Chapter Text
This was not the worst flight Edgeworth ever been on, but it was certainly creeping its way into the top twenty. That in itself was a difficult task. On the second worst flight he'd taken, someone had gotten murdered. So the bar was, admittedly, set quite high.
Edgeworth flew excessively for work. From LA to Germany to wherever his work took him. He had recently begun to settle back into life in LA more permanently, but only just recently. A cross country, LA to Chicago flight was a quick and welcome reprieve in comparison to the 14-hour trans-Atlantic ordeals he was used to enduring, even while flying first class. At least, one would think it would be easier.
His traveling companion, Ms. Maya Fey, was not a frequent flyer. She had cheerfully informed him of this on their drive to the airport that evening, sitting politely in the passenger’s seat of his car. The girl could certainly put on the proper social airs depending on who she was talking to. He’d seen how she acted around Wright and “polite” was not the word he would use to describe it. Then again, Wright was quite a close friend to her, while he had tried to put her in jail after the murder of her sister. He suspected the politeness may have been a sign she was slightly uncomfortable spending time with him, without Phoenix there, for the first time. He didn’t mention it, however. If he did, she might mention how stiff and awkward he was being. And she had much more reason to be uncomfortable around him than he had to be around her.
Some of the awkwardness had subsided in the airport as she excitedly exclaimed over how large the planes were up close (“They always look so tiny flying!”) and when Edgeworth bought her dinner at one of the lounges before their plane took off. She thanked him profusely for the meal, which he waved off as being no trouble at all. He had to bite down a smirk though at the memory of her shaking down Wright for hamburger money. She definitely did not extend the same gratefulness towards him.
Currently, Ms. Fey was in the seat next to him, curled up with her head resting on the window, earbuds in. She had apparently fallen asleep watching a movie. Edgeworth was trying to distract himself with work. They had gotten a late flight. His fault. He felt quite guilty taking time off, especially when the prosecutor’s office was so busy, and he found it unconscionable to take an extra day off work just for travel. So, a late flight to and an early flight from it was.
The binder he was working out of was precariously balanced on the small tray provided to the first-class passengers. More room than economy, but not by much. It contained both his legal documents and all his travel papers, and his premier ticket, along with the letter that had accompanied it:
********
Hey-o Mr. Edgeworth!
I’ve seen you in the papers! Hope everything is going well! I saw Mr. Wright by
chance a few months ago, and he mentioned you were a big fan of the show! I
could hardly believe it! As a favor to him for all he’s done for me, and to show
that everything that happened before is all water under the bridge, have these
tickets to the premier of Steel Samurai XI: Daughter of the Evil Magistrate 2-
Attack on Neo Olde Tokyo! You’ll be my VIP guest! Hope you can make it!
********
The tickets had been tucked carefully in a patently ridiculous card of two kittens poorly edited into a boat with the text "Come Sail Lake Meowchigan!" above them. When he received the letter from Will Powers, he had felt a snap of embarrassment. He had thought about denying the invitation. It seemed like a bit of a pity invite. Obviously Will Powers would have preferred if Wright would have come, but Phoenix was not sophisticated enough to appreciate the artistry of the Steel Samurai property. However, he couldn’t deny that Steel Samurai X: Daughter of the Evil Magistrate- A Dark Night in Neo Olde Tokyo was a desperately needed return to form the series needed after the absolute critical failures of Steel Samurai VII and IX.
Maya apparently, had also received one of these letters (also Midwestern cat themed). She had kept her plane ticket stashed in it, along with her movie ticket, and Edgeworth had caught a glimpse of the writing when they were checking in for their flight. It was much longer than his and contained the phrases, “Thank you so much for all you’ve done for me”, “You save my life”, “So grateful to have such a wonderful person like yourself as a fan.” Edgeworth hated to be nosy, but he was far from perfect.
Edgeworth was pulled from his thoughts as the plane rocked. His binder lurched off the tray and he lunged to catch it before it could smack on the ground and scatter his papers across the aisle. He hadn’t been able to get much work done with all the turbulence. He was certainly better than he had been, but the shaking of the plane was a bit to familiar for comfort. During his first dozen or so plane rides as a child, he would lock himself in the plane bathroom until the shaking subsided. Von Karma had never mentioned it, which he felt grateful for at the time, but the old man had always flashed him with a withering gaze when he returned to his seat. Sitting down made it more bearable. It was near the end of the year, holiday season, which didn’t help either. Edgeworth tapped the edge of the binder with his pen, reading through the report, trying to tamp down on the biting shame.
While in LA it hardly ever dropped below ‘balmy’, Edgeworth had been diligent in checking the weather on the plane’s route. The radar had promised some “light snow” with no delays. If he was his sister, he would have certainly contacted the weather agency to complain about their entirely imperfect report.
Outside of the plane’s window was a complete wash of darkness, stirring around in a snowy frenzy, like TV static. The plane shook with the force of the wind. Edgeworth had experienced turbulence before, but this was some of the worst he could remember. He wondered how Ms. Fey could sleep through it.
The plane was completely dark, save for the small reading light he’d packed and the soft illumination of some of the other passenger’s phone screens. It was a much smaller flight than he expected. Usually, planes flying between major cities were large, but this one was only moderately sized. Maybe because of the late flight. The seat belt light was on, and the only person who had gotten up in the past hour had been someone from economy making their way through first class to use the bathroom. He had been thrown against a seat as he tried to walk down the aisle. Edgeworth glanced at Maya. He noticed that she wasn’t buckled. She’d gone to sleep before the seat belt light had come on. He debated on whether to wake her, but if she was hurt Phoenix would certainly never forgive him. And he had no wish to see a kind young woman like Maya Fey get hurt from being jostled around. So, for safety’s sake, he nudged her arm.
Her eyes were bleary when she opened them. “Ugnh… Edgeworth?”
“Ms. Fey, you should fasten your seat belt we’ve encountered some turbulence.” Edgeworth was aware of how stiff and awkward he sounded, but outside of work, stiff and awkward was a space he often occupied. It was comfortably familiar.
Maya rubbed her eyes and took out her earbuds. “That explains the dream about the mechanical bull…”
Both Maya and Edgeworth grabbed at the seats in front of them as the plane jolted. Maya quickly pulled back and clicked her seat belt into place. She peered out the window and gasped. “Is that snow?” she said, watching the mass of grey writhe outside.
“Yes, it appears we’ve flown into a blizzard.” Edgeworth stopped and looked at Maya, who had gone frozen, eyes wide looking at him. He coughed, “But I’m sure we’re perfectly safe. This kind of thing happens all the time.”
He watched her relax a bit. “Oh, have you ever flown through a blizzard before?”
“Well, no.” She tensed up again.“But, um, once I flew through a thunderstorm while over the Atlantic.”
“Well, ah.” She worried at the hem of her sleeve. Not her usual shrine maiden costume, but a purple pullover and a pair of soft pants. Edgeworth didn’t think he’d seen her in anything but her temple garb before. The two were held in an awkward silence until Maya broke it. “Brr, this plane is freezing.” She wrapped her arms around herself in an exaggerated shiver.
“Ah erm, I think you can turn the heat on. Up here,” Edgeworth said, grateful for a change in subject that didn’t require him to comfort her.
“Oh I can’t see it…”
“Here let me get my phone light out…”
The two fumbled around in the dark for a moment. Beside them, a flight attendant passed, cart clattering. Neither of them paid her much mind. Eventually, they got the heat working, warm air blasted down from the vents above them. “Ah…” Maya sighed. She cracked a nervous smile at him. “At least we’ll be warm when we plummet to our deaths.”
Edgeworth tapped the armrest of his seat. “I can assure you Ms. Fey. This plane will not crash.”
The intercom overhead pinged.
“Attention ladies and gentlemen. Due to inclement weather, we will be making an emergency landing. We apologize for any inconvenience and ask that you take your seats and fasten your seat belts now if you have not already done so. We will be landing shortly.”
Edgeworth slowly released a breath through his nose. At least it was still better than the murder.