Hakuba, detective by nature, had always been a firm believer that where there was a will, there was most certainly a way. There was no beginning without a conclusion, no crime without a culprit, and there was no problem without a solution. That has always been his way of thinking, and nothing, not even Kaitou Kid, had been able to steal that away. But now he was starting to think this was all a lost cause.

He honestly had no idea where everything had gone wrong. He had only started this ordeal with the best intentions at heart, and only the welfare of his friend in his mind, but perhaps the situation had been rather hopeless from the start.

Shinichi had been called out to America a little over a week ago, leaving no certain timeframe for his return. The case he was working on required the capture of one very cunning and particularly underhanded serial killer. One the States had nicknamed the Crossroad Killer. He had been stalking the roads for weeks now, his body count reaching well over two dozen, and the American police were at a loss. Their public was pushing for a capture and the Heisei Holmes was their last hope. Shinichi had yet to come home, and that left Kaito all alone on Christmas Eve.

And a depressed Kaito was a tad bit creepy. That particular Kaito did not play any harmless, albeit annoying, pranks that would bring out a batch of good cheers from his all too pleased audience. He did not jump around spreading merriment in any form he could possibly think of, laughing and smiling all the while. He did not decorate the house, or a tree, with dozens of lights and an endless supply of beautifully hand crafted ornaments and sweet minty candy canes. He did not dress up as an elf and pass out presents to any child that passed by just to see them smile. No, depressed Kaito did not do any of that. Depressed Kaito sat outside the gate of the Kudo mansion looking lonely and, well, depressed.

Hakuba had tried everything to make this better, had even phoned in help from Osaka at the risk of Kazuha giving him an earful when Hattori returned after New Years. The three of them had gone out to eat nothing but deserts (The bill coming out of Hakuba's wallet), seen several movies the magician had been dying to see (The tickets again came out of the Englishman's pocket. Though Hattori did pay for the snacks), had even admitted Kid would most likely never be caught (And he hoped no one had heard him say that out loud), and when all else failed Hattori shoved Hakuba into the snow. Nothing worked!

No matter what the two detectives did Kaito would always end up right back in front of the Kudo family gates, frowning broken heartedly and looking ready to cry.

Hakuba was going insane. "Kuroba this is ridiculous."

Kaito slumped forward a bit more, but ultimately said nothing.

Hattori frowned. "C'mon Kuroba. It's Christmas Eve. Good cheer, and reindeer, and all that!"

"Rudolf."

The Osakan blinked. "Eh?"

"Rudolf is Shin-Chan's favorite reindeer." Kaito said miserably. "When he was younger he used to try and figure out why his nose glowed."

Hattori blinked. "…okaaaay." He coughed awkwardly. "Well then…how bout we make some cookies!" He would ignore for the moment that that was probably the most unmanly thing on the face of the planet he could have said. Right now there was a friend in trouble, and he'd be dammed if he left a man down.

Hakuba snapped. "Good idea Hattori-Kun! You like sweets don't you Kuro-" Hakuba's next words died on his lips at the, if it was possible, even more depressed look on Kaito's face. "What's wrong?"

"Shin-Chan's favorite cookies are chocolate chip. He likes to put strawberries on top of them right out of the oven. That way the strawberry can warm up and get melted chocolate all over it."

Hakuba glared at the Detective of the West heatedly, almost as if to say 'Way to go you incompetent idiot', and turned back to his brooding classmate. A small beep alerted him to the watch on his wrist and the current time. 11:20 PM. They had been on this quest to cheer the magician up for seven hours, and they still had no headway.

"Kuroba that's enough!" Hakuba finally exploded. "This pessimistic overly dramatic and clinically depressed attitude of yours must stop!" Off to the side Hattori tried to signal the other to stop, quickly making cut throat motions and various other 'do not do' signs, but Hakuba was hardly in the mood to listen. "Play a prank, act like an idiot, dye my hair purple, do something!"

Kaito actually stopped moping. Instead he glared at the British detective currently pulling at his hair in frustration. "What would you have me do, huh? In case you haven't noticed I'm not exactly in the mood to act all happy and merry."

"Oh grow up. So Kudo-Kun's not here. Big whoop! It's not as though you can't enjoy a holiday without him."

Kaito stood up and bristled angrily, almost like a cat, Hattori thought, at Hakuba. "You just don't get it, do you? This is supposed to be my first Christmas with Shin-Chan as a couple. You know what that is, don't you Hakuba? It's when a person decides they like you enough to spend time with you, and only you, of their own free will. Then again, maybe you don't, since people don't usually like dealing with pompous as-"

"Okay!" Hattori shouted while getting between the two Edoka students, who looked like they were ready to come to physical blows. "Let's just chill for a second. This is supposed to be a day of peace and joys remember? Happy smiles, good laughs, and not beating up our friends."

Kaito turned his head childishly, but his tone was oddly serious when he spoke. "How am I supposed to be happy when the person that makes me smile is gone? And because of a set of murders no less?" He sighed unhappily, turning sad eyes to the two detectives. "The dead keep taking him away from me, and their murderers get all of my attention. Even on Christmas, a day when it should have been just the two of us."

The detectives shifted uncomfortably. They would both admit that their jobs had a tendency to run into their personal lives, Shinichi's included. It wasn't that any of them meant for it to happen. They just all had a strong sense of justice. They could not stand to let criminals go free when they had the ability to do something about it. They would also admit that it was that pursuit of justice that often left them unable to focus on other, sometimes more important, things, like their relationships. And it was that same pursuit of justice that sometimes made them hurt the ones they cared about most. Like Kaito.

Said boy chose to ignore their discomfort and smiled sadly. "Well, if that's how it is, I won't let them win so easily. I'll just act like this is any other day. Nothing special, nothing valuable they took away from me. There's no use celebrating if there's nothing special there anyway."

Hakuba could sense some slightly twisted logic in that theory, but it still did not sit well with him. "Kuroba it's the holidays. Kudo-Kun would want you to feel happy."

"Well I don't want to be happy without him."

Hakuba, who had seconds ago felt sorry for his love struck companion, quickly reverted back to his angry state. "You are such a child!"

Kaito met his anger head on with just as much force. "And you're such an insensitive prude!"

With the two of them eye to eye like that, right in each other's personal space, glaring as though looks could kill, Hattori was reminded of a scene from an animated movie. The classic look shared by rivals that made it seem like lightening was coming out of their eyes. In fact Hattori could almost swear he saw a spark.

The boys made a grab for each other once again, and it took everything Hattori had in him to get in between the two and keep them apart. That didn't stop them from trying to get to each other's throat despite the odd Osakan sandwich they were in.

"It's not like you haven't had Christmas' without him before."

"And it's not like you've ever been in a decent relationship to know what this is supposed to mean."

"I'll have you know I've in plenty of good relationships."

"Blow up dolls don't count."

"ENOUGH!" With an amazing amount of brute strength he wasn't aware he possessed, Hattori managed to fling the two arguing classmates on opposite sides of the ground. "Would you two look at yourselves? You're actin' like little brats! Genta and Mitsuhiko argue less than the two of you!" He turned his attention to the English detective slowly rising and dusting off his cloths. "Ahou, you can't just go around kickin' a guy when he's down. That ain't the point of this thing!"

Hakuba had the decency to look slightly ashamed.

"And you Kuroba," He said turning to face the magician. "Like we've been tryin' to tell ya, it's Christmas-"

"To hell with Christmas!" Suddenly Kaito was on his feet, standing tall and ready to shout out his emotions so that all of Japan would be able to hear him. "You want to know what I think about Christmas right now?" He did not wait for his shocked friend's to answer. "Bah humbug!"

Then, suddenly, a person's low whistle broke through the air, followed by an amused chuckle. "What a surprising little Scrooge we have here."

The three high school students turned to gaze at a site that had them all gaping. For there, just a few feet away, with bags whose straps were resting on the inside of his elbows, arms crossed with a smile on his face, was none other than Shinichi Kudo.

"And here I thought I was a Grinch."

Kaito looked on with hopeful eyes. "Shinichi? Is that really you?"

Shinichi responded by opening his arms, welcoming Kaito to come and see for himself. The thief wasted no time in quickly glomping the detective. "Shin-Chan!"

Hattori and Hakuba blinked on in confusion before running over to Shinichi's side. Kaito still had a firm grip on him and Shinichi wasn't even trying to protest. Instead he returned the affection he was getting with a fond smile.

Hattori seemed to be the first to gather his wits and speak. "Kudo what are you doing here?"

"I live here."

Hattori tried not to pout. "That ain't what I mean ahou. I thought you were supposed to be in America."

Shinichi shrugged. "I was." He laughed at the look of annoyance on the others face. Hattori never did like one word answers.

Hakuba didn't either, but he knew how to ask the right questions so he could avoid them. "Did you catch the murderer?"

"Sort of." He felt Kaito shift slightly, and was soon looking into his boyfriend's questioning indigo eyes. "He wasn't apprehended in the way I thought he'd be."

Hakuba raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean by that?"

"Did your plan to catch him fail?"

Hattori heard Kaito snort. "Shin-Chan's plans never fail."

Shinichi smiled. Kaito could be pretty darn adorable when he was defending his boyfriend's honor.

"So then spill Kudo-Kun. How did you catch this man?"

A smirk appeared on the detective's face. "You're not going to believe me, but, he turned himself in." He was met with three very confused stares.

"You're not serious."

"You gotta be kidding me."

"You're not lying are you Shin-Chan?"

Shinichi just laughed, placing a small kiss on Kaito's head. "I'm telling the truth. He walked right into the police station, sauntered right up to me, put his hands out and said, 'I did it. I'm the guy you've been looking for.' He then proceeded to tell us all the details about the recent murders in America. Even those that weren't released to the public. Lucky for us seeing as how I hadn't figured out how to trap him yet."

To say that Hakuba was confused would be an understatement. "Why on Earth did he do that?"

The smile that he received was a bit mysterious. It reminded him of one of Kid's smiles, only this one was more sincere. "He said it was gift to the victim's families, as well as a present to the police."

The Detective of the East was only met with more stares of bewilderment.

"Early yesterday morning he had spent time with a family that saw him stranded on the road. They had been separated for quite a while, seeing as how each family member had jobs that required them to be away from home for long periods of time. This would be their first year as a broken family." Shinichi's voice lowered, a tall tale sign that he was upset about what he was going to say next. "Their youngest daughter, who had been battling the early stages of cancer, had been murdered by the Crossroad Killer about two weeks earlier. Still, even in their grief, they took a lonely man off the streets and let him sit at their dinner table, and treated him as one of their own."

"If only they knew." Hakuba found himself whispering.

"After he was ready to leave them, he asked what they would ask for if given the chance to wish for something to make things better. They told him they wanted the man who killed their daughter, the man who kept dozens of police officers away from their families, to be put behind bars where he belongs."

"He was granting them their Christmas wish." Kaito whispered softly, breath tickling the detective's neck. "I wonder why."

Shinichi shrugged the best he could with Kaito still in his arms. "I guess there was still some good in that darkening heart. Perhaps the season and all its pure intention was enough to light it up a bit." He held the boy in his arms a little tighter, an action that had Kaito returning the gesture joyfully. "It's a good thing he turned himself in too, because I was leaving today whether he was caught or not."

To that he got three very inquisitive stares. The Detective of the East motioned towards the large mansion that had most likely been empty since his departure. Kaito would not stay in there alone very long, and no one besides Ran had the key anyway. Speaking of which, Shinichi had to remember to get that back. Ever since he had started going out with Kaito, Ran's overall attitude towards both detective and magician had been very tense. She hadn't stopped talking to Shinichi completely, but she was getting very close to making him chose between her and Kaito. And of course, that was no choice at all.

The boys set up their own little private Christmas party in the Kudo family living room. Shinichi had brought food and drinks, and everyone's present had already been stored at the Kudo household since early December. Before Shinichi had gone to America, all of them had agreed to get together at the mansion at least once during the holiday. It was a good thing Hakuba had not retrieved his gifts like he had planned on doing when news of Shinichi's case grew dim.

After a few good minutes of cheer, Hakuba found he just could not take it anymore. "Kudo-Kun, forgive me, but I have to ask. Just what did you mean when you said you were coming home regardless?"

"Oh that," Shinichi finished off the remnants of his eggnog. He usually hated the stuff, but this particular brand always made their drinks with vanilla and strawberry extracts, which actually made the beverage quite good. "Simple really. I promised Kaito I'd be home for Christmas. I was going to keep my promise."

When the shocked silence arose, Shinichi just had to laugh. "Come on guys. I may be oblivious at times, but I'm not stupid. This is the time of year to spend with friends, family," He paused to give Kaito a loving smile. "Loved ones. How could I have possibly allowed myself to stay in a foreign country, alone, on such an important day?"

Kaito could hardly believe what was coming out of his detective's mouth. The season did more for the heart than even he knew.

"I wasn't about to let myself be taken off task by some murderer."

Hattori and Hakuba could not help but feel a bit ashamed.

"You may have succeeded in that endeavor, Kudo-Kun, but I'm afraid I have not."

"Me neither." Hattori muttered. "We lost our focus completely."

"Oh?" Shinichi raised an eyebrow. "How so?"

"My family."

"Kazuha."

Shinichi's lip twitched upwards into a sly smile. Kaito had only ever seen that look in a mirror. "I think your family would understand. Anyways, aren't they busy hosting some fancy dinner party for the entire police force, or something to that affect?"

Hakuba nodded slowly. "I suppose you're right. And those things get terribly boring when you're the only young person in the entire room."

"And Hattori, didn't you say you wanted a stress free holiday season this year?"

"Yeah. I love Kazuha, as a friend an' all, but sometimes I gotta be away from her to enjoy myself."

"Exactly." Shinichi folded his hands behind his head and leaned into the back of the couch. "As far as I can see, we're all right where we should be, with the people we should be with."

Kaito swore there was something hidden in those words. He just couldn't get past the fact that Shinichi was here and with him enough to figure out what. "Shinichi?"

The detective just winked at him before looking at his watch. "Hattori," He said excitedly. "Go get the gifts. It's almost time."

The presents were scattered amongst the four boys, and eyes stayed on the clock, counting down the moments until the grandfather clock in the Kudo mansion gave them the signal. Christmas day had arrived.

They had been given many gifts from many different patrons, but they had silently decided to save all other gifts for later on in the day. Right at that moment the only presents they wanted to open were the ones from each other.

Hattori tore open his gifts first.

He rolled his eyes at Hakuba's gift, an anger management book with a very detailed list for how to settle down a heated attitude. It also contained a pamphlet for an anger management course that would be taking place right in the heart of Osaka. The detective had somehow known that something of the sort would be coming, but he had hoped Hakuba at least had some class and would give him something decent. Guess not. He raised an eyebrow at Kaito's gift, an inflatable little samurai with a detachable blow up sword. The little samurai had a stamp on the top of his head reading, "Where for art thou Bushido?" He should have expected some odd kind of trinket from the magician. Hattori could not help but smile at Shinichi's gift. It was a little Watson bowler with a small tag inside that asked, "Boswell?" He was quick to put it on and openly boast about it to Hakuba.

The Englishman simply rolled his eyes. "Of course he would pick you to be Watson. I'm too much of his equal to be considered his sidekick." He waited for the inevitable sputter that marked his victory, before he too began to unwrap his gifts.

Kaito had given him a fashion magazine. Attached to the front cover was a note that told him he needed to improve his taste in clothing or risk being alone with nothing but his books for the rest of his life. Had it not been Christmas, Hakuba would have thrown it out. As it was, he simply moved on to Hattori's. The tanned detective had surprisingly been very civil with his gift. The parcel was a new suit jacket the blonde had been eyeing since late November. He almost felt guilty about his gag gift, and promised himself he would make it up to the other later. Shinichi had given him an older addition of one of his favorite Holmes novels, no doubt a tab bit expensive given the condition and certificate of authenticity.

Katio tore open his gifts in an excited frenzy.

Hakuba had given him an amateur magician set. It was a gag towards skill and a bit of a challenge to up his anti for the coming year of heists. It was insulting in intent, but Kaito smiled goodheartedly in spite of that. If a challenge was what the other wanted, a wonderful challenge was what he was going to get. Though, he really should have thought more about that little wish. KID did nothing if not deliver. Hattori had purchased an assortment of funny costumes and useful props. They were intended to be used in whatever magic show the brunette had in mind, but they would find their way to a heist soon enough. Shinichi had given his boyfriend a golden clover with a diamond in its center on a shimmering silver chain.

Shinichi laughed outright at Hattori's gift, a large box filled with good luck charms and methods to keep away bad spirits and the like. It was obvious that the Osakan held no false assumptions that Shinichi's good fortune would remain for the rest of the year. Today was a fluke. A fluke that likely would never happen with such good results again. Hakuba had, practical as always, had given the detective several books that Shinichi had made mention of wanting to read. Kaito, the smirking fox that he was, had given his lover a monocle with dark blue spades dotting the silver rim.

"If it had been anybody else," Shinichi said with a smile, eyes twinkling with a glow that normally only appeared once a year. "I think I may have to be insulted."

The group laughed. They looked towards the tall tree standing proud in the Kudo living room, shining and glimmering in the midnight light of the early Christmas morning.

Hattori found he could not take his eyes off of it. "Well, this may not be what I thought I'd be doing today,"

"But it sure is wonderful all the same." Hakuba finished.

Shinichi raised a glass of eggnog he had placed at his side, the other three in the room following his example, and offered a toast. "To all we hold dear."

Hattori nodded. "To the old problems and the new ones, and all the interesting things that happen with them."

Hakuba rolled his eyes. "To the people we've met, and the people we've yet to see, who will worm their way into our hearts."

Kaito happily chimed in, "To all the adventure we haven't had yet, and all the colors and patterns I can dye Hakuba's hair to."

Shinichi laughed. "And to all the mysteries the four of us will find ourselves solving."

"Cheers!"

And with the final clank of glasses, the story ends. Of course, in the classic Christmas fashion, it is only ever the beginning of something much more.

MistressOfTime1218: Happy holiday's guys. Hope it's a wonderful day for all of you.