Chapter Text
Hugs
Phoenix could still remember the first time he hugged Miles.
It was an ordinary hug, given a few days after the lunch money class trial. Phoenix had simply come up from behind and given Miles a friendly hug before sitting down. He was always an affectionate kid who clung to his friends a little more than was usual.
Then he just started up the everyday mundane conversation. He asked Larry how his day was and listened patiently as he got bombarded with complaints about last night's homework. What made the hug so memorable was that Miles did not chime in to the conversation to talk about his day but rather slowly ate his sandwich, his eyes not separating from the beige bread. It was almost as if he wasn’t even aware that he was eating it, his bites happened well after he had already swallowed his food. Phoenix looked over quizzically which caused Larry to follow his eyesight.
“You doing okay Miles?” Phoenix asked, causing his friend to look up from his daze.
“Huh? Oh yes, I’m quite fine. Perhaps I just got a little lost in my thoughts.” He replied, blushing a little at his noticed mood change.
“What are you so embarrassed about Edgy?” Larry asked bluntly, having not enough social awareness to leave well-enough alone.
“W-what? I’m not embarrassed! I am simply… processing. Being hugged by a friend is a new experience, that’s all. Father says it is healthy to take time to process new things.” He said, his tone taking on its usual poshness, only somewhat covering his embarrassment.
“Aww, sorry about that Miles I should have warned ya I was gonna hug you,” Phoenix said, smiling brightly.
The rest of the conversation continued on from that, only somewhat changed by Larry teasing Edgeworth, saying he’d never thought he would see Miles so out of his comfort zone.
Phoenix hugged Miles many more times over their childhood, so much so that Miles came to expect it and look forward to it.
Phoenix remembered this hug because, though he didn’t know it at the time, he wouldn't hug his friend again for many years.
It was December 27th. Phoenix had asked Miles if he wanted to stay over so the three boys could continue watching the Signal Samurai season finale marathon. Miles had gently shook his head.
“I can’t, my father has invited me to watch his court case tomorrow and I must be up bright and early to get ready-” Before he could continue his sentence he was already being enthusiastically embraced by his friend.
“Miles! That’s so awesome! You’ve been waiting forever to be allowed to go to court with your dad!”
Miles found a familiar blush returning to his face. “Yes well, father primarily deals with murder cases. He has explained that I am far too young to be present at one of those trials. However, this case is dealing with larceny.” At the confused look from both of his friends he sighed, “stealing, that’s what larceny is. Father has allowed me to come, seeing that I am all too familiar with situations in which a person has been accused of stealing from another.” At this he nodded at Phoenix, who gave him an impish smile.
“Well, what are you waiting for! You should go home and get ready for your big day!” Phoenix said, giving Miles a hand up from the floor. “Larry and I wouldn’t want you to be tired during court just because you stayed up late watching a show with us.”
Larry nodded, “No problems dude, I’ll tape it so that we can all watch it together in a couple of days,” He said, giving his friend an iconic thumbs up.
Sadly, the three would never get to watch the season finale together. They wouldn’t get to all be in the same room for a long time.
Earthquakes
Miles Edgeworth was never a fan of earthquakes even before that fateful day.
When the ground began to shake his heart skipped a beat. Thankfully, his father was always there for him when they happened. He would wrap his son in his arms to calm the shaking and distract him with stories, mostly about being a defense attorney. Miles learned to almost look forward to when this would happen, just so that he could hear stories of his father, who in his mind, seemed like a gallant knight, saving the princess that was his client, from the dragon that was the prosecution.
When the earthquake hit, he was in the elevator with his father and a bailiff who he could not remember the name of. The elevator rocked back and forth as the ground shook and Miles found himself sitting on the ground having lost his balance. His father had immediately gone to speak but was interrupted by the sudden halt of the elevator and the lights going out. Miles closed his eyes and covered his ears to avoid the sensory input of the natural disaster but the feeling of rumbling underneath him could not be avoided.
He did not know how much time had passed before the gun landed at his feet. All he could remember was that his breath started to become more shallow. The yelling of the bailiff and his father made its way to his ears. He couldn’t handle it anymore, he started hyperventilating from the stress and he lashed out in an attempt to make the yelling stop, to make the fear stop. He picked up the gun at his feet, it was cold. He couldn’t remember what he was thinking at the time or whether he knew the danger of the weapon he was holding. All that he could remember was the bailiff pushing his father, the weight of the gun in his hand, the gunshot, the scream, and then black.
When he woke up he found himself in a hospital bed, several hours after the incident had occurred. A nurse was watching over him when the after-shocks of the earthquake came. Miles could feel his breath getting short again and his body shaking. In panic, he asked for his father. The nurse was too cowardly to tell him the truth, only saying that his father could not be there at the moment. When the earthquake stopped she explained that he was having a panic attack. She explained that he may continue to have these in the future because of the trauma of being stuck in an elevator for 5 hours following an earthquake.
Then the detective came in to ask for Miles’ statement, and the boy was finally told about his father's death. The night after the talk is when the nightmares started. The gun, the shot, the scream, the guilt.
What happened next came in a blur. His father's rival, Manfred Von Karma took Miles in. Miles could not call him a father, the only word that could kindly describe their relationship was mentor. Miles was taken out of school and trained to become a prosecutor. His children's shows and bedtime stories were replaced by schoolwork and a goal to be perfect.
It was on a night, many months after being taken in, that another Earthquake came. Miles was working alone on his schoolwork when he felt rumbling under his feet and a rising heat in his chest. The cup of tea sitting next to his paperwork fell off the table and onto the hardwood floor. Miles couldn’t hold it in, the loud sound of glass shattering caused him to scream and fall out of his chair.
Franziska found him curled up underneath the table, shaking and barely able to breathe. She was not familiar with the kindness that was supposed to be offered in these situations but tried her best anyways. She offered a hand to her brother but did not get a reply. Frustrated, she grabbed his hand and dragged him out from under the table. Her arm wrapped around his side in an attempt at a hug. Edgeworth was reminded of his father and he relaxed a little. The tension soon came back when Manfred entered the room, he was on the other side of the house and had not heard the cup shatter, only being told later by the maid who had cleaned it up.
He stood tall over Miles. Franziska quickly pulled away, leaving Miles alone.
“Edgeworth, what are you doing?” Von Karma's deep voice boomed down at him.
Miles looked up obediently, “I-” he started, trying to find the words to explain himself. Before he could continue, however, Von Karma spoke again, his tone now more agitated.
“A Von Karma should not be so easily swayed by something so inconsequential as a little earth tremble. Your weakness threatens your perfection, you would be smart to get over this little phobia of yours, or you will never reach my standards.”
Miles felt a lump in his throat which he quickly pushed down. He wiped the tears in his eyes and pursed his lips together, “Yes sir,” he said. Apparently pleased, Von Karma left, followed by his daughter, leaving Miles all alone.
Edgeworth learned quickly to hide from others when he got a panic attack. He could not show his weakness to anyone, especially not his mentor. The only exception was his sister, who had become used to sitting next to her brother on his bed while he stifled tears that came from the nightmares. And just like that, his childhood had been taken away from him, replaced by a perfect record and an empty feeling in his chest.
Badges
Phoenix Wright’s playful attitude had not lessened as he grew older, if anything, it had only strengthened.
The proof of this was in the many inside jokes and witty one-liners that Phoenix and his assistant shared. Ladders (it’s a step ladder, phoenix insisted), the discussion of Maya’s all-consuming love for burgers, the hilarious amazement that both of them shared for the growing popularity of the neighboring hotel, the Gatewater Hotel, as a result of the first case the two had shared together. And of course, Phoenix’s need to show off his defense attorney’s badge to whoever he met during cases.
Phoenix pinned the badge to his suit as Maya talked on and on about needing a waterfall to stand under and how the coldness of the water helped her connect to the coldness of the dead and yada yada. She looked up and smirked at the way Phoenix was fondly looking at the badge. He looked up too and smiled.
“It's grown in luster, don’t ya think?” He asks.
Maya answers back in a playful tone, “I think your love for it has just grown Nick,” she said, adding, “Nick’s defense attorney badge, the one true love of his life.” Phoenix snorted. Well, she wasn’t entirely wrong. Phoenix did look at the badge with all of the love in the world, but only because looking at it reminded him of an old friend.
“Anyways Maya, if you need a waterfall why don’t you try taking a cold shower?” He said.
“Good idea!”
He sat on the couch and sighed, turning on the tv. The reporter was talking about some fake monster that everyone was convinced was real. Maya came back complaining about the water pressure in the shower, which Phoenix replied to, telling her to get hit by a firehose, a piece of sarcasm that Maya didn’t seem to grasp.
The mundanity of the morning was suddenly stopped in its tracks by one name,
“Sources inside the police department revealed... that the suspect's name is Miles Edgeworth……” Phoenix couldn’t listen to the rest of the broadcast over the ringing in his ears. Before he knew it he had dragged Maya out of the door and to the detention center.
When he got there and met Edgeworth’s eyes, the other man immediately stood up from his chair and fled to the door, not wanting to meet his childhood best friend's eyes for a second time.
No. The prosecutor turned defendant thought, no please, he can’t be here. Not today, not for this case. God damn it Wright, why can you never leave me alone! Why do you have to be so insistent on your emotions?
“Hey! Edgeworth! Come back!” Despite himself, Edgeworth turned around at the voice. He sighed and returned to his chair.
“What are you doing here?” He almost hissed in return. He still couldn’t meet the other man's eyes, opting instead to look at his young, purple-clothed assistant.
His glare must have been sharp because she nervously turned to Wright and whispered “Nick, I don't think he's in a very good mood.”
Nick? Edgeworth almost scoffed in his mind, it’s been a long time since I heard someone say that name. It must have been Larry who told her, Wright defended him from some time ago. If anyone had asked him he would have outright refused it, but Edgeworth had been keeping an eye on Wright’s career ever since he had read his name in the paper detailing the Larry Butz trial. Lost in thought he found himself looking at Wright, fool that he was. In his eyes was an ounce of pity buried by a wave of determination. He felt his blood begin to boil.
“So, you've come to laugh at the fallen attorney? Then laugh, laugh! Well? Why aren't you laughing?” He spit out.
Wright’s reply was too witty for his liking, responding to his assistant's questioning face he said, “Laugh and he'll get mad... or burst into tears.”
Why you… self-righteous, pompous. UGH. All of the insults that he could think to throw out would describe him better than Wright, and he knew the attorney would take advantage of that fact. He had seen as much in court.
“Edgeworth. We don't have so much free time we can spend it coming down here just to laugh at you.” Wright continued.
“Yes you do” he mumbled, “I hoped you wouldn't come. I didn't want you to see me. Not like this.” His heart sank to his stomach, he had said more than he wanted to.
They went back and forth a bit, Wright trying to press him for details and Miles refusing to talk using the excuse that Wright was not experienced enough. Edgeworth, of course, knew that the number of cases a lawyer has had does not immediately determine whether they will win a case. How could he not when Phoenix Wright had been the one to dethrone him from his perfect win record.
However, he had to stop Wright from taking this case. The DL-6 incident spread its roots too far into their legal system. In addition, he had received word from Gumshoe that his mentor would be prosecuting against him. He shivered at the thought of Wright meeting his so-called father figure, of taking a plunge into the childhood past that made him the man he was today. Above all, Edgeworth did not want Phoenix to discover just how vile of a person he had become.
Edgeworth was shocked out of his thought process when Wright held out a golden badge.
“Your attorney's badge?” He asked, failing to hide his shock. This was one question that he wasn’t prepared to answer so suddenly.
“Edgeworth,” Wright said, his eyes shining with that annoying determination. Stubbornness, some might call it. “Let me defend you.”
“Ha! Good one, Wright. But I'm not that hard up. Not yet.” Edgeworth recovered from his shock and swung a bit too much in the opposite direction of kind, coming off as harsh instead of neutral. Whatever, he thought, Maybe this is the push he needs to be convinced to drop it. “Me? Trust a wet-behind-the-ears lawyer with only three trials under his belt? Never! My case is near hopeless, Wright. Every defense attorney I've talked to has turned me down. Simply put, they were afraid they'd lose…”
He sighed, “It occurred to me that it might be my fault that they lack confidence. After all, I did get every single one of their clients declared ‘guilty.’”
Phoenix was taken aback, the correct reaction to Edgeworth’s blunt rejection. “I-I don’t believe it!” His shock had now turned to anger.
No, no! Wrong reaction Wright. He had to take back control.
“Regardless, I don't want you involved in this. You in particular, I cannot ask to do this.” His words became a little soft at the end, almost pleading.
Phoenix noticed.
He had to ask the question that he had been too afraid to ask Edgeworth before.“Edgeworth... this is really hard for me to ask... But... you didn't do it, right? Right?”
Edgeworth looked down. “Think what you will. I have only one request. Stay out of this case.”
He wasn’t expecting Wright’s assistant to step in, defending her friend. (Boss? Sibling? Oh god, lover?) Miles wasn’t sure of their relationship yet. “Why!? B-but Nick is trying to help you!”
“I know! … I know that! But I don't want your help, okay?” He bit back and turned away.
Before he exited the room he heard Maya say, “Nick... Mr. Edgeworth did it, didn't he?”
Good. Anyone would believe he was guilty now. And if Wright thought he was guilty, well that was all the better. Surely he wouldn’t defend a guilty man.