Not Alone

"Just in court, Wright. Are you hungry?" The pair was nearing the food court. "My treat."

"Sure, thanks Edgey!" Phoenix smiled. "What are you getting? I'm leaning towards sushi."

"Maybe a chicken sandwich. Or a salad. Maybe a chicken salad. I'll decide later. You can order first." Miles put his hand out in a 'lead-the-way' fashion.

Phoenix led the way to the sushi vendor happily, and ordered his favorite raw fish item. He went to go pick up his food and Edgeworth paid. "Thanks Edgey!" Phoenix smiled at his courtroom rival.

"Not a problem." Miles looked at Phoenix's fishy meal. "What in the world did you get, anyway?"

Phoenix chuckled, slightly amused by how clueless Edgeworth was in terms of sushi. "Some calamari, some salmon, some shrimp, and some wasabi...wanna try some? Or are you chicken?"

"Of what? A little bit of fish? Surely you jest, Wright. Give me anything on that platter and I'll eat it." Miles sat down at an empty table.

Phoenix smirked, and pointed to a little green blob on his tray. "You see that? It's called wasabi. I dare you to eat the whole thing at once."

"Gladly." Miles picked up the glob of green slime and popped it in his mouth, swallowing it whole. He looked at Phoenix with a content smirk and suddenly he felt his mouth and throat heating up at an intense rate.

Phoenix tried his best to suppress his laughter, yet he guffawed a little bit at Edgeworth's face once the wasabi kicked in. "Oh, Edgeworth, I'm sorry, but you were so cocky!" he chortled. "I'll go get you a drink." He jogged up to the nearest ice cream vendor and got a milkshake for Edgeworth. "Here, it'll help a ton."

Miles took a long sip of the milkshake, not caring what the flavor was. He had to trust Phoenix. Once his mouth cooled down he responded. "You're enjoying this, aren't you...."

Phoenix nodded, one hand over his mouth to prevent himself from laughing more. "Is it too obvious?" he smiled. "I mean, your face WAS matching your suit."

"Only because you took advantage of me!" Miles folded his arms and stared Phoenix dead in the eyes, taking the occasional sip of his milkshake. "Although, I must thank you for getting me the milkshake. It really did help."

"Told you so," Phoenix smirked. "And what do you mean, 'take advantage?' You make me sound like a villain, stealing some girl's virtue!" He pretended to act indignant.

"What you stole is my sense of taste for the next couple of days!" Miles continued sipping his milkshake. "I think my tongue is numb or swollen..."

"I'm sorry, Edgey," Phoenix tried to look sheepish. "I didn't think you'd do it, though. You'll be alright." He picked up a piece of calamari with his chopsticks and ate it, wondering how mad Edgeworth was.

"I guess I swallowed my pride. Literally." Miles chuckled and finished his milkshake. "I guess if I forget about the pain it didn't taste too bad."

"Yeah, it's great in tiny doses," Phoenix continued to eat his sushi. "But it's great entertainment value in large doses." He smirked at Edgeworth.

"Oh ha ha." Miles looked at the other portion of Phoenix's late lunch. "How's the actual food part of your meal treating you?"

"It's great," Phoenix smiled. "But I'm sorry, you probably don't want to eat for a while...I know I didn't when Larry pulled that stunt on me...How should I make this up to you?"

"You could keep buying me random ice drinks until I can feel my mouth again..." Miles looked around at the various food stores. He turned his attention back to Phoenix. "Or you don't need to do anything." He got a playful glint in his eye. 'Just be on the look out for my revenge...!'

"Should I be afraid by what you mean in that last sentence?" Phoenix pretended to cower in fear. "Usually when someone says, 'it's cool,' that means they're plotting. Are you plotting, Edgey?"

"All I'm saying is that you don't need to do anything. Don't be such a worrywart." Miles kept the subject vague, since even he didn't know what he had in store for the defense attorney.

"I'm not a worrywart! I'm just cautious, and in this city, it doesn't hurt to be overly cautious," Phoenix stuck his tongue out at Edgeworth flippantly.

"Being overly cautious can lead to being naive, my friend." Miles had turned to biting his tongue to see if he could feel anything. "You can be careful, just not stupidly so."