A.N: Hello, everyone! This is my entry for Day Five of Wright Family Week 2022, with the prompt being "Protection." Before you read, I want to warn that this story touches upon some M-rated topics, so reader's discretion is advised.


Day Five: The Oath of Protection

Phoenix knew his daughter better than he knew himself. So when she came home from school with that fake smile on her face, he knew something was up.

Especially since it wasn't the first time this had happened recently.

"You okay, Trucy?" he asked, not showing that he knew but showing that he was concerned. "You seem kinda down in the dumps."

"I'm okay, Daddy, don't worry," the young magician answered, flashing him one of her customary smiles. Yet, there was something that Phoenix could faintly detect that showed how forced it was. "I'm just gonna go practice in my room, okay?"

"Hm, alright. Good luck, Trucy."

He let her leave, although his doubts were far from being vanquished. The ex-lawyer knew he had a tendency to be paranoid, but he also had a strong trust in his gut feeling. And whenever his daughter seemed concerned, there was nothing he could do but play the most horrible of scenarios in his mind.

He figured that's what having a psychopath like Kristoph Gavin as your "friend" did to someone. Every day, he woke up worried that the so-called Coolest Defense in the West would decide he had come too close to the truth and make him pay for that.

Still, there was no reason to believe that the elite defense attorney had said or done anything to Trucy. He may have been his enemy, but he wouldn't put the blame on him without tangible evidence.

With a sigh, the pianist thought it was probably better to go check out on Trucy, just to be sure. These doubts were making him uncomfortable, and he couldn't have that.

I really hope everything's alright… Phoenix thought, walking over to Trucy's bedroom. However, before he could get there, he noticed the lights in the bathroom were on, and the door was slightly ajar. He knew better than to enter without knocking, but he had a feeling Trucy wouldn't let him in otherwise.

"Trucy…?" he called out, opening the door slightly more. He noticed she was in front of the mirror, doing something. Realizing it was okay for him to come in, he did just that. "What are you doing, Trucy-?"

"D-Daddy!"

Evidently caught by surprise, the magician dropped what she was holding and rushed out of the bathroom, dodging her father in the way with ease. A second later, Phoenix heard the lock of her bedroom door closing.

"Fuck…" he muttered. He noticed a make-up case on the floor; one Maya had offered her for her last birthday. And yet, he knew it wasn't to make her face cuter. Phoenix covered his face with his hand, cursing some more.

After all, she may have been fast to escape him, but he had seen the bruises on her arm. Phoenix broke into a cold sweat. Since her stage clothes had short sleeves, she needed to hide them with make-up.

In a second, Phoenix went from "not calm" to "freaked out."

Someone had hit his daughter.

Probably repeatedly.

He didn't know what to do. Why hadn't Trucy told him? Didn't she trust him enough to share these things with him? And more importantly… who the hell had done this to her?!

The man clenched his fists. Whoever it was, they weren't going to get away with this. No one got away with hitting his beloved daughter and forcing her to show him these fake smiles.

But for now, he needed to console her. The poor girl must have kept all of this bottled up inside. Phoenix was mad at himself for not being able to see it before.

"Trucy!" He banged on her door. "Trucy, open the door! I… I need to check up on you!"

The magician didn't say anything. Phoenix made sure his voice didn't scare her even more, but he was getting no reaction. From inside the room, he could hear faint crying.

"P-Please go, D-Daddy… I… I'm okay…"

Tears appeared in Phoenix's eyes as his daughter's saddened voice reached his ears. When he had adopted her, she was already so enthusiastic and full of energy. There were times he forgot that she could be sad, just like he could be.

She may have been strong – the strongest person he knew – but life had been unfair to her, too. Somehow, he had tricked himself into believing that nothing could happen to her and that when she seemed a little down, it was nothing to worry too much about.

Furthermore, she had just asked him to leave. Whatever had happened to her, she didn't want to talk to him about it. This hurt, of course. Every day, Phoenix strived to be his daughter's light, just like she was his. And yet, this wasn't something she wanted to tell him about.

"I-I can't go, Trucy…!" Phoenix cried. "I-I need to know what's happened to you…!"

She didn't answer. The pianist had a spare key to her room just in case something happened, but he didn't want to use it. As much as it broke his heart, she didn't want his help for now.

It pained him, but he had to give her space if that's what she wanted.

"I-I love you, Trucy… D-Daddy's here if you want to talk, y-you know that…?"

There was still no answer. Phoenix closed his eyes and sighed. If he couldn't get Trucy to talk to him, then it meant no one could. He figured he would try again later.

Wiping the tears from his eyes, the ex-attorney returned to his desk. A part of him was hurt, of course. However, another part, just as big, was pissed off.

He would get his hands on whoever had done this to Trucy, and they would answer to him.

Now was the time for some investigating.


"Hello? This is Pearl Fey speaking? Who is it?"

A small smile reappeared on Phoenix's lips. Aside from Trucy's, little Pearl's voice was the only one who could systematically make a bad day better for the pianist.

"It's me, Pearls," he said. "Are you busy right now?"

"Oh, Mr. Nick!" the spirit medium greeted with enthusiasm. "No, I'm not very busy right now. I'm just waiting for Mystic Maya to come back from her training. Is there something you wanted to ask me, Mr. Nick?"

Pearl was Trucy's best friend. Phoenix figured if anyone knew something he didn't, it would be her. The two girls spent a lot of time together, after all.

"Actually, yes, there is. Could I borrow a little bit of your time before Maya comes back?" Phoenix wondered. He didn't want to bother the little girl, either.

"Yes, of course, Mr. Nick!" Pearl said with her usual beaming voice. There was a reason she and Trucy were best friends. "What is it?"

I'm going to hate myself if you didn't know, but… You're my only lead, Pearls… "Well… It's about Trucy."

"O-Oh, about Trucy, Mr. Nick…? D-Did something happen to her…?"

Phoenix cursed under his breath. If there was something Pearl wasn't, it was a good liar. The way her voice had changed from cheerful to worried told Phoenix everything he needed to know.

"Look, Pearls, I know something has happened to Trucy," he told her, his voice assertive. "And the way you worded your question tells me you know something about it."

The small channeler remained silent, but he could imagine her fidgeting. He sighed again. Putting her on the spot was the last thing he wanted, but he needed to know.

"If you know something, you need to tell me, Pearls. I saw Trucy with bruises on her arm earlier. I'm not going to allow this," he told her, hoping that the frustration he felt towards the guilty party would get the girl to talk to him. "If Trucy has told you anything, you need to tell me, Pearls, please."

Suddenly, he heard sniffling. "P-Please forgive me, Mr. Niiiiiiick! T-Trucy just insisted that I absolutely didn't tell you! S-She said you would be worried! A-And now she's going to hate me!"

The tears returned to Phoenix's eyes. He almost considered Pearl to be his second daughter, and now she was crying too. The sound of that was nothing short of heartbreaking.

This whole situation absolutely sucked.

"D-Don't cry, Pearls, it's okay…" he assured her, trying to sound calmer than he really was. Trucy… you really didn't want me to worry… My poor girl… "Trucy won't hate you, Pearls. You're her best friend, and if she told you about this, it must mean she knew you could be her confidant."

This seemed to do the trick, at least somewhat. The crying on the other line subsided, although the teen's voice was still strained.

"O-Okay… W-Well… T-Trucy told me that there was this upperclassman at her school who…" she paused, and Phoenix heard her take a deep breath. He took this as a sign to brace himself. "W-Who tried to forcibly kiss her… A-And when she pushed him away, he twisted her arm until a bruise appeared! A-And since then, he's been doing it regularly to her!"

"What the hell?!"

He didn't mean to curse, and especially not so loud, but it had left his mouth before he could help it. His eyes filled with fury as he knocked away the papers on his desk in one fell swoop. He stood up from his chair and began to pace around, trying to calm himself. However, that didn't work, not even a little.

"M-Mr. Nick…? A-Are you angry at me…?"

Oh, shit! "N-No, no, Pearls, of course not! I-I'm just really mad at the one who did this to Trucy!" he explained in a panic, thinking, I'm going to beat you up so bad, kid, your face won't be recognizable!

"O-Oh, okay…" Pearl whispered. "P-Please help Trucy, Mr. Nick… I-I could see she was really sad when she told me about this…"

"I swear I'm going to get to the bottom of this, Pearls!" Phoenix promised, trying to control his anger. It was more than rare for the ex-attorney to get angry, but now he wanted nothing less than to punch a wall. "Thank you for telling me about this. I'm going to solve this and get Trucy back to normal, okay?"

He tried to sound reassuring, but that wasn't so effective. Still, it did seem to lift the medium's spirits a little bit, which was all he could ask for at the moment.

"O-Okay, Mr. Nick! I believe in you!"

You're so sweet… "Thank you, Pearls. Well, I'll keep in touch. Say hi to Maya for me, okay?"

"I will, Mr. Nick! Goodbye! And good luck!"

With this, Pearl hung up. Phoenix threw his phone on the desk, doing his best to think rationally. He thought he had been unlucky when his class had turned against him so many years ago. And yet, back then, he had been able to count on the unexpected help of Edgeworth and Larry.

But now, poor Trucy was all alone, unable to tell even her father about her situation. Phoenix loathed bullying with every single cell in his body. Combined with the fact that said bullying had arisen from an attempt at sexual assault… He was even angrier.

He walked over to Trucy's room and thought about knocking again. The situation was even worse than he had first thought. However, he stopped himself when he heard a snoring sound coming from inside.

I hope you can sleep somewhat well, Trucy… I swear on my life that I'm going to make this stop! No matter how many things I fail at, I won't fail to protect my daughter!


The next day, Phoenix stood near Trucy's school, waiting for the students to leave class. He made sure to be a distance away from the gate so that he wouldn't be seen. Usually, he would be at work at this hour, but he had made sure to get the day off this time.

No matter what, nothing would prevent him from protecting his daughter.

The bell rang and the students left the school. Some joined their parents while others walked home alone. Quickly, he noticed Trucy leave through the gate. She was looking all around her, hands shaking.

Lord give me strength… Phoenix thought, hating to see his daughter so obviously terrified. She must have been looking for the route she could take not to run into her bully.

Discretely, the pianist began to follow her, making sure to be far enough not to be spotted. It was weird, having to tail his own daughter in the streets, but he needed to catch the one who had done all of this to her. Suddenly, Trucy took a right-hand turn into a small alley.

"Oh, if it isn't my beloved Trucy! How lucky am I to run into you again!"

"E-EEEEK!"

Phoenix's blood turned cold at the scream. Most of his nightmares ended with that scream. However, this wasn't a nightmare, but the cold truth.

He ran as fast as he could, trying to reach his daughter before she could get harmed in any way.

"Now, now, no need to scream! You wouldn't want someone to hear us, would you?"

"D-DADDYYYYYYY! HEEEEELP MEEEEEEEE!"

Phoenix's heart skipped a beat. She was calling to him. She needed her father to protect her. And he would go to hell if he failed her! She may not have shared his blood, but she meant more to him than anyone else. No one was allowed to even lay a finger on her.

"Ha, too bad for you, but your Daddy's nowhere to be found! Now, are you sure you still don't want to kiss me, you little bitch?!"

The spiky-haired man was panting, but he didn't let this stop him. He turned right and entered the same alley Trucy had taken.

And there he saw it: a boy, at least two years older than she was, twisting her arm. A whole new kind of fury entered Phoenix's eyes. He looked the arrogant type, and the smug look on his face was one Phoenix swore to make disappear very quickly.

"DON'T YOU FUCKING TOUCH HER, YOU BASTARD!"

His outburst was so loud it echoed in the alleyway for a few seconds. The ex-lawyer dashed to his daughter's side before grabbing the boy by the collar and pinning him to the wall.

"D-Daddy!"

"Y-You little fucker… You're going to pay for this!"

Never before in his entire life had Phoenix been so furious. Without hesitation, he decked the boy in the cheek, drawing a loud pained cry. A clear red imprint remained, and his nose started bleeding. The boy may have been fifteen years younger than he was, but Phoenix didn't give a shit.

"L-Let me go…" the boy pleaded, his voice weak and tears entering his eyes. "P-Please…! I-I'm begging you…!"

"Shut the fuck up!" Phoenix punched him again, releasing his anger with violence. "H-How dare you hurt my daughter, you son of a bitch?!"

"I-I'm sorry…!"

With a look on his face that could kill, Phoenix threw the boy away, not caring a single bit that he had landed on his face. He would have a field day explaining this to whoever his shitty parents must have been. Phoenix didn't know how you could mess up your child's education that badly, even by doing it on purpose.

"Get the fuck out of my sight. If I see you around my daughter one more time, I'm going to break your face real bad."

Not in the mood to show off anymore, the boy ran away as fast as his legs could carry him. Soon enough, he was out of sight. Phoenix would need to check how old he was. It would be unfortunate for the boy if he were old enough to end up in court.

After all, the pianist had one very well-placed friend at the Prosecutor's Office.

"D-Daddy… D-DADDY!"

Phoenix sighed in relief as Trucy threw herself in his arms and hugged him so tight it hurt. No matter. The man kept her as close to him as he could, feeling that if he let her go even for a second, he would never see her again.

"T-Trucy… T-Thank God…"

He kneeled down to be at face level with her and wiped the tears from her eyes, even if he was tearing up, too.

"You're alright, Trucy… Daddy's here… And this guy won't bother you anymore, I promise."

"D-Daddy… T-Thank you, Daddy…!"

My little girl… Phoenix welcomed her into another hug, letting her cry against his shoulder as much as she needed to. "N-No, I'm sorry, Trucy… I should have known that something was wrong… I-It's my fault you had to go through all of this…"

"N-No, I'm the one who's sorry, D-Daddy… I-I should have told you about this…"

The two embraced each other for long minutes. He could feel how mentally distressed his daughter was. Chances were, this had weighed down on her for a while now.

"I'm just glad you're okay now, Trucy. I swear I won't ever let anything like this happen again, okay? But if something does come up, you need to tell me, alright?"

Trucy gave a tearful nod. He had made sure that his voice was as reassuring as possible. After all, he knew she had not told him out of kindness. The pianist had his own share of trouble to deal with, and she probably didn't want her problems to bother him.

"I-I promise, Daddy! I-I promise on my life!"

He smiled. These moments made him realize how precious she was to him. The little magician literally meant life to him.

"Okay, Trucy. I'll always protect you; you know that? Forever." He received another nod, just as tearful, although a small smile began to reappear on Trucy's face. Phoenix ruffled her hair playfully. "That's my girl. Well, let's go home for now, okay? I'll call Aunt Maya and Uncle Miles over if you want."

"YAY!"

This seemed to bring her a lot of joy. And knowing these two, they would rush over to see her.

"Oh, and one more thing…" he paused for a second, a grin stretching on his lips. "You're going to give Pearls a big, big hug, okay?"

Trucy chuckled. For some reason, Phoenix had a feeling the little medium didn't have to worry about his daughter hating her. On the contrary…

The End.


A.N: This wasn't a "fun" entry to write, but I felt like it was needed. After all, life is not always all fun and games, and I wanted this oneshot to serve that purpose. Also, I know that Phoenix was OOC in this entry, but I honestly didn't know how to write him. In any case, I hope you still liked it. Please leave a review, and I'll see you all tomorrow for Day Six :)