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“Come in,” Klavier’s pavlovian response called to a knock at his door. He stared through the documents in front of him, clicking his pen to a familiar rhythm while one of his boots tapped offbeat.
Me? Miss a cue!? How could I conceivably get the most important part of that song wrong? How!?
He got a lot more than a cue wrong. Klavier clicked his pen with more force.
“Uh… Prosecutor Gavin?”
Klavier raised his head to see Apollo Justice in the doorway, his back comically stiff and his hands clutching a manila folder. His usual scrappiness was replaced with hesitance and a scrutinizing stare. Klavier forced on his artificial smile. “Ah, Herr Justice. It is a pleasure to see you.”
It was less pleasant and more staring into the sun, but he wasn’t one to be rude to guests, especially not Apollo. He couldn’t help that his luminosity shook Klavier to his core.
“You too, I guess. I had to drop off a file with the records people and uh…” Apollo’s unwavering gaze now turned to his office, wandering between furniture and Klavier’s face. “I decided to drop in. I realize now you’re probably super busy and aren’t open to social calls or anything so uh I’ll-”
Klavier’s grin grew wide and he pivoted in his chair, resting his chin on his hand. “Moment mal, Herr Justice, did I hear that correctly? You came here of your own volition, and without Fraulein Magician with you? Is the world turning upside down out there?”
“Hardy har. No, I just…” The folder in Apollo’s hands crinkled as he clutched it closer, Klavier preferring to focus on that rather than the way he worried his lower lip. “Well, we didn’t get to talk after last week’s trial and I wanted to make up for it, I guess.”
Klavier’s facade faltered a moment, but he waved it off with the lilt of a joke in his voice. “Mm. Yes, in that case, congrats on besting me once again, Herr Justice. Give Frau Misham my sincerest apologies and well-wishes next time you see her.”
“I- I didn’t want praise, Gavin.” Klavier raised an eyebrow, but Apollo seemed steadfast in his assertion. “I wanted to make sure you were all right.”
Klavier turned to the forms on his desk as the silence between them grew too loud. “You don’t need to worry about me. Truth does not waver for any man. I am firm in the jury’s decision and my path as a prosecutor.”
“...Okay.”
“You might want to run that file down to Cheryl before lunch. If you hold her from from her Chicken Burrito Bowl she will flay you. Trust me, I know from personal experience.” Klavier tapped the end of his pen on the desk, now able to read the previously illegible documents.
“Right. I’ll uh… I’ll see you later, Prosecutor Gavin.”
His office door paused mid-creak.
“Gavin.”
Klavier glanced up, and Apollo’s eyes bore into him like searchlights.
“If you want to talk, I’m… If you ever need me I’m at the Agency most days, and you can always call since I’m playing secretary now.”
Klavier huffed out a laugh. “Thank you, Mister Justice. I will keep it in mind.”
Apollo gave a firm nod as the door shut with a solid thunk and click. Klavier stared at his afterimage, throat closed in a way that was unbecoming of any professional speaker. Was he Icarus, trying so hard to escape his complacency with the people around him that he’d rather burn up in the heat of Apollo’s integrity? Or was he Eurydice, so trusting that when they reached daylight Apollo, too, would betray him, and he’d be drug back to his own personal hell?
Klavier groaned and considered smashing his face into one of his speakers.
--
“Prosecutor Gavin!” Cheered a girl across the courthouse.
Klavier glanced up from the case file he was hiding behind. His hair wasn’t done. His make-up was a mess, what little there was. His usual court suit was rumpled and hadn’t been dry-cleaned in too long. His patience was thin.
“Truce, don’t scream at him-” Apollo said in a sorry excuse for a whisper as Trucy dragged him into the corner Klavier was hibernating in. Even in this state, Klavier had to admit the man was radiant.
“Prosecutor Gavin, how are you?” She screamed at him more.
Klavier waited until the duo made a wall between him and the general populace before snapping the case file closed. He let it drop to his lap as he put on a grin. “Ah, if it isn’t my favorite Fraulein and her lovely assistant. I am perfectly well, thank you for asking.”
Their matching grimaces told him that wasn’t landing. Was he that catastrophic?
Klavier combed a hand through his hair and smiled harder. “Well, as well as one can be. Prosecutor Payne has gotten quite ill so I am taking on his caseload alongside my own until he’s fit enough to return.”
“That’s a lot.” Apollo’s frown deepened. “Are you sure you can handle all that?”
“Yes, well, he likely would have lost them anyway.” Klavier’s grin didn’t falter. “The man never prepares for a case or talks to his detectives during the investigation, so having a competent lawyer filling in for him will be quite the win for the judicial system as a whole, I’m sure.”
“Tell us how you really feel,” Trucy giggled. “Man, I can’t imagine having multiple trials a day. That has to be hard to keep track of.”
Apollo’s attentive eyes flicked over Klavier like he was a witness on the stand. Probably appalled at whatever display this was. Klavier shifted in his seat and arched an eyebrow. “Indeed it is. But I can handle it. I do not have my music to distract me anymore, so these shall be a breeze, Fraulein. Now, what brings you to the courtroom today?”
Trucy launched into the epic tale of their trial, the ups and downs with the evidence, the witnesses, and the prosecutor. Klavier made a valiant attempt to follow along with the intimate knowledge that holes were being stared into him. By the time Trucy announced the verdict, Klavier felt like he was an exhibitionist. As she bounced away, dragging the great eye of Apollo Justice with her, he slumped against the wall and once again shielded himself with his case files.
--
“There’s something wrong with Gavin,” Apollo said over their victory noodles, of which he had already conceded a good portion to Trucy.
She rolled her eyes. “Duh, Polly. He was the epitome of a glamorous, sexy hangover.”
“He had so many tells that I was about to have a migraine,” Apollo glared at nothing in particular as he chewed on the end of a disposable chopstick.
“And here I thought you were ogling his golden locks and natural beauty,” Trucy cooed as she snuck another shiitake from his bowl.
Apollo side-eyed her. “You read too much fanfiction. I’m telling Ms. Fey it’s having a negative impact on you.”
“Nooo, she gives the best recs,” Trucy whined, “Fine, his body language was pretty overwhelming. Plus that comment about prosecutor Payne?”
Apollo smirked. “He wasn’t wrong.”
“I haven’t seen him be that harsh since the Guilty as Charged concert.” Trucy pursed her lips and tapped her chin. “It’s weird for him to be acting like that in court, isn’t it? Since that’s more of his music persona?”
“Yeah, now that you mention it. He’s a lot more even-keeled in the courtroom,” Apollo conceded. They slurped thoughtfully on noodles for a moment. He sighed and admitted, “I told him I was available to talk whenever he wanted to, but he never took me up on it.”
“What? When?”
“When I turned in the report for the Misham case,” Apollo said, hoping the heat in his cheeks wasn’t showing through, “You should have seen him, Truce, he looked miserable until he noticed I was there. Even then his usual rockstar persona or whatever felt… wrong.”
Trucy pouted. “I can’t believe you went to see him without me.”
“Not the point.”
“Well, it doesn’t sound any different from today! Maybe he needs some more time to think?”
Apollo shook his head. “He was a lot worse today, and I don’t think having double the caseload will let him think.”
Trucy puffed out a cheek and tapped her chopsticks on the side of her bowl, scowling into the salty broth like it would show her things that were, things that are and things that have not yet come to pass. She let out a lungful of air before resting her head on the grimy outdoor table. “I don’t know, Polly. This has to be a lot to process. It took me forever before I was over my dad, and if Daddy pried I’d always get super mad. I don’t want Prosecutor Gavin shoving us out of his life because we meddled. Ugh, I can’t believe you got me to say we shouldn’t meddle!”
“Sorry,” It was Apollo’s turn to stare pensively into his noodles. “I get it, Truce. We can’t push him. But we can’t do nothing either, the guy’s spiraling right in front of us.”
And then for once, after a long, salty instant, Apollo got a pretty good idea.
--
As soon as Klavier slammed the courthouse doors behind him, Apollo pounced.
“Prosecutor Gavin,” He said as he matched him pace for pace, though Klavier was definitely trying to use his height advantage to get some extra mileage.
“You two are like paparazzi and cockroaches, showing up in unexpected places at inconvenient times.” Klavier inclined his head, peeking over his Prada sunglasses to examine Apollo. “Nevermind. You are alone. I shall leave the Fraulein out of this simile, in that case. That being said, you won your case this morning, Forehead, and I know you don’t have that report ready yet so please bother some other poor prosecutor until I feel sociable again.”
Apollo winced. If he’d somehow forgotten that Kristoph and Klavier were related, that certainly reminded him. Instead, he noted, “You put on makeup.”
“Ja, I snuck out during a recess and put some on for my other trials. Thank you for noticing that I don’t resemble Frankenstein’s monster anymore.” Klavier took a sharp left towards the parking garage and Apollo followed. Klavier’s lip gave the barest hint of a twitch up. Apollo considered it a win.
“You didn’t look bad without it. I think you’re used to stage makeup so you put it on kind of heavy.” One of Klavier’s eyebrows arched high above his glasses. “I-It’s not a bad thing! Just a performer thing. Trucy does it, too.”
“Hm,” was all he got in response.
Apollo cleared his throat. “You didn’t look bad at all today, honestly, you just looked different. I’m sorry if we made you self-conscious or… something.”
“Is that so?” Klavier’s smirk turned into a genuine, fond smile and he let out a chuckle that sounded more like a sigh. “All right, all right. Stop dancing, Herr Justice, you have complimented me enough to thaw my mood. What do you need?”
“Well. Uh. You know. I was wondering if you wanted to go on a drive with me?” Apollo laughed too, scratching the nape of his neck in an attempt to act casual. Or less flustered. Maybe both. “You don’t have to, you just seem like you have a lot on your plate, and maybe you’d want to take a break.”
Klavier stopped and Apollo slammed on his own internal breaks. In a fluid motion, Klavier swept his bangs back and slid his shades off, revealing red-rimmed and laser-focused eyes. Was this what his cross-examinations felt like? Jesus. Klavier bit his lip for a microsecond before he asked, “Apollo, are you proposing a date?”
“Uh,” was Apollo’s eloquent reply, because he had not thought about how this proposition might sound, “Um.”
“Ah. That is answer enough, then.” Klavier’s frown morphed into a small smile, almost elegant in how fine it was. He straightened and replaced his glasses. “A friendly outing. Sure, Herr Justice.”
“Okay. Good. Uh.” Apollo stuttered, still trying to recover.
“Do you need me to drive?” Klavier said too smugly, “If this is a kidnapping, it is going horribly.”
“I-” Apollo deflated. “Yes. I’ll give you directions.”
“Natürlich.”
--
“Apollo,” Klavier said as he clambered to the top of another large rock, “I’m wondering why you didn’t mention this would be a hiking trip, considering these Docs aren’t broken in yet.”
“Sorry, Prosecutor Gavin, forgot that this was hard for beginners.” To be fair, he did sound sorry, and Apollo’s arms did look nice when he was clutching rocks for balance. Klavier decided to let it slide. “We’re almost there, anyway.”
“Ach, that is what you said two boulders ago.”
“It’s better than doing Payne’s paperwork, right?”
Klavier rolled his eyes up to the grey, overcast heavens and hoped someone commiserated with him on this horrible, weird, day. Yes, he won all of his cases, yes, he found the truth, yes, he was having a not-date with Justice, but at what cost?
Klavier bumped into Apollo and blinked back to reality.
“Scheisse,” He murmured.
“Yeah. We’re here.”
Great, burnt orange mountains sat around them, settled into the trees and shrubs that littered their bases. A rocky beach cut through the greenery, protecting a large lake that reflected the mountains’ peaks and cloudy sky. Large boulders sat against the water, unbothered by the threat of erosion.
Apollo made a beeline for the biggest one, sticking out far enough that it could act as a dock. He sat at the edge and kicked his feet, the presence that usually took up an entire courtroom pared down with such a simple gesture. He threw Klavier a smile and nodded him over. “Come on, man.”
Klavier trekked over, attempting to be suave while losing his balance on uneven terrain. Not tempting himself with unnecessary proximity, he perched a few feet away from Apollo. His legs dangled above the water, just close enough that he sent out a ripple with each small kick he made. The hum of nature was quiet compared to the city, and Klavier was almost overwhelmed with the lack of distractions.
“So why here, Forehead, and not some hole in the wall?” Klavier turned to Apollo, the only thing here that didn’t remind him of how empty he was. To Apollo, whose eyelashes laid against his freckles, dotted like sunspots across the soft curve of his cheek and the strong set of his jaw. To Apollo, who seemed completely at ease.
Apollo opened an eye and Klavier swallowed, because yes, once again he was staring at the sun. Klavier couldn’t help his endearment though, it was impossible not to be drawn to Apollo’s boldness, or trust the light he brought to every situation. Once again Klavier asked himself: would he be Icarus, or would he be Eurydice? Apollo gave him the same fiery smirk he’s throw out in the courtroom, but their proximity made it all that more intense. Hubris, or betrayal? Betrayal, or hubris? “This is a lot more introspective, don’t you think?”
Klavier’s mouth twitched, and for the first time out of court, he wondered if Apollo could read minds. “I did not take you for a psychologist.”
“I’m not. I found this place during a field trip when I was going through… things. Y’know, average high school stuff.” Apollo frowned. He picked up a pebble and chucked it into the lake. “I realized I was a kid in a big world, and that moment in life was a small one. It was a moment I had to deal with, but it was still just a moment. Gave me some perspective.”
Klavier hesitated and threw his own pebble, gaining more height but falling short distance-wise. Apollo tossed another, and Klavier responded in kind, and they continued like that for a moment.
“I came out here after… after my first case. It helped then, too,” Apollo said after Klavier had lost their pebble throwing contest four out of five times. “My car shit out after that, so I haven’t been able to come back until now.”
“Did you find any more life-changing perspective?” Klavier asked. Any advice having to do with Kristoph being in jail was welcome at this point.
Apollo gave a lopsided smile and rubbed at his neck. “Nah. Mostly yelled a lot.”
“Yelled?”
Apollo grinned and hopped up, positioning himself at the head of the boulder. With a deep breath, he bellowed, “I’M APOLLO JUSTICE AND I’M FINE!”
Bushes rustled, birds fled, and Klavier doubled over wheezing.
“Don’t laugh, it really helps!” Apollo gave Klavier a light kick to the side with a snort. “Come on, try it.”
Klavier shook his head, still chuckling as he asked, “What do I even say?”
“Whatever you want. That one’s my go-to, but you could yell about what you’re feeling. I won’t listen if you don’t want me to.”
Klavier pursed his lips and stood. He tapped a damp Doc Marten on the rock and stared into his vacillating reflection, the water making him dull and amorphous. After a moment he shooed Apollo away from the peak of the boulder, Justice giving him a facetious bow as he stepped away. Klavier rolled his eyes and got into his favorite concert power stance. It probably looked silly without a guitar. He forced himself not to care.
“I am Klavier Gavin! Fuck the bastards I thought I knew, and fuck everyone who thinks they know me! I’m a rockstar, I’m a prosecutor, and I’m fucking fine! Flachwichser! Arschgeige! Geh zum Teufel!”
Klavier sucked in a breath as he straightened up, not realizing how far forward he’d bent. It felt like he was on his own stage, an audience of the world and Apollo, who somehow didn’t matter more than what he was howling. He glanced over to his friend, who placed a careful hand on his back.
“You have amazing breath control,” was all Apollo said.
Klavier chuckled, “Ja, thank the concerts for that one. I cannot match you in volume, though, somehow.”
“It’s taken years of practice. Trust me, one day you’ll get there.” Apollo laughed.
As they sat back down, the sky finally decided to open with a generous sprinkle. Klavier thought as their reflections melted into the ripples of raindrops. “You were right about feeling better.”
“Yeah?”
“Yes. It’s less of a burden. But it still hurts.” Klavier tucked his knees against his chest and leaned his head on them. He closed his eyes and felt the raw, hollow feeling in his ribcage for the first time in months. “I… should probably talk to someone.”
“Yeah,” Apollo agreed, his voice soft and almost proud. This must have been his plan all along, then.
Klavier couldn’t find it in him to care too much. “Yeah.”
When the taps of raindrops turned into a steady pour, they decided to head back to civilization. The trail from their remote lake to the parking lot was small and covered in leaves, but Apollo trudged onwards like he was born in these woods. He took the lead and took it well, Klavier following behind like an emotionally unstable duckling. Apollo pointed out good footholds and spots to avoid, Klavier teased him about his hair being ruined.
Apollo was telling him off, something about environmentally friendly hair gel, when Klavier stumbled. Tripping was not something that Klavier Gavin did, but it turned out focusing on the harsh yet dulcet tones of an annoyed attorney and not focusing on the road ahead led to such things. He at least the good sense to brace himself for impact.
Impact, which came in the form of firm hands steadying him. Klavier looked up to find Apollo’s earnest doe eyes staring right back at him. Once he was sure they weren’t going to fall he relaxed and squeezed Klavier’s arm.
“You alright, Gavin?”
And Klavier realized that one can be both Icarus and Eurydice all at once, too close to the sun yet so close to the surface, falling, either way, into hell for no better reason than lovesickness.
Good going, Icarus, you flew too close to the sun and now you’re burned.
Sorry, Eurydice, he was too kind for you to ever surface from the underworld.
Hubris or betrayal, did it matter if it was going to end the same way?
“Klavier?”
“Ja. I’m alright. Thank you, Apollo.”
The drive back was contemplative as nature morphed into cityscape, only livening up at dinner in a roadside pub and when Klavier dropped Apollo off. As soon as Klavier got home he shucked his clothes and collapsed on his bed, completely engrossed in his ceiling as he thought. He sat in the dark and despite everything, he hoped.
If there was anyone who could turnabout a tragedy, it had to be Apollo Justice.