voice;

[proxysearch]

[It's early into the night, an hour or two after the sirens have gone off at most. She's out of breath and there's an underlying hint of pain in her voice as she steadies her tone.]

Mr. Edgeworth was killed tonight. His killer, Grimmjow, is still at large and is somewhere out here in the Darkness.

[It should be obvious, but she says it anyway.

Comments

voice 1/2

[lawyerific]

[Phoenix was just settling down to, as mundane as it seems now, a cup of hot malted milk and a good book, but the milk turns sour on his tongue and he drops the scalding hot cup into his lap. A few years of stunning courtcases where his clients would say something that made them look horribly guilty on the stand, and even that couldn't prepare him for such a shock. And she sounds so...so steady. Her voice is steady, and it doesn't even seem reasonable that anyone could say those words without falling over them, without...without something.

It falls that it cannot be true, because it's too horrible. It's wrong. Not Edgeworth. No, not anyone else, but not him. So careful, so outspoken, so talented. A dear friend. It occurs to him that he's clicked on the speaker without thinking, and absently clicks it off again in horror as he realises he doesn't know what to say.]

voice 2/2

[lawyerific]

[A few moments later the speaker clicks back on, punctuated by another few seconds of silence before a harsh intake of breath breaks it, and he tries to speak - to deny it - because that seems like the only sensible thing to do. Maybe denying it will make it go away...not that it has in the past, but the body's natural reaction is self-defense and denial is the first natural stage in that.

The fact that his hot milk has burned him is a distant dream. He bangs his hands hard down on the coffee table in front of him, glaring at a stain in the wood as though it had personally offended him.]

It... You were mistaken. It can't... He can't be dead. This is Edgeworth we're talking about.

[It sounded desperate even to him.]

[Not Edgeworth. It can't take him. He can't be dead.]

voice

[proxysearch]

I wasn't mistaken. I saw him with my own eyes.

[I felt for his pulse and there was nothing. I know what I saw, and I wish-]

I know who it was. I'm sorry, Phoenix...but it was him.

voice

[lawyerific]

Don't--

[He jumbles through responses in his head. There's no way. I won't hear it. I need to see him. I can't believe this. No way. Not Edgeworth. No. No. No. Stop it. I'm not listening. Lalala. Instead he bites down on all of them, dragging his fingers back through his hair in a long buried anxious sweep.]

It can't be.

[But it's smaller now, less certain. Any minute now his in-built lawyer control should set in, the control that helps him face danger in the courtroom, that helps him keep his calm when everyone else is losing their heads, but it's not coming; the dread and certainty just creep in more certainly, claustrophobic. Edgeworth is dead. His friend...his friend is dead. Killed by this place. Killed by Grimmjow. His hands ball into tight fists, trembling, and there isn't a further word for a few minutes.]

You're going after him? Now?

voice

[proxysearch]

[But it is. It rips her up inside that she's the one reporting this, that Edgeworth isn't there telling her, "Calm down, Miss Mayer, I'm not dead."

Goddammit.]

I already did. He ran off and I'm going to find him again.

Re: voice

[lawyerific]

Shouldn't...

[There are so many things he could say. He should be angry. Furious that this could happen. He could rage and stomp and destroy things, but then...

[What he would want.]

Do you think that's really the best idea? You should take your own advice.

voice

[proxysearch]

No.

[She straightens and keeps moving.]

I refuse to let him get away. I wounded him enough that he couldn't have gotten far. I can't let him get far.

voice

[lawyerific]

And if he's gone looking for reenforcements? All I know is Edgeworth wouldn't want you getting yourself killed. What about...I don't know, someone who can nullify powers? The police have those, right?

voice

[proxysearch]

I'm still waiting for my backup. And if he's gone for reinforcements, then I know exactly where he's gone.

voice

[lawyerific]

Then you...do have backup coming? You're not going into this alone?

[It's something. Angry people, though, could sometimes make hotheaded mistakes.]

Please be careful. Don't forget that you're as answerable to the law as him. You could end up in the same position as Nara was if you aren't careful.

voice

[proxysearch]

I've been waiting for them, but they're back at the crime scene. I don't have time for waiting.

[But she will wait. She'll wait where his sword is. He has to come back for it.]

I will be.

voice

[lawyerific]

[He can't just let another person die. Edgeworth...]

Can't you make time? It's not safe out there.

voice

[proxysearch]

People are volunteering to come and help me. I can wait for them, but not much else. The longer we wait, the more chance he has to come back stronger.

voice

[lawyerific]

By that same coin, it gives you more opportunity to offer a strong response, doesn't it?

voice

[proxysearch]

I know. I just-

voice

[lawyerific]

I know. I know.