A/N: I have only played the first two cases of the AA trilogy. Sorry, I'm fake fan *sob*. But I've watched the entirety of the anime, and I have AA wiki at my disposal, so I'll do my best.
Also, this is very, VERY WIP. Updates (if ANY AT ALL) WILL BE SPONTANEOUS. I am currently working on another fanfiction project which is taking up most of the time I have (school notwithstanding).
Likely eventual Fredgeworth. If it ever gets to that point.
It was the screech of the manor house's iron gates opening that brought Franziska away from her grand piano and to the window, where she had a clear view of the vast driveway. She was spending her time in the games room today, having departed from her terribly boring math tutor an hour ago.
A dingy little car rolled in, and Franziska narrowed her eyes, pressing her cheek against the window when the vehicle started moving out of sight.
Who are they? A client of Papa's? Are they poor?
She considered the sight she had seen, prepared to use mere logic to pick apart the car's presence. Manfred von Karma was one of America's greatest prosecutors—he didn't take cases that weren't big, only things like murder, grand theft, and so on.
Besides. Franziska primly sat down at her piano again. Why would Papa ever invite a murderer to our home? There was a gleam in her eyes as she considered her own memory of the car—or her witness testimony, as she liked to call it. Let's see—there were mounds of suitcases strapped on the roof of the car, and I could see smaller shadows sitting in the backseat, meaning that this is most likely a family. And the suitcases tell me that they're moving into the manor. But that wouldn't make sense… No, not the manor! With a triumphant smile on her face, she moved to a west-facing window, where she had a good view of a series of nondescript granny flats. The servants' quarters! Of course! It makes sense—these people must be new servants working under Papa, and the people in the back of the car were their foolish snot-nosed brats!
She was feeling rather brilliant and proud of her deduction when knuckles rapped on the double doors prior. One of the doors opened then, and the boy who she mockingly referred to as "Little Brother" despite his clearly being older, poked his head inside.
"Your father wants us down at the entrance hall," Miles Edgeworth informed her. "We're to greet the new servants."
"I understand. Those foolish fools…" Franziska muttered under her breath as she followed Miles out of the room and down the hall. They were soon greeted by a grand flight of stairs leading downward to the wide space between the staircase and the main doors. Beneath her powder blue bangs, she glowered at the children—both girls, both around her and Miles' ages—as if they had just crawled from the sewer. And with their plain faces and tacky clothing, they might as well have. "Why should we have to entertain the brats?"
"They look older than you," Miles pointed out.
"Physically, maybe."
Miles raised an eyebrow. "I didn't realize there was a different way to document ages."
"Fool! I was referring to our obviously superior intellect. These children look like they don't even know how to read! Hmph."
"Franziska, Miles," Manfred von Karma nodded at the appearance of his children, "I would like to you meet our new servants, Jet and Alex Leong from Singapore."
Introductions were made, starting with curtseys and bows from both parties (the Leongs bowing and curtseying deeper than the von Karmas). The Leong couple had worked for private rich families their whole lives, and were strongly recommended from the last family they had served in Singapore. Jet was to be their driver, and Alex would be taking up household duties. They were polite, pleasant people, and Franziska bore no ill will toward them. Their children, however…
"Franziska, you're staring," Miles hissed from the corner of his mouth.
It was common knowledge—at least among the two von Karmas and one Edgeworth in the house—that Franziska rarely got along with children her own age. She was simply too intelligent for them—and that was a fact.
I should have brought down my riding crop, Franziska thought irritably. So that these foolish children know who to listen to!
When they dispersed, the Leong girls scurrying after their parents as the butler showed them to their new home, and Manfred holing himself in his private study, Miles pulled his adopted sister aside. "Honestly," he grumbled. "You're no better than them, you know, not when you haven't even given them a chance. You've not spoken a word to them so far."
"You watch your tongue, Miles Edgeworth!" Franziska said hotly. Had her riding crop been within reach, she would have smacked him with it (not too hard, of course, because she really was rather fond of him; he was one of the few children close to her age that she could actually stand). She just wished he wouldn't look down on her so much. She was eight, after all, and he was twelve—only four years older than her!
But her father had taken him under his wing, and nowadays found more time for him than he did for her. She was left to be bored by her mathematics tutors, who insisted on revising "things you don't understand" rather than moving ahead per her instructions. They were utterly useless in her opinion, and she hated their lessons! But she was a von Karma, one who strived for perfection like her ancestors before her, and she refused to let math get the better of her, even when she felt like giving up thanks to the sheer incompetency of her tutors!
Yes, I'm the von Karma here, not him! He's just a plain old Edgeworth, the foolish fool! Irritated, Franziska turned away, huffing. "I have nothing to say to them. As long as they stay out of my way, then everything will be fine."
Miles flicked her in the forehead, making her yelp. "You're too arrogant."
"Hrr, be quiet!" She pointed at him fiercely, and they both could have sworn the action summoned up a gust of wind. "You may be Papa's precious protégé, but I'll surpass you one day! Just watch—I'll pass the bar exam before I'm twenty! No—fifteen, even!"
Miles sighed, leaning against the wall. "That's impossible."
"Nothing is impossible when you're a von Karma." Her cheeks flushing with pride, she berated, "Of course you wouldn't understand, you fool. You're an Edgeworth, after all. You have no idea of the doors and doors of possibilities that open up for you when you carry the von Karma name."
"The von Karma name?" Miles frowned. "Please. Don't spew that rubbish at me—you're only telling me that the most you'll ever amount to is a child riding on the coattails of her family name."
"You dare?" Franziska smirked, the fire of competition lighting under her belly. "I'll show you then… I won't even need to use Papa's power to get to the top. Just watch, Miles Edgeworth! Soon you'll be looking at my back."
"Hmm…" Franziska blinked in surprise when he unstuck himself from the wall and closed the short distance between them, poking her forehead gently. In retaliation, she yanked at his cravat, making him squawk before saying, "Good luck with that. But let's not fight anymore, Franziska. Where did Mademoiselle Reisz go?"
The Reisz in question was not a person, but rather the dressed-up cat doll that Franziska lugged around—or had, until recently. She was named after the character from a novel: Kate Chopin's The Awakening.
"O-oh, that old thing? I outgrew her, fool."
Miles took his leave. "Then I suppose you won't mind me taking it to the donation bin."
"Hey! Get back here this instant, Miles Edgeworth!"
The hallway was filled with spluttering and laughter
So this is our new home?
Jade Leong glanced around the humble unit, running her hand across the smooth kitchen counter. When she examined her finger for any signs of dust, she found none.
"Jade! Come help with the luggage!" her mother, Alex, called as she wheeled two suitcases into the house, both surely stuffed full with an assortment of undergarments.
"Coming!" Throwing off her jacket (she was already beginning to sweat a little in the summer heat, and she had lived in Singapore for years), she made for the door, nearly running into her twin sister, who smiled.
"Isn't this exciting?" Ruby was shorter than Jade, and skinnier, too. Alex had told them that Jade had taken most of the nutrition when they'd been growing, and Ruby was just lucky to have even been born alive.
Jade ruffled her smaller twin's hair. It was hard to believe that Ruby was older (by three minutes, but older all the same); most people assumed that Jade was the big sister. "Sure," she said agreeably as Ruby stuck her tongue out at her. "I just hope the kids are nice."
"Oh, you mean the von Karma girl and the Edgeworth boy?" Ruby leaned inside to dump a duffel bag of personal belongings to the side. Then they went back to the car, helping their parents unload more bags.
"Who else?"
"Honestly, they look a little stiff. We should loosen them up!"
"Ruby, that's a terrible idea."
"Kids," Alex sang as she went over to them with a cardboard box full of things in her arms. "No matter how stiff they are, I hope you treat them with respect. Not only because they're technically our superiors, but because I didn't raise my children to be rude."
"Yes, mom," the girls chorused.
There was the tell-tale slam of the car boot, and then Jet joined them, towing the final piece of luggage behind him.
"Do you know where the key is?" he asked, using his free hand to pat down his pockets.
"It's on the kitchen counter," Ruby reported, and the entire family went inside, closing the door behind them. "Mom, when's Kyle coming?"
"University lets out next week," Jade answered instead. "I can't wait for big bro to come back!" And then we can hang out again, just like we used to… A thought struck her. Are there any other kids here besides Edgeworth and von Karma? She certainly hoped so—there was a chance that there were other servants that lived in the compound with their families.
The Leong family spent the rest of the day unpacking and settling in, Ruby and Jade lighting up with glee when they found the perfect room for themselves, two single beds already made for them. The unit was around the same size as their old, cramped, house, so it was already starting to feel like home. Aside from the kitchen and small living room, there were two bedrooms and a single bathroom.
The sun was setting when Ruby flopped into her bed, Jade marking a page in her book on the other bed.
"We're so lucky," Ruby murmured as she hugged her pillow. "Getting to live in such a big house like this…" She glanced over to Jade, who had put her book down by now. "Hey, say something, sis."
"Say what?" Jade lay back huffily.
"Aww! You miss our Singapore, don't you? But that's okay! Ol' big sis over here will help you get through this." Grinning, Ruby reached over the small gap between their beds and poked her sister's side. "We've still got ages before the summer holidays are over, so we'll have loads of fun before school starts!"
"Hmm…"
Ruby pouted. "Don't be a grump."
"I'm not! Geez, Ruby, not everyone can adapt to change like you do. It's only been a day and you're already making yourself cozy."
There was a knock on the door. "Dinner!" Alex's voice carried through the thin walls easily.
The twins exchanged a glance. "Coming!"
Dinner was usually a silent affair.
Manfred von Karma saw little need for small talk, and neither child really spoke unless directly addressed by their father.
Tonight's dinner was a classic American steak with mashed potato and steamed vegetables on the side. Franziska got the smallest portion, while her father got the largest. Miles' meal was bigger than his adopted sister's also, but smaller than von Karma's, their dinner sizes corresponding with the size of their appetites.
"Miles," von Karma addressed him over the table. "I expect to see you in my study this evening after supper. We have much to go through—you've been slacking." The dangerous and this is unacceptable was left hanging in the air.
Miles pushed his peas around his plate. "Yes, sir."
"Franziska, you are to revise your mathematics before bedtime."
The blue-haired girl clenched her fork tighter. "Objection! But, Papa, there's nothing to revise. I've done it all already—several times, in fact… Please, Papa, teach me how to be a prosecutor, like you! I won't even mind Miles Edgeworth being there, too, I promise—"
"Franziska!"
A chilly wind seemed to blow through the dining hall, and Franziska's spine stiffened as her father lost his patience. He pointed a finger at her, and Franziska wondered if he did the same gesture in the courtroom. After all, she had not seen his whip in years.
"Mathematics has always been your weakest subject. You will never become a perfect prosecutor if you do not first correct your mistakes!"
She could feel Miles' gaze boring into her, and her cheeks burned with shame. "… Yes, Papa," she muttered bitterly. In her peripheral, she saw Miles turning his eyes away from her small, cowed figure and back to his plate. His eyes were half-lidded in uncertainty and regret.
They ate the rest of their meals in silence. Once her father and Miles had finished, they left her alone, heading over to the former's study to pore over stacks and stacks of tomes. Franziska deliberately took her time, not wanting to face the book of equations that had been tossed in the corner of her otherwise neat and tidy bedroom.
"If only Papa would give me a chance," she groused as she got up and out of her seat, a servant taking her empty plate away. "But he's always too focused on that Miles Edgeworth nowadays…" I can do it, though! I know I can. But how do I prove myself? When she arrived at her room, she picked up her math book and sat down with it at her study table. Inherently, she knew the answer. She'd have to ace mathematics before she could move on to any sort of legal tutoring with her Papa. Personally, she didn't see how mathematics was involved with studies of the law, but her father insisted otherwise.
Sighing irritably, Franziska opened up the book and began to self-study. The content wasn't too difficult, but she found it hard to pay attention. Mathematics was oh so boring and she could have sworn she had learned this already…
Before she knew it, she was equal amounts of frustrated and confused.
"To hell with this!" She didn't even care if she had said a bad word. She slammed her book shut and grabbed one of her legal textbooks that she had on her shelf. She knew all of them by heart, and all their techniques and secrets, but those were just the basics. What she really needed was to immerse herself fully in the art of law, and there was no better way to do so than to be taught by one of America's greatest prosecutors. It really was too bad that her father was spending every free moment teaching that Edgeworth boy.
I bet, she thought in frenzy, that I could pass the Bar Exam if Papa just gives me a single lesson! She had reached an impasse in her studying—she needed this.
But to do so, she would have to face her nemesis: mathematics.
It was all so frustratingly circular!
Not to mention it was getting stuffy in here. Franziska threw open the window, noticing the lights turned on in the servants' quarters. From here, she could see the new family enjoying dinner, smiles on their faces bright and warm.
Her brow lowered when one of the girls had to have her face cleaned by her sister after getting sauce smeared all over her mouth.
Hmph. Do these children have no discipline? Franziska waited for the girls' parents to rebuke the mess, but no harsh words or frowny faces ever seemed to come. I figured… the fools…
Why on earth did they get to look so happy, anyway? Especially when she was feeling so down? Huffing, Franziska slammed the window shut and closed the curtains. She could deal with a little lack of ventilation.
She did not notice one of the Leong girls glance up in the direction of her room when she did so.
A/N: The ages in Ace Attorney have been tossed around for years on end, so I decided to take the liberty of putting Miles and Franziska as four years apart.
It is a popular assumption that Franziska and Maya are the same age, but I have yet to find any evidence of this. All I've heard is that they are AROUND the same age, meaning Franziska could be younger or older (the former being highly unlikely, though).
So if Maya was 17 at the start of AA, and Pheonix was 24 and Miles was presumably the same age (perhaps some months older idk), and the (head)canon age gap between Franziska and Miles is four years, then Franziska is 3 years older than Maya. There. Case closed. Not really. But yeah.
TL;DR; current ages:
Miles, Pheonix, and Larry: 12
Franziska: 8
Jade and Ruby: 10
Kyle: 18
Idk if you noticed, but with the exception of Kyle, the Leongs are all named after gems. Kyle just couldn't get with the program, could he? God dammit, Kyle.