Hahaha. I'm not sure whether to love or hate this chapter. Anyway, sorry for the long wait, but school started and my schedule's impossible. And I switched this chapter up a little bit-- it ended differently before. I'll update when I find the time, which will hopefully be soon!

My living room looked flawless. For once, my bedroom floor was visible. I didn't know why I cleaned my bedroom, anyway... I wasn't planning on letting Franziska see it, but I figured I had better be prepared for anything.

The only other thing I had to do was get dressed. I didn't want to look like I was trying too hard, but I didn't want to look like a slob. I pulled out my old cravat and held it up to my chest, wondering if I should wear it or not. Franziska would surely say something if she thought I looked bad... ugh.

I can't believe I'm having this conversation with myself.

I put on a dress shirt, tie, and pants. I wasn't going to put on that cravat ever again, even if my live depended on it. I tossed it back in my drawer.

I took out my hair gel and rubbed it inbetween my palms. I hadn't done my hair in so long, it was almost difficult.

After two minutes of perfecting my coiff, I was ready. I had ten minutes until Franziska Von Karma was going to show up.

I couldn't believe that I was actually meeting her. After so much...

I stood outside my apartment, folding my arms around my chest and practicing my 'suave' look, as I waited for the girl to arrive. Leaning against the door, I wondered how the night would end up. I didn't want anything ugly to happen. I didn't exactly need that sort of drama in my life.

Subconsciously, I was expecting something ugly to happen, as it usually did.

Suddenly, I heard someone coming down the hallway. It was the sound of high heels clicking against the ground. Franziska's small, delicate face appeared from the darkness.

I was shocked by what I saw; no-- I was awe-stricken. She had become so... overwhelmingly beautiful, despite the unimpressed expression she was wearing. Her black peacoat matched her black shoes. She was extremely well put-together, as she always had been. I felt under-dressed.

As soon as she spoke, I could tell her personality hadn't changed, either. She said dryly, "Aren't you going to say anything, Miles Edgeworth?"

"F-Franziska Von Karma...!" I hadn't felt so self-conscious in a long time. I was never nervous around Franziska before, but now that she was older... I could tell she was a force to be reckoned with. It was an odd, uncomfortable feeling that was rumbling in the pit of my stomach. I began timidly, "You look lovely, Fran--"

"Hmph," she interrupted me, furrowing her brow as she gave me a once-over. "And you look... well, you certainly are going for a more 'casual' look today," she said sarcastically. She looked at me, and must've realized that I was dumbfounded by her presence. She lightened up a little, and said warmly, "Why don't you invite me inside?"

"Er, of course," I tried to sound as collected as possible as I opened my door for her. I wasn't used to being so vulnerable. I had a feeling the night wasn't going to end well. Franziska stood in the doorway, scanning the living room.

"Not bad... whose house did you have to rob to get the place to look so nice?" I think that was a compliment.

"Nobody! Nobody!"

"So you're selling drugs? How foolish..."

"No! I, erm... I write... for a magazine."

"Huh. Miles Edgeworth, a writer? I never would've guessed it," Franziska stated curiously.

"...I really don't see what's so suprising about that," I muttered, my brow furrowing in annoyance. I figured I shouldn't mention the fact that I had seen Gumshoe, but I added, "You're the second person who has said that."

Franziska thought about what I had said, but shook her head in disagreement. "I brought you a housewarming gift," she mentioned after a moment. She pulled out a gift bag from behind her back.

I opened her gift. To my disappointment, I pulled a bottle of expensive wine from out of the bag.

"Um... thanks," I said as nicely as I could. The truth was that I hadn't had a drink in years, and wasn't planning on changing that.

Franziska gave me a look, as if my thank you weren't enough. She sat down gracefully on the couch, and stared down at her perfectly-manicured nails as she asked, "Well... why don't we open it?"

"S-sure," I said awkwardly. I wasn't going to argue. I grabbed two wine glasses-- two glasses that I didn't even know I owned --from the very back of my cupboard, popped open the bottle, and poured two servings of red wine. It felt like Franziska was analyzing and criticizing every move I made, so I made sure not to spill anything on myself as I carried a glass back to her.

She took her glass from my hand, and said quietly, "Sit down, Miles..."

I twitched. She had never called me just Miles before. It had always been more along the lines of... Mr. Edgeworth, or Miles Edgeworth, or 'fool'...

I sat down in a chair on the opposite side of the room, holding my wine glass and debating with myself whether or not I should take a sip. I didn't want to do anything stupid with Franziska watching me. Or, worse, with Franziska. I did always have a problem with knowing when I'd had enough to drink...

Franziska took a sip of her wine and looked up at me with large eyes. "Aren't you going to drink your wine? I got it for you..." After I didn't respond, her face became stern as she quietly demanded, "Drink it."

I couldn't refute that. On cue, I gulped down half of what was in my glass.

"Thank you," Franziska said condescendingly, like a first grade teacher talking to a student, "I thought you might like it." Controlled by her intimidating tone, I took another sip. She continued nonchalantly, "So I bet you're wondering why I'm even here."

"Yeah, actually. What made you want to talk to me, of all people?"

"What do you mean, 'of all people'? It's not like we were never close!"

I slurped down the remaining liquid in my glass. I never remembered wine --or any alcoholic beverage, for that matter-- to be so refreshingly delicious.

"I know, but after what happened before I left--"

"You mean when you told me I was a horrible person, and that you never wanted to see me again?... And when you threw your briefcase at me?" Franziska paused for dramatic effect. I gave her a look of pleading apology, reminding myself of the face that Gumshoe always used to give me. After a moment, she continued in a sultry manner, "I usually don't let trivial arguments get in the way of life-long friendships, Miles."

I laughed half-heartedly, quickly pouring myself another glass of wine. I was creeped out by the way Franziska was acting. She was so... subtly controlling. With every punch she threw, she said something to lure me back in. She had this strange ability where she could push me around, yet manage to sound so inviting while doing so.

Years ago, when I was training with Manfred Von Karma, and even when she was prosecuting in the States, I was drawn to Franziska's cynical personality. But, I was twenty-two, and she was so young-- she was more like a little sister. Now that she was more mature, her mysterious ways were even more enticing.

Then again, I'm sure the wine was making her look all the more alluring.

"...I found out some troubling information about Mr. Phoenix Wright. I thought you might want to know; that's why I called you-- so that we could discuss it."

I raised an eyebrow. "Yeah? So what is this 'troubling information'?"

Franziska grabbed the wine bottle from the table and poured herself another glass. "I hope you don't mind," she apologized, although I didn't really have time to stop her from having more. She held up the bottle, and asked, "Won't you have another glass? I'd feel more... comfortable, if you did."

I cleared my throat and helped myself to a third serving of wine. I was fully disgusted with myself.

"Do you really want to know what happened?" Franziska leaned in, as if somebody from outside the apartment might hear her talking.

"Of course!" I was inhaling the wine like I had just come back from the desert, and was dying of thirst. I barely wanted to stop for a moment to answer her question.

In my mind, I repeated what Gumshoe had warned me earlier that day-- "She lies about everything, pal..."

But, as much as I tried to listen attentively as Franziska spoke, my thoughts were fixated on the drink in my hand.

"Almost immediately after you left town, Mr. Wright came to me with something quite strange... he 'found' a note that you had allegedly written. In the note, 'you' revealed all of your secrets-- that you forged countless pieces of evidence, that you bribed witnesses, and that you--"

I stated abruptly, inbetween sips, "I never wrote such a note."

Franziska frowned. "Do you realize what that means?"

"Somebody forged a letter, pretending they were me," I replied slowly. I had to think harder than usual, due to my slightly impaired state of mind. I noticed that Franziska had already finished her glass. "So... who did it?"

"Miles, you really don't know who did it?" she laughed. "I'll give you a hint, it's the person who found the letter..."

"PHOENIX WRIGHT!" we both exclaimed simultaneously.

Once it had actually registered in my mind that Phoenix Wright was possibly the person who wrote the letter (and that was almost a minute after I had exclaimed his name), I yelled, "Why would he do that!?"

Franziska smiled in amusement at my slow thinking. She grabbed my wine glass from out of my hand, and poured me what was left of the wine. The situation was gradually transforming into a disaster. I realized, at the time, that she was purposely trying to get me a little tipsy, but I was enjoying the wine too much to stop drinking. I wasn't that gone... yet. I got up from my chair and leaned against the wall.

Franziska continued, "You know what Mr. Wright told me after he found the note? He said he was going to release it into the public, so it could be seen by everyone. He was going to turn you into a villain, and he hoped that when you returned to prosecuting again, you would be shunned."

"Why... why the HELL would he want that...? What did I do...?" I protested.

"You left town. Mr. Wright felt betrayed," Franziska answered blatantly, reaching for the wine bottle and re-filling her glass. She stood up and walked over to me, standing several feet away. I looked up.

She glanced down at the floor and smiled to herself, in an almost sinister manner. She then looked me in the eyes, saying innocently, "You know, Miles, I can't say I blame him..."

I had finished my fourth glass of wine, making her flirtatious way of speaking sound even more irresistible. I stepped towards her, mumbling, "What...?"

"Miles Edgeworth, star prosecutor, and a family friend of the Von Karmas... you were a brother to me. But you left me," Franziska whimpered quietly, following my lead and drawing closer to me. I didn't know whether to object (heh), or go along with her charade. She stared at me with the biggest eyes I'd ever seen. "I'm sure Mr. Wright would say something along those lines, as well. He just wanted revenge for being left behind. Still, I'm going to need your help if you want me to stop him from releasing that note..."

I stepped back a few inches, but realized that I was practically up against the wall. Franziska was obviously up to something-- even I, who had just downed four large glasses of alcohol, could see that. She realized I had backed away from her, and moved in even closer to me, playfully grabbing my tie and giving me a mischevious glare. I stopped breathing for a moment, not sure what her next move was going to be.

Franziska looked down at the strip of silk that lay in her hands, then up at me. She let go of the tie, and I took a deep breath of relief. Seconds later, though, she grabbed me in a different spot-- by the collar. I jumped.

Giggling to herself, she loosened my tie, taking as much time to do it as possible. I bit my lip and ceased breathing once more-- the looser the tie was, the more choked I felt. I never liked anyone touching me, and the fact that the person in this case was Franziska Von Karma made things even more uncomfortable. Once Franziska was satisfied with the way the tie hung around my neck, she unbuttoned the top button on my shirt, running a finger down my chest as she did so.

Even though my mind was working a little slower than it normally did, I could tell that she was purposely playing the Sympathy-And-Sex-Appeal card. At that point, I wasn't sure if it was all a part of her act, or if her actions were a result of the wine she had just drank. I prayed to God it wasn't the latter.

I had not taken a full breath in almost a minute. I thought I was going to pass out. Finally, as she let go of me for the second time, I sighed.

"There," Franziska declared in triumph, "You looked a little uptight. I had to do something about it."

I squeaked out a laugh, making a move for the couch. She followed me, stumbling a little as she turned around. I turned away from her and cleared my throat. I didn't want to look into Franziska's eyes again-- I was starting to cave in.

"Miles?" she asked, gently placing a hand on my leg and causing me to flinch violently.

"What... do you think you're doing?" I turned around.

Franziska ignored my question. "So... about Mr. Phoenix Wright..."

"Yeah, about him..." I interrupted her. "I'm not sure if he was the one who wrote that note, ya know...?"

"Fool! Who else would do such a thing?" Franziska grunted. "I know it's hard to believe, but..."

"You could be lying to me, too..."

I looked up. Franziska's mouth hung open, and a look of hurt glistened in her eyes. Or maybe it was just the fact that her eyes were a little hazy from the wine. "Me? Lie to you? Let me tell you something, Miles Edgeworth..."

She inched closer, until our knees were touching. I gulped.

For a woman that had just drank three glasses of wine, Franziska still spoke semi-eloquently. "I've known you for a long time, and I don't take our relationship lightly; although, lately, we've been having a falling-out... I digress. I don't think it would make sense if I lied to somebody I truly cared about. Do you?"

"No, I... I guess not..." I mumbled. Franziska was practically on top of me by then... and I was starting to enjoy it.

The alcohol's starting to set in. With that thought, I was nervous again.

"Then it's settled that Mr. Wright wrote the note. Right, Miles?" she said a little more forcefully. She rested her head against my chest, which was pounding rapidly. I desperately wanted Franziska to leave, but there was no chance of that happening-- I couldn't send her home drunk. Things were definitely taking a turn for the worse.

"Now, won't you help me... stop him?" She asked, tracing a circle around my chest with her index finger.

I gently pushed Franziska off my lap and stood up, brushing myself off. All I could say was, "Uhhh."

She sat up and hiccupped, "Miles... you're cute when you're nervous!"

Did that just come out of Franziska's mouth?

"Yeah...? Well," I sat back down. When in Rome (and when you can use alcohol as an excuse)... "Calling you 'cute' would be an understatement."

Franziska leaned in. By then, I really wasn't sure what I was doing; I simply went along with it.

Until she started kissing me. Once I felt her lips against mine, I was brought back to almost-reality. I turned my head quickly.

"Miles, haven't you ever kissed a girl before? Because that's not how you do it..." Franziska grabbed my face and tried to kiss me again before I could reply.

This is NOT happening. This can't be happening.

I didn't invite Ms. Von Karma over so that I could get drunk with her... and yet, I couldn't stop myself from kissing back.

Once Franziska started unbuttoning the rest of my shirt, I knew my predictions about the night being disastrous were absolutely correct.