"Good," Kristoph answered, satisfied, and his gaze relaxed as if the question had had no deep meaning behind it, and he hadn't just been intensely measuring the sincerity in Klavier's reaction. Never mind that he had waited like a coward until his little brother had overindulged in the wine to ask. He hadn't had nearly as much himself, and he held his liquor much better in any case, but he still would not have admitted if they were not both drinking: "I worry sometimes, that you might have out-grown me."
Things had been odd between them. In a way they always had been, with Kristoph being so much older and spending the last decade straddling the line between sibling and parent -- but he had sensed a distance slowly growing since Klavier had embraced adolescence, which had sharply accelerated after the Gramarye trial. That trial was supposed to have brought Klavier back under his wing, but Phoenix Wright and Zak Gramarye had robbed him of the chance to humble his brother in his courtroom debut, and then also sabotaged his contingency of handing Klavier the key to victory. It had ended with Klavier making enemies of Wright's acquaintances, without even a high-profile verdict to jump-start his legal career, and rather than feeling a renewed sense of Kristoph's superiority, he had reacted by finding solace in his band and moving farther out of reach.
So Kristoph couldn't help but feel relief, being allowed to continue this little home tradition for another year when Klavier's birthday came around, and hopefully keep him from drifting further. The dinner was a subtle reminder that the big brother would always provide for the little one, and the wine...
It wasn't that Kristoph had planned for this to happen, but he'd known from the start that Klavier would drink more than he could handle, and he had made only the most half-hearted attempts to discourage him from doing so. Just enough to be able to say 'I told you so' when the younger Gavin inevitably found himself too impaired to celebrate any more. The wine was a not-so-subtle reminder that the little brother would always need the big one to save him from his own mistakes.
Klavier's inarticulation, foreshadowing his return (if only temporary) to a state of dependence on the older and wiser between them, was a great source of comfort. Kristoph smiled in delight, nodding at the toothless grievances levied at him as he stood to clear their empty plates from the table and serve dessert. "Yes, well, nagging is my job as a big brother, isn't it? I'm glad you don't hold it against me."
His hand fell firmly onto Klavier's shoulder to hold the swaying young man steady as he placed a slice of cake with a single lit candle gingerly in front of him, and gave a little squeeze. "I love you, too, Klavier. Happy birthday."
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