Franziska found she couldn't stop looking at Phoenix Wright. Apollo Justice was below her notice, a shivering man-child easily cowed by her whip. She would win the case against him and continue the spree she was on since Phoenix Wright was disbarred.

Franziska owned the courtroom as usual, except for one person. Phoenix Wright's lazily calm expression never changed. Now matter how many glancing blows she landed on him, he continued to gaze onward with a friendly, resolute stoicism. It was as if she hadn't hit him at all. Franziska wasn't sure what vexed her more, the fact that Phoenix Wright had the gall to show his face in court at all, or the fact that her blows meant nothing to him.

She was having trouble concentrating. Every time Franziska sat down to review the facts of the trial she thought of that disgustingly unkempt man staring at her from across the courtroom, smiling as if he knew something she did not. Never the type to dwell on things rather than take action, she tracked down Phoenix Wright in his place of employment and cornered him on his way out.

He was completely unfazed. Even when she whipped him.

"Is there something you want, Franziska?" Phoenix Wright asked calmly. "It doesn't seem like you to confer with the defense."

"Foolishly foolish fool! Doesn't it hurt when I do this, or are you too stupid to feel pain now?"

"It hurts," said Phoenix Wright, giving some thought to the matter. "But not enough to really distract me. You're trying to control me through pain, like an animal." He smiled disarmingly. "I may be a foolishly foolish fool, but I'm not an animal."

That smile was meant to seem innocuous but was so obviously heavy that Franziska was filled with rage. With a precise snap of her wrist she knocked the hat off Phoenix Wright's head.

His expression changed immediately, but it was not her desired one: instead it was a hardness. Apparently she had crossed a line. "That was very rude, Franziska. That hat was a gift from a friend of mine."

He went for the whip. She yanked her hand away. He took her wrist and turned her. She was suddenly pinned to the wall.

"I read something once that said kids bully because they long for attention." He was barely holding her down, but Franziska didn't struggle. "They actually crave discipline. Someone to put them in their place."

Phoenix Wright invaded her space deliberately. She could almost feel his whiskers on her skin as he spoke in her ear. "What kind of discipline does Franziska von Karma want, I wonder?"

"Phoenix Wright!" Franziska yelped at the exact moment his lips contacted her neck. She all but turned into jelly. She dropped the whip. Phoenix Wright took it and withdrew, examining the weapon with a thoughtful expression.

"This whip has dominated a lot of people. Do you have any idea how much it stings?"

Franziska shrank against the wall and gulped, expecting Phoenix Wright to hit her. Instead, he stroked her cheek softly with the leather. That easy smile of his returned, and Franziska did not hate it quite as much. "You're okay, Franziska. You've grown really beautiful in the last few years. Really, you'll be a catch once you work on those bad habits."

Franziska swallowed hard. Many men had tried to take her whip from her, but Phoenix Wright was the first who didn't attempt to engage it. The words rushed out with the heat that flooded her face. "I do need discipline. Yours."

Phoenix Wright crouched to pick up his hat and replace it on his head. It took him a moment to get it to the exact angle he wanted. "I'm in such high demand lately," he mused.

"I know a hotel," said Franziska.

"I can't do anything like that tonight. I've gotta get home, Trucy's got dinner waiting." Phoenix shuffled toward the door, still holding the whip. He paused at the door. "Come back tomorrow, and we'll go to the hotel. I think we've got a lot to talk about. Maybe I'll even give this back to you if you seem like you've learned your lesson."

Franziska stared at him, heart in mouth.

Phoenix chuckled. "Nah, I think I'd better make you earn it."