I'm a long time shipper of Phoenix and Maya: this fanfic follows a chronological story line for the most part, but it might jump around a little later on. Some chapters may come off very one-shot-like. This begins shortly after the final case in Trials & Tribulations and spans over a time period lasting a couple months, soon before Phoenix's disbarrment.

Major spoilers for the original Ace Attorney trilogy. Minimal spoilers for AJ much later. Please enjoy (:

The clock on the wall of the detention center ticked loudly in what would otherwise be complete silence, thick between Phoenix and Iris. They sat like this a lot, saying nothing, when they no longer had anything else to contribute to their small talk. Visiting hours for them often became this way: quiet. But Phoenix didn't mind it. He'd continue to come. With nothing else left to say, Iris would cast her eyes downward, bashfully, her hands folded into her lap. She was an angel. An angel separated by a wall of glass; Phoenix wished he could hold her again. He missed the feel of having his arms wrapped around something so serene and breathtaking.

Looking at her now, Phoenix was knew. He was completely and utterly sure. Even after all these years, he was still irrevocably in love with Iris.

"Iris," he said. She looked up startled: her name sounded like a shout after the long silence. Phoenix smiled kindly and Iris' eyes softened. "Feenie," she replied.

"Do you know why I keep visiting you?"

Iris hesitated. "I believe I do."

Phoenix's heartbeat was starting to feel a little stronger. She understands, he thought, somewhat terrified. She knows how I feel for her still. He sought her eyes desperately. Iris was staring into her lap again. Phoenix frowned.

"Iris," he said again and she grimaced. Picking up on her physical reaction, he waited for her to say something.

"Phoenix, you should...stop," she managed.

Phoenix froze. Did she just call him "Phoenix"? He tried not to appear as shaken as he was on the inside.

"What? Stop what, visiting you?"

Iris cast her eyes down again. The angel's frame was now stiff and rigid. "I can't continue to watch you wait for me," she managed at last.

Phoenix was dumbfounded. What he was hoping to be an adult conversation about what he honestly believed to be mutual feelings of love and affection had rapidly escalated to…his worst nightmare.

He took a moment to collect his thoughts. "Iris, what if I want to wait for you?"

"You can't—"

"What about everything we ever were?!"

Immediately after he said it, Phoenix clamped his jaw shut, his face flushing, humiliated that he just pulled that card out. Like a teenage girl, he thought tiredly.

Iris smiled and Phoenix blushed furiously: she was so impossibly tranquil while on the inside, his stomach was doing somersaults. Iris waited a moment for him to calm down a little.

"Feenie. The happiest six months of my life were spent with you. But we can never be with each other the same way we were before... Even when I look at you now, I can't meet your eyes without it torturing me, in some degree."

"Don't tell me you feel guilty for Dahlia's crimes," Phoenix muttered. "You can't keep taking the blow for her: nothing that ever happened was any of your fault."

"I'm in jail, Phoenix."

"To protect Maya!" he countered angrily. "From Dahlia! And what happened six years ago was all because of her, not you—"

"Stop trying to compromise my sins!" she cut off speedily. She stared him down, her eyes fiery. Phoenix became aware that he was half out of his chair and his fists were clenched. He eased back down and begrudgingly relaxed his hands.

"Since when did you have such a temper?" Iris asked warily but in a kind voice.

"Since the woman I love started to push me away," he replied flatly. Hurt immediately flooded her face.

"Too much has changed since we dated," she said quietly. "You know it can't work out."

A long painful silence preceded, a much stronger silence than any other that had transpired between them.

"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't still in love with you," she admitted finally. Phoenix looked at her sorrowfully, longingly. "But you were never mine to have," she insisted. "She needs you now, not me."

Phoenix refused to clarify who Iris was implying because they both knew who she was talking about.

This was not happening.

"Don't you love her?" Iris offered further.

I love YOU. Phoenix thought crossly, but held his tongue.

"When you arrived to Hazakura Temple with her, I could have sworn she was your girlfriend."

"It's a common mistake," he replied stiffly.

"Why isn't she your girlfriend?"

Getting this kind of interrogation from Iris, about Maya of all people, was making him extremely irritated extremely fast. Iris had just rejected him. The situation was already bad enough as it was. Why the ridiculous follow up?

"You're the one I want, not her!" he snapped. "Maya is my employee, she's seven years younger than me, and she's the sister of my mentor for Chrissake…!"

Iris was unshaken by his anger. "Feenie…" she said softly, coyly. "It sounds to me like you're creating a defense."

Phoenix clamped his jaw shut abruptly, his face hot again. Iris had so swiftly stunned him she could be a lawyer herself if she wanted. She took the opportunity to press her case.

"Don't tell me Miss Fey doesn't mean something special to you," she challenged.

Phoenix was growing more flustered and angry by the minute. Iris hardly knew Maya, she was way out of line to be saying these kind of things. And hearing this bullshit from the woman of his affections was like a knife in the heart. However, this interrogation was unexpectedly putting him on pins and needles…

"Maya…means the world to me."

Iris said nothing.

"—She's one of my best friends," he added firmly.

"You ran across a burning bridge for her."

"I was caught in the moment."

Iris' eyebrows raised. Phoenix's shoulders slackened.

"Fine," he huffed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "She may not be one of my best friends…She's…my best friend." He pointed at Iris defiantly, gritting his teeth. "But you're in no position to even suggest that what the two of us feel for each other is even remotely similar to what Maya and I have." He grinned. "True, she's my loyal assistant and I fell forty feet into frigid waters to try and save her. But that's pretty weak as far as a prosecution goes, one could easily argue that I'm mentally insane, not madly in love."

Iris laughed, the sound bringing a smile to his face. For a split second he completely forgot about the argument.

"Can I object?" Iris asked. She was smiling now, genuinely, and she looked absolutely beautiful. Phoenix was mesmerized.

"By all means."

"The bridge isn't my only evidence I have to support my case."

"The prosecution is bluffing."

"Not at all. In fact, I'd like to make a formal accusation." Tilting her head up, Iris looked pointedly into Phoenix's eyes. "The prosecution accuses Phoenix Wright of having romantic feelings for Maya Fey."

Phoenix was downright stupefied. Iris' forwardness had now gone a step too far.

"There's no evidence of such a thing," he said lowly, his heart aching for Iris' love more than ever.

"But I have eyewitness testimony," she claimed, leaning forward towards the glass that separated them. "I've seen the way you look at her, Feenie," she said gently. "I've seen you look at me that same way. And I'm sure I'm not the only one of your friends' whose noticed. Why do you think people mistake you for a couple so often?" Phoenix said nothing.

"When Dahlia's spirit left Maya's body in the courtroom," Iris continued, "and you saw that girl's face for the first time in however long, I saw nothing but love written all over you. It even broke my heart a little. You looked so relieved, so desperately happy she was alive. At that moment, I thought that even if you still loved me the way I loved you, I could never truly have you to myself with her around. She's clearly stolen your heart."

Phoenix was completely speechless. Iris lowered her voice.

"I love you, Phoenix Wright," she whispered so softly that he leaned forward to linger on every word. "None of this has been easy for me to say. But I know if I really loved you I'd let you go, because I don't believe that I'm what's best for you." She put her hand against the glass and Phoenix, his heart broken, placed his hand opposite.

"Did you ever consider, maybe Maya is?"