A/N: New chapter! Yay! Hope you guys like this, but I don't really have too much to say today...

Reviewer: Feyfangirl, Shizuka Ayasato...you're awesome!

Talk to you guys later! Enjoy and please review!

~Diana

"Court is back in session. Mr. Edgeworth, do you have any comments you'd wish to share before we begin?"

"No, Your Honor."

"I actually have a question for the defense," von Karma said. "Did you find any evidence that supports your absurd claim that the defendant was kidnapped?"

Edgeworth looked over his shoulder to where Madeline was sitting. She slowly shook her head, her gray eyes tortured. "I only have the testimony of the defendant."

"And I don't think this court will believe that." Von Karma continued smoothly. "I believe we can make a verdict now, Your Honor?"

"Objection! The prosecution has yet to prove its case beyond reasonable doubt. This trial isn't over yet," Edgeworth said determinedly.

"If you want to play that way, Mr. Edgeworth, then so be it. Your Honor, I'd like to call my final witness, one who will prove without a doubt that Madeline Brent is guilty."

"Alright, Mr. von Karma. Bring them in."

"I call Markus Sandes to the stand."

Finally, Edgeworth thought as the man was led in, taking his place at the witness stand.

"Name and profession," said von Karma, boring into Markus with his eyes, as if giving him a hidden message.

"My name's Markus Sandes. I'm…currently unemployed."

"I see. And what relation do you have to this case?"

"I saw her…cleaning up after the crime."

"Cleaning up? What does that mean?" the judge asked in confusion.

"That will be explained in his testimony," von Karma said, smirking. "Mr. Sandes, please testify about what you saw."

Witness Testimony

What I Saw

I got home late that night.

When I got inside, Madeline was in the kitchen.

She was cleaning off a knife-there was blood all over!

I was afraid to say anything, I mean, what if she killed me too?

"This is very incriminating testimony," the judge said thoughtfully, looking toward Edgeworth. "You may begin your cross-examination, Mr. Edgeworth."

Witness Testimony

What I Saw

I got home late that night.

When I got inside, Madeline was in the kitchen

She was cleaning off a knife-there was blood all over!

"Hold it! What exactly do you mean by cleaning the knife?"

"Well, she was wiping it off, yeah? She was wiping the entire thing with a rag, to get all the blood off so it wouldn't incriminate her."

Edgeworth smirked. Got him. "Your Honor, could his last statement be added to the testimony?"

The judge nodded. "Mr. Sandes, if you would?"

"No problem."

She was wiping the entire knife off with a rag, to clean off all the blood.

"Objection!" Edgeworth stood confidently, his arm outstretched, pointing directly at Markus. "Mr. Sandes, I've noticed a few contradictions so far, but your last statement threw light on the whole situation. Now, you said she was wiping off the entire knife, correct?"

"Yeah."

"That's impossible. How would her fingerprints still be on the knife if it was wiped?"

"Objection!" von Karma yelled from the other side of the courtroom. "Her fingerprints could have gotten on it if she'd picked it up after wiping it."

"And that brings me to my next point. Her fingerprints are upside-down!"

"What? That's the most foolish thing I've ever heard!" von Karma said angrily, snapping.

"Mr. Edgeworth, please explain to the court what you mean," the judge said.

"It's quite simple, Your Honor," Edgeworth said, pulling out a picture of the knife with the fingerprints clearly visible. "If you look, her fingerprints should be the other way around, if she was stabbing the victim. But they're upside-down, which means she stood above the victim the other way and only pulled the knife out, as it is clear from other evidence that the victim didn't die while laying down. Did that make sense?"

"Yes, I understand!" the judge said. "Any objections, Mr. von Karma?"

"Before that, I have one more thing I'd like to add," Edgeworth said. "I paid a visit to the house of Markus Sandes yesterday. While investigating his kitchen, I discovered a large pool of dried blood. Why is that there, Mr. Sandes?"

"Uh…um…"

"Stop badgering the witness, Mr. Edgeworth!" von Karma said almost tauntingly.

"I'm not badgering the witness, I'm asking why there's blood in his kitchen!" Edgeworth replied angrily.

"The defense has a point. Mr. Sandes?" the judge said. It was clear that Markus was about to break down: he was growling softly and his hands were clenching the rail so hard they were white.

"Ready to confess, Mr. Sandes?" Edgeworth said.

"Objection!" Edgeworth let out a few curse words as von Karma yelled. "What if we've all made a very grave misconception here, Mr. Edgeworth? What is the crime scene was, in fact, at the home of Markus Sandes?"

"Then how did the body get to the other crime scene?" Edgeworth asked.

"Simple, the defendant took it over and set up the scene to frame someone else."

"Then how was she back in time to be seen by Markus?"

"Well, she could've easily-"

"Mr. Sandes," Edgeworth cut the prosecutor off, "around what time did you return home that night?"

The man looked confused and nervous as he answered. "Oh, uh, I dunno, around 10:00 I guess."

"And what was Ivy Brent's time of death."

"Did you not read the autopsy report?" von Karma mocked. "It was at 10:15…wait…"

` "Exactly," said Edgeworth, grinning confidently. "Markus arrived home before Ivy Brent was even killed!"

"NO!" Markus yelled, practically punching the witness stand.

"Mr. Sandes, how do you explain the obvious flaw in your testimony?" the judge asked sternly.

"Well I-um, that is to say-"

"Or why don't you just confess now?" Edgeworth cut in. There was a short pause, then Markus spoke again.

"Well, looks like you got me," he said, chuckling evilly. "So this is how it ends. Yeah, Mr. Edgeworth, I did it. I'm sure Madeline told you everything already, so I don't really need to explain it, do I?"

"Not really," Edgeworth said. He was still waiting for an objection from von Karma, but nothing was coming.

"I also kidnapped Madeline, on the request of-"

"Objection!" von Karma yelled. "That doesn't matter. This is a murder trial, not a kidnapping trial." Edgeworth had a sneaking suspicion that the next words out of Markus' mouth would've been "von Karma."

Von Karma continued quickly. "I think we're through here, Your Honor. Pronounce your verdict, NOW!"

The judge looked stunned. "Mr. von Karma, this isn't like you at all!"

"NOW!" von Karma repeated, looking pained. Franziska glared at the judge and Edgeworth in turn.

"Alright. This court finds the defendant, Madeline Brent…

Not Guilty

Court is adjourned."

Edgeworth waited patiently in the defendant's lobby until the doors opened. Madeline rushed through, her eyes aglow. She threw her arms around Edgeworth, grinning. "Thank you," she whispered.

"No problem," he replied. She took a step back and looked at him.

"Are you alright? What's wrong?" she asked.

"Nothing, I just thought that if I helped you, I'd be-"

"Taken back to your own time?" she finished for him. "I'm sorry."

"Let's go," he said, not replying to her apology.