Gesundheit, liebchen (Ace Attorney. Secret Santa for ChickyNuggetofJustice!)

[Guest]

 Hey! This is my gift to @ChickyNuggetOfJustice for this year's Secret Santa! I originally wanted to post this earlier, but I had less free time on Christmas than I expected, so sorry for taking so long. I hope you enjoy this, since I really loved writing it, Apollo is one of my favorites! We've chatted before and I know you like him too, so I hope this fic makes you happy 

 Happy new year and Merry (late) Christmas. 

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“Apollo? You listening?”

 Apollo’s eyes snapped open the moment he noticed his boss talking to him, and he subconsciously rubbed his temples without noticing Phoenix’s concerned gaze. He was sitting down and with some documents about a recent case organized on top of his wooden desk. He looked up at Phoenix with an apologetic stare.

“S-Sorry Mister Wright...” he said, his voice a bit raspy and unclear. He cleared his throat. “I think I was dozing off for a bit.”

“Yeah, you’ve been doing that a lot today, Apollo. You didn’t sleep well?” Phoenix asked in a soft tone, clearly worried about the young lawyer’s current state.

“Uh- n-no. I’m fine,” he muttered and, when Phoenix opened his mouth to say something, he changed the subject. “So, about the case files...”

“Oh, right,” he said, then grabbed a folder from Apollo’s desk. “This one’s outdated. I think Prosecutor Gavin has the new one, but I don’t think you’re in shape to go to his office.”

“I’m in perfect shape, Mr. Wright,” he said with his hands fisted. “I just have to go and ask him for the update, right? I can do that.”

 Phoenix looked troubled for a moment, like he wasn’t sure he should let Apollo go out on the early winter cold. He could ask Athena or even Trucy, but they weren’t in the office at the time since Athena was handling her own case alongside the young magician, who went with her to help with the investigation. Apollo was the only one available, because Phoenix wasn’t free either. He sighed.

“Okay, you can handle it. But bundle up a bit unless you wanna catch a bad cold,” he said while giving Apollo the file. The young lawyer nodded and put on his red jacket, which was on the couch, then he gave a weak goodbye to Phoenix and quickly left the office, much to his boss’s concern.

 After the closed the door, he took a second to rub his nose furiously. It was tickling far too much for his liking, and the cold temperature wasn’t exactly helping; he wished he had some tissues around for once. A bit irritated, he sniffled wetly and walked towards the stairs. The sooner he talked to Prosecutor Gavin, the sooner he could relax.

 When he got outside, the cold air smashed him on the face and immediately made him shiver. Since when was it so cold?! He thought winter was just setting in, but this felt as if it was already snowing. Apollo, despite having a thick, red jacket on, couldn’t stop shivering. He rubbed his hands together in an attempt to warm up a bit, even though it seemed to be useless. Defeated, he sighed. He didn’t have much choice but to wish Gavin’s office was heated.

 Apollo walked for around ten minutes, file in hand, until was at the front of the large Prosecutor’s building. He always got surprised at how big it was, compared to the small, discreet Wright Anything Agency. The lawyer forced himself to stop staring and went inside, then he saw the elevator already empty and got in. He rubbed his nose with his knuckle before pushing the button for the 12th floor.

 In less than 15 seconds, the elevator stopped and Apollo went out to the hallway. He was a bit doubtful about seeing Gavin; he knew he would be as mischievous and teasing as ever, that was for sure, but this time Apollo was lacking on his usual energy. He didn’t know how this meeting would go.

 When he finally reached the door with the numbers “1202” on it, he knocked. 

“Come in!” came a very recognizable voice from inside that made Apollo gulp. His body felt heavy all of a sudden.

 The lawyer opened the door to find the prosecutor sitting on his chair with some documents on his desk and his hands, and when Gavin noticed who was visiting him, his eyes lighted up.

“Why, Herr Forehead! I didn’t expect to see you here today,” he said while putting the papers down, flashing a smile towards Apollo.

“Yeah, me neither,” he said, ignoring the heat forming on his cheeks in response to the prosecutor’s gaze. “It’s about yesterday’s case file.”

“Oh? So I don’t get a greeting today?” he asked. “What an unexpected thing coming from a well-mannered man like you.”

 Apollo didn’t know if the part about the well-manners was sarcasm or not, he couldn’t tell by Klavier’s warm smile, and he didn’t care much. He wasn’t exactly in the mood for this. He could feel his nose twitching from a small tickle at the back of his sinuses that wasn’t there earlier in the cold, and he mentally cursed at his nose for being so inopportune.

“Well, hello, good morning. Does that work?” Apollo said while approaching Klavier’s large desk and avoiding tumbling on the piles of books close to it.

 The prosecutor chuckled. “I’ll accept that for now, liebchen. Now, what’s wrong with yesterday’s case file?”

 Apollo quickly rubbed his nose in an attempt to calm down the itch without Klavier noticing, and put the file on his desk.

“I think it’s outdated. Mister Wright told me you had the new one.”

“And he’s right as ever. It must be around here somewhere...” he looked up to smile at Apollo and he looked quite surprised when he saw his face up close. “Hm? Was the weather outside too cold, Herr Forehead?”

“Huh?” Apollo blinked at him. “Why do you ask that?”

“Your nose is completely red. You kind of look like a reindeer,” he teased. Apollo averted his gaze with a slight blush on his cheeks.

“Not all reindeer have red noses,” he corrected him. Apollo knew it would seem too childish to say Rudolph was the reindeer with a red nose, Klavier would definitely mock him for that.

“Ah, vergib mir, I seem to forget that story sometimes,” the prosecutor stood up from his chair and arranged his bangs. “I didn’t think you were the type to remember something as that, I’m surprised!”

“It’s... common sense. Everyone knows it,” he muttered blatantly. He felt his nose starting to run a bit and he sniffled as discreetly as he could. Klavier didn’t notice this and turned his attention towards some documents behind him, looking for the one Apollo asked for.

 The lawyer took advantage of the fact Klavier couldn’t see him and rubbed his nose, trying as hard as he could to stop the forming itch that only grew stronger and stronger every second. Apollo turned his gaze towards the prosecutor’s large window, his eyelids fluttering, and his breath started to hitch.

 He froze. Was he going to sneeze? Right in front of Klavier? The lawyer scrunched up his twitching nose as his eyes closed and he took a deep, involuntary inhale. Exactly at that moment, Klavier turned around with a file in hand, and he raised an eyebrow when he noticed Apollo’s pre-sneeze face.

“Herr Forehead? Is someth-”

“Hah’DJSHUUhh!” he sneezed desperately into his elbow, and he saw from the corner of his eye how the prosecutor nearly jumped out of his skin thanks to the unexpected explosion. Apollo tried to apologize, but then his breath caught again and he barely had any time to turn away his head away from the other man before another outburst overtook him. “Hhh’JSHUUhh! E-Excuse bme...”

 Apollo’s head started spinning a lot, so he didn’t notice the congestion creeping into his tone and the throbbing in his sinuses. Klavier, already recovered from the scare, smiled warmly at him.

“Gesundheit. Is everything in place after those?” he joked while Apollo wiped his nose into the sleeve of his jacket.

“Yeah, I’b... fide,” he paused mid-statement to sniffle a little too wetly for his liking. “So, is that the file?”

“Ja, it is, but let me get you some tissues first. You’re sounding a bit stuffed up, liebchen,” putting the file and his mild concern away, Klavier rummaged around one of his drawers and took out a small pack of travel tissues, then he opened it and grabbed one to offer it to the sniffling lawyer in front of him.

 Apollo mumbled out a small “thanks” and accepted the tissue. He awkwardly turned away and blew his nose as softly as he could into the soft paper, feeling his cheeks being covered in an embarrassed blush; he knew Klavier was probably smiling sympathetically at him, even when he was turning his back at him at the moment.

“What changed in the new autopsy?” he asked before he coughed softly on his arm and cleared his throat, gaining a curious gaze from the blonde prosecutor.

“Apparently, the time of death was incorrect,” he explained between a slightly furrowed brow. Apollo’s tone was getting noticeably congested, and his sinuses looked irritated, presumably from a lot of sniffling and rubbing throughout the day, and the man noticed this. Even if he didn’t look like it, he was still quite the retailer prosecutor that never overlooked anything in cases.

“Just the time of death?” Apollo asked again, his tired eyes focused on the file on Klavier’s desk. “Is there something new about the weapon used to kill the victim?”

“Hm, I don’t remember that well. I’ve had a lot of work lately, you see,” said Klavier as he slowly got closer to the sniffly lawyer without him noticing. “You seem like you’ve had a lot of work, too.”

 Apollo lifted up his eyes, confused. 

“Not that much. It’s okay,” he brushed it off despite the pressing glare he was receiving from Klavier. “I’m not that tired.”

 That wasn’t exactly convincing. He had spent the last night blowing the unlimited congestion filling his sinuses, only for his nose to get watery again and repeat the never ending cycle, so he had little to no rest. Even then, the throbbing in his sinuses refused to cease, and he knew soon his voice would get nasal and stuffy and he had to clear his sinuses again. He just wanted to leave the office before that happened.

“Not that tired, hm?” the prosecutor repeated, not buying it. “You look like you’re about to pass out, liebchen.”

 Did he really look like that?

“I’m fine,” he said again. That ‘argument’ was getting less believable the more he used it, but it was a type of automatic response from Apollo by now. “I’m not tired, really,” he noticed Klavier was about to say something, and he hurriedly grabbed the file. “I’ll-uh, read it a bit then take it to Mister Wright.”

 The prosecutor nodded. “Ja, I’m sure you will.”

 Despite his concern, Klavier sat down again and read part of the documents he’d been focusing on before Apollo’s unexpected visit, but he still paid attention to him. The way he read was slow, tired, and every now and then he would sniffle or rub his visibly irritated nose with a knuckle; Klavier wondered if the lawyer was really trying to convince him he was fine, because it didn’t seem like it. He then saw some mess dripping down his nose and quickly grabbed a tissue, sat up, then gingerly covered the man’s nose with it, gaining a surprised gasp from him.

“Your nose is running, Herr Forehead,” he whispered, really close to his ear, making Apollo’s face turn red.

“...I-I can clean it by myself,” he scoffed, grabbing the tissue with his own hands to massage the bridge and undersides of his nose. Klavier smiled.

“I know you can, but you seemed too unfocused to even notice,” he said before his face got more serious. “But, speaking of unfocused, you don’t look like yourself today.”

“’s probably just the cold. Nothing to worry about...”

“Is that so?” Klavier raised an eyebrow. “Is it just the cold or just a cold?”

 He couldn’t keep a smile from appearing on his lips when Apollo looked away, his cheeks flushing.

“It’s nothing,” the lawyer pressed, quickly taking the file in one hand and making his way to leave. “I’ll take this to Mr. Wright, he must be waiting for ihh... Huhhh...”

 Just when Klavier was about to stop Apollo from leaving, the latter’s breath hitched unexpectedly. The rockstar noticed how his sinuses flared unwittingly and his nose crinkled in anticipation of the forming sneeze. Apollo furiously rubbed his bright red nose, his eyes watering, before he ducked into his elbow with two hard-sounding:

“Huh’JSHHUhh! Hahh’DJISHHhuh!” these sneezes were so desperate they triggered a small coughing fit that seemed to overtake Apollo’s shivery body. Each cough sounded painful, so Klavier took a small glass of water and handed it to the suffering guy, who, between weak hacks, took a small gulp.

“Was ist los? are you alright?” Klavier asked, worried. 

“I’b...” Apollo managed to say, giving back the glass of water to his owner. “It’s... all right...”

“Come on, Herr Forehead, it’s not like you to lie,” he said sympathetically. “Your face is all red.”

 Without waiting any more second, Klavier put a hand on Apollo’s large forehead, making him flinch. His brow furrowed and the lawyer looked away, not knowing what to do.

“Hm, this is not a good temperature,” he mumbled, gently moving his hand to massage the lawyer’s temples. “You managed to catch a bad cold, Herr Forehead.”

 Apollo sniffled wetly, something that didn’t do anything aside from making his nose more congested.

“It was just a cold... I had to work od this case,” he murmured.

“I understand, but you always overdo it,” Klavier smiled at the way Apollo’s eyes closed, enjoying the small massage on his temples. “You have to know when to stop, ja?”

“I’ll rest after I give this to Bister Wright,” he said, cringing at the congestion plaguing his tone. “I’ll take sobe bedicide a’d...”

 He stopped to cough softly on the back of his hand, interrupting Klavier’s relaxing massage.

“I don’t recommend you going out with that cold, especially with the current temperature outside,” he went back to his desk and grabbed the pack of tissues, giving it to Apollo. “Seems like you’ll need the whole pack, liebchen.”

“I... t-thadk you,” he accepted the gesture and quietly blew his nose, trying to not sound so gross. This immediately triggered another strong tickle at the back of his sinuses that barely gave him time to prepare before he inhaled sharply. “Huh’DJSHHUh! Unnghhh... Hh’JISHUHhh!”

 His head started pounding thanks to the body-jerking sneezes that sneaked up to him, and at times like this he disliked the loud nature of his explosions.

“Gesundheit, bless you!” said Klavier. “Are you alright?”

“Yeah, mby head just hurts a little.”

“That doesn’t sound well. I think I have some cold medicine around here, let me search for it.”

 He rummaged around another one of his drawers, hearing Apollo’s thick sniffles increasing, to take out a small pack of pills that didn’t look like they’ve been used much. The lawyer saw, through tired eyes, how Klavier grabbed a pill and the glass of water from before and handled it to him.

“You should rest. I don’t think Herr Wright will mind if you are a bit late,” offered Klavier while Apollo painfully gulped the pill.

“I cad’t. I’b fide,” he muttered even though he knew it was useless to say that now.

“Yeah, you always are,” the prosecutor smiled warmly. “Why don’t you take a short nap on my couch over there?”

“I-I really should’dt, I’ll defiditely fall asleep for more thad ad hour.”

“Then... what about a thirty-minute nap to recover your energies? I’ll make sure to wake you up.”

“Uh...” Apollo seemed to be considering accepting that tempting offer. “You better wake mbe up...”

 Klavier chuckled. “I will, don’t worry, liebchen.”

“You always call bme that, but, what does it — Huhh- Hh’JSHHUhh! — bead...?” he asked before sneezing loudly as he lied down on the comfortable couch, shivering a bit. His eyes started to close almost immediately and his shoulders relaxed.

“Ah, that’s a secret. Gesundheit, by the way,” he said, but all the answer he got was some weak grumbles from Apollo, who was already far from conscious. Klavier resisted the urge to laugh to not wake him up. “Sleep well, sweetheart.”

Edited January 8, 2020 by EvaBloom

[SpookyBoi]

Ahhhhhhh I love it! Apollo’s so stubborn, good thing Klavier’s their to remind him to take a break! This is so cute!

[Diamond_Promise]

This is art! I love the dynamic between them and you write it so well. I’m glad one of my favorite ships has a place here. Thank you for your lovely contribution to the fandom and humankind in general!

 

[Kushami Suki Da!]

Wow!  I still haven't finished AA4 (I'm in the last case), but I adore Klavier and Apollo!  You have captured their natures and dynamic so well!  This was a joy to read

[Akahana]

Awwww super cute!!