A/N: I have decided to enter the Ace Attorney fandom. Specifically, this was inspired by a discussion with my sister, aireyverkhovensky. She was also the beta reader.
From a young age, Pearl had always wanted to have her own "special someone". She wanted everyone to have a special someone. Mr. Edgeworth said it was because of her upbringing in a village with very few happy marriages, so she romanticized the ones that worked and told herself that one day she could have a special someone like Mystic Maya had.
As time moved on, other people seemed to find their special someones. Mystic Maya married someone who wasn't Mr. Nick, and they had two sons. The village elders weren't very happy, though, because sons couldn't channel. Mr. Nick found someone else, and they raised Trucy (who Pearl was good friends with) and it seemed any other orphan that was sprung on Mr. Nick.
There were marriages that were surprising (like Ms. Franziksa and Mr. Klavier) and some that were not (like Mr. Apollo and Ms. Juniper). But it seemed to Pearl that as she got older it was about time for her to meet her special someone too.
And then she met him. Arsenius. He was nice, he was reliable, he liked kids, he was friendly, he was funny, he was smart, he treated people well, he liked animals, and he even liked Mystic Maya! He was also very attractive and liked the same things she did. It seemed a match made in Heaven. He had no problem with taking the Fey name and they were married after a year.
Sure, they had differences. Sometimes they argued over whether Mr. Nick's bluffing was right or if Trucy should really become a prosecutor or not. They had different tastes in food and decoration and while Pearl liked fast cars, Arsenius did not. He drove like Mr. Nick.
Within another year, Pearl was pregnant. It was one of the most wonderful things Pearl ever learned. Now they would really be a family, they had created a human being together and Pearl could already imagine their little baby growing up. They would have Pearl's hair and Arsenius' eyes or maybe they would have Pearl's ears and Arsenius' smile and they would be so cute and if they were a girl they'd be a spirit channeler and be Mystic Maya's heir's right-hand woman, and if they were a boy then they'd be a powerful and trustworthy attorney or maybe they'd be both!
Well, the boy couldn't channel, but still! They could be like Mystic Mia! The pregnancy wasn't all fun, though. Actually, it was kind of painful and not very fun at all. Pearl tried to get help from all sorts of people. Ms. Franziska lectured her on proper perfect pregnancy techniques, but they weren't very helpful especially since Pearl didn't know how to use a whip. Mystic Maya tried to help, but what worked for her didn't seem to work for Pearl. Pearl asked Mr. Nick but he was just as confused as Pearl was. Mr. Apollo wasn't much help either. Actually, he just fainted. Mr. Edgeworth was next to worthless. Cravats wouldn't look good on babies anyways. Mystic Mia was also not of much help, on account of being dead for some time. And even Mr. Godot just made weird coffee metaphors that Mystic Maya and Mr. Nick said were probably to cover up the fact that he knew nothing. Mr. Godot threw his coffee at the dividing glass at that.
So Pearl hobbled her way through it, but when things like the baby kicking happened, it was like a little miracle. Pearl arranged for Mr. Nick and Mr. Edgeworth to take pictures of her with Arsenius. Eventually, that little miracle was born, and Pearl named her Amaryllis. Mr. Edgeworth called it "pretentious", but he had no room to talk. Others, like Arsenius, loved it! Mr. Nick said it was "unique", and Mystic Maya said it was "interesting", so Pearl was happy with it.
It wasn't long before Pearl was pregnant again. Other than Apollo fainting again, the second time was much different, much easier than the first time. Arsenius was very supportive and watched Amaryllis for her on the days Pearl couldn't get up. He took Amaryllis to visit her grandmother and aunt, and stayed in Kurain village and left to the city only for sporadic cases rather than a full-time defense attorney so that he could support Pearl 24/7. Pearl felt her love for Arsenius, and Amaryllis, and her new child increase every day.
The baby was a boy, and Pearl named him Oliver. Oliver was a sweet little boy, shy and collected, while Amaryllis was impulsive and bossy. For some reason, people like Mr. Godot seemed wary of that, but for the most part people had nothing to say but kindness and praise about Pearl's perfect little angels. Pearl loved them so much as they grew up and started going to school. She had a perfect little branch family. Amaryllis was a channeler, and a strong one, while Mystic Maya still didn't have any daughters who could channel. Oliver seemed fascinated with Mr. Nick and his father's careers, however, and Pearl was sure he would grow up to be a defense attorney too.
And then someone murdered Mystic Maya.
All at once, Pearl's world ground to a stop. Mystic Maya was dead, and she was the master unless Mystic Maya's newest daughter was a channeler. A visiting Mr. Nick was accused of the murder, and it shocked Pearl to learn that one of the witnesses was her husband. But in the end, Jana von Karma-Gavin, Mr. Nick's newest hire, was able to prove his innocence (by accusing him of robbing Pearl's house on the night of the murder, of all things) and together with the prosecutor, her brother Alois, the von Karma-Gavins were able to prove that the murderer was none other than Arsenius Fey, Pearl's own husband.
Pearl was furious, of course. She knew her husband, she knew he wouldn't murder Mystic Maya. He knew how much his wife adored her, and special someones don't violate the wishes of each other! She used every connection she could think of to get Arsenius new appeals, but each prosecutor and defense attorney and judge ended up coming to the same conclusion. Everyone from Trucy and Edgeworth to Apollo and Athena told her what she didn't want to hear. In desperation, she went to Godot.
"You shouldn't be surprised when the coffee is hot," was all he said.
Judge Juniper Justice sentenced Arsenius to life in prison with no chance of parole. But Pearl knew that one day, he'd be found innocent, that one day he could return home to her and her children again! She resolved to meet him in the prison visitation center the first thing the next morning, like when other people were put behind bars unjustly, like Mr. Blackquill.
Her discussion with Arsenius was at first about provisions for the kids and Pearl promising to sneak things to her husband. And as she rose to leave, she placed her hand on the separation glass and said, tears in her eyes, "I'll wait for you to leave prison, Seenie. I'll always love you. You're my… my special someone."
And Arsenius looked at her and smiled. "Why would anyone want to be your special someone?" he said, "I've put up with that for years. This is paradise, Pearl, not having to listen to your horrible voice. See, the funny thing about us, Pearl, is that you never were my special someone."
And with those few sentences, Pearl felt like her soul had been crushed. "You and those filthy excuses for children that you always heaped praise on," Arsenius continued, "what kind of a name is 'Amaryllis'? Pretentious indeed. Well, I never got that power your mother promised. Looks like you'll at least be the master of Kurain. Make sure you remember me when you channel, will you? I hope you find your real special someone…"
Pearl stood up and started walking away from him, dazed. But she still heard him finish: "…in Hell. Because they sure don't exist on this damn earth."
The next day was the worst in Pearl's life. She visited him once more, to find out if she'd just hallucinated what he said, but his abuses were worse. He told her what he had done, how he had strangled Mystic Maya and how the incompetent lawyers at Wright Anything Agency would surely think that he was innocent because of his connections. He didn't know about the magatama or the tricks that Ms. Franziska had taught her children! And he'd been defeated, denied the wealth and power promised by Morgan Fey. He also told her how he'd come to detest even speaking with her, with hearing her vapid talk of their brainless children, how there were days when he couldn't believe he was waking up next to her, how he wanted to strangle her instead of Mystic Maya.
And then he laughed. He laughed and laughed and laughed and seemed to laugh even more at Pearl's despair and depression. Athena told Pearl that his defeat had unhinged him, but Pearl wasn't sure anymore.
But one thing was obvious: there was no such thing as a special someone. All they would do is betray you. She watched as her family fell apart, as the infighting began to flare up in Kurain village again. Oliver turned on the world and became a bitter cynic. Amaryllis became obsessed with romance to a degree even Pearl herself never fell to.
Eight years had passed since Arsenius' imprisonment. Pearl had never really recovered. Everyone tried their best to help, but for Pearl the most helpful place was sitting, silently, in the visitation center while Mr. Godot silently sipped coffee on the other side of the glass. She visited Mystic Maya's grave and trained her heir. She moved out of her old house and before long, fled Kurain village entirely.
And then Amaryllis hanged herself because of a bad breakup with her boyfriend. Pearl's relationship with Oliver shattered and he ran off to Germany to become a prosecutor. Pearl's life had finally fallen apart. At first, it was just the whiskey. Before long, it was the bleach. One of the last things she heard was the heart monitor and Mr. Nick pleading for her to hang on, to please just hang on...
A new email entered the inbox of a certain Shelly de Killer. "a job," was all it said, sent via various proxies anonymously. But Shelly could tell that this was not just some cop. It was a hit request, a real one.
He set a date and met with a Mr. Phoenix Wright in a secluded café. His target was simple: a man named Arsenius Fey...
A/N: Jana and Alois von Karma-Gavin belong to aireyverkhovensky. Sorry if the last part was a little too melodramatic, but I needed to explain why Phoenix would hire an assassin...