(This is an AU fic, in regards to Kristoph. In this universe, he didn't get Phoenix disbarred (someone else did, it doesn't matter who, this has no relevance to the story, pretend it was Winston Payne or something :3) and as a result, 4-4 never happened. 4-1 did, but differently (you'll see :D). This story is born out of a wild thought I once had: what would 2-4 be like, with the characters of AJ? This story is my answer, except it turned out a lot more complex than I originally planned. Also, I am fully prepared for the inevitable lynching that my choice of murder victim will cause. I have been warned.)

The real story begins in chapter 2. This is just an intro that got a little too long, so I made it a chapter in itself. Please stick around for chapter 2!

Chapter 1

Apollo never in a million years expected to win his first trial in such a way. He did expect to win it. After all, Phoenix Wright himself was the defendant, and there was no way he could kill. And Apollo believed that no matter what, the truth always comes out in the end. So he did expect a 'not guilty.' No, it was the way it happened that surprised him. He thought back to it.

Payne was glaring across at him, the very picture of incompetence. Mr Gavin was at his side, ready to jump in and save him if he absolutely needed it. The judge, in all his beardy glory, looked down upon them all, gavel in hand. Phoenix Wright, having just presented the possibility of a fourth person, sat patiently in the defendant's chair. And Ms Orly, having just revealed herself as the dealer in the fateful game, was valiantly trying to prove her case.

"Ms Orly, you're lying to me!" Damn, pointing felt good sometimes.

"W-wait! I see through your tricks! It'll take more than that to accuse me, Olga 'Quick-Fin-"

"When the witness is quite finished." The calm, collected voice of Kristoph Gavin interrupted the frantic yelling of the witness. 'Your Honor, I believe it is plainly obvious for the court to see who the true culprit is here.'

"That's right!" Apollo carried on. "Her motive can be established easily! She-"

"OBJECTION!" The horrifically whiny voice of Payne rang out, and everyone in the court cringed. "That's as far as you go, rookie. What was it your mentor said, right at the beginning of this trial? 'A defense attorney must always cede to his client's wishes,' was it?"

"You are correct, Prosecutor Payne." Apollo could almost swear to the hidden 'for once' at the end.

"I think I see where Winston's going here." Phoenix stood up, and spoke directly to Apollo. "He's talking about the possibility of a fourth person. I would suggest not jumping to conclusions about Ms Orly here before you've fully considered what that could mean."

"What do you mean, Mr Wright? No-one else was there the night of the crime! Ms Orly is the only person, apart from you, who could have done it."

"The one who swapped the cards was the killer, right? All three people in the room knew that the red cards were being used. But there was someone" – here Phoenix glanced at everyone in the court before continuing "- who didn't. Someone who thought the cards were blue."

Apollo thought hard. Someone had said that, Phoenix was right. Then it hit him. It made no sense, but at the same time, it had to make sense. In a bizarre way, it made perfect sense.

"It was…" He couldn't bring himself to say it.

"The court is listening, Mr Justice. Who was this fourth person?" the judge asked.

"It was Mr Gavin." Apollo had to try his best not to pause too long before saying the name. It had sounded less ridiculous in his head.

The court went silent. Phoenix made his way to the witness stand, and was now smiling to himself.

"Yes. You're right." He was doing that shifty look, hat almost over his eyes.

"What? That was right?" Apollo was more-than-slightly taken aback.

"Mr Gavin! What do you have to say to this?" the judge asked in surprise.

"Need I say anything, Your Honor?" Even like this, Kristoph never once lost his cool.

"Of course you do! You have to testify! Even I cannot deny that you stated the cards were blue!"

The judge called a recess, enough time for Kristoph to prepare his own defense, and court reconvened after 30 minutes, during which time Apollo tried to figure out just what the hell was about to happen.

Kristoph's defense was actually very simple.

"The defendant has presented his theory of a fourth person at the scene, and that I myself am that fourth person. It is true that I dined with him the night of the murder. However, I will ask the defense: what basis do you have for accusing me? I have no motive that I am aware of. In fact, the only evidence you have is that I stated the cards were blue. I seem to remember Wright and I played cards ourselves that night, with the blue deck. This explains my reasoning rather well, I think. What does it matter if I thought the cards were blue?"

Apollo had practiced cross-examination on Kristoph before, but he never expected to do it like this.

"Mr Gavin. We know the killer thought the cards were blue. You're the only one here who ever said that. It matters because it proves you're the killer!"

"How, exactly? What does the color have to do with anything?" Apollo had no comeback. "And another thing – hypothetically, why would I even want to switch the cards? Frankly, I see this entire testimony as a colossal waste of time."

"Uhhh…" Stalling for time, Kristoph had told him, was one of the most important strategies of a defense attorney.

"Mr Justice? Do you have a reason? Can you prove that Mr Gavin had a reason to swap the cards? I'm afraid, without a valid reason, you don't have a case." The judge, and everyone else in the court, stared at Apollo expectantly.

"Uhhh…"

He had nothing. Not a shred of evidence. Nothing at all to indict Kristoph. He was actually relieved. Kristoph smiled amiably at the court, then resumed his spot behind the defense's bench. Of course, considering that Phoenix was innocent, that it wasn't a suicide, and that Olga Orly had a motive, it was obvious who the true killer was.

"The defense accuses the witness, Ms Olga Orly, of murder! When the plot failed, Mr Smith lashed out at her, and she fought back with a bottle! Then, she switched the bottle for one on the floor, which had Mr Wright's fingerprints on it! Your Honor, Ms Orly is the murderer!"

Mr Wright was declared innocent, and Ms Orly was immediately arrested. Later, she was found guilty of the murder of Shadi Smith.

Apollo's defending career had gone upward from there, and he had also found Trucy. Phoenix had finally told him that they here half-siblings, as well as the whole truth about the Gramaryes, including his mother, Thalassa Gramarye. Phoenix, Trucy and Apollo had grown closer over the year or so that Apollo had known them, through their trials and experiences together. Klavier was also a good friend of the group, the man who Phoenix described as 'the only decent prosecutor left in the country.'

Kristoph, however, had suffered as a result of that trial. He had come nowhere near to being accused of Smith's murder, but public opinion was a fickle thing. He was never directly accused of anything, but he was suspected. He had been there the night of the crime by his own admission, after all. Ms Orly protested her innocence constantly, which added fuel to the fire – if she was innocent, then…