Penetrating the room seemed worse than any heinous act he'd previously committed against the state by being present at that illegal club: the tension couldn't have been sliced with an axe - let alone a provisional butterknife. Everything immediately stopped. Leader Edgeworth, from his almighty staircase-pedestal, seemed to allow a lone sheet of card - or paper - to drift to the floor, the only indication of his head shaking being his wavering silvery bangs as he briskly strode forwards past the man swathed in blue.
"No no no no no." He reached the very edge of the top step:
"Why," Stern and echoing as he slowly - menacingly - descended;
"Is he here?" The blue one seemed to hesitantly turn to look at the offender before the Leader raised his hand, sharply, and barked:
"Turn back round." To which they hastily obeyed - no doubt sweating rivulets beneath the cheap fabric. At least he'd found him, though. Kristoph could recognise that man anywhere.
"I thought-"
"It is not up to you to think." Silver eyes glinted with aggression as they widened and he was upon them; Engarde took a shallow breath, fiddling with his peculiar fringe which many often mistook as being ginger: a prospect he profusely denied - he was a brunette, for Heaven's sake.
"He," Leader Edgeworth stabbed the bemused ex-prosecutor with a prominent fingernail;
"Is supposed to be with the others." This time it was Phoenix's tension which was vented in the form of inhalation - a rather tenuous inhalation.
"It's not his fault." Kristoph crossed his arms:
"I asked to see Phoenix." The ensuing slap resonated throughout the hall. Its relatives were only painful reminders of the predecessor which remained prisoner only in the throbbing confines of reddened cheekbone.
"I do not care what you asked for. I do not pander to the whims of criminals and I thought I had made that very clear." It was quick - snappy.
"In fact, after having worked beneath me for so long, I would have thought you were well aware of the consequences of your idle ignorance." Kristoph stagnated where he was.
"And you, Engarde. How dare you disobey my explicit orders?"
"Sorry, sir."
"Leader." Leader Edgeworth accusatorially stared at the pair for a moment, examining the tardiness of Kristoh's crumpled suit: marred by remnants of the mental hell he'd been oppressed in, the numb, glazed look in Engarde's pissed eyes (he clearly thought he wouldn't suffer the same meagre salary as his colleague Captain Gumshoe) and the overall joint naïvety; the pair had evidently built a union upon distaste - a weak and petty substance which had presumably been induced by the sweating, writhing cell. Rebellion would not be tolerated. If even the unruly Phoenix Wright knew when it was best to behave, then this pair were hopeless. He twitched.
"Take him back to the cell and report back here immediately." The crimson-swathed man swivelled cleanly upon his expensive Italian shoes.
"It's interesting how you keep him separately to us."
"Excuse me?"
"You've never done that before." The blonde yawned, his eyes fixed upon the unmoving blue figure. His line:
"Are you fond of him?" Earned him a worthy and withering glare from his silvery superior, along with a mortified hiss.
"Don't be obscene." Grey eyes rolled as far as possible within their white confines.
"Go."

"Where do you keep them?" Phoenix inquired after the looming wooden doors softly clicked shut, masked by the more dominant clicking of heels, still with his back to the ascending Leader Edgeworth.
"Together."
"Where, not how." Once he'd reached the top, the taller man gracefully lifted the forlorn document from its limp position upon the gleaming floor. Again, the criminal was presented with his own condemnation and rose an eyebrow.
"I believe we were discussing your death warrant."
"I don't care. I want to know where-"
"Shut up." Phoenix froze as his jaw was clamped shut by cool flesh gripping his chin and upper, pinkish lip, wincing with heightened sensitivity.
"Don't make me regret being nice to you." The frown returned was all that was needed to continue.
"If you join us, I will rip this warrant up. Impromptu." A rebellious hand snaked up to pry determined fingers off its owner's jaw. The fingers were fairly compliant and slid off with ease despite the light bruising they'd left in their wake - the aching reminder. Phoenix jerked backwards.
"Do I look like a murderer to you? No."
"Come off your high horse. I would not make you murder anyone."
"Your entire system is built on murder!" Phoenix cried:
"Look what you did to me."
"And I have already informed you that I will have someone look at it for you." Leader Edgeworth countered with gritted teeth, his firm hold on the sheet slipping.
"That doesn't make it right." The shorter man's hypnotic blue eyes glared up at their Leader in defiance, surrounded by pools of crisp, dry blood and scratches. Reciprocation from Leader Edgeworth was also keenly felt as sleek eyes continued to peruse beaten skin wordlessly - perhaps even aimlessly - and the rays of sunshine dimly filtering through seemed to dim further.
"Why me?"
"We have been through this before. You  are different. You possess an iron will." Leader Edgeworth smirked;
"Although you do lack charisma."
"Charisma? At least I don't slaughter." Leader Edgeworth let out a condescending laugh before retreating to his desk where Phoenix distractedly followed the movements of his hands, witnessing the fundamental acquirement of a biro. Something was elegantly scribbled down upon a tardily torn sheet.
"You are to be reeducated beginning at 9am sharp tomorrow morning."
"No." No lexicon in existence - in the Japanifornian dictionary or our beloved own - could truly emulate exactly how far Leader Edgeworth's pupils rolled, however the amount was so tremendously large that it could only have been achieved by a man of his ranking.
"You do not have a choice-"
"I'll only attend on one condition." Then, as if by magic, the pupils returned to their esteemed positions as their amused owner swivelled to face his accompaniment yet again. He smirked.
"Which is?"
"You let me see the others." Phoenix clenched his clammy, trembling palms.

"Do you need me to correct the word 'see' to 'meet' or do you actually just wish to observe them?"