Chapter Text
“So, Miles, are you ready?”
“I…yes, I am!”
“Today's your big day, I gotta say I'm very excited!” Phoenix grinned, looking over his boyfriend in appreciation. “You look great, and I bet you'll look even better once we get there!”
“I hope that you're right… I've dreamt about days like these, if I'm being honest. I just never thought they'd come true.” Miles fixed his suit somewhat nervously, taking a deep breath and entering the bedroom. “It's time to head out.”
“Mr. Edgeworth, the Steel Samurai episode is about to end and then we'll go!” Maya explained.
“Oh I see.”
Phoenix stepped in.
“It's time to go!”
“Phoenix, the Steel Samurai episode is still ongoing. We will leave when it ends.” By then, he sat down on the bed as well.
“You know Gumshoe is waiting for us downstairs, right?”
“But it's the most exciting scene. Surely, you don’t expect us to leave in the middle of it.”
“I…sure, sure.” He shrugged, watching how happy they all looked from the doorway. Pearl was sitting on the ground, roughly situated between Franziska and Maya’s legs, tilting her head left and right. Miles sat on the side of the bed, facing the TV with only his head. This was a nice sight to see, even as the apartment had become a painfully cramped hellhole.
Ever since Pearl's mother got incarcerated, her and Maya have been staying at their place so much that they may as well be considered a permanent fixture. Currently, their living situation consisted of Phoenix and Miles having reacquired their bedroom, the two Fey girls sharing the couch and Franziska sleeping in a single bed that they'd bought for later, making the living room a huge pain to traverse. It was honestly shocking they even managed to convince her to accept it, though she did refuse to go to a hotel for whatever reason.
The episode ended and they all headed downstairs, Phoenix locking the door to the apartment behind them all. Like promised, Gumshoe was loyally waiting in his car, blinking in confusion as soon as he’d seen the small swarm of people appear, clearly more than he’d anticipated.
“Hey pals! I-I uh, I’m not sure how all of us are gonna fit into my truck, honestly.”
“Hello, detective.” Miles greeted him. “I think it will be fine.”
Maya, seemingly having gotten an idea, spoke up.
“Mr. Edgeworth! You know how to drive, right? So you should drive and Detective Gumshoe will go into the truck bed!!!”
“Or Pearl will travel in your lap, seeing as that is tremendously more logical than kicking the good detective out of his own ride.”
“Oooh…Right.”
“You truly are a fool, Maya Fey!” Franziska pointed at her.
“No, you!”
“No!”
“Yes!”
“No!”
Miles pursed his lips, getting into the backseat of the car on the drivers’ side. Phoenix slid in the middle, Maya next to him and Franziska in the front.
The ride there was surprisingly quiet. Despite having already had plenty of time to prepare for what was coming, Miles couldn’t stop himself from being nervous. This would be a brand new start in all senses of the word. In the last few months, he’d helped Phoenix with some cases as co-counsel, including the one where Maya had been accused of murder for a second time. That was what ultimately put them in this lodging house-esque position.
The work was hard, less prim and proper than that of a prosecutor. But there was something else about it, even though he hadn’t really experienced it in full. That sense of satisfaction he could see shining from Phoenix every time he managed to defend someone that was innocent. Ultimately, no matter which side a lawyer may find themselves on, they should seek to find out the truth, more than anything.
Despite still having respect for the field, prosecution simply wasn’t what he wanted to do anymore. The dreams he decided to chase after were old and brittle, but their glow drew Miles in just as it did all those years ago. And he knew that no matter what path he was to head down, there would be people out there who supported him unconditionally.
Gumshoe suddenly stopped his car, looking behind. “We're here, pals!” They were parked at the side of a tall building without much elegance or flair to it, the agency that oversaw all lawyers of this district.
A moment passed in silence. Then Miles let go of the sleeve of his suit jacket, opening the door and sliding out of the car with everyone else doing the same. Walking inside, he approached the receptionist, taking a deep breath.
“Good day. Where do I need to go to get my attorney's badge?”
“Good day, sir.” The young woman glanced at him. “If you head down the hallway to the right, it will be the third door. You head inside, give them your name, and you'll receive your badge. Assuming you submitted the paperwork for it, that is.”
“Yes, I have… I passed the exam some years ago.”
“Alright then.”
He faced everyone for a moment, nodding at them and then walking down the hallway. The door to the room was labeled with a sign reading ‘secretariat’, glistening softly in the sunshine.
Miles's fist stilled right above the wooden surface before he knocked, heading inside.
“Hello.”
“Hello. What can I help you with?” The secretary questioned.
“I'm here to pick up my badge as a defense attorney…and return my prosecutor's badge.”
“I see, Mr. Edgeworth.” He nodded, putting his hands on the keyboard. “I will look up your data to make sure that you have filed the necessary paperwork and then make the exchange.”
His files showed that he'd been suspended for charges of manslaughter but reinstated after they were taken off his record, as well as the recently submitted request of changing his authorization to defense. By all accounts, everything seemed to be in order.
Having filed away something, the man stood up.
“First, I would like for you to hand over your badge as a prosecutor.” Miles reached into his pocket, taking it out. He'd been holding onto it for years now and it would certainly be strange to part ways with something like that, but that was just another part of this process. He handed it over, watching as the secretary walked to a cabinet of sorts on the other side of the room and stored it away in one of the drawers. Then, he reached into the drawer beside it with a great deal of intentionality, taking out a badge and setting it down on the table. “Here you go, Mr. Edgeworth. Good luck with your future endeavors as a defense attorney.”
“Thank you. Have a great day.” Fingers struggling to grasp onto the small item, Miles finally managed to lift it up, beginning to head out of the room while holding it in the palm of his hand, turning it over.
Stepping outside, he was faced with everyone staring at him with bated breath. He couldn't help but smile, holding the badge up towards them. Phoenix stepped close, looking at it as if he'd never seen one (even though he was wearing his own.)
“I'm… I'm grateful for all of you coming here with me today.” Miles spoke. “This is…it feels like a childhood dream of mine finally coming true.”
“It is! And I'm happy for you!” By then, Phoenix picked it up, attaching it to his boyfriend’s lapel with pride and taking a step back to allow the others to see how it looked.
“Mr. Edgeworth!” Gumshoe gave a thumbs up. “It really makes you look different…! I would let you defend me!”
“And I'm suddenly filled with the urge to crush you in court.” Franziska added. “I can't wait to see you standing on the side of the defense.”
“As if I haven't been doing that already.” He rolled his eyes.
Pearl looked between them for a little while, before asking a question. “So… Mr. Edgeworth, now you're a defense lawyer too?”
“Yes, I am.”
“Next time I get accused of murder, I want you to defend me!” Maya bounced up and down a couple of times having said that, while Phoenix frowned very obviously.
“Or maybe stop ending up in the defendant’s chair constantly! That'd be pretty nice too!”
“Hey! We were both accused two times, Nick! You can't throw stones from a greenhouse!”
“A glasshouse, you mean.” Miles corrected her.
“Yeah, a grasshouse! That's what I said!”
“...sure.” Miles glanced at the clock on the wall, eyes widening. “We are going to be tremendously late!”
“Wait, I haven't even taken our picture yet!” Maya interrupted.
“You'll take it when we get there! Let's hurry!”
They rushed back to Gumshoe's car like their lives depended on it, hopping in. The detective proceeded to speed through the city, pedal to the metal all the way through. Miles moved one of his hands to the badge on his lapel, the other finding Phoenix's and holding onto it firmly.
There was a world of difference between his past and present self, even if physically, all that changed was which tiny piece of metal he had in his possession.
He'd gone from a fairly miserable prosecutor who felt like he wasted his life more often than not to a convict who lost hope of ever being happy again. Then, Phoenix helped him out of prison and gave him that hope back, even if it was a dim flame trying to light up an entire cathedral of depression.
And yet, the meager spark was enough to ignite each and every torch lining the walls. Now he would become a defense attorney…or no, he already was one. The future has never seemed more exciting, and what's more, Miles hadn't looked forward to it this much since he was a child.
“Hey, I was wondering,” Phoenix turned to him. “How long do you think this whole thing will take?”
“I don't know. I'm not in construction. Though, it's likely a good thing that we have managed to get to it by now, if nothing else. The longer we wait, the more difficult and expensive the renovations will end up being.”
“Then consider yourselves lucky for my financial support!” Franziska looked back at them. It was true, she instantly put a generous sum of money towards the home renovation project as soon as she found out about it.
“We are grateful but you really shouldn't have.”
“The sooner I get to stop sleeping in the middle of the living room next to those two,” She pointed at the Fey girls. “The better!”
“Hey!” Maya yelled. “You're one to talk, you say weird German things in your sleep!”
“Bah, Quatsch! I don't talk in my sleep!”
“Honestly though,” Phoenix spoke up. “It's gonna feel weird when you end this vacation.”
“I was actually planning on doing so, it has been going on for quite a while.”
“It's a shame you are leaving again, will you return when the house is finished?” Miles asked.
“I'm not leaving.”
“Hm?”
“I said I was ending my vacation, ergo returning to prosecution. Not once did I mention that I would head back to Germany, even in passing! Matter of fact, I demand a room of my own in the renovated home!”
“It can be arranged…” He smiled. “I have something in mind in regards to where everyone will be staying, I will explain the plans to you all when we are on site.”
“Mr. Edgeworth?” Gumshoe looked at him from the rearview mirror. “We're here!” Oh yeah. The truck came to a stop at that exact moment. The first batch of necessary materials had already been delivered the day prior, so the team of construction workers were ready to get on with their work, only really waiting for Miles to give them the go-ahead.
But before he could really get into micromanaging the crew, Maya tugged him back to the car.
“Mr. Edgeworth! It’s time to take that group photo we talked about earlier!”
“Yeah pals! Gimme the camera and I’ll take it for you!” The detective reached out towards her but she pulled back indignantly.
“Nuh-uh-uh! I’m not giving you my camera!”
“Why?!”
“You’re gonna drop it!”
“N-no I’m not!”
“I can take the photograph, if I must. Though I don’t find it fair not to be featured in it.” Franziska gave them all a look of ‘I know I’m offering but you best not take my offer.’
“I can certainly ask one of the workers to take our picture.” Miles looked back towards the house, only to be swiftly (and rudely) cut off by Maya.
“My camera has a timer, guys! Everyone can be on it, no sweat!”
“That’s…shockingly competent for such a foolishly shoddy looking camera!” Franziska nodded in approval.
“What is a tie-mer?” Pearl tilted her head.
While taking their places against the fence, Maya climbed into the truck bed to make sure everyone would be visible in the shot, placing her camera on a makeshift tower of empty soda cans. Then, she pushed a button, running to the group. “Alright everyone, smile wide and say STEEL SAMURAI!”
They all smiled, yelling “steel samurai” in unison as the camera snapped a shot.
“I really wonder if it came out good or not!” Phoenix lamented. Miles shook his head slightly, laughing.
“It must have. I suppose we’ll see it once it is time to have the photos developed.”
“Aw man! I wanna see it now!!! The film’s practically run out already anyway!”
“Maya, I’m not buying you more film, you know!”
“Niiick! Come on! Fine! You want me to really get my money’s worth?! Alright! Everyone, get out of the frame cause I wanna take a pic of the lovebirds over here!”
“Huh? Huhh?!”
After chasing the good people around with her camera and snapping involuntary shots from every angle, Maya ran off to get the film developed. Miles sent Franziska after her to make sure she doesn’t become a statistic pertaining to accident victims that didn’t look both ways before crossing. Apparently, they’d be ready in two days or so.
The photo itself would go on to sit in a picture frame on the counter inside of Phoenix and Miles’s apartment.
It showed them standing around next to the gate, the house behind them still in ruins — this would certainly serve as a nice progress report of some kind when the renovations are complete. Gumshoe stood on the right, one hand on the back of his neck, grinning. Franziska tried to give off the impression that she wasn’t the least bit amused by the hijinks taking place, though this attempt was about as successful as her sense of humor. On the left side, Maya essentially just arrived into the scene, putting her hands on Pearl’s shoulders, who looked up at her happily. And in the center, Miles and Phoenix, glancing at each other and smiling, connected by their joined hands.