A/N: Happy New Year! And I hope everyone had a great holiday season! You'll get to see who Edgeworth's guest is now (if you didn't already guess, I mean there are only like two people it could be really) but I have to say… If you're a shipper of this particular Edgeworth ship, don't get too excited, because this is probably not going where you think it's going. Seriously. Not anywhere close to it. I wasn't planning this at first but the more I thought about it the more I liked it. I'm so sorry if you guys think it's super weird.

Anyway, I hope you manage to enjoy it. :D


December 31st, 2028, 8:00 PM
Fey-Wright Residence

"Someone's at the door! Nick! Get off your butt and answer the door!"

Phoenix was so absorbed in watching the newest boy band dance around the stage of the New Year's Eve special he was watching on the TV that he hardly heard Maya's call from the kitchen. Apparently Pearl was a fan of this band, but he didn't see the appeal. He figured they'd probably go the way of NSYNC or the Backstreet Boys in the early 2000s anyway. They never did last long.

He got up from his spot on the couch. "I got it, Maya!" he called. She was in the kitchen, probably covering another plate in crackers and cheese since she'd already packed one of her stomachs full with a plateful that was supposed to be snacks for their guests when they arrived.

He made his way to the door and checked out the peep hole, then pulled it open. "It's only Larry!" he yelled to Maya, standing aside and letting his friend in.

"Only Larry?" Larry said. "Please, I'm the life of the party." He handed Phoenix another plate of hot dogs wrapped in bacon, the same thing he'd brought to their Christmas party. "Besides, it's not just me," he said, pointing down the driveway. Phoenix hadn't noticed Edgeworth's red sports car behind Larry's beat up old Jeep.

"Oh, great. I didn't think Edgeworth would be late, he never is." He took the plate from Larry and raised his eyebrows. "Do you know how to make anything besides these things, Larry?"

"Of course! Don't you remember your Christmas Eve dinner? That was all me, dude. These things are just really good!" he said, lifting the saran wrap he'd covered them in to pick one up by its toothpick. "If I recall, I went home with an empty plate on Christmas Eve."

Phoenix rolled his eyes. "Yeah, yeah, stop rubbing it in that you're a good cook and I'm not."

Larry grinned. "Where are Maya and the girls?" he asked, popping the tiny hot dog into his mouth.

"Pearls went into the city with Apollo and Trucy for Trucy's New Year's Eve show at the Wonder Bar. Athena is going to be there too and after the show they're all going to watch the fireworks in the city at midnight. Maya's in the kitchen eating, and eating… she never stops eating."

"Nick, I heard that!" Maya said, coming out of the kitchen with the her plate of snacks. "Good to see you again, Larry!"

Larry exchanged a friendly one armed hug with her. "You too. Looking nice as always."

She was in her traditional Master's robes. Phoenix would've thought they'd be too hot or heavy, but Maya always seemed most comfortable when she wore them, and they looked nice anyway, befitting of a person with the title of Master. "Thank you! You too! Didn't you wear that to the Sprocket wedding?"

"Yeah, I figured I might as well wear it again tonight because I have nothing better to dress up for."

Phoenix knew Edgeworth would undoubtedly show up in his formal courtroom attire too, and felt underdressed in his sweater and jeans, but there was no point changing now. He fidgeted a bit. "Hey Maya, can you stay by the door to let Edgeworth in? He's here, he's just out in his car."

"Of course!" she said, pushing her plate of snacks into his hand and turning on her heel to head back to the door. Phoenix and Larry headed towards the living room with the food.

Maya went to the door to wait, noting the car was still running. She waved, and it finally shut off. Edgeworth climbed out of the driver's seat and walked around to open the passenger's side door so his guest could get out too. They walked to the front door together and Maya had to smile when she recognized who it was.

"NICK! COME SEE WHO MR. EDGEWORTH BROUGHT!"

At her yell, Phoenix was out of the living room and back at the door in a flash. The anticipation was killing him, but if it was who he was thinking it was going to be, he would have to brace himself for some pain. "Let's see who this illustrious guest is," he said as he approached. Maya stepped out of the way and waved her arm in a flourish so he could get a good look.

"Hello Phoenix Wright."

Phoenix stopped to stand beside Maya and flashed his visitor a nervous grin. "Hey Franziska."

Franziska von Karma stood out on the porch beside Edgeworth, looking just as majestic as she always had. Her silvery hair, which was always the most striking part of her, was longer now, falling just past her shoulders and blowing lightly in the cold wind. She had a black turtle-necked sweater dress on under her dark blue coat, and the same stocking covered legs and high heeled boots she always seemed to wear. Like Maya, she seemed forever young. If he didn't know any better, he wouldn't have guessed her to be over 21. Phoenix couldn't help eyeing her hip for any sign of the whip she normally carried, but she didn't seem to have it with her.

"What are you grinning like a fool for?" she said, pushing her way into the house. Edgeworth followed her inside and stopped to converse with Maya as he took his coat off at the door. Franziska however went straight for Phoenix. "Why are you so happy to see me? If I had my whip I would whip you right now, Phoenix Wright!"

"W-What?! Why?! What did I do1?!"

"You were disbarred is what! How foolish could you be, being tricked into presenting forged evidence like that?!" Since she didn't have her whip, every other word was punctuated with a hard poke to his chest. "How was I supposed to finally get my revenge against you for defeating me all those times if you weren't a lawyer anymore?!"

He could already feel a bruise forming. "It wasn't my fault!" She raised her eyebrows in challenge. "Well, okay, I may not have checked the legitimacy of the evidence but-"

"No buts, Phoenix Wright! Only a fool would have presented evidence in court without checking it first! Although I have heard that Maya Fey was not present at that trial. Perhaps your mind was elsewhere?"

Edgeworth finally approached, and he laid an arm on Franziska's. "Calm down, Franziska. This is not the time."

Phoenix looked at Edgeworth gratefully, then turned back to Franziska. "Well, I became a lawyer again almost two years ago now, Franziska. You can always try your hand at defeating me again, but just so you know, I did win a trial against Edgeworth just a few months ago, so…"

Another poke. "Don't you brag to me, Phoenix Wright. I dare say I've surpassed my little brother's prosecuting abilities already, so the fact that you're still able to defeat him has nothing to do with whether or not you could win against me! If there were any cases worth prosecuting over here I could take you down a peg or two." She took a deep breath, finally standing back. "But, Miles is correct. This is the holiday season after all, so I will admonish you properly sometime in the new year." She turned to address Maya now, as if Phoenix didn't matter any longer. "Thank you, Miss Fey, for allowing me into your home. I decided to visit Miles for the holidays this year, and I'm grateful you've invited me to visit you as well."

Maya grabbed Franziska in a hug and Franziska froze, standing rigid in the arms of the other woman. "Miss von Karma! I'm so happy to see you! It's been years! And please call me Maya!"

Franziska patted Maya on the back, and was relieved when Maya finally let go. "You may call me Franziska, then. I must say, it didn't surprise me much when Miles told me that you and this fool here were romantically involved. What you see in him I will never know, but so long as you're happy I suppose that's all that matters."

Maya smiled awkwardly and Phoenix rolled his eyes. "Uh, thanks?" Maya said. "What have you been up to all these years anyway?"

"Miles and I had some work overseas with Interpol a few months after that whole Hazakura debacle, then I went back to prosecuting, so I've been working in Europe for years now. I only come to the States to visit Miles every other year or so."

"Well, I'm glad to see you again, and so is Nick even if he pretends not to be."

There was a loud commotion from the living room, and everyone turned to see the orange blur that was Larry run into the hallway. "Is that who I think it is?!" he exclaimed, his face lighting up when he laid eyes on her. "Franzy! I haven't seen you since… Well, you know."

Franziska's eyes widened. "Larry Butz," she muttered. Phoenix noticed the telltale movement of Franziska reaching for a whip that wasn't attached to her side like it always was before. When she remembered it wasn't there, she strode over to Larry and gave him a swift punch in the arm, making him yelp. "Shut up," she hissed at him. "Do not say another word!"

"I wasn't gonna!" Larry exclaimed. "I promised didn't I? Jeez, your punches still hurt," he said, rubbing his arm. "I think I actually preferred the whip."

Franziska ignored him and turned around to look at Edgeworth. "You didn't tell me he'd be here, Miles," she said.

Edgeworth shrugged. "I didn't know. Wright didn't inform me."

Franziska turned to Phoenix, who took a step away so he was out of reach of her poking or punching arm. "I didn't know you were the one coming with Edgeworth either, so why would I think to tell you?"

Larry just stood there. "It's been a while, Franzy," he said. "Years, actually. You know my book about you became really popular? People loved it!"

"Yes, well, of course they would, I was the main character. And your art did improve an awful lot before it was published."

Larry beamed. "It helped that you were the model."

Franziska tried to hold back her amused smirk and completely failed. Phoenix exchanged a look with Maya. They didn't need any words to convey what they were thinking, which was something along the lines of 'what the hell?'

Edgeworth cleared his throat and held out a bottle of wine he'd brought in with him. "Here, Wright. For tonight."

"Yes!" Larry grabbed the bottle before Phoenix could take it. "You always bring the best wine, Edgey."

"True," Maya said. "Nick would've bought boxed wine."

Edgeworth made a face. "Of course he would."

"It's cheap and it gets you drunk, isn't that all that matters?" Phoenix said, shrugging.

Edgeworth shook his head sadly. "Someone like you wouldn't understand the fine art of wine tasting."

Franziska was taking off her coat and hanging it in the closet when Larry spoke to her again. "Come on, Franzy. Let me pour you a glass." She nodded curtly and followed Larry with no complaints.

Phoenix turned his bewildered gaze to Edgeworth, who only shrugged. "She and Larry apparently have some history."

"History?"

"I don't know all the details. But I will be heading down to your living quarters now so I can keep an eye on my sister and our lecherous friend."

Phoenix nodded. "Go right ahead. Make yourself at home."

He hurried away, and Maya leaned over to Phoenix when Edgeworth was out of earshot. "History? With Larry? What the heck?"

"I know he made that Franzy's Whippity-Whip Trip book," he said, cringing just at the title of it. "I didn't realize she actually willingly helped him with it though. You don't think…?"

"I — I really don't know, Nick. I don't think I want to know. I mean, it's Franziska and Larry. Franziska is so proper and beautiful and serious and Larry is… well, Larry."

"It's too weird, right?"

"Totally weird." They stood together for a few seconds in silence, both thinking a bit too hard about the way Larry and Franziska had interacted. Maya was the first to snap out of it by clapping her hands together in front of her. "We'd better go, we're keeping our guests."

"Right."

Larry and Franziska were seated on the couch together when Phoenix and Maya entered. They both had a glass of wine in their hands already. Larry was chatting with her, and they looked to be getting along surprisingly well. Maya practically dove for the chair that Edgeworth wasn't occupying, forcing Phoenix to sit at the end of the couch beside them.

Edgeworth cleared his throat politely. "Franziska, I don't believe you've ever had the pleasure of meeting Wright's daughter, have you?"

Franziska turned her attention away from Larry. "Not yet, no. He didn't even bother to introduce me to her."

Phoenix smiled. "She'd probably love to meet you, but she's out with friends tonight. She should be back sometime after midnight, if you're still here you could meet her then."

Franziska nodded curtly. "I must say I'm still having a hard time wrapping my head around the fact that you managed to raise a child." She looked at Maya. "This daughter, she turned out okay?" Phoenix wouldn't have liked the implication of that question if Franziska didn't sound playful while she said it. He could tell she was only teasing. Perhaps age had mellowed her out a little.

Maya giggled behind her hand. "Trucy is an angel, and it's all because of Nick. He took her in when her biological father abandoned her and raised her as a single dad, you know."

"You two were not together back then?"

"It's a long story, believe me, but no I wasn't really around often enough to be a mother to her like she deserved. I try to make up for it now though."

"And I'm assuming you do not have any children of your own as of yet?" Franziska said, sipping at her wine.

"Not yet." Maya looked over at Phoenix, who was busy occupying himself with getting his own drink and cleared her throat. "Nick, pour me one too." He nodded and grabbed another glass. She looked at Edgeworth, who was staring daggers at Larry. "Mr. Edgeworth, aren't you having any?"

Edgeworth looked like he'd been snapped out of some trance when he looked at her. "As much as I'd like to, I'm Franziska's designated driver, and possibly Larry's too if he drinks too much since he didn't seem to think about how he was getting home before pouring a glass," he said.

Maya shrugged. "You guys can stay here for the night if you need to. There's a cot in the basement and we have the couch, and one bedroom upstairs is still empty."

Edgeworth leaned forward eagerly. "I'll take you up on that offer then, Maya." He swiftly took a glass for himself.

Larry leaned back comfortably. "So what are five sophisticated adults like us going to do on New Year's Eve anyway?"

"I think you mean four sophisticated adults," Edgeworth muttered into his glass.

"I know!" Maya said, smiling mischievously over at Phoenix. "Let's play poker."

Phoenix narrowed his eyes at her. "How about we don't?"

"Why not, Phoenix Wright?" Franziska asked. "As long as we don't bet any real money, I don't see why we can't."

"Yeah Nick, we can play for glory, not money," Maya said, looking pointedly at him again. That had always been his excuse when he played.

"I can deal," Larry offered. "I don't want to play though."

Maya turned to Franziska. "Hey Franziska, did you know Nick was a poker shark during the time he was disbarred?"

"I do believe you need to fill me in, Maya. Miles was always so vague when he spoke about what Phoenix Wright was up to for those seven long years."

"It's nice to know you thought about me so much over the years, Franziska," Phoenix said. She scowled at him but refrained from attempting to cause him any physical harm given she was holding a wine glass and Larry was sitting between them. He turned to Maya. "Fine, Maya. If you want to play me that badly, just say so. You haven't played against me since before I was disbarred, and I've had a lot of practice since then."

"Oh, confident are we?"

He leaned back. "Well, I was undefeated."

Franziska looked exasperated. "Are you telling me you were also an undefeated poker player?"

He nodded. Bragging wasn't normally something he did, but with Franziska he just couldn't help himself. He liked winding her up. "Yep, for seven years. Still am, technically, except I don't play professionally anymore."

"You could never beat me though," Maya said. "You still owe me five hundred dollars, and you're about ten years late on that. You also had help a lot of the time when you played in the Hydeout."

Franziska looked back to him with her eyebrows raised. "Help? Isn't that another word for cheating?"

Phoenix sighed. "It wasn't cheating, I never knew the other player's cards, I just sort of had help seeing their tells. She wasn't there every night anyway, Maya. I'm good on my own too."

Franziska sat forward. "Let's play then. I might not have the chance to go up against you in the courtroom again any time soon, but I'm sure I can beat you at a little card game."

Phoenix shrugged. "If you want to try."

Maya left the room for a second and came back with a pack of cards. She threw the package to Larry. "There you go, dealer." He opened them up and started shuffling. "We'll play Five Card Draw since poor Mr. Edgeworth here doesn't know how to play Texas Hold'em," Maya said, patting Edgeworth's knee.

He frowned at her. "I prefer logical games like chess to games of chance like poker."

Maya smiled at him and continued. "We can use the potato chips, crackers and cheese as poker chips," she said, clearing off a spot on the coffee table and issuing everyone an equal amount of food. "Let's say the chips are worth five, crackers are twenty-five, and cheese is a hundred. The ante is one chip," she said. Everyone threw a chip into the pile.

She pulled her chair up closer to the table, as did Edgeworth, and Larry dealt everyone five cards. Maya watched curiously as Phoenix picked up his cards and leaned back to study them. When he looked up and across the table at her, that smirk and half lidded gaze that he'd kept plastered on his face during the last few years of his disbarment was back in place. He looked so aloof, like he couldn't care less what his or anyone else's hand was like. It was a little weird to see him acting like that again, but it was also impressive how quickly and easily he slid back into that old persona.

Franziska seemed to notice the change too, and frowned. It was so different from the confident looks he used to give her across the courtroom when he thought he had a case won, and she couldn't read him for the life of her.

Phoenix scanned the others, looking for tells. He may not have had the same ability as Trucy or Apollo but he did have a ton of practice and could see almost right away that Franziska did not have a good poker face. In fact, she just looked confused. Edgeworth almost pulled off a confident look, but his clenching jaw indicated his hand was anything but good. With Maya, it was hard to tell. That was the reason he'd never been able to beat her. He could never tell by her expressions if she had a good hand or not since she seemed to switch them up so often. Sometimes her happy looks really would mean a good hand, but other times she'd look unsure and then slap down a straight flush or other strong hand. Phoenix bluffed in the courtroom but at the poker table, Maya had bluffing down pat.

"I'll open," Maya said, setting two chips on the table.

Edgeworth threw another two onto the table to match her bet. "Call."

Phoenix mimicked this by throwing two more chips onto the table. Everyone turned to look at Franziska next, who was studying her cards meticulously. When she realized everyone was waiting on her, she also placed two chips on the table. Larry was leaning toward her to get a look at her cards since he wasn't playing, and whispered something in her ear. She nodded slightly at whatever he said. Each of them then discarded the cards they wished to get rid of and Larry dealt them new ones before another round of betting started.

"I'll raise," Maya said, smirking across at Phoenix and putting a cracker in the pile. The way she kept her attention on him made Edgeworth and Franziska wholly aware of the fact that she didn't consider either of them much of a threat.

Edgeworth pursed his lips and glanced down at his cards again. "I fold," he said, placing them face down and pushing them towards the middle of the table.

Phoenix snorted. "You always fold."

"I know when I have a bad hand, Wright. Know when to hold them, know when to fold them—"

"Know when to walk away!" Maya sang out.

"Know when to run!" Phoenix finished it with her, both of them giggling like children.

Edgeworth rolled his eyes. "You two really were made for each other. Is that not a saying in poker circles?"

"Those are lyrics to an old country music song, Edgeworth," Phoenix explained, "but I guess they're apt. I get it, you don't want to waste your precious cheese and crackers." He threw a cracker onto the pile with Maya's. "Call."

When it came to Franziska again, she leaned over towards Larry to whisper something to him. He made sure to keep his back towards Phoenix to hide her cards from his view and muttered something quietly back to her.

"Franziska," Phoenix interrupted. "Do you even know how to play poker?"

Franziska's cheeks coloured, and that smirk on Phoenix's face was starting to infuriate her. "Of course I do! Do you think I, Franziska von Karma, would not know how to play a little card game like this?"

"Really? I wouldn't think you'd need Larry's help then, of all people. There's a reason he's the dealer and didn't want to play. He sucks at playing the game."

"I still know how to play it, Nick! I'm just unlucky!" Larry said. "I never get a good hand."

Edgeworth took another sip of his drink. "Franziska, just admit you never learned. Gambling wasn't something Manfred von Karma took kindly to unless it was horse racing. He thought gambling on cards was a waste of time and money."

"Hmph. Fine, Phoenix Wright, you are correct. I've never played it before, but I am a quick study and with Larry's help I do believe I can still defeat you. And wipe that smirk off your face!" she snapped.

The smirk stayed firmly in place. "You're lucky we're not playing Texas Hold'em. Five Card Draw is a lot easier. If you still want to play then fine, but you're going to be hungry at the end of the night after I've taken all your cheese and crackers." Franziska brought out his competitive side, and this wasn't like the courtroom. There was no truth to be found, simply a game to be won, and he wanted to win.

Maya tsked from her side of the table. "You'll be even hungrier, Nick, when I take it all from you."

"You two seem to be under the impression that I have no chance of winning," Edgeworth said. "Don't underestimate me."

"You already folded and we aren't even five minutes into the game!" Phoenix said.

Edgeworth just hid his face in his wine glass.


Almost two hours later Phoenix and Maya both sat with a large pile of winnings, hoarding most of the cheese and crackers to themselves. Edgeworth had a few measly chips but a few more glasses of wine than everyone else had throughout the night, and Franziska had a few pieces of cheese with mostly crackers mixed in on her side of the table.

Edgeworth had already folded again, Franziska had matched Phoenix's bet of one piece of cheese, and they were now waiting on Maya's decision. She studied her cards, and then studied each of her opponent's faces. Phoenix still sat with that impassive expression, almost like he was looking directly through her instead of at her, so she really had no idea what his hand was like. He had raised twice already which seemed to indicate that he thought it was good. When it came to Franziska, Maya focused more of her attention on Larry, since he was still helping her and knew her hand.

Franziska and Larry were sitting so close together now that Maya's mind temporarily left the game completely to think about what this so called history between them was. They seemed so comfortable with each other, it was weird. She never knew Franziska to be a touchy feely sort of person, she had even tensed up when Maya hugged her earlier, and yet here she was shoulder to shoulder and heads together with Larry Butz?! She didn't seem drunk either, she'd had two glasses of wine so far, and she'd barely touched the second.

Phoenix waved a hand lazily in front of Maya. "Maya? Are you still with us or is the wine getting to your head?"

"I'm not drunk!" she insisted. Her own first glass of wine was still half full beside her. "Sorry. Um…" One more glance at Larry told her that he thought Franziska had a pretty good hand, so she conceded. "Fine, I fold. It's not worth losing more of my cheese."

For once Phoenix's poker face faltered and he smiled outright. "Alright! It's just you and me now, Franziska. Let's see who's luckier."

"Fine," Franziska said, slapping down her cards.

Phoenix blanched. "A royal flush?! What the hell?!"

"I assume that's better than whatever you have?"

"That's the best hand possible!" Phoenix exclaimed as he flipped over his own cards. A straight flush. Larry whooped and Maya laughed out loud. Even Edgeworth couldn't suppress his grin.

"Nick! Franziska just destroyed your going-on-ten-years undefeated record!"

It was true that when he did play for fun against Apollo or Athena, and sometimes even Trucy, he always won, so despite not playing professionally anymore he was still undefeated. When they played, Athena would take off Widget and Apollo would remove his bracelet to make it more fair, but even without their special items to help them, all three of them still had an advantage over him because their abilities were innate. And yet Franziska, who had never played the game before, had managed to win with Larry's help?

"Larry, did you cheat to help her win?!"

Franziska slammed her hand on the table. "Phoenix Wright, do not accuse us of cheating! A von Karma is always perfect, cheating is not necessary!" She leaned forward and dragged all of the food on Phoenix's side of the table toward her. Of course she didn't plan on eating any of it when they'd all had their hands all over it half the night, but it still felt very satisfying to take it from him. "I told you I was a quick study. I may not have ever defeated you in the courtroom, but I do believe that look on your face right now makes up for that completely." She turned to Larry next. "You share my winnings as I will admit that even I could not have won without your help, Larry."

Larry threw an arm around her shoulders to give her a friendly squeeze. "Hey, all I did was give you suggestions. You are a fast learner after all." Maya tensed, just knowing that a pummelling was on Larry's way for daring to touch Franziska so casually. But Franziska did nothing, not even shrug him off. In fact it looked like she was blushing. An honest to goodness blush. Maya looked across the table at Phoenix and caught his eye. Another 'what the hell?' look passed between them.

Maya looked at Edgeworth next, sure that he would protest to Larry's physical contact with his self-proclaimed big sister, but all the wine he'd been drinking had finally caught up to him, and with the excitement of the last showdown finished, he had promptly fallen asleep in his chair. Even drunk and passed out he managed to somehow look dignified, like he was simply resting his eyes.

Maya cleared her throat and began cleaning up all the food they'd used in their game. "Hey Franziska, can you help me bring this stuff into the kitchen?"

Franziska nodded and got up, letting Larry's arm slip from her shoulders. She took a plate with her and followed Maya to the kitchen. As soon as she set the plate down on the counter, Maya turned to her and put her hand on her hip.

Franziska stopped. "What?"

"So Franzy, what's up with you and Larry?"

"What do you mean? There is nothing up with us," she said easily.

Maya narrowed her eyes. "Franziska, Larry Butz just put his arm around you and you didn't even seem to mind. If anything I'd say you liked it."

"I've just been drinking too much," she said quickly.

"You had one glass. Come on, you can tell me," Maya grinned. "Did you guys actually have a relationship or something while he was illustrating that book?"

Franziska cleared her throat. "There was no relationship."

"A fling then? Admit it! Admit it!" Maya said, playfully poking Franziska's arm.

Franziska shot her a glare but sighed in resignation. "I suppose you could call it a fling."

Maya gasped. "What?! Seriously?"

"Yes, seriously."

Maya giggled. "No offense Franziska, but you think my taste in men is bad? You're one to talk."

"Yes, I realize that. I'm sorry."

"Why Larry? I mean he's not a bad looking guy by any means, and he's gotten better with age like Nick, but he's just so Larry-ish."

"He was very persistent," she said, smiling a little. "Most men treat me like some sort of crazy witch when they realize what I'm like, before tucking tail like cowards, or they don't approach me at all because they already know. Believe me, I'm well aware of what people say about me behind my back, but I never had nor will have any intention of changing myself for a relationship, and with him, that was never a problem."

"Larry always has been persistent when it comes to the women he likes…"

She nodded. "It did start off with that book of his. If he was going to base a character on me it had to be perfect so I agreed to help. When it was finished I went back to Europe, and we lost contact eventually. I couldn't visit often enough for it to work out, but I never really expected it to in the first place. We haven't spoken for almost ten years so it was a bit of a surprise to see him here tonight. I suppose I'm still comfortable around him given our history together."

"Did you not want anyone to know?" Maya asked, remembering what Franziska said to Larry when she first arrived, and how he replied that he'd 'promised'.

Franziska pursed her lips. "I told him not to tell anyone of our tryst, yes. He kept it a secret all these years, it seems. Miles knew that I was helping with the book, but nothing else, though he may have had his suspicions."

"Did you have feelings for him? Or was it a…" she suppressed a shudder, "was it a more physical thing?"

Franziska crossed her arms and squeezed her bicep with one hand. "I suppose I felt something for him. It may surprise you but he was a lot less annoying in private. He was quite sweet and actually seemed to care about me. Not that it matters now."

Maya could tell Franziska was getting tired of talking about it. Either because it really was in the past or because she was still struggling with feelings she thought long gone, Maya wasn't sure.

A light knock on the doorway could be heard. Phoenix smiled at them when they looked up. "It's five minutes to midnight. Come back to the living room. Larry and I managed to wake Edgeworth again so he'll at least be semi aware that we're ringing in a new year."

"My foolish little brother has been drinking too much," Franziska said, shaking her head and following Phoenix out of the kitchen.

Maya nudged her playfully. "It is a new year, Franziska," she said. "No time like the present to start over, huh?"

Franziska said nothing to that.


Franziska took her seat on the couch beside Larry again when they re-entered the living room. He smiled pleasantly at her but made no move to touch her again. Maya pushed Phoenix into her vacant seat and sat on the arm of the chair, throwing an arm around his shoulders. Edgeworth was sleepily pushing his glasses further up on his face as he stared at the TV where they were counting down the last minute.

Maya started counting down with the TV host at ten seconds, and eventually she had everyone counting with her.

9…

8…

7…

6…

5…

4…

3…

2…

1…

"Happy New Year!"

Edgeworth raised his wine glass towards everyone and took a sip while Maya unashamedly slipped herself from the arm of the chair onto Phoenix's lap to kiss him.

Franziska turned to Larry. "Larry Butz!"

"Y-Yeah?"

"I am going to kiss you now. For New Year's," she announced. Edgeworth choked on his wine and Phoenix and Maya pulled back from their rather thorough kiss to gape at them.

Franziska leaned forward to plant a chaste kiss against Larry's lips. He grinned when she pulled away. "You have no idea how much I missed you, Franzy."

"I have some idea," she smirked.

"Oh! Poor Mr. Edgeworth!" Maya cried, mainly to take everyone's attention off of Franziska and Larry. She jumped off of Phoenix's lap and sidled up to Edgeworth. "Here's your kiss," she said, leaning down and pecking him lightly on the cheek.

"Thank you, Maya," he said, "though it wasn't necessary."

She shrugged. "Happy New Year everyone! May 2029 be just as exciting as 2028!"

"Or less exciting," Phoenix said. "I could do with a little less excitement."

"I don't know, Nick," Larry said, glancing at Franziska. "I could do with more."


January 1st, 2029, 5:00 AM
Fey-Wright Residence
Phoenix & Maya's Bedroom

Phoenix had always cursed the fact that he was a light sleeper. Maya on the other hand seemed able to sleep through anything, so it was no surprise to him when the loud thump from right outside their bedroom door managed to wake him, but not her.

He sat up in bed and rubbed the sleep from his eyes. Apollo, Pearl and Trucy came home together around 2 am and had gone straight to bed, so he knew the noise wasn't any of them. Franziska was staying in the guest room, but Larry and Edgeworth had taken the couch downstairs and the cot in the basement respectively. He crawled out of bed, deciding that it was better to check. Maybe Franziska needed the bathroom and didn't know where it was or couldn't find it in the dark?

By the time he'd pulled a t-shirt on and made it out of the bedroom, whoever it was was slowly attempting to make their way down the stairs in the dark. Phoenix walked along the wall until he found the light switch and flipped it on.

It wasn't Franziska, it was Larry, and he yelped when the light was turned on, then slapped a hand over his mouth. Phoenix squinted at him. "What are you doing, Larry? There's a bathroom downstairs."

"Uuuuuh, yeah I know."

Phoenix was still half asleep and didn't really question why Larry would have come upstairs if he knew there was a bathroom downstairs. Being Larry, it probably wouldn't have made sense anyway. He yawned. "Well, are you okay? I heard something, it woke me up."

"I'm fine! I just couldn't see and I bumped my foot on that table," he said, pointing to a decorative table placed in the hallway. "Thanks for checking on me, Nick! You can go back to sleep! Night night!"

Before Phoenix could even say anything more, Larry was down the stairs and back in the living room to sleep away the rest of the morning on the couch. Phoenix slowly made his way back to the bedroom and crawled back into bed beside Maya, who still didn't stir.

He was drowsing again when suddenly his brain seemed to turn on, and his eyes snapped open again. When he turned the light on before, he hadn't registered the state of Larry's clothing, but now it was all too clear. The orange waistcoat and black tie he was wearing that night had been draped over his arm, and his white shirt was unbuttoned halfway down. And just down the hall was the room Franziska was supposed to be sleeping in.

"Oh, God," he muttered. Had they defiled his home by doing… that just down the hall while everyone else, a literal house full of people, had been sleeping?! Would Franziska have done something like that? Phoenix couldn't bear the thought alone, and immediately started shaking Maya by the shoulder to wake her up.

She groaned and rolled over onto her back. "Nngh, Nick. What do you want?"

"Maya… I think… I think Larry and Franziska…!"

Her eyebrows scrunched together over her still closed eyes. "Huh?"

"I just caught Larry out in the hallway going back downstairs! I think he was in Franziska's room!"

Maya's opened her eyes, suddenly wide awake. "What?! No way! I wouldn't put that past Larry but surely Franziska wouldn't do that while staying as a guest at someone's home… Would she?"

"I don't know! He was acting pretty nervous and weird."

Maya sat up to lean against her pillows. "Okay, okay. Let's treat this like a trial. You're the witness. What did you witness exactly?"

"Larry, going back downstairs in the dark, with his waistcoat and tie over his arm. He wasn't wearing them anymore."

"Definitely suspicious. Anything else?"

He shook his head. "Not really."

"If there's no decisive evidence, there's no crime!" she said. "At least not one you can prove. You know that better than I do. So unless we find evidence, which I pray to God we don't, nothing happened. Okay? No matter what your gut is telling you, nothing happened!"

He nodded quickly. "Alright, okay. I'll just forget about it then."

"Yes. Good. Now let's go back to sleep."

"Wait, Maya."

"Oh, what now? I'm so tired, Nick."

"I think I need a hug."

She snickered but reached over to wrap him up in her arms. He buried his face in her neck. "You didn't actually see anything so just try to forget about it," she said, soothingly rubbing his back. "Now seriously, I want to go back to sleep." She let go of him and settled herself back down into her pillow. Phoenix wrapped an arm around her tightly from behind.

She could tell he was asleep a few minutes later when his breathing evened out, but now she couldn't sleep. She silently cursed him for waking her up and sharing this horrifying realization with her, because now she couldn't stop thinking about it.

Maybe she could somehow trick Apollo into cleaning that room for them.


A/N: First off, this chapter is dedicated to wikiHow, because I have no frickin' clue how to play poker. There's a reason Edgeworth couldn't play Texas Hold'em. No matter how much I researched it, I could not wrap my head around it enough to even make an attempt at writing it. I don't even know if I got Five Card Draw right (or is it just called straight poker?), so if you're a poker player, I'm very sorry. I tried.

Secondly, I hope this wasn't too out there for you guys. I honestly never thought I would ship Franziska/Larry in a non-cracky way, but I finished playing Ace Attorney: Investigations a few weeks ago and since they interacted again in that, I couldn't stop thinking about it, especially when I realized that Larry did publish that book according to SOJ. I haven't gotten far in AA:I 2 yet, so I have no idea what happens with anyone in that.

I don't have any further plans to include Larry at the moment so don't worry, my focusing on him won't become a habit. Apparently I really missed him or something given the urge I've had to write him into this story.

And lastly, not related to the story really, I'm starting college (for the second time) in about a week, so future updates might be even further apart than they already are. I'll definitely try to update as often as I can though.

No guest reviews this time so thank you to all the logged in users who reviewed the last chapter! ^_^