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

Pairing: KaitoxShinichi

Rating: Eventual M

Genre: Romance/Supernatural

Warning: None in this chapter

Chapter 1/3

Summary: They always met under the strangest circumstances. They might have called it fate, but Kaito hadn't had a good word to say about fate in centuries and Shinichi never believed in such things to begin with.

Notes: I was originally going to put this into my Different Suns KaiShin collection, but I decided it didn't feel right for that.

Moonlit Crossroads

Part 1

The first time they met, Shinichi was only six. Kaito didn't know how old he was. He had stopped counting the years after the first century or so. There really was no point keeping track of your age when you were immortal. It was more depressing than interesting.

Well, it wasn't actually much of a meeting. Kaito had recently moved from France to Japan. It wasn't the first time he had lived in the island country, but it had been a while since he had last been there. He had found himself a nice apartment in one of Tokyo's many high-rises and done a little arranging to enroll himself in a local college. It would be fun to be a student again at least for a few years. That evening, he had been out taking a walk after moving into his new abode and ended up at Beika Park.

That was where he had seen the small, black-haired boy juggling a soccer ball by himself on the park's grassy field. It was an odd sight for several reasons, the first and foremost being the late hour. The sky was already gray, and it would be dark soon, but the boy was still out with no parents in sight. Nor were there any other children with him, although there were a few over by the swings, preparing to follow their mothers and fathers back home.

Kaito's gaze lingered on those happy families, feeling caught between nostalgic and wistful. He still remembered his own parents well even though it had been centuries since he had seen them. It was for their sake that he had opened the proverbial Pandora's Box.

He had been nineteen and just beginning his career as a stage magician alongside of his father when a madman had kidnapped his mother and demanded that his father hand over something he had referred to only as Pandora. That was when Kaito had learned that his father had been guarding a magical gemstone purported to have the power to grant wishes.

"They say it was given to mankind by God to be a symbol of hope a long, long time ago when it bore a different name," his father had told him. "It was said that, one day, when the world faced destruction, mankind would be able to save this world with the power it offers. However, if someone with selfish intentions ever makes a wish upon the stone, that wish will be the last for the jewel will lose its power."

Knowing that they could not afford to hand the jewel over to the madman, Kaito and his father had devised a plan to rescue his mother while pretending to acquires to the madman's terms. However, things had not unfolded as they had planned.

To make a rather long and convoluted story short, it had come down to a choice. Destroy the stone or watch as the madman usurped its powers. It hadn't been much of a choice.

Kaito hadn't realized at first that destroying Pandora had landed him with a curse. In retrospect though, he supposed it wasn't surprising. After all, if the stories were true, then he had destroyed something that had been meant to be the hope of the future. Now he had to watch the future that could no longer be rescued with Pandora's wish as it unfolded, come good or ill.

He had been twenty one when it all ended, and twenty one he stayed.

His mother had cried when they had finally figured it out, but Kaito himself had no regrets. He had done what he had believed was the right thing at the time, and he had gotten to spend another half century with his parents before old age took them from him. Even so, he couldn't help but miss them at times like these, and, for a few moments, he would feel the weight of the loneliness that came with being an immortal walking amidst mortals.

When he had come back out of his thoughts, he noticed that only the little boy with the soccer ball was still in the park. Said boy too, however, appeared to have decided that it was time to go home. But with night already fallen, Kaito had taken it upon himself to keep an eye on the child and make sure he got home safely. After all, the night was a dangerous time for such young children to be out by themselves, and he had to wonder what kind of parents would allow their son to wander around unsupervised at such an hour.

It took less than a block for Kaito to notice that someone else was also following the boy. It was two shady looking men with their faces hidden.

When the little boy stopped at a street corner to wait for the light to change, Kaito crept up behind the two men where they hid in an alley mouth to see one of them pulling out a phone. He showed the picture on the screen to his compatriot. Kaito peered closely at the picture too. It showed a pretty young woman with brown curls and a bespectacled man with a child—the same child with the soccer ball tucked under his arm—sitting between them. He realized with a start that he recognized the woman. Her name was Yukiko, he recalled. She was a famous actress, but she had retired a few years ago after getting married. That must mean the boy was her son.

"It's gotta be him," the man muttered.

The other grunted in agreement. "I'll bring the car around to the next corner. You be ready to grab 'im."

So the two were kidnappers. Kaito would have snorted if he weren't hiding. That figured. It didn't matter what time period you were in. There would always be a rotten bastard or three waiting in the wings to take advantage of the innocent for their own gains.

It was men just like these who had forced him to give up what could have been a normal life.

He was not going to let them do as they pleased.

The man who had volunteered to get the car turned around, took three steps into the alley, and promptly collapsed upon receiving a face full of sleeping gas.

The second man, hearing the thump of his companion's body hitting the ground, turned around in confusion. He spotted the body on the ground and gaped.

"What the—"

A hand fisted in the front of his shirt. The next thing the man knew, he had been pinned against the alley wall. He choked, eyes going wide partly from the pressure against his throat and partly from the shock of seeing a young man barely out of his teens at the other end of the iron grip on him. The kid was young enough to be his son, but he was somehow managing to hold the much older man off the ground and against the wall by the collar with only one arm and no sign of effort.

"You look confused," the smiling young man said pleasantly. The calm politeness of his voice made the kidnapper's hair stand on end. "So let me explain what's happening. You see that boy you were just following?"

The man's eyes widened.

Kaito nodded, still smiling. "Well, I'm looking after him."

The man's face drained of all color.

"Right," Kaito agreed like the man had spoken out loud. "But since this is your first offense, I've decided I'll let you off with a warning. But don't get too comfortable." And suddenly the smile vanished to be replaced by a pair of indigo eyes that burned with icy inner fires. "If I ever see you or your friend even thinking about kidnapping anyone again, you'll wish the police had caught you first."

The man promptly passed out. Though whether this had been from fright or from the lack of oxygen caused by Kaito's grip around his neck was not entirely clear. Kaito was happy enough to let the man drop to the ground next to his coconspirator.

Then he dusted off his hands, congratulating himself on a job well done. These two definitely weren't the brave or intelligent sort. They wouldn't make another attempt.

Now in a very good mood, Kaito had turned to leave the alley—and looked straight into a pair of shocked blue eyes.

The six year old boy they had been following was standing just outside the alley mouth, looking at them with his soccer ball still tucked under his arm. How much he had seen was anyone's guess, but at least he wasn't looking at Kaito like he was planning to call the cops.

When the boy continued to just stare in silence, Kaito took it upon himself to break the ice. "Hey there, sorry you had to see that. But you really should be more careful about walking through the streets alone after dark. Especially when your mom's a famous actress. These two were planning to kidnap you."

"That's what I thought too when I noticed them following me," the boy admitted, surprising Kaito. "But who are you?"

"Just a good Samaritan who hates seeing little kids get hurt," Kaito replied, smiling in genuine amusement this time. "You won't have to worry about these guys anymore, but I still think you should get your parents to come pick you up next time you want to stay out late."

"I can get home on my own just fine," the boy pouted, sounding grumpy. If Kaito was any judge, this wasn't the first time the boy had had this conversation. Good. That meant the kid's parents weren't completely incompetent.

"Well, you better run along home then, kid."

"Kudo Shinichi," the boy said. "I have a name."

Now, Kaito laughed. "Indeed you do. And so do I. Kuroba Kaito, at your service. But if you'll excuse me now, I really have to go. I haven't had my dinner yet because I was taking care of your stalker problem."

"Oh." The boy actually looked embarrassed. "Um, thank you…"

"No problem." The kid really was rather cute. He carried himself well and spoke so properly. Nothing at all like how Kaito had always thought children were like—loud, messy, demanding, and unreasonable. So maybe there was hope for the future after all.

Chuckling to himself at that thought, he patted the boy on the head as he walked out of the alley. "See you around then, Shin-chan. Remember, no more late night strolls alone."

He hadn't bothered to turn and look at the boy, or he might have seen the curiosity and interest that had kindled in those bright blue eyes. But at the time he had assumed he would never see Shinichi again. Therefore, his thoughts had already moved on to what he should get for dinner.

Not that he really needed to eat. Though he could feel hunger, it wasn't human food his body craved. That was the other thing that it had taken time to get used to.

He hadn't believed in vampires before Pandora's curse. Actually, he supposed he still didn't believe in them. As far as he knew, he was the only one in the world, and he knew for a fact that he wasn't some undead monster who would wither away under the sun. Strictly speaking, he didn't have to drink blood to survive. Being immortal meant food of any kind was sort of optional. But whatever it was the curse had done to his makeup, he still felt hunger, and the only substance that could truly sate that hunger was the blood of the living.

It was a little irritating, but he had gotten used to it as he had with so many other things.

The thing about life was that, the longer it was, the more complicated it became.

-0-

The second time they met, Shinichi was fourteen. They had both been at a local coffee shop, although Kaito had come for the place's famous chocolate cake and Shinichi had come for the coffee.

The chocolate cake had been every bit as scrumptious as he'd heard, and so Kaito had been rather preoccupied with savoring it until someone on the other side of the coffee shop had dropped dead. Literally.

The guy had just slumped sideways out of his chair, and the woman sitting with him had, quite naturally, screamed.

The police had been called, and no one was allowed to leave.

That was when Kaito had noticed Shinichi. The boy was walking around, examining things and talking to the staff and other patrons. It had taken Kaito a moment to recognize him, but those pretty blue eyes were unmistakable, as was that funny little cowlick.

Then the boy was walking up to him, and Kaito smiled.

He could see the moment Shinichi's eyes widened in shocked recognition right after he gave his name. He could also see the confusion and the thought that no, this couldn't possibly be the same man he had met so long ago because, well, it had been years yet Kaito hadn't changed at all.

Unable to resist, Kaito said, "It's been a long time, hasn't it?"

Shinichi started at the question, and Kaito could see all the things he wanted to ask piling up behind his eyes, but the police had chosen that moment to arrive. Kaito watched as Shinichi explained the case to the police and pointed out the suspects. Less than an hour later, one of the waiters was being marched away in cuffs. It turned out the dead man had broken his sister's heart, and the girl had committed suicide.

Kaito finished his cake. He was considering ordering a coffee when Shinichi approached his table again, hesitant but clearly curious.

"Have a seat," Kaito invited, gesturing at the chair across from him.

The boy hesitated only a moment before doing so.

"The police seem to know you well," he remarked when the boy didn't immediately say anything.

"My dad used to consult with them," Shinichi explained.

"Ah, I see. And now they consult with you?"

Shinichi coughed lightly. "Well, sort of. I'm a detective."

The conversation stuttered on a little longer as Kaito secretly enjoyed watching Shinichi struggle to find a way to ask what he wanted to ask. Finally, he took pity on the boy and broached the issue himself.

"It's been eight years. I'm glad to see you're doing well."

"You haven't changed at all," Shinichi blurted out.

Kaito chuckled. "No I haven't," he agreed. "It's been centuries since I last changed." He didn't know why he decided to say it. He hadn't told anyone about his condition since, oh, ever (although he had met a redheaded witch some decades ago who had somehow known about everything without his having said a word). Maybe he was just having a little fun though.

Shinichi, however, just gave him an extremely unimpressed look. "Right."

The way he pronounced that one word made it obvious that he thought Kaito was either joking or insane. Somehow, that just made Kaito laugh. They didn't talk for long, but when Shinichi got up to leave, Kaito stopped him.

"You should come see my show sometime," he said, handing the boy his card.

-0-

The third time they met, Kaito didn't actually see Shinichi because it was pretty much impossible to see one person in the massive audience at his magic shows.

Shinichi wasn't sure why he had gone to the show. He had never liked crowds, and magic shows had never held any particular fascination for him. But he hadn't been able to get the strange man who hadn't aged in eight years out of his head. He supposed it was the mystery of it that had pushed him into buying a ticket for the show.

Truth be told, by the time he walked into the performance hall, he was starting to believe that Kaito really was something supernatural. There was just no other way to explain how he hadn't aged. But that was just ridiculous. There had to be a logical explanation. Right?

He had the same argument with himself so many times that he couldn't tell which side made more sense anymore.

So here he sat, looking up at the stage as a young man dressed in white paraded impossible feats before their eyes.

Shinichi had to admit, magic was a lot more amazing than he had thought. Whatever else Kaito might or might not be, he was the best magician Shinichi had ever seen. He told Kaito this the next time they met at the same coffee shop where Kaito had extended his invitation.

Though Shinichi didn't know it, his simple but sincere compliment had meant more to Kaito than any of the hundreds of compliments he had received since restarting his career in Japan.

They stopped counting their meetings after that because they both frequented that coffee shop, and there just wasn't any point keeping track. Both were surprised and delighted to have found someone they could talk to so freely. The detective was happy to have found someone who didn't think it was weird that he was a homicide detective at his age. Kaito was brilliant, and the man knew so much and had done so many things and seen so many places that Shinichi couldn't help but be amazed. Kaito, in turn, found Shinichi to be both intriguing and amusing. The boy was intelligent and extremely knowledgeable, especially considering his young age, but at the same time he was rather naïve about some of the oddest things. It was cute and rather refreshing.

Their friendship developed rapidly after that.

-To be Continued-