#each and everyone are about phoenix and maya

[warrenwaskilledbyadeer]

Can we talk about how the heart and soul of the original Ace Attorney trilogy centers around how Phoenix loves his sister Maya so much he will do literally anything for her but all the fandom wants to talk about is Wrightworth

(HAD TO EDIT THE POST BECAUSE PLEASE DO NOT TAG SHIP)

[fiendishartist2]

guys what if i want to make my own apollo justice game.

[pandoratheprocrasticreator]

Weird how fandoms take a "found family" and immediately start assigning everyone nuclear family roles. That feels super restrictive to me. Like isnt the appeal of found family the premise that the closest people in your life dont have to be related to you by blood? If so why do we need to make everyone exactly like a traditional blood related family except some characters are Legally Adopted? Thats not the only family structure that exists.

[ofdreamsanddoodles]

i love how much the buddy system is built into playing ace attorney. no one ever investigates things by themselves. when maya gets kidnapped, phoenix investigates with pearl & at one point makes a joke that pearl doesn’t pick up, which makes him miss maya. when pearl & maya are on the other side of the bridge in aa3, franziska insists on him coming with him. when phoenix can’t investigate because of his cold, it’s not just edgeworth that looks at crime scene, but edgeworth and gumshoe. apollo gets left alone for five minutes in the gavinners dressing room and he’s immediately like “oh i wish trucy could have heard my joke about this guitar” or “trucy would love this post card.”

i’m sure part of it is just narratively things flow a lot better if information is split between two characters but it also just gives the impression that everyone actually genuinely likes each other. it feels very endearing. don’t separate them

[the-bar-sinister]

There's lots of gay subtext in Ace Attorney. 

But when looking specifically at subtext that might be intentionally put in the narrative by the creators with the intention that the character in question is actually gay, I think the main character with the most evidence behind this is actually Apollo Justice.

Our other main characters, Phoenix Wright and Athena Cykes both have obvious subtextually heteronormative romantic partners. To an adult, straight, culturally normative audience, Phoenix Wright and Maya Fey read normatively as an obvious romantic pairing. This is also the case for Athena Cykes and Simon Blackquill. In Great Ace Attorney the same can be said for Ryuunosuke and Susato. 

I repeat– to an adult, straight culturally normative audience, the romantic subtext between these characters is clear. If you showed these games to an American movie going public, that would be the obvious read by the audience.

Yes, each of these characters, Phoenix, Athena, and Ryuunosuke also have strong queer romantic subtext with another character. (Miles, Juniper, and Kazuma respectively).

However, that's not my point. It's not significant that each of the other three characters has homosexual relationship subtext.

It is significant that Apollo Justice does not have a character with whom he has heteronormative romantic subtext.

The closest thing Apollo Justice has to a "heteronormative romantic subtext" is Trucy Wright– whom we, the audience know is his sister.

And yes, you can make the argument that there is deliberate incestuous subtext between them– a kind of Luke/Leia style relationship with which the audience is teased by the narrative. Dhurke brings it up directly in Spirit of Justice.

However, this is still not a heterenormative subtext, because of its taboo nature. More taboo, culturally at this point, than homosexuality.

On top of the lack of heteronormative romantic subtext, Apollo also is on the receiving end some of the strongest and most overt of the homosexual subtext in the series.

There is of course the famous "meet cute" introduction between Apollo and Klavier– 

“I must say, I'm used to being inspected by the ladies... but this is the first time I've felt this way with another man.”

This is without question overt homosexual subtext.

However, there is another, even more subtextually clearly defined moment in Dual Destinies. Honestly, the subtext is all over Dual Destinies in the way Apollo reacts to Clay Terran's death (basically completely losing it) but there's one particular moment that deliberately draws your attention to the relationship in a queer way.

In one of the last cases of the game, everyone is delicately trying to explain to the judge that Aura Blackquill was in love with Metis Cykes (who was murdered) in a queer way. It's a big “they’re lesbians, harold” moment.

And then the conversation immediately turns to Apollo Justice and how he’s just had someone who was “important to him” murdered, too.

The narrative specifically draws you attention to the relationship that Aura and Metis had, and compares it to the relationship between Apollo and Clay.

You are specifically invited to speculate about what kind of important relationship Clay and Apollo had, and why Apollo has been affected so incredibly deeply.

So yeah. Between Clay, Klavier, and the lack of anything resembling a heteronormative romantic relationship for Apollo in the games, I think he has the strongest narrative evidence that he's actually being written deliberately as gay.

[sciencelings-arts]

🌻✨🏳️‍⚧️Girlifies Capcoms favorite punching bag✨🏳️‍⚧️🌻

Closeups and rambles about the designs under the cut, you know the deal

I stared at Feenie’s pitiful puppy eyes sprite for like a half hour for this, I just wanted you guys to know that. I couldn’t decide on whether I wanted to draw her bleeding or include the necklace because logically they can’t be there at the same time but I did it anyway because I wanted to. Also I wanted her to be splattered with paint where in later iterations she’d have scars.

Sunflower/defense attorney badge inspired earring, and bleeding heart necklace. I didn’t feel like going easy on the symbolism on this one lol.

Closeup of Rookie!Phoenixes gay little earring, I love putting too much detail into things that end up being way too small to appreciate. Obviously it’s an Edgeworth reference, and a reference to that one DD concept art where he has a little blue knight on his tie and I thought this is her era of getting really into being a knight in shining armor for everyone ever.

All the earrings/jewelry correspond to the people she’s closest to at the time, or at least most devoted to. Feenie: Mia and Dahlia, Rookie: Edgeworth (the sketch had the chess piece replaced with a large bead which is for Maya/Pearls), Beanix: Trucy, and MILFeen: the WAA (the star in the celestial trio alongside Athena’s moon and Apollo’s Sun)

Another note about the main trilogy Fem!Phoenix design is that I included temporary marks from Franziska’s whip rather than the burn scars from the bridge which are included in the later versions. Also the scars from being bashed in the head bc i felt like that wouldn’t just disappear, and I wanted to focus this design on JFA.

More about the scars, specifically her lip scars, I wanted to give her a darker lipstick that she uses to draw away the attention from the necklace chomping scars but during the 7yg she kind of gives up on hiding them. I also wanted to make sure there’s a dramatic change between Beanix and MILFeen, Edgeworth bullied her into having a decent skincare routine.

Speaking of Edgeworth, she’s here, having homosexual feelings in the background. As usual. The fun thing about Narumisu is that they almost exclusively refer to each other by their last names so it doesn’t matter if they have different first names for a gender swap, they will always be ‘Prosecutor Edgeworth’ and ‘Defense Attorney Wright’

All side by side at the sacrifice of image quality. I love her eras

[midnightbrightside]

pearl and maya come down to see phoenix early into the 7yg. and what do you know, kristoph is there too. phoenix introduces them as pearl studies this new man. she's come to terms w the fact that phoenix and maya arent together, but when she sees how kristoph's hand is placed on phoenix's arm something clicks. "oh! mr kris is mr nick's 'special someone'!"

phoenix goes to correct her but kristoph shushes him, "let her have a little fantasy, it's easier than correcting her anyway."

"yeah, but she'll expect us to act all couple-y in front of her." phoenix warns

kristoph raises an eyebrow, "is that all? half of my office already thinks we're an item, i dont think we'll find it difficult." it's mostly the truth, most of his office have deduced that theyre sleeping together and a few of them call phoenix "mr gavin's boyfriend" when they think he can't hear them.

and that makes phoenix pause. kristoph isn't wrong. everyone seems to think there's something going on: staff at the borscht bowl, kris's coworkers, and now pearls... fuck it, whats the harm in indulging her a little? "yeah, kristoph is my special someone" and he's gotta admit, pearls's delighted squeal makes the lie worth it.

throughout the day it's surprisingly easy to fake it, especially since maya and trucy pick up fast and play along. phoenix is thankful that theyre so smart and put up with his bullshit. even so, every time kristoph laughs at phoenix's jokes or leans into his arms he can feel trucy's gaze boring holes into his back. he doesnt know what she's looking for, but it's a relief when they put her and pearl to bed for a sleepover.

in trucy's room pearl sighs dreamily "wow, mr kris and mr nick are really, truly in love!" she's kicking her feet.

trucy hums a doubtful little "mhm..." and pearl looks worried.

"oh no, you dont sound so sure"

trucy's eyebrows are pinched together like shes thinking very very hard, "i know uncle kris likes daddy a whole lot, i KNOW he does..." she trails off.

"... but?" pearl prompts.

"i don't know! grown-ups are weird" she mumbles, frustrated. daddy and uncle kris aren't actually dating, she knows that. but they didnt seem to not like being a couple today. maybe that means they like each other? but that doesnt feel right either.

pearls pulls trucy out of her thoughts, "hey, if mr nick and mr kris are boyfriend-boyfriend does that mean you have two dads?"

trucy blinks. "uncle kris isnt like daddy," she smiles, "but if he was i think that means i have three!"

meanwhile kristoph, phoenix, and maya are in the living room. maya thanks them for saving her from a million questions about nick on the way back, and tells kristoph it was nice to meet him, it's good for nick to have a "friend" who lives near him for once. she means it.

the moment kristoph leaves maya turns to phoenix, "he's a weird guy."

phoenix smiles "he's not so bad once you get used to him. besides, he's good to trucy and i, and i appreciate that." he doesn't know why kristoph has been so kind to them, but he's in no place to question someone's generosity.

theres a pause as maya thinks, "hell, edgeworth was weird too and you were right about him. i'll trust your judgment this time, gavin seems to make you happy" a smile creeps onto her face, "so dont take 3 years to confess to this one," and she laughs as phoenix sputters and blushes.

[cornertheculprit]

like it's about how phoenix tells maya a joke in turnabout sisters (whether it's cheering him on in court like a cheerleader, her acting as his defense lawyer or breaking him out of the detention center) and maya is 100% down to do any of those things without question to the point where phoenix has to backtrack and tell her it was a joke. it's about how phoenix told her he wouldn't abandon her after everyone else had. it's about how maya threw herself at von karma with his six hundred thousand volt taser and told phoenix to run. it's about how phoenix grew so miserable without maya around after she left to train that he didn't take a single case for two months until he met a girl that reminded him so much of maya that he couldn't say no. it's about how maya refused to do her first proper channeling without phoenix being there for it. it's about how when maya thought she'd killed dr. grey phoenix was the one to insist over and over that it wasn't her and that no one had decided anything yet. it's about how she trusted phoenix with her magatama, something that had "always protected" her. it's about how phoenix slapped lotta for talking shit about maya. it's about how when phoenix realized maya was kidnapped his eyesight instantly started fading away out of sheer panic. it's about how maya told phoenix to get engarde a guilty verdict no matter what even if it meant her life and drew a picture of him while she was kidnapped as a symbol of hope. it's about how phoenix told maya that she knew he'd never desert her. it's about how they were so busy teasing each other at lordly tailor that pearl was the one doing all the investigating. it's about how maya called herself phoenix's sister twice. it's about how phoenix knocked larry out of the way to brave the burning bridge to reach maya on the other side. it's about how phoenix's desire for dahlia to get the hell out of maya's body was so powerful that it actually evicted her. it's about how maya called phoenix one of the feys and it's about how phoenix went through the ridiculously rigorous spiritual training alongside her at hazakura temple even though he isn't even a spirit medium. it's about how maya asks for help every time she's in trouble and how phoenix always answers without question. and finally it's about how maya whacked phoenix on the head with the shichishito

[schmorpthe]

I see a lot of debate on this fandoms found family obsession and I want to add my two cents and headcannons that no one reaaaallllyyyyy cares about.

I think there's a balance of it that's good. For example, I think interpreting Maya and Phoenix as siblings is just as valid as best friends. Siblings can be best friends, my own sister is literally my best friend. It works with the dynamic of them both feeling like they're taking each other in after Mia's death, and I see their banter and can relate it to how my sister and I treat each other.

On the other hand, I don't like it when people give Phoenix and Apollo the father-son dynamic. I think there is a level of protectiveness from Phoenix, coming from seeing some of himself when he was younger in Apollo, as well as knowing he's Trucy's brother. But Apollo is an adult who looked up to Phoenix when he was younger, just his trust betrayed. At first it's a case of never meet your idols for Apollo. He also finds him irritating. I think there is a point where those two can get on good terms and Apollo forgives Phoenix, but they aren't family. It's a different type of love and care. They are mentor and mentee. Apollo will always find Phoenix annoying too, he just gets used to it and that irritation no longer is from a place of resentment, just Phoenix pushing his buttons.

As far as Athena goes, I haven't played much of DD yet because I started as the new trilogy got announced and decided to wait, but I think it's another case of Phoenix being protective but not quite in an adopted kid sense. He sees a young girl who needs some love, care, and guidance. You can love and care for someone a bit like a daughter without going all the way into they are my daughter territory. Trucy and Athena? Best friends. You know how so many of us have best friends that are basically like a sibling but we don't literally feel like siblings? That's them. They are an unstoppable duo.

As far as Edgeworth and Kay goes, I haven't finished AAI but I do see a little bit of adopted father-daughter dynamic, but not as intense. Kay is very self sufficient and made it through her teen years without her own dad or Edgeworth in her life. They are bonded over the shared trauma of losing a parent at the courthouse and Edgeworth is protective of her and his door is always open for her in the good and the bad. The paternal instinct is there and he would help her through anything. I feel like Kay called him Dad by accident one time and that did make them more like family, but apart from emotional times or jokes, he is Mr Edgeworth.

On the note of Edgeworth, I'm not keen on the adopting basically the entire prosecutor's office. I just don't feel like that's Edgeworth. I do think he softens yes. I do think he cares about his employees, but it's the vibe of a good boss being on professionally friendly terms. They can go to him for help, sometimes not work related. He can be a mentor. But he's their boss first and foremost, and in a more Edgeworth sense than Phoenix. More by the book. So yes he cares about them and can sometimes be protective, but not in a family way.

I do like Edgeworth eventually becoming Trucy's other Dad, but it takes time. For a long time he's Uncle Edgeworth and it takes him a long time to adjust to that even. Eventually he starts treating Trucy like a daughter, Phoenix pulls him up on it, he has a bit of a crisis. This is after the 7yg when Phoenix no longer has to live in the shell he did before getting his name cleared, therefore being able to officially be with Miles. Point being it's not immediate. He does immediately live Trucy but his instinct isn't familial for a while.

Honestly me explaining this hasn't completely gotten what's in my head across about I hope you get what I mean.

Also, at the end of the day everyone can have their own interpretation of the game. People will make it what they need it to be and that's okay. As long as what you are going with isn't illegal or straight up gross, go ahead. These are my own conclusions I've come to and it's these interpretations I look for in the media I consume, but whatever fuels your love for this series is what matters ✨

[very-grownup]

Ace Attorney game parallels (no, not that one, or that one, or that one ...)

One of the interesting things about the Great Ace Attorney in the evolution of Shu Takumi's Ace Attorney games is the maturation of "Weird Girl Assistant".

Our original trilogy Weird Girl Assistant is Maya Fey (obviously a perfect being beloved by everyone with taste why can't I preorder that Nendroid yet motherfuckers?), who is all heart and ... not so much knowledge, but a conduit to Mia’s knowledge. She doesn’t personally possess any legal knowledge, but she’s integral for Phoenix in accessing knowledge that would otherwise be denied to him due to Mia’s untimely death. She’s fully Weird in her Assisting.

Apollo Justice has Trucy Wright (obviously a perfect being beloved by everyone with taste), who is a lot of heart but not all heart. She has personal knowledge to impart to Apollo, regarding the perceive ability and his bracelet. It’s integral assisting to how the trials in that game will reach pivotal points, which makes it genuine Assisting, even if outside of that Trucy is plenty Weird. I would argue this is distinctive from the Phoneix-Magatama matter in the original trilogy (it’s easy to forget that Nick doesn’t even have the magatama in the first game) because Trucy is, essentially, teaching Apollo to do something he technically can already do, whereas the magatama is something Phoenix is given by an outside source still connected to the mentor (Pearl). Narratively and thematically they’re different, even if mechanically they function similarly.

Years later, the Great Ace Attorney gave us Susato Mikotoba (obviously a perfect being beloved by everyone with taste). Susato is an /actual trained legal assistant/ to the point she can masquerade as a lawyer in the second game's tutorial. She could BE the lawyer as easily at Ryunosuke, save for her sex in the historical setting of the game. She Assists like no one’s business and her Weird is no weirder than Ryunosuke himself, two young people who grew up in a country with recently opened borders, in a foreign country for the first time. 

A reflection of a maturation in Takumi's depiction of female characters, a general wider consciousness of feminism in popular culture in Japan (something I am in no way qualified to discuss), a third possibility? I don’t think it’s fair or accurate to say that the evolution of the Weird Girl Assistant into an actual competent assistant is a sign of the games ‘maturing’. For all their goofiness there has always been a serious, darker tone in the games compared to the adventure game standbys of North America. It’s built into the series from the choice to have Phoenix’ second case involve the solving of his boss and mentor’s murder.

There may also be something in the connection between the tutorial mentor and the Weird Girl Assistant, holding the balance of knowledge between them like the centre of a seesaw.

The connection with Mia and Maya is obvious: they’re sisters and perfectly mirror each other in their relation to what they bring to Phoenix. Mia on a pedestal of legal knowledge, forever older and wiser than Nick, as her death fixes her on that pedestal. Mia and Nick never get to be colleagues, equals. On the other end, enthusiastic but underage Maya, someone Nick will always be older than and always be wiser than in the legal sense. We don’t know how an older Maya might have fit with the disbarred Phoenix Takumi left the series with; maybe it didn’t matter and outside the confines of the Lawyer Protagonist and Weird Girl Assistant, Maya could stop being a mirror for her sister.

Similarly, Kazuma and Susato are sibling-like. Kazuma, like Mia, is the tutorial mentor, but he’s only a mentor to Ryunosuke because he’s a law student and Ryunosuke isn’t. He doesn’t have that much more knowledge than Ryunosuke and I think it correlates that he doesn’t have that much more knowledge than Susato, the girl who expected to be his legal assistant. There is something like equality here between the Mentor and the Weird Girl Assistant when neither precisely fits their role mold. Kazuma is, I think, as weird as Susato is knowledgeable.

BUT WHAT ABOUT --

Bitch, you know I've always got Apollo Justice opinions to drop.

In Apollo Justice, Kristoph is a fully knowledgeable mentor to Apollo. He is an actual lawyer, he is Apollo’s senior, and he is Apollo’s employer. In these ways, he is on all fours with Mia.

Aside from being the murderer.

There is, frankly, an entire other thing to get into with the tutorial mentors and how their stories intersect with death and a turning point in their respective protagonist’s life and career but this is about Weird Girl Assistants.

So.

What is Kristoph Gavin’s Weird Girl Assistant connection?

THE INCIDENT.

Seven years earlier, in Zak Gramarye’s trial, Trucy is used by Kristoph to deliver fake evidence to Phoenix, leading to Nick’s disbarment.

In Apollo’s tutorial trial, for the murderer of Shadi Smith/Zak Gramarye, Trucy is used by Phoenix to deliver fake evidence to Apollo, leading to Kristoph's arrest (and possibly his disbarment but who knows in the world of Ace Attorney and Japanifornia).

I have nothing but love for Trucy, but she's the shifty, deceitful Weird Girl Assistant to follow a shifty, deceitful Tutorial Mentor in a game about disillusionment and broken trust, following a trilogy about believing in yourself, your instincts, and redemption, and preceding two games riding a balance between hope and despair, with part of that balance being a more equal partnership between the Attorney and his Weird Girl Assistant.

[nutmeg-mayonnaise]

If Gregory, Mia and Mel are Phoenix and Maya's biological kids, does that mean Phoenix and Maya have Done the Deed, so to speak? Or were other methods involved?

Hello friend! I feel like if I gave the “quick” answer to this question, it’s going to be missing a lot of important context, and since I feel like the topic of family planning from a queerplatonic/aroace perspective is seldom talked about, I'm going to go more in-depth.

[ID: Edgeworth, Phoenix, and Maya holding or carrying children. Edgeworth is carrying the fan character Gregory Wright as a child on his back, with his eyes closed and a tense expression. Gregory has a happy face with closed eyes with his arms wrapped around Edgeworth’s shoulders. Phoenix has the fan character Mia Fey as a young child on his shoulders and head. Mia has her hands covering Phoenix’s eyes and has a determined expression. Phoenix is gripping Mia’s legs. Maya is holding Melusina Fey as an infant to her chest with a happy expression with her eyes closed.]

This is a little long and I know the subject matter isn’t for everyone, so the details along with a mini-comic are below the cut! (Nothing discussed is above the T rating!)

In my AU, Phoenix, Maya, and Edgeworth are all on different places on the aromantic and/or asexual spectrum (cue "Ace" Attorney jokes). It’s also worth mentioning that they're in a queerplatonic relationship, so their orientations don't really matter that much with regards to the polycule. If any of them wanted to pursue a romantic relationship with someone besides each other, it doesn’t break the queerplatonic polycule. However, their orientations does matter with regards to the kids.

One of the fics I'm writing takes place after Spirit of Justice where Maya is starting to seriously think about the future of the Fey Clan lineage. This makes Phoenix anxious, as he's well aware of the history of disastrous marriages in Kurain Village, and hopes to whoever's listening that it doesn't happen to Maya, too. However, he's not attracted to her in that way, so he doesn't get involved outside of being there for moral support.

Extremely long story short, after Maya's disastrous dating life--where she discovers she does not like romantic attention--soul-searching, emotional turmoil, Phoenix and Maya ask themselves why they couldn't have a family together as friends--especially after Edgeworth lectures both of them on separate occasions that they were viewing the situation too romantically. Fey Clan lineage doesn't care about romance, you see.

Obviously how the kids came to be was a huge hang-up. When Maya lamented that she wasn't fond of romantic attention during her moment of self-discovery, Phoenix recommended she have a chat with Edgeworth, who suggested the very unromantic route of donors (and offered to help pay). On a different occasion, when Phoenix was hung up over the birds and the bees, so to speak, Edgeworth suggests that he (Phoenix, to be clear) could be a donor for Maya. That doesn't involve contact, Maya's kids would have a dad who loves them and their mom, it's a win-win.

Unfortunately, well after Phoenix and Maya were already emotionally invested in starting the family together, Maya learns that known donors require a lot more time and money than unknown donors, as well as mandatory therapy. Did I mention money? So, to put a finer point on it, since they felt very secure with their friendship and nothing has threatened it thus far in this situation, they didn't see why they couldn't give the "free" route a shot.

As you might have guessed, given the lack of attraction towards each other in that way... it did not go well. 

It was the straw that broke the camel's back and started to strain their relationship. So much so, that when they were working together in court after trying for a few months, Edgeworth noticed they were irritable towards each other and requested a recess to chat with them...

[ID: Two comic panels. The first panel has Edgeworth, Phoenix, and Maya in the Defendant Lobby. Edgeworth is standing before Phoenix with his arms crossed. Phoenix is sitting on one end of the couch hunched over in distress with his hand over his forehead. Maya is sitting on the other end of the couch, facing away, with her hands together on her lap and a red face. The narration says “After a long vent about Phoenix and Maya’s Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Time...”. The second panel has Edgeworth with his arms crossed and his eyes closed. He says “Why are you two not considering medical assistance?”]

[ID: Two more comic panels. The first panel has Phoenix in the same pose as before. He says, “We don’t have that kind of time or money. I know you offered to help with the expenses, but it’s still too much, and we can’t ask more from you...”. The second panel has Edgeworth adjusting his glasses with one arm still crossed. His grits his teeth as he says, “Are you aware they have............. they sell....”]

[ID: Two more panels. The first one has Edgeworth typing on his rose gold phone with the onomatopoeia “tap tap tap”, looking flustered. There is a speech bubble with several ellipses. In the next panel is Edgeworth showing his phone to Phoenix and Maya, with him saying “Here.” Very small text pointing to the phone says “At-home kits that allow kids to happen with no contact for about $100. :)”. Phoenix looks at the phone with his eyes wide and Maya leans in, also looking at the phone with wide eyes.]

[ID: The same illustration as the first image, with the narration “Seven years and three kids later...”. Phoenix says “Hey, thanks again for the recommendation, Miles!” Edgeworth’s speech bubble has “.....*grumble*........” written. Maya has a speech bubble with a pink heart.]

(And Edgeworth is still in disbelief that he did more research than they did..........but he got a son out of the whole ordeal so it’s okay. :) )

To sum it all up, while it was far from their first choice, they certainly did give Doing the Deed a shot for the sake of saving time and money, but they found it was too much for them so all three kids were conceived with those at-home kits. 

Thanks for the question!

[roxannarambles]

I was bored and wrote a drabble and it’s very silly (art is some official artwork although the context is never given for it so I’m inventing some context)

It had ended up being a bit of a tradition, now. The losers would treat the winners to dinner. At first, it was just casual trips to the noodle house, everyone crowded into the little resturtaunt, Gumshoe with his wide, easygoing grin as he drank his root beer, Maya slurping her noodles noisily, Edgeworth looking so laughably out of place as he gazed at Phoenix disdainfully from across the table, as if Maya's dreadful table manners were somehow his fault.

But one evening, after an especially gruelling 10-hour stint in court, when Phoenix had immerged victorious but had such little energy left at the moment of victory, he had emitted little more than a grateful whimper when the court finally, mercifully made its ruling-- it was then when Edgeworth had approached to shake his hand, smiled at him ruefully, and suggested a resturuant that offered meals with a little more substance than ramen.

That was how they'd ended up here, at some upscale Italian resturuant, and it was now Phoenix and Maya's turn to look out of place; Phoenix hoped his beraggled, cheap suit didn't look too sweaty, and his hair wasn't ruffled too ridiculously out of place from hours of running his hand through it nervously. Maya didn't look terribly excited at first with the fancy menus, containing choices she couldn't pronounce, but once the food came her eyes grew as wide as saucers and she inhaled things at a terrifying pace. Gumshoe, meanwhile, looked as though he was about to break down and cry right then and there. Phoenix chuckled and did his best to be the normal one of the group, quietly enjoying his mushroom carbonara (a choice Edgeworth had recommended to him and Phoenix had expected he would dislike-- he'd never been terribly fond of mushrooms before, too rubbery-- but he had been wrong to doubt him, the dish was so fantastic he was at risk of tearing up like Gumshoe was).

When the waiter had collected their dishes and inquired about dessert, Maya's boisterious demands were impossible to suppress, although Phoenix tried very hard to, as Edgeworth had already treated them so generously. However, Edgeworth dismissed him with an easy wave, and so they each selected something from the dessert menu. Phoenix had a raspberry gelato which was surprisingly delicious but the scoop was too small for his tastes (why would anyone bother with dessert if it's such a small portion??). After he'd finished it, he watched Edgeworth delicately eating his tiramisù with envy. Meanwhile, Maya was wolfing down a big cannoli. Phoenix said something snarky to Maya about how she was likely bypassing her tastebuds by eating so fast, and Edgeworth remarked that was interesting commentary from the man who had finished his dessert in under thirty seconds (Maya guffawed).

"Hey! It wasn't my fault the scoop they gave me was so tiny," Phoenix lamented, still gazing longingly at Edgeworth's dessert. Edgeworth quirked one of his elegant brows. In a voice that somehow sounded both deeply exasperated and amused at once, he asked,

"Do you wish to sample my tiramisù?"

Phoenix's eyes lit up as if he was just offered the keys to the pearly gates. With almost childlike glee, he asked,

"You'll let me?"

Something flitted briefly across Edgeworth's face, an expression Phoenix couldn't identify; the man had paused midway from bringing a forkful of the fluffy dessert to his mouth. He seemed to deliberate for a second or two.

And then, with just a little twist of a smile, Edgeworth held the forkful of dessert out across the table towards Phoenix, those silver eyes settled entirely on him.

Phoenix's eyes widened and a flush fanned out across his face. Maya stopped eating, and he could feel her astonished stare.

Edgeworth's gaze didn't waver, that small hint of a smile edging a little further into his expression, and he spoke with the same calm, silky tone he often used in court;

"Well, Wright?"

Phoenix suppressed the shiver threatening to run through him, his short-circuiting brain struggling to parse what was going on (Edgeworth was teasing him? He was being mocked? That's what this was, right?)

After the half-second it took his brain to decide this, Phoenix felt his body taking over automatically, leaning forward and taking the forkful of dessert into his mouth obediantly. As he leaned back into his chair and tasted it, his eyes rolled closed and whined,

"Oh, god."

It was so light and fluffy and heavenly, why the heck hadn't he ordered this instead? He heard Edgeworth emit a noise that sounded startled and almost a little strangled. Phoenix's eyes popped back open, but it seemed Edgeworth had quickly gone back to eating his dessert, as if nothing out of the ordinary had just happened. Although, he was gazing quite steadily down at the table, and in the fancy candlelight of their booth, it almost looked as though his cheeks were dusted with just a bit of pink.  

"All right, next time I'm defering to your judgment for the desserts," Phoenix commented wryly. Smoothly, Edgeworth shot back,

"Next time? Next time you'll be paying and we shall be dining once more on overcooked ramen."

Phoenix crossed his arms and barked a laugh.

"Oh, you wanna bet? Those are pretty bold words for someone who's on a losing streak."

He looked to Maya for backup, but she was still looking at the both of them with a rather befuddled expression.

"A wager, hmm? Interesting," Edgeworth hummed, pausing a moment before proposing,

"Then the next case, winner takes all? Whoever loses shall pay for all future outings going forward."

Phoenix hesitated,  stammering,

"U-uh . . . all of them?"

Sounding a little alarmed, Maya cut in,

"Hold on, Nick, let's not start making bets we might regret . . ."

Edgeworth smirked,

"Stakes too high, Wright?"

Miffed, Phoenix shot back,

"It's a deal!"

"Nick."

Phoenix glanced to her.

"What? You don't think we'll win?"

She heaved a sigh and answered,

"Look, of course I have faith in us! But, c'mon, even you know a lot of our last win was due to some really great luck. What if our luck runs out next time? And . . . and then we'll never see the inside of this resturaunt ever again. . ."

Her forlorn expression caused Phoenix's confidance to immediately falter. He gazed across the table at the beautiful pudding that his rival was finishing off. Okay, damn. Maybe this was gonna bite him in the butt. Phoenix's lower lip quivered as he pondered the tragic possibility he'd never taste such heaven ever again. Or at least until he could actually afford to pay for eating at a place like this. That could be quite a while.

Edgeworth said grimly,

"Then you'd best savor it while you still can."

All right, that was just mean. He was gonna make Maya cry. Or him.

Arching a brow, Edgeworth gestured at Phoenix with another forkful of dessert and added,

"You look regretful, Wright. Perhaps you'd like me to feed you the rest of my tiramisù?"

Phoenix tried to respond but his rapid inhalation sent him choking on his own spit, and he fell into a coughing fit, face heating, as he choked out,

"HAha that's, that's COUGh, all right--"

 Later, when Edgeworth had dropped them off and they were walking back, Maya was unusually quiet. Curious, Phoenix glanced to her.

She was staring at him, eyes narrowed. Exasperated, Phoenix asked,

"What?"

She gesticulated wildly as she spoke.

"What d'you mean 'what?' What the heck was all that at dinner?! It's bad enough you guys have this weird constant sexual tension in court, but now I gotta deal with this crap at dinner, too--"

Phoenix yelped out,

"S-s-sexual t-tension?! Wh-what are you talking about--"

Maya looked at him in a way that reminded him far too much of how she looked when she was humoring her small cousin.

"Uh-huh, sure, you have no clue what I'm talking about. And why exactly are you blushing like a schoolboy?"

Phoenix tried to level a glare at her-- normally he didn't mind how cheeky Maya could be, but this was crossing a line here!

"Hey, maybe I'm just really uncomfortable with you referring to my childhood friend and trusted, reliable partner in such an--"

Maya cut in,

"Partner?"

Phoenix spluttered,

"WORK partner, I meant WORK partner!-- in, in . . . in such an inappropriate w-way!"

[milesdadworth]

feral over thinking abt phoenix and franziska being reluctant family and caring about each other so much

somehow they go from court rivals to antagonistic weird siblings-in-law to having fun snarking at each other to being competitive with each other during family game nights

to phoenix calling her up to bitch about something that he would normally bitch to maya or miles about but they’re not around/busy and he has to talk to someone about how stupid the PTO committee at trucy’s school is and franziska offers to come back and whip them for him before offering real advice on dealing with it

to franziska reluctantly asking phoenix for advice on a case she’s on for interpol because she just can’t seem to connect the evidence and she can’t go to miles for help and somehow its less embarrassing to ask phoenix but also 10x worse BUT phoenix is also the king of finding the threads of truth in a bunch of miscellaneous evidence and she trusts him to help her figure it out and yes of course he gloats about having to help miss perfect von karma but is secretly really touched that she sought him out and trusts him enough to help her

they get to a point where they’re close but they would never admit it to anyone and they swear it’s just peripheral caring that it’s just “you’re my brother’s partner” “you’re my partner’s little sister” “you’re my girlfriend’s dorky older brother” “you’re my little sister’s girlfriend and if anything happened to her i would kill everyone in this room and then myself and somehow you make her happy despite you nearly whipping me to death in a courtroom while I was trying to get her a not guilty verdict after she was accused of murder for the 2nd time that year so i guess i care about you”

but in reality they love each other so much THEY ARE FAMILY

[vikkirosko]

Headcanons

⚖️ Phoenix Wright x Reader 🚲

For Phoenix, relationships were something that rarely appeared in his life. His infatuation ended sadly, so when he realized that he had fallen in love with you, he tried to properly sort out his feelings. He didn't want to find himself in a similar situation again, but pretty quickly he became convinced not only of his feelings, but also that you had mutual feelings for him

From the very beginning of your relationship, you tried to see each other often. You came to his office when you knew he was busy on another case. You brought him a snack and sometimes helped him put the office and documents in order. You knew that he was doing a lot to win the trial and prove the innocence of his client, which is why you tried to help him in the few ways that were available to you

You tried to attend all the court sessions where Phoenix represented the defense. Every time he saw you among people, he felt confident in himself. Your support gave him the belief that he could do anything, including prove the innocence of the defendant

Phoenix cherished your relationship and tried to protect you. He knew that you could be in danger, as Maya was, which is why he tried to protect you from it. The last thing he wanted was for his loved one to suffer because of his next job

👻 Maya Fey x Reader 🍔

Maya didn't have a lot of opportunities to have a relationship. She spent most of her life in her native village where everyone was familiar to her, almost her own family. She met you in Los Angeles. You were her other older sister and it was she who introduced you. You were able to find a common language quickly and often tried to meet when Maya came to town. The news of her sister's death was a great blow to both of you

You supported each other after Mia's death, becoming even closer than before. Maya lived in your apartment the whole time she was in town. She was calmer with you. Your relationship began with the fact that after winning in court, she kissed you in a fit of emotion. You were both embarrassed by it, but that was the beginning of your relationship

You often went on dates when you both had free time. She told you about what happened to her during the time that you didn't see each other. When she returned to the village, you tried to call, but she did not always have the opportunity to do so. You understood that her aunt might not react well if she found out about your relationship, so you didn't tell anyone from her family about it

You and Maya have been through a lot of difficulties together. You supported each other and helped each other. You took care of her, lifted her spirits and tried to surround her with love. Your feelings for her were sincere, as were her feelings for you

⚖️ Miles Edgeworth x Reader 🚘

Edgeworth has never had time to arrange his personal life. He spent a lot of time studying and then working. It was only when he rethought for himself what it means to be a prosecutor that he began to find time for a rare rest. One of such rare rest was a friendly meeting with Phoenix during which he introduced Edgeworth to you

You and Phoenix have known each other since university, but unlike him, you graduated from the Faculty of Arts. During your acquaintance Miles behaved calmly and restrained, but his heart was beating furiously. He fell in love with you at first sight. It was the first time he felt such feelings and they did not hide from the Phoenix

Phoenix sincerely wanted to help his friend and you to be together. He saw that you also liked Edgeworth, so he and Maya tried to help you see each other's feelings. Their plans didn't always work, but eventually you and Miles really started dating. He was insecure when it came to relationships, but he genuinely wanted to make you happy

For the first time Edgeworth was so happy. He had friends, a favorite job and a loved one. Next to you, he felt warmth in his chest and wanted to smile at him. He was genuinely in love with you and hoped that you could spend as much time together as possible

⚖️ Franziska von Karma x Reader ⚜️

Since childhood, Franziska has not thought about relationships. She was completely focused on her studies, striving to become perfect, as her father had told her. She had no friends and certainly no romantic relationships. She aspired to become the best prosecutor no matter what. However, when she came to Los Angeles to work there as a prosecutor while Edgeworth was not there, she met you

You have worked in court and you have often encountered Franziska. At first she treated you coldly, but she liked you. She treated you more gently than others, sometimes being embarrassed around you. You didn't mind talking to her. You were genuinely interested in communicating with her, especially when she told you about life in Germany

When she left for her homeland, the first time you corresponded, sending letters to each other. She would have been happy for you to come to her, but she understood that you had no serious reason to leave your native country. However, in another letter you wrote to her that you were planning to surprise her. She assumed you were planning to send her a package, but she was wrong. You came to her in person. As it turned out, you were offered a job in Germany and you could not refuse the opportunity to combine the useful with the pleasant

She couldn't contain her feelings and hugged you tightly. She was glad to see you again. Now you had a lot of time that you could spend together. You had a lot of time to make sure of your feelings for each other and talk about them

[shikisei]

based on your reactions to aa2, especially how you enjoy that the cases more relate to and help develop pre-existing characters, I’m INCREDIBLY excited to see you play aa3. it’s a fantastic game and I’m happy for you to experience it yknow!!!!!

i'm really excited too! i don't have any idea what to expect, so i'm kind of scared, but it seems like a lot of people are excited for me to play it, so i'm sure i'll have a good time!

aa2 very much had its good and bad moments; 2 really good cases kind of bracketing a pretty... lackluster one, and especially because it started off with a silly scenario for the tutorial case it had this down-up-down-up timeline to it in terms of how serious i took it. (not to say that in a bad way, i still had fun! ...mostly) however both 2-2 and 2-4, as well as That One Specific moment in 2-3 were very strong points and definitely gave me a lot to think about. overall, i had a really good experience.

like you said in the ask, i really noticed the character development in everyone since aa1, and that's one of my favorite things about this game. observing brand new dynamics between characters we just met and even characters we already knew created a really interesting and wonderful narrative. just as an example, my friends have already heard my rant about how the reason we were able to succeed the final trial of 2-4 was because edgeworth was the prosecutor; if it was anyone else, phoenix would not have been able to stall it long enough, i think. they've established that they worked well together in 1-3 and 1-5, but we don't know if it's possible again, because this time there was another new layer added to it that tested that dynamic, being that edgeworth was gone for a year and phoenix's resentment towards him for it. so having that test of separation and meeting again almost as strangers shakes their ability to work together at first, but they eventually still find that the trust they had in each other held strong and were able to re-establish that dynamic from the first game, but with... more. i have more thoughts on that and the whole case itself, but i dont want to talk too long because i have a lot, so i'll save it for another time...

i may have talked about it before, this series has a lot of emphasis on family and it's importance, how other people regard it, and how far they'll go for those they consider family, whether it's good or bad. it was very present in the first game, but the major cases of this game really emphasized that idea also. (morgan trying to project her desires through pearl, mimi using ini as an escape, acro trying to get revenge for his brother, franziska and edgeworth and how she views him as someone she has to chase after <- airport conversation made me cry and cry so much btw, and this one is kind of projecting but phoenix and pearl doing everything they can to save maya). it's really important and i think it's good.

the line between selfishness and self-preservation is a thin one to walk on.

i'm sorry for rambling. thank you for the ask. here's a sketch for you! we will start aa3 soon!

[musashi]

i love turnabout big top for so many reasons but even without all the allegorical shit about franziska and miles and phoenix woven in i think i would always be predisposed to love it because the general plot of it is "sympathetic uwu tumblr softboy frames co worker for murder and no one questions it because said co worker is egocentric and arrogant and abrasive"

like its just SO emblematic of how that shit works in real life because yeah court of public opinion has nothing to do with your actions, it entirely hinges on if you present yourself in a pleasant way. if state v. johns was a real life court case that people were following or even if it was just online influencer drama and max and acro were being pit against each other, everyone would rush to acro's defense because he's softspoken and warm and appears level-headed. max would have 87 callout posts that hyper-analyzed his tone of voice and when you asked people why they think he did it they'd say 'idk bad vibes' with no actual evidence to back up the claim.

if we ignore the love triangle stuff--which we are, because it completely fucking poisons any valuable discourse to be had about big top--max galactica's only crime is that he is self-obsessed, overly passionate, and hard on his fellow performers for not being the same. he is abrasive and unpleasant but as maya says in the case itself, that doesn't make him a murderer.

(it's very very personal to me for obvious reasons. so much of my own callout post was just strangers claiming i was an abuser because they had one interaction with me where they deemed me unpleasant. the whole thing was wrought with people who were mad at me for stating an asserting a boundary, or because i didn't respond to their uncomfortable advances with patience they thought they deserved. and so many of the people who have done wrong unto me are people who resembled acro in personality as well, who fell back on their soft sweetboy persona to avoid scrutiny, because how could someone so pleasant and warm be bad?)

the fact that i look exactly like max galactica is really just the icing on the cake lmao.