taking unnecessary risks with your health."

Ridiculously touched by the thief's concern, Shinichi agreed.

KID gave him one more long, searching look before letting him go to go check on the stew.

The detective found himself wishing that KID would come back and hold him a little longer. It had felt nice, having the thief's arms around him.

A blush crept into Shinichi's cheeks, and he hastily dragged his gaze from the thief making him stew and focused it instead on the dining table. It was really a very nice table. The grain of the wood formed quite a pretty pattern.

Shinichi was focusing so hard on the patterns in the wood (and therefore not on KID's presence in his kitchen) that he nearly jumped out of his skin when his phone started ringing. He hadn't even noticed that his cell phone had been sitting on the far corner of the table (how had it gotten there anyway? He couldn't remember putting it there. Actually, he couldn't remember getting it back from his kidnappers at all. In truth, it hadn't even occurred to him to look for it when he'd been caught up in the need to escape. That probably meant he had KID to thank for its reappearance in his house. He'd need to thank the thief for that—as well as for everything else).

"Are you going to answer that?" KID asked, breaking Shinichi out of his thoughts.

"O—oh, uh, yeah." Embarrassed, Shinichi snatched the phone in question and did just that. "Hello?"

"Shinichi!" exclaimed a voice he recognized as Ran's. She sounded simultaneously worried and relieved. "Where have you been? We've been trying to reach you since last night!"

"You have?" he asked blankly. Later, he would blame his slow thought processes on the distraction in white and the drug still messing with his system.

"Of course we have," Ran snapped, now sounding annoyed. "You never showed up at the heist. When KID didn't show up either, Sonoko thought everyone must have misinterpreted his most recent heist notice, and she was sure you'd figured out the real answer and gone to meet KID without telling us. But then her uncle got that message from KID saying he was canceling, and you still weren't answering your phone. So naturally we thought you'd run into a case again. But I got Dad to call Megure-keibu to check, and he told us no one in his department had seen you."

Shinichi winced. "I'm sorry. I wasn't feeling well. I should have notified you guys, but I, er…sort of forgot. I didn't hear the phone ring at all."

"It was that bad?" Now Ran sounded concerned. "Do you need me to come over?"

"No!" Shinichi yelped as images of Ran walking in to see the Kaitou KID in his house filled his head. Then he realized how weird that would sound and tried again. "I mean no, that's all right, though thank you for the thought. I took medication and feel a lot better today. Besides, didn't you and Sonoko already have plans?"

"I…guess if you're sure," Ran said doubtfully.

"I am. Besides, I wouldn't want you to catch whatever I got."

"Right. Well, if you won't let me come over, you at least have to promise me you'll eat some proper food. No coffee and toast. Your body will need actual nourishment to recover."

"I know," he assured her. "And I promise. I plan to take it easy today anyway."

"Good. But call if you start to feel worse again, all right?"

"I will."

Once the call had ended, Shinichi let out a long sigh of mixed weariness and chagrin. Though, strictly speaking, he hadn't actually lied to Ran, he knew that he hadn't really been honest either, and he felt guilty about it. At the same time, all that telling her the whole story would accomplish would be to make her freak out about something that none of them could change. The past couldn't be undone after all, and fretting about it would get no one anywhere worth going.

Even as Shinichi thought that, however, an image of Sylva leaning over him flashed across his mind's eye, and he shuddered. Hastily, he pushed the memory aside. Nothing had happened, he reminded himself. And nothing would. It was over. It was done. Just don't think about it.

He had more important things to think about right now—namely the fox hybrid who'd just set a steaming bowl down on the table in front of him.

Shinichi noticed that KID wasn't wearing his gloves. It was probably to be expected, seeing as preparing food with his KID gloves on would have been a bit unhygienic. But still, wasn't the thief worried about leaving fingerprints? It was KID though. He'd probably already made plans to clean up after himself. If there was one thing the fox hybrid was good at, it was making evidence disappear.

"I recommend letting it cool a little before you try to eat," said KID.

Shinichi wondered again if he was dreaming. He felt like he was. And if he wasn't, he thought, he should be because this entire situation was simply too strange to be real.

Not that it wasn't kind of…nice.

"What about you?" he asked, looking from the bowl of soup to KID, who had taken the seat across from him.

"I ate earlier," the thief assured him.

"Oh. That's…that's good."

KID chuckled, and Shinichi blushed. He lifted a spoonful of soup and blew on it gently. Then he attempted a sip only to discover that it was still too hot to drink.

KID pushed a glass of water across the table without a word. Shinichi accepted it gratefully and downed half the contents in three quick gulps, soothing his burning tongue.

"Thanks," he muttered.

KID smiled. "My pleasure."

Shinichi ducked his head. He could still feel the thief's eyes on him though, and it was making him feel caught somewhere between nervous and oddly tingly on top of the lightheadedness already messing with his thought processes.

Looking for a distraction, he recalled something Ran had said during their admittedly brief conversation.

"Um, Ran said you canceled your heist last night…?" he ventured.

"I did," the thief agreed amiably. "It was more important to make sure you were all right."

Shinichi's heart skipped a beat as the thief's words caused another bubble of happiness to rise up inside him. He squashed it down again, reminding himself firmly that KID was a decent person with a policy against letting people get hurt. He wasn't giving Shinichi special treatment. He was just following his own code of proper conduct.

Still…

"Thank you," Shinichi said, looking the thief straight in the eyes. "For getting me out of there."

KID's expression grew somber. "I'm glad I got there in time."

Shinichi was infinitely glad too.

"By the by, do you have any idea who those people were?" the thief asked.

Shinichi grimaced. "Sort of but not really."

"Well that made sense."

"What I mean is, I met some members of the group yesterday while I was out with Ran and Sonoko, but I don't actually know who they are—just who they said they were."

"Which would be?"

"Well, one was a black dog hybrid who called himself Kuro. The other was a silver fox going by Sylva." Shinichi shivered despite himself as said silver fox's image flashed across his mind again unbidden. He took a deep, steadying breath and pushed on, forcing himself to focus on the bare facts. "They said they were cousins and that they'd just moved into town. They claimed that they were starting an event planning business and tried to recruit us."

KID's eyes narrowed. "So they were targeting you from the beginning."

There was a hint of a growl in the thief's voice.

Shinichi, however, looked thoughtful. "I'm not sure. I…think they were more interested in the fact that Ran and I are rabbit hybrids. When they… When they drugged me, I heard them discussing how they haven't been able to collect much test data on rabbit hybrids."

The thief's eyes darkened even more. "That sounds ominous."

Shinichi could only nod.

"I didn't see much of the lab they had set up," the thief told him. "But from what I did see, it was pretty sophisticated. Whoever they are, they've got serious financial backing."

Shinichi winced. "I guessed they might, but I was hoping I was wrong."

KID cracked a smile. "Now that's not something I hear from detectives very often. You should report what happened to the police."

Shinichi blinked then let out a burst of laughter despite the serious nature of the discussion. "I never thought I'd be advised to go to the police by a thief. It's kind of weird."

"Hey, I help the police out all the time," KID said with a mock-offended look. He held it for several seconds then cracked a grin. "But I see your point. Really though," he added, switching back to serious again. "Those people are bad news."

Shinichi sighed, slumping a little in his seat. "I know. Trust me, I know. And I don't intend to let them get away with—whatever it is they're doing. I just…need some time."

KID's indigo eyes softened. "You have nothing to be ashamed of," he said gently. "You know that, right?"

"I…" Shinichi started to speak, stopped, then shook his head. "Thanks."

Sensing his discomfort, KID just nodded.

The next few minutes passed in silence as Shinichi finally started into his soup.

He still didn't have much appetite, but getting some actual food in his stomach did seem to be making him feel a little better. Still, it was only with an effort that he managed to finish the contents of his bowl. He washed it down with the rest of his water then turned hopeful eyes on KID.

"I don't suppose you made coffee?"

KID laughed and rose from his chair. "Of course. I knew it was only a matter of time before you asked for coffee. To be honest, it took you longer to than I expected."

"I was preoccupied by the thief in my kitchen," the detective pointed out, eliciting another laugh. The atmosphere lightened perceptibly.

KID pulled two mugs from the cupboards and filled them both with piping hot coffee before dosing one with cream. Shinichi couldn't help but notice that the thief hadn't had to search at all to locate either the mugs or the cream. He decided to chalk it up to KID already having spent some time in the kitchen that morning making soup (because the other explanation—that KID had snooped around his house before—was more than he felt ready to deal with in his current state).

The coffee served as an excellent distraction.

Shinichi couldn't help but notice that KID seemed to be enjoying his coffee too.

He wondered how long KID was planning to stay. Part of him wanted to ask, but the rest of him didn't want to just in case it encouraged the thief to do so faster.

Come to think of it, did KID's presence here in his kitchen right now mean that the thief had actually spent the entirety of the previous night in Shinichi's house? Shinichi's stomach flip-flopped at the thought, and he felt a rush of nervous giddiness that was utterly disproportionate to the situation.

Thoughts of KID possibly having slept over reminded Shinichi that he had woken up in his pajamas—which meant that the thief had changed him into them after bringing him home last night. That led to the mortifying realization that really should have occurred to him sooner that KID had seen him nude.

Shinichi hid his rising blush in his mug. How was he ever going to look the thief in the face again? And why couldn't he stop imagining what it might have felt like to have KID's hands on his body, slowly peeling away his clothes? That was totally the wrong thing to be thinking about at a time like this—or any other, for that matter. It was a recipe for trouble and then some.

The problem was that when you told yourself to stop thinking about something, it often just caused you to think about it more. The feel of KID's eyes on him wasn't helping. Shinichi was dismayed to discover that he was beginning to feel rather warm, and he squirmed in his seat, subconsciously pressing his thighs together under the table.

The lingering lightheadedness that had been haunting Shinichi all morning suddenly sharpened. The detective's grip tightened on his mug as his breath hitched. His body flashed hot then cold then hot again, and his hand shook. He set his mug down quickly. The last thing he needed was to spill hot coffee all over himself.

Across the table, KID tensed. "What's wrong?"

"I…I think I need to lie down," Shinichi gasped.

He pushed his chair back and hastily stood up. He regretted it instantly as the world tilted wildly and his knees promptly gave out on him for the second time that morning.

The next thing Shinichi knew, he was blinking up at KID—also for the second time that morning. This was getting seriously embarrassing. Or it would be if Shinichi wasn't feeling too off kilter to worry about being embarrassed.

The world tilted again, and Shinichi found himself cradled in KID's arms with his head resting against the thief's chest.

"I'll take you to bed," KID said, setting off for the stairs.

His probably unintentionally suggestive choice of words sent a full-body shudder through the semi-delirious detective as a traitorous little voice in Shinichi's head screamed 'yes please'.

Oblivious to the effect he was having on his adorable armful (because he was too busy reining in his own increasingly uncontrollable desire to ravish said adorable bundle), KID made a beeline for Shinichi's bedroom. He noticed that Shinichi had folded his pajamas on the foot of his bed and wondered if he should help the boy change again, but KID was pretty sure he wouldn't be able to control himself if he tried that right now. Besides, the loose T-shirt and sweatpants that Shinichi was wearing now should be comfortable enough to sleep in.

So KID simply strode up to the bed and deposited Shinichi on it—or tried to. Since the detective didn't seem to want to let go, they ended up sinking onto the mattress together. Shinichi was a warm, cuddly weight, panting softly, eyes half closed, and long ears twitching.

"You really aren't making this easy for me, you know," the thief murmured in a tightly controlled voice that was half amused and half strained.

Shinichi barely heard him.

The fox's scent was overwhelming—but not in a bad way. Quite the opposite. It filled his senses, stormed through his brain, and shut down all rational processes (what few of those were left anyway). Then it kick started another process entirely.

And suddenly all Shinichi could think about was the fox holding him. He nuzzled against KID's chest and inhaled deeply. A shiver ran up his spine.

He wanted to be closer. His body moved of its own accord to straddle the thief's hips.

KID made a half strangled sound as his hands clamped down on Shinichi's hips (and oh how he wished the circumstances were different). "I think I'd better go."

He carefully (and reluctantly) lifted the detective off of him, trying desperately not to notice the way the detective's thighs squeeze around his hips as though trying to keep him in close. And was that a disappointed whimper he heard? If he didn't get out of here now, he was going to snap.

For the sake of his poor, muddled detective's innocence and his own sanity, KID sat up and swung his legs off the side of the bed. He straightened out his clothes then, unable to resist, he turned for one last look at his detective.

Shinichi lay there, slightly rumpled and flushed, blinking up at him with big, mildly confused blue eyes. KID's by now uncomfortably tight pants grew abruptly even more restrictive.

"You're leaving?" he asked in a small voice that sounded distinctly distressed by the prospect to KID's vulpine ears.

"I'm afraid I am," the thief replied. On an impulse, he reached down to brush Shinichi's feathery bangs out of his eyes. He was a little startled when the detective caught his hand, pressing it to the side of his face. The feel of the soft, warm skin of Shinichi's cheek against his palm made KID's breath catch in his throat.

He wondered if the skin on the rest of Shinichi's body was just as soft.

He wondered how that satin soft skin would taste.

"I wish you'd stay."

Those few words, uttered just barely above a whisper, had KID freezing in place.

Shinichi blinked then seemed to realize what he'd said. His eyes widened as they cleared somewhat of their earlier fog and his behavior of the last few minutes abruptly invaded his awareness. His already flushed cheeks darkened in color, and he let go of KID's hand like it was a hot coal.

"I—I'm sorry," he stammered, rolling over so that his back was to the frozen thief. "That was wrong of me. I shouldn't have… I mean, I know you're not interested…" His voice caught and he swallowed hastily. "I'm sorry. You should go."

There was a long silence, and Shinichi was just beginning to think that the thief must have left without saying goodbye (which totally made sense even if it hurt) when KID spoke.

"Did I seriously just hear you say that you believe I'm not interested in you?"

The mattress dipped, and a presence was suddenly there behind Shinichi. It was KID. He knew it was KID. But somehow, it suddenly didn't feel like KID.

It felt like a predator was stalking towards him. A nervous quiver ran through Shinichi's body along with another pulse of heat. KID was so close now that he could feel the warmth radiating from the thief's body.

Shinichi gulped. He wanted to turn around, but he couldn't seem to move.

"You have no idea," the fox whispered into Shinichi's furry ears, voice a low growl that did funny things to Shinichi's insides, "just how many times I've dreamed about stealing you away. About kissing you and making you mine. I've known I have feelings for you for years now. I've dreamed up a million and one scenarios for advancing our relationship, and believe me, I remember them all."

Shinichi's heart skipped a beat then set off racing like a startled rabbit.

"Do…you really mean that?"

Arms circled around his waist and pulled him back flush against a strong chest. Since they were lying on their sides, this meant that KID was now spooning him from behind—a fact Shinichi couldn't help but enjoy.

"I do."

There was no hesitation in KID's answer.

"Then will you stay?" Shinichi asked, voice trembling just a little, caught between hope, fear, and a desperate yearning. "If I want you to."

His words caused KID's arms to tighten around him, sending another wave of heat rolling through his body. They both knew that the question intimated more than KID merely staying over.

"Do you?" the thief asked, breaths hot on the back of the rabbit hybrid's neck.

"I do," Shinichi said, and there was no hesitation to his words either.

"I wish I knew whether you'd give me the same answer if you were thinking straight."

"I would," Shinichi insisted even though he knew that his addled state made it a weak claim. He couldn't blame KID if the thief didn't believe him. He was aware enough of his own current state to know that KID was entirely right that he wasn't thinking straight. Still, he had to say it (and thanks to the aforementioned addled state, he found it much easier to do so than he usually would have. Though admittedly it helped too that he was currently facing away from the thief and couldn't see his face to gage his reaction). "I like you too. I…just never thought you could really be interested in me."

The fox hybrid blinked then smiled, the expression a bit lopsided but genuine. "We really need to talk about this. But it's going to have to wait."

Shinichi whimpered despite himself at the thought that the thief was about to leave.

"Don't worry," KID said as though he'd read Shinichi's mind. Ducking his head, he trailed his lips up the side of Shinichi's neck and delighted in the way Shinichi's breaths quickened. "I'm not leaving just yet."

Shinichi swallowed as his stomach fluttered. "You're not?"

"Well, I wouldn't be much of a gentleman if I left you in distress. I'll help you with your little problem before I go—if you want me to."

"I do," Shinichi blurted out, too far gone to be embarrassed by his own desperation.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. Yes I am."

"All right then."

Using the arm he had slid under Shinichi and around his waist to hold him in place, KID ran his other hand down the smaller boy's body then up under his too-large shirt, relishing the feel of that warm, soft skin under his hands, quivering at his touch. His hand rubbed gentle circles on Shinichi's flat stomach before trailing up to pinch and tease his nipples. Shinichi squeaked and squirmed but made no move to try and pull away. Indeed, his mild protest shifted quickly to little gasps of pleasure as his nipples hardened under the thief's ministrations. The stimulation caused other parts of him to harden as well, and he moaned.

Smirking, KID gave the bunny detective's nipples a last tweak each before he let his hand slide down again. His long, calloused fingers traced a line just above the waistband of Shinichi's sweatpants before slipping inside and down between Shinichi's legs. The thief's hand closed around his bunny's already stiff length and gave it a long, firm stroke. Shinichi gasped, hips bucking in involuntary response. The hand pulled again, and Shinichi mewled, hands scrabbling for something to hold onto and ending up latching onto the arm keeping him pinned to the fox hybrid's chest. Said arm tightened, and Shinichi abruptly realized that he could feel KID's own erection pressing against him from behind. They were both still dressed, but his sweatpants were too soft to be much of a barrier, and he could feel the prominent bulge in KID's pants pressing against the cleft between his cheeks.

Startled, a hungry gasp forced itself from Shinichi's lips, and he wiggled his hips as he pushed himself back more firmly against the fox holding him captive, unconsciously searching for more contact.

KID let out a low growl and thrust his hips forward, grinding his clothed erection hard against the warm curves of Shinichi's buttocks, spreading the cheeks below the detective's short and fluffy bunny tail as his hand continued to stroke Shinichi's shaft.

The rabbit detective was panting in shallow breaths now between badly stifled moans as his hips rocked, first forward into the hand stroking him then back to grind his bottom on the enticing hardness of KID's arousal. They were moving together now, and the rhythm was hot and heavy and characterized by heavy breathing and stifled moans.

Some part of Shinichi that was still thinking wished that the situation was just a little different. He wished that there weren't so many layers of cloth between him and the man behind him. He wanted to feel the heated flesh of KID's erection against his skin, wanted to feel it rubbing against his bare bottom and spreading his cheeks until it finds his entrance. He wants to know how KID would feel inside him, thick and hot and hard.

His cheeks burned at the lewd nature of his own fantasies even as a desperate whimper of need forced itself from his lips. He'd never felt like this before—not even during his heats, and part of him wondered if it was the lingering influence of the drug still in his system. But the rest of him suspected (or rather knew, though he wasn't sure if he was quite ready to admit that yet) that it was entirely because of KID.

KID, who Shinichi has been secretly longing for for years now.

KID, who had just said in no uncertain terms that he wanted Shinichi too.

The ache deep in Shinichi's abdomen intensified at the thought, and he felt something hot and wet slithering down the inside of his thighs inside his pants. His hole was leaking. It had happened before when he was in heat and he'd accidentally let his mind wander onto a certain fox, but there had never been quite so much (was it the drug?), and the sensation made him flush in mixed mortification and want.

"K—KID, please—!" he gasped.

"Are you close?" The thief scraped his fangs over the sensitive skin of Shinichi's neck, causing the rabbit detective to shudder and tilt his head, baring his neck in a gesture of submission that went straight to KID's cock.

Shinichi nodded quickly, eyes squeezed shut and lips parted in shallow pants. I…I want…!" A whine rose in his throat. Frustrated, he pushed himself back more firmly against the bulge in KID's pants to try and get his point across.

The fox stilled, confused by what his little bunny was asking for. In the momentary lull, however, he noticed the warm, slippery wetness coating Shinichi's inner thighs and the inside of his undergarments.

KID's breath hitched. His hand moved of its own accord, releasing Shinichi's shaft and questing further between Shinichi's warm, quivering thighs.

His fingertips found Shinichi's hole, and a thrill of excitement coursed through him when he found said hole all but dripping wet with slick. Unable to stop himself, KID ran a fingertip experimentally around that tight ring of muscle, feeling the way it twitched at his touch as though eager for a taste of his fingers.

"Y—yes, there," Shinichi whimpered mindlessly. "Touch me more."

KID shuddered. God, he thought, just when he thought he couldn't possibly get any harder, Shinichi had to go and proved him wrong. And he wanted nothing more than to answer that plea, but he also couldn't forget that they'd ended up here because Shinichi had been drugged.

KID inhaled deeply then let out a shuddering breath. His thoughts raced in a heated internal debate before finally reaching a compromise.

He pulled his hand out of Shinichi's pants and sat up, moving to nudge the detective onto his back. Shinichi made a confused noise before he noticed that KID had hooked his fingers under his waistband. KID eased Shinichi's pants and underwear off his narrow hips and all the way down his long, supple legs, gaze hungrily drinking in each inch of skin as it was exposed to the open air. The moment both articles of clothing were off, he tossed them over the edge of the bed, eyes never leaving Shinichi.

The bunny detective immediately spread his legs in a blatant invitation that had KID's mouth going dry. He'd never have guessed that his detective was such a natural little temptress.

Leaning over him, KID pressed two fingers over that dripping hole and rubbed it teasingly.

Shinichi's spread legs trembled, and he whimpered, hands grabbing onto the lapels of KID's suit.

"P—please," he panted, heat hazed eyes gazing imploringly up into the fox's indigo blues. Caught up in the sensations thrumming through his body, he didn't even notice that the thief had lost his hat.

The fox hybrid lowered his head to brush a kiss across Shinichi's parted lips.

"Here."

And KID was pressing a finger into Shinichi's virgin hole. His very wet, very tight hole. The sudden intrusion sent a jolt of electricity up Shinichi's spine that left his mouth in a pleasured gasp.

That finger slid in deeper, stroking up his sensitive inner passage. The sensation was new and foreign and unlike anything Shinichi had ever felt before. And it was a little bit uncomfortable, but he found himself craving more. When that finger pulled out and pushed in again, Shinichi eagerly moved his hips to meet it.

Above him, KID chuckled. "So you like that, do you? And how about this?"

The fox pushed a second finger into Shinichi alongside the first, forcing his bunny's sweet little hole to stretch further to accommodate him. Shinichi gasped, inner muscles stuttering and tightening around the increased intrusion as it pushed into him, going deeper this time. The twinge of discomfort was accompanied by static sparks of pleasure dancing along his every nerve. The pleasure grew as the fox's fingers continued to move in and out of him, stroking his inner walls even as they worked to expand his tight, virgin channel.

By the time KID inserted a third finger, the sparks had blazed up into a simmering inferno.

KID paused for a moment in his ministrations to free his own straining erection. Then he detached Shinichi's hands from his suit and guided them down to his cock.

Shinichi's eyes widened, and he flushed beautifully as his hands closed around the thief's pulsating length. His inner muscles clenched around KID's fingers as he imagined having that length inside him. He wasn't sure if it would fit, but he kind of wanted to find out.

KID thrust his fingers deep into his detective's deliciously tight passage once again then crooked them. He knew he'd found the right spot when Shinichi tossed his head back against the pillows with a loud, breathless cry of pleasure. The detective's hands tightened around KID's length as hips bucked.

Indigo eyes gleamed. With a malicious grin, the fox began pawing mercilessly at that spot, delighted by the way it made his bunny writhe.

Soon, Shinichi was riding the thrust of KID's fingers inside him with the wild abandon of an animal in heat (which was admittedly a fairly accurate description of the state of affairs). His hands stroked the thief's length in time with the movement of his hips.

"P—please," Shinichi gasped. He could feel the pressure building inside him, and he knew he was getting close, but he wanted more than KID's fingers. Unable to form a sentence around the moans of pleasure he couldn't seem to stop, however, he resorted to giving the fox's member a pointed pull and bucking his hips.

But the fox refused to let up. If anything, he redoubled his efforts.

Then it was too late. Unable to hold on any longer, Shinichi came with a cry, back arching. KID let out a hiss between his teeth as he felt Shinichi's inner muscles clamp down convulsively around his fingers even as the rabbit's hands did the same around his cock.

Shinichi shuddered as he felt the fox come us well, splattering hot semen across his thighs and lower abdomen. Some corner of his mind knew that they should clean up, but a sudden wave of exhaustion crashed through his system. He didn't realize he'd closed his eyes until he felt KID gently wiping what felt like a soft cloth over his body.

"Wanted you," he mumbled in sleepy protest as his eyelids drooped.

KID felt his heart swell at both Shinichi's words and the adorable picture he made lying under him in just his over large shirt (which was still bunched up, revealing his midriff), struggling to stay awake.

"Next time," the fox promised, leaning down to press his lips to Shinichi's in a gentle kiss. "When I make you mine, it's going to be when we know you're not hyped up on drugs. Now go to sleep. I have a few errands to run, but I'll be back to check on you tomorrow."

"Promise?"

"I promise."

Chapter Text

When Shinichi next woke, it was to find that it was already half past two in the afternoon. His stomach promptly informed him in no uncertain terms that it was extremely displeased with the way he had treated it over the last two days and demanded a proper meal with some actual substance or else.

Fortunately, his previous lightheadedness and disorientation had gone. He could think clearly again.

Of course, that was also the unfortunate bit because he could also remember everything that had happened that morning from finding the Kaitou KID making him stew in the kitchen to ending up in bed with the thief.

It didn't help that, though KID had clearly cleaned him up and tucked him in, the thief hadn't changed Shinichi's clothes this time. That meant Shinichi was now lying in bed wearing nothing but the same oversized T-shirt he'd been wearing when they'd…when they'd…

Color rose rapidly in Shinichi's cheeks as he stared fixedly at his bedroom ceiling. In his mind's eye, that morning's events played out like a movie he couldn't press pause on. He couldn't believe he'd been so…so… He wasn't sure what word to finish that sentence off with, but he was sure it wouldn't be a word he liked.

He'd all but begged the fox to ravish him! And he wasn't sure if he was more upset that he'd not only allowed things to get that far but encouraged it or that they hadn't gone all the way like he could still remember wanting to (like part of him still wanted to—desperately).

With a groan, Shinichi rolled over and tried to smother himself in his pillow. It didn't work, but screaming into the pillow did make him feel a little better.

When he felt slightly less overwhelmed by abject mortification, however, he found himself dwelling on their short but heartfelt exchange of words.

KID had told him that he was serious.

And he had promised to claim Shinichi as his own.

The detective's heart skipped a beat at the recollection. He wanted it. He couldn't deny it anymore. He wanted the fox to claim him.

In context, the morning's little tryst was but a taste of a potential future now beginning to unfold before him if only he had the courage to reach for it, and Shinichi knew that, soon, he would have to make some very important decisions.

A furious growl from his stomach finally rousted Shinichi from the warmth and protection of his bedcovers and sent him stumbling into the bathroom for a quick shower. He was a little dismayed to discover that his legs were a little shaky and certain parts of his anatomy were unexpectedly sore in a way that made him want to blush because he didn't find it unpleasant.

The shower itself presented an ordeal of its own as he found himself imagining that it was KID's hands on his body as he bathed, lathering him with soap as they smoothed over his skin…

Realizing abruptly just what he was thinking and just how those thoughts were beginning to affect his body, Shinichi blushed bright crimson and rushed through the rest of his shower. He forced himself to mentally run through the contents of his kitchen and consider what he could make to pacify his unhappy stomach. He settled on making a stuffed omelet and toast. It would be fast, nutritious and filling. And would accompany the meal with a mug or three of good coffee.

Satisfied with this plan, he proceeded to follow it to the letter.

He really was feeling much better. Hopefully, that meant that the last vestiges of that experimental drug had finally left his system. That was a huge weight off his mind as he had honestly been quite worried about it. He'd heard of drugs that stimulated hybrid mating behaviors before, and none of them had been good news (and not all for the obvious reasons). Side effects weren't inevitable, but they weren't rare either even for the very small number of such drugs that doctors could legally prescribe. Shinichi could only imagine what could have happened to him, being forced to take an experimental drug produced by a lab whose members had openly discussed the death of other test subjects in front of him like it was just a thing that happened.

The second reason he was grateful to finally have a clear head was that he remembered that KID had said he would visit him again on the morrow to check on him. Shinichi needed to have a good think about his own feelings and his relationship with the thief before that. He owed it to the both of them.

Then he remembered that the next day was actually a Monday, and he did in fact have an essay to turn in even though the actual class said essay was for was optional because the teacher was doing final reviews for their upcoming exams.

He also needed to do the laundry.

Better get all that done and out of his hair before anything else.

-0-

In another part of the city, one Kuroba Kaito was having his own think through recent developments while he conducted maintenance on the many tools and gadgets of his trade. Though he'd constructed a million and one ways to advance his relationship with Shinichi, none of those scenarios had prepared him for recent events. Given a choice, he would have preferred a more romantic beginning—or at least one that didn't involve suspicious, potentially lethal substances produced by definitely lethal criminal organizations.

Still, he wouldn't be the man he was if he couldn't recognize a golden opportunity when it fell into his lap.

He wanted to do this right though. He might not get another chance.

Fortunately, he already had confirmation that Shinichi liked him back—or at least he thought he did. It was frustrating, not being able to be sure which bits of Shinichi's behavior had been caused by the drug and which bits had come from the detective.

Kaito was almost certain that Shinichi's confession had been heartfelt, but to what degree, he couldn't say.

At least he knew for certain now that the attraction was mutual. He'd been fairly sure before, but it was nice to get the confirmation.

And oh god but he could still remember all too vividly the feel of Shinichi's hot, tight inner muscles squirming and constricting around his fingers as he pushed them as deep into that delectable heat as he could. He wanted to feel that wrapped around his manhood, beckoning him in even deeper until he had completely filled his Shin-chan's gorgeous body with his own heated essence.

The way Shinichi had practically begged for it had tested Kaito's control like nothing before.

How he wanted Shinichi to look at him like that when he wasn't drugged.

And he thought his wish had a good chance of being fulfilled so long as he handled the situation correctly. First, he needed to convince Shinichi that he was indeed serious about pursuing a real relationship.

He also needed to decide just how much he was willing to share with the detective at this stage in their relationship.

-0-

With both his chores and homework finally done, Shinichi poured himself a fresh cup of coffee and just sank down onto the living room couch. While the work he'd done hadn't been strenuous by any definition of the word, he was dismayed to find himself exhausted. He felt like all the strength had drained out of his body. It was forcing him to reevaluate his original assessment that he had already fully recovered from the effects of the drug.

Clearly, it was still messing with his body.

Some recovery was better than no recovery though, and at least he wasn't feeling desperate to be touched anymore. Everything else, he could handle.

He supposed he should start planning what he was going to have for dinner though. As everyone had been telling him, a recovering body needed nourishment.

But first he needed a few minutes of rest and the soul-soothing company of hot coffee.

Picking up the remote, he flipped idly through the channels on TV. Nothing stood out, so he ended up watching the local news. Detectives needed to stay up to date on such things after all.

It seemed the weekend had been busy for more than just him and Kaitou KID.

There had been a huge bar fight at some place called the Black Moon that had sent twenty three people to the hospital with severe injuries.

There had also been an incident at Beika Park where a young mouse woman walking her dog had run into her ex. The two had gotten into a huge argument, but that wouldn't have been news in itself. The real news was that the ex had ordered the girl's lab to attack her, and it had. It was only the intervention of several other people at the park that had saved the girl from having her throat ripped out by her own dog.

The ex, a male dog halfer, was purportedly one of those hybrids able to communicate with animals, and he supposedly performed especially with dogs, but it was still bizarre that the mouse girl's own dog had obeyed the man's orders to assault its own owner.

Shinichi made a mental note to get a copy of the case report for the incident. The incident was being treated at the moment as an argument that got out of hand, but there might be more to it. If the ex had secretly trained the dog to attack on command then the case would be premeditated murder if the girl didn't survive her injuries.

Shinichi grimaced into his mug. Honestly, though murder was always despicable, murdering someone you were supposed to have loved once—and who had loved you once—just seemed more…sordid somehow. Even if they were no longer in love, they would have once shared precious memories and emotions together. Shouldn't that count for something? Enough at least so that both parties could just cordially walk away?

Giving himself a shake, he turned his attention back to the television in time to hear that an unidentified body had been found in Tokyo Bay. The body was mangled from being tossed against the shore over and over and over again, so all the authorities knew about it right now was that it had been a female monkey halfer. The reporters speculated that the woman must have fallen into the bay by accident. Everyone knew after all, they pointed out, that monkeys enjoyed climbing and jumping about dangerously unstable places and pretty much anywhere that could conceivably be turned into a jungle gym.

Shinichi rolled his eyes at the predicable conclusion drawn too fast based off nothing but a stereotype.

No, he wasn't saying that it couldn't have happened the way they were saying it had, but just from looking at the one photo they flashed of the woman being zipped into a body bag told Shinichi that there was a lot more to the story.

That gaunt, withered face looked like something on its way to mummy-hood, all dried out and shriveled in on itself. Drowning hadn't done that.

Picking up the case notebook sitting on the table before him, he jotted down notes to look into both the monkey hybrid's death and the park incident.

Then the news switched to introducing some concert and other major upcoming summer events, and Shinichi tuned them out.

He'd been putting it off long enough. He had to decide how he was going to face KID tomorrow.

He had no idea where to start.

Groaning, he flopped back against the couch cushions.

As though it was an answer from the heavens, Shinichi's cell phone rang.

Ready for any excuse to delay the inevitable thought circles, Shinichi answered.

"This is Ran. How are you feeling?"

Shinichi blinked then smiled, shifting into a more comfortable position on the couch. "I'm a lot better. I got a good few hours of sleep, though I'm still kind of tired."

"Have you eaten dinner yet?"

"Not yet," he admitted with a wince, preparing himself for a lecture. But none came.

"Great," Ran said instead. "Sonoko and I got takeout that we can all share. We'll be at your place in five minutes."

"Wait, but…I told you I was sick. You don't want to catch it."

"We won't stay long," Ran said reassuringly. "And we'll keep our distance. But really, you're not coughing or anything, and you sound pretty normal. I'm sure we'll be fine."

In the background, Shinichi heard Sonoko's voice say, "It's probably just your lousy eating habits and nonexistent sleep schedule catching up to you."

I wish it was only that, Shinichi thought grumpily, but, deep down, he had to admit that he was looking forward to the girls' company. They might have some advice for him if he could figure out how to ask for it in a way that didn't end with him needing to change his name and move to the other side of the globe.

Chapter Text

Ran and Sonoko arrived bearing food, a selection of shopping bags and stories of their exploits that day at what Sonoko termed the uber sale of the season.

"Marvel at our amazing success and unparalleled generosity!" the cat hybrid declared with a manic grin as she reached into one of the shopping bags she'd brought and whipped out something round and fluffy. "Behold!"

Shinichi just blinked at her blankly. "That's…a plush toy."

"It's not any old plush toy. It's a super collectable, limited edition Cuddle Puff!" Sonoko corrected him, expression smug. When Shinichi failed to look impressed, she huffed. "Do you have any idea how much effort we had to put in to get these?"

Shinichi thought the answer to that should be obvious.

"Honestly, why do I bother?" Sonoko grumbled. "Anyway, this one's for you—and you better be grateful."

She shoved the plush she was holding into Shinichi's startled arms.

A bit nonplussed, Shinichi examined the toy.

It was about the size of a soccer ball and covered in extremely soft, velvety black fur. Actually, the entire toy was comfortably huggable in all the right ways. Upon closer inspection, Shinichi noted that the puff had a pair of long, velvety ears lying along its back and a super fluffy puff of a tail attached to what was presumably its backside. On the other side of the ball was a pair of round, black eyes and a little button nose.

"It's cute, right?" Ran asked, pulling an identical brown bunny puff from another bag to show him. "This one's mine. They made a set for every type of hybrid. And every animal puff comes in five different colors: black, white, and then the three most common hybrid colors."

"I sort of guessed," said the detective.

"Right. Now pictures!" Sonoko declared. "Then we can eat."

"Pictures?" Shinichi repeated, growing abruptly alarmed. "What pictures?"

"It's part of the ongoing promotion," Ran explained as Sonoko dragged them into Shinichi's living room and shoved them onto the couch. "Hold those puffs," she ordered, whipping out a portable tripod from another bag and beginning to set it up. "Hold on a moment. Do you think we need to be holding both?"

"Both?" Shinichi echoed, feeling increasingly lost.

Sonoko just shrugged. "Nah. The rules only say you have to be holding one of them. You can get bonus points if your picture shows you've done the swap, but obviously that's not really an option for us."

"What are you two talking about?" Shinichi asked again without much expectation of receiving an answer. He was not proven wrong.

In minutes, Shinichi found himself sitting with the girls, each of them holding a Cuddle Puff that matched their animal features, and saying cheese as Sonoko's phone flashed several times. Then the petit cat hybrid was up and flipping through the pictures.

"Perfect. I think I'll submit this one. What do you think?" She turned the phone to show her chosen picture to her friends.

Ran smiled. "It's adorable. Could you send me a copy?"

"Already did."

"What are you submitting to?" Shinichi asked suspiciously.

"Each person who gets one of these limited edition Cuddle Puffs can submit a picture of her or himself with the puff in question for a chance to win an entire keychain collection of the set," Ran explained.

"And since there's three of us, we can submit three entries," Sonoko said gleefully, fingers tapping away on her phone as she set about doing just that.

"Hold on a moment," Shinichi said slowly. "When you say 'the set', do you mean keychain versions of these same plush toys?"

Sonoko rolled her eyes without looking up. "Duh."

"But if there are five colors of every available hybrid type then that would be sixty keychains."

"Yeah. So?"

"Why would anyone need sixty keychains?"

Sonoko gave him a look like he had somehow, beyond all expectations, proven even slower than she had predicted. "They're collectables. You don't get them because you need them. You get them because they're collectable. Besides, it wouldn't be much of a prize if you didn't get the whole set now would it?"

"What you're saying is that you bought me a plush to increase your chances of winning sixty keychains you'll probably never use," Shinichi summarized.

Sonoko narrowed her eyes at him. "So? Is there a problem?"

Shinichi resisted the urge to back away. "Er, no. No, there isn't."

She sniffed. "Good. And just so you know, they're not just plush toys. They're emblems of love."

"…You've lost me."

"Cuddle Puffs are sold in pairs," Ran explained, opening another shopping bag and pulling out a second black bunny puff identical to the first and setting it down on the couch next to its twin. "You're supposed to exchange the second one with the person you love."

"So you see, they're both cute and meaningful," Sonoko added.

Shinichi rolled his eyes. "That's just a sales gimmick."

"You say that because you don't understand romance," Sonoko said condescendingly. "Seriously, it wouldn't kill you to start taking an interest in modern culture. It might improve your social life."

"I don't think collectable plush toys qualify as culture."

"Says you."

Ran inserted herself smoothly between her two best friends before they could start one of their arguments. "Why don't we move this to the kitchen? The food will go cold if we don't eat soon."

A few minutes later, the three of them were seated around the Kudo Manor dining table with dinner and their beverages of choice (coffee for Shinichi, naturally, tea for Ran and some newfangled brand of strawberry soda for Sonoko that she claimed was fashionable—though she failed to explain to Shinichi's satisfaction how a drink could be fashionable). Neither girl seemed overly concerned that they might catch Shinichi's nonexistent cold, and he felt no need to bring it up since he suspected he might inadvertently give away that he hadn't actually caught a cold but stumbled into trouble again (they'd both known him long enough that it wouldn't take much to tip them off, and he really, really didn't want to have to tell them about it).

Thoughts of the events he was hiding, however, led Shinichi's thoughts back to KID and the fox's impending visit.

Taking another bite of his teriyaki chicken dinner, Shinichi wondered if he should prepare food for that. Having food available would be helpful if the conversation stalled. The problem was that KID hadn't actually said when he would be coming for his visit. That meant any food he prepared would have to be good cold.

He wondered what KID liked to eat.

Then he wondered if KID had classes of his own to schedule around.

Shinichi was fairly certain that the fox hybrid couldn't be more than a handful of years older than him. It was entirely possible that he too was attending a university somewhere—maybe even right here in Tokyo.

Shinichi found himself trying to picture the Kaitou KID in a classroom. It was kind of difficult. The classroom in Shinichi's mind kept erupting into smoke and glitter and filling up with madly cackling magicians.

The image should terrify any sane person, so Shinichi wasn't sure what it said about him that it made him smile.

"Hellooo, Earth to Detective Geek, did you hear a single word we said?"

Startled from his thoughts, Shinichi could only shrug sheepishly.

Sonoko heaved what Shinichi felt was a way overblown sigh of exasperation. "I said I scored a half dozen tickets to Mystic Rose's anniversary concert."

"Oh." Shinichi considered that. "I take it that that's good."

"Are you kidding me? It's not just good. It's freaking fantastic! The concert's, like, the event of the summer! Everyone's been talking about it."

Shinichi sorely wanted to point out that Sonoko was the only person he knew who had been talking about it, but he thought he'd better not.

"Anyway," the petit feline hybrid went on, oblivious to his thoughts. "It's clearly a sign."

Apparently, this was news to more than just Shinichi because it was Ran who asked, "A sign?"

"That it's time we step up our game," the shorter girl explained. "It's going to be our goal to all have dates for the concert!"

Her passionate declaration was met by something rather less than enthusiasm. Ran smiled at her in that way that suggested she was sweat-dropping on the inside and trying to figure out what to say.

Shinichi just groaned. "Not this again. Count me out."

Sonoko glared at him. "You are not wasting the effort I put in to win those tickets," she said flatly. "Do you have any idea how much just one of them is going for now?"

"Then you can sell the extras and consider it reimbursement."

His perfectly reasonable suggestion earned him a dirty look.

"Why are you so against love?" she demanded.

"I'm not against love," Shinichi objected, taken aback by the accusation. "I just don't think you need to spend every waking moment looking for it."

"And how do you expect to find it if you never look?" she countered. "Admit it. If Ran and I weren't around to make sure you have a social life, the only people you'd ever meet would be police officers way older than you and criminals."

Shinichi opened his mouth a few times before saying a bit lamely, "I meet people in school."

Sonoko snorted. "Barely. Name one campus social event you went to without one of us."

Shinichi couldn't, so he said nothing.

"You see?" the cat hybrid said smugly before her expression inexplicably softened. "I know you and Ran haven't had much luck finding the right kind of people, but that doesn't mean they're not out there. My point is you'll never find them if you don't put in a little effort."

The shift in her attitude threw Shinichi off, leaving him unsure how to respond. It didn't help that she had actually just made a valid point.

"It might help if you just think about it as trying to make friends," Ran added, apparently having already accepted Sonoko's summer plans (as she pretty much always did when Sonoko made plans).

"So it's agreed," Sonoko concluded, clapping her hands together. "I know you two both have summer work stuff lined up, so send me your schedules and I'll deal with arranging our social calendars. We're all going to have dates for the Mystic Rose concert if it kills us!"

"Wouldn't that defeat the point?"

"Shut up. It's a figure of speech."

Once they'd cleaned up and the girls had left, Shinichi poured himself another mug of coffee and wandered into the library, where he sank into his favorite armchair.

It was strange, he reflected. Though they hadn't really talked about anything important—and Sonoko had somehow usurped part of his summer, he felt better now than he had before they'd visited. He wasn't hugely enthused about Sonoko's harebrained schemes, but, in truth, he wasn't that upset about them either. He'd long gotten used to the girls dragging him to all kinds of events. Sonoko had been right when she'd said that his social life would be nearly nonexistent without them, and, though he wasn't ready to admit it out loud, deep down, he appreciated their efforts more than he knew how to put into words.

He still didn't know exactly what he was going to say to KID when the fox next visited, but, now that he was feeling more relaxed, he realized that that was all right. If he wanted this—and he did, there was really only one thing to do. He just had to take a chance and be honest. As Sonoko had said, the important thing was to try.

And Shinichi was never, ever, ever going to tell Sonoko that he had taken her relationship advice.

Chapter Text

Shinichi wasn't sure what exactly he'd been expecting, but it certainly hadn't been for the Kaitou KID to arrive just before noon via his front door. He expected even less for the thief to announce his arrival by actually ringing the doorbell like an ordinary guest. As such, the rabbit hybrid was understandably shocked when he answered said doorbell to find a tall young man dressed in casual clothes, a hat and sunglasses standing on his doorstep.

"I've got your takeout order," the stranger said, holding up a paper bag stamped with the logo of a local family restaurant.

Shinichi blinked at him. "I didn't order any takeout."

"Nevertheless, it is yours," the stranger said cheerfully, flashing him an all too familiar grin. "So are you going to invite me in or what?"

"Oh." Turning a becoming shade of pink, Shinichi stepped back from the door. "Um, would you like coffee?"

"Just a moment."

The fox set the takeout bag down, reached behind him and flipped all the locks without needing to look, then whipped off his hat and sunglasses.

Shinichi took an involuntary step back as his breath caught in his throat. "KID—!"

"Kaito," the fox cut in before Shinichi could finish his thought. He stepped forward smoothly and took Shinichi's hand, bringing it to his lips as those intense indigo eyes bore into Shinichi's. "Kuroba Kaito. It's a pleasure to meet you."

Shinichi stood frozen, eyes wide and the back of his knuckles still tingling where KID's lips had touched his skin.

"Now it's your turn," KID—no, Kaito—prompted, mirth dancing in his eyes.

Shinichi blinked, momentarily confused, before it clicked. He wasn't sure whether to laugh or roll his eyes. Instead, he took a deep breath and answered.

"Kudo Shinichi. It's, um, nice to meet you too."

The fox beamed, and Shinichi's stomach fluttered disconcertingly.

"Right then," the thief said, retrieving the takeout bag. "Let's eat."

Once again, Shinichi found himself moving through a world gone surreal and soft around the edges.

He and KID moved about the kitchen, pulling out plates and utensils and setting out the food that the thief had brought with a seamless ease as though they had been doing this for years as opposed to for the first time. Granted, the scene probably lost some in the warm and fuzzy department if you knew that the reason KID—Kaito—knew his way around was that he had let himself into the house before and explored the place uninvited, but Shinichi decided that he didn't actually mind (or at least not much. It was kind of late to mind anyway).

Soon, they were seated at the table across from one another.

"So…" Shinichi started then trailed off, uncertain. "Um, I…know you said we should talk…?"

"After lunch," the thief said with an easy smile.

"Oh. Well, okay then," Shinichi decided and started into his shrimp alfredo pasta, mildly relieved for the reprieve. Except now he didn't know what to talk about, and the silence was growing longer and more awkward by the second.

He stole another look across the table at the fox hybrid, taking in the messy mop of dark hair. It was a sharp contrast to the white coloration the thief sported while working his night job. It suited him, Shinichi thought (not that he hadn't been handsome with the white, but the dark brown made him look more real).

"Is that your natural color?" he asked before he could think better of it. He regretted it the moment the question left his mouth. KID was still a thief after all. Asking if this was really what he looked like might be crossing a line.

Kaito, however, just laughed. "It is. Like it?"

Shinichi blushed. "I—I, uh, what?"

One of the fox's ears flicked as his lips quirked in clear amusement. "Do you like it? Or do you prefer the white? I think both colors suit me quite well, but that's my personal opinion."

The color in Shinichi's cheeks darkened as he shifted in his seat. "Er, well, it…looks good. More natural."

The fox laughed. "Considering it is natural, I'd have thought that would go without saying."

"That's not what I meant," Shinichi protested then realized that he couldn't—or perhaps just didn't want to—explain what he did mean and hastened to redirect the conversation. "How do you manage to change the color so completely anyway? It's supposed to be really difficult to dye dark hair."

He didn't add that he'd heard you had to bleach dark hair before you could dye it, and it damaged the hair to do so, especially when the process had to be repeated frequently as the thief would have to do every time he held a heist. But KID's hair looked healthy (soft and glossy in its roguishly stylish mess).

"I use a special type of dye I invented myself," Kaito boasted. "I'm thinking I might get it patented one of these days."

"You invented a hair dye formula just to create an alternate identity?"

"Actually, I invented it back when I was still in high school so I could prank my classmates," the thief corrected him with a grin

Shinichi goggled at him. "Are you serious?"

"Perfectly. I had loads of fun with it. The stories I could tell!"

Shinichi blinked then laughed. "That's just like you. I'm not sure why I was surprised."

The atmosphere relaxed after that as the fox shared some of his high school escapades (half of which sounded made up, but since it was KID, Shinichi decided not to make any assumptions). The longer they talked, the more comfortable Shinichi felt, and he found himself following the thief's lead and beginning to share a few of his own past exploits. Kaito seemed to know just what to say or ask to encourage him to talk, and Shinichi probably shouldn't have been surprised by that either, but he was nevertheless. In a good way.

He was also rather amazed by just how many of his cases Kaito knew about, especially since several of the incidents the thief wanted to hear more on were ones that either hadn't made it into the papers or where Shinichi's involvement hadn't been public knowledge. It strongly suggested that the thief had been stalking him (and for quite a long time at that. Years, in fact). It was frankly a bit creepy except that it was KID, so part of Shinichi couldn't help but be a little flattered (which probably meant he was insane, but he couldn't help it).

It was kind of a relief though—to know that they could sit here and just chat about ordinary things (well, ordinary for them, which even Shinichi knew probably wouldn't qualify as ordinary to the majority of the human race). It made a relationship feel less like some impossible fantasy and more like it could actually work. They still had many, many things they would have to figure out, but this glimpse of that reality felt a little like a sign.

They finished lunch and cleaned up together with the same casual ease as they had set up. Then Kaito produced the ingredients for hot chocolate (complete with a bag of mini marshmallows).

"It's cozier to talk over hot chocolate," he said by way of explanation.

Shinichi wasn't sure if that made sense, but he would be the first to admit that these sorts of social situations were not his forte.

A more comfortable setting did sound like it might help though.

A few minutes later, they were seated in the living room. Shinichi had chosen the armchair while Kaito sat on the end of the couch adjacent to it. The corner of the coffee table was within arm's reach for both of them, and the distance between their seats was just far enough to not feel crowded but close enough too to feel intimate.

Shinichi ate a marshmallow off the top of his mug of hot chocolate out of nerves, tried to sip at the drink itself, realized it was too hot, and set it on the table.

"So…" he began then trailed off, ears twitching uncertainly.

"I figured we could take turns asking questions," the fox offered, sounding slightly uncertain for the first time Shinichi could remember. For some reason, it made Shinichi feel a little better. It was a relief to know that he wasn't the only one harboring uncertainties about—all of this.

"I guess we could try that," Shinichi agreed.

"Would you like to start?" asked Kaito.

Shinichi drew in a deep breath then let it out slowly. It was now or never.

"Did you mean it?" he blurted out before he could lose his nerve. "When you said yesterday that… That you like me."

The fox hybrid blinked at him, and, for a moment, Shinichi was worried that he was about to laugh (and Shinichi would have to start looking for apartments in a foreign country). But then Kaito smiled, and the expression was fond and amused and achingly sincere.

"I did," he said softly, indigo eyes catching and holding Shinichi's. "I meant every word. But now I must ask, did you?"

Shinichi swallowed, but he didn't look away. "I did," he said just as softly, and there was no uncertainty in his voice or eyes. "But…I don't know what this means for us."

"I'd say it depends on what we want it to mean," Kaito replied, tone and gaze serious. "I would like it to mean that we give ourselves a chance. I would like to be a part of your life, and I would like for you to be a part of mine. If you want that too then we can start working out how we want that life to look and what we need to do to get there. You see," he went on, setting his mug of hot chocolate aside so that he could reach over and take Shinichi's hands in both of his own. "I love you. I have for some time now. One day, I would like you to be my mate."

Shinichi's heart skipped a beat as his stomach did something fluttery and strange that made him feel caught somewhere between giddy and nervous and ridiculously happy and absolutely terrified all at once.

"I…think I'd like that too," he admitted. "I…just don't know if this is right."

"Because I am a thief and you are a detective?" Kaito guessed.

Shinichi bowed his head. "Doesn't it worry you?"

Kaito contemplated the question for a long moment then sighed. "Tell me, you're almost always ahead of the police at my heists. You meet me on my escape routes more than half the time. So why have you never tried to arrest me?"

"Detectives don't have the authority to arrest people."

The thief waved an impatient hand. "Then why haven't you ever brought officers with you?"

Shinichi opened his mouth then shut it again. The truth was that he treasured those moments alone with KID after heists where they could talk and swap witty comments. Those precious minutes were their time to just be themselves and be together with someone who seemed to understand them.

Or at least that was how Shinichi had always felt about those encounters. He supposed he didn't actually know what KID had thought about them. But he'd always stayed to chat, and that probably meant something.

Realizing that the thief was waiting for an answer with an unusually serious expression, Shinichi took the only route he could. He told the truth.

He wasn't sure whether to be gratified or embarrassed by the look of surprised pleasure his admission elicited from the fox.

"I have to admit, I was hoping you'd say you never bring backup because you don't actually want to see me caught, but it's so much sweeter that it's because you wanted to be alone with me."

Shinichi huffed, trying and failing to suppress his blush. "You're one to talk. You're always seeking me out at your heists—sometimes before the event even, like you want me to know it's you. I really don't think that's the kind of thing a thief who wants to get away is supposed to do."

"Unless what the thief wants to get away with is your heart," the fox quipped then grinned when Shinichi lost the battle to the blush. Smiling, he brought Shinichi's hand up to his lips. "I plan all my most spectacular shows for you, you know."

Shinichi had the vague inkling that he probably shouldn't find that sweet, but he did. In some ways, he supposed that that contradiction encapsulated a lot of the feelings the thief engendered in him.

"You look troubled," Kaito observed. "What's on your mind?"

Shinichi hesitated, staring at their linked hands. He could feel the warmth and strength in KID's grip. It was reassuring. And he thought again that he wanted this—wanted them—to work out. And that meant being honest.

"I don't know what to do," he said finally. "I… You were right that, well, that I don't want to see you get arrested. But I know I shouldn't feel that way. I'd like to spend more time with you, get to know you better, see if we can really…make a life together. But I also feel like I shouldn't be thinking that way."

To his surprise, KID didn't pull away. Instead, the fox's hands tightened around his own.

"You're afraid that you're prioritizing your own feelings over what's right, and you don't want that."

Startled, Shinichi looked up. "How did you do that?"

The fox quirked an eyebrow at him. "Do what?"

"It's like you read my mind." Except that the thief had managed to put into words with ease what Shinichi had been struggling to describe to himself for ages.

Kaito chuckled. "I've been watching you for years. I know you. You've always been better at seeing other people than at seeing yourself."

Shinichi's brows furrowed in confusion. "What are you trying to say?"

"Well, consider this. If it was, say, Miss Ran in your situation instead, and she came to you for advice about how she should proceed, what would you say? Would you tell her to just forget about me and try to move on?"

"No," Shinichi said without thinking then, more slowly as he gave the matter more thought, "No."

"And she reminds you that I am a thief."

"That may be true," Shinichi said, thinking hard. "But I…feel like you're a good person, and you have a reason for what you do. I know a lot of people think you're just looking for thrills, but you're not. You're looking for something important. You have a goal that isn't just about having fun. So I'd tell her that she should give you a chance. Find out the truth and then decide if she can accept it."

The fox gave Shinichi's hands a squeeze. "So?"

Despite the serious nature of the discussion, Shinichi found himself smiling as he met Kaito's steady gaze. "So will you tell me why you do what you do?"

Kaito's smile broadened into a slightly crooked grin. "Of course. That's one of the things I came here today to do."

Chapter Text

"Tell me, Tantei-kun, do you believe in magic?"

Shinichi blinked. Of all the ways he might have imagined Kaito starting his story, that question had not been one of them.

The two of them both had their mugs of hot chocolate in hand now. KID had already drained half his drink while Shinichi had barely started into his. The rabbit had decided that the fox had been right about hot chocolate being therapeutic when having serious conversations.

Shinichi delicately plucked another marshmallow from atop his hot chocolate then licked the bit of whipped cream that had come with it off his lips (oblivious to the way Kaito gulped, gaze tracking the tip of that pink tongue) before answering. "Is that a trick question?"

"Huh?" Kaito blinked and he dragged his thoughts back to the subject at hand with an effort. "Oh, uh, no. Though I understand why you might think that."

Shinichi frowned slightly at the thief's distracted response. He went so far as to glance around the room, wondering what might have caused it, but, seeing nothing of particular note, he decided to shrug it off for now in favor of the more important task of being a good listener now that he was finally being given the opportunity to learn KID's story.

At this point, the fox had managed to recollect himself with a firm reminder that this conversation was important. Now was not the time to be fantasizing about kissing the detective senseless.

"My father was a jeweler," Kaito began. "He specialized in creating custom pieces, and his work was highly regarded. He had clients from pretty much all around the globe."

Shinichi nodded, noticing the use of the past tense with a pang.

"His work was sought out not merely for their artistic value though," the fox went on. "What truly made Dad's works special was that they had power."

"Power?" Shinichi's ever analytical mind immediately made the connection, but then he balked because surely KID didn't actually mean to say that his father had crafted pieces of magical jewelry.

Except, looking into those intense, indigo eyes, Shinichi realized that that was exactly what the thief was saying.

Stranger still, Shinichi found himself teetering on the edge of believing him.

Unusual, semi-psychic powers were not uncommon among hybrids after all. There were many hybrids who found that they had an affinity with certain animals—so much so that it was often to the point where they could hold actual, meaningful conversations with them. There were also hybrids who could sense the ill health in the land or plants and identify its roots and potential cures merely by touching it. There were even hybrids like Shinichi, who could sense ill intentions and danger. Perhaps this purported power that KID's father had had was a variation of one of the more commonly seen gifts.

He shouldn't make any judgments until he knew more.

"Could you give me an example?" he asked.

"I can do better. I brought visual aids and evidence," the fox declared with a cocky grin that showed one of his canines (the look made Shinichi's heart skip a beat. It was mischief and danger and the promise of adventure).

"Here's exhibit A," Kaito announced, flicking his wrist and pulling three photographs out of thin air. He offered them to Shinichi.

The detective set his mug down and took the pictures, blue eyes bright with curiosity.

The first of the photographs showed a young child who was clearly in poor health. His complexion was that of someone who had not seen sunlight in a very long time, and Shinichi thought from what he could see of the boy's clothes that he was probably dressed in hospital attire. Exhausted eyes peered out of a gaunt face framed by drab, dark hair.

The second photo was of a vibrant, young monkey hybrid dressed for a graduation ceremony of some kind. Judging from his apparent age, it was probably a college graduation.

Upon closer inspection, Shinichi decided that the two photos were of the same person.

The third photo showed an elegant gold locket.

"These are from when my dad was figuring out his gift. The child was diagnosed with a degenerative disease. Dad didn't give me the specifics—privacy issues and all that, but all you really need to know is that his doctors all said he would likely never see his eighth birthday. His parents heard of a clinic developing a new type of treatment though. They decided to take the chance, but it meant sending their son to America. Since they couldn't live at the clinic with their son, the parents came to Dad and commissioned a locket. The diamond on the lid was taken from a ring passed down from the boy's grandmother. They wanted him to have a tangible representation of his family, their love for him and their hope for his future."

"You're about to tell me that he made a miraculous recovery, aren't you?" Shinichi stated more than asked.

The thief let out a huff of laughter. "I suppose it was pretty obvious where the story was headed."

"The pictures made it pretty obvious too," the bunny detective replied. "But doesn't that just mean that the treatment was a success?"

Kaito shrugged. "It could. Although he was the only recipient of the treatment who made a full recovery. The researchers eventually concluded that the treatment was effective at slowing down the disease and making the patients more comfortable, but it couldn't cure them."

Shinichi nodded slowly, digesting that.

The first set of photographs were followed by others. There were also several news clippings from a variety of major papers from around the globe.

There were dramatic tales like that of a sea captain who had brought his ship safely out of one of the worst storms of the century and another of an actress who had emerged unscathed from a terrible fire. There were also much subtler stories like those of a couple who had been having trouble getting a child finally conceiving, a family feud finding a sudden and peaceful resolution, and even a wedding where every detail had fallen perfectly into place from a recalcitrant grandfather finally giving his blessing to the ceremony landing on the only clear day in a week of bad weather.

Alone, none of the stories would have really stood out as much more than just somebody's stroke of good fortune. But taken all together along with the custom jewelry that appeared in each tale and even the most skeptical person would have to stop and wonder just a little.

"So you're basically telling me that your father created good luck charms," Shinichi summarized. "Is that right?"

"In a sense, but it was a bit more complicated than that," the thief replied. "Dad described it as gathering and channeling wishes. You may have noticed that not all the pieces in those photos centered on precious stones. Well, for the magic to work, the 'heart' of the piece had to be a stone chosen by the person commissioning the piece. And the power it gained was a manifestation of the person's wishes. According to Dad, the strongest pieces were those crafted to be gifts to loved ones. That's also why most of these stories center around miraculous survivals, recoveries and reconciliations—things that come across as strokes of incredible good luck."

"I see." Shinichi retrieved his mug. "So, let's assume for now that I believe you're right and all these stories are examples of this amazing gift your father was born with. What does it have to do with KID?"

"I was getting to that," the fox assured him. "But you've given me an excellent lead in. You see, my father wasn't born with his gift. He was endowed with it by an entity that he named Pandora."

"Wait, wait… What? I've never heard of a hybrid being able to give someone else powers."

"That's because hybrid abilities are, as far as we've been able to learn through research, results of further developing our brains. In other words, they're psychic in nature. What I'm talking about here is magic. And the source entity wasn't a hybrid anyway."

"So…what was it then?"

"Good question. Dad told me this story when I was just a little kid, so I may not have all the details right, and he may have left out details he didn't want to share with a child. But this is what he told me about how it all began.

"He grew up knowing that he wanted to pursue the jeweler's trade. He also liked to travel. He wanted to create unique pieces that encapsulated the hearts and souls of the places he saw and the people he met, their joys and sorrows, their wishes and dreams. So he took every chance he got to travel even as a student.

"He was crossing Death Valley when he saw a shooting star. It passed so close that he was sure he could find where it had landed, so he went hunting for it. And he found it."

KID lay a single photo on the corner of the coffee table where they could both see it with ease. It showed a fist-sized rock.

"The actual meteorite was unremarkable but for its size and origin, but when Dad picked it up, it spoke to him. It asked him to free it from its prison. And in return, it would share with him some of its power."

"That sounds like the beginning of a cautionary tale," Shinichi observed.

The fox chuckled. "I guess it does. And maybe it is in its own way."

"I take it your father agreed?"

"He did," Kaito confirmed. "Though not without considerable thought. Dad always had a sixth sense for people, and he felt that the entity wasn't evil, just really, really sad. So he brought it home and took a diamond cutter to it."

The next photo he passed to Shinichi showed a scattering of stone fragments, several of which sported odd, crystal structures on some of their surfaces. They reminded Shinichi of the fragments of an amethyst geode except that the crystals were black.

"So what was inside?" Shinichi asked.

"It's probably best just to call it a spirit."

"Of what?"

The thief shrugged. "We can only guess. It didn't stick around. When Dad told me the story, he said that it passed on. He believed that that was what it had wanted all along—to find rest. And it left him with a gift. He showed it to me when he told the story, but I'm afraid I don't have pictures to show you. Actually, I doubt it would have showed up on film."

Shinichi waited patiently as the thief took a moment to gather his thoughts. His curiosity was burning even brighter now, but he knew that all he could do was be patient.

"Imagine a star," Kaito began, eyes closing as he looked back through the years upon that magical moment. "Floating over an open palm. It's light, and it's power. There is no physical substance, but you can still feel its presence like a warm weight in the atmosphere that you can feel right in your soul. It should be blinding to look into it, but it's not. And when you look deep into its center, you see a flutter of motion edged in brilliant crimson like a butterfly fluttering its wings."

Letting out a reminiscent sigh, Kaito opened his eyes again. "He brought it out to show me, but it usually lived inside this jeweled pin he always kept with him."

Shinichi's brows furrowed in confusion. "What do you mean it lived inside a pin?"

"Like I said earlier, it wasn't a physical object. It was more like a concentration of power. It's best contained within jewels. I don't know how Dad moved it around, but he did say it resonated with a person's heart. When it's contained, you can't see it, but the light of a full moon wakes the power."

"Wait a moment," Shinichi said suddenly, straightening in his seat. "You always check the jewels you steal under moonlight. Are you searching for this, um, power?"

"Patience, Tantei-kun," the fox admonished. "I haven't even gotten to my part of the story yet."

"Oh." Shinichi blushed. "Sorry."

"Don't worry about it. Now, where was I? Ah, yes. Dad was already well established when he received Pandora's gift, but receiving it elevated his career to all new heights as people began associating his work with good luck. Things were great for several years. Then, about elevent, twelve years ago now, someone showed up with a new commission."

The thief's expression darkened.

"At the time, I had no idea what the man wanted. All I knew was thatDad refused to take the commission, but the man kept coming back—over and over for more than a year. Dad was always really pensive after one of the guy's visits, but he wouldn't talk about it. Then one day, while Mom was chaperoning my class on a school field trip, we got a call saying that Dad's shop had burned down."

Shinichi's breath caught in his throat. "So your dad…"

"Didn't make it," Kaito said softly. "It was assumed that it was a robbery. All the pieces in the gallery had been stolen along with Dad's laptop, the unset stones and the other precious materials that had been in the workshop. Dad's pin was never recovered either."

Kaito fell silent then, indigo eyes dark and distant. Shinichi could all but feel the turmoil roiling beneath his calm façade, and he wished there was something he could do to offer the fox some comfort. But he knew that no words would be adequate, and he wasn't really sure what gestures would be appropriate. So he simply waited patiently in silence, hoping that his presence and willingness to listen would be enough.

Eventually, Kaito pulled himself back to the present with an effort and drained the last of his chocolate from his mug before setting it aside.

"About a week after the funeral, Jii, a close friend of my dad's who helped my dad acquire the materials for his work, came to us with a letter that Dad had left with him. That's when we learned what had been going on. I made the distinction earlier about Dad's work being about manifesting wishes and not just about good luck because it's what brought that mystery visitor to his door. This guy had somehow figured out the nature of what Dad had been doing, and he had a wish he wanted desperately to realize." The fox's voice dropped into a sinister whisper. "He wished to raise the dead."

Shinichi inhaled sharply, eyes going wide. "Could your dad really have done that? I mean, no offense but… I just can't imagine that being possible."

"It might not have been," the thief agreed easily. "Dad didn't think it was. Nor did he feel it was right to try. He said so in his letter. He had a sense that trying would cause a catastrophe. But he couldn't convince his mystery client to give up on the idea. When the man kept coming back with more and more extravagant offers, Dad started getting worried. The last time the guy came to see him—or rather the last time before he wrote the letter, he said some things that made Dad suspect that he knew not only about Dad's abilities but also where he'd gotten them. That's when Dad started taking steps. I believe he was planning to explain everything to us in person once he had finished, but he never got the chance. Fortunately, he'd written the letter just in case."

"So the robbery wasn't about money," Shinichi concluded. "It was about this Pandora's gift."

"Pretty much. The mystery client must have decided that, if Dad wouldn't help him, he'd just take the power and do it himself. By the time he made his move though, Dad had already sent Pandora's gift into hiding. He removed it from his pin and placed it in one of the stones he had on hand then sent it away mixed in with several batches of stones he dispatched to other jewelers and merchants. He didn't say what kind of stone he used or who he sent it to, just that he had done it. And, well, that's where my part of this story really begins."

"Would you like a refill first?" Shinichi asked, motioning to their empty mugs.

The fox paused then laughed. "That sounds like an excellent idea."

A round trip to the kitchen later, they were back in the sitting room. The tension that had built up during their earlier conversation had drained away as well, leaving the air feeling lighter.

"So where were we?" Kaito asked.

"Well, I get that you decided at some point to try and find the, uh, gift that your father hid," the rabbit replied. "You always check them under moonlight because that's how you'll be able to tell if you've got the right gem, and you only target pieces crafted within the last decade because anything made earlier couldn't have used the gem your dad sold. What I don't understand is why you're trying to find it."

The fox flashed him a lopsided grin. "I'd say the answer to that is twofold. The first is simple. Knowing something that can give people real magical powers to an unknown extent is out there is a little unnerving. I'd be happier knowing where it is and, more importantly, who has access to it."

"Makes sense," Shinichi conceded. "I have to admit, now that you've pointed it out, I'd prefer to know where something like that is too. If it can do even a little of what you say, it's terrifying to imagine what the wrong people could do with it."

"Indeed. The second reason is that I know the man my dad was talking about is still searching for it too." Kaito's indigo eyes hardened as his voice took on a dangerous edge. "I refuse to let him get his grubby paws on it. I'm going to find it first, and I'm going to make sure he pays for what he's done."

Shinichi frowned. "Hold on. All of this happened a decade ago, right? And the guy was never caught?"

"No, he wasn't," the fox said grimly. "Any evidence he might have left at the scene was consumed by the fire, and none of the pieces he stole ever turned up on the market. On top of that, none of the rest of us had ever seen his face or heard his voice. I suspect Dad kept us away from him on purpose."

Shinichi nodded in understanding, eyes softening. "Because if you couldn't tell the police anything about him then he'd have no reason to go after you guys."

"Yeah."

"But isn't all the fanfare around your heists kind of counterproductive?" the rabbit wondered aloud. "If this man is out there as you say and knows as much as you suspect, wouldn't you just be telling him what you're up to?"

The thief's grin this time was predatory. "That's the point."

Shinichi looked at him askance as understanding dawned. "You're actually trying to make sure he knows you're after what he's after?"

"Yep."

"You do realize that you just told me he's already killed."

"Why do you think I invite the police to all my heists?"

"And what if he makes the connection between KID and your dad? Then he won't have to wait for your heists to try and get rid of you."

"Aww, are you worried about me?"

The bunny bristled. "This isn't funny. Of course I'm worried. You just admitted that you're running around trying to attract the attention of a murderer!"

Kaito sobered. "Right. Sorry, I know I'm taking a risk, but I did take steps to reduce that possibility. Though if he's smart, I suspect he won't act until I do find our target. That's also when I'll know for sure he's coming."

Shinichi opened his mouth then shut it again, shaking his head. "There has to be a better way to find this man."

"I'm open to suggestions," the thief said earnestly. "But until a better idea presents itself, this is what I've got. It's actually already proven beneficial."

Shinichi looked dubious. "How so?"

The fox snapped his fingers. There was a puff of smoke, and he was holding a small USB drive. He tossed it to Shinichi, who caught it automatically.

"The details are in there," Kaito told him. "But to make a long story short, I figured out the guy was active because of a certain series of break-ins targeting the people Dad sold to and the people that those people sold to, so on and so forth. I'm sure you'll see why I think they're related when you go over those reports. And you may be interested to learn that similar incidents became less frequent after my debut."

Shinichi carefully set the memory drive on the table.

"I don't know what to say," he admitted. "This is…a lot to take in."

The thief chuckled. "Believe me. I get it. And it's all right if you don't know what to think yet. I just wanted you to know where I was coming from. Take however much time you need to think about it. And feel free to ask if you have questions."

Chapter Text

If anyone were to ask later, Shinichi would not have been able to explain how the very serious conversation with KID about the thief's history and future goals had ended with the two of them ensconced on the couch together and watching a movie.

But it had.

They started out sitting side by side, but as the movie progressed, the distance between them gradually decreased (and Shinichi honestly couldn't say which of them had been moving. More than likely, they both had). By the twenty minute mark, there was no longer any space between them at all.

And sitting there, curled up against the fox's side with said fox's arm wrapped possessively around his waist, Shinichi found that he felt more content than he could remember having felt in a very long time.

He still had no idea what he thought about everything that KID—Kaito—had told him. The majority of the story sounded like something out of a novel. A magical spirit trapped in a meteorite? A spirit who gave its savior a gift of real magic with which he could give shape to—perhaps even grant—wishes? How could any of that really be?

But Kaito was serious about all of it. Shinichi was sure of that. And if it was true, it would explain the thief's behavior.

In any case, though Shinichi fully intended to go through the thumb drive of information KID had given him at the earliest opportunity, he knew that, at least for now, he had already made the decision to trust Kaito and his intentions. Maybe he was taking a risk, but he couldn't help it.

He wanted to believe in Kaito.

He also remembered that the thief had expressed a willingness to hear alternative solutions to his self-imposed quest.

Shinichi mentally added finding said alternatives to his to-do list.

KID suddenly made a noise of recollection and straightened. "I almost forgot. I still have a question for you."

Shinichi straightened as well, puzzled and beginning to worry again as his thoughts raced, trying to remember if there was anything he might have overlooked. "What is it?"

The fox took Shinichi's hands in both of his. The contact startled Shinichi into stillness as his cheeks flushed for what felt like the umpteenth time that day.

"Will you go out with me?" Kaito asked.

Having expected something to do with KID's history and goals, Shinichi was caught wrong-footed. "I…what?"

"I just remembered that I forgot to actually ask. And I thought I shouldn't just assume you'd agreed without asking."

"Oh." Still pink in the face but feeling abruptly—embarrassingly—giddy, Shinichi swallowed to try and give himself a moment to compose himself before answering.

"I think I'd like that."

The smile that broke out across Kaito's face was like the sun rising, and it left Shinichi breathless and spellbound. The sounds of the television faded into the background.

Feeling vaguely like he needed to say something, Shinichi's lips parted, but no words emerged as his brain drew a blank.

The fox's indigo eyes flicked down to Shinichi's lips, and the detective felt his heart rate speed up. Some part of Shinichi took note that Kaito was a lot closer than he'd thought he was and wondered when the thief had moved. The rest of him was simply focused on the fox's proximity—of his scent and the warmth of his presence and the calluses on his hands where they were still entwined with Shinichi's own.

Then the thief closed the remaining distance between their lips, and Shinichi stopped thinking entirely.

The kiss was soft and sweet with traces of hot chocolate and coffee melding seamlessly into one.

It was intoxicating.

Both fox and rabbit moved instinctively, following that rapidly growing craving to be closer.

The next thing he knew, Shinichi was straddling the thief's lap, but he couldn't remember when or how he'd gotten there. Nor, he realized, did he care. Because it felt right to be here—to have the fox's hips between his thighs and the fox's hands sliding up under his shirt to caress his bare back. One of those calloused hands found its way to his fluffy, cotton tail, and the touch, which Shinichi would normally have found objectionable, sent shivers of pleasure up his spine and tendrils of fire curling through his veins. Those inner flames danced along his inner thighs, making them tingle, before spreading upward to pool in his stomach, warm yet taught with mixed pleasure and want.

The strength of that rush of sensations was, however, rather more than Shinichi had been prepared for, and he tensed despite himself. His moment of nervous uncertainty broke the spell of the moment, and Kaito pulled back—not far, just enough to give Shinichi a sense of space, and the detective found it to be both a disappointment and a relief.

"Sorry," the thief said. "Are we moving too fast?"

Shinichi swallowed his instinctive denial to give his own confused whirling of emotions some serious thought.

"Maybe a little," he admitted eventually, cheeks coloring in mixed dismay and embarrassment. The admission felt rather ridiculous, considering what they'd already done the other day, but he couldn't help it. He'd never been this intimate with anyone before (er, not while in a fully coherent state of mind anyway), and the foreign sensations were almost just as unnerving as they were exciting.

Kaito seemed to read his thoughts as he bumped their foreheads together, lips curving into a fond little grin. "Hey, don't feel bad. Take all the time you need. We'll figure this out as we go. Together."

Shinichi couldn't help but smile back, heart swelling with warmth and a renewed sense of wonder for the man sitting here with him and the inexplicable workings of fate that had brought them here and gifted them with this precious opportunity.

He wished he had the words to express what he was feeling, but he didn't.

"Have you heard of Mystic Rose?" he blurted out instead.

Kaito blinked. The rare expression of honest surprise on the fox hybrid's face elicited a laugh from the detective.

"Do you mean the band?"

Shinichi nodded. "They're holding a major concert at the end of the summer."

"I've heard," the fox agreed before quirking an amused eyebrow. "Are you a fan?"

"Not really," the rabbit hybrid admitted. "Actually, I'm not even sure if I've ever heard their music. It's just… Well, Sonoko got a half dozen tickets, and she's already making summer plans for us. She insists that I have to go and, um, that I should have a date, so…"

He trailed off, face heating up yet again.

Kaito blinked again before breaking into a grin. "Are you asking me to be your date?"

"If you're interested," Shinichi qualified. "It's okay if you're not too. I just thought, well, Sonoko's a bit… What I mean is, when she makes plans like these, she's impossible to stop, and if I'm going to be forced to go with someone either way, I'd really rather go with a friend than some random person she picks for me. Last time that happened, Ran had to threaten to break a few arms, and there was this whole thing with an attempted poisoning, and…"

Shinichi knew he was rambling, but he couldn't seem to stop until Kaito pressed a finger to his lips. The contact did what Shinichi's brain had failed to do and stemmed the tide of increasingly irrelevant words.

The fox was smiling.

"It would be my pleasure to accompany you," he said. "Though I rather hope I'll be attending as something more than just your friend."

Shinichi had to admit that he rather hoped that too.

The thief ended up staying for dinner. Shinichi didn't know if he had planned to do so all along or if it had been a spur of the moment decision, but he was glad. It felt right. Comfortable.

Having mutually decided to set the more serious topics from earlier aside for the time being, they turned their discussion to other things.

Shinichi learned that the thief was indeed, as he'd suspected, also a university student. Not only that, but he was actually attending the very same university that Shinichi was attending. Kaito was a year ahead though and in entirely different majors, which explained why they had never run into each other on campus (although the fox admitted that he may have gone out of his way to make sure their paths didn't cross).

"I wanted to introduce myself, but I hadn't decided how yet," he explained. "I was originally thinking of bumping into you at the end of year party that the Student Cultural association is planning. I knew Suzuki-san joined the organization committee, and I know she's making you take a shift at the refreshment stands."

"You know, some people might say it's creepy how much you know about the life of someone you haven't officially met," Shinichi observed, though it was clear to Kaito that he was amused rather than disturbed.

"What can I say? I like to be prepared," Kaito replied with a grin. "Better too many plans than too few."

Despite the way that Kaito had arrived, Shinichi still felt more than a little strange seeing the thief to the door. They both lingered in the front entrance, Shinichi reluctant to say goodbye and Kaito reluctant to leave.

"Well, don't shelve your meeting plans just yet," the detective said. "We'll probably need one, considering we haven't actually met officially."

Kaito grinned. "Very true."

Another silence fell as the two simply watched each other, both waiting for the other to start the farewells. The silence stretched until the fox let out a bark of laughter and stepped forward. Catching Shinichi's chin, he tilted the detective's face up and leaned in to catch those petal soft lips with his own. Shinichi's startled gasp melted into a quiet moan as his hands came up to fist in the front of the thief's jacket.

Reluctant to part but sensing that he had better go now lest he lose his self control, Kaito broke the kiss, but he didn't immediately step away. Instead, he pressed his forehead to Shinichi's.

"Thank you," he murmured.

Shinichi blinked, still a bit dazed from the kiss. "For what?"

As far as Shinichi was concerned, he was the one who should be doing the thanking. Without Kaito, he wouldn't even be sitting here right now. He'd still be back in that horrible little room, bound and at the mercy of Sylva and his unsavory friends.

"For hearing me out," Kaito replied. "For giving me a chance."

"Oh." Shinichi paused in surprise then smiled. "I should thank you too. For trusting me with your story. It means a lot to me."

It was Kaito's turn to pause before he let out a soft chuckle and leaned in to steal one last kiss.

"You're amazing," he told the blushing bunny detective. "Now, much as I'd love to stay, I'm afraid I won't be able to tear myself away if I put off leaving any longer."

Shinichi found himself sorely tempted to ask the fox not to go, but he thought better of it.

"Do you want to exchange phone numbers?" he asked instead.

For some reason, the question made Kaito laugh.

"We already have," the fox informed him. At Shinichi's bewildered frown, he elaborated. "I entered my number in your phone while you were refilling our hot chocolates. And I already have your number."

"Oh." Shinichi considered that for a moment. "I guess I should have expected that."

"You should," Kaito agreed. Catching both of Shinichi's hands in his own, he gave them a squeeze then moved to unlock the door. "I'll see you soon."

Then he was gone, swift and silent as the phantom he'd been named.

Upon returning to the living room to turn off the lights in preparation for retiring for the night, Shinichi paused and frowned.

Where there had been two black bunny Cuddle Puffs on the couch earlier that day, there was now only one. Puzzled, he made a circuit of the room, checking to see if the second might have rolled off the couch and inadvertently into some hidden corner somewhere, but nope, there was no sign of it.

There was only so far a plush that size could have rolled, even if it was mostly round. Shinichi knew for a fact that he hadn't moved it though. On the other hand, he wasn't the only person who'd recently been through the room.

Had KID stolen his Cuddle Puff?

Chapter Text

After everything that had happened over the weekend, it felt surreal to be back in class again, and Shinichi was grateful that, with finals just around the corner, his professors were all simply reviewing the most important parts of their courses. He was having some trouble concentrating, but his memory of the materials was good enough that he wasn't too worried.

Shinichi had spent several hours the previous night (well into the wee hours of the morning, in fact), going through the contents of the memory drive that Kaito had given to him during his visit. As he'd half expected, the drive was filled with reports—sales reports, news reports, police reports, and more. There had been a staggering amount of information to sort through, though thankfully Kaito had also included a few dossiers summing up his interpretations of the materials provided.

To make a long story short, there had been a long series of rather strange, unsolved burglaries and robberies that had all targeted the people and venues to which Kuroba Toichi had sent gems shortly before his death (and the people to whom those people had subsequently sold). These crimes had been strange because, even though the culprit had demonstrated no hesitation in killing the handful of times he or she had encountered a person on the premises, they had almost always discarded all the jewels they stole shortly after the theft—often right outside the location of the crime, in fact. At other times, nothing was taken at all. This could be explained as a smokescreen for enacting revenge in the cases where people were murdered (and the police who'd caught those cases had treated them as such only to dead end on suspects), but Shinichi's experience told him that the handful of murders appeared to be spur of the moment as opposed to planned. And nothing could really explain the burglaries that had ended with thousands of dollars in jewels discarded in a random ditch three hundred yards from the burgled building.

Another oddity tying the cases together was that they had all occurred on full moon nights. The venues that had been broken into but not actually relieved of their merchandise typically had large windows, and their jewels were found scattered carelessly around the premises—as though someone had examined them then tossed them aside.

Taking into account all the facts and Kaito's story, Shinichi could see why the thief believed these crimes to have been committed by the stranger who'd approached his father.

Interestingly enough, however, the frequency of the aforementioned crimes began dropping around the time when KID's fame really began to skyrocket.

It was really rather ironic, Shinichi thought. Kaito's criminal activities might actually be playing an active part in preventing other, more violent crimes.

He had to admit though that he was still having trouble coming to terms with the idea of a wish-granting magic stone.

For now though, he'd decided that it didn't really matter one way or the other if the stone (or rather the thing inside said stone) really had such powers. It was enough to know that someone who didn't care about harming others was looking for it and that that someone might be lying in wait for when Kaito tracked down their mutual target to try and steal it for himself.

Shinichi had to find a way to track the man down before it came to that.

For now though, another, more immediate problem was beginning to weigh on his mind.

Sylva and his creepy friends were still out there, plotting who knew what. Shinichi knew that the sooner he shared his knowledge of the group with the police the better, but he was not looking forward to it. Frankly, part of him still shied away from even thinking too deeply about the experience. The thought of having to talk about it was, therefore, about as appealing as going to the dentist to get a tooth pulled.

Just like with the aforementioned dental procedure, however, putting it off would only make it worse. The longer such problems were left to fester, the more harm they caused and the more difficult they became to solve.

Knowing that, Shinichi braced himself and reached out to his police contacts to arrange a meeting. Thanks to the multitude of cases he had helped them with, the police were always quick to respond to his requests.

He declined an invitation to have dinner with Ran and Sonoko after his last class of the day let out and headed straight for the police station. He was met in the lobby by officers Satou Miwako and Takagi Wataru, the latter of whom was sporting an enormous black eye.

"What happened to you?" Shinichi asked, shocked.

"Oh, uh, it's nothing really." The dog hybrid scratched the back of his head, looking sheepish. "It's just this suspect we were bringing in yesterday didn't take well to being arrested. He sort of caught me by surprise and, er, yeah."

"He let his guard down because the suspect was a skinny little office worker," Satou said dryly.

Takagi laughed nervously. "Maybe… It's better than it looks though." Seeing the dubious look on Shinichi's face, he hastened to change the subject. "So how can we help you?"

"Is there somewhere we can talk in private?" Shinichi asked.

Satou, a bear hybrid, raised an inquisitive eyebrow at that. "Sounds serious. We can use one of the conference rooms."

Takagi led them through the familiar corridors of the police station and into an empty conference room. Satou shut the door then joined her partner and Shinichi at the conference table. "So what was it that you needed to talk to us about?"

Shinichi took a deep breath. "I was at a restaurant with Ran and Sonoko on Saturday when we ran into some people I believe are involved in illegal drug research."

He went on to relay the conversation they'd had at the restaurant then his subsequent kidnapping and the discussion between Sylva and Scarlet. Partway through his story, both police officers produced notebooks and began taking notes.

Shinichi faltered when he reached the part of the story about the pill he'd been forced to take and the effects it had had, but he forged on.

The two officers traded concerned looks before Takagi asked hesitantly, "So about this Sylva. Did he…?"

Shinichi shook his head rapidly, face flushing. "No! I, uh… I managed to escape before…" He trailed off uncomfortably. Despite knowing that the event was now behind him, it still scared him to think about just how close he had come to being raped. He shivered and forced the thoughts away with an effort.

Sensing his discomfort, Satou cleared her throat. "So you said they mentioned that they were testing twelve different pills?"

Shinichi nodded.

"Would that be one for each type of hybrid?" Takagi wondered.

"I don't think so," Shinichi replied. "They were discussing which one to test on me, so I'd assume that every pill was a different type of drug. They also mentioned that numbers ten through twelve had high mortality rates. The implication was that they have already conducted more than a little testing on human subjects."

Takagi winced. "That's bad."

Shinichi thought that that was probably the understatement of the century.

"By the way," Satou said suddenly. "How did you escape?"

"Oh, uh, well… Someone saw them taking me away and followed their vehicle to the location of their hideout. He helped me escape."

Takagi frowned, puzzled. "Hold on a moment. If this guy knew you were in trouble and where you were being held, why didn't he call the police? Didn't he realize how dangerous it was to try and rescue you by himself?"

Shinichi opened his mouth then shut it again, mind racing as he tried to come up with a reasonable explanation.

Satou, however, beat him to it.

"It was Kaitou KID, wasn't it?" she asked shrewdly. "That's why he didn't show up at his heist."

You had to hand it to the woman. She was sharp.

Shinichi debated with himself only briefly before inclining his head in ascent. "It was."

One reason he had chosen to take his story to Takagi and Satou instead of Megure-keibu or one of the other officers he knew was because he'd known Satou was actually quite a big Kaitou KID fan (well, okay, it had also mattered that he knew they were competent, discreet and trustworthy, and he simply liked them as people). If there were any officers he would trust with this particular part of his story from that night, it would be these two.

"KID caused a commotion in their lab and used it as a distraction to sneak me out," he elaborated. To his relief, the two officers took this news in stride (or rather Satou did. Takagi had yet to pick his jaw up off the table).

"Do you think you could find your way back to the building where you were taken?" she asked.

"I can," Shinichi said. The truth was that Kaito had provided him with the address, but he saw no need to provide this detail unless the police asked him directly. "I doubt those people will still be there, but I was planning to go back some time to see what I could learn."

"I think maybe you should leave that to us," Takagi said, frowning slightly. "It might not be safe for you to go back there."

"Takagi's right," Satou said grimly. "Even if these people weren't searching for rabbit hybrids, they know not only that you are now aware of their operation but also that you can identify several of their members. It's not a stretch to imagine that they might decide they need to recapture or silence you. At the moment, they might assume that you were too sick to remember much, but seeing you nosing around could easily galvanize them to act."

Shinichi winced. "I understand that, but I can't sit around doing nothing. And they already know who I am. It wouldn't be difficult for them to find out where I live. If it's only a matter of time before they come after me then that's all the more reason for me to do what I can while I can to stop them before anything irreparable happens."

"We're not asking you to do nothing," Takagi said kindly. "We're just asking you not to take any unnecessary risks. You've already been targeted, and, judging from everything you've said, these people must be well funded. That means there's a real power behind them."

Satou nodded her agreement. "We all need to approach this carefully. Trust us. We won't exclude you from the investigation. But let us do the looking around. It is our job after all," she added with a wry grin. "We'll keep you updated on what we find. In the meantime, you should consider taking precautions. Maybe find someone to stay with until this case is resolved."

Shinichi's first instinct was to argue. As a detective, he took pride in his investigative skills. He also knew deep down that he wouldn't be able to rest easy again until Sylva and his pals were safely behind bars. But he knew too that the police were making good points. And, well, hadn't he just been thinking that he trusted Satou and Takagi?

So, with a firm reminder to himself that he'd already had one close call because he'd run into this alone, he agreed to leave the building search to the police and to put some thought into his own security. Any investigating he did, he would conduct as discreetly as he could manage. In turn, Satou and Takagi promised to keep him looped into their side of the investigation.

"Before I go, I was wondering if I could get copies of a few case reports," Shinichi said. He described the cases he was interested in. The police were a little puzzled about his interest in two rather mundane cases, one of which was already closed and the other an apparent accident, but they agreed to provide him with his copies.

Takagi headed out to collect said copies, leaving Shinichi alone with Satou.

The woman waited until the door was closed again before turning searching eyes on Shinichi. "Kudo-kun," she said carefully. "I know you've seen your fair share of trouble, but this latest incident was…different. If you need someone to talk to, we can recommend a good counselor."

"Thank you for the offer, but I'm fine, really," Shinichi insisted.

"Just remember, it's always an option."

"…I'll keep it in mind. I promise."

Chapter Text

It had been a week since the incident, and KID had been over twice more: once to discuss how Shinichi's meeting with the police had gone and once just to study together for their final exams (after addressing a few issues anyway).

"Your police friends make a very good point," Kaito had said after listening intently to Shinichi's account of his meeting with officers Satou and Takagi. "We caused those people some trouble, but I doubt it was enough to do anything more than slow them down. There's a more than passing chance that they'll come after you again. Even if you didn't know more about them than I'm sure they'd like, you're still a rare rabbit hybrid they apparently want experiment data on. I can't believe I didn't think of all this sooner."

The thief sounded seriously upset, and Shinichi couldn't help but feel a little touched even as he pointed out that, being a detective, he should have realized all that too. So really, the fox couldn't be blamed for the oversight.

"Besides," Shinichi added. "Nothing's happened yet, and I think I would have noticed if I was being stalked. I can usually sense that sort of thing."

He was especially adept at sensing ill intentions—something which had both led him to trouble and saved his life on numerous occasions already. Sonoko sometimes joked (or exclaimed with great exasperation) that the powers that be must have designed him with a crime radar, and it was no wonder that he'd ended up being a detective geek.

Kaito's concerns, however, remained undiminished.

"All that means is that they haven't decided to take that step yet," he pointed out. "If they have any brains at all, they'd have started by clearing out the building they were using now that it's been compromised. Then they'll need to select and secure a new base of operations and take stock of what information may have gotten out and to whom. Then they'd have a better idea of what kind of damage control they need."

"I suppose. Though that should also mean that they should realize they've missed the window of opportunity for stopping me from telling the police about them," Shinichi reasoned.

"But you're still an eye witness," the thief reminded him. "And a type of hybrid they want to experiment on. You need to be careful."

Shinichi grimaced. "I know. And I'll be careful. But I'm not the only rabbit hybrid in the city. I wish there was some way we could warn people…" His thoughts flashed to Ran. He really, really didn't want to tell her what had happened to him (it would only worry and upset her), but he had to warn her, especially since Sylva and Kuro had already seen and approached her before. On the other hand, he'd already told her after that first encounter that the two gave off bad vibes. She should know to be wary if she ever saw them again.

Better remind her though, just to be safe. He made a mental note to do just that.

"Have you given any thought to their suggestion?" Kaito asked.

Shinichi frowned, confused. "What suggestion?"

"That you find someone to stay with until this matter is resolved," the thief clarified.

"Oh that. I really don't think it's necessary," the rabbit hybrid replied. "I'll just stick to populated places and keep an eye out otherwise. Besides," he added. "I'd rather not drag anyone else into the line of fire."

His aspiring beau looked less than satisfied with this proclamation. Kaito strongly suspected that Shinichi was basing his decision mostly on his desire not to put anyone else in danger—which was admirable and just like his detective, but admirable was not the same as wise (or even right. Life was never that simple—more was the pity).

He wanted to offer to stay over, but he and Shinichi weren't supposed to have even met yet. So staying over would mean having to hide his very existence from everyone around Shinichi, both friends and enemies alike, and therefore his presence wouldn't serve as much of a deterrent. And while he could make some arguments for that being an excellent way to set an ambush, it would feel too much like using Shinichi for bait. That was something Kaito would like to avoid if at all possible. All considered, even one mistake would be one too many in a situation like that.

On the other hand, he simply couldn't wait around doing nothing. Things would change once he and Shinichi were 'officially introduced', but, until then, maybe he could arrange some other, additional security.

"How do you feel about birds?" he asked.

The question elicited a confused look from his detective. "They're fine…? Why do you ask?"

"I was just thinking about how to enhance your security."

The next time the thief dropped by, he arrived dressed like a landscaper and installed a pair of birdbaths, one in the manor's front yard and another in the back. Each birdbath came equipped with a very well hidden, rotating camera ("designed by yours truly") that Shinichi could monitor via a special program the thief installed on his phone.

The fox also brought three birdfeeders.

And several birds.

He introduced each bird in turn, though Shinichi promptly lost track of which was which.

"I'll have them keep a lookout for you," the fox informed him. "They'll work in shifts. If they see something suspicious, they'll warn you and notify me. If you have a really small window anywhere, I can fix it up so that they can open and close it. Otherwise, they'll knock on the windows, so you just have to make sure you pay attention. You can also ask them to carry messages to me. I'll show you how later."

"Your birds can do all that?" Shinichi was impressed.

Kaito looked smug. "They're the best of the best. I breed and train them myself. I sell occasionally to other magicians I trust will treat them well too."

"You must be really busy," Shinichi observed, half bemused and half amazed.

Kaito laughed. "If I don't keep busy, I get bored. And believe me, that's something to be avoided at all costs."

Shinichi took a moment to imagine what might happen if Kaito got bored and shuddered. It didn't take a genius to figure out that that would be a recipe for disaster—or at least for mass mayhem.

"So you said you were going to show me how to ask them to convey messages?" he asked.

Later, as he looked out his library window at the new birdbath in his backyard and the two doves exploring it, Shinichi thought that he was probably going to grow quite fond of bird watching. There was something uplifting about seeing the animals at play, and knowing that they were there because Kaito cared enough about him to want to protect him made him feel warm inside.

He was now counting down the days to the year end festivities that Sonoko had volunteered him for instead of dreading them like he had previously because they would allow him and Kaito to begin actually integrating their civilian lives together.

-0-

"Just one more exam to go!" Sonoko cheered as she slid into the booth at the ice cream parlor where Ran and Shinichi were already seated. "Then it's vacation time!"

"Speak for yourself. I still have two exams," Shinichi replied, digging a spoon into his vanilla ice cream. "And they're both tomorrow. So I'd appreciate if you make this quick. There are a few things I'd like to review while I still have the time."

Sonoko looked sly. "Oh ho, has the great detective been procrastinating on his studies? I seem to recall you were the one who was always saying that last minute cramming was pointless."

Shinichi rolled his eyes. "No, I haven't been procrastinating. And trying to cram last minute is pointless. But refreshing your memory on important points is just the prudent thing to do before an important exam."

The cat hybrid sniffed. "Whatever."

"You guys, come on," Ran cut in, waving a placating hand. "Let's just enjoy our break. We all have at least some studying we still need to do. I'd like to actually rest before I go back to mine."

"Yeah, I guess you have a point," Sonoko conceded. "Well, I mainly wanted to make sure you two got these."

She rummaged around in her bag before coming up with a pair of pamphlets. She handed one each to Ran and Shinichi.

"They're copies of the event schedule for the year end celebration," she explained. "If you turn to the map, I've marked out the locations of the refreshment stands you'll be working at. I also wrote down the times of your shifts."

"How thoughtful of you," Shinichi said dryly. He couldn't help but wonder how an event that Sonoko had first introduced as a year-end party had evolved so quickly into what was clearly a full blown festival.

Sonoko stuck her tongue out at him. "You should thank me. All volunteers get a dozen discount coupons they can use at the various refreshment and game stalls. There's going to be loads of delicious food and cool prizes. And that's not even all! You're also getting a complimentary raffle ticket and an invitation to our staff party at Club Indigo afterward. It's a sweet deal."

"If you say so."

"I do say so. And since it's going to be an awesome event, I'd appreciate it if you avoided finding any dead people there."

This comment earned her a glare from the detective. "Contrary to what you might believe, I don't go around looking for dead bodies."

"Considering how often you find them anyway, that might actually be worse," the cat observed.

Shinichi opened his mouth then shut it again as he realized that, loathed as he was to admit it, Sonoko might actually have a point. What was the world coming to?

Finding himself short an adequate comeback, Shinichi decided that a quiet retreat would be the path of least commotion and busied himself with his vanilla sundae.

Deciding that she'd won that round, the visibly smug Sonoko went back to detailing the upcoming festivities before moving on to some of the tentative plans she was making for their summer and assessing each plan's potential to serve as a springboard to new and better things. Or rather how they might most effectively be used to snag an epic college romance.

Shinichi thought idly that, if Sonoko put even half the energy she did into her hunt for the perfect romance into her class work, she'd be acing all her classes.

At present, Sonoko's summer activity ideas ranged across the board from simple, normal summer activities like going swimming at the beach to ridiculous activities like visiting a fortune teller to have their love fortunes told.

Shinichi made a face. "You can't be serious."

"You might scoff now, but I hear this lady's never wrong," Sonoko retorted.

Shinichi rolled his eyes. "That's not exactly evidence."

"It might be fun though," Ran said and blushed when Shinichi shot her an incredulous look. "I'm just saying, it's really more about the experience than if the fortune telling is accurate, right? It's like—going to a magic show. Even if you know it's more than likely all a trick, it's still fun to pretend for a while that it could be real. And maybe, sometimes, it is."

At her mention of magic shows, Shinichi's thoughts flashed to a white top hat and a wicked grin gleaming in the moonlight. And he thought again of Kaito's incredible story of spirits and wishes and magic, and he realized that this too was a point he couldn't in good conscience deny.

He thought ruefully that his world was looking stranger and stranger—and, by extension, more and more complicated—by the day. Despite that, he was, dare he say, excited to discover what was to come.

Speaking of what was coming… Shinichi pulled up a calendar in his mind and began calculating. He realized that, provided that whatever substance he'd been drugged with hadn't messed with his body's natural cycle, he was due to have his next heat in just two weeks (Did Kaito know? Did he want Kaito to know?). He should probably warn Kaito to avoid any awkward situations. They didn't need a repeat of last time.

Not that Shinichi would mind that exactly.

Okay, so maybe he would sort of, kind of, quite like to repeat what had happened last time, only with less in terms of mind-addling drugs, but he wasn't entirely sure if he was ready for that. On the one hand, they'd only been officially dating for a little over a week. On the other hand, they'd been dancing around each other for years (during which Shinichi had had more than a handful of certain…dreams about the fox—though he would die before admitting that embarrassing truth to anyone). And of course there had been the other morning…

He found himself remembering how the thief's hands had felt on his body. He remembered the ease with which Kaito had picked him up to carry him to bed. He remembered the way the fox's breath on the back of his neck had made his skin tingle, and he remembered the electric thrill that had jolted through his body when the thief's fingers had slid inside him—

Suppressing a violent shudder, Shinichi forced his thoughts back to the present (a task which was considerably more difficult than he would like to admit. He'd revisited that morning several times already in fragmented dreams, some of which hadn't stopped where reality had. He'd found himself both dreading and yearning for those dreams and the phantom promises they embodied. And he wondered. Did KID dream of that morning too?).

He would have to do some serious thinking on these feelings stirring inside him and what he was and wasn't ready for soon, but at a public eatery with Sonoko and Ran was not the time or place for it.

Before the three of them parted ways for the day, Shinichi pulled Ran aside and told her to be extra careful.

"I was talking with Satou and Takagi-keiji," he told her. "There's a criminal group actively searching for rabbit hybrids right now. We don't know what their goals are, but they've been confirmed to be behind some recent kidnappings."

He refrained from mentioning that said kidnapping had been his own. He reasoned that that particular detail wasn't nearly as important as the news that there had been kidnappings in general.

"I suspect those two we met at the restaurant before the KID heist, Sylva and Kuro, may have been related to this group. If you see them again, stay away from them and let me know. You should also contact me or the police if you notice anyone following you or if anyone suspicious approaches you."

Ran shivered, looking uneasy. "I will. I promise."

Shinichi nodded. "Also, if you know any other rabbit hybrids, it would help if you could warn them too."

"All right," she said before fixing him with a piercing stare. "You better take your own advice."

The detective tried not to look too guilty as he promised that he would.

On his way home, Shinichi found himself ducking into a convenience store and, after furtively checking that no one was looking in his direction, making his way to the part of the store devoted to healthcare products. When he got there, he pretended to be browsing the cold medications until the two other patrons in the aisle had left. Then he sidled over to stare in mixed embarrassment and trepidation at the surprisingly large selection of contraceptives.

Since he'd never even contemplated getting into a relationship before now, he'd never bothered acquiring such items. Now he was absolutely flummoxed by the variety of options. Not only was there a plethora of brands to pick from, but every product came in multiple variations (some for female hybrids, some for female halfers and some for male halfers). These in turn were categorized according to hybrid types. All the colorful labels were frankly dizzying to look at.

The last thing he wanted was to be seen by someone he knew buying contraceptive pills though, so he hastily skimmed over the shelves and snagged the first option for male halfers he saw sporting a brand he vaguely recognized as reputable. Then he realized that the bottle in his hands had a little cat silhouette drawn on it and switched it out for one with a rabbit.

Then, cheeks red with a blush that refused to be suppressed, he hurried through checkout and made a beeline for home.

Or at least that was the plan.

He only got three steps out the door before someone in the building behind him screamed.

Shinichi let out an involuntary groan of dismay, but he was already turning around and heading back into the store. Though he remembered to stuff his purchase into the deepest pocket on his person. As he sprinted for the scream, he mused that this was another reason he never procrastinated on his studies if he had a choice about it. Someone who could literally run into a crime at any time, anywhere, needed to be prepared for the possibility that any free time he planned could become considerably less free at the drop of a hat.

Chapter Text

Letting his breath out in a long sigh of satisfaction, Shinichi rose and stretched. All around him, other students were doing the same as they packed up and prepared to leave. Like him, this was the last final exam of the semester for most of them, and everyone was more than pleased to be looking ahead at the glorious expanse of their summer vacations.

For his part, Shinichi had never really minded schoolwork, but he too was relieved—if for different reasons. In his case, his relief at the advent of a long vacation was because it would give him some much needed time to devote to solving the problem of Sylva and his mysterious organization.

He sobered quickly at the thought.

Satou-keiji had called him that morning to update him on what she and her partner had uncovered.

It hadn't been good news.

"We're pretty sure we located the right building," the ursine officer had told him. "But there wasn't much left of it to examine. It was completely burned out. We spoke with the fire department about it. Apparently, the fire was called in shortly after you left the premises. But the fire spread fast, and there seemed to have been a gas leak that caused a series of explosions. Those didn't help. By the time the fire fighters were able to get the blaze under control, the building and everything in it was pretty much a lost cause."

"So there was no sign of what might have been going on inside?" he'd asked.

A hum. "Technically, that would be correct."

Shinichi's ears perked up. "Technically?"

"Well, the place was abnormally clean. There are a lot of things you'd expect to find in any building in use that shouldn't just go up in smoke without a trace."

"Which means, if that was the right building, then someone cleaned up and moved stuff out before letting the fire have the rest of what was left," Shinichi concluded. "And they must have been really fast about it."

Satou made a noise of agreement. "I'd wager they've had practice and plenty of it."

"You're sure it was the correct building?"

"Fairly certain. We checked into it, and the building was recently sold to a man who, as it turns out, doesn't currently exist."

"What do you mean by currently?" Shinichi asked, perplexed.

"Well, his information is attached to a real person, but he passed away in a remote little village some fifteen years ago. There was a coroner's report, but the official records weren't properly updated. That, or they were tampered with. As far as we were able to determine, he was a fairly ordinary man. No criminal record to speak of. He was never married and never borrowed money. He established and ran a bar in the village he moved to after graduating college with a degree in art history and passed away from a stroke at the age of fifty two. He has—had—no known relatives."

"That's…" Shinichi trailed off, shaking his head. "I wasn't expecting that."

Satou snorted. "Neither were we. But it proves something fishy was going on in that building."

Well that was certainly true, the rabbit thought. Upstanding citizens didn't purchase buildings using the identities of long deceased men. On that note though, he'd suggested that the police check to see if said dead man had purchased any other property post mortem. If they were lucky, their culprits might have used the convenient identity more than once, thus giving them at least a fragment of a clue to work with.

Stopping outside the building where his last exam had taken place to turn his cell phone back on, Shinichi discovered that he had a text message from Kaito.

See you at 6.

He smiled and texted back an affirmative.

The fox's last exam was today as well, though it was scheduled slightly later than Shinichi's. Once he was done, they would both officially be on vacation. They had planned to celebrate together that evening.

Kaito had said he would bring dinner, so Shinichi had volunteered to provide dessert. They'd both agreed to keep it simple. With that in mind, Shinichi had decided that he was going to bake brownies.

Shinichi had found over the years that he sort of enjoyed cooking. At first, he had learned out of necessity.

His parents had been a footloose pair for pretty much as long as he could remember. When he'd been younger, they'd managed to limit their travels, but the older he'd gotten, the less restrained they'd become. It had probably helped (if that was the right word) that he had learned early on to be as self sufficient as possible. By the time he'd started middle school, his parents had decided that he was independent and responsible enough to be left to his own supervision and gone off globetrotting (or so Shinichi preferred to think of it. He knew that people like Ran had seen the situation very differently. She had, however, always been too polite to tell him to his face that she thought his parents were being horribly irresponsible).

When Ran had realized just how much time Shinichi was alone at home, she'd taken it upon herself to teach him to cook. As she'd said, she couldn't help him remember to eat, but she could make sure he could make something better than toast when he did remember.

Nowadays, Shinichi was proud to say that he was at least a passable cook. And though he wouldn't want to do it every day, he did find the activity therapeutic. As a homicide detective, he saw so much loss and death on a regular basis that it was a relief to be able to spend some time doing something productive—to be able to create something positive and helpful to the world, even if it was only in some small way.

He'd looked up a brownie recipe the night before, so he stopped by a grocery store on the way home to purchase the ingredients he'd need. He was standing in line to check out when he thought he felt eyes on him.

Shinichi stiffened. Quickly, he scanned the grocery store's other patrons, searching for anyone suspicious, but no one stood out.

And the feeling had gone.

Had he imagined it?

Distracted and suddenly in a rush to get home, he paid for his purchases and bolted out the door—to crash straight into a familiar feline.

Sonoko let out a shriek of surprise as Shinichi bowled her over, sending the both of them sprawling across the sidewalk.

Shinichi apologized hastily and helped her up.

"What is wrong with you?" she complained as she brushed herself off. "You should watch where you're going. You could have knocked us both into the street!"

He sighed. "I said I'm sorry. I was just in a bit of a hurry."

"It's all right," Ran said, moving to help him collect his spilled groceries. "No one was hurt. Though you really should be more careful. By the way, are you making brownies?"

Seeing no reason to deny it, Shinichi nodded. "Yeah. I found a recipe I wanted to try out."

The brunette smiled. "Would you like some help?"

"Thanks for the offer, but I can manage."

"Why are you making brownies anyway?" Sonoko asked. "You've never had a sweet tooth before."

Shinichi fought valiantly not to blush and to instead portray a calm, casual expression. "I just figured it would be a nice change of pace. You know, to unwind since my exams are over."

The cat hybrid gave him this long, considering look that screamed disbelief. "Really?"

Beneath her scrutiny, Shinichi could feel himself losing the battle to the blush. He knew it would be a terrible mistake, but he couldn't help it. "So what?"

Sonoko stared at him for a moment longer then gasped suddenly. "Don't tell me. You met someone, didn't you?!"

Shinichi choked on thin air. "What? No! What are you talking about?"

His hasty denial was rendered even less effective by the way he immediately blushed bright red, but he wasn't about to let that stop him from claiming ignorance.

"Oh my god, you did!" the cat girl shrieked.

"You're crazy! That's not it at all," Shinichi spluttered. "I'm just making a thank you present," he invented. "I ran into a difficult case the other day, and this guy lent me a hand."

"Oh really?" Sonoko drawled, clearly unimpressed.

"Really," Shinichi insisted.

"Just a thank you present."

"Exactly."

"For a guy who helped you at a case."

"…That's right."

The cat's lips curling into a sly grin. "Is he hot?"

Shinichi thought of depthless indigo eyes and a wicked, razor-edged grin that never failed to make his heart skip a beat and blushed harder.

What he said, however, was, "How would I know?"

He couldn't blame Sonoko for her disbelieving look. He wouldn't have believed him either.

Sonoko leaned forward like a shark scenting blood in the water, and Shinichi turned desperate, pleading eyes on Ran.

The brunette rabbit hybrid coughed into her hand in a manner that looked suspiciously like she was hiding a laugh. "We should probably get going if we want to make it to the club before the party starts," she said, tugging gently on Sonoko's arm. "Some of the girls in our fashion history elective are throwing a birthday party for the class TA," she added to Shinichi. "Anyway, I hope those brownies turn out well."

"Thanks," Shinichi said, though his gratitude was directed more at her rescuing him from Sonoko than at her well wishes.

But of course Sonoko, being Sonoko, had to have the last word.

"Don't forget to get his number!"

Shinichi rolled his eyes and set off for home, having completely forgotten about the sensation of being watched.

-0-

"What is this?" Shinichi demanded, holding up the outfit Sonoko had shoved into his arms. "You never said anything about costumes."

"This celebration is being thrown by the Student Cultural Association," the petit girl shot back. "And we're doing foods from a variety of cultures. It's only natural that the people serving each cultural food should be dressed for the part."

"But I never agreed to this," the bunny detective complained.

"Ran's not complaining about hers," Sonoko pointed out, gesturing to Ran, who had already changed into her Shinto priestess outfit and was already turning heads.

Shinichi just scowled harder. "That's because you told her, and she agreed. Don't think I didn't notice that she wasn't surprised when you pulled out her costume."

Sonoko rolled her eyes. "It's just a kimono! It's not like it's inappropriate. Honestly, you'd think I was asking you to wear slinky lingerie in public!"

"That's not the problem and you know it," Shinichi argued, not willing to give in yet.

In truth, Sonoko was right. There was nothing technically indecent about the outfit she was trying to force on him. There was just one problem with it, and that was the fact that the outfit was one of the variations on traditional Japanese garb that had been developed after the Advent to show off a hybrid's tail.

Tail etiquette among hybrids was complicated and varied greatly from animal type to animal type. The fact was that tails and ears were among each hybrid type's most distinguishing features. The fashion industry had thus naturally latched onto them—as had pretty much every other form of self expression. Quite a lot of people enjoyed showing off their tails. Looking at someone's tail, therefore, was nothing unusual. For hybrids with short tails like bears and rabbits, however, fashions that showed off their tails quite naturally showed off certain other anatomical aspects as well.

Say what you like, but Shinichi had never been—and would never be—comfortable with or thrilled at parading around in clothes meant to make people look at his butt.

In his daily life, he tended to wear jackets and shirts that were long enough in the back to cover his tail, and he avoided the showier fashions like the plague despite all attempts by his mother to enhance his wardrobe. It was a habit he'd developed to try and stave off unwanted attention. It had been an unpleasant shock to him in the past just how often people (likely laboring under that loathsome belief that rabbit hybrids were easy) had tried to come onto him by touching his tail despite the fact that it was commonly considered rudely intimate with short-tailed hybrids to touch said appendages without permission (it was, after all, one short step away from grabbing their backsides. Things were very different for hybrids with long tails, where said appendages were generally treated more like additional limbs. Indeed, it was second nature for long-tailed hybrids with dexterous tails like monkeys to use said tails like extra hands).

The first time Shinichi had been on the receiving end of such an unwanted advance, he'd only been in middle school, and he'd been so shocked that he hadn't reacted right away. The presumptuous upperclassman had mistaken his lack of response for consent and attempted to kiss him—at which point Shinichi had snapped back to his senses and kneed said upperclassman so hard in the groin that he'd had to be carried to the school infirmary (where he'd had to stay for the remaining hours of the school day).

Sonoko shook the outfit at him again, clearly having no intentions of letting him off the hook.

"I know you don't like showing off your tail, but you're going to be behind the counter," she said impatiently. "No one's going to see. Although seriously, maybe it's time you start showing off that nice figure of yours a little more. You won't find your perfect college romance if you don't put in a little effort to look good."

"And when exactly did I say I was looking for a college romance?" Shinichi retorted, folding his arms stubbornly.

"Get moving, people!" someone at the front of the classroom that the association had reserved for use by the staff during the event called out. "We want everything to go live at ten!"

Sonoko cast a quick look at the clock on the wall, which announced that it was twenty minutes to opening, scowled and pushed the bundle of clothes into Shinichi's arms.

"You have two choices," she said sweetly. "Put these on or swap costumes with Mako-chan and run the crape stall. You two are about the same size. So her costume should fit you perfectly and vice versa."

Shinichi blanched. If they were being dressed in costumes people associated with the cultures connected to their foods then he had a pretty good idea what Mako-chan's outfit probably was. Just to be sure though, he turned and peeked across the room to where the Sheba hybrid was double checking the flavors written out on the menu sign for the crape stall. As he'd predicted, the girl was wearing a hybrid-adaptation of a frilly, French maid outfit embellished with a tiara that complimented her ears and thigh-high stockings.

"So?" Sonoko said slyly. "Would you like to switch with her? That bow on the back of her dress would hide that tail you're so touchy about."

For a moment, Shinichi imagined how embarrassing it would be if KID arrived at the event to see the bunny detective serving crapes in a maid outfit. Admittedly, Shinichi had the sneaking suspicion that the fox would enjoy that very much (and a traitorous little part of him kind of wanted to try it just to see what would happen—maybe even tease the thief a little. His imagination seized on the scenario without his permission and raced gleefully away with it).

Realizing that he was beginning to grow rather warm, Shinichi hastily squashed that train of thought. This was not the time.

"I'll wear the kimono," he relented with a sigh and took the bundle of clothes to the bathrooms across the hall to change.

Fifteen minutes later, as students and faculty members alike poured onto the open athletics field that had been transformed into the site of the day's celebration, Shinichi found himself standing behind the counter of a small vendor's booth offering mochi. There were red bean ones, fruity ones, and peanut ones, each sold in little, artistically decorated boxes provided by one of the school's arts and crafts clubs.

Shinichi couldn't help but notice the giant, cardboard rabbit someone had set up as his stall's sign. It even had a little expository placard reviewing the myth of the rabbit on the moon (along with a note reminding visitors that all proceeds from the day's events would be donated to local museums and their educational programs).

So it seemed he hadn't been recruited last minute for this position after all, he thought. Sonoko had planned this booth with either him or Ran in mind. Go figure.

Though, deep down, he had to admit that the integration of their hybrid species with the foods they were selling and the myths related to them was quite a good move.

He had a feeling that Sonoko might have a talent for marketing if she ever chose to walk that route.

"You can eat some of the mochi if you want," she told him as she helped him stack his inventory boxes behind the counter. "Just don't overdo it."

"What's Ran selling?" he asked, glancing at the next stall over where Ran was also busy setting up. Her station appeared to be equipped with actual cooking equipment.

"She's in charge of the takoyaki since they have to be cooked on the spot to be really good. She made a test batch the other day, and everyone on the planning committee agreed they were awesome."

"I guess that makes sense."

Shinichi double checked that the register was working, made sure all the boxes of mochi were in order, then settled onto the stool behind his designated counter (he would have to stand while actually operating the booth, but someone had been thoughtful enough to provide the seat for lulls in activity).

Sonoko did her own review of the booth then clapped her hands together. "We open in five minutes. Remember to smile. And don't find any dead people. Got it?"

"I have no control over that," he pointed out, deadpan, only to quail under her stormy glower. "But I'll do my best."

"You better." Parting shot had, the cat hybrid moved on to check in with Ran.

Left alone, Shinichi took a moment to simply breathe and bask in what he was sure was going to be the last few moments of peace he had for at least the next few hours. Sonoko had signed him up to run the mochi stall for the first and last shifts of the day.

He wondered idly if the other volunteers who would be staffing this stall would be rabbit hybrids too. He made a mental note to check later. If they were, he would have to find a way to warn them as he had Ran to be especially vigilant for the foreseeable future. The police had issued a press release on the matter, but not everyone paid attention to those.

He should probably start planning how he might do so. He wouldn't want to sound like some random, paranoid crazy person. Hopefully, his fame as a detective would help with that.

Gradually, the air began to fill with the murmur of cheerful voices, and he knew that the visitors were starting to trickle in.

The thought sent a thrill of answering excitement up his spine. His anticipation, however had nothing to do with the event and everything to do with a certain fox who had promised that he would be coming.

Had Kaito arrived yet?

Shinichi was on his feet and scanning the thickening crowds before he'd consciously decided to move. He knew he shouldn't let his eagerness show. He wasn't supposed to be expecting anyone. But he couldn't help himself.

Fortunately—or unfortunately, depending on perspective—his movement caught the attention of a pair of passing squirrel hybrids, both of whom light up at the sight of the sign promising mochi from the Hanazuki Sweets shop. Their excited chatter informed Shinichi that said shop was recently featured by a major culinary magazine. This news and the two girls' animated discussion of it almost immediately began to draw a crowd.

The next thing Shinichi knew, a line was growing rapidly in front of his stall.

The rush of customers soon pushed all other thoughts to the back of his mind. He'd never realized mochi was so popular. They were all but flying off his metaphorical shelves, and he went from wondering if Sonoko had ordered too much stock to worrying that she'd ordered too little. Lucky for him, neither possibility was strictly his problem. He just had to keep the mochi flowing over the counters and counting the money coming the other way.

It was easy but hectic, fast-paced work that left little to no time for extraneous thoughts. And because of it, he was caught entirely off guard when the next customer stepped up to the counter and asked for one box of original red bean mochi and one box of strawberry mochi in a smooth, masculine voice that sent shivers racing up and down Shinichi's spine and made his ears stand up.

Shinichi had ducked down to move some of the boxes stacked in the crates on the ground up to fill the empty spaces on the counter, but the sound of that voice had him jerking upright so fast that he nearly hit his head on the underside of said counter.

He missed though and emerged only mildly less embarrassed than he might have been had he actually hit his head.

And there, standing on the other side of the counter and smiling at him, was the man he'd been waiting for (and dreaming about every night since his rescue).

His trickster knight, all tall and lightly tan, with a wild mop of windswept hair that should have looked like a ridiculous mess but instead looked ridiculously stylish, the perfect compliment to his mischievous, slightly crooked grin. He was every inch the charming rogue, eyes gleaming with the promise of thrilling adventures and long, romantic nights.

For a moment, Shinichi couldn't breathe.

It was strange. He had seen the thief's real face several times now—spent hours with him talking over meals and books like they'd known each other much longer than they had. And yet, somehow, seeing him here now felt completely different.

It was only now that they were here that Shinichi realized that perhaps part of him still hadn't quite believed that this—that they—were real.

But now they were here, standing on their university campus with the sun shining bright overhead, surrounded by other people.

And suddenly it was real.

Shinichi felt like he had woken up from a beautiful daydream to the breathtaking discovery that it hadn't been a daydream at all but an amazing, incredible reality.

It was only now that it truly struck him that KID—Kaito—was now an actual part of his life.

And that he just might be here to stay.

It was a dizzying realization—wonderful and terrifying and utterly unbelievable except that it was right in front of him.

It was only when spots began dancing in front of his eyes that Shinichi realized his lightheadedness was due at least in part to the fact that he had actually stopped breathing.

"O—oh, uh, one red bean, one strawberry, right?" he half gasped, half stammered.

Kaito smiled, and Shinichi could feel himself flushing pink. "That's right."

Shinichi swallowed and busied himself locating the correct mochi boxes as he ordered himself to get a grip. He placed two boxes of mochi on the counter and rattled off the price on autopilot.

Kaito already had the money ready. Their hands touched when when he passed it over, and the fox lingered, letting his fingertips trail lightly over Shinichi's hand before withdrawing. It sent another shiver up Shinichi's spine, and the blush he'd just managed to quash returns.

"Hey, sorry if I'm wrong, but are you Kudo Shinichi?" Kaito asked, somehow managing to make the question sound genuine.

"You're not wrong," Shinichi replied.

The fox beamed. "Cool. I've never met a real detective before."

Shinichi just barely managed to swallow a snort of laughter at that outrageous lie. Before he could come up with a suitable comment that also wouldn't blow their cover, however, the fox hybrid had swept up the mochi boxes, tucked them under one arm, and extended his other arm to offer Shinichi a single, crimson rose that popped seemingly out of nowhere.

"It's a pleasure to meet you," he said with a charming smile that made Shinichi's knees go weak. "I'm Kuroba Kaito, by the way. Feel free to call me Kaito."

Shinichi accepted the rose (though not without a certain amount of nervous looking around to see if anyone was watching). "It's nice to meet you too. I…take it you're also a student here?"

"Sophomore engineering and computer science major with a minor in chemistry," Kaito supplied. Before he could say more though, the person in line behind him let out a loud and very pointed cough.

"Sorry. I guess I'd better move. Wouldn't want to hold up business." The fox made to step aside but hesitated. "By the by, will you be here all day?"

Shinichi blinked. Kaito was going off script. He was supposed to say "See you around" then take his leave.

"Only for the first and last shift."

"So your first shift would end at…?"

"My first shift ends at noon," the detective said cautiously. "Why do you ask?"

"Well, if you don't have any other plans, I was hoping you'd have lunch with me."

Oh. So that was what the fox was up to. Shinichi really shouldn't be surprised, but he was nonetheless. Some warning would have been nice, but, well, if they were going to move their relationship into the daylight, it had to start somewhere. This was faster than the detective had expected—but maybe not faster than he was ready for.

Shinichi cleared his throat as he reminded himself not to look too eager (it would be unnatural). "I'll think about it."

Kaito's smile broadened, and there was laughter and warmth in his eyes. "I'll be back at noon then."

Chapter Text

Shinichi sensed Kaito before he saw him. It was in the weight of an intense gaze and the prickling of warning across his scalp that whispered predator to his subconscious mind. Unprompted, Shinichi looked up from the register to scan the crowd.

His searching eyes found Kaito almost immediately. The fox caught his gaze and winked.

Shinichi could feel a flush climbing into his cheeks, so he forced himself to look away and respond to the next two customers. Then there was a lull, and, so abruptly that Shinichi could almost believe the man had teleported, Kaito was there.

"Hey there," he said by way of greeting. "You ready to go?"

"I need to wait for the volunteer who has the next shift," Shinichi replied, checking his watch and seeing that there was at least another five minutes before said next volunteer would be late. "Once they get here, I can go."

It was only then that he noticed that the fox was now empty-handed.

"How was the mochi?"

Kaito blinked in what appeared to be honest confusion, followed Shinichi's gaze to his empty hands then laughed. "Oh. Actually, I haven't tried them yet. The two boxes I got earlier were for my friend Aoko. She's running the trivia games booth, but something got mixed up, and some of their original prizes didn't come through. So I volunteered to gather a few suitable replacements for them."

"I didn't know there was a trivia booth," Shinichi commented, interest piqued. Can anyone play?"

"As far as I know, sure. Are you interested? Their booth's on the way to the picnic tables. We could stop by before we get lunch."

Shinichi smiled. "I'd like that."

Reaching under the counter, he pulled out a box of red bean mochi and set aside the lid, revealing four soft, beautifully round white treats. "Here. Try one. I think I'm allowed one box of each flavor or something as the person running the stall."

"Those are perks I can get behind," the fox said with a grin. "You sure it's all right for you to share them though?"

"I don't see why not."

Putting actions to his words, Shinichi picked up one squishy treat and offered it to the fox. Instead of taking the mochi, however, Kaito took Shinichi's wrist and lifted it so that he could duck his head and pluck the soft sweet treat directly from Shinichi's fingertips with his mouth. Then he drew back, chewed thoughtfully and swallowed.

"It's good," he pronounced. "You should try one too."

Shinichi reclaimed his hand the instant the fox's grip loosened like he'd been burned and tried very hard not to think about either how Kaito's larger hand had felt around his wrist (warm and strong) or the sensation of Kaito's soft lips brushing lightly over his fingertips as he'd stolen the proffered treat.

Swallowing hard, he snatched up another mochi and shoved the whole thing into his mouth at once to delay any further talking. He tried to ignore the amused gleam he could see dancing in those captivating, indigo eyes.

Shinichi's relief came in the form of a small, ginger-haired rabbit hybrid who, despite her diminutive size, turned out to be a professor in hybrid sociology (and the faculty advisor for the Student Cultural Association, which sort of explained her presence. Sonoko had wanted this stall staffed entirely by rabbit hybrids, but she hadn't found enough of them, especially with Ran being assigned to the takoyaki, and so had made the bold decision to approach the professor herself). She had already been contacted by the police and read their press release regarding shady outfits looking to kidnap rare hybrids. But she thanked him for the reminder and insisted that he save her contact information should any further developments on that front come to light. She would, he could already tell, be an excellent resource for disseminating subtle warnings and the like through the student body.

Business settled, Kaito and Shinichi left the mochi stall behind.

It was only as he felt the weight of Kaito's arm over his shoulders, guiding him through the various booths, that Shinichi realized with a start that he had been asked on—and just accepted—his first real date (the various outings Sonoko had forced him into with potential partners she'd picked out for him over the years didn't count).

He was on an honest to goodness date with none other than the Kaitou KID.

In broad daylight.

On his—their—very own university campus.

Part of Shinichi felt as though something was about to go terribly wrong. Someone was going to drop dead any minute now, or someone else was going to come running up to announce that there had been a major accident. Maybe some of the vendors from different stalls would get into an altercation. Or maybe one of that huge long line of customers salivating after Ran's takoyaki would take a bite of their savory treats and go into a seizure.

There were, literally, thousands of ways things could very abruptly go extremely, criminally, and even fatally wrong. Shinichi had already witnessed hundreds in his short lifetime and read about hundreds more. Not a week went by during which he couldn't add a few more cases to the list. Sonoko was, after all, well justified in accusing him of being some kind of living crime radar.

Of course, Shinichi was aware that his experiences were not representative of the norm—far from it (and thank god for that or the world would probably have ended already).

The strangest thing about his and Kaito's stroll through the rest of the Cultural Association's festival was that nothing strange happened. Everything was, for all intents and purposes, normal (as defined by people who were not Shinichi).

It was actually a little bit disconcerting (which said a lot about Shinichi's life, none of it complimentary) but definitely not unwelcome.

Shinichi discovered quite quickly that Kuroba Kaito was apparently quite well known around their campus. Every other person they passed seemed to be a friend, a classmate, an acquaintance or a fan. Cheerful greetings and well wishes followed them from the mochi stand all the way through the festival grounds as they made their way towards the picnic tables that had been set up near the main hot food stands. Listening to the chatter, Shinichi deduced that the fox had put on a magic show as part of the school's new year's celebration the previous year, and just about everyone who'd seen it had been so impressed that Kaito had subsequently received a deluge of requests to perform at parties and assorted venues. He'd even MCed for the wedding between two graduating seniors.

None of that really came as a surprise though. Kaitou KID had always been charismatic. And no one who'd ever attended one of KID's heists could doubt his skill in his chosen art.

What did surprise Shinichi, however, was the realization of just how many activities Kaito had to be juggling on a daily basis. In addition to his coursework, Kaito was actively building a career as a professional magician while also participating in the university drama club, the robotics club, and the outdoors club.

"What's the outdoors club?" Shinichi asked, puzzled. "It can't be people who like to be outside…"

Kaito laughed. "Yes and no. It's more like extreme outdoor sports and generally trying out cool outdoor activities. We do weekend trips for skydiving, kayaking, rock climbing and the like. It's a lot of fun. There's a lot to learn, and there's plenty of thinking on your feet. You should consider joining. Last summer, we organized a survival week in the mountains. We hired an instructor and everything. It was quite the adventure—and beautiful too."

"I'll think about it," Shinichi said. He enjoyed learning new things, but his life was so eventful already that he tended to prefer his downtime be more relaxing (and preferably involve a book). And speaking of his eventful life… "I'm afraid trips like that always end in murder for me."

Over the years, quite a lot of groups had ended up disbanded after Shinichi's first visit because of murder in the ranks.

Kaito just laughed. "They can't all do that."

"You'd be surprised," Shinichi muttered.

"Besides," the fox went on, undeterred. "You'd be going with me. Between the two of us, I'm sure we could head off any trouble before it got too serious."

Shinichi thought that sounded a little like tempting fate, but he reiterated that he'd think about it.

"Where do you find the time to do all these things?" the rabbit couldn't help but wonder. "I mean seriously, do you ever sleep?"

"I'm just awesome that way," the fox boasted. "Besides," he added, dropping his voice so that no one would overhear. "Better busy than bored, remember?"

Shinichi's lips twitched in contained amusement. "I remember, but there's busy and then there's this."

Kaito just snickered.

They reached the trivia stand that Kaito had said his friend was running, and Shinichi got another surprise.

Kaito had mentioned his friend Aoko several times during their conversations, but he had somehow failed to mention that the girl was none other than Nakamori-keibu's daughter.

Shinichi had seen the girl before at KID heists (she was hard to miss, considering she often came brandishing anti-KID signs, which tended to stand out against the seas of KID fans which was the typical backdrop to KID heists), but he'd never traded more than a passing greeting with her.

"It's really nice to meet you officially," she said, sticking out her hand for Shinichi to shake. "I know you work with my father a lot."

"I try," Shinichi said diplomatically as most of his dealings with Nakamori revolved around the man shouting at him to stay out of the way.

Aoko probably knew this because she giggled, looking amused and chagrined at the same time. "He can be a bit…passionate. It hurts his pride to need help, especially from people he thinks are still children, but I'm glad you can be there to watch his back anyway, even if he doesn't want it." Her face grew more somber then. "He's not getting any younger. I'm worried sometimes that he's going to overdo it and hurt himself. But on the other hand, it keeps his mind and body active, so maybe it's a good thing that KID's around. At least he's nonviolent. And he keeps Dad motivated to keep learning and coming up with new ideas."

Shinichi couldn't help but steal a sideways glance at Kaito. Then he realized that doing so was precisely the kind of action that might give their game away and hastened to change the subject.

"So how does this trivia game work? I thought you'd have a game show type setup, but this doesn't look like that. And I think I see a list of names there with points next to them. What do they represent?"

"Oh that." Aoko brightened, switching gears instantly. "Let me explain. We didn't want a game that required time blocks with contestants and all that, so what we did is we created bunches and bunches of culture and mythology-based trivia questions and ranked their difficulty from easy to insane. Each level of question has a different point value. Each person who wants to challenge the trivia gets ten minutes. During that ten minutes, you can choose any level question from any category like in a game show. If you get the answer right, you get all the points. If you get it wrong, you lose that many points. You answer as many questions as you can during your ten minutes. At the end, we total up your score and add you to the scoreboard. This evening, when the event is coming to a close, we'll announce who got the highest scores. The participants who end up in the first through sixth places all get prizes. And we have school pens for everyone who participates."

"Is sounds like fun," Shinichi said. "Can I register?"

"Of course." Aoko handed him a registration card then glowered at Kaito when he held out his hand. "Don't even think about it. You wrote more than half these questions. So no trivia participation for you."

"Fine, fine," Kaito said, raising both his hands in a placating manner though he looked, to Shinichi's eye, a tiny bit disappointed. "I'll just cheer Shinichi on."

Aoko's eyebrows shot up. "You're already on first name basis with Kudo-kun?"

"Well, I told him to call me Kaito, so I figured it was only fair."

"Bakaito, that's not how it works!" the girl huffed before turning to Shinichi. "I'm really sorry about him. He's never been great with manners."

"Hey!" Kaito squawked, indignant. "I resent that. My manners are impeccable."

Shinichi hid a smile behind his registration card. "It's okay. I don't really mind."

Kaito looked smug. "You see?"

Shinichi decided to head off further bickering by asking to start his round of trivia. Aoko wasn't the only person overseeing participants, but, as the person who'd explained the rules to him, she clearly felt it was her responsibility to facilitate his game.

Ten minutes later, Shinichi's name was added to the scoreboard in slot number three—a racnk which surprised him since he'd used up a lot of time on the two 'insane' level questions he'd challenged himself with (both of which had more than earned their label). Those questions had, however, also netted him a considerable chunk of points, so he supposed they must have balanced out.

"Congrats." The fox flashed him a charming grin that made Shinichi's insides turn abruptly into warm fluff. "I didn't actually expect anyone who wasn't majoring in ancient Japanese literature to get that last one."

Shinichi was rather embarrassed by just how pleased that made him.

"Don't forget to come back when closing time comes around to check whether you've won anything," Aoko reminded them before they left. "Oh, and here's your commemorative pen."

Shinichi smiled and accepted the rather sleek, black and gold pen. "Thank you, and I'll remember."

"We're going to get lunch now," Kaito added. "You want us to bring you anything, Ahoko?"

Aoko rolled her eyes but thought about it and nodded. "Actually, yeah. I could use something to eat. But I don't want it to be sweet. Just—find me a sandwich or something. Unless you find someone doing fruit smoothies, I could totally go for one of those. I didn't realize it was going to get so hot today."

"Right then. We'll see you in a few."

Just as he looped his arm through Shinichi's to tug him away from the trivia games booth, Kaito found himself face to face with a very familiar blond dog hybrid.

"Kuroba!" the newcomer exclaimed, jerking back from the near collision and scowling at the fox. "Watch where you're going."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. Move it, will you? Shinichi and I have some fine dining to hunt down."

"Shinichi?" Hakuba's eyebrows shot up before he spotted Shinichi and they rose even higher in surprised recognition before lowering again in a dark scowl.

"And what exactly are you doing with Kudo-kun?" the blonde demanded like he thought he had caught Kaito in the midst of pulling a nefarious con on Shinichi.

"I'm taking him to lunch, obviously," the fox replied, the picture of innocence. "I literally just told you that."

"But…when…how did you…"

"If you're asking how we met, I was at the mochi stall when he came off shift, and he said he hadn't eaten yet. I hadn't either, so I asked if he'd like to join me."

"And he agreed?"

"I didn't kidnap him, if that's what you're asking."

Shinichi observed the interaction with a certain level of bemusement. First Nakamori-keibu's daughter, and now the son of a police superintendent who also happened to be a detective in his own right. Kaito was sure acquainted with a lot of law-enforcement types as a civilian for someone moonlighting as a thief. Shinichi wondered idly if that made the fox's job easier or harder. He could see it going both ways—maybe even both at once, come to think of it.

"Excuse me," Shinichi said politely into a pause in the interrogation (that was going nowhere fast). "Is there a problem? Only I would really like to get something to eat before I have to go back to tending the mochi stall."

Hakuba apologized for holding them up even though he looked like he sort of wanted to say that yes, there was a problem. He clearly felt this wasn't the time for the conversation he wanted to have however, as all he said was, "It was a pleasure seeing you again, Kudo-san. I hope we have the chance to speak more extensively soon."

Kaito rolled his eyes but Shinichi subtly elbowed him to tell him to stay quiet before they ended up stuck here for the rest of Shinichi's break. The fox must have gotten the hint because he refrained from further comment until they were well out of earshot of both canine hybrids.

"There are days when I seriously wish he'd gone to England for university," he told Shinichi. "Except, if he had, I suppose Aoko would have wanted to go too, and then I wouldn't be able to keep an eye on her."

"I didn't know you and Hakuba-san were friends," Shinichi commented, unable to keep the hint of amusement from his voice. "For a thief, you seem to spend a lot of your free time around law enforcement types."

The fox pulled a disgusted face and mimed gagging for emphasis. "That nuisance is not my friend. He's the annoying guy my best friend had the poor taste to fall in love with and who I must therefore tolerate."

"I'm guessing the tolerating goes both ways," the rabbit observed. "He knows you're KID."

It wasn't a question. He'd seen it in the blonde's eyes and suspicious demeanor.

Kaito scoffed. "He suspects. But he can't prove it. He was a huge pain back in high school when he was always trying to find ways to out me, especially to Aoko since, ah…" Kaito hesitated a moment, steeling a glance at Shinichi's curious face. Then he let his breath out in a rush and plunged onward. "Aoko and I dated a bit while we were in high school, and he was jealous. He wanted to show her that I wasn't the man she thought I was and that I was just using her for her connection to the police or some nonsense like that. She wouldn't buy it though, and he eventually realized that trying too hard to prove it to her would only alienate her. Well, that and he finally got it through his thick skull that I wasn't taking advantage of Aoko for her contacts. So he stopped accusing me at every opportunity."

"So you two have sort of reached a truce."

"Sort of. He doesn't pry too much into my work outside a heist, and I occasionally give him tips on how to make Aoko happy. That's the one thing we can agree on, so it works out. We both want Aoko to be happy."

Shinichi nodded slowly, thinking that over and trying to pick through the tangle of feelings that had arisen in himself at the story.

"So you and Aoko-san were together in high school."

"For only about a year at the start of it. But…well, then I started my night job, and it started taking up more and more of my time and attention. That, and the secrets just kept piling up. We…drifted apart. By the start of senior year, we were basically back to being like siblings. Although, to be honest, when I look back, I don't think we were ever really meant to be. We cared—care—about each other, but there was always something missing. And it took us the year or so we tried being together to realize it wasn't something we would find. Although sometimes I think the missing piece was all on my end, and Aoko just finally accepted it and realized it was time to move on."

Kaito fell silent then, lost in old memories. The melancholy in his eyes looked wrong to Shinichi, who was accustomed to seeing them sparkling with mischief and wicked schemes and delight for the game and the challenge of the race.

Reaching out on an impulse, he laid a hand on Kaito's arm. The fox stopped walking in surprise to look at him, and Shinichi smiled, tilting his head back a little so that he could look the fox in the eyes.

"Whatever happened, you two have clearly moved past it. I can tell just by watching you two. And if you're both happy where you are now then that's all that matters."

The thief blinked once, slowly, then broke into a lopsided smile so tender that it made Shinichi's breath catch.

"You're right. And thank you."

It was Shinichi's turn to blink. "For what?"

"For being here. With me. For listening. For understanding. For being you."

Shading deeply pink at the magician's soft and heartfelt words, Shinichi started to speak, realized he had absolutely no idea what to say, and ended up just standing there looking like an idiot.

Kaito seemed to get what he was feeling though and laughed. The fox reached over to ruffle Shinichi's hair then took his hand and gave it a tug.

"Come," he said. "I did promise you lunch. So what would you like?"

Chapter Text

Bidding his final customer a good evening, Shinichi let out a heartfelt sigh of relief and sank onto the stool behind his counter. There was still ten minutes or so left to his shift, but every flavor of mochi had sold out, so he was officially closed. He even found a sign that announced it for him in the very bottom of one of the boxes that the mochi stock had been stacked in. He had to hand it to whoever had done the inventory for his stall. They'd thought of everything and gotten the numbers almost spot on.

Despite how exhausted he was though, Shinichi could honestly say that he had never enjoyed a school social event so much. He hadn't even really minded tending the stall once he got over the fact that he hadn't been given a choice about it (and been forced into clothes he wouldn't normally wear on top of that. Although the embarrassing truth was that he had sort of stopped minding the outfit after the sixth time he caught Kaito ogling him when the fox thought he wasn't looking. But the fact that he thought something good had come of the outfit Sonoko had chosen for him was a secret Shinichi was going to take with him to the grave. He shuddered to imagine what would happen if she were ever to find out).

Taking a water bottle from the small cooler of water bottles that had been provided for those tending the stall, he twisted off the cap and took a long, grateful gulp. The water was no longer cold after spending the very hot day out in the semi-open, but it still provided a welcome reprieve from the heat.

Shinichi took another, smaller sip and let his mind drift back over the day.

He and Kaito had sampled food from a variety of stalls. The fox, it turned out, had both a discerning pallet and a voracious appetite. Shinichi had been awestruck by just how much food both sweet and savory that Kaito had managed to pack away. Then he'd thought of the insane list of activities that Kaito had called his schedule and figured that anyone who did that much probably needed to eat like a black hole or run out of steam.

Shinichi had a friend in Osaka who was also a big eater constantly on the hunt for good cuisine, and he idly toyed with the idea of possibly introducing the two sometime.

After lunch, they had wandered from stall to stall, trying out the various games and studying the informational posters and artworks that had been set up in the larger pavilions. If Shinichi had been alone, he would probably have wandered through those educational exhibits, reading the plaques and taking it all in then left, enlightened but still very much an inquisitive mind alone.

Visiting the art and history pavilions with Kaito, however, was an entirely different experience. The magician knew more than enough to give him and everyone near them an in-depth, guided tour of the various artistic styles and historical events being showcased, and Kaito was definitely showing off, but it was more than that too. He pulled in the Cultural Association representatives tending the pavilion for lively discussions and to share funny anecdotes that eventually drew in everyone who'd been visiting the exhibit at the time.

As a result, Shinichi was pretty sure that everyone who had been at those exhibits while he and Kaito had been there would retain a lot more of the information they'd learned there than they might otherwise have.

And the thought was nice, he mused, because spreading knowledge and promoting understanding of different peoples and cultures was, he believed, essential to building a more peaceful and happy society.

Really, the more time he spent with Kaito, the more amazing he realized that the fox hybrid was. He had a charisma and charm that just drew people in.

Kaito could probably take over the world if he wanted to. And wasn't that a scary thought? Except it wasn't because, in his heart, Kaito was a decent man who upheld values that Shinichi could respect. There would doubtless be a lot of crazy and a lot of flash and flare in a world Kaito ruled, but it would almost certainly be fun.

"What are you thinking about?"

Startled by the sound of someone speaking from right behind him, Shinichi spun around on his stool to find Ran standing behind him, looking at him from under one raised eyebrow.

He started to answer honestly then realized that telling her he had been imagining what the world would be like if it was ruled by Kaitou KID would probably not be a wise life decision. So instead he latched onto the next topic that came to mind.

"I was wondering if Sonoko would let me off the hook about attending the after party if "I told her I feel like a cooked noodle."

"And that was what made you smile?" Ran looked skeptical.

"Oh, uh, no. The smile was for the fact that my shift is over. We don't have to do cleanup, do we?"

"No, we don't," Ran agreed. "Sonoko says there's a different team of volunteers handling that. She has to stay here a little longer to supervise, but she says you and I can head over to Club Indigo first. The Cultural Association made reservations, but if a few of us don't show up on time, the reservation might get canceled."

Shinichi read between the lines and let out a groan of dismay. "So she wants us to go and hold their places."

Ran smiled a touch ruefully. "You got it. So, if you're ready, one of the senior club members will be giving us a ride."

Shinichi sighed but acquiesced to the inevitable. The truth, however, was that he wasn't really that annoyed at getting dragged to another party. Such social events had never been—and probably would never be—things that he enjoyed, but Kaito had mentioned that writing all those trivia questions for Aoko had earned him an invite to the after party as well.

For all that he had said goodbye to the fox only a short few hours ago, Shinichi found that he was already looking forward to seeing him again. It was a new feeling for him as so many of the feelings he had around Kaito were, and he held it close to him as he followed Ran towards their ride, a treasured secret still too fragile to share.

-0-

Club Indigo occupied a three-story building close enough to their university campus to be popular with the student population. Shinichi had never been to the place, but he knew from Ran and Sonoko that it was considered to have excellent prices for quality food and beverages.

Inside, he was mildly surprised to see that the first two floors were actually a single, open space, with the "second floor" being a wide balcony running around along three sides of the space. Most of the tables were on that level, though there were some around the edges of the dance floor below as well.

The Cultural Association had reserved a swath of tables on the balcony level. There weren't nearly enough seats to accommodate the number of people Shinichi had been led to believe would be attending the party, but he supposed most of them probably didn't intend to spend said party at the tables anyway. The dance floor below was already buzzing with activity, and he was sure that a lot of his fellow students would be joining that crowd as soon as they arrived.

For his part, he was quite happy to occupy a chair in their reserved section and peruse the club's menu—which had surprised him with its extensive selection. Their reservation apparently included a certain selection of party-sized meal options and access to a smaller bar counter on the balcony level that, as part of whatever package the Cultural Association had chosen, would be serving a wide array of sodas, floats, juices, teas and milkshakes (since not everyone would be of legal drinking age, their package did not include alcoholic beverages, though Shinichi suspected that there would be students visiting the main bar counter in search of said beverages. And doubtless there would be a few who did so despite not being of legal age. He just hoped they knew not to get in over their heads. The club looked like a reputable one, and he'd only heard good things about it, but you never knew what kind of people you were going to run into in such crowded and chaotic places).

Considering the enormously long list of drinks available, Shinichi was somewhat dismayed to find that there was only one coffee option. But he decided he should just be grateful that there was one at all and asked for it.

By the time he got his drink, their reserved tables had filled up with students happily chattering away about the success of the festival. Others were already down on the dance floor or bouncing to the music right there on the balcony. A few were even singing along to the live band performing on the stage below.

Sonoko swung by then left again, dragging Ran with her, to go prowl the dance floor for potential partners. Shinichi retreated to a corner table after turning down five invitations to dance. Thanks to Sonoko's recent comments, he couldn't help but notice that all but one of those invitations had been extended by fox hybrids, both male and female. He wasn't sure what to make of that.

Speaking of foxes though, he hadn't seen Kaito yet. He knew the magician would be later as he was helping out with the festival cleanup, but surely more than enough time had passed for him to have finished and made his way to the club by now.

Shinichi scanned the crowds again, hopeful.

"My, my. I didn't know we were entertaining a celebrity this evening."

Startled by the unfamiliar voice speaking up from right beside his seat, Shinichi whipped around. He hadn't sensed anyone approaching, but there someone stood.

It was a man: tall, thin and definitely not a student. He was dressed in a sleek, well-tailored black suit and looked to be in his early to mid thirties. Blue black hair framed an aristocratic face and a pair of disconcertingly luminous, green yellow eyes.

It took Shinichi a moment to realize what was so creepy about that gaze.

The man wasn't blinking.

Those were reptile eyes, Shinichi thought. He'd heard that lizard hybrids had the dual lids of some reptiles. By closing their transparent, inner lids, they didn't have to blink. Hearing about it and seeing it, however, were very different things.

It was the first time in Shinichi's life that he had ever seen a lizard hybrid in person.

Shinichi realized with a start that he was staring and ducked his head in embarrassment. "I'm sorry. Were you speaking to me?"

The man looked amused. "I was. And I apologize. I did not mean to startle you. Let me introduce myself." He offered Shinichi his hand. "My name is Minazuki Aoi, and this is my club."

"You're the owner?" Shinichi asked, surprised. He shook the proffered hand, noting that the man's skin was rather cool to the touch. He wondered if it was true that lizard hybrids were cold blooded.

"Indeed."

Recalling his own manners, Shinichi introduced himself as well only to receive an amused half smile.

"I recognized you. As I said, I did not realize we were entertaining a celebrity tonight. If I had, I would have come to greet you much sooner."

"I'm just here with my classmates," Shinichi replied, slightly discomfited by the show of deference—especially here, surrounded by his peers. It made him feel awkward. And those unblinking eyes weren't helping. He couldn't tell if this man wanted something from him or if he was just there to see a semi-famous person up close.

He really didn't give off the kind of vibe Shinichi would expect from someone of the latter persuasion though.

On the other hand, Shinichi realized abruptly that, whether or not this Minazuki actually had anything important to say to him, Shinichi had something to say to Minazuki.

After all, if Sylva's lot were hunting for rabbit hybrids because of their rarity then surely they would be interested in lizard hybrids as well. They were even more scarce. They were also purported to have some extremely unique capabilities that would no doubt fascinate any scientists studying the differences between hybrids and whatever else Sylva's friends were interested in.

Casting a quick look around to make sure that no one was paying their corner of the seating area any attention at the moment, Shinichi took a deep breath and looked the older man square in the unblinking eyes. "Have you seen the press releases from the police recently?"

His question clearly caught the man by surprise as both his eyebrows went up, and he finally blinked his outer human lids (even if he did it only once). "No, I suppose I haven't. My work does tend to keep me quite busy. Why do you ask?"

"Well, since you've heard of me, I assume you know that I'm a detective."

"Indeed I do."

"Well, I'm currently helping the police on a case involving a series of kidnappings."

"That sounds ominous." The vaguely amused expression that Minazuki had been wearing throughout their conversation so far smoothed into one more solemn and inscrutable. "I must assume you bring this up now for good reason. We have private rooms upstairs. Perhaps we should continue this conversation in one of those. I would not wish for any of my guests to become unduly alarmed by what they might inadvertently overhear should we keep this discussion in the open."

Shinichi hesitated, casting another look over the Cultural Association's reserved seating area then down at the writhing mass of flailing limbs and gyrating bodies on the dance floor below. There was still no sign of Kaito.

"You are waiting for someone," the club's owner stated more than asked.

The man was observant, Shinichi thought. That was good.

"I told a friend I'd meet him here. I agree that this conversation may be better held in private, but I'd really prefer to be able to tell him where I'm going in case he thinks something happened."

The amused gleam returned to the lizard's green yellow eyes. "I suppose your life must be fraught with unexpected adventures." Pulling a dark blue card from an inside pocket of his suit, Minazuki handed it to Shinichi. "I have some business I need to attend to. But we can speak more on this matter once you have found your friend. Just show this card to the bear manning the elevator and he'll direct you to my office. If my door is still closed, just knock. If it's open then come right on in."

With that, he swept Shinichi a shallow bow then disappeared just as suddenly as he had arrived.

Left alone again and feeling a little off balance from the odd and very abrupt nature of the encounter with the owner of Club Indigo, Shinichi took a grateful swig of his dark, dark coffee (which was, it turned out, a delightfully rich and buttery smooth blend unlike any coffee he had ever tasted before). Then he settled down to examine the card he'd been given.

It was a business card, but one that had been printed on exceedingly rich, heavy stock. The front had Minazuki Aoi scrawled across it in an elegant, looping script. It provided a phone number and an email but little else. It did not include the club's name. The back of the card made no mention of Club Indigo either, although it did have an odd symbol on it. A symbol, now that Shinichi thought about it, that matched the lapel pin Minazuki had been wearing that Shinichi had paid only cursory attention to. Staring at it, he had the strangest sense that he should recognize that symbol, but he couldn't quite place it. His first thought had been that it was a stylized M and likely a reference to the lizard hybrid's family name, but that wouldn't explain the sense of familiarity.

The familiar scent reached Shinichi's nose just before the voice he'd been waiting for all this time reached his ears.

"Why are you sitting here in the corner all by yourself?"

Shinichi looked up just as Kaito dropped into the empty chair across the small table from him. He smiled.

"I was just talking to the owner, actually." He held up the business card as evidence.

The fox's eyebrows rose in genuine surprise. "You mean the owner of Club Indigo?"

"Yeah. I guess he recognized me, so he came to say hello. He's a lizard hybrid."

"Huh. You know, I don't believe I've ever actually met a lizard hybrid."

"I haven't either," Shinichi supplied. "They're really rare. So considering recent events…"

"You warned him?"

"Sort of. I mentioned the police press release, but he didn't want to discuss the issue here where it might disturb his guests. He said I should drop by his office sometime this evening before I leave."

Kaito frowned slightly then shrugged. "I doubt anyone would have heard anything in this ruckus, but I guess I can understand the precaution. Do you think he'd mind if I tagged along to your meeting?"

Shinichi shrugged. "I don't see why he would. I already told him I was waiting for a friend."

The magician looked oddly pleased by the perfectly ordinary statement. "Right. Well, did you want to get that out of the way now? Or would you like to eat first? Unless you've eaten already?"

"I haven't. I was waiting for you," Shinichi admitted.

Kaito's smile broadened. "Food first then."

Chapter Text

Kaito wasn't entirely sure what he had been expecting from the meeting with the owner of Club Indigo, but he did know that it wasn't for the man to listen intently to Shinichi's explanation and then offer to keep an eye out for suspicious characters just like that. And okay, it was a good thing that the man was so accommodating and, dare he say, helpful, but there was something about his solicitousness towards Shinichi that just didn't sit well with the thief.

The creepy way the man never blinked even once during the entire conversation didn't help. Although it did make Kaito wonder if he was judging the man unfairly due to his own unfamiliarity with lizard hybrids and their ways. It was well accepted that people's animal halves often could and did influence the ways in which they behaved, interacted and even thought, but lizards were so rare that Kaito didn't actually know anything about what their conventions might be. What he did know was mostly nearly mythical rumors about how they could regenerate their lost limbs and change their sexes whenever they felt like it—the latter of which was true for their animal halves but the former of which Kaito wasn't sure he believed at all.

Kaito would also freely admit that he may be letting some jealousy color his impression of the man as well. The intense interest in those reptile eyes aimed at his dear detective made the fox's possessive instinct rear its head and snarl.

But if he sat back and tried to look at the interview objectively, he knew that the real reason the man had bothered him was nothing to do with anything he'd said or done or agreed to do. It was instead the fact that Kaito, the master of the Poker Face, had found himself completely unable to read Minazuki Aoi.

This lizard hybrid club owner had a Poker Face that Kaito was sure even the great Kuroba Toichi couldn't have found fault in, and that was just aggravating on multiple levels.

It just screamed 'hiding something' to him.

But as they left the man's office, he noted that Shinichi seemed pleased with the outcome.

"It's always better when the people in charge are willing to help keep an eye out for trouble," the detective commented. It makes it easier for everyone to keep track of what needs to be done and what needs to be looked for and all that. If we share what we know and keep our eyes open, we may be able to catch our color coded friends off guard and turn the tables on them. At the least we can make their work more difficult."

"So, now that the work is out of the way, would you like to dance with me?" Kaito asked, putting on his most charming smile as he offered Shinichi his hand.

The bunny detective blushed at the gesture, but his hesitation lasted for only a moment before he shyly placed his hand over Kaito's outstretched palm.

"I haven't done much dancing before," Shinichi murmured as Kaito led him down to the ground floor of the club. In the past, he'd avoided events that involved such activities like the plague because it was far too easy to run into unwanted attention at them. "I know how in theory, but I've never really…"

"Put the theory into practice?" Kaito supplied.

"Yeah."

The fox grinned. "Not a problem. I'd be happy to show you how it's done."

Shinichi would admit, if only to himself, that he was actually looking forward to dancing with Kaito, but, as fate would have it, his mobile began to ring just as they began descending the stairs to the dance floor.

Shinichi glanced at the caller ID and almost groaned out loud.

"I have to get this," he told Kaito. "It's Megure-keibu."

Kaito felt a flash of disappointment, but he nodded. "We should step outside then. It's too loud in hear."

"I don't mind if you want to go dance," Shinichi said, feeling a bit guilty but already headed for the door.

"Nah. I'd rather be with you," Kaito assured him with such sincerity that Shinichi felt his face heat up. As such, he was rather glad for the excuse that the ringing phone provided.

He pressed the answer button just as he stepped from the noisy interior of the club out into the much quieter night outside.

"Megure-keibu?"

"Kudo-kun," came the clipped reply. The inspector sounded stressed, and Shinichi could hear sirens in the background. "Sorry to call you so late, but there's been an incident. We've uncovered some things that Satou tells me you'll want to see as soon as possible."

Shinichi stiffened. The only case he was involved in right now that might elicit a reaction like that from Satou was the one regarding Sylva's people.

"I'll head over now," he said immediately. "Where should I go?"

The inspector rattled off an address.

When the man had hung up, Shinichi plugged the address into his phone's navigation while Kaito peered over his shoulder.

"I can drive you there," the fox offered. "My motorcycle's right around the corner. I guarantee I can get you there faster than a taxi."

Shinichi hesitated. "Are you sure? It'll mean missing the rest of the party."

His query only made Kaito laugh. "I'm sure. Didn't you hear me earlier? I'd rather be with you, whether that's here at the party or not is irrelevant."

Shinichi ducked his head to hide the return of his blush as his stomach did something fluttery. "Thank you."

Kaito caught the hand Shinichi wasn't using to hold his phone and brought it to his lips, pressing a soft kiss to the detective's knuckles. "It's my pleasure."

A few minutes later, Shinichi was seated on the back of Kaito's motorcycle with his arms around the fox's middle and his face pressed against his back. Shinichi told himself it was to keep the wind out of his face, but the truth was that it was because Kaito's jacket smelled like him, and Shinichi couldn't help but want to bury his nose in that scent. It made him feel warm and safe (and maybe just a little bit tingly too in a way he didn't quite understand).

Seeing the sea of flashing police lights surrounding their destination and realizing that parking would be a nightmare in that area, Kaito turned into the parking lot of a small park a few blocks up the street. They walked from there to the scene of the crime together, though Kaito melded into the gathering crowd of onlookers before Shinichi reached the yellow tape keeping the rubberneckers at bay.

The officers recognized Shinichi immediately and let him through the barricade, where he was met by Satou.

"Good, you're here," she said briskly. "Come with me."

Shinichi fell into step behind her. "What happened? Megure-keibu didn't say much when he called. He just said there'd been an incident."

Which, now that Shinichi thought about it, had been rather odd? He was much more accustomed to getting calls about the discovery of a dead body or the arrival of a threat or something else along those lines. An 'incident' was atypically vague.

"Well, this building belongs to a game production company," Satou began. "It recently launched a new RPG that was a huge hit. They were up for potentially getting an award even. However, to simplify things a bit, the man who came up with the game's story wasn't an employee here."

"So they stole someone else's idea," Shinichi concluded.

"Yep. He found out and was understandably angry. He didn't ask for money. He just insisted that they at least credit him as the story writer, but the company refused. They also went online to, ah, besmirch his name. Said he was the one trying to steal their ideas and a whole lot of other junk. In other words, not only did they not give him credit for his work, they also harassed him relentlessly for the last six months. He threatened to sue, but the lawyer he hired suddenly turned around and dropped his case. The evidence suggests he was paid to. Though thankfully that's someone else's case. Ours began with our angry story writer declaring that he would make the company pay."

Satou stopped outside the building's open front doors, and Shinichi stopped beside her, staring. The doors to the game company's office building were being held open by two officers as a stream of paramedics carried stretcher after stretcher out from inside and towards the waiting line of ambulances.

On every stretcher lay a bruised and battered man or woman. Several clearly had broken arms or legs. If they'd been standing in front of a bar, Shinichi would have guessed that there had been a huge, drunken brawl.

Finally, the stream of stretchers ended.

The last two bodies came out in body bags.

"Are you saying this was his revenge?" Shinichi asked, horrified.

Satou nodded, face grim. "The two who died are the two who got the credit for his work."

"So…what? He came here today and just started attacking people?"

"Pretty much."

"Did he have help?"

"Not during the attack. The security cameras caught most of it. He came in alone and decimated the place, all in under fifteen minutes."

Shinichi opened his mouth then shut it again. He couldn't have heard her right. "What?"

"I know it sounds impossible," the bear hybrid said wryly. "You really do have to see it to believe it."

Inside, the building was a mess with broken furniture and equipment everywhere, quite a lot of it speckled or smeared with what Shinichi knew instantly was blood. The sight made his stomach turn over. It was horrible and sad but also incredibly frustrating. If the company had just admitted they'd done wrong and given the man the credit for the work he'd poured his heart into instead of doing their utmost best to ruin the man's life for speaking out then none of this destruction would have happened.

Satou led him to a relatively undamaged corner desk where a laptop had been set up. She gestured for him to take the seat in front of the machine and reached over to cue up the footage she wanted him to see.

Shinichi spent the next fifteen minutes watching in stunned disbelief as a skinny little monkey hybrid whose complexion suggested he needed to get more sun crashed into the office wielding an iron bar. He moved in sudden bursts of speed so great that his image actually blurred on the cameras. And it wasn't just his speed, Shinichi thought as the figure on the screen found his main quarry and caved the man's skull in with one mighty blow. He had then proceeded to dodge a vase someone threw at him, leap right over another desk, snag the vase-thrower's wrist with his tail and jerk it out so he could bring his iron bar down on her elbow.

The awful fifteen minute show made it indisputably clear that the monkey who'd attacked the game company had been impossibly fast, several times stronger than his build suggested, and agile on top of that.

When the police finally arrived, it took four particularly well-built officers, all Shinichi knew to be highly trained in martial arts, to subdue him.

The part that stuck out most to Shinichi, however, was the feral look that had been burning in his eyes the entire time.

"From what we've been able to gather, he's had no martial arts training—or any real physical training at all, really. He prefers to stay indoors, and will usually go for digital meetings rather than in person confrontations whenever possible. His friends also considered him very even tempered until this recent debacle with the game company started getting under his skin. Both friends we've managed to interview over the phone so far feel that the company's harassment finally got to be too much, and he just snapped."

Shinichi tore his gaze from the brutal video and shook his head, though it was more in incredulity than disagreement. "I mean, I can sort of see what they mean, but this… What he did here… It doesn't look, well, possible. I know strong emotions can drive people to be able to do things they can't otherwise, but this seems to go way beyond that."

"I agree," Satou said. "So, wondering whether he had help or extra encouragement, Takagi and I started tracing his movements, and we found that he stopped by a bar shortly before he came here."

"So…he was drunk?" Alcohol and rage, Shinichi knew, were not a healthy combination.

"We're not sure. We're still waiting on his tox report. But we did pull these interesting moments from the bar's door cams."

Satou queued said images and let them play.

For what felt like the umpteenth time that day, Shinichi found himself stunned.

There, going into the bar, was the monkey from the attack. And also there, walking in with him, was a familiar, silver-haired fox.

Satou leaned in close to Shinichi and lowered her voice. "Is that him?"

Discovering that his throat had gone abruptly dry, Shinichi could only nod.

Satou looked satisfied. "I thought so. Our monkey left just ten minutes after going in, already looking confrontational, but the fox stayed another twenty minutes. Coincidentally, that was when the monkey got here and started 'making them pay' as he'd promised."

"Have you and Takagi already spoken to the people at the bar?"

"Only briefly to get the security footage. Takagi's gone back to speak with them more on both the monkey and your silver fox, but I stayed to show you this. There's nothing for you to solve in this case, but I felt you'd want to know about it. And about his appearance."

"I do. And thank you." Shinichi looked at the image of Sylva frozen on screen opening the door to the bar again and frowned. "I wonder if the monkey hybrid's performance has anything to do with those drugs Sylva's people are developing. If the one they gave me was meant to stimulate lust, maybe they have another one that catalyzes rage."

Satou brought a hand to her chin as she considered that. "It's certainly a possibility. I'll send you a copy of his toxicology report when I get it."

"Thanks. You're going over to that bar now, right?"

"I am. The rest of the work here will be for the forensics people for now."

"Would you mind if I went with you?"

Satou started to agree but then appeared to think better of it. "I think it would be better if you went home for tonight," she said instead. "For all we know, the bar's one the Sylva character frequents. I think it would be best to learn more about it before you decide whether showing your face there is something you should do."

Shinichi wanted to argue, but he found that he couldn't—especially when he closed his eyes and saw again Sylva's leering face and predatory eyes gazing down at him as he lay helpless.

Shuddering, Shinichi wrenched himself out of the memory and plastered on a neutral face.

"Please keep me updated on what you find," he said as Satou led him back outside.

The ursine officer patted him on the shoulder. "We will. Now go get some rest. And stay safe. Do you need me to get an officer to give you a ride?"

"Thanks, but that won't be necessary. I was at a school event when Megure-keibu called, so one of my upperclassmen gave me a ride. He's waiting for me at the park."

"All right. If you're sure then."

"I am. Have a good night."

"You too."

-0-

Kaito rejoined Shinichi halfway back to the park, appearing out of the dispersing crowd so unobtrusively that it took Shinichi a moment to realize that there was a person walking beside him.

"So what happened?" the thief asked.

Shinichi shot him a sideways glance as he reached under his own jacket collar and pulled out a tiny listening device. "I know you heard everything."

The fox let out an unrepentant laugh and plucked the incriminating devise from Shinichi's hand. "I did, but I couldn't see the footage."

Conceding the point, Shinichi recounted what he'd been shown. He was still talking when they reached the park, so they ended up sitting on one of the park benches. When he finished his story, Shinichi fell silent, gaze distant and pensive.

It was Kaito who eventually broke the silence. "Do you really think those drugs are for manipulating emotions?"

"I don't know," the detective admitted. "It's just a guess. We really don't have much information to work with at the moment. For all we know, Sylva had nothing at all to do with what happened today, and he just happened to say hi to our culprit when they bumped into each other at that bar. We don't have the evidence yet to prove they actually knew each other."

"But?" the fox prompted.

Shinichi sighed. "But my gut says they did. And I have this horrible feeling that this is only the beginning."

Kaito nodded slowly. "I'll help however I can."

The simple statement of support filled Shinichi's chest with warmth, and he turned to offer the fox a small but genuine smile of gratitude. "Thank you."

Unable to resist, Kaito leaned in and stole a quick kiss. Then he stood.

"I never got my dance back at the club," he said. "So, well…" He gestured at the deserted park with its little solar lights and neat, flagstone square

"What do you say?"

Shinichi blinked then smiled a little shyly. "Sure."

Grinning, Kaito pulled Shinichi to the middle of the square then directed him to place one of his hands on Kaito's shoulder as his other was clasped by Kaito's own. The fox's free hand found its way to the curve of Shinichi's hip, and though the touch was light, it sent tingles of heat dancing across Shinichi's skin beneath his clothes.

"Just follow my lead," Kaito murmured into his ear, sending another shiver up Shinichi's spine.

Caught off guard by the sensations that Kaito's proximity was causing to hum to life within his body, Shinichi could only nod.

And then they danced.

It started out a little hesitant, with each of them feeling for a rhythm. But soon their movements grew sure as they discovered the way their bodies fit together, seamless and balanced and perfect—as though they had practiced dancing like this for a thousand years already.

And though the park was quiet, it was as though they could hear music. It was a song only they could hear. It resonated between them, guiding their feet and filling their souls with a deep, thrumming sense of connection.

When their dance came to an end, they were back in the center of the square, holding each other close as they swayed.

Shinichi couldn't remember the last time he had felt this at peace.

Kaito couldn't remember the last time he'd been this happy.

Neither of them wanted to let the moment end.

At some point, Shinichi had tucked his head under Kaito's chin, and the fox turned his head so that he could rub his cheek against the detective's silky hair. He drew in a deep breath, inhaling the rabbit's enticing scent. Shinichi's slim, supple body was all but molded to his own, all warm and inviting, and that hum of energy that had bound them together during their dance now shifted, taking on a new texture and tone.

Kaito realized rather abruptly that he was very aroused. And with Shinichi pressed flush up against him the way he was, his bunny couldn't possibly fail to notice.

Startled from the haze of contentment that his mind had sunk into by Kaito's sudden stillness, Shinichi noticed the fox's predicament almost right away. It was difficult not to with it pressing against him the way it was. The sensation made Shinichi blush even as his whole body twitched, and he caught himself struggling between the instinct to pull away and an almost overpowering urge to press himself more firmly against the thief's arousal.

Sheer embarrassment at his own train of thought and the realization that his own body was responding to said thoughts in kind had Shinichi stepping back. His face was burning, and he hoped that the park's limited lighting was hiding it.

"I, ah…" His blush darkened at how breathless he sounded. "I mean, it's, uh…getting late…"

Kaito coughed lightly, and Shinichi thought that he too looked a little flustered (though he wasn't sure if he was projecting). "Yeah." Kaito offered Shinichi his hand. "Come on. I'll take you home."

Later, when Kaito walked him to his front door, Shinichi screwed up his courage and leaned up to press their lips together.

Surprised but very pleased, Kaito was quick to return the kiss, and what started as a chaste meeting of lips evolved rapidly into something deep and considerably more heated that left them both gasping for breath when they parted.

"Thank you for today," Shinichi said, expression open and honest and blue eyes glimmering like the most precious of sapphires.

He was rewarded with a genuine smile.

"You're very welcome. I'll see you soon," Kaito promised, dropping one last kiss on the tip of Shinichi's nose. "Have a good night."

-0-

Once the front door had been shut and locked, Shinichi spent a long moment just leaning against it and gazing unseeing into the dark entrance hall of the Kudo Manor.

His heart was still pounding from the kiss.

His lips tingled.

He couldn't help but think back on how it had felt back at the park to have Kaito's arms around him—how the fox had held him like he was something precious and how their bodies had fit together so perfectly as though they had been made for one another.

With an effort, Shinichi dragged his thoughts back to the present.

Hoping to distract himself from the sensations still thrumming in his body, he brushed his teeth and showered. In the process, he discovered that Kaito had slipped a card into his back pocket. On it was a heist notice. Half exasperated, half fond, Shinichi put the card on his desk with his case notebook.

Then, dressed in pajamas, he checked his email.

It was mostly spam. He cleared those out with a few quick clicks.

Of the two remaining, one was from his parents. Apparently a fan of his father's had offered his parents a voucher for a free, week-long stay at a classy hot spring resort. The voucher stipulated the dates, however, and his parents weren't planning to come back to Japan anytime soon. As such, they were wondering if Shinichi would like to use the voucher in their stead. They included the voucher in the email as it was digital.

Considering his aversion to unwanted attention, Shinichi rarely went to the hot springs. The springs themselves, he enjoyed. The attention from other guests he happened to bump into in the springs? Not so much. But his mother had included a note promising that this resort had been designed specifically to cater to small groups who valued their privacy.

Shinichi noted that the specified dates were quite soon—they'd begin in just four days in fact. That meant they coincided with Ran's karate camp, which in turn meant it was during the weeks Sonoko had declared they could each have to themselves before her plans for their summer would go into action.

He sent his parents an email saying he'd think about it.

The second email was from an unknown sender (the first part of the email address was S12, and it used a common, free domain) and contained only one line of text.

"Detective Kudo Shinichi, will you help me?"

Shinichi stared at the message for a long moment pondering. His ever present curiosity was piqued. It could be a prank, but it wouldn't be the first time someone hoping for his help with a delicate case had approached him first with cryptic messages.

He typed up a return message.

"Who are you?"

Then he hit send.

He also copied the email to his neighbor, an old family friend who also happened to be an inventor with decent tech skills, and asked if he could learn more about the email's origin.

He waited for a moment, half hoping for a quick reply, but none came.

With no more emails to deal with and the clock in the corner of his screen informing him that it would soon be so late that it was early, he shut down his computer and climbed into bed.

Lying there alone in the dark and quiet of his bedroom, however, he found his thoughts gravitating back to Kaito of their own accord.

He thought of how it had felt to speed through the city streets on the back of Kaito's motorcycle with his arms around the thief and the fox's scent filling his senses. He thought of the way that scent had made his body tingle.

"Stop that," he told himself firmly. He had to get some sleep.

Yes, this was the start of his summer vacation, but he had a lot to do tomorrow. He planned to follow up with Satou and Takagi-keiji on what they learned at the bar, and Sonoko had scheduled a group dinner with him and Ran to wish Ran well before she left for her two-week karate training camp and the tournament to be held shortly thereafter. He also had to get groceries, and there was a new mystery novel coming out that he wanted to pick up. Then there was the new KID heist notice to solve.

And his thoughts had come full circle back to the fox.

Shinichi shivered, body growing warm with the memory of how it had felt to be pressed flush against the fox's strong, well-toned body. He recalled the moment when he'd noticed Kaito's excitement and the thrill that had run through his body at having the thief's erection pressing against him. Oh how he had wanted to rub himself against that enticing hardness.

He still vividly remembered how it had felt to put his hands on that cock. He remembered the hot, hard pulse of it in his hands.

He wanted to feel it deep inside him, prying him open and filling him up. He wanted to find out what it would feel like when the fox came inside him—

Blushing, Shinichi snapped open his eyes and stared hard at the ceiling in an attempt to reorient himself in the present. But the sight of his bedroom ceiling only made the memories more vivid. After all, they had been right here in this very bed. Shinichi had even been wearing these same pajamas. And he thought of how Kaito had lain with him… Of how Kaito had held him… Of how Kaito had touched him…

Heat pulsed low in Shinichi's belly, and he felt a something wet trickle between his legs.

With a groan, he rolled over and tried to smother himself in his pillow. God, what was wrong with him? This was so embarrassing! But he just couldn't seem to stop the thoughts from coming or his body from reacting.

Was this normal?

It had been long enough that he couldn't reasonably blame the drug he'd been forced to take (or so he assumed). And that meant it wasn't going to go away. Like it or not, these feelings were part of him.

Perhaps this was what happened when you finally got together with the person you'd spent years pining for while trying desperately to suppress your feelings because you'd been convinced they'd never be returned. It was like he'd been holding something in himself back for years, but he had suddenly gotten permission to let go.

To breathe and just…feel.

Restless, he turned onto his side. His gaze immediately caught sight of the bottle of contraceptives he'd purchased the other day. It stood on his nightstand. If it had had a face, it would have been wearing a teasing smirk.

Cheeks warming, Shinichi looked away from the pills only to spot the large calendar on the wall. Ran and Sonoko had gotten it for him and positioned it so that he was bound to see it every day. Whenever they had plans, they would mark out the dates themselves, claiming he would forget otherwise.

Shinichi could just about make out the bright orange highlighter circles he used to remind himself when to expect his heats.

He stared at them then thought back on his mother's email.

The timing was a perfect match. There'd be two days before and after, with the three in the middle aligning neatly with…

Shinichi lay there for another ten minutes just staring at those dates, struggling with himself. Deep down, however, he knew he'd already made his decision.

Sitting up, he reached over to retrieve his phone from the nightstand and sent Kaito a text.

"My parents gave me a voucher for a week's stay at a hot spring resort." He included the dates. "Would you like to go together?"

Not expecting Kaito to see the message until morning, Shinichi was startled when his phone buzzed with a reply before he'd even put it down.

The reply read, "I'd love to."

Shinichi clutched the phone to his chest, feeling the rapid thumping of his own heart and as he stared, wide-eyed, at his own audacity. At the same time, he couldn't help the thrill of excitement.

He wanted this.

He just needed to figure out how to tell Kaito.

Chapter Text

"Kudo-kun," Satou said in greeting as she spotted the young detective walking through the police station's front doors. "I suspected you'd be by today."

"Do you have time to talk?" Shinichi asked.

The bear hybrid flashed a grin. "You're in luck. Takagi and I were about to head out for our lunch break. Why don't you join us?"

Shinichi followed the policewoman right back outside to where her car was parked. Satou had just unlocked the doors when Takagi came trotting out of the station to join them. He greeted Shinichi with a smile and a cheerful salutation, clearly just as unsurprised by his presence as his partner had been.

A few minutes later, the three of them were seated at a table in a local ramen shop, waiting for their orders to arrive.

"So did you guys learn anything about Sylva at the bar?" Shinichi asked eagerly.

Satou, however, looked rueful. "Not as much as we would have liked. He doesn't frequent that location—or rather, if he does, he's managed to keep a low profile. The bartender, who also happens to be the owner, didn't recognize him, and he insists he would have if Sylva was a regular. The monkey, on the other hand, was a regular. He'd heard about the trouble with the game company as our monkey often complained about it when drunk, but he was shocked when he learned of just what the man did last night. His face went dead white, and he had to sit down."

"He kept saying that Marui-san, that's the monkey, wouldn't do that. Swore up and down that Marui was a kind man who hated physical confrontations. He was a video game lover who enjoyed crafting game stories. He'd been in the process of developing his own RPG when the friend he was working with took their work and took it to the company, claiming it was all his own work. They liked it, hired him, let him lead a team to finish developing it, and the project was a success. You know the rest."

"So, even knowing all that, the bartender didn't think Marui-san would have lashed out the way he did?"

"That's what he insisted, yes." Satou sighed. "He even suggested that it was a fan dressing up as Marui-san to get his revenge for him, but it doesn't track. The facts are the facts."

"What did he remember from Marui-san's visit last night?"

"Well, he did say Marui looked more tense than usual," Takagi supplied. "Though he put it up to stress over the court case at the time. He didn't know the lawyer had bailed. Marui ordered one beer and sat at the very end of the counter, which was unusual for him as he usually just sits in the middle."

Takagi checked his notebook. "Sylva ordered a gin and sat down beside him. The bartender didn't pay him much attention as he was more concerned about his friend Marui, but he agreed after he thought about it that they looked like they'd come in together as opposed to just at the same time. They spoke a bit, but the bartender wasn't able to catch any of the conversation, though he suspects he saw Sylva give Marui something. All he knows for sure though is that once the two had finished talking, Marui paid for both their drinks and left."

Satou picked the story back up. "Sylva stayed for another ten minutes or so. He finished his first drink, slowly, and didn't order another. Instead, he just sort of watched people. The bartender stopped paying attention to him after that since he figured Sylva was just killing time."

"Didn't he wonder what Sylva had given his regular?"

"He said he considered it," Takagi reported. "But he dismissed the idea that it was an illegal drugs deal or something like that because Marui wouldn't do drugs. Marui valued his sharp mind far too much to do drugs."

"That means the man must have met Sylva somewhere else," Shinichi murmured, frowning. "Did you guys find out what he gave Marui-san?"

"Not yet. The labs are still looking into it, but our case isn't considered high priority at the moment because the culprit's already been apprehended and even admitted to the crime. With the surveillance videos and the street camera that showed him going to pick up that iron bar from where it had clearly been placed there for retrieval by him earlier, it's a pretty open and shut case."

"Did you two interview him? Marui-san, I mean."

"No. That was mainly Megure-keibu. But we did ask him to ask Marui-san about the fox hybrid he had drinks with that evening. He insists he didn't know the guy, had never met him before yesterday, and they only talked because the guy said he was new to town and was asking for tips on the best local bars for meeting people. He insists that Sylva didn't actually give him anything and that the bartender must have been mistaken in what he saw."

"As for the attack, he claims it was entirely his own idea. He just couldn't take the betrayal and the harassment anymore, and he refused to see the friend who betrayed him get an award for the work he stole. The lawyer thing was the last straw. He bought the iron bar at a hardware store then went to the bar for a beer to boost his nerve and spend some time reminding himself of why he was so angry. Once he'd psyched himself up, he went for it."

"I…guess that's plausible," Shinichi conceded, although he felt it left some rather major questions unanswered—namely the one about how the monkey hybrid had been able to pull off those incredible feats of strength and speed. "What's his attitude been like during the interviews?"

"Surprisingly calm," Takagi admitted. "Though I suppose sullen might be a more accurate description. He spent the entire interview staring at the table and talking in a monotone even when he was describing how upset he'd been. It was a little bit creepy."

"What about the toxicology report?" Shinichi asked.

"We're still waiting on that," Satou replied.

The conversation lulled as the waiter arrived with their noodles, and all three hybrids dug in.

Shinichi mulled over the information he'd been given as he ate. It wasn't much, but he tried not to let that get him down. After all, it had been a stroke of pure luck that they had been able to connect the case to Sylva's people at all. Just confirming the connection was another step towards figuring out what exactly the silver fox and his compatriots were up to and, more importantly, how to stop them.

If only they could get Marui-san to tell them how he had made contact with Sylva to begin with and just what arrangements they had made that had led to his receiving, well, whatever it was that he had received.

"So Kudo-kun, you're starting summer vacation now, right?" Takagi asked brightly. "Have you made any plans?"

Shinichi's thoughts flickered to the calendar on his bedroom wall and the words "hot springs, Kaito" he'd scribbled across a certain upcoming week and had to fight not to blush.

"My parents sent me a voucher for a visit to a small hot spring resort," he said, hoping he sounded casual.

"Are you going with Mouri-san and Suzuki-san like usual?" Satou asked.

"Er, no, actually. Ran's heading off to a karate camp with the university club tomorrow. She'll be there for two weeks. The camp leads up to a major tournament for martial artists under twenty one. She's already decided that she's going to be participating in the singles events for karate. Sonoko and I will be going to cheer her on. But before that, we'll all be doing our own things."

"So you're going to the resort alone?" Takagi asked, sounding honestly dismayed on Shinichi's behalf. "Or will your parents be joining you?"

Shinichi shuddered at that last suggestion. "I seriously hope not. But no, I'm not going alone. I'm going with a friend I made recently. He's the upper classman who drove me to the crime scene. He took me home after that, and so when I got my parents' message, I thought inviting him would be a good way to repay him for his help."

He didn't miss the way Satou and Takagi traded looks, though he couldn't for the life of him imagine what thoughts they were exchanging with those loaded glances.

"Which resort is it?" Satou asked, pulling out her phone, clearly intending either to note down the venue or Google it.

"It's called the Tranquil Moon."

Satou hummed thoughtfully as she, as predicted, noted the name down then ran it through an internet search.

"Wow, if these pictures are at all accurate, this place is gorgeous."

"Maybe we could go together sometime," Takagi suggested hopefully.

"A hot spring trip might be nice sometime," the ursine officer conceded without looking up (and therefore completely missing the way her companion lit up at her words). "According to their website, the Tranquil Moon has been around in one form or another for more than five hundred years. They've got this entire section on myths and stories that surround the area. It's supposed to be rich in ghosts and spirits."

Shinichi thought that it was probably a good thing he hadn't tried to invite Ran. She hated spooky things, and this resort was starting to sound a little spooky.

Kaito, on the other hand, would definitely love the mystique.

Shinichi just hoped they didn't arrive to find a body waiting for them.

He wanted this trip to go well—wanted it more than he could remember wanting anything in a really long time.

Shinichi blushed at his own thoughts and the brief fantasy it inspired and he bowed his head to busy himself finishing his food in thehopes that the redness in his face would be chalked up to the hot soup.

-0-

Kuroba Kaito was not freaking out. The suave and unflappable Kaitou KID, master thief and magician extraordinaire, did not freak out.

He had, however, gotten zero sleep that night as he had spent the entirety of it researching a certain hot spring resort, its amenities, its history, its staff, its food, the area it lay in, and pretty much anything and everything you could possibly imagine researching about a potential vacation location. He may also have examined every article of clothing in his closet. Then, because part of him was practical whether the rest of the world believed it or not, he also ran through his inventory of tricks and gadgets as well as survival gear and other potentially useful knickknacks a person might need should they encounter violent crime in an out of the way area. Anyone who decided to commit murder anywhere near the resort in the upcoming week was going to regret the day they'd been born!

Okay, fine, he might be freaking out a little. Just a little! But in his defense, the love of his life had just invited him to spend an entire week with him at a hot spring. Not only that, but he knew perfectly well that Shinichi's next heat would land smack in the middle of the trip.

And Shinichi had to know it too.

The message between the lines wasn't difficult to read.

Thrilled though he was, Kaito had also been caught by surprise. He had expected Shinichi to need more time to become comfortable with the idea of intimacy—especially after what had almost happened to him—and Kaito had been perfectly happy to wait for him. In essence, he'd expected to have more time to plan because taking the next step in their relationship absolutely had to be perfect. Kaito refused to let it be any other way.

But what exactly should perfect look like?

Kaito had spent a few minutes researching that too, but he'd realized very quickly that any attempt to find an answer to that particular question by consulting other people was useless. Just as every human being was different, so too every relationship was different. Perfection for him and his beloved would and could only be unique.

He was planning a grand performance for an audience of one: Shinichi.

But his detective wouldn't really want a grand performance, would he?

What qualities would his lovely detective ascribe to the perfect romantic getaway?

The question remained at the forefront of Kaito's thoughts as he headed to Aoko's for breakfast. It was the first day of their summer vacation after all, and she'd wanted to celebrate the occasion by having breakfast with Kaito and Nakamori-keibu just like they had had on a nearly daily basis all through high school.

"Kaito-kun!" Nakamori Ginzo greeted him as the magician flopped into his old familiar chair at the Nakamori dining table. "Aoko tells me you've already got several gigs lined up for the summer, performing at weddings and parties and the like."

"I do indeed," Kaito replied with a cocky grin. "It's pretty awesome. It's going to be all I can eat great food and quality cakes all summer!"

"It's not fair how you can eat the way you do and not end up the shape of a beach ball," Aoko huffed. "I'm making omelets, by the way. Would you like two eggs or three?"

"I do happen to lead a very active lifestyle. And I'll go with three," Kaito said. "And with all the stuffing, please."

"Got it. Set the table. I already prepared all the ingredients, so the omelets won't take long."

Oil began sizzling in the pan.

Kaito moved around the kitchen with the familiarity of one who had walked its tiled floors for years and fetched a stack of plates an utensils. Several minutes later, both Nakamoris and Kaito had a beautifully golden omelet lying on a plate before them.

They said their thanks then dug in.

"This is nice," Aoko murmured when she paused to sip at her orange juice. "I miss this sometimes, just being able to sit here at home, just you, me and Dad, with nothing urgent to do so we can just enjoy being together, you know? Like a family."

"Not like family, silly," Kaito chided. "We are family."

His comment made the girl blush, but her smile brightened. "You're right. So, well, I've been thinking, since Dad has some time off, it might be nice if we could all go somewhere together."

"We could pick a nice restaurant," Kaito offered. "I've seen several being advertised that look like they should be worth trying."

"I meant more like an actual trip together," Aoko said. "You know, a family outing. So I did a bit of research, and there's this hot spring resort that has some really nice promotional discounts for families right now. I'm guessing it's their slow season, but that should mean we won't have to deal with crowds. Doesn't that sound nice?"

A tingle of foreboding lit in the depths of Kaito's brain.

"I suppose I could check my calendar," he said carefully. "When were you thinking of going?"

"End of the week. I'll text you the itinerary. The entire trip will be four days."

"You didn't already make the reservation, did you?" he asked, suspecting the answer.

He was correct.

"I did."

Kaito sighed. "Aoko, didn't it occur to you that I might have other plans?"

"You told me none of the jobs you decided to take on start for another few weeks," the girl replied, puzzled. "So what's the problem?"

"I need to plan. My shows don't create themselves."

"Yeah, but you can do that anywhere."

Kaito opened his mouth then closed it again. Then his eye caught the pamphlet peeking out of Aoko's apron pocket. Without thinking, he reached over and plucked it from said pocket.

It was a promotional pamphlet for the Tranquil Moon Hot Springs Resort.

For one of the very few times in his life, Kaito found himself at a complete loss for words.

Chapter Text

Kaito parted from the Nakamoris that day wondering whether Lady Luck was upset with him or if these latest developments were a mocking salute from Shinichi's general bad luck.

He had tried every argument he could think of to convince Aoko to change her vacation plans. He'd argued first that she and her father should have Nakamori-keibu's rare vacation to bond as father and daughter, but both Nakamoris had insisted that Kaito was as good as family (which he really didn't have the heart to argue with). He then tried to persuade Aoko to reschedule, but their options were once again limited by the inspector's work schedule. Kaito had even briefly entertained the idea of suggesting that Aoko invite Hakuba instead, seeing as the blond was her boyfriend, but that would have been so wildly out of character that it would definitely have raised Aoko's suspicions.

The only card Kaito hadn't played was to send his next heist notice early. He knew that Nakamori-keibu would drop everything for a KID heist, but, in the end, Kaito knew he couldn't do it. Aoko would be devastated and furious, and Kaito wouldn't—couldn't—put her through that just so he could enjoy more alone time with his dear Tantei-kun (he was fairly certain that Shinichi wouldn't approve of him doing that either).

In the interest of honesty, he called Shinichi that night to relay the situation.

"The trip Aoko's planned will only overlap the last two days of the one your parents got for you," he concluded. "So if we scope the place out properly before they arrive, I might be able to keep them from finding out that you're there if that's what you would prefer. I'll be telling them that I'll arrange my own travel, so it's also up to you whether we end up sharing that we traveled to the resort together or, well…pretend that our all being there is just one big coincidence."

Shinichi was silent for so long that Kaito was beginning to wonder if he was going to call off the entire trip. The fox prayed that he wouldn't, but he wouldn't begrudge it either if Shinichi did. After all, though Kaito considered them to have been sort of dating for years (he'd planned numerous heists just for the purpose after all, whether or not Shinichi had seen those endeavors at courting for what they were), but they'd only made it official a few scant weeks ago. If Shinichi wasn't comfortable sharing their new relationship status with their family and friends yet, that was fine. Kaito would accommodate him.

When Shinichi finally did speak, Kaito had almost forgotten that they were still on the phone. The rabbit detective's soft voice in his ear drew him out of a daydream of sitting down at the Nakamori breakfast table with a fourth bunny addition to their family of three.

"I don't mind if you want to tell them that we're dating," Shinichi said, and Kaito could hear the shyness under the words as well as the hint of trepidation at the uncertainty of how he might be received. That anxiety, however, was offset by a firm resolve that spoke volumes.

"Are you sure?" Kaito asked anyway, heart hammering but breaths held in nervous anticipation. He knew Shinichi wouldn't make such declarations lightly.

He could all but hear Shinichi's blush, but the detective murmured an ascent. "There's no reason to hide it from them. They are basically your family after all, and you've already introduced me to Aoko. With the way you were behaving during the festival, I don't think she'd be too surprised to hear you'd asked me out."

Kaito had to laugh at that. "Maybe so, but I suspect she'd also believe you if you claimed I kidnapped you."

"I don't think that's the kind of reputation you should sound so happy about having," the detective observed, sounding equal parts dubious and fond in a way that made Kaito smile.

"By the way, have you already made your travel arrangements for the hot spring trip?" Kaito asked.

"Not yet," Shinichi admitted. "My neighbor offered me the use of his car, but it breaks down every other time I've gone on a trip in it—and nine times out of ten, I've ended up finding a dead body shortly afterward. So I was thinking about maybe going with public transit. We should be able to get partway there by train. Then there are supposed to be some buses that will get us the rest of the way there."

"I have a motorcycle," Kaito offered. "I don't mind driving us there, though it'll mean packing light."

"I wasn't planning on having a lot of luggage, but I may have let slip to Ran and Sonoko when we were at Ran's send-off that I'd be going to a resort, and they both demanded that I bring back souvenirs."

"A souvenir or three can only take up so much space," the magician pointed out. "As long as they don't mind you going for quality over quantity, I think we could manage."

Shinichi laughed. The sound was music to Kaito's vulpine ears.

In the end, they agreed to travel by motorcycle. Kaito would pick Shinichi up on the morning they were to leave, and they'd take their time seeing the sights on the way to the resort.

Kaito fell asleep that night with Shinichi's voice still ringing in his ears, and he dreamed of sunbeams sparkling in sapphire blue eyes.

-0-

For Shinichi, the remaining days before the promised hot spring retreat passed in a blur of nervous anticipation. He felt like someone had filled him up with bubbles of sunlight. The whole worled seemed to have become more vibrant.

"You look unusually happy," Sonoko had commented sourly between complaining about the week-long business boot camp (her name for the program. Shinichi was fairly certain its actual designation was something else) she was about to be sent to and working her way through a massive plate of assorted cakes. "I suppose you're looking forward to your trip, eh? Lucky bastard. I wish I was going on a hot spring vacation. That would be so much more fun."

Shinichi had felt himself beginning to turn pink (because it wasn't the hot springs or even the resort that he was looking forward to. It was the prospect of going on what was definitely a romantic getaway with Kaito as an official couple), but, fortunately for him, Sonoko hadn't waited for a response before going back to her rant about the unfairness of being enrolled in extra classes by her parents when she was supposed to be on vacation. Venting was, after all, the primary reason she had dragged him out with her. The second reason was that she had wanted to go to an all-you-can-eat dessert parlor, and the establishment offered special deals for parties of two. With Ran at camp, Sonoko had settled for asking (or rather ordering) Shinichi to accompany her.

Shinichi had rolled his eyes and put up a token protest but gone along with it because Sonoko was, despite everything, one of his best friends, and long association had taught him that she'd feel much better once she'd been able to get it out of her system. All he had to do was hum and nod in the appropriate places (when they'd been younger, he used to make comments, but he'd learned rather fast that Sonoko in this mood didn't want comments or, God forbid, advice. Attempting to offer either would quickly and efficiently redirect her ire to the hapless soul who'd dared speak up, and then the sparks would really fly. They'd all grown up a lot since those days, he mused as Sonoko's tirade finally began to wind down and she admitted that some of the materials being covered at the camp sounded interesting to her, and she'd heard one of the teachers was a really hot horse hybrid who'd just gotten a commendation for a paper he'd published at some major conference or other).

By the time they'd left the dessert parlor, Sonoko had been reconciled with her fate, and Shinichi felt he had done his duty as a friend.

"Just don't have so much fun at the hot springs that you forget Ran's got a tournament she'll be entering after her training camp," the feline hybrid reminded him before they parted ways that afternoon. "We promised we'd be there to cheer her on."

"I won't forget," Shinichi insisted, deliberately trying not to think about Sonoko's comments about having too much fun (because it made him think of Kaito, and that in turn made him think of the heat beginning to stir deep inside him—deep inside where he wanted to feel a certain fox).

Shinichi moved through those days like he was being buoyed up by those sparkling sunbeams bubbling up inside him.

He made preparations, packed, solved the KID heist notice that Kaito had slipped to him that night that the fox and escorted him home, and helped out at the police station.

The note had been a complicated one that had required him to search through more than half the reference books in his library, and Shinichi couldn't have been happier. The heist it promised wouldn't be for a few weeks yet, and he was curious to see whether the note the police and the media received would be as complex as the one he'd been gifted.

If there was a gray spot on those days, it was the rising number of violent crimes that the city seemed to be experiencing. Shinichi wasn't typically called in to consult on those as there was very little mystery in most of the cases, but it bothered him to see the officers he often worked with showing up with increasingly more numerous bruises and bandages. It was unsettling both because he considered these people his friends and because they were all trained officers who should not be having so much trouble on such a regular basis.

That problem, however, no matter how troubling, was not of the sort that detectives could solve. So he tucked the incidents and his concerns into his mental filing system for if—when—they became more.

Shinichi had also had no further contact from that odd, cryptic email.

He had, however, heard back from his neighbor, Professor Agasa. The elderly inventor had told Shinichi that he'd been unable to trace the mysterious email. Indeed, as far as the professor could tell, the account from which the email had been sent had been completely erased.

It was most intriguing, but until and unless the person behind the email reached out to him again, that mystery would have to remain unsolved. It could still be a prank too, so he told himself to put it aside for now and not let it distract him from the real work (and plans) in front of him.

Unbeknownst to Shinichi, a certain fox hybrid in another part of the city had passed those few days in a very similar haze of happy anticipation.

If anyone had noticed, however, they had known better than to ask for his reasons. Most people who knew him at all knew better than to expect straight answers, and those who knew him best understood that they were probably better off staying in the dark until Kaito himself decided to share.

And then it was time.

-0-

Kaito arrived at the Kudo Manor at seven o'clock sharp on the day they were to depart. He parked on the driveway and jogged over to ring the doorbell.

Shinichi emerged a few minutes later looking adorably grumpy.

"Why did we decide to leave so early again?" he grumbled as he let the fox hybrid guide him towards the waiting vehicle.

Kaito chuckled. "Seven's not really that early, but to answer your question, we knew we'd have a long way to go, and we didn't want to have to rush."

Shinichi's nose wrinkled. "Don't remind me."

Unable to resist, Kaito leaned down to drop a kiss on the tip of Shinichi's nose and grinned with the bunny detective went cross-eyed trying to follow the movement. "Cheer up. I picked out a great little breakfast place for us. We'll stop by there first. They're supposed to have excellent coffee."

Shinichi brightened instantly. "Well then what are we waiting for? Let's get going."

Chapter Text

Kaito had never had any particular feelings about coffee before. He rarely went out of his way to seek it out, but he didn't avoid it either.

Watching the way Shinichi lit up as he took his first sip of the coffee at the little breakfast place where they'd stopped, however, made him think that he might start developing an affection for the beverage purely for the joy that it could bring to his dear detective.

"Good?" he asked even though he already knew the answer (it was written on the rabbit's face).

"Very," Shinichi said reverently.

Bemused, Kaito picked up his own mug. He too had ordered a plain coffee—partly because it was what the restaurant was known for and partly because he'd ordered the strawberry and cream cheese French toast special, and whatever his thoughts on coffee as a potable on its own, Kaito fully agreed that it was an excellent accompaniment to such delightfully sweet, western breakfast foods. The fox sipped at his beverage, considering, trying to discern just what was so special about it.

Halfway through his mug and most of the way through his breakfast, he still hadn't figured it out. To him, it just tasted like coffee. He could tell it wasn't instant, but aside from that, it was just, well, coffee.

The French toast, on the other hand, was divine. And the coffee balanced its sweetness just right, so there was that.

He said as much to Shinichi, who actually laughed.

"I'm a coffee person, but I can admit that it's probably an acquired taste," he said. "And, like wine, sometimes it's about the food you pair it with." He nodded to his own blueberry pancakes. "Whoever chose the coffee to serve here definitely picked one that would match well with the food they offer."

"Cheers to that," Kaito agreed with a grin, holding up his mug in a playful toast. "To the culinary arts. Truly, a form of magic in its own right."

"Real world magic," Shinichi agreed, returning the fox's grin with one of his own.

Kaito was momentarily entranced by the way the detective's clear blue eyes sparkled in the morning sunlight pouring in through the windows beside their table. Shinichi had always been pretty, but like this, relaxed and open and so obviously happy, he was downright breathtaking.

"What are you thinking about?" Shinichi asked, and Kaito blinked, coming out of his trance.

Catching the bunny's curious gaze, he smiled. "I was thinking about how lucky I am to be here with you."

His quiet but heartfelt comment had Shinichi flushing a becoming shade of pink. The sight only made the warmth in Kaito's chest grow stronger.

Later, when they were back on the road, Shinichi rested his head against Kaito's strong back and thought that he was the one who was lucky.

-0-

They couldn't have picked a better day to travel if they had tried. The sky was a gorgeous expanse of blue, flawless and deep in the way only the sky could be. Below it, the world lay drenched in sunlight and overflowing with colors. It was warm but a light breeze kept it from being hot. And just to top it all off, the traffic was good. They barely encountered any red lights. As a result, they made it all the way out of the city in record time.

It was as though all the fates were lining up to help them.

"We've set sail with auspicious winds," Kaito declared as they cracked open the bottles of water they had just acquired at a rest stop. "The powers that be are telling us to indulge ourselves and feel free to take the scenic route."

Shinichi huffed out a laugh. " I don't think your metaphor really works with your conclusion. If we were really sailing with good winds, we'd get to our destination faster and without incident. Detours, scenic or not, wouldn't be part of the equation."

"Ah well. It's a good thing we're not really sailing then," the fox replied, handing Shinichi a trio of brochures he'd picked up from the rest stop. "Because these look like detours worth taking. What do you think?"

Shinichi leafed through the brochures, eyebrows climbing higher with each entry. There was a small farm offering homemade ice cream, some estate with a garden maze it had opened to the public, an old shrine said to house a spirit of love and good fortune, and even a unique rock formation that was supposed to be very picturesque as well as to play simple tunes when the wind was right.

"Do we have time for all of these?" he wondered aloud.

"They're all reasonably on our way, so sure," Kaito said, skimming over their map. "Provided nothing unexpected happens anyway. So? How about it?"

Shinichi glanced over the brochures again. He couldn't help but recall all the many, many times he had taken detours on a road trip and run into a case. But then again, he ran into just as many cases when he didn't take detours, so there was probably no point worrying about it.

"Let's do it," he decided.

-0-

Shinichi had never been the sort for spontaneous vacations in the past. He was more of the plan ahead as best as he could sort.

There was, however, something thrilling about simply hopping on Kaito's motorcycle and letting the fox sweep him off into the unknown in search of wondrous sights and hidden treasures.

Not every find was grand or amazing, but even the simplest discoveries offered their own kind of charm. Take, for instance, the rocky outcropping that was really just a large, funny-looking bolder in the middle of a field of wildflowers. It didn't sing when the wind blew—though that may or may not have been because the wind was not blowing from the right direction. Nor was the rock particularly impressive in its stature or composition. But standing proud like a craggy pirate ship rising from the midst of a vibrant sea of soft, multicolored petals, it did indeed provide the two travelers with a picturesque photo op.

There was too the homemade ice cream being sold out of the kitchen of a small, local dairy farm. They offered only vanilla and chocolate, but the richness and texture of their sweet, cold creams was a delight to the tongue. It was also presented to the couple in bowls of two globes of ice cream each: one chocolate with two long, cookie bunny ears and one vanilla with pointy, fox ears comprised of half a small cone each.

"That place was cool," Kaito declared as they left satiated and refreshed from the summer heat outside. "Their ice cream is top grade, and their presentation was adorable!"

Shinichi wholeheartedly agreed, and he thought of how places like these were ones that you would never find if you didn't slow down and let yourself stray just a little off the beaten path.

Then there were the jaw-dropping surprises like the grand estate with a sprawling rose garden designed and landscaped to be one enormous garden maze.

"Welcome to the labyrinth of love," the lady at the gatehouse told them as she accepted their entrance fees and handed them their beautifully illustrated and time-stamped tickets. "Consider the path ahead of you, think of the life you wish to share, and let the love between you blossom like the regal yet luscious rose!"

It was all Shinichi could do to keep a straight face.

Kaito waited until they were well out of earshot of the gatehouse to laugh. "That was quite the little speech."

"I…suppose it's a nice sort of sentiment," Shinichi said a touch dubiously. "Just a bit, uh, dramatic."

"Well, love and drama do go hand in hand."

Shinichi wrinkled his nose. "No they don't. Drama is about conflict. If anything, it's what love should put an end to."

Kaito chuckled. "That's certainly one way to look at it. But that would still mean they're intertwined."

To either side of them, densely grown bushes towered in prickly walls frosted with roses. Ahead lay a single, straight path through a frothing tunnel of pale pink blooms which opened out into a small courtyard with a stone fountain standing in its middle.

The fountain centerpiece was a man and a woman, both tall and elegantly sculpted marble statues, standing face to face as thin streams of spray arched over them, veiling them in shimmering rainbows.

It took Shinichi a moment to realize what was odd about the statues.

"They're not hybrids," he said, surprised.

"Indeed they're not," Kaito agreed, pulling out his phone and taking several pictures. "I'm guessing they didn't want to single out any one type of hybrid. It's quite common nowadays to use non-hybrid images to represent the entire human race as a whole. Now, do we want to do this the methodical way or the fun way?"

Shinichi peered down into the fountain's basin, observing the glint of numerous copper coins below the dancing waters, then pulled back. "What do you mean?"

"Well, I'm sure we both know the easiest way to solve a maze is to keep following one wall. That's the methodical way, and it would mean we'd definitely get out fairly quickly. The estate's only so large. But since we're here to relax and enjoy ourselves, I propose we do it the fun way. Pick whichever paths strike our fancy and see just where they lead. What do you think?"

Shinichi rolled his eyes. "When you put the options like that, it's pretty obvious which one you want to pick. So why bother even asking?"

"Because it would be remiss of me not to offer my lovely date a choice," Kaito replied, affecting an air of dignity.

Shinichi snorted, but he was smiling.

"In that case, I vote we go right," he said.

"Right it is then."

Together, they turned to the right. The floral corridor zigged and zagged before opening onto another 'room'. Like the first, there was a fountain at its center. The basin of this fountain was sunk into the ground, however, and its border was comprised of a marble walkway that swept up into steps on one side. Said steps led up to a raised terrace of sorts complete with railing twined in marble roses. A woman in a flowing dress stood at said terrace, gazing down at a man standing in the middle of the fountain. His hand was stretched up towards her. His expression was entreating. Water cascaded from below the terrace to froth and ripple around his feet.

The roses here were lavender.

Kaito snapped a picture of the tableau from the side then trotted up the steps to take another from the terrace. "What's the bet this one's a reference to Romeo and Juliet?"

"Probably a safe one," Shinichi replied.

Kaito beckoned him towards the makeshift terrace. "Hey, come up here a moment, will you?"

Shinichi obliged. Up close, he had to marvel at the exquisite detail of the sculptures. The stone roses twining through the railings looked like they should begin swaying in the breeze at any moment.

"Stand here and put your hands here. Right, just like that. Now don't move," Kaito directed then scampered down the steps. Pivoting, he aimed his camera lens up at Shinichi with a cheeky grin. "Say cheese!"

Shinichi realized too late that, thanks to Kaito's directions, he was posed just like the stone woman standing beside him. Flushing, he pulled away from the railing and headed back to ground level.

"I'm onto you," he said pointedly.

Kaito only laughed. "It's too bad we don't have someone to take pictures for us. Then we could do all the poses."

"Do you think they're going to have statues in every room?"

"Only one way to find out."

It turned out that yes, the maze did indeed have statues in every room—almost all of them fountains. Every fountain depicted a romantic moment between the same man and woman. Some were clearly references to scenes from famous romances, like a prince sliding a slipper onto the foot of a girl in servant's clothes. Other scenes were more generic, ranging from the couple talking over cups of tea or cuddled together with a book to the two dancing a waltz or doing the tango. Each tableau was accentuated by roses of a color befitting the emotions being highlighted by each moment, from the lavender of love at first sight to the orange of fascination and the crimson of passion.

Three rooms in, the two visitors also discovered that there were actually several discreetly placed stone pedestals that were perfectly positioned to serve as a stand for anyone who wished to set up a camera for a timed shot (Shinichi mildly regretted this discovery because Kaito immediately started insisting that they do the poses whenever possible. Shinichi wasn't entirely enthused about collecting photographic evidence of himself doing something as silly as mimicking the poses of romantically involved statues. But Kaito's enthusiasm was contagious, and maybe, just maybe, there was something a little…nice too—about having these tangible memories to help him hold onto the feeling of being here together. Shinichi couldn't remember the last time he had felt so relaxed).

"Whoever designed this place put a lot of thought into it," Kaito marveled, clearly impressed. "I guess that little welcome speech was more than just a poetic greeting. They really do seem to have gone out of their way to try and explore all the little bits and pieces and unexpected faces of a relationship. I mean, they even included making up after a fight."

"It's definitely not something most people would think of as part of a romance," Shinichi agreed. And yet there it was, clear as can be on the faces of the marble couple as they faced each other, hands clasped and eyes searching: the sorrow and regret of hurtful words and the apology—the hope that fences could be mended and a bond grown stronger through repentance, acceptance and forgiveness.

"Whoever the sculptor is, they're incredible," Shinichi said fervently, awed and humbled by the sheer depth and complexity of the feelings expressed in those stone faces and bodies—like living people stolen out of time.

"Remind me to ask for a name when we get out of here," Kaito agreed. "If I ever need to commission a statue, they'd be at the top of my list for sure."

"When exactly would you need to commission a statue?"

"Dunno. But anything's possible."

Shinichi added yet another photo of what he had dubbed the Reconciliation Fountain then pointed to the archway directly across from the entrance they had come in by.

"Let's go straight this time."

This time, as they walked, the white and pink roses of regret, forgiveness and new beginnings gave way once more to the deep, rich crimson of passion just as the walls of vegetation opened out once more into one of the largest 'rooms' they had seen so far in the garden maze.

The statue occupying the center of this space was one of the first that was not a fountain. It was clothed not in water but in climbing roses. Thanks to that, it took Shinichi a moment to realize exactly what the marble couple was doing in their bed of blossoms.

With a yelp, Shinichi spun away from the statues as his hands flew up to cover his eyes. He could feel his cheeks burning.

"Oh my god, they should have put up a sign or something," he whisper-shrieked. "You can't just dump something like that on people without warning! What if we'd had kids with us?!"

"Then I'm sure whoever met us at the gatehouse would have said something," Kaito postulated, sounding far too amused. "Surely you've seen naked people before on crime scenes."

"That's different. Those people are dead."

"And these people are stone," Kaito pointed out with maddening logic.

"They're also—doing things they shouldn't be doing in public."

"Hey, cut them some slack. They're in love, and, technically, we're the one's who're trespassing."

"Are we seriously having this conversation?"

"Well, our mouths are moving and workds are coming out, so I'd say that's a definite yes."

"Are you taking a picture?" Shinichi squawked in consternation as he heard a click and stole a sideways look at Kaito through the gaps between his fingers.

"It's a work of art," the fox defended himself. "I mean seriously, that detail is incredible!"

"I noticed," Shinichi said darkly.

Kaito chuckled. He pocketed his phone and padded up behind Shinichi on silent feet. "Up we go."

"Wha—hey!" Shinichi yelped as he abruptly found himself swept off his feet and into the magician's arms. "What do you think you're doing?"

"Sparing your virgin eyes," Kaito replied cheerfuly. "Now stop struggling. I'll put you down once we're out of this room."

Shinichi grumbled a little longer but settled down, closing his eyes and turning his face into Kaito's chest.

The magician took a moment to just enjoy the feeling of having his beloved detective cradled to his chest before setting off to circle the marble lovers in their bed of roses. He chose the farthest exit just because he could (and because he would take any excuse to hold Shinichi just a little longer). As Shinichi remained warm and quiescent in his arms, he went ahead and carried the detective down the twisting corridor and into the next room. There, he stopped.

"You'll like this one," he said, gently setting Shinichi back on his feet.

Shinichi straightened, secretly a little disappointed (he had enjoyed being held by Kaito like that—like he was something precious and irreplaceable), and turned to survey the latest artistic installment.

Here, the now very familiar marble couple sat side by side on a stone bench, smiling and laughing as they fed a flock of stone pigeons. It was a heartwarming scene.

"Come on, we can totally do this one," Kaito said, taking Shinichi's hand in one of his own and gesturing with the other towards the identical but unoccupied bench set at an angle to that on which the couple were posed.

"Wait!" Shinichi blurted out, tugging on the fox's hand.

Kaito turned to face him, eyebrows raised. "What is it?"

"I," Shinichi started then stopped, biting his lip. There was a long pause before he took a deep breath and started over. "I've never…been with anyone before you. So there are a lot of…relationship things I've never, um, done—or thought about really." Most of his experience with relationships was the bits that led to murder, but it didn't seem appropriate to bring that up right now.

Kaito looked shifty. He glanced away then back and cleared his throat. "Would it creep you out if I said I knew that?"

Shinichi blinked. "I'm not sure. I think that would depend on how you know."

"Deductive reasoning?" the fox suggested. "And maybe some observation." He paused. "Okay, a lot of observation."

Shinichi considered this answer for a long moment then sighed. "I guess I can't complain." His lips curled into a fondly rueful smile. "You are a thief after all."

Kaito chuckled, leaning in to press his forehead to Shinichi's. "In the interest of fairness, I should tell you that Aoko's the only other person I've ever been in a relationship with. By the time we admitted we weren't going to work out, I was already halfway in love with you. I knew you were the one I wanted. No one else could compare."

Shinichi turned pink. He started to say something then stopped because he honestly had no idea how to put words to the emotions swelling inside his chest. Instead, he gathered his courage and leaned up to press his lips to Kaito's in a chaste kiss. "So…about that picture?"

Chapter Text

The Tranquil Moon Hot Spring Resort was the main attraction in a small, out-of-the-way village nestled in the mountains. Surrounded as it was by nature in all its glory, the place was absolutely gorgeous.

"I wonder why this is their slow season," Shinichi mused out loud as Kaito guided them down the village's main street (with great care as all the streets were packed dirt and not exactly even). "This place is beautiful. With summer vacation just starting, I would have thought this would be a popular time for visitors—especially families with children."

"There's a story behind that," Kaito replied. "Or rather there are several stories, most of them involving ghosts."

"That's mildly concerning," Shinichi said with a grimace. He'd lost count of the number of times he had arrived somewhere only to encounter a murder inspired by one local legend or another. "What kind of ghosts? If it's about vengeful spirits then we may want to turn around now."

"Don't tell me you're afraid of ghosts," the fox said, a teasing lilt to his words. "I never would have guessed."

"I'm not," Shinichi huffed. "I'm being practical. I have literally never stayed anywhere that was supposed to be haunted by a vengeful spirit without someone in the vicinity getting killed."

"I see. Well, fortunately for us and everyone here then, most of the ghosts in these stories are harmless."

Kaito hit the breaks as a small dog raced onto the road ahead of them. It was followed by several children, all laughing and trying to catch the energetic little animal as it scampered this way and that, expertly avoiding its pursuers' grabby hands.

The two college students watched the proceedings with amusement as Kaito resumed his storytelling.

"The oldest and most famous ghost story actually dates all the way back to the Advent. This village wasn't here yet at the time. There was just the one lonesome house built by a man and his wife so that they could raise their daughter, the first hybrid born in their town, away from the fear and discrimination many early hybrid children faced. The couple had always been really outdoorsy people, so they'd hiked throughout this region in their youth and knew there was a good, secluded spot here with its own hot springs as well as a nearby natural cave system where they could hide if the mob ever came calling. They built their own house, planted their own food, and basically lived as hermits. By all accounts, they were happy."

"I'm hearing an 'until' in there," Shinichi said softly.

Kaito sighed. "You would be right. When their daughter was sixteen, it had already become apparent that no more purely human babies were being born. So on the one hand, hybrids were beginning to be accepted—if grudgingly by some—as the new norm. That being said, at that point, that first family had also been joined by a few others with hybrid children seeking a safe haven. Among the newcomers were two brothers. One was just old enough to have been born before the Advent and therefore human. His little brother, however, had been born a dog hybrid. Their parents had been purists who still wanted to see hybrids as some kind of disease on the species, so the older brother took the younger and ran with him to this little remote safe haven he'd heard about."

Shinichi frowned. "This is going to be a romance, isn't it?"

Kaito chuckled, the sound reverberating through them both as Shinichi was still holding onto him. "However did you guess?"

"It sounds like the beginning of one of Sonoko's stories," Shinichi replied flatly then sighed. "So…what happened?"

Considering this was a ghost story, he knew the ending couldn't be a happy one. He was still waiting for the other shoe to drop.

"Well, the young lady with whom our story started had grown into a lovely young horse hybrid. As you know, horse hybrids tend to be tall, elegant and strong, which is why so many of them go into modeling and height-centric sports. Suffice to say, the girl was gorgeous and a very nice person too. She was kind and soft spoken but had a good eye for design and business both. She was the one who helped develop the Tranquil Moon Resort. She came up with the vision and worked with the locals to get it built. But anyway, to make a long story short, both brothers I mentioned earlier fell in love with her. The younger was going to keep his feelings secret because he felt indebted to his older brother for having basically raised him, but the lady in question loved him and saw his older brother as merely a good friend. Their respective cycles kicked in, one thing led to another, and the girl and the younger brother ended up sleeping together. But afterward, the guy was so ashamed of what he saw as his betrayal of his older brother that he ran off into the mountains and was never seen again, leaving behind the heartbroken lady and a child he never knew he had. The older brother also felt real torn up for, as he saw it, not having realized his brother or crush's feelings and causing the tragedy, but he stuck around instead of running off, married the girl to protect her and her child from scandal, and raised his nephew as his son. But they say both he and his wife never stopped looking for the brother that went missing, hoping for his return—even to this day."

"That's a rather depressing story," Shinichi observed. "For everyone involved. Though even if it was true, I don't see why it would result in this being the slow season."

"Ah well, like I said, that's only one of a whole bunch of ghost stories associated with this area. A good half of them have to do with people who've disappeared for one reason or another, and almost all those disappearances are attributed to this time of year. This is also the time of year when the ghosts are most active."

Shinichi's frown deepened. "When you say there have been a lot of disappearances…"

"Or so the stories go, but disappearance is probably too strong a word for the more recent, confirmable cases."

"You're saying there have indeed been confirmed cases."

"Well yeah," Kaito admitted. "But the real culprit is also what most people these days agree is the culprit behind the hauntings."

"And that would be?" Shinichi prodded.

"The fog."

"Hey! You two on the motorcycle!" a man's voice yelled from behind them. "What's the hold up? We got cargo ta deliver here. Get moving or get out of the way!"

Shinichi and Kaito both looked back to find an enormous moving truck idling in the road behind them. It took up more than its fair share of the road, looking more than a little out of place, and its driver was wearing the frazzled face of someone who had already had a very long and very trying day which he would really like to finish as soon as possible.

"Sorry, but there are kids on the road," Kaito called to the man.

The guy's grumpy expression grew grumpier as he peered past them at said frolicking kids and their bouncy little puppy.

"Oi! You lot with the dog! Don't you know it's dangerous to play in the road?" he hollered even more loudly. "Move it!"

To emphasize his point, he slammed his hand down on his horn several times. Loud blasts of noise rang out.

On the road ahead, the dog let out a startled, high-pitched yelp of panic and bolted. Its pack of children immediately chased after it, coincidentally clearing the road.

Kaito revved the engine and resumed his explanation of the local woes.

"It's the terrain around these parts," he said, raising his voice a little so that Shinichi could hear him over the dual rumbles of the motorcycle and truck engines. "The formation of the land means that this valley sees frequent and heavy fogs starting from the late spring and running through the early summer. People who don't listen to the warnings and go wandering around at the wrong times tend to get lost. The lucky ones find their ways back or are found before they land themselves in accidents. The unlucky ones, well, I'm sure you can guess. I think they lose one or two overly adventurous hikers a year."

Shinichi would have liked to say he was surprised, but he really wasn't. There were always people out there who did things even when explicitly and repeatedly warned against them—sometimes because they thought they knew better, sometimes because they falsely believed themselves immune to whatever the danger was—and got themselves hurt or worse as a result. It was incredibly frustrating, but there it was.

"I…guess that's a nice, ordinary explanation for both the disappearances and ghost sightings," the detective murmured as he mulled this latest piece of information over. Then he fixed a curious look on the back of Kaito's helmet-covered head. "You know an awful lot about this place considering I didn't think you'd even heard about it until a few days ago."

"I just did a little—" a lot of "—research," Kaito said nonchalantly. "Right. Looks like we turn here."

The motorcycle veered left onto a narrower path.

The buildings around them thinned out while the trees and other vegetation crept in. Then they were rounding a bend around a grove of flowering trees and pulling up in front of a beautiful, old Japanese-style building.

Chapter Text

"Welcome to the Tranquil Moon," the sheep-hybrid receptionist said with a warm smile. "How may I help you?"

The fox and the rabbit returned her greeting with their own and set about getting themselves checked in. They were given their keys along with the password for accessing the resort's internet and a heartfelt reminder that there were often heavy fogs in the area throughout the nights and early mornings.

"So if you want to go hiking, please wait until its full daytime—and stick to the trails. If you want a more strenuous trek, I'd also recommend going with a local guide. Otherwise, we have a lot of events you can choose from here at the resort or in the village. You'll find the schedule in your room."

They assured her that they would not go wandering outside the village in the fog. Then, since they had a good hour and a half before their dinner would be served, they dropped what little they had brought in terms of luggage off in their rooms before heading out to stretch their legs and explore the village.

There was, Shinichi thought, a kind of rustic charm to the little village that housed the Tranquil Moon Resort. It was the kind of settlement where every building had both its own space and style. There were just as many trees as buildings scattered throughout the area, casting their welcome shade over the dirt paths and tiled roofs alike. It was quite clear after only a few minutes of wandering that the place had not been built according to any particular plan but rather grown into what it was now as people came together, had ideas, and set about making those ideas into realities.

Shinichi was drawn almost immediately to the bakery, which looked like a fancy, western villa scaled down with a wraparound porch. On the inside, it was an aromatic wonderland divided into a comfortable sitting area furnished with tables and chairs that had been hand carved with lovely patterns of vines and flowers, a veritable gallery of well-lit shelves of baked goods behind glass, and a spacious kitchen—visible to guests through an enormous window.

Everything smelled divine, and Shinichi spent a good chunk of time watching with fascination as Runo, the master of the bakery's coffee bar, demonstrated every step of his coffee crafting process from the roasting of the beans on up.

Shinichi took it all in with rapt attention while Kaito watched him with same. Both left feeling that it had been time well spent.

"All our cakes and breads are amazing too," Runo told them, gesturing towards the glowing shelves of golden brown loaves and icing frosted goodness. "Everything we've got here is made one hundred percent from scratch. No prepackaged help at all. Try anything. You won't be disappointed."

"I'm sure we won't," Kaito agreed, "but I'm afraid we may have to take you up on that challenge tomorrow. We need to start heading back. We have a dinner reservation at the Tranquil Moon, and we wouldn't want to be rude by spoiling our appetites beforehand."

"That's a good point," Runo conceded. "Mitsuki-san's cooking is the food of the gods. It deserves your respect and your appetite. But do come back tomorrow. We'll be holding the Mystery Bake Off. It'll be fun."

As they were leaving the bakery, the found the road all but entirely blocked by a very familiar moving truck. Its back door was open, and the ramp was lowered, but though there were several large crates both still inside the transport vehicle and stacked on the ground beside it, there was no sign of any people. No drivers and no movers.

Curious, Shinichi circled around closer to the open back end of the truck and looked over the crates at the building that appeared to be their destination.

Not counting the resort complex and a handful of apartment buildings, it was one of the largest buildings he and Kaito had seen so far in their exploration of the village, and the sign hanging over the front door had the words "Tranquil Moon Art Gallery" scrawled across it in beautiful, bold calligraphic letters.

The gallery's front doors were propped wide open. Out of it drifted a pair of raised voices.

"—not my fault!" a vaguely familiar male voice was snarling. "It ain't my fault I had to take a detour. I didn't schedule the damned construction!"

"Well you should have taken the detour into consideration from the start and set out sooner!" an irritated female voice retorted. "The exhibition is scheduled to begin tomorrow morning. How in the world am I supposed to get everything set up in time? If you'd at least called ahead to let me know you'd be this late, I could have asked my assistant to stay until you got here."

There was a grunt. "And I said I was sorry about that. I'll help you get the crates in to wherever you want 'em if you'd just, ya know, start doing stuff instead of standing here and harping on and on about what can't be changed."

"You clearly have no idea how much work has to be done to prepare a show."

"Yeah, whatever. Ya want my help or not? Because I can leave as soon as I've unloaded. I don't have to stay and get griped at."

"I don't like your attitude."

"Lady, the feeling's mutual."

The two unhappy voices had been drawing closer by the second, and now their owners emerged from the gallery's depths. One, as expected, was the driver who had crossed paths with them earlier on their way into the village. He was accompanied by a well-dressed woman with the characteristically delicate, pointed ears and long, straight but luxuriant hair of a horse hybrid.

"Hey, don't touch those!" she said sharply when she spotted the boys standing near the half unloaded crates.

"We didn't," Kaito said quickly, holding up both hands in a placating manner as he offered the woman a disarming smile. "We were just passing by."

The woman visibly calmed herself and pasted on a polite smile. "Sorry. We're running behind schedule, and a lot of these pieces are delicate." She turned back to the driver, expression becoming pinched. "I want to start with the six key pieces. Those have to be ready for viewing tomorrow when Kawashino-san arrives."

"So which ones would those be?" the driver asked.

The gallery manager flipped open a leather folio she had had tucked under one arm, skimmed over the lists inside, then pointed to several of the largest boxes. "That one there, those two, and the three in the back there."

"Of course it'd be the heaviest ones," the driver grunted. "Damn. I knew I should have brought a trolley."

"You know, if you need some help, we may be of some assistance," Kaito offered, stealing a glance over at Shinichi, who nodded.

"Really?" the bear hybrid looked surprised. "I mean, we could use the help, but you're tourists, yeah? Shouldn't you be off enjoying the amenities or something?"

"We have dinner reservations back at the Tranquil Moon in a bit, but we can spare some time to help out here," Shinichi insisted. "I've never helped set up an art exhibition before. I think it could be interesting."

The gallery manager looked from the rabbit to the fox and back again, hesitant, but apparently her desire to get everything set up as quickly as possible outweighed any concerns she might have about enlisting random tourists.

"But please, handle everything with care," she said. "All of Masaguchi-sensei's work is extremely valuable. I'll be in big trouble if even one of them is so much as scratched."

"We'll be careful," Kaito promised. "Now, how about you walk us through what you need, and we'll get started?"

The gallery manager nodded and proceeded to do just that.

Soon, Kaito, Shinichi, the driver and the manager were all carrying crates in and out of the building. Since Kaito and Shinichi's time was limited, they focused on the six main pieces that the gallery manager was most eager to have installed. Sculpture after sculpture was unboxed with great care. Then the packing materials were removed and the sculptures were given a final brush up and a light test.

"So what's the theme of this show?" Kaito asked the manager as he helped her adjust one of the light fixtures so that it would better show off the long, sinewy lines of the…er, coiling mass of something or other statue that was one of the exhibit's largest pieces. Kaito privately thought that it was one of the ugliest pieces of art—if you could even call it art—that he had ever had the misfortune to lay eyes on, but he understood that such things were very subjective. Beauty was in the eye of the beholder and all that.

"This is an annual showcase of Masaguchi-sensei's works," she explained. "This year's theme is the monsters within."

Kaito looked again at the seething mass of sculpture then around at the five other similarly monstrous pieces of art that had been arranged as the exhibit's headliners.

"I take it Masaguchi-sensei's a bit of a pessimist," he concluded.

The comment earned him an odd look from the gallery manager. "I…suppose he can be a bit…intense. Have you heard of him?"

"Nope." And if these pieces were anything to go by, the thief thought he could just as well go without ever doing so, but it was probably more politic to keep that thought to himself. "It looks like Shinichi and I need to start heading back if we don't want to miss our reservation. Think you guys can handle the rest without us? If not, we may be able to come back after we've eaten."

"Oh, no, really, that won't be necessary," the gallery manager said with a rather more genuine smile. "Though I do thank you for the offer. You two have already done plenty. But you should come by and see the show sometime before you head home."

"We'll do that."

Kaito gave the hideous main statue another speculative look before crossing the showroom to where Shinichi had just finished helping the driver maneuver one of the smaller statues into position.

"We gotta go," he said, tapping Shinichi on the shoulder. "Our dinner awaits."

Shinichi's stomach growled, and the bunny blushed pink. Beside him, the bear hybrid driver laughed and slapped him good naturedly on the shoulder.

"Kids like you shouldn't be missing meals. Go on then. And thanks. If you hadn't stepped in earlier and offered ta help, I'm afraid I might've let my temper get the better of me and ended up in a row. Then nothing would've been done, and yeah. You get the picture. This way, everything's worked out all right."

"Do you deal with a lot of artists?" Shinichi asked, curious. He hadn't really thought much about it before, but he supposed that shipping art was probably a business all its own.

"Plenty," the bear said with a shrug. "Most of them are eccentrics. Masaguchi's one of the strangest. He always sends his statues here to this dinky little town at this time of year. He says it's to help give them something to share with tourists during their slow season, but I can't see many tourists being drawn to galleries of huge, ugly statues as a vacation destination. But he sells well every year, so maybe I'm the one who doesn't understand how the art world moves."

"I'd be interested to hear more about it if you're staying in town for a few days," Kaito mused.

"I will be," the driver conceded. "I have a room up at the hot spring resort. I always go there when I'm in the area. Their food is amazing, and the service is friendly, and they're really good about keeping your privacy for you. It's a great place for unwinding after a tough job. You could join me for a beer or something sometime and I can tell you about all the weirdoes I've hauled art for. You're going to think I'm making it all up."

"Now I'm even more interested," the magician said with a laugh. "So you're also staying at the Tranquil Moon?"

"Yeah. I'll be in the third crescent room. I always get that room while I'm here."

The two university students arrived back at the Tranquil Moon just three minutes before their dinner reservation. The receptionist complimented them on their punctuality with an amused gleam in her eyes.

They made their way to their rooms to find the dining table already set. The wide, sliding doors on the far side of the room had also been opened, giving them a splendid view of the gently steaming hot spring pool associated with their suite.

Here at the Tranquil Moon, the natural hot springs had been directed through careful landscaping to flow into a series of smaller pools, each sheltered by ornamental rock formations and luscious vegetation so that they offered both privacy and a lovely, natural atmosphere.

Kaito whistled. "Nice. Very picturesque."

Shinichi would have agreed, but his attention had been caught by the gift box sitting in the middle of the dining table. Curious, he picked it up. The size and shape made him think chocolate, but there was a little more heft to the package than he would typically expect from a box of candy.

"What's that?"

Not having heard the fox walking up behind him, Shinichi jumped and whirled around. "Don't sneak up on me like that!"

"I wasn't sneaking. You were just distracted," the fox defended himself before nodding at the box in Shinichi's hands. "So? What is it?"

"I found it on the table," Shinichi replied. "I think maybe it's a welcome gift."

"Can't be a normal service though," the fox observed. "If it was, I'd expect the resort's logo to be on the box. Or, failing that, it should have been green, brown or silver to match the resort's colors."

"It could be a special treat since the resort's owners are fans of my dad's work," Shinichi theorized.

"Did you read the card?"

Shinichi followed Kaito's gaze to where, indeed, a small card lay on the table where the box had been. He set the box aside for the moment and retrieved the card. The texture and weight of the paper spoke of luxury—as did the beautiful, calligraphic letters spelling out Shinichi's full name. Said name, however, was also all that was written on the card. Shinichi turned the card over a few times then held it up to the light just to be sure, but no other messages or signs of hidden meaning presented themselves.

Having determined that the card had no more to share with him, he turned his attention to the gift itself. Like the card, the box was simple and nondescript. Although it was a lovely shade of blue.

Sitting down before the table with Kaito beside him, Shinichi lifted the lid off the box to find another box nestled inside. This inner box was carved wood, which explained the weight of the gift. Etched into the lid of the wooden box and inlaid with gold leaf was a pattern of blossoms.

"Forget-me-nots," the detective murmured, tracing a finger lightly over the flowers.

"Like the color of the outer box," Kaito agreed.

Shinichi glanced at said outer box and realized that yes, it was indeed the blue of forget-me-nots. Aside from the blossoms, however, the wooden box too sported no message that he could find.

Upon lifting the hinged lid, he was greeted with the sight of a dozen chocolates, each unique and delicate in design.

Shinichi contemplated the rather extravagant gift for a long moment then glanced over at Kaito. "This wasn't you, was it?"

The magician's vulpine ears flicked as he frowned. "No. I would have picked roses. 'Remember me' would be a pretty strange message to send someone you're literally on vacation with."

That, Shinichi thought, was a good point.

"I've never met the resort owners," he said, thinking aloud.

"Could it be from your parents?"

Shinichi thought about that then shook his head. "It's not their style."

Both detective and magician fell silent as they turned the facts over in their minds.

"Who else knew you'd be here?" asked Kaito.

"Well, Ran and Sonoko," Shinichi said, thinking. "My neighbor knows too. He's picking up my mail for me. Other than that, the only people I told were Satou and Takagi-keiji."

"Any of them likely to send you expensive chocolates?"

Shinichi snorted. "No. I'm pretty sure the only one who'd even know where and how to get something like this would be Sonoko, and," he added in a bit of a mumble. "If she was going to send me something, it would be something super suggestive and embarrassing so she could poke fun at me. Except I didn't tell her I was coming with someone."

"Let's go ask the front desk," Kaito decided, rising to his feet. Before he could take two steps to the door, however, it slid open to admit a delicate, dark-haired woman with the fluffy tail of a squirrel. She was dressed in the leaf-patterned kimono of a resort staff member.

"Oh," she said, startled when she nearly walked into Kaito. "I'm so sorry."

"No, it was my fault," he assured her, reaching out to steady her. Seeing the tray she'd brought, he offered to give her a hand, but she declined. At her insistence, the boys sat and watched as she served the first course of their meal.

"Enjoy," she said softly, bowing and turning to leave.

"Please wait a moment," Shinichi called after her.

She turned questioning eyes to him, and he indicated the chocolate gift box with its uninformative card.

"This wasn't here when we checked in, but it was on the table when we arrived back just now," he explained. "Do you know who sent it?"

"Oh, um, no," she said nervously. "It was delivered to the front desk earlier today. Is there a problem?"

"No. We were just curious," Shinichi said, offering the woman a reassuring smile.

She bobbed a quick nod but continued to linger. Shinichi noted with curiosity and no little confusion that her nervousness hadn't abated at all. Her posture was tense and unnaturally still in the manner of someone trying very hard not to fidget. Everything about her screamed that she had something to say but wasn't sure how or if she should.

Catching her large, dark eyes, Shinichi held her gaze. "Are you all right?" he asked, keeping his voice gentle.

The woman started then blinked rapidly, dropping her gaze.

"I—I'm sorry," she stammered. "I just… I mean, I heard you were a detective…?"

Shinichi exchanged speaking glances with Kaito before turning his attention back to the squirrel girl. "I am."

She nodded again, hesitated, started to leave again then stopped again and turned back. "Um, I know this may be a bit…inappropriate of me, but, if you have time, would it be all right if I… What I mean is, there's something I'd like to talk to you about. But I understand if you don't want to be bothered on your vacation."

"I don't mind at all," Shinichi said sincerely. "If you'd like, we can talk after dinner."

The woman looked relieved.

"Thank you," she said, quiet but sincere, bowed again then left.

"Well, that was certainly something," Kaito commented once she'd gone. "It's just one thing after another around you, isn't it? I mean seriously, we've been here for less than half a day, and you're already receiving mysterious packages and getting approached by someone with a potential case."

Shinichi shrugged. "I'm used to it. This sort of thing just happens."

"Your life is weird," Kaito concluded.

Shinichi rolled his eyes. "Thank you for that astute observation."

Chapter Text

"You know, this is actually the second thing I've gotten from an anonymous sender recently," Shinichi commented later as the two of them worked their way through what was definitely a very scrumptious dinner. "Although the other one was an email."

"Emails from unknown people are considerably less unusual than gifts from the same," Kaito commented. "But I assume you wouldn't have brought it up if it was just your run of the mill spam."

"It could still have been spam," Shinichi admitted. "I haven't ruled out the possibility. Though on the surface it looked like a request for help. Or at least it was someone asking if I would consider helping them."

Kaito leaned forward slightly, clearly intrigued. "What was the case?"

Shinichi looked rueful. "I don't know. That was literally all the email said. It was a one-liner asking if I'd help them. I sent a reply to ask who they were, but they haven't responded, and the email account that the message was sent from has apparently been deleted."

The fox's eyebrows shot up. "Okay, that certainly does up the weirdness meter. And I can see why this gift brought it to mind," he added, nodding to the box of chocolates now sitting on the corner of the table. "Do you think they could be related?"

Shinichi paused at that, giving the question some serious consideration before responding. "I don't know. Though they don't feel like they're related. The email was cryptic and, well, frankly about as nondescript as you can get. It was furtive. This," he nodded at the chocolates, "is, well, kind of…"

"Bold?" Kaito suggested. "Presumptuous? Borderline stalkerish?"

Shinichi blinked. "I wouldn't have put it quite like that, but now that you mention it…"

"It's damned suspicious is what it is," the thief said darkly. "It's a romantic gift from someone who chose not to identify themselves. And they sent it here to you while you were here with me." His words ended in a growl as he followed the thought through to its natural conclusion. The timing, the type of gift, the lack of identification—all of it would make perfect sense if someone was out to try and sabotage their romantic getaway. The mere thought made Kaito's hackles rise.

On the other side of the table, however, Shinichi just looked mildly confused. "I really think it's more likely to be about a case. I don't have any exes, and only the police know I came with someone anyway. If someone wants to be remembered, they're more likely someone I've met in a previous case or something—or maybe someone whose life was affected by a case I solved."

"So, what, like someone whose letting you know they remember what you did and that they appreciate your work?" Kaito asked. He supposed that wasn't an illogical possibility, although his gut still said it was competition (he could admit that he might be letting his possessiveness get the better of his thought processes though. He didn't like the idea of someone lurking out there, making sneaky little moves to try and steal his dear detective right out from under him).

"Or someone who did not appreciate my work and wants me to know I'd better not forget it," the detective said, expression going grim. "An expensive gift doesn't automatically represent good intentions."

"That's a singularly unpleasant interpretation," Kaito observed, looking even more disturbed—though now for different reasons. "Do you get that kind of thing a lot?"

Shinichi smiled a little wanly. "I wouldn't say a lot, but it has happened a few times. Some people take it badly when their friends or loved ones are exposed as murderers. Sometimes it's because they don't care who's been hurt so long as their own circle of loved ones stays intact. Sometimes, they think the killing was justified. Whatever the case, such people can end up blaming the detectives and police for not leaving well enough alone."

A somber silence fell over the table. It was punctuated only by the sound of their utensils clicking against the plates.

"I take it you're not planning to eat the chocolate then?" Kaito asked eventually.

Shinichi shrugged. "It depends. I'm going to take some photos to document them and see if I can find out where they were made. Then I'll have them analyzed for poison. But if they're clean, it'd be a waste to throw them away."

Kaito gave him an incredulous look, opened his mouth, shut it again, then started to laugh. "You really are something else," he said, gaze warm and tone fond in a way that made Shinichi's stomach flutter and warmth blossom deep in the very core of his being. "I'll help. I'm an expert at tracking things down, if I do say so myself."

Shyly, Shinichi reached his free hand across the table to lay it over Kaito's own. The magician immediately turned his hand so that he could lace his fingers with Shinichi's before he looked up to meet the detective's gaze.

"Thank you," Shinichi said, quietly sincere. "I'm really, really glad you're here with me."

Kaito's breath hitched in his throat, and he wished fervently that there wasn't a table in between them right then because he wanted nothing more right at that instant than to lean over and kiss Shinichi full on those tempting lips.

He fancied he could see the same desire shimmering in the bunny detective's sapphire eyes.

All other sounds faded. The faint rustling of leaves and the chirping of the nocturnal insects became muted as though hidden away behind a dense wall of cotton. The edges of the suite around them too softened and fuzzed out, pulling away until it was only them.

Only Kaito sitting on one side of the table and Shinichi on the other, hands clasped in the space between them.

A loud knock came at the door, shattering the moment.

Both thief and detective startled then shared rueful looks. Kaito gave Shinichi's hand a squeeze and was pleased when the detective squeezed back before withdrawing and calling out.

"Come in."

-0-

"My name is Inoue Nozomi," said the dark-haired young woman. She was still dressed in her resort staff uniform. She had cleared their table and now sat at it across from the two university students. Her delicate hands were folded on the table before her.

Shinichi observed that, sometime between when she had first asked him for his help and now, she had calmed her nerves and found her resolve. It shone now in her dark eyes as she reached up to the fine, gold chain she wore around her neck and unclasped it. She lifted a locket from where it had been hidden under her collar and popped it open before extending it towards Shinichi.

He took the proffered piece of jewelry and studied the photo inside.

It shoed Nozomi, looking much the same as she did now if a little younger and somehow more…bright, with her arm around the shoulders of a boy several years her junior with Nozomi's same large, dark eyes and dark hair. But where she had the more discreet ears of a squirrel hybrid, he had the large, triangular ears of a cat and, in his grin, the long, sharp canines to match.

Even with their different animal characteristics, it was clear to Shinichi that the two were related. This boy had to be a younger brother or cousin.

Nozomi confirmed his theory when she finally took a deep breath and started to speak.

"The boy in that picture is my little brother," she said. "And he disappeared a year ago. I… If it's possible, I was hoping you could help me figure out what happened to him."

"Are you asking me to find him?" Shinichi checked.

Nozomi hesitated. "If you could, I would like nothing better, but… I know everyone thinks he ran off on his own, but I think—no, I know—something happened to him."

Shinichi nodded slowly, considering. "Could you start from the beginning?"

Nozomi took a deep breath, visibly steeling herself.

"My brother and I grew up in this village with our aunt. She took us in after our parents passed away in a car accident. I used to come here to the Tranquil Moon Resort a lot when I was little because the other kids my age had all grown up together, and it was difficult not to feel like an outsider. The staff were all very kind to me and taught me a great deal, and I realized that I wanted this place to be part of my future. So I applied for this position when I graduated high school. I was—am—happy here, but my brother was different."

She sighed, accepting her locket back from Shinichi and clasping it once more around her neck.

"Natsu was always a bit of a handful. He was very bright but headstrong and kind of, uh, direct. He always said exactly what he was thinking, and it often got him in trouble. He didn't have many friends, and this place was too quiet for him. He wanted to move to the cities for high school, but I… I didn't want him to go. I guess, deep down, I was afraid that, if he went off to the big cities, he'd never come back. We…had a big fight about it." Nozomi swallowed, looking pained. "So when he disappeared a few weeks later, everyone just assumed that he must have decided to take matters into his own hands and just gone."

"You don't believe that though," Shinichi concluded, keeping his voice as gentle as he could. "Why is that?"

"The thing is, we'd already made up about that fight," Nozomi explained, dark eyes earnest. "I…realized I was being selfish. I didn't want to lose him, but I also wanted him to be happy, you know? And, well, I knew he cared about me too. That wasn't going to just change if he started spending more time away. But if I kept holding him back just because I was afraid then that might change. I guess I realized that staying family—really family—isn't about staying physically together. It's about support and caring and…"

She trailed off and coughed lightly, cheeks shading pink. "I'm sorry. That was off topic."

"That's all right," Shinichi assured her. "It helps me understand the situation better."

She nodded, grateful. "Thank you." Nozomi drew in a deep breath then picked her story back up. "So we had that fight, but we talked it over after we'd both gotten our heads cleared, and we were planning to spend some time researching potential high schools that Natsu might be able to apply to that would be within our budget range and provide easy commute for when he visits home or when I want to go see him. We hadn't started the research yet, but we agreed we would do it later after the art shows and other activities the village likes to put on during this time of year."

"In other words, you two had plans together for when festivities lulled."

"Yes," Nozomi nodded. "But there's also the timing. He still had another year of middle school to finish. Natsu might have been hotheaded, but he was smart. Even if he was afraid I'd change my mind and try to stop him from leaving, he would have spent the time he had remaining in middle school to do his research and get everything arranged proper like. I can see him making those arrangements in secret then sneaking off after graduation and sending me a letter or email or something after he'd gotten settled. I can't see him rushing off in a huff with nothing but the clothes he was wearing and anything he happened to have in his pockets."

"So he left all his belongings?"

Nozomi smiled wanly. "Just about. His phone and wallet vanished with him, but those were things he always carried. Other than that, the only things of his I couldn't account for was the clothes I know he was wearing the last time I saw him, a jacket, his camera and his backpack. He may also have had a toy tambourine. I found a receipt for it in his room. Its timestamp said it was from that day, but I never saw it. The backpack was what convinced everyone else he ran away, but unless he planned to purchase a lot of supplies, all that he had in it were some snacks. No spare clothes or toiletries. And that just doesn't make sense to me."

"It would be a bit strange," Shinichi agreed. "So what do you think happened?"

Nozomi drew in a deep breath then let it out again. Her face had gone deathly pale at this point, but her eyes were still dark and full of fire as she looked Shinichi straight in the eye. "I believe Natsu was kidnapped or—or worse. And I'm sure I know who's responsible. But I need your help to prove it."

Chapter Text

Shinichi wondered briefly what it said about his life that he was only mildly surprised by Nozomi's statement.

"There's this man—one of our regulars," Nozomi explained. "He always comes to the Tranquil Moon for two weeks during this time of year. He's done it every year since I started working here. He was booked for two weeks last year too the way he always is, but he left before the first week was even over. It's the only time he's ever done that that I know of, and he left the day after Natsu disappeared. That can't be a coincidence. He has to be responsible."

"I understand why the suddenness and timing of his departure makes you suspicious," Shinichi said. "And I'm not saying he can't be involved, but there are a lot of other reasons this guest could have cut his trip short last year."

"Like a family emergency," Kaito put in. "People get called away from things on short notice all the time."

Nozomi looked away, the corners of her mouth turning down. "That's what the police said too when I asked them to investigate Kawashino-san."

Shinichi's ears perked up at the name. He'd heard it just recently, though it took him a moment to recall where.

"Are you talking about the Kawashino-san who's going to be at the art gallery tomorrow?"

Nozomi looked up, startled. "You know him?"

"No, but his name came up when we were at the gallery earlier this evening," Shinichi explained. "We were helping the gallery people unload and set up some of Masaguchi-sensei's work for the show starting tomorrow, and Kawashino-san's name came up as an important client."

"You were helping them set up?" The squirrel's surprise made her fluffy tail rise higher. "I'm surprised. The gallery staff are always reminding people not to touch and telling them to be careful. I'm really surprised they let outsiders help actually unload and move the pieces around."

"I'd guess it was because they didn't have much choice," Kaito told her. "Apparently the delivery arrived later than planned, but the manager still wanted to open on time because she'd promised to show Kawashino the goods."

"So he just…goes on like nothing happened," Nozomi murmured, more to herself than to her audience. Her hands fisted on her knees under the table. "He just comes back and… and goes buy his art and use the springs. Just another vacation." Nozomi's voice trembled, and Shinichi worried for a moment that she might burst into tears—or scream something about the injustice of it and throw something.

In the hopes of calming her down and bringing the discussion back to the relevant, Shinichi suggested that Nozomi tell them a little more about Kawashino-san and what she remembered about when the man and her brother had crossed paths.

"You feel strongly about this," he told her. "So help us understand why. Did Kawashino-can and Natsu ever have an altercation?"

"Well… There was an incident." Nozomi's pale cheeks flushed a faint pink in mild embarrassment. "It was the year before last. Natsu used to come around here all the time when school wasn't in session. He had a real bond with the cat who lives here. He had the gift for communication, and he was especially good with cats. The two of them—Natsu and the cat—played all sorts of games, chasing around through the complex. They, um, weren't always careful to keep to the parts of the complex that they were supposed to, and they accidentally broke one of the sculptures that Kawashino-san had purchased. He was showing it off to the other collectors in one of the private party dining rooms, and Natsu chased the cat in there. Kawashino-san went ballistic! I'd be surprised if there was anyone in the resort who didn't hear him screaming at Natsu and the cat to get out. When the other staff and I went to see what had happened, he screamed at us too—demanded we all get out and stay out. He wouldn't even let us clean up the mess."

Shinichi pictured the scene and winced. Yeah, that was certainly an altercation and then some. It didn't, however, strike him as something to go after an adolescent kid for an entire year after it had happened. A spur of the moment act, maybe. Lashing out in a fit of temper—which he clearly had, if Nozomi's account was even halfway accurate—at someone who'd broken a prized possession. But waiting a whole year? Unlikely.

Then again, perhaps there was more to the story that he had yet to learn. Best not to count anything out completely until he knew more.

"Did Kawashino-san want compensation?" he asked.

"He didn't exactly ask, but the owner waived the bill for his stay."

"Did he seem appeased by that?"

" I thought he was at the time since he finished his stay and didn't have any more outbursts," Nozomi admitted. "But now I don't know."

"How much was the sculpture worth?" Kaito asked curiously, earning himself a startled blink from the squirrel hybrid.

"I don't know," she said. "But I'm sure it was expensive. It was one of Masaguchi-san's originals."

"Was anyone injured when the statue broke?" asked Shinichi.

Nozomi thought about that for a moment then shook her head. "Not that I'm aware of. Though, like I said, we staff members weren't allowed back into the room until after Kawashino-san and his party vacated it. By that time, everything had been cleaned up. We didn't find any stains or the like that might indicate an injury."

Kaito's eyebrows shot up. "Hold on a moment. The guy cleaned the place himself after throwing his tantrum?"

"Well, he had people with him, so he might not have done it personally."

"Huh."

"I don't know how badly the sculpture was damaged, but we all thought maybe he was hoping it could be repaired." Nozomi glanced from Kaito to Shinichi. "Is that important?"

The detective glanced at Kaito too, raising an eyebrow.

The fox shrugged. "Dunno. I'm starting to want a good look at the Masaguchi exhibit tomorrow though. I'll admit I didn't think much of the few pieces we saw earlier, but if someone's actually willing to go to the trouble of getting one repaired then there's gotta be something to 'em."

"I don't really understand that kind of art, but Masaguchi-san's work always sells really well," Nozomi told them. "There are several collectors who always come by this time of year just to attend his annual show here. This has always been our slow season, so it's been a real boon for the village."

"Just goes to show, I guess."

Feeling that they were getting a bit off topic, Shinichi coughed lightly.

"Did your brother have any other run-ins with Kawashino-san?" he asked.

"I don't think so," Nozomi replied. "I know Natsu felt bad about the statue, so he tried to stay out of Kawashino-san's way as much as he could. When they did cross paths though, Kawashino-san would glare at him until he was out of sight like he expected Natsu to do something criminal. It was very uncomfortable."

Shinichi could understand that. "And did that behavior persist into the following year's visit?"

"It did," the squirrel hybrid said so fervently that it was clear the matter had weighed on her mind. "Kawashino-san definitely held a grudge. He must have been stewing over the incident for that entire year and finally snapped when he saw Natsu again."

"It's possible," Shinichi said carefully, though he personally thought the suggestion was a bit of a stretch. "But when conducting an investigation, it's best not to assume anything until you have all the facts. Was there anyone else that your brother had major disagreements with? Either among the guests who were here last year around the time of his disappearance or among the locals?"

Nozomi shifted where she sat, looking a bit perturbed by this turn in possibilities. "Natsu was only thirteen. Children his age are always pushing at everyone's boundaries. It's only natural that they sometimes get into fights about it with their peers, but none of those were ever really serious."

"What about incidents with other adults? Or the parents of those classmates he got into fights with?"

"They wouldn't have hurt Natsu. The children were just doing what children do. And to be honest, by the end of his first year in middle school, Natsu had already calmed down a lot. He simply didn't spend much time with the other children or their families. He preferred to go off exploring and doing his own thing—usually with some of the local dogs or cats. About a month before he disappeared, he used his allowance to buy a fancy new camera and told me he was going to capture photographic evidence that the village really is haunted."

The girl smiled a little at the memory. "I told him that that was not the kind of proof any of us needed or wanted him to find, but he just laughed and ran off. He even started keeping a ghost hunting journal and spending lots of time talking to the village's older residents and reading the old records. It made me happy to see him suddenly take an interest in something that was close to home." Nozomi's smile grew wan. "I thought it meant he was finally warming up to this place, but when I mentioned as much, he told me he was going off to Tokyo, where he would eventually get into a university and study paranormal phenomena. Then he'd write a book about our village."

She sighed, shaking her head. "That's when we had that row about his leaving for high school."

The bunny detective leaned forward slightly, sapphire gaze sharpening. "Did Natsu-san ever see or find anything unusual while he was ghost hunting?"

The question made Nozomi frown. "You're a detective," she said a bit reproachfully. "You can't actually believe that my brother's disappearance was caused by the ghosts he was hunting."

"That's not what I was suggesting," Shinichi said hastily, raising both his hands, palm out, in a placating gesture. "I was thinking more that, well, if he did a lot of wandering around this area in places where ghosts are supposed to be found—which are usually secluded or otherwise avoided by the general populace and therefore prime places for people who want to do things that they don't want to be seen doing then, well, it's possible Natsu saw someone doing something that would get them in trouble."

Nozomi opened her mouth then shut it again as understanding dawned across her face, causing her complexion to pale. "So you mean he may have disappeared because someone wanted to silence him."

"It's a stronger motive than payback for breaking a statue an entire year ago."

"But…what could he have possibly seen?" Nozomi wondered, delicate fingers tugging at the ends of her kimono sleeves in a clear sign of frustration. "How would we even know where to start looking for clues?"

"Take a deep breath," Kaito advised, reaching across the table to cover Nozomi's trembling hands with his own much larger, warmer ones. Holding them—and her gaze—steady, the fox smiled reassuringly. "Remember, you've got the best detective in Japan sitting right here, waiting to help you." He grinned and nodded to Shinichi, who blushed at the compliment (he couldn't help it). "He'll figure this out. You just need to trust him and answer this questions as best that you can."

Nozomi took a deep breath as she'd been advised then smiled at Kaito. "Thank you. I…needed to hear that."

"You're very welcome." The fox sat back again. "Well, Shinichi, you have the floor."

Shinichi fought the urge to roll his eyes because Nozomi didn't deserve it. And Shinichi was growing more and more interested in unraveling the truth behind Inoue Natsu's disappearance.

"Why don't we start with the day your brother disappeared," he said. "Tell us everything you remember about that day. Everything you did and saw, all the people you met, and all the things you remember your brother saying and doing."

"I…can try," Nozomi said a bit uncertainly. "But it's been a year."

"Just do your best. Start in the morning and take us through each step of your day. Build us a picture of the resort at that time—before, during and after Natsu's disappearance."

"Right. I understand. But please, I need a moment to think."

"Take all the time you need," Shinichi said gently.

Nozomi took him at his word and remained there, seated with her hands clasped on the tabletop before her, eyes distant as she sank into her memories, searching for the threads that had woven together to form that fateful day.

Then she sighed, the gust of it loud in the stillness of the room, and lifted her head. Her shoulders squared.

"I'm ready," she said like someone about to take a test they weren't sure they'd crammed enough for. It might have been amusing if the subject of their discussion hadn't been her brother's possible murder.

Shinichi produced one of the many little notebooks he never went anywhere without along with a pen. "All right. Please don't leave anything out—even if it doesn't seem important."

Nozomi nodded sharply, drew in a deep breath then launched into her recounting.

Chapter Text

"My shift at the time started at seven in the morning, so I got up at six to shower and make breakfast," she said, apparently taking Shinichi's request to go over every step of the time in question to heart. "I was going to box Natsu's portion so that he could reheat it when he got up—he wasn't usually an early riser unless he didn't have a choice about it. But I was surprised that day because he joined me for breakfast. I asked if he wanted to come to the resort with me, but he declined. He said he might drop by in the afternoon, but he had plans. He wouldn't tell me what those plans were, but I saw him reviewing things in his ghost hunting notebook when I was on my way out."

Nozomi went on to walk them through her morning duties at the Tranquil Moon. She quickly proved that she had a remarkable memory for details—although the detective suspected that she had gone over those times in her mind so often in the past year that she could likely describe them in her sleep. That kind of terrible, cloying guilt and frustration of wondering why and what if and 'I should have' was the phantom that haunted all those who were left behind when misfortune struck and stole their loved ones away. He had seen it more often than he could count. In all his years, the only cure he had ever found for that shackle around those victim's necks was the truth. Terrible or not, truth had the power to grant closure and release them from their spiral of what ifs and if onlys.

But that was neither here nor there.

Interestingly enough, Nozomi mentioned checking Ota, the bear hybrid delivery driver into the resort that day. She remembered him by name because he too was a regular at this time of year.

"We know he helped deliver Masaguchi-sensei's art to the gallery," Shinichi said. "But do you know if he delivers them to the collectors' homes for them after they make their purchases too?"

"I do believe so," Nozomi agreed. "That's why he's always here until the gallery showing is all done. Then the pieces that were bought get packed up, and he hauls them off to where their buyers want them sent."

"He might be a good source for learning more about this Kawashino fellow," Kaito commented.

"That's a good idea," Shinichi murmured, hands rising to his chin as he thought. "If he's here every year at this time too then he may also have seen or heard something that could be relevant." He nodded to Nozomi. "Please continue."

Nozomi did so, taking them through the rest of her morning and the regular noonday rush of activity.

"I saw Kawashino-san go into one of the party dining rooms with his usual party—that is the other three collectors I mentioned are also regulars at this time of year. I didn't serve them though, so I don't know how long they were there."

"Quick question," Shinichi said, raising one hand. "All four of these collectors are regulars?"

"Yes."

"Are they the only regulars at this time of year?"

Nozomi thought about that for a long moment then nodded. "I'd say so. Just them and Ota-san. There are other guests who've been by more than once since I've started working here, but none of them do so on the regular like, if you know what I mean."

"I do. Go on."

"I went to the bake off during my break. That's an event we hold annually where anyone in the area who wants to participate can try their hand at baking something using a mystery ingredient chosen by the contest coordinator. It's a popular event. It's churned out quite a few unique and tasty treats—even if it's also birthed a couple dozen monstrosities unfit for human consumption. Oh, and while I was there, Runo-san, he's the barista, told me I'd just missed Natsu." She smiled a little. "Natsu always loved the food at the bakery. We used to have breakfast there together once a week on my day off. Our aunt used to join us from time to time before her illness grew too severe. I was surprised Natsu didn't stay for the bake off."

She fell silent, momentarily overcome with grief, and her audience of two stayed quiet as well in deference to her loss. In time, she gathered herself back up again as she must have done time and time again already in the year since her brother had vanished.

"I learned later that Natsu also visited the convenience store to get a few snacks. I found the receipt in his room after…well, after. The toy tambourine was the only other purchase. Those would have been the only food items he took with him. I didn't see Natsu myself again though until that evening. I brought dinner home from the resort. Natsu wasn't home yet when I got back. That irritated me because I'd told him when we'd be having dinner and that he should be back by then. But he came banging in just as I was about to call him."

Kaito quirked an eyebrow. "Banging?"

"Yes. He was in a great hurry," Nozomi said firmly. "He never was a very patient boy."

"What did he do when he got home?" asked Shinichi.

Nozomi pursed her lips in concentration. "Let's see… I told him to go get himself cleaned up before coming to the table. I remember thinking he looked like he'd been crawling around in the dirt. The knees of his jeans were all scuffed up and dusty. His hands were dirty too. I was going to ask him what he'd been up to that got him into such a state, but he bolted into his room, shouting back at me that he'd just wash up. Then he shut the door, and I went back to getting our food ready, reheating the dishes that needed to be reheated and setting everything out on the proper plates and the like. I know it's not really necessary with takeout, but I always liked that feeling of having the family at a table with all the dishes laid out for everyone to pick and choose from as they will. It feels more festive and communal, I guess, even if laying it all out properly takes time."

"By the time I'd set the table and brought out all the food, Natsu was still in his room. So I went to knock on his door and ask him how long he intended to keep me waiting. He insisted he'd be out in a bit. He was, and we sat down to dinner. I asked if he'd started his summer homework yet, and he got a bit snippy. Told me he wouldn't forget and to stop nagging. So I asked him what he'd been up to instead."

Nozomi frowned. "He didn't give me a straight answer, though I didn't notice at the time. Instead, he asked me if I knew which buildings were the oldest in the village. I said it had to be one of the buildings that make up this resort complex, but he told me I was wrong. We spent the rest of dinner going back and forth about it. I'd make guesses, and he'd correct me and explain my mistake." The squirrel hybrid laughed a little in a painful mixture of fond exasperation and sadness. "Apparently the Watch Post—that's the building where visitors can go to sign up for hiking tours and get information on trails and the like—is actually the oldest building still standing. It was the residence of the first family to settle here. The art gallery and the bookstore are close seconds though. Natsu told me the gallery building was originally the first schoolhouse, and the bookstore was the residence of the village's first architect—she led the design and construction of this very resort's original buildings."

Realizing abruptly that she had wandered rather far off topic, Nozomi blushed and cleared her throat. "Sorry. I didn't mean to ramble. It's just that I've been over that day so often in my own head, and this is the first time I've gotten to just talk about it with people who haven't already made up their minds about, well, you know."

"We understand," Shinichi assured her. "And I did ask you for all the details. You may not think the things you two talked about over dinner were important, but you never know with these things."

"I suppose you would know best, though I have to admit that I don't see how any of that could be a clue."

"I'd actually say it gave us more than one clue," Shinichi replied and grinned a little at the squirrel's disbelieving look. "Put it this way. You told us that your brother was interested in hunting for ghosts. It seems to me then that it's quite possible that all those factoids he shared with you about the village history are things he was investigating in order to further his search. After all, it would make sense to assume that older buildings are more likely to be haunted. We can also assume therefore that the oldest buildings—the ones he told you about—would have been of special interest to him. And that gives us somewhere to start our investigation as we try to reassemble your brother's day. Doing that is the first step we need to take if we want to have any chance at figuring out what he might have seen or heard that would either lead to his sudden departure or to someone wishing him harm."

Nozomi blinked, visibly took a moment to digest his words, then nodded slowly. "I see. That…does make quite a lot of sense."

"Hey, I remember you said Runo-san told you your brother had been by the bakery. That bakery is right across from the art gallery. Since Natsu-san was gone by the time you went to watch the bake off, he wasn't there for the contest, so it's possible he was there to scope out the gallery. Maybe ask around for people who'd seen things or heard things go bump in the night."

Nozomi looked a little dubious at that suggestion but conceded that it was a lead of sorts. "I can imagine Natsu going to Runo-san for ghost stories. Runo-san and his wife grew up in this town, and with the bakery being so popular, they also hear a lot of gossip. It'd be a great place to collect tales to look into."

"Or even just news about the gallery itself," Kaito joined in with a grin. "The haunted schoolhouse turned art gallery! Who knows what secrets may be hidden beneath its creaking floorboards or behind its oft whitewashed walls."

"Do you know which ghost stories your brother was most interested in?"

Nozomi shook her head. "I've never been into those sorts of things. They always struck me as rather silly. All I know is that he wrote all the stories he found in his ghost hunting journal. I believe he may have chronicled how he found the stories too. And he was planning to chronicle how he found and proved or disproved them in the future."

Nozomi sighed then, her expression melting into one of deep, heart-aching melancholy. "That was the last time I talked to Natsu." She stopped, swallowed then continued. "He retreated into his room right after dinner, and I cleaned up. I watched a little television, said goodnight to Natsu through his door then went to bed. And, well… That was that. When I got up the next morning, he wasn't home."

She sighed. "I thought he'd just left home early and forgotten to leave a note. But he never came to visit me at the resort that day. Then, when I got home, he wasn't there either. I tried calling him a few times, but his phone must have run out of power. It kept sending me straight to voice mail. I left a few, but he never called me back. By the time I'd finished dinner and there was still no sign of him, I knew something was wrong."

"Quite a lot of us turned out to look for him. Hikers and the like are always getting themselves lost wandering around this area when the fog is heavy, so we thought maybe the same had happened to Natsu. I could totally see him chasing some ghostly apparition right off a cliff, trying to take its picture. But we didn't find any signs that he'd gone out on any of the trails. For days, we combed the area. We never found anything. Eventually, everyone else decided that he'd taken himself off to the city just as he'd been saying he would. And that's all I know."

Shinichi nodded sympathetically. "That must have been hard."

"It was."

"Did you notice anyone behaving oddly after your brother's disappearance?"

"Just Kawashino-san cutting his visit short."

"One more question. When you talked about the items your brother disappeared with, you didn't mention his ghost hunting notebook. Does that mean you still have it?"

Nozomi blinked then frowned. "I suppose I must. I…haven't been able to bring myself to clean out his room yet, so all his things should be there."

"Would it be all right with you if we came by tomorrow morning to see it?"

"Of course. Anything you need." Nozomi gave them the directions to her residence along with her contact information. "Is there anything else I can do to help?"

"Not at the moment. We'll contact you as soon as we find something," Shinichi promised. "And if you remember anything else, feel free to come see us again."

"I will," Nozomi said with a slightly watery smile. "I should be going now. Sorry for taking up so much of your evening."

Habit and manners had both boys rising automatically to see her to the door (as though she was a guest and this their home).

"We'll see you tomorrow then," said Shinichi.

"Thank you again for agreeing to look into this." Nozomi bowed. When she straightened, she sniffed once then colored faintly. "I didn't mean to impose on you at such a time. Please don't feel you need to go out of your way for me. I've waited a year for answers. Another week or two won't make much difference."

Shinichi blinked, mildly puzzled. "I'll keep that in mind. But really, it's no trouble."

Good nights were exchanged, and Nozomi took her leave.

"I wonder why she suddenly got all embarrassed about asking for help again at the end," the detective mused out loud once she had gone. "Was it something I said?"

"I doubt it."

The fox's muttered comment earned him a raised eyebrow from Shinichi. "Explain."

To the rabbit's amazement, a hint of color actually rose in the magician's face.

Kaito coughed lightly, not quite meeting Shinichi's eyes. "I…suspect she just got close enough to notice your scent."

"My scent?" Shinichi echoed blankly before it suddenly clicked. Now it was his turn to blush. With everything that had been going on, it had completely slipped his mind that his scent would not only be growing stronger but also shifting with the approach of his heat. "O—oh."

There was an awkward silence (or at least it was awkward on Shinichi's end. He wasn't sure what Kaito thought).

"Would you like a scent masker? I have a few in my pack," the fox offered.

"Thanks," Shinichi mumbled. "I'll apply one before we go out tomorrow."

There was another awkward pause.

Kaito broke it with a cough. "So… Are you tired? If not, we could try out the springs."

Shinichi considered the suggestion for only a moment before nodding. "I'd like that. I have too much on my mind right now to sleep."

Chapter Text

Though they had gone to sleep side by side, Kaito woke to find his arms around Shinichi's waist and the rabbit detective curled right up against his side with his head pillowed on the magician's chest. Shinichi's long, soft bunny ears tickled the underside of Kaito's jaw as he shifted in his sleep. Kaito couldn't help but smile. The detective's scent filled his senses, somehow managing to be both soothing and enticing all at once.

Kaito felt so warm and content at that moment that it was as though his entire being was filled with sunlight. He recalled how, when they had been preparing for bed the previous night, he had lain down first on one side of the bed closer to the enormous windows overlooking their private hot spring and waited to see whether Shinichi would take the other of the two beds or join him. He'd been hoping for the latter, but he hadn't wanted to push. His elation when Shinichi had crawled into his bed with an adorably pink blush and a 'is it all right if I sleep here?' had been so strong that he'd had to force himself to take a moment to count to ten before responding lest he overreact and scare Shinichi off.

Now here they were, and it was a dream come true for the vulpine magician to have his bunny love lying so willingly—so trustingly—in his arms.

"You really know how to test a man," Kaito murmured under his breath as he ran his fingers lightly along the length of Shinichi's ears then down the curve of his spine to the soft, fluffiness of his tail—at which point he caught himself and, with an effort, forced himself to stop and carefully ease his hands back up to more appropriate territories. "If you only knew the things I want to do to you…"

Shinichi's ears twitched, and he murmured something incoherent before snuggling closer.

Kaito knew he was smiling like an idiot, but he felt he could be excused, all considered. He allowed himself a few more minutes to revel in the closeness before giving the detective a light shake.

"Hey," he said softly. "It's time to get up."

Shinichi twitched and grumbled something that Kaito interpreted as an attempt to complain about the early hour.

"I know it's early," he said accordingly. "But you told Inoue-san that we'd drop by her place before she has to leave at seven. You don't want to be late, do you?"

That finally got a reaction.

For all that Shinichi abhorred mornings, he could apparently wake and get revved quite quickly even at the crack of dawn when there were cases afoot. It took him less than ten minutes to get dressed and run through his morning ablutions. Then he was hurrying for the door, pulling up a village map and asking Kaito for Inoue Nozomi's apartment address.

"Oi, slow down a little. There's no rush," Kaito called after him with a laugh. "And don't forget the scent masker!"

That final reminder had Shinichi hurrying back even faster than he'd left, face adorably pink. Kaito thought fondly that, mysterious disappearances and parcels or not, this vacation was off to a wonderful start.

-0-

The Inoue family (or rather what was left of it) lived in a small apartment in one of the village's scant handful of apartment buildings. Their unit was on the corner of the second floor. On the inside, it boasted a small kitchen and dining area situated next to a sitting area complete with television and a set of old but comfy couches. A short hallway led to three rooms and a bathroom.

"Do you live alone?" Kaito asked.

Nozomi looked downcast. "I do now."

The fox winced. "Sorry. That was insensitive."

"No, it's all right. It's been pretty quiet with it being only me here now. Some of my friends have suggested I get a roommate or a pet, but I'm still thinking about it. Here, let me get you two some house slippers."

"So which one is your brother's room?" asked Shinichi.

"It's this one." The squirrel hybrid opened a door to reveal a small, square room with a window that looked out towards the forest fringe. "The room next door is mine. I was considering moving into our aunt's old room now that she's…no longer with us, but I still get sad thinking about getting rid of her things. So I guess I'm not ready yet for that step."

"These things take time," Shinichi said softly. "Just take each step when you're ready, and you'll be fine."

Nozomi glanced from one now deserted bedroom to the other. Her expression was melancholy but wistful. "I hope so. I really hope so."

Nozomi offered them breakfast. When they declined, she left them to examine her brother's room so that she could attend to the dishes from her own meal.

"So what are we looking for?" Kaito asked once the squirrel hybrid had gone.

"This, mainly," Shinichi said, moving across the little room to pick up the notebook lying on the desk between the table lamp and the laptop. Rather than opening the book right away, however, Shinichi took a moment to study the rest of the space.

It was clear that, though she hadn't gotten rid of any of her brother's things, Nozomi had been keeping the place clean. For a room that had not been lived in for a year, there was remarkably little in the way of dust on any of the surfaces. The bed was neatly made and the floors clear of debris. A pair of furry slippers still stood perfectly side by side beside the bed, ready to warm the feet of someone who needed to take a trip to the bathroom in the middle of a chilly night.

If there was anything out of place, it was only the notebook Shinichi had just retrieved—every other bookish object in the room was lined up neatly on the single shelf—and a phone charging cord, which was still plugged into the USB port in the base of the desk lamp but bereft of an actual phone to contribute to.

If there had been more clues to Natsu's activities the day he had disappeared to be found in this room, they had likely all been tidied away. Still, Shinichi had hope.

He looked down at the notebook in his hands. If his suspicions were correct then Natsu's notes would tell them where they needed to look. He just wished he wasn't already certain that the answers waiting for them at the end of this ghost hunt would be grim ones.

Nozomi reappeared in the bedroom doorway, looking equal parts hopeful and nervous. "Did you find anything?"

"Not yet," Shinichi replied. "Would it be okay if we take this notebook with us? I promise you that we'll return it to you before we leave town."

Nozomi hesitated only a moment before inclining her head in ascent. "If you think it'll help, you're welcome to keep it as long as you need it."

At that point, their time in the apartment was up as Nozomi had to head to work. She thanked them again once they were out on the street with a fervor that made Shinichi a little uncomfortable. Then they parted ways: the squirrel to return to the Tranquil Moon and the travelers to breakfast at the local bakery.

"We can see what Runo-san remembers about Natsu from that day while we're there," Shinichi remarked. "And we can begin going over Natsu-san's notes."

"So we're following the hunter's footsteps, eh?" Kaito chuckled. "Think we'll see any of the local ghosts?"

Shinichi slanted him a dubious look. "Seriously?"

"Hey, you never know with these things," the fox countered. "My old man had a magic rock. Besides, before the Advent, people would have scoffed at the idea of human-animal hybrids, let alone human-animal hybrids suddenly being born to perfectly ordinary human parents simultaneously all around the globe, and that's not even taking into account the various other gifts we now have access to."

Shinichi had to concede the point. When spelled out like that, the Advent did indeed sound a great deal more improbable than a ghost or two.

-0-

Kaito and Shinichi arrived at the bakery to find it absolutely vibrating with activity. They very nearly had to fight their way through the crowds to reach the coffee bar. They only managed to reach it at all because it was not the main destination of the throngs. That dubious honor went to a table in one corner of the main indoor seating area where, they gathered from the snatches of conversations they caught from the crowd, contestants were signing up for the bake off that would be taking place that afternoon. A large poster depicting a carrot hung on the wall over the table. It was apparently the special ingredient of the year. Once they had signed up, competitors had a few hours to plan and complete their entries. All baking was to be done in the bakery kitchen or the kitchen of one of the other local establishments that had volunteered their premises using carrots and other ingredients provided by the bake off committee, though contestants were allowed to bring a limited number of additional ingredients of their own with the approval of said committee. There was no set schedule for contestants. They simply had to make sure they came into the kitchen and created their entry before the judging banquet—which was a veritable feast of all the competitors creations during which their goods would be tasted and rated by anyone and everyone who wished to try a bite.

"You're a little too early if you want to try the contest entries," Runo told them after he'd welcomed them back with enthusiasm. "Or are you here to participate?"

"We're actually here to ask you about Inoue Natsu,": Shinichi said, cutting straight to the point.

The older man looked surprised but not unduly disturbed. "Right. You did say you were a detective yesterday, didn't you? Did Nozomi-chan ask you to find her brother?"

"She did."

The old man sighed, shaking his head regretfully. "I already told Nozomi everything I remember about when I saw him that day. He really wasn't here long, and we just talked, er, well, ghosts." He finished the declaration with the faint embarrassment of one unsure as to whether he was about to be mocked.

"Was there a particular ghost he was interested in?" Shinichi asked.

Runo shrugged. "He was mostly asking me about my own experiences and any more credible stories I might have heard."

"So you have personal experiences with hauntings?"

The older man hesitated, searching Shinichi's face for any sign of ridicule. Finding only earnestness, he cracked a grin. "Indeed I have."

"Could you tell us the experiences you shared with Inoue Natsu?"

The man glanced over the crowd in the bakery, noted that most were still occupied with either the contest or the baked goods with the handful at the coffee bar being handled by his assistant, and nodded. "I sure can."

Finishing their coffees by topping each cup off with an artistic drizzle of cream, Runo set one cup before each university student and gestured for them to sit. They did so, settling in on the tall stools of the coffee bar.

"Now, the start of this story isn't truly mine," the man began in the tones of one well used to telling tales. "It began with my grandfather. He was in the fourth grade when there was a terrible fire at the old schoolhouse. It was hot and dry that year, and the fire was fast and fierce. It consumed most of the building. One child was lost.

"Her name was Tarue Rin. She was in my grandfather's class, and she was a talented dancer. It's tradition around here for the children to put on performances whenever we have festivals, and many of those involve dance. Rin became the star of the stage at every show. It was said that the grace and beauty of her movements captivated her audience, holding them entranced so that they could only watch until she completed each performance. Quite naturally, everyone in the village knew that she was headed for great things—or that she was until her tragic death in that fire."

Shinichi winced in sympathy at the thought of such a brilliant promising life cut so abruptly and needlessly short. As a detective he knew death well, but it still pained him to hear of such losses.

"Well, my grandfather and some of his other classmates who knew her got it into their heads that she should still get her performance—the one she was originally supposed to give at the school on the night of the autumn festival. They and their classmates had originally been slated to help her keep time with a mixed rhythm of tambourines and drums while she showed off a new dance she'd choreographed to demonstrate the changing of the seasons into then out of fall. The teacher suggested casting a new dancer, but my grandfather and his team refused. They wanted to perform it once like it was supposed to have been and just pretend that Rin was with them. Maybe they thought she really would be in spirit. Give her a final send off, perhaps, with the end of autumn being the time for spirits to pass on. In the end, the students got their way, and the dance was performed during the festival with all the supporting percussions but no dancer. Except…"

Runo's voice fell to a near whisper as he leaned forward, forcing Kaito and Shinichi to lean towards him as well. "As they set the beat, the lanterns flickered, and suddenly there was another light—a figure of ghostly orange flames dancing before them to their beat. It was Rin. She danced and danced just as beautifully as she always had in their practices before. And when the dance ended, she bowed and disappeared, but my grandfather told me that he swears he heard her tell them 'thank you' before she vanished."

"Kind of a bittersweet sort of story," Kaito mused.

"Indeed," Runo agreed. "But that wasn't the end of it. Remember how I said the old schoolhouse was mostly burned out?"

The boys nodded.

"Well, it was decided that a new and more modern schoolhouse would be built. The old one was converted instead into the art gallery we have now. But in honor of Rin's memory, the music room where she and her classmates had spent so much time practicing their performances was to be preserved as best it could and integrated into the gallery. In case her spirit still lingered."

"Now we fast forward to my father's early years," Runo went on. "My father loves all things weird and paranormal. So when he heard Grandpa's story, he bought himself a tambourine and the musical score for the song used in Rin's last performance. Then he snuck into the gallery which wasn't the gallery yet as it was still under construction, found the room in the rough location of the old school multipurpose room, and waited until the sun had set. Then he sat and began to play the tambourine, beating out the rhythm of the dance in the dark. And slowly, he began to hear another beat in the room, but this was not the beat of an instrument but the light tapping beat of small feet on wooden boards. Startled but hardly daring to believe, he looked up, still tapping and jingling away, and saw a little girl dancing to his tune, face joyful but utterly silent. He told me it was the most surreal thing he had ever experienced in his life. Terrifying and exhilarating all at once. Naturally, I wanted to experience it for myself."

Kaito chuckled. "Naturally."

The older man nodded sagely. "Well, by my day, the art gallery was fully operational, though it wasn't nearly as successful as it is now. They were really still just figuring themselves out. Anyway, it took me some time to figure out which room correlated with my father and grandfather's stories. Once I did though, I got myself a tambourine. My friend Tori's cousin was the gallery manager at the time, and he managed to get a hold of the key and permission for a group of us to spend the night. There were four of us. In all honesty, I don't think any of us were actually expecting to see anything. It was just fun to pretend. And we were all still young enough to crave adventure. I nearly wet myself when Rin appeared."

Runo shook his head at the recollection, though there was an amused twinkle in his eyes.

"There we were, the five of us all sitting in a row along one wall of the room, holding our breaths as we tapped out a rhythm on our tambourines." He tapped out a beat on the countertop with his fingers. "We'd turned off our flashlights, so the room was completely dark—until it suddenly wasn't. One moment we were alone, the next, she was there like a gust of cold air and a wisp of fog. I can still remember watching that pale shadow twist and turn as it slowly grew clearer. Its shape was defined in its motion, a little girl dancing to our beat. To this day, I'm not sure how we managed to keep playing. Perhaps it was Rin's spell. I felt like a man entranced, my hands moving of their own accord as all I could do was gape. But then the song ended, and she was gone."

"That's quite the story," Shinichi said thoughtfully. "Did Natsu-kun ask you for the room?"

Runo nodded. "He did. I told him it was one of the room's facing the back of the gallery. The one next to the back door. I suspected he wanted to find a little adventure of his own."

"His sister told us he bought a tambourine," Kaito recalled.

Runo nodded sadly. "She told me too when I mentioned what we had discussed. But we asked, and no one at the gallery saw or heard from him that day or since."

Though Shinichi was fairly certain that the story about the dancing ghost and the tambourine were a strong lead, he wouldn't be the detective he was if he didn't make sure he had all the facts available. So he asked Runo about what other ghost stories he and Inoue Natsu had discussed. Perhaps unsurprisingly, considering Runo and Natsu's shared interest in local ghosts, there were quite a number of other stories (including a few more firsthand accounts), and Runo was more than happy to share them all.

From the tale of the dog hybrid hiker ghost who sometimes appeared to lost travelers to lead them back to safety to the spirit guardian of a hidden shrine said to be a gateway between the realm of the living and the realm of the dead, this village really was home to a hundred and one tales of ghosts and spirits and other supernatural phenomena. Listening to the man's tales, Shinichi thought that Inoue Natsu could probably have written a whole series of books on local tales rather than just the one he'd told his sister he planned to pen.

While they listened, the bunny detective and his vulpine companion sampled several of the bakery's most popular breakfast foods, every one of which turned out to be delicious. With all the good food, the therapeutic hot springs, the gorgeous scenery, and the plethora of interesting local stories to enrich it all, Kaito could see himself making this village a regular vacation destination in the future—provided, of course, that Shinichi enjoyed it too and that their investigation didn't unearth some crazy cult rooted in these parts or something equally off-putting.

They eventually left with full stomachs and a complementary pamphlet (courtesy of Runo) that contained both a detailed village map and a list of all the events and other experiences of note that could be explored over the next few weeks.

With Runo's story fresh in their minds, the natural next stop was the art gallery across the street.

It was as Shinichi said: "Just because no one admitted to seeing Inoue Natsu doesn't mean he wasn't there."

The rabbit hybrid stopped out on the street before they entered the gallery though and caught Kaito's arm. When the fox turned questioningly in his direction, he was met with an earnest (and far too serious, in his opinion) gaze.

"I'm sorry about all this. I know this isn't what we planned for our trip," he said. "I promise we'll go somewhere you want to go next."

"Hold on a moment there," the vulpine magician cut in before Shinichi could say more, pressing one finger to Shinichi's lips (momentarily distracting himself by accident with the softness of those lips under his finger). "You don't have to apologize to me for wanting to help someone. I'm in this too. We may not have planned this, but the lady asked us for help, and I want to see her get her closure too. Besides," he added, voice softening. "I don't really care where we end up going as long as I can go there with you."

Shinichi immediately blushed pink. Rendered temporarily speechless by a sudden lump in his throat, Shinichi had to look away so that he could take a moment to compose himself. Once he had, however, he hesitantly slipped his hand into Kaito's own, twining their fingers together and giving the fox's hand a squeeze.

"Thank you," he said softly, the raw sincerity clear even in those two little words.

"My pleasure," Kaito murmured back with just as much sincerity. Then his face cracked into a grin. "Although I wouldn't say no to buying ourselves some tambourines and seeing if we can earn ourselves a performance from Miss Rin one of these nights before we have to head home."

Shinichi huffed and rolled his eyes, but what he said was, "I'll think about it."

An expression of genuine surprise flitted across the magician's face. "You will?"

"I did say you could pick where we went after this," the detective reminded him. "Though you may have to take a rain check on the performance as we'd have to pick a suitable night and make arrangements for use of the premises."

Kaito blinked then burst out laughing. He slung an arm over Shinichi's shoulders and started propelling him towards the front doors of the art gallery. "You know, I may just hold you to that."