Notes: An eventual Klavier x Ema. I do generally update kind of slowly, but I guarantee a finished product. Please excuse me for the extremely bad name puns...or don't because this is Ace Attorney. Contains spoilers for Spirit of Justice and, obviously, everything before it, so be cautious if you haven't finished the game yet.

Titration by HawkofNavarre

Chapter 1

Don't Let Caffeine Dictate Your Decisions

Ema knew she shouldn't have said yes, but she'd only gotten two and a half hours of sleep the night before, was still struggling to pay off student loans with every cent she had, and hadn't had any personal luxuries in over a month. She was weak-willed when he had asked her, with an offer so enticing that she couldn't turn him down.

Free coffee.

Looking back, she was so ashamed of herself that she didn't even want to tell Lana what she'd done. To accept a date for the free food? Not the worst thing in the world, but to accept a date for the free food with a guy she found completely obnoxious? Ema Skye, how could you?

"He seriously won't leave me alone!" she hissed as she dusted the glass fragments on the ground for fingerprints.

"I could probably scare him away from the crime scene for awhile," Trucy Wright offered sympathetically. The Wright Anything Agency was defending the suspect in this case and technically, Ema wasn't supposed to be talking to any of them, but screw that. She had things to rant about!

"No, no," the forensic investigator responded with a sigh, gently blowing the powder away. "That wouldn't address the main issue here, but I appreciate it."

"I don't get it. Can't you just tell him you're not interested?" Apollo, who had come back for a brief visit from Khura'in and still had cases thrust upon him, asked unhelpfully.

Ema rolled her eyes. She was the last person on the planet who would worry about being too blunt. "Of course I told him that. You think he took 'no' for an answer? Pft, I should've thrown Snackoos in his stupid face the moment he asked me out."

"So you told him you weren't interested, but he didn't accept that," the young lawyer deduced as he crouched down next to her.

"That's right," she confirmed with a nod. She picked up the shard of glass with a pair of tweezers. It was only a partial, but it'd probably be enough to identify who it belonged to. "You see, Apollo, some people don't respect a woman's decision. The woman has to be property of another man before he'll back off, and that's just the way society is."

"He won't back down because you don't have a boyfriend?" Trucy asked on the other side of Ema, frowning. "Well, I don't think that's right."

The detective tucked the glass shard into an evidence bag, knowing she wouldn't be able to match a partial without the more advanced lab equipment they had back at the office. She rose up along with Apollo and Trucy. "Trucy, you'd better watch out. Boy can be scumbags," she advised the younger girl. "No offense, Apollo," she added as an afterthought.

Apollo's hair was drooping. "Look, can we not throw generalized insults in my direction? I'm just here to investigate a murder."

"So was I before some idiot brought me flowers and chocolate to a crime scene."

"Alright, alright! I get it! I don't really have a solution for you though," Apollo stated, trying to calm her down.

"I know you don't," she sighed as she lifted her pink shades from her eyes, "but thanks to you both for listening. I'll let you know the results of the fingerprints, but I'd say that your client's prints are pretty well going to be the match."

Trucy looked thoughtful while the defense attorney appeared downtrodden; he was always picking up the complex cases. But then again, that was why he had trained under Phoenix Wright. This guy could turn a case around in court in the blink of an eye, and that was only further proven now that he had his own law office back in Khura'in.

"I guess we'd better go back to the detention center and see if our client omitted some details," he said, glancing off towards the exit of the park.

"Shouldn't we help Ema before we go? That guy's still here..."

"I don't think there's a lot we can do, Trucy."

Suddenly, Trucy's eyes lit up like she was on stage at one of her shows at the Wonder Bar. "I know! Apollo can pretend to be your boyfriend!"

Ema tried rather unsuccessfully to hide her frown. Sometimes she forgot that Trucy was a full decade younger than her, the poor girl had been through so much, but it was moments like these that the age difference really showed. It wasn't her fault, and she was just trying to help. In fact, Trucy wouldn't even be thinking of such things if that jerk would just be respectful enough to leave her alone.

"'Apollo' doesn't like that plan," he drawled, unamused.

"Aw, but it worked for my friend Angelica when that guy from our chemistry class wouldn't stop bothering her last year," Trucy replied with a frown.

"Not that I don't appreciate the idea, Trucy, but I've been out of high school for too long to want to do something convoluted like that," the forensic investigator said apologetically. In no universe did she want to have to keep up some charade of Apollo being her boyfriend anyway—and that was even if he would be around for more than a week.

"Well... I'll keep thinking!" the young magician replied determinedly, holding a gloved fist in the air.

Apollo sighed, guiding the girl towards the exit. "We'll see you later, Ema. Good luck with the guy."

She waved to the two as she headed over to where Klavier was speaking to one of the officers. Honestly, out of the people she wanted to deal with today, he really was the last one—besides her stupid persistent coworker, anyway. Of course, Ema had been seriously struggling to hold onto any reasoning she had that wouldn't change her attitude towards him over the last year. She had two solid reasons so far: he was too glimmerous and he was a giant fop. Too bad those were all she could think of, especially since the whole forgery mystery with Phoenix had been cleared up. It was the reason she had hated him in the first place, being the person who had been the reason for Mr. Wright's disbarment. She had hated him before she'd even met him and then hated him even more for his annoying behaviour. And then when she finally had to work under him, he never seemed to take his job seriously and was always too busy being a rock star.

But now...she knew Klavier had just been another pawn in his brother's plans and that made it difficult for her not to sympathize with what had occurred eight years ago. He even proved how seriously he actually did take his job by helping convict both his brother and best friend. So then she couldn't hate him like she had before for any reason other than his annoying foppishness because she was too stubborn to apologize for some of the really terrible things she'd wished upon him in the past.

Besides, it'd just be weird if she was suddenly cordial with him, right?

"The best I have for you is a partial, Gavin," the detective reported as Klavier's attention turned onto her.

"I suppose that's better than nothing," Klavier sighed, running a hand through his bangs. Ema rolled her eyes at the blushing female officer at his side. No good-looking man should render that kind of response unless his name was Miles Edgeworth. "Of course, with Herr Forehead on the case, I knew this one wasn't going to be easy."

"He's just good about choosing his clients," Ema replied with a shrug. She was trying hard not to glare at the officer who was still swooning over the prosecutor.

"Prosecutor Gavin."

Oh God, she knew that voice too well.

"Herr Feller," Klavier greeted the forensic specialist.

"We've finished processing the victim's items," he stated, keeping himself professional to the max—as if he hadn't brought flowers and chocolate to the crime scene earlier to give to her. "As far as the evidence goes, it appears that our suspect is the only one who could have committed the murder."

"Scientifically speaking," Ema interjected in annoyance, "everything we have is circumstantial so far. I have one print and it's only a partial, with no telling whose it is until we get back to the lab."

"Good. Process it as soon as you can. I hate building cases blind," the prosecutor replied as he looked off at some fans screaming behind the yellow tape—yet another thing that grated on Ema's nerves. It was his fault the crime scene was so noisy all the time.

"Officer Tymid, would you please try to calm them down?" he asked the blushing female who quickly scurried off at his insistence. He turned back to the forensic investigators. "Let me know of any of the developments in the case right away. I'm going to check on the autopsy report myself. To be quite honest, the police may have pressed charges against the suspect too soon. Motive is important, but without evidence, I'm not sure how much I can do with this case."

"I believe the lack of evidence is evidence enough," her arch nemesis replied, further irritating Ema. His world views were so black and white that he was even imposing his strong opinion on the prosecutor of the case. He probably should've been a lawyer.

She ignored her irritated feeling, keeping her composure. "I'll go get started on that print."

As she took her first stride, she felt a hand on her shoulder holding her back. She glanced behind carefully, dreading the fact that it might be Dayton Feller trying to get her attention once again. Her stomach seemed to turn to stone as soon as she laid eyes on him.

"Ema, wait."

Her eyes narrowed on him. It wasn't like she had a choice with him grabbing her shoulder like that. "What?" she demanded.

"Would you like to get some coffee before we head back to the lab?" he asked with what she thought was supposed to be a charming smile.

"Not particularly, no."

"We could discuss the case further, collaborate our ideas," he insisted, face solid with determination.

If he were a different man, Ema might appreciate his persistence, but she didn't like him at all. His personality was tolerable at best and she could safely say that she wasn't attracted to him. "I think we've already discussed all there is to be discussed," she retorted, trying her best to shut him down.

"There's always more to discuss in a case with no evidence," Dayton replied smoothly.

Ema was in the middle of thinking about how she might suffocate the man with her family-sized pack of Snackoos when Klavier stepped in, clearly sensing the tension that had risen in the air.

"You pose a good point, Herr Feller. Why don't we all go for some coffee and discuss the case? On me, of course," the prosecutor interjected.

Dayton stared hard at her and Ema returned the favour, her face not wavering in the slightest. "Fine," the detective said, never taking her eyes off the other man.

A moment later, Dayton looked away at their boss and broke into a small, manufactured smile. "On second thought, Prosecutor Gavin, it's already late afternoon, and if I drink caffeine now, I might not sleep tonight. Thank you for the offer though."

Both Ema and Klavier watched the forensic investigator retreat in silence. She glared at his back, wishing her eyes could burn holes in the back of his stupid brunette head. It was a petty thought for someone her age, but she couldn't remember the last time someone induced this much rage from her. His persistence was not in the least bit cute and his disrespect for her decisions put her over the edge.

"So...coffee still?" Klavier offered.

"Yeah, whatever. But I'm paying for myself," she answered stubbornly.

Ema did eventually end up paying for her own coffee, but only after turning down Klavier's offer twice more. After the last free coffee she'd accepted from a man, she wasn't keen on doing it again—especially not from Klavier Gavin, flirt extraordinaire. He might think of that as some sort of open invitation to flirt with her too. Instead, she just opted to keep it as cheap as she could, getting the smallest size possible and purchasing only regular coffee.

Klavier sat down across from her in the coffeehouse and she was half surprised he'd done so. His proposal had seemed like it was only there to diffuse the situation, but he was actually following through.

"I would have gotten you a larger drink," Klavier stated, amused at the size of her tiny cup.

"I pay my own way, Gavin," she shot back with a shrug. She was too drained to go on the offense, even if this was the glimmerous fop sitting in front of her.

"Alright. I won't bother you any further about it," he replied before changing topics. "Then you and Herr Feller—what was that about?"

"Nothing," Ema said immediately and took a rather large gulp of her coffee. She was disappointed to find the cup almost already empty. All she could hope was that there was enough caffeine in there to last her to the rest of the day.

"Ema," he started, and the aforementioned woman glared at him. Klavier only ever used her first name if he was trying to get something personal out of her, as if lowering the formality would somehow make him more relatable. "If Herr Feller has been harassing you, then I would like to know about it."

"I don't think you should pry into my personal matters," she retorted as she looked out the window, trying to show her disinterest in this conversation.

"I agree," Klavier said amicably, and Ema whipped around to look at him suspiciously, "but I am also your superior. If there's a problem in the workplace, it's my job to see it through. I saw you with flowers and a box of chocolate earlier."

She rolled her eyes. "Don't worry, Gavin. I threw them away outside of the crime scene."

"So I'm right in assuming Herr Feller has been causing you problems at work?"

Ugh, that nosy fop! "Look, I can handle it myself. I don't need my boss to be fighting my battles for me," Ema answered, little patience for anything left in her today.

Klavier stared at her for a moment, as if trying to get a feel for what to say next. Instead, he simply shook his head slightly before smiling like the weird, glimmerous alien he was. "I apologize, Fräulein Detective. I didn't mean to overstep. I just want you to be aware that I am available to talk if you ever need me."

"Uh huh," she responded absently, wanting nothing more than for this dreadful conversation to just end. Ema sipped the remains of her coffee and looked at the cup with disdain. The thing seriously needed to carry more liquid. On the other hand, now she had an excuse to leave.

She stood up, beginning to step out from her seat. "Well, if there's nothing else, I'm gonna go."

"Actually, there is something I wanted to ask you, Fräulein," Klavier said, delaying her escape. She glanced forlornly at the glass entrance where a few kids were pushing their way out of the shop. Lucky brats...

"What?" she asked in exasperation.

"I understand this is last minute, and feel no obligation whatsoever to accept this request, but I'm having a small concert at the Moonlight Theater on Saturday night and I'm wondering if you could do security for me," the prosecutor explained and she stared at him incredulously. Did he even remember what had happened at the last concert she had handled security for?

"Saturday is my day off," she pointed out, trying to think of every possible excuse she could find to get out of this job.

"I would be hiring your services privately," he explained. "Like I said, feel no obligation to agree to this. If you're busy, I understand, but if you don't mind working on your day off, then it will be about a six hour job from six until midnight. I've already hired some officers to help out; I just need someone to organize them."

It was certainly not the hardest job in the world, especially being in charge of it all. Still, sacrificing her day lounging around in her pajamas in order to do detail for Klavier? Easy money, but she didn't want to see him any more than she already had to. She opened her mouth to reject his request when he spoke up again.

"I'd pay you double your usual wage for your time."

Ema paused, her brain catching on a certain word. "...Double?"

Klavier smiled. "Correct. Double."

She could barely afford a tiny cup of coffee on her strict financial budget. To do a job that would basically net her two days worth of work and allow her to actually relax for a change was a sweet deal. Gavin had hit her in a weak spot, that was for sure.

Ema thought of the alternative, which she had previously been looking forward to. She was most certainly a homebody, and that helped in her financial situation, but it was also pretty much the only thing she did in her free time. Besides, it was also kind of a double-edged sword. She had a terrible habit of online shopping for handy forensics equipment to use in the field which were much more convenient than the ones she had access to in the lab—and work didn't pay for those. She had splurged on fancy black lights and bottles of chemicals more than a few times.

"Fine," she finally agreed, sinking back down into her chair. "Then I need a list of all the officers you hired for security."

"I'll send it to you tonight."

"And don't you dare push up any deadlines for evidence processing for our case," Ema warned him with a sharp glance.

"Of course not," Klavier replied, his face never changing from its bright expression.

"Okay then," she said, faltering. It was strange having her demands so easily agreed upon. "I really am going now."

"See you tomorrow, Fräulein Detective," the prosecutor replied smoothly. He took a sip of his coffee, offering her yet another smile before he picked up his phone, apparently starting to write an email.

Feeling awkward for just sitting there after she'd already announced her departure, Ema stood with her empty drink cup and headed towards the garbage can near the door. Tossing the cup away, her hand settled on the handle to leave. Instead, she turned abruptly and marched back to the table where her superior was sitting.

"Why me, Gavin?" she asked suspiciously, causing Klavier to look up from his phone.

He looked confused to see her standing there again. "I'm not sure I follow..."

She crossed her arms in annoyance, not wanting to have to explain herself. The whole thing didn't make much sense to her. She'd agree too quickly, she knew, to a deal that was too good to be true. There had to be a catch. There just had to be.

"You're paying me double for a job you could easily ask someone else to do, so why ask me at the last minute?" she elaborated, glaring at him expectantly.

Klavier seemed surprised by the question for a second, but composed himself quickly. "You know, a lot has happened over the last couple of years, Miss Skye," he started as he placed his drink down on the table. His address to her threw her off the most, halfway between his usual "professionalism" and attempt at being personal. This one somehow seemed the most genuine. "I waited until the last minute because I wanted to ask you. We may not have always gotten along, but there aren't many people I trust anymore."

As the words left his mouth, the glimmerous rock star visage seemed to fade a little. Ema didn't know what to make of it.

"Well...okay then," she replied with a nod and then left as soon as she could.

Outside, she walked fast towards the police station, not wanting to think about the way he'd looked just then. She'd seen her boss angry before, and even kind of a mess, but for that one moment, there was a vulnerability in his expression that didn't look right because it was so the opposite of the confidence he always exuded. It reminded her that he had discovered the betrayal of both his best friend and his brother within a few months.

Oh god, she felt sorry for him, and for once, she regretted that she had been confronted by the fact that he wasn't just an insufferable glimmerous fop. And worse, he'd admitted that she was one of the only people he still relied on despite how much they used to dislike each other. All of it was a proof that Ema didn't want, proof that she'd misjudged him for her own biased reasons. Back then, when she was so wrapped up in her bitterness from failing the forensics exam, he had judged her too, but only because she had given him a reason to. Now he was counting on her and she was still caught up in preserving her attitude towards him.

The forensic detective bit her lip, frowning. Alright, fine. She could stand to show a little less animosity when it came to Klavier Gavin. He'd always treated her fairly well in the past, despite her attitude towards him. He'd never cut her salary or anything, even after all those biting words. Admittedly, he already had her respect. She supposed she could give him a shot at civility too.

Ema sighed. She was giving Klavier Gavin a chance? Maybe. She didn't know.

She strode down the street rubbing her temples. All she knew was that being compassionate was turning into a big hassle.