I'm so sorry, those who are waiting for chapters of my Fable stories! Soooo much uni stuff to do... I promise I will try and get the chapters uploaded soon!
Anyways, third chapter of this little story, and the introduction of three GK2 characters - as I haven't played the games, I've had to improvise with their personalities according to how they're described on the wiki. Sorry if there's some OOC going on there - and very sorry if I've spelt their names wrong. I'm no good with Japanese names, I'm afraid.
Disclaimer: I own nothing.
It was a Saturday, a day off from school long after the New Year, and Miles and Phoenix were playing with Power Rangers figurines in the latter's bedroom when Mrs Wright poked her head around the door.
"Ah, boys, there you are. Miles, dear, your father just called to ask if you could stay here a little longer. He's got to go to the Detention Centre again. Is that all right?"
Miles looked up from where he was pitting the Pink Time Force Power Ranger against the Cyclobot in an epic battle to defend the other, injured Rangers. It might not be law, but Power Rangers was one of Miles' secret weaknesses.
"Oh, that's fine, Mrs Wright. The more clues to this case the better, so Father needs the time to talk to Mr Tenkai and see if he can get anything out of him. After all, we have no real decisive evidence, and Mr Tenkai must've been lying when he confessed."
Mrs Wright looked blank, as she always did when Miles started to talk about law. She nodded.
"That's nice, dear. Now dinner will be ready soon – you boys both like pepperoni pizza, don't you?"
Smiling at the excited response she received, the black-haired woman disappeared back around the door and before long they heard her footsteps as she went down the stairs. Miles turned back to their game, and spotted Phoenix looking at him strangely.
The silver-haired boy felt his cheeks go pink, as they always did when he spotted someone looking at him.
"What?" he asked defensively.
Little Phoenix shrugged, the too-big shoulder of his jumper sliding down his arm.
"I dunno. I was just thinking about your dad's case – are you sure Mr Ten-key was lying?"
"Tenkai. And yes, he had to be lying. He's innocent."
Miles' voice was matter of fact, and his eyes drifted back to the figurines, as though that settled that. Phoenix wasn't finished, however.
"How do you know that? There's no proof, is there?"
Miles made the Pink Time Force Power Ranger execute a special attack that left the Cyclobot keeled over, defeated. He spoke without looking up.
"Not yet. But Father will find some, don't you worry. He'll get the innocent verdict."
Phoenix twiddled his thumbs, biting his lip.
"But say there's no real proof. What if Tenkai really is the bad guy? What if your dad's wrong?"
Miles' head snapped up, a cold glare in his eyes. His words were of a slightly higher pitch than normal, showing how furious he was.
"My father's never wrong! He never defends a guilty man, all his clients are innocent! He just doesn't have the evidence to prove that yet in this case!"
The other small boy reeled from the verbal attack, his eyes widening, but then he frowned.
"But he's been fighting for years and he keeps losing! If the guy really didn't do it, why can't your dad win for once?"
Miles very nearly hit him. If he hadn't been taught all his life that it was wrong to hit people, because you might seriously hurt them, he would have slapped the ignorant spiky-haired boy across from him around the face. As it was, he tossed the figurines onto the floor with a lot of unnecessary force.
"My dad will win! He's the best defence attorney in Los Angeles, and he's gonna beat von Karma and get Tenkai off and then von Karma's record will be broken and my dad will be even more famous! Just you wait, Wright, my dad's gonna find the body, and prove Tenkai innocent and work out who really did it!"
There was a pause, in which Miles was breathing hard, his face pink. It took him a few seconds to clear his anger-clouded mind and see Phoenix's hurt expression, and a few more to realise he'd been shouting. He sighed, eyes going to the floor.
"Sorry," he muttered quietly, "I didn't mean to yell at you. And I'm sorry for throwing your toys."
He glanced up to see Phoenix smiling nervously.
"Um, that's okay. I'm sorry too. I didn't mean to make it sound like…I know your dad'll win. He's great. And nobody likes von Karma, so he's going to lose for sure."
Miles smiled at that. Phoenix smiled back. The moment was spoiled slightly a few seconds later when the spiky-haired boy sneezed pitifully and had to grope for tissues, but Miles just shook his head fondly.
"Wright, you're pathetic."
Phoenix looked up from behind the various tissues splaying from his hands and stuck his tongue out playfully.
"Not as pathetic as you, Miles Edgeworth! My Time Force Quantum Ranger will wipe your Pink Ranger from the face of the earth! Muahahahaha!"
The pair of them dived for the figurines again and commenced yet another epic battle, their own fight forgotten in the imaginary war consisting of laser beams and gunshots and a lot of yelling random gobbledegook that sounded good.
Gregory Edgeworth was pacing outside of the visitor's room, getting steadily more frustrated by the minute. Although from the outside he was calm, and his pacing merely looked like the bored walking of a man who had nothing better to do, Tateyuki Shigaraki knew better.
The eighteen-year-old bit his lip and fiddled nervously with the rim of his hat, which sat in his lap, as he waited for Mr. Edgeworth to explode. He admired the older man so much for his skill as a defence attorney, his determinedness even in the worst of odds and just his kindness towards everyone around him, but damn the guy could be scary at times.
Gregory glanced at the security guard again, who shrugged apologetically before hurriedly looking away. Gregory blinked at the man before shaking his head and continuing his pacing. Tateyuki felt the sudden wild urge to giggle, and looked back down at his hat, biting his lip harder. Yes, Gregory Edgeworth could be scary, and he himself was completely oblivious to this fact.
Finally, the walkie-talkie on the security guard's belt crackled, and he answered it with a curt 'Yes, sir.' He glanced up to the defence attorney and his assistant and smiled uneasily before turning to unlock the door behind him.
Manfred von Karma stepped out, his face the same arrogant sneer that he always wore. When he spotted the trench-coated defence attorney, however, his face paled to the colour of sour cream and his expression warped into one of deepest loathing, the chill of his glare matched by the heat of the anger in his eyes.
"…Edgeworth. Come to visit the condemned for one last goodbye?"
His voice sent shivers down Tateyuki's back, and by the way he paled, also that of the guard's. Gregory merely raised an eyebrow.
"Not condemned yet, von Karma. I still intend to prove him innocent."
Von Karma laughed, but it held no humour. Instead it seemed to suck the heat out of the room.
"A futile wish, Edgeworth. A von Karma's path is that of perfection, and I will have Issei Tenkai executed like the dirty criminal scum he is. Guilty of murder or accomplice, the same punishment awaits."
Tateyuki's mouth twitched. He was dying to make a dig about that so-called 'perfection' – that had, after all, been marred not three months ago – but didn't. He didn't even need Gregory's warning glance – the words had got lost on the way to his mouth and he merely stuttered some incoherent noises under his breath.
Gregory looked von Karma dead in the eye.
"Tenkai is not going to be executed. We both know he is innocent, von Karma. The evidence is out there somewhere."
The prosecutor rolled his eyes.
"Indeed."
And with that, the older man barged past Gregory, bashing into his shoulder before striding out of the door. Gregory stumbled, and turned to watch the prosecutor go, rubbing his hurt shoulder.
"And a very good morning to you too, von Karma." He muttered quietly.
The security guard cleared his throat awkwardly, then ushered them through to the visitor's room, closing the door firmly behind them with a clatter.
Issei Tenkai smiled grimly from where he sat on the other side of the glass.
"Good morning, Mr. Edgeworth, Mr. Shigaraki. I see you've already encountered Mr. von Karma this morning?"
Gregory slid into the seat opposite him, Tateyuki coming to stand just behind him. The defence attorney smiled at his client.
"You heard all that?"
The chef chuckled.
"Yes, I'm afraid I did. It seems Mr. von Karma is not too pleased with the result of a few months ago, no?"
Tateyuki sniggered.
"I'd say not. Doesn't get the verdict he wants, and gets a penalty to boot! Serves him right, cold blooded reptile!"
He then followed this insult with a far less socially-acceptable one. Gregory looked around at his assistant.
"This isn't about personal attacks, Tateyuki."
The eighteen-year-old flushed.
"No sir. Of course not, sir."
Gregory nodded and turned back, but the teenager could've sworn he saw a small smirk on the older man's mouth. The defence attorney eyed his client carefully.
"I suppose you know I'm still planning to appeal."
The chef's whole demeanor seemed to slump slightly. There was still the kind sparkle in his eyes, still the same polite smile, but all of a sudden he didn't seem to be so straight-backed anymore. And he looked exhausted – even more so than Gregory remembered.
The defence attorney frowned slightly, but his words were light.
"Proving your innocence would have been easier if you hadn't made that false confession, Mr. Tenkai."
A long pause.
Tateyuki blinked in surprise as Gregory swallowed nervously. He'd never seen Edgeworth look nervous, ever.
"That…that confession was false, wasn't it, Tenkai?"
Tateyuki's mouth dropped open. He couldn't believe his ears! Gregory Edgeworth, letting doubt creep in? That was unheard of! True, this case had been going for a year, and true, evidence pointed to Tenkai and it was true they were facing an undefeated prosecutor, but still-
"…Yes, it was. That confession…"
The chef sighed sadly.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Edgeworth. It was never my intention to make this any more difficult for you…I just…"
He paused, then flushed slightly.
"It's been over a year, Mr. Edgeworth. Over a year since…since the murder, and I've spent that year in this Centre, or under house arrest, with paparazzi at my door day and night and called out every few months for retrials and I…I guess I just broke down that day. I'm sorry."
Tateyuki chewed his lip. He'd never really thought about how hard it would have all been on the defendant. This past year, he'd been too excited in the chase for evidence, too busy focusing on how Edgeworth could catch the unbeatable von Karma out, to even think about how Tenkai must have felt.
He hadn't been there for that last trial, but he could guess how terrible the young chef must've felt to just break down like that. He bowed his head.
Gregory was also looking slightly ashamed.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Tenkai, this must be very hard on you. I can see you haven't been sleeping these past months."
Issei Tenkai smiled through his politely-covered yawn, running one hand across his tightly curled hair.
"That, and Mr. von Karma's questioning methods are…not for the faint hearted to face, so to speak."
The defence attorney blinked in shock, then his face set. His voice seemed a few octaves lower than usual, and there was the rumble of a growl behind them.
"What's he been doing now?"
The chef shrugged.
"Nothing illegal, sir, not as far as I know. Mr. von Karma just likes to be…thorough in his questionings."
Gregory Edgeworth leant forward slightly, his voice rippling with anger. Tateyuki felt shivers down his spine. Thank goodness Edgeworth was on their side…
"Tell me, Mr. Tenkai, just how thorough is von Karma?"
The chef shrugged again, this time more awkwardly. Tateyuki knew his hesitation was due to the man's sense of honour – he felt the need to be polite about everyone, no matter how twisted and evil.
"Well, his questioning sessions last a very long time, sir. He asks the same questions over and over, and demands explanations off of me. His sessions can last for hours – all night, we've been talking, on quite a few occasions."
Gregory leant back, but it was clear he was no less angry. In fact, he seemed furious, but he was careful to keep his next words calm.
"Well, Mr. Tenkai, I don't suppose you'd have anything more for us? Or any ideas of someone we could further question – Tsukasa Oyashiki, for instance?"
The chef straightened up, his serious expression turning to stone.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Edgeworth, but I must ask you to leave Tsukasa out of this. She…she's too young to get caught up in something like this, and I don't want her to get hurt."
Edgeworth nodded stiffly.
"Of course, you don't want your adoptive daughter hurt, I understand. If anything happened to my boy, if he got caught up in a murder this young…" his voice caught, "I'd never forgive myself. But I'm afraid I have to gather as much information as possible, and with all due respect, Ms. Oyashiki is already caught up in this murder as much as you are."
The chef lowered his head, defeated.
"Yes, I understand. Just, please…make sure she doesn't get hurt. I…I don't want her hurt…"
Edgeworth gave a short, polite bow.
"Of course. Good day, Mr. Tenkai."
Tateyuki looked over his shoulder as they left. Tenkai had buried his head in his hands, and it almost looked like he was nodding off. The teenager felt sorry for him.
He trotted out of the detention centre alongside Edgeworth, who had buried his hands in the pockets of his trench coat and was scowling angrily. As they crossed the road, the older man hissed something under his breath.
"That bastard…"
Tateyuki, shocked, missed the step up onto the curb and nearly fell over. He looked up at his mentor in shock.
"Who, Issei Tenkai?"
The defence attorney shook his head impatiently.
"Manfred von Karma! He's doing this on purpose, to break Tenkai down! What's that bastard up to?"
Despite his shock at his mentor using such crude terms – as well as expressing his real attitude towards the ice-cold prosecutor – Tateyuki managed to pipe up.
"Well, he's doing anything for his guilty verdict, of course. He knows Tenkai's innocent, so he's using every trick in the book. The fake autopsy report didn't work, so he's turned to making Tenkai so tired he'll do anything to make it all stop. But that won't work either," he continued, a grin starting to appear on his face," because we'll re-appeal, and we'll keep re-appealing until we win, which is what we're gonna do because you're such an awesome defence attorney! And, er… because Tenkai is innocent. That helps, too."
Edgeworth chuckled, his temper finally curbed. He late his breath out in a sigh, then glanced idly up at the sunny sky.
"So, what now, rookie?"
Tateyuki punched the flat of his palm with his other fist.
"We go back to HQ, regroup, go over the evidence and our notes and plan our next move!"
The defence attorney adjusted his glasses to hide his smile.
"And tonight, I seem to remember, is meatloaf night."
The teenager punched the air.
"I thought so! Hell yeah!"
Gregory shook his head fondly, turning in the direction of his car. Now, he wondered, can I pick up Miles from little Phoenix's house without it becoming a law conversation on the doorstep this time?
I get the feeling Edgey sr. and Mrs Wright are like mine and my friends' parents - Mrs Wright feeds mini-Edgey as a favour to Gregory, and Gregory feeds mini-Edgey when he gets in to apologise for being so late. Edgey jr is too polite to point out he's getting two dinners.
And nobody likes von Karma. Especially not me, so I always write him as the total bastard that he is. He'll get his comeuppance, don't you worry...
And kiddo!Tateyuki is sweet. He'll be a bigger character in this, no worries.