AN: This is around where I originally stopped writing when I first wrote it back in 2010. I promise I will try to continue next week.
Outside the courtroom in the Defendant Lobby, Carol kept looking down to her charm from Officer Meekins as she spoke to Phoenix.
"So...do you have your objections prepared?" Carol asked, still slightly mocking him.
"H-Huh? Oh...well, it has to happen naturally. I have to find contradictions in the witnesses testimonies before I can even think about objecting them. If you are innocent, it should be clear in the lies." Phoenix explained. Carol spun the charm in her hand, smiling slightly.
"I know the routine, Mr. Wright. You will reveal the truth in the contradictions." She replied, then looked away, thinking for a moment. "I've heard of the Prosecutor in this case...I can't help but think I've seen him before."
"Yeah?" Phoenix said, then thought as well. "Well, you've seen my trials before, right? Maybe you've seen him from there."
"Heh...maybe." Carol muttered, still trying to think hard.
"...Miss Ling."
Carol jumped a bit, turning around to the timidly spoken voice. Phoenix was even surprised it had taken this long for him to show up.
"...Officer Meekins." Carol sighed, looking away. "I thought you promised you wouldn't get involved...I still can't believe it, after you told me yesterday, that you were going to be a witness here..."
So I was right...he did try to apologize yesterday. Phoenix thought, watching them.
"I-I know, miss...a-and I'm sorry, but..." Meekins stammered, then pounded his fist into his palm. "I know what I'm doing, miss! You're going to be set free!"
Carol looked away from Meekins, looking down to the floor. She muttered something neither Phoenix nor Meekins heard, because it blended into the bailiff's shout calling everyone into the courtroom.
The voices of the audience members hummed over the courtroom, up until the Judge slammed down his gavel. The scene was all too familiar for Phoenix Wright. The crowd hushing down almost immediately, the sight of the Judge in his seat, bald head, long beard and black cloak all ready for the performance. And the defendant, Officer Carol Ling, remaining almost pitifully in her seat. From everyone he's talked to, he knew she was innocent. Well, almost everyone.
"The court is now in session..." The Judge began to exclaim once again. "...for the trial of Officer Carol Ling."
"The defence is ready, Your Honor." Phoenix said, standing confidently.
Across from him was a familiar sight. The type of person who seemed to command jazz to play for him. His eyes were hidden behind a visor with three red lenses running across it. His hair was whiter than snow, looking even brighter against tan skin. And with a grin and prepared hand, a coffee mug slid to his command.
"Here we go again, Trite..." The prosecutor said cooly. "My first cup of coffee. Remember, I will only allow 17 cups per trial."
I told you before! Phoenix thought, already looking pathetic. My name is Wright!
"Prosecutor Godot..." The Judge said down to him. "Are you prepared for this trial?"
With a gulp of dark coffee, Godot responded with a smile. "Of course...Your Honor."
"Very well then." The Judge nodded. "Let's review this case."
"With pleasure, Your Honor." Godot said, holding his mug close to his lips. "The murder took place at the restaurant, Worldwide Tastes, the night before last. At around 8:30, the defendant, Officer Ling, shot the victim twice in the chest. The victim was none other than Ali Dante, a local food critique who was there for a review. He was killed in a divided section of the restaurant, as shown on this map." Godot said, holding the floorplans of Worldwide Tastes to the Judge.
The floorplans showed how there was one large waiting area far to the right, then three sections in the middle for eating and a kitchen to the left. The eating area on the bottom was marked as the scene of the murder.
"The court accepts these floorplans as evidence." The Judge said before adding it into the Court Record.
"Scientists have proven that the gun was handled by the defendant at the time of the shooting. Her fingerprints were the only ones found on the gun." He finished with another sip of coffee.
"I see." The Judge said, then looked up. "Please call your first witness, Prosecutor Godot."
"The Prosecution calles Detective Dick Gumshoe to the stand. He was on the scene at the time of the murder."
Here we go...Phoenix thought.
"Here we go, Nick!" Maya exclaimed next to him.
"Y-Yeah...please don't read my mind at a time like this." Phoenix said almost lightly.
Gumshoe found his way onto the witness stand. He kept his head forward, almost not wanting to look directly at anyone. Even when Godot spoke, it startled him slightly.
"Could you tell us your name and occupation for the record?" Godot requested.
"U-Uh...yes, sir. Dick Gumshoe. I'm a detective at the local precinct." Gumshoe replied, trying to be extra careful with his words.
"So, you were at the restaurant at the time of the shooting?" The Judge asked.
"Yes sir...and I can let you all know right now that Officer Ling is completely innocent. She shouldn't have even had to have gone through all this!"
"We'll get to that, Detective..." The Judge said, scowling slightly. "Let's just hear your testimony about that night."
"Y-...Yes sir..." Gumshoe said, starting to sweat.
The atmosphere in the room shifted greatly as all eyes fell upon the nervous detective. Both Phoenix and Godot were in a stare down through him. The testimony began as what he saw.
"I was eating at the Worldwide Taste at the time of the murder. I was with a few fellow officers as well, sir. We had just finished up our meal and were getting ready to leave when we heard the gunshots from inside. I was going to run back in, but Officer Ling was already on her way in. She ran in so fast, I don't even remember seeing her. Then, right after that, she was taken out in handcuffs..."
"You were eating with fellow officers?" The Judge asked after he completed his testimony.
"That I was, sir! Officer Maggey Byrde, Officer Mike Meekins and Officer Carol Ling!"
"..." A sudden pause overtook the courtroom.
"You were eating with the defendant?!" The Judge boomed in surprise and anger.
"W-Well, yes I was, sir...That's why I know it couldn't have been her, sir! She ran back in after the shooting!" Gumshoe retorted.
"I see...that would almost definitely prove her innocent-"
"OBJECTION!" Godot shouted out, holding out a hand to stop him. "We're far from passing a verdict, Your Honor. I believe Mr. Trite needs to cross-examine the detective to show just how wrong he is in his statement."
"What do you mean, pal?!" Gumshoe shouted back. "I told you everything I know!"
"Then things will be made easier for him, wouldn't it?" Godot grinned, readying his hand for another cup of coffee. Once one slid into his hand, he turned to Phoenix. "Fine then. Find something faulty in this statement, won't you, Trite?"
"I'm ready to cross-examine the witness, Your Honor." Phoenix said, sweating bullets and annoyed already by Godot.
"Very well then. You may begin your cross-examination, Mr. Wright." The Judge nodded.
Phoenix began listening through his testimony once again. Once he talked about how he saw Carol running back in, he thought something was a little bit off on that statement.
"HOLD IT!" Phoenix shouted. "What made you think Officer Ling didn't need any help? I mean, you said you were with two other officers aside from her. And you're a detective. Didn't someone else think to help her?"
"...Wait..." Gumshoe thought, then turned angrily to Phoenix. "What do you mean, pal?! She ran in too fast for the rest of us to realize what was happening!"
"OBJECTION!" Godot shouted. "Where are you going with this, Trite?"
"I just wanted to remind the court of something vital." Phoenix said, looking to Carol Ling's report, tapping it with one hand. "Even though it is proper to call the defendant 'Officer', she isn't officially one yet. She is still in training and will be for another week." Phoenix then slammed his hands onto his desk. "She hasn't even been issued a gun yet!" To put the icing on the cake, Phoenix raised his left hand, pointing in Gumshoe's direction. "What made you think she didn't need any help?!"
The audience reacted with a low murmur raising over the court. The Judge banged his gavel to silence the crowd, then looked to Gumshoe.
"This is a vital point indeed...Detective. Please add why you didn't follow her to your testimony."
"Y-Yes, sir..." Gumshoe said sadly. "There was a crowd rushing out, so it was impossible for us to follow her."
Phoenix thought quickly, knowing he's heard this before. He found the information of the broken entry door and showed it off with a loud "TAKE THAT!"
"What is it now, pal?" Gumshoe asked.
"What you said just now...it seems just a little...contradictory." Phoenix grinned. "If you could remember back, you stated that you saw her running in right after the gunshots were fired. But now, you said that the crowd was so massive, you couldn't follow her. Well, that's true. It was so massive, it even broke down one of the doors!"
"Wh-What?!" Godot spat out the coffee he had been drinking down.
"I think you understand what I'm saying. If the panicked restaurant attendees managed to break down the doorway to escape, they would never move so easily as to let Officer Ling run through! She would've had to wait until the crowd died down before running in!"
The audience muttered louder over the court in this sudden turn of events.
"Alright, Nick! Already we're winning!" Maya exclaimed next to him.
Was it really this easy? Phoenix thought. Something just doesn't seem right, though...Godot isn't even objecting.
The Judge slammed down his gavel to silence the crowd again.
"Order! Order!" The Judge commanded. "Well, Detective? Is this true?"
"U-Uh...y-yes, sir. This is true." Gumshoe replied solemnly.
Why does Gumshoe seem so depressed? This proves it couldn't have been he-
"OBJECTION!"
Godot grinned widely, grabbing another mug of coffee. He took a long moment to take in the aroma of the coffee, then have a sip before starting. "Something as simple as one unground bean can easily change the taste of a blend."
"E-Excuse me?" The Judge asked, surprised and confused.
"It seems...I have acted upon a simple human error." Godot said, still grinning. "If we could turn our attention back to the floorplans, you will see what mistake I've made."
On the floorplans, Godot had everyone look to the main waiting area. "Yes, it is true that the main entrance was blocked off severely just from the crowd naturally. However..." he said, trailing off to the left of the map. "...there's a second entrance right over here, in between the kitchen and third dining area. The area the victim was killed in!" Godot shouted, slamming down his mug of coffee.
"Wh-What are you saying, Prosecutor Godot?!" The Judge asked.
"Isn't it obvious, Your Honor? Think now." Godot began. "Detective Gumshoe said that she ran in so fast he didn't even see her. Could it be possible that she never left with them in the first place? Our Detective here does seem like the type to confuse two people."
"You making fun of me, pal?!" Gumshoe growled at the stand.
"No, I'm merely stating the obvious. She ran off to the second entrance while you three were leaving. She knew the crowd was enough so no one else could run back in. And, in cold blood, she fired at the victim!"
"Wh...WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT ?!" Phoenix shouted.
Once again, the crowd roared over the courtroom.
"Order! I will have order!" The Judge shouted as he slammed his gavel once again.
"This is bad, Nick...he's got everyone convinced again!" Maya whispered.
"I know...he almost had me too..."
"What?!"
"I said almost...but I'm not sure..."
Phoenix thought for a moment, debating on whether or not he wanted to raise an objection or not.
"I think it's safe to say...that three cups was a perfect amount of coffee for this trial." Godot grinned, then began to take his last few gulps of coffee.
"OBJECTION!"
The shock of the objection was enough to make Godot spit out the rest of his brew.
"Your Honor!" Phoenix shouted, still trying to think of if he should do this or not. "The defence wishes to call another witness to the stand!"
"A-Another witness?" The Judge asked. "But we've hardly gotten through with this one, Mr. Wright."
"I understand, Your Honor, but I don't have anymore questions for this witness."
"Th-Thanks, pal..." Gumshoe said, both relieved and embarrassed to have let so much go unnoticed by him.
"I would like to call upon a witness who would know, without a shadow of a doubt, that Officer Ling left before the time of the shooting." Phoenix said.
"Alright." The Judge nodded after thinking for a moment. "I will allow you to call your next witness."
"Thank you, Your Honor..." Phoenix said, knowing this was probably a mistake, but a mistake worth making. "The defence calls Officer Mike Meekins to the stand."