Author-

There are a few cameos from Ace Attorney at the buffet scene, can you name them all?

Sojiro frowned at Akira once he returned to the cafe, gesturing at the pile of dishes waiting for a wash. "Get to work, boy." Akira pursed his lips and went to change into work clothes, donning the apron and picking the scrubber. *Ding-* A man with a gruff countenance stepped in and scanned the place. "A new face, you look like a detective." Badou glanced at Sojiro, nodding before taking a seat by the counter. "Yes, Mikumo told of this place." Akira peeked at the veteran and asked himself of how that peppy woman could be linked to a man that belonged in a hardboiled cop novel. "I want something sweet." The teen and the hidden cat almost gaped in shock, that guy was the complete opposite of Naoto and Mikumo in looks and taste, those two always took their coffee black and bitter.

That conviction only got reinforced when Sojiro served the steaming mug, with Badou taking a sip and reaching for the sugar cubes right away, dumping three in before stirring. "Now that's more like it." Sojiro took a mental note of Badou's sweet tooth for his next visit. "Do you want some curry? I got sweet ones for kids." The detective checked the time. "Okay, it's almost time for a meal, anyway." Akira and Morgana were still reeling from the gap shock until the owner nudged the teen to resume his work. "Less staring and more washing." Still, Akira sneaked a few more glances at Badou, seeing him pull out a bag of lollipops and pick one to snack on while the curry was being prepared. "Looks can fool, and HOW."

The teen wondered if the detective could hit it off with Ann, with both having quite the appreciation for sweetness. "That's... I think it might happen, for real..." Badou picked his phone and began talking. "Mikumo? ... Hey, I'm not on the streets, okay? ... I'm at that cafe you told me, Lablanc? Ah, Leblanc. ... Yeah, yeah, I'll go straight home later, don't worry." If Akira's image of Badou as a sour and gritty officer was already cracked by his taste, this call was like a wrecking ball, the guy seemed to be receiving a scolding from the caller like a bratty kid. "What's next, a rockstar prosecutor?" Akira thought better of taunting fate and simply finished with his duty, going upstairs once he was done. Once he was in his room, his phone rang. "Hm, it's Ann."

~Great job, guys~

"Hnn... Uncle is so stubborn..." Mikumo was lounging on the floor while waving a teaser for her cat, barely paying attention to the TV as a report about some coach was aired. "Well, he's quite capable of taking care of himself." She pouted at her companion on the sofa. "But I can't help but worry..." He sighed, she was always a bit pushy, but she made an effort to curb it down to acceptable levels. "So, what do you think of Shirogane?" She rolled to face Reiji, who was holding some documents. "She's as stiff as you, but she's friendly. I guess that she is quite by-the-book- Oi!" She squeaked when the cat pounced on her face. "Haha, Sissel is still like a young kitten..." The detective pried off the animal, mock-glaring into golden orbs until the cat meowed softly, so she squished its cheeks together. "Aw~ Why can't I stay angry at you?"

She let the cat escape her hold to get some water. "Mikumo, how are things going with that operation?" She sighed. "It's risky, that guy is always wary, so I have to wade through quite a lot of dirt to not get busted." Sure, she had some leeway due to her job as an undercover agent, but the law would strike her down if she slipped. "I know that I can't forbid you from those jobs... But I ask you to be careful." "I know, but Mei really wants to throw the guy behind bars, so I'll do my best to help her." Besides, it would be a great service for society, as the criminal targeted young people and baited them into the underworld, turning them into addicts or even slaves. "Tsk... that tub of lard has a face that pisses me off..." The detective scowled at the memory. "I'd love to have a chance to punch him without consequences."

~Good luck, everyone!~

Akira's phone rang with another incoming call once he finished talking with Ann. "Who is this ti-" Morgana got worried at the strange emotion in his eyes once he checked the ID. "Hey, mom, it's me." The teen sat down on the sofa, his voice was strange to Morgana's ears. {Son, sorry for not calling earlier, but-} He sighed, this was opening old wounds. "No, don't worry about that, I'm happy you called." His mother sounded like she didn't buy his excuse, but relented. {Is that so? Well, is Sakura treating you well? Your father said he was a good man, yet I still worry...} Akira mulled over Sojiro's actions. "He's a bit strict, but I'm fine." He could hear the breath of relief from the speaker. {And how is school? I saw the news...} Figures that an ex-Olympian would earn quite the coverage for his crimes.

"Ah that. Well, I did see the guy from far, but I had no issues with him, so there are no problems from my side." He hoped that this would calm his mother. {That's a relief... Son...} His eyes became serious, predicting a difficult topic. "Yes, mom?" He was dreading this route. {I and your father... We're sorry that we couldn't do anything about those charges...} Akira gritted his teeth, flashing back to that damned night. "Mom... that wasn't your fault... It was of that drunkard..." He felt bad for making his parents worry. {You grew into a good person... I'm proud of you, but the house feels empty without you...} Morgana lowered his ears, that expression was tearing at his heart. "Mom, I miss you and Pops too, but it's just one year, right? It should be a good lesson for me."

The cat felt pride for him, his resolve was strong, despite him sounding like he'd break anytime soon. {If you see it like that... I have to hang up, sleep well and stay healthy, son. I love you.} He took a deep breath before replying. "Love you too, mom." Akira waited until the line was cut before throwing the phone at the bed, lowering his head and clutching his hair. "Why me...?" Morgana swallowed the knot in his throat, Akira was struggling to not let his emotions overflow. "Akira?" The look in his eyes was haunted, he kept visualizing that accursed day when he met the man who ruined his life. "Hey, you have a friend in me, okay?" The cat approached him gingerly, cautious to not set him off. "Morgana...?" The teen gazed at him as he curled up, offering support. "... thanks."

~I'll be cheering you on~

Yuugami was going over the transcription of Kamoshida's confession as he traced his plan to convince the honored Baldness to rule the coach as irredeemably guilty, no matter what his defense might spout. "Hn, Shirogane got several testimonies and photos for proof. But maybe I should obtain more material to work with." He'd put a request for permission to interview the students and staff from Shujin, it was to be enacted tomorrow. "Sir, I found the archived complaints." He looked up from his desk to face his partner, who brought a pile of folders. "Good, leave it here, I'll read them later." Naoto picked one to read and frowned, it had been thrown into the inactive files without even a cursory investigation. "Whoever was behind this, they really wanted to avoid having Kamoshida detained..."

"That's the ugly mug of society, those buzzards would never let go of the prize without a fight." And he was sure that now, once they noticed that Kamoshida was beyond salvation, they'd deny any involvement with the man, not wishing to sully their pristine reputations by continuing to protect a known criminal. "Shirogane, do you have a hypothesis about the main culprit?" He saw her take a few moments to think. "The principal, most likely. He attempted to interrupt my investigation about the attempted suicide." His eyes hardened, marking the man for later, intending on finding out if there were more scummy deals to be uncovered. "You will tell me more about him, once we lock this puny trainer. For life." The detective nodded at the order.

"What do I have to do now?" He told her to round up some personnel for Shujin, the sooner the better. "Understood." Once she walked away, he set down the papers, thinking about the mysterious change of heart again. "Those breakdowns... The pattern is erratic, but the aftershocks always end up affecting those in positions of power..." This deduction was quite worrisome, for now, it was targeted at politicians and CEOs, who ended up replaced and falling from grace. "No, it's reasonable to think of that progression. But I do not wish for it to come true." Whoever was calling the shots, had their sights on politic and economic power, it was a matter of time until there were advances into the legal sphere. "Unless..." Maybe it was already too late, the police were easy to corrupt. And the Chief Prosecutor was only one man. "No, I refuse to accept this."

~Be cautious~

Akira and Morgana looked up at the building, Ann sure had gone out of her way for luxury. "She sure has good taste." It was a lavish hotel and the food seemed to be quite the high-end stuff, hopefully, the medal's sale would cover the price. The pair found their friends and paid for the admission fee. "It's like a stab to my wallet..." The group claimed one of the tables and went to get their picks from the buffet. Ann went with sweets and pastries, Ryuji was gorging on the meat selection, and Akira was savoring the shark and fish stew. "This is so damn good, man." Morgana swiped some pieces for himself when people weren't looking. "This food is truly worthy of a celebration." Ann then recalled something she heard. "There will be police officers coming to Shujin to interview people."

The boys cringed, the rumor mill was cranking out tales about them, using their enmity against the coach as material. "Our names are gonna come up, for sure." Akira prayed that Naoto could hold her side of the deal as the lead detective, she might get to brush off those rumors and keep her colleagues off the gang's tail. "But we got 'em pumped up! I keep hearin' stuff like 'The Phantom Thieves really stole his heart'!" Ryuji focused on the bright side, mentioning how some people seemed grateful. "Check this." He pulled up a site for the others to see. "The Phantom Aficionado Website...?" Ann had a dubious expression, the page was as tacky as Ryuji's card. She read some of the encouraging and thankful comments left by the visitors out loud. "Pretty cool, eh?"

"Seeing people saying all this feels... strange." They had done this for themselves, but there were people appreciating their efforts. "Hey, boss... What do we do now?" Akira shrugged as he ate some spoonfuls of stew. "You planning on eating?" Ryuji deflated at the dry reply. "Well, of course, but..." Ann shot up from her seat, exclaiming that they were on a time limit. "Oh crap, and it's only an hour!" The blondes raced out to get more food, both intended on eating all they could from their favored menus. "Get some for me too!" Akira barely managed to say this before they got out from earshot. "Nya, I wonder what they will bring..." Ryuji and Ann were barely balancing their share on the plates. "Only meat? And she's all about the cakes..." The cat grimaced at their meals, but the blondes only cared about eating what they liked.

"Where's our share?" Ryuji pushed a plate, it was a lot of dishes haphazardly mixed, mostly beans, it was quite the bland rainbow variation. Ann wasn't better, with fried bananas, preserved eggs, and goddamned extra beans. "This is just plain grotesque..." Morgana had lost his faith in their palates, so he ordered Akira to get their own pick. "Those two just don't know what fine dining means." The teen just nodded, the little gourmet was staunch on this. Akira navigated the buffet while listening to Morgana's tips, getting to eavesdrop on some interesting conversations among 'elites'. "Hm?" He peeked at some tables a bit farther away, spotting the familiar face of Mikumo as she conversed with a couple with ruffly clothes and a man with a feral grin. "I guess that some people are more than they seem... Right, Joker?"

At another table was a woman who seemed to be an idol, the name escaped him, chatting with an eccentric man with a gaudy heart-patterned suit and his serious-looking manager, with a young man with a red jacket and a burly one with an orange jersey listening in. "They seem to be talking about making a movie." Then Akira remembered that they were on the clock and rushed back to the table to eat. Ryuji teased Akira and Morgana, with them returning the favor until Ann pointed that they all brought too much food. "It'd be a shame to let it all go to waste." The males set into the ordeal of eating the mammoth meal. "Urgh... It feels like no matter how much we eat, the amount of food stays the same..." It was the BBB Challenge, Luxury Buffet Edition.

And predictably, the males ended with overstuffed gullets and feeling sick. "My belt feels too small..." Ryuji exclaimed how this was a victory, prompting Akira to shoot the nastiest glare he got. "Is this a game to you?" The guy backpedaled at that and denied it, then he gurgled and held his stomach. "I gotta go to the bathroom." The guys got up and rushed for their stomachs' sake. - After relieving the overload on their guts, the trio was waiting for the lift. "You even talked about eating until you puked... Are you some kind of moron?" Ryuji snarled. "Drop the act! You puked too!" They tried to recall the floor for the buffet. "It has to be on a lower floor, right?" As they stood idly, a bunch of bodyguards around a bald dude came and bumped them aside.

Ryuji almost picked a fight, but the men were intimidating. But the bald one just had to diss them and one of the dumb muscle shoved Ryuji back. "Hey now, that wasn't nice of you." The boss of the lot looked back, spotting a pair of men with serious faces. "Garyū, Ichiyanagi, I didn't expect to see you here." The blond brushed his braid back. "Me neither, Shido. Why are your subordinates hassling these kids?" The older male snorted. "They started it, as expected of riff-raff." The male with maroon suit shook his head. "Unless our eyesight has gone bad, we're sure of what we witnessed. People with power shouldn't abuse it." The elevator's doors opened, so Garyū and Ichiyanagi took the chance to return their acts in kind and tugged the pair of teens with them, pushing the button to close the lift.

"Eh?" Ryuji and Akira had eyes wide open, not expecting it. "Heh, I think I saw you at the buffet, so it's no issue to share a ride." The blond adult offered a courteous smile as his companion nodded. "Uh, thanks..." Akira then thought over the confrontation, that voice sounded familiar, but he couldn't pin it down. "No use worrying about it now." - Ann snapped at her friends, still feeling irked at some rude woman. "I wonder if we're out of place here..." Akira sighed forlornly, they were the band of pariahs, after all. "It always feels like this." Ryuji saw his friends get dejected and asked Morgana about Palaces, reiterating the fact about strong distorted desires and Treasures. Ann and Akira faced Ryuji with confusion. "... I was just wonderin' if we'd be able to change those kindsa people too." "You mean, as Phantom Thieves?" He nodded, affirming that there were people in need of their help.

"If we ignore people in trouble, we'd go back to square zero." Morgana popped his head out of the bag. "You are under my tutelage, so I'm confident that nothing can stop us. For we are proud thieves." The will to change society burned within them. "But that means we'll have to fight Shadows again, right?" The cat nodded and Ryuji was unworried. Akira could feel the resolve from the blondes. "Alright, let's do our best to help people." It was settled, their group would continue their activities. "By the way, are you really OK with being the leader?" Akira shrugged. "Fine by me." It was time to decide on a name for their group, with the group pushing the final say at the leader. "Let's see... 'The Phantoms'?" Nobody saw issues with that, the next step would be picking a new target. "Now then, this is the official formation of the Phantom Thieves organization!"

Author-

I hope that call from Akira's mother is well accepted, I assumed that they had no choice, considering some things. And I'll have his parents be a certain pair from Catherine.