OOC: 35 Things You Probably Didn't Know About Miles Edgeworth

[samuraiprosecutor]

1. There are three bookcases in his apartment. The recessed wall-length bookcase in his office contains the books he uses for work. The subjects there are varied, and among the obvious legal texts can be found anatomy, general medical, psychology, general science, and forensic science references. The bookcases in his foyer are for entertainment and are even more varied; Shakespeare and Machiavelli share shelves with Captain Blood and Agatha Christie, Sue Grafton and Mark Twain.

Edgeworth has read all of the books in his apartment, most of them multiple times.

2. Edgeworth always takes the stairs.

3. Edgeworth's apartment usually smells of sandalwood or eucalyptus. Just as he's allergic to some of the more common flowers, strong flower-scented candles have a tendency to make him sneeze.

4. Gay. Very, very gay.

5. Also has an extreme aversion to relationships of any sort. During his years in the prosecutor's office he's been physically attracted to a few men (lawyers, court personnel, police officers), but only ever indulged himself when certain there would be no risk of emotional attachments developing (on either side).

6. Were he to ever be interested in a relationship, his 'type' would be a lot like Phoenix someone handsome, obviously. Masculine. Muscled but not overly so (he finds a body builder's body type to be a turn-off). He considers himself to be rather attractive, and so feels justified in holding extremely high standards in those he would consider for any sort of physical relationship. Personality-wise, he would look for someone at least as intelligent as him, someone self-sufficient and independent, someone who could respect his privacy and know when to give him his space. Confidence is an absolute necessity; he can't have respect for anyone who can't respect themselves, and anyone he can't respect isn't worth his time.

7. At the age of nine Miles was taken out of school. His education was overseen wholly by Manfred von Karma. Through 'reading law' he took and passed the bar exam on his first attempt, without having ever gone to law school, and began his career as a prosecutor at the young age of 20.

8. Law - its study and its execution - is Edgeworth's purpose in life. He throws himself into his work, usually disregarding petty things like his own health in the process. He's not driven by guilt over his years as the Demon Prosecutor (though those years are often on his mind). His work isn't penance. What he strives for now is to come as close as he can to the man his father wanted him to be, and to avoid adding on to his already-long list of regrets.

9. He now sees Phoenix as the man his father wanted him to be.

10. Edgeworth knows love exists. He was old enough when his mother died that he was raised with the love she and his dad shared, and until the age of nine he was still reminded of it almost every day, every time his father passed her picture on the mantelpiece and let his gaze linger on it just a few moments too long.

Edgeworth believes in love. He doesn't believe he wants it, deserves it, or will ever have it.

11. As a child, Miles had an insatiable need to learn. He read constantly, and delighted in enlightening his friends (namely, Phoenix and Larry) with every interesting thing he'd discovered (whether they found it interesting or not). He saw their education as his own special duty, and he took to the job with relish. When he recounted his attempts to his father at the dinner table every night, Gregory always encouraged the plan wholeheartedly.

12. Edgeworth still has an insatiable need to learn, though through training he developed a focus for it that centers on law and anything that has applications in the execution of law. Occasionally something on the community (such as Phil's dragons) will kick-start his interest enough to prompt a round of 20(+++) questions.

13. Despite the viewpoint he thinks his mentor carries about homosexuality, Edgeworth isn't ashamed of his own sexuality. Which isn't to say he's comfortable with it being public knowledge; gay or straight, he believes that a person's sexual preferences are their own business, and that a person is only required to share such information with the people they're actually involved with. The apparent ease with which people discuss their own private lives on the internet confuses and disturbs him.

14. Low rise briefs. Cotton. Dolce & Gabbana or Calvin Klein, preferably.

15. Edgeworth prefers California cabernets. With blended drinks his favorites generally contain vodka, and include the White Russian, Sweet Death, Silent Service, Irish Coffee, and (though he'd never admit it to anyone he actually knows) Sex on the Beach. He has a glass of wine with dinner every night, but otherwise only drinks on rare occasions (and during the holidays, but that's another matter entirely).

16. On the floor in the back of Edgeworth's bedroom closet, wrapped in a blanket and leaning against the wall, there's a large oil painting. The frame is gilt, the craftsmanship superb. It was taken off the wall just after Christmas two years ago and relegated to the closet.

He tells himself he can't get rid of it because Franziska's in the picture as well.

17. Edgeworth kept the letters. They're in a small wooden box under his bed, tied together with a thin white ribbon. There are pictures, too. His father in a polo and slacks, glasses sliding down his nose as he picks up Miles (age six, in a natty grey suit and blue bow tie), smiles spread wide across both their faces. His mother, her sharp eyes softened by the roundness of her face, grinning mischievously at the camera. Larry, Phoenix, and Miles, their backs shadowed, the flickering of the campfire reflected in their wide eyes. (There's chocolate smeared across Miles' cheek, marshmallow cream on Phoenix's, and both are staring with rapt attention at Larry's animated retelling of his favorite ghost story.) The end of Miles' trial, Gumshoe throwing confetti on the group, Maya holding up a victory sign (things he'd wondered about after, that they'd gone to the trouble beforehand when victory had been so very unlikely).

He never read the letters, and he never looks at the pictures.

18. Edgeworth abhors violence in most forms. Though he's become somewhat desensitized due to the scenes he's exposed to on a daily basis as part of his career, he only tolerates plot-driven violence in his entertainment, and if he were ever in a confrontation violence would literally be his last resort (and even then, only in self-defense).

Von Karma once attempted to teach him the noble art of fencing. It didn't take. Edgeworth found himself unable to detach the strategy from the practice's original purpose. His mentor was quick to show his disapproval, but it was one of the very few times Edgeworth refused to 'correct' himself.

19. Edgeworth knows how to treat authority figures. People like Von Karma and Damon Gant taught him where his place is, and how to behave around those above his station (namely, themselves). His superiors in court and around the prosecutor's office always receive his respectful deference, though he's beyond the point where he would follow orders blindly, and if necessary he's not above manipulating them with his many methods of persuasive diplomacy. Von Karma also taught him that an idiot is an idiot, though certain positions always dictate a certain professional treatment.

20. Most service people (retail clerks, restaurant employees, just about every form of customer service representative he encounters) hate Edgeworth. Unlike his co-workers, who are at least around him often enough to see the few good qualities he projects (professionalism and...uh...professionalism?) service people only get terrifying snippets of interaction with him. They all see him as cold, disturbingly detached, snappish, and ready to pounce on the slightest hint of weakness or poor service. He's made more than one CSR cry, and the harder among them turn their eyes heavenward and roll up their sleeves when they see him coming.

In reality Edgeworth has no problem with service people. He doesn't see them as being 'below him' or any such nonsense. But Edgeworth holds everyone to the same standard he holds himself to, which is to say perfection, and isn't the least bit bothered by letting people know when they don't live up to his expectations.

21. Edgeworth doesn't have friends. Edgeworth has 'acquaintances' and 'colleagues.' Only recently has he been able to call Phoenix a friend, and Phoenix has been striving for that title for over two years.

22. The other children never knew how to treat Miles. Bullies generally avoided him because he'd had a reputation as a tattle-tale since kindergarten. Everyone else avoided him because he was too quiet; too prone to getting worked up and rambling on in long lectures about things no one wanted to hear; too much of a know-it-all. Miles didn't mind, really. He found his schoolbooks more appealing than his classmates, and always got along better with his teachers and his father's friends than any of the other kids.

At least he did, until Phoenix and Larry came along.

23. The presence of Manfred von Karma and Dahlia Hawthorne on the community scares him more than he'd ever be willing to admit. More than being scared for himself, he worries that one of them will do something to hurt Wright. If either of them ever got out of prison, he'd probably immediately have Phoenix set up with 24 hour police protection.

24. Out of all the things Dahlia Hawthorne has said to him since she arrived at DDD, the thing that hurt him the most was that she was in the letters. Even if Wright were to forgive him (and he's sure Wright would) he won't forgive himself for what his cowardice almost allowed to happen.

25. The suicide note was real. When he wrote it he fully intended to carry it out, in one form or another, and after almost a year he did. The only regret he carries from that period of his life is the way Wright took it.

26. Edgeworth keeps an expensive pair of driving gloves in his glove compartment. He only wears them on his sabbaticals, extremely rare weekend trips in which he drives up the coast to northern California. He loves the feel of the engine, the way his car hugs the winding curves of road. This is the only time he drives with his window down. His final destination on these trips is always a different city, and he usually stays at a bed and breakfast.

27. Edgeworth's DVD collection is as extensive and varied as his collection of books. He is a 'movie buff' in the purest sense of the term, and prefers dramas, classics, and action-adventures. He rarely likes comedies, has to have his foreign movies subtitled, and has a special fondness for spaghetti westerns and film noir detective movies. He doesn't own a single full-screen DVD.

His signed 'Steel Samurai' and 'Pink Princess' box sets are the pride of his collection, so much so that he has a separate set of each for actual viewing.

28. Edgeworth's favorite tea is darjeeling.

29. Edgeworth hates peppermint.

30. Edgeworth loves to debate, and rarely leaves an argument before he's convinced he won (or at least reached a draw).

31. It's been a long time since Edgeworth gave serious consideration to leaving DramaDramaDuck.

32. Sigi is Edgeworth's first pet. When he decided four years ago that he wanted to try out pet ownership Edgeworth did extensive research into the different breeds, hunting for one that was highly intelligent, loyal, and aesthetically pleasing. Once he'd picked a breed, he spent another month corresponding with breeders, checking credentials, carefully scrutinizing every reputable facility within a four-hour driving distance. He finally chose one about two hours away, and arranged a visit several weeks before he would actually be picking up the dog. He arrived with printouts of several complete guidelines to choosing the right dog.

He fell for Sigi the moment he laid eyes on him, and didn't consult the list once.

33. Edgeworth has a pet insurance policy on Sigi. The notes on his policy in the company's database are extensive, and despite never having used it for anything other than routine care he now understands the policy as well as the company's employees. (I'm sorry, I couldn't resist because it's TRUE.)

34. The dream catcher that Phoenix gave him for Christmas is hanging in his bedroom. It clashes horribly with the decor, so it's hung in the far corner, by the sliding glass doors that lead onto his balcony. The shield Zelos gave him (despite his initial assessment) actually looks quite nice hanging on the wall of his apartment office.

35. On DDD so far Edgeworth has been called 'Edgey,' 'frilly pink gay guy,' 'crotchety lawyer-type-man,' 'darling,' 'dear heart,' and several other highly embarrassing pet names.



Okay, show of hands... who saw #4 coming? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller?

Most of these are my personal headcanon/things I've made up for my Edgeworth, though there's a bit of fanon/implied canon/canon in there as well. The really sad part is another month down the road I'll probably have another batch up...