Work Text:
Dear Phoenix Wright,
I'm hoping this letter reaches you. I have to write and mail this in secret. It's even worse now that we're an entire ocean away.
Yes, you have read that correctly. Quite a lot has happened since we last spoke. I now live in Germany with a man named Manfred von Karma and his daughter Franziska. I'm sure you're wondering why I'm now living in Germany. I don't wish to talk about that right now. Maybe in the future…
Regardless Anyways, I'm sure it will be difficult to communicate like this, but I still wish to do so. Mr. von Karma had tried to claim that you and Larry are "distractions" when I mentioned wanting to keep in touch with the both of you. He had even tried to throw away my Signal Samurai keychain. I thankfully managed to retrieve get it back before it was truly lost. It's now hidden underneath my mattress so he hopefully won't find it.
I don't know why he would call you two distractions. Well, I can understand why he would refer to call Larry one. But… I still consider the both of you my friends. I can focus on school and continue to write to you.
I hope that you receive this letter, and that you're able to write back.
- Eliza Edgeworth
❯──｢✾｣──❮
Dear Eliza,
Oh, wow, it's really you! Hi! I didn't expect you to ever write, honestly.
Well, okay, that sounds mean. But I'd written you a bunch of letters before and you never responded to them. At least I know why now! Cuz you live in GERMANY now! That's crazy! What's it like? You probably see a lot of, like, goats and sheep. Or just farm animals in general. Oh, have you gotten to have beer yet?? Are you learning german?
It's fine that you don't want to talk about what happened. I hope someday you're okay enough to tell me, cuz I am a little curious. But I'm not gonna push it, obviusly obviously. I just hope you're okay.
That Mr. von Karma guy doesn't sound very nice. I don't know why he'd be calling Larry and I "distractions" (that's a hard word to spell). We're your friends! I'm glad you're being sneaky and still writing, though. You've always been a rule follower. It's fun to see you break them! I'd also like to know more about Franziska, cuz it's kind of like you have a sister now!
Larry says hi, by the way! I showed him your letter! He was really, really mad at you for just up and leaving without saying anything. He almost tried to throw away his Signal Yellow keychain. I'm glad I stopped him before he could. He was really happy to read that you kept yours. It doesn't matter how far away we all are, we'll always be the Signal Trio!
Oh, do you still have Missile with you?? Or did you have to leave him behind? I hope you got to take him to Germany, he really loved you.
Sincerely, (Ms. Terker taught us we should end our letters with "sincerely")
- Phoenix, aka Signal Blue
❯──｢✾｣──❮
Dear Phoenix,
I'm incredibly sorry to Larry for leaving without a word. Mr. von Karma taking me to Germany with him was something I hadn't expected. It happened so quickly, so I hadn't gotten the chance to say goodbye. But believe me when I say that, if allowed, I would have said goodbye properly. I genuinely do miss the two of you greatly (yes, even Larry. It's too quiet without his yelling. Something I never would have expected to miss).
I don't know what idea you have of Germany, but it's surely nothing like what you're thinking. It's not just green fields and cottages. There are actual cities. For example, I now live in Leipzig. It's a very nice city, I recommend you look it up when you find the time. And no, I haven't tasted beer yet. I'm only ten years old, that would be illegal. And I am learning german. It would be very hard to live in Germany without knowing german. Although I do struggle with it a little. Mr. von Karma isn't very happy that I struggle with the language, but Franziska uses it as a chance to show off her mastery of it.
Speaking of Franziska, she is… A lot, to put it lightly. I'm glad that she won't be able to read these letters. I'm sure she would hit me with her riding crop if she did.
And yes, you read that correctly. She carries around a riding crop at all times. And she hits anyone who upsets her or disagrees with her with it. She has already tried hitting me once when she tried to get me to play dress up with her. I'm sure you remember how unpleasant I find dresses. It was not a very fun time.
I would not call Mr. von Karma an unkind man. He did take me in after all, and is allowing me to stay in his estate. But he is extremely stern. He talks a lot about perfection. Like I said, he's not happy that I have been struggling a little with learning a new language. I've been studying near constantly to keep up.
Yes, thankfully, Mr. von Karma let me bring Missile. He did not like the plane ride in the slightest and was extremely happy to be back on the ground. As was I. Plane turbulence is terrifying. As I'm writing he's sitting in his dog bed underneath my desk. He hasn't left my side since we've arrived at the von Karma's estate. I'm including a couple of pictures of him with this letter. I hope you like seeing him in all of the little outfits Franziska has put him in. She has taken a great liking to him, which does make me happy. He's something we can bond over.
Sincerely,
Eliza, aka Signal Red
❯──｢✾｣──❮
Dear Eliza,
I did manage to look up Leipzig on the library's computers. You're right, it does look really nice! Okay, I guess it was a little silly to think you lived in a cottage now. And that you could have beer.
I don't know any german, obviously, but if you ever want to practice it with me go ahead! It'll be fun reading you… Write in german, I guess.
Franziska sounds really scary. I'm glad I probably won't be meeting her, at least not anytime soon. I don't want to get hit by her riding crop. Why does a kid have a riding crop, anyways?? Do you have horses?
Speaking of where you live, I looked up what an estate was. YOU LIVE IN A MANSION??? All of the pictures of estates I saw were mansions, they were so big!! You got a major upgrade from your old house!
Larry wanted you to know he got a girlfriend. You remember Sandy, that girl with the bear backpack that Larry had a big crush on? Apparently they started dating recently. I dunno how long this one will last. You know his, uh, track record with dating (I think that's the right term). Everytime he brings up Sandy he starts teasing me for not dating anyone. He's even tried setting me up with some of the girls in class. But I didn't have an interest in any of them. There was only one girl I could maybe see myself having a crush on? Her name's Gina. Apparently she also likes the Signal Samurai, which is cool. She's also kinda smart. But I dunno. Larry talks about some kinda "spark" and I never felt anything with any of them.
Sorry, all of that probably sounded really dumb. I can see you rolling your eyes like you did when Larry would talk about his own crushes.
Anyways, Missile looks adorable with all those outfits! Franziska might sound scary, but she did choose really cute outfits. I put a couple of them on my cork board above my desk, right next to that photo your dad took of the three of us with our Signal Samurai keychains.
Sincerely,
Signal Blue (I think it would be fun if we signed off like this :D)
❯──｢✾｣──❮
Dear Signal Blue,
I would like to start this letter by saying that the von Karma estate is not an upgrade from my old home. And it never will be. It's too big and quiet. And I'm nowhere near you and Larry anymore. So do not call it an upgrade, no matter how flashy those estates you saw might look.
But, yes. I do live in a mansion.
I feel the same regarding Larry's dating escapades. Do you remember how we used to bet on how long Larry's previous relationships would last? While we can't really use money anymore, I still would like to bet that this one will last a week. It will take longer than that for you to receive this letter and respond, so let me know if I'm correct.
Despite what you thought, I didn't roll my eyes reading you have to deal with Larry's antics. If I can be honest, I think it was incredibly rude of him to try to push you into relationships you didn't want. I hope he's stopped by now. If not, you should tell him to yourself.
Please do not be worried about talking about your own life. I don't want these letters to be just about me. I want to hear about you, as well. That's why I wrote that first letter.
Sincerely,
Signal Red
❯──｢✾｣──❮
Dear Signal Red,
First day of high school! It doesn't feel believable that I'm in ninth grade now! Have you started, um… Secondary school, I think you called it? I know you mentioned in a different letter you went to a private school. I'm still surprised you weren't, like, privately tutored or anything. Maybe now you will be, haha!
It's only the first day and Larry's already trying to get with a girl. Camilla, I think he said her name is. They apparently sit together in Spanish class. She helped him with a sentence, cuz she's apparently pretty fluent in Spanish already, and he's already head over heals heels and claiming that she was flirting with him. No, Larry, she was just being helpful. I don't get his love crazed brain sometimes.
I'm… A little bit annoyed at Larry right now, actually. Not just because of his girl stuff. He apparently got rid of his Signal Yellow keychain while he was at some summer camp. He said we were too old for the Signal Trio. Which is dumb! Sure, the Signal Samurai is pretty goofy (I rewatched it recently cuz I was really missing you), but the keychains are our friendship! How could he just throw his away like that?!
Okay, "a little" was an under exaggeration.
I bet that this new girl won't even date him.
Okay, that's a little mean. Even if I am really mad at him. A few days, at the least.
I hope you still kept yours. The paint on mine is starting to chip, but I still carry it around everywhere. I don't think I could ever get rid of it, even if I'm the last one with a Signal Samurai keychain.
Sincerely,
Signal Blue
❯──｢✾｣──❮
Dear Signal Blue,
It's astounding that we've been writing to each other for so long. I'm surprised I've been able to keep these letters hidden for so many years. But I'm also very grateful.
I'm sorry it's taken so long to respond. Some… Things have happened in my life, that I will get into later in this letter. To answer your question, yes, I am now being privately tutored. Partially by an actual tutor, partially by Mr. von Karma. He's teaching me how to be a prosecutor, which I'm quite grateful for. I've seen some of his trials and he's incredible at what he does. He's put away every criminal that's been up on the stand. The fact that he is now taking me under his wing, so to speak, is quite the blessing.
I'm also extremely upset to read that Larry threw away his Signal Yellow keychain. While I'm sure it's in better condition, as I still keep it hidden away, I still have my Signal Red keychain. I wouldn't dream of throwing it away. That and these letters are the only things I have that connect me to you.
I'll be the mean one and say only a day.
I suppose I can't delay the inevitable any longer.
I have recently realized, at the time of writing this letter, that I am transgender. I wish to be a man. Mr. von Karma took the news… Fine, I think? He was incredibly neutral about it. But he let me change my name. I go by Miles now. He also said, when I'm able to, if I still identify as a man he will help fund my physical transition. But he didn't have much of an actual reaction. He was a bit dismissive of it, actually. But I suppose it's better than him not accepting me being transgender.
I doubt that you will be unaccepting, either, which is why I'm telling you this. I trust you. But please, don't tell Larry. I don't know how he'll react. I don't know if you remember, but when we were kids he would make fun of how I dressed. How I didn't wear "girly clothes" like all of the other girls in our grade. I suppose now it's obvious why I dressed in those suits. But, yes, don't tell Larry.
It's silly, but I'm thankful that you suggested the Signal Trio addressing in our letters. The more I grew up the more uncomfortable I got with my name, so being referred to as "Signal Red" was a nice break. Of course, now that I have a name I'm comfortable with, I don't expect you to stop calling me Signal Red, Phoenix.
Speaking of the Signal Samurai, have you seen the new show that Global Studio has put out, The Steel Samurai? It's far more mature than The Signal Samurai was, with much better practical effects and costume design. I think you would enjoy it greatly.
Sincerely,
Signal Red (Miles)
❯──｢✾｣──❮
Dear Signal Red (Miles),
Oh, wow, it seems we've both discovered a lot about ourselves.
First off, I'm really glad that you told me you're trans. That you trust me with that kind of information. Obviously you'll be my best friend no matter what. It would be really silly of me to not like you anymore. I like you're your new name, too! "Miles", it's really cool! Kinda like a samurai or something, haha!
Second, uh, I guess I should explain that first sentence. Um… It's a bit of a long story, I guess. Sorry if this gets too long.
So, Camilla and Larry have been together for, like, a month. Which is crazy, right?? I think Camilla might actually like him. But now I've had to deal with them being lovey dovey pretty much all the time. They get all kissy and everything. I even had to watch them feed each other their lunch. My face is squishing up just thinking about it.
Larry decided to point this out. He was really upset and tried saying I didn't support him and Camilla together. Which is crazy! I'm surprised they've been together so long, but I'm genuinely happy for him! And I told him that! But then he started talking about how I don't have a girlfriend so obviously I'm jealous. I don't understand Larry's thought process sometimes.
Anyways, you don't wanna hear about our argument. It honestly did get me thinking. I haven't been interested in any girls before. Honestly, the thought of dating a girl icks me out. "Oh, so you're gay" you might think. Nope, cuz I thought of that too. And the thought of dating boys also icks me out.
I think I don't wanna date anyone. Like, ever.
I dunno, that probably makes me sound like a total weirdo.
Um, anyways! I'm really happy that you still have your Signal Red keychain! If we ever meet up again, I hope you'll show it to me so I can see how well you kept it! Although you'd probably laugh when I show you how beat up mine looks.
I watched a bit of The Steel Samurai. You're right, it's way more mature than The Signal Samurai. I can't believe the Evil Magisrate blew up that school in episode 3! That's so evil!
Oh, well, I guess that's why he's called "the Evil Magistrate", haha!
Oh, wait, I just reread your letter again. I thought you had said you wanted to become a defense attorney, like your dad? I mean, we were kids, so it makes sense you wouldn't have the same dream job anymore (remember how I used to wanna be an astranaut?) But you just seemed to be really passionate about following in your dad's footsteps, and especially when talking about your dad's trials. But, if being a prosecutor is what you wanna do now, I'm sure you'll be great at that, too!
Sincerely,
Signal Blue
❯──｢✾｣──❮
Dear Mr. Wright,
Do not try to contact Miles Edgeworth again. I will not allow him to have any distractions from becoming the perfect prosecutor. Any further letters will be thrown away immediately.
Manfred von Karma
❯──｢✾｣──❮
Dear Miles Edgeworth,
It's been a while since I've written one of these. I know your mentor said he'd throw away any other letters. I don't care anymore. Not after the newspaper I just read.
Bribing witnesses? Forging evidence? Miles, what the fuck? That doesn't sound anything like you. What the hell has that von Karma guy been teaching you?
I'm choosing to believe, for now, that these are just lies from upset people and journalists looking for a scoop. Because I can't believe my best friend, who would rave about pursuing the truth, would stoop so low just for a guilty verdict.
In fact, I intend to see for myself if this is true. I've gotten into Ivy League. Originally I was majoring in theatre art. But I'm considering switching to law. In fact, I might just straight up do it. Is it impulsive? Sure, probably. I don't care though. I bet the only chance I have of seeing you again is in court. So I'll become a defense attorney, so we'll have to face each other again.
I hope you'll read this. I'm sending this to the prosecutor's office in LA, since you work there (according to the newspapers). You won't respond, I know. But I just hope you'll be expecting me.
Sincerely,
Phoenix Wright (Signal Blue)
❯──｢✾｣──❮
Dear Phoenix Wright,
Please
I don't know why
It's ridiculous
I look forward to I hope we never
(The letter was crumpled up and never finished).