I have an annoying tendency to forget to add things to the Court Record. Please forgive me, readers. Anyway, enjoy!

XX

November 19, 6:54 PM

Barrymore Mansion

Crime Scene

The room was dark, lit only by a few dim lights. Ema pulled out a flashlight and tossed it to Apollo, who promptly turned it on. Against the wall was white tape supposedly shaped like the victim's body. And on the floor was… Iris gasped and clasped both hands over her mouth. "Th-That's…" Trucy stammered.

"'The Fragrance of Dark Coffee,'" Phoenix finished, his eyes narrowed. "The painting Ron deLite was accused of stealing." The painting lay on the ground; Apollo could clearly see the blood-stained coffee mug.

"But what's it doing here?" Maya asked, covering her hand with one mouth.

"M-Maybe Mr. Barrymore stole this painting," Pearl guessed.

"I doubt it," Apollo refuted. "Ellis said he was here preparing for his dinner party. He has an alibi."

"But that is no guarantee that his accomplice didn't steal it," Edgeworth said.

"True," Apollo conceded.

"We can't say that for sure," Phoenix said. "We don't even know who the accomplice is. 'Joseph King' is a pseudonym, after all."

"Um…" Apollo jumped as he whirled around. Ellis was standing there behind him, staring at the floor meekly.

"What is it?" he asked.

"I was wondering if you knew where Mr. Barrymore was," Ellis said. "I haven't seen him since the trial, and before, my father wanted me to give something to him." She pulled out a folded sheet of paper.

"The victim?" Pearl whispered. Ema smiled.

"We'll make sure he gets this, Ellis," she said, taking the paper. Ellis gave a faint smile.

"O-Ok," she said, bowing her head. "Thank you." And with that, Ellis left.

"Can I see that Ema?" Apollo asked.

"You're going to read it, aren't you?" she guessed. "Well I'm not going to stop you. It's not like she said it was confidential or anything." She handed Apollo the note haphazardly, and he opened it. Apollo began to read it out loud. Franklin's Note added to Court Record.

"'Arthur,'" he recited, "'I no longer wish to be in your service. I am afraid Nicholas Dreinim himself has realized my identity, and I can only imagine his fury. As such, I am resigning. However, I have served you for longer than you deemed necessary. I demand that you release Ellis immediately.'" And then, signed at the bottom, was the signature of Thomas Franklin.

"Now I'm even more confused," Trucy complained.

"His identity?" Maya asked. "What does that even mean?" Realization dawned on Phoenix's face.

"It means…" he began slowly, "… that Thomas Franklin is Joseph King. I never knew…" He shook his head.

"Wait a minute," Apollo said. "This letter has brought up a new possibility. Nicholas Dreinim is now a suspect in this murder."

"What?" Maya yelled. "That's crazy!"

"Think about it!" Apollo shot back. "Nicholas Dreinim must be absolutely furious that someone forged his paintings, and it says in the note that he knew that 'Joseph King' was really Thomas Franklin. That takes care of the motive!"

"I agree," Pearl said, nodding. Edgeworth shook his head.

"Inconceivable," he said. "Nobody has ever seen Nicholas Dreinim, so nobody knows what he looks like. Furthermore, Ellis Franklin testified today that Nicholas Dreinim, in fact, did not come to Arthur Barrymore's dinner party." Apollo felt his bracelet tighten around his wrist. What? he thought. He's lying. But… why? Does he know Nicholas Dreinim? Is he trying to cover for him?

"Apollo…" Trucy mumbled uncertainly.

"I know," he whispered back hurriedly. "Keep quiet about it until we find out more."

"What was that?" Phoenix asked.

"N-Nothing, Daddy!" Trucy insisted. Phoenix hung his head so that Apollo couldn't see his face.

"No," he said. "I know what you're thinking. You think Edgeworth's hiding something, don't you? Well let me ask you this: what relevance does Nicholas Dreinim's identity have to this case?"

"It has everything to do with this case!" Apollo yelled. "Two of his paintings were stolen, and a so-called patron of the arts turned out to be a forger of his paintings!" His voice cracked and he coughed. Phoenix grinned goofily at him.

"Easy there, Apollo," he said. "You don't want to lose your voice before the trial."

"Cut the crap!" Apollo yelled. "You know something!" Phoenix hung his head again.

"Yes I do," he said. "I know that Nicholas Dreinim was, in fact, here on the evening of the murder." This threw Apollo, Pearl and Trucy for a loop.

"What?" Apollo whispered quietly for once.

"He was?" Trucy asked incredulously.

"Then that makes him a potential suspect!" Pearl announced.

"It does, doesn't it?" Phoenix asked, more to himself than to Pearl. "You should look into becoming a lawyer, Pearls. You'd do well at it."

"Feenie…" Iris mumbled.

"Wait a minute!" Ema interrupted. "What about Ellis? I don't think she had a clue that her father worked with Arthur Barrymore in forging those paintings!"

"She probably didn't," Edgeworth conceded, "which removes any and all doubt of her innocence. You have nothing to fear. No one in their right mind would accuse her of murdering her own father."

"So what are you going to do, Apollo?" Phoenix asked.

"I'm going to take on Nicholas Dreinim himself," Apollo announced. "Tomorrow, in court." Phoenix hung his head.

"I'm not sure that would be the best idea," he advised.

"Maybe not," Apollo conceded, "but if I don't do this, then that slimeball will hide in the shadows forever. Maybe he did murder Thomas Franklin. My point is that the world will never know if I don't face him in court." Edgeworth smirked.

"You show promise as a lawyer," he said. "I look forward to tomorrow's trial." Well I don't. I don't even know who Nicholas Dreinim is. I know I have to face him in court tomorrow; I just don't know how.

TO BE CONTINUED…

Court Record:

Evidence

Attorney's Badge – No one would believe I was a defense attorney without this badge.

'Distant Traces of Beauty' – A painting by the famed artist Nicholas Dreinim that was reported stolen by the art patron Arthur Barrymore. Depicts four butterflies flying through a meadow of pink flowers under a pitch black sky. One butterfly is caught on fire and two butterflies are covered in blood.

Yatagarasu Calling Card – Found at the original location of Arthur Barrymore's stolen painting. Depicts a three-legged raven.

Locked Art Gallery Door – A locked door in the art gallery in Barrymore's mansion near the original location of the stolen painting.

Wooden Frame Remains – The charred remains of a wooden frame found in the fireplace at the art gallery at Barrymore's mansion. Contains Nicholas Dreinim's signature and the initials of 'Distant Traces of Beauty'.

'The Fragrance of Dark Coffee' – A painting by the famed artist Nicholas Dreinim that was reported stolen by Professor Roland at Ivy University. Depicts a white coffee mug splattered with blood against a black background.

Masque*deMasque Calling Card – Masque*deMasque's calling card. Usually appears when a valuable item is stolen.

Franklin's Autopsy Report – Cause of death: suffocation due to a blow to the xiphoid process. Estimated time of death: September 17, 7:45 PM. Suspect: Kay Faraday.

Crime Scene Photo – He's slumped against the wall in a dimly-lit room, and there's something on the floor next to him. Check for details.

'Warehouse Tiger' – Another painting by Nicholas Dreinim. Depicts a tiger biting a green dragon against a bright orange background. Contains Nicholas Dreinim's signature in the bottom right-hand corner. Has the initials 'WT' on the frame.

'Warehouse Tiger' Copy – A copy of Nicholas Dreinim's 'Warehouse Tiger' painted by Vera Misham. Nicholas Dreinim's signature is slightly higher than the one in the original. The shade of the dragon doesn't quite match that of the original, and the frame does not have the initials of the title of the work.

Franklin's Note – A note Thomas Franklin asked his daughter Ellis to deliver to Arthur Barrymore before he died. Check for details.

Profiles

Trucy Wright, 16 years old – My assistant and my boss's daughter. A magician who recently inherited the great Magnifi Gramarye's trade.

Phoenix Wright, 34 years old – My boss, a defense attorney who lost his badge after being accused of fabricating evidence. He recently regained his defense attorney's badge, but he has to watch five of my trials before he can officially practice again.

Maya Fey, 27 years old – Mr. Wright's old assistant and the master of the Kurain Channeling Technique. She's been dropping by the Wright Anything Agency a lot ever since Mr. Wright got back his badge.

Pearl Fey, 17 years old – Maya's younger cousin and an old client of mine. Usually hangs out with Trucy and me whenever she visits the Agency. Like Maya, can also channel the dead.

Miles Edgeworth, 34 years old – Mr. Wright's old prosecutor rival. Requested that we defend his old friend.

Iris Hawthorne, 33 years old – Mr. Wright's college sweetheart. Was sentenced to eight years in prison after tampering with a crime scene, but was recently released.

Kay Faraday, 24 years old – An Interpol agent who calls herself the great thief Yatagarasu. One of my clients.

Ron DeLite, 31 years old – A man formerly known as the legendary thief Masque*deMasque. My other client.

Desirée DeLite, 31 years old – The pregnant wife of my client Ron DeLite.

Ema Skye, 26 years old – An avid scientist turned detective who was formerly employed under prosecutor Klavier Gavin.

Ellis Franklin, 18 years old – A maid working for Arthur Barrymore. Cripplingly shy.

Arthur Barrymore, 48 years old – A patron of the arts and one of the victims. Had the painting 'Distant Traces of Beauty' by Nicholas Dreinim stolen. Is actually a forger who sells copies of Nicholas Dreinim's paintings for more than the originals' worth.

Professor Roland, 68 years old – Mr. Wright's old art professor. Reported the painting 'The Fragrance of Dark Coffee' stolen.

Shi-Long Lang, 35 years old – An Interpol agent from the Republic of Zheng-Fa investigating the theft at Ivy University. Has a thing for wolf metaphors.

Dr. Hindley, 43 years old – Ron and Desiree DeLite's doctor. Did Desiree's sonogram on the night 'The Fragrance of Dark Coffee' was stolen from Ivy University.

Thomas Franklin, 43 years old – The murder victim and Ellis Franklin's father. Suffocated to death either by being strangled by someone wearing gloves or by having his xiphoid process hit so hard that he stopped breathing altogether.

Klarissa von Karma, 41 years old – A prosecutor who recently moved here from Germany after her sister was promoted to chief prosecutor.

Vera Misham, 20 years old – A painter and one of my previous clients. Has a knack for copying things precisely and unknowingly used to be a forger.

Joseph King, 43 years old – Arthur Barrymore's accomplice. Nobody knows who he is or what he looks like. 'Joseph King' is only a pseudonym, and his real name is Thomas Franklin, the name of the victim in this case.

Nicholas Dreinim, ? years old – A famous painter who had two of his works reported stolen. A mysterious, shifty person who avoids any and all unwanted attention. He was at Barrymore's mansion the day of the murder, according to Mr. Wright, which makes him a potential suspect.

XX

Dun dun DUN! It appears that Phoenix and Edgeworth know more than they're letting on. And now the painter himself is a potential suspect! What will happen next? … Read to find out! PLEASE REVIEW!