boxolawyers | [RL] It was only a matter of time

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[RL] It was only a matter of time

Who: Edgeworth, the Corinthian (II)
What: A celebration is interrupted by an old favorite virus.
Where: Edgeworth's apartment
When: Mid-evening
Warnings: None

Sieghard was waiting by the door long before the jangling of keys preceded their entrance into the apartment. Edgeworth greeted the dog with a few gentle pats, leading him out of the doorway to allow their guest room to enter.

"Can I get you anything?" he asked, for once mindful of his duties as host. "There should still be a few beers left from the last time you were here."

Sieghard moved on to the Corinthian, planting himself at the nightmare's side and sniffing curiously at his hand before greeting him with a lick.

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Edgeworth watched the outburst silently, the furrow in his brow deepening with every word. Something was wrong, that much was obvious, but what it could be was beyond him. Surely the few awkward moments they'd experienced that evening couldn't have built into this.

As the Corinthian got himself under control, Edgeworth struggled to do the same. The effort wasn't entirely successful. He couldn't completely wipe the worry from his features, but at least his voice was steady when he spoke.

"There's no need to be." He hesitated, unsure of how far he should take this. The nightmare was rarely open to offers of aid. "Corinthian, if something's wrong..."

He shook his head again, stopping Edgeworth right there, but it was still longer before he replied, taking time to think about his answer.

"Whatever it is, I'll be fine." Maybe save some bits of his pride, but he had more than enough to make up for the loss, he was sure. "....I think I'm just tired. We can still finish the movie, at least. If you want to." It would be a shame to just leave before it ended, especially when it looked like Edgeworth had actually been rather into it. And he really didn't want to leave....

The rejection was expected, and with such a clear sign that the matter wasn't to be discussed any longer, Edgeworth couldn't do anything but comply. At least not until he had more of a reason to believe he should involve himself.

"If you don't mind." He nodded, retrieving the remote once again. "This isn't the sort of film you can abandon before the climax."

And it was only because of the lack of prying that the Corinthian still stayed at all. He rarely asked questions himself, and Edgeworth repaid it in kind. All he needed to do was be a little careful about choosing his words....

"Exactly," he said, giving a small grin, an attempt to ease the mood again. He only hoped it didn't look as plastic as it felt right now. "Besides that, I spent a lot of time looking for this one, so I can't leave until you've suffered through the whole thing."

It wasn't an entirely convincing smile, but Edgeworth was willing to overlook that for the sake of the evening the Corinthian was clearly trying to recapture. He gave a smirk in response.

"If suffering is required, I'm afraid you may not be leaving after all. So far I've enjoyed myself."

"Have you? Sounds like I might not have to sit through another snore-fest next time after all." There it was, just a little bit of teasing pride leaking into his voice.

It's a welcome sound, something Edgeworth is happy to return in kind.

"Don't get too far ahead of yourself, Corinthian. Movies often succeed or fail based solely on the strength of their endings. You aren't safe just yet."

"I don't know," he said with a careless shrug. "I'm feeling pretty confident. But let's start it up and see, then."

"Let's."

The tension hadn't quite dissipated, but it had eased enough for Edgeworth to be able to fall back into the film without much effort. Once the movie was playing, he kept his eyes fixed on it until the very end. As the credits rolled he slowly leaned forward, picked up his glass, and tossed his head back to down what was left in it.

"Well well..." He turned to his companion, a smirk on his lips and his eyebrow cocked. "Corinthian, I believe you've finally managed to exonerate yourself."

By the time the credits began he had already looked over at Edgeworth expectantly, waiting on whatever commentary was to come next. But it looked like he hadn't had anything to worry about after all.

"You really are damn difficult man to please, anyone ever tell you that?" His own smirk widened, just slightly, and he chuckled as he looked away. "I'm glad you liked it, though. It's been one of my favorites."

"Actually, despite appearances I'm not so difficult to please. I demand of others only what I'd demand of myself." The feigned loftiness of his tone hinted at what was coming.

"...Perfection."

His amusement was clear in the way he narrowed his eyes as he said it. Then his expression softened into a small but pleased smile. "But I'll readily admit that this time you delivered. It was an extremely well-crafted film. I can see why it would be a favorite."

"I don't know. Perfection might be a bit hard, but if it'll make you happy...." Well....honestly, it might be worth a try, however badly it would fail on his end. He shook his head, still grinning.

"I told you before I wasn't all pointless gore, didn't I?"

"You did. And after all this time you've finally managed to prove it," he said, the smirk returning. He took a sip of wine before giving his companion a curious look. "Are you really so concerned with making me happy?"

"Should I not be?" It was a genuinely curious question, though the grin never quite left his face as he turned to look over at Edgeworth in return. He would have kept up the banter; in fact, that's what he'd been aiming to do.

But....

"As long as you're happy, so am I."

He should have brushed it off. He should have kept his voice steady and calm and made some flippant comment to the effect that the Corinthian should enjoy the films he enjoys regardless of what Edgeworth thinks of them.

Instead, his brows furrowed, and he hesitantly replied, "Corinthian...?"

That....wasn't an expected response to their usual good natured teasing, and the Corinthian's grin quickly faded as well, replaced with confusion. Did he say something....

There was a pause, brief but tense, and then he swore, quietly, grabbed his jacket off the armrest and stood. He shouldn't have said that. He didn't know why he said it. He had kept his feelings to himself very well before, why was he now--

"Thanks for dinner." The leather was shrugged on in one quick motion as he headed for the door, not looking up. "I'll talk to you later."

The nightmare's reaction confirmed his fears that he hadn't misread the comment. Something twisted uncomfortably in his stomach, but he stood almost as quickly as the Corinthian did, stepping over his startled dog to head the nightmare off before he could reach the front door.

"What did you mean, Corinthian?" he demanded, the furrow in his brow deepening.

It would have been too easy to just brush the other man aside and continue out the door, but he held himself back, fists clenching at his sides instead. But he only looked at him with a flat expression.

"Edgeworth, you need to move."

Edgeworth cocked an eyebrow at that, but made no move to let him pass.

"I--" Didn't mean anything. That was what he wanted to say, but the words died before they reached his throat. Twice, when he tried again. Goddammit.

"....Exactly what it sounded like." He looked up, gave him a hard look. "Any chance you could move now?"

Edited 2010-09-24 01:11 (UTC)

He didn't move, but he did seem to relent. The hard challenge in his eyes softened, leaving only confusion and something that bordered on a silent plea. "I don't understand."

"You don't have to understand. You're not supposed to. I...." The rest of the comment never made it and he sighed, frustrated and a little lost. He didn't know what else to say....

Unfortunately, neither did Edgeworth. All he could do was stare at his friend, his eyes narrowed, searching for...some cue, some sign that this wasn't what he thought it was, some answer to a question he didn't know.

He didn't find any of it, and eventually he had to drop his gaze. Something clenched in his chest; he lifted a hand to rub fitfully at his other sleeve while his mind floundered for purchase and landed on what seemed like the only means of escape. He looked up into the Corinthian's dark glasses.

"You're... You've been acting oddly this evening. Could this be a virus?"

While Edgeworth's gaze fell, the Corinthian's didn't. He continued to study the man's demeanor, the fidgeting, and he was almost sure he could feel his heart fall just a little more every second.

The next question did little to help the growing discomfort and tension. Not when he had already suspected it himself. He grimaced.

"....maybe partly," he agreed. And he was starting to get the feeling he knew exactly which one it could be.

That wasn't the answer he'd hoped to hear. Edgeworth's eyes narrowed.

""Partly'?"

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