I hope I'm using the term 'oneshot' correctly here. When I started writing fanfiction at the tender age of 13, all these things like oneshot and drabble and so on didn't exist. DERN KIDS GIT OFF MAH LAWN!

Getting to the point, though, I came up with a few ideas over the last day or so, just as a break from writing Turnabout in Wonderland. I've never written oneshots before, and only one of these has been seen by my proofreader, so...if they're bad, let me know. And I can't help trying to make a joke in them at least once, so I suppose they're mostly Romance/Humor with maybe a little drama. XD

Reflection in Oils
Pairing: Phoenix/Edgeworth
Author's notes: Hail YouTube, spawner of ideas - I came up with this after watching something about a blind oil painter. I hear oils are difficult to paint with, but Phoenix could probably manage it, given enough motivation and inspiration.

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It was…an unusual request. Something Phoenix didn’t think would ever be brought up again. And yet, Edgeworth had still approached him after court, and asked;

“Wright, I would like you to paint my portrait.”

He was taken aback, initially. He hadn’t even picked up a pencil for any reason other than legal work…and the occasional doodle…since his college days.

And yet, he’d accepted. Some old spark, that refused to die, said yes.

He’d gone to the art store…bought a canvas, selected each oil-based paint, as he pictured the prosecutor’s visage in his mind’s eye. He had been assured, that money would be no object.

He’d spent an hour, maybe more, deciding on which shade of Magenta to use.

The next day, Edgeworth had arrived exactly on time. Not a minute sooner or later; a mechanical efficiency, as reliable as the hour struck.

Phoenix answered the door with his old shirt unbuttoned. It was the way the prosecutor said nothing, raising his eyebrow as he entered the apartment, which caused more embarrassment than his state of undress.

What was even worse was the way he just sat there. Phoenix remembered enough from art class to make a few preliminary sketches, maybe some basic shading, mix a few colours. That would be that. That was supposed to be that, and he would finish the painting later. Alone.

But no, he’d insisted. The prosecutor had sat there, for hours, barely moving a muscle. There was just the sound of his breathing, the tick of the clock, the hesitant scrape as the artist blended and perfected his colours.

Small talk wasn’t exactly his specialty.

They’d taken a break. Phoenix had black, instant coffee. Edgeworth brought his own tea leaves. He’d watched them circle around the cup for a while.

Phoenix said the painting was going well. Edgeworth nodded, and sipped his tea.

And it had taken another few strenuous hours, but the painting was finally complete. Phoenix, the artist, was proud of his work. It had been difficult to keep the levels of light in the room constant, as the sun moved across the sky.

But he was proud, of the way the light caught his subject’s face, the shadow highlighted each stone-chiselled line of his features.

It was not meant as a flattering portrayal. Just…Edgeworth, as he was. Each line, crease, and shadow held a memory, like marks on a page told a story.

That brought them to now. It was almost painful, watching the prosecutor scrutinize his work. His gaze, poring over every little detail, the still-drying paint like blood at a crime scene.

Edgeworth's eyes met those of his reflection in oils. His expression flickered momentarily, like he’d seen something unexpected.

It had taken several attempts, blending several shades of grey to finally get those eyes right. Edgeworth's distant expression hadn't changed a bit over the many hours. It was like he was fascinated by something, and yet couldn't quite tell what it was.

Phoenix thought his heart had stopped when he finally turned to look at him.

“…You did well.”

The artist wrung his hands together, getting even more paint on himself. “You think so?”

“Yes, Wright. Now wipe that silly grin off your face. You look like a dog that just got a ‘good boy’ from its master.”


Spaghetti Speciali
Pairing: Phoenix/Edgeworth
Author's notes: This came about in a spare half-hour before classes this morning. I think I heard "Bella Notte" from Lady and the Tramp in my dreams, and then I thought of the restaurant in "Struggling against Gravity"...and this happened. I'd like to dedicate this everyone who helped with that amazing fic so far, and will do in the future.

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They didn’t…they don’t think…? Oh god…

That had been Phoenix’s first thought as he saw what their server was carrying. He felt like this, all this, was his fault. The premise had been innocent enough…just two old friends-slash-rivals, and a night they had both found free.

But with his lack of restaurant experience outside ‘Chuck’s Bottomless BBQ Pit’, how was Phoenix to know ‘The Golden Gondola’ had a reputation for a romantic atmosphere?

In hindsight; the many couples, holding hands as their candles slowly burned down, should have been a clue.

And then there was their buxom, raven-haired waitress. Isabella Notte, her nametag had stated, not that he could miss it. The knowing smile she gave the pair should have rung alarm bells. Lots of very loud alarm bells.

And yet, even when their spaghetti specials arrived in a shared, heart-shaped dish, Edgeworth still seemed unfazed. That worried his companion, a lot. No doubt there was an unspeakable rage lurking just beneath his stoic mask, waiting to be released at a less public time.

“Wright…”

Phoenix froze in place. He’d been occupying himself with his bread roll for the past few minutes. Waiting for the inevitable deathblow, he glanced towards the prosecutor.

“…are you going to touch your share, or are you expecting me to feed you?” Edgeworth said, leaning on his hands. There was an amused smirk on his face and a small pile of pasta on his own plate.

His companion responded immediately, stabbing the heart-shaped dish to skewer a meatball. Looking away, he chewed it with pout-lipped, childish annoyance.

Edgeworth covered his mouth with a napkin, and the sound of a barely suppressed chuckle. His cheeks flushing slightly, Phoenix piled more from the shared dish onto his own plate, and silently dug in.

For spaghetti with meatballs and tomato sauce, it was surprisingly good.

Like the others, their table’s candle slowly burned down. And that smile, which seemed genuine with or without the rather strong house wine, never left Edgeworth’s face.

That is, until he found the cigarette butt in his Tiramisu.

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Last edited by ExImplode07 on Wed Nov 21, 2007 8:54 am, edited 1 time in total.

The second one made me giggle. <3 The last line was like *snickersnortohh, poor wait staff.* But I thought you constructed an adorable idea without making it scream of fluffiness. I noticed that in all three of your works I've seen (these two and Turnabout in Wonderland) that you have an uncanny ability to make Edgeworth seem almost childlike and wonderous in his joy. This is an aspect that I've grown to quite like of him, since it almost expresses the childhood that was torn from him. Of course, it's gone just as quick as it comes, but that goes directly with his character.

Very nice job :D I look forward to seeing more little oneshots and more of TiW!

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Heheh, I'm glad the ending got a snickersnort out of you. X3 I can imagine him finding it halfway through his dessert...poor wait staff indeed.

And...you really think so? It's funny how I do these things and don't actually notice. XD;; I guess you're right, though. I always got the impression Edgeworth has a playful side, but it takes Phoenix (who's a little childish himself) to bring it out. Even if he won't admit it.

Glad you liked it, anyway. :3 I'll post more as I write more...I've got a Franziska/Adrian thing lined up, but it's a little silly. XD;; I'll need to think about it.

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I suspect Larry works in that regard too, sometimes :) And Pearls. Definitely.

I actually liked the first one best just because - it's somewhat off-the-wall, and I like that approach as you can often find stuff in characters placed in odd situations that you don't find otherwise (which is why I've been enjoying the Kink Mem so much - I would never have thought of trying some of the stuff I've written otherwise).

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I sense a lawsuit in the Golden Gondola's future. I think Edgeworth would be a bit like my mom when the resturant ticks her off...she's a lawyer too, go figure.

For something written in 30 minutes, that's pretty funny. XD Also, a Reflection in Oils is still good too, of course.

And I agree with Mercury Kitten and I also agree with you, how Edgeworth is a little childlike when he's happy but only Phoenix can really bring that out.

And by all means, do silly Franziska/Adrian. XD

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Do the Fradrian. DO ET.

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Queen of Fools
Pairing: Franziska/Adrian
Author's notes: As requested...here's the silly Fradian fic. XD I got this idea from a picture in http://www.forums.court-records.net/viewtopic.php?f=27&t=44&st=0&sk=t&sd=a&start=1160. Ethed posted a Japanese fanart of Franziska groping Adrian, and then MoogleGunner said THAT line. XD I swear, I almost fell out of my chair laughing. I also blame Can'tFakeTheFunk for making me love this pairing, so...this is for all of you.

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They were going to pay. By the nine circles of hell and all dimensions beyond, they would pay.

And that was regardless of whether the person who had pushed her, and the person Franziska was due to face in court, were the same person. Either way, someone had to suffer for this…humiliation.

Even now, the old lessons were still engraved into her mind. A von Karma’s poise is perfect. Their balance is perfect. It had taken countless hours of balancing heavy legal books on her head, walking back and forth, but she had mastered the art of good posture.

And yet she was still knocked off balance, no doubt by some clumsy defence attorney. And she’d been knocked into someone…into her…companion, Adrian Andrews. Into a position that was rather awkward, as she’d tried to stop herself falling.

Time seemed to stand still. Adrian had flushed an unbecoming scarlet, her eyes wide in shock.

Franziska straightened up, her hand still on the other woman’s chest. She was a fool for not removing her hand, and an even bigger fool for not apologising immediately. But what made her a fool’s fool, a Queen of fools, was what she inexplicably said next.

“They are…acceptable.”

She turned on her heel and stepped towards the courtroom, maintaining her perfect posture. Woe betide whoever stood to face this Queen of Fools, beyond those doors.

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Hah hah hah! Smashing. I can totally buy into that XD

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Ahahah, good job. I had a good laugh :) I also agree with everyone else about Edgeworth acting kind of childlike when he's around Phoenix. I think it's adorable.

And about oils, they're actually pretty easy to paint with, so I think Phoenix could easily manage it :) The only thing though, is that you can't exactly paint a whole portrait with oils in one day, cause you have to wait hours (if not days) between layers, to avoid smudging. Unless, of course, you abuse cobalt drier, which is not exactly a good thing to do. Not that I've done it before or anything...

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Haha, you can blame me and my lack of artistic skills for that innacuracy, Shiva. XD For the purpose of the fic, though, I play the 'it's the future' card - they've invented fast-drying oil paints and that's what Phoenix is using.

Either that or a wizard did it. Those sneaky wizards get everywhere!

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I love that handy dandy "plausibly, in the future, XXX could have happened" card XD It's a useful device XD

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[Fricken removed for revision]

=P Thanks KingMobUK. It has been a long time since I've played PW1 and it's late. Back to the drawing board.

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Last edited by ExImplode07 on Fri Nov 23, 2007 1:18 am, edited 1 time in total.

Psst - they meet after 1:4 when she takes the Victory! Pic, IIRC.

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Hmm? What? I want to see it even if it's uncanonly correct.

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