Summary: Each star in the night sky shines vibrantly on its own; when joined together, they form beautiful constellations. A set of one-shots of the sisters of the Ace Attorney series.

~ This story contains spoilers for all games!

~ You do not need to read every chapter; each long shot is unrelated to the rest, and they are as follows:

Chapter 1: Wish Upon a Folded Star - Iris and Dahlia

Chapter 2: Fallen Star - Lana and Ema

Chapter 3: Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star - Mia and Maya

Dedication: I decided that I wanted to dedicate this story (this chapter especially) to my best friend. It's all thanks to him that I got Ace Attorney and he was the one that fueled my appreciation for Iris. So for that and everything else, this story goes to him :)

Author's "pre-notes":

This is my first time trying to write this genre so I'm not sure how well it turned out...

This is the first of five one-shots I'm planning to write spotlighting the sisters of the PW series centered around a theme.

I guess this is a bit long for a one-shot, though XD

I must also thank Ioniclunch for beta-reading and kaleidostarmoon for looking over it for me :D Thanks, guys!

Ah, a disclaimer before I forget...

Disclaimer: All characters, settings, plots, etc. related to the Ace Attorney series belong to the wonderful Capcom. I don't own the art of star-folding either :)

On with the story! (Oh, in case you were wondering, this first chapter is about Iris and Dahlia)

Enjoy! :D

Wish Upon a Folded Star

"Now pinch the corners."

Her sister's delicate eyebrows bunched together as she tried unsuccessfully to follow her instructions.

"I can't do it, Dollie!" Her eyes watered. "I can't do anything, can I?"

"Don't be silly, Rissy. You just need practice." Little Dahlia took the unfinished paper star from her sister's hand and fixed it. She handed it back.

"Here. Now close your eyes and make a wish."

Iris sniffled. "Does it really work?" Dahlia nodded.

"Then I wish that Dollie and I will always be best friends and that we'll always love each other." She gave her sister a quick, shy hug and dropped her star into the jar Dahlia held out to her.

Dahlia giggled and said with an older sister exasperation. "Rissy! You weren't supposed to say it out loud. Now it won't come true."

Iris' innocent eyes widened in horrified shock and she clapped a tiny hand over her mouth. Dahlia saw that her sister's eyes were wet again.

"Oh, Rissy! Don't cry! If Mommy sees you, she'll yell at you for being a baby again."

"But my wish won't come true now!"

"Rissy, you're being silly again! You're my sister and I'll always love you. Okay?" She grabbed Iris' hand. "Come on. We'll go to the pond. Maybe we'll see some ducks – they always make you laugh."

Iris sniffled again and wiped her face with the back of her hand.

"Will there be bunnies too?"

"Yup! I promise – bunnies, ducks, maybe even frogs. We can even catch one and put it in somebody's bed."

Iris giggled. "Okay, then."

Iris sat alone in her room, the unfinished paper star in her hand, her eyes brimming over as the unexpected memory brought a wave of loneliness over her. She missed Dahlia so much and it had only been a week since she had been left at Hazakura Temple. Sister Bikini was a jolly, friendly nun, but no one could replace her sister. How would she know what to do without Dahlia there?

Dahlia had always been the star to shine more brilliantly – enough for the two of them. She was always the one to lead the way, to make decisions, to protect Iris from their mother's angry tantrums. And now, Dahlia was far, far away with a small chance of ever being reunited with her sister.

As the tears spilled down her cheeks, Iris looked down at her paper star. She could imagine Dahlia, "Don't cry, Rissy! You have to be stronger than that!"

"I can't do it, Dollie!" she cried internally, just as vulnerably as she had many years ago.

"Everything will be okay, Rissy. Now dry your tears and make a wish." Her sister's words from past years echoed in her head.

All Iris wanted was the chance to say the many things she had left unsaid for the past years. And now she would never have that chance.

But as the despair sank in, an idea formed in her head. Slowly, she unfolded her paper star and smoothed out the strip of paper. As she pulled out a pen, she hesitated, and a teardrop became the first mark on her paper.

Dear Dollie,

I miss you so much. Now I know what it really feels like to be alone. It's not like when the other kids made fun of me and didn't let me play with them when we were younger. You were always there for me. Now I know that being alone means being without my best friend, my leader, my protector, my big sister. Being alone means being without you. I hope that one day, you'll know how much I love you and how lucky I feel to be your sister.

Love,

Rissy

As she signed her name, she felt a certain peace inside at having written out the hurt she was feeling. She folded it up and gently dropped it into the jar Dahlia had given her.

It was the first star of many.

Dear Dollie,

You've changed so much. It hurts me to see you like this. What happened to my sweet, brilliant older sister? Why have you suddenly turned to criminal means? You know how much I love you and want to help you, but why must you force me to help you in doing something so hurtful and dangerous? What if something happens to you? And that man, Terry – he's innocent. I feel so weak and cowardly for not being able to stop you and for agreeing to help you. Dahlia, I know the real you is still there somewhere. Maybe one day, the big sister I loved will come back to me.

Dahlia,

Where are you now? You promised me that after you left with the diamond, you would call or write to me. That was three months ago. Where have you gone, Dollie? It feels like you've abandoned me.

Why, Dollie? Why? How could you do such a horrible thing? Valerie and Terry helped you in your plan; how could betray them like that? All you wanted was the diamond and you got it. Every time I close my eyes, I remember how I failed to stop you. Every step you take away from being the Dahlia you once were feels like a stab into my heart. Dollie, I'm begging you, please come back.

Dahlia,

I don't want to lie to him any more. Every time he calls me Dollie, it breaks my heart to remember that everything is a lie. Our relationship is a lie, our love is a lie, I am a lie. Feenie is innocent, and when he discovers the truth, it'll hurt him so much. Please, Dollie, stop making me hurt him. And stop making me hurt myself. How can I live loving a man who doesn't even know who I am?

Dear Dahlia,

Why must it end like this? Why couldn't you have stopped before it was too late? Why didn't you realize the consequences? Dollie, you're going to die. I will never see you again. Dollie, I love you so much. Even if the whole world says that you don't get a second chance, I forgive you for everything you've done wrong. Please just show me a sign that the real Dahlia is still in you somewhere.

Dear Dollie,

These past two months have been excruciatingly painful for me. At times I feel that there is no possible way that you can actually be completely gone. But why have you still not realized your mistakes and regretted them? Mr. Godot told me of your plan long ago, but I held fast to the belief that you would never do such a thing. I feel like my whole being has been shattered from all the times you let me down. And it's heartbreaking to know that it was our mother who planned all this. I've been hoping all these years that you would turn back, but it's beyond too late now.

I feel so ashamed that it had to come down to us against each other. Sister against sister. When did our lives twist into this ugly mess? What happened to the two little girls who spent hours folding stars together? Now I sit in my room, folding star after star and wishing again and again that all this were a bad dream. What you did was wrong, but I still felt like I was betraying you in helping Mr. Godot. Everything has spiraled out of my control ever since the day father left me here at the temple. Seeing you in court trying to frame our cousin burned an everlasting image in my mind. You left me no choice, Dollie. I believed in you so faithfully, but you still kept going down the wrong path. And I couldn't do anything to stop you.

Dear Dollie,

I'm so sorry. Did I really do the right thing? Or should I have, as a loyal sister, helped you in any plan you had, no matter how wrong it was? Even so many months after your death, I still feel a hole in my heart, aching for the older sister that once was a brilliant star in my sky. But Dollie, not matter where you are, I wish so much that you will know that I still love you, I forgive you and I will always miss you every day. You were the one who taught me how to fold these stars and to make wishes on them. Now I can only hope that someday, somewhere, somehow, you will know that I never, ever gave up on you. Every star I have ever folded doesn't even come close to representing how important you were, are and always will be to me.

I love you,

Rissy

Iris stood at the edge of Eagle River, the waters rushing beneath her feet. In her hands she held a jar filled to the brim with paper stars of every colour and size. Hugging it close against her heart, she closed her eyes. Memories of her sister flashed through her mind, some in the very place she was standing.

She choked back a sob as the truth dawned upon her.

"You're not coming back, are you, Dollie?" she whispered to the wind.

I'm so sorry, Rissy. You'll have to be strong without me.

"No, Dahlia! Don't go! Don't abandon me again!" she screamed inside, clutching the jar even closer.

Shh…we had to part someday. You have to let go…Goodbye, Iris.

Dahlia was gone forever.

Iris fought against the tears stinging in her eyes. Dahlia would not come back no matter how hard she cried. She looked down at the jar she carried, which suddenly felt much heavier than it actually was.

You have to let go…

Iris felt her arms toss the jar towards the river and as it was caught by an updraft of wind, the lid came undone. Hundreds of multicoloured little stars cascaded out and for a moment, they seemed to be floating.

As Iris watched all her wishes dance towards the water below, she could feel a weight lift off of her as if each little star had been carrying a burden from the past years. She stood there until all she could see was rushing water again and made one more wish.

I wish that one day, we'll meet again. But until then…goodbye, Dollie.

Author's End Notes:

I hope I kept them in character enough...

I know, the letters seem a bit long to fit on a strip of star folding paper...but let's pretend Iris has really small writing, 'kay? :D

And I'm assuming that Dahlia wasn't evil by nature - it was the lack of love from her family after she was separated from Iris.

Oh, if any of you are confused by Iris' actions at the end, I should clarify something. Iris isn't giving up on Dahlia, she still believes she's out there somewhere; Iris is just letting go of all the hurt between Dahlia and her over the years.

Anyways, thanks for reading, and please leave me a review! I really want to know what you thought of this :) (Pretty please?)

If my brain juices allow, the next chapter should be about Lana and Ema, from Lana's perspective :D