Disclaimer: Hello! I do not own the Ace Attorney franchise, all rights belong to Capcom.
A/N: I was listening to Tamaki Suoh's character song "Guilty Beauty Love" by Vic Mignona with my sister, and it struck us how suitable it would be for Klavier. I wanted to figure out who else was like the Ouran hosts, but it failed, so I came up with an attempt to combine the plots of both stories, so things will be familiar, but not ^^
Warning: High School Alternate Universe, sheer pessimism and somewhat minor spoilers from AJ
"Man, you'd think there'd be somewhere quiet to study in a rich private school…" The young man eased the ornate double doors of the library shut again, hiding the throng of chatting rich youths from view. He wandered away in search of a quiet spot, sighing tiredly. There was not a single soul in the academy for him to turn to. He would have gone on to public high school with the rest of his friends, but when a scholarship offer came for the prestigious Gyakuten Academy, it was too much of an opportunity to pass up, and here the teen was, stuck alone in an academy among spoiled rich brats.
"I've heard that they have common rooms with open ceilings on the top floor, so they may be worth checking out," the brunette said to himself, starting up a richly carpeted staircase. He navigated his way to a set of doors labeled "Court Room Three." The young man took a breath, planting his hand on the handle, and pushed.
Bright sunlight from the open roof flooded his vision, and the young man shielded his face with a hand.
"Welcome to the Ace Host Club," came a chorus of voices. Eyes adjusting, the teen realized that there were four boys in the center of the traditional closed courtyard standing around a fifth boy lounging in a plush red chair.
"What the hell…" he grumbled.
The boy on the left with slightly grayed hair and a ruffly kind of neck tie scoffed, saying, "If you hadn't noticed, this person is not a girl." Another guy with brown tufted hair grinned at him wolfishly and asked, "What's wrong, pup? Did you get lost somewhere?" The white boa over his shoulders shook as he threw his head back and cackled.
"Hey, this guy might be the new honors transfer student Maya was telling me about. Huh, I can't remember what his name was, though," mused the guy on the right with hair that was far too spiky to be physically possible. The young man next to him had hair that was even less feasible. He ran a hand through his pure white locks and leveled his odd sunglasses, snorting.
"Get your facts straight, Trite. The new kid's name is Apollo Justice."
"Is that so? I only wish you'd get my name right, too," the spiky 'Mr. Trite' replied dryly.
"Yes, that's me. I'm obviously not supposed to be here, so I'll just be on my way again," Apollo said, hastily backing out the door again.
"Wait," commanded the blond from between them. He rose from the chair and gazed at Apollo with amusement, closing the distance with long strides. He had the strangest hair of all, styled into a sort of drill hanging over his right shoulder. Unease settled over Apollo.
"Herr Justice is our guest. Why don't we give him a warm welcome to the academy, boys?" he stopped a couple of feet from Apollo, eyeing him with mirth. The brunette nearly leapt out of his skin when the much taller blond leaned over the rest of the way to bring them face to face.
"Now, what are we hiding beneath this mop of hair?" he purred, extending a tanned hand to gently sweep the other man's bangs aside. "My, my, what a large forehead you have," he remarked, poking Apollo's brow with a long finger.
Apollo's face reddened furiously, and he darted out of reach. Vaguely, stifled sniggers reached his blushing ears from behind the maniacal homosexual blond molester. Just what kind of place had Apollo gotten himself into?
"Aww, look, he's shy," cooed the tall pursuer. "Are you alright, Herr Forehead?"
"I-I'm fine!" Apollo blurted, backing away in panic. Finally he snapped into action, turning and bolting from the dreaded Court Room Three to safety, chased by the raucous laughter of the Ace Host Club. As far as he was concerned, he would never return to that room again.
-AHC-
The next day at school, Apollo managed to gain more unwanted attention, and lots of it. As soon as he stepped in the doorway of his classroom, a bunch of girls turned to peer at him and giggled. How dismaying. Apollo marched past the rows of girls surreptitiously looking at him and took a seat in the back, where he hoped would diminish stares during the lesson.
"Heya! You must be Apollo," greeted a spunky girl with long black hair. "My name is Maya Fey. Nice to meet you!" She dropped onto the seat next to his and grinned widely at him.
"Hello, Maya, nice to meet you too," he answered cautiously. How had he become so well known by his second day? Nobody had cared all that much when he had to introduce himself in front of the class yesterday, after they all took in his carelessly drab appearance.
"Got any questions, you just come to me, and I'll help ya," she told him, elbowing him roughly and winking mischievously.
"Um, thanks, I guess?"
"By the way..." Maya added, feigning casualness and sidling closer, "Nick told me that you're, you know, gay. Is that true?" Apollo turned to look at her sharply. Maya was much too excited while bringing up a complete stranger's orientation. Did rich kids know no dignity?
"Where did you hear that?" he questioned, voice dead flat.
"My best friend Nick told me that you, the new transfer student, went to the Ace Host Club yesterday and got all worked up when Klavier Gavin tried to charm you. So is it true? We're all just dying to know here," she explained. Apollo glanced around and caught several girls trying to listen in. They blushed, turning back around in their seats.
"No, it is completely untrue. I am not gay, and that is how I'd react if anyone intruded into my personal space," he stated, doing his best to start dispelling the rumor. He might need to find himself a girlfriend if it didn't tide over, and fast.
"Aw, how boring," Maya pouted. But a crafty expression crossed her face, and a chill ran down the young man's spine. "Did Klavier go like this?" She put her face almost on top of Apollo's, and he squawked, falling backwards and onto the floor. Maya laughed uncontrollably as she pulled the hapless young man back up. "We are going to be great friends, Polly." Apollo groaned in pain and in annoyance at the nickname she had decided for him.
The doors of Court Room Three slammed open, and Apollo Justice stormed inside, past the tables where the hosts were sitting with various female guests.
"Which one of you is Nick?" he demanded. The spiky-haired youth stood up smoothly from a corner table and brushed off the front of his crimson blazer.
"That'd be me. Normally, we'd require you to sign up for an appointment, but I'm at your service," he smirked at Apollo, lazily stepping around the sofa to meet him in the center of the yard. "What's the matter, kid? Shall we take this somewhere more private?" Apollo took a deep breath and met Nick's calm gaze.
"Yesterday, you said something completely untrue about me. You told people that I am- that I'm gay, and it isn't true. Take it back."
"Is that the problem?" Nick asked wryly. The whispering around them grew. "There is one contradiction in your statement." The raven haired teen smirked lazily, like a contented cat.
"Wh-what do you mean?" Apollo asked.
"I never once said anything that wasn't true. Yes, I did relate the tales from yesterday to my friend Maya, but at no time did I ever say that about you," Nick gazed down at him with taunting dark eyes.
"Why you... You certainly implied it, you dirty-"
THWACK
"I-I hit him..." Apollo whispered, staring shocked at his hand and then the older teen, whose head was still turned away from the force of the blow.
"Oh my gosh, I'm so s-" a large hand gently clapped down on Apollo's shoulder. Klavier glanced at Apollo and looked at his friend, saying, "That's enough."
Nick looked up and laughed. "I would have yelled 'Take that!' It adds a bit more of a punch." his eyes gleamed, and a smile threatened to break through as Nick tried to keep a stern face. The other three hosts began laughing and defused the situation, allowing Klavier to lead Apollo away to the side as the guests returned to their activities. Nick's guests fussed over his face, admiring his bravery for taking such a hit.
"My Herr Forehead, what a pleasant surprise. I didn't know you had it in you, after the way you ran off yesterday. The way you stood up for yourself against Phoenix was wunderbar!" they stopped under the roof meant to shield the perimeter of the yard from rain. Klavier placed both hands on Apollo's shoulders and looked at him with gentle blue eyes. "Do not hold it against him, though. He has turned wily with age, but he means no harm. Given time, the rumors will fade, and all of this will pass." Apollo was still suspicious of them all, but calmed down a bit. That was, until Klavier began fidgeting with his clothes.
"What's with this outfit?" Apollo protested as the taller man tugged at his faded burgundy sweater vest. "It's heavily patched, no?" Apollo's pants were patched too, but it saved a lot of money to wear things until they fell apart, and he couldn't afford to get new clothes all that often. "What can we do about this mess on your head, as well?" Oh. That. It had been a while since his last trim. He let Trucy have a go at it once, but afterwards he resolved never to let her near his hair again.
"Apollo, answer me honestly," Klavier urged him softly, "Why are you dressed in rags? Don't you have a school uniform?" Apollo averted his eyes. He didn't want to tell this irresponsible rich kid, but he did.
"I can't afford one... What can I say? I've run hard on cash," he stated despondently.
"Oh..." Klavier clicked his tongue, and Apollo could just see the question of 'how?' forming on his lips. But Klavier rebounded, snapping his fingers and looking mightily proud of himself. "I've got it! This club employs a variety of people for different tasks. You, my finely proportioned-forehead friend, will work for us. No buts."
"What? This is completely ridiculous!" he yelled.
"Don't worry, Forehead, we'll pay you for your services," Klavier called, strolling away. "Now go fetch us some tea and sugar. We're a bit low on supplies."
"Oh! Why that- Gah!" Apollo rushed off to the store, not willing to lose a source of income, however troublesome.
-AHC-
"Hey, Herr Forehead, you're back! Do you have the tea I asked for?" greeted Klavier.
"Yeah, yeah," Apollo muttered, handing a box of tea bags to the blond.
"Hm, I've never had tea from this company before," Klavier mused, shaking the box and looking it up and down. He opened it up and gasped, pulling out a paper packet. "How interesting, they've already sorted the tea out into appropriate amounts." Klavier chucked the box back in Apollo's general direction and tore open the packet, prepared to pour tea leaves into the tea pot on the table.
The tea bag fell out with a plop.
"Wh- Apollo, why do they have a bag within a bag for the tea? How does this work?" the boy held the pot up to see inside as the girls at his table oohed and aahed.
"It's a teabag. Actual tea leaves are pricey, you know," Apollo explained sardonically.
"Oh, I see. It's poor people's tea. How clever," he purred. Apollo just knew the older student was covering up his ignorance. The girls chatted amongst themselves about how they had never had 'commoners' tea' before. Unbelievable.
Seeing a way to impress them, Klavier proclaimed, "Alright, I will drink this tea." He earned himself a round of applause for his daring. "Herr Justice, prepare this tea for me." Apollo was almost surprised that Klavier didn't do it for himself, but he set to it with minimal grumbling.
Apollo fished the teabag from the pot and properly placed it in a cup. He filled it with hot water, and after the tea had set, he handed the cup to Klavier, who took it with a show of trepidation. The blond took a quick sip, pinky up.
"It's… it's…" All of the girls crowded around Klavier, clamoring for his verdict. "It's rather bland, actually…" Apollo groaned inwardly as the girls praised Klavier for bravely tasting the 'bland commoners' tea.' Picky drama queen.
The strong, rich aroma of coffee wafted around them just then, and Apollo looked up to see the white-haired guy looming over their shoulders.
"So the little kitten has wandered into a den of beasts. What's going on here, Pollywog?" Apollo tried to see who this stranger was talking to, but his head was pointed decidedly in Apollo's direction. Uh oh.
"I bought tea that Mr. Gavin asked me to get," he replied.
"Did you get anything else, Pollywog?" the white-haired man asked.
"Just some sugar."
"What! Baby Grand, why didn't you ask the chore boy to get coffee?" he demanded, glaring at Klavier. Well, Apollo assumed it was a glare, as he couldn't really see the guy's eyes. He was really into strange nicknames, wasn't he?
"Hmph, that's because coffee consumption is the highest at your table. You're always running out because you drink more than is physically possible for mortal beings, Godot," Klavier accused darkly.
"Huh, think of coffee as water for me," Godot replied, shrugging carelessly.
"Achtung, you drink more coffee than most people drink water!"
"Whatever. Pollywog! Get me coffee, quick!" Godot ordered.
"Yes, sir!" Apollo couldn't help but salute and run out the door.
A/N: I decided that since Apollo is the starting character, it would be better to portray Phoenix more like how he was in the fourth game, but don't worry, it'll be more like a front he puts up to people who aren't THAT close to him ^^
