I'm sorry if Dahlia or/and Gant seem OOC in this. I wanted to show that Gant still cared, even if just a teeny-tiny bit, about his daughter Dahlia. Reviews are completely welcome. Constructive criticisms, too. Just no flaming, please.
Dahlia Hawthorne heard some footsteps. Probably a new prisoner. Most likely a new prisoner. Obviously a new prisoner.
Out of curiosity, she took a little peek at the face of the prisoner, who was passing by. He was old, about sixty-five, with white hair and a white beard. He was wearing an orange suit, and had piercing emerald green eyes, which were magnified by his glasses. But the most startling thing was… he was laughing and clapping like a madman.
That face was very familiar to Dahlia. She could not quite place it, but she knew that face. But Dahlia knew not the expression.
"Who's that?" Dahlia asked herself. The guard looked at her.
"Dahlia Hawthorne, this is Damon Gant," the guard answered. "He was the former chief of police, but he was accused and convicted of murdering two people by Phoenix Wright." Phoenix Wright. Now that was a name familiar to Dahlia. Gant stared straight at Dahlia, boring his eyes into her soul.
"I see." Dahlia said, seething silently. After she was convicted, she never wanted to hear the words "Phoenix Wright" ever again. Ha! Feenie. What a weak soul living in the shell of a pathetic man. If only he had been convicted…! Dahlia thought menacingly.
"Here's your cell," the guard said. He opened the door to Dahlia's cell and let Gant in before slamming the rusty door shut. Dahlia retreated to the back corner of the cell.
The guard left. He had better things to do than watch the prisoners. Dahlia could still hear Gant laughing and clapping his hands, which also came to an abrupt stop. Ha! That idiot Gant probably already realized he's a goner, thought Dahlia.
"Dahlia Hawthorne, huh." Gant said calmly, unlike the maniac he had been earlier. "I remember that name."
Dahlia rolled her eyes. "Of course, you've probably heard of my case. After all, you were the chief of police." Dahlia hissed, emphasizing the word "were". She did not want to hide herself anymore, as that pretty, young, red-haired woman wearing a beautiful dress with butterflies fluttering around her. Butterflies. She'd always hated butterflies.
"No, not in that aspect." Gant replied. "I mean in an intimate aspect."
Intimate? Does that mean…? No, it couldn't be. This man wasn't the person she thought he was. No. "Intimate aspect, huh?" Dahlia could not help asking. "What the hell are you talking about, madman? Elaborate."
"Madman, you say?" Gant asked. Dahlia imagined him raising his eyebrow. "I'm not sure you'd like to call your own father a madman."
Dahlia knew it. She was right, after all. This is the man she had stolen the diamond from. This is the man who she convinced to abandon Iris at Hazakura temple. This is the man who left her mother. Not that Dahlia cared, of course. "How do you know?" Dahlia asked.
"I think I'd notice my daughter anywhere, with that mane of red hair on your head, those cunning eyes. Yes, I knew, from the very moment I laid eyes on you in this prison, that my fellow prisoner would be my daughter. You are just like me." Gant replied.
Dahlia came closer to Gant. "Why did you abandon Mother?" Dahlia asked curiously. She did not care, though—she has long since stopped caring about affairs that were not her own, especially not her mother's or Iris's.
"I had realized that she was of no worth to me anymore." Gant replied matter-of-factly. "Her sister Misty overshadowed Morgan with her superb powers and became Master in her stead. Your mother was not of use to me, ever, unless she became Master."
"I see" was all she could reply.
"You see, my daughter," Gant said, already getting used to the term. "We criminals belong together. We do vile deeds for a reason. Tell me, Dahlia, are you on death row as well? I know for a fact that I am." Gant said, laughing maniacally.
"Yes, I am on death row." Dahlia replied. "And there is nothing humorous about it."
And they continued on and on, talking, about their past crimes. Each asked a string of whys, and the other told the story. Until Dahlia asked Gant, "Why did you let me convince you to abandon Iris?" Dahlia was curious. She didn't care a bit about her sister, but she wanted to know.
This one, Gant did not answer. Not immediately, anyway. "There are only three people I care about." Gant said, quoting his earlier words to Phoenix Wright, "Me, myself, and I. Iris was a bother, and a total waste of money."
Dahlia asked another question, "Why didn't you abandon me then?"
This one, Gant answered… with his silence.