Breakdown
Chapter Two: Luke
Delicately, Joshua pulled away the chair and sat opposite the young boy opposite him. Sure, Luke was reasonably strong, emotionally, but nonetheless, he was young, and needed to be treated like the metaphorical golden goose, lest he be kicked out of the country… again.
He sat there, patiently, waiting for the boy to be ready to start. Slowly, yet confidently, he saw an almost solemn nod from the other party. Gently, he depressed the button. "This is Prosecutor Joshua Holmes, starting the recording. Witness… state your name, age, gender, and occupation." His pronunciation was firm and deliberate, yet calmer and softer than it was before.
Slowly, Luke brought himself to speak, cap discarded to the side of the table. "Luke… Triton… Thirteen-year-old boy…" He was lost for words.
"I think it would be safe to say…" - Joshua paused for emphasis – "…that you have no occupation to speak of. Am I right?" Luke nodded. "I see. The witness just nodded, for the tape."
"Before we start on the details of the actual case, I need to confirm – do you feel comfortable elaborating on your companionship with one Hershel Layton?" Luks shook his head vehemently. "I see. In that case, I would like you to talk about…" Joshua knew the best way to get to younger people would be to press the details."…the changes in demeanour and emotions of the suspect around the time before the crime and shortly after his accusation." Once again, he pulled up a transparent screen in front of him – yet this time it shone a faint blue.
-Begin Questioning-
Change and Revolution
"Hmm…" At the question, Luke brightened and straightened slightly – "I don't think that he was acting that entire time – yet the way he reacted afterwards made it seem like he was…"
"That's understandable. But, yet, you think that he was acting at some point?"
"…I… Think so…" Erroneous detail: What was the act?
"And he switched… how?"
"He… laughed. Loudly, mind… but when he talked… he sounded… well, only smug."
"…Hmm?! Wait, so you mean… he laughed, and then suddenly stopped?"
"I'm quite sure he did…"
"Hey, if you're struggling for a name, you could just call me Josh."
"What?" `(Quiet, yet still a tad shocked…)
"Seriously. Spiked hair, coloured blue, and you think I'm a through and through professional?"
"Josh… I see… but what is this all about?"
"Most people who act things out have multiple discrepancies in their fake selves. So, to discover which persona of Clive's is fake… we should seek out what's wrong. Now, it says in your file that you can comprehend animals."
"It's strange… but yes. I can… quite easily actually." Luke smiled.
"That's due to your elevated perception of emotions. So, I can ask you things that others wouldn't notice. So… what seemed odd?" Commencing Resolution: What was the act?
"It was strange – up until the point before the whole meeting with the professor, he seemed completely normal… wait? I think I remember him acting oddly before the point at which we went in…"
"Oddly? How would you mean?"
"Well, when we ran into him on our way out, he seemed… quiet."
"Yes! That's what I want! Details like that…" Discrepancy: Withdrawal
"You said something about his laugh…"
"Ah! Yes, of course. His laugh was cut off…" Discrepancy: Shut-Off Laugh "…and did anything seem off about how he was standing?"
"I'm not too sure… he didn't look too bothered in his standing… although he was a little crouched after he… well, changed, and… whilst he was dragging out Flora…"
"How crouched?"
"Only slightly – it didn't really feel like anything…"
"Very slight crouching… subconscious gesture, not confident, indicates…"
Prior Withdrawal + Shut off Laugh = Played Role
Played Role + Subconscious Lack of Confidence =
Joshua slowly leaned into his chair. "Subordinate."
Questioning End
-Clive Was A Subordinate-
"Of course… Clive, at least at this point, wasn't actually the highest in the chain. He was merely playing his assigned role… which actually gives me a small bit of a hint…"
"A hint? About what?"
"When I was questioning the good professor, we noted that the professor himself was, in a way, left in charge. Now, this isn't because he was – we both know that – but, he was in one heck of a Kingmaker scenario… "
"So… he intended for the professor to take him into the station?"
"Well, after Claire went to save him, I suppose so. It is now my solid belief – that he was being threatened."
3 Hours Later
"… You're surprisingly good at this, Luke… Have you been practicing?"
"N-n-no! Not at all! I don't even know how-!"
"Hush now." Joshua leant forward. "Now… show me what you've got…"
"Hmph…" Luke threw his hand down.
Joshua smirked. "Damn. More than I thought. I only got a two pair." Next to Luke's arm, were a heart and diamond of 3, and 5's of spades, clubs and diamonds. …"Full house. Nice."
"How…"
"It matters not. I'm flush out of chips, beside."
All of the sudden, there was a knock at the door. "Ah. That'll be your father. Now, I will likely have to pull you in again-"Luke flushed. "-heh. Don't panic, I'm sure it'll be fine. Casual like this one, yeah?"
"…Yeah…" With a slight smile, Luke walked out, Joshua's unwavering gaze upon him. All of a sudden, Joshua's phone rang. "Joshua... Ah, Mister Edgeworth…"
Notes: That bit at the end is not meant to be indication of a crossover... sorry 'bout that. It's a small bit of self referencing humour towards one of my AA stories, 921. In other words, I'm agreeing with the crossover game - the two universes are one and the same.