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Shinichi was often adamant that he didn't want his younger siblings to be exposed to the same things that he often dealt with.
They were just little kids after all, and they weren't old enough to start going to crime scenes. Sure, Shinichi had been to them plenty of times as a kid (and as Conan), but they didn't need to know that.
No crime scenes, and especially no murders.
And at the very top of the list, absolutely no heists.
Not because they were dangerous, Kaito never willingly puts people in danger at any of his heists, but because the twins were a bit too smart for their own good.
Shinichi was certain that even Kaito won't be able to fool them for long, and he would rather not have to explain why Kaito was an infamous phantom thief alongside his day job of being a magician.
So, Shinichi left for the Suzuki Museum to prepare for the heist.
Admittedly, he liked Kid's heists. It was one of the few times that he didn't have to worry about dealing with a murder, and was just an opportunity to face off against his brother. Of course, he'd never admit any of this to anyone, but others could tell that facing off against Kid excited him.
"Seal all of the exits, I want an officer at every single vent and door!" Nakamori-keibu barked at his men, and Shinichi watched as they all hustled back and forth. He checked his wristwatch.
Still an hour until the heist.
Well, Kaito often prefers to leave by the roof, so I'll check for traps and things there.
―
"You guys are gonna love it! Kid is so awesome at magic!"
At the same time, Shiho was walking the twins and the Detective Boys to the Suzuki Museum. It was Ayumi and Mitsuhiko who wanted to see the heist, but they were still young so she didn't want them to walk alone.
And since she was in charge of babysitting, she decided to just bring all of the children with her.
Shinichi and Kaito might get annoyed, but they'll get over it.
"Can we get some dinner after this?" Genta asked, stretching and yawning. He wasn't a huge fan of Kid, and only agreed to come along because he didn't want to sit in Agasa's house alone.
"We can stop by that diner Ran-chan loves." Shiho said, and the kids grew excited.
"Shiho-nee." Kona gently tugged on her pant leg, causing her to look down. "Is this a magic show?"
"Not quite. This is a heist, where a criminal breaks in and steals something before escaping."
Kona's face immediately turned fierce. He never did like criminals of any sort.
"W-we have to catch him!"
Shiho resisted the urge to laugh.
On her other side, Ai looked bored. She didn't care much for criminals or crime scenes, and she definitely didn't care for magicians that weren't her older brother.
"Oh! There's the museum!" Mitsuhiko pointed, and the other children cheered.
"This is gonna be so fun!"
"Hopefully it ends soon, I'm getting hungry..."
"You'll just have to be pat―" Shiho froze.
"Hm? Shiho-chan?" Ayumi looked back at her.
Shiho whipped around, but saw no one standing in sight on the street. There was a crowd at the museum, which was usual for Kid heists, but none of them seemed to be looking in their direction.
"Shiho-chan?"
"Shiho-nee?? Are you okay??"
"She looks like she's about to pass out! Does anyone have a water bottle??"
"I can get one!" Ai perked up and ran across the street towards a small vending machine park near the museum.
"No!" Shiho cried, wincing as the sense grew stronger. "Someone go with her! Don't leave her alone!"
The children were confused, but Ayumi and Kona decided to follow after Ai while Genta and Mitsuhiko stayed behind.
"Shiho-chan, what's wrong??"
Shiho found it hard to breathe, the fear that she'd long forgotten had paralyzed her to her core.
"It's them...!"
Someone from the Black Organization is here!
―
Ai and the others got to the vending machines, which were thankfully devoid of crowds, and looked over what they should buy.
"Water should be good," Ayumi said, before pointing to another drink, "We should get a Pocari Sweat too, she might be low on electrolytes."
As Ayumi dug into her pockets for some change, a dark shadow flew overhead. She ignored it, thinking it was just a plane or something, until a black feather fell before her eyes.
"...Huh?" She held out her hand for the feather, noticing it was actually pretty large.
...A crow feather?
A scream rang out behind her, and when Ayumi turned, she saw Kona and Ai on the ground.
"What happened??"
Kona curled up into a ball, quivering in fear of his life. Ai was holding him, and scattered around them were those giant feathers.
"G-giant bird! Giant bird!!" He covered his head protectively. "It's gonna swoop us up and eat us!"
"K-Kona! Crows don't eat people-"
"I've read it in books!! Giant birds that kidnap kids to peck their eyes out and eat them!"
Ayumi didn't know what to say or do. It was weird that there was a giant bird flying around Tokyo, but surely it wouldn't kidnap children?
"...
"Let's buy the drinks and get back to Shiho-chan okay? Then we can get into the museum and be safe from the giant crow."
Kona sniffled, still unwilling to move. Ayumi handed the money to Ai and picked him up.
"It's okay! Big sister Ayumi is here, I won't let any mean old bird get you!"
Slowly, Kona looked up at her.
"...You mean it?"
"Of course!" she smiled, and Kona wiped his eyes with the backs of his hands. When Ai returned with the two bottles, Ayumi led them back to the group.
―
"You saw what?"
The group had eventually met up with Shinichi inside the museum. Kaito had arrived a bit earlier, to scout out the area, and the twins, who were clinging to his legs, were explaining what had happened to them.
"It was a giant crow flying overhead!" Kona cried, to which Ayumi gently put her hands on his shoulders.
"We were at the vending machines when something flew overhead. I didn't see it, but it left these giant feathers behind." She pulled one out of her purse and handed it to Shinichi.
This is a synthetic feather...
"Do you know where it went?" Kaito asked, crouching down to their height.
"Uhm... I looked away when I saw it..." Kona admitted, but Ai pointed upwards.
"I saw it on our way here, on the roof." She looked angry, but didn't know what to do with that anger. "Stupid, scary bird on the roof..."
"The roof? Of the museum?" Shinichi looked up, feeling a sense of dread.
Shiho crossed her arms. "I had the sense earlier. I think one of them is here."
Kaito and Shinichi tensed up. There was only one member of the Black Organization who used crow feathers.
"But there's―"
"Keibu!" One of the officers stationed at the front entrance ran in, huffing and puffing from sprinting across the foyer.
"What's going on? Why did you leave your post?"
"W-we got an advance notice!"
Ginzo pinched his brow, "Of course we did, that's why we're here!"
"N-no! Not from Kid!" the officer held up a pure black card, causing the entire room to go cold.
"Looks like they're fighting," Ginzo mumbled, taking the card and turning it over to read the notice, "We only have less than 20 minutes to prepare, let's go over the security again!"
Shinichi glanced over at Kaito, who had immediately made eye contact with him.
He's back.
And he's gonna regret it.
—
When Shinichi went sniffing around for the Corbeau, he didn’t actually expect to find him so easily.
The “scary bird on the roof” was in fact still there, waiting. As if he knew that Shinichi would eventually come to find him.
“... Menthe.”
The Corbeau tilted his asymmetrical top hat. “Detective.”
It had been a while since he saw the Corbeau in his proper uniform, and Shinichi almost didn’t recognize him. The man was wearing an intricate black suit with a mantle of feathers that hung from his back and wrapped around his arms like sleeves, resembling huge black wings. His asymmetrical top hat and ornate monocle also showed a new type of aura for him. To top it all off, his face also wasn’t that of Toichi’s anymore.
“...
“I see you ditched the Kaitou Kid costume.”
“This is how I truly look,” The Corbeau smiled softly. “The mimicry that you and my successor are familiar with was purely that; mimicry.
“I told him as much when I first saw him, did I not?
“This face and appearance was chosen to unsettle you.”
Rage simmered under Shinichi’s skin.
“So you could have returned without anyone being the wiser, but you chose to resemble your old self to upset Kaito??”
“It was the only way to spur him to action.”
“You broke his heart on purpose! Doesn’t any of that bother you?? Not only that, but you darken our skies again just to terrify my other younger siblings! You said you loved your family!” Shinichi reached for his belt, but remembered that he had long since traded in his soccer ball belt for a police issued pistol.
“Perhaps you misheard me,
“I love my brothers. Their children are of no consequence to me.”
“Even Kaito??”
The Corbeau ran his thumb and index finger along the rim of his top hat. “Simply a means to an end. But I like him far more than I do you.” He reached into his lapel and brandished a revolver, pointing it directly at the other. “Do you know how many times I thought about killing you? Far more than anyone else, at the very least.
“You grate on my nerves in a way no one else ever had, and I honestly respect that about you.”
Shinichi’s hand hovered over his own pistol, but he knew that he’d never be able to quick-draw fast enough to get a shot off. “...
“Then why haven’t you? You must’ve had so many opportunities. Why let me continue to be a thorn in your side?”
“Because your death would make those I love upset. No other reason.” He fired the gun, but instead of a bullet, a large net shot out and ensnared Shinichi.
“Ack!!”
“Stay up here and cool down a bit, hm?” With a flick of his wrist, the gun disappeared.
“L-let me go! Menthe!!”
“I’ll make sure someone comes to rescue you soon, don’t worry. Now—”
A super-charged soccer ball flew out of nowhere and impacted directly into his left shoulder, dislocating it with a loud snap.
From the neighboring rooftop stood Shiho and Ai. She had used the tracking glasses to see what was happening, and enlisted Ai to use her sneakers to kick a ball to help.
“Shi-nee! Did I do good? What did I hit??” Ai excitedly said, tugging on the other’s jacket.
Shiho locked eyes with Menthe, before removing the glasses. “You hit a big, ugly, mean bird. So yes, you did wonderfully. Shall we return to the others now?”
“Okay!”