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Chapter Text

One month after Simon Blackquill had been exonerated, Athena Cykes finally got to face him in court again.

The case once more involved Nine-Tails Vale – fitting, really, considering that that had been her first case in this country, the first time she had seen Simon again after seven years. A murder had been committed in one of the village’s souvenir shops, apparently over an item that looked like a perfectly ordinary black rock. According to village superstitions, it had the power to grant wishes.

Simon had indicted Phineas Filch for the murder, as multiple items of evidence pointed to the pickpocketing caretaker having been at the scene of the crime during the right time frame, and the murder weapon – a throwing ax which had been used to bash the shopkeeper’s son’s head in – was found to have his finger prints on it. Filch had then remembered the Wright Agency’s work in solving Alderman Kyubi’s murder, and had asked them to defend him. As usual, it did not look good for their case, except there was one detail which was strange: Considering Filch’s aptitude for stealing, why had he decided to kill the victim instead of simply filching the rock?

Athena did her best to maintain her combative stare as she surveyed Simon’s appearance. She had not seen him since that day, as the agency had been inundated with work (among their cases had been the defense of Aura Blackquill, which Mr. Wright had personally conducted after a private talk with the prosecutor on one of Athena’s days off), and she had not wanted to interrupt him in finding his feet in the outside world. Now standing in court without shackles, his color had improved slightly, and although it might just be a trick of the light, she also thought that the dark shadows under his eyes had marginally lightened. Clearly, freedom was agreeing with him.

That did, however, not mean that his courtroom demeanor had changed for the better – if anything, he was even more ferocious now than he had been back when his cases had mostly been a way to while away the time before his execution.

Simon had been pummeling their case with relish from the time the Judge had opened the court session, and Athena and Apollo had had to give it their all just to keep Mr. Filch from being declared guilty a number of times. However, she had a feeling that they might be able to turn things around on him soon.

“OBJECTION!” her cry rang out through the courtroom. “Mr. Filch had ample opportunity to enter the back of the shop through the unlocked door leading into the garden. From prior cases, we know that our client is very good at finding… alternate routes into even the most inaccessible places, so why would he stroll through the front door, murder Mr. Moneypenny, and once again leave through the front?”

Simon did not miss a beat. “Objection! The treasure our thieving Tanuki was seeking out the last time he came to testify in this court had ostensibly been in the same place for hundreds of years, so he did not feel the same sense of urgency in trying to get his grubby paws on it. The item in question is a different matter, as the shopkeeper had only purchased it two weeks ago.” He presented a picture of the mythical rock they had heard about from both Filch and Mr. Moneypenny’s father. Really, his self-assured grin made Athena want to punch him. However, she immediately realized upon seeing the photograph that Mr. Filch could not, in fact, have stolen the item in question, as it was actually in the defense’s possession.

“Objection!” she retorted, holding up the object that had supposedly provided the motive with one rubber-gloved hand. Apollo had found it under the couch in the living quarters above the shop when he had tripped over a fold in the carpet. “This rock, which was supposedly in its display case in the shop until the murder occurred, has been discovered in the shopkeeper’s apartment on the second floor!”

That wiped the smile off Simon’s face immediately, Athena noticed with grim satisfaction. The courtroom broke out in a din as the spectators began murmuring to each other. She had the feeling that some poor detective was going to get his salary re-evaluated in short order.

“Your Baldness. 20 minutes recess, in order to obtain the additional evidence from the defense and have it analyzed. Now.” A sharp jerk of his chin emphasized Simon’s not-quite-a-suggestion.

“Uh, if you insist, Mr. Blackquill…” The judge banged his gavel. “Court will go into recess for twenty minutes to allow for the evaluation of this piece of evidence.”

***

Athena and Apollo immediately withdrew into the lobby with their client when recess had been called. A broad grin lit up the young woman’s features when she exclaimed, “Gut so! Now we’ve got him on the defensive. Maybe we can even win this on the first day!”

Widget underscored her elation with a chirped “High five!”, causing Apollo to break out into an answering grin.

Suddenly, the door of the defense lobby was forcefully pushed open by an obviously fuming Simon Blackquill. As he stalked towards the little group, Apollo’s expression quickly changed into something resembling panic.

“… I think I really need to go to the bathroom, Athena. I’ll be right back.”

Filch, who had been quick to cower behind him, squeaked out, “I do too! Take me along, Mr. Lawyer, sir!”

And gone they were.

That left Athena to deal with the angry prosecutor, who now loomed over her.

“Withholding evidence, are we?” he addressed her, his lips quirking upward in an entirely unamused, razor-sharp smile.

Athena refused to be cowed by him. Looking up to meet his eyes, she replied in an even tone, “We were not withholding anything. Until we saw the picture, we had no idea that this was the rock in question, seeing that it was under the couch in the living room. For all we knew, it was just a random piece of debris.”

His gaze darkened. “Hand it over.” A demand, not a request.

At this, Athena inwardly grit her teeth. I don’t appreciate your tone, Mister. On the outside, however, she maintained her calm demeanor. You try to intimidate me, you reap what you sow.

“As long as you brought some gloves, seeing as we haven’t checked this thing for fingerprints yet…”

Simon whistled shrilly. A moment later, Taka appeared on his shoulder, a rubber glove used for evidence handling held in his sharp beak, leaving Athena to wonder once more just how he managed to let the bird know what he wanted at any given time. With jerky movements, the prosecutor thrust his right hand into the encasement and, wordlessly, held it out towards her.

Athena now rolled her eyes at his theatrics. So we’re facing each other in court, that doesn’t mean we have to antagonize each other while we’re in recess, you know?

She took the black piece of rock out of their evidence bag and put it into his hand, carefully in order to not smudge any potential fingerprints. As the rock connected with the surface of his palm, she thought somewhat wistfully, This is not how I imagined us ending up after you went free. I wish we could once again understand each other.

Suddenly, something resembling an electric shock stabbed Athena’s fingertips. She flinched, noticing that Simon did, too.

Static shock with both of us wearing rubber gloves…?

She did not have an opportunity to muse on this strange occurrence, as Simon nodded stiffly and was gone in a matter of seconds.

***

Despite their recovery of the rock, the day at court ended on a stalemate. No fingerprints had been found on the new piece of evidence, which still did not prove that Filch had not been the one to remove it from its case, as he could have worn gloves or wiped it clean. Back to the investigation it was, then.

When Athena got to bed that night, her alarm clock already blinked a cheery-green 1:02 AM. She fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow.

***

Across town, Simon Blackquill was getting ready to go to bed at that time, himself. Other than Athena, he was used to late nights and little sleep, but tonight, even he was uncharacteristically fatigued. While he was able to sleep more consistently in his new apartment than he had been in his jail cell, it still usually took him at least an hour of meditating on the day in the dark before slumber would claim him. However, tonight, he felt himself drift off as soon as his body had assumed a horizontal position.

This would not remain the only strange thing about this night, as two souls deserted their owners and passed each other in the cold moonlight in their search for a new home.

Chapter Text

When the alarm clock next to her bed went off the next morning, Athena slammed her hand down on the snooze button, rolled over and almost fell asleep once more when she remembered that today was a court day. She blearily stumbled out of bed, eyes still mostly closed – and almost fell over something.

Huh, I don’t remember putting anything next to the bed last night.

Annoyed, she pushed some black hair out of her field of view and was about ready to head to the bathroom when –

Hold on. Black hair?

Now jolted awake, she reached back, pulling forward long tresses of hair into her field of vision and stared.

Not only had her hair changed color, her hands were huge. Letting go of the strand, her gaze wandered further downwards, noticing a very bare, very male chest.

What the- …Am I still dreaming?

Carefully looking around for the first time, she realized that she was not in her apartment, either. This was someone else’s place, entirely unfamiliar – but the surcoat hanging over a chair nearby immediately made clear just whose it was.

“What the hell?” she said aloud, immediately clamping a hand over her mouth when the voice that formed the syllables was not hers, but one that was awfully familiar. She spied a small mirror on the wall and hurried towards it, only to confirm the impossible situation which she had long since started to suspect.

Staring back at her was the face of Simon Blackquill, although the expression of utter incredulity was clearly hers.

“Oh shit.”

***

Simon was still blissfully asleep when his cell phone rang. Drowsily blinking a few times, he decided to ignore it and pulled the blanket over his head – after being robbed of sleep for years, he was not responsible for taking calls before his alarm had gone off, as far as he was concerned. However, the annoying noise persisted, and a strange thought wormed its way into his sleep-addled brain.

When did I change my ring tone to that awful pop garbage?

He blindly grasped for the cell phone and answered it with an oddly high-pitched grunt.

“Simon, is that you?”

That question, delivered without any introduction by some guy who sounded awfully like him, except for the uncharacteristic hint of hysteria in his voice, added enough surreality to the situation that Simon finally found his way into full wakefulness.

“Who is this?” And that was most definitely not his voice.

“Don’t freak out, Simon, but something really weird is going on here. This is Athena, and I think you should look into a mirror right now.”

“… Athena?!”

There was that strange-but-familiar voice again, coming from him, yet unmistakably… female?

Simon leaped out of bed so fast he nearly fell on his face, having misjudged the distance between mattress and ground. Only briefly registering that he was obviously not in his familiar environs, he spotted a standing mirror next to a small dresser, which he turned toward himself immediately.

The cell phone fell from his hand when he was confronted with the reflection of Athena Cykes.

“What in the nine circles of hell is going on here?”

Am I still sleeping and this is some kind of bizarre dream? He pinched his arm and flinched when it hurt more than he had expected, thanks to Athena’s longer fingernails. Obviously not. But then… how?

He picked up the phone from the ground and noticed the time on the display – only 8 AM, still 2 ½ hours until today’s court session. Lifting it to his ear once more, he inquired with a somewhat shaky voice, “Are you still there?”

“Yeah.” Simon could not help but start once more at hearing his own voice sound tinnily from the little speaker. “What’re we gonna do?”

He was mildly surprised to find that Athena’s special hearing apparently came with this body, as an almost-subconcious thought process informed him of the turmoil in her heart, and that it was true that she had no idea on how to proceed. Truth be told, neither did Simon, but considering that they were supposed to go head-to-head in a trial in just a few hours, one of them had to take the lead in this odd situation.

“You. Me. The little breakfast place across the road from the courthouse, in half an hour. Bring my notes – they’re on the chair with my clothes.” he said and hung up without any further ado.

Only then, another rather disturbing thought came to mind. Clothes… getting dressed… meaning I have to get out of these, he looked down on himself, hideous flannel things and see me – her! – naked. He felt himself flushing slightly with sudden embarrassment for her until he noticed the sensation of a strap digging into his left shoulder, and breathed a sigh of relief. Apparently, she had not bothered to take off her bra before she went to bed, so at least that particular bit of indignity could be avoided for now. As he generally slept in his underwear, she should not suffer any particular problems, herself.

Purposefully getting to his task without paying any undue attention to the body in which he was currently stuck, he refused to acknowledge his inner voice asking whether propriety would remain an option, should their condition last beyond today.

***

When Athena appeared forty minutes later at the designated place, Simon had already downed two cups of coffee and was drumming a staccato rhythm on the small table with his fingers.

He rolled his eyes at her when she waved at him and came to sit down on the opposite side of the table with a somewhat shaky smile.

“Could you cut that out?” he hissed at her as soon as she was close enough that no one else would hear. “You make me look like a damn school girl.”

She slumped a bit at that, which was also unacceptable. “And stop lounging like that!”

Athena felt herself getting angry with a speed that was foreign to her. Must be the male hormones or something.

“Did you just call the meeting here to whine at me, or are we going to talk about what we should do next?” she asked irately, which, surprisingly, earned her a grim grin from Simon, as alien on her face as her greeting smile had been on his. “Oh, and by the way, I never look like that, either!” she could not resist getting back at him.

His grin vanished immediately, and he steepled his fingers in front of him. “Very well, to work then. Point one: It seems that we are going to have to fulfill each other’s roles in court today, as trading places would be more than a little out of the ordinary and I sincerely doubt anyone would believe a cockamamie story about how we mysteriously traded bodies. Point two: We need to ascertain how this switch came to pass, whether it is reversible, and if not, how long it lasts.”

He leaned back in his chair, making a mock-invite gesture with one hand while picking up the cup in front of him with the other. “The floor is open to suggestions.”

Athena chose to ignore the point about having to take on his role as prosecutor today for the moment, since the thought of carrying this responsibility by herself, rather than as a member of a team, terrified her, to not even speak of the guilt at having to turn on her client. Also, I think it would be best for all concerned if we resolved this problem sooner rather than later.

She thought for a minute and then stated, “Considering the change happened overnight, I’d assume that we were both exposed to something yesterday that caused it. I can only think of one item that supposedly has supernatural powers which we both touched. In fact, I remember that it gave us some sort of shock when we were both in contact with it.”

Simon nodded. “I was thinking the same thing, although, true to Nine-Tails Vale’s track record, their superstitions are once again off, as I certainly did not wish to trade bodies, and I don’t see you jumping for joy, either.”

His sarcasm startled a chuckle out of Athena. “No, it was more like jumping in terror when I saw my face in the mirror…”

“Thank you very much,” Simon replied sardonically. “But back to the topic at hand. You wouldn’t happen to know whom to contact in Nine-Tails Vale for more information on this artifact?”

Athena did not have to think much about an answer to this question. “How about we try to write to Mayor Tenma? He’s pretty familiar with village lore, after all. I don’t know if he has a cell phone, but he did leave us his e-mail address after that case. Hand me my phone.”

She took the little yellow device from him and attempted to navigate through the various menus, but the size of her fingers made it next to impossible to select the right icons. Finally, she got exasperated enough to drop the phone on the table and give up.

“How do you even text with these paws?”

“Very carefully.” The grin was back on Simon’s face as he grabbed for the phone, quickly scanning through her records until he found the address and dashed off an e-mail from her account.

To: Damian Tenma

From: Athena Cykes

Mr. Tenma,

I am contacting you as I am currently experiencing a problem potentially related to an artifact of Nine-Tails Vale. After coming in contact with the black stone currently at issue in the Moneypenny case, a colleague and I switched bodies overnight. I was wondering whether you had heard of such a case before, and if so, if you had information on how to reverse the process.

Sincerely,

Athena Cykes

He pressed “Send” and pocketed the phone once more. “You may have a point regarding hand size – I don’t think I have ever written anything so quickly on a phone before.”

Athena nodded and smiled crookedly, which, she decided after a quick glance past Simon at her reflection in the window, looked authentic enough. “Hopefully we’ll have an answer from him by the time we’re done at court.”

Chapter Text

Simon agreed with her wish. “Let’s hope. The longer this goes on, the higher the potential for complications.”

Then, he lifted one of his hands to massage his forehead between his brows, just above the bridge of his nose, and sighed in exasperation.

“How do you deal with all of this noise around you everyday?”

My hearing, Athena realized with a start, only now noticing that fragments of information she usually received from her environment were missing from her perception.

“It seems that, while you received my ability, being able to suppress it is a learned part of my consciousness, so I’m afraid you’re going to have to figure out how to deal with it for yourself,” she answered slowly, honestly feeling sorry for him for a moment. She remembered how borderline crippling her acute hearing had been back when she had been a child, and while its acuity had lessened somewhat as she underwent puberty, she could imagine it still being difficult to process for someone who had not had a chance to learn how to deal with it since birth.

“The only thing I can think of to make it better is spending most of your time in public listening to music – the genre doesn’t matter, but choose something without singing.”

Athena had found out that particular piece of information the hard way when she had received her first portable music player for her thirteenth birthday from the distant relatives who had taken her in in Germany. Even in songs, the singer’s voice of the heart had butted in on the music, distorting supposed love songs into bitter tragedies and even supposedly ‘brutal’ metal into sentimental drivel. She had tried everything to escape the dissonance, been about to never use the little device again when she had discovered that classical orchestra performances were okay. Nowadays, music with lyrics did not pose a problem for her anymore, but considering his current sensitivity to voices, he would likely have to take it slow for now.

“I’ll keep that in mind,” Simon grated, his left hand now moving on to his temple as he fished around in her bag with his right and came up with a small bottle of over-the-counter pain medication.

After he had swallowed two of the small white pills down with a swig of coffee, his eyes once more focused on Athena, who knew the gnawing headache he was likely currently experiencing well enough from her childhood. She cringed inwardly at the memory, hoping for him that the medicine would begin to work quickly.

“My apologies for the tangent,” Simon returned to their previous topic. “We will have to leave for court in about an hour, so I suggest we go over the new developments in our case. Have you had a chance to read my notes on your way here?”

Athena somehow managed to make his sharp features look sheepish as she pulled his papers out of his black briefcase. “Actually, I got lost on the way from your apartment since I’ve never been in that part of town, so I had to run most of the way here…”

Oh dear god, I hope no one saw her, Simon thought as his gaze turned towards the ceiling in embarrassment. I’m never going to hear the end of it if one of my colleagues saw me sprinting down the street as though the devil was after me. They would have to have another long conversation on proper conduct later. However, for now, the trial was the most important thing – they could worry about accidental behavioral missteps later, if it was even an issue at that point anymore.

“Recall my strategy from yesterday. Mr. Filch remains the prime suspect in this case, as we have not had any alternate potential killers show up in the proceedings yesterday. Detective Doddbury has been investigating the origin of the throwing ax, and it turns out that it has been stolen from one of the itinerant entertainers in the area, a Mr. Bruce Knievel, about a month ago. Knievel is sure about the time frame as the ax is a family heirloom and therefore important to him. Considering Filch’s fingerprints on the weapon, we can say with reasonable certainty that he was the one who stole it. As for the location where the rock was found, Doddbury found traces of a smudged boot print on the living room carpet which seems to match up with the pair Filch habitually wears.”

His gaze bored into hers as he emphasized his next point. “I am expecting you to pull off a good show, Athena. Go on the attack and don’t let up. As much as you are used to reacting and flying by the seat of your pants in court, your job right now is to get a conviction for the person you believe to be guilty. As you will be standing in for me and I happen to believe the tanuki is guilty, I will not accept any sabotage on your part. Are we clear on that?”

She grimaced, earning herself an even sharper look from him until she carefully schooled her expression into neutrality once more. “While I disagree with you on Filch’s guilt, even though he is an odious little man, I see your point. I’ll do my best.”

Although Simon was not entirely sure that that was going to be enough, there was nothing he could do at this point to further alleviate his worries. He leaned back and asked, “Has anything new come up during your own investigation?”

Athena nodded. “We interviewed the neighbor of the Moneypennys, a Mr. Julius Hapless. Apparently, his daughter has been in the hospital for quite some time, and the whole village seems to be aware of his resulting irritability. Some of the other villagers mentioned that he recently got into a fight with Mr. Filch, although no one knows for sure what exactly it was about, and Filch wouldn’t talk when we went to see him in the detention center. We were made aware of the boot print on the carpet by Doddbury,” Simon’s eyes narrowed dangerously at that, and she prayed that she would not have to be the one to cut the pleasant young detective down to size later, “and found a similar print in Mr. Hapless’ house, so we confiscated Mr. Filch’s boots for analysis and handed them over to Detective Ema Skye, although we have not yet received the results.”

She smiled once more, this time with a certain amount of cynicism which she was sure was not out of place. “I’m afraid it’s ‘seat of the pants’ for you until we do.”

He shrugged. “How hard can it be?”

Athena’s grim expression intensified, although a frankly disturbing sliver of a smile remained on her new features. You just wait, Simon. Let’s see how you like it when I hold all the trumps for once.

Her thoughts were interrupted by Simon chuckling behind one hand. “You’re getting better at impersonating me – keep up that smile while court is in session, and no one will have any issues believing you are me.”

Athena’s smile brightened at that, causing his own to vanish again in an instant. “You should avoid employing this one, though – I would really rather not appear as an infantile buffoon in front of his Baldness.”

Her eyebrows drew together in sudden ire. “Thanks for calling my expressions ‘infantile,’ you jerk,” she growled. Simon said nothing, although he looked a bit taken aback, and her anger abated as quickly as it had risen.

With a sigh, she looked down at her hands for a second, still so very unfamiliar to her eyes, and said, “I guess this is all we can do for now, isn’t it?”

He nodded gravely. “It will have to do. Let’s reconvene here after we are done for today, to check whether Mayor Tenma has answered our message and continue strategizing. As I will probably have to shake off your colleague, wait for me if I don’t show up right away.”

Athena nodded. “Yeah, sounds good to me. Good luck today.”

Once more, he seemed a little dumbfounded at that, but he replied, “And you,” before signaling the waitress that he wanted to pay his bill as Athena got up from her chair to head out.

Chapter Text

When Athena approached the lobbies assigned to the prosecution and defense near courtroom 3, she had to stop her legs from automatically carrying her into the wrong one. Glaring at the door knob for a second, she was just about to turn away and make her way to the correct door, when she suddenly found herself looking down on Apollo Justice.

Well, isn’t that a novel perspective, something inside her exulted at for once being the tallest person around, although the glare had apparently not entirely left her mien, as Apollo promptly started sweating.

“Uh, good morning, Prosecutor Blackquill…”

Reveling in her sudden, new elation, she could not help but wind him up a bit, Simon-style. It’s what he probably would have done in this situation, anyway.

Smirking at the smaller man, she replied, “Yes, most likely, Justice-dono. For me, that is.”

Even without her enhanced hearing, she could easily tell that her colleague radiated both increased nervousness and annoyance at himself now. Master manipulator, my bum. Anyone can play Simon Says when they look like this!

Without waiting for his reply, she turned around and walked away, towards the other lobby, starting to think she just might be able to pull this off.

***

Simon entered the courthouse about five minutes after Athena, as usual striding in as though he owned the place in order to establish his position. When he saw the faces of the guards at the front, however, he immediately realized that this looked more than a little ridiculous in a person of a more petite stature than his own, particularly when that person happened to be the usually-exuberant Athena. Mentally sighing, he made a show of checking her cell phone for the time, let his eyes widen in feigned surprise, and began sprinting up the stairs.

When he entered the defense lobby, Justice was already there, and Simon hastily attempted to force his features into his sunniest Athena-style smile, which went slightly awry when he realized that the whelp was now taller than him. So this is what it is like when everyone gets to look down on you – literally. He had not been in that situation since his final growth spurt at age 17, and to say he did not care much for it would be an understatement.

Justice’s eyebrows immediately approached his hairline. “Morning, Athena. Are you okay? You didn’t fall down the stairs again, did you?”

This time, the smile slid into place, and he thanked his stars for his current face’s muscle memory. “Don’t know what you’re talking about.”

But his denial was too little, too late, apparently, as Justice began fondling his armband. How could I forget? Everyone at this thrice-be-damned agency seems to have some sort of special ability…

“Are you sure everything’s all right?”

Desperate times called for desperate measures. Simon was fairly sure Athena had never used her auditory ability on herself before, but surviving on death row had left him self-possessed enough to achieve unrivaled focus in critical situations, and he hoped that, while this skill could hardly compete with the Wright Agency’s lawyers’ uncanny talents for discerning truth from lie and delusion, he would be able to fool Justice, at least for now.

Simon was not quite positive on what exactly the defense lawyer did with the ornate gold ring on his wrist, but knowing the likely result, maybe that was not even all that important. Listening intently to his inner voice, currently full of discord, he carefully adjusted the pitch of his intended utterance until it resonated as the truth within him, noticing with astonishment that his posture relaxed along with his modification. Fascinating. I don’t think she has any idea that she could be a perfect liar if she used her ability this way.

A mere couple of seconds had passed in the real world when he finally replied a little contritely, “I may have slipped a couple of times…” Even though he knew intellectually that this was a bald-faced lie, it sounded perfectly true to him.

Apparently, Justice felt the same way, as he let go of his bracelet again.

“Well, in that case…” he replied, obviously relieved. “After running into Prosecutor Blackquill a little while ago, I was kind of worried that today was going to be one of those days.”

You have no idea…wait, what in blazes has she done now? Simon left his curiosity free reign while mercilessly tamping down on his rising apprehension when he asked, “Why, what did he want?”

Justice shrugged. “Who knows? He was loitering around the door when I got here, only to go back to his regular friendly self and swan off as though there was nothing weird about it at all.”

The younger man’s sarcastic emphasis on the word ‘friendly’ had Simon suppressing a sigh of relief. It seemed Athena had caught herself before giving everything away – and he would definitely have to ask her just what she had said to her colleague to leave him with the impression of Simon’s own brand of friendliness.

Outwardly, he mirrored his erstwhile opponent’s shrug. “Who knows what’s eating him?”

Justice apparently had issues recognizing rhetorical questions for what they were, as he replied, “Beats me. Heck, you’re probably the only one in this courthouse who has any idea how to handle him, anyway.”

Starting to feel a little safer in his mimicry, thanks to getting a handle on correcting any falsities being evident in his voice, Simon felt a reaction to this assertion was warranted.

“Is that why you had to go to the bathroom so suddenly yesterday?” He may not have possessed Athena’s ability yesterday, but he was far from deaf. “Scared of the big, bad prosecutor?”

His needling, though Simon noticed with a hint of alarm that it emerged more pointedly than it probably would have from the real Athena, nevertheless seemed to puncture Justice’s ego quite nicely, as the lawyer slumped over a bit, his mien a mixture of embarrassment and exasperation.

“I know he’s your friend – or was, at least – , but come on, the man is excellent at intimidating the heck out of just about anyone, Athena…”

Simon smirked at that, causing the young man to flinch slightly. “And stop imitating him, it’s creepy!”

Wrong expression. “Sorry, just wanted to see if I could do it,” he replied airily, reminding himself to not let his guard down this easily again.

Justice was about to say something in order to keep up the meaningless chitchat when a bailiff opened the lobby door.

“Mr. Justice, Ms. Cykes, the trial is about to start. Please proceed into the courtroom.”

Simon straightened – only to nearly jump out of his skin when Justice began wailing right next to his ear, “MY NAME IS APOLLO JUSTICE, AND I’M FINE!”

Nice to meet you. I am Simon Blackquill, and I now suffer from tinnitus.

Today was going to be a long day.

***

When Athena arrived in the prosecutor’s lobby, still in the strangely elated state that had come with discovering the intimidation and outright terror her mere presence now caused in others, she found Detective Doddbury looking up at her from the couch, and quickly sifted through her memories for the correct, Simon-esque address. It would be easier if you just slapped your silly -dono on everyone’s name instead of insisting on making up stupid nicknames for people you don’t respect.

Thankfully, she had it after a second, seeing that the young detective had provided the opening testimony at trial yesterday. “Odd Bird…”

By way of acknowledging her minute nod, the spindly man jumped to his feet, his curly brown hair bobbing along with his movements. He wore a dark blue suit which appeared just a tad too formal even within the hallowed halls of court, and his demeanor reminded Athena once again of a clumsy puppy as he shakily saluted.

“Prosecutor Blackquill, sir!”

Athena dismissed his overenthusiastic greeting with a gesture, and then suddenly found herself at a loss in terms of what to do next. Simon is hardly the type for friendly banter with his subordinates, particularly not with one he has nicknamed.

A quick glance at the wall clock told her that she still had about ten minutes to fill before the trial would begin. In order to while the remaining time away, she walked over to the table near the opposite wall, opened his briefcase and began looking through the evidence once more. He’s probably going to glare me to death if I screw this up, better be safe than sorry.

Eyeing the photos, items and various notes in his spiky handwriting, she had no warning when something heavy suddenly crashed into and held on to her right shoulder, and she could barely keep from emitting a very un-Simon-like shriek.

I totally forgot about his little pet. Not that Taka was particularly little. Carefully, she reached up to ruffle the raptor’s neck feathers as she had seen Simon do multiple times in court, and was promptly rewarded with the hawk tilting his head to make the spot more accessible.

Maybe I’m not entirely alone out there today, after all, even if you can’t speak. She was surprised at the gentleness of the fierce animal when it came to his master; whenever she had encountered Taka up-close before, he had usually been mere inches away from lacerating her face with his sharp talons.

I just hope you do your thing automatically, I don’t know any of your commands. Ah well, while the idea of sending his own bird after Simon had a certain ring of cosmic justice to it, Athena was already happy to know that she had some company in her impossible-seeming endeavor.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a bailiff hesitantly opening the door and informing them that court was about to start.

No way but through it now. Break a leg, Athena, she thought to herself, wishing that she could for once use Apollo’s “Chords of Steel” relaxation technique in order to calm herself, but fearing that Doddbury’s heart might give out if she started roaring out in Simon’s sonorous voice that she was FINE!

Giving Taka one last scratch at the ruff of his neck to reassure herself instead, she dropped her arm and turned to proceed out of the room.

Chapter Text

The judge had not yet taken his seat when Athena entered the courtroom; the defense had yet to appear on their side of the courtroom, as well. Visitors were only just filing into the spectator seating, and she was wondering why it apparently seemed procedure to have the prosecutor be present before everything was ready for the trial to begin.

Hm, while no one important is looking, let’s try something.

She sharply leaned forward, right shoulder slightly lower than the left, just as she had witnessed multiple times before, and Taka took off to find his accustomed perch in the rafters.

Hah, so that’s how that works, she thought, pleased with herself, and decided to turn her back on the procedural floor to go over Simon’s notes.

Witness list:

1. Odd Bird
2. Bruce Knievel

New evidence:

1. Carpet stain (matched to Tanuki’s boots)

Potentially call Tanuki back to witness stand and press him on visit to M.’s apartment, and on potential personal connection to Bruce Knievel – how did he know that murder weapon was valuable?

Athena’s mood darkened. That’s not a lot to go on – and you accuse me of flying seat-of-my-pants? Fine then – she would do what he had instructed her to do and stay on the attack as much as she could, even if she had very little ammunition.

From the corner of her eyes, she saw the judge ascending the podium which housed his bench, but decided against turning around to face the defense, as insolence was pretty much Simon’s regular modus operandi. Affecting a bored expression, she gazed up at Taka and, noting that one of his feathers had come loose on her coat, grabbed it and put it in the corner of her mouth for additional authenticity. She was still kind of wondering whether this was not terribly unhygienic, but as Simon had not yet succumbed to some bird-borne disease, she assumed that it was probably not that big of a deal.

Finally, she heard the familiar bang of the gavel as the judge opened the trial and schooled her features into Simon’s trademark dismissive smirk. And the curtain rises on our little spiel.

From behind her back, she heard him announce that the defense was ready, and turned her head sideways to gaze over her shoulder.

“Ready when you are, Cykes-dono.”

The judge turned to her. “Mr. Blackquill, would you please recap yesterday’s proceedings for the court?”

And… action! She turned around with what she hoped resembled his usual swagger, insolently leaning on her bench.

“I see no need, your Baldness, as this will be over quickly enough. Should you consider it necessary to recap yesterday’s farce, though, be my guest.”

Simon kata, the First: Never give an opening statement. Check.

As usual, the judge played right into the prosecution’s hands, and Athena once again found herself irritated by that fact, even if it made her work easier for a change.

“Of course, Prosecutor Blackquill. This court has established yesterday that the item believed to have been the reason for the murder of Chip Moneypenny was, in fact, not taken from the premises, but either hidden or lost underneath the couch in the shopkeeper family’s second floor living room. No fingerprints were found on the rock, but that was not enough to either establish or refute the defendant’s guilt.”

Athena nodded when the judge had ended, smirking across the room at Simon and Apollo.

“That about covers it. The prosecution remains convinced that Mr. Phineas Filch is the guilty party in this crime, and is prepared to present further evidence and testimony to that fact.”

Simon kata, the Second: Your evidence has precedence at all times. Check.

She straightened and continued, “The prosecution calls Detective Doddbury to the stand.”

***

Simon, meanwhile, was having a hard time not showing how impressed he was with her overture. He dimly remembered hearing that annoying fop Gavin running his mouth about her terribly hammy acting during the investigation of Themis Academy murder, and considering her actions at the restaurant, he had had severe doubts that they could get through this unscathed, but now…

Is she watching me so much in court that she has got me down pat? Or…am I that predictable? He began to suspect that it might just be the latter; Athena had had ample time to observe him, but an acting genius, she was probably not. Maybe I should change things up a bit once things go back to normal.

Odd Bird had taken the witness stand in the meantime, and was relating the results of yesterday’s investigation to the court, officially entering the results of the boot print analysis into evidence and bringing up Mr. Knievel. When he repeated his statements for the purpose of cross-examination, Simon’s hand shot up almost of its own volition upon hearing that Mr. Filch’s boot print featuring this specific type of soil had only been found in the Moneypenny shop and apartment.

“Objection! During our investigation, we found a boot print that also seems to match Mr. Filch’s boots in the neighbor’s house. The color of the sediment left behind is the same.”

He presented the picture Athena and Justice had taken during their investigation yesterday - only to be immediately confronted by a predatory grin from the other side of the room.

“And I assume you have an expert analysis to back up your statements?” Athena drawled. “Evidence is everything, Cykes-dono.” Simon kata, the Third: If the other side’s evidence is inconvenient, question its weak points.

Simon grimaced. Damn, of course she knows that we weren’t likely to have Skye’s report yet.

“Detective Ema Skye has been conducting analyses on samples we took since yesterday, but we are still waiting for the results.”

“A convenient excuse. If you cannot prove your assertions, do this court a favor and stay silent.” Simon kata, the Fourth: Drive the point home that your opponents are fools and send them into disarray.

The smug grin on Athena’s face actually made Simon forget about their little farce for a moment, as he felt a hint of anger rising within him before he realized how ridiculous it was to become irate at her performance – she was making his case, and she did so splendidly.

On second thought, maybe I'll just keep with the routine. If she can get my goat even though I know it’s an act, I must be doing something right.

Apparently, he had been quiet for too long at this point, as he suddenly felt Justice’s elbow poking into his ribs.

“Say something, Athena, or we’re done for,” his associate whispered at him urgently, and Simon found himself at a loss for words.

“Any suggestions?” he asked lamely.

Justice lifted his index finger to his forehead as he thought. “The boot print isn’t strong enough evidence to put Filch away. I’d say we let him move on to his next witness and hope that Ema shows up soon.”

Hmph. I got all high and mighty on how to prosecute earlier, and now I’m the one needing help at being a defense attorney. I guess the joke’s on me.

Aloud, Simon relayed Justice’s thinking to the room at large. “Although the print analysis shows that Mr. Filch, or at least his boots, were in the Moneypennys’ living room at one point, the defense posits that this is not sufficient evidence to establish our clients’ guilt. This is particularly the case considering that the object the prosecution asserts Mr. Filch attempted to steal never left the room.”

Athena never so much as flinched. “You’re asking for more? Far be it from me to deny you further punishment for your mindless jabbering,” she almost purred.

Simon kata, the Fifth: If your evidence is called useless, keep face, insult the enemy, move on.

Her smirk vanished as she consulted his notes again. “In order to establish the provenance of the throwing ax and the tanuki’s connection to it, the prosecution calls Mr. Bruce Knievel to the stand.”

***

The trial proceeded exactly according to Simon’s original plan: Knievel testified that Filch had been interested in his throwing ax ever since talking to its original owner about its value at a local bar, providing more proof that the murder weapon had been in the thieving caretaker’s possession. Unfortunately, his success did not exactly fill him with confidence in his abilities, considering today’s situation.

Just like my luck to potentially win a case when I am not even prosecuting it.

Additionally, he began to get the sense that something was wrong here, considering that some of the rather interesting information Athena had given him prior to the trial had not yet surfaced in their discourse.

After Knievel was excused from the witness stand, Simon could only reassert that Filch having possessed the ax at some point had already been proved beforehand, and that its provenance did not serve to further substantiate the murder accusation against the man.

“The defense requests a short recess to regroup.”

His gaze made brief contact with Athena’s before she could reject the request, and her eyes widened a fraction, but she caught herself again right away and once more radiated dismissiveness.

“Why not? I am curious to see with what imbecility you are going to come up next. Have five minutes.” She glared towards the judge’s podium. “Your Baldness…”

The bearded old man nodded. “Court is in recess for five minutes.”

Chapter Text

Simon and Apollo left the courtroom as quickly as possible when recess was called, filling Athena with a measure of grim satisfaction even though she felt more and more conflicted about her role in all this. She still thought Filch was innocent, but if she continued along the path Simon had laid out for her and he did not put up resistance anytime soon, she would probably manage to get a “Guilty” verdict.

She briefly considered paying the defense lobby a visit in order to tell him to get a move on, but ultimately dismissed it as too out-of-character. Apollo would probably catch so many tells from us that his arm might fall off.

She had chosen to remain in the courtroom, as she currently had nothing to prepare and preferred not playing the staring game with Odd Bi… Detective Doddbury, who was undoubtedly back in the lobby.

Feeling a bit forlorn with the other benches having been deserted for the time being, she looked up at the rafters, and suddenly, an idea began to form. It’s worth a try – the worst thing that can happen is that nothing comes of it.

Athena lifted her hand to her lips and whistled, causing Taka to descend and hit her shoulder with the force of a shot put ball. She searched Simon’s briefcase for a blank piece of paper, scribbled out a quick note in a sufficiently Simon-ese tone to hopefully conceal her intentions from Apollo, and raised the folded result to the hawk’s claws. When he dutifully grabbed it and looked at her as if waiting for further instructions, she dared to hope that this would work.

“Bring this to S… Athena.”

Taka took off from her shoulder with a shrill cry.

***

Simon and his associate, meanwhile, were holding a hasty war council in the privacy of the defendant lobby.

Justice was currently sighing. “I am almost at the end of my wits. Something tells me we need the info on those boots, and urgently.”

He checked his phone for the third time this minute. “Still nothing. Come on, Ema…”

Suddenly, a muffled outcry could be heard from outside, and a bailiff quickly pulled open the door to admit a feathery projectile into the room. Taka dropped a folded, slightly wrinkled piece of paper in front of Simon, and was gone again in an instant.

Curious, he picked it up, unfolded the note and read it.

Cykes-dono,

Your tanuki is about to be skinned. Maybe your neighbor should be called into action.

SB

Simon came perilously close to barking out a laugh. Clever girl, using code to let me know what she would do next in our place, and getting Taka to bring it over. If nothing else, this should buy us more time to wait for Skye and her damn report, although both witnesses have potential.

Justice eyed him curiously. “What’s it say?”

Knowing that he could hardly enlighten him as to the true meaning of Athena’s words, Simon quickly drew his eyebrows together in feigned annoyance. “Now the jerk is taunting me with notes, like an overgrown middle schooler. Here,” he shoved the note into his associate’s hands, reasonably sure that Athena and he would not be caught out.

Eyebrows raised, Justice read the note under his breath, only to crumple it up into a ball and fire it into a corner. “That’s the height of pettiness! Don’t let him get to you, Athena.”

Simon smiled, and it served well enough as an authentic expression even though his smile had little to do with attempting to alleviate Justice’s ire on his behalf. Just as intended. Well done indeed, Athena.

“No worries. In fact, I think I have an idea how we can get some worthwhile information that will actually help our case. First of all: If he doesn’t call Mr. Filch to the stand next,” she would, she had written as much in the note, “we will, since we don’t even have his own story on the boots yet. Also, I believe I saw Mr. Hapless in the gallery,” he had not, considering that he had never seen the man before, but Athena apparently had, “and since there was a boot print in his house and he lives right next to the store, he should testify on what he knows about the incident. Even if those two testimonies don’t yield anything new, we’ll buy ourselves a little more time for Ms. Skye to get here.”

Justice thought his proposal over for a few seconds, then he nodded. “That sounds like the best way to go on.” Suddenly, a grin appeared on the young lawyer’s face. “Maybe he should taunt you more often – it brings out your strategic mind.”

Simon, refusing to dwell on the fact that his strategic mind had apparently all but deserted him in the task at hand until Athena had decided to help out, forced his features into an answering grin. “I’m just tired of being yanked around by him. Let’s start playing hardball.”

***

Athena was relieved to see that Simon seemed invigorated after the short recess; apparently, her little ploy had worked. She gave Taka, who was perching on her shoulder once more, an appreciative scratch, and the bird preened, seeming quite satisfied with himself.

Then, the gavel met with the judge’s bench once more, and the trial continued.

They both pressed Filch from their respective sides for information, and it came out that his boots had vanished hours before the murder, only to resurface shortly thereafter, before the body had been found. His reason for not talking had been refusal to admit that a thief might have pulled one over on him, the descendant of the master thief Azuki Kozo, but now that the boot prints had become important to the case, he realized that his pride could be too costly for him to continue holding on to it now.

Ema Skye showed impeccable timing, as she entered the courtroom just as they had established the importance of the boots, explaining that she had found two sets of fingerprints on the upper rim, and that the soil on their soles contained a specific type of geranium fertilizer, which lifted Athena’s hopes for Filch, as she vividly recalled Mr. Hapless’ notably highly fenced in garden veritably overflowing with the flowers.

Simon brought the geraniums up after “having his memory jogged” by Apollo, and although Athena felt it necessary to assert that geraniums and their fertilizer were not exactly rare in Nine-Tails Vale, eventually Mr. Hapless was called to the stand. It did not take long for him to break down after being asked for a fingerprint sample, and he admitted to having attempted to steal the stone from the Moneypennys in order to use it to heal his daughter.

He had been caught in the act by Chip Moneypenny and murdered him, having prepared for contingencies by stealing the ax and boots from Filch. Always wearing gloves to handle the ax, only Filch’s fingerprints were on the weapon, but as Hapless had not been aware of the fact that leather could also hold the identifying markers, he had not exercised the same caution with the boots.

Filch had sought him out at the local bar prior to the murder, suspicious that Hapless had been responsible for the theft, which had led to the public altercation the villagers had witnessed. Watching from his house later that day, Hapless had waited until Filch had entered and exited the store, and the crime had happened shortly thereafter. He had gone upstairs into the Moneypenny residence directly afterwards to check whether Chip’s father had been home, which had resulted in the boot print.

However, the Moneypennys had outwitted him, as the stone in the display case had been a perfectly ordinary rock, while the real thing had been placed under the sofa in the living room by the elder Moneypenny due to a premonition that displaying it would invite thievery – as ultimately even the decoy had managed to do.

Court was adjourned at 4:55 PM with a “Not Guilty” verdict for Phineas Filch.

***

When Simon re-entered the defense lobby after it was over and Filch had said his annoyingly lengthy farewells, his nerves were more than a little strained.

This skin-of-the-teeth business is not for me. I think I’ll stick to prosecuting when – if – I get my body back.

Additionally, his headache had reasserted itself with a vengeance, thanks to the constant din of voices in the courtroom. Justice, sensing his obvious discomfort, sensibly suggested that he should go home and lie down, giving him an excuse to extricate himself rather quickly.

Ten minutes later, he wearily nodded to Athena in greeting as he sank down on the chair opposite her back at the restaurant.

Chapter Text

Athena’s eyes widened when Simon joined her by unceremoniously plopping his body on the chair, his forehead apparently stuck in a permanent frown.

“How about you stop that, you’re going to give me wrinkles,” she joked lamely. After not receiving a response for multiple seconds, she leaned forward and quietly asked,

“Are you okay?”

He blinked a couple of times. “I’ll manage.”

Liar, she thought, contemplated for a minute, and then stated, “Y’know, I have to admit that I have no idea how to get back to your place, since I headed out so quickly this morning. Could you lead me back there?”

One of the corners of Simon’s mouth twitched upwards.“I can tell that that isn’t your primary motive, Athena, but I appreciate the effort. Let’s get out of this echo chamber.”

He pulled the bottle of pain medication out of her bag once more and dry-swallowed another dose while he waited for her to rise from her chair, and they stepped out into the rapidly cooling winter air.

They began walking away from the imposing courthouse in silence.

Athena, watching Simon next to her from the corner of her eyes, contemplated how to strike up another conversation after a few minutes, as she was beginning to find the wordlessness oppressive. Suddenly, he preempted her by stating, “You did well today.”

She stopped walking and stared. “Did you just compliment me?”

Simon now came to a halt, as well, although he kept his back to her. “You deserve commendation for your work. Without you, this trial would have ended quite differently. That is all.”

“Thank you.” He could hear the warm smile in her voice.

“Additionally, I believe I owe you an apology for my own abysmal performance,” he forced out, getting to the point he had been trying to make.

Her voice sounded from behind him again, this time surprised. “There was nothing abysmal about it. You won and we got the right person indicted for the murder this time. Isn’t that what’s most important?”

That statement finally got him to turn around and face her. “If it hadn’t been for you and Justice…”

Athena shrugged, an easy grin on her face. “Welcome to my life, Simon. In case you hadn’t noticed, I do rely on people to help me out when I get stuck, so it’s not as though you made me look any more idiotic than I usually do. As for the note… consider it a small heads-up to make up for the fact that you had to do my job without having been on-site for the investigation yesterday. To be honest, I didn’t even know whether I could get Taka to understand where to deliver it when I came up with the idea.”

Simon’s tense posture relaxed somewhat when he realized that he was being absolved of his perceived failure.

“Birds of prey are fairly intelligent animals. Taka knows about 20 people by name at any given point, and he is very good at locating them, particularly on the courthouse premises, since that is his hunting ground, but also within up to a fifteen-mile radius, if necessary.”

She whistled through her teeth. “That is so cool! How did you test him on that?”

He barked out a mirthless laugh. “Nothing but time when you’re sitting in the clink.”

Athena cringed. Bad topic. Backpedaling to safer ground, she asked, “Anything else I should know about him? How to make him do things, how to care for him…?” I know he’s important to you, and I don’t want to accidentally be responsible for him suffering.

Simon, sensing her worry, threw her a quick, minute smile that actually contained some warmth.

“Taka is self-sufficient; he usually hunts for himself, and has never been sick or injured enough that a visit to the veterinarian would have been necessary. When he has been particularly helpful, I sometimes buy him a rat or two from the pet shop, though.” He figured that the bird deserved a treat on occasion, particularly since their relationship had been decidedly one-sided while he had been rotting away in prison.

“As for commands, you seem to have figured out most of the basics. Taka’s vocabulary includes the names I mentioned – you, Justice, Wright, the judge, my sister, Chief Prosecutor Edgeworth, Odd Bird, and a few assorted other people who should not have any bearing on your immediate delivery needs. Additionally, he understands ‘get,’ ‘bring,’ ‘find,’ ‘catch,’ and ‘attack,’ plus the words for assorted items I need on a daily basis.”

Athena grinned. “Nice low-maintenance pet you got there – I’m tempted to get one for myself once we’re back to normal.”

She began walking again, catching up with Simon, who shook his head at her impulsive announcement and fell in step next to her once more.

The silence that reigned between them now was a lot more companionable than before, and they simply continued walking for a while, now entering residential areas whose streets were mostly deserted on a cold winter day.

After a while, Simon spoke up again. “I just realized something. Your Widget didn’t pipe up once in court today.” His fingers went up to the little device on his neck; he had put it on this morning like so much jewelry, as Athena was never seen in public without it, but now he realized that it could have caused him a major headache, had it seen fit to broadcast his thoughts at the wrong moment.

She laughed. “I don’t think you have to worry about that for a while. Widget is currently attuned to my thought patterns, and it will probably take a few weeks before he can readjust. You can still access his functions though, including the Mood Matrix. I assume you know how it works?” 

He nodded. “I’ve seen you use it a couple of times, so I can probably work with it, should the need arise.”

Finally, they arrived in front of a building that looked vaguely familiar to Athena, and Simon confirmed her thoughts by stating, “Here we are.”

She fished around in her pockets for the keys and let them into the building. His apartment was on the top floor, and they had to wait around a bit for the elevator to make its way down, but a few minutes later, they arrived in his rooms. Athena shrugged out of his coat with a relieved sigh, draping it over the chair as it had been this morning. Then, she turned around to look at Simon, who quipped dryly, “Make yourself right at home.”

She let herself fall backwards onto the couch next to the window, the ankle of her left leg coming to rest on her right knee. “Thanks, I believe I will,” she grinned.

Then, their conversation from this morning reasserted itself in her mind. “I don’t suppose you have checked whether we have gotten an answer from Mayor Tenma yet?”

Simon, who had just sat down in a nearby armchair which matched the couch’s pattern, shook his head and dug around in her handbag for her phone, checking the display.

“There is a new message from Tenma.”

Athena tensed. “What’s it say? Read it aloud.”

He pulled up the message and began.

“Dear Ms. Cykes,

I am familiar with the object about which you have inquired of me, as well as with its effects, if only by second-hand accounts. The records of Nine-Tails/Tenma township indicate that the soul exchange you are currently experiencing has happened at least three times, although the last such event lies twenty years in the past by now. Unfortunately, you will not be able to use the stone to change back, as it is still unknown to what sort of heart’s desire it responds when effecting the change. The good news is that all three recorded exchanges have eventually reversed themselves; the accompanying bad news consists of the fact that the time frame for the reversal seems to be related to the individual case. The shortest time period recorded until the reversal seems to have been 31 days, while the longest had the participants in the exchange trapped in each other’s bodies for 598.

I will continue to do research regarding this problem in the lore archives of the surrounding townships, and will contact you again, should I find anything useful.

With warmest wishes,

Damien Tenma.”

Simon looked up from the phone in his hands at Athena’s crestfallen expression, and commented pragmatically, “Well, shit.”

Chapter Text

For what seemed like an eternity, neither one of them spoke as they tried to digest the information they had received.

Finally, Athena whispered, “Up to almost two years??” A high-pitched, broken noise rent itself from her throat, belying her quickly rising terror.

“Stop this at once!” Simon thundered at her, startling her out of her misery.

When she moved to stare at him, he continued in a slightly apologetic tone, “Histrionics are going to get us nowhere fast. Instead, let’s put our time to good use and start planning for the long term in light of this new information.” Particularly since otherwise, I might be the next one who cracks.

Athena closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths, trying to refocus her thoughts. When she felt steady enough to continue the conversation, she asked in a voice that barely shook anymore, “What sort of long-term planning did you have in mind?”

Simon thought for a minute. “As we are currently inhabiting each other’s bodies, we should put up some ground rules in order to make the eventual transition back as unproblematic as possible. Additionally, we both sorely lack in information regarding daily routine, workplace behavior, and personal acquaintances.” He made a face when he fully realized what his own suggestions entailed. “Unfortunately, tonight has just become uncomfortably personal, I believe. I hope you will excuse the untoward questions this brings up.”

Athena firmly nodded. “I understand. Ask away.”

To her surprise, she found her companion in this untenable situation blushing a bit.

“First of all, I am currently unattached. I don’t suppose you are… seeing anyone… in a carnal manner?”

She shook her head. “No, there’s no one.”

Simon deflated a bit with relief at that. “That is one potential complication I didn’t want to deal with, I admit. I propose that we do not enter into any sexual relationships while this situation persists, as it would constitute an abuse of the respective other’s body.”

Athena heartily agreed with his approach. “Good idea. Oh, and while we’re at physical integrity: I know neither one of us is a thrill seeker, but we should add a prohibition on any out-of-the-ordinary dangerous activities. No skydiving or other extreme recreational activities, no undue heroics… that sort of thing.”

He slightly shook his head. “A worthwhile addition, to be sure, but do keep in mind that I am – you are – employed in law enforcement, and that we both work in a place where a volatile situation could develop at any minute.” Such as bombings and sniper attacks, recently.

“I know,” Athena replied. “Just… let’s not tempt fate if we don’t have to. Who knows what is going to happen to the other if one of us dies.”

“Agreed,” Simon conceded. He was about to continue when Athena made an odd noise, causing him to look up at her.

She looked positively mortified. “I really have to pee,” she admitted in a small voice. “I’ve needed to for a while, but I’ve been holding it, since I was hoping that this would go away…”

He sighed, closing his eyes. “Go ahead and do it, Athena. Considering the time frame we have just been given, it is hardly realistic to assume we can avoid hygiene and bodily functions until we are back in our own skins.”

Athena promptly bolted for the bathroom, locking the door behind her. An internal, hysterical little voice cackled at Simon, Why does she bother with the lock? It’s nothing you haven’t seen every single day of your life. He ruthlessly quashed it and waited for her to emerge again.

A few minutes later, he heard the sound of the toilet being flushed, then the water faucet was turned on. Finally, she opened the door, her face a shade of red he had not even known it could assume anymore.

“I tried not to look, but I…”

“Athena,” Simon interrupted her with a calm and steady voice. “Do you think it’s feasible that we do not look at what are currently our own bodies for months on end?”

She still refused to meet his eyes, and he sighed once more. “If it makes you feel better, I hereby give you leave to look as much as you would like. I know this is embarrassing, but there is no helping it at the moment.”

Her blush did not abate. “In that case, I should extend the same courtesy to you,” she managed to squeak out in a pitch Simon had not been aware his vocal cords were capable of producing.

Not knowing how to alleviate her disquiet otherwise any longer, he quietly stated, “You know your secrets will always be safe with me.”

That startled her into finally meeting his gaze again, and then her features relaxed into a smile which only showed the slightest leftover strain.

“Yeah. I do know that. Sorry for flying off the handle like this.”

Crisis averted. He would be lying to himself if he claimed that did not have his own misgivings about being forced to peep at her body from now on, but he would address these concerns in private later.

“Think nothing of it. To mention another thing related to maintenance though,” Simon’s eyes narrowed slightly, “you will have to start shaving from now on, at least once a day. You are getting noticeably stubbly, and while,” and here a crooked smile appeared on his face, “I would probably cut a good figure wearing a Mifune-style beard shadow, I don’t think Chief Prosecutor Edgeworth would approve if I showed up at the office like that, let alone at court.” I am already grateful he has not thrown the book at me about my hair yet.

He was rewarded with a blank look. “Who’s Meefoonay?”

Simon snorted. “Never mind. Do you think you can do it without cutting your face to ribbons?” A horror vision appeared before his inner eye: Athena showing up at court, face half-obscured by bloody, wadded-up pieces of toilet paper. Anything but that.

Athena mulled it over. “To be honest, I’m not sure. I shave my legs and my pits, but I’ve obviously never tried my face, and there are so many uneven spots the razor could glance off of…”

She looked up and found Simon standing in front of her. “In that case, I believe it is time for a quick lesson. Get back into the bathroom.”

He stepped aside to make room for her to stand up, underscoring his order with a quick jab of his chin that looked imperial even when performed in the body of one Athena Cykes.

She had to grin at that point. “Wow, time for my second puberty, I guess. Will you talk to me about the birds and the bees next, dad?”

Simon could not help it as the strain he had been under all day found a way to escape – he burst out laughing, unable to stop for about a minute. Athena had never seen him do that before, not even back in the old days, and it made her feel inexplicably happy, although a tiny voice in the back of her mind was momentarily dissatisfied that she was not able to witness his mirth on his own face.

When he finally managed to rein himself in, holding his sides, Simon wheezed, “If you think bees have anything to do with it, you are in for a world of hurt, son.”

That comment set Athena off, as well, Simon joining in once more, and when their laughter abated, the tension that had hung over their heads like so many rainclouds had left with it, at least for the moment.

Athena got up from the couch, and nodded at him from above, still smiling.

“Well, let’s do this.”

Chapter Text

After they had entered the bathroom, Simon pointed towards the razor and shaving gel sitting on one side of the sink.

“As you are not completely ignorant of how this works, lather up, and we go from there. Make sure not to forget the area underneath your chin. You might want to take your vest and shirt off, though, so you do not get the foam everywhere.”

As Athena followed his instructions, he seated himself on the rim of the bathtub. Watching for a moment, he eventually continued, “While we’re doing this, we should get back to our talk about daily routines.”

Athena nodded. “Go right ahead.”

Sifting through his thoughts, Simon began, “The prosecutor’s office operates on flex time – as long as you put your weekly work hours in, it does not matter when you show up. I would still recommend coming in no later than 10 AM if you can avoid it, as that would probably be noticed as out-of-character. I generally keep to myself during lunch breaks and the like, and water cooler conversation is not of interest to me, either, although Gavin tries to lure me into talking to him at least twice a week. I usually tell him to get lost. Avoid my office neighbor at all costs – Gaspen Payne is not only a ludicrous gossip, but once you make the mistake of getting him started, he sings his own praises as if there was no tomorrow.”

That made Athena snort. “I’ve had the displeasure of meeting him in court. You can be sure that I won’t become best buddies with him anytime soon.”

Simon grinned at her response. “Good. On occasion, Chief Prosecutor Edgeworth invites me to lunch – he has done so twice, so far. He seems… concerned… about my well-being, and I do appreciate the concern, although it is unwarranted. My office is on the third floor, room 324. The paperwork I am taking care of when I do not have a current case is mostly self-explanatory, but if you find yourself in a bind, text me a photo and I will tell you how to proceed. As for other activities, I have to admit to not exactly enjoying a vibrant social life. I usually visit Aura on Tuesdays around three if I am not bogged down at court, and Friday nights, someone comes by here to pick up my dry-cleaning, which includes all of my court attire. For socks and underwear, there are coin-operated washers in the basement of this building. That is about everything I can come up with right away. Questions?”

Athena had finished covering her face with the foamy substance by now, and she shook her head. “I can’t think of anything at the moment. Okay, how do I start?”

Simon got up and uncapped the razor, wetting the blades under a stream of warm water from the faucet.

“You begin from the sides and work your way towards the middle. The trick is to create a planar surface if at all possible – either by pulling the skin tight with your fingers, or by making ridiculous faces at the mirror. I find the latter usually brightens my day more, but do whichever you prefer.”

She chuckled at that, and he reached up with the razor to demonstrate by pulling it up in a line on her right cheek.

“Do not use excess pressure – as long as the blades are sharp, it should not be necessary. Be particularly careful when moving over the edge of your face underneath your chin, that is the part where you can cut yourself most easily. Use even less pressure in those areas.”

Simon handed her the razor. “Give it a try. Don’t hurry too much, and we might just keep you from bleeding out.”

Athena stuck out her tongue at him in the mirror when she saw his grin. After observing her for a moment, making sure that she could handle herself, Simon seated himself once more.

“Incidentally,” he stated, remembering a topic that he had wanted to bring up with her, “I had an interesting… experience with your ability before court went in session.”

He explained the lying technique he had accidentally discovered during his conversation with Justice, finishing with, “Were you aware that this was a possibility?”

Athena had stopped moving the razor across her face, eyeing him intently by way of the reflection of the mirror.

“It hadn’t crossed my mind. Honestly though, I don’t know that I would use it all that much.”

Simon raised an eyebrow. “And why would that be?”

When Athena took a deep breath before continuing, he had a feeling that he was not going to like the answer. That hunch turned out to be correct.

“Remember the emotional makeup of the Phantom? He was nearly perfect at controlling his feelings – and, perhaps as a result, he barely had any genuine ones left at all. I don’t know how he did it, but if he has an ability that is similar to mine, he might be the end result of overusing this kind of control.”

A queasy feeling settled in the pit of Simon’s stomach when he considered the implication of her musings.

Athena began shaving again, moving on to the other cheek.

“I’m not saying you shouldn’t use it at all, particularly if Apollo tries to use his bracelet on you. He can tell if you tense up upon being asked something because of it, and if he asks the wrong question, our little charade might be up otherwise. Just don’t overdo it.”

He nodded. “It sounds as though that would be the wisest approach. Thank you for the warning.”

She returned his nod in the mirror. “Don’t mention it. Also, while we’re at it, be careful when interacting with Mr. Wright. I don’t exactly know what it is he can do with this green stone he has, but his own method of questioning people is really effective. I think he needs evidence to do his thing, though.”

“Wonderful,” Simon commented laconically. “I am starting to think that I drew the short straw in our little exchange.”

He saw Athena’s eyebrows drawing together under her fringe in the mirror.

“Your only friend is a bird – you’re hardly one to talk.”

He had to concede the point. Moving their conversation back to safer ground, he asked, “What else should I be aware of?”

“Work at the Wright Anything Agency starts at 10. You’ve been there before, so you know how to get there. I don’t have a desk – Apollo and I generally work on the couch, while Mr. Wright is in his study. His adopted daughter is 16 – her name is Trucy. She’s there a lot, since the Wrights live in the rooms attached to the office, and she is kind of like Apollo’s and my little sister, although she can be odd sometimes. She’s a magician, you see – the last offspring of the Gramarye dynasty. Don’t be surprised if she tries to offer you snacks from her magic panties.”

Simon stared at her. “You are pulling my leg.”

She chuckled. “I wish I was. Cross my heart and hope to die. It’s actually kind of cute when she doesn’t try to give you a cookie.”

He shook his head, still somewhat in disbelief. “Your workplace environment sounds like a right mixed nuts sampler.” I might end up missing Payne and Gavin in short order after a few months of this particular hilarity.

“Don’t worry, you’ll get used to it,” she replied with no particular sympathy in her voice. “At least things stay interesting this way.”

“That’s actually what I am worried about,” he commented dryly. “Anything else?”

She thought for a moment while finishing up her shave. “I think that’s most of it. I sometimes to go Trucy’s magic shows at the Wonder Bar on weekends, and we have board game night at the agency once in a while, but I don’t have any particular free time activities you should be aware of. I like going running, but I’m not on any set schedule for that. On Sundays, I generally just clean my place, do the laundry – like with you, the washers and dryers are in the basement – and watch TV or read a book. On occasion I go see a movie, either with Junie when she has time, or with Apollo and Trucy.”

He nodded. “Understood.”

When Athena rinsed out the razor and recapped it, he instructed, “Wash the residue of the shaving gel off your face. There’s aftershave lotion in the cabinet.”

She did as she was told, cringing at the stinging sensation when the lotion first hit her features.

Simon, gazing at her now clean-shaven face, nodded approvingly. “Not bad for the first time.”

Noting that night was advancing outside, he continued, “Are there any other concerns that we need to address right now? Otherwise, I should probably take my leave.”

Athena turned towards him. “I think we covered everything that we can tonight. If I can think of anything else pressing, I’ll give you a call.” She grinned. “I have your number, after all.”

He smiled at that, and she noticed with delight that it did not contain a shade of sarcasm. “That you do. Good night, Athena.”

He turned to leave, and just when he had reached the apartment door, he heard her reply, “Good night, Simon. And… thanks.”

Shaking his head, Simon closed the door behind himself.

Chapter Text

After Simon had left, Athena was not quite sure what to do with herself. She contemplated going to bed early, but a look at her phone, which told her that it was only about 10 PM, made her give up on that idea in short order. I don’t think I could sleep right now, anyway.

Contemplating the long and strange day she had just completed, she let her gaze wander around the apartment. It was a relatively small one-bedroom setup, not much unlike her own, although Simon’s living room beat hers in terms of size. The attached kitchen area did not look as though it was used much, aside from the multiple cups with coffee stains on them in the sink. Not really surprising, he seems to live on coffee these days.

One corner of the living room, next to the couch, held a desk with a black laptop on it; against the nearby wall stood a small stand with a basic model television and a DVD player, some disc cases and box sets deposited haphazardly underneath. When she uncovered the set buried beneath a number of black-and-white samurai movies by some director named Kurosawa, she had to grin. The Steel Samurai? Maybe you haven’t changed so much in the last seven years, after all.

The memories welled up immediately: Simon sitting on the couch next to 11-year-old her, hair still short and reasonably neat, face unmarred by the passage of time, as they had watched the children’s show together. Sometimes, she would act out the Steel Samurai’s special techniques, such as the Steel Samurai Sushi Slice, and he would mime the Evil Magistrate for her benefit. She recalled fondly how much he had sucked at it, because while he certainly had a naturally serious face, he had not been able to keep from smiling at her when she had bounced around on the furniture, wielding an imaginary sword or spear, so unlike her regular quiet behavior as she had ventured out of her shell for him.

And yet… he was not that young man anymore. Seven years in prison had imbued him with sarcasm and bitterness, earning him the moniker of “Twisted Samurai.” Athena could not help but agree with the name, to a certain extent – his gentle personality had had to harden over the years in order to cope with his situation, twisting him into someone who shunned personal attachment and delighted in intimidating others. She felt a stab of guilt at not being able to free him from his situation earlier, particularly since it had been her fault.

But he was different today. Sure, this morning, after they had first discovered the bizarre situation they now found themselves in, he had mostly stuck to discussing their mutual problem in a factual manner, stopping occasionally to take a jibe at her. But tonight… he had praised her for her performance in court, if only to bring up his own perceived failure. He had managed to keep her from falling apart when they had first learned of how long their switch could potentially last, and then again when the bathroom situation had occurred… Athena felt a blush creeping up on her cheeks and viciously pushed the memories of what she had seen out of her mind. I might have to get used to looking, that doesn’t mean that I have to think about what I see.

You know your secrets will always be safe with me. When he had said that, quietly and seriously, with no hint of reservation or sarcasm in his gaze as it connected with hers – that was when he had most reminded her of the Simon from her childhood, barely older than she was now. And yet, his declaration had also been a hallmark of the man he had become, the man who had sacrificed seven years of his life, would have gone to his death, all to prevent a little girl from being indicted for the murder of her own mother.

Without realizing her objective, she found herself drawn to the small mirror on the wall in the bedroom, where she had first beheld her new face – his face. Until now, she had not had a lot of time to truly contemplate her current reflection, seeing that it had first induced panic within her, and then had been under intense scrutiny by both its original owner and the public at large.

Now, she took her time, mapping his features in detail. His forehead and eyebrows were nearly completely hidden by his fringe, the right side of it glowing a snowy white. Hesitantly touching the prematurely time-bleached strands, which seemed as though they had been painted in, she wondered, How much pain did you have to endure for this to happen before you even turned 30?

Her right index finger moved down to the dark shadows under his – her – sharp gray eyes, exploring another trait that had not been there before. She could now tell that she had been right in her musings yesterday, an eternity ago – they were indeed lighter than they had been when she had first encountered him in court more than half a year ago, but still very much visible. Their elongated shape had always puzzled her, as she had never seen this kind of darkening even in habitually insomniac friends back at university, and she could not keep from blaming herself once more. I can’t even begin to understand what you must have suffered through for my sake.

Unsure what possessed her to do so, she reached up, loosening the tie that held his ponytail together. Carding through the long black hair with her fingers a couple of times, she looked up at the mirror one more time, and nearly shrank away. With his hair flowing freely, his features looked sharper and somehow haggard, his eyes even more shadowed than they had appeared before and with an almost desperate cast. This was the face of a man who had stared death in the face, who had perhaps even welcomed it.

I did this to you.

This final self-recrimination brought tears to her eyes, and as one of them rolled down her cheek, she finally had an answer as to just what had caused the darkened tracks on his face.

Stunned by her realization, she stared for a moment as her first tear was joined by others, until finally she had to turn away, lest she would be completely overcome by her grief for his suffering.

I wish I could talk to you about this, apologize for what I did to you, but…you probably wouldn’t accept my taking the blame, and I don’t know how to start the conversation in the first place.

She shook her head at herself. No, this is something I’m going to have to bear by myself. I can’t make those seven years go away, no matter how hard I wish I could, and apologizing would just devalue what you gave me so freely. Maybe we can discuss it at some point in the future, but right now is not the time.

Feeling the need to do something in order to keep her mind otherwise occupied, Athena began rifling through his closet in search of things to wear tomorrow, finding fresh socks and underwear, pants, and shirt. As his vest, tie, and surcoat were still immaculate, she decided to wear them again until the dry cleaning was picked up in two days, even though he did have a spare for each. He probably uses each set for a week and has them cleaned then, she thought, momentarily relieved that her thoughts had returned to the mundane tedium of everyday life.

She also came up with something she had not expected in his wardrobe – a pair of gray, slightly threadbare sweatpants, which were nevertheless soft and felt as though they would be a whole lot more comfortable than the dress pants and boots which still clung to her lower body.

She promptly sat down on the bed and pulled off the footwear, wriggling her toes in relief once they were free of the black leather encasements. Staring at her feet, she could not help but think, It’s kind of ridiculous how much bigger everything is on your body as opposed to my own…wait, nope, not going there.

Feeling like banging her head against the wall to quell her traitorous thoughts by force, she quickly took off the black pants and socks and, very pointedly not glancing anywhere near her crotch, pulled on the somewhat ragged piece of clothing she had discovered.

Oh yeah, that’s a lot more comfy…

She let her torso fall back on the bed, staring up at the ceiling. What am I gonna do with myself, living like this for who knows how long?

Chapter Text

Luckily, Simon, like his feathered companion, had always possessed an excellent sense of direction, enabling him to retrace his steps from this morning. Walking through the now oppressively cold night, he reached Athena’s apartment building approximately 45 minutes later.

Letting himself into the blissfully warm rooms after finding the right key, he found that he was now confronted with the same problem Athena had faced earlier – the coffee from earlier today demanded a way out.

Thankfully, her outfit made things a lot easier on him, as he only had to ruck up the skirt a bit, pull down tights and panties, and seat himself, all without taking a single look at her anatomy. I suppose it’s not really fair on her, seeing that she isn’t used to the extra bits, but that is how the dice have fallen.

Now, the absurdity of his current conundrum had a chance to fully dawn on him, as he was finally not occupied with alleviating one acute crisis or another, and he found himself chuckling under his breath.

“This is completely, utterly ridiculous,” he murmured into the tiled room, beginning to laugh once more. To his dismay, more than a hint of the hysteria which he had sought to prevent in Athena earlier now surfaced in his own voice.

Thinking of her enabled him to rebuild his composure for the moment. Calm down, idiot. One of us has to keep a clear head in all of this, and while she is holding up well enough, you have dedicated your life to protecting hers. Assume the role you have assigned to yourself, and stop being a weakling. Besides, it could be worse.

Indeed it could – he could be dead by now. What was living as a woman (a very specific woman who happens to be my dead mentor’s daughter and now works on the opposite side of the court system) for a few months or even years, compared to that?

Potentially goddamn difficult, I would say.

He finished his activities in the restroom, readjusted his clothing, and emerged once more into the living area, sinking onto the couch. He had not felt this exhausted for a long time, but considering that he had been under not inconsiderable strain since first opening his eyes this morning, that was perhaps not entirely out of the ordinary.

Simon thought back once more to his conversation with Athena earlier, wishing to recapitulate on what she had told him about her routine, but his traitorous mind insisted on replaying her mortification after leaving the bathroom, instead.

He smirked, shaking his head.

Come on, Athena, you are talking to a former jailbird. Granted, there weren’t any female guards in the part of the clink where I was stuck, but do you honestly think I haven’t had my dick stared at by everyone and their brother before?

And yet, he had to acknowledge to himself that this situation was vastly different from his prior living circumstances. For one, Athena was female. For another, she was a personal acquaintance, whom he had known since childhood. And thirdly, he had studied under her mother. No matter which way he turned the circumstances in his mind, this was still several shades of wrong.

Wearily, he dragged his hands over his face, still surprised at the softness of the skin which greeted his fingertips.

I have to make a decision regarding hygiene needs though – shower tonight, or tomorrow morning? He would hardly do Athena any favors if he now decided to insist on modesty in spite of his earlier words to her, and ended up being thrown out of court for smelling like a dumpster in a couple of weeks.

Maybe it is time for the shock treatment. He would likely not be able to keep his tension from Justice tomorrow morning, should he behold his new body in all its glory for the first time right before their next encounter. Hell, he was hardly able to concentrate now, considering that he seemed to be stuck thinking about them being exposed while in each other’s bodies. Additionally, it was generally better to jump into a pool of freezing water, rather than slowly wading in.

Simon sighed. Metis would have my family jewels if she was around to witness this.

Before he could second-guess his decision, he was on his feet, divesting himself of his clothing. Holding firm to the allegory on his mind, he did not look down on himself while doing so. After struggling a bit with the bra (Why are these things so damn complicated?), he dropped the infernal piece of clothing on the couch along with her other things and resolutely marched into the bedroom, where he knew her standing mirror to be from his first encounter with his new appearance earlier today. On the way, he told himself, This is your body right now, you have to get used to this. If you do it right now, everything will be easier later. Her anatomy will hardly differ from that of other women, and your imagination of what was under these clothes all day is probably overwrought, anyway.

This was as far as he got before he reached the bedroom. Three more long steps, two, one, and then his hand was on the frame of the mirror, turning it toward him –

Simon froze, his gaze glued to the reflective surface in front of him. Apparently, he had vastly overestimated the lengths his imagination was able to bridge these days.

Athena’s body immediately brought Greek statues of her goddess namesake to mind. Firm breasts, just about a good handful on each side, flawlessly curved lines leading from there down towards the trim waist, only to flare out softly again into the hips. Long legs with finely boned ankles, leading up to what he assumed was probably a just-as-flawless ass, though he currently found himself unable to move in order to check. A trimmed patch of auburn pubic hair enticingly darkening the center between the legs…

Simon closed his eyes and took a shuddering breath as he felt heat pooling in his lower abdomen. This was probably not one of my better ideas. The hysterical little voice which had been plaguing him earlier reasserted itself, presenting him with the mental image of Athena railing at him for becoming sexually aroused in her body.

Metis would definitely cut my dick off for this. And he would not even blame her for wanting to. Not that she currently could, seeing as I quite obviously do not have one right now, a now-persistently out-of-control part of himself snickered within him.

I bet the thought of doing something like this has not even crossed Athena’s mind, he continued to berate himself, feeling more like a degenerate pervert with each passing moment.

Finally, he met his own gaze in the mirror defiantly. “Cold shower for you tonight, you lecher,” he grated out at himself, wondering at what point exactly his sanity had decided to desert him, and stalked off towards the bathroom.

Chapter Text

Athena woke the next morning to a staccato rhythm being drummed against her bedroom window.

Whu…? Who manages to knock on a third-floor window…?

Then, she began to remember the events of yesterday, as well as her current circumstances.

I must have fallen asleep while thinking about things last night… Seeing that she was still in his sweatpants and diagonally spread out over the bed, on top of the blanket, that seemed to be a valid hypothesis.

She turned around towards the window and saw Taka hovering outside, using his beak to rap on the glass. A quick glance at the alarm clock immediately told her why.

10:20 AM… dammit!

She jumped out of the bed, ran in and out of the shower, internally grateful that she only had time for a quick spray-down without a chance to ponder body parts, put on the clothes she had readied last night, and, barely remembering to grab his briefcase, was out of the door after twenty minutes, bound for the prosecutor’s office.

Unfortunately, as Simon had forgotten to admonish her for running the day before, run she did.

***

When Simon’s alarm went off at 9:15 AM, he felt as though he had not slept a wink.

He stumbled into the kitchen, ready to get his caffeine fix, when he discovered that Athena did not own a coffee maker. Investigating the refrigerator yielded nothing but orange juice and milk.

Perfect. I hope there is a coffee shop on the way to Wright’s… If there was not, he had a feeling that her colleagues in all their bizarreness might not survive the day.

I could take another shower to wake myself up.

Then, he remembered what impulsiveness on his behalf had led to the initial cold shower last night, and reconsidered.

On second thought, maybe not.

Before going to bed, he had put on fresh panties and a bra, in addition to her embarrassingly pink flannel pajamas, with the express purpose of not succumbing to his lecherous instincts again, either during the night or when getting ready in the morning. He would not undermine his efforts and what was left of her dignity now by completely undressing again until it became necessary once more. Just the thought of it made his nethers clench in a way that was disconcertingly unfamiliar and yet clearly recognizable.

Note to self: Don’t ever rely on the shock treatment again.

He changed into her regular office attire, grabbed her bag, and headed out for the Wright Anything Agency.

***

The prosecutor’s office was treated to an unusual sight just as the beginning of lunch time rolled around, when Prosecutor Blackquill entered the building at a full run, only to slip at the top of the first flight of stairs.

As Athena felt herself fall backwards, she barely had time to think, If this doesn’t break my neck, he probably will for embarrassing him. Then, her back hit the ground at the bottom of the stairs hard, and she saw stars for a moment. Lying there for a few seconds, stunned, she mentally took inventory of her assorted body parts and found that she had not done herself any major injury. Okay, evisceration by Simon it is.

She opened her eyes to find Taka on the ground next to her. While the bird of prey had no obvious emotional expressions, something about his manner reminded her of concern.

Slipping back into her role, she quietly stated, “I’m unharmed, my friend,” pushing herself up into a sitting position. Taka hopped aside, then fluttered up to come to a rest on her shoulder, for once not with his regular velocity.

Athena had just begun to hope that no one had witnessed her metaphorical and literal slip-up, when she became aware of a high-pitched, grating snicker coming from the balustrade above, as well as a purple pant leg coming into view to her left.

She did not have to wonder whose leg it was when a melodious voice with a soft German accent asked, “Are you all right, Herr Blackquill?”

Remembering Simon’s assessment of his relationship with Prosecutor Gavin, she repeated for the benefit of the concernedly smiling man, this time in a dismissive tone, “I am unharmed.”

She moved to stand, gazing up at the balustrade, where Gaspen Payne was still laughing his head off, and her mood darkened. Jerk! Scratching Taka’s neck, an idea came to mind that would somewhat restore Simon’s reputation while giving her satisfaction, as well.

“… but somebody else will not be in a minute,” she muttered ominously and minutely inclined her head toward the bird, whispering, “Taka, attack Payne!”

The hawk shot away from her shoulder like a brown lightning bolt, and a second later, a shrill scream sounded from above. Athena grinned wolfishly. Serves you right, for laughing at the missteps of others.

What she had not expected was to hear Prosecutor Gavin laughing at the spectacle the bird was making out of Payne’s already outlandish coif.

“Hahaha, appropriate punishment as usual…”

Athena shot him a slightly weirded-out look, but chose not to comment as she climbed the stairs once more, this time in Simon’s customary stride.

***

Simon’s luck was not with him; along the entire route to the Wright Anything Agency, not one establishment selling coffee could be found.

Resigned to his fate, he eventually climbed the stairs to the law office where Athena worked, only to detect the scent of French Roast as soon as he pushed open the door.

Perfunctorily nodding to Justice, who was seated on the couch already, he glanced over at the coffee maker in the corner, noticing that a number of clean cups were stacked up next to it upside-down, and decided that helping himself would probably be appropriate.

Unfortunately, Justice did not seem to think so. Without so much as a “good morning,” he simply remarked, “Coffee, Athena?”

“What about it?” Simon responded as he finished pouring, realizing immediately that the challenge in his tone was too overt for Athena’s regular behavior.

Justice’s right eyebrow rose. “Crabby,” he remarked. “I was just surprised, since I’ve never seen you drink coffee before. Isn’t orange juice your regular morning pick-me-up of choice?”

Cornered by his apparently inappropriate choice in drinks, Simon had no choice but to resort to the truth. “I had a bit of a rough night,” he admitted, taking a sip as the damage had already been done.

Justice’s other eyebrow met the already raised one. “Any particular reason?”

At that, Simon could not help but tense, as he could not seem to come up with a reason other than ‘I am not really Athena and I saw her body naked for the first time last night,’ which was obviously not an acceptable answer. This is what I get for getting too used to a certain caffeine level in the morning.

Miraculously, the young lawyer rescued him from his bind, as, without waiting for a reply, he mused, “This wouldn’t have anything to do with that note you got during recess yesterday, would it?”

Mentally reaching for Athena’s ability, Simon directed his gaze downward. “I still don’t understand why he’s being so confrontational…”

He heard a sigh coming from the direction of the couch. “I don’t know what to tell you, Athena, I don’t know the guy outside of court. Is there a chance that he just used it as an attempt to demoralize us, without realizing that you’d take it personally?”

Simon started internally at that. Is he attempting to speak in my defense in order to make her feel better?

As he knew the true reason for the note and had been anything but offended by it, the lie was becoming harder to maintain. Pretending to contemplate Justice’s question while thinking about how Athena would feel if he did send her a missive that was overtly belittling, he slowly answered, “I don’t know. It’s been so many years since I have met him outside of court…”

He took another swig of coffee, and the dark fluid tasted as bitter as the realization that he had just presented an actual truth to his current associate, after all: Athena and he had been separated by years of leading very different lives, and neither she nor he were much like they used to be anymore. I would do everything the same way again, if I was faced with the choice, but my actions have left us both with scars.

The springs of the sofa creaked, and footsteps approached him. Before Simon had a chance to emerge from his maudlin train of thought and react, the arms of one Apollo Justice enveloped him in a brotherly hug.

Chapter Text

His whole body stiffening, Simon’s first instinct was to push the other man away, snarling, What do you think you’re doing? But then, he remembered how Athena had described spending a not inconsiderable amount of her free time with Justice and Wright’s little patchwork family unit, and he realized that this was not an option here. In for a penny…

He forced himself to relax his posture once more and reciprocated Justice’s gesture by giving him a quick squeeze around the waist, which seemed to do the trick, as the young lawyer stepped back. “Better?” he inquired with a slightly embarrassed smile.

Simon somehow managed to plaster an answering smile on his face. “Better,” he agreed, and found it more than slightly disconcerting when he had to admit to himself that that was the truth, as well.

I am just relieved that he bought my lie, he firmly told himself.

This is a lot harder than pretending to be each other at court.

***

At the prosecutor’s office, Athena found herself thinking much the same way. She had been cooped up in Simon’s office ever since her failed start into the day. On occasion, a secretary brought her forms which required her attention, and she was relieved to notice that handwriting was apparently a muscle memory thing, as the signature she scrawled on each of them was indistinguishable from his.

While the routine office work was easy enough to handle, just as he had said, she found it more than a little lacking in social interaction.

I’m so used to having Apollo and Mr. Wright right there at the office with me most of the time, and when Trucy comes home from school at 3, she’s there, too. Yeah, we work, but there’s also talk, and jokes, and sometimes Mr. Wright invites us out for noodles when we’re done for the day, after Trucy bugs him long enough…

There was no use lying to herself about it: She already missed her colleagues, her job, and her own life in general. Taka, while being a wonderful companion in his own way, just could not compensate for everyone she was used to interacting with.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door. Oh great, here comes another heap of paperwork.

“Come in.”

She double-checked the various sheets of paper already piled up on her desk, making sure that they were properly filled out and signed, when she realized that the secretary had yet to announce her presence verbally. Glancing up, she found herself facing Chief Prosecutor Edgeworth.

She had heard from Mr. Wright that Mr. Edgeworth had been his childhood friend, and that it had been thanks to him that Simon had been allowed to work as a prosecutor even while imprisoned, but she nevertheless could not help but find the man in the pinkish-red suit a little intimidating.

“Sir,” she greeted, nodding at him.

Simon’s superior returned the greeting in a similar fashion, likewise inclining his head. “Blackquill.”

Athena noticed that he held a sheet of paper in his hands, and started to wonder if he had come with an agenda.

“What can I do for you, Chief Prosecutor?”

Edgeworth’s eyes seemed to flick towards the form he was holding for a minute, and a tendril of worry began to wind its way around Athena’s heart. What is this all about?

When the gray-haired man spoke again, his tone remained neutral, although she could not help but get the feeling that it was a willful sort of neutral.

“I received a report from someone regarding a bird attack in the lobby earlier today. It also states that prior to this, you suffered an… accident.”

Oh dear. She had no doubt that she knew just who had submitted this report. Payne, that odious little shit.

Asking herself what Simon would do if confronted with this conversation, she quietly replied, “A minor mishap, and punishment for an inappropriate reaction to said mishap, sir.”

She readied herself for the inevitable dressing-down when Edgeworth’s gaze sharpened behind his glasses, only to be surprised when he asked, “Are you sure you were not injured? As I understand it, it was quite a,” he lifted the report closer to his face as he referred to it, “spectacular fall.”

Athena did not entirely manage to conceal her surprise when she met the inquiring gaze of Simon’s superior. He isn’t here to rag on me for siccing Taka on Payne…he’s actually worried! While it fit with the observations Simon had related to her last night, she had not expected the normally so reserved chief prosecutor to be this forward with his feelings.

She let one of the corners of her lips twitch upward in a slight, crooked smile when she replied, “My ego might have sustained some bruises, but otherwise…”

Talking about the bruises on her back and behind would probably not be appropriate in this setting (What are you doing thinking about his butt right now stop that Athena!).

Edgeworth seemed relieved at her answer. “In that case… as you do not currently have a case and seem to have the daily paperwork tedium well in hand, would you care to step out to the coffee shop across the road for a few minutes?”

Out of the frying pan, and into the fire…Athena barely knew Simon’s superior, and although he had made her aware that these invitations did happen, she had no idea how to go about it now that the situation was at hand.

“I came in rather late, and I do not wish to deliver a less-than-optimum performance…” she tried to extricate herself, but Edgeworth would have none of it.

“We both know that the forms you are working on are just a paper trail to let the state know we are actually doing our job, Mr. Blackquill,” he replied dryly. “I have it on good authority that you have been in here since arriving at the office, and a small break will hardly have a negative effect on your next performance review.”

Great, so it’s an offer I can’t refuse. Athena nodded and moved to stand, Taka settling on her shoulder after swooping down from his perch on the shelf behind her.

“Very well.”

They left the building in silence, which persisted until they had been seated in the cozy little establishment to which the chief prosecutor had steered their steps. A waiter attended them right away, and Edgeworth took it upon himself to order for both of them.

“Jasmine tea for me, black coffee for my associate.”

Athena was sorely tempted to throw in an objection and request something else, but immediately realized that this would be more than a little out-of-character for Simon, considering that he had apparently become a coffee fiend, if the state of his kitchen was any indication. She grimaced internally. I’ll somehow have to gulp down this sludge without making a face. If only I could get my hands on some orange juice…

After their order arrived, Edgeworth took a sip, and she hastened to do the same, noticing that it was not quite as terrible as she had feared. Must be because this is a fairly high-quality place, even though I wish I had some cream or sugar.

Contemplating the brew, she only looked up when Simon’s superior addressed her directly for the first time since their arrival.

“How have you been faring recently?”

Not sure what exactly the chief prosecutor was aiming at with his question, Athena took another swig while sifting her brain for an appropriate reply.

“The People v. Filch took a nose dive thanks to my detective neglecting to fully investigate the buildings adjacent to the crime scene,” she answered, settling on the case she had prosecuted for Simon yesterday. “I am thinking of taking on a more active role in investigations in order to prevent any such future occurrences.”

Edgeworth smiled at that. “Not a bad idea. My adoptive sister swears by a more direct approach to investigations, herself, and while it does not preclude every potential setback, it is always preferable to have more eyes on the ground in order to cover every possible angle of a case.”

He took another sip of his tea, and Athena noticed that he actually spread his pinky away from the cup handle. For some reason, this struck her as inexplicably funny, and she hid the beginnings of a traitorous grin with the rim of her own drinking vessel.

When she put the cup down again, she found herself once more under Edgeworth’s scrutiny.

“However, I was not just asking about your professional endeavors, Mr. Blackquill. How is life treating you these days?”

Chapter Text

Athena fought the urge to fidget. Oh great, how am I going to answer this? I’m not the one who was stuck in jail for seven years!

Taking another drag from her cup, which rapidly emptied, her thoughts went into high gear on how to best respond, when she realized that maybe, she could just use a similar experience as analogy, if she kept it general enough.

I’m currently stuck in a body that isn’t my own, living in an unfamiliar place, having to deal with people I don’t know well or at all, always worried that my secret will be discovered, and uncertain what the next moment will bring. Granted, it has only been a day so far, but…

She took a deep breath and stated quietly, “I am getting along well enough, Chief Prosecutor, thank you for your concern. There are some things which still seem… difficult to adjust to, but I suppose that is to be expected.”

Edgeworth’s cup, which he had been about to lift to his lips once more, stopped to hover near his chin when he looked up at Athena. She could see the surprise on his features, and feared for a moment that she had finally managed to overdo it.

After a moment which seemed like an eternity, her conversation partner nodded minutely and finally brought the cup to his mouth. After replacing it on the saucer, he replied, “You are correct, of course. I am aware that my experiences with the wrong side of the justice system are nothing compared to yours, but… if there is anything in which I can be of assistance, you know where to find me.”

Now it was Athena’s turn to be surprised, and when she glanced at the face of Simon’s superior, she only just managed to catch a glimpse of what seemed to be a flicker of guilt before it was once more hidden behind a stoic façade.

Now, the pieces of the puzzle fell into place. While she had still been a child when the DL-6 case had been retried and finally solved, she had happened upon it when reading up on her current boss’s track record after first meeting Phoenix Wright abroad. Miles Edgeworth had been accused of murdering the defense attorney associated with the case, which had involved the murder of his father. It turned out that Edgeworth had thought for over a decade that he had been the responsible party for his father’s death, only to find out with the help of Mr. Wright that his mentor, Manfred von Karma, had been the true murderer. Really, there were a number of parallels between his case and Simon’s, aside from their respective knowledge of their innocence – with one notable exception: While Edgeworth had walked free aside from a few nights in detention, Simon had spent years in jail, and had been a hair’s breadth away from being executed for the crime he had not committed.

He feels responsible for the miscarriage of justice Simon had to suffer through. There was nothing he could do to save him, just like I couldn’t do anything, but that doesn’t stop us from feeling guilty now.

The realization that the chief prosecutor shared the gnawing guilt she had nearly succumbed to last night somehow made Athena feel better. Not raising her eyes from her cup, she answered, “I appreciate the offer, sir.”

Maybe Simon isn’t quite as alone as he – or I – thought, after all.

***

After the tight spot with Justice in which he had found himself earlier, Simon avoided further exchanges with his associate, choosing instead to pull up Widget’s main menu after he had seated himself. Aimlessly browsing through her new e-mails, which contained nothing that required his immediate attention, he found that he quite liked the effortless way Widget’s interface was structured. While the little gadget was hardly unique in featuring a holographic screen or a cybernetic input device, such items were still prohibitively expensive for the average person, even if they offered more comfort and portability than tablets or laptops.

I am not really looking forward to it possibly stating my thoughts aloud, but aside from that little bug, I wouldn’t mind having something similar at my disposal.

Glancing through the screen to check the clock on the opposite wall, he found that he had already been at the office for about two hours, and yet he had not even caught a glimpse of Athena’s employer.

Better ask what is going on, before this day gets any more interesting.

Turning toward Justice, who had given up any pretense of working and was watching the news on TV, he asked, “Where’s Mr. Wright?”

The other man shrugged, his gaze never leaving his program.

“He left about five minutes before you came in… said something about picking up some case files at the courthouse. He should be back soon.”

Simon nodded his understanding, and once again settled for sifting through Athena’s files. One can tell a lot by the organization and content of a person’s personal data, maybe this will come in handy in the future.

When he happened upon a folder simply entitled “Old Pics,” he could not help but be curious what it contained, and opened it.

The picture files were unlabeled and unsorted, but the file creation dates seemed to span a number of years. Hoping that Justice would remain occupied for a while yet with his TV program, he started a slide show, witnessing a slightly younger Athena in a number of scenes, with a varying assortment of friends. A lot of these must be from her time as a university student.

Athena, grinning at the camera while the girl next to her made rabbit ears behind her head. Athena, standing on the prow of a sailboat, wearing a one-piece swimsuit. Athena, obviously intoxicated while wearing lederhosen at what he assumed was the drunken revelry Germans called “Oktoberfest.” Athena, sloppily kissing the dark-haired boy on whose lap she was sitting.

The last scene caused Simon to frown. It seems she had a lot of fun while I was sitting on death row.

No, that thought was patently unfair to her. She had entered her profession with the express purpose of saving him from his fate, and all he had wanted for her when he had confessed to murdering Metis had been that she would get to live a normal life. Blaming her now for doing just that would be pettiness at its finest. I was not exactly averse to company of the opposite sex in college, myself, so why should I expect her to be all prim and proper?

And yet, Simon could not help but feel a stab of anger at the unnamed boy before he resolutely moved on to the next picture. I am projecting – I don’t know him or what his intentions toward her were, and I am actually irate at myself for not having been available to protect her.

He decided that this explanation sounded plausible enough from a psychological standpoint and scrolled through the remaining images, until his fingers stilled when he happened upon what had to be one of the oldest pictures in the folder.

It was a shot of him, just weeks before the tragedy which had shaped most of his adult life had occurred. Young Simon was smiling slightly at the camera, holding himself easily while little Athena tried her hardest to encircle his waist with her arms, falling just short and laughing. Next to her stood her childhood friend Juniper Woods, apparently not minding that Athena was focused on someone else, her right hand raised in a “v”-sign.

Who knows how we would have ended up, if Metis hadn’t been murdered…our lives intersected long enough to have an impact on each other, but not long enough to prevent the rift that has opened up between us. She was like a little sister to me, and now I barely recognize her anymore. Seeing that the child Athena had been mostly quiet and withdrawn, however, he was not sure whether her metamorphosis into the lively defense lawyer whose body he now inhabited was a loss or an improvement – not that it was for him to decide.

Justice’s voice next to him startled him out of his reverie. “That’s from seven years ago, isn’t it?”

Chapter Text

The melancholy that had overcome Simon after first setting eyes on the photograph had apparently lowered his defenses, as he found himself replying to his associate’s inquiry without thinking.

“Yes. Things were… different then.”

Justice focused once more on the image, himself, whistling. “I’ll say. I don’t think I’ve ever seen Prosecutor Blackquill like that. I mean, obviously he’s much younger, and he doesn’t have that mane of hair yet, or those dark smudges under his eyes, but that’s not what I’m talking about. He looks so… kind.”

Simon registered with a hint of amusement that he had just been called a bitter, twisted old fart in so many words, although he now found himself unable to escape this particular, potentially dangerous conversation, seeing that he had invited it.

“Prison changes people, Apollo. Maybe he had no choice but to change into the way he is now.”

Another inconvenient truth, out in the open. This impossible situation felt more and more like some odd form of self-therapy.

Next to him, Justice sighed. “I s’pose you have a point there. This whole thing you guys went through was really screwed up. And it’s still not all right yet, even though the legal side is all over and done with, is it?”

His eyes remaining on the picture, Simon once again found himself answering without his volition. “Who knows if it will ever be. Seven years are a long time to bridge.”

Silence reigned for a long moment, until it was once again broken by Justice’s voice.

“Have you tried talking to him about it? Outside of court, I mean?”

Now it was Simon’s turn to sigh. “I wouldn’t even know where to begin.”

To his surprise, Justice shrugged. “Well, at the moment you are fuming and sniping at each other more often than not, from what I can tell – what’s the worst that could happen, one of you running off in a snit?” He smiled, and Simon noticed that his smile held a what-could-have-been that seemed remarkably similar to his own. “Your friend is still alive. You managed to do what you set out to do and saved him. Don’t run away from the opportunity you have now, just because you don’t know what to say. I wouldn’t know how he feels about all this, but I can tell you’re hurting. Go tell him what you feel you need to say, and even if he decides he’d rather continue being a jerk to you, at least you’ll have the closure of having tried.”

Simon only now recalled that Justice had recently lost someone close to him to the Phantom – the victim in People v. Starbuck. He began to feel like an unmitigated ass for dragging the man into his own maudlin self-reflection. When have I developed the need to overshare like this? Maybe it’s because I am currently forced to impersonate someone else – not that that is an excuse.

The least he could do now was to take Justice’s advice into serious consideration, particularly since it applied even though it was given to the wrong person, lest he would feel indebted to the man for listening to his self-absorbed prattle. Voice firm, he promised, “I’ll give it a try. Thanks, Apollo.”

His associate’s hand landed on his shoulder, giving it a quick squeeze. “Anytime.”

Simon finally found himself able to close the picture that was still displayed on Widget’s holographic screen, thinking to himself that A… Justice, for all of his bizarre habits, was not entirely obnoxious to have around, after all.

It turned out be not a moment too soon, as the door of the agency swung open to admit Phoenix Wright into the room, a couple of legal files under his arm.

“Athena, hello! Sorry I didn’t catch you before I left, I wanted to get into the archives before they were overrun with law students.”

Hoping that he could get Athena’s regular cheery mood right this time, Simon replied, “No problem, Mr. Wright, I understand.”

Considering the reputation the lawyer had enjoyed before his disbarment, before Simon had even gained his prosecutor’s badge, he considered Wright to be a formidable opponent, even if he was given to the occasional bumble in court. Then again, after one day as a defense attorney, he was beginning to sympathize with the fact that the cards were often stacked against the defending side, and Wright, with Athena’s help, had managed to save both their hides in a case that had seemed certain to end badly for at least one of them at first glance. Fooling Justice is one thing, but Wright has known Athena for longer, and has an eye for details everyone else misses. I’d best be careful.

Wright seemed to be satisfied with his reply and turned to his junior associate.

“Anything on the news that seems like a worthwhile case, Apollo?”

“Nothing at the moment,” the younger man replied. “I could go down to the detention center and check if there are any new detainees whose cases seem worth taking on.”

Athena’s employer contemplated his offer for a second, then shook his head. “We’ve been pretty busy recently, so a slow day won’t exactly hurt our finances, to not even speak of the fact that I’d rather not stoop to the equivalent of ambulance chasing. Let’s just man the phones for now and see if something drops into our laps, and if nothing comes up, we can head out to Eldoon’s after Trucy gets home.”

Justice made a slight face at the mention of Eldoon’s, but nodded his acquiescence.

“Works for me, Mr. Wright.”

His superior smiled and made for his study in an adjacent room, leaving Simon and Justice once more to their own devices.

Simon was a bit nonplussed. Do they have days where they do nothing on a regular basis? How do they keep afloat?

His thoughts were interrupted by Justice turning towards him and stating, “Well, you heard the man. Poker for pennies? Monopoly? Charades?”

I guess it’s better than paperwork for the sake of paperwork. “Poker,” he shrugged.

Justice looked taken aback. “You sure? The last time we played, I managed to get over a dollar in pennies out of you…”

Simon felt tempted to chuckle for a moment; that sounded like Athena. Her tells are a mile wide. I wonder if he would know that something is amiss if she won for once?

Aloud, he stated, “I gotta learn at some point, considering both you and Mr. Wright are better than me.” At least if the legend that has been going around in the clink about the elder Gavin landing there because of Wright’s knack for poker is true.

Justice smiled. “Well then, prepare for a bloodbath… I’ll get the cards, if you go downstairs and get some penny rolls from the sandwich shop.”

***

A little more than two hours later, which had passed without any interruptions by potential clients or Wright, Simon had managed to extract close to three dollars from Justice. While he made sure to lose a game in regular intervals, he could not exactly help but take the younger man to the cleaner’s – he had passed many a boring afternoon playing poker with his cell neighbors, and his own knowledge of manipulation in conjunction with Athena’s ability to recognize falsities in Justice’s banter did the rest.

Finally, Justice called it quits. “Today seems to be not my day – you’ve cleaned me out.”

He had barely finished speaking when Wright’s daughter stepped into the room, school bag dangling from one of her shoulders.

“Hi guys! How are things?”

Without waiting for a reply, she surveyed the coins on the table. “Slow day, huh? Wow, Athena, you’ve destroyed Polly!”

Simon grinned – the girl’s exuberance and tendency to change the topic at the drop of a hat reminded him more than a little of Athena. “I just got lucky, I guess.”

Wright chose this time to emerge from his study. “Hello Truce. How was school?”

His adopted daughter dropped her school bag and hugged him. “Kinda boring, as usual. I’ve got a math test next week, but I’m not too worried.”

Wright laughed. “You never are, kiddo. Are you up for some hot and salty noodles?”

“When am I not, daddy?” Trucy grinned. Then she skipped back over toward the table where Simon and Apollo were seated. “Come on guys, put your stuff away, it’s time for Eldoon’s!”

Chapter Text

When Simon left the noodle stand to return to Athena’s apartment, it was already beginning to get dark. All things considered, it had been a surprisingly amusing afternoon, even though the Wright girl had at some point managed to pull the soggy pasta out of her “magic panties” (which were really a pair of flower-patterned turquoise granny bloomers), causing a not inconsiderable mess which had ended up all over Justice’s pants. The conversation, while inconsequential, had been rather refreshing, and he had barely had to resort to Athena’s ability to conceal his true emotions.

I understand now why she likes working with these people, even though they are baffling at times.

Checking Athena’s phone for the time, he noticed that he had received a new message from his own, and he suddenly felt a little guilty.

I have been whiling the day away in the company of her colleagues, and she has been stuck in paperwork hell at the office downtown. I hope this isn’t something she didn’t know how to handle.

Pulling up the text and noting with relief that the text had only been sent within the last half hour, he read,

From: Simon Blackquill

To: Athena Cykes

I will be happy if I never see forms again. Give me a call when you get a chance.

Simon chuckled at her exasperation with his work while hitting the call button, lifting the phone to his ear.

Athena picked up after the third ring, and he could not help but once again be struck by an odd feeling at the sound of his own voice from the speaker.

“Yes?”

“It’s me,” he answered without any unnecessary introduction, considering that he did not know where or with whom she currently was. “You wanted me to call?”

“Oh, yeah… I’m just on my way home now, I was a little late today…overslept.”

And thus, it begins. He rolled his eyes at her admission, remembering that he had specifically told her when to appear at the office.

“How late are we talking?”

“…uh, about 11:30…?”

Keep yourself in check, Simon, we’ve both had a hard day yesterday. Unable to completely conceal the barb in his voice, he inquired, “Is there anything else I should know about?”

He could almost hear Athena cringing away from the phone, and felt an inexplicable stab of regret.

“I kind of had a little accident… fell down the stairs when I first got in…”

Simon sighed. There goes my reputation. I guess it was only to be expected. Still, antagonizing Athena for it would probably not serve any purpose, particularly since her tone told him that she was already beating herself up over it.

“Are you injured?”

The other end of the connection was silent for a long moment, to where he was almost wondering if they had been disconnected, when she finally answered, “I’m fine. I sent Taka after Payne since he had the gall to laugh.”

He grinned at that. “Well done, that little twerp deserves a lesson now and then.”

Her relief was audible even without enhanced hearing abilities.

“After that, Chief Prosecutor Edgeworth invited me for coffee, otherwise, I’ve been sitting in your office all day.”

Simon started. “What did he want?”

“Nothing in particular. Remember how you told me he worries about you? I think it was just one of those meetings again. Nothing consequential about the conversation, aside from the fact that, if I get another case, I figure I might want to go and do some investigating by myself, so I’m not ruining your track record.”

“Hm, not necessarily a bad idea,” he had to admit. “Odd Bird came to me fresh out of the police academy, and if the case yesterday is any indication, he still makes enough mistakes to where keeping him in check might be a prudent choice.”

“Glad you think so.” Once more, relief in her voice. Simon was beginning to assume that his lie to Justice about Athena being upset by his being overly harsh had more than a grain of truth to it, after all. She seems to just wait for me to bite her head off.

Dismayed at himself, he turned around a street corner, when she asked, “How was your day?”

“Slow, just as yours,” he replied. “There were no new clients, and since no cases were currently ongoing, Wright called it a day at three when his daughter came home, and dragged us to Eldoon’s Noodles. I am currently on my way back from there.”

“Sounds relaxing.”

Simon chuckled. “Not entirely, if you have to pretend to be someone you are not. Also, your colleague is terrible at poker.”

Athena laughed. “And I assume you aren’t. I guess it’d be too late to point out that I suck at poker.”

“He took his loss well enough, all things considered.”

Once more, the connection went silent for a moment, then she slowly said, “Taka took off a few minutes ago, probably to go hunting. I guess I’ll just turn in for the evening now.”

She sounded dreadfully lonely.

“Well, I guess I’ll talk to you later.”

“Hold on,” Simon found himself blurting out.

“Yes?” She was surprised, although there was also some happiness at not being cut off from the conversation just yet.

He licked his lips nervously, once again unsure as to how to say his piece, but he had promised Justice earlier, and he was a man of his word. Furthermore, now seemed as good an opportunity as any. She is despondent because of me. Maybe I can lift her spirits at least somewhat.

“Athena, it has come to my attention that, since you first returned to this country, I have been excessively rude to you on multiple occasions. I… sometimes get caught up in my primary objective, and when that happens, collateral damage does occur.”

That was probably the worst apology ever offered, he berated himself right after he had finished speaking.

This time, Athena did not respond for so long that he was sure she had hung up on him.

“Are you still there?”

Her sigh caused a few static noises in the connection.

“I appreciate you telling me that, Simon…”

The discord in her voice was clear as day. Regret, apprehension, and anger were mingled in her syllables. Realizing that he had somehow managed to make things even worse than they had been with his words, Simon made a decision.

“Would you mind if I imposed on you for a while tonight?”

Athena seemed surprised. “No, come on over.”

He took a deep breath. Maybe I will find the right things to say on the way. “I will be there in half an hour or so. See you then.”

Pushing the “End Call” button, he redirected his steps towards his own apartment.

Chapter Text

When Simon arrived at the familiar apartment building, he still had not come up with a more eloquent way to confront the barrier between them, which angered him to no small extent.

Tongue-tied yesterday in court, tongue-tied trying to talk to Athena today…I seem to be rapidly approaching imbecility.

He stabbed at the door bell with more force than was necessary, and she buzzed him in after a few seconds. Soon, he approached the entrance door to his rooms, which had been left slightly open for him to step inside.

Athena had apparently already found the time to divest herself of his office attire and to dig through his closet, as she sat on the couch clad in his old gray sweatpants and a faded t-shirt proclaiming “UCLA Law Class of 2018.”

She looked up when she heard him come in. “Ah, there you are. What’s going on?”

Simon sighed. “Do you mind if I start some coffee before I get to the reason for my visit? To be honest, I am still not sure how to begin.”

Her eyebrows raised in silent inquiry, she made a welcoming gesture. “Help yourself – it’s your kitchen, after all.”

Still detecting the apprehension he had heard in her voice earlier, now mixed with surprise, he once more tried to come up with words that were able to get across what he wanted to say as he busied himself with measuring out ground coffee and filling the machine with water. He ran out of time when the brew began to drip into the pot, and once more returned into the living area, sitting down opposite her in the armchair.

Silence descended on them for a seemingly interminable time span. Finally, Simon spoke up.

“My apology on the phone was not all I had to say, and I thought it might be best if we had this conversation in person. Truth is, after we finally had an opportunity to talk in private yesterday, even though most of our topics concerned our current situation, I realized that we barely know each other anymore, and that my behavior in the last few months has certainly not contributed to alleviating this state. In the face of your resolve to prevent my execution, I have come across as profoundly ungrateful, dismissive and belittling more often than not, and I wanted to let you know that, while it was more than a little presumptuous of me, I thought at the time that I had your best interests in mind. I miscalculated in that I still saw you as the little girl I used to know, and for that, I am sorry.”

Athena’s eyes had widened as she had been listening to his words, and she stared at him in silence for a whole minute after he had finished.

“I don’t know if I can accept your apology,” she finally said. “Mostly because I don’t know that you have anything to be sorry for. You were right a lot of times, after all. I am impulsive, I do make mistakes, and I overreact on a regular basis. Maybe it’s good for me if someone tells me those things.”

Simon shook his head, looking away. “Every single word you just said is dripping with discord, Athena. I hope you are only lying to me, and not to yourself.”

The quietness of his voice aroused anger in Athena for some reason.

“Fine. You want the truth? I did resent you at times for going after me like that, and myself for getting angry with you right afterwards, because you didn’t deserve that. I had a good, hard look in the mirror last night after you left, and I didn’t see the Simon that I used to know. I saw someone who is lonely, bitter, and was ready to die. I know that it’s my fault, that you ended up turning into a different person because of me, and I hate myself for it. I didn’t want to tell you because you have suffered more than enough for me, and now I’m burdening you with yet another one of my problems. I should be able to deal with it on my own for once, all the more because I’m now usurping your life even more than I already have. It’s probably selfish of me to wish you’d change back to the way you were before, particularly since I can tell sometimes that you haven’t changed all that much in some respects, but then I run into a wall again, and I just don’t know what to do or to say to make it go away…”

She trailed off into a sigh which contained a tell-tale shudder, raising a hand to her face.

Simon was stunned. He had not expected Athena to remonstrate herself in this manner. My actions have ended up scarring you more than I thought.

 “It is true that I have changed, and probably not for the better,” he ventured to say hesitantly. “However, I do not regret my choices. If I somehow received a chance to turn back time and make my decision again, I would not act any differently. I owed it to both you and your mother, and I have achieved my goal of keeping you safe. The only thing that I do regret is that my change continues to cause you pain even now that everything is finally over.”

He sensed that she was now gazing at him, but could not bring himself to meet her eyes. To keep himself occupied, he got up to go into the kitchen, filling two cups with steaming coffee, and returned, placing one of them on the table between them within her reach. After a moment, he heard the scrape of porcelain on wood which signified that she had picked it up.

For a while, they sipped in silence, neither one of them sure how to continue the conversation.

Eventually, Athena said quietly, “Maybe we need to let go of the past, even if it’s what connected us in the first place. We aren’t the people we once were. I am not the shy little girl with the big headphones anymore, and you are not the young man who occasionally played with her. We can’t change that. But… I am still Athena, and you are still Simon. If we can let go of all the guilt and the pain that tie us to each other, perhaps we can find a connection that suits us as we are now.”

Simon glanced up at her, finally meeting her gaze again.

“I would like to try… that is, if you are amenable to it, as well,” he responded, his muttered utterance hardly above a whisper.

Athena felt her heart clench for a second. Maybe we’ve already started doing just that.

She nodded. “Let’s. If you’re not otherwise occupied, give me a call every evening once you’re by yourself, and we’ll just talk about our day. It’d probably be better to keep up with each other anyway, considering that you are currently living my life, and vice versa. I guess it’s a bit strange to try and get to know each other again while pretending to be each other to everyone else, but unless we want to wait until this is over, we don’t really have much of a choice. What do you say?”

The smile she received in return was small and more than a little hesitant, but imbued with a measure of gentleness that made her resent the fact that it was displayed on her own face.

“Agreed.”

Now that the specter of their shared past which had stood between them had finally been brought out into the open and they had come to an agreement, relief hung palpably in the air, although the moment began teetering on the edge of awkwardness after a short while.

Simon was the first to break eye contact. “…I should leave.”

He got to his feet and moved for the door. While Athena knew he was right, she nevertheless felt a momentary urge to stop him from going, even though she was not entirely sure for what purpose.

No, we’ve come a long way tonight. If we drag this out any longer, we’re only going to screw up everything we gained.

She settled for saying, “Good night, Simon.”

He stopped at the door, his hand on the handle.

“Good night, Athena… Thank you.”

Then he was gone.

Chapter Text

The remainder of Thursday night ended up being uneventful. Simon had procured a cheap coffee maker and the necessary utensils on the way back from meeting with Athena, figuring that this approach might be wiser than once again braving the Wright Agency’s coffee supply, considering that if Wright himself noticed that something was amiss, he might not be able to talk his way out of it.

Even though he knew that it was foolish, as Athena’s body did not show any external untoward excitement, he once again took a cold shower that night, telling himself that it was to condition himself out of thinking about her body in those terms. They had just taken a tentative step towards rekindling their friendship, after all, and he refused to jeopardize their progress by letting his baser instincts reign freely. He actually managed to sleep reasonably well that night.

Athena likewise got to bed at a decent time. After Simon had left, she remembered to shave, since she did not want to risk having to try it in the morning before she was fully awake, and as she had not exactly had the time to be particularly meticulous in her hygiene before she had left for the prosecutor’s office, she took a proper shower, even though she was still refusing to let her gaze wander down beyond a certain point. This time around, she set the alarm clock before going to sleep, and when she closed her eyes, she felt much less discontent about her lot than she had the day before.

On Friday, Justice took a case about an hour after Simon arrived at the office, and he ended up tagging along for the investigation at the suburban park where the crime had ostensibly occurred. They managed to find a wealth of evidence for the innocence of their client, and Simon’s not-very-nice grin when he learned that Gaspen Payne would be the prosecutor for this case was for once perfectly apt, as Justice was apparently not exactly the man’s biggest fan, either.

Athena ended up with paperwork duty once more, and mostly amused herself between filling out forms by throwing Taka scraps of beef jerky, which the hawk deftly snatched out of the air even in the limited space of Simon’s office. After seeing the swords on display on his wall, she contemplated for a minute whether she should test his muscle memory by drawing one of them out of its scabbard and swinging it around for a bit, but reconsidered the wisdom of that when she remembered her own ground rule of not willfully endangering each other’s bodies – while Simon’s body might well remember how to handle the razor-sharp blade, she herself did not have the first clue about what to do with it, so it was probably safer to leave it alone for now.

At the water cooler, she had to avoid Klavier Gavin a whole three times, as the Euro rocker somehow seemed to pop up out of thin air every time she ventured out of the office, hell-bent on roping “Herr Blackquill” into a conversation. Honestly, she was starting to wonder if the glitzy blond prosecutor was somehow interested in Simon beyond mere talk – after all, Gavin had enough groupies both male and female, so maybe he was in it for the challenge.

When she mentioned her thoughts to Simon on the phone that evening, his response was, “You can’t possibly be serious,” and his baffled dismay caused her to poke fun at him good-naturedly for at least fifteen minutes, which he took fairly well, all things considered, even though he felt it necessary to put his foot down when she jokingly suggested that she should invite Prosecutor Gavin out for dinner sometime. As for Simon’s account of his day, she found that she rather enjoyed his sarcastic evaluation of Apollo’s inability to leave a rhetorical question well enough alone, particularly since she noticed that there was no real venom behind it. The case he would assist her associate with at court the following Monday did not sound like much of a problem, and she looked forward to Apollo and Simon serving Payne an order of crow to eat just as much as Simon seemed to, himself.

Saturday found them both keeping to themselves, Athena lazily lounging in front of the TV, Simon going out for a run after remembering that Athena did so on occasion, not wanting to take responsibility for neglecting her exercise. He found that it was actually quite relaxing, as the physical exertion did not leave him much room to contemplate anything but the rhythm of his own breathing. He wondered if he should add the occasional jog to his own regimen, particularly since he had not done much in the way of exercise after being released from the clink. While he was more inclined toward weight training and iaidō kata, it would probably not be amiss to work on his stamina, as well.

By this day, Simon found that, with all the company he now enjoyed by necessity, he was still beginning to miss his feathered companion. Taka had been a constant in his life since he had discovered the hawk as an abandoned nestling in the prison yard, and while he was aware that the bird would not recognize him in his current appearance, he mentioned as much during his phone call to Athena that night.

“Should we try and see if we can get him used to seeing me – that is, you as you currently are?” she asked. “After all, you’re not going to get rid of me anytime soon, so maybe it’s only in my best interest if you befriend him again while you’re in my body.”

He chuckled at her suggestion. “That is positively underhanded of you, thinking of undermining my authority with him. What if I want to send him after you in court again once this is over?”

“Sucks to be you then, I guess,” she answered immediately, and he could hear the laughter in her voice. “How about we meet at the fountain in People Park tomorrow afternoon, at three or so?”

He found himself smiling as he answered, “That would be agreeable. I will be there.”

Chapter Text

When Athena approached the park fountain the following day, Taka perching on her right shoulder, Simon was already there. He was sitting nearby, legs outstretched, arms spread out on the back of the bench while he looked up at the cloudy sky. She was surprised to see that he had taken it upon himself to search her wardrobe for something other than her regular business ensemble – he was wearing a pair of faded black slim cut jeans and a scuffed leather jacket she had not pulled out of her closet in ages.

Huh, it suits him. Maybe I should wear that old thing a little more often, myself.

“Got sick of the skirt already?” she asked once he had noticed her steps on the gravel path and turned towards her.

Simon grinned. “Seeing that I am not usually one for showcasing my feminine side, particularly since I did not exactly have the girlish figure to match until a few days ago… also, your office attire is in the laundry.”

Athena shook her head, laughing quietly. “That makes perfect sense.”

She lifted a hand to scratch Taka’s neck. “So, how are we gonna do this?”

He sat up straight, taking his arms off the back of the bench. “For now, sit down to my left. Close proximity for a few minutes should help with any further steps.”

Athena did as he had told her, Taka fluttering a bit when she folded her body to sit down, but ultimately remaining on her shoulder. “And now we wait?”

Next to her, Simon nodded, and she was struck by the fact that he was close enough that she could feel the small air turbulence his movement caused.

“I would rather not approach him too fast, as I would prefer to keep your fingers intact, if at all possible.”

Her eyes widened. “…okay, I think I can agree with that.”

He smirked up at her, but said nothing in return. Even seated, their difference in height was plain as day, and Athena realized with a start that, in their original state, the crown of her head only about reached his shoulder while standing. I’m not that tiny, for a woman…he’s just really tall. It just didn’t hit me before because we haven’t been this close to each other for a long time, and when we were, everyone was a giant compared to me.

“Sorry for coming here in your office gear,” she tried resuming the conversation. “There isn’t much informal stuff in your closet.”

“Yes well,” he began, “what is in there is everything Aura had in storage for me. I should probably see about purchasing more clothing, but lodging and furniture had priority after I was released.”

“Do you want me to go shopping one of these days?” she suggested brightly, only half-joking. Maybe a bit of color would be a good idea, what with his pale complexion…

Simon immediately guessed at her intentions. “It depends. Would I end up wearing yellow and pink by the time you are done?”

Damn, caught out. “Whatever gave you that idea?” Athena snickered.

“I don’t know, possibly your closet? I had to search around for a while to find something that was not one of those two colors…” The corners of his lips quirked upward, and she reveled in the fact that they were now able to trade humorous banter like this without fearing that it would soon descend into anger or awkwardness again.

“Actually,” Simon continued, “if you promise that I am not going to look as though I accidentally stumbled into the wardrobe of a circus clown and dressed in the dark, feel free to buy a few things. It would be… pleasant to have a larger variety of clothing items at my disposal.”

“Hey, I don’t dress like a clown!” Athena felt it necessary to respond, although his grin told her right away that he was just winding her up. Only then, she realized that he had actually offered her an option on doing as she pleased.

 “Hold on… did you just say you trust me to buy you clothes?”

He shrugged. “As we do not yet know how long this state is going to last, why not? Only… please do not pick anything that would be egregiously out of character, and don’t overdo it – I would rather not return to my own life to find that my bank account measures in the single digits at that point.”

“I promise.” She smiled, a warm feeling spreading in her chest. He actually trusts me! Yeah, it’s not exactly a big thing, compared to doing his job for him, but… this is different. This is personal, and something he had a choice in.

Then, she remembered that he had referred to his sister. “About Aura… your regular visitation day is coming up. I have to admit I’m a bit worried – she is pretty observant, and she has known you all your life. How am I gonna pull this off?”

Simon sighed. “That problem had crossed my mind, as well. I wish I could say that not going was an option, but it would hardly be appropriate, seeing that she always made time to visit me, and I would rather not damage our relationship any more than I already have with my… past actions. As long as you do not appear too pleasant during your visit, you should be able to fool her. Think back to your impersonation of me in court – behave like that, only with less intent to win the argument at hand.”

Athena fought down the urge to fidget. She was dubious about her ability to make it through that particular meeting unscathed, but Simon was right – considering that he had confessed to the murder of her mother, whom, it had come out in court, Aura had had romantic feelings for, it was hardly fair to just let her sit in prison without any visitations. In a way, his sister had been just as scarred by the ordeal they had undergone, what with her younger brother facing execution and the woman she had loved gone forever. It’s what got her thrown in jail in the first place, and without her, one of us would not be sitting here today…yeah, she was convinced that I was the guilty one, but I can’t blame her for that, really, considering that I couldn’t remember what happened, myself, until Mr. Wright managed to show me.

“What I wouldn’t give to have my ability back for just that one day a week,” she joked weakly, “then I could try out that little lying technique you discovered…”

They stayed silent for a while after that, until Simon brought up the original purpose of their meeting. “We should see if Taka has become used to my presence enough to where I can approach him. Please don’t move once I get close to him.”

Athena turned her head towards him as far as it was possible with the bird of prey on her right shoulder, observing as Simon slowly lifted his hand until his fingertips were just an inch and a half away from Taka’s body. The hawk’s plumage bristled and his beak opened in a threatening gesture, until Athena made an executive decision and reached up herself, softly ruffling the bird’s feathers.

“Calm down, Taka,” she stated in what she hoped was a soothing tone, “S… Athena is a friend.”

Taka eyed her as if trying to make sense of what she had said. He clearly seemed suspicious of this other person getting uncomfortably close to him, but after a tense minute, he calmed down enough that Simon finally dared to softly make contact with the hawk’s wing.

Taka’s gaze swiveled toward the point of contact with the foreign hand, and he seemed to contemplate whether or not he should attack. Simon kept perfectly still, not making direct eye contact with the bird in order to not provoke him.

After what seemed like an eternity, the hawk’s posture relaxed, and Simon slowly trailed his finger upward, ready to stop if Taka assumed his threatening stance once more, but the bird had apparently consented to his touch for good, as he leaned into it when the ruff on the right side of his neck was lightly scratched.

The smile on Simon’s face when he reconnected with his feathered companion was worth the long moments of tension that had preceded the contact, Athena thought.

“Hello, my friend,” he murmured. “I know you do not recognize me as I am now, but my days have been emptier without you around…”

Athena had to swallow hard to not tear up at the scene. It’s so good to see them reunited…but if I start blubbering right now and somebody sees, it would probably be the most embarrassing thing ever.

Just as her luck would have it, she suddenly heard a very familiar voice calling out from the other side of the fountain.

“Hey Athena! Didn’t think I’d run into you today!”

Chapter Text

Athena would recognize that voice anywhere. Apollo. Dammit.

As she still could not make him out due to the fountain being in the way, she quickly scooted over towards the end of the bench, Taka squawking in surprise as he was suddenly bereft of the caressing contact with either one of their hands. Simon looked a bit like a deer caught in the headlights of an approaching car, and she gazed at him intently, hoping that he would be able to understand her silent message.

He can see you. Get back into character, now.

Thankfully, Simon was quick on the uptake as usual, as he plastered a smile on his face and turned towards the direction the greeting had come from, waving.

“Hey Apollo, how are you today?”

Athena shuddered inwardly. This is actually kind of disturbing, watching the guy I traded bodies with play at being me outside of court… and he’s not too shabby at it, either.

Apollo had now rounded the fountain, and seemed taken aback at finding her sitting on the bench with the person he assumed to be his colleague.

“Oh… good afternoon, Prosecutor Blackquill… I hope I’m not disturbing?”

She found it almost too easy to slip back into her own role.

“At this point, I would say that the damage has already been done, Justice-dono.”

Her associate seemed embarrassed, lifting an arm to scratch at his neck.

“Hehe, sorry about that, I didn’t see you here before I came closer, so I just thought I’d say hi to Athena…”

“And so you did.” Now go away.

Apparently, Athena’s own powers of suggestion were still sorely lacking when compared to Simon’s, as Apollo did not get the hint. He also completely overlooked that Simon’s smile, though reasonably friendly, was becoming a little strained.

“Do you live around here somewhere? Can’t say I’ve ever seen you in this area before, aside from that one time you came by the office...”

Best to keep my interactions with him short. “I do not.”

At this point, Simon was glaring daggers at Apollo, his mouth starting to twitch into something that was not exactly Athena-like, and she started to realize that, even if her erstwhile colleague left now, the moment they had shared had passed.

“If you will excuse me…”

She moved to stand, towering over Apollo, and glanced over at Simon, nodding minutely. I’ll call you later.

He blinked his understanding, expression now grave. Understood.

Surcoat flapping dramatically as she turned around, Athena began to walk away.

***

Simon waited until Athena was out of sight, then turned his gaze back on Justice, who was still staring after her. For once, he did not really care whether he came across as angry.

“What the hell was that all about?” he hissed at his current associate, who had the good grace to cringe.

“As I said, I just wanted to say hello, and I didn’t see him until I was past the fountain… oh damn, Athena, that wasn’t that talk, was it?”

Simon crossed his arms, lifting his chin confrontationally as his eyes narrowed.

“And what if I told you that it was…?”

Truth be told, the reminder that the other man had lent him an ear in just that matter took some of the wind out of his sails, but it would be a cold day in hell before he admitted to that.

 Justice seemed lost for words for a moment.

“I’m so sorry I butted in like that… I hope I didn’t ruin everything…?”

Simon’s ire began to dissipate as he sensed the discord borne out of the younger man’s sudden guilt.

“Don’t worry about it,” he sighed, annoyance still evident in his tone. “We were pretty much done talking about the important things.” Granted, we did that a few days ago, but you still disturbed…

He was not sure how to finish his thought in more specific terms than, …something important.

Justice sat down next to him on the bench, a defeated expression on his face. “I’m really, really sorry about that. It’s just that… I’m starting to get kind of tired of running away from the man at court, and I wasn’t going to turn tail once I saw him out in the open for once, so I thought I’d give talking a try… it didn’t really work, though, did it…?”

“Not really,” Simon admitted while a slightly self-conscious grin stole its way onto his features. “He’s not exactly one for small talk, or as he’d call it, jabbering.”

“I noticed,” Justice responded dryly. “So,” he turned serious once more, “how’d the conversation go?”

Considering that he had not exactly presented a lot of lies on that particular topic before, even though the truth had come from a slightly different perspective than Justice might surmise, Simon decided to stick to a mostly unaltered account of what had transpired at his apartment.

“I really didn’t know if it would work out at first, and there were some touch-and-go moments, but it seems we both agree that we should attempt a fresh start of our… relationship, whatever that is at this point.”

Justice’s features softened as he smiled. “I’m glad to hear that.” Then, his eyes started to hold a slightly mischievous spark. “Of course, it’d be even better if your truce extended to your friends, as well, but I’m sure that that’s only a matter of time now…”

Simon snorted. “I wouldn’t bet on that, if I were you. You are aware that he’s at leisure to lug an actual sword around with him outside of court again now, right…?”

He had a hard time keeping from laughing aloud when Justice blanched at that. “Oh god, I didn’t even think of that… not that I think he’d really take my head off as he always threatens, but I am kind of attached to my hair…”

“Best be careful.” Simon was beginning to enjoy the needling he was doling out. “He might not be guilty of murder, but he still has a mean bite if you don’t watch what you’re doing.”

His current associate shrugged, grinning. “I’m sure I’ll run into his blade again, both literally and figuratively. As long as you know how to deal with him again, I guess I’ll just have to live with the fallout.”

At that, Simon’s own grin relaxed into an actual smile. He is willing to brave me, even though he is obviously not exactly at ease in my presence, in order to keep Athena content. He suddenly found himself much more willing to forgive the other man’s intrusion on their conversation.

“Thanks, Apollo.” The words came unbidden to his lips, and although he was mildly disconcerted to discover that he was professing his gratitude rather a lot lately, they nevertheless felt right.

“No worries.” Justice’s voice betrayed his relief. “Hey, do you wanna go grab a sandwich or something…? I kind of just realized that I missed lunch…”

Simon had skipped the meal, as well, and he realized two things at his associate’s offer: For one, he was ravenous. For another, he was not entirely averse to spending time eating in the company of another person at this point, even though a small inner voice refused to refrain from noting that he would prefer someone else to join him in this endeavor.

“Let’s,” he agreed.

Chapter Text

Monday finally saw another court day dawn on Simon, and to say that he and Justice demolished Payne’s case would have been an understatement. They walked away with a “Not Guilty” verdict after the trial had been in session for less than two hours.

Athena, meanwhile, even though she knew that it was not right, wished for a case to come her way in order to avoid her visit with Aura. Unfortunately, nothing was assigned to her, and she was once more stuck with paperwork.

That evening, as she congratulated him on their win against Gaspen Payne, Simon immediately heard the apprehension in her voice.

“You have handled everything admirably so far,” he tried to reassure her. “If a problem arises, we will deal with it somehow, but for now, just try to stay the course.”

And so, Athena found herself at the detention center the following day at three o’clock sharp, waiting for Aura Blackquill to be brought out for their meeting.

Trying her hardest to exude the insolent confidence Simon regularly brought to the courtroom, she watched as the robotics engineer was led into the room and seated herself in the chair behind the thick pane of security glass.

Aura smirked at her. “Hello, little brother. It’s delightful to see you, as usual.”

Time to give the performance of my life. “The pleasure is all mine.”

Simon’s sister emitted a harsh laugh at Athena’s sarcastic tone. “I’m sure. So, back to our regular conversation topic: How’s life on the outside?”

Not that question again. “Tedious,” she settled for an obvious answer. “The office seems determined to bury me under a mountain of meaningless paperwork.”

Aura appeared to contemplate her response for a minute, and Athena took the opportunity to take a look at the woman she had known since her own childhood days.

The older woman’s hair hung loosely down her back, completely unlike the tightly-wound hairdo she had always worn while in the lab. Her face seemed tired, but her gaze was still as scrutinizing as it had ever been.

“Your tedium can’t possibly be worse than mine,” she finally responded. “I’m sure you haven’t forgotten how dull this place can be.”

Athena forced out a bark of a laugh. “Hardly. I’ve had enough time to thoroughly navel-gaze while being housed in this fine establishment.”

The woman behind the glass proceeded to give her a quick once-over, and Athena valiantly fought down the urge to squirm.

“Something about you seems… different, and it’s not just the fact that you’re sleeping more. Anything going on that I missed?” Aura grinned. “Gotten some tail lately?”

Oh hell, I didn’t know she’d bring up something like that…

“I don’t see how that is any of your business,” Athena shot back, trying her hardest to keep the answering smirk on her face.

Aura did not miss a beat in her follow-up strike. “Oh, what now? No reprimand for being crass this time? Either you’re going soft, or I’ve just scored a bull’s eye.”

Athena’s responding chuckle sounded forced even to her own ears. “If you are already aware of your crudity, I don’t see the need to point it out yet again. I do so hate to repeat myself needlessly.”

Simon’s sister raised an eyebrow. “And yet, you just got redundant. A little tongue-tied today, are we?”

Athena felt herself beginning to sweat. This is not going well at all.

Suddenly, Aura leaned forward towards the security glass, leading to one “Simon Blackquill” being unable to suppress a completely out-of-character wince.

The purple-haired woman’s eyes narrowed immediately. “Who are you, and what have you done with my brother?”

The gig is up. Finito. Verpatzt.

Trapped in Aura’s steely glare, Athena did not know how to respond to her sharply voiced inquiry.

“Well?” Aura pushed the matter. “I know you’re not the Phantom, seeing that he’s rotting away in a high-security cell. Are you one of his cronies? And why would you be crazy enough to show up here, with a guard in attendance and cameras all around us, and try to pretend you’re Simon? Oh, you didn’t start out badly, I’ll give you that, but when it comes to our little sparring sessions, you still have a lot to learn.”

The guard at the door seemed to start taking an interest in their conversation now as Aura’s volume had risen enough to where he could hear snippets, and Athena knew she had to say something, or this situation would completely slip out of her hands any second now.

“He sent me here, he’s fine, and I’m not a criminal,” she responded quickly. “I’m afraid the situation is a little… complicated.”

“Oh, I can’t wait to hear this. But first, prove to me that he’s all right.”

Athena sighed, slumping in the chair in defeat as she pulled out his cell phone. “One moment.”

To: Athena Cykes

From: Simon Blackquill

We have been found out. Aura demands proof that you are safe. Respond ASAP.

She sent the message, and once more met the other woman’s penetrating stare.

“Give him a few minutes, he’s terrible when it comes to checking his phone sometimes,” she hesitantly ventured to say.

Aura’s eyes widened at that, although the suspicion did not vanish from her gaze.

“He always has been,” she admitted grudgingly.

A full five minutes passed in silence until a low buzz signaled that a new message had arrived.

To: Simon Blackquill

From: Athena Cykes

Not entirely surprised. Tell Aura that the scar on my left shin is a result of her tripping me up on the front steps of our house when I was seven. Six stitches. Father insisted on taking care of it, himself.

Athena turned the phone around and showed Aura the text, causing Simon’s sister to start violently.

“There is no way this would be in his medical files,” she breathed. “But why the hell was this sent from the little princess’ phone?”

Knowing that this particular battle had been thoroughly lost a while ago, Athena gave in to gallows humor as she shrugged.

“Sorry I didn’t bring the headphones with me,” she said, the crooked grin that momentarily appeared on her face for once not actively intended as an emulation of Simon’s expressions.

Her response apparently managed to thoroughly stun the other woman, whose face instantly drained of almost all color.

“What the fuck…”

The buzzing of the cell phone reasserted itself when another message arrived.

To: Simon Blackquill

From: Athena Cykes

Unable to leave agency, potential new client. Apologies for underestimating her. Will attempt to come by later if she does not eat you alive.

Athena felt the corners of her mouth quirk upward for an instant at the condition he had tagged onto the end of the text. Are you apologizing to me, or to her?

She internally debated for a moment on whether this additional missive was meant for Aura’s eyes and finally decided to share, if only to help his sister realize that yes, this impossible situation was actually happening.

The woman behind the glass, expression still incredulous, scanned the message quickly. Then she scooted a little closer to the clear pane separating them, throwing a glance over her shoulder at the guard, and said quietly, “While is this completely insane, I’ll believe you for the moment, if only because these messages sound exactly like him. Explain… Princess.”

Chapter Text

Athena quickly related everything she and Simon knew about the switch, and about the rock of Nine-Tales Vale which had caused it nearly a week ago.

“… and since we were both pretty sure that no one would believe us this crazy tale, we decided to trade places for the time being,” she finished, looking at Aura to see what her reaction would be. I wouldn’t blame her for not believing a word I just said – if I wasn’t actually part of this business, I’d laugh anyone who told me they’d switched bodies with someone else out of the room…or call the nearest treatment center for the deranged.

The other woman was silent for a long moment as she digested what she had just learned.

“I must be going nuts, myself, for buying into this at all. The messages seem authentic enough, but it wouldn’t be that hard to fake those, even if the information in the first one is both old and private. Tell me… what was your favorite toy when you were a child?”

Athena did not even have to think about the answer to that question. “My plush tortoise. When I talked to Mom about it with you there, you’d correct me sometimes if I called it a ‘turtle.’ I actually still have it over at my place, even if it’s a bit ratty now…”

“Correct.” Aura made a face as she had to acknowledge that her expectations had been met. “I guess I could go on to assume that some elaborate spy network recorded all of us while we were in the room and made a note of something this inconsequential, or that you really are Simon and pulling a not-very-amusing prank on me as some sort of very early April Fool’s joke, but the first option seems just as far-fetched as your explanation, seeing that the police combed every square inch of that room after Metis was…”

She could not bring herself to say it. “… and as for the joke theory, my brother has a rather eccentric sense of humor on occasion, but this kind of hoax is beyond anything he would come up with. I guess this is as much proof as I’m going to get until he feels it’s time to get his sorry ass down here again.”

Athena first found herself full of sympathy when Simon’s sister reasoned her way through the information she had gleaned, particularly when the other woman’s voice stalled as she mentioned the young lawyer’s mother.

However, she grew annoyed at what she regarded as an implication that Simon was not here because he did not care.

“For your information, I told him that this visit was a bad idea, but he insisted that he had to be here on a regular basis in some way, shape or form, so I came down. It was this, him coming over looking like me, which would have probably led to similar results, or no one showing up for who knows how long.”

Athena’s anger had found its way into her voice by the end of her statement. I don’t care. Maybe if I play the bad guy here, she won’t blame Simon for our attempt to deceive her.

Aura’s reaction surprised her, as the other woman burst out laughing.

“I swear,” she gasped as she wiped some tears of laughter from the corners of her eyes once she managed to catch herself, “I’m actually starting to think that codependent little drive to protect each other you two have going is kind of cute, what with his message about me not eating you alive and your little snit just now....”

She moved on to explain in a tone that was almost pleasant, “There are a number of things I have yet to fully forgive Simon for, but this little switcheroo is not even a blip on the radar. Honestly, if I was in your situation, I would have probably done the same thing.”

“So,” Aura then continued, her voice now curious, “how many people have sussed you two out yet?”

Athena was not sure what to make of this question. “You’re the first. Why?”

The way the corners of the other woman’s lips started twitching upward belied her renewed amusement. “You’re telling me that no one has caught on to the fact yet that the only member of the fairer sex employed as a lawyer at the illustrious Wright Agency has recently been possessed by a spirit that’s grumpy, sarcastic, used to behaving like he stepped out of some cheesy 50’s black-and-white samurai flick, and oh, how could I forget, male? Oh my god, that’s rich…”

Aura’s shoulders began to shake as she tried to hold in her laughter, but a few guffaws nevertheless made it past her lips.

Now Athena was starting to find the whole situation really quite funny, herself.

“Well, no one has caught him yet – and to be honest, I could barely believe my eyes when Apollo ended up butting in on one of our meetings and he went all sunny and smiley-faced…”

That did it. Aura started howling with laughter, her right hand smacking the little shelf in front of her in a way that reminded Athena of the way Simon emphasized his amusement in court.

“I’ve always told him that he should get more in touch with his feminine side, but I didn’t think he would go that far…” the other woman squeezed out before another bout of mirth shook her. “Now I really can’t wait for him to show up…”

Athena could not help herself at this point: She started laughing, as well. After a while, she had to lift her hand to her face to keep any traitorous moisture from escaping the corners of her own eyes.

She knew it was strange to sit here and laugh at Simon’s expense with his sister, who had harbored so much hatred for her for such a long time, and quite possibly still did, but… He wanted me to come here and talk to her, and I did. He didn’t exactly specify what we should talk about, to not mention that he owes me one for the heart attack I almost had when she noticed I wasn’t him, so if he has a problem with us laughing about him now, he can shove it.

Both women only managed to collect themselves again when the guard decided to step forward.

“Visitation time will be over in five minutes,” he announced without much apparent interest in what exactly had started the laughing fit the prisoner and her visitor had shared, and once again assumed his post near the door.

Aura was the first to speak again. “Well, that was certainly the most interesting visit I’ve had so far. Run along now, missy. And tell Simon,” her lips twitched again, “that I look forward to seeing him, particularly since his ugly mug seems to have suddenly improved in attractiveness lately.”

Athena grinned. “I will.”

Without another word, Simon’s sister threw her one last smirk as she got up and signaled the guard that she was ready to go back to her cell.

Chapter Text

Athena had just let herself into Simon’s apartment after returning from the detention center when his cell phone rang. Noticing that it was her own number, she picked up.

“Yes.”

“Apologies for not calling earlier,” his voice sounded from the little speaker. He seemed tense. “The potential client kept us busy for over an hour until Wright asked him some questions and decided to refuse the case. I had to fib about using the bathroom to even be able to respond to your message; leaving was completely out of the question. Are you all right?”

She grinned. Payback time. “Whatever would make you think I wasn’t?”

Reveling in the insolent content of Aura’s message to Simon, Athena related it to him word for word, and had to keep from snickering when there was silence on the other end of the line for a long moment.

“I am not sure that I am looking forward to this particular meeting now,” he finally said, and she could just imagine him grimacing.

“Oh, to be a fly on the wall for that…” she sing-songed.

“I guess I deserve that,” Simon responded dryly and a little ruefully. “I don’t suppose I can invoke our clause of not unnecessarily endangering each other’s bodies?”

“No way, no how, buster,” Athena shot back. “Tongue lashings don’t constitute bodily harm, so you go and get yours at the earliest opportunity!”

“Your wish is my command, Cykes-dono,” he answered resignedly, but not entirely devoid of humor. Athena pictured him taking a bow with the phone in his hand, like one of those Japanese salarymen in the TV shows, and could not suppress a snort.

“Good luck,” she grinned. “You’re going to need it.”

***

Simon made good on his promise the following day, citing an unspecified appointment he had forgotten about until now to Wright, who raised an eyebrow, but did not seem to find it all that out of the ordinary for that to happen to Athena.

When Aura first beheld his form as she was led into the visitation room by the guard, her shoulders began shaking right away, and before he could even so much as utter one of their habitually barbed greetings, she started laughing. Her mirth lasted for a solid two minutes before she had herself in check enough to say anything.

“Oh Simon, you shouldn’t have,” she giggled at him. “I know I’ve been telling you since you were three that I would have rather had a little sister instead, but this is ridiculous! I have to say though, you look amazing in a skirt…”

He made a sour face at her. “Hilarious, sister dearest. Have you applied to put on a stand-up act for the other prisoners yet?”

Aura took a moment to sober a little more before she retorted. “I didn’t think I would ever say something like that out loud, but it’s good to see you, particularly considering the circumstances. How’s life as the little princess?”

Simon shrugged. “Different, to be sure, but oddly not as odious as I would have envisioned at first.”

When his sister affected a leer, he knew that he had just committed a major mistake with this admission.

“I’m sure of that, considering the perks…Taken a peek yet? Of course you have, you don’t look as though you haven’t washed up in a week. How’s the view?”

Even as he responded, Simon knew that a traitorous hint of color had appeared on his cheeks. Damn this body for blushing so easily. “Crude as ever, Aura.”

Aura’s answering grin was positively predatory. “I take it you approve? I’d say I wouldn’t mind taking a look, myself, but considering that the thoroughly disagreeable spirit currently inside that body is a major turn-off and I’m still not that fond of its original owner, I think I’ll refrain.”

She had always been able to read him like a book.

Simon shook his head, now slightly amused in spite of himself. She thoroughly got my goat, and in record time, no less. “I think I will concede today’s round to you, although I demand recognition of mitigating circumstances for my extraordinary state of affairs.”

His sister smirked. “Granted – this time.”

Then, her features turned serious. “As for future visits… as much as I will miss the pleasure of your company, you should probably have the little princess come over, instead. I don’t know if there would be any repercussions for you if your little charade was discovered by the world at large, but it would look strange if ‘Athena Cykes’ started showing up here on a regular basis while my brother dearest is nowhere to be seen, and I’d rather not be the reason for causing you professional problems. She can keep you updated, and if there is something major I need to talk to you about in person, I’ll let her know.”

Simon was about to dismiss his sister’s idea without further thought, considering that he could really not ask this of Athena now that their trade had been revealed, but Aura preempted him, once again knowing what was on his mind.

“I won’t bite her head off, if that’s what you’re worried about. I don’t give one whit about her either way, don’t get me wrong…”

She did not finish her sentence, but Simon nevertheless understood the implication. …but she does care about me, and that will stay her tongue at least somewhat, lest the rift between us widens again.

Slightly dumbfounded by Aura’s semi-open admission, so soon after she had already displayed her regard for him by taking hostages in order to prevent his execution, he could only convey his gratitude by nodding his understanding.

“I will ask her if she is amenable to our agreement first, but I am sure she won’t mind,” he responded, voice slightly rougher than usual.

Aura actually smiled in return. “Goodbye, little brother. If everything goes well, I won’t see you again until you are back to your regular tall, pale, and shaggy self.”

She signaled the guard that the visitation was over.

***

That evening on the phone, Simon refrained from relaying most of his conversation to Athena, considering the rather untoward topic which had come up during their sparring, but he mentioned Aura’s thoughts regarding visitations from this point on.

To his relief, Athena right away agreed to meet with his sister once a week as per his usual schedule.

“I’m not gonna let her stew there in her own juices until things go back to normal, even if I’m not her favorite person in the world,” she stated firmly. “We both owe her too much to do that to her.”

Simon smiled at that. “If you insist… but let me know if she gets too obnoxious.”

“Pah, I’ll manage. MY NAME IS ATHENA CYKES, AND I AM FINE!”

Grimacing, Simon held the phone at arm’s length until she was done yelling.

“Must you do that?” he asked in a pained voice once it was safe to put the little device to his ear again.

He swore he could hear Athena’s grin when she responded, “Considering you work at the Wright Anything Agency right now, you better get used to the Chords of Steel. It’s a good method to psych yourself up for something, actually…”

Simon shook his head resignedly. It is too late for her – she has already succumbed to this particular idiocy. I just hope I can avoid a similar fate. “As long as you don’t insist on doing it in public…”

She laughed. “I don’t have to, I’m usually the scariest person in the room, remember?”

That flippant remark got him to chuckle slightly, as well. “Scary…? You make me sound as though I was some sort of bogeyman.”

Simon was surprised when Athena’s voice lost most of its mirth as it softened. “Well, no one but me seems to have realized yet that you’re really pretty nice to have around, and that you care a lot more about things than you let show.”

He was not quite sure what to say to that.

This is the second time the headstrong women in my life have gotten one over on me today. I am getting soft.

Although this thought should have been irksome, for the first time in a long while, Simon found that he did not really mind.

Chapter Text

A week passed without any major incidents. Athena was finally assigned another case to prosecute and, true to her words to both Simon and Chief Prosecutor Edgeworth, accompanied Detective Doddbury to the scene of the crime. It turned out that the matter was rather cut-and-dried, and she won a “Guilty” verdict for her suspect on the first day of court against some pasty-faced defense lawyer she had never met before, who was terrified of her the moment she started exercising through her mental Simon kata.

When she complained to Simon about the fact that this had almost been too easy afterwards, he laughed. “Prosecutors don’t only take on cases they find interesting, you know. The job description includes finding criminals and ensuring that they receive appropriate punishment. Unfortunately, yokai and high school drama are generally not required elements.”

At the office, Prosecutor Gavin remained on the prowl, to where she was starting to find his persistence as bewildering and obnoxious as Simon had. While the frequency with which the rock star accosted her varied with his own workload, it was nevertheless constant, and she was more and more tempted to snap at him. Does he not understand that the cold shoulder treatment means no?

Simon experienced fewer problems at the Wright Anything Agency. He was beginning to think of Apollo and Trucy in first-name terms and rationalized it to be perfectly reasonable, considering the relaxed atmosphere of this particular workplace environment, particularly when compared to the stiff formality of the prosecutor’s office. In addition, it would undoubtedly prove useful to align his thoughts with Athena’s way of addressing them, as it would preclude any accidental slip-ups on his part.

Lulled into a false sense of security by his new everyday routine, he never realized that nature had an entirely unwelcome surprise in store for him.

***

One week after the day of Athena’s visit with Aura, Simon woke up with a headache and pain searing through his lower abdomen. He was not so ignorant of female anatomy that he did not realize what his state probably meant.

Wonderful. I haven’t even taken a step out of bed yet, and the day is already ruined.

Dragging himself to the bathroom, he surveyed the bloody mess in his underwear with bleary dismay. Until now, the most tangible exposure he had had to this particular phenomenon had been prior girlfriends telling him “Not today, I’m on my period,” which made the whole concept rather abstract for him. Aura was nine years older than him and had left for college before the topic had even been covered in his health class, and his mother had not exactly been particularly prone to sharing in regard to this particular aspect of feminine life, either. Not that he had needed any particular knowledge on the subject up to now, beyond don’t ask for sex during that time and chocolate helps, if the small number of relationships he had had which had lasted beyond the month mark were any indication.

As he had not exactly been on the lookout for the appropriate hygiene products in Athena’s bathroom in preparation for this day, Simon bunched some toilet paper into the soiled panties he was wearing in order to prevent any further distasteful accidents and began to investigate the bathroom cabinets, but came up empty.

He debated on just going to the store and picking up something used for this purpose at random, but gave up on the idea rather quickly. I have no idea what to use, and these things come in all kinds of shapes and sizes.

This left him with only one resort: Calling Athena.

He had to dial her number three times before she picked up instead of the answering service; apparently, she had still been asleep. “Mhmyeah?”

“My apologies for waking you. I’m afraid I need your advice on something right away.”

Athena managed to shake off the remaining slumber in her voice rather quickly at that. “What’s going on?”

Struggling to come up with an inquiry that did not sound cringeworthy, Simon gave up on his endeavor when she asked after a while, “Hello, you still there?”

“I am,” he sighed. “I need you to tell me what you usually use in terms of feminine hygiene products.”

“Oh damn, I forgot I had nothing in the apartment anymore for that, I’m so sorry,” she immediately responded. “How are you feeling?”

“Unpleasant,” Simon returned curtly, not exactly in the mood for further elaboration. She knows what this is like, and I refuse to start whining.

“That’s pretty normal, unfortunately, at least for me,” Athena sympathized. “I think there’s still some Midol in the mirror cabinet, and I have a heating pad under the bed. Has it just started?”

He considered that question for a moment. “I do not think so, if the state of my underwear is any indication. I’m afraid this pair is ruined.”

She did not seem too worried. “That happens if it jumps you while you’re sleeping. You can try and wash out the mess with cold water if you want, but you can also just toss the pair and be done with it, your choice. For the first day, I generally have to use both a tampon and a pad to keep everything contained, so buy both, or you’re never gonna leave the bathroom today. Highest absorbency rate, wings for the pads. From the second day on, the tampons alone generally do the trick. If you want, call in sick – I’ve had to do that before, and it’s generally no problem.”

Simon was torn. On one hand, doing as Athena suggested would not only be an admission of weakness, but it would also make him feel that he was neglecting her duties, even if she had admitted that she had taken time off for this very issue, herself. On the other, he had an inkling that the over-the-counter medicine would only be able to do so much, and that attempting to get meaningful work done in his current state would probably not accomplish much, anyway.

As he did not have a case at present, he eventually decided to take her advice. “I will probably call in and go down to the store, then.”

He moved to end the conversation when her voice sounded out once more. “Wait! I forgot to tell you: Wear something dark while you go shopping, you don’t want to be seen leaking in public – or ruin my work clothes, for that matter.”

Simon cringed. “I was not aware that this was a possibility.”

Athena’s tone was dryer than he had ever heard it before when she responded, “Welcome to womanhood, Simon. Now wad up some toilet paper for a stopgap, get dressed, and get going. This is going to last for a few days. I might be by later after I go see Aura.”

Even though he was currently in the throes of both physical misery and embarrassment, Simon found himself grinning at her words. “Yes, Mother.”

She laughed and hung up on him.

Chapter Text

It took Simon a while to work up the impetus to get changed into street clothes. If she feels this sluggish every time this happens, I cannot fault her for calling in sick.

Then, he called the office, relieved to hear Apollo on the other end of the line instead of Wright, even though he found it a bit strange when the other man immediately sympathized, “Oh, it’s that time again, huh? Well, get rested up, and I’ll see you tomorrow.”

After making a show of being suitably grateful, Simon hung up and shook his head. She shared that with her colleague? Granted, it made things easier on him, but he could not believe that she actively imparted information about private bodily functions on others, particularly those who did not share her gender. Then again, since this is a recurring problem, informing someone at her workplace is reasonable enough, and considering that the only female regularly at the office is Trucy, who hardly has the authority to let her take a day off, she probably did not have much of a choice.

When he entered the small grocery store nearby twenty-five minutes later, Simon had to suppress a grimace at the din of the establishment; it seemed that somehow, Athena’s hearing got more sensitive around this time of her cycle, as well, and no amount of pain medication would compensate for the way the noise grated on his nerves.

 He quickly navigated his steps toward the appropriate aisle, selected products with the properties Athena had described to him, and made his way back to the registers, when someone called her name behind him.

“Hello, Thena!”

Simon nearly dropped the box of tampons in his hand, but knew that he could hardly ignore that particular greeting. Trying for a smile, which nevertheless turned out tired and forced, he turned around to find himself face to face with Juniper Woods.

“Hi Junie…” Of all the times to run into her… what did I do to deserve this?

Woods, who was in her school uniform, shot him a curious glance, looking askance at his getup.

“You’re not on your way to the agency like that, are you…?”

He had chosen to fish the faded old jeans he had worn this last weekend out of the laundry hamper, and the pants were more than a little wrinkled. Along with the warm but somewhat scuffed leather jacket, it looked a little bit as though Athena had ventured into hobo chic.

Simon felt his ears and cheeks burning, both at the fact that he looked as though he had slept in his clothes for multiple days, and that he had been caught buying feminine hygiene products, even if he might appear female to the world at large at the moment. Unfortunately, a quick attempt to alleviate the problem via Athena’s ability yielded no results; it seemed that blushing was a function autonomous from her conscious emotional makeup.

“Ah, no…” he responded, relatively certain that embarrassment was not entirely out of the ordinary in this situation, “I called in sick, actually… I just needed to get some things, and I’m gonna go back home now.”

Juniper looked him over some more. “Yeah, you don’t look good… hey, do you want me to walk you home? I still have some time before classes start, and I have some dried feverfew in my bag…”

Goddammit.

Simon knew he should probably take her up on the offer, as Athena would not refuse her best friend, but he really did not think that he could keep up the act for longer than a few minutes today.

“I’m sorry Junie, I appreciate the thought, but I really just want to get back into bed. I’ll call you later, okay?”

“Uh, okay,” the girl responded, followed by a small cough into her fist.

He could hear that something was definitely not okay, as a hint of discord had snuck its way into Juniper’s voice, but there was nothing to do for it now if he did not wish to aggravate the situation further.

“Later,” he retorted with a weak smile, and queued up in one of the register lines without looking back.

***

After getting home, Simon spent a minute in the bathroom reading the instruction booklet that came packed in the tampon box. He only had the vaguest idea of how they were used, considering that his health instructor, while mentioning the blasted things when he had been in fifth grade, had not exactly been forthcoming with explanations on how to deploy them, telling the girls to ask their mothers about it, instead. Additionally, tampon commercials in America were not exactly overflowing with anatomical information, and no prior flame had seen fit to share with him what they did in the bathroom during their menses. When he understood the mode of use completely, he was mortified. They go in that far?

However, he remembered Athena’s admonition that he would not be able to go without for the first day, at least, and so he dutifully attempted to follow the instructions. He had bought the kind that came with applicators, the pink box cheerfully proclaiming, “Easy to use!” Unwrapping one of the items from its plastic packaging and squatting above the toilet, he tried wrangling the cardboard tube into place underneath him to insert the bullet-shaped white object inside.

The first tampon landed in the bowl with a plop when the applicator came apart. The second one, after Simon was pretty sure he had it, came back out when he attempted to straighten, and got a fresh mess of menstrual fluid on the seat. Giving up on the useless contraptions that made this brand supposedly “easy to use,” he pulled the third tightly-wadded lump of cotton out of its cardboard enclosure with a resigned sigh. As he struggled to push it in deep enough to where it would stay in place with his finger, he thought, This is definitely the low point of my life. Here he was, knowing that his ears were once again bright red as he came into contact more intimately with Athena’s anatomy than he had ever thought possible or necessary, in a situation that could not be more embarrassing. At least his touch, in this context, was the absolute antithesis of arousing.

Dignity duly demolished, he cleaned up the stains he had left on the tiles and the toilet, washed his hands, and got a fresh pair of underwear out of the closet, which he lined with one of the pads he had also bought.

Plugged-up and diapered…I think I am done for today, he decided, and once more changed into her flannel pajamas, dropping the street clothes he had put on for the trip to the store back into the hamper. He wrinkled his nose at the soiled panties he had worn until now, contemplating ceremonially burning them for a moment, but then decided that the fire alarm going off was probably not worth it, and opted to toss them into the trash, instead.

Simon was aware that he had absolutely no good reason to feel this sorry for himself, considering that half of humanity had to deal with this problem on a monthly basis, but that fact alone did not entirely manage to keep him from doing so, anyway. After downing a few more Midol with some tap water, as he could not find it within himself to make coffee for once, he went back to bed.

Chapter Text

When the doorbell rang that evening at 6:30 PM, Simon had only been out of bed again for about three hours, opting to lounge in front of the television with Athena’s heating pad as he felt marginally more awake. He would have preferred to read a book, but Athena’s library consisted of a mixture of law texts which were dryer than the Sahara desert, and juvenile romances which made him wonder if she had ever so much as looked sideways at a work of actual literature. Predictably, the programming had been terrible, presenting him with a choice of old cartoons, daytime talk shows, and a show called “World’s Worst Car Crashes.” He had opted for the cartoons as the least obnoxious option among the few channels he could receive with her indoor antenna, particularly since next to no voices which could aggravate his hearing were involved, although at this point, the antics of the cat and mouse on the screen were beginning to bore him.

Thus, he was actually relieved when it turned out that Athena was apparently making good on her promise to come by, and pushed the button to buzz her into the entrance door.

As she entered the apartment with Taka on her shoulder and found him sitting on the couch in her pink pajamas, complete with heating pad and blanket, the first words out of her mouth were, “I’m not sure if I should laugh at you or feel sorry for you.”

Simon noticed that she was not wearing his regular work attire; apparently, she had found the time to go shopping and had changed before coming, since she was clad in a black wool trench coat, a gray sweater, and a pair of dark blue jeans. This is not too bad. At least there’s no yellow involved.

“Feel free to go with the first option, if you would like,” he replied with a rueful grin. “I have the distinct feeling that I am already feeling sorry enough for myself.”

Athena seated herself next to him. “In that case, you should probably know that Aura was positively delighted to hear her little brother is currently experiencing his first menstruation.” Her answering grin was positively evil.

A hint of annoyance made itself known in Simon’s voice at that. “And you felt it necessary to share this with her because…?”

It was a sign of how far their relationship had come that Athena did not shy away from him due to his tone anymore. Instead, she shrugged easily and replied, “Female bonding. I don’t exactly know what to talk to her about aside from you, you know…”

He had to admit that she had a point there, considering that all other topics his sister and Athena had in common were not exactly ones to make small talk about.

Instead of formulating an answer, he carefully reached up towards Taka and ruffled his feathers, finding the contact as soothing as the bird seemed to do.

Primarily paying attention to his feathered companion, Simon nevertheless noticed out of the corner of his eyes how Athena’s features softened upon watching him interact with the hawk. His memory flashed back to the old photograph he had found in her files a few weeks ago, and for a moment, he thought, If she can look so much like the man I was, even with the traces time has left on me, maybe it would be possible for me, as well.

After a short while, Athena spoke up again. “How are you feeling now?”

Simon shrugged. “Better than this morning, although still not exactly splendid.”

Additionally, the boredom of the day had not been appreciated, either – he was used to accomplishing at least a few worthwhile things even on his days away from the office, and his condition had all but precluded him from doing so today.

“I’m really sorry I didn’t warn you about this.” She sounded guilty. “I guess I’ve been used to this happening for so long that I didn’t think about it at all when we had our discussion about routines…”

“How long?” Simon asked before he realized the words had left his mouth.

Athena pondered his question for a minute. “About six years now, I think. I’ve seen doctors about it before, but they all told me that while my first day is pretty terrible compared to those of other women, they couldn’t find anything wrong with me. I tried using those seasonal pills that make you only have your period four times a year, too, but they somehow instead made me bleed for a solid month and a half before I gave up on that little lark.”

He could not help but grimace at that. “So this will continue for you…?”

“Yep, until my mid-forties, most likely. Thank you, Mother Nature.” Athena’s smile seemed a bit strained, as well.

At this, Simon’s lips quirked upward slightly. “In that case, stop feeling sorry for me. Considering that I will likely only have to live with this for a few years at most, you deserve sympathy more than me.”

***

Athena stayed with Simon until about eight; after she had reassured him once more that he should be in well-enough shape to return to the agency tomorrow, they mostly spent their time in companionable silence, watching the trainwreck television stations called “programming” together while spoiling Taka rotten with attention.

Her good mood remained with her after she had said her goodbyes, the hawk leaving for his nesting ground the moment he seemed to realize that she was homeward bound.

Not thinking about anything in particular, she walked through the night, when suddenly, the noise of a motorcycle slowing down next to her caught her attention.

Athena sneered when she noticed the purple hue of the vehicle, instantly giving away its owner. Not that this information was necessary, as Prosecutor Gavin removed his helmet and smiled at her.

“Good evening, Herr Blackquill. Fancy meeting you here.”

Great, now I can’t even go home without this guy following me.

She grunted and walked on, deliberately passing the turn-off toward Simon’s apartment as she hardly wanted to lead his persistent colleague to his place.

Of course, Gavin once again did not seem to take a hint.

“I hope you’ve had a pleasant evening so far…?”

Meeting the man outside of the office left Athena without a proper reason to ignore him, and considering that he would hardly leave on his own, she felt it necessary to reply, even though she hoped that her rudely dismissive tone would get through to him sooner or later.

“Reasonably so, until I was disturbed, Gavin-dono.”

She heard the motorcycle rev up behind her, and a moment later, the blond man was once again next to her on the road, helmet dangling off his ride’s right handle.

“You are aware that operating a motorcycle without wearing a helmet is illegal in the state of California?” she tried to get rid of him again.

Gavin shrugged, the inappropriately dazzling smile still on his face. “Feel free to indict me for not so much riding, but pushing my hog at a walking pace for a couple of meters without my helmet on, Herr Blackquill, although I can’t help but feel certain that it would come across as petty.”

She stopped walking, now more than a little annoyed. Considering that avoiding him clearly doesn’t work, since Simon and I both tried that, maybe I should attempt some straight talk.

Glaring over at the rock star, she asked with an exasperated sigh, “What exactly is it that you want from me, Gavin-dono?”

Interestingly enough, Prosecutor Gavin’s features became serious, although he did not seem inclined to leave. “Your ear for ten minutes, over a cup of coffee. I’m sure that that is not so much to ask for, ja?”

Athena could not help but be intrigued. This hardly sounds like he’s going to break out into some embarrassing admissions of attraction, and if I’m wrong and he decides to get handsy, I’m fairly sure I can make him wish he was never born, considering that in a fight between him and Simon in his own body, I’d bet on the latter.

“Very well,” she agreed after a long moment of silence, although her expression still clearly showed that she was not exactly happy about the arrangement.

The glitzy smile once more blinked into existence. “Ah, danke, Herr Blackquill. There is a small coffee shop just down the road. I will wait for you there.”

He put his helmet back on, albeit without fastening the chin strap, indicating that the place was quite close, and sped off ahead of her.

Chapter Text

When Athena arrived at the little establishment, the motorcycle was already parked near the door, and she could see Klavier Gavin sitting in a window booth from the outside. Equal parts disgruntled at having to see this conversation through and interested in what exactly the prosecutor thought he had to talk to Simon about, she pushed the door open and seated herself opposite the blond man.

A waitress came over, eyeing her a bit apprehensively, but still cheerfully asking them what the two “hons” wanted to order. Athena swallowed a laugh. She is probably the first person in years to dare call Simon “hon.” She deserves a tip for that.

Still, she made sure to keep her order of “Coffee, black,” terse in order to let Gavin know that she was here to take care of whatever business he had. The prosecutor himself was a lot more amiable, flashing the woman another one of his trademark smiles which made her blush while ordering a hazelnut cappuccino.

After the waitress had left their table to put in their order, she raised an eyebrow at the rock star across from her. “Talk.”

Gavin grimaced a bit at her curtness, but apparently had no objections. “Ja, gut. I wanted to ask you if you learned anything about my older brother while you were incarcerated, particularly after the verdict in the Misham murder…”

At that point, the waitress returned, placing their cups in front of them, and Athena reached for the coffee in order to buy herself some time to think while she took a sip.

Mr. Wright told me a little bit about the Misham murder when he last visited me shortly before my bar exam, and how the first encounter with that counterfeiter got him disbarred due to forged evidence…but didn’t he also mention that Kristoph Gavin went into solitary confinement after his second conviction? Additionally, she could not envision Simon willingly associating with the man, from what she had heard of the elder Gavin – sociopaths who had murdered due to a perceived slight against their abilities hardly sounded like they were to his taste.

She decided to wing her answer based on what she had extrapolated as she put the cup down.

“I did not have much contact with him before the Misham case, and after the verdict, he was put in solitary. I’m afraid I do not have any worthwhile information for you.”

Prosecutor Gavin sighed, now partaking of his own coffee. “I expected as much. Still, I had to ask… he may be an irredeemable human being, but he is still my brother.”

Athena could not help but feel a flash of pity for the man. He’s a bit like Aura, having a sibling sitting on death row… only he has it even worse, considering he can’t visit, and he knows his brother is guilty.

Her ponderings were interrupted when Gavin once more spoke up. “Did you know, Herr Blackquill? I am also one of those responsible for the dawn of the ‘Dark Age of the Law,’ as the press likes to call it.”

That bit was news to her, as researching the younger Gavin had never crossed her mind, and his name had not been explicitly mentioned to her in this context, although she began to suspect just what kind of role he might have played based on Mr. Wright’s more evasive comments. “In what manner?”

The blond man stared at his cup. “My brother had the evidence forged that got Herr Wright disbarred, and sent it to him via a third person. He then warned me of the forgery before the trial, and I fell for the trap. Yet, I did not suffer so much as a professional reprimand, while everyone else whose innocent missteps led to the current state of affairs was met with severe consequences… pathetic, nein?”

Athena took another sip of her coffee. Is this survivor’s guilt? So that’s why he was so obsessive about talking to Simon…he needed to open up to someone who was embroiled in what is superficially the same situation, and he probably hasn’t dared to talk to Mr. Wright directly yet, even though the boss could have easily gotten him that reprimand after regaining his badge and didn’t – that would have probably never even crossed his mind. Phoenix Wright, for all his steely resolve in court, did not have a mean bone in his body, as far as she was aware.

“It is not my place to judge or absolve you. I believe that role falls to Wright-dono.”

Gavin’s smile seemed tired now. “Do you think I don’t know that? Unfortunately, I have no idea how to bring up the matter with him …”

Good god, the man is asking me for advice? He must be more desperate than I thought, considering that he’s not exactly Simon’s favorite person in the world…

She scrambled for a moment to come up with a response that was not too out-of-character for the disgruntled façade of the man she now impersonated, and finally settled for stating gravely, “After I was exonerated, I sought to make amends to those harmed by my false confession. Are you not acquainted with Justice-dono? You should seek his advice.”

Klavier Gavin was silent for a long moment, choosing to take long drags of his drink instead of responding to her suggestion.

When Athena eventually ventured to take another sip herself, the prosecutor had apparently fully digested what she had said. Smiling once again a little more brightly, he stated, “I will do that one of these days. Danke, Herr Blackquill.”

She nodded gruffly, emptying her cup. When she moved to pull Simon’s wallet out of her pocket, Gavin shook his head. “Bitte… I invited you, so let me pay the bill.”

At that, Athena relaxed her features slightly, although she did not go so far as to smile, when she once again inclined her head in silent appreciation. She moved to stand.

“Gavin-dono.”

After the rudimentary farewell, she left the coffee shop, relieved that this little encounter was over.

***

By the time Athena reached Simon’s apartment, she was actually quite happy about how she had handled the situation with the blond prosecutor – not only had she probably bought her friend reprieve from future incessant attempts at conversation by Gavin, but she had also managed to apply her psychological skills without her ability. Sometimes it’s good to know that I don’t have to rely on a gimmick to do something worthwhile in one of my fields. Also, Prosecutor Gavin now owes Simon a favor – I’ll have to make sure to let him know about this tomorrow.

Locking the door behind her, she took off the boots, hung up her new coat, which Simon had not seemed to find disagreeable despite his lack of commenting, and stretched to loosen up her muscles. Things accomplished today: Counseled a man through his first period, entertained his sister who resents me with an account of said period, and managed to clear the air with a guy who I thought for a while wanted into my – well, Simon’s – pants. My life is weird.

Thinking that maybe a shower would restore some normalcy to her day, she made her way into the bathroom.

Chapter Text

In spite of today’s oddness, Athena nevertheless found herself in a good mood when she entered the tiled room. Humming to herself, she took off her clothes and deposited them on the toilet lid. Now only clad in a pair of black briefs, she started the water, adjusting the temperature until it was to her liking. By this point, she had mostly lost her shyness when it came to handling Simon’s intimate parts for everyday needs such as using the bathroom or washing up, although she still did not look at them any more than was strictly necessary. Simon never really had that option, considering that boobs are a bit more line-of-sight, and he had to insert a tampon today…I guess in this regard, I am the lucky one, after all. I’d really rather work at Mr. Wright’s agency than at the prosecutor’s office, though.

Refusing to let thoughts of missing her colleagues ruin her current tranquility, she pushed this line of thinking aside as she loosened her hair tie, stripped out of her underwear, and stepped under the water, sighing contentedly when its cascading warmth began to gently massage her neck and shoulders.

I wonder if this impersonation thing is ever going to get easier. I mean, I’m starting to look forward to seeing Aura once a week, so I don’t have to pretend being Simon for a little while with someone who’s not him. Granted, he was probably much in the same boat, or even more so, seeing that she had more acquaintances than he did. Who knows how many people are going to cotton on to the fact that we are not really ourselves before this is over – Aura may be one of the more observant people in our lives, but it’s only a matter of time before we slip up and give the game away to others, particularly if this lasts for over a year.

Strangely, the thought of spending so much time in each other’s bodies had lost its terrifying edge for her since they had initially learned of the potential time frame. Maybe it’s because I know I can return to my old self eventually, even if it might take a while – and because, thanks to all this, I gained Simon back as a friend for good.

Really, it was quite astonishing how he had resumed his stabilizing presence in her life after the seven years they had been apart, and how much his demeanor toward her had softened in the two weeks they had lived each other’s lives so far. I knew your gentleness was still buried somewhere deep inside yourself, and I’m so happy that you are relearning how to show it again. I just hope you won’t forget all about it the moment we go back to normal.

Perhaps she should have approached him to talk about things earlier, right after he had been released from prison. Maybe then, this exchange wouldn’t have happened… but on the other hand, I don’t think I would be able to talk to him like I do now if it hadn’t been for the need to coordinate our charade. It was a weird feeling to be thankful for this aspect of her current circumstances, but Athena was determined to keep it in mind as a silver lining.

Knowing that she only had a few minutes of warm water remaining, she began washing her hair, closing her eyes to avoid getting the suds into her eyes.

Her thoughts wandered back to her unexpected talk with Prosecutor Gavin earlier this evening. I hope he’s gonna do what he said and set things right with Mr. Wright, and that he’ll become a little less clingy at work now so Simon won’t feel the need to rearrange his hairstyle a bit…

She chuckled under her breath at the thought as she made sure to check if any shampoo remained in her current black mane. Gavin was really quite attractive, though possibly just a bit too conventionally so for her own tastes. Maybe that’s how I got the idea that him showing up whenever I left the office meant that he had the hots for Simon. I have to admit, seeing these two together would be a sight for sore eyes…

Unfortunately, at this point, her imagination decided to assert itself, presenting her with a mental image of the tall, pale body she was becoming accustomed to, pressed against a slighter, tanned frame, black hair contrasting with platinum blond as the two men’s tongues were battling for dominance in a heated kiss.

 Oh fuck. What is wrong with me…?

Athena was mortified enough when she forced the disturbingly alluring image from her mind. However, that was nothing compared to her reaction when she noticed a strange sensation in her groin region.

Oh god, please, no…

Hesitantly directing her gaze downward, she immediately realized that one of her fears had finally managed to manifest itself: Little Simon, which had been exceptionally well-behaved so far, had woken up from its hibernation and was now vigorously twitching upward.

Unable to think rationally in her wish to make it stop, she lowered a hand to push it back down as if that would accomplish anything, groaning when this did not only not have the desired effect, but sent her reeling with a sudden stab of arousal.

Shit shit shit shit shit what am I gonna do…? Athena found herself panicking.

You could just do what you usually do when you are horny and take care of it, a devilish little voice in the back of her mind supplied.

Hell no! Her higher thought processes reasserted themselves. Simon isn’t doing that with my body when he’s by himself… or is he?

Once again, her imagination butted in on her already-derailed train of thought, showing her Simon squeezing one of her breasts, which were currently his to do with as he pleased, while fingering himself with the other hand.

THAT’S NOT HELPING! She mentally yelled at herself.

In her distraught state, she could only come up with one drastic solution to her current problem: She reached for the warm water knob and turned it all the way down, flinching when she was immediately pelted with what felt like ice-cold needles.

Athena thanked her lucky stars when her erection relented after shivering under the cold water stream for a few minutes. Careful to not think about anything that would even remotely encourage it to reassert itself, she toweled off quickly and put on a fresh pair of underwear, sighing with relief when her groin was once again hidden from view.

How am I possibly going to face him now…?

That particular thought was at least as much of an arousal deterrent as suffering under the cold shower had been. Discouraged, she left the clothes she had worn on the toilet lid, changing into the trusty gray sweatpants and old t-shirt in an attempt to regain some comfort, and left for the living room to settle down for what she assumed would be a late night of watching terrible TV. Who knew whether the images would return once she fell asleep?

Chapter Text

Athena woke up groggily when the sun shone right into her face from the window. The television was still running, and one of her long legs was hanging off the couch, while its counterpart was pressed against the furniture piece’s back. Her neck was stiff… and so was something else.

Not only had her penis decided to once again act up; apparently, it had also had its own way at least once during her uneasy sleep, as she distinctly felt a wet and sticky sensation in her underwear. She felt like crying.

I have to go to work, but… what am I going to do with this…?

The only thing that came to mind was yet another excruciatingly cold shower.

***

An hour later, Athena swept into the office with what was almost a tangible cloud of pique surrounding her. All prosecutors and office personnel steered clear of her, and even the secretary, who had recently taken to at least attempting to wish her a “good morning,” fled the room as fast as humanly possible after delivering the first heap of paperwork for the day.

At 11:30 AM, a murder case was put on her desk, and she sent Taka out with a curt missive to Doddbury to come pick her up at once. When she strode towards the entrance, no one dared interfere with her.

On the scene, she attempted to collect herself enough to exude a somewhat professional demeanor, but when the young detective nearly accidentally touched a potential piece of evidence which had not yet been checked for fingerprints by the forensics team with his bare hands, the words “useless waste of flesh” were probably the nicest thing in the tirade she unleashed upon him. Doddbury looked for a minute as though he was going to faint, and she barely managed to once more get herself under control, ignoring him for the remainder of the investigation.

Thankfully, the case seemed to be open-and-shut enough for her current disposition to not make much of a difference at court tomorrow, and after Athena had ensured that all evidence was properly accounted for, all witnesses had been issued subpoenas, and her suspect had been formally arraigned, she stalked out of the building immediately.

During the entire day, the anger she had exuded was in truth mainly directed at herself, the same thoughts replaying in her head like a mantra. I can’t talk to him about this, but I also don’t know how to hide it from him. He will hear it the moment I try to lie. I am so screwed.

***

By the time Athena opened the door of Simon’s apartment at around five in the afternoon, she had still had no idea how to weather Simon’s inevitable call. When, at six, the phone began to vibrate on the table, she eyed it like a live snake, unable to bring herself to pick it up.

The phone buzzed rhythmically once more at seven, and at eight, with the same result.

At 8:30 PM, a somewhat shorter vibration indicated that a text message had arrived. With unsteady fingers, she called it up on the screen.

To: Simon Blackquill
From: Athena Cykes

Why are you not picking up? Unusual occurrence? Please keep apprised.

Texting, of course! It shot through her mind. He can’t hear me if I don’t talk to him. She knew this was a stopgap at best, considering that she had been the one suggesting their daily exchange, but if she could stave him off until tomorrow, maybe she could calm down enough to face him without giving herself away.

She quickly typed up an answer.

To: Athena Cykes
From: Simon Blackquill

Am tired tonight. Can we talk tomorrow?

The answer did not take long to arrive.

To: Simon Blackquill
From: Athena Cykes

Before 9 PM?

Athena closed her eyes and took a deep breath, envisioning him raising an eyebrow at her. She struggled to come up with a more valid excuse when the phone once more vibrated in her palm.

To: Simon Blackquill
From: Athena Cykes

Can tell something has happened. Pick up the phone, or I will be there in person shortly.

Dammit dammit dammit! He obviously knew her just a little too well by now to let her weak attempt at evasion slide.

Shortly thereafter, the rhythmic buzzing of the cell phone set in once more and, feeling like a lamb going to slaughter, Athena took the call.

“Hello?”

“Athena? Whatever the hell is the matter?” She could hear his concern beneath the gruff inquiry and felt terrible for her behavior for a moment.

Taking as deep a breath as she dared without it being audible, she attempted to convince herself of the lie she was about to tell so it would not register as undue discord with Simon.

“I fell asleep on the couch and missed your calls. Didn’t sleep too well last night.”

The line was silent for a moment. “Any particular reason?”

Athena knewat this point that she was trapped.

“I… really don’t wanna talk about it,” she whispered. Please don’t ask any more, please…

Unfortunately, Simon was not the kind of person to let go of a topic once he smelled something foul.

“And that would be why you just lied to me about missing my calls due to falling asleep. I do not mean to add to whatever discomfort it is you are currently experiencing, but you sound terrified.”

He did not have to add talk to me in order for Athena to understand his implied invitation.

Feeling tears of shame threatening to escape, she hesitantly demanded, “Promise you won’t get angry, or disgusted, or laugh at me…”

Simon’s response was dry, even though she could still hear the worry in his voice. “Considering recent events in which you afforded me the same courtesy, I am hardly going to overreact to whatever it is you are so embarrassed about. Talk. Please.”

The “please” did the trick: Athena clenched her eyes shut, took a deep breath, and spat out, “IthoughtofGavinintheshowerandgotahardonpleasedon’tkillme!”

Simon was once again silent for a short while, and then she thought she heard something resembling a quiet snicker, until he audibly cleared his throat.

“That’s it?”

“No,” she admitted defeatedly, “I had the same problem this morning, plus what are apparently called ‘nocturnal emissions’ on top of everything. Feel free to laugh now.” I’m not gonna mention his part in my little daydream. That just goes too far.

“One moment.”

Athena heard the phone being put down on the table, shortly followed by a door slamming. He was back about a minute later, sounding winded.

“Apologies. To reiterate: That is what had you worried enough that you refused to pick up the phone?”

Annoyance mingled with relief as she responded, “You didn’t have to evacuate to the bathroom in order to laugh, you know,” knowing that that was exactly what he had done.

“You were the one who set the initial rules of this conversation,” Simon replied, his grin audible in his voice. “Is this the point where I need to reassure you that what you experienced is entirely normal? I have to admit that I thought you had better taste than to have erotic thoughts about Gavin of all people, though…”

Athena chose to ignore the final sentence, as it was delivered in a tone good-natured enough to know that he was just teasing her.

“I thought this kind of thing was the domain of teenaged boys, not grown men…”

“Hardly. I’d wager to say that for some, it is a lifelong issue, depending on sexual activity level.” His next words belied a hint of embarrassment. “You are aware, of course, that I was incarcerated for seven years, allowing me little privacy…”

…and considering Aura’s teasing and his statement that he was ‘unattached,’ plus the fact that he was only out of the clink for a month before our switch happened, he probably didn’t have that much of a chance to ‘catch up,’ Athena put two and two together. It’s kind of a wonder nothing like this has happened before now.

“I see what you’re getting at. So, what am I gonna do about this? I’ve been keeping things in check with cold showers, but considering that it’s February and I’ve had to endure this twice in the last twenty-four hours, to not even mention that I can’t really resort to that method if this happens in public, I don’t think I can continue doing just that.”

She knew that the ensuing silence did not bode well. Finally, he responded very slowly and deliberately, “I can only think of one reasonably reliable way to preclude the occurrence of any such future mishaps.”

“You don’t mean…?”

Athena did not have to say it out loud for Simon to realize that they were on the same page. “Just so. Some find that physical exertion also helps, but I personally have never found this particular…problem to be responsive to exercise.”

Athena buried her face in her hands, willing the ground to swallow her whole right this very moment.

When he continued to speak, she got the impression that he just might feel similarly. “That is all the information I can give you. I won’t ask or offer unsolicited advice regarding this situation from this point on. How you proceed is up to you.”

“I understand,” was all that she could reply, hoping beyond hope that this particular topic had not finally managed to once more drive a wedge between them, even if Simon had just indicated in so many words that he gave her leave to do whatever she saw fit.

His transition to other topics sounded a little forced. “Is there anything else I should be aware of?”

Athena nevertheless gratefully latched on to the feeling of renewed safety her more mundane activities provided. “I have a case to prosecute tomorrow, and I found out what was behind Prosecutor Gavin’s attempts to talk to you…”

Chapter Text

They talked for about twenty more minutes about their day, but neither of them could help noticing that their conversation felt as though they were deliberately making small talk in order to avoid the new elephant in the room.

When Simon finally wished her a good night and ended the call, Athena did her best to suppress a fresh instance of panic.

Here I am again, alone with this problem… From the way he had spoken of the issue at hand, she knew she had the choice of continuing the cold shower regime and praying that she did not experience an erection in a setting where no such deterrent was available, or of pleasuring herself in a body that was not only not her own, but was fundamentally different where it mattered for this particular purpose.

Either way, I will end up embarrassing him. She was aware that his suggestion was probably the more pragmatic way to handle things, but was almost tempted to rather brave the prosecutor’s office with the chance of suffering a hard-on at the wrong time than to find that he could not look her in the eye anymore the next time they met.

What would Simon do, if he was in the body of a male friend and forced to masturbate in order to not embarrass that friend in public? Athena realized the moment she had followed that thought to its end that it had no bearing on their specific situation. If Simon was in another man’s body, he would likely be able to employ the same coping mechanisms he did in his own without much of a second thought, while Athena had never needed to hide accidental arousal due to her body not providing visible cues, and thus had no idea what they were. He’s had time since puberty to learn how to keep his genitals in check, so he probably doesn’t even consciously realize how he does it beyond the obvious things he mentioned. This is about as unfair as my hearing is on him, only that he just has to deal with a headache if it becomes too much.

She began getting angry at herself for continuing to be caught up in her preoccupation with the topic. What am I so worked up about, anyway? It’s just sex, and not even with another person. And yet, was that second bit true, seeing that her current body was that of another? Granted, he had all but given her his consent, so at least she was not violating his trust, but still…

It’s just a bodily function. Like going to the bathroom – or like Simon having to shove a finger up my body to get that tampon where it needed to go. You take care of it, and then it’s over, until you need to do it again. Intellectually, she knew of course that the situation was not exactly the same, but firmly held on to her thought, lest she lose her nerve again.

A look at how the dress pants she was still wearing were once again beginning to tent traitorously, in spite of the anything but arousing way she had thought about the matter, drove home the fact that she had to do something about this problem – and that she ultimately did not have much of a choice.

I’m sorry, Simon. I guess the time has finally come to take more than a quick look.

Athena got up from the couch and went into the bedroom, her burgeoning erection causing her walk to be somewhat uncoordinated. If I’m gonna do this, I should at least be resting comfortably.

Sitting down on the bed, she began to undress, automatically folding the clothes in order to keep the outer layers presentable for the following day, and decided to begin her exploration with a by now somewhat familiar view: Broad shoulders, leading into arms whose biceps and triceps were well-defined even without flexing, likely due to his sword practice (although he had probably had to resort to a garden variety stick while in prison). An equally broad chest with but a smattering of hair along the lines of the pectoral muscles. Firm but lean abs. Below the navel, a thin stripe of black hair descended downward underneath the waistband of the pants she was still wearing.

Athena got up once more to loosen the belt and push the remainder of her clothing down over her narrow hips, taking the time to let her hands wander over her backside in order to keep from dealing with the front of her current lower body. Again, firmness greeted her, and she wished for a second that she could turn her head far enough to actually see what she was touching. When she realized that the darkness outside, in conjunction with the ceiling light in the bedroom, made the window pane on the other side of the bed somewhat reflective, she positioned herself to where she could get at least a somewhat blurry glimpse at her own ass over her shoulder, which was only rounded ever so slightly, particularly compared to the more curvy nature of her own body.

Finally running out of less dangerous places to direct her eyes to, she allowed herself to let her gaze wander down along the happy trail until it came to a rest between her legs, confronting the now once more fully erect penis jutting from an unruly thatch of black pubic hair.

Just like the remainder of Simon’s body, his cock was somewhat larger than average, though not to outrageous proportions. Other than the boys Athena had had sex with while living in Europe, he was circumcised, the skin of his glans slightly lighter than the dusky pink of the shaft.

Hesitantly, she got back onto the bed, stretching out in a not entirely successful attempt to get comfortable, and reached down to wrap her fingers around her borrowed length, feeling it twitch against her palm. Without applying much pressure, she trailed her hand up towards the tip, breathing in sharply at the sensation.

Her second pull, a little harder this time, made her moan lowly, the sound causing her to shiver with an additional spike of arousal.

Her right wrist falling into a slow rhythm, she automatically reached for her chest with her left hand, but found that her nipples were not particularly sensitive. Putting her free hand behind her head instead, fingers threading into her own hair, she redoubled her efforts, the subdued noises she could not keep from emitting gradually rising in volume.

Inexorably, she began feeling a familiar tightening below her waist, although it was not centered beneath her navel as usual, but below the root of her cock in her balls. While the sensation was slightly different, she nevertheless knew instinctively what it meant.

Grasping herself more firmly yet while beginning to move her hips in a counterpoint rhythm, inching closer toward orgasm with every passing moment, she found her gaze drawn once more to the dim reflection in the window. The glass pane was not wide enough to show her everything, but she caught a glance at Simon’s face, his lips slightly parted, a flush high on his cheeks visible even in the nearly colorless blur, eyes half-closed, sharp features almost slack in helpless arousal…

Athena bucked her hips up into the hand fisting her cock once more, twice more, and then succumbed to every muscle in her body tensing up, a long, broken groan emerging from her throat as she felt spurts of warm moisture landing on her abdomen.

The sharp Too much! warning of oversensitivity set in almost immediately, and she weakly let go of her now softening length, attempting to catch her breath.

It did not occur to her until much later that, while she usually envisioned various erotic scenarios when stimulating herself in her own body, and while it had been an unfortunate fantasy that had ultimately led to this moment, she had not once resorted to her imagination in order to bring herself off this time.

Chapter Text

When Simon prepared for work the following morning, the uneasiness their conversation had caused in him still remained. At least his own embarrassing problem seemed to be close to an end, as his bleeding had lightened enough to forgo the tampons, and he thanked his stars for small favors.

Yes, he had been very amused at first when Athena had burst out with the issue she had been experiencing – only to rapidly join her in mortification when she had asked him for potential solutions.

Hmph. I really wish she had just taken care of it and never breathed a word about it to me.

Of course, he could not entirely fault her, considering that he had fumbled rather spectacularly on the first day of his period, himself – unfortunately, differently-sexed bodies came with their own pitfalls, which most of those born into them learned to weather before reaching adulthood, but which their extraordinary situation forced them to confront as unfamiliar challenges

This rational way of thought, however, did not manage to preclude the disconcertingly erotic mental images of Athena doing what he had suggested and touching herself while in his body.

This is ludicrous. Am I turning into some sort of narcissist? His body was just that – his body. While certainly not repulsive or overly deficient in some way, he was so thoroughly used to seeing it that he had never considered it particularly arousing. He vehemently refused to entertain the idea that it was Athena’s soul which made the difference in the equation. It’s not as though that plays into these sordid fantasies – she looks like me, she sounds like me, and I can’t see what is going on in her mind in my thoughts.

Still, he could not come up with any alternative advice he might have been able to impart on her, instead. It was giving her leave to pleasure herself, or the entire prosecutor’s office – or courtroom, for that matter – being treated to an accidental erection at some point. Both options were terminally embarrassing, but at least the former left only him and her with the shameful secret, instead of exposing it to the world at large.

In the end, this is really not so grave a matter that I should dwell on it like this. I’m sure we will be laughing about this in a week or two. Even while formulating his thoughts, he knew he was lying to himself, considering the strain their conversation had already experienced due to the issue at hand, but did not really know how else to calm his thoughts.

Trying his hardest to banish the topic from his mind, Simon left for the Wright Anything Agency after changing into Athena’s regular work attire.

***

Simon arrived at the agency a few minutes before ten. Apollo looked up at him from the couch, the beginnings of a smile on his face when he began, “Good m…ouch!”

His associate’s arm went to his bracelet. “Athena, what is going on? I haven’t seen you so tense in weeks!”

Simon gave him a grim look. “I don’t wanna talk about it. You might want to find your sty bandage if it bothers you so much.”

Considering the extent of his inner turmoil, he did not think that he could keep it in check even with the help of Athena’s ability, particularly not for longer periods of time. Additionally, there was the potential danger to consider. I will not lose myself over a matter this trivial.

Apollo grimaced, but dutifully went into the small bathroom to rummage around until he came up with a length of white gauze. Winding the bandage over his right eye, he asked, “Does this have anything to do with Prosecutor Blackquill?”

Simon could feel his posture tensing up even more at that, his hands balling into fists, which in turn made Apollo flinch. “I take it that’s a yes.”

“You’d better get on with it and stop asking before your hand falls off at the wrist,” Simon retorted, now becoming annoyed at his colleague’s persistence. “We’ve hit an unforeseen problem, and it’s being worked on.”

Oh yes, probably hard, fast, and with increasing dedication, the hysterical little voice which had not plagued him for weeks helpfully supplied.

“And no,” he continued for good measure to get his thoughts back in check, “unfortunately, this is not something talking to you about will solve.”

Apollo’s hands stilled in his task, his expression suddenly deadly serious. “He hasn’t hurt you in some way, has he?”

Simon stared, incredulous for a moment. “Whatever the hell gave you that idiotic idea?”

His hearing, still further heightened by the only slowly waning peak of Athena’s cycle, nearly buckled under the onslaught of Apollo’s relief when the other man answered, “Okay, I just wanted to make sure. I have a feeling that if he ever does, the entire Wright Anything Agency is going to go after him, sword or no sword.”

Simon was not entirely sure whether to be amused, distraught, or happy on Athena’s behalf when it came to that somewhat ominous statement.

“It’s nothing like that. We’re gonna work it out somehow,” he once more reassured, even though he was not all that sure about his promise the moment it left his lips.

Apollo finally tied the gauze into a knot, letting his hands fall back to his lap. “I’m sure you will,” he responded. “If you can though, try not being quite so tense, or Mr. Wright’s going to want to know what’s going on, himself. For now, if he asks about the bandage, I do have a sty, it’ll hopefully go away in the next couple of days, and nothing weird is going on, okay?”

For a moment, Simon resented being yet again in the young lawyer’s debt, but realized that he did not have much of a choice but to agree.

“All right. Thanks.”

Apollo nodded. “Don’t mention it.”

***

The day passed without any further incidents. While Apollo’s feigned affliction did raise Wright’s eyebrow when the senior lawyer of the agency first caught a glimpse of the younger man, their boss chose not to comment beyond a muttered hope that his junior associate’s eye would feel better soon.

They played poker again, with Apollo managing to best Simon in almost half of all rounds, likely because the latter’s concentration was hardly up to par today.

When Wright offered to take them out to Eldoon’s again after Trucy had returned from school, Simon decided to bow out, stating that he had a few things to take care of, and returned back to Athena’s apartment, having decided that he should probably attempt to take up meditation once more in order to clear his head.

Phoenix Wright would ask Apollo after ‘Athena’ had left, “What’s eating her?”

The younger lawyer shrugged. “Personal problems of some kind. Best not to bother her, she’ll probably sort it out.”

Phoenix said nothing in return, his eyebrows drawing together in worry.

Chapter Text

The following Monday, a new case presented itself to the Wright Anything Agency shortly after the doors had opened for the morning, and Phoenix sent his two junior associates off to investigate the crime scene and interview their newest client.

Contentedly watering Charley while contemplating giving the toilet a good scrub in place of Apollo for once, Phoenix was unprepared to hear the door opening once more behind him – he had not expected his fellow lawyers to be back this quickly.

As he turned around, he heard a quiet cough being smothered by a hand, followed by a deep breath, which told him that Athena and Apollo had not returned just yet, after all. Only just catching a glimpse of Juniper Woods letting go of the sunflower in her hair, he faced the girl, wondering what had brought her here on a school day.

“Good morning, Ms. Woods. Is something the matter? You seem nervous.”

Juniper coughed once more. “Good morning… is Apollo in?”

Phoenix resisted the urge to raise an eyebrow. He knew that the girl had a crush on his junior associate, but this did not seem like some sort of courtesy call, considering that she was supposed to be in class at ThemisAcademy at the moment. “Not right now, I’m afraid. He’s on a case with Athena. Is there anything I can help you with?”

Yet another coughing fit shook Juniper, forcing her once again to breathe in the scent of her flower. “”Maybe… Actually, I wanted to talk to him about Thena. I’m kind of worried about her.”

“Worried?” He frowned.

She nodded. “I last met her at the supermarket almost a week ago, and she was behaving really weirdly, as if she didn’t want to talk to me at all… and before she left, she promised that she’d call me, but I haven’t heard from her since.”

Phoenix stilled at the girl’s statement. While it would have been easy to write off her concern as some sort of oversensitive, perceived juvenile slight, her account did not sound like Athena at all, considering her dedication to Juniper in the cases concerning the other girl, and in the way she had talked about their friendship.

“You two haven’t had some sort of argument that might explain her behavior?”

Juniper shook her head, coughing yet again. “Not that I can think of… We’ve been talking on the phone pretty regularly until about a month after that big case where you managed to prove both her and Prosecutor Blackquill innocent, but the only contact I’ve had with her since then was that chance meeting at the store, and we didn’t argue over anything either then or before…”

“Hm.” Phoenix scratched his chin. “She has been kind of tense recently, but that hasn’t been going on long enough to where I’d definitely think that it’s related to your situation. At any rate, I’ll see about talking to her when she gets back from the investigation before we close tonight, okay?”

She nodded gratefully while again smothering a cough. “I’d appreciate that. Thank you very much, Mr. Wright. I’m afraid I have to go now, I’m already late for class.”

After Juniper had closed the door behind her, the proprietor of the Wright Anything Agency could not help but find his concern at what he had learned from the girl growing by the minute.

The last time Athena concealed a major secret from us, even if it was subconsciously, was during that case, and it could have ended badly for everyone involved if I hadn’t somehow managed to uncover it. And then, there’s Apollo with his silly little “sty” story again… Who knows what she is hiding now, and what it means for all of us…?

***

When Simon pushed open the entrance door of the Wright Anything Agency in the late afternoon, Apollo with his eye bandage still wrapped around his head in tow, he was reasonably sure that they would be able to make their case in court tomorrow.

His nightly phone calls to Athena still remained strained, as if their newly-found openness with each other had been shackled by the uncomfortably intimate cloud which now hung over it. He had mostly managed to reclaim outward calmness by rigorously meditating for over an hour before going to sleep at night, in conjunction with judicious application of Athena’s talent when he was at work, but could still sense the turmoil in his own heart loudly and clearly.

Simon was not entirely able suppress his surprise when, as he was about to leave after finishing the necessary paperwork regarding the evidence they had found, Wright called him into his office. “Athena, do you have a minute?”

The discord in his current superior’s voice warned him right away that he was unlikely to find the impending discussion particularly enjoyable, and while he wondered just what this sudden request was about, he was aware that he had no choice but to heed Wright’s call.

Simon entered the study in which the older lawyer spent most of his time, sitting down in the visitor’s chair on the opposite side of the desk.

After a moment of silence, Wright brought up the topic of his inquiry.

“Your friend Juniper was here earlier today. She was concerned because you have suddenly ceased almost all contact with her.”

Simon mentally kicked himself. I completely forgot about her.

Now tapping into Athena’s ability, he projected sheepish dismay. “Oh no, Junie… I’ve had so much stuff going on recently that calling her totally slipped my mind!”

Wright shook his head. “We both know that that isn’t all that’s going on here. I’m very sorry about this, Athena.”

Reaching into his pocket, the agency proprietor retrieved a comma-shaped green stone, holding it out for Simon to behold. He recalled her warning of the item and tried to inconspicuously look away, but found that he suddenly could not move, as if he had been bound to the chair by invisible chains.

“What is it that you’re hiding?”

A strange jolt went through Simon at that question, and he helplessly returned Wright’s suddenly unwavering gaze, unsure how to respond. This is the end.

The lawyer in the blue suit looked him over thoroughly, muttering to himself, “Five of them, huh…? At least they’re not black this time…”

What in blazes is he talking about…? Is this part of the ability Athena mentioned…?

At this point, Simon dimly recalled Athena’s addendum to her explanation of what the green stone could do. He needs evidence, and he has precisely zero items that would give away what is going on with us right now. Let him probe – he will find nothing.

“It’s not important,” he finally responded to the question, flinching when Wright’s gaze sharpened momentarily.

“I don’t believe you,” the older lawyer responded, a hint of steel in his voice.

“However…” he then relented, “I have no way of proving right now just what the problem is.”

Wright removed the comma-shaped stone from his field of vision, and Simon found that he could move again.

“Is there anything I can help you with, Athena? No matter what it is, just let me know, and I’ll try my best to fix it.” The defense attorney now sounded primarily concerned, although the discord born from his suspicion still provided a dissonant undercurrent to his inquiry.

“I’m afraid this is a personal matter no one can really help me with, Mr. Wright,” Simon deflected the offer, knowing that he had no way of even presenting a veiled truth at this juncture.

Wright’s gaze again hardened, and he lifted the stone once more. “In that case, I have to ask: Is the secret you are currently keeping potentially dangerous for the agency or anyone affiliated with it, including current or prior clients?”

To his surprise, Simon realized that he was still able to move even while he could see the strange item, wondering if this was because he was able to give a clear and truthful answer to the question his current superior had posited.

“No, there’s nothing dangerous about it for anyone involved with the agency.”

While Athena’s and his relationship was complicated at the moment, no physical harm was likely to result for either one of them from their current situation, after all.

Wright nodded, the voice of his heart exuding relief, although a measure of discord stubbornly remained.

“In that case, you’re free to go home. Have a good evening – and see about calling Juniper, she’s worried about you.”

The older man stowed the stone in his pocket once more, his facial expression unreadable when Simon nodded. “I will, Mr. Wright. See you tomorrow at court.”

He got up from the visitor’s chair and left as quickly as he could without arousing further suspicion.

***

Phoenix watched Athena leave, still sure that something fishy was going on. At least her statement that whatever it was she refused to talk about this time around was not going to cause them harm had been true. Additionally, her psyche-locks had been their regular red, instead of the cold black locks signifying a repressed, awful truth that was next to impossible to reveal.

Apollo got up from the couch when the door had closed behind her, apparently curious about why he had asked to speak to Athena in his study.

“What’s going on, Mr. Wright?”

“I’m not sure,” Phoenix slowly responded. “Athena has some sort of secret, and it seems that it’s been bothering her for a while. You wouldn’t know anything about that, Mr. I-Have-a-Sty…?”

Apollo cringed a bit, sheepishly removing his bandage. “You got me. Athena’s been pretty tense for a couple of days, and my bracelet started really digging into my arm without disabling one of my eyes… She was the one actually suggesting it, because she didn’t think she could calm down for a while.”

Phoenix raised an eyebrow. “Tell me more.”

His junior associate’s cringe deepened. “I don’t know anything specific, I swear! All she’s told me is that she has recently been trying to reconnect to Prosecutor Blackquill on a personal level, and a few days ago, some sort of a snag happened… she seemed sure that it was only temporary, and she didn’t want to talk about it in depth, so that’s all I can tell you.”

Blackquill, huh…? Of course, Phoenix was aware that his newest employee and the prosecutor shared ties that went back to her childhood, and he supposed that it was not all that surprising that Athena would want to deepen their relationship once more. However, he could not help but feel that there was more to the story than she had let on, both to him and to Apollo.

“In that case, I guess we should just let her try and work things out,” he responded. Still, five psyche-locks…that seems excessive for a simple communication issue, even if it involves that guy…

Chapter Text

That same night, when dutifully calling Athena as per their arrangement even though he was beginning to feel apprehensive every time it was time to do so due to recent developments, Simon told her about the encounter with Wright right away.

“That’s not good,” she stated, the discord in her voice for once not born of their current discomfort with each other. “Can you think of anything he might be able to use against you if he tries again? Because I can promise you that he will, now he knows that you’re hiding something.”

He thought for a moment. “Your colleague saw me coming over to the defense lobby in order to get the stone from you the day before our trade, and an inquiry to Mayor Tenma about the item would yield corroborating testimony as well as evidence. The stone itself is in the police evidence room, and Wright would not be able to access it without good reason. Aura won’t talk, and he would need the same evidence to get the truth out of her as he would in our case. Apollo is the weak point – he witnessed my initial slip-ups and is aware of the stone’s rumored properties. However, he would probably never even dream of suspecting that some sort of unconscious wish initiated a soul exchange between us at that point, and he seems reasonably convinced that I am who I appear to be. I can’t prognosticate what the future might bring in that regard, but we should be safe for a while yet.”

Athena agreed. “There won’t be anything we can do if Mr. Wright somehow manages to ask his way through to Mayor Tenma, particularly since we sent him that message…but up to now, neither he nor Apollo should have a reason to suspect enough of the truth to contact him.”

Agreement in this urgent matter reached, they descended into their by now odiously customary, uncomfortable silence.

“Have there been any new developments at the office?” Simon inquired, more out of a need to say something than anything else; if something interesting had transpired, she probably would have shared by now.

“Nothing really worth mentioning,” Athena replied. “I have to prosecute a hit-and-run manslaughter tomorrow. Prosecutor Gavin told me when he heard about it that he thought your skills were wasted on something this pedestrian, and while I told him that it’s my job, I kind of have to agree.”

As was usual these days, Simon sensed the discord in her heart when they talked about their daily lives, although he found it mildly curious that it did not seem to spike at “Prosecutor Gavin,” as he would have expected given her prior confession, but at “your.” Is she hiding something from me, or is this just additional embarrassment related to the…genital situation?

Knowing that asking further questions in this regard would likely lead to him breaking his word when it came to not inquiring about said genital situation, Simon had to accept that he would not be able to solve this particular riddle.

“We have a new case, ourselves...”

***

Athena won her case easily enough the following day, while Simon and Apollo had to go into another trial day in their court battle against Prosecutor Gavin. Simon had had to resort to using the Mood Matrix for the first time, as the prosecution’s witness seemed to get more and more confused as the cross-examination went on, and while he was not sure that one could term Widget’s function a “therapy session,” as Athena usually did, he managed to straighten out the woman’s muddled memory with the help of the evidence they had obtained, proving that she had not, in fact, seen their client at the scene as she had initially insisted. Gavin might initially seem like a pushover in court, but he apparently could be remarkably dogged when it came to making his case, which was what ultimately ended the day at a stalemate despite his witness’s invalidated testimony. Simon found himself gaining a measure of grudging respect for the man’s prosecutorial prowess, even though he still did not see what Athena found interesting about his pretty-boy looks.

They managed to wrap up the trial the following day with a “Not Guilty” verdict, and Gavin came over to the defense lobby to congratulate him and Apollo on their win, forcing Simon to actually simper about how the man had fought a good fight, himself.

That evening, after briefly talking to Athena, he realized that it would behoove him to contact Juniper Woods, considering that forgetting about the girl in the first place had nearly led to disaster a few days ago. He did vaguely know her from the few times when she had visited Athena during her childhood days while he had also been present, but had absolutely no idea how to handle the conversation. After all, he was not exactly an expert in what Athena would undoubtedly dub “girl talk,” but that could not be helped at this point.

Simon found Juniper’s number in the contacts of her phone, and pushed the “call” button.

“Hello?” The girl’s voice sounded from the little speaker.

Time to, as Aura would put it, ‘get in touch with my feminine side.’

“Hi Junie,” he responded. “I’m so sorry I haven’t called you recently. How are you?”

“Thena! I’m so happy you called!” Juniper enthused. “I’m doing really well! How about you, though? I’m sure you must be very busy…”

Simon heard the girl’s hurt at having been neglected by her friend in the last sentence, and while he certainly had a multitude of reasons for simply forgetting about her, most of them were unfit for mentioning in this context.

“… Yeah, we’ve had a lot of things going on at the agency…”

He knew that this was a weak excuse at best, considering that Juniper had ties to not only Athena, but also Apollo, if the doe eyes she had been making at his current colleague had been any indication. As he had already shared with Apollo that ‘Athena’ was trying to rebuild her connection with ‘Prosecutor Blackquill,’ he figured that it would be safest to let the girl know, as well, lest the two compared notes.

“… and I’ve started talking to Simon again recently. Outside of court, I mean.”

Juniper’s happiness for her friend was palpable. “Oh Thena, that’s so good to hear…You were so happy that day when he got exonerated, but then you were just waiting to meet him again at court… I know you said that you wanted to give him time for things to go back to normal, but I could tell that you were just scared to make the first step. He’s so different now, after all…”

Her last statement held a discordant note of fear – likely of him. Simon could not help but feel somewhat ashamed for the aggressive way he had gone after her in court months ago. Indicting her based on the evidence I received was the right thing to do… but then I was ready to sacrifice her on the double in order to discourage Athena from trying to save me. No wonder she would find me frightening.

“Maybe not as different as he seems at first glance,” he assured her, knowing that Athena would defend him, only to be surprised to hear her childhood friend giggle.

“I remember that he was your first crush when we were kids…is that still going on?”

Simon started. …What?

“It’s not like that,” he quickly responded. “We’re becoming friends again, that’s all!”

Juniper’s voice of the heart spoke volumes: She didn’t believe him one word. “Well, that’s good. And if you ever change your mind about what I just mentioned, and decide to do something about it, I’ll totally cheer you on, even if he kind of scares me.”

The conversation veered off into Juniper’s life at this point, with her relating to Simon how her little band of friends, including the cardboard box girl Myriam, were faring. When he finally managed to extricate himself half an hour later and ended the call, he was still shaken by the girl’s revelation.

I was her ‘first crush,’ and her best friend thinks she might want to ‘do something about it?’

He recalled the spike in Athena’s discord when she had referred to him the day before, as opposed to Gavin. The picture of the dark-haired boy she had been kissing during her days in Europe, who, come to think of it, had resembled a younger version of him. The overdrawn embarrassment upon seeing his intimate parts exposed when she had first needed to go to the bathroom, and again when the problem that currently separated them had occurred.

I cannot allow her to get her hopes up, if she does indeed seek to pursue anything beyond friendship. The mere thought was inappropriate for multiple reasons, and yet, propriety was not the foremost thing on his mind in his considerations. If she did, it – I – would inevitably hurt her once again, Simon thought, mercilessly crushing the hint of sadness evoked by his thoughts under an imaginary boot heel.

Chapter Text

The following days at the office passed in tedium for Athena, now once more unalleviated by the friendly banter she had come to share with Simon before the roundabout talk about masturbation had occurred. In fact, their formerly burgeoning friendship seemed to be rapidly deteriorating once more, seeing that his answers on the phone during their daily talks had become more and more terse, as if he was beginning to consider their conversations a chore. I’m losing him again, and I don’t know how to stop it this time…

It did not help that she was still somehow embarrassed whenever she laid a hand on his cock in order to let off necessary steam, as if she betrayed his trust with every touch, regardless of his prior concessions. Additionally, the need to do so was occurring at a much higher rate than she had initially thought necessary; it was beginning to seem to her that the appendage was possessed, considering that it still decided to get hard at the worst possible times in spite of her attentions.

Oh, she could not help enjoying the resulting release, and had even braved the ever-knowing Internet to learn of methods to add to her stimulation in a futile attempt to reduce the frequency of her urges, even if it made her ears burn. However, implementing the ideas she had found had also not managed to alleviate the fact that she was having a wank at least twice a day when she was alone in his apartment, and still on occasion had to lock her office door and take out the box of Kleenexes she had hidden in the back of his filing cabinet. Her sudden abundance of physical desire was more than a bit ridiculous and, she thought, abnormal.

This can’t just be because he’s been mostly celibate for so long, can it? It must have something to do with me, somehow…Maybe it’s because I’m feeling so alone recently, what with him withdrawing again.

She wished she could find a way to talk to Simon about it and seek his advice once more, but knew that doing so would likely only make matters worse. I should have just dealt with accidental hard-ons by pulling his surcoat closed and thinking about car crashes or something.

Of course, now it was far too late for attempting this course of action; the damage had been done.

Sooner or later, I’m going to have to say something to him, even if it destroys what I thought we’d managed to build. Athena quailed at the thought, particularly since she had absolutely no idea how to bring up the topic again.

Her most recent conversation with Aura a few days ago had also been more than a little strained, Simon’s sister ending their talk prematurely when she had found that Athena was trying her hardest to avoid discussing her little brother for once.

“Trouble in paradise, eh?” she had said before leaving. “Considering the people involved, I probably shouldn’t be too surprised. I guess I was wrong in thinking that you just might be able to handle his stubbornness.”

Athena sighed. I miss you, Simon. How did we manage to screw everything up again, just when I thought that we were regaining what we lost so long ago?

***

By the time the fourth week of their exchange came around, Simon had managed to ruthlessly bring his inner discord back under control enough to where Apollo could stand being around him once more without the eye bandage, mostly by doing exactly what he had sworn not to do and utilizing Athena’s talent to smother it. He was on a mission once more, and he would not allow his own pathetic pining for their prior ease in dealing with each other to stand in the way of carrying it out.

Miyamoto Musashi had it right. “You may abandon your own body, but you must preserve your honor.” While his soul rather than his body was at stake here, the concept still applied: If he had to suffer the loss of his emotional faculties in order to keep Athena from making a fatal mistake, after he had allowed her to draw too close already, it was a sacrifice he was willing to make. His honor demanded it.

Better to sever our connection as much as is possible in our circumstances than to further impose upon her. With his bitter, sarcastic nature, the fear he inflicted on most of her friends, his tendency to keep his own counsel, and last but not least, the fact that he was much too old to associate with her in the carefree manner that he had.

Yours should be a world of silly crushes and spending hours on the phone with your friends, laughing. You are only 18, and it was so easy for me to forget that recently, because you have forced yourself to grow up before your time in your quest to save my worthless hide. I have no place in your world, even if our current conundrum forces me to be in it – and you to be in mine, with only a bird to call your friend.

Having learned about Athena’s juvenile regard for him from the Woods girl, he had reexamined his actions of the last few weeks, his stomach churning when he realized how he had all but invited renewed infatuation, particularly in giving her his permission to sexually relieve herself in his body. I have exploited her and her feelings in order to preserve my reputation and cope with my own situation. I have lusted after her. If Metis knew that her daughter harbored this kind of attachment to someone who was an adult while she was still but a child half his age, and of the inappropriate liberties I have recently taken, she would rightfully strike me down.

He still kept his original promise of calling her daily, even though he privately thought that it would be best to abandon this practice, lest he accidentally encouraged her yet again. He managed to ignore the pain in her voice by tamping down on his own emotional response in this setting, as well.

“Do not, under any circumstances, depend on a partial feeling. Resentment and complaint are appropriate neither for oneself nor others.” I must prevail.

Focused thusly on avoiding the woman whose body he now inhabited, he was unprepared to deal with an excess of discord from a source he had least expected.

***

Thursday afternoon, Simon found himself alone at the agency, as Wright and Apollo had left for the detention center to interview a client the older man knew personally and thus wanted to defend, himself.

He looked up from Widget’s screen when the door opened, already aware of who it most likely was as the wall clock was approaching 3:30 PM. As expected, Trucy walked in, but he sensed immediately that something was wrong.

The girl’s face was drawn, her eyes shining with unshed tears. The blue top hat she always wore sat on her head at such a crooked angle that it threatened to fall off at any moment, and her movements were listless.

Simon dismissed the screen and redirected his full attention toward Trucy.

“What’s going on?”

His concerned tone seemed to loosen the hold Wright’s adopted daughter had had on her distraught feelings so far; she dropped her bag, ran over to the couch where Simon was seated, and in the next instant, her head was in his lap as she began to cry.

Chapter Text

Simon was not entirely unversed in dealing with weeping girls, even if it had been a while – he had had some practice in it from when Athena had occasionally burst into frustrated tears during her childhood days. Granted, she had been a few years younger than Trucy was now, but the principal steps were likely to be the same.

He lowered his ungloved left hand to her hair, which was now free of the top hat, as it had fallen from her head when she had first leaned over towards him, now lying forgotten next to him on the couch. First of all, try to calm her down.

After a few minutes of wordlessly stroking her hair in what he hoped was a soothing manner, Trucy’s breathing began to even out. Simon wished that Wright was here to take over at this point, considering that this was not any of his business, whatever it was, but it seemed that, for the moment, he was stuck with whatever had made her so distraught.

“Do you want to talk about it?” he inquired, hoping that he gave off the right balance of concern and wiggle room for the girl to not feel pressured.

Trucy pushed herself up to a sitting position, wiping her face. “Sorry about that, Athena,” she said quietly, sadness still evident in her heart.

“Don’t worry about it,” Simon simply returned, knowing that asking her once more about the reason for her tears at this point would be too pushy.

The girl was silent for a short while, gazing unseeingly toward the window. He had rarely experienced Trucy in any emotional mode other than jaunty exuberance, although he assumed that these instances did have to happen on occasion – she was a teenager, after all.

Finally, she said, “There’s this guy in my class… his name is Jake. For the last few weeks, he’s been watching me practice my tricks at recess, and he even promised that he’d come see one of my shows at the Wonder Bar. But today, when I was showing my newest illusion at the cafeteria, he wasn’t there.”

Trucy took a shaky breath. “I ran into him later and asked him why didn’t come and watch this time. He was really cold and told me that my tricks were stupid, and that he didn’t wanna talk to me anymore.”

Simon fought the urge to roll his eyes. Of course. High school drama. Just my luck. He refused to acknowledge the quiet, semi-unconscious self-admonishment in his mind that her situation sounded disconcertingly familiar.

His first instinct was to simply denigrate the boy in order to make her feel better, but he could detect in her voice that she still harbored regard for him in spite of his slight, making this the wrong move.

He eventually settled on asking, “Do you have any idea why he suddenly changed his mind about your tricks?”

Trucy shook her head. “I dunno, but he seemed really tense when he said it… I wish I could take you to school with me so you could maybe use your Mood Matrix on him or something…”

Oh hell no. Do not drag me into this. While Simon was willing to aid in restoring the girl’s emotional equilibrium, particularly since she generally was an amusing person to have around, he would not wade into the morass of high school social life again unless it was for an official case.

“That wouldn’t be ethical, Trucy, and you know it,” he gently tried to deter her from entertaining any more thoughts about that particular topic.

Trucy pouted half-heartedly. “Ethical, shmethical…”

Choosing to see her statement as an attempt at humor, Simon continued, “Maybe this is about something really stupid. Maybe his friends have been making fun of him, and he thinks he needs to play the tough guy so they’ll stop. Teens can be idiots like that sometimes.”

The girl shrugged, tone still glum. “I guess… but it still wasn’t very nice of him.”

She had a point there. “Try to talk to him again in a few days, see if he’ll apologize,” Simon ventured to suggest.

Trucy’s eyes suddenly gained an almost unholy sparkle. “Is that what you’re waiting for with Prosecutor Blackquill…?” she asked, and while it was good to hear some of her usual spunk returning to her voice as well as her heart, Simon grimaced at her choice of subject matter. I see Apollo has been running his mouth. Just grand.

“Not a good topic right now, Trucy,” he returned grimly.

The girl’s expression, which had livened up at her inquiry, stilled once more. “Okay, sorry ‘bout that.”

They sat in silence for a moment. When Trucy spoke up again, it was to make a suggestion. “Hey, Athena… since we’re both kinda mad at guys right now, do you want to have a girl’s night? Just the two of us, a few buckets of ice cream, and cheesy romance movies…?”

Before Simon had any chance of refusing the invitation, vehemently or otherwise, he realized that the door had opened and Wright and Apollo had returned.

Trucy, true to her regular self, instantly jumped up and gave her adoptive father a hug. “Hey Daddy, can Athena stay over for a bit tonight?”

Simon mentally recoiled at the fact that he had apparently just been volunteered for her idea, no matter his own preferences, but a look at how Wright carefully scrutinized his daughter’s face and apparently saw her distress made him rethink any half-hearted objections he might have been able to present. She is something of an office mascot, and I would rather not be the linchpin in Wright losing his case tomorrow because he is too preoccupied with worrying about her.

Additionally, it would be out-of-character for Athena to refuse aiding a friend in distress, and after the incident with the stone in Wright’s study he did not dare add to the man’s suspicion of him.

How bad could watching a few undoubtedly awful movies while partaking in sugary desserts be?

Wright predictably turned toward him next, his arm still around Trucy’s shoulder. “I have no problem with that, as long as Athena is all right with it…?”

By now thinking that it might be a good way to distract himself from his own troubles, always speaking that he could keep the girl from trying to have a heart-to-heart with him about ‘Prosecutor Blackquill,’ Simon gestured that it was no issue. “I don’t have to go to court tomorrow, and I’ll leave before she has to go to bed.”

Wright grinned at his statement, although his response also contained a thread of relief. “In that case, I hope you girls have fun. We still have black cherry, walnut, and chocolate in the freezer – will that be enough, or do you want anything else…?”

Chapter Text

Simon would come to curse his impulsivity before the Wright Anything Agency closed its doors for the day. A ‘girl’s night?’ Really, Simon? You must have gone completely batty recently to have agreed to this. Aura would have a field day with you if she knew.

He still tried to tell himself that it could not possibly be that terrible, considering that Trucy had school tomorrow and he would easily be able to return home before midnight. And yet, the Wright girl possessed an almost preternatural insight into people sometimes, which might prove dangerous. He was not sure if she, like the other agency members, had some sort of ability in that regard, but considering the already extraordinary nature of this law-office-cum-talent-agency, he would not be surprised at this juncture.

At 5 PM sharp, Apollo left, muttering something about having to meet with Prosecutor Gavin. Simon wondered for a minute whether it was about the matter Athena had learned from Pretty Boy a while ago, but ultimately thought that it was really not any of his business if the man managed to gain absolution from Wright.

Trucy’s father excused himself for the evening shortly thereafter, as well, telling her that he was visiting Chief Prosecutor Edgeworth. His interest perked up at the seemingly commonplace announcement when the girl chirped, “Say hi to Uncle Miles for me, daddy!”

Hm. I was aware that they are well-acquainted with each other, and meeting each other during their private time does not seem too out of the ordinary, either. But if Trucy calls the chief prosecutor “Uncle Miles,” they must be closer than I am aware of at this point.

He was still considering digging into the background of the two men to satisfy his curiosity when Trucy grabbed his arm.

“We have the place to ourselves – what are we waiting for…?”

***

About fifteen minutes later, Simon found himself sitting cross-legged on the girl’s bed, a gallon tub of cheap store-brand chocolate ice cream sitting next to him, while Trucy busied herself with her desktop computer, signing into a streaming service she apparently regularly used.

“Any particular wishes?” she threw at him over her shoulder.

I suppose this is probably not the venue for my usual fare. Simon had very little interest in romantic movies of any sort, and he doubted that a suggestion of watching the Steel Samurai would be warmly received. “Nothing comes to mind. You pick.” It’s your pity party, after all.

He took a spoonful of the ice cream, savoring its sweetness. It has been a while.

Trucy scrolled through the available options for a while longer, on the verge of picking her poison more than once, until she finally settled on the 1992 version of “Dracula” directed by Francis Ford Coppola.

Simon raised an eyebrow at her choice. This counts as a ‘cheesy romantic movie?’ Did they redefine genres while I was in the clink, or is she just being strange?

Noticing the introductory rating marquee, he felt obliged to ask, “Is it okay with Mr. Wright if you watch an R-rated movie…?”

Trucy just giggled. “Daddy doesn’t care, and I’m almost 17, anyway. Also, I’ve seen this one before, so it’s not like I’m gonna be shocked by any of the stuff in it.”

Simon had not seen this particular work, as supernatural tales were also not exactly on his radar, but he figured that it could not be too explicit in the probably included horror scenes if the girl had watched it before, and that it was not his problem as long as Wright did not lodge any complaints at him later.

“Go ahead, then.”

He took another spoonful of the ice cream as Trucy settled down next to him on the bed, her own tub of black cherry flavored frozen dessert balanced on her legs.

“So, d’you wanna talk about the deal with Prosecutor Blackquill now, seeing that no one’s gonna interrupt? You’ve been really tense for about a week now…”

Simon made a face. Of course she would get straight back to that topic.

“Not really.”

Trucy pouted. “Aww, come on, Athena! This isn’t a proper girl’s night if we don’t talk about the guys we’re peeved with, and you do want to help me forget about my own troubles, don’t you…?”

He had to smirk in spite of himself. Hmph. And they call me the ‘Master Manipulator…?’

Trying to frame their situation in the most general terms possible, he sought reassurance first. “You won’t breathe a word of this to your Daddy or Apollo, all right?”

Trucy drew her thumb and forefinger across her mouth. “My lips are sealed. Promise, promise!”

Simon sighed. I maneuvered myself into this position. Time to pay the piper.

“A week ago, I agreed to him doing something… fairly private, and although I said yes at the time, it’s now a bit hard to digest for me. And no, I won’t tell you any specifics.”

Trucy eyed him with a disturbingly single-minded sort of interest after he had finished his vague explanation. “You didn’t fuck him, did you…?”

Only now, Simon realized how his statement must have come across. Bravo, Simon, really smooth.

“Good god no!” he exclaimed, ears burning.

The girl just shrugged. “I wouldn’t blame you for wanting to. He’s pretty cute, in an angsty, ‘I-haven’t-slept-in-ages’ sort of way, as long as he’s not threatening to lop your head off or sending his bird after you.”

Simon was a hair’s breadth away from excusing himself at that point. Cute…? What the bloody fucking hell is wrong with this child? 

He was starting to wonder whether he had some sort of perverse animal magnetism, only that it somehow attracted inappropriately young girls, instead.

Leaving is not an option. The last thing I need right now is Trucy starting to realize something strange is going on, as well.

“Can we please talk about something else?” he tried to stave off any further conversation about his own cuteness, shoving another spoonful of ice cream into his mouth in order to mask his sudden nervousness.

Trucy shrugged once more. “Sure, whatever. I’ll be waiting for the happy announcement. Until then, let’s watch our movie.”

Chapter Text

The film started with a long scene in which the titular character went to battle in order to subdue the invading Ottomans, followed by a stylized depiction of multiple impalings. Simon was not sure at this juncture whether he should be relieved that this movie was clearly not some sentimental feel-good story, or bewildered at Trucy considering this a “romance.” The latter feeling only deepened when the wife of Dracula committed suicide upon receiving malicious false news of her husband’s demise.

“I thought you wanted to watch a romantic movie…?” he now felt the need to inquire.

Trucy grinned. “It totally is, even if there are some horror bits, too. Keep watching, you’ll like it!”

Simon severely doubted that, but internally shrugged at himself. It could be worse.

Realizing that he should probably ask the girl about her own troubles as this was a ‘girl’s night’ and Trucy had already afforded him the dubious courtesy of talking to him about ‘Prosecutor Blackquill,’ he formulated his question while partaking in another spoonful of chocolate ice cream.

“How did you start talking to this Jake guy?”

Trucy sighed; despite her good humor earlier, she was obviously still affected by the boy’s rejection.

“About a month ago, he just came over to talk to me after I’d shown some friends a trick and told me it was really cool, and that he’d love to know how I did it. I said that I couldn’t reveal that, since a magician never reveals her tricks, and I was really surprised when he said that he totally understood that. Since then, he’s always been watching and clapping when I showed off something new… until today, that is.”

Simon nodded. “I don’t know him, of course, but it sounds more and more to me as though this is just a temporary problem. Wait and see whether things work out, and if he keeps his current distance, he’s probably not worth your time, anyway.”

Just like I am not worth Athena’s time, it flashed through his mind, and he immediately crushed the thought.

I am not some sort of pining teenager, and this is not about me. Enough.

Trucy had thought about his words for a minute, and when she now responded, the voice of her heart had gained some strength. “Well, if our resident psychology expert says so… I’ll give it a shot.”

Then, she eyed the tub of chocolate ice cream by Simon’s side. “Wanna trade flavors?”

The movie had by now introduced the fiancée of English salesman Jonathan Harker, who currently resided with the aristocratic Westenra family. When Wilhelmina Murray’s friend Lucy was introduced, Simon could once more not help thinking about the young woman (girl) whose body he now inhabited, for the actress had the same red hair, the same blue eyes, and the same slim build.

Trucy seemed to notice the resemblance, as well. “Wow, I never realized how much she looked like you.”

After this introductory passage, the plot sought to clarify Dracula’s nature as a vampire through his interactions with Harker, and with the latter’s first encounter with the count’s three bloodsucking brides. Soon, they began kissing and tonguing the male visitor as well as each other, and Simon was aghast at the displayed eroticism. She has seen this before? At what age…?

While not overtly pornographic aside from the three women’s bare breasts, the sensuality this movie portrayed was somehow even more affecting than actual porn would be, and for the first time in weeks, he felt liquid heat pooling in his lower abdomen.

Trucy took one look at his crestfallen expression and snickered, “Don’t be such an old maid, Athena! It gets a lot more interesting in a bit…”

And that it did. Simon watched incredulously as, in a scene shortly thereafter, Dracula arrived in London, tempting Lucy to leave her bedroom in a diaphanous red robe in the middle of a storm, only to take her while in half-beast form on a stone altar in front of the family mausoleum. When, after repeated assaults by the count, the young, red-haired woman had almost completely turned into a monster herself, the vampire hunter Abraham van Helsing and her male acquaintances found her squirming on her bed, one hand moving between her legs, one perfect breast exposed…

I should not be watching this. Not here, not now, not ever.

At this point, Simon was uncomfortably aware of the wetness between his legs, but that alone would probably be ignorable. What was worse was that, when acutely aroused, the skin all over Athena’s body seemed to become exceedingly sensitive, much more so than his own would in the same state. Every brush against the fabric of his clothing, every disturbance of air seemed to reach his nerve endings and set them on fire. And yet, he was too mesmerized to look away at this point.

He managed to regain his composure somewhat when the vampire ended up completely turning Lucy, necessitating her staking and beheading by the male characters, and the the return to London of the rather forgettable Mr. Harker, whom Mina had married abroad.

Just at this moment, a text message from Athena arrived on her phone.

To: Athena Cykes
From: Simon Blackquill

Busy with something?

The way Simon’s eyebrows drew together at reading the text apparently told Trucy immediately just who had sent it.

“From him, huh? Can I see?”

He shook his head sharply while typing up a reply. “He’s just being a nosy bastard.”

To: Simon Blackquill
From: Athena Cykes

Yes. Unexpected delay, do not know for how long. Will call tomorrow.

The girl shook her head at him when he shoved the phone back into Athena’s bag. “You two should really just get it on already and get it over with.”

“Trucy.” Simon’s tone now held a clear warning that this topic would not be discussed any further.

She raised her hands to appease him, although the voice of her heart clearly indicated that she had not exactly changed her mind. “Okay, okay, I’ll stop.” Then, she left the room to put the now rapidly melting ice cream back into the freezer.

On the screen, the men had now figured out that Dracula resided at Carfax Abbey, going there to exorcize the vampire by scattering the native soil he had brought with him and staking him, but their target had flown the coop.

In fact, at that very moment, he was visiting Mina Harker in her sleep. The young woman woke, and after Dracula confessed his nature and deeds to her, she still professed her love to him, begging him to turn her with the words, “I want to be what you are, see what you see, love what you love.” After sinking his sharpened teeth into her neck and initially allowing her access to a wound on his chest, which he himself had created in order to feed her his blood and turn her, Dracula attempted to stop her from partaking, stating that he loved her too much to let her change into an undead monster. And yet, Mina insisted on being with him until he relented, the young woman licking and sucking on his chest until the vampire seemed to have what closely resembled an orgasm.

Simon had to press his lips together in order to not let any noises that would betray his condition escape.

He tapped into Athena’s ability, but only managed to suppress some of the tumultuous currents in his heart, as they were tied directly to a more physical component he could not seem to will back under his control. By now, his underwear was soaked.

When he finally emerged from his semi-futile attempts at regaining his equilibrium once more, Trucy had returned and the movie was nearing its end, Dracula having taken Mina, who was apparently a reincarnation of his beloved wife, back to Transylvania. Eventually, the young woman was asked by the vampire to set him free, and she ran him through with the blade that was already stuck in his chest, beheading him after kissing him one last time.

As the credits started rolling, Wright’s daughter turned to him with an impish expression.

“So, what do you say, romantic or not…?”

Simon did his best to contain his fluster, which was nevertheless likely evident in his expression.

“I guess so, in some ways…”

At this point, every fiber of his body screamed for a cold shower.

“I should probably go home now, since I have to man the office by myself tomorrow,” he continued. Also, if Wright comes home and catches me in my current state, I will have a lot to answer for.

Trucy seemed to realize that that was not the only reason for his desire to leave, as she threw him a positively evil grin. “Okay, I’ll see you tomorrow, then. Thanks for staying over for a while. I’ll let you know what happens with Jake.”

Affecting obliviousness to her expression, Simon nodded. “Good luck with that. See you tomorrow.”

He got up from the bed and willed himself to leave the girl’s room and the office at a measured stride. It was only when he reached the street corner after exiting the building that he gave in to his urge to flee.

Chapter Text

On his way home, Simon attempted to regain his shattered composure, only to find that it was impossible, even with the cool winter air biting at his skin. Snippets of the movie stubbornly reasserted themselves in his mind, interspersed with mental images of his own design.

Lucy Westenra writhing on her bed, only for a trick of the light showing her face as the one that was currently his own (Athena’s).

Mina Harker’s tongue laving at Dracula’s chest, only for the vampire’s long hair to turn black with a telltale white patch, and the dark-haired young woman’s to turn the same shade of red Lucy’s (Athena’s) was.

“I want to be what you are, see what you see, love what you love.”

No.

This balderdash has nothing to do with reality. I will not give in to this sentimental drivel.

Yet, his mental images kept plaguing him all the way back to her apartment.

The outer layer of his epidermis felt seared at this point, both because of the frigid air and because his skin was uncomfortably sensitive once more.

Cold. Shower. Now.

He began to undress the moment he had closed and locked the apartment door behind himself, trembling at the tiniest contact his fingertips had to make with the remainder of his body. When he removed the sopping scrap of underwear and his nails lightly scraped against the taut skin near his pelvic bone, he was wracked by a violent shiver.

Looking down on himself, equal parts dismayed and aroused, he realized once more that Athena as she was now could be a doppelganger of the actress who had played Lucy Westenra in the film, almost two decades before she had been born, and almost one decade before his own birth.

Silky skin, curved enticingly outwards on each side of his chest, both soft mounds punctuated by a rosy bud of a nipple…

Long, firm legs, slim enough to not overtly betray their strength…

Long red hair, though not curly as that of the actress, tendrils of it tickling the now nearly painfully sensitive nape of his neck…

A shuddering breath.

Before he knew what he was doing, he divested himself of the cybernetic half-glove that was Widget’s interface unit, reaching down to test the moisture between his legs for the first time.

When the tip of his finger breached his (her) body this time, unlike the numerous times he had had to exchange a tampon during prior occasions, his knees nearly buckled at the contact. The same touch, and yet so very different…

Stop this at once. This is wrong.

He flinched when his fingertip, now slick with the wetness her body had produced, accidentally brushed his clitoris upon withdrawing, at which point the traitorous part of himself, which seemed completely detached from his better judgment, decided to speak up.

She is doing this to your body, maybe right this very moment. You never decided on a rule about masturbation together, and she already has your permission to do so. Besides, the situation is unlikely to get any more embarrassing than it already is, since you have had to touch her body everywhere it matters for other purposes, anyway.

For once, Simon could not find a sufficient counterargument to ward off the temptation. His need was imperative, and no amount of time under ice-cold water would be able to staunch it at this point.

A mere few seconds later, he was stretched out on Athena’s living room couch, fingertips hesitantly moving across his breasts, surprised at the extraordinary sensitivity of the slightly darker, now puckered skin of his nipples.

His right hand all but automatically moved down between his legs again, middle finger diving inside once more, only to deliberately drag over the center of his pleasure after slickening itself with the essence of Athena’s body.

“Hngh…”

His inadvertent vocalization only managed to spurn him on; while he knew intellectually that it had been he who had uttered it, his mind supplied him with an image of Athena writhing underneath his own body, pressing herself against him.

Repeating the motion which had caused him to emit that first groan, his spine arched, pushing his right breast into the free hand he had thrown across his chest, which seemed to only have waited for the renewed contact.

He grabbed the enticing mound a little too tightly, flinching at the minuscule pain he could currently register while still reveling in the touch, his right hand now roughly rubbing at the almost aching arousal between his legs.

The arch of his back increased to an almost impossible-seeming extent as his thumb and forefinger closed around the perky, rosy bud still in his peripheral vision, his eyes sliding shut. Now, he envisioned himself driving into her as fast as humanly possible, above her, underneath her, from behind her, as two of his fingers plunged into the warm slickness while his thumb still drew clumsy yet irresistible circles just above the now-filled emptiness inside him.

The sound of his own voice (Athena’s voice) uttering his passion in escalating moans was simultaneously nearly mute and deafening beyond measure, his own heart betraying his lust to his ears and yet mistaking it for hers.

In his mind’s eye, he clutched her to himself as he stiffened, finding release deep inside her body.

That last mental image was all it took for Simon to lurch violently, his hand stilling as he felt his insides clenching tightly around his fingers, mouth falling open in a wordless outcry.

He dimly registered how long it took for him to relax from the sudden paroxysm of pleasure to which he had just succumbed; apparently, the female orgasm was a lot more momentous than its male counterpart.

Finally, he fell back, spreading bonelessly on the couch while dropping his hands to his sides. The aftershocks of his climax continued for a few minutes, and he found himself unable to think about much of anything as endorphins flooded his body.

Only after his breathing pattern had reasonably stilled, and the haze of pleasure was lifting as the moist result of his orgasm began to make itself apparent by cooling against the skin of his inner thighs, his ability to reason became functional once more, immediately presenting him with harsh judgment.

I have exploited her yet again.

Simon closed his eyes, lifting his right hand to his face, only to be faced with the dangerously illicit, intimate scent of the woman he had forbidden himself to touch and yet had so egregiously trespassed upon mere minutes ago.

I will never be able to forgive myself for this.

In an entirely futile attempt to regain his dignity, he partook in a cold shower now, even though he knew that it was not sufficient penance for what he had just allowed himself to do.

Chapter Text

The following day, Athena entered Simon’s office in a somber mood. After Taka, who had swooped down onto her shoulder about halfway on her way here as every morning, had taken off for his perch on the high shelf behind the desk, she sat, miserably staring at the grain of the wooden surface.

He blew me off last night, just like that, without even telling me why, and I haven’t heard from him since, even though he knows I’m not exactly an early sleeper. What’s going on, Simon? What have I done for you to withdraw like this again…?

Could this really just be embarrassment because he knew she masturbated? That would be more than a little ridiculous of him by this point. So, what exactly was the reason, then? Athena could think of nothing she had said or done that warranted ending the burgeoning friendship they had just begun to enjoy.

She made a decision. If he doesn’t call me tonight, I will bug him until he picks up the phone, and then we’re going to have it out, one way or the other. I don’t want to go on like this any longer.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a short knock on the door.

“Come in,” Athena called, nodding to the secretary as she entered with a stack of papers.

“Good morning, Prosecutor Blackquill. Nothing of import for you yet… oh, and this flyer came through intra-office mail.”

She placed the gaudy orange announcement on top of the regular white clutch of forms, threw her a small smile, and left.

After the woman had closed the door behind her, Athena reached for the colorful sheet of paper, wondering just what was being advertised. This place isn’t exactly one for office parties or the like, as stiff and formal as it is most of the time.

She scanned the text.

PROSECUTOR’S OFFICE GYM – TRYOUT MONTH

In our current bid to reduce our collective health insurance premiums, the gym in the basement will be free to use until March 15^th for prosecutors not currently paying dues. Join your colleagues in their endeavor to strive for a healthy body alongside a sharp mind!

- Exercise dress and dedicated, light-soled shoes required

- $1 locker rental (refundable)

- Open Mon – Fri, 6 AM – 10 PM

Athena snorted. They have a gym in the basement? I’d say that’s ridiculous, but considering that the job mostly consists of paper-pushing, I can see how their premiums could skyrocket without it.

Only now, she realized that she had not done much in the way of exercise (or, to be entirely frank, none at all) since she had begun calling this body her own, and began feeling a little guilty. Simon had been out to run semi-regularly according to his own words, and she was repaying his diligence by slowly but surely letting his muscles go to pudding.

Additionally, she recalled his words regarding exercise being helpful for some in regaining control of inappropriate arousal, and while he had indicated that he was not one of those men, she thought an attempt certainly could not hurt, as her physical needs had not exactly waned in recent days.

I’ll give it a try – if nothing else, I’ll at least get a workout in and have one less thing to feel guilty about.

***

During her lunch break, Athena left the building to visit a second-hand clothing store nearby, but far enough away from the office that she would not be spotted by any of his colleagues. She was a little doubtful that they would have much that would fit a man of Simon’s tall stature, but ended up finding a simple black t-shirt and a pair of track pants in the same color, except for the two parallel white stripes running up and down the outside of the legs, both items still with their original tags on them – possibly a Christmas present gone wrong.

Shoes were a bit harder to find as the selection was smaller, but finally she happened upon a pair that did not painfully pinch her toes or heels and featured a translucent tan layer on the bottom of each sole. Together with a simple black drawstring bag, her purchases only ran up a twenty-dollar bill, and she was satisfied that she had managed to locate appropriate and unflashy attire so quickly. Ripping the tags off and stuffing the clothes into the bag, she made her way back to the office, stopping only to grab a quick sandwich before lunchtime was over.

***

No case came her way for the remainder of her work hours, but for once, Athena was not too heartbroken about the lack of work. She was actually looking forward to a bit of physical exertion, and going on an investigation would have delayed her in her newest endeavor.

She walked down to the entrance door, bag in hand, and let Taka fly outside, the bird understanding that it was time to return to his nest. Then, she entered the elevator and selected the basement level.

When the doors opened again, she was impressed: It seemed that the gym took up the entire basement floor in a mostly open-plan setup, featuring exercise machines, two tennis courts and two basketball courts, with a narrow running track winding along the walls.

Noticing a sign with an arrow hanging on a wall nearby, Athena then realized that there was a little snag in her plan. In order to change, I’m gonna have to use the men’s locker rooms… While most male prosecutors she was familiar with did nothing for her, she hoped beyond hope that the few specimens she did find reasonably attractive would not make a semi-nude appearance during her time in there.

Resigning herself to having to do this if she wanted to exercise and choosing to frame it as a personal challenge, she began walking into the direction the sign had indicated.

The lockers in the brightly-lit room were arranged in a conjoined T formation, with two rows jutting out back-to-back every six feet or so, lined by benches for guests to sit and change. At the moment, few men were present. Athena found herself a free locker at the back of the room, where no one was currently changing, and shrugged out of her surcoat and vest. Next, she made short work of her tie and unbuttoned her shirt. After her torso was bare, she took the time to fold everything up orderly, and placed the items in the lockable storage space.

At that point, her tenuous privacy had apparently run its course, as an unpleasant nasal voice behind her cooed, “Well well well, would you look at the gun show!”

Athena turned around and sneered at Gaspen Payne.

“I was not aware that being scrawny was a requirement to use these facilities.”

Payne was about as tall as she was when in her own body, and Simon could probably break the man over one knee without even trying, considering that the middle-aged prosecutor’s regular suit seemingly was mostly there to hide spindly arms and an upper body which clearly showed every single rib in disturbing detail. The only part of him that did not remind her of a drowned chicken was his paunch. All of this was highlighted by a too-tight red muscle shirt. His hair, odd-looking at the best of times, now stuck up in all directions, not exactly aided by the sweatband of the same color on his brow. A pair of baby-blue shorts, which looked on him as though he had to secure it with extra string in order to not fall out of it, completed the ensemble.

For a moment, Athena was actually impressed by the man’s bravado. I certainly wouldn’t come up to someone who’s mostly a stranger in a locker room and make sarcastic comments about their physique if it was one hell of a lot fitter than my own.

However, Payne was apparently not finished antagonizing her yet. “Not that you didn’t have enough time to work on those muscles, what with sitting in jail and mooching from the state for years, while some of us have been on the outside doing our jobs… rookie.”

That does it. Athena was done with indulging the jerk, particularly if he had the gall to call a man who had almost been executed in spite of being innocent a “moocher.” The derision when he had called her “rookie” just now, just like that which he had displayed months ago when she had attempted to defend Junie by herself, told her enough to hit him where it hurt even without the benefit of her hearing.

“If you think it is such a vacation, maybe a little stint in the clink would do wonders for both your build and your odious personality, Payne,” she improvised, an insolent grin on her face. “In there, they don’t take too kindly to powerless little men who need to puff themselves up and point toward their seniority at all times in order to feel like they matter more than they actually do.”

Someone one locker row over began snickering as the ridiculously-clad prosecutor stomped off, and Athena, satisfied with herself, finished changing.

When she was about to leave the locker room, walking past the rows of lockers without paying too much attention to the other people present, a familiar voice called after her, “Herr Blackquill, wait!”

Chapter Text

Athena turned to face Prosecutor Gavin, who was dressed in gym clothes very similar to her own, only that his shirt was sleeveless.

“Gavin-dono,” she greeted neutrally, inclining her head.

“I was wondering,” the blond man continued, an easy smile on his face, “whether you would join me in a game of hoops for a bit of a warm-up, as I can’t seem to find any volunteers at the moment.”

Athena had lovedplaying basketball with her friends during her time as a university student, and realized that she had been eyeing the courts most of all when she had first emerged from the elevator. She was unsure whether this was something Simon would do, although she had the sneaking suspicion that he would not, but in the absence of firm evidence, she decided to take Gavin up on his offer, anyway.

“Far be it from me to deny you a trouncing,” she announced, lips quirking upward.

The rock star laughed at her taunt. “That’s the spirit!”

As they walked down the corridor towards the courts, he quietly continued, “I have taken your advice and contacted Herr Justice in the matter we discussed. An appointment has been made.”

Not sure what to respond to that, Athena nodded her understanding, which was apparently all Gavin required, as he did not speak up again until they had reached their destination and he had procured a ball from a small cart standing nearby.

“Ready when you are, Herr Blackquill,” he then stated, dribbling the ball as he walked toward the middle of the court.

Athena made an inviting gesture, a combative grin on her face. “Go for it.”

Gavin started running without any further warning, evading her as he made for the basket he had apparently decided was for her to defend, and she immediately followed. They reached the area underneath the hoop at roughly the same time, and Athena propelled herself upward to block the ball when the blond man attempted to dunk it. The ball sailed over both their heads toward the other side, and she chased it as soon as her feet hit the ground once more, her split-second head start enabling her to close her hands on it moments later. Then, Gavin was behind her, attempting to reach into her space and bat the ball out of her hands, but she managed to feign him out and ran off towards his hoop, smothering the delighted laugh bubbling up in her throat.

She had missed the feeling of a heart rate elevated by friendly physical competition, the way her muscles felt alive when they were put to good use in this manner, and maybe even breaking a sweat that, for once, had not resulted from fear or arousal.

Not only that, as Simon was a lot taller than her and even had a few inches on Gavin, and as his jumping prowess was surprisingly good, she felt confident that she could give her current opponent a run for his money, even if he was obviously quite well-versed in the game, himself.

She reached the area underneath the net and leaped, her right arm with the ball outstretched, and brought her hand down to the rim of the basket when she had reached high enough, hanging on it for a second. The ball cleanly went through the net and bounced off her chest before she let go.

Gavin stood a few feet away, clapping as her the soles of her shoes reconnected with the ground.

“Very good, Herr Blackquill. It’s been a while since I’ve had a worthwhile opponent.”

Athena retorted, “Less jabbering, more playing,” a broad grin still firmly on her face.

Oh yeah, coming here was totally worth it.

***

They continued for about twenty more minutes without keeping any sort of score, although if they had, it probably would have been very close – Athena had no idea which one of them had managed to get the ball through the hoops more often. She was pleased to find that she was not as winded as she had feared she would be by the time Gavin called the game – apparently, sitting on her behind for a solid month had not turned Simon’s body into a wreck just yet.

After sauntering over to the water fountain, where both rehydrated and splashed a bit of water on their foreheads, Athena combing her fringe out of her eyes with her fingers to avoid getting sweat into them, the blond prosecutor inquired, “If you don’t have any other plans, could I bother you for a few more minutes to assist me in some bench presses? I will return the favor.”

Athena had never worked with weights of this size before, making her a little unsure about this, but in the end, confidence in her current upper body strength led her to agree. Considering Simon managed to break the chains he was forced to wear in court without breaking a sweat more than once, I should be able to lift whatever he presses off of him if something goes wrong.

Gavin strode over to a bench situated near a mirror wall, and she stifled a laugh. Narcissism Central.

Next to the wall, weight plates of different sizes were stacked up neatly, and the blond prosecutor slowly retrieved them one by one until he had assembled 220 lbs on the provided bar. Then, he laid down on the bench, smiling up at her. “If you could stabilize this while I’m getting a good grip...”

She nodded and did as he asked, momentarily bearing the brunt of the weight when aiding Gavin in lifting the bar off the holding hooks. Athena was surprised when it was heavy, to be sure, but not overwhelmingly so, at least not short-term.

If I tried doing this in my own body, I would maybe manage half this much. She actually found herself curious just how much strength she could eke out of Simon’s muscles.

The prosecutor slowly went through four sets of reps, calling on her to help him haul the bar back on the hooks inbetween. Finally, he sat up, legs hanging down on each side of the bench, and stretched.

“Your turn,” Gavin smiled while getting up. When she did not move to sit or alter the weight on the bar right away, his easy expression flickered for a moment. “Oh, I suppose you have not had a chance to gauge what weight to use recently? Maybe you should start with what’s on there right now, and adjust as necessary.”

Athena nodded her assent, grateful for the save, and assumed the same position her current exercise companion had before, making sure to firmly grasp the silver length of steel with both hands while the prosecutor assisted her in lifting it out of its resting position.

The weight came to rest against the middle of her chest, and she carefully placed her elbows to avoid slipping off to one side before forcing it upward. Trying the same thing once more, she called for Gavin to put it back on the hooks.

“I believe a bit more would be appropriate,” she stated, unsure of what kind of incremental increase she should ask for.

The blond man laughed. “Ja, I expected that, seeing that your frame is more solid than mine… shall we try another 30 pounds? That should not be too much for you – nein, stay on the bench, I’ll get it.”

A short while later, everything was in preparation, and Athena once more lowered the bar to her chest with Gavin’s aid, ensuring that her grip was sure, and pushed up.

The weight was quite a bit more challenging this time, and she could feel her arms trembling slightly when she held it up for a second. Out of the corners of her eyes, she saw herself in the mirror wall, and the image was… interesting, to say the least. Even though the hair tie stayed in place, the black jumble was disheveled, particularly her fringe. She had sweated through the shirt in a few places, the moisture darkening the fabric. The muscles in her arms were bulging with the strain of holding what was twice her own body’s mass.

Wishing to see the current visual in motion, she repeated her movements a few times, watching as intently as she could without turning her head and unbalancing herself. When Gavin finally guided the bar back on the hooks, relieving her of the weight that had been foremost on her thoughts despite her observatory activities, her brain finally presented her with a realization.

Nice view. Really nice view. I’d dare say, hot view.

Oh.

Athena excused herself from Gavin’s presence and strode back into the locker room, changing into her street clothes right away while pointedly thinking of the most horrible things she could envision. Showering here is too dangerous.

She had left the building before she finally allowed herself to ponder her sudden awareness of something which, come to think of it, should really have been obvious to her for a while: That the blond rock star had not been the primary factor in her initial arousal, after all.

This is why I can’t keep my hands away from my dick, and why I haven’t so much as daydreamed while jerking off. Simon’s body itself is the culprit – not because of its own needs, but because I really, really like seeing and touching it. How did that happen?

Yes, she had had a puppy love crush on him at age 11, but that had been because he had always been so nice to her, and because he had taken her a lot more seriously than the other people at the Space Center, not because of his looks – not that she had ever seen him in any state of undress during those days, anyway.

With everything that's been going on since our switch, and especially with him barely taking to me lately, I guess I just didn't allow myself to realize this earlier.

When she stepped under the shower in Simon’s apartment half an hour later, the hand that moved to grab her cock was the most deliberate and steady it had ever been.

Chapter Text

Simon did not go to work the day after the disastrous “girl’s night,” having barely slept by the time the alarm went off. He feigned a stomach bug to Apollo on the phone, who sympathized with him and assured him that closing the office while he himself and Wright were in court should not pose a major problem.

Afterwards, Simon dressed in the most unobtrusive items Athena’s wardrobe contained, and braved the city’s public transportation system in order to remove himself from areas where he might run into people who might recognize her. While he looked out the window as the bus passed smaller and smaller buildings on its way into the outskirts, the small music player he had found in her drawer blasting Beethoven into his ears in order to drown out the other passengers’ voices and hearts, he attempted clearing his head of the troubling, tangled mess of thoughts which had inextricably lodged itself in his consciousness.

After forty minutes, the vehicle reached its terminus, and he disembarked with the remaining passengers. Looking around and fixing the unfamiliar area in his mind’s eye in order to be able to return later, he fell into a jog.

The exertion of exercise managed to do what contemplation had not; he ran until the sound of his heartbeat pounding in his ears drowned out his own discord, until his leg muscles were beginning to twitch in self-inflicted agony, until he was beginning to see dark spots dancing in front of his eyes.

Finally conceding that it was time to stop lest he turn himself into a medical emergency, he came to a halt, hands on his knees, breathing heavily.

Simon knew that tiring himself out did nothing to alleviate the situation, that it was but a band-aid for a short term, but he was completely out of ideas when it came to actual solutions.

When he returned to her apartment, it was already past three in the afternoon, and he seated himself on the floor to meditate, as he now stood a slightly better chance of emptying his mind.

He remained that way for almost two hours, listening to the silence of the room, the dim noises of the outside world filtering in from the window, and the sound of his own breathing. The discord in his heart dimmed to a quiet but still disconcerting murmur, which was nevertheless preferable to its prior cacophony.

Eventually, he was forced to stand up by his legs screaming in pain at his relentless abuse, and he allowed himself to for once take a shower at a more pleasant temperature in order to not further aggravate the condition.

Staring at the familiar white tiles as the water flowed over him, he came to a conclusion.

Our experiment to reconnect has failed. I have failed.

He could not lie to himself any longer: What he wanted from her was not friendship, and more was completely out of the question. Not only was it wrong due to their history and respective ages, the potential repercussions for her tying herself to a former inmate, who was still regarded with suspicion by many, in a fit of girlish infatuation were simply too great. It would never work, and trying would leave her as bitter and alone as he was.

 I will extricate myself from her life as much as possible until this situation has ended, and request a transfer to another district after everything is resolved. It’s the only way.

While Simon was under no illusions that a change in location would afford him a blank slate, as his exoneration had made the news due to the hope that it was heralding the end of the Dark Age of the Law, not working with people who had known him during his incarceration would perhaps allow him to finally lay the past to rest, while removing himself from Athena’s proximity would set her free from the intricate shackles that bound her to him.

The discord in his heart had swelled again throughout his thought process, and it took him a moment to force it back under his control.

Better to deal this untenable situation a swift, merciful deathblow. She might be hurt at first, but she will be better off for it. One last phone call, and then this will be over.

He was mildly astonished when, about an hour after he had finished his ablutions, Athena’s phone began to ring, the number showing up as his own.

Usually, I am the one calling. Did something happen?

Steeling himself for the onslaught of her own internal chaos at whatever had caused the change in their routine, he took the call.

“Yes?”

“Sorry I’m calling without checking in with you by text first. Are you by yourself?”

No emotional turmoil, not even a hint.

“I am,” he answered, suppressing his surprise. What is going on here?

“Good to hear,” she said, her heart giving away her relief, as well as a steely hint of resolve.

Apparently, I haven’t suddenly lost her ability – but this determination…

“I’ve had a pretty good day today,” she ventured into small talk, as if they had never strayed from the easy relationship they had enjoyed a few weeks ago. “Nothing major at the office, but I went to the basement gym for about an hour.”

He had no idea what to make of her statement. “Sounds pleasant.” And…?

“Oh, it was!” She actually smiled; Simon could hear it in her voice. “I’m not generally into weights, but they’re a lot more fun when you have the necessary upper body strength to bench a good amount.”

Where the hell is she going with this…?

He did not have to wonder for long, for Athena continued to speak after a short pause.

“Not only that, there are a lot of mirrors in that place…”

She stopped herself from talking at that point, but her heart immediately gave her away: The merest hint of embarrassment, quickly drowned out by…

Simon’s head shot up from the half-crouched position in which he had been sitting.

Carnal desire. For his body. And she was not all that bothered by it anymore, or she would not even have considered sharing this piece of information. For a moment, his traitorous heart thrummed with something resembling giddiness, before he managed to smother the emotion with the dread he felt at the thought of taking advantage of her again.

I should have closed this avenue of communication sooner.

“This is inappropriate, Athena.”

Her pique set in immediately, inundating every one of her sharply voiced syllables. “Don’t tell me you still haven’t gotten over the fact that I just might have a functioning libido. I’m tired of talking around it and feeling terrible about it for days on end. Maybe you should get off in my body, let’s see if you manage without developing some sort of interest in what you’re touching…”

Simon took a breath while formulating an answer, only to be stunned into silence when a chirping electronic voice from underneath his chin announced, “Already done that!”

Widget. Fuck.

A hint of surprise radiated from her when she began talking once more, quickly replaced by grim satisfaction and not a little interest.

“Oh? Well then, Mr. ‘Inappropriate,’ your verdict…?”

“Perf…” Widget did not get to finish his second ill-timed attempt at blurting out Simon’s thoughts, as he hurriedly ripped the little device off his neck and stuffed it under a couch cushion just a split second too late.

Athena spoke up again, her voice warm and suffused with hope. “I heard that.”

This must stop right now.

Simon bore down on every last shred of emotion in his heart, answering flatly, “Congratulations. I would advise you to forget about it at once.”

Her contentment gave way to hurt confusion. “What is so terrible about us happening to find each other attractive? I don’t understand, Simon…”

“The very fact that you cannot fathom what it might be is proof enough that nothing good can come of this,” he returned, his voice as cold as he could make it. Another attestation to her youth – once she has an idea, she pursues it, and to hell with the consequences. Just like she almost got herself thrown in the clink trying to save me.

Anger joined her pain when she shouted at him, “What’s the damn problem!?”

“I am,” he stated curtly, and pushed the “End Call” button.

Chapter Text

After hearing the sharp crack in the line signifying that the connection had been ended, Athena stared down at the cell phone for a minute.

Did he just hang up on me…?

She dialed her own number, but predictably received no answer. He was ignoring her.

Why did he get so riled up over this?

She had deliberately brought up her gym session in order to work her way up to the topic which had weighed on their conversations the last few weeks, only for Simon to apparently hear in her heart just what she had wanted to say and preempt her, shutting her down. His admission that he had succumbed to the urge of touching himself had caused her to hope for a moment that they would now finally be even again. And then…

Truth be told, when Widget had blurted out that he thought her body to be perfect, she had not just felt flattered; Simon’s inadvertent confession had caused the strangest little tug at her heart, which she had not entirely been able to classify, only to be extinguished when his coldness had washed over her, and nothing but confused anger remained.

Athena was a great many things; “persistent” was one of them, “stupid” was not.

Without her ability, the thoughts of others were much harder to pinpoint, as she mostly had to rely on things she was explicitly told as well as the tone of the other person’s voice, rather than being able to peer into their heart, but she had not been trained in analytical psychology for nothing.

“Inappropriate.” For what reason? And then his answer…roundabout as usual, but pretty much, “If you don’t understand already, I’m not going to tell you.” …Oh. The utter bastard…

In spite of everything that they had weathered together, and in spite of his words on the second evening of their exchange, he had reverted to treating her like an unruly child. No, not reverted…he’s worse than he’s ever been before. What the hell?

Athena’s fist slammed down on the wooden surface of the coffee table in a sudden fit of frustrated anger, the sound reverberating in the room like a thunderclap.

***

The weekend passed in stony silence for both of them.

Simon, realizing that he had to bring Widget under his control for the next work day, obsessively practiced bombarding the electronic device with sudden bursts of emotional thoughts until he managed to pinpoint the threshold under which it would not give voice, training himself to stay within permissible parameters. He chose to see the resulting numbness as a bonus.

Athena, meanwhile, downed cup after cup of coffee after the sleepless night with which their conversation had presented her, antsy for movement. While straightening up the apartment, she happened on a bamboo practice sword lying forgotten underneath Simon’s bed. Remembering his attack stance, she planted her feet on the living room floor, whipping the weapon forward, and found that his muscle memory extended far enough to exercise through a basic kata she had also seen him practice once or twice with her mother. Going through the motions faster and faster, by the end, her arms were nothing but a blur to her eyes. This night, the exertion, in conjunction with the exhaustion from not having slept the night before, enabled her to rest, albeit fitfully.

Sunday saw Simon single-mindedly resuming his practice in order to fortify his emotional control, and taking care of the basic household chores such as laundry. Athena went for a walk, joined by Taka as she passed by the courthouse, which was deserted today. She walked the streets aimlessly, not once running into anyone she knew. Buying a few items for dinner, she did not return back to the apartment until it was dark.

Neither one of them bothered trying to call the other.

***

On Monday, about an hour after Athena had arrived at the office, a case presented itself. What was unusual about this fact was that it was personally delivered by Chief Prosecutor Edgeworth.

The case file in his hand, the grey-haired man explained, “I need someone dedicated on this, seeing that we might have a serial killer on our hands. The modus operandi seems to differ with each murder, but the victims are all prostitutes plying their trade in one of the shadier parts of town, and we have had five within the last two months. The autopsies indicate that they were violated just prior to being killed, although the murderer left no DNA evidence. The newest case has just been called in, and I am afraid to say that it is particularly gruesome...”

When he still hesitated to place the file on the desk, Athena’s stomach began to churn. Something tells me I’m not going to like this.

“Show me,” she prompted, holding out her hand.

His face frozen in a moue of distaste, Edgeworth finally handed it over, and she opened the plain tan cardboard enclosure, only to be confronted with an image of a naked woman’s body, a katana protruding from an elongated wound in her abdomen.

Revulsion spread within her as she closed the file once more, feeling the chief prosecutor’s gaze on her.

“I have to apologize for even asking you whether you would consent to prosecuting this case,” Edgeworth said quietly. “Unfortunately, the only other person in the office not assigned to a case is Payne…”

“I will do it,” she interrupted him, her voice sounding raw to her own ears.

Edgeworth raised an eyebrow. “Are you certain? Given your history…”

Athena looked up at him, her expression deadly serious. “I will take the case.”

“Very well,” the chief prosecutor relented. “You are more likely than Payne to indict the man behind this, and see to it that he will receive an appropriate sentence, otherwise I would not even have presumed to ask for your services. Best of luck.”

After Edgeworth had left, Athena immediately contacted Doddbury, giving him the basic rundown of the case and asking him to pick her up immediately. Taka on her shoulder, she made her way to the parking lot, hoping that her strides exuded a confidence she did not really feel. Still, Payne would have certainly screwed this matter up, just like any in which she or her acquaintances had witnessed him work, and this was the sort of incident she could not forgive. Time to get some scum off the streets.

***

The crime scene was a seedy building which apparently housed an illegal brothel. The body had been found by one of the other women after knocking on the dead prostitute’s door at around 9 AM without receiving an answer, even though her book at the front indicated no clients after 2:30 AM. Then, the witness had noticed the stench of blood coming from the room.

When Athena arrived with Doddbury, the body was still there, although it had already been processed by the forensic specialists, and a medical examiner handed her a preliminary report, listing the cause of death as a punctured liver with subsequent blood loss. Pre-mortem marks of strangulation were evident on the victim’s neck, but her windpipe remained intact – apparently, this had not been a first failed attempt at killing her, but merely a means to keep her silent.

After perusing the file, Athena accepted the vinyl gloves one of the investigators handed her with a nod, taking in the scene while putting them on.

Only now, she realized that she was already standing in the large puddle of blood which had spread throughout the cheap shag carpet. It was clear that the woman had all but bled out. Walking over to the side of the room to get a better look at her, Athena stopped in her tracks when the victim’s face, which had been obscured due to her position in the preliminary photograph she had received, came into view.

Long brown hair. Limpid light brown eyes, open in death. A round face with a somewhat pointed chin. The woman was younger than her mother had been when she had last seen her alive, but the prostitute could have been the younger sister of Metis Cykes.

Chapter Text

Athena swallowed hard, forcing down the memories.

“Something’s wrong with Mom, so I’m taking her apart to fix her…”

She had thought that she had made her peace with her mother’s death a long time ago, and even Simon’s revelations on the witness stand and the subsequent flash of her repressed recollections returning had only managed to add a certain vague nostalgia to her memories of the woman who had given birth to her. Whether she had loved her daughter or not, Athena’s reminiscences of Metis Cykes were those of a serious woman spending most of her time on her work and not a lot of time with her daughter, unless she had been trying to coax her into wearing the hated, heavy headphones with their irritating noise, regardless of their intended purpose.

Upon gazing at this unfortunate young woman, she realized that she had been wrong, the scene making her stomach lurch.

She checked the preliminary coroner’s report once more, finding that the victim’s name had been Fleur Jamais. The katana protruded from her body at an angle, leaving a gash at least four inches long. Jamais’ midriff was covered with blood, although most of it seemed to have soaked into the carpet from the point where the blade had exited the body on the other side.

Athena closed her eyes. I am going to catch the pig who did this to you, Ms. Jamais, and if it’s the last thing I do.

“Has the sword been examined for fingerprints yet?” she asked the closest forensic technician.

“Not yet, sir. We will have to remove it in order to produce accurate results.”

“Do it, then, as long as the body has been processed as far as possible at this point,” Athena retorted.

The young scientist in the white clean suit nodded, stepping over to the body.

The sound when she pulled the blade upward in a fluid motion, grabbing it with a gloved hand just below the guard and going along the path of the entry wound to not disturb the evidence, was wet and sickening. Athena could barely resist the temptation to place a hand on her mouth; next to her, Doddbury retched and ran out of the room.

The forensic technician presented the sword to her. “According to the first witness on the scene, this was actually the victim’s. The sheath was found under the table and has been sent off for further examination already.”

Athena nodded sharply. “Get to work on the murder weapon right away. Has any other evidence been recovered so far?”

“We have a fingerprint record for the door; unfortunately, there are clean prints of at least 20 different people on there, so it’s unlikely to be useful. Additionally, this paint swatch was on her desk.”

The technician held up a piece of cardboard in a soothing mint green tone.

Hm. This is probably not related to the case, but you never know.

“Have that checked for prints, as well.”

Athena turned and almost ran into Doddbury, who had apparently finished vomiting, if the smell was any indication.

She slightly wrinkled her nose. “Rinse your mouth out, Odd Bird. Potential witnesses are hardly going to respond well to you while you are emitting this stench.”

***

Athena requested to see each of the remaining prostitutes one by one, dropping her grave demeanor as soon as the door closed behind them. She did not give a whit about preserving Simon’s fierce reputation in the face of these women’s obvious terror, even if Detective Doddbury was present.

Finally, she talked to the woman who had found the body, Taletha Jenkins, who was still trembling like a leaf.

After the shaken woman had once more related to them how she had entered the room, Athena asked gently, “Do you have any idea who could have perpetrated this crime, Ms. Jenkins?”

The woman shuddered, and fresh tears ran down her face. Slowly reaching out to place her own hand over hers, Athena continued in an even softer tone, “We want to find the monster who did this. Anything you could tell us might help in bringing them to justice.”

Jenkins looked up at her, her surprise evident on her features even through her tearful horror.

“…you actually care…?”

Athena realized at that point that these women were judged by their profession and, seeing that they constituted a semi-illegal underclass of society, were often written of as dross little better than the murdering swine who was currently picking them off. She had not encountered this situation before, as prostitutes had never sought legal counsel at the Wright Anything Agency during her brief tenure there, likely for obvious reasons, and her heart clenched at the burgeoning hope in the woman’s voice.

Prosecutors aren’t just there to provide a foil for defense attorneys…if Payne had taken this case, he probably wouldn’t even have bothered talking to them, just because of what they do for a living.

She found herself glad that she had agreed to prosecute this case, even if Edgeworth had been magnanimous enough to offer her the chance to decline.

“I do,” she finally answered. “You will not be indicted in any crime, unless it turns out that you are directly related to the one at hand. Please, Ms. Jenkins, tell us what you know.”

***

According to Jenkins, it turned out that the proprietor of the brothel, a Mr. Muzai, had shared an interest in bladed weapons with the victim. Additionally, he had apparently forced his attentions upon her more than once, if the noises from the room had been any indication, and he had been overheard having a loud argument with Ms. Jamais the evening before her death between clients. Another incriminating fact was that he had last been seen in the building at about 7:50 AM, over an hour before Taletha Jenkins had found the body.

Athena called for a manhunt immediately, knowing that she could not do much more before the man had been apprehended, and asked Doddbury to bring her back to the prosecutor’s office.

During the drive back, the awkward young detective seemed on the verge of saying something more than once, before he finally burst out, “Prosecutor Blackquill, sir, a word, if I may…?”

She was surprised at his courage, particularly after the vicious dressing down to which she had subjected him not too long ago.

“Yes…?”

“I don’t want to be presumptuous, I mean, obviously you know what you are doing, sir…”

She allowed a hint of impatience to show in her voice when she interrupted his rambling. “Get on with it, Odd Bird.”

The young man nodded, his curls bobbing, and took a deep breath.

“How you treated these ladies in there was… good. Inspiring, sir. No one else would have listened to them like that.”

Athena felt a hint of embarrassment at the detective’s praise. “This is what our job entails, Detective: Protecting the innocent,” she replied quietly. “Victims are victims, and these women are traumatized and in danger. Let’s make sure this ruthless criminal gets what he deserves.”

Doddbury saluted her with one hand on the wheel, his eyes still on the road. “Yes, sir!”

***

A few hours after Athena had returned to her office and Doddbury had made his way back to the crime scene for further investigation, she received a phone call that Muzai had been caught at the airport, just about to check in for an international flight. Her resulting grim smirk rivaled the best Simon had to offer.

Well well, look who was trying to flee the country…But I’ve got you now, you murdering scum, and I’ll make sure that you hang for this.

Spending the remainder of the day processing the few additional pieces of evidence, the finished autopsy report, and the preposterous testimony Muzai had given during his interrogation, she finally decided that her case was solid. When she was just about to leave, the secretary handed her a sheet of paper containing information for the trial tomorrow. Athena nodded her goodbyes and kept walking while scanning the writing – only to freeze in her tracks when her eyes fell on the defense attorney listed for her suspect: Athena Cykes.

Chapter Text

The day at the Wright Anything Agency had begun slowly, like most others. Simon had spent most of the morning making meaningless small talk with Apollo, who did not seem to realize that every smile he received from his conversation partner was faked.

At about 2:30 PM, they decided to turn on the television, ostensibly in order to see whether an interesting case appeared on the news, but mostly because they felt the need to while away the remaining time at the office. Wright joined them on the couch; he seemed more than a little bored, as well.

The news broadcast at three did feature a recently apprehended suspect in a murder, but the case hardly seemed suitable material for the Agency: A man running an illegal brothel was suspected of killing one of the women working in his establishment; additionally, he might have been guilty of prior prostitute murders in the same area of town.

However, then one intrepid reporter, who had apparently been at the airport for something unrelated when the man was caught, shoved a microphone into the suspect’s face and asked him for comments as the police were trying to drag him off.

“I didn’t do it, you hear me? I’m innocent!” he wailed, and Simon could not help but stare at the screen.

Wright turned to him. “Athena, what’s wrong?”

“There was no discord in his heart,” Simon responded slowly. “He is innocent of the murder.”

The older lawyer raised his eyebrows. “Are you sure about that?”

“Positive.”

Apollo grimaced on the other side of Simon. “…do we really want to defend a pimp, though? That can’t be good for our reputation…”

Wright thought for a minute. “That is certainly something to think about… but on the other hand, we’ve defended thieves and people associated with organized crime before, I’m sure you recall…”

The agency proprietor mulled the matter over in silence for a bit longer, his right forefinger scratching his jaw. Then, he turned to Simon.

“As long as you feel that you can believe in his innocence… if you want to take his case, you’re free to do so, Athena. You should realize that this is fairly high-profile though, considering that the media already portrays the guy as a serial killer. Also, from the bits the police leaked about the case, it’s probably not going to be a pretty sight.”

Simon nodded sharply. “I’ll go down to the detention center right away.”

He got up and turned around to grab his bag, grateful for the chance to do something in order to keep his mind occupied, and was halfway to the door when Apollo called out behind him, “Hold on, I’m coming along!”

***

After sitting down to talk to Muzai at the detention center, the middle-aged, heavyset man with the gold tooth officially requested the services of the Wright Anything Agency for his defense. While Apollo filled out the paperwork next to him, Simon asked him about the murder of Ms. Fleur Jamais, and was told that Muzai had never so much as bent a hair on her head, and that he, in fact, had been the first to find the body. Overcome with panic, the brothel owner knew he would be implicated, and had attempted to flee the country. Additionally, the detained man swore that he had never had any contact with the prior victims of the murderer, either. Once again, there was no discord in his heart, just surprise and sadness whenever he talked about Jamais.

“Can you recall any new regulars to your establishment, Mr. Muzai?” he asked. “This killer had a chance to make a clean escape out of a building which was occupied by a number of people at the time. That would take at least some knowledge of the daily routine.”

Muzai pondered his question for a moment. “I don’t think there were any new returning customers, but… I’ve had some neighborhood guys come in to do some renovations recently. We’ve had a bit of a mold problem, and I didn’t want to lose the building over a code issue, you see. It was all under the table, of course, but their names and phone numbers are on the desk in my room.”

Truth be told, Simon did not find his newest client particularly endearing, given that he profited from women selling their bodies, but considering that he had just consented to being the only one on his side in court tomorrow, and that he knew with certainty that the man had told the truth regarding Ms. Jamais, he was aware of his obligation to reassure Muzai at this point.

“We will find out what really happened and prove your innocence in court, Mr. Muzai.”

Once the pimp had been led back to his cell, Simon and Apollo set out for the crime scene.

***

Simon was surprised when he and his associate ran into Detective Doddbury in the corridor that led to the room where the crime had occurred.

That can only mean one thing.

“O… Detective,” he greeted, only barely able to swallow his more common appellation.

“Miss Cykes, hello!” the young man greeted, curls bobbing, although his expression was the grimmest Simon had ever seen. “Don’t tell me that you’re going to defend Muzai? We’re sure that he did it, and Prosecutor Blackquill is all but baying for his blood.”

“Yes well, you happen to be wrong about his guilt,” he replied. “Even odious people have the right to an attorney.”

Doddbury shrugged. “It’s your loss. Are you sure you want to see the crime scene, though? The body has been transferred to the morgue already, but…”

“We’re sure we can handle it, Detective,” Apollo now spoke up next to Simon. “Could we take a look now?”

The young detective stepped aside, falling into step behind them after they had passed. “It’s the third door on the right. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

Simon was the first by the door, his nose already detecting the coppery smell of blood. When he pushed it open, the stench intensified ten-fold, and he inadvertently lifted a hand to clamp over his nose and mouth.

Since the fateful day on which he had encountered Metis’ dead body so many years ago, he had not been directly confronted with a murder this gruesome – when he had been given permission by Chief Prosecutor Edgeworth to prosecute while incarcerated, his status as a prisoner had made it impossible to be on the scene in person in the vast majority of cases, and during the month after his release, he had continued to be aloof as the few cases which had been thrown his way had seemingly not required his personal attention. During his work with the Wright Agency, they had only defended one murder suspect, and the killing had been committed with an overdose of prescription medication in the victim’s tea.

Now, barely standing inside the doorframe, the soles of his shoes had already made contact with the large puddle of blood staining almost the entirety of the carpeting in the small room reddish-black and rusty brown. A white line marked the position in which the body had been found; the underside of the rope, too, was discolored by blood. This was not like looking at a photograph of a crime scene, as he had done in the case of the murder of Alderman Rex Kyubi, or in the subsequent Nine Tales Vale murder; being at the site in person made the situation a lot more tangible and real.

Simon could not keep his mind’s eye from flashing back to carrying little Athena away on his arm, her bloodied headphones staining his surcoat. He had known at that point that he had to protect her, come what may, and if it meant that he had to be the one to suffer the consequences in her stead. Only his determination had kept the terror in his heart at bay, as well as the pain of seeing the dysfunctional little family unit come to such a horrible end. And the smell in the lab where he had found Athena and Metis, both of them covered in blood… it had been the same as it was here.

Eyes involuntarily closing, Simon took a step back, bumping into Apollo. He swallowed hard to fight down the bile rising in his throat.

Then, he felt his associate’s hand on his shoulder. “Athena, are you okay…?”

His voice carried not only worry, but also a strong note of puzzlement; apparently, his reaction was not true to Athena’s regular behavior.

Doddbury hastened to close the door, shutting most of the sickening odor in once more. “You’re really pale, Ms. Cykes. Do you need a glass of water?”

He shook his head, forcing his dread back under his control. “I’ll be fine.”

The detective threw him a sympathetic look. “I can’t blame you for finding this hard to handle – I nearly threw up earlier, myself.”

Liar, Simon thought; Odd Bird’s heart had clearly seized with a spasm of discord when he had said “nearly.” For some reason, the detective’s not-quite admission made him feel better about his momentary show of weakness.

The young policeman continued, “How about I share the evidence we found in there with you? Most of it has already been tagged and bagged, and there wasn’t much of it to begin with, anyway – not that it’s going to help you much, Prosecutor Blackquill has some pretty decisive testimony for our case…”

Chapter Text

The evidence Simon and Apollo received from Doddbury was sparse, as he had said: The bloody sword which had been the murder weapon only showed the victim’s finger prints, although smudging on the grip and minuscule canvas fibers indicated that someone wearing work gloves had handled it last. The sheath, however, did have Muzai’s prints on it in addition to Jamais’, even if they had been smudged in places. The paint swatch had been handled by both victim and suspect, as well, although a third partial print, which had not yet been identified, had also been found.

According to the autopsy report, the young prostitute had died from a punctured liver and subsequent blood loss from the single stab wound, which had apparently been aggravated by the culprit pulling the sword downward after thrusting it into the woman’s body. Marks on her throat showed an attempt at strangulation, or at least at silencing her. Jamais had been raped before her death, but no DNA evidence had been found, indicating that the murderer knew how to cover his tracks.

“Prosecutor Blackquill said this might be the work of a serial killer,” Doddbury confirmed the rumors that had been mentioned on the news. “The M.O. seems to change by the case, but the victims are always prostitutes of a specific age range, work in a fairly small radius within this area, and have been violated prior to being murdered, with no DNA evidence remaining. Incidentally, I should warn you that Ms. Jamais was found completely naked before you take a look at the pictures, Ms. Cykes – you’ve already had one shock today…”

Simon inclined his head to show he had heard and understood the warning, and moved from the written report to the photos. The first picture was a close-up of the wound, with the katana’s blade still sticking in it. The surrounding skin was stained red and brown by the blood which had welled up, although a strange, dark spot with uneven borders an inch and a half to the right of the gaping wound caught his eye.

“What is this?” he inquired.

Doddbury shrugged. “I have no idea. Might just be a birthmark, but if you want, I can check with the coroner for you.”

Apollo eyed the spot with considerable interest, as well. “If you could…”

The second picture showed Jamais’ body lying in the center of the room, as viewed from the door. Her face was not visible due to her position, but as Doddbury had indicated, she was clearly nude. The sheath of the sword was located underneath the table next to her, and they were only just able to make out the paint swatch on the table surface. This photo did not seem to yield any other potential clues.

The final image showed the woman’s face in close-up, and Simon stared at it as though looking at a ghost, glad that her features had not been visible in the full-body shot. Fleur Jamais was fairly young, a few years younger than him, and yet, she looked almost exactly like Metis Cykes.

No wonder she is out for blood. She must have been here when the corpse was still at the scene. He felt his own anger rising at the creature who had perpetrated this crime, and who had caused Athena renewed distress when she had only been confronted with the murder of her mother again two months ago. His fingers closed around the edge of the picture hard enough that the photograph’s paper was beginning to wrinkle.

Apollo seemed to realize that there was a resemblance, as well, both from having seen pictures of Athena’s mother in his own investigation of Clay Terran’s murder, and from Simon’s reaction. His associate reached down and took the photo out of his hands.

“Athena, are you sure you can handle this? If you need me to take the lead, just say the word.”

“I’ll be fine,” Simon bit out. “Let’s take a look at Muzai’s office and see if we can find anything else.”

***

Muzai’s office was decorated with an ornamental kimono in a glass case, as well as a number of blades. It looked less shabby than the rooms which housed the prostitutes, and his desk was of considerable size, housing filing trays and a small television. A large paper planner was laid out on its surface, and, as he had said, some names and phone numbers were scribbled on it alongside basic job descriptions.

Plumbing – Julio Rodriguez, 555-1234

Paint – Marcus Splodge, 555-9876

Heating – Lorne Marshall, 555-6767

Apollo took a picture of the writing with his cell phone and made a note of it in his planner for tomorrow’s trial. “I think this is all we can do for now, right?”

Simon agreed. “We’re probably not going to find anything else. Let’s hope it’s enough.”

His associate was silent for a moment. “We’re going to have to pull out all stops tomorrow… Prosecutor Blackquill sounds as though he is on the warpath in this matter, not that I can blame him – he probably didn’t take too well to seeing this scene, either.”

Simon did not entirely manage to shove his renewed worry for Athena’s well-being out of his mind after that remark. Brusquely, in order to mask the emotion, he replied, “It doesn’t matter. He’s wrong about Muzai, and we’re going to prove it – and maybe even identify who really killed Fleur Jamais.”

Apollo nodded grimly. “Yes, we will. Come on, let’s get out of here, it’s time to go home and prepare ourselves for tomorrow.”

***

Both Simon and Athena were plagued by nightmares soon after they had fallen asleep that evening. Both of them started the morning with three cups of coffee. However, whereas Simon was filled with rigid determination, Athena gave in to her anger at the person she thought to be the perpetrator, and at Simon for agreeing to defend him.

When they saw each other from afar after entering the courthouse and proceeding to their respective lobbies, her expression immediately clouded over with ire, and the glare she threw at Simon could have incinerated steel on the spot. He found himself scowling back in silent response until Apollo felt the need to grab his arm and steer him towards the lobby door. “Be the bigger person, Athena,” he whispered. “He looks like he’s taking this really personally, and one of you has to be the responsible adult in there.”

The last statement got Simon’s attention. He is right. I have a duty to perform, and if she cannot keep her anger at me from clouding her judgment, I will have to take the lead in this trial.

“All right,” he stated aloud.

They had about five minutes left before the start of the trial when Doddbury entered their lobby.

“Good morning, Ms. Cykes, Mr. Justice,” he greeted. “I don’t have much time, I lied to Prosecutor Blackquill about having to go to the restroom… I just wanted to give you this. It doesn’t seem to be particularly useful, though.”

He left immediately after handing over the item he had brought.

“This” happened to be a folded computer printout from the coroner’s office, stating that the spot they had noticed on Fleur Jamais’ body was wall paint.

Simon looked up at Apollo after perusing the information. “Are you thinking what I’m thinking?”

His associate nodded quickly, his gelled-up hair bobbing slightly. “I believe we have ourselves an alternate suspect.”

At that point, the bailiff opened the door. “Ms. Cykes, Mr. Justice, the trial is about to start. Please proceed to the courtroom.”

Chapter Text

The trial started unusually, in that Athena decided to forgo Simon’s regular baiting of the judge.

When she was called upon to give an opening statement, she immediately said, “The defendant stands accused of murdering Fleur Jamais, a prostitute plying her trade at his illegal brothel. She was stabbed to death with her own sword. Witnesses have stated that Mr. Muzai has been known to enjoy swordplay himself, and that his entering the victim’s room was… not an unusual occurrence.”

The anger she radiated at the end of this sentence was strong enough to make Simon wince.

“The prosecution is therefore convinced that the defendant had the necessary skill and opportunity to kill the victim, and will present evidence and testimony to that fact. That is all.”

She gazed over at Simon, and her eyes narrowed dangerously for a moment.

“Odd Bird, take the stand.”

***

Doddbury mostly repeated the information both sides had at their disposal, although he did mention that the woman who had ostensibly been the first to find the body had done so at a time about an hour and a half after Muzai had claimed he had happened upon it.

“Objection!” Simon interrupted him. “Our client has stated that he entered the room and saw the body at 7:34 AM, prompting him to flee the scene because he knew that he would be implicated.”

“Silence!” Athena snarled back, her fist slamming down onto the bench. “How simple-minded of you to believe such an obvious lie!”

Inundated in the combative atmosphere of the courtroom, Simon could not prevent an unpleasant grin from appearing on his features. And how childish of you to antagonize me without arguments. Time to go on the attack.

“Simple-minded, eh? Tell me then, Prosecutor Blackquill, how it is that he was seen that morning prior to the alleged discovery of the body? The approximate time of death was 4:30 AM – why would he remain in the building until three hours later?”

Athena leaned forward, causing Taka to take off from her shoulder. However, the bird veered off course a second before intruding on Simon’s personal space, going after Apollo’s hair, instead.

“Hey!”the young lawyer exclaimed, “What’d I do!?”

She whistled, calling the hawk back to her. Simon’s grin widened when he could hear her muttering to Taka under her breath, “Et tu, Brute?”

I guess your little ploy to get him used to seeing this body as friendly backfired on you. What were your words again? “Sucks to be you.”

The judge was obviously in no mood to let these antics slide when it came to this case, as he banged his gavel. “Order in the court! The prosecution will refrain from needlessly attacking the defense. Keep it up, and you will be reprimanded, Prosecutor Blackquill.”

Athena gritted her teeth. “Understood, your Baldness. The prosecution calls Taletha Jenkins to the stand.”

***

It was clear from the moment Ms. Jenkins took the stand that she was incredibly ill-at-ease. She radiated fear whenever she glanced at Muzai, and was generally shaking like a leaf.

When she could finally bring herself to testify, she stated that the pimp had had a loud argument with Jamais in her room the evening before her death, although none of the women in the adjacent chambers had been able to make out any actual words, as they had been with clients at the time. Simon asked her at this juncture whether such arguments were regular occurrences, to which Jenkins replied that Muzai had been seen going into Jamais’ room on a regular basis. “We all thought he was sampling the goods, from the sounds that came through the door and the walls, but her face always got all closed-off when we tried to talk to her about it. He probably raped her multiple times.”

“I did not!” Muzai howled from the defendant enclosure.

Simon was not entirely happy with having to counter the witness’s contention, as it did sound logical enough and her unease made him feel a stab of sympathy, but his client was, once again, not lying.

“Objection! Baseless conjecture. In the absence of proof that our client did, in fact, violate the victim prior to the situation at hand, we cannot accept mere brothel gossip as corroborating his alleged guilt.”

This time, both of Athena’s hands slammed down on her bench, and she emitted a low growl. “Why you little…”

The judge’s gavel met wood three times in a sharp staccato rhythm.

“Prosecutor Blackquill, control yourself!”

Then, the bearded official turned towards the defense bench. “As the prosecution is apparently in need of a regrouping, I will call a short recess. I realize that it is irregular to ask you instead of your opponent, but as I have the impression that at least you are able to think calmly today… how would you like to proceed after the break?”

Simon fought the urge to raise an eyebrow. As much of a doddering fool as the old man appears to be most of the time, he apparently does have the occasional insight.

“I would like to call Mr. Muzai to the stand,” he responded, “both to defend himself against the allegations leveled against him by the brothel grapevine, and to explain his version of the events to us, particularly since it seems relatively certain that he was the one who found the body.”

The judge nodded. “That sounds reasonable. We will proceed in that manner. For now, court is in recess for 15 minutes.”

The gavel banged once more.

***

When Simon and Apollo closed the door of the defense lobby behind them, the latter whistled through his teeth.

“Wow, Athena, you really got him on the ropes. Excellent work out there!”

Simon’s expression was serious. “He seems to have completely lost his objectivity.”

Not that he could entirely blame her, as she could not hear the truth in people’s hearts at the moment. Additionally, he was aware that his presence as Athena’s opponent, and the way he had just let himself get carried away in his bid to take the reins of the trial, certainly had not helped matters.

For a moment, he considered going over to the prosecutor’s lobby, but then dismissed the idea – Odd Bird would be there, preventing a frank talk, and he doubted that he would be able to convince her to trust him after Friday’s phone conversation, anyway.

Perhaps this is for the best. She will resent me after I win this trial, and with time, she will heal.

Simon had to keep a tight reign on Athena’s ability in order to not risk Widget blurting out his emotional reaction to his thoughts – a sharp spike of pain at the finality of giving up everything they had built, in addition to concern for her well-being.

This is how it has to be, he reassured himself once more.

“I’ll say,” Apollo returned. “I’ve never seen him so unbalanced before, even during that case, and you’ve had to use the Mood Matrix on him then because he was so freaked out internally…”

Simon was momentarily surprised by his associate’s words, but assumed that he must have watched a recording of the UR-1 retrial in order to learn what had transpired before he had appeared in the courtroom, himself.

“Well, I’m certainly not about to let him convict someone who is innocent just so he can feel better,” he retorted. His worry for Athena got away from his control for a moment, and the resulting tension in his posture had Apollo reaching for his bracelet.

“Ow… so things between you have really gone from bad to worse, haven’t they?”

“That’s between me and him,” Simon bit out in an attempt to mask his concern with anger. “Don’t snoop into this, Apollo. All you have to know is that I am determined to win today.”

His associate relented, although he was still rubbing his wrist. “Okay, you are the one who has to know what you’re doing. Let’s finish this.”

***

Meanwhile, Athena was pacing like a caged panther in the prosecution lobby, muttering a string of the vilest profanities she could come up with under her breath. Doddbury, sensing that losing assorted body parts was a real possibility, should he inadvertently find himself in her way, excused himself to go to the vending machine for a snack.

After a few minutes of venting in this manner, she let herself fall on the nearby couch, burying her face in her hands.

What the fucking hell? How can he defend this scum? Is he doing this to get back at me somehow? If so, that is the most contemptible thing he has ever done. I thought, after everything was said and done, that he was still an honorable man, even if our relationship recently went into the toilet, but this… I can’t forgive him for this.

The last thought suffused her mind with an icy calm. I have to get my act together, or he’s going to get Muzai off the hook. This is no time to let my emotions get the better of me. I will prove him wrong.

Chapter Text

Once everyone had taken their positions in the courtroom once more, the judge resumed the trial with a bang of his gavel.

“Court is back in session for the trial of Makoto Muzai. It is the opinion of this court, after consulting with the defense, that the defendant should be allowed to testify in order to relate his version of the events. Please take the stand, Mr. Muzai.”

The brothel owner did as he was told, prompting Athena to demonstratively turn her back on the proceedings in contempt.

Muzai took a deep breath and began. “It’s true that I visited Fleur’s room regularly, but everything that happened in there was consensual! We may have gotten a bit loud, I guess… Anyway, I would have never hurt her. In fact, I loved her. In the fight we had last night, I was trying to convince her to start a new life with me, in another country where no one would know us, and she refused. When I left her room at about 10 PM, she was still alive and well, I swear! I wanted to try and convince her again in the morning once she had cooled off a bit, invite her for a spot of breakfast, but of course, I never got the chance… On my way back to the office that evening, I ran into Mr. Splodge, one of the handymen I had recently hired, he was bringing paint swatches around to show the girls…”

Athena lifted her head when Simon interjected.

“Hold it, Mr. Muzai. That painter… he was on the premises this late?”

The defendant replied, “Yes, he has a day job where he has to be until six almost every night. Since the girls are mostly around in the evening and I wanted to give them leave to choose their own colors, seeing that they’re in those rooms all the time, he’s been there most nights until about midnight… or at least that’s as late as I’ve seen him around, I watch TV in my office after that time most nights…”

She could hear the grim satisfaction in Simon’s voice even without her enhanced hearing.

“Answer me this, then… did you see this paint swatch on her table when you visited with Ms. Jamais last?”

He presented the cardboard sample to the court.

Athena huffed. Really, this is all you have? Pinning it on the handyman with nothing but the stupid swatch?

Muzai shook his head. “No, we actually talked about how she had not picked a color yet before our argument…”

Simon spoke up again; he sounded incredibly sure of himself. “In that case, the defense has further evidence it would like to present to this court. In the close-up of the victim’s dead body included in the autopsy report, we found a stain close to the wound. It was hidden somewhat by the blood which had emerged and initially assumed to be a birthmark, but further investigation by the coroner’s office has revealed it to be wall paint.”

That finally got her to turn around and stare at the picture and coroner’s report he had presented incredulously. He can’t possibly mean…

“Additionally,” Simon continued, “Forensics have found canvas fibers on the grip of the murder weapon. Who would wear canvas gloves on a regular basis? A painter. The paint swatch that was found on the table at the crime scene further corroborates that this Mr. Marcus Splodge was in the room sometime between Mr. Muzai’s departure and his discovery of the body in the morning. As a temporary nightly employee of the proprietor, he would also have been aware of our client’s routine. We would like to posit that the painter’s testimony is vital in this case, and request that he be served with a subpoena immediately.”

The judge nodded. “Bailiff, please send some officers to Mr. Splodge’s residence with the necessary papers. We will enter another recess until…”

“You don’t have to do that,” Muzai interrupted him, looking behind himself at the gallery seats, where a man in an overall full of paint stains was currently trying to inconspicuously make his way out of the row in which he had been seated. “He’s right over there!”

After the brothel owner’s exclamation, everything seemed to happen at once.

Splodge looked up, his hand moving to his pocket in a fluid motion. What he pulled out was a tan object, fashioned from what seemed to be plastic, but nevertheless clearly in the shape of a gun, which he immediately pressed against the head of the person currently next to him.

That person happened to be a little girl, no older than five.

The courtroom broke out into auditory chaos as people began to scream, trying to get away from the armed man. Splodge fired in the ceiling, proving that his gun was indeed functional, and shouted, “Everyone shut up!”

Silence descended at once, and the painter continued, “My compliments for figuring it out… and here I wanted to see the old horn dog take the fall for me. Ah well. I’m afraid I won’t be testifying today. In fact, I will be leaving right now, and I would strongly advise you to not follow me, or else…”

He held the gun against the girl’s head again, who began to whimper.

Simon’s first thought at seeing her in the gallery earlier had merely been, What kind of irresponsible parent takes their child to court to observe a rape-murder trial?

However, now that her life was in imminent danger, he found his gaze focusing on her, and his resulting distress drowned out the dissonant cacophony of terror pervading the courtroom.

The girl had red hair, braided into pig tails. She was clutching a Phony Phanty plush toy to her chest, and her wide blue eyes, full of tears, were filled with a silent plea.

“Wait,” he found himself calling out in a steady voice. “Leave the child. Take me, instead.”

“NO!” Athena forced out on the other side of the courtroom; her voice was raw and full of fear.

Splodge thought about Simon’s proposition for a minute, then his lips parted, showing his teeth in an unpleasant grin.

“Why not? Seeing that the prosecution seems to have a vested interest in you not being harmed… Just one thing: I’ve read up on you before coming here, and I know that that little gadget around your neck is some sort of computer. I’m not going to have you with me if you take anything that might be tracked. Leave it here; the glove too. No phones, either. I’ll meet you outside the courtroom as soon as everything’s cleared out there, along with this little sweetheart’s parents. If anyone else leaves this room or you aren’t coming, it’s the girl, instead.”

Simon nodded, moving to take off Widget.

Splodge now turned to the judge. “Your Honor, tell the bailiffs to get everyone out of the hallways for at least the next five minutes. If I run into anyone on my way out, you’re going to have a bloodbath on your hands… but if I manage to get out of here, maybe we’ll all live to see another day.”

The bearded old man, who had ducked behind his bench to where only his bald pate was visible, called out, “Bailiffs, do as he says!”

As the court orderlies filed out to do as the criminal had demanded, and Splodge made his way toward the main doors with the girl pressed to his side, Apollo’s hand landed on Simon’s while he was placing the little device on the bench.

“Athena, Blackquill is right. Don’t do this, this guy is dangerous…”

Only when his associate called him by her name, Simon fully realized for what he had just volunteered: Putting not only himself, but also Athena’s body at risk. Still, at this point, he had made the offer, and he stood a far better chance of escape than the child. He pulled his hand out of his associate’s grip. “Exactly, which is why we can’t let him leave with the girl.”

He removed the glove and turned to leave without so much as taking a look at the prosecutor’s bench.

Athena called after him, “Don’t, please…!”

Simon feigned ignorance of her outcry, even as it cut into him like the sharpest blade. Apologies for breaking one of our cardinal rules, Athena, but…I cannot let this happen.

***

When Simon stepped out of the room, the bailiffs had finished their task; only Splodge, the girl, and her terrified parents were present.

“I am here,” he announced. “Let her go.”

The murderer nodded. “Come closer, within my reach, and I will. Oh, and before you do… go over to our little treasure’s parents, and get their car keys from them. I’m not stupid enough to accept a ride from the cops, and these fine folks owe you one for saving their princess from the big, bad wolf, anyway.”

Expression rigid, Simon did as he was told. As soon as he stepped within arm’s reach of Splodge, the criminal shoved the child aside, pulled him in, and the muzzle of the gun – likely a product of 3D printing, which explained why the metal detectors at the entrance of the court house had not responded to it – pressed into the skin underneath his chin.

“Okay, my pretty little lawyer lady, and now we leave,” Splodge hissed into his ear, and dragged him off towards the nearest exit.

Chapter Text

Athena could not look away from the courtroom doors for a few minutes after they had closed behind Simon with an ominous bang. She did not hear the din of the spectators resuming their conversations among themselves.

He was right all this time…and now his life is in danger. This can’t be happening.

She felt her terror slowly giving way to rage as she balled her hands into fists. This is not real. This is some sort of nightmare.

Gazing down at her bench, right at the murder weapon, now re-sheathed, in its clear plastic evidence bag, her emotions finally overwhelmed her.

“This. Is. Not. HAPPENING!”

She had begun her denial of the current events lowly, only to end in a feral snarl.

The sound of her fists crashing down onto the bench loudly reverberated in the courtroom alongside the echo of her words.

The room fell silent. Athena ignored the surprised faces of Apollo, of Mr. Wright, who had joined him at the defense bench from his seat in the gallery, and of the judge, all of whom had turned toward her upon hearing her exclamation. Turning her head towards Doddbury, who was seated in a corner near the end of the prosecutor’s bench, she growled, “Odd Bird, car.”

The young detective blanched. “But sir, if we follow them…”

“NOW!” she thundered at him, and he ran.

Athena raised her eyes to the rafters, where Taka was still lodging after she had sent him up there prior to recess, and was suddenly struck by an idea. She whistled for the hawk, and once his weight had hit her shoulder with a now-familiar and even comforting punch, she whispered to him, “Taka, find Athena.”

The bird took off immediately, and the bailiffs, used to the hawk coming and going as he pleased, opened the door for him.

I will find them.

She reached for the evidence bag containing the sword, and strode after Doddbury.

***

In the parking lot, Simon and his captor had meanwhile reached the car the girl’s parents had described after a final, rough inquiry from Splodge. It was an older, silver sedan of a very common make and model, the license plate smudged with dust and dirt. The perfect getaway car.

“Do you drive, pretty?” the murderer asked.

Simon had not sat behind the steering wheel of a car in many years, and he refused to chauffeur his abductor around while a gun was trained on him. “I don’t.”

Perhaps I can get out while he is distracted by traffic.

He felt Splodge shrug behind him. “In that case, into the trunk with you – I won’t have my little canary escaping by simply opening the door at a red light.”

Dammit.

The painter pulled Simon towards the car and unlocked the trunk’s hatch, only now letting him go. The gun was still pointed at his head.

Simon wordlessly complied.

Neither one of them noticed the bird of prey circling above them when Splodge closed the trunk lid, got into the vehicle, and sped off.

***

In the courtroom, Apollo could still not believe what he had just witnessed – even though he knew that time must had passed, everything had happened in what had seemed like a single moment.

Prosecutor Blackquill, for all the anger he had shown towards Athena earlier, had completely forgotten himself when she had agreed to exchange herself for the little girl. Apollo had not needed his junior associate’s ability to catch the acute terror for her in his voice, nor the rage which had followed it.

“He’s going to kill Splodge,” he whispered, which got Mr. Wright, who had not yet been able to remove his gaze from the prosecutor’s bench from which their opponent had just departed, to nod grimly.

“There isn’t much of a chance that this is going to end well…”

At that point, Prosecutor Gavin entered the courtroom at a run. “I was in the archive when heard the news, Herr Forehead,” he exclaimed, somewhat out of breath. Only then, he noticed that Blackquill was missing. “He isn’t…”

“Yeah,” Apollo quietly returned. “He’s going after Splodge and Athena with Doddbury. He has a sword on him.”

Gavin’s usually so sunny expression darkened. “That’s bad. Herr Forehead, Herr Wright… I have my car with me today. How about we try to follow them? If Detective Doddbury is in his regular unmarked vehicle, that one is being tracked by police dispatchers, so I can ask them to give us their location… maybe we can prevent the worst.”

Mr. Wright quickly agreed. “What are we waiting for? Let’s go.”

As they high-tailed it out of the courtroom after the blond prosecutor, Apollo closed his eyes for a moment in a fervent wish. Athena… please be okay. And Prosecutor Blackquill, don’t do anything you both will end up regretting.

***

After having been curled into a ball to fit into the cramped, stuffy space of the car trunk for half an hour, bumping into the unpadded sides more than once as the criminal forced the car into a sharp turn, Simon felt the vehicle come to a halt. He heard the driver side door slam shut, the sound muffled by the trunk lid. A moment later, the click of the lock sounded, and light flooded his erstwhile cage.

Splodge waved at him with the gun. “Out you get, birdy.”

Simon frowned. Is he planning on letting me go already?

Obviously, that was not the case, as the man grabbed his arm the moment he had climbed out of the trunk, steering him toward the steel basement door of the grey, abandoned-looking building next to which he had parked. The windows on the lower level were mostly broken, only jagged fragments remaining in the small openings, but each one of them featured solid-looking, if somewhat rusty iron bars.

“A bit cliché for a hideout… not to mention that we’re not exactly all that far away from where we started,” he commented.

The criminal grinned as he opened the door. “Oh, I will get out of here soon enough… but you’ll stay here. Don’t want you to be found too quickly.”

Only now, Simon realized that it was exceedingly hard to read his abductor; throughout the various times the man had spoken up, the voice of Splodge’s heart had been nigh-nonexistent. Almost automatically, he began compiling a list of diagnosis criteria in his mind, based on the man’s behavior so far. Self-aggrandizing. Remorseless. Lack of empathy. Appears immune to stress. Impulsive. Little emotional affect.

Psychopath.

And for the first time since the UR-1 retrial, he suddenly found himself in the grip of bone-chilling fear.

Splodge led him through a short corridor into a room, which featured one of the demolished, barred windows, closing the door behind them.

“I guess this is gonna be goodbye, my pretty…”

Simon was relieved for a moment. He is really just leaving me here. Thank god.

However, the liberating feeling was immediately replaced by abject terror when Splodge’s hand wrapped around his throat from behind, pulling him against the criminal while momentarily cutting off his ability to breathe, and the muzzle of the gun was firmly pressed against his temple.

As Simon struggled to take in air, ineffectually trying to pry the constricting fingers away from his neck, hot breath washed over his right ear when the murderer whispered, “…I should say, but since you’re such a gorgeous little piece of meat, maybe I should have some fun with you before I get out of here…”

The hand around his throat loosened as it moved down on his body in a callous parody of a caress, until it squeezed one of his breasts hard.

At that point, Simon tried breaking the man’s grip out of reflex, regardless of the threat to his life.

No!

Unfortunately, only just recovering from having been choked and still somewhat limited in his movements from the time he had spent curled up in the car trunk, he did not manage to free himself. The gun’s pressure against his temple redoubled, and he could hear the slimy grin on Splodge’s face when the man panted, “Oh, I like it when they fight back,” grinding his hardening cock against Simon’s backside.

Escaping this situation seemed impossible; no one knew where he was, and if the gun did not go off due to him struggling against the man’s grip, there was at least a minuscule chance that he would get away with his – Athena’s body’s – life.

Simon went limp in Splodge’s grasp. I am so very sorry, Athena…

In spite of all the rumors about life in the clink, he had only very rarely been subjected to attempts of rape by fellow prisoners during his seven-year stint. Most sexual advances had been offers of a consensual roll on a bunk, which he had universally declined, and the few times when some hulking fresh meat or other had chanced trying to subdue him in a dark corner, he had been able to make short work of the would-be assailants.

However, these prior instances had not involved a deadly ranged weapon, Taka had been with him as a valuable distraction, and, most importantly, Simon had not been in a body which he had to try and keep alive at all costs.

He cursed himself for having momentarily all but forgotten about their peculiar situation when he had agreed to the exchange, gritting his teeth as Splodge roughly shoved his hand under his skirt and palmed his center through his tights and panties.

“I bet you’re nice and tight, not like those whores…”

Shuddering when the criminal’s tongue ran across his ear, Simon closed his eyes.

Chapter Text

When Athena left the courtroom, she ran into the parents of the little girl, who were still tearfully celebrating the reunion with their daughter.

The scene would have been touching at any other time, but the hostage situation the child had just barely escaped from remained foremost on her mind. Finding it not within herself to rein in her rage at the moment, she barked at them, “Where did he go?”

They all blanched at being directly confronted by the angry, impressively tall prosecutor who was now clutching a sword, but somehow the father managed to stammer, “He had Ms. Cykes take our car keys from us… it’s a silver Chevrolet Cavalier. Do you need the plate number?”

Athena shook her head sharply, and continued walking without wasting another second. I can’t risk calling a grand search for the car, or this might end up in a standoff with some idiotic patrol cop the moment Splodge realizes we’re after him, and that might endanger Simon even more, so the license plate is going to do me a fat lot of good… I hope Taka has seen them and knows how to track a vehicle. It’s in my hands now.

Outside, she found the hawk circling in the sky, taking off eastwards as soon as he spotted her, and Doddbury behind the wheel of his already-started car. Throwing herself into the passenger seat, she ordered him, “Drive. I will tell you where. Be prepared to turn at a moment’s notice.”

“Yes, sir!” The detective floored it without any further ado.

Keeping an eye on Taka, who made sure to stay in their sights, Athena directed Doddbury through traffic, hoping beyond hope that they would arrive in time to rescue Simon while he was still alive and unharmed. After all, the person who had abducted him had all but admitted to having committed at least one rape and murder…

You stupid man…Please, please be safe. I need you.

The sudden realization almost caused her to sob aloud, and she bit the inside of her cheek to keep herself under control.

“Left here! And for god’s sake, Odd Bird, hurry!”

***

The tail lights of Doddbury’s car were just vanishing in the distance when Klavier Gavin left the courthouse, Apollo Justice and Phoenix Wright in tow.

“I think that’s them way over there,” he stated, staring for a moment before continuing on toward his car. “They don’t have much of a head start. We can probably stop whatever situation we find from deteriorating to the worst-case scenario.”

As they jumped into the flashy sports car, Apollo on the passenger seat and Mr. Wright in the back, the younger lawyer could not help but point out, “Let’s hope. As fast as Prosecutor Blackquill can be, it wouldn’t take him particularly long to hack someone to pieces…”

His employer returned quietly, “Depending on what we find at whatever location Splodge has taken Athena to, I might even be willing to help Blackquill hide the body afterwards.”

Apollo did not even want to imagine just what the scene might be. He thought back to the pictures of Fleur Jamais, and in his mind’s eye, the face of her naked, lifeless corpse was replaced with Athena’s, the mortal wound having been caused by a bullet this time.

He shuddered. I’m with Mr. Wright, if that happens before Blackquill can get her out of there.

Gavin’s expression was grim as he stepped on the gas pedal. “Let’s not assume the worst just yet, ja? We will determine the best course of action once we arrive.”

Both Wright Anything Agency lawyers noticed that he had not said anything about not aiding them in whatever their decision might entail when the car shot out of the parking lot.

***

25 minutes after they had started out, Athena saw Taka suddenly diving downward before disappearing behind the buildings between them. The area in which they were now did not feature any houses that were particularly high, which, on one hand, had been useful for keeping an eye on the hawk; on the other, it made pinpointing where exactly he had gone to ground somewhat difficult.

I hope his sudden descent doesn’t mean that he felt he had to try and save ‘Athena…’

“Turn right at the next intersection,” she instructed Doddbury, urgency apparent in her voice. “Keep an eye out for a silver Chevrolet sedan.”

***

Simon had just consigned himself to his fate when suddenly, a familiar screech sounded from outside, and a split second later Taka shot through the window bars straight at Splodge. The man cried out in pain when the hawk’s sharp claws sank into the hand holding the gun, and the weapon fell from his maimed fingers.

Simon immediately realized that he had been afforded an opening when the pressure of the muzzle was removed from the side of his head. He threw himself backward, forcing both the criminal and himself to the ground. During the fall, he angled his legs, bringing both of his heels down on his opponent’s knees as soon as they had landed with all of the not inconsiderable force Athena’s thigh muscles could muster.

Splodge’s howl of pain was much louder this time as his kneecaps shattered with a dull crunching noise. His grip loosened, and Simon jumped to his feet, kicking the gun further away so it was safely out of the murderer’s reach. Then, he rounded back on the man on the floor.

He was no stranger to anger or even rage, but the fury which now descended on him, ice-cold and paired with dark, savage glee, was something new. It would have terrified him if he had not been the one in its grip, and the distorted grin he was sporting unbeknownst to himself was sinister even on Athena’s face.

“You should have never put your filthy hands on her,” he stated in a deadly quiet tone, took aim, and forced his foot into Splodge’s groin, grinding his heel back and forth as the murderer screamed and folded like a knife in a futile bid to protect himself.

Feeling Splodge’s weak attempt at tugging at his leg in order to unbalance him, Simon straightened once more, proceeded to take a few steps toward his opponent’s back, and began raining sharp, forceful kicks down on every part of the murderer’s body.

“I.” kick “Will.” kick “End.” kick “You.”

Eventually, his foot connected with Splodge’s head, driving the man’s nose sideways into the concrete floor, and the murderer lost consciousness as blood began to trickle from his nostrils.

At that point, Taka let out another cry, and Simon was finally able to regain his control over himself. He pushed down the red haze that had clouded his vision with considerable difficulty, breathing heavily.

As much as I want to kill this animal, it might get Athena convicted for murder. Right now, we can still sell this as self-defense.

He squatted next to Splodge’s prone body and checked the man’s pulse, equal parts relieved and disappointed when he found it.

I have to get out of here and notify the police.

Finding the pair of canvas gloves the killer had likely worn during his last crime in his pockets, Simon pulled one of them on, even though they were far too large. Then, he picked up the plastic gun. As he straightened, he was surprised to see Taka fluttering towards him, and even more so when the raptor came to a rest on his shoulder.

Taking a moment to ruffle his feathered friend’s plumage in order to calm his still rapidly-beating heart, Simon let out a breath he had not realized he had been holding.

“Let’s go,” he said quietly, and walked toward the door.

***

An endless-seeming ten minutes of combing the neighborhood later, Athena finally laid eyes on the unobtrusive silver car, next to a building that was slated for demolition, according to a sign on the construction fence surrounding it. Thankfully, parked vehicles had been few and far between in this particular area, so that even such a common make and model had not been difficult to spot. 

She tensed. “Stop! They’re here.”

While Doddbury brought the car to a halt, she opened the evidence bag, pulling the katana from its sheath. The sharp blade glinted when sunlight reflected off of it, except for the first six or seven inches, which were still stained with Fleur Jamais’ blood.

“Call for backup,” she instructed the detective. They’ll be here far too late to stop whatever is going to happen now, but in the worst-case scenario, they can either catch Splodge after he has killed us both… or lead me off in handcuffs after I am finished with him.

“I’m going in.”

“But sir, you can’t…” the young man began to protest.

“Do it!” Athena growled, stunning him back into silence. When she saw Doddbury reaching for the radio unit, she opened the passenger door and stepped out.

She was aware that she was literally bringing a knife to a potential gun fight, but as she had no other weapons at her disposal and sincerely doubted that the detective would lend her his, no matter how much she yelled at him, there was not much she could do about it. I have to try and stop Splodge, right now. Steeling herself, she approached the car, noticing some steps leading down to a door behind it.

Athena rounded the car and was just about to set foot on the first step when the door swung open with a creak.

The reflexes of Simon’s body kicked in as she widened her stance, one foot sliding forward, and leveled the tip of the katana at whatever might be coming her way, ready to thrust forward. I’m close enough, I should be able to cut him down before he can fire.

Her eyes widened when she found herself face to face not with Marcus Splodge, but with Simon.

Chapter Text

His fight-or-flight reflex fully active, Simon’s first instinctive reaction when being confronted with a blade just inches from his face was to raise the gun, and he was only barely able to keep himself from pulling the trigger when he realized just who was holding it.

“… Athena?”

His arm fell to his side as his tension suddenly abated in a rush, the glove slipping from his hand along with the gun. The movement caused Taka to flutter up, coming to rest on the stairs’ rusty handrail.

Athena took a moment longer to register that it was him, but when her eyes finally showed a flicker of recognition, she threw the sword aside, stepped down toward him, and pulled him into a hug.

She did not cry, she knew better than that by now, but her voice was still full of tears when she asked into his hair, “Are you okay? He didn’t…?”

With the ebb of adrenaline, Simon felt all strength leaving his legs, and leaned into her for support to keep himself upright.

“He was about to try when Taka disarmed him,” he murmured into her chest. “I incapacitated him right after that.”

Athena crushed him to her even more tightly at his words. “I’m so glad that you’re all right… even if I’m really, really upset with you.”

“I know,” was all he could respond.

Behind them, Doddbury’s voice sounded out. “Sir, backup is on the way… oh.”

The young detective recovered remarkably quickly from the unusual sight of his superior embracing his courtroom rival. “Does Ms. Cykes need an ambulance?”

Simon extricated himself somewhat from the tightness of Athena’s embrace to answer the question himself. “I’m fine. You might want to call one for Splodge, though. He’s in the first room to the left behind this door.”

Doddbury’s eyes widened, and he quickly placed the call, afterwards shimmying past the two of them in order to take a look at the abductor.

Standing in front of the basement door in silence, neither Simon nor Athena realized that another car was pulling up to the scene, until Apollo’s voice rang out to them in his best Chords of Steel impression.

“Athena!”

The young lawyer froze in his tracks when he came close enough to take in the sight of his colleague in Prosecutor Blackquill’s arms. He was joined by Gavin and Mr. Wright, the latter of which placed a hand on his gaping junior associate’s shoulder, smiling wryly. “I guess we don’t have to find a spot to hide a body today…”

The detective chose that point in time to emerge from the basement again, whistling through his teeth. “You gave that pig what-for, Ms. Cykes. He’s unconscious, black and blue all over, and it seems that you busted at least a few of his bones…”

Simon feigned surprise at that, but Athena could immediately tell that he was insincere. “I may have overreacted a bit…”

“On the contrary,” she responded quietly. “Given what I might have done to him, he got off remarkably easily.”

She heard one of the men to her left swallow nervously at her statement.

Now, two police cars and an ambulance came to a halt behind Gavin’s car, and Athena decided that they had remained here long enough.

“Odd Bird, let the others handle the rest. We should bring Cykes-dono home.”

She let go of Simon with one arm, although the other was still gently wound around his waist, as she could feel that he was still somewhat shaky on his legs.

“What about her statement, sir?” Doddbury asked.

Athena’s glare immediately made him answer his own question. “Tomorrow then, sir. Very good, sir.”

Now Apollo stepped closer, “Athena, I have your bag, Widget and your glove in Prosecutor Gavin’s car…”

She speared him with a gaze. “It can wait.”

However, Simon’s hand on her arm made her relent. Still leaning on her for support, he said to Apollo, “Thanks for bringing the stuff along.”

Looking up at Athena next, he actually managed a grin. “I don’t think I can get into my apartment without my keys.”

Oh. She felt more than a little sheepish about forgetting that little fact. “That… might pose minor difficulties,” she admitted lamely.

Apollo looked at her as though he had seen a ghost. “Uh, just hold on for a sec, I’ll get it.”

When he returned from Gavin’s car a minute later, he handed everything to Simon with a smile. “I’m glad you’re okay.”

“So am I,” Simon retorted. “Well, I should probably leave for now, I’m beat.”

Apollo’s smile was consumed by renewed worry. “I can imagine. Go get some rest.”

Athena inclined her head at her erstwhile colleague, and proceeded to lead Simon to Doddbury’s car, seating herself in the back with him. The detective took his place behind the wheel, and a minute later, the vehicle pulled out of the lot. Taka finally took off from the handrail of the stairs, as well, winging his way into the general direction of the courthouse until he vanished into the background of the clear blue sky.

Apollo let out a deep breath, watching Doddbury’s car vanish in the distance.

“Thank god everything turned out okay,” he said with feeling.

Klavier busied himself with picking up the canvas glove, which had dropped from Simon’s hand along with the gun earlier, pulling it on. Then, he grabbed both weapons, which were still lying on the ground, before the EMTs now rushing toward the basement door with a stretcher could step on the evidence.

“Seeing that I don’t think he’ll give the case to Herr Blackquill after this little lark, I believe I will petition Chief Prosecutor Edgeworth for a chance to prosecute this Drecksack, myself,” he stated grimly as he straightened.

Mr. Wright nodded. “Best of luck, Mr. Gavin. You can be sure that we won’t be defending him.”

The ambulance crew now returned outside, the still-unconscious Splodge on the stretcher between them, and one of the policemen on the scene climbed into the emergency vehicle with them in order to keep an eye on the man.

“Detective Doddbury wasn’t kidding,” Apollo breathed, “She really did a number on him…”

“Ja,” Klavier agreed. “At least she only beat him to a pulp, though. Herr Blackquill would have probably run him through without even stopping to think about it.”

“Blackquill…” Apollo mused. “I don’t think I’ll ever understand the man. From what Athena told me, he’s been running hot and cold at her for a few weeks now, and yet he’s still ready to either kill or die for her.”

His regular courtroom opponent smiled at that. “What is so hard to understand? He considers himself her protector, come what may. That doesn’t have to mean that they always get along.”

“I guess so.”

His superior shrugged. “Their relationship is their business… but I really wish they would stop landing themselves in life-threatening situations for once.”

“Amen to that,” Apollo agreed. “Well… how about we get out of here?”

Chapter Text

The ride back to Athena’s apartment passed in silence; in fact, she did not even look at Simon. However, her hand had reached out for his the moment they had seated themselves next to each other in the car, and he could not bring himself to pull away.

The detective seemed to sense that no conversation was wanted or necessary, as well; after asking for the address, he, too, remained quiet.

Athena followed him up after Doddbury had pulled away from the curb, letting go of Simon’s hand when he unlocked the door, still without saying a word. He went to deposit Widget, the glove and her bag on top of her nightstand, and then stepped into the bathroom, silently checking his throat for bruises and washing his face and hands, paying particular attention to the ear Splodge had licked. Maybe I should slip an inmate some cigarettes to have your tongue cut out with a shiv, you miserable piece of shit. He knew that he probably would not follow through on that thought, but it made him feel better.

Glad that the criminal’s hand had surprisingly only left the faintest marks on Athena’s fair skin, he finished his ablutions and returned to the living room, seating himself next to her on the couch, now more than slightly apprehensive.

After another long moment of silence, she finally spoke up again.

“We need to talk. About a number of things.” The anger in her heart was subdued, but still there, underneath a general feeling of tension.

Simon was not sure whether he was willing to have this particular conversation right now, but after the extraordinary day they had just managed to survive, he could not fault her for her desire to have it out.

“Talk, then,” he invited hesitantly.

Athena gazed down on him; for once, her face was unreadable.

“You broke one of our rules today,” she stated flatly. “Why?”

He looked away as he attempted to evade her ire with a lie, although he did not have the necessary control at the moment to make it more convincing with Athena’s ability. “I knew you would realize that you could track me with Taka, whereas the girl would have been lost. I apologize for endangering your body.”

Of course, he had not known at the time that that was what she would do, although it was a logical assumption in hindsight.

She was silent again for a long moment. Finally, she said, “You are not only a liar, but also a colossal idiot, Simon Blackquill.”

Simon felt his hand being taken once more, this time in a firmer grip. When he dared to look at Athena’s face again, tears were rolling down her cheeks.

“Do you really think I was mainly worried about my body back there?” she murmured.

She did not have to elaborate; her heart provided the answer to her all-but-rhetorical question.

Unable to stand the sight of her crying, Simon directed his gaze down toward their hands.

“The girl… she reminded me of you,” he admitted. “I could not let her fall into the clutches of this monster.”

A helpless little laugh emerged from his mouth. “Furthermore, and this might sound completely ludicrous… when I offered myself in exchange, I didn’t even remember for a moment that I was impersonating you. I suppose I am finally losing it.”

Athena wiped at her face, and her expression softened as she let go of his hand and wrapped her arm around his shoulders for a moment in an offer of unspoken sympathy. Simon could not keep from leaning into the comfort of the contact.

She threw him an ever-so-slight smile when she withdrew again. “I’ve had that a few times. I guess we’ve been at it long enough by now that it becomes difficult for us to remember where the masquerade stops and our real selves begin…Heck, I’ve started guzzling coffee like there’s no tomorrow, even when I’m by myself.”

Getting back on topic, she stated quietly, “I’m not mad at you for saving the girl, just for putting yourself in danger, instead.”

Simon could not resist raising an eyebrow at that. “Says the woman who came after a gunman, armed with nothing but a katana, to save me.”

He was surprised when Athena began to chuckle slightly, the anger finally completely leaving her heart.

“It appears we’re both idiots, after all… did you know that Aura called us ‘codependent’ because we just can’t seem to stop trying to protect each other?”

Her eyes roamed over him for a moment. “God, I’m so glad you’re okay… I would’ve never been able to forgive myself if something had happened to you…”

Feeling more than a little guilty at the way her breath hitched again in preparation for further tears, now Simon reached for her hand out of his own volition in a bid to soothe her. “Athena. I am here. I am fine. Everything is well.”

She took a deep breath to compose herself, and a minute smile appeared on her face, only for her expression to once more become serious after another long moment of silence. “Not everything… there is something else we need to discuss. Explain to me why you got so freaked out and hung up on me on Friday.”

He closed his eyes for a minute in a grimace, avoiding her suddenly intent gaze. “Can’t this wait?”

“No,” she shot back at once, a hint of pique flickering up in her heart again. “Today nearly ended in one of us getting killed because we didn’t communicate with each other, and I won’t have any more of it. If you give me one good reason for being so distant, I won’t bug you anymore about it. Just… please talk.”

Hearing that she was determined to get to the bottom of this issue, no matter what, Simon sighed.

“Very well… I had a phone conversation with Ms. Woods a while back. It seemed safer to call her after Wright used the stone on me due to my not contacting her. She mentioned to me that you apparently had, as she put it, a ‘crush’ on me during your childhood days, and she seemed certain that you were interested in acting on it now. It made me realize that I am already asking far too much of you, and that we cannot forge such a connection between us. Right now, you are forced to live the life of a man who is ten years older than you, and whom you first met when he was twice your own age. This man comes with a past that still sets a lot of people’s teeth on edge, and even though your friends seem to believe in his innocence, he still scares them away, while the only kindred spirit he can offer you in exchange is a bird.”

He looked up at her. “You cannot tie yourself to me, Athena. It will only bring you more misery, when you deserve so much better.”

Athena seemed perplexed for a moment, but then she shook her head at him, smiling gently.

“And here you are trying to protect me again, this time from yourself. Simon, that crush… that was completely harmless, girly daydreaming, I certainly never thought of getting into your pants back then, either the regular way, or the way I have been recently. I can’t believe Junie thought I was all primed to jump you after you were released… She never mentioned my stupid little ‘Simon is so nice to me’ phase when we were talking before our trade. I guess I must have brought you up a lot in our conversations, because I was so thrilled that you were alive and free, but considering how charming you and I were to each other on the first day of the Filch trial…”

She had to chuckle at the thought.

“Also, I’ve spent most of my time at university around people much older than me, given how many grades I skipped, so the fact that you might be worried about the age gap honestly never crossed my mind. True, I’m young – but then again, you are not exactly ancient yet, yourself. I mean, what are ten years? It’s not like this is a difference where you could go, ‘Athena, I am old enough to be your father.’”

Her comically low impression of him, in spite of the fact that she was already speaking with his voice, startled a snort of laughter out of Simon.

Flashing him a quick grin, Athena continued, “As for your past… as long as we know the truth, I don’t care what other people think. Mr. Wright and Apollo won’t judge me for associating with you, so my job is secure and I’m not going to lose their friendship over it. And… you don’t have to scare everyone away, you know? Now that you are living my life, you seem to get on pretty well with everyone… not that you have to be best friends with them or anything, unless you feel like it. When it comes down to it, though, I am the one who chooses for myself with whom I spend my time, and if anyone else has a problem with it, particularly if they don’t know us personally, they can write it on a piece of paper, fold it up, and stick it where the sun doesn’t shine.”

Athena looked down at their entwined hands, and her following words were delivered in a much softer voice. “I’ve really missed our meetings the last couple of weeks, you know… since all of this started, you’ve become so important to me, even more so than you were before. I’ve missed the way we were talking and laughing together. I’ve missed seeing you smile at me, even if you did it with my face. And now that I nearly lost you again today, I finally realized… I don’t just want your body, Simon. I want you. All of you.”

Her confession left Simon at a loss. She is right. I am an idiot.

He had spent the better part of two weeks vehemently trying to staunch her infatuation, which, according to her words, she had only fully acknowledged to herself today. Apparently, he had unwittingly succumbed to projecting his own feelings onto her in his self-denial. Not only that, now that she had actually come to reciprocate his affection in spite of his recent abominable treatment of her, Athena had dismissed all of his arguments against giving in to their emotions as unimportant in one fell swoop.

Yet, he could not help but try to dissuade her once again, for her own good.

“You cannot possibly know what it is you are asking for,” he stated slowly.

Athena shook her head. “Au contraire. I know exactly what I want… and I notice that you never once said that you didn’t want me.”

Her tone made abundantly clear that she refused to consider any other reasons valid at this point.

Gazing directly into his eyes, she then demanded seriously, “Tell me to my face that you don’t want to be with me, Simon Blackquill, and mean it. I will leave, and we’ll never discuss this again.”

Simon took a breath, as if to start speaking, but faltered.

Her heart had not only spoken of her resolve. He had also heard the warmth her voice had betrayed on the phone for a second last Friday; it was still hesitant, but it had been there for the last few minutes, and it was strengthening.

His own determination to keep her at arm’s length, already eroded by their abundance of physical contact today, wavered and melted away.

“I can’t.”

Athena’s face lit up. “What’s wrong with us being happy for once, then?”

His sigh this time seemed to come straight from his soul. “I have been the cause of a lot of pain for you. I do not wish to hurt you again.”

“But you will, Simon,” she replied, causing him to gaze up sharply at her.

Athena continued, smiling, “Those we care about always have the power to hurt us the most, sometimes accidentally, sometimes on purpose. You can’t make me not care for you anymore, it’s far too late for that. Not that I want to stop caring for you…”

The warmth her heart emitted flared up as she spoke, until it irresistibly dissolved the last stubborn barriers in his mind. Her affection had disarmed him, had dismantled every one of his defenses, and this final, crushing defeat oddly felt like a triumph, instead.

For a moment, Simon merely looked at her, wondering how to respond. Then, he realized that no more words were necessary.

Reaching up, he pulled her down to him, and brought his lips to hers.

Chapter Text

The kiss was short, a gentle touch of lips against lips with half-lidded eyes, and when Simon moved away, Athena seemed stunned. She stared at him, and he threw her a lopsided, somewhat sheepish smile.

Suddenly, she pulled him back toward her by the hand, hoisting him up onto her lap, and her arms went around him, and her mouth opened against his, and he was lost.

Gasping at the sensation of Athena’s tongue sliding sensuously against his own, Simon twined the fingers of his right hand into her hair at the nape of her neck, just underneath the hair tie which held her ponytail together, and she groaned into his mouth. Dimly remembering that he had always liked it when someone else touched him in that spot, he trailed his hand down toward her collar, and the resulting noise in the back of her throat was even louder.

In retaliation, she softly traced a finger along his ear, and while he momentarily could not help but think back to what had almost transpired earlier, Athena’s touch did not carry a hint of intent to hurt and humiliate, only to impart pleasure. Her heart sang of her desire for him, and now, he willingly let himself be pulled in by its siren call.

Moving away from her mouth to begin a trail of kisses along the line of her jaw, he felt a trace of stubble against his lips, the sensation entirely strange. Simon had never been attracted to men in an erotic manner, but in this case, he found that his preferences did not matter for once – this was Athena, in a body he knew as well as he possibly could, and all that mattered to him at the moment was proving his own need for her closeness to her.

When he devoted his attention to placing a series of teasing nips down her neck, he felt her hardening cock bumping against his own growing wetness and ground down against it almost instinctively, causing her to emit a moan which immediately went straight to his own center. He sucked in a sharp breath and repeated the movement, now forcing a groan out of both of them. While he found himself momentarily surprised at his own ardent physical response to his unfamiliar position in their embrace, he welcomed the sudden spark of arousal with open arms. I want this. I want you.

Simon pulled back, Athena eyeing him intently with a heated gaze when he started removing her tie and opening her vest. He pushed the black piece of clothing off her shoulders along with the surcoat, and began working on the buttons of the white shirt she was wearing underneath until she was able to shrug out of it. Kissing every inch of skin stretched across her collarbones, he only relinquished direct contact with her for a moment to aid her in pulling his own jacket off in return.

Athena stayed his actions after a few minutes by moving her hand to his cheek. “Hey… are you sure this is a good idea, after… today?”

Simon met her eyes without hesitation. “So far, it feels like an excellent idea to me.”

Suddenly, one of her arms was cradling his back while the other was hooked underneath his knees as she carried him toward the bedroom, gently letting him down on the bed.

“If we’re going to do this, we’re doing it right,” she said with a smile, seeking his lips once more as she loosened the blue tie around his neck and began pushing the buttons of his own shirt through their holes one by one. Then, her hands made short work of his bra, and her tongue lightly flicked over one of his nipples a few times.

Simon arched against the intimate contact, surprised at how incredibly sensitive this part of her body really was. She could probably make me come just by doing this…

However, he refused to be distracted from his own desire to touch her and pushed her over to lie on her back. I am going to make you scream my name – in my own voice.

Leaning over her, he slowly opened her belt and pants, leaving open-mouthed kisses on the area around her navel and along her pelvic bone while his hand softly caressed the still cotton-covered bulge between her now-open flies.

“Ahhhh…” Athena’s eyes flew open, trying to focus on him without being entirely successful as he lifted up the waistband of her underwear, freeing her cock from its confines and huffing a breath on it from up close.

“Simon, you don’t have to…” She threw her head back with another wordless, garbled shout when he licked a wet stripe up the underside of her erect length and closed his lips around the tip.

This is probably the most bizarre instance of autofellatio in the annals of history, he could not help but comment internally at the odd sensation of feeling his own cock resting against his tongue, but his determination to reach the goal he had set for himself overrode the initial moment of strangeness. While he obviously did not have any prior experience to draw on, he knew what he would respond to in this situation, which, judging by her reactions, should be exactly what brought her pleasure at the moment.

He took her into his mouth as far as he could, letting his tongue dart out beyond his lips to slide wetly against her base, satisfied at the way her hand came to rest in his hair.

Giving her a hard suck on his way back up, he noticed how her breath came quick and shallow already. He swirled his tongue around the head a few times, feeling her claw at his scalp, and then swallowed her down again.

“Simon…!”

Surprised by achieving the exclamation he had sought so soon, he pulled back too slowly, and the results of her orgasm landed squarely on his face.

He was about to bring a hand up to wipe the cum away, half-ashamed and half-aroused, when her fingers closed around his and pulled him up. Athena licked her lips, and then her tongue made contact with his cheek, lapping up the product of her own peak. The mere concept nearly caused Simon to follow her in her release. His excitement only increased when, after devotedly licking his face clean, she reached for his center.

Her finger flicked over his still cloth-covered clitoris teasingly, producing enough of a sensation through two layers of fabric that he reeled.

“… and you are not completely undressed yet, how…?” Athena prompted with a smile, shoving her pants and underwear completely down with her other hand, only momentarily meeting resistance by her boots before she impatiently kicked them off.

Simon shook his head at her as a chuckle escaped him. “Until recently, I was somewhat occupied.”

He removed the pieces of clothing still clinging to his lower body, pressing himself against her the moment he was done. The contact of skin with naked skin on such an intimate level was something he had not experienced in years, and the sensitivity of his current body only made the encounter more exquisite.

Again, Athena reached out between his legs, slowly dragging circles over his most sensitive spot. Keyed up as he was, Simon felt himself tensing almost immediately, felt the edge of his climax approaching rapidly, and yet it still caught him by surprise when it crashed into him mere seconds later, causing a loud moan to fall from his mouth as he stiffened.

He trembled when she drew a finger over his entrance, gathering some of the slick wetness and presenting it to him with a smile. “Look at this… and I barely did anything to you.”

Simon let out a slightly breathless laugh. “You have no idea what you are doing to me.”

Grasping her hand before she could move to wipe the moisture off on the blanket, he brought her finger to his lips and began sucking on it greedily.

“This is really quite fascinating, you know…” Athena mused, watching him from pupils blown wide with arousal, her own breath quickening again, “two heterosexual adults going at it while being alternately-sexed…”

He gave the digit a last lick. “Are you proposing volunteering for a study…?”

She once again reached down, this time slipping the spit-slicked finger inside him. “Not really… I’d rather keep you to myself.”

Simon only really heard the first part of her sentence, the second part being swept away by her blissful intrusion so shortly after his first orgasm.

“You do realize there’s an upside to being a woman physically, right?” She grinned, lowering her mouth to the side of his neck. “I happen to be one of the lucky ones who can easily come multiple times in a row…”

The shudder that wracked him due to both her words and deeds was almost as violent as his first climax by itself.

“Oh yes,” Athena breathed against his skin, her finger rubbing the upper side of his inner walls tightly while her thumb reached out to once again stimulate his clitoris.

Simon was unable to respond, as he was caught in a wordless exclamation of pleasure.

He ground himself against her hand, and then a second finger joined the proceedings, only adding to his need.

Her assault continued to be relentless, and he could feel his arousal steadily moving toward another peak, his thoughts a fever pitch of disconnected pleas. Harder faster more now oh fuck-

His hand shot down, stilling her moving fingers. “Stop.”

Athena froze, looking at him in surprise, and Simon took a moment to calm his breathing and reclaim control over some of his higher brain functions. Then, his gaze steadily met hers.

“Fuck me.”

Chapter Text

Her eyes widened, and she glanced down at her once again hard cock, at the juncture of Simon’s legs where his hand still rested on hers, and then at his face.

“Are you sure…?”

He threw her one of his trademark crooked grins. “Usually, I am the one asking that question, although the answer is self-evident more often than not.”

Pulling her toward him with his free hand, he kissed her deeply to prove his intent.

When he broke the kiss after a short while, his forehead still resting lightly against hers, he whispered, “You said you wanted all of me…feel free to take what you want. It’s all yours.”

Athena let out a shuddering sigh, bringing their lips together once more.

“Okay,” she said after moving away and reluctantly withdrawing her fingers from him; her heart was filled with flickers of anticipation, interspersed with nervousness. “Hold on…”

Simon was a bit bewildered when she proceeded to get off the bed and began rummaging through the lowest drawer of her nightstand.

“What are you doing?”

“Hah, found them…” Athena held up two silvery squares for him to see. “I figure we might need some protection for this, unless you did want to add the chance at pregnancy and maybe even childbirth to your current list of feminine experiences...”

He swallowed. “Ah, no, I am quite content for some things to remain a mystery to me, thank you very much.”

Grinning at his negation, Athena separated the foil packages and ripped one of them open. Her hands shook a little when she rolled on the condom. Then, she moved over him, until his field of vision was filled with nothing but her.

She nuzzled his neck, muttering next to his ear, “If you want to stop, tell me immediately, okay?”

He smiled. “I am reasonably certain that you won’t break me, but… I will.”

Athena reached down to grab her cock, placing it against Simon’s entrance. Kissing him gently, she slowly sank inside. He groaned into her mouth when he felt the unfamiliar but intensely pleasurable sensation of his body stretching to accommodate her girth as she filled him inch by inch.

Finally, she was seated within him all the way to the hilt, and stilled. Her eyes were wide open as she gazed down on him in wonder. “So this is what it’s like…” she gasped.

After she had remained motionless for a moment, Simon decided to take action. He lifted his legs until his ankles crossed at her lower back, and nudged her forward, the slight movement making them both moan.

Athena got the hint. She pulled back, only to move all the way inside once more, faster this time, kissing Simon’s exposed neck when he threw his head back.

Her thrusts increased in speed every time she moved her hips, and Simon met her movements by bucking up in kind.

Athena’s hands were everywhere she could reach without impeding their coupling, ghosting over his neck, tangling in his hair, caressing his breasts, running down his sides, grasping at his thighs. She grunted with every thrust, her forehead beginning to bead with sweat, and the pure, untainted feeling of lust her heart emitted relentlessly stoked Simon’s own, as did his own vocalizations in her voice.

Suddenly, he felt her arms moving underneath him, her hands coming to a rest on his shoulder blades, and she carefully rolled them around until she was lying on her back, with Simon seated on top of her.

“I want to see you fuck yourself on my cock,” she panted, and her demand caused a tremor of additional arousal to run through him. He lifted himself halfway off the hard length within him and then ground back down, a long groan ripping itself from his throat when he realized that, impossibly, this new position made for even deeper penetration.

Beginning to ride her in short, quick movements, he felt his climax approaching once more. Athena seemed to be in the same state – her breath became shallow, her utterances more guttural with every passing moment. “Touch yourself,” she commanded in a rough whisper as her hands came to rest on his hips. The urgent need in her voice and heart nearly undid him right then and there.

Continuing to bear down on her, rhythm becoming unsteady, Simon reached for his center with one hand, the other grasping one of his breasts. All of the sensations combined to an unimaginable crescendo, and he went rigid above her with a shout, his inner walls convulsing around Athena’s cock. Her grip on him tightened as she started to wildly drive up into him, each movement prolonging his peak with an almost painful jolt and forcing near-breathless, high-pitched cries out of his mouth. Finally, she stilled deep inside him, her eyes wide open and glassy, and a final, deep moan shook her as she spent herself.

Simon collapsed on her chest, twitching with the aftershocks of his release, and one of her arms weakly came to rest on his back.

When he was able to relax enough to still his involuntary movements and open his eyes once more, Athena was looking at him, an exhausted but satisfied smile on her face.

“Wow. That was… wow,” she breathed.

He chuckled slightly. “Eloquent as ever, although in this case, I happen to agree.”

A laugh rippled through her as she reached down to nudge him off her softening cock, making sure to hold on to the condom’s base to prevent any unfortunate accidents. “Jerk.”

“I’m afraid it comes with the package.” He grinned down at her, only for her affection to spread through his whole being when she replied, “I wouldn’t have you any other way,” kissing him softly.

They stayed in their current position for a little while, wordlessly basking in each other’s presence, until Athena grimaced slightly. “This is getting a bit uncomfortable.”

Simon moved to roll off of her, and she removed the used condom from her cock, depositing it into her bedside paper basket. Then, her arm looped around his waist, pulling his back against her chest as she curled up around him.

“We’re some pretty big weirdoes, having sex with each other while being stuck in each other’s bodies,” she remarked, smiling against the back of his neck.

“Indeed, we are completely off our rockers,” he replied with a snort. “And yet, I can’t bring myself to care somehow.”

He felt her shrug against him contentedly. “Normal is boring, anyway.”

Threading his fingers with those of the hand currently holding him, Simon did not respond for a while. When he finally spoke up again, he said softly, “I am sorry for trying to push you away the last few weeks. I should have talked to you about things, rather than jumping to conclusions by myself.”

She tensed against him, and sudden anxiety filtered into her voice as she replied, “I need to apologize for something, too. Earlier in court… I really hated you for a moment. I couldn’t believe that you would defend the guy I thought raped and killed… Fleur Jamais.” Her final pause made abundantly clear that she had almost uttered something different.

Athena’s grip around his waist slackened in her defeat when Simon stated matter-of-factly, “I know.”

Then, he lifted her hand to his lips, placing a kiss on its back. “And I don’t blame you one bit. You were upset, and I would have likely reacted the same way, had I been in your position. To not even mention… Muzai was convinced that his encounters with Jamais were consensual, but we have no idea whether she perceived it the same way. After all, she did refuse to go with him, and he was in a position of power over her. Yes, he was innocent of her murder, however…”

Simon shuddered internally at the thought. We will never know the truth about their relationship, now that she is dead.

He continued, “At any rate, this matter… it brought back memories, for both of us. If I had not known due to your ability that Muzai did not commit the murder, I would have never agreed to defend him, and if I had not refused to talk to you before the trial… Your feelings toward me at court were quite understandable, considering the circumstances. It is I who must apologize again for upsetting you, for endangering your reputation with this case, and for everything that happened after that…”

“No, please…” As she relaxed against him once more, he understood what she meant. No more self-recrimination. No more guilt. At least not for me.

After a moment, she kissed the side of his neck just below the ear. “Thank you.”

The voice of her heart let him know that her words did not just refer to his apologies when she pulled him against her.

“No,” he replied, noticing the way his own voice wavered, “thank you.”

No further words were exchanged between them before, about fifteen minutes later, they drifted off to sleep.

Chapter Text

Simon was not a particularly long sleeper; when dawn light began to filter in through the bedroom window, he slowly began finding his way back to consciousness, contentedly holding Athena against him with his eyes still closed.

It took him a few minutes to remember that she had been the one holding him last night, and he forced his eyelids open, only to find himself looking down on the smaller, female, red-haired body he had inhabited for weeks. For a moment, he indulged in just gazing at her, taking in her peaceful features, her deep, regular breathing, and her fresh-faced beauty that even his spirit had not been able to mar.

Finally, he let go of her waist, planting a kiss on her temple. “Athena, wake up.”

“Nngh just another hour or two…” she mumbled, pushing herself back against him… and then her eyes opened wide, as she registered that the voices she had just heard from him and herself were not those they had used until yesterday.

“We… we’re back to normal!”

She turned around to face him, a broad smile on her face, and he dryly retorted, “I thought you might like to know.”

“Yeah, that’s worth being woken up for at…” she took a look at her alarm clock over his shoulder, “…6:30 in the morning.”

“Oh man, I’m kind of sore down there,” she continued with a slight wince. “Couldn’t you have told me that I was being too rough last night?”

Simon raised an eyebrow at her. “How was I supposed to know? Also, I don’t recall you lodging any complaints while it was happening.”

He paused for a moment, before adding with a positively impish smirk, which would not have been amiss on her face, “I certainly didn’t have any.”

Athena laughed. “Shut up and kiss me, you jerk.”

“Your wish is my command.” He pulled her against him, and the kiss felt once again like a brand new sensation to both of them.

Athena felt tears pricking at her eyes as her tongue slid against his, and a few of them managed to make their escape, rolling down her cheeks.

Feeling the moisture as it made contact with his own face, Simon pulled back, opening his eyes. His slight frown betrayed his bewilderment. “Why are you crying?”

She smiled even as more tears began to flow, reaching up to wipe them away. “I’m just so happy right now… we’re both alive and well, we know where we stand, and… I can finally see your own smile again. Not the one you use in court; the one that lights up your eyes, the one that you mean.”

Simon presented her with just that smile, even as he said, “Sentimental nonsense.”

Her regained ability told her the moment these two words left his mouth that they were completely insincere.

“Now then,” he continued, affecting a lazy grin, “I believe you mentioned some discomfort due to last night’s activities. By way of apology… would you like me to kiss and make it better?”

Athena giggled. “You, good sir, suffer from a serious oral fixation.”

Simon’s grin only widened at that. “Thank you for the diagnosis, Ms. Psychologist, although I don’t know whether suffering is the correct term in this instance…”

He moved closer, his lips sliding down the side of her neck to her shoulder, along her collarbone and then ever downward, only stopping on their way to close around each of her nipples with a quick suckle. His tongue descended into her navel for a moment, then flitted out in small, open-mouthed kisses below, until it pressed softly against her entrance.

Athena sighed when Simon began kissing and licking at her folds, his tongue once in a while teasingly dipping inside her or flicking over her clit, his nose buried in her pubic hair. She moaned when he hummed his contentment against her, her fingers coming to rest in the mess that was his mane. The determination and pleasure in his heart told her that he found her delectable, that he could do this forever, and her own skipped a beat.

Oh god, how are you so good at this…? Athena felt herself starting to shake under his ministrations, pushing his head down against her, and one of his arms began snaking up on her side until his large hand started kneading one of her breasts, his thumb brushing over her nipple again and again. With his other hand, Simon gently spread her open, licking long stripes from her entrance toward the front.

Her trembling increased as she fought against the urge to close her eyes; the sight of him so devotedly consuming her, his tongue darting out to meet with her most intimate place over and over, only served to further stir up her desire.

Now achingly close to the edge, she opened her legs wider in order to encourage him, and he seemed to get the message: After one last drag of his tongue, his lips closed around the engorged bud of her clit, sucking on it softly.

Athena bucked against him, inadvertently pulling hard on his hair as she tensed. For an eternal moment, she could not breathe, she could not move, and the high-pitched keen emerging from her mouth seemed to belong to a different person.

Then, her breathing set in again with a shiver, her muscles seemingly losing all strength, and yet, he was still laving at her, his eyes now closed, and she heard a small groan from him. Simon did not seem particularly inclined to stop any time soon.

Her passion began to rise toward another climax, and when his tongue breached her entrance this time, partaking of her now abundant wetness, Athena managed to breathe, “Hold on…”

He withdrew slightly and looked up at her silently, the unspoken question in his gaze.

“I want you inside me,” she whispered.

Simon’s raised eyebrow was clearly visible through his disheveled fringe. “You said you were sore.”

“Mhm, you’ve made it a lot better… Please. I want to feel you.”

“Are you…?” He stopped in the middle of his question, and a self-deprecating smile appeared on his face as he answered it, himself. “Of course you are sure.”

She grinned at him as he sat up and reached past her for the remaining unused condom on the nightstand, giving his mass of hair a playful tug. “Good save.”

He muttered something under his breath that sounded suspiciously like “jerk,” before instructing, “Kneel on the bed and turn your back to me.”

Hearing the merest hint of concern for her in his heart, Athena realized that he was trying to avoid doing what they had done yesterday in an attempt to make it easier on her. Ever the protector.

Smiling, she did as he had told her, hearing him ripping open the package and rolling the latex sheath over his cock. Then, his hands were on her waist, pulling her to a more upright position, and his thighs came to a rest around her own. He, too, was kneeling, although at a lower stance than her, and she could feel the blunt tip of his length nudging at her entrance from underneath.

Simon kissed her shoulder when he slowly pushed inside her, and Athena leaned back against his chest. While it felt just slightly uncomfortable at first, both the position and the wetness her orgasm had produced made the initial discomfort manageable, and once he was all the way within her, she reveled in reliving the ultimate closeness they had first shared last night, but this time in her own body. His hands moved to her breasts, caressing her nipples, and he started rocking his hips at a gentle pace.

She sighed her renewed pleasure as she turned her face toward his when he leaned over her shoulder, finding that his lower position left their heads at roughly the same height for once. When he bent forward a little more, she kissed him, still tasting herself on his lips, while lifting her hands to place them on his own.

His rhythm of sliding in and out of her never changed, and Athena felt her arousal now heightening in an almost soothing way. Simon was mostly silent, only occasionally emitting a muffled grunt, his breathing quickening ever so slightly and hitching once in a while, but she could feel the tension in his thighs as he kept himself from abandoning his restraint and driving into her. With every quiet noise, with every slow and deliberate movement, his silent message reverberated within her: For you.

His right hand slid off her breast, unhurriedly making its way down until it came to a rest between her legs, one finger beginning to tease at her center.

Caught between the two sensations, Athena’s lust began building up to a wave. She could feel her orgasm coming from miles away, could almost reach out and touch it more than once, and when it finally hit her, she pressed herself against him with a long moan, letting her head fall back on his shoulder.

Chapter Text

Simon simply held her in their kneeling position for a while, then he moved away, slipping out of her.

Athena remained in her almost dreamlike afterglow until the telltale noise of him pulling off the condom reached her ears, and she remembered that he had not achieved his own climax yet.

She turned around to face him. “Hey, what are you doing? That’s the last one I had!”

He shrugged when he tossed the item into the paper basket next to the bed. “You were done, I thought.”

Athena crossed her arms. “And what about you?”

Simon grinned. “I do happen to have hands, as you might remember.”

Oh, you.

“So do I,” Athena shot back, grabbing for his still hard cock. “Your point being…?”

She gave him a rough stroke, and his eyelids fluttered closed for a moment. “I – hngh – seem to have forgotten it just now.”

Athena smirked. “Idiot.”

He smiled down at her. “Jerk.”

“Well, if you ask so nicely…” She began moving her wrist, grabbing for the back of his neck with her other hand to pull him down for a kiss.

His breathing quickened again after a few moments of her hand running up and down on his cock, but he remained silent aside from the minuscule noises he could not entirely smother. While those were nice, Athena began to feel the desire to hear more out of him – and she had just the idea to make it happen.

She let go of him and pushed him down to lie on his back. “I just remembered that I have some earlier favors to repay,” she explained with a saucy smile, lowering her face to give the tip of his length a teasing lick.

That managed to finally get a groan out of Simon. “Don’t – ah! – let me stop you,” he replied in a voice that suddenly sounded winded.

“I wouldn’t have let you, anyway,” she replied, and swallowed him down, beginning to bob her head rapidly. His fingers tangled in her hair, causing her to smile around his cock, and his quiet moans were music to her ears.

I want to see and hear and feel you completely lose control, Simon Blackquill. Show me what you are like when you are unleashed in your own body. Watching him let go of all his inhibitions last night had undone her almost as much as the physical sensations had, and since he had now reverted to the shape she had grown to desire so fervently, Athena wanted – needed – to experience him at his most passionate even more.

She began alternating between stroking him firmly while licking up the first beads of fluid welling up from his tip, and taking him into her mouth as deeply as she could while drawing her tongue up on the underside of his cock, the noises he made inexorably increasing in volume.

After a short while, her lips let go of him with a wet popping noise, and she felt his heated gaze on her. “Do you trust me?”

Eyebrows drawing together under his fringe in puzzlement, he nevertheless nodded. “Of course.”

Athena smiled at him warmly when his heart told her just how much he meant his statement, and began tonguing at his tip again. “Good.”

In her bid to increase her own stimulation while masturbating in Simon’s body, she had found some remarkably effective tips online, and she had decided that, now that their state had been reversed, he might as well benefit from her newfound knowledge.

She reached back toward her center with her right hand, slickening her index finger with her own juices, only to trail it over his balls and downward. Taking his cock deeply once more, she let the digit slowly slip inside his ass. Since her fingers were much slimmer than his and she had done this at least once a day when getting off, he opened up for her with little resistance.

“Athena, wha- hngraah!”

His grip on her head tightened as he involuntarily bucked into her mouth.

Yeah, that’s it, give it to me. She exulted in the way the prior tenderness in his heart was suddenly pushed aside by a wave of raw need, and that she was the one who had the power to do this to him.

Putting her other arm over his abdomen to keep him from accidentally breaking her nose, she tried finding the right spot inside him again – it was a bit difficult, as her own vantage point had been vastly different, but she knew she had hit her target when he let out another string of nonsensical sounds, eyes tightly shut, and thrashed against her hold. His hips gained a life of their own, fucking her oral cavity in short, shallow thrusts, her finger brushing against his prostate at the same rhythm.

Only a short time later, his hands cramped into claws amidst her tresses and his muscles went rigid as he came inside her mouth in long spurts, the noise he emitted somewhere between a groan and a scream. She looked up at him as much as it was possible in her current position, and the sight burned itself into her retinas: Simon’s eyes were wide open, yet clearly unseeing, his mouth gaping in a rictus of pleasure, his hair tie finally having succumbed to their activities and his long hair tumbling loosely over his shoulders in an unruly mess. Then, the moment was over; his eyes slid closed as his body relaxed bonelessly against the mattress, and he took a deep breath.

Swallowing his ample release, equal parts satisfied and somewhat amused, Athena thought to herself, If we keep going at it like this, I just might end up with an oral fixation of my own… I’m almost ready for another round again after that, but we’d probably both fall asleep in the middle.

She gently removed her forefinger from his anus, surreptitiously fishing for a moist towelette in the top drawer of her nightstand. After she had used and disposed of the wet tissue, she moved up to lie next to him, listening to his still rapidly beating heart.

His facial expression, although more relaxed than she had ever seen it before, also belied a hint of incredulity.

“Where the hell did you learn how to do this?” he asked when his breath had returned and he had opened his eyes to look at her.

“On the Internet, when I was looking into some fresh ideas on how to get off in your body. Did you like it? I know I did when I did it to myself…” Athena’s grin was more than a little wicked.

Simon snorted. “Overachiever.”

His heart belied the truth about his feigned derision, delighting in the filthiness of her admission of just what she had been up to with his body while inhabiting it.

Her grin did not wane. “Well, if you’d rather I didn’t do it again…”

Athena had to giggle when he answered her with a question. “Whatever gave you that idea?”

“Noted for future reference,” she replied, placing a kiss on the tip of his nose. “For now, we should maybe see about getting at least a little more rest. I don’t know about you, but I’m a bit worn out.”

Now it was his turn to grin. “I can’t for the life of me fathom why, but I feel the same way. Come here.”

Simon pulled her against him and was just about to close his eyes when Athena’s cell phone began to ring. Conditioned by five weeks of responding to its ring tone, he let go of her and turned toward the nightstand, taking it out of her bag before she could stop him, and answered the call.

“Yes?”

He was greeted by the Chords of Steel. “PROSECUTOR BLACKQUILL!? What are you doing with Athena’s phone at eight in… the… oh. My. God.”

Grimacing at the phone, he handed it to Athena with a laconic, “Oops.”

She burst out laughing.

Chapter Text

~Tuesday, six days later~

Apollo stretched his arms in the air on the couch of the Wright Anything Agency as yet another work day drew to a close. Next to him, Athena dismissed Widget’s screen. It had been a slow day, no new cases at the moment, but after all the excitement a week ago, he could not really claim that he minded the current lull. Trucy had returned from school a while ago, tittering excitedly to his junior associate about some guy named Jake coming to her show at the Wonder Bar tonight, and while Athena had appeared mildly perplexed, she had patted the girl’s shoulder and exclaimed, “Good for you!”

Now, Trucy was in the study with her father, possibly to show him her newest trick, and Athena was starting to glance at the clock.

“Stop doing that, Athena,” Apollo could not keep himself from remarking. “He’ll be here on time. He doesn’t do late, and you know it.”

She stuck her tongue out at him. “That doesn’t mean I’m not allowed to look forward to seeing him.”

A sharp rap on the door had her jumping up from the couch. “I’ll get it!”

Apollo shook his head at her antics. He had been more than a little shocked when Athena and Prosecutor Blackquill had decided to take their relationship to the next level after the Muzai-Splodge case, particularly considering that he had found out about it by calling Athena’s phone after a sleepless night of worrying about his colleague and friend, figuring that she had probably turned in early and would be rested enough by the time of his call, only to hear the man’s voice on the other end. Truth be told, he was still getting used to the situation, even if Blackquill had not once antagonized him ever since that day. Tonight, the prosecutor would accompany her to Trucy’s show.

He heard two sets of steps in the hallway, one of them with a jaunty spring, the other more measured, and then Athena and Blackquill stepped into the room.

“Good afternoon,” Apollo greeted the man while Athena amused herself by scratching Taka’s neck, who had fluttered over to her shoulder.

Blackquill inclined his head toward him, the corners of his lips quirking upward ever so slightly. “Justice-dono.”

Athena smiled up at her boyfriend. “Why don’t you sit down? We’ve put on a fresh pot of coffee just a little while ago…”

He leaned down to kiss her; Apollo would have never believed the man to be this demonstrative in his affections until he had witnessed it with his own eyes for the first time six days ago. For him to drop the ‘Twisted Samurai’ act in front of others, he really must be head over heels for her. Nothing like yet another mortal threat to get your priorities in order, it seems.

“I will help myself, then; thank you.”

As Blackquill strode over to the coffee maker, another knock sounded on the door, causing Apollo to raise an eyebrow. “Who could that be? It’s pretty late for new clients to stop by…”

He went to let the new arrival in, and quailed when he found himself face to face with the imposing figure of Mayor Damian Tenma. “I have important news. May I come in?”

“… Sure.” Apollo guided him through the hallway into the main room of the agency.

He was surprised when Athena’s eyes widened in panic at seeing their visitor, but not as surprised as when the towering man turned toward him and murmured in a tone that was obviously supposed to be quiet and confidential, but failed in both regards, “I have with me more information about the prior cases of the soul exchange, Ms. Cykes. I believe I may have found a way to reverse it... although I should probably discuss the matter with you and Mr. Justice in a more private setting.” He glanced at Blackquill’s back.

‘Soul Exchange?’ And why the hell is he calling me by Athena’s name?

“Um, Mayor Tenma… I’m over here.” Athena sounded defeated. “Actually, the whole thing has already resolved itself fairly recently, and I completely forgot about contacting you to let you know. Sorry that you went through the trouble of coming all the way here for nothing.”

Apollo had no idea what everyone was talking about at this point. “Would someone care to explain to me just what the heck is going on here? I’m feeling a bit out of the loop!”

Tenma eyed him curiously. “So you were not the one who traded bodies with Ms. Cykes after touching the wishing stone? Interesting. She only referred to an unspecified ‘colleague’ in her inquiry about the phenomenon, but seeing that this agency’s staff is not particularly numerous, I was sure that it was you.”

Wishing stone. The Moneypenny case six weeks ago.

“‘Traded bodies…?’ So wait… are you saying that the Athena who was with us here almost every day for weeks wasn’t really her!?”

The final words had slipped from Apollo at an almost Chords-of-Steel-worthy volume, now drawing Mr. Wright and Trucy out of the study.

“Why are you yelling like this, Apollo? Oh… Mayor Tenma, hello.” His boss’s expression was mildly puzzled, only to segue into out-and-out bafflement when Apollo explained, “The Mayor just told me that Athena has been replaced by an imposter recently for at least a few weeks, because she somehow traded bodies with someone due to that Nine Tails Vale magical rock we used as evidence in the case with Mr. Filch. It’s really her now, but it wasn’t until a short while ago.”

Who could she have traded places with, though…? Who else touched the stone…?

His eyes wandered over to Prosecutor Blackquill, who was standing near the small table with the coffee machine, holding himself very still.

Coffee.

“No. Nuh-uh. No way!”

Athena’s smile was more than a little lopsided when she confirmed his suspicion by turning toward her boyfriend, saying, “I think we’ve just been found out, Simon.”

The tall man’s shoulders slumped minutely, though when he turned around to face them he now sported a crooked grin of his own. “It would appear so.”

He made his way over to the couch, sitting down next to Athena.

Apollo still could not wrap his head around the information he had just received. Looking at Blackquill in disbelief, he asked, “I’ve been working with you? For how long?”

One of the prosecutor’s shoulders lifted slightly in a resigned half-shrug. “For about five weeks, starting on the second day of the Filch trial.”

Wait…so I really talked to him when this whole business about ‘her’ relationship with ‘Blackquill’ came up? And I huggedhim on the day after the trial!?

Apollo sighed. “I think I’m going to have a nervous breakdown. Don’t mind me.”

He threw himself into the nearby armchair, one hand held firmly over his eyes.

Mr. Wright laughed quietly. “So that’s what those psyche-locks were all about… I knew something was going on, but I can’t say that I saw this coming. You’ve had us all thoroughly fooled, Mr. Blackquill.”

Athena giggled. “He’s pretty good at pretending to be girly when he needs to…”

Blackquill surprised Apollo yet again when that statement did not only not enrage him, but caused him to chuckle lowly.

Looking at Athena with a completely uncharacteristic warm smile on his face, he gently said, “Jerk.”

Her expression softened. “Idiot.”

No… maybe that smile isn’t out-of-character for him. It seems that somehow, through this ordeal, he has found his younger self again. Apollo still vividly recalled the old photograph Athena – no, Blackquill himself – had looked at on Widget’s screen so many days ago, and even though the man in front of him still bore the marks of his seven years in prison, it was suddenly much easier to connect him with the young prosecutor in the picture.

Next to his armchair, Trucy now joined the conversation. “Does that mean… I’ve had a girl’s night with Prosecutor Blackquill…?”

That got Athena to stare incredulously at the man next to her for a moment. “A ‘girl’s night?’”

Then, she started laughing uproariously, slapping her knee repeatedly. “A girl’s night, Simon!?”

Apollo shuddered at the sight. Oh yeah, let’s not forget, she has been him for the same amount of time, and she was damn good at it, judging from the one time I’ve run into her, and from the way she impersonated him in court…god, this is so weird.

Blackquill resignedly shook his head at being the subject of her hilarity before addressing Mr. Wright’s daughter.

“I would prefer it if this particular bit of information remained confined to these rooms, Trucy,” he told her.

“Furthermore…” He paused for a second. “Considering that we have, in fact, had a ‘girl’s night,’ you may call me Simon.”

Trucy bobbed on her toes, grinning. “Okay, Simon. I won’t tell anyone!”

Then, Blackquill turned his attention to Apollo. “I should apologize for deceiving you for such a prolonged period, Justice-dono, particularly considering that I probably spent most of my time here in your presence. I hope you realize that I did not have much of a choice in this matter.”

“Apollo, please,” he felt himself compelled to respond. “You’ve been calling me that for weeks, anyway, so why stop now?”

Blackquill nodded. “In that case, I extend the offer of using my given name to you, as well.”

“I’m very impressed by your work for this agency,” Mr. Wright now made himself heard again. “If you ever decide to give up prosecuting, we’d have an opening for you.”

“Ah, no thank you, even though the offer is appreciated,” Blackquill responded remarkably quickly. “I believe I am better suited to working on the other side of the courtroom, Wright-dono.”

A wry grin spread on his face when he added, “Besides, I am thoroughly done with cleaning toilets for the rest of my life.”

The senior lawyer of the agency laughed. “Just as well. And while we’re at it, I better not let Edgeworth know that you’ve been prosecuting Mr. Blackquill’s cases recently, Athena, otherwise he’s going to try and snatch you away from me…”

“As if he could!” Athena exclaimed, obviously horrified. “I still have nightmares about being buried under piles of paperwork… I’ll take toilet duty over that!”

Mr. Wright smiled at her. “It’s good to hear that you aren’t suddenly interested in a career change, either. Now then, since we’ve cleared this matter up, how about we lock up here and all go down to Eldoon’s Noodles before moving on to the Wonder Bar? Mayor Tenma, you are welcome to join us, as well.”

“Yay, let’s do it!” Trucy enthused and was already halfway out of the door by the time the other people in the room moved to leave.

Walking behind Blackquill – no, Simon -, whose hawk had returned to his shoulder as he and Athena had risen from the couch, Apollo was suddenly struck by a thought.

“So, if you don’t mind me asking, when exactly did you guys change back?”

Both Athena and Simon stopped walking, exchanging a long look, and the young lawyer felt a twinge when his bracelet tightened around his wrist. Finally, she quietly said, “The night after Simon was taken hostage by Splodge.”

No. They didn’t…! Or did they…? Okay, Apollo, stop thinking about this. That way lies madness. An idea of just what Mayor Tenma’s proposed solution might have entailed flashed through his mind, and he hastily clamped down on it.

“I didn’t hear that,” Apollo stated resolutely and walked past them, ears burning. “Let’s go eat some noodles.”

He swore he could hear Simon laugh under his breath behind him as Athena closed the agency door.

- THE END -