Chapter Text
"As you may imagine, I brought you to this creamery for more than over-sized dairy desserts," Miles begins.
"It's not a creamery," (Kay pronounces the last word with an infuriating, highfalutin affect), "It's a Baskin Robbins off the freeway, and yeah, Mr. Edgeworth, you're not exactly a surprise ice cream kind of guy," she ribs, trying desperately to maneuver her tongue to catch melting tracks of cotton candy ice cream before they drip off the end of the cake cone.
("I consider the cone as merely a blank canvas, a backdrop for the dynamism of the ice cream’s flavor," she had philosophized earlier. “Ma’am, again, please, I just need your order,” the cashier begged. Miles over-tipped in recompense.)
Kay, absorbed in her near-gymnastic attempts to save every drop, pointedly ignores Miles' perfunctory sigh.
"I think you could be a surprise ice cream guy, Mr. Edgeworth," says Pearl helpfully, patting his hand.
"Thank you, Pearls, that's very kind," he replies. "In any case-"
"Can you be a surprise donut guy tomorrow?" Trucy cuts in, barely visible above a tower of unnaturally-colored spheres. She, like her father, is never one to pass up free food.
"NO- er- yes- er- I don't know, that's not the point," Miles rubs his forehead despairingly.
"Aw, Uncle Miles," Trucy smiles tenderly. "I'm sorry. What's up?"
"'What's up' is... is..." Miles closes his eyes, embarrassed at himself. But it must be done. "Is that... well, Wright always says the right thing, gives the right gifts," (Miles groans internally at his own emotional vulnerability but soldiers on), "knows how to make people feel... valued. I want to make him feel the same way."
He opens his eyes, looks at the collection of young people. "I thought you three might have some ideas. You know Wright, you know... er... romance-"
"He's your SPECIAL SOMEONE, Mr. Edgeworth!" Pearl nearly shouts.
"Verily," Miles lets a rare smile rise. "Trucy, I am sure you have insight on what your father may like. And Kay - er -"
"Um, excuse me, I am a bona fide romantical savant," protests Kay, grinning and turning to Pearl and Trucy. "But also I may have invited myself once I heard Edgey say the magic words 'I'm paying.'"
"A true friend," Miles deadpans. "And I regret ever introducing you to Larry, as that nickname-"
"OOOH we should invite Larry to join us!" Kay exclaims, bringing her phone up to text.
"ABSOLUTELY NOT." Edgeworth swiftly pushes the phone back down as Trucy guffaws behind her franken-cream.
"Hmm...." sighs Pearl thoughtfully, idly stirring the red bean ice cream she'd smeared to a near-paste. Her eyes suddenly light up, and she drops the spoon, cupping her face in her hands. "Mr. Edgeworth, what if you proposed?!"
"NO- er," he glances at Trucy, nervous, then looks at his hands. "I mean, not until he gets his attorney's badge back. I want everything to be perfect when- if- when I propose."
Miles thinks he sees Trucy's eyes mist, or maybe it's glare from the fluorescent lights. She peers at him around her shrinking dessert mountain.
"Uncle Miles, you don't have to take Pearly's suggestion right this instant, but... you shouldn't wait for Daddy to get his badge back. You don't know how long that could take, if ever," she fixes a stare as he starts to interject, "I mean, yeah, I hope it'll happen soon too, but...”
She lowers her gaze, takes a breath. "Don't wait too long to tell the people in your life that you love them.” Another pause, and her eyes return to his. “Or that you want to be with them forever. Or be friends with legal benefits or whatever marriage is."
"Alright," Miles says simply, squeezing her hand. "I promise."
Trucy regains her bearings. "Anyway, I think you should start with the smaller tricks first so you can build up to something that big, just like I do in my show," she continues thoughtfully. "Maybe something cute and sweet like pulling a flower out of your sleeve."
"Yeah, he already has so much experience with sticks up his-" Kay starts.
"KAY."
"Cravat." Kay finishes. "Why, what did you think I was gonna say?"
Ignoring her, Miles replies to Trucy. "I am not particularly adept at magic tricks."
Trucy beams. "I can teach you!" In an instant, she produces an elegant white rose and hands it gallantly to Miles.
Kay flinches and squeals, "Whoa! Do you always have one of those?"
"Nope! Just wore my performance cloak today," Trucy laughs. Kay looks impressed and suspiciously intrigued, and Miles suspects she's imagining the utility of a magic cloak in the context of thievery.
"I'll keep your offer in mind, Trucy," Miles says kindly.
A few rare moments of quiet descend as they finish their ice cream. Miles attempts to look distinguished as he scrapes the last bit of his Bavarian chocolate ice cream with the tiny neon pink taste-test spoon. A piss-poor recreation, he thinks, having practically inhaled two huge scoops.
"Ugh, I don't feel so well," Trucy moans, tower fully demolished.
"I wonder why," Miles says dryly. "Let's head home." They throw out their trash and open the glass door to wall of heat outside.
"Wait, I haven't given my idea yet!" shrills Kay.
"Don't be shy, let's hear it," prompts Miles, hiding a smile. As if Kay would be shy.
"You steal -"
Miles rolls his eyes. He knows the young thief way too well.
"His HEART!"
"Excellent, thank you."
Kay cartwheels impressively along the sidewalk ahead of them as they walk. "The Yatagarasu strikes again!"
"Mr. Edgeworth," Pearl ventures, "I think that, no matter what you do, Mr. Nick will love it, because he loves you, because you are each others' special someone.”
"That's very wise, Pearls," Miles looks down at her tiny form, as she takes two steps for each of his longer strides.
They arrive at Kay, leaning nonchalantly against Miles' gleaming red sports car. "It's true, Mr. Edgeworth, you already stole Nick's heart. Now you're just reminding him it was worth stealing to begin with," she declares, pumping her fist in the air.
"Get off my car, Kay Faraday," Miles reproves.
Pearl and Kay climb in the back row and the older man helps a steadily-greening Trucy into the front seat. "And Trucy, no texting while we drive – no reason to irk your nausea with motion sickness. Are you going to be alright? We can wait a bit before leaving."
"I'll be fine, Uncle Miles," she insists, small but strong, laying her head against his hip. "Shouldn't have eaten that much purple at once."
"A good lesson for all of us."
"Don't think this gets you out of being a surprise donut guy tomorrow," she murmurs, yawning.
Once in his own seat, he takes a moment to look to his right at his partner's daughter, her eyes closed in sugar-induced catatonia, holding the rose she gave him loosely in her fingers. The rose has transformed from its original white into a stunning ombre – petals emerging from the stem in a deep blue that fades, then strengthens, to a crown of fuchsia.
Miles considers the other young people through the rear-view mirror. Kay, holding the handle of a large to-go bag of ice cream between her lips (wait a second, when did that happen?), is helping Pearls secure her seat belt properly.
Miles desperately wants Phoenix to know how much that man means to him – how much this entire family means to him. How did they get here, to this wondrous life?
And suddenly, he knows how to show Phoenix that he's valued.
"Kay, I need your help."