AN: Okay, so if any of you have ever read Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe, this is an AU that uses Apollo and Klavi instead of Ari and Dante. If you haven't read it, I highly suggest you read it - it's a fantastic book and it is so well written! Obviously, some things will be changed since I had to change their backstories to match a little better with Apollo and Klavier, but some of the dialogue (like the one in the summary) will be similar or the same, though the context for it will probably be different.

Anywho, happy reading! I love the book and so I'm having a blast re-writing it with those dorks Klavi and Apollo. ^.^

Apollo Justice wasn't a fan of summer. I mean, sure, it was great to have an entire three months out of school. All his classmates raved about days by the pool or day trips out to the oceanfront, eating ice cream and driving in cars and blasting the latest pop hit through the speakers.

Apollo just sort of sat there and pretended like he fit in with that sort of thing; he pretended that reading law books and comic books at all hours of the day and then riding his bike to the countryside to watch the stars by himself wasn't what he meant when he said that he was excited for summer. He wished that he could live in the same world as them. A world where he didn't feel like he was struggling to swim while everyone else floated on their backs alongside him.

However, he found himself, a week after summer vacation started, sitting by the poolside at the local community center, trying to read the Calvin and Hobbes book that his friend had given him many moons ago. The sun was beaming down extra hard that day, and he had barely settled down into the pool chair when a wet hand clamped down on his book, the water dripping onto the pages.

He looked up into the eyes of one Trucy Wright, who was pouted at him with one hand on her hip. "Trucy, you're getting my book wet," he said, mimicking her pout and pulling his book away.

"Polly. The pool is for swimming! Not reading!"

Apollo looked around. "There's like three other people reading."

She huffed. "You're hopeless, Polly," she said, lifting the book out of his hands and closing it.

Trucy Wright. She was (technically) his sister. He hadn't been living with his current foster family for long, but Trucy, at the mere age of 8 (seven years his junior), she'd already taken a liking to him. Apparently, Mr. Wright, his foster father, had adopted Trucy as his own a few years ago. Though a lot of time hadn't passed, he did feel an odd sense of comfort at their small home.

It was then that he noticed that Trucy's skin had started to turn slightly pink. "Trucy, did you put on sunscreen?"

She looked thoughtful for a second. "Hummm…"

His face fell. "Trucy, I asked you before we left if you put on sunscreen. Mr. Wright is going to be really upset with me if you come home with a sunburn," he said.

Trucy blew air. "Daddy won't get mad at you, Polly." She stroked her chin thoughtfully, then gasped. Right. New home. Mr. Wright didn't seem anything like the past home tha he as at. But he could never be too careful. "And I'm sure it's fiiinnne."

Apollo reached down next to his chair and handed her the bottle of sunscreen. With a loud, dramatic sigh, she took it and ran off. "Wait, did you want me to- Ah, nevermind," he said as he spotted her catching up to one of her friends and holding the bottle out to her.

The pool water did look nice, and it was getting extremely hot. With a stretch, he got up and set his book down on the chair. He walked over to the edge of the pool, watching each group laugh and splash water and swim around. Sometimes, he felt like such an outsider. It wasn't for any particular reason, but maybe he hadn't learned how to live yet. He was only 15, after all, and what 15 year old knew how to live? He wished he could be that carefree. But his mind swirled about Clay Terran, who was his best friend, Mr. Wright and Trucy, college, his future career, everything and nothing at all. He was stuck in that in between phase of adulting and being a kid.

"Yeah, man, she was so smokin' hot. We're going bowling tomorrow night." Apollo turned and saw a lifeguard that looked like he'd stepped right off of Men's Fitness or something. He was talking with another buff, tan dude as they walked over to the lifeguard standing where an equally tan woman was sitting up with blonde hair and sunglasses. It was almost like they'd all come from the same stereotypical storybook.

Apollo squatted down, now fully aware that his chair had been situated on the deep end, so he was now standing by the deepest end of the pool. He dipped a toe in carefully, literally testing the waters. People were already on that end, swimming like they could be pros (or maybe he was just so bad at it that anyone who could swim was a pro to him).

"I can teach you how to swim, you know." A silky voice said from behind him.

Apollo turned around and stood, now face-to-face (okay, face-to-mouth, really) with someone who looked like he should've joined the three lifeguards. The boy had the kind (and slightly smug) face that popular people usually had. But the popular people who didn't necessarily care for the attention, but by default it was offered to them because of their good looks. He had long blonde hair that was twisted into a loose braid, and glimmering sunglasses sitting on top of his head.

And why was he offering to teach him how to swim, anyway? It seemed pretty odd, to Apollo. Had he really made it so obvious that he didn't know how to swim? Did Apollo just look like he had no friends and so the boy had sauntered over out of pity? After all, who didn't have friends at the pool?

"I can teach you how to swim, ja?" He said again.

And what was up with that "ja" at the end? Was he actually German, or was he one of those people who'd traveled abroad for three months and suddenly they were "cultured?" Apollo paused his thoughts for a moment, realizing that he'd already started judging the guy when all he'd done was offer to teach him how to swim. This was probably why he didn't have many friends.

"Oh, um…"

Before Apollo could fully answer, the boy sneezed loudly. "Ach, sorry. Allergies."

"What are you allergic to?"

He looked up, playfully pensive for a moment. "The air."

Apollo couldn't help but laugh.

"I'm Klavier," the boy said. It sounded musical.

"Apollo."

"Apollo," Klavier repeated, like he was choking back a laugh. His eyes lit up in the process. "Sorry," he said. "It's just funny."

"My name is funny?"

"Nein," he said. "It's just…Klavier is piano in German. And Apollo is the god of music." Then Klavier started to laugh again. Apollo almost said something god-awful like "so I should master you, then?" but thankfully he wasn't so lacking in social interaction, and instead he laughed along with Klavier.

"Among other things," Apollo pointed out.

"Ja. Among other things."

"So are you German?"

"No, I'm cultured." Apollo stared at him. Had he read his mind. Klavier simply smiled in amusement, like he'd read Apollo from a mile a away and had already predicted all of his cynical thoughts. Apollo wasn't sure if he liked that or not. "Well, it's nice to meet you, Apollo…?"

"Justice. Apollo Justice."

"That sounds like a fake name."

Apollo huffed. "It's not. It's my real name."

"Really?" Klavier prodded.

"Yes," Apollo emphasized, annoyed.

Klavier laughed again, seemingly happy to have gotten under his skin so easily. "I'm only teasing." Something told Apollo that there was a lot of that amongst Klavier in his friends. Which, by the way, this guy probably had plenty of. He seemed like the kind of easygoing guy that Apollo wanted to be on some days. Mostly on summer days when everyone was at the pool.

"Oh. Well, I wouldn't know. We've only met," Apollo said flatly.

The boy wasn't fazed. "That we have. It's nice to meet you, Apollo Justice." Apollo liked the way that he said it. It was filled with genuine sincerity. Like it wasn't just nice to meet him, but like it was nice to meet him - little, unimportant Apollo - specifically.

"Okay," Apollo said. "You can teach me how to swim." He'd said it like it was a personal privilege to Klavier to teach him, but Klavier didn't comment on it. He simply smiled that carefree smile, took off his sunglasses, and dove into the deep end of the pool, splashing an unhappy Apollo in the process.

It turns out that Klavier was actually a good teacher. He swam like it was something that he'd done all his life, although in reality he said he'd only learned a few months ago. Great, Apollo thought, and now he was one of those people who could take something up and become an expert in a short amount of time. He knew all of the techniques and the right postures and how to balance one's body in the water. He talked about it like it was something as essential as learning how to walk. He made it seem infinitely more important in that moment than Apollo ever thought that something as mundane as swimming could be. He was only 16 years old, and talked about swimming like it was the most beautiful and skilled form of art. Who exactly was this guy?

After Apollo had barely learned how to tread water, Klavier said that he would teach him how to swim that summer, and didn't really give Apollo a choice in the matter. Not that he would've denied it. Klavier was interesting. They hadn't even talked about much more than swimming techniques that day, but at the same time, there was something in his voice that made Apollo curious. It was hard to pinpoint it exactly. It was like…the moment when you're reading a book and realize that you want to continue it and see where it goes next. It's unexplainable, but it's there.

In an instant, Klavier become one more mystery in a universe full of mysteries.