#now I can be extra annoying and say that not only is my kaito impression award winning but the cosplay is too

[beehivian]

Also here's the build book I submitted at Anime Fusion for Anniversary Kaito if anyone here is curious

[drsweetzscenarios]

Kiibo, Ryoma, and Kokichi (Seperately) With a fem! Ultimate Neko.

Wow! My first request! I hope you like this, anon! I had a lot of fun with this request! Anyway happy reading! I couldn’t really think of anything for Ryoma so he just gets a lil extra headcanons. And I may or may not have been a lil sappy for Kokichi’s but I overall enjoyed fulfilling this request!

Keebo, Ryoma, and Kokichi with a Fem!Ultimate Neko!S/O

Keebo

This was a “love at first sight” kind of deal

You two were the only non-human people in the class!

I headcanon that whenever Kiibo experiences something new, he watches a bunch of anime or reality tv shows to prepare for the moment itself.

If TV told him anything people like you had to stick together!

On the plus side, you were realllllllllllly pretty so it was only natural he introduced himself to you!

I mean he knows how to play it cool!

So-

“Hello! I am K1-B0, the Ultimate Robot! But please, address me as Kiibo!" He waved to you, all the while his internal fans were cooling himself down.You flinched, ears and tail pricked up before calming down. “Oh! My apologies! Did I startle you?” Did he already screw up??“Oh no, it’s alright! Kiibo-Kun, It happens!” Kiibo sighed internally. THANK GOD HE DIDN’T SCREW UP IN FRONT OF A PRETTY GIRL!

“Oh, where are my manners? I’m (Y/N) (L/N)! The Ultimate Neko! Nice to meetcha!” You smiled cutely, your fangs showing slightly. A Neko? What’s that? And then he looked it up…He then turned red. “O-oh! Tha-That’s cool!” He may or may not have come across a very “informative” source.

Thank you internet!

Now Kiibo doesn’t know how to talk to you!

Yay!

But after months of encouragement from Kaede, Kaito, Maki, Shuichi, Miu, and Kokichi Kokichi just threatened to prank him for the rest of his days as if he wasn’t going to already

He finally confessed!

And it all went uphill from there.

When people make remarks about you, you can expect a “HEY! THATS NEKOPHOBIC!” from Kiibo almost immediately after they said that.

He started watching a lot of animes with nekos in them recommended by Tsumugi since he was wayyyyyyyyyy too embarrassed to ask you about it.

Cuddle time is the absolute best for you two.

WHY ARE YOU SO WARM??

KIIBO WANTS THAT

You two were cuddling and thanks to your warmth, you took care of both of your needs for warmth.

“Sweetie...Can I tell you something?” You wrapped your tail around him and your ears were pinned to your head. You were clearly drowsy. “Yes, (Y/N)?” He wasn’t really sure for a nickname and couldn’t think of a good one so he just calls you by your name with no honorifics. ”Just know I love you, alright? No matter what..” and then you were about to fall asleep but then you noticed something.

Kiibo had shut down.

His face was bright red and he shut down.

You killed him.

Thanks a lot (Y/N) >:(

Ryoma

He went to his usual place for cats, that one alleyway he always went when he needed to breathe after a long day.

The first day at Hope’s Peak Academy is nerve-wracking.

Even the calmest person would agree so

Besides, he was a criminal

Everyone would either avoid or question him

As he rounded the corner, he saw someone

He didn’t get a good look but-

He knew they wouldn’t want to get involved with a criminal.

So he left, thinking that they didn’t notice him

Oh how wrong he was.

“Hey! You’re that guy!” Ryoma just looked over to you, internally scanning your appearance. “Yup, but I don’t think you’d like to associate yourself with me so bye” He was about to walk off before you interrupted “Wha?? I have no idea what you’re talking about?” You flicked your tail quizzingly. ”I saw you the other day! Were you going to visit the cats?” Your head tilted slightly.

”Do you like cats? Oh! I forgot to introduce myself! I’m the Ultimate Neko, (Y/N) (L/N)!” Too bright, he thought. “And you are?” Your wide eyes blinked. "Ryoma Hoshi, the man called the Ultimate Tennis Pro... no longer exists. I'm nothing more than his empty shell." “Huh? Well maybe if we try hard enough we can make that empty shell not so empty!”

After that you two were attached to the hip

You asked him out since Ryoma being Ryoma didn’t expect you to return his feelings so he kept quiet.

There is already plenty people scared of him so you don’t need to worry about anyone commenting on your appearance.

Cuddles?

Daily Cuddles.

This relationship is so wholesome-

I swear-

You both depend on each other so much-

You are each other’s comfort

Home.

Etc.-

And finally

FINALLY

Ryoma doesn’t feel like a criminal

Kokichi

One of his D.I.C.E. members was on a call the other day

Kokichi, being curious, may have over heard a conversation about the caller going to Hope’s Peak and being nervous, slightly nervous?

Though the caller’s deadpan tone didn’t really help with conveying that...

So the caller is going to be in his year :o

This will be very interesting!

Also the D.I.C.E. member seems to be calling you ‘kitty-chan’ or ‘neko-san’ or something...

Probably a nickname thing!

"I'm Kokichi Oma, the Ultimate Supreme Leader!" You blinked. Then blinked again. ”I... didn’t ask...” You then looked back to the window. Her voice is … familiar... He thought.

“Well, I'm just the supreme leader of an evil secret organization. That's all. I gotta say, it's pretty impressive. My organization has over 10,000 members! Or not!" You glanced at him as your tail brushed against his shoes. “So I’ve heard...” you patted his head. You knew who he was. Your childhood friend worked for him. Your friend always talked about D.I.C.E. so they of course talked about their leader.

“What about you?” “Oh.. I’m the Ultimate Neko, (Y/N) (L/N). Nothin’ special”

And so began your friendship began

Well not really it was more like Kokichi’s questioning and in turn you sorta followed him around.

Then you became closer and *BOOM* you started dating each other

Your D.I.C.E. member friend gave him the “talk” and he had the ok to continue dating you.

Whenever someone dares to make a negative remark about your appearance, they get the same treatment that Miu does for the rest of their life

He asks you annoying questions sometimes that are meant to tease but you know that it is like I said just teasing so you don’t respond.

You don’t really smile or laugh at all, but Kokichi knows you still feel.

You just don’t express easily.

It was cuddle time after a long day of Kokichi’s pranking and school. Kokichi no matter how tall you are is the big spoon and he’s teasing you.

“Who knew your ears were so fluffy, cutie cat-chan?” He continued to pet your ears softly and gently. He snickered, his eyes closed but once he opened them... He saw something he always dreamed of seeing.

Your smile... It was happy, cheerful yet it was soft. He always wanted to see it but. He never thought it would look this...perfect and so you. One of the softest people he knew.

“So pretty...”

“What was that?” “N-nothing!” You had heard Kokichi loud and clear. Plus he was really flustered. First time you ever saw him like that. So today was a great day for the both of you.

[squidpro-quo]

can we have more blind!kaito au? i really love it so much, your writing is really warm and pleasing

Ahhh thank you so much, anon! I tried to make this installment warm and pleasing in content, so I hope you enjoy it! I’ve always loved this commonality between them, so I couldn’t resist. 

Part 5

Hakuba was annoyed to admit that he didn’t have a good guess as to where or what Kaito intended to do for their date. He’d picked up on what he’d thought were clues during lunch, when Kaito had been far too enthusiastic about his chicken curry to be normal, and tried to catch sight of any braille pamphlets in Kaito’s desk or backpack but all he’d found was a ziploc bag of raisins. 

The best he could figure out was that Kaito was being overly eager about food, although he couldn’t condemn the practice of carrying extra snacks as all that suspicious. It was a habit he’d found Kaito was fond of, even going so far as to pass him small pieces of chocolate or candy during class as if it were a personal point of pride for how many Kaito could line up on the edge of Hakuba’s desk before he started eating them. In lieu of notes, he took this to be their way of communicating during lessons, he’d taken keeping a few packets of pumpkin seeds in his pocket to pass back, as a counterpoint to Kaito’s sweet tooth. 

But none of that helped him unravel this current mystery. As much as he hated to admit it, Kaito was still good at surprising him both intentionally and unintentionally. On the other hand, he found he didn’t mind it when Kaito was the one on the other side of the puzzle. It wasn’t a case to solve for the police, it invoked no harm on anyone and he could enjoy the way it tickled his brain without the shred of guilt that sometimes overtook him when he was working a murder. He could understand the allure of KID’s heists, with their spectacles and captivating performances that left no one hurt beyond the momentary sting of bruised pride over another victory for the thief. What guilt did niggle at him though was on the count of his actions at the heist and what he could almost certainly say he knew… and what he would do about it. 

He stood by the school’s gate lost in those considerations, the curiosity and the uncertainty warring in his mind until he was taken unawares by a stick thwapping against his legs. 

That was another thing he’d grown used to. Kaito let him pass safely by his desk now, but his customary greeting remained a swift tap on his shins whenever they met, as if to remind him where they started out from. It was accompanied by a hand curling around the crook of his elbow and Kaito tugged him immediately into motion down the sidewalk. 

“Wait, Kaito, where are we going?” Hakuba asked, not resisting and falling into step beside him easily. His stick swept out ahead of them, with Kaito leading the way as they crossed a street to the beat of the beeper in the walk sign. 

“You didn’t figure it out? Saguru, I expected you to know by now.” The sly grin that stole across Kaito’s face made Hakuba’s spluttering protests a little less indignant. “Going soft because of my wonderful charming self?” 

Hakuba’s heart ached at the playful jibe, both because it was true and because he didn’t know how to reconcile that softness with what he did and what he might have to do. Focusing on the sun filtering through the leaves overhead, the signs along the roadside, he struggled to stay in the moment. 

“Maybe.”

“Maybe? Guess I’ll have to work harder then, I thought I’d made some headway! But this should help me out with that.” With those words, Kaito turned sharply and pivoted Hakuba around his axis until they were facing into a park entrance, the path leading to a large domed enclosure that blocked almost all views past it. The sheer scope of it was breathtaking, the hemisphere composed of panes of glass that revealed the greenery inside, a door set in the side that Kaito quickly made a beeline towards. 

“Kaito…Are we allowed—”

“I asked. And this is its inaugural day, they want people to spread the word.” 

Hakuba pulled the door open for them both seeing as both of Kaito’s hands were full, the noise inside washing over him at the same time that realization did. 

Chirps and calls flooded his ears, the small waiting area they stepped into filtering out none of it despite another door separating them from the true interior. After that, the true breadth of the aviary opened up before them. Birds roosted on almost every tree, flitting between branches and sounding off mating calls with persistent regularity. He could see an owl perched in the back, a nest of robins sheltered in a nearby tree and several pigeons cooing on a high roost. 

“They’re all rescues, either injured or found as abandoned chicks. Released when they’re old enough, or kept safe if they can’t.” 

“A ryukyu scops-owl...an okinawa woodpecker too.” Hakuba said, voice hushed as he craned his neck slowly around the space, trying to catch a glimpse of every species present. There were some he’d never seen before, though he could identify them by their coloring and distinctive shape from perusing the ornithology dictionary he kept beside Watson’s perch for when they ventured out into the back gardens. It was one thing to spy these species from afar, and another to see them flitting overhead only meters away. 

“Maybe I should have held back a bit, it sounds like you’re more enamored with these guys than you are with me,” Kaito chimed in after another minute of Hakuba’s continued name dropping. “You haven’t even found the greatest treasure here yet.” 

“What do you mean?” Hakuba finally focused back on Kaito, who tilted his head while he stowed his folded stick in his pocket. He shifted his arm from Kaito’s grasp and threaded his fingers through Kaito’s free hand, squeezing it gently as he tried to comprehend how warm he felt inside, how indescribably soft his heart was from the care that Kaito had taken in planning their date. 

“Just listen,” Kaito said, smiling enigmatically. Pursing his lips, he whistled a distinct note that morphed into a higher register, before pausing. The same unique sound came back, shrill with the caw of an answering bird. Kaito repeated it again, one hand held straight out as he mimicked the bird’s call with unnerving accuracy. Hakuba couldn’t have told the two apart if he’d tried, the cadence and scratching trill were one and the same, the level of skill required to be the real parrot in the aviary was not lost on him. 

A flap of wings and where Kaito’s fingers had been splayed now rested a small dove, beak colored orange and a stripe of white splashed across its face like a mask. Its feathers were  a beautiful green, vibrant as a spring bough and it ducked its head to preen briefly. 

“How did you…” To say Hakuba was impressed would have been an understatement, he’d had to coach Watson to come on command for weeks before the falcon responded and Kaito had charmed a bird down with just a few notes. 

“It’s an emerald dove,” Kaito answered the question Hakuba hadn’t asked, shifting his hold to reveal the raisins he’d hidden in his palm.

Hakuba huffed out a laugh, careful not to be too loud lest he scare the bird but the implication of the name was not lost on him. However, he couldn’t agree with Kaito, because the greatest treasure in there wasn’t resting in Kaito’s hand, but in his. It was a sappy thought, one he’d never expected to have, and it cemented a resolution in his mind.

[balancingdiet]

Comparison

Detective Conan & Magic Kaito Characters: Kaito/Shinichi & Heiji Words: 1700 ish Required Fic: Tabula Rasa Extra: (1) (2) (3) (4)

“So... is it safe for me to say I’m your best neighbour too?” 

“Yes, I will. Okay— I promise I’m gonna do it now.” Kaito closed the kitchen tap and clamped his phone in between his cheek and shoulder before heaving the filled watering-can out of the basin.

“Thank you, Kaito-botchama,” Jii said on the other line, but Kaito recognised more exasperation than satisfaction in Jii’s tone.

“I’mma hang up now, see you later.”

Cancelling the call, Kaito carried the watering-can in one hand and stumbled out to his backyard, and with his other hand, he went to his clock app and set three alarms.

Well, Kaito really couldn’t blame Jii for his worries and reminders these days, especially after Kaito recently got so distracted with his own things and nearly missed the hour of his heist; and Jii was almost desperate enough to act as Kaitou Kid then.

And this didn’t just happen once, but twice.

Standing in his backyard, Kaito glanced over to Shinichi’s house.

There were indeed loads of distractions lately.

Kaito ambled over his rose plantations and began watering them, as what he normally did.

“Wow, you have plants.”

Kaito blinked, glancing towards the fence that cut between his and Shinichi’s house.

Rather than the owner of the backyard, Kaito found the other dark-skinned detective — Hattori Heiji — the man that wasn’t easy to forget, given his reputation and the incident that nearly scarred Kaito for life.

Hattori was looking around Shinichi’s backyard in amazement, as if it was the first time he’d ever seen a patch of grass with two pots of plants... Or maybe it was the first time he’d seen Shinichi’s backyard, and knowing that Shinichi was plant-stupid in many sense, the two potted plants must be as impressive as running a country.

And speaking of first time, this was also the first time Kaito saw Shinichi ever had any visitor, well, save for Mouri Ran, the only unexpected and uninvited one.

All of the sudden, Hattori turned, spotting Kaito from where he was.

“Eh, your neighbour’s there too.” Hattori gave a wave. “Hello!”

Right there and then, Shinichi stepped out of his backyard door, his face looking all frozen and awkward.

This could be fun.

Kaito grinned and waved back; but of course this wouldn’t be enough to consider fun. Putting the watering-can down, he walked towards the fence, and with every step closer, Shinichi looked more and more disgruntled...

Eventually, Shinichi pinched the bridge of his nose, looking absolutely done with Kaito, or Hattori, or basically the entire situation.

“Nice to meet ya,” Hattori said as he put a hand over his chest. “I’m Kudo’s best friend and greatest rival.”

“And his name is also Hattori Heiji,” Shinichi mumbled before gesturing weakly over Kaito’s face. “And he’s my neighbour, Kuroba Kaito,” he said to Hattori.

Best friend and greatest rival... Kaito propped an arm over the fence. “Is it safe for me to say that I’m your best neighbour too?”

Shinichi couldn’t look any more resigned than this. He turned away, ignoring Kaito and attempted to tug Hattori out of his backyard. “Ok, anyway—”

“Wait a minute.” Hattori’s eyes narrowed at Kaito suspiciously, and Kaito felt a shiver ran down his spine. “Why does it look so familiar?” Hattori added.

Kaito blinked, barely holding back the urge to touch his face, and it took a much greater effort to stop himself from giving a nervous swallow too.

The fun sure lasted shorter than Kaito expected.

But it wasn't just Kaito that was stumped; Shinichi’s eyes looked like they were going to fall out any moment.

“What?” Shinichi spat.

Hattori scratched his chin, and he looked like a curious monkey when he did. “I’ve seen it before…”

Shinichi stepped a little closer to the fence, as if trying to block Hattori’s view of Kaito. “What are you talking about—”

“That shirt, ya.” Hattori pointed to Kaito’s chest. “I’ve seen you worn it before.”

Kaito looked down.

Crap. He certainly played himself this time; he hadn’t realized he was wearing Shinichi’s shirt today, the one Shinichi changed him out on the night he bled a mess out of his Kid’s clothes.

He nervously glanced up, coincidentally meeting Shinichi’s eyes before turning to Hattori, who still had the same squinty look on his face.

“Uh,” Shinichi began. “Yes, what a coincidence that my neighbour has the same shirt as me.”

This was the stupidest thing Kaito ever heard, but he doubt he could complain about the excuse when he didn’t have anything better to say. He tried to add a laugh, hoping it was enough to ease the situation.

But then again, Hattori wasn’t named the Detective of the West for nothing. “Right—”

“Anyway, there’s nothing in my backyard besides the two plants, so let’s head back in,” Shinichi said. Hattori was obviously not listening as he was still scrutinising Kaito and the shirt, but he didn’t have the opportunity to comment anything else as Shinichi successfully dragged him back into his house.

The backyard door closed.

A cooing sound made Kaito turned as he stared at his two doves—Touma and Curry—perched one the other end of the fence.

Kaito scorned. “You two... enjoying the show?”

Curry cooed.

Shaking his head, Kaito headed back to his watering-can.

—— 

After Kaito finished watering his plants, he walked out of his house, played with his own mailbox latch for a bit before heading to Shinichi’s one.

No bird poop stain.

No reason for Kaito to be here then.

But that wasn’t going to stop him from doing what he wanted. Kaito leaned against Shinichi’s mailbox, fingers drumming across the top. Shinichi’s car was still parked at the usual spot, but Kaito was sure he had heard Shinichi’s front door opened and closed beforehand. He stared down at the empty street, the only path Shinichi could take to go to the train station, or anywhere else; Kaito’s house was on the end of the block anyway—

And Kaito was right, as he spotted Shinichi’s returning with both of his hands tugged deep inside his pockets. Hattori was nowhere in sight.

Kaito placed his elbow on the mailbox and rested his chin against his palm. As Shinichi got much closer, and clearly already spotting him from the distance, Kaito spoke, “You haven’t answered my question.”

Shinichi looked confused, but he expressed that with a frown. “I don’t remember any question,” he replied, stopping his tracks before Kaito.

“So...” Kaito grinned. “Is it safe for me to say that I’m your best neighbour too?”

Shinichi rolled his eyes. “What do you think?”

“Yes?”

Kaito expected Shinichi to not reply, but he didn’t expect Shinichi to return to his house so soon when their conversation barely started. Kaito stared at Shinichi’s back and observed the slump on his shoulders, which Kaito didn’t notice earlier in the backyard when Shinichi was mostly tensed the entire time.

He wondered what Hattori was here for, and what they had talked about in the house. And if... it had anything to do with Mouri Ran.

Then, to Kaito’s surprise, Shinichi suddenly stopped and turned, looking at Kaito over his shoulder.

“What?” Shinichi muttered.

Does he have eyes on his back? “Nothing.” Kaito said.

Kaito knew what it was like to have his problems meddled with when he didn’t want it to be, and Kaito wasn’t going to be that hypocrite. Like what Shinichi said a long, long time ago, if he wanted the answers, he should wait when the time was right, or let the answer eventually come to him.

And if Shinichi didn’t want to talk, or do anything about it at the moment, there was no point for Kaito to force anything.

And maybe he didn’t have the rights to do it too.

Having nothing else to say, Kaito dusted his hands and returned to his own home.

“Wait.”

Kaito stopped.

“Uh.” Shinichi glanced at his mailbox.

“My doves didn’t shit on it this time,” Kaito said, which was true, yet deep down somewhere in his gut, he somehow wished they did.

“Yes, I can see that,” Shinichi answered back.

Kaito tilted his head. Shinichi sounded almost annoyed, but Kaito couldn’t pinpoint the main reason for it, just like the cause for the slump in his shoulder too. Kaito stayed silent and waited for Shinichi to continue.

“When are you planning to return my shirt?”

Huh. It’s for this? Kaito tugged onto the shirt, wondering. “Do you want me to take it off now?”

“Don’t.” Shinichi looked even more annoyed, but Kaito was much familiar and better with this annoyance; the one that seemed only Kaito was capable of making Shinichi feel.

Kaito grinned.

“Just give it back to me next time,” Shinichi added.

“Ok.” That is, if Kaito remembered and not wear it every time after he finished washing it. “Is there anything else?”

“No. I guess not.” Shinichi was about to turn again. “Bye.”

“Bye.”

“...Wait.”

Oh God, even Hakuba wasn’t this fickle-minded with his words, and that was one hell of a comparison that Shinichi was forcing Kaito to make. “What now?” he said as he swung his arms up in the air.

“Do you... I mean, are you free?”

“Certainly not”, Kaito was about to say, but he held back his tongue and tried to ignore Jii’s reminder and chiding words echoing in his head. Rather than a yes or no, he said, “Why?”

“By any chance are you cooking later, like fried rice?” Shinichi looked awkward, and Kaito almost saw some resemblance of that awkwardness he saw in Mouri Ran that day. “Can I pay for you to cook an extra plate for me?”

Pay? Kaito wanted to shake his head, to mock, and maybe to laugh, but he considered himself reaping more benefits from the act of cooking that meal, more than what Shinichi could ever pay with him in money.

“I can do it for free,” Kaito said, and he found his cheeks aching from the smile that spread across his cheeks. “But in exchange, you have to answer my question: Is it safe to say that I’m your best—“

“Yes,” Shinichi interrupted with a sigh, but his gaze looked a little amused at the same time. “Yes you are.”

[clairekatswritingcorner]

A Valentine’s Surprise

Word Count: 2,080

Summary: Claire decides to put on a special Valentine’s show for Kaito that he won’t soon forget.

*Author’s Note*: That summary is probably not a very accurate summary but don’t let your minds go to the gutter it isn’t anything like that. I didn’t think I was going to have time to do a Valentine’s Day one shot but I procrastinated on homework and did this anyway. For anyone that doesn’t know (and because I haven’t posted a character sheet for her yet) my OC/Self Insert is a witch who practices blue magic, hence why what you read involves water and not some other element like air. I feel bad that a lot of the scenarios I come up with for me and Kaito are of him as Kid, so I wanted to do a one shot where me/my self insert could do something extravagant for normal old Kaito (because he is also amazing and great and I love him just as much). I hope you enjoy!

(Read on Ao3)

The weather was pleasant and the city buzzed with an air of anticipation that was to be expected on this annual holiday. Claire tried not to let the weight of the atmosphere affect her, although her own distractions and anxieties were enough to put her on edge. The colorfully decorated gift bag she held behind her bounced against her legs as she rocked back and forth, listening to the hum of the city and waiting for Kaito to answer the door.

Half of her was glad for the extra time to compose herself, while the other half just took the time to worry and whine about all of the worry that’d been building since she’d settled on this idea. It was a little intimidating to do anything for Kaito, at least if it was along the lines of impressing him, mostly because he was already such an impressing person himself. Claire knew that it was irrational to discount herself before she’d even gotten started, especially when Kaito was such an uplifting and genuinely supportive person, but she couldn't wholly dissolve the knot in her stomach as she repeated the steps of the plan to herself for the umpteenth time.

“Hello?” Kaito greeted with distracted hesitation, and Claire hoped that she hadn’t caught him in the middle of something. It was rare for her to stop by unannounced but she knew, thanks to her source on all things Kaito related, he didn’t have any work or heist engagements that might interfere with her spontaneous plans. She smiled and greeted him with a tiny wave, caught off guard by his enthusiastic reaction once he registered who she was.

“Claire!” She was surprised at how soothing her name could sound when he spoke it, and realizing that this simple expression arose any kind of feeling in her made her blush. Her preoccupied thoughts were swept away for a moment as Kaito swung the door open and tackled her with a hug. She did what she could to keep the bag behind her concealed, letting her purse slip down a bit in the hopes that it would serve as a plausible distraction. “What are you doing here? You should have texted me or something, let me know you were coming over. I would have been more presentable…”

“You’re not not presentable,” she replied, observing his casual attire alongside knowing that he wasn’t the kind of person to leave his home a mess. “And I don’t want you to feel like you have to put on a face when I come over. You never have to put on any faces with me; you know that.”

“Yeah but I would have prepared something or--”

“No, nope, that’s alright. I don’t need some fantastic display exploding in my face every time I come to visit either. Besides, today isn’t your day to impress me.”

He examined her with an increasingly curious, perplexed gaze. “And what exactly is that supposed to mean?”

A self-satisfied smile spread across her face as she slipped a blindfold out of her sleeve and deftly secured it to his face. Kaito remained still, not fighting her unexpected gesture, and she hoped that was as much a testament to how much he trusted her as it was to his familiarity with this kind of scenario. Well, at least in the context of his work as a magician.

“So, am I allowed to ask any questions, or will all be revealed to me in due time?” he asked, the teasing edge in his voice making Claire hope he hadn’t already figured her out. She didn’t know how he would even begin to predict exactly what she had in store, but then again, there were a lot of mysteries about Kaito that she was sure she would never solve.

“Don’t ruin the surprise. I’m going to make sure you don’t run into anything, and if you peek, I promise you’ll be cursed with misfortune for the rest of your life.”

“I thought Akako was the one who specialized in stuff like curses,” he mused, following her instructions as she led him back into the house.

“Well, I can’t give you the specifics, but if I said she’s been teaching me some of her techniques, would you be scared?”

“I don’t know if I’m more scared of that kind of power in your or Akako’s hands,” he continued. “Maybe the most terrifying thing would be you two as a team. I can only imagine the kind of havoc you would wreak together.”

The thought made Claire laugh as they entered the living room, and she got him seated on the couch she considered how grateful she was for this small talk. Even with her heart pounding a mile a minute, her head racing with the terrified possibilities that something might go wrong, or all her efforts would turn out to be subpar, he still had a way of making her feel at ease. His personality was charming and adaptable, at least he always seemed that way with her, and his mood shifting influence was just what she needed to calm her nerves. All of the stress and expectations she battled were obstacles that she had placed in her own path. Kaito would never expect anything more from her than he knew she could do, and she also knew he cherished every part of her anyway.

“Alright, now remember what I said about the peeking,” she reminded him as she stepped back to examine the room. “I’ll tell you when you can remove the blindfold, but you better not move a muscle until I say so. And I’ll know, don’t try to trick me.”

“Magician’s honor,” Kaito replied, and although she felt like that was quite a flimsy oath to pledge, he always kept his word.

Relieved that he would do as she requested, Claire turned her attention to the real reason she had come here. Concentrating her training and her power, she went to work conjuring various forms, shapes, and moving creations, filling the room with them from one end to the other. She couldn’t remember the last time she had ever stretched her creativity or her conjuring abilities in such a way, but aside from being good practice, she just wanted to be able to give back even an inkling of the wonder that Kaito had brought into her life. He was always performing some sort of amazing feat or elaborate trick to impress and inspire audiences and individuals from all over; she wanted to bring a similar spark to his life.  At least she hoped she could repay at least some of his kindness and generosity this way.

“Okay. Here we go,” she muttered a bit nervously as she took a seat next to him, leaning over and undoing his blindfold. “Three…two…one.”

She slid the blindfold off and slipped her hand into his as his eyes opened to the dazzling display before him. Streams and pools and bubbles of water all danced and twirled through the air, shapes of various animals bouncing around alongside numerous kinds of flowers. Claire examined the integrity of her work, the centerpiece of which culminated in tiers of fountain like streams surrounding the words “Happy Valentine’s Day” at the center.

She had committed the stories Aoko had told her about Kaito’s bad experiences with the holiday to memory, kind of glad that he had such a lack of consideration for the holiday itself. This attitude provided Claire with the perfect opportunity to make this day her day, or at least the day she could give him a surprise unlike any trick he had performed. Knowing the level of finesse and showmanship she had to live up to, she had designed and practiced conjuring this present of a magic show for at least a month. She still felt a bit too embarrassed to examine the look he had on his face, and instead removed a couple packages of chocolate from her bag, slipping them into his hand as she pressed a kiss to his cheek.

“Happy Valentine’s Day.” She hoped that her words reflected the love and adoration she had put into every piece of magic for him. She might not have been a gifted magician, but she was a hard working witch, and every miracle of magic he had shown her made her want to return such feelings to him tenfold. She leaned her head against his shoulder, content to let him process what was going on as she steeled herself for whatever reaction might be awaiting her. Was he confused, elated, disappointed, annoyed? Though some people might find such waiting agony, she took comfort in her own feelings, more worried about how she might react if his reaction turned out to be bad.

She watched as one of the enchanted animals approached his face, her own gaze focused more on the creature than him, both of them caught off guard as it playfully squirted a small stream right between his eyes. Claire hadn’t remembered designing them to do that, and she quickly looked around for something he could use to dry off. She wasn’t able to move in the next second, though, because Kaito simply wiped his face with his sleeve, let out a burst of laughter that almost sent her jumping off of the couch, and tackled her to said couch before she could fall off.

“You did all this for me?”

“There’s few people in the world I would do something like this for. You’re pretty much at the top of the list.” She paused, squeezing him in a hug that communicated her feelings better than tangled words. “So, do you like it?”

“I don’t think I could ever find the words to tell you just how much I do,” he replied, shifting so she could get a full view of his beaming face. “So, how about I do this instead?”

He leaned down to kiss her in a calm, serene manner, although she still found herself dizzied by the combination of her intense emotions and the energy she had expelled using so much magic. She hugged him tighter, pressing a few kisses to his cheeks as her face was engulfed by a blush of embarrassment and elation. He helped her sit up again as they nestled against each other, their attention returning to the magic display that had a life of its own.

“I know here it’s traditional here for the girl to give chocolate to the guy, so I got a couple kinds. I wasn’t sure exactly which kind you liked…I’m sorry I forgot to ask,” she explained as he looked over the chocolate and other small various gifts she brought.

“I really think you don’t understand how fully you outdid yourself and pretty much anyone else who did something for their special someone today,” Kaito replied. Her blush deepened and she tried to remember to keep breathing, taking the small distraction Kaito provided her by asking about her magic array to gather her thoughts.

“I feel kind of bad though,” he admitted as he held his hand out to catch one of the water flowers as it drifted by, “how am I ever going to top sentient water that flies around and splashes people?”

“I’m sure, even if you meant that statement, you could still find a way to top all of this by tomorrow.”

“Wow, that’s giving me a lot of credit.”

“Well, I’d hate to bruise your ego after I went through all the trouble to impress you.”

Kaito grinned and flicked his wrist, summoning a flower that he twirled idly between his fingers before handing it to her. “Please, it takes more than that to knock the illustrious Kaito Kid from his pedestal.”

“Would something like this work then?”

Taking the initiative to tackle him this time, Claire pinned him to the couch and set about pulling flower after flower from the many pockets, sleeves, and other various folds of Kaito’s clothing that she could reach. The two of them rolled and laughed and eventually came to a stop snuggled together in a pile of the innumerable flowers he had stashed away. Claire dissolved her illusory display, closing her eyes as she focused on just how nice it felt to lay here with him. Both of them were safe, both of them were happy, and that was all she really wanted. As long as they were together, everything would be okay.

[musicprincess655]

Knight and Bishop, Ch. 13

Pairing: Semishira, slight Aofuta

Rating: T

Tags: a/b/o, royalty au

read on ao3

“A good sacrifice is one that is not necessarily sound but leaves your opponent dazed and confused” - Rudolph Spielmann

“Whoa.”

Eita looked to his side to see Kaito staring up at the Wall in awe.

“I can’t believe it’s so big,” he whispered, as if he might invite the Wall to attack him if he spoke too loudly. “How did they even build this monster?”

“Carefully,” Eita replied, at normal speaking volume. Kaito shot him a dirty look.

“Don’t pretend you aren’t impressed by this,” he said. “I know you’ve never seen it before either.”

Kaito was right. Eita had never seen the Wall, and he was impressed at its scale. Soon enough, they were within the gates of the fort at the base, and everything was moving, and Eita didn’t have time to be entranced by the Wall anymore.

“Everyone stay together,” Eita called over the noise around them, the rushing around as the entire army fit itself into the gates. “We’re gonna see where we’re bunkin’ and then you lot are gonna stick together while I go see what we’re dealin’ with.”

A sound of assent greeted him. He turned his head back and forth, looking out in the crowd. He could see men in the light green of Datekou moving among them, probably giving out instructions. Eita waited patiently until one of them made it to his company.

“We’ll be putting you in our barracks,” the man told him. He was absolutely tiny and clearly a new recruit, but he moved with grace around the taller men around him, obviously used to operating near the ground. “They’re over here. Try to keep your companies together and orderly.”

Eita thanked him and turned to Kaito.

“You make sure everyone gets settled and that I have somewhere to sleep,” he said. “Everyone! Listen to Kaito!”

Once again, a shout let him know everyone had heard and understood. Eita slid off his horse, handing the reins to Kaito. He could see Ushijima’s tall head going inside, which meant everyone else important was probably with him. He hurried to catch up.

He managed to walk into the room just as everyone else was settling down. The walls were lined with maps, and the table was low and round. This was clearly a room for a war council. A smaller man stood at an open space that was a close to a front as a round table could get to address them.

“Thank you all for coming so quickly, and with such a large force,” he started. “My name is Moniwa Kaname, and I’m the captain of Datekou. Let’s all work hard together.”

Eita nodded his head, seeing everyone else around him do the same. He didn’t doubt that Moniwa was captain of Datekou. He carried himself with the pride of a man who knew his place in the world and had long accepted it, the pride of a man for who commandership was a privilege, not a right.

Eita would have no problem working with him.

“The eagle from the citadel said that you would be bringing a strategist with you?” Moniwa continued, addressing it as a question to Ushijima.

“Yes. This is Shirabu Kenjirou,” Ushijima waved Shirabu forward. “He's the one who will be doing planning in place of Saitou-san. And this is Semi Eita.” Eita stood straighter at the call of his own name, stepping forward to stand at Shirabu’s side in front of Moniwa. “He’ll be helping Kenjirou. He has experience fighting against people like Itachiyama.”

Eita murmured a greeting, and heard Shirabu do the same beside him. So he did know how to be polite.

“This space is free for you both to use as you wish,” Moniwa told them. “This is my student and right hand man, Futakuchi Kenjirou.” He gestured to a younger man, probably about thirty, with bright brown eyes and a grin. He smelled like an alpha, but he didn’t flaunt it. Eita liked him on sight. “He speaks with my authority, most of the time.”

Futakuchi looked like he was laughing at the words. He nodded to Eita and Shirabu, welcoming them.

“Pleased to meet you,” he said, vowels much softer than they were in the north. He must have been a southerner, not that Eita had travelled enough to say from exactly where. “I can blend in a bit here, so if you're having trouble finding me, look for my partner Aone Takanobu. We're usually together.”

And now Eita was looking up for real. Aone may have been an omega, judging by his scent, but he was taller than Eita and even Futakuchi, though the two moved as a unit. They were probably together, maybe even a mated pair, though Eita couldn’t tell without talking to either of them more. He gave them a nod, and somehow, that spoke just as much as all of Futakuchi’s words.

Moniwa spoke up again, breaking them from the exchange.

“Ushijima-sama, I know you've been here before, but I'm sure you'd like the tour again. Things don't change much up here, or so we like to think, but I'm sure one visit didn't give you the entire picture of our Wall.”

“I would appreciate that,” Ushijima said, standing. Goshiki and Kawanishi moved with him.

“Shirabu-san? Semi-san?” Goshiki asked when neither moved to follow. “Aren't you coming?”

“I'd rather get a picture of the fight we’re about to have from you, if you don't mind,” Shirabu shook his head, instead moving closer to Futakuchi.

“If he's staying to start planning, I'm staying too,” Eita said. They didn’t have much time to spend, so the more he and Shirabu could get done now, the better. Moniwa shrugged, and Ushijima and the two guards left. Eita turned back to Futakuchi as Shirabu leaned in more.

“Tell us what we’re dealing with,” he said. Futakuchi nodded, turning to the map behind him. Aone stood like a statue, watching them all and revealing nothing.

“We’re actually kind of lucky,” Futakuchi started. “A rider from the king’s company managed to get back to the Wall this morning after riding his horse to death. The king is still alive, or he was when the rider left yesterday, and he’s out of the trap they fell into.”

“Where?” Eita asked. Futakuchi pointed to a valley cradled by the mountains.

“The scout said they were in the middle of the valley, moving this way,” Futakuchi said, moving his finger along what might have been a river. “Itachiyama is about a day’s ride behind them. But their horses are tired, and Itachiyama is gaining on them fast. They need a rescue, and soon, if they’re going to get out of this one alive.”

“What are they riding towards?” Shirabu asked, pointing to where the valley seemed to pinch off, but the river clearly kept running through. Eita’s heart jumped. If that was what he thought it was…

“It’s a mountain pass,” Futakuchi told them, and Shirabu’s small gasp echoed Eita’s feelings.

“We can cut them off there,” Shirabu said, and Eita nodded furiously.

“How wide is the pass?” he asked Futakuchi.

“Narrow,” Futakuchi replied. “Only a few horses at a time can go through. It’s a good thing the king’s group is small, and that they’re a day’s ride ahead, because that’s how long it will take them to get through. If they’re lucky, they’ll all get through before any arrows can take them out. Itachiyama’s archers have some stupidly accurate aim.”

“This is perfect,” Shirabu said, and Eita felt his excitement rising at the same time as Shirabu’s. “We can hold them at the pass after we get the king through.”

“We can cover him from the pass with archers,” Eita added, speaking faster and almost slurring his words with his speed. “I have some in my company, and they’re not stupid accurate, but they’re good enough for cover. There’s gotta be more in this army that’ll work too. We can get the king through safely.”

Eita couldn’t help grinning. So this was what it was like to work with Shirabu, really work with him. They were a team, and bouncing off each other, and it was working. It felt like they’d finally found their rhythm.

“And after we get the king through we can form a shield wall across the pass,” Shirabu went on, and Eita felt his stomach drop as all the momentum left him. “If the pass is so narrow that only a few horses can go through at a time, we could easily have rows of shield wall guarding it. Itachiyama would never get through. They’d be at a complete disadvantage.”

“Can I talk to you for a second?” Eita asked, his voice suddenly clipped. With anger, he realized, far more than just shock. He’d really thought he and Shirabu were starting to mesh.

He was a fool.

But he wouldn’t shame Shirabu in front of Futakuchi and Aone, so instead he led him out into the hall. Shirabu followed silently, face settling into a blank mask. He was annoyed.

Eita didn’t care.

“Your plan is going to get a lot of people killed,” Eita told him flatly. Shirabu tilted his chin up to look at Eita defiantly.

“What do you suggest, then?” he asked scathingly. “We just let them through? That river runs right to the Wall. Should we let them invade us again?”

“That’s not what I’m saying,” Eita argued. “There’s more than one solution here. We’ll already have archers stationed around the pass. Have them pick off Itachiyama one by one. It’ll be such a narrow press, they’ll be bottlenecked and they’ll drop like flies.”

“Too much room for error,” Shirabu shot back. “A lot of them could still get through and make a run past us.”

“So we work around that!” Eita snapped. “You’re smart, we can figure somethin’ out!”

“We don’t have time!” Shirabu yelled, and he really was yelling now, but so was Eita.

“If we have to take an extra hour or two to save hundreds of lives, we should do that!” Eita yelled back, resisting the urge to get in Shirabu’s face. That would only make both of them angrier. “We’re supposed to be a team, dammit!”

“No we’re not!” Shirabu screamed. “I’m the one planning this! You’re advising me! Advice noted and rejected!”

“Excuse me?” Eita was suddenly stiff with cold fury.

“Here!” Shirabu snapped, still burning. He flung a scroll at Eita’s face. Eita unfurled it slowly and read it, read the words of the queen that made it clear who was in charge, and who should be ignored. He looked up from the letter to Shirabu, with his red cheeks and his heaving chest.

Somehow, it made how well they’d gotten along for that brief moment even more painful.

“Fine,” Eita said, shoving the letter back into Shirabu’s hands. He might be angry at Shirabu, but right now, he hated the queen.

“Where are you going?” Shirabu asked.

“To tell my company about the death sentence you’ve just given them,” Eita said, loud enough that his voice would carry without having to turn around to look at Shirabu again. “If they’re all about to die, they deserve to hear it from me.”

“You’ll be back by Ushijima-sama,” Shirabu called after him, voice suddenly surprisingly pleading. “You won’t be on the front lines.”

“Really?” Eita asked, and he laughed despite himself. Shirabu just didn’t get it. “You don’t get to play that game. You can’t pretend I’m a number, because you know me. You can’t pretend Ushijima-sama is a number, because you know him. And you don’t get to pretend everyone who isn’t us is a number, either, just because you don’t know them personally. They’re no better than me, and they deserve to be treated like humans if you’re going to send them off to be slaughtered.”

He kept walking, about to have one of the worst conversations of his life.

“Semi, wait!” Shirabu called after him, but Eita ignored him. If Shirabu really wanted to be in charge, he could damn well figure this out on his own.

Eita had to go tell his company to make their final goodbyes, because they probably wouldn’t be surviving the attack.