Phoenix Wright sat down on the soft bench, straightening out the wrinkles in his blue suit as he lowered his head and sighed. It was finally over. He was in the courthouse lobby, fresh from his first-ever case after months of courtroom observations and stack after stack of paperwork. Larry Butz was free, and Frank Sahwit on his way to jail. He felt a presence before him, and looked up. He brightened.

Mia Fey stood above him, smiling. "Wright! Good job in there!" It's been a while since I've seen a trial end on such a satisfying note!" Phoenix scratched the back of his head. "I-it was nothing, Chief. Just doing my job!" He could not help the pang of pride he felt at proving himself so quickly. His first case as a lawyer in the Fey & Co Law Offices had been a resounding success. He stood up. If the Chief is this glad, Phoenix began to think, just imagine how Larry…

"Aaggghhh!"

Phoenix and Mia spun around to see Larry in his shabby orange shirt and jeans, hands on his head and tears flowing down his cheeks. He shambled towards them, his lips quaking.

"It's all over for me, Phoenix….it's all over…" he mumbled wordlessly as Phoenix sighed. It was true. Frank Sahwit was in jail for the murder of Cindy Stone and his framing Larry for it. The man before him was free, but without a girlfriend.

"Look at the bright side, Mr. Butz!" Mia stepped in front of Phoenix, folding her arms and giving her characteristic smile. "You're a free man! I can just see the headlines…'Innocent Butz!'" Larry changed his demeanor, as Phoenix knew he would. He watched his friend rub his nose and wipe the tears out of his eyes. He then reached out into his jacket pocket and pulled something out.

Phoenix could see that it was a clock identical to the one that had been used to kill Cindy Stone, a digital one with a sculpture of the Thinker on top. "I, uh, actually made this clock and the other one….I know you took this case pro bono and all, but please accept this..."

Phoenix knew he was the one being addressed, but he could not help but notice that Larry was offering it to Mia. He barely suppressed a snort. Good luck with her, Larry…

Mia opened her mouth, but before she could give her thanks, a shout reverberated throughout the courtroom.

"Phoenix Wright!"

Phoenix spun around and his face broke out into a grin. Franziska von Karma strode towards him, dressed in a black waistcoat and skirt with her hair carefully combed as always. A coiled whip hung from her right hand, and he could already tell her mood from the peculiar straight face she wore. Proud.

"Fancy seeing you here." He watched as Franziska unfurled her whip and struck the floor with a resounding crack. She smirked. "Just adding another victory to my record. It seems we have finished at the same time. I have a murder accomplice ready to confess." She looked pointedly at Phoenix and coughed. She watched him point to Larry. "I just got my buddy off the hook."

Larry donned that Chesire cat grin Phoenix was so accustomed to now. He dared to take a step forward. "Hey, there, how you doing…" He yelped as Franziska struck forward once more, the end of the whip directly striking the place between his feet. He cowered behind Phoenix, who marveled that Franziska had not actually gone to the trouble of aiming higher.

"Anyway," Franziska shrugged. "I suppose I should congratulate you." She shifted her head to the side. "And I suppose you are due a reprove, Prosecutor Payne."

Phoenix, Mia, and Larry turned around to see Winston Payne halt in his tiptoe out the door behind them. The bespeckled, dour-faced man hunched his shoulders forward and wiped his brow. "Nothing gets past you, Eagle Eyes."

Franziska folded her whip. "I am assuming that you had either faulty evidence or a faulty witness." Payne winced. "It was the witness."

"Was he the murderer?"

"...Yes." He looked up, pointed at Wright. "This isn't over, Mr. Wright. I'll see to it we meet again." Larry seemed to have picked up at least some of his nerve, as he stepped out from behind Phoenix, raised his fist, and grinned.

"Dream on, old man! You take me on again, and I'll…" He hesitated for the briefest of moments. …"let Phoenix teach you a lesson!" He watched with limp bravado as Payne turned on his heel and walked away.

Phoenix looked back to Franziska. "You know that guy?" Franziska shrugged. "I have been observing him in the courtroom sometimes. We share notes on occasion." Phoenix was surprised. So he's a mentor? Like….Mia is for me? Well...his brow furrowed. By the look of him, I'd say he's stepped on enough rakes to point them out to others.

"Anyway," Franziska's voice cut through Phoenix's thought process. "I expect to see you home at the usual time."

"6 p.m., no problem." Phoenix's response was automatic. He presently noticed the reaction of the other two around him. Larry's jaw was opened, and Mia looked startled.

"You...live with her?" Larry's eyes shrunk.

"You live together?" Mia put her hand to her chin. Phoenix smiled awkwardly and scratched the back of his head. "Uh, yeah….I didn't really have a place after I paid all my tuition in one go, and she doesn't mind as long as I pull my own weight."

Mia was nonplussed. "Isn't that awkward? What with you being a defense attorney and her being a prosecutor?"

Franziska stepped forward, put her hand on Phoenix's shoulder, and grinned. "We have our ways."

Phoenix and Franziska both got to the house a quarter before six. It was a thin, two-story bungalow with stark white walls and a gray shingled roof. It was one train ride away from their old Ivy University and another ride to the courthouse. Franziska had not been kidding when she said it was small, but it more than suited Phoenix's needs, and her own, for that matter. They had shared the place for six months now, and their daily lives were going swimmingly.

Inside the dining room, Franziska sat down at the wooden table. She had hung up her black waistcoat, showing the white collared shirt that had been beneath. Phoenix was already at his seat, his suit jacket hanging over the chair. A container of pasta, with sauce already added sat between them. The pair served themselves. Franziska paused, then removed her watch so that it could not be stained as she ate. Phoenix instantly recognized it as the one she had gotten on their vacation last year. He copied her, removing the complementary watch on his own wrist.

Franziska picked up her fork. "Here's to your first successful case. Pray they keep coming." Phoenix smiled, then looked up with supreme effort as the smell kept hitting his nostrils. "I'm sorry...what was your case again?"

Franziska sipped some water. "Murder by proxy...it was done after a love triangle went wrong. I proved that the defendant hired the Daffodil Killer to take out his rival." Phoenix squinted. He had heard tales here and there about this "Daffodil Killer." He had been hearing about it more in the news as of late. People would be found dead, the yellow flower placed upon their bodies as a calling card. No other name was known to have been used by this person. Victims included Dr. Turner Grey, security executive Kane Bullard, and actor Matt Engarde, among others.

Phoenix took his first forkful of the pasta. "It's good that you caught the one truly responsible for the murder." Franziska took another sip of her water. "Perhaps so. But the Daffodil Killer is still out there, and we of the Prosecutor's Office will do everything in our power to apprehend whoever they are." She tried the pasta for the first time that night, and smiled.

"Your recipe has improved."

Phoenix smiled back. "Thanks."

-A multi-chapter story; Chapter 1; story idea by CRed1988 and writing by Jerviss.