Chapter Twenty-Five :: The Translated Turnabout :: Trial :: Day 3 [Final] :: Part 1

Kiria and Nathan found themselves at the courthouse early, nerves amped up by the caffeine they'd consumed early this morning and their own trepidation surrounding the case. Nathan blamed Kiria. Kiria blamed Nathan's excursion with the translator. He couldn't argue with that logic.

Even waking up cuddled next to each other hadn't helped her nerves, and Nathan knew she was a cuddler. There was nothing romantic between them, just the knowledge of two friends that he knew her better than anyone and she couldn't resist it when he did nice things for her, like bring her chocolate with sea salt (her weakness, if asked) or offered to cuddle late at night. He came back over with another cup of coffee (without cream and sugar, like he knew she liked) and handed it to her wordlessly. She was staring at the evidence.

She didn't really have a case if the dichromate residue reaction failed to work.

They'd appealed for an early-morning chat with their client, but the request had been denied by the judge. Kiria didn't feel good about that at all. After all, she'd thought they were in the judge's good graces, and this only proved that they had no clue where they stood.

"Hey, is that Edgeworth?" Nathan asked, suddenly, making her look up from her seated position. Indeed, the magenta-suited prosecutor was striding toward them with all of the normal confidence and poise he usually possessed. "Good morning. What brings you here?" he asked when Edgeworth was close enough to hear.

He smiled, bestowing a nod to the female Defense Attorney in greeting before answering. "Franziska mentioned she was prosecuting a case, so I flew in to watch it."

"How supportive," Kiria said. "Are all prosecutors so?" Indeed, they weren't in the Defense Attorney world, where the firms competed against each other to get clients.

He shook his head. "No. I consider Franziska to be a sister, however, so—"

"A sister?" Nathan couldn't help questioning. "And what does she see you as?"

"A little brother. Inferior in every way, of course, but what can you do if you aren't a Von Karma?" Franziska asked, seemingly coming out of nowhere and cracking her whip. "How do you feel this morning, Nathaniel Price?"

He eyed her whip. "I've got a headache, believe it or not."

She gave a predatory grin. "I can believe it." She turned to Kiria. "I should hope you weren't so dense as to miss some clues yesterday, Kiria Nomura?"

She bit her lip in uncertainty, but shook her head. "No, I didn't. You should give a commendation to Agent Lang; he's an excellent detective."

Edgeworth nodded his agreement. "Lang is special in his knowledge and determination. Tell me, does he still have his league of a hundred men?"

Kiria and Franziska both nodded. "The fool would be better off alone. But he insists on having that ridiculous 'pack' around him!" The thought seemed to rile Franziska up before she calmed down and centered her attention back on Nathan. "Miles Edgeworth tells me something fairly interesting, Nathaniel Price."

Nathan gulped, anticipating the statement.

"Around Los Angeles, you've made yourself into an excellent Prosecutor. Are you changing trades?" she jeered.

He shook his head. "No. Miss Nomura needed help on this case, and having a Prosecutor's insight would be beneficial. Or so I believed." He shot her a rueful look. "I'm learning that being a Defense Attorney isn't quite as easy as it seems from the other side of the courtroom."

"I must say, Miss Nomura, I think this is the first time I've seen you not dressed according to court standards," Edgeworth noted. "I don't know whether it is refreshing or a disgrace to the court."

Kiria rolled her eyes, immediately on the offensive. "I might have brought more appropriate clothing for the occasion if Mr. Price hadn't told me that we were going for a case, not a vacation." Today she'd put on a conservative white sweater over the black dress she'd worn a few nights ago to go clubbing in. Again, the wedge heels were the only heels she'd brought, so they'd have to work as her motivation. "Even so, my clothing choice does not affect my ability to defend my client."

"Well stated. Not that I ever said that it did, but it is certainly an admirable defense for such an attack."

Franziska rolled her eyes and scoffed. "Leave the semantics to the courtroom, Miles Edgeworth. After all, you shall have plenty to talk to Kiria Nomura about once we enter."

"Wait, what do you mean? I thought you were watching the trial?" Nathan asked in alarm.

Edgeworth shrugged, disaffected. "I figured if I were standing in the courtroom anyways, I should have my say in the outcome."

"Miles Edgeworth is my co-council for the final day of the trial. He is well acquainted with the circumstances of the previous trials and prosecuted the case against Ambassador Alba. I felt that to wrap up this case, he should be involved. For resolution's sake, of course."

Kiria eyed Franziska for misgivings, or even a hint of the word "perfect", but both seemed to be absent. The woman seemed to be much more mature around Miles Edgeworth than she had been in the previous days of the trial. "Shall we go in, then?" Edgeworth offered, but Kiria and Nathan both shook their heads.

"We're waiting for our client. An image of solidarity, you understand," Nathan quickly apologized, trying to stay as coolly professional as the earlier conversation had been.

Franziska and Edgeworth nodded, making their way into the courtroom together. Kiria and Nathan, in contrast, hung back and waited for Sine Hawkins' appearance. "You think we're going to win this trial?" she asked quietly.

"I have no doubts about it. If we lose, it's because there just wasn't enough evidence. But we know our client is innocent, right?"

"Of course he's innocent. I have no doubt about that. I'm just wondering whether the evidence is strong enough against Gelrica and Chaudery."

"I think that if we pursue Gelrica, Chaudery's motive will come out eventually."

Kiria shook her head. "What's Gelrica's motive?"

The thought made him pause, but not for long enough. "Well, he doesn't need motive. After all, if he's tagged with the spray, he had to have committed the crime. No need for motive."

"Maybe on the other side of the courtroom with an inexperienced witness and defense. But the Defense must always give a motive, regardless of the crime. I just keep hashing it over in my head, and nothing's sticking." She looked slightly green when she said this, obviously unhappy with this outcome.

Nathan winced. "I can't think of anything either. Maybe it was a fight over Lea Chaudery?"

"You'd think the repercussions of that would be much more direct and quick. A stabbing, even poisoning. But framing for involvement in a smuggling ring? What's the point in that?"

"What else connects Lea Chaudery and Maksim Gelrica?" he asked, not unreasonably. "If we're accusing both, there has to be something that links the two together."

Kiria shook her head. "Their connection is Sine Hawkins. The girlfriend and the best friend? I'm not getting a motive here."

"Well, there's Sine. Maybe he can shine some light upon this."

Even as he spoke it, Kiria could sense the misgivings in his voice. After all, if he knew some reason why he'd been framed, he wouldn't be silent through this whole process. Or perhaps he would have been. Kiria shook her head, wanting to eliminate all of the problems with this case. "Mr. Hawkins. How are you?" she asked, giving her brother a quick half-hug.

"He says he's good."

"I need to know a few things before we go in there." She was immediately in game mode, determined not to lose this. "What could Maksim Gelrica possibly have against you? Is there anything that would have prompted the crime against you?"

Sine pondered this for a second before shaking his head. Yoshiya, in response, translated. "No. Well, other than the election."

"Election? What do you mean?" Kiria pressed.

"Sine Hawkins and Maksim Gelrica ran against each other to be chosen to become the Ambassador for Cohdopia. Sine won the votes he needed for the nomination. I thought you knew." He ran a hand through his dark hair as Kiria turned to Nathan.

"A motive?"

He grinned. "The best motive we've found since we started on this case. So Maks Gelrica loses the election to Sine Hawkins. But what about Lea Chaudery?"

"Well, why did she and Sine break up?" The question was directed at Yoshiya, and he translated hurriedly, stumbling over his words as he attempted to ask the man what could have been the most important question of the trial.

"He says that she didn't like the whole long-distance relationship thing they had going on. But she was part of International Relations, and therefore could not go to America with him."

"That didn't stop her from showing up here, did it?" Kiria asked pointedly.

Nathan shook his head and shrugged. "I don't have a clue. But I have a feeling that we're missing a big clue here. Hopefully Von Karma and Edgeworth figured it out before we did."

This was the first day that Kiria could walk into the courtroom of her own accord and feel like she was in there for her own reasons. There was a morbid sense of eagerness in her step, in which she couldn't help but be excited for the end of this trial. This would be the thing that would distinguish her career worldwide, win or no win. When she stood at the Defense Bench for what would be the final time in Washington DC, she had a determined look in her eyes, completely apart from anything she'd had in previous days. Franziska Von Karma seemed to notice; as the women sized each other up on opposite sides of the courtroom, she gave a minuscule nod of her head in approval. Her pale lips were spread into what could be considered the slightest smile, and her arms were crossed over her chest, mimicking the Defense Lawyer.

Between Franziska Von Karma and herself, they'd figure out the secrets of Maksim Gelrica and Lea Chaudery. There was no doubt about it, in the mind of either the Prosecutor or the Defense.

"All rise for the Honorable Judge . . ."

This was it. The point of no return. The ball was in her court now, Kiria knew instinctively. Franziska had given her the key to winning the trial, and Lang had wrapped the proof up with a silver bow on the top like a present.

If she lost this trial, it would be of her own accord. And she was not about to lose this trial.

"I trust that the Prosecution and the Defense have gathered sufficient evidence in order to complete this trial?" the Judge asked after he'd settled into his high-backed chair comfortably.

Kiria nodded. "Yes, your Honor."

"The Prosecution feels the trial shall be completed today without delay."

The Judge stared at the man at Franziska's side. "A co-council today, Ms. Von Karma? I have to say, it's quite unexpected. I've never seen you require a sidekick before."

Franziska's mouth tightened in rebellion, but before she could say anything, Edgeworth had spoken up. "Your Honor, it is a pleasure. I am Miles Edgeworth, Prosecutor in Los Angeles, like the two attorneys on the opposite side of the courtroom. Ms. Von Karma thought she would benefit from having consultation with another attorney who was as aware of the circumstances with the smuggling ring as she is."

The Judge looked impressed. "Ah, Miles Edgeworth! Yes, I do remember reading your name somewhere. Quite a famous attorney, aren't you?"

"On the contrary, your Honor. I am still relatively unknown in many places of the world," he said.

"Ah, so humble! What an admirable quality in such a youth!" The Judge smiled in approval. "But on with the trial, I suppose! Ms. Von Karma if you would present your opening statement, we can continue on with this trial."

Franziska nodded, her whip clenched between her hands and pulled taut like she was on the offensive. The stance was symbolic, but undoubtedly what she said would be more of an attack on her opponent. "Yes, your Honor. The Prosecution maintains the guilt of Sine Hawkins on the basis of lack of evidence to convince this side of the courtroom otherwise."

"Ms. Von Karma!" the Judge interrupted. "That doesn't seem to be a strong opening statement at all!"

Franziska looked him coldly in the eyes. "On the contrary. For when all of the possibilities have been ruled out, the one that remains, no matter how improbable, must be true."

Edgeworth looked stunned at her response, and Kiria had to admit that it was quite eloquent for such a statement. The Judge, however, contemplated it momentarily before nodding in agreement. "I suppose that is an excellent statement . . . however, do you have any other proof?"

"I believe Kiria Nomura has already worked very hard to rule out other proof. The Prosecution would like the chance to do the same to the Defense's theories."

"Alright," the Judge said, sounding rather unconvinced, but realizing that he wasn't going to have her back down anytime soon. "Ms. Nomura, Mr. Price? Your opening statement?"

"The Defense accuses Maksim Gelrica for his involvement in the smuggling ring and attempting to pin the crime on my client."

"Short and succinct. Do you have any proof of this?"

"Of course." Kiria steepled her fingers together in front of her, composing her thoughts for a moment, then spoke. "Yesterday, Mr. Gelrica caught the Defense on a lack of proof as to whether or not he made the Babahlese ink. We don't have proof for that, but we do have proof that he was there at the scene of the crime! The Defense would like to call Agent Shi-Long Lang to do forensic testing on Mr. Gelrica!"

The Judge glanced over at the Prosecution. "Does the Prosecution have any objections?"

"None, your Honor." Edgeworth nodded his agreement.

"The Court demands that forensic testing be done. As an foreign citizen, Mr. Gelrica, you lose your right to object to such testing. Please proceed, Agent Lang."

Lang already had his spray bottle out, rolled up Maks's sleeve, and squirted some of the alcohol on it.

The courtroom held its breath. If it wouldn't have looked so unprofessional, Kiria would have had her fingers crossed and eyes squeezed closed like a child wishing on a star.

To the relief of possibly all Attorneys present, the man's arm began to glow with what could only be seen as a ghostly green.

"We got him, sister," Lang said, cocking a grin at the Japanese attorney.

Kiria was almost beside herself with relief. This was perfect; there was no way Maksim Gelrica could get out of the charges now!

"You look far too happy, Ms. Nomura," Maksim Gelrica said. Her stomach dropped and churned as she watched his next move with terrified eyes. What did he mean that she looked too happy? "After all, you haven't proven anything."

"What do you mean? Of course we've proven everything!" Nathan argued.

Maks shook his head. "Remember what you said yesterday? I'm a Chemist. There should be dichromate residue on my skin; it would be strange if there wasn't. I'm writing a paper on Babahlese ink. You can't prove when I got the Dichromate on me!"

"No . . ." Kiria murmured, realizing he was absolutely correct. She'd depended on the dichromate residue to forge her case, but it wasn't strong enough proof. It didn't actually prove anything but that he'd been around Potassium Dichromate lately.

Lang seemed to realize the same thing at the same time. As her face fell, his mouth set into a formidable and harsh line. "So then when was it?" he asked in an interrogating manner.

Maks barely gave him a glance. "I don't believe I have to answer to you, Agent Lang. Thank you, but you've been quite enough help for now." The dismissal seemed to echo around the courtroom as they all realized what was going on here. Maks Gelrica was still very much in control of this trial.

There was an uncomfortable silence between the two benches as Kiria tried to rustle up a Defense for her client. For a normal citizen, that would have worked. But for someone who was so entrenched in this case, it was just a hopeless cause.

"If we can't get him, we've got to get someone else," Nathan muttered to her, taking the reins from the stunned Defense Attorney and preparing to turn the world onto its head. "The Defense calls Lea Chaudery to the witness stand."

"Does the Prosecution—"

"The Prosecution has no objections," Franziska said shortly.

The Judge looked between the two sides, obviously put off by the trepidation radiating between them. It was obvious enough that they were on the same side—Justice's side—but of course, that wasn't enough. There wasn't enough evidence, and everyone in the room knew it. There could be no conviction without evidence. "Bring the witness to the witness stand," he finally said with a sigh.

"I should remind the Defense that if this lead runs cold . . ." The Judge implied the consequences by raising his eyebrows.

Kiria and Nathan both nodded. "We know the consequences."

She could finally feel the feeling returning to her face and hands. The disappointment that had rushed through her had been devastating. Kiria looked at her co-council, giving his fist a bump against hers under the table. "We've got nowhere to go but up," she murmured to him.

He nodded, not looking at her, but straight ahead, as if he were watching the gallows he was about to be sentenced to. "And up we've got to go."

When Lea Chaudery took the stand, Kiria studied her. She'd barely seen the girl; nothing but a quick glance every so often in the crowded bar, and under the influence of alcoholic beverages. Lea Chaudery didn't seem quite so harmless now that she had seen her in the light. The girl had haunted eyes, the kind that held a secret. But they were eyes that held a certain command to them, so that it was impossible to look away. She wasn't dressed appropriately for a courtroom, but still nicely, so that the bottom of her skirt was just over the knee, and her sweater wasn't too low-cut or too loosely knit. It was almost classy, not like the guy from the bar had described her. Then again, the guy from the bar had ended up getting her drunker than a cowboy on a Saturday night. He was the epitome of honesty. Not.

"Witness, please state your name and occupation."

"My name is Lea Chaudery. I am an International Relations Coordinator for the Principality of Cohdopia."

Nathan smiled. "Makes her sound a lot more important than she actually is."

Kiria chuckled, but elbowed him. "Behave."

Franziska nodded at the Defense meaningfully. "I believe that the Defense was the one requesting cross-examination?"

Kiria nodded in response, but Nathan put a hand on her elbow, signalling that he'd take this one. "Ms. Chaudery, could you testify as to your relationship with Maksim Gelrica?"

The question surprised Kiria. "We know her relationship to Maks, don't we?" she hissed.

He was stone-faced and immovable, refusing to answer her question.

She sighed and relaxed back in her chair. Worst case scenario, she talked them out of a dead end. Kiria groaned as she contemplated what she'd say. He, however, didn't seem to notice, paying strict attention to her testimony.

"You want me to testify about Maks?" She seemed surprised, but shrugged. "Well, alright. Maks and I have been friends for a long time. We worked together for a while, and then when I broke up with Sine, he stayed behind and comforted me. He's a good friend, I guess." She smiled, obviously placated by her testimony.

Kiria looked at Nathan, and he nodded at her, handing control back. She grumbled under her breath about what a great friend, to get her in a pickle and then trust her to get herself out, but as she thought over the vague testimony, she realized it had been vague enough to be hiding any sort of inconsistency. With her fingers crossed, she began to deconstruct it.

"You said you and Mr. Gelrica have been good friends for a long time. How long?"

Lea put her finger on her chin as she contemplated it. "Well . . . it's been a while. At least five years or so. Sine introduced me to him, before we were dating."

"You said you two worked together?"

"Well, yeah. When Cohdopia split into Allebahst and Babahl, they kept in touch. When they both became International Ambassadors to the USA, it was my job to keep them updated on current events in Allebahst."

Kiria's eyes narrowed as she thought the logic through. "Why would you be working with Maks then?" she asked. "I was under the impression that Allebahst and Babahl were two different countries at that point."

Lea's mouth twitched. "Well, they were. But the International Relations division had been divided between the countries. We kind of kept working together, because any sort of foreign threat meant a problem to either country, because of our proximity to one another. So sometimes I'd work with Maks, and sometimes I'd work with Sine."

"Interesting, I'm sure, but useless information," Edgeworth said, cutting off this line of questioning efficiently. "Unless the Defense would like to try to tie it to the current crime?"

Kiria shook her head. "No. Ms. Chaudery, what was your relationship with Sine Hawkins?"

"Well, we dated for a long time. A long, long time. But when he was elected Ambassador, I broke up with him. I'd already dealt with years of a long distance relationship. I didn't want to have anything else to do with it."

"Would you say you were close?"

"Of course." She looked alienated by the question.

Kiria centered her gaze on the witness, not sure what answer she was going to receive from this question. Mia's words of wisdom from her apprenticeship rang in her head, making her hesitate. "Never ask a question you don't know the answer to."

"Did Sine Hawkins ever mention being a part of a smuggling ring?"

There. She'd dropped the bomb.

There was a long silence. The woman seemed unable to answer the question, or more accurately, unsure of how to answer it. Her eyes met with Maks's, and it didn't escape the court's notice. After a moment, the Judge cleared his throat. "Would you mind answering the question, Ms. Chaudery?"

"It's speculation, plain and simple. I'm surprised Franziska or Edgeworth hasn't called us on it," Nathan observed.

Kiria shrugged one shoulder. "It's a character question. They can't really cite irrelevance; we don't have a character witness before this."

The silence extended. Then she shook her head quickly. "No, he didn't. I don't think he was a part of the ring, to tell the truth."

"Why not?" Kiria pressed.

There was another silence before she answered. "Because he didn't do it. I did."

A/N: Another late chapter. I've been trying to keep this fic on the front page, but it isn't happening, haha.

I didn't realize how long this chapter was going to be until I started writing it, so I didn't anticipate needing two chapters. I'm not quite clear on how long the next chapter will be either. One of the drawbacks of posting this while I'm writing it.

Comment Section!

Blaze: I'm glad you liked the chapter! I actually almost didn't include the backstory, but I figured it was as good of a time as any! And if it helped you with the characterization, hey, it did its job, right? Thank you for your wish of luck; my sequel is shaping up nicely so far!

Psykit: Congratulations! And thank you for the warning; it's much better to know! Otherwise I'd sit here until you came back wondering if my chapter quality was going down, haha. As for Nathan, well, your guesses will have to suffice for now! Hopefully at the end of the series, I have you crawling back through the chapters, trying to figure out my clues. Again, congratulations, and I hope you had a wonderful honeymoon!

35k in words on my sequel!

Read and review!