(May 23rd) (Bleach / Phoenix Wright) Order In The Court: Part XXIII
Title: Order In The Court: Part XXIII
Day/Theme: 23. Who can love you and still be standing?
Series: Bleach / Phoenix Wright
Character/Pairing: Phoenix, Edgeworth, Rangiku, Renji
Rating: G
"She's lying," Edgeworth said. "I have no doubt about it."
He and Phoenix looked out over the site below. It was the area that Dahlia Hawthorne had pinpointed as the location of the murder. Ema Skye had commandeered anyone available into helping out with Luminol for tracing bloodstains, plaster casts for footprints, and fingerprint hunting in the vain hope that the suspects had rested bloody hands against the wall, or indeed anywhere else. So far they hadn't been lucky.
"Oh yes," Phoenix agreed. "I'm not just saying that because of who she is, either."
Edgeworth nodded. "Her testimony is far too convenient. Even von Karma admits that. However, until it can be disproven . . ."
Phoenix nodded. "There has to be a flaw in it," he said.
The air rustled behind them, and the two men turned to see Matsumoto Rangiku and Abarai Renji.
"Can we talk?" Renji said.
"Certainly we can. The question is, what do you want to talk about?" Edgeworth said.
Rangiku sighed. "Look. Do you seriously think my Captain's guilty?"
Edgeworth and Phoenix exchanged glances.
"No," Phoenix said.
"Much as it pains me to agree with Wright -- I think that he has been framed, and I don't think that he would go to such lengths to fake a frame against himself," Edgeworth said.
Rangiku frowned. "Does that mean yes or no?"
"It means no," Phoenix said hastily. "But I don't think that Kurosaki's guilty either."
"The hell he is," Renji said. "He's got no reason to do anything like that, and he's too straightforward to try hiding it."
"There is the hypothesis," Edgeworth said neutrally, "that he didn't do it deliberately, but that he had been conditioned by Urahara Kisuke and his alternate personality was responsible for the murder."
Renji frowned.
"That wouldn't work," Rangiku said. "If you're saying that Captain Hitsugaya's innocent -- well, that bitch of a witness is saying that both he and Kurosaki Ichigo committed the murder together. So if my Captain's innocent, then so's Ichigo. Pardon my language."
Edgeworth nodded. "But for the moment, nobody else has a motive to have killed Captain Aizen. The only person who even so much as argued with him is Captain Ichimaru, and he has an alibi for the night in question."
Rangiku studied the sky. "Well, yes," she admitted. "So could it be that Captain Aizen was killed totally by accident because of something he saw while he was going to meet Captain Hitsugaya?"
"That letter puzzles me," Phoenix said. "The prosecution's given it all possible checks. Everyone agrees that Captain Aizen wrote it. But why did he accuse Captain Hitsugaya of all those things?"
"He has to have been mistaken." Renji tugged at his tail of hair. "Maybe someone else was doing all that corrupt stuff and framed Captain Hitsugaya for it back then too, then framed him for the murder as well?"
"Possible," Edgeworth admitted. "Can you suggest any Captains who might do such a thing?"
Renji and Rangiku exchanged thoughtful glances.
"I know Captain Kurotsuchi doesn't exactly have the best reputation," Rangiku said, "and he's not exactly what you'd call a good person, or nice, or even sane, but even so I can't see him doing that."
Renji shook his head. "Me neither. He'd be doing big demonstrations of his new forbidden scientific advances, not trying to hide them."
"Exactly," Rangiku said. "So . . ." She checked off her fingers. "Captain Yamamoto, no way. Captain Soi Fong, can't see why she would. Captain Ichimaru, um . . . well, he has an alibi," she said with some relief. "Captain Unohana, no way. Captain Kuchiki --"
"No way," Renji said forcefully.
Rangiku shrugged. "Captain Komamura, can't see why he would. Captain Kyouraku, well, he wouldn't, and besides, he's been here for two thousand years, so why do something now? Captain Tousen, he's so virtuous and fond of justice that he'd never even think of breaking the law. Captain Zaraki --"
"Captain Zaraki wouldn't bother trying to hide anything," Renji said.
"No," Rangiku agreed. "Captain Kurotsuchi, well. Captain Ukitake, well, he wouldn't, like Captain Kyouraku."
"And Urahara Kisuke and Shihouin Yoruichi?" Phoenix asked.
Rangiku shrugged. "Nobody really knows much about them."
"No. And Kurosaki himself admits that Urahara used . . . unusual training methods on him."
"But didn't Captain Yamamoto say that Urahara couldn't have got here on his own, Wright?" Edgeworth asked. "I think we should consider the cat. That is, Shihouin Yoruichi. She has no alibi. If she was cooperating with Urahara, and in fact the whole business with Kurosaki was a giant red herring . . ." He frowned. "In fact, perhaps we should look at it the other way. The accusations against Kurosaki resulted in us bringing Urahara Kisuke here to give testimony in court. What if this was all a ploy by Urahara to cause us to bring him here?"
"That seems needlessly complex," Phoenix said.
"Well, Dahlia Hawthorne is involved."
"True."
Renji's frown was deepening. "So if the plot is to bring Urahara Kisuke here to Seireitai -- then what might he be planning to do?"
"I don't know," Phoenix said. "But I think that perhaps we should watch him very carefully indeed."
---
Compilation Order in the Court post.
Day/Theme: 23. Who can love you and still be standing?
Series: Bleach / Phoenix Wright
Character/Pairing: Phoenix, Edgeworth, Rangiku, Renji
Rating: G
"She's lying," Edgeworth said. "I have no doubt about it."
He and Phoenix looked out over the site below. It was the area that Dahlia Hawthorne had pinpointed as the location of the murder. Ema Skye had commandeered anyone available into helping out with Luminol for tracing bloodstains, plaster casts for footprints, and fingerprint hunting in the vain hope that the suspects had rested bloody hands against the wall, or indeed anywhere else. So far they hadn't been lucky.
"Oh yes," Phoenix agreed. "I'm not just saying that because of who she is, either."
Edgeworth nodded. "Her testimony is far too convenient. Even von Karma admits that. However, until it can be disproven . . ."
Phoenix nodded. "There has to be a flaw in it," he said.
The air rustled behind them, and the two men turned to see Matsumoto Rangiku and Abarai Renji.
"Can we talk?" Renji said.
"Certainly we can. The question is, what do you want to talk about?" Edgeworth said.
Rangiku sighed. "Look. Do you seriously think my Captain's guilty?"
Edgeworth and Phoenix exchanged glances.
"No," Phoenix said.
"Much as it pains me to agree with Wright -- I think that he has been framed, and I don't think that he would go to such lengths to fake a frame against himself," Edgeworth said.
Rangiku frowned. "Does that mean yes or no?"
"It means no," Phoenix said hastily. "But I don't think that Kurosaki's guilty either."
"The hell he is," Renji said. "He's got no reason to do anything like that, and he's too straightforward to try hiding it."
"There is the hypothesis," Edgeworth said neutrally, "that he didn't do it deliberately, but that he had been conditioned by Urahara Kisuke and his alternate personality was responsible for the murder."
Renji frowned.
"That wouldn't work," Rangiku said. "If you're saying that Captain Hitsugaya's innocent -- well, that bitch of a witness is saying that both he and Kurosaki Ichigo committed the murder together. So if my Captain's innocent, then so's Ichigo. Pardon my language."
Edgeworth nodded. "But for the moment, nobody else has a motive to have killed Captain Aizen. The only person who even so much as argued with him is Captain Ichimaru, and he has an alibi for the night in question."
Rangiku studied the sky. "Well, yes," she admitted. "So could it be that Captain Aizen was killed totally by accident because of something he saw while he was going to meet Captain Hitsugaya?"
"That letter puzzles me," Phoenix said. "The prosecution's given it all possible checks. Everyone agrees that Captain Aizen wrote it. But why did he accuse Captain Hitsugaya of all those things?"
"He has to have been mistaken." Renji tugged at his tail of hair. "Maybe someone else was doing all that corrupt stuff and framed Captain Hitsugaya for it back then too, then framed him for the murder as well?"
"Possible," Edgeworth admitted. "Can you suggest any Captains who might do such a thing?"
Renji and Rangiku exchanged thoughtful glances.
"I know Captain Kurotsuchi doesn't exactly have the best reputation," Rangiku said, "and he's not exactly what you'd call a good person, or nice, or even sane, but even so I can't see him doing that."
Renji shook his head. "Me neither. He'd be doing big demonstrations of his new forbidden scientific advances, not trying to hide them."
"Exactly," Rangiku said. "So . . ." She checked off her fingers. "Captain Yamamoto, no way. Captain Soi Fong, can't see why she would. Captain Ichimaru, um . . . well, he has an alibi," she said with some relief. "Captain Unohana, no way. Captain Kuchiki --"
"No way," Renji said forcefully.
Rangiku shrugged. "Captain Komamura, can't see why he would. Captain Kyouraku, well, he wouldn't, and besides, he's been here for two thousand years, so why do something now? Captain Tousen, he's so virtuous and fond of justice that he'd never even think of breaking the law. Captain Zaraki --"
"Captain Zaraki wouldn't bother trying to hide anything," Renji said.
"No," Rangiku agreed. "Captain Kurotsuchi, well. Captain Ukitake, well, he wouldn't, like Captain Kyouraku."
"And Urahara Kisuke and Shihouin Yoruichi?" Phoenix asked.
Rangiku shrugged. "Nobody really knows much about them."
"No. And Kurosaki himself admits that Urahara used . . . unusual training methods on him."
"But didn't Captain Yamamoto say that Urahara couldn't have got here on his own, Wright?" Edgeworth asked. "I think we should consider the cat. That is, Shihouin Yoruichi. She has no alibi. If she was cooperating with Urahara, and in fact the whole business with Kurosaki was a giant red herring . . ." He frowned. "In fact, perhaps we should look at it the other way. The accusations against Kurosaki resulted in us bringing Urahara Kisuke here to give testimony in court. What if this was all a ploy by Urahara to cause us to bring him here?"
"That seems needlessly complex," Phoenix said.
"Well, Dahlia Hawthorne is involved."
"True."
Renji's frown was deepening. "So if the plot is to bring Urahara Kisuke here to Seireitai -- then what might he be planning to do?"
"I don't know," Phoenix said. "But I think that perhaps we should watch him very carefully indeed."
---
Compilation Order in the Court post.