Hey! :D
This will be a multi-chapter, and not a drabble collection or a one-shot, thank goodness. (To be fair, I did consider this first chapter to be a one-shot as I wrote it and then I got the inspiration for the multi-chapter.)

Please forgive me if I don't update regularly, though I'll try my best to upload a new chapter at least once a week. :)

This story's about Apollo the astronaut and Clay the defence attorney. Well, Apollo in Clay's body doing Clay's job and Clay in Apollo's body doing Apollo's job.
I wonder what they'd be like? Apollo on a rocket, and Clay having to find contradictions and defend a client... xD

Oh, that reminds me! This may or may not have Dual Destinies spoilers, and it will involve some of the Dual Destinies characters, but the fic itself is set beforeClay's death. (Whoops, spoiler right there. xD) Probably around the time after the Spiritual Turnabout or whatever it's called, the one with the Nine-Tailed Fox and Tenma Taro.

And one more thing: so as not to confuse you, this prologue is set one and a half years after the events of Apollo Justice: Space Attorney. Basically, this prologue is an epilogue...but it still starts off the story. I hope you got all that... xD

Anyways, I hope you enjoy! :D

Prologue - One and a Half Years Later

It was a crisp spring morning that day, and the sun was almost fully risen, a golden glow covering the desolate graveyard. It had been raining mere hours before, and subsequently the sun's rays caught the fresh dew on the blades of grass covering the ground. You could hear the odd bird sing a solemn tune on the old willow tree nearer the lake a few miles down, and- usually on Sundays- the loud, deep chimes of the bells from the church overlooking the place.

These were the things Apollo Justice noticed as he made his way down the dirt path towards the graveyard in question, slowing to a halt in front of the gate as he reached it. Sighing lightly and taking a moment to brace himself, he opened the gate, entered the graveyard, and shut and locked it behind him.

It was many a day in which he had visited the graveyard, and although it was never exactly the most wonderful place to be, it had slowly- over time- become quite familiar and known to him.

Sometimes, the graveyard was a relaxing and cheerful place, in which Apollo would sit or kneel or stand by his best friend's grave with a tear in his eye and chat for hours on end about a case he'd just won, or an old friend from junior school he'd run into on his way to the shops the day before, or maybe even an extremely salty bowl of noodles he'd digested- although not with great delight, I must add.

Sometimes, the graveyard was a stress-relieving and reassuring place, in which Apollo would sit or kneel or stand by his best friend's grave with more than a few tears in his eyes and mutter in down-hearted tones about a stressful trial, or a difficult client, or perhaps even a heated argument he'd had with someone from the Agency- although he always received a hug and apology from that person later on, I must add. Apollo always felt better after confiding his worries and troubles in his best friend- it always made him feel like there was a reassuring hand on his shoulder, a familiar person next to him, and a voice in the wind saying, "Don't worry, 'Pollo. You'll be fine."

But, sometimes, the graveyard was a heartbreaking and depressing place, in which Apollo would sit or kneel or stand by his best friend's grave with tears spilling down his cheeks and not speak or make any noise at all- save for the muffled sobs that he just couldn't hold back.
He'd remember the days before the incident, the ones where they were both carefree people, chasing their dreams and looking out for one another; then he'd remember the incident, the days where Apollo had to, time and time again, visit that wretched space centre, look at the dead and unmoving body of his best friend and swear upon his life he'd find the killer; and then he'd remember the trial, the days in which, time and time again, Apollo would have to recount the events of the incident and try to find an error in a witness' recount, all the while having to defend a man whom all the evidence pointed to as the killer.

Apollo didn't know which one of those scenarios it was at that particular moment. However as he walked towards a grave in the top-right side of the graveyard, stopped in front of the grave and read the epitaph- Here lies Clay Terran, 2004-2027 - he will be sorely missed- Apollo was convinced it would soon be the latter; he could already feel tears welling up in his eyes.

"Clay…" Apollo muttered, placing his hand on the gravestone with a sigh, "I wish we'd have swapped places that day, and it was me…instead of you…"

I wish we'd have swapped places…

Apollo could immediately picture Clay in a blue suit not unlike his boss's, only a hue darker, and some plain, striped brown trousers with an attorney's badge on his lapel, his crop of black hair messy as was the usual with him. Apollo chuckled as he thought of how Clay would get on with Athena, Trucy and the others- he could just imagine Clay joining in with Ema and calling Klavier a 'glimmerous fop' but then asking for his autograph afterward anyways.

"Hey, Clay. I wonder what you'd be like as a lawyer? D'you think you'd be good? I think you would… but I'm not sure what the judge would think about that," Apollo smiled, running his hand through his light brown hair. He then went on to ponder on whether his or Clay's 'Chords of Steel' would be the loudest in the raging battlefield which was the courtroom, and it was not with a hint of jealousy that he managed to convince himself Clay's would probably be louder, if not only a little louder, than his.

Apollo pictured in his mind what Clay's first trial would be like- the usual 'Rookie Killer' or even perhaps the younger 'Rookie Humiliator' on the prosecution, that is. Clay, in Apollo's imagination, would thrash the prosecution, whether a Payne or not, on strength and volume alone- both in his voice and his objections. Apollo couldn't help but laugh out loud when he realised that the volume of Clay's voice and his own combined would most probably deafen the poor old judge, let alone give him earache (as Apollo usually did on his own).

Following this, Apollo felt a little better- until he remembered that if they had ever swapped places, he would be an astronaut. Apollo didn't really know what to think of that, really- yes, the distant universe and prospects of extraterrestrial life did fascinate him, but he wasn't sure if he would like it as his full-time career. And especially the thought of actually going up into space…Apollo shuddered.
As far as he was concerned, he'd never go into space and leave the astronomy to the people working at the Space Centre, thank you very much.

Laughing, Apollo smiled warmly. "If we'd have swapped places, Clay- and I was an astronaut and you a defence attorney like I am now- there would be a whole load of problems, wouldn't there? Something like us two swapping places would be totally impossible, though."

Apollo then checked his watch- more specifically, the really smart one Clay had bought him for his birthday a year ago. "Oh, it's half past 11 now- I've got to head back to the Agency now," Apollo explained, "or else there'll be another murder in Los Angeles soon. Bye, Clay."

Beaming, Apollo turned on his heel and took his leave, but something he himself had said bothered him somewhat, although he didn't know why. Shrugging it off, he left the graveyard with a smile on his face, making his way towards the Agency with a grin.

Still, hours later, that statement he'd said still bothered him- and it was when he was filing out some extremely boring paperwork that he realised what it was, his eyes widening and his mouth widening also.

"If we'd have swapped places, Clay- and I was an astronaut and you a defence attorney like I am now- there would be a whole load of problems, wouldn't there? Something like us two swapping places would be totally impossible, though."

The thing was that, one and a half years ago, they had.