#Like if he wasn’t with the von Karmas where was he? We know he had to move away but to where?

[musashi]

ace attorney popped the fuck off by doing that thing where certain characters have ‘hidden’ sprites that you only see once in the whole game, usually it’s an emotionally closed off character offering a smile in the final hour of their story to show a sense of peace and closure, but ESPECIALLY they popped the fuck OFF by having franziska von karma break down crying in hers.

‘the angry/mean character is actually deeply emotional and using anger to keep it at bay’ is an incredibly common character archetype but it is so often done in a more shallow manner. like they will just bust out their tragic backstory in the 11th hour and we’re supposed to sympathize because awww they’re sad :( but we already know everything there is to know about franziska pretty much immediately. we know she is a child prodigy, we know she is a genius, we know she is fierce and dedicated and that she loves what she does. and we know she’s lost her father, and we know she’s upset with her brother and wants to see him again. but she does not invite pity, because she does not want it. she lays these details out clearly and concisely when they’re relevant to what is being discussed--they simply are. she remains as she is, and she fights the same way she always has, for what she believes in.

franziska goes through it. we watch her go through it. we watch her lose everything, and then we watch her have to be confronted with the fact that her brother disappeared on her and is utterly remorseless about it aloud. and then we watch her get shot by a violent hitman, and kick and scream and fight while she’s bleeding out because she wants to go to court. she has to be dragged to the hospital by force. never once does she back down an never once does she present anything other than this steely determination and resolve. until the very, VERY end. until POST CREDITS. she doesn’t even crack until AFTER THE CREDITS HAVE ROLLED!

and it is KINDNESS that breaks her! it is softness that makes her cry. i feel like to a lot of people what miles says to her in that scene might seem cruel, but it isn’t about what he says, it’s about what he does.

by franziska’s own admission she has abandonment issues. one of the few single insights we get into her pain is that people tend to discard her and make her feel left behind. miles fled back to his home country and left her all alone in germany to pursue his career, and he wasn’t wrong to do that, but it obviously hurt franziska and she felt neglected and like he didn’t bother to keep up with her. and then when he took his dramatic fucking sabbatical, he refused to loop her into that, too. miles decided without the consent of the people who love him that he was not worth it. he was unbelievably selfish to disappear the way he did, blinded by this idea that he is not loved or worth love. franziska loves him more than anything, and he did that to her on the tail end of her father’s incarceration. she lost both of her favourite people in the span of a few months. 

she ran away at the end of JFA and intended to give up on everything. and she ran away from him because if she abandons him first, he cannot abandon her. but nothing miles says in that scene undermines the fact that he chased after her. he could look her in the eyes and tell her she was scum to him but the fact of the matter is he followed her. he loved her enough to not be content just letting her give up and run away. he chased after her. can you imagine what that must’ve meant to her? 

he didn’t have to chase her. and he didn’t have to bring her whip back. and when he said ‘if you stop being a prosecutor, this is where we part ways’ i think we all knew he was not being literal. i think we all knew he was full of shit. i think what miles meant by that was to light a fire beneath her. to say that he had no intention of stopping, that he would keep on fighting, and that he wanted her to fight alongside him. they’ve always been rivals and they have always pushed each other to do better and be better, and miles knows that rivalry drives franziska unlike anything else. she doesn’t actually want to stop prosecuting, she’s just emotionally vulnerable and struggling to cope and throwing a bit of a tantrum about it, and so he pokes at an old button he knows will clear her head. franziska is a difficult person, but miles edgeworth knows her more than any person in the world, he knows how to love her and he does. he loves her so much.

she has seen a lot of pain in JFA. she has seen a lot of wicked words thrown her way, a lot of pushback, a lot of antagonism and banter and bickering, but the one thing no one shows her is kindness and love. phoenix tries, when he brings her flowers, but he gets nervous and backs out at the last second. gumshoe tries, but he does it out of earshot where she can’t hear. every nice thing someone says about franziska, they say while she is not there to listen. miles is the only person who looks her in the face and says he loves her. 

it is love that allows her the space to fall to pieces. it is love that shatters her veneer and turns her into a sobbing mess. she’s literally just a little girl who was forced to grow up too fast. she’s 18 years old and everything’s so hard. she just needed a fucking hug. 

no scene in ace attorney will ever, ever, EVER mean more to me.

[enchiibean]

Now I'm curious about what Narumitsu things you go "he would not fucking say that" about :0 Alternatively go ahead and give out the Narumitsu/Tasutsumu thoughts >:3

HELP OKAY. These will both be sooo incoherent and will contains spoilers so I will put this all under a read more just in case.

I will admit that I haven’t read any Narumitsu fics in a hot minute but I feel like a lot of the ones I TRIED to read back in the summer felt kinda like they were. Like. Stripped of the things that I personally like about them like the complexity and the admiration and how much they CARE for and will support each other despite being “rivals” on opposite sides of the court. And I’m not saying that every depiction of them has to be super complicated or emotionally life-changing or anything because I love reading just. Fluff or silly stuff. But I feel like they were being replaced by some generic yaoi pair where one of them is super dominant and possessive while the other one is super woobified, if that makes sense? And I would just stare and be like that is NOT them!!!! I feel like this happens to a lot of mlm ships though, especially when they’re popular. The nuance is taken away and the yaoi effect takes its place. Have you also seen this. Is this only in my imagination. Was I just bad at picking out fics (probably).

ANYWAY Narumitsu/Tasutsumu comparisons I am taking out my notes. This isn’t even necessarily romantic/from a shipping point of view, I just think they’re very similar!! First of all, they’re both pairs of childhood friends who had shared dreams. For Narumitsu, as children, they both wanted to become defence attorneys to protect truth and justice, while Tasutsumu wanted to become actors together. However, as they grow up, one of them changes paths, without warning, and not necessarily because they wanted to. Edgeworth ends up as a prosecutor instead of a defence attorney after being raised by Von Karma, while Tsumugi becomes a tutor instead of an actor. Meanwhile, Phoenix and Tasuku are both still working towards defence and acting but they both want to know what changed (although Tasuku has a lot better of an idea on that) and have no way of knowing.

Another thing is they both have a “divorced” arc where one of them had what they saw as a HUGE failure and then left to somewhere the other couldn’t follow. For Tasutsumu, this is the same situation above because Tsumugi abruptly changed paths BECAUSE this failure and Reni’s words affected him so much that he didn’t think he could act anymore. For Narumitsu, you could say that similarly, this aligns with the situation outlined before because Phoenix couldn’t contact Edgeworth in any way until they were on opposite ends of the court, but I was thinking more of the post-AA1 “PROSECUTOR MILES EDGEWORTH CHOOSES DEATH” era where Edgeworth got up and left to Europe. And I think these situations are more similar because in these, there’s more anger. Tasuku is angry that Tsumugi abandoned their dream, while Phoenix is angry at Edgeworth because he thinks that he’s quit being a prosecutor. I think that they both perceive this as selfish. For Tasuku, it feels like a betrayal to him because he thought that acting was so incredibly important to both of them and Tsumugi being able to quit after one failure is proof to him that it wasn’t as important to Tsumugi as it was to Tasuku. Plus, they’d been friends all their lives and he just leaves without a word!

Phoenix feels similarly betrayed because he went through SO MUCH to be reunited with Edgeworth and save him, to become his friend again, just for Edgeworth to disappear at the end of it all. In his eyes, Edgeworth is still operating on the basis that he needs to be perfect, and if he isn’t perfect at prosecution, then he might as well not be a prosecutor at all. To Phoenix, “Prosecutor Miles Edgeworth’s death” is him quitting prosecution for what he sees as a petty reason. By the end of Justice for All, we learn that for Edgeworth, this was not the case; “Prosecutor Miles Edgeworth’s death” was him abandoning his previous ways and becoming a new type of lawyer. He’d already been saved by Phoenix, and he was trying to learn how to become closer to that lawyer he dreamed of being as a child who fought for justice (rather than the ruthless prosecutor he’d been who was willing to do anything for a win and he also had to deal with the fact that he probably got innocent people convicted), which is what Phoenix had wanted. But can you blame Phoenix for thinking this? I mean, Edgeworth was vague as hell in that note and disappeared without a trace. Both him AND Tsumugi disappear without a trace, knowing where Phoenix and Tasuku are (Edgeworth reads about Phoenix’s cases in the news and Tsumugi goes to see Tasuku’s plays), but not letting them know where THEY are. Anyway, Tasuku and Edgeworth both thought that their respective friends were willing to give up on not only their dreams, their work, but also THEM because they were no longer perfect and were upset by this.

Also, this has less to do with their relationships, but a similarity between Tasuku and Edgeworth is that they were forced into “perfection” by their mentors. The ways their mentors made them act led them to becoming hated by their peers and also distanced them from why they were pursuing acting/law in the first place. Reni kept pushing Tasuku into the prince box and put him on a pedestal as the top actor, which painted a target on his back in God Troupe's competitive environment. This took away a lot of what Tasuku loved about acting; trying all types of new roles, doing it with people who share that passion, and just. Acting for the sake of acting!! And the way Reni had one idea of what “good” acting is and thought that he could only do princely roles, as well as his peers’ opinions on him and the way he couldn’t show weakness in front of them which furthered their opinion that he was cold and thought he was above them, when really he felt isolated and alone.

Von Karma hammered into Edgeworth since he was young that he has to be PERFECT, and that means a perfect win streak. I’m almost certain that he switched from defence to prosecution because of him (I just can’t remember if or where this was Actually Confirmed). He wants a perfect streak because of him. And similar to Tasuku, he’s kind of alienated by his peers because of it with the “demon prosecutor” image who’s willing to do ANYTHING to maintain that perfect win streak. And the fact that he’s been taught to care more about wins than anything else in his profession made him lose focus of his ideals and why he wanted to become a (defence) lawyer in the first place, which was to find out the truth behind a case and to bring justice and protect people!!

Also, they both eventually break away from those mentors!! Tasuku left Reni and God Troupe because he saw what he did with Taichi and Mankai in episode 3 and he couldn’t stay with a troupe that would be willing to sabotage others like this to stay on top of them. And after 1-4, after being on the defence podium, Edgeworth gets to see how Von Karma REALLY is and what he’s willing to do to maintain that streak and stay as the “best” prosecutor!! It puts things into perspective for him because he’s been taught to try to emulate Von Karma for most of his life but he realizes that if that means doing all of THIS then he doesn’t want to. They both decide they want to change. Perfection wasn’t either of their goals in the first place, they just wanted to improve and this is how they were taught to do that. And their morals lead them to changing for the better :)

[the-bar-sinister]

In Justice We Trust (95196 words) by thesavagesabretooth

With Simon Blackquill and Athena Cykes assigned as their psychologists, the Phantom and Fulbright must grapple with their identity, their deeds, their future, and their love for the twisted samurai whom they betrayed.

All the while, Edgeworth and Wright find their relationship tested as they walk the narrow path between pursuing real justice, and the dark age of the law.

-

December 25, 7:45 am

Gumshoe followed miserably along with the furious Apollo Justice as the lawyer slammed his way through the hotel, looking for Mr. Edgeworth.

“Hey, pal..” Gumshoe slumped along at top speed after Apollo, as fast as his worn out old boots could carry him. “I know you ain’t happy, but let’s try to breathe huh?”

"I'm breathing," Apollo said– despite sounding quite breathless, and his face being quite red. "I'm very aware that I'm breathing right now, Detective Gumshoe. Where can I find the chief prosecutor?"

“I’m gonna be honest with you, pal. You lookin’ the way you do right now? I ain’t sure it’s the best idea to tell ya. You look like you’re two steps from a Third Degree Murder.”

Gumshoe didn’t like seeing the man this way. Apollo was a good kid, but worked up the way he was now, he was likely to hurt someone. Lash out, like that Aura woman had back at the space center with her hostages. Or like too many crimes he’d seen in the past.

“Would you want Trucy to see you like this, kid?” Sometimes you had to make an emotional bid to calm someone down. Remind them of something important, friends, family, loved ones. 

Apollo paused in his stride for a moment– but then kept marching. "No. Not that she hasn't seen me angry. But sometimes anger is important, Gumshoe. I'm not going to hurt anyone. I would never do that– unlike some people."

Maybe Gumshoe had gotten through to him at least a little bit– because his steps had slowed, and while the snap in his voice was still there, it was a bit less sharp.

“I get it, pal. Trust me. I’ve seen plenty done in anger…” He hurried up to put his hand on his shoulder with a sigh. “Just try not to say nothin’ you’ll regret in the mornin’.” 

Apollo stopped again, and he rubbed his shoulders as he stood there, rolling them under his hand. "Gumshoe– thanks for trying to look out for me. But… you really have no idea what I'm going through right now."

“Yeah, that’s true pal. I mean, I dunno the specifics…and I dunno much, I ain’t a bright guy…but I can tell you’re still hurtin’ from losin’ someone.” He rubbed his neck. “I felt the same way when I thought Mr. Edgeworth had gone off an’ killed himself.” 

That seemed to throw Apollo for a loop. "What?"

Gumshoe’s rugged face flushed under the scruff of his beard, and he rubbed his chin with a sigh “...back after he an’ Phoenix Wright had their first clashes in court, and the truth came out about his mentor Manfred Von Karma…Mr. Edgeworth and I were…are…real close. Always have been since I was assigned to him and since. He’s…”

He trailed off… important to me. A lot like Maggey is. She knew how much him and Mr. Edgeworth had shared together. “He and I worked close together. But after that, he vanished. Left a suicide note or somethin’ that sounded just like it, and vanished into the night for long enough we almost declared him dead. Broke my fuckin’ heart, kid. I was fallin’ to pieces. Woulda, if it weren’t for Maggey.” 

Apollo was quiet for a moment. "Gumshoe– I'm sorry. I never knew about that. It uh, well I guess it explains some of the comments Phoenix has made about Miles before…"

He rubbed his chin. "But he wasn't really gone though… how long did you think?"

“Too damn long.” Gumshoe murmured. “he wasn’t really gone, but for those months of searching, he may as well have been. I didn’t think I’d see him again. So…yeah. I dunno how you feel, kid. Not exactly. But I got some idea, okay?” 

"Maybe, but…" he rubbed the back of his neck. "Even when you thought Mr. Edgeworth was gone, you didn't think he'd been murdered. You weren't– you weren't being asked to go to work with his killer, Gumshoe, and pretend nothing was wrong. Don't you feel like that's a bridge too far?"

“I dunno, pal.” Detective Gumshoe set his jaw.

“I’ve seen some things over the years. Every time I think ‘maybe this is a bridge too far’, I think to myself ‘but what’s on the other side’. I dunno why Mr. Edgeworth invited you on this knowin’ you’d have to face the guy…maybe he thought you’d be even angrier if you found out, and weren’t invited at all.” 

"I don't know what the hell he was thinking," he said, shoving his hands in his pockets. "Which is exactly why I want to find out. But– you're a dependable kind of guy, Gumshoe. If you think I should wait to ask until later, I'll do that."

Gumshoe patted his shoulder “...If you wanna talk to him now, I can tell ya where he is. Just…try not to lose your cool. You ain’t gonna get answers if you barge in there seein’ red.” 

"You're right." He set his jaw. "You'll see him today, right?"

“Of course. He’s supposed ta check in with me before heading out to give me instructions.” 

"Alright. Tell him I want to talk to him tonight. Tell him to come see me. You can tell him what it's about, too."

Gumshoe nodded. 

“you got it pal, I’ll pass it along to him nice an’ proper. Alright?” He patted his shoulder again, and Apollo put his hand on his for a moment. “Take care of yourself till then, alright?” 

"Yeah Gumshoe. I'm gonna try to do that." He took a deep breath. "Thanks. Really."

Gumshoe gave him his best chummy smile. “Any time, kid. You ever need anything, feel free to hit up your friendly neighborhood Gumshoe, eh?” 

December 25, 9:00 am

Simon stood back and assessed the scene after they'd finished their initial tour of the crime scene.

Two cars, the first of which had– apparently, according to the tire marks– swerved in front of the second car which then hit it. There was a second streak of tire marks from the second car where it had attempted, futilely, to brake at the last second. Both cars had burned so hot, and so long that they were destroyed and almost unrecognizable. There was a body in the front driver's seat of each car, both of which were heavily destroyed by the same fire. 

Ema's analysis had not turned up any finger prints– unsurprising, given the fire– but she had discovered traces of unburned gasoline leading up to the scene of the two cars. And an assessment with luminol had turned up the most surprising feature of the case yet– a few drops of blood on the pavement between the two cars, which someone had attempted to wipe away.

And now that they were certain there were no fingerprints to miss, Ema was assisting in opening the cars, and examining what was left of the bodies.

Athena had been logging the entire investigation into Widget’s note function, drawing lines and notes between photographs taken with the small device in a rather interesting expose on how she conducted her investigations for the defense. She’d seemed most interested in the blood, writing out theories on exactly what it might mean while Ema worked with Agent Kelso.

Ema wrenched the door open with the agent’s help, with Ema holding her arm out to stop Kelso from moving the body until she took a picture.

“There. Lay them out on the ground. I’ll begin the examination.” 

Halblicht stood to the side as Kelso moved the body out of the car under Ema's instructions, and Simon noticed him watching the agent carefully. He'd noticed, in fact, that Halblicht had been watching both interpol agents carefully since the investigation had begun. He wondered what was on his mind– perhaps he was concerned that the agents might recognize him?

Whatever it was, it was of little consequence now, while they were investigating. Frankly as long as Halblicht didn't try to flee, or to tamper with the evidence– both of which were seeming less and less likely– Simon didn't care what he did.

He was loath to admit it, but he was almost enjoying the opportunity to work the case with the man, and with Athena.

Halblicht's gaze flicked from Kelso to the burned remains, which were, admittedly, difficult to look at for Simon. The monstrous things that fire did to the human body.

"Uuuh, is anyone seeing what I'm seeing?" Bobby asked after a moment.

Kelso looked up as Ema began her examination, starting from the head and going down with a magnifying glass and tweezers to peel away what little remained of clothing and charred flesh when she needed to.

“Seeing what, Detective Halblicht? The dead man? Yeah, I do.” she’d taken to flipping the bullet again, the clicking of metal on metal ringing out adding a sort of background track to the proceedings.

“Mm…if you’re talking about the bullet wound to the face, yes. I’ll work on extracting the bullet when I’m done with my preliminary examination of the rest of the body, “ Ema murmured from her work.

Athena looked a bit sick to her stomach as she glanced at Halblicht. “I haven’t gotten close, what is it?” 

Halblicht snapped into his ridiculous Bobby Fulbright salute at Athena. "Ms. Cykes– there's what appears to be a large bullet hole in the front of this man's skull."

"Not what one usually expects from a car wreck, admittedly," Simon drawled.

“Not unless it was an execution.” Ema said casually. “You sometimes see it, someone gets close and fires through the windshield to eliminate the incapacitated target…except.”

She pointed with her tweezers to the bullet wound, “it’s not a close range shot. This was from a distance.”

Athena frowned. “...now that’s interesting, isn’t it? I wonder if we can find any other bullet holes? And I wonder if it ties into the blood that was wiped up.”

Kelso whistled low, and adjusted the sunglasses in her hair again. “yikes. I guess we knew it wasn’t gonna be a cut and dry crash, but…”

"Yikes is right!" Bobby agreed. "It's too bad that all the windows were destroyed– they would have had something to say."

"Wouldn't they just?" Simon agreed. "The entry wound is in the front of the skull, yes?"

"Sure is, Prosecutor Blackquill!"

He touched his chin thoughtfully. "That tells us something in itself, doesn't it. If he was shot while he was driving– perhaps that's why the car swerved."

“Yeah..” Kelso nodded as she knelt down to look at the body with Ema. “I think you’re right, Prosecutor Blackquill. The sudden shot to the head probably caused him to slump, turning the wheel sharply to the side and colliding with the barrier.”

Athena bit her lip. 

“So someone was in front of them? And fired the gun from the distance to kill him.” She looked back at the other car “then what about the second car? It collided with the first, right?”

Ema had gone quiet again, working with the tweezers and her small medical kit to extract the bullet from the dead agent’s skull. 

Halblicht crossed his arms, and narrowed his eyes with a very cold expression in his face suddenly. "If that's the case, then it's likely the second car is unrelated to the case. A bystander casualty incurred due to the sudden wreck of the agents car."

"An interesting theory, detective," Simon said, considering it. "And a decent one– if not for one problem."

"Sir?"

"If this car belongs to an unrelated bystander– where's the second agent? There were two agents, and two agents are missing."

"Ah. Then perhaps the agents were in two cars after all?

“They could have decided that going separately somehow lowered suspicion?” Kelso suggested, the bullet reappearing and flipping through her fingers once more. “and give the opportunity for, if one was shaken, the other to continue to monitor unsuspected?”

Athena’s nose wrinkled. 

“...I don’t know, Agent. I think I’d like to examine the second body and car first. Agent Ash says that it’s almost certain that they took one car. I can’t imagine they’d have the time or inclination to grab a second car if the target was already heading out…right?” She suddenly looked unsure “then again, I’m no espionage expert.”

“I’ve got the bullet.” Ema announced. 

"Espionage tactics aside, what can we observe about the bullet, Skye-dono?" Simon asked. He noticed that Halblicht had crossed his arms, and gone quiet again.

Ema held up the ruined slug in her tweezers. “It's a pistol round. Typical handgun 9mm. Damaged from the heat and entry, but we might be able to make out rifling if we sent it in for testing.” 

"A pistol round, shot from a distance, in the front of the skull," Simon nodded. "Interesting. Is there anything else significant about the remains at this time?"

“Not really. Fire did its job admirably,” Ema huffed with a frown as she stood. “he was shot by a pistol from the distance in the front of the skull, and then the body was all but destroyed in the fire.”

“Brutal.” Kelso murmured with a shake of her head.

“I think we should get looking at the second body..” Athena said “...especially given the blood on the scene. It’s outside, between the cars…which is interesting.” 

"It's very interesting," Simon agreed. "Let's have a look at the second body, and see what conclusions we can draw from it."

Halblicht turned, quietly, suddenly snapping into action again. "I'll be happy to take the body out of the car then, if you'd like, Prosecutor Blackquill."

Simon raised his eyebrows. Why was he offering that?

"I don't see why not. Agent Kelso should only be required to get her shirt so dirty," he drawled. He resolved to watch Halblicht carefully. Surely he wasn't going to tamper with the evidence.

“Well I’m not gonna say no.” Kelso smiled. “...this shirt’s got enough tragedy smeared on it from the first one. If you want a hand, lemme know, sir.”

Athena’s head tilted up, and she seemed to listen very carefully as Halblicht spoke…she even paused in her note taking. 

Halblicht slipped his black gloves from his pocket, and onto his hands. "At least I'm in the appropriate color for being covered in ash, hm? Ms. Ema– would you please open the car?"

“You got it, Rob,” Ema nodded as she tightened her own gloves and grabbed the door handle. “On three. One…two…”

She wrenched the door open with the groan of charred and melted metal scraping together. 

Halblicht held back as the photo was taken of the car, and then he very carefully looked the body over. 

"There seems to be another gunshot wound in this one," he said. "Possibly two. I'll move it now."

“Good, once you get it on the ground I’ll give it the in depth examination.” Ema said, seeming more alive than ever now that she was in her element.

Kelso stood back, flipping the bullet between her fingers again as she asked. “Want me to investigate the interior of the car while you work on that, ma’am?” 

As Halblicht gently removed the body, he looked over his shoulder and caught Simon's eye. To his surprise, he noticed Halblicht shake his head very slightly, as if in answer to a question. 

Simon frowned, not knowing quite if he was making the right assumption, but–

"Why don't we look together, Agent Kelso? Two heads, as they say, are better than one." He stepped around toward the other side of the car.

“They say that!” Kelso laughed cheerfully, before waving her hand, the bullet vanishing down her sleeve. “If you asked Agent Ash, she’d probably say it’s at least better than just mine, anyway.” she lightly rapped her knuckles on the side of her head. “let’s take a peek.”

Athena tilted her head, and her brow furrowed as she listened to the conversation. She glanced back. “Actually, there was something I wanted to ask Agent Ash about the cars…” 

"What was that, Ms. Cykes?" Halblicht asked as he lay the body down on the pavement next to the other.

“I wanted to ask Agent Ash something about the cars.” She spoke up “...their procurement , specifically. And if there’s any way to track and ID cars used by Interpol agents. I think we can solve the ‘two bodies, two cars’ discrepancy that way.” 

As Simon busied himself looking in the car's passenger seat, he thought that that was a very interesting question indeed.

December 25, 8:20 am

When Phoenix, Miles and Kay met up with Gumshoe and with the girls in the hotel dining room, the first thing that happened was a minor change of plans. Trucy invited Kay to go see Klavier and his commercial with them.

Miles looked at Kay with a raised eyebrow. "Well, Ms. Faraday– it's up to you. Admittedly, I think I have enough backup for this investigation if you'd rather."

Indeed, Miles had rarely felt as well backed up as he did with both Phoenix and Gumshoe there.

“If you’re sure, boss.” Kay had said, glancing between them. In the end, the siren call of bothering a rock star all day won out, and she’d agreed to go along with Trucy and Pearl…leaving the trio to do their work.

“I won’t lie, sir.” Gumshoe said, “I kinda appreciate havin’ something to do today.” 

"And I'll appreciate having your… unique skills and way of looking at the world, Detective," Miles drawled with amusement. "Enjoy the day, Kay. Make sure to get some pictures."

“You got it, sir!” Kay snapped a salute. “I’ll steal you one of his guitars, alright?”

“Don’t…Don’t say that to us, Miss Kay.” Gumshoe pleaded “I don’t wanna have to testify in court.” 

With the pleasantries out of the way, and Phoenix securing multiple promises from Trucy and Pearl that they'd check in throughout the day, the prosecutor, the attorney, and the detective headed out toward the parking lot.

"Nostalgic, in a way, isn't it?" Miles mused.

“Sure is, sir. Reminds me of all them times you and I solved mysteries overseas.” he chuckled richly. “Guess ya still get the itch now and again eh?” 

"Can't keep Edgeworth away from a good mystery," Phoenix chuckled.

"Or a bad one." Miles smirked and shook his head. "You know, I'm not sure the three of us have all been on one investigation together like this."

“Nah , every time we managed to get on one of these, Phoenix was off fuckin’ around, sir.” 

"Hey, that's not true!" Phoenix complained. "I was not the one 'fucking around' off solving mysteries over seas. Besides, the three of us have been on plenty of investigations together– just not exactly on the same side."

"And thus, not in the same room at the same time, Wright," Miles tutted. "So this is a fairly novel experience."

They strolled outside into the cold air where their breath came out in puffs, and Miles headed toward where he'd been told his rental car for the day would be parked.

Gumshoe laughed, clapping his hands together. “Two she, Phoenix. Ya got a good point.”

He had probably meant to say touche…but the word was very much lost in translation.

Miles was about to speak up to correct him, when he gave pause, looking at the car next to his own. The driver's side window was wide open, and he immediately noticed that it wasn't merely rolled down, but that there were specs of glass littered in the space where it would have rolled into.

"Oh dear. I think someone's car's been robbed."

Gumshoe’s brow furrowed. 

“...That ain’t good. That ain’t good at all.” He leaned forward to inspect it with a rub of his chin. ‘We should report it, yeah? “ 

"Of course we should," Miles said. And they should– but his curiosity was piqued.

Phoenix caught up. "Uh-oh, I know that tone."

“Oh ho ho!” Gumshoe rubbed his hands together. “is it time to meddle, Mr. Edgeworth, sir??” 

Edgeworth flushed and rubbed the back of his neck. "Well– as curious as I am to do so, we have more pressing business today. Let's take down the license plate and give the information to the front desk. If something hasn't been done about it by the time we get back…"

Phoenix slapped Edgeworth companionably on the shoulder. "Then we'll indulge your meddling, Edgeworth."

He made a noise and adjusted his cravat. "Quite."

[snezfics-n-shit]

Sicktember Day 24: "Did you just sneeze?"

Fandom: Ace Attorney Characters: Franziska von Karma, Larry Butz Notes: Can’t get enough of Larry and Franziska being besties? Me neither! If you have had enough, I’m sorry but not really. This entry is actually somewhat of a follow-up of last year’s “Excessive Use of Tissues” entry you can find in my Sicktember 2022 collection. Franziska and Larry get together as they usually do, with Franziska reluctant to allow Larry even a glimpse of the imperfections her life has accumulated in recent weeks. Set early in the 7yg, just like the entry this is following up on, but this time with references to one of Shu Takumi’s short stories from 2020. Just like said entry from last year, there are mentions of very recent past franmaya. Also, Larry has no room to tease Franziska’s girly sneeze because, as some friends and I have decided (and therefore made true and canon), he has his own cutesy pixie sneezes. Maybe a future entry will give Franziska the chance to send the teasing back into his court (hint hint) hehe. If you like the things I write, I always appreciate reblogs and comments; they really make my day!

     Franziska von Karma refused to consider herself unlucky in anything. She was not unlucky in her career after several losses in American courtrooms. She was not unlucky in love after the recent end of her very first romantic relationship. She was most definitely not unlucky in health after that foolish little brother of hers gave her this dreadful cold that seemed to wait for the worst moment to strike once she returned home. Everything had to have happened for a perfect reason; that’s what her older sister once told her. 

A perfect reason for her cold to be at its worst on the day Larry Butz was to visit, no matter how much she refused to believe it, may as well have not existed. It was too late to cancel the plans made months in advance, leaving her pushing herself to appear at her best, even if she was feeling close to the worst. 

“How was your flight?” She asked as she poured tea for both herself and Larry. Tea was a wonderful thing, both for serving to houseguests and soothing an ailing body. Franziska could have easily been upfront about her choice to serve tea instead of her usual offer of a wide range of beverages when Larry arrived, but what good would it be for Larry to know? His occasional obliviousness was a gift that anyone would be a fool not to take advantage of once in a while. 

“It was pretty exciting! I’ve never been on a private jet before.” Larry smiled and made a soft, gleeful noise as he picked up the teacup to blow on his tea, ignoring Franziska’s look of irritation towards his unwillingness to burn his tongue. “I’ve been on a lot of planes, but they were always crowded and I usually ended up with the seat in front of a really fidgety kid who would kick my seat for the entire flight. I don’t blame the kid, though; I probably would’ve been just like that if my parents could afford flying when I was growing up.”

“What about those first class tickets I recall you purchasing?” Franziska asked as she savored a breath of the steam emanating from her teacup, careful as ever to be quiet in doing so. 

“Oh, those weren’t for me! I can never afford more than one of those, but my girlfriends have deserved nothing but the best. Take Bennifer, for example. She really wanted to visit Tibet, so I thought it’d be really nice to travel there with her.” Larry’s expression fell. “When we got there, she thanked me for the first class flight and then immediately told me she wasn’t interested in me anymore.” He sighed. “I guess it wasn’t all bad. I got my miles from the flight and a new place so say I’ve visited.” 

“It still sounds like a shame, though.” Franziska took a small sip of her tea. “To go out of your way for someone, only for her to tell you that a relationship is something that no longer fits where she wants her life to be right now.” Her voice shook despite her efforts to separate herself from this particular topic. For Larry to find out she was just as impacted by the pits of heartbreak as any other human might be even worse than if he were to find out she wasn’t feeling well.

“Did I strike a chord or something, Franzy?” Larry tilted his head. “It’s not like you and Maya– No way!” He leaned forward with wide eyes.  “You got dumped!?” 

“I did not ‘get dumped!’” Franziska growled, taking her throat by surprise and triggering a good few seconds of coughing. “E-Excuse me.” She sniffled as she struggled to regain her composure. “The relationship may have ended, but not in a way I would describe as ‘dumping,’ even if it was her decision.” 

“Woah, woah. Sorry.” Larry laughed nervously. “It’s just a, uh, figure of speech, really. When you get dumped as much as I have, you start to realize it’s not a dirty word. It is the hardest the first time around, though, and I’m here for you. You know that, right?” 

As much as Franziska could not stand the word, considering it to be far too vulgar for something she felt to be a serious and painful matter, maybe Larry was right. Maybe the first time around simply was the hardest and it would be, dare she say, much appreciated to spend this time in the company of a friend. 

“T-Thank you,” Franziska swallowed despite the soreness it caused, “Larry Butz.” She had to be ill for those words to come out so easily. “You’re far better of a confidant than my foolish little brother has been lately.” 

“Huh? What did Edgey do this time?”

“He hogged the tissue box in my time of need, for one thing!” Franziska started. “Then, I can tell he clearly neglected to disinfect his living space because he… he… Iit’tshhew!! H’hsshhiew!!” She scrambled to find her pocket handkerchief and make quick use of it before Larry could potentially catch a glimpse of being so unpresentable. 

“Did… Did you just sneeze?” Larry asked through poorly stifled laughter. 

“Why would it matter?” Franziska’s voice was muffled by the handkerchief pressed against her face. 

“You’re just so… dainty, Franzy!” Larry held his hand to his mouth to hide his involuntary smile. “It’s cute, like a little kitten!”

“Were we not having a serious discussion right now?” Franziska huffed. “I refuse to let it take such a foolish turn as this!”

“Okay, okay. Sorry.” Larry quickly attempted to calm himself. “I, uh, I’m guessing he gave you that nasty cold, huh?” 

Franziska was about to admit it anyway, so there was no sense in denying when this visit had already led to Larry seeing multiple aspects of Franziska that she would have rather hid. 

“Yes, he did.” Franziska scowled as if Miles had committed a much higher offense than just not spending Franziska’s entire time at his home in a hazmat suit. 

“The nerve!” Larry made a scandalized face, one of his favorite things to do whenever he and Franziska met up to tell each other the latest gossip. 

Franziska wanted to laugh at Larry’s exaggerations, but ended up coughing instead.

“Pardon me.” She cleared her throat. “But now you do see the full consequences of Miles Edgeworth’s foolishness.”

“Yeah!” Larry again played up his reaction. “Hold on, I think I got some cough drops with me.” He dug through his jacket’s pockets before pulling out a couple of cough drops. “I don’t know how well it’ll go with your tea, but it’s worth a shot, right?”

“I suppose I’m willing to try.” This was Franziska’s way of accepting the offer, though she grimaced as soon as the saccharine cherry flavor met her tongue. She mentally reminded herself that Larry was trying to help and instinctively used her tongue to push the cough drop to the side of her mouth. “So, while this melts, why don’t you tell me what you’ve been up to?”

“Really?” Larry blinked. His brain needed to flip through the cards of Phoenix’s rough situation that he didn’t feel right divulging and recent failed relationships he would rather not bring up given Franziska’s opening up about her first heartbreak. “Well, uh, I graduated from my patisserie school program!”

“You did?”

“Yup! And you won’t believe what Edgey told me afterwards! He said…” 

[heaven-s-black-box]

Deathless- ensemble

Return to File

Recovery date: July 17th, 2020

Description: nobody dies AU

Notes: An entry from my 2020 research project into the universe of Ace Attorney. You can find the next entry here.

Word count: 826

Back to directory

“Franziska? Have you se-”

“Did you lose more evidence?”Mia asked, laughing from her desk.

“Wha?! I- no, I just put it down, and it’s not where I left it,” Miles stumbled over his words.

“I have it brother. You left it on my desk when you went to talk to your boyfriend,” Franziska sighed, waving the file around.

“He is not my boyfriend!” Miles yelled. Then the door opened, and everyone turned.

“Hey, is Mr.Edgeworth here right now? Our new guy is here,” Ray said, as he poked his head in.

“Father’s out investigating. What do you mean our new guy?” Franziska asked, frowning at her lack of information.

Ray laughed, before opening the door all the way and walking in. Behind him, was a boy with horns, who looked completely star struck.

“Hey kid, you gonna introduce yourself?”

“Uh, right! Sorry. I’m Apollo Justice and as of today I’ll be a part of this office! It’s a pleasure to meet you all!” The boy yelled, causing everyone to wince.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” Miles said, extending his hand. “I’m Miles Edgeworth, this is Mia Fey, and that’s Franziska von Karma. You’ve already met Raymond Sheilds and my father, Gregory Edgeworth, I’m assuming.”

“Yes! Thank you!” Another knock came from the door.

“Hello everyone, look who I fou- Oh Apollo, hello. I wasn’t expecting you till later,” Gregory said, as he entered the office.

“Ah, sorry. I got here a little early and Mr. Shields told me to come up.”

“Hey Mr.Edgeworth, the foods getting cold!” A girl's voice yelled from outside the office. Then two heads popped around the corner. “Hey sis!” The girl yelled.

“Maya, Phoenix. Did you two bring food?” Mia asked, standing up to greet her sister and friend by the door.

“Yes ma’am,” Phoenix said, “We were told you were getting a new member, so we thought a group lunch would be nice.”

“Alright, bring the food over here,” Ray called, from where he had cleared a table. “I wanna get to know Pollo.”

They set up, and passed out drinks and burgers for everyone. Phoenix was introduced to Apollo as Miles’s best friend since grade school, a part time assistant here at the Edgeworth and co. law office, and an aspiring actor. He also found out that Maya was Mia’s sister, and had a tendency to get accused of murder. “You aren’t officially part of this office until you've defended her,” Mia had laughed.

“So how ‘bout you?” Maya asked, around a mouthful of burger. “What’s your story?”

“Ah, it’s kind of long.” 

“We have time,”Maya cut in, and everyone nodded.

 “Well, back when I was younger, I met an amazing defense attorney. He saved me and my dad, actually you might have heard of him. His name is Dhurke Sahdmadhi from the kingdom of Khura’in,” Mia and Maya choked on their drinks. But they didn’t say anything, so he continued. “Anyway we were supposedly dead, so until that was cleared up, we were stuck in Khura’in. When we came back to LA, it turned out my mom had remarried, and had a daughter with her new husband. But, long story short, he was a bit of a dick and she still loved my dad, so they got a divorce and she married my dad again. And that’s it…”

“That sounds like quite the adventure,” Phoenix said, “How old are you again?”

“I’m twenty two, oh and I did work at the Gavin law office before this. That’s abou-”

“Wait! Gavin law office? As in Kristoph Gavin who forged evidence?” Franziska asked in disbelief. She always kept an eye on cases of forged evidence, she never wanted anything like what happened with her father to happen again.

“Uh, ya?”

She pulled him into a hug, “You poor thing.” Apollo looked rightfully confused, as the rest of the office snickered.

“So, any other friends?” Gregory asked.

“Hm, I have a friend from middle school. His name’s Clay Terran, he’s doing astronaut training. He’ll hopefully be joining the HAT-2 mission,” Apollo hummed. He wouldn’t normally talk this much about himself, but he figured it would be best if his boss knows this stuff.

“HAT-2? Oh, do you know Dr. Cykes?” Gregory asked.

“I’ve met her a few times, why?”

“We consult her ever now and then,” Ray said. “Nice lady. I think her daughter is in school to become a defense lawyer, isn’t she?”

Gregory nodded, “I’ve already offered her an internship here if it interested her.”

Maya looked up, and her eyes nearly bulged out of her skull. “Shit! Nick, we need to go or you’ll miss the audition!”

“Huh?” He looked up at the clock, “Shit! Sorry, we have to run, it was nice meeting you Apollo. Bye Miles, Bye everyone!” He yelled as him and Maya ran out the door. It was silent before Franziska spoke up.

“Not your boyfriend huh?”

“Shut up!”

[askaceattorney]

Dear Gumshoe-letty-fan,

Chief Mod Edgeworth: Agreed. Klavier got the short end of the stick when it came to his character. Though, he’s not the only one. Franziska also lost her father to prison and has to carry a damaged reputation because of it. If we were to go by location, which is in Japan, there’d have been great shame upon the von Karma’s to the point where Franziska would only be seen as the daughter of a criminal. Thankfully, she did develop from that, but I believe there is a huge character arc missing from Franziska and one I think a lot of fans wish to see.

Though the one I’d have to choose that had the saddest things happen to him or her, it would be Maya. She’s lost her sister, then was arrested for it. That’s got to be traumatic for her. I don’t know what I’d do if I lost my sister and found myself convicted for her murder in one day, let alone five minutes. I mean the girl was so traumatized that she fainted and Phoenix had to carry her to the couch. Then, to find herself arrested because her name was on the receipt her sister supposedly wrote? It doesn’t even end there. A year later, Maya gets arrested again because her Aunt wants to get rid of her to make way for Pearl to be the new Master. Morgan Fey had raised Maya throughout most of her childhood. To find out that someone who is supposedly a second mother to you wants you arrested and possibly dead has to be one of the most dreadful things to swallow, not to mention a serious betrayal. And, just when you think it couldn’t get any worse for Maya, her Aunt makes a pact with her daughter Dahlia WHILE IN PRISON to set up a plan to trick Pearl into channeling Dahlia to kill Maya. Not only is that traumatizing for Pearl, but that is an extra burden on Maya from her end. That’s not counting her mother being killed because she was channeling the very person that was trying to kill her and her sister’s fiancé had to step in to save her. This is just the trilogy. I haven’t even got to the Inmee’s and that whole debacle.

To this day, I do not know how Maya could move on from that. Most people would be suicidal at this point. Yet, she’s able to pick herself back up and move on. I’m convinced Phoenix and Pearl are the reason, but I cannot understand how Maya can go through all that shit without developing some form of PTSD or Depression. It’s one thing to think you killed your parent, but to have your own family try to murder you is another kind of trauma I would not wish on my worst enemy. If I had to choose between Edgeworth’s and Maya’s backstory for anyone, I’d choose Edgeworth’s because he at least can move on knowing he didn’t kill his father and that his mentor is a bitch. I’d like to ask anyone how they’d be able to move on from knowing their secondary mother and Aunt tried to kill them over a leadership position? Edgeworth barely was able to move on from DL-6. How Maya was able to move on from all this shit is a godsend.

Co-Mod: That’s a tough one, but for me, I’d say it’s a tossup between Maya and Athena.  Both of them lost their mothers and were apparently abandoned by their fathers, but unlike Maya, Athena had to actually see it happen during her childhood (and it sure wasn’t a pretty sight), which was so traumatic for her that she didn’t even remember most of it until years later when she had to confront it in order to prove her innocence, and she even had to face the possibility that it might have been her who committed the murder on top of that.  To not only come out of that okay, but to have a constant can-do attitude afterward is nothing short of an incredible feat.

A close second would be Simon Keyes, who developed trust issues at a young age and came to believe that even the law was against him.  As cruel as he became, he was someone in need of saving, as Edgeworth pointed out, and that rescue didn’t come until the very end.  Better than nothing, but it’s still hard for me not to feel for him, or for anyone with that level of mistrust.

Dear Charicla,

Chief Mod Edgeworth: I’ve never used it, so I wouldn’t know.

In any case, I’ve already decided to delete any letters that look or read like what that troll had been putting out. Even now, they’re trying to sneak in letters from Hotti under different Anonymous names. Thankfully, it’s easy to know which is them, because of their writing style alone.

(Referenced Link)

Dear Anonymous,

Chief Mod Edgeworth: We never get to the letters in the inbox for a month or a few weeks. Either way, it seems you guys didn’t need our help for Shoe and Wagahai to win against the Baron.

(I’d have voted for both to be honest. I love The Cat Returns.)

Dear Anonymous,

Chief Mod Edgeworth: Clay Terran. Apollo kept mentioning him throughout Duel Destinies and we never get to see him. I think we should have seen Clay instead of just being told of his existence by Apollo.

Co-Mod: Cindy Stone comes to mind.  I’m not a big fan of models, but it’d be nice to know why she had a soft spot for Larry despite having so many other men who admired her.

Dear Charicla,

Chief Mod Edgeworth: I’ve never used the block tags on here, so I don’t know what to do about that. As I have said before, the Hotti letters from that troll are gone now, so it shouldn’t be a problem anymore.

(Referenced Letter)

Dear Anonymous,

Chief Mod Edgeworth: Yes and no. The Squid Game letters were going around at the time and I couldn’t come up with better ideas for Gant’s response. 

(Referenced Letter)

Dear Pun,

Chief Mod Edgeworth: I wasn’t a mod at the time. I’m assuming this is from Co-Mod. If it is, he’ll answer below. Either way, your words are appreciated.

Co-Mod: Yep, that was me.

I probably wouldn’t have noticed it myself if you hadn’t pointed it out.  It’s always fun discovering things you didn’t notice before like that, so I’m glad I was able to create that moment for you.

Dear Anonymous,

Chief Mod Edgeworth: Honestly, all of them. I did mention in your previous letter about not telling the same joke more than three times. This is one example of how it could be done if you were to break that rule. The reason it works is because you’re using the same joke to multiple people, each one of them being different from the other.

If you really want to start doing letters again, I’d start by either STOP making Hotti letters altogether or writing letters that do not involve Hotti. Take a lesson from Dawsongfg. If you want to write letters again, stop writing the very letters that got you blacklisted in the first place.

Co-Mod: Do old ones count?  If so, I’d probably go with this one.

Dear Rogertheegg,

Chief Mod Edgeworth: To be honest, I’m not sure. However, someone on here did create an OC that is close to an ideal Prosecutor for Athena. The only thing I remember is that her name was Steele. I loved her design and how she has that Old World/by-the-books mentality that opposes Athena’s New World/technological views. It’s an interesting idea and something I feel we need more of in Ace Attorney: Prosecutors that aren’t assholes and just have a different perspective on things. Sure, we had Klavier, but it’s clear he was only there to represent a reflection of his brother, who was the asshole villain. 

This is why I’m excited about having Kazuma being a Prosecutor because this means the third game of TGAA will give us a Prosecutor that isn’t an asshole. I think Kazuma would do better as a Prosecutor that isn’t an asshole (the unlikable kind anyways) and is just a Prosecutor with a different set of views. The last case gave us an idea of what that would look like. Just get rid of the revenge thing and you have a Prosecutor who’s stubborn with his views and how he views a crime scene that would be an excellent opponent to Ryunosuke with an overarching conflict that would flow well with it.

Co-Mod: Simple -- use Franziska’s sister (or her niece if she’s a prosecutor by now, which wouldn’t be surprising).  In the words of Phoenix, it’s scary when women fight, and who wouldn’t want to see women like them in a face-to-face courtroom brawl?  I don’t even know what Franziska’s sister or niece are like, but I’m still willing to bet it’d be pretty epic.

Chief Mod Edgeworth: Why does every von Karma have to be a Prosecutor? Can’t we have female prosecutors that are original? 

Dear Anonymous,

Chief Mod Edgeworth: I think your letters with Phoenix acting stupid are great examples of this. The reason your letters with Phoenix acting stupid work is because he often does this. Granted, there’s context behind it, but it’s because he’s done this before that even Edgeworth can believe those letters are from Phoenix, even if it makes him OOC or more stupid than he normally is. That’s usually the key: it has to be something other characters could believe the character you’re writing would say/do. I will give you one example by using another character known for doing stupid stuff: Dick Gumshoe. 

Dear Mr. Edgeworth,

Man, that Wright character ain’t never gonna win this one for sure. The man I just arrested was the only one found next to the victim inside the bathroom. Sure, the fingerprints don’t match the weapon, but he probably wiped it off or something. It couldn’t have been anyone else but him. Let’s see Mr. Wright try to beat us this time!

- Detective Gumshoe

Now, while this one does put Gumshoe OOC for arresting someone, knowing the fingerprints don’t match the gun, it is like his character to arrest someone because their name is on the back of the receipt. He also sees Phoenix as an opponent and someone to prove that he’s a good Detective, given how many times he gets his salary cut. You could have him arrest Oldbag because she lost her temper and it would work. Then, you have this:

Dear Mr. Edgeworth,

I just arrested Mr. Wright. I always knew that guy was up to no good! You can count that we’ll get that guy in prison in no time!

- Detective Gumshoe

Not only is this OOC of Gumshoe, but this is not the kind of man he is. He’s not someone who arrests or finds joy in arresting anyone he considers a friend. Hell, he couldn’t even think straight when he had to testify to his crush being a murderer TWICE. He demanded Phoenix to defend Edgeworth the moment he was arrested and he defended Kay when she was accused of murder while amnesic. He might be reckless when arresting someone, but when he has to arrest a friend, he’s going to investigate and find anything he can find to prove his friend didn’t do it. If he has to testify to his findings that point to his friend being the killer, he’s going to be sadder than Ema Skye eating snackoos. 

That’s what you do right with Phoenix. Yes, you’re having him point to everyone being the killer except the killer, but it’s closer to the kind of person he is. He does tend to do that under pressure. You also make sure that he’s not pointing to every character in the games and only points to those who testified in court (like he’s not pointing to Larry and Maya when neither of them testified. I don’t even think you had him accuse Ema since she kinda was in the middle of the trial and Phoenix pulling that stunt would make him seem less stupid and more cruel). Does this help?

-The Mods

[metaphorical-goblin]

Fic Analysis: Egg on the Wall

Before you read this analysis, I recommend reading the full story here! Of course, there will be spoilers for everything below.

Title: Egg on the Wall

Author: actual_goblin (That's me!)

Fandom: Ace Attorney/Gyakuten Saiban

Words: 2962

Summary: Franziska doesn't have anyone to tell her what to do or where to go, especially now that her father is in prison. Now she is an independent adult, free to make her own decisions and discoveries.

Miles can relate to that.

(AKA An exploration of the Von Karma siblings’ view of their own free will)

Miles Edgeworth (the brother in question) had been ever-so-gracious as to permit her to stay in his guestroom during her brief stint into the country he currently called his home...

This specific wording (ever-so-gracious) is meant to imply that Franziska does not believe that Miles is actually doing this out of the "kindness of his heart;" instead, she feels that he is doing this to gain some kind of power.

Now, he was acting as though everything was reversed, as though she was the one that needed guidance and care in the ways of mastering the self.

Now he acted as though he cared about her. It was a bit unnerving.

Since she views Miles as a "little brother," Fran historically believes that she should be offering Miles guidance. However, after his return to prosecuting and after she was shot in Engarde's trial, it is implied that he has been trying to take on a more "brotherly" role with her. This is unexpected for Fran, of course, bc she believes they're still rivals...

He wouldn’t approve of her behavior, either.

...which adds to the volume behind this line. She thinks her father would be disappointed that she is conceding to her "rival" (and he would, but that's not the point of this fic so we won't get into that here). However, this is something she wants to do, even if she doesn't realize it quite yet.

He was one half-step above scraggly, dressed down in nothing more than jogging pants and an old t-shirt from a canceled children’s show.

Put this in to "emphasize" how much Miles had changed since he started dating Phoenix. He's okay with relaxing a bit, even though it is far from Von Karma's standards.

He should care what she thinks of him.

To Franziska, he should be incredibly irritated that she keeps picking on these flaws, but he isn't "taking the bait."

Franziska blinked. He wasn’t treating her like a sister. He was treating her like a guest. Like something to be entertained.

Fran believes he should be fighting with her because "that's what siblings do." Unfortunately, his excess politeness (or, rather, lack of argument) means that he is not treating or viewing her as a sibling. Instead, he is treating her like a business partner (someone he has to be polite to). This is why she specifically calls him "little brother" in the next line.

“Though, I was on the fence about whether to make them into sticks or not.” When Franziska raised an eyebrow, he clarified, “They’re easier for dipping.”

This was just included bc I think Phoenix would prefer French toast sticks (over regular French Toast) bc they're "easier for dipping" and Miles likes to do things that Phoenix likes lol

When she opened her mouth to protest, to pick, to pester once again and gain some semblance of status in her brother’s eyes...

Another callback to the feeling of distance. She wants to be treated as an equal, not as a guest.

He swiftly abandoned his work, leaving Franziska speechless as he practically pranced off to answer the beck and call of the attorney. He was acting more expressive than she had seen in a long time, even since he picked her up from the airport yesterday... Her stomach curled. Why didn’t she get the same courtesy of–

He probably didn't "prance," but Fran believes that Phoenix makes him do "foolish things." It upsets her that he seems more excited/enthused to talk to Nick (someone she believes that he hardly knows) than her, but she would likely never admit that.

He gasped, the little thespian.

Haha, Phoenix Wright is a theater kid

“She doesn’t mean that, Wright.” And something in the way he cut his eyes back in her direction made her stomach twist.

Miles immediately jumps to correct Fran for saying something she genuinely did mean, which then reminds her of her father and how he would constantly make corrections or "fix her mistakes."

“He is the son of a very important colleague of mine. A colleague I wish to make far closer.”..."Go fetch Miles Edgeworth. Weber’s daughter is a little older than he is, but hopefully, he won’t manage to scare her away.”

Haha, this man thinks his children are straight

The implication here is that MVK is trying to "set up" Fran or Miles with one of Weber's kids so he can get an opening for political negotiation. The little weirdo

Franziska sneered. “I will be prosecuting my own case, Miles Edgeworth.”

“No. No. You’ll be staying here, staying safe, and recovering. I will act as the prosecution.”... “Don’t worry,” he whispered, pulling away. “They will not get away with this. I will fix this.”

Miles is viewing his acts here as coming from a place of care and concern. Fran, on the other hand, views this as an attempt to control her. This is somewhat further emphasized by the fact that he is just now returning, on the "eve" of one of the most important cases against Phoenix that she's ever gotten and a case that she must, under any circumstances, win. She feels that Miles is coming in simply to take that victory away from her.

“But that wasn’t your decision,” she added. “That was terrible. You shouldn’t have lost.”

Miles’ mouth turned up a little as he sprinkled cinnamon into his eggy concoction. “I suppose that was my decision, then. Deciding that I should have lost. Coming to terms with the fact that the defendant was truly innocent.”

Miles is at a place where he does not think as intensely in terms of "winning" or "losing;" it is more of an effort to find the truth than anything else. So, his decision to change his mindset of getting the correct verdict was his first step of "freedom," so to speak.

"...I needed to… ‘face the music,’ as it were... My… actions… from before my absence were relatively unforgivable. I realized that, and I had to make amends with those that I wronged. Fix the issues I had caused."

Miles is being a bit hypocritical here, which is expanded on a little further down. He doesn't realize that, in protecting Franziska, he is keeping her from being able to go through the same revelations that he had. He is "fixing her messes," but is stunting her growth in the exact same way MVK did.

A little step, then. A little loss and a little consequence. With a sharp turn on her heel, she reeled her hand back and threw the egg, full-force, into the side of her brother’s pristine kitchen cabinets.

YAS GIRL BE THE PROBLEM

“I am allowed to suffer the consequences of my actions, Miles Edgeworth.”

YESSSS

The confrontation! She should be allowed to have the opportunity to grow and learn! We love it

And now, a bigger step. A bigger consequence. Her father would never allow her to do something so reckless. Franziska stole her brother’s phone. Dialed the number of a certain blue-clad defense attorney. “Phoenix Wright, you will bring Maya Fey to our lunch meeting today. I wish to catch up with her.”

Some implied FranMaya in the end of the fic, just for fun. However, it does emphasize how she is moving away from acting the way her father expected her to and is instead willing and ready to make her own mistakes and suffer the consequences of her actions. She is ready to express her free will.

Final Thoughts

This entire fic was inspired by the "egg-throwing" video that was circulating my TikTok at the time. However, I also wanted to explore Miles & Fran's relationship as siblings, especially in absence of MVK and a necessary rivalry. Miles is trying to be a better brother, but he still has a long way to go. Fran has a lot of growing to do, too!

Do you have any thoughts? Interpret anything in a different way? I'd love to hear what you think!

[azuramarigold]

The Found Turnabout Ch 3

Summary: When Apollo Justice was literally shipped off from Khura'in back to his native country in America, he had issues from bouncing from foster home to foster home - that is until one day in the courthouse he met Phoenix Wright at the age of twelve years old. With a new found family and starting to learn the legal ropes early, Apollo joins Phoenix Wright on some of the earlier cases and the downfalls.

Chapter Summary: Apollo goes to a new family - they seem to be eccentric as one is really into magic tricks and the family goes to see a famous magic show.

AO3 Ch1 Ch2

Foster Home #2 – The Thompson’s

Christmas came and went for Apollo and Aria, and the trial for Emilio Rodriguez was shown on TV, where a random public Defense Attorney barely did anything to help him.

            Apollo thought that was awful of the attorney; they could have brought up how Emilio was being blackmailed and forced to be part of the drug smuggling, maybe give him a lighter sentence. But the defense literally didn’t care, and the Prosecution, who was Prosecutor Manfred von Karma, showed no mercy. Emilio was given the “Guilty” verdict on the spot.

            Once January hit and it was time to go back to school, Apollo unfortunately was not allowed back in the private elementary school. He was okay with that – even though the classes were very prestigious, and he was learning Spanish at a decent pace, he didn’t care for the attitude of the school. The other kids made fun of him and Sam for being in the foster system, and they also made fun of him for his accent and hairstyle.

            So, Apollo studied in the small room where he lived in once before. He loved the cramp space, it felt natural and normal; the walls were covered with years of pictures and drawings, and the floorboards itself creaked with memories. It felt a lot like his and Nahyuta’s shared room in Khura’in, they barely had room to think let alone sleep in, but it was home.

            Finally, when it was almost Mid-January there the pleasant chime of the doorbell rang through the house. The cats that were curled up at Apollo’s side while he was reading through a Spanish textbook jolted awake and bolted underneath the bed from the sudden noise. With a sign, he closed the book and made his way to the living room where he saw Aria greeting Detective Dick Gumshoe.

            “So, you’re sure this will be a good place for him?” Aria questioned, her voice uncharacteristically hard.

            Gumshoe grimaced. “Hey… I don’t choose the homes…” he dejected. “I usually don’t even take the kids there. But, because it was slow that day and I was the one who originally processed him… he’s just more familiar with me, it’s easier that I take him. It’s less confusing that way.”

            Aria sighed, pinching the corners of her eyes with her finger and thumb, “I was wondering why a homicide detective was doing this…”

            “Until Mr. Edgeworth tells me we have a case, I usually do some side runs. Sometimes it’s taking evidence to other precincts, or cleaning up Mr. Edgeworth’s office, or getting some coffee for the others at the station…” Gumshoe chuckled lightly. The scruffy detective then finally noticed Apollo. “Ah, heya, pal!” He gave a wave. “I want to mention ‘Happy Belated Birthday’! It was back in December, wasn’t it? December 7th?”

            Apollo gave a shrug. “I don’t know when my birthday is…” he replied sheepishly.

            Gumshoe looked taken aback. “Oh, uh… your birth certificate said your birthday was December 7th… so… you’re ten-years-old now….”

            Aria looked shock at the news. She didn’t know the information, or she would have got him a gift and a cake.

            “We didn’t celebrate it in Khura’in…” Apollo insisted. “It’s fine.” He then gave a depressed sigh. “But I know why you’re here, Detective… there is another home, isn’t there?”

            The detective scratched the back of his head. “Yeah… the Thompson family,” he explained. “They already have a couple of their own kids, but they wanted to foster one.”

            “Why not get Tyler or Sam…?” the brunette boy blurted out. “I ruined their lives, so they should get a home before me!”

            Gumshoe made a pained expression. “They’ve already been processed a couple of weeks ago… they’re in new homes already,” he explained softly.

            Wonder why it took me longer to find a new home…?

            “If you’re wondering why it took us longer for you,” Gumshoe continued, as if reading the boy’s mind. “I put in a special request to help ya out, wanted extreme background checks and everything. The process just took a little longer…” He then scratched the back of his head nervously. “Even the Mr. Edgeworth tried to speed things up, but…”

            “A Prosecutor was trying to speed it up?” Aria questioned; her eyebrow raised.

            Gumshoe gave a shrug, “The man has personal matters when it comes to kids going into the system… but I’m not prying.”

            Aria then gently told Apollo, “Alright, dearie, let’s get your stuff packed up…” there was a hint of sadness in her voice.

            So, once again Apollo went into the small room where he was staying, the two cats greeting him on the bed with softs mews. As before, he began to pack his suitcase with the clothes and books he had brought along; this time a second suitcase was issued to him as he happened to have a few more things this time. When he was finished packing, he sighed and slowly rolled his one suitcase to the living room before going back to retrieve the second.

            “Hey, an upgrade!” Gumshoe joked as he saw the second suitcase.

            Apollo couldn’t help but grin at that. He had to admit, this was a lot more stuff than he was used to in Khura’in. In Khura’in he and Nahyuta shared most of their things together, and whatever reading material was in the home was Dhurke’s.

            “Sí, ahora tengo más cosas,” Apollo replied in Spanish.

            Gumshoe laughed again, “Hey, that’s not that other language you speak! You can speak Spanish too?”

            Aria nodded. “He was taking classes at the last school and continued studying while here,” she explained.

            “I may have future clients that speak Spanish,” Apollo explained brightly. “Spanish is considered the most used language in the country next to English.”

            Gumshoe gave that some thought. “I guess that makes sense…” he replied slowly. “Mr. Edgeworth knows a bit of German… and a few other phrases in different languages for when he goes to Europe.” He then took both of Apollo’s suitcases in his hands. “I’ll get these in the patrol car, alright, pal?”

            Apollo nodded as he turned to face Aria. Aria looked sad once again that the boy was leaving. She then wrote something on a piece of paper and handed it to him.

            “Just like with the detective, if you need anything, please call me, dearie…” she pleaded with him. “I don’t want you in that kind of situation ever again…”

            The boy felt a wave of gratitude rush over him. He threw his arms around her and hugged her closely to him. “Thank you,” he whispered to her.

            Aria then grabbed Apollo’s hand so she can guide him outside to the patrol car. She then handed him a small pack of something she had picked up from the pharmacy earlier that morning. As she helped him in the car she received a bottle of water from the detective and handed it to Apollo.

            “These are motion sickness pills, dearie,” Aria explained to him. “This should help with the queasiness from the car rides you have to go on.”

            “I still got bags in there too for ya, pal,” Gumshoe chimed in.

            Apollo took the medication, his face twisting when the bitterness and saltiness of the medication touched his tongue. He downed the water in a matter of seconds, desperately trying to get the tase out of his mouth. Once he was done, Aria took the empty bottle from the boy.

            “Remember, please call me with any issues,” Aria reminded Apollo. Her gaze then went to the scruffy detective and her eyes hardened. “You too, Detective Gumshoe.”

            “YES, MA’AM!” Gumshoe shouted as he straightened up and shot his right hand to his head in a salute.

            Once again, Apollo was buckled into the car. Gumshoe started the vehicle and pulled away from the house slowly, him giving a small wave to Aria. Apollo rolled down the window and stuck his head out and shouted his goodbyes, this time he did have a smile on his face, albeit small; at least he had her phone number now to be able speak with her when he felt overwhelmed.

            The car ride felt a little better this time – his stomach felt less queasy from the motions, although his face was still flushed. He kept one of the plastic bags that Gumshoe had in his hands just in case though; he did notice that there was a stain on the floor from the first time he was in the car and had vomited.

            “Yeah… the Chief wasn’t happy about that!” Gumshoe laughed when he looked in his rearview mirror, noticing Apollo looking at the floor. “My salary got docked a little for the cleaning, but, hey, what’re gonna do, pal?”

            At least he’s very lighthearted about it…

            The car ride didn’t seem to be as long as going to the Rodriguez’s home. In fact, according to the detective it was only a few neighborhoods over from Aria’s place. That also made Apollo happy… maybe he’ll see Aria around town too.

            Gumshoe pulled over the patrol car to a quaint suburb, all the homes almost cookie-cutter the same. The only difference of the homes were the cars that were parked in the driveways and that the gardens contained. All the homes were either a white or off-white in color, with the roofs the same tiled red.

            It felt… uneasy.

            “How was the ride this time, kid?” Gumshoe asked genuinely.

            “A bit better…” Apollo honestly replied. “That medicine seemed to help a lot.”

            Gumshoe, like before, assisted the boy out of the car and got his suitcases out of the trunk. He gave the lighter one to Apollo and he rolled the heavier one himself as the two walked up to the door. As before, the detective rang the doorbell.

            A petite woman answered the door, her blue eyes almost sparkling like the sun reflecting on the ocean. Her auburn hair was tied up in a messy bun, loose hairs framing her freckled face. As it was winter, she wore a light blue cardigan along with jeans and house slippers; she honestly looked very cozy.

            “Ah, hello, are you Detective Gymshoe?” the woman asked nicely, her giving a warm smile.

            “Uh… Gumshoe,” the man replied lightly. Apollo could tell that this happened a lot.

            The woman then glanced down and saw the boy. “Ah, you’re Apollo, right?” she asked gently.  He nodded. “Well, welcome. My name is Olivia Thompson.”

            “Hap’piraki,” Apollo greeted softly. He had given a small wave.

            “Well come inside, sweetie,” Olivia then said. “You must be freezing!” She opened the door a little wider and let the boy inside, her taking his suitcase from him. “You can bring his other one in, right, Detective?”

            Gumshoe nodded. “Of course, ma’am.”

            The inside of the home was much smaller than the Rodriguez’s large manor-like house. Shoes piled up near the door of various types, sizes, and colors. Pictures hung haphazardly on the walls, each with a different child with similar features with large smiles. The air felt warm, and the smell of something baking filled Apollo’s nostrils.

            Thumping and screeching filled the home as well. It was very lively – something that Apollo really appreciated. Everything here felt alive.

            “Lukas and Lila, please stop your horseplay and come meet Apollo!” Olivia bellowed, her motherly voice cutting through the noise.

            Two blonde children came running down the hallway, both trying to push each other to get to the goal first. Both looked to be the same age, about eleven-years-old, so only a year older than Apollo himself. The girl, Lila, had her blonde hair in twin braids, while the boy, Lukas, had his hair almost a curtained style. Both had twinkling blue eyes, very similar to their mother, and both were wearing overall denims with Lila wearing a purple plaid shirt underneath and Lukas wearing an orange plaid shirt underneath.

            They must be twins…

            “Hello,” they both greeted in unison.

            Oh, I am not going to like this.

            “We are the twins,” they continued in their unison, their tones almost identical to each other. “Lila and Lukas Thompson.”

            “Um…” Apollo whispered uneasily, his brown eyes darting toward Gumshoe. The detective looked just as uneasy. “I’m Apollo… Apollo Justice…”

            Olivia gave a giggle, “Oh, don’t worry about the twins, they’re harmless.”

            Another boy came from down the stairs that was in front of the door. He was older than the twins and Apollo, not by much only a couple of years – so he had to be around fourteen-fifteen.

            “Mom, what is with the yelling?” the boy called. He had auburn hair like his mother, and freckles kissed almost every part of his face. His eyes were a deep gray, almost like stone. He then finally noticed Apollo. “This is the kid I’m sharing my room with?”

            “You’re the one with the bunk bed, Brayden,” Olivia pointed out. “And you know the twins don’t want to be split up.” She then turned to Detective Gumshoe. “Thank you for getting Apollo here safely, we can take it from here.”

            Gumshoe scratched the back of his neck. “Uh, okay,” he lightly said. He glanced at Apollo. “You still got my info, pal?” A nod from the brunette boy. “Alright, call me if ya need anything, pal.” He then set Apollo’s heavier suitcase down and with a wave left the home.

            Oh… please don’t leave me here…

            Apollo thought he would be better off living with Gumshoe where the scatterbrained detective was at than here. Even though the home was very homey feeling, something still felt off.

            “Brayden, how about you show Apollo to the room?” Olivia suggested, breaking Apollo’s frantic thoughts and conspiracies.

            With an irritated sigh, Brayden gestured for Apollo to follow him. Apollo grabbed the lighter of the two suitcases and followed the older boy up the stairs. The hallway upstairs was cramped, showing more pictures of the family doing various activities. Toys and other objects littered the hall, Apollo practically stumbling over them.

            He found it refreshing compared to the blank and openness of the Rodriguez house.

            Brayden then led them to a door that was covered in “KEEP OUT” stickers plastered all over the brown wood. The stickers were in bright red and yellow, a few with skulls and crossbones, others with biohazard symbols or with radiation symbols.

            “Are we allowed in this room?” Apollo asked as Brayden went to the turn the handle.

            Brayden looked at Apollo as if the boy grew an extra head. “Uh… yeah?” he sputtered. “This is my room.” He then opened the door to reveal a bedroom. The floor was a brown carpet, littered with wrappers and dishes, a TV on a stand was blaring a skateboarding game that Apollo was familiar with from his time at the old house, an oak desk that was piled up with books and papers that was about to fall over, and of course the wood-framed bunk bed.

            “If this is the bedroom…” Apollo began as he followed Brayden inside. “What’s with the stickers?”

            “So those brats and my mom don’t come in.”

            Brayden entered the room, Apollo following close behind. The door slammed shut, the doorframe rattling. The bottom bunk was already filled with pillows and haphazardly flung sheets, all various in colors and styles; it looked as though it was already occupied.

            “You’ll get the top bunk – so, try not to make so much noise,” Brayden declared. He then gave a sneer. “Also try not to fall, one of my friends during a sleep over broke his arm when getting down to use the bathroom.”

            Apollo’s left wrist felt uncomfortably tight. Brayden’s own left hand touched his right arm subconsciously.

            “I don’t think that happened…” Apollo said slowly. His brown eyes really focused on Brayden’s movements. The auburn-haired boy did touch his own arm when he mentioned the broken arm… “I think you’re trying to scare me, because you broke your own arm before.” Apollo then glanced at the bottom bunk. “That’s why you sleep on the bottom, so you don’t risk falling and getting hurt again,” he then formulated.

            Brayden’s gray eyes widened. “Wh… What do you know!?” he whined. “Get your other stupid suitcase and unpack your stupid stuff!”

            Apollo muttered in Khura’inese as he opened the bedroom door. He had a feeling there was going to be a lot of arguing.

            And a lot of lying.

            Now, Apollo always had this subtle feeling when people were lying. Everyone had a tell. Nahyuta always scrunched his face at certain times when lying, or Dhurke would fiddle with his shirt. Detective Gumshoe always scratched behind his head or darted his eyes. Aria always touched her stomach when talking about how she never had time to have her own children or her other tell for lying was tapping on her hip.

            But when people are telling stories, or recalling certain memories, they often expose their own exaggerations, or lies, by subconsciously doing an action. Many people when telling stories of how they won fights would always touch a body part where they were severely hurt where they say they hurt the other person, and many movements are embellished. Apollo was always able to tell which movements were embellished, and that’s when people were lying. Sometimes it was hard to pinpoint, but slowly as he got older it was starting to become a little clearer.

            Especially when it came to card tricks.

            He found that particular trait odd, how he was able to spot card tricks from a mile away. When he was small, he and Nahyuta would go to a shadier market with Dhurke, and one of the stall owners would try to use card tricks to distract people to pickpocket; however, Apollo was always to see the card trick ahead of time and tell Dhurke what was happening to stop the hustle.

And that was what was driving Brayden completely nuts as the two sat on the floor of the bedroom after Apollo brought up his second suitcase. The older boy seemed to try multiple card tricks. One was the old “Is this your card?” trick, and another was a “disappearing” card trick. Brayden would be shuffling the cards in every which way to “prove” that he was really shuffling.

            Except, Apollo knew that Brayden wasn’t really shuffling the cards. Apollo could clearly see him slightly using his thumb and pinky fingers to keep tabs on cards that Apollo “picked”. Or, he could see that Brayden kept his thumb tightly gripped on a card to “transform” one type of card to another, or make one disappear, which was just another card already hidden in his palm. These were all simple “sleight of hand” tricks, anyone who was paying attention could tell what he was doing…

            When Brayden was first showing Apollo the deck of cards, he had asked the brunette if he knew any “magic tricks”. Apollo didn’t know the meaning of the term, so he followed along. But as Brayden continued the “tricks”, Apollo realized these were the “scams” that he recognized from Khura’in.

            “You have my three of diamonds on the top and ace of clubs on the bottom,” Apollo deadpanned, almost stifling a yawn after the tenth time of going through the motions of yet another card trick.

            That’s when Brayden threw the cards in his face. “Are you kidding me!?” he shouted. “How can you see that!?”

            “It’s very obvious…”

            “That’s not how Troupe Gramarye showed it…” Brayden almost pouted.

            Apollo raised an eyebrow. “Troupe what now…?” he questioned.

            “Did you live under a rock or something?”

            “I lived in another country for nine years.”

            Brayden just blinked at that. “Troupe Gramarye are famous magicians.”

            Apollo then just… laughed. “Magicians…?” He then stood up, letting whatever loose cards that were on him fall. “That is ridiculous.”

            Brayden then stood up himself. “Are you saying magic and being a magician is a hoax?” he then demanded.

            The brunette nodded. “Yeah, I am. Magicians just seem to be con artists. I’ve dealt with a lot of them in Khura’in.” he stated. “Now, spirt-channeling… that is the real deal-”

            “Oh, you draw the line with card tricks, but ghosts are real!?”

            “Not ghosts, spirit channeling, it’s different!”

            Olivia then shouted from downstairs, “BOYS! Stop arguing and come down for dinner!”

            As Apollo went to go to the door, Brayden had shoved him away, him blowing a raspberry. With a groan, Apollo followed Brayden out of the room and down the stairs to a brightly lit dining room. The table was small and cramped, filled to the brim with lean meats and vegetables, and surrounding the table were mismatched chairs.

            Olivia sat near the end, an older blonde man at the head of the table. The twins sat next to Oliva, leaving Brayden sitting across and the only open seat was next to him. Apollo felt his hair droop – he rather not sit next to Brayden.

            “Ah, you must be Apollo,” the older man greeted. “Welcome to the Thompson family, my boy. I’m Terrance Thompson, but everyone calls me Terry.” He then gestured to the empty seat. “Have a seat, my boy. The detective mentioned that you have a specific diet, so we got chicken and vegetables for your first night with us.”

            Apollo gave a small bow, something that was common in Khura’in and thanked him in Khura’inese. “Thank you very much,” he then said in English.

            “They also mentioned your bilingual too,” Olivia commented, her already getting food for Lila and Lukas. “That explains your adorable accent!”

            Again, Apollo felt his hair droop and his felt his face fall into almost a grimace.

            Why does everyone think my “accent” is adorable? If anything, everyone else sounds weird and has an accent!

            “He sounds weird to me,” Brayden sneered, him putting a few pieces of chicken on his plate. He received a glare from his father. “I don’t know what he’s saying half the time.”

 ��          Tightness. A subtle pinching of the tablecloth in front of him.

            Liar.

            “I’m also learning Spanish,” Apollo then offered, him finally taking a seat next to Brayden. As he went to take a piece of chicken from the center, Brayden went and snatched it.

            “Brayden Terrance!” Olivia snapped. “You have enough on your plate, you need to let Apollo have some!”

            “I can deal with vegetables,” Apollo stated, him not actually minding. Sometimes too much meat, even lean, made his stomach uneasy.

            Terry grumbled, “Nonsense! You can have some!” He glared at his son with his own gray eyes. “You start shaping up, or do you want me to give back those Troupe Gramarye tickets to my co-worker that graciously gave them to us?”

            Brayden’s eyes lit up. “Wait… you got the tickets?!”

            Apollo raised an eyebrow.

            “Brayden has been wanting to go to their show for some time,” the twins spoke up in their unison tone. Even when they were eating, their movements of picking up their forks and shoveling food into their mouths were identical.

            This is starting to be more terrifying than the Kurain Channeling Technique…

            “Have you ever been to a magic show, Apollo?” Olivia asked politely as she put some chicken on his plate for him.

            “We didn’t have those in Khura’in,” Apollo replied.

            Just channeling and Divination Séances from the Khura’in Royal Family … I guess that’s the closest thing we had…

            “I think you may enjoy this,” Terry commented. “I did manage to even get an extra ticket since we knew we would be expecting you.”

            An exasperated sigh came out of Brayden.

            Apollo had to bite the urge to sigh along with Brayden.

            “It’ll be fun, Apollo,” the twins said again in unison.

            I have a feeling it won’t be…

**

The show was two weeks later, in the meantime, Apollo was registered in a new elementary school, the same one as the twins as they were in fifth grade.

            This school wasn’t as prestigious as the last one he had attended, which was okay for the most part. Apollo was still able to take Spanish as an extracurricular activity, but he could tell he was already more advanced than the other students, often finding himself quite bored. In fact, he found himself quite bored with many of his subjects… often finding himself getting scolded by the teachers for not paying enough attention.

            So, he forced himself to read the horribly written textbooks, but once he was done, he brought his own books from home. He read his law books that he had received from Lucy and from Aria, he finished his Spanish texts he had from his last school that was purchased for him, and he even read a homicide detective book that Gumshoe had brought by one day for the heck of it.

            All in all, Apollo was bored. Even the library of the school had no other books that piqued his interest.

            It was finally the day of the Troupe Gramarye show. Apollo was dressed in his traditional color scheme, a red hoodie with a black undershirt, jeans, and white sneakers. He made sure to cover his golden bracelet with the sleeve of his hoodie; it always made him uncomfortable when Brayden and even other kids made fun of him for it – even a kid tried to steal it from him.

            The rest of the family dressed in warm clothes as well. The twins dressed in identical black hoodies and jeans with purple knitted hats. Olivia and Terry wore tan peacoats and black dress pants with burgundy sweaters – it almost looked as though they were going to a business meeting rather to a magic show. And then there was Brayden…

            Brayden was wearing what looked almost like a costume from a pop-up Halloween store – a cheap magician’s outfit. He was wearing all black with what was almost a plastic top hat and an equally plastic cape.

            Apollo made a mental note to make sure not to sit next to him – he rather sit next to the twins at this point.

            “Brayden,” Olivia sighed, almost with irritation. “I thought I told you not to wear that…”

            “I’m hoping they’ll notice me, and I can learn better magic tricks!” insisted Brayden.

            Never thought I’d see a fifteen-year-old act like they’re ten… and I’m ten.

            As they were about to pile into a silver minivan, Apollo was given the motion sickness medication by Olivia. She said to him that it was mentioned to her by Detective Gumshoe that he got carsick easily, so she had stocked up on medication for him and had grocery bags in the car for him. Apollo felt grateful for that, so he gladly took the medication.

            Even with the medication, Apollo still felt queasy in the van. This time however, he did not vomit, which made him happy; he doesn’t know how he would feel if Brayden berated him for feeling carsick.

            Soon the family made it to a large tent that was already having a large string of people lining up. Lights danced against the dark red tent, the chatter of people were buzzing around, and what caught Apollo’s attention was the large billboard that had the entire troupe on it.

            The largest image was the patriarch of Troupe Gramarye was Magnifi Gramarye in all his glory – him dressed in his traditional black, his Spade brooch proudly on his chest. In front of him, albeit smaller, were the other three performers. To the left was a man dressed in a yellow magician’s outfit with a Heart brooch front and center, his long black hair neat and tidy under his yellow top hat, and in his left hand was a long scepter. To the right was a man with tan skin in a more salmon-colored magicians outfit with a Club brooch, his mustache and sideburns neatly trimmed. In the center was a woman with light brown hair in twin braided pigtails, her deep sapphire blue eyes almost sad looking with her soft smile, and her powder blue magician’s outfit complimented her olive-colored skin very well, and holding her cape in place was a Diamond brooch, and her final touch was a red scarf around her neck. All three had the card motif pattern on their capes and all three wore white gloves.

            “Wow, that woman is so pretty,” Olivia commented when they passed the billboard.

            “That’s Thalassa Gramarye,” Brayden told his mother. “She’s the daughter of Magnifi Gramarye.”

            “She looks sad…” Apollo couldn’t help say, it was almost like the more he stared the more he could feel the pain in her eyes.

            The family entered the tent, the crowd of people’s voices filling the tent almost to the point where Apollo wanted to cover his ears. Terry took the twins to a merch tablet and bought them a couple of t-shirts, while Olivia took Brayden and Apollo to a different table and got them a couple of things as well; Brayden got a new deck of cards and Apollo got a stamp book with various stamps of the magicians.

            Apollo couldn’t help but continue to linger on Thalassa – for some reason, she just felt very familiar. Has he ever seen one their shows on television in passing and caught a glimpse? That couldn’t be it, he’s never even heard of Troupe Gramarye until the Thompson household. However, there was just something that was familiar about her…

            “Alright, let’s find some seats,” Terry announced once he was back with the twins. The twins were now wearing their new bright pink and yellow t-shirts over their black hoodies.

            Surprisingly, the family of six managed to find some seats at a decent height to be able to see the show properly. Once seated, the show began. An announcer bellowed into a PA system, greeting everyone, the cheers were nearly deafening.

            The show began with a tuft of smoke, and front and center was Magnifi Gramarye. He gave a bow and with a wave of his hand the other three magicians appeared in a flash of feathers as doves erupted and flew away. The crowd went wild.

            Valant, the yellow magician, began doing illusion tricks for the crowd. First, he had Thalassa seemingly floating in midair. Zak was then seemingly in the crowd with the patrons, Thalassa soon joining him with her small, yet sad smile.

            The crowd was eating it up.

            Zak’s part of the show was having Thalassa go into a box as he then set it on fire. Gasps erupted from the crowd. As the box was engulfed in the dancing flames, Zak then also proceeded to thrust swords into it as well. With three snaps of his right hand the box ceased to be engulfed in flames, and he opened the box to reveal it was empty.

            “Hello, everyone!” a cheerful voice called out. Everyone turned to the spotlight that shined into the crowd that happened to be next to VIP seating, revealing to be Thalassa. She took off her top hat and gave a small bow and gave a wink as she put her hat back on.

            Cheers and applause filled the tent, even Apollo clapped.

            Thalassa’s trick was different than the other two’s – she required a volunteer. Many people cried out and raised their hands, begging to be part of the show. Brayden was practically jumping out of his seat. Apollo was lowering himself deep into his seat, wanting to avoid being potentially picked. In the end, a little girl was next to her.

            The little girl couldn’t be no older than two or three years of age, and her outfit was nearly identical to Zak Gramarye’s magicians costume. The only difference in the costume was that her brooch was a Diamond like Thalassa’s. Thalassa then picked up the girl effortlessly, as if she had done it a million times.

            “I would like to introduce you all to Trucy Gramarye, my and Zak’s daughter,” Thalassa announced proudly, a true smile on her face for the first time that night. “Tonight, she will be my special volunteer for my trick!”

            “Yay!” the little girl, Trucy, cheered, her smile large and her deep blue eyes sparkling under the lights.

            The entire crowd awed.

            “She’s so cute!” Olivia exclaimed, her hands to her face. “Look at her in the little outfit!”

            Thalassa then continued, “Tonight will be considered her debut as officially a magician for Troupe Gramarye!” She paused so everyone can cheer and clap. The mother then whispered something in her daughter’s ear and sat her down.

            Trucy then ran up to the center of the stage that was set up and started lifting three large cards to stand them up, Thalassa soon joins her. Thalassa tells the audience to watch Trucy in the center as Thalassa put the giant card in front of her. The mother magician then placed one large card to the right and then to the left. Once she removed the card from the center, Trucy was gone. Then when she removed the other two cards, showing that all three cards were now on the ground, the little girl was still gone.

            “Oh dear!” Thalassa feigned worry. “Now, where did my little Trucy go?” She had both her gloved hands to her face in shocked expression. A glint bounced off her right wrist from the stage lights when her glove rolled up a bit, showing she was wearing a bracelet underneath, but it was heard to see what type it was from a distance. “Has anyone seen little Trucy Gramarye?”

            The audience began to whisper among themselves. Some were saying it was part of the show. Others were asking if the woman legitimately lost a toddler during a magic act.

            Thalassa then raised the cards again, standing all three in a row just as she had done before. After a moment the center card was pushed forward, revealing Trucy.

            “Ta-da!” the little girl cheered excitedly.

            The audience clapped and cheered. Many talked on about how adorable Trucy was and how beautiful Thalassa was. A couple stated that Trucy was most likely going to grow up to be a looker just like her mother and be as talented as her grandfather in magic.

            “And now, the finale!” Magnifi announced, him being front in center as a puff of purple smoke appeared. “Prepare yourselves!”

            Zak and Valant appeared in center stage, both with one of their hands to their sides. Thalassa was coming to the center of the stage as well, handing off Trucy to Magnifi. As Magnifi and Trucy began to walk off stage, Zak and Valant took places on opposite sides while Thalassa stayed in the middle.

            “Get ready everyone!” Magnifi’s voice boomed over audience, almost like magic without a PA system. “Get ready for ‘Zak and Valant’s Quick-Draw Shoot’em’!”

            The crowd roared. Brayden was practically jumping out of his seat with excitement. Apollo felt uneasy.

            “I can’t believe they’re gonna do it!” Brayden cheered. “They rarely do it at their smaller shows!”

            This is a small show!?

            And that’s when Apollo heard it.

            Gunshots.

            The popping, the banging. Those were the only sounds he heard along with his heart pounding in his ears. His blood ran cold, a cold sweat beaded on his forehead. The image of the gun in front of his face kept flashing in his mind… the bullet hole in the man’s forehead and the look of life draining from his eyes before he fell forward.

            “Apollo…?” he heard from what seemed like a distance, but he couldn’t pay attention now.

            He needed to leave.

            What seemed to be like a mind of their own, his legs just made him stand from his seat and began to move away from the crowd. He barely saw the faces of people laughing, cheering, being happy.

            I’m fine… I’m fine… Breathe in… Breathe out… I’m fine…

            He felt the corners of his vision blur, and with each heartbeat it was almost pulsating along. His blood roared in his ears, but he still heard each bang of a gunshot as though it were right next to him… as if a bullet was whizzing past his ear like he was running through the house that night.

            I’m Apollo Justice and I’m fine… I’m fine…

            Finally, what seemed like an eternity, he was out of the stands. He managed to hunch over a trash can and vomit, feeling his knees wobble in weakness. Apollo wanted to go home… but not at the Thompson’s… not even at Aria’s at this point… he wanted to go back to Khura’in.

            “Are you alright, boy?” an older gruff voice asked.

            Apollo barely looked up, but he saw it was the leader of the troupe himself: Magnifi Gramarye.

            “I’m… not feeling well…” Apollo rasped. He wiped his mouth with the sleeve of his hoodie, almost hitting his teeth with his bracelet that was hidden underneath.

            The older man looked at him intensely, as if he were studying an insect. “I can tell you’re not lying about that…” the man admitted. “Was there something that… bothered you?”

            “No,” Apollo lied, his right hand instantly going to his bracelet that was still hidden. When he lied this was his own tell he noticed, he always went for the bracelet, but he always touched it for comfort as well.

            “Now, that is a lie,” Magnifi declared, a sly smile on his face. He then crossed his arms across his chest.

            “I just don’t like guns…” Apollo then admitted, him then looking to the ground, feeling a wave of embarrassment wash over him. But why should he feel ashamed? The older man gave a soft nod, almost like he understood.

 Magnifi then looked at Apollo very closely, as if the boy reminded him of someone. “You look a little familiar… have you ever been to one of our shows before?”

            “No sir,” Apollo honestly answered. “I have not.”

            Magnifi nodded with approval. “Not a lie…” he whispered. “What’s your name, boy?”

            “Um…”

            “Apollo!” he then heard Olivia call out. “Where are you!?”

            Apollo darted his brown eyes away from Magnifi’s stoney gray. “I have to go… my foster mom is calling me…” he rushed his words as he spun to turn away. He felt his hoodie sleeve, his left, get tugged, but he managed to pull it away, but it rolled up a bit, showing his bracelet.

            “Wa… wait a minute… where did-!?” Apollo heard Magnifi start to shout, a combination of shock and anger, but he never heard the rest of the sentence as he ran as fast as he could to the exit to meet the rest of the Thompson family.

**

Four months passed since the show with Troupe Gramarye, and Apollo couldn’t shake the feeling that possibly Magnifi knew something about him.

            But it was no matter, the Troupe had packed up and left for another part of California the following day after the incident. Apollo of course got a lecture about running off by Terry, but once Olivia pointed out that he mostly ran off because of the guns the subject got dropped.

            Brayden, however, made it a cruel game whenever he could during the next four months.   

            The teenager had bought a toy gun that made popping sounds and an airsoft gun. He hid them in the room, with the orange tip of the airsoft painted, so when Apollo discovered it one day in the sock drawer, he legitimately had a panic attack and almost fainted. Brayden would shoot the toy gun at random intervals in the night on random nights by Apollo’s ear just to watch the boy bolt up and nearly fall off the top bunk, screaming in Khura’inese nearly in tears.

            During these four months Apollo would call Aria and talk to her, and she suggested about going to therapy. He preferred not to, as it would be yet another person he had to deal with. Occasionally he called Gumshoe, asked him more about gun safety and possible firearm defense protocols.

            “Maybe when you’re a couple of years older, pal,” Gumshoe had told him. “I’ll show ya how to properly handle things if ya want. Safety is important after all, but right now with the laws you’re still too young.”

            It all came to a head when Apollo was looking at pictures in the hallway. He did notice the twins were in pictures of course, but there were many pictures of Brayden with another boy that was his age at the time in pictures as well. At one point, the pictures just stopped being the two of them and it was just Brayden being alone, but his expression was a bit… sadder.

            Olivia was walking by in the hall, a laundry basket on her hip. She said a greeting to Apollo as she walked by, but he then stopped her.

            “Hey, Olivia,” he said. “Who is the other boy in these pictures with Brayden?”

            Olivia looked over and smiled sadly at the pictures. “Oh… that’s Cayden,” she replied. “Brayden’s twin brother…”

            Apollo felt his face twist with shock. “He… he had a twin too?” he gasped. He looked more closely at the pictures. They weren’t identical twins, but they looked similar enough at a closer glance, but they weren’t eerily similar like Lila and Lukas.

            “Yeah…” Olivia sighed sadly. “He drowned about six years ago…”

            “D-drowned…?” the boy echoed.

            “Yeah… he and Brayden loved magic tricks,” she explained. “They saw a trick on TV of a magician being tied up and trying to escape a water tank… they tried to do it in our old pool we used to have in the backyard… Brayden noticed too late that Cayden couldn’t escape… and he couldn’t untie the knot he made.

            “By the time Terry got to the Cayden… it was too late.” Olivia concluded sadly.

            That explains why he has a bunk bed actually…

            After the explanation, Apollo finally went back to the room that he and Brayden shared. The room was always a mess, but Apollo kept his area – the top bunk – as neat as possible, with his shelves organized with the books he had accumulated. As he walked in the door, a loud pop! sounded by his right ear.

            He felt his heart race, almost like it was about to burst out of his chest. Without even thinking, he balled up his left hand into a fist and threw. His fist collided with Brayden’s face with a sickening crack and there was a loud scream. A sticky wet substance covered Apollo’s hand, and when he looked his hand was red… covered in blood.

            “WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU!?” Brayden screamed, his face in his hands, blood spewing between his fingers.

            “I… I didn’t… I didn’t mean-” Apollo stammered, his voice shaking, but his volume was still loud.

            Olivia came rushing in, her laundry basket forgotten. She screamed when she saw Brayden covering his face and all the blood, and she the blood on Apollo’s hand. She obviously made the connection.

            “What did you do!?” she demanded as she went to her son and tried to see the damage.

            “I… I…” Apollo couldn’t form words.

            “He just punched me for no reason, Mom!” Brayden cried, tears brimming his eyes.

            The tightness on Apollo’s left wrist said otherwise, Brayden was fidgeting with his loose strand of hair as he said that – another one of his tells Apollo had noticed over the time he had spent here. Apollo had mentioned over the course of the last four months what Brayden was doing with the popping toy and the airsoft gun to both Olivia and Terry, but they both brushed it under the rug.

            “Boys will be boys,” Terry had said.

            And now it had escalated to this.

            When Olivia had finally managed to remove Brayden’s hands from his face, his nose was clearly broken. Cartilage and bone busted through his skin, and his eyes were already starting to swell and blacken. Blood was everywhere, still streaming from where the bone and cartilage broke through and streaming out his nostrils.

            The ambulance and police were called immediately – and when the police were called it was mentioned that Apollo, the foster child, was the cause of the violence. The cop that arrived on the scene was none other than Detective Dick Gumshoe, who looked extremely confused that a call like this even happened.

            Brayden was loaded into the ambulance along with his mother and they were taken to the nearest hospital. Terry and the twins went and followed them via the minivan. Both the parents made it very clear to Gumshoe though – they did not want Apollo to be there when they returned, and they would try to find a way to press charges on the minor.

            Gumshoe had Apollo sitting in his patrol car, his suitcases already in the trunk packed away. The lights from the other cars were blaring red and blue against the home as the police investigated inside.

            “So, pal,” Gumshoe started softly. “What happened? I don’t think you would just attack another kid out of the blue.”

            Apollo explained everything. From the Troupe Gramarye show with how the gun trick freaked him out, how Brayden found out that was a weakness. Brayden had then purchased items to make it look like and sound like real weapons to torment him for the last four months.

            “I walked in the room…” Apollo was finishing the story. “I heard the pop in my ear… It was like that night… when I was running… I… I reacted… I just wildly punched…!” Tears were streaming down his face. He didn’t want to go to jail… did they put kids in jail in America?

            Is it like Khura’in…? Am I going to be executed!?

            “Am I going to jail or am I going to die, Detective Gumshoe?” Apollo cried, his voice high pitched in hysterics.

            Gumshoe looked panicked. “Whoa! Look, pal, no one is dying here, okay?” he stated. “I’m making sure things are being investigated, you’re not gonna get in trouble…”

            “I want to be a lawyer…” Apollo whispered. “Is this going to ruin it…?”

            Gumshoe then turned his attention to another officer that called out to him. “What is it?” he asked.

            “Detective,” the officer said. “There is evidence in the boys’ room of an airsoft gun with a painted tip and a popper toy.” He showed the detective the items in question in plastic bags. “We already dusted them for fingerprints, and since we already have this kid’s on file here -” he gestured to Apollo. “– we can already see his are not on these. The popper has recent residue, most likely fired within the last half hour – forty-five minutes.”

            The detective gave it some thought. “That timeline is accurate to when we got the call and when the Thompson’s left for the hospital…” He took the bags from the officer. “Looks like solid evidence to me. I’ll make sure Prosecutor Edgeworth is in the loop of this.”

            “Yes, sir,” the officer saluted.

            Gumshoe put the bags in his car and then gave Apollo the anti-motion sickness medication. “Don’t you worry, kid,” he told him. “Mr. Edgeworth will make sure this doesn’t even get filed with the court.”

            Apollo took the medication, him now knowing this means he is now going for a ride. “So… where am I going…?” he asked meekly.

            Gumshoe gave a sad smile. “I know I’m gonna get my ear chewed off… but I made a call,” he whispered.

            Once again, Apollo was buckled in the patrol car and the scruffy detective put it in gear. Apollo was still thankful that this car ride was not long… because he knew exactly where he was going.

            As soon as the patrol car pulled up the familiar home, Aria was already at Detective Gumshoe’s driver window knocking on it. With a terrified squeal, he rolled the window.

            “I thought this was going to be good home for him, Detective!?” she scolded him accusingly.

            “Ma’am, I don’t pick the places!” Gumshoe pleaded.

            “I heard that the woman is going to try to push charges on a ten-year-old!?” Aria screeched.

            “Mr. Edgeworth is not going to let that happen…” Gumshoe promised.

            “He’s a fresh Prosecutor… only a year under him,” Aria reminded the detective. “He already has that much influence?”

            “He’s a master tactician when it comes to prosecution,” Gumshoe pointed out. “He is considered a prodigy. He’ll make sure nothing is going to happen to the kid.”

            Aria then left Gumshoe’s driver window and when over to Apollo’s side and got him out of the car. She led him inside the house as the detective got his suitcases out of the trunk. When she noticed that his hand was still stained red from a hasty wipe from a rag, she led him to the bathroom to get ready for a bath. As she left Apollo to be alone to do his business, he could hear Aria and Gumshoe talking again through the cracked bathroom door.

            “What other options does he have now, Detective?” Aria asked solemnly. It seemed like her voice was shaky, as if she was holding back tears.

            “I’ll have to look into that in the morning, Ms. Commons,” Gumshoe replied seriously. “Hopefully no homicides happen over night so I can help with this.”

            With a sigh, Aria replied, “I do appreciate all your help…”

            “Hey, that kid had been through a lot…” There was a pause. “I feel bad for him too… even Mr. Edgeworth does too… but, he stated he couldn’t look after him right now because of all the cases he’s gonna be getting… and his age is a factor too.”

            A surprised gasp escaped from Aria. “Prosecutor Edgeworth was considering taking him in…?”

            “Yeah… but it’s not feasible right now.”

            “… I guess that makes sense.”

            “Don’t worry, ma’am, we’ll make sure Apollo is taken care of.”

            A pause from Aria. “… What’s shocking to me is… I know that you’re right and you have the best intention at heart… but I can’t… I can’t keep doing this either…”

            “I heard you’re unregistering yourself from the network…”

            “My cancer came back… and this time it’s more aggressive.”

            “Oh… I’m sorry…”

            Apollo didn’t want to hear anymore of the conversation, so he shut the door completely. He took his bath, but it seemed like no matter how many times he scrubbed his hand it was like he still saw the blood. After he was done, he dressed in fresh clothes and exited the bathroom, seeing that the detective had left for the evening and that Aria prepared him vegetable rice.

            “Are you sick, Aria?” Apollo asked softly.

            A shocked expression crossed her face. “How… how did you hear that…?”

            “I had the door open…”

            “Apollo Justice, you should not be eavesdropping on adult conversations,” Aria scolded.

            “I know… but if you’re sick and me being around is making it worse-”

            “It’s not making it worse, dearie!” Aria cried out, her taking him by the shoulders and forcing him to look her in the eyes. “You are never a burden! Never think you are!”

            “I mean… my mom left me in Khura’in, my foster dad that took me in sent me back here… and pretty much every family I’ve come in contact with was a disaster…” Apollo told her bitterly. He then gave her such a sad a pitiful look that no child should ever have, a look that was almost haunting and hopeless. “Maybe me being around is just a mistake…”

            Aria embraced him tightly to her, and she felt his body shake with sobs. “Oh, Apollo… no you’re not… you’re not…”

[zorua-gaming]

FE7 Prologue through Chapter 5

Time to enter the GBA era of the series.

Maybe it’s cause I started with Awakening, but all I could think of was the parallels of finding a tactician unconscious in a field.

Was Lyn supposed to get that 1% chance crit as the final hit on the boss?

So anyway, we beat those bandits and went on our merry way.

And now we meet Sain and Kent, our Christmas knights (which admittedly took me a moment to realize).

I do find it interesting that if you make your avatar female that Sain doesn't flirt with you.

I know that since Lyn’s whole route is a tutorial, it was probably intentional that Sain missed both those two times, but it was very funny.

Why does Lundgren kinda look like Manfred von Karma from Ace Attorney? Is this just me seeing this?

And now we are on our way to pray to a sacred sword for safety on out journey.

Oh, it’s the Mani Katti! Wasn’t expecting to get that so early.

So it also has weapon durability. So do I save it for the end of the game, or will there be a forge in the future where I can repair usage?

Florina has entered the chat.

Lyn went to speak to a village and we now have an archer named Wil.

Interesting that armories are actually on some of the maps.

We have now been dubbed Lyndis’ Legion!

Onward we trot and meet Natalie, who is looking for her husband Dorcas.

Dorcas was an enemy unit, but through the POWER OF SPEECH he has joined the party.

I feel like you could make a pretty good reaction image out of that “Never underestimate the power of a persuasive speech” text box.

Was Dorcas supposed to get a crit first hit?

Kent is starting to double these axe users, let’s go!

Fuck that one random enemy archer in particular for killing Lyn; now I have to start the chapter over.

Alright, second attempt was a success!

Serra has entered the chat. Oh and Erk too.

I had Wil kill the boss because I like him and felt he needed some more experience.

Serra just gamed Sain SO HARD into joining the party.

[hikari-kaitou]

Capcom’s Official AA Fanclub Surveys - Main Series Edition

Naturally, Capcom’s official AA fanclub site didn't only post surveys about the DGS characters; they published far more of them about the main series characters. It makes sense, as they started the trend before the DGS series had even been conceived.

Back in the old days, they used to hold a survey on Capcom’s official AA fansite every few months where they’d write about the seasonal activities of a handful of characters and ask fans to vote for the funniest/most pleasant/strangest/etc answer.

They stopped doing them in like… 2016? 2017? The original text is lost for good as far as I can tell. Even the wayback machine couldn’t help because the content was password locked and you can’t get past the password wall while remaining in the archived version.

Fortunately, I saved some of my translations of them so I thought I’d share them. Unfortunately, I was doing these translations very casually and only intended to share them with two of my close friends at the time when I did them, so some of them are just summaries rather than proper translations, and I tended to only focus on characters that we personally were interested in or scenarios that we thought were funny or interesting. That means there are parts missing, and because I didn't expect the original text to be wiped off the site I didn't save it so I could go back and fill in the blanks. Sorry about that...

Cut for length!

"Spring is on its way and each of the AA cast members spent their day off in different ways. Who's way of spending their day off sounds the most pleasant?"

Phoenix- he finished unpacking his moving boxes and sorting his seasonal clothing. While he was packing away his ugly pink sweater and such, he happened across the complete works of Shakespeare at the bottom of one of the boxes, got completely absorbed in reading, and ended up abandoning his unpacking.

Mia- She went shopping at a department store for a new summer suit. On her way, she coincidentally ran into Maya, who was on her way to the agency to hang out, but then at some point Maya vanished. Mia tried calling her cell phone but she didn't answer. "Don't tell me she's lost at her age," Mia thought, and began to search for her. She found Maya transfixed by a rooftop Steel Samurai show. It seems that she was both exasperated and relieved.

Maya- she tagged along on Mia's shopping trip, but the second she spied a poster for a rooftop Steel Samurai show, she made a beeline for the roof. She got into a cheering battle with a mean-looking elementary school boy and really enjoyed the show. When the show was over, she reunited with an exasperated looking Mia. She gleefully led Mia to a burger restaurant so they could eat some burgers together.

Edgeworth- he treated himself to a drive along the coast in his red sports car... Well, that was the plan, but then he was pushed by his mentor Von Karma into being the driver for his shopping trip. As a reward for his service, he received a brand new Von Karma style, stylish and flashy summer suit.

Then there's Larry, who dragged Phoenix to a café to hit on its hot owner, and the judge who bought a wig.

"Apollo, Fulbright, Edgeworth, Klavier and Kristoph made visits to a nursery school near the courthouse. Which of them did the most pleasant activity with the children?"

Apollo acted out the story of the “Crying Red Ogre” for the children. Phoenix played the part of the blue ogre, and Apollo was the red ogre, and Apollo’s wailing moved the children to tears too. In a panic over all the crying, they got Trucy to cheer them up with a magic trick in which she made Apollo disappear.

Fulbright: He came dressed in a blinding white costume to teach the children about justice and put on a play. The children gave him thunderous applause... But when Jinxie, who had been forced to play the part of the heroine, saw Fulbright, she thought he was the ghost of an army general, got scared, and slapped a charm on his face.

Edgeworth and Gumshoe: He and Gumshoe were going to reenact the story of Kintarou (an old Japanese fairytale). Franziska handed Edgeworth the Kintarou costume she’d designed (If you've seen Ghibli's Spirited Away, recall what Bou, the giant baby, wears. That's what we're talking about here). Edgeworth fearfully asked “You... expect me to wear this...?” Gumshoe, who had painted his whole body black to play the role of a bear, told him “Of course, sir! It doesn’t fit me!” and shoved Edgeworth out on stage in it. Edgeworth quickly began to reconsider Gumshoe’s salary for next month.

Klavier and Kristoph: Kristoph started giving a boring lecture on the importance of law, and the kids were getting antsy. Seeing this, Klavier came over with his guitar to liven things up, performing a rock style arrangement of the “The Bear Went Over The Mountain". But then he threw in the unnecessary comment of “If any of you scratch the frets of my guitar, I’ll be suing for damage of property, ok?” And they both ended up getting kicked out.

"This survey is about who knows how to enjoy a sunny day at Gourd Lake the best"

Simon: To give Taka some exercise, Blackquill took him and Fulbright (who was on guard duty) out for some falconry. Things were going well until Taka heard something about this mysterious creature “Gourdy,” freaked out, flew into the little shop selling Gourdy merchandise and started making a huge mess. Blackquill and Fulbright gathered Taka up in a panic and hightailed it out of there as fast as they could.

Edgeworth had seen Phoenix home and on his way back passed by Gourd Lake. Just as he was starting to get bad flashbacks... he happened to hear Larry in the middle of a flirting attempt and got dragged in. The woman he was trying to put the moves on was a foreigner, and she and Edgeworth started chatting in her native language. Larry couldn’t understand and was annoyed that Edgeworth was apparently moving in on his target, so he sulked and blew up at Edgeworth.

Athena tried to play matchmaker for Apollo and Juniper, so she told them to meet her in the forest near Gourd Lake so that they would run into each other there and hopefully hit it off. Juniper got there first, expecting to find Athena, but when Apollo showed up, she panicked and hid behind a tree. While she was trying to gather her nerve to go talk to him, he wandered off and she lost sight of him.

Phoenix was at the park and he got caught by Larry who was doing his part time job of selling Samurai Dogs. Larry saw a pretty lady that he wanted to flirt with so he asked Phoenix to mind the shop while he was gone. Business was slow, so he called in all the WAA members to put their full range of skills to use. They seem to have managed to sell them all!

Gumshoe took Missile for a walk in the park. They stopped for a rest and Gumshoe fell asleep, so Missile slipped out of his collar and ran over to where the Samurai Dogs were being sold. He ate them all without Phoenix noticing. Phoenix handed things back over to Larry when he got back and Larry got in huge trouble for losing so much product.

"This survey is talking about how the cast spent their Valentines Day"

Trucy gave Polly chocolate for himself and some for Klavier and asked Apollo to give it to him for her. Klavier wasn’t in court when Apollo went to look for him, though, so he and Phoenix went to the prosecutors’ office together with their chocolate. On their way, though, Apollo found himself getting a lot of strange looks from Themis Legal Academy students.

Ema gave some chocolates to Phoenix to give to Edgeworth because she suddenly got called to a crime scene. Phoenix headed over to the prosecutors’ office but Edgeworth was in court and wasn’t there, so Phoenix waited out in front of the prosecutors’ office with this flashy, girly looking bag of chocolates. Edgeworth’s trial ended up going a long time and Phoenix got a lot of stares as he waited.

Edgeworth was hit by a pollen-filled spring breeze on his way back to the office and suddenly his eyes got all red and itchy and he was left sneezing and sniffling. Phoenix came to talk to him and got quite a surprise when he saw the state Edgeworth’s face was in. The chocolates Ema gave him were in the shape of the Steel Samurai and they made Edgeworth so pleased that it seemed to ease his suffering a little.

Flower Viewing:

Phoenix and Apollo go to the park early to hold flower viewing spots for the WAA members. They see some people from around town that they know who ask them to hold their spots while they go and grab this or that. Phoenix and Apollo do their best to hold those people’s spots and in the process lose their own. They end up begging Edgeworth to let them share his and Klavier’s spot.

White Day:

Because of his painful memories about Valentine’s Day from elementary school, he doesn’t like Valentine’s Day or White Day that much. As a return gift to his beloved daughter, he gave her painstakingly handmade magic panty shaped chocolates. Apparently he forced the ones that didn’t turn out on Edgeworth...

Klavier was holding a ladies only concert, which he invited Trucy to. Phoenix was worried about letting Trucy be out at night by herself, so he sent Apollo along in disguise (as a woman!!). But Klavier saw through Apollo’s disguise easily and to Apollo’s horror, called him up on stage.

Autumn/Moon Viewing:

Phoenix, Edgeworth and Larry went to collect chestnuts together. Larry was too focused on looking for chestnuts and not watching where he was going and fell down the mountain slope. Phoenix had tried to catch Larry but he ended up falling too and spraining his ankle slightly. Edgeworth had to carry Phoenix on his back down the mountain.

Apollo went moon viewing with the rest of the WAA. It turned out into kind of an office party and Apollo had drink after drink while assuring everyone that “I’m fine!” but ended up getting pretty hammered. He proceeded to pass out and Phoenix took care of him.

Obon Festival:

Klavier performed a bonfire festival dance version of the Guitar’s Serenade at the summer festival and Apollo provided the taiko drum backup. He filled the gaps in the taiko drumming with his chords of steel, and it was a very energetic bonfire dance.

Edgeworth noticed the festival going on on his way home from work and decided to have a look. He saw Phoenix selling Samurai Dogs and desperately wanted one, but couldn’t bear the thought of Phoenix finding out that he was a Steel Samurai fan. He hemmed and hawed in front of the festival stall, trying to decide whether to buy one, but they sold out before he could make up his mind.

Phoenix went to the festival with Maya. Larry, who was working the Samurai Dog stand, called them over and forced them to watch the stand while he made a booty call. Phoenix and Maya’s manzai comedy duo style vocal advertising was so successful that they quickly sold out.

Christmas:

Phoenix, Trucy, Athena, Apollo and Pearl all spent the night at the office after their party wrapped up. Phoenix put presents next to the kids' pillows during the night.

Edgeworth grumbled about having to play Santa but dressed up anyway and snuck in at night to bring the younger ones at Phoenix's office some presents. He accidentally ends up sneaking into Phoenix’s room instead.

Apollo wanted to be a good big brother to Trucy and Pearl, so he snuck into their rooms to leave gifts but tripped over something, let out a Chords of Steel volume shout as he fell and ruined the surprise/

Klavier, as a favor to Trucy, snuck in dressed as a Visual Kei style Santa, but he announced his arrival with a rock arrangement of Santa Claus is Coming to Town and got caught and kicked out.

Blackquill had to make a jailbreak in order to play Santa, was chased down and Phoenix woke to find the police surrounding his office.

DGS Edition

[styx1an]

A Chat about Chat

A short fic about how Chat came to be a singular being, written by yours truly. By all means, this isn’t canon, it’s just my interpretation of things.

Word count: 1,863

Fandom: RTGame, Miitopia (NGL I’m a little displeased with how I wrote the ending, but oh well!)

You know, there is this odd sense of irony in knowing how terrified Chat was of Magical John when they aren’t even human nor a singular being in the first place. Wait, so you didn’t know? Of how they became such a being in the first place? (They chuckle.) Then I suppose that means I’ll have to tell you their story. Well then, shall we begin the tale of Chat? (You see the twinkle in their eyes. They must’ve been waiting a while to be able to do this.)

> You nod. You’ve been waiting a while to understand Chat’s origins. Tonight, like many others, belongs to the storyteller.

> You shake your head. No thanks, you think you’re too tired. Dawn shall rise anew soon, and you will not waste your time with tall tales.

(They nod, pleased with your decision.) Then I shall begin to relay their tale.

Our tale begins in the vast lands known as Twitch, a domain that belongs to another, a far crueler being whose tale is for another time. It is a place where one is free to express their opinions and whatnot (as long as it suits the many whims of its Amazonian overlords, of course), and many are versed in the easy to learn, but difficult to master art of gaming. Many such masters have gained a large following, and even if they do not possess such skill, more often than not their humor and charisma paves the way to fame.

One example of the latter would be RTGame, a man of sizable repute. Aside from the frankly ridiculous story of the origin of his moniker, he is also known for doing some… questionable things for the sake of entertainment. There are still tales of his quest in the bathtub along with Gilbert (yes, the very same Gilbert on the quest to defeat The Darker Lord Khadgar!), the night of the Painted Wall’s Communion, the birth of Mr. Compost- But my dear, we are here for one of his lesser-known exploits, one that would change the world as we know it.

> You lean closer to the campfire, watching the storyteller with a renewed interest. Where does the tale lead? Where does it end? You need to know.

> It’s getting even later. You think some rest will be needed before tomorrow’s travels begin. Perhaps the rest of the story can wait another time?

It was a dark and stormy night. The then-Dark Lord Von Karma had just been unleashed upon the land, and I Want Die set along the path of salvation with his fellow party members, Mr. Bean the Warrior, Goofy the Thief, and Mint the Horse. He was pleased with the ease with which they vanquished monsters and saved (literal) faces, but the lack of actual conversation within the party had begun to get to him. Mr. Bean had nothing to offer other than a simple “Bean!” every now and then, and Goofy terrified him with all the “hyuck!” and talks of absolving the world’s many sins. Mint is a horse and therefore cannot participate in a verbal conversation unless you happen to understand what her neighs meant. She also happens to be the most normal member of the party, strangely enough.

Either way, I Want Die longed for a proper conversation.

And God took notice.

It was inevitable. The fourth party member was always going to join, whether he wanted one or not. It shouldn’t be notable in any way whatsoever, yet here I am regaling this tale to you.

It is not how Chat had come to join the party that I wanted to explain, but rather how they came to be.

Do you remember the man I had called RTGame? I hope you had not thought of him as irrelevant to our tale, as he is the patron saint of I Want Die’s adventures. Surely you know of the vast armory that belongs to the party? The various delicacies fed to the team? All his work. Along with his followers’ contributions, of course.

Chat was what he called his followers, the ones who watched his various endeavors as he traveled across the land of Twitch. Oftentimes the crowd would conversate with him (hence their name), offering jokes and sardonic commentary whenever he did anything remotely comedic. Other times, RT would have to tell them off for being such a rowdy bunch- the usual group of thousands could never keep quiet for long.

It happened that Chat witnessed I Want Die’s pilgrimage along with RTGame. They all looked upon him with a jolly sense of humor (after all, their master is well-versed in the art of comedy), some wondering where his travels will bring him. The others who knew how it would all end kept silent at the behest of RTGame. Either way, every single one of them was enjoying the show he had put on for them. 

And came the time to summon the fourth member.

As per usual, RTGame withdrew into his workshop, closing the curtains around him so no curious onlooker could see inside. But that did not stop Chat from yelling their predictions and demands.

“EDGEWORTH” one cried.

Another begged for a certain “End Mii!”

“CHAT CALM DOWN!”

“!uptime”

“69420toesucker just subscribed for 5 months!”

“TURG”

RTGame smiled at them. He wasn’t surprised at all at their reactions, rather it was something he had hoped would happen.

“Alright then Chat,” he said, “here they are!”

His pale, thin hands reached out to open the curtains-

And unveiled a faceless, empty husk of a being. 

Under any other circumstances, Chat would’ve rioted, demanded justice against the irony of sending a faceless doll to retrieve the faces of others. But they had no time.

Almost in an instant, the skies darkened. Clouds swirled up above with vibrant shades of violet, cobalt, magenta. Bright blue lightning strikes a tree and dissolves it into dust. Somewhere distant, something roars. The air feels thick- something magical, something electric is positively buzzing. Magic truly is in the air.

And thunder strikes once again. 

The crowd is gone.

Silence fell. All that is left is the master and the doll, no longer an empty husk.

> You look up to the storyteller, their eyes reflecting the blazing flames. You have a feeling that you know how this ends, but you’d rather have them confirm it first.

> You’re sleepy. As tempting as it is to continue listening to their story, you must admit that the very idea of slumber is even more tantalizing.

RTGame had managed to do exactly what he wanted. Chat’s consciousness, placed inside of a single, physical being. A puppet controlled by a hivemind would not be very easy to control, yes. But the idea intrigued him. And wouldn’t it be better than having a large gaggle of people constantly behind him, watching his every move? It could help I Want Die on his journey too.

So it is settled. It happened that one of the members of his temple had just crafted a rather nice puppet, in case RT needed one. And he did come to use it. It does look a little plain, as both body and head are painted in the same shade of bright white. However, the face was not white like how it was in the beginning, but a disturbingly pitch-black space. No, that’s not the right word.

Rather, it was like a void had formed. That’s also not the right phrase to describe it either, as there were drops of ichor dripping down onto the ground, dissolving the once green grass. But I digress. 

Chat broke the silence that had fallen between them, wailing as a cacophony of noises and emotions spilled out. Despite what RT had done to them, they were still determined to voice their opinions. Quite in character, really. 

“RT WHAT”

“NO NO NO”

“!uptime”

“I'M ON TV!!!”

“bazingabanana just gifted 5 subs!”

“that’s kinda meta”

As their voices grew louder, ichor kept pouring out of the void. As expected, RT thought to himself. He still needs to act fast. So with a quick snap, he fastened a wooden mask the temple-goer made; the same shade of white, a pair of beady black eyes almost as dark and soulless as the void, bright purple ears. 

The yelling and complaining didn’t stop of course. Still, as their voices were muffled by the mask, it was an arguably better experience than the previous ear-splitting wails. And it was less deadly too. Ichor had stopped dripping down onto the grass, which meant that the constant sizzling would finally stop.

Now, one last thing.

RT stared into Chat’s eyes.

This in itself wouldn’t have been quite a remarkable action had it been anyone else, but it’s Chat that we are talking about. The very sensation of doing something as simple as gazing into a hivemind’s many souls wasn’t anything ordinary, either.

It felt like you had just plunged one of your hands into ice-cold water in the middle of winter and not only are you freezing, you’re scared and you don’t know whether you’d come out in one piece.

They all stared back. Thousands and thousands looked upon RT, all different yet whispering the same things, each claiming to be an individual yet virtually nothing distinctive belongs to them. A true hivemind. It’s exactly what he wanted, but he wondered if perhaps other troubles would arise.

He let himself go from their gazes. It asks too much of him.

“Alright then, Chat. Ready?”

A gaggle of voices reply, sounding their agreements.

“OK then!”

--

I Want Die finally opened the inn door, after convincing himself that he’d like this new friend. That this one would be neither an anime villain, a comedy star or a horse. Someone with actual rational thoughts and words to speak.

In front of the door stood a short figure, clad in a purple mage’s robes. Their pitch-black eyes looked at I Want Die, and a chorus of voices came from their permanent smile:

“Hi, I’m Chat!”

And I Want Die wondered if he had forgotten to cross off ‘hivemind’ off his list of potential party members.

Chat’s introduction ends here, of course. But not their tale. The journey was far from over in fact. The party had yet to meet the Royal Court, witnessed the court’s love affair, or get kidnapped by the Dark Lord Von Karma. Even the party wasn’t complete, as it was only the first party I Want Die would encounter in his tale of redemption.

And it’s not the only story either. You haven’t heard of Magical John’s past life, or how Cupcake isn’t as pure as she seems. Gilbert’s fear of the kitchen. How Jefferson came to be, and Obama’s past life with Mr. Bean.

But I’m afraid I must stop here, for it is late already, is it not? Our journey must continue tomorrow. Let us rest. Goodnight, may the stars shine for you. (They head off into their tent, leaving you alone with the flickering embers of a dying fire.)

> You bid the storyteller goodnight. Perhaps they’ll tell you another one of their stories, underneath the moonlight once more.

[abluescarfonwaston]

Anyway this is @sapphire-wine fault so blame her.

Detective conan ace attorney au where Edgeworth gets reverted to the body of a child after he followed after two men dressed in black he suspected were a part of a smuggling ring. Gumshoe lost him and when Edgeworth woke up he was like 5 again.

Gumshoe finds him in a pile of his old clothes that he’s MANY sizes too small for now. But Gumshoe can’t afford to take care of him! And he Definitely cant go home. He can’t even reach the door handle! Luckily Mia, Wright and Maya are all at this theme park celebrating Wright’s first case win! 

Gumshoe: Hey can you hold onto this for me for a second?

Wright: Huh? Sure?

Gumshoe: *Hands him tiny Edgeworth but in glasses and baby*

Wright: ... *Miles sweating bullets as Phoenix studies him* YOU’RE SO CUTE!

Edgeworth, master of being where the murders are gets Wright and Mia a Lot of work. Edgeworth is trying so hard to track down this smuggling ring and get his body back. Wright laments to... Tails (open to a better/worse fake name for Miles) that the man he studied law to met has suddenly disappeared. Phoenix and Tails share Wright’s bed the first few nights before they buy a second futon. Miles looks at him so sadly. Then Wright starts snoring and he looks less fond.

Miles regularly wakes Phoenix up in the middle of the night with nightmares. Phoenix cuddles him back to bed with all the Dad he will one day master. Talks to Mia about getting Tails into therapy because clearly that kid has seen some shit and is not handling it well.

Miles has to sit through first grade. It is a nightmare of children he does not know how to interact with (just like the first time!) and mind numbing boredom. (Just like last time!) Phoenix gets Many requests from the teachers to ‘just let the kids write his own reports please.’ Phoenix has no idea what they’re talking about.

He’s in a class with uhh Kay, Sebastian, Athena and Cody. They are very impressed by the fact he knows so much about the Steel Samurai and they make him watch the Jammin’ ninja as well. They solve kiddy cases as the Detective Kids. Sometimes these turn into murders/mafia/kidnappings. It’s Fine.

Franziska flies in to see her Father again. (Read: To look for her missing brother that she’s terrified her Father killed.) She is absolutely Brutal in court and Tears Wright and Mia apart. They manage to eke out a second day by the skin of their teeth.

Edgeworth sees her leaving. All rage and pain wrapped up in fury. Scrambles to remember what it was that kid called her that had her preening for Days.

“Hey Ms. Whip Lady!” Oh he was getting hit for that.

The hit never came. “... What is it small child?”

“Would you like to play chess some time with me?”

“... If you would like,” (I am so lonely here) “I suppose I could.” (I just want my brother back) “My little brother loves that game you know?”

“I do.”

Edgeworth sneaking into Lana’s office to find some key evidence about the smuggling ring. Gant Almost finding him. Badd searching for the same group. Shields returning and putting together who Miles is after like 0.5 cases with him and proceeding to almost blow his cover every single time they meet. Edgeworth questioning the system that corrupted him. Badd being Deeply frustrated people keep letting the 5 year old Tails run around the crime scene. (Gumshoe why are you letting this happen?!)

Miles learning that Kay’s father was killed by the smuggling ring to stop the investigation. That Athena’s uncle/brother was framed for murder by them. Realizing that Sebastian’s father is the head of the organization that attempted to have him killed (you thought it was a coincidence we went after you? You sniff around a little too much and Von Karma wasn’t moving fast enough) Cody is- well he’s just a very good boy with a camera and a love of the steel samurai and justice. Miles loves him very much.

Phoenix getting so desperate to just Know if Miles is alive or not that he asks Maya to channel him. (Mia already refused) Maya accidentally pulling Gregory instead and Gregory, lost and confused, comforting Phoenix.

Ema developing a ‘cure’ for his deaged state but unfortunately it only works for a little while. “Phoenix I-” Love you too. He wants to say. But their isn’t time. There is Never enough time.

Them all tearing down the entire smuggling ring and uprooting the deep roots of corruption in their system. The sword raised above the guilty chest of the corrupted and damned ready to plunge it in for one final victory over evil and madness-

When Von Karma kicks the feet out from under him.

And suddenly their whole case is falling apart because their Lead witness is suddenly pleading guilty to his father’s murder and there are so many voices demanding his guilt and so many more asking where Tails went- No one cared about Edgeworth. Edgeworth should just Die. Let him just die boy. Don’t make us force your hand.

Miles curling up that Same Exact way Tails does after an earthquake. Phoenix who was So ready to defend him realizing that Miles has been manipulating him for Months now and leaving the courthouse in a rage. Franziska holding her brother that she’s been looking for so long as his bones Melt back down to youth. A glazed eye boy taking the stand and confessing to his father’s guilt. Mia griting her teeth and not knowing how to proceed.

Von Karma demanding a verdict because It’s rather obvious isn’t it?

Franziska yelling out Objection! Standing against her Father. Shaking and demanding a fair trial for him. Protecting her Little Brother from her Father. From Papa with shaking hands.

(I spent the last months thinking you’d taken him from me once. I’ll not stand by and let you do that to me for Real)

He delaying the trial enough that Wright comes back. Them fighting side by side. The kids yelling out things that Miles taught them. The Ballistic markings Mr. Nick!

Coming together at the last minute to save Miles Edgeworth. Uncovering the truth and exposing the corruption of the system. Miles and Phoenix talking. I wanted to save you. You did.

Edgeworth taking the detective kids out for trips to the museum after its all over. Them being surprised how little their dynamic changes despite the fact he can now drive. He is still an absolute pushover but now he can buy them candy.

Lana and Mia reconnect over this kid they got very attached to (Miles vs Tails) and swapping stories and dragging him mercilessly. Maya dragging Edgeworth in his full adult glory to their (previously established) weekly steel samurai viewing party that Does take place in a mountain of pillows and blankets.

Phoenix sitting up late that first night that Edgeworth went back home and Missing. Missing all the space that was filled by another person. By caring for another person. (Shouldn’t it be a relief? Why am I so empty?) Mindlessly calling Edgeworth who answers because he can’t sleep even though he’s exhausted. (i don’t want to dream and wake up alone.) Come over Edgeworth. Edgeworth sleeping on the futon on the floor and Wright dropping his hand over the edge for Edgeworth to hold. Edgeworth not waking up alone.

Detective Conan au.

[justagost]

Face him head on - A Narumitsu Fic

So I got into the AA fandom recently and... I love Bratworth??? And I like seeing Bratworth/Feenie content? So I wrote this:

Basically, Post SoJ Edgeworth and Wright get teleported (with some Magatama incident) in the years where they were young, aka Bratworth’s and Feenie’s (Pre-Dahlia) years, but, Wright appears in the courthouse with young Miles, and Edgeworth in Ivy University with young Phoenix. So, the old counterparts, to get back together, make their young selves meet again.

I know this sounds complicated af, but I swear it’s a LOT easier to understand if you just read it

Spoilers for: Most of AA: Trials and Tribulation and Turnabout goodbyes 

Warning: Mention of blood, fluff, and a bit of horny Bratworth for Older Phoenix and his fancy suit. Nothing explicit  

Words count: 3.700

Enjoy~

Edgeworth paced the tribunal’s hall, his shoes clicked on the smooth pavement, Von Karma was to arrive soon for a trial and he was sure the man was going to want to meet him for a regular check-up on victories and progress. Miles wasn’t really ecstatic about it, but he had no choice, so he used this time to prep-talk himself, that was until a voice from a man he had just surpassed stopped him, “Excuse me, um… what year are we in?”

How could you not know the current year? “What a foolish question, you should be out of this world to not know.” He turned around with his eyes close, “We are well in two-thousand and–” but as he opened his eyes, his words were cut off by the sight of a well-dressed man in multiple shades of blue.

The stranger’s eyes widened, “M-Miles?” he stuttered, and Edgeworth flinched at the use of his name, making him forget all about the suit, “H-How dare you call me by my first name?! It is highly inappropriate and unprofessional, especially from a stranger” the annoyance from his own situation with his mentor arose and he turned around to leave with a “Hmph!” as he was stopped again: “What do you mean ‘stranger’ Mi- Edgeworth? It’s me, Phoenix!”

He scanned his memory for that name, but only one person came to mind- and it definitely wasn’t them. They were part of his past and also the same age as Miles, so it was impossible.

The man shifted behind him, “Really Edgeworth? Does the name ‘Phoenix Wright’ not ring any bells?”

Wright?

His breath hitched.

With an expression full of surprise, he turned back to the man and stared: the spiky hair, the ocean-deep eyes… an attorney badge?!

No, it wasn’t the Wright, it couldn’t be.

He shook his head, “There is no logical way you are the Wright I’m thinking about-” a soft smile welcomed his confused gaze, “But I am- “ He fished for something in his pocket, “Here” and opened his hand to present it to him, Edgeworth accidentally gasped out loud: Signal blue, worn out and slightly faded.

“H-how?” he let out a shaky breath, clutching his arm with the one that wasn’t carrying his bag, “You are my same age- yet you look much more mature-” and hotter, “And what are you doing in a courthouse? Why do you have a defence pin- no” he stopped himself, “You are trying to fool me. You are not who you say you are”

A deep sigh came from the supposed Wright, “I know it’s hard to wrap your head around it- but it’s me, from the future”

His confusion disappeared in an instant, replaced with anger, “What nonsense are you spouting?!” He almost took his leave for the third time, “You want proof, Edgeworth?” his words stopped him once again, as Phoenix shoved his hands in his pocket again, “Then there is proof!” he fished out a device he had never seen before, he deduced it was a cellphone, but much more technological: it didn’t have a keypad and it lit up to show an image with various people in it, just for it to change. The man pressed the screen and there was a calendar which showed the same date but another year– so far away from the current one.

“See? This is almost twenty years ago for me, of course I look older, but it’s me” He placed a hand on his chest for emphasis, “Here- I’ll even show there is an older version of you!” he clicked the screen again and a cellphone contact with the name ‘Miles Edgeworth’ was there: the number was his.

He still couldn’t believe it, but the longer he stared at the man, the longer he could see Phoenix Wright, the kid with the biggest brightest smile he had ever seen, something in his chest was bubbling at the memories of his childhood friend.

“Edgeworth I know this is confusing and very sudden but– you need to help me find my Edgeworth” those words deepened that feeling, my Edgeworth…

“If I’m here with you, that probably means he’s with twenty years old me– you have your car already, yeah?” He stuttered out a reply, “Then please Edgeworth, help me find him” Phoenix grabbed both of his shoulders and stared at him with his glittery eyes.

His instinct was to say yes, but the fury of Von Karma about making him wait would be inevitable… but those eyes… his touch…he was so close…

“Yes…” he panted out, his breath missing from the closeness of his childhood crush, and the next second, he was being dragged down the hall: Phoenix was holding his hand.

His face lit up and the fire within him started to crackle louder: the man was well-toned, the blue suit was perfect for him- made for him, and that light blue vest… made him wild, it made his sculpted chest and thin waist even more obvious, the gold chain to his pocket and his shiny attorney badge complimented the look: Miles had to look away in shame for thinking such thoughts.

Without realizing it, Phoenix had dragged him all the way to the parking lot, like he was more than familiar with the courthouse layout… which he guess backed up his pin. “You already have the red sports car?” he looked at Edgeworth with a serious expression, which made him quiver a little, “Y-yes!”

He was dragged again until they arrived at the car, he managed to fish out his keys and unlock it, Wright stole them from his hand, his skin warm against his left a tingling sensation, “I need to drive, you don’t know where we’re heading. I know you don’t like that other people drive your car, sorry, but it’s an emergency” He flushed again as he entered the passenger seat, the question of how he knew such a thing was answered by the fact that Phoenix knew him in his… timeline? World? Either way, any type of complaint died in his tongue, too overwhelmed as the man started the car and Phoenix’s cologne filled the air: it was fresh and pleasant, it complimented his looks just as the suit did.

While they were speeding somewhere, the car was silent: mostly because Edgeworth was overwhelmed with... Phoenix, everything about him was too much to process.

How the little boy in his memory became this handsome man, why he was a defence attorney, how he came from the future… how the butterflies in his stomach hadn’t stopped since his name was brought up.

Yes, Miles had a bit of a childhood crush on Phoenix, but he had to stuff away his feelings since Von Karma had subtly introduced him to daughters of powerful friends of his multiple times, and had expressed how ‘He could choose between marrying a proper woman or dedicate his life to his job’.

But seeing a mature, sexy version of Phoenix had reawakened that old fire he thought he had extinguished.

The man driving fumbled with that device again and then placed it on his lap, the beeping made him realize he was calling someone.

“Phoenix? Are you alright?” a voice that sounded awfully like his own replied, Wright picked up the device, “Miles! I’m on my way!” So this was the older him! And they used their first names! This meant they were friends!

A wave of happiness washed over him knowing they reunited after all this time.

“On your way?! Phoenix how do you know where I am?!”, Wright turned left using only one hand to steer, which was… hot…

Edgeworth looked away and realized how much the sight had affected him… he could feel his pants become a little tighter... “I awoke at the courthouse, not too far away from twenty years old you, I presume you must be at Ivy university with twenty years old me”

“Yes…” They accelerated a little as the confirm came in, “I’m glad I caught him as he was leaving class… I swear I saw… Her… in the distance” Wright’s grip on the wheel tightened, his face winced like he was in pain: Who was… her?

“I should be there in five minutes or so, bring young me with you at the entrance: visitors aren’t allowed inside” an okay arrived from the device, “I’m… not wearing the sweater… am I?” The question was so weird Edgeworth snapped his head towards Wright in confusion, why what he was wearing matter?

A sight came from the other line, “No, fortunately you aren’t… I think you haven’t started da-” he stopped his older version of him on the phone, “Don’t Miles…” the man driving the car looked at him for a brief2 second, “You’re on speaker”.

A mortified “Oh” came from the other line, “I’ll see it for myself, bye” he placed the device on his lap again, not before a concerned, “Drive safe Phoenix” came as a goodbye.

Silence fell again, and it stayed that way for a while, Edgeworth was becoming restless, Phoenix could tell by how hards he was grabbing his arm, so he talked, “Say… you had your first trial already, yeah?” He winced at the memory of that man falling backwards, with blood spilling from his mouth… that girl smirking…

He shivered and nodded, a hand softly settled on his shoulder, “I’m sorry to bring back the bad memory, but I need to find out at what time both you and young me are living in right now” he nodded and dared a peek at Wright.

His brows were furrowed in concentration: he was thinking: “How do I ask this…” he mumbled, “Um.. Did you make it on the news?” The question threw him off, “Uh… Y-yes… an article about me was released not too long ago” Phoenix nodded, “Alright, so young me is aware of you”

A confused “Huh?” slipped past his lips. Phoenix shook his head, “Young me saw that article, that’s how…” he paused.

Wright had seen the article? A chill went down his spine… they didn’t talk too well about him on there… it mentioned all sorts of bad rumours. Did Phoenix hate him now?

“No, I can’t say more than this, you’ll see for yourself once we arrive”

It struck him that he was about to see Wright, well, the Wright he spent that blissful year of school with… his Wright.

“Hey… don’t overthink this, I can assure you everything will be fine” A comforting smile came from the man, Edgeworth nodded.

Now that he had seen older him, he couldn’t think how twenty-year-old Phoenix would look.

_______________

Phoenix parked and scrambled out of young Edgeworth’s car, the man was walking so fast he had no time to register where they were, thank god for the massive sign saying “Ivy university”. So this is where Phoenix ended up huh.

They approached the entrance by the big stairs, and once on top of them, there they were: The older version of himself reminded him too much of his father, the glasses were– as best as he could remember – the same model. He was wearing a long jacket a shade slightly different than his, the cravat was at its usual place and the black vest, he realized, matched with Phoenix’s, different colour, but it looked like the same model.

A smaller boy was standing almost behind him, gripping the sketchbook to his chest, a red scarf hid his reddened face: he was looking directly towards him. His stomach dropped: that was Wright.

“Phoenix!” His counterpart ran into adult Wright’s arm, embracing him for a few seconds before pulling away and cupping his cheeks, “Are you ok? Is everything all right?” the man with the spiky hair smiled, “Yes Miles I’m ok”.

After a sigh of relief, his old self looked right at him and scooted away from Phoenix, a little blush lit his cheeks. An awkward silence fell in the middle of the chaos of students leaving school.

“So… how do we go back?” Wright asked, adult him looked down in thoughts, “I’m not sure… but Maya shoved the magatama on me as soon as it started to lit up” He grabbed the side of his jacket and pulled a shaped rock out of it, “I presume we’ll have to use this… although you’re much handier with it than I am” He gave it to adult Wright and then looked back at him, he looked away: he looked so much like his father it hurt.

“M-miles…?” A broken voice called his first name, both Edgeworths looked at the young boy with the spiky hair. He was about to say how childish it was to call him by his first name, but his heart dropped as he realized: Phoenix was crying, subtly sobbing in the scarf, “Why didn’t you reply to my letters?” Edgeworth gripped his arm, “Why did you suddenly disappear?” he cringed, “Why are you a prosecutor?” he choked out the final question, Miles internally cursed von Karma and that damned earthquake.

“I..-” he attempted to reply, but Phoenix threw himself at him, making his briefcase drop: “I MISSED YOU SO MUCH!”  

The boy gripped him desperately, his first instinct was to shove him away, yell at him to stay back and disappear. Wright was part of his painful cursed past.

But the warmth of another body surrounding him… the closeness of his friend made him realized that he was the cause of his sadness: he had hurt Phoenix.

His brain screamed at him to free himself, but every inch of his body, touch-starved for years… and his instinct to protect him… they held his negative thoughts back from becoming true.

Adult Wright was holding that greenstone, absorbed in thoughts, but older him stared at his soul, smiling. Phoenix was a sobbing and shuttering mess, his suit was going to be ruined after this, but as if older Edgeworth read his mind, like this was a situation he’d been before, he whispered softly enough for only him to hear: “Don’t run, face it head-on”

After a few seconds of confusion, he almost physically recoiled as he realized what older him was saying: his suit getting stained, his pride being hurt, what von Karma taught him… they were all excuses to run away from an uncomfortable situation: this situation.

Face it head on… Phoenix’s feelings, all of the memories he reminded him of, the mistakes he had made, his hurtful past… He had to face them head-on.

But his feelings for Phoenix! The butterflies he got when a nine-year-old Phoenix smiled at him or grabbed his hand… the insecurity of preferring boys over girls that had started with the man in his arms-

Older him sighed and held out a hand in Wright’s direction, “Hm? Yes Mile- Hmf!” and grabbed older Phoenix’s tie, pulling him to… kiss him.

Miles’s eyes widened as he observed how Wright’s surprised expression melted into the kiss, his eyes closed and a hand crept up onto older Edgeworth for support: Edgeworth had told Wright his feelings, and he reciprocated them.

Every ounce of logic flew right out of the window and Miles hugged the still sobbing Phoenix tight, pushing him against his chest. He stiffened as a small gasp came out of the boy in his arms, he was just waiting for Phoenix to shove him away, to say that he hated him, to see his angry face… but Phoenix never moved away, actually, he whispered: “I missed you so so much…”

The gentle voice hit him straight in his heart, so he replied, “... I…  missed you too…” and closed his eye as tears threatened to spill out.

___________________

They broke the kiss before it became too heated, panting, Phoenix, after recovering, asked, “What was that fo-” but he was cut off again as Miles took his chin and turned it to their younger versions directions, hugged as both of them cried. His husband smiled at the sight.

Edgeworth remembered how Wright told him, (when pretty drunk once after Edgeworth’s trial, and again, after Phoenix had almost died due to the bridge) how when he saw the ‘Demon prosecutor’ article, all he wanted was to hug Miles and ask him what happened.

Of course, Edgeworth knew that even if they had met back at that time, his phobia of the past and his repressed feelings toward men and Phoenix (because yes, they were two separate things), wouldn’t have allowed it, ever. Especially with all of von Karma’s hate for romantic relationships with ‘normal people’ in general, planted in his head.

He never told Phoenix what he wished would have been impossible, it wouldn’t have been nice. But as soon as he saw twenty years old Phoenix threw himself at twenty years old him, he knew exactly what thoughts were going on in his head. Denying young Phoenix of the hug would have hurt both older and younger Wright… and of course, his younger self too.

So, he thought to himself, that a little encouragement and reassurance wasn’t going to hurt. In fact, it was all worth it when his husband flashed that big soft smile of his at the sight.

After he stopped staring at the two young adults, he turned towards Miles, “I’m pretty sure I know how to go back: all we need to do is hold the magatama in our hands and think to walk back to Kurain village” he whispered, Miles nodded, “Thank god I caught it when Maya threw it at me” he replied, earning another smile from Phoenix.

They waited another minute before their younger selves untangled out of the embrace: Miles guessed their habit of long hugs was something that had always been there from the start.

After wiping their tears aways, Phoenix spoke first, “Alright, we are ready to return in our year-” Miles placed a hand on his husband’s shoulder, “Before we go, I’d like to speak to my young self… privately” Young Edgeworth looked away while older Wright nodded, “Ok… just, don’t say anything… risky” Miles flashed a smirk, “I have no intention to”. With that said, he walked towards twenty years old Edgeworth, “May I have a word with you?”, young him stuttered out a yes, and followed him a bit away from the Wrights.

__________________

“von Karma is going to be furious when you show up late, so say confidently that you were stuck in traffic. Don’t say that there was an incident unless you run into one on your way back, he will probably check” Young him recoiled by how detailed the plan was, “O-ok…” he gripped his jacket, older him smiled, “Keep Phoenix close, no matter what the consequences” he placed both hands on young Miles shoulders, “You like him, don’t you?” After a pause and a cringy expression, he slowly nodded, “Don’t be ashamed of it, he won’t judge you. Phoenix will be there for you if you ever need anything” The wide-eyes stare he received made him smile, “You simply have to allow him in, and trust me: you’ll never regret it”

Edgeworth realized that his wedding ring was in full display, and maybe the news wouldn’t ease his younger self’s nerves, so he shoved his left hand in his pocket, and spoke right after to cover up the perhaps too rushed action, “At first, it may hurt to explain your situation to Phoenix, but it will only be at the start. Again: if you allow him in, he’ll only be of help and support. You just have to face him head-on”

Young Edgeworth was still a little confused, but as he took a quick glance behind his older self (probably to look at Wright) he nodded, “I… I’m scared…”

Of course he was, hell, he himself was scared when Phoenix came crashing into his life, shuttering everything he had built up until then.

“I know, your first instinct is to run, but unless you want to hurt him, it’s better that you explain your situation first thing first”

After letting young Miles elaborate a little more, they went back to the Wrights, and each Edgeworth took their rightful place next to them.

“Well, I guess it’s time we head back” Older Wright broke once again the silence, “I hope you too keep in touch from now on” they looked at their younger version look at each other and gaze away as a flush crept onto their cheeks, “T-thank you for bringing him to me… me” Young Phoenix bowed, as young Edgeworth’s blush deepened.

“Let’s go or we’ll worry Maya and Pearl” Miles waved at the two and grabbed Phoenix’s hand, leading him away. After they climbed down the stairs, they disappeared.

Wright and Edgeworth were left standing next to the other, “So… that really really just happened, huh…” the boy with the spiky hair huffed, turning to face his silver-haired friend: “So uhh… sorry for–” “I’m sorry Phoenix but I have to go, now” he cut him off, startling the boy, Miles dug into his briefcase and pulled out his business card, the one von Karma had him make before he even became officially a prosecutor, “We have a lot to catch up on but– there is a very inpatient person waiting for me and I’m already–” a soft hand crept on his shoulder, pulling him out of the small panic he had gotten into when he intterrupted the other boy, “I understand” Phoenix took the card and brought it to his chest, “I’ll text you and we can see each other with less rush” he smiled, and that made Miles relax, “Just- promise me something… “ a small hint of pain in his eyes made him look like a lost puppy, cute, “Please answer me this time”.

Edgeworth realized that not answering his letters might have hurt Phoenix more than he thought, but he nodded, “I will, I promise” and after a quiet goodbye, he rushed to his car, speeding carefully along the road.

von Karma, as his older self anticipated, bought the excuse, not after a little scolding, of course.

He was thankful that they were walking while talking, and he didn’t have to pay actual attention to the conversation, because Miles’s mind drifted off to how sexy Wright looked with that blue suit, and how cute Phoenix was with the red scarf.

Yes, the childhood friend was going to be a constant thought from now on, distracting him from his work, but as older him said: he wasn’t going to run away, he wanted Phoenix back into his life, and no von Karma or murder case was going to deny him that wish.

[the-bar-sinister]

The Mechanics of Emotion (13736 words) thesavagesabretooth

catch up here Simon had spent the past year living like it was going to be his last year on earth– because it was. But now he is still alive, and there are questions unasked that demand answers. Just what is his relationship with the detective going to be going forward? And what complications of his own does Bobby Fulbright have up his sleeve

Not to mention that there are two more members of the Phantom Organization who've been captured that Simon now needs to prosecute, and Athena must defend. Love and chaos in LA. In justice we trust– but who understands the mechanics of emotion?

-

December 27, 9:20 am

One week. Today it had been exactly one week. One week since Ray Hoshino’s life had completely fallen down around his ears. The Cosmos Center was still taped off even a week later, the courtroom still lay in blocked off ruins, and his mentor, Bobby Fulbright, was dead.

Long dead, if you went by what was shouted back and forth in the trial.

Ray hesitated outside the station, leaning forward towards the glass to try putting himself back together in its faint reflection. As he smoothed his deep blue-black hair. It sprung back into messy half curls and waves around his soft and freckled face. As he adjusted his precious reproduction mech pilot’s jacket, its shining badges– the circular LAPD detective’s badge flanked by rank insignias and merits– caught the light in a bright twinkling that hurt even his eyes.

He didn’t feel like a hero of Justitia today, that was for sure.

But that didn’t mean he wasn’t going to try. He posed, flipping his sunglasses down from where they sat atop his head, and flashed a peace sign at himself.

“In the endless reaches of space, one light shines even in the deepest darkness! The star of Truth and Justice burns bright, and its hero answers its call!”

He smiled broadly, the sun catching every one of the metal adornments on his mech jacket in a brilliant shine. “In…In…” he sniffled. “in justice we t-trust..”

He had completely forgotten that windows were see-through until he noticed the desk sergeant staring at him in disdain past his own faint reflection. 

There was a soft cough behind him. 

"Are you planning to go in, or should I just go around you?"

“UHM!” Ray snapped to attention as his face heated up in embarrassment. He stiffly turned with a bright and sunny smile “sorry! I’ll head in! Just having a moment!”

He turned to find a familiar, impatient figure waiting behind him. Interpol agent Adrian Andrews had her arms crossed, and was giving him a look– as usual. She was a frequent presence at the precinct, often there running errands and liaising for her boss, former prosecutor Franziska Von Karma.

"Having a moment, huh, Hoshino?"

“Oh!” He snapped a salute with a sparkling of his badges and his best dazzling smile. 

“Hello Miss Agent Andrews! Pleasure to see you this fine morning!” His smile twitched, just the slightest as he stayed at attention “Just thinking about the…the whole thing the other day, ma’am. Lost in my own head.” 

Some of Agent Andrew's impatience went out of her expression and she sighed. "The Phantom case still on your mind, detective?"

They talked sometimes. Hoshino hadn't been exactly up front, but Andrews was a woman who understood subtlety– especially the kind of subtlety that Ray wasn't good at.

Ray nodded as he rubbed the back of his neck with a sheepish grin. 

“Yeah. Can’t seem to forget it, you know?”

He couldn’t forget it, not with the way it seared in his mind, and he couldn’t believe it either. Every time he thought of the Phantom’s torn mask and the accusations of ‘spy’ and ‘killer’, he couldn’t help but think back to every little moment where he knew Bobby Fulbright was the real deal.

After all– he’d known him for years. If anyone would know that Fulbright was a fake, it was Ray Hoshino. Yet…he didn’t.

“I know it’s a bother, the chief’s been on my butt about it.” 

Andrews sighed. "I have to file some paperwork. But if you're not busy in fifteen minutes we can get coffee about it. You up?"

Ray sniffed, and held his hand to his chest once more as tears beaded at the corner of his eyes “Miss Agent Andrews…that’s such a generous offer! You’re gonna buy me coffee? I’m up! For sure!” 

"Yeah. I'll buy you coffee, detective. Pretty sure I get paid more than you do these days. Meet me in the lobby.-- or my car, if you're just standing around outside anyway."

And with that, she sashayed into the police department, her spiked black heels clicking all the way.

December 27, 9:43 am

The cafe down the street from the precinct was a favorite of the local detectives– and the detectives were a favorite of the cafe. The owner liked to brag that he'd never been robbed, but neither had the gas station across the street. In the precinct, the gossip was that the guy was secretly hoping for his cafe to be the scene of a crime some day.

Hopefully, today would not be that day.

Adrian Andrews, in her black turtleneck and blazer, blond hair pinned tightly, sat across from Ray and sipped her double shot espresso. She'd gotten him the extremely sweet drink he'd asked for– and he could tell that she definitely expected payment in the form of 'tea'.

"So," Adrian opened. She waved a hand at him.

Ray had settled in the chair, brooding and thoughtful throughout ordering their drinks, creating an atmosphere of soulful, brooding mystery that was utterly destroyed by the fact he was in the middle of licking some of the whipped cream atop his drink when her hand gestured his way.

“Oh uhm.” He took another lick of the sweet drink’s caramel-drizzled whip cream. “...I just can’t wrap my head around it…Miss Andrews, I know Bobby Fulbright, and…and what happened on tv doesn’t make any sense.” 

She leaned on her hand. "I did notice you two seemed close. Didn't you tell me once you came from the same home town? When I saw that trial on tv, I figured if anyone would have known he was some spy, it was you."

Ray looked out the window with a pained pout on his face.

“Yeah…we grew up in the same town in Utah. He did a lot to help me when I was at my worst…we were close. Very close. I’d have known if he was a spy, or…or if he’d been replaced.” He closed his eyes with a quiet hiss of breath. “...but he was the same man I knew, I swear it!” 

"Very close," Adrian nodded. "Like Miss Von Karma and I… I like to think I'd know if she were replaced by a spy."

Ray sipped his drink sadly, looking up at her again. “like Miss Von Karma and yourself..y-yeah. Probably a lot like that, ma’am. I think you’d know, because…w-we know things about them a spy couldn’t possibly, yeah? So they couldn’t fool us.”

"I'd like to think so," she repeated. "But if that were the case, what could possibly have happened?"

Ray pouted again as he poked at the mound of whipped cream with a straw. 

“I..I dunno. Maybe this spy guy had him hidden somewhere and j-just stepped in for the trial. Or maybe…” he glanced from side to side “it was a big undercover op to help save Prosecutor Blackquill from the gallows!” 

Adrian raised her eyebrows and smiled. "That sounds really romantic. Walk me through the logic on that one, detective."

Ray tipped down his sunglasses and took a long, long sip of coffee before he flashed a peace sign with a grin “Yessir, ma’am!”

He tilted his head to the side “easy, when you think about it…Mr. Fulbright, in order to force a trial that would save Mr. Blackquill from execution, took up a false identity as this Phantom spy! And he worked to ensure that….the…trial…”

He paused for a moment before he said “oh geez.”

He rubbed the back of his neck with a grimace. “....Clay Terran and Metis Cykes, though. Yeah uh…I mean…maybe they’re not …really dead?” 

Adrian sighed. "That might be a little excessively romantic, Ray. Sorry to say. But who knows? I know there's a hush hush operation happening in Cauli that's connected to the case."

Ray’s eyes widened, and he found himself leaning over the table with a hopeful grin. “D-do you know what’s going on, ma’am? Can you tell me?” 

"I know some. Miss Von Karma's been handling the state-side part of the operation, so I've seen some things." She sipped her espresso thoughtfully. "They arrested two suspects with regards to involvement in the same organization the Phantom was associated with, and they're being transported to LA to stand trial."

Ray fell back in his seat with a serious nod.

“Woah. That’s some high level stuff, Miss Andrews…two whole suspects huh? I wonder if maybe…maybe they’ll have some information on what went on a week ago. A-answers, you know?”

He flushed , and looked down at his coffee as his encounters with the man they claimed was a fake flashed through his mind. “For what exactly was going on this last year.” 

"I hope you get your answers," she nodded. "Being close with someone like that– it must be hard to accept. That he's gone. And that he wasn't the person that you knew."

Ray’s fingers tightened against his mug. “he was the whole reason I became a detective in the first place.” 

"Yeah?" she cocked her head. "More in common with me and Miss Von Karma I guess."

“She inspired you to join interpol?” Ray asked with a curious smile. “and yeah…I wanted to follow in his footsteps once I got away. To be a hero of justice right by his side.” 

"Well. I know you'll live up to that, no matter what the truth is," she said. She looked over to him and offered him a hand. "You can't let yourself fall into despair, alright? Even if it hurts or seems hopeless."

Ray sniffed quietly, before he took her hand with a firm grip and a smile “...it’s true, isn’t it? Even if everything seems hopeless…the star of justice shines brightly on us! Despair…despair is giving up,especially when it’s hard.”

He gave her a shaky smile. “you’re speaking from experience, aren’t you?” 

She smiled a shaky smile, and nodded. "Unfortunately, I am. Miss Von Karma saved me when I thought I was beyond all hope. But she also taught me to find strength in myself, and not only live for others."

Tears beaded in Ray’s eyes once more.

“Wow… She seems like one heck of a woman, Miss Andrews. And I mean…I think you really learned that lesson well, ma’am. You’re really strong” He put his hand to his chest “maybe I can learn a thing or two from that.” 

"I believe in you, detective," Adrian said. She raised her coffee to salute him. "And if I find out more about what's going on, I'll tell you, okay? Promise."

Ray snapped a salute…thankfully having remembered to let go of his coffee first and grinned.

“Ma’am yes ma’am! And h-hey. I’ll…” he looked from side to side, "pay you back with all the best gossip the precinct has to offer, okay?” 

Adrian smiled widely. "I'm looking forward to it."

December 27, 10:45 am

When Ray returned to his desk at the precinct, there was a folded sheet of paper stuck under the keyboard of his computer, and he noticed quiet conversations going on between some of the other officers and detectives.

He gave one of the nearby clusters a sparkling smile before he settled into his seat to pluck the paper from the keys, opening it with a curious tilt of his head. 

From the desk of chief prosecutor Miles Edgeworth–

This communication should be shredded after reading.

Your department is doubtless aware of the recent publicity surrounding the alleged death of your co-worker Detective Fulbright, and the subsequent public assassination of an espionage agent who attempted to assume his identity.

We are happy to assure you that the death of Detective Fulbright and the circumstances around his impersonation were reported incorrectly during the televised event for the purposes of successfully closing the investigation on the agent known in the department as 'The Phantom'.

Happily, Detective Fulbright will be returning to your department shortly. However, owing to the complications surrounding the phantom organization and Bobby Fulbright's public death, we ask that you instead welcome Detective Robert Halblicht as your new co-worker until such time as 'Bobby Fulbright' may be able to officially return to work.

Thank you for your cooperation.Ray’s heart skipped a beat, and he was sure the others nearby heard the sharp gasp of breath. He read the letter again…and again…and a fourth time over with a widening of his eyes and a widening of his smile.

“I knew it” he whispered. “It’s just like I told Miss Andrews, it…it had to be fake…”

Ray Hoshino clutched the letter to his chest with a welling of tears in his deep blue eyes and began openly sniffling in the middle of the precinct.

“Lady Justitia has smiled on this scion of the star of justice!” 

It was only a few minutes later, while Ray was dutifully shredding the piece of paper stained with his tears, that he noticed the chief's door click open, and a very familiar figure slip out from it.

Ray’s heart skipped a beat as Bobby Fulbright–his mentor, the man who inspired him, the man he shared stolen moments with, his crush– walked through the chief’s door.

He stared, like a rabbit in the headlights, directly at him with a smile that he was sure might literally light up the room. 

Fulbright–or Halblicht, according to the memo– stopped short upon seeing him. It was strange to see him in a black suit for once, Ray was used to seeing him in bright white and pale colors.

A moment barely longer than a heartbeat passed, and the man snapped into a salute in Ray's direction.

"Good morning, detective!"

“M-m-m-mr. Fu-Halblicht!” Ray snapped a sharp salute in his direction as he fought back the urge to cry. “G-good morning, sir!!”

Halblicht glanced at the other officers– who were stealing looks their way– and then back at Ray. "I only came in this morning to file some paperwork. But if you'd like to walk with me to my car, I could use some catching up."

Ray glanced towards the chief’s office, biting his lip before he nodded seriously. 

“I'm sure the chief won’t mind me being a little late to my duties, sir…I’m on uhm…” The chief had put it as a ‘temporary removal from active duty’ , but what it really meant was ‘Ray Hoshino’s too upset to be sent out , so let’s have him do all the paperwork in the office until he calms down’ “Paperwork duty, anyway.” 

"Ah. Oh. Well. That works out, huh?" Halblicht laughed awkwardly, and beckoned for Ray to follow him out of the office. He gave a little wave at their fellow officers as he headed quickly for the door.

Ray hurried to follow him, scampering and grabbing his coat before he fell into step just at Fulbri— Halblicht’s heels. 

“It sure does…h-hahah…wow. You look uhm..” he stammered. “Pretty cool, honestly? You look good in black.” 

He glanced at him with a little embarrassed look, his familiar amber sunglasses sliding down his nose. "You think so?" 

He held the door for Ray.

Ray stepped out into the morning sunshine, keeping his own sunglasses tipped up in the fluffy locks of his hair. 

“Y-yessir! I think I’ve only ever seen you in light colors…it’s a big change! But I guess if you gonna be a whole new you..” He put his hand on his chin thoughtfully “it gives you more of an ‘antihero’ look.” 

"I suppose from that point of view, I've had a bit of character development," he chuckled, embarrassed again, and followed him out down the steps of the precinct to the employee parking lot.

Ray glanced around, before his eyes fell on Bob—Halblicht’s embarrassed smile, his fingers resting against his lips in a thoughtful gesture. He had to get used to the new name.

“You have, huh? I ..I bet you’ve been on one heck of an adventure, sir..” he smiled shakily behind his fingers. “Because we…we thought you were dead. I kept hoping they were wr-wrong, though.” 

Bobby paused mid-stride and sighed, rubbing his jaw. "I'm sorry about that, Ray. It wasn't exactly something I had any control on… It's a… really complicated situation."

Ray stumbled to a stop, the medals on his coat jingling musically as he folded his arms around his chest. 

“It had to be, right? It had to be a big, complicated situation for the good of justice to wrap you up in that whole Phantom case..” 

"For the good of justice." He looked a little uncomfortable for a moment, then nodded sharply. "It came out on the side of justice in the end. Thank Justitia herself. But I have to apologize for scaring you."

Ray’s brow furrowed briefly. He knew he could sometimes miss things, sometimes his head was too high in the stars, and his excitement a little too present and it caused him to overlook that which experts like Investigator Skye might otherwise catch.

But he was good with people he knew, and he could tell something was off about Detective Fulbright…something odd in his reactions.

“Thank Justitia. “I was having trouble believing I’d been lied to all this time, sir…and that I’d have to go on alone from here on out…but…” He hesitated before he blurted out “there’s more to it than Mr. Edgeworth’s letter, isn’t there?” 

December 27, 11:05 am

We have to tell him, Robert.

Why?

Because he'll find out. And I don't like lying to him.

Halblicht hesitated at the question, looking at the slim detective standing in front of him. Robert had only known the young man for six months or so, but Bobby had known him much longer.

Ray Hoshino had been the complication. The one unexpected person who could have noticed that something was off with 'Bobby Fulbright''s' behavior.

Robert had made sure that that wouldn't be a problem. But now that was a complication too.

Robert sighed, performatively as he acquiesced to Bobby.

"Get in the car, Ray."

He motioned to the black sports car that was currently arranged as his rental.

Ray glanced over his shoulder at the precinct with his deep, dark eyes, before he snapped a dutiful salute and hopped into the passenger seat of the car. Once he settled, they saw him fussily fixing his hair in the rearview mirror like a nervous prom date.

Robert thumpted the driver's side door closed and glanced at Ray in the mirror as he started the car.

Robert, Robert say something, we are being so ominous right now.

But Robert didn't say anything. He just started the car, the engine purring to life.

Bobby, telling him the truth right now will just create more questions than it answers. Create more problems than it solves.Ray got into the car, as he was instructed, his shoulders tense and his expression pensive as he buckled himself in. He stole furtive glances at Robert, before he visibly seemed to at least pretend to relax.

“You’re gettin’ me a little worried here, sir.” 

Robert reached over and stroked Ray's cheek with his gloved fingers. 

"My apologies, Ray," he chuckled, putting on a wide smile. "I think you can probably guess, it's been kind of a tough week for the side of justice."

Ray did lean into his hand with an unsure little smile on his face, but Robert could see the way his eyebrows knit together.

He was confused, or potentially worried.

“Justice sure has taken a beating from the sound of it…where the heck were you when everyone thought you’d been shot?” 

Robert, what are we going to tell Ray if not the truth? I've known him since he was a teenager, you know? I tried to help him out with his parents– no matter how much that backfired… the point is he trusts me.

That's right, Bobby. He trusts you. That's why he's going to believe what we tell him, just like he has the whole year.

"I was on the stand, being shot in fact," Robert laughed as he backed out of their parking space. "That's what bullet proof vests are for. Thank Lady Justice. A large part of that night was an elaborate illusion, Ray– that's why it wasn't even legally a trial!"

“You’re kidding me…” Ray’s eyes widened as his hand went over his mouth again in a quiet gasp. “...but that Aura woman’s in jail for taking hostages, and…I mean…why the heck would Mr. Edgeworth lie about justice?” 

"Ms. Aura was not supposed to be involved," he said, rubbing his jaw, "That was unfortunate, but Chief Prosecutor Edgeworth's grand plan adapted to it. As for lying about justice, well, sometimes it's necessary– only for the greater justice, Ray."

Is it him you're trying to convince, or me, Robert?

Both. Not that I need to convince you. You know the truth would hurt him, and you don't want that.

Ray bit his lip, before glancing off to the side. He didn’t seem entirely convinced as he rubbed the back of his neck. 

“I suppose…” He grimaced “the light of the star of justice is sometimes eclipsed by the moon of duty, I guess. But I don’t know what could be important enough to…to make everyone think you’d been executed on live TV over…especially with all that ‘Phantom’ stuff. I don’t get it. It hurt a lot of people to watch! Everyone in the department…” 

"It hurt me too, a lot." Robert gazed at Ray's face in the rearview mirror as he drove down the highway. "But after the Phantom stole my identity on that day and impersonated me while he committed that gruesome murder– suddenly I was involved in a web of intrigue. Mr. Edgeworth and Interpol asked me if I'd cooperate in a plan to draw out other members of the Phantom's organization so they could move up the chain of command and punish them in the name of justice."

“Stepping into the darkness of the abyss to save everyone from something terrible…” Ray pushed his hands through his hair, smoothing it back and away from his youthful face. He hadn’t smiled yet, but some of the tension between his eyebrows had softened into what seemed to mostly be worry and confusion.

“It’s awfully heroic, sir…what ah..” he trailed off “what happened to the Phantom?” 

"I'm not at liberty to disclose that, thanks to interpol," he said, scowling. "And I'd prefer not to think about the man who stole my face. But, I'm happy to report that the mission was a fantastic success. Thanks to the public mock trial, we lured out the badguys and got them on the back foot. Two more of them are in custody now. And all it cost me was my life."

Is that even really a lie, Bobby?

It feels like a lie. It's not the whole truth.

Despite the inner conflict, the Phantom summoned the ability to laugh out loud at his own dark joke about his death.

He reached over and scooped an arm around Ray's shoulders.

Ray shifted across the seat with a flush, blinking a little dazedly as he laughed along with his musical little laugh, at least until he grimaced with an audible. 

“Oough…” He half fell into Robert’s embrace as he made a quiet sniffle of a sound “all it cost you was your life!”

Ray’s shoulders shook gently for a moment before he flashed a bright smile. “well. That sounds like Interpol, from what Miss Andrews always tells me! It sounds like it was terrifying sir, but as long as we got the badguys, the day is saved!”

Something in that enthusiasm seemed a little forced.

Ray was confused. And still uncertain about everything that had happened. Robert certainly understood that. But he knew how to deal with Ray. He'd been doing so for the last six months, making certain that he wasn't paying attention to anything that would cast suspicion on him.

It was manipulative.

Obviously it was manipulative.

Robert had been lying and manipulating people his whole life.

"The day is saved," he repeated with his own much more natural forced enthusiasm. "So how about we celebrate my return, Ray? As 'Halblicht' at least, for however long that's necessary."

Ray Hoshino’s face flushed a deeper shade of pink, and as he often did, seemed to glance for prying eyes before he relaxed somewhat and answered with a lopsided little smile.

“Sounds like a plan, Bob….Rrrobert? Yeah, Robert.” he laughed, and when he smiled the light seemed to catch his jacket again to make it as bright as his grin. “Let’s celebrate…it’s not every day someone comes back from the…fake…dead, after all!” 

They laughed. "Oh it's weird to hear you call me Robert! But yes, it's not every day. It's an occasion worth celebrating. And I hope to make up at least a little bit for scaring you."

It is weird to hear him call us Robert. Do you think everyone's going to start doing that?

Probably not.Ray’s foot scuffed gently against the floor of the cab, and some of his usual smile crossed his face. 

“well sir…I won’t lie and say i wouldn’t be happy with a little making up for it. Miss Andrews and Detective Byrde can probably attest that I wasn’t in my finest form for a …a week. Or so.” 

"I'll be sure to ask them about it so I can properly regret having upset you so terribly, detective Hoshino!" he chuckled, and smiled at him. "But honestly, I feel absolutely terrible about it that I couldn't let you know until now."

Robert…. you know um, when you think about it there are other things we haven't let him know about either. I mean it sounds like we're going to take him on a date, and…

And…

He doesn't know about Simon. And Simon doesn't know about him.

“I mean…I guess you couldn’t help it, sir.” Ray gave him a weak smile “interpol’s high level stuff…and while they’re fighting for justice too, I know they got their secrets. I..I’m not gonna hold that against you, okay?”

He pumped his fist “so let’s enjoy our d…” he turned a vivid scarlet “outing.” 

They gave him a thumbs up. "Let's enjoy it together!"

We'll tell Simon later today, Bobby. Maybe he can help us figure out how to handle the… situation.

Bobby sighed internally. At least he could tell that Robert was trying. But it was some situation!

[wildfey]

Anon from yesterday back again! About the set-up, a post on twitter explained the theory much better and I gotta look up the name. The gist is that Phoenix could've proved that he was set up. He did not have the time to have a forgery done since he got the job for defending Zak only the day before. Plus the money. Instead, there is no evidence at all he even tried. Why? Because he'd seen the courts' corruption before and decided it didn't matter anymore, plus too dangerous.

(continued) You could even point at his reply to the Judge's words and wonder if Phoenix has nothing to say because he knows it's useless to argue. Hidden powers have already decided that they will attack him and try to drag him down.

okay, okay, hello again anon, good to see you back with another excellent ask.

I always think that there are two ways to look at Phoenix's disbarment:

a) that the problem was straight-up with bringing forged evidence into court, no matter what the circumstances were.

b) that the problem was that Phoenix was assumed to have created the forged evidence and bought it into court intentionally.

Ace Attorney really flips around on which of these is true in universe (it's a plot point to some extent in 1-5, 3-3, 4-1, and 4-4) but considering that Phoenix gets his badge back almost immediately after it's proved that the second wasn't the case, I'm going to assume that presenting forged evidence accidentally is either not an issue or less of an issue. This tends to be the fanon majority stance too. (It's worth noting that Edgeworth is implied to have pulled some strings irt getting Phoenix's badge back. Ymmv and so on.)

With our framework safely in place, the question arises: If Phoenix could have avoided punishment, or at least public shaming, by revealing the set-up, why wouldn't he? As you point out, the forgery doesn't make sense once you start to look into it and we know that Phoenix did put a lot of these pieces together. Hell, he could have made these arguments when Misham testified during the Gramarye trial. But he doesn't. (Warning: this is a more headcanon-y meta than my last one, because the 7yg is... a gap and we have very little concrete info on what the fuck Phoenix was up to. He got a kid, worked on jury trials, played good poker + bad piano, and had some sort of frenemyship with Kristoph. That's pretty much all we've got).

Firstly: Corruption. The AA court system is ridiculously corrupt, and at the point that Phoenix is disbarred, he becomes emblematic of this - he's a man with a history of revealing injustice - notably Von Karma & Gant, but even without them he still won some high profile cases - and once he's disbarred, it's implied that the narrative is flipped, turning him into a figurehead for that which he fought against (dark age of the law, etc). The obvious conclusion is that his disbarment was a convenient way to discredit him - powerful and corrupt figures (and in AA there are many) don't need to fear Phoenix Wright if he isn't a lawyer and his reputation is ruined. The counter argument is that Phoenix... has always done some questionable things with evidence (1-5, 2-4, and 3-3 stand out to me). But no more so than anyone else in this fucked-up universe. Either way, Phoenix has always worked in a system stacked against him, and it's very possible that he suspected there to be manoevering behind the scenes (and there was! We know Kristoph existed and was purposefully working against Phoenix.) HOWEVER, I don't believe that any of this would stop him on it's own, because it's been long established that Phoenix Wright does not give a shit about bad odds.

So, what would make him accept it? Anon, you mention danger in your ask, and I do see that as partially true - Phoenix isn't concerned about danger to himself, but he has a kid to care for. I would say, however, that especially when we come to Kristoph, as much of a bastard as he is, Phoenix had no evidence that he could be violent to the point of murder until 4-1. Before that, his influence was long-distance life ruining, rather than active threat (though long-distance life ruining is pretty scary on its own when you're raising a small child with low funds). I do see that as a cause, but one of many, and this is the point where I'd like to go back to the conversation on motivation.

I am going to make the argument here, as I did in the other answer, that Phoenix, in the 7yg and possibly elsewhere, is depressed, and that one symptom of that is a loss of motivation. It's implied by the game itself, and makes more sense than most of the alternatives.

(I won't get too personal, but the years of my life where I dressed like this... not good years lol)

My headcanon has always been that by the point that Phoenix had sorted out his guardianship of Trucy and got himself out of that initial low that came from having his life ruined, it was too late to fix his disbarment and he had to change tracks, and that's when he became interested in MASON. (Not to self-promote, but I'm realising that a lot of what I've said here is rephrased ideas from The Path Once So Clear, so if you want 15,000-ish words on the subject, it's there). Of course, when talking about Phoenix's 7yg depression, I think it's also important to mention that Phoenix in AA4 is very much implied to be putting on an act (which is pretty common in AA4 in general. Most characters in that game have both a public and private face). Being 'Beanix' - eg. the piano/poker player with no prospects who works in a shitty restaurant and takes nothing seriously - is a convenient cover while he works on the things that he doesn't want to be targeted for (and here we come back to the corruption angle).

As to how far the depression helps that act... well, that could be a whole conversation on its own. Once again, I'm very much coming into headcanon here, but I'm reminded of the phenomenon where someone with depression will deliberately exacerbate it, either as a form of self-harm or as some attempt to fit a role (artists are especially prone, due to the 'depressed artist' stereotype. I see it most in the emo scene). Beanix has always seemed to me as someone who is deliberately messing up his own life - he repeatedly provokes Apollo, essentially sabotaging their relationship, he puts himself into dangerous situations for no real reason (this is a general Phoenix trait), and despite the fact that we KNOW Maya and Edgeworth were supportive of him during this period, we never actually see them around, presumably because he's keeping them at a distance. How much of this is for the act, and how much is real?

Again, we've come very much off topic (whoops) but I see a lot of this as another aspect of Phoenix's low self worth - is there a difference between the image he projects of a man who has given up due to being disbarred, and the real Phoenix who is still actively working behind the scenes but is very obviously not doing well because he can't 'save people' - the thing which so much of his identity relies upon? I think there is, but I also think the image too often becomes the reality, and AA4 does carry this underlying theme of how wearing these masks of a public persona can affect your 'true self'.

As always, I genuinely love to see other people's takes on this, either in the tags, in reblogs, or via asks. This one is very headcanon-y, and I know there some entirely different perspectives out there, some of which I really like. (Also this one got to be heavy. Look after yourselves guys.)

[heaven-s-black-box]

Self-defense- Miles & Gregory Edgeworth

Return to File

Recovery date: August 22nd, 2020

Description: During a short recess, Miles begins to lose hope of his innocence. With Nick out, Maya goes to call the next best person, Mia, only to channel someone else entirely.

Notes: Recovered in conjunction with mariekiki50 from research lab Ao3, we thank them once again for another contribution.

Word count: 832

Back to directory

“I- I don’t know Maya. What if he’s right? I can’t find anything that disproves what he’s saying,” Miles sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose.

“You can’t give up! Nick believes in you, and he hasn’t been wrong so far.”

“Wright has taken all of, what? Three cases so far? He’s bound to be wrong eventually...maybe this is where his luck runs out.”

“Why else would Manfreed taser him Miles? He probably thought Nick could dig up whatever he was hiding! We can’t give up, I won’t let you.” Maya closed her eyes and clasped her hands.

They were currently taking a short recess during the court case for the DL-6 incident, and Miles was getting nowhere with the evidence. All of it seemed to point to one possible suspect, him, just like he remembered. Even with Maya, Gumshoe, and Wright's help, he didn’t see this ending in his favor. Why was he still fighting this?

“What are you doing?” He asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Trying,” she hissed, “to channel my sister. Maybe she can help you.” Maya’s brows furrowed in concentration, as Miles sighed and turned back to the file in front of him. It seemed so… empty.

“Good luck with-”

“Miles? What’s going on?” 

He stopped reading the paper in his hand, and slowly looked up. Now that was a voice he didn’t think he’d ever hear again. But sure enough, when he looked up, he found his father standing in front of him.

Well, it was his father’s face and body, but Maya’s clothes and hair. He had to admit it was a strange look, and the outfit didn’t fit him all too well.

“Father, wha-” Before he could finish, his father had rounded the small table to hug him. It took him a second, both from shock and recent lack of affection, but eventually he returned the hug. It wasn’t even a small, awkward hug, he was almost worried he’d squeeze the life back out of him. Burning his face into his father’s shoulder, he spoke, “Father, I don’t know what to do. I know this is crazy, but do you remember anything?”

Gregory let go of his son, and sat down beside him.

“No, I’m sorry. I was unconscious…”

“But-”

“I know. I know that’s not what I told them years ago, but at the time… I only wanted to keep you safe. The last thing I remembered was you throwing the gun, and I thought maybe it had gone off. But… I- I couldn’t…”

They sat in silence for a moment.

“Maybe, you can help me look at the evidence. See if anything is different from what you remember. A friend of mine, Phoenix Wright-”

“The boy from school?” Miles smiled.

“Yes. Him and Ms. Fey, the one who channeled you, believe that Manfreed Von Karma may have something to do with it.”

“Von Karma? I know he’s forged evidence in the past, but murder seems a litle extreme, don’t you think?”

“Yes, I suppose.”

They returned to silence. There were only a few minutes left before he had to return to court, and they hadn’t found anything.

“That’s odd,” Gregory said.

“What is?”

“Well, it says here that Yanni Yogi’s gun was fired twice, but only one bullet was recovered from the crime scene.”

“Perhaps it had already been fired that day and had yet to be reloaded?”

“Maybe, but…” Gregory looked around for a picture of the crime scene. He could see Miles’s expression darken slightly at the sight of it. “There are two holes here. One in the wall…”

“And one in you. Where the bullet was recovered from.”

“Yes. But if the gun was fired twice in the elevator, where’s the second bullet?”

“I don’t know. But how does that prove I didn’t do it.”

“I’m not sure, but if anyone can figure it out, it’s you.” Gregory smiled at him. “At the very least it will buy you some time.”

“Mr. Edgeworth? The court will be resuming soon,” a bailiff said.

“Ah, thank you.” He turned back to his father. “Will you be joining me?” There was a hopeful look in his eyes, and Gregory felt bad for his answer.

“I’m sorry, but I don’t think Ms. Fey can keep me here much longer.” Miles nodded solemnly. “But, before I go, I want you to know that I am so very proud of the man you’ve become.”

Miles’s expression turned into one of shock, and then guilt. He looked down at the floor, and began to play with his cuff.

“You wouldn’t say that if you knew what I’d done…”

Gregory placed a hand on Miles’s shoulder, and Miles looked up. “Then fix it. From today on, be someone you can be proud of. Be someone you want to tell me about, and wipe that look off your face. As long as you try your best, as long as you are happy, I will always be proud of you.”