AN: I'm excited to start this brand new story, and in two fandoms I've been part of for quite some time now! I hope that fans of both Ducktales 2017 and Ace Attorney will enjoy this crossover of both series!

March 13, Duckburg Harbor

In Duckburg Harbor, trouble was brewing on the docks. With only the light of the moon shining on the water, it was easy to miss the gleam of a scope as someone aimed a harpoon gun at their unsuspecting victim. All it took was a steady hand and the fishing spear would find its mark. They were standing on the dock, completely unaware of a shadowy figure targeting them, until…

KA-THUNK!

The victim went flying from the force of the harpoon, shot through the heart and dead upon impact as they slammed into the deck of the closest boat moored on the dock. The assassin cackled at the sight, ditching the harpoon gun and running over to gloat over their victim's body.

"That's what you get for taking 'er from me, Duck!" the assassin laughed. He was a middle-aged owl with grey feathers and thick eyebrows, his attire that of a dock worker to blend into the area for his dark deeds. "Now there's no one stopping me from… Wait a minute…"

The owl narrowed his eyes as he looked at his victim. "Wait a moment, yer not Donald Duck! What trickery is this!?" He shook his head as his mind started to race. "No, if this not be Donald, then what have I…? I can't just leave 'em lying here, or else they'll charge me fer murder! …Unless…"

The sound of a duck snoring from inside the boat came to the owl's ears, his beak curling up into a menacing grin as a plan formed in his mind. "Of course… This is Donald's boat, and if they find the body here… Well, there's more than one way to pluck a duck, as they say…" The owl laughed into the night as he enacted his plan, setting the stage for the most nefarious of schemes. "I hope you have a hell of a lawyer, Duck, because there's no way the police will ever know that I was the one that framed ya! And once yer gone, I'll have what's rightfully mine again!"

[***]

March 14, Wright Anything Agency

It was an average day at the Wright Anything Agency… which meant that business was slow as usual. Among the various and haphazardly placed magician's tools strew about the office space, a spiky-haired Asian-American man was thumbing through an assortment of papers at his desk. This is Phoenix Wright, Age 35, a defense lawyer in Los Angeles who had seen many cases in his almost decade-long career in the field of law (though not all of those were spent as a lawyer… but that's a story for another day).

Phoenix brushed a hand through his hair as he set the document down. As he let out a sigh he got the attention of the other occupant of the room, which just so happened to be the other lawyer working out of the office. Athena Cykes, Age 19, is the newest member of the Wright Anything Agency, but her keen ear and specialty in analytical psychology made her an invaluable member on Phoenix's legal team.

"What's up, boss?" Athena asked.

"Just reviewing an old case, Athena," Phoenix replied. "It looks like it's going to be another slow day in the office as usual…"

"Yeah, there hasn't been a big case since last September," Athena said. "Remember that one with the time traveler?"

"I don't think a case as strange as that will be easily forgotten for a while," Phoenix chuckled. "Still, bills are going to be due soon, and I'd like to have some kind of case to work…"

"All of your monetary woes will soon magically disappear, Daddy!" an exuberant voice exclaimed. The door to the office soon burst open to reveal a girl wearing a magician's outfit on the other side, doing a little flourish before she closed the door behind her. This is Trucy Wright, Age 17, and the "CEO" of the Wright Anything Agency. She's a talented magician that comes from a long lineage of the trade and the adopted daughter of Phoenix, as well as the owner of all the magic props that filled the office space.

"Oh, did you get us a case, Trucy!?" Athena exclaimed in excitement.

"As long as you aren't the one being accused of murder this time…" Phoenix said.

"That only happened the one time, and Polly got me out of it!" Trucy laughed. "Speaking of which… Tada! A letter!" She reached into her hat and pulled out a letter, handing it to Phoenix. "It's all the way from Khura'in, so you know what that means…"

"Apollo's sent us a letter!" Athena cheered. Apollo Justice is a former member of the Wright Anything Agency who was currently living in his home country of Khura'in to help reform the legal system there. Everyone at the agency missed him, but he did send letters to tell them how he was doing.

"What's it say, Daddy?" Trucy asked.

Phoenix read the letter before smiling. "It says that Apollo is looking to come visit us over the summer."

"Yes! I can't wait to see him again!" Athena cheered.

"This is so exciting!" chimed in the necklace hanging around her neck. That was Widget, a special device Athena used to analyze the emotions of others and occasionally voice her own if they were strong enough.

"We've got to get this place in tip-top shape if Polly is coming to visit!" Trucy declared. "And we have to show him that we haven't been slacking off since he's been gone either. I'll book us at least five more magic shows to perform, Athena!"

Athena winced. "Y-Yeah… Boss, we should try to get a few cases in as well. We don't want to look rusty when compared to Apollo," she said seriously.

Phoenix nodded. "Right. The real problem is going to be finding a client..." It was at that moment that the TV in the office suddenly turned on by itself, static filling the screen as the dials spun uncontrollably. "What the…? Is this old thing busted?"

"It can't be. I had someone come in and fix it last week…" Trucy stated.

The static grew brighter, muffled voices coming from the other side. "You sure… going to work…?"

"It has to! Uncle… is… on us!"

"Just stay back… too weird… even… us…"

"Come on… focus… lawyer… greatest… universe…"

"H-Hey, stop freaking us out!" Athena exclaimed, slamming a fist on top of the TV to try and get it to work.

"Stupid machine!" Widget shouted, his "face" flashing red with anger.

Instead of returning to normal, a beam of light shot out from the set, making the three humans cry out in shock as in a flash… they vanished. The TV briefly focused for a moment, showing a comic dots pattern on a yellow background as a voice sang out ominously. "Life is like a hurricane…"

[***]

March 14, McDuck Manor

Phoenix's head was pounding as he regained consciousness, his eyes screwed shut as the ceiling light blared in his face. (Ugh… What happened…?) Phoenix thought, sitting up slowly in… bed? (I must have had a bad dream or something. Work must have had me stressed out that I was dreaming of being in the office…)

"That was unbelievably reckless of you to do!" a feminine voice shouted, turning Phoenix's attention to the door of the room.

"But Mom, we had to do something! For Uncle Donald!" a boyish voice replied.

"Besides Ms. Duck, I had Lena and Violet double check the spell before we cast it- and it worked!" a younger female voice added.

"And all it cost us was an old TV…" a different, more laid-back boy voice said.

"Still, you know how your Uncle Scrooge feels about using magic around the house," the female voice said.

Phoenix shook his head at these new voices as his eyesight started to clear up. (Wait a minute… this isn't my bedroom!) Phoenix realized. Wherever he had ended up seemed to be a spare room of some kind, and judging by a few cobwebs in the corner it was one that hadn't been used for some time. There was a single bed in the room- Phoenix had been sleeping on a mat in the middle of the room, apparently- that was currently occupied by two human-sized avian creatures, one an owl with orange hair and one a chicken with brown hair.

"What a weird place to leave mascot costumes laying around…" Phoenix said to himself. He stood up and stretched a bit before going over to the door to see what all the yelling was about. Before Phoenix could open the door, however, someone else opened it for him. "Woah!"

Phoenix took a step back as five duck creatures entered the room: three of them being boys that looked to be around the same age, each wearing a different color and having a different fashion sense. The other child of the group was obviously a girl with her pink-and-purple dress and a bow in her hair, while the lone adult of the group was a woman wearing aviation gear and- was that a prosthetic leg. (I really need to stop watching old cartoons before bed…) Phoenix thought.

"Oh good, you're awake!" the girl duck said with excitement. She pulled out a camera and quickly snapped a photo of Phoenix, who blinked the spots out of his eyes as she continued, "I'm so excited to finally meet the greatest lawyer in the universe! What's you're name? What world do you come from? Do you have a secret evil twin we have to worry about coming after you for revenge?"

"Uh… My name is Phoenix Wright, I come from Los Angeles, and… no?" Phoenix replied, taking aback by the sudden barrage of questions.

"LA? Huh, that's closer than I thought," the red duck muttered to himself.

"Phoenix, huh? You look more like a heron to me," the duck in blue said. "Oh wait, are you actually a god in disguise or something!?"

"Why would a god waste time on being a lawyer, Dewey?" the duck in green said, rolling his eyes. "Clearly the spell just picked some lawyer off the street and dropped him and his friends at our door."

"I'm sorry- did you say I look like a heron?" Phoenix questioned. (At least I'm not being compared to a pin cushion for my hair…) "I'm a human, just like you all are under those costumes."

"These aren't costumes, Mr. Wright, and you're definitely a heron," the red duck said. "I've never heard of a "human" before… is that a newly undiscovered sub-species?"

Phoenix looked at the group in confusion, before noticing something off about his hand. He raised a hand into his field of vision and saw that it was completely grey, and touching it revealed a feathery texture. Heart beating faster, Phoenix touched his face and found a long, thin beak attached to it. "Mirror, I need a mirror!" he shouted.

"Here you go," the green duck said, holding up his phone with the camera turned on.

Phoenix looked at his reflection to see that he was no longer human, but a Grey Heron like the red duck had said. "Okay, sir, I know this must be a shock, but whatever you do, don't-" the adult duck said, only for Phoenix to comically fall onto his back in a dead faint. "…Pass out. Oh phooey…"

"Not to worry, I brought smelling salts!" the girl duck said, pulling out said substance and waving it under Phoenix's beak until he jolted awake.

"Talking ducks!" he shouted, before shaking his head and looking at his feathered hands again. "This… isn't a dream, is it?"

"No, it is not," the green duck said. "Sorry about kidnapping you and all, but our uncle's life is on the line, and we needed a lawyer ASAP."

"Kids, I think we should wait until Mr. Wright and his friends are all awake before you explain this convoluted scheme to him," the adult duck said.

"Yes, Mom," the triplets all said at the same time.

"Oh, you all did the thing again!" the girl duck squeed.

Phoenix looked over at the owl and chicken passed out in the bed, realizing now that they were actually a transformed Athena and Trucy, respectively. (I can only imagine what their reaction to all of this will be when they wake up…)

[***]

McDuck Manor- Living Room

To no one's surprise, both Athena and Trucy promptly freaked out upon finding out that not only were they in a world full of talking birds but had been turned into birds themselves. Widget was voicing all of Athena's fluctuating emotions as she fretted around the room, while Trucy quickly calmed herself down and started checking to make sure that all of her magician tricks were still on hand and working properly.

"Huzzah! I am here as well and the same as ever!" said the magician puppet that popped out from under Trucy's cape.

"I'm glad that you're all right too, Mr. Hat," Trucy said with a smile before dismissing him back to… wherever Trucy kept him under her cape.

"My best friend's a magician as well," the girl duck said.

"Webby, Lena is an actual sorcerer. She is clearly just a stage magician," the red duck corrected. "Whatever world we pulled these three out of has a high probability of not having magic like we do."

"I mean, I have seen some pretty unbelievable things in my time as a lawyer, including things that could be considered magic," Phoenix said. At this point he was kinda numb to the whole situation, so if magic did exist in this world of talking ducks, he wasn't going to question it. (If I didn't have friends like Maya and Pearl, I don't think I'd be as open about the supernatural as I am…)

By this point Athena had finally calmed herself down, so the Wright Anything trio could finally sit on the comfortable couch and have the ducks finally explain everything to them. "First some introductions," the red duck started. "I'm Huey Duck, and these are my brothers, Dewey Duck and Louie Duck."

"And I'm their mother, Della Duck," the female duck introduced herself.

"And I'm Webby Vanderquack, their… well, the family relationship is a bit complicated, but we all live here with our Uncle Scrooge in his manor," Webby said.

"She's basically our sister-slash-best friend," Dewey chimed in.

"Well, it's nice to meet you all. I'm Phoenix Wright, and this is my daughter, Trucy Wright, and my fellow lawyer, Athena Cykes," Phoenix introduced.

"We run the Wright Anything Agency. If you need us for anything, you can count on us to be "Wright" for the job!" Trucy giggled.

"With a name like that, the pun writes itself," Webby giggled.

"So, how and why did you bring us here? One minute our TV was going crazy, and the next we're here in these strange bodies," Athena asked.

"We summoned you here with magic," Webby said as if it was the simplest thing in the world. "My friend Lena gave me instructions on how to do a summoning spell, and then we cast it using an old TV in the garage."

"Without adult permission, I might add," Della said, crossing her arms.

"Mom, we just wanted to help Uncle Donald," Dewey said.

Della sighed, placing a hand on her son's head. "I know, Dewey, but as your Uncle Scrooge says, you can't rely on magic to solve all your problems. Besides, I'm sure the richest duck in the world has lawyers on-hand we can use."

"Richest duck in the world?" Phoenix questioned.

"Oh yeah, our Uncle Scrooge is literally the most valuable person on the planet from years of adventuring," Louie explained. "He's even got a Money Bin where he keeps all his money- and he even swims in it."

Athena laughed. "Swimming in money? That sounds like a lot of fun, don't you think, Mr. Wright?"

"Well, not anyone can swim in money. Only Uncle Scrooge and Louie can do it," Huey added. "But, back to the topic at hand- we tried getting in contact with Scrooge's lawyers, but all of them were either busy or would only work directly with him, and he's out of the country at the moment. We were all out of options, so we had Webby cast a magic spell to bring us the greatest lawyer in the universe to help us."

"And what's so important that you would summon a lawyer from another world?" Phoenix asked.

"Their Uncle Donald, my brother, has been framed for murder," Della explained. "A dead body was found on his houseboat, and the police pinned him as suspect number one. My brother may have a temper at times, but he's not a murderer!"

"You are our last chance to have him cleared," Dewey said. "So, can you help us?"

Phoenix sighed, looking down at his attorney's badge before looking at the Duck family. He could see the desperation in their eyes, and even if Phoenix was annoyed at being dragged to an entirely different universe, he couldn't turn away from someone that needed his help. (I would be letting Mia down if I did that…) "I took an oath as a defense attorney to always trust in my client and to pursue the truth no matter what. If we're stuck here for the time being, I can at least hear out your uncle first before I make my decision. Is that okay?"

"Of course! And if you can't help us… Well, I didn't read the "send-them-back-where-they-came" part of the spell, so you can stay with us until we can get you back home!" Webby said.

"We have enough room in this house to spare for three more freeloaders, trust us," Louie quipped.

"Just remember that you aren't under any obligation to help us. These kids did kidnap you, after all," Della stated.

Athena raised her hand. "Question: how does your legal system work? I don't think we'll be able to just pass as defense lawyers in your world if we don't know the rules."

"Thankfully, the Junior Woodchuck Guidebook has a section all about legal cases," Huey said, pulling out a scout book from underneath his head. "Hm… It says here that cases usually last up to three days at most, with the defense and prosecution bringing in witnesses and evidence to argue for their side in the case. In the end, it comes down to the judge making a "guilty" or "not guilty" verdict to decide the accused's fate."

"Wow, only three days for a trial? No wonder lawyers are so cutthroat about everything," Louise mused.

"That sounds… exactly like how courts in our world work," Athena said, exasperation on her face.

"Seriously…?" Widget sighed, matching his master's expression.

"That just means you and Daddy will have an easy time getting their uncle a "not guilty" verdict, Athena!" Trucy cheered.

"Hey, that symbol in your book looks just like what Mr. Wright has on his collar," Dewey said, pointing to a picture in the guidebook.

"You're right. It matches the attorney's badge that lawyers wear," Huey noted. "With your badge, Mr. Wright, you should be able to represent Uncle Donald with no problem."

(All of these coincidences… it's almost scary how similar are worlds seem at a glace) Phoenix thought. "All right then. Let's go meet your uncle. I'm assuming he's being held at the Detention Center?"

Della nodded. "Yep. I'm pretty sure visiting hours are going to be up soon, so we should visit him as soon as possible. I'll go have Launchpad get the limo warmed up."

"Launchpad is our driver and pilot- whenever Mom's not flying," Dewey explained. "Come on, we've got no time to waste. Let's dew it!"

"Sounds like we've got a case on our hands after all, Boss," Athena mused.

"It's just not the case I was expecting," Phoenix sighed. (Why can't we ever just have a regular case on our hands that doesn't end up in a murder occurring…?)

[***]

Duckburg Detention Center

Phoenix half-stumbled into the police station after the drive over, trying to keep his breakfast down. "Who let that madman drive…?" he groaned.

"I thought it was a lot of fun. Like being on a roller coaster!" Trucy cheered.

"I'm more surprised Launchpad didn't crash this time. He tends to do that a lot," Louie said.

(These kids are unfazed by their valet constantly crashing!?) Phoenix thought. Judging by the laugh Athena and Trucy shared, his face must have been priceless at the moment.

"Okay kids, you stay out here with Launchpad and let the lawyers do their jobs," Della said, ushering the teens back to the limo.

Phoenix took a deep breath before entering the station with Athena and Trucy, showing his attorney's badge to one of the officers and explaining that he was here to see Donald Duck. Soon enough the trio was sat opposite of a pane of glass, a disheveled male duck in a sailor suit being sat on the other side. (This sure brings back memories…) Phoenix thought, noting how similar this room was to one he'd sat in many times in the past.

Athena pressed the call button on their microphone to start the conversation. "Hey there! You're Donald Duck, right?"

"Yes," Donald nodded. "Who are you people?"

Trucy giggled. "He's got a funny voice, Daddy."

"Let's not make fun of people for how they sound, Trucy," Phoenix chided. He turned his attention back to Donald and replied, "My name is Phoenix Wright, attorney at law. This is Athena Cykes, my fellow lawyer, and Trucy Wright, my daughter."

Donald raised an eyebrow. "You don't look like Scrooge's usual lawyers…"
"We couldn't get in contact with your uncle, so your family hired us to help you out," Athena explained. "…Well, more like they used magic to kidnap us from our own world, but we're here to help nonetheless!"

"Figures this would happen to me. Of all the rotten luck…" Donald cursed. "But if the kids trust you, then I suppose I'll have to do so as well."

"Then first thing's first: did you kill the victim in this case?" Phoenix asked.

"Of course I didn't! I was sleeping in my house the whole time!" Donald exclaimed.

Phoenix idly rubbed a jade magatama in his pocket. (Hm… I didn't get a reaction from my magatama, so Donald isn't hiding anything from me.) He nodded and spoke, "We believe you, Mr. Duck. What we need from you know is any information you can tell us about the night of the murder."

"Since I was sleeping the whole time, I can't give you much. Sorry…" Donald said.

"It's okay, Mr. Duck. Any information is better than none at all!" Athena said, trying to cheer him up.

Donald gave her a weary smile. "Well, I can tell you that it was the police that woke me up that morning. All I was told was that I was the main suspect of some guy named Dapper Duck because his body was found on my boat."

Trucy took notes for the case file, scribbling down what Donald said in looping handwriting. "Wait, Dapper Duck? Is he a cousin of yours?"

"Duck is a fairly common surname," Donald explained. "Anyways, he was found dead on the deck of my houseboat with a harpoon in his chest. Sure, I own a harpoon gun, but I hadn't stocked up on harpoons since my last fishing trip."

"Might want to leave out the part of you owning a harpoon gun. The less information we give for the prosecution to use, the easier it will be to get you a "Not Guilty" verdict," Athena said. "…Hey Boss, who do you think will be prosecuting?"

"Who knows? We don't know anyone from this world, after all. Hopefully they'll be nicer than some prosecutors we know," Phoenix shrugged. He shuttered at the thought of all the punishment he'd received from prosecutor's past: whips, hot coffee, attack birds, and prayer beads all having been thrown his way on more than one occasion.

"Is there anything else you can tell us, Mr. Duck?" Trucy asked.

"Well, I do know that someone called in the murder. The police said the caller claimed to be a "personal friend" of mine, and I think I know who did it," Donald said, rubbing his head as a migraine came on. "His name is Goofy Goof, an old friend of mine who was planning to come and visit today. He's a nice guy but a bit… well…?"

"Goofy?" Athena guessed, making herself and Trucy giggle.

"Yeah, he can't sometimes be a bit confused about things," Donald nodded. "He'll probably be in the courtroom tomorrow, so I'll need you to help him make sure he doesn't accidentally get me thrown back in jail… or worse."

"Don't worry, Mr. Duck. I've dealt with my fair share of witnesses that cause more trouble than they help. I'm sure I can handle this Goofy fellow," Phoenix replied. (I did not mean to make that pun right there…)

An officer stepped into the room. "Visiting hours are almost up. Wrap it up in here."

"We're out of time. Looks like we'll have to figure out the rest of this case in court tomorrow," Trucy said, handing over her notes to Phoenix.

"Mr. Duck, we will get you out of here and back to your family. The kids all spoke well of you, and I'm not going to let a family get separated because someone tried to frame you for murder," Phoenix stated firmly.

"Thank you, Mr. Wright. I'll put my trust in you as well," Donald said with a smile.

(And so, my first case in a while is about to begin… In a different world, with a different body. I hope Mia is watching over me for this one. I'll need all the strength I can get, Boss) Phoenix thought as the trio left to rejoin the Duck family and return to McDuck Manor for the night. (Tomorrow in court, it would be up to us to solve the case and save Donald!)

Author's Note

Originally I was going to have Apollo be part of this story, but the cast quickly became too bloated for me to handle, so I had to leave him behind in the Ace Attorney world. This does however let me give some spotlight to Athena, who is one of my favorite characters that I hope gets more time to shine in future AA games.

I had fun coming up with what kind of birds the AA characters would be. Phoenix is a grey heron as they were the inspiration of the phoenix in Egypt, Athena is an owl because of her namesake, and Trucy is a chicken because thought she'd look cute as one. If Apollo was here, I'd have him be a rooster because of how loud they can get matching his Chords of Steel.

This story takes place after the current end of both series, with there being a few years time skip from the Ducktales finale, so the kids are about 15 years old at this point in time. I wanted the first case to have some good stakes for our cast, so having Donald be convicted was an easy choice. Luckily for him this is the first case in an Ace Attorney story, so it won't be too hard for Phoenix and company to solve- even if they have to contend with Goofy as a witness.

We'll get more into the details of the case itself next time when the trail begins, so stay tuned for when court is back in session!