justonetruth | Directed at [damaged

"I think this is it," Leormon said, leading the way down a hall.

"Good. Keep following it," Conan said, keeping a hand on Leormon's back, watching behind them for any sign of movement.

"Huh? Hey, this scent...." Leormon said, looking up. "He smells like that place..."

"Who? Kaito?" Conan said, looking forward.

"No, that Conan smells like that Island we went to for a day," Leormon said, gesturing down the hall.

Where another, younger Conan was, illuminated by a red butterfly. He slowed down as soon as he saw the other two, watching as the butterfly hovered outside the door of a room, trying not to let his wariness show. "Hi. Ah, that's my room," he said, pointing to the door.

Conan's eyes narrowed. "...Leormon?"

"Yes," Leormon said.

"And do you...?"

"Only you and him in the area."

"Is that really your room?" Conan asked the younger one.

Conan paused, looking over what the two said before answering. "He's Leormon?" He asked, pointing to the Digimon.

"...what about it?" Conan asked.

The younger nodded. "Just checking, he said, moving to the door to open it. "I was sent by the locator," he added, pushing up the door and following the butterfly inside.

The older paused, but followed when Leormon moved in. The Digmon didn't smell or hear anyone else nearby except the two Conan's, and the blood he was pretty sure was the Kaito they were looking for. Conan closed the door behind them before calling out, the trio illuminated by the butterfly. "Kaito?"

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"I also went against a bug the size of a house and lived, thank you," Conan said.

"After nearly getting cut in half and only because of Yuuko," Leormon said.

"But I lived and this isn't near as one sided," Conan said. "Besides, Kaito, you saw what I could do. He won't know that. More than that, NO ONE here knows what LEORMON can do except for those who came from the Digital World," he said. "I just need a minute or two with him and I'll get what I need. After that, Leormon will get me out."

"How did you know that one was going after Absinthe though?" The younger Conan said.

"I read him talking to Kaito. He set you, but didn't offer to come himself? That's because he's confronting him himself," Conan said. "But he'll be fine. He's the source of teleportation right?"

"....yeah, that's right," the younger Conan said. "He can do it too. He'll get away if it gets bad. Though if he's really like Beatrice, it's likely Absinthe won't be able to kill him quite so easily. For one thing, he can probably get his normal body back anytime he wishes."

Kaito cringed at the memory of those ugly scars. Perhaps they were stronger than their stature suggested, but it still made him very uneasy.

"Then the one who is with Absinthe now is the future you?" Kaito's eyes were fixed on younger Conan. He was getting the hang of this doppelganger thing. "The one who said he is probably the closest to Absinthe..." The idea that two psychos confronting each other was enough to make him shiver, especially the image of two Shinichi's doing that.

"I thought he sent him because he knew I was more comfortable with him than him." Realizing how vague that sounded, Kaito tried again, "As in, I wasn't as comfortable around another self claimed psychopath. Although I'm glad to know he can escape if he has to."

The younger Conan nodded. "Correct."

"He claims to be a psychopath?" Conan asked.

"It's...a long, crazy story. He kind of is and kind of isn't. Either way, I've seen Beatrice take having a ton of lasers fired at her and finding a way to survive. I trust he'd find a way to make all this work," Conan said with a shrug, looking a bit uncomfortable.

"...still adjusting to the idea of magic," the older asked.

"Not magic," Conan muttered.

"Riiiight," the older said. "And no, it doesn't matter how uncomfortable you were, if he was worried about your safety, he'd come himself unless he was doing something like that," Conan concluded. "Anyway, we need to find a safe place and I think that would be the best place for us. Especially since...didn't he have a creeper too?"

"Yeah, he did," Leormon said.

Baffled again by the sudden change of conversation, Kaito held up his good hand. "Wait, what... who?" Was he just getting slow, or did these guys switch things around too quickly for him?

"Back up... where are we going?" He really wasn't all that comfortable with seeing another Shinichi at the moment, even if it could be confirmed that that one wasn't Absinthe. Looking like the agent was enough to make Kaito on edge at the moment.

"There's a room we might be safe. It's Kaito and two Conan's. One is an alternate timeline from me. I've already passed the point to become him, but he's not a psycho," the older COnan said.

"He's just really quiet and introverted," Leormon said.

"The other Conan and Kaito are from the same world. They..." Conan hesitated. "Kaito didn't have an easy life. He's a good guy, but he...well, he was on a route to maybe end up similar to Absinthe, but he was able to break free before it got to that point," he said. "You'd have to know Kaito REALLY well to notice anything to make you think he was a Kaito different from the fundamental norm."

"He's a good guy! And so is his Conan!" Leormon said.

"But it'd be a safe place for you and me. The Kaito and Conan from the same world have been avoiding assassins for a while now and the other me isn't a restful sleeper anyway. So even if Absinthe DID find us, it's not likely he'd sneak in undetected."

"That's..." Kaito considered, absently reaching his arm over to Leormon to run a hand along his fur. It wasn't feathers which greeted his touch, but it was still comforting nonetheless.

"If you all are vouching for him... And if he doesn't mind a crowd." He didn't like the idea of depending on a stranger though, even if that stranger was technically himself. The part where Conan said this Kaito was on route to becoming like Absinthe didn't reassure him, but everyone else seemed to be quite insistent that this himself was a good guy.

And, if Kaito was really honest, meeting another himself increased his scale of discomfort. His own face really wasn't all that different from Shinichi's.

"I assure you, if he was even the tiniest bit inclined to follow that sort of life, that me wouldn't trust him to the level he does. More than that, his Conan followed life to the fundamental normal until he found out about the assassins after Kaito BECAUSE he refuses to be like that," Conan said, standing up straight.

Leormon nodded. "He really is a good guy. He's been making that Conan smile though he always has a hard time doing it. A bad Kaito couldn't do that," he said.

"I'll talk to him about letting us stay," Conan said, heading for the door. "He'll agree. Not like him to abandon someone."

Kaito nodded, agreeing with the assessment on himself at least. If positions were reversed and he had to be cheering these boys up... He could definitely see it.

"Alright," he agreed, smiling slightly at the two Conan's and Leormon. "I guess it's time for me to meet one of myselves."

His gaze flickered to the door. "These butterflies will attract a lot of attention Is it safe to just... walk to his place?"

The younger Conan looked around. "...make one." And immediately all, but one vanished.

"...and he says it's not magic," Conan muttered. "This could be good. Especially since Leormon will likely see anyone with this much light."

"I'll lead the way!" Leormon said. "I can find it easy."

"True magic..." Kaito agreed with softly. With the disappearance of the other butterflies, it took the thief a bit longer before his eyes adjusted to the dimmed lighting, but he nodded for the others to go on.

"I trust your senses are better than ours, Leormon." He trusted them in general. He was just sorry that his trust had jeopardized them as well.

"Well, I am a lion. I've got good night vision," Leormon said proudly, heading for the door as the younger Conan moved the chair and opened it.

The older Conan grabbed his hand, moving after Leormon and the younger Conan. "We'll try to keep you around longer this time," he said, just loud enough for him to hear.

Given that there was an Absinthe in both worlds now, things became complicated, but Kaito definitely knew which one he preferred to face the agent in. And it looked like older Conan did too.

Kaito returned the sentiments in by squeezing lightly the boy-like hand.

"Your presence seemed to have helped last time," he murmured back. "And today's my second day here. I'll take it as a good sign." Still holding onto Conan's hand, Kaito followed with the boy behind the other two.

Directed at [damaged_dove]

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