A/N: And with this my completed story count reaches four! I really hope you guys enjoyed this little tale as much as I enjoyed writing it. Writing Apollo and Athena is always such a joy, so expect to see more of the more I write! Now that this one is out of the way, I can focus on my two main concerns; Ace Mommy and the Christmas fic! Look out for a new Ace Mommy update in the next few days!
Apollo began to stir, feeling incredibly weak. Before he even opened his eyes, he knew something was different. Rather than the uncomfortable rocky surface he expected to feel, he instead felt a comfortable cushioning all around his body, as well as warmth, as opposed to the blistering cold he expected.
Opening his eyes slowly, he had to squint against the light shining down on him. Weakly, he brought up his hand to shield his eyes until they adjusted.
Where am I? The last thing I remember, I was digging through the snow. And… Athena… ATHENA!
Shooting up quickly, causing him to feel lightheaded, he looked around the room, catching no sight of his redheaded companion. "Athena!?" No answer. Tossing off the blanket that covered him, he placed his feet on the floor and tried to stand, but simply fell back onto the bed.
A hand then reached and gripped his shoulders. "Whoa, whoa there, Man of Steel!"
Apollo glanced at the person who held him. "Mr. Wright!"
Indeed, staring down at Apollo was the concerned face of his boss. "Glad to see you're awake, Apollo. But you're a long ways from walking out of this room."
Apollo tried to stand again but fell forward this time, being caught by his boss. "But, Athena… Gotta find her."
Phoenix gently put the man back on his bed. "Apollo, relax. Athena's fine. She's in the room next door getting some bed rest."
"She… She's ok?" Apollo breathed out.
Phoenix nodded. "Yes. She was in a lot better shape than you were when I found you."
"Me? But… I-I was fine. Athena… Her ankle… and, her cold-"
"Were nothing in comparison to you going through hypothermia." Phoenix interrupted.
Apollo looked confused. "Hypothermia? But, that's crazy. The last thing I remember, I was digging through the snow, trying to get us out."
Phoenix nodded. "Yes, and because of that, I fell through the snow and found the cave you two were trapped in. But according to Athena, you were knocked out cold, no pun intended, by a rock. Apparently it left a nice bump on your head."
Apollo moved his hand to the back of his head, and sure enough, there was a sizable lump. He then turned his attention back to his boss. "How long was I out?"
Phoenix put a hand to his chin and thought for a moment. "Well, according to Athena, at least half a day."
Apollo's eyes widened. "Half a day!? How long ago did you find us?"
"About six hours ago. You were airlifted here and treated for your hypothermia. Honestly, it's a miracle you're already awake."
Apollo turned to look out the window and saw that it was indeed night time. "So… We're both ok? Athena's gotten some medicine for her cold and her ankle's been looked at, right?"
Phoenix smiled and shook his head. "You were a few hours from being at death's door and you're still worried about her?" He chuckled. "Relax. You did a good job of keeping her ankle under control and her cold isn't too bad. Now just lie down, Apollo. You two have had a rough past few days and need your rest."
"But, I need to-"
Phoenix shot a glare at him and his voice came out more demanding. "I said lie down, Apollo. You won't be seeing Athena tonight. Aside from the fact that visiting hours are long over, you need to regain your strength."
Apollo was taken aback and finally conceded, pulling the blanket back up on himself. "R-right. Sorry, Mr. Wright."
Phoenix sighed and headed for the door, flicking off the light as he exited.
"No foolin'? You're that kid I pulled outta the cave back then?" Gumshoe asked.
"I sure am! I never forgot about you. You saved me back then and I really wanted to find you again someday." Athena explained.
"Ah," Gumshoe started, scratching the back of his head. "It wasn't nothin' pal. Just doin' my job."
Athena had awoken the next day and was met by Gumshoe, who wanted to check on the two young lawyers. Athena had recounted the tale of how the two of them met so many years ago. As the two of them chatted, Phoenix made his way into the room.
"Detective? You sure got here early. Visiting hours just started." Phoenix said.
Turning around, the scruffy man looked at Phoenix. "Oh, hey pal. Well, they let me in since I'm on the force. I couldn't help but wonder how this girl here knew me, so I came to ask."
Phoenix slumped slightly. "So you woke her up early to ask her about that?"
Athena giggled. "It's fine, boss. I could hardly sleep anyway. I couldn't stop worrying about Apollo."
Phoenix sighed. "Apollo said the same thing about you."
Athena gasped. "He's awake!?" She quickly made to climb from the bed before Phoenix made his way over and forced her to stay. "You're not going anywhere, Athena! Not until the doctors clear you to leave this room."
"But boss, he needs-"
"He NEEDS rest. Seeing you can wait for now."
Athena conceded, getting back into bed. "Fine. But how is he? He's had me so worried."
Phoenix took a seat in a chair next to Gumshoe. "Well, he's pretty weak at the moment, as you'd expect from someone who nearly froze to death, and he doesn't seem to remember everything after he got knocked out, but he's alive. And he has you to thank for that."
Athena giggled, looking at her hands. "Well, what was I supposed to do, let my boyfriend freeze to death?"
Phoenix's eyes widened and he raised up his hands. "Whoa, whoa, back up a second. Boyfriend? Did I miss something?"
Athena flinched, having forgotten that her boss was unaware of what had transpired between the two of them in the cave. "Uh, y-yeah… Uh, well, y'see…" Athena struggled to find the right words. "We kinda… confessed to each other while we were trapped?"
Phoenix sighed and brought a hand to his face. "Damn it, now I owe Trucy ten bucks."
"What was that, boss?"
"Nothing. Nothing. But, well, I guess if you two are happy, that's all that matters."
Athena smiled softly. "I'll be happier when I can see him again."
"Don't worry. If you get enough rest, I'm sure you'll be able to see him later today." Phoenix assured the girl. "Now," He said, his eyes shifting between his employee and the detective. "How about you tell me how you're acquainted with Gumshoe here."
Athena grinned and began to tell the tale once more.
"Hello, Mr. Justice. How are we feeling?" The young male doctor asked as he stepped into the room.
"Somewhere between dead to the world and what I imagine people feel like after running a marathon." Apollo said, sitting up slowly.
The doctor chuckled. "Well, it's good to see you have a sense of humor. Now, I just need to look you over a little bit. Just a few simple things. Blood pressure, temperature, heartbeat. Y'know, just general things."
"Yeah, sure." Apollo said. "Hey doc, can you tell me how Athena is doing?"
The doctor walked up to the hospital bed and fiddled with is stethoscope. "Athena? … Oh, do you mean the woman who was with you in that cave?"
"Yeah. How's she doing?"
"Could you please pull your gown down so I can check your heart beat?" Apollo obliged and the doctor placed the stethoscope to his chest and listened. Satisfied, he nodded to Apollo, telling him he could replace his gown. "Well, I personally haven't been treating her. But I hear she's doing well. It's incredible she came out of this with nothing but a sprained ankle and a mild cold."
"So, will she be allowed to leave soon?"
"Leave?" The doctor laughed. "No, neither of you will be out of here for the next few days, but she'll most likely be allowed to roam the hospital a bit later today." He said as he pulled out a blood pressure gauge.
"Is that so? Well I'm glad to hear that." Apollo said as he held out his arm for the doctor to attach the gauge.
"You should be a bit more worried about yourself, Mr. Justice. A few more hours in that mess and you might not have made it."
"Yeah, Mr. Wright said as much." Apollo said, staring at the tiled floor.
"You also have that young lady to thank. It seems her quick thinking managed to keep you from getting much worse." The doctor said as he pumped away at the gauge.
"How's that?" Apollo asked.
The doctor jotted something down on the papers on his clipboard before releasing the air from the gauge. "As I understand it, she found you facedown in the snow, so she got you out of your wet clothes and huddled up with you to share body heat."
Apollo's eyes widened. "S-she undressed me!?"
The doctor chuckled. "Given the circumstances, I'd hardly be complaining, Mr. Justice." He then walked over and handed a thermometer to Apollo. "Please keep that in your mouth for one minute."
Apollo did as he was told, and once the minute was up, the doctor looked at the thermometer.
"Hm, well, you're body temperature is still on the low side, but not at a dangerous level anymore." He jotted a few more things down. "Alright, that's everything I needed for now, Mr. Justice. Remember to try and get plenty of rest." He then left the room.
Apollo got settled back in to go back to sleep when the door to his room opened again.
"Mr. Justice?" It was the doctor.
"Yeah?" Apollo replied, not turning to face the door.
"You have a visitor. Would you like to meet with her?
Her?
"Y-yeah, send her in." Apollo said, leaning back up and facing the door.
"Of course." The doctor turned around and spoke to someone before walking off. He was replaced shortly by…
"Athena." Apollo said softly.
In the doorway, Athena stood, balanced on her crutches. On her face, she wore a mask, no doubt to keep from spreading her cold. She slowly but surely made her way toward Apollo's bed before finally releasing her crutches and falling forward, grabbing onto the man for dear life, burying her face in his chest. "Apollo… I'm so glad you're ok. I was so scared I was going to lose you."
Apollo weakly returned the embrace. "I… I'm sorry, Athena. I never meant to worry you. I was just trying to get us out."
"I know." She said into his chest. "But I was so worried when I found you like that. I was afraid I wouldn't be able to save you. To keep you alive."
Apollo tightened his hold on the woman. "I'm sorry."
The two sat there silently for minutes before Athena pulled her face from his chest. Apollo wiped the tears from her face. "Feel better, Tiger?"
Athena nodded. "Yes. So much better." She grinned underneath her mask.
Apollo smiled. "Good. Now…" He trailed off. "What's this I hear about you undressing me?"
Two weeks later…
Apollo and Athena sat at their desks, filling out paperwork for a recent trial. Phoenix sat at his own desk, reading over the paper when he suddenly started to laugh.
"Something funny, Mr. Wright?" Apollo asked, looking up from his paperwork.
Still laughing, Phoenix stood and strode over to Apollo's desk. "Yeah. You two should take a look at this." He laid the paper down on the desk as Athena joined the two of them.
Apollo picked up the paper and read over the headline. "Mountain cave involved in rescue becomes tourist attraction."
"People are visiting the cave we were trapped in? Why?" Athena asked.
Phoenix chuckled. "Keep reading, Apollo.
Apollo did so. "The case involving two young lawyers trapped in the mountains has caught the attention of tourists. The cave in which Apollo Justice (23) and Athena Cykes (18) were found two weeks ago has become a stop for tourists and locals alike, who have taken to calling the cavern… LAWYERFALL CAVE!?"
Phoenix finally lost his composure, holding his gut as he laughed.
"What kind of stupid name is that?" Apollo said.
Athena suddenly grabbed his hand. "I dunno. I think it works. After all," She turned the man's face towards hers. "It is a cave where to lawyers fell, right?"
Blushing, Apollo nodded. "Y-yeah. I guess you're right."
Grinning, Athena leaned forward and pressed her lips to Apollo's, who happily returned the kiss.