Archive of Our Own ^beta

It’s been eight months since Phoenix has adopted Trucy, and he still has no clue what he is doing.

At first, it was excusable, he thinks. Other than his brief caring for Pearls, he’d had no experience with taking care of kids. He was an only child growing up, and he never had little cousins to watch over during family events, seeing as he was the youngest. When Trucy came along, he was thoroughly lost. Combined with the grief of losing his badge, he honestly was a god awful dad at first. He was distant and anxious, afraid of what the future held, and Trucy was waiting up for a father that would never come home.

She liked him now, he’s…decently sure of that. Would bet maybe five dollars on it. She was kind, energetic- yet polite. A bright light in the otherwise dark eight months he’s had since formally adopting her. He’s just not sure if he’s doing as much as he could. What if she secretly hated him, and he was the worst father ever and-

Okay, stop that line of thinking where it’s at. Distantly, he does know Trucy cares for him as much as he does her. And, more importantly, things are good at the moment. They, at the very least, communicate with each other a lot more than they initially did!

Except for this morning.

Phoenix figures it’s because it’s a Monday, and she always has math tests on Mondays. It would explain her quiet, muted nature as he put waffles in the toaster oven and cut up an apple for her breakfast, though it didn’t explain the red rimmed eyes or splotchy cheeks.

“Everything okay, Trucy?” He asked, putting the food on a plate before handing it to her. She shrugged.

“Can I eat on the couch?”

Phoenix wants to say no, because the couch is also technically his bed, and Trucy hasn’t mastered the art of not getting crumbs everywhere. But, he also can’t say no to the downright pitiful look she’s giving him.

“Go right ahead, kiddo.”

She smiles tightly. “Thank you, daddy.”

Trucy leaves the kitchen, which gives Phoenix the time to brew the worst cup of instant coffee possible. He was never a fan of coffee before, even less so after having a cup thrown on him whenever Godot felt like he could spare one in court, but it’s given him something warm to wrap his hands around as the days begin to cool down considerably (or as cool as things can get in LA).

Shortly after, he joins Trucy on the couch. She’s slumped, chewing on her waffle as she watches some sort of cartoon. She acknowledges him with nothing more than a small smile before turning back to the TV.

“…You excited for school to be out in a few weeks?” He asks, trying to fill the silence with some kind of conversation.

“Mhm,” She nods, now moving on to eating her apples.

“Is there anything you wanna do?” He asks.

She shrugs, keeping her eyes on the TV. “I dunno.”

“If you think of something, let me know and I can take the day off!” He suggests. He can’t really afford to take a day off, but that’s a problem for future Phoenix.

It’s quiet for a while after that, spared from the sound of Trucy chewing on her apples and Phoenix sipping from his mug. Eventually, whatever show Trucy was watching goes into a commercial break, playing some kind of commercial for a holiday special of Steel Samurai. She has this worried look on her face as she stares at the screen, before glancing at him.

“…Daddy?”

“What’s up, Truce?” He sets down his mug on the coffee table, not caring that there isn’t a coaster to place it on.

“Does Santa know that I moved?”

Phoenix falters, if just for a moment, before answering. “Why do you ask?”

“I moved far from home.” She pouts, and for a moment, Phoenix is worried that she’s about to cry. “And you don’t have any decorations up. How’s he gonna know where to stop?”

Not knowing what else to say, Phoenix comes up with what he thinks Trucy would want to hear. “Santa knows everything, kiddo. I’m sure he knows where you’re at now.”

Trucy nods, definitely not fully convinced. He knows he can’t let the conversation end there, because clearly this is what has had Trucy in whatever mood she was in now.

“…Did you and your dad celebrate Christmas?”

She nods, looking down at her hands. Even now, Trucy still didn’t like talking about her dad. Sometimes, she’d say that she didn’t want Phoenix to feel bad, but he knows that it more has to do with the fact that she had been legally abandoned by him.

“Do you?” She asks.

“Uh, yeah!” He lies quickly. It’s not that he didn’t celebrate, but he also doesn’t celebrate in a traditional sense. Pearl didn’t grow up believing in Santa, meaning he had little reason to decorate his apartment or the office. Beyond giving a few gifts, and receiving far fewer…he didn’t really do much. "I just, uh, didn’t know if you did. So I didn’t want to do anything if you weren’t comfortable with it.”

Trucy says nothing at this, just continues to stare at her hands. Phoenix sighs. This was the difficult part of parenting a decidedly traumatized kid; she had trouble opening up to him at times.

“Would it make you happy if we did something? For Christmas, I mean.”

“…Kinda, yeah,” She admits. “But I don’t wanna make it-”

“Nope, nope, none of that.” He stops her before she can say something silly like ‘I don’t wanna inconvenience you’. “If it’ll make you happy, I’ll do anything you want me to, Trucy.”

She perks up and there is that award winning smile he’s come to know and love. “Really?”

“Of course, kiddo.” He ruffles her hair affectionately. “Now, let’s get ready for school, yeah? We can figure out all we’re doing after.”

Trucy smiles wide, her happy nature now back as she leaps off the couch, going to her room to get her backpack.

A week later, and Phoenix is quickly beginning to wonder if he’d bitten off more than he could chew.

He doesn’t tell Trucy their money situation because she’s eight and doesn’t need to know those things, but things are looking…tight. They had been since he’d started working at the Borscht Club a few months ago, loathe as he is to admit it to himself. He’d been making do, budgeting to only buy things he and Trucy really needed, but now that he has the added stress of saving up for decorations and gifts, he was seriously struggling (seriously, did a plastic tree and some stupid ornaments have to cost him that much?)

Asking for extra shifts works well enough, at least when Trucy is still in school. Despite technically being a club, the Borscht Bowl is technically open in the daytime, with its more illicit activities happening at night. He makes do with the pianist job during the weekdays, when Trucy is in school or doing magic shows at the children's library, and is always secretly thankful for the ability to do the job he’s actually good at when she’s spending the night at a friends house.

But in another two weeks, Trucy will be off of school for the holidays, which would make it rather difficult to work even his pianist job. Again, she’s only eight, and shouldn’t be left home alone, but it’s also not the smartest idea to bring Trucy into work even in the daytime. He wishes, distantly, that Maya wasn’t so busy so that he could ask her to come on down and watch her, but it’s not necessarily an option at the moment.

He’d just finished dropping Trucy off from the bus stop when his phone rings. He picks it up, recognizing the number as his bosses.

“I need you to work tonight,” She says before he can even so much as get a “hello” in.

“How come? It’s a Tuesday, I don’t work nights on Tuesdays.”

“Phoenix, I’ve heard rumors that some really good gamblers are coming in town for the night for some bullshit competition near us and I need my best guy there. Think of how much money we can make if they come by.”

Phoenix sighs. “Candy, I’d love to, you know I do but-”

“I’m not really asking here, Phoenix.” She pleads. “I’ll give you a bonus if you can come in tonight. Please, please for the love of god come in tonight.”

“The answers still no, Candy,” Phoenix turns to properly get on his street. “I don’t have anyone to watch my kid-”

“Figure something out, then.” She begs. “Look, Phoenix. I know you’re trying to work extra before the holidays, and I respect that so just take the fucking job. Please.”

Phoenix pinches the bridge of his nose. “What time do you need me in by?”

“Four, preferably.” She hums, clearly delighted. “You’ll work piano for a bit, then once the guys come in, you can move downstairs. Unless these guys somehow end up giving you a run for your money, you should be home by eleven.”

“Alright, alright, yeah, that works,” He rambles, thinking over some semblance of a plan in his head. He has enough time to pick up Trucy from her bus stop, get whoever is watching her to come over, leave dinner cooking on the stove, and get to work in that time. It’s a tight schedule, but he can make it work. “Mind if I ask, how much would I be making tonight?”

“I’ll let you keep 70% of whatever you make, plus your time for playing piano.”

“That’s stupid.” He can scarcely believe what she’s telling him. He can make how much money tonight? “You’re barely turning a profit on that-”

“Do you want me to change my mind?” She asks mischievously.

“No, no!” He frets. “Thank you, thank you so much Candy. See you later.”

He hears a laugh. “Buh-bye now.”

He gets inside his apartment shortly after hanging up the call, trying to make out just how much money he could earn from tonight alone. If he plays his cards right (absolutely no pun intended), he could easily make a hundred, maybe two hundred dollars from tonight alone, and that’s not counting his usual money he pulls from shittily playing the piano.

There is, though, the issue of trying to find someone to watch over Trucy while he’s out. He sits down on his couch/bed, scrolling through his contacts to try and find somebody.

He first tries Larry, who’s phone almost immediately goes to voicemail, go figure.

He then tries Gumshoe, because he was good enough when watching Pearls, but he apologizes with a heavy heart stating he has a date with Maggie already planned.

After that, he’s embarrassingly exhausted his options. He could probably call one of Trucy’s friends parents, ask if she can spend the night but he knows he’d be walking on thin ice from there on out with them.

Of course, there’s always…

No, no, absolutely not. He can’t ask him.

…

But he could-

Nope, nope.

…

Ah, fuck it.

Clicking the call button for Edgeworth, he’s pleased that it rings for only two rotations before the other line picks up.

“Wright,” Edgeworth acknowledges. “Is everything okay?”

“Pshh, no yeah, everything’s good.” Phoenix waves his hand dismissively, as if Edgeworth could actually see the action. “Uh, listen, I have a favor to ask, and you’re probably not gonna like it.”

“…Okay?” Edgeworth sounds confused. “I’m sure I won’t mind, but believe whatever you wish to.”

Phoenix hesitates. “I need you to watch Trucy tonight.”

“Wright-” Edgeworth starts.

“I know, I know,” He stresses. “Listen, I got called into work last minute, and I need someone to watch her. I’ll be home by eleven, promise.”

he hears papers rustling on Edgeworths end. “Do I need to do anything major? Take her to any extracurriculars, or such?”

“No, no.” Phoenix taps his foot nervously. “I’ll leave dinner for the both of you guys. Just make sure she does her homework and is in bed by 8:00.”

He hears a sigh from the other end. “What time do you need me over by?”

Phoenix feels a rush of relief wash over him. “I need to be in by four, so maybe 3:30-ish?”

“I’ll be sure to have my work done by then,” Edgeworth concedes.

“Thank you so much, Edgeworth.” Phoenix could just about melt from relief. “You’re the best.”

“Save your breath, Wright.” Edgeworth deadpans. “You know I don’t mind offering you a helping hand when you’ll let me.”

“But you do mind kids. I know you were kinda shit watching Pearls when she would stay with me.”

Edgeworth sputters. “I am not terrible at watching kids! It’s not like I never babysat Franziska growing up.”

Phoenix laughs, rubbing the back of his neck. “I dunno, I just know that Trucy can be a bit of a handful sometimes; she’s got a lot of energy. A sweet kid, but, uh- yeah.”

“I don’t mind, Wright.” Edgeworth sighs heavily. “If you need the help, I’m happy to lend it. I know you’ve certainty a lot on your plate now.”

Phoenix scoffs. “You got that right,”

It’s quiet for a moment before Phoenix decides to speak up. “…Thank you again, Edgeworth.”

“It’s no problem. Uh, I am still at work, so if that’s all..?”

“Right, right! Sorry, see you later,” Phoenix smiles.

“Likewise,” Edgeworth responds before hanging up.

The rest of the day goes by without any major issues. He manages to clean up the apartment a decent amount so that Edgeworth won’t criticize the state of it when he’s over. Around three, he makes his way to the bus stop, already waiting there when the bus pulls up, the brakes screeching their loud, ugly noise. To no one’s surprise, Trucy is the first off the bus, jumping off the steps and running to give him a hug.

“Hey, Truce.” He smiles, ruffling her hair. “Had a good day?”

“A great day!” She beams. “We made fake snow for science today!”

“Fake snow?” Phoenix tries to sound as amazed as he can. “That does seem like a great day!”

She hums. “It was! Daddy?”

“Yes Trucy?”

“Can we go to the park, pretty please? I only have my reading log tonight and I pinky promise to do it when we get back!” She offers, clasping her hands together.

“Sorry Truce, no can do today,” He frowns. “We gotta get home quick. I got called into work tonight, so Mr. Edgeworth will be watching you. You remember him, right?”

Trucy nods. “Mhm! He’s the one who drove us to the place where you adopted me, right?”

“That’s right,” He confirms. “Now, let’s get home before Mr. Edgeworth does,”

“Okay, daddy!” She smiles, grabbing onto his hand as they begin their walk home.

He had to rush to finish his work on time, but Edgeworth manages to get out of the office before three.

The cooling December air is a comforting feeling, so he leaves the windows down in his car as he drives to Wright’s apartment. He’s rather nervous, not having seen either Wright or his daughter since that man had formally adopted her a few months ago, so he’s hoping he doesn’t completely screw this interaction up somehow. It’s the least he can do.

Wright has…done so much for him, to put it lightly. Edgeworth wouldn’t be lying if he were to say that Wright had saved him from one of the darkest moments of his life. He’s happy now- really, and truthfully so. He’d like to think that he’s kinder, even if by just a degree.

Wright doesn’t ask him of much. It’s annoying, honestly. He’s sure that he’s struggling in his own way since his disbarment; with finding work and caring for Trucy. He may not be the best at caring for children (how did Wright put it earlier? He’s “shit” at it?) but he owes Wright this, at the very least. An ease of mind while he’s out working, no doubt to afford the holidays.

He pulls up into the parking lot of Wright’s apartment complex, parking his car and getting out. He climbs up the stairs only to then discover that the man isn’t even home yet. He sighs, putting his hands in his pockets as he watches a few clouds drift over the sky; light and fluffy.

He isn’t waiting for terribly long, hearing Trucy and Wright far before he can actually see them. When he finally does, he locks eyes with Trucy, who begins taking the steps two, three at a time.

“Hi Mr. Edgeworth!” Trucy waves. He smiles tersely.

“Hello, Ms. Trucy. Are you doing alright?”

“Mhm!” She hums, swinging her arms.

“Hey, Edgeworth,” Wright smiles tiredly, going to unlock the front door. He looks…good, all things considered. Hair marginally longer, in desperate need of a shave…but somehow still good. Still Phoenix.

It is no secret to those close to him that Miles Edgeworth had developed feelings for Wright over the past few years. Blooming when he was separated from him as he lived in Europe, and hitting him like a bus when Wright almost killed himself falling off Dusky Bridge. He’d even plan of confessing to the man, maybe with a nice dinner or going out to a movie to pair with the admission of love.

But then the past 8 months had happened. Wright lost his badge and became increasingly more busy with his odd jobs and taking care of his new daughter. They talked less and less, and though his feelings never dimmed, he didn’t think now would be an appropriate time to spring something like that onto Wright. Not when he already had so much on his plate.

The front door unlocks, and Trucy runs inside, slipping off her shoes before collapsing onto the couch. Wright’s apartment had always been small, but Edgeworth swears it loses at least several square feet each time he visits, or perhaps it really has just been that long. The couch has a pillow and a few folded up blankets on it, and Edgeworth hopes its a leftover mess from some movie or game night rather than proof of a current sleeping situation.

“Like I said earlier, I should be home by eleven thirty at the latest,” Wright narrates as he grabs a binder of sheet music, along with a few decks of cards. “That should be it-”

“What are we having for dinner?” Trucy asks, swinging her legs as she digs into her bag, grabbing a handmade paper folder from it. Wright freezes, groaning.

“I knew I was forgetting something,” He says, frustrated. “Uh, let me see what I can make really quick-”

“Don’t worry about it, Wright, I can order us both something.” Edgeworth suggests. He’s not entirely sure anything Phoenix can ‘make really quick’ will be anything particularly good, nor filling. And judging by the way Trucy just beams at the thought of eating out, she’s clearly excited by this offer.

“Are you sure? I can-” Phoenix starts.

“You’re going to be late.” He points out. Wright makes a face.

“Alright, then, I’ll pay you back-”

“None of that.” Edgeworth cuts him off yet again. “Go on, I got things from here.”

Phoenix nods, going by the couch to give Trucy a quick hug.

“Can’t I stay up so you can read me my story?” She makes puppy dog eyes at Phoenix, which Edgeworth tries his hardest not to laugh at.

“If I don’t let you stay up ‘till eleven on the weekend, what makes you think you can do it on a school night?” Phoenix raises a brow. “You gotta get enough sleep tonight Truce, and I’ll be home very late.”

Trucy pouts. “Worth a shot.”

“Thanks again, Edgeworth. You’re the best.” Wright makes a move to hug him before backing away, which he can’t deny he is a bit thankful for. Out of all the love languages, physical touch has got to be his least favorite. He’s lucky Wright is a good enough friend to respect that boundary, despite his main love language being that exact one.

“See you two later,” Wright waves before leaving out the front door, locking it behind himself.

Trucy waves back. “Bye, daddy!”

With Wright out of the house, Trucy moves herself to the kitchen table to do her homework. She’s got one of those old kitchen timers counting down from thirty minutes as she reads aloud Matilda to herself, swinging her legs happily. Edgeworth busies himself with trying to find if Wright has any tea bags, and is woefully disappointed when all he finds are a few hot coco packets and some, frankly awful looking, instant coffee from Dollar Tree.

The timer goes off and soon after, he feels a tug at the hem of his jacket. He looks down, seeing Trucy holding a pen and paper.

“Can you sign my reading log?”

“Shouldn’t your father do that? It says you need a guardians signature.” He holds the paper close to his eyes, annoyed he’d left his glasses in the car he’s too lazy to walk back to.

“Well, he’s not home.” Trucy deadpans.

“Then ask him in the morning?” He raises an eyebrow.

“but I’ll forget! Pretty please, Mr. Edgeworth?”

He does his best not to roll his eyes, taking the pen from the girl as he quickly scrawls his signature; neat and elegant.

“Thank you!” She smiles wide as he hands it back to her, the young child moving to shove the paper back in her folder.

“Is that all the homework you had?” He feels the need to ask this. He doesn’t know what kind of student Trucy is, considering how little he knows about the girl, and needs to have at least some peace of mind he’s doing things alright.

“Yep!” She says, popping the ‘p’. “I’m gonna go practice my magic tricks in my room.”

“Be careful,” Edgeworth says as she runs from the kitchen to down the hall. He peers down, watching to see her enter what used to be Wright’s room- and, oh, guess the couch was indicative of something after all.

The afternoon slowly ebbs into evening, and Edgeworth had busied himself with a book he’d found on the coffee table (which unfortunately, also seems to serve as both a nightstand for Wright and as a final resting place for a half finished puzzle). It’s some kind of cheesy mystery novel, which is never something he personally would have gone for, but he can understand the appeal it’d have to Wright. As he’s wrapping up a chapter, he hears small footsteps padding from down the hall, stopping just behind the couch. He turns around, seeing Trucy standing there.

“Are you getting hungry?” He guesses. Trucy nods.

“Alright, is there anything you want?”

“I dunno,” She shrugs. “Me and my daddy don’t eat out a lot, I dunno what there is around here.”

Edgeworth thinks for a moment, trying to remember any of the spots near the area. There’s some shifty noodle cart just down the street, but he can’t say he’s ever been fond of the place the few times Phoenix had taken him there for lunch when he was still a lawyer. Of course, there’s always some cheap place like McDonald's or Jack in the Box, but he’d feel better about himself if he saw Trucy eat some form of fruit or vegetable.

“How do you feel about pho?” He concludes on asking.

“Never had it,” Trucy says, to which he finds himself pulling up a menu to a place nearby. Trucy’s eyes widen.

“That looks yummy! Can we get it?”

Edgeworth nods. “I’ll deliver it to here so we don’t have to leave the house.”

Twenty minutes later, and they’re both seated at the dinner table, slurping on fat rice noodles and sharing an order of gỏi cuốn. The warm soup is delightful on the otherwise cool day, filling him with warmth to his core. Judging by Trucy’s happy face, he’s sure she feels the same way.

“You have very good taste, Mr. Edgeworth!” She comments after a while of them sitting in silence. “I think my daddy would like this. He likes soup, but we normally get the star one from the red can.”

Edgeworth nods, blowing on his noodles before eating. “I’ll be sure to keep that in mind.”

Trucy goes back to eating her Pho, lost in her own little world. Edgeworth feels a bit awkward, as he doesn’t know what to say to the girl. Normally, silence doesn’t bother him in the slightest. He and Franziska were more than comfortable eating entire meals without saying a word to each other, whilst both Gumshoe and and Wright did more of the talking while he did more of the listening.

But it felt different with Trucy, since he can clearly see her brimming with energy yet isn’t saying much. Is it him? Does he not look approachable? Has he done something- in the brief interactions they had today- to upset her? God, he’s getting in over his head again. Maybe Wright wasn’t unjustified in saying that he was terrible with kids.

“Mr. Edgeworth?” Trucy calls. In his reminiscing, he failed to notice that she had left the table to open the fridge.

“What is it, Trucy?”

“Can we make these?” She holds up a box of those Pillsberry cookies; the one’s with the little Christmas trees on them. “My daddy bought them, but we haven’t had time to make them, and the ex-pir-a-tion date is soon,” She has to sound out the syllables to say the word correctly, but she manages alright.

“I’m assuming he bought those for you two to make together,” He notes. “How long are they good for?”

“Another two weeks,” Trucy frowns.

“Maybe you’ll make them together on your winter break?” He suggests. “‘Two weeks’ isn’t very soon, as far as expiration dates go.”

“But what if my daddy wants to come home to cookies after work?” She counters.

“Objection, I think you just want cookies.” Edgeworth has to admit, this banter is rather fun, and he’s not finding himself as annoyed as he thought he’d be.

“Pleaseeee?” She begs, giving him the same puppy dog eyes she’d attempted on Wright earlier. Edgeworth would like to think he’s better than that man in a lot of petty, non-important aspects, but even he can’t say no to the look the child's currently giving him.

He sighs. “Let’s clean up the table first.”

Trucy gives out a delighted cheer, putting the box of cookies down on the counter before rushing over to the table to help with the clean up. There isn’t much, spared for throwing away his empty bowl and putting the top back on Trucy’s so that she can bring the rest for lunch the next day. After helping the girl up to wash her hands in the sink, he had her show him where the cookie sheets were kept, along with how to work Wright’s archaic oven.

Now standing on a kitchen chair, Trucy hums a happy little tune as she picks the cookies apart, placing them on the sheets. Edgeworth is more supervising her than anything else, with his only help being putting the cookies into the oven so she doesn’t burn herself.

They set a timer, both of them now waiting at the dinner table again as the smell of sugar cookies fills the tiny apartment. Edgeworth is idly scrolling through his email when Trucy speaks up suddenly.

“My daddy talks about you a lot.”

“He does?” He raises a brow, caught a little off guard.

“Mhm,” She swings her legs back and forth; it seems as though that’s a habit of hers, or perhaps she’s picked up Wright’s inability to stay still. “He said he was happy you could watch me on ‘short notice’,” She makes her voice drop an octave as she said that, trying to mimic Wright’s voice.

“It’s no issue,” He says. “I wouldn’t have been doing anything tonight other than work.”

“That’s boring.” She sticks out her tongue.

“Work often is,” He muses.

“Not the work I wanna do! I wanna be a famous magician when I grow up!”

He can’t help but smile faintly at that. Her joy is rather contagious, he’s finding out. “I’m sure you’ll find some way to make that work.”

“Oh, I do!” She beams. “I practice my magic tricks all the time! My daddy says I’m getting really good at them. I should show you!”

The timer dings only a few minutes later, and he carefully takes the cookies out of the oven. He has to remind Trucy several times that yes, they’re still too hot to eat. But, the second he gives her the okay, she’s already got two of them in her mouth. He grabs one too, plopping the whole thing in his mouth whole. They’re cheap, mass produced cookies, but that’s sort of the appeal. It faintly reminds him of being younger- much younger, back when his father was still alive- and making these with Larry and Wright.

“Thank you so much Mr. Edgeworth!” Trucy grins from ear to ear.

“Like I said,” He takes another cookie from the tray. “It’s no issue at all.”

The rest of the evening goes…surprisingly well after that. Trucy moves her magic equipment from her room to the living room, trying to give him a demonstration of each one of her tricks. He smiles and claps politely, and he can’t deny that some of the tricks are rather clever. For the life of him, he couldn’t figure out how the Mr. Hat trick worked. Where does she even hide that giant thing?

But soon, he can tell the girl is getting tired; yawning and rubbing her eyes every so often. He gets her ready for bed (again, more so watching over her than anything else. She’s rather independent, and he’s not sure if that’s due to how Wright is raising her, or is something spawned from her admittedly terrible life). He tucks her in, make sure her nightlights on, then quietly closes the door to her room.

He’s about a third of the way into the shitty detective novel when he hears the front lock click open. He looks up just in time to see Wright enter the house cautiously. He waves as he slips off his shoes by the door.

“Hey Edgeworth,” He whispered. “Everything go okay?”

“More than okay,” He confirms. “You’re right, she’s a sweet kid.”

Wright lets out what he hopes isn’t a sigh of relief. “That’s good to hear. I’m sorry again for springing this on you. I know it was really last minute.”

“And for the umpteenth time, I don’t mind.” He shakes his head. “I’ve told you before, and I’ll say it again. I want to help you any way I can. I know this year hasn’t been easy for you.”

Wright grimaces, “I can handle it on my own, this was just a one time thing.”

Edgeworth raises an eyebrow, saying nothing. Wright turns away. There’s an awkward tension that he’s not sure how to break, so instead, he decides to point out:

“We made cookies while you were out.”

“Really? I don’t think we even have half the ingredients to make those,” The father mumbles under his breath, walking into the kitchen with Edgeworth following behind. When he sees the cookies on the counter, he lets out a laugh, but quickly suppresses it with his hand once he remembers that his daughter is asleep only a room over.

“I was planning on making these with her when she got on break.”

“That’s what I figured, but she just had to make sure you came home to cookies.” Edgeworth responds, sarcasm leaking through his every word.

Wright snickers. “Yep, that sounds like her alright.”

He plucks one of the cookies from the sheet, taking a bite and smiling. “I forgot how good these are.”

“Do you remember-” Edgeworth starts.

“Making these with you and Larry?" Yeah,” Wright smiles fondly. “Didn’t Larry try just sticking the whole box in the oven instead of taking them apart?”

Now Edgeworth is laughing. “I’m surprised we didn’t burn the whole kitchen down that day.”

The two of them stand together in the kitchen, Wright enjoying his share of cookies before putting the rest of them into a Tupperware container. He saves a few in a Ziploc baggie, handing them to Edgeworth.

“Since you don’t want me paying you back for dinner,” He adds. For a moment, their hands stay together, with Wright not having fully placed the baggie into Edgeworths own yet. They don’t say anything, just stand there, looking at each other. Edgeworth looks down at their hands, lightly intertwined, before looking to Wright. The former lawyer flushes, shoving the baggie into his hands as he clears his throat.

“It’s late, Edgeworth, I should let you go. I’m sure you have work in the morning.” Wright sputters. He nods in response.

“That I do,” Edgeworth sighs.

“Thank you, again,” Wright awkwardly rubs the back of his neck, a nervous habit Edgeworth had noticed about him years ago. “I know you’re not always the most, uh- y’know, available person? Like, I’m sure you had a lot to do, so it just, uh, means a lot.”

Edgeworth chuckles lightly. “Don’t worry about it, Wright. Contrary to popular belief, I don’t hate everybody on this planet. Just most people.”

Wright laughs back, leading him out of the kitchen, then out the front door. “Well, I’m glad me and Truce aren’t most people.”

The next time he asks Edgeworth, it’s at least on the weekend, and during the daytime.

It’s only a few days after he first asked the prosecutor, but Phoenix only has so long before Trucy is off for the year. He’s trying to get in as many shifts as humanly possible before he’s put between a rock and a hard place with figuring out child care, after all.

At this point, he’s saved up enough money to justify buying some incandescent string lights that he’s hung around the kitchen and front windows. The way that Trucy’s face lit up once she saw the lights after coming home made his increasingly longer shifts worth it. She seemed so, so happy, so he was glad to know his work was paying off.

When he had been leaving the Borscht Club that Friday night, pocketing his money and his decks of cards, his boss had come up to him, lips pursed in the way they always were before she asked a question.

His boss was this stout lady named Candace Cayne, but everyone in the bar just called her Candy. With thinning hair and even thinner lips, she always had this forever pissed off RBF that genuinely made Phoenix afraid to talk with her during the hiring process. Shockingly, he’d come to learn that she was rather kind, spared for when she had to kick out the occasional rough or rowdy drunk trying to pick a fight.

“Phoenix, my man,” She smiles, shifting her weight so as to rest it all on one leg. “I need you to work tomorrow.”

“Another night shift?” He asks.

“Day. Super quick, super painless, promise.”

“My kids home tomorrow, I can’t-” He says before getting cut off.

“You figured out something last week, pull it again tomorrow.” She cocks her head to the side.

“Is there really no one else you can ask?” He tries to negotiate. He hadn’t had a day off all week, and while he most certainty could use the money…he would also like to see Trucy more than just when they’re eating dinner or when he’s tucking her into bed.

Candy pats his back. “No one can play as terribly as you can.”

He groans, rubbing his face with his hands. “Fine.”

“Thanks! See you tomorrow, 11-4, please.” She smirks before heading back upstairs. He finishes packing up his own things before doing the same.

He’s already calling Edgeworth as he’s walking down the street, shivering in the cold. He’s lucky that in LA, it never snows, but truly nothing can compare to the biting winds of December in SoCal.

“Hey Miles, I have a question.” He starts off saying.

“I have an answer.” The prosecutor responds.

“It’s totally, completely fine if you can’t, but I was wondering if you could watch Trucy again, please? I got called into work tomorrow from 11-4.”

“That’s alright.” Edgeworth says plainly.

“This time I’ll actually remember to make food.” Phoenix adds.

“I don’t mind buying us lunch again. She at least has better taste than you do.”

Phoenix makes a mock noise of offense. “Excuse me? I have great taste.”

“Chef boyardee is still, by far, the most disgusting thing I’ve ever had.” Edgeworth deadpans.

Phoenix huffs out a laugh. “So you’ll do it?”

“Of course.”

“Thank you, Edgeworth, you’re the best. I know Trucy will be happy to see you again, she won’t stop talking about how much fun she had last time.”

There’s a sound of amusement in Edgeworth’s voice when he speaks. “I’m glad. Talk to you later.”

“Nighty night.” He replies just as the phone hangs up. He places his phone back into his pocket, bristling in the cold night air. He tugs his hoodie over his head, walking as quickly as he could. How he longed for Edgeworth to come swooping in with his fancy car so he could warm up his hands with the car heater.

…He’s glad he and Edgeworth had gotten closer the past few years. After spending so long chasing after him- trying to save the boy he once knew, they’d lapsed into a comfortable friendship. A great friendship, even.

He just wishes he didn’t long for more.

He doesn’t know how the crush started, or when. Maybe it was when he’d come back from Europe, or when he defended Iris for him when he was stuck sick at the hospital. Or perhaps he’d always loved him, feelings reeling and rushing in like the tide at the shore.

No matter where it started, it’s kicking his ass now. Thoroughly doing him in. Maybe when this is all said an done with, he can finally grow a pair and ask him out. But right now, his main concern is getting home before he keels over on the road due to the cold.

The next morning, Edgeworth arrives at 10:35 on the dot. Not even halfway up the stairs to Wright’s apartment, he sees their front door open and Trucy come running out.

“Hi Mr. Edgeworth!” She smiles, waiting at the top of the stairs as he continues to climb them. He can’t help but smile this time.

“Hello, Trucy. Is your dad still home?”

“Mhm! He was waiting for you to get here!”

She leads him up to the small apartment, and he is greeted by the sight of Christmas lights adorning the windows. They’re turned off, given the fact that it’s still daylight out, but it’s…cute, almost. Wright is combing through his hair with his hands just as they walk in.

“You’ve decorated the place,” He notices. Wright blushes.

“Uh- yeah, I tried to kinda spruce up the place; get more into the holiday spirit.”

“It’s nice, a bit bland if anything.” Edgeworth jokes.

“You wound me, Edgeworth.” Phoenix sighs dramatically. He grabs his sheet music from the coffee table before turning to Trucy.

“See you, kiddo, don’t cause too much trouble for Mr. Edgeworth, okay?” He ruffles her hair. Trucy giggles, waving him out the door.

“Only just a little trouble, got it!”

Edgeworth laughs- genuinely laughs at her words as Wright closes the door behind himself with a smile. Trucy quickly settles herself on the couch with Edgeworth doing much the same. She turns on the television, watching some kind of Christmas special of Steel Samurai that he definitely isn’t also watching.

The plot is…laughably awful. He supposes he can’t be the biggest judge, seeing as this is a program meant for kids, and the fact that he hasn’t celebrated Christmas in almost two decades. The plot is almost a rip off of How the Grinch Stole Christmas, with the Evil Magistrate trying to ruin Christmas for the Steel Samurai. He and Trucy are both watching in mild humor as the Evil Magistrate tears down the towns Christmas tree when he glances around the apartment, trying to find where Wright had set up his.

Only to discover that there isn’t one to be found.

He doesn’t know why it took him so long to notice that- that’s a huge thing to fail to see- but it’s almost…sad once he does. He might not be a big Christmas person, but Wright has a daughter for Christs sake. He should at least try to-

“Trucy?” He asks once the show goes on its commercial break.

“Mhm?”

“Has your father talked about getting a tree for the place?”

Trucy pauses for a moment. “Yeah! But he said that the store is, uhm, re-stock-ing them, so we have to wait before we get one.”

Knowing Wright, that was him trying to buy himself the time to save up for one. He thinks for a moment, trying to find his way around this. It’s an impulsive decision, and maybe this is proof that Wright has changed him in ways he can’t begin to describe but-

Well, he justifies that Trucy is still a little kid, and if Wright only wants him helping out with his daughter, then this counts. This is just because he wants to ease the weight off of his friend. Nothing more.

“I think I know somewhere that they’ve restocked.” Edgeworth says, and Trucy’s face lights up.

“Seriously? I gotta tell my daddy so-”

“Or, we can go get one right now and surprise him when he gets back?”

“I like the way you think, Mr. Edgeworth!” Trucy grins.

“Go put on your shoes and we can get going.” He gestures, and the girl wastes no time doing exactly so.

They’re in his car in no time at all, en route to a nearby shopping center. Trucy has a delighted look on her face as she messes with the backseat window of his car, and Edgeworth admittedly can’t bare to tell her to stop touching it.

God. What has Wright even done to him.

After a surprisingly short drive (short by LA traffic standards, of course) they walk inside the shopping center. Trucy is holding onto the hem of his coat, clearly a bit overwhelmed. Despite his aforementioned disdain for physical touch, he places a hand on Trucy’s shoulder, making sure she stays close by.

The shopping center is insanely crowded, with hundreds of people trying to buy gifts for their family and friends. Distantly, he hears some local band playing absurdly cheerful Christmas music. It’s…familiar. Reminiscent of a time where the holidays weren’t something he completely dread.

He’s living a bit vicariously through Trucy, seeing how happy she is once she settles with the crowd. They walk together until they find a store selling artificial Christmas trees, grabbing a cart before looking around the store to where the trees are kept. Although Trucy, in her childlike manner, gravitates towards the biggest tree, he redirects her to the ones that’ll actually fit into the apartment.

“This one’s lights are so pretty!” She gushes, pointing at one of the smaller trees. It has different settings, equipped with both the traditional soft-yellow lights, and bright multicolored ones.

“This should fit in the apartment, albeit after moving some stuff around.” He notes to himself. “Is this the one you want?”

“Will my daddy like it?” She asks.

“Knowing him, he’d be happy even with a common house plant.” He deadpans. Trucy giggles.

“You sure seem to know him a whole lot.” She purses her lips.

“I should hope so, I’ve known him since I was about your age.” He sighs, heaving the box into the shopping cart. “Let’s go find some ornaments now, okay?”

Trucy nods, excitedly racing off to the next aisle over, looking over her options with rapt attention. She picks out a few novelty ornaments of rabbits, playing cards, and even one of a piano whilst he concerns himself with getting traditional spherical ones to fill in the tree a bit. By the end of it, they have a perfectly chaotic selection. Just as Christmas should be.

They head to the front to pay, Edgeworth handing the cashier his card without a second glance of the price, more focused on how excited Trucy look at the prospect of finally having a tree in her house.

Perhaps here, he should be having some grand realization about the “true meaning of Christmas” or some bullshit like that, and maybe he does, noting how delighted Trucy is when they struggle to fit the box into his car without blocking his rear view mirror.

Only a few years ago, he would have scoffed (and probably thrown up) at the idea of helping someone out like this, much less the concept of that person being his once rival. But he’s not that same, arrogant man he used to be. Time (and, admittedly, a lot of therapy) has mellowed him out. He’s still an absolute weapon in the courtroom, don’t get him wrong, but he’s…kinder now. Or at least he’d like to think so.

“Mr. Edgeworth?”

“Yes, Trucy?”

“What do you do for Christmas?” She looks at him through the rear view mirror, tilting her head. Edgeworth tries his best not to grimace.

“I don’t celebrate, if I’m being honest.”

“Why?” She asks innocently.

He inhales deeply, trying to find a more age appropriate way of explaining things. “I don’t have the best memories associated with the holiday.”

“Oh.” She fiddles with her seatbelt. “I’m sorry.”

“It’s alright, you didn’t know.” He replies. An awkward silence fills the car for a moment after before Trucy speaks up.

“Maybe you can spend Christmas with us? My daddy said we’re gonna spend the whole day in our pajamas and eat pancakes after we open presents!” She offers. “Then you won’t be sad.”

“Maybe,” He replies. “But wouldn’t you want to spend the day with your father instead?”

“What if my daddy wants to spend the day with you too.” She says cheekily. He sputters, feeling his face heat up.

“What do you mean by that?”

But Trucy doesn’t respond, and instead, stares out the window for the rest of the drive home, humming to herself.

Phoenix is exhausted when he gets off of work. He’d been playing the same damn song for the past couple of hours to the point he never wants to hear a piano again, and he’s got a killer headache brewing in his brain to boot. He wants nothing more than to go home and sleep for the next century, thank you very much.

He unlocks the door, expecting to be greeted with the sight of Trucy putting Edgeworth through one of her many magic routine acts, or perhaps the two baking together instead.

What he finds, instead, is the two of them assembling a Christmas tree together, a few bits of his furniture having been rearranged to make room for it.

“Holy-” Phoenix quickly stops talking, effectively censoring himself. “What’s this?”

“Hi daddy!” She waves excitedly, running up to him. “Look! Mr. Edgeworth bought us a tree!”

“I can see that,” Phoenix is looking at the tree, wide-eyed. “Uh…can I ask why?”

“Would you believe me if I said I noticed you didn’t have one because me and your daughter were watching a Steel Samurai episode?”

Phoenix snorts. “That…tracks actually.”

“Daddy, look!” Trucy grabs onto his hand, leading him to the tree as she points at an ornament of a piano. “I got this ‘cause you play the piano!”

“Oh, and this one!” Trucy points to an ornament shaped like an ace card. “I got ‘cause you play the card games at work.”

“You did?” He asks. “Did you pick out all the other ones too?”

“Mhm!” Trucy beams brighter than the sun. “All the fun orn-a-ments were picked out by me! Mr. Edgeworth got the boring red ones.”

Phoenix ruffles her hair, pressing a kiss to her temple. “You both did a great job! This tree looks amazing!”

Trucy giggles before moving to lay under the tree, staring up at the twinkling lights. Phoenix looks at Edgeworth, gesturing to the kitchen with a nod of his head. Edgeworth rolls his eyes, walking over with Phoenix following behind.

When they’re out of earshot of Trucy, Phoenix whispers to the prosecutor, fiddling with the zipper on his jacket.

“You seriously didn’t have to do that, Edgeworth.”

“I know, but I wanted to.” Edgeworth said softly.

“I was gonna get one, eventually.” He added.

“There’s no shame in needing help, Wright.” Edgeworth points out. “I think you, of all people, should know that.”

He deflates in posture. “But I’ve already made you-”

“Wright, you’ve asked me to babysit twice, it’s not the end of the world for me. I’ve gotten better about my work-life balance, believe it or not. I won’t faint at the idea of not working 24/7.”

That earns a light laugh out of Phoenix. “Point taken…thank you. Seriously.”

Edgeworth smiles, and Phoenix can’t help but feel the fluttery feeling blooming in his stomach. He looks away to avoid embarrassing himself.

“Do you work again tomorrow?”

“No, actually.” He turns back to Edgeworth, pushing down the light feeling inside him. “I was gonna take Trucy to the mall, do one of those mall Santa photo things. I really just need to make sure I get her what she wants for Christmas, so that’s my best shot at finding out without directly asking her.”

“Would you guys need a ride?” Edgeworth offers.

“Edgeworth, I’ve already asked so-”

All the man has to do is raise an eyebrow, giving him a condescending look. Phoenix laughs fondly.

“Alright, alright. Does two work?”

The next morning, Phoenix is shaking Trucy awake gently, he himself having already gotten dressed for the day.

“Time to get up, Truce.” He whispered. “We got a busy day ahead of us.”

His daughter opens one of her eyes, yawning. “You’re not working today?”

“No, you’re stuck with me alllll day today!” He pokes her cheek playfully. She wakes up fully, sitting up with stars in her eyes.

“Really?”

Phoenix ignores the painful twist of guilt in his gut at the fact his daughter was shocked at the thought of him staying home. “Yep! And guess what we’re doing today?”

“What?” She looks up at him with big, expecting eyes.

“Mr. Edgeworth is gonna come by and take us to go meet Santa so you can tell him what you want for Christmas!”

“You can do that?” She practically yells. “My other daddy always just had me write a letter!”

“Of course you can do that, Truce,” He ruffles her hair. “But only if you get ready in time!”

With no further prompting needed, Phoenix watches in mild amusement as his daughter leaps out of bed, making it in record time, grabbing her clothes out of her dresser, and racing to the bathroom to take her shower.

He busies himself with tidying up her room, picking up the few stray toys or magic tricks littering the floor. He can’t shake the lingering feeling of guilt he has, making him feel sort of sick.

He hasn’t…spent a lot of time with her, this past week. It’ll pay off when he can actually afford to take a few days off following Christmas Eve even if right now, it sucks.

At least that’s what he’s telling himself.

After she’d finished showering and dressing herself, Trucy comes skipping out of the bathroom and back to her room. She sits patiently on her bed as he gets a brush and hair tie, taking careful effort to brush out any tangles before putting it in its signature low pony.

They spend the day messing around the house; enjoying a late breakfast/early lunch consisting of Eggo waffles and the remaining apples in the fruit bowl. They watch movies on the couch, both he and Trucy laughing at every silly gag in Home Alone and enjoying each others company.

Edgeworth, true to what they agreed, arrives at 2:00 PM, sharp. After ensuring Trucy was buckled in the back, Phoenix sat himself comfortably in the passengers seat, enjoying the warmth spilling from the cars heater. It was the first truly cold day of December, so he was grateful that Edgeworths car was expensive enough to have heated seats.

“Are you excited to see Santa today, Truce?” Phoenix asks.

“Mhm!” The girl smiles, swinging her legs back and forth.

“What do you think you’ll be asking for Christmas?” Edgeworth probes, giving a wink to Phoenix.

“I can’t say!”

“It’s not a birthday wish Truce, you can say it out loud…” Phoenix trails off.

Trucy hums. “It’s for Santa’s ears only.”

“Well, I guess I’ll find out when Santa delivers it to the house, then.” Phoenix sighs.

“Wait- daddy?”

“Yes, Trucy?”

“How does Santa get in if we don’t have a chimney?”

“Front door?” Edgeworth suggests.

“Front door.” Phoenix affirms.

The mall is insanely packed. Like. Absurdly packed. Packed to the point where Phoenix feels the urge to tug his hoodie over his head in a ‘if I can’t see you, you can’t see me’ way, but decides against it.

They get in the line to meet whatever Mall Santa’s on duty, Trucy bouncing on her heels in excitement. Edgeworth

“You okay?” Phoenix whispers. Edgeworth nods.

“It’s just very loud in here.”

“Ah, right, I know you’re not big on crowds.” Phoenix rubs the back of his neck awkwardly. “You can head back to the car? We’re not doing any shopping- just the photo- so we shouldn’t be too long.”

“And I’d be doing what, exactly?” Edgeworth raises an eyebrow. “I offered to take you guys here, and I intended to spend the day with you. It’s not like I’d be doing much else.”

“Miles Edgeworth not having any work?” Phoenix mocks surprise. “Who are you, and what have you done with my friend?”

Edgeworth snorts. “Taken him to a faraway land known as a therapists office.”

Phoenix hides a smile behind his hand. “Oh my gosh, and you’re joking? Jesus…”

The line moves just fast enough that Trucy, thankfully, doesn’t get too antsy. Before they know it, they’re at the front of the line. The kid before them finishes their interaction, getting a candy cane from one of the “elves” before running off with their mom. Trucy bounces on her heels, running up once one of the “elf” workers gives her the okay.

“Santa!” She cheers, running to where the actor is seated. Phoenix and Edgeworth follow at a more languid pace, but Phoenix stops short. There’s something about the actor- something that looks familiar until it clicks. He holds a hand up to Edgeworth, signaling to stop as well, dropping his voice to a whisper.

“Is that..?” Phoenix asks, mortified.

“Oh god,” Edgeworth sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose.

Sitting before them, clad in a Santa costume is one Larry Butz. He makes eye contact with Phoenix, who immediately has to smother a laugh with his hand. Larry-Santa has this terrified look on his face, fully having broken character upon seeing his two friends until he’s reminded that there is currently a kid very excited to meet him. He plasters on a smile, now seeming overly cheerful as Phoenix swallows down his own laughter, helping Trucy up onto Larry-Santa’s lap.

“Uh, ho-ho-ho!” Larry-Santa smiles, glancing nervously at both Phoenix and Edgeworth before giving his undivided attention to Trucy. “And what is your name, little girl?”

“Trucy,” She giggles shyly.

“Alright Trucy, have you been a good girl this year? Been nice to your, um, daddy and everything?”

“Mhm!” she swings her legs. “I help him clean the house, and, uh, I got all 4’s on my report card!”

“Well that’s great to hear Ms. Trucy Wright!”

Trucy gasps. “How do you know my last name?”

“Uh…Christmas magic?” Larry-Santa blanches. Edgeworth has to physically turn away to keep from laughing.

“That’s so cool! Did you hear that, daddy?” Trucy looks at Phoenix.

“Sure did, Truce!” Phoenix, much like Edgeworth, is trying his damn best to not laugh, but it is a losing battle.

“So, what is it that you want for Christmas, Trucy?” Larry-Santa asks. Trucy gestures him to lean down, whispering something in his ear. He smiles, nodding his head.

“I certainly can make that happen!”

Trucy cheers, clapping happily. Phoenix prays to whatever angel and or demon that is looking out for him that he’ll discover whatever it is she asked for. The photographer positions the camera to look in on Trucy. He’s about to announce the photo being taken before she gestures to Phoenix and Edgeworth.

“Come be in the photo, you two!” She requests. Phoenix and Edgeworth manage to get their giggles under control before they walk over, standing on either side of Larry-Santa.

“Uhh, dads, can you look at the camera?” The photographer asks.

“We’re not-” Edgeworth tries to explain, and Larry-Santa snorts. Phoenix shoots him a dirty glance before looking back at the camera, giving his best smile. The camera flash shutters, and just like that, Trucy is helped off Santa’s lap with the help of Edgeworth. Larry-Santa hands her a candy cane before waving her and Edgeworth off, wishing them both a marry Christmas as they walk to get the printed photo from the photographer. Before Phoenix can join them, he feels a tug on his wrist. He looks behind, Larry smiling back at him.

“She wants a dollhouse.” He whispers, adding a wink.

“Thank you Santa.” Phoenix teases.

“Screw you, Nick.” Larry sticks out his tongue before getting back into character for the next child.

It’s a Wednesday morning- Phoenix having just dropped off Trucy at the bus stop- when he’s dialing up Edgeworth’s number on his phone. It’s not…ideal. None of this has been. He’d managed to go a whopping two! Two days! Without needing Edgeworths help, and he was stupidly proud about that. So of course, the universe felt it necessary to punish him by making any and all stores within walking distance out of dollhouses because why would anyone wait until a week before Christmas to shop for their child's gifts?

It’s not like he was ungrateful for all that Edgeworth had done for him the last few days- far from it, actually. Edgeworth had been nothing short of patient with him, understanding the struggles that go with single parenting. He just didn’t feel worth the effort, is all.

A still painfully prideful part of himself wanted to prove that he could handle this. Many people can handle single parenting with little to no issue, so surely this was some fault on his end, and therefore a problem he could fix all by himself. Asking Edgeworth for help, no matter how eager he was to provide it, made him feel a bit…helpless. Loved, cared for, and all those fuzzy feelings, but helpless.

Anyways. Phone. Ringing. It cycles through several times, to the point Phoenix almost hangs up, before Edgeworth picks up.

“Wright,” Edgeworth states. “I’m in the middle of work right now, is everything okay?”

“Shit, are you at a trial?” He asks, now fearful.

“No…I surprisingly have nothing scheduled until the 27th of January.” Edgeworth sighs tiredly. “Just tedious paper work.”

“Ah, alright.” Phoenix stuffs his free hand into his pocket as he continues walking. “Can- shit, um, I’m sorry I know I’ve asked so much these last few days but I, uh-…Isortakindaneedsomeonetotakemetowalmartsoicangettrucysgiftiwouldtakethebusbutmypassexpiredso-”

“Wright,” Edgeworth sounds vaguely frustrated. “Breathe. You need a ride you said?”

“Please? I need to get the gift while she’s at school, or a friends or something, but my next day off isn’t until like…two days before Christmas Eve, and she’ll already be off of school by then. I just need to get it in the house and hide it before she sees it.”

“That’s fine, I understand,” There’s a creaking of a chair. “…Look, I’m busy right now, but I suppose I can take a longer lunch to drive you really quick. I could get to you by 12:40, give or take? My office isn’t too far from your apartment.”

Phoenix smiles, feeling like a gigantic weight had been taken from his shoulders. “Yeah, that works. Sorry, thank you.”

“Talk to you in a bit.” Edgeworth concludes before the call hangs up.

“Is the world ending, or are you seriously taking a lunch?” Gumshoe asks, standing in the doorway as Edgeworth gathers his coat and keys.

“Is that so hard to believe?” He responds, terse.

“A bit, yes sir!” Gumshoe stresses. “Is everything okay? Do I need to beat someone up for you?”

Edgeworth fights down a sigh. “Detective-”

“Because so help me god, I will fight someone, I don’t care.”

“Gumshoe.”

“Yes?”

“I’m just helping a friend. I’ll be back in an hour, maybe an hour and a half at most.” Edgeworth concedes.

“Oh.” Gumshoe straightens up, fixing his coat nervously. “Is it Mr. Wright?”

“How’d you know?” Edgeworth raises an eyebrow, shrugging on his own jacket.

“You’ve been hanging around him a lot lately. Haven’t been staying after work, I mean. Or took something to work on over the weekend.” He mumbles sheepishly.

“It’s nothing.”

“Never said otherwise.” Gumshoe holds up his hands defensively, shooing him out the door. “Have fun, stay safe, make smart decisions.”

“Excuse me?” Edgeworth shoots an accusatory glance behind himself.

“Bye Mr. Edgeworth!”

Edgeworth grumbles all the way down three flights of stairs and the walk to his car. Gumshoe doesn’t know what he’s talking about. There’s nothing going on between him and Wright. He’s just doing this because he wants to lesson the load on Wright, even if just minutely. Nothing more than that. He’s just not that kind of person.

The drive to the mans apartment is blissfully short. He puts on his hazards before texting Wright that he’s waiting outside. It’s only a minute longer before he sees him climbing down the stairs, getting into the car.

“Sorry.” Wright mutters as he buckles himself in.

“It’s no issue. I don’t understand why you feel the need to apologize for needing help.” Edgeworth turns his hazards off before driving away. Phoenix leans his head back, looking up at the ceiling of the car.

“A laundry list of reasons, how much time do you have?”

Edgeworth rolls his eyes. “No matter, it was a slow day anyways. I might’ve exaggerated a bit on the paperwork. It’s nothing more than keeping my hands from being idle. I should be thanking you for giving me something better to do.”

Phoenix shrugs in response, choosing to divert his attention to messing with Edgeworths radio, turning it onto a station playing Christmas music. He hums along playfully, drumming his fingers on his thigh.

They arrive at the Walmart not too long after- maybe another 10 minutes, or so. Inside, it is an absolute madhouse. Edgeworth grimaces just as he narrowly avoids getting smacked by someone carelessly pushing their cart.

“Let’s…try to do this quickly.” Edgeworth mumbles. Wright nods.

“Agreed.”

They make a beeline to the toy aisle, which is somehow impossibly more crowded. He stands back, for the most part, seeing as this is Wright’s gift to Trucy, and not his own.

…He should probably get the girl something, thinking about it now. As well as something for Wright. He makes a mental note to go looking for those in his own time.

Wright scans through the limited selection of dollhouses with the same type of care one would have when selecting a real house, or a car. It’s a bit funny, if he’s being honest with himself, but it’s undeniable that Wright truly cares for his daughter.

There is some distant memory, in the back of his mind, of the first month Wright had adopted Trucy. Thinking back, it also happened to be the last time he’d even seen the man in person. They were together, in some dingy diner that most definitely had several health code violations. Wright had spilled his guts to Edgeworth, stressing about how terrified he was about the sudden decision to adopt Trucy.

“I don’t regret it, not in the slightest.” He had said. “I just wish I knew what the fuck I’m supposed to do.”

“You do the best you can.” Edgeworth had replied, as though it was as simple as that.

“What if that’s not enough?” He whispered back. “What if I’m not enough?”

Edgeworth, in some outlier act of bravery, had put his hand on top of Wright’s, squeezing it.

“You will be. I know you’ll be.”

Presently speaking, he’s sure that doubt is still there. Knows it likely always will be. He had colleagues, either other prosecutors or those working in the police force that had kids. It seemed like in order to be a parent, you had to have this odd fear of messing up somehow. He always thought it to be quite stupid, but especially so with Wright. The man had too much love and empathy in his heart to intentionally cause harm to someone.

After a long (frankly, too long) while, Wright eventually decides on the exact toy he was getting. It wasn’t as flashy, or as large as the others on display, but it had a sort of older aesthetic to it, looking like a cottage instead of the seemingly standard mansions other brands were trying to promote. With Edgeworths help, they loaded it into the cart before making their way over to the cashier. The lady scans it, smiling.

“For your kid, I’m assuming?” She says, striking up small talk as Wright puts his debit card into the reader.

“Yeah,” He responds. “It’s what she wanted from Santa; I’ve looked at like, three different stores already, and they were all sold out. It was crazy!”

“Aw, well she’s lucky to have parents who’d deal with the crowds to get her what she wants.” The cashier says sweetly.

“Oh, we’re not-” Wright started to say.

“We’re not a couple.” Edgeworth continued.

“We’re just friends.” They both state together, rushed. The cashier flushed from embarrassment.

“Oh, I’m sorry for assuming.”

“It’s okay!” Wright casually waves her off. Edgeworth simply glances away, putting a hand on his cheek to hide his own flush from this random cashier. Once Wright had typed in his pin number, the cashier handed him the receipt, waving them off.

“You two have a happy holidays!”

Wright waves goodbye to her as well before they leave the store, keeping the cart on them for the moment to make taking the dollhouse to the car a bit less painful.

“That’s the second time we’ve been mistaken for a couple.” Edgeworth comments the second they’re outside.

“Eh, two guys Christmas shopping for a kid only reads as husbands, I fear.”

“It’s rude to assume.” Edgeworth points out as they load the box into the car. Wright rolls his eyes as Edgeworth slams the trunk shut.

“I’m sure your pride is forever ruined from interactions with people you’ll never see again.” Wright groans, rolling the cart to one of the many cart return spots in the parking lot.

“It has been irrevocably,” Edgeworth jokes as they both climb into their respective seats, Edgeworth driving out of the parking lot and back onto the main road. The traffic is heavier, no doubt from lunch rush. It’s a stop, go, stop, go mentality for an insanely long time, his patience for this wearing thin.

They eventually stop at a light, right behind a banged up SUV with those car antler and red nose attachments on it. Wright huffs out a laugh through his nose.

“You should get one of those for your car. Make it look more festive.” He bantered.

“Absolutely not.” Edgeworth retorted.

“C’mon Scrooge, where’s your holiday spirit?” Phoenix teases, poking Edgeworths arm.

“Buried deep inside long, long ago." He replies, sound gravely serious.

“…You still don’t celebrate, do you?” Phoenix asks. Edgeworth shakes his head.

“I don’t think it’ll ever be a holiday I enjoy.”

“Do you…do anything?” Phoenix probes. “Like, a dinner with your sister or something?”

“Franziska has never been one to take the holidays off.” Edgeworth points out. “And, like I said, I doubt it’ll ever be a holiday I look forward to.”

Edgeworth can see Wright pout from the corner of his eye.

“Funny, your daughter told me the same thing.”

Phoenix sputters. “You told her about-”

“Not really, no.” He mumbles, tightening his grip on the steering wheel. “It’s difficult for me to discuss it even with Franziska, never mind me trying to explain it to Trucy.”

“Right,” The former lawyer nods, looking away. “Either way, the offer still stands. I doubt we’ll be doing much, but I’ll be cooking, and we can, I dunno, watch movies and open gifts together. It could be fun.”

“I suppose,” Edgeworth conceded.

“So, it’s a date?” Wright asks, a smiling spreading across his face. Edgeworth, for once grateful being stuck at another red light, turned to look at Wright, wide-eyed. He saw the gears turn in the ex lawyers brain, his face going bright red once he realizes what he insinuated.

“Oh, fuck, sorry, not like that!” He says, panicked. “J-just, y’know, ‘date’ like the…day…of the week…not like an actual, uh…I’ll stop talking now.”

The light turns green, preventing Edgeworth from staring at just how damn adorable Wright looked flustered (for better or for worst, that’s not really his concern). As he drives back to the mans apartment, he speaks up.

“I know a good bakery nearby, I can bring a cake for us to share that day.”

Phoenix had promised Trucy that he’d be home in time for them to watch Christmas movies and order their favorite Chinese food spot. He’d promised Edgeworth that he’d actually have the Saturday evening to himself, unlike last weekend.

And because the universe hated him, that didn’t end up happening.

He’d been at the Borscht Bowl since eleven, his shift ending at five. He’d been doing nothing more than playing piano, and at one point, playing a decently long game of poker downstairs. At around 4:40, he was picking up the cards from the table, collecting the money he’d earn when he heard footsteps coming down the stairs. He turned around, seeing Candy looking at him with a hesitant look on her face.

“Hey.” She said, drawing out the vowel.

“What is it?” He asked, curtly. “My shifts almost done, whatever you need better be quick.”

“About that,” She hisses. “…So there are a lot more customers asking to play with you-”

“No,” He whines, already declining what he knows she’s about to say.

“And considering we’re gonna be closed on Christmas, which need I remind you, is only five days away-”

“Candy, I can’t.”

“-And I can’t turn them away. Maybe one or two, sure, but my hands are kind of tied.”

“I can’t possibly be the only poker player that works here.” Phoenix deadpans.

“You’re the only one who has never once lost.” She retaliates.

“Candy.”

“Phoenix.”

“I-I don’t have anyone to watch my kid-”

“Then who’s watching her right now?” She counters.

‘This can’t be legal.” He ignores her.

“Nothing we do here is.” She says with finality before heading back upstairs. He takes a seat, putting his head in his hands.

This isn’t…fair. Is that childish to say? He’s making money- hell, he can make an insane amount of money tonight if these people don’t know how to quit while they’re ahead, he should be happy.

But that happiness is dulled knowing that he’s going to have to explain to Trucy that he isn’t going to be home any time soon. He waits for almost the entirety of his break, trying to delay it, until he has no option but to call Edgeworth.

“Hello?” The prosecutor answers almost immediately.

“I am so sorry-” He starts off.

“What did I tell you about saying that so much? Is everything okay?”

Phoenix inhales shakily. “My boss just voluntold me to do a double shift right now.”

Even without seeing Edgeworths face, Phoenix can visualize the man rubbing the bridge of his nose in frustration.

“Believe me, I didn’t want to do this either.” Phoenix says.

“I know, it’s alright.” Edgeworth assures. “What time are you coming home now?”

“No idea,” Phoenix massages his temple, already feeling a headache forming. “Poker is never a fast game unless you’re playing with a complete moron.”

“And I assume these people won’t be that?”

“Highly doubt it.”

“Okay then, that’s fine.”

“It’s not.”

“Either way, I’m not mad.”

“You’re too nice to me.” Phoenix deflected.

“Hardly, but I’m fine to disagree on that.” Edgeworth responds.

Phoenix looks around the room, trying to stop tears from forming in his eyes. “I don’t expect you to stay up, I’ll wake you when I get home. The couch is a pullout, so help yourself. It’s not the most comfortable thing in the world, but it beats sleeping on the floor.”

“Thank you.” Is all Edgeworth says.

“…Uh, listen, can you pass the phone to Truce, please? I should be the one to tell her.”

“Of course.” He says before Phoenix can hear the slight feedback of the phone being handed to his daughter.

“Hi daddy!” She chirps.

“Hey, Truce.” He swallows thickly. “Uh, listen kiddo, you remember Candy, right? From my work?”

“Uh-huh?” She replies, confused.

“Well, she wanted me to work more today, and I couldn’t say no. So, I’m sorry, but our movie night is getting pushed to tomorrow.”

“What?”

“I know, I know, Truce. I’m sorry.”

“But you promised.” Her voice begins to waver, and Phoenix wishes for nothing more than to come home right at that moment and scoop her up in his arms until she calms down.

“I know, kiddo, but this was out of my control. You can always watch the movie with Mr. Edgeworth?” He suggests, trying to do some kind of damage control.

“I don’t want to watch it with him!” And now she most definitely is crying. His heart squeezes painfully.

“Trucy, it’s alright, you don’t need to cry. We can just watch it tomorrow!” He tries to sound positive, even if he’s feeling anything but.

“B-but you said you’d be home on time tonight.” She sniveled.

“I know Trucy, and believe me if I could, I would.”

“Can I stay up until you’re home?”

“No can do, Truce. I’m gonna be home really, really late, and you need to get sleep.”

“…But you will come home, right?” She asks hesitantly.

Phoenix has to take a moment to answer, lest he start crying as well. “Of course. I’m never, ever going to disappear on you, Truce.”

“O-okay.” She sniffles.

“Be good for Mr. Edgeworth, okay? He’ll be with you until I get home, just like last weekend.”

“Mhm,” She hums shakily. “I love you, daddy.”

“Love you too, Truce.” He responds earnestly as his daughter hangs up the phone. He only has a few moments to compose himself before Candy knocks on the door, opening it and looking at him from the top of the stairs.

“Figure it out?”

“Yes.” He bit back. His face was burning from shame.

“Who’s been watching after her anyways?” She asks.

“A friend.” He answers noncommittally.

“A friend?” She raises an eyebrow. “Didn’t know you had any.”

“Candy, I’m really not in the mood right now.” He grumbles. Candy at least has the decency to look ashamed.

“Listen, Nick,” She twirls a strand of hair around her finger. “For what it’s worth, I’m sorry.”

“Not in the mood,” He repeats.

“Okay.” She whispers, and heads back upstairs, one of the gamblers climbing down after she’s gone. Hours pass, and by the end of it, he’s played against four different people. He wins all his games, because of course he does; he’s Phoenix fucking Wright, but he isn’t happy about it. He’s unfocused each game, his mind replaying Trucy’s cries on a terrible loop that squeezes at his heart.

The second that the last person throws their cards down on the table, frustrated as they stomp out the room, he slumps in his chair, completely and utterly spent. Candy comes down a few minutes later, an envelop in her hand.

“She put up a fight?” She asks, her eyes following the gambler as she slammed the door. He only has the energy to nod in response. Candy pulls up a chair next to him, eyeing the money.

“Good payout, seems like.” She nods in satisfaction.

“Yep.” He sighs. She presses her lips into a thin line.

“It’s all yours tonight, I won’t take any.” She offers. He doesn’t reply, only sliding it over into his bag.

“Look, I know you’re mad at me, and that’s fair. I’d be mad at me too.”

“Doesn’t really help at all, but I appreciate the sentiment.” He replies bitterly. “I’m taking tomorrow off, by the way.”

“You’re taking tomorrow until the New Years off.” She corrects. He raises an eyebrow.

“I can’t, I used all my paid time off.” He reminds her. “Even if I somehow still had some, I can’t afford-”

“Hence this.” She hands him the envelop. “It’s a check; a median pay between both your jobs here covering the time you’re off for.”

“…Why.” He feels the need to ask. He’s beyond grateful for it, no doubt about it, but the question still lingers.

Candy twirls her hair around her finger. “…You were right. I’ve been treating you like shit. I have other employees. Sure, they aren’t as terrible at piano as you, or as good at poker as you are, but there are others.”

Phoenix can only nod in response, feeling rather conflicted. He should be excited about this, but why is she only doing this now? It’s not like she suddenly found out that he had a kid- she’d met Trucy before.

“Go home to your kid, Phoenix. Get some sleep, and know that I’ll try harder to be more sympathetic next year, okay?” Candy pats him on the back as she sits up, pushing her chair back under the table before heading up the stairs.

It’s a few minutes before he too leaves, still a bit too stunned to move, but he manages his slow trek back home, feeling an odd mix of relief and complete shame.

It’s three AM when Wright comes back home. Easily the latest he’s ever gotten home since this whole “watching Trucy” arrangement had started. Edgeworth stirs from where he’s currently asleep on the couch, hearing the lock jangle open. He stands up to turn around, covering a yawn with his hand as he looks at Wright. And, god, the man looks dead on his feet. He barely registers what he’s doing before the disheveled man collapses on the couch, not even bothering to take his shoes off.

“Rough night?” Edgeworth guesses.

“mmmph…” Wright groans.

“At least take off your shoes, Wright. Have some decorum.”

Wright shuffles them off, his slides falling loudly on the ground. Edgeworth purses his lips.

“Do you want to talk about it?”

Wright groans once more.

“I don’t know what that means,” He laughs fondly. Wright proceeds to lift his head up from the couch and- oh.

He’s crying.

Fat tears spill from the mans eyes, falling down his cheeks as his body is wracked with minute shaking. It’s like he’s trying his absolute hardest to be quiet. Edgeworth moves to sit next to him, and for once, Wright shies away from him, turning away.

“What happened?” He asks, much softer this time.

“Nothing, nothing happened.” Wright shakes his head. “I-I should be happy, my boss is literally paying for me to not work until New Years.”

“…But?” Edgeworth gestures for Wright to keep talking

“Edgeworth, I feel awful.” He whispers, his voice cracking. “I’ve barely seen my daughter at all this month, a-and the one time I promised to do something with her, I couldn’t do it.”

“She was rather upset after that call, I’ll admit.” Edgeworth nods. “But it was out of your control. She can’t fault you for that.”

“I’m an awful dad.” Wright sobbed into his hands. Edgeworth stilled before cautiously putting a hand on Wright’s back. This time, the man didn’t move away from his touch.

“Let’s not go that far. She loves you, Wright, I don’t know what it’ll take for you to see that.”

“Miles, I’ve barely seen her.” Wright reiterated so painfully clear that Edgeworth had no time to notice that Wright had just called him by his first time. “She probably hates me right now.”

“You’ve been saying this to me for months, yet she’s never done or said anything to you that suggests she dislikes you for that. She knows the effort you’ve been putting into this holiday for her.”

“Most of this has been you.” He points out. “I wasn’t the one who got the tree, or the ornaments. I wasn’t the one who baked cookies with her. I haven’t been here for her like you have.”

“but you fail to see how highly she thinks of you, Wright. She picked out a majority of the ornaments based off the things you like. She made those cookies for you, if you’d remember that I told you as such. You’re doing all you can, and at least now, you can spend her whole break with her.” Edgeworth says with finality.

“You’re right.” He wipes at his face, but Edgeworth can still hear a shred of doubt in his voice.

“You know what I think?” Edgeworth asks. Wright looks at him with dead eyes.

“What?”

“I think you’re overworked and sleep deprived. Go to bed Wright, you’ve had a long day- a long week.”

“I’m actually fucked if I’m getting life advice from Miles Edgeworth.” Wright chokes out before dissolving into tears once again.

“Let me go get you some water,” Edgeworth pulls away his hand, going quietly to the kitchen to get a glass. In the darkness of the house, he fails to notice (or hear) the sound of Trucy padding back into her room; fails to notice how she’d witness the whole exchange.

When he gets back to the living room, Wright has already fallen asleep on the couch, snoring loudly. He smiles fondly, setting the glass of water on the coffee table before he grabs the few blankets hanging off the edge of the couch, placing them over the sleeping man. He stirs slightly, snuffling as he

“Goodnight, Phoenix.” He whispered, placing a hand on his shoulder for the briefest of moments, before heading out the front door.

Trucy gives up trying to fall back asleep at seven thirty-five. Her stomach hurts, tangling in the worst kinds of knots imaginable. She didn’t mean to listen in on daddy and Mr' Edgeworths conversation, because it is rude to do that apparently, it just happened! She just so happened to wake up in the middle of the night, intending to go to the bathroom, only to hear the sound of her daddy crying to Mr. Edgeworth.

She’d only ever seen her daddy cry once before, right after adopting her. It was late that night too, and she originally thought it was because he was afraid of the dark like she was. It was the reason she was awake, anyways.

But when she sat down next to him and asked what was wrong, he just laughed awkwardly and said that sometimes he gets scared. Trucy replied that she gets scared of the dark too, but he told her it wasn’t that kind of fear.

Now, in all 7 years of her life up until that point, she didn’t know there were different types of fear. Fear was monsters under the bed, the dark corners of her room, or getting lost in the grocery store. But daddy explained to her that his fear was silly, and that sometimes he “gets in over his head sometimes”. When she asked him what that meant, he smiled sadly at her.

“Just sometimes, daddy doesn’t think he’s doing the best he can.”

…It’s sad to know that he still doesn’t think he’s a good daddy. He’s the best, and she wishes she could do something more to prove that.

Or maybe…

She goes down onto the floor, grabbing a box from under her bed. Inside was a beanie she’d been crocheting for the past few weeks. It was light teal in color, made of the softest yarn she could find at the craft store. When she’d bought it, she told her daddy that it was because she wanted to make a new costume for Mr. Hat.

Obviously, that was a lie, since Mr. Hat liked his current costume, thank you very much, and the true recipient for the beanie was her daddy. He’d complain about how messy his hair would get sometimes, so she wanted to get him something for Christmas that could help that on the days he didn’t have the time to style his hair.

There wasn’t supposed to be any decorations on it; just the plain beanie and nothing else. But after overhearing her daddy last night, she was starting to think of something she could add to maybe show him that he was a good daddy to her.

She sets the beanie down on her bed, going to the bathroom to take a shower to get ready for the day. When she’s done and dressed, her daddy still wasn’t awake to do her hair, so she opted on just leaving it down. Along with the beanie, she grabs the small altoids can she kept her allowance money in, before tiptoeing to the living room.

Daddy was still snoring loudly on the couch, his back turned away from her. His phone was placed on the coffee table, and so she grabbed it and opened it up to its contacts. Her daddy had told her that if she ever needed to call someone, she could use his phone, and told her which people she could contact for whatever problem she had. Cousin Pearl if she needed a friend to talk to, Auntie Maya for “girl things” (she didn’t know what that meant), and Mr. Edgeworth for “everything else”.

This felt like an “everything else” moment.

The phone rings for a few times before she hears him pick up. She answers before he can.

“Mr. Edgeworth?” She asks, keeping her voice quiet so her daddy doesn’t wake up.

“Trucy? What are you doing awake so early? Is everything alright?”

“Mhm,” She hums, glancing at her daddy, still snoring on the couch. “Can you take me to the craft store, pretty please?”

“What for?” He asked.

“I need something for my gift for daddy.” she explained. “I have my own allow-ance so you don’t have to pay. I just need a ride ‘cause I can’t take the bus alone.”

“Save your allowance for when you hang out with friends, Trucy. I’m sure whatever you need can’t cost too much, so I can pay.”

“Thank you, Mr. Edgeworth.” She hums. “I’m all ready whenever you can come.”

"There’s a small pause. “Give me an hour and I should be over.”

Trucy is in the backseat of Mr. Edgeworths car, swinging her legs happily as they drive to the store. He let her pick the radio station they listened to, so they were both enjoying the sound of a 24/7 Christmas music station. It was raining out, causing all the lights around them to have a pretty sort of halo effect. It’s all very pretty, if she’s being honest with herself.

When they get to the craft store, it had barely just opened, meaning it wasn’t crowded at all. She enjoyed the ability to look over all the thread and needle options without having to ask people to move every five seconds.

“What exactly do you need this for?” Mr. Edgeworth asked as he watched her.

“I wanna add something to the beanie I’m making him.” She explains happily. "I thought it looked a bit plain.”

“You know how to crochet?”

“Mhm! My old daddy taught me how.” She explains, holding up a pink spool of embroidery thread. “How does this look?”

Mr. Edgeworth nods his head in approval, so they begin to walk to the cash registers. “That’s impressive. My sister tried to teach me once when we were kids, but I never had the dexterity nor the patience for it.”

“You have a sister?” She asked.

“Yes, a little one.”

“Does she do anything for Christmas?” She asks.

“Not usually, no. She’s sort of like me.”

“Then she can be sorta like you and join us for Christmas!”

“I’m sure she’d love to, but alas, she lives in Germany right now.” He chuckles.

“Oh. That’s really far.” Trucy says plainly.

“It is, but she’s happy where she’s at, as am I.”

Mr. Edgeworth hands the cashier his card, and they’re out of the store within the minute of paying. As they drive back home, Trucy can’t help but feel immense excitement for finishing up her gift for her daddy.

Maybe this will finally be the thing that makes him see how much he means to her.

“So, you doing anything for the holidays, sir?” Gumshoe speaks up, causing Edgeworth to stop where he stands. It’s a Monday afternoon, and they’re currently experiencing the coldest day of the week; possibly of the entire year. Work had been slow all day, meaning Gumshoe had made his way into Edgeworth’s office to mess around until he got called to do something more useful with his time.

“Surprisingly, yes, I am.”

“Oooh,” The detective exclaims joyfully. “What’s the special occasion?”

“Ah, I’ve been helping Wright out with his daughter this month and managed to get invited to spend Christmas with them.”

“Oh yeah, I forgot he’s got a little one now. How’re they holding up?”

“They’re doing good.” It’s not a complete lie, but Edgeworth doesn’t feel like spilling all of Wright’s troubles to Gumshoe at this very moment in time.

“That’s good to hear.” The detective nods. Edgeworth is about to say something in response when his phone dings. He glances at his phone, a text from Phoenix being displayed on the screen.

‘Still on for tonight?’ It read. He responds with a thumbs up.

“Who was that?” Gumshoe asks.

“Wright. We made plans to go look at that one block that does those massive light displays.”

“Aw, isn’t that sweet.” Gumshoe gushes. Edgeworth feels his face heat up.

“What do you mean by that?”

“You’re not usually the type to extend that sort of kindness to anyone, is all. It’s sweet seeing you care for the guy so much.”

“Wright means a lot to me,” He says, voice uncharacteristically soft.

“I’m sure he does, Mr. Edgeworth, sir.” Gumshoe smiles. “Well, I better not keep you. Have a happy holidays sir, see you next year.”

“I hate that phrase, I’ll see you in a week.” Edgeworth glares, but there’s no malice in the look. He goes to walk out the door when Gumshoe adds as an aside.

“Enjoy you’re time with Mr. Wright, sir.”

An embarrassing purchase for the exterior of his car later, and Edgeworth is waiting, parked at the curb, for Wright and Trucy. The sun is already setting, causing the already cold day to become impossibly colder. He’s glad he decided to change into warmer clothes before heading over, lest he wanted to be miserable while walking around.

As the two come down the stairs from their apartment, Edgeworth laughs to himself upon seeing the complete look of shock and awe on Wright’s face. Clearly, he noted the purchase too. Atop his car, and on the front, are the same antler and nose attachments they’d been laughing about just under a week ago.

“Holy shit.” Wright didn’t even try to censor himself as he entered the car. “Haha, you actually got them!”

“You’re car looks like Rudolph, Mr. Edgeworth!” Trucy squeals as she buckles herself in.

“It does, doesn’t it?” He laughs as they drive off. The car ride is full of laughter and Trucy excitedly pointing out any Christmas lights they pass by on the way to the neighborhood. Though he’s been uncharacteristically happy this whole month, this kind of joy finds itself seeping into every single one of his bones.

It feels sort of right, laughing with the two of them and getting excited over simple lights and blow ups of characters. It’s something he doesn’t want to let go of once Christmas is over.

They park at the designated parking lot for the event, beginning their walk around. Wright wraps his arms around himself, shivering.

“Jeez, it’s freezing out.”

“Not really,” Trucy giggles.

“Well that’s because you were smart to bundle up,” Wright ruffles her hair as they walk around the neighborhood. It’s decently crowded, with groups of various sizes laughing together and taking photos. Distantly, Edgeworth can hear someone playing Christmas music from a speaker, and a few houses down, there’s someone handing out free hot chocolate. They inevitably find their way over, and once Trucy gets an adequate amount of whipped cream poured into her cup, they continue on.

At some point in the night, Edgeworth finds himself distracted, looking at Wright more than he’s looking at the lights. He looks more well rested since the last time they saw each other in person, clearly having caught up on his sleep. He’s lively as he takes photo after photo of Trucy at the various photo ops the residents had built, his eyes twinkling brighter than the lights themselves.

…Would it be so bad if he were to confess how he felt now? He’s nothing even remotely close to being a romantic, but if he were to guess, this would be a perfect spot to do exactly such. The nice lighting, the faint sound of music and laughter; an overall aura of happiness and peace.

Before he can talk himself one way or another, Trucy is calling him over. She’s holding Wright’s phone in her hand, smiling mischievously.

“Mr. Edgeworth! I wanna take a picture of you and daddy together, pretty please!”

And so, he makes his way over, standing in a lit up archway with a sign next to it reading ‘take pictures here!’ complete with a smiley face at the bottom. Wright places an arm around his shoulder so casually that it only feels right that he does the same to him.

The photo is done all too quickly, Wright pulling away once it’s done. For once in his life, Edgeworth feels saddened at the loss of contact. They walk around for another twenty minutes or so before it gets too cold for even himself to bear, and so they make their way back to the car.

Wright puts the heater on obnoxiously high, but Edgeworth makes no comment about it. At some point in the drive back, Trucy seems to have dozed off in the backseat, leading to Edgeworth and Wright talking in hushed tones.

“I had a lot of fun tonight, Edgeworth.” Wright smiles. “Thank you for taking us.”

“I shockingly enjoyed it as well.” Edgeworth notes. “It was nice seeing you and Trucy so happy together.”

Wright hums, closing his eyes. For a moment, Edgeworth thinks he had fallen asleep too, but he eventually hears Wright mumble.

“You should come over tomorrow night.”

“Are you busy?” He feels the need to ask.

Wright shakes his head. “Just want your company. We’re gonna do a Christmas movie binge before Santa comes.”

Edgeworth chuckles. “Wouldn’t you just want that to be you and your daughter?”

“You’re like her second dad at this point.” He slurs, head drooping before it softly hit the side window.

“Pardon?” He glances to Wright, heart rate picking up ever so slightly, but the former lawyer now officially fallen asleep.

Edgeworth had picked up a cake a day early, figuring that finishing the whole thing over two days would be justified. Holiday spirit and all that jazz. He places the gifts he’d brought with him onto the ground so that he could ring the doorbell.

Trucy is the one that lets him into the house. She’s wearing fuzzy looking pajama bottoms with penguins printed all over them, and an ugly sweater with a cat on it. She smiles.

“Hi Mr. Edgeworth! C’mon, daddy’s making dinner right now!”

The house smells of sage and rosemary when he steps inside. He makes his way over to the kitchen, Wright turning to look behind himself. He smiles warmly.

“Hey Edgeworth, glad you could make it.”

Edgeworth nods in response. “What are you making? It smells delicious.”

“It’s just baked chicken,” He shrugs. “And mac and cheese, since that’s Trucy’s favorite. And steamed carrots and broccoli, so I feel a bit better about myself.”

“Sounds good,” He smiles. Wright stares at him for a moment longer, like he wants to say something, but stops himself short. “You can put the cake in the fridge for now.”

“And these?” He holds up the hand holding the gift boxes.

“You didn’t have to bring any!” Wright exclaims. “But thank you, you can set them under the tree.”

Edgeworth nods and does what was asked of him, putting the cake in the fridge before making his way back over to the living room. He notices the new addition of stockings hung up with command hooks on the wall by the tree; three of them with varying designs of Santa, elves, and snowflakes. He smiles to himself, giddy in a childlike manner of being included in such a way as he sets the presents under the tree.

Trucy has found herself a comfortable spot on the couch, curled up under a blanket as she watches what seems to be the latter end of Muppets Christmas Carol. He sits next to her, trying to find a similar investment in the plot. Soon after, Wright comes in holding plates full of the food he’d made. Both he and Trucy thank him for the effort as Wright sits down between the two.

“You’re fine with eating on the couch?” Edgeworth asks.

“It’s Christmas, we can do anything we want.” Wright shrugs, taking a bite of the mac and cheese.

“Technically, it’s not Christmas yet.”

“It’s almost Christmas.” Wright flashes him a mischievous look. Edgeworth gawks at him.

“You did not just say that.”

“Say what?” Wright looks at him, innocent as could be.

And that conversation can perfectly sum up the evening; another night of playful banter and smiles. They eat their fill of dinner, and it only takes a short while after before Edgeworth is cutting slices of cake for them all.

They manage to go through not only the ending of Muppets Christmas Carol, but also manage to start and finish Klaus, Home Alone, and courtesy of Wright finding a bootleg for it, the Charlie Brown Christmas special.

Some point into the night, they take a break to make a fresh batch of cookies, Trucy saving a plate of them for Santa, along with a few baby carrots for the reindeer. She claims she’s going to wait up to give them to him personally, but she ends up falling asleep before 9:30.

Wright carries her off to bed, coming back a few minutes later with a grocery bag placed on top of the now wrapped box containing the dollhouse. With some minor help with Edgeworth, they move it to rest by the tree, and Phoenix proceeds to busy himself with putting whatever is in the grocery bag into the stockings.

“What did you get me?” Edgeworth whispers, watching him. Wright makes a show of hiding his stocking from him.

“If you get caught peaking, Santa’s not gonna be happy about that.” Wright replies cheekily. He finishes putting the stocking stuffers in, tossing the bag into the trash before he heads back towards the

“I don’t think Santa will be happy knowing someone else is eating his cookies.” Edgeworth points out playfully. Wright simply pouts, handing a cookie to Edgeworth, who takes it gratefully. Together, they eat most of the cookies, and shamefully, only eat like, three of the baby carrots.

The multicolored lights of the Christmas tree offer a soft, hazy glow to the living room, allowing for Edgeworth to see the soft smile spreading across Wright’s face.

“Thank you, Miles, for everything.” He whispers. “I seriously couldn’t have done half of this,” he gestures vaguely around the room. “if it weren’t for you.”

“And as I’ve said time and time again, it was no trouble at all.”

Wright steps closer to Edgeworth. “I know the holidays aren’t always the easiest for you, let alone the fact that you’re almost constantly working. It just…thank you for making the time.”

“You’re always worth the time.” Edgeworth whispers before he can stop himself. Wright blinks at him, slowly, looking away shyly.

“Well, when you put it like that…” He shuffles a foot against the carpet. It takes a moment before he looks at Edgeworth again, face flushed as he carefully takes ahold of Edgeworth’s hand. He doesn’t flinch from the contact, Edgeworths fingers interlacing Wright’s.

“This has been the most fun I’ve had around the holidays since I was a little kid.” Edgeworth admits. “If it weren’t for you, I’d likely just spend the day moping at home.”

“Well, I’m glad I made the day less lonely for you.” Wright takes another step closer, their faces now just inches apart. The former lawyer looks at Edgeworths lips, then his eyes; a silent ask for approval. Edgeworth nods.

“I’m glad as well.”

And with that, they both move closer at the same time, lips interlocking. It’s slow and clumsy and everything Edgeworth could have imagined this moment to be. Wright’s lips are warm against his own, still tasting faintly of the cookies they’d shared moments prior.

They part for a moment, just to reinstate the kiss once again, this time with more fervor. Edgeworth wraps his arms around Wright, guiding him down to the couch. They kiss lazily, with Edgeworth slightly atop of Wright. They stop after a while, both slightly out of breath. Wright giggles, looking at Edgeworth with something that can only be described as pure adoration, and Edgeworth follows suit.

“Mind if I spend the night?” Edgeworth asks, his voice barely above a whisper.

“Let me pull out the couch, at least.” Wright replies.

And that is how Christmas had come early for the both of them, falling asleep in each others arms.

There’s a moment where Phoenix is barely awake, sighing in content as he looks at Miles’ sleeping form. His face is completely relaxed, not a line or wrinkle creased in worry or stress. It’s a good look on him.

He hopes he can be the reason he relaxes in such a way for the rest of his days.

Of course, this peace didn’t last for long, it hardly does on Christmas morning. He isn’t sure what time it is, but judging that the sun had only risen not too long ago, it has to be early. He hears the sound of Trucy’s door open, followed by hurried footsteps.

“Santa came!” She exclaims excitedly. Phoenix can’t help but laugh, feeling Edgeworth jolt awake beside him.

“Inside voices, Truce.” Phoenix gently reminds her. She puts a finger to her lips in a shushing moment, but that still doesn’t quiet the excited giggles coming from her.

“Can we open gifts now, pretty please?”

Phoenix glances at Edgeworth, who is seemingly still waking up. “Give us a few minutes.”

“Us?” Trucy tilts her head in confusion before glancing over the couch. When she sees Edgeworth, her eyes widen.

“Mr. Edgeworth spent the night?”

“Mhm.”

“With you.” Oh great, now she’s grinning from ear to ear.

“Yes…”

“I KNEW it!” She cheered. “I knew you guys liked each other.”

“Alright, Truce, let’s maybe drop this and go make some coffee, okay?” He chuckles, getting off the couch and moving towards the kitchen, Trucy following behind him as she giggles to herself.

With two cups of coffee made for himself and Edgeworth (and a cup of hot chocolate, as per Trucy’s request), he heads back to the living room, seeing Edgeworth now sitting up, much more awake. He hands Edgeworth a mug before sitting back down next to him, resting his head on the others shoulder. He makes a gesture for Trucy to start opening up her gifts.

“Let’s see what Santa got you.”

She excitedly goes for the stocking first, finding an assortment of little candies inside along with new colored hair ties, and an Alice in Wonderland themed deck of cards. She plucks down the other two stockings, handing them both to him and Edgeworth before she makes her way over to the gift from “Santa”.

She tears into the wrapping paper, and the delighted look on her face lights up the whole room. “He got it! Daddy, he got what I wanted!”

“He did?” He puts his almost-earned-a-BFA-in-theater skills to use, acting surprised.

“We have to put it together later.” She smiles with finality.

She hands the rest of the gifts under the tree to their respective recipients. Phoenix is too engrossed in watching the others open up their presents to do the same for himself. Trucy receives a new pair of shoes from himself, and a few new dolls from Edgeworth. He laughs at Edgeworths reaction to one of his stocking stuffers being a Steel Samurai blind box, but mellows out when Edgeworth receives a crocheted red scarf from Trucy, and of course, the new wallet he’d gotten him.

“Daddy, you need to open your gifts now.” Trucy points to his still unopened gifts laying beside him.

“Alright, alright, do you want me to open yours first?”

Trucy shakes her head frantically ‘no’. Edgeworth’s it is, then.

He unwraps the box, finding a few new (and frankly, much nicer jackets).

“Because you’ve been wearing the same hoodie this whole month.” Edgeworth notes.

“It’s called style, Edgeworth.” He teases before squeezing his hand. “Thank you.”

He takes the bag housing Trucy’s gift next, noticing how she looks at him with owlish eyes. He takes out the tissue paper, and inside, is a teal beanie. He unfolds it, thumbing at the soft yarn. Belatedly, he notices that on the side, she had embroidered the word Papa in pink.

“This is beautiful, Trucy.” He smiles, in awe at the craftsmanship. He puts it on his head, posing. “How do I look?”

“Like the best daddy in the whole world.” Trucy smiles back. Phoenix moves over to give her a tight hug, a warmth similar to pride filling his chest.

“Thank you, kiddo.”

Christmas was spent lazily, with him watching Trucy and Edgeworth assemble the dollhouse together as he gathered thew wrapping paper into the now overflowing trash, making a mental note to throw it away at a later date. Even though he’d started this endeavor out with nothing but fear and anxiety in his heart, these two in front of him helped in ways he couldn’t begin to describe. Happily, they spent the day similar to the night before, watching movies on the couch and eating the leftover desserts, Trucy’s head resting on Phoenixs’ lap and Edgeworths hand intertwined in his own.

He can’t wait until next year.