For some reason, Phoenix hadn't expected that interning at the Fey & Co Law Offices while he attended university would involve so much...running around.

Well, that wasn't really true. He had definitely expected to be on the move around the city.

He had just thought it would be done as part of cases.

But instead of going to a murder scene to talk to a detective, or meeting a client at the Detention Center to hear their story, Phoenix was at the mall for the third time that week.

This time, Mia needed a new coffee maker for the office, since the last one...okay, Phoenix couldn't really complain too much about this errand, since he had broken the old one. How was he supposed to know that the creamer didn't go into the water ahead of time?! He didn't drink coffee!

The problem was, the first two stores Phoenix had been to didn't sell coffee makers, so he was desperately looking around the mall for any other store that might have what he needed. After all...failure meant leaving the air-conditioned splendor for the mid-summer LA heat, where Phoenix would once again begin to bake like cookie dough in the oven as he searched the streets for what he needed.

As he flailed his head back and forth, eyes darting for his target, he spied something else, something that stole his breath away immediately.

Inside a nearby cafe was a girl, having a meal by herself at a table directly next to the window.

There was no way Phoenix could mistake the girl for anyone else. It didn't matter that her hair was black and not red, she was obviously Dahlia Hawthorne.

His ex-girlfriend, who he'd been with until half a year ago. The woman who'd attempted to frame him for a murder she committed. Someone who was supposed to be in prison for her crimes.

It was impossible for her to be there.

And yet, there was no way Phoenix could be mistaken. He would know his Dollie anywhere.

Actually...in some strange way, she looked more like his girlfriend than she had in the courtroom, despite the different hair color and the change in outfit (she seemed to be wearing a simple white cardigan over a blue blouse, rather than the lacy white dress he was used to).

Realizing that he'd been staring, mouth agape, Phoenix shut his gab and tried to think.

Okay, so, that was clearly Dollie. No doubt about that. But it couldn't be.

The concepts warred in his mind, until they came to a peace treaty: go up to her and ask her for her name.

Simple. Stupid, honestly, but simple.

It was only after entering the cafe and approaching her table, where she was still eating her sandwich and sipping on her black tea, that Phoenix realized how strange it was to just...go up to some woman's table and ask her questions. Was he being a creep?

"Um, miss?"

She hadn't seen him approach, and she waited to finish what food she had in her mouth before turning to answer him. "Yes? How can I-" The half-finished sentence ended as her eyes saw Phoenix, and she looked just as shocked as he felt. "...Feenie?" The word was said so quietly that Phoenix almost didn't catch it.

Mouth suddenly very dry, Phoenix tried clearing his throat, but that just made things worse, he almost started choking on the spot as his airway started to constrict. What...what was he going to ask? Finally, he managed to reform the question in his mind and spit it out. "Um...could I ask you what your name is? If you don't mind?" His heart was beating so fast, fueled by a strange nervous energy. Was he blushing? He was probably blushing.

For a second, the girl reminded Phoenix of a scared rabbit, facing a predator. But then she closed her eyes, took a breath, and calmly replied, "My name is Sister Iris, and I'm a nun at a local temple. Did you need something from me, Mister...?" She asked the question smoothly, as though this kind of encounter happened every day.

As if it didn't matter at all.

It hurt...even worse because it felt like a lie. "I'm Phoenix Wright...but you know that, don't you?" He couldn't keep the pleading out of his voice. "You...you called me Feenie before..." Unbidden, tears started to well up in Phoenix's eyes, and his voice choked with emotion. "Dollie...don't you recognize me?"

Her eyes shifted from him to her plate, and he could see her making some kind of mental calculation in her head. Eventually, she let out a sigh, and gestured to the seat opposite her. "I...I think you should take a seat, Mr. Wright. I have a lot to tell you. Things I should have told you seven months ago." The girl sounded resigned, almost like she was walking towards the gallows, giving one last speech before departing the world of the living.

After taking the seat, Phoenix watched as she collected herself, sorting through her thoughts before speaking once more. "To start with...my name really is Iris. I'm not...I was never your 'Dollie'. But we have met. We spent...a lot of time together. More time than you ever spent with my sister."

From there, Iris wove the tale as best she could. How she was the twin sister of Dahlia Hawthorne, how they've been separated by cruel parents, how Dahlia had planned to kill Phoenix from the beginning. It was only Iris's mercy that had kept him alive.

It was a patchy telling, and it was clear to Phoenix that, no matter her murders, Iris had some love left for Dahlia.

"...and...that's it. I never went to the trial, but I read the records of what happened. I'm...I'm so sorry my sister tried to kill you, and that she framed you for her crime. And more than anything...I'm sorry for lying to you, Mr. Wright."

Trying to wrap his brain around all of this was rather difficult. But, weirdly enough, Phoenix seemed to have a knack for strange logic. In fact, once he managed to put it all together, nodding his head along, the biggest thing that stood out to him...was how she'd ended the story.

"You...um, you can call me Feenie, if you still want to, Iris." One hand went to the back of his spiky hair, as his cheeks flushed. "I mean...you might not be Dahlia, but...we did kind of date?"

His response clearly confused her. "What?" She was getting teary too, now, and she sounded like she didn't believe that Phoenix was really saying this to her. "But...but Feenie, you...I betrayed you! I never, you never..."

Reaching a hand across the table, Phoenix hoped she would take it. "Iris, I don't...right now, that doesn't matter to me. What matters is you're here, you're safe, and you never tried to kill me." He almost laughed. He'd been right, in a way, even if Mia had doubted him. The Dahlia on the stand had been a phony.

It looked like she wanted to argue with that, wanted to pull away...but instead, hesitantly, she extended her own hand to meet his, and they just...enjoyed the contact.

After a minute of just looking at each other, holding hands, and sharing the moment, Iris changed the topic. "So, what have you been doing since then? Did you get your art degree?"

Phoenix chuckled, feeling a little embarrassed. "Um, no, actually I'm studying to be a lawyer now. I mean, I kinda was before, but...you know I hadn't really taken any law classes yet, but I am this next semester! And I'm interning with a local attorney!"

She smiled, and it made Phoenix's heart skip a beat. How long had it been since he'd seen that expression on her angelic face? Too long. "I'm happy for you, Feenie! That's wonderful." Her expression fell a little, and she added, "That's...about your friend, isn't it? The one you want to save?" He nodded, and the smile came back, tinged now with sadness. "I hope you're able to help him."

Just thinking about that old friend made Phoenix's heart hurt. Every time he saw an article about him, the more distant and impossible his goal felt. But he pushed through that, and kept a grin on his face. "What are you doing in the city?"

"The temple had some errands, and I'm usually the one who actually does them, since the head nun has such a bad back," Iris explained. "What about you?"

He explained the coffee maker story as she ate, and felt a thrill every time she giggled. When other people laughed about him doing something stupid (which was pretty often, honestly), it kind of sucked. But with Iris, he never felt like he was the butt of the joke.

After she'd finished her food and paid for the meal, she shyly asked, "If...if you wanted, I could help you look for the coffee maker?" There was no way in hell that Phoenix was turning that idea down, and soon they were strolling through the mall together.

Phoenix was on Cloud Nine. Despite some initial awkwardness, it wasn't long before he and Iris were talking together like they always had.

At first, they'd kept a few feet apart, as if scared what proximity would lead to, but before long her arms were wrapped around his as they left a thrift shop carrying a cheap coffee maker that was well within Mia's budget.

Iris squeezed his arm tightly, getting his attention, and he looked down to see she was...scared about something. "Feenie...um...have you...met anyone?"

Even for someone with his thick skull, it didn't take long for Phoenix to realize what she meant. Blushing, he told her, "No...at least, no one I'm still seeing." In point of fact, he'd taken a cute guy in the same apartment building as him out to coffee a few times, and one of his classmates he'd had a project with...well, they ended up spending a night or two in his room with him.

But neither of them...neither of them felt like it had with Dol-Iris! With Iris. He was going to have to get used to that.

She didn't say anything to that answer, but she did lean in closer, resting her head on his shoulder.

Since she asked... "Iris?" She looked at him. "Would you...do you want to..." He searched for the right word. 'Getting back together' didn't really feel right, since they never really broke up. "...give it another try?"

As they reached the mall's exit, he wasn't able to look at her reaction, as the sun blinded him once they passed through the doors. Wow, how did he always forget just how mind-numbingly hot it was?

"...the temple is far away. It takes a few hours to get there, or for me to visit here. You also don't have a lot of free time, between your studies and your internship, and..." Even though he wasn't looking at her, Phoenix knew she was biting her lip. "...you deserve someone better than me."

None of those were 'no's.

"Iris, I love you." He hadn't spoken those words to her in months, but they came out with as much passion and truth as they had before that awful trial. "I don't...I don't care how far away the temple is! You can come here when you can, and when you can't, I'll find time to see you!"

She wanted to argue. There was something in the tension, in how tightly she was suddenly holding his hand, that told Phoenix that she wanted to disagree. Not because she didn't love him back...but because she did.

It was...going to be an uphill battle, Phoenix realized, helping Iris see in herself what he could.

Finally, she gave a real reply. "...I want to be with you. So, so badly. But it might not...if we try this, and it becomes clear that we're just hurting each other, we have to stop."

"We will." Phoenix didn't think it was likely to be an issue, but he told her that anyway.

She took a long, slow breath, before saying, "Well then...let's try it." They walked down the sidewalk a little longer, and just when Phoenix was beginning to wonder where they were going, Iris asked him, "Do you...think it would be possible to show me your workplace? Just a peek, I wouldn't want to bother anyone."

Phoenix smiled. "I'm sure the Boss won't mind. It's just her and I, and she opened the office really recently."

He told her a little more about his boss, while she told Phoenix more about the head nun at the temple. Iris talked of her so warmly, it made him genuinely excited at the chance to meet her some day.

After riding the elevator up, Phoenix opened the door, new coffee maker under one arm, while shouting out, "Boss! I'm back! I got the thing and I brought someone over! She's..." he blushed, "...she's kind of my girlfriend?"

Mia was in the back room, and even through the door was closed he could hear her reply. "Why are you so late? I sent you out hours ago." Still, she didn't sound too upset, especially when she followed it up with, "I'll be right out. I'm surprised you didn't mention a girlfriend earlier."

He was just about to explain the situation when the door opened, and Mia gasped seeing Iris.

That made sense. After all, she looked just like someone that Mia had helped put in prison. Though...wait, why did Iris also look shocked? "Ms...Ms Fey?" Iris gasped.

Blinking a few times, Mia looked from Iris to Phoenix and back again, before finally giving a strange smile and asking, "Phoenix...why do you keep dating my cousins?"