#this is what would have happened if phoenix joined apollo on an investigation in aa4 dont come for me

[24-7fandombrain]

Apollo: Where were you?!

Beanix: Investigating.

Apollo: What were you investigating, that bottle of wine?

Beanix: ...

Beanix: It's grape juice.

Beanix: You would know that if you'd investigated it.

[leighsartworks216]

We’ll Be Okay

Phoenix Wright (disbarred) x gn!reader (can possibly be read as platonic)

I wrote this out on my phone really quickly with like no proofreading or editing. I don’t think it’s great, but I like the idea I was trying to get across

Also this may not align with the timeline or actual canon events of the games. Spoilers for AA4

Warnings: living paycheck to paycheck, depression, references to alcoholism, hurt/comfort, fluff, light angst

Word Count: 950

Masterlist

AO3

Ever since you were little, you and Phoenix were thick as thieves. You joined his little friend group, earning a limited-edition green Signal Samurai for yourself in the process. And even though you all got older, drifted apart, and built lives for yourselves, the bond you shared never really died out.

In the end, Larry was the only one who didn't get a job in law (not that he could carry a job for longer than a week). Miles drifted apart the most and earned the title of Demon Prosecutor, with nasty rumors to follow. Phoenix was determined to close that distance, and became an attorney, willing to face Miles in court, no matter what. And you found yourself stuck in the middle, working as a detective for Criminal Affairs.

Things came back together, after so long. Phoenix saved Miles, Miles learned how to stop pushing everyone away, Larry, well, was still Larry. The Signal Samurai were reunited!

But it was short lived. Everything, all the hard work put in, came crashing down. Phoenix lost his badge. He lost his hope. He lost everything.

He pushed you all away. Even Larry couldn't get near enough.

You could still vividly remember one day, shortly after it happened, when you stopped by Miles' office to drop off information about a case. It was silent. You just looked at each other, forlorn. It felt like there was nothing you could do.

That same day, you refused to give up.

At first, all you did was drop by and slip an envelope of cash through the mail slot. You didn't know if he ever used it, but he had no income, no way of supporting himself. It felt like the best thing to do at the time.

Then, through some less-than-legal means, you got into his apartment. He was laying on his bed, surrounded by too-many bottles of grape juice, and basting in his own stench. He was too tired to yell, or cuss you out. He was basically a rag doll in your arms as you forced him into a bath and washed all his sheets.

He cried when he came out of the bathroom. You held him. Nothing was said. A week later, you moved in.

After that, for the past seven years, you worked alongside Trucy to keep Phoenix and his daughter afloat. Your paycheck went toward rent, mostly, while Trucy's went toward food. It wasn't glamorous. There were days you would wake up next to Phoenix, and the world felt so heavy. The sheets suffocated you, the sun burned you, and all you could do was drown under the weight of life.

On those days, Phoenix refused to give up on you. He forced you into a bath, made sure you ate something, drank something with some water content that wasn't alcohol, sat by you and provided a shoulder to lean on. If you still hadn't given up on him after seven long years of turmoil, he wouldn't abandon you either.

Once Apollo joined the "Wright Anything Agency", things felt easier. Maybe nothing changed. Maybe you were all still living paycheck to paycheck. But it felt better, somehow. It felt like things were beginning to actually be okay again.

Apollo and Trucy were out, investigating a crime scene and interviewing witnesses. You should have been out there, too, helping Ema catalog evidence or being pelted with Snackoos. But when you woke up that morning, and the world felt too heavy to bear, Phoenix called you in sick and stayed with you.

Admittedly, you felt guilty. You knew he was working on something big (he wouldn't tell you what), but whenever you told him he could leave and get back to his "secret mission", he just smirked in that all-knowing way.

"I'm not allowed to take a day off with my partner?" he asked. It had a subtle lilt to it that gave away that he was teasing.

You were laying along the couch, head in his lap, with some sort of Steel Samurai spinoff episode playing on the tv, buried under all of Trucy's magic items. Light from the window lit up the room, casting beams of warmth along his stubbly chin. You reached up and playfully pushed his head away. He chuckled.

"No," you retorted, "you're not. Not when we live like we do."

Grey eyes settled back on you, filled with affection and mirth. He didn't say anything for a minute. Even so, you could tell he was studying you, trying to decide what he should say.

One of his arms that had been resting along the back of the couch fell in favor of running a hand through your hair. His fingers scratched lightly at your scalp, massaging at the base of your neck. You couldn't help it; you melted into his touch immediately. Your eyes fell closed, breaths evening out, anxieties melting away with each second.

"We'll be okay," he finally said, voice quiet, like it was a secret only you could know about. Warm air brushed across your cheeks and rough, picked-at lips pressed against your forehead. The sun's rays were blocked momentarily. “We’ll be okay.”

You turned, pressing your face into his stomach. The teeth of the zipper were cold against your nose, providing no softness, but you ignored it. Laying like this was too comfortable, and comforting. He tugged a blanket off the back of the couch and draped it haphazardly over your body, tucking it in around your shoulders before returning to petting your hair.

"I know." Your shoulders relaxed with the admission, as if saying it out loud had lifted some of the burden. "I know we will be."

[trlvsn]

joining on it. I don't want aa7. I feel like there's been enough mainline games and tbh capcom has completely ruined my trust with them handling the mainline ones. I would LOVE a franzi spinoff or an investigations type game again. but I'm sick of phoenix centred games because I don't think capcom knows what to do with him anymore. I wish the apollo n trucy stuff would get resolved but after soj I just... don't think capcom is able w those games. like dgs was really good, aai2 was really (kinda) good, they clearly have writers who are excited and have new ideas for those spin offs. but the mainline just feel dead in the water. shu tamaki didn't even want to do aa4 I'm pretty sure because he thought the storyline was wrapped up- which I agree with even though I like aa4 and the characters it adds. but anyway, I just don't see where they can go after aa6, that game is a Mess.

-lanamia booyah

honestly i was going to say "maybe we don't need aa7" in my reply to an ask but changed my mind bc i know too little about the last two games. either way, you are making some veeeery good points here. why squeeze more out of the main game plot when you can have an expansion of something that already happened by making aai3

[askaceattorney]

Dear 91teivos,

Mod Vera: Thanks! Everyone in the world is going through some kind of existential crisis, so it made sense for the AA characters to join the party! (And since it was another follower who gave us the idea, we might just keep that idea in the think that after all...)

Dear dawsongfg,

Mod Vera: No need to apologize! We like to space out letters from specific people a little, but we’ll answer as many as we can!

(Referenced Letter)

Dear Bluedragoncody,

Co-Mod: Don’t worry.  I doubt they’ll have much luck against the Ace Attorney crew, even without the Proto Badger.  They have the ultimate weapon against despair in their arsenal, after all.

...They’re doomed, aren’t they?

I can’t make any promises, but if I ever gain enough skill in the art of animation (which has been a dream of mine for a long time, it turns out), I’ll keep that idea in mind.

Dear skibot99,

Mod Vera: Probably Tumblr bein’ weird. (What else is new?)

Dear sheeeesh,

Mod Vera: Mods get brought on as needed, as you can see with the arrival of Mod Edgeworth! Also, DGS2 is one of the few AA titles I’ve never played, but rest assured. Where there’s a letter, there’s a Mod who can answer it!

Mod Edgeworth: To add to Mod Vera, even if you weren’t accepted during any mod applications, that doesn’t mean you have lost all chances. I applied early January and lost to Mod Vera. Regardless, Co-Mod informed me that, even though I was rejected, he saw my potential and kept me in mind for if I was ever needed. Now, here I am.

Just because you get rejected, that doesn’t mean it’s game over. Show that you have potential and make yourself known by sending letters to us. That is what I did, after being rejected. I made myself known to the mods by sending letters. We do read them and they tell us how much you know the characters and games of AA more than any application. Of course, you must also follow the guidelines. That just goes without saying.

Co-Mod: I think my actual words were something like “Don’t tell anyone, but you were my second choice.”  But yeah, what they said is true -- becoming a Mod here, like many things, may or may not happen to you, but you can definitely increase your chances by waiting patiently and demonstrating your potential.

As for DGS2 letters, I’m afraid those are still off-limits unless you know of a way to play or watch the game in its entirety, translated into English.  I guess I could check to see if the Dai Gyakuten Saiban 2 channel finished translating...

(Translation: Whaaaaaaaaaaaat?!  ...D-Don’t tell me?!)

...Okay, looks like I have some watching to do.  Don’t know how I missed that.

So, uh...  That part in bold was what I was going to say.  Now that both games are finally getting an official English version, all I can say is, hang tight!

(Previous Post)

Dear Inferno again,

Co-Mod: Yeah, I agree.  I was just joking around.  For anyone who didn’t catch it, that was a reference to Sbemail #108.

The event’s technically over, but we’ll answer the rest of the April Fools’ Day letters when they reach the bottom of the queue.  I’m as eager to see Trucy’s reaction to the news (after the stunned silence) as anyone else, after all.

(Video in Letter -- Strong Language Warning)

Dear Ella,

Mod Edgeworth: 

I can’t see the first link and....

How did you find this masterpiece and where can I play this game?

Co-Mod: We don’t check for direct messages on Tumblr, if that’s what you’re referring to, so it wouldn’t have made any difference anyway.  You can always send links in your letters, of course.

(Previous Post)

Dear Inferno,

Mod Edgeworth: That mad lad would be me and thank you. 

I like to put my heart and effort when answering these letters. With this one, I figured you wanted to see Trucy in costume, so I just searched up an image on Google for the Ancient One’s costume, a sprite of Trucy and a bald head to put on her. The rest I photoshopped on GIMP. 

We’re still going through letters from January. Hopefully we will get the rest of yours soon enough.

Mod Edgeworth: Thank you very much. Your support and the others’ support that have liked, commented and reblogged it mean a lot. As you have stated, a majority of the fandom seem to consider him the worst. I’d like to think it’s because how AA had created this villain of a character to be universally hated was pure genius. Not even the Phantom gets this much hate… and that’s saying something.

Unfortunately, I’d like to keep my real identity outside this blog a secret. I write a lot of letters here and I don’t want to break the spell for anyone. Think of it like a Disney theme park. The cast that play the characters will never admit their true identities, outside of family and close friends, to prevent the experience from being ruined. I want to do the same as a Mod. I don’t want to break the spell of writing to your favorite AA characters. This blog had helped me through my tough times and I want to help everyone else as a mod.

However, I will answer your letters and, if you post anything on your account, a mysterious friend I know may linger and give you a like ;)

(Previous Letter)

Dear Ali S. Fakenamington,

Co-Mod: Beautifully so.

(Previous Letter)

Dear Sinyove,

Mod Edgeworth: That letter was made in 2012 before AA5 and AA6, which was WAY before I became a part of the AA fandom. I’m certain a lot of us were not here when this letter was made, except maybe Co-Mod, but you’ll have to speak with him about this. I will say that the mod that answered this is no longer working here... I think. At the very least, I haven’t heard from him.

That being said, AA4 or Apollo Justice was the first AA game I’ve ever played. Despite all of the hate I saw towards that game, I still loved it regardless. Though, having not played the trilogy, playing the tutorial of AJ was a pain in the ass. I remember going to YouTube to find out how to beat it, because it was so hard. I also played it on PC.

I do see where The Mod was coming from. Had the two sequel games never existed, Apollo Justice would have more holes than my brothers’ socks. My only critique is that Phoenix wasn’t any better either with having Mia babysitting him during almost every trial AND investigations. Hell, Phoenix needed Mia to know how to talk to a kid, talk to a perverted old man, almost gave up in most of his trials in the first game and never conducted a trial without Mia until Turnabout Goodbyes when Maya literally couldn’t summon her. For the most part, Apollo was doing fine on his own without Phoenix, with only Trucy assisting him for the two middle trials, only almost giving up once and Phoenix having assisted him during times when Apollo was not in a normal situation (like when the criminal turned out to be his own co-council/mentor or when he had to lead a trial that included the Jury System). That’s more than Phoenix ever did on his own in the first two games and I think Apollo deserves more credit than he got in that letter in my opinion.

For me, Apollo Justice is one of those games you either like or you hate. I love it for what it is. My least favorite AA game would have to be Ace Attorney Investigations, the first game. The second one is my absolute favorite.

Co-Mod: Sadly, I haven’t seen or heard from the Mod in a while, so it may be time for us to declare him MIA again.

Erm...  Sorry, poor choice of words.

I’m fairly certain I wasn’t around 5 years long ago, but I have to say, Capcom did a great job of making Apollo and his story more interesting over time.  He may not be Phoenix, but he certainly carried his legacy forward pretty well, both as an attorney and as an Ace Attorney protagonist.

Now, WHAT ABOUT ATHENA ALREADY!?

Dear BDC,

Co-Mod: It fits like a glove, if you ask me...although it also kind of reminds me of 101 Dalmatians.  And thanks for that bit of info!  I never get tired of watching people enjoying the fun dialogue and plot twists of Ace Attorney, so I might have to look him up.

I’m not sure I feel the same about watching Dahlia’s voice actress, though.  I’m sure she’s a nice person and all, but the thought of hearing that voice for so long...  *shudder*

(Previous Letter)

Dear dawsongfg again,

Co-Mod: I wasn’t trying to say that natural deaths can’t happen in the Ace Attorney universe, just that most deaths aren’t what they seem.  I knew right away that Archie Buff’s death was no accident, for one thing.  Waaaaay too much of a coincidence, know what I mean?

-The Mods

[rivalsforlife]

i've always found so interesting that phoenix not being in contact with friends in the 7yg is a thing in so many people's hcs/fics, bc even when i first played aa4 i just assumed the choice to not bring up old trilogy characters was just bc they wanted to focus on the new ones, and considering some writer comments about worrying that new games will spoil old ones (which like, wild when it prevents addressing plot points lol) + how quickly they addressed it in new games, does seem to be the case+

+ and like, as you said, considering the end of the trilogy and that some of aa4 events happen right after it, it does feel weird that he'd cut contact/they'd cut contact with him just like that haha

I only joined this fandom a couple of years ago so I wasn’t around in that six-year wait between AA4 and DD... but from what I’ve heard, it was preeeetty common for people to think Phoenix had cut off all contact, and also a lot of people assuming that AA4 was just the end of the series. So no statement on what anyone’s up to now, or if any of them have ever talked to Phoenix again at all, just... nothing. And I think that the apparent complete lack of mentioning a lot of the characters (like Miles, and Gumshoe, etc) led to a lot of people trying to come up with headcanons for why that would be the case, hence why if you’re willing to dig far enough into ao3 (or the older fanfiction . net, though I haven’t been there much because I’m on constant high alert about the lack of tags) you’ll see a lot of fics where Phoenix and Miles had a huge breakup/fight or Miles went to permanently live in ~Europe~ somewhere or something like that, or Phoenix in distress over disbarment forcibly cut everyone out. A lot can happen over seven years, and I guess that a bunch of people assumed all those friendships disintegrated over that time; it can happen, I guess, as upsetting as it is to think about.

(It’s also cool to read these fics to see how much of current fanon and/or fan interpretations of characters are influenced by the investigations+DD/SOJ games (since the fan patch of investigations 2 didn’t come out until 2014, from what I can see?) and it’s actually pretty neat. A Turnabout Toast is probably my favourite of the fics I’ve read from this era and some of the things it handles about post-AJ era are better than the actual games.)

I mean now we have DD which tells us that Phoenix+Miles were in contact over the gap and that Miles flew him over to help on cases sometimes, and it says that Trucy+Pearl were close so there must have been contact with the Feys, and it has letters from Maya implying regular contact, and SOJ with its few offhand lines saying Gumshoe’s alive at least... but none of that was really there before.

I’m pretty sure Takumi’s intent was just as you said and didn’t want to bog down the story with the older characters whose arcs were done, and the only reason Phoenix is even there is because he was told to bring him in somehow. (Who wants to bet that capcom exec was kicking themselves for that one after seeing people get so upset over disbarred Phoenix.) But then of course 56 went back on that by bringing back the old characters whose arcs were done anyways...

The thing about old games spoiling new ones seems to be pretty recent, actually, since the original trilogy had much more focus on older plot points + the second investigations game talking a lot about DL-6, but it actually did a pretty cool thing with this by talking about the old plot points without spoiling them. For instance, the second investigations game mentions DL-6 a lot and mentions MvK but never does the full connection of MvK being the one who killed Gregory, or that Miles thought he did, or a lot of those details that are the big twists in Turnabout Goodbyes. (It does make things weird sometimes, though.) ... And thinking back on it, I may be wrong, but I don’t even think JFA mentioned that MvK was the one who killed Gregory. Also all that with Morgan (you know she’s in jail but I don’t think they go into detail about why) and Mia’s death having a big part in T&T although the details of that case aren’t explored. 

I think it’s a good approach since this way there’s still stuff to experience if you played the games out of order for whatever reason, but you can still build on old plot points and they’re actually addressed instead of each game feeling isolated in its own little universe with the same cast (cough cough 456.) That particular comment one of the writers made I think was specifically about Thalassa, and that’s a tricky thing to do, since Apollo and Trucy being siblings was one of the big twists of AA4, and there’s no way to kind of... smoothly integrate that without spoiling the game.