Hello! Long time no see! Sorry about that. Though, at this point I imagine you're fairly used to it...orz. Sorry. Again. m(_ _)m
Anyway. Here, finally, and as you requested, is the last chapter of A Snowy Meeting.

The POV in this chapter shifts at line breaks (hopefully you're able to figure out who is who, but I'll put the order at the end to clarify just in case).

Dialogue in this chapter will be as follows:
"words" = spoken dialogue
'words' = thoughs
words = memory

Happy Reading! ^_~

Chapter Start

"Isn't it about time you told me?"

Haibara watched as Conan held back a flinch as he held a glass under the sink's faucet, using a footstool for easier access. She stood leaning against the jamb of the door leading to the professor's kitchen, her arms crossed over her chest and a displeased look on her face. Behind her, the rest of the Shounen-tantei-dan were clamoring about in the living room as they finished getting ready for their day out. Ran and the professor were there as well and were helping to make sure everyone had what they needed (as well as prevent them from taking a lot of things they wouldn't need). With everyone else finally sufficiently distracted, Haibara had finally gotten the opportunity to speak with Kudo alone.

"What are you talking about?" he turned the faucet off and stepped down with his glass of water. He shot her a quizzical look that she didn't buy for a moment. She let her expression fall into an angry scowl.

"You know exactly what I'm talking about. This Kuroba boy. How is it that he's a 'family friend' when Edogawa Conan is a false identity and therefore has no family?"

Conan finished his drink, shooting her at irritated look as he brought the cup down from his face. She didn't back down. Seeing this, Conan rolled his eyes and sighed before turning around. Standing on his tiptoes to put the glass in the sink, he finally spoke without looking at her.

"Nobody ever mentioned the Edogawa family."

"What? What do you…" Conan just looked over his shoulder at her.

Her eyes suddenly widened in realization. "You don't mean!" She glanced around before quickly approaching the detective. "You don't mean family friends with the Kudos!?"

"His dad taught my mom the art of disguise," Conan revealed, not quite meeting her eyes as he ignored the horror she knew was on her face.

"You…" Haibara struggled to wrap her mind around what she'd learned. "Don't tell me he knows?"

"Not the details, but yes." Conan shrugged, still not meeting her eyes. "He knows I'm me."

"Idiot!" Haibara managed to scream while still whispering. She took a step closer. "Are you insane!? You barely know him!" That much had been obvious to her due to the lack of clear answers to the many questions the kids had asked over the last day. "So what if you're mom knew his dad? That's–"

"Haibara," Blue eyes finally met hers and she fell silent at the confident defiance she saw in them. "There's more to it than that, alright? I just…can't go into it with you." He scratched his head. "At least not now – not without speaking to him first. Though…" he grinned lopsidedly, "you might figure it out when you meet him, now that I think about it."

"What do you mean?"

Conan just shrugged. "Just wait and see. You can deal with at least that much. You are the one mostly responsible for this outing taking place, after all," he glared at her slightly.

Haibara almost winced. She hadn't needed Conan to remind her, she'd been well aware of the fact for a while. In her defense though, it had just been so odd to see Kudo texting with someone and for such a long time. At first she'd thought it was with Hattori – she knew they communicated fairly regularly though it was usually the Osakan detective who initiated the exchanges – and that he was telling him about the case. But the more she'd watched him the more she'd doubted that initial suspicion. The expressions the other had made just weren't those that she'd expect in such an exchange between the two. Plus, it had gone on so long. Kudo was usually terse in his phone conversations – she'd heard the Osakan complain more than once about Kudo's habit of hanging up on him.

Finally letting her curiosity win out, she'd asked him about it. Sure, she supposed she could have been a bit more discreet about it, but after the scare he'd given all of them she felt he'd more than deserved to squirm a little. Or at least that's how she'd seen it.

"Conan-kun, Ai-chan." Ran smiled as she walked up to them and cut their conversation off. "Are you all ready? He'll be here any minute."

"Yes Ran-neechan!" Conan gave her his little boy smile, instantly falling into his usual character.

"Y-yes, I'm ready," Haibara also quickly switched masks, though not quite as seamlessly as Kudo had. She and Conan both followed her into the living room to wait with the rest of the group. Ran glanced at her watch just as the doorbell rang.

"Right on time!" she grinned down at the kids as she began to walk towards the door. "I think you'll all be really surprised when you meet him!" She giggled a little.

As the other kids trailed after her, trying unsuccessfully to get the girl to explain her comment, Haibara noticed Conan give a deadpan look before he also began to follow. With nothing else to do, she joined them in front of the door just as Ran reached out to open it.

When she saw the person on the other side of the door, Haibara was just glad she was at the back of the group. Otherwise, someone might have seen her nearly fall down in shock as she was faced with what appeared to be an unprecedented temporal and/or spatial anomaly right in front her eyes.

'T-two Kudos!?' She stared between the two, her mind racing.

Suddenly she recalled having this though before, though at that time she hadn't been quite so shocked. They'd been a Kid heist after all, and she'd known (though hadn't been happy with) the fact that Kid knew about Kudo's shrinkage. She'd admit to being surprised that there hadn't been a mask but she'd immediately grasped the situation (and even got a fair bit of amusement out of it). But this couldn't be Kid. For one, Kid was much better at disguises than this; the more she looked at their visitor, the more differences she began to notice between him and the real Kudo. They did look very similar but…

'Wait. That time. Kid hadn't used a mask – didn't Kudo even say it was probably because Kid likely looked a great deal like him and therefore didn't need one? It…couldn't be.' She stared at the teen at the door while the other kids clamored to meet him. She only barely registered that they were speaking.

"You're really not Shinichi-niichan? You look so much like him!"

"Are you related? Are you twins?"

"Are you a high school detective like him?"

The teen blinked, obviously taken a little aback at the sudden barrage of questions before he laughed and squatted down to their eye-level. "No, I'm not related to Shinichi-san, and I'm not a detective either." He held up a hand and clenched it into a fist in front of Ayumi. A moment later, a yellow rose popped out of the previously empty hand and he presented it the girl. "I'm a magician. Kuroba Kaito. Nice to meet you."

"Wow! That was great Kaito-nii-san!" Ayumi beamed as she held the flower before she began introducing everyone.

Haibara didn't even hear her speaking, her attention riveted on the flower her friend was still holding. 'A magician…?' She recalled what Conan had said to her not five minutes ago.

"You might figure it out when you meet him, now that I think about it."

'No way…?' Her mind raced, going over all the information she had. The expressions Conan had had while texting. Kuroba's father apparently teaching Kudo's mother disguises. The fact that they'd apparently met at Kitanosawa, where they'd witnessed that ski contest; Haibara recalled thinking how similar the teen had looked to the real thing. And hadn't Kudo wandered off right after that contest?

"And this is Ai-chan!"

Haibara started as a hand landed on her shoulder. She looked at Ayumi beaming cheerfully at her, then at the magician she'd just been introduced to who was still squatting at their eye level.

"Nice to meet you, Ai-chan!"

"Haibara," she corrected coolly, a polite smile on her face that she knew wouldn't reach her eyes. She wasn't sure if she was impressed or not that the teen barely blinked before once again smiling winningly at her.

"Haibara-chan, then." He held out his hand and presented her a rose as well. She stared at him for several seconds before giving a mental sigh and taking it.

She sent a glare at Kudo, who pretended not to notice, as the teen stood up looking satisfied. For now, she'd just go along with things while being sure to keep a careful eye on Kuroba. She would corner Kudo later.

"Well, then. How about we head to the park?" Kuroba announced to the group at large. The kids let out an enthusiast cry and ran out the door to wait in the yard. She and Kudo both began walking at a more sedate pace, but they both paused, just out of immediate sight, when they heard Ran speak quietly to Kuroba.

"Are you sure you don't want me to come along?" Ran spoke quietly to Kuroba. "They can be a bit of a handul at times. Especially Conan-kun."

Haibara sent an amused look at Kudo, who looked like he couldn't decide whether to grimace or scowl.

"Really? Him? I never would have imagined it…" Kuroba glanced in their direction, and Haibara had the distinct impression that he knew the two were there and listening.

"He's not bad!" Ran was quick to reassure. "Really, he's just the sweetest." Haibara grinned again as she noticed a distinct redness appearing on the discussed boy's face. "It's just that…well he is very quick to wander off the moment you take your eyes off of him."

"I'll keep that in mind, but I'm sure I'll be fine. You'd be surprised what we magicians can have up our sleeves!" He laughed and quickly snapped his fingers several times, each snap causing a different item to appear in his hand. Although her eavesdropping location offered poor vantage Haibara could make out some of the items: lollypops, a soccer ball, a deck of cards, and what she would swear was one of those child leashes she'd seen commercials for.

When the brief display was over Ran just stared at him for several seconds before she burst out laughing. "Where in the world are you keeping all of that?" She looked him over in wonder, but the magician just grinned and put a finger to his lips.

"Magic."

Haibara smirked when she noticed Conan roll his eyes.

"Well, it looks like you're well prepared. But let me know if anything happens, you have my number."

"Don't worry so much. You have my word that I'll bring them all back, safe and sound, at the appointed time." He gave a deep showman's bow, before turning in their direction.

She and Conan both moved from where they'd listened in. Haibara quickly made her way towards the kids but Conan took a more sedate pace hanging back slightly. Just before she joined the kids by the gate Haibara heard Conan mutter to Kuroba.

"If I see that leash again you're getting a soccer ball up your ass."

'If someone had told me a week ago that this would be how I'd be spending my afternoon…' Kaito shook his head with a grin as he leaned with his back against a tree in the park. 'Ah, well. At least it's warmer now that we're back in Tokyo." The grin widened. 'And I gotta admit, the irony is pretty amusing!' He glanced at his watch.

"And time! Ready or not, here I come~!" Kaito said aloud out as he pulled away from the tree. He quickly scanned the park the children had chosen for their game. After Ayumi had suggested the game, Conan had said that since Kaito was new and didn't know their hiding habits, he should be the seeker. He'd also thrown Kaito a challenging smirk and discreetly ran a finger counterclockwise over the face of his watch. Kaito'd seen it for what is was: a challenge. Kaito had given him an equally discreet nod. He had to admit, even he found the idea of role reversal interesting.

The rules were simple. The kids had five minutes to hide. If Kaito wasn't able to find all of them within 30 minutes they would win, otherwise it was Kaito's win.

The sound of the kids' feet when he'd started counting had scattered in all directions so Kaito called up a mental map of the park and chose a route that would allow him to more or less see the entire park within the time limit. Almost immediately after setting off, his sharp eyes spotted a tree's shadow that was slightly wider that it should have been. Kaito shook his head. Genta's size really was a disadvantage in this sort of game. He approached the tree slowly (he didn't want to hurt the boy's pride too much, but he was on a deadline) before leaning around it.

"Foooound you~!" Kaito grinned at Genta who scowled.

"I'm always the first one!" the boy grumbled.

"Sorry 'bout that," Kaito apologized with a smile. "Shall I give you some pointers for next time to make up for it?" His smile widened slightly as he imagined the look Conan would give him for giving his innocent sort-of-apprentices advice about anything.

"Really?" Genta looked slightly less disgruntled at the suggestion.

"Sure!" He winked. "I was always pretty good at this game myself."

"Well…alright," Genta nodded and Kaito laughed. He turned his attention back the surroundings as he moved on, Genta following silently along behind him as they'd planned.

A couple minutes later, movement out of the corner of his eye had Kaito snapping his attention to the right. 'There. Those leaves.' A dense bush's leaves were moving slightly, out-of-sync with anything the slight wind that day would cause. Looking closer, Kaito was just able to make out the grayish blue jacket he recalled the freckled boy, Mitsuhiko, had been wearing. 'Not a bad hiding place actually. His jacket even blends pretty well with the bush's shadows.' The bush's leaves wiggled again, more strongly this time and Kaito chuckled silently. 'Now he just has to learn to stay still.'

He quickly made his way over to the bush where he reached out to pull apart the branches concealing Mitsuhiko's face.

"Found another," he smiled at the disappointed boy.

"Ah man…I thought I'd chosen a good spot this time!"

"You have to be really still in places like this!" Kaito shook one of the branches slightly, sending all the leaves on it rustling. "The slightest movement gives you away."

He grinned as the boy's eyes widened in realization then reached a hand out to help him from the clingy greenery. As soon as the boy was free, Kaito got back to his route. Nearly five minutes had passed before Kaito finally spotted the smallest member of the group.

Ayumi had chosen a pretty good hiding place beneath the large elephant sculpture/slide that was the centerpiece of the park's playground. It was impossible to see into the crevice unless you were standing at certain angles, and shadows beneath provided cover even when the space was visible.

'Too bad her bright pink jacket negates that cover,' Kaito chuckled to himself as he approached.

"And that's three!" He grinned as he peered into the space.

"Awww…" Ayumi crawled out, a disappointed smile on her face. "How'd you find me?"

"Pink may be cute, but it doesn't work too well for hiding," Kaito winked at her.

Ayumi looked down at herself then laughed.

"You're pretty good at this, nii-san!" Genta announced.

"True, but the real test starts now!" Mitsuhiko brought up a finger and grinned.

"Oh?" Kaito glanced at them as he returned to his planned route.

"Yep! Ai-chan's always really good at this game, and so is Conan-kun!" Ayumi proudly announced.

"Well, as long as he actually remembers to hide!" Genta chuckled. Kaito blinked at that and glanced at them questioningly. As he'd expected, it was Mitsuhiko who responded to the look first, shaking his head in obvious exasperation as he explained.

"Sometimes Conan-kun gets distracted when we play hide-and-seek. There was one time when we were playing on a cruise ship. Haibara-san ended up finding him practicing soccer against a wall instead of hiding."

Kaito couldn't help but laugh as he imagined the scene.

"But you know!" Ayumi quickly jumped in. "When he does hide, he's really good! And he's even better at seeking! He's never once failed to find everyone within the time limit!"

"Imagine that," Kaito muttered and rolled his eyes slightly. 'You could let them win once in a while Kudo.' He silently admonished before glancing at the kids out the corner of his eyes with a grin. "Guess that means it's time to really get serious then huh?"

"Yep. Of course, we can't help 'cuz that'd be cheating, but good luck nii-san!" Genta cheered as the other two nodded encouragingly.

Smiling at the display, Kaito glanced at his watch; 14 minutes had passed since he'd started searching. Considering the look he'd given Kaito earlier, the magician was willing to bet that the shrunken teen was going to be even better at this game than usual. Which meant he'd better find Haibara so he could focus entirely on the detective – having one's attention divided was never as effective after all.

Kaito looked around with a different focus than before. Unlike Ayumi, Haibara didn't seem the type who'd be willing to get dirty for the sake of a simple game. Therefore she'd choose a different type of hiding spot than any of the others. From what he recalled, the girl seemed to want to avoid drawing attention to herself. He'd also noticed during the Kirin's horn case that she had a pretty good grasp of human psychology.

'If you take those facts, along with that…unique personality of hers…' Kaito thought to himself as he scanned the people present in the park. 'She's the type who's more likely to try to blend in rather than outright hide.' It took him a few minutes, but eventually he grinned and began walking purposefully towards a group of women and children standing around a baby carriage.

There, tucked in among several other little girls clamoring to see the newborn baby in the carriage, was Haibara.

"Oh! A baby!" Ayumi squealed as she realized what was going on. Haibara heard her and turned around. Seeing Kaito, she met his eyes then shrugged before turning her attention to Ayumi as she ran up to see the baby as well.

"Looks like neither of them want to leave," Kaito remarked before glancing at the boys as an idea occurred to him. "Why don't you boys stay here to keep an eye on them while I finish the game?"

"Huh? Oh! Sure!" Mitsuhiko puffed his chest up at the thought of being the girls' protector. Genta looked slightly less enthusiastic but agreed as well.

'Perfect. One less thing to worry about while searching for Kudo.' Kaito thought with a grin. He'd noticed Haibara had been eyeing him ever since he arrived; it had reminded him that, whatever her situation may be, she did know the truth about Kudo (the most recent proof of this was her calling him by name at the dam). And the fact that she'd been there when he'd impersonated Kudo meant he should probably watch his step around her until he could talk to Kudo about it.

'12 minutes left,' Kaito glanced at his watch before a familiar grin made itself home on his face. 'It's show time!'

"I can't believe you cheated."

The bubble of laughter that had been threatening to burst out of Conan since the game's conclusion made itself known again as he glanced up at the magician walking beside him and saw the sour glare aimed at him. He swallowed it down before smirking at the magician.

"I didn't cheat."

"You wore a disguise–"

"I just took my glasses off and slipped on a baseball cap. I'd hardly call that a disguise. Especially considering present company." Although, the fact that such a simple ruse had actually worked, had probably only galled the part-time thief more. Oh well.

Kaito glared at him, "and you gave your jacket to another kid and paid him to climb a tree to act as a decoy!"

Ok. There wasn't much he could refute about that part. But…

"I still didn't cheat."

"How is that not cheating!?"

Conan shook his head, more amused than be probably should be at the outrage in the other's voice, "looks like you should practice a bit more at solving riddles instead of making them." Grin never faltering, he repeated the gesture he'd shown the other before the game had started: spinning his finger counterclockwise across the face. A questioning look tinted the scowl in the other's expression and Conan continued.

"I know you got the role reversal part. Now think it through. If you'd taken on my role as detective…" His grin widened as he watched the realization dawn on the other's face. He finished the reasoning silently, 'I took on yours as the law-breaking thief.'

"Dammit…!" Kaito muttered to himself as he scratched his head in frustration. He let out a sigh as he looked to the sky. "And I can't even complain about being caught off guard can I? That is, after all, par for the course. Heh," he looked down at Conan with a reluctant smile. "Looks like you're a better artist than I am a critic, Tantei-kun."

But Conan shook his head at that. He'd seen the way Kuroba had found the other Shounen-tantei-dan. He doubted he could have done any better if he'd been the one searching. "You just need a bit more refinement. With a bit of practice, I think you could make a pretty decent critic of yourself."

"Perish the thought!" Kaito shivered with a laugh. "I'll stick to making the mysteries."

Conan opened his mouth to respond when a familiar voice suddenly shouted in the serene atmosphere.

"Hold it right there!"

"Genta?" Conan looked to where the voice had come from. Ahead of them was the group of women Kaito had described leaving the kids with. At the edge of the group, Genta was pointing at a man wearing a black hoodie and sunglasses who was walking past the group.

"You took this lady's wallet!" Mitsuhiko pointed at a woman who was standing at the edge of the crowd.

"We saw it!" Ayumi held her hands up in fists.

The woman in question blinked and looked into her purse just as the man took off running. A moment later the woman screamed, "They're right! Thief! Someone catch him!"

"Leave it to us!" Genta called, the three of them already off and running.

"He won't get away from the Shounen-tantei-dan!" Mitsuhiko added.

"Wait! You three!" Haibara cried out as she ran after them.

"Those guys…!" Conan scowled as both he and Kaito also took off in pursuit as well. He reached into his pocket for his detective badge. "Oi! What do you guys think you're doing!? Stop!" He yelled into the speaker. A few moments later Genta's eager voice responded.

"Not now Conan! We're busy catching a bad guy!"

"And yet he has time to dig out that badge and answer you," Kaito muttered and shook his head. Conan growled in agreement as he watched the pickpocket quickly approach the line of trees and bushes that ran along the street at the edge of park.

"Idiot! That's why I'm telling you to stop!" The pickpocket disappeared from sight through the tree line, the young trio quickly following suit. "It's dangerous!"

"You just want all the – wah! Look ou-!"

The transmission cut off at the same time as the sound of screeching tires, honking horns and then the sickening sound of crunching metal froze the breath in Conan's lungs.

"Ayumi! Genta! Mitsuhiko!" He screamed just as Haibara also disappeared from view, her face discernibly whiter even from a distance.

Distantly, he noticed that Kuroba had disappeared from beside him and was now several body lengths ahead of him with the gap growing. Ignoring the already painful burning in his legs, he forced his shrunken limbs to go even faster. He felt a vicious satisfaction when he noticed the gap between the magician and himself had stopped growing.

It felt like an eternity had passed since he'd heard the crash (though that always-logical distant part of his brain recognized it had been less than 10 seconds) when suddenly a pop of static brought Conan's attention back to the detective badge he'd all but forgotten he was still holding in his hand.

"They're ok," Haibara voice was thick with relief and Conan felt his heart start beating again. Ahead of him he saw the magician's shoulders relax as well. A few moments later they both passed through the tree line and could confirm with their own eyes what Haibara had told them.

Ayumi, Mitsuhiko and Genta were all huddled together near the edge of the sidewalk staring out into the street, white as sheets but unscathed.

The same couldn't be said of the red Toyota Corolla sitting across the street, halfway onto the sidewalk with its front end getting intimately familiar with a light pole. A glance at the skid marks, sudden and almost immediately veering to the side, made it clear that the driver had been trying to avoid something. The driver, a business man in his early 30's, was just getting out the car, hand on his head and a dazed look on his face.

'And the something he was trying to avoid…?' Conan asked silently as he continued to scan the scene. A blur of black motion caught his eyes and he focused on it just in time to see the pickpocket, now with a slight limp, disappear down a narrow side street not far from the damaged car.

'He's not even bothering to check for injured in the accident he caused…!' Conan glared in outrage, his body moving before he was even fully aware of it. He did glance both ways before leaping off the curb, though – one accident was enough.

"Haibara, check on the driver!" He called, not even glancing at where she was standing with the kids. He was across the street and at the mouth of the alley a few moments later. He could see the pickpocket already preparing to turn a corner at the end.

"You're not getting away!" Conan yelled out as he released a soccer ball from his belt and knelt down to power up his shoes. He kicked the ball just as the man looked back towards his voice.

The black and white missile hit the man square in the face and sent him flying to land on his back a good five feet back, where he lay groaning in pain and barely conscious.

A whistle behind him had him spinning to see Kaito standing behind him, a hand shading his eyes and grin on his face as he stared at the pickpocket. "Nice shot. I almost feel sorry for him."

"Don't," Conan scowled darkly. "He's just lucky nobody was killed back there."

Kaito's face sobered instantly and he nodded. Snapping his fingers, a roll of duct tape appeared in his hands. He gave Conan a slightly darker-than-usual smirk before he went over and securely bound the man's arms and legs; the detective couldn't help but notice that the magician chose to secure the tape to the man's wrists and ankles directly, instead of over his clothes. Conan couldn't bring himself to criticize the choice.

They left the man where he lay and headed back out of the alley. A police car had already arrived. Conan could see a pair of officers over by the kids. Judging by the looks on all faces involved, Conan was willing to bet the three were getting a harsh lecture regarding their reckless actions.

Haibara, who'd been leaning against the rear of the Corolla watching the kids nod and apologize to the officers, saw them come out of the alley and walked over to meet them.

"How's the driver?" Conan asked as soon as she was close enough.

"He is suffering from severe hyperextension and hyperflexion in the splenius capitus, trapezius, and splenius cervicus as well as a mild traumatic brain injury."

Beside him, he could see Kaito's eyes growing wide in worry as the miniature scientist spoke but he just leveled her with a flat look as he crossed his arms.

"So he has whiplash and a concussion," he translated. Beside him, he could almost imagine the mental prat fall the other was likely experiencing. Haibara just smirked at him, though the glance she threw at the magician was all but dancing in sadistic amusement.

"Correct. He'll likely be asked to stay in the hospital overnight for observation before being sent home tomorrow with pain medication and an at-home physical therapy regiment."

"In other words, he'll be fine?" Kaito asked, still looking a bit stunned.

"Most likely, yes." Haibara smiled at him innocently. Conan huffed, rolling his eyes.

Kaito continued to stare at Haibara for several more long seconds before he looked up and around their immediate vicinity. Seemingly satisfied with whatever he'd been looking for he knelt down to their level before whispering to Conan.

"Please tell me that she's the same as you."

Haibara felt her breath freeze and body tense even as she desperately told herself not to react to the wild-haired teen's words. The implication behind those words and the possible repercussions that could result sent her imagination, fueled by the material of dozens of nightmares, into overdrive.

She could see herself and Kudo, their childish masks suddenly shattering and revealing their true faces to the world – including the shadows hunting in the darkness. With their true identities revealed, those shadows would quickly converge on them to snuff them out, as well as all the people they were connected to and who they'd been so desperately trying to protect.

'Calm down. He already knows about Kudo. Has for a long time now if he's really Kid.' And by now she was 99% sure he was. 'And nothing's happened. So, it'll be fine.'

Unfortunately, Hairaba already knew there was a problem with that hypothesis: she's not Kudo. And while their situations were similar, there's a key difference.

Since the Black Organization's so focused on remaining hidden, it had adhered to a strictly need-to-know basis for information sharing among its members. That way, even if a low rank member was caught or decided to go to the police, the information they could provide about the organization as a whole was very limited. As a result of this policy, the number of people who were aware of the fact that "Kudo Shinichi was killed by the Black Organization" was relatively few.

Truthfully, had Kudo been killed by normal means, the number of people who would've known it had been by the Black Organization probably could've been counted on one hand – well, maybe two considering how well-known he and his parents are. The fact that he'd ended up being the first human test subject for APTX 4869 had brought Shiho and her fellow scientists into the loop. When a body failed to turn up, a few more were added. Still, by the time she'd officially registered Kudo as dead in the Organization's database, she doubted more than 30 people had been made aware that Kudo Shinichi had any connection to the Black Organization.

The fact that so few within the Organization knew he was supposed to have been killed by them meant that even if a member happened to overhear Ran and Sonoko talking about him, or even if they'd seen him during one the times he'd briefly returned, the chances were fairly high that they'd fail to notice the significance of it; the only mention of it might be a passing comment one might make about seeing a celebrity on the street. And that was Kudo's biggest problem; if even one rumor or internet post about someone having seen "that famous high school detective that disappeared a while back" reached one of the 30 odd people who knew…it would all be over.

But she was different. Miyano Shiho had been in the organization practically all of her life, and her role in the development of the APTX 4869 had given her quite a bit of notoriety; she'd met or at least heard of a fair number of codenamed agents. So, as far as the Black Organization's standards went, she'd been fairly well-known. Then she'd turned traitor and vanished.

Haibara had no doubt that every codenamed agent, and possibly even some unnamed, had been ordered to memorize her face and report immediately if any sign was seen of her – she already knew that some of the higher members, like Gin, had been given permission to kill on sight.

In other words, her true identity was much more dangerous than Conan's. It was a fact that had always weighed heavily on her mind, and a burden that she'd nearly given in to on more than one occasion. Eventually, she had come to accept it. But that didn't mean that she wasn't still acutely aware of the danger she posed to those around her.

And that was why she was still panicking now. Even if it had been safe for this Kuroba Kaito to know Kudo's identity, there was no guarantee that the same could be said for hers.

Despite her attempt to hide it, Kuroba had obviously picked up on her tension. Without waiting for a response, he turned from Kudo to her. And as he looked into her eyes, something in his expression shifted. She couldn't say how exactly, the difference was too minute, but it was a shift nonetheless. And then suddenly he was sitting down crossed-legged in front of her, a grin on his face and an understanding look in his eyes.

"You're a child prodigy like him, right?"

"Eh?" Haibara blinked, her panicked thoughts stuttering to a standstill at the unexpected words.

"That's what I'm hoping at least," Kuroba continued blithely as if she hadn't responded at all. "Because it means any comparison between me as a child to you two wouldn't count."

"Why would that matter?" Conan quipped, an eyebrow raised. Haibara glanced from him to Kuroba and back, her shaken mind struggling to reboot and process the situation.

"Of course it matters!" Kaito held up a finger. "I happen to have a fairly good opinion of my childhood intelligence – not that I'm one to brag-"

Conan's snort interrupted him, sounding equal parts amused and disbelieving.

"Much," Kuroba conceded with a mischievous smirk, inclining his head slightly. "But if you two are rated among the group of 'normal' kids, it would drop my own rating!"

"Oh? So you're openly admitting we're smarter than you were as a child?" Conan grinned at him.

Kuroba's faced scrunched into an annoyed frown, "Hardly. I'm saying that you can't compare the two."

"But aren't prodigies by definition smarter than their normal counterparts? If you're including yourself among the 'normal' kids then you're basically saying we're smarter than you."

"I'm saying that any comparison between the two is tainted from the start! It's like trying to rate a rabbit in a room full of doves!" Kuroba rolled his eyes dramatically.

'He- He's giving me an out…' Haibara stared at the teen, her eyes widening in realization as her mind finally freed itself from the dark visions it had conjured.

Kuroba had given control of the situation to her. He'd left it completely up to her how much, if anything, she chose to reveal.

'But why?' she mentally questioned, instinctively suspicious. 'I don't have a repertoire with him. Not like Kudou does. Is it just because of my connection to Kudou?' That was plausible, but somehow it didn't feel quite right.

Thinking back, she tried to recall the moment when the teen's demeanor had changed. 'Right. It was when he noticed how tense I was.' She'd been too absorbed in her mind's imaginings to really take much in at the time but now, as she ran through those few moments with a clear head, she realized something.

After all of her experiences in the Organization, Haibara knew a poker face when she saw one; she'd already admitted to herself that Kuroba Kaito had one of the best she'd ever come across. But at that moment, when he'd sat down and met her at equal level, he'd allowed the mask to drop from his eyes.

The understanding in his eyes had been real.

The last shreds of doubt she'd had regarding the other's identity fell away completely. The wild-haired magician still bantering with Kudou in front of her really was the infamous thief Kaitou Kid. And because he was Kaitou Kid he could understand.

"There's more to it than that, alright?"

That's what Kudou had told her when she'd asked how he could let Kuroba know his identity just because of their family connection. Once she'd realized his likely identity, she'd thought he'd been referring to the fact that the thief had figured out the truth without being told. But it was more than that.

Kuroba Kaito was also someone who lived a second life nobody could know about. He too faced dire consequences if anyone realized the truth - and not only arrest; Haibara knew you didn't get to be as infamous as Kaitou Kid without making enemies in the underworld. He'd understood completely what Haibara had been going through because he'd gone through it himself.

'And likely very recently as well, if Kudou-kun stuck to his usual methods,' Haibara almost smiled at the thought.

Seeming to finally sense her stare, Kuroba turned away from Conan and refocused on her. She sensed him studying her for a few moments before he grinned widely.

"So Haibara-san? You never answered! Are you a rabbit? Or a dove?"

Haibara blinked at the teen for several moments, while her brain processed the seemingly incongruent question. 'I'm starting to get the feeling that that's a common effect of being around him…' She mentally shook her head before reexamining the situation.

Kuroba Kaito could understand their situation. No. More than that. He could relate to it; he could empathize with it. Probably better than anyone outside the shrunken pair themselves. In addition, there was this new friendship between him and Kudou. Logically, Haibara recognized that Kuroba was probably safe.

But her paranoia wasn't something that was so easily overcome; it wouldn't let her ignore the 'probably' in that sentence. Probably wasn't the same as certainly. So for now, perhaps it was best to take the out Kuroba had given her.

But she'd do so her own way.

She tilted her head as if in thought before shaking her head, "I think I'm more of a hawk myself."

"A hawk?" Kuroba blinked. Beside him, Conan raised an eyebrow at her.

"Yep!" Haibara smiled, pulling up her own child persona. "They fly high up all on their own and observe the world from a distance with their sharp eyes! Plus…" She let her mask fall as she smirked at him, "they've been known to prey on both rabbits and doves."

The wide-eyed startled, almost-but-not-quite-scared look on Kid's face was absolutely priceless; Conan's deadpan was also pretty amusing. Holding back laughter, she turned her back on them and made her way back toward the kids.

'So. A hidden friendship between a detective and a thief, huh?' She thought to herself. 'Well, maybe I'll at least get some entertainment out of it at.'

A commotion at the mouth of the alley brought her attention there just in time to see a man with a heavily bruised face and duct taped limbs hopping between a pair of police officers towards a police cruiser.

As she glanced over at Kudo and Kuroba and saw a remarkably similar smirk on both of their faces, she decided to delete the 'maybe' from her last thought.

Owari

As promised, here's the order of POV: Haibara - Kid - Conan - Haibara. Though again, I'm hoping it was apparent while reading.

So! That's the end! Honestly, I can't believe it's been more than two YEARS since I posted the first chapter of this story! That fact that I only managed 6 1/2 chapters in two years is...pretty sad. I've GOTTA do better next time! And YES! There will be a next time! I've hinted at it before, but I'll make it official now: there will be a sequel to this - in fact, I hid the title of it in this chapter!

Please let me know what you thought! It was your reviews that got this story to this point - thanks for all your support and I hope to see you next time!

Until then! ^_~