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It was a fairly comfortable room, as far as jail cells went. Shinichi reclined back in his chair with his feet on the table, the picture of relaxed arrogance. Internally though, he was a mess, sick with worry. This was his first time being properly “arrested”—the occasional week throughout his childhood where Dad would dump him into Gramps’ custody and steal him back once the threat was gone didn’t count. His occasional stints in the interrogation room were nothing compared to this. Not just that, but Dad had also allowed himself to be captured. For him. His dad had been caught before and at least this time it was of his own violation, but that didn’t stop the guilt from gnawing at his stomach. At least Papa and the others were still free. Papa had been very adamant against this plan, declaring it “foolish” and unnecessary.” But he had eventually agreed under the combined peer pressure, though Shinichi had no doubt he was lurking in Japan somewhere. Uncle Goemon was probably hiding him; he knew the country best. A door creaked open, then slammed shut. A lazy smirk crept across Shinichi’s face as Inspector Zenigata and two blond men—one older, the other his age—walked into view. The only thing between them was the cell bars. Zenigata narrowed his eyes. “Arsène,” he growled. Smirk growing (yet fake), Shinichi inclined his head. “Gramps.” He’d gotten used to his other name years ago. When they forged Shinichi’s birth certificate, Dad had immediately put down Arsène Lupin the IV, much to Shinichi’s annoyance. “Have you finally found a crime to charge me with?” Gramps scowled. “You shouldn’t say things like that. Do you want someone to think you’re a criminal!?” “My apologies. I figured that since I am under arrest, you’d have a crime to charge me with.” They’d always been very careful about Shinichi’s own illegal activities. When he was younger, they managed to play it off as a child being manipulated by his parents—cruel from an outsider’s perspective, but he’d never been forced to do anything he wasn’t comfortable with. And really, the worst things he ever did were being a distraction or pick a lock or two. As he reached his teens, his illegal actions went down… at least, that’s want Zenigata and Interpol thought. While Auntie tried to push him down the path of a thief, Dad, Papa, and Uncle insisted that he not have a criminal record, in case he didn’t “want to continue the family business,” in Dad’s words. “Don’t be absurd,” Zenigata scoffed, pulling up a chair so he could sit outside the cell bars. “You’re not under arrest, Arsène.” “Inspector,” the older blond cut in, his heavy mustache twitching with the word. “If… Lupin-kun isn’t under arrest, then why is he in a cell?” Zenigata was about to answer when Shinichi cut him off. “I’m bait, aren’t I?” They stared at him, shocked. “Interpol might be happy you caught Lupin, but they're upset that the rest of my family escaped. And I’m the only thing you’re certain they’ll all come back for.” Shinichi smiled at his unnamed visitor’s dumb-founded expressions. “Was I close, old man?” “Y-Yes,” Zenigata said, slightly unnerved. “That’s correct. Arsène, this is Superintendent-General Hakuba and his son, Saguru. You’ll be staying with them for a duration of time until Daisuke Jigen, Goemon Ishikawa XIII, and Fujiko Mine are apprehended. During this period, you shall be heavily monitored not only by Interpol agents, but by the Hakuba’s.” “And if I… disagree?” Shinichi asked, looking up to the ceiling. This was better than he could ever hope. Sure, he was still going to be monitored, but at least he was staying in Tokyo. And with a police family… that could be good or life-threatening depending on how this goes. Gramps smirked deviously. Geeze, and people said Dad has a monkey face… “Due to Lupin’s arrest, you’ve become a ward of Interpol until you’re 18. If we want you to go with the Hakuba’s, then you will and you will stay there.” Shinichi faked a resigned sigh, but inside his smirk was worse than the old man’s. Looks like everything was going according to plan. At least it was until Zenigata brought out the ankle monitor.
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Never mind, being fostered by a police family was definitely for the worst. “—You will not have access to a phone or computer without supervision from either Saguru or myself,” Hakuba-san continued, glaring down at Shinichi. They were in the man’s house, a Western mansion surprisingly enough. Shinichi thought he’d have something a bit more Japanese, but then again, he did have an English wife at some point, if Hakuba-kun’s slight accent was correct. Hakuba-san’s office was all dark wood and bookshelves, with its owner behind a large, intimidating desk and his son off to the side, reading one of the books. “Of course, you’ll have to use a computer for writing school papers, so we’ve already arranged for one that will only allow you on educational or research websites. Any phone call made will be listened to by Interpol agents stationed nearby and the number will be recorded for them. “If you misbehave in any manner, you will be punished. I will not tolerate any criminal acts under my roof and if I discover any, you’ll be sent to the same prison your father is in, Interpol’s plans or not. Do we have an understanding, Lupin-kun?” “Of course, sir.” Lupin’s son or not, Shinichi knew when there was a time to mouth-off and this definitely wasn’t one of them. “If I may… what will I do for clothes? I only have these.” Shinichi gestured down at his jeans and t-shirt. Hakuba-san grimaced. “My son and his caretaker will take you out shopping then. They both have credit cards; just remember to keep the receipts. Interpol has promised to reimburse us for anything you need. Your school uniforms need to be ordered as well. Saguru, make sure you walk him through that when you three return.” “Yes, Father.” Hakuba-kun finally spoke up. Shinichi had thought he’d gone mute for the entire conversation. “Let’s leave, Lupin-kun. Baaya should be waiting for us down stairs.” Shinichi looked back at the Superintendent General, but he’d already turned to his work. “Alright.” Following Hakuba-kun, Shinichi was introduced to his nanny—“Just call me Baaya, Lupin-kun”—and ushered out of the house and into a car, which Baaya drove, leaving Hakuba-kun and him stuck in an uncomfortable silence. Around them, people followed the rat-race that was life, scuttling about their business whether it is ordinary or possibly illegal. Crossing his legs, Shinichi took the opportunity to inspect the ankle monitor. It sat heavy on his leg. He wasn’t used to the extra weight yet; it would probably take a few days for him to learn to compensate for it. The black metal was snug, with padding inside to prevent the friction from tearing up his skin too badly. The locking mechanism was just a small, square hole. The key for it would be very distinct, something that Gramps would keep on him at all time… He brushed the keyhole thoughtfully. If he could find out where it was being kept… “I wouldn’t mess with that if I were you.” Shinichi glanced at Hakuba, an eyebrow raised. The blond stared back, suspicion clear as day. “It’s set to administer a sedative if the keyhole is tampered with. It would be problematic if you were to lose consciousness before our errands are complete.” Shinichi straightened, flexing his hands in front of his face to show that they were empty. “I wasn’t going to do anything.” Yet. “I was just looking.” He gave Shinichi a humorless smile. “Of course.” “So, I’m going to the same school as you?” Shinichi asked, desperate to keep the conversation going. With his family, there was always someone talking, usually Dad or Auntie, and the barren silence between them was killing him. “I’ve never been to an actual school before. Is it difficult? The television shows I’ve seen imply that it is.” Shock crossed Hakuba-kun’s face for a flicker of a second—how curious. He obviously hadn’t expected Shinichi’s questions, but Shinichi really didn’t think it was that surprising. How could he have gone to a proper school when they were always fleeing from Interpol? Not only were they rarely in a single area for longer than a month, but school leaves a paper trail that could harm his family. He had always been home-schooled… or perhaps the proper term would be “car-schooled.” Hakuba coughed, regaining his composure. “It’s… different for everyone. Personally, I find it a tad boring. Note-taking is standard practice for most students, which is more time-consuming than it is engaging. I usually spend the class reading.” “Interesting.” Shinichi had no idea how to continue this line of discussion. He’d never talked with someone his own age for long. Hakuba actually snorted. “Hardly. I’m aware of my inability to interact with my peers. Most people find me to be a ‘stick in the mud.’” “It doesn’t seem like a fault to me,” Shinichi replied. “You’re a better conversationalist than I am. At least you’ve gotten regular practice in the area; most of mine comes from the occasional sentence or two when I can’t avoid it.” There was that shocked expression again. “You weren’t allowed to talk to others of our generation?” “Not from lack of my family trying. Auntie attempted to teach me for months, but I’d always mess up in some way so she gave up. Normal people can’t keep up with conversations about Ancient Roman architecture or the newest upgrades to video surveillance.” Hakuba hummed in agreement. “It is rather difficult to find someone who understands the complexities of figuring out if a death by hanging was a murder or a suicide. Though I would be content to meet someone who has read Sherlock Holmes in the original English version. So many things get lost in translation…” “You’ve read Holmes too?” Now it was Shinichi’s turn to be shocked. “I’ve never met anyone else who likes it.” “It’s more surprising to find that you’ve read Doyle’s work, Lupin-kun.” Shinichi chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck. “That’s kind of a funny story… Most teenagers spend their rebellious period drinking and doing drugs. I spent them reading every detective novel I could get my hands on.” “You’re kidding.” “Not a chance,” Shinichi laughed. “Dad hates crime novels, especially Holmes. He spent weeks ranting about how they’d corrupt my innocence and drive a wedge between us.” Hakuba snickered. “I have a classmate whose reaction to Holmes is similar. And you read them just to spite your father? Ridiculous.” “Sorry to say, but the Lupin family is drenched the ridiculousness. I’ll never escape from it,” Shinichi bemoaned dramatically. That gained an eye roll from the detective, which he counted as a success. “You’re not as bad as I expected, Lupin.” Shinichi smiled. Was this what it was like to have a friend? If so, then he definitely made the right choice. “Right back at you, Hakuba. Which book was your favorite? I prefer The Sign of the Four, but a Scandal in Bohemia always holds a special place in my heart.” “Not to be cliché, but I’ve always favored A Study in Scarlet…”
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Shinichi sighed and tugged at the stiff collar of his school uniform. Here he was: Ekoda High School. If he did well here, if he behaved, then Hakuba would let his guard down to the point where if Shinichi disappeared for an hour, he wouldn’t bring down the cavalry. And if he disappeared a few times, then he could… “We have a new student joining us today. Would you please come in?” That’s his cue. Releasing a steading breath, Shinichi strolled into the class room, head high and shoulders straight. He turned to meet the curious eyes of his classmates and gave them his most bland, polite smile. “It’s nice to meet you. I am Arsène Lupin. Please take care of me,” he said, bowing his head. The teacher (whose name he should really find out) nodded and gestured for Shinichi to take the only empty seat—next to Hakuba-kun, just as Interpol arranged it. As he walked past everyone, whispers sprouted up behind his back like he wasn’t right there.” “Arsène? It sounds foreign… do you think he’s half Japanese like Hakuba-kun?” “Never mind that, do you see what’s around his ankle—” “Yeah, but did you see him? He looks—” “It’s like an exact replica…” “Do you think it’s some sort of prank?” Shinichi tuned them all out. He didn’t want to know what they thought about him. Turning to the front of the room, Shinichi forced his attention to the teacher, diligently taking notes as Hakuba suggested even though he’d already covered advanced physics with Papa. He needed to make a good impression here; the better impression he made on people, the easier it would be to escape… Soon, the class period ended and the teacher left, leaving the oddly tense class to fend for themselves until the next teacher arrived. Shinichi doodled a gem in the margins of his notebook and carefully drawing the gilded metal around it. “That’s really good, Lupin-kun. Do you like to draw?” Looking up, Shinichi blinked owlishly at the girl standing over him. Her hair, long and messy, was held back by only a few hairpins and a curious, close-lipped smile made her look younger than a high schooler. He set down his pencil. “A little. It helped pass the time when I was a kid, even though I prefer soccer. This is actually a necklace my dad got Auntie a few years ago. It’s nice to meet you, Ms…?” “Aoko Nakamori,” Nakamori-chan said, peering over to look at the drawing. “That looks like… The Scarlet Mystery?” “That’s because it is.” “Ah!? But that jewel was stolen by Lupin the Third!” Shinichi nodded. “My father.” He watched as Nakamori-chan’s cheeks flushed red in embarrassment, but he just gave her an understanding smile, like it was a mistake that a lot of people made. He was a gentleman after all. It was rude to mock someone’s ignorance. “You seem to know a lot about stolen gemstones, Nakamori-chan.” She rubbed the back of her neck, blush still full on her cheeks. “M-My dad works in the theft division of the police here in Ekoda, so I’ve learned some about it.” She was so nervous—did she think he’d dislike her just because her father was police? Shinichi smiled again, this time a little happier to put her worries to rest, even though inside his shoulders slumped in disappointment. Another person who he couldn’t contact after this mess was over. First Hakuba, now Nakamori-chan…” “Ahoko!” Shinichi flinched back as a brunet knocked into Nakamori-chan, wrapping his arm around her neck. Shinichi stared into what could have been a mirror, albeit a twisted one that gave him a bird’s nest for hair and lighter eyes. The doppelgänger poked Nakamori-chan in the cheek. “What happened to you? Your face is almost as red as your panties.” Nakamori-san stared at him blankly before her face contorted into a glare. “Kaito…” she growled and Shinichi suddenly felt the need to lean away. She lunged at the boy, aiming for his neck. He dodged and they began a merry chase around the room which most people ignored. That was… weird. Shinichi turned to Hakuba who was pinching the bridge of his nose. “Er… who is that?” Hakuba rolled his eyes up to the ceiling. “Kaito Kuroba, unfortunately. Aoko-kun’s best friend.” “Ah…” Shinichi nodded and continued to watch the two dart around the room. Nakamori-san’s fist came inches away from Kuroba-san’s face, but he managed to leap off the counter just in time. “Are you… sure about that?” “Yes. Though the way Kuroba treats Aoko-kun is abysmal for a lady of her standard, they do make each other happy and stand by each other.” Hakuba sounded rather wistful when he said that. Shinichi tilted his head. “Are you alright, Hakuba? You sound a little—” He coughed, his cheeks slightly pink. “I’m fine. However, I advise not getting too close to Kuroba; he’s—” “An absolute joy to be around?” Kuroba-san darted over to wrap his arms around Hakuba’s neck, making the detective scowl. “That’s so kind of you, Hakuba! I adore being around you too!” “Remove yourself from my person,” Hakuba growled out. “Yeesh, tough crowd.” Kuroba-san turned towards Shinichi and, with an ease uncommon to most high-schoolers, leapt over Hakuba’s desk to stand in front of him. A puff of smoke covered his hand and the next thing Shinichi knew, Kuroba-san thrust a flower in his face. “I’m Kaito Kuroba! It’s a pleasure to meet you, Lupin-san!” Hesitantly, Shinichi took the offered flower. It was a yellow rose, thorns clipped and somehow lacking bruises even though he knew that, logically, Kuroba-san had hidden it somewhere on his body. He could distantly remember his Auntie teaching him flower colors when he turned 13—“The perfect age for first romance!”—and knew that yellow was for happiness… and friendship. Kuroba-san… wanted to be his friend? “Thank you,” Shinichi said, looking up at Kuroba-san with a small smile. “It’s a pleasure to meet you as well, Kuroba-san.” Kuroba-san’s eyes widened slightly and he tilted his head. His lips twitched up at the corners—a rare gesture as Shinichi had seen nothing but exuberant smirks and grins since he’d been made aware of the other’s existence. Shinichi had learned first-hand that the largest smiles were never real. Kuroba-san quickly covered the smile with a yawn, sitting down on Hakuba’s desk to the blond’s annoyance. “So, Lupin, what was life on the run like?” he asked, devil-may-care grin back in place. “Surely you can give us all the juicy details, right?” Shinichi couldn’t help himself. He laughed.
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“Geeze, are you two going to do anything besides talking about Holmes?” Kuroba complained loudly, drawing the attention of the other patrons in the café. Nakamori-chan sunk lower in her seat. “You’d think you’d run out of things to say about it! Besides, Lupin is a much better character. He defeated Holmes after all.” Hakuba scowled over his tea. “Technically, Lupin went up against Herlock Sholmes. LeBlanc never got permission from Doyle to use him, so Lupin never beat Holmes.” “LeBlanc never got permission to use Lupin either,” Shinichi added. “Great-grandfather actually tried to sue for royalties; that was the closest time he was almost caught.” Kuroba, next to him, stared with wide eyes. “I’ve never heard anything about that…” he murmured. Shinichi shrugged. “There’s a lot the public doesn’t know about my family. We enjoy our privacy.” Hakuba stared at him from across the table, unreadable expression on his face. “Like not allowing you to go to public school?” “No, that was just convent for them.” Shinichi blinked, puzzled at the concerned looks he was now getting. “What? Gramps was chasing us constantly for… pretty much my entire life.” He’d almost slipped and said 11 years. Shinichi had only been here for a few days and he was already way too comfortable! “If he just knew the general area we were in, all he would have to do was look for any knew students in an area and he’d have the perfect place for an ambush.” “That’s not an excuse!” Nakamori-chan declared suddenly. “They shouldn’t have involved a child with their crimes to begin with! You should have had a stable home and school life, not one where you were whisked around the world with no regard to what you wanted!” “I… don’t understand what you mean, Nakamori-san,” Shinichi said, honestly confused. “My family might not be… normal, but they still homeschooled me. I never felt neglected. They never pressured me to do anything I was uncomfortable with. Why are you so upset?” Hakuba placed a hand on Nakamori-chan’s shoulder. “What Aoko-kun means is that, as criminals, Lupin and the others should have never considered keeping you. Because of your “life on the run,” you appear to lack certain social and life skills that could possibly affect your life forever.” Biting back a scathing remark, Shinichi breathed deeply, trying to calm down. He had to look cool and collected; he couldn’t just emote every time he wanted to. Kuroba spoke up. “I think you two are being a bit hard on him. And Hakuba, you didn’t have any social skills before we became acquaintanced, so you’re not one to talk.” “I think you’re missing the point, Kuroba—” Kuroba shrugged. “Then we agree to disagree.” He turned to Shinichi. “I want to know about the places you’ve been too. Paris, Moscow, America—you must have interesting stories to tell.” Shinichi jerked back as the magician attached himself to his arm. “Please?” “Uh… well…”
“Oh my God, he’s dead!”
Hakuba shot out of his seat towards the kitchen. He pointed at one of the waiters. “You. Call the police and stand by the doors. Don’t let anyone leave; they’re all witnesses now.” The waiter scrabbled to obey, frightened by the detective’s intensity. Shinichi peered around Kuroba’s head as Hakuba disappeared behind swinging doors. “Will he be alright by himself?” he asked. “H-Hakuba-kun is always fine!” Aoko laughed, but it came out sounding shrill. “He… he usually ends up working cases while we’re out, it’s fine! Aoko is used to it by now… He’s very important for his job and they just happen so often, so Aoko really can’t complain!” She tried to force herself to sound happy, but it didn’t work. Shinichi glanced at Kuroba, who was watching the front doors, then back to Nakamori-chan. No one should be used to murder… He made up his mind. “Mark Williams once challenged my dad to steal Donald Trump’s toilet paper.” Nakamori-chan choked on air and Kuroba’s head whirled around so fast his neck cracked. “W-What?” Nakamori-chan asked, eyes wide. “Are you serious?” He nodded. “Completely. Would you like to hear the story?” Maybe he couldn’t keep people from dying, but he could help Nakamori-chan feel a little better. “It’s ridiculous… you might not even believe me.” She laughed and Kuroba gave Shinichi a grateful look. “Oh, it can’t be that bad! You should hear some of the stories Kaito comes up with!” “Then I’ll do my best to surpass him,” Shinichi said with a smirk, happy that she was no longer thinking about the murder.
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Distracting Nakamori-chan from the unfortunate death aside, Shinichi was kind of enjoying talking about his family's misadventures. He didn't dare discuss any of the ones where he was a main player—he'd rather keep his ears safe from Nakamori-chan's loud volume—but there were still plenty left over to tell."Please tell me you're kidding!" Kuroba exclaimed, just as wrapped up in Shinichi's tale as Nakamori-chan. "Leonardo Da Vinci? Seriously?""Yeah," Shinichi said. "I was there and I still don't understand how it happened. I think it was supposed to be part of some… cloning thing? It was weird."Kuroba threw his hands up in the air. "That's it! I can't compete with this! Congratulations, your life has officially broken my brain." He slammed his head on the table. Nakamori-chan giggled at the theatrics. He was being overdramatic on purpose obviously, adding to Shinichi's show in the only way that made sense. "How do you live like this, Lupin?"Shinichi shrugged. "I've gotten used to it."The bell over the door rang and several men entered. Some wore police uniforms, one was in a suit—detective, without a doubt—and the last was overweight and dressed in an orange trench coat and hat, a large walrus mustache under his nose. Hakuba exited the kitchen and as the door swung shut, Shinichi caught a glance at the body inside. Male, early 40s, no trace of blood, so either poison or strangulation. Probably poison as it would be difficult to strangle someone quickly in a busy kitchen. His skin was a darker tone than average, tanned rather than natural, and was that…? Shinichi's eyes widened."Ah, Hakuba-kun!" The orange man exclaimed. "Always on the scene, as usual.""Meguire-Keibu," Hakuba said. "The victim is Hiro Hidetoshi, 39, a waiter at this café. Cause of death appears to be poisoning, though we won't know which kind without a toxicology report. Apparently, after eating lunch, Moriya Kozakura-san, a coworker, found Hidetoshi-san coughing and clutching his chest before he collapsed."Shinichi frowned. Lunch? So late in the afternoon?Meguire nodded. "Any suspects?""Not yet, but I haven't had a chance in interrogate the kitchen staff, so we'll see—"Scanning the kitchen staff that had assembled near the cash register, Shinichi narrowed his eyes. The chief was the obvious choice; his behavior was skittery, his eyes flickering back and forth and he was wringing his hands—guilty behavior. But no… he was too obvious. A real murderer would look as nonchalant as possible. Besides, he was the only chef for the entire café that was low on staff—including the victim, there was only one other waitress and a dishwasher. He would have been too busy.There! His eyes landed on an older woman, white streaking her hair. Her lunch—grilled sandwich, two of edamame, coffee—sat untouched, but she kept glancing between the kitchen door and the police, her lip bitten raw. At her side sat a briefcase that she nudged every once in a while, to reassure herself that it was still there. And her hands… Shinichi smirked."Hey, let me out," Shinichi said. Kuroba moved, brows furrowed in confusion as he watched Shinichi approach the woman while the police began questioning the cook. He sat the chair to her left. "Excuse me, but are you alright?" he asked quietly.She jumped in her seat. "Oh, yes, I'm fine! It's… It's just…""You were married to the deceased?"Her jaw dropped. "How did you know that?" she whispered."You're lunch is specially made—not on the menu," he began. "You were here before us, yet you still haven't eaten much of it, so you're waiting for something, and you've been glancing towards the kitchen, meaning that you've been waiting to speak to someone in there. Not as a customer, otherwise you would have flagged down the waitress and asked for them, so you wanted them to see you out here. Your husband, though it wouldn't have been for much longer, given the tan line on your finger. He has a similar one.""How did you know all that?"Shinichi shrugged. "Just some deduction and a lifetime of people watching. Did I get anything wrong?"She slumped in her seat. "N-No. No, everything is spot on. My name is Fumiyo Hidetoshi. I came here to force Hiro to sign the divorce papers—he hasn't been home for two weeks, ever since I confronted him about his affair. I know which tables he's supposed to wait on, so I sat here to try and make him talk to me, but… I guess he was just waiting in back for me to leave." She laughed bitterly. "He thought that we could still make things work, that I just needed some time to cool down. He just… I couldn't stay with someone like that. And now he's…""So, his lunch in back wasn't planned?""No. He's always disliked eating lunch—said it makes—" she corrected herself— "made him feel tired.""And do you know who he was having the affair with?"She shook her head. "I only overheard a few phone conversations from Hiro's end. And they were not something you could misunderstand."He nodded. Fumiyo looked at him, terrified, her eyes flickering over to the police. Shinichi got the idea. "Oh, don't worry. I'll make sure the police don't suspect you. You didn't do it, after all.""Huh?"Shinichi stood. "How would you have gotten in the kitchen without anyone seeing you? Don't worry, oba-san. I've got this."He didn't have this. Shinichi studied the staff again, this time looking for further than obvious signs of guilt, unlike the police who were still harassing the poor cook. It was down to the waitress and the dish boy. The waitress was in her late twenties, a little young for man as old as Hidetoshi, but apparently men were interested in younger women. Shinichi personally never found the appeal in women at all—with only Auntie and movies as his main interactions, he found himself uninterested rather quickly. She was pretty, Shinichi assumed as she wore enough makeup to cover anything that could be interpreted as unseemly. She reminded him as a Barbie doll with the moral compass of one—to say, none at all. And she was in a relationship with someone, but…Walking up to the group of staff and police, Shinichi spoke, speaking from the chest so his voice would project. "Yuri Kasaka, correct?"The dish boy blinked in surprise, having been ignored for most of the investigation. "Yes…?""Arsène Lupin. Tell me, when did you begin your affair with Hiro Hidetoshi?"All noise in the room stopped. Police were staring wide-eyed while Hakuba looked like he was about to lay an egg. "W-What!?" Yuri squeaked out, his face ashen. "Hidetoshi-san!? W-We just worked together, why would you think that!?""Your other two living coworkers live alone based on the wrinkles of the cook's clothes and her immaculate makeup—he doesn't care much about cleaning, she has tons of time for her appearance. But based on your apron, you'd be more like the cook; however your clothes aren't nearly as bad as his, so someone is taking care of you, but only recently. Likewise, Hidetoshi-san is wearing clothing that clearly show that they've been well-cared for, but his wrinkles says that's changed recently and he's had to move it with someone less caring. What better place for him to stay but at his lover's house?"The poison, based on the speed and apparent suffocation, seems to be strychnine. A Clematis leaf is stuck to your shoe—the plant probably grows outside your home. You could have easily added some of the seeds to Hidetoshi-san's food." Yuri gulped, but Hakuba didn't seem very convinced so Shinichi added, "Also, you have a hickey."Yuri slapped his hand over the hickey, his expression murderous. "So what if we were sleeping together!? Why would I want to kill the man I loved?""Because he didn't love you back." Yuri flinched. "He wanted to stay with his wife, not you." His face contorted. Shinichi pressed further. "So you killed him and now you have to live the rest of your life knowing that the only person you loved just wanted you for sex."He collapsed, arms hugging himself as he sobbed. "You're right…" he whimpered, glaring up at Shinichi. "He wanted to go back to his bitch of a wife, so I… I… Oh, God, Hiro!"The police lead the murderer away after thanking Shinichi for his help. A hand fell on his shoulder and Shinichi twisted to see Hakuba smiling at him. "Oi, what's with that look?""You know, Lupin, you could probably make a decent detective if you wanted to."A detective? The idea had never occurred to him. Sure, Shinichi had met his fair share of detectives over the years, but… to join them? It almost felt like blasphemy, yet why did it feel destined? Shinichi shook his head. "Doubtful. I was raised by thieves, remember? I was taught that everything not bolted to the floor could be stolen, and even then you could still try to take it. But murder… I don't understand how someone could maliciously take a life."Hakuba snorted. "You sure you're not a detective? Because you sound like one.""Don't even joke about that. My great-grandfather would rise from the grave just to slap me upside the head for joining the enemy.""Pity. I could use another pair of hands to help me catch Kaitou Kid."Shinichi frowned. "Kaitou Kid? Who's that?"
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Shinichi followed Hakuba into the display room. They’d had to go past three checkpoints just to get there which included an abhorrent amount of face pulling. Whose idea was it to try and rip off someone’s face to see if they’re wearing a mask!? There are easier ways to check! “Bwahahahahaha!” A mustached man cackled. “With this trap, there’s no way Kaitou KID can escape this time! Enjoy your last hour of freedom, KID!” “Nakamori-Keibu,” Hakuba called out, walking towards the inspector. “I see you’re as jubilant as ever.” “Tsk, nosy English brat… is this the expert you were talking about?” Nakamori glared at Shinichi who had no idea if he should be offended or not. He was called an expert... but that tone… “Yes, Keibu. This is Lupin-kun, from school. He’s a leading expert on gentlemen thieves and will hopefully prove useful to catching Kaitou KID.” “An expert?” Looking down, Shinichi saw… himself. As a kid. With glasses. He glanced at Hakuba. Was he seeing this? Apparently so, since Hakuba was looking directly at the kid. In fact, Hakuba didn’t look surprised at all. A little warning would have been nice. What’s with all of these doppelgängers!? “How are you an expert, niisan?” the boy continued. “I guess that one way to describe it,” Shinichi answered. “I was raised by thieves.” The boy’s eyes widened behind his thick glasses as Shinichi crouched down to be eye-to-eye with him. Damn, the kid even had his cowlick. How was this even possible!? “The name’s Arsène Lupin the fourth. What’s your name, kiddo?” “Conan Kudo, Tantei-san!” He laughed at the enthusiastic reply and ruffled Conan’s hair. The kid pouted. “Well, it’s a pleasure to meet you, Conan-kun. I look forward to working with you to catch this Kaitou KID.” Hakuba cut it. “Conan-kun is actually the detective who’s come the closest to catching KID. The newspapers call him the KID Killer.” Shinichi nodded. Newspapers? That means he should be able to skirt past the blocks on his laptop. Newspapers counted as scholarly sources, right? And it wouldn’t be odd for him to look up a child he just met, especially one that looked so similarly to him. “Then tonight should be interesting. Shall we get to the reason why I’m here?” When Hakuba had told him about Kaitou KID a few nights ago, he hadn’t been impressed. Compared to some of the heists Dad had pulled off, KID sounded like… well, a kid. Sure, he was clever, but all thieves were. The only special thing about him was his magic and even then Shinichi was sure he could find someone better, like Gunter Von Goldberg II. Shinichi had never seen any of his shows, but had heard his illusions were the best in the world. Still, something about Kaitou KID intrigued him. Maybe it was the 10 year hiatus that no one had an explanation to. Maybe it was the ever looming mystery why KID felt familiar to him. Either way, Shinichi was fascinated. Fascinated enough to do what he’d never done before and actively assist the police against a fellow thief. He could feel his ancestor twisting in his grave at the thought. Good. Shinichi never liked the idea of following tradition. They walked over to Nakamori-Keibu. “Keibu? Perhaps you could go over the heist plan for Lupin-kun?” Nakamori narrowed his eyes and tried to pinch Shinichi’s cheek again. He swatted the hand away. “Do you have to do that every time!? It’s not even that affective a method; you’d only need a strong adhesive. It’s easier and less painful to check for a wig—” He pulled his hair and ignored the dull ache. “—which I’m not wearing. Can we get on with this now?” “S-Sure.” Nakamori looked cowed enough, but both Hakuba and Conan were side-eyeing him. Shinichi rolled his eyes. “This time, we arranged a laser trap, designed to go off when case is tampered with. The lasers only appear for several meters around the case, but our analysis has determined that KID doesn’t have any device or trick that can move him that far. If he touches any of the lasers, he’ll be electrocuted!” Well, he sounded way too happy about that… Shinichi looked across the room where the night’s prize, the Red Royal, was secured. The large ruby sat in the center of its silver tiara, surrounded by diamonds. “Have you checked to make sure the case hasn’t been altered with?” “Of course! It was the first thing we did!” So it was probably tampered with after they secured it… “I can think of three different ways he can get the Red Royal, six if he’s not averse to property damage,” he announced. Smoke started the fill the room as laughter echoed. “For shame, Lupin-kun! To think, the prince of thieves helping his enemies! Does your father know about this?” Shinichi barred his teeth. Damn, he wished he had a gun. At least then he wouldn’t feel so defenseless! “My father doesn’t really care what I do, which shows how much you know! You shouldn’t get into the affairs of others, Kaitou KID!” “Ah, but it’s such a waste of talent for your skills to be used on police work.” KID was still nowhere to be seen, but the smoke was beginning to clear now. “You should really consider taking up the family business, if only so we could meet more often!” “Nakamori-Keibu!” One of the officers cried out. “The Red Royal! It’s gone!” “WHAT!?” Nakamori pushed through the crowd, everyone scurrying up to see the missing gem. “HE COULDN’T HAVE JUST GRABBED IT—” “Wait, the lasers!” Hakuba’s cry went unheeded as someone grabbed the case and a field of lasers activated around most the officers in the building. Shinichi blinked, but had no time to analysis as several green pellets shot towards him. He dove to the side, but Hakuba and Conan weren’t so lucky. The pellets burst on contact, covering the two in sticky, green goo that held them in place. Shinichi was already running, ignoring Hakuba’s yells to stay where he was. The roof. There were no extra officers in the room and Hakuba had told him of KID’s habit of looking at his gems through moonlight; add those with KID’s infamous hang glider and the best place for him to go was the roof. Sides burning, Shinichi raced up the stairs like a shot, his heart pounding in his ears. Without knowing, a breathless smile had appeared on his face. He burst onto the roof. KID was waiting for him. “You’re a lot faster than you look,” he said. “I’ll have to take that into account next time.” KID raised an eyebrow. “Next time? You want to come back?” “Eh.” Shinichi shrugged. “High school and restricted movements can only be so entertaining.” “Oh, I can make this more entertaining for you, if that’s what you need…” They started to circle each other. “Are… are you trying to flirt with me?” He was sure, but KID’s face looked similar to Auntie’s when she was doing something lewd. Was this something thieves did with each other, flirt for the hell of it? Papa had never mentioned anything about it, but it would explain at lot of Dad’s actions over the years. “Why are you making it sound like a bad thing? It doesn’t have to be a bad thing.”
“You’re like 40!”
Without warning, KID was in Shinichi’s face and the thief whirled him around. Shinichi got a good look at what was under that hat and it definitely wasn’t a forty year old. Warm breath brushed over his ear. “Are you sure?” Before Shinichi could process, KID was gone and Shinichi was handcuffed to the roof’s railing. He tugged at it in vain and sighed. The night couldn’t get worse. Until the Interpol helicopter showed up, carting Gramps screaming at the top of his lungs.
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“Honestly, Hakuba-kun, I was still in the building!” Shinichi had been reproaching Hakuba for his hasty actions the night before and he loved almost every minute of it. He didn’t enjoy Hakuba’s shamed face any more than he had last night, when Gramps had chewed him out for “wasting ICPO resources outside of an emergency.” Shinichi wasn’t a cruel man; he could tell how genuinely sorry Hakuba was, how much he wished things had gone differently. But that regret was there and regret was what Shinichi needed to capitalize on. The twist of his face, the subtle change in his name, the precise percentage of scorn in Shinichi’s voice—all were carefully calculated to keep Hakuba feeling guilty. As long as Hakuba related shame and regret with the memory of Shinichi escaping, real or not, he’d be hesitant to call Interpol again. And when Shinichi escaped for real, that hesitance could give him hours more time to work with. But despite how necessary it was for him, Shinichi couldn’t stop the guilt from building every time he saw Hakuba’s distraught face. But still he continued, “I know you were just following Interpol’s orders, but have I ever given you the inclination that I want to leave?” Shinichi put on his most betrayed expression. “I haven’t tried contacting my family once. I like it here. I like school, and being with people my age, and talking to you. Why would I want to leave?” “Lupin-kun…” Hakuba clenched his hands and sighed. They stopped, people parting around them like a rock in a river. “I believed that my actions, at the time, were correct. I can’t apologize for that.” “And if you think it right, so be it.” Shinichi looked away. “But I can’t help but desire for one friend not to see me as a criminal. Our classmates do, Nakamori-chan does, Kuroba-kun does… Is one too much to ask?” “I’ll…” Hakuba swallowed. “I’ll try to keep that in mind.” Shinichi smiled. Got him. “That’s all I ask, Hakuba. Come on; we’re going to be late to school.” They made it to class with 5 minutes to spare and as Shinichi brushed past a red-headed girl, her hand snatched his elbow. He froze, staring down at her. She stared back, red eyes like blood, her lips curled into a smug smirk. “Can I help you?” He tried to tug his arm away, but her nails dug into his sleeve. “Arsène Lupin the Fourth…” she drawled, inspecting him. Shinichi shivered. “You are not who you say you are.” A chill washed over him. Shinichi narrowed his eyes. “What are you talking about?” Her smile looked a little too wide, a little too sharp. “Be wary, little sparrow. An old enemy lurks close by and wishes to rip into your flesh once again.” What the hell. “Why are you telling me this?” Shinichi glanced around the room, desperate for anyone to save him from this crazy woman. “I was told you must know it.” “By whom?” “My friend Lucifer.” Shinichi leaned as far away from the girl as possible. “Keep your wits close, Lupin-san. Your nest-mate is about to be stolen by the crows if you don’t keep your eye on him.” “Akako!” Kuroba tore him from the woman’s grip and glared at her. She glared back. “Stop harassing the new kid! No one cares about your Lucifer bullshit, so knock it off.” “That’s not what you said about my last warning, Kuroba-kun,” Akako said. “But if you continue to lay in denial, that is fine. I’m sure Lupin-san will eventually see the benefit of my words.” Kuroba rolled his eyes and pulled Shinichi to his seat. He glanced back at Akako, who was still watching them. “Um… is she alright? In the head?” “No. No she is not. Just… try to ignore her.” Leaving him with that cryptic statement, Kuroba went to his own desk as the first teacher of the day walked in. It was English period, the subject Shinichi was arguably best at—he’d been traveling around the world for years and when Papa found him, apparently he’d spoken English first. Shinichi didn’t remember too much from that period of his life. He had only been six after all. But… somethings you just couldn’t forget and pure utter terror was one of them. He shook his head, ignoring Hakuba’s questioning glance. Now wasn’t the time to think about it. He had to pay attention. “Okay everyone!” the teacher said in English. Shinichi really had to start learning the names of the teachers here. “I know you all worked hard on your papers last week, so I wanted to give you an easy group project!” Most of the class groaned. Only Kuroba looked excited at the idea. “You are going to interview your partner and write what they say in English. Now, you can choose partners—” “Lupin!!” Shinichi jerked up. Kuroba launched himself out of his chair and across another desk. He threw his arms around Shinichi who had frozen. “I choose Lupin! He’s my partner! No one else’s!” “Kuroba—” “No, Hakuba!” Kuroba shook his finger in Hakuba’s face. “I won’t let you take this from me! Do you have any idea how long I’ve wanted to hear more stories about Lupin’s childhood? Since Monday, at most! You aren’t taking this away from me, you got it!?” “Kuroba, he’s legally required to work with me on any group project—” “I doubt it’s an actual requirement,” Shinichi cut in. He fought to keep the grin off his face. This was just what he was looking for! Now, how reluctant should he seem in order to throw Hakuba off the scent…? “Something can probably be arranged if you really want, Kuroba. The most I can do is ask Gramps about it after school; we need to visit him anyway, remember?” Hakuba nodded. Kuroba looked ecstatic yet confused. “Why do you need to visit your grandfather? I thought Lupin the Second was dead.” “I was talking about the investigator who chased my dad: Inspector Zenigata. He wants me to come in and talk to my dad.” “Why?” “Zenigata-Keibu wants Dad to reveal the location of the rest of his team; he thinks I’m the best person to talk it out of him.”
Omake:
Okimi was lost. The six year old pressed herself up against a tree as she glanced around. She’d never been in this part of the park before! She bit her lip as tears gathered in her eyes. Her mommy had to be around here somewhere… right? She couldn’t be that far away. Maybe she should yell?Leaves crunched and a woman appeared from around a tree. Okimi sighed in relief. A grown-up! She could help her! The neechan looked like a doll, wearing a pink and white dress that Okimi thought looked more in place on stage than in a forest. She ran up to the neechan, who stopped when she noticed Okimi. “Is there something wrong, little girl?” the woman asked, crouching so she was eye-level with Okimi. Her voice was only a little louder than a whisper. Okimi nodded. “I can’t find my mommy, neechan. I ran off to find my friends, but they weren’t around, and now I don’t know where I am.” She started sniffling. “There, there.” The woman took out a hankie, a monogramed H in pink on the corner, and offered it to Okimi. “Don’t cry. You’ll find your mother.” She didn’t look so doll-like up close. Her hair wasn’t in the curls Okimi had seen old European dolls have; instead, it was short, to her chin rather than down her back, with only one ringlet in a sea of fly-aways. She didn’t wear makeup either, only a magenta lipstick that Okimi had only seen in department stores, never on anyone’s lips. But the weirdest thing about her was the black eyepatch over her right eye. It didn’t match the rest of her. “Neechan, did you hurt your eye?” Okimi couldn’t help but to ask. Her curiosity was piqued. Neechan nodded, her lips twitching up into her first smile. “Would you like to see?” Before Okimi could stop her, she lifted the patch. Okimi couldn’t look away. She could see… She fainted, her tiny body barely making a sound against the forest floor.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Irritation bubbled up in Shinichi as he endured his pat-down at the hands of one of the rougher guards. He deduced the man responsible as he waiting for it to end; his girlfriend had just left him and he had an inferiority complex and was power-hungry, if the insulting way he addressed Shinichi was anything to go by. He hoped the guard eventually came across his dad. Dad would probably get a kick out of embarrassing him. Soon enough, he was finished and pushed through to the visitor’s room where Dad was waiting. Smiles broke out on their faces at the same time. “Junior!” Dad threw himself at Shinichi, who caught him in a hug. “It’s been way too long, kiddo. How are you? Have you been eating regularly—Goemon gets on my back when you don’t eat regularly.” “Hey Dad,” he whispered, emotion leaking into his voice without his permission. He hadn’t realized how much he missed his family until he saw his dad. It made him ache to see the rest of them, or at least hear Papa’s voice. “I missed you.” Lupin shifted and the hug became softer, more comforting. But they let go quickly; they were well aware of the mirror in the room, of who was behind it. They sat down, the visiting room surprisingly containing moderately comfortable couches. Dad draped himself across one half, looking far more smug and in control than anyone in prison had a right to look. “So, what brings you to this side of town? I doubt this is a social visit.” “They want me to interrogate you about where the rest of my family is.” He was originally supposed to have an earpiece to feed him the answers, but Gramps had decided against it, knowing Lupin would know that he was being interrogated through his son. Shinichi was glad that they’d scrapped the idea, otherwise his eardrum would have popped from how much they were probably yelling at him. “The idea that you would ever give them up without a substantial amount of money is ridiculous.” “Now, now, it’s not that bad. I’d also give them up in exchange for purging my criminal record! Geeze, Pops, I thought you knew me better than that!” Dad yelled at the mirror, laughing. “So, kiddo, how have you been? One of the guards let slip you were going to high school, has it been treating you well?” Shinichi perked up. “High school’s great. Well, the material is pretty easy, even though I think I’m in the advanced class, but I like it because I made some friends.” “YES!” Shinichi flinched back as Lupin bolted to his feet throwing his hands in the air. “Ha! I won the bet! In your face, Jigen, I told you he had social skills!” “You guys made a bet on whether or not I’d make friends!?” He wanted to be offended, but this honestly seemed like something his family would do. And worry about. “Of course we did. And your Papa was stupid enough to bet that you wouldn’t make any friends. Ha! Don’t worry, kid, I share my winnings with you.” Finally calmer, Dad sat back down, a grin stretched himself across his monkey face. “So, tell me about them! Who’s hanging out with my kid?” He told him about Kuroba and his magic tricks, Nakamori-chan and her… aggressive tendencies, and Hakuba, who Shinichi described as his best friend. It was an exaggeration, because as close as they could be, Shinichi was still holding back on telling him… anything, really. But Hakuba was watching from the other side of the mirror and he needed Hakuba to trust him as much as possible, even if he was going to shatter that trust when he escaped. Lupin listened thoughtfully, nodding his head every once in a while to show he was still listening. Finally, when Shinichi could no longer think of anything to say, Lupin said, “It sounds like you really like it here.” “Yeah…” He looked away, unable to meet his dad’s eyes. “I’m glad. Don’t look so shocked! I always knew that all our traveling wasn’t good for you. It makes me happy that you’re enjoying yourself so much, Arsène.” “…Thanks, Dad.” Shinichi smiled weakly. Lupin smiled back. “No problem, kid. Now, since you live in a police chief’s house, have you noticed anything suspicious? The ICPO agents around here have been chasing their own tails after something and it’s definitely not me.” “You know you could probably just ask them to tell you what’s going on.” “That’s no fun! Besides, it’s not going to affect me in here, now will it?” Lupin gave him a pointed look. “Ask. Please. You know how danger always follows you; I want you to be prepared. If you don’t, I’ll call your Aunt Red and make her pick you up so you can stay with her.” “Fine, fine. I’ll ask, but I doubt whatever it is will bother me. Interpol and Hakuba have been keeping a solid eye on me.” Shinichi waved off his concern, appearing nonchalant about the whole thing when he was trying to hide how curious he was. Something had to be pretty bad to rattle Dad this much… But he wouldn’t concern himself with it. He didn’t want to stay with Aunt Red, not with what happened last time… “I went to a KID heist yesterday.” Dad raised his eyebrows. “That sounds fun. Anything interesting happen? See any ideas we could steal?” “Eh, it was pretty basic. He did end up flirting with me though.” “What!?” If looks could kill… “He has to be at least forty! What the hell is he doing, flirting with kids!?” Shinichi was fairly sure that Kaitou KID was actually closer to 14 than 40, but he wasn’t going to correct him. It was kind of funny that his normally brilliant Dad didn’t actually know the truth for once. “Oi, I’m not a kid…” “I’m going to kill him,” Dad concluded, ignoring what Shinichi just said in favor of plotting death. “No, you can’t kill him, you’re in jail.” “Then your Papa can kill him!” Shinichi sighed. Really, the people he was family with…
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After being ushered from the room, Shinichi, with Hakuba walking beside him, was escorted to the office the prison gave Zenigata to work out of, the inspector wanting to be close to Lupin for when he made his inevitable escape attempt. It was more of a closet than a room, seeming even smaller with the supply boxes scattered about, piled high with case files. No doubt they were about Dad, Shinichi thought, eyeing the room for anything he could use. Zenigata wasn’t here yet. Hakuba looked around. “He’s probably still talking to the profiling expert,” he mused. “It might end up taking a while—what are you doing!?” Shinichi went up to the desk and started skimming through the files there. “Snooping,” he said. Wasn’t it obvious? “Gramps was looking stressed. I mean, he usually is and it’s usually Dad’s fault, but it’s gotten worse. Something else has him worked up and it’s not the fact that he has no leads on the rest of my family.” “So your solution is to break the law!?” “If you want to be technical, I’m only reading the things he’s left out.” Shinichi smiled at Hakuba. “It’s not my fault he left classified documents in the reach of impressionable children. He should really be more responsible.” Hakuba rolled his eyes, but he couldn’t hide the fond smile on his lips. “Only a criminal would put it in that way.” “You’ll never find the evidence to prove it.” Shinichi grinned back. “Do you want to help?” Hakuba seemed to deliberate, weighing his morals against his curiosity, but unsurprisingly, his curiosity won. He sighed. “I’ll take this side of the room. We’ll have to be fast though, Zenigata will be back soon enough and I don’t want to know what he’ll do if he catches us.” “He’ll probably just complain and tells us not to do it again. He has a soft spot for me,” Shinichi said. He turned back to the files and worked in silence, their fingers flipping through page after page. Shinichi couldn’t prevent worry from building in him. Gramps looked torn to pieces and the man wasn’t getting any younger—he needed to retire soon. Maybe he could convince the man to take on an apprentice to do the physical chasing… Then again, Gramps would take it as an insult to his pride as an inspector, like the last time he had an assistant… “Hey, does Zenigata have a grandkid?” Hakuba asked. “Not that I know of. I think he has a daughter though…” Shinichi trailed off, his eyes frozen to a familiar mugshot with a security cam photo beside it. She was a few years older in security camera, but other than a hand-full of wrinkles, she looked exactly the same as she was seven years ago. The same rat’s nest hair, the same horrible taste in lipstick, and the same cold look in her eyes—eye. That was right; she only had one eye now. Shinichi bit his lip and glanced at Hakuba, then back at her. He should tell him. It wasn’t safe for him not to know, but… Shinichi didn’t want to be arrested. He had to find a phone soon. Papa needed to know that Harper Valentine is in Tokyo.
Omake:
Saguru flipped through the files on his side of the desk. For Lupin to be this worried about Inspector Zenigata… it must be serious. Saguru rarely saw anything other than mild amusement from Lupin—his poker face had to be on par with Kuroba’s. For him to be so visibly disturbed… His hand brushed against a brightly colored mug and, curious, Hakuba inspected it. It was hand-painted, though not very well. Obviously a child’s work. In crude handwriting, someone had painted “#1 Grandpa” in English across a meadow background. “Hey,” Saguru called out, “Does Zenigata have a grandkid?” “Not that I know of,” came the answer. “I think he has a daughter though…” Saguru shrugged and was about to set it down when he saw more writing in blue paint at the very bottom of the mug. It read “Love: Arsène.”
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
The front door of the Kuroba family home swung open before Shinichi even had time to knock. Kuroba stood just beyond the entryway, enthusiastic grin on his face as he ushered Shinichi inside, much to his amusement. “Thanks for inviting me over, Kuroba,” Shinichi said, taking off his shoes in exchange for house slippers. “I have to admit, when you suggested doing this project together, I never thought you’d convince Hakuba to actually let me out of his sight.” “I figured you could use some time without your stalker.” As much as Shinichi enjoyed Hakuba’s company (and his literary preferences), he had to agree with Kuroba. Hakuba’s persistent; he’s followed him everywhere but the bathroom and to bed. “Still, what did you tell him to get him to leave us alone?” “I implied that he’d be reaquaintanced with a rather immovable pink tutu if he tried to butt in.” Shinichi snorted. “Of course, he’s probably going to grill you for details when you return, but it’s a nice price to pay for privacy. So!” Kuroba clapped and a puff of smoke floated from his sleeves. “What can I offer you? Water? Coffee? I could beat up some leftovers if you want.” “No, that’s—” Glancing around the room, Shinichi’s eyes landed on an old phone, almost out of sight on an end table. “Actually, those leftovers sound pretty good right now; I forgot to eat lunch. If you don’t mind…” “No, it’s alright.” Kuroba waved off his fake-concern and, miraculously, went into the kitchen. He shouted from inside. “So, do you think we’ll be lucky enough to do this again, or will Hakubastard force himself onto our time together?” Shinichi was already at the phone, dialing the first of 7 phone numbers he memorized before his arrest. They were just in case of an emergency; this counted. He bit the inside of his cheek. “Definitely the second,” Shinichi shouted back as he listened to the phone ring. “I don’t doubt he’s watching my tracking device right this second—” It connected. A deep voice growled out, “How’d you get this number?” Despite the risk and anxiety, Shinichi relaxed. “Papa, it’s me.” “Shinichi!” Jigen’s voice instantly changed from aggressive to concern. “What happened!? Where are you, we’ll come get you—” “I’m fine,” he whispered, glancing back towards the other room and trying not to feel irritated. Papa had been against his infiltration from the very beginning, deeming his freedom too much for information that may or may not exist. But Shinichi had to do this. He had to know. “Everything’s fine, Papa, you don’t need to come get me.” “Then why did you call? I doubt it’s just because you missed me.” Shinichi shook his head, a small grimace twisting his lips. “I wish, though I do miss you, lots—” he was rambling, trying to get the words, Papa was going to be so mad—“And really, I wouldn’t be calling you unless it’s really, really important, and it is, but I’m not sure how you’re going to react—” “Shinichi. Breathe.” “And I think Harper Valentine is in the country,” he said in a single breath. Jigen was silent on the other end and Shinichi squeezed the phone nervously. “Um… Papa…?” “How the hell is she here!?” he shouted. “How should I know?” Auntie retorted. Oh, he must be on speaker phone. “I thought she was sent to a Brazilian prison.” “It doesn’t matter. Shinichi, we’re coming to get you now.” “No!” he hissed. “I can’t leave yet, not when I’ve barely even started! This might be my only chance!” “I won’t just leave you in danger!” “Look, Interpol’s already on it. They know she’s here and she can’t hide forever.” “He’s got a point, Jigen,” Fujiko cut in. “Valentine’s European; she’ll stick out of a crowd.” “Thank you, Auntie. Papa, I know you’re worried, I am too. But I need to finish this. Please… just trust me.” A sigh rattled through the speakers. “I’m going to regret it… Fine, fine. But if she harms a single hair on your head, you’ll be out of the country before Pops screams “Lupin!” Got it?” “Got it,” Shinichi agreed, shoulders slouching. “Thank you, Papa.” “Just hurry the hell up, kid. Having you exposed like this is giving me grey hairs.” “Love you too, Papa.” Shinichi returned the phone to its cradle, and just in time as Kuroba took that moment to return. “Food’s ready.” “A-Ah. Thank you, Kuroba.” Shinichi and Kuroba went into the kitchen and began to eat their late meal. He blinked in surprise. “This is excellent.” And clearly made fresh. He hadn’t been on the phone that long, had he? “How long did it take you to make this?” “Not too long. Honestly, I thought you take more time on the phone, so I just whipped up something fast.” Shinichi choked. “E-Excuse me!?” Panic flooded his system as his pulse sped up. “I-I did no such thing!” Kuroba laughed at his attempt of innocence. “Your poker face sucks. And there’s no need to freak out—” He popped a piece of chicken into his mouth. “I was hoping you’d take the hint.” Shinichi’s heart rate slowly returned to normal. He glared suspiciously at Kuroba. “I don’t completely understand what you’re implying, Kuroba-san.” He set his chopsticks down, sighing thoughtfully. “I can’t imagine not being able to see my mom whenever.” Shinichi hadn’t expected that. “She might be a pain and I only call her a few times a week, but she’s still my mom.” Suddenly, he crossed his arms and huffed. “Of course, if you didn’t, that’s okay too. I don’t care what you do. I just figured having Hakuba and Interpol constantly breathing down your neck could get tiring.” Oh. “Thank you, Kuroba. My family’s doing well.” Shinichi smiled, small and sincere. That seemed to melt Kuroba’s icy demeanor as a light flush appeared on his cheeks. “N-No problem. And you don’t have to call me that if you don’t want to. My first name’s fine.” “Alright then, Kaito-kun.” Kaito’s blush deepened, though he tried to brush it off as nothing. “You may call me Shinichi.” “Shinichi? But that’s not your given name.” “It’s… more like a family nickname. And Arsène is a pain to pronounce outside of French.” “Shinichi… it suits you,” Kaito decided, standing. “Just put your dishes in the sink and I’ll clean them later. Do you mind if we work in my room? All my school stuff is up there.” “Sure.” He followed Kaito up the stairs and past a few closed doors, into the last one on the hall. Kaito chattered away cheerfully, not noticing how Shinichi froze in the doorway. “I know it’s a little messy, but we’re both guys, so what does it matter? Besides, I’m sure you’ve stayed in worse places during your family’s adventures—” Shinichi couldn’t respond, couldn’t even move. His body trembled and shook with the strain of a scream that would not come out. It couldn’t be. Scenes from years past, 11 years to be exact, flashed through his mind. He knew the man whose portrait sat on Kaito’s wall.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Trembling, Shinichi took a step back, but his leg collapsed out from under him. He landed hard on his knees, pain distant. It couldn’t be. His eyes wide and gasping for breath, he couldn’t stop staring at the portrait, couldn’t stop seeing the faces he’d tried so long to forget, couldn’t stop comparing the man in the picture to his new friend, noticing all the similarities between them. “Aniki? What’s with the kid?”
“Boss’s orders. He told me to take him when his mother was distracted.”
“Think he’s another experiment? Boss has had some of the non-codenamed members kidnap a few for the Apotoxin 4869 trails.”
“Doesn’t matter. Boss just wants him mostly unharmed—”
No! It’s been years since he’d seen him, seen any of them, this shouldn’t… shouldn’t hurt so bad. The room spun around him and someone was calling his name, but he couldn’t focus, he couldn’t stop shaking. Air struggled in and out of his lungs, never enough, never enough—
“Shh, don’t cry kiddo, don’t cry…” Rough fingers wiped the tears from his cheeks, horribly gentle considering how much she’d already hurt him. “I’m sorry kiddo, I don’t wanna hurt you, but Boss’s orders…”
“Shinichi!” Kaito’s face swam into view and Shinichi flinched back, away, he had to get away, to escape! Pushing Kaito to the side, he stumbled to his feet, unsteady and uncaring, and pushed out the door. His feet faltered and, as he wasn’t focusing on where he was going, he fell. Down the stairs. Darkness. A car, from the feel of the seat. Rope kept him from moving too much, around his wrists and arms. Sobbing. Blue eyes, slim face, a voice, saying, “It’s okay, little boy, I’m not going to hurt you.”
Begging. Screaming. Blood in his mouth, not his, everything tasted like blood and tears, Papa, where are you—
He was saying something, what was he saying—!?
“Shinichi!” Dazed, Shinichi broke from his stupor to see Kaito standing above him again. He blinked and felt everything. Everything hurt, his head, his back, his legs… even his heart ached from going too hard too fast. But nothing felt broken, familiar enough with the feeling to tell instantly. “Shinichi, are you ok? You just started hyperventilating, and then you collapse—” Kaito babbled, reaching down to help him up— “Don’t touch me!” he hissed, surprising even himself. Kaito flinched back, eyes wide with hurt. Shit, he didn’t mean to… it was just an automatic reaction. “S-Sorry, sorry.” He stood up, leaning against the wall. “I-It’s fine, I’m fine.” He tried not to look at Kaito. “Fine!? You had a panic attack and fell down the stairs!” “It’s nothing; this is hardly the first time.” “What happened?” Shinichi looked away. Kaito grabbed his shoulder. “You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to, but…” He bit his lip. He didn’t want to talk about; he never had to. His family already knew most of it since they’d been there, but… And did he really want to tell Kaito of all people? They barely even knew each other. And if the man is who Shinichi thinks he is, then does he really want to shatter Kaito’s belief in him? “I’m sorry, Kuroba, but there’s nothing to tell.” Shinichi tried pushing past him, but Kaito fixed him with a stern glare of the likes he’d never seen on his trickster classmate. “I’m not stupid, Shinichi,” he said. “You were looking at my dad’s portrait when you collapsed.” So his suspicion was right. “Then why are you asking!?” “Because I need to know!” Kaito shouted, grabbing him by the shoulders and shaking him. “Because my dad was murdered when I was 8, I know next to nothing about it, yet you remember him well enough to have a panic attack when you see his face!” Face-to-face, Kaito stared into his eyes. “I need to know,” he repeated in a whisper. “I know it hurts, but… please.” “I can’t tell you anything good,” Shinichi whispered back. Why was he even humoring him? He should just leave and never speak of it again. “That’s for me to decide.” Disbelieving laughter spilled from his lips. “Really?” he asked, incredulously. “You think one of the most traumatizing moments of my life can be rationalized, because trust me, I’ve tried.” He took a deep breath. “When I was six, for reasons unknown to me… your father tried to kidnap me.” Kaito choked on air. “I was terrified at the time, so I don’t remember some details, but I know he was trying to take me somewhere.” Shinichi closed his eyes. He softened the blow as much as he could. “He didn’t hurt me. If anything, I hurt him; I bit him the moment his hand got near my face. But he was taking me somewhere, away from my family.” Kaito stumbled away, his expression heartbroken. Guilt and shame clenched Shinichi’s stomach. “I… that can’t be…” Kaito murmured. He shook his head. “No. I can’t believe that.” “I have no reason to lie.” Shinichi said stiffly. He knew this would happen. “I’ll leave you to your thoughts.” Without glancing back, Shinichi strode to the front door, exchanging his shoes and opening it. “Goodbye, Kuroba. Thank you for letting me use your phone.” The door closed with a resounding click behind him.
Omake:
Hunched over the dinner table, Kaito squeezed his head between his hands. He wanted to stop thinking, to forget Shinichi had ever come upstairs, or even better, had ever been there in the first place. Once again, his world had been flipped on his head. It was becoming a habit, he thought, a hysterical laugh caught in his throat. He shouldn’t have asked. He should have just let Shinichi brush it off, even though the other looked like he was going to cry if Kaito had so much as twitched the wrong way. Even though Shinichi looked like he had been swallowing his fears for years. And what was worse is that it made sense too. No matter how hard he tried to deny it, telling himself that his father was a good man, that he would never steal a person, that he only stole to keep people from baiting his mother out of hiding, there was evidence that pointed otherwise. Kaito’s memories of his father were strong. He could still remember his smile, his voice, his hands, which were covered in scars, all the small nicks and cuts that came from practicing his trades. And he still remembered the one that Toichi never explained, an odd round one on the meat of his thumb, shaped unfathomably like a bite mark. The sharp trill of his phone cut through the silence. Startled, it took him a minute to realize that his phone was across the room, resting near the sink where dirty dishes sat, waiting to be cleaned. It rang again and Kaito stood, picking it up and answering it before it stopped. “Hello?” “Kuroba!” Oh, great. Hakuba. Just what he needed right now. “What do you want—” “Where’s Lupin?” “He left.” Kaito checked the clock. “About… half an hour ago. Shouldn’t you know this already? You’re the one who’s got him bugged all the time.” “I just got a call from Interpol.” The Brit’s voice sounded concerned, a first for Kaito. “His signal disappeared off their monitors and I can’t find him on mine. He’s missing and if we don’t find him within three hours, Interpol’s going to put out a warrant for his arrest.” His phone slipped through his fingertips.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
The first thing Shinichi realized as he slowly rose to consciousness was how badly his arms hurt. They burned, his shoulder joints feeling like they pop out any second, as if someone was trying to pull them out. He knew this feeling. He was hanging from the ceiling by his arms, just like last time. Which meant… Shinichi peeled open his eyes, unsurprised to see Harper Valentine inches away from his face. The ex-assassin pouted at his lack of reaction. She looked older—her hair with a bit more grey in the blond, a few more wrinkles around the eyes—but other than that and the eyepatch, she looked exactly the same as the last time she kidnapped him, down to the same all-black assemble. But Shinichi wasn’t a terrified 9-year-old anymore, so he raised an eyebrow in annoyance. “Really, Valentine? Chloroform?” “Would you prefer blunt force trauma?” Her voice was even the same, he thought with a shiver. “Don’t you know how easy it is to die from that? I want you to have time to regret your life choices before you die.” Shinichi swallowed hard. “This is about the eye.” “This is about the eye,” she agreed. “But not entirely. I can’t blame you for what you did, kiddo. You were only 9 and really it’s my fault for not expecting the son of a renowned hitman to have excellent aim.” Valentine stepped away from him, shrugging. “To be completely fair, I could even deal with losing an eye; sure, no more depth perception, but that’s something I can train myself to compensate for. “So, really, this isn’t about the eye. Or you. Except for it is.” Unholstering her gun, she pointed it at Shinichi. To his shock, she could barely hold it, her right hand twitching and trembling too much to properly aim. Valentine smile bitterly. “It’s about your Pops. But since I can’t find him, you’re gonna have to do.” She turned away and Shinichi quickly looked around. He was in a warehouse of some sort, on a balcony overlooking the main floor. Windows were broken, none near him though. His hands chained to the ceiling but his feet were free and barely touching the floor. On his leg, instead of seeing his ankle monitor, there was just a silver bag. “What’s on my foot?” “Just something to keep Interpol from finding you.” Valentine rummaged around for something on the table. “I don’t want them to find us before my fun is done.” She turned back around and in her hands was a modified cattle-prod. Shinichi flinched away. “You don’t have to do this.” “I do, kiddo, I really do.” “No, you don’t. Everyone has a choice, Harper. Even you. Especially you. Please. Let me go.” Her frozen smile seemed to falter and Shinichi dared to hope as her eyes softened. “You’re a good kid, Shinichi. It’s a shame I hate your dad too much for you to live.” “Yeah.” He spat. “Such a shame.” “Now, don’t give me that look. This is only going to take ten, fifteen minutes tops, then it will be just like falling asleep, I swear.” She pressed the wires on the end of the cattle-prod into Shinichi’s stomach, her finger brushing over the switch. “So, let’s get this over with, shall we?”
Omake:
Any moment spent with Hakuba was bad enough on its own, but now? With Shinichi missing, Interpol breathing down their necks for being the ones who “lost” him, and Kaito’s personal emotional threshold reached for the day, he wanted to go back home and take a nap, not be cooped up in one of Hakuba’s cars with the detective. Hakuba wasn’t even looking at him, just staring at the GPS on his phone. “Okay, this is where his signal was last picked up. Baaya, stop the car.” They pulled over, warehouses all around them, and got out. “This is pretty close to the train station,” Kaito observed. “How do we know he didn’t just ditch the tracker and go somewhere else?” He did talk to his family, he remembered. It was possible that they met up to remove the tracker after he left. Left because of him after having a panic attack, falling down the stairs, and hitting his head. Kaito winced. “Not possible. His tracking anklet can only be remove with the key which Inspector Zenigata keeps on him at all times. If anything else enters the keyhole, it will administer a sedative and activate a different alarm.” Hakuba looked around. “There’s no one else on the street. Is this area usually so abandoned?” “A lot of this area is storage. No one I know goes here unless it’s to vandalize or get high.” Kaito got a look from Hakuba. “Which I don’t do! It’s like you have no faith in me.” “…Right. Anyway, we’ll probably have to start searching the individual warehouses, so let’s spit up and get to work. We’ve only got so much time left.”
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Another scream tore from Shinichi’s throat as his muscles contracted painfully. His body seized with convulsions, the electricity flowing through his body and damaging every nerve and muscle he had. His voice, hoarse with screaming, died out as Valentine lifted the prongs from his skin, leaving behind another set of burns on his torso. He panted for breath, his tongue dry and lips cracked. These weren’t the only burns he had. The ones on his wrists and ankle were far worse, since the area of metal—from his chains and ankle monitor—was bigger than the bits of metal sticking out of the cattle prod. But at least he could feel them; he wasn’t going into shock yet, which meant he still had a chance. His muscles shuddering uncontrollably, Shinichi tried to stop shaking, but just like all the times before, he had no control over his body. His vision blurred as a blonde head of hair overtook his vision.
“Shin-chan~! So this is where you’ve been!” A laugh. “I swear, you’re going to end up just like Yuusaku, always hiding from Kaa-san!”
Shinichi blinked slowly, confusion clouding his already clouded mind. What was that? A hallucination? A memory? Before he had time to process it, his vision focused and he saw past the blonde hair and into Valentine’s face. Her lips were moving—speaking into a phone?—but he barely caught what she said. “…Pupil dilation within normal range for someone who has experienced 15 milliamperes. Pulse rate is roughly 190 beats per minute, subject possibly approaching cardiac arrest…” Valentine’s voice faded in and out, her melodious tone soothing to listen to after what felt like hours of screaming and pain. It was reassuring; as long as she was talking, she wasn’t hurting him. This wasn’t the first time she called someone to comment on his condition. Shinichi could never work out what for or who she was calling, only that it definitely wasn’t Papa—he would’ve heard him bellowing at Valentine. But any break was a good break. Now, if only she gave him enough time to figure out a way to escape this mess. If only he could gain muscle control back for a moment, then he’d kick the bag off his foot, bringing Interpol down on their heads. Assuming that the electric shocks hadn’t destroyed the monitor’s circuits. Shinichi could barely see his torturer walking away from him, his eyes were so blurry. He hung limply from his chains, irritating his burned skin further, but he couldn’t help it. The electric shocks left him defenseless, unable to even keep his feet on the floor. He helplessly watched Valentine return, her phone replaced by a hunting knife. She ran her fingers through his hair. “I’m sorry about this, kiddo.” She sounded exhausted, not that Shinichi cared. But it was like she’d been deflated, all the energy drained out of her. A cold shiver ran down his spine as the orange and red rays of sunlight peeking in through the shattered windows glinted off her knife. “I know I said I’d make it painless for you, but… Boss wants me to make a statement. And since he freed me… well, it’s not like I can say no.” Lifting the blade, she pressed the edge of it against his throat. Shinichi swallowed, the hunting knife scrapping across his skin. His eyes flickered around the room, hoping for some chance of escape. Could he kick her? No, he still didn’t have enough control over himself for that; it would be weak and ineffective. Wait, what was that…? “But I swear this time, it will be fast, alright?” Before she could press the blade deeper, Shinichi croaked out one word. “Heart.” She looked perplexed. “What?” “Heart.” He forced out again. Stall, stall, stall. He had to keep her talking, just a little bit longer— “Faster.” “Well, yes, I suppose so…” She muttered to herself, completely oblivious to what was behind her. “It certainly is faster. And Boss did say that there should be a large amount of blood, so that’s taken care of… But are you sure? It’s probably far more painful.” Shinichi managed a nod, both to her and whoever was behind her. “Alright then.” As she moved to plunge the knife under his sternum, Valentine screamed out in pain, a playing card now lodged in her hand. She dropped the knife as a voice called out, “Freeze! Put your hands in the air! This is the police!” She whirled around, a wild snarl on her face. “Who—?” Hakuba emerged from the dark, pistol trained on her. His eyes flickered to Shinichi but did not stay, preferring to keep his focus on Valentine. Kaito was with him, skirting along the edge of the platform to get to Shinichi. He could only watch dully as Kuroba started picking the locks of his shackles. Valentine had yet to obey and brandished her knife in her uninjured hand. She sneered. “So this is all Interpol sends against me? A child?” Hakuba’s voice was cold and steady. “The swat team is only a few minutes away, along with the rest of Interpol’s agents and an ambulance.” He held his gun as steady as his voice. “You’ve lost, Valentine. Put the knife down and surrender.” Her eyes slid over to Shinichi, looking… amused? “Am I?” Before Shinichi could process the question, Kuroba opened his cuffs, ripping away burned skin with the metal. His arm felt aflame, shredded skin and muscle torn apart, leaving nothing but blood. Shinichi caught one look at Kuroba’s horrified face before he completely blacked out. The sound of a gunshot followed him into the darkness.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Shinichi awoke irritated by the constant beeping noise. Vision swimming in and out of blurriness, he tried to swat at the source of the noise only from something to pull painfully in his hand. Well, it was less of a pain and more of a dull tingle, but Shinichi’s been on painkillers often enough to know what was what. Like how the throbbing in his wrists and leg indicated a lot of damage. Shinichi groaned and tried to sit up, only for his back to protest, leaving him unable to look away from the plain white hospital ceiling. A hand pressed down on his chest to keep him from trying again. “Don’t do that, Shinichi.” A brown head of hair came into view. At least, Shinichi thought it was a head. His eyes kept forgetting to focus. “Your doctors will kill me if I let you hurt yourself. Hell, they nearly killed me when they saw the damage I caused to your wrist.” Not your fault, Shinichi wanted to tell Kaito, but his mouth and brain couldn’t connect and he had to sit in silence as Hakuba asked, “Why did you call him that?” “Call him what?” “Shinichi.” “Shinichi? Oh, he asked me to call him that. Apparently, it’s what his family calls him.” “Hmm…” Shinichi couldn’t see it, but he was sure Hakuba was making his “deduction face,” cupping his chin and frowning like he was mildly constipated. Licking his lips, Shinichi blinked the sparkles from his eyes and tried to speak again, only for a groan to escape. “What… What hap—” A body-wracking cough cut him off, pain shooting through his body despite the morphine. Kuroba hovered him fretfully, unsure about what to do. He settled for grabbing Shinichi’s least injured hand and squeezing. “Valentine attempted to stab Kuroba as you passed out,” Hakuba answered. “I shot her in the shoulder; currently, she’s undergoing surgery in another hospital.” Despite all she’d done to him, kidnapping him twice, nearly killing him several times, causing life-long trauma to his psyche, Shinichi still sighed in relief at hearing of her survival. But wait, Hakuba had said… “S-Shot?” He blushed, covering his mouth with his hand. “Interpol gave me a gun. It… was meant to be used if you ever became a danger to others. Just as a precaution!” He hurriedly reassured. “I was never actually going to use it on you, I swear!” Shinichi nodded the best he could—of course Hakuba would never shoot him, the blond despised hurting people, even criminals. They were much the same in that. Kaito opened his mouth to speak, but a high-pitched voice cut him off. “Hakuba-niisan? Is that you?” Flopping his head to the side, Shinichi watched a small blob enter his hospital room. He blinked rapidly, trying to clear up his vision, only for a tiny cross between himself and Kaito wearing glasses to look up at him. Shinichi stared in shock. Damn, this morphine was stronger than he thought… “Conan-kun? What are you doing here?” Oh, yeah. Conan. Conan Kudo. That… kid with KID. Shinichi smothered a laugh. “Mouri-tantei hit his head and is in the hospital again, so Ran-neechan made me visit him with her.” Conan-kun peered over the bedside. “Is this your friend?” “This is Lupin-kun. You met him at KID’s last heist, remember!” Conan-kun’s mouth dropped into a cute little ‘o’ shape. “Oh, yeah! Is he alright? What happened!?” “Electrocuted.” That was Shinichi’s first words since the kid had entered the room. Oddly enough, Kaito was being silent for once. It wasn’t worth the horrified expression that crossed Conan-kun’s face though. “What!? You’re going to be okay, right Lupin-niisan? Are you hurting!? Do I need to call a doctor!?” Shinichi smiled at that, despite everything. Such a cute kid… “Better now. Go—” His voice broke. “Go find your neechan.” Conan-kun bit his lip, looking unsure. Hakuba added, “I’m sure Ran-san is looking for you after you ran off again. Don’t worry about Lupin-kun; I’ll keep him safe.” That seemed to reassure the boy so, with one last “get well soon,” Conan-kun ran off to find his big sister or whoever “Ran-san” was. Shinichi turned his head towards the other side of the room, towards Kaito. He wasn’t jealous. No, it was the morphine making him feel this way. Hell, Shinichi had never yearned for a sibling, even considering himself lucky with how much teasing went on between Dad and Auntie, so why would he want one now!? Preposterous. While Shinichi was busy debating the merits of siblings, not that he wanted any, Kaito had leaned close. Unreasonably close. Close enough that Shinichi, head fuzzy from all the pain killers pumped into his system, decided to count his individual eyelashes instead of paying attention, only realizing that he’s probably been asked something once Kaito’s lips stopped moving. “Sorry; what did you…?” “I said, I want to talk about the reason you left my house.” Shinichi suddenly felt like he’d swallowed a liter of gravel. “No.” Kaito looked frustrated, which was weird considering how he rarely did anything without either a smile or a bored look. Briefly considering the possibility of this Kaito being an imposter of some sort (either a robot or a hallucination), Shinichi almost missed his next words. “I wanted to let you know… I believe you.” The words took a few seconds to process. “…What?” “I… I don’t know why. But people don’t fake panic attacks. And your statement of events matches things you’d never know about. So it stands to reason that you were telling the truth.” “But… your dad…” “He was a good person to me,” Kaito cut him off, glancing back over at Hakuba who was steadily looking more and more confused. “But if he hurt you… I want to figure out why. If that’s okay with you.” “More than okay,” Shinichi said with a small smile. “Let me know too.” Kaito smiled back at him, dispelling any further thoughts of an imposter with the single thought that Kaito was… rather pretty. Before Shinichi could dwell on that, Kaito answered, “I will. Thank you.”
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Zenigata finally arrived once Shinichi was feeling less high. Well, it wasn’t that he was “less” high, but more that he had adapted to the amount of morphine in his system. It didn’t stop his mouth from running. “Hey, Gramps. You’re looking… stabby.” …Okay, so maybe he overestimated how sober he was. Fortunately, Zenigata only rolled his eyes. “Good to see you too, kid.” His eyes roamed the room and landed on Kaito-kun. “You, civilian. Get out.” Kaito-kun crossed his arms. “Why should I?” “Because there is no doubt he will talk to Lupin about classified information,” Hakuba said. “And you’re a danger to security. So leave.” “You do realize I was there when we rescued him, right?” He was getting uncharacteristically worked up. “I already know what happened, so why make me go—” “Kaito-kun,” Shinichi croaked out. “It’s fine. I’m fine.” He was worried, Shinichi realized, noting the other’s tightened jaw and downturned eyes. Worried something could happen. Kaito-kun huffed, putting on a big show of not wanting to do anything, but went to the door anyway. He paused in the doorframe. “I’m only staying out in the hall, okay? I’ll come back as soon as he’s done.” Taken aback by the unexpected protectiveness, Shinichi nodded and Kaito-kun closed the door behind him. “Nice friend you got there.” Zenigata rubbed a hand over his face. “You look like shit, Arsène.” Shinichi shrugged the best he could, wincing at the sudden stab of pain. “Well, I was barbequed. Not really something people just walk away from.” He looked away. “I’m sure you have questions. You too, Hakuba.” Hakuba stepped away from his corner, towards the bed. “Yes. While I received a packet explaining who Harper Valentine was, it neglected to mention why she would kidnap you. Do you…” “Know? Yes. It’s because she kidnapped me before, right before her arrest about 8 years ago.” His eyes widened. “Then you would have been…” “Nine,” Zenigata cut in. “He was nine. We kept it out of the official arrest record back then, but Interpol didn’t discover Harper Valentine’s hideout in Brazil on our own. Lupin lead us there.” “That’s correct.” Shinichi shifted further up the bed, so he could see them better. “Eight years ago, she apparently worked for some organization—I don’t know much about it, only that Valentine worked directly under her boss and dressed uniformly in black.” Hakuba went pale, but Shinichi continued. “During my first imprisonment with her, I learned that this organization was blackmailing my family into stealing for them; every time they tried to defy, Valentine would get orders to torture me. “But she made a vital mistake one day. I was able to get free long enough to find her phone and call my dad. By the time she realized I had escaped, they had already tracked the call and were on their way.” “And with them came Interpol,” Hakuba said, looking like he swallowed a live fish. “How horrible; thank God she’s been arrested again. So then, why, exactly, did she target you again? Is just because you got her arrested?” “No, not just that.” He glanced at Zenigata. “This is the part you wanted to interrogate me on, right? Since she’s still in surgery or whatever.” He nodded. “When Dad and the others found me back then… I wasn’t in good shape. There was a shootout and while Dad and Jigen were trying to protect me, I managed to find a gun. I knew how to shoot thanks to Jigen so I just aimed and… it hit her in the eye.” Shinichi swallowed down the instant well of guilt the mere thought of that moment produced. He’d never been so horrified before in his life. He thought he had killed her, had murdered her, and even after learning she had survived, it was still enough to sicken him. “Meanwhile P—I mean, Jigen shot her in the arm, which resulted in her losing an eye and motor control in her eyes, turning her into a useless assassin. She told me that since she couldn’t find Jigen, I’d work as a substitute.” Zenigata took notes all throughout his explanation. “And is there anything else? Anything about she escaped, how she got into the country, about any allies or other members of this organization?” Shinichi shook his head. “Not that I can remember. My brain’s still pretty fried. But if I can come up with anything, I’ll tell you first. And Gramps…” Zenigata raised an eyebrow. “Can you… not tell Dad about this? He’ll freak out the moment he hears and break out of prison just to check on me. And since it was so hard catching him to begin with…” Now both eyebrows were up there. “You sound like you want him to be in prison.” “It’s safer in there than it is out here, with all these assassins and bounty hunters after him,” Shinichi answered honestly. “There have been so many “Dead or Alive, preferably Dead” bounties on him that I lost track.” “Very well; I won’t tell him.” Zenigata reached over and awkwardly patted his knee. “Get some rest, kid. You need it.” He left and Hakuba started moving towards the door too. “I should go get Kuroba then—” “Wait Hakuba,” Shinichi said. “Lock the door real fast; I want to ask you something.” Hakuba gave him an odd look, but did as he asked. “What is it, Lupin?” “Why have you been trying to be friends with me?” “Excuse me?” “I’m a criminal, the child of a criminal.” Hakuba flinched. “I literally just admitted to shooting someone and have been accused of countless other crimes; the only reason I’m not in jail is because there is no solid evidence, just circumstantial. But you sympathize with me. You want to be friends. Why?” “I-It’s because you like Holmes. Someone who likes Holmes can’t be a bad person—” “That’s illogical and you know it, Hakuba. Tell me the truth. Please.” He turned away, conflicted expression on his face. “I-I’ve… recently come to terms with the idea that the world is not as black and white as I used to see it.” The words sounded like they were physically paining him. When did this happen? How had Shinichi not noticed? “Besides, one should not be judged for the flaws of their parents—” A sudden pounding on the door interrupted him. “Hey!” Kaito-kun shouted through the door. “What’s the deal with locking me out!? What are you doing in there, Hakubastard!?” Irritation crossed his face, erasing all traces of vulnerability. Hakuba opened the door. “Do you have to make a nuisance of yourself at every possibility?” “Yep!” Kaito-kun cheerfully replied as he pushed past Hakuba into the room. “Now get out. We have an English project we have to finish, and last thing I want is for you to steal our ideas!” “Our English project is an interview, Kuroba, I can’t exactly steal that—” “Doesn’t matter! Out, out, out, out, out!” Kaito-kun physically pushed Hakuba out the door, closing and locking it behind him. He turned to Shinichi with an excited, evil-like grin. “Now, you were telling me about one of your dad’s heists…” Shinichi missed Hakuba.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Out of the few times Shinichi’s gone to a public hospital, this was the longest. He was two weeks in, going on a third, and while his physical therapy was going well, the doctors still didn’t think he was ready enough to leave. And while Shinichi didn’t blame them—he couldn’t get out of bed during the first week—he felt restless, and considering that this was the first time he didn’t have Hakuba hounding him 24/7, he wanted to get some work done. His doctor even banished the Interpol agents following him to outside the building, stating that they were “constantly in the way” and “the boy can barely walk without holding onto the wall, where exactly do you think he’ll run off too!?” Shinichi’s doctor was the best, he should buy him a fruit basket. Gripping the rails on his bed, Shinichi swung his legs over the side. He winced at the dull soreness that rippled underneath his skin. It was like his muscles had been stretched too tight. But he had to ignore it so, grabbing his IV stand like it was a staff, Shinichi staggered to his feet. Nearly losing his balance, he waivered in place before taking his first step. His knee almost buckled under his weight, but he pressed on, taking one step after another while dragging his IV stand along for the ride. He gritted his teeth. His original plan had involved locating an unused computer or laptop to access the internet, but if this is how hard it was to walk… Usually his physical therapist would have him brought to his area of the hospital via wheelchair, so he’d never had to try getting up from bed and walking across his room. He leaned heavily against the wall. It was unlikely that he’d be able to make it back to his bed without falling. Originally, Shinichi thought that his injuries hadn’t been that bad, with most of the burns leaving only minimal damage. But that was before he read the reports on the internal damage. The electrical currents had torn muscles all over his body and while nothing seemed to be wrong with his nerves so far, the possibility for long-term damage was high. All in all, Shinichi was not even close to healthy. Steeling his nerves and his pride, Shinichi scooted along the wall to the door and swung it open. He popped his head out. Luckily, a dark-haired nurse was right outside his room, flipping through the files on a computer. He licked his lips and said, “E-Excuse me? Nurse?” Her head jerked up and spun around towards him, surprise etched onto her face. “Yes? Can I help you, young man?” He swallowed down the shame in asking for help. “I… I appear to be stuck here. I tried to walk and… do you mind helping me back to my bed?” Her expression softened and she nodded, pushing her glasses up her nose. “Of course, honey.” Logging out, she got up and helped Shinichi back to his bed, holding him under his arms and supporting his weight most of the way. His ears flushed a bright red the entire time. Finally when the nurse successfully manipulated him back onto the bed, she sighed, crossing her arms. “Honestly, what are we going to do with you, Shinichi?” Her voice had completely changed from that of a stranger to someone familiar. “Auntie?” Fujiko raised her glasses and winked, revealing familiar brown eyes. “In the flesh, kiddo.” A smile broke out across his face as he practically sagged into the bedding. “It’s really good to see you, Auntie. I missed you.” She smiled back, a soft one that no one but he ever inspired from her. “Missed you too…” Her smile turned into a frown. “Which is why I was so dismayed to find out that, not only had you been captured and tortured by that horrible woman again, but that you specifically tried to keep that information away from me!” Shinichi winced. “I… told Papa that she was in the country?” She tsked. “Not good enough, kid. In fact, not good at all. You told old man Zenigata not to tell Lupin—what exactly are we supposed to think!? One of the concessions we insisted on when we agreed to let you do this was that if you got hurt, we bring you home. One of the very few concessions, Shinichi. Do you remember the other two?” “If I get arrested and if I get abused, I come home,” Shinichi recited back dutifully. “But it’s not that bad; I’m not even that injured—” “Don’t even try that with me after I just helped you back into bed.” Her voice immediately grew harsh. “Do you have any idea how long it took just to convince Jigen not to burst in here, guns blazing to get you back? Hours. Hours of my life I will never be able to get back, just like how you are wasting hours of yours on this insane mission of yours.” “I have to do this, you know I do!” “Of course I know; I understand better than the rest of them!” She ran her fingers through her hair. Shinichi had never seen her so incensed. “But I’ve been watching, and you have barely done anything. And sure, I’m happy that you’re finally getting the high school experience that you’ve never had, that you have friends and after-school activities and a normal sleep schedule. But maybe if you actually bothered asking for help, you’d already be done.” Fujiko tossed something at him. He didn’t catch it in time and it hit his chest. A flashdrive. “What’s on it?” “What little I’ve been able to find. There’s not a lot from back then, but there’s one particular file that I need you to take a look at,” she answered. “That might be the right one. And the files are protected; even when they’re open, the Interpol agents monitoring your computer won’t be able to see anything.” His eyes widened with the realization of what was on that flashdrive. “Auntie… thank you.” She sighed. “Just… find out what you need to know, okay kid? And stop worrying your parents so much.” And with that, she walked out the door.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
It was a bit embarrassing to let Hakuba help him out of the car. Kaito-kun, who had visited him in the hospital every day, was with him and handed him his walking cane that the doctors wanted him to use. They were being kind, he told himself as he limped his way to the house. It wasn’t condescending, they just didn’t want him to fall. Still, Hakuba didn’t have to open the door for him and Kaito-kun didn’t have to brace his shoulders as he walked through the door— “SURPRISE!!” Shinichi reeled back and probably would have fallen if not for Kaito-kun. Inside Hakuba Manor, every single member of their homeroom class had gathered. A table had been set up along the far parlor wall and above it was a banner that read “Welcome Home, Lupin-kun!” His eyes darted around the room, locking eyes with Nakamori-san and Koizumi-san. “What’s—” Shinichi swallowed—“What’s going on?” Nakamori-san bounced up, an excited grin on her face. “It’s a party, Lupin-kun! We wanted to welcome you back from the hospital!” “I was against the idea at first,” Hakuba commented. “But after Kuroba-kun suggested the idea, Nakamori-san wouldn’t be deterred… Still, I suppose this wasn’t the worst thing to happen…” Shinichi turned to Kaito-kun. “You planned this?” “I suggested it…” Kaito-kun rubbed the back of his neck. “Aoko was the one who really took to the idea.” Shinichi smiled. “Thank you, Kaito-kun.” Kaito-kun’s face paled significantly. “I-It wasn’t a problem, Shinichi-kun. Though, really, it was all Aoko, she gets like that—” Nakamori-san appeared behind him. “Stop selling yourself short! He was really worried about you these past few weeks, Lupin-kun; I’ve never seen him so troubled before! It was like he thought you were going to die—” “No one cares, Ahoko!” Kaito interrupted, pushing her behind him. “Really, I want to talk about you; bright pink Pokka-dots? It’s not nearly as risky as you usually wear, were you feeling shy this morning?” Shinichi tilted his head in confusion as Nakamori-san froze, her face a bright red. She clenched her jaw, scowling. “Bakaito…” she growled, taking a single, threatening step forward. Kaito bolted, with Nakamori-san close behind him welding a mop. That seemed to break the spell over their silent classmates and they all began talking to each other, ignoring the two causers of chaos. “Huh…” Shinichi and Hakuba watched as she chased Kaito around the room. “I wonder if she’s ever taken kendo classes. She looks like she’d be good at it.” “God, I hope not; she’s too proficient with that thing to begin with. I don’t think our classroom would survive if she got better.” Shinichi nodded in agreement. He’d seen Nakamori-san crack the floor with her mop. “Though, after the party, could we talk, please? There’s something that I’ve been meaning to discuss with you.” That piqued Shinichi’s interest. Something Hakuba wanted to talk about? And he couldn’t do it during the party? A coil of anxiety tightened in his gut. He smiled. “Of course, Hakuba. I’m always open to conversing with you, you know that.” Hakuba nodded solemnly. Now Shinichi knew something was up. “Thank you, Lupin. I’ll leave you to your party.” Hakuba left him and Shinichi spent his time mingling among his classmates, thanking them for coming and chatting casually about their teachers and school. These people barely knew him, but they bothered to check up on him? Nothing… nothing like that had ever happened to him before. He’d never had casual acquaintances before. It was… kind of nice. As Shinichi was walking to the snack table, a manicured hand grabbed his forearm and pulled him away. It was that girl from before… Kaito-kun called her Akako? She smiled at him. “I see you’ve survived your enemy. Congratulations.” Oh, yeah, now he remembered. She kept speaking in riddles and had a friend named Lucifer or something. “Thank you. Though, I don’t understand how you knew about her.” “Future scrying is one of my many talents,” she purred, rubbing her hand up and down her arm in a way that made Shinichi uncomfortable. He tugged her arm from her grip. “But be aware; your trials are not finished yet, dear sparrow, but I’m confident that you will succeed.” She turned to leave, but Shinichi said, “Hey, can I ask you a question?” Akako raised an eyebrow. “Are you a wiccan or a pagan?” “I—excuse me?” Shinichi rubbed the back of his neck. “It’s just, you wouldn’t be the first witch I’ve met; while traveling with my family, we’ve met several, but they’re usually either wiccans or pagans, and I wanted to know which theology you fell into.” Akako gave him a look he couldn’t read. “I do not understand you, Lupin-san,” she said at last, preparing to go. “…I’m a pagan.” Shinichi smiled to himself as she left the party, happy that he’d actually gotten her to express part of herself. Maybe, if he tried hard enough… they could be friends? That would be nice—sure, Kaito-kun didn’t like her much, but he didn’t have to hang out with both of them at the same time. Or did he? He still wasn’t sure about all the rules to this friendship thing, was having two friends that hated each other taboo? He shrugged, putting the subject out of his mind. It wasn’t like he and Akako were friends yet anyway. Wandering through the crowd, Shinichi turned on the TV in the front parlor. The TV in the hospital had always played old American westerns no matter how often Shinichi asked the nurses to change it. He flipped through the channels to find the news. Ah, finally— Oh no. It was like he’d fallen through ice; all warm feelings the party inspired instantly evaporated at the sight of the “Breaking News” headline:
[News from Grimway Maximum Security Prison: Lupin III, Escaped!]
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
Shinichi had been on the inside of interrogation rooms more times than he could count, but each time was just as frustrating as the last. “Gramps, for the tenth time, I had no idea that my father was going to break out, nor do I know where he or my family are now. I didn’t help them escape and was in the presence of Saguru Hakuba for the entire day before you picked me up from his house.” He ran a hand over his face, grateful that at least this time he wasn’t handcuffed to the table. “We could sit here for the rest of the day, but my answer’s still going to be the same.” “So you think it’s a coincidence that Lupin broke out on the day of your release?” Zenigata asked, leaning back in his chair, crossing his arms. “Of course not; Dad probably anticipated that you’d put extra guards on me for the day and that’s why they made their move. But it doesn’t have anything to do with me!” Zenigata sighed. “I wish I could believe that, Arsène, I really do. But with your list of crimes, I can’t, at least until I know for certain that you’d were cohered and that you'd never willingly do them again.” “List of crimes…?” Shinichi hadn’t known that he had a rap sheet. When had that happened? “What’s on it?” “Aiding and abetting a group of known criminals in their efforts of grand larceny, breaking and entering, aiding and abetting grand thief auto, resisting arrest, and conspiracy to commit crimes.” Each word seemed to weigh on Zenigata, while each word made Shinichi’s eyes grow wider. “The only reason I could get you this kind of plea is that you are still a minor and you were raised under the influence. I had to convince 3 separate judges and the head of the NPA just to keep you out of prison. So please, Arsène… if you know anything, you need to tell me, otherwise I won’t be able to protect you anymore.” He had a criminal record. Shinichi barely believed it; he’d been certain that Dad and Papa had successfully deleted any record of his misdemeanors and it wasn’t like Gramps would willingly report on him—Gramps had as much a hand in raising him as Auntie did, so he wouldn’t… But he would. If Shinichi knowingly went down his family’s path now, Zenigata would throw him in prison. “Gramps… there’s a safe house, in Ikebukuro. An old looking building, with brand new shutters,” Shinichi said, looking away. “I don’t know if they’re there or not, but…” That was a lie; while that safe house probably had been used at first, his family would have definitely abandoned it by now. But he couldn’t just give Gramps their locations! Gramps thanked him and sent him back to the Hakubas with a group of officers that were going to patrol around the house. He seemed to think that Lupin and Jigen would try and kidnap him soon, to “get the family back together.” Shinichi didn’t correct him. The car ride was slow and boring, constantly doubling back to make sure no one was following them. Shinichi was almost relieved when they finally returned. Baaya let him into the house. In the front parlor sat Superintendent Hakuba, reading a newspaper. The older man looked up at him from over the edge. “So, they let you go.” It wasn’t a question. Shinichi responded like it was. “Yes, sir.” The Superintendent scoffed. “I thought Interpol was smarter than that. A shame too; Zenigata seemed smarter than this. I suppose he too can be caught by a criminal’s lies.” Shinichi bristled at the insult to both him and Zenigata, but before he could respond with a properly scathing remark, Hakuba entered the room. “Ah! Lupin, you’re back!” Hakuba said with a frown. “I have the homework you missed while you were in the hospital. You better do it quick; you only get a week’s extension to finish it all.” “Really? But I thought I’d finished it all—” “—No, no, I only gave you some of it. You were in the hospital, I didn’t want to overwork you…” Grabbing Shinichi’s arm, Hakuba pulled him up the stairs, out of sight of Superintendent Hakuba and into his own room. Shinichi looked around; he’d never been in his friend’s room before. It was painted a plain cream color, with the bed against the far wall and one entire wall dedicated to bookshelves. Hakuba rubbed his forehead. “Finally. Lupin, we need to talk.” “But I thought I had homework?” “I lied.” Shinichi’s eyebrows shot up. Hakuba was overly dedicated to his morals. The fact that he lied at all… “However, you seemed like you were about to argue with my father and I needed to talk to you, so I made something up on the spot.” “Alright then… what do you need to talk about?” “This.” Hakuba reached into his pocket and pulled out… Auntie’s flashdrive. Shit. “Look, I can explain—” “I’ve already looked through it.” Hakuba cut him off. “It’s full of missing person’s reports, children’s at that, all of them reaching back from about a decade or so. Ignoring the fact that it should have been impossible for you to get these files—I can only assume that a member of your family slipped them to you sometime while you were in the hospital—I want to know why.” “Why?” Stall him, stall him, he needed to stall and change the conversation to something, anything! “Yes. Why do you have this, Lupin?” “Well, you’re the detective,” Shinichi shot back. “Why don’t you deduce the answer?” Hakuba sighed. He looked exhausted. “If I must…” Adjusting his tie, Hakuba stared him down. “You’re behavior in the past as well as the fact that you almost certainly contacted your family when you visited Kuroba’s house means that you are actively staying in police surveillance for a reason. I can only assume that it’s because you’re looking for something or someone; this flashdrive confirms it was someone. The question is: who? “Looking at its contents, the children in the flashdrive all have three similarities: they are all male, all younger than 10 years old, and they all went missing the winter of 2005, 11 years ago. At the time of all these reports, you would have been around 6, perfectly fitting into the demographics you’re searching through. But my theory needs more substance than mere this, so I looked deeper. Reports on ‘Lupin’s son’ only started showing up 11 years ago, in this country. At the time, it was noted that the boy Lupin claimed was his son didn’t look physically like him; appearance wise, he looked closest to Daisuke Jigen, but no connection was ever proved. In addition, there’s your nickname: Shinichi. While it does translate directly into ‘new one,’ I believe it’s more than that, especially considering that you respond faster to Shinichi than your given name, Arsène. “In conclusion, the most likely reason you have this flashdrive… is because you’re looking for yourself, Lupin. Biologically, you are not Lupin the Third’s son.”
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
The Blue Parrot was a lovely little bar, full of soft colors and hard woods, but Shinichi wasn’t really in the mood to appreciate décor. Hakuba had dragged him here, even though Shinichi didn’t confirm or deny his claim and now they were waiting. For what? Well… Koizumi had been the last to arrive, settling beside Nakamori and Kaito at the table across from him. It was more of an intervention than anything else. Then Hakuba offered him a choice: either he could tell them the truth by himself or Hakuba would tell them his deductions and they could infer from that all they want. Either Shinichi could control the narrative or Hakuba would let them make their own decisions. So Shinichi confessed. And now they were here. “Amnesia?” Nakamori quirked her eyebrow up in disbelief. “Like, honest-to-God, can’t remember anything, amnesia?” “That’s what I said, yes.” Koizumi cupped her chin. “That would explain why my visions of the future constantly claim you are not who you say you are. And to gain amnesia at such a young age… much of your psyche would have been based after whatever experiences you experienced afterwards. Though I doubt it’s too much of a loss; no one really remembers what has happened when they were six anyway.” “But that doesn’t explain why you want to find your birth parents,” Kaito said, face contorted and refusing to look Shinichi in the eye. “You already have a family. Family who has risked their lives to keep you safe. Why would you want to replace them?” “I don’t want to replace them! I just… I’ve always wanted to know.” Shinichi hunched, biting his lip. “You don’t understand… Wouldn’t a child who was adopted normally want to know their birth parents too? And I… When I woke up in the back of that car, with no memories and no one to help me, my first thought was, ‘Did they get rid of me? Did my parents lose me or did they abandon me?’ and I’ve never been able to answer that question.” He sighed. “Did they miss me? Did they get over me? Or were they the reason those men had me to begin with? Those are the questions I’ve had for over 10 years. And… if it turns out that they sold me… I want them punished by the fullest extent of the law.” The declaration left the others speechless. Hakuba huffed out a laugh and smiled. “I have to admit… I was expecting a worse reason, but Lupin, you went beyond my expectations again. I’m truly honored that you trust me enough to talk about your past freely.” Shinichi grimaced. “It… took a while to get to this point,” he admitted. “And I still don’t trust you entirely… comes with the family trade, I guess. I had actually planned a way to escape from you if I had thought you’d be a hindrance to my investigation.” Hakuba smirked. “Watch what you say, Lupin, you’re starting to sound like a detective.” “You’re… not mad?” “You admitted it, right? And I can sympathize with having to work a case alone without knowing who you can trust. But you never expected that you’d gain friends that were willing to help you and now, I think it only right that we offer that that help.” “You’re absolutely right, Hakuba-kun!” Nakamori announced, sounding just as enthusiastic as her father. “This is just another mission for the KID Capture Team!” KID… Capture Team? It sounded like a shojo manga. Nakamori pointed at Hakuba. “Hakuba-kun! You’re in charge of looking through the flash drive. I’ll look into the police side of things and figure out why Jigen couldn’t find Lupin-kun’s parents through our missing person’s system. Akako-chan, you use your magic to look for answers. And Kaito! Your job is to look after Lupin-kun in case someone else tries to kidnap him!” “Haaaaaaaa? Why do I have to get babysitting duty!?” “Oh~? Are you saying you don’t want to be alone with Lupin-kun?” “S-Shut up, Ahoko!” “Don’t call me that, Bakaito!” As the two fought, Shinichi couldn’t help smiling. Maybe… this would all work out well.
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
“Kaito, I’m fairly certain that babysitting me didn’t need to involve going to the fanciest restaurant in town.” Glancing over the top of his menu, Kaito pouted. “But this is the only French restaurant I know of,” he whined. “I wanted you to feel at home.” Shinichi sighed. The Monet was certainly one of the fancier places he’d been to in the past few months, but he shivered at the side-eyes they were getting from the waiters. Wearing jeans in this type of place tended to be a bad choice, but Kaito didn’t seem to mind. “Kaito, I’ve traveled all over the world and back. I’d be just as comfortable at a ramen shop or eating chocolate covered crickets. Besides, can we even afford this? The Hakubas don’t give me an allowance.” Kaito waved away his concerns. “It’s not a problem. My mom’s a big-shot critic overseas, so I end up with more allowance than I know what to do with sometimes.” “She’s a critic? What does she review, movies?” “Nope!” With a flick of his wrist and a puff of smoke, Kaito transformed his napkin into an origami bird. “Magicians! She travels all over the world just to critic them.” Pausing for a moment, Shinichi cupped his chin. “You… had a second napkin already folded in your lap, and switched it out when I was distracted by your hand wave. I’m right, aren’t I?” He huffed. “No fun at all,” he muttered. Shinichi giggled, perking Kaito up. “Though, while I know Aoko didn’t give me a part other than keeping you alive, I decided to do a little research of my own.” Reaching into his pocket, he puled out a little polaroid photo. “I dug through my father’s old files, particularly around the winters of when we’d both be 6. I never found any reference to the… incident that you remember, but I did find this.” He handed Shinichi the picture. Shinichi raised an eyebrow. “These are certainly… infants.” The two looked like any other babies, with wispy brown hair and chubby cheeks. The only real thing of note was that, even for babies, the two appeared identical. Shinichi squinted at the picture. “I guess that could be me. Or you had a twin brother that your parents got rid of.” He tilted his head. “Maybe we’re actually brothers.” If Kaito believed that, that would explain why he’d been showering Shinichi with attention lately. Kaito violently gagged. “GOD, I hope not.” He shuddered. “Nope. Nope, that is a bad thought, absolutely not.” Shinichi frowned, a little hurt. Returning his attention to the photograph, he flipped it over. On the back, it had been labeled. “Shin-chan and Kai-chan, 6 and 5 months.” He muttered, turning it over again. “I guess that confirms that one of these babies is you… But we still can’t make a positive identification that the other one is me.” He met Kaito’s eyes. “Have you spoken to your mother about this picture.” “I’ve tried, but she’s not answering me.” He scratched the back of his head, leaning back in his chair. “I’m not too worried yet though; sometimes she drops off the map for weeks at a time. It just means she’s found a new French boy to play with.”He sounded a little bitter about that, so Shinichi directed the conversation to another avenue. “Do you think we should tell the rest of the KID Capture Team about… what your dad did?” Shinichi viciously bit the inside of his mouth; they were dancing around his kidnapping like a pair of kids at a middle school dance! But he couldn’t afford to alienate Kaito now. “It would probably make Hakuba’s and Nakamori-san’s jobs easier if they knew we already had a lead.” Kaito grabbed one of the complimentary bread sticks and absentmindedly broke it to pieces. “I… would prefer if we didn’t. I don’t want them to think he’s a bad person.” He closed his eyes. “I don’t want to drag his name through the mud, so long after he died.” “I understand, Kaito. I’m sorry, it was cruel of me to ask.” “No, no, I get it. You’re just trying to make this as efficient as possible.” He huffed. “Of course, that would be easier if Hakuba had allowed you an actual computer to begin with. The amount of monitoring he forced on you is ridiculous.” “Hey, it wasn’t Hakuba’s idea. It was the Superintendent General’s.” “Really?” “Yeah. According to Hakuba, his father insisted that all my access to communication devices be cut off. Hakuba had originally wanted to give me access to those sorts of things, but monitor all outgoing communications in secret so they could try to catch me contacting my family.” Shinichi shrugged. “Which is what I had originally planned they’d do. Hakuba-san’s plan was… very tedious to work around.” “Maybe he just didn’t want his house’s calls being listened to.” “He’s the Superintendent General, I’d be surprised if they weren’t already being listened to.” The waiter finally returned with their drinks and they gave her their orders in perfect French. Shinichi leaned back in his chair. “I wish this restaurant would prioritize their customer’s more. We were waiting, what? 15 minutes for our drinks? What was taking them so long?” “Don’t get mad at them. They probably noticed we were talking and didn’t want to interrupt our date.” The word through Shinichi for a loop. “Kaito… do you think this is a date?” He looked down, fiddling with his hands. “I had wanted this to be one. But… I didn’t know how to properly ask you or what people talk about on dates, and then we just started talking business and… I just really wanted this to be special. That’s all.” Shinichi reached out across the table and grabbed Kaito’s fumbling hands. “I’m flattered, Kaito, I really am. I think I would love to properly go on a date with you.” Kaito’s head snapped up. “But I don’t want to hurt you either.” “What do you mean?” “I’m probably not going to stay in Japan after I find my birth parents.” Shinichi glanced away. “There’s a high possibility of them being the type of people you’d rather have in jail than raising someone. They could have abandoned me, or sold me, or lost me and never bothered to look. And if they’re those types of people… there’d be nothing for me here. I would prefer returning to my family and traveling the world again.” Kaito looked heart-broken. “But there’s a lot of things for you here!” he pleaded. “There’s me, and Hakuba, and Aoko, and school! You said you loved being an actual school, do you really want to give that up? And there’s no guarantee that your birth parents are evil. There’s no solid proof yet, but please… please, give here a chance.” Kaito grabbed Shinichi’s hands. “Give all of us a chance.” Shinichi bit his lip, glancing away. “I… I can try.” “That’s all I ask.”
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A few nights after his not-date with Kaito, Shinichi and Hakuba were invited to a KID heist at the Suzuki estate. According to Hakuba, Old Man Suzuki often sent out challenge letters to KID, daring him to steal whatever new gemstone Suzuki had acquired. Such a request was just asking for Shinichi to intervene; having a newbie thief rob the man instead of Kaitou KID sounded hilarious. Unfortunately, that was unlikely to happen. In addition to the KID taskforce and Hakuba, Interpol agents sat outside the location. Even that Conan kid was there, proving himself to be a competent detective. How did the kid prove himself a detective? Well, by solving the murder that happened at the heist pretty much single-handedly. Shinichi glanced down at Conan, who’s eyes were glued to the murderer—the current wife of the deceased who’d poisoned him once she learned that he had written her out of the will in favor of his ex-wife. She was in custody, with the orange police detective talking to Hakuba. “That was terrifying. I have no idea how you did that,” Shinichi told the boy. He shrugged. “It wasn’t that hard to figure out. I just followed the clues.” “Doesn’t make it any less impressive. Especially since that’s your dad,” Shinichi gestured over at Mouri-tantei, who was mucking it up in front of the cameras. Conan stuck his tongue out. “Don’t be gross; he’s not my dad! I’m just staying with his family while mine are out of the country.” “Do they leave you alone a lot?” “Not really; they prefer to take me with them, but there are a lot of times where they can’t, like now.” Conan side-eyed him. “Why are you asking?” “Just making conversation.” Shinichi’s eyes drifted back to Hakuba. “So, how long until KID figures out that we know he’s not actually Hakuba?” “Probably until we tell him,” Conan snorted. “Anyway, I’m going to get some orange juice. Come get me when he decides to grab the jewel.” “Later.” He watched Conan leave and, when he turned back to Hakuba, he found the fake-detective’s eyes on him. Raising an eyebrow, Shinichi sighed as KID took it as a request for him to come over. Seriously, how has this guy not been caught yet? You can clearly see that KID is two centimeters shorter than Hakuba is! Still, he didn’t want to spoil the fun too early. “What is it, Hakuba?” “Were you talking with Conan-kun?” “Clearly. I think we get along, but it’s difficult for me to tell; I’ve never spoken at length with a child before.” “You two did well on solving the case, though.” “He did most of the work. All I did was—” “Identify the poison and stop the murderer before she washed her hands.” KID cut him off. “If you weren’t a thief’s kid, I would swear you were born to be a detective.” Shinichi scoffed. “What are you trying to insinuate, Hakuba?” “Kuroba told me that you were planning on leaving even if you find your parents.” His eyes narrowed at the non-sequitur. How did KID know about that? Did Kaito really tell Hakuba and KID interrupted them somehow? Was Hakuba’s personal phone tapped? How much did KID know? “I never made any effort to hide that,” he said slowly, eyes peeled for any hint something malevolent. “Why are you bringing it up? I thought you’d be glad for me to be out of your hair.” “I’m trying to ensure that I don’t end up releasing a menace on the populace.” Fake-Hakuba shrugged. “Besides, leaving would be difficult for you. After all, you’re still under Interpol surveillance. If you escape them, you’d probably be officially considered a criminal, for aiding and abetting Lupin. Seems like too much of a hassle.” Shinichi smirked. “Perhaps for a thief like you, but I’m used to hassles like that.” Hakuba’s eyes widened before he disappeared in a puff of pink smoke that burned Shinichi’s lungs. “Figuring me out so quickly, Lupin-kun!” KID called out from above them, lounging midair with his back resting on a window leading outside. “Seriously, are you sure you’re not a detective? I think you missed your calling.” “Kaitou KID!!” “Nakamori-keibu! Suzuki-ojiisan! Thank you for sponsoring this beautiful event for me. And thank you, tanteis Kudo and Lupin, for making sure the night was not completely ruined for my loyal guests!” KID bowed and from his coat pocket, revealed the gem he was challenged to steal that night. “Now, I’m afraid that while the night is still young, I am no longer welcome in this reality. Feel free to stick around afterwards!” Eyes widening, Shinichi threw himself to the side, barely missing the attack. The ballroom was now covered in sticky string, tying up everyone inside other than Shinichi and KID. “And now I must bid you all goodbye! Farewell!” KID leaned back against the window glass and phased through it, as though it wasn’t even there. Damn it! Scooting carefully around the string, Shinichi made it towards the back exit, which would lead to stairs that went to the roof. At least it should. And KID should be at the roof, he was last time after all. Damn, this would be so much easier if Hakuba was with him, he was the one who memorized the floor plan! Somehow, Shinichi made it too the roof, where KID was holding the gem up to the moonlight. “I’m pretty sure that’s not how you tell if a jewel is real or not,” Shinichi said. “Have you tried investing in a microscope lens?” “No; that’s not really my style.” With a smirk, KID tossed the gemstone to him. Shinichi caught it one handed. “Alas, it’s not what I’m looking for. Such a pity.” He cocked an eyebrow. Who the hell said ‘alas’ anymore? “Are you alright, KID? You’ve been acting… weird.” “Ah, is it that obvious?” “Very.” “Then I guess the gib is up, then.” KID’s monocle flashed in the moonlight. “I’ve found myself… discombobulated, Lupin-kun. I’ve trapped myself in quite the dilemma.” “Oh?” “You see, things are much more entertaining while you are here. I’ve heard rumor’s of your father; I believe that, as a rival thief, the games would become so much more enjoyable for everyone. Even if you became a detective, I would be content with that sort of rivalhood. But if you were to leave… things would return to being so boring. So what should I do if you leave?” Another flash, but this time, from behind KID. “Do I stay here and rot in boredom? Or should I follow instead?” Before Shinichi could answer, a gunshot rang through the night.
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“Move!” Shinichi dove to the side as a bullet grazed KID’s side and impacted into the roof shingles. He grabbed KID and pulled him forward, another bullet passing through right where his head had been. Thoughts racing, Shinichi practically dragged KID back inside Suzuki’s building, down stairs and through halls, looking for someplace to hide. They had reached one of Suzuki’s display rooms, Shinichi intending to return to the party in order to gain help from the police officers trapped there, when KID pushed him to the ground. Shinichi fell hard, bruising his shoulder, and KID collapsed on top of him, pushing him underneath a table. What was he doing!? Shinichi tried to glare at him, but it was too dark.Before Shinichi could tell him off, a gloved hand covered his mouth. Panic reared and Shinichi tried to buck him off, but he was too strong, holding Shinichi still long enough for a group of people to run into the room from the direction they came from. A click of a gun cocking. “Kaitou KID…” A slimy voice breached the dark. “Come on, now; is this really the time for games?” Footsteps echoed around the room. “We’re not even after you tonight, or the jewel. Just hand over the Lupin brat, and no one has to get hurt.” KID inhaled and threw his voice, making it unclear exactly where it was coming from. “Oh? And what guarantee do I have of that? Seems more like you to just shoot both me and the kid, Snake.” The man, Snake, laughed. “You know me too well, KID! However, Lupin will be safe, for as long as Boss wants him. But if you don’t… well, let’s just say we have a little leverage.” KID laughed back at him. “Leverage? You really think you can hold leverage over me?” “I know so. Give us Lupin and we won’t kill your son.” Son? KID has a son!? But he’s too young to have one— “Eh? What are you going on about, old man?” KID scoffed. “Kaitou KID doesn’t have a son.” “No…” Shinichi could practically hear the smirk in his voice. “But Toichi Kuroba does, right?” This man was saying… that Toichi Kuroba, Kaito’s dad, was KID? But Toichi Kuroba is dead, right? And… and based off of his previous deduction, that would mean… Oh. KID barked out a laugh. “You’re bluffing!” “Do you really want to try me?” Before KID could respond, Shinichi elbowed him in the ribs and threw him off before sliding out from under the table. He stood and put his hands up, stepping towards the dark shadows shaped like people. “Don’t shoot,” he told them. “I’m unarmed.” One of them walked closer. “Arséne Lupin the fourth?” Snake asked. “That’s correct.” Shinichi let Snake walk up to him and grab him. Finally, Shinichi could see him in the dim light; a sleezy man with a handlebar mustache. Snake sneered. “I didn’t expect this to go so smoothly… What’s your angle, kid?” “I didn’t have much other choice,” Shinichi shot back. Uncocking his gun, Snake spun Shinichi around and ziptied his wrists behind his back. “As I said, I’m unarmed, and KID fucked off the moment you said his name.” Snake’s eyes narrowed. “I don’t believe you.” Snake jerked him and he hissed. “KID’s not the type to leave someone behind.” “For once, Snake, you’re correct.” KID appeared, disregarding the chance Shinichi gave him to escape, and pointed his card gun at them. He could not see his face from under his hat. “Release the young prince. Now.” “You should have stayed hidden, KID.” Another shot rang out and black bloomed upon KID’s white coat before he fell back into the darkness.
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Bolted to his seat in a vehicle going God-knows-where, Shinichi desperately tried to keep his cool. He couldn’t see anything; that bastard Snake had thrown a hood over his face the moment they’d left Suzuki’s building, dragging his shock-ridden body out and blocking his Interpol tracker before throwing him in a van. He had to stay focused. If he didn’t, then KID… no, KID was still alive, he had to be. But the blood… No, the building was full of police men. Even if it resulted in KID getting captured, someone would have heard the gunshot and investigate. Right? For now, he had to gather information about his situation if he wanted to survive. The fabric of the hood was good, but so were Shinichi’s ears, allowing him to listen in on Snake’s henchmen with relative ease. They didn’t even bother lowering their volume. “So, this is Lupin’s kid?” One asked. “He doesn’t look like much.” “Yeah, I was expecting to get into a firefight with him, considering his family.” “Well, he was arrested by Interpol. Hard to get a gun that way, I guess. Why do you think we captured him?” “Does it really matter?” “Well, no, but…” “Then shut up about it. He’s probably a hostage or something. Either way, it doesn’t involve us so shut up and keep your head down.” Shinichi rolled his eyes. Henchmen. He doesn’t know why he expected to get concrete information out of them. “Still, aren’t you the least bit worried? This is the kid who took down Champagne twice.” Champagne? “Champagne was a crazy broad who couldn’t even properly kidnap a 9-year-old kid. Rum is going to make sure this brat doesn’t go anywhere.” Were they talking about Valentine? Was this the organization she had worked for? If so, that meant they were planning on blackmailing his family again. But who was Rum? Valentine’s boss? Shinichi frowned, testing his restraints again. Damn. He’d have to break free when they got to their location. Reaching said location took longer than Shinichi anticipated, but soon the van jerked into park and he was manhandled out of the vehicle. Snake was the one dragging him along; he could hear the man’s voice barking orders at his henchmen. They walked hallway after hallway, Shinichi stumbling a lot since he couldn’t see where he was going until they stopped. A door opened and Shinichi got shoved in, nearly falling before being forced into a chair. Bright light blinded him as the bag was ripped off. He was in an office, trapped in a chair in front of a dark desk. The door opened again behind them and he heard Snake leave as another person entered. “You’ve caused us a lot of trouble, Lupin-kun,” the man said. Shinichi recognized him. He walked in front of him and Superintendent General Hakuba glared down at him from behind his desk. The Superintendent General loomed over him, seemingly bigger than ever before as Shinichi froze in his chair, betrayal gurgling up his throat like vomit. “You’re surprised,” the Superintendent General commented, tilting his head. “As expected. I doubt you ever imagined that I was the one who ordered your kidnapping.” “I don’t… understand…” “I could hardly allow you to be kidnapped in my own home, in presence of my son. It would reflect poorly on me.” Valentine had taken him within the first hour of Hakuba leaving him alone. Snake had taken him when he left Hakuba behind to catch KID. “But now we can successfully get Lupin and his ilk to steal for us again; even better, Lupin’s actually out of prison, unlike last time.” “You… you have an entire organization at your disposal, but you can’t even hire your own thief?” Shinichi sneered, allowing his anger to well. He couldn’t afford to dwell on the betrayal because of course Hakuba had to have known—“Some organization.” “We have our own thieves; you met one of them tonight. However… you Lupins have always had a tendency to make myths reality and steal the impossible. We need that kind of skill on our side.” The Superintendent General folded his hands. “But you’re not really a Lupin, are you?” Ice water rushed through his veins. Of course, not even that was a secret anymore. “Some sort of amnesia, I gathered. Still, despite Gin and Vodka’s initial kidnapping attempt on you all those years ago, I never expected you’d find your way into Lupin’s hands, Shinichi Kudo.”
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He’d heard the name before. It was hard not too; the name had turned up during his research on Conan Kudo, and was one of the more famous possibilities he’d considered, but eventually thrown out. Shinichi Kudo was declared dead years ago. He wasn’t even mentioned in the files Auntie gave him. Then why did the name feel so familiar? The Superintendent General smirked with satisfaction. “Shinichi Kudo, the missing son of mystery writer Yusuku Kudo and former actress Yukiko Kudo. I’ll admit, I didn’t expect you to turn up in the hands of Lupin, of all people, especially after our failed kidnapping attempt when you were a child. I had always assumed Gin killed out for being annoying and lied about you escaping, but now…” He shook his head. “No matter. Your escape simply made you twice valuable. Now we can blackmail both as Lupin and the Kudo family.” Shinichi clenched his fists. Why was he telling him this? He’d known this man for months now, and he’d never seemed like the monologuing type. What was the reason behind this?? The Superintendent General continued. “You can’t be blamed for not knowing, of course; amnesia is a pesky thing, especially from a young age, and with Lupin and Jigen deliberately misleading you, it’s surprising that you knew you weren’t a biological Lupin at all.” “What are you talking about?” “Jigen and Lupin knew you were a Kudo.” Liar. He was lying, there was no way—“They kept you intentionally, as revenge against them. Yusaku Kudo had prevented one of their heists from working smoothly a few months back.” His parents wouldn’t do that, they wouldn’t—“And once Jigen found you on the street—” How did he know that—“the rest was history.” He was getting off on this. Shinichi could see it in his eyes, the cruel amusement that lit up with every flinch Shinichi tried to suppress. Was this what Hakuba was raised by? This monster who enjoyed his pain? He’d give him pain. Shinichi bit his lip, shrinking in on himself. Making him look smaller, more prey-like, weaker, underestimated. Make him think you’re defenseless, Auntie’s words echoed in his head. Then make him wish he was never born. “What’s going to happen now?” he whispered, refusing to look at him. “Well—” he sounded satisfied—“You don’t need to worry about that. So long as your families keep their words, you’ll end up just fine.” The door to the office opened and a woman walked in. “Ah, Vermouth. Take Lupin-kun over to the holding cells and lock him in tight.” “Yes sir,” the woman answered and allowed her to manhandle him into standing. She dragged him out of the room and through various halls; this time, he could see, and began a mental map of the facility. Eventually, Vermouth pushed him into a holding cell and locked it. But that wouldn’t be any worry. She’d slipped him a lockpick during the walk, for whatever reason. And Shinichi was ready to make them regret learning either of his names.
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Despite getting his handcuffs off within the first few minutes, Shinichi waited at least an hour before trying to escape his cell. It wouldn’t do to escape only to walk right into someone patrolling the hallway. He’d wait until morning, he thought, just to make sure that whoever was on nightshift were exhausted or leaving, then make his escape. This flew out of his hands when gunshots began echoing through the building. What was happening!? What luck, though, for this organization to be attacked right after he was kidnapped. Perhaps the police followed them? Or Interpol? No matter. Shinichi picked the lock, neat and fast like he’d been taught. Taking a steading breath, he pushed open the door. No one was there. Shinichi smirked. Good. He only had a vague direction to go in, but he was unmasked when that Vermouth woman took him from the Superintendent General’s office to his cell. He knew exactly how many turns it took to get there; all he had to do was reverse engineer the process. And since people were attacking the building, all the higher ups in the organization, like the Superintendent General, would be escaping. Leaving the office unguarded. Shinichi sprinted through the halls. No one was in this part of the building; had it been evacuated already? All the better for him. It’s not like he had any idea what to do if someone did try to stop him. It took too long yet didn’t to find the office. The door was locked—of course, he should have expected that—and Shinichi wasted precious seconds picking the door open before rushing inside. It was empty, looking nearly the same as when he left only the Superintendent General was gone. Shinichi rushed the desk, bypassing the computer entirely. He didn’t have time to waste trying passwords and had nothing to store information on. Paper files were much more useful since he could hide them on his person. He wanted his file. Sure, any of these files could indict the Superintendent General if he gave them to the police, but he wanted to see his file. The file from his first kidnapping, where he lost his memory. There should be one. If what that man said was true, then Shinichi Kudo—possibly him—was kidnapped in a blackmailing scheme, so there should be some record of it. If he’s telling the truth. His fingers brushed over the file with the date from his kidnapping written on its tab. He read it. Everything seemed to match his memory. Pressing his lips into a thin line, Shinichi exhaled, closing his eyes. This… this was who he was. Who he had been. He shook with relief. For so long, he’d been ready to curse his birth parents, to condemn them, to get them arrested for abandoning him. But he wasn’t abandoned. It felt like a broken arm was finally set after years of being loose. A loud squeak filled the room as the air duct above him on the wall fell to the ground. Shinichi jumped back. Out popped a brown-haired head, followed by a white suit, tumbling to the ground in a heap. “Ow…” the suit groaned, rubbing his head. “Kaito?” The head jerked up, revealing Kaito’s startled face. “Kaito!” Shinichi leapt at the thief, landing on him roughly, clutching him tightly. “You’re… you’re alive…” he said breathlessly. “Shinichi.” Arms wrapped around him, fingers digging into his back, afraid to let go. “Shinichi, oh thank God…” “You’re alive… you’re alive…” Shinichi shuffled back to look him in the face. “How did you…?” The thief smirked. “Blood packs. I always wear them over a bullet-proof vest. No matter how many times Snake’s shot me, he still hasn’t figured it out.” “Ah… ahahaha…” Shinichi ran a hand through his hair and smiled. “It’s good to see you again.” He winked. “I know. Now, come on!” Kaito hauled them to their feet. “We need to get out of here.” Kaito tried to pull him towards the exit, but he resisted. “Wait! There’s evidence that we’re going to need!” “Evi—You’re risking your life for evidence!?” “Yes!” Free, Shinichi started taking random files from the desk. Who knew which were important? Better take a variety, just in case. “Okay, now, let’s—” The office door opened again. Kaito’s face brightened. “Tantei-san!” Hakuba stood in the doorway, visibly disheveled. A gun was holstered at his waist. Hakuba sighed, shoulders sagging. “Good. I found you both.” He gestured for them to come over. Kaito moved to join him, but Shinichi stepped away. Hakuba’s face turned confused. “Lupin?” “Don’t speak to me so familiarly, traitor.” Shinichi voice was cold and accusing. Hurt flashed across Hakuba’s face. “Did you think I wouldn’t find out? After your father was the one who ordered my kidnapping?” “What do you mean?” Kaito asked. “Superintendent General Hakuba is a high-ranking official in this organization,” he told Kaito. “He’s the one who ordered all my kidnappings. This one, the one with Valentine, even the first one.” He glared at Hakuba. “Lupin, please—” Shinichi cut him off. “Did you know about any of this? Were you involved in your father’s plans?” “No!” Hakuba insisted. “No, I swear, I didn’t know about my father’s organization until this year.” “Really.” Shinichi didn’t buy it. “Shinichi—” “Not now, Kaito—” “Shinichi, he’s the one who organized this raid.” His eyebrows jumped up. “What?” “Hakuba is the one who got Interpol, the CIA, and the NPA together and organized this raid. Hell, he even got me and your family in on this.” That was impressive. “I—Hakuba?” He looked back at his friend, who he had wrongly? accused. “I got in contact with the NPA earlier this year, when I learned about my father’s crimes by accident. My connections with the FBI happened later. Both wanted to remove the two of us from the situation entirely, but… I insisted that we stayed.” He looked away in shame. “Not only would it be suspicious if we both disappeared, but I… I convinced them that I could feed them information about the organization without my father finding out. I never even considered that my father would desire to use you for some nefarious reason. “Though, I probably should have guessed.” He laughed, self-deprecating. “I’ve long figured out that he’s been using my own skill as a detective to cover up his nefarious deeds. Still, for me to put you in danger, Lupin… it’s unforgivable. You have my most sincere apologies.” Oh no. Oh no, what had he… Shinichi bit his lip. He was wrong. He had to own up to it, or… “Hakuba…” The detective had bowed deeply in his own shame. “I must apologize as well.” Hakuba’s face fell into shock. “I accused you with only circumstantial evidence and in the outcome, I hurt both of us—” “Yes, blah blah blah, you’re both sorry, you’re forgiven—” Kaito interrupted, grabbing both of their hands and dragging them out the door. “If you both forgot, we’re in the middle of situation here, can we hurry it up before we all die? You two can apologize when we live.” Shinichi exhaled, glancing at Hakuba. “Yeah, I get agree with that.” Hakuba smiled back at him. “I concur. Let us leave this mess behind us.” And they escaped, without looking back.
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Two Weeks Later
“Lupin, are you ready to—” Shinichi turned away from the mirror as Hakuba walked into the room. “Oh, you’re still changing. My apologizes, I’ll just—” “You don’t have to go; I’m almost done.” He yanked the knotted mess around his throat and started again. “I just… can’t get this tie right.” Hakuba walked up to him. “Have you never tied one before?” he asked, taking the ends of the tie in his hands. “I’ve never had to. Our school doesn’t have one with the uniform and any time I’ve had to dress up fancy, Papa would tie it.” Shinichi rubbed his head, careful not to mess up the gel that held his hair in place. “You could probably get away without it.” Despite his words, Hakuba began tying the tie for him. “Go for a more business casual look.” “I know, but I want to look my best for today.” Finished, Hakuba allowed him to turn back to the mirror. “You look your best every day, Lupin. So relax; everything’s going to be fine.” Shinichi’s shoulders sagged. “Ah, you can see right through me then…” And here he thought he’d been hiding his emotions well! “I don’t suppose you’d want to come along…?” “Unfortunately, I cannot. Zenigata dropped off more paperwork I need to fill out. Becoming an Interpol agent is rather difficult.” He nodded, trying not to look disappointed. It didn’t work as Hakuba rested his hand on his shoulder. “I am aware that I am not very good with emotions, but… things are going to work out. Its going to be alright.” He smiled at him. “Now, go see Kuroba before he permanently wears a hole in my carpet downstairs.” Shinichi smiled back, rubbing his neck. “Thanks, Hakuba. For letting me stay here, and… everything else.” “What else are friends for?” He answered with a shrug. Together, they went downstairs to find Inspector Zenigata and Kaito in the foyer. Kaito was, in fact, pacing back and forth anxiously. Shinichi held out his arms. “Well… I think I’m ready as I’ll ever be.” Relief drenched Kaito’s form as Zenigata stepped forward. His eyes gleamed, suspiciously wet. “You clean up nice, kid.” “So I’ve been told. Shall we get going?” Zenigata nodded, but stopped Shinichi. “I’m… I just wanted you to know… I’m really proud of you, Arsène.” He then realized what he said and immediately backtracked, stuttering. “I-I mean, Shinichi! Sorry, sorry, I’m really proud of you, Shinichi.”They—he, Kaito, and Hakuba—had told Zenigata the truth during the aftermath of the Black Organization takedown. While the inspector had been disappointed that Shinichi hadn’t confided in him earlier, he was all for their plan and set everything up for today to even happen.Shinichi smiled, shaking his head. “There’s no need to apologize. I’ll always be Arsène, just like you’ll always be Gramps, and nothing can change that.” Tears really started to fall then, Gramps frantically wiping them away. “Jesus, kid, you really know how to pull on the heartstrings,” he groaned, sniffing heavily. Pulling himself together, Gramps smiled ruffled his hair. Shinichi franticly patted it back into place. “Alright, kid. We better get moving if we want to get there on time.” They said their goodbyes to Hakuba and Shinichi climbed into the back of Zenigata’s car, Kaito at his side. The drive was quiet to the park, leaving Shinichi alone with his thoughts. Why were they even meeting at the park? Surely a police station would be just as fine, right? But no, he wouldn’t have been comfortable in a police station, not with everything that’s happened. Not only that, but in certain circles, his reputation proceeded him. By meeting in a police station, they could take it to mean all the rumors were true, that he really was a criminal like Dad and Papa. Had Gramps taken that into account when he planned this? A hand landed on his shoulder and Shinichi turned to Kaito. “Shinichi… I’ve been meaning to ask you something… It’s about—” A sharp trill cut him off. Shinichi pulled out his phone, new and untapped since Interpol didn’t think he’d contact his family anymore. “I can let it go to voice mail,” Shinichi assured Kaito. “No, no.” Kaito waved his hands, a line of sweat trailing down his face. “It might be something important; I can wait.” “Okay then…” Shinichi answered it. “Hello?” “Hey brat.” “Papa!” Kaito’s head snapped back to him. Gramps looked like he was physically restraining himself from leaping into the backseat, snatching the phone, and belting Dad’s name into the receiver. What restraint. “Why are you calling?” “What, a father can’t be worried about his kid?” “No, but… you haven’t contacted me before—” in the aftermath of the Organization’s fall. Did he consider it too risky? “I knew you could handle it yourself. Besides, not every member of those people were caught in that one attack. Someone had to hunt them down for the police.” “So, your lack of contact has nothing to do with the meeting today?” Papa remained silent. “I’m right, aren’t I? You don’t want today to happen.” Shinichi couldn’t stop the disappointment from leaking into his voice. Kaito placed a hand on his leg for support. “…Can you really blame me?” Papa sounded tired, past the point of exhaustion. “You’ve been my kid for the last eleven years and now… you’re not coming home ever again.” Shinichi clenched the phone. “Papa…” “You don’t have to try to reassure me; I knew this was going to be the outcome from the start. From the moment you suggested this plan. I thought I was ready for you to leave, but…” A self-deprecating laugh crackled through the speaker. “I tried to start years ago. You never took to stealing like Lupin, or shooting like me. It was always detective work. So I resigned myself to you eventually being on Pops’ side when you grew up, but now there’s these people…” “Papa…” Shinichi turned towards the window, an inkling of privacy. “You know I’m not replacing you with them. I still love you and Dad and Auntie and Uncle. You all mean the world to me.” “And you mean the world to us.” Shinichi blinked away a tear. “I know. But I can’t leave this hole open anymore.” Both in his chest, and in theirs. “It’s time to end this. But that doesn’t change the fact that I am your son.” A sigh. “You’re a good kid, Shinichi.” A laugh. “Fujiko says to tell you that we’re coming over to their place for Christmas. Also, she says she loves you too.” He laughed as well, relief saturating him. His family wasn’t mad at him. Thank God. “I’m sure the Kudos will love having to explain why their house was robbed by the Lupin Gang this Christmas.” Gramps’ head twitched towards him and Shinichi made note to make sure Gramps got hot chocolate during the eventual stakeout that was sure to happen. Looking out the window, Shinichi didn’t recognize where they were, but the car was starting to slow down. “Hey, I think we’re nearing our destination. I’ll have to get off the phone now.” “Yeah.” A moment of silence, then—“I’ll see you soon, kid. And if things don’t turn out the way you wanted them to—” “I’ll call and you’ll come pick me up. I remember.” Shinichi smiled. “I love you, Papa.” A quiet choking noise trickled through the speaker. “Goddamn it, kid.” Papa sounded like he couldn’t breathe. “I love you too.” A beep. The call was done right as Gramps slid into a parking space. He looked around. “Do you think they’re here yet?” “Nah.” Rolling down the window, Gramps lit a cigarette and puffed on it. “They’re probably not in a hurry; I didn’t tell them why we were meeting, after all.” And at the park, no less. Even Hakuba wouldn’t expect such a meeting to be serious. Though, that was likely the reason why this place was chosen. “I’m going to wait outside, so they’ll know we’re here. You kids behave in here.” “You have the window down, you’ll know if we misbehave.” Shinichi rolled his eyes. Gramps left the car. “Shinichi… about what I was going to say…” Kaito grabbed one of his hands. “I… after this, I want to go on a date with you.” He blinked. “I thought that we’d agreed that I would if meeting the Kudos went well.” “Yes, but,” Kaito licked his lips. “Even if this doesn’t go well, I want to be your boyfriend. If you want to leave Japan, I’ll follow you.” Shinichi’s eyes widened. “I’m willing to follow you anywhere you want.” “But you have a life here!” “And I can have a life with you too.” He glanced away. “I might be giving things up by leaving, but I’ll gain a lot more with you.” He didn’t know what to say. Gently, he enclosed Kaito’s hand within his own. The only people who have been willing to stay with him… were family. Everything else, every town, every acquaintance, he has had to leave, but now… “Okay. I’d like that.” Kaito’s smile was breathtaking. “Thank you, Shinichi.” Shinichi never felt such a burning desire to kiss someone before in his life. Before he could act on that feeling, another car pulled into the parking lot, not far from them. Gramps walked away to meet it. Out of the car came two adults and one child—the Kudo family. Yuusaku Kudo was a tall man, mustached, with thick glasses glinting in the sunlight. Yuukiko was shorter, wearing a violet sundress, with her curly blonde hair pulled back away from her face. Conan moved behind his father, almost hiding behind his legs. He sighed, hit by a sudden pang of longing. “I guess this is it,” he murmured, squeezing Kaito’s hand once more. At least his hands weren’t sweating. Shinichi left the car, Kaito behind him but choosing not to trail him. He heard Gramps say, “Ah, here he is,” right as he reached them. “Excuse me for interrupting your day, Mr. and Mrs. Kudo.” Shinichi began his prewritten speech. “My name is Arsène Lupin the Fourth. I’ve—” “Lupin?” Yuukiko interrupted him. Yuusaku was staring at him suspiciously. “Oh, this must be the same one you were talking about, right Conan?” Conan nodded in agreement, but kept away from his mother. “Is something the matter? Inspector Zenigata was vague on the reason why he summoned us here.” “W-Well, it’s…” Shinichi no longer knew what to say, interrupted as he was. “It’s about my family.” “I suspected as much. You’re the son of that thief, Lupin the Third, correct?” Yuusaku asked. “Not necessarily…” That caught them off guard. “I was adopted off the streets as a child. I had amnesia and had been kidnapped; combined with him being unable to locate my birth parents, he decided to keep me.” “So, you require our help in tracking your birth parents down?” Yuukiko didn’t seem to get it, but from the expression on Yuusaku’s face, he was starting to understand the situation. Shinichi shot Gramps a mildly panicked look. “Well, not really—” Taking pity on him, Gramps continued. “What Arsène is trying to say is, that we’ve already found his parents. Yuusaku, Yuukiko, this is your eldest son, Shinichi.” “Shinichi?” The words slipped from Yuukiko’s mouth. “You’re certain?” “Lupin-nii’s my brother?” “Yes,” Shinichi answered. “The man who kidnapped me confessed to the crime. O-Of course, I understand if that isn’t enough evidence for you; I’m sure there have been people who’ve tried to pass themselves off as your son, so I’ll willingly submit to a DNA test—” “Shinichi. Shinichi, it’s you.” Tears pouring down her face, Yuukiko pulled Shinichi into her arms. Clutched tightly to her chest, he flailed around awkwardly in her hug before wrapping his arms around her too. Yuusaku placed his hands on both of their shoulders and even Conan joined in, hugging his leg. “It’s you.” “Yeah.” Shinichi swallowed down the lump in his throat as relieved tears budded in his eyes. “It’s me.”