(no subject)
How had it come to this?
How had he let it come to this?
Yuffie had found out about him and his moonlight profession months ago. It had been an accident, but in the end he’d had no choice but to tell the truth. If he’d had his way, she’d have never found out, but…
For a while, it had been good. Better than good. One less person to lie to, and for that person to be Yuffie… There had been no more secrets between them. No more sneaking around at home. It had been fantastic.
But not everything had changed.
No, it had been after Kudo had approached him with a request, as Conan-- The boy had found out, and that had left Kid between a rock and a hard place. So he’d accepted the request, somewhat reluctantly, and so the plan had started to restore Kudo to his true age and identity, and to move that much closer to bringing down the organization.
It had taken more than a month of work.
Everything had been going according to plan, though it had been one of the most difficult tasks he’d ever
faced, even with two high school detectives on his side. The police had played their parts perfectly.
But there had been a trap. And by the time they’d realized, everything had already started to fall apart. They’d just managed to successfully restore Kudo to his original body when things had taken a turn for the worst. Kid swallowed, mouth dry.
Half an hour.
Fifteen dead police officers.
However many more wounded.
Nakamori-keibu…
He didn’t want to think about it, but the longer he gazed at Snake, at the scene before him, the harder it became to get it out of his mind. It had all happened faster than he would’ve thought possible.
And it hadn’t just been the police officers. Hattori had gotten clipped in the arm by a bullet before he’d managed to duck for cover, and Kudo had nearly given himself a heart attack trying to do too much, too soon. But they’d been lucky. He’d been lucky, too.
His eyes flickered briefly from Snake to the two people slumped on the floor. Eyes closed, covered in scratches and bruises; he could see blood trickling from Aoko’s forehead. She’d been there to support her father in what everybody else had thought would be a normal Kid heist. Instead, she’d ended up in a nightmare. It terrified him to think that she might have died then and there, and almost had. Stupid, brave Aoko--
Even though she’d been there, watched with wide-eyes as Kid’s monocle fell away, courtesy of Snake, she’d still rushed to his aide. Hadn’t she thought about what could’ve happened if--
If Yuffie hadn’t appeared--
He could’ve lost Aoko then. But then, he could’ve lost them both. He still could, and it was all his fault.
For a little while, he’d been sure he had lost them both. He hadn’t been able to move fast enough-- Hattori and Kudo had been too far away.
He wasn’t sure how long it had taken them to track Snake down. Too long. An eternity. But here they were; the girl’s were still alive… and the nightmare thickening every single second.
Snake’s smile was as pleasant as a bite from one of his namesakes. “Well? You’ve got a choice, Kuroba Kaito. What’ll it be?”
“You’re one sick sonnova--”
“Be quiet, Hattori.” He wasn’t looking at the detective. He could hardly tear his eyes away from the black clad murderer standing between himself and two people who should never, ever have gotten involved.
Yuffie. Aoko.
“You don’t have to listen to him.” Kudo said quietly, standing to the left and just behind. His voice was low and calm, controlled. “We’ll--”
The former high school detective was cut off by raucous laughter. “You’ll what, boy?” Snake sneered, “I’m being kind. One of their lives, in exchange for the rest of you going free. Isn’t that nice of me?
Kid breathed in through gritted teeth, hands clenched by his sides. After everything that had happened, after coming so far-- how could it come to this? He couldn’t think-- No. Kudo had to be right; there had to be some way out of this, some way to turn the tide. There was no way he could give up so easily, not with stakes this high.
He couldn’t make a choice that would mean the death of his sister, or the death of his-- of his best friend. He couldn’t.
Aoko might hate him now that she knew, but if she was alive to do the hating… And Yuffie…
“Oh my Gawd,” A small voice groaned. Kid’s eyes snapped back to the unconscious bodies on the floor, only to find his sister peeking an eye open. “This is like… the epitome of cliché.”
Dead silence.
Her other eye opened slowly, and he had to force himself not to move as she took stock of the situation. Finally, she met his eyes.
“Sorry, bro.” Her voice was tinged with apology. “You know me. Curiosity n’ the cat, and all.”
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(The context of this section- it isn't spoken outright, or perhaps isn't actually spoken at all. The twin's aren't psychic, but I figure they know each other well enough to be able to infer meaning, and coupled with the 'link' thingie we talked about... I'll leave it up to you to decide who 'says' what. :D)
“That confidant, huh?”
“No.”
--
(this second section might have been said outloud.)
“Come back and haunt me, okay?”
“Count on it.”