Yanmegaman: Ah, always good to be in my comedic element! Hopefully, this I a good follow-up to our fearless leader's first chapter. Anywhore, I really hope you guys enjoy this one, as I had a blast writing it!

ThePudz: Oh, I just KNOW you guys are gonna love this one! We all know Mr. Punny Man never fails to impress us. Hope you all get a nice laugh out of this one, cause I sure did! Hoping my chapter can do these last two justice, since they have been amazing. Enjoy, folks!

JP: I have had the pleasure of writing with my good friend and terrific author, Yanmegaman, for some time now, as well as having enjoyed his works of comedic gold in the past as a reader. However, this time he has truly outdone himself! I have never been one to solicit reviews for myself in the past, and I have been fortunate enough to have supportive readers who gave them freely and willingly, but this one time, I do request, if you are as touched and moved by this chapter as I was, that you give your support and feedback to this talented writer for this second installment in our tribute for Phoenix and Maya Day! :-)

Chapter Two: Amazed

Gatewater Hotel Ballroom – September 5, 2016

Maya stood there, simply staring at the man as a flood of emotions washed over her. Anger, happiness, betrayal, relief…but most of all, shock. It had been eight years since she had last laid on eyes on Phoenix Wright.

And it seemed that the picture in the paper had done him no justice whatsoever.

That adorable little Superman hair curl notwithstanding, Phoenix hadn't seemed to have changed one bit in all the time they'd been apart. Those familiar, distinctive eyebrows. That unchanged, goofy as all hell gobsmacked expression. The consistent affinity for the color blue, evidenced by the three-piece, vested blue suit he was sporting. However, even though he looked the same, something about him still seemed different. Perhaps it was the air that surrounded him; although he still seemed prone to shock, something about him made it seem as though he had grown wiser over the years.

But the raven-haired beauty couldn't have cared less at that moment, as she was too busy fuming. Her cousin had lied to her – had sworn Phoenix would not be in attendance at tonight's soirée, which Maya had guilelessly believed was being held in Edgeworth's honor! – all so she could get the two of them together, for what she'd naïvely believed was going to be some sort of fairy tale reunion!

Well not if Maya had anything to say about it! The woman quickly spun around on her heel to leave… Only to be met with a human blockade by Trucy and Pearl!

"Pearly, get out of the way!" Maya seethed. "There's no way I'm talking to him! And you and I are having a long talk when we get back to the village!"

"No way, Mystic Maya! Trucy and I worked so hard to try and get you both here!" Pearl shook her head stubbornly. "We didn't want to lie to you, but it was the only way! And we are not letting you leave after putting so much time and effort into this!"

"And I had to rework a lot of my schedule to be able to make it here, thinking it was a party in honor of an actual friend who didn't abandon me for eight years!" Maya shouted at the teen.

Pearl's face fell as her cousin yelled at her. She hadn't ever thought that Maya would be this angry about all the scheme! Before she had time to dwell on this, however, another roar came from the crowd of partygoers.

"Trucy Hecate Wright! Get over here right now!" The voice came from Phoenix, who was shooting an absolutely livid expression at his daughter. The young magician immediately scurried over to her father, who immediately began berating her, obviously every bit as displeased as Maya was.

As the incensed duo continued to scold the girls, the whole party ground to a halt. Every guest stopped what they were doing. No dancing. No socializing. No eating or drinking. Just staring with dismay at these two angry people, who each person in the room knew desperately needed to make up.

And to that end, one more person heroically intervened.

"When we get home, young lady, you are - YEEEEEOWCH!"

"Pearly, I can't even begin to - OW!"

Both Phoenix and Maya yelped in pain as quick as lighting, something whizzed through the air and struck both of them in the forehead! Wincing in pain and turning, both found themselves facing a very displeased, whip-wielding, Franziska Edgeworth!

"You stubborn fools! I will not stand idly by as you foolish fools foolishly lambast these young women for merely trying to show you how foolish you both have been!" The platinum-haired German swung her whip at the two again, earning another pained squeal from each. "Trucy Wright! Pearl Fey! Push these two fools together before I tear them apart with my whip!"

"Yes, ma'am!" The magician and the spirit medium cried in unison before getting behind their two legal guardians and shoving their reluctant forms toward each other.

Once the lingering pain of the whip had finally worn off, the Kurain Master and the Comeback King found themselves staring directly at each other, both of their expressions unreadable. A few silent moments passed before the sound of the whip whizzed through the air again, this time striking their feet.

"Speak, you fools! We did not go through all this effort for the two of you to simply stare foolishly at each other all night!" The German woman's words were becoming louder and more enraged.

Maya, however, decided to step forward and stand her ground.

"Mrs. Edgeworth, with all due respect, although I appreciate the gesture, I do not want to be here under these false pretenses. Whatever…" The woman paused for a moment, thinking over what term to use next, before settling on one. "Mr. Wright and I had in the past is exactly that; the past."

Franziska absorbed these words for a moment, crossing her arms and thinking deeply.

"Very well. Then you have left me no choice. Scruffy! Plan B!"

"Plan?" Maya echoed.

"B?" Phoenix finished.

Before either one could react, Dick Gumshoe was beside them and slapped a pair of handcuffs onto their wrists, linking them together.

"W-What the hell!? Gumshoe, take these off!" Phoenix demanded.

"Yeah, you have no right to do this!" Maya shouted as the two fidgeted trying to break free.

The detective pocketed the key to the cuffs and shot a smug smile at the duo.

"No can do, pals. Maggey and Mrs. Edgeworth would tear me apart. I'll take those cuffs off when you two kiss and make up." With that, the scruffy man wandered off, probably heading back to his evidently die-hard romantic of a wife.

"Now then, Miss Maya Fey, Mr. Phoenix Wright," Franziska smirked triumphantly and bowed. "Do enjoy the party."

With that, the German woman walked off.

Maya's shoulders slumped defeatedly. "I knew something was fishy about this whole thing!"

"Well, that makes one of us I guess. They sure had me fooled." Phoenix awkwardly attempted to shove his hands in his pockets… Only to end up unintentionally dragging Maya's hand toward his nether regions.

"Hey!" Maya exclaimed, jerking her hand back. "Watch it, David Cop-a-Feel! Just because we're cuffed together doesn't mean I wanna get kinky with it!"

"Would you relax, Maya!? It was an accident. I wasn't thinking."

"Oh, imagine that you not thinking! That's a new one."

Phoenix sighed, running his free hand through his hair.

"Look, instead of standing here yelling at each other, why don't we go find a seat? They surely can't keep us cuffed together like this all night."

"No," Maya replied obstinately.

"N-no? Why not!?"

"Because if I'm gonna be stuck here like this, I'm gonna take advantage of the buffet!" Maya yanked on the cuffs, dragging Phoenix along at she made her way to the large buffet table, which hosted a variety of delicacies, ranging from chicken parmesan to steak to fresh fish, most of which was being prepared right behind the counter. However, despite all the options, after grabbing her plate, Maya made a beeline for the build-your-own burger section.

Phoenix let out a small snicker, causing Maya to glare at him.

"Something funny?" She asked with undisguised irritation.

"Yes, actually." The blue-suited man had a soft smile on his face. "You haven't changed at all, have you? Same burger fanatic you've always been."

Maya wanted to continue her front of being angry at the man, but she cast her gaze downward and saw he held a full bottle of grape juice, which he must have grabbed from the drinks when she wasn't looking.

"Well, you're one to talk. I see you're still downing grape juice by the bottle."

The two shared a laugh. It was their first real laugh since being cuffed together, and for the first time in over eight years.

The memory of the awful day went through Maya's head again -the last time she had seen Phoenix before his disbarment. She kept silent as she filled up her plate and they finally made their way to a free table.

The two sat in silence for some time, Maya digging into her burgers while Phoenix drank his grape juice, straight from the bottle. It was awkward doing so when cuffed together as they were, but they somehow managed. Finally, when Maya's plate was clean and Phoenix's bottle was empty, the situation became awkward again.

The defense attorney nervously began drumming his fingers against the table.

"Could you stop that?!" Maya barked. "It's annoying!"

"Sorry. Just passing the time." He grimaced. "I mean, the company I'm stuck with isn't that great."

That comment pushed Maya to the edge.

"Oh, my company's not great? Is that why you ignored me for eight freakin' years!?"

Those words hung in the air for a moment, with neither one really having a response. Finally, Phoenix broke the silence.

"I'm sorry," he said softly. "I shouldn't have said that. Guess I'm just a bit irritated about this whole situation. Not just the cuffs. But being deceived by my daughter and my best friend, too."

The Master listened and understood what he meant. She knew she was being a complete bitch to him at the moment, and he didn't really deserve it. She was just infuriated about being deceived. In reality, she really was happy to see him again. It might have been a bittersweet reunion after so long, but this man was still the same one who had rescued her from murder convictions, attempted to fight off knights, and even ran over a burning bridge to protect her.

"Yeah. Me too. I-I'm sorry I snapped at you." Maya lowered her eyes, trying to avoid his gaze.

Another minute of silence passed before Phoenix spoke up again.

"It really is great to see you, Maya. I mean it."

"Hmm?" She looked questioningly at the man.

"Well, I mean… I've been thinking a lot about you. Going through the aquarium case, seeing Pearls again … reminded me a lot of the old days."

"The old days, huh? I guess we did have a lot of crazy times on the job, didn't we?" The medium absentmindedly brushed a lock of hair from her face, not realizing she was using her cuffed hand, which caused Phoenix's hand to brush her cheek. Both of them blushed, their cheeks staining a deep red. "S-sorry. Kinda forgot about the cuffs."

"I-it's fine. This means we're even for that Cop-a-Feel moment earlier?"

Maya laughed. A real, genuine, sweet laugh.

"Ok, yeah. You're off the hook for that, I guess."

They shared another laugh together and continued to talk. Each passing minute seeming to close the distance between the two that had driven them apart.

Meanwhile, around them, the resumed party had continued to escalate for the other guests as well. Certain moments of interest included:

*Apollo getting completely wasted on wine and starting to hit on Jean Armstrong, whom the lawyer appeared to believe was a petite blonde named Claurice.

*Mike Meekins, who seemed to have retrieved his megaphone, standing on the stage and declaring his undying love to Lana Skye.

*Larry being escorted out of the hotel by security as Adrian Andrews scowled at him.

*Athena also partaking in the provided alcohol of the open bar and attempting to compose a text message to her long-winded ex.

"Hahaha! God, I've missed you, Maya." Phoenix set his third bottle of grape juice on the table.

Maya paused before placing her burger back on the plate and looked downward.

"If you missed me, why did you ignore me for so long?"

Phoenix froze.

"Maya, I –"

"Please, Nick! Tell me!" Tears filled her eyes. "I need to know why you abandoned me. Why my best friend just –stopped speaking to me!"

Phoenix studied the floor for a moment, wracking his brain for what exactly to say to this woman. This beautiful, amazing woman whom he had hurt so badly.

"Maya… You probably won't believe me, but everything I did… Avoiding you, not replying to your messages and letters… I did it all for you."

Maya's eyes began to sting from the tears she was holding back. That answer wasn't good enough.

"You're right, I don't believe you. You did it for me? That doesn't even begin to make sense!"

"Well, it makes perfect sense to me," he said quietly. "Once I lost my badge, I knew one thing for certain – your village wouldn't want you associating with me. Being seen with a disbarred, ruined attorney would have tarnished the rebuilt reputation of you and the entire Kurain village. We both know it's true."

"Yeah, we both also know I still wouldn't have cared!" She insisted. "If the elders had something to say about my friendship with you, I would have told them to eat several kinds of dick! You were more important to me than some damn reputation!"

Phoenix still refused to look at her.

"Well, that's you, Maya. I didn't want to drag you down. But I also had another reason…" She stared at him expectantly. "Kristoph Gavin."

"Kristoph? You mean the crazy German lawyer who was the reason you lost your badge?"

The spiky-haired legal genius nodded.

"Maya, if I had kept you in my life, I have no doubt that Kristoph would have put you on his kill list. He plotted out the deaths of every person involved in the incident, and if he thought, even for even a second that you were still around, I know he would have had no qualms using you to get to me." Phoenix finally lifted his gaze to meet hers, and Maya gasped as she saw the tears in his eyes. "I couldn't let that happen. I refused to let you be put in harm's way again."

"Nick…" Maya spoke his name softly, barely able to keep her misty orbs dry anymore. So rarely had she ever seen Phoenix shed a tear. But here he was right now, spilling his guts to her about the question that had plagued her for so long; why?

It tore her apart to see him like this. Without really thinking, Maya slowly slid her free hand to Phoenix's. Just as she was about to entwine her fingers with his…

A very noisy and nostalgic ringtone began to play.

"Oh!" Phoenix cried out as his cell began to go off. He quickly fished into his pocket and pulled out his phone.

"Nick!" Maya couldn't help but giggle. "Even after all these years, you still have your ringtone set to the Steel Samurai theme?"

"Hey, I can't figure out how to change it!" Phoenix retorted as he fiddled with the device. "If I had even a- SWEET JESUS!"

He suddenly flinched, tossing his phone into the air before it landed on the table.

"What?! What is it!?" Maya asked worriedly.

"I-I-I think Athena is trying to drunk text her ex…but accidentally texted me instead," Phoenix managed to stammer out.

"Seriously!? This I gotta see!" Maya immediately snatched the phone up, reading the message. Her eyes widened as she read the words on the screen. "Whoa! Is she even flexible enough to do that!?"

"How should I know!? I don't wanna think about my 18-year-old employee doing… THAT to that freaky panty snatcher! I don't even know if that's legal. And if it's not, I sure as hell am NOT defending her!"

Maya finally started cracking up. The absurdity of this whole situation was all just too much, and she couldn't contain herself anymore. She laughed harder than she'd laughed in years, and eventually, Phoenix joined in.

As they continued to laugh, it seemed that Klavier had managed to push Meekins off the stage and resumed his place back at the mic.

"Achtung, Frauleins and Herrs. This next song is a slow dance, so grab your dancing partner, ja?"

The rock star began to play the opening to Lonestar's "Amazed" and Phoenix gazed at the exquisite woman he was handcuffed to.

"Hey Maya, you wanna dance?"

Maya's cheeks flushed red at the question.

"Sure. I'd love to, Nick."

The two made their way to the dance floor and struggled for a moment as Maya attempted to place her hand on his shoulder while he tried to put his on her waist. Eventually, however, they had to settle for holding each other's cuffed hands while Phoenix put his free arm around her waist and she placed hers on his strong arm. Klavier's voice rang out through the room.

Maya gazed into those twin sapphires and found that same warmness she remembered from so long ago. Despite all that had happened, all that had changed, Nick hadn't. He was still the same man she'd fallen for so long ago. And was falling for all over again.

Phoenix stared right back into those mocha orbs and found himself almost mesmerized. God, he loved those eyes of hers so much. He felt as though he could drown in them…and he wouldn't complain one bit if he did.

Without the two taking notice, no one else was dancing at that moment. Everything had once again stopped so that the guests could see what they'd come to see: These two lost souls, finally finding each other again.

Klavier continued to sing and strum his guitar, but his eyes were locked on the only dancing couple on the floor. This was exactly what he had hoped for. He knew deep down that he was every bit as responsible for the two of them separating as his brother was. Being able to play even a small part in bringing them back together was all he could ask for.

As the final notes of the song finally played, Phoenix and Maya still did not separate. They simply stood there, staring into each other's eyes, each one wanting to say those three words, but not knowing how to.

I love you.

Mood music from this chapter:

Lonestar - Amazed

Full video and lyrics on thejordanphoenix dot com

AN: In the meantime, as I go through the painstaking task of ensuring all my previously uploaded works now comply with site regulations per the admin's advising, the full uncut version of Turnabout Everlasting, Filling The Void, and Singing In The Courtroom (apparently we aren't allowed to post public review replies, but I can reply to my wonderful readers on my own site, where all my uncut works can be found on THEJORDANPHOENIX DOT COM