Archive of Our Own

November 29th, 2027
Wright Anything Agency
26 Days Until Christmas Eve

Christmas was a holiday that had always fascinated Apollo ever since he had been dropped off in America at the age of 9. It was by no means his favorite holiday; that was reserved for Halloween, but the lights, cheery music, movies, and the limited time snacks were things he enjoyed the most. Even the basic message of good will towards men and peace on earth were things he could get behind during the season (though he thought these things should be an all around the year type thing and not condensed to a singular month of the year). 

So, no he wouldn’t consider himself a Scrooge or a Grinch during the season (even though the Grinch had the right idea about distancing himself from the over zealous Whos). Overall he enjoyed the spirit of the season.

There was just one, teeny, tiny thing that he could do without-

“Polly! Come on, you have to pick your Secret Santa!” A cheerful voice called out from the boss’ office.

Apollo sighed. “It’s literally the Monday after Thanksgiving.” He muttered. He could certainly do without the forced social interactions. Apollo heaved himself up off his desk chair and straightened the forced-upon Santa hat on his head as he made his way into the back office. His first Christmas in the Agency was uneventful, a forced jollity after the debacle that was the Misham trial. He exchanged gifts with Trucy and Mr. Wright with Trucy giving him a knitted mauve scarf and Mr. Wright giving him a regifted mug that read “World’s Okayest Lawyer”. (Apollo would not admit even under pain of death that the mug was his go-to for drinks in his apartment). Mr. Wright also gave him both Christmas Eve and Day off and Apollo was grateful to have the holiday with his best friend and gave no further thought to the Wrights for the rest of the holiday, too busy with making merry with his best friend to think of his cryptic boss and his quirky daughter.

This year, he couldn’t quite get out of the festivities. Trucy had been keen on incorporating Apollo and Athena into her family’s traditions and thus this whole “Secret Santa” thing. Apparently it was something that the Wright Family (with their many, many extensions) did every year. (Which, in hindsight, is probably where Apollo’s gift from last year came from). It made a weird pit settle in Apollo’s stomach as he wracked his brain overthinking what it meant that he was now being involved in family traditions; did that mean Trucy viewed him as a part of her family now? That made him feel weird to think about; all of his other families hadn’t really worked out for him, Clay and his dad notwithstanding, so to suddenly have someone that truly wanted him to be around was hard to believe and even harder to accept. 

Apollo wouldn’t even have considered being a part of any of the shenanigans that undoubtedly would come about during this holiday season if it were not for Clay. Clay insisted that Apollo not withdraw into himself when the astronaut left on the HAT-2 Mission later that month. Clay had even gone so far as to assure Apollo kept his promise by marking the deal with a pinky-swear. Clay had shared his worry every now and then that Apollo didn’t have enough friends many times over their decade of friendship, but was even more worried for Apollo’s social calendar now that he wouldn’t be around for six months. Apollo had rolled his eyes at the hyperbolic scenarios that Clay had outlined which ranged from Apollo melting into his couch from sitting and doom-scrolling for so long to Apollo spontaneously combusting because he had no one to listen to his snarky, sarcastic commentary during the nine-billionth viewing of Star Wars. However, he felt so bad for making the other man worry so much about his well-being when Clay should have been focused on preparing for his mission that he agreed to Clay’s terms without much thought, only wanting to make the other man smile. If he had known how much Trucy had planned up her sleeve, he probably would have negotiated with Clay a little bit harder.

“Polly! Come on! Stop dragging your feet, mister!” Trucy called exasperatedly from behind the open door. Apollo obeyed and a moment later, was standing in the doorway of his boss’ office, Trucy holding her blue silk top hat in her hand and shaking it. “Finally!” She exclaimed with a puffed cheeks pout. “Took you long enough! Come on! Pick out a name from the hat. If you grab your name, put it back. I’ll know if you try to hide it.” Trucy instructed her words deadly serious for such an unserious thing. Apollo pressed his lips together and dipped his hand into the opening of the hat. He felt around the small folded papers, flicking them around for extra randomness before pinching at one and pulling it out. He slipped the paper open gently, keeping it close enough to his chest so there wouldn’t be any prying eyes. As he read the name, his eyebrows popped up in shock.

Klavier Gavin

Of course it would be him. Just Apollo and his rotten luck.

It wasn’t that he despised Klavier Gavin; that was too strong a word. It was more the fact that he and the prosecutor seemed to exist in two different realms. Klavier was a highly successful musician and prosecutor. He was intelligent, charismatic, graceful-basically everything Apollo was not. Not that Apollo thought too badly of himself, but he understood his place in life was to be mediocre, and that was fine with him. He couldn’t hold a candle next to Klavier Gavin. Which is why, of course, fate would decide that Apollo had to somehow not embarrass himself in giving an acceptable gift to a man who could buy the entire world if he wanted to. What did Klavier even like, anyway? And if Apollo figured that out, would he even be able to afford a gift worthy for the rockstar prosecutor?

“Polly?” Trucy’s voice cut through his thoughts. 

“What?” Apollo blurted with a shake of his head.

“You were staring pretty intently at that paper. I guess you’re excited with who you got, huh?” Trucy asked cheekily, but the little twitch in her cheek indicated that she was trying to hide concern. 

“Excited is not the word I would use.” Apollo mumbled as he pocketed the paper. He could swear it felt like it was burning his thigh as he turned and went back to his own desk, as it was Athena’s turn to find out who she was going to be the gift giver for.

Apollo slumped at his desk with a sigh. Where to even start? He looked over at the clock, noting it was almost five, and, as there were no clients lined up and no cases pending, it meant that Apollo could go home. Apollo slid his laptop into the bag at his feet and started to straighten up the papers and books on his desk into neat piles so that he could find them easily tomorrow morning. Apollo stood and slid on his jacket as Trucy, Athena, and Mr. Wright came out of the back office.

“Getting going, Apollo? Got a hot date?” Mr. Wright teased. Apollo felt his cheeks heat up as he put on his backpack.

“Yeah, my girlfriend is waiting for me at home. You know how much she likes to stay on her schedule.” Apollo snarked back with a roll of his eyes. His comment earned a chuckle from both teen girls. Mikeko, his newly acquired male cat, (that part was the whole crux to the girlfriend joke), was an unexpected but welcome companion, especially as Clay was getting ready to leave off to space. The cat was friendly, affectionate, and pretty easy going as long he was fed, and, for some reason, only liked it when Apollo fed him. Clay had tried to feed the cat as a way to help out when Apollo had been called away to an investigation and the cat refused to come out. Clay had assured Apollo that the cat would eventually come out and eat because instinct wouldn’t allow him to starve, but Apollo was neurotic at best and didn’t want the cat to suffer unnecessarily if the easiest solution was Apollo coming to feed him when it was time.

Mr. Wright let out a booming laugh, “Well, let’s not keep her waiting.” He said, shooing the younger attorney out the door. “I’ll see you two in the morning.”

“See ya!” Apollo called as he turned and left the room, hearing Trucy and Athena send their regards as the door closed.

Once Mikeko was fed, Apollo sat at the kitchen counter, notepad in front of him to list potential ideas for Klavier’s gift. He wanted the gift to be personal enough, yet practical. The rockstar probably had enough tchotchkes lying around both his office and home that Apollo getting him some sort of paperweight wouldn’t be a useful gift at all. There was also the man’s proclivity to stacking papers and books as high as he dare allow that made a paperweight useless in a different way. On the other hand, Klavier didn’t strike Apollo as the oversentemental type that would appreciate something like a photo frame with a personal photo inside. Not that there were any photos that Apollo would put in the frame itself out there. A gift card was practical but exceedingly unneeded when the recipient’s royalty checks were more than Apollo made in a year. 

Apollo sighed and laid his head on the fold of his arms. This was going to be a tedious task indeed. Well, at least he had time.

December 1st, 2027
Wright Anything Agency
23 Days Until Christmas Eve

Apollo opened the door to the office and his eyes widened. “It looks like Christmas threw up in here.” He observed. A giggle sounded from the floor and allowed Apollo to see the culprit of the festive visage of their, admittingly, usually unprofessional office. Trucy and Athena, covered in glittering garland, stings of lights, and paper stars, beamed up at him. 

“That’s the best part about Christmas; dressing up our spaces with joyful decorations!” Trucy exclaimed, shaking the garland.

“It certainly wasn’t this festive last year.” Apollo pointed out. He vividly remembered there not being this much color or glitter last year.

Trucy nodded. “Last year wasn’t our best showing, for sure. But now since Daddy got his badge back, and Thena came to work here, we have so much joy that it simply-” she gestured to the decorations on the floor around them. “-have to reflect that in our space!”

Athena clapped her hands together and cheered. “Christmas-time in Europe is magical! All the twinkling lights and giant baubles. Everything looks like its glowing.” She sighed wistfully. 

Apollo hummed and folded his arms. “Well, this certainly looks glittering and glowing.” Apollo muttered. 

“Don’t be a Scrooge, Polly!” Trucy exclaimed. “It’s for Christmas!” Apollo rolled his eyes and stepped into the office, practically leaping over the mess of lights and garland covering the floor. 

“We’re a law firm.” Apollo retorted as he often did when Trucy had pulled some shenanigans. He paused as a similar conversation flooded into his memory. Apollo’s words had often been uttered by Kristoph whenever the man wanted to end an “argument” with Apollo. Not that the two often had many disagreements, but Apollo when he started working for Kristoph had been a teen with a rebellious streak a mile wide and loved to push the buttons of authority for fun. Kristoph had often been heard muttering Apollo’s aforementioned words directly in response to something Apollo had done. Apollo sighed and shook his head. It was no use dwelling on these things now.

“We’re an Anything Agency.” Trucy shot back, puffing her cheeks out petulantly. “A Christmas is a specific sort of anything that follows a certain set of rules in this office.” She continued.

“Well, you know how much I like rules and needless procedures.” Apollo joked sitting down in his chair. Athena chuckled and pulled at the string of lights in her hands. The three fell into a comfortable silence, the light plinks of Christmas tunes coming from the speakers and the rustling of light wires and garland the only sounds passing between them. Apollo busied himself with some end-of-the-year paperwork, and, yes, Trucy already pointed out that it was December 1st and nowhere near the end of the year, but Apollo insisted that if certain things were done now (especially his W2) it would make the transition into the New Year smoother. 

The song switched over to “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree”, causing the two girls to start singing loudly as they hung the lights around the molding in the room. Their giggles and purposefully off-key singing made Apollo smile as he filled in some mundane detail onto the sheet in front of him. 

“Okay, Thena!” Trucy crowed. She was standing on the ladder by the door to Phoenix’s office. “Grab the tape! We can get this door done while Daddy’s visiting the prosecutor’s office.”

“You got it, mon ami!” Athena responded and skipped over to the door with a tail of garland trailing behind her. Then suddenly, Athena crashed to the floor with a bang. Apollo shot up out of the chair.

“Are you alright, Athena?” He asked frantically. He didn’t want to think about what would happen if Athena wasn’t alright. He was technically left in charge when Phoenix was out of the office, and Apollo took that responsibility incredibly seriously. If Athena or Trucy got hurt on Apollo’s watch, he knew Phoenix would be disappointed, and that was the last thing Apollo ever wanted.

“I’m alright. Just the garland got twisted around my ankle.” Athena answered cheerfully, Widget’s bright yellow screen betraying her light tone. She gingerly stood up and unwound the garland that caused her fall before slowly moving towards Trucy.

“You went down like a log, Athena. You sure you’re alright?” Trucy asked with a frown as the yellow-clad lawyer handed over the garland.

“Oui! I am fine.” Athena insisted with a beaming smile. Widget now matched her tone by glowing a bright green. Apollo let out a relieved huff and slumped back down in his chair as the two girls continued their decorating. 

The song switched and a loud, high-pitched guitar string whine shot through the room. Apollo threw his hands over his ears and his face screwed up into a pinch. “What is that noise?” He groaned. 

“Oh! This is a Gavinners cover of Last Christmas!” Trucy cheered. “They only made one Christmas Album, so it’s full of all the most iconic and well-known Christmas songs.” She explained further. Apollo’s scowl deepened.

“I can’t seem to escape from him, can’t I?” Apollo grumbled. 

“There’s that usual spike of irritation.” Athena commented, flicking her earring thoughtfully. “It's always present whenever he mentions Prosecutor Gavin.” 

“It’s just cuz Polly is jealous.” Trucy revealed.

“No!” Apollo exclaimed, slapping his hands against the desk. “I am not jealous of Prosecutor Gavin at all!” Athena put her hands over her ears and Apollo huffed again. His feelings regarding the prosecutor were not of jealousy, but rather of begrudging acceptance of the man’s presence in his life. He didn’t have to like the other man’s flashy and flighty personality to still have some semblance of respect for Klavier and his profession; the legal one, not the musical one, though Apollo did respect the man’s inherent talent. It wasn’t his fault if people couldn’t figure out nuance and look at the situation deeper than surface level.

“Take it down a notch, Apollo.” A voice from the entrance called, causing his head to whip towards the owner. Phoenix sauntered in a moment later with an approving hum. “Looks great, ladies.” He complimented with a smile.

“Thanks, daddy!” Trucy cheered. “It was hard though, Apollo kept distracting us.” She said with a small pout, shooting Apollo a glare.

Apollo’s mouth dropped open as he exclaimed,“I was not! You kept talking to me!”

Phoenix shook his head. “Now Apollo, that wasn’t very nice of you. Trucy and Athena are working hard to make this place all ready for Christmas. It wouldn’t do well to distract them.” He chided. Athena giggled, Widget glowing bright green around her neck. Apollo huffed and folded his arms petulantly.

“I’m going back to doing taxes. Dunno why I even bother defending myself.” He grumbled, picking up his pen and resuming his task of filling in mundane details. Phoenix chuckled and started towards the back office as Trucy and Athena started to add the light/garland combination to the other door frame next to Phoenix’s office door; their unofficial storage closet.

Klavier’s voice had drifted off sometime during the short conversation with Phoenix, which was perfectly fine with Apollo, but the mention of the prosecutor brought up thoughts of his current conundrum over what Secret Santa gift would be best to give the former rockstar. Apollo had already gone through his pathetically short list of ideas and determined them all as duds. He talked himself out of getting the man a wallet chain to match the ones he already owned, personalized guitar picks, and purple fountain pens. All of them were practical enough, but useless when you thought about it realistically. He belatedly wondered if he could afford a last minute trip up to Oregon to see Clay’s dad and spend the holiday with him instead of the Wrights. Then he could say to Trucy that something came up and he couldn’t be there on Christmas Eve and then wouldn’t have to give a gift to Klavier. He felt a pang in his heart picturing Trucy and Athena’s dejected faces and realized he couldn’t do that to them. There was also a flash of Klavier’s dejected face that came unbidden to his mind, for some reason.

Apollo huffed and shook his head. No. He wouldn’t hear the end of it if he skipped this party. He would just have to suck it up and try to get something that wouldn’t ultimately embarrass him in the end.

“Apollo?” Trucy called. Apollo turned his head to see the younger girl standing by his desk, fingers curled together. Apollo cocked his head in a silent acknowledgement. “Athena and I were going to make paper chains, would you like to help?” She asked hopefully.

Apollo twisted in the chair around and folded his arms across his chest. “I thought I was distracting.” Apollo reminded her bitterly. Trucy pouted.

“I was joking…” She muttered. Apollo cocked an eyebrow causing the girl to sigh. “I’m sorry for using you as the butt of the joke.”

Apollo smiled. “Apology accepted. Come on. If we leave Athena for too long, she might wrap herself in the chain and fall down the stairs.” He joked, standing up and walking with her to where the cardstock was laid out. Athena looked up at him, Widget glowing red.

“Not funny, Apollo.” She snapped. Apollo chuckled and sat down on the floor, pulling some paper in front of him and grabbing the scissors.

“That was for earlier. Now we’re even.” Apollo declared as he started to cut out some strips.

“Fine. Truce.” Athena said, mimicking Apollo’s actions.

“Yea?” Trucy asked, coming to sit with a few bottles of water she grabbed from the kitchen. Apollo laughed as he figured out why Trucy was responding. Athena sighed.

“I wasn’t calling you, but thanks for the water.” Athena said wearily, taking a bottle in hand and opening it.

The trio spent the rest of the work day creating their paper chains for the office. Apollo showed the girls how to make a Möbius loop, which Trucy eagerly replicated to make her chain. Athena made her chain with patterned boxes that twisted against the wall. Eventually they started to make paper chains with winter-themed figures holding hands; elves, gingerbread people, snow people, snowflakes, Christmas trees. Apollo smiled as he put simple touches on his chain of gingerbread people, electing to make them look like Star Wars characters while Trucy made her snow people all look like Mr. Hat. Athena’s snowflakes had been transformed into shooting stars.

Apollo stepped back and admired their handiwork with a smile. “This looks great!” He commented brightly. Trucy beamed up at him.

“Yeah! Despite your grumpiness, you are pretty creative, Polly!”

Apollo scowled. “Those two traits don’t cancel each other out, y’know.” He grumbled, feeling his spikes curl down towards his forehead. Trucy’s twittering laugh was the response to his words. Athena smacked a fist into her hand with a crack!

“Muy bien! This place looks ready for the holiday!” She cheered. A ping sounded from her pocket causing her to quickly pull her phone out and, after fumbling to straighten the phone in her hands, quickly exclaimed, “Oh! Is it that late already! I was supposed to meet Junie for dinner.”

Apollo looked at the clock on the wall. “Oh, wow. Yeah, I’ve got to go feed Mikeko.” Apollo explained. “Don’t you have a show tonight, Trucy?” Apollo asked. Trucy nodded and quickly turned to grab some of the props laid on the table and shoved them in one of the bags at the end of the table. The three of them grabbed their things, said their goodbyes to each other and Phoenix who had come out to see what the commotion was, and went their separate ways.

Apollo smiled as he closed his apartment door behind him. He was relaying his day to Clay, who had called as Apollo locked up his bike. 

“Yeah, I can send you a picture of the chain tomorrow when I get there.” Apollo said, watching as Mikeko ran up to him and pushed against his leg in greeting. “Hey little man!” He cooed down at the cat. Apollo pressed the speaker on the screen so he could put his phone down on the counter as he set about making sure the cat was fed.

“You better! I can’t believe you didn’t think that I would want to see it.” Clay said in a way meant to be overly bitter which meant he was not mad at all and was just teasing Apollo.

“Oh please, you forget shit all the time, Terran.” Apollo shot back, in the same voice, as he smashed the pâté against the plate before stooping down to lay the plate on the floor. Mikeko immediately attacked the food voraciously. Clay began to talk a little bit about his day; things regarding the training left he had to complete for the HAT-2 mission, how Starbuck was feeling,  and purposefully avoiding talking deeply into things. He avoided talking about his dad or Christmas, which Apollo was okay with keeping silent about as well. 

After another 20 minutes of banal conversation, Apollo and Clay said their goodbyes with the promise of talking again the next day. Apollo flopped onto his desk chair and turned to the laptop he had placed there. His list from earlier in the week was also sitting there, mocking him. He had some things listed there, but many had been crossed off for various reasons. He frowned and swiveled slightly in the chair, thinking. If there was one perk about his giftee being a famous celebrity (former or not) was that there would be plenty of information to be found on the internet by way of interviews. Prosecutor Gavin probably had been asked about his favorite things multiple times over. Surely Apollo could find something.

He powered up his laptop and began his research.

December 2nd, 2027
Apollo Justice’s Apartment
22 Days Until Christmas Eve

Oh Holy Mother, he was never going to look up anything to do with Klavier Gavin again.

December 7th, 2027
District Prosecutor’s Office
17 Days Until Christmas Eve

“Why are we here again Trucy?” Apollo asked with tightly folded arms.

“Daddy needed something brought to Mr. Edgeworth. So I volunteered us to go!” Trucy answered, bouncing on her toes as the elevator climbed up.

Apollo felt his spikes droop as he grimaced. “Trucy, the word volunteer, comes from the Latin word ‘voluntarius’, meaning ‘willing or of one's own choice’. I did not make the choice to come here, you told me I was going.” Apollo pointed out bitterly.

Trucy narrowed her eyes at him. “Of course you would know that bit of information off the top of your head.” She retorted before rolling her eyes. “Okay, so I volun-told you to come with me; happy?” She asked.

“Semantics.” Apollo seethed. “It still doesn’t change the fact that I didn’t want to come down here. I come here enough due to Prosecutor Gavin’s nonsense.” Apollo muttered.

Trucy smiled brightly, “You mean the times when he wants to see you so badly because he likes you, so he devises ways to get you to be in the same room as him since you decline to go on dates with him?” She asked cheekily. Apollo huffed and leaned against the back wall of the elevator.

“I can’t believe a so-called genius would be that irresponsible with his paperwork.” Apollo grumbled. Trucy let out an aggrieved sigh and mirrored Apollo’s position against the back wall. 

“You’re so…dense.” Trucy muttered. Apollo sent a glare her way as the elevator stopped on the 12th floor. Trucy hopped out and skipped down the hall towards Office 1202. As Apollo followed, he could hear the muffled sounds of a wailing guitar coming from one of the other offices. Oh who was he kidding, he knew it was Klavier’s office the music was coming from. Apollo sped up his steps so as to get down the hall faster in case Klavier had some sort of Apollo-tracking beam on his door and knew of Apollo’s presence in the hallway.

Although…

Maybe this was a good opportunity to delve a little deeper into trying to figure out what would be the perfect gift for Klavier. An office could reveal a lot about a person, he remembered Kristoph saying to him once. A lot of good that did for him; Apollo didn’t know what in Kristoph’s office had screamed “serial killer”, but the sentiment was still something Apollo kept in the back of his mind when investigating offices. Maybe there was something there, or not there, that Apollo could use as the spark of an idea for a practical gift for the blonde.

He stole a glance at Trucy; she was already at Chief Prosecutor Edgeworth’s door talking to Miss Hannah Fright. Apollo nodded his head firmly and started toward Prosecutor Gavin’s door. He knocked firmly and waited. The music stopped (confirming Apollo’s suspicion that it had been coming from inside the blonde’s office) and a moment later the door swung open. Apollo watched the older man’s eyes widen slightly before the look was replaced with a flirtatious grin.

“Well, aren’t you a sight for sore eyes, Herr Forehead.” The prosecutor commented as he leaned forward, hands firmly draped around his hips. Apollo pressed his lips and sent a quick prayer of patience to any deity that would listen before slipping a smile onto his face.

“Trucy had to see Mr. Edgeworth and had me tag along, so I figured I should say hi. I haven’t seen you around.” Apollo explained. Klavier grinned brightly.

“You were worried about me?” Klavier teased and stepped aside. “Come on in.” Klavier turned around and Apollo followed, the door closing behind the two of them. “Ach, don’t mind the mess.” Klavier muttered. Apollo nodded to himself mostly. Hmm, that might be a good place to start, he thought. It wasn’t that Klavier was unorganized; Apollo quickly figured out that the blonde had his own way of organizing his work where he knew exactly where everything was. Apollo’s eyes drifted to the wall of guitars. Maybe a really good glass cleaner? Or wood polish? Does one even polish guitars? Klavier adored his guitars, comparing them to a lover, Apollo recalled with a grimace. On the opposite wall, underneath the large screens, were various vinyl record displays; he could see shiny autographs and glossy photos arranged neatly in a frame. Maybe he could possibly find something akin to that?

Apollo sighed and let his eyes drop to the papers on the floor. Maybe he could get the man a chair for when he had other people in the office. Nah, that might be a tad selfish. Also, Klavier knew of Apollo’s disdain for the prosecutor’s lack of chairs so a, “oh I see you bought yourself a present, huh, Herr Forehead?” And then everyone would laugh at the joke…so yeah, Apollo was not gonna go down that road, thank you.

“You’re oddly quiet today.” Klavier’s voice interrupted Apollo’s thoughts. Apollo jolted and gave his head a little shake.

“Oh? I was just listening.” Apollo lied quickly. Klavier chuckled.

“And I asked you a question and you hadn't responded. Such good listening skills, ja?” Klavier teased, leaning forward, smile brightly crossing his face. Apollo scrunched his nose and folded his arms.

“Can you repeat your question then?” Apollo grumbled. 

Klavier chuckled again. “Ja. I had asked you about your holiday plans.” Klavier repeated.

Apollo cocked his head. “What does that have to do with anything?” Apollo asked defensively.

Klavier stood up straight and looped his thumb in his belt loop. “Ach, not one for menial small talk. I should have figured.” Klavier said, a teasing tone still present in his voice. “It is customary, Herr Forehead, that during the month of December, at some point there will be talk between colleagues that revolves around the holidays found sometime during the month.” Klavier explained. Apollo’s nose scrunched further.

“Not that it’s any of your business, but other than the Wright Christmas party, I’m not really doing anything other than going to work.” Apollo said stiffly. It was the truth; he usually spent a lot of the end of December with Clay, ever since they met in seventh grade. Through distant foster families and college breaks, Clay and Apollo were the source of strength for the other. This year though, Clay would be in space on the HAT-2 mission for six months, effectively missing the holiday. As much as Clay’s father, Craig, loved having both men around, Apollo felt it was too awkward to spend a family holiday with a man whose son was flying in a giant space station in space. Apollo’s lips pulled into a tight smile as he added, “is this the time when I reciprocate and ask you what you are doing?”

Klavier huffed and turned around, surveying all the papers on the floor. “After the actual holiday, I have to come back here to work, as well. I appreciate all of Herr Chief’s efforts to eradicate corruption in the Prosecutor’s office, but I wish it didn’t have to come at the expense of my vacation time.” Klavier muttered before he gave a smirk. “Although, I think it has more to do with my seven year sabbatical that I am expected to be here next week.”

Apollo snorted, trying to hold back a laugh by clearing his throat. “So you’re going to spend all your time here catching up on work? And here I thought my work/life balance was shit.” He muttered.

“What that a joke?” Klavier asked eagerly, smile so bright it was practically blinding. Apollo pursed his lips and jerked his head away, causing Klavier to laugh. “Nein, I also…” Klavier trailed off with a frown and looked at some crumpled papers on the floor. “I’ve been trying to write. Oh no, now Apollo was treading into some dangerous territory in regards to Klavier’s music, but a knock on the door decided to be his saving grace. “Come in!” Klavier called. Trucy’s hatted head popped in the space left from the opened door.

“That’s where you went off to, Polly!” She declared. “I didn’t realize you hadn’t been behind me until Mr. Edgeworth mentioned that I was by myself.” The door opened fully and revealed Trucy’s hands were propped on her hips. Her cheeks puffed out in a pout.

Apollo rubbed his hand against the back of his head and chuckled. “Sorry, Trucy. We can get going, now.” He promised and turned around to walk towards her before stopping and twisting his head back towards Klavier. “Uh, it was good to see you, Prosecutor Gavin,” he said awkwardly. Klavier smiled.

“Ja, of course. It was good to see you as well, Herr Forehead.” He responded in kind. “Maybe we should do this again sometime, hm?” Klavier asked, smiling sweetly at him. It was a familiar looking smile, reminiscent of his brother but somehow looking nothing like the older Gavin at all. Apollo nodded quickly and turned his head, striding out of the room quickly past Trucy.

“Oh, Apollo! Are you feeling alright, your cheeks are all red!” She exclaimed as the door closed behind them. Apollo practically ran to the elevator, determined to bury the whole interaction to the back of his mind.

December 11th, 2027
Holiday Road Market
13 Days Until Christmas Eve

Apollo stood off to the side with a smile as Trucy, Kay, and Athena took a photo at the little gilded frame hanging from the tree. Kay was a recent introduction to Apollo despite her being a part of the mismatched family Mr. Wright had acquired before Apollo worked at the agency. She was an investigator that Chief Prosecutor Edgeworth uses now and again on cases. She was perky, cunning, and sly; fitting in perfectly with the other girls. She was also dating one Detective  Ema Skye, which Apollo did not see coming, but somehow, after seeing them interact today, he understood their relationship perfectly. 

It had been Kay’s idea to take a trip out to Holiday Road, a pop up Christmas experience in which you get to walk through different holiday displays and take pictures. It wasn’t usually Apollo’s cup of tea, especially when it involved crowds of people, but Clay, who had intercepted the message from Trucy this morning, had almost thrown Apollo out the door at the prospect of him spending a whole Saturday out of his apartment and with other people. Clay was under pseudo-house arrest for the next week to prepare for the HAT-2 Mission, and couldn’t participate in “highly risky” activities out of precaution. Apollo wanted to scoff and make a sarcastic comment that walking through a flat path of lighted displays was the epitome of risk, but he knew how much Clay was looking forward to being able to go to space and if anything impeded that the astronaut would be devastated, so Apollo bit his tongue and went off with the girls.

Well, not just the girls.

“Are you sure you don’t want a photo, Herr Forehead?” A voice sounded out behind him. Apollo huffed and turned his head slightly towards the voice.

“Yeah, the fewer pictures I am in, the better.” Apollo responded to the blonde before narrowing his eyes at the cups in the man’s hands. “Thirsty, Gavin?” Apollo asked.

“One is for me, yes, but I got one for you as well.” The man said, holding out the cup in his right hand towards Apollo. Apollo frowned and took the cup tentatively. 

“Oh. Thank you but, I-” Apollo started as he looked at the cup.

“It’s cider, not hot chocolate.” Klavier interrupted and then rolled his eyes. “I remember. You’re surprisingly picky about hot chocolate.” Klavier observed. Apollo lifted the cup to his nose, immediately getting a whiff of the sweet and sharp tones of cinnamon and apple. Apollo took a small sip. He wouldn’t reveal that part of the reason that he was picky about hot chocolate had to do with his former mentor, Klavier’s older brother, Kristoph, and that the older man used to make the younger attorney hot chocolate on particularly long and tedious days in the office, or when Apollo was plagued with pain due to his period, or just as a pick me up when Apollo had been stressed over school and work tasks. No, it was best to just keep that memory locked up tight and never dwell on it again.

“Surprisingly?” Apollo questioned instead.

“You’re a very simple man, Apollo Justice.” Klavier responded. Apollo scrunched his nose causing the prosecutor to laugh. “I don’t mean it as a bad thing, mein freund.” Klavier assured him. “I quite like that about you. You’re straightforward and what I see is what I get. No mystery.”

Apollo huffed and took another sip. Great, so he was an open book. Little good that did him as a giant mystery was staring at him in the face…literally.

Apollo was no closer to getting Klavier a gift today than he was when this silly little thing started. Every time he thought he had a good idea, he would picture Klavier’s face when he opened it and how his bracelet would tighten as Klavier exclaimed how he liked the gift and demanded to know who got it for him. Apollo knew it was irrational to think that way; after all, Klavier had never given Apollo a reason not to trust that he was telling the truth before, but his anxiety was a whole other beast to contend with. Apollo just had to find the perfect present for his own sanity, if nothing else.

“-Forehead?” A voice cut through the cloud of his mind. Apollo blinked quickly into the endless blue eyes of the prosecutor, bent over into his line of sight as ever.

“Huh?” Apollo said intelligently.

“I asked if everything was alright. You’ve been staring intently at the lid of your cup for a while now. Surely it has cooled down enough to drink, ja?” Klavier teased. Apollo felt his cheeks heat up and he put the cup to his mouth surlily and took a sip. 

“Aww, you guys got drinks without us?” Trucy whined as she came over with the other girls. Apollo rolled his eyes.

“I did not do anything without you. It was Rockstar over here.” Apollo grumbled. Klavier let out a booming laugh.

“Oh, I get a nickname now! That means were are fruends, ja?” Klavier exclaimed happily. Apollo’s eyebrows shot up and his mouth dropped open. He didn’t mean it as a friendly nickname; it was an insult. Though Klavier’s smile at the implication of Apollo considering them friends made Apollo’s heart flutter. Apollo turned his head away with a frown; why was his anxiety spiking over this conversation? That was annoying. Apollo huffed and stomped away, going towards the vendors in the market. He needed to take his mind off of Klavier and onto…well Klavier’s gift. The chuckling of the others rang through his ears as they were undoubtedly following behind him towards the vendors’ tables. 

Apollo’s sourness faded as he started to look at some of the wares in front of him. The twinkling lights glinted off the glass surfaces of the holiday themed shadow boxes on the table. The boxes were artfully decorated and would be nice additions to anyone’s home decor, but he didn’t think Klavier was the type to decorate for the holidays. Not that Apollo ever thought about Klavier’s house or how it looked! Not at all. That would be extremely unprofessional. 

Apollo shook his head and smiled awkwardly at the vendor before moving on to the next table. This one had cute little tea towels and gift bags with iron-on Christmas sayings and puns written on them. Again, these were nice, but not something Apollo thought that Klavier would be excited about. A loud cheerful exclamation from his left startled him and he turned his head quickly to see Trucy bouncing excitedly at the previous table.

“Oh! Tante Franziska would love this!” She said breathlessly. Apollo smiled. At least someone was crossing off people on their gift list. 

An hour later, Apollo made a good amount of progress on his regular Christmas list. He had found the silliest thing for Clay; a NASA drink koozie. For Athena, he found a set of handmade satin bows in different colors. He even managed to find something for Mr. Wright and Mr. Edgeworth, a feat of which he was exceptionally proud of, but still nothing that caught his eye for Klavier.

Apollo sighed and turned his head and gasped lightly. His feet were moving before he could even think as he locked eyes with, quite possibly, the coolest thing he had ever seen.

“Big Dr. Who fan?” The vendor asked jovially as Apollo bent down to peer at the shadow box on the table. Apollo smiled up at him.

“Yeah. Ten is my favorite.” Apollo said lowly as he lifted the box carefully. It was a beautiful image of David Tenant’s iteration of the Tenth Doctor both in front of the TARDIS but also a portrait outline. The TARDIS was in the foreground with the swirls of space and planets in the background. On the frame itself were some of Tenant’s most famous quotes burned into the wood. It was a stunning piece that Apollo would never buy himself, but could appreciate and wonder how it would look in his apartment. Apollo put it down and gave the seller a smile. “This is great! Thank you.” He then walked away, more determined to try and find something for Klavier that would invoke the same feeling as that box did for Apollo.

In the end, Apollo found nothing he thought was good enough to give the prosecuting rockstar. Oh well. It was not a big deal. He still had 13 days after all.

December 16th, 2027 12:43 pm
Hickfield Clinic
8 Days Until Christmas Eve

Well, being in the middle of an explosion that gave you a concussion and subsequently landing you in the hospital with second degree burns and lesions all over your arms and back while your best friend was awaiting trial for the murder of his mentor was not how Apollo thought he would be spending the week before Christmas.

December 21st, 2027 2:32 am
Apollo’s Apartment
3 Days Until Christmas Eve

Apollo laid his head against Clay’s arm, the adrenaline crash in full effect and he was struggling to stay awake. Mikeko was curled upon Apollo’s lap as the TV played lowly in the background. Neither man was focused on the show playing. Apollo’s mind spun with raging thoughts about everything that happened in the last few days. The failed HAT-2 launch, Clay’s arrest for Starbuck’s death, the courtroom bombing, Apollo’s hospital stay, Blackquill’s exoneration, Athena’s accusation, The Phantom…he was thinking of everything and nothing all at once.

“Hey.” A poke to Apollo’s forehead took him out of his thoughts. Apollo looked up at Clay frowning down at him, pointer finger hovering in the air between them. “Whatcha thinking so deeply about at 2 in the morning?”

Apollo let out a huff. “Everything…I was wrong.” Apollo admitted. Clay shifted gently in a way Apollo knew to be a sign to continue speaking. “About Athena…but all the evidence pointed to her…at least that's what it looked like.”

“You made a mistake. You’re human.” Clay reminded him gently. “Don’t beat yourself up too badly. You guys found the truth in the end and saved not only me, but Trucy, Athena, and Blackquill and all those people in the space center.” Apollo huffed and tilted his head down. Clay gently prodded his forehead again. “Hey, they forgave you. I forgive you. Guilt is a wasted emotion, isn’t that what you’ve told me?”

Apollo’s eyes rolled and he let out a scoff. “Yeah, and it was advice from a literal murderer, so I trust you understand why I take it with a grain of salt.”

“So is the whole evidence is everything bit,” Clay shot back sharply. “And you were pretty keen on following that line, so forgive me when I say shut up and let us forgive you.” Apollo pressed his lips together tightly. “Okay, so we will let that particular sleeping dog lie for a time when you’re more awake to process it,” Clay suggested. Apollo nodded and sniffed. “Let’s…try turning our attention to more pressing matters.”

Apollo shifted and tilted his head up. “Like?”

“Like Christmas.” Clay answered. “Looks like I’m here for the holiday, so we can spend it together.” 

Oh. Apollo hadn’t realized that particular outcome. The space center was closed for the finalizations of the investigation into the Phantom and the hostage situation, so the HAT-3 launch would be rescheduled for the new year. Clay had been offered a seat on the rocket going up, to make up for the debacle of the HAT-2 mission. Clay hadn’t accepted yet and the two of them probably wouldn’t talk about it until after the holiday; Clay had to process Starbuck’s death and his own role in the death of his mentor. 

“Sucks that I’m not part of the Secret Santa stuff as I wasn’t going to be around, but I’m gonna need help in getting gifts for your friends and co-workers.”

“Why?” Apollo asked.

“Trucy invited me to the Christmas Party you guys are having.” Clay explained cheerfully. “She barely knows me, and I wonder whose fault that is,” Clay teased, causing Apollo to roll his eyes again. Clay was going to space and was constantly unavailable, so Apollo never really went out of his way to make a plan to let his co-workers meet his best (and only) friend. Also, Apollo selfishly wanted to keep Clay, let out a chuckle and continued, “but she still invited me. The least I could do is give her and her family a gift card. Does her dad drink wine or something?”

Apollo sat up. “Mr. Edgeworth does. Mr. Wright cut back a while ago.” He answered while stroking Mikeko’s back. “I’m sure I can help you out with some of that. We would have to hurry though. Only four days left.” Apollo pointed out. Clay sighed.

“Yeah. I only got you and my dad gifts. Starbuck-” Clay cut off before sighing. “Well…the point is, I hadn’t done much shopping. The malls are gonna be a nightmare now. Lucky you. Knowing you, you’ve been and have had them all neatly wrapped since before the tenth.” Clay teased. Apollo shifted and frowned. “Oh? You’re not? Punctual ‘Pollo?” 

“Will you stop with that nickname?” Apollo snapped. “It didn’t stick in high school, it certainly isn’t going to stick now.” 

Clay chuckled and lightly bounced his shoulder against Apollo’s. “Aww come on, you love me.” Clay drawled. 

Apollo smiled sadly. “You know I do…is it bad that I feel happy you didn’t die? You know you could have. It could have easily been you instead of Starbuck…and I feel so guilty when I think that.”

“Apollo…” Clay sighed. “I don’t wanna think about this now.”

“I know…” Apollo trailed off and slid a hand through his hair. “Just…I’m glad you’re here man.”

Clay smiled. “Me too. But you’re deflecting, counselor. You aren’t done shopping yet?”

Apollo huffed. “Let’s start with I suddenly have a lot more people to get gifts for. My list tripled in size and price really quickly.” Apollo complained. “And then this stupid Secret Santa gift. I can’t figure out the best gift for this person and it’s annoying me so much!”

“Who is it? Maybe I can help.” Clay suggested and Apollo’s usual quick “no”, the instinctive answer that bubbled up out of self-preservation came to his lips but then his brain caught up and forced the answer back down into his chest. Clay could actually prove to be useful in his predicament; Clay was (or still is depending on the day) a huge Gavinners fan, ever since they were younger. Apollo had better taste in music, in his opinion, and heard exactly one song from the band and wrote them completely off as just noise. If there was anyone he could ask, outside of Trucy (which was against the rules; they couldn’t reveal who they had before the 24th and Apollo was a stickler for the rules sometimes to a fault), it would be Clay. However, Clay was also of the opinion, as was Trucy, that Apollo had a…thing for Klavier Gavin, so the revelation that Apollo was stuck on getting the perfect gift for Klavier would not be interpreted as Apollo’s perfectionism rearing its ugly head, but rather Apollo’s anguish would be read as wanting the perfect gift to woo Klavier as a potential love interest, which was NOT at all what was happening. Apollo just wanted to not embarrass himself at the party and have to hide in misery until the New Year, that was all.

“You cannot laugh at me or you will not be allowed to help me.” Apollo warned. Clay drew an x over the left side of his chest. Apollo sighed before mumbling, “It’s Klavier Gavin.”

Clay, to his credit, held back the laugh that Apollo could see bubbling up in his face, and decided instead to give Apollo a smile before saying, “Okay, let’s see what we can do.”

December 23rd, 2027 11:03 am
South LA Strip
1 Day Until Christmas Eve

Apollo took Clay up on his advice two days later and took the other man with him to try and get last minute shopping done. Apollo was determined to find something for Klavier today, come hell or high water.

“Hey.” Clay called. Apollo turned around from the shelf he had been looking at to see Clay holding up a wooden triangle shaped thing in his hands.

“What the hell is that?” Apollo asked. Clay shrugged.

“I don’t know. Sign says something about a book nook.” Clay explained. “I figured now that Blackquill is out in the world, he’s gonna wanna catch up on reading his fancy psychology books. This looks like you can put the book on it and not lose your place. It might be a good gift.”

Apollo cocked his head and thought about Clay’s words for a moment before humming. “Yeah, that’s a good idea. Blackquill seems like a reader.” At the affirmation of Apollo’s words Clay smiled and put the wooden object into his basket.

“Do you think that I have to get something for the bird?” Clay asked. Apollo huffed and turned back to the wooden sculptures on the shelf with a frown.

“I’d know that frown anywhere.” A voice from Apollo’s right called. “It seems that you and I had the same idea, ja, Herr Forehead?” Of all the rotten luck. A gasp and a flash of blue at his left stopped him from ruminating on his terrible luck. Clay’s face was beaming literal sunshine as he took in the sight of Klavier Gavin in the flesh in front of him. “Oh! Aren’t you Herr Astronaut from Simon’s case?”

Clay’s face, if one could believe it, brightened even more as he looked towards Apollo, eyes sparkling. “I get a nickname. I’m Herr Astronaut. You cannot take this away from me.” He hissed at Apollo before looking at Klavier again. “Yes. I am Herr Astronaut, I am an astronaut, I will be going to space soon.” Clay babbled. Klavier chuckled good naturedly. 

“It’s nice to meet you, Herr Terran.” Klavier greeted.

“Oh my Wizard God, he remembered my name.” Clay whimpered. Apollo rolled his eyes.

“Hello, Prosecutor Gavin. What would you be doing here?” Apollo asked.

“Ach, so cold, Herr Forehead.” Klavier teased. “I am, like you, trying to get some last minute shopping done with my friend.” Apollo looked off over Klavier’s shoulder where, while there were many people standing behind him, none of them looked like they were with him. “They are already in a store. I just got here and am waiting for her out here.” Klavier explained after seeing Apollo’s confusion. 

“Are you here with your friend, Rea?” Clay asked. Klavier cocked his head.

“A friend of Herr Forehead who knows about my former band members?” Klavier asked humorously. “Will wonders never cease? Ah, yes, I am here with Rea. She wanted to get something for their partner’s family. They are going to meet the family for the first time. I needed to grab some things so I offered to meet her here. I think she will be fine, but they like reassurance from time to time, like we all do, ja?” Klavier explained.

“Yep. Totally.” Clay agreed. Apollo sighed and turned his head. This was going to be very interesting. 

Rea ended up finding Klavier a moment later. The former bassist was a quiet but welcome addition to their impromptu shopping group. She walked next to Apollo as Klavier and Clay were in front of them talking. Well Clay was doing most of the talking and Klavier was listening. Rea made adequate small talk with Apollo and, once Apollo asked about Rea’s job, they had a good chat about forensic psychology. It was different than talking with Ema about forensic science though the two professions were intrinsically linked. Apollo, though not a fan of psychology, found an appreciation for Rea’s choice of profession.

The group came to a stop outside of a rather large shop that seemed to sell a mishmosh of a ton of different tchotchkes. It seemed like a good place to try and find some unique gifts or silly little gag gifts for a white elephant type game, which Rea revealed that was another reason they needed to come to the mall today. The shop wasn’t occupied by too many people so Apollo wasn’t immediately made uncomfortable by having to force himself between people standing in the way even after Apollo said “excuse me”. It was baffling to him that people could ignore his booming voice and be so self-absorbed that they don't move out of the way.

Klavier immediately made his way into the back of the store to look at the decorative signs with Clay following behind him. Rea started to look at the store's display of Christmas ornaments, intently surveying each one with a laser-like focus, leaving Apollo to wander around the store by himself.

Apollo had found himself enjoying looking at the wares on the shelf. There were a lot of knick knacks gag-like gifts with cheeky sayings. He grabbed for the office bathroom a sign that said, “you don't know what you've got till it's gone…toilet paper for example.” He knew Mr. Wright would love it. 

He was able to find some smaller gifts for some of his old college friends as well as associates from his former place of employment that he still kept in contact with, those little things that you got when you didn't know what to get but were still personal enough that you knew they would like it. Was that a thing? Well Apollo was making it a thing.

Apollo heard Clay call his name from the cashier and was ready to check out when his eyes caught another display and he had to hold back a gasp.

Yes! Perfect!

December 24th, 2027 7:38 pm
Wright Anything Agency
Almost Christmas

Apollo smiled as Trucy wowed the rest of the party goers with her newest trick, thankfully there were no panties involved. 

“Tada!” She exclaimed as she pulled a stuffed reindeer out of her top hat. The crowd gasped and clapped joyfully. Apollo clapped along with them before stuffing a cheese topped cracker in his mouth. 

The agency members had exchanged gifts before the party. Apollo was pleased that they all seemed to like the gifts he got them. Athena had all but thrown off her usual blue bow and donned a red one even though it clashed horribly with her bright yellow suit and blue tie. Trucy has started practicing with her gold gilded backed playing cards and sure enough, the sign has made Mr. Wright burst into a fit of laughter which turned into tears when he opened Apollo’s second gift; a framed image of a tree with Phoenix’s name at the base of the tree, Apollo, Athena, and Trucy's names in the branches going up and underneath in the roots, just above the quote, “A mentor is someone who sees more talent and ability within you than you see in yourself and helps bring it out of you,” was the name Mia.

“And you can put more names on it if you want.” Apollo had babbled when he saw Phoenix looking at it intently. “I just figured that since the three of us are a part of the Agency now that it would make the most sense to have us there first. I…know that I wasn't the best employee this past month and I know you said you all forgive me, but…” The rest of Apollo’s words were swallowed up by Phoenix's shoulder being pressed up to his mouth as the older man swallowed him in a hug. 

Trucy had given Apollo a bright red fountain pen and some ink chargers. Athena had given him a candle which read, “I'M NOT A CONTROL FREAK BUT YOU'RE DOING IT WRONG” which made Apollo laugh. He took a picture for Clay who responded with a ton of laughing emojis. Mr. Wright had given him a bonus check and mug which read “Cat Dad” that had a fairly accurate depiction of him and Mikeko that the older man had drawn on himself. Both things had taken Apollo by surprise and were very thoughtful. 

They had closed the office early that day so Trucy and Mr. Wright could get ready for the party. She insisted that her and her daddy were fine by themselves which made Apollo suspicious that she was plotting something, but he didn't particularly mind the extra time before the party to spend with Clay.

Apollo, as punctual as always, had arrived with Clay in tow at exactly 6:30 pm. To no one's surprise, he was the first guest to arrive. Clay and Trucy got along like a house on fire, excitedly talking as if they were the ones who had been friends since they were 12 and not he and Clay. Trucy had squealed upon seeing Clay’s present for her which was a trick ring box that could make a ring appear and disappear. She cackled as she dashed to her prop room in the back, muttering something to herself too low for him to hear. Clay smiled innocently at Apollo and then stood up to go to the grazing table to get food.

Soon after Apollo’s arrival, the other guests started to trickle in. Chief Prosecutor Miles Edgeworth along with his “big” sister Franziska von Karma. Maya and Pearl flew in behind them with comically large suitcases. Inspector Gumshoe, his wife Maggey, and their two children, Amber and Ricky, tried to all come through the entry way at the same time and, as expected, fell to the ground once they dislodged themselves. Athena and Juniper bounced in around 7 with matching knitted scarves, most likely Juniper’s creation, with Simon and Taka surprisingly bringing up the rear. The former convict’s presence seemed to please the Chief Prosecutor who was smiling slightly behind his wine glass. 

Klavier came in a little while with Ema, Kay, and a sandy haired man that Apollo recognized from a court case while he was working with Mr. Gavin, though Apollo didn’t remember the man’s name as the case had been about four years ago.

“Sorry we’re late, the fop’s hair wasn’t cooperating.” Ema said scathingly as she made a beeline to the grazing table. Klavier flipped his hair with a scoff.

“It was not, Fraulein Detective.” Klavier protested. “Sebastian lost his present and couldn’t find it.” The blonde explained. Learning the man’s name was when it all flooded back for Apollo. Sebastian Debeste, another prosecuting prodigy from Themis, had been working under Miles Edgeworth for the last eight years, leaving on Interpol missions now and then, and only recently came back from one to help the short-staffed district office. 

“My apologies for the delay.” Sebastian said firmly, though the tears in his eyes betrayed the display of bravado.

“It is of no consequence.” Mr. Edgeworth had piped up. “I have been told that it is customary to arrive late sometimes to parties. Something of it being ‘fashionable,’” The man tilted his head with a small hum and shrugged. “At any rate, no one finds fault in your arrival at this time, Sebastian, so worry not.” He assured the man. Sebastian smiled and nodded before following Kay to get some food. Klavier shrugged as well before flashing Apollo a smile.

“Now the party can really get started.” Klavier commented cheekily. Apollo rolled his eyes and folded his arms with a huff, but found himself tongue-tied at the sight of the blonde before him. He was wearing the tightest purple sweater, shiny silver Gavinners’ symbol stretched tightly across his chest. At least his clavicles were covered, Apollo thought grumpily. “Your sweater is quite ugly indeed, Herr Forehead.”

Apollo looked down at his chest. Clay and Apollo had gotten each other their sweaters for the party. Apollo’s sweater was a bright red with a green and white Christmasy horizontal pattern. The words, “I’m a criminal attorney, of course I’m on the nice list” were sandwiched between the lines of green presents and white bows. Apollo scrunched his nose at Klavier. 

“At least mine looks like a Christmas sweater, Prosecutor Gavin,” Apollo shot back.

Klavier’s smile turned to a pout. “What happened to Rockstar? I quite liked that name.” He said lowly. Apollo felt his cheeks heat up.

“I-nicknames are your thing.” Apollo objected weakly. Clay, thankfully, chose that moment to come over and wrap and arm around Apollo’s shoulders.

“Hey KlavGav!” He greeted. “Nice sweater!”

Klavier flipped his bangs and smiled. “Danke. You have an interesting sweater there, ja?” Klavier observed as his eyes fell on the Christmas tree on Clay’s chest. However, instead of evergreen branches, the shape of the tree was adorned with the planets, comets, rockets, and the sun at the top. The background of the sweater was similar to Apollo’s with horizontal patterned stripes, but instead of gifts and bows, there were stars and moons.

“Apollo got this for me.” Clay informed the blonde, knocking Apollo’s shoulder playfully. “I got his sweater, too. I figured with all the stories Apollo has told me about being a defense attorney in this district, there would be no reason he’d not be on the nice list.”

“I don’t disagree with you on that, Herr Astronaut.” Klavier said cheekily, leaning forward and smiling directly into Apollo’s line of sight. Apollo scrunched his nose and pressed his lips tightly together. The door suddenly banged open, diverting all attention towards the noise.

“NIIIIIIIIICCCCCCKKKKKKK!” A wail sounded from the open door. A long-suffering sigh sounded from the back office. Mr. Wright came out from his office where he had been putting the coats of the guests. 

“Larry, what happened this time?” Mr. Wright asked wearily as he came closer to the door.

“It’s Veronika man…she…she went off to Dubai with her assistant!” Larry wailed. Mr. Wright grimaced as Larry threw himself into the attorney’s shoulder. 

“Alright man. Come on, I got some bourbon in the cabinet and you can tell me all about it.” Mr. Wright murmured into Larry’s ear while patting the other man’s back. Larry sniffed and allowed himself to be led deeper into the office. Apollo sighed. Larry was always around causing trouble for Mr. Wright, but Mr. Wright always smiled and took care of his friend. Mr. Edgeworth excused himself and followed behind the other two, probably to help the damage control.

“Such a luckless man.” Klavier commented. Apollo cocked his head questioningly causing Klavier to chuckle and continue, “Herr Butz, Deauxnim, whichever he goes by these days, comes by the office sometimes. It’s often to talk about his love life woes, mostly. When he isn’t crying about his latest break up, he tells us about his successful career as an illustrator.”

“Interesting. He comes around here too, but I hadn’t realized he did the same to Mr. Edgeworth.” Apollo revealed.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if there was a calendar where Herrs Edgeworth and Wright trade off who has to be the supportive friend for Herr Butz.” Klavier chuckled and started to snap his fingers rhythmically.

“That’s good friends for sure.” Clay commented, giving Apollo’s shoulder a tight squeeze before excusing himself. Apollo felt his bracelet tighten before Clay left and frowned. If Apollo had to figure a guess, Clay was reminded of his late mentor through Larry’s actions and wanted a moment to collect himself. The squeeze was Clay’s way of giving Apollo a signal to how long he needed before Apollo should come out to follow. Apollo forced the frown off his face and took a sip of his drink.

“So you drink something other than iced coffees and cider?” Klavier commented lightly. Apollo scoffed.

“Is that a way to find out what I’m drinking, Prosecutor?” Apollo asked teasingly. Klavier laughed, the joy radiating behind his eyes. 

“You see right through me as always, Forehead.” Klavier commented lightly. A series of sharp dings signaled for attention from across the room. Mr. Wright smiled at the crowd as Mr. Edgeworth put down the glass and knife he was holding.

“Thank you. So now we come to the moment I feel like everyone has been waiting for: Secret Santa time! Everyone, go get your gifts and then bring them to your giftee!” Mr. Wright instructed. A flurry of motion filled the room as everyone went to follow the instructions given by Mr. Wright. Apollo took out his package for Klavier and returned to the seating area of the office where everyone else had returned with their gifts. 

“I suppose you should start, Wright, given that you are the host of the party.” Mr. Edgeworth suggested from his spot on the arm rest. The man held a rather large rectangular gift on his lap delicately. Phoenix nodded and slid his gift over to Athena who gasped.

“Oh!” She exclaimed, Widget turning yellow from shock. “Thank you, Boss!” She grinned and ripped into the paper. Out slid a wooden triangle that had a shiny side. Athena looked down and read the gold plaque. Widget turned a bright blue as the tears started streaming down her face. “Boss…thank you.” Athena repeated, less exuberant but just as grateful. 

“You deserve it after this year, Athena. I wish I could have given it to you sooner.” Phoenix said. Athena bounded over and wrapped the older man in a tight hug. A chorus of coos sounded from the rest of the guests.

“Okay, next.” Phoenix said, his voice tight with emotion as Athena bounded to her desk and put the plaque proudly at the edge of the surface. Athena Cykes, Attorney At Law glistened in the candlelight. Trucy hopped over to Larry and handed him a gift joyfully. Larry’s eyes teared up as he took the gift and opened it.

“A set of paintbrushes. Thank you Trucy.” Larry said, a noticeable wobble to his soft voice. Trucy gave the man a firm hug which he returned.

Other gifts then were distributed with gusto. Maggey Byrde-Gumshoe handed a misshapen gift to Mr. Edgeworth as Inspector Gumshoe handed Juniper a small gift box. Juniper gave Trucy a gift and Klavier’s gift went to Simon.

“There’s one in there for Taka as well, Herr Samurai.” Klavier informed his fellow prosecutor. Simon hummed and sliced open the wrapping on the gift with a sharp stroke. 

Apollo had been watching Simon intently when the sound of a cleared throat took his attention away from Simon’s gift opening. Apollo turned his head to see Mr. Edgeworth was still holding his large gift. Apollo’s eyes widened as he took the package from the Chief Prosecutor, becoming increasingly curious as to what it could be when Apollo felt the surprisingly heavy weight in his hands. He ripped the paper open and revealed a large tome. Apollo cocked his head to the side and read the cover: Black’s Law Dictionary. Mr. Gavin owned a copy and Apollo remembered pouring over it when he had some time to read in between cases. Apollo looked up at Mr. Edgeworth, a bright smile stretched across his lips.

“This is awesome, Mr. Edgeworth! Thank you so much!” Apollo exclaimed excitedly. Mr. Edgeworth looked away from Apollo, holding his left elbow awkwardly.

“Wright mentioned our…ahem, common interest in learning about the law beyond the surface level. This book has been integral for me during my research into different legal systems around the world. If there was anyone that would appreciate the work I have compiled in my travels, I am assured it would be you.” Mr. Edgeworth explained.

“I will take good care of this. Thank you, thank you.” Apollo promised.

“Wow, Apollo. I don’t think I’ve ever seen you this excited about something before.” Trucy commented, poking her chin with her index finger. “I quite like this side of you, Polly.” Trucy folded her arms behind her back and bounced on her toes. Apollo felt his cheeks heat up and put the book down at his feet.

“That’s awesome dude.” Clay said, coming to Apollo’s shoulder. Apollo twisted his head and smiled at Clay.

“You okay?” Apollo murmured as another gift trade began on the other side of the room between Kay and Sebastian. Clay sniffled and nodded quickly. Apollo bumped his shoulder against Clay’s and picked up his gift for Klavier and walked towards the blonde who had been standing with Simon over on the side of the office. Klavier turned his head and smiled at Apollo’s arrival.

“Ah, so you’re my wichteln, hm?” Klavier asked. Apollo nodded and handed his gift over. Klavier took it gingerly in his hands, turning the smallish package over in his hands before sliding a well-manicured nail through the seam where Apollo had taped the two sides of the paper together. It was the neatest and slowest unwrapping Apollo had ever been a party to. Though soon enough, Klavier had pulled out his present and Apollo held his breath as Klavier looked closely at the prize in his hand.

“A…music book?” Klavier asked slowly. 

Indeed it was. Apollo had locked eyes with the leather bound music journal in the shop the day before right as he was going to check out. It was a smooth purple color. Burned on the cover was a musical staff artistically twisting around an acoustic guitar with music notes sprinkled around the lines. Under the guitar was a quote, "I see the stars in your persona..." 

Apollo gripped his bracelet tightly in his right hand. “Yes. You had said you were looking to write more music. I know that I go through journals quickly when I get inspired to write things so even if you don’t need it now, you will be able to use it eventually.” Apollo babbled.

“Thank you. I did need a new book.” Klavier affirmed with a gentle smile, one that Apollo had never really seen before on the other man. Apollo didn’t know quite what to make of it. Apollo nodded and went back over to Clay. He took his drink back and downed the rest of it in one go.

“You want another?” Clay asked as Apollo pulled the glass away from his lips. Apollo pushed his glass towards Clay as an answer. As Clay went off to get Apollo something to drink, Apollo mused on what just happened. The exchange went better than Apollo expected, which is what he had hoped. Klavier genuinely seemed to like the gift, which, again, was what Apollo had wanted. All in all, it was a success.

The party started winding down about an hour later with Inspector Gumshoe and his family being the first to leave as the children had to be home before Santa’s arrival. The older adults were seated on the couches playing card games while the younger adults were talking over by Apollo and Athena’s desks. Apollo was seated in his chair with his chin laying on his arms simply listening. The anxiety of overthinking about giving Klavier his gift coupled with his usual anxiety just about tuckered him out. Clay was having a good time and deserved to have a good time after what happened just a few days earlier, so Apollo was content to just sit and wait out Clay’s social battery.

“Herr Forehead?” Klavier called. Apollo twisted his head to see the blonde standing next to him. 

“What’s up, Prosecutor Gavin?” Apollo asked, sitting up straight. Klavier started twirling his hair around his finger and Apollo felt his bracelet tighten slightly.

“Can you come with me for a second?” Klavier asked. Apollo nodded and stood up. Klavier led them to the little hallway leading towards the kitchenette and it was then Apollo noticed that Klavier had a present in his hands. Before Apollo could speak, Klavier held out the package to Apollo. “I had gotten this for you a little while ago. I know I was not your Secret Santa, but I…well, just open it, bitte.” Klavier instructed.

Apollo nodded and ripped off the paper quickly, sparing Klavier any more anxiety if only to help alleviate the tightness in his bracelet. He slipped open the box flap hiding the gift inside and pulled.

“Prosecut-Klavier.” Apollo said breathlessly as he took a good look at the gift. “How did you-?”

“I was watching you at Holiday Lane. You looked at this with the same look that you give to anything that captures your attention; wholly and intently.” Klavier explained. Apollo looked down at the shadow box that he had been eyeing weeks ago during the trip to Holiday Lane with a small smile. “You looked sad that you had to leave it behind, so I thought that it would make a good gift for you.”

“I appreciate this a lot. Thank you.” Apollo said softly while looking at the details of each layer closely.

“I am glad you like it.” Klavier said, giving that same soft smile that he had given Apollo after the blonde had opened Apollo’s gifts. “You deserve to have good things, Apollo Justice.”

 Before Apollo could shoot back that same sentiment Trucy’s voice rang out from across the room. “Look up!” She called. Apollo’s head shot up and saw mistletoe hanging from the ceiling above them. Apollo huffed and sent a glare towards Trucy.

“Trucy!” He hissed before looking at Klavier sorrowfully. “You don’t have to do anything about this.” He told Klavier.

“Ach, who am I to deny tradition?” Klavier shrugged. “Besides. I really would like to.” Klavier assured him, leaning forward to put his face in line with Apollo’s eyes.

“Really?” Apollo asked skeptically.

“I meant it when I said you deserve good things…I hope that I can be a good thing for you.” Klavier answered. Apollo could see that Klavier was playing with one of his rings, a sure sign he was nervous. Apollo smiled.

“I don’t kiss on the first date.” Apollo informed the blonde. Klavier’s eyes widened slightly. “But, I think I can make an exception for you, Klavier Gavin.” Apollo said, pushing forward and pressing his lips against Klavier’s cheek firmly. Doeish blue eyes locked with playful brown as Apollo pulled away. “And for the record, you also deserve good things, Klavier. Maybe we can figure out what that means together.”

Klavier jolted out of his stupor and smiled at Apollo, pulling the brunette against his chest. “I think that sounds like a plan, liebling.” Klavier purred and pressed his lips against Apollo’s forehead making Apollo burst out into giggles.

It seems like Christmas Magic had struck once again.