"If you're asking me about a job, I suggest you remove the disguise or leave. I won't work for anyone who doesn't even trust me enough to show their real face."

To say the least, that was the last thing Kaito had expected when walking into the small library like building. The male at the shelves barely even spared a glance in his direction when the small chime alerted him of a new presence before he returned to his books and yet he was able to tell that the face Kaito wore wasn't his own.

Granted, it wasn't that much different from his usual appearance. He put to use his signature fast drying dye to chance his mousy mop to blond and green contacts hid his unique eyes. That would normally be enough for a simple outing on the town but Kaito was nothing if not cautious, so contouring had his facial structure looking rounder and maybe a little younger than he actually was. Throw in a spare set of stable hand clothes he stole from a storage closet and the image was complete. Not one of his best, but it did the job nonetheless.

"And what if I wasn't in here for a job," Kaito inquired at the male as the other pulled a few dusty tomes from the shelf and moved to a desk. Kudo Shinichi, the magician noted from a plaque hidden amongst the files and general clutter.

Shinichi coughed as he opened one of the books sending a spray of dust straight into his face. As he waved it away, he leveled a glare at Kaito who had walked over to stare curiously at the books. "I would kindly ask you to leave and stop wasting my time then." And he promptly began flipping through what appeared to be a book about poisonous plants and their properties.

Ouch. That tone could probably ice over the cook's hearth back home and that thing was hotter than most deserts, Kaito swore it. Hands up in a show of peace, he backed away a few steps and promptly fell into one of the cushioned chairs set just across from the desk, looking as if he wasn't about to move anytime soon, eliciting something that straddled the line of a groan and sigh from the other.

"Alright, fine. I give. What do you want?" he asked impatiently finally looking Kaito in the eyes and wow hiding a blue that clear behind such large glasses should be illegal.

"Just to satisfy some curiosity," Kaito hummed, propping his feet up on the desk, satisfied to have finally gotten through to the other. Shinichi grumbled something inaudible under his breath and shoved the feet back to the floor and Kaito's smirk grew. "What is this place?"

He had seen it a few times on various outings while ducking through side roads to avoid the guards. From the outside, it was completely nondescript. Just an average two-story building just a short way off main. Windows showed walls of books leading to the assumption of a library of sorts with a teen librarian puttering around inside but there already was a public library and this most certainly wasn't it. The inquiry about a job held a few promising leads but nothing that Kaito could use to get an answer.

"Well, by all technicalities, it's my home which you just decided to waltz into with nothing more than an over-zealous hello," Shinichi snarked as a response, "but I guess you could also say it's something of a detective agency."

That had Kaito's eyebrows shooting towards his hairline. Detective, huh? Most didn't bother with the practice as the guards stationed around town handled most things. They even had various security spells stationed on the roofs to capture any suspicious activity and alert the officials.

"Aren't you a little young to be a detective?" he asked leaning forward, chin propped on intertwined hands.

"Aren't you a little young to be traversing about the city in a disguise?" A pointed look.

"Touché." An acknowledging tilt of the head.

A short silence fell shortly after that as Kaito processed the information and tried to fit it into what he had figured out about the place and its odd occupant and Shinichi sat behind his desk and began flipping through a file and book, begrudgingly resigned to the sudden company.

"You got a name?" Surprisingly enough, it was Shinichi who broke the silence.

Kaito didn't set down the magnifying glass he had swiped from the desk and only grinned with a single ginormous eye gleaming in the detective's direction. "Call me Kid."

"But that's not your real name." There wasn't a trace of doubt in the tone and Kaito hadn't been expecting otherwise.

"'Course not."

Shinichi rolled his eyes and eventually an open file landed in front of Kaito, a small rune drawn in the corner to signify a magic image, probably from the scene of the crime. He cast a questioning look at Shinichi who only dipped a quill into the inkwell.

"If your going to sit there, you might as well make yourself useful," he reasoned nonchalantly. "You seem smart if not a little unorthodox. Show me what you got."

A test then. Piece of cake. He set down the magnifying glass and stretched his fingers before setting to work. Scanning over the details of the case, the alibis of the suspects, and descriptions of each individual, it all lined up less than a twenty minutes later.

"As cliché as this turns out to be, it's the butler," Kaito stated dropping the papers down in front of Shinichi. He prided himself on the slightly startled look he got from the sudden motion.

"You didn't even look at the image. How did you figure that one out?" Shinichi asked, eyebrow raised, stance confident.

Kaito only smiled and fell back into the chair he had officially claimed as his. "No need. He's the only one with access to the victim's private chambers and while yes, the wife technically also had a key, her alibi of working with the full moon checks out. Scrying of that force is the only thing that can leave a blue green haze over one's eyes and she had the remains of it. Not to mention the traces of thyme and fresh rose which suggests the brewing of what's probably a love potion on her hands which again, can only be done during a full moon for a powerful affect. The daughter wasn't even in the house at the time and there's no possible way she could get from the pub to the manor in the amount of time she had. So that leaves the butler as the only one capable of even attempting the crime."

Shinichi hummed vaguely and set down his quill. "What about evidence? Is there a motive?"

"This poison stains and there's evidence that it had been spilled prior to placement. Test the shoes and socks and you'll have your evidence. As for motive, my best guess is revenge. The guy's sister "accidentally" died a year or so ago and charges were either never pushed or were dropped. So, Tantei-kun, how'd I do?" Kaito leaned forward to send the other a challenging smirk.

The other only inclined his head with the faintest of smiles on his lips. "Not bad, not bad. For a beginner at least." The smile grew at the affronted gasp from the person in front of him. "You probably could have solved this quicker if you bothered to look at the scene of the crime, but you did well, Kid."

Kaito stood straight, manifesting a top hat tipping it into a showman's bow. He placed it on his head and ran his fingers along the grin in a motion that was equally smug and showy that only caused Shinichi to roll his eyes.

The detective looked as if he was about to say something before the door slammed open, the bell loudly protesting its sudden shaking. Both boys startled from their conversation and turned to the person who barged into the agency.

"Takagi." Shinichi was already moving to grab his coat while the man in question caught his breath, hand braced against the doorway. "What's going on?"

"Murder—Bomb—"

Kaito watched as the color dropped from Shinichi's face and was hot on his heels by the time the detective crossed the threshold. The footsteps pounding behind them let him know that Takagi was right behind them.

"What's going on?" he asked, finally managing to match Shinichi's pace.

"We've been tracking a serial murderer for the past few weeks. We set up a trap to get him, but it looks like things went south," Shinichi explained as he swerved left into a crowd of frantic soldiers. A thin man stood in the middle of it all, restrained, smirking, and not struggling in the least. Kaito wrinkled his nose as they neared. He reeked of dark magic.

The guards let Shinichi pass without a second thought and with the close to murderous look on Shinichi's face hidden under a mask of controlled professionalism, Kaito understood the wide berth given.

"Where is it?" Shinichi demanded coming to a stop in front of the man. Silence.

"Where is it?" Harsher this time, hands fisting by his sides. The smirk grew and Shinichi growled, whipping off his glasses. After looking the guy over once, he turned on his heel and slid the eyewear back on.

"Beika park, fire-based spell, shields in place. We have half an hour left."

And they were off again.

"How did you…?" Kaito trailed off as they ran knowing this wasn't the time to be asking questions.

Shinichi didn't answer and only pushed on ahead. "You know magic." It hadn't been a question. "Any experience with fire?" At Kaito's slow nod, he continued, "Good, because I'm going to need your help to dismantle this thing."

Kaito went dead silent for a moment as the words processed in his mind before he looked to Shinichi incredulously. "What?!"

They neared the park and Shinichi veered off into a small grove of trees ordering the people to evacuate. Confusion rippled in whispers through the people before guards began showing up and escorting everyone off the premises. Needless to say, the park was soon empty except for him and Shinichi.

The detective knelt by a patch of newly upturned dirt and brushed away the soil until a dull red glow appeared and rune marks floated on the surface of the small sphere.

It was a complex spell, a few shields and a good few powerful spells woven into a condensed ball of power. It was actually quite beautiful from a magician's standpoint but it most certainly wasn't the most impressive spell Kaito had ever seen. His father could do so much better.

"Kid, I ¬know you know how to take this thing apart and if I touch it, I promise it'll go off," Shinichi spoke softly, an uncharacteristic helplessness tinting the tone, and Kaito felt something in him give. Taking a deep breath, he nodded and pulled the spell from the ground. Shinichi stepped back to give him some space.

The shield had to come off first. That was what was making this thing so dangerous. If someone using magic were to come in contact with the force, the entire thing would go off. The problem with that was most magic users couldn't stop using their magic. It was as instinctual as breathing. It bled from their fingertips and soaked into the earth. Only extremely skilled sorcerers could suppress their use and be able to bypass this shield. So in order to take this thing apart, you had to be in the extremely small percentile of magic users that could do that or the even smaller percentile of the non-magic population who still had enough knowledge to dismantle the thing. It was a good thing Kaito was a part of that small population.

His fingers worked quickly as he tore apart the runes and rearranged them into something more favorable for them and less likely to blow up in their faces. Then came the process of unweaving the various spells meant to create the explosions. He had to work fast. They were running out of time.

Twenty-eight minutes and fifty-seven seconds later, several strings of magic lay untangled and frayed in front of him and he fell back on his hands, exhausted. Shinichi let out the breath he was holding in and the guards all seemed to slump as relief blanketed over them.

He did it.

Megure, the city guard's commander, stepped forward to congratulate the two before ordering someone else to clean up the remains. He sent them both off with orders to get some lunch and probably some sleep. They deserved it. He could get their statements later.

Which was how Kaito found himself back at the detective agency but this time upstairs in what was probably Shinichi's living quarters with a plate of takeout and an exhausted detective in front of him.

"You did well." Shinichi nursed a cup of liquified death while picking at his own food.

Kaito hummed.

"I'm… sorry for dragging you into all of this… I just—Well, I knew that we weren't going to get out of that without your help."

Kaito swallowed and paused for a moment. "How'd you know?"

Shinichi offered an almost sad smile in return. "That you can't use actual magic? Honestly, I had my speculations since you walked through my door. Most disguises are mere perception filters because it's easier to slip by because no one sees the same person. You're wearing a physical disguise." Kaito tugged on his falsely blond hair. "But I figured it out when you didn't look at the file image. It wasn't because you didn't need it. It was because you physically couldn't see it."

Well, it looks like the secret was out then. Kaito sighed and set down his chopsticks, hands raised in defeat, head bowed. A white handkerchief appeared in his hand as a sign of surrender. "You got me. Can't hide anything from you Tantei-kun."

There was a quick huff that could technically be called laughter across the table and Kaito smiled at his small victory. Vanishing the cloth in a small puff of smoke, he leaned back in his chair, watching his current partner. The detective seemed to be going through a mental debate.

There was a moment of silence.

"Work with me."

And that was where Kaito lost track of what happened because somehow he agreed for reasons currently unknown to him, was handed a small badge which served as a communication device, a few case files, and promptly shoved out the door. He must have made his way back to home in his weird daze because the next thing Kaito knew, someone was rapping at his bedroom door because the prince was needed for dinner.

What?