The Next Verse in the Science of Life

Chapter 2

"Turnabout Question"

Disclaimer: I own none of the characters from Ace Attorney. All credits go to Capcom, they own the rights to everything. This story here however, is completely original and was created by me.

Ema hung up the phone at her desk and pulled her paperwork back to her. She'd just gotten off the phone with the people down at the morgue, making a call regarding Apollo's latest case. He was going to court tomorrow and needed a last few details verified. She glanced at her desk phone's screen and saw it was pushing five in the afternoon. Klavier would be picking her up in half an hour.

As her pen scratched across the paper in silence, Ema's mind wandered.

Yesterday she'd had a scare. She's felt a pressure in her stomach that'd alleviated itself, then returned a few minutes later. She'd thought it was the beginning stages of labor and was a minute away from calling an ambulance. But it was just a momentary thing, though enough to keep her on her toes from now on. Theoretically she could go into labor at any time, as she was past the seven month mark, and twins usually guaranteed a premature delivery to some degree.

She thought about what else she needed to get done for the twin's nursery. She picked out the color she wanted for the room (Klavier gave her free reign over the room), and they were waiting for the furniture to be delivered and assembled. It should be in any day now. Klavier hired painters to do the room for them, since Ema had to avoid any chemical exposure if possible. The workers were making good progress yesterday and finishing the job today. It should be done when they got home from work.

They'd turned the guest bedroom Klavier had at his penthouse apartment into the nursery. Klavier rarely had people staying over for more than an afternoon, since neither of them had family left to have visit or entertain, save for Ema's sister. But Lana lived in the same city, so there was never a need for her to stay over.

Ema's cell phone vibrated from inside her messenger bag and she leaned down stiffly to reach around and locate it before she missed the call. She pulled it out and flipped it open.

"Hello?" She grunted as she sat back up.

"Ema, it's me. I was going to be there soon to pick you up, are you done for the day?" Klavier's voice was on the other line.

Ema nodded to herself. "Yeah, scientifically I only have a few more things to do. How much longer will you be?"

Klavier looked at the clock on the dashboard. "Twenty minutes? I just left the precinct a minute ago."

Ema huffed. "Fop, be careful driving please? Scientifically, talking while driving is as bad as driving drunk. That can't happen again..." Ema trailed off, remembering his drunk driving accident the hours following Kristoph's execution last year. That was one of the scariest moments in Ema's life, thinking she'd lost him forever, while watching the news flash.

Klavier chuckled. "I am fine Ema. No need to worry. I was thinking we go out for dinner tonight, does that sound good?"

Ema nodded to herself again. "Sounds fine, I didn't really feel like cooking either. Where did you want to go?"

Klavier offered up her preferred restaurant. "Oregon Grill?"

Ema's eyes lit up, thinking of her favorite dish she hadn't had in awhile, chicken parmasean with portobello mushrooms. "Sure! Are we stopping off at home before we go?"

Klavier gave a 'uh-uh' sound. "Nein, I don't see any reason to. I don't feel like waiting." Indeed that was the truth, he didn't.

Ema replied. "Alright then. I'll be waiting for you when you get here. Love you."

"Ich liebe dich auch, Ema." And Klavier hung up.

Twenty minutes later, Ema was situated in the car and they were on their way. She tried to glance over her work while they were driving, but Klavier gently took the folder out of her hand and put it on the backseat behind her. "No work tonight Ema."

She tried to twist around and reach the folder, but her large stomach wouldn't let her, and she grunted with the effort. Klavier's hand on her shoulder kept her from straining herself. He chuckled as she settled back into her seat and crossed her arms.

"Such a workaholic, even when you're two months away from delivery." Klavier said and he gently rubbed her stomach with his right hand as they stopped for a red light. "Mom needs to take time off and relax. Working so hard isn't good for either you or our children. You worry me with how exhausted you've been the past week." He looked at her, asking his usual question with his eyes.

Ema saw him giving her that look, and got lost in his ice blue eyes. She never found a way to break from their hypnotic trance once he got her in it. Her earlier resolve to work for another three weeks started to crumble, and she conceded. She blinked and nodded.

"Alright, I will. I'll talk to Apollo tomorrow and finish out my current cases. Then I'll stay home, I promise. Apollo said I could leave whenever I wanted." She smiled and gave a tiny sigh. "Don't know what I'll do to pass the time with you being gone all day every day though."

Klavier smiled and accelerated the car as the light turned back to green. "I'm sure you'll think of something soon."

They pulled into the restaurant and the valet took the car away. Klavier wrapped his arm around Ema's waist as they walked inside and helped her into her chair when they got to their table. They both ordered their drinks and watched the waitress walk away.

Ema sighed and laced her fingers together underneath her chin. She looked at Klavier, who was looking back at her with the tiniest hint of a smile.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Ema grinned.

Klavier stayed silent for a minute, then seemed to come to a decision in his mind.

"I was going to wait until later tonight, but I don't feel like waiting after all. I've been waiting for the chance to do this again, and I've waited long enough." Klavier unwound Ema's fingers from themselves and took her hand in his across the table.

"Daryan's trial was difficult for me. Seeing my best friend in the defendant's chair was...awful. Hearing him receive a life sentence was one of the hardest things I had to hear. When everything was said and done with my brother, that was probably one of the darkest times in my life, having those two events so close together. Everything was such a crushing blow that I didn't know if I'd ever move past it. Honestly, you were the only thing that kept me going. You pulled me through it and gave me the kick in the ass I needed to man up and keep going."

Ema gave his hand a squeeze when he finished that sentence.

"When we went to Germany, I knew something major was going to happen, I just had a feeling. I never imagined it would have been you getting pregnant, and I'd never seriously considered having children until you told me what was going on that day in the hotel room. Then my perspective on it changed, and I was ecstatic. But when I saw the news flash at Herr Edgeworth's house, I swear my heart dropped to my stomach when I was piecing together that you were in that accident. There are no words to describe how I felt in that short span of time."

Ema's smile turned down into a frown, thinking of that day earlier in the year, but she let him continue.

"When the doctor told us of the...miscarriage." He said in a small voice. "The look on your face truly broke my heart for both of us, since you had still been unsure of how you felt about the situation. All I wanted to do was hug you and not let you go until you pushed me away. And somehow, you and I managed to get through that together. It seems that everything turned out for the best, since here we are now."

Ema's smile returned and she leaned over the table a bit.

"There was something I was going to do back in Germany, but things changed and I never got the chance. I never found another good time to do so. Until now." Klavier reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a velvet ring box that had been in his office for six long months now, waiting for the right time to make its appearance. He turned her palm over and settled the box in the middle.

"I want you to marry me Ema. Spend the rest of our lives together, you, me, and our daughters. I love you, and I don't want anything to separate us anymore."

Ema could have caught a fly in her mouth with her jaw hanging open like it was. She was not expecting a marriage proposal when he suggested they go out to dinner tonight. She didn't even know he'd gotten a ring that long ago, and was going to ask her to marry him back in Germany.

Either way, she was completely shocked by the proposal, and for a second her mind went blank as she tried to remember the one word she needed to say. It came back to her in a flash and she smiled widely at him.

"Yes I will. I'll marry you Klavier!" She smiled so wide her cheeks hurt as she uncurled her fingers so he could slide the ring on her left hand. He hastily put the now empty box in his pocket and stood up to take the two steps to Ema's side to kiss her. He cradled her head in his hands and felt her smile though the kiss.

The rest of the night Ema spent on a cloud, hardly seeing or comprehending anything beside the words spoken to her, the ring on her finger, and her future husband sitting across from her.

She wouldn't lie, the ring felt very odd on her finger. She rarely wore jewelry to begin with, and knowing that would be on her finger for the rest of her life was hard to believe at the moment. She kept fiddling with it over and over, admiring the gorgeous stones. She was never much for somewhat gaudy jewelry, but Klavier definitely picked something she loved. The solitaire diamond was beautiful in the platinum setting, and their birthstones was a very nice touch in her opinion.

She didn't even want to think about the money he spent buying the engagement ring. She knew he had enough money to support their family for the rest of their natural lives, but Ema coming from a middle class family, always appreciated the value of saving, not spending. She considered this a 'don't ask, don't tell' situation.

When Ema laid her head down on the pillow later that night, she stretched out her left hand out in front of her and gazed at the ring for the thirtieth time since he put it on.

Soon she'd be Mrs. Klavier Gavin.

Ema sighed in contentment and Klavier settled down behind her. She turned her head toward him and he kissed her cheek. She buried her face into the soft pillow and forced her mind to wind down. She drifted off to sleep with a smile on her face.

The next day...

Apollo and Aria saw Ema to the door of the office. Today was her last day. Apollo had a one-day trial, so Ema had finished the last of her work. She packed up what little things she did need to take with her, the rest she was leaving at her desk. She wouldn't be gone forever, and Apollo said he wouldn't give her job away to someone else.

Ema did heave an internal sigh as she walked out of her workplace for the last time for at least eighteen months. She'd miss talking with Nicole during their lunch breaks, talking about their lives, talking about work, among other things. Nicole filled Ema's need for a girl friend, since conversing with Alison was difficult given the nine hour time difference between them.

She'd miss sitting at her desk, hearing snippets of conversations from both Apollo and Aria's office as she worked. She wasn't an eavesdropper by habit, but Apollo's loud voice made it hard for her not to in his case.

A year and a half off, minimum. That was an agreement she and Klavier came to awhile ago when her maternity leave first came up in conversation. Even she had to agree that was necessary. It still didn't lessen the impending boredom she'd have in the next two months while she rode out the last of her pregnancy.

The immediate thing was get the nursery set up, since the twins could come at any time.

Ema turned to Klavier. "Remind me I need to call my sister later. I haven't talked to her in a week. She's been quiet for some reason."

Klavier nodded thoughtfully.

Author's Notes: This chapter is also a bit shorter than usual, but we're easing back into the storyline, there's plenty planned! Not much to say about this chapter lol except he PROPOSED! I was just smiling the whole time. I've seen very few stories where Klavier and Ema get so far as marriage, so I'm happy I am getting that far with this story. I hope you guys liked this chapter! Next I'll be writing something for my good buddy Ilze ;) she knows what story I'm talking about lol. Should be a slow weekend for me, just working and being out at the barn, so writing will happen! :)