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1. Mr Mean-looker
Trucy was happy to have a soda in her hand, to sit on a crappy couch and to get the chance to watch the Steel Samurai without any time-limit. Her dad usually wouldn’t let her do that, but her new daddy said she could, because he had to call some important people! Just thinking about the fact that she could stay up late however long she could made her giddy (she probably couldn’t, but it was nice to think about).
If she had to be honest, though, she was a bit disoriented. Just after the… trial (?), she couldn’t say goodbye to her dad and was pulled away from the courthouse with her new daddy, who explained that he was going to take care of her from then on. She didn’t mind! She liked her new daddy! He was a bit silly looking with his spiky hair, but other than that, he was cool, because he defended her dad!
Just when the fight ended on the screen, a bang was heard throughout the apartment, like a door slamming open.
“Wright!” Hey, that was her daddy’s name!
Trucy jumped off of the couch and made her way to the wall separating the kitchen and entrance, hiding behind it to see what was happening.
A man in a full red suit with a weird handkerchief around his neck took big strides towards her daddy who was sitting with his head in his hands by the kitchen table. The whole table was littered with papers and empty cups, it was kinda sad to see.
The red man took a seat and sat down beside Trucy’s daddy, placing a tentative hand over his shoulder. His eyebrows were furrowed, giving him a scary and mean look. But his words were entirely different, “Wright- no, Phoenix, what have you done?” they were soft, worried.
Trucy’s daddy sighed and laughed, but it didn’t sound like a joyful laugh, “What do you think, Miles? I got disbarred because I used fabricated evidence, my client betrayed me and now I have his daughter to take care of,” Trucy saw how tired her daddy looked, his eyes looking lifeless, “She isn’t the problem though. I know who did this, but I can’t prove it, yet,”
The mean-looking man sighed and shook his head. He stood up and started to pace around the kitchen in distress, “I knew it. That sly man. How could he do this to you?”
“How should I know? But we have to think logically about this, we can’t jump the gun,”
“What gun?” Trucy decided she wanted to help her daddy as best as she could. She made herself known with her soda in hand, “Can I help, daddy?”
Both older men snapped their heads towards her direction, the mean-looking man with shock apparent on his face, and her daddy with distressed eyes.
“Hey, hey, Truce, don’t worry about it!” her daddy stood up and walked to her, kneeling down to her height, “Me and my friend here are just discussing some grown-up things,”
Trucy looked over his shoulder to look at the red man, “You mean Mr. Mean-looker?”
A squawk of shock came from Mr. Mean-looker and she saw how her daddy’s shoulders started shaking with silent laughter.
“Wright!”
“Sorry, sorry!” her daddy laughed before he picked up Trucy and held her to his chest, “Trucy, this here is Mr. Edgeworth, not Mr- pfft, not Mr. Mean-looker, okay?” he looked like he was still a second away from bursting out laughing.
Trucy nodded to her daddy before she turned her head toward Mr. Edgeworth with her brightest smile (because her dad said that made everyone like her!), “Okay! Nice to meet you, Mr. Edgeworth!”
The man in question just sighed (he seemed to do that a lot, Trucy noted) and gave her a small smile, “Nice to meet you too, Trucy,” he walked up to the two and patted Trucy on the head.
Maybe he wasn’t so mean looking after all!
“And Wright, what were you thinking giving a child a soda before bedtime!?”
Trucy giggled at her daddy’s defeated look.
2. Uncle Edgeworth
“We did it, daddy, Polly!”
Trucy laughed happily as she hugged Apollo, jumping up and down, making the said man grunt at every jump. But how could she contain her happiness when they had managed to defeat the evil Gavin brother?! Finally, her daddy could rest easily!
The trio was standing on the staircase up to the court, having needed the opportunity to breathe the fresh air after such an intense trial.
“Trucy, please stop jumping so much,” Apollo whined as he tried to calm her down, but not even he could contain his relieved smile. Phoenix was calmly looking at the two from the sidelines.
“Well, well, fräulein," a voice came from behind them, "You seem very happy,” Klavier mused as he walked down the stairs to the three, giving Apollo a very exaggerated wink before continuing his speech, “Care to share that happiness here too?”
“Of course!” she happily released Apollo, who sighed in relief, and bounded over to Klavier to give him an equally big hug, “You helped us a lot, too!”
Klavier laughed loudly and hugged her back. He looked over at Apollo with a smirk, who was watching them already like a hawk, “Jealous of her, herr forehead?” the prosecutor teased him.
The man in question spluttered and turned to look at something in the distance, trying to hide the rising blush on his cheeks, “Pah! As if!” Trucy giggled when she noticed his Cords of Steel peaking out. They only came out if he either was passionate about something, or if he was nervous. She knew which one it was, but didn’t comment (for now, she definitely would when they got back to the Wright-Anything agency).
Klavier patted Trucy on the back and released her to look in the same direction as Apollo, only to furrow his eyebrows, “Hey, I know that car…”
Trucy looked in the same direction as well to see what Klavier was talking about, when she saw a familiar red sports car. She gasped and ran over to Phoenix, “Daddy, it’s him!”
Her daddy laughed heartily and nodded at her, “I told him that the trial was today, after all,”
She felt both Apollo’s and Klavier’s questioning stares on her, but she ignored them in favor of running down the steps of the courthouse with her daddy following in a slower pace, “Don’t trip, Truce!” She giggled and shot back a “I won’t!” before she continued down the stairs. She could hear Apollo and Klavier’s steps as well, following the father-daughter duo down.
Of course she wouldn’t trip, she wasn’t that careless, but she couldn’t contain herself. It had been so long since she last saw him!
The red sports car parked close to the courthouse, apparently not caring about whether or not it could park there, and out came a grey haired man in his signature red suit. He looked towards the steps and she knew could see how his face lit up (even though most people usually couldn’t see it). Trucy waved at him and ran towards him when she made it to the ground, “Uncle Edgeworth!”
She ignored the loud “WHAT?!” and the curious “oooo” behind her in favor of jumping at Uncle Edgeworth and hugging him tightly. Of course he catched her and hugged her back, but not without reprimanding her first, “Trucy! You shouldn’t jump at other people!”
But she knew that he was just as happy as her. Trucy would be a fool if she didn’t hear or know of the late-night calls that he and Phoenix had, talking strategies about how to take down Kristopher and exchanging soft words of reassurance. She had even joined in sometimes, which is how she became familiar with the new title that she used to address the prosecutor. Trucy still remembered how that came to be, and how shocked her daddy and Uncle Edgeworth were.
“Trucy, do you wanna say hi to Mr. Edgeworth?” her daddy was sitting on the crappy couch with an empty beer can on the coffee table.
She had just walked there to take her forgotten blanket, but she was happy to get the chance to say hi to the other man. It wasn’t always she got the chance to do so, “Yes please!”
She unceremoniously sat down beside Phoenix and spoke into the flip phone that her daddy still insisted on keeping, “Hi!”
A chuckle came through the speaker, a soft and deep one that she could easily recognize, “Hello, Trucy. How are you? Are your studies going well?”
That was probably the catalyst, if Trucy thought about it.
“It’s all going well, Uncle Edgeworth!”
A shocked silence fell over the phone while Phoenix looked at Trucy in shock, “T-Truce, I don’t think you should-”
“No, Phoenix,” Edgeworth’s voice suddenly crackled back into the conversation. Trucy could hear how the other man cleared his throat before he continued, “I am glad to hear that, Trucy. It’s important that you focus on your studies,”
The father and daughter looked at each other in disbelief. In that voice, both could decipher, was affection. A warmth that wasn’t usual to hear from the prosecutor.
Back to the present, Phoenix had catched up to Trucy and was standing beside the two, looking at them with a warmth that was starting to return after they had gained the upper hand before the actual trial. Trucy was elated to see her daddy so happy, and she knew Uncle Edgeworth was one of the reasons as to why.
“Good to see you, Edgeworth,” he said to the prosecutor.
“Likewise, Wright,” he responded.
Trucy quietly stepped away from the two, knowing they needed some space to talk to each other. She instead rejoined Apollo and Klavier, who was watching with curiosity (Klavier) and confusion (Apollo).
“Hey, Trucy?”
“What’s up, Polly?”
“Why is prosecutor Edgeworth here, and why did he accept your hug?” Trucy couldn’t help but giggle at Apollo’s increasing confusion, “And why did you call him uncle?!”
And there was the Cords of Steel.
“Because,” Trucy just shrugged and tried to contain her laughter when she saw how Apollo was starting to spiral. Klavier on the other hand, did not hold back on his laughter.
“Relaaaax, herr forehead,” the prosecutor slung an arm around the defence attorney’s shoulders, “Let’s just enjoy the show and see how this blossoms out,”
Apollo only huffed and pretended not to lean into Klavier’s embrace, but Trucy knew (and she would tease him about it later).
But at that moment, she redirected her attention towards her daddy and Uncle Edgeworth. If she had to be honest, when she saw the two, she could only see two men yearning for each other. In her heart, she hoped, really hoped, that they would make it official as soon as possible, so that she could call Uncle Edgeworth what she had felt was right for a long time.
“Just take the leap, daddy!”
3. Dad
It was a calm evening that it finally came the time for Trucy to call Edgeworth the final title that she had, admittedly, thought about for a long time. She almost complained to her daddy for taking so long to start dating him! But when he finally sat her down with Edgeworth in their kitchen and said that they were dating and that they wanted to hear her thoughts about it. All she had to say was an exasperated “Finally!” and she gave them both a hug before retreating to her room. Like, come on! She was almost an adult, she could see how they looked at each other. She wanted her daddy to be happy!
So, the evening when it happened, she and the other two men were having dinner together in Edgeworth’s big apartment (much bigger than their own), having pleasant conversations. “How did your last case go?” “Any difficulties with the witnesses, as usual?” “How is school going for you, Trucy?” The usual.
Trucy had thought long and hard on how to call Edgeworth his new title, but she never really got a good idea on how to do it. Should she ask to do it? Should she talk about it with her daddy first to see if it was a good idea? Should she ease into it?
The simple answer; no. Why?
She was a Wright, of course! And what do the Wrights do best? They wing it!
“Could you pass me the salt, dad?”
Phoenix looked at Trucy in confusion before tentatively reaching for the salt, “I mean… sure, Truce. But why the sudden change? I thought you were dead-set on calling me daddy,” he chuckled at the memory of her telling him that.
Trucy rolled her eyes and shook her head, “No, daddy, I’m still calling you that,” she directed her gaze with intense eyes at Edgeworth, “I’m asking dad,”
A thick blanket of shocked silence fell over the two men as they took in what the teenager had just said. But Trucy wasn’t nervous, she only looked at her dad with calm eyes and a bright smile, as if saying that that was her final decision.
The silence was broken up by a sudden ugly sob ripping out of someone’s throat. That someone’s throat was Edgeworth’s.
“Miles!” Phoenix was immediately at his side, “Are you okay?”
Edgeworth swatted away Phoenix’s worried hands as another wrecked sob came out of him. He shakily stood up from his chair and walked around the table to Trucy’s side, kneeling down next to her.
“Trucy,” he took her hand in his own trembling ones as he smiled at her with shining tears running down his cheeks, “Thank you, truly. I hope… I can live up to this precious title you have given me,”
As Phoenix watched his daughter and partner with disbelief and unbridled happiness, Trucy only giggled and yanked at her dad’s hand to make him hug her instead, “You already have, dad. From the beginning, that day after the trial, to this day, you have always been by my daddy’s side, as well as mine,” she squeezed him extra hard before letting go of him, “Now let’s continue eating, I’m still hungry!”
A small chuckle was drawn out of Edgeworth. After one final squeeze of her hand, he stood up and returned to his seat. Phoenix smiled one of the soft smiles he only showed Trucy herself and Edgeworth. He reached out to his partner’s face and brushed away the stray tears of happiness that still clung to his cheeks. The scene made Trucy even more happy.
“Now, can you pass me the salt, dad,” she repeated her question, making sure to put extra emphasis on the title.
Edgeworth gave out one of his rare loud laughs, “Yes, I can, dear,”
As he handed over the salt, a sudden thought came to Trucy’s mind, “Wait, does this mean I’m siblings with Kay and Sebastian?”
“Oh, god. I forgot to tell them about you two,”
“Miles, seriously? They’re basically your kids!”
“Not by paper, Wright! They only sometimes call me by a fatherly title! And besides, it was a while ago since I last saw them!”
Trucy giggled as she watched her dads argue, almost similar to how they do in court. This, she decided, was the best family ever, and she could never dream of trading her dads with anything.
She loved her dads, more than anything.
+1. My dear daughter
“Hey, Truce? Could you come to the kitchen?”
Trucy closed her history book (that she was not reading, she was tinkering away on one of her new devices that she was hoping to use in her next magic show) and exited her room to go to the kitchen.
In said room, sat her dads, surrounded by papers. Her dad was wearing his glasses on the tip of his nose, meaning he didn’t even have the energy to push them up like he usually does, and her daddy was slumped back in his chair, looking like he was a second away from falling asleep.
“Hey, guys, what’s up? You look like you’re both done with life,” she joked, trying to cheer them up. But they didn’t look sad, though. They looked… satisfied?
Phoenix managed to pry himself off of the chair and walked over to his daughter, leading her to her designated chair and making her sit down. He walked back to his own chair and leaned his head on his hand, “Trucy, we’ve got some good news for you,”
She furrowed her eyebrows in confusion as she looked back and forth between her dads, “Then tell me!”
Her dads chuckled at her eagerness, not liking the build-up Phoenix was trying to set up, “Okay, okay,” Phoenix gestured to Edgeworth, “Say hi to your official dad, Truce,”
Her frown deepened, not understanding at first, “What do you mean? He’s already- OH!” as she finally understood what her daddy meant, her sparkling eyes turned to her dad, “Are you really…?”
Edgeworth smiled softly and slid a paper towards her, the final document of adoption, signed by both him and Phoenix, making them both her legal guardians, “It’s official, my dear daughter,”
Trucy almost felt the need to jump over the table to get to Edgeworth as fast as possible, but he would reprimand her if she did (and say something stupid about how Kay was a bad influence), so she settled for running around the table and hugging her dad as hard as she could, “Thank you, thank you! This is the best! Even better than my history assignment!”
“I can imagine so,” Edgeworth chuckled and hugged her back, trying to match her energy and strength in the hug, “I’m glad I can be here for you as your dad,”
“You always have, though,” Trucy pouted and flicked her dad’s forehead, making him squawk, “But I understand how you think, so don’t worry,”
Phoenix strode up behind them and hugged them both in a group hug, giving them a kiss each on the head, “We’ve been a family for quite a while, but now it’s on paper as well,”
And Trucy could not be happier about that fact. Sure, she may never have the chance to have a mom, but having two dads? That almost seems like a better deal! A win is a win in her book.