A/N: First chapter is 2020! Which did take a while to get here. Though that's because this case is fast reaching an unraveling point. So join Hugh as he pursues every little point that he can get, to reach the truth beneath it all. Enjoy, my readers!

May 6th, 2029

District Courthouse, Defendant Lobby #1

12:00 p.m.

"Prosecutor Newman ended up being more intimidating than I thought!" Carnila exclaimed. "I felt like I was on the edge of my seat the entire trial!"

"We don't have a long recess, so I need to ask something," Hugh said. "Were you actually pushing the dolly like Harry said you were?"

"It's true that I was putting the dolly away, yes," Carnila said, rubbing her arm nervously. "I don't remember if it had blood on it! It was really dark that night."

Hugh pursed his lips. This wasn't the best account, and their case was barely holding on as it was.

"You seem like you have a lot on your mind," Juniper said, approaching Hugh. "Even from the gallery, I could tell that something is weighing on you."

"Hello, Juniper. I know that near hopeless cases are par for the course for attorneys," Hugh said, sighing. "But it does get exhausting after a while."

"You did learn from the legendary Phoenix Wright. He's famous for escaping any hopeless situation," Juniper said, smiling. "So maybe his advice can help you do the same!"

Hugh clearly remembered the lesson from Phoenix Wright that he earned from winning the mock trial. The defense attorney had treated Hugh like an equal, imparting teachings from his storied career.

The final teaching from Phoenix had been, "Your most powerful weapon will always be your belief in your client's innocence. Believe in your client, and you will always find a way to the verdict they deserve."

At the time, Hugh had been struck by the contrast Phoenix had to Professor Means, as a defense attorney. A lesson from Means that Hugh clearly remembered: "You are an attorney. If you get anything besides a Not Guilty verdict, you do both yourself and your client a great disservice."

Neither of these viewpoints helped Hugh sort through his current dilemma.

"Carny, is there anything else I can do to help?" Sheila asked, tugging at her sister's arm. "I want you to go free!"

"You're already doing enough, Sheila," Carnila said, affectionately patting Sheila on his head. "I'm sure Mr. O'Conner can defeat the prosecutor like he has before!"

"If you're innocent, Miss Winters, there should be no issue in overturning the prosecution's case," Hugh said, putting on his best confident grin.

Juniper shot Hugh a look, catching the hidden message in his words. "...I'll be watching the rest of this trial from the gallery. Good luck, Hugh."

May 6th, 2029

District Courthouse, Courtroom #3

12:20 p.m.

"Court is back in session for the trial of Carnila Winters. Are the defense and prosecution prepared?"

"The defense is prepared." Hugh answered. At least, I hope I'm prepared for wherever this trial goes.

"The prosecution is ready to end this trial, one way or another!" Robin declared, pointing dramatically. "As such, I am also ready to present the testimony that will accomplish this!"

"My sister is going to be up there, right? What happens next?" Sheila asked, looking up at Hugh.

"We'll talk with her, and whatever she tells us is going to resolve everything," Hugh answered. "Because there are some things only she can tell us."

Carnila did in fact take the stand, but not in a way that Hugh expected: In her arms, she carried the scale model of the Starry Skies Carnival that he had seen before. Carnila placed the scale model on the witness stand.

"Prosecutor Newman, please explain the meaning of this to the court," The Judge said.

"That scale model is a tool used by the defendant! She navigates her way through the carnival with it," Robin explained. "This way, she can reach anywhere in critical need of repair with little issue!"

"That's my sister!" Sheila declared proudly. "She's such an amazing mechanic!"

The Judge looked like he was pondering something. "...If the defendant is the only person that usually uses this model, that would be significant."

Robin nodded, grinning. "Exactly! The defendant alone would know areas of the carnival that no else would!"

"OBJECTION!" Hugh was furious at himself for letting Robin take the lead so early in the trial. "The defense would like to point out that there is no indication that access to the scale model was restricted in any fashion!"

"This is true. Does the prosecution have anything further to present?" The Judge asked Robin.

"I would like to compare the defendant's testimony with the previous testimony given," Robin said. "So if Your Honor allows it, I'd like to call back the previous witnesses."

"The court consents to the prosecution's request. As the previous witnesses were never dismissed, it would be easy to recall them."

Only a few minutes later, Jacob, Nina, and Harry were now with Carnila on the stand. Harry stood to Carnila's left, while Jacob and Nina stood to her right.

"The prosecution asks the defendant to explain her actions on the night of the crime," Robin said. "And if anyone else has something to add, feel f-r-e-e!"

"What are you planning, Robin? You realize that this can very easily backfire on you," Hugh pointed out.

"Whatever happens, I'll be ready for it. You should know me by now, Hugh- I face everything head on!" Robin declared.

"The defense and prosecution will kindly save further discussion for the cross-examination." The Judge reprimanded.

Witness Testimony

Carnila at the carnival

"I spent the night of the crime repairing one of the carnival rides," Carnila said. She pointed at the teacup rides on her scale model. "I was there all night."

"I know I didn't see Carnila meeting with Ms. Illusa. So I guess she could have been anywhere," Nina said, scratching her head.

"My flame will not falter in the following- I saw Carnila pushing a blood soaked dolly," Harry said, combing his hair. "I can only assume she had just finished the murder."

"Why the serious faces, everyone? Surely once we clear this up everyone can go back to the carnival," Jacob said, his smile strained.

End Testimony

"This testimony is pretty conflicted. Only Harry seems convinced of Carnila's guilt," Hugh said. "Which could has an ulterior motive behind it."

"Okay, so we just need to help sister as she talks, and we'll finally be able to help her!" Sheila exclaimed.

"That's the idea." At least, as much as I can possibly help your sister.

"HOLD IT! Jacob, could you clarify what you mean?" Hugh asked. He'd never seen the clown's smile waver, and that seemed like something worth digging into.

"I don't want to think of any of my friends here as a killer. So I was thinking, maybe it was none of us," Jacob said, trying to stretch his fake smile wider. "Maybe Ms. Illusa fell off on her own."

"OBJECTION! Jacob, you seem like a nice guy, so I'll put this as gently as possible," Robin said. She smacked the gallery behind her with her palm. "This crime was a murder. All evidence points to someone pushing Ms. Illusa off of the maintenance platform of the Comet Shuffle!"

"OBJECTION! The witness must believe this for a reason! So it's the court's duty to listen to him!" Hugh countered.

"The defense's objection is sustained." The Judged directed his heavy gaze at Jacob. "Mr. Tumble, tell the court why you believe this was an accidental death."

"None of us saw anyone standing with Ms. Illusa on that platform," Jacob said, now wringing his hands. "So maybe while she was on there, Ms. Illusa tripped and fell off the railing."

"What is your response to this, Prosecutor Newman?" The Judge asked.

Robin already had her easel on her bench, reading over a report. "Even without eye witnesses to the moment of the murder, there is proof that Ms. Illusa was not alone on that platform."

"I believe you mean the footprints found on the platform," Hugh said, recalling that evidence himself. "One set was clearly the victim's, but the other set was smudged."

"Besides which, if Ms. Illusa fell off on her own, why would there be a need to transport her corpse with a dolly," Robin continued. "Tampering with an accidental death would implicate you more than anything else."

Robin has a good point. So there is no doubt this is a murder. It's only a question of who the killer is.

Once again Professor Means flashed in his mind. Never allow suspicion to fall on your client. Deny anything that should threaten them.

"HOLD IT! Carnila, earlier in the trial, Miss Booth testified something," Hugh said. "She claims that she saw you fixing a tall machine."

"Did she?" Carnila tinkered with the scale model in front of her nervously. "I'm sure Nina saw me, but she usually has her head in the clouds. She could have been wrong."

Nina frowned, looking over at Carnila. "I mean, I know I can be pretty forgetful, but I'm pretty sure you were fixing something tall."

"Without further clarification, I suppose we cannot accept this testimony as conclusive," The Judge said. "Continue the cross examination."

Hugh still had more to ask Nina. "You claim you saw Carnila fixing 'a tall machine', but you also claim you didn't see her meeting with the victim. How do you explain this?"

"Actually, that's what I'd like to know," Nina said, swaying from side to side. "What I saw was Carnila intensely focused on something at the base of the machine."

"So that's it!" Carnila spun a wrench in her left hand.

"HANG ON! Carnila, do you have something to add?" Hugh asked.

"I know what she's talking about. As a mechanic, I usually have to get into the inner workings of the carnival rides," Carnila explained. "All of them have hidden hatch that I access."

"In other words, Miss Booth watched you access this hatch for a ride, and then fix it's inner workings," Robin said suddenly. "Do I have that right?"

"You do, Prosecutor Newman. Though I insist that I was fixing the teacup ride," Carnila said.

Hugh felt a jolt in the stomach. He realized that he had a way to prove what she had been doing. A piece of evidence he never got around to asking Carnila about.

"At this point, the defense would like to present something," Hugh said. He took a breath, reached for the right evidence, and shouted, "TAKE THAT! This is work order from the victim, to you, Carnila. What can you tell me about this?"

"Oh, that! It's a work order to fix a rotor inside of the Comet Shuffle," Carnila exclaimed. On the model, she pointed at the ride in question. "Okay, I admit it. It's true that I was ordered to fix it."

As the crowd in the gallery chattered with each other, Hugh had his own thoughts. She really was there. The next question is going to decide a lot.

"Were you anywhere close to the Comet Shuffle that night? Because if you were, it is possible that you might have seen something suspicious," Hugh said. Please let you have seen someone else.

"Then it would be best for the defendant to give further testimony on her actions on the night of the crime!" Robin demanded. "Tell us if you were near the crime scene, and why!"

Witness Testimony

The Comet Shuffle

"I wanted to fix the Comet Shuffle that night because it's the central ride of the carnival," Carnila said, rubbing her bicep. "But I was ordered to fix the teacup ride first."

"I did start to do that, but I was so worried about the Comet Shuffle, I left the teacup ride to go attend to that instead."

"When I got there, I noticed that someone placed a dolly in front of the ride," Carnila continued. "It was dark, so I didn't see anything wrong with it."

"But if it was already covered in blood, then the body must have already been carried away by that time!"

End Testimony

"Mr. O'Conner, why are you so pale?" Sheila asked, looking up at him.

Because there is a contradiction in this testimony. A fairly obvious one too. What… what am I supposed to do?

This time, Hugh could see the face of Phoenix Wright in his mind. Sometimes it's going to look bleak for your client, but you can't lose hope. There will always be a way to save them.

Then I'm supposed to pursue this contradiction regardless. I have to believe another suspect will be unveiled if I do.

"HOLD IT! To be clear, you were at the teacup ride, and went straight to the Comet Shuffle right after," Hugh said. "You didn't go anywhere else?"

"That's right, Mr. O'Conner. Though I didn't stick by the Comet Shuffle. I left to go put away the dolly," Carnila said, adjusting her headband. "Is that all you wanted to know?"

"..." It's all I need to know. "OBJECTION! As your attorney, I must point this out," Hugh said, opening a file in his right hand. "If the dolly already had blood, that can only mean the body was where it was found the next morning."

"That would be none other than the teacup ride," Robin said, also looking at a map of the carnival. "So we are left with this- the defendant claims to have been working on the attraction after the body had already been hidden there!"

"Th-that's- I didn't-!" Carnila, in pulling on her headband, accidentally yanked it off entirely. Her hair falls around her face in an untidy curtain. "N-no one saw the body until the next morning, remember."

"This is true. In the dark of night, it's very likely that you missed the body, especially if you were working on the inner machinery," Hugh pointed out.

"But that's not the main problem, is it? Let's take a closer look at the structure of the carnival." At Robin's direction, an enlarged version of the map was shown to the court. "The teacup ride is in the lower left point, with the Comet Shuffle in the center. If someone else transported the body from the latter to the former, Carnila should have run into them!"

"The prosecution is right! There really should be no way…" The Judge's eyebrows knitted in confusion as he studied the map more closely. "Hang on. The top center point of this star isn't labeled."

"As far as the prosecution can tell, that point is the storage area that has been brought up several times," Robin explained. "But it's normally closed off to the public, and as such is not labeled on maps for customers."

Carnival Map updated in the Court Record

At the witness stand, Carnila was covered in sweat, and her eyes darted around the courtroom. Nina and Jacob looked at her nervously, while Harry had his arms crossed and was lost in thought.

"The foundation of this case is that only the defendant can access everything needed to pull off the crime," Robin continued. Then she drew her arm back and pointed at Carnila. "The storage area is yet another example! As the carnival mechanic, she is the only one that regularly uses it!"

"OBJECTION! Don't get ahead of yourself! Before you make any more claims, please make clear what your case is to the court," Hugh said. "Because there have been several weak points that have been brought up!"

The Judge deliberated this. "Very well, We will hear the prosecution's stance. After that, it will be a matter of if there's enough evidence to render a verdict."

This really is coming down to the wire. One way or another, this case is going to end soon.

To be continued

A/N: Next chapter is the end of this case. Which means that the rest of 2020 is going to be dedicated to the finale of this project. I hope everyone that has stuck with me this long will stick with me until the end. See you next time! Please review.