[RL: - Thursday, February 19; Midday | Phoenix; Tyki; Edgeworth later?]

[attorneyatlol]

Phoenix stared blankly at his computer monitor, idly tapping his pen against the desk. Thus far, the offices of Wright and Co. Law had been relatively quiet. It was a welcome change from the last few weeks, which had seen a steady flow of potential clients (a few had panned out, some of whom even paid), but while he was still up to his neck in debt, it was nice to have what seemed like a long-awaited break. In fact, looking out the window where he could see the Gatewater and the fading evening light behind it, he thought he might lock up early. There were only a couple hours left in the day, after all, and people rarely stumbled in any later than 2pm on a Wednesday, anyway.

Standing up, he lifted his arms above his head, wincing until he heard a satisfying pop in his back and then dropped his arms with a sigh. The whole being an average lawyer in Los Angeles thing was starting to take its toll on him. He couldn’t wait to get home, kick his shoes off, and enjoy some mindless television on the couch, a soda and warm TV dinner in hand…

…Or maybe not.

He nearly jumped at the sudden appearance of a gangly figure standing awkwardly in his doorway. Clearing his throat, he quickly smoothed his shirt and suppressed a sigh. (There went the rest of his day…)

Still, he smiled earnestly and said, “Hi,” holding out his hand in greeting. This was a rare occasion; people usually barged in and did the talking for him. “I’m Phoenix Wright.”

The man didn’t say anything in return. As a matter of fact, the man had yet to acknowledge Phoenix’s presence at all, which was a bit unsettling and caused Phoenix to frown. His arm sagged a little.

“Er, did you need a lawyer…?”

The man lifted his head slightly, then took an unsteady step toward Phoenix. He was shaky and he was limping, and his face appeared to be twisted in pain. He took another step and muttered, “I need… I need, I need…”

Phoenix swallowed and stared for a moment, his hand going for the phone. This guy didn’t look good at all… “Are you okay?” he asked, his brows furrowed. “Do you need me to call someone?”

“I need... I need to…” The man stopped about a foot away from Phoenix’s desk and dropped his head into his hands, shaking it back and forth. “I need to…”

“Hey…” Phoenix reached out as if to steady the man, but the distance between them was too great; he held his hand up in a placating gesture while his other hand grabbed the phone and lifted the receiver to his ear. “Just… hang on a second, okay?” He tried to sound reassuring. “I’ll get some help.”

Then the man suddenly looked up. For a brief moment, they locked eyes, but before Phoenix could possibly know what was happening, he suddenly found himself staring down a thick barrel aimed right at his face… a thick barrel that was coming out of the man’s forehead straight through his skin. Phoenix stepped back and dropped the receiver. “What--!?”

There was a strange sound, like the cocking of a gun, but Phoenix didn’t wait around to see what it was. It was a good thing, too; he jumped to the side just in time to hear the bookshelf with his law books (Mia’s formidable, mocking law books) be blown to smithereens, the aftershock of which nearly sent him sprawling. Without looking back, he scrambled to the bathroom and immediately slammed the door shut, already fishing for his cell phone. He an idea of what was going on, but God, what could he do?

Dialing without thinking, he used his free hand to pile whatever he could in front of the door (it wasn’t much: a wastebasket, a few towels, and a mop) which probably wouldn’t be very effective, but at least it was something. While the phone rang on the other end, he eyed the small window above the toilet. There was no way he’d be able to make it out of there, and he was on the second floor, anyway. Which, in short, meant he’d basically trapped himself. Fantastic.

He couldn’t hear anything on the other side of the door, but that probably didn’t mean anything. He stayed as far away as he could, wedging himself between the toilet and the sink, and proceeded to make a phone post.

Comments

[attorneyatlol]

Phoenix didn't want to think about how the visit ended or how it could have ended or anything having to do with any endings at all right now. In fact, he would have been just fine forgetting about the entire day in general, impossible as it was. The sight of all the akuma and the piles of dust that used to be people... It made him ill just thinking about it.

"Eventually," he replied, and the tension in his body released with a sigh. He was absolutely exhausted. "Maybe in a couple days. In the meantime, I'll find a hotel or something..."

[samuraiprosecutor]

Edgeworth watched him a few moments longer, his brows still furrowed, before turning his attention to the thin strip of light shining through the open curtains that covered the balcony doors. There was a hesitation underlying his voice when he asked, "This area was cleared of the...things you described?"

[attorneyatlol]

As he ran a hand through his hair, Phoenix unconsciously followed his friend's gaze.

"The area around your complex was cleared," he said. "I don't know if that means they won't be back, though..." He turned to Edgeworth, hoping to offer what reassurance he could, but he was finding it difficult to muster the enthusiasm needed to smile. He tried, anyway. "I think you'll be fine. Just... don't answer your door for a few days."

[samuraiprosecutor]

Edgeworth waved his hand dismissively, but the casual gesture was belied by his gaze, which flicked uncertainly to the front door. "Easily done. I'm not expecting anyone, save for the boy who walks Sigi, and I can verify visitors' indentities before opening my door."

[attorneyatlol]

"You can't let Sigi out there," he said, looking at Edgeworth as if the man had grown a second head. "And you can't let anyone in here. You can't open your door at all, Edgeworth."

[samuraiprosecutor]

Edgeworth matched the look with a confused one of his own, crossing his arms defensively. "I never said I intended to leave. I merely said I'd verify any visitors," he snapped, then added, almost as an aside, "though, Sigi has several needs that a two bedroom apartment can't adequately provide. Keeping him here for any length of time will be difficult."

[attorneyatlol]

"You'll just have to make do," was Phoenix's abrupt reply. He hadn't intended to be so short, but after everything that had happened today, it was easy to forget that Edgeworth had no idea what was going on.

Hastily, he clarified, "Listen... These things can imitate people. They kill their victims and then..." He closed his eyes, remembering what Allen told him, what he'd seen with his own eyes today. "...And then wear their skin. You can't trust anyone right now, Edgeworth."

[samuraiprosecutor]

He blinked at Wright and immediately opened his mouth to respond, but his sharp protest was cut off before he could begin. Throughout the hurried explanation his eyes widened steadily, and once Wright was done, Edgeworth was slow to respond.

"No one, save you." It was said with surety, the one truth still obvious in the midst of an impossible tale. Edgeworth let his gaze drop to the polished wood floor, his expression heavy with thought, and when he met Wright's eyes again, his brows were furrowed darkly.

"Yet you expect to find safety in a building filled with strangers."

[attorneyatlol]

"I..." When put in perspective like that, it did kind of sound like a dumb idea... Phoenix paused, lightly tapping his chin as he considered it for a moment.

"I could always get a world-hop to a hotel outside of the city. You could come, too," he offered as an afterthought. "Or we could stay in Kurain with Maya and Pearls or..."

...Wait a second, Maya and Pearls! He needed to make sure they were all right!

[samuraiprosecutor]

"An effective enough plan, assuming these...things are contained to the city." He cocked an eyebrow at his companion, pointedly, but before he could relentlessly drive the jibe home, the look on Wright's face pulled him up short.

"...Wright?"

[attorneyatlol]

"Hang on." Phoenix had already fished out his cell phone and was going through the entries in his address book before Edgeworth had even said anything. Thankfully, he was quick to find the number for Kurain's payphone and even quicker to hit the send button.

[Insert conversation in which Pearls reassures Phoenix that everything is fine and, no, there aren't any monsters attacking their village and, no, people aren't turning to piles of dust. Assumed with Pearl's player's permission]

There was an obvious air of relief about Phoenix as he hung up and returned his phone to his pocket. He ran a hand through his hair, which was already messed up from the numerous times he'd already ran his hand through it that day.

"Okay," he sighed. "Kurain's in, if we want...."