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March 24, 2018 was the day Phoenix's Facebook friend request was finally accepted by his childhood friend, Miles Edgeworth. Phoenix was practically over the moon since yesterday's trial and finding out Miles was not in fact dead, but rather the merciless prosecutor in him who only cared about victory was dead. The attorney smiled brightly at his laptop seeing his friend request was finally accepted. Part of Phoenix wondered why they weren't friends on Facebook before. They did date for a while... but he couldn't think of one time where Miles brought up social media. Phoenix shrugged off the questioning and begun to scroll through Edgeworth's Facebook. It was sparse and professional, an emulation of the man himself. It was mostly photos of places Edgeworth had gone and a photo of two of his dog, Pess. There only seemed to be one photo of Edgeworth. He was sitting on the comfy red couch in his office, drinking a cup of tea- Gumshoe must have taken the photo Phoenix assumed while staring at the photo for quite a while. The way the setting sun came through the window and made Miles’ face glow and the tea cup shine. Phoenix could have sat there and stared at it forever.Meanwhile, Maya Fey received a friend request from the prosecutor. Maya glanced at Phoenix before looking back at her new pink smartphone and accepting the friend request. She scrolled through Facebook a bit before sharing a tide pod meme on Phoenix’s timeline. Phoenix groaned from his desk at the notification- goodbye beautiful prosecutor hello, he clicked on the notification, tide pod. Phoenix looked over at Maya rather confused and said in a rather dumbfounded voice, “I don’t think anyone should eat tide pods, Maya.”“It’s a meme Nick,” she sighed, “It’s just a joke.”“I know what a meme is,” Phoenix replied in an annoyed tone before going back to Edgeworth’s Facebook page. “Don’t you have something better to do than to send me memes?”“Well it’s not my fault you don’t have any clients right now. And the Steel Samurai isn’t on TV right now,” Maya replied before looking back down at her phone. Her phone dinged – with a Facebook message from Edgeworth himself. Maya raised an eyebrow and opened up the message. She had no idea why Prosecutor Edgeworth would want to talk to her.‘Hello Ms. Fey, I have a favor I would like to ask you.’ The message read.Maya glanced over at Phoenix, wondering if this favor was going to involve Nick in some way. She then messaged him back, ‘Sure, what’s up Mr. Edgeworth?’ Maya then returned to scrolling through Facebook – looking at memes and keeping up to date with popular celebrities. A few minutes passed until Edgeworth finally replied with his inquiry. ‘This may be a peculiar favor for me to ask of you… but I was wondering if it would possible for you to channel my father for me. I’ll be willing to pay you for your time.’Maya paused, looking down at the message. She heard all about Miles’ father, so she understood why he wished to have him be channeled… but was he ready to deal with the emotions that came along with bringing his father back. Maya stood up from the couch and looked at Phoenix. Phoenix slowly closed his computer and inquisitively asked, “You alright Maya?”She nodded her head and lowered her phone. She then asked, “Is it alright if Edgeworth comes over later today?”“T-Today?” Phoenix became flustered, “Edgeworth… why on Earth is he coming over?” He paused when a thought struck him. He stood up from his desk and said, “Why the hell did he message you?” Phoenix was slightly jealous that his boyfriend – or complicated partner- didn’t message him instead.Maya sighed and rolled her eyes. She then informed the zealous attorney, “He wants me to channel his dad apparently.”Phoenix’s face then quickly became solemn. “Oh… I see… Uh sure… yeah sure he can come over here. Just let me know when,” he said softly and then asked, “Also ask him if he wants me here for support.” Phoenix slowly sat back down in his desk seat. He was beginning to be filled with anxiety. Was Miles really ready to talk to his father after all these years?Maya nodded her head and messaged Miles back, ‘Sure thing! When do you plan on coming over? I’m at Nick’s office. Speaking of- Nick was wondering if you wanted him here for support.’‘I can come late this afternoon- perhaps sometime between four and five.’ Miles replied. ‘I suppose he would prove to be helpful in comforting me. But… would he mind waiting in the hall? I wish for some time alone with my father.’‘Sounds good! And of course- I will make sure Nick is here incase you need some comfort, but I’ll also make sure he knows to give you space while the channeling is going on.’‘Thank you, Ms. Fey. I will see you then.’ Maya glanced at Phoenix, “He said he would be here between four and five.” She then sat back down on the couch. Phoenix nodded his head and then curiously raised an eyebrow, “Alright. And did you ask him about me?” “Yeah I did. He said you should wait in the hall for him just in case he needs you, but he apparently also wants some alone time with his father,” she said while returning to scrolling on her phone and annoying Phoenix with more memes. Phoenix sighed and tilted his head. “Maya, you have to explain the SpongeBob meme to me. I haven’t seen that show since I was little- why the hell is it a meme now?”- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - *TIME SKIP*- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - The clock read 4:13pm when there was a knock on the office door. Maya and Phoenix at the time were both sitting on the couch watching Gordan Ramsey. Phoenix glanced at the door when he heard the knock. He looked back at Maya and said kindly, “Turn off the TV. I’ll get the door.” Phoenix stood up and went over to the door. He opened the door just as Maya turned of the TV. There he was, standing in the door way, prosecutor Miles Edgeworth. He seemed to come over directly from work. He was wearing his usual elegant, burgundy suit, and had his brief case in his hand. Miles deadpanned looked Phoenix in the eyes and greeted him rather nonchalantly. “Wright, it is good to see you again.” Phoenix smiled at his rather distant boyfriend. He spoke sweetly to him, “Hey Edgeworth. We haven’t really gotten the chance to talk.” Miles sighed softly. “I know Phoenix… I know… we can talk later. I know you must be concerned but I do not wish to discuss that just yet,” he said rather coldly while looking into the room and noticing Maya looking over at them from her spot on the couch. The last thing he wanted to do was discuss the tension and confusion of their relationship in front of Maya. Phoenix sighed softly and looked back at Maya. He then turned his attention back to Edgeworth. “Can I ask you something else then?” He gently grabbed onto Miles’ wrist and turned him around and walked back into the hallway. “Phoenix! What on Earth? I told you I do not wish to discuss things with you.” Phoenix shook his head and closed the office door behind him. “It’s not that,” he said gently. “I was wondering why you wanted Maya to channel your father. Like… I know Maya is probably the only spirit medium you know… but why now?” Phoenix spoke softly, trying his best to not upset the prosecutor. Miles sighed softly and glanced down at the floor. “Well, I realized Father didn’t know the truth of DL-6.” He looked back at Phoenix, with some sorrow in his eyes. “You probably heard how when the case went cold the court had a spirit medium channel my father. And… Father named Yanni Yogi. He… never knew who really killed him. I…” “You feel he deserves to know,” Phoenix finished his sentence for Miles and nodded his head. “I get it. But… did you know that spirit medium was Maya’s mother?” Miles raised an eyebrow. It wasn’t shocking but he seemed to recall hearing that fact before. “I wasn’t completely aware. Sadly my father’s false accusation apparently led her to leave the village and subsequently go missing. I… didn’t know exactly that that was Ms. Fey’s mother.” Miles paused and then said quietly, more to himself than to Phoenix, “I should pay her more for her troubling her.” “You’re paying her?” Phoenix wondered if he heard him right. “Paying her is good and all… but knowing her she probably would do it for free. She kind of feels bad for you and all because you lost your father.” Phoenix thought for a moment and put his hands on his hips, “I am a bit worried that this may bring up bad memories for her too… but god, you two both lost your parents. You never knew one parent, and your other parent lost due to that one case.” Miles suddenly furrowed his brows. “Can we stop speaking of this now Wright? I get it. We both went through similar situations and both pity each other as a result. I am sure she will be fine though. If you ask me… she certainly seems stronger than me when it comes to her mother being mentioned.” Phoenix slowly nodded his head. He became a bit nervous to speak again. His voice became shaky as he forced himself to say something, “Y-Yeah. Well… she never mentions her mother and doesn’t like speaking about it. And well…” “I know I break down. Now can we stop discussing this?” Phoenix pouted and slowly nodded his head. “Of course… I’ll be out here if you need me.” Miles sighed loudly, shooting a cold glare at Phoenix before walking into the office. He shut the door behind him before sitting down on the couch across from Maya. He set his briefcase on the floor. Maya smiled brightly. She could tell Edgeworth was in a bad mood after talking to Phoenix. She was constantly confused about their relationship- were they friends or were they enemies? “So… Are you ready to begin?” Miles bent down and opened up his briefcase. He slowly pulled out a framed photo. When he sat back up and looked at the photo for a moment before handing it to Maya. He said softly, “I thought you would like to see a good photo of my father.” They both wouldn’t mention it- but Maya did see a photo of Edgeworth’s photo. It was the crime photo of the DL-6 incident. Maya gently wrapped her fingers around the frame and looked at the photograph. It was a photo of a much younger Miles, his father, and their Pomeranian. She lit up when looking at the photo. She pointed to the young boy in the photo and begun to tease the apathetic prosecutor. “Is this cute kid you?” she asked with a smirk slowly growing on her face. Miles sighed and crossed his arms. He simply nodded his head up and down to answer her. The young spirit medium carefully handed the photo back to the prosecutor. And he set the photograph down on the coffee table between them; placing the photo right beside a small jar filled with fresh statice flowers. Maya pressed the tips of her fingers together and bowed towards Edgeworth. “We can begin now,” she said in a soft, friendly tone. She slowly shut her eyes and informed Edgeworth, “This may take a few minutes.” She intertwined her fingers together and begun to whisper some things under her breath. Edgeworth was unable to make out a word she was saying. He sat on the couch, looking at Maya. He was growing rather anxious with every passing moment. Was he really ready to see his father after fifteen years? Where would he even begin to talk about everything that happened? How would Miles explain that Von Karma was the killer? His nerves came to a sudden halt when Maya’s magatama necklace grew brightly. Her body slowly transitioned into the attorney that Miles knew as his father. It was rather strange to Miles watching as Maya lost her feminine features that were replaced with the body of an adult man. Gregory slowly opened his eyes. The first thing he saw his son sitting across from him, staring at him with wide-eyes. Gregory weakly smiled and his voice almost cracked from the joyous sorrow he felt to see his boy all grown up, “Miles… is that really you?” Miles blinked and took a deep breath to calm himself down. He smiled shyly before looking down at the floor. Miles brought his knees together and hunched his shoulders- he was embarrassed to see his father again. “Yes Father. It’s me,” he said softly. Gregory smiled brightly and scooted to the edge of the couch. “No need to be shy in front of me son,” he told him kindly. “Can you look at me?” Miles sluggishly raised his eyes and lowered his shoulders even slower. He made eye contact with his father. Gregory leaned forward and reached across the coffee table. The older man lightly placed his hands-on Miles’ cheeks. Gregory tilted his head slightly while analyzing his son. “You’ve grown up so well,” he said delicately. He then chuckled a bit when he asked, “Where is your attorney’s badge? I assume this is your office…” Gregory removed his hands before glancing around the room. Miles suddenly remembered that his father didn’t know a thing about what happened after he died. “Father,” Miles said rather weakly, getting the man’s attention again. “We need to discuss that… in fact, we have a lot to discuss.”
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“If you wish to continue living under my roof, Miles, then you need to become a prosecutor. I don’t want any pesky attorneys in this house,” the cruel voice of Manfred Von Karma said to Miles. Miles just turned twelve yesterday and he was still be scolded for wishing to become an attorney like his father one day. “If you chose to be an attorney then you will have to figure out that path yourself. I am not afraid to kick you out and cut you off from my support.” Miles stared down at his feet and the deep, navy blue carpet. “I-I’m sorry sir,” he said quietly. Manfred sighed loudly and stood up from his desk. “Speak up boy!” “I’m sorry sir!” Miles repeated himself; this time speaking louder as his adoptive-father ordered. “But if… if I can’t be an attorney then what can I do?” Miles slowly raised his head to look at the old man that stood before him. “A prosecutor of course,” Manfred stated. “I can and will turn you into my prodigy.”- Ever since then Miles was taught all about what a prosecutor does, and what it means to be a prosecutor – at least what it was in a Von Karma’s mind. Miles let out a loud sigh as the bad memories filled his mind once again. He gently placed his hand on his forehead. Gregory raised an eyebrow and asked worryingly, “Are you alright son? What do you need to tell me? You can tell me anything… just… don’t tell me you are a criminal.” “I would never. I don’t have the heart to be a criminal,” Miles replied while setting his hand back down beside him. He decided to clear Gregory’s confusion in the quickest way possible. “This is not my office. You… remember my friend, Phoenix Wright?” “Oh yes, Phoenix. You two are still friends?” The father smiled brightly glad that Miles still had the same friends he was friends with in elementary school. He then smirked and crossed his arms. He then cockily asked, “Or have you two… grown closer?” “Father! We can discuss that later! We have more important things I want to talk to you about,” Miles said quickly. He let out a loud sigh as he went back to explaining where they currently were. “Phoenix became an attorney. This is his office.” He then thought for a moment, wondering how to explain the situations that forced him to become a prosecutor. Anxiety quickly begun to run through his veins again as he felt like he confessed to a great sin, “I became a prosecutor.” The older man opened his mouth as if he were to say something. He stared at the prosecutor in front of him. Eventually he gently shrugged his shoulders and let out a small sigh. “What ever happened to wanting to be a defense attorney like your old man?” he tried to sound normal, but Miles could sense the disappointment in his dad’s voice. Miles cupped his hands together and leaned forward, pressing his elbows against his knees. Miles said in a whisper, “It is a long story.” “Miles. I don’t want to piss you off… but I’ll be disappointed in you if your reasoning for becoming a prosecutor was because you want justice for my death. While I would understand that reasoning… I thought I taught you better.” “It’s not that Father. Well, not completely anyways.” Miles glanced down at his feet and then looked back over at the attorney who raised him. “Von Karma made me become a prosecutor.” “Von Karma made you become a prosecutor? Why the f- why on Earth would he do that?” Gregory stopped himself before swearing. Miles may be an adult now, but he wanted Miles to keep an innocent and pure image of his father in his mind- which meant not doing anything that he would have scolded child Miles for doing. “Father… I’m an adult. You can swear in front of me if you want,” he said with an annoyed sigh. Miles moved a hand in order to slide the family photo towards the other man in the photograph. He then cupped his hands back together as he briefly shared the story. “After you died… I was adopted by Mr. Von Karma. I had to get rid of everything that was sentimental or things he deemed childish. Which meant no more Signal Samurai. And it meant a lot of the old family photos went missing. I did get to keep this one. I always kept it next to my bed,” Miles glanced at the photo before Gregory carefully picked it up. “I have no clue what he did with most of my belongings. He could have kept them hidden somewhere in his home office or the attic. Or he could have even gotten rid of them. But- th-that doesn’t matter. What happened to my childhood belongings is insignificant to what else we have to discuss.” Gregory gently set the photo back down and looked over at his son. “There is more you wish to tell me? I take it that what you are about to tell me is far worse than Von Karma forcing you to dispose of your childhood you had with me.” Miles slowly nodded his head. “Father… in December the truth of the DL-6 case was finally revealed.” “It has been fifteen years. How the hell was there any evidence left from the incident?” “There was still court documents from the trial all those years ago. But a new piece of vital evidence was revealed. It was kept hidden all these years just to keep the truth from being revealed. In short, it wasn’t Yanni Yogi who killed you.” “Miles… if Yanni Yogi didn’t kill me then who did? I… I don’t think you would ever hurt anyone so there is no way you killed me. And well, you being here in front of me proves you weren’t found guilty of my murder.” “Father, to be honest, I had nightmares all these years. I thought… I was the one who killed you. But you need to thank Wright for proving my nightmares are not a reflection of what truly happened,” Miles said. He then let out a loud sigh and questioned himself; why was he beating around the bush when he could just get to the point. “Von Karma shot you.” “Von Karma…? He- I can’t say that he wouldn’t. He had the motive to kill me,” Gregory admitted softly. “He hated all attorneys. But he grew angry with me in particular because I exposed evidence he forged during my last trial. I’m just curious… but rather afraid to hear… how did he get away with it?” Miles leaned back into the couch and gently placed his hands in his lap as he explained the events of that faithful day. His hands started to tremble when the faint memories he had returned to his mind- with the blank parts filled in with the truth that was exposed in court months ago.- After the earthquake most people were too preoccupied checking on themselves, the ones they were with, and their belongings. Everyone seemed to forget about the attorney and son, along with a court bailiff who got trapped in the elevator during the earthquake. Everyone except Von Karma. Von Karma waited for the elevator. He patiently waited but when a bullet came through the elevator door and impacted his shoulder his patience quickly snapped. The elevator doors slowly opened not long later, and three people laid unconscious in the courthouse’s elevator. Just beyond the elevator’s threshold was the gun in question. Von Karma picked up the weapon and shot Gregory once. A short and merciless revenge for the stain on his perfect record. He soon left without being noticed by anyone. A few minutes passed before someone went to check on the elevator. The police were immediately contacted when they saw the bodies lying on the ground. With blood and unconscious bodies it was hard to tell by looking who was a live and who was long gone. All Miles remembered from the incident was a hazy memory. He remembered a dispute going on between his father and the bailiff. When Yogi’s gun slid across the floor Miles threw it back in hope of breaking up the quarrel without getting directly involved. He remembers the gun going off, and hearing a scream, just as the world around him got incased in darkness. Miles awoke a few minutes later just as the police arrived on the scene. A detective walked into the elevator and crouched beside the attorney’s body. Miles blinked when he caught a glimpse of his father and the blood-stained suit he was wearing. One of the cops looked over at Miles and said calmly, “You’re awake. You okay kid?” Miles slowly nodded his head and forced himself to stand up. He was rather shaky after everything he experienced. He couldn’t take his eyes off the bloody wall across from him. The cop that spoke to him offered his hand, “Come with me kid.” Miles turned his head to look at the cop, but his eyes still stayed on his father. “Come on. Let’s get you out of here,” the cop gently grabbed onto Miles’ arm and pulled him out of the elevator before another cop went in to check on Yanni Yogi. While leaving the elevator Miles looked at his father- he finally got a good look at the body. A bullet hole right in the chest. Miles’ eyes widened in shock and he quickly turned to look at the cop. Miles twisted his arm and pulled away in attempt in escape. “L-Let me go! F-Father… Father… he…” the boy threw a small fit after realizing his father was dead- or at least close to death. The cop let out a sigh and stopped in the hall way. He crouched down in front of Miles and said sternly, “Hey, look at me kid.” Miles reluctantly did as he was told and looked at the police officer. “Your father has been shot. The detectives need to investigate. My job is to bring you down to the police station so they can see what you know about what happened. The police will also see if find some family or friends to take you in.”- “And so Mr. Von Karma took you in because they couldn’t find any family?” Gregory asked to ascertain his thoughts. Miles nodded his head, “Yes but not right away of course. Von Karma took me in the moment your death was announced. Until then, Mr. Shield’s mother let me move in with them. I was there for only a few days.” Miles sighed, “Von Karma said he was taking me in out of respect for you, his ‘fallen enemy’. He used the same reason to take one vacation day after your death, but I presume he really needed the day off to deal with the wound I gave him.” Gregory smiled softly and spoke gently to his son. “Don’t blame yourself for shooting him. It was an accident… plus he deserved it.” Miles thought for a moment, reflecting on the crime he committed. He did shoot a man. He may have never killed someone, it may have been an accident. He may have been a child at the time and the man he shot was terrible, but in his mind, he still shot someone. Miles let out a long sigh, accepting that he committed a crime that he got away with, but he still understood that the worst that could happen is that he would have to spend a few more nights in prison for committing such a crime fifteen years ago. “Can I ask you another question relating to my death?” The father questioned. He could tell his son was deep in thought. “Miles. Listen. You did nothing wrong. You need to stop reflecting back on that incident.” Miles nodded his head and crossed his arms. “I know, I know,” he said heartlessly. “What do you want to know, Father?” Gregory flat out asked, “Did I have a funeral? Well, I assume I had a funeral, but I want to know who attended. I… sense that Von Karma wouldn’t like to attend my funeral and pay his respects to me.” Miles smiled sheepishly as he said, “Yes well… Mr. Von Karma and I did attend the funeral. He didn’t want to stick around. Mr. Shield’s family pretty much worked with the town’s police to plan the funeral. Von Karma had no interest in socializing with anyone you or I considered friends. After that… Von Karma made sure I got all my work and chores done before I could go visit your grave. I would try to go often the first few years… but then it… just became a hassle to leave flowers for you. Once I moved out though Detective Gumshoe insisted that I went to visit you on holidays. It… was tough to explain to him everything that happened without breaking down.” “Detective Gumshoe? Shall I presume that is the detective you have worked with since you became prosecutor?” Gregory seemed concerned about how much Von Karma ruined his good son. He then assured Miles, “Do not worry about visiting my grave so often. I do appreciate the thought, but I won’t be angry with you if you have better things to do. I… would very much like you to move on from me. I of course want you to remember me; but you can’t let your memories of me hold you back.”Miles frowned and quickly put a hand over his face. His heart burned hearing his own father telling him to move on from the past. Miles sniffed loudly, trying his best to keep himself from crying. Gregory then tried to calm him down, but still spoke the truth. “Son… I know you are succeeding and doing well in life, but I get the sense you could do a lot better if you didn’t dwell so much on what happened in your childhood,” he said soothingly.Miles lowered his hand and furrowed his brows. He shot a fiery glare at his father, “What the hell do you think I could be doing better?! Sure I’m not an attorney like I wanted but I have a great career as a prosecutor.”“And you have one friend… if you even are friends.”“Phoenix? …I guess I really only have one real friend. I do share some things to Detective Gumshoe, but I never speak to anyone else.”“You are really lacking friends. I know I didn’t have many other friends either… and I will tell you, it was terribly lonely so that’s why I want you to have friends. But you are using me to keep yourself from opening up to people.” There was a moment of silence as neither of them spoke; they just looked at each other. Gregory then added, “I would like you to find a boyfriend at least.”A light blush appeared on the son’s cheeks – he almost forgot that he came out as gay when he was a child. “F-Father,” Miles stuttered.“Come on Miles. You’re really telling me you’re just friends with the boy you had a crush on when you were eight? I know you two must have grown apart after you left; but I’m barely buying it.”“Goodness Father… I guess we have more to discuss. It’s rather complicated… and well, I’ve been shoved back into the closet over the years.”Gregory raised an eyebrow and questioned, “Shoved back into the closet? Miles… son, what happened? Do I need to haunt someone for abusing you because of your sexuality?”
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“There is nothing you can do, Father,” the mentally abused man said to his father. At this point the largest source of his self-hatred was spending the rest of his life sitting in a prison cell. Now, Miles just feared how other people would react if they found out he was interested in dating men. Gregory let out a disappointed groan. “What do you mean Miles? I am sure I can do something… even from beyond the grave. It is a father’s job after all to care for their children and protect them.”- “I’m home,” the attorney called when walking into the house. As usual his young son was sitting on the couch doing his homework. Their dog laying down at Miles’ feet. “How was school? How are your friends Phoenix and Harry?” “It’s Larry, Father,” Miles corrected the older man. Somehow people had trouble remembering the name Larry Butz. “School was fine. Larry is fine. And Phoenix… he’s good,” Miles’ voice got softer when he mentioned Phoenix. “Well that’s good,” the Father said happily while setting his briefcase down beside the couch. “Do you want to tell me what you did at school? Anything interesting happen today?” Gregory constantly worried about his son- he spent too much time focusing on school work. For a child he was rather boring and far too mature for his age. Gregory just wanted for his son to have some fun with friends every so often. Miles looked at up at the attorney and then looked down at the floor. He thought for a moment, reminiscing on the events that took place today. “Classes were the same… boring and easy. Except… recess was… strange today.” The older man raised an eyebrow and sat down on the couch beside Miles. He asked softly, “Strange in what way?” The boy hesitated for a moment before saying, “Larry played truth or dare. There were a few girls and well… he got Phoenix and I to play too. Larry is kind of mad at me now.” “Son… are you going to tell me what happened?” “Whenever someone said truth Larry asked them who they had a crush on. He eventually asked me and well… I left without giving him an answer.” Gregory smirked while looking at his son. “Oh? Do you have a crush on someone that was playing so you couldn’t say?” Miles paused and slowly nodded his head and answered, “Y-Yeah but…” Gregory patted his son’s back and chirped, “You should be friends with her. You’re too young to date but you should at least play with her on the playground until you two are older. Then you can ask your old man for advice on how to ask her out.” He smiled brightly but then slowly frowned when he could tell his son was upset. The young boy frowned and looked as if he was on the verge of tears. “Something is wrong with me,” the boy whined. “Hm? Son… there is nothing wrong with having a crush on someone at your age.” “I… Father… I like a boy.” Gregory paused and looked at his son. He felt ashamed assuming his son would be a lady killer when he grew up. “Really? A boy? …Do you want to tell me who?” Part of him also wondered if Miles was getting confused with the desire to make more friends. Miles shyly crossed his legs. He raised his shoulders up to his chin. He mumbled under his breath, “I think I… like Phoenix.” “Oh!” He realized this wasn’t just someone Miles wanted to be friends with. Afterall, Phoenix and Miles were already best friends. “There is nothing wrong with liking boys, Miles. You know Raymond, right? Raymond told me he likes both boys and girls,” Gregory calmly informed him in an attempt to tell him that it was normal to like people of the same sex. Miles paused and returned his gaze to his father. “Really?” Gregory gently smiled and nodded his head. “Yup. And I don’t mind one bit if you’re gay. Just no dating until you are older!” “Gay? Doesn’t that just mean happy? I mean… I am happy, Father…” “Gay is what you call someone who likes people who like the same gender,” the father laughed. “So since you are a boy who likes boys, you’re gay. But on the other hand, a girl can also like girls.” Miles processed the new vocabulary for a moment. He nodded his head once it was added to his mental dictionary. “Then… there really is nothing wrong with me…” he said softly and looked back down at the floor.” “Yes well… there is nothing wrong with liking boys,” Gregory said but then decided he needed to have a talk with his son before he went around openly saying he likes boys and risked being bullied by fellow students. “While it is normal and okay for you to like boys… I’m afraid some people find it weird, or gross.” “But- you just said nothing is wrong with it!” Miles retorted and turned to face the older man. The attorney smile gently and soothingly rubbed the boy’s back. “I know. But you are fully aware people are dumb. I just worry that people who think it is weird will bully you. And you know I don’t want anything to ever happen to you. So… while I do support you, and will continue to support you, I just want you to be careful who you tell.” Gregory then pulled his son closer and hugged him. “If anyone hurts you just let me know. I’ll sue them.” “Oh. I see,” the silver-hair boy said gently, “I don’t want to cause you more work Father.”Since that conversation Miles continued to keep his crush a secret from his classmates.- “I kept that secret for even longer than I thought I would,” Miles said sadly. “I originally hoped to come out in high school and ask a boy to prom. But… that never happened. Hell, I didn’t even get a normal college experience. Von Karma made me go to a private school. They were so strict in their rules there about no dating people in the school, and we just had to focus on our studies.” Gregory nodded his head, “Did you… ever tell a close friend at the time? I don’t want to know how Von Karma may have felt, but did you bother telling him?” Miles looked at the wall behind Gregory as more memories flooded his mind. “I didn’t have any friends at that time. I was completely alone. And… when I was fourteen, I decided to tell Von Karma I was gay. He never mentioned anyone who was gay before, so I really had no idea what his opinions were. I… really chose the wrong person to tell.” “Miles… tell me everything. I’ll make sure Von Karma doesn’t know a moment of peace for the rest of his life,” Gregory threatened. After all, he was a ghost, what was anyone going to do if he drove the criminal insane.- “Sir, now that I am in high school, I wanted to tell you something,” Miles said while making eye contact with the prosecutor sitting behind his desk. If Miles ever wanted to talk about something important, they spoke in the office. But it was also where Miles was scolded most; in contrast to Franziska, which the office was a safe haven for her from the rest of the world. Miles was kind of glad he wasn’t spoiled as much as Franziska was. Afterall, she was the one who ended up getting bullied more at school. She was rich and thought to highly of herself. But she was always protected by her father; while Miles had to deal with the man’s anger. “What is it?” the prosecutor let out a meaningless sigh. He planned to just shoo Miles out when he said something unimportant. Miles nervously put his arms behind his back and cupped his hands together. “Sir. I want you to know… that I like boys.” Manfred raised an eyebrow. There was a moment of silence as the old man processed what he heard. He stood up quickly and slammed a hand on his desk. He spoke angrily, which scared the poor teenager before him. “A faggot! I dare let a faggot in my house?!” Manfred then laughed to himself, “Of course Gregory raised a fairy.” “I-Is there something wrong sir?” “Of course there is something wrong! There is something wrong with you!” He said cruelly. He wagged a finger. “If you are telling me this because you want to date then you can bet, I will never let you be alone with a boy. We must destroy any disgusting thoughts you have. You’re absolutely disgusting. You’re a pansy for crying out loud! But it doesn’t surprise me one bit that your father raised a twat such as yourself. Your father was always weak… he really is the type to raise a fairy.” Miles flinched at Von Karma’s harsh words. He begun to question, “Maybe… there is something wrong with me.” “There is something wrong with you. For God’s sake, you’re a faggot. But we can fix this,” Manfred crossed his arms and tapped his finger on his elbow thinking of a way to rid of the boy’s ‘sin’. “If you are interested in dating then I will set you up with a woman. Some of my friends have daughters around your age. Just promise you will not tell them your perverted feelings, or I will kick you out of my house! If you still have such perverted feelings for boys, then I’ll seek out a professional to cleanse your cursed mind.” “Y-Yes sir. I understand. I… I would love to date a girl,” the boy said reluctantly. It pained him to say it. He was never once interested in dating a girl. But now he was going to be forced to date a girl in order to convert him. He wondered, maybe he just needs this to learn that being straight was the normal sexuality. He didn’t even want to know what Von Karma meant by having a professional help; so he figured it was best to just play along with it anyways.- Gregory raised an eyebrow and he couldn’t help but hold back a small laugh. “You, date a woman? Who well did that go?” Miles rolled his eyes. Even though it had been so long since he spoke to his father, he still knew the attorney’s sense of humor. “Oh it went great,” Miles said sarcastically, “I turned straight after my first date.” “Just how bad was it?” Gregory inquired. He knew his son was never interested in girls. Miles was completely, 100%, gay. He was just kind of curious how disgusted by women Miles was. Miles crossed his arms and sunk into the back of the couch. “If I am to honest… it wasn’t terrible. Von Karma did have me date different women over time. Things just never worked out… but I kept telling myself I needed to like girls in order to fit in with society. And to be safe, of course. None of my relationships got serious at all. I remember one of the ladies tried to kiss me, but I pushed her away. She wasn’t too happy with me rejecting her like that; and she complained to Von Karma. I got quite the scolding for turning her down.” Gregory nodded his head, understanding his son’s dilemma. He was put in a precarious situation. “Well of course, no woman is happy if you reject her. I really don’t think anyone would be happy with being rejected, regardless of sex. Did you get out of the terrible dating at some point?” “I eventually just told him I changed my mind and wasn’t ready to date. I told him I was far more interested in just focusing on my education and work to become a prosecutor. It was the one time he seemed even mildly proud of me.” “Who really cares what that man thinks. He’s atrocious. I really wish fate didn’t work this way. You deserve so much better. …If only I wasn’t killed,” the late attorney said softly. “Are you at least doing better now?” Miles smiled at his father. He nodded his head and informed him, “Father don’t worry about me. Of course I am doing better. I am making the best out of the situation. I rather like being a prosecutor. I… recently took some time off work to find out what being a prosecutor meant to me. And it’s just about the truth. I don’t care if I lose a trial. It is not about winning to me.” The older man grinned. “I’m glad to hear that.” Gregory paused and glanced around the room, “I don’t think we have too much longer.” “Oh… yeah, you have been here for a while. Ms. Fey must be getting tired.” “Before I go Miles, promise me you’ll become comfortable with yourself. I really want you to find a good man to be with. I would love for you to get married one day. I want you to have a really good life.” Miles sheepishly smirked, “Well… I am not too sure if I want to get married. There is still plenty of time before I make the decision. But until then… I do have some good news. It is rather complicated right now.” Gregory beamed, “You have a boyfriend? Or is it just another crush? Tell me all about him!”
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Miles laughed softly, “I have a boyfriend.” His father seemed so excited to hear such news; he always wanted Miles to find someone to love. Gregory then pushed the subject further, “Come on. Tell me about him!”Miles blushed slightly at the thought of his boyfriend. Their relationship was rather complicated at the moment. Afterall, Miles left and went to Europe without a word. And Phoenix thought he was dead. It made sense that Phoenix might have been upset so Miles simply avoided the conflict- but as a result they grew more distant even after Miles’ return to America. All and all, Phoenix was everything. He was perfect. He was cute, charming, caring, kind, funny… almost any positive adjective could have been used to describe him except maybe, intelligent. Miles softly said, “He’s a little stupid but he is perfect in every other way.” Miles paused and crossed his arms as he admitted, “I’m just afraid I pissed him off.”Gregory gently smiled as he repeated his son, “He’s perfect.” He then added, “I don’t think you could stand being with someone who is smarter than you. But what on Earth did you do. You can tell me. Let your father give you some relationship advice.”Miles sighed. He really didn’t want to tell his dad everything, but he deserved to know; plus, Miles needed some advice on how to close the gap he created between himself and Phoenix. “A few months ago,” Miles started, “there was a case that um… Phoenix and I went up against each other.”“Wait- Hold on! You’re dating Phoenix Wright? Your childhood crush, Phoenix Wright?” Gregory grinned brightly- he seemed ecstatic.Miles paused, looking at his father. Why did he seem so thrilled over this, Miles wondered. “Y-Yes… I’m dating Phoenix. I thought I could finally trust him after he figured out the truth of your death. Anyways, we were working against each other on a case. The case resulted in a few police officers and the chief prosecutor getting arrested. I… went through a rather… tough mental period. I was still working on getting over the DL-6 trial when this happened. I really started to wonder if I was going down the wrong path. After all… Von Karma was all about victory and he would force me to present forged evidence when it was needed to ensure my victory.”“You… my son forged evidence?” was the only question the late attorney could come up with.“I didn’t,” the prosecutor retorted, “I was simply forced to present it. I felt terrible for doing it, but I wasn’t given much of a choice. I did refuse his wishes once I became more independent from him, since he couldn’t threaten me too much when I was no longer under his roof or relying on his money to survive. At that point I made a promising career for myself, so I was financially stable…” Miles let out a small sigh. He wondered why was he going on and on about that terrible man? “I thought I erased the sins in my career but then I realized the hypocrisy within the police department and in the head prosecutor. I thought for a moment, all prosecutors were inherently evil. I ended up leaving the office and flew to Europe to get a break from everything here. I only told Detective Gumshoe that I was leaving but I told him to just play along with it… I… left a note saying that ‘Prosecutor Miles Edgeworth chooses death.’”Gregory sat there calmly, listening to everything his son said. “I understand why you were upset and rather lost in your career. It is quite upsetting to think the law exists to help people, but the law can also be quite corrupt.” The late attorney then took a moment to think to himself. What was the best way to word the question that was bugging him? “Miles… I know you. Even when times get you down it isn’t like you to run off like that. Did you… mean what you wrote in a literal sense?”The younger Edgeworth hesitated, shifting his gaze to the floor. He shamefully nodded his head up and down. “Richard saw the letter before I managed to do anything. He tracked me down and talked me out of it. Who knew that the dumb detective would save my life like that.”“Richard? Oh… Detective Gumshoe, I presume,” Gregory said softly. He wasn’t too used to his son calling people by their first name unless they were good friends… or boyfriends.“I ended up booking a flight to Europe that night. I wasn’t going to mope around my house, nor go back to work so soon. I needed a change of scenery. I didn’t throw out the note I left though. I left it as a… sort of symbolic message.” Miles attempted to explain, “I figured it could mean the past, cruel me was dead. And I became a new person. But… I also saw it as a message to Phoenix. To inform him that I still needed someone to be there for me and support me… just in case my mental health deteriorated again in the future.” The prosecutor looked up from the floor, returning his eye of sight back to the man sitting across from him. “Richard at the time was the only one who knew I was alive and in Europe.” Miles narrowed his eyes and frowned. He quickly looked back down at the floor. “I am really afraid that I upset Phoenix for not telling him. I made him worry about me. I really shouldn’t have done that to him. Richard told me how sad Phoenix was while I was gone… and… I feel terrible Father. I will never cease to make mistakes, won’t I?”The older man gently smiled, and spoke soothingly, “It’s alright Miles. You are bound to hit a few bumps in the road when you’re in a relationship. And I guarantee you, you will make mistakes and upset Phoenix from time to time. But it is up to you and Phoenix to forgive each other and fix the mistakes you made. I am actually pretty sure Phoenix is worried about you more than he is angry with you for leaving without saying anything.”“…Perhaps,” Miles sighed, “I just feel awful for making him worry and not telling him anything. I think he always been worried about me though. Afterall… while I was forced to present forged evidence Phoenix tried to reach out to me. He sent me letters back then. And well I decided not to write back. I didn’t want him to get involved and I hated having him being so concerned about me.”“Well if he was worried about you then, then he is definitely worried about you now. But don’t feel too ashamed about it. If you two are dating, he needs to be there for you and take care of you. While on the other hand, you need to be there for him when he needs you. Does that make sense to you?”“I know. Perhaps I should apologize to him for making him so concerned about me. Thank you for the advice Father,” he said softly. “You should go now Father. I think you are all caught up with my life right now. I don’t to tire out Ms. Fey too much.”Gregory nodded his head. He warmly smiled at the man across from him. “Alright son. I hope to see you again sometime. I love you. Stay safe.”Miles smiled shyly, “I love you too Father.”Gregory kept a smile on his face as his appearance slowly faded. As the adult, masculine features faded they were replaced with young, feminine features. Maya soon returned and slowly opened her eyes. She looked over at Miles and yawned loudly. “I want a burger,” she mumbled.Edgeworth weakly smiled and nodded his head. He pulled his wallet out of his pocket and handed her three fifty-dollar bills. “Would you like me to order you lunch too?” he asked. He was really thankful that he was given the chance to see his father again.Maya shook her head and carefully took the money out of his hand. “This is fine Mr. Edgeworth, you don’t need to buy me food. It’s Nick’s job to feed me after all! And honestly, you don’t even need to pay me this much.” Maya held the hundred and fifty dollars out towards him, wishing for him to take the money back. She did appreciate the money, but she pitied Edgeworth. She wanted to just do this channeling out of the goodness of her heart, and not for payment.The prosecutor let out a sigh as he returned his wallet to his pocket. “I insist. You had no need to do this for me. But I do greatly appreciate it. In fact, I don’t think I can thank you enough.” Maya looked at Miles a bit confused before slipping the cash into her jacket pocket. Edgeworth put his photograph back in his briefcase and stood up. “I’m certain I will see you again somewhere. Now if you will excuse me… I wish to talk to Wright before I leave.”“Of course. I’ll let you talk to him alone,” she said softly. Once Miles walked over to the door and left the office Maya laid down on the couch to rest a bit and regain her energy. Her stomach growled loudly, but she wanted to bug Phoenix to get her a meal instead of leeching of Edgeworth.Edgeworth quietly left the office. He made sure to shut the door behind him. Phoenix was in the hall, sitting down on a bench. But once Edgeworth came out of the office Phoenix stood up and looked at him. “Hey Edgeworth… How are you?” Phoenix asked softly. The prosecutor nodded his head. “I’m fine, Phoenix. It was good to speak to my father after all these years.”“That’s good to hear. I’m sure he was glad to talk to you again. How is Maya doing?”“She seems alright. A bit exhausted but that is to be expected when using so much of her energy. She laid down on the couch before I came out here… perhaps she is napping to recharge.”“Oh I see,” there was an awkward silence between the two of them. “Miles… do you… can we… talk about us? Are we… you know… still dating?” Phoenix was very nervous to ask such a thing. With Miles vanishing without a word Phoenix worried that Miles was upset with him for some reason.“Of course. I actually hoped to talk about our relationship,” Miles smiled shyly, “I actually asked my father for advice. I… told him I was dating you.”“Really? What did he say?”Miles crossed his arms as he stated, “He was rather thrilled with the news. Apparently, he has always wanted me to grow up and find someone to love. But anyways… I think he said I should apologize to you. For…” Miles sighed and uncrossed his arms. “I am really sorry for not telling you anything Phoenix. I… at that time when I wrote that note I was… really willing to end my life.”Phoenix was happy to hear the news that Gregory accepted his son and supported him. Phoenix then raised an eyebrow – he did appreciate hearing an apology, but he didn’t need it. The attorney then frowned and looked concerned. “Miles… you… listen Miles, if you ever need help, I’ll always be here for you. I’m glad that you’re still here but you should have reached out to me. I… blamed myself thinking something happened to you. I really thought you died… and… I was upset with myself for not being there for you.”“It is not your fault Phoenix. It is my fault for not reaching out to anyone. To be quite honest, Detective Gumshoe chased me down and talked me out of it. I didn’t seek out any help. It’s not your fault that you weren’t there. Please… do not blame yourself.”“Miles… promise me you’ll reach out to me the next time you think of doing such a thing. Please… promise me that. I don’t want to lose you. I don’t want anything to ever happen to you.”“I promise Phoenix. I’ll… try my best to reach out to you when I need support. I… do hope this hasn’t ruined our relationship,” Miles said softly.Phoenix nodded his head and chuckled a bit, “Our relationship has become a bit awkward since you returned. But I don’t want it to ruin our relationship either. I don’t want mental health to ever end our relationship. Because I know I can help you through it. I’ll always be here for you.”Miles smiled and walked closer to Phoenix. He gently wrapped his arms around the attorney. “Well… should I take you out on a date tonight? It will be our first date since my return. And I’ll pick out somewhere very nice in order to apologize for upsetting you.”Phoenix wrapped his arms around his boyfriend. “Of course Miles. I would love to go out on a date with you. But… can we just act like nothing happened? I don’t want to remember the strain in our relationship.”“Sure Phoenix, whatever you want. I’m relieved that you are not upset with me to be quite honest,” Miles stated while slowly pulling himself out of the hug. “I too would like to act like nothing happened. We can go out now if you wish.” Miles glanced at his watch. 5:36pm. Perfect time to go out and get dinner.“Oh, now? Y-yeah sure let me just… I want to check on Maya before I go,” Phoenix paused. He looked at Miles and quickly pecked his cheek before going into the office. “Maya. How are you?Maya sat up and pouted. “I’m starving Nick! Can we go get food?”Phoenix paused. Welp- so much for his date with his boyfriend. “Yeah well… Edgeworth and I were thinking about going out for dinner together. But I can see if you can join us.”“Oh… if you want to go out with him you should. You two are best friends so I don’t want to intrude and bother you guys,” Maya said with a small smile.“No, no, don’t worry about it Maya. You’re a friend of mine, so don’t worry. Plus, you just said you’re starving. You need some food. I’ll go ask Edgeworth if you can come along. I’m sure he will be fine with it,” Phoenix said and poked his head out into the hall way. “Hey Miles… is it alright if Maya comes get dinner with us?” Miles let out a sigh. He offered to buy her food earlier and she said no; why did she want food now? He was a bit annoyed that she would come in between them on their date; but she didn’t know the two men were dating. “Sure. She is welcome to come,” he said in an expressionless tone. Phoenix could tell Miles would prefer she didn’t come but what the hell was Phoenix going to do about it? Leave Maya to be sad and starving? No way. “You can come Maya!” Phoenix said happily while looking back at Maya.“Dinner on your Phoenix?” she asked while hopping off the couch. She walked out into the hall with Phoenix.“Maya,” Phoenix rolled his eyes, “I’m not made of money.”“Don’t worry about it,” Miles butted in. “I’ll pay for dinner. You two can pick out the restaurant though.”Maya smiled up at Edgeworth and teased the prosecutor, “Nah, you should pick the restaurant. I get the feeling just being in a burger joint will make you lose your appetite. I to be honest can imagine you eating a burger with a fork!” She laughed while Phoenix locked the office door.Miles let out a small sigh. “I can eat finger food, Ms. Fey.” He glanced at Phoenix and then looked back at Maya. He still wanted to make it up to Phoenix for upsetting him. He still wanted to go on a date with him. He had a fancy restaurant in mind… he stared at Maya. Miles wondered if she could behave herself in a nice restaurant. “You just have to promise to behave in the restaurant I take us to. Is that understood?”Maya nodded her head. “I promise! I take it we are going someplace really fancy!”Miles crossed his arms and became a bit flustered at the thought of having her drag along with them. “Ms. Fey… are you sure you want to come? I believe you should… know something.”Maya smirked and cocked an eyebrow, “Come on Edgeworth… I’m sure I want to come. It’ll be fun!”Phoenix paused and looked at Edgeworth, “Miles… you don’t need to force yourself to tell her.”Miles furrowed her brows and shot a glare at the attorney. “I need to get over myself Phoenix.”“Hmm? Let me take a wild guess. You’re gay, aren’t you Edgeworth?” Maya assumed with an evil smirk on her face. “And you don’t want me to ruin your chance of getting with Nick.”A bright red blush suddenly grew on the prosecutor’s cheeks. He stuttered, “M-Ms. Fey! How- How did you figure out I’m gay?”The spirit medium shrugged her shoulders. “Just a wild guess. Nick told me one day that he’s bi. And well… I had the sense you two were more than just friends, so I think you both like each other. Afterall, you don’t seem like you want me to join you two for dinner, Edgeworth. And the only plausible reason I can think of is that you want to start dating Nick!”Miles stared at Maya. He then smiled slightly. “Not a bad deduction Ms. Fey. You are rather on point. But- I think you should know that Phoenix and I have been seeing each other for a while.”Maya raised and eyebrow and glanced at Phoenix. Phoenix was staring at his boyfriend, with a warm proud smile for Miles becoming comfortable enough with his own sexuality to come out to Maya at least about their relationship. Maya then returned her attention to Miles. She smiled and sweetly asked him, “How long have you two been together?” “Uh well… A little over a year technically,” Miles said quietly.Phoenix then shook his head and butted in. “Nu-uh! You disappearing for almost a year isn’t really dating Miles! We dated for like two months.”Miles looked over at Phoenix. “We never really broke up in the last year. And I think we have both been loyal to each other. You didn’t move on and start dating anyone else while I was gone. So you clearly loved me even then.”Phoenix sighed loudly. “I thought you were dead Miles!“I know! Alright! I feel terrible for making you think that,” Miles retorted. The couple continued to bicker a bit about how long they were really dating for.Maya yawned, “Can’t you two just kiss and make-up already? Just say you dated on and off for a year- sheesh. I’m starving. Can we go now?”Phoenix and Miles both became silent and looked at Maya. At least someone realized that the two of them would never agree on something like that. Miles slowly nodded his head, “Of course. We can take my car.”Maya smiled, “Alright Edgeworth!” She headed down the hall and looked back at the two men. “You two can kiss or hold hands if you want. I don’t mind. And if strangers mind- I’ll fight them.”Phoenix looked at Maya, a bit disappointed in her. “Fighting isn’t good Maya… but I appreciate your support.” Phoenix lightly held on to the prosecutor’s free hand. “Miles…”Miles turned his head and looked at the attorney. “What is it Phoenix?”“I’m really proud of you for coming out like that.”“I’m a grown man,” Miles chuckled, “I had the suspicion that Ms. Fey would be fine with our relationship so she was the first person I thought I could tell.”“I’m just… really glad you’re becoming more comfortable with who you are,” Phoenix said softly as he leaned against his boyfriend. Phoenix then gently pressed his lips against Miles’ lips before they headed out and met Maya at the car.