Disclaimer: Ace Attorney belongs to Capcom.

Set before Rise from the Ashes

"Wright, stop your singing."

It was a useless request, but Edgeworth felt that he had to try, if only to show that he was just as irritated with the racket as the other citizens walking through the city that particular evening.

Phoenix, as inebriated as he was, didn't actually appear to register the request until it had formally turned into a command, at which point Edgeworth was feeling tired and in dire need of a drink himself.

"Wh-What's wrong, Miles?" The other man groaned, one arm slung haphazardly across Edgeworth's shoulders, physical contact that made the prosecutor feel distinctly uncomfortable. The unnerving feeling only intensified when the drunken defence attorney leaned his head against his, breath tickling his ear. "H-Hey, let's sing a round..."

"Let's not, Wright." Edgeworth muttered stiffly, wishing he didn't have to associate with the man when he was in such an embarrassing state. Then again, he supposed he should have expected as much as soon as he'd heard the distressed voice of Larry on the other end of the phone. For once, it had been Wright who had been the 'Butz', so to speak. Apparently, Larry had deemed himself unfit to look after his drunken friend with his girlfriend present, and without further ado had quickly thrust the burden on to Edgeworth.

"W-Where we goin', M-Miles?" Phoenix slurred, suddenly shifting his weight so that he was leaning upon the prosecutor as though he were a wall. He seemed somewhat surprised to find Edgeworth moving, and stumbled in an attempt to keep up with the other man's footsteps. "Uugh... I-I feel sick..."

"You do?" Edgeworth halted abruptly, the horrific image of Wright throwing up all over his clothes flashing in his mind. "Perhaps we should stop for a..."

"H-Haha, I was j-just... hic... joking. Really, M-Miles..." Head lolling, Phoenix giggled, tottering unsteadily on his feet. "Wh-Whoa... I sure drank a lot, h-huh?"

"Please, don't make this anymore difficult than it already is." Edgeworth gritted out, face burning under the curious gazes of other citizens passing by. What must they be thinking of all this? "Wright, stop fooling around. I'm going to take you home."

"M-Miles...!" Phoenix whined, and Edgeworth felt a shiver run down his spine. Somehow, it felt vaguely unsettling to hear his name called out in such a fashion by his old friend. "I-I don't wanna go home..."

Believe me, I do. "Wright, stop being a child," Edgeworth reprimanded him, though he couldn't help but tense when the other man clung to his arm like a child. "L-Look, it's just a few more steps before we get to my car - " Though at this rate, it felt like a mile. " - so just try and..."

He wasn't entirely sure what he was trying to say, but Phoenix wasn't listening anyway. "... Th-That was a great date, M-Miles..." He sighed, eyes lidding. "The beer was great..."

"Er... Wright, I wasn't eating with you," Edgeworth reminded him, somewhat blankly.

Phoenix peered at him as though he were trying to stare through a foggy piece of glass. "... You weren't?""

"No. You called Larry, who was with his girlfriend, and the three of you went to a pub." Edgeworth stated, turning his gaze back on the path ahead. Already, he could glimpse the car park in which he had left his beautiful Alfa Romeo waiting, and he couldn't help but quicken his pace - he really wasn't sure if he could stand the constant odd looks directed in his way. I'm going to kill you, Larry Butz.

"So..." Phoenix seemed to be thinking hard, his face scrunched up in fierce conentration. They were almost in the car by the time his brain finally managed to piece something together. "Wait a sec..." He slurred, leaning heavily upon the gleaming finish of Edgeworth's car, "th-then... What are you doin' here...?"

"I..." Edgeworth began, but then decided to remove the defence attorney from his car's beautiful paintwork first. "Larry called me after you were thrown out of the pub," he stated, sighing as he remembered his friend's call. To be honest, I would have ignored him completely had he not told me he was already on the bus back home without you...

"O-Oh..." Phoenix tilted his head, as though he were trying to think. "... And then we went on a date?"

"... No..." Edgeworth felt his face grow hot. Where is this 'date' thing coming from? "We didn't go on a date, Wright." Translation: You are making me uncomfortable. Stop.

"Huh..." Evidently, the message which would normally have rang through hit a dead end tonight. Phoenix's head sank down on to the hood of Edgeworth's car, as though he were preparing himself for a night of sleep, but his eyes flickered up to meet him, wide and oddly irresistible. "... I wish we did."

"Wright." Edgeworth cleared his throat, the heat upon his cheeks flushing straight down to his neck. "... I think you've had too much to drink." Firmly, he gripped the other's shoulder and gave him a little shake, prising him off the car. "Get in. You're going home."

"Mmh..." Phoenix groaned, but shifted reluctantly towards the passenger side of the car. He spent a moment pulling uselessly against the door handle, and in the end Edgeworth ended up opening it for him. As soon as he had done so, Phoenix fell into the seat, where he sat, sprawled over like a doll with his head resting limply upon the headrest.

"Please do your seat belt up, Wright," Edgeworth commanded, as soon as he had settled into his own seat, and he didn't start the engine until the other man had obeyed his command. Smoothly, he eased the car out of its space, before turning to Phoenix once more. "What is your address?"

When a long silence greeted him, he was almost worried that he would have to bring the other man into his house, which would have been awkward beyond imagination and, he imagined, deeply unpleasant. Thankfully, he did not have to worry. Phoenix had apparently stored his own address into his phone for just such an occasion, and it was with a frown that Edgeworth entered the post code into his satellite navigation. The defence attorney apparently lived not far from his own agency, within an area that was close to the town centre. It wasn't particularly well known as a rich place, but then again, judging by Phoenix's normal attire outside of court, neither was he.

"We should arrive in about fifteen minutes," Edgeworth stated, after a moment's silence. His words were met with no reaction, and when he took his eyes off the road to look at his companion, he found the other man asleep, eyes closed and expression content, with his head resting against his seat belt. Whilst his outing had made him appear scruffy and unkempt, Edgeworth found that it did not bother him so much as it would have done had it been, say, Gumshoe, or anyone else.

"... You drunken fool." He said the words out loud, allowing himself one brief moment of affection.

Edgeworth almost didn't want to wake Phoenix up by the time they finally reached Phoenix's apartment block. Then again, he didn't want the man to be drooling all over his car either. It really wasn't hard to make a choice as soon as he caught sight of the thin trail of saliva leaking from the defence attorney's open mouth, and without hesitation he reached over and gave the man a firm shake.

"Wright."

"H-Huh...?" Groggily, Phoenix's eyes opened slightly and he groaned. "Uuugh... N-Not guilty, Your Honour..."

"Wright, wake up." A little irritated at being mistaken for the Judge, of all people, Edgeworth gave the other man a harder shake. "We're at your house." If you could call it that... It really was a plain block of flats, small and insignificant, and though Edgeworth had known not all everyone lived as he did, he had always imagined Wright to live somewhere... bigger, at least. This surprised him.

"Uh..." Phoenix made an intelligent noise and finally lifted his head slightly, wiping away the drool on his chin, much to Edgeworth's relief. "O-OK... W-Wait, what are you doing here?"

Edgeworth sighed, and decided he wasn't going to waste all night going over that again. "Just... Come on, Wright. I'm taking you home."

"Oh, good." Phoenix mumbled, struggling against the seat belt. A long series of fumblings and muttered curses later, the defence attorney was finally freed and, unsteadily, he stumbled out of the car. Evidently, he was still drunk, but he appeared to be a recovering enough to totter a bit on his own. "... Ugh... My head hurts..."

"It will be worse in the morning," Edgeworth muttered dryly, though Phoenix did not appear to hear. Sighing, the prosecutor offered a steadying hand and allowed the other man to cling to him for balance, despite his initial disgust at the defence attorney's alcohol stenched breath. Phoenix clung to him gratefully, eyes half-closed, as though asleep again, and in this staggering, unsightly manner, the two of them made their way into the block and up the stairs. Phoenix's steps were unsteady, his fingers tightening occasionally upon Edgeworth's shoulder as he struggled to find his balance. It seemed like years before they reached the door which Phoenix finally declared to be his apartment, and a further three minutes was spent fumbling around whilst Phoenix scavenged his pockets for his key.

Just as Edgeworth had decided this night was never going to end, Phoenix managed to extract the key from an inner pocket in his suit. Triumphantly, he waved it out as though he had just produced some sort of magic trick, before spending another moment to actually jab the key into the keyhole. He succeeded rapidly, merely on the third go, and as the door clicked open, Edgeworth finally decided he was free.

As he turned to go, a hand grabbed his arm.

He flinched, turning in surprise to find himself face to face with a pair of ocean blue eyes. They weren't quite awake, not entirely comprehending, but they looked at him with the same sort of intensity which he normally would have expected from the man when he was awake.

Phoenix looked at him, and asked: "... Will you call me?"

"Wright..." Edgeworth shifted, looking about him instinctively even though he was almost certain no one would find them at this hour. "I'm... busy."

"So... you're not gonna call me?" Phoenix's expression fell, as though Edgeworth had just stabbed his puppy.

"I..." Edgeworth cringed. ... Damn those eyes. "Look, Wright. I'm sorry, but I'm very busy - "

"Then I'll call you." Phoenix declared, swaying slightly, and though he was apparently having trouble staying upright, he kept his gaze locked to Edgeworth's constantly. "I-If you're not gonna call me, Miles... I'll call you."

"I... don't think that's a good idea, Wright." Sighing, Edgeworth tried to retreat, but the defence attorney's grasp was surprisingly firm. "I won't answer."

"Then I'll call you. Every. Single. Day." Phoenix stated. His hand tightened around Edgeworth's arm, and this time, when the prosecutor looked up, he was almost frightened to see that the attorney's eyes were surprisingly clear, sober. ... Don't tell me he's serious.

"Wright, I - "

"I'll call until you answer." Phoenix finished, and even his voice had lost its original, drunken stammer.

Don't tell me you're not actually drunk, you -

All thoughts vanished when Phoenix leaned forwards abruptly and their lips met.

Edgeworth froze.

The contact was brief, but the prosecutor was startled enough to jerk back reflexively. His eyes were wide, his mouth hanging slightly open in disbelief.

"Wr-Wright..."

The other man stared back at him seriously, blue eyes deep and full of emotions, and Edgeworth had to cling on to the reminder in the attorney's breath that Phoenix was drunk. He might have looked, and sounded completely sober, but he was drunk. Inebriated. Out of his mind. This was nothing.

"Miles, I - "

Colour was beginning to flush through Phoenix's cheeks. Evidently the effects of his own actions had dawned upon him, and finally, his drunken stupor faded. For real. Suddenly, he looked just as flustered and uncomfortable as Edgeworth was feeling. "M-Miles..."

Edgeworth took a step back. "I'll... be taking my leave, now." His face felt as though it was burning; his blush had extended all the way down to his neck. "I-I... I have some paperwork to be getting on with."

Phoenix nodded quietly. "U-Um... Right... I-I'll..."

Edgeworth didn't wait for him to finish his sentence. His hands fisting by his sides, he turned and fled back down the stairs, his entire body hot with shame and embarrassment.

God, Wright. What on Earth possessed you to do such a thing?!

A/N: Couldn't resist writing P/E in the end. Those two are just so cute.

I'm thinking of turning this into a multi-chapter. I haven't tackled one for a while, and, you know what? This time I'm gonna stick with the old 'go with the flow'. I seem to write better when I don't actually have a sense of direction. With lots of possibilities open, I can take this anywhere... Hmm...

Anyway, this is, again, un-beta-ed. I would love to have a beta-reader for this particular fandom. So, if anyone knows a good beta-reader, or is a good beta-reader, please PM me!

Hope you enjoyed! Please leave me a review and tell me your thoughts.

Thank you for reading.