A/N: And that's the end! Let me know what you think :)

musings (whilst on walkies)

Day 7: Seasons

Pess quite likes the Prosecutor's Office today; it smells clean and fresh, as if someone had opened the windows and let the sunshine into the dark corridors for the first time in years. There are very few voices around as well, which is strange to him. During his previous visit, it had been bustling with activity, people coming in and out and pausing, each and every one, to look at Pess' presence by Miles' side.

Pess shivers at the memory, moving closer to Nick. The man immediately pauses midway through his conversation with the young woman standing at the front glass-gated desk, leaning down to scratch Pess' forehead soothingly. It is lovely and gently, the sensation making Pess simply nuzzle up against Nick's leg until he is done.

"See you around, Maggey!" he says to the woman with a wave at last, tugging gently on Pess' collar. "Alright, boy. Let's go up to see Miles, okay?"

Pess barks softly in agreement, tail wagging painfully fast in excitement. They're almost there! They are so close to giving Miles his pointy pin!

He only hopes they're not too late. He has never seen Miles leave the house in his suit without the pin, after all. Please, oh please let us make it this time!

Once they step into the elevator, however, Pess witnesses a curious thing. Nick's hand begins to tremble on the leash, catching Pess' attention. Immediately, he lays his chin on Nick's leg, looking up at him worriedly. Miles doesn't like elevators- Pess understands why, because they make his tummy feel funny, too- but it doesn't seem to be the same for Nick. Pess' breath catches in his throat as he witnesses Nick looking at the pin in his hand, that same expression of longing and love which he has seen on Miles' face over and over again painted clear as day upon Nick's face. He carries the pin like it is a treasure, like it is sacred; his thumb polishes the surface of the shiny center gently for a moment before he brings it up to his face, pressing his lips lightly against it.

Pess melts, leaning his weight against Nick's leg fully. I want you and Miles to be happy, he whines softly.

To his sorrow and his delight, Nick interprets that as a whine for attention, the man kneeling beside Pess and pressing a kiss to his head, too. "Don't be jealous, boy, I love you too," he chuckles, ears tinted darkly, eyes glittering.

Pess kisses Nick's cheek. He has always known that Miles is a smart human; to have chosen Nick out of all the other humans in the world is proof of that.

He needs no help finding Miles' door; the scent of his suit and cologne and favourite tea seeps through the door, leaving Pess to paw at it frantically once they arrive. Nick tries to calm him down, but before Pess relents, the door opens, an incredulous Miles standing there in utter shock. "Pess, what are you- right?! What are you doing here?"

Nick clears his throat as Miles lets the two of them in, closing the door behind them. Pess immediately flops down, waiting in anticipation for what shall happen next; he longs to run up and grab their legs and drag them to stand closer, rather than this clumsy distance between them. Miles has taken tentative steps back, after all, perching awkwardly upon his large desk and clutching his arm. Nick, on the other hand, grabs hold of one of the armchairs in the office, fingers gripping tightly upon the backrest, clumsy as ever in front of Miles. For a moment, he struggles with what to say; finally, he sighs, holding out his hand with a blush to reveal the pin. "Um… I dropped by your house earlier and heard Pess barking like crazy. Sorry I- I used your key, but I just wanted to make sure he was okay." Holding the pin up to the light, he says with a wry smile, "Turns out he realized you dropped this this morning and got really worried."

For a moment, Miles is absolutely stunned. Pess pants eagerly, awaiting Miles' reaction; did Pess do a good job? He brought the right pin, right? Miles is thankful, right?

Then, Miles mumbles out, "I… I mean, I suppose. I didn't realize it fell off- I'm not prosecuting today, so I didn't think to check…" Then, he pats his knees, looking at Pess.

Without hesitation, Pess bounds up to his human. He perches his front paws upon Miles' knees, accepting the tender, loving scratches around his face blissfully. "You did great, Pess," he murmurs with a crooked, slightly disbelieving smile. "I'm so lucky. Thank you for helping me."

Ecstatic, Pess licks his face, then steps off, grabbing hold of Miles' leg. Tugging gently, he attempts to pull the man over to Nick; when that does not work, he releases Miles with a huff, running over to Nick. Thankfully, Nick seems to realize what Pess wants to do and saves him the effort, walking over to Miles hesitantly.

Pess sits back on his haunches, his heart swelling as he watches Nick tentatively reach out. He does not want to touch Miles at first; then, sucking in a deep, almost frightened breath, Miles nods. With that permission given, Nick pulls up Miles' ascot, reaches underneath, and works to affix the pin, their faces drawing closer and closer while he works, his ears dark and starkly contrasting with his neck the entire time.

When he is finally finished, Nick finally lets out a quiet sigh. "There," he breathes. "Back in its proper place."

"…thank you, right." Miles' voice is faint, trembling as he shivers.

Pess does not understand why he shivers. It is honestly a little too warm in this office for his tastes, after all. However, Nick seems to get it, his eyes widening and mouth falling open in shock, that darkness tinging his skin refusing to go away. Suddenly, the dark-haired man glances over to Pess and blurts out, "Oh, you're cold, huh?"

Just like that, whatever tension was drawing them closer like this is broken. Miles coughs awkwardly, looking away. "I suppose the summer is ending soon," he mumbles, his own cheeks and nose flushing darkly.

Pess cocks his head, baffled. What in the world are they talking about? Isn't summer going to last a few more weeks?

The two men continue on their exchange unfazed, however. "You should wear a jacket if you're cold, Edgeworth," Nick says.

"I suppose you're right."

There is silence. The two of them take a seat upon the couches at the side of Miles' office, their brows furrowed and lips bitten and eyes flitting between their own knees and one another, wholly unsure of where to go from here. It is slightly awkward, slightly tense; still, the two men look at each other with an openness Pess cannot remember. It is refreshing and so, so wonderful.

At last, Miles breaks the silence. "Well, thank you for bringing it. Would you mind bringing Pess-"

"Are you leaving again?" Nick asks abruptly.

"…what?"

Pess looks over to Phoenix worriedly. The man's shoulders are hunched, hands balled up into tight fists upon his lap from strain; Pess walks over and licks them, trying to pry them open. After a few moments, Nick finally relaxes, cupping Pess' face absently as he repeats, "Are you planning on leaving again?"

Miles is clearly taken aback from the question. Pess' feet carry him over automatically to Miles, licking the man's clutched elbow before he has even registered the man is back to his old habits. Smiling wearily at Pess, Miles mutters, "Well… maybe. Depends. I'm still working things out- there's a lot of things-"

"Will you tell me next time, at least?"

"…I did not think it mattered."

"It does." Nick sniffles, and in horror, Pess turns, realizing that the man looks about to break. "It matters a whole lot, Miles."

Miles is speechless, focusing his attention on Pess for a moment. Pess barely feels it, though; his eyes are too focused upon the few tears which roll down Nick's cheeks, his embarrassment and frustration clear as day. Tugging himself away from Miles' familiar touch, he pads over to Nick and licks the man's cheeks, whining softly. I don't know what's going on, but it's okay, Nick. It's okay.

Finally, Miles admits, "I don't want to make promises, right. I don't want you to wait for me- that… wouldn't be fair to you."

Sniffling, Nick glowers at Miles with a mix of bitterness and irritation and adoration. "I became a lawyer for you, you moron. I'm pretty good at waiting. I just need to know."

Miles takes this in slowly, carefully. Then, after a pause, Miles adds, "I… thought you threw out my key, you know."

"You gave it to me right after you came back," Nick replies with a shrug. "I just… didn't know when I could use it."

"…whenever you want."

When Nick smiles, it is absolutely blinding; amazed, Pess turns back to look at Miles, waiting to see his reaction. What he witnesses causes his tail to wag so hard in almost hurts, his own eyes watering and heart clenching and stomach bubbly and airy in the most incredible way as he sees, after all this time, the smile he adores on Miles' face return to it, slowly but surely.

And this time, this smile is directed at Nick. Nick sees it. They all do.

Pess' heart aches with joy as he jumps onto the couch beside Miles and lays straight across his lap. He knows that Miles doesn't like getting fur on his suit, but he feels so warm and bubbly and happy, and he wants Miles to feel that way, too.

Based on how much Miles' fingers tremble, how wide and oddly bashful his smile becomes, his heartbeat racing under Pess' loving ear… Miles knows exactly how Pess is feeling.

And so, life goes on. Pess finds that their conversation, while random, had been accurate; the seasons do begin to change rapidly after that, a strangely-early autumn making the air slightly chillier than he would have expected. He does not mind, though, nor does he mind that other things have changed, too.

He doesn't have much legroom on the couch anymore, for example. Due to the colder weather, there's always a blanket on it that he can snuggle underneath, but it doesn't have the same oomph to it that stretching himself out used to have. It is okay, though; now, he can lay across Miles and Nick's laps at once, the two men fitting perfectly side-by-side with a little gap for Pess in the middle. They are happy, and he is happy. Occasionally, he hears them talk about magic and chains and locks, and heartbreak and leaving people behind, and trials and lawyerly things that Pess doesn't understand; he grows really good at tuning it all out, because there is always a hand to give him pets, and two bodies to keep him warm when there used to be one.

The one thing he does learn is that Nick's real name is Phoenix. Apparently his name is Phoenix Wright! It explains a lot, in all honesty; but Pess still calls him Nick, though, and Nick doesn't mind one bit. This is home, and this is his family, and Miles and Nick finally know how to tell each other just how much they love one another. For that, Pess is a very happy, lucky dog.

-fin-