Chapter Text
The Blue Parrot, barren save for four teenagers and the owner, was quiet, an oddity for a bar so late at night, but less so when the bar had a reputation for being closed on Wednesdays for after school activities. Moonlight shown through the windows, highlighting the pool tables that had dozens of papers scattered atop them in place of cue balls. Aoko sleeps soundlessly at the bar, Jii washing dishes nearby, though he keeps an eye on Kaito, who in turn hardly blinks when Hakuba's familiar footsteps approach from behind.
"I didn't see you at KID's heist yesterday, Mr. Detective," Kaito drawls, throwing a glance over his shoulder to meet that ruby red gaze. They're so bright that every now and then, Kaito gets hit with the fear than Pandora isn't inside another gem, but a person. Thankfully, Hakuba's insistence of chasing after KID in the moonlight revealed that his dear British nuisance didn't glow with magic, so it was probably fine. But even so… "Back for two weeks and not a single heist gone to. That little KID Killer is going to have your track record beat at this rate."
Hakuba raises an eyebrow, as politely judgemental as always. Weirdo. "Edogawa may be beating me in terms of temporarily stopping you, but I know your identity. In those terms, I think I am confidently in the lead."
"Oi! I keep telling you I'm not KID!"
"Of course not," Hakuba replies easily. Across the room, where she had hunkered down in the darkest corner of the bar to do… whatever witchy things she normally did, Akako giggles maniacally. "Nevertheless, I figured this would interest you. It's this evening's paper," Hakuba adds as he hands over the newspaper in question. Kaito takes it readily, having not gotten a chance to swing by a convenience store on the way to school thanks to a heavy, pain-killer induced sleep. And then he pauses.
Indigo eyes sweep over the headline once, twice. At the third run over, Kaito's hands fall down onto the table, as if the paper and the weight of the title had simply grown too heavy. The moonlight catches on the big bold words "Suzuki Jirokichi Adopts Kaitou Kid?!"
"What even is my life?" Kaito asks aloud, to no one in particular. Hakuba gives him a pitying pat on the back, which isn't helpful in the slightest. And yet somehow, it's still more helpful than Akako's words.
"Woo the devil with your dancing, and soon enough, you'll be invited to stay in his house and home," she says, ever the cryptic, and also suddenly right next to Kaito. Kaito does, admittedly, jump a bit, but so does Hakuba, so he's not too embarrassed about it. He just wished Akako would stop doing that-
Whatever. "Thanks, Akako. Anyway-"
Akako pinches Kaito's ear, and he yelps. She doesn't let go as she begins her monologue, words hissed and carrying a dark weight, "Listen to me, Kuroba. You have yet to heed my words, and always fall into despair. The white demon, both large and shrunk, and the crows, and your various secrets- all have hounded at you, and you have only managed to escape their clutches due to my aid. So do not toss away my words, magician: you brought this about with your own actions, now you must reep what you sowed."
Kaito blinks rapidly. At his side, Hakuba looks just as lost, and so does the awakened Aoko, who squints at them from the bar. Kaito, ever so slowly, says, "…Okay. Got it. Thanks."
Predictably, Akako isn't impressed. She pulls back anyway, which is a marginal improvement to ten seconds ago, and stalks over to Aoko, quickly pulling her into a conversation. Over their heads, Jii meets Kaito's eyes, and nods.
"Planning to go poke at the 'devil' despite the blatant warning?" Hakuba elbows him lightly. Kaito swats at him, but from now months of honed instinct, the blond dodges his attempts. Kaito answers anyway.
"I don't have the slightest idea what you're talking about, and that was barely a warning," he grumbles, grabbing the papers on the pool tables that are his and stuffing them hurriedly into his bad. Then, relenting, "I am. That old man didn't even send out a warning; just said: hey, I'm keeping you like a show pony, thanks. I want to know how his brain functions."
Hakuba huffs a laugh that seemed entirely unconcerned. "Good luck then, Kuroba. Call if you need assistance."
"I won't!"
He lands as silently as the summer's breeze, even as his cape flares out behind him and his hanglider clicks shut. KID who is Kaito who is KID shoves his hands into his pockets, tips his head so the shadows of his hat obscured all but his poker face's grin, and steps through the open window of the balcony.
He had been expected.
It's even more obvious inside, where two recliners and a stand full of tea and sweets is sat. On one of the chairs, legs crossed in front of him and hands cradling one of the cups, is Suzuki Jirokichi, watching Kaito's every move, very unlike Lupin, who hasn't so much as twitched his nose. The lighting is dim yet welcoming, like a nightlight in the hall. Kaito steps further into the room.
"My, my," KID says with a sigh, letting the heels of his shoes click with every step against the marbled floors. "It seems as if your guard dog is feeling a tad bit lazy tonight, Advisor. Must be a real pain when luring in a thief."
Jirokichi grins. The whiskers of his mustache point up as well, as if he were a character in a cartoon, and then he happily answers, "Ah, Lupin doesn't go after family, you see. This was fate from the moment I got the boy!"
KID's smile settles from what Hakuba likes to call feral into something far more amused. "Is that so?" He asks lightly, dropping down onto the free chair. His cape trails against Lupin's nose, finally making the dog perk up, dark eyes locked onto every graceful movement. Kaito obediently bends down to scratch him behind the ears. "Funnily enough, that's exactly what I'm here about! Such a blatant trap, and yet… Can I query you further about this- ah, sudden subject?"
Jirokichi barks a laugh. "So stiff for someone so young!" KID stiffens, and his grin sharpens back into that feral thing. "This isn't a trap, kiddo. Hah- KIDdo." Jirokichi shakes his head, grin fading to something more somber. "This isn't a trap. I'd have news crew lying in wait if it was, and the fact you walked in here so calmly means you know that there isn't anyone here but us. I've just come across some interesting information and want to make sure you're safe. A boost to my reputation is just an added bonus."
"Information?" KID repeats carefully. Lupin whines, settling his head on KID's knee and refusing to stop until a gloved hand resumes petting him with no notion of other distraction. Despite this, it wasn't good enough for Lupin, who quickly decides to climb into Kaito's lap.
Guard dog? Therapy dog more like. Not that Kaito needed therapy but-
Nevermind that. Jirokichi's voice was oddly gentle with this answer.
"Just your age, and the fact that you don't have a father," Jirokichi seemed to reassure. Kaito blinked at that. Where could he have gotten that information? It couldn't have been Snake- that didn't make any sense- and if it was Akako or Hakuba, the question became why those specific pieces of information?
And then it clicked.
"I hadn't realized there were any listening bugs," KID mutters, more towards Lupin than Jirokichi. Lupin gives a soft bark. "Odd. I'll have to be more careful of that in the future."
Jirokichi shakes his head quickly, the beginnings of a glare forming. Familiar territory. "No bugs, just me. I know my way around the places I built, after all. Regardless, first order of business is going to be working on that paranoia of yours-"
"Hey!" Kaito snaps.
Jirokichi didn't stop, "Correction. Second order of business. The first is for you to sign here, and to give me your mother's contact information." He reaches into his suit and pulls out an entire folder of paperwork. How he did that with presumably no magic training was certainly something to wonder about. KID watches skeptically as Jirokichi flips through the folder until he found the paper he was looking for and held it out for the other to take.
KID takes it silently. Lupin licks his cheek. The paper was read in barely ten seconds.
An adoption form. A genuine, legally functionable adoption form. Then… this really wasn't a trap.
Kaito glances up from under the rim of his hat, awaiting the second shoe's drop. Jirokichi calmly reaches over toward the snacks and swipes a chocolate chip cookie. Kaito glances toward Lupin, who again barks softly.
"…If I sign this," Kaito begins to question, "what changes? What do you want from me?"
"I told you it isn't that serious," Jirokichi grumbles around his bite full of cookie. "But, to be perfectly honest, a few things. For one, you'll be one of the faces of the company, alongside my niece, Sonoko. Ideally, that would mean no more thefts, but I know that's a lot to ask." Another bite. "So I propose this: I will buy whatever gem, jewel, or especially shiny object you want for whatever it is you want them for, which adds to my collection and notoriety. In exchange, you can work in the public in other ways: be it charity events, helping the police with crimes, or magic shows. You get to be flashy and draw people in, while also being able to get your hands on valuable objects, and I -alongside the Suzuki Financial Group- get more fame. Is that agreeable?"
…Was it? KID got a thrill out of his heists, out of the freedom, out of the revenge. But every time he did so, he took Aoko's father away. He risked the lives of his Task Force by being in the proximity of the black cloaked snipers. He worried Jii and his mother. It could work, yes, but what happens if the crows go after the Suzuki family because of the public adoption? Scratch that, it was probably going to happen anyway, and then the only way to keep them -and his little detective, alongside said little detective's family- safe would be-
To accept.
Wordlessly, Kaito reaches into his pocket, the one hidden under all of his layers. Out of it he pulls his personal phone, and soon enough his mother's number was displayed as the phone rang. Kaito places it on the table, keeping an eye on the way Jirokichi's eyebrows raised in surprise, and says, "It is."
His mother picks up. Jirokichi laughs. Lupin barks.
Kaito, finally, relaxes into his chair.