Disclaimer: I do not own Detective Conan/Case Closed.

Pairing: KaitoxShinichi

Rating: T

Genre: Romance/Fantasy

Summary: Sent undercover to investigate if the renowned sorcerer Kuroba Kaito might be connected with the thief who broke into the king's palace, Shinichi finds much more than he bargained for.

Heart of a Spell

Chapter 1 - Assignment

Seated in a small café tucked into a corner of the city square, Kudo Shinichi frowned across the table at the blond man who'd been assigned to brief him on his first assignment as a member of Ekoda law enforcement. He had just spent an hour being told about a series of strange thefts that had started over four years ago. The thief in question was also a powerful sorcerer—a fact that had caused law enforcement all over the country no end of headaches. Now that he thought about it, Shinichi thought he might even have heard of the man's endeavors a few times back in his home city of Beika. However, back there, he'd always been assigned to homicide cases. To be totally honest, he wasn't all that thrilled to be assigned to this case instead. Theft wasn't a good thing, but he would much rather be putting his efforts into tracking down killers.

This phantom thief, however, seemed to have rubbed so many people the wrong way that law enforcement officials everywhere were demanding that he be found. His most recent heist—during which he had actually broken into the king's palace and made off with an extremely valuable brooch—had just fueled the fire. A long and tedious investigation had narrowed the thief's most likely city of residence to Ekoda. Now all the city's most powerful sorcerers were being watched like hawks.

Four names in particular had come up as likely candidates, and one of those was a Kuroba Kaito. The man was the son of two famous magic users and said to be a true prodigy of the arcane arts. And it was he who Shinichi was now being told he would be investigating.

But what he really wanted to know was, "Why me?"

"Because you're the only one he's remotely likely to hire," Hakuba Saguru replied, tone matter-of-fact. "Since you just transferred here from a different city, he won't have seen your face before."

"But I thought you said he was looking to hire an assistant," he pointed out. "I can't use magic."

"Wasn't your mother a sorceress though?"

"Well, yeah, but I never had much interest in it," Shinichi admitted. "So I used to run away from her whenever she wanted to try teaching me…"

The blond nodded thoughtfully. "Still, that means you probably know more about magic than the average applicant. It could give you an edge, though he never actually specified magical knowledge as a requirement. I've also heard he's partial to blue eyes."

"…Does that matter?" Shinichi asked warily, suddenly feeling a bit thrown off. What could the color of his eyes have to do with anything?

The blond shrugged. " It might, it might not. It's all about making a good first impression. We've already submitted your application for you."

"Gee, thanks," Shinichi muttered under his breath, though not loud enough to be heard by his companion.

"And here is a copy." Hakuba pushed a folder full of papers across the table to him. "Also in the folder are all the necessary identifications, etc. Familiarize yourself with it as quickly as possible. Your interview is tomorrow morning."

That was awfully soon.

"All right." Picking up the folder, Shinichi flipped through it quickly to check that everything was there before setting it back down again. "If you don't mind me asking though, why are we devoting so many resources to catching this one thief?"

That earned him a disbelieving—and maybe a bit disapproving—look from Hakuba. "He's breaking the law. That means he has to be stopped. You should understand that."

"I know, but weren't there three serial killings recently? I would have thought that case should have greater priority."

"There are other people working on that. All you need to worry about is landing this job."

"Oh." It seemed he wasn't supposed to ask questions after all. He'd hoped things would be different here, but it seemed he'd been wrong. All the other officers back home were also always telling him that he should just do what he was told.

-0-

Pausing outside the towering mansion, Shinichi gazed up at the elegant building with no little trepidation. So this was where Kuroba Kaito lived. If he was successful in getting the job he'd been sent to get, it would be where Shinichi would be living as well. Tall windows glittered in the building face like the facets of a great jewel. And the grounds he'd walked through to reach the building—all deep flowerbeds, lush lawns, and leafy trees. It was like the mansion was sitting in the middle of its own park.

But it wasn't the size and grandeur of the place that was making him nervous. He'd seen plenty of big houses in his time. His parents' house, back when he'd still lived with them, had been fairly large as well, even if it didn't have this place's impressive yard. After he'd moved out, he'd mostly lived in apartments, but large houses bore no special power over him no matter how awe-inspiring they were probably meant to be. This place though… It felt—as though there was something else here. A presence. It felt as though it was watching him, ridiculous as the notion was. He couldn't see anything, but this was definitely no ordinary house. What kind of man lived in a place like this?

Come to think of it, he knew practically nothing about this sorcerer other than his name and reputation. He knew the man was renowned as a genius. Like his equally famous father, he had started his career as a performing sorcerer—building spectacular shows that had people flocking to any venue he was scheduled to appear at. Not only that, but in the process of perfecting and expanding on his arts he had discovered more than two dozen entirely new spells and created multiple, powerful magical items. Nowadays people from all over the kingdom came to consult him whenever they had problems with magic. Many had come asking him to teach them, but so far he had turned them all away. No one knew why.

For someone so famous, he was said to be incredibly secretive. It was believed that in addition to the spells he'd documented and published for others to learn from he had many more that he had never shared.

It was partly this secrecy that had made the city's law enforcement so suspicious of him. To them, his unwillingness to take students into his house and his preference for keeping things to himself meant that he had something he wanted to hide.

His fame, however, was also the reason why they had to be so careful about investigating the man. Without solid evidence against him, even hinting at an accusation could get everyone in the department fired and possibly denounced for life, all considered many of the country's rich and powerful were the man's avid fans. Even the king was rumored to have attended more than a handful of his performances.

Shaking his head, Shinichi braced himself and moved to ring the doorbell. If he didn't get moving, he'd be late, and that was never a good way to begin an interview.

The door was answered by an elderly man who smiled at him. "How may I help you, lad?"

"Hi, my name is Kudo Shinichi. I'm here for an interview with the sorcerer, Kuroba Kaito."

"Ah, yes, I remember now. Please, follow me, Master Kaito is waiting in the study."

-0-

Shinichi tried not to fidget as the old man closed the study door behind him. At the large desk before him sat a young man who couldn't be more than a year or two older than himself. There was a roguish air about him. It was in the sly quirk of his grin and the mischievous gleam in his eyes. His tousled brown hair fell in a mess that somehow managed to look wild and elegant at the same time. The most striking thing about him, however, was the complete confidence with which he carried himself—like someone who knew that he could have the entire world at his mercy if he so chose.

His sharp, indigo eyes looked Shinichi up and down as he stood there awkwardly before the door, studying every inch of him with an intensity that made Shinichi squirm. It felt like the man was reading his soul. Could sorcerers do that? Come to think of it, he didn't know. What if the guy could tell that Shinichi was actually here on behalf of people trying to investigate if he was a thief? Would he just throw Shinichi out? Or do something worse?

But it seemed his fears were unfounded as the man waved for him to sit on the chair across from him. "Your name was Shinichi, right?"

He nodded, taking a seat.

"And you just moved to Ekoda?"

"About a week ago. I'm from Beika."

The sorcerer nodded thoughtfully. "Ah, I've been there once. Not a very big city but beautiful. So, as you know, I am looking for an assistant. I just keep getting busier these days and there are a lot of things that have to be done that just eat up time like nobody's business. Lately, I've barely had any time to spend on my own studies and experiments, which is a drag because that means I won't be able to improve on my abilities or inventions." He heaved a melodramatic sigh. "In any case, that is why I am seeking an assistant. Most of what I need from you will be to take care of things around the house and run errands. However, I may also ask you to help in the preparation of my shows, represent me at meetings and official functions that I am unable to attend myself, and an assortment of other tasks as needed. There will probably be a lot of running around, and maybe some awkward hours. You must also be willing to advance your own knowledge of the arcane arts for those occasions where you may need to attend meetings for me. Old Jii—the man who brought you in—helps me out here and there, but he's getting on in years and I really don't want to put so much strain on him. He's a good man, and he deserves more rest than he's been able to get. Does all of that sound acceptable to you?"

Shinichi nodded again. "I have to tell you though that I'm not a sorcerer. I won't be able to provide assistance in anything actually magical."

Kaito chuckled. "That's alright. If I was looking for a sorcerer, I would have said so to begin with. You don't have to be able to cast spells to understand how magic works. All you need is to be willing to learn. Now, tell me more about yourself. Why did you decide to come to Ekoda?"

"Well, like you said earlier, Beika's a small city…"

This Kuroba Kaito was, Shinichi reflected, incredibly easy to talk to. And as much as he could, he tried to tell the man only the truth. He'd always hated lying—another reason he hadn't wanted to take this job (not that he'd been given a choice).

"I think we're going to get along very well," the sorcerer concluded an hour later. "Just one last thing. Your mother was a sorceress, wasn't she?"

Shinichi started in surprise at the question. The sorcerer hadn't said it like a question—more like he knew it was true and was asking only out of courtesy to confirm it should the knowledge be necessary in the future. But he knew for a fact that that piece of information hadn't been in the application the department had submitted for him. Had he mentioned anything during their conversation that might have hinted at it? He couldn't remember doing so.

"I—yes," he said finally. "But how did you know?"

The sorcerer chuckled. "You'll find out eventually. Now, if you're going to be working here, there are two rules you will have to observe at all times." Kaito's face grew abruptly serious as his gaze sharpened, pinning Shinichi to his seat. "One, you do not speak of anything you see regarding my work in this house with anyone unless you ask me first and I give you permission. And two, if I tell you to do something—say, for example, to duck, close your eyes, or turn around—you do it immediately or I won't be held responsible for anything that happens to you. If you have questions, ask them afterward. Magic is a volatile thing and it doesn't often allow for second chances. Do you think you can do that?"

Shinichi hesitated only a moment before nodding, trying to convince himself that he wasn't lying. He wouldn't tell anyone about the sorcerer's official work. He was just supposed to keep an eye out for any signs that the man might be sneaking off to steal things at night. That didn't count as part of his actual work, right? Right.

The sorcerer beamed. "Good. Then you have the rest of today to pack. I'll expect you back here tomorrow morning by ten at the latest."

-TBC-