Miles Edgeworth sat the tea down on his desk and patiently waited. Waited for the arrival of his subordinate Simon Blackquill. It had been exactly one week since he was released from prison. He had given the man a week off to collect himself and try to start adjusting to life on the outside and today was he would be evaluating his mental state to see if he was ready to return to work. He himself wasn't convinced that a week was enough time to return to life after being locked away seven years but the young prosecutor was eager to get back to work.
Looking out the window, he heard the door slowly creek open and turned to acknowledge his presence. "Good Morning Prosecutor Blackquill."
Simon bowed. "Good morning sir." He responded softly as he took his seat. His appearance hadn't changed too much in the past few days. His skin looked to have a bit more shade to it and the bags under his eyes were a bit less pronounced, but everything else remained unchanged. "I must apologize for this." He said gesturing to his ponytail. "I was going to chop it off but it seems I've grown quite attached to it. However..." There was a slight pause in his sentence. "I know that it's important that your Prosecutor's look classier and less like criminals. You have my word it will look more manageable than it does now."
It was probably the most respectful Miles had heard him be to anyone in recent memory. It was so shocking it caught him off guard. He heard the way he spoke to defense attorneys, the judge. He even got a few complaints from witnesses. He recollected himself. "No worries Prosecutor, as long as you do your part in court, the hair can stay. How was your week off?"
"It was fine, thank you for allowing me the time off." He responded. Miles gestured at the tea he had set out, knowing it was a preference of Simon's over coffee. He reached over slowly and took the cup, sipping from it. "You have very fine taste in tea."
"Thank you." He went to the seat behind his desk and sat down. "As I explained to you on the phone, this will be an evaluation of your mental capacity before I permit you to return to work."
Simon looked at him. "Because I've been incarcerated for so long." He added.
Edgeworth nodded, there was no point in lying to Blackquill when it was obvious and he didn't seem offended. "You understand. Though you've been prosecuting cases the past year, but with everything that has happened recently I want to make sure you are level headed enough to do your job. If you need more time..."
"That will not be necessary sir. I spent over six years doing absolutely nothing in a jail cell, so I'm eager to do as much work as I possibly can now that I can perform in my full capacity." He mumbled, his voice steady and monotone as always.
Edgeworth had checked in with Wright earlier in the week, because he knew Athena would probably be very well vested in Blackquill's welfare. When he was told that Simon seemed fine, it was what as he expected. It was similar to what he had witnessed in court. A very disciplined and conniving man determined to convince you of what he wanted you to see. Psychological manipulation at its finest.
After seeing his reluctance to give into Athena's therapy sessions, he knew that he wouldn't confide in her and his sister, who as far he knew was his only relative in town was in prison. Miles wasn't really good at comforting people but after seeing the high amount of respect the young prosecutor seemed to hold for him, it was worth a try.
"Are you positive everything is alright Prosecutor Blackquill? I am just as eager as you are to return you to work as I've seen how skilled you are, but I want to make sure it's under the right circumstances. Is there nothing else you wish to tell me?"
They sat in silence for what felt like forever. Simon twirled a hawk feather between his fingers while Edgeworth patiently waited.
"There...are a few things I would like to say to you." Simon finally spoke up, his eyes closed. "First I would like to thank you for a few things."
Edgeworth's brow furrowed slightly. "You have already thanked me for the retrial."
"I know, there are other reasons. First, I would like to thank you for allowing me to prosecute this past year even with my incarceration. You have no idea how...therapeutic it was for me."
He looked at him with slight confusion, though Simon's eyes never opened. "How so?"
"I was in prison six years before that order came down, sir. After the first year, days, weeks, months; they all begin to bleed into one another. Regardless of my search for the Phantom, I had accepted my fate for what it was. I truly do love my job, even if everyone doesn't approve of the way I like to do it. Being able to prosecute for my...for what I believed would be my final year alive gave usefulness back to my life."
He took another pause, sipping on his tea again. "And it allowed me something I believed I'd never get a chance to do. I got to see Athena again." He cleared his throat carefully. "I hadn't seen her since my trial and though I went to the clink to protect her, it was after I got in there that I realized I was only partially protecting her as I had left her a victim to the outside world. I didn't know what happened to her, if she was well or anything. Seeing her across the bench from me, grown up and much different than the scared, traumatized child I left behind, made my impending death feel like it was worth it."
Edgeworth thought he saw Simon's eyes flicker open for a moment, but with the tilt of his head and perfect placement of his bang to protect his eyes, it was difficult to be sure. Sometimes he wondered how Blackquill managed to be so unphased by being on death row. He had seen even the hardest criminals crack before their executions and yet this innocent man was willing to take it head on. "You should probably thank Mr. Wright for bringing Ms. Cykes here"
"I also want to apologize to you."
"Blackquill, regardless of all of the things that followed with your conviction, I do understand why you did it."
This time Simon's head tilted up to look at the man in front of him. "Not for contributing to the dark age of the law, though I'm sorry about that to. I'm sorry that I failed you, twice."
Miles tilted his head a bit sliding his glasses off. "Could you elaborate?"
"During my younger years, I was very impressed with your skills as a Prosecutor. I suppose you could say you were somewhat of an inspiration to me. The way you handled yourself in court. Forgive me for even copying some of your mannerisms. Though my career was cut short, I still remember meeting you on my first day of work. You complimented my work ethic, my respect for the law and said you expected me to become something spectacular in the courtroom. Surely you probably weren't referring to the Twisted Samurai persona."
That explained why he seemed to be the only person Blackquill bothered showing respect to. "And the second time?"
Simon this time broke his gaze and let out a sigh. "The second time was this year. You allowed me to prosecute case again in hopes of luring out the Phantom did you not? Even after I contributed to the dark age of the law, you trusted me. And yet, I was fooled by that faux detective. He was right next to me, the entire time and I never suspected a thing..."
"Prosecutor Blackquill, I do not blame you for being fooled, he had everyone fooled."
Simon slammed his hand down in frustration. "He shouldn't have fooled me! As much work as I had done trying to find him. As much as you were counting on me to smoke him out, I would have failed if it weren't for Wright-dono. And why? Because I let my guard down. That I had become so weak and soft by this man pretending to believe in me so much. Believing that someone that wasn't Athena or my sister could care that much about me at that point..."
Miles moved from his seat and came around to the front of the desk. "Prosecutor Blackquill...Simon. You should not blame yourself for being fooled, as even the strongest have weak moments. It does not mean you failed me." He gently placed a hand on his shoulder. "And you're not alone now. I recommend that you take a few more weeks to get yourself situated but after that, do you think you can indulge me for tea twice a week during your lunch hour? You seem to be the only one to appreciate it." He asked.
It was probably the closest he'd ever get Blackquill to therapy. And he vaguely remembered how excited the young man was to work under him years ago.
"On one condition..." He looked up at him again. "That my feathered companion is still allowed to accompany me to court regularly."
Edgeworth let out a soft chuckle shaking his hand. "Deal."