songerein | [Closed] The Merry Ace Attorney

Entry tags:

[Closed] The Merry Ace Attorney

Who: The Great Ace Attorney cast
Which: Closed log
Where: Mikotoba house
What: The Mikotobas invite Kazuma over for Christmas on the 25th, and all their friends from home on the 26th
Warnings: Nothing here but Christmas cheer!

[25th, closed to Kazuma]

[It's Christmas day in the Mikotoba household, and no such celebration would be complete without their adoptive family member. For that reason, presents have not yet been opened and instead lie ready in a corner of the living area, the wrapping paper almost beckoning the curious gaze. The decorations in the house are minimal in number, though Yujin did learn a thing or two from the most recent dreamscape about crafting a strong Christmas aesthetic with bare essentials. Food has already been prepared for the most part by Susato; roast duck and an apple spiced tea. It only requires those few easy finishing touches, but it's not dinner time yet!

At the moment, they're still waiting for Kazuma to arrive.]

[26th, Cast Party]

[For today, the Mikotobas made sure to invite everyone they know from home to spend Christmas at their home. They have to stick together! While those who hail from London may have their own traditions regarding Christmas, they'll just have to make do with what's been set up! Yujin dragged in a small tree, there's hot cocoa for everyone and dinner will be later. After that, perhaps some drinks of the alcoholic variety for the adults? (Which means everyone except Susato, sorry!) The choices are between apple cider or wine, because we all know Van Zieks has a problem.]

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[ They would get to the topic of the plush... perhaps. The man is hard to read, reactionless as he was, and even harder to shop for. Perhaps that is the reason why she finds it so difficult to speak now, because she truthfully doesn't know whether he'll like it or find it offensive in some way. It could easily go either way, based on past experiences. Now that they lack a courtroom, he is certainly finding all new ways to make her nervous, which is awesome, but she steels herself. ]

I think that perhaps you have done more than you realize. Nevertheless, I--I do hope you'll like it.

[ If Barok chooses to open the present immediately, he will find an especially elegant tea set inside, with four matching teacups complete with a kettle of similar theme. Fitting for him, or so she thinks--but because she looking for something else to occupy herself as he opens it, she finds herself grabbing her new bunny idly for comfort.

...A new bunny that needs a name, she slowly realizes. ]

[Although van Zieks can't imagine what she's referring to, he lets the conversation go without further argument, and simply turns his attention to the offered gift. Her statement clearly leads to the suggestion of opening the gift and answering to her hope, so he does, tearing a relatively neat line through the wrapping.

The heft of the box told him it was no small gift, but the exact form of it—the detailing and the theme—is something of a pleasant surprise. He lifts one cup from the box carefully to inspect it properly, as if to judge if the quality is up to his standards. But after those few moments, he nods in apparent satisfaction.]

It appears you have a talent for observation. [That is to say, they're definitely his aesthetic.] I shall be glad to use these in future.

[ Phew! Susato lets out a quiet breath, holding onto the stuffed rabbit a little less tightly. There is a proud smile on her face. Certainly not the first compliment she's ever received, but definitely the first one she remembers from Lord van Zieks. She wonders if this is how Ryunosuke felt before--it feels like a lifetime ago now. ]

Well... your friends who have taken up residence in your home are rather hard to miss. [ She may have been a tad unsettled by the bats at first, but she kind of likes them now??? Especially that one with the broken wing. That one is her friend, sir. ] It reminded me of you straight away. I am glad to hear they will see use.

[ He doesn't strike her as a person to host guests often, if at all, but he does have access to an endless supply of wine, so who knows. Either way, even if it's only van Zieks who ever gets to use the set, she'd be okay with that. ]

[They are all very good boys and girls whose presence is integral to Barok's abode.]

... I'm sure they would be flattered by your attention, had they the capacity.

[Are the bats a metaphor...? Nah...

He turns his eyes briefly to that doll, simply to indicate its presence for the next topic of conversation:]

I see you've received some gifts of your own.

[ ...Damn, he's got a good poker face, she will admit. But her father and her discussed it once they both opened their gifts, and they had it down to a 1% margin for error by her estimations. Of course, there was no evidence, so that 1% felt like far more of a toss up, even with Mr Sholmes' former partner involved in the deduction process. ]

Oh, her? [ Susato childishly makes the bunny hop around on her lap for his benefit. ] It was the strangest thing. She was delivered to me last week wrapped in one of two packages, with the other one being for my father. We opened them a little early to try and find out where they came from, but there wasn't any indication.

[Van Zieks seems to consider the issue for a moment, tilting his head at a slight angle and letting out a thoughtful hum.]

... Then one must assume your anonymous friend would simply be satisfied knowing their gifts were well received.

[He raises his neutral gaze from the rabbit to Susato's face, and though the reasons for his exceptionally consistent stone faced expression aren't pleasant, it certainly comes in handy when he wants to show nothing. Call him out, I dare you.]

[ Perhaps she has become used to his resting stone face. It certainly unsettles her far less than it used to, though not being opposite him in a courtroom certainly helps.

... ]

My anonymous friend, one who knows where I live and the very shop which carries certain things of my taste...? [ A shop they visited together? ] Call it wishful thinking, but it does seem rather like you.

[ Yeah, she went there. She is nothing if not direct... or is he really going to try to keep up the ruse? ]

[Wishful thinking, hm? It's an interesting thing to wish for. But then, he does owe her and her family and friends a great deal, so perhaps it's only appropriate for her to hope for him to repay his debts. He merely closes his eyes for a moment before responding.]

You may think as you like.

[Barok neither confirms nor denies the accusations put forward.]

[ The idea of collecting on any kind of debt was far from her mind, so that really wasn't what she was getting at, alas. Still, she doesn't know what else to do with his relative silence other than stare for a few seconds.

He didn't say no, in any case, so she has to take that as a good sign. What a mystery. ]

...I was thinking of naming her Iris, you know. Though I wonder if that might be copying my father a little too much.

[A glance at Yujin who's somewhere across the rooms...]

Somehow, I feel he would have no objection.

[The complexity of his feelings regarding said previous naming situation, however, draws him back into silence—but in place of further words, there's the scent of earth and woods just after a rain, faint but certainly out of place.]

[ It is certainly out of place, and Susato catches on. She closes her eyes, sniffing gently at the air. For a moment, she wonders if her senses are tricking her, but she finds herself walking towards their window nearby, leaning on its sill as he considers his words.

No rain. Just a quiet snowfall, though the sight of that and the smell of the rain seems to bring her peace. ]

After all we went through for the truth, you would be okay with us not knowing? [ Her tone is non-accusatory, and surprisingly neutral. ] I could live with that, of course. This is... just a kind gesture in the spirit of the season. But I do think she means more to me if I choose to believe she came from you.

[ She still holds Iris, now named officially, in her hands. ]

[And he still doesn't quite understand that sentiment. What a strange girl, he thinks, to feel so positively about a man who until very recently had harbored a clear loathing for her and those she cared so deeply about.

But honestly—of course he's fine with them not knowing. He has never done the right thing in order to be acknowledged, and small gestures like this are no different. He turns his eyes away, still avoiding a direct answer.]

If that belief brings you any comfort, I have no complaint with what you decide.

[ ...Yeah, sure. Maybe she's weird and just a little sheltered. Until recently, she would have never imagined she'd have a part in uncovering a foreign government conspiracy spanning ten years, or that she'd find herself stuck in a dream world when it was all over. Or that her brother is turning into a got-damned snake and there isn't anything she can do about it.

Call it a personal victory if you will, to have received a present (and one she liked so much) from someone who claims to hate her kind (but is apparently trying). ]

...Alright. Then I have.

[ Decided, that is--but she won't push her luck. Between the present itself and just getting him here for some celebration, it felt like a lot already. ]

Thank you, Lord van Zieks. I hope you'll stay for as long as you're comfortable.

[As long as he's comfortable, is it? Well, given he already feels that he doesn't deserve that sort of generosity, his departure will likely be sooner rather than later. Still... what he knows about the people here and what they know about him has allowed him to relax a little. He doesn't quite feel the need to keep up his guard. As much.]

Very well.

[He'll stay as long as required to be polite, and maybe a tad longer. If he's not the first to leave, though, he'll be surprised.]

My thanks to you and your father for the invitation.

Of course.

[ Susato bows respectfully to excuse herself, holding Iris the bunny at her front as she does. In the end, she placed her back on the present pile beneath the tree as she intended (though the pile was quickly thinning, as the recipients received the gifts). ]

...Keep the other presents safe, okay?

[ She pats Iris on her head, and then disappears into the kitchen--likely to check on the snacks. ]

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[Closed] The Merry Ace Attorney

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/fin