mightiswright | ♣ ic contact

[ Edgeworth trying to act casual is in and of itself a cause for concern. ]

Unless you're telling me he made a few doves fly out of his sleeves, which I'm having a hard time picturing, you're holding back on me.

[He struggles to figure out a way to make this sound less horrible than it does. The last damn thing Edgeworth wants is Wright getting upset, and he will get upset - but it's not morally correct to hold back this information. So finally, with some difficulty, he says:]

He - used some - ability of his to temporarily remove one of my lungs. To prove he could. [Then, quickly and aggressively:] The damage was undone, and I've gone to the doctor and confirmed that there were no lingering aftereffects, so do not get worked up about this.

[ 'Upset' is putting it lightly. Phoenix is furious, so much so that he can't even make words come out. that his friend would try to play off something this serious, and that there's someone powerful enough to do something like that without any consequences.

but more importantly, he's beyond worried, and he suddenly needs to see for himself that Edgeworth is as fine as he's saying. ]

Don't get- You're unbelievable, Miles. Where are you?

[Wright sounds as upset as Edgeworth feared he would be. As ever, his instinct is to flee from this conversation - to plead work, to hang up the phone, to desperately avoid the emotion involved in this confrontation, but, well...Wright deserves better than that.

So, uncomfortably:]

I'm...at the office.

I'm coming over.

[ then he hangs up. ]

[And Edgeworth is, as promised, waiting in his office. He does take a few moments to make himself look particularly in good health; he puts on his suit jacket, opens the blinds behind him, puts on the kettle for tea, places some work in front of him so that it's clear that he's busy and important.]

[ true to his word, the second he hung up the phone, Phoenix grabbed his jacket and left the house to make his way to Edgeworth's office.

by the time he arrives, some of the initial fire has faded, but he's no less unhappy, and he doesn't even knock before barging in. he couldn't care less about what the office looked like, and he goes directly to the object of his concern.

Phoenix slams his hands down on the desk (knocking over some papers) and gives Edgeworth a good look over before sitting down, satisfied for the moment that he's not going to keel over. ]

You weren't even going to tell me, were you? [ saying it out loud just gets him fired up again, and his voice rises. ] Parlor tricks? What Trucy does is parlor tricks, removing one of your lungs isn't!

[Edgeworth wants to default to any number of defensive, dismissive answers in his arsenal. Good day to you too, or You're being irrational, or This is why I didn't want to tell you in the first place, or something else that will make Edgeworth's desire to stay silent less irrational. Something that will shift the blame to Phoenix himself.

But Phoenix deserves better than that. He can't bring himself to do so. So instead he just stands, and crosses to the teapot, and begins fixing tea for them both.]

What good would telling you have done? It happened. That can't be changed.

That's not the point, and you know it.

[ Phoenix watches Edgeworth get up with a small frown, keeping an eye on his movements, to reassure himself that he's physically fine. though he already said he was, Phoenix's not willing to take that at face value, considering how much he'd stalled just giving up the information in the first place. ]

Where did it happen? You said he just showed up right?

It was here.

[The ritual of making tea is always soothing; there's a familiarity to the movements that brings him a measure of calm. Calm which is, frankly, much needed. Because no matter his confident air, the carelessness with which he is endeavoring to speak of the incident, even the memory of it shakes him. He thought, in that moment, that he was going to die. All he wanted - all he could do was leave evidence of who killed him, and -

But he can't indulge that fear. He has to keep it together. He's not going to have Wright getting more upset. And so, with his voice perfectly controlled - nearly emotionless - ]

The site has, of course, been searched thoroughly; any physical evidence left behind was recovered. That was why I was allowed to return to work in here.

[ Edgeworth's attempts to sound controlled comes off as the wrong way to Phoenix, who doesn't look any more mollified by the fact that any evidence was recovered. because that wasn't even close to what he was concerned about. if that's the way he wants to play it though...

he waits for Edgeworth to sit back down, with the tea. ]

Were there any leads on his identity?

All that's known is that he is an import like the rest of us. He claims to be the Christian devil - but I suspect that is merely an affectation.

[He hands Phoenix a cup of tea and sits down with his own. Then he hesitates a moment, because of the absurdity of this, but...]

The...prints I got from him matched those of the President. This was, of course, a function of his ability to alter the space around him.

[ Phoenix accepts the tea, but doesn't do much more than nurse it in his hands. tea's not really what he needs right now. ]

... The President.

[ he repeats it, just to make sure he heard correctly. ]

So far, he can teleport, somehow know where a person is, and now alter his fingerprints too? What does that even mean, alter the space around him?

I don't know how else to describe it.

[Edgeworth speaks staring down into his tea. His face is controlled, his voice quiet.]

All I know is that his ability to manipulate what's around him physically seems to be nearly...unlimited. So, too, does his sadism and his malice.

[ Phoenix's grip on his teacup tightens with every word. if it were anyone else, his expression would be composed but with present company, he doesn't feel the need to hide the displeasure on his face. ]

Nothing is unlimited. [ his voice is even but tight and fierce, and as always, Phoenix is the last to heed his own advice about staying out of the line of fire. ] We're going to catch him, I swear, he's not going to get away with this... with attacking you. He'll face justice for what he's done, sadism and malice and powers be damned.

[ with that said, Phoenix leans forward, eyes searching his friend's face. ] But right now, are you okay? And don't give me that stuff about what the doctor said, that's not what I mean.

I'm fine.

[Quick and clipped. As though Edgeworth would give any other response.

But what Phoenix gets that no one else would is a moment of troubled silence, and then a quiet confession.]

He made it clear that he'll strike again. Elsewhere, where people cannot defend themselves. I tried to...taunt him into staying here, and he said he would if I could offer him something of value. But he was not satisfied with anything I offered.

[Another moment; he doesn't look up.]

If people die, I suppose their blood will be on my hands, won't it.

[ he's clearly not fine, and it's a good thing Phoenix has learned to take anything Edgeworth says about his own personal health at more than face value. ]

How important do you think yourself? [ it comes out a little rough, because there is no way in hell Phoenix is letting him think that every single person Lucifer killed was on his hands alone. he's got a ton of words for him, but before that: ]

Miles. Look at me.

[Edgeworth slowly looks up. Guilt and discomfort are heavy in his expression. But he waits for Phoenix's assessment: after all, this is why he brought it up, so his friend would absolve him of some of the guilt. Because that is, of course, what Phoenix will do; that is what he can always be counted on to do.]

[ That's an expression he doesn't like to see, especially on Edgeworth, and he will gladly do what he's always done. Convince him of the truth. ]

What makes you so sure you had anything that could've convinced him to stop? And even if he'd accepted whatever you offered, you can't seriously believe he would've kept up his end of the bargain. Maybe for a day, maybe for two, but forever?

[ Firmly: ] You're not responsible for him any more than I am, and to claim you are is pure ego. It's a disservice to yourself, and it's a disservice to his victims.

[Edgeworth of course, no matter his resolve, can't hold Phoenix's gaze for long. He's courageous in many ways, and stands up to any danger, but he's always fled from displays of emotion; it's a measure of how far he's come that he's not actually avoiding the topic, but being able to face it head-on is beyond him.]

Yes. Well. I suspect if I'd offered my life, that would have been sufficient. And while that would have been out of the question, one cannot help but feel...an irrational sort of - remorse, when one does not offer such a thing.

[ He takes a moment to breathe because lord knows otherwise he might actually bite Edgeworth's head off. How could he even think...? ]

How is offering to sacrifice yourself ever an option? Irrational is right.

[ Phoenix frowns. ]

Don't let him get in your head. All of this, that's what he wants.

[Edgeworth doesn't look up, but he does offer a slight nod - a single, grim lowering of the head, an even slighter rise. And then, still not looking up, he offers a humorless little smile.]

You're furious with me.

[ It's just as well that it wasn't a question. Since Edgeworth still isn't meeting his eye, Phoenix puts the teacup down on the table with a clatter.

He is upset, though he manages to sound miraculously mild. ]

Did you expect me to say "you're right, you should have tried to give yourself up in an act of martyrdom"?

No.

[He shakes his head very slightly.]

I know you'd never say something like that. Never mind that you'd be thinking it if it were you in the same situation.

[ ... Damn him. ]

Regardless, it's not, so I'm not.

If I ever get the idea in my head to do something like that, you can quote my words back at me, but until then, I'm allowed to be angry.

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I'm dictating that we do action you can't stop me

joke's on you i was going to start a log anyway

Oh damn

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