[COMPLETE] First Meetings & First Impressions

[thedevilsmile]

Characters: Kristoph Gavin & Miles Bratsworth Edgeworth [thedevilsmile & edge_of_honor]
Content: Fresh out of Belarus, Edgeworth is (re)assgined to the Victoria II as it's newest officer - and of course as the First Mate, Kristoph is required to welcome him in. All in all, it's going to be the start of a beautiful relationship.
Setting: The (former) First Mate's office, the

Comments

[edge_of_honor]

While Kristoph raged in silence, Miles Edgeworth marched to his cabin, his pace steady and his stomach nauseous with anticipation. The last time he visited the first mate's quarters he was a mere cabin boy, but now he returned as both a man and an officer the Ivonian military. A world of responsibility and obligations lay before him, but he was more than ready.

...now he just had to prove it.

He came to Gavin's door sooner than he would have liked, but there was nothing he could do about that; it was time to face the inevitable. There was but the briefest moment of hesitation before he took a deep breath and knocked on the door.

[thedevilsmile]

A couple of moments passed as Kristoph took to staring (glaring) at the manilla folder lying almost mockingly at him. It was still early, of course, but the man didn't exactly have much of a patience at the moment - the sooner that brat was here, the sooner he could get this over with--oh there it was, the knock.

Kristoph took a moment to let the calm settle back on his features, pushing his own personal rage aside from now (he would get his chance to show that brat a thing or two about expectations later) and just generally being the nice polite man that everyone saw him as. He picked up the folder and flipped it open and resisted every urge to scowl at the words and praises of accomplishment written in his testimonial - though not as much as he had, he had to note smugly. He gave himself a minute to do all of that before he finally responded to the knocking. "Come in, please."

[edge_of_honor]

Edgeworth didn't need any further invitation. He entered as soon as he was called in and, after he closed the door behind him, walked up to Gavin's desk and saluted.

"Sir!" he announced, his young voice clear and his back ramrod straight. "Sub-Lieutenant Miles Edgeworth reporting for duty, sir!"

[thedevilsmile]

To his credit, Kristoph managed not to wince at the what seemed to be rather enthusiastic shouting from the younger officer. Didn't he know better than to go about exclaiming like that? It almost reminded him of his own protege.

That thought brought a small smile to his face there and then as he looked up to face Edgeworth with a somewhat exasperated look (mainly at the shouting). "Yes, so I gathered. The captain has told me quite a bit about you while you were in Belarus, Sub-Lieutenant."

[edge_of_honor]

...von Karma told the first mate about him? Really? Edgeworth's eyes lit up and his chest swelled with pride, but it only took a moment to compose himself. Really, it was natural for the captain to talk about new crewmembers. It meant nothing, nothing at all.

Edgeworth let his hand drop, but he didn't take a seat; he wouldn't unless Gavin offered. He cleared his throat and looked at him, now more or less professional.

"If I may be so bold as to ask...what sort of things did he mention, sir?"

[thedevilsmile]

The corner's of Kristoph's lips twitched upwards just ever so slightly at that question - he had been expecting it, of course - and if Edgeworth had paid enough attention, he might have noticed how the blonde's eyes were almost sparkling mysteriously before the man pushed up his glasses and the whitened out lenses blocked them.

"Oh, not anything too memorable - just some notices, a few of your accomplishments... I must admit though, you do seem quite the character." He raised his head at that properly in order to send a rather pleasing look to the younger officer and gestured to the chair before him. "Please, do take a seat. It wouldn't be very nice of me to let someone of your calibre continue standing for no reason."

[edge_of_honor]

Edgeworth blinked and, after he finally realized that he was no longer required to stand, quickly took his seat. Honestly, he chided himself, there was no reason to be this affected by simple praise, after all, he was the pupil of Manfred von Karma. For von Karma, excellence wasn't a surprise, it was a requirement for life itself. Only a simple minded child would be so dumbfounded.

He cleared his throat and straightened his posture. Now it was time to get down to business.

"Thank you, sir," he answered, his voice calm and his face impassive. "Is there anything else you need to know about my record?"

[thedevilsmile]

It was almost admirable, really, how Edgeworth was apparently trying so hard - but of course, Kristoph knew better than to be taken in by his apparent earnestness no matter how honest it seemed to be; it was only a matter of time before the brat would show his true colours. That was what always happened with people - try to trust them, and they'd do nothing but use that trust against you. In such a day and age, the only one who you could trust was simply yourself, and nobody else.

The glasses on his nose flashed once as Kristoph tilted his head, smile playing on his lips. "Nothing at the moment - not that I would need to try and ask anything from a fellow student of the esteemed Admiral." He paused then in order to consult the manilla folder that contained the younger officer's file, looking over Edgeworth as he did so. "Now correct me if I am mistaken, but you're to be assigned as a boatswain on this ship, correct?"

[edge_of_honor]

Another student? That was strange. For all that von Karma told him about Gavin, he never mentioned that; as far as Edgeworth knew, the admiral's only other student was Franziska von Karma herself. He furrowed his brow, but before he had a chance to respond, Gavin had continued with his questions.

"Ah, yes sir," he said, composed once again. "While I may not have the experience of my seniors, you'll find that I'm still perfectly capable of my duties."

[thedevilsmile]

"Of course," came the response, voice so perfectly smooth and unperturbed as if the man had anticipated him to say this. Kristoph let his smile widen a little more, the lenses of his glasses glinting as he pushed them up once more. "I doubt I'll need to go through the usual procedures with you, seeing as you've been on this ship before, if memory serves me right."

He then paused to snap the folder shut and gave the younger officer a somewhat amused look. "In fact, if I may so daresay, you might even understand this ship better than I do." Even though his tone was light and amused, there was a deeper, underlying meaning in those words; a quiet voice that only he could hear and nobody else.

[edge_of_honor]

"I'm sure you understand the ship well enough, sir," he replied, with a smile on his face. "As we both know, the admiral expects nothing less from us."

That was a good answer, Edgeworth told himself. It was perfectly noncommittal; it complimented the first mate's talents without downplaying his own. Hopefully that would be enough to keep Gavin satisfied.

[thedevilsmile]

There was a short pause at that response - Kristoph stopped in his own actions in order to cast a look at Edgeworth for a brief moment, but eventually the strange stormy bluegreen eyes closed to a smile that spread across his face (yet again). "Of course... of course."

Despite the smile though, he was raging within - how dare, how dare the pompous brat assume such things?! He was the first, the first student of the admiral no matter what of the history that had happened between him and the captain. Edgeworth was so much more inexperienced, so much more weaker and so utterly imperfect. What right did he have to try and go up against him like that?! He was Kristoph Gavin, and anyone who dared to go against him was going to pay - even if that man was Miles Edgeworth.

Especially because the man was Miles Edgeworth.

[edge_of_honor]

Well, the first mate seemed pleased, but Edgeworth's nerves still tensed. Something about his demeanor was off; perhaps it was that slight pause before Gavin spoke. Did it mean Gavin was in thought, that he had yet to make up his mind about Edgeworth's record...and his potential? Or did it mean that Edgeworth himself made some sort of slip up, an imperceptible faux-pas that his superior was too polite to point out? Or maybe-

-or maybe it's nothing, he told himself firmly. It meant nothing in the slightest, other than the fact that Edgeworth's imagination was shamefully overactive. He forced his worries and concerns aside and asked, "Is there anything about the ship or the crew I should know about, sir?"

[thedevilsmile]

"Nothing too big for you to be concerned with," Kristoph responded with a small shake of his head. "You know as well as I do how the crew typically is after all." Honestly, it was a bit of a miracle at times of how the ship could still function as so despite the many... imperfections of the crew, for a lack of a better term.

Honestly, just what were those Parliment fools thinking at times? He respected them enough, but their stupidity truly was something to behold. It was only their fortune that someone like the Admiral and he were around, or he have suspected that the government would have fallen a long time ago already,

[edge_of_honor]

"I understand, sir."

So not much had changed then. Edgeworth should have known as much; he supposed that if there was anything he needed to know, von Karma would have told him himself. Now all there was to do was to wait until he was given orders or until he was dismissed.

[thedevilsmile]

Kristoph's lips twitched ever so slightly upwards with that response. "Excellent."

Part of him was highly tempted to try and test the younger officer's potential a bit more - to see just what exactly about the man did the Admiral see in so much to have taken him in despite his roots. While he did certainly loathe Edgeworth (he was just nothing but a brat blessed with luck), he couldn't exactly deny the small shred of curiosity that had grown within him. Perhaps, maybe - just a very small maybe - there could be something that was redeemable