Author's Note: Special thanks to Slezak and PenAndPaper71 for Beta-ing this chapter! (And chapters in the future)

Phoenix Wright: Everything Gone Wright

Chapter 10: A Lesson In Law

Morning had come just as swiftly as the previous night. Phoenix woke up and gently got out of bed so Iris could continue sleeping. He stretched and walked around a bit, before going to the window of the house and looking out. Of course, the acolytes were working in the village; as they were every morning. The sun was rising, giving off its red glow across the rooftops. He also noticed someone walking towards the house. 'Oh, isn't that Mia?'

He opened the door as she came up. She greeted him, "Oh, hello, Mr. Wright! Is my sister up yet?"

"I don't think so," said Phoenix. "I just woke up, myself. Iris is still asleep as well, so I'm trying to keep quiet."

"Well, I actually came to talk to you," Mia responded, looking at him seriously.

"To me? What about?" asked Phoenix.

"Mr. Grossberg wants to talk to you. He says that today will be your first lesson in his law firm. It'll take most of the day, but I think you'll learn more than you did at the University; Mr. Grossberg is one of the best defense attornies there are." Mia knew she would have to help as well; Grossberg didn't exactly follow the 'absolute trust in clients' that she did.

"Oh really?" Phoenix's face brightened. "I can't wait! ... But I can't exactly leave Iris here..."

"She can come. You know how to get there, and I've got to get back." Mia chuckled; she could tell how much Phoenix cared for Iris.

"But didn't you want to see Maya?" asked Phoenix.

"Oh, sis!" said Maya as she came up to the door, apparently having just woken up.

"Hey, Maya," said Mia, smiling. "Did you sleep well?"

"Uh-huh..." Maya rubbed her eyes, and broke into a big smile. "So did you come to take me to eat burgers again!?"

"...Sorry, Maya," chuckled Mia. She knew that usually when she came to visit she would take Maya out for burgers, like yesterday; however, this time she had important business. "Mr. Grossberg wants to talk to Mr. Wright, so I'm telling him to come to the law firm when Iris wakes up."

"Oh..." Maya looked a bit disheartened, but sprang right back into action. "Well, that's okay! Promise you'll take me out for burgers again soon?"

"I promise," said Mia. "Well, Mr. Wright, I'll see you at the law firm."

"Okay. Bye, Mia," said Phoenix; they waved at Mia leaving, and then Phoenix went to sit down on the couch across from the bed.

"Do you need anything, Mr. Wright? Some tea?" asked Maya.

"No, that's alright, Maya. Also, you can just call me Phoenix," he responded.

"Oh, okay then, Mr. Phoenix!" Maya went into the kitchen; supposedly to get herself some tea. Phoenix chuckled; he guessed that Maya was used to referring to outsiders formally.

It wasn't long before Iris woke up, stretching and rubbing her eyes. She looked over and saw Phoenix sitting beside her, causing her to instantly blush. "O-Oh, Feenie... how long have you been sitting there?"

"Not very long," said Phoenix. "We've got to go somewhere." Iris looked up at him confusedly, and he continued: "Mr. Grossberg wants to start teaching me law, apparently more advanced than University-level."

"Oh, that's great!" said Iris happily. "Can I come with you?"

"Of course you can."

Maya came walking in, and smiled. "Hey, Ms. Iris, you're awake!"

"Hey, Maya." Iris smiled back. "Did you hear? Feenie's going to learn advanced law."

"I know!" responded Maya. "It's great that my sis have someone to pass her teachings on to."

Iris and Phoenix stood up, and began walking out. "Good luck, Mr. Phoenix!" Maya called behind them. They turned around and waved goodbye before leaving and going to the train station.

Once they got off the train station in the city and got outside, Iris shuddered a bit. "What's wrong, Iris?" asked Phoenix.

"I-I felt like... we were being watched," said Iris. "When we exited the train..."

Phoenix nodded understandingly. "Let's be careful, then." They then walked to the Grossberg and Co. Law Firms.

Once inside, the receptionist gave them a cheery wave. "Mr. Grossberg has been waiting on you, Mr. Wright," she said, and then Mia walked down the stairs.

"Ah, you're here," she said. "He's waiting. Shall we go?"

Phoenix nodded. "Of course." He and Iris followed Mia up the stairs and through the halls again, just like the day before.

They walked through the door to Marvin Grossberg's office, and was almost immediately greeted by the loud clearing of the throat. "So you've finally arrived, Mr. Wright!"

Phoenix and Iris jumped slightly at the sound of the throat-clearing, but Mia didn't move. "Y-Yes sir, I am," Phoenix responded.

"No need to be embarassed, my boy! You're going to be taught by the best, by me, Marvin Grossberg!" he laughed as he said this, sitting at his desk with a rather large book open. "Come, sit in front of my desk! And you, young lady, you may sit beside him. That couch over there, that should be comfortable enough, yes?"

"Er... yes, thank you," said Iris as she and Phoenix sat down on the couch. With this, Grossberg stood up and walked around the desk to face them. Mia stood beside him.

Grossberg went on. "Now then, law is a very serious business, my boy. There's no one way to go about it. It all depends on your ability. I've studied law almost all my life, and I find that there is no greater way to go about your job than relying on the Court Record."

"The Court Record?" asked Phoenix. He had never heard of this up until now, but he figured that it was a record of the evidence.

"It's a record that you use to keep track of what evidence you find in court, and profiles of every person linked to the case," Grossberg continued. "Those pieces of evidence and profiles are an attorney's only weapons in court. Without them, we would never win a case!"

"Also, the defense and prosecution can present their own evidence, so make sure you take advantage of every piece," added Mia.

Phoenix thought all about that for a second. "So evidence is our most powerful weapon?"

Grossberg chuckled. "Most definitely, my boy. Especially when the witnesses come around.

"Witnesses?"

"Oh yes. There will always be at least one witness to the murder. They testify about what they saw, and it is your job to handle the Cross-Examination."

"Cross-Examination?" Phoenix didn't know about this. He knew that witnesses would testify, but cross-examining them? He figured that the Judge would try to just take the testimonies as they were, but he was suddenly interested. "You mean, examine the testimony?"

"Indeed," beamed Grossberg. "You seem to have a grasp on the subject, at least. You have to think hard about the testimony being presented to you, and compare it to the evidence."

Mia continued, "If you find something contradictory about the witness' statement, you simply object."

"I object?" said Phoenix. How do you object? He had never been in court before, so the term 'object' held no meaning for him yet.

"Yes. You simply yell out OBJECTION!" said Mia loudly, making even Grossberg jump. "And then point out your contradiction." She grinned. "It's quite fun, actually, even considering how serious trials are."

Grossberg collected himself before speaking, "Without contradictions, the case would immediately rule in the prosecution's favor. Therefore, it's simply vital for you to think carefully before proceeding during cross-examinations. There's also pressing a witness, where a fact may be a bit unclear or you know they're hiding something. I think Mia can explain a bit more."

Mia straightened up; she had been sitting on the desk while Grossberg spoke. "Sometimes a testimony won't show any contradictions straight off. In this case, you press on certain facts the witness presents, and that can sometimes make him or her slip up."

Iris was listening to all of this intently; it interested her a bit. She knew that she would never be a lawyer, but she suddenly thought about helping her Feenie during court cases... somehow. She spoke up, "Erm... isn't there someone who helps the defense attorney during cases?"

"Yes, it's called the co-council," came Mia's reply. "Why?"

"O-Oh, nothing..." Iris blushed slightly, and sat further back on the couch, as if embarassed.

Mia looked over at Iris. 'Is she thinking what I think she is? Does she want to be his co-council? ... I'll talk to her about that later, I guess.' "Well, anyway..."

The lesson continued for the next two hours. Mia spent some of that time giving Phoenix examples from her previous case; it was a very serious murder case, where a famous artist was murdered because of someone being jealous of his work. She elaborated on how much fun it was to point out contradictions and watch the witnesses try to squirm their way out of their own lies when she pointed out how contradictory they were. Grossberg sat back and let Mia take care of most of it; he wanted her to have the spotlight for once, since Phoenix would most likely become her apprentice.

"Unfortunately, those are the only easy bits to remember," said Mia. "There's quite a lot more about law to learn, but we'll save that for next time."

Phoenix looked like he was taking all of this in; in fact, he was imagining being able to do all of this in court. He imagined being able to yell his objection and kill off witnesses' credibility by proving that they were lying simply to persuade the judge to declare the defendant guilty. This amused him, as serious as being in court was; he just couldn't help grinning at the very image.

Mia and Grossberg both bade their farewells to Phoenix and Iris, saying that they should come back next week. Mia couldn't come with them, but she added, "Tell Maya that next time I come, we'll definitely go out for burgers."

Phoenix and Iris walked into the train station, and Iris shuddered again. "Feenie... I think we're being watched again."

Phoenix turned around and looked, but saw nobody in particular. He turned back around. "I think we're okay. Let's hurry and get on the train."

Both of them hurried onto the train. From behind a toll booth, Dahlia stepped out. 'Now I can really find out where they're going...' She quickly made her way onto the train, making sure that she was at least two train cars behind the couple so they wouldn't see her. She sat down, ignoring everyone that looked at her. Despite it being strange that one would carry a parasol on the train, she decided it would be the best way to keep her image up.

The train sped off, going underground and gaining more speed. Phoenix and Iris sat, cuddled together, thinking about what they learned. "So, Feenie, do you think being a lawyer will be fun?" asked Iris.

Phoenix turned his head to face hers, and replied, "I think it should be. Sounds a lot harder than I thought, though..."

Iris giggled. "You'll be fine... I know it."

The train came to a stop in the Kurain Village train station a couple of hours later. Phoenix led Iris out of the train and into the Village. Little did they know that Dahlia was following them; she was keeping a distance, just enough where she could hide if they looked, but close enough where she could keep a good eye on them.

When she saw them go into Maya's house, Dahlia looked around. 'Hmph... this place looks familiar somehow. ... Maybe it's just me.' But before she could go any further, she was interrupted by a voice.

"Excuse me, good miss!" Morgan walked out of the Fey Manor after haivng spotted Dahlia, and continued, "Could I perchance help you?"

Dahlia smiled and responded, "Oh no, of course not. I'm only here to sightsee." She was still pretty good at throwing up lies at the last minute, but how to get to the traitors without being spotted?

Morgan looked Dahlia over, as if remembering something. "Ah... you seem to look exactly like that other good miss that came with that spiky-haired good sir earlier... Perhaps you are related?"

Dahlia rose an eyebrow. 'Well, this is a problem...' But she continued to smile and responded sweetly, "Is that so...? I'm afraid we're not related, however."

"I see," came Morgan's response, though she seemed not to believe it. "Well, you must need a place to stay, do you not?"

Dahlia was surprised to hear this. Another person offering her refuge? Then again, this woman definitely reminded her of someone she knew... but she didn't care about that. She could stay here in the village and finally exact her revenge... somehow... "Why, yes, I do. I'm quite honored that you would offer me one."

Morgan led her into the Fey Manor, closing the doors behind them.

Meanwhile, in Maya's house...

Phoenix closed the door after having led Iris in. Maya came in, grinning. "Welcome back, guys! ... Where's sis?"

"She said she'd take you out for burgers next time she comes," said Phoenix. "She has a case to work on, apparently."

Maya grinned anyway. "Well, how about you two take me out for burgers? Tomorrow?" She was never one to give up on eating burgers; not to mention she still wanted to get to know Phoenix and Iris more.

Phoenix laughed. "Okay, okay, we'll all go tomorrow. We need to give Mia some space for the moment; according to her, a case takes a lot of work." He and Iris sat down on the couch. Turning to look at her, he noticed she looked quite worried about something. "What's wrong?"

"I'm just afraid..." Iris looked down. "I get the feeling we're still being followed. It's like someone's eyes are burning into the back of my head..."

Phoenix put his arm around her and held her close. "We'll be fine, alright? Let's go and take a look around. Maya, didn't you say you wanted to give us a tour of the Fey Manor?"

"Oh, that's right!" Maya sprang up, overjoyed. "Let's go!" She quickly led them out of the house; joyously showing them to the Manor.

Little did they know, Dahlia was inside...

To Be Continued...