WARNING: Spoilers of Trials and Tribulations. Also, Iris&Phoenix and Mia&Diego.

Disclaimer: I don't own Phoenix Wright's games. If I did, Feenie would marry Iris and be a lawyer until he was eighty. Hmph.

Prologue

The 'future' is something so unstable, that even the smallest and most insignificant of things can change its shape.

Let's change something then, and see what could have been. Let's change… 5 cm.

For 5 cm, Maria took the clock instead of the brush to throw in Larry's direction. The clock survived the rampage, but not unscratched. The next day, the alarm was one hour late.

One hour late meant that Larry never met his friend that morning, and couldn't convince him to hear him out at the nearest café, saving Nick from three hours of talk about the meaning of life without love and other meaningful matters, thus allowing him to arrive to his class in time. Thanks to that schedule, he arrived to Southern California Courthouse half an hour earlier.

It was thirty minutes that made the difference between life and death for them. But before I can tell you that story, we must learn exactly how much things changed because of that single chance encounter.

Phoenix Wright, student of Art and Law at Ivy University stopped his bike in front of the grand building and secured it before heading inside. He had come straight away after the end of classes. It was hard to study both subjects, but he never seemed to be able to choose between one and the other; after all, it would be just five years of hard work and mad schedules.

As soon as he stepped inside, one of the trials finished and people began to go out of the court. That in itself didn't have any importance, if it wasn't because the prosecutor of that case was the one person Phoenix didn't want to see (yet).

His perfect plan of becoming an attorney and open the other's eyes wouldn't work if Edgeworth knew what he was doing (he still had to answer one of his calls or letters, after all), so he abruptly changed his route and nearly ran towards a corridor that led to the cafeteria.

Distracted by this victory, he failed to notice his surroundings, crashing into the person closest to him. Suddenly he felt something hot and wet on his face that made him jump in pain.

"What were you thinking, running in a place like that?"

Phoenix looked up to find a huge man with a stripped vest and an attorney badge; the person took a handkerchief from one of his pockets and tried without results to clean his clothes before the coffee could spread more. Before he could apologize, the other let out a frustrated sight, and went into the bathroom.

Really, the attorney couldn't believe his luck; precisely the day when he was finally going to get that Hawthorne… but he figured she wouldn't mind waiting a few minutes; it would definitely be better than to show up in that state. Knowing that harpy's personality, a bad impression would ruin their meeting (not that he was hoping for much, anyway).

When Diego Armando arrived at the cafeteria, barely ten minutes later, he immediately noticed that something was wrong. It didn't take him more than ten seconds to found the source of the commotion; in one of the tables, a man was lying down, most likely dead. At the moment he saw the corpse, he had the eerie feeling that he himself had escaped death by a hair's length. He scanned the room, but Dahlia Hawthorne was nowhere to be seen.

The murder of Doug Swallow was never solved. Since the poison was never found, the only suspect was freed without going to tribunals.

And so, eight months passed by.

Ch.1 _ A heart for the Witch of the West

April 11, 09:40 AM

District Court

Defendant Lobby nº 3

"Really, Mia? I can't believe that your first case after a year is to defend that witch."

"I know, Diego. I don't know why I'm doing this either. It's just that… something seems off. It's like she is another person."

"Still, kitten, you have some serious suicidal inclinations. Defending that harpy… and the prosecutor is him again. I hope you know what you are doing."

"I do. I hope. Maybe. Will you be there with me?"

"You have to ask?"

Mia Fey had been the most surprised one when she discovered the identity of her client. Even though she hadn't been in any trial after that first time, she had received a call that asked for her services specifically; it wasn't until Mia reached the detention center that she found out…

When she saw Dahlia Hawthorne at the other side of the glass, the first thing she thought was that it was a trick. Then she thought that it was a dream, but finally decided to consider it a joke. Ha!

After confirming that it was no dream and that the woman on the other side was dead serious, she got so angry that she almost left the room on the spot. But then… Hawthorne, the same Hawthorne that killed Doug Swallow and caused Terry Fawles to suicide said: 'please'.

And somehow Mia felt that there was no lie in that one word. She agreed to hear her out, and the more Dahlia spoke, the more confused Mia was. That girl… she wasn't the same heartless murderer she was last year. If Mia didn't know better, she would have sworn that it was Hawthorne's long lost twin… even if Mia knew that it was impossible.

The courtroom's atmosphere seemed even more oppressive than before; Mia stopped on the threshold to inspire and expire a few times before getting in place. She couldn't help but glance at her client, looking for signs of deceit. Hawthorne had big bangs on her eyes, almost as if she had barely slept the night before and her eyes were a bit swollen; was it possible to fake to that stent?

"Ms. Fey. Ms. Fey, is the defense ready?"

"Umm? Oh, yes. Yes, it is. I'm sorry, Your Honor"

"Ms. Fey, you do realize that Ms. Hawthorne is charged of murder? If you don't feel ready, it might be wise to find another attorney."

"No, Your Honor. I'm ready."

"Well then, the prosecution may proceed."

Miles Edgeworth smirked, as pompous and self-conceited as ever. Even though they had debuted at the same time, Edgeworth had already gained a lot of fame as a genius prosecutor, and had yet to lose a case. He bowed to his audience before speaking (stuck-up little brat…).

"The crime took place on Ivy University. The victim was a student called Phoenix Wright."

"He seems a bit aloof." Commented the judge.

"Uh, yes. We have a photo of the crime scene. A friend of the victim was the first to arrive. He found the victim and the suspect, who had not been able to flee. He was the one who called the police.

"I must admit, it makes sense. The court accepts the photo as a proof."

Mia was a bit surprised at first. As far as she knew, Phoenix hadn't died yet, even though he was in a pretty bad state. Why wouldn't Edgeworth mention that? It probably was to get a higher sentence. He had no reasons to prevent the murderer from knowing the truth, had he?

Agh, she had to trust her client. Like it or not, Dahlia was her client. So no more doubting, Mia scolded herself.

"The autopsy confirmed the time of death to be between 14:00 and 15:00."

"And the cause of death? It is not clear in the photo." The judge continued.

"He was poisoned, Your Honor."

"Poison? And how did such a thing happen?"

"The poison was found in this flu medicine, 'coldkiller X'. The effect was instant. The suspect was carrying it when she was found in the crime scene. What is more, we can prove that she was the only one with an opportunity."

"This is strange."

Mia turned to his senior, who had an unreadable look on his face.

"The Dahlia Hawthorne I know would never have made such a stupid mistake. Maybe you were right with this, kitten. We'll see how it turns out."

Mia thought about this for a moment; true, Hawthorne would never hold onto something as potentially dangerous as a bottle with poison. She hadn't, eight months ago. Mia wondered if she would have a chance to find out what happened to it someday.

Edgeworth's voice snapped her out of her thoughts.

"The accusation calls the first witness. Please, state your name and profession."

A man well into his sixties stood up, wearing something similar to a lab coat. He introduced himself as Anthony Grippe, owner of a drugstore near campus. This didn't look good.

"Mr. Grippe, have you seen this man before?" Edgeworth, said, showing him a picture of the Ivy student.

"Oh yes, oh yes, I did. He came often to my store; I remember because he always wore a very pink pullover."

"Could you describe what happened?"

"Of course, of course."

[Man in pink's order]

"My store is the best one around campus, so many students come when they are sick and don't want to go to the doctor. Phoenix seemed quite prone to catching colds, so it wasn't the first time I had seen him."

"He always took Coldkiller X, but don't think I poisoned him! I didn't know he'd be coming!"

"Let's see it was… about twelve, I think? Morning 80 had just finished, so the time should be right, I think."

"He didn't come alone, though. It was my first time seeing his girlfriend. They both were wearing pink, now that I recall. She didn't seem too happy, though."

[]

Mia frowned. If he had bought the medicine that morning, it would reduce the number of suspects greatly. In fact, it would probably leave just one.

Perfect.

Ok, time to ask, ask and then ask some more.

"Was Mr. Wright a regular customer then?"

"That he was. He always came on his way to a class, and always in a rush since the trip takes about fifteen minutes back and forth. That time he was more relaxed, I guess he didn't have more classes."

"Why did he take that particular brand of medicine?"

"OBJECTION!" – Was it Mia's imagination or Edgeworth had blushed? Was there something wrong with her question? – "The witness can only voice an opinion, and it has no relevance for this case."

The judge agreed, and Mia let go unwillingly. Now on to the hard part.

"About the time when he came to the store…"

"Yes, yes, it must have been about twelve. I normally have the radio on in the mornings to, you know, create a lively atmosphere for my clients. Phoenix came just as the locutor was introducing the next show. So it should be about twelve."

She could practically see the mouse trap she was about to step in.

"About the girl you saw with him. Could you describe her?"

"Sure. Pretty little thing may I say. Red hair, pink umbrella. Well, that pretty lady over there it was. But not as pale. Are you okay, missy? Do you want one of my fool-proof ol' grampa remedies?"

To Mia's surprise, Hawthorne managed a little smile at the man's concern and shook his head a little before bringing her hand to her chest. She kept her head low then, fighting back new tears.

'Strange' didn't even begin to sum up Mia's feelings. Hawthorne was a real good actress, but even she wouldn't be able to keep the façade up for so long. Besides, she hadn't tried to seduce the judge once, and the last one had been practically drooling at her.

Edgeworth cleared his throat, and Mia sent him an annoyed look.

"The computer of the drugstore confirms that the bottle was indeed bought that morning at 12:04. That leaves about three hours for anyone to put the poison inside. Another three witnesses have confirmed that the suspect was with the victim, and so she was the one with the best opportunity."

And with that he handed the piece of information to the judge and flashed once of those victory smirks that made Mia want to punch him. How dared he! He took advantage of her distraction and dealt a finishing blow. Now the judge was practically convinced of Edgeworth's version!

"OBJECTION! The fact that she was with him at that time doesn't prove anything. Three hours are a long time, and we can't even know if they were together until the incident!"

The judge finally snapped out of his daze and agreed with her; Mia sighed in relief.

Edgeworth shook his head and moved a finger in front of him.

"Of course it isn't. The accusation merely wished to clarify every possible doubt on court. If there are no more questions from the defense, we can proceed to the next witness: a friend of the victim and the person who found him."

Anthony Grippe left the stand, still listing in a low voice medicines for the girl. Mia wondered who the next witness could be; she had noticed the strange intonation Edgeworth had used when referring to him. A man on his twenties made his way to the stand, shoulders hunched forward and being the pure image of depression.

Please, review after reading. Also, I'm not English, so I apologize for any mistakes I could have made; if you spot any feel free to correct me. I'm especially interested in the way the characters speak; I played these games on Spanish, so some things might be missing.

Next chapter will be up in two days!

P.S.: Can anyone guess the identity of the second witness?