[RL] Because these two had to talk

[samuraiprosecutor]

He couldn’t have said what possessed him to do it. Prayers hadn’t crossed his lips or mind since he was nine years old. Even prior to that praying had been more of habit than an act of belief. So it was especially strange when, in the deepest depths of his nocturnal Hell, fueled by several holiday-induced weeks worth of nightmares and exhausted by a near-deficit of sleep, his desperate thoughts turned to the angel.

'Even you,' some rebellious corner of his mind cried. 'If you could take all of this away I might even worship you, you sanctimonious prick.'

He regretted the thought the moment he thought it. He was disgusted by the very idea of praying to some unfeeling, self-righteous tyrant or any other being that thought themselves above him. Doing something so damnably foolish helped to drag him from that moment of extreme weakness. Chest aching, he rolled over in bed, curled in on himself and struggled to control his haggard breathing. At least he could take comfort in the fact that only he would ever know how pathetically low he had sunk.

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[makeitupaswego]

“I no longer have a right to be sanctimonious.” The voice, low and gruff, came from behind Edgeworth. Castiel stood near the bed, staring beyond the darkness of the ceiling.

[samuraiprosecutor]

Edgeworth came dangerously close to throwing himself off the other side of the bed in his effort to get away from the intruder.

"Goddamn—" He cut himself off as the angel’s silhouette and voice (not to mention the fact only he had any conceivable reason and means to be there) gelled into recognition. With a growl he sat up and glared at the shadow in the dark.

"You do understand the concept of a warning, don't you? It's not a completely foreign idea."

[makeitupaswego]

The angel turned a puzzled expression on Edgeworth, squinting at his shadowed form. “Why do humans say that? How am I-- how am I supposed to ‘warn’ my ‘arrival’,” punctuated by air quotes, “if not by speaking?”

[samuraiprosecutor]

The strangeness of Castiel performing air quotes derailed Edgeworth’s train of thought for a moment. He wasn’t used to the angel displaying anything resembling human behavior; quite the opposite, in fact. Ordinarily he was patently not human.

Edgeworth’s brows furrowed. “I don’t know! Ring some heavenly bells before you arrive? Project the word ‘Incoming!’ into a person’s mind? Isn’t the Bible filled with pointers on that sort of thing? You people were always announcing your arrival with trumpets and other such fanfare. Take that and scale it down to a less alarming level.”

[makeitupaswego]

"Exaggerations," Castiel grunted with a shake of his head. "Medieval nonsense. There are no heralds trumpeting our arrival, and certainly not any bells." He caught Edgeworth’s gaze again. "And if I spoke directly to your mind, your brain would hemorrhage. Perhaps that would be adequate warning?"

[samuraiprosecutor]

Blatant sarcasm. There was another thing he wasn’t used to seeing from the angel. And being chastised like some petulant child wouldn’t have been well received by Edgeworth under any circumstances, let alone when his nerves were already frayed and raw. He crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes at Castiel.

“You mean there’s something in the Bible that’s not entirely true? I think I feel a crisis of faith coming on.” He knew full well that he was being petty, and he couldn’t bring himself to care. If the angel was expecting civility he shouldn’t have invited himself over in the middle of the night.

“Anyway, send a text from beyond, for all I care. Or fine, give no warning at all, but then don’t expect any sympathy when people inevitably call you out on your rudeness.”

[makeitupaswego]

"My rudeness. My rudeness?" Something like a laugh escaped the angel’s throat. "Well, then, I do hope you’ll forgive me for trying to answer your prayers, Miles Edgeworth. It was apparently very, very rude. Goodnight," he spat.

And with that, he was gone.

[samuraiprosecutor]

That…wasn’t quite how he expected things to go. Edgeworth stared into the darkness of his room for a moment, listening for any evidence of the angel’s return, but he seemed to have driven him away. It was certainly easier than he could have hoped for, too. No muss, no fuss, save for a small, easily ignored shred of guilt poking at the back of his mind.

With a sigh, Edgeworth lay down and scooted back over to the correct side of the bed. Sigi, who had watched the whole scene with a bizarre absence of concern, met him there. Edgeworth allowed the dog to lick his palm while he lay there, staring at the ceiling with tired eyes.

[makeitupaswego]

Several minutes passed without interruption. It seemed Castiel was gone for good, until he reappeared by the door leading to the balcony, briefly preceded by the sound of flapping wings.

"I’m... on the other side of the room, now," he warned. His voice was quieter this time, with an almost sheepish quality.

[samuraiprosecutor]

In the silence of his room and with clearer thoughts, it became easier to sense the wingbeats and subtle shift in the air that heralded the angel’s arrival. This time he didn’t react.

That sheepish quality in his voice didn’t escape Edgeworth. It made it more difficult for him to respond as harshly as he might have liked. He suppressed another sigh.

“Noted.” He still didn’t bother to look at his visitor, and just continued to stare at the ceiling for a while.

[makeitupaswego]

Castiel watched Edgeworth from the corner of his eye, studying his unmoving form, and then looked away. "I apologize. I’m not... feeling like myself tonight."

[samuraiprosecutor]

‘That makes two of us,’ he almost responded. But then he realized that no, pathetic as it was this state was as much a part of him now as the Demon Prosecutor. Pride wouldn’t let him admit it to anyone else, but he couldn’t very well hide it from himself.

With nothing else to say, he gave the angel a searching look then waved his apology off dismissively. After a pause, he turned his gaze back to the ceiling. “You know, I wasn’t actually asking for help. Not from you or from anyone else. I know even if I wanted to, it would cost more than I’m willing to pay.”

[makeitupaswego]

"Deals aren't Heaven's area," Castiel said. "Even if you were willing to pay, I couldn't do what it is you want. Not without consequence."

[samuraiprosecutor]

The answer didn’t surprise him. It was even, if he was being entirely honest with himself, a relief to eliminate the possibility of temptation. A bitter smirk crossed his lips. There were thousands (if not millions) of desperate people who thought they could bargain their way to salvation, commit their crimes and mistakes then buy their way back into God’s good graces. How disappointed they would be to hear this.

But the angel’s proclamation did leave one question. Edgeworth finally sat up and leaned back against the headboard, bringing his knees up to his chest. He gave Castiel a quizzical look. “Then why did you bother coming?”

[makeitupaswego]

The question hung in the air for a few moments. Castiel stared at the sliver of light peeking through the curtain of the sliding glass door, then turned, staggered towards the bed, and invited himself to sit on the edge of the mattress. He ran a hand over his face, sighing through his nose. "...I don't know."

At this distance, Edgeworth might be able to catch the scent of liquor practically leaking from the angel's skin.

[samuraiprosecutor]

Castiel's movement prompted Sieghard to investigate further. He rounded the bed and approached the angel to give him a few curious sniffs. Edgeworth didn't respond nearly so well to the angel's presumption. He shot a sour look at his back, which only deepened when the displaced air carried the ripe, sickly scent of alcohol to him.

"Good God. Did you fall in a still on your way over?"

Tact was a tool reserved for people with the luxury of a full night's sleep behind them.

[makeitupaswego]

"A liquor store," Castiel amended. "Although I didn’t fall into it." He stared down at the dog for a moment, and then curiously extended his hand.

[samuraiprosecutor]

Sigi happily took advantage of the invitation and closed the distance between them, sniffing eagerly at the angel’s fingers. Once satisfied with their visitor’s character, he hopped back to give Castiel a cheeky dog grin, circled, then shoved his head into Castiel’s palm. Someone is in dire need of petting.

“Isn’t the consumption of alcohol rather…contrary to God’s edicts? Or is that yet another thing the faithful got wrong?” Not that Edgeworth had any objections to drinking. The fully stocked bar and wine cabinet in his living room was testimony of his tacit approval of the habit, at least in general. What he did object to was hypocrisy, and an angel indulging in a ‘sin’ certainly seemed to qualify.

[makeitupaswego]

Castiel blinked as the dog pushed itself against his hand, insistent. After a few seconds, he let his fingers move, very lightly stroking the surface of Sigi's fur, and oh, it was... soft. Almost comforting. He did it again.

"God doesn't care, anymore." His voice was rough.