Chapter Text
Frankly, Apollo had known that the Stevens case was bad news from the get-go.
For starters, their client, Danny Stevens, was adamant he had committed the crime. Confessions were generally a bad starting point for any defense case and it certainly didn't help that Mr. Stevens, 26, was a healthy young man in a sound state of mind who had faced no police pressure when he had confessed. There had been no unsavory interrogation tactics, no intimidation factors, nothing Apollo really could hang his hat on to argue that the confession had been forced.
It also didn’t help that Phoenix seemed convinced of Mr. Stevens’ innocence and once Phoenix was convinced someone was innocent, that generally settled both the question of if they would take the case (they would, of course) and how they would plead (Not Guilty to all charges, naturally).
Apollo at this point would have been shocked if Phoenix Wright, famed turnabout terror and legal legend, even knew what a plea deal was.
Still, Apollo was loathe to admit that Phoenix had an uncanny ability to pick the innocent ones and if Phoenix believed in Mr. Stevens’ innocence, well the man was probably innocent. Apollo himself had interrogated Stevens as well, searching for any clues that the man was being dishonest. His bracelet had reacted violently throughout the questioning but Apollo knew the lies Stevens told weren’t because he had committed the murder he was being accused of. There was something else there, an entire hidden story, and Apollo’s natural curiosity was burning to get to the bottom of the whole mess. So sure, Apollo agreed that Phoenix was probably right and of course Apollo was eager to take on a difficult case like Stevens. These defendants needed attorneys who would fight for them and Apollo would never deny the thrill that ran through him when he turned seemingly impossible cases around in some truly spectacular ways. Honestly, Apollo wouldn’t have been so upset with the Stevens case if Phoenix hadn’t come bustling into his makeshift office a week ago, looking rather bashful.
“So there’s been a situation in Kurain.” Phoenix explained, once he had sat himself down in the chair across from Apollo's desk, “And I sorta need to go help Maya with some issues regarding a settlement of the estate.”
“You aren’t an estate lawyer?”
“No but you know.”
“I don’t.” Apollo sighed, “Mr. Wright you can’t just bluff your way through estate law? You’re going to commit some crazy tax fraud if you don’t do this right.”
“Relax, Apollo, she’s hired an estate lawyer to handle the technical....” Phoenix waved his hands around as if forming a shapeless blob, “...stuff. I’m just there to review everything and provide emotional support if necessary. Honestly, it’s probably gonna be more emotional support than law stuff.”
“We can hold the fort down while you’re out, boss!” Athena suddenly popped her head in, interrupting before Apollo could respond “You go help Ms. Fey with her estate stuff, it’s no problem!”
“Okay well see here’s where it might be a problem” Phoenix said smiling apologetically, “So I need to be there all of next week.”
“Sounds good!” Athena said, moving the shower curtain Apollo had set up to give himself some privacy as she came into Apollo’s “office”.
“The Stevens trial is next week” Phoenix clarified.
“Oh.” Apollo said, realization dawning, “You…want us to take the Stevens case. By ourselves.”
“Well, yes.”
“Just us?” Athena sounded concerned.
“Is it a problem?” Phoenix looked troubled, “I think you two can handle it. It’s a difficult case but you both have experience and have been working with me on it. I wouldn’t ask if I weren’t comfortable leaving it in your hands.”
“I…I think we can handle it?” Apollo said, trying to not sound too worried, “I mean. I think we can. Yea. We’ll be fine.”
“I’m only a couple hours’ train ride away too – if day one’s too bad then I’ll excuse myself and leave early, I’m sure Maya will understand.”
“No, no that won’t happen,” Apollo shook his head, feeling more confident, “I mean I’ve handled cases with just Trucy before and you’re just a phone call away if we need to discuss. It’s just Stevens is a tough one. He’s not cooperating.”
“Yea, he’s definitely innocent but hiding something” Phoenix sighed, running his hand over his face, “Of course I’ll help with the investigation till I leave and I’ll handle the paperwork for your and Athena’s appearances before the court.”
“Who’s the prosecutor on the case?”
“You’re in luck” Phoenix laughed, “It’s Gavin.”
“Oh thank god.” Apollo sighed, “He’s by far the least worst of the bunch.”
“You mean the best?” Athena asked.
“No. The least worst. They’re all terrible and I don’t want to imply that he’s not terrible but he is the least terrible. I will give credit where credit is due.”
“Can’t argue with that.” Phoenix nodded, “Anyways I’ll bring you two up to speed on Stevens this afternoon.”
“Sounds good, boss!” Athena said cheerfully, “We’ll probably head to the crime scene after that then.”
“Great. Thanks for stepping up,” Phoenix grinned, “And who knows? If this goes well maybe I can start taking more vacations…”
“Don’t jinx us before we even start,” Apollo rolled his eyes, “Let’s get through this with no major explosions before you commit to that partner lifestyle.”
The first day of the Stevens trial saw Athena and Apollo hurrying up the courthouse steps a full hour before their courtroom had even opened. Their plan had been to talk to Stevens before trial, mainly to confirm his pleadings and potentially pull some of the truth out of their unfortunately stubborn client.
“We don’t have much evidence to crack him on his lies” Athena sighed, flipping through the case file as they hurried through the courthouse entrance lobby, “So I guess we’re gonna have to rely on the old press until someone cracks method.”
“Love it.” Apollo said grimly, “You know, just for once I’d love a trial with a, oh I don’t know, cooperative client? Is that too much to ask, Athena?”
“But what’s the fun in that” Athena laughed, “Gripe all you want, Apollo, I see through that grouchy façade. You love these impossible cases - and going against Mr. Gavin. You’ve been looking forward to this all week.”
Apollo muttered indistinctly under his breath, ignoring Athena as he threw the door open to Defendant Lobby No. 2, marching in ahead of her and looking around for Stevens. There was no sign of him. Apollo wasn't particularly surprised, though he could feel the familiar tension knotting in between his shoulder blades as his stress rose. He had asked Gumshoe the night before to bring Stevens in early and while Gumshoe had said he'd do his best, he had made no promises. It seemed like the detective hadn't been able to make it quite as early as Apollo had hoped.
“Not here yet,” Athena noted, after quickly glancing around “Ah well - oh” one of the bailiffs noticed the pair as they came into the lobby and waved them over, “I think he wants us to talk to us?”
“Hey.” The bailiff greeted them as they approached, “The judge wants to talk to you two before trial starts. He’s in chambers now; do you know how to get there?”
“Oh, yea we know where to go,” Apollo said, swallowing nervously, “He didn’t happen to say why he wanted to talk, did he?”
“Nah.” The bailiff shrugged, “Just said to get you. Be sure to knock but then go ahead and let yourself in.”
“Right. Of course, thank you.” Apollo nodded before turning to Athena, “Let’s go? Not like we can do much here anyways and hopefully Mr. Stevens will be around by the time we get back.”
“Yep! Right after you” Athena smiled, grinning at the bailiff in thanks as they walked towards the judge’s chambers.
“I hope it’s nothing serious,” Apollo said to Athena as they exited the defendant’s lobby and started hurrying down the hallways towards the judge’s chambers.
“Probably not” Athena shrugged, “I mean it usually isn’t right? Like last time there were just some minor pre-trial issues that came up.”
“And the time before that was some extremely last-minute discovery requests.” Apollo muttered darkly.
Athena laughed, “Okay but that was one of the Paynes trying to pull some procedural bullshit. You know Mr. Gavin – he wouldn’t do that.”
“I suppose not” Apollo sighed, rapping sharply on the judge’s chamber doors as they reached them before pushing them open.
“Ah Mr. Justice, Ms. Cykes” the judge was seated at his desk, wearing a plain white button down and dark slacks. His robes were hanging on a coat rack behind him and while Apollo knew logically that the man wouldn’t be wearing his robes outside the court, it felt odd to see him dressed-down, “Come in, please have a seat.”
Apollo and Athena smiled, sitting down in the two chairs that faced the judge’s desk, “You wanted to see us, your honor?”
“Yes, I just wanted to speak with you briefly before trial”, the judge said, looking over a form on his desk, “There’s been a change in appearance – nothing major but Mr. Gavin came down with a cold so he’s been removed from this case.”
“Oh that’s unfortunate” Apollo said, frowning and quickly quashing the sharp flare of disappointment that rose in his chest. He certainly didn’t want Athena to pick up on that particular emotion, “If Mr. Gavin’s not on, are we postponing the case?”
“No, fortunately that won’t be necessary” the judge said, smiling, “We have a substitute. Mr. Edgeworth has agreed to step in to prosecute the case in his stead. I just wanted to inform you before trial began that he would be representing the state in today's proceedings, not Mr. Gavin."
“Wait.” Apollo said, horror slowly creeping into the pit of his stomach, “Edgeworth. Miles Edgeworth.”
“Ah yes” the judge frowned, “He’s currently our chief prosecutor. I apologize for not clarifying, I just didn’t bother explaining who he was because I just assumed you had met? I believe him and your mentor, Mr. Wright, have quite a, well, history.”
“No, I know who Miles Edgeworth is!” Apollo cried, “I’m just wondering what he’s doing stepping in to prosecute a case!? He’s the chief prosecutor!”
“Yes, I’m aware.” the judge said, a small, amused smile tugging at the corners of his mouth as he watched Apollo, “They apparently were reluctant to postpone and Mr. Edgeworth seemed rather interested in the case. Frankly I think it’s because he saw that you and Ms. Cykes were defending.”
“Us?”
“Surely you know Mr. Edgeworth and Mr. Wright go way back” the judge responded, “It’s only natural for Mr. Edgeworth to want to see how good Mr. Wright’s protégé’s really are, don’t you think?”
“Oh my god.”
“Think of this as a learning experience!” the judge said, his smile broadening, “You’ll be able to see one of the top prosecutors in the nation in action! Is that not exciting?"
“When I’m opposing counsel? No.”
“Alright Mr. Pessimistic” Athena chided gently, “Thank you for the heads up, your honor. We’ll be prepping our client now.”
“Of course. Best of luck against Mr. Edgeworth” the judge said, “I certainly hope you two are as entertaining against him as Mr. Wright is - the trials those two lead are always quite engaging.”
“We will certainly do our best!” Athena said, grinning as she leapt up, grabbing Apollo and dragging him towards the door, “See you in a bit, your honor.”
The judge nodded in agreement as Athena threw the door open and hurried into the hallway, Apollo following shortly behind her. They made their way back to the defense lobby in silence, Apollo’s nervous energy radiating off his small frame. As soon as the doors to the defense lobby swung shut behind them, Apollo rounded on Athena, panic evident in his face as he completely ignored Stevens, who had apparently been brought in during their absence. Their client stared nervously at them as Apollo started furiously whispering to Athena.
“Miles Edgeworth!” Apollo hissed, “We can’t go against fucking Miles Edgeworth while Mr. Wright is out of town!”
“Sure we can. And we will,” Athena said, “I don’t see what the big deal is, Apollo. We’ve gone against good prosecutors and won before.”
“Yea but he’s supposed to be on a completely different playing field!” Apollo said, “He’s ruthless in court!”
“I mean Mr. Wright likes him, right?”
“They’re rivals?”
“So how bad can he be?”
“Have you reviewed his cases?”
“No, I’m not a nerd, Apollo.”
“He’s brilliant, Athena. Brilliant but brutal. He started prosecuting at 20 - 20!”
"Hey, I became a defense attorney at 19 and I don't see you losing your mind over me."
"Athena, Mr. Edgeworth has resolved some of the biggest corruption issues in our justice system and abroad?! He worked with Mr. Wright to rewrite the whole system," Apollo continued, arms flailing about as he gestured emphatically, "He helped take down two chief prosecutors, defied the PIC board, worked on some of the biggest international scandals in the last 10 years and even when he left LA he published some of the most important works in international law? The ALI treatise on the interpretation of UNCLOS? The application of Torfu Channel and Nicagu on the 2023 nuclear submarine crisis in the East China Sea, specifically pertaining to the use of force and the right to safe passage? The resolution of the Gelin Marbles!?"
"Apollo, I don't know what any of those things are. I'm a criminal defense attorney."
"Athena - how - UNCLOS, okay so, barring treaties wherein states agree to be bound -"
"Oh no, we are not having a law nerd session now" Athena quickly cut Apollo off, slapping a hand over his mouth before he could really get going and glaring at him fully in the face, "Look, I don't care how nervous you are, I don't care if states are getting bound, the only thing that I care about now and for the next twenty-four hours is the California Penal Code and getting through today. We good?"
Apollo stared at her, his eyes wide and eyebrows quirked up in surprise before deflating, the tension slowly draining from his shoulders as he reached up and pulled her hand away from his mouth, "God. Yea. Sorry you're right I'm just nervous - it's just Mr. Edgeworth is sorta a big deal? Like he's good and god he's smart. Really smart."
“We’ve faced a lot of smart prosecutors, Apollo. We've faced a lot of good prosecutors. Gavin? Simon? Look.” Athena sighed, “How about you give Mr. Wright a real quick phone call and let him know what’s up.” She glanced at Stevens who had not stopped staring at them, clearly worried, “I’m gonna comfort our client because you are certainly not doing that right now.”
“Right. Good plan.” Apollo nodded, smiling tersely at Stevens who shot him a nervous grin back before turning towards Athena. Apollo only heard part of Athena's gentle greeting towards their client, quickly moving away from them as he hurried into a corner in the opposite side of the defense lobby. He reached into his pocket, turning towards the corner for some privacy before pulling out of his phone and calling.
Phoenix thankfully picked up almost immediately, “Apollo, hey!” he said, “What’s up?”
“Mr. Wright. There’s been a…development on the Stevens case.”
“You and Athena have trial for that soon, right?” Phoenix asked, concern creeping into his voice, “Is everything okay?”
“No, everything’s certainly not okay Mr. Wright – they changed prosecutors!” Apollo tried to keep his voice low, praying his client wouldn’t hear him, “Klavier’s apparently come down with some cold or something!”
“Calm down, Apollo you’ll be fine” Phoenix sounded relieved, “You and Athena can handle yourselves. God I thought something serious had happened. Why are you worried anyways? There’s literally no prosecutor in this whole state that can beat you two when you’re pursuing the truth. You know that.”
“Mr. Wright, Mr. Edgeworth is prosecuting.”
“…okay so maybe one.”
“Mr. Wright!”
“Kidding, I’m kidding, Apollo!” Phoenix laughed, “Oof, that’s rough though – Edgeworth can be difficult.”
“Difficult” Apollo repeated back, “I’m sorry, difficult, Mr. Wright we’re talking about Miles Edgeworth here, not fucking Winston Payne!”
“Yes, I know,” Phoenix said, his tone clearly amused, “Surprised but not worried, I guess. Edgeworth really doesn’t step down to prosecute anymore so they must be pretty short-staffed.”
“How are you not worried!?”
“Because I know Edgeworth and I know you two.”
“Mr. Wright, I’m sorry but that brings me absolutely no assurance whatsoever.”
Phoenix laughed again, “I know you and Athena can take whatever punches Edgeworth throws and I know he’s counting on you two to counter him. That’s how we get to the truth, Apollo.”
“Feels like there should be an easier way to get to the truth” Apollo grumbled.
“But it works, Apollo. Look. Edgeworth is relentless – he doesn’t ever let up and he can be one smarmy little bitch.” Phoenix said, his voice suddenly softer and more serious, “But he’s good. Not just at his job, as a person. He’ll work with you to get to the truth. I mean it won’t feel like he’s working with you, it’ll feel like he just he’s calling you and your mother and anyone that ever loved you a fucking moron without ever actually saying the words, the things the man can do with tone. And damn you’ll feel like a fucking moron, not gonna lie it kinda sucks. But then when everything comes together, once he’s seen the truth, once he realizes what he has to do, what path to take, god Apollo he’s beau-brilliant.“ Phoenix’s breath hitched and he suddenly stopped talking, pausing for a beat before letting out a nervous laugh, “Sorry about that rant. I…I got carried away. Um. Just a little jealous I guess.”
“You like going to court with Mr. Edgeworth.”
“Course I do.” Phoenix said, “He’s thrilling to go against. He doesn’t prosecute much anymore so it’s a real treat to be able to face him.”
“I…I guess. I’m just…nervous. I mean this is Miles Edgeworth.”
“And you’re Apollo Justice.”
“I’m aware.”
“So what’s there to be nervous about?”
“I…it’s Miles Edgeworth, Mr. Wright. He’s a legend.”
“And an absolute prick who loves his dog and Steel Samurai and hates elevators. He’s a man Apollo.”
“I guess.”
“Hey what’s your trademark saying again?”
Apollo sighed, “I…I’m fine.”
“There he is.” Phoenix laughed, “You’ll be fine Apollo. Trust yourself, trust Athena, and trust Edgeworth. But do kick his ass, I can’t bear the thought of my kids losing to that smug jerk.”
“Wow, thanks.”
“You’ll be fine. Call me when you can and remember, if things do get too bad just extend the trial and I’ll catch the first train back then put in an emergency appearance.”
“I. Yea. I don’t want that.” Apollo sighed, “We’ll keep you updated though, Mr. Wright.”
“Of course. Good luck, Apollo.”
“Thanks.”
Apollo hung up and stuffed his phone into his back pocket, sighing before straightening his shoulders and walking back to where Athena was talking to Stevens in a low voice.
“How’s Mr. Wright?” Athena asked as Apollo approached.
“Good.” Apollo said.
“How are you?”
“I’m fine.”
Athena grinned, “Hell yea you are.” She smiled at Stevens, “Court should be starting soon. We’ll find the truth, don’t you worry.”
“I appreciate your concern” Stevens said, “But I’m telling you, there’s…really not a lot to say. I shot Carla. I was upset and didn’t mean to kill her but I still shot her.”
“Mmmm” Apollo nodded, ignoring Stevens as he flipped through the case file to refresh his memory. Something about this case didn’t sit right with him and before Phoenix had left, he had sat down with Apollo and Athena to discuss their case theory.
“This is a cover up” Athena had said, her voice ringing with certainty, “Nothing about this murder makes any sense. There’s just too much evidence and it contradicts the timeline that Mr. Stevens gave.”
“I agree with you” Phoenix nodded, “So the question is then – who is the culprit?”
“Look at who stands to benefit the most from the victim’s death.” Apollo said, examining the case file, “And that would be Mr. Charles Tompkins.”
“The defendant’s boyfriend.” Athena said.
“And victim’s younger brother.” Apollo provided, “With a very clear motive.” Apollo pulled a rather thick contract from the file, placing it down on the table with certainty, “I’d say a $2 million life insurance policy is as good as a motive as any?”
“Mr. Stevens keeps saying he murdered the victim because she was abusive towards Tompkins. His story is he went to the victim’s house – his boyfriend had been staying with her because of some work issues – where he got into an altercation with the victim over Tompkins.” Phoenix said, thoughtfully, staring up at the ceiling as he recounted their client’s story, “He shot her with a gun he found in the house. He said Tompkins was in his room when this all happened and had nothing to do with the shooting.”
“Our client seriously expects us to believe his boyfriend just sat in his room while his sister and boyfriend got into such a bad fight that someone got shot” Apollo rolled his eyes.
“So we have our case theory” Athena said, “Now we just have to prove it.”
Which was where they were now. Apollo sighed, closing the file before turning to Mr. Stevens.
“Mr. Stevens, you’re sticking to your story?” Apollo asked, “That you shot the victim?”
“I did, Mr. Justice” Stevens said, “I…I’m sorry that you have to defend me but I shot her.”
Apollo ignored the familiar feeling of his bracelet tightening. It wouldn’t do him much good, as he already knew Stevens was lying but had no concrete evidence to force the truth out of him, “Alright Mr. Stevens.” He said, resigning himself to another stressful day, “How are you hoping to plead?”
“Guilty. Um to second degree murder though, right?”
“You’re the one making the plea.”
“What’s the difference between first and second degree again?” Stevens asked.
“Well, obviously, first degree is the more serious charge and a capital crime but what really distinguishes the two is intent. First degree requires the state prove premeditation and deliberation as part of intent,” Apollo said, ticking the elements off in his head, “Premeditation is a decision to kill, deliberation is a consideration of that decision. So you basically need two steps in a first degree murder - a plan to commit the murder and then a chance to reflect on that plan. Generally the state will demonstrate these elements through evidence - things like a plan or motive to kill, the time that elapsed between the decision to kill, and the nature of the act.”
“Well...I didn’t intend to kill her” Stevens said, “So I committed second degree murder?”
“That is the plea we entered and what we argued in our response to the state’s complaint,” Apollo responded, “Second degree murder is still obviously a very serious crime but it carries a lighter sentence. The death penalty is off the table in a second degree murder conviction but you can serve up to 25 years in prison.”
“Then yes.” Stevens nodded, his face pale but determined, “I...that’s what I want. I want to plead guilty to second degree murder.”
“Very well” Apollo sighed, “But I should warn you that the state is pursuing a first degree murder case, which is being presented by an extremely competent prosecutor. If they succeed, then you probably will be hanged.”
Stevens swallowed, his hands flying in front of him as he grasped himself nervously, “I…I’m aware.” He said softly, “It’s fine. This is fine.”
“If you’re covering up for someone…”
“I’m not!” Stevens cried with such force that Apollo instinctively took a step back, “Ah. No, sorry but I’m not covering up, I shot her!”
“While your boyfriend sat in his room.”
“He…he was listening to music.”
“While his boyfriend and his sister had a crazy shouting match in the kitchen over him.”
“He doesn’t like confrontation.”
“Funny.” Apollo said, “I pulled his criminal record and he has a history of assault charges. Seems pretty confrontational.”
“He…he doesn’t like confrontation in his personal life.”
“Oh really now. And half his assault charges involve family members because…?”
Stevens gaped at Apollo, his face flushed, “I…Mr. Justice. You aren’t going to enter his criminal record…Charlie’s really sensitive about that stuff and it has nothing to do with this trial. If…if you’re trying to drag his name through the mud, with all due respect I think I’d like to go pro se.”
“Relax, Mr. Stevens,” Athena looked annoyed, “Even if we wanted to move Mr. Tompkin’s record into evidence, we probably can’t. Or it'd be a very bad idea at least. Character evidence rules.”
“I. Good.” Stevens steeled himself, “Because when I say Charlie had nothing to do with this, I mean it. That’s what I want to tell the court, Mr. Justice, and I would ask that you respect my wishes. If you don’t I will fire you on the spot.”
Apollo resisted the urge to roll his eyes. It was so obvious that Stevens was covering up for Tompkins but now it was Apollo’s responsibility to prove this was the case. In a way that wouldn’t get him fired. In a court of law. Against Miles Edgeworth.
Sometimes Apollo really wondered why he had become a criminal defense attorney. Securities law probably would have been more profitable and he had been good at that in law school. Maybe it really was time to reconsider his career path; after all, nobody’s life was on the line when you fucked up an IPO...
“Mr. Justice, Ms. Cykes” the bailiff approached, interrupting Apollo’s train of thought, “They’re ready for you now.”
“Great. Thanks.” Apollo nodded, smiling grimly at Athena before he squared his shoulders and nodded, “Let’s do this.”
The bailiff nodded, pulling the door open for the three of them. Stevens stumbled into the courtroom, flanked by Apollo and Athena, who gently placed a hand on his elbow and guided him to the defendant’s chair. Stevens looked at her, shaking slightly before plopping down bonelessly and shrinking into the chair, shoulders hunched and face scrunched up on a mixture of fear and sadness.
Ah. That.
Apollo sighed, studying Steven’s broken figure as he made his way over to the defense’s bench. Right. That’s why he did this. He had always enjoyed law, of course. Puzzling through statutes and the legislative intent behind the placement of a comma had always been fun for Apollo but even beyond that, Apollo had just wanted to help people. There had never been some noble call or desire to pursue justice, no lofty aspirations about reforming the legal system or even really leaving his mark, just a simple desire to reach out to someone hurting in front of him and ease their pain. Advocating for people who needed it when nobody else would, when the stakes were literally life or death - despite his misgivings and shitty studio apartment, Apollo knew he’d probably never be able to give this up to structure corporate mergers, no matter how nice six-figure bonuses and his own two-bedroom condo sounded.
Let’s just hope I’m actually up to the task Apollo thought grimly, organizing his files on his desk as Athena began setting up Widget for the courtroom.
The door to the prosecutor’s lobby opened and Apollo quickly pushed down a wave of nausea as Edgeworth walked in, his case file tucked snugly beneath his right arm. The man was dressed in the same burgundy outfit Apollo had always seen him in and Apollo nodded jerkily as Edgeworth made eye contact. The prosecutor nodded slightly in return before also nodding to Athena as he made his way to his own bench, spreading out his case file in front of him and arranging everything in neat piles on his desk.
“Oh god oh god oh god this is really happening” Apollo whispered, his face heating up, “Athena he’s right there. It’s really him. He’s on the other side of the courtroom.”
“Apollo…we’ve seen Mr. Edgeworth before. He comes to the agency all the time. Him and Mr. Wright get lunch together at least once a week.”
“Yea but that’s not court.”
“We’ve seen him in court.”
“As observers for Mr. Wright’s trials!”
“Apollo, you sweating bullets and passing out really isn’t gonna help much you know.”
“I can’t help it Athena!”
“I don’t know – imagine him naked?”
“That’s so much worse.”
“But less intimidating?”
“Still intimidating! But worse!”
There was a clatter as the judge finally came out of his chambers, the entire courtroom standing as he climbed the stairs to the bench.
“Please be seated” the judge said as he settled into his chair, “Now, I believe this is State v. Stevens? Are both parties ready?”
“The prosecution is ready, your honor.” Edgeworth spoke, his voice rich and even.
“The defense is also ready, your honor.” Apollo nodded, trying to sound more confident than he felt.
“Very well” the judge said, “I believe there are no pre-trial matters so Mr. Edgeworth, your opening statement please.”
Going into the trial, Apollo knew it would be rough. The prosecution had a strong case. Their own defendant had confessed to the crime. And Miles Edgeworth, not Klavier Gavin, was prosecuting the case.
Despite that, Apollo was not quite prepared for the absolute shitshow the trial quickly turned into.
If Apollo had to pinpoint the moment when their case absolutely blew up in their face, he would have to say it was probably when the prosecution began their case in chief. The first witness to take the stand was Detective Gumshoe, who had been called to lay out the scene of the crime and the state’s overall theory. Apollo had crossed Gumshoe before but for whatever reason his testimony was solid this time – the police had shown up to the scene after a 911 call from the defendant’s frantic boyfriend and had found the defendant, calm and holding the weapon that had clearly fired the bullet lodged firmly into the back of the victim’s head.
“Well, the detective just said the police had found evidence of a struggle, right?” Apollo asked Edgeworth thinking hard after raising an objection, “But the lack of gunpowder residue suggests the victim was shot from a distance of at least 2-3 yards. Your theory is they were fighting, and during the struggle, Mr. Stevens shot the victim in the head. But that makes no sense – why would there be such a distance between the victim and their killer if they were in the middle of a fight?”
“But if the defendant had left the room, retrieved the gun, and returned to shoot the victim, some distance would make sense, correct Mr. Justice?”
“Mr. Edgeworth, there is evidence that the victim was armed!” Apollo shot back, “We have a rolling pin that has her fingerprints on it. It’s believed that she was fighting against her attacker with that – your theory is that he just walked out of the room in the middle of their fight and then she just sat there after fending him off with a rolling pin!? That makes no sense!”
“Indeed, Mr. Justice” Edgeworth smirked, “Care to enlighten us on the defense’s theory then?”
“Well there’s evidence of a struggle and it's clear she did try to fight her attacker off right before she died. However, she was still shot from at least 2-3 yards away.” Apollo said, speaking slowly as he worked through the facts, “Combine that with the fact that she was shot in the back of her head…it’s clear she was trying to run away.”
“Very well” Edgeworth shrugged, “So far the state has no objections with the defense’s theory of the events.”
“Apollo, be careful. Mr. Edgeworth is going along with your theory way too easily for my liking.” Athena muttered. Apollo nodded, swallowing heavily before he continued.
“So…so the prosecution’s theory is unfounded!” Apollo cried, “It wouldn’t have been possible for Mr. Stevens to have shot the victim! They were arguing, he couldn’t have left the room to retrieve the gun while she was trying to escape! If that were the case, she would have been long gone by the time he got back!”
“Interesting” Edgeworth seemed completely unphased and Apollo felt a sinking in the pit of his stomach, “It almost seems like the killer had the gun on them when the fight started.”
“That’s the only way for this to make sense.”
“And I do believe that the defense has argued that it is impossible for this case to be first-degree murder because of a lack of premeditation and deliberation” Edgeworth said, picking up and flipping through what Apollo assumed to be the defense’s response brief, “As evidenced by the fact that the murder weapon was actually the victim’s own handgun, is that correct? Your position is that this was a spontaneous killing and thus second degree?”
“Yes” Apollo nodded, “If this was a premeditated murder committed by Mr. Stevens, he would have brought his own weapon. The fact he didn’t have one demonstrates that he had no plan to commit the murder. No plan, no premeditation. No premeditation, no deliberation. Without those elements, the state cannot prove first degree murder. Perhaps you would like to amend your charges to second degree, Mr. Edgeworth?”
“Cocky, aren’t we, Mr. Justice?”
“Just trying to ensure the state meets their burden.”
“I appreciate the concern” Edgeworth drawled, not even sparing Apollo a glance as he continued to flip lazily through the response. Apollo flushed, annoyed with the blatant disregard Edgeworth was showing him, “A quick legal question I was hoping you could help me with though. In establishing the intent element, when exactly does the state have to show that the plan to kill was formulated?”
“There’s no precise timing requirement.” Apollo responded quickly, “For either premeditation or deliberation. As demonstrated in the Watson case, the crime can be formulated shortly before the act. Even a few seconds may be enough for a killer to consider their actions. This means that even a murder that is conceived shortly before being carried out can meet both intent elements. It’s a totality of the evidence deliberation, Mr. Edgeworth, not a precise science.”
“Thank you for your response and for answering both my premeditation and deliberation concerns.” Edgeworth said, still not looking up from the response, “I see you certainly have a greater command of case precedence than other defense attorneys who elect to get through trial on bluffs alone.” Edgeworth finally stopped reading, looking up at Apollo, a lazy smirk gracing his handsome features, “So Mr. Justice help me work through this hypothetical. Say a killer comes to a location unarmed but obtains a gun at the location. They then keep the gun on their person before getting into an altercation with another individual, who they shoot. Does the fact that they obtained the weapon upon arrival instead of bringing the weapon with them change the intent analysis?”
“Well…no.” Apollo said slowly, “The analysis doesn’t have a precise time limit. So even the fact that they obtained the gun later doesn't really matter. It’s the fact that they brought a gun into the argument at all. That act would suggest that they had formulated a plan to commit murder, meeting the premeditation requirement. The killer then had a chance to consider throughout the argument, meeting the deliberation - aghk!”
Edgeworth's smile sharpened as Apollo realized what he had said, “I see the defense finally understands. Mr. Justice kindly established earlier that the killer must have brought the gun to the argument with the victim, since the victim was shot as she was fleeing. The fact that the defendant arrived at the scene unarmed has no bearing on this case, as he could have formulated the murder plan after arriving at the scene. After all, there is no precise time requirement, isn’t that correct, Mr. Justice?” Edgeworth paused, clearly not expecting an answer from Apollo, shrugging before continuing, “Thus, the defense’s original argument that this was murder in the second degree…” he snapped the response brief shut and let it drop to the bench in front of him, “....is frankly without merit. Thank you for clearing that issue up, Mr. Justice.”
“I-”
“I believe the state has met its burden for establishing the intent elements of first-degree murder” the judge said thoughtfully, interrupting Apollo, “The only question now remaining is if the defendant is the party who committed the crime.”
“Fuck that was smooth” Athena cursed, “You walked right into that one. I mean the flair he threw in there was totally unnecessary, did he really have to just drop our brief, but ugh he got you. You even handed him the precedence he needed and made his argument for him.”
“I didn’t see you helping.” Apollo muttered, “Could’ve tried to stop me from helping Mr. Edgeworth bump this case up from second degree to first degree.”
“Well we just sorta just blew up our whole response then. Alright. Cool” Athena sighed, “We are solidly in first degree territory now, huh? If we lose Mr. Steven’s definitely hanging. Talk about raising the stakes right out of the gates.”
“Oh my god. Athena we’re barely two hours into trial.” Apollo groaned softly, “At this rate I don’t even know if we’ll last long enough for Mr. Wright to come back.”
“Okay, no, we’ve only proven that the killer acted with premeditated intent” Athena whispered back, “We haven’t…gone anywhere with who pulled the trigger. And our actual case theory never rested on intent anyways it was always Mr. Stevens just didn’t do it. The response was just to convince Stevens to let us take the case. So this fight’s far from over.”
“Yea, you’re right” Apollo nodded, steeling himself, “This is just a setback. Let’s get back in there.”
Gumshoe finished his testimony, clarifying a few additional questions Apollo had before stepping down.
“If the defense has no objections, the only additional testimony the state would like to secure is Mr. Stevens’” Edgeworth said after Gumshoe had shuffled off the stand.
“We have no objections.” Apollo said, smiling at Mr. Stevens, “The defendant is willing to take the stand to tell his side of the story.”
“Very well” Edgeworth said, “Mr. Stevens, if you would?”
Stevens shot a terrified glance at Apollo before swallowing thickly and nodding, visibly shaking as he took the stand.
Please hang in there Apollo begged silently, trying to maintain an encouraging smile as Stevens shakily introduced himself to the court. Please don’t give Mr. Edgeworth any more rope than he already has to hang you god please just tell the truth.
“Mr. Stevens, I’ll be direct,” Edgeworth said, once introductions had been made, “Did you shoot the victim?”
“Yes.”
“The state rests.”
“Objection!” Athena cried, “No – Mr. Stevens! The truth! We need to hear the truth! Need I remind you that the state is pursuing a first degree murder charge and the judge has already said that he believes Mr. Edgeworth has met his burden for intent! This is now a capital case, Mr. Stevens, with your life resting on its outcome!”
“I see you’ve inherited your boss’s propensity to badger witnesses into saying what you want them to say, Ms. Cykes.” Edgeworth interjected.
“The defense has a right to get the full testimony!” Athena shot back without missing a beat as she slammed her hand onto her desk, “Our witness, our direct, and we would ask that the defendant describe the events of the day.” She turned to Stevens, softening considerably, “If you would, Mr. Stevens, could you please describe exactly what happened?”
“Oh. Yea.” Stevens nodded nervously, “Of course.”
Stevens’ testimony was a mess. He had barely been speaking for five minutes before Athena objected, pointing out a contradiction so glaring even Edgeworth stayed silent, tapping his finger impatiently. This went on for about half an hour, Stevens stumbling and making mistake after mistake while Athena and Apollo pointed out every hole in his testimony.
“In conclusion” Athena said triumphantly, “Mr. Stevens couldn’t have committed the crime! The evidence proves he didn’t even enter the house until the victim had passed!”
“Interesting case theory Ms. Cykes,” Edgeworth finally spoke, and Athena glared at him, “However, you still have yet to explain the defendant’s confession.”
“His confession?”
“You say he lied to protect his boyfriend, Mr. Tompkins,” Edgeworth said, “He had, at this point been dating Mr. Tompkins for what? Two months? You mean to tell me that this man is on the stand, perjuring himself and facing a capital sentence merely because he wanted to protect a man he had been dating for two months?”
“That’s our theory, Mr. Edgeworth.”
“You don’t find this behavior extreme.”
“He’s in love.”
Edgeworth scoffed, “In love? Ms. Cykes, he barely knew Mr. Tompkins. He is now, according to you, offering to die for him. Your explanation is ridiculous.”
“Love is a strong emotion!” Athena said, swiping her screen up to put it in display mode, “I’ve psychoanalyzed his emotional output and I can confirm this man is very much in love with Mr. Tompkins. This emotion has been consistent throughout his testimony so it’s not exactly a leap to understand that this is the emotion driving all of his actions.”
“And you believe Mr. Tompkins to be the true culprit.”
“It makes the most sense” Athena said, “It was Mr. Tompkins’ gun. He had a…history with his sister and most importantly, a $2 million life insurance policy of which he was the sole beneficiary. Furthermore, he was the only one in the house at the true time of the killing. Everything’s there Mr. Edgeworth. Mr. Tompkins is the true murderer and Mr. Stevens is simply taking the fall to protect him.”
“Well, Mr. Stevens?” Edgeworth asked, turning towards Stevens who had been staring at Athena in horror the entire time, “Is this true?”
“Wha- no!” Stevens cried out, “No! I shot her! Ms. Cykes, what are you doing – I said I shot her!”
“And we’ve proven that that’s an impossibility, Mr. Stevens” Athena said, “I…I’m sorry. This is hard, I understand but we’ve got to get to the truth.”
“That is the truth!” Stevens wailed, “I…there must be a mistake in the forensics, I shot her, I was the one…she ran away and I shot her!”
“Ms. Cykes, you really are going to stick with your ludicrous love theory?” Edgeworth pressed, disbelief evident in his tone, “It isn’t love if Mr. Stevens is acting like this. It’s simply preposterous.”
“You don’t think I love Charlie?” Stevens asked, clearly confused.
“I believe you’re delusional and a fool if the defense’s theory is correct” Edgeworth retorted, “Hanging to protect a murder because you love him – it’s asinine. Frankly, a more credible motive for the defendant acting in such an irrational way would be much appreciated.”
“That’s what you do when you’re in love, Mr. Edgeworth” Stevens protested, “You protect each other. You help each other.”
“Not like this, Mr. Stevens.”
“Mr. Edgeworth, have you ever been in love?”
It was a simple question, a stupid question really, and Apollo expected Edgeworth to immediately shoot it down with his usual venom.
He didn’t.
There was a pause, a second, a heartbeat, and Apollo saw Edgeworth freeze. His eyes remind the same, haughty and condescending, but Apollo saw his hands grip his elbows suddenly, tight, and his mouth twist into an unpleasant grimace, as if the prosecutor were suddenly in pain.
It was over in the blink of an eye. Edgeworth exhaled, so quickly, so quietly that Apollo was sure he was the only one who noticed. His hands loosened, dropping to his sides and his mouth relaxed as he started speaking again, “Defendant, last I checked, I was not the one on trial today,” Edgeworth’s voice was calm and smooth, bored even, “I believe Ms. Cykes was attempting to establish your motive for perjuring yourself - would you care to explain yourself to the court?”
“What’s going on?” Athena muttered.
Apollo glanced at her, then back to Edgeworth, moving his hand to his bracelet which had tightened as soon as Edgeworth had spoken, “Are you getting weird readings from Mr. Edgeworth too?” he asked her, careful to keep his voice low.
“Insane readings” she nodded, staring at her holographic screen, which she had pulled down from display mode, “I mean I don’t even need Widget for this honestly, the discord in his voice from that one sentence is deafening. His emotions are all over the place, Apollo – he’s scared, really scared, and god there’s a deep, deep sadness there too. A yearning almost, that must hurt.” Athena grimaced, “But there’s…a happiness there too? It’s weak but definitely there, underlying everything. What’s going on here?”
“My bracelets acting up too” Apollo confirmed, “He…did not like that question. But why? Why would Mr. Edgeworth respond to a throwaway line like that?”
“If the defense is done conspiring, I would very much like to wrap this case up sometimes in the next decade.” Edgeworth’s voice, sharp and biting, abruptly brought an end to Athena and Apollo’s conversation, “Please instruct your witness to answer the question I asked.”
“Yes, right. Um. Mr. Stevens, would you mind answering the prosecutor’s question?”
“I am!” Stevens wailed, “Motive – you want a motive, as to why I might take the fall for Charlie, isn’t that right, Mr. Edgeworth?”
“It would certainly help your case.”
“That’s why I asked you!” Stevens shook his head, “Have you ever been in love, Mr. Edgeworth?”
“I generally choose to devote my energies to more fruitful endeavors.” Edgeworth snapped back, clearly irritated.
“Again!” Athena hissed, biting her lip, her hands jerking up slightly as she instinctively tried to cover her ears, “What’s going on!?”
Apollo nodded, feeling the band around his wrist tighten as soon as Edgeworth had answered the question, “I have no idea but Mr. Edgeworth is reacting badly to this line of questioning.”
“No – you’d understand if you’d been in love Mr. Edgeworth” Stevens said, “That’s why I would do it.”
“You perjured yourself because you loved Mr. Tompkins?”
“I – no. I didn’t commit perjury.” Stevens shook his head, “I shot the victim, Mr. Edgeworth.”
“But following the defense’s hypothetical.”
“I…if I were lying.” Stevens said, “Which I’m not. But sure. I love him, Mr. Edgeworth. I – none of this matters. It’s fine.”
“You would be willing to do this because of your love.”
“Absolutely”
“And you believe in Mr. Tompkins?”
“I love him, Mr. Edgeworth.”
“Answer the question, defendant.”
“I…yes. Of course.”
“And you think he loves you.”
“He does.”
“He doesn’t.”
“What?” Stevens looked shocked, “What are you talking about? How would you know?”
“Because if he loved you he would never have never asked you to do this for him,” Edgeworth snapped back, his arms crossed over his chest as he glared down at Stevens, “If that man loved you half as much as you loved him – you would offer, oh yes, and he would have never taken you up on that offer.”
“You don’t know anything about our relationship!”
“I certainly do not,” Edgeworth agreed, “But I know that asking someone to perjure themselves, to come to court and lie, to fall on the sword for them – that’s not love. The person you love should be an anchor, a guiding light, someone who holds you to the path you chose to walk together. He should make you a better person, Mr. Stevens, not demand you commit crimes to protect his worthless hide!”
“I – “
“Tell me, Mr. Stevens, did you offer to perjure yourself or did Mr. Tompkins ask?”
“H…he asked.”
“Interesting.”
“He – he knew I would say yes!”
“Of course he did, you’re in love after all!” Edgeworth threw his hands in the air, “You love him, Mr. Stevens. He sees you as a tool to avoid the hangman’s rope.”
“I –“
“Mr. Stevens, I’m curious, what were you doing before you met Mr. Tomkpins?”
“I…was a student. At Riverside. I wanted to get my Associates then transfer to a state school.”
“And what were you going to do after that?”
“…I wanted to go to med school.”
“And what do you do now? Are you on the path to med school still?”
“I. No.”
“Why is that?”
“Charlie said it’d…be better if I dropped out. Said school was stressful and my depression made it impossible.”
“Understandable. So of course once you dropped out Mr. Tomkpins assisted you in seeking treatment for your depression. Perhaps looked for a therapist? Helped you find counseling? Worked through your insurance coverage to see what options were available?”
“…no. N...none of those things.”
“Why is that?”
“He said he was busy.”
“Well then surely you sought help for yourself?”
“I…no.”
“Why not?”
“He said I couldn’t be trusted.”
“Oh really now?”
“It…it isn’t like that.”
“He convinced you to give up on your dreams to become a doctor, he encouraged you to drop out of college, he has done nothing to get you the help you need and he has gaslighted you into thinking you couldn’t even be trusted to handle your own health.” Edgeworth’s tone was scathing and Stevens winced as if the words physically cut him, “Furthermore, to add insult to injury, he has now asked you to take the fall for a capital crime. Mr. Stevens. He doesn’t love you. That isn’t love. It’s perverted and twisted and toxic and in no way is it love.”
“N…no. I…shot her.”
“Naturally, what you believe makes no difference to me” Edgeworth smirked and shrugged, spreading his arms wide, “You hanging would be another win for my record.”
“You…”
“Mr. Stevens, please!” Athena piped up, “Mr. Edgeworth is right – look at the evidence, think about what he said! He doesn’t love you! Please. Just tell us the truth.”
“I…I…” Stevens was grasping the witness stand, his head bowed, “What do you even know, Mr. Edgeworth” he finally spat out, “How do you know anything about love? You say these things after telling me you “chose to devote your energy to more fruitful endeavors” – what the fuck do you know!?”
Edgeworth said nothing, coolly regarding Stevens for a few seconds, “Mr. Stevens, I do not understand what part of ‘I’m not the one on trial here’ you utterly fail to comprehend.”
“I see you for what you are – an emotionally distant asshole with probably enough rich boy baggage to fill an entire cargo hold.” Mr. Stevens' voice was harsh, full of venom as he glared at Edgeworth, “Mr. Edgeworth – you talk about love but nobody has ever loved you.”
“Perhaps.”
“So what could you –“
“Do not presume to know me, Mr. Stevens.” Edgeworth’s tone was even and face impassive but Apollo had to swallow a gasp as his bracelet bit into his wrist. Out of the corner of his eye, Apollo saw Athena grimacing, the discord she was hearing in Edgeworth’s voice apparent in her face, “Perhaps I’ve never been loved. I don’t need that to see what you have, twisted and grotesque as it is – is a sham, some sick and pale imitation of what love can be.”
“Then you-“
“Of course.”
Edgeworth’s voice was soft, so soft Apollo barely heard his response, tender and for a brief second vulnerable. It wasn’t a tone Apollo ever expected to hear from Miles Edgeworth of all people but as he spoke, Apollo bracelet suddenly went slack, loosening with the prosecutor's last few words. Apollo wasn’t able to swallow back the surprised gasp that escaped him as the bracelet stopped biting into his wrist and Athena also sighed, her hand flying up and grasping Widget.
“It finally stopped.” She said, her tone wondrous.
“Same” Apollo nodded grimly, “What…what was that.”
“Something we can deal with after we get to the bottom of this” Athena said, gritting her teeth and turning her attention to Stevens, “Mr. Stevens…are you willing to talk?”
Stevens had been staring at Edgeworth the entire time, his face pale and red eyes brimming with tears, “I…yes.” He finally said, his voice quiet, tears trickling slowly down his cheeks, “Charlie. Charlie. Oh god Charlie shot her.”
To say the trial went smoothly after Stevens' confession would have been a lie. Of course, the defense had to prove each element of their case with Edgeworth fighting them the whole way (the things the man could do with tone indeed) but eventually they finally established enough probable cause to drag Mr. Tompkins onto the stand. From there it was just a matter of turning on the pressure, pointing out the numerous contradictions in his testimony until he finally cracked, admitting to shooting the victim for the insurance payout.
“Oh my god I can’t believe we did that in a day.” Apollo gasped at Athena after they filtered out of the courtroom, shaking his head, “Today was…rough.”
“But we won!” Athena said, pumping her fist, “You beat Mr. Edgeworth, Apollo! How’d you feel about that?”
“Honestly? Still feel like shit not gonna lie” Apollo groaned, “Mr. Wright was, well, right. Mr. Edgeworth can really make you feel like an idiot.”
“Yea but I can’t help but feel like he was actually helping us…” Athena said thoughtfully, “There were definitely points where he could’ve ended the trial but he kept it going.”
“And he actually honored discovery?” Apollo grumbled, “No springing last minute changes on us through trial…yea I guess. Prosecutorial discretion is sure scary.”
“Speaking of Mr. Edgeworth though…”
“Yea.” Apollo frowned, “What was that.”
“Apollo.” Athena looked worried, “I think we should go talk to him.”
“What.”
“The emotions in his voice were bad, Apollo” Athena said, “I know you can see when someone’s lying so we know he was lying and trying to hide something. But whatever he was hiding, it hurt him. Badly.”
“So you’re suggesting that we, two attorneys who barely know him, go see him because he’s hiding something that deeply hurts him and we drag this extremely painfully secret out of him.”
“Yep."
“By force if necessary?”
“We gotta do what we gotta do!”
“Athena” Apollo said slowly, “How do you not see what a monumentally bad decision that is?”
“Apollo, we need to help him.”
“Athena, if he’s hiding whatever this is, he’s probably hiding it for a reason!” Apollo protested, “I don’t know if he’d appreciate us barging in and pulling that out of him!”
“If he isn't willing to talk, it’s only going to fester” Athena responded, “You’re right though. I don’t think we should necessarily drag it out of him but I do want him to know he should talk to someone about this. Maybe make sure he has a therapist? Or Mr. Wright? They’re really close aren’t they? So this should be something he should be able to talk to Mr. Wright about.”
“Are you going to listen to me if I say we shouldn’t go?”
“Glad you understand Polly!”
“Don’t call me that.”
The prosecutor’s office was a short walk from the courthouse and Athena and Apollo showed their badges to bypass security, taking the elevator to the twelfth floor after speaking to Edgeworth’s secretary.
“Mr. Edgeworth should be available”, she said, looking over the calendar she had pulled up, “Just knock and go on in. I don’t think he’s expecting anyone but he’s been trying to keep an open door policy lately so someone might already be in there with him.”
Athena and Apollo thanked her and rode the elevator up in silence. It dinged at their location and they shot each other a nervous glance before making their way down the hallway, stopping in front of Edgeworth’s office door. It was a plain brown door, unassuming and exactly like every other door on the floor. Nothing distinguished it as the chief prosecutor's door except for the name displayed on the plate next to the door.
“I guess this is it” Apollo said, sighing before rapping sharply on the door and then pushing it open after a second. Edgeworth had been at his desk, writing something and looked up as Athena and Apollo walked into his office.
“Oh, Mr. Justice, Ms. Cykes” Edgeworth said, his tone pleasant despite the somewhat surprised expression that flashed across his face, “I suppose I should have been expecting you two. Please take a seat. Did you want to discuss Stevens?”
“Um. Well in a way.” Apollo said as he sat down on one of the plush couches in front of Edgeworth’s desk. The prosecutor had stopped working on whatever he had on his desk, still holding onto his pen as he removed his glasses and fixed Apollo with a steely gaze. God why had he agreed to this? He knew better than to go along with the ideas of any of the other members of the WAA, “Um. Athena?” he said desperately, who had sat down next to him. This was her stupid idea, she might as well carry the conversation.
“Mr. Edgeworth” Athena spoke clearly and with none of the hesitancy Apollo felt, “We noticed some unusual readings during trial and wanted to talk with you about them.”
“The trial’s over.” Edgeworth frowned, “Do you believe we missed something? This is rather untimely, don’t you think?”
“No, not with Stevens” Athena shook her head, “With you.”
“With me.”
“During your cross of Stevens.” Athena clicked Widget, pulling up the holographic screen and scrolling through it as she talked, “We got some really bad readings from you. Apollo’s bracelet also reacted to you – you’re hiding something and it’s really hurting you.”
“Ms. Cykes.” Athena’s frown deepened as Edgeworth spoke, “What are you asking me?”
“The discord is back in your voice” Athena muttered, “Mr. Edgeworth, with all due respect what’s going on?”
“I would like to ask you that” Edgeworth’s voice had changed, the warmth in his tone almost immediately swapped out for something defensive and cold, “You two are the ones who barged into my office, after all, demanding explanations for these hogwash readings.”
“It’s not hogwash!” Athena cried, “Mr. Edgeworth, psychoanalyzing emotions is a cutting-edge method to understand motivation behind actions and Apollo’s bracelet never lies.”
“Why does your entire law firm claim to have these ridiculous truth-detecting superpowers again?” Edgeworth grumbled, “I assure you, no matter the “readings” you’re getting from your odd necklace or Mr. Justice’s bracelet, there is absolutely nothing wrong with me.”
“No, Mr. Edgeworth” Athena shook her head, “I don’t even need Widget to hear the discord in your voice.” She said, her tone firm but insistent, “Look, whatever this it, it's clearly very sensitive and Apollo and I aren’t really here to figure out the details.”
“Then pray tell, why have you two decided to grace my office with your presences this evening?” Edgeworth spat out.
“We want you to get help” Athena said, “If you wanted to talk to me, I’d be happy to help but if not perhaps consider reaching out to a therapist or a close friend?”
“I have a therapist, Ms. Cykes.”
“But this isn’t something you’re comfortable talking to them about.”
Edgeworth said nothing, glaring at Athena. His silence spoke volumes and she sighed, plowing on.
“That…that’s not great, Mr. Edgeworth. Whatever this is, it’s poisoning you.” Athena paused, her eyes flicking over her screen, “This is festering and I don’t think I need to tell you how badly it's hurting you.”
“Of course you don’t” Edgeworth said, his voice harsh and pointed, “You think I’m that oblivious to my own emotions?”
“Then if it hurts so badly why not tell-“
“Because I cannot Ms. Cykes.” Edgeworth cut her off, “This is not a…new situation. I’ve dealt with this for over a decade. I assure you, I am perfectly aware of how to handle myself and do not appreciate your prying.”
Athena fell silent while Apollo absentmindedly grasped his bracelet. It had been reacting throughout the conversation, loosening at some of Edgeworth's admissions only to tighten a few seconds later. It was quickly becoming very annoying, a pulsing against his wrist, constantly expanding and contracting as truths and lies ebbed and flowed from the prosecutor, a tide of emotions that Edgeworth clearly was not able to contain.
“Mr. Edgeworth, we’re not asking you to tell us what’s going on” Athena said softly, “But you have to tell someone. This…this is unhealthy, bottling up these kinds of emotions for this long. If you can’t talk to your therapist, perhaps a close friend? I’m sure Mr. Wright would be happy to listen – “
“No.” Edgeworth’s voice had somehow become even harder, cutting Athena off, “Not him. Never him.”
“Mr. Edgeworth, I understand you have a rivalry with him but Mr. Wright likes you.” Athena protested, “You know he sees you as his closest friend - I mean he constantly speaks really highly of you, right Apollo?”
“Ah. Yea.” Apollo said lamely, “Um. He called you brilliant today when I called him about Stevens.”
“I am…aware of that.” Edgeworth’s voice was tight as he clearly considered each word carefully, speaking slowly and deliberately, “I know Wright and I know he values our…connection. He is indispensable to me and our relationship has not been an easy one. I value his companionship above all else and I do not doubt he feels similarly. Good god, I know this, Ms. Cykes.”
“Then talk to him” Athena said, her voice gentle, “Mr. Edgeworth the discord in your voice throughout this conversation has somehow gotten worse – you just can’t bottle up this kind of pain forever, it'll destroy you. Talk to Mr. Wright. As you said, he sees you as his closest friend and I know he’d prefer if you were honest and open with him about this.”
“He wouldn’t” Edgeworth said with absolute certainty, “This is one thing I cannot speak to Wright about – to jeopardize our friendship after how long it has taken to get to this point...to lose what we have…” he paused, the slightest softening of his eyes the only indication that the thought disturbed him, “I could never.”
“You think Mr. Wright would stop being friends with you over this?!” Athena asked, disbelief evident in her voice, “Mr. Edgeworth, you know Mr. Wright. There is nothing you could say to him that would convince him to stop seeing you!”
“Some things would certainly drive a wedge in our relationship, Ms. Cykes and that is something I am not willing to risk. As I said, I value Wright’s friendship and would not trade it for anything.”
“But that’s not quite true.” Apollo suddenly spoke, fidgeting with his bracelet which had by now grown uncomfortably tight. It had been bothering Apollo the entire conversation and while he had kept mostly quiet due to the sheer terror of pushing Edgeworth, the cold metal was almost becoming unbearable, “Mr. Edgeworth, you start rolling your pen between your thumb and forefinger when you lie, did you know that? You started doing that when you said you wouldn’t trade your friendship with Mr. Wright for anything. So that’s not true then. There is something you would trade your friendship for and that something is connected to whatever these emotions are. You can’t tell what this is to Mr. Wright though – is it because you’re worried he’d be upset that there’s something you value more than your friendship with him?”
“I-!” Edgeworth suddenly looked stricken, quickly dropped his pen and letting it fall to his desk with a clatter as he stared at Apollo.
“No, that’s not it, is it?” Apollo frowned, “It’s not that you want to trade your relationship with Mr. Wright for something else, you would never want to lose him. You weren’t lying when you said that.”
“Mr. Justice, I ask that you cease this line of questioning immediately.” Edgeworth snapped.
"So you'd trade your friendship with Mr. Wright for something, but you don't want to lose him...let's think the other way then. Turn it around. You don't want to move away from Mr. Wright, you want to be closer to him." Apollo continued, ignoring Edgeworth as he worked through his logic aloud.
“Mr. Justice!” Edgeworth had sprung up now, slamming his hands on his desk. He was nearly yelling now, his voice hoarse, tense with fear and anger, “Stop - I insist you and Ms. Cykes leave my office immediately!”
Apollo instantly flinched back, his hand dropping from his bracelet as he stared at Edgeworth in shock. The prosecutor's outburst had come one question too late though and the pieces fell together in Apollo's head forming a complete picture he had never wanted to see.
Edgeworth was willing to give up his friendship with Phoenix but not his connection.
Which meant that Edgeworth wanted to be closer to Phoenix.
Edgeworth wanted something closer than a friendship.
Which meant.
Which meant.
Oh god.
The trial. The question that had started this whole stupid chain of events. The one throwaway line that Stevens had asked Edgeworth.
"Have you ever been in love, Mr. Edgeworth?"
The back and forth that had led to that one admission from Edgeworth - the brief second of vulnerability that Apollo had never expected, Edgeworth suddenly soft and open as Stevens had pressed for an admission, some confirmation that Edgeworth knew, that he understood what it meant to be in love and what had Edgeworth said?
"Of course."
Of course. Of course he knew. Of course he understood. Of course Miles Edgeworth knew what love was, what love could be because he was in love with Phoenix Wright and this revelation slammed into Apollo like a ton of bricks as he gaped at the prosecutor.
“Oh my god.” Athena said softly, apparently reaching the same conclusion as Apollo, “Oh my god. Mr. Edgeworth. Oh my god I’m so sorry."
Edgeworth seemed to freeze for a few seconds before drawing back, the air and tension leaving his body as he slumped over, his face suddenly haggard, “Is this what you wanted?” he finally asked, his voice small and unbearably quiet, broken and filled with a deep sadness. He looked away from Apollo and Athena, his right hand flying to his left elbow, which he grasped fiercely, “Is this the all-important truth you wanted from me?”
“I…we had no idea.” Athena said, “Oh my god Mr. Edgeworth we didn’t know…”
“And now you do. Are you satisfied?”
“We would never, Mr. Edgeworth we thought it was just some problems you could talk to someone about, I – we – “
“You have your answer” Edgeworth was still refusing to look at either of them, his face flushed as he stared determinedly off to the side, “That’s my secret. You now know it. Now as I said earlier, if you could please leave me alone. I have work I would like to finish today and you two have done nothing but grossly hinder my progress.”
“We – “
“We’re going” Apollo interrupted, his face matching the hue of his suit, “We’re sorry Mr. Edgeworth, we’ll keep quiet about this.”
“That would be appreciated.”
Apollo nodded, standing jerkily as Athena stood too. With one last soft apology the two fled the office, letting the door slam behind them as they hurried out of the prosecutors’ building.
“Why did we do that. Why did I listen to you. Why do I ever go along with your harebrained schemes – you know, now I can never look at Mr. Edgeworth or Mr. Wright again so thanks for that! Is this karma? Did I do something to deserve this? I’ve tried to be a good person you know, I give to charity, I work pro bono, I separate my recycling from my trash so please tell me what the fuck I did to deserve that!”
Athena looked miserable as Apollo ranted, pacing around the office as he gesticulated wildly. The two had hurried back to the Wright Anything Agency, silent through the whole car ride but as soon as they had gotten into the office, Apollo had gone off, yelling at nobody in particular as Athena collapsed on the couch.
“I told you that was an awful idea! I told you we shouldn’t pry! I told you that whatever was going on was Mr. Edgeworth’s problem and we shouldn’t push!!! Oh my god why couldn’t I just have shut up when he asked me to stop pushing!?”
“Apollo, you know we had no idea!” Athena wailed, “I…I thought it was something we could help him on!”
“Well we sure as fuck didn’t do that!” Apollo said, “Now he knows that we know that he’s fucking in love with Mr. Wright!? What do we do with this information!?”
“There was no way we could have known, Apollo!” Athena said, “He hides it so well – there was nothing to indicate that he wanted anything more from Mr. Wright, you’ve seen them interact! He never seems awkward or uncomfortable, he just seems, well, happy? Relaxed?”
“He sure as fuck won’t be relaxed anymore!”
“There was no way to know, Apollo!” Athena shook her head, “They were friends! They get lunch together a lot but friends do that! I mean they go way back, right? Like Mr. Wright said that they met as kids, and I guess he helped Mr. Edgeworth a lot early in their career? So I just assumed they were good friends!”
“Mr. Wright did say that Mr. Edgeworth helped him a lot when he was disbarred” Apollo said, continuing Athena’s thread, “He said that Mr. Edgeworth helped covered some of Trucy’s expenses and he would fly the Wrights to Europe a lot to consult on cases. He also paid for Mr. Wright’s bar prep when he was retaking it? And I know Mr. Wright usually has Mr. Edgeworth over for holidays – Mr. Edgeworth doesn’t really have a family I think so it made sense?”
“And Mr. Edgeworth does go to Trucy’s magic shows all the time and will go to parent-teacher night with Mr. Wright” Athena said, “He also usually takes a special interest if he sees Mr. Wright’s on a case and has come over to discuss cases when he’s stuck and usually brings a present and he knows which kind of grape juice is Mr. Wright’s favorite…”
“And he knows Mr. Wright’s favorite take out dish.”
“And his favorite coffee place.”
“And which place to get those stupid weird pastries that Mr. Wright likes. He brings those over all the time.”
“And he…paid for Mr. Wright’s new suit. And insisted on getting it tailored. Which he also paid for.”
“That…that was an expensive suit.”
“Oh my god.” Athena let her face drop into her hands, “Oh my god it’s so obvious. How did we miss this? How is Mr. Wright missing this!?”
“W…what if he’s not missing it?” Apollo said miserably, “It’s a lot, Athena and Mr. Wright’s dense but he can be horribly perceptive when he wants to be.”
“You think he doesn’t return his feelings so he’s just pretending not to notice” Athena suggested, looking up at Apollo.
“Well, I mean yea.” Apollo said, “Athena, what if he’s straight?”
“Oh god you might be right, I’ve never considered Mr. Wright’s sexuality, not gonna lie” Athena frowned, “But he…might be bi? Or pan?”
“I mean sure maybe” Apollo said, “But I’ve only ever seen him express interest in women, y’know? I know I shouldn’t assume but I’ve never seen him ever look at another man like that?”
“So Edgeworth wants to keep this on the downlow because he’s not even sure if Mr. Wright swings that way.”
“I mean wouldn’t you? If you fell in love with a straight friend?”
“I…yea I guess. Goddamnit.” Athena shook her head, “I really didn’t want to find out that Mr. Edgeworth has unrequited feelings for Mr. Wright you know.”
“Well maybe we should have just listened to me” Apollo rolled his eyes, “But why would we do that?”
The phone suddenly rang and the two jumped, staring guiltily into Phoenix’s office where the office telephone was.
“That’s probably Mr. Wright” Apollo said miserably, “I meant to call as soon as trial ended but we decided to be fucking morons instead. I texted him that we won but I didn’t really give him any details. Got distracted, after all. In our whole 'let's be idiots' scheme.”
“Let’s answer it” Athena said, standing up and walking into Phoenix’s office, “He’s just gonna get worried if we don’t update him.”
Apollo nodded, trailing after Athena. She leaned over Phoenix’s desk, pressing the speakerphone button, “Hello?” she said, “Wright Anything Agency, Athena Cykes speaking.”
“Athena!” Phoenix’s voice sounded relieved, “Hey, just calling for case updates! Got Apollo’s text that you won so congrats but wanted to follow up!”
“Ah. Um, yea we won.” Athena said, “Um. Mr. Stevens was very happy. Our case theory was right so. Yay team.”
“You okay, Athena?” Phoenix asked, “You sound kinda off.”
“Oh, no we’re fine – just so you know I have you on speaker and Apollo’s with me, Mr. Wright. But we’re good!”
“Hey Apollo!” Phoenix said, “Edgeworth wasn’t too hard on you two was he? I’m gonna call him up after this – need to brag that my kids kicked his ass in court so let me know if I need to chew him out for being a jerk to you too.”
“You’re gonna call Mr. Edgeworth?” Apollo asked, instantly wincing as soon as he heard how harsh he sounded.
“Of course?” Phoenix sounded confused, “Wanna get a full evaluation of you two from him since I wasn’t able to come.”
“Um. Well. I think he’s kinda busy tonight so maybe that’s not the best idea?” Apollo asked, “I mean it’s late you know, he’s probably tired full day of trial and whatnot.”
“Hey” Phoenix’s voice had changed, “What happened? Are you two okay? I’m serious when I say I’ll yell at Edgeworth if I need to, I know he can be harsh sometimes and if he crossed a line...”
“No, no, no.” Apollo said quickly, his face flushed as he looked helplessly at Athena, “No, it’s nothing like that Mr. Wright. Mr. Edgeworth was um. Fine. Nice. Friendly!”
“Apollo, I know you’re lying now. Miles Edgeworth has never been “nice” or “friendly” in court. Are you okay?”
No I am not okay did you know your courtroom rival is madly in love with you and apparently has been pining for you for over a decade and oh, we know this because Athena and I had the brilliant idea of dragging this information out of him after court so now I can never look at him again because what! The fuck!
“I…I’m fine.”
“Apollo…” Phoenix’s voice carried a warning tone.
“Mr. Wright, we’re fine” Athena said, “Just…had some personal issues. It has nothing to do with this case really.”
“Alright” Phoenix sounded unconvinced, “I won’t pry. But you will tell me if Edgeworth gets too much, alright? He doesn’t really use kid gloves ever so I know he can be overwhelming.”
“Mr. Wright, you and Mr. Edgeworth go way back, right?” Athena suddenly asked. Apollo looked at her, horrified, mouthing What are you doing!? aggressively at her.
“Ah, yea.” Phoenix said, “We were friends when we were kids so we’ve known each other since we were what? 8? 9? It’s been a while.”
“You’re…friends, right?” Athena asked, pointedly ignoring Apollo who was shaking his head frantically at her.
“I would certainly like to think so” Phoenix laughed, “Sometimes I’m not so sure what Edgeworth thinks though.”
“What do you mean?”
“Ah well, um.” Phoenix suddenly sounded uncomfortable, “Well he’s somewhat emotionally closed off a lot of times, I guess. He isn’t exactly an open book, and it can be difficult to connect with him sometimes. He’s gotten better though, but it’s still…hard.”
“Do you want to connect?”
“Of course I do. He’s….” Phoenix coughed, “Um. Well. Anyways, good job today kids! We’ll debrief more when I get back, should be in town by the end of the week so we can go over the case then. You got all the dismissal paperwork taken care of, right?”
“Of course, Mr. Wright” Apollo said, glaring at Athena.
“Perfect.” Phoenix said, “Alright, I’m gonna go now I’ll talk to you later. Don’t burn the office down while I’m gone!”
“Yea,” Apollo said, “Say hello to Ms. Fey for us.”
“Will do” Phoenix responded, “Talk to you two later.”
“What was that!?” Apollo asked, rounding on Athena as soon as they hung up, “Are you trying to make this even worse?!”
“We need to figure out how Mr. Wright feels about Mr. Edgeworth” Athena said, a new fire in her eyes, “Apollo, we can fix this.”
“Ooooh no. No. No, no, no. Nope!” Apollo shook his head, putting his hands up, his arms bent at the elbow and palms facing Athena, “No. We do not. We absolutely do not. We have done enough damage, we are not getting any more involved in this, so help me god.”
“Too late, Apollo” Athena said, “We opened this can of worms and we’re seeing this through.”
“You opened that can, I very much tried to keep that lid slammed shut, thank you very much!”
“Well you delivered the finishing blow.”
“Because my wrist was killing me!”
“Doesn’t matter, you’re still involved” Athena said, “Look, we aren’t trying to interfere too much…I just want to know if…”
“If there’s a chance.” Apollo sighed, “Athena, isn’t this weird? I mean. Mr. Wright’s our boss. Isn’t there like? A professional boundary or something we shouldn’t cross?”
“Sure but we’re not playing matchmaker or anything” Athena shrugged, “Just wanna get a feel on how Mr. Wright feels, y’know.”
“To see if Mr. Edgeworth has a chance.”
“I mean…”
“That sounds like playing matchmaker.”
“It isn’t! If Mr. Wright’s not interested or straight or whatever we’ll drop it!”
“This is a terrible idea Athena.”
“More likely than not.”
“Would you honor my request if I asked to be left out of this?”
“Probably not." Athena grinned, "So you're in? If this works we'll have the LA legal power couple of the year - well besides you and Gavin, I guess."
"Athena!"
She cackled in response, grinning at Apollo cheekily before flouncing out of the office and leaving Apollo to deal with the foreboding that this was going to go very, very wrong.