Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Conan decided to sneak up on Kid for once.

He always gave him a signal to let him know he was coming by running noisily to the roof. He was smart and a Detective, of course he knew how to stay silent.

But Kid never seemed to figure out that he was alerting him on purpose.

So he took a page out of Kid's book and used the vents. He got to the roof and decided to lie in wait.

So imagine his surprise when he was the witness to something else he should not have seen. A man dressed in a black attempting to murder Kaito Kid after holding a jewel that glowed red in the moonlight.

"Give me Pandora." The man ordered gruffly but Kaito Kid performed a sleight of hand and the jewel vanished.

"You thought you could murder me? I'm a Phantom!" Kid radiated arrogance but Conan could see the tension on his shoulders and wanted to scream for him to run away that he didn't know who he was dealing with.

The inflection he used when he said me obviously meant that there had been a predecessor likely a father, brother or uncle.

It scared him.

He could deduce that this wasn't the first time Kid had faced this man, but he obviously didn't know about who he was messing with.

He didn't know just how far out of his depth he truly was.

Conan wanted more than anything to help but he couldn't help if he was seen so he bit down on his own fingers drawing blood.

He wanted to cry out for Kid to watch out for the man in black's accomplices. But nothing could've prevented what happened next, it was enough to bring him to tears.

It was like see what happened to him all over again, no one deserves to have this happen to them.

He would make them pay.

They managed to pin Kaito Kid to the floor and shoved a pill into his mouth forcing him to swallow.

They began to pat him down and Conan knew that they couldn't have 'Pandora' so he decided to intervene in the only way he could.

"Kid is on the roof! Hurry men!" Conan orders loudly using his bowtie to mimic Nakamori-Keibu.

The men in black cursed angrily and disappeared leaving Kaito Kid in a crumpled heap on the floor. He waited in silence before busting out of the vent and running to Kid.

He could see him shivering as his body began burning up, he couldn't carry Kid as he was to heavy and he couldn't try to wait for the process to begin if he was indeed experiencing the unique side effect of the Apotoxin.

He'd need to call in his back up. It's a good thing Hattori was waiting nearby.

Chapter Text

Conan quickly texted Hattori to have him distract Nakamori-Keibu from going to the roof once he got free so Conan had time to hide Kaito Kid.

Then when the coast was clear Hattori would come back for Conan and Kid if he didn't die.

Please don't let him die.

He couldn't see someone who he was almost friendly with die again.

"Kid, promise me you won't die." Conan saw Kid shift his head and took that as a nod before he began to remove the white suit to hide him better.

Conan had only just managed to stuff the white suit into the vent when the door was slammed open by Nakamori-Keibu. He was frothing at the mouth with puce green hair, garrish pink skin and an orange tux.

"KID!!!!!!!!" Conan flinched and clapped his hands over his ears waiting out the tirade until Nakamori-Keibu looked down at him and sighed.

"Got away?" Conan smiled innocently and watched Nakamori-Keibu turn around and shove past Hattori who had his bag over his shoulder and a serious look on his face.

Both waited in silent before Hattori scrambled after Conan who had propped Kid just out of sight behind a fan.

Conan pressed trembling fingers to Kid's neck and nearly panicked when he couldn't feel a pulse.

He put his ear to Kid's chest and waited with bated breath.

A small stuttered gasp of breath followed by another. He was still burning up but now he could hear the sounds of bone snapping.

"Is he...?" Hattori winced when Conan nodded.

"We'll take him while he's changing. You said those guys were around right? Safer for him and you if we took him now." Conan didn't move from where he had his cheek pressed against Kid's chest until he heard a whimper.

"Take him with you. I'll grab his things. We'll meet at Hakase's house. Haibara will be waiting." Hattori looked at him with a frown before gritting his teeth and slamming his hat onto Conan's head.

"You bring this back to me!" It was as close as a promise he could give when he nodded.

"Thanks... Hattori. I... I just have to be sure." Hattori looked away from him to look at Kid and silently pulled out his spare set of clothes leaving the bag for Conan to put the rest of Kaito Kid's suit.

Which he retrieved from the vent while watching Hattori stare at Kid's face intently.

"I know." He muttered when Hattori stared pointedly at him with his eyebrows raised.

"Look at it this way. Now you have an easy way to get him out. And the police already know to keep quiet when they see me." Hattori snorted but began mussing Kid's hair until he was satisfied. Hattori left without looking back once, Kid cradled in his arms looking so ill and young.

Soon he'd be a child, his entire life would be changed again.

Heiji resisted the urge to look back at Kudo or call him out on his stupidity.

But they had to be certain that it was the Black Organization.

And not some assassin in black that was after Kaito Kid. It was hard, and he'd forever regret it if Kudo never made it back but right now, this person was more important.

He managed to get by unseen as everyone was too distracted by getting clean and avoiding traps.

He made it to his bike and shifted Kid around covering his face with his helmet and used the spare for his self.

Heiji winced when Kid let out a soft cry and began convulsing as the sound of bones snapping was heard. Heiji knew he couldn't stay until the change was over or someone would see but it would be dangerous driving with Kid convulsing and shrinking. But he would have to risk it.

Kid might not survive the transformation if he understood Kudo's words from the first time he witnessed his transformation.

He could still remember how Kudo had grit his teeth unwilling to cry at another failed antidote.

And the risk of death grew with each antidote as well as the chance that the real one wouldn't work.

Heiji drove as quickly as he dared trying to offer Kid some type of comfort from the agony he was experiencing.

His clothes already looked four sizes too big and it had only been a minute.

From what Kudo and the little nee-chan said, the initial transformation lasted from anywhere close to an hour or three.

Kudo's lasted three hours from the little he recalled as well as the time it took for him to follow Vodka then waking up.

The little nee-chan said hers was an hour.

He was glad Kid was unconscious or it would have been utter agony to feel the process.

He would probably wouldn't actually ever remember the first transformation, Kudo vaguely did and the little nee-chan didn't recall it whatsoever.

Conan laid in the vent watching and waiting. He'd already bandages his bleeding fingers and texted Haibara that they had another junior detective joining the club of mature for their age.

And that he was reading the Raven by Edgar Allan Poe, but was having trouble understanding the motivation so he'd read awhile longer while Heiji-nii-chan brought over their newest friend.

Conan had stuffed the jewel 'Pandora' in his pocket for safe keeping but was now regretting it due to the fact that it was digging uncomfortably into his thigh but he didn't move.

He couldn't risk it, not when he didn't know where or when they would come.

And come they did.

An hour and a half later.

"He's gone! He probably managed to get away on that hang glider of his. He is dead, now we just have to find where he fell and get Pandora." The first man said to his partners who searched the area but couldn't find a thing.

Conan had made sure to leave nothing behind and erased his and Hattori's fingerprints from every single surface.

It paid to be cautious, though this was a bad habit he had for years now.

He swallowed when he heard it. That song coming from the dial tone of the man's cellphone. They were definitely working with Gin and Vodka.

"Snake take a look at this." Conan filed the name away and held his breath as one of them men pointed to something near the vent Conan was in.

The camera, good thing he had dismantled it after he arrived on the roof earlier today.

"It's useless. Don't even bother trying to find a video." Conan listened to the man type and tried to figure out what he was writing.

There was a variety of words he could have written but Conan had the time so he memorized the keys pressed and their order.

He'd decipher this later but for now he had to get to Hakase's house.

He ended up leaving an hour later as they had decided to perform a thorough search leaving Conan to quietly scramble away and erase signs of having been in the vents.

He had ended up playing hide and seek with a woman who had crawled into the vents thinking someone was there.

She was right of course but it was a terrifying hour he spent running and hiding until the woman was called away.

He walked home as opposed to riding on his skateboard not want to attract any attention.

Haibara stared at her phone in shock.

"Hakase! Prepare a bed in my lab! Kudo-kun has found someone targeted by them!" Haibara shoved her phone into her pocket as she saved her work and shut down her computer before getting a first aid kit and other essentials. 

'I stumbled across a friend who is being forcibly drafted into the Shounen Tantei Dan. He's definitely mature for his age, like us. Did you finish your homework? I'm doing mine on the Raven by Edgar Allan Poe. It's hard to decipher every little thing so I'll have to stay up late to read into it. So Heiji-nii-chan will be bringing our new friend over for you to meet. He'll probably need a few band-aids. He had a rather nasty fall.'

Haibara was waiting by the door with Hakase who had a worried look in his eyes.

Then they heard the roar of a motorcycle and hurried out the door to see Hattori practically throw his bike to the floor in his hurry to get to them.

He was cradling someone in his arms but they were convulsing violently.

"Get him inside and downstairs." Haibara ordered briskly as she ran to her lab with Hattori following her. He saw the bed and quickly set the person down removing the helmet making Haibara pale.

"Kudo-Kun?" Hattori looked at her and shook his head.

"Kaito Kid." She looked shocked before shaking herself and getting to work. She checked his temperature, pulse, blood pressure, respiration, pupils, nails, and even his ears when he stopped convulsing.

"We'll need to wait it out." Hattori looked helplessly at Kid when he whimpers and chokes as the sound of bones snapping permeates the room.

He was looking smaller and smaller it was only a matter of time now.

Haibara hopes that it wouldn't last as long as Kudo's first time.

Conan arrived at Hakase's house at one in the morning. Hattori was pacing back and forth checking his phone anxiously before beginning to pace again.

"Kudo!" Hattori swept Conan off his feet and hugged him tightly with a relieved sigh. Conan relaxed instantly and rested his forehead on Hattori's shoulder feeling relief and safety.

"Kid?" Hattori set him down taking the hat and his bag without a word and lead him to Haibara's lab.

Kid was fast asleep on a bed looking exactly like Conan only with messier hair.

"Looks like we've found your long lost twin Kudo-Kun." Haibara smirked though her eyes were full of pains and regret. Conan ignored her words and stared deeply at Kid's relaxed face feeling sorrow.

"We'll worry about everything tomorrow. We should all get some rest." Everyone left the lab leaving him alone with Kid. Conan sat on the edge of the bed knowing he wouldn't be able to sleep so he would be the best person to look after Kid.

"Don't worry. I'll help you. I promise." Conan whispered reaching out and laying his palm on Kid's foot.

It was a promise he'd made to Haibara before and one that he did his best to uphold.

Conan had to comfort Kid from several nightmares throughout the night.

But he never woke up once. Sometimes he cried, sometimes he choked on sobs and other times he muttered about his father.

But he never lost that weak vulnerable look until Conan held his hand and rubbed gentle circles along the inside of his wrist while muttering soothingly.

Kaito awoke feeling sore and tired. He stretched and scratches his head looking around with a frown.

He didn't recognize his surroundings, and everything looked strange, like his depth perception had changed over night.

Then he heard the door opening and threw his self off the bed to hide even though he knew he was trapped.

He wasn't in his Kaito Kid suit and his monocle was gone but it wasn't Snake that had him.

And Jii didn't have him either, seeing that he had no idea where he was.

"You can come out now Kid." Kaito froze when he heard Tantei-kun. He heard a tray get set down before a chair was wheeled towards the bed and then silence.

He could trust Tantei-kun to a certain extent so he stood up and froze when he saw that the bed was at chest level.

"You should sit down and eat. I'll explain everything." Kaito looked up to see Tantei-kun sitting on a desk sipping a tall mug of some hot drink probably coffee.

The light was reflecting off his glasses obscuring his eyes from view but he was smirking when he saw Kaito staring.

"Sit. Eat." Kaito nodded dumbly and climbed onto the bed grabbing the tray from the chair and eating the eggs, toast, juice and cheesecake.

"I know you have questions, ask away." Kaito had so many questions but decided to ask the first one on his mind.

"Why did you help me?" Tantei-kun looked up face expressionless as he swung his feet idly. "Is there a reason that I needed to? You don't need a reason to help someone." Kaito smiled a little, that sounded like something Tantei-kun would say.

"What happened to me? Why am I like this?" Tantei-kun looked down at him and seemed to be lost in thought as he tapped his fingers on the desk matching the beat of his kicking feet.

"It's called Apotoxin 4869. It's an untraceable poison used to dispose of people who get in the way. There happens to be... A unique... Side effect that effects one in three victims." Tantei-kun laughed mirthlessly but there was a brokeness in that laugh that scared Kaito.

"Welcome to your second childhood." Kaito could feel his self hyperventilate as he tried to process this.

Snake tried to kill him, and now Kaito was a little kid.

He'd finally found Pandora and now he was a little kid!

How was he supposed to find out what happened to his father when he was a kid- how would he explain this to Aoko!

"You're lying!" Kaito threw his tray at Tantei-kun feeling angry but Tantei-kun remakned stoic idly catching a cup before it could hit him on the face.

"No. It's the truth. You have to accept it. You made a mistake, but this is a second chance for you. You could have died but instead here you are." Kaito knew it was irrational but he was furious with Tantei-kun for telling him that he had a second chance like his life hadn't just been irrevocably changed in a matter of hours.

"What do you know about it?! I have to live with the fact that I can never return home! No one would believe me about who I was!" Tantei-kun's eyes were still obscured by the light and he was frowning like Kaito was being particularly obtuse.

"Accept it. You made a mistake and now you have to live with it. And you can't go back or you'd endanger everyone you know. Because Snake would hunt them and gun them down without a shred of remorse." Kaito froze and felt his self paling as he looked at Tantei-kun.

"How do you know that name?" He asked horrified.

"I was there watching." He stated simply and drank his coffee as if he was talking about the weather. Kaito didn't understand, how did he know?

Why did he know.

And what was his motive for helping?

"Who are you?" He asked instead and watched Tantei-kun smirk and reach upwards towards his glasses.

"My name is Kudo Shinichi. Nice to meet you."

Chapter Text

Shinichi smirked when he removed his glasses.

"My name is Kudo Shinichi. Nice to meet you." He saw Kid freeze before he fainted falling off the bed leaving Shinichi alone with his coffee.

"Hattori owes me cheesecake and the new Detective Samonji book." Shinichi muttered as he got off the desk and made his way over to Kaito Kid.

He studied Kid's face and remembered the time Ran had 'seen' him with another girl and realized it must have been Kid that she saw.

It was strange to have a doppleganger and he was the opposite of Shinichi.

He managed to get Kid onto the bed and instantly felt irritated that Kid was both heavier and taller than him despite how much they looked alike.

Shinichi was playing a game on his phone as he laid on the bed beside Kid who had latched onto him and wouldn't let go no matter how hard he tried to escape.

The game was to find out what Snake had written. He closed his eyes and began typing, using memory to press the order and number of times each number was pressed.

It wasn't hard but it was not exactly easy either. And Shinichi was an escape artist, though Kaito was one of an even greater caliber so it was no wonder see he couldn't escape.

"Warm." Kid muttered as Shinichi stared blankly at Kid was wrapped around him tightly snuggling into his hair.

"I would dart you if I knew I could escape." He said blandly going back to his game to pass the time it took for Kid to wake up again.

'Pandora' found. Kaito Kid disposed of.using Apotoxin 4869. Need to retrieve Pandora. Performing grid search.'

So this was what he wrote.

He needed to move quickly if he was going to hide Kid from them in case they became suspicious.

Looks like he'd need to take the newest antidote and act as bait to make them think they failed once again.

It'd throw them off and keep them from searching for Kid's civilian identity.

Normally Shinichi would've just hurt Kid to escape but he was in shock and obviously needed some type of comfort so he allowed 'this' to happen.

He didn't let anyone but Ran and Otchan hold him like this.

Though secretly he did enjoy when Hattori carried him or he woke up from a nightmare with Hattori hugging him like his favorite stuffed animal.

A soft exhale followed by a groan had Shinichi looking up to see indigo eyes staring at him in surprise.

"It wasn't a dream?" Shinichi shook his head and cautiously began to move but Kid tightened his grip and buried his face in Shinichi's hair crying.

Shinichi withheld a sigh and comfortingly patted the arm wound across his chest.

"It'll be okay I promise." Kid was sobbing quietly but it hurt Shinichi deeply just as it did back then when Haibara broke down into tears about her sister.

"I'm here for you." Kid just nodded holding on to him more tightly.

"PANDORA!" yelled Kid in a blind panic as he searched his clothes huffing wheh he saw the child clothes he was wearing.

"Where's my clothes!" Shinichi only managed to point at the bag on the desk before being thrown off the bed. Shinichi cradled the back of his head blinking back tears and looking at Kaito throw his clothes in his haste.

Smoke bombs, glitter bombs, a flash bomb and even a deck of cards hit the ground activating.

A card sliced off a few hairs but Kid paid no mind to him.

"Where is it?!" Kid screamed hysterically seemingly teleporting to Shinichi's side to shake him violently.

"I have it-" Shinichi felt a breeze and looked down to see that he'd been stripped of his clothes. His face flushed as he snatched the blanket from behind him and glared furiously at Kid hiding his scars.

"I hid it." He grit his teeth angry that Kid had taken his clothes without any regard to his feelings. He hated letting anyone see the scars that covered his body from various cases.

"Give it to me!" Kid pleaded dropping the clothes but Shinichi moved back using his foot to drag his clothes towards him.

"No." He said coldly as he dressed under the blanket. It wasn't like he could tell Kid that he'd watched the jewel melt into his skin.

He still wasn't even sure what happened and when he told Hattori about it when he went to get breakfast, he told Shinichi to keep it a secret.

"Sorry Tantei-kun." Kaito felt ashamed at his rash actions. Tantei-kun had hidden his body behind a blanket but that didn't stop Kaito from seeing several scars.

All in various states of healing. Some healed, some healing, and others that were too fresh to even begin healing. He could see how uncomfortable he made Tantei-kun especially when he saw the frosted look of fury in his eyes.

"An ally of mine gave me a good idea on how to hide you. And since we look so similar it could work." Shinichi pulled his glasses out of his pocket and unfolds the temples before cleaning his glasses and slipping them on his nose.

"But you need to pick a name before I can help create your new identity." Kid was fiddling with the hem of his shirt looking so guilty and ashamed that Shinichi wanted to forgive him.

But he crossed a boundary by striping him of his clothes without a single regard to his feelings.

He was not going to let Kid walk all over him, no one disrespect him like that!

No one!

Even Hattori asked permission to strip him or if he was unconscious he made sure Shinichi was covered understanding Shinichi's need for privacy.

He even figured out just why Shinichi didn't allow for anyone to take his clothes off him, and it wasn't just the fact that he wanted to hide scars.

Apparently Hattori's father heard about what happened to Kudo Yusaku's son.

Kaito could see that Tantei-kun was being truthful about creating a new identity to hide him and making him family.

"But you haven't even asked for my real name..." Tantei-kun stared at him without a single emotion and arched an eyebrow.

"I don't need to know your name, you'd just lie. And starting today you're going to be lying every single day so there isn't a point in knowing it." Tantei-kun pulled out his cellphone and began texting someone looking annoyed when he received a message.

He shoved the phone in his pocket and looked at the mess around them with a sigh.

"Help me clean up your mess. And then you can tell what you can about Snake." Kaito nodded hesitantly stepping closer only for Tantei-kun to move away and start cleaning the opposite side of the room.

"How exactly am I going to be your twin if you can't stand to look at me?" Tantei-kun stopped sweeping and stared at his feet frowning. The light obscured his eyes from view making him impossible for Kaito to read.

"I've been Edogawa Conan for a year now. Every single person I've come in contact with knows me as an only child. So if I were to suddenly have a twin and act close it would be suspicious. And sometimes parents give up their children for adoption especially if they end up with more kids than they wanted despite how much other people look down on it. It wouldn't be much of a surprise if I were to admit that I had a sibling that I never got to know. I do keep quiet about my life before coming to Japan." Kaito could see Tantei-kun didn't want to continue talking so he got back to cleaning. It was silent aside from the sound of sweeping and walking.

Several times Kaito made to speak to break the tension but he fell quiet.

Shinichi was lost in thought as he cleaned the lab before Haibara could torture him. Hattori's response to his text was not what he had been expecting and Haibara's comments had left him reeling.

She'd never heard of Pandora, but she had heard of Snake.

That he was a top tier assassin who was sent after thieves that were no longer useful.

She'd never met him but she'd met a partner of his, and that woman had a rivalry with Vermouth for stealing a jewel many years ago. A jewel that supposedly glowed in the moonlight.

"Tantei-kun." Kid whispered timidly snapping Shinichi out of his thoughts to see the room clean. He really had to stop losing his awareness.

He was sitting on a chair across from Kid who was sitting on the bed shuffling cards nervously.

"Sorry. I got lost in thought." Kid nodded smiling and Shinichi sighed and climbed into the bed and laid back to stare at the ceiling patting the space beside him and waited in silence until Kid laid back and looked at him.

"Well I suppose I'll start."

"It started when I was sixteen. I went to Tropical Land with my best friend, and solved a murder. There I saw two suspicious men in black and I followed one." Shinichi could still feel the burning agony he'd been stuck in for what seemed like days.

The blood from his ears and nose and the head wound he had.

"I saw something I wasn't supposed to and forgot about the partner. I suffered for my arrogance."

Tantei-kun's smirk was bitter and resentful.

"I paid the price for my mistake and now I have to live with it for the rest of my life by lying every single day and making everyone I love suffer." Kaito felt his heart go out for Tantei-kun, no. Kudo.

"They wear all black and are named after alcoholic drinks. Only their top get code names from liquor and they have their hands in everything all over the world." Kaito sat up in shock and stared at Kudo.

"What? How has no one noticed?!" Kudo turned his head slightly and stared at him with an unreadable expression.

"They have been noticed but they are so far out of reach its a joke. The FBI, CIA, Secret Police, NSA, DIA, MI6, Mossad and many other agencies have tried infiltrating the organization I call the Black Organization. But one by one they lose their agents." He saw Kudo's eyes glaze over with sadness and frustration.

"They show no remorse. Anyone that gets in their way is gunned down without mercy. For every step I take, they're three steps ahead. Always out of reach." His hand was raised and he grasped at the air.

"Like grasping a shadow." His hand fell and landed on his stomach above where he saw the biggest scar.

"But even the shadows fear something." The light reflected off his glasses as he tilted his head slightly and smirked viciously.

It scared Kaito.

That expression didn't belong to a child.

"My... I inherited the title Kaito Kid. They murdered someone dear to me." Shinichi could feel dread in his stomach as he shook his head in horror and denial.

He wasn't this stupid was he?

"I had thought it was an accident. Then I found out it was murder. So i-" Shinichi grabbed Kid's shirt and stared into his eyes seeing the shame. Shinichi was speechless at the thought that Kid baited the people who murdered his predecessor without a single regard to his life.

And that wasn't taking into account the fact that Kid didn't know know a single thing about 'Snake' before going in blind.

He was tempted to scream at him, shake him until he understood how stupid and dangerous that was.

But words failed him, and everything he read in Kid's body language said he understood everything he did was wrong.

"I'm keeping Pandora." He said instead releasing Kid's shirt and laying back down so he wouldn't punch Kid in the face.

He didn't need Shinichi to punish him further for his mistake, he was already suffering now.

It was lunch time when Heiji decided to check in on Kudo and Kid. He was carrying lunch on a tray for the two hoping that everything worked out.

"Oi Kudo, open the door." The door opened and Kudo looked at him with a smirk.

His hair was really messy like Kid's, wait a minute.

"Kid." Heiji said and the smirk grew as a hand grabbed the door from behind.

"Yes?" Said Kid wearing glasses also and having messy hair with a wide smirk.

Heiji stared at the two and wondered if he should runaway screaming or walk away and pretend he saw nothing.

"Here." He said handing the tray to the first Kudo/Kid and leaving.

He was not going to deal with this until he had lunch.

Chapter Text

After the prank on Hattori and the laughter Kid and Conan shared they ate lunch.

"Decide on a name and when you're ready tell Hattori, he'll be coming back in an hour. But for now I have to get back." Conan left after seeing Kid understood him.

He told Hattori to watch Kid and make sure he doesn't attempt to leave and then went to speak with Haibara.

He told her about the text from Snake about performing a grid search for Kaito Kid and his idea to dress as Kaito Kid after taking an antidote to make sure the organization wouldn't send in undercover agents or Vermouth.

She agreed knowing the risk of them being found if a new child was introduced to society with no real background after Kaito Kid 'died' would lead the organization straight to their door step.

"You must understand the risks of taking this particular prototype Kudo-Kun, this one could last longer than the others even with your immunity... and it might also be your last." Conan put his hand on Haibara's shoulder and smiled at her.

"It's a risk we need to take, and I don't a plan on dying anytime soon." Conan left for the Mouri Residence to plant the seeds of deception.

The lying never ceased to make him sick to his stomach. It made him resent 'Conan' so much he was unable to bear looking in a mirror.

"Neh, Ran-neechan. Did you know I had a brother?" Ran looked at Conan in shock. Kogoro turned off the TV which had Yoko-chan's newest TV show airing.

"He managed to track me back here to Japan with the help of a free lance detective. I met him at Hakase's house... I left before he could tell me his name. I don't want him around." Conan said bluntly ignoring Ran and Otchan's look of shock as he twirls a pencil on his finger.

He was writing a letter to his self about how his day had been, a form of therapy he agreed to try to appease Hakase's worries.

He'd burn the letter at midnight when everyone was asleep and he'd feel a little less like scum.

Probably.

If he made it seem like he didn't want anything to do with a brother then they wouldn't question why they were so distant.

By saying that his brother managed to track him down, well that was simple really.

They'd understand that he knew nothing about his brother while his brother knew so much about him because of the Detective.

After having planted the idea that he had a brother he left with the kids who arrived to take him out to play in this new arcade.

Why they continue to drag him to arcades he'll never know though he did get the feeling that they liked being able to beat him at something.

Maybe he should let them lead a case and solve it more often. He enjoyed their cries of triumph and the smiles on their faces as they successfully solved a case.

Tch.

Look at him getting sentimental.

"Conan-kun?" Conan saw the kids staring at him in worry and smiled.

"It's fine. Weren't you leading me to the new arcade?" They cheered excitedly and began talking about the games there.

When Conan arrived back at Hakase's house he could see Hattori tied up on the floor squirming as he used his legs to hold Kid.

There was a gag in his mouth but that didn't stop him from yelling at Kid who kept trying to escape from Hattori. He saw Haibara watching as she sipped her coffee and couldn't decide if he should intervene or not.

His phone ringing had him shutting the door behind him as he removed his shoes walking past Hattori and Kid to sit on the couch as he answered the phone.

"Hello, Kaa-chan..." Conan' eye twitched as his mother whined about how his father was locked in his study not paying attention to her.

He got up and snagged the back of Kid's shirt when he managed to slip away and glared at him until he stilled.

"And what do you want me to do about it?" He asked pushing Kid into a sitting position while gesturing to Hattori who was glaring angrily at Kid. Conan could feel a headache coming on as his mother whined some more about not having anything to do and she was going to come visit him to kidnap him.

"No. I'm busy." He informed her starting to feel irritated that she was walking all over him again. He had too much going on to let her do as she liked this time.

"No. You can do whatever you like next month but I'm too busy right now." He grabbed Kid's shirt as he tried sneaking passed him and dragged him to the couch handing him to Haibara who simply stared him into submission.

Conan used his shoulder to hold the phone to his cheek as he helped Hattori get free.

"Yes. Whatever you want." He stated blandly now that she had calmed down and began listing all the things she would do. As long as she stayed away at this time he would do whatever she wanted.

They had to get Kid settled in, throw off the Black Organization and Snake, inform Jodie and the FBI.

He also had to introduce Kid to Subaru, Otchan and Ran, then inform his Kaa-chan about Edogawa Fumiyo's eldest son so she could play the role of grieving mother who had to give up one of her children.

He also had to learn some of Kid's tricks, send a heist notice, pretend to steal a jewel, and figure out what the hell 'Pandora' is.

When his mother began squealing in his ear he hung up and threw his phone across the room barely missing Hakase.

"Having trouble with Yukiko-san again Shinichi?" He'd apologize later, though Agasa-Hakase always knew it wasn't personal when he threw his phone across the room after any infuriating conversation with his mother.

Conan huffed nodding his head as he removed the last ribbon allowing Hattori to rip off the mouth gag and glare venomously at Kid.

"We're doing this for yer own good ya ahou!!" Hattori muttered angrily under his breath about no one respecting him making Conan smile a little. He patted Hattori's shoulder in a patronizing manner to comfort him.

"Don't worry, I respect you..." Hattori brightened up making Conan smirk.

"Heiji-nii-chan." He laughed childishly watching Hattori's face change from happy to stunned to angry then to mischievous and only had enough time to hold up his hands before a hand was on his waist and he knew he was in deep trouble.

Haibara watched Kudo shriek with laughter as he struggled to escape Hattori-kun's hold. He tried pushing the hands away but was laughing to hard to even keep them away which made her smile.

Kudo-Kun didn't laugh so freely unless it was with Hattori-kun which made her glad that there was someone that Kudo-Kun could truly be his self around.

"Stop!" He laughed helplessly trying to pry away the fingers that danced along his ribs.

"Hattori!" He tried kicking him, a useless effort but it was hilarious to watch all the same. Hattori-kun was laughing as he pinned Kudo-kun down and began tickling him anywhere he could reach.

"Ya shouldn't have teased me Kudo." A choked off reply was his only response and Haibara decided they should stop before Kudo-Kun lost the ability to breathe.

"Hattori-kun." He looked up at her smiling with an embarrassed look on his face as he let go of Kudo-Kun who glared weakly at her.

"You couldn't have ended this sooner?" He muttered indignantly cradling his ribs aiming his glare to Hattori-kun.

When it was time to plot the ultimate fake heist, Conan told Kid his plan and shot down any chance of him taking the prototype.

"You still have the original Apotoxin in your system, if you take it now you will die. I've built up an immunity to it so I can take the prototype, the only drawback is the more I take these the shorter they last. And there is a chance I won't make it through the next or the antidote will not work on me." Conan looked down feeling upset at that grim reminder though he kept a brave face even when Hattori-kun ruffled his hair and laid down the blue prints of the building for next heist of Kaito Kid.

Kid had been planning his next heist in case this jewel had not been Pandora and he'd set his eyes on the Monkey's heart, which Sonoko had once told Ran and Shinichi about when they were in middle school. About an ethereal light that only showed up on the night of a super moon.

"Hattori's working on infiltration, and he's going to pretend to be me to get a walk through with Sonoko and Ran tomorrow. You need to teach me your tricks and how to use that glider of yours, you can write a note to your accomplice and alongside Haibara and Agasa-Hakase you can deliver to him at the heist. But you can not allow him to follow you or for you to go back with him." Conan saw Kid nod his head with a look of heartbreak in his eyes and nearly took back his own words but he couldn't falter.

Haibara had done the exact same thing to him for his own good and he would do the same to Kid, and when this was all over he would take the blame for everything, he'd owed it to them.

Shinichi had always been a fast learner, that was the only reason he was able to master the small tricks Kid taught him and seeing that he only needed to learn a few to pull this off he had to master the few he did leave.

Though the mimicry he would need to rely on his bowtie for that. And he was good at disguises but not well enough to fool the likes of Vermouth or his mother, Kid deemed him a passable imitation after his first test run which involved an old prototype antidote that lasted about a half hour now.

It was worth it to get this right or they'd just end up throwing fuel to the fires already lit by Snake.

When the notice was sent he was with Otchan watching him grumble about the time while glaring at Conan who was only allowed out past curfew on Kid heists when Nakamori-Keibu brought him home otherwise he wasn't allowed to go.

Conan was going to be in so much trouble later but he could deal with being grounded although he knows the punishment would involve his estranged brother.

Otchan would try to mend the bond between himself and his brother which would go according to plan, not that he had to like it.

"That could have gone better." Kudo-Kun groaned as Haibara splinted his fingers together.

"Could they tell you were not Kid?" Haibara asked as Kudo-Kun tilted his head towards her so she could clean the cut on his cheek idly noticing that it was a gunshot wound, leave it to Kudo-Kun to forget to mention being shot at.

"No. They just told me when would I actually die, good thing I had Kid send out a notice." Kudo-Kun slowly began removing the white suit, being extremely careful not to damage it which she found strange, but then again the suit didn't belong to him.

"Kudo-Kun, how long has it been since you last took the newest batch of the antidote?" He paused in folding the blue shirt to look at his watch face blanking as he turned to face her.

"Did we just find a cure by trying to get everyone to think Kaito Kid was still alive?" He continued removing his clothes used to being observed by Haibara in little to no clothing. Though it was only possible if no one else was in the room otherwise Kudo-Kun became a blushing maiden.

He slipped on some clothes he left in the lab for cases like these when he returned to his original age and instantly pouted.

"Oi, Haibara. I shrunk." He held up his hands which were dwarfed by his sleeves. She brought out her tape measure and her clipboard to begin taking notes and frowned.

He had shrunk.

He was now 5'3 instead of 5'8.5 and he appeared younger than seventeen.

"We'll keep on eye on this. For now you should get some rest, and keep weight off your left foot!" He flinched and scratched his cheek glancing away with an embarrassed flush on his face.

Hattori-kun burst into laughter startling Kudo-Kun who whirled around hand on his watch. He pouted instantly when he looked at his arm to see that his sleeves had covered the watch up.

"Dammit Hattori. I told you not to sneak up on me!" He then proceeded to chase Hattori-kun out of the lab by aiming Kaito Kid's card gun at him and shooting.

There was silence as he caught his breath blushing at the glare Haibara aimed at him.

Then his phone began to ring so he picked it up and frowned as it continued ringing. Haibara coughed pointing to the other phone and watched Kudo-Kun panic as he searched his pockets frantically.

"Where's my bowtie! Why's she calling now?" Kudo-Kun huffed and began searching Kid's outfit idly dropping objects that he quickly caught and set on the table.

"Kudo-Kun what are you doing?" Haibara wanted to know how long it would take him to figure out he was already Kudo Shinichi.

"Looking for my bowtie to answer the phone. Where did I leave it? Ran is probably going to ask about Kid- I mean Conan's brother. Where did I leave it?!" He crawled under the table and looked under it pulling out a stash of cards, a tape recorder, some snacks and even a wad of cash.

When did Kudo-Kun start hiding all those things in her lab?

He usually only did that upstairs or in the Mouri Residence.

Well, it looked as if he wouldn't figure it out.

"Kudo-Kun. Look at your hand." He paused in looking under her desk idly removing a stack of a cards, and a slim book, it looked like the photo album the kids had gotten him for his seventh birthday. He looked at his hands blankly then shot to his feet and grabbed the phone.

"Ran, can I call you back. I'm on a case." Kudo-kun paused trying to catch his breath and rubbed his neck nervously as Haibara stared at him.

"Okay. I'll ask Kaa-chan about it. Bye." He hung up getting more and more red in the face. The door opened behind him allowing Haibara to see Kid-san and Hattori-kun.

"I forgot okay! I haven't been me in a while, plus I'm not my normal height. It threw me off." He mumbled blushing bright red as he hunched his shoulders defensively.

The rest of that night Shinichi ended up sick with a high fever from the stress and slept fitfully beside an equally stressed Kid who wanted answers from Shinichi about what happened at the heist.

Hattori had taken Kid aside and talked with him about letting Shinichi rest and had then taken up position at the entrance of the lab with Haibara and Agasa-Hakase guarding the upstairs door.

Shinichi knows he'd end up leaving even if he wasn't in any condition to go anywhere but he couldn't exactly control his self when he had an episode.

And even if they had tapered off in the past four months tonight had been highly stressful.

Which was why he wasn't surprised that Subaru-san was holding his elbow and talking soothingly as he listed ingredients for curry.

Hattori-kun was asleep on the couch holding his phone and Kid was watching him with a worried expression.

"You just got up and walked away before anyone noticed." Shinichi just looked at his feet to see that they were mildly dirty which meant he hadn't gotten far, and he was exhausted.

"Now that you're aware lie down." Shinichi limped to the other couch and curled up on it falling asleep before he even fully settled down.

The second day Shinichi texted Otchan about his mother or rather Conan's mother had picked up Conan to talked to him about his twin brother.

He texted him back and told him that he should have texted or called sooner but was assured that Conan was safe.

About three days have passed and Kudo is still Kudo only he looks fourteen and is 5'3 so the lil nee-chan and Kudo think they finally found the cure.

Heiji thought so, he was happy for Kudo despite feeling uneasy about the situation. Kudo was getting antsy as he checked the time multiple times throughout the day for the past three days.

"Relax Kudo. Show me those soccer skills your so proud of." Heiji grinned holding up a soccer ball with Kid standing beside him pouting.

Heiji knew that Kid wanted to take the cure too but Kudo and the lil nee-chan were adamant that they try to wait as long as possible before trying to give Kid the cure. Seeing that the remnants of the ahotoxin was still in his system and they were unsure that this was actually the cure.

"Hattori!" Kudo flailed around trying to get away from Heiji as he dragged up and off the couch.

Shinichi was kicking the ball against the wall trying to hit Hattori who was laughing as he dodged out of the way.

Shinichi could see Kid shaking in terror beside him and smirked a little knowing he was the reason Kid was afraid of soccer balls.

Then as he made to kick the ball again he got dizzy and missed the ball.

"Kudo?" Hattori was at his side holding onto his arm looking concerned.

"Hattori? I think I should sit down..." Shinichi could hear his self say faintly and felt a small hand pat his cheek.

"You are sitting Tantei-kun." Shinichi looked down to see that he was leaning against Hattori who was holding him up.

Kaito saw Kudo stumble and instantly Tantei-Han was beside him holding his arm and helping him to the floor with a scared look on his face.

"Kudo? Kudo look at me." But Kudo didn't respond at all he just sat on the floor staring in a daze.

"Tantei-kun?" He shut his eyes and then titled sideways nearly falling until Tantei-Han leaned him against his chest.

"Kudo?" He looked up slightly with a frown.

"Hattori? I think I should sit down." He murmured faintly voice falling as he shut his eyes. Kaito put his hand to Kudo's face and watched him slowly turn to him.

"You are sitting Tantei-kun." He stared blankly at him before his eyes rolled into the back of his head and he began seizing.

He heard Tantei-Han curse and was pushed towards the house with the order to get Haibara.

Haibara watched Kudo-Kun cry out in pain as he curled into a ball of agony.

He began bleeding from his nose as he gripped the blanket tightly biting his lip.

"You should leave." Haibara told Hattori-kun and Kid-san but both didn't leave, one out of curiosity and the other determined to stay out of friendship.

Kudo-Kun cried out again as he buried his face in the pillow hand spasming.

"Get out!" He screamed throwing his shoe at Hattori-kun who idly dodged and made his way closer.

"I told you Kudo! I'm not leaving you alone!" Kudo-Kun began seizing again which startled everyone who quickly pinned him down until the seizing stopped. But it didn't stop making Haibara worry and begin to fear for his safety and health.

After nearly ten minutes he stopped seizing and began vomitting and coughing inky black blood.

He sounded as if he was drowning and it reminded Haibara vividly of her first test subject who had drowned in their own blood along with dying of blood loss.

"KUDO-KUN STAY STRONG! YOU'VE COME TO FAR!!"
Haibara cried out trying to get Kudo-Kun to fight. He was gasping for breath whenever he could get a seconds respite from spewing out blood.

He suddenly began screaming and writhing in utter agony until he passed out.

Then she could feel his skin burning up and feel his bones shift before hearing the sound of bones snapping.

"Is it always like this? Changing back? Is there a cure?!" Kid sounded hysterical as he scrubbed his hands and tore off his shirt trying to get rid of the blood.

Heiji felt his hands shaking as he stared at Kudo's pale, too pale, face dyed copper by blood as he breathed looking like he was in so much pain.

He could hear a slight whistling sound as Kudo breathed and could feel tears in his eyes.

"Kudo, don't die. Don't die okay?" Heiji ignored the blood on the floor as he kneeled down and grabbed Kudo's hand feeling it twitch in his hold.

"No. There is pain, fever and a residual ache from taking one of the antidotes but never to this extent. Something went wrong. Kudo-Kun has never remained his self for this long." He heard the lil nee-chan say after a smacking sound and wondered how hysterical Kid had been to be slapped.

"I promised I wouldn't leave you to suffer alone, and I won't no matter how many times you tell me to leave." Heiji whispers tearfully staring at Kudo's face as he began wiping away the blood.

"It's going to be okay." He didn't want the lil nee-chan or Agasa-han or even Kid to clean up this mess.

He didn't want them to have so much blood on their hands so he took up the task of cleaning up despite the tears that made their way down his face.

He could hear Kid leaving with the lil nee-chan and let out a sob.

"No matter what... I'll see this through to the end with you. So you have to promise me Kudo. Ya have to promise ta fight until you've got nothin' left, then ya keep on fightin!'" Heiji squeezed his eyes shut as he buried his face in the mattress away from the blood stains.

Fingers twitched spasmodically before slowly tapping out an agreement. Heiji looked up to see blue eyes glazed with fever and pain but also determination staring into his own

'Who do you take me for? Of course I'll keep fighting.' his expression seemed to say, then he smiled a small painful smile falling asleep leaving Heiji alone with a pile of bloody clothes and rags.

But he felt reassured that Kudo would pull through maybe be weak and Ill for a while but he'd be just fine.

And Heiji would hold him to it, so for now he'd worry about this mess and ask the lil nee-chan if she needed to take a blood sample from this mess.

Maybe she'd find out what went wrong.

Chapter Text

Heiji watched Kudo twitch as he struggled to push off the blankets. It hadn't even been a day before his health took a sharp nose dive into dangerous territory.

The fever hadn't gone down in the slightest and it was steadily rising even if it hadn't gone into a dangerous range yet.

Kudo would come in and out of consciousness looking disoriented. Sometimes he didn't even know where he was.

Just that he was safe.

Heiji was scared.

More than scared, he was frightened.

And Kid could only watch in confusion and fear as the stong child he knew lost himself more and more to his own mind.

The lil nee-chan was running countless tests on him trying to figure out what went wrong.

Heiji couldn't help but feel this was Pandora's fault some how.

That was the only thing that had changed from the normal routine of taking a test antidote.

"Shh. You'll wake him." Heiji whispered when the door was opened behind him. There was a pause before whoever it was came closer to them without any hesitation.

"How is he doing?" Heiji's lost expression must have shown on his face as the glasses wearing man smiled gently.

"I'm a doctor. You can call me Araide-sensei." Heiji looked back at the hand in his and sighed.

"The same Araide-sensei who is in contact with the FBI?" Queries Heiji more than wary about this newcomer as he shifted so Kudo was hidden from view. The man looked at him with a soft yet sad look.

"Yes. Jodie-sensei is keeping a close eye on me." Heiji didn't move from his position and the doctor didn't try to make him move.

"Hattori-kun. He's safe." Heiji looked behind Araide-sensei to see Agasa-han and the lil nee-chan.

"Go get washed up and get some sleep or you'll be joining Edogawa in sickness." Heiji squeezed the small hand in between both of his.

"I'll be back. So don't go anywhere." Feverish blue eyes locked onto his for a few seconds before shutting. A small smile and a finger twitching was his only response.

"Glad we agreed." Heiji reluctantly released the warm, too warm, hand and left the room to get cleaned up.

When Heiji returned, he found the lil nee-chan waiting for him with a look in her eyes that had him tripping in his haste to go downstairs. Kudo was sleeping fitfully looking about the same as when he left. So then why did she look that way?

She'd finished analyzing the blood sample. He whirled around at the sound of her approaching and tensed at the hollow look in her eyes.

"Yes, I did finish the tests. The Apotoxin along with the test antidotes in his blood have been completely purged from his system." She paused on the last step to look him dead in the eyes.

"The loss of the Apotoxin 4869 has destabilized his already compromised immune system and it's wreaking havoc in his body. The side effect from the Apotoxin was the only thing keeping him functional. And now without it there is nothing keeping him stable and his body is trying to shut down. He's neither a child nor an adult even though he once was both."

Kaito listened from the top of the stairs and wondered if the same would happen to him. Or it's as Tantei-kun had said, the more doses of the cure he took, the closer to death he was.

Or that the cure wouldn't work at all.

"Kudo will be fine... He... He's stronger than this." Tantei-Han voice wobbled dangerously as he spoke. If this could shake up Tantei-Han, what hope did Tantei-kun have?

"Ah, Kaito Kid..." Kaito smiled falsely at Tantei-Han and the small scientist when they saw him at the top of the stairs eavesdropping.

A hard look entered Tantei-Han's green eyes as he climbed the last of the stairs to reach ground level.

"Stay away from Kudo. Only he knows where Pandora and he needs all the rest he can get." Kaito raised his hands fearfully wanting to keep the wrath Tantei-Han was wearing like a cloak as far away from him as possible.

"I just... You said..." Kaito nervously stuttered afraid when he shouldn't be. But at this size he was vulnerable.

Tantei-Han flinched pulling his cap down over his eyes as he turned partially away from him.

Kaito relaxed slowly seeing the movement for what it was, an apology.

The small scientist, Haibara stared at him with a cool calculating gaze that had him shivering in fear.

"Harry. Edogawa Harry, is the name I've chosen." Kaito stated bravely meeting Haibara's gaze. Edogawa since it was a family and Harry after Harry Houdini although it would probably be pronounced 'Hari', like needle.

And he'd even thought up his background story to try and fall into character as Edogawa Harry.

The glasses Tantei-kun had given him were changed to transition lenses so his eye color would be better hidden when he went outside where being spotted was more dangerous.

The only differences between Harry and Conan were that Harry had messier hair, transition glasses and slight thieving tendencies that often appeared with magic tricks.

Kaito was nervous but after a days worth of preparation from Heiji-nii-chan and Haibara-san he knew he was ready to play his part.

He'd need to play his part as Edogawa Conan before he could even begin to play Edogawa Harry. He just prayed that Tantei-kun would get better soon.

"Brat. We need to have a serious talk." 'Conan' tensed as he looked up at Mouri Kogoro when he entered the apartment at three thirty in the afternoon two days after the Kaito Kid heist. He let out a nervous laugh thinking about the lies Tantei-kun had spread before disappearing and acted accordingly when Mouri-san told him about contacting Agasa-Hakase about his brother.

"Agasa told me the name of your brother, it's Edogawa Hari. And he made his way here to Japan with an emergency visa to come see you. I haven't been able to get in contact with your mother, and neither has Agasa. But Shinichi confirmed your familial relationship." Mouri-san looked at him with a soft kindness in his eyes as he gently ruffled 'Conan's' hair.

'Conan' blushed at the warmth he felt quickly trying to stamp down the fluttery feeling in his chest as he thought about another mustache'd man who'd always looked after him.

Now was not the time to be recalling Nakamori-Keibu, he was supposed to be Conan.

"I'll meet with him." 'Conan' grumbled irritably under his breath as he crossed his arms over his chest and turned away slightly.

Everything was going as planned on this front, now they only had to worry about Tantei-kun getting better before they could introduce 'Harry' to the Mouri family.