This one-shot is something a little different, inspired by a review left for The Rest of The Pieces that I should perhaps write something for Mia and Ben, my OC children of Phoenix and Edgeworth. I really liked the idea, so I wrote this.

As such, it doesn't quite fit "in between" chapters 39 and 40 of Pieces, but rather after the epilogue. Almost nine years after to be exact.

I've also borrowed the character of Madeline Brent from Diana Lily and Isabella, who writes excellent Edgeworth fan fiction.

Hope you enjoy.

Mia Wright stopped by the hall mirror to check her reflection before heading to open the front door. She knew who would be behind it, and wanted to make sure she looked her best. Her silky black hair hung straight to her shoulder blades, and the red dress she and her mother had picked out for the party hugged her body in all the right places without being too revealing, even if her mom did proclaim that her height and figure were "Aunt Mia all over again". After a quick makeup check and a deep breath, it was time to welcome in her guest.

Mia's stomach still did tiny back flips whenever she laid eyes on Benjamin Edgeworth, even though the days of her adolescent crush were long behind her. Childish infatuation aside, there was no denying that he was indeed a handsome man. At twenty three years old, Benjamin had become a highly successful prosecutor in London with a reputation just as fearsome as that of his father. In fact, from looking at her dad's old photographs, Mia could plainly see that Benjamin Edgeworth was the spitting image of his father, Miles, at the same age. Well, except for the striking blue eyes that he had inherited from his mother.

"Ben," Mia managed with a smile, glad that her voice came out even and not squeaky and nervous like she had anticipated it would. "I'm so glad you could make it."

"I wouldn't miss your 21st birthday, Mia," Benjamin said as he removed his scarf and jacket. "You made it to London for mine, after all."

Mia laughed awkwardly, covering her face at the memory. That was almost two years ago now, and it had been her first trip overseas. She had drunk way too much sangria and even though it was his birthday, Benjamin had taken care of her. He had brought her continuous glasses of water, held her hair while she threw up and put her to bed in his room, making sure no one disturbed her. He'd even gone as far to tell Phoenix and Maya that someone must have spiked her drink to account for her inebriated state and avoid getting her into any trouble.

"I think we'd both rather forget that," Mia said, embarrassed. "Or at least I know I would."

"I'm surprised you remember anything at all," Benjamin teased. The slight British lilt of his accent was indicative of his time spent studying there and somehow made even his taunts sound refined and sophisticated. "Perhaps it's best if you avoid the sangria this evening just to be safe."

"Lemonade," she said with a grin, raising the glass in her hand. "I promise."

"Good," Benjamin nodded with a smile.

Mia stood there for a moment, dazzled by him almost awkwardly. Was it possible that he had grown even more handsome since they had last seen each other four months ago at his fathers wedding? It seemed her crush wasn't over and done with after all. Benjamin cleared his throat after a few seconds, causing Mia to blush furiously.

"Uh... let me take your coat. I'm sorry, how rude of me." Mia said, taking the garment and moving to the hall closet to hang it with those belonging to the other guests. "Come on through. Everyone is scattered through the house, but I'm pretty sure your dad and your step-mom are with my parents and Uncle Larry in the den."

Benjamin nodded and followed closely behind her as she led them up the hallway.

"My mother sends her regards by the way," Benjamin said offhandedly. "She's caught up in a big trial right now but she wishes she could have made the trip with me."

"I was worried that she might have been a little uncomfortable, you know with your dad being here with your new step-mom," Mia shrugged.

"Oh no, not at all," Benjamin replied. "She actually introduced the two of them. Mother and Father have always had an… interesting relationship. I find it difficult to fathom that they were ever married at all."

Mia nodded in agreement. Miles and Franziska were indeed a stark contrast to the affectionate nature of her own parents. The small handful of times that she had seen the two in the same place at the same time, they had seemed rather formal with each other. Franziska was usually just as quick to lose her temper with Miles as she was with everyone else. There was never really anything about their behaviour that indicated that they had ever once been husband and wife.

"Tell her I said thank you, next time you speak to her." Mia smiled gratefully. Aunt Franziska might have had a reputation for having a short temper, but for some reason she had always been incredibly fond of and patient with Mia.

"Can I get you something to drink?" Mia said, pausing and glancing in the direction of the den and her fathers bar.

"Let me guess," Benjamin smiled wryly. "Uncle Larry has taken over all bar tending duties and is claiming to be a world class bartender."

Mia couldn't help but laugh. There had been way too many occasions where this had taken place and tonight was no exception.

"Hey, it wouldn't be a party if he didn't do that," she shrugged.

"Actually I was hoping we could have a moment alone, before we join the party. I'm a little exhausted from the trip and I'm not sure I'm ready to deal with our parents yet." Benjamin suggested, running a hand through his hair. "And also… I'd like to give you your gift."

Mia couldn't help but stare at him, not sure what to say. Was she imagining it, or was he actually blushing?

"Um, sure." she answered finally. "I don't think there's anyone in the dining room. I'll grab your drink and we can sit in there for a little while if you like."

Benjamin nodded gratefully.

"That would be wonderful, thank you."

Mia smiled at him questioningly. He did look nervous. This was quite the turn of events. What exactly was this gift anyway?

"So what can I get you?" she asked, turning to head towards the den.

"Uh, Scotch, neat." Benjamin replied.

"A little heavy," Mia observed, raising an eyebrow.

"It's been a long flight." Benjamin sighed, leaning against the doorframe, the corner of his mouth turned up in a small smile as he watched Mia leave to get his drink.

"Princess!" Phoenix exclaimed, extending his arms as his eldest daughter entered the den.

"Hey Daddy," Mia said with a smile, manoeuvring behind the couch her father sat on with her mother and over to the bar, stopping to place a kiss atop his head.

"Look at my beautiful little girl, all grown up. Still calls me Daddy." Phoenix said smugly to no one in particular.

"Dad, you've already had too much to drink." Mia sighed. "Mom, is he drunk?"

Maya looked up at her daughter, smiling grimly as she nodded.

"Afraid so, honey." Maya said with a shrug.

"Nonsense." Phoenix said, shaking his head. "I'm fine. We're fine. Right Edgeworth? Fine," he finished, nudging Edgeworth who sat on the couch adjacent, almost toppling over the wine bottle that sat on the corner table between them.

"Absolutely." Edgeworth agreed, ironically raising his glass as a testament. "We are both a picture of sobriety and coherence."

"I'm sure." Maya said, rolling her eyes before Mia had the chance to.

Mia chuckled to herself as she headed to the bar, where of course, Uncle Larry had stationed himself.

"And what can I get the birthday girl who is now legally allowed to drink this stuff?" Larry grinned with a wink.

"Uncle Larry, can you make me a scotch, neat?" Mia asked, lacing her fingers together as she leaned on the bar.

"That's a big drink for a little girl," he said, shaking his head as he prepared the glass. "Are you sure about that order? How about a Blue Lagoon or a Mimosa?"

"I'm not a little girl, Uncle Larry, I'm 21." Mia huffed, shaking her head. "Besides, it's not for me anyway. Ben's here," she finished, unable to contain her smile.

"You hear that Edgeworth, your boy made it." Phoenix exclaimed, raising his glass to toast Edgeworth who complied by clinking their glasses.

"Wonderful, wonderful." Edgeworth proclaimed. "Tell him to come in here and join the celebration."

Mia laughed under her breath. Ben had been right to assume that he would need a stiff drink before seeing their parents. They were in fine form this evening.

"We'll be in shortly." Mia explained. "He's had a long flight and just wants a minute to catch his breath. We're just going to have a quiet drink first, Uncle Miles. I promise I won't keep him for long."

"One Scotch, neat." Larry said, pouring the caramel coloured liquid into the glass he had put down on the bar.

"Thanks Uncle Larry," Mia said with a smile, picking up the glass and heading back out of the room. "Back soon!" she called to her parents as she passed through the door.

"Sounds more like your son wants a few minutes alone with my daughter." Phoenix stated plainly, nodding knowingly in Edgeworth's direction. Edgeworth shrugged implicitly in response, his action suggesting that what Phoenix had observed was to be expected.

"Oh will you two stop it?" Maya said, exasperated. "The two of you have been teasing those poor children for years."

"Don't you think they would make a beautiful couple?" Phoenix said, almost wistfully.

"I think they can make up their own minds," Maya said, shaking her head at her inebriated husband. "You sound just like Pearl when she used to talk about us that way."

"And Pearl was right, wasn't she?" Phoenix nodded with a grin.

"That's beside the point." Maya argued. "Remember how embarrassing it was before we worked it out?"

Phoenix reached over, taking his wife's small hand in his own, just as Edgeworth's new wife returned with a glass of Merlot that she had sourced from the kitchen. She settled on to the couch beside him, her dark curls framing her pretty face. Her smile was filled with love as she watched her new husband. She didn't even seem to mind that he was a little drunk. Madeline was definitely the complete opposite of Franziska - quiet, kind and reserved, but it was plain to see that Miles was most definitely happy.

"What's wrong with wanting the kids to be just as happy as Edgeworth here?" Phoenix reasoned with his wife.

"Here, here, Wright." Edgeworth said, raising his glass to toast his friend once more.

"Well, our fathers are their usual drunk, embarrassing selves," Mia said as she approached the dining table. She handed Benjamin his drink, which he accepted, nodding in thanks.

"It is to be expected, I guess. They're like this every time they get together nowadays. Who would believe that they were once bitter rivals?"

Mia couldn't help but laugh. The tales of their court battles were the thing of legend. It was kind of hard to imagine them on opposing sides these days.

"Your dad looks really happy though." Mia smiled. "Your new step-mom is very pretty."

Benjamin nodded, swirling his scotch around in his glass.

"I worried about him being lonely for a long time," he admitted. "It's good to see him happy."

"He mentioned earlier that he was off on holiday somewhere in a couple of weeks?" Mia frowned, trying to recall the details. "I can't recall where though."

"Yes," Benjamin sighed. "He's taking Madeline on a vacation to Bora Bora."

"You sound a little displeased," Mia noted, watching Benjamin's facial tics.

"It's one thing to be happy, but I fear that my father is developing a penchant for frivolity in his old age," Benjamin said.

Mia smiled sadly. Her parents had told her so many stories of Miles Edgeworth's crazy work ethic as a young prosecutor. She wondered if Ben knew how much he sounded like his father likely would have at the same age.

"I wouldn't be so hard on him," Mia said, patting Benjamin gently on the hand. "Perhaps he's finally working out that there's more to life than what goes on inside the prosecutors office."

Benjamin tensed slightly as Mia placed her hand over his. She must have felt it too, as she seemed as if she was going to pull her hand away, but decided against it at the last moment.

"Not something that I am sure that I agree with." Benjamin responded, still acutely aware of Mia's hand covering his own. "You of course, wouldn't know, being pre-med and all."

"Yeah, I know. I know." Mia said, pulling her hand back and sinking back in her chair. "I feel like enough of a black sheep in this family as it is without you rubbing it in. It's bad enough that Mom and Dad are both attorneys, but Chris and Alex want to study law once they finish high school as well."

"And Elena?" Benjamin enquired of the youngest Wright sibling.

"Well, she still wants to be a princess when she grows up so maybe I've still got time to work on her." Mia laughed.

"That is if Trucy doesn't seduce her into the world of show business," Benjamin said, finishing with a magician's flourish for effect, causing Mia to chuckle more.

"Oh no," she laughed, shaking her head. "That's a real worry. I'm pretty sure Truce could talk anyone into anything so I'll have to keep an eye on her."

"Is she coming tonight?" Benjamin asked. It had been a while since he had seen Trucy Wright. She had been unable to attend his father's wedding due to a nightly show schedule in Las Vegas. Trucy's fame kept her busy a lot of the time.

"Yes, but she's not here yet." Mia nodded. "In fact, your flight brought you in quite early. None of my friends are here yet either. Pearl was here earlier, but she's ducked out to go pick up Apollo, Vera and the baby."

"I'm early and yet our fathers are already drunk?" Benjamin asked, shaking his head incredulously.

"Oh, they started before lunchtime." Mia chuckled, as Benjamin placed his head in his hands.

Silence enveloped them as Mia's giggles settled to a smile, and the two of them remained still, just watching each other for a few moments, before Mia felt a blush creeping up the back of her neck, forcing her to look away.

"So how long are you here for?" Mia asked, hoping to strike up a new conversation and stave off the charged silence between them. "I'm hoping we'll actually have some time to catch up before you fly back home."

"Actually," Benjamin began, dragging out the syllables of the word, "I'm moving here permanently. This vacation that my father is taking is the start of a sabbatical and I'm going to be taking over his position and caseload at the prosecutor's office."

He paused, trying his best to gauge Mia's expression for a reaction. "I'll be living here in LA," he finished with a small shrug, pleased when he noted Mia's eyes widened ever so slightly at his news.

"Really? That's wonderful!" Mia exclaimed, immediately regretting how excited she sounded.

"I mean, awesome," she tried to continue, coolly. "We can see each other more often, I mean, if you want."

Benjamin watched Mia as she looked away, trying her best to look calm and unaffected. He couldn't help but smile. Why were they still playing these games? Why were they still trying to convince each other that there was nothing between them when there clearly was? There always had been.

She took a deep breath and raised her glass to her lips, still focusing her sight on some uninteresting spot on the wall across the room. Benjamin found himself studying the lines of her face. Everything was perfect, from her high cheekbones to her flawless skin right through to her expressive hazel eyes. Mia Wright was a sight to behold. The slight tinge of pink on her cheeks making her all the more beautiful. They needed to stop playing these childish games. If he didn't do something soon, some other lucky man would surely beat him to it.

"Maybe we should get married," Benjamin said plainly, as simply as one might ask someone to pass the salt.

Mia choked on the lemonade that had just passed her lips. Benjamin continued to watch her, the tiniest hint of a smirk on his lips. She hated it when he looked at her like that. She could never quite tell if he was serious or not.

"Are you kidding me?" Mia cried, coughing into her hand as her cheeks flushed red. Partly from the blockage to her airways, but mostly due to the question Benjamin had just posed.

"I wouldn't kid about something this serious. You'd make a wonderful wife." Benjamin stated, still enjoying her reaction.

Mia's brow creased into a puzzled frown as she took a few deep breaths.

"I think we might have missed a step or two, Ben," she said emphatically, wondering how he could sit across from her and ask her such a question so calmly.

"Inconsequential details," he maintained, downing the rest of his drink. "You don't want to marry me?"

"Yes. I mean no. I mean this is crazy!" Mia stammered. "Shouldn't we just go on a date or something like normal people?"

Benjamin laughed.

"Look at our families. Care to elaborate on anything that has ever been normal in our lives?"

He stared at her across the table, clearly awaiting an answer to his question. Panic started to flood through Mia when she realised he wasn't just messing with her. He meant what he had just asked.

"You're actually serious."

"Have you ever known me to be anything but?" Benjamin laughed.

Mia eyed him warily. Was this really happening? Had she slipped into some sort of whacked out alternate dimension? Worse still, was this one of those embarrassing dreams? She closed her eyes tightly, praying that when she opened them, she wouldn't find herself at a biology exam in her underwear.

She opened her eyes to find that nothing had changed. Benjamin Edgeworth was still sitting across from her, waiting on a reply to his insane marriage proposal. Mia felt a sudden need to lie down.

"You don't have to accept today." Benjamin relented with a grin, confident that his brash action had staked a claim on the girl's heart that she wouldn't soon forget. "I'll convince you eventually. For now, I'll accept your offer of a date."

"That's better," Mia mumbled under her breath, still not sure of exactly what was happening.

"Ah, I mustn't forget your gift," Benjamin said, pulling a small velvet box from his pocket.

"If this is an engagement ring I'm going to be very upset." Mia said sternly.

"I promise it is nothing of the sort." Benjamin laughed. "Although I find it hard to believe that a large diamond would be capable of offending you in any way."

Mia relaxed slightly, laughing at his joke. She shook her head at him in disbelief. Benjamin Edgeworth was sure full of surprises. He handed her the small box, smiling expectantly. She glanced up at him as she opened it gently, gasping when she laid her eyes on the beautiful crystal snowflake pendant inside.

"Ben," she breathed. "It's… it's beautiful."

"I know how much you loved the snow in London when you visited," he explained. "And it doesn't snow here in LA, so I thought I would bring you a snowflake that you could keep forever."

She was shocked by such a romantic notion. This gift was picked out with such incredible thoughtfulness. How could it be possible that this was the same man who had just completely, unromantically suggested they get married only a few moments ago?

"Ben, I.. Thank you. It's the most beautiful gift."

"I'm glad you like it," he said quietly as he stood from his chair, taking the box from her hands. Mia wondered silently how he could have possibly had any doubt that she would adore the gift. It was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen.

He moved behind her, draping the necklace across her collarbone. Mia felt herself shiver at the contact of his fingertips against her neck as he closed the clasp.

She stood, turning to face him, heat rising in her cheeks as their eyes locked.

"Thank you, Ben. Really. It's amazing," she said softly before leaning forward to kiss him on the cheek. Sensing her movement, Benjamin angled his head slightly, his lips gently catching the corner of hers.

Mia pulled back immediately as if burned, her eyes wide.

"I'm so sorry… I meant… your cheek…" she stammered, her cheeks blazing red with embarrassment.

Benjamin watched her fumble for words for only a few seconds before frowning and gripping her shoulders.

"Silly woman," he breathed softly, before silencing her feeble attempts at coherent speech with his lips against hers, this time in a proper kiss.

He continued to kiss her tenderly, smiling against her lips when he felt her relax in his arms. Mia could be pretty highly strung at times but it appeared he had figured out the solution to that particular problem. This could definitely come in handy in the future.

The intrusive chime of the doorbell caused the pair to part suddenly. Mia looked around in the direction of the dining room door fearing someone was just about to walk in on them, a blush still heating her cheeks. Thankfully, no one walked through. It appeared no one else had witnessed what had just transpired between them.

"We should join the party before they come looking for us." Benjamin whispered softly, still holding Mia close. She nodded, trying hard to get her heart rate to return to something remotely resembling normality.

Benjamin released her from his grip, his fingertips trailing down her arms as he moved past her to the door.

"I'm holding you to that date, by the way," he said with a small smile. All Mia could do was nod dumbly in response. She couldn't have spoken an intelligent sentence if her life had depended on it.

From the sounds she heard in the hall as her mother opened the front door it appeared that Pearl had returned with the Justice family, and there would no doubt be more guests arriving soon. She really needed to go and splash some cold water on her face and fix her makeup.

And quite possibly explode with joy.

Benjamin gave Mia's hand a quick squeeze, winking as he passed her in the doorway and headed up the hall to join their parents in the den. Butterflies appeared instantly in her stomach the moment his hand touched hers. She couldn't help but smile pathetically at his back as he walked ahead of her.

She took a deep breath as she fingered the delicate crystal snowflake that now hung around her neck. Perhaps she shouldn't have turned down that marriage proposal after all.