A/N: AAAAND THE END! Holy crap guys, this is my first finished fic EVER. And it's all thanks to every single one of you~ Thank you so much for sticking with me for the last two months and giving me feedback and pointing out my little mistakes and plot holes. Every single one of you is amazing and I love you all.

And now, shameless self-advertisement time~ If you're into KaiAo, I'm writing some AUs ("Aftershocks" is an angsty immortals!au and "Riddle me This" is an Inception AU, there will be a regency AU coming soon), you can find those on my profile. And if you're into angst or ShinRan, or a combination of those two things, "Feel What You Know" is a ShinRan ten years later au with a twist. Other than that, I write for canon pairs in general, if anyone is interested :D All of these are not yet finished, but I'd be honored if you'd drop by and visit~

And now, without further ado, the final chapter~

Pain.

Every single cell in his body screamed in protest as he turned onto his back.

Where was he?

There was a faint beeping behind him, and the scent of antiseptic stung at his nose.

Hospital then?

Kaito forced one eye open, and then the other.

He blinked. Dimly he seemed to remember someone screaming before his world had gone black. Aoko? What stupid stunt had he pulled this time?

The girl in question, asleep in an uncomfortable looking plastic chair, shifted.

His breath caught in his throat as the memories came flooding back and he remembered the heist, Aoko's pale face, gunfire, and blood blossoming like roses on Kid's suit.

Shit.

She knew, didn't she? She knew everything.

Experimentally he lifted his hand, and was surprised to find that he had not been cuffed to the hospital bed.

Perhaps Nakamori-keibu knew too, then, and this would be a small concession, made toward the boy he'd known since he was a child, a final courtesy before Kaito would be carted off to jail.

The girl in the chair turned fitfully. "Kaito?"

He froze.

Aoko rubbed red-rimmed eyes, blinking as she came awake. Her blue-eyed gaze settled on him.

He held his breath.

Her brows furrowed together and she bit down hard on her lip, tears already brimming, hands fisted into the material of her skirt.

Dammit. He'd made her cry again.

"Aoko-"

"Don't."

His heart sank to his feet.

She hated him. Of course she hated him. Given the choice between her morals, her father, and him, he knew he'd always lose.

God, let her hear him out. Please hear him out. "Aoko," he tried again, " I can explain-" the words were already tumbling out of his mouth when she started to her feet and stalked across the room. Kaito half expected her to hit him, but then she'd crawled onto the hospital bed and her cool, slender fingers were threading through his hair, and she was pulling his face up toward hers, eyes glittering, searching.

And then she kissed him.

It didn't taste like blood this time. It tasted like her, like something familiar, like something he'd been longing for all this time, only he hadn't known it. Kaito's hands found their way to her waist and he propped himself up on his elbows to meet her better.

"Aoko-" he said dazedly, breathlessly as she pulled away.

"Shhh," Aoko's voice was hoarse from what must have been crying. "I want to know everything, and I want you to tell me. But for now," her fingers brushed across his cheek and her gaze flickered impatiently from one spot to the next, as if she was afraid the parts she couldn't see would disappear, "For now, you're alive, and I love you. Everything else can wait."

A kind of warmth he'd never known before flooded into him, thawing the frozen expanse in his chest where a hollow had once been. Something swelled in that left-ish place beneath his ribcage, and his eyes became suspiciously wet. Kaito pulled Aoko into his arms, pressing his face into her shoulder.

"Thank you," he breathed, shaking, into her hair. "I thought-I thought you'd hate me."

"Bakaito," she admonished gently.

He held her tighter, hissing when her arms knocked into his chest.

"Bakaito," she said again, pulling away, brows furrowed with worry. "You shouldn't do that. The bullet you...took for me," Aoko finished shyly, swallowing and looking away, "It tore through your lung and then lodged itself in a rib. No hugs for you in the near future. No flying either, unless you want your lung to collapse again. The other two injuries didn't seem to leave lasting damage, but you were in surgery for a day and then you were out for another three, and you scared me half to death. You won't be able to walk for a while, but the doctors said your foot should heal just fine."

"And you?" Anxiety suddenly gripped his insides, and he didn't care to duck as his fingers ghosted over the skin of her calf. "Your leg…?"

"I'm fine. They patched me up in no time," she assured, and instead of finding the nearest mop, leaned down to kiss him again.

Behind them, a door creaked open, and someone cleared their throat.

Aoko turned beet red as Nakamori-keibu came through the door, and clambered quickly off of the bed and back to her seat.

"Am I interrupting something?" The inspector raised a stern eyebrow.

Kaito swallowed. "No, sir."

"Don't worry," there was danger, but also a small amount of gruff amusement in Nakamori-keibu's eyes. "There isn't exactly a law in place that lets me arrest you for kissing my daughter. Mind you, I would if I could."

Kaito paled visibly.

"Tou-san," Aoko interrupted dangerously.

Nakamori-keibu waved her away good-naturedly. "Kidding aside, I'm here to get your statement, Kaito-kun."

"My...statement?" Kaito looked helplessly to Aoko. To be honest, the fact that she hadn't told her father his identity came as enough of a shock. He hadn't even considered the possibility that she might have gone to the length of coming up with a cover story for him.

"Tou-san, can't we do this another day?" Aoko stood again, coming to hover protectively over him. "Kaito just woke up, and he nearly died."

"I know. Believe me, I know. But we can't withhold a statement any longer. The media is convinced that you were with Kid the entire time."

"But that's stupid," Aoko said, a little too quickly. "He was never there."

"And the sooner Kaito-kun releases his statement, the sooner he's cleared of that suspicion."

Aoko sighed. "Fine. But could I just have a few moments with him? Alone? He's probably a little confused."

Nakamori-keibu raised his eyebrow again, in a way that made both teenagers blush bright red, but neglected to do anything aside from give Kaito a warning look before leaving the room.

"So," Kaito swallowed, staring after the inspector, still a little bit shocked that he wasn't in handcuffs yet, "What is my statement?"

She sat down at the edge of his bed. "You followed me upstairs and got shot. I dragged you into a closet, administered first aid and saved your life. And then we waited until Hakuba-kun and Conan-kun came to rescue us."

He stared at her.

She flushed. "I know it's not the best story I could have come up with but I thought it would be easier for me if I stayed as close to the truth as possible-"

"No," his voice was choked with emotion. Aoko, the Aoko that hated Kaitou Kid and often voiced aloud exactly how much she wanted him dead, the Aoko that hadn't so much as told a single lie all her life, had betrayed her own principles to save him. Not Kid. He knew she still had little love for that side of his personality. Him. Kaito. She'd done it to save him, despite knowing who he was, despite knowing what he's done.

"Thank you."

The smile on her face grew a little morose and he knew she knew what he was thanking her for.

"I...don't understand why you do it. Or even, really, what it is you do." Aoko twisted a strand of her dark hair absently. "And...I'm mad, and hurt, that you lied to me and used me...so you'd better give me a damn good excuse."

So he did. He told her everything.

When he was done she wasn't exactly crying, but she looked like she wanted to.

His heart was in his throat again, and his voice was hoarse. "I really am sorry."

"I know. I gathered as much. You...told me so. They were your 'last words.' Or...would have been." Aoko bit her lip and reached out to take his hand, as if to reassure herself he was in fact, still alive. "I promise I will be angry later. I'll yell and hit you with a mop but...but..."

The conflict behind her eyes tore him to shreds all over again. "You can take a raincheck for that. Hit me with a mop whenever you want."

That released a watery chuckle from her lips.

There was silence again. This time, not so uncomfortable.

"So the story about Pandora...it's true?

"Yes," he said, "Every bit."

"I understand why you can't go to the police about that...but...Toichi-oji-san's death..."

"He was the original Kaitou Kid. And Snake...Snake and them. They killed him. I couldn't go to the police because they would never believe me. That, and if they ever found out who I was...everyone around me would be in danger." Kaito's spirits sank as he played back the conversation he'd had with Snake. They thought he was his father, and they knew that his father had a wife and son, which means he was in danger, his mother was in danger, and everyone around him would be in danger. His panic must have shown in his eyes because Aoko reached out to take his hand.

"You don't have to worry about that," she assured gently. "Hakuba-kun...took care of it."

Before he could ask any questions-he remembered Snake's death clearer than anything in that last half hour, but he wanted every detail for dissection and review-Hakuba himself came in.

"Kuroba," the Brit greeted, tolerably pleasant. But Kaito could tell that there was something off, something haunted in his eyes, something that made warning bells go off in his head. "I'm taking your statement instead. Nakamori-keibu had to deal with press."

Kaito's brain was running faster than a freight train, already mapping out all the possible ways to escape the room with an IV still in his arm, and was fully prepared to rattle off exactly what Aoko had told him a moment ago.

Hakuba put up a hand. "No need. I know your story."

"And," Aoko cut in. "He also took care of your gear." Hakuba glared at the girl, who crossed her arms and smiled sweetly up at him.

"...there was blood all over it. The task force would have been able to put two and two together from DNA samples." Hakuba admitted grudgingly. "I had to burn it."

"Hakuba…" Though he suspected some part of Hakuba probably enjoyed that, Kaito inclined his head anyway. He knew the weight that accompanied the action. Hakuba was a detective, which meant that by helping Kaito, he was betraying everything he stood for. Much like Aoko was. That same feeling, part gratitude, part affection for these people he cared about who cares about him, swelled up in his chest. "Thank you."

A nearly humorless smile twitched at a bloodless lip. "Now Kaitou Kid owes me a favor."

"I will do anything short of letting you arrest me."

"...Then let me help you."

Kaito had to double take. "What?"

"Let me help you," Hakuba clarified, "Those men that were after you seem like they should be a higher priority than capturing Kid. Besides, from what Aoko-san told me, they know your father was the first Kid. It wouldn't be long before they came after you and your mother."

"And if you help me, it wouldn't be long till they start going after you. And I can't...I can't risk the people around me. People I care about. That's part of the reason why I never told you," Kaito turned to Aoko, hoped to God that she'd understand. "This is my fight. My tou-san's fight. And I have to be the one to finish it."

"And ours, Kaito, is to catch Kid," Aoko said, putting her hands on her hips. A second's pause, and then she blushed. "Besides, I'm not letting some men in black kill him now that I've finally caught him."

"I agree with Aoko-san on that front. You're not allowed to die until we can arrest you."

"Or you could just arrest him now," A small childish voice came from the doorway.

Aoko turned around, glaring.

"Kidding," the boy in the glasses smiled, a little too sly.

Hakuba let out an uncharacteristic groan. "How many times have I told you-"

"It's too dangerous?" Tantei-kun walked in, hands in his pockets. He nodded in acknowledgement. "You should thank Ran...neechan, by the way. If she hadn't offered to donate blood to you on the way to the hospital, you'd be dead by now." The shrunken detective said, lifting his blue eyed gaze to look Kaito dead in the eye, "and as for too dangerous...that's a risk we all have to take, right?"

A long pause.

A boy stared at another boy. They had nothing, and yet everything in common. A seven year old, and a seventeen year old, a detective and a thief, both too smart for their own good, both hiding from a black shadow looming over their past, over their present, over their future.

Somewhere far away, perhaps down the hall, perhaps around the corner, a girl who looked perhaps just a little too much like Aoko was wandering the floor worriedly, calling for her little Conan-kun.

They shared the same demons, the same worries, the same fears. The same situation.

And for now, that was enough.

"Am I missing something?" to the side, Hakuba mused to Aoko. Aoko shrugged.

For now, it meant a truce.

Besides, now that his friends knew, who was he really fooling? Hakuba got into more than enough trouble on his own, and Aoko was certainly stubborn enough to start stalking Kid to heists.

A smirk began to grow on Kaito's face. "...I suppose." he allowed.

"Kuroba, does that mean-?"

"Yeah," Kaito shrugged. "You can help. Knowing Ahouko, she's going to insist anyway. And then she's going to do something stupid and I'll have to save her again." He squeezed her hand affectionately, and accepted her yelled "Bakaito!" and accompanied light smack with grace.

And then he yawned. He hadn't really meant to. Things were kicking off. He should be planning something or discussing something with one of the detectives. Listing the boundaries. Explaining away the enigma of the Kaitou Kid. But the blood loss must have been getting to him.

"Of course, I'd like a reasonable explanation as to why your less than legal night job also involves you being shot at," Hakuba put in. "I'll need some kind of excuse to justify the aiding and abetting we've been doing."

Aoko glared at him until he relented.

"I'll get your statement to Nakamori-keibu," the usually reserved detective chuckled. "It seems as though the Magician under the Moonlight needs to sleep."

"Piss off, Hakuba."

"Already done, Kuroba." The brit waved a hand over his shoulder as he left the room.

"I should go too," Tantei-kun said, when his phone began to ring. "Ran-neechan's probably looking for me."

"And I-" Aoko was about to get up and leave too, before he tugged her back by her hand, still joined to his.

"Stay?"

The puppy eyes were very skillfully employed.

There was a moment of silence.

Aoko rolled her eyes, resolve snapping. "Move over then, you big baby."

He did. It was hard to find a comfortable enough way for two bodies to fit on one small hospital bed, without some part of her jamming into his already bruised and very tender ribs, but they managed, somehow, and before long she was pressed against him and his nose was in her hair.

"Hey," he whispered.

"Go to sleep.".

"I will. But...before I do...I just wanted to..."

"What?"

"Tell you I'm sorry. Again.I know...I don't always...I laugh a lot of things off, but I can't do that to this. I can't do that to you. An apology doesn't mean much, I know. Not when I've...done...some incredibly shitty things to you. But I just…"

"Kaito...I can't exactly tell you I agree with all of your choices. I can't exactly tell you that I'm okay with the stuff you've been doing, to me, or otherwise. And I haven't forgiven you, not yet. But...I think, some day, I'll be able to." She glanced over her shoulder, smiling, tiredly. "If you're willing to try, then I'm willing to try, ok?"

"...Ok." His arm went around her waist. She held his hand, and closed her eyes.

So they weren't quite right, two teenagers that were perhaps a little too old for their age and didn't, weren't able to love each other the way they had before. So they were a little bit broken, a little out of shape, a little bit bent. So that red thread of fate, the string that connected them had been tangled and stretched a little farther than it should have been, pulled taut and then released, thin, long, unwinding.

They were somewhere in the middle. Between right and wrong, between love and hate, between destiny and something of their own making. Limbs tangled, hair mussed, cheek to cheek, different, but still the same, the inspector's daughter was in the phantom thief's arms, and Aoko Nakamori was in Kaito Kuroba's.

They were a living, breathing oxymoron that had been declared simply impossible. And yet, they were.

"But you have to promise me one thing." She said, after a long silence.

The world was still upside down.

"Hmm?"

Their hearts were still inside out.

"No more lying."

But black was melting into white.

"Never," He vowed into her hair.

And they met each other halfway in the sea of gray.

So maybe they were right. Maybe they were wrong. Maybe both were both at one point or another.

It didn't matter, because this was exactly where they were always meant to be.

THE END