Title: The Confrontation

By: EsTeLweNadia

Summary: "You are KID, aren't you, Kuroba Kaito," Edogawa Conan had said flatly. It wasn't a question. He was absolutely sure that Kaito was really the Kaitou KID, the Phantom Thief.

Rating: Friendship

Disclaimer: Anyone and anything that you recognize from Detective Conan, is/are from Detective Conan.

Author's Note: I have always wanted Conan to meet Kaito, and confront him about KID. And it isn't fair that KID knows Conan's true identity, and Conan doesn't know KID's alter ego. And so sorry, this is really an unplanned fic. I will really get to the Saving the Detective – Chapter TWO right after this one.

As always, comments and constructive criticism are immensely appreciated.

Hope you'll enjoy the ride!

"You are KID, aren't you, Kuroba Kaito-san," Edogawa Conan had said flatly. It wasn't a question. He was absolutely sure that Kaito was really Kaitou KID, the Phantom Thief. It showed in his intense eyes, on the young face. And all Kaito could do was to stare at the faux-child, flummoxed and frozen, akin to a deer caught in the headlights, thoughts racing and crashing against each other in mindless panic.

Kaito really, really dreaded the moment when anyone came up to him and confidently accused him of being KID.

Not that they were wrong, but he rather swam with the creatures of the water than to admit the truth. He might as well slap a neon sticker on his forehead declaring 'I'm KID. Arrest me now!"

No way.

Bad enough Hakuba SUSPECTED him of being KID, but thank goodness for lack of concrete evidence, the blond detective could not do anything more to have him cuffed and thrown behind bars.

Oh, and Akako, the creepily beautiful chick from his class who happened to be a creepy witch of sorts, KNEW he is KID, and worse, she was attracted to him for all the creepy, wrong reasons. Good thing he had Aoko around.

Aoko. She hated KID, and it was in her best interests that she didn't know that Kaito is KID. Aoko would hate him too, and Kaito didn't want her to hate him.

What a pain.

But that wasn't so bad. What he feared most (other than those THINGS) was a certain kid detective who wasn't really a kid, to boldly approach him and ask him the dreaded question.

In his turf, mind you. Right in his very district.

Ekoda High School was having a huge fair for charity, with lots of stalls being set up by students selling various items or showcasing their talents to the public. It was a major event, so much so it was even broadcasted in the television and the newspapers. Of course, Kaito took this opportunity to show off his exceptional capability as a magician, and so far, his performances received the most visitors, and hence, donations.

He was feeling pretty damn good of himself, until a murder happened within the fair. Chaos ensued, and the arrival of the police clearly spoiled the day rotten. Especially his mood. That couldn't be helped, because police made him all kinds of twitchy. So he managed to escape to higher grounds, away from the mess. It was time for him to take a break, anyway.

The case was solved faster than he thought possible. Swift, concise, precise. And Kaito had a strange notion that the police had additional help. Additional INTELLIGENT help. Couldn't be Hakuba. That twit had left for London. Again. Man, no fun at all! Maybe, the Savior of the Police?

Nah, Kaito shot the thought down as soon as it surfaced. Beika is miles away from here. Why would he be here?

But then again, he should have known. The ONLY person he knew whom stumbled into murder cases practically everywhere he went, was Kudo Shinichi, now known as Edogawa Conan. Seemed that becoming a kid physically again didn't break the curse. And the only person he knew whom was able to solve said murder cases within the same day they happened, was ironically, also the very same detective.

Also, during one of his performances, he had a disturbing feeling that he had been watched. Scrutinized and analyzed by a pair of sharp, critical eyes. They had no sense of malice, not even a murderous intent, but it was so thorough Kaito jerked and almost ruined the trick he was showing his audience. And Kaito never, ever fumbled in his performances.

He hadn't been able to pinpoint who, because the place was dark and he was busy. But he really should have known that the only person who could make him react that badly was again, the detective.

And now, the above-mentioned annoying shrunken teenager was looking expectantly at him. Unwavering piercing blue gaze, thinly amused smirk, casually indifferent stance.

"What makes you think that I am the famous Phantom Thief, little boy?" Kaito asked in return, curiously playing dumb. He was an accomplished performer; he knew how to handle this. How to act, how to pretend the he was something he was not when he was actually it.

As he had expected, Conan-kun scowled briefly at his 'little boy' remark. What he didn't expect was Conan-kun to take a seat beside him and to stare into space for awhile.

"It is quite hard to explain, considering that I have no concrete evidence to prove that you are indeed KID," he said at last, sounding nothing like the little boy he was. "But I know, I KNOW that you are him. It may be just a hunch, but my instincts are never wrong."

Dead-on accurate, just like his mind, Kaito thought with a slight shudder. Arching his eyebrow, he waited patiently for the diminutive detective to continue.

"Say, Kuroba," started Conan-kun softly. "If you are asked to put on KID's uniform, would you do it?"

Startled by the strangeness of the question, Kaito could only gape at him.

"Of course not," Conan-kun huffed, answering his own question. "Because if you put it on, you'll look so much like KID. But that isn't a surprise, because you ARE KID. Can't you see? You and he are around the same height. Both of you have the SAME eyes, the same SMIRK. Muted now that you are not the world-renowned thief, but when you are, it just increases tenfold. And then, there's the hair, too. Both of you have unruly hair, even covered by the top white hat. So it's KID's uniform that sets both of you apart, but only JUST barely."

"Hey!" Kaito protested indignantly. "I may look like KID, but that doesn't mean I'm him! I'm his biggest fan!" He announced quite proudly, attempting to distract the detective, only to have succeeded in making it worse.

"You might be KID's biggest fan, Kuroba, but in all of his heists, you are NEVER there," Conan-kun countered, smirking. "Don't look at me like that; I overheard some of your schoolmates talking. There are some cases that you were there BEFORE or AFTER the heists, or both, but DURING the heists, where were you? You disappeared, KID appeared. Kinda… FISHY, don't you think?"

Oh boy. Kaito did his damndest not to flinch at the word relating to his phobia. Conan-kun could not have known of his deepest fear, could he?

"Aw, don't give me that crap," Kaito remarked dismissively. "Maybe I had someplace to go, people to see during KID's heists…"

"Aw, don't give me that crap," the faux-child mimicked him, grinning victoriously. "Maybe you had, but definitely not in EVERY of KID's heists, right? And if you are his biggest fan, you surely wouldn't want to miss a thing, or even a second of the heists. Who are you trying to fool? Conan disappears; Shinichi appears, even if it is only his voice. So yeah, you are not fooling anyone. Definitely not me."

Apparently, nothing gets past by the detective, Kaito realized ruefully. Besides, it is only fair that he knows my identity, because I know his.

"So what are you going to do now?" Kaito asked, seemingly in impassive resignation. "Find THE evidence, inform the police and throw KID behind bars?"

Conan-kun shot him a dark look. "You know that if I want to, I will find it, and I can." That, Kaito had no doubt. He had seen the detective's prowess in deduction, in investigation and in his determination to unravel mysteries, even with only a couple of clues. His heart thudded painfully in his chest as he braced himself for the worst.

"But…" Conan-kun trailed off, his usually unforgiving features softening a little, "the fact is, I don't want to. I just want to know who is hiding behind the monocle, and I'll leave it at that."

"Why?"

A light sigh, and the young boy with a not-so-young personality turned away. Light from the setting sun glinted off his ridiculously huge glasses, effectively obscuring his eyes, and somehow, Kaito found it rather disturbing.

"You know my identity, Kuroba Kaito-san," Conan-kun said softly. "And you still haven't told anyone. Why?"

Kaito scowled. "I hate it when my question is answered with a question. Don't you?"

"Don't anyone?" came the sly response, eyes twinkling mirthfully.

Kaito rolled his eyes. If they kept at it, they would be heading nowhere. Meanwhile, time was happily ticking away. "I am VERY sure you know why."

"I think I do," Conan-kun said thoughtfully. "And I think we both have somewhat similar reason for it to remain a secret."

Kaito kept Conan's secret a secret because he wanted to know how and why such a genius detective was reduced to a mere gradeschooler. It was mind-boggling, almost ridiculous, but it was still true. He had nothing against Conan-kun, although the little brat ruined his plans every time, but that just made the heists even more interesting. He was even surprised himself to know that he actually CARED for his toughest adversary, to the point that he frequently sent Hato -the dove Conan-kun had saved in the Memories Egg heist- to check on the chibi Tantei. So far, Conan-kun had been coping amazingly well. Besides, Kaito wouldn't want to eliminate the most exciting aspect of KID's heist. The chase. The challenge. The thrill. The fun. KID's heists without the brilliance of the Detective of the East, were akin to the moon obscured by the clouds. And KID loved the radiance of the moon, being the Moonlight Magician and all that. The brighter, the better!

Furthermore, both of them owed each other favors. That was also one of the reasons why he blabbed anything to anyone, and the detective never made an attempt to arrest him, even after foiling his plans. Yet.

"I know KID has a reason to be KID," Conan-kun told him anyway. "Official challenge to the police, a very public venue to steal a very valuable gem, preferably from a very famous individual, with as many people involved as possible. KID is trying to draw someone out in the open. I think the person might be the very same person who murdered the first KID. So all these heists, stunts and tricks? Are probably just a ploy. So yes, I will let KID have his funs and games until he accomplish what he had become KID for."

"And after he has accomplished his objective, would you have him arrested, Conan-kun?" asked Kaito casually. He HAD to know. Never mind that Conan's deduction on the reason on why he had become KID was terrifyingly accurate.

"And get rid of the most exciting part of my life yet?" the kid interjected cheerfully. "No way."

The way Conan-kun echoed the sentence from his own thoughts was so EERIE. Coincidence, or was that kid telepathic? Kaito didn't want to know.

And now that his identity as KID was no longer a secret, at least, not to the detective, Kaito had a very strange urge to try something. Maybe, maybe…

"Tantei-kun," he addressed the little Tantei just as KID would. Conan-kun snapped his head up and around to stare at him. "What would you say if we meet, not as KID and Detective, but as me and you? There is much I want to talk about with you."

Conan-kun studied him carefully. And again, the young face softened. Understanding dawned in his eyes, and a tiny smile appeared. Kaito frowned slightly, perplexed by the sudden change he saw in the shrunken teenager. Oh boy. Maybe the detective had somehow sensed the loneliness in Kaito. His longing for a FRIEND whom he didn't have to hide anything from. It must have showed in his tone, and even his eyes. He was Kaito now, not KID. So Poker Face wasn't needed.

"Likewise, Kuroba," Conan-kun said, grinning up at him. "Just let me know when and where, and I'll be there."

Kaito matched the grin with one of his own. "Excellent, and thank you."

"Not necessary," Conan-kun told him dismissively as he rose to his feet. He glanced at his watch, frowning. "My, it's getting late. I better get going now. See you soon, Kuroba. It's a pleasure knowing you." With a wink and a wave, the detective turned around and walked away, leaving Kaito in befuddled silence.

It's a pleasure knowing you. As KID and as Kuroba Kaito. Kaito smiled, catching on the words left unsaid. Well, it's a pleasure knowing Kudo Shinichi as the great Detective of the East, and the vivacious little boy, Edogawa Conan. He was really glad the feeling was mutual.

And he was really looking forward to meeting Conan-kun as himself, Kuroba Kaito, Ekoda High School student, teenage magician.

Maybe they could even be best of friends. Best friends in the day, toughest rivals at night.

Sounds pretty cool, don't you think?

- The End? -

Sounds AWESOME, if you ask me. ^^

Wondering if I should make this a multi-chapter. Hmm. *nervous*

I had intended this to be a one-shot, but look at how it turned out!

And I just couldn't think of a better title. *unhappily*

Erm, anyway, thank you so much for reading! ^^