Ladies and gentlemen! After too long of a wait, I humbly welcome you to the next chapter of this story.

*gasp* Has Hebiaczek actually updated this story finally? Yes, yes she had xD

Yeah, I don't really have an excuse, just saying 'a lot was going on in my life' won't do but at the same time, I can't really offer anything more. So, please don't kill me? I have re-written this chapter far too many times but now it's finally finished!

Now, onto the review reply section (and it will be the last time I do this - I used to reply to the reviews in a chapter to keep myself motivated to update fast but it obviously doesn't work, so from now on I'll just reply with a private messages):

lupsss1412 - I'm glad you enjoyed it~

HalfafanD - To be perfectly honest - I haven't thought about it before either, it just struck me when boys started talking about it (they were trying to find a reasonable explanation to Pandora and this... well at least for me sounds as reasonable as it gets).

1Consumer - Oh man, I feel so bad for making you wait yet again! I hope this chocolate chip will be sweet enough to reward the long wait :D

Astrido - I know, but as I said, this was my way of motivating myself to update more often (and for quite a while it worked!). No worries - this is the last time I do it like this.

meladi1 - congratulations on figuring it out ;) As for the kidnapping - well, let's just say for now that Kaito is at his wit's end.

Mists - To be fair Kaito didn't have much choice - not after he already spilled how to find Pandora. If he remained silent his detectives might have started to try and find it out on their own and that could bring some unwanted attention to them. Thank you for the compliment~

DaLantis - Thank you~

Hoppy854 - and we would hate for so much work to go to waste right? Can't say any more :D

KaitouStarlight - I kinda wish that it would have been the case of just losing my password. It's just that life can get in the way you know... But worry not - I will finish this story even if it kills me xD

Guest - I'm glad you've enjoyed the story so far :D

Just a quick note before we start - this chapter wasn't beta'd by anyone so please excuse any technical mistakes on my part that might have missed my attention.

So without further delay…
Please enjoy and review! :)

Chapter 39: The new path

The silence, that followed the Night Baron Virus activation, was suddenly broken Saguru's phone. Startled a little, he mumbled his apologies to the others and was about to answer the incoming call only to notice the device gone from his hand. Immediately he raised his gaze at Kaito only to notice him holding the device and clicking the green icon on the screen.

"Hakuba speaking, how can I help you, inspector?" he spoke perfectly imitating Saguru, while the real one lunged at him to get the phone back.

With his free hand, Kaito grabbed his outstretched arms and pushed them down, using the momentum to slip from underneath the quilt and get to his feet. "Did you? And are you sure the note is genuine?" he asked suspiciously still in character while stepping on Saguru's shoulder to force him onto the bed turning at the same time and grabbing his IV from where it was hanging.

As Saguru grunted hitting the mattress, Kaito did a flip to jump over Heiji's head and land on the carpet next to the window. "I'm sorry inspector, I'm outside right now and there are some kids playing on the playground," he explained with a grin directed at Saguru, who just huffed in return and pushed himself up, abandoning the chase.

It was hard to ignore the commotion and Heiji breathed a laugh seeing it. Any signs of cheerfulness however faded from his expression and heart as his gaze fell on the abandoned laptop. He pulled it closer, while Saguru pulled his shirt down to get it in order again. Hopelessly, Heiji pressed the power button and clicked his tongue as the machine did not respond "This has got to be a joke… come on…" he mumbled quietly.

Kaito's antics did little to distract Shinichi, who only got up from the bed to not get trampled over. Now that the danger was over, he flopped back down onto it, his gaze trailing after the computer. Hearing Heiji's whisper he shook his head. "It's all gone. The virus destroyed it all..." He could only be angry at himself for not realizing what was going to happen sooner but right now he was just feeling so very tired.

He rubbed his face, wondering if there was any way they could salvage this situation. They could, of course, ask Kaito about everything he managed to find out while in the facility but given what he already told them, there wasn't much they could find out. Vaguely, he felt Saguru put a hand on his shoulder in silent support but he didn't have it in him to react to it in any way.

"Of course, I'll gladly help. Though…" Kaito continued and hanged his voice for a moment, "My apologies, but would it be alright if I came in about half an hour? I could probably be sooner but-" he paused, seemingly cut off, "Oh, no, it's a private matter, not a case-" he replied politely and waited through the interruption again. "Thank you, inspector, I'll be as soon as I can. Mhm~" Another pause. "See you at the station." He turned off the connection and threw Saguru his phone back before allowing himself to fall face forward onto the bed, breathing heavily.

"Idiot…" Saguru grumbled as he pocketed his mobile, having little pity for the magician. "I would prefer it if you didn't pick up my phone for me."

Kaito's shoulders shook a little as he chuckled into the bed and turned over to his back, showing his shamelessly grinning face. "Well, I figured that you weren't exactly in the mood to speak with Nakamori-keibu just now, so I decided to give you a hand," he explained cheerfully and pulled himself onto the pillows, seemingly ignoring Saguru's glare. "I also bought you a little time to calm down and figure out how you want to 'solve' my riddle~" He grabbed the computer from Heiji, who already abandoned his attempts on reviving it and flicked his wrist to conjure a screwdriver from somewhere. "Though you should probably consider calling that dear old lady to drive you there if you don't want to leave now," he added as an afterthought and unscrewed the bottom lid from the laptop to look inside of it.

Shinichi kept mindlessly following Kaito with his gaze and sighed shaking his head when he realized that the other was probably searching for a way to fix the laptop. "Don't bother. It's fried… So is the drive…" he added glancing at the tiny pendrive that could have held his salvation and swallowed thickly. "I've seen it happen once already…"

Kaito spared him only a short look and poked something inside the machine. "I'm guessing it was an older computer?" he asked quietly, not seeming to pay the conversation much attention and took out a tiny, cylindrical-shaped and smoldered part giving it his whole attention and then looking back into the laptop.

Seeing his uncanny focus Shinichi frowned and just nodded, unsure why it mattered.

Thankfully Saguru asked the question for him. "What difference does it make?"

"Hmm… I wonder…" Kaito mumbled enigmatically while balancing the tiny part on the tip of his tool.

"Oi…" Heiji growled angrily causing Kaito to chuckle and turn his attention back to the detectives

"Now, now~ No need to get angry. It's not my fault you don't know your facts~"

Saguru rubbed his eyelids. "It's really not a good moment for you to be messing around Kuroba."

Kaito gave him a sour smirk. "I'm not. I was just curious. You see, it's pretty much impossible now to damage a computer by overheating it with internal processes. It used to happen quite frequently but they learned how to prevent it." With a flick of his wrist, he sent the tiny part balanced on his screwdriver into the air.

"But the virus…" Shinichi mumbled, unwilling to let the hope grow within him too much.

Kaito caught the tiny part. "A virus can't order the computer to do anything it's not capable of doing in the first place. It might be malicious but in the end, it's just a program." He showed the part between his two fingers and turned the open computer towards them, showing the inside of it. "From what I see only this got damaged."

"So the data..?"

Kaito sighed. "That wasn't on the computer…" He pulled out the drive from the side of the laptop and pressed on it causing the plastic to start crumbling in between his fingers. "I'd say it's toast." He placed it down in a moment of silence allowing for the information o sink in. "But on the bright side I should be able to save the laptop~" he added cheerfully as if that was any consolation at all.

Shinichi's gaze fell down. He should have known better than to allow his hopes to get back up. He guessed the computer was Agasa's, which explained why Kaito wanted to fix it but he didn't care if he did right now. Truth be told he expected the magician to be even more devastated, given how much work he must have put into gathering the data in the first place.

Saguru squeezed Shinichi's arm a little trying to cheer him up a little and spoke carefully. "That's good I guess but…"

Hearing him pause made Shinichi look up and he noticed Saguru staring with wide-open eyes at his classmate. He turned to Kaito and couldn't help but see that infuriating smirk on his lips and mirth dancing in his eyes.

And then it clicked.

He exhaled and whispered breathlessly, "You bastard… this wasn't the only copy you made, was it?"

Kaito's smirk grew to a full-toothy grin. "I really thought that would have been obvious from the start~"

Heiji swore and laughed grabbing Kaito by the head and messing up his hair more. "Ahou! You should have said so sooner instead of letting us worry! You want us to go bald or something?!"

Shinichi just covered his face, not minding his glasses being pushed off and dropping to the ground, chuckling in relief. Just leave it to KID to have a trick up his sleeve even in this kind of situation.

"Hey, what do you take me for?" Kaito shouted in an offended tone. "Would you really expect me to leave with just one copy? After all, I am the best kaitou currently out there~"

"Oh yeah? And I heard that both Chat Noir and Corbeau bested you," Heiji challenged still chuckling in relief.

Kaito gave him a sly smirk. "Is that what the general public believes in, you included~?"

"Huh..?"

Saguru cleared his throat to break the new argument between the two, staring at Kaito with urgency. "Am I right to assume that you have more than one copy left?"

Kaito clicked his tongue, looking annoyed. "Well to my record, that was the plan. Sadly I never managed to return there after the heist, soo…" he picked up the destroyed drive and grimaced, "there's only one more left…"

And needless to say, it would be infected with the Night Baron Virus as well...

Heiji huffed through his teeth. "So we're still at square one, huh? Can't you, I don't know, make an antivirus or something, Kuroba? How long would it take you?"

Kaito glared at him and flicked the broken pendrive into the air. "Unless you forgot, I have a heist to prepare. I do have an idea of how to deal with this but it will have to wait when I have the time for research. I'm a magician, a kaitou and a high schooler didn't have the time to add a professional programmer to my repertoire just yet." He caught the tiny device and twirled it in between his fingers, looking to Shinichi with an apologetic expression. "Sorry, it might suck, but you'll have to wait a little bit longer."

Shinichi bit the inside of his cheek. "Not necessarily. I know somebody who's very good with computers and should be able to deal with the virus if he knows what he's dealing with…" he trailed off as he raised his eyes and saw Kaito's hands go still and his face take on a serious expression.

"Meitantei…" he started with a careful tone and twirled his fingers once more to close his hand around the pendrive. "I might not be sure what exactly I managed to get but I'm fairly certain that, among other information, we'll find the formulas for the poison you took and a few others. I don't mind giving it to you, as you need it to make a cure for yourself. But I'm not exactly excited to hear you want to share this with somebody else."

Shinichi glared at him angrily. "I think I know best how dangerous it is." He couldn't help but recall the pain he felt during transformations as well as what he overheard about it from both Haibara and Gin. "I'm not gonna be careless about it."

Kaito smiled softly at him and his shoulders dropped an inch. "I believe you won't. Just..." He sighed heavily. "So who is it you want to give it to?" He raised an eyebrow seeing Shinichi squirm a little, "You know, aside from this, I also would still want to glance through the data myself. I doubt there is much that would interest me but there might be."

Shinichi couldn't blame Kaito for wanting to know and refusing to tell him wouldn't do him any favors. He didn't really want to reveal this secret just yet but it didn't seem he had any choice if he wanted Kaito to continue trusting him. "He's an undercover FBI agent. I can't tell you more, but it's somebody I trust."

Beside him, Saguru breathed with surprise a quiet "What?"

Heiji just looked away and pursed his lips, as if willing himself not to say anything.

Kaito didn't say anything either and went very still, as if unsure what reaction he should show to this.

Shinichi didn't want him to get the wrong idea and rushed to explain. "You don't have to worry, he's a good guy. You'd probably like him if you knew him," he added with a smile. Then again, there were probably very few people he didn't like. He continued with an earnest expression wishing for Kaito to believe him. "Also, he owes me quite a bit, I'm sure he'll give me back the data if I ask him to without asking too many questions."

That being said, Shinichi was fairly certain that Akai would ask a whole lot of questions when he delivered him the pendrive. But that was a problem for another day. And only if Kaito agreed to cooperate.

KID (because with how sharp his features turned Shinichi had trouble thinking of him as 'Kaito') snorted. "You do like collecting your debts, don't you?" Even his tone suited more his moonlit persona. He dropped the amused facade and his expression turned serious again. "You do know that by giving this to him, you're pretty much handling the data to the American government, right? If he's as trustworthy as you claim, I imagine that he is also loyal. So he will give the data to his supervisors. This means anything they do with it will be by extension your fault. And mine." And it came unsaid that it wasn't something he wanted to weigh down his conscious.

Shinichi wanted to object. FBI were the good guys, they were fighting criminals and abiding the law. Only that he knew the bureau had some dark secrets as well. Heck, they even broke the Japanese law by working without permission on the island. He looked away and swallowed thickly.

"It's only a matter of time they get it anyway. They're working on dispatching the Organization, so eventually, they will get the formula."

Kaito huffed. "Maybe, maybe not. You never know if it won't be destroyed before the FBI could get their hands on it." He picked up the laptop and turned it between his hands. "But I guess it's gonna be your choice anyway," he added lightly, eyes staring at the void before him.

"You mean..?"

The computer vanished in a puff of smoke and Kaito grinned at him, though the smile looked fake. "I have a feeling you'd tear through my hideout and house in search of it if I didn't give it to you before I leave for Kyoto. You're not gonna get it before I do though. I might want to try something if I find the time." He turned to Heiji who patted him on the back amicably.

Shinichi huffed a relieved laugh. He was pretty sure Kaito knew that it wouldn't have been the case. If KID wanted to hide something, Shinichi was fairly certain that it would remain hidden somewhere where he wouldn't be able to find it.

"Thanks, and don't worry, it's gonna be fine."

Kaito glanced back at him and shrugged, seemingly returning to his carefree self. "We'll see but it's not my problem anymore anyway." As if to make a point, cards fluttered from his one hand in an arc and landing in the other.

Heiji hummed in agreement, following the cards with his gaze. "So all that's left are preparations for the heist and the following kidnapping?"

Kaito grinned without looking at him, focused on the cards he was shuffling in his hands. "Yeah, but the first is on me and there isn't much we can do for the other right now~"

Saguru clicked his tongue, showing his distaste. "So it would seem," he agreed reluctantly and glanced curiously at Kaito. "When are you planning to go to Kyoto?"

Kaito hesitated, locking the deck for a moment between his hands as if considering whether he wanted to answer or not. After a second however he fanned out the cards and shrugged. "Sometime next week, I guess. It depends on when Ai-chan will let me really. But don't even think about going with me." He quickly added with a glare directed at Saguru, throwing a card at him. " Just do me a favor and stick with Nakamori-keibu to avoid any suspicions, will you?"

Saguru grimaced, swatting the card away but before he could answer, Heiji wrapped his arm around Kaito's shoulders and grinned at him. "Don't worry, I'll make sure he's fine~"

Kaito smirked at him challengingly. "Oh, really~?"

But Heiji's grin only widened in response. "Come on~ You're gonna need some help settling in and I could show you where's the best food around. Plus, I'm your go-to-man if you need to know anything regarding Kansai region~"

Saguru just shook his head and turned his attention to Shinichi. "I probably should call Baaya and get going anyway. Tell me everything later?"

The way he said it, Shinichi had a feeling he didn't just mean anything he might miss from Kaito but that was alright. He wanted to consult Saguru before he made any rash decisions anyway, so this suited him just fine.

He smiled at the other detective and nodded. "No worries, I will," he promised with a soft tone. It honestly felt good to have another friend he could count on.

Saguru smiled in response and got up to make the call. With Kaito and Heiji still bickering it left Shinichi to his thoughts. He would have liked to celebrate a little but he couldn't really afford to get distracted just yet. And thinking on the matters ahead of them he realized something annoying.

He raised his gaze Kaito coming to the conclusion that this was probably the most troublesome guy to be indebted to. On one hand, he probably should allow him to do as he pleased but on the other, he couldn't let him get himself in more danger than it was necessary.

Shinichi suppressed a sigh. Being subtle wasn't really his forte but he figured that he could at least confront him in private.

It didn't take long for Saguru to finish his conversation and say his goodbyes. Shinichi offered to walk him to the door and they left the room together.

Before he managed to return Heiji's and Kaito's argument was interrupted by a phone call. Heiji swiftly jumped away from Kaito's reach, pressing one hand over his pocket and the other stretched as if trying to stop his adversary from moving. He countered Kaito's pout with a glare and took out his phone. He picked up the call without looking away from the menace before him to make sure he didn't try anything funny.

"Yeah, what's up?"

"Heiji? Where are you?"

"Kazuha? I-I told you, went with the squirt on a walk. Something happened?"

"N-nothing. I thought that maybe we could go to that curry place before we leave back to Osaka? S-so where are you?" she asked coyly and Heiji couldn't help but imagine her blushing ever so slightly.

He bit his lip thinking fast and glanced at Kaito who just crooked his head a little at him. He didn't really want to leave but then again he could talk everything out with the guys later and he did owe Kazuha to spend some time with her as well.

"Great idea, wanna meet up there? I'll just drop the kid with his friends and be on my way." That way the girls probably wouldn't be suspicious of Conan's absence and he wouldn't be leaving Kaito alone either.

"Sure~! See you there then!" Heiji couldn't help but find it cute how she didn't bother to hide her excitement.

He felt a blush creep onto his cheeks and turned away from Kaito who, judging by his amused expression, must have noticed it. "Y-yeah, see you then." He disconnected the call and cleared his throat. "I gotta run, tell Kudo I'm meeting with the girls?"

"Sure~ Have fun..!" he replied with a shameless grin to which Heiji forced his smile down and pretty much escaped the room.

Kaito's lips stretched with a sharp grin when a few moments later Shinichi walked into the room and turned to close the door behind him

"I hope you didn't forget to call Kazuha-chan about the meeting?" He had the audacity to laugh seeing the other jump hearing the question.

"I-um? What-what do you mean?" Shinichi tried but already knew it was hopeless.

Kaito raised an eyebrow at him. "Aside from your guilty expression right now and the fact that it doesn't take half as long to walk to the front door and back, that was way too convenient."

"Maybe I had to go to the toilet?" It didn't make sense to lie anymore but at the same time, it was the perfect opportunity to give Kaito a taste of his own medicine.

Sadly, it didn't seem to work and only serve to amuse KID. "And I think I already told you to stop using the toilet as your excuse for whenever you want to go acting sneaky~" But he smiled and winked seeing Shinichi grimace. "No worries~ As long as you won't try to blame this on me, I won't tell him~"

Shinichi huffed and stuffed one hand into his pocket, taking his phone into the other - he did forget to call Kazuha but he figured he could just text her about the meeting. "I'll keep your word for that..."

Kaito hummed cheerfully and squinted at him. "So what did you want to discuss with me with such secrecy?"

Shinichi held back a grimace and pressed send. He hid his phone in his pocket and looked at Kaito. "Just so we're clear, I'm really grateful for everything you did. Not only now. Before too. You often annoy the crap out of me," Kaito laughed at that but it didn't reach his eyes, "but I know I can trust you with my life. And probably more than that."

There was a moment of stunned silence before Kaito covered his confusion with a bright smile and replied "Well, I guess you shouldn't trust a jewel thief with gems~"

Shinichi snorted at that. "Actually, considering you always give them back, I wouldn't worry too much about that either." He dropped his smile and walked closer to the chair sitting next to the bed. "The thing is that I want to trust you with everything. I really do. But you don't exactly make it easy for me…" He raised his gaze to meet Kaito's eyes. But it didn't seem the other wanted for him to see through his poker face anymore.

Kaito's both eyebrows rose up to his hairline and he pressed a hand to his chest. "So it's true! You actually don't trust me! Oh poor me! And after I try so hard!"

Needless to say, Shinichi was not impressed by the act, though he wasn't annoyed either. He pretty much expected it by now. "It's not like I can when you apparently don't trust us either and try to manipulate us instead." He sighed when the other only crooked his head, still refusing to admit anything. "You know, Hattori is going to be really pissed when he realizes that you used his birthday to distract us."

Kaito remained silent but at least he dropped his facade and instead allowed a blank mask to hide any emotions from surfacing on his features. For Shinichi, however, this was as good as him admitting that he was right.

"It's obvious when you think about it actually," Shinichi reasoned while pulling himself up onto the chair to be able to look Kaito straight in the eyes without the need to raise his head too much. "You didn't want to trust us with your birds just a few days ago. And now you want us to 'have your back' when you're being kidnapped? Sounds too good to be true." And given how hard they were trying to get Kaito to trust them and cooperate with them, it was the perfect thing he could say to make them drop their guard. "If a little cruel," he added quietly.

Kaito clicked his tongue, slipping a little too much into his moonlit persona mannerisms again. "So distrustful! Maybe after seeing how well you performed, I had a change of heart~? People do that, you know," he offered with a sharp grin.

Shinichi snorted. "Yeah, right. But you don't. You're probably the most stubborn person I've ever met."

Kaito smirked back at him and replied without missing a beat. "You haven't been looking in the mirror lately, have you?"

Shinichi glared at him but knew better than to reply to this, so instead, he rolled his eyes and went on with his deduction. "You said it yourself - you're going to stir your adversaries into believing that you've found that 'Pandora' and is aiming to destroy it. They won't have the time and will be forced to act fast. Meaning, we should expect them to try to kidnap Kuroba Kaito as soon as they manage to regroup. 24 hours after the heist should be more than enough for that. And you can't have them looking for you in America." He crossed his arms and continued with a stern expression. "Since you failed to mention that detail, I can only assume you want us out of the picture when that happens. So, if I had to guess, I'd say that most likely you planned to slip away from the party and ditch us in Osaka while you got yourself kidnapped. Though I'm not sure how you intended to keep us there long enough..."

Kaito sighed, apparently finally deciding to drop the act. "Well, you have to admit that it's not like I can trust you guys not to put yourselves in danger otherwise, can I?"

"Rich, coming from you."

"Besides~" Kaito grinned, seemingly choosing to ignore the comment, "I'd expect you of all people to understand that as I, as a kaitou, prefer to do things alone. Though that being said, I did intend to let you guys help me get the police to treat this seriously and come get me when I called~"

"And what if you were unable to make the call, or we found you too late?" Shinichi challenged, narrowing his eyes with poorly hidden anger. "Besides, I thought that first and foremost you are a magician, not a kaitou. And as far as I know, those rarely work alone." He smirked feeling victorious.

Surprise flashed through Kaito's expression before it was replaced with mirth and a laugh. "Meitantei~ Are you offering to be my lovely assistant? I guess I should be able to find a tutu that could fit you~"

Shinichi couldn't help but flinch at the image of it. "Should I remind you that soon enough I'll be your height and have a face similar to yours?"

Kaito's grin faltered for a second but regained sharpness all too soon. "Well, I'll have you known that I've been told to look dazzling in a dress, so it should be fine!"

Shinichi covered his eyes with a palm. He should have known better than to start. "Whatever," he grumbled ignoring Kaito's victorious grin. "I have a better plan of how to handle you getting kidnapped. And this one doesn't include cheating Hattori out of his birthday."

"I have a bad feeling about it… Can't you just do me a favor and let me do it my way? My plans have a really good track record of working the way I want them, you know," Kaito argued with a sour expression.

Shinichi clenched his teeth, having a flashback of KID asking to be let go after the detectives cornered him in the forest after he last heist. He never expected that refusing the thief would be ever so painful for him.

"Until they don't…" he mumbled angrily and shook his head. "Don't worry, you'll still be the one taking most of the risk. I just want to make sure we're close enough to try and help if things go south. But for that, I'm going to need you to have Kuroba Kaito show up on your heist and visit Hattori's party."

Kaito barked a laugh and rolled his eyes. "What did I say? Any more impossible requests? How exactly do you expect me to pull this off, huh?"

Shinichi shrugged, unimpressed. "It wouldn't be your first time to show up as yourself during your heist."

"Your faith in me is truly flattering," Kaito mumbled through his teeth. "Don't you think I'd be frequently pulling this off if this was so easy? And this time it'll be even more impossible."

Shinichi raised an eyebrow at him. "Why's that?"

"Seriously..? Oh, I don't know… For starters, maybe because Kuroba Kaito is currently in America?"

"What's the big deal? Just 'return' the same way you 'left'. You'd have to get it done anyway." And given short time frames, it wasn't like Kaito was going to fly personally there as somebody else and back again as himself.

Kaito clicked his tongue. "There aren't any direct flights from America landing in Osaka. And as far as I know, a passenger has to get on the plane before they can get off it."

Which meant he had someone to go through all the check-outs as him in the US. But for some reason that person couldn't, or wouldn't take the flight for him, so he had to be personally present at the airport when the plane landed. Shinichi frowned. "Don't you need somebody to actually be on board as well?"

Kaito waved a hand. "After people believe you boarded nobody actually checks whether you're present or not. And unless you make yourself memorable for the crew on the plane, they're not going to notice you were never there. Especially if the number of passengers that boarded equals that which leaves the airport at the destination."

Shinichi had to admit that it did make sense. He wondered how else it could be abused and whether or not it posed any real danger but that was a thought for later. He shook his head to get back on topic. "I guess I could check out for you then?"

Kaito raised an eyebrow at him. "Oh? Could you now? Aside from the height difference, can you really infiltrate an airport and slip in between the passengers while they get off the plane?"

Shinichi ignored the mocking tone and look. "Maybe?"

"There's no 'maybe' Tantei-kun. You either do it, or you botch it and then have to deal with security chasing you. You might be able to shake them off your tail but at the same time you'd blow my cover and I can't deal with that now."

Shinichi huffed. "Whatever, so I'll just fly to the USA as me and board the return flight as you." It would mean a world of pain for him but at the same time, it opened him a new world of possibilities that he didn't even consider before. "And I'll even stand in as you during the heist as well, so you won't have to worry about pulling that off."

Seeing Kaito's expression shifting from shock to blank to a frown again was probably worth losing the secret of the temporary antidote. Shinichi guessed Kaito knew about his brief appearances to solve a few cases anyway, so it wasn't much of a loss anyway.

"So you can actually change back to yourself when you want to?"

Shinichi grimaced a little. "If you can manage to get enough of the temporary antidote from Haibara, that is. You'll probably need to steal it from her though."

Kaito narrowed his eyes at him suspiciously "And why would she limit your access to it?"

Shinichi really didn't want to answer that one but if he didn't, Kaito would just find it out from Haibara anyway. "It's not exactly safe…" he admitted slowly.

"Tantei-kun..!"

"It's fine enough, alright?!" Shinichi cut him off before he could start a rant and looked away. "I just need to be the right height when I board the plane and when I get off it, and then during the heist. It's not big of a deal. Besides..!" he added hastily seeing that Kaito still wanted to argue. "I could use a proof that I'm actually in the US. It'll help me, alright? And since I'll get to return as you, it's very convenient for me. We're similar enough for this to work and you know it."

Kaito crossed arms over his chest. "If you can fool Nakamori-keibu that is. He's known me most of my life you know. And he'll be extra careful during this heist knowing that something is on."

"But that's exactly why he won't pay 'you' as much attention as he normally would, right? Hakuba should be able to coach me how to be you well enough and you wouldn't want Aoko-chan there anyway, so I'm not worried about her."

"I don't like it. What if you get kidnapped right after the heist? Just because I don't expect them to act immediately, doesn't mean that they won't. And it's easy to get lost in a crowd. Nobody would notice you're gone before it would be too late."

"I'll just stick to Hakuba. He probably won't be as interested in chasing you this time anyway."

"But you're going to miss my show this way…" Kaito whined but Shinichi only shook his head and ignored him continuing his reasoning instead.

"It's hard to kidnap two people in public without causing a scene. We should be safe. I doubt they would be willing to hurt the Superintendent General's son right under police' noses."

Kaito nodded slowly. "Meaning the kidnapping will most likely take place on the next day. At Hattori's would be too outrageous, so whenever I stray away from you guys…"

Shinichi nodded. "Or during your trip back to Tokyo." He could tell by how Kaito was refusing to meet his gaze that he didn't feel comfortable with the plan at all. Shinichi imagined why and reached to touch his hand. "It's not your turf but you'll have us near. It shouldn't be harder to deal with than it would be here. And I promise we won't do anything stupid."

Kaito huffed a laugh but didn't try to slip away from the touch. "You're detectives, it's in your nature to do something stupid~"

This time, Shinichi decided to let it slide and smirked back, playing along instead. "Not when we have a kaitou telling us what to do."

Kaito grinned at him. "I sometimes hate you, you know~"

"No, you don't~"

He huffed a laugh and finished it with a sigh. "I'll need more details before I think about." He pulled his hand away from Shinichi's.

"Sure. But just so you know - I'm not going to let you do this alone."

"It's not like you have a great record of stopping me, Meitantei~"

"Maybe, but at the same time I do always foil your plans."

Kaito only laughed to this, sounding genuinely happy. Shinichi liked to imagine that he was actually relieved but with his poker face one never knew for sure.

There was a lot to plan and talk through and he had to make sure to get Saguru on his side to fully convince Kaito to this but he was feeling hopeful that it could actually work. At the very least, they would be really working together on it, instead of trying to avoid being manipulated by each other.

Yes! Kaito's very own personal quarantine in Ai's and Agasa's care has come to an end (that was a far too long arc for my liking and I deeply apologize for how long it took me to finish it!). Next chapter we're going to Kyoto and KID will attempt to charm his audience once again! Look forward to it! :D

On that note - stay safe everybody!

Hope to see you next chapter *bows*