[ . . . . longing is interesting. longing manages to get mineo to pause and look kind of curiously at greed because what was that. is greed okay. um.
though at least he's distracted fairly quickly by the question]
.... I did something pretty horrible by not trusting my partner. [now that they've discussed it. mineo sighs and if only to give himself something to do, reaches his hands up to adjust his ponytail] So I have to make it up to him.
It was just - hard, I guess. And I know it doesn't make it any better, or erase what I've done. But... I freaked out, when they were considering powers that didn't belong to me, or stuff that didn't point to me. I really thought we cleared Vira-san so she wouldn't get suspected at all but... then Takeru didn't mention the bullet. Of course he wouldn't.
[and they weren't doing strip check. and mineo nearly got out of their completely free while other people were being considered.]
... so - I didn't really choose. I just acted. And it was selfish, but I thought that if a no vote didn't work out, I would have rather been the name people reached for before anybody else.
[there is still guilt - but there is also certainty. it's hard when some things he regrets and others, he can't because they're written into his personality]
I don't know, Greed-san. I don't think any of it should've happened in the first place but - I'm still alive, so all I can do is try to make up for it from here, right?
I suppose that's a fair enough reasoning. [anything else greed could say about it, he doesn't. he chooses to stay quiet about it, letting his thoughts filter into nice little organized boxes never to see the light of day again.]
In the end, you admitted your guilt which is more than some of the other culprits have done. That's another step in moving forward.
[greed please your thoughts - mineo's obviously curious but. he wonders how much he's allowed to ask after]
.... I guess I did. [he sighs a little bit at that, putting a hand over his own heart] I think I wouldn't have been able to take it, if I had to keep lying.
[he really is so painfully honest. he can say a lie here and there but - it rarely lasts.]
It's because you're stupidly honest. [bluntly. tiredly. he's always known that about mineo from the moment they spoke and it was enough that he really wasn't sure he could handle speaking to him for too long. what can you say to someone like that? there's a way his shoulders sag a little, those little threads of frustration slipping through before they settle into something harder to identify.]
...acting on your own instincts, even if you acknowledge them as selfish and even if you apologize...it can inspire bitterness between you and your partner. And even in that bitterness, it shouldn't be a surprise they would still act on your behalf.
[so. he's just thinking. projecting, maybe.]
You ought to consider yourself lucky people trust you the way they do.
[aw - his own shoulders slump a little at being called stupidly honest. he didn't think it was a bad thing... but he listened to greed regardless, thoughtful as he nods....]
.... I do. [he agrees, instantly and immediately] I'm really lucky. Fortunate beyond words, really.
[he knows that it's everyone's mercy and willingness to work together that let him get away with this, with living even though he made sure that his name was the most obvious and only one worth voting for. there's some confusion in his emotions - but gratitude tenfold over that.]
.... did you have a partner, Greed-san? Before you came here.
[it isn't. despite the brusqueness of saying it, it's clear greed doesn't think it's entirely a bad thing. not in the way mineo might think.
honest people are always the ones who get hurt in the end, but at the same time they're the ones who take the biggest and dumbest risks.]
It was a specific set of circumstances that led you here. I should only hope your next risk will be a bit more calculated.
[so he's not mad. he thinks the whole trial was a farce and he's still not thrilled about the circumstances, especially not with the crime itself with the throwbacks to the other cases, but that's all for him to deal with later. instead, mineo asks the question he knew was coming. greed watches maus walk ahead instead for a few moment.]
...a stupidly honest defense attorney. [except...naturally, things have changed over the last year. wright's disbarment has changed his personality in ways that are a little more than nerve-wracking. but when he thinks of what he knows about him, it's similar. it's a man who's too easily excited, too willing and wanting to trust people, too willing to help at the expense of himself and too stubborn to ask for help when it's needed.]
Despite being on separate sides, more often than not we have to trust each other to work together and find the truth of each case. It's the only way we'll find the answers we're looking for.
[a soft realization, a surprise. it's a little funny maybe and - ironic? some things click into place, like the notion that mineo was saying that both greed and takeru were familiar to him.]
Am I familiar to you too?
[greed's suggested that in the past but - this seems like a more direct suggestion of it. and then....]
... sorry. I didn't mean to be a bad reminder, whenever I came to visit you.
I wouldn't call it a bad reminder. [it's complicated is what it is, but that's what makes this conversation difficult to navigate, too. it's the only reason he's telling mineo at all. he's aware of his own biases and shortcomings and his own views on what's right. for as much as he berates people for being stupidly honest, sometimes, he himself doesn't always feel like withholding information either.]
...it's simply part of the reason I'm here at all. [which really makes mineo and takeru's whole deal a very. wild experience.]
[it reassures him a little bit, and that comes through the emotional line easily enough. he rubs the back of his neck at that, unsure.]
.... you're here because - you have a wish for your partner? Am I understanding that right...?
[he's still trying to parse through all the information they got - even information they got today! but this at least seems like something that might be... safe-ish to ask?]
Partially. [...and maybe explaining it will also give insight to why he's annoyed.]
...there have been two major incidents within the last year that posioned our legal system. The first was the Gramarye trial in which defense attorney Phoenix Wright presented forged evidence to the court and was immediately disbarred. The second was the UR-1 incident in which Prosecutor Simon Blackquill pleaded guilty to the murder of Dr. Metis Cykes, his mentor. He has been sentenced to a seven years sentence to be ended with an execution. Corruption has begun to breed within our system on both sides of the bench. The public no longer trusts the word of the law, and the law no longer feels confident in getting the desired outcome and has begun resorting to any means necessary, even if it's illegal.
I believe neither of those men are guilty of either crime. And I need a way to prove it and find a way to fix the system.
[ . . . it's not exact - there are things about the cases that don't ring quite true to mineo. but the x-day incidents did start because people lost faith in police, because of the way that some people like fuji were condemned for their crimes. but those crimes were true, no matter how hard mineo looked for evidence otherwise.
greed's so sure that the two are innocent - and mineo believes in that, believes in him.]
.... then if you're sure they're innocent - I hope that you find it.
You think you need a wish to accomplish that? [a beat] Though it sounds like... you've all been through enough that a wish is what you're owed anyway.
[it's not exact, no, but also there are too many murders and also the whole smuggling ring case he just came off of not too long ago that the whole thing is a mess. the x-day incidents are hardly pleasant, but it's still something he can understand enough.
...there's something akin to embarrassment then, maybe a little regret but mostly it events out to stubbornness.]
I had thought perhaps it would make things more clear to me. I didn't...I need Wright's help, and he's currently in no position to do so. [so he had thought to do it himself and faster than the time it would actually take. greed can usually bide his time, but sometimes you care about people and situations a little more than you care about yourself.]
Our situation wasn't really any more clear than yours was upon arrival.
[ . . . . he nods at that. and - he gets it too, in a different way. isn't mineo's own wish just to be able to do something in case takeru doesn't get his? so he can run after him, and save him from himself? there's a familiar ache at that, an understanding one. sometimes you don't hesitate for the sake of the people who matter to you.]
... sorry, I didn't mean to suggest that you didn't think it through - [maybe greed didn't, but mineo is hardly the person to make that assertion] I'm sure you did the best with what you had at the time.
I think... we're all trying to do the best with what we've got? Right? I probably would've done the same thing as you, if it's for my partner.
I know. [he hadn't thought that's what mineo meant, though now he has to wonder about that, too.] Our situation was initially similar to yours. An offer to change things, but we simply had to find ways to indulge. It was different, however. We didn't have any clue what it meant and had to learn for ourselves.
[there's another pang of something like bitterness.]
I suppose you're all doing what you think is best, and that's how it should be. You came here for a purpose. And so did we. It isn't as if it isn't understandable. All the more reason I'll repeat what I've always said. Do not lose sight of what you're after.
[ . . . . that is pretty terrible. mineo's brow furrows at that, a bit irritated himself on greed's behalf? that's such a shitty situation to be in - but he listens to the rest of the words and then mineo can't help but wonder.]
.... I know. I'm trying not to - I want to hold onto what I've still got. [those pieces of his idealism, even if he's had to bend some of his own morals. or well... more like, he had to sift through his morals until he finally arrived at some answers. but...]
What about you, though? Do you still have your sights locked onto what you want?
there's the sense that there's something that he wants to ask, that he wants to know about - but he's not sure if the timing's right. there's hesitation and mineo is so obvious with his emotions he can do nothing to hide them, but he will gently brush them aside for now.
but more than that... there's an understanding. a sort of echo of devotion on mineo's end - for something and someone else - but. he gets it. there are some people you simply can't let go of, no matter what hell you have to face in order to save them.]
.... I hope we both get what we want, Greed-san.
And... I hope that he understands how much he must mean to you, to earn your dedication like this.
[emotionsharing is bad because likewise there's a flicker of curiosity when he gets that sense.]
...it would be nice, wouldn't it? [an idle yet truthful comment, something he's considering. it could also apply to the second statement but he doesn't clarify that. instead, he debates briefly.]
...you may as well ask whatever it is you want to ask. [they're already here. so what's the worst that can happen?]
[mineo is... well, thoughtful, but there is some modicum of restraint. he's still curious and the feeling gets worse but - ]
... maybe not right now. [there's little notes of apology in his feelings to match] I already promised my partner that I'd hold off until we could get to figure out a few more things.
[and they just discussed the importance of not breaking partners' trust, or working ahead of them? so.]
But... I'll be back as soon as I can ask, Greed-san. Is that fair?
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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though at least he's distracted fairly quickly by the question]
.... I did something pretty horrible by not trusting my partner. [now that they've discussed it. mineo sighs and if only to give himself something to do, reaches his hands up to adjust his ponytail] So I have to make it up to him.
It was just - hard, I guess. And I know it doesn't make it any better, or erase what I've done. But... I freaked out, when they were considering powers that didn't belong to me, or stuff that didn't point to me. I really thought we cleared Vira-san so she wouldn't get suspected at all but... then Takeru didn't mention the bullet. Of course he wouldn't.
[and they weren't doing strip check. and mineo nearly got out of their completely free while other people were being considered.]
... so - I didn't really choose. I just acted. And it was selfish, but I thought that if a no vote didn't work out, I would have rather been the name people reached for before anybody else.
[there is still guilt - but there is also certainty. it's hard when some things he regrets and others, he can't because they're written into his personality]
I don't know, Greed-san. I don't think any of it should've happened in the first place but - I'm still alive, so all I can do is try to make up for it from here, right?
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I suppose that's a fair enough reasoning. [anything else greed could say about it, he doesn't. he chooses to stay quiet about it, letting his thoughts filter into nice little organized boxes never to see the light of day again.]
In the end, you admitted your guilt which is more than some of the other culprits have done. That's another step in moving forward.
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.... I guess I did. [he sighs a little bit at that, putting a hand over his own heart] I think I wouldn't have been able to take it, if I had to keep lying.
[he really is so painfully honest. he can say a lie here and there but - it rarely lasts.]
.... can I ask what you're thinking?
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It's because you're stupidly honest. [bluntly. tiredly. he's always known that about mineo from the moment they spoke and it was enough that he really wasn't sure he could handle speaking to him for too long. what can you say to someone like that? there's a way his shoulders sag a little, those little threads of frustration slipping through before they settle into something harder to identify.]
...acting on your own instincts, even if you acknowledge them as selfish and even if you apologize...it can inspire bitterness between you and your partner. And even in that bitterness, it shouldn't be a surprise they would still act on your behalf.
[so. he's just thinking. projecting, maybe.]
You ought to consider yourself lucky people trust you the way they do.
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.... I do. [he agrees, instantly and immediately] I'm really lucky. Fortunate beyond words, really.
[he knows that it's everyone's mercy and willingness to work together that let him get away with this, with living even though he made sure that his name was the most obvious and only one worth voting for. there's some confusion in his emotions - but gratitude tenfold over that.]
.... did you have a partner, Greed-san? Before you came here.
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honest people are always the ones who get hurt in the end, but at the same time they're the ones who take the biggest and dumbest risks.]
It was a specific set of circumstances that led you here. I should only hope your next risk will be a bit more calculated.
[so he's not mad. he thinks the whole trial was a farce and he's still not thrilled about the circumstances, especially not with the crime itself with the throwbacks to the other cases, but that's all for him to deal with later. instead, mineo asks the question he knew was coming. greed watches maus walk ahead instead for a few moment.]
...a stupidly honest defense attorney. [except...naturally, things have changed over the last year. wright's disbarment has changed his personality in ways that are a little more than nerve-wracking. but when he thinks of what he knows about him, it's similar. it's a man who's too easily excited, too willing and wanting to trust people, too willing to help at the expense of himself and too stubborn to ask for help when it's needed.]
Despite being on separate sides, more often than not we have to trust each other to work together and find the truth of each case. It's the only way we'll find the answers we're looking for.
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[a soft realization, a surprise. it's a little funny maybe and - ironic? some things click into place, like the notion that mineo was saying that both greed and takeru were familiar to him.]
Am I familiar to you too?
[greed's suggested that in the past but - this seems like a more direct suggestion of it. and then....]
... sorry. I didn't mean to be a bad reminder, whenever I came to visit you.
[he really does just like talking to greed]
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...it's simply part of the reason I'm here at all. [which really makes mineo and takeru's whole deal a very. wild experience.]
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.... you're here because - you have a wish for your partner? Am I understanding that right...?
[he's still trying to parse through all the information they got - even information they got today! but this at least seems like something that might be... safe-ish to ask?]
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...there have been two major incidents within the last year that posioned our legal system. The first was the Gramarye trial in which defense attorney Phoenix Wright presented forged evidence to the court and was immediately disbarred. The second was the UR-1 incident in which Prosecutor Simon Blackquill pleaded guilty to the murder of Dr. Metis Cykes, his mentor. He has been sentenced to a seven years sentence to be ended with an execution. Corruption has begun to breed within our system on both sides of the bench. The public no longer trusts the word of the law, and the law no longer feels confident in getting the desired outcome and has begun resorting to any means necessary, even if it's illegal.
I believe neither of those men are guilty of either crime. And I need a way to prove it and find a way to fix the system.
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greed's so sure that the two are innocent - and mineo believes in that, believes in him.]
.... then if you're sure they're innocent - I hope that you find it.
You think you need a wish to accomplish that? [a beat] Though it sounds like... you've all been through enough that a wish is what you're owed anyway.
[if only as compensation for everything else]
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...there's something akin to embarrassment then, maybe a little regret but mostly it events out to stubbornness.]
I had thought perhaps it would make things more clear to me. I didn't...I need Wright's help, and he's currently in no position to do so. [so he had thought to do it himself and faster than the time it would actually take. greed can usually bide his time, but sometimes you care about people and situations a little more than you care about yourself.]
Our situation wasn't really any more clear than yours was upon arrival.
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... sorry, I didn't mean to suggest that you didn't think it through - [maybe greed didn't, but mineo is hardly the person to make that assertion] I'm sure you did the best with what you had at the time.
I think... we're all trying to do the best with what we've got? Right? I probably would've done the same thing as you, if it's for my partner.
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[there's another pang of something like bitterness.]
I suppose you're all doing what you think is best, and that's how it should be. You came here for a purpose. And so did we. It isn't as if it isn't understandable. All the more reason I'll repeat what I've always said. Do not lose sight of what you're after.
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.... I know. I'm trying not to - I want to hold onto what I've still got. [those pieces of his idealism, even if he's had to bend some of his own morals. or well... more like, he had to sift through his morals until he finally arrived at some answers. but...]
What about you, though? Do you still have your sights locked onto what you want?
[now that mineo knows what it actually is]
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I owe him that much not to give up.
[greed: i'm doing this for the whole system
also greed: but also i can't let my partner down]
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there's the sense that there's something that he wants to ask, that he wants to know about - but he's not sure if the timing's right. there's hesitation and mineo is so obvious with his emotions he can do nothing to hide them, but he will gently brush them aside for now.
but more than that... there's an understanding. a sort of echo of devotion on mineo's end - for something and someone else - but. he gets it. there are some people you simply can't let go of, no matter what hell you have to face in order to save them.]
.... I hope we both get what we want, Greed-san.
And... I hope that he understands how much he must mean to you, to earn your dedication like this.
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...it would be nice, wouldn't it? [an idle yet truthful comment, something he's considering. it could also apply to the second statement but he doesn't clarify that. instead, he debates briefly.]
...you may as well ask whatever it is you want to ask. [they're already here. so what's the worst that can happen?]
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... maybe not right now. [there's little notes of apology in his feelings to match] I already promised my partner that I'd hold off until we could get to figure out a few more things.
[and they just discussed the importance of not breaking partners' trust, or working ahead of them? so.]
But... I'll be back as soon as I can ask, Greed-san. Is that fair?
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I suppose it will have to be. [but it's said in a way that says he's fine either way and he gets why.] ...until then.
[unless mineo has something else?]
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Until then! I'll see you guys later.
[a beat]
Thanks, Greed-san. For hearing me out - and everything else you've done so far too. I really appreciate it.
[and you are what his feelings say, the gratitude coming up to the surface without restraint]
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...of course. [he doesn't quite know what to do with that, but he can accept it with a slight nod. go forth and do your best, mineo.]