Just a fun little chapter. I like writing fun chapters. They're so…fun!
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Ace Attorney series characters!
Chapter 3 - Turnabout Cousins
"Pearly! I can't wait to see everyone's faces when they see us here!" Maya Fey was lounging on a red sofa as she spoke to her little cousin.
Pearl Fey was dusting the framed photo of famous magician, Zak Gramarye. She glanced over her shoulder at the Master of Kurain. "I can't wait either, Mystic Maya!" After two more strokes with the duster, she nodded her head, feeling quite satisfied with herself. "I especially can't wait to see Mr. Nick's reaction to seeing the office all neat and tidy!"
Maya shook her head. "You didn't have to clean everything up, Pearly. You know that in less than one minute once they get here, they'll make a huge mess."
"…Still. I want them to come back to a spotless office! And without all of the clutter, they'll be able to notice us!"
Maya frowned. "When you put it that way, I kinda wish this place was still a mess. Then we could've hidden ourselves and surprised them." She sat up, straightening out her purple robes. "Did you water Charley? He's looking a little…thin."
"Charley? I did water him."
Maya went to pick up the watering can. "Oh…I think he could use a little more water." She proceeded to water the plant, with Pearly watching.
"Um…Mystic Maya? Don't you think that might be a little too much water?"
"It's alright, Pearly! A little water won't kill good ol' Charley here!" Once the can was empty, she set it down and went back to the sofa. "Come on Pearly! You should sit down too! All you've done since we got here was clean, clean, clean!"
Pearls seated herself next to Maya and looked up at the clock. "I wonder where they are." She bit her thumb. "I hope they're alright."
"Don't worry! They're fine! They just better have some good food for me! I've been dying to have some meaty foods! My three stomachs have felt empty for too long!"
"Ah! That show was absolutely amazing!" Athena exclaimed as she adjusted her pirate's hat on her head.
"I'd love to be able to do a magic show there at the aquarium!" Trucy turned to Phoenix. "Do you think they'd let me do that, Daddy?!"
"I'm sure they would Trucy. Sasha and Mr. Rimes would probably really like that." He then looked over at Iris. "Did you enjoy it, Iris?" It was his girlfriend's first time going to an aquarium.
"I did. They have such wonderful marine animals there, but I think I liked the orcas the best. They're so gentle and agile."
"I know, right?! Orla and Ora are just too cute!" Athena snickered. "Hey Iris! Did you know Orla kissed Mr. Wright?!"
Iris had a playful smile on her face, shooting a sideways glance at her boyfriend. "Oh really, Feenie? You never told me that."
Phoenix chuckled a little, a hand behind his back. "It was a thank-you kiss, if I recall correctly."
"Ha! You should've seen him, Iris! He screamed aloud and fell back onto the ground! It was hilarious!" Athena laughed whole-heartedly.
Phoenix could feel his face turn red. "I was just shocked. I just thought I was giving her some fish. I didn't expect to get a kiss."
"Oh Feenie! I wish I could've been there to see it!" Iris looped her arm through Phoenix's.
Smiling, Phoenix glanced over to someone who was uncharacteristically quiet. "What about you, Apollo? Did you like the trip to the aquarium?"
"Me? Oh yeah. It was totally awesome."
"Your voice says otherwise, Apollo!" Athena pointed out.
"Oh really? Hm, I wonder why. Oh, that's right. It probably wouldn't have to do with the fact that I'm soaking wet and smell like chlorine!"
Trucy giggled. "That was so funny when Ora splashed you, Polly."
"Not as funny as his face afterwards!" Athena added before she and Trucy burst into a fit of laughter.
Apollo sighed, rolling his eyes. He hadn't been all that excited to go to the aquarium. Once being seated for the show though, his enthusiasm grew, only to be splashed away literally when Ora Shipley hit her tail against the water.
I should've gotten there earlier. Then I could've just sat with them and avoided getting wet altogether. I guess it must be punishment for getting to the agency late so much…
Phoenix suppressed his urge to poke fun at Apollo, feeling a little sorry for him. "That aside, did you like the visit, Apollo?"
"Yeah, I did. It was nice. I especially like that penguin…what was her name?...Oh, right! Rifle!"
Athena now frowned, crossing her arms. "I can't believe Rifle actually liked Apollo! She still can't stand me, even after everything we've been through!"
Well, you did call her a little pipsqueak when we were investigating the aquarium way back when. He shook off the thought, hoping to avoid what he knew would be an upcoming argument between the two attorneys. Phoenix saw the agency come into view. "Almost there you guys."
Athena began running past them. "Whoever gets there last is Taka's prey!"
Really? Did she really have to say that? Shaking his head, Apollo sped up his walking while Trucy ran after Athena.
The yellow-clad lawyer opened the office door, only to slap her hands on her cheeks and scream.
"Eek!" Trucy stopped in her tracks, immediately frightened. She had no idea why Athena was screaming, but she didn't want to know.
"Athena! What's wrong?!" Phoenix ran past her and into the office.
"It's…it's…it's…!" She pointed a gloved finger, unable to say anything more.
"What is it? A snake?!" Apollo, who stayed outside the office, peaked inside.
"It's…it's…clean!"
Iris entered, followed by Trucy. "She's right. It's…extremely clean."
"So let me get this straight. You nearly burst my eardrums…because the office is clean?" You've got to be kidding me.
"Hey! In my defense, the office was really messy when we left, which means that someone's dropped by!"
Phoenix looked around. "I don't think anything's been stolen. Nothing important anyway." He turned around, crossing his arms. Everyone by now was in the office, and the door was shut. "Now…who forgot to lock the office?" No one spoke up at first. They only stared at the ground. "Well…I'm waiting. The guilty party should just step up and confess to their crime."
The other four exchanged glances, but it was Trucy who spoke up. "You asked me to do it Daddy, but I knew I'd forget, so I told Polly to."
"Trucy told me to, but I was busy, so I asked Athena if she would."
"I asked Iris to lock the office."
"And I told you Feenie."
"And I…" He faltered. "Forgot."
"That's just like you, Nick! Blaming others for something you did wrong!"
That voice…
The door to the other room opened, and out came two spirit mediums.
"Maya! Pearls!"
"Mr. Nick, Sister Iris, Trucy, Apollo, Athena!" Pearl placed her hands together and bowed respectfully.
"Nick! Iris! Everyone!" Maya ran towards them, arms open for a hug. "Group hug!"
The seven of them gathered for a big hug, when Maya sniffed something and pulled away. "Why do I smell…chlorine?"
Apollo sighed heavily. "That…would be me."
Pearl covered her mouth with her hand. "What happened to you Apollo? You're…all wet!"
"Ora happened to me."
"Ora? Oh!" The young spirit medium's hands went to her cheeks as she smiled. "You went to Shipshape Aquarium, didn't you?"
"We did. It was real fun!" Athena informed them of the trip.
"Mr. Rimes wanted us to specifically say hi to you, Pearls. He said, and I quote: 'Tell Small Fry I said hi!'"
"Oh! How nice of him!"
His eyes glanced around the office once more before landing on 'Small Fry.' "So you're the one who cleaned the office, huh Pearls?"
She nodded. "I thought it would be nice for you to come back to a neat and tidy office, Mr. Nick." She bit her thumb. "You…aren't mad, are you?"
"Of course not! I'm thankful! This place sure could've used a cleaning! Thank you, Pearls."
"It's my pleasure, Mr. Nick. Now please, everyone sit down! I'll make us all some tea, and you can tell Mystic Maya and me about your trip!"
"Sounds good, but first, let me go get changed out of these wet clothes." He quickly did so and came out to join the others, who were all sitting on the couches.
As Pearls was preparing the tea, Iris, Athena, Trucy and Apollo took turns relaying their time at Shipshape. Pearls and Maya went on to tell them about their adventures at Kurain.
When the tea was being served, Phoenix came out of the bathroom, beaming. "You even cleaned the toilet, Pearls!" He turned to Apollo and Athena. "Pearls always does such a wonderful job with cleaning the toilet. It sparkles and shines. Not to mention, I never have to ask her to do it. You two should take some lessons from her."
"Great. Now we'll be held to an even higher standard than we were before," Apollo muttered.
"Yeah, thanks Pearly."
Pearl just grinned, happy that Phoenix was pleased.
"So the two of you will be staying with me, aren't you?" Iris asked them.
"Oh! You wouldn't mind, would you Sister Iris? We'd love to stay with you!" Pearl clapped her hands, smiling brightly.
"I wouldn't mind at all!"
Trucy took the last sip of her tea. "How long are the two of you going to stay?"
"About three and a half weeks. If we stay any longer, Pearly will miss school, and I can only take so much vacation from Kurain."
"Cool!" Athena could already imagine what they could do in the next three and a half weeks. "This is going to be so much fun!"
Phoenix chuckled. "With you here, Maya, maybe we'll even get a case to handle."
"Hey! What's that supposed to mean?!" Maya's cheeks puffed out. After a moment though, she calmed down.
H-how did she do that?! "You alright Maya?" He asked cautiously.
"Of course I am, Nick! After all, you just complimented me."
"Complimented…you? How?"
"When you said that you might get a case since I'm here. That must mean I'm a good luck charm for you, and I consider that a major compliment!"
Phoenix just shook his head. I'll never understand her…
They had all finished their tea and were now sitting around, wondering what they should do.
"Hey guys! I have an awesome idea!" Maya pulled out from behind her a DVD. "Let's watch…the Steel Samurai!"
While everyone else cheered, Phoenix just groaned. Not that top-knot! I've watched that show so many times, I probably know the dialogue of every episode better than even Edgeworth does! He attempted to tiptoe his way into the room where his desk was, only for Trucy to pull him away.
"Come on, Daddy! This'll be so much fun!"
Phoenix smiled weakly at her and sat down between her and Iris. Ugh. Time to be bored out of my mind…well, maybe I can sneak in a nap. Maya shrieked as soon as the theme music began playing. …Or not.
I attempted to make this funny…whether I was successful or not, I'm not sure (I'm hoping I did though!). Please feel free to review or leave a private message. Thanks!
And really Phoenix? There's no way you could know the words better than Edgeworth. Shame on you for thinking that!