…I had another title, but I forgot what it was. This is my first time writing anything like this, so please excuse me if my writing comes off as a little awkward, especially the courtroom sections.

This is something I came up with last year, but I stopped working on it for several months. Looking back, I got a lot more done than I thought I had.

March 1, 2028 12:03 AM

Main Street alley

The 23-year-old woman trembled, staring at the switchblade knife the man pressing her against the wall held in his hand.

"N-no… Please… Don't…"

The man said, "I regret that I have to do this…but I'm afraid that I can't trust you anymore."

She tried to get away, but the man was pressing against her too hard.

"No… No! NOOOO-AAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

Within a few minutes, it was over. The woman was slumped against the wall, stabbed to death.

"YOU MONSTER!"

The man whirled around just as another man leapt onto him.

"YOU KILLED HER!"

The first man shoved the other man into some garbage cans in the alley. Across the street, a woman, watching from behind a car, fiercely whispered into her cell phone, "Police! Come quick! There's been a murder and another guy's fighting with the killer!"

0~*~0

March 2, 9:23 AM

District Court - Defendant Lobby No. 2

Apollo Justice nervously wrung his hands. This was going to be the first time he would be defending somebody by himself.

You'll be fine, Justice, he thought, you can do this.

"Good morning Mr. Justice."

Apollo turned towards his client, who looked calm and confident. "Ah, good morning Mrs. Sheach."

Mrs. Sheach immediately looked concerned. "Your voice sounds quite raspy, Mr. Justice. Are you sick?"

Apollo smiled and said, "I'm fine. I might've overdone my Chords of Steel training a little this morning, though…"

"'Chords of Steel training?' You're a lawyer. Why on earth would you need to practice yelling?"

"…"

"Say… What would happen if you lost your voice in the middle of a trial and there was nobody to replace you?"

"…I don't know. It's never happened to me."

"Ah."

They were silent for several moments before Mrs. Sheach said, "By the way, don't you normally work with another person?"

"Yes but…they're on their own cases."

"I see. I…still can't believe I have to go through all this…"

"You'll be fine…Mrs. Sheach!"

"And all because of a stupid knife!"

"…You mean the knife one of your 'followers' lost a few days ago?"

"How did you know about that?"

"They came and talked to me…when they heard I had taken on your case. One of them…even gave me this," he replied, showing her a photograph of a woman holding up a switchblade knife with Mrs. Sheach visible in the background. The knife had a very large and noticeable chip in the hilt.

"Hmm," she said, looking at the photo. "…I think you should hold on to that. Might prove useful…"

"Okay…" Apollo said, taking the photo back.

0~*~0

March 2, 9:30 AM

District Court - Courtroom No. 3

There was idle chatter among the gallery. The judge pounded his gavel and said, "Court is now in session for the trial of Mrs. Liana Sheach."

Apollo, standing at the defense's bench, said, "The defense…is ready, Your Honor."

The judge looked surprised. "Are you all right, Mr. Justice? Your voice sounds quite raspy…"

"I-I'm fine, Your Honor…! *Cough*"

The judge didn't look very convinced, but he said, "…If you insist. And the prosecution?"

At the prosecution's bench was a woman that seemed oddly familiar to Apollo, though he couldn't figure out why. Her golden blonde hair was tied up in a bun and she had a confident, almost smug look on her face. She was wearing a peach-colored long-sleeve shirt that went up to her neck. She was also wearing a pair of sunglasses that looked very familiar.

The woman smirked and said, "The prosecution is ready, Your Honor."

"…"

"What?"

"Um… Excuse me, but… I was under the impression that Winston Payne would be leading the prosecution."

The woman put her hands on her hips. "He was, but when he learned who the defense would be… He opted out."

Apollo thought, Should I be flattered or insulted?

The judge said, "In that case… Who are you?"

"Prosecutor Angela Succubil. This is my first time prosecuting."

"Hmm. I see."

Apollo's eyes went wide. "Angela Succubil…? …It's been a long time, Angela."

Angela nodded and said, "Indeed it has, Apollo."

The judge was surprised. "You two know each other!?"

Angela said, "We were in elementary school together. Now, may I make my opening statement?"

"By all means."

"On March 1st, shortly after midnight, the victim, Keisha Marvin, was killed by the defendant, Mrs. Sheach. We have a witness who saw the murderess flee the scene and later saw the defendant try to steal the murder weapon."

"Very well. Prosecutor Succubil, you may call your first witness."

"Please, call me Angela. The prosecution would like to call the chief officer at the scene…Detective Miska." She gritted her teeth and clenched her fists.

I have a feeling Angela doesn't like Detective Miska…

0~*~0

A large, haughty-looking woman took the stand. She glared at Angela with a look of contempt on her face.

"Witness…state your name…and occupation," Angela snarled.

…I was right.

The detective said, "Mariana Miska. Homicide detective." There was a noticeable amount of anger in her voice.

"Detective Miska… Describe for us the details of this murder."

"The victim, Keisha Marvin, was killed in an alleyway on Main Street. The cause of death was blood loss from multiple stab wounds. The murder weapon was a switchblade knife, found near the body."

The detective held up a decorated switchblade knife.

The judge said, "The court accepts the knife into evidence."

The courtroom went silent. After a few moments, the judge said, "Um… Would you please testify about why you arrested the defendant?"

"Certainly."

0~*~0

"When we arrived at the scene, there was a woman there, standing guard over the body. She told us what had happened and showed us a few pictures she had taken. One of them clearly shows the defendant handling the knife. After that, half of us, myself included, went looking for the defendant. We found her near the graveyard and arrested her on the spot. The only reason she would handle that knife is that she was trying to take it because she had killed that woman with it!"

The judge said, "Hmm… Where is this photograph of the defendant?"

The detective held up a photograph. "Right here."

The photo showed Liana, one knee on the ground, looking at the camera, holding the knife.

The judge said, "…The way the defendant is holding the knife makes it look like she was looking at the hilt."

Detective Miska said, "Of course! She was checking to see if the knife was hers!"

"…Mr. Justice, you may begin your cross-examination."

"Yes, Your Honor," rasped Apollo.

0~*~0

"When we arrived at the scene, there was a woman there, standing guard over the body."

"HOLD IT! 'We?'"

"I and seven other police officers. We went in two cars."

"How long did it take you…to get there?"

"About…five minutes, I'd say. We would've gotten there sooner, but we had to go around a few traffic jams. Alas, by the time we got there, the murderer was long gone. The only person there was the woman who found the body."

0~*~0

"She told us what had happened and showed us a few pictures she had taken."

"HOLD IT! Where are the other pictures?"

"There was only one other picture. You'll see it later."

Angela said, "Detective Miska, give him the photo."

Detective Miska said, "I don't have it with me. The witness has it."

Apollo and the judge were silent.

Angela said, "…WHAT!?"

"She wanted to make an enlargement."

Apollo said, "What kind of camera did she use?"

Angela said, "It was a digital camera…"

"…In that case… She didn't need the original to make an enlargement! *cough, cough*"

Detective Miska said, "She said she needed the original and I believe her."

I would point out that, in several cases, a witness turns out to be the culprit, but…

Angela said, "This line of questioning isn't going to get us anywhere. Let's continue the cross-examination, shall we?"

Apollo nodded. She read my mind.

0~*~0

"After that, half of us, including myself, went looking for the defendant."

"HOLD IT! How long did it take you to find her?"

"At least ten minutes. We mostly just drove around."

Angela said, "Where did you find her?"

0~*~0

"We found her near the graveyard and arrested her on the spot."

"HOLD IT! Why?"

"She was running very fast and she looked exactly like the person in the photo."

"How did she react?"

"When we pulled up to her, she stopped. She made no attempt to resist her arrest and our subsequent search of her. Clearly, she knew that resistance was futile!"

Angela said, "Detective Miska. You're a little too eager to persuade us of the defendant's guilt. Please, state the facts, not your opinions."

Detective Miska glared at her but otherwise said nothing.

The judge said, "Witness, continue."

0~*~0

"The only reason she would handle that knife is that she was trying to take it because she had killed that woman with it!"

"OBJECTION! Detective Miska… You may not know this, but Mrs. Sheach is the leader of an occult group."

The detective said, "What does that have to do with this case?"

"One member had recently lost her switchblade knife." Apollo held up a large photo. "And she gave me a photo of it."

Detective Miska gave him an incredulous look. "Why on earth would she have a picture of her knife?"

Apollo said, "The way she talked about it… I don't think it was the first time she lost it."

The judge said, "Let me see that." Apollo gave him the photo and the judge compared the photo and the murder weapon. His eyes went wide. "Aside from the large chip in the hilt, this knife looks identical to the murder weapon!"

Angela said, "So, you're claiming that the reason Mrs. Sheach picked up the knife was that she was checking to see if it was the missing knife."

Apollo nodded. "…Exactly."

"I admit, it's a logical theory… But unless you can prove it, it's only a theory."

Detective Miska suddenly yelled, "Of course! That's exactly what she wants you to think!"

Angela said, "…Huh?"

"She wants you to THINK that she was just looking for the missing knife!"

The judge said, "…Explain what you mean, Detective."

"She used a knife that was identical to the one that was missing! That way, if she had to go back for it and got caught doing so, she could say that she had mistaken it for the missing knife!"

Angela said, "There's something about that statement that makes sense…and yet doesn't."

Detective Miska said, "What do you mean?"

Apollo said, "It would make perfect sense…if the murderer had expected to lose their knife. But unless you can prove that…"

"Can you prove that she DIDN'T expect to lose her knife?"

"No… But if you were going to kill someone in an alley with a switchblade knife, would you expect to lose your knife?"

Detective Miska thought for a few moments before saying, "I suppose not…"

"…Exactly."

Angela said, "Detective, I think it's about time you stepped down. Your Honor, I would like to call my next witness."

The judge said, "…Very well."

Detective Miska said, "Mr. Justice, was it? Well, I have only one thing to say to you-."

"Detective, step down before you say something that you end up regretting," Angela suddenly cut in.

With that, Detective Miska turned around and briskly walked out.

Author's note: …I think I'll end this right here. Let me know how I'm doing with the courtroom sections and if I should shorten them. Or if I make a mistake in my logic.

By the way, the defendant was originally an elderly man who was part of a motorcycle gang, and one member had lost their switchblade knife, in case anyone thought it was weird that a member of an occult group had a picture of their knife. Please let me know if I make any pronoun mistakes.

I have to admit, I was nervous about posting this.