This chapter got so long, I split it into two. I hope you like it! The testimony is underlined.

Thanks to SuperSonicSmash for suggesting the name for the store, Varia T.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the Ace Attorney series characters!

Chapter 6

March 6, 9:50 AM

District Court

Defendant Lobby No. # 6

Phoenix stood in the lobby, patiently waiting for his client to appear. It wasn't too long once he arrived before Robin was escorted into the room. "Good morning, Mr. Banks."

"Good morning, Mr. Wright," the man greeted him with a dull voice.

Someone's in a chipper mood. "How are you doing?"

"Oh, alright."

Your drooped shoulders and sullen expression say otherwise. "Don't worry, Mr. Banks. I'll do my best to get you the not guilty verdict you deserve." Seeing that his words weren't helping to ease the man's tensions, Phoenix added, "I know the prosecutor who's handling this case. If he thinks you're not guilty, he won't give me much trouble."

As he hoped, that brought the other man's spirits up. "Really? That's encouraging."

The bailiff standing by the doors cleared his throat. "The trial is about to begin. You can enter the courtroom now."

"Good luck, Mr. Wright, and thank you for doing this."

"Thanks, but don't thank me just yet." You can certainly do that after the trial's over. He watched the officers escort his client away. This will be an interesting trial. It'll be nice to have a fair-and-square trial with Gavin. Hopefully, things will go smoothly.

But when do trials with Phoenix Wright involved ever go smoothly?

March 6, 10:00 AM

District Court

Courtroom No. # 6

"Court is now in session for the trial of…" The Judge stopped, frowning. "Er…who is the defendant of this case?"

Phoenix didn't drop his straight pose even when he was surprised by the Judge's question. "You don't know who the defendant for the case is, Your Honor?"

"No, I'm afraid I don't. You see, my brother was originally going to be presiding over this trial; however, he said he wasn't sure how he felt today. I think he may be coming down with a cold. So I gladly offered to take his place, and here I am."

"Very considerate of you, but let's not get too distracted, ja?" Klavier snapped his fingers a couple of times. "To answer your question, Herr Judge, the defendant is Robin Banks."

The elderly man's eyes widened. "The defendant is robbing banks?! Why, that's another heinous crime in and of itself!"

Phoenix quickly intervened. "No, no, Your Honor! The defendant's name is Robin Banks. He doesn't go around robbing banks." Sheesh, Your Honor. Way to make a joke out of my client's name. Not the best way to start his trial.

The Judge shut his eyes. "That's a rather...suspicious name."

Klavier didn't comment on the name or the remark the Judge made, but there was a hint of an amused grin on his face. "Anyway, in case you were curious Herr Judge, the prosecution is ready to blow the courthouse down with our performance."

On the opposite side of the room, Phoenix simply stated, "The defense is ready, Your Honor."

"Very well. Your opening statement please, Prosecutor Gavin."

"The victim for today's case is the manager of the C. T. Zen Bank, Macon Monet. He was killed in the lobby of the bank. He was hit in the head with a heavy object. Here's the autopsy report with the details."

Once the report was added to the court record, the Judge skimmed it. He shut his eyes, a pensive expression on his face. "Blunt force trauma to the head. Time of death between 12:45 and 12:58. Death was instantaneous. Quite a shame, but at least he didn't have to suffer too much."

"Very true. Once he was struck, he fell to the ground on his back, as you can see from this photo of the crime scene."

"The court accepts the photo as evidence."

"The important question that might be going through the minds of some of the audience members is who hit Herr Monet in his head? It was his own employee, Robin Banks."

"Objection!" Phoenix pointed his finger out at the prosecutor's bench. "That's yet to be decided, Prosecutor Gavin!"

"Now, now, Herr Wright. Please be patient and let me finish, ja? The prosecution would like to call its first witness whose testimony will inform us of the circumstances of the crime."

"Very well. The prosecution may call the witness to the stand."

"Your name and occupation, please."

Prosecutor Gavin looks thrilled to see Ema. Can't say the same for her though.

Ema had a grumpy frown on her face as she stood behind the witness stand. "Ema Skye. I'm a detective for the police department. I also happen to be the detective assigned to this case."

Klavier had his hands in his pockets as he waited for her to finish. "You may give the court your testimony, if you would."

"I know that I need to testify! I didn't come here to stand and look grumpy!" She countered, her eyes flashing with anger.

Please don't be that difficult with me, Ema.

"Always ready to argue, aren't you, Fraulein?" The prosecutor teased.

"Now, now. There's no need to bicker like this, you two. You're acting like a married couple. Now then, Detective Skye. Let's have your testimony."

His Honor is lucky Ema didn't pelt him with snackoos for that remark. And from the looks of that grin on his face, Prosecutor Gavin might just give him a kiss.

Ema simply huffed, choosing to ignore what the Judge had said. "Sure."

Alright Phoenix. Pay extra good attention to her testimony. There has to be some kind of contradiction in it…I hope.

The bank opens at seven in the morning for the public. It closes at 11:30 so that employees can have their lunch break.

A 911 call was made yesterday afternoon, at 12:58, two minutes before the bank was supposed to reopen.

The defendant had called to report that he found his boss on the ground, possibly injured, but definitely unresponsive.

The police arrived at the scene not too long after that, took a look around, and immediately arrested the defendant.

The Judge had his eyes closed as he was listening to the testimony. He opened his eyes afterwards. "So the crime was committed right before their lunch break ended."

"That's right. Apparently, according to the person who performed the autopsy, the victim had eaten lunch that day."

"Hopefully, he enjoyed that meal of his. He probably never thought it would be his last." Shaking his head, the Judge got himself back on track. "Very well. Mr. Wright, you may begin your cross-examination."

Wow, Your Honor. That was a cheerful thought. Phoenix cleared his throat. So…I can't spot any contradictions at the moment, but maybe if I press her statements, I should get something. "The bank opens at seven, closes for lunch time, and then reopens. When does the bank close then?"

"At five o'clock in the afternoon. They're open Monday through Friday, and on Saturday, they close at 12, not 11:30, and remain closed for the rest of the day," Ema explained.

"Herr Wright. There's no need to have Fraulein Detective answer questions that have no relevance to this case."

"Hey! Don't pick on Mr. Wright!" The detective scolded him. She then addressed Phoenix, her tone significantly lighter. "Ignore the fop over there, Mr. Wright. Feel free to ask me as many questions as you'd like."

Thanks, Ema, but he's right. Pressing that statement really didn't help me out much. If I pressed her second statement, what information could I possibly get out of it? It would be easier to just skip it and go to the third one, but I don't want to take any risks. "Of course. So Ema, er, Detective Skye. My client, Mr. Banks, called 911 two minutes before the bank reopened. That means the bank reopens at one."

"Well done, Herr Wright. I'm glad to see you were able to figure that out." The prosecutor couldn't help but pick on the man. "Or rather, I should commend you for your basic math skills."

That's the kind of comeback Edgeworth would give me. He must be training his subordinates to be relentless with me. "Thanks for the compliment, Prosecutor Gavin. I'm glad to see that you managed to maintain your ego for over seven years, although I'm sure that wasn't hard for you at all."

Ema gaped at Phoenix before grinning. The Judge's eyes widened, his gaze falling to his right. "Er…Prosecutor Gavin? Your response to that?"

A small frown found its way onto the blonde man's face. "Yes, well…I think you should go on with your cross-examination."

Heh. It's a good thing I decided to press that statement; otherwise, I would've never been able to say that. "Right. When Mr. Banks made the 911 call, do we know exactly what he said?"

"When dispatch contacted the police department, they said that the call was for the middle-aged bank manager at the bank called in by one of his employees. His condition was stated as being lying on his back on the floor, eyes closed, sprawled out, seemingly unconscious. The defendant said he thought he may have been injured."

"The description is exactly the same that of the police officers who were first at the scene gave. Matches the photo of the body too."

No contradictions there. Now, I was waiting to press this statement. "It doesn't make any sense though. Mr. Banks called 911 to get help for Mr. Monet. How does that make him the culprit?"

"Mr. Wright makes a good point. If the Chief Justice were to die suddenly in his quarters and I was there to call 911, why, the police might think I was the one who killed him!" The Judge thought out loud with wide eyes.

I think the police would be a little concerned about arresting you so quickly, Your Honor.

"I'll handle this, Fraulein Detective."

"But I'm the one being cross-examined."

"But I'm the prosecutor, ja? Moving on, while it's true that Herr Banks called 911, the fact that he was the one who made the call would make him seem least likely to have committed the crime; however, I'm sure you'd agree with me when I say that this could've been done so that any suspicion he could have garnered would have been deflected. Obviously, that didn't end up being the case. I'd ask that Fraulein Detective testify about what the police discovered at the crime scene."

"Very well. Detective Skye, please testify to the court about this."

"Why should I testify if he's just going to answer all of the questions during the cross-examination?" She grumbled. Nevertheless, the detective got ready to give her testimony.

I have to find a contradiction in this testimony. If I don't…

When the police arrived at the bank, they found the defendant standing above the victim, who was on the floor, like we saw in the crime scene photo.

There was an object right next to the defendant's feet and the victim's body. It was a binder for the Varia T store, and it had blood on the top corner of it.

Police took some fingerprints and found the defendant's fingerprints on the binder.

With some questioning and more examination of the crime scene, they made their arrest, taking the defendant into custody.

"The police discovered the murder weapon right next to the defendant and the victim?! Oh my. That sounds too good to be true."

"It does, doesn't it?" Ema questioned, neither smiling nor frowning.

"Anyway, as we mentioned, the murder weapon was the binder, with the defendant's fingerprints on it. Here is the binder that was used to rob Herr Monet's life."

"The court accepts this as evidence. This is interesting. Varia T. I haven't gone shopping recently. Perhaps I could go to this store and see if they have anything interesting there."

Oh boy. I should've known that the murder weapon would be brought up. I better find that contradiction. Everyone waited for the Judge to announce that Phoenix could start his cross-examination. After a minute though, Phoenix spoke up. "Er…Your Honor? May I start my cross-examination?"

"Hm…hm? Oh! Oh, yes. Yes. Sorry. I was a bit distracted looking at the products in this binder. Now, I'll definitely make a stop there in the near future." The Judge cleared his throat, trying to regain his serious composure. "Mr. Wright. Please begin with your cross-examination now."

I love how he acts like this was somehow my fault. But now's my chance to find and pin down the contradiction. I'm positive there has to be one in here. "The police arrived at the scene of the crime after the call came and found the victim on the floor. So did they not notice the blood near the victim's head?"

"The forensics officers who later arrived at the scene didn't look for blood on the floor," Ema replied.

"Why wouldn't they check for blood? The victim had a wound on his head, didn't he?" The Judge's brows were furrowed in confusion.

"How about you have Mr. Rock God explain, Your Honor?" Ema suggested, almost glaring at the prosecution's bench.

"Prosecutor Gavin? Could you explain this?"

For an instant, Phoenix noticed Klavier's eyes widen in surprise. He then snapped his fingers with his eyes closed, "Gladly. You see…" He opened his eyes and stopped snapping. "I made a request to the forensics officers that they not test for blood near the body."

"Why would you make a request like that?"

"Ack! Well…I…knew how much Fraulein Detective loves to do her scientific investigations, so I wanted to give her a chance to test for any traces of blood. That was all."

"That's…an intriguing request to make, Prosecutor Gavin. Although it was very kind of you…"

Ema interrupted. "Kind? The fop? Yeah right."

"As I was saying, I don't quite understand why you would go so far as to ask forensics officers to not conduct a part of their investigation."

The prosecutor did not respond this time. Really, Your Honor? Do you not realize why he did that? I would say it's pretty obvious how Prosecutor Gavin feels about Ema.

"Let's just move along with the cross-examination." Phoenix didn't want the silence to become awkward, nor did he want to waste time. "In your second statement Detective, you said the binder was found near both men. Did the police happen to question the defendant about it?"

"When the officers asked him about it, he said he was given the binder by the owner of the store, Varia T. There wasn't much else they asked him about it other than that. They wanted to search for fingerprints on it, which is when they discovered Mr. Banks's fingerprints."

The fingerprints. Right. What can I ask about that? Could I get anything from pressing that statement? Maybe not. I need to focus on finding the contradiction. "What exactly did the officers ask Mr. Banks?"

"The usual. What were you doing before you found him? How he found him? Did he appear to be alive or dead when he first saw him? Was there anyone else with them in the building? Questions like that. The officers were already pretty convinced that the defendant was the guilty party."

"Hm…something's been bothering me for a little while." The Judge was deep in thought. He then stared right across the room. "Detective Skye. You're the detective for this case, yet it seems you weren't as involved in the investigation as you usually are. Is there a reason for that?"

She turned to the side, her lips pursed. "I wasn't actually the detective on this case at first. The detective who was originally assigned to the case didn't want to handle it, so it was given to me."

"Oh. I see. Thank you for clarifying."

"Herr Judge, Surely, you see that this case is quite simple, ja? The defendant used the binder, on which his very fingerprints were found…" The blonde leaned forward, his gaze fixed on the defense's bench. "To deliver a fatal blow on the victim's head!"

"Objection! We can't say this case is simple!"

"But you can't deny that the evidence points to Herr Banks, no?" Klavier countered.

"Mr. Wright. Prosecutor Gavin does make a point. Unless you can find a contradiction in the testimony Detective Skye has given, I'll have no choice but to end the cross-examination."

No, no! I can't let the trial end like this! Not when we've only started! Come on, Phoenix. Think of a contradiction. I know it's there. I need to look at the evidence in the court record. Crime scene photo, no. Autopsy report, no. Mr. Banks's card, no. The murder weapon…hm…it's something to do with the murder weapon. What does it say? The defendant's fingerprints were found…wait. Wait!

"Herr Judge, I believe it's time you slammed your gavel and state your verdict."

"Hold it!" Phoenix slammed his hands on the desk. "There is a contradiction in the testimony." Holding a document in front of him, the attorney elaborated. "Detective Skye. You said that the defendant's fingerprints were found on the murder weapon, and that was one of the discoveries that prompted his arrest, right?"

"That's right."

"Well, did they not look into the second set of fingerprints?"

"Second set of fingerprints?! What are you talking about, Mr. Wright?!" The Judge exclaimed, clearly surprised by the statement.

"If you look over the end of the document talking about the murder weapon, you'll find that a second set was found on the binder, for which an owner hasn't been identified."

The Judge did as Phoenix said. "Why…he's right! There were more fingerprints found other than the defendant's!"

"Who's to say that the owner of these fingerprints isn't the real murderer?" Phoenix declared. "After all, besides Mr. Banks being the only person at the scene when the police arrived, the only other evidence the prosecution's presented to make their case is the binder!"

"Prosecutor Gavin! Please explain to the court the meaning of this!"

To their surprise, Klavier had his head bowed down, and they could hear him chuckling. He lifted his head, smiling. "It would've been disappointing if you hadn't pointed out that contradiction, Herr Wright."

Usually I feel great after pointing out a contradiction, but now I've got a sinking feeling in my stomach.

"I know of the second set of fingerprints, and I know who they belong to."

The attorney wasn't expecting to hear that. "You do?"

"You do?" The Judge repeated.

"I do."

"Then tell us already. Who do they belong to, Prosecutor Gavin?!"

"They belong…to the prosecution's next witness."

"Next witness? Who is this witness?"

"This witness is a man who will shed light on this second fingerprint business Herr Wright has finally brought to the court's attention. He will help to prove that Herr Banks is indeed guilty."

Another witness? Who could that be?

"Very well. We will have a five minute recess before the next witness is called to the stand."

Five minute recess? That's really short, although…Prosecutor Blackquill did once ask for a three minute recess, so this is better than that. I won't be able to get much info from Mr. Banks. Oh well. I guess it's enough time for a bathroom break…and to wipe up all of this sweat. Ugh. Hopefully, I won't be sweating bullets anymore after this recess.

The second part of the trial should be uploaded soon!