Chapter Text
8 years ago
“Three. Two. One. Ta-da!”
The broad hands covering her face disappeared and she grinned at the sight of the lopsided cake that was revealed. It looked a bit like an upside-down ‘T’ but the stripe just above the base of it made way for the illusion of a top hat. The messy icing was a couple shades off from the soft pink of her own magician outfit but close enough to be recognisable.
She turned her head to meet her Daddy’s gaze. His own smile was tight at the corners, nerves showing through, but it soon smoothed out when she beamed at him.
“It’s perfect! Thanks, Daddy!”
His grin turned goofy, the way it always did since she started calling him that. “Glad you like it. The frosting is strawberry flavoured so– wait,” his eyes widened. “You aren’t allergic to strawberries are you!? Do you have any allergies!? How have I only just thought of that!?”
A giggle escaped her as she watched him panic.
“I like strawberries!” She paused for a second before adding, “I don’t have any allergies.”
Probably, she thought.
Her Daddy seemed to relax at that. He brought a hand up to bashfully scratch the back of his head, fingers combing through limp hair spikes that had grown longer than when she first met him. She should make him a hat or something. Not a magician’s hat like hers though. Outside of card tricks, her new Daddy was lousy at magic.
That was okay though. It just meant she had to be extra magical for the both of them.
His eyes scanned the cake for a second, seemingly deep in thought. Trucy almost jumped when he suddenly let out a loud groan.
“Agh, I forgot to light the candles! Man I had one job…”
With a deft flick of her cape, Trucy hid the cake from view. A masterful feat of sleight of hand later and she pulled it back to reveal the nine candles all fully lit.
He blinked down at the small, now-steadily flickering lights. “How… did you do that?”
“Magic!” She beamed, remembering to tip her hat for effect.
A hand came up to cup the back of his neck as he continued to stare wide eyed at the cake. “Yeah, that’s pretty good. Though maybe we should be leaving fire tricks until you’re older…”
A pout rose to her face, prompting a laugh from him. She wasn’t really upset though. She had plenty of other tricks in her repertoire and, well, if she kept practising tricks when he wasn’t around then what he didn’t know wouldn’t hurt him…
Still, it was nice. Nice having some there who cared. Who wanted to keep her safe.
Who loved her.
“I’m really happy to have you, Daddy.”
His returning smile was warm enough to be the butter melting on a pancake.
“I’m really happy to have you too, Truce.”
*****
“I can’t believe the fop blew us off! He was supposed to be paying this time! So much for all that rockstar money.”
Trucy hummed as she sipped at her milkshake straw, the sugary concoction rewarding her with a chunk of chocolatey cookie goodness. Oh, that was so good! They’d definitely have to come back here again some time. She’d gladly suffer through clogged arteries and Apollo’s straight-faced disapproval any day.
Ema at least seemed to be enjoying her own calorific drink between complaints about having to pay for it. Apollo sat at their table with nothing but a bottle of water, having cited that he wanted to live to see his thirties. Spoilsport.
“He did say he might have to run afterwards if the trial ended up being a long one. Honestly after his witness changed their testimony for the sixth time, I wouldn’t blame him either way.” Apollo defended, twisting the bottle cap in his hand. “And rockstar money? I’d settle for prosecutor money. We take so many pro-bono cases at the Agency it’s a wonder we’re still afloat.”
Trucy grinned. “The only wonder involved there is the Wonder Bar! The patrons are very generous.”
“Yeah, well, you’d think people on trial for murder would be a little more generous with money too.” Apollo grumbled. “Slow down with that shake by the way, I’m not buying you another. It’s not good for you.”
She gave a pout, knowing it wouldn’t be as effective against Apollo as it was on her usual target. “It’s good for the soul.”
“She’s right, you know.” Ema chimed in. “A sweet treat every now and then is good for dopamine levels. That’s science.”
Trucy high fived her.
“Why are you so stuck on that anyway?” The detective continued. “You genetically at risk for diabetes or something?”
He shrugged, little hair spikes shifting with the motion. “I wouldn’t know. I grew up in foster care. Doesn’t hurt to be careful though.”
Trucy felt a pang in her heart. She might not have gotten much time with her birth parents but at least she had some memories, faded as they were. There was no mystery to lay awake pondering. No unattainable answers. And while her original parents were long gone, she knew that she wouldn’t trade her current Daddy for the world. If Apollo had anyone like that in his life, he had yet to mention them.
“So, no relatives?” Ema asked with a frown. “Putting aside the concern for unknown hereditary medical conditions, I imagine that gets pretty lonely. I don’t know how I would’ve turned out without my sister there when I was younger.”
“I mean there were foster family members I was close to when I was younger but… none that really stuck around, no. It is what it is, I guess. I’m used to it.”
Well, that just sounded even sadder.
“Have you ever thought about trying to track down your birth family?” Trucy asked, curious.
“I don’t even know where I’d start. I never knew my parents’ names or faces, never mind if they had siblings or living parents of their own around.”
She thought for a second before something occurred to her. “What about one of those DNA test thingies! Those websites online that tell you a bunch of stuff about your ancestry and help find distant relatives!”
Ema perked up, interest probably peaked at the mention of something remotely resembling scientific testing. “That’s not a bad idea actually. Even if it ends up a bust for finding relatives, they tend to highlight any genetic conditions you might be at risk for but wouldn’t normally think to get tested for.”
Apollo shifted in his seat. Trucy could tell from the way he crossed his arms that he was slightly uncomfortable. “I don’t know. It just feels like a whole lot of effort for what might be a load of nothing. I don’t wanna make it a whole big deal.”
Hmm. Well, if that was what was holding him back…
“Then why don’t I do it too!” She tipped her hat with a signature Gramarye showman’s smile. “Surely one of us will find something interesting!”
“Or medically concerning.” Ema added, sipping her milkshake.
“Or that!” Trucy agreed. “Anyway, who knows. I might be able to track down some fellow magicians!”
“Trucy, just because they’d be related to you, doesn’t mean they’d be a magician. That’s not a blood thing.”
“That’s just what a non-believer in the art of magic would say, Polly.”
Apollo, sensing a losing battle, simply sighed the world-weary sigh of someone far older. “Fine. I guess we can give it a go. It better not be expensive though.”
At that, Ema pulled out her phone and started tapping away at it. “I can probably pull some strings for you. If you get me some buccal swabs or blood samples I can handle it.”
“Uh,” Apollo squinted at her, “you’re not just gonna run it against the police database, are you? I’m not sure I wanna find out I’m related to a mass murderer with a life sentence.”
The forensic enthusiast rolled her eyes. “Relax. I’d get the DNA profile breakdown myself and then pass it along for further analysis. I don’t exactly have the equipment or medical training to know about decoding the genetics stuff. Besides, I actually know a guy who has connections to one of the bigger organisations for lineage DNA matching. If I pass the results I get over to him to run through their algorithm, it shouldn’t take too long.”
As Apollo and Ema began discussing the logistics, Trucy let her mind wander. It had seemed simple enough at the time, offering to join in, but she couldn’t help but feel a few nerves pop up at the prospect. What if it turned out she had some kind of turbo mega genetic disease? Actually, if she did, it would probably be better to find out sooner rather than later. What if she managed to contact a relative who wanted nothing to do with her in turn? Actually, if they’d submitted their DNA results to an organisation focused on ancestry and lineage tracking, they were probably open to the idea of people reaching out to them.
Really – what could go wrong?
*****
7 and a half years ago
“Daddy!” Trucy yelled, as loud as she possibly could with nine year-old lungs.
The man in question came racing over, almost tripping on the soft grassy park ground by the bush where she sat crouched.
“Whatisitwhatwha– are you okay!?”
She shook her head, tears threatening to run down her cheeks. She kept them in as best she could. She needed to be grown up, or she wouldn’t be able to help.
“This kitty’s hurt! Daddy, we need to help him!”
Without hesitation, her Daddy knelt next to her in the mud, peering down to see the injured cat tucked away just under the cover of the bush. The poor thing was shaking, vivid red matting the ginger fur around its back leg.
“Oh,” her Daddy said softly, “Okay Truce, I need you to hang back a second.
Trucy did as he asked, stepping back to watch him take off his jacket and oh-so-gently wrap it around the little kitty while picking it up. The poor thing gave a few feeble meows but seemed too tired and in pain to raise much else of a protest. When it was finally bundled up in his arms, Trucy came closer.
A furry little head rose up to meet her own. Surprised, she found herself staring into only one eye: pale amber and shuttered.
“He must’ve wandered too close to the road,” her Daddy mused quietly, talking to himself more than anything, “No collar. Quite skinny too. Probably a stray.”
“We can still help him, right?” She asked, voice wobbling.
“We can do our best, sweetie.”
It took them fifteen minutes to race to the nearest veterinary clinic, by which time the cat (who Trucy had taken to calling ‘Presto’) was quickly losing most of the little energy it had left.
When a vet finally carried him towards the back rooms and the kind looking receptionist invited them to sit in the waiting area, Trucy let out a shaking sigh of relief.
There wasn’t a whole lot to do in the waiting room. She swung her legs back and forth from her seat, trying not to think about the way the kitty had looked. Instead, she focused on when he’d be all better.
Presto was a good name, she’d already decided. She could say ‘Hey Presto!” and he’d appear like magic. But he probably needed a nickname too. All the best performers had nicknames. Maybe “Press”. Like her Daddy used to do in court. Or “Pesto” – no that’s food. Or –
She perked up slightly.
He’d need a place to sleep. There wasn’t much room in the apartment, but that was fine – she could make space. He could stay in her room. She’d happily let him sleep in her bed with her.
Trucy smiled faintly at the thought, hugging her knees. She could cuddle up with him under the covers, cozy and warm at night. And when he got better, she could teach him tricks. A magician’s assistant cat would be perfect.
At one point during her musings, the receptionist came over and offered Trucy a lollipop. She accepted with a cheery “Thanks!” and popped it in her mouth happily. She loved strawberry.
It was a long while before the vet came back out, her lollipop already long since finished off. Their mouth was a hard-set line on their face, though that had been the case earlier too. Trucy wondered if it was just stuck like that.
Her Daddy stood to greet them. “Is he okay?”
The vet hesitated, casting a brief glance towards Trucy before turning back. “Could I speak with you for a moment, Mr. Wright?”
Her Daddy repeated his glance. “…Right. Wait here a second, Truce. I’ll be right back, okay?”
She nodded quickly, clutching the edge of her seat as he disappeared through the door. A few minutes went by before he came back out.
“Is Presto okay?” She asked, hopping off the seat to run over to him.
Something flickered across his face – too quick to name.
Then he smiled.
“Yeah, sweetie. He’s gonna be fine. He’s just really sleepy right now, okay? They’re going to take good care of him here until he goes back to his home. We should leave and let him rest.”
Trucy nodded automatically.
But despite the reassuring words, something didn’t feel right. Her eyes narrowed slightly and her perception shifted.
She looked at him. Really looked at him. After a moment she saw it.
His hands lay still at his sides.
Usually when her Daddy spoke, he’d rub the back of his neck, or adjust his hoodie, or do something. The man was very rarely ever not in motion; the only exception being when he was focusing a lot on something.
And right now, he wasn’t moving at all.
Like he was trying very hard not to.
“…You’re lying.”
He froze, the smile on his face twitching before dimming. “What do you mean?”
“You’re lying, I can tell! Prestos not okay is he!?”
Phoenix opened his mouth. Then closed it again.
“Why did you lie to me!?”
“I’m sorry,” he said quietly, a note of confusion present.
“It’s not fair!”
Her voice cracked, and she hated how it sounded.
He crouched down in front of her, looking completely out of his depth. Her Daddy wasn’t smiling anymore. He looked tired, like he’d aged fifteen years over fifteen seconds.
“Trucy, I just didn’t want to –”
“I want to know!”
That stopped him.
She sniffed, eyes bright but thankfully dry.
“…I want to know.”
The truth came out after that. Quietly and carefully.
Presto wouldn’t be going home with them. Or back to the park. Or anywhere else. The surgery had been too much for his little body, already exhausted and weak as it was. But Presto wasn’t in pain anymore. And never would be again.
Afterwards, she excused herself to go to the toilets, where she finally let slip the tears that had been building up, wiping them away even as they appeared. A performer doesn’t cry. Even when the act doesn’t go to plan.
When she was done, she walked back out, taking her Daddy’s hand as they turned to leave.
The fire and emotions from before had dulled at that point. Instead, she just felt heavy.
The walk home was quiet.
She stayed a little turned away from him the whole time, arms folded and tucked against her tightly, until they made it back home. Dinner that night was a much more muted affair than was normal for them. She spent longer than normal that night trying to fall asleep.
The following day, there came a knock on her bedroom door. Trucy opened it to find her Daddy holding something behind his back, a tentative smile in place. He crouched down to be at her eye level.
“I’m sorry that Presto didn’t make it, sweetie. And I’m sorry I lied about it. It’s hard for me to not try and protect you from things like that. You… you mean everything to me, Truce.”
From behind his back, he brought out a soft looking form. Trucy couldn’t help the small gasp that escaped her when she saw it was a soft looking plushie of a one-eyed cat. The shade of the fur wasn’t right and the missing eye was on the wrong side, but when he held it out to her, she didn’t hesitate to grab it. She pulled the stuffed toy into a hug, squeezing into it all of her love and grief and frustrations.
She sniffled when she finally pulled away from it.
“Thanks, Daddy.”
His face was soft, like he was looking at something precious.
“You’re welcome, Trucy-doll.”
Looping her arms around him, careful not to drop her new prized possession, she gave him a hug. She didn’t squeeze him as hard as she had before (he had squishy insides and bones she shouldn’t break after all) though he still gave an oof from the force of it. His arms looped around her to return the hug though, and she relished the warmth of it.
Soon he sat back and ruffled her hair, before getting a serious look on his face.
“This present is a promise from me, okay? No more lies. There may be some boring grown up things I don’t tell you about sometimes, but when it comes to things that really matter, I’m going to trust you. Is that okay?”
Was it? She paused for a moment. Something that really mattered…
“You promise?”
“I do.” He said softly.
“Okay…”
She sniffed, steeling her resolve.
“Daddy?”
“Yeah?”
“My other Daddy isn’t coming back, is he?”
She watched as he sucked in a breath like he’d been hit. He worried his lip for a moment before sighing.
“The truth is that I don’t know, Truce.”
“But what do you think?”
“I think…” His expression was conflicted for a moment before changing to something more determined. “I think that whether he does or doesn’t come back, you’re going to be just fine either way. Because you’ve got me now. And I’m not going anywhere.”
Silly Daddy, she thought, you didn’t answer the question.
But that was okay. She liked the answer he gave better anyway.
Giving the plushie a good scritch behind the ears, she placed it gently on her bed and tucked it in snuggly, before turning back to him. She gave him a beaming grin.
“Okay, Daddy. I trust you too.”
*****
To Trucy’s surprise, only a couple days had passed when she got the text from Ema saying that she had their results.
It was a quiet day at the Agency – meaning it was a typical day at the agency. Even with her dad back to acting as a lawyer and the addition of Athena, their cases tended to be sporadic. Athena claimed that it was because guilty people knew better than to ask them for representation. Apollo claimed it might have something to do with the fact that their most famous technique was the questionable art of bluffing in court. Trucy, however, was of the opinion that fate simply knew to only throw the most entertaining of cases their way. Quality over quantity.
In any case, it so happened that Trucy and Apollo were the only ones present at the Agency. Athena had taken the day off to go visit Juniper for an extended weekend, while Phoenix was attending a conference. Stuck holding down the fort, Apollo had been complaining her ear off ever since she got home from school, which quite frankly was far too negative for a Friday.
Glad for the potential to turnabout the mood, she shot Ema a reply to invite her over.
Her hope for a cheerful distraction fell flat, however, when she answered the door half an hour later to find the forensic scientist munching on a Snackoo like it was her last lifeline, a couple of manilla folders tucked under her arm.
Uh oh. Stress snacking was never a good sign.
“Okay, good, Apollo’s here too.” Ema mumbled as she made her way over to the couch, pushing half the messy contents onto the floor to free up room. “Shit I need to sit down for this.”
Trucy wanted to point out that the usual phrase was that the person receiving the news was supposed to be told to sit. She chose to take the initiative and sit regardless.
“Neither of us are dying, are we?” Apollo asked bluntly, abandoning the paperwork he’d been slogging through to give Ema his undivided attention.
“No, no. It’s just–” She broke off, biting at her nail before munching down another Snackoo. “So, my contact sent back the results, right? He mentioned there was nothing super worrying on the medical side of things, though I didn’t go snooping there so you’re free to read up on that yourselves.”
“Okay…” Apollo frowned at her. “So why are you being so weird then?”
“Well, when I asked if there were any familial matches in the database, he said no but… the way he phrased it was odd. Like he said no other familial matches. And then I asked what he meant and he got all confused cause he thought I’d sent them knowing–”
She took a breath, looking away before handing them each one of the folders. “It’s probably better to just show you.”
Trucy accepted the folder, peeling off her white gloves before opening the contents. There were several pages inside with graphs and charts and lists and a map and oh boy information overload. Eventually she caught sight of the phrase DNA Match Summary and pulled that paper to the front.
Inevitably Apollo ended up finding it before she did, chords of steel making his discovery heard loud and clear.
“WHAT!?” He yelled abruptly.
It took her only a moment to find the line in question, her heart stuttering when her eyes landed on that name. She double checked the top of her sheet to make sure Ema had given her the correct one, but sure enough it was hers. She looked again at that section and read on.
DNA Match Summary
1x potential match found for candidate Trucy Wright
Match breakdown – Apollo Justice
Match Status: Close Family
Confidence Level: High
Shared DNA: 24.8%
Shared DNA Segments: 1,742 cM across 32 segments.
Estimated Relationship:
Based on the amount of shared DNA, this match most likely represents one of the following relationships:
Half-sibling
Aunt / Uncle
Niece / Nephew
Grandparent
Grandchild
“A- are you sure you didn’t mix the samples at all? Cross-contamination?” Apollo paced across the Agency floor; eyes fixed to the paper in front of him.
“It doesn’t work like that,” Ema reasoned. “Besides, I ran multiple samples for you guys, trust me when I say there’s no mistaking it.”
“So… me and Polly are…”
She couldn’t bring herself to finish the sentence, the reality of it not quite setting in. Amidst the shock of the revelation, was another feeling – a fuzzy warmth that threatened to make her eyes water. Apollo was already her family; she’d decided that a long time ago. It’s not like this changed anything.
But if that was the case, then why did it feel like it did?
Apollo meanwhile had stopped his pacing and turned to face them, an intense look on his face halfway between crazed and focused. It was an expression she recognised from only the most case changing turnabouts. “Trucy is either my half-sister or my niece!? How do we even check which!?”
Ema sighed, placing a hand on Trucy’s shoulder to peer over at the results she hadn’t realised she was still clutching. “Just from the shared DNA analysis we can’t. You guys would need to investigate it the old-fashioned way, which may be a bust on Apollo’s end. Trucy? Do you have any idea?”
Did she? Hmm…
“I don’t think I remember any mention of aunts or uncles. I mean, not blood related ones anyway. It was a long time ago to be honest. There’s really only so much I remember from those days outside of magician stuff.”
The hand on Trucy’s shoulder squeezed lightly, “Mr. Wright might be able to help out with your family history. He met your bio-dad, right? He might remember any details he let slip that you might have forgotten about over the years.”
Excitement sparked in Trucy’s chest, flittering about like a dove primed to be pulled out of a hat. “Polly, we can talk to him this afternoon after he gets back home!”
“Right!” He nodded with similar enthusiasm before bringing a hand to the back of his head and giving a sheepish smile. “Man, this is insane. I can’t believe we’re actually related.”
“Me neither, Grandpa!”
“Trucy I’m not your grandad.”
“Grandpollo!”
“That’s physically impossible.”
“So grouchy in his old age.”
*
Several hours later saw Trucy and Apollo sitting opposite Phoenix at the Wright family residence. The apartment was comfortably cluttered – casefiles and magic props that had found their way there from the Agency lay littered on the small coffee table, squeezed between old Steel Samurai box sets that her dad had yet to return to Aunt Maya.
Apollo sat stiffly on the couch, looking as if he were waiting for the judge to call the court to order. Trucy, on the other hand, was practically buzzing. She tried to organise her thoughts, but questions were swimming in her head, each one craving answers more than the last.
Phoenix evidently had noticed the strange vibes they must have been giving off.
“Not that you’re not welcome here any time Apollo… but what is this about?”
Trucy and Apollo shared a look. They’d had plenty of time to go over how they would approach this. What they didn’t want to happen was to let the cat out of the bag too early and derail the investigation. Trucy gave her as-of-yet-undecided-brother-slash-uncle a nod.
Apollo cleared his throat and turned to Phoenix with the kind of focus he normally brought when questioning a witness.
“Trucy and I were just going over the performer’s rights she inherited for Troupe Gramarye.”
“Oh? I thought we got the legalities sorted out for that.”
“Yeah, it’s all fine.” Apollo nodded. “We were just going over it since Trucy’s started preparing for her first big show using those techniques. And it, uh, kind of got us on the topic of that kind of family stuff.”
A raised eyebrow. “Family stuff?”
Trucy rested her head on her fist, giving a light smile. “Yep. You knew my old Daddy, right? Did he mention anything about having family outside the troupe?”
Her dad leaned back into the couch, rubbing his chin. The smooth motion threw her off sometimes after years of always hearing the movement accompanied by scratch of stubble. “I didn’t exactly know him well. I played a single poker game with the guy, got appointed as his attorney and maybe talked with him a handful of times before he disappeared. And the very last conversation I had with him, well…” He shook his head. “Sorry Truce, but I don’t think he mentioned anything about other Enigmars running about.”
Disappointment threatened to dim her smile. If they couldn’t find out anything here she wasn’t sure what their next move would be. Valant was a no go – the man had refused to see her the one time she had tried visiting him in prison. Maybe birth records? How did one even go about accessing those? She didn’t even know where her parents had been born.
Before she could think too far down that route, Apollo chimed back in. “What about on her mom’s side? Did Zak or Valant mention anything? Anything come up during your investigations?”
It was then that something odd happened.
At first, it didn’t seem like Phoenix gave any reaction to the question. His laid-back posture against the couch didn’t change. His hands didn’t fidget. His foot didn’t tap. He appeared perfectly calm when answering.
“Not off the top of my head,” he said. “Why?”
But Trucy felt it. Something was off. The way that Apollo tensed next to her was a dead giveaway that he sensed it too. She just couldn’t put her finger on what it was.
“Nothing?” Apollo prompted again, holding his bracelet.
Phoenix eyes tracked the motion. No – that was exactly it, she realised. Phoenix had already been looking there.
“Mr. Wright…” Apollo’s voice was confident and measured. “When you said that just now your gaze shifted to my bracelet. You knew it would react to your statement.”
The other man’s expression hardened. Trucy recognised it as the same expression he used to make at the Borscht Bowl. A sick feeling twisted in her stomach at the reality of being on the other side of the table for once. She didn’t like it.
“If I was expecting it to react, wouldn’t I make a point to not look at it? Not react at all? I know how your ability works. Not to brag but I’ve been told I have a pretty good poker face.”
The younger lawyer narrowed his eyes. “Right… that just means you weren’t thinking about it. But still, it reacted. If it wasn’t because you were pre-empting my reaction, then you must’ve focused on it for a different reason.”
“Apollo –”
“The bracelet itself. It reminded you of something. Something related to Trucy’s mother.”
“Apollo, hang on, I –”
“A bracelet I’ve had for as long as I can remember, I –” His eyes went wide. “It was from her, wasn’t it? It has something to do with her and you knew.”
That was the crux of it wasn’t it? That her dad knew something about her mom, something about Apollo and his relation to her and hadn’t said a thing. That feeling in her gut tightened.
The room fell silent. Phoenix sat with an indecipherable expression, not answering straight away.
Eventually something seemed to give as he ran a hand through his signature spikes and let out a sigh.
“This really isn’t how I wanted to have this conversation.”
He looked between the two of them, something conflicted flickering across his face as though he was weighing what he wanted to say against what he should say and was losing that battle.
Trucy’s fingers curled in her lap. The conversation had derailed too far from what she had prepared for, and the disparity left her lost. A performer would improvise, adjust to the set-back, and come out the other side with a perfect smile in place. For some reason that well-worn mask felt too far away to grasp. It left her wrong-footed, and feeling woefully unprepared.
“That bracelet belonged to your mother, Apollo.”
Apollo’s breath caught. “Then –”
“Yes. You’re Trucy’s half-brother on her mother’s side.”
…
The confirmation settled over the two of them like dust. Apollo was the one to shake it off first.
“How long have you known that?” He asked, quieter now but no less intense.
Phoenix hesitated. “Long enough.”
That wasn’t an answer. Trucy was about to complain before he continued speaking.
“I suspected as much for a while after I first saw that bracelet. You were still working for Kristoph at the time. I recognised it from a photo I’d seen of Thalassa Gramarye. Speaking of her…”
For a moment he looked conflicted, internally warring over whether or not to continue. Eventually he looked between the two of them and seemed to make up his mind; it was then, just when Trucy thought she had reached her limit, that Phoenix managed to drop an even bigger bombshell.
“Thalassa is alive.”
Her initial reaction of ‘Uh, no she isn’t Dad, what the heck’ died before it could even come out when she saw the expression on his face. It wasn’t the cold one he wore for difficult poker games. Nor the cocky one he used to bluff in court. His eyes were soft at the edges, a little sad but honest. Trucy kept quiet.
“Though nowadays, she’s going by a different name” Phoenix continued, like he hadn’t just shaken the foundation of her childhood, “It’s a long story, but one I’d be more than happy to go into another time. It’s a conversation she deserves to be here for.”
Something snapped.
“What about what we deserve?”
The outburst takes even her by surprise. The look on Phoenix’ and Apollo’s faces would’ve been comical if the situation wasn’t what it was.
As it was? Trucy couldn’t bring herself to laugh.
“My mom is alive and I have a brother and you didn’t think to tell me!?”
He grimaced. “I wanted to, Truce, you gotta believe me. But we decided it would be better if –”
“Why do you get to decide that!?”
Her voice was coming out louder than she meant it to now, but she couldn’t help it. She couldn’t stop.
“You know the truth now,” he reasoned, “and we can go over everything as much as you want. I’ll answer any questions you have.”
“Only because we had to drag it out of you!”
Her hands clenched at her sides.
“Face it, you were cornered into telling us! How long would you have waited otherwise? A year? Five years? Longer? Would I be graduating high school as an only child? Birthdays, shows, everything. What about if I got married, would my mom be there? Would I have… would she have been there for any of it?”
“We were going to tell you both when you were ready. When she was ready. It’s a long story like I said and… I’m sorry I kept you in the dark for so long. Both of you.”
Apollo let out a quiet, disbelieving breath. He mumbled something that Trucy didn’t catch, though it seemed more to himself than anyone else. His hand was still around his bracelet, not as though he was trying to sense anything, but in what was likely an attempt to ground himself.
He didn’t press further. Didn’t object. For once, he had nothing.
She, however, was more than ready to compensate.
A small voice in the back of her head was telling Trucy that this wasn’t like her at all. That she should let her dad explain. That there were probably half a dozen reasons to keep it from her. That she should trust him.
But that voice was too far away. Right now, all she could feel was an aching sting right between her ribs; a feeling of betrayal that left a bitter taste in her mouth. A combined hurt that came from being failed by three different parents in her lifetime.
Only one was target in front of her though.
She stared at him.
Nine years.
Nine years of just the two of them.
“Or maybe…” she said, her voice quieter now, but all the sharper for it, “you just didn’t want things to change.”
Phoenix’ head snapped up. “Trucy –”
“Maybe you liked things better when it was just us.”
That one landed. She could see it in his face. It spurned her on, the high of the chase.
Keep going.
“When I didn’t have anyone else.”
“You know that’s not the case!” His voice was loud and brittle, cracking with something. Urgency? Pain? Was that anger? She didn’t think she’d ever heard him angry but maybe this was it. “I never wanted that for you. Why would you even think that?”
Keep going.
“Maybe you just couldn’t deal with the fact that after all those years of me being your only family, I might finally get to have someone else in mine! Well, it’s not my fault your life fell apart!”
The silence that followed was suffocating.
Phoenix’ eyes were wide. If she thought his emotions were hard to read before, she was beyond lost now. If Athena were here Trucy had no doubt she’d be covering her ears from all the discord polluting the room.
She swallowed, her chest tight and fists clenched.
“I just…”
Her voice wavered.
“You promised,” she said, soft enough to break.
Before either of them could respond – before she could see her dad’s reaction – she was already heading straight for her room.
The door slammed shut behind her.
For a moment, she just stood there, staring at nothing.
Then her legs gave out, and she collapsed onto her bed. She grabbed Presto, the plush well-worn and well-loved after seven years, and curled in on herself as everything finally caught up all at once.
Somewhere in the back of her mind, she registered that she’d left Apollo out there on his own.
The thought came and went in a single breath.
She couldn’t bring herself to go back.