AN: Ahhhh! So very sorry for abandoning this fic for a few months! This has
actually been mostly completed for a while now but I only got around to finishing
it today... Don't hate me please? I have cookies! :3
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September 8th
10:46am
District Court - Defendant Lobby No. 3
"I can't believe I pulled that off..." Phoenix sank into the cosy couches
of the lobby.
"What a crazy trial. Even the Judge had his moments" Phoenix commented.
"Oh! You mean..." giggled Athena, unable to complete her sentence.
"When the Judge managed to get Prosecutor Blackquill to shut his smart aleck
mouth" Phoenix finished, chuckling along.
*BANG*
Both attorneys whipped their heads towards the direction of the sound.
Slowly, the door opened to reveal Megan laying on the carpet with her fingers
gripping her newly bruised head.
"Err... Hi" Megan sheepishly greeted, using one hand to wave.
"M-Mango! Were you eavesdropping on us?!" angrily inquired Athena.
"Well... Umm... Sort of" reluctantly but partially admitted Megan.
She straightened up and dusted herself off.
"But I've come in here to say something!" Megan announced dramatically.
'As long as you don't turn bitter and withdrawn on us...' Phoenix spoke to
himself.
"Well? Say it already!" pressured Athena.
"Why don't we go..." Megan took one of Phoenix's hands "Investigate the crime
scene!".
"Wha-WHAAAAAAAAAAAAT?!" Phoenix snatched his hand back and disbelievingly
stared at Megan "We can't just waltz out of here!".
"But you didn't get to investigate it yet, did you?" Megan wagged her finger
cheekily "You might learn something new from checking it out!".
"B-But...! Prosecutor Payne is definitely going to find out and drag my name
through the mud a bit! ...And Prosecutor Blackquill will cut me in half!".
"Prosecutor Blackquill is going to be busy with the new witness and Winston
the Whiner is sick; we have the perfect chance here!" Athena chirped.
"Wait... wasn't his name Gasp-".
"Oh fine, but we've got to be fast" interrupted Phoenix who finally caved
in.
"Righty-o! Let's go!" Athena sang and bolted out the room.
"...This is the part where we run after her like madmen" Phoenix explained
to Megan before they began their pursuit of Athena.
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September 8th
10:51am
Los Angeles Public Library - Visitors' Entrance
The sound of shoes stomping against the pavement stopped as Athena skidded
to a stop at her destination. She flicked a lone droplet of sweat from her
forehead and gazed up at the magnificent library in awe.
"Woooaaaahhh! It's huge! I could get lost trying to find the toilet or something!"
exclaimed Athena.
Two trailing pairs of feet went into break mode too suddenly and caused them
to greet the footpath quite painfully.
"Owowow..." moaned Megan, slowly picking herself up from the ground.
"*huff* Athena why do *huff* we need to run all the time?!" Phoenix heaved.
Phoenix looked up after a couple of seconds of silence.
"...Athena...?".
"Boss! Mango! Hurry up you slowpokes! I'm already inside!" called Athena
from the library doors.
"Shhh, missy! This is a library!" snapped the elderly librarian from inside.
"Sorry, ma'am, she's just a lively one after all" Phoenix sheepishly apologised
for Athena as he walked into the building.
"Hmph! As long as she keeps the noise down, then she can remain lively in
this library" replied the librarian snippily. The librarian then resumed
her work on dusty books.
"H-Hey...!" cautiously whispered Megan "There's the crime scene...!".
Yellow taped marked 'Police Line' protected the crime scene like the chains
on a Psyche-Lock. Megan quietly lifted the tape and ushered Phoenix and Athena
through to the restricted area.
"Wow! This makes me feel like such a rebel!" Athena exclaims quite loudly.
"Shhhhh!" the librarian impatiently shushed from down the hall of books.
"Sorry!" mouths Phoenix, the librarian turns up her nose and begins to leaf
through books.
"See anything off?" asks Phoenix scanning the area for himself.
"Nothing from me, boss" Athena answers.
"I've got something" Megan announces quietly, the lawyer duo hurries over.
"You see this?" she points to a computer screen with 'AP0LL0 JU$TIC€' typed
on it "I've examined the document it was written on, and so far what I've
gotten is that this was created away from this computer".
"...So?" Athena and Phoenix say at the same time.
"I wasn't finished, I checked into where it was created and the first thing
that popped up was a bunch of garbled nonsense but then..." Megan taps a
few keys on the keyboard "It has the number codes for the digital address
of the computer it was created on. In short, if you find out what PC this
document was made on, then you've either got yourself a witness, suspect
or accomplice".
"Hmm..." Phoenix ponders for a moment "We defiantly don't have enough time
to-".
"HOLD IT!" Athena interjects.
"If you could get the address of the computer that created this, then can't
you get the time it was uploaded onto this computer?" Athena stretches her
mouth into a confident grin.
"I-I hadn't even thought of that!" Megan stammers excitedly "Sure! Give me
a minute- no, a second!" she bangs wildly on the keys at a speed faster than
Phoenix's eyes can follow.
"Done!" she yells triumphantly.
"SHHHHHHHH!" the librarian casts a nasty glare to the lawyers and computer
programmer.
Phoenix sheepishly rubs the back of his neck before getting back to serious
business.
"I've got the time" Megan whispers "And I'm not sure what the time of death
was so...".
"Oh, right! It was... 9:56pm? Wait, doesn't the library close at 10?" Athena
asked.
"So the time it was uploaded was... oh my goodness..." Megan sucks in her
breath.
"...9:43pm..." Phoenix reads out.
"Then it couldn't of been the victim's dying message" Athena places her hands
on her hips.
"Now we just have to present this in court at the right- OH SHOOT! COURT!"
Phoenix grabs Athena's arm and runs for the library exit.
"W-Wait for meeeeee!" Megan calls from behind.
"FOR BOOKS SAKE, HOW MANY TIMES DO I HAVE TO TELL YOU TO SHUT YOUR TRAPS?!"
the librarian stomps after them with a seven inch thick encyclopaedia in
her hand.
"Ahhhhhh! She's trying to whack me!" Megan screams and zooms out before Phoenix
and Athena despite being meters behind them.
"Holy s-sugar!" Phoenix yells.
The librarian was leaping strides, her hair was wild and her fingernails
cruel and sharp. Phoenix could almost see smoke gushing out her nose, and
red piercing eyes.
"B-Boss! Court starts in seven minutes!" Athena shouts, checking the library's
grandfather clock before bursting out the exit.
"SHH! SHH! SHHHHHHH!" the librarian takes one last stride and hits the lawyers
hard with her weapon of knowledge.
"AHHHHHHHHHHHH!" the two screamed before flying headfirst out the door and
across the street, knocking Athena unconscious.
"THAT'S WHAT YOU GET FOR NOT KEEPING QUIET!" the mad librarian shrills. She
then proceeds to stomp back inside her library lair of doom.
"Oh no..." Phoenix breathed. He picked up Athena and cradled her the best
he could in his arms before sprinting towards the courthouse.
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September 8th
11:15am
District Court - Defendant Lobby No.3
"Outta my waaaaayyyy!"
"Huh? Hey, Meekins, did you hear that?" Candice Arme asked.
"SIR YES SIR! I did hear that, sir!" Mike Meekins yelled through his megaphone.
"I didn't ask for you to make me deaf!" growled Candice.
"S-Sorry sir..."
"Now, it sounded kind of like... someone I think I know... shouting... Out,
outta? Outta my...?"
"GET OUTTA MY WAAAAAYYY!" Phoenix screamed and barrelled through the two
officers.
"M-Mr Wright?!" exclaimed Candice, scrambling to her feet "What is the meaning
of this?! Why aren't you in the Defendant Lobby?!".
"Er, Athena wanted to go for a run so I ran after her to stop her... and
she... tripped and... banged her head" lies Phoenix.
"Well... the trial starts in less than a minute, so get your behind to the
bench right now!"
"SIR! What about the fainted girl, sir?!"
Candice let a sympathetic look wash over her face as she stared at Athena's
limp body.
"I'll take her to the clinic in my car" she lifted Athena "Meekins, direct
Mr Wright to the courtroom"
"SIR YES SIR!" the bailiff faced Phoenix "LET'S GO NOW SIR!"
"A-Ah, yes! No need to shove...!"
"Sir! There is a trial to attend! We must make haste!"
"Yeah but..." Phoenix glances back at Athena "What am I supposed to do without
my analytical psychologist?"
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AN: Ooh! Suspense! What will Phoenix do without Athena? ...Probably bluff
his way through like usual... BUT WHO KNOWS?! Certainly not me! ...Maybe...
