Disclaimer: Hey, guess what? I still don't legally own Phoenix Wright!

Author's Note: A semi-serious mini-sequel to New Year's Eve with Pearl Fey. Because, well, after replaying Case Four and seeing that Pearl somehow got Phoenix and Maya a honeymoon suite… this idea spawned. Oh, and there are some spoilers if you haven't beaten Case Four already.

Reservations

"How in the world did Pearls get her hands on a honeymoon suite, anyway?"

"Well, Nick, remember that this is Pearly that we're talking about."

"Right."

Phoenix and Maya were boggling over the idea of Pearl reserving them a hotel room as they made their way down the hallway to their supposed suite. As Phoenix repeatedly checked the room number on the card key he'd been given, Maya excitedly looked at all the decorations still up. The defense attorney shivered slightly as they passed Juan Corrida's old room; all the bear dolls were still up, and it was somewhat creepy to think that just a few days ago, a murder had taken place there.

"Oh, hey, it's Room 313, right, Nick?"

"Uh, yeah, here."

Phoenix handed Maya the card, and she slid it into the lock. Moments later, the door clicked open, and Phoenix fumbled for the light switch as he and Maya stumbled in. When the room finally lit up, the pair blinked in astonishment.

Sure, the Gatewater Hotel had been receiving plenty of publicity lately, and sure, they'd probably had more than enough money to do some renovations… But Pearl had been right. The honeymoon suites really were something else.

This one had maroon everything, from the walls to the thick shag carpet to king-size-bed's bedspread—heck, even the curtains, Phoenix noted. Before he had much more time to take everything in, Maya squealed loudly.

"Nick! A mini-fridge! And a microwave! Do you think the bellboys leave popcorn in the cabinets? Huh?"

Phoenix blinked and shook his head. "Probably not, but feel free to look."

"How boring, Nick," Maya frowned, but then instantly brightened up again. "A flat screen TV! I wonder what's on?"

Phoenix sighed as Maya flopped down onto the bed. He watched her reach for the remote on the bedside table and eagerly start flipping through TV channels. At least she'd gotten back to her normal cheery self, and surprisingly quickly…

"Boring… old… boring… hey, it's a Pink Princess rerun!"

Maya set the remote down on the bed, and then patted the spot next to her, indicating for Phoenix to sit down. He did slowly, and sighed—it was an episode Maya had taped, and she'd had him sit through it several times in the past.

Phoenix admittedly wasn't paying attention this time, though. He glanced at Maya out of the corner of his eye, and despite the fact that she was acting the same as she always did, he was having a bit of difficulty believing it. He'd only managed to prolong the trial and rescue her by the skin of his teeth (and with help from Edgeworth, of course), and despite all the mental stress he'd been through, Maya seeming so normal was almost a strain in its own way.

Knowing full well that Maya wouldn't be happy with him, Phoenix slowly picked up the remote from where it sat between them. He clicked the power button, and as the TV turned off, Maya shrieked.

"Nick! Why'd you do that?" she demanded.

"Maya…" Phoenix winced. "Look, I'm sorry, but… I need to talk to you."

"About what?"

As Maya tapped her chin thoughtfully, Phoenix resisted the urge to cringe. He wasn't exactly sure where to start, and Maya herself obviously wasn't going to be making this any easier on him.

"Well… It's just… Are you sure you're okay?"

"Geez, Nick, you sound like an old lady or something," Maya grinned. "But yeah. I think. My stomach still kind of hurts, but not too much."

"No, I mean…"

Phoenix frowned, and Maya looked at him with a confused expression on her face. When he looked back at her, he hesitated a bit before he spoke.

"You're totally fine?" Phoenix forced, rather lamely.

"I don't get it, Nick! What are you trying to say?"

"Maya!" Phoenix finally exploded. "Look, during the trial… I thought that no matter what I did, I was going to make someone suffer. I could either get Matt the guilty verdict but let you die, or let him go free and send an innocent woman to jail to take his blame. At least, that's what I thought until Franziska arrived with that evidence… And then I knew I could save you and still give Matt justice, and… And then… You seemed totally normal, like nothing had even happened to you!"

"Wow, Nick… I…" Maya chewed her lower lip and looked down at the floor, unusually quiet. "I'm sorry. It's just that the whole time I was in that cellar, I had this feeling that everything would be okay, because you always manage to turn things around, so I wasn't really scared. Well, not too much, anyway. Besides…" She then gave her trademark grin. "Even if I did die, I'd just have Pearly summon me!"

"That's not funny, Maya."

"O-oh…"

An awkward silence arose between the pair, and Phoenix almost regretted having turned off the television. The silence was a bit too heavy, and now that he'd said what he'd wanted to say, he wasn't exactly sure what to do next.

"Um, Nick?"

"Yes?"

Maya looked away from Phoenix and lowered her voice again. "Is it my fault you lost the trial?"

"Maya! How…"

Phoenix put his hands on Maya's shoulders and turned her towards him, and he was surprised yet again by the tears forming in the corners of her eyes. This was one of the few times he'd seen her cry, but this time he felt like it was his fault.

"How could you say that? You know that's not the only thing I care about! I was worried about you."

"Oh, Nick…"

Maya burst into tears and wrapped her arms around Phoenix's neck, crying into the stiff shoulder of his suit. Stunned, Phoenix slowly pulled Maya closer to him and hugged her awkwardly, not entirely sure how to comfort her but eventually figuring that silence would be the best company. After a few moments, Maya's tears were reduced to quiet sniffles.

"I'm sorry, Nick," Maya mumbled into his chest.

"It's all right," Phoenix replied. "I'm… I'm just glad you're safe."

"Hey, Nick…" Maya looked up at him, her eyes still a bit swollen. "How did Pearly get us this suite, anyway?"

"Wait, what?"

Phoenix blinked, thrown off guard. Even at a time like this, Maya had managed to pull out a completely random subject change. Of course, that was typical Maya, but it still felt odd.

"She probably swiped my credit card or something," Phoenix sighed. "Although I don't know how I'm going to pay this back, after tonight's dinner and all…"

Maya giggled. "I'm sure it'll be fine, Nick. Besides, Pearly managed to hook us up again, right?"

"Right. I mean…" Phoenix felt himself blush as he trailed off.

"Don't tell me you forgot about New Year's already," Maya grinned, pulling back and poking Phoenix on the shoulder. "You said you'd visit me if I ever went back to Kurain, and that we were going out, and…"

"Yeah, but… You're the one that kissed me first…" Phoenix grumbled, his blush darkening.

"Aw, come on, Nick," Maya said slyly. "You kissed me, too. Besides, you weren't just pretending in order to please Pearly, were you?"

"What do you mean?"

By now, Phoenix's face was red enough that he had to look away from the spirit medium. Maya burst into laughter. What was so funny about Phoenix's humiliation, he'd never know.

"I'm a girl, Nick. Call it intuition," she announced.

"Oh, boy…"

"Well?"

Phoenix looked back at Maya. Despite the fact that only a few minutes ago he'd been comforting her, he was having a bit of trouble saying anything now… Let alone giving in to the small part of his brain that was screaming Maya was right after all and Pearl's plan at New Year's hadn't ended in a fluke.

"Hello! Earth to Nick!"

Maya waved a hand in front of Phoenix's face, the jangling of her bracelets snapping him back to reality. Phoenix blinked, and that small portion of his brain was steadily growing larger. Before he could argue with himself, Phoenix put a hand on Maya's shoulder, and then drew her into a hug again.

"I knew it," Maya bragged slightly.

"Yeah," Phoenix agreed, tuning out the urge to reply sarcastically as he rested his chin on her head. "I… I'm really glad you're back, Maya."

"You should be! Who would you take out for burgers if I was gone?"

Smiling, Phoenix drew back slightly and lightly kissed Maya's forehead. Maya grinned back, and Phoenix silently admitted, Pearls really knows what she's doing.

…I better remember to thank her later.