***Disclaimer: I don't own Gyakuten Saiban (Phoenix Wright) or any of its characters~!***
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Chapter One: A Meeting?
"What are you doing here, pal?!??!?"
I winced and turned to find exactly the man I'd hoped not to find. "Detective Gumshoe," I responded with a tight smile. "Edgeworth called me down here. Said it was important."
"P-Prosecutor Edgeworth?" Gumshoe's scruffy, roughed-up face took on its usual puzzled expression, his dark eyes surveying me carefully. "Actually, he called me down, too, pal. I wonder what it's about."
I tried not to roll my eyes. As nice a guy as Dick Gumshoe is, he's usually pretty slow on the uptake. I pulled at my collar, settling onto the small, cushioned bench outside of prosecutorial office number 1204, which belonged to Miles Edgeworth, and wiped my sweaty palms on my blue jeans. I actually had no idea what the meeting was about either. Edgeworth was a cold, generally distant man who usually avoided me like the plague. Why he would call me (along with Detective Gumshoe) to his office late on a Tuesday night was beyond me.
Gumshoe settled onto the bench next to me. I could tell he'd been on the beat for a long time, because he smelled like a mixture of sweat and slummy streets. Doesn't he ever take a break to shower? I wondered, turning my head to avoid the brunt of the smell.
"Alright, pal, what's taking so long?!" Gumshoe shouted suddenly, several minutes later. He stood up, pacing in front of me. Two things one has to know about Gumshoe: one, he's impatient. Two, Edgeworth makes him nervous. Put the two together, and it's an awful combination. I sighed, looking up at the wild-eyed detective with only a small amount of sympathy.
"Detective, Miles Edgeworth is one of the busiest, most famous prosecutors in the country," I reminded him with a firm tone. "He's also one of the most successful, mainly because of his unparalleled focus and work ethic. I'm sure he's in the middle of something, and I'm also sure he hasn't forgotten he asked us here." It was only an hour ago that we received the call, I thought dryly. "He'll ask for us when he's ready."
Gumshoe turned to me angrily, opening his mouth to respond when a loud CRACK rang out from inside Edgeworth's office. I jumped to my feet, looking at the detective in alarm. In the room, I heard a few loud bangs and crashes before another CRACK and a woman's scream. We have to get in there! I thought, shocked.
The detective was way ahead of me. He shouted, "M-Mr. Edgeworth, pal!!" and ran straight for the door. He threw it open, and I followed him into the room to find—
"M-Maggey Byrde?!" I cried in shock. Maggey turned to face us, tears streaming down her cheeks, a gun in her hand. It was then that I saw what—rather, who—she was standing over. On the floor lay Miles Edgeworth, bleeding from the chest. It was clear what had happened to him. "M-Miles," I whispered incredulously, feeling the tears prick at my own eyes. "N-No….. No……!"
"M-Maggey," Detective Gumshoe stammered, looking at her with disbelief as she dropped the pistol. Her clothes were soaked in Miles's blood. "Come on, Ms. Byrde," Gumshoe mumbled, clearly reluctant. He pulled pair of handcuffs from deep in his pocket, putting them on Maggey's wrists with the slow deliberation of someone obligated. "How could you….?"
"I-I didn't do it!" Maggey cried, tears still streaming down her face. "I didn't do it!" She turned and saw me, and as she did, her eyes widened. "Ph-Phoenix Wright!" she cried, sounding a touch relieved. "P-Please, you have to represent me! I didn't do it!!"
I watched, incredulous, as Gumshoe hauled Maggey away. I looked down at my old friend, crumpled and child-like on the floor. "Maggey didn't shoot you, did she, Miles?" I asked him quietly, squatting down to examine him a little more closely. Out of the corner of my eye, I noted a piece of paper sticking out of his clenched fist. "No. No, Maggey didn't shoot you," I decided, standing up and exiting the crime scene after Gumshoe. I was going to have to complete an investigation, but I had no legal right to be at that crime scene yet. Gently, I touched the newly gleaming attorney's badge on the inside of my dark jacket. For a first case following my return, this one sure was a doozy.
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AN: Yup. Short and not terribly revealing, for a first chapter. Looking ahead: more on our narrator and the return of an old friend. Oh, and more Maggey and Gumshoe. 3 For those unfamiliar with the series as "Gyakuten Saiban," this story is surmised to be sometime after Apollo Justice, and probably after Ace Attorney Investigations as well, though I won't really mention much about that. And please don't flame me about Edgeworth's death! He'll still be around in the story…. You'll see.
Rate and Review, please! 'Til next time,
muteSOUL