Chapter Text
It was a slow day in the Wright Anything Agency offices. Apollo and Trucy were out working on an investigation, but Apollo was pretty sure they could get a decent case in favor of the client by the end of the day and so, quite unusually, there wasn't a lot to stress about. Phoenix decided to waste time by reorganizing the bookshelves filled with old case files (and some of Trucy's magic books and high-school textbooks) and Athena was napping by her work desk, snoring loudly.
Suddenly, the ring of the office's doorbell jerked the younger lawyer wide awake.
"I'll take care of it, Athena!" Phoenix said, leaving the bookshelves a bigger mess then they were before.
The Wright Anything Agency didn't always have the most reliable reputation in the legal world, and right now Athena Cykes still looked sleepy due to her rude awakening; with bags under her eyes and messy hair and little remains of drool around her lips - Phoenix was probably the slightly-more-respectable-face to greet a possible new client. But, who he saw when he opened the door was not a new client, but rather...
"Edgeworth! He-llo!" Phoenix intoned happily at the sight of his boyfriend, "what brings the Chief Prosecutor to our little Agency?" He asked in a flirty manner and leaned over for a little 'welcome' smooch.
Edgeworth pushed Phoenix's lips away with his hand, his expression stern. "Wright," he said "please, I am here on business matters, this is not a personal meeting."
Phoenix stepped away, pouting in a comically exaggerated manner. "I just wanted to say hello to my boyfriend," he grumbled "last time I checked, that's you, right?"
"Correct," Edgeworth said, as serious as his opening statements in court "but we are both working right now" he continued as he entered the Agency "we need to both conduct ourselves in a professional manner, especially right in front of your subordinate." He gestured at Athena, who was struggling to comb her hair back to its regular state.
She waved hello to him awkwardly "Willkommen, Chief Prosecutor Edgeworth!"
"Welcome," Edgeworth said half-heartedly.
"Alright then," Phoenix said with a sigh, he really should be used to Edgeworth's ideas on 'impropriety' by now "so, what does bring the Chief Prosecutor to our little agency?"
"I have a few cases I wish to discuss with you." Edgeworth lifted up his briefcase slightly "And I need to cross-reference the information with your own clients' records. Let's go into your personal office, Wright, I would rather get started as soon as possible." He gestured toward what was once Mia Fey's office, the door that now has 'Phoenix Wright, Head of Law Division' written on it.
"Alright, sweetie" Phoenix said with a half-smile as Edgeworth entered the office.
"Jeez, boss," Athena whispered to him "sorry 'bout your boyfriend being all..." she winced a little as she struggled with the right words "it must suck to date a literal block of ice."
"Oh, Edgeworth's not that bad." Phoenix said, smiling, but defensive. He followed Edgeworth into his personal office, closing the door behind him.
"Alright, Edgeworth, it's boring legal documents time!" Phoenix rubbed his hands "hit me with your best shot."
"Certainly, Mr. Wright," Edgeworth said, drawing himself closer to Phoenix, a smirk on his face, "but first, I do believe I owe you a kiss."
Edgeworth wrapped his arms around his boyfriend and pulled him into a kiss, much longer and deeper then what Phoenix was planning at the door. Not that he was complaining.
"Oh, Chief Prosecutor Edgeworth," Phoenix said in a teasing tone when they pulled apart "whatever happened to professionalism?"
"Hm, professionalism only means we should refrain from public displays of affection," Edgeworth said. Their faces were still incredibly close, their noses lightly brushing against each other. "And last I checked, we are not in public right now."
"Well..." Phoenix eyed the office door for a second, but Edgeworth shut him up with a light kiss. Probably assuming he was going to make another dumb joke, not an unlikely assumption considering their history together.
"And you do look exceptionally endearing today," Edgeworth said with a light smile, "my business here is not urgent, we can spare some time for each other."
"Well, if you insist." Phoenix laughed and put his hands gently on Edgeworth's waist. He gazed into Edgeworth's eyes for a long moment. Some people would describe the eyes of their beloved as ones you can get lost, that's how Edgeworth describes Phoenix's eyes (Well, whenever he managed to articulate himself romantically, at least). But that's not how Phoenix would describe Edgeworth's eyes. Edgeworth's eyes were too clear, too direct, too piercing to get lost in, that's what made them so beautiful. They were a straight, clear path to his brilliant mind, lighted by silver starlight. Phoenix sighed dreamily, it was so dorky, and he didn't care.
Phoenix tightened his hands around Edgeworth's waist and pulled him into a kiss much more powerful than the previous ones. His hands leaving their previous position to slowly remove Edgeworth's bulky courtroom longcoat and ruffle up his hair. He pulled away with a cocky smile, everything about his body language conveying let's see you better.
As always, Edgeworth seemed to practically read Phoenix's mind and complied by kissing him back even harder and longer. His fingers gently unbuttoning Phoenix's waistcoat.
The kiss was so good neither of them noticed the office door getting slammed open and Apollo running in, panicking and clutching a mess of documents.
"Mr. Wright! Mr. Wright!" He shouted as he entered "We need your help! The case is going so bad! There's a new witness and they're saying that-" he stopped when he finally noticed his boss making out like crazy with the Chief Prosecutor. "GAHHHHHHH! MR. WRIGHT!" He yelled in surprise.
Now that got the older lawyers' attention, they broke apart from the kiss, Phoenix screaming in surprise back at Apollo and Edgeworth making a sound closer to "NGHOOOOOO!" The entire room was a cacophony of screams.
"I'm sorry! Mr. Wright! I'm so sorry!" Apollo shouted while covering his eyes with the case file in his hands. He was as red as his suit. "I didn't know you were... um, busy! I'm sorry!"
"It's alright, Apollo! It's really alright!" Phoenix blushed in embarrassment as he quickly buttoned up his waistcoat "I'm sorry, it's my fault. Me and Edgeworth... kinda got carried away."
For the first few moments, Edgeworth couldn't do anything but grumble incoherently as he tried to put his coat back on and recomb his ruffled hair without a comb at the same time. As startled and embarrassed as Phoenix and Apollo were, Edgeworth was the one who looked the most distraught about the whole affair.
"Mr. Wright, why didn't you lock the door?!" Apollo asked. Even with the two older lawyers now being fully-dressed and standing apart, he was still hiding his face and just barely peeking behind the case file.
"The lock on this door is busted" Phoenix admitted "It's been busted for, like... four years now? I really should have gotten it fixed already, I know." He chuckled in embracement "I keep postponing it." He sighed, looking at his boyfriend "I'm sorry, Edgeworth, I really should've told you. I wanted to, but then you, um, cut me off." He briefly bit his lip "and after that it... kinda slipped my mind. Sorry." He apologized sincerely.
"Well, yes, you should be, Wright." Said Edgeworth, grumpy. His hair was still kind of a mess "but also," he turned sharply toward Apollo, his arms crossed and his expression severe "Mr. Justice, you should have knocked. This is your superior's private office, is it not? Show some respect."
"I, um..." Apollo was pretty baffled by the Chief Prosecutor's reaction "Mr. Wright never..."
"Wright, don't tell me that you regularly allow your protégés to just burst into your office whenever they feel like it?!" Edgeworth said, exasperated.
"Alright, I won't tell you that!" Phoenix said with a stupid grin on his face.
"Honestly, Wright, what self-respecting head-of-office would-" Edgeworth stopped himself "hm. Well I guess I answered my own question." He said with the tiniest hint of a smile. The kind only Phoenix would ever notice.
"Yeah, yeah, you got me," Phoenix said and laughed, "Anyway, Apollo, what is it?"
"Oh, um..." Apollo suddenly remembered how bad his investigation was going and got even more panicked "There's a new witness! You know how I said that I think Mr. Fence is probably the culprit? Well, now the prosecution is calling the guy's wife to the stand and she's claiming that they were both on the other side of town on a date and we have no idea how to disprove that alibi! And Detective Skye says they found our client's fingerprints on-"
"Hmm..." Phoenix scratched his chin, thinking of a way one could wriggle their way out of that situation.
"I should probably excuse myself for a moment, Wright, Mr. Justice," Edgeworth said, slightly awkwardly "As the Chief Prosecutor, I should probably avoid overhearing the defense's strategy on any sort of case."
Phoenix nodded at him as he left the room and closed the door behind him.
In the main Agency office, Athena and Trucy were discussing the case. Apparently, the investigation took a sharp turn to the worse very suddenly and ''Polly is freaking out like crazy''. Athena is not Mr.-Wright-Level of Lawyer. Not yet, anyway. But she tried to give as much preceptive as she could while Apollo was asking the boss. It's apparently going really bad if it made everyone in Mr. Wright's office shout like this. Even Chief Prosecutor Edgeworth, I think. Suddenly, the office door opened, and the Chief Prosecutor exited the office. His hair was slightly unkempt, and he looked very tense.
"Hey, Mr. Edgeworth!" Trucy greeted him immediately with a bright smile and a friendly wave. She was sitting on Apollo's desk.
"Please get off from the desk, Trucy." Chief Prosecutor Edgeworth scolded her, not angry, simply stern. "It might break, it's dangerous."
"A true magician needs to be able to take risks!" Trucy jumped up to stand on the table, a big grin on her face.
Chief Prosecutor Edgeworth crossed his arms and frowned "Trucy, please, these tables are not very sturdy."
"Well, if you're gonna make such a sour face..." Trucy was obviously deflated, though she tried to hide it. She jumped off the table to the floor.
"Hey! Chief Prosecutor Edgeworth! Lasciala stare!!" Athena jumped angrily to Trucy's defense. She was just having fun, why did he have to be such a joy-killer? But a scary cold glare from the Chief Prosecutor shut her up "Hey, um..." she tried to change the subject "What was all that screaming about earlier. I mean, I know Apollo can be loud and the case is going pretty bad, but..."
"Um..." the Chief Prosecutor's stoic and serious attitude was gone in an instant, leaving him looking… just kinda weird. Weird and panicky.
"Oh, I bet Polly walked on Daddy and Mr. Edgeworth being all affectionate and cute with each other," Trucy said confidently and nonchalantly.
"Pfft, yeah, très drôle, good one, Tru-" Athena started to say with an eye roll. The Chief Prosecutor? Affectionate? Yeah right. She thought, or at least until she turned her head and noticed Chief Prosecutor Edgeworth looking at Trucy with quiet panic and embarrassment in his eyes.
"Good deduction, Truce!" Mr. Wright suddenly popped out from his office "you're getting good at this!" He patted his daughter on the head.
"Okay, Trucy!" Apollo shouted as he ran out of Mr. Wright's office "Quick! We need to search the train station again! And we'll need one of your trained pigeons to-"
Trucy nodded and they ran out of the WAA offices, Apollo explaining Mr. Wright's new defense strategy on the way.
Athena moved her attention from her panicked co-workers to the nervous Chief Prosecutor still standing in the middle of the office.
She looked at Chief Prosecutor Edgeworth and then at her boss, then back at the Chief Prosecutor "I can't believe Trucy was right about you two being all cute." She said, more to herself than to anyone else.
"Ms. Cykes!" Chief Prosecutor Edgeworth tried to sound scolding and serious, but all Athena could hear was his embarrassment.
"Look, Athena, I'm sure we can all tell this subject is making Edgeworth uncomfortable," Mr. Wright said, quickly encouraging his boyfriend back into his office "we really should leave it at this, and never talk about it again."
They exchanged an understanding nod and Mr. Wright entered his office and closed his office door loudly.
There were a few minutes of silence, as Athena wondered whatever she should go back to sleep or work on those bookshelves the boss was supposed to sort out. And just as she decided on a nap, Mr. Wright popped back from his office.
"Oh, and next time any of you kids need my help," he said, "please knock first."
W-Why…? Oh, of course "You got it, boss!" Athena said with a suggestive wink.
"It's nothing like... um..." Mr. Wright half-chuckled "Edgeworth's been doing nothing but complain about how rude and improper it is to barge in without knocking for the last five minutes."
Athena heard the slight creak of Mr. Wright's office door opening. She looked up from the phone game she's being playing for at least an hour or so.
"And with that, I will be taking my leave." Chief Prosecutor Edgeworth said as he exited the room "Farewell, Wright." He wasn't panicky and stressed anymore. He seemed (and more importantly to Athena, sounded) as calm and collected as he usually is.
Mr. Wright leaned on the office's doorframe "See you soon, Edgeworth." He said with a smile.
"Thank you again," Chief Prosecutor Edgeworth said, his voice a little bit softer "you have been a great help to me today."
"Always glad to lend you a hand in improving our legal system." Mr. Wright's smiled widened.
As soon as the Chief Prosecutor left the Wright Anything Agency and closed the door behind him, Mr. Wright turned sharply to Athena. "So, you really couldn't believe me and Edgeworth were being cute in there?" He asked, his voice wasn't angry or offended - he mostly sounded curious, and… okay, maybe a little hurt.
"Oh, um..." Athena took a second to remember what she said an hour ago "...not...really...no, I really couldn't." she knew she pretty much stuck her foot in her mouth but decided it's probably better to just go through with it than to embarrass herself more by trying and failing to wriggle out of it.
Mr. Wright looked with a curious expression, urging her to continue.
"I mean, it's... it's Chief Prosecutor Edgeworth, pour l'amour de Dieu!" Athena said, "He's as far removed from cute as I can imagine!" He talks like if Mr. Spock swallowed a thesaurus, he's dressed up like a vampire 24\7 and he always act like everything fun is personally interrupting the stupid posh tea party he has in his head!
"Aren't you best friends with Prosecutor Blackquill?" Mr. Wright asked, hands on his hips. "The six-feet tall guy with the samurai sword collection and the trained attack-hawk?"
"Hey, at least Simon doesn't have the world's biggest stick up his butt!" Athena said, defensive of her friend "Simon knows how have fun!"
"At least Edgeworth never threatened to literally stab me with a literal sword." Mr. Wright said "Prosecutor Blackquill has that scary violent streak…"
"That's what makes 'im fun, boss!" Athena slammed her fist into her hand for emphasis "Simon's great!" And after a second of thought she added"…But I dunno how he'd be as someone's boyfriend. And you're basically dating a Simon with extra obnoxious-smug and none of the fun parts."
Mr. Wright seemed to think about her comment for a moment "Athena, my point is that people can be very different in public and behind closed doors," he said "that's why I brought up Prosecutor Blackquill. I mean, you're just about the one person who've seen his soft side."
"I guess that's true..." Athena fiddled with her earring "So I guess I'll just have to take your word on the 'Chief Prosecutor Edgeworth is super adorable' angle, boss." She shrugged, though if she ever actually got see him act like that, she'll probably flip out.
-Months Later-
Phoenix squinted as he looked at the document "It looks good enough to me?"
Edgeworth snatched the paper from his hands and looked it over himself, adjusting his glasses. "Mm..." he shook his head, frowning "Yes, you would think that it is 'good enough', now wouldn't you?" he said, his voice dripping with smugness. As he was gently stroking Phoenix's face, "I guess I should have expected that from you, Wright." He kissed Phoenix softly on the cheek before going over the document again.
"Heh," Phoenix half-laughed "have I ever told you you're totally adorable when you get like that?" He asked with a big goofy smile.
"I have no idea what on earth you're talking about, Wright." Edgeworth put his arm around Phoenix and drew himself closer. The cheap swivel chairs in Phoenix's office squeaked. "Nothing I ever do is 'adorable'" he said as he nuzzled his head into Phoenix's chest.
"Oh, you know... when you get like that." Phoenix gestured vaguely at Edgeworth with one hand while playing with his silvery hair with the other "when you suddenly get super abrasive and super cuddly at the same time."
"Hmph...I..." The power of Edgeworth's icy glare was significantly weakened by the warm red blush on his cheeks "I don't believe I ever asked for your opinion, Wright," he grumbled before kissing Phoenix softly on the neck.
Phoenix laughed and gently tagged at Edgeworth's cravat to pull him off his chair and into his lap. Edgeworth allowed his eyes to glaze over Phoenix for a moment before giving him a little peck on the cheek.
"I have never asked for your ridiculous opinion on anything," Edgeworth said, his voice soft and kind, while interlacing their fingers together "and yet here we are."
Phoenix chuckled "and yet here we are." He agreed, leaning his head closer to Edgeworth's, his eyelids suddenly feeling very heavy.
Their lips gently brushed against each other's, preparing for a sweet, soft kiss, when the office door suddenly flung open.
"Hey, boss," Athena said as she walked into the office, her head buried in a case file "I need you to take a look at this-" She raised her head to see her boss and his boyfriend sitting on his lap, almost kissing each other. "Oh, hello, Chief Prosecutor Edgeworth, didn't know you were here." She said, unfazed at the sight - which has become a lot more common since Apollo's incident a few months ago.
In a second, Edgeworth was gone from Phoenix's lap and back in his chair, sitting rigidly and looking absolutely freaked out.
Phoenix was unbothered as Athena, he got up from his chair to check out her file. "Well, you see," Phoenix stroked his chin "maybe we need to turn our thinking around, regarding-" he suddenly stopped, and his eyes went wide as he realized "oh, Edgeworth, you should probably leave for a sec, you being the Chief Prosecutor and all that... You know…"
Edgeworth was still sitting still by the desk, looking like he's just about to scream for three hours straight. Phoenix immediately realized what the matter is. Maybe he and the kids can get numb to the embarrassment of stumbling over him and Edgeworth being affectionate, but Edgeworth, stuffy old Edgeworth, can't. And the fact that he and Athena are being so nonchalant about it is just freaking him out even more. It probably just dawned on him how many times the kids saw us totally making out.
"Hey, Edgeworth," Phoenix said softly, gently touching Edgeworth's shoulder in a manner that he hoped was comforting and wouldn't stress him out more "It would probably be better if we just do our meetings in your office for a while and I promise I'm going to get this damn lock fixed as soon as possible, alright?"
"This is not the most important matter, Wright!" Edgeworth snapped suddenly, getting up from his chair "why can't your subordinates simply learn to knock on your office door once in a while? This is just utter disrespect!" He said in a huff.
"Edgeworth..." Phoenix sighed.
"Um, you know what, boss?" Athena said, backing out of the room "I could probably just ask Apollo, it's not that important anyway." She ran out of her boss' office and closed the door behind her. Sighing a sigh of relief as she avoided the upcoming marital spat.
Phoenix could tell Athena was expecting them to have some sort of long marital spat, but he and Edgeworth actually resolved their issues pretty quickly and went back to work, with only the occasional teasing (unfortunately, the whole debacle meant Edgeworth was no longer in the mood to cuddle and smooch). And, sadly, soon it was time for Edgeworth to leave.
"I really would have loved to stay, Wright." Edgeworth said, checking his watch "but I have some meetings to attend this afternoon." He signed "sends Trucy my congratulations for her upcoming televised performance."
"Sure thing, Edgeworth." Said Phoenix, smiling.
Edgeworth looked at Phoenix's smile, thought for a moment, and then gave him one light kiss on the lips to say goodbye. "As always, it's been a pleasure, Wright," he said before leaving the office.
Phoenix waved him goodbye with an idiotic dreamy look on his face.